Post by hubertbartels on Jul 16, 2023 15:57:48 GMT -5
Out of the Swamps
Under a constant drizzle, we broke camp the next morning. The rain continued until we left the swamps around mid-morning. Our trail wandered among grasslands and trees higher into the hills. An hour later, we came across the tracks left by a large hydra. We decided to leave the monster alone.
The hills became drier as we ascended. In places, we could see caves – caves formed from volcanic lava tubes. Not all of them were unoccupied. Some of the caves had bones scattered in front of them.
Cresting a low ridge, we could finally see the serpent-folk ruins. The abandoned city spread out below us, encircled by the remains of defensive walls. Studying the ruins, we did not see any dinosaurs wandering around.
We descended the ridge, passed under the remains of a city gate and began looking for a suitable place to make camp. We were looking for a substantial building that we could defend if the city was not completely abandoned.
Near the city gate, we found a suitable structure – one with an adjacent building we could use for Three River’s ankylosaurus. The only troubling sign was a number of serpent-folk tracks leading in and out.
Inside, we find a rotten ramp leading to the upper folks. Devon sent his quasit to check as the ramp didn’t look as if it would support our weight. The quasit reported the upper floors as empty. There was also a well-built stone ramp leading down in the basement.
The basement was a massive barrel vaulted structure. It had been once been used as a wine cellar as the remains of glass bottles and wine barrels littered the floor. Then from the dark corners, degenerate serpent-folk began moving in on us.
Tessa’s fireball killed a large number of degenerate serpent-folk in the far corner. Her second fireball cleared the ones in melee with Three Rivers and Marissa. Talos, Three Rivers and Marissa finished the remaining serpent-folk. Then we returned upstairs, made camp, and set watches for the night.
In the morning, we began our explorations of the ruins. We had decided to start with the larger buildings – any temples and the civic center of the city. As we moved through the ruined city, we discovered and destroyed an ambush by more degenerate serpent-folk. Tessa picked up a Headband of Intellect from the corpses.
Three Rivers noticed that the footprints of the serpent-folk seemed to avoid one particular building. We decided to explore the former restaurant. As we entered the building, we noted a black tar pool lying in the center of the building. Tessa decided to set the tar on fire. But the black pool grew legs and lashed out at Tessa with a pseudo-pod. Defending ourselves against the thing’s pseudo-pods and tentacles, we beat it down until it lost cohesion and dissolved.
Under a constant drizzle, we broke camp the next morning. The rain continued until we left the swamps around mid-morning. Our trail wandered among grasslands and trees higher into the hills. An hour later, we came across the tracks left by a large hydra. We decided to leave the monster alone.
The hills became drier as we ascended. In places, we could see caves – caves formed from volcanic lava tubes. Not all of them were unoccupied. Some of the caves had bones scattered in front of them.
Cresting a low ridge, we could finally see the serpent-folk ruins. The abandoned city spread out below us, encircled by the remains of defensive walls. Studying the ruins, we did not see any dinosaurs wandering around.
We descended the ridge, passed under the remains of a city gate and began looking for a suitable place to make camp. We were looking for a substantial building that we could defend if the city was not completely abandoned.
Near the city gate, we found a suitable structure – one with an adjacent building we could use for Three River’s ankylosaurus. The only troubling sign was a number of serpent-folk tracks leading in and out.
Inside, we find a rotten ramp leading to the upper folks. Devon sent his quasit to check as the ramp didn’t look as if it would support our weight. The quasit reported the upper floors as empty. There was also a well-built stone ramp leading down in the basement.
The basement was a massive barrel vaulted structure. It had been once been used as a wine cellar as the remains of glass bottles and wine barrels littered the floor. Then from the dark corners, degenerate serpent-folk began moving in on us.
Tessa’s fireball killed a large number of degenerate serpent-folk in the far corner. Her second fireball cleared the ones in melee with Three Rivers and Marissa. Talos, Three Rivers and Marissa finished the remaining serpent-folk. Then we returned upstairs, made camp, and set watches for the night.
In the morning, we began our explorations of the ruins. We had decided to start with the larger buildings – any temples and the civic center of the city. As we moved through the ruined city, we discovered and destroyed an ambush by more degenerate serpent-folk. Tessa picked up a Headband of Intellect from the corpses.
Three Rivers noticed that the footprints of the serpent-folk seemed to avoid one particular building. We decided to explore the former restaurant. As we entered the building, we noted a black tar pool lying in the center of the building. Tessa decided to set the tar on fire. But the black pool grew legs and lashed out at Tessa with a pseudo-pod. Defending ourselves against the thing’s pseudo-pods and tentacles, we beat it down until it lost cohesion and dissolved.