The Quest

The land of Semaji is dying. The sun struggles to pull itself over the horizon in the mornings and sundown is equally lethargic. Fires don’t burn as hot as they should, and medicines are iffy at best. Plants aren’t growing; new life, human and animal alike, is rare. Our kingdom has tried everything. The one thing they haven’t done is investigate the ruins to the southwest. These are the ruins of an enormous city spanning most of a mountain range. Surely a people who could create such a wonder had some knowledge that would save our land. We are come in search of answers at the behest of our leader. We are the last two who remain from our party.

Entrance to the Ruins

The landscape and the city have merged over the centuries since its abandonment. Peaks jut out of cathedral domes. Towers emerge from cliffsides. A yawning entrance, half-collapsed, greets the adventurers as they trudge their weary way up to the gates at the foot of the mountains. A short distance away, a small frontier town ekes out a dismal existence. It is dusty and dry, like everything else in the land.

Frontier Town

The heroes inquire at the tavern, such as it is, buying mugs of weak ale and a bit of the tavernkeeper’s time. They learn that the ruins were once a source of income for the town: explorers ventured in, found treasures and relics, and brought them back for trade to neighboring communities. But the easy pickings are exhausted, and the costs of picking through the increasingly deadly environment are too high.

The tavernkeeper suggests the heroes talk to Crotalus, a retired adventurer. We find her mending a fence at her house on the outskirts of town. She confirms that the easily accessible treasure is long gone. There are hidden traps and lethal creatures that wait deeper in, barring the way for explorers and treasure-seekers.

If we can secure part of the entrance Crotalus is willing to return with us. In the meantime she gives us a rudimentary map to a secondary entrance about a half day’s journey from the town which bypasses some of the traps. She warns us not to get caught in the hills at night. Not that the ruins are much better, according to her. It’s bad to draw attention to yourself at night. Don’t build a fire. Post a watch.

In addition to the map she presents Alexi and Necklehurst with a magical talisman. While two people are attuned to the talisman, one can transfer a bit of their vitality to the other. She hopes this will help us survive long enough to return the talisman to her. (1x/LR, one can choose to give 1 HP to the other.)

Venturing into the Ruins

After a night’s rest at the tavern we follow Crotalus’ direction to the entrance she recommends. The ruins are of Dwarven craftsmanship. The walls are of the mountain, but the floor is paved in flagstone. This is a rudimentary road that was built early on in the construction of the city. The road extends to our right and left. We chose the rightward parth.

After a brief journey with a torch and Alexi’s sparkling magic to light the way, we come to a roughly hexagonal room with 4 pillars dimly visible in the center of the room. There are unlit torches in the sconces. Alexi goes about lighting them one by one. After the fourth is lit, the fire gains a life of its own, leaping to the remaining four torches to set them ablaze. A sigil of fire springs up from the floor in the center of the room, and skeletons begin to emerge from the floor.

Alexi and Necklehurst fight bravely. Necklehurst makes themselves a shield to protect Alexi while he hurls electricity at the foe. The heroes take turns protecting each other while they extinguish the torches one by one. As the last torch goes out, so does the sigil in the middle of the room. There remains a dusting of magical energy in the outline of the sigil - a material rich in fire magic. Alexi, an avid potionsmaker, collects some of the residue for further investigation.