Giants, woman and winter Written by Callas Verdicini on February 1995 AP

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Introduction

Callas: A female human Earth Mage and party scribe.
Damien: (the Black) A devilishly handsome Dark Celestial human.
Shoka: Orc frontliner and party leader.
Uric: Orc Namer and other front line fighter.
Ughbash: Orc Dark Celestial and walking environmental hazard.
Vicarn: Giant Earth Mage and second rank fighter.
Scratch: Turned from the dark side to become an E & E, but still a lecherous toad.
Tempest: A human, male Air Mage.

Diary

February 1, 1995 AP

We flew up the Meg's place, next to Robin's castle on the southern border of Ranke (see Evil Below, or Next Door to Hell). The raven told us that Meg was asleep so we camped down in the forest.

February 3, 1995 AP

Spend the previous day passing time. During the afternoon Scratch attempts to burgle Meg's and comes back a real mess. He comes back with three wands and 18 potions, 13 or which are magical.

Three transformation potions (sex change)
Two restoratives
Two Self Immolations potions
Potion of protection from cold
Potion of SP
Potion of Gaseous form
Potion of Diminution
Potion of Mammal control (non sentient only)
Potion of Polymorph self
A ward with eight charges of Rank 17 Resistance to Light
A ward with eight charges of Rank 20 Fireball
A ward with four charges of Rank 12 Increase gravity

The Storm Giant King arrives that night on the top of the knoll, in a storm. While getting close to him through a circle of lightning Damien gets blasted and almost dies of heart failure.

Somehow he manages to misdirected during the trip and we end up at a dolment up in the snows somewhere. The place is an Earth Place of Power.

February 4, 1995 AP

While the King was casting the ritual Shoka and Scratch go off to find some mistletoe, since mine got destroyed. On their return they were attacked by four Yeth Hounds and a pack of wolves. We fight them off and the ritual succeeds.

From the stone circle at the southern end of the forest we travel on the Cloud Dragon boat to the King's keep. We sleep for a while, only disturbed by Ughbash and Damien playing murder in dark for a while.

After noon we meet the King and he says that the woman were taken about nine months ago and a couple of them were pregnant, but the woman and those at the castle were the last of the race. He says that the culprit could have been a white dragon, or that a dragon was involved.

If it was the dragon then the giants cannot go because of a prophesy and it is probably an enchanter. The dragon lives in a palace about 500 to 600 miles north of where we were but the King could get us to within two days walk to it. The palace itself is in a valley but not underground, according to the winds, but their movement is restricted within the area so the King could not tell us any details of its construction.

The King also gives us various invested items to help us.

Weapon of flames invested (12 charges)
Three Lightning bolt investeds (10 charges each)
Two Windwalking investeds (10 charges each)
Ten Vapour breathing potions
E [amp ] E general counterspell invested (10 charges)
Ray of cold invested (10 charges)
Resist cold invested (10 charges)
Gaseous form invested (10 charges)
Bottle containing air spirit
Three Trollskin invested (6 charges each)
Smoking magma invested (6 charges)
Wall of iron invested (6 charges)
Healing burns invested (7 charges)
Extinguish fire invested (2 charges)
A potion of Fire proofing each
Seven Rank 7 Protection from magical fire potions
One Rank 14 Protection from magical fire potion
Five Waters of strength

The cloud dragon flies us back to the stone circle and from there we were transported to another circle, which was in a volcanically active valley. The valley was full of geysers and mud pools. We travel north, heading up the valley.

February 7, 1995 AP

About three hours after dawn we are attacked by four frost giants riding wooly mammoths. We manage to kill three of them, the other one fleeing north. Ughbash becamed Death Cursed when he killed their shaman. The loot consisted of the following items:

Fire ring: Ring of fire resistance plus other unknown magics.
Ring of telekenesis: 18 charges of Rank 20 Telekenesis. Each charge can lift 400 lb for 210 seconds with 100[percnt] chance. In addition, triggered charges are stackable, increasing the amount of weight able to be lifted.
Ring of warmth: Regenerate cold damage and protection from cold. -6 of all cold damage and +10 magic resistance against cold magics.
Giant arrow: Shot it up and in will land in the direction you want to go (Zen Navigation Device).
Horn of Valhala: Summongs heros aligned to good.
Acorns: Will automatically grow an oak tree when planted.
Large round shield: Adds +20 to defense verses missiles but will attract all missile fire.
Giant mace: Shaped Weapon of Flames.
Scroll: Banishment.

Half the party flies north after the last giant. From the giant they learn the palace is up on the glacier surrounded by a maze. The Boss is about 8' to 9' tall and not human and probably related to a dragon.

February 8, 1995 AP

We travel for a day on the captured mammoth.

February 9, 1995 AP

We travel up to the face of the glacier. It is about 200' tall with a cave in it. Inside the cave is an ice worm 30' in diameter. Ughbash Earthdoor's the party out except Eric, who flies off as an eagle, and Damien, who gets sucked up towards the palace when he Windwalked away.

From a distance of five miles south of the glacier we climb the valley wall and head north. We decide to Windwalk to the edge of the maze and lose Scratch and Vycarn in the process. After a traitorous journey we make it to the maze around midday.

We make it about an hour into the maze when we are ambushed by orcs, orges and greater trolls. They Windwalk us and we end up in a giant bottle where we are slept.

February 10, 1995 AP

We meet the boss in the throne room. He is 9' tall reptillian humanoid called Armageddon. While talking to us he completely blanks out for half a minute. We are condemed to the arena.

Later that day we defeat six orcs and an orge twin. Ughbash names us `Grim Death' for our team name.

February 11, 1995 AP

We fight a troll Fire Mage called Bog, riding a wooly rhino called Spike. After we defeat both Tempest cuts Spike's horn off so we name it Stumpy.

February 12, 1995 AP

In the morning Ughbash managed to capture an female elf caleld Rexena in his beer trap. She says that many of the woman want out since the boss started going all strange, about a year back. She says she can help us find out way around and will show us to the Master's quarters.

The party pleads injury to get out of the arena for the day. Myself, Shoka, Tempest and Vycarn spend a little while in the garden outside our wing. Later, while the rest of the party spend the time at the arena, myself, Damien, Ughbash and Eric attempt to enter the Master's quarters.

The first garden had northern climate plants, the second mediterrainian plants and the third, next to the Master's wing, hot, off plane flora and forna. We avoided the fire lizards, hyrda and giant scorpions and tunnel back into the building. Ughbash just missed being turned to stone by a passing medussa.

We make it into a storeroom filled with assorted junk. The Master's wing consists of a long corridor, with doors leading to the throne room and the garden at each end respectively.

We make it down as far as the library, which has a petrification curse on it, before getting spotted. Eric, myself and Damien all get slept but Ughbash managed to make it back all the way through the gardens to our wing before getting captured.

February 13, 1995 AP

Myself, Eric and Damien wake up about two hours after noon. Rumours have it we are to be put to the worm. Ughbash managed to capture Rexena again (much to her disgust). She says about a year ago the boss had a staff made of ice which he carried around continually for about three weeks before it disappeared.

We follow Rexena up into the roof area and make out way to the north wing. We make our down into a store room, Vycarn losing a lot of skin in the process.

We enter the north wing into a storeroom. After subduing a guard we looted the armoury. We then entered the alchemy lab while Ughbash tried to chop his way into the Master's quarters. A combat ensued, which ended with the possesion being killed and the drake unconscious. We declare a truce with the chamberlain and retire to our rooms.

February 14, 1995 AP

We talk to the drake and get some more items which he did not recognise.

Two scrolls
Three potions
One amutlet
One broach

February 20, 1995 AP

We meet again with the drake and we given a boon.

February 26, 1995 AP

The Storm Giant King arrives and we leave.

March 3, 1995 AP

Return to Seagate.

Giants, Woman and Winter

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