Gold Fever

Summary

Adventure Gold Fever
GM Martin
Season Winter 824 WK (beginning second week of Snow)
Night Monday
Location The House of Ellis
Area Serraine, Aquila, Dwarven lands
Level Medium

Party

Bodric Henrickson (GM Info) - Dwarven Rune Mage (m) - Mandos
Duvon - Dwarven Earth Mage (m) - Dean
Haedric of Bryn Coed - Dwarven Ice Mage (m) - Stephen Scribe
Hrothgar Bronzebeard - Dwarven Artificer (m)- Alex
Henric Henrickson - Dwarven Mind Mage (m) - Chris MilSci 2
Lyric Henrickson - Dwarven E&E (f) - Michelle PL
Bromli - Dwarven Namer (m) - Nick MilSci 1

Employer: Organized by Lorcan Skyratchet of Serraine, on behalf of the Everforge Trading Company, an enterprising dwarven mercantile concern and clients of the gnomes.

Mission: A lost dwarven hold rediscovered. Fortunes free for the taking. Summertime gold rush! But now winter snows have closed the passes and supplies to the prospectors are blocked. The Serraine gnomes seek help on behalf of some dwarven clients planning to fly in supplies – and make an honest profit off gold-laden prospectors to boot.

Payment: A share in profits (with a guaranteed base of 7,500sp each) with optional exchange for training/knowledge from Serraine.

Scribe Notes

Bodric's Return

Th'rsday 8th Snow

We meet up in a room at the guild for a late employment request. Introductions, Dwarven in-jokes and then in walks Bodric, lost for the past 15 years with a story of an unplanned ocean voyage.

Frysday 9th Snow

We head through Seagate for the noon transition to Mulberry where we're met by Anton. Framework for a new tower has being built in the back courtyard. Dunbar arrives in his balloon-basket ship, tying up to the new tower. After an extended lunch, we board and drift up into the clouds, finding the right winds. 4 hours later the clouds part and we approach the flying city to 'park' at a tower.

Dunbar stays with the ship, handing us over to Lorcan who takes us through customs and off by cable car to meet the Dwarves who are working through final preparations on their ship the Gryphon.

Their other ship, the Drake was on a two week mission and is now a week overdue.

Everforge Trading (ETC) bought up a couple of old Carracks and brought them to the Gnomes to get them fitted out for flight.

A church knight wandered out of the Dragonspines with gold he found on the ground near an old Dwarven hold, this triggered a gold rush amongst the local humans.

ETC decided to take advantage by shipping in and selling food & tools.

The plan is to head out to Konigburg, resupply then follow the Drake's planned route to the hold and look around.

While waiting we head out to see the sights and do some shopping and drinking.

We ask a local Sphinx if it knows what happened to The Drake, it decides that answering is a quicker route to peace than eating us.

Ills of your kin rise
When old sins cast long shadows
Buried in the past

Reapsday 10th Snow

Returning in the morning, the ship is being prepared for departure. Bjorg directs us to our quarters.

Once untied, the ship drifts up then catches the winds and moves away.

The Gryphon

Details of the Airship Gryphon and its crew.

Into the Mountains

A stately shake-down flight, cruising through the clouds, getting to know the crew and the workings of the ship.

Setting anchor for the night, floating about 50' off the ground. Duvon elects to camp on the ground in a stone hut built by his Elemental.

Sunday 11th Snow

Flying on we get to Konigburg in the late afternoon where we're met by Yanosh, Clovis' factor/cargo agent (human from Barovia Hold).

Moonday 13th Snow

Shopping and sightseeing in Konigburg while the cargo is loaded aboard ship.

When everyone gets back that evening, Rabscuttle is missing, he got a forged message from Clovis directing him to go to a chandler's in town to pick up a chair. Locating and tracking Rabscuttle leads us to an old part of town where a small group of street thugs are trying to smash Rabscuttle apart. We accidentally kill 2 and capture the other 3 who confess they were hired to do this by a Dwarf at a shady Inn, The Raven. They were supposed to drop the parts at the back door of The Raven. We head there to check but the Dwarf is gone and nobody there knows who he is.

Back to the ship, we get a description of the Dwarf that did the hiring but nobody on the crew knows him. We let the remaining thugs go with a mix of stories to spread misinformation.

Duesday 13th Snow - Th'rsday 15th Snow

Flying north, better food after the shopping in Konigburg market, investigating and divining Rabscuttle:

Enchanted Dwarven Runes of animation incorporated into its cogs and components. Crystalline 'heart' full of life magic.

Sentient Construct, GTN: Gearforged. Golem-like, has a spirit and an ITN. Usually in good health, self-repairing.

Slowing a little when we get into the mountains part way through the 14th.

On the 15th, a Roc takes interest in us and takes off with Ulf who was on watch in the crows nest. I chase after, annoying the Roc until he drops Ulf who I barely manage to catch and fly back to the ship.

Frysday 16th Snow

The lookout spots a red balloon near the ground in the snow, The Drake. It is facing our way, it was heading south when it went down.

We approach carefully, it is anchored about 50' off the ground. 2 Dwarven corpses (dead just over two weeks ago from assassins short blades) and a sack of ore.

As we climb/fly up to the ship, we see 5 Dwarven bodies in sight on the deck and in the rigging, 1 in the crows nest. One of the ones on the main deck and the one at the helm have lesions or a rash. Another body fallen on its way into the captain's cabin, knife wounds. Another body at the base of the stairs down from the cabins, also dead, we're fairly sure it was poison in the porridge.

Curled around the mast is a living animal, Greater Ice Wyvern, was poisoned (eating a poisoned Dwarf corpse), it attacks.

Wyvern & Drake

I engage the Wyvern's teeth, Lyric steps in to carve it up, Henric bounces a spell off it, Hrothgar finishes it off. We find the remains of the Dwarf that it had been eating.

Bodric & I start the skinning while the others finish searching the ship.

Greater Ice Wyvern Hide, teeth & bits

A dead (f) Dwarf killed by an area of flame (Dragonflames). Two Dwarves locked into close combat who killed each other. Eight dead humans (diseased, pustules, murdered in their sleep) in one fore-cabin, a group of dead halflings in the other (killed with poisoned weapons in a fight - Azure blade venom). Five more dead humans - a family? (murdered in their sleep). 15 dead Dwarves in total.

The gold ore in the sack is enriched by a touch of Mithril. It probably came from the open chest on the ship, the other (previously locked) chest is filled with the same ore.

The two dead Dwarves from below were also killed with daggers with Blue venom. They have medallions of Borgan/Athnar, rubbings of runic diagrams similar in style to those used in Rabscuttle. And pages torn from Captain Dain Stonebrow's log. The log pages detail trade and passengers:

Mining camps near old caldera
Dwarves occupying the old hold, let the humans in when winter hit hard.
Trade with Halston (human), 2 chests of ore (120k sp) for their shipload of food and supplies.
8 quarantined (diseased) human passengers. Pustules are filled with dark silver bad-metal fluid.
5 not sick humans
3 Dwarven passengers (Albrkis, Alvin, Dagir)
4 Halflings
as they headed home, some of the crew started showing signs of malaise,

Bored with waiting, Pongo flies down. He's most interested in the engine and his friend Sprinkle (Gnomish mechanician) who is clearly missing.

We brief Clovis and suggest he sends a minimal crew to identify the bodies and help secure the ship. He sends Bjorg (DA: Curse/Malady, Last Magic) who identifies the crew confirming our deduction that the crew are all dead, one of the Dwarf passengers and Sprinkle are missing. Coming over to fill out the 'prize' crew, Njal (DA: Curse/Malady) & Vianna (DA: Curse/Malady) - moderate strength magical disease/malady, Gold Fever (aka Dragon Greed).

Duvon cures Vianna of the Fever.

We get the Drake going, move to a more sheltered location and hunker down for the night until the storm has passed.

Reapsday 17th Snow

We check the crew of the Gryphon and find they're all clear of the fever.

Bjorg (in command), Njal, Boso, Ulf, and Blain will take the Drake back to Konigburg. Henric and Hrothgar agree to step in as interim engineers looking after the steam engine, with assistance from stoker Oddrun and general meddling from Pongo. Bodric offers to take over breakfast from the departing Boso to some considerable relief.

Vianna, one of the other crew, Henric and I all have the fever by morning. Cures are applied.

In the Gryphon, we set sail for the hold.

The other Binder is the Traitor

We make a few hours progress before the weather closes in and we have to find shelter by midday, waiting out the blizzard for the rest of the day.

Sunday 18th Snow

Pre-dawn, Bodric wakes us with cries of the ship drifting. The doors have become fused with the walls (Joining/Binding variant of Mending); stairways are frictionless; walls are adhesive; controls disabled. We hack our way out through former doors, slide down stairs, stick to walls, tear ourselves off again (less some beard), make our way down to the bottom deck to check out the engines...

Two small harlequin-golems amongst the cargo on the bottom deck; steam engine has been sabotaged, will probably explode soon; two holes in the hull at bottom deck level, one taking out part of the propeller; Ánarr the Stoker attacks Henric then falls through a new hole in the hull mid-combat; we take out the wood golem and sentient (triggering investeds) R&S golem; Vianna tries to 'secure' a chest of cursed gold; stabilize the steam engine; then the trapped fire in the coal store goes off, ripping a hole in the hull and losing a lot more cargo.

We eventually make it to ground level and 'beach' in the snow to assess damage and start patching.

Golem Heart: Makes a Rag & String Golem a Sentient Servant, Zannie.
Invested Adhesion, Frictionless Floor, Disintegration, Unfastening(?).

Carved in the wall near the engine is a Diamond inside an Octagon, similar to the holy symbol of Borgin.

Late in the afternoon, Duvon's elementals tow the ship back to where we were last night.

During the night a monstrous Ice Wyrm rams the ship, we lure it out with an elemental and knock a few chunks out of it before it flees.

Moonday 19th Snow

Limping along with an improvised wooden propeller, several patched holes, heavy cloud, strong winds, limited visibility, slow progress.

Eventually come to a warm area - the caldera of the active volcano, next to the Dwarven Hold. Pulling up to the tower, a couple of giants throw rocks at us, we throw axes back at them and they retreat while we tie up.

Entering through the barred door at the top of the tower, we make our way down through empty levels to a lower level where the people are living close and odorous proximity - a variety of humans, halflings, and others.

Languages from below include Common, Folksprach, and Halfling. And sounds like a tavern.

To Dwarf and To Hold

Groups in the Hold

Populations shown for each area.

Knucklebone Tavern (45+): The old airship docking tower now converted into a tavern is run by an extended family of halflings.

Sam, Halfling
Mamma - Elderly Halfling boss of the family.
Dalm the brewer.
Sprinkle Clockspan the Gnome

The Market (~40): Located in a small hall next to the tavern are half a dozen merchants, their heavily armed guards. They have the bulk of the food and other goods available at the hold available at extortionate prices.

Halston - Human, merchant with competent guards.

Raphaelite Church of St. Lucia (10): The feasting hall and adjacent room host a soup kitchen and are warmed and lit as much as possible.

Father Johan, Raphaelite Priest and his 2 aids.
Torbjorn Firekind, Dwarven priest of the harvest
Helga Firekind, Dwarven priestess of death

Main Refugee Camp (~160): Occupying the side of the Great Hall next to the Church, the main camp hosts those who arrived in the hold with little and have much less now.

Rich Camp (~25): On the opposite side of the Great Hall from the main camp is the smaller group of tents and makeshift dwellings of those who had struck it rich by the time the snows arrived. The gold disease has hit these hardest and few now remain.

Sick Camp (~40): At the back of the Great Hall are the bed rolls of those sick with the fever. Father Johan and his acolytes check in on these and remove disease when they can.

We head down into the Knucklebone Tavern / community room - drinking, gaming, talking.

Sam introduces us to Mamma, she's keen to trade for everything we have then Halston comes in with his guards to outbid and maintain his monopoly. Then the priest pleading for the starving and downtrodden. Clovis makes the deal, trading the majority to Halston, some to Mamma, and some seconds are donated to Johan. We take payment in Rubies, Topaz, Diamonds, Citrine, Amethyst, Silver, Platinum, in opposition to Vianna's desire for Truegold. A dispute between Clovis and Vianna over ownership of the ETC leads to Clovis offering 11% to Serraine (through Pongo and Sprinkle) in exchange for ship maintenance and upgrades.

Over the course of summer, about 100 Dwarves arrived and took over the hold and closed it to everyone else. When winter hit heavily, the Dwarves allowed the other prospectors to shelter in limited parts of the hold.

About 3 weeks ago, a couple of the Dwarves executed a couple of prospectors for killing one of the Dwarven Elders.

We knock on the door, talk with the guard, Varden Redfell, and head on down to talk to the Hold Dwarves.

Dwarf Expedition Forces

High Castle Dwarves. Largest group. Slain Elder was from High Castle.
Granite Peak Dwarves. Second largest group and most of the trained fighters.
Ironfist Stonghold, small group including Finnr Silvertongue aka "Galar", a Skald.
East Guard. Small well organised group of fighters.
Azadmere. A half dozen Gryphon Riders
Brightrock. Claimant mother & daughter Ludmilla and Lucinda Rokthemin plus a few retainers.
Darkhorn Kingdoms. Three brothers, Wulfric, Wulfsige, and Wulfstan Darkpass.

All groups contain dwarves that have some ancestral claim to the hold here, and are discussing how these various claims are to be resolved.

Story: The Dwarves gained great wealth from the Brill (True Gold). Borgin's dark twin (Athnar) cursed the gold with Avarice - the Gold Fever. There is rumour of a way to lift the curse, nobody knows what it is. Albrikis may have been researching this.

Story: The True Gold gradually became harder to find until everyone packed up and left. That doesn't fit with the recent levels of finds.

The Dwarves have heard disturbing howling from the deep. They have access to The Great Stair which connects to all levels. Yesterday, they sent a group of 20 Dwarves under the command of Thane Cragstone of Granite Peak to investigate why the furnaces are going cold, they're overdue.

We volunteer to go after Cragstone and crew, investigate below, and see what we can find. First we head upstairs to look for any remnant of Albrikis' notes. They put it inside him... the answer is the gears... Tears of the mother... wash away... mountain... cured.

One Rune suggests something hidden in plain sight. Another is the runic key to a significant lock / secret door.

Rabscuttle is caught tapping one wall upstairs, likely about to open a secret door based on locked off memories.

We chat with Clovis about what we've learned and our plans. Clovis heads downstairs to discuss his Clan's claim.

We rest, ready to head downstairs tomorrow.

Cragstone's Cohort

Clovis returns from his meeting with the claimants (The Seven Hammers syndicate), with paperwork (patent) from Highcastle confirming the ancestral claim of the Stonebrow family of Superstition Mountains.

With alert watches, we sleep on the ship.

Duesday 20th Snow

We head back down in the morning, exchanging friendly greetings.

Duvon starts checking who/what people are followers of.

Balin Crowtoes - fixer, un-pacted follower of Athnar.

Yorgin Strawbeard - firewood dealer, also a follower of Athnar. Did have Gold Fever about a month ago.

We're met downstairs by Vardin and Galar (Finn Silver tongue). Vardin gives us a partial map based on old records and schematics indicating the path that Cragstone would have used. Thane Brynja Jarnhelm of Ironfist is called in to negotiate our recompense:

100 guineas plus salvage off 'evil bastards' excluding heirlooms.

We head downstairs, along some corridors and come to the great stair (open center, square 'spiral' stairs) which we head down. Many side passages and corridors. Runes scratched into a wall at one point: "Balak, we're heading for the place we agreed, we will wait until the supplies are gone." A side corridor barricaded against something beyond, an armoured corpse dead for hundreds of years. More runes: "They take prisoners, kill your wounded." After a few hours, campfire remnants where Cragstone's crew rested. Rabscuttle falls to the ground, crushed by a rock we can't see until we drag him clear. Other remains of ancient battles, a last stand, something that melted stone. More runes: "Mine, mine, mine, mine..."

Howling/ululating cries ahead. We close and call out the spiky quadruped assailing a couple of Dwarves behind a barricade, we kill it as it charges. A Howler created by a dark power. We approach and talk to the Dwarves, they attack with their Greek Fire thrower. Turns out they're well infected by Gold Fever. We engage carefully trying to take them alive while they try to kill us. They've been partially turned to stone, gold eyes, GTN: Gold-Veined Dwarf, beyond Healer Cure Disease to restore, regeneration would be required, Stone to Flesh would help.

Around the corner we come to the furnace room, a lava pool, giant gold pipes, walkways, valves, (rk 10+ Mechanician) a control/panic room with a broken door. Hrothgar and Lyric patch and pick the door to get it open and release the 'Bronze Dwarf Golem' (Long-lived Sentient, GTN: Azer) who looks after this place, Abalard Feuerhirte, aligned to Kelsor, God of the Forge. Abalard identifies Rabscuttle as Ludo's work but not his field to help with Rabscuttle's memory issues. He can get the furnace flowing again once he finds and calls his Fire Elementals back. He just needs us to clear the area of the 'degenerates'.

We start patrolling:

kitchen and dining room lit by lava light.

6 Dwarf corpses, looks like they killed each other while under the influence of Gold Fever.

Living quarters, 3 corpses trying to hold a barricade.

Maintenance room, 2 more corpses, 1 killed by a sledge hammer, the other her head crushed in a vice.

Shrine, statues to many Dwarven gods, including a big one to Kelsor and his altar being used as a work bench for some sort of Alchemical rendering of captured/killed Dwarves by 5 'evil bastards' (Priestess, assistant, 3 guards). We attack and kill them all. Rescue Cragstone alive, save one dead Dwarf from being sludged, the rest of the missing Dwarves spirits are nearby, having been killed in the device.

Alembic - magical, dedicated to Addrikah, the Mother of Madness.
Mural - Dwarven Goddess (Elamic) giving a gem to a king/priest and then the goddess crying as the king puts the blue gem in a red sphere / space.

Addrikah - Lady of the white bat, voice of the void.

Abalard casts Fire Armour (100 ablative) & Fire Protection on us.

Deals and Defences

Henric spends some time apologizing to Hagan after accidentally desecrating his statue with a thrown axe.

Rabscuttle identifies the Dwarf King in the mural as Alaric, says the gem was real but its origin story may not be that mythic. And claims credit for making doors containing the gem and other doors that didn't go so well.

Armour: Mithril/Gold Hauberk (Dwarf Sized) (12/4/2)- inherently magical, not carrying the Gold Fever curse.
Symbol of Addrikah - provides protection from things with a 'light' origin.
Short range repeating crossbows + pouches of paralysis poison derived from funghi

Divination of the Alembic - subsequently thrown into the lava pit: Input: Living & Sentient. Output slurry can cause madness, corruption, slowing/binding.

Abalard returns, grumpier. The elementals are refusing to return to service, he wants us to talk to them.

He leads us through to where they are, a room with about 30 Fire Elementals/Sprites of various sizes and shapes and an Efreeti.

The Fire Elementals agreed to aid the Dwarves in return for coal and Fire Gems (rubies). The Dwarves have been failing to pay for the past few centuries. We de-escalate by opening discussion of backpay and resumption of the old agreements. Some backpay may be exchanged for a share-holding in the hold, a seat on the council. We make an interim (1 week) agreement for them to return to work, supplying a payment of goodwill fresh coal (collected by Duvon's Earth Elementals).

Abalard needs us to protect the room and him while he reestablishes the wards against the degenerates. We block two of the entrances with ice, hands and walls then prepare to defend the other one. The evil Dwarves charge up behind their Earth Elemental, we engage their elemental at range, they tunnel through a side wall to try to flank us; we pivot our attacks (hands of earth, thrown axes, sleep, greek fire cannon); they hit us with something like stream of corruption, sticky (TMR reducing), madness (beserk); We clean up the first group just as the second and third groups charge in.

We run across the room to engage the new groups, scattered a bit more, Bodric & Duvon absorb damage, Lyric bounces their attacks; our melee counter-attack drops them fairly quickly. More gloop attacks, Duvon ends up stuck to the ground, beserk, and then blind. But our flash of light cripples their mass offensive; their priestess withdraws, those that can see protect her, others mill or protect themselves, Henric spreads healing around.

Chapter 8

W'nsday 21st Snow
Th'rsday 22nd Snow
Frysday 23rd Snow
Reapsday 24th Snow
Sunday 25th Snow
Moonday 26th Snow

Locations

Buffs & Mil Sci

Buffs and Abilities

**Long Term (assumed always on)**
Magic (caster)	Rk	Effects	Duration	Bo	Br	Du	Ha	He	Hr	Ly
Strength of Stone (He)	12	+12 EN	13 hrs	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	Y
Armour of Earth (Du)	10	+22% Defence	5.5 hrs	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	Y
Enchant Armour (Ly)	6	+14% Defence	3.5 hrs
Resist Cold (Ha)	16	+5 Temp Gauge, -5 Cold Dmg.	9 hrs	Y		Y			Y	Y
Weapon of Cold (Ha)	16	+17 BC%, +6 Dam	21 min **				4
Ice Traversal (Ha)	12	4 targets, +5 tmr over level ice/snow.	4h 20m	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Spell (?)	?	?	?	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Short Term

**Short Term/Situational**
Magic (caster)	Rk	Effects	Dur	Bo	Br	Du	Ha	He	Hr	Ly
Enchant Weapon (Ly)	16	+17 BC%, +6 Dam	21 min
Flying? (?)	?	? mph	?
Spell (?)	?	?	?	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

**Self Only Buffs**
Magic	Rk	Effects	Dur	Bo	Br	Du	Ha	He	Hr	Ly
Ice Armour (Ha)	16	26% 4 AP 1 SG 17 Fire	9.5 hrs				Y
Mind Cloak (He)	16	+42% vs mental Attack	33 hrs					Y

**Senses and other stuff**
Capability	Effects	Bo	Br	Du	Ha	He	Hr	Ly
Sense Danger (%)						64%
Detect Ambush (%)	Ranger (-5/rank of opposition)				118%
See Invis (Rk)	Effective rank for seeing invisible				14			?
Stealth (%)	Std / Ranger Outdoors	47%	%	%	70% / 94%	%	%	%

** Weapon of Cold Peace-Bound until needed.

Enhance Enchantment: Rk ? from Lyric
Greater Enchantment: Rk 20? from Lyric
Mil Sci Raise Morale: +3 WP - Bodric
Brewing: Golden Ale nightcap - +1 FT per hour of sleep; Stoneybrew, Dur 1 Hr - +7 WP; Fighting Ale, Dur 1 Hr - +7 EN, +5 PS, +4 FT, No Stun.; Porter Ale, Dur 1 Hr - +7 PC, Death Aspect, +15% MR vs Charm/Hypnosis, +10% MR vs Illusion, -15% MR vs Necro/Wicca, Fearless.
Herbalist Meals ?: +3 FT for a Hot Meal, +2 FT for Broth
Shape of Shelter (Br): Resting at night - for EN recovery, 1 hour counts as 24 hours. i.e. 3 hrs = 3 days rest = +1 EN. And FT recovery per hour is 6.

Astrology

Lucky Numbers
Bodric	Bromli	Duvon	Haedric	Henric	Hrothgar	Lyric
2

Watch Order

Hour:	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
	Duvon		Bodric				Hrothgar				Duvon
	Henric				Haedric				Lyric

Marching Order

Skirmish Formations (Front)
Default Henric Haedric Bodric Duvon Rabscuttle Hrothgar Lyric	Single File Haedric Henric Bodric Duvon Rabscuttle Hrothgar Lyric

Calendar

Winter: Frost 824 (7)
	Moonday		Duesday		W'ansday		Th'rsday		Frysday		Reapsday		Sunday
		Samhain	1	Guild Meeting Seagate	2		3		4		5		6
	7		8		9		10		11		12		13
	14		15		16		17		18		19		10
	21		22		23		24		25		26		27
	28		29		30		1		2		3		4
Winter: Snow 823 (8)
	5		6		7		8		9		10		11
	12		13		14		15	Solstice	16		17	The Duke of Carzala's Winter Ball	18	Yuletide
	19	Days of Chaos	20	DoC2	21	DoC3	22	DoC4	23	DoC5	24	DoC6	25	DoC7
	26	DoC8	27	DoC9	28	DoC10	29	DoC11	30	Twelfth Night	1		2
Winter: Ice 823 (9)
	3		4		5		6	First Plough	7		8		9
	10		11		12		13		14		15		16
	17		18		19		20		21		22		23
	24		25		26		27		28		29		30