At the end of Adventure 16, you had just fought a dragon and rider on the bridge of Kronos, standing outside the pyramid of Kronos. Recovering from the dragon attack, you rested for a few minutes, regrouped, and headed around the side of the pyramid. You tried to climb the steps between two pyramids, and found the five towers within unrealistically beautiful. It took some time, as you all, in turn, stood in worship of those awe-inspiring structures. But eventually the group got ahold of itself, and got everyone away from the hypnotizing trap that lay there.
From there, the group went out the next bridge, and found shelter in a hollow under a tree about 1 mile away. Boombaata and Andrinor hunted down a bear for all to eat, and you rested well. The next morning, Andrinor healed several group members. Jordan also showed his new powers as an initiated cleric of An, healing himself.
The group continued out, away from the pyramids and hypnotizing towers of the high gods (An, Ki, Nar, Arast and Merest). Theorizing that the first tower was Kronos, Jordan hoped that this coming one would be Gruumsh. It was not, but instead belonged a Shamash. A quick look inside confirmed that belief, and Andrinor swiped the magic-looking knife from the altar for good measure.
Returning to the central complex, Ito scouted ahead and heard dragons and kobolds. He returned, the group decided that they HAD to advance and get through one of the pyramids, and they formulated a plan to get in there. They snuck forward, and when it sounded like the kobolds might have heard them, Ito chucked a sling bullet off in one direction. He then threw another, and another. The third time he chucked one, the enemy zeroed in on your location, and you started running.
A chase ensued, running from two mounted dragons and half a dozen kobolds. About two thirds of the way to the next bridge, the group stopped to turn and fight the dragon, which had caught up to them. Battle went on, and the dragon was slain, even as Jordan ran on, read that the next pyramid was that of Gruumsh, then kept running to find the pyramid of Kronos (which was clearly behind you).
From there, another dragon with rider approached, this one not as big. The group's crossbows and spells picked off the rider, and the dragon swerved off, much to everyone's relief.
At the end of Adventure 17, you had just passed through the Pyramid and Tower complex at the center of the First Kingdom, fighting kobolds and dragons in order to pass. Badly beaten, the group retreated down the Bridge of Gruumsh, and camped out on a rock in the swamp for 2 days to recover. While camped out, some scouting was done showing more swampland. You also saw some kobolds wading through the bog towards the Tower of Gruumsh, but not touching the bridge itself.
Feeling better after 2 days of rest, you climbed back onto the bridge and headed on to the tower. The lands near the tower opened to hard grassland, called "Horsebreakers" in the Tribelands. Even the trees looked like Boombaata's homeland. The Tower of Gruumsh itself was clean and shining, with all the vines torn off. Many of the trees around it had been felled as well, and a make-shift fortress had been set in the past few months up by the previous tenants. The fortress was also littered with bodies of orcs and kobolds from some great battle not too long ago. You passed a couple dozen kobolds who did not attack, seeming to revere the bridge that you walked upon, and you made it safely into the tower.
Inside the tower, a mob of undead kobold zombies stared out at you from the center altar. Also in that first floor room were the makings of an abandoned camp of the orcs. You skirted around, and went down to the basement, where a great statue stood in the midst of the remains of more orc materials and refuse. Stepping near the statue, Kerrick angered it and it turned to smash him. Thinking fast, Fungia led the party away, out a doorway to the jungle floor, around and back up on to the bridge, then back in to go around the zombies again.
This time you rose up in the magically enchanted air-shaft at the back of the tower. One floor up looks to have been the remains of the orc officers camp. There, you found many abandoned magical weapons and armor, some potions, and a map drawn by the orcs of the area. You also found a scrap of hide with Endrin's writing, going over his thought process on where to find the Scroll.
Andrinor and Kerrick read the magic words as well, and saw that Endrin seems to have made a mistake. The Scroll is a being or a person, some sort of entity. It was then that thunder rolled outside, and you saw 5 orcs and a goblin running down the bridge for the tower.
"Up to safety" you moved, and took a defensive position on the fourth floor, amid the historical carvings on the walls and a stone block altar in the middle. Upon that altar was a book, identical in appearance to the one you found under Three Kings, only half sized. The orcs below commanded the zombies to rise first, then followed.
The altar was heaved across, and dropped on them, taking out about half the zombies and smashing Endrin fairly well. But the rest came, and a great, terrible battle was fought in that Hall of History in the Tower of Gruumsh for the Scroll of Blood. By the end, Endrin and his orcs were slain, and the book that was on the altar was kept out of the hands of the orcs. The wise leader Fungia paid the ultimate price for keeping this book, this Scroll of Blood, out of the hands of the enemy.
At the end of Adventure 18, you had just fought and defeated Endrin the half-orc cleric of Gruumsh and his small band of elite orc bezerkers in the Tower of Gruumsh. The mighty Fungia perished in the battle, and Ito and Jordan were also badly wounded. But thanks to Andrinor's healing magic, the latter two were saved. You also recovered a book of history from the orc tower, believed to be the Scroll of Blood which, if brought before the Crown of Blood, could activate the Blood Reign.
While resting briefly in the tower, you saw elves approaching, led by an old friend from Three Kings, Amrod Yohondus. He and his two elven warden friends (Bestandri and Galrean) had come as part of an expeditionary force led by Prince Ramses of Enkidor, and the Lord Davar. They had boats near the Tower of Kronos, and all departed quickly with the book for those boats.
The run across the jungle went smoothly and without incident. You reached the camp of the men to find them in sad shape. Most had perished in an ambush by a great force of orcs under the leadership of the Great Chief Grak. Included in the dead are the Prince and all the men of Enkidor and Marakredor. Only Lord Davar, and Duke Ren of Marakredor remained of those parties. A group of monks, 7 in all, also remained from 10 who originally set out from the distant Majite lands at word of their Oracle. Some discussion was had, and some arguments, but eventually the book was turned over to Davar, and all boarded boats to leave.
In the seas, the red storm clouds which had been threatening all day finally hit. Driving rain, 6 foot swells and blasts of hail rained down on the little halfling boats. If not for the courage of Ito, the muscles of Boombaata, and the smarts of Amrod, many would have perished, including Andrinor and the elf maid Galrean, who were swept overboard but saved. The weather cleared quickly on the inland sea when the storm reached land and unleashed it's unnatural devestation. Lighting strikes malevelantly destroyed trees and jungle floor, hail blasted from the sky like boulders, and terrible destruction was wrought on any who would have been there without a Dwarven Mountain Fortress for protection.
Davar brought the 3 boats together, and made a hard day and night pace for Marakredor. There, the two elven rangers, the Duke, and two monks disembarked, and the boats continued on, dropping the rest off at White Ford. There you went north and overland to the White Hills, where you met again with the elves there, and the Seer.
The Seer created a protective magical ward and opened the book, meaning to do battle with the demon inside and destroy it. She did destroy the demon and the book, but at the price of the spirit of the god of men that had inhabited her and her predecessors since the beginning of the Second Age. She went on to describe much of what has happened and much of the whole situation.
It seems that many of the legends are truth. People once lived in the First Kingdom, side by side with the Gods. But it was all peoples: Elves, Giants, Dwarves, Halflings, Goblins, Men and Orcs. They lived there with their gods: Shamash, Kronos, Gron, Baahn, Olgdrok, Metabke, and Gruumsh. The First Age ended when five gods banded against those of Orcs and Goblins, and the five dragged themselves and the two evil ones out of the mortal plane. And when the gods left, all peoples were scattered from the First Kingdom, and eventually settled out as we know them today.
It also seems that there are three prophesies, spoken by the first Seer at the time of the end of the First Age, and only one has been addressed.
Red skies above all
Dead and living bow to one
Beware the Blood Reign
Seven Gods return
Order of people reposed
Time of the Coming
Divine turnover
Five and seven to one
Third Age will begin
With the loss of the Spirit of the god of men, and the obvioius realization that we are now in the time of the Prophesies that could spell the end of the Second Age, the elves and the Seer, now known simply a lovely girl named Charla, they threw a great celebration, as is the way of elves. Everyone enjoyed themselves, and the night passed.
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