[OOC suggested soundtrack: Season of the Witch, by Atli Örvarsson]

After mourning the brave knight and resting your tired bodies, you go out in the early morning, following the crude map found in Gallaharn’s room. After a eight hours trek in the mountains you eventually reach the small underground complex which hosts the Crystal Cage.
You find an entrance to the caverns, guarded by a stone portal carved with magical symbols.
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:12, Thu 22 Mar 2018.

Garl carefully examines the magic symbols.  What does he make of them?

[OOC please take a test of MAGIC (it doesn't seem to me that you have specific Special Skills for this) ]

you go out in the early morning, following the crude map found in Gallaharn’s room.

Rorn takes point in the wild and leads the way, getting a bit ahead of the main group.  He keeps an eye on the sky for more demon-crows, and also climbs a tree from time to time to get a better view of the ground and the land ahead.

Were there any tracks on the ground, making a beaten path towards this cave?

Awareness:  Roll 7, Skill 7, Special Skill +2 and Hawkeye
Tracking: Roll 7, Skill 7, Special Skill +1

08:29, Today: Rorn rolled 7,7 using 2d6,2d6.  Awareness roll, tracking roll.


You find an entrance to the caverns, guarded by a stone portal carved with magical symbols.

Fearful and superstitious of such things like all good villagers, Rorn keeps back a goodly distance from the portal and keeps an eye out for threats while the witch-elf dealt with it.

During the journey Rorn didn't spot anything particularly strange. He couln't spot any bird to hunt either.

Rested and rejuvenated, Galendra stands alert scanning the area outside and around the portal for threats. Her hand rests easily on her weapon, at the ready.

This message was deleted by the player at 22:13, Thu 22 Mar 2018.

18:14, Today: Garl Ligoosh rolled 2 using 2d6.  Magic Lore check (if appropriate).

(I previously made a roll to check Magic Lore, but I forgot it wasn't an attack roll... Without adding +10 to this previous roll, it would have been 10, which also would have succeeded.)
This message was last edited by the player at 22:16, Thu 22 Mar 2018.

Garl isn't sure about the exact meaning of the runes, but he notices they are quite faded, and faded or damaged magic runes often lose or reduce their powers.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the GM at 03:05, Tue 27 Mar 2018.

After wasting some time, Garl shrugs.  “I can’t read them,” he says simply.  “And just when I was starting to think I was smart.”

There didn't seem like much else to do ...

Rorn helps organise a heave-ho with Larson and Sir Roland.  With the three of them forcing the portal, and Gal and Garl helping provide extra leverage they would hopefully be able to get the stone slab moving in the right direction.

"Manual labor," Garl grumbles as he pushes with all of his feeble might.  "It really has come to this."

Galendra helps with the old heave ho, as well.

[OOC who picks up the Silver Mace?]

Sir Roland joins the effort and the eventually gate opens.
Inside, you can see caves covered by a thick blanket of ice which shines with disturbing rainbow-like colours. Stalactites and stalagmites protrude chaotically in all directions and a frigid mist flutters some ten centimetres high on the floor. The temperature inside is incredibly low.

[OOC you will all have a -1 SKILL penalty under these conditions. If you think you have a particularly good way to protect yourself from cold, you may want to share it with me and I will tell you if it helps to some extent inside the caves.]

Sir Roland steps in with caution, with Sir Gallaham's wondrous shield and sword, and looks around with great attention, before letting his companions in.

This part of the cave looks a bit like a chamber. The northern wall of this chamber is occupied by a huge crystal statue representing a horned demoness with a dozen udders, sitting crosslegged. Sick veins of purplish energy pulsate within the statue’s crystal skin . The demoness’ right hand is open, its palm facing up, while the other tightly holds a Blue Gem.
Besides the statue, at her right and left, there are two passages progressing deeper inside the frozen mountain.

Farmer folk were a tough breed but Rorn still suffers and shivers along, teeth chattering and hands rubbing.  "Agh, whatever hellbeast lives here does not have blood pumping in its breast," he declares.

The northern wall of this chamber is occupied by a huge crystal statue representing a horned demoness with a dozen udders, sitting crosslegged.

"Hellcow," he corrects himself, looking at the horrid icon with disgust.  Rorn feels that smashing it to pieces with the mace would be a good deed, but greatly fears the repercussions of a chaos curse or worse.

Sick veins of purplish energy pulsate within the statue’s crystal skin.  The demoness’ right hand is open, its palm facing up, while the other tightly holds a Blue Gem.

"Uhhh," is all the young hunter can muster and he hopes the witch-elf knew what was going on here.
This message was last edited by the player at 02:58, Wed 04 Apr 2018.

“Beware of the statue,” Garl says simply.  “It may come to life and rip your intestines out, or put a curse on you, or force you to drink gods know what from its enchanted udders.”

"So, do you think more prudent leaving the statue alone and take one of the passages?"

Garl shrugs.  “Not necessarily.  If we do that, we’ll have no idea what sort of unholy menace we might be leaving behind to be dealt with latter.”

The demoness’ right hand is open, its palm facing up, while the other tightly holds a Blue Gem.
Besides the statue, at her right and left, there are two passages progressing deeper inside the frozen mountain.


"Maybe the other hand needs a gem too," Rorn muses.   "Or we snag the gem that's there, and then no hand has one."

Perhaps an instinctive need for symmetry was the wrong approach, though; these were Chaos fiends after all.

Sir Roland is unsure about what is the right way to proceed in front of obvious black magic, and looks at Garl and Rorn.

Galendra seems particularly scared and confused by the image of the horrible demoness and doesn't open her mouth.

“There could be a non-magical trap that is set off by removing the gem.  Perhaps we could try searching the area for such devices?”