Finally Destruction confronts Drugilla in the buried tower of her cloud giant ancestors.

After dispatching her giant-sized henchman (thanks to the power of the White Roc artifact), the company chases her through the tower, as she flies in the air above them. After a lengthy battle, Drugilla is brought low as Dandalv turns her to stone. Her fall from high above destroys her stone body along with the powerful artifact she carried.
At the top of the tower, the party is confronted by a cloud giant skeleton! The conflict is blody, but ultimately Destruction and his allies bring the undead death machine down. In the ruins of the tower, La La finds a legendary halfling magical item: a bag of unerring stones!
Still looking to clean out the third level of this dungeon, the company explores the various tunnels around the sunken tower. They stumble upon a massive green slime, one that fills an entire section of the dungeon.

With Destruction’s hammer and Dandalv’s fireballs, the party vanquishes this horror.
The company continues deeper into the tunnels, finding an underground lake. They are approached by a small nixie with a tale of woe; she is trapped in this cave by a great beast. Could the company save her? Destruction and his allies swim through an underground tunnel and confront a monstrous crawfish. After a brief skirmish, Brother John charms the giant beast and sends it on its way. In appreciation, the nixie gives them a magical ring, which Dandalv quickly discerns is a powerful artifact!
And with that, Level three of Castle Whiterock is cleared!

http://texahol.deviantart.com/art/zombie-orc-horde-593137008

In exploring the third level of the dungeon under Castle Whiterock, Destruction finds an ancient beastman crypt filled with the undead. In a heated battle in which Kolash is once again brought down, Brother John calls upon the holy might of the Treemoot to turn the zombie horde. Asefah calls upon the power of the Helm of the Hill Giant Chieftain and grows to the size of a giant herself! Unfortunately, she immediately goes into a berserker rage and attacks everyone around her. Again Brother John saves the day, seizing control of her mind with the power of his Lotus Stare.
Next the company finds the living quarters of the beastman’s leader, Drugilla. Along with an exploding treasure chest, they also discover a map, annotated by the beastwoman herself. This leads them directly to the excavated tower and Drugilla. The battle begins. Through the power of the mighty artifact the tribe of the White Roc came to the dungeon to find, Drugilla transforms her four warriors into giants. Will Destruction and his allies survive?

The company continues to delve deeper into the dungeon, this time seeking out a beastwoman named Drugilla, reputed to be the leader of the White Roc tribe. They discover an ancient temple that has been used as a training room for the beastmen, finding a secret cache of treasure in the altar.
Next they find a barracks filled with a group of beastman and battle ensues! As Destruction and his allies fight, another group of beastmen join the fray. It was a mighty confrontation, one that saw both LaLa and Kolash brought low by their foes only to be revived by the healing magicks of Brother Jon. After dispatching their foes, the company rests for only a second before they are discovered by another patrol of beastmen. Finally, with no enemies in sight and Brother Jon feeling the disapproval of the Treemoot, the party hunkers down in the beastmen barracks for the night. After a remarkably quiet rest, they awake to a new day and a continued search for the beastmen’s mistress.

NOTES
I added a new twist to wandering monsters in Whiterock, including an entry for “Enemy”. If I get this result, then I roll randomly for one of the party’s enemies from a past adventures shows up in the dungeon looking for them. He’s made quite a few, and I thought it might keep his past deeds fresh in his mind. For example, he has the cultists of Bobugbubulz after him, along with the followers of Jubilex, the Nightmen of the Lord of Iron and Shadow . . . just to name a few.

Destruction and Company launched their assault on the third level of the great ruin that is Castle Whiterock.
They quickly discovered more beastmen up to no good and, with the aid of Dandalv’s knew fire magic, began slaughtering their way through the dungeons. After one battle, Brother John questioned the corpse of a beastman, learning some valuable information about Drugila and her quest for some “artifact”.
The group encountered a group of extra-dimensional apemen mercenaries, tough as nails and ready to battle.

After some tense negotiations, Dandalv paid off the apemen and the mercs left, seeking to return to their own dimension. In this way, the party learned that extra-dimensional travel does not seem to work in the Whiterock ruins.
Next the group encountered two beastmen dragging a stunned lizard creature through the corridors. After dispatching its captors, they questioned the lizard man, learning that it had been captured in the level below, which was the home of its people. The lizard men are ruled by something known as Mighty Benthoc.

NOTES
-I’m going to have to come up with a way to counter the BM’s tendency to fireball everything in sight before asking questions.

-completed level 2 after defeating and mentally enthralling Kaernga the Beastman Warlord in a mighty, bloody battle.
-found stairs down to level three
-heard about the White Roc tribe and their leader Drugila (Kaernga’s sister!)
-avoided the natural caves of Level 2 after hearing tales of a ghost!
-returned to Silvercliff and had a huge party that lasted for three days! And destruction spent all his money! And all of the party’s loot from the dungeon delve. It was glorious!
-met with Lady Chauntessa, proprietor of the Sleeping Drake Inn, who rewarded their work with free lodgings at the inn. She also asked the party to keep a lookout for any books in the ruins, and she offers to pay handsomely for them.

Carousing!
Destruction: A True Warrior’s Life. As “Heroic Carousing” (Carousing like Conan! Wine, women, song, and all worldly pleasures are yours, won with coin looted from Skull Mountain. You may trade gold for XPs on a 100 gp to 1 XP basis (maximum 50 XP may be gained this way per month), plus the following. Your brawling, drinking, carousing, and fighting has taught you a bit more about the world and yourself, and made you an even more formidable warrior than before! Gain a +1 to all melee damage rolls.
Brother John: During the party, Brother John won many converts to the worship of the Treemoot. The Treemoot was pleased, and blessed Brother John’s weapon Root!
[In the Service of the Gods. Your time proselytizing and serving with your order in the Bazaar of the Gods/Street of the Gods has strengthened your faith. Gain 5 XP. You may also donate up to 5,000 gp to your order, gaining +1 XP per 100 gp of treasure donated (50 XP max), and 10 XP for each magical item donated. Additionally, your god has deemed you worthy of serving as his/her/its holy avenger, bestowing a measure of divine favor upon your weapon: +2 to hit and damage, Demon Binding, outerplanar creatures hit must make DC 20 Will save or be bound in exact location for 1d4 turns.]
Dandalv: Disgusted by the partying, Dandalv holes up in the Sleeping Drake and pours over his magical tomes and communicates with extra-dimensional entities.
A Magical Breakthrough! Through your arcane researches and experiments, you have made a significant magical breakthrough!: Gain 1 additional spell slot of any level you can currently cast, and pick 1 spell of your choice to immediately learn.
Asefeh: During the party, Asefeh drunkenly insulted a mysterious stranger, who she finds out is a deadly assassin!
[This object of your public insulsts is now a deadly enemy, who will actively try to make your life difficult and, if appropriate, even slay you! Gain 15 XP. The insulted person may be amendable to some form of recompense, however…]
LaLa: Rogue’s Reward. Ah, profit! Through a series of burglaries, cut purses, and various swindles, you have scratched together a bit of gold. Gain 1d10x10 gp, and gain 10 XP.

NOTES
Holy smokes, but the BM rolled well on his carousing checks first time out of the gate. He rolled a 28+ on a d30 for all three mains! These tables are super fun and serve for great fodder for in game developments and storytelling.
Lotus Stare is stupid powerful for a 2nd level spell, or feels that way to me. The BM nerfed all three of the main big bads of Level 2 with that thing.

The adventurers faced a beastman champion bearing a whip and a greatsword but they made quick work of the foe.

Destruction and company then found a secret area in the dungeon. Inside this complex, La La scouted ahead and sees a dark clad, gray-skinned dwarf writing in a journal.

http://qualitydoodles.blogspot.com/2011/04/duergar.html

When the company returned to the room in force, this being had disappeared. They traveled further into the complex and discovered an ogre operating some sort of lift. When they moved to attack, the dark clad dwarf appeared as if by magic. The battle had barely begun when Brother Jon ensnared the minds of these two mighty foes, rendering them his zombie-like slaves.
The company avoided the elevator and returned to the mining caverns with their new minions. They attacked the beastmen overseers and a mighty conflict ensued, during which both Destruction and Kolash were brought low and then revived by the healing power of Brother Jon. Finally, as the tide had clearly turned, two beastmen fled deeper into the caverns.
Destruction freed the last of the slaves and sent them to the surface camp.

Poor healing and disapproval forces the company to leave the dungeon with the freed slaves in tow. They set up camp in the “monk’s” tents. During the night, something sneaks into their camp and steals Brother John’s bag of jewels.
In the morning Destruction and company leave the villagers behind and return to the dungeon, only to find a beastmen ambush waiting for them. Destruction notices that Mourngrummel reacts strangely to their foes, which he thinks means that these beastmen have giant blood. After dealing with the ambush, the adventurers find a wizard’s lab and make short work of its occupant, freeing the gnome Findle Glimmer in the process. He asks them to look for his sister while they explore the rest of the dungeon, and then he heads topside.
Next, the company finds a beastman and his trolldogs, which leads to a nasty fight. Brother John curses their foes in the name of the Treemoot, and Dandalf burns the trolldogs down.

Image: https://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?724064-Mutant-Monster-Art-Gallery

Destruction and company delve deeper into the catacombs beneath the ruins of Castle Whiterock, finding an abandoned torture chamber, some secret hallways and store room. Finally, they discover a vast underground chamber where more of the albino beastmen were overseeing human slaves mining gold. After a short but bloody battle, the adventurers slew eight more of the slavers.

As more and more commonfolk settle around the Red Keep, the company hears many rumors. Some tell stories of the ghostly Night Boats, black longships that float upon sorcerous fog, manned by tall, gaunt warriors with ghostly weapons. Others tell stories of missing neighbors and family members. A few have even escaped attacks by black clad warriors bearing a chain tattoo who seek to capture and enslave. Finally, a story circulated about a group of monks excavating an old ruin near Silvercliff called Castle Whiterock. Destruction and his allies set out to make contact with the monks in the ruins. Kid Tiger, the company’s young protege, asks to come along.
After several days travel, the adventurers arrive at Silvercliff and receive a hero’s welcome. The city council holds a feast in their honor, and Destruction and company are pleased to hear of the silver pouring into the Red Keep’s coffers.
The next morning, the party travels to the ruins of the ancient Castle Whiterock, which sits next to a lake in an extinct volcano. They approach the keep and are met by monks, who take them to some tents erected in the ruins to await their master, Ikvenvar. But it was all a trap, and they are set upon by villainous slavers. Worse, Kid Tiger himself reveals himself to be a member of this terrible group and attacks his former allies. Destruction lays the young man low, Dandalf’s magicks turn Ikenvar to stone, and several of the warrior monks are killed.
The company explores the ruins, flushing out another monk, this one a short, fat man who flees at an incredible speed. Ultimately, the adventurers uncover stairs that descend to a complex beneath the castle. There they confront and defeat a group of armed albino beast men and their minotaur ally. Later they find a number of enslaved humanoids, whom they free.

Destruction and company journey back to Red Keep using Brother Jon’s newfound ability to travel through the Green. Entering a tree near Silvercliff, the group emerges from a tree outside of Red Keep. Brother Jon and Kolash travel on to the priest’s shrine while the others return to the fort.
That night, the keep is attacked by a dark spirit . . . a wraith! It makes its way through the fort and into Asefeh’s room. Destruction, La La and Dandalf narrowly prevent the undead thing from kidnapping their friend. Calling upon the power of the Demon’s Head, the artifact that exists below Red Keep, Dandalf destroys the wraith with hellfire, only to find himself corrupted in the bargain. He now has the pointed ears of a hellspawn!

In attempt to pacify the country between Red Keep and Silvercliff, Destruction and company discover a terrifying tiger spirit that is plaguing the countryside. Confronting the creature in it’s human form, the barbarian lord slays it with a mighty blow of his hammer.

The company enters the Great Hall of the Hill Giant Chieftain Hugglbugg. They defeat his two bodyguards and his dire wolf pets. The chief himself, rising from a drug induced stupor, does battle with Destruction and his allies but is ultimately brought low by the hammer Mourngrumml.

2.5.12
envoy from Silvertown asks for help with hill giants in exchange for joining Destruction’s domain

2.5.13
Brother Caleb, priest of the Lords of Light arrives, demanding they destroy the Demon’s Head and Dandalf be purified by fire.
accepted the Silvertown envoy’s offer, travelled NW to the mountain mining town, spent the night in the inn

2.5.14
from there tracked the hill giants back to their fort.
waited for a hunting party to come out, tracked them and killed them
used invisibility magic from Dandalf to sneak into the fort, attacked and killed the guards in the gate house
entered the mead hall and rendered unconscious the hill giants there.

Held up in the keep tower, Dandalf tries to master some of the spells he has found on his journeys with the barbarian Destruction. Meanwhile, Destruction trains his soldiers and Brother John returns to his grove in the woods. After weeks of study, the wizard emerges having mastered two mighty incantations: a spell to turn his enemies into stone and another to grant his allies magical strength.
The company sets out into the wilderness to hunt giants. They discover a small valley plagued by a horrible, shambling hillock plant creature. After a terrible battle in which both Destruction and Kolash are swallowed hole by the dread thing, the plant monster is destroyed through the fire magicks of Dandalf.

For several weeks, Dandalf is haunted by a voice calling out for help in his head. Finally Dandalf traces the source of the message to underneath the Red Keep itself. The company answers the call of adventure and, with some excavation, finds a great door marked by magical glyphs deep under the fort. Opening the door summons a celestial guardian that attacks the party. After overcoming this challenge, Destruction and his allies tear through a subterranean complex filled with celestial beings, all of whom fall to our “heroes.” Finally, the group confronts an old man sitting in a room in front of a locked door.
The old man claims to be a mighty warrior placed here a thousand years ago to guard the remains of a powerful devil. He pleads with the group to leave; meanwhile, Dandalf is assaulted by the voice in his head calling the old man and a liar and promising the wizard great powerful in return for its freedom. The company hesitates, torn by indecision. Finally, convinced that he cannot persuade them to leave, the old man transforms into a shining paladin and attacks. After a terrible battle, the party defeats the old man, who with his last words pleads once more for them to leave.
Dandalf opens the door and enters, finding a giant skull half submerged in a great stone. After placing his hands on the skull, Dandalf fights a mighty battle of egos with the evil spirit, ultimately bending the devil ghost to his will. Once more Dandalf is faced with a choice: maintain his grip on the spirit and keep it as a slave or destroy it once and for all. Fearing the creature’s power, Dandalf shatters the ghost.
Now the wizard finds himself the master of the Demon’s Head, a mighty relic that can embue his spells with great power.

Destruction and company leave the young warrior Kid Tiger at the keep and head west into the hills hunting hill giants. While they don’t find any giants, they are attacked by the horrible troll champion Grubsnoot. After a bloody battle that nearly killed Kolash, Destruction and Dandalf wear able to bring the vile creature down.

cleared out a nest of man-bats

tracked down and captured a mountain lion

discovered the crypt of an ancient barbarian king who happened to be a vampire; after surprising the creature in its resting place, the company beat the foul thing into helplessness and dragged it into the sun. They then stripped the place of of its treasures: magical leather armor, potions of healing and speed, and a scroll of magic containing the ruins of paralysis and the secret of creating powerful magic staves.

The band discovers four ogres living among the ruins of an ancient tire. After a bloody battle, Destruction and his allies emerged triumphant.

Dandalf spent two weeks studying and ultimately mastering the powerful of the Wizard Staff spell. Three more weeks spent on the paralysis spell, but the wizard was unable to learn it.

Continuing to explore the area around the keep, the company finds a forest of giant redwood trees . . . and signs a large winged predator. They track the creature back to its nest just as night falls. A great white owl emerges, circles the party and then flies off. Destruction and his allies return to the keep for the night.
The next morning, the group returns to the owl’s lair, high up in a giant redwood. Dandalf summons an invisible spirit that carries all of them up to the nest. There they fight off some cave crickets and confront the owl. Dandalf uses his magic to speak to the great bird, and the two sides come to an accord. The company returns to the keep.
The next day, Destruction and his allies discover a valley to the southwest of the keep that has fallen under a dark enchantment. Danalf senses two powerful fey creatures wandering down in the forest of the valley. The party confronts the first of the two, a great four-legged flying beast named Bogroot. It swallows LaLa, but Brother John is able to bind the creature to his will. They then seek out and attack the second, more powerful fey, a dark robed humanoid with a skull-like visage, a bone tail and ghostly sword. They surprise the creature, and Dandalf casts a mighty spell (aided by the luck of La La) that destroys the evil being before it can even respond. Feeling his power, the wizard turns and destroys Bogroot as well.
The party uncovers the fey’s treasure trove, a hoard of gold, electrum and jewelry.

After barely surviving the battle with the mighty chimera, Brother John heals himself and his compatriots. In calling upon the Treemoot, he finds himself in a strange quandry. He has both ascended in power, gaining the official title of ‘Druid’, while also offending the power he serves. Perhaps slaying this grade primal beast was against the Treemoot’s wishes. This will take time and reflection to unravel, but Brother John swears an oath to travel the untamed forests of the valley to uncover this mystery.
Upon climbing up on to the piles of rocks from which the chimera emerged, Destruction and company find an entrance on the top that leads down into the beast’s lair. Once inside, the group finds great treasure! Thousands of gold and platinum coins litter the floor of the cave. A dusty shield that appears to made from a great black scale is discovered. The adventurers also find a ragged old pack that contains a scroll and two potions. Finally, Dandalf the wizard discovers ancient writing on the very walls of the lair, arcane sigils that map out a powerful spell. Dandalf casts a spell to discern the power of the magic of this place and discovers the shield is named Wyrmscale and bears strong protections against dragons. One potion conveys the strength of a giant on the imbiber while the other give temporary invulnerability. Finally, the scroll contains a spell to conjure and control ropes. The wall’s writing reveals an even more inticing spell, one to bestow great strength. The mage jots down notes in his spellbook while his companions gather the treasure, and then the company hastens back to the Red Keep.
While Dandalf sequesters himself away to attempt to wrest control over the newly discovered spells, Destruction and his companions all busy themselves with their own activities. Destruction and Asefeh train the garrison of the Red Keep, and are pleased to see the warriors progress. Brother John and his bear companion embark on a walkabout, traveling the green paths of the wild lands around them so that the druid might make peace with the Treemoot. And La La, well, La La remains busy being La La.
During this period, there are two significant sightings. First, one of the barbarians points a giant bird, flying high in the sky many miles distant. Second, Destruction himself notices a shadowy humanoid figure watching the keep from the woods.
After three weeks, Brother John and Kolash return with several acolytes in tow. The druid has founded a shrine nearby, one that will remain a holy place to the trees. And Dandalf emerges, tired, disheveled, and furious. He has failed to learn the new spells, despite his hard work and dedication!!
To shake the wizard out of his funk, Destruction immediately leads the party out to continue taming the wild lands around the keep. After much travel, they come up on the great bird, a giant hawk. While the bird flies lower to investigate, Destruction orders Asefeh to shoot it down. The enraged bird attacks, but one mystic bolt from Dandalf and a single mighty blow from Destruction bring the bird down. Brother John feels a stinging in his mind. The Treemoot is again angry!! The company returns to the Red Keep, another “threat” dealt with.

Destruction and Company continue to explore and settle the countryside around the Red Keep. They are joined by a new companion, a young female archer named Asefeh. The party travels southeast and discover signs of a major predator. They ultimately the creature’s lair in a great pile of boulders in a small valley. There they confront a mighty chimera. Through spells and might, our heroes bring the terrible beast down, but Dandalf and La La lay horribly burned. Both appear dead, though miraculously Brother John hangs on to life. Although in horrible pain, he calls upon the Treemoot to heal him, and he in turn is able to bring back LaLa from death’s very door. A great beast is defeated, but Brother John will carry its mark until the end of his days, his left leg burned and withered.

The day after the group returns to the Red Keep, a company of dwarves arrive. They claim to have been sent by the King of Elfland, and they begin restoring and reinforcing the fortifications of the keep. They tell Destruction that, if he were to retrieve the bones of any giants, they could add them to the keep walls, thus making the walls magically powerful. The company goes out hunting in the area of the keep. They find panther tracks as well as the signs of a large company of monstrous humanoids. The company is even set upon by a clan of bandits. After much discussion and a short skirmish, the bandit’s leader, Robin, is convinced to join Destruction rather than die horribly at the claws of Kolash. Ultimately the group finds and slays three hill giants. They return to the keep and hand over the giant corpses to the dwarves, who note that three more will be needed to cover all the walls of the keep.

The following day Destruction and company begin to claim the territory surrounding the Red Keep. For the most part, this process is initially a quiet one until the group comes across the a mighty pack of eleven trolls. The company quickly retreats to the keep with the trolls in hot pursuit. They make it to the walls and a bloody fight follows. Ultimately, Destruction and his companions are triumphant, though the barbarian himself, Zeb, and Kolash the bear all fall the claws of the trolls. Brother John’s healing magicks are able to revive Destruction and Zeb, but the bear seems lost. Only the use of the might Horn of Kings brings the bear back from the land of death, and then the ancient artifact crumbles to dust. The band tracks down the trolls’ lair, and discovers a great hoard of copper and silver, along with a potion of giant power, a scroll with three might spells enscribed, and a mysterious magical ring.

Destruction and his allies have rid the area of a great horror! For two weeks, the group recuperates, Destruction trains both his barbarian followers and his newfound ex-bandit archers, and Dandalf studies the magical spells from the scroll. During the band’s “vacation,” they are first attacked by a pack of hell hounds. Who could have sent these evil demonic creatures? Even worse, a great ooze 100 feet across comes out of the Broken Lands, burning a path in its acidic wake. A mighty battle ensues, and our heroes emerge triumphant! Finally, a party of young adventurers arrive at the fort. They gather information, are warned away from traveling into the deadly Broken Lands, and head north towards the Briar, the halfling homeland.

Upon returning to the floating city of Alfheim, the company reports its success to the King of Elf Land. The king absorbs the mystical energies of the magical toad idol from the Croaking Fane, the elf blade from the Orb Widow’s lair, and the blackened shard of the God Seed and uses the power to awaken Lore!
The king gifts Destruction with a mighty hammer called Mourngrummel. He promises Brother John the companionship of Krulg the Cave Bear, and he cures Dandalf of his corruptions. In addition, the king gives them a great hoard of gold. Finally, he returns the companions to the Red Keep on the wings of giant ghost owls.
As if waking from a deep sleep, the band finds themselves standing in front of the Red Keep. They enter the compound as returning heroes only to discover that the place empty and with a strange arcane eye painted on the gates of the keep. The company has been lost in the mists of the Elder Wood for six months, and some calamity has befallen the Red Keep!

Keyros the Elf guides Destruction to the Mount Welwood to destroy the God Seed, an evil entity seeking domination of this dimension. Traveling deep into the mountain, the company battles the God Seed’s mutated followers before facing the being itself. After a mighty battle, our heroes destroy the God Seed.

Destruction and the Company rest in the gnomkin village of Redcap. They meet Sister Zasha, the priestess of the Treemoot. They also buy a choko-bird named Bob, Jr. and they hired a choko-trainer to help take care of the thing. The gnomkin’s name is Smebulock . . . and he talks a lot.

Fought the transformed cultists
fought the Toad Thing
fought the mummified toads
destroyed the cursed tablet
rested in the chapel
tried to leave the temple, triggering the toad idol attack-defeat the toad idol and escape the collapsing temple

The company continues to explore the lower levels of the Temple of the Croaking Fane. They stumble into a deep cavern and do battle with a host of giant frogs. Wave upon wave crash against Destruction and his companions until the gore piles up around them. Several of the heroes fall, only to be healed by Brother John.
After the battle, the group finds a trove of platinum pieces and a prisoner, a slightly unhinged cult member locked in a cell. Once freed, he leads the party deeper into the caves where they fight off some horrible flying vampiric frogs. Again Brother John calls on the healing energies of his masters. But his repeated requests for aid draw the ire of the Treemoot, who punish their priest by stripping him of his clerical powers! What will be the cost of this terrible judgement?
Lacking Brother John’s healing, the company uses the might Horn of Kings to heal themselves, Following the freed lunatic, Destruction and his allies discover a horrible scene. A deep bubbling pool of mystical fluids, floating upon which is the cult of the Croaking Fane. Each of the cultists is transforming into toad-like fiends. The lunatic screams in joy and dives into the pool, disturbing his brethen who rise to destroy the interlopers.

After Brother John communes with the Trees to determine the cave’s safety (Second Sight), the group spends the remainder of the day and an evening resting and recuperating in the Mistress’s former lair. The next day they return to the Temple of the Croaking Fane. Destruction and Company finish their search of the temple’s upper level, destroying a swarm of killer frogs as well as a primeval slime. They also desecrate a great idol, stealing its gemstone eyes (classic move!). Then they move down into the subterranean level of the temple.
There they loot the head priest’s room and Dandalf smokes some bad witchweed from a water pipe (permanent -1 Intelligence!). Still they uncover the priest’s treasure stash and score some serious gold.

Destruction tracks the trolls back out of the swamp and into a mist-shrouded forest of tamarack trees. There he discovers a nest of orb weavers. The party destroys six of warrior males before facing and defeating the Stygian Widow herself, Mistress Dralnibulla, in her extradimensional lair. Afterwards the group discovers a powerful magic item: the Staff of Vesuvian.
In defeating this terrible foe, Destruction has completed the first of the Elf King’s Great Labors.

As the group rests and Brother John heals the bloody mage, their barbarian leader hears whispering in the darkness back the way they came. When they investigate, they discover a group of satyrs setting up an ambush. A battle ensues and the party makes quick work of the savage goatmen. No sooner have they cleaned their weapons than a voice calls them outside.
There they find a giant, bent-back, green form who tells them that “the Mistress” wants them dead. Another lurking troll pounces from above, and Destruction and Company find themselves in a terrible battle. Both the barbarian and Zeb are struck down, but Brother John’s healing saves both men from death. Only the fiery spells of the battered Dandalf save the group, burning the trolls down. All feel lucky to escape the encounter alive. Who is the “Mistress”?

[OOC: Playing with my eldest while out of town. I brought everything we needed . . . except for the module “The Croaking Fane.” I scrambled and created this encounter to “pause” the adventure. Holy *(&% DCC trolls are nasty. Now I’ve got to figure out who “the Mistress” is . . . ]

The company enters the toad temple. They explore a strange fountain, desecrate a sarcophagus filled with mummified giant toads, and avoid tampering with votary candles. Finally, moving into the nave of the temple, Destruction and his allies are attacked by flying toad gargoyles. The party triumphs and Brother John even bends one of the creatures to his will using his powerful lotus stare, but Dandalf the Faceless is struck down. The party assumes the wizard is dead, but Lucky La La turns him over to find him barely alive!

Finally the company arrives at the Elder Wood, the vast forest home of the elves. They camp at its edge and spend the night fighting horrific fey creatures. The next day the band enters the wood and are met by an elven hunting band that takes Lore’s body and leads the company through the Grey Gates and into the mystical realm of Elfland. Griffin mounts take them to the Floating City, and Destruction and Company finally meet the King of Elfland. The Fey Lord thanks the party for returning his son Lore to him but then informs them of their debt to him. He commands that Destruction and his allies perform eight labors.
The first is to stope the malignant swamps from encroaching upon the Elder Wood. The company immediately embarks upon their first quest. They are led by Keyros, an elven hunter, to the marshy area at the forest’s edge. There the company finds a half-sunken stone temple, shaped like a great squatting toad.

After looting the serpent man’s private chamber and discovering his alien spellbook, the company flees a strange fungus that begins to rot the tower from the inside out. They escape just before the tower collapses, emerging into the light of day in time to see the comet Serbok roar across the sky and crash somewhere back beyond the Shudder Mountains.
The group returns as heroes to Gator Hide, earning much deserved awards. After resting for a night, the party moves on, now with a new member, a donkey named Bob. But the journey is not a peaceful one; at midday they are attacked by a behemoth frog, an amphibious monster the size of an inn! The company proves triumphant and continues, stopping to camp at a yurt aside the causeway that night. They are awoken by a horrific sound, the roaring challenge of a water dragon racing toward them. Vandaraxx, the terrifying lord of the Fetid Plain, demands tribute from the travelers in the form of Dandalf’s spellbook. When his demands are not immediately met, the dragon attacks the arrogant humans. In a terrible battle that sees many of the company sorely wounded, Destruction ultimately slays the dragon with a mighty blow from his hammer. The heroes have freed the inhabitants of the Fetid Plains from Vandaraxx’s terrible rule! Huzzah!

Traveling through the Fetid Plain along the Old Road, the company arrives at Gator Hide, a town sat up on stilts above the great swamp. They are able to rest and recuperate, and Brother John is able to heal the afflicted members’ zombie fever. While there, they are asked to investigate a pillar of light that appeared several days ago. Ferried out on flat boats, Destruction and his allies find a strange tower made out of living hide. Inside the group fights ape men controlled by strange parasites, one of which Brother John is able to dominate with his priestly powers. After making their way to the top of the tower, a snake man wizard and his ape allies. During a horrific battle, both Destruction and Brother John are struck down by the snake mage’s evil magics, but the group, led by Dandalf, are able to overcome their enemies.
Miracle of miracles, both Destruction and Brother John are found to be (barely) alive, though both bear horrible wounds from the battle.

Destruction and Company climb up through the Highwind Pass only to run into its guardian, a mighty, ruby-eyed stone giant! When the creature’s demand for gems was refused, a mighty battle took place. After both Brother John and the giant were both brought to death’s very door, the two parties struck a truce, and the company was allowed to pass on unmolested.

Reaching the eastern base of the Shudder Mountains, the group camped on the edges of the Fetid Plain, a great swampy area rumored to inhabited by many evil and terrible beasts. That night, the group was attacked by swamp dead, the animated corpses of those who had perished in the swamps of the Fetid Plain. The dead were defeated, but unbeknownst to our crew, several of its members (Dandalf, La La and Aurik) have contracted zombie fever and will themselves become the walking dead within a week unless cured!!

In the depths of the Woeful Caves, the heroes confront Shrod the Hungry and his evil axe Reaver. After a mighty battle, Destruction and company defeat the corrupted creature. Leaving Reaver where it lay, they exit the caves and continue on their journey.
Camped in the high passes of the Shudder Mountains, the company is set upon by Under-slavers, foul creatures from deep in the earth looking to capture “toppers” to sale in the Deepworld. Destruction and his allies make quick work of these small, gray-skinned humanoids.

[from The Chained Coffin boxed set]

Upon reaching Yonder Mountain, the fairie dragon Moonglum tells Destruction that the Wrigglers dwell in the caves on the mountain. Destruction and company enter the Woeful Caves to seek vengeance for their fallen comrade, Morgaine.
Upon entering the caves, the group encounters a number of creatures: more Wrigglers, a hungry mountain lion, and a giant spider. All the time, several of the heroes sense something stalking them, something that takes many forms. Sometimes it is a pale green glow, other times it is the sound of flapping wings overhead. But the unknown force does not yet reveal itself.
Finally, deep down in a cave lined with black eldritch fire, the group is attacked by some undead dwarven miners. The heroes defeat the foul creatures, though Destruction and Zeb both suffer broken limbs from the dwarves’ mighty hammers. After the battle, Brother John calls upon the blessed energies of the Trees to trees to heal his comrades, and the party moves deeper into the caverns.

After a week’s recovery, our heroes are back on the road. Their first night out, they meet a strange creature, a cat-sized dragon that calls itself Moonglom, who decides to tag along for the journey to the Elder Wood.
The company travels for several uneventful days until they reach Turtle Crossing. There they are ferried across the Mistwater by . . . a giant turtle! A half day’s travel on the other side brings the party to Husk, a trading post for the people of the Shudder Mountains. After a quick stop (and a few ignored warnings), the heroes travel the Old Road along Yander Mountain. There they are attacked by wrigglers, horrific albino humanoids. They repel the attack at great cost; Morgayne dies in the battle, and one of the creatures escapes. After burying their friend, the company moves on.

Emerging from the ladder that apparently rises several hundred feet, our heroes find themselves in a guard tower over looking the wilderness. They are attacked by a swarm of bats; Destruction splatters many with his mighty hammer while Kong uses his psychic powers to blow the remaining creatures out the window.
The group find a rickety drawbridge across a massive chasm. The bridge leads to a ruined fortress. Bravely leading the way, Destruction unfortunately falls through the rotted planks down hundreds of feet to the forest below, apparently to his death. His comrades make there way back down through the tunnels. After hours of searching for their leader’s body, they find him . . . miraculously (if barely) alive! Apparently the lucky barbarian had fallen into the river pouring out of the mountain and was washed up on the shores of the lake. The group decides to camp for the night, and Brother Jon calls on the blessings of the trees to heal Destruction. The next morning the group makes it’s way back up to the mountain top fortress.
Avoiding several traps, the group finally confronts the Bull God. The creature, already wounded by its battle with the priestess of Justicia, fell quickly (and surprisingly) before the might of our heroes, with Destruction landing a mighty blow and Dandalf finishing the beast off with blasts of fire.
The company returns to Upper Hook as conquering heroes, and the locals throw a wild feast in celebration.

Destruction and his allies defeat the Bat Man Witchdoctor and destroy the Evil Dragon Totem. After traverse a web-filled chasm, the company follows a trail of blood that leads them through an wizard’s laboratory (in which they fight a mad homonculus and experiment with some magical pools) and into a chimney, where they find a ladder leading up into the spire. Is this where the minotaur lives?

Destruction and his allies fight there way through the Dragon Door, the entrance to the Bull God’s mountain lair. Joined by a mysterious gorilla psychic monk from another dimension, the party march into the darkness. They are accosted at every turn by strange humanoid bat creatures. In the throne room of the King Bat, our heroes slay the giant spider-riding ruler of the bat people.

Wasn’t there supposed to be a minotaur in this mountain?

The party spends a day resting in the centipedes cave. While most of the group feels slightly better, no amount of resting is going to solve Brother John’s paralysis. As they consider their options, the Champion Morgaine mentions the the rumors of a holy shrine a day’s travel from here, near the village of Upper Hook. Perhaps they could find a cure for their druid’s condition there? Girding their loins, the group sallies forth.

Their first day of travel passes without event. However, during the night, a terrible beast buzzes the group’s campsite. Destruction climbs up a tree; breaking the canopy, the barbarian sees a great dragon wheeling back around. Only by the luck of La La Farfoot is the party able to find a hiding spot, and the mighty wyrm flies past and on into the night.

By noon the next day, the company arrives at the village of Upper Hook. The place seems deserted, but eventually the group is approached by Mother Derva, an old crone who claims to speak for the townsfolk. She says that they have been under attack by a minotaur calling itself the Bull God. When asked about the shrine, she says it is very near the hill the creature calls its lair. She warns the party to be careful; a cleric of Justicia rode off a week before to end the minotaur’s foul reign but never returned. With a shrug, Destruction the Berzerker heads off to destroy the beast.

After an hour traveling through the woods, the party comes upon a pack of wild dogs feasting on the remains of a war horse. Though the pathetic creatures attack, they are quickly overcome by our adventurers. The group moves on, traversing a trapped bridge and ultimately making their way to a mysterious lake, shrouding in a heavy mist that constantly forms strange shapes and images. The company finds an ancient stone dock, lit by two ghostly braziers. The barbarian discovers a magical, invisible bridge that leads to an small, wooded island. As the party joins him, Destruction investigates the island. Everyone but the warrior succumbs to the island’s magical powers, falling into a deep sleep. Unable to awaken them, the Berserker continues to search the area. After four hours, his comrades awake, refreshed and healed. As the sun goes down, the company hears the noise of elfish flutes and singing, and a shimmering bridge appears, leading them to the Shrine of the Druids.

Once there, the company discovers ancient statues of a robed woman and a unicorn and a small stone basin filled with a sparkling liquid. Feeding the liquid to the paralyzed druid, Destruction is delighted to see Brother John healed! The company spends the night in peace at the shrine.

The next day, the group returns to their adventure, now actively hunting the Bull God. Searching the woods, the company is set upon by a flock of ravens, many with poisoned talons! The beasts try to force them to take a path to the east, but Destruction and his allies refuse and ultimately slay the birds. After the battle, they stop to take a breath and enjoy the ministrations of their newly restored druid companion.

The party continues the journey on the Old Road. Early morning on the third day, the group encounters a mysterious cyclops seeking knowledge. After much enigmatic talk, the being offers to trade a spell with Dandalf. Our wizard studies for two days with the strange giant, ultimately learning Edvarg’s Energy Enchantment, allowing him to manipulate the mystic forces of the cosmos into simple forms. The party continues on.
The next day, Destruction and his allies discover a large pile of boulders near the road. Upon investigation, the group is attacked by a giant centipede, but Destruction makes quick work of the great beast. The crew strides confidently into the cave lair of the vermin, only to discover a next of fourteen other giant centipedes. Things go horribly awry! Destruction watches as, one-by-one, his companions fall to the poison of the horrible insects. Finally, the mighty warrior is forced to flee. The barbarian returns to the site of the group’s meeting with the cyclops, but finds nothing—not even a trace of the strange creature. Girding his wounds, Destruction returns to the scene of the battle, determined to save his companions, or die trying!
Centipedes rush out, but the barbarian is able to defeat them. As he prepares to enter the cave-nest, Destruction hears voices from the road. La La has returned, and she brings with her Morgaine the Champion, a sword-wielding warrior. At the same time, the crazed dwarf known only as the Skeleton Man rushes out of the woods. The group is able to clear the nest and recover the bodies of their friends. Miraculously, Brother John, Aurik, Zeb and Dandalf are all found alive. Only poor Bumble the Dwarf and Clara the Archer died.
Exhausted, the group hunkers down in the now quite comfortable cave to rest and heal their wounds. Only one problem remains: Brother John appears to be paralyzed by the centipede venom. What will Destruction do?

After visiting the Blue Shrine’s library to research the journey to the Elder Wood, the company sets out for the east on the Old Road. On the first day, the group is set upon by a company of hobgoblins in a botched robbery.

Destruction and his allies make short work of them.

Near the end of the first day, our heroes come upon a group of hungry ape-men. Dandalf casts a spell that allows him to communicate with the beasts. The creatures were planning on attacking the small village nearby; the company offers the ape-men food and they all part ways peacefully. That night the group sleeps on the floor of the village tavern.

On the second day, the company is ambushed by a giant lizard in the ruins of an old way station. After defeating the creature, the company travels on. At nightfall, they encounter a trio of bugbears who ask for a toll.

A quick refusal results in a tough fight, but Destruction and his allies are triumphant. Afterwards, they hunker down for the night, sleeping at the side of the road.

Destruction, Brother John and Dandalf (now most fouly corrupted by the magic of the Pit Beast) lead twelve villagers up out of the pit. Unfortunately, the arduous trek leads to the death of the majority of the poor commoners. The three survivors, Aurik, Zeb, and Clara, pledge themselves to the service of Destruction and Company.
After resting in the now nearly empty village of Hilltop, the adventures, with the body of the poor Lore, head back north. Along the way, they face a mighty band of trog warriors escaped out of the Broken Lands in the west. After defeating the savages, our party finally returns to the Red Keep. Already they begin to plan their next expedition. Fearing the curse of the King of Elfland, Destruction and his allies plan to take the corpse of their fallen comrade back to his homeland in the Elder Wood.

Clambering down a secret passage, Destruction and his allies, along with a mad dwarf who calls himself the Skeleton Man, interrupt a terrible rite in which cultists and their subhuman servants attempt to sacrifice villagers to a colossal beast of a hundred mouths and a thousand tentacles.
After a mighty battle in which Lore the Wanderer is cruelly struck down, the company is able to slay the head priest, causing the pit god to go mad and pull the walls down upon itself and its cult. Our friends, and the rescued villagers, flee back into the caverns. When the dust settles, they find themselves trapped, and now must begin the arduous journey back to the surface.

The company travels deeper into the pits by way of mysterious eggs that magical transport those who lie inside them. Upon arrival, Destruction and his brethren fight their way through more cultiests and several foul toans, ultimately discovering a secret passage beneath a statue of a foul tentacled beast from beyond the stars.