After exploring these tunnels, we rested for three hours — and the two clerics levelled up. So Merrick and Farin both acquired the power to cast one spell a day. Right away, Merrick cast Cure Light Wounds on Willem, and rolled well, so our warrior was fully healed up. Then we opened the northern door and found an empty room with a well. Clear, fresh water, a good two meters deep, and two marble benches to sit in two alcoves. Merrick suggested looking for secret entrances or hiding spots; he himself looked into the water and saw something small gleaming.

He suspected it might be a key. So Merrick shed his clothes and went diving – and his hunch was right: it was a small metal key. No secrets were found, but something else happened: skeletons came up from level 2! Hermione heard them clatter up the stairs and warned us in time, so we clolsed the door and spiked it again.

The skeletons came knocking, then banging on the door, and did their best to break it down. Merrick suggested we block it with a marble bench, and the others helped him bring one to seal it up. Yet, the forceful attacks on the door were such that we could be sure that they would get through sooner or later.

So Merrick devised a plan: There was an exit to the north, a locked metal door, which had to be the one to the chest and dead man. He knocked, to get the kobolds’ attention. That worked, and he managed to communicate despite the language barrier what was going on, and that we would want to circle back around and get the skeletons in the rear, while the kobolds should lock the door again.

So we left Hermione and Elyndor (players absent) to guard this metal door, while Willem, Farin and Merrick circled around to attack the assembled skeletons with Farin’s extensive storage (five) of Holy Water.

To Battle!

The skeletons heard us coming, but we still surprised them: Farin went past the door and threw a flask in, damaging skeleton 1. Willem followed to stop right in front of the door and chucked a second flask, destroying one and severely damaging two. I followed, provided light and handed Farin his mace. I reminded everyone of the tactics: We stay here as a line of three. The skeletons will come, and then we will smash them, always with a 3:1 advantage.

Willem didn’t listen.
He went on the offensive and stepped into the killing zone, facing skeletons on a 1:3 basis while Farin and I were bottled up behind him. His plan: To wrestle an opening into the skeleton lines so we could rush in and destroy them.

He took a beating! Luckily his armor turned away several stabs and blows, and he had been healed back up, otherwise that would have been his end. Luckily he also dished out a lot of damage and kicked some bony ass. With no other way to help I stepped up behind him and raised my holy symbol to turn them.

Finally that worked! Praise be Tah! The holy symbol shone bright and all the skeletons in the room backed away, turned to run, and Willem could crack them in the back; then Farin and I followed him in and we made short work of the bedazzled undead.

Scout Mission

Willem was beat up down at 3 HP, so we had to fear for him, especially with his reckless behaviour. Merrick suggested that Farin (blessed with dwarven dark-vision) could sneak down to Level 2 and take a first peek at what awaited there. Then he should retreat and we would go home to rest and heal.

Farin went down and started to follow a corridor towards a place with light. From the door he could see a strange setup with four pedestal, carrying a skull each. Farin decided to go closer and look at it in detail. But he was not alone: Once he went in he noticed two zombies, who started to shamble toward him.

Farin ran. Back to us. On the stairs we made a stand: We blocked Willem off in the back to make sure he would not go into melee and die. Farin stood in front, I behind him. That way we both had a free field of vision. I threw a flask of Holy Water and got the first zombie right in the face, killing it and burning the second. That second one was tough and massive, with an abundance of hit points. Farin got it directly in the face, and half of its head sizzled away, but it still kept coming!

Luckily slow zombies automatically lose initiative, or that would have gone sour. As it was, I could chuck another one, and this time got it right in what was left of its gullet, and that was it: the zombie dropped and melted on the stairs.

Time to go: “The way home will be dangerous enough as is,” warned Merrick. “We are fresh out of Holy Water so we cannot risk another encounter with the undead.” We turned around and prepared for the treck home. Farin healed Willem up to 9 hp, and we rested in the entrance area of the kobold warren to return by day, not by night.

Alas: Random Encounter.

Boars

Six of them! And one came gallopping right away, attacking a surprised Merrick, but missing him narrowly. I decided to confuse and repel the animal with psychological warfare: I made myself tall, held the maul high, and preached a loud sermon in the name of Tah to assert dominance.

It worked! The boar stepped back, confused. And then Willem stepped in and hacked it in two, hoping to collect some sizzling ham for dinner.

Sadly, four of the surviving five boars reacted unfavourably and came running. A battle ensued, in which Farin quickly climbed a tree to get out of harms way, but not fast enough, he got wounded. Willem got attacked, but his armor protected him well, and he commenced to slay more of the beasts.

Merrick stepped forward to support Willem and guard his flank, alas the cleric was flanked himself and one boar rushed him from the left, trampling him down and slicing his leg open with its tusk: he was reduced to zero HP and lay unconscious.

Willem hacked down a total of four boars until the last one noticed it had lost all its friends, turned tail and fled north, together with the one that had not attacked at all.

Farin came off the tree and lay hands on Merrick to give him a bonus on his Death Save.

Nope. Not like that.

Merrick succumbed to his wounds and bled out on the spot.

Stricken by this turn of events, the friends carried the fallen priest back to Wildehaven, where the local temple recognized the fallen adventurer from our past dealings and agreed to give the brave cleric a proper burial, even though the party was only able to scrape together 11 meager gold pieces as a donation to the Faith.

Here endeth the story of Merrick Malmora of the Weeping Widow;
and a new adventurer must take his place. Let there be 3d6 down the line.

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