Summary
During their journey to the Troll Bridge location, the party made camp for the night. Their rest was interrupted when an undead warrior wielding a black blade sword and glowing red eyes attacked the sleeping party members. The creature managed to drain the constitution from Thru before the party could fully engage, with Darn Sackins throwing firebrands while Jeffrey attempted various spells. Though resistant to divine magic, the undead being was vulnerable to fire and was eventually defeated, crumbling to dust and leaving worthless equipment behind.
Following the combat, the party ventured into a cave where they discovered an intriguing silver orc skull adorned with ruby-studded teeth. Upon reaching the familiar Troll Bridge location, they began exploring a set of stairs leading downward. Their progress was impeded by magical glyphs that triggered a sudden gale when the party hesitated too long, and Grimdar’s failed attempt to jump over these glyphs left him weakened.
In the underground chambers, the party made a somber discovery of dead barbarians from Thraani’s tribe and recovered a golden-inlaid mace. As they descended a 30-foot shaft, a troll ambushed them through a secret door. The battle was fierce, with Thru shooting at the Troll while Gremdar doused it with oil, allowing the party to set it ablaze. The burning troll attempted to flee down the stairs with the party in hot pursuit.
The chase led to a dark cavern system where an intense battle ensued. The troll proved a formidable opponent, its regenerative abilities making it particularly challenging to defeat. During the brutal fight, the Troll chomped Sackens before the party finally overcame it with fire. After the battle, their exploration yielded valuable treasures including a magical vial bearing a pegasus seal and black plate mail. The adventure concluded with the distribution of treasure, the awarding of experience points, and several party members achieving new levels of power.
Scenes
Discovery and Camp at Mysterious Cave
- Jeffrey discovers an old stone entrance in a hillside
- Party debates whether to explore at night or wait till morning
- Group decides to make camp nearby
Extended Battle with Undead Warrior
- Darn Sackins spots something during night watch
- Undead warrior attacks Thru, draining 1 point of Constitution
- Party members wake up and engage in combat
- Darn Sackins throws firebrands which seem effective
- Magic missile and other spells are used against the creature
- The undead being shows resistance to divine magic
- Creature attacks after failed turn undead attempt
- Thrurepeatedly fails to land effective hits
- Protection from Evil cast on a party member
- Creature drains 4 points of Constitution from Gremdar
- Party finally defeats creature, which turns to dust leaving rusted chainmail and a black sword
Cave Exploration and Silver Skull Discovery
- Party finds a cave with an earthen mound and hole
- Discover silver skull with ruby-studded teeth in the hole
- Area has similar cold feeling to the undead encounter
Troll Bridge Investigation and Glyph Encounter
- Party arrives at Troll Bridge location
- Discover cleared stairs leading down
- Find empty chamber with four stone plinths
- Detect magical glyphs on stairs
- Mysterious gale triggered by party’s hesitation
- Some party members jump over the glyphs
- Gremdar attempts to jump over glyphs in plate armor
- Gremdar fails the jump and loses 4 points of strength from a withering effect
- The activated glyph dissipates after use
Underground Chamber and Troll Combat
- Party finds remains of Thraani’s tribe members
- Discover golden-inlaid mace with holy symbols of Gede
- Explore underground chamber with piles of furs and bones
- Party descends 30-foot shaft
- Troll ambushes through secret door
- Thru hits troll with crossbow bolt
- Gremdar douses troll with oil
- Darn Sackins sets troll on fire
- Troll flees down stairs while burning
- Party fights troll in dark cavern with water
- Troll downs Darn Sackens
- Party uses oil and fire to finally defeat the troll
- Darn Sackens miraculously survives with healing
Treasure Recovery and Session Conclusion
- Party finds magical vial with pegasus seal (potion of flying)
- Discover black plate mail armor
- Find various valuable items including golden mace and silver skull
- Navigate dangerous yellow mold in bone pile
- Party divides 27 gold each
- Characters gain 9 XP total
- Some characters level up
- Party receives luck tokens
NPCs
Undead Warrior
A gaunt, skeletal figure in tattered chainmail wielding a black-bladed broadsword. Has glowing red eyes and can drain constitution. Shows vulnerability to fire but resistance to divine magic.
Thraani
Deceased barbarian character mentioned whose tribe was killed by trolls, her remains found in the underground chamber.
Troll
Green, warty creature that ambushed the party through a secret door. Has regenerative abilities, requiring fire to defeat. Nearly killed Darn Sackens before being destroyed. Initially fled while on fire, later encountered and eliminated.
Locations
Mysterious Cave Entrance
An old weathered stone structure built into a hillside, with two stone pillars and a crooked lintel, containing a dark entrance
Cave with Silver Skull
A natural cave about 60-70 feet deep with earthen floor and walls, containing a disturbed mound with a 6-foot deep hole where a silver skull was found.
Troll Bridge
Ancient stone bridge 80 feet long and 10 feet wide with 4-foot railings, spanning a 250-foot ravine with a river below. Features arrow slits and stone staircases leading down.
Underground Chamber
Large cavern with reinforced walls, 60 feet wide and 40 feet high, containing piles of furs and dead bodies. Shows signs of dwarven construction techniques.
Spells
Magic Missile
Cast with racing flame effects, dealing minor damage to the undead warrior.
Hold Person
Cast by Jeffrey, manifesting as ghost chains, but passed through the undead warrior without effect.
Items
Silver Skull
A silver-cast orc skull with tusks and teeth studded with tiny ruby flecks, found buried in a hole in the cave.
Black Bastard Sword
A worthless, non-magical black-bladed bastard sword, chipped and pitted, wielded by the undead warrior.
Gold-Inlaid Mace
Weapon found clutched in dead barbarian’s hand, decorated with gold-inlaid holy symbols of Gede, god of nature.
Dubious Heroes 
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