DragonFlight 45: Palace of the Sorceress, Take 1

Summary

This session, the party chose the bold path: scale the cliff, slip in through a high iron grate, and take the sorceress Methween’s keep from within. After hours of studying the guard rotation, Kat strung together ropes, climbed the rough sandstone, and found the grate bolted to the wall. A second climber lent muscle, prying a bolt free so the bars sagged. One by one, the party slipped into a perfumed chamber where a vast stone bowl bled crimson into a floor channel beneath a statue’s feet.

A curtain hid a bell and a gaunt bull-man sentry. A priest froze him in place, and the group whisked the clapper from the bell before quietly tipping the rigid sentry back through the slick chute; far below, the sea answered. Beyond, a hall of pews held slumped bull-men and crocodilians while bat-winged imps bled them into bowls. The imps were lured, then fled north shrieking—right into an ogreish armorer and his lion. A spell paralyzed the brute; arrows and sorcery dropped his lion, and the party put the ogre down before the bell ever sounded.

Breth then turned an imp’s corpse into a puppet, vanished from sight, and bluffed a squad of bull-men into inaction—only for Sven to end the argument permanently when they tried to retaliate. With the alarm quiet, the party scouted deeper, overheard Methween singing beyond a door fitted with a silver ear, and stepped into a dusted chamber that became a deathtrap as the ceiling descended. A loose stone revealed an iron culvert; crowbars bent the grate, and one was jammed to slow the crushing slab as the party crawled through.

They spilled into Methween’s private bath, where a withered crone floated in a vat of blood. Swords ended her mid-ritual. In her boudoir, two massive baboons lay dead beside each other, and a melancholy mirror sighed in puns while an ebony chest yielded a coin, a pearl necklace, a spun-gold headscarf, a set of amethyst dice, and an arm-length golden key marked with an M. As the party moved to leave, the front hall’s winged lion statue tore free and smashed Aurora to the ground. A blinding spell and quick field aid got everyone on their feet, and battered but laden with trophies, they fled the keep into the daylight. Their work had slain the mistress, emptied her coffers, and left the fortress leaderless—if not yet safe.

OUTLINE:

Scaling the Cliff and the Secret Entry

• Studied guard rotations from cover until a lax changeover opened a window.
• Cat climbed to the cliffside grate, pried a bolt loose with help, and sagged the bars.
• The party slipped into a perfumed chamber where a vast stone basin bled crimson into floor drains.

Bell, Blood, and the First Fights

• A bull-man by a bell was held fast; the bell’s clapper was removed.
• The frozen sentry was slid back down the chute into the sea.
• In the chapel, imps bled slumped beastmen; lured imps fled north, rousing an ogreish warder and his lion.
• A holding spell locked the ogre; arrows and sorcery slew the lion, then the party dispatched the helpless ogre.

Schemes, Sleep, and Union Dreams

• Breath used invisibility and a dead-imp puppet to bluff bull-men into revolt; they rushed him instead.
• Sleep dropped the imps and bull-men who threatened the ruse.
• Looted the bull-men’s gaming table and scouted deeper corridors.

The Silver Ear and the Crushing Trap

• A dusted room with a silver ear on its door sealed; a portcullis fell and the ceiling began to drop.
• Cat found a loose block hiding an iron culvert; crowbars bent the grate and one was wedged to slow the slab.
• Everyone crawled through the culvert to safety.

Killing Methween and Looting Her Chambers

• Emerged into Methween’s blood-bath and slew the withered crone at once.
• In her boudoir, two giant baboons lay dead by each other’s hands; a melancholy mirror spoke in puns.
• An ebony chest yielded gold, silver, jewelry, a priestly scroll, and an arm-length golden key marked M.

The Winged Lion and the Escape

• In the front hall, a massive lion-headed statue animated and mauled Aurora.
• A blinding spell and quick field aid saved her; the party chose flight over a pitched fight.
• They escaped the keep alive, battered, and laden with treasure and clues.

NPCs:

• Bat-Winged Imps: Red-skinned, horned servitors who collected blood for Methween’s rituals. They tried flattery and flight, but were slept and slain.
• Bull-Men of the Keep: Gaunt, weary beastmen pressed into Methween’s service and bled for her baths. Some nearly turned; others died in the confusion.
• Crocodilian Guards: Crocodile-headed warriors who patrolled the walls and filled the chapel pews under enchantment and exhaustion.
• Half-Ogre Warder: An eight-foot, chain-mailed brute who guarded the inner halls, accompanied by a trained lion. Frozen in place and killed before he could sound the alarm.
• Lion Guardian: A great tawny-maned cat unleashed against the party. It fell under a storm of arrows and sorcery.
• Melancholy Mirror: A talkative, pun-loving mirror found in Methween’s chamber, now bundled up and taken. It hinted at other mysteries with door-themed wordplay.
• Methween, Mistress of Namu: The sorceress who ruled the keep with blood and enchantments. Slain mid-bath as a withered crone, her fall unbound monstrous guardians and left her forces leaderless.
• Villagers Under Enchantment: Locals coerced into the keep and bled by imps for Methween’s bathing rituals. Hapless victims rather than willing soldiers.
• Winged Lion Statue: A fifteen‑foot lion-headed guardian that animated in the front hall and nearly crushed the party’s escape.

ITEMS:

• Amethyst Dice: A beautiful pair of purple dice found on the bull-men’s gaming table; light, lucky, and valuable.
• Arm-Length Golden Key (M): A heavy golden key engraved with a flourished M; seems meant for a grand lock yet to be found.
• Bell Clapper: The heavy iron striker removed to silence the gate bell before any alarm could be rung.
• Ebony Chest with Silver Inlay: A three‑item bulk chest that held coin and curios; valuable in its own right.
• Melancholy Mirror: A talkative, punning mirror bundled in a red robe; likely linked to deeper mysteries beyond the keep.
• Pearl Necklace and Spun-Gold Headscarf: Fine jewelry lifted from Methween’s chamber, glittering proof of victory and wealth.
• Scroll: Lamia’s Embrace: A priestly scroll on goatskin that imbues a weapon with vampiric energy for a short time.
• Silver-Eared Door Device: A door mounted with a polished silver ear that seemed to listen and triggered a lethal ceiling trap.

LOCATIONS:

• Bell and Chapel Hall: A vaulted hall of pews where beastmen slumped and imps bled them; a bell and sentry stood behind a curtain.
• Blood Basin Chamber: Incense-lit room with a vast stone bowl brimming with crimson ichor and channels beneath a statue’s feet.
• Bull-Men Bunks: A cramped barracks with bunks and a gambling table piled with coins, jewelry, and amethyst dice.
• Cliffside Iron Grate: A high, bolted flow-grate in the fortress wall over the sea, pried loose just enough to enter.
• Culvert Crawl: A tight iron-barred passage behind a loose stone that let the party escape the crusher, at the cost of a crowbar.
• Front Hall, Winged Lion: The keep’s entry hall dominated by a 15‑foot lion-headed statue that came to life as the party exited.
• Methween’s Blood Bath: A private ritual bath where Methween floated as a withered crone in blood until the blades found her.
• Methween’s Boudoir: A bedchamber with an armoire, a melancholy mirror, and two hulking baboons dead by each other’s hands.
• Silver Ear Trap Room: A dusted chamber with a silver ear affixed to a door; it sealed, dropped a portcullis, and began crushing from above.
• The Keep on the Hill: A red sandstone fortress with domed towers, looming above sea cliffs. The party infiltrated from the cliffside rather than the guarded gate.

FACTIONS:

• Bull-Men of the Keep: Wearied beastmen pressed into service; some chafed under the yoke and nearly turned when the chance arose.
• Crocodilians of the Keep: Brutal reptilian guards who patrolled openly and filled out the garrison.
• Imps of Methween: Bat-winged fiends bound to Methween’s will, tasked with collecting blood for her rituals.
• Methween’s Thralls: The sorceress’s sworn and bewitched servants—human, beastman, and fiend alike—who kept the keep in her grip.

QUESTS:

• Escape Alive: Survive the keep’s guardians and traps and make it back out with your lives and loot.
• Free the People of the Island: Break the systems of coercion—imps, rituals, and fear—so villagers and beastmen can go free.
• Infiltrate the Fortress Unseen: Find a covert way into the hilltop keep, bypass patrols, and penetrate the inner halls.
• Plunder Methween’s Hoard: Recover coin, jewels, arcana, and keys to deeper mysteries within and beyond the keep.
• Slay the Sorceress Methween: End the reign of the mistress of Namu, whose enchantments and blood rituals enslaved the island.

PLAYER CHARACTERS

• Aurora: A stalwart fighter whose first instinct was to disarm alarms and take the front line. She deftly removed the bell’s clapper, put arrows into deadly targets, and stood against the animated winged lion before being smashed down and dragged back to her feet by allies.
• Breath: A daring wizard who favors clever gambits over brute force. Breath slept imps, blasted threats, and, invisibly puppeting a dead imp, nearly talked bull-men into rebellion before cutting the scene short when it turned. He also sprinted into danger to haul an ally back from the brink.
• Cat: A nimble halfling thief and consummate scout, Cat’s ropes, climb, and stealth got the party through the high grate. She spotted the culvert that saved everyone from the crushing ceiling, picked locks, and put the final arrow into the lion.
• Doctor: A grim, methodical priest whose restraint broke the keep’s alarms. Doctor froze sentries with binding prayers, helped dismantle the bell, and triggered—but then solved—the crushing ceiling trap by focusing the team on the hidden escape.
• Skarn: A cautious wizard with a knack for precise magic. Skarn’s arcane bolts wore down foes, and his prudence likely kept him alive when the winged statue came to life, ensuring the party’s magic endured to the end.
• Yaga: An eldritch-minded priest who met horror with calm resolve. Yaga frontlined in tight halls, helped pry open the culvert, sacrificed a crowbar to stall a descending ceiling, and was quick to press advantage with decisive steel and well-timed prayers.