Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Mherduwynn 08-01-06, 11:44 AM	It took all his strength, but Vorran managed to swing his warhammer one more time. The weapon smashed into the zombie’s face with a sickening crunch, sending flesh and bone in a spray across the room. The vile undead raised his clawed hand to the paladin’s throat before falling to the rubble-strewn floor. Vorran felt like doing the same, staggering to the nearest wall before collapsing as well. How many times had he been here now? How many foes had he sent to Khyber, only to face another? And another? This place was seemingly endless, with new challenges around every ancient corner. He could spend a lifetime here and never see the end of the monsters lurking in this ageless edifice. And he would, if that’s what it took. Crawling since he lacked the strength to walk, Vorran made his painful way to the fallen zombie and unsheathed his dagger. Using the blade as quickly as he could, the servant of the Silver Flame pried out his reason for these visits into the dark catacombs – a glyphstone. Small, only an inch wide in any direction, the stone was engraved with a magical sigil that pulsed like a heartbeat now that its bearer was destroyed. Its magic had kept the zombie from suffering the ravages of time; now its power was his. He could not use it for immortality, of course, but that had never been his goal. No, Vorran had a different goal in mind. A goal that would require many more stones like this one. Many, many more. Drawing on the power of the Flame Within, he forced himself back onto his feet. One look at his skin showed Vorran that he had little time left down here. He was already glowing bright enough to see his own bones beneath the flesh. Soon, the magic of the Abbadon would overtake him and his quest would end again. Before that happened, perhaps there were enough moments left to seize one more stone. Just one more. Vorran pocketed the glyphstone and staggered down the corridor ahead. The body of the zombie was already less than dust by the time he passed it; the weight of centuries proving unkind to its unprotected corpse. He spared it no further thought. Everything down here was long past the idea of redemption and the only freedom any of the beasts in these halls could hope for was a clean death. He focused his will and tightened his grip on his hammer. A clean death was something he was more than willing to provide. Within moments, another doomed soul appeared for absolution. Snarling as it scented his blood, the ghoul bounded down the cracked hallway stones and leapt for him off a fallen piece of archway. Vorran was exhausted but the rush of combat quickened his limbs. He raised his battered shield, warding off the charnel eater’s first talon strike. With a sweeping motion, he hurled the thing to the ground and tried to follow through, lashing out with his own deadly weapon… …and found himself swinging through empty air. The rush of a midnight breeze billowed across him, the light of a starry sky no brighter than the dim radiance of the Abbadon now miles below his feet. His skin no longer gleamed; the foul reek of undead-infested halls no longer surrounded him. Vorran Lightshorn slammed his mace into the ground and cursed. “Just another few seconds! Is that too much to ask for?!?” Even as he roared the words, he knew the answer. Spellspitter’s Abbadon gave each visitor the same fate as every other. The same number of heartbeats passed for anyone stepping foot into its labyrinth; one moment more resulted in expulsion to the surface. Even dying in the descent could not cheat its magic, as those falling to its denizens found themselves alive and whole again up here the moment their hearts stopped. Cursing again, he rose and stared up into the heavens. One hand went to his pouch, counting the night’s haul. Six glyphstones was a decent number, less than usual but more than he’d pulled out of some runs. A drop in the bucket but a substantial drop nonetheless. Then he thought about why he needed the tiny relics and just how many it would take to complete his mission. The bucket was looking bigger with each passing day. It was looking bigger and he was feeling smaller. Even if he spent a lifetime down there, he might never collect enough glyphs to do what must be done. Vorran looked back across the jungle canopy at the blazing light of Stormreach’s harbor beacon. One light, one man. This job was too big for any one man, even him. He shouldered his pack and prepared to set out for the city. He needed supplies if he was going to continue the hunt. The Abbadon raised its victims but it didn’t feed them and he was no hunter. A warm meal and a night in a real bed might restore his confidence, not to mention some time spent praying with the congregation. Congregation. A gathering. And that’s when it struck him. This was too large a task for one person but he did not have to do this alone. It had long been joked in the Church that Stormreach’s chief export was adventurers. Perhaps it was time to do a little trading of his own… ----------------------------------- Dare the shadows of the Abbadon if you dare! See you at GenCon Indy!
kiddoc 08-03-06, 08:41 AM	The real question is: Who's got the guts to go in there? Surely some must be brave enough to attempt it--but the Abbadon has claimed many a life. It's rumored that the glyphstones may even be sustained by the life force of the hundreds of slain adventurers than seek out the ancient Spellspitter's secrets.
raalynthslair 08-04-06, 03:17 PM	The real question is: Who's got the guts to go in there? Surely some must be brave enough to attempt it--but the Abbadon has claimed many a life. It's rumored that the glyphstones may even be sustained by the life force of the hundreds of slain adventurers than seek out the ancient Spellspitter's secrets. When is it being run/offered? I didn't see it in the games list on the GenCon site. ~ Z o r ~
kiddoc 08-04-06, 03:39 PM	When is it being run/offered? I didn't see it in the games list on the GenCon site. ~ Z o r ~ It's being run continuously throughout the convention. There's no traditional "sign-up" for it. It's more of just a "Show up and play" type of event.
clem 08-04-06, 06:04 PM	It's being run continuously throughout the convention. There's no traditional "sign-up" for it. It's more of just a "Show up and play" type of event. At first I read that as, "Shut up and play." :)
kiddoc 08-04-06, 06:26 PM	At first I read that as, "Shut up and play." :) Give the strict 20 minute timeline I expect that phrase might be heard a lot too. :D
raalynthslair 08-05-06, 06:07 PM	Give the strict 20 minute timeline I expect that phrase might be heard a lot too. :D You make that sound like a "bad" thing... Sometimes (and I known plenty of tables that qualify) a group NEEDS to hear this! *lol*