Sessions 33-35: Gorilla Island: Arrival

Post date: Sep 02, 2016 1:9:38 AM

These session summaries were originally posted to The Piazza in August and October 2015, and have been edited to remove spoilers for future sessions. Out-of-character commentary is in italics.

The party has reached 8th level. All will continue in their previous classes, except for Inacio, who will pick up a level of monster slayer (see the new Freeport: The City of Adventure book). This means that the Grinder's crew now consists of:

• Harissa, azhari freebooter 8 and ship's captain, and her cohort Virali (nagaji bard 6)

• Inacio, hadozee ranger 7/monster slayer 1, and his elasmosaurus companion Lapras

• Larkspur, undine druid 8, and her crocodile companion Atoll

• Damarak, undine cleric 8 (of Melkarth, god of strength and storms)

• Issalia, sylph witch 8, and her owl familiar Titania

• 5 elf deckhands (Harissa's followers)

• 18 goblin sailors, 6 half-orc toughs, and 1 halfling "cabin boy"

Now that "Winds of Freeport" has concluded, GM Notes for "Gorilla Island" (with stat blocks and other details) have been posted to this wiki.

Session 33 (8/1/2015)

The party returned to Freeport and spent the next few days appraising and selling their loot from the sahaugin temple.

Inacio attempted to use his knowledge of traps and devices to open the brass cylinder. As he moved the sliding pieces of the puzzle box, Harissa and Larkspur realized that the parts of the merfolk and dolphin engravings represented stars, and that Inacio had moved them to give a bearing using constellations in the southern sky. Harissa took careful notes and very accurately plotted the indicated course, towards the southern continent of Khaeder. Inacio then manipulated the puzzle further, and found the configuration that opened the cylinder--and indicated that the Serpent's Teeth were intended to be the starting point for the previous bearing.

Inside the device was a small package wrapped in oilskin and sealed with wax, inserted inside a ring. Issalia examined the ring and identified it as a ring of jetting, which would allow its wearer to jet underwater like an octopus. The oilskin contained a tightly rolled map labelled in Aquan as "Gorilla Island." The map depicted an island with a central volcano named Mount Girallon, and four peninsulas: one "arm" for each of the cardinal directions. The southern slope of the volcano's cone depicted Ape Rock, which matched the giant face in Damarak's vision from the comozant wyrd.

After provisioning for the voyage, the Growler set sail. Their course would take them past Crab Island, which they found on the maiden voyage of their previous ship, the Half-Pint. Harissa, Larkspur, and Inacio had told Issalia and Damarak stories of their past adventure here, fighting giant crabs, a sea hag, and the horrible "dead man's brain" coral. This time, they had little fear of the island's dangers, and easily killed a couple of the large crabs to cook for a feast for the crew.

However, while everyone was preoccupied with preparing the feast, the PCs heard screams coming from further down the beach. A huge shark-eating crab, much larger than the species they had encountered before, had attacked one of the foraging parties. Some of the PCs ran to investigate but were too late to save one of the goblin sailors, and found a tough fight on their hands. Larkspur used a geyser spell to hurt the crab and drive it onto the beach where the others could engage it. It then grabbed the druid, who wild shaped into a triceratops in order to better defend herself. The crab landed a lucky crit on Harissa with its free pincer, but couldn't hold onto two foes at once. Then the azhari had it flanked and finished it off with a vicious crit of her own. Damarak arrived just as the crab went down, so could merely provide healing for the badly hurt druid and freebooter. He and Inacio then helped drag the dead crab back to the cook fires.

The immense crab provided ample meat to supplement the ship's larder for the voyage--and Larkspur's cantrips kept it edible for long after the crew grew tired of eating crab! After another two weeks of sailing, they sighted Gorilla Island, and dropped anchor near the mouth of one of the streams on the northern shore.

Inacio took to the trees of the jungle to scout around. He spotted a dragon flying around the peak of the volcano, but was too far away to determine its size and color (just that it was dark, not shiny). He also came across a giant chameleon--as large as a horse and able to snatch a pterodactyl out of the air--but avoided its notice. He returned to the ship to report, and the PCs decided to go hunting the lizard. When they caught up with it, Larkspur took a wrong step and alerted it to their presence. The party had just started to rush towards the lizard when arrows flew out of the nearby foliage and hit several of them. They had been ambushed by a gang of kech, hairless ape-men with camouflaged skin, who had been stalking the chameleon. (Inacio and the kech had failed to notice each other when he was scouting here earlier.) Inacio quickly took out the lizard, then moved to help the party fight the kech. Between his and Harissa's weapon skills, Issalia's hexes, giant spiders summoned by Damarak, and Larkspur in dire tiger form, they made quick work of the kech. They left one alive--hexed to sleep, then webbed and later bound with rope--to interrogate for information about the island.

But that conversation has to wait until next session...

Session 34 (8/22/2015)

Issalia cast tongues and interrogated the kech prisoner. She intimidated it sufficiently to learn that the north and east sides of the island are controlled by the kech and "four-arms" (girallons). The volcano belongs to the dragon, and the other side is populated by "weakling monkeys" (vanara). The witch spared the kech's life so that it could tell the others of its kind that the party plans to avoid their territory, if they don't attack first.

Out of concern about drawing the dragon's attention, the party went back out to sea to circle around to the south of the island, and approached the river that the map shows as leading to the treetop village. They saw some vanara fade into the trees as they came in close, so anchored at the mouth of the river and kept watches through the night. The vanara set their own watches as well, to keep an eye on the newcomers.

In the morning, the PCs took the ship's dinghy up the river, and encountered one of the locals' leaders, Wokah, who asked their business (in his own language). These ape-men are the standard tailed species, rather than the gliding hadozee subrace Inacio belongs to, so they found his wing-flaps somewhat freakish. That and his low Charisma made a less than ideal first impression, but his news about having a vision of Ape Rock caught Wokah's attention. The vanara decided to take the party to meet "Grandfather." He led them further upriver, where the sharper-eyed PCs could see a village of platforms and rope bridges high in the trees, then turned aside to head for a clearing where a few huge trees held larger structures. During this walk, Inacio recognized an amulet Wokah wore: a pregnant winged ape, which represents the vanara fertility goddess Der-Maga.

After a short wait, a very elderly, mostly white-furred vanara descended slowly to the ground, and was introduced as "Grandfather." (Inacio alone noticed another vanara who came down far more stealthily, and kept a watchful eye on her.) Issalia cast tongues on Damarak to act as the crew's spokesperson. He and Inacio told the old monkey about their visions and showed him their map. Grandfather told them a good amount of lore about the island:

• Some merfolk have recently come to the waters south of Gorilla Island. The vanara know very little about them yet.

• Ape Rock is the home of "Der-Maga's Children," who are made in her image and guard the mountain. They keep the dragon away from the village, and the mountain is sacred to Her.

• The dragon has been seen more often recently, and the volcano has been smoking more than usual, too. However, the vanara are more worried about stories of a leader arising among the girallons (who normally are not very intelligent or organized).

• The kech hate all other races, and are becoming more aggressive in their raids. The follow a vile form of nature worship, with rituals including the sacrifice and consumption of other intelligent beings.

• There is a shrine to Der-Maga at the base of the mountain below Ape Rock. The vanara sometimes speak with Her Children there. Damarak asked if outsiders were allowed to visit the site, and Grandfather replied that he will have to pray and think about whether to allow it.

• The ruins on the north side date from when the island's vanara were more populous, but have since been taken over by the kech, who appeared later. The stone circle is more recent, and attracts both the kech and the girallons. (The latter have been here as long as the vanara.)

• Besides the various simian races, the island is also inhabited by giant lizards and a number of dinosaur species, both prey and predators. (Occasionally even the jungle itself attacks people.)

• The party was warned not to kill any of the island's tortoises, who are under the care of "The Old One," a great tortoise who is the oldest living being on the island.

• Grandfather knows little about the island's four "arms," apart from Sloth Hook, named for the giant sloths found there.

Through Damarak, the Growler's crew offered to help fight the tribe's enemies, while waiting for permission to visit the shrine. The vanara here know little of sailing, but confirmed that the cove inside Sloth Hook is sheltered from the worst weather. The PCs ordered their crew to move the ship to the far side of the small island in the cove, while they remained with the vanara. After some deliberation, they decided that they would investigate westward first, exploring Rocky Fist Point then heading north into girallon territory. They intend to eventually thin out the kech a bit, and hopefully learn more about their priests at the Stone Circle.

Session 35 (10/17/2015)

The party started their trek to the island's western arm by following the river back to the shore. Before they exited the jungle, they were ambushed by two huge beetles that had natural camouflage making them look like fallen trees until they moved. The first insect went down quickly under hits from Inacio and Harissa, a call lightning from Damarak, and a burning hands from Issalia. Then the second one finally connected with Inacio, inflicting a critical hit and grabbing him. Damarak slapped a cure critical wounds on him, which saved the ranger from dying from an attack of opportunity as he slipped free and retreated out of reach. Harissa landed a critical hit (with dirty fighting added in) on the second beetle, disabling it. This bug bit the cleric, who was in the path to its escaped prey, before collapsing.

These deadfall beetles were a new monster of my own creation, and I was very pleased by how the combat played out. As my wife put it afterwards, they weren't very dangerous to the party as a whole, but posed a serious threat to any individual they successfully hit (2d8+12 plus grab). The one that grabbed Inacio did 49 damage--one point away from forcing this campaign's first save vs. massive damage! Now that my players have encountered this creature, I'll be posting its stats to my Studded Plate blog soon [done 10/21/2015].

After several healing spells were cast, the party continued onward along the shore to Rocky Fist Point. They decided to climb the spire to see the surrounding area better, and Larkpsur cast mass feather step to make this easier. (The spell's recipients ignore difficult terrain.) As they hiked up the steep slopes, Larkpsur spotted a dragon coming in for a landing near the top. She warned the others, and Inacio, being a natural climber, went ahead to scout. He found the dragon--actually a two-legged, grayish drake covered in spines--perched on a large shelf-like flat space near the peak, next to a cave opening, eating what remained of a vanara. He reported back via message. The ranger circled to a closer hiding spot while he waited for the rest of the party to come up. Damarak used a silence spell to cover their approach, but the dragon noticed them as soon as they were close enough to run out of cover.

Harissa charged the dragon, which allowed Inacio to flank it with surprise. The drake then spat a glob of black dust at the ground, so that it that exploded over both attackers. This breath weapon did negative energy damage and cursed them for a round (with effects similar to a doom spell). The party's weapons and spells quickly wore down the drake, and it fled--but it waited just a little too long to do so. Larkspur wild shaped into a pteranodon to pursue it, but a critical hit from Harissa's crossbow knocked it unconscious, causing the dragon to fall to its death on the mountainside.

All but Larkspur explored the small cave, finding a nest, hundreds of broken bones, and a battered sea chest. The chest held a (Tiny) scorpion, which attacked Inacio, who handily killed it. The treasure inside the chest was less than they had hoped--a scroll, a couple potions, a well-made starknife, and a handful of gems, The better climbers in the group then finished the ascent to the peak to have a look around. (There was little to see that wasn't already on their map, but the druid did spot a couple of huge sea turtles swimming offshore nearby.) The party then worked their way down to the dragon's body, and spent the rest of the day butchering it for its spiny hide and horns--and hoping to find whatever glands or other organs produced its cursing breath.

The dragon was a spire drake from Bestiary 4, but they were unable to identify it. They will need to do some research to learn more about it--and Damarak has been inspired to try to create a "mass doom" spell. As a Large dragon, its hide could be used to craft dragonhide hide armor, which could be used by the druid. However, Larkspur has been avoiding medium armor to date because she has a poor Strength score and prefers to have her speed unimpeded. At the very least, though, they'll have an impressive trophy to show off to the vanara village when they return.