Players: Kathi, Chris, JC, Davy, Kris, Bryan

Characters: DM, Lew, Illuverin, Caland, A'Tora, Maulgrim

After the magical message from the evil priestess appears on the wall we are left with the dilema of how to proceed. Illuverin finds himself full of heroic notions and it surprises him greatly. In a brief moment of clarity he wonders how much of the feeling is due to the exhilaration of his unusual strength.

We continue to investigate Andaria's rooms. The dwarves are getting ready to depart and the Matriarch tells us to be careful of traps should we find the dwarven crypt and to look on the columns in the tample for it's location. We find a Potion of Red Dragon Control in Andaria's bathroom and a book under the bed. Illuverin examines the book, finding no traps, and hands it to Caland since it's fairly obviously a spell book. Caland opens it and it explodes. Illuverin is aware only of the flash and then nothing as the blast knocks him down and out.

Sometime later he regains conscienceness. Caland hands him a Potion of Healing and following that he drinks his own Potion of Extra Healing. Taking a moment to rest we then proceed to the temple. Remembering what the Matriarch said Illuverin examines the first of the columns they come to while the others continue toward the other end of the large room. When they have gotten nearly to the end the group is attacked by some nasty creatures.

MELEE

Illuverin is encompased in Darkness. Hearing sounds of battle from ahead he moves quickly (and hopefully quietly) forward and to his left. Drawing his sword he waves it slowly back slowly back and forth in front of him but still runs headlong into one of the pillars just as he is emerging from the small area of Darkness. He sees the group being attacked by what look like apes.  Grim, shaggy creatures with long claws and wicked teeth, one of which hits him in the back as it chases him out of the Darkness and into the flickering torchlight. Illuverin gets a very major blow on one of the ones attacking A'Tora. Eventually the creatures are killed or driven away. Illuverin is not in good shape but isn't so out of sorts that he doesn't return A'Tora's kiss when she comes to thank him for taking care of the one that was attacking her.

Coming to the front of the room with the others Illuverin discovers that one of the icons on a pillar of Dumathoin is actually a set of pressure plates, and that it is trapped. Sadly he can not tell what the proper sequence or action is for its safe activation.

Maulgrim volunteers to be the one that presses the plates and does so. A moment later as he is commenting that nothing happened and he's going to press it again. It's a good thing he does for that second press shuts off the acid trap that had just begun to rain down on him, splattering a wide area, from the pillar behind us. Caland jumps out of the way and Maulgrim is mostly protected by his shield, but Lew takes a good bit of damage. Behind the pressure plates is a small cabinet in which there is a carved figure of a dwarf holding a long pick, point down, that has a mithril head. Illuverin announces that the pick itself swings to one side or the other with one way setting off a trap (probably the acid trap again) and the other way activatating some sort of sliding stone mechanism.

We decide to tear a long strip off a tunic and pull the pick toward the interior of the room from a safe distance away. Doing so causes the acid trap to go off and it gushes for about 10 seconds or so discharging a lot of acid. After it has settled and stopped bubbling Illuverin once again examines the small figurine which surprisingly has not been damaged by the acid. On a whim and a chance he tilts the pick the other direction (ready to leap out of the way if necessary) but instead of acid he hears the sound of stone on stone from back toward the back end of the room. Maulgrim who was returning to Andaria's quarters for another cloak to shred sees the sliding stone and calls it to our attention. It opens to a stairway leading down.

A'Tora, for whatever reason, is not able to pass the threshold so Maulgrim stays behind to guard her. Illuverin, Lew and Caland descend. The stairs end at a rough tunnel that continues to descend through several twists and turns and then comes to a small natural cavern. In it there is a large statue of a dwarven miner standing over an altar that has obviously not been disturbed. Caland spots a hidden compartment, Illuverin examines it removing the trap, and then retrieves a small stone box which contains three Potions of Extra Healing, one of which Illuverin drinks immediately. They examine the statue carefully (Illuverin at one point actually climbing it to examine the eyes) but find nothing on it or in the remainder of the room.

Returning to the cooridor we examine a seeming dead end and Illuverin finds a small recess that is the perfect shape for that small stone hammer that A'Tora has been carrying. Caland goes back to get it and then Illuverin inserts it in the small opening. A portion of the wall slides up revelaling more of the rough hewn passageway. After forty feet or so it opens into a large cavern, the most of the center is a recessed area with three stone coffins.

Illuverin tries to remove a trap on one but inadvertantly sets off the trap on the other. Oil floods into the room which is ignited by sliding scraping stones. The oil bursts into flame and we all take damage as we leap up onto the coffins to get off the now flaming floor. Caland quickly conjures a Rope Trick and we wait out the fire returning to the room only after the smoke has dissapated. Only the center coffin remains. Illuverin checks it for traps and finds many on the inlaid crown. Then he examines the coffin lid and finds another. This one he removes so deftly he is able to retrieve the small clay pellet that makes up the poison gas trap. He very carefully stowes it with the two he got earlier and then slides the lid away.

It is the body of the dwarven king. He clasps an adamantite pick axe in his gauntleted hands. The gauntlets are THE DWARVEN DRAGON GIFT, THE GAUNTLETS CRONYMONATH.

Lew removes them carefully and reverently and then takes the pick axe as well. Before leaving we also retrieve two odd glowing blue stones (each of which are dimmer than a continual light), a high quality shield to replace Maulgrim's lost one, a dozen stun-bolts (for a crossbow), and three large diamonds. We return to Maulgrim and A'Tora to tell them of what we found.

Next session 11/18/2001