73b: Stronghold

Talsil 13th
Entering Jagged Keep

Three hundred feet up the side of the central cavern by way of winding staircases and uneven shelves, and The Dark Three finally reached the outer gates of Jagged Keep. A small castle all its own, the gate was really a mold-covered stone structure consisting of two towers, a curtain-walled bailey, and a heavy stone door. Beyond it, a calcium drip several hundred thousand years in the making dripped between the ledge where the outer gate perched and the inner gate situated at the nadir of the fortress stalactite.

It didn't seem as if anyone was manning it, until, thirty paces away, Leonardo noticed a huge pair of eyes peeking from between turrets. Caprica took it from there, announcing their intentions and their affiliations (House Gloma of Niliak), spurring the guardian of the outer gate to rise. He was an ugly hill giant with rocky spurs along his joints and misshapen face. Standing nearly thirty feet high, he was unusually towering for one of his kind, but proved about as intelligent (to say not very). The party was eventually able to way him into summoning his superior, which the three could only hope was King Rend.

Unfortunately not, as they would come to find Jagged Keep a series of well-fortified barriers overseen by a number of strange, powerful and oft-cunning creatures. A tall, thin drow in the plain, gray robes of a page or scribe heeded the giant's call, moving from the inner gate to the walls of the outer and staring down with passive interest. Again Caprica took the diplomatic lead, but the dark elf Nivit was much more difficult to sway, and he nearly left them on the doorstep before the sorceress mentioned Raven was a vampire. King Rend's nemesis these last seven years was a vampire, and of all his harem slaves he lacked a true vampire. This was a means to advance, as surely it would please his master. Nivit and Caprica worked out a proper price, 11,000 widows (gp) and a sale was made.

Once the contract was signed (in which was hidden a ridiculous middle-man clause that would make Nivit a very rich drow were the vampires really Niliak drow), they were allowed entry into the outer bailey and, once a scraggly night troll delivered the two chests, access to the bridge and inner gate. Nivit was quick to secure his dominance over Raven, however, and slapped her hard before renaming her Morsel, finding her full knowledge of her fate amusing.

He escorted them into the lower bailey, a large area consisting of troll barracks, a stable for slaves and giant cricket mounts alike, an armory, scribes offices and apprentice laboratories, and the slavers' dormitory. Nivit bade them properly prepare Morsel for an audience with his master, the Seneschal Ervelis, and left.

So far, their disguises had been a success, and their cover story the perfect yarn. It seemed as if King Rend had a voracious appetite for young women of different races, a full harem, allowing them some sort of access to him. Yet it seemed inevitable the party would be split, Raven taken off on her own, likely to endure things better not dwelt upon. There was no real plan on how to reunite, and the layout of the keep was largely a mystery. For all that was working, there were far too many unknowns for the vampires' likings.

Yet even as they talked amidst themselves in the bailey, as slavers and trolls and various goblinoids and slaves went about their duties, Leonardo noticed a scowling, ashen-skinned dwarf looking at them from a second story window. Caprica approached and called the dark dwarf out, for which he did exit the dormitory, seeking to bully the competition. But when he drew close enough, he realized Caprica and Leonardo were in face paint and meant to cry out. Only Leonardo's blade gently poking the duergar's belly gave him pause, and fear forced him into offering a deal. He and his siblings had been coming to Tsojcanth City for a decade now, and they knew somewhere in the keep was a secret treasury filled with treasures. Their impending assassination provided the perfect cover for breaking into said vaults. If the party would find and loot the treasury during their exploits, returning the choicest items to the dark dwarves, the duergar would offer them what they knew of the keep's layout, lords and even improve their disguises. It occured to The Dark Three that the duergar of Clandash might even prove useful in future dealings, as well, and they accepted.

They followed the duergar Climrandan to his flat in the dormitory, the same sort of twisted drow architecture as the whole of the keep, with odd angles and tricks of horizon and dimension. There they met his docile brother Doorbac and his fiery sister Heliza, the latter a priestess of Hecate. Initially unconvinced of the party's chance of success or the wisdom in aligning with strangers, Raven's worship of the Queen of Hell quickly won her over. With the deal made, Heliza transformed Leonardo and Caprica into actual flesh-and-blood drow via ten minutes of shear agony, and listed a few important rules regarding the ritual.


Experience: 1133 xp each (37, 176 total)
Infiltrating Jagged Keep, 2800
RP bonus, 600
Magic: n/a
Coin: +11,000 widows (specially-minted gp)
Loot: n/a

New NPCs
Bailey Giant (unnamed): An ugly, over-sized hill giant with stone protrusions who keeps guard of the outer gates of Jagged Keep. He was convinced to summon Nivit Sorlixil, another speed bump on the way into the stronghold.

Nivit Sorlixil: An enterprising drow page of the Jagged Keep, who bought Raven after dealings with Caprica and slipped a clause in the contract that would make him middle man for all future trade with Niliak. He escorted The Dark Three to the dormitory and plans to introduce them to his master, Seneschal Ervelis.

Climrandan: A duergar slaver from Clandash, laden with jewelry and expensive armor. His gold-capped teeth and hungry demeanor marked him a greedy fellow. He attempted to bully The Dark Three when he thought them competition, and discovered they were in fact frauds. Before he could sound any alarm, Leonardo intimidated him into silence, and the dark dwarf ended up making them an offer of alliance. He took them back to his flat, where the deal was sealed and plans drawn.

Doorbac: Climrandan's twin, a duergar slaver of expensive taste and gold-capped teeth met in the Clandash slavers' flat. He offered what knowledge he could about the keep and its inhabitants for the uses of The Dark Three.

Heliza: Climrandan and Doorbac's sister, a duergar priestess of Hecate in a family of slavers. While initially unconvinced of The Dark Three or their plans, Climrandan's pleading and Raven's faith in the Queen of Hell won her over. She made the deal for the choicest treasures of the hidden vault, and turned Caprica and Leonardo into true drow. She agreed to teach Raven the ritual, if they upheld their end of the bargain.

Seneschal Ervelis Sorlixil (mentioned): A cunning and powerful drow wizard in King Rend's employ, who oversees most of the keep's finer matters (including the slave trade). The duergar warned not to give him time to dissect their personalities and motivations, lest he find a way to own or destroy them. The Dark Three are slated to meet him along with Nivit in the dormitory commons.

Gorsplattr (mentioned): The Claw of Tsojcanth, troll second-in-command below King Rend. His is the command of the war troll legions and the success of the war effort against Drelzna. There have been twelve Claws in seven years for all the impatience and failure the war has seen, making Gorsplattr very eager to please and impress his king.

Fligruel the Bitch Queen (mentioned): The favorite troll whore of King Rend, bully of the harem, whose given the king the most sons. She has no real power beyond what she can sway the king to do, but is a vindictive and vicious enemy if made one.

New Hooks
Nothing Short of Conspiracy: The Dark Three have aligned with duergar slavers of Clandash for mutual benefit. The three little ones have offered what they know of the layout and workings of Jagged Keep, as well as transformed Caprica and Leonardo into full-fledged drow. In return, they want the party, during their assassination spree, to raid the hidden treasury and return its choicest valuables to them. There's prospect of future alliance, for Drelzna and the group, should things go well.