Mushroom broth arrives, even colder this time, and just as bland and flavorless as always. It's passed through the bars one at a time, and Ront gently scratches his nose but behaves himself.
Lex shakes the shadow elf awake, and the drow prisoner stirs as well, looking blearily up at her. He has sores on his face, and the beating he'd taken has left his eyes filled with blood.
"F-food?", he croaks in Undercommon.
"Dammit!", Jimjar says in Common, walking over and pouring a splash of his broth in Ront's bowl. He looks at Lex and shrugs, explaining to her in Undercommon,
"I bet Nosebleed broth that the drow wasn't going to say anything for another two days."
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DM:Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
When Lex touches him, Galingal moves more quickly this time, his injuries less pronounced and allowing more fluid motion.
He sits up, his hands going straight to the mask trying to move it so he can see. He finds the lock and tugs on it a few times.
Remembering the feeling of someone touching him, he turns his head from side to side, listening carefully, the sound of rushing water making it difficult to be certain.
"How many are here?" Galingal asks in heavily accented common. "Do all wear masks?"
Perception: 12 to try and come up with an idea of how many people are around, listening for movement and breathing differences (assuming disadvantage on the roll).
Then he wrinkles his nose, smelling the broth.
"Is there food?"
While waiting for any answer that might come, Galingal runs his fingers over the lock on the mask, probing for weak points.
Galingal, you heard 4, maybe 5 voices? You'd guess not many more than that.
The mask is of tough leather, formed to the face, with some sort of padding behind it. You think it's less for comfort, and more to block visual. The stitching or straps could probably be cut or worn through eventually, if you had a tool or something to do it, but the locks securing the hasp feel study. The leather straps are probably the weakest point, but would be pretty obvious with even a cursory inspection if you were to cut through them.
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DM:Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Lex: There is the soft clink of chains as the hooded elf moves around the chamber, eventually passing by the drow, who stands and staggers over to get a bowl of food. Ront looks like he really wants to trip him, but glances at you and is suddenly very interested in his empty bowl.
Io: The deliciously warm woman who had welcomed you departs into the darkness and your left listening to muttered conversations and the clink of chains. Suddenly, a drow lurches towards you out of the darkness, his hands bound in chains, but his face marked with weeping sores and his eyes filled with blood.
Galingal: You get a feel for the room, it's oblong, with bars at one end. The bars are about 10 feet across, and the room is somewhere from 30-40 feet deep.
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DM:Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Her eyes almost iluminate by the sight of such creature "UUhhh are those eyes actually blood? And are those sores painfull? wait what did my mom taught about people launching themselves on you? HHmm.. not that.. aahh oohh yeah" She then did a terrified scream and got back as fast as she could and started to run around the room screaming "Heeelpp! Don't eat me please! I am like a ice statue, my flesh is always frozen and I don't have a good taste! don't eat meee! PLEASE!"
The drow blinks and stops his shuffle forward, holding up his hands placatingly.
He says something in a language that Io doesn't understand, though Lex does (Undercommon).
"I-I don't mean you harm, I didn't want to hurt anyone, I just want the soup..."
He gestures towards the bowl of broth alotted to him and slowly, cautiously moves towards it, before picking it up and sipping from it, peering over the rim at Io.
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DM:Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Galingal searches along the walls for any loose shards of stone, that might be useful as knives, either as weapons or to cut this mask off, and probes at the wall at the same time.
"How long have you been here?" Galingal asks the room in general. "I have been named Galingal."
He keeps pressing on the wall in the back, farthest from the bars as he talks.
Perception: 18 - second roll if he's disadvantaged - 21
"If slaves stay short time here, might hide things."
Galingal, your hand touches something fuzzy, which pulls back.
Day 4: All prisoners
You're woken by drow at the bars, rousting you for the day's labor. Again you're made to bring your chamberpots and tip them off the edge, and then the slaves are broken into two groups, Jimjar, Ront and the quiet fish-man, who introduced himself as Shuushar the Awakened (he's got to be either insane or important to be handing out a name like that...) are led off by one group of guards and the two women and the two sad boy elves are taken to the kitchens and put to work scrubbing pots.
Whatever the drow are eating is still fungus heavy, but it smells delicious after a few days of bland broth. The drow prisoner seems to take the brunt of the guard's abuse, somewhat sparing the rest of you. A foot tripping him, scolding him for stumbling, small things, but things that seem to amuse the guards. For his part, he seems resigned to it. They make no concessions for Galingal's lack of vision, and unless Io or Lex help to guide him, he's going to have an unpleasant start to things as he is hauled blindly by his chains.
Day 4: Thom
Your eyes are fixed on the drow in front of you. Not only did they shackle you and haul you below the earth, that bastard took the rabbits you'd just trapped! Each bounce of their carcasses against his thigh is a mockery of this whole situation.
You've manacles around your wrists, and a chain connects them to both the iron collar around your neck, and the belt of metal encircling your waist. As you are marched deeper and deeper, your tongue keeps unbiddenly seeking out the tooth that took a spearbutt to it earlier in the night. It's a bit loose, but probably won't lose it if you can just leave it alone... and if you don't get smacked there again.
Eventually the drow stop for a lunch, starting a small fire and putting your rabbits on to cook.
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DM:Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Day 3:
When Galingal touches the fuzzy 'something' he stops for a moment and searches again, gently for it.
"Do you talk?"
Day 4:
In the kitchen, scrubbing pots, Galingal keeps his hands moving and searching, looking for anything with a sharp edge, or even just a ragged, rough surface that could be used to wear away at the leather straps of the mask locked to his head.
(Not sure if a roll would help or not or which might be best Perception +6, Sleight of Hand +3, Investigation +1: 19 )
Getting a sense that one of the prisoners is being tormented more than the others, Galingal waits until he doesn't hear sounds of the guards and speaks in a low voice to that prisoner, trying both common and elvish.
"Why do they choose you for worst treatment?" Galingal asks. "Did you try escape?"
(not sure if this should be in a spoiler or not! let me know @Spider - thank you)
blasted drow. why am I not surprised Thom thinks to himself as he can't seem to get the throbbing in his mouth to subside. He had learned about the drow growing up. The dark dwellers. He remembers some of his 'family' members would actually speak highly of the drow.
Thom spits.
When the drow stop for lunch, Thom takes the opportunity to get some type of sense of his surroundings. Was he knocked out when he was hit? Does he have any other injuries? Does he have a sense of how long he's been walking underground with the drow? How many drows? He also scowls when they start to cook the rabbits he'd just killed.
Thom would sit down if they'd let him when they stop. He'd say nothing. He'd just keep looking around when he notices the drow aren't looking.
Any other people around other than himself and the drow? Are we in a larger room now with the fire while they prep lunch?
"He's just getting food, not trying to hurt you," Lex translates for Io. She then looks to the drow and speaks in Undercommon,
"I'm sorry. She's scared, but she won't hurt you. I told her that you meant no harm."
"I've been here three days," she tells Galingal."Two others came with me. One was here before. The rest showed up with you."
Day 4:
Lex grabs Galingal by the forearm to help guide him when they start walking. She whispers which way they're turning, and when they start and stop. When the work begins, she mostly keeps to herself, trying to maintain a low profile. While she's confident she can defend the prisoners from one another, protecting them from the guards is an entirely different ordeal.
((Sorry I was a bit slow over the weekend, I got scheduled an extra shift on Saturday, so been limited on computer time, and I find it hard to post anything involved from my phone.))
((@Thom, it need not be in spoilers, I was putting what I post in spoilers to make it easier for each of you to see what was pertaining to you, but you're all welcome to read anything that has been posted. I'd assume that there is some amount of whispered sharing of experiences at the hands of the drow, whether any of that is RPd or not. People can specify what they do or do not share, however.))
Day 3 : Galingal
The fuzzy something brushes against your hand, you feel the prick of hairy little feet crawling across your hand, but if you stay still, it continues moving across.
Day 4: Galingal, Io, Lex
The masked elf has a quiet conversation with the other elf, who responds in Elvish.
Galingal, you hear a dismissive almost laugh. "No, no escape for me. I'm surprised they haven't killed me for what they say I did."
((Give me a Persuasion if you are going to continue this line of questioning.))
Day 4: Thom
The drow freeze when you spit. One of them stands and walks over.
He speaks aloud in Elvish, addressing his comments to his fellow drow.
"Do you know what's worse than a surface elf?"
"Two surface elves?"
"Ha, that as well... No, what's worse than a surface elf is a human/surface elf mongrel halfbreed."
He pulls a blade and holds it to your face.
"Maybe we should just kill this one and leave it for the scavengers? After all, who would want to spend good money buying a slave like this?"
"Eh, he looks like he'd be worth a round or two in the arenas, if nothing else, we'll take him back and let her decide what to do with him."
The drow pulls his blade away, then grabs your collar and pulls you down, forcing your face to rub against the stone where you spit. It's met by a round of laughter.
---------------------------
At lunch you take a bit of an assessment. You feel a bit woozy from whatever was on that bolt they stuck you with, but they packed the wound with a poultice, though it is likely less about your comfort and more about keeping you alive to retain your value as a slave. You were already underground when you were slapped to, but not in the Underdark proper. You'd wager you'd been walking two hours or so. The rabbits have had time enough to cool as they skin them out and put them over the fire.
They do nothing to restrain you other than the manacles you already wear, and don't comment as you squat and then sit upon the cave floor. There are luminescent mushrooms about, the chamber is a bit removed from the main tunnel, and you're on a bit of a ledge within, the smoke seems to be rising up, and there are signs of past fires. You'd wager it is a common stopping point for drow parties. You seem to be their only captive.
As they start eating your rabbit, one of them points at you and they laugh. A few, as they finish, toss bones they've licked clean in your direction. One of them who finished eating early has been doing something with the pair of rabbit hides.
As they stand up to leave, he comes over and holds it out, the hind limbs have been tied together, and he places it on top of your head, the bloody inside of the hide sticking to your cheeks and ears as he knots the rabbits ears together under your chin, leaving the two heads bobbling in your beard. He grins, pats you on the head, and you resume marching.
After a few more hours, you hear the sound of falling water growing louder as you open up into a larger chamber, whatever ceiling beyond your ability to perceive it. You stop short of the waterfall you can hear further along, and are bundled into a lift, and ferried up to the top, with your guards
As you slowly near the top, you see a odd looking ceiling approaching, with stalactites descending. The lift passes up through the ceiling, and you realize it's a false ceiling made of densely woven silk. A bit of movement at the edge of your vision... was that one of the creatures that produced the silk? A much larger spider than you're used to if it is... The lift continues up to a ledge, you see a pair of hulking beast-men who had been operating the crank winch of the lift. The stalactites you saw below are much larger, and extend down from the true ceiling above.
You're lead along a walkway past the waterfall out to some large, house-sized stalactites that descend from the ceiling, across a rope and 'wood' bridge to a stalactite. More guards are within the hollow interior, it seems to be a guardpost of some sort.
You cross another bridge and are led to a large iron gate. One of the guards unlocks it and you are shoved inside. The floor is bare rock, there's a couple small clay vessels, and it smells like mushrooms, body odor and excrement. It is currently empty, though you would guess that it has had recent occupants.
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DM:Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
The work details are eventually relieved of their duties for the day, the elves and the two women returning with fingers wrinkled, pruny and raw from scrubbing. The other group is sopping wet and smells terrible, which seems to have brought down the spirits of even Jimjar, though the kuo-toa doesn't seem to mind at all.
You're marched back to the slave pens, where you find your number has increased by one, a rather disheveled looking fellow with fine features for a human, who seems to be wearing a hat made out of two rabbit pelts.
Great. Each arrival is crazier than the last.
Thom, you see an assorted group enter. There's a grey-skinned, tattooed elf with mask over his upper face, a fish-man, a human girl with white hair and piercing blue eyes, an angry looking orc, a dark skinned bald gnome, a well beaten drow in manacles like the rest of you, and an ashen completed woman with red hair.
Within the hour, the drow bring your evening allotment of mushroom broth. In a bit of deviation from the norm, this batch is just as flavorless, but has a congealed texture that at least mixes things up.
Day 5: All Prisoners
The lot of you are again sent out on various work details, and the drow guards make things difficult for you. Lex and Thom, you witness the orc try to stage an escape when he grabs a guard's weapon, but he is swiftly beaten to unconsciousness and some of the hulking beasts are summoned to haul him off.
He's returned after dinner, alive, but shivering and sobbing softly to himself. His skin is disturbingly unmarked by even the beating he'd received. The drow woman some of you would have seen earlier arrives and makes a bit of a speech in Undercommon (those able to speak it could translate to the others).
The gist is that one of you misbehaved, and you're all to be punished. Her guards line you all up and she hands a whip to the overeager, well dressed drow male attending her. He lays into each of you in turn, the whip biting into the bare flesh of your backs. The other drow male, with a mass of scars down one half of his face, looks on, but keeps his gaze on the room rather than the strutting male who is taking great pleasure in whipping you all.
Day 6: All prisoners
You wake when roused, your backs stiff and crusty with dried blood, the welts from the whip starting to scab over. Another day of hard work, and when you are returned to the pens that evening, you find two new slaves have taken up residence.
One of them, a short, twisted dwarvish fellow, pipes up in cheerful sounding Undercommon.
"Ah, welcome, welcome! There's plenty of room for you all! Your stay tonight is on the house, if you've an entertaining story to tell or song to sing! Buppido's my name, and customer morale's my game! Just let my barman there know what you'd like to drink and he'll be happy serve you! Kidding, of course. So far all I've found in these bowls is piss and shit that I'm assuming belongs to some of you. I hope the menu here is a bit better than that!"
The fellow points into the darkened corner of the pen, where one of the hulking beasts that work the lifts is sitting quite primly upon a shelf of stone. His heavily muscled form is currently trying to brush some of the bluish grey fur in a way that it stays put. He speaks up in Elvish.
"I am most certainly not your barman, nor is this a drinking establishment of any sort! Finally, people of substance! The derro's constant nattering has quite driven me to distraction, where are my manners. I am, despite the form you see before you, Prince Derendil, heir apparent to the Kingdom of Nelrindenvane in the High Forest. I've explained this to the damned deep elves, but they refuse to ransom me back to my father! Perhaps one of you could explain it to them!"
Stena finishes off her second ale and gives the steaming pies on a the counter long, thoughtful consideration.
She looks to her recently emptied plate that had been filled with a heaping stack of potatoes, goat meat, peas and mushrooms all covered in a creamy mushroom sauce. She gives a little nod to no one in particular before saying,
"Always room for pie,"
and rises to get herself a slice...or maybe a slice of each.
Day 3 "I am beyond sorry!" she said while kneeling before the drow"Take it, it´s all yours!" Day 4 "Ok I am beyond bored when do we leave? we can't just keep beeing here, and i already got tired of studying this jail!" She was visibly angry "Without my jacket I am sooo cooold, well either way I am always cold.. STILL!! Come on we need to think of something!"
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
((@Spider, ok cool! I have not been reading each of the various spoilers and responses including the 'all prisoners' ones (up until now) just to keep the experience for Thom as authentic as possible. Thanks for providing so much cool content and setting it up this way to be able to do this. Now that Thom is in the game I will be reading them unless they are obviously meant for someone else specifically. I won't put Thom's in spoilers either unless it's for someone specific. Thanks a lot))
Day 4:
Thom has an expressionless gaze on his face when the drow comes over and addresses him spitting. When the drow puts the blade to Thom's face, he tries as hard as he can to keep the expressionless gaze on his face, but inside he's quite afraid and is thinking smarten up Tom, you're going to get yourself killed and then thinks maybe that wouldn't be so bad at this point as the drow pushes Thom down and puts his face into the spit. Thom does not resist. He'd try and wipe the spit off his face once he gets back up.
At the stopping point, Thom is able to squat and the sit down, and it is at that moment when he would grab the flint shard (@Spider, added as a custom dagger). Perhaps it was after they throw the bones at Thom and finish up their laughter. The moment they look away, he grabs the flint and he sticks it into a fold in his loincloth.
He doesn't resist the makeshift rabbit face/headdress that the drow put on/tie around his head. He's read stuff like this and knows he's as good as dead should he try anything at this point. So he lets the rabbit blood run down his face as the blood paints his cheeks and eventually his whole face red.
As Thom is then brought deeper into the underdark, to the waterfall and up via the lift, through the silk ceiling, across the bridge and to the house-sized stalactites, his hopes of surviving this whole ordeal start to diminish quickly. Especially as the rabbit heads bounce off his chin for this 2 hour trek. i'm done for
He lands on the floor of the chamber that he's thrown into and sits there alone, waiting for what the drow might have in store for him. Perhaps this is a punishment for turning his back on his 'family'. Although maybe he'd rather be here than back with those pretentious bastards. The rabbit heads hit his chin.
No, this is worse.
He does not try and take the rabbit headdress off. Who knows what they'll do if he does.
He just sits in the most comfortable position he can get into moving the chains around, makes sure he can access his flint shard in his loincloth, and tries to meditate until someone arrives for him to do who knows what.
As the others enter the slave pen, Thom just looks at them and says nothing. He'd try to get into a corner and ensure his shard didn't fall out as everyone else comes into the pen. He'd eventually come over and take come of the mushroom broth, only speaking if one of the others speaks to him. He would cast a quick mean glare at the beaten drow, shaking his head and then returning to his spot against the wall eating his broth.
DAY 5
yeah i'm getting real sick of this blasted rabbit corpse hat, it's coming off Thom thinks to himself. He's about to try and take it off, and then him along with Lex see the orc try and escape and get subsequently beaten. Thom then thinks twice about trying to take off the rabbit headdress. At least for now. He would look at Lex whom he hasn't spoken to yet to see her reaction to all of this. Afterwards, he grits his teeth and takes the lashings.
DAY 6
Thom ignores the dwarvish fellow as he doesn't understand him and doesn't have any desire to, but he perks up a bit when the hulking beast announces that he's in fact himself as Prince Derendil. Thom still wouldn't say anything, but now would be more interested in how the others react to this.
Does Thom know about Prince Derendil, Kingdom of Nelrindenvane and/or the High Forest? history20 or if you'll accept religion it's +3.
@everyone - without giving away Thom's background, he's extremely introverted and likely won't speak to any of you unless one of you speak to him first. Not ignoring any of you or anything!!
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Day 1 & 2: Lex
Ront grumbles, but backs down. You have, at least for now, established your position in the pecking order above him.
------------------------------------------------------------
"Excellent!", Jimjar rubs his hands together.
Day 3: All prisoners
As it gets on towards the sleeping cycle, Jimjar approaches Lex, speaking in Undercommon.
"A bet's a bet, even if they didn't let us out today, so I'll pay up once I have it, or if you want, we can go double or nothing on tomorrow?"
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
Lex smiles and shakes her head, responding to Jimjar in Undercommon,
"I think I'll quit while I'm ahead. Maybe try one of the newbies, see if they're interested."
If and when dinner arrives, she'll head over towards the elf and give him a gentle shake to wake him up.
Iris - Tiefling Cleric | Cassandra - Elf Warlock | Solace - Tiefling Monk | Tempest - Hexblood Monk | Lex - Fire Genasi Barbarian
Lilyn - Triton Ranger | Candor - Changeling Bard | Echo - Changeling Warlock/Bard | Rowan - Fairy Wizard
Day 3: All prisoners
Mushroom broth arrives, even colder this time, and just as bland and flavorless as always. It's passed through the bars one at a time, and Ront gently scratches his nose but behaves himself.
Lex shakes the shadow elf awake, and the drow prisoner stirs as well, looking blearily up at her. He has sores on his face, and the beating he'd taken has left his eyes filled with blood.
"F-food?", he croaks in Undercommon.
"Dammit!", Jimjar says in Common, walking over and pouring a splash of his broth in Ront's bowl. He looks at Lex and shrugs, explaining to her in Undercommon,
"I bet Nosebleed broth that the drow wasn't going to say anything for another two days."
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
When Lex touches him, Galingal moves more quickly this time, his injuries less pronounced and allowing more fluid motion.
He sits up, his hands going straight to the mask trying to move it so he can see. He finds the lock and tugs on it a few times.
Remembering the feeling of someone touching him, he turns his head from side to side, listening carefully, the sound of rushing water making it difficult to be certain.
"How many are here?" Galingal asks in heavily accented common. "Do all wear masks?"
Perception: 12 to try and come up with an idea of how many people are around, listening for movement and breathing differences (assuming disadvantage on the roll).
Then he wrinkles his nose, smelling the broth.
"Is there food?"
While waiting for any answer that might come, Galingal runs his fingers over the lock on the mask, probing for weak points.
Day 3: Galingal
Galingal, you heard 4, maybe 5 voices? You'd guess not many more than that.
The mask is of tough leather, formed to the face, with some sort of padding behind it. You think it's less for comfort, and more to block visual. The stitching or straps could probably be cut or worn through eventually, if you had a tool or something to do it, but the locks securing the hasp feel study. The leather straps are probably the weakest point, but would be pretty obvious with even a cursory inspection if you were to cut through them.
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
“There’s seven of us. And no, just you.” Lex tilts her head to the side. “Why, you shoot flames out of your eyes or something?”
She chuckles to herself, stepping away to collect a bowl of broth, then pressing it into the elf’s hands.
”I’m Lex. Seems like we’re stuck here for a few days before they ship us off to the city to be sold.”
((Apologies for the lack of formatting, I’m posting from mobile.))
Iris - Tiefling Cleric | Cassandra - Elf Warlock | Solace - Tiefling Monk | Tempest - Hexblood Monk | Lex - Fire Genasi Barbarian
Lilyn - Triton Ranger | Candor - Changeling Bard | Echo - Changeling Warlock/Bard | Rowan - Fairy Wizard
"One type prison to new type prison," Galingal says quietly in his accented common.
Galingal takes the bowl from Lex and drains the contents quickly.
"Sometimes, fire out of hands," Galingal says in answer as he fiddles with the lock on his mask again. "But must see first."
He lets his hand drop from the lock on his mask.
"Knife, or my tools would help," Galingal continues. "But guess no tools here."
He gets to his feet, one hand keeping contact with the wall, and begins to trace the edges of the cell.
"But think they know my kind," he says again as he moves. "We see, we shadow jump. Not make much sell slave only to have slave vanish."
Day 3: All prisoners
Lex: There is the soft clink of chains as the hooded elf moves around the chamber, eventually passing by the drow, who stands and staggers over to get a bowl of food. Ront looks like he really wants to trip him, but glances at you and is suddenly very interested in his empty bowl.
Io: The deliciously warm woman who had welcomed you departs into the darkness and your left listening to muttered conversations and the clink of chains. Suddenly, a drow lurches towards you out of the darkness, his hands bound in chains, but his face marked with weeping sores and his eyes filled with blood.
Galingal: You get a feel for the room, it's oblong, with bars at one end. The bars are about 10 feet across, and the room is somewhere from 30-40 feet deep.
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
Her eyes almost iluminate by the sight of such creature
"UUhhh are those eyes actually blood? And are those sores painfull? wait what did my mom taught about people launching themselves on you? HHmm.. not that.. aahh oohh yeah"
She then did a terrified scream and got back as fast as she could and started to run around the room screaming
"Heeelpp! Don't eat me please! I am like a ice statue, my flesh is always frozen and I don't have a good taste! don't eat meee! PLEASE!"
Day 3: All prisoners
The drow blinks and stops his shuffle forward, holding up his hands placatingly.
He says something in a language that Io doesn't understand, though Lex does (Undercommon).
"I-I don't mean you harm, I didn't want to hurt anyone, I just want the soup..."
He gestures towards the bowl of broth alotted to him and slowly, cautiously moves towards it, before picking it up and sipping from it, peering over the rim at Io.
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
Galingal searches along the walls for any loose shards of stone, that might be useful as knives, either as weapons or to cut this mask off, and probes at the wall at the same time.
"How long have you been here?" Galingal asks the room in general. "I have been named Galingal."
He keeps pressing on the wall in the back, farthest from the bars as he talks.
Perception: 18 - second roll if he's disadvantaged - 21
"If slaves stay short time here, might hide things."
Day 3: All prisoners
Galingal, your hand touches something fuzzy, which pulls back.
Day 4: All prisoners
You're woken by drow at the bars, rousting you for the day's labor. Again you're made to bring your chamberpots and tip them off the edge, and then the slaves are broken into two groups, Jimjar, Ront and the quiet fish-man, who introduced himself as Shuushar the Awakened (he's got to be either insane or important to be handing out a name like that...) are led off by one group of guards and the two women and the two sad boy elves are taken to the kitchens and put to work scrubbing pots.
Whatever the drow are eating is still fungus heavy, but it smells delicious after a few days of bland broth. The drow prisoner seems to take the brunt of the guard's abuse, somewhat sparing the rest of you. A foot tripping him, scolding him for stumbling, small things, but things that seem to amuse the guards. For his part, he seems resigned to it. They make no concessions for Galingal's lack of vision, and unless Io or Lex help to guide him, he's going to have an unpleasant start to things as he is hauled blindly by his chains.
Day 4: Thom
Your eyes are fixed on the drow in front of you. Not only did they shackle you and haul you below the earth, that bastard took the rabbits you'd just trapped! Each bounce of their carcasses against his thigh is a mockery of this whole situation.
You've manacles around your wrists, and a chain connects them to both the iron collar around your neck, and the belt of metal encircling your waist. As you are marched deeper and deeper, your tongue keeps unbiddenly seeking out the tooth that took a spearbutt to it earlier in the night. It's a bit loose, but probably won't lose it if you can just leave it alone... and if you don't get smacked there again.
Eventually the drow stop for a lunch, starting a small fire and putting your rabbits on to cook.
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
Day 3:
When Galingal touches the fuzzy 'something' he stops for a moment and searches again, gently for it.
"Do you talk?"
Day 4:
In the kitchen, scrubbing pots, Galingal keeps his hands moving and searching, looking for anything with a sharp edge, or even just a ragged, rough surface that could be used to wear away at the leather straps of the mask locked to his head.
(Not sure if a roll would help or not or which might be best Perception +6, Sleight of Hand +3, Investigation +1: 19 )
Getting a sense that one of the prisoners is being tormented more than the others, Galingal waits until he doesn't hear sounds of the guards and speaks in a low voice to that prisoner, trying both common and elvish.
"Why do they choose you for worst treatment?" Galingal asks. "Did you try escape?"
Day 4:
(not sure if this should be in a spoiler or not! let me know @Spider - thank you)
blasted drow. why am I not surprised Thom thinks to himself as he can't seem to get the throbbing in his mouth to subside. He had learned about the drow growing up. The dark dwellers. He remembers some of his 'family' members would actually speak highly of the drow.
Thom spits.
When the drow stop for lunch, Thom takes the opportunity to get some type of sense of his surroundings. Was he knocked out when he was hit? Does he have any other injuries? Does he have a sense of how long he's been walking underground with the drow? How many drows? He also scowls when they start to cook the rabbits he'd just killed.
Thom would sit down if they'd let him when they stop. He'd say nothing. He'd just keep looking around when he notices the drow aren't looking.
Any other people around other than himself and the drow? Are we in a larger room now with the fire while they prep lunch?
Day 3:
"He's just getting food, not trying to hurt you," Lex translates for Io. She then looks to the drow and speaks in Undercommon,
"I'm sorry. She's scared, but she won't hurt you. I told her that you meant no harm."
"I've been here three days," she tells Galingal. "Two others came with me. One was here before. The rest showed up with you."
Day 4:
Lex grabs Galingal by the forearm to help guide him when they start walking. She whispers which way they're turning, and when they start and stop. When the work begins, she mostly keeps to herself, trying to maintain a low profile. While she's confident she can defend the prisoners from one another, protecting them from the guards is an entirely different ordeal.
Iris - Tiefling Cleric | Cassandra - Elf Warlock | Solace - Tiefling Monk | Tempest - Hexblood Monk | Lex - Fire Genasi Barbarian
Lilyn - Triton Ranger | Candor - Changeling Bard | Echo - Changeling Warlock/Bard | Rowan - Fairy Wizard
((Sorry I was a bit slow over the weekend, I got scheduled an extra shift on Saturday, so been limited on computer time, and I find it hard to post anything involved from my phone.))
((@Thom, it need not be in spoilers, I was putting what I post in spoilers to make it easier for each of you to see what was pertaining to you, but you're all welcome to read anything that has been posted. I'd assume that there is some amount of whispered sharing of experiences at the hands of the drow, whether any of that is RPd or not. People can specify what they do or do not share, however.))
Day 3 : Galingal
The fuzzy something brushes against your hand, you feel the prick of hairy little feet crawling across your hand, but if you stay still, it continues moving across.
Day 4: Galingal, Io, Lex
The masked elf has a quiet conversation with the other elf, who responds in Elvish.
Galingal, you hear a dismissive almost laugh. "No, no escape for me. I'm surprised they haven't killed me for what they say I did."
((Give me a Persuasion if you are going to continue this line of questioning.))
Day 4: Thom
The drow freeze when you spit. One of them stands and walks over.
He speaks aloud in Elvish, addressing his comments to his fellow drow.
"Do you know what's worse than a surface elf?"
"Two surface elves?"
"Ha, that as well... No, what's worse than a surface elf is a human/surface elf mongrel halfbreed."
He pulls a blade and holds it to your face.
"Maybe we should just kill this one and leave it for the scavengers? After all, who would want to spend good money buying a slave like this?"
"Eh, he looks like he'd be worth a round or two in the arenas, if nothing else, we'll take him back and let her decide what to do with him."
The drow pulls his blade away, then grabs your collar and pulls you down, forcing your face to rub against the stone where you spit. It's met by a round of laughter.
---------------------------
At lunch you take a bit of an assessment. You feel a bit woozy from whatever was on that bolt they stuck you with, but they packed the wound with a poultice, though it is likely less about your comfort and more about keeping you alive to retain your value as a slave. You were already underground when you were slapped to, but not in the Underdark proper. You'd wager you'd been walking two hours or so. The rabbits have had time enough to cool as they skin them out and put them over the fire.
They do nothing to restrain you other than the manacles you already wear, and don't comment as you squat and then sit upon the cave floor. There are luminescent mushrooms about, the chamber is a bit removed from the main tunnel, and you're on a bit of a ledge within, the smoke seems to be rising up, and there are signs of past fires. You'd wager it is a common stopping point for drow parties. You seem to be their only captive.
As they start eating your rabbit, one of them points at you and they laugh. A few, as they finish, toss bones they've licked clean in your direction. One of them who finished eating early has been doing something with the pair of rabbit hides.
As they stand up to leave, he comes over and holds it out, the hind limbs have been tied together, and he places it on top of your head, the bloody inside of the hide sticking to your cheeks and ears as he knots the rabbits ears together under your chin, leaving the two heads bobbling in your beard. He grins, pats you on the head, and you resume marching.
After a few more hours, you hear the sound of falling water growing louder as you open up into a larger chamber, whatever ceiling beyond your ability to perceive it. You stop short of the waterfall you can hear further along, and are bundled into a lift, and ferried up to the top, with your guards
As you slowly near the top, you see a odd looking ceiling approaching, with stalactites descending. The lift passes up through the ceiling, and you realize it's a false ceiling made of densely woven silk. A bit of movement at the edge of your vision... was that one of the creatures that produced the silk? A much larger spider than you're used to if it is... The lift continues up to a ledge, you see a pair of hulking beast-men who had been operating the crank winch of the lift. The stalactites you saw below are much larger, and extend down from the true ceiling above.
You're lead along a walkway past the waterfall out to some large, house-sized stalactites that descend from the ceiling, across a rope and 'wood' bridge to a stalactite. More guards are within the hollow interior, it seems to be a guardpost of some sort.
You cross another bridge and are led to a large iron gate. One of the guards unlocks it and you are shoved inside. The floor is bare rock, there's a couple small clay vessels, and it smells like mushrooms, body odor and excrement. It is currently empty, though you would guess that it has had recent occupants.
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
Day 4: All prisoners
The work details are eventually relieved of their duties for the day, the elves and the two women returning with fingers wrinkled, pruny and raw from scrubbing. The other group is sopping wet and smells terrible, which seems to have brought down the spirits of even Jimjar, though the kuo-toa doesn't seem to mind at all.
You're marched back to the slave pens, where you find your number has increased by one, a rather disheveled looking fellow with fine features for a human, who seems to be wearing a hat made out of two rabbit pelts.
Great. Each arrival is crazier than the last.
Thom, you see an assorted group enter. There's a grey-skinned, tattooed elf with mask over his upper face, a fish-man, a human girl with white hair and piercing blue eyes, an angry looking orc, a dark skinned bald gnome, a well beaten drow in manacles like the rest of you, and an ashen completed woman with red hair.
Within the hour, the drow bring your evening allotment of mushroom broth. In a bit of deviation from the norm, this batch is just as flavorless, but has a congealed texture that at least mixes things up.
Day 5: All Prisoners
The lot of you are again sent out on various work details, and the drow guards make things difficult for you. Lex and Thom, you witness the orc try to stage an escape when he grabs a guard's weapon, but he is swiftly beaten to unconsciousness and some of the hulking beasts are summoned to haul him off.
He's returned after dinner, alive, but shivering and sobbing softly to himself. His skin is disturbingly unmarked by even the beating he'd received. The drow woman some of you would have seen earlier arrives and makes a bit of a speech in Undercommon (those able to speak it could translate to the others).
The gist is that one of you misbehaved, and you're all to be punished. Her guards line you all up and she hands a whip to the overeager, well dressed drow male attending her. He lays into each of you in turn, the whip biting into the bare flesh of your backs. The other drow male, with a mass of scars down one half of his face, looks on, but keeps his gaze on the room rather than the strutting male who is taking great pleasure in whipping you all.
Day 6: All prisoners
You wake when roused, your backs stiff and crusty with dried blood, the welts from the whip starting to scab over. Another day of hard work, and when you are returned to the pens that evening, you find two new slaves have taken up residence.
One of them, a short, twisted dwarvish fellow, pipes up in cheerful sounding Undercommon.
"Ah, welcome, welcome! There's plenty of room for you all! Your stay tonight is on the house, if you've an entertaining story to tell or song to sing! Buppido's my name, and customer morale's my game! Just let my barman there know what you'd like to drink and he'll be happy serve you! Kidding, of course. So far all I've found in these bowls is piss and shit that I'm assuming belongs to some of you. I hope the menu here is a bit better than that!"
The fellow points into the darkened corner of the pen, where one of the hulking beasts that work the lifts is sitting quite primly upon a shelf of stone. His heavily muscled form is currently trying to brush some of the bluish grey fur in a way that it stays put. He speaks up in Elvish.
"I am most certainly not your barman, nor is this a drinking establishment of any sort! Finally, people of substance! The derro's constant nattering has quite driven me to distraction, where are my manners. I am, despite the form you see before you, Prince Derendil, heir apparent to the Kingdom of Nelrindenvane in the High Forest. I've explained this to the damned deep elves, but they refuse to ransom me back to my father! Perhaps one of you could explain it to them!"
DM: Forged in Chaos, Spiders of the Abyss, The Sundered Way, Champions of the Citadel
Active Characters:
Breldo, Halfling Ranger | Kathryn, Wood Elf Rogue/Ranger | Kroshav, Dragonborn Paladin | T'laren Farsiel, Wood Elf Fighter | Trill, Kenku Bard | Val "Janellae", Mark of Shadow Elf Warlock
*At a tavern somewhere else at the same time*
Stena finishes off her second ale and gives the steaming pies on a the counter long, thoughtful consideration.
She looks to her recently emptied plate that had been filled with a heaping stack of potatoes, goat meat, peas and mushrooms all covered in a creamy mushroom sauce. She gives a little nod to no one in particular before saying,
"Always room for pie,"
and rises to get herself a slice...or maybe a slice of each.
Day 3
"I am beyond sorry!" she said while kneeling before the drow"Take it, it´s all yours!"
Day 4
"Ok I am beyond bored when do we leave? we can't just keep beeing here, and i already got tired of studying this jail!"
She was visibly angry
"Without my jacket I am sooo cooold, well either way I am always cold.. STILL!! Come on we need to think of something!"
((@Spider, ok cool! I have not been reading each of the various spoilers and responses including the 'all prisoners' ones (up until now) just to keep the experience for Thom as authentic as possible. Thanks for providing so much cool content and setting it up this way to be able to do this. Now that Thom is in the game I will be reading them unless they are obviously meant for someone else specifically. I won't put Thom's in spoilers either unless it's for someone specific. Thanks a lot))
Day 4:
Thom has an expressionless gaze on his face when the drow comes over and addresses him spitting. When the drow puts the blade to Thom's face, he tries as hard as he can to keep the expressionless gaze on his face, but inside he's quite afraid and is thinking smarten up Tom, you're going to get yourself killed and then thinks maybe that wouldn't be so bad at this point as the drow pushes Thom down and puts his face into the spit. Thom does not resist. He'd try and wipe the spit off his face once he gets back up.
At the stopping point, Thom is able to squat and the sit down, and it is at that moment when he would grab the flint shard (@Spider, added as a custom dagger). Perhaps it was after they throw the bones at Thom and finish up their laughter. The moment they look away, he grabs the flint and he sticks it into a fold in his loincloth.
He doesn't resist the makeshift rabbit face/headdress that the drow put on/tie around his head. He's read stuff like this and knows he's as good as dead should he try anything at this point. So he lets the rabbit blood run down his face as the blood paints his cheeks and eventually his whole face red.
As Thom is then brought deeper into the underdark, to the waterfall and up via the lift, through the silk ceiling, across the bridge and to the house-sized stalactites, his hopes of surviving this whole ordeal start to diminish quickly. Especially as the rabbit heads bounce off his chin for this 2 hour trek. i'm done for
He lands on the floor of the chamber that he's thrown into and sits there alone, waiting for what the drow might have in store for him. Perhaps this is a punishment for turning his back on his 'family'. Although maybe he'd rather be here than back with those pretentious bastards. The rabbit heads hit his chin.
No, this is worse.
He does not try and take the rabbit headdress off. Who knows what they'll do if he does.
He just sits in the most comfortable position he can get into moving the chains around, makes sure he can access his flint shard in his loincloth, and tries to meditate until someone arrives for him to do who knows what.
As the others enter the slave pen, Thom just looks at them and says nothing. He'd try to get into a corner and ensure his shard didn't fall out as everyone else comes into the pen. He'd eventually come over and take come of the mushroom broth, only speaking if one of the others speaks to him. He would cast a quick mean glare at the beaten drow, shaking his head and then returning to his spot against the wall eating his broth.
DAY 5
yeah i'm getting real sick of this blasted rabbit corpse hat, it's coming off Thom thinks to himself. He's about to try and take it off, and then him along with Lex see the orc try and escape and get subsequently beaten. Thom then thinks twice about trying to take off the rabbit headdress. At least for now. He would look at Lex whom he hasn't spoken to yet to see her reaction to all of this. Afterwards, he grits his teeth and takes the lashings.
DAY 6
Thom ignores the dwarvish fellow as he doesn't understand him and doesn't have any desire to, but he perks up a bit when the hulking beast announces that he's in fact himself as Prince Derendil. Thom still wouldn't say anything, but now would be more interested in how the others react to this.
Does Thom know about Prince Derendil, Kingdom of Nelrindenvane and/or the High Forest? history 20 or if you'll accept religion it's +3.
@everyone - without giving away Thom's background, he's extremely introverted and likely won't speak to any of you unless one of you speak to him first. Not ignoring any of you or anything!!