2. The First Delve

Orc Guard Post
In the blink of an eye, the orc’s demeanour changes from jovial to sombre as he hangs, credulously, on every word of Pickles’ tall tale of his ghoulish auntie. At the conclusion of the story, he shakes his head in silent contemplation before continuing earnestly: "A sorry case indeed, which only goes to prove my point - you don’t want to get involved with those dead-things-that-aren’t-dead if you know what’s good for you."
"If you’re planning on heading north, make sure you bear west. That should take you back towards the main entrance eventually. It’s the crypts to the east you’ll want to avoid."

(Pointing to the southern exit from the chamber): "That way’s off-limits so you’ve only two options, back the way you came or onwards to the north."
"Pfff … I wouldn’t worry about the Wolf Gang goblins. Pathetic creatures. If there are any still skulking about, you’re most likely to find them away to the south-west."

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Day 2, 4:50 pm
Fenwick, Elf 1: 5/5
Gabbro, Elf 1: 4/7
Jessica, Cleric 1: 5/5
Luther, Cleric 1: 5/5 (Lantern)
Pickles, Halfling 1: 4/4
Ricard, Fighter 2: 12/14

Link to Gabbro's mega-maps ...

"Well, I think it's clear that we're heading north, then. We want to find that way back to the Grand Foyer so that we can exit back to the surface at some point in the future..." Gabbro smiles at the orcs, standing close enough to easily overhear. "That's where we can find out more about those Grave Robber idiots!" Gabbro tries to subtly catch Ricard's eyes and look to the north, encouraging him to come along. Together, they can lead the way out of this dangerous situation with the nervous, bowstring-happy orcs. "Let's go, right, gang?"

Pickles extends a hand to the jovial Orc, "It was a pleasure to meet you and you’re a fun guy. I am Pickles and you are?"

If the Orc shakes hands Pickles will take a mental note of the name and face, before turning and catching up with the group. Turning once to wave.

Luther looks aroundYes, let us continue on.

"Thank you for all of the advice and, you know, not killing us," Fenwick tells the orc leader, nodding at each of his troops as well to make sure they know they're included. "I'm sure we'll come passing through again. "

Looks like the decision is to head north. Skeletons and necromancy aren't really her favorite thing, but there's probably something magical behind them, which could prove at least academically interesting.

She heads after Ricard and Gabbro.

Gabbro has updated the map now … thanks spaceseeker19!

Orc Guard Post
"Pleased to meet yer Pickles, the name’s Gruk. You look after those fine feet of yours - you don’t want them gobbled by a ghoul!" (cue more laughter).

You say your farewells to the orcs and leave via the northern exit from the guard post.

---

The passage north continues for 20’ before opening out into the next chamber. You stand at the threshold and peer in. It is a large, square room with a much higher ceiling (35’) than any other space in the dungeon you’ve encountered so far. The roof is supported by six stone columns, each 5’ in diameter. Above you, cobwebs hang from the ceiling and trail from pillar to pillar. You can see one other exit leading north from the far side of the room.

Mapping information: square chamber, 40’ x 40’. You enter from the westernmost section of the southern wall. The other visible exit is in the northern wall, 10’ west of the eastern wall.

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Day 2, 5:10 pm
Fenwick, Elf 1: 5/5
Gabbro, Elf 1: 4/7
Jessica, Cleric 1: 5/5
Luther, Cleric 1: 5/5 (Lantern)
Pickles, Halfling 1: 4/4
Ricard, Fighter 2: 12/14

Link to Gabbro's mega-maps ...

"Hmm." Gabbro muses, looking at the shadows and webs hiding the ceiling from view just at the limit of the light, peering in for a moment before entering the room. "Gruk made it sound like they've entered this part of the dungeon before, but the barricade they built suggests that maybe it's been a while, and I don't like the look of those webs." He turns to Ricard and the others. "Gruk told us to bear west, and we know that the Grand Foyer entrance is almost directly west of us here, but there's no obvious western exit from this room. Do we rush through to get to the exit on the other side of the room - to avoid web-spinners dropping on us from above - or do we go slow to check for traps like we usually do?"

"Think the webs are flammable?" Fenwick asks, scratching at her chin beneath her helmet strap. "Like what if we could stand here in the passageway but burn the webs to flush out any occupants and keep them pinned in the room? Then we'd just do our searching after we clear the room."

Jessica now holds her holy symbol before her with her left hand (instead of her shield). Her right hand grips her war hammer.

"I can't tell from here whether they're cobwebs - which are webs filled with dust, which makes them flammable - or fresh webs. I think they're cobwebs, since we can see them, but they're way above us, so I'm not sure how we'd get fire all the way up there to test it." He leans in and whispers to his fellow elf, "I, uh, I don't have any fire magic, so we'd have to throw a torch or something."

Luther listening to the convo between Fenwick and Gabbro suggestsMaybe Pickle could shoot a flaming arrow up there.

Pickles pops his head around the corner of the door and looks up at the webs, "If we wrap an arrow in cloth and soak it in oil should do it. Maybe a couple." As he speaks he pulls out a couple of arrows and oil.

That seems reasonable. You won't be able to recover those arrows to use them again though. Remember to update your inventory for the oil and arrows.

I'll say it takes a turn for you to prepare the arrows.

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Day 2, 5:20 pm
Fenwick, Elf 1: 5/5
Gabbro, Elf 1: 4/7
Jessica, Cleric 1: 5/5
Luther, Cleric 1: 5/5 (Lantern)
Pickles, Halfling 1: 4/4
Ricard, Fighter 2: 12/14

Link to Gabbro's mega-maps ...

"Anyone got some cloth? Otherwise I’ll just rip a sleeve off my shirt."

No attack roll needed. There are enough cobwebs, and the ceiling is large enough, that you can't really miss. However, there is a risk that the webs won't catch fire ... does 1-in-6 for each arrow that they fail to light seem fair?

Luther will cut off a couple strips from the bottom of his robes that he wears over his armor.Here you Pickles, will this work?

"Perfectly thank." Pickles says taking the cloth from Luther, "I will try my best to not waste them" Having wrapped the arrows in cloth and the soaking the cloth in oil, Pickles waits for the cloth to be lit before firing. The Halfling starts with two flaming arrows . . .

Watching Pickles setting his arrows on fire and launching them into the ceiling, Gabbro observes, "I almost want there to be something up there, so this isn't a waste..." Then his eyes widen. "What am I saying? It'd be much better if there's nothing there!"