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| Spoilers |
Introduction
In session 96, the party travelled to the firenewt city of Cthugarak. They used captured brooches, an introductory letter, and Sheamus disguised as a Fire Giant to gain entry and participate in the monthly sacrifice to Lord Inferno, ending the session in a cube in area 1 of his lair. As noted in that session report, timing was an important factor: the sacrifice corresponded with the full moon on the real-world calendar. For the first time, I allowed only the days actually used for downtime to pass before the next session began; the party was effectively in a bubble, and there was no reasonable explanation for their waiting around for the exact day of this session. By the same token I had secretly decided that, had a major fight been unable to conclude within the session, I would pause time between sessions and allow the fight to conclude next session. In the end this contingency was not required, and the gods of the BROSR were not greatly offended.
The roster meant that the players of Fluid, Sheamus, and Giuseppe each had two characters present. With the prospect of a significant haul of treasure, this was no trivial matter; it was resolved by allocating various secondary tasks to the additional characters. A player absent the previous session was offered a character from the human prisoners in the cube and graciously accepted.
In session 96, the party travelled to the firenewt city of Cthugarak. They used captured brooches, an introductory letter, and Sheamus disguised as a Fire Giant to gain entry and participate in the monthly sacrifice to Lord Inferno, ending the session in a cube in area 1 of his lair. As noted in that session report, timing was an important factor: the sacrifice corresponded with the full moon on the real-world calendar. For the first time, I allowed only the days actually used for downtime to pass before the next session began; the party was effectively in a bubble, and there was no reasonable explanation for their waiting around for the exact day of this session. By the same token I had secretly decided that, had a major fight been unable to conclude within the session, I would pause time between sessions and allow the fight to conclude next session. In the end this contingency was not required, and the gods of the BROSR were not greatly offended.
The roster meant that the players of Fluid, Sheamus, and Giuseppe each had two characters present. With the prospect of a significant haul of treasure, this was no trivial matter; it was resolved by allocating various secondary tasks to the additional characters. A player absent the previous session was offered a character from the human prisoners in the cube and graciously accepted.
Timekeeping
This session began on February 5th 2026, with the player characters adventuring from the 3rd of February. Downtime for these characters begins on the 4th of February.
Player Characters Present
Sever the Wrathful (Level 10 Pegasus Corps Ranger Lord of Machodor, wielder of Were'shbane and the Rod of Lordly Might, wearer of the Girdle of Cloud Giant Strength, rider of Mustang) with henchman Thomas (C7), Poindexter (M6), and Rabbit (FMT556)Slippery Pete (Level 10 Master Thief, wearer of the Hat of Disguise and wielder of the Black Dagger)Fluid the Druid (Level 9 Druid, "Scourge of Trollopulous", former wearer of the Ring of Kings, current wearer of the Cloak of Druidish Awesomeness)Sheamus (Level 9 Irish Fighter Lord from Brovenloft, rider of the Rocket Cycle and wielder of the Drewblade)Giuseppe (Level 8 Paladin of Rome, Brovenloft, wielder of Sanctus Draconis Interfector and the Shield of Protection from Missiles, rider of Bonecrusher) with henchmen Bishoy (F6), Tawadros (F6), Steelvein (F6), Rhoikos (M6)Karshe (Fighter Level 6, wielder of the Military Trident, Machodor order of the rising sun)Marty O'Tool (Level 5 Cleric, wielder of the Mace of Saint Patrick and the Aegis of the Dire Wolf)Marco Valtieri (Fighter Level 4, formerly of Sir Troland's guard at Castle Irish)
Downtime
While confined to the cube for several days, the party investigated and interrogated their fellow sacrifices: a group of humans and three Firenewts from disparate noble houses — Thalrek, a disgraced Ignisalam priest; Ssethkar, a Scorchviper slave from the outcast quarter; and Vesthra, a female Pyrotoad alchemist. The heroes left no method of interrogation untried: Sever used intimidation, Giuseppe persuasion, Sheamus conversation, and Fluid flirtation.
They found that summoning magic such as create food and water did not function inside the cube, if they did not get out they would starve. At one point they overheard a one-sided battle taking place somewhere beyond the cube's walls. Vyrisara tormented Giuseppe with nightly visions, though the paladin kept this to himself.
Karshe passed along intelligence gathered by his henchman I.T. — wrung from the robot head looted from the Pizza Slice of Doom — concerning the association of various characters with elemental affinities, particularly fire. It sounded important, but what did it mean?
Finally Thalrek provided information that led them to remember this from Machodor session 13.
"That fungus, which until now the PCs had been very careful not to let touch their skin, was landing in clumps all over the place… the fungus immediately sank into any exposed skin; but the only effect they could notice was a reduction in any surface abrasions they may have already had. Then the penny dropped: the fungus was healing them… somehow, exposure to the magical living fire had granted the fungus these unusual properties."
The key discovery was that Sever, Slippery Pete, Giuseppe, and Sheamus each possess an affinity with the Living Fire — traceable to that long-ago exposure to the fungus — which allowed them to step into the brazier of living flame in the cube, transport back to Cthugarak's Island of Sacrifice, and return. They also discovered they could share this ability with another person by holding hands at the moment of entry.
Sever: "Sever will try to hold hands in a very masculine and non-gay way and escort his henchmen through the portal."
DM: "This works! You immediately release hands and avoid eye contact."
Session Report
Thalrek, eager to make himself useful, explained that only the "rubes of the Bandit Mountains" thought that "Lord Inferno" was a name that referred to the red dragon. It was actually a title that belonged to the dragon's master, the efreeti prince Za'rathul. This worthy had not been seen for over a century but was reputed to be the founder of Cthugarak. The name of the dragon they had spent so long hunting was in fact Vyrathax.
After taking all that in, they were still trapped in the cube and so put their minds to that issue. Realising that they had seen far more sacrifices than were here with them, they concluded that there must be more than one such cube. So, the characters travelled back down to the island once again and tried to "will" themselves to appear elsewhere in the lair. It worked, they found themselves in a cube — but a different one. Here they found a similar assortment of humans and other creatures, and the adventures brought the humans back to their cube. Karshe was put in charge of keeping watch for those who might prove hostile.
They repeated this process until they arrived in a cube that was empty. One wall, however, opened onto a larger area beyond; at the far end, the wall was pierced by what appeared to be a "door" of living fire.
The dimensions of the open area — about 100 by 100 feet — implied that all six cubes had one face bordering it. The previous occupants of this cube had gone through the opening and had been killed and eaten in the open area; it called to mind the sounds of one-sided battle they had overheard from within their own cube.
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| Za'rathul the Efreeti Prince |
Giuseppe and Sever approached the "door" and examined it before attempting to go through. It seemed that their affinity with the Living Fire allowed them to pass. Beyond was a cavernous hall (area 2), the far wall of which was a continuous vertical river of molten lava. Vast basalt pillars rose to an unseen ceiling. At the exact centre stood an enormous throne of obsidian and hammered gold, twenty feet tall. Before the throne burned another brazier with living fire.
On the throne sat a powerful efreeti. The figure looked directly at them but gave no sign that it saw them — at first. Was this Za'rathul?
"Mortal offerings," his voice boomed, echoing from stone and lava alike: "You stand before Za'rathul, Lord Inferno and Herald of Cthugha. Kneel… or burn."
The figure took no further action. They retreated to tell the others what they had found.
Unsure what to do next, Giuseppe attempted to issue a mental challenge through Sanctus Draconis Interfector, daring Vyrisara to come and face him.
This alerted Vyrisara, who knew that Giuseppe possessed a connection with Echellet and herself via one fragment of the holy sword — but not that he now carried it whole. She came out of area 5 through a secret door into area 2 and set up to attack them, hiding behind a pillar and using audible glamour and phantasmal force to create a convincingly real image of Echellet standing before the doorway.
Invisible, the party came back into the throne room ready to fight. Before we went on, I realised that a misconception required clearing up: the heat cloaks obtained from the Firenewts did not provide true protection from fire, as resist fire or protection from fire would. The cloaks were sufficient to dull the ambient heat of the city, but no more than that. With two mid-level clerics and a druid, they had plenty of such spells to go around. With this correction out of the way, the adventurers ensured that everyone — except, tragically as it would turn out, Marco — had this protection.
Returning to the throne room, Giuseppe was immediately confronted with the illusion of Echellet, pleading with him to hand over his sword: "...and it will all be over." The heroes were not persuaded to buy what she was selling.
I missed an opportunity here to play this enemy more effectively, Vyrisara could have had fire charm running on the throne room brazier at the outset, which would have dramatically complicated the party's approach. Instead, I gave them a 1-in-6 chance of spotting where she was hiding; one character succeeded, and her ruse was over.
Giuseppe brandished Sanctus Draconis Interfector and Vyrisara recoiled:
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Combat#1: Vyrisara
Rounds: 1
Result: Party win
Highlights: “It cannot be! That sword… it was broken! Luigi’s bane lies in fragments! How… how do you wield it whole?!
The main front line of Sever, Giuseppe, and Sheamus charged Vyrisara. Giuseppe used his holy sword's ability to excorcise the connection between the dragon and Echellet, while the others slashed away at her suddenly soulless husk.
It was over in one round; but a very damaging round it was, the dragon was wreathed in living fire, which acted like a fire shield spell — inflicting double the damage received on her attackers. Even with their fire protection spells, the heroes were taking damage equivalent to what they were inflicting.During the fight Rabbit tried to backstab the efreeti and realised that the seated figure of Za'rathul was only an illusion.
After sufficient healing, Giuseppe concentrated and Sanctus Draconis Interfector indicated the presence of a dragon directly ahead, in the direction of the lava wall. Perhaps there was a room beyond? To reach it they would need to pass through either the living fire door to the east or the open secret door to the west. They chose east and passed into area 3, the laboratory. The heroes decided not to investigate the laboratory itself, which was behind a locked door and in the opposite direction of the dragon signal, but pushed on through the next fire door into what was clearly a great treasure room (area 4).
"Steps lead down from the doorway into a veritable lake of coins, depth unknown: there must be millions of them. Scattered among the coins are statues, weapons, chests, and countless other items. Directly ahead, atop the hoard, reclines a colossal red dragon — scales like fresh-forged armour, wings folded, eyes closed in sleep. The dragon's chest rises and falls in slow, deep rhythm."
Already alert to illusions, Giuseppe was not taking the scene at face value. He once again used his sword and sensed a dragon ahead, but further ahead than the one he could see. The treasure room consisted of six interlocking caverns, any one of which could hide the dragon. A d6 roll had determined that Vyrathax was sleeping at the furthest reaches of the chamber — in a straight line with Giuseppe and the decoy illusion.
The heroes fanned out but found the footing treacherous, the coins shifting underfoot with every step. Per the standard dragon rules, each round brought a 1-in-6 chance of Vyrathax waking. But the party yelled a challenge; the dragon awoke and cast ventriloquism, then proceeded to taunt them while continuing to build his defences: mirror image, enlarge, haste. Slippery Pete snuck around to where the voice was coming from but found nothing. The psychological battle was going the dragon's way.
Then Sheamus yelled out: "We killed your *@%&$!"
I rolled 2d6 to determined the success of the taunt. With a result of 12, the dragon reaction was fury.
Combat #2: Vyrathax
Rounds: 5+1
Result: Party win
Highlights: “My mate. My queen. The Ashen Queen lies dead!? You shall all burn in the everlasting fire!”With that, Vyrathax sprang from beneath the treasure pile and attacked. Then everything happened at once — initiative was tied. What looked like four enlarged dragons launched themselves into the centre of the room and filled the area with flaming breath. Protection spells saved most from instant immolation — but not Marco, who was burned to ash where he stood; incoming arrows were incinerated in the same breath. Giuseppe's sword provided complete protection.
Attacks from Sever, Sheamus, and Giuseppe rained down, but the mirror images did their job and much of the damage was wasted. From the flank, Slippery Pete hurled a flask of toxic material recovered from the Pizza Slice of Doom. A desperate throw at long range; he rolled a 20, only for the flask to sail through a mirror image and splash harmlessly below. That image was gone, however, and that proved decisive; the follow-up attacks from Giuseppe, Sheamus, and Sever brought the dragon to zero, while the Living Fire's damage shield simultaneously drove the party's own hit points to critical lows. The fight was over in a single round. Had there been a second, several heroes would not have survived it.
Giuseppe, forewarned of terrible traps in the area, advanced into the next room. There lay the real Echellet, on a bed near a strange gem suspended in a crystal container.
Her eyelids fluttered open: "Giuseppe…"
So ended a sequence that had begun with Echellet's capture in 2024. This session was the culmination of many threads and no small amount of downtime. It felt good. The campaign story would continue, of course; at a minimum there was treasure to loot. With no prospect of returning to civilisation after the trials of the day, the party occupied the chamber and rested.
Session Statistics:
Wilderness travel: 0 Miles
Downtime begins on: 05/02/26
Combats: 2
Rooms mapped: 4
Combat rounds: 7
Losses: Marco
Combats: 2
Rooms mapped: 4
Combat rounds: 7
Losses: Marco
Treasure & Items
Monsters
Vyrisara
Vyrathax
Rating (E,S,F,P), 0 XP & 0 GP Assignment
Sever (E)
and Thomas (E)
and Poindexter (E)
and Rabbit (E)
Slippery Pete (E)
Fluid (E)
Sheamus (E)
Giuseppe (E)
and Bishoy (E)
and Tawadros (E)
and Steelvein (E)
and Rhoikos (E)
Graveyard
Marco Valtieri (Fighter Level 4), immolated and burnt to a crisp by Vyrathax in Lord Inferno's Lair in session #146
Oblate (Illusionist Level 3), killed and eaten by the Nathruk in the Skalrath in session #140
Eniac (Magic-User level 1), killed by a poisoned Grothak spear in session #137
Rhoikos (Henchman Magic-User level 4), smashed by a Mummy fist in session #126. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Thomas (Henchman Cleric level 6), Killed by a Symbol of Death in session #126. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Josef Ironbeard (Dwarf Fighter level 1), Killed by a Symbol of Death in session #126.
Matthias Steelvein (Henchman Fighter level 4), Killed by a Symbol of Death in session #126. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Sever the Wrathful (Ranger level 9), Killed by two pains in the Annis in session #122. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Anri (Henchman Magic-User level 4), found dead with a ghastly chest wound in the Ice Castle, with her heart missing she was unable to be revived, in downtime after session #122
Symeon (Henchman Cleric level 2), Only strong enough to wear studded leather, he was torn to shreds by Troglodytes in session #121
Paul (Henchman Paladin level 3) Effected by the Imprisonment spell touch attack from a Styx Devil in session #117. Might not be dead, but is definitely at least six feet under for all intents and purposes.
Gurt the Green (Paladin level 6) killed by a poison needle trap in session #114 RAISED FROM THE DEAD (with a roll of 94!)
Solaire the Fallen (Henchman Fighter (paladin) level 3) killed by Stone Giants acting as catapults in session #114
Paul (Henchman Paladin level 1), reduced to 0 hit points by white dragon breath when climbing down a rope ladder in session #108. Killed not by the fall; but by the sudden stop at the bottom. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Ignatius the Smiter (Cleric level 1), horrifically mutilated and killed by double hit from a Shoggoth in session #106
Domby (Henchman with Dex 5), double surprised and turned into a pin cushion in session #87
Luke (Half elf Fighter/Cleric level 1), tragically killed by a normal hydra while trying to cauterise one of its neck stumps in session #86
Gurt the Green (Paladin level 3), killed by a hydra bite in session #86 RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Pleasance (Footman level 0), killed by a phase spider bite in session #81
Siegward (Henchman Fighter level 1), killed by a phase spider bite in session #81
Tawadros (Henchman Fighter level 4), killed by a phase spider bite in session #81 RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Patria (Footman level 0), killed by a two headed snake bite in session #81
Deltacron (Dwarf Fighter/Thief level 1/1), threw his last flask of oil at, and was level drained to death by, a Vampire in session #76
Petrov the Prestidigitator (Magic-user level 1), wrong place, wrong time; killed by Sever the Ranger in session #72 RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Petrov the Prestidigitator (Magic-user level 1), killed again by the toxic gas of an Achaierai in session #72
Red (Paladin Level 1), always popular with the ladies, he was eaten up by a female Roc in the Pizza Slice of Doom during session #67
Jacques Ocular (Magic User level 1), a fat green worm burrowed into his head and turned him into a Son Of Kyuss in Brovenloft in Session #43
Pino (Dwarf Footman level 0), Killed by a Frost Giant axe to the head in session #39
Paro (Dwarf Fighter/Thief level 2/2) Killed by Winter Wolves and frozen in session #39
Zabib (1/2 Elf Fighter/Magic User level 1/1), Killed by Frost Giant rocks in downtime prior to session #39
Marco Valtieri (Fighter Level 4), immolated and burnt to a crisp by Vyrathax in Lord Inferno's Lair in session #146
Oblate (Illusionist Level 3), killed and eaten by the Nathruk in the Skalrath in session #140
Eniac (Magic-User level 1), killed by a poisoned Grothak spear in session #137
Rhoikos (Henchman Magic-User level 4), smashed by a Mummy fist in session #126. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Thomas (Henchman Cleric level 6), Killed by a Symbol of Death in session #126. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Josef Ironbeard (Dwarf Fighter level 1), Killed by a Symbol of Death in session #126.
Matthias Steelvein (Henchman Fighter level 4), Killed by a Symbol of Death in session #126. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Sever the Wrathful (Ranger level 9), Killed by two pains in the Annis in session #122. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Anri (Henchman Magic-User level 4), found dead with a ghastly chest wound in the Ice Castle, with her heart missing she was unable to be revived, in downtime after session #122
Symeon (Henchman Cleric level 2), Only strong enough to wear studded leather, he was torn to shreds by Troglodytes in session #121
Paul (Henchman Paladin level 3) Effected by the Imprisonment spell touch attack from a Styx Devil in session #117. Might not be dead, but is definitely at least six feet under for all intents and purposes.
Gurt the Green (Paladin level 6) killed by a poison needle trap in session #114 RAISED FROM THE DEAD (with a roll of 94!)
Solaire the Fallen (Henchman Fighter (paladin) level 3) killed by Stone Giants acting as catapults in session #114
Paul (Henchman Paladin level 1), reduced to 0 hit points by white dragon breath when climbing down a rope ladder in session #108. Killed not by the fall; but by the sudden stop at the bottom. RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Ignatius the Smiter (Cleric level 1), horrifically mutilated and killed by double hit from a Shoggoth in session #106
Domby (Henchman with Dex 5), double surprised and turned into a pin cushion in session #87
Luke (Half elf Fighter/Cleric level 1), tragically killed by a normal hydra while trying to cauterise one of its neck stumps in session #86
Gurt the Green (Paladin level 3), killed by a hydra bite in session #86 RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Pleasance (Footman level 0), killed by a phase spider bite in session #81
Siegward (Henchman Fighter level 1), killed by a phase spider bite in session #81
Tawadros (Henchman Fighter level 4), killed by a phase spider bite in session #81 RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Patria (Footman level 0), killed by a two headed snake bite in session #81
Deltacron (Dwarf Fighter/Thief level 1/1), threw his last flask of oil at, and was level drained to death by, a Vampire in session #76
Petrov the Prestidigitator (Magic-user level 1), wrong place, wrong time; killed by Sever the Ranger in session #72 RAISED FROM THE DEAD
Petrov the Prestidigitator (Magic-user level 1), killed again by the toxic gas of an Achaierai in session #72
Red (Paladin Level 1), always popular with the ladies, he was eaten up by a female Roc in the Pizza Slice of Doom during session #67
Jacques Ocular (Magic User level 1), a fat green worm burrowed into his head and turned him into a Son Of Kyuss in Brovenloft in Session #43
Pino (Dwarf Footman level 0), Killed by a Frost Giant axe to the head in session #39
Paro (Dwarf Fighter/Thief level 2/2) Killed by Winter Wolves and frozen in session #39
Zabib (1/2 Elf Fighter/Magic User level 1/1), Killed by Frost Giant rocks in downtime prior to session #39
