(G261 15/01/2016 via Roll20 - Guru(GM), JF, AP, Mira)(5e 4)

(G261 15/01/2016  via Roll20 - Guru(GM), JF, AP, Mira)(5e 4)

[JF - I joined the game later on, at 10pm.]

The Further Adventures of Random in the Castle of the Vampires!

DAY 4 continued..

In the morning after a big breakfast Random headed down to the gates again to shoot the breeze with his friends the gargoyles.

After hanging out for about half an hour to his utter amazement he saw the large form of Skeldrog the half-orc lumbering up the road, like a mobile weapon's rack, in the company of a short figure in a  hooded cloak.

At the gates they greeted each other and the short figure was introduced as a high elf called Ara. Ara had blonde hair and white eyes.

Skeldrog informed Random that he had been working for Logos, the God of Intelligence and went on to explain all about his adventures involving dragons and elves. Random could hardly take it in. Skeldrog even let Random know he had a secret scrying orb under his cloak that he had got from Logos somehow.

Random worked his charm on the gargoyles and they let his friends come in once it had been cleared with Varus. He lead them into the castle and then the servants quarters where he introduced them to Rodger the Robber. Soon they were scheming away on how to rob Ormund the Head Mage, something that Ara, a goodly elf, was not altogether happy about.

Random told them what he knew, that Ormund kept the skull, the book and the wand in the Arcanium and explained in simple terms how the castle was structured. Once they had the beginnings of a plan they started putting it into effect.

Rodger went outside to scout the gardens around the Arcanium and Skeldrog befriended a messenger  boy called Jonathan while Random started up a card game and used it as cover to get information from the servants. He found out that all the servants had silver badges that identified what area they worked in and then Skeldrog asked Jonathan if he could get some and the useful young lad said he would see what he could do.

The card game continued and Random got information about the contents of the Arcanium from an old lady, details that made his treasure taste buds tingle in anticipation. One hundred identical necklaces, a room full of crystal balls, an armoury, the blood pool, all places the woman knew of as she dusted and cleaned them. He also learned that the library, where the book most likely was, was attended to by a higher class of servant that kept themselves above the regular lot and were a closed group.

A little later on Rodger returned and told them he had discovered a chute that opened out above a sort of charnel pit that was emptied by the gardeners. All sorts of unpleasant stuff was thrown down it and he thought it would perhaps be useful for getting the items out of the Arcanium to be picked up by an accomplice in the gardens.

Random and Rodger spent some time thinking about how to get their hands on some Arcanium badges but when Jonathan came back he had two which he gave to a delighted Skeldrog. Jonathan explained he had found them in the laundry and they would have to go back later in the day.

In the privacy of their room Skeldrog used his Scrying orb to follow a female librarian from the servants quarters to the Arcanium but it took him more than one attempt to finally get a hold of her and after each failed attempt he had to wait an hour. Finally though he got her and could see the library. However, the walls and bookcases were blurred, as if protected from Scrying somehow.

Next he followed a blood donor (human cattle) to the blood pool but the orb stopped working at the entrance. It did give him a good idea of the lay out of the Arcanium wing though.

Random nodded and stood up. It was time for phase two. It would start as a scouting mission but perhaps turn into the heist if the got lucky. Rodger and Ara went into the Arcanium, the gargoyles seeing the badges and letting them enter.. Meanwhile Random and Skeldrog hid by the chute just incase those inside found something of interest.

Rodger skulked off by himself and Ara went to the library. All the books were in a languages he didn't understand and while he was wondering how on earth he was going to find the book they needed the librarians started to get suspicious. He walked away from them into another part of the library and with the agility of an elf leapt up onto a bookcase and hid there. Curiously he found a small jewelled spider with a purple gem in it. Wondering what it was he put his hand out...

..and the next thing he knew he was back at the servants quarters with the book that Varus wanted! Quite at a loss to explain what happened he went to the gang's room as quickly as he could and hid there to await their return.

Meanwhile, Random and Skeldrog were at the chute when suddenly a sack plopped down into the pit. Skeldrog fished it out and it contained;

17 rings
5 bags of magical powders
a Crown fitted with rubies
a map of the Arcanium
a spider-ornament with a black onyx as its abdomen

'Good lad, Rodger!', exclaimed Random and quickly stuffed the bag up behind his cloak.

Later they all met up again, at the stables this time, and while they stuffed the loot they had collected so far up inside the chest cavities of Varus's undead horses they planned their next move.

Rodger had discovered that Ormund had his rooms next to the Blood Chamber and that it was there that they may find the skull and the wand. From the map he had found they also knew that from there a set of stairs lead down to a series of tunnels under the castle.

Since Ormund was currently attending the Queen now was a good time to move onto the next, most  dangerous, phase of the plan.

'Huddle up.', whispered Random to the others, 'This is how it's going to go down...'