MALCHOR'S DARK HOUSE - SESSION 2

The party moved around the busted-out floor and into hallway and north, in twenty feet busting open a door on the west wall, and propping it with a spike. They flood into the room, and as the lantern sets within the 30' x 30' room (58) fully, it reflects on a 10-feet-in-diameter sphere on sawhorses in the center of the room. Three sections are on the floor. Gilleegan gets up inside the sphere, which has a crimson felt lining. He wedges himself up in there, as Leif and Arnor pick up the three missing sphere pieces on the floor, and replace them, with Gill still inside.When the last piece snaps in place, the sphere starts to hum, then it rises a bit and the top starts to open, flowering out, rising in the middle, and where Gill is sitting now still among the unseen machine works, pops and drops 300 sp, 1000 gp, a gold bracelet, and a brass ring with a curvy glass design on the outside. After collecting the treasure, the party tries the door to the south, but ultimately can't get it opened, so they go back to the corridor to the east and then move northward.

Places explored so far by party on Level 2 of Malchor's Dark House. This write-up starts at top right (53), and ends in room at bottom right (78). Note that on this map, up is south, down is north.

The party continues north where they can see a room opening up ahead after 20', but then go down a corridor to the west and then further down this corridor north where they come into a room occupied by two Bugbears (69). As if caught in the act of something, the Bugbears seem surprised as the light of the party's lantern hits their faces. They stand, huge, pumpkin-headed. The party looks about the room and sees long, white robes hanging on the walls, some hooks and stands about, chairs, a few cots. The Bugbears stare, their heads flaming.

Bugbear, as drawn in OD&D supplement, Greyhawk. Drawn by Greg Bell.

The party moves toward the door on the north wall, and the Bugbears leave the room to the SE. As the Bugbears are leaving, and before the party totally exits, a number of the white robes are snagged. On the back of the robes is the symbol of the Dawnbringer. Opening the north door, our heroes come into a room that's in a Furthermoor way, a Planetarium (71). There's a long flat table/model at center that holds a topographical map of Furthermoor, and also, in a gravity mobile Calder-style the Seven Kushy Moons are slowly revolving around it, held by a mechanical arm at the middle. Leif takes an interest in the moons, and studying them, notices how one is painted red, while the other six are grey. The most interesting part of the map, other than the moons, is the fact that the map not only shows known Furthermoor, but also has a bit into the land of Kush, west of the Wall of the Endless Edge. Many in Furthermoor have heard of this land's existence, though few believe it actually does.

Next, the party bust their way through the east door and spike it, and as they moved into the room (70) the atmosphere changes, as suddenly they're in a tropical setting, looking north at a beach, sand, waves lapping in... A bit suspect, the party sends Bogwater, on a rope, to enter the water, and after wading in a bit, Bogwater drops down about five feet under the water, and on the floor of the drop is a floor of bones, animal and humanoid. He picks about the bones for about ten minutes or so, but finds nothing of interest.

As others enter the water they do not feel the water, just the drop-off to the bones (except for Leif), so a rope walkway is made to make it to a door on the north wall, that originally looked suspended above the water. Bogwater, the first there, is able to push the north door open, and as the others arrive, and they open it further and light the way, they see into a 30' x 30' room (76) with two tables, both stacked with maps. Most of the party is eager to move on, either through the door at north or east, but Leif holds them up so he can study the maps, and after a good looking over, is able to surmise how each table carries similar maps surrounding a different location: that is, two main theoretical locations of where the Dawnbringer once landed, perhaps bringing Orcs to Furthermoor. The party snag a map from each table, and then bed down in the room, and decide on a watch at 8:40pm. Leif studies his spell book for two hours within this time, as the others fall asleep.

With no intrusions over the night, the party wakes and moves at 5 AM, relighting the lantern, and passing through the door to the north. They spiral about the corridors to the north a bit and Leif exclaims in Elvish, "This place is huge! (for a house)," then moving NW they come into a 30 x 30' room that has shelves lining the walls, all filled with trophies displaying a dog on the top. In the middle of the room (78) is a large version of what is seen atop each trophy, up on a post of about four feet: a gold-painted dog with big ears flopped down. At the base of the post, it reads: Toby.

Next thing the party knows, three Orcs come busting into the room from a door at the NW. Gilleegan attempts to lure them from the room, perhaps to chase him, but the Orcs stay put, perhaps over-confident, but sizing up the party and standing their ground with machetes. Gill then wraps around as if to talk with one, and then surprise slices an Orc, and battle ensues.

The second Orc blunders after swinging at Bogwater, missing, its machete sticking into the dog statue at the middle of the room. He is then promptly slain. After that it was number three that took Leif's "White Knife" to the throat, decapitation style, quick and easy and terrible, blood spewing all about the nearby dog trophies.

The party searches the three Orcs and finds 29 gp, a letter in orcish, and a fish w/ a green eye wrapped, as if for delivery. 

It's 6:00 AM.