36

End of Sunblight
Xardorok Sunblight gloated in religious fervor, basking in the completion of his Chardalyn Dragon in honor of a false god. Our party cleared his hallways, thick with blood of both Muzgardt and Sunblight duergar before facing the warlock king in his forge. MALEVOLENCE PROTOCOL ENGAGED. With the dragon reprogrammed to take flight, Tetro, Oona, Fern, Crank, Gadget, and Azgul routed the vanguard of duergar hammerers and quaggoth soldiers. Sussur branch jutting from an impaled eye, Xardorok transmogrified, body turning to chardalyn as dark magicks tore apart the foundry. Whatever remaining lifeblood spilling, Xardorok died in agony. Quickly tending to the wounded and freeing prisoners, the Heroes of the Cairn consider the calamity now flying towards Ten Towns.

Sunblight Fortress: Versus Xardorok

#ADuergarPlot There was a chance that Muzgardt aligned duergar resided on the forge level, and it would be better to have their help sooner than later. Fern donned the hat of disguise, masking herself as a duergar soldier. Putting on her best gray dwarf impersonation, she went to pry around the barracks. There were at least a dozen of them, several duergar playing cards with many more in their quarters. After a confused duergar began to prod a bit at her presence, she made an excuse to leave. Snooping around the forge watch towers nearest to them, she was able to suss out that one of the three at each post was Olpha's plant. Returning to Olpha's chambers, the old dwarf princess and her right hand Ulkin said they were running out of time; the soldiers in the command level were about to dine and a shift may head below.
#ADuergarPlot The forge level barracks had to be dealt with, decided Crank. Back by Oona and the others, they waltzed in and flashed the Muzgardt symbol. It took some persuasion but quickly duergar were taking arms against duergar in a battle royale. Gadget dispatched several with a thunderwave, whose blast brought the attention of the duergar on the guard towers. Mopping up the remnants, the party had added a cadre of bruised but determined Muzgardt soldiers to their ranks. While regrouping, Crank crept down a tower walkway, taking in the full view of the dragon heart forge from which pools of molten chardalyn flowed. Present below were two armed guard towers, a cabal of quaggoths, and Xardorok Sunblight, standing near his gargantuan obsession, the Chardalyn Dragon. Xardorok's eye met Crank's as the monk stepped back to inform the party to get ready.
#battle #ADuergarPlot #DestructionsLight Our heroes stormed the forge through every possible avenue. Crank jumped into the pit and rushed for Xardorok Sunblight, Azgul and Tetro fired spells from the cleared guard towers, Fern masked their casters with darkness, Gadget led the vanguard of Muzgardt duergar, and Oona flanked the quaggoth warriors through the Temple of Deep Duerra. An enemy forewoman rushed to the Chardalyn Dragon's iron service platform but was enwebbed and died in flames. Xardorok, briefly stunned by the bugbear monk, went invisible and began monologuing to the interloping heroes about his imminent victory. As the party lost sight of him, they cut through several more quaggoth until they heard the click of a lever. Through the hiss of steam, the dragon spoke NEW DATE. TONIGHT IS THE FEAST OF THE MOON. PREPARING SYSTEMS FOR ANNIHILATION. Xardorok had reset his dragon to attack this evening, though the true Feast of the Moon lie two nights ahead. HOSTILITIES DETECTED. MALEVOLENCE PROTOCOL ENGAGED. A radiant beam disintegrated two duergar and felled Olpha before the dragon clawed up the exit shaft, pushing off towards Ten Towns.
#battle #ADuergarPlot Picking themselves up, our heroes pushed back as three duergar hammerer units made their way from the far side of the forge. Olpha polymorphed a duergar into a chicken atop one guard tower, inspiring her comrades up top to fight back. The front lines of the quaggoths began to fall under the pressure on the main floor. Alit by Tetro's shooting star, a bloodied Xardorok's eye stumbled as Crank shoved a sussur branch into his eye. It shattered, as eye puss trickled down, and he began to cackle. Enlarging himself in an agonizing shout, chardalyn growths rapidly spurted from his flesh. Xardorok, subject to the sussur branch's influence, had little control over what happened next. Pillars of earth randomly erupted. Gadget and Ulkin were pinned to the ceiling, some 30 feet high, and Azgul dodged away from a tower of the black earth as he was shut out from the guard tower. The numbers soon turned on Sunblight, however, and he died in rapture, as Azgul's spectral servant severed the last chords binding his soul to his flesh.
#DestructionsLight Quickly tending to the wounded and freeing prisoners, including the goliath Kapanuk Talltree, the Heroes of the Cairn consider the calamity now flying towards Ten Towns.

XP

Total XP: 20401

2100 ~ #ADuergarPlot COMPLETE

Loot

❮ 35 · Chronicles · 37 ❯

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