The party starts out fortifying the forge against future attack for a while. Meanwhile, Kenisha organizes a Clever Plan inside. She sneaks out again to find that the party unconscious and stripped of weapons -- they decided to treacherously attack a Spider Mage, which responded with unexpected kindness by *only* stripping the party of weapons, physical matrices, and anything else which looked like a useful weapon or magical artifact. It's *all* gone except for what Kenisha was holding... and so are the mine carts. The party ended up passing out from lack of air, and waking up with a sign over their heads saying "Property of Water Tunnels; if Found, please Return; Postage Paid." The party talks for a **long** time about how to properly deal with all of this, usually at the same time as each other and on different topics. Eventually, they improvise some slings and prepare to have Jenna make some of them Insignificant and prop the doors open for the rest to attack. Jenna is recognized as Councillor Palpatine, but fails to be able to do anything creative, despite her insane skill in Illusion Art. She eventually intimidates a guard into letting her in, and heads straight for the suspended-animation area. Thwak and Kenisha start a revolt... a few moments later, the guards are all unconscious and placed outside the inner barred door. The outer door is unbarred, so the Spider Mages walk off with the unconscious guards. Unpleasant things happen to them. The party tells the smiths they're there, watches the non-Dwarf smiths knock out the dward smiths, and leaves them replanning for making a drill without access the outer forge. Eventually, the party finds the room-o-coffins in the Earth tunnels; there's a narrow shaft with a ladder going up to a tunnel running between a Camrish sewer and a cave near another town... with Dwarves running things and the Kaer's hornless collared trolls working as slave labor. Gilad freaks and cuts the *input* hose to the coffins. Everyone in the coffins starts dying. Some of the coffins turn out to contain slugs. Those demonstrate the ability to Damage Shift, but die when remove from the coffin hoses. An hour later: Dwarves present: 0 Elves: 2000 survive, negligable casuaulties Humans: 2500 live, 500 die T'skrang: 1500 live, 500 die Windlings: 250 live, 250 die Orks: 200 live, negligable casualties Trolls: only two there: Speaks-with-stone and the SkyRaider captain. Both survive. All 500ish Adepts made it. About then, the Goatriders show up. The party mostly panics, but Steven points at them and shouts "Get them!" Less than a second later, they're all extremely dead. 500 adepts vs. 7... it's gruesome. Some of the Adepts even appear to summon Grues. While this is happening, Thwak and Kenisha have run after Gilad, socked him over the head, poisoned him, and dragged him back. The party discusses ways to deal with this, and eventually decides on a frontal assault with as many large, stealthless, vincible party members as possible. Gilad, Thwak, Donk, and Steven jog down the hall while the rest of the party (Jenna, Tristian) actually *do* pick a fight with the 500 adepts, attempting to knock out a tainted elementalist the party had been using as a bulldozer. There are hundreds to a thousand of Dwarves in this town, The Thystonius Boys and their friends, led by an incredibly stealthy Captain Donk, sneak up to the slave pen. Steven recognizes that it's made of living Thorn Mandrake vines, so the party tries to find a way around it -- there's a big lock on the chain holding the doors shut. The party starts freeing the trolls, realizes they're mind controlled to resist that, and gets into a brawl. They bonk one and start running, but Gilad goes off to start killing slavers. He slaughters a family, but Mommy of them turns out to be a Warrior. She kicks his ass, breaks his arm, half rips it off, and then her head explodes -- Steven intentionally set off the Mandrake vines outside, which shriek to kill/drive mad most people there. Donk falls to the ground comatose from the shriek and is dragged inside for questioning. Steven runs into the tunnel, preceded by Thwak and the surviving 25 Trolls. As they get to the bottom of the ladder and start wreaking havoc, Thwak calls out to the heavens and offers his soul for the power to free them from bondage. The party will be finding out exactly what price he paid next session. GM To-do notes: * Mail Gilad and Donk about their dispositions and rolling up new characters as necessary. 2*CP 1 Here 1 ! Defeated (kenisha only) 1 XRP: Andy 2*XP 1 Physician: Steven, Jenna 4*LP 1 Cleverness: Steven 2 Success 3 Danger N Q 1 AID: Kenisha, Donk 1 Legendary Propaganda (Troubadour Effect): Tristian Donk "What was the last thing you remember before waking up?" '...A strong distaste for salt' --Party, mage from tanks. "Hey, I haven't killed her son *yet*" --Gilad "Grappling a naked greased Troll..." --Jesse "I just gave him the power to do **what**?" --bts