Murdicog's Manse Session 4: Simultaneous Somnolence, Surprise Shrinkage, & a Sequestered Sartorial Sanctum
Date: Jan 7, 2026 (A.D.M. 26)
Players: Bekhtar Kothar (Jay_Zer0), Talvthus Alyval (oldhawkeyes), Osric of Sophalbelath (EvilTables), Buster Diamantis (Black Citadel Games)
Summary
At the end of the first week of year 26 A.D.M., four adventurers gathered in the village of Bar Udartophir, planning to venture deeper into Murdicog's Manse.
Once again, they entered the manse via the cave & used a goat carcass to distract the Dinicthys. Hoping to make use of the color-coded keys, they proceeded directly to the level below, fending off a Giant Spider on the way.
Upon arriving in the smoke-filled chamber of Hannibal Brompp, the adventurers found him to be less sanguine than before. When Osric prodded him with the tip of his spear & asked if he was real, Hannibal became incensed & demanded that the adventurers offer tribute & a formal apology.
Although Bekhtar & Talvthus were willing to scrape together 54gp as a peace offering, Osric decided to run for it, just barely ducking out of sight before Hannibal could use Ensorcel Person to make him grovel. Openly hostile at this point, Hannibal cast Spell of Somnolence on Osric's allies, but Bekhtar was able to work the same spell at the exact same time, causing everyone in the room to fall into a deep slumber.
Cautiously, Osric poked his head back into the room. He dispatched Hannibal with a proper spear thrust & woke his comrades, who stripped the Enchanter of his lavish blue robes, ornate jade hookah, & five pouches of valuable tobacco.
After disabling the spinning room trap, they explored knorth, where they encountered a fountain bubbling with purple goo & 2 skeletons. After dispatching the skeletons, Bekhtar drank deeply of the goo & shrank down to a height of 6". He would spend the rest of the adventure perched of Talvthus' shoulder.
Further knorth, they found a large cavern with metal cylinders & stairs leading up. Buster cast Read Languages to decipher ancient glyphs on the cylinders: HELIUM-3 - DEUTERIUM REACTION MASS CAUTION: CONTENTS UNDER PRESSURE.
Upstairs, they found a sewing room where Mercy Tachyon, blue Conjurer, hunched over a book of ancient dress patterns. Four Berserkers slumbered in the corner, apparently neutralized by a spell (& immediately slain by the party). A cordial, if somewhat disinterested, conversation ensued.
In the adjoining rooms, the adventurers encountered training dummies, 117 porcelain dolls (of which 32 were taken as loot), & four hollow clay figurines next to a kiln, one of which was taken. Though the rooms were thoroughly checked, no receptacles for any of Hannibal's keys were identified.
Hannibal's body was fed to the Dinicthys on the way out.
Aftermath
Treasure Found:
- Halifax Brompp's Jade Hookah: 150gp
- 5 pouches of rare tobacco: 3 from the fields of Xoth Ralath (300 total) & two mycelial strains imported from Batrachopolis in Bingabandari, (1,000gp total)
- 21gp from the dead Berserkers
- 3 unfinished dresses (225gp total)
- 32 porcelain dolls (32gp)
Total: 1724gp, divided four ways for 432gp each.
Foes Encountered: Giant Spider (fended off), Hannibal Brompp (slain), 2 Skeletons (slain), 2 Brigands (escaped), 4 Berserkers (slain)
Rumors: None?
Deaths: None
XP Awarded: 2724 total, base award of 681 XP each