In attendance were;
Kumak Morudall: Half-Orc Bloodrager
Tiberius: Human Paladin of Sarenrae
Susan: Human Universalist Wizard
Thaddeus Whisperheart: Gnome Trickster
Orik and Kumak spend the next several minutes claiming coins, gems and a magically enchanted amulet from the floor of the pool. The large golden helmet is too large to fit through the doors but Kumak swims below and with much difficulty finds the exit the giant crab was about to use and determines they can move the helmet through this exit. Susan casts a spell to assist in detecting any secret doors that the group may have missed before leaving Thistletop and indeed finds one nearby, a door hidden behind a wall made to look like a pile of coins. After determining the activation method the group proceeds up to the main floor finding no additional secrets. Tiberius busys himself with burying Black Jack then sits with Shalelu and Villister in a huff and refuses to speak with the group so they return to the secret door. Searching beyond they find a strange communication room, and what appears to be a torture room. Finally they come to the final door which Susan identifies as having strong abjuration cast on it. Either meant to provide protection or containment the group checks once again with Tiberius before opening the door.
A small burning fire pit dominates the center of the room but nothing else is seen. Kumak uses his newly uncovered arcane blood to enlarge himself and steps inside with Orik, bastard swords ready. Suddenly a large paw swipes at Kumak landing a good hit. Kumak swings back but misses and the large beast which Susan will later identify as some kind of barghest unleashes a devestating barrage on the half-orc who remains standing purely on rage. Kumak orders Orik to flee and while the mercenary does so he only withdraws enough to allow Kumak to pass by. Quickly losing blood Kumak has no choice but to withdraw and flee back along the corridors calling for everyone to run. Thaddeus trusts that the creature is bound to this room somehow and once it does not follow appears proven right. Kumak downs a moderate healing potion to bring him back from deaths door and collapses in a heap panting. Tiberius walks down at this point and derides the group for bothering him before he once again returns upstairs. Kumak asks the rest to close the doors and return later to face this thing then heads upstairs to deal with Tiberius. Asking Villister for any healing magic the cleric has remaining Kumak listens to the cleric and paladin chide him back and forth over whether or not this group deserves any healing based off their actions before he interrupts and points out Tiberius's conduct including throwing the recently slain corpse of Nualia from room to room as bait and his apparent blind trust of Lyrie, who up until this group had forcibly taken her prisoner was on track to be complicit if not involved in the slaughter of town of Sandpoint, while he deems Thaddeus beyond salvation. That it was Villister's uncharacteristic refusal to lend aid to Kumak that led to Villister not being considered to heal Black Jack so that they could interrogate him. A long drawn out conversation is had between the 3 before it is decided the group will discuss the matters of our prisoners, temperament, and future. Then Villister relents and heals Kumak.
While the conversation is happening above, another more sinister one occurs below. Not heeding any warnings, Thaddeus approaches the now closed doorway with Orik in tow. Hearing a deep voice in his head asking "Who are you?" Thaddeus pries for information back. Suddenly the door begins to open again and rather than its pseudo wolf form, the barghest appears as an enormous goblin. Asking Thaddeus several questions in first common, then goblin, the barghest finally asks something in a language that the gnome shows no recognition in then chants something in that language. Thaddeus realizing that this beast has been one of the gnomes truest friends eagerly accepts its invitation to step inside to talk. It is only Oriks timely intervention that saves the gnome from becoming a meal, thwarted the beast unleashes some kind of area attack that rouses Thaddeus from his charm and with Susan and Lyrie shooting magical blasts the creature identifying itself as Malfeshnekor removes the key from inside the room. As the doors begin to close Lyrie magically shatters the key in Malfshnekors hand. The creature is taken aback for a moment before it snarls in rage and ineffectually flails against the invisible bonds that hold it in the room.
The team regroups upstairs and Kumak, Thaddeus, Tiberius and Susan move to the side to discuss their future together if any. In the end it is settled that some bending on all fronts will be required. Orik and Lyrie will be taken back to Sandpoint. Orik will be presented to Sheriff Hemlock and will work as a deputy with full pay for a period of 1 year to earn his freedom. The hope is that in living among the people of Sandpoint he will feel a connection to them and even if he should leave would not pose these people a threat. Lyrie will be presented to Broderik Quint the local Thassalonian expert, Kumak suggests she remain under some sort of house arrest that will ease over time and her spell book be provided under scrutiny of Susan or another designated chaperone. That her exact spells prepared be known until she demonstrates she is no threat to the group or Sandpoint.
Thoughts,
This was another weird game. A lot of time was spent towards the end out of character arguing between players and between players and GM. The paladins player claimed that Thaddeus had so wronged him that he did not see anyway forward under the current form he could continue with the gnome. When asked why the paladin was best friends with both people who up until hours ago were about to murder an entire town, but the gnome who had willingly fought side by side with the paladin to stop it was so bad, because he played stupid jokes like pretended to be Sarenrae speaking to him, in a mans voice. The player had no real answer to that, I suspect it had more to do with he felt teased in character and either did not have a response ready to fight back or felt he could not fight back in character. He accused me of enabling Thaddeus, but I countered that my only response was to stop obviously bigger and stronger people like a 17 Str paladin from physically picking on the much smaller and weaker 9 Str gnome. They were always welcome to meet his words with words of their own and I would only step in when I saw an obviously lopsided physical confrontation looming as that what my character dislikes. The GM began insisting that I play my character right, which I had let slide last week but this time handed him the sheet and asked if he would like to play him instead. The argument seems to be stuck at the point of whether a Chaotic Good character would feel bad about someone who had been plotting to kill them in their sleep did not survive being used as bait. I had argued that while he would not be happy at the outcome he would not lose sleep over it. Tempers I think were running high. The paladins player had been eyeing re-rolling as a 2 handed fighter and had brought it up again when claiming that he needed to see repentance from us and I told him that if he wanted to try and force my character to atone for the death of someone who had been plotting my demise then he had better re-roll or think of another way to feel ok with it. Not the most diplomatic exchange I admit, it costs me next to nothing to say I go to confession and mope around for a while and he can smile and feel like hes changing me, but change should come from within, trying to force me by the social contract of the party to lament my would-be murderers death doesn't sit right. I think rather having us help him bury the body, talking to us while we are digging, asking "Did he ever say anything about family? Children? Brothers or Sisters?" to make us think about the life before he went bad would have been a much more effective strategy. I never think a paladin should be like a school marm, slapping the hands of other alignments when they don't conform to his. I always felt the paladin leads by example, they don't offer the services of the group to a town free of charge, since that's not what the others may want, they could instead publicly hand back their own share and ask if any of their comrades will join them. If the town cant afford their assistance then the paladin could throw their own money into the towns coffers, work on the group slowly. Like with boiling the frog when you increase the temperature one degree at a time they never notice until its too late, so too can a paladin or cleric seek to convert their more wayward companions.
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