Mercenary 970720

6th: Recon of the Gussili Temple, (Played July 20, 1997)
A secret patron (the Melbin Military through Lord Portnoy) hires the team to conduct an onsite recon of the Gussili Temple on the southern tip of Vond Island, Lac Vond. Orders are to kill any cultists who try to prevent the recon.
Adventure Background, Adventure Outline
Players: Joe White, Kara White, Scott Chelette, Ken McKinney, Ron Shigeta (part), Sam Jennings
Summaries: 970720.Chelette

Adventure Background

Contract: 3 weeks to complete mission, 200 gold advance, 200 payment for completion of recon, 200 bonus for significant damage to stockpile (if one is there.)

Contact: Lord Portnoy gives the party the mission briefing. Captain Taddeo Valleri, a human in the Melbin Navy will be both the onsite advisor and the captain of the transportation, a small trade sloop in poor repair, named the Perch, with a Mate and three sailors.

Mission: (For Your Eyes Only) Determine if a large stockpile of supplies, weapons, and armor are being kept in the vaults of the temple. If possible, destroy the stockpile.

Operations: Captain Valleri and the party will slip off the boat on the tip of Vond Island at night (he knows the island and the shore well.) The boat will pick the group up in 30 hours at dawn in Vimini, a small port village only a few hours away from the drop off point.

Intel: The temple has a high priest, a priest, Lord Barberra, Lord Ulinari, about 10 high initiates, and about 150 initiates. About two hours from the temple is a Keep/Fort owned by Baronet Genna, vassal of Count Vond, with 4 knights and about 100 footmen (6 skill/6 armor).

Warning: This mission is very dangerous because of both the competant temple defenders, but also because of the nearby garrison, who are very likely to respond.

Listing from 2nd: Sir Arrosto and his Bandit Problem:
Count Lucius Vond: Master of Vond Island in Lac Vond and has many knights and a few baronets whom owe fealty to him. Liege Lord of Sheriff Moliari, Sir Arrosto, Sir Haleria, Sir Tunessi, and many others. Income is several thousand gold per year.

Adventure Outline

None Yet

970720.Chelette

6th: Recon of the Gussili Temple.

The Characters: The Brothers (Ken), Cenzo (Scott), Dagmar (Kara), Cosmo (Joe), Roberto (Ron), and Dieter (Sam).

Prolog: After last week's fiasco, Scott and Ron have new characters: Cenzo the Weapon Master and Roberto the Engineer.

Lord Portnoy of Melbin secretly hires the party to recon the Gussili Temple on Vond Island. We are to determine if there is a stockpile of weapons and supplies and destroy it if possible. The party is accompanied by Captain Taddeo Valleri, who commands the small boat which takes us to the island. We are unable to find much information on the Gussili Cult other than they are associated with Death and the Underworld. Since we have no quarrel with the Priests and Rune Lords, we ask Lord Portnoy if he might arrange for them to be away when we conduct the recon. We suggest an invitation to a social function and Lord Portnoy makes the arrangements. We are also approached by the Ubermensch Kommando Teutan Mercenary Company who want to hire us as human auxillaries. We agree and they send along an observer for the mission. We also hire 5 men at arms and a competent Shaman to fill out the party to around 20.

The boat drops us off at the main town on Vond Island. It will return in 30 hours for extraction. We march to the Gussili Temple and Cosmo does a quick recon. The temple is on a mesa about 30 meters high. Two adjacent stairways are the only obvious way up. Unfortunately they are each guarded by a POW 21+ spirit. Cosmo recons the rest of the mesa and finds that it is too high to throw up a grappling hook. There is a route which could be climbed, but it is quite perilous. He also finds a crane assembly at the top of the wall. It is apparently used to lift objects from the base of the mesa to the temple above. He also finds a cave near the base. It is apparently unused and has a huge wooden door which apparently leads to the temple. The engineer inspects the door and determines that it is too formidible for the party's resources and that it is probably at the bottom of a large cistern anyway.

The party faces a dilemma: the only way up to the temple is either through two huge spirits or a rope climb 30 meters to the top of the wall. The spirits are too tough and whoever goes first on the wall must free climb, risking near certain death if he falls. Since Dieter has the best climb skill, he is the logical choice. When there seem to be no alternatives, he finally agrees and climbs to the top. He ties off the rope near the crane and the rest of the party climbs up without incident.

The first building we enter turns out to be the storehouse for the weapons and supplies we were looking for. Unfortunately, there is little flammable material available and there is no easy way to destroy weapons and armor. Cosmo sends scouts foreward to recon the rest of the temple. They make it to the main sanctuary where hundreds of spirits are swirling around inside. Sensing peril, they withdraw and rejoin the main group. Meanwhile, a group of about 50 defenders is trying to get organized in a large open area around the corner from the storehouse. Not wanting to commit to battle against such a large force, cosmo moves the party in a counterclockwise direction around the perimeter of the mesa. We hope to confuse the defenders and attack them from behind. Moving along, we find a summoning circle and chase off a cultist. We eventually find that there is no way to go further around without going through the courtyard in front of the main sanctuary. The courtyard is defended by cultists and numerous spirits so we turn around and return to the large storehouse.

When we arrive, the defenders are nowhere to be seen, but two spirits of POW 21-30 are guarding the only entrance. Roberto devises a way to get in through a small gap between the wall and the roof of the storehouse. He and Dieter crawl through the space and start trying to destroy the supplies. Since the opening is small and most members of the party are large, they are the only ones who can get in. They quickly realize that it will take hours to destroy even a small part of the inventory.

With most of the mission objectives accomplished, we decide to withdraw. The defenders try in vain to organize an attack as we climb down the ropes, but we get away safely. Dieter is the last one down and takes a wrong turn trying to follow the party. He ends up in the wrong town but is able to hire a fisherman to take him to the top of the falls. Dieter makes it to the falls and back to Melbin, but the fisherman has on unfortunate accident out on the lake.

The rest of the party arrives at the town with hours to spare until the boat arrives. We go to the local inn to drink the hours away. immediately after we enter, Captain Valleri motions us to come outside quickly. He has recognized four of the men inside as Melbin rebels and offers us two bars of gold to dispose of them. Of course we accept, and come up with a plan. While we secure the exits, Dagmar and her four Riot Girrlz go back into the bar and pick up their drinks. Within a few moments they are over by the table with the four men. Dagmar accuses one of bumping into her, but the men think it is just harmless flirtation. They are completely surprised when the Riot Girrlz grapple them to the ground and quickly dispose of them.

The remaining patrons are rounded up and locked in the basement for safekeeping. As more and more townspeople come to the inn, they are sent to the basement. Eventually it is crowded with almost a third of the populace. The Teutan observer suggests a final solution for smoking them out, but he is overruled. Eventually we meet the boat and make it back to Melbin.