MÖRK BORG: Chapter I: Nurse the Rot

[Stormbringer]

Scrunched up in a pocket of the hag's robe, you find a map, showing the way to a wealthy family's manor house, somewhere else in Wästland.

It is called, according to the map, Castle Risten, home to the noble Risten family.

[Sly Boots]

Into the sack it goes

[Stormbringer]

Prügl and Grin are still in the tunnel. We shall wait to see what they do...

[Wrathbone]

Then I'll go back up and ask Fechr what manner of evil she performed to provoke his onslaught.

Screaming woman in crypt surrounded by flaming piles of human bones seldom good.

Perhaps she merely arrived at this grisly scene before us and was understandably horrified?

Would I be familiar with the Ristens? If so, is there any chance their ruler was an old crone fitting the description of the one before me, with no known heirs, leaving Castle Risten in urgent need of a new and willing lord to take up residence...?

[Sly Boots]

Then I'll go back up and ask Fechr what manner of evil she performed to provoke his onslaught.

Screaming woman in crypt surrounded by flaming piles of human bones seldom good.

Perhaps she merely arrived at this grisly scene before us and was understandably horrified?

Would I be familiar with the Ristens? If so, is there any chance their ruler was an old crone fitting the description of the one before me, with no known heirs, leaving Castle Risten in urgent need of a new and willing lord to take up residence...?

You might have a claim were Giant willing to share the knowledge... ¬_¬

[eny]

Prügl rises from the tunnel and immediately investigates the burning bones to see whether they were intended to keep something at bay...

[Animalmother]

Malaiz now feeling a bit better notices that everyone seems to be mooching for loot. Not wanting to be left out, he starts checking the corners of the chamber for anything useful (or any pointy pebbles...).

[Stormbringer]

Screaming woman in crypt surrounded by flaming piles of human bones seldom good.

Perhaps she merely arrived at this grisly scene before us and was understandably horrified?

Would I be familiar with the Ristens? If so, is there any chance their ruler was an old crone fitting the description of the one before me, with no known heirs, leaving Castle Risten in urgent need of a new and willing lord to take up residence...?

You might have a claim were Giant willing to share the knowledge... ¬_¬

It should be noted that Giant Dances the Sea cannot read 'modern' languages, and therefore has no idea what the map says, but I assume Lord Margar caught sight of it while he was looking at it just a moment ago.

Would I be familiar with the Ristens? If so, is there any chance their ruler was an old crone fitting the description of the one before me, with no known heirs, leaving Castle Risten in urgent need of a new and willing lord to take up residence...?

Well now, that is a good question!

It just so happens that you do know the Risten family. Like your own family, they too owned a village of poor farmers — in fact, two villages — not very far from here.

You knew their son when you were but a boy. You would often play together, pretending to be knights like your father was [you didn't know him; he died in a great war against the Southern Kingdom (Südglans) when you were still at your mother's breast]. But, alas, tragedy struck when the lad disappeared, around the age of fourteen. His father, the Baron Risten V, would no longer let you see him, claiming he was...ill. Then he and his nurse suddenly vanished. After that, Baron Risten became very withdrawn and...well, you have not seen him since. You've heard whispers that he is considered weak by the other nobility of the Western Kingdom. If his estate has not already been forcefully taken by the King, like yours has, you'd be surprised, but even if that were not the case, without an heir to carry on the Risten family line, who knows what state his lands are in?

Now that you think of it...the old hag on the floor, though ravaged by age, apparent madness, lack of hygiene and severe dental problems...and of course a violent death...does bear a resemblance to the young Risten lad's nursemaid!

Malaiz now feeling a bit better notices that everyone seems to be mooching for loot. Not wanting to be left out, he starts checking the corners of the chamber for anything useful (or any pointy pebbles...).

Well, the chamber is circular and therefore has no corners, but, roll me a d100 to see if you find anything.

Prügl rises from the tunnel and immediately investigates the burning bones to see whether they were intended to keep something at bay...

Prügl has excellent intuition, but if this theory is true, there is no way to prove it, for the western corridor that leads out of the circular chamber is jam-packed with bones, and the fire burns so hotly that you cannot get too close to it. You cannot see what lies beyond it. The only thing you can see is that the majority of the smoke from the fire is being funnelled through a pipe high up in the northern wall of the corridor in which the bones are piled.

The only way out of the circular chamber, other than the tunnel by which you entered, is through one of the three corridors (north, east and south).


I'll repost this just to remind everyone of the situation:

• The chamber is brightly lit by four torches, burning away in iron wall-sconces, spaced evenly apart around the walls on its north-east and south-east quarters.

• The ceiling of the chamber is decorated with an incredible mosaic design, portraying a great battle scene from a former age. The battle appears to be an absolute slaughter: a carnage unlike any other. There does not appear to be a victor, for the dead outnumber the living, and those that remain alive appear as if they are about to join their fallen brethren. You do not know if the event depicted is historical, mythological, or merely symbolic.

• There are four corridors leading out of this room; to the north, south, east and west.
  
  • The northern corridor appears to be clear, and leads off toward another room.
  • The eastern corridor has a rusty floor grate, from which protrude what look like giant spider's legs! It also leads off toward another room.
  • The southern corridor appears to descend down a flight of stairs, then—inexplicably—another flight of stairs leads up back to the same level again, and into another room.
  • The western corridor is jam-packed with bones! Bones that are ON FIRE! A raging fire that makes access to this corridor impossible. The smoke from the fire appears to be being funnelled through a steel pipe in the northern wall of the western corridor.

[Wrathbone]

Can I hear anything down any of the corridors?

[Snowy]

Grin emerges into the circular room and peers about at the rather unusual scene before him. Spiders legs and flame-engulfed bones seem like bad choices, so he wanders to the southern corridor to see why anyone would build opposing staircases in an otherwise normal corridor. As he does so, he runs his fingers over the anti-prayers carved into his sacred crook, possibly in search of inspiration.

[Sly Boots]

Giant runs over the to grating in the floor and tries to club a spider leg with his bone-club.

[Wrathbone]

Fearing that the party is about to go every which way, Margar calls out softly:

"Stay together! Who knows what terrors may await us beyond this... seemingly harmless crone, who I believe I may have known once. On that point, very effective slaughtering so far everyone, well done, but perhaps attempt to ascertain any hostile intent before separating anyone we encounter from their vital organs. They may be hapless bystanders, and also we may need help in finding this staff. If they're lunging towards you with a violent look in their eyes or hurling uncouth profanities in your direction, by all means, hack away. But if they are merely in distress or simply attempting to endure this frightful and wretched world amidst this pitiful ruin, try smiling politely at them. Introduce yourself, stike up a cordial conversation about the weather or similar mundane topics. After all, if I'd met half of you in this place, my first inclination would be to put you out of your misery, but I took the time to see the persons within. And look at us now, our close-knit band of - wait, Giant, leave that poor spider carcass alone! What would Barbarister think?"

I silently despair.

[Stormbringer]

Giant runs over the to grating in the floor and tries to club a spider leg with his bone-club.

The legs retreat into the rusty grating at a terrifying speed, and you hear strange noises emitting from it.

[Sly Boots]

Giant runs over the to grating in the floor and tries to club a spider leg with his bone-club.

The legs retreat into the rusty grating at a terrifying speed, and you hear strange noises emitting from it.

His momentary boldness, inspired no doubt by his murder of an unseen ceiling assailant moments earlier, dribbles away as quickly as the panicked stream of urine that runs down his leg, and Giant skitters behind Fechr. He peers fretfully at the rusty grating from around the deserter's imposing frame.

[Animalmother]

I roll a 66 from d100