[ODnD] Skulking a Labyrinth in Blackmoor

This week I was the DM for our third OD&D game and the last of this story (see here for the last AP.

Set-up:

Recap - using Labyrinth Lord game system and Dave Arneson’s Blackmoor setting.  Four player characters – an elf maiden (Laora), a female Halfling (Ada), a dwarf (Baldric) and a cleric (Dorin) of Hersh, the god of luck: now 2nd level.  Using a D&D 3E module called Scourge of the Howling Horde that I’ve hacked into LL stats.  The party has just entered a cave system inhabited by some goblins that have recently raided a trading route near a small village.

Scenes:

* Described the party entering the caves that were quickly revealed to be a dwarven stronghold, highlighted some of the stoneworking craft and runes to Baldric, who relayed his expertise to the party and the elf became curious about why the dwarves left it to goblins

* The Charmed goblin guide Dibbner scrawled out the map of the main hallway which lay ahead with several closed doors; Dibbner described what was behind each room simply: “Spiders”, “Ravnet”, “church”, “food”, “sleep”, and “Bronk” (who was a bugbear the players saw in a cut scene I ran last session where Bronk sent another pack of goblins out to attack the party).

* The party attacked Bronk first and rather than draw out a battlemap or use minis, I tossed a blown up photocopy of the room onto the table for reference; one player astutely pointed out that there was an obvious secret door, so I told them that the door was ajar and obvious to them.

* Baldric (dwarf) led them down the secret passage that he realized due to his underground dwarven senses was leading towards the “sleep” room.  Inside were four goblin whelps, aged somewhere between four and seven; the party argued about what to do, with options ranging from “just kill them, they’re not fighters… yet” to “maybe we can lock them in”; party decided to have Dibbner (who “realized” the party must have killed all of his tribe when he saw the whelps by themselves) lead the whelps out of the caves on a “field trip”

* The party then moved deeper into the Labyrinth, attacking and killing two hobgoblins but not before they alerted Urtarr and Daxar that “adventurers are here”; once the hobgoblins were dead and their footlocker was opened (setting off a trap that hurt Dorin the cleric), the party had to choose between attacking the room with Daxar, the leader, or Urtarr

* From his room, Daxar called out to the party calmly, offering them employment working for the dragon he serves, explaining that he knows the party must be powerful since they killed the goblins; he refuses to leave his room to meet the party (Dorin (cleric) explains he thinks the dragon is a hoax)

* Baldric (dwarf) tells the party they should attack Urtarr first, then end up with Daxar; the party spies down the hall towards Urtarr’s room that is eerily quiet and sees a large mushroom; they recall that Dibbner had mentioned a screaming mushroom, so Ada (halfling) and Laora (elf) suggest they try to find a way around, but Baldric charges down the hall and muscles past the mushroom; the mushroom, a shrieker, goes off, deafening the party; Baldric throws open a curtain trying to find Urtarr, who has been lying in wait with a wand of magic missiles, which she surprises Baldric and hits, then wins initiative and hits him again.  Baldric goes down, makes his save vs. Death (a house rule I threw in last session) and… fails.  Baldric dies. Wow, I hadn’t killed a PC in a long time that wasn’t authored by the player.  But there it was in OD&D fashion, run into a mage, get whacked.  The party takes swift vengeance and kills Urtarr and spends the next few minutes pillaging Urtarr the Wizard’s workshop and then hides Baldric’s body once the shrieker grows silent

* Baldric’s player takes the PC death well, shrugging and quickly rolling up a new PC; I overhear him talking about HD for a fighter as we continue on; the party comes up to just outside the room with Daxar and continue to talk with him; this time, Daxar is talking while there are sounds of movement and a big plank of wood being thrown onto the stone floor; Laora (elf) and Ada (halfling) head down to check it out and see Daxar has unbarred a double door out of the room and exited

* As the elf and halfing enter the room, Daxar’s red eyes shine in the darkness behind the slightly open double doors and he fires a poisoned arrow and nearly kills Laora (elf), then flies down the stairs away from the room

* Dorin (cleric), Laora (elf) and Ada (halfling) are joined by Dibbner (I let Baldric’s player take him as a PC) head into the dark area behind the double doors and are nearly hit by another poisoned arrow from Daxar; Laora (elf) charms Daxar and I make another secret save roll (which he fails, darnit) and Daxar stps firing from cover and approaches the part to reveal himself as a menacing hobgoblin; Daxar offers to pay the party so they can work together; the party asks for some time to discuss privately, so Daxar heads deep into the cave behind the double doors

* The party decides to attack Daxar from behind, firing an arrow and sligh bullets while Dorin (cleric) charges; they ping Daxar a couple times before he escapes their range and vision, but Dorin stays on him and the two end up at the end of the cave and near a small lit area where Daxar and the dragon had been hiding a prisoner; Baldric’s player realizes this must be his PC and compliments me for working in his new PC right away (which made me feel good)

* Daxar fights the party and is aided by a tiny black dragon calling itself Noak (I described it as the size of a pug); party takes out Daxar and Noak escapes, the day is won

* Dibbner tells the party he and the cook from the unmolested “food” room are going to leave the labyrinth and raise the whelps for a new tribe, the party agrees to let them go, the village agrees to give the party the dwarven stronghold and they detail the last rooms

The end for now.

Next week we begin a 4E module, and I get to be a player! woot