Session 9: Under the Old Sycamore Tree

in which the characters storm the Mites lair

Grabbles, the "Mite King" on Tickleback

Fighting the Mites
The characters thought that the best course of action was forging an alliance with the Kobold tribe of the Kamelands, and what better way to do it than recover their statue, which had been stolen by the pitiful Mites?

It took them three days to arrive at the Old Sycamore, a graying hulk of a tree that loomed over the hills in the northern Kamelands. Visible for miles around, they had no problem approaching the tree in the early morning of their third day of travel. A root-lined shaft, hidden amid the ancient tree roots, descended into a network of narrow tunnels. Though the group descended carefully and surprised two mites in the first cavern, it took them too long to overcome them, and the noise alerted some of the other Mites.

Kii, who was exploring in front of the group, was ambushed by a group of six mites in a cave the mites used to torment their prisoners. A pitched battle ensued, and the noise attracted a gargantuan centipede from a nearby chasm that pinned Gam'el'gar against the walls of the cave. When all seemed lost for the ranger, several precise shots from Am's bow put the critter down.

In the meantime, Kii had been busy with his wand of Color Spray and most of the mites were unconscious on the ground. While Cardot healed the group, a second wave of mites, this time led by its "king" Grabbles and strengthened with three giant centipedes, surrounded the characters. Grabbles was riding a giant tick, shouting orders to his subjects, but apparently to a poor result, because the mites and their centipede pets showed at all times very poor tactical judgement.

Conversation with Mikmek the kobold
In the end, the group prevailed, although the battle left them exhausted, and Kii was almost crushed to death by the giant tick's pincers. In the torment chamber, one kobold prisoner was still alive: Mikmek. Mikmek promised the characters many fine treasures if they helped him recover the statue. During their conversation, the characters learned that the kobold tribe had two leaders, a shaman named Tartuk, and the old chief Sootscale. The characters noticed that Mikmek seemed nervous when describing the relationship of these two with the statue, so after a bit of pressure, he gave them a lot of information about the tribe.

Apparently the relations between the two leaders were strained. Mikmek described Tartuk as a "magical kobold" that had joined the tribe some months before. Tartuk told them that the statue, Old Sharptooth, was magical and that it would increase the strength of the tribe. They had prayed to the "Rope God in the Glowing Cave" before (at this, the characters remembered the crude altar they had seen in the golden cavern some days before, in which they had been attacked by a strange crab-like creature) but the few kobolds that objected to this change soon became ill and died, their scales turning yellow, dry, and brittle.

Tartuk had ordered the kobolds to attack the mites to increase the territory controlled by the tribe, and they had even started attacking and robbing some human merchants. Whenever they suffered a setback, some kobolds were sacrificed to Old Sharptooth to ask for his forgiveness and power. When the Mites robbed the statue, Tartuk told them that it was a priority to recover it, as otherwise they would be punished for their weakness. Mikmek had been part of a failed expedition to recover the statue.

Exploring the Mites´ lair
After a short rest, they explored thoroughly the Mites´ lair, and found the Kobold's statuette, together with a list written in Undercommon with two columns labeled "Us" and "Them". The "Us" column listed "kobold statue" and "lots of spears and coins", whereas the "Them" column listed "magic dust", "lots of coins" and "shiny human ring". The small statue depicted a crouching horned devil and was a beautiful work of art; the characters examined it carefully but could not discover anything about the statue except the obvious.

Finally, as both Kii and Gam'el'gar were in bad shape, they decided to stay the rest of the day and that night in the lair. As it was pouring rain outside, they all felt lucky to be indoors. During the night, they discussed how to approach the kobolds and gain their confidence to form an alliance.

XP:
- 1900 (Mites)
- 600 (Giant Centipedes)
- 600 (Gargantuan Centipede)
- 935 (Grabbles and Tickleback)
Total this session: 4035XP
Total campaign: 13,480XP

Loot:
- kobold statuette (fine work of art depicting a crouching horned devil).
- 50gp.
- Necklace with a strange coin with both faces depicting a face of a beautiful woman.
- Centipede parts useful for alchemical ingredients.

Time Passed:
- A bit more than 3 days.
The time now is 8th Gozran (April), in the morning. The group is at the Old Sycamore.