The party makes their way to one of the mining areas of Janderhoff to speak with Juuck. When the arrive, it’s clear that they’ve misinterpreted the history; Juuck never went on the expedition, he was merely an investor.
Unfortunately, the dwarf doesn’t have a whole lot of information to offer apart from the names of the brothers, Silas and Karivek. He also explains that from what he understood, the Vekkers built a cabin into the side of a cliff in the Kodar Mountains to serve as a base camp.
Despite his best efforts, the party doesn’t allow Juuck to invest his money in their own expedition. After all, this dwarf just met the party and is already willing to give them money that he likely may never see again. I guess some lessons are never learned.
Armed with their new information, it’s time to spend the night in Janderhoff and teleport to the Vekker cabin in the morning. Before that, however, Fyn tries a longshot: maybe he can just teleport directly to Xin-Shalast and bypass all this nonsense. But alas, he finds it quite difficult to focus on a specific location. There must be some magical interference going on there.
Instead, they settle to check out the Vekker cabin. As they arrive in the foothills of the Kodars, snow flurries have begun to fall. It’s cold, but not alarmingly so. One of the first things they notice is a pile of rock and silt covered in strange lichen, which appears to have been carried along a chute that runs inside the cabin.
Fobias investigates. He deduces that this is mining runoff, the proverbial chaff when the dwarves separated the gold from the rock. The lichen is very hearty, but it doesn’t seem to be dangerous.
Just then, the party hears a terrible howl reverberating through the mountains. It seems far off, but close at the same time. Part elk, part world-eating monster, Fyn can only discern that it’s likely a supernatural outsider. As they discuss, Krask is whacked alongside the head from the decaying tree behind him!
About Tree Fiddy
Krask is hit hard, and does his best to retaliate against this horrific tree. Barnaby flies up, over the cabin to engage the tree with his new shoes while Krask fires desperation arrows up close. Trace begins to hack at it, but the tree advances.
It tramples all over the group, and Krask is able to dodge out of the way of the writhing roots and branches. Fyn summons an elder fire elemental to hopefully do some extra damage against the rotting wood, and the team converges on the enemy. Krask activates his invisibility ring to get out of harm’s way.
Trace uses his holy power of Sarenrae to smite the tree, bypassing the DR of the thick bark that encases its black heart. Bonus points because it’s undead! Barnaby and Fobias contribute extra damage as well, but Trace is really the one who shines in this fight.
The tree charges forward to trample, but the party opts to take attacks of opportunity over attempting to dodge. It’s good that they did, because the tree crashes to the ground. Without pausing, Trace buries his sword deep in the woody flesh of this monster, immolating it from within.
A Delicious Treat
After healing, the party turns their attention to the cabin. Krask picks the lock and the party enters the structure, which is preserved quite nicely thanks to the expert dwarven craftsmanship. In the second room, Krask notices a haunt. It appears to be a shadowy dwarf that solidifies, stuffing its face with dust in the corner of the room. He compels Krask to try some, but the kobold is made of sterner stuff than that.
Meanwhile, Fobias locates a magical punching dagger inside a boot. Mostly worthless for this party, but an interesting weapon nevertheless.
The haunt triggers again, and the other party members resist the compulsion as well. Outside, the snow begins to pick up and the sky darkens. Fyn studies the dust, realizing it to be less-than-pure gold dust laced with arsenic. Thinking this to be the cause of the haunt, he telekinetically gathers up the pile, sending it down the chute.
This appears to eliminate the haunt, or at least move it to the outside. What could possibly happen with sending the haunted dust scattered to the wintery winds outside the cabin?
Through the next door, the party realizes that it’s time to ascend the 60-foot stairway to the upper level of the cabin. Trace leads the way, winding the party through these ancient wooden steps.
Unfortunately, he doesn’t notice a trapped floorboard near the top, and the ground gives way. Without warning, he begins plummeting to the ground.
What secrets lie in the Vekker’s cabin? Why is this place haunted? Did Trace have a nice summer?