Robed skeletons and mummified remains cleared.
Dead figure at bottom of pile found crouching of 4-section black staff. Staff radiated powerful demonic magic. Under figure was large metal trap door.
Inside trap door was naturally mummified human that looks like he was sealed in alive. There was also a steel box with dwarven treasure: magically obscured map, ceremonial hand-axe, 10 dwarven books (very thing stone sheets bound with mithril rings), and 300 ancient dwarven gold coins.
Party examine room and debated what to do for some time. They discovered that the staff could be disassembled into sections, and that each time a section was removed, the staff as a whole seemed to diminish in dark power. The staff sections are now carried by Berrian, Ramuh, Ashen, and Hep'ztar. The party took several sacks worth of precious metal grave goods and the dwarven books, which seemed to be particularly prized by Vira as she is a cleric of knowledge.
There was a buzzing in the outer crypt room. The party investigated and found a single stirge, which had been drinking at the blood basin. They chased it and slew it.
The party then decided that they had accomplished their brief and should return to the surface. The returned to the connection between the tomb and the mines, to discover that several miners had been killed and dragged several hundred feet away deeper into the mine. The PCs followed this passage through several rooms and ultimately came to a dead end. They also discovered a natural cavern with a fish pool down this way. The returned and the went the other way, back the way they originally came when they were escorted by the miners to the tomb. They fought off a small swarm of stirges while in this tunnel.
Monster experience: 10 stirges = 1000 XP / 6 = 166
Present: Karen, Mark, Dennis, Alex, Danny, Michael (? I think so)
We play D&D. In our company's board room. Every Monday evening given enough players.
