# 64_20210418 Chokepoint for the Gibberlings ## Session Summary Invidoo stays true to his word and gives me a ring of spell storing, and then shows us to the Sanctum Empirica, Zofaris Kez's private study/bedroom. We find out that we can use it to travel to and between Elemental Planes, and that it's a safe haven from the psychic damage in The Chasm that causes mental disturbances during long periods of time. We send Invidoo to find a way to the blue crystal, and he returns with descriptions of noisy creatures that litter the path to the cliff between us and the blue crystal. Meanwhile, Eraithe and I find a defensible position and set up an ambush, but we don't end up using it. Maestro and Invidoo think they've found a good path to avoid the gibberlings, but when we follow their instructions, we are spotted by the noisy, primate-like gibberlings! ^summary ## Recap of last session ![[63_20210418 Freeing Invidoo#^summary]] --- ## Log No fog where we're at now. [[ttrpgs/Order of the Wandering Mind/The Spellplague]] did not open the chasm; the eruption of [[Mount Hotenow]] did. [[Zofaris Kez]]'s [[Tower of Zofaris|tower]] existed after the Spellplague and before the eruption of Mount Hotenow. Zofaris had the reputation of being a master summoner, but he preferred summoning elemental beings. On rare occasions, he summoned other types of beings. Supernal is the language spoken by gods and angels. Invidoo says there is a [[Sanctum Empirica]]: Zofaris's bedroom. He finds a gem, called a spellshard. It's like a spellbook. I touch it and instinctively know what it entails. It's a spell called Wizard's sight (level 8). Ring with an azure band and blue gem on it. [[Ring of spell storing]]. Need a long rest to put a spell in it - anything of level 12 or lower. When I cast it from the ring, I have a bonus of +4 while using it with the implement. Circular arrangement of four gems on its side, on the wall. They've been covered by dust. They are finger-sized gems: ruby, sapphire, jade, pearl. Sacred Flame did nothing. Fire Burst on the red gem causes an energy field to envelop all of us, and we appear in a different room. The room is like a d4. The point of the ceiling is 50 feet up. It's made up of a silvery, reflective metal. There is a bed. There is an eyeball the size of the basketball that turns to us when we appear. There is a desk with a miniature building on it. The room is immaculate. There is a fancy arcane sarcophagus. What dominates the scene is a window or glass. Outside, we see lots of smoke, ash, and crackles of fire. We seem to be floating in air. Invidoo is not with us. There is only one gem here where we came from (green emerald). Desk is empty. The building is of old Neverwinter design. 2 ft x 1 ft model, like a dollhouse. Maestro goes to the arcane sarcophagus. There is a figure carved on the sarcophagus. A native of elemental plane (fire, water?). Vaguely humanoid in shape, but the face is chaotic - it could be made of wind or fire or something. It has a loincloth. The sarcophagus has a preserving, protective magic around it. Outside, we see a sea of lava and darker landmasses that are still smoking from the heat. There are waves of fire that go onto the landmasses. Maestro notices that there are things swimming in the lava and walking on the landmasses (which look like red hot metal). [[Elemental Plane of Fire]] or [[The Abyss]]? We seem to be turning in the air, and that might account for the low hum of vibration in the air. But the gravity remains centered on the floor. Thunderwave the emerald. It brings us all back. Invidoo said the red plane sounds like his home. But Invidoo's home is organized. There are souls that are screaming due to torture in his home, though. Invidoo says it might be the Abyss if it was chaotic. Invidoo talks about the neverending war between devils and demons. Devils are more organized and tactical. Demons are chaotic and reckless in battle. Invidoo says there are two things lower than him in the [[Devils#Hierarchy|infernal hierarchy]]: lemurs - formless, shapeless blobs that should barely be called devils; and soulworms. They are the lowest form. They can be formed in two ways: promoted from being a soulworm or demoted from a higher-ranked devil. The highest are the archdevils (there are nine of them), with a lord that is the strongest. Demons don't have hierarchies. Stronger ones just rule over the weaker ones. The only way to kill a demon is to kill it in the Abyss. Sacred flame doesn't work for any of the gems. Gloomtoes uses Memory Hole on all gems. Maestro tries psionic (Steel Wind). No effect. No effect for Maestro's arc of the flashing storm (lightning). 4 basic planes: prime material, elemental chaos (pure elements - fire, earth, air, water), feywild Acid breath on jade doesn't work. Lightning lure on pearl - no effect. Sapphire works (with lightning lure). Same house, but outside there's no ground. It's all clouds, with different colors. There's a massive hurricane that we've never seen before. Fog, steam, mist, some smoke. Things are flying in the distance, in the window. They must be large because they're far, but still quite big. They're not birds. There are small tornados of wind. [[Elemental Plane of Air]] I notice that on the floor, there are faint white, almost colorless, markings on the floor. They are teleportation sigils! Lightning on jade. [[Elemental Plane of Earth]] Cold on pearl works. We're underwater! We're in the [[Elemental Plane of Water]]. There are no fish here, and no surface. There are clumps of solid masses. Bubbles all around. Endless ocean, with water glowing dimly with a greenish-blue luminescence. There are corals and plants attached to solid masses. Kelp and seaweed. Squids and humanoids. Short rest. During our short rest, we transition from water to a mixture of water and fire. We see a lot of smoke and steam. We go back to the tower. Invidoo is back. He tells us we're on a cliff, which goes down about 20 feet. The mushroom forest ends, and was able to find the crystal. There are veins or roots growing around it. There were things moving about. They are slightly bigger than Invidoo. They are "SO NOISY" and seem to be staying in the mushroom. ([[Gibberling]]) There are thousands of them, in groups of 20. Erathe and I have found a defensible position and a place where we can wait for one of the groups could come to. I cast [[Tenser's Floating Disk (ritual)]] while Maestro and Invidoo stealth closer to the animals and try to find a way past them. Arcana 15: up to 500 pounds. The rest of us hide at a chokepoint passage in case Maestro and Invidoo fail and bring back a horde. Invidoo fails to help Maestro stealth, but Maestro manages to do really well on his own. He spots the large crystal, with a bunch of [[Grell Strangler|grells]], [[Fire Bats]], and some humanoids that we've seen all walking around it. There is a spiral pattern of something, with corpses at the edge of it. The corpses are long decayed. The humanoids Maestro is seeing are human-shaped, but their eyes have no eyelids and their muscles are moving around their bodies. It's like a small city. The crystal is the source of the blue lightning. We get the attention of 4 swarms. Monster check. These things are [[Gibberling]]s. They look like a mass of oily fur and flesh. They are grey, hunchbacked humanoids. Black manes, grinning faces. They look animal-like, not intelligence. They attack in numbers and communicate in ghastly howls and chattering noises (called _gibbers_). They are darkness-loving creatures. They are found in the underdark. They are evil and cruel and are always looking for something to kill. They are disorganized and attack randomly. They burrow into the soil during daylight. They normally awaken at night, but in the Chasm, it's always night. They emerge in unison and devour anything they can take down. They fight to the death. They're like evil monkeys. Their only method of attack is to pile up on enemies and bring them down. They originated in the realm beyond sanity and logic, called the Far Realm, a long time ago. Next time, we start in combat!