Spellbreaker, the final showdown – Part 3, the tomb of Gwythain

Day three. I have survived Aryll. There was a plague, a barn fire, zombies and a minor god of disease. The complimentary breakfast was mid but the service was friendly. All in all, two stars, would not recommend as a tourist destination.

But they did tell me where to find Gwythain’s Barrow, where I hope to find some loot in the tomb of Gwythain the Protector, one of our great warrior-martyrs. Why would I pillage the tomb of a heroic martyr? Because the mole man I met on the way said that my quest would take me to places of burial. And also, because I looked ahead and found that a required quest item is in here.

The road to Gwythain’s Barrow is said to be long, but it goes by in just one paragraph.

I come upon a circle of stones, with some druids sitting there waiting for someone to show up and start shit. And here I am! Fortunately, they don’t want a fight, just for me to solve a puzzle… a grid of numbers… Apparently the number is 7, because all of the numbers are multiples of 7? I had to look that one up.

The priests then take my pilgrim’s staff that I got from the dream, and give me an Ilithorn rose. I have no idea what it’s good for, and apparently don’t think to ask either. So yeah…. into the tomb!

Inside is a surprisingly short gauntlet of craziness, a lot less wild than The Canker’s place. I have to Test My Luck for a pit trap, then kill an undead guard, and I’m in.

Once I get into the burial chamber, I see that Gwythain’s sword is missing, but his shield and helmet are still here. Odd that a thief would steal one but not the other? There is an inscription, asking that anyone who wants the sword and shield can take them, but please leave the armor. Okie doke – and now I have a +1 shield, and surely avoided something awful by not taking the helmet.

I have to kill that undead guard again on the way back out, and then I’m back outside. The druids have taken off; I thought they were supposed to guard this sacred place, but maybe that’s just one side gig? Anyway, I hit the road back northwest. I have a brief encounter with an ogre who wants to eat me for dinner, but I end up winning that argument. And I rejoin the road just west of Aryll.

So, which way to go? West leads to Selwick and northwest leads to Fenford. I angle northwest, and immediately run afoul of bandits. I kill several of them and get a few bruises in the process, before the last one threatens me that The Mask will hear about this. Hey, that’s the same gang of bandits that attacked us on the way to Hallow’s Well. Hmmm. it’s not really my major quest to rid the area of bandits, but come to think of it the bandit leader had a glowing sword. Oh, I better investigate this.

I sneak to the bandits’ camp without incident, and sneak into the tower (they”re camped at an abandoned military tower) and pick a door… which fortunately is The Mask’s office. Got it on the first try. I made some heroic comment about “Your days of  marauding are over, bandit!” and he was all “Screw you, I got a magic sword!” and we got into it. He’s tough, with a skill of 11, and if not for Gwythain’s shielf it would have been rougher. But ultimately, The Mask lies dead and there is one less bandit in the land.

Now a bout that sword… I recognize it as Gwythain’s sword, the one that was missing from Gwythain’s Barrow. It’s another +1 giving me a 13 Skill so that’s awesome. And I find Lady Attana’s jewelry box, and all told I leave the bandit camp with +3 Faith, a +1 sword to go with the +1 shield, and a few more gold.

Then for an exit, rather than just sneak out the way I came, I decide to… jump out of the window. It’s more dashing that way, Fortunately I make the Test Your Skill roll and only take 2 damage. I hurriedly cram down 2 provisions as I get back onto the road, and into the town of Fendord.

So this episode, I had to cheat only twice, by looking online for a required item and a puzzle solution. And now I finally have all of the required quest items… that I know of.

Next episode: Danger in the fen