[Challenge of the Frog Idol] Session #10: The Haunted House Part II

Continuing on their exploration, the party discovers several hiding spots with small treasures in the "haunted" house, as well as plenty of living dangers - spiders and centipedes lurking in the fireplaces or in the dark, and a nest of stirges roosting at the attic. While the other party of adventurers has suddenly vanished, the characters find three corpses of what appears to be a separated party, who got killed three weeks prior. One thing is for certain though, no such thing as mythic treasure is to be found; in addition, no workshop or a lab the alchemist conducted his foul research has been so far revealed, which leads the characters towards the underground levels of the mansion. But before venturing in the dark, another "haunting" strikes fear into the hearts of the characters, just as they step at the staircase, but with determination, the party moves downwards. By this time, they are convinced that these "hauntings" are actually magical traps to scare off intruders, pretty much a work of some magic-user placed to deter anyone from messing with their job.

A seemingly ordinary wine cellar hides a well-placed secret door that takes the party to a different scenery: a big, long room, well-lit by lanterns and furnished with a table and stools, cooking utensils and cots for ten people. What purpose this chamber served has now been turned into barracks for a group of ne'er-do-wells, as the characters meet one of them carving a wooden boat, unaware of their intrusion. Striking swiftly, the man lies dead before even raising his head, however, a sneaky blow sends one of the retainers bleeding and frothing at the mouth; Ned, who previously assisted the party now looks keen on halting its advance, a poisoned dagger in his hand. As they battle him, the characters find out he was placed here to hinder and discourage them from coming across the smugglers' hideout, which means someone must have known they were to explore this house. And as they look for more clues in what appears to be the leader's private room, they come to the realisation that indeed, the place serves as a hideout for a lucrative smuggling and slavery operation.

Still, the party is determined to investigate further and soon enough, they happen on the undead guardians of the alchemist, just beyond the door with the chalked warning. The presence of undeath in the room makes the characters hesitant at first, but they steel themselves and the two clerics use their divine power to turn the skeletons away, while the rest of the party strike them down. With a little bit of searching, the secret door to the alchemist lab is finally revealed, hiding amongst rubble and ruined alchemical gear extraordinary treasure, as well as the skeletal remains of the alchemist, still seated in front of his beloved workshop. The characters loot everything and, as they don't seem able to proceed any deeper underground, they decide to head back to the city and inform the City Council of their findings, who eagerly asks them to expose the smuggling den. However, the party prefers to stay and recuperate in the city, thus giving the chance to the smugglers, after finding out their hideout was busted, to pack everything and leave at once.

Characters involved:
Rolf the Bold, fighter 1
Aurora, cleric 1
Yudel, dwarf 1
Lolék, thief 1

Elaine, fighter 1 (retainer) KIA
Raine the Despised, cleric 1 (retainer)

This session actually marked the end of the adventure. The players didn't fancy going back to the mansion, especially now that they returned laden with treasures, so I had to devise a plan. The Iron Overlord made a recurring appearance, so I thought of him as being the mastermind behind the smuggling operation. He would write a letter to the characters to cease their investigation and co-operate with him, with the promise of handsome rewards. For now, that was the end of a slightly modified Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh, a fun module in which your typical "haunt" trappings turn out to be a cover for criminal activity. Since my group runs a not-really-good party, they never felt the need to fight off the evil; instead, they enjoy messing around with the underworld and go after quests for riches and power.