To recap, my group is in Chult in the Forgotten Realms where many dangers had them arguing about their next course of action. Now having voted in a leader they have decided on a plan to find the dwarves rumored to be somewhere in the southwest part of the peninsula. I “hand wave” the few months sailing back and forth to the mainland to acquire some ale and other items to trade for Dwarven items and gold - so they can rent a boat, or build a raft, go a-pirating until they can commit mutiny, conjure up some permanent friendly dolphins – still not sure on this part. Then they hire many natives to help them lug their offerings through the jungle. Yes, the same jungle they were trying to run away from in last week’s game session.
To help out their natives they create a small barge that is pulled along in the river. They get most of the day out before they come upon a problem, namely the giant crocodile that grabs the gnome tinkerer, Vyddyn off the rivers edge and pulls him underwater. At this point Evandur, our wizard, retreated from the water and used all his magic missiles, the cleric jabbed at the tail end until it started attacking back, the fighter refused to get into the water fearing that he would drown in his armor, and it was only subdued when their druid, the Mighty Sir Wyn, cast entangle and the ranger stabbed it to death. Unfortunately this was about 30 seconds too late for our little gnomish friend. (Timely demise apparently as in 4th ed he would be a monster – rawr). Once they pried his cold dead body from the croc’s teeth, they cast gentle repose and added his body to the pile of stuff to be carried, followed by the crocodile hide and meat, as dwarves could enjoy it and hey, its food.
The heat of the day, exhaustion of the battle and the despair over losing a comrade had them agreeing to stopping early. So they chose to travel about an hour distance before setting up camp, hoping they were far enough from any scavengers that would show up. The jungle falls into deeper darkness and they settle in for the night. A few hours later Drorain, the ranger, hears something wandering through the jungle and it sounds like it is getting closer so he sneaks off to check it out. Lo and behold the skinned skeletal remains of the very now undead crocodile is headed in their direction. He runs back into the camp at breakneck speed and awakens the Mary Moonbeam, a cleric of Chauntea, with a “Holy Symbol! Holy Symbol out now!”
She lurches to her feet holding aloft her requested symbol and attempts to turn this thing from its path. Urgently and repeatedly with no avail. At the top of her lungs so everyone else is awakened, and they can see the one lesson they forgot in this place. With a rogue and extremely powerful necromancer in this land, you always, always burn the dead.
Fortunately this time it was more easily dispatched and burned with no fatalities.
(Now, as a GMs note, as the gnome was dead, but his player was not at the table this week, I made the decision that if you have gentle repose cast that you are immune to being animated. It is one thing to have to tell someone their character is dead, and a whole other to then say that he went on to kill other people.)
Tags: Undead Crocodile Gnome Death
