BARRIER PEAKS EXPEDITION: Session 3 – Police Action

The party pushed forward against the endless mass of vegepygmies. They’d been slaying the animate fungoids by the dozens, and only taken nickel-n-diming to their own hit points. But the party’s spells were running out.

Previously:

What We’re Playing

Expedition to the Barrier Peaks

During this adventure walkthrough / playthrough, I use primarily the original module, with some extras lifted from Goodman Games fantastic Original Adventures Reincarnated hardcover.

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VTT Maps are by Jon Pintar. He’s kindly extended permission for me to use them in the game and session posts. (Link)

The Brawl Alerts the Police

Taking advantage of his Spirit Guardians spell while it was still active, Yebarinscrud took the lead. Most of the vegepygmies in the area of effect… dropped dead.

Tagren, always trying new tactics, tried spearing 2 fungoids at once on his pike. He succeeded on his 2nd attempt, a pair of the little creatures wriggling and dying on his uplifted pike.

Fungoids surged forward, and they too died.

And yet more heedlessly charged the dwarf, and died. And more. And more. The bodies were piling up. Until those few that survived – along with the tough Thornies – filled the spell’s effect.

*Illustration from the Goodman Games hardcover*

A vegepygmie chief began whacking sticks together in what was clearly some type of command.

All the vegepygmies trapped back in the hallway… as one, wielded slings, and the stones began flying. Most missed, but the PCs were taking hits from the pelting.

Disconcertingly, the maintenance robot continued observing the battle.

Then two different, more menacing robots appeared. They immediately pushed into the fray.

One of the robots shot a hand-sized rock down the hallway, and a pink gas issued from it. Vegepygmies collapsed in droves.

But these robots had it in for all combatants. The other grabbed at Ada and Wil-Li with its tentacles. Though Ada danced aside, Wil-Li was seized. A mild electrical current issued through the tentacle, and Wil-Li just barely avoided being overcome.

These are Police Robots of course, though that wouldn’t be immediately apparent to the characters in-game. They are tough and dangerous, but they are programmed to apprehend rather than kill, at least initially. Their goal is to break up this riot, and subdue all the combatants.

The art in module S3 is so great. Erol Otus inked the Police Robots, both B&W and the color image I used in the cover pic.

A Menacing Spotlight

A powerful beam of light lit up the party from the south.

Because of the dazzling brilliance, it was not apparent who or what was doing this.

Willhelm Pembroke tossed a Fireball down the west hallway, incinerating the whole lot of helpless (asleep!) vegepygmies, including the chief.

For the vegepygmies, this was all too much. Their morale broke, and they fled in a stampede to the west.

This left the party the police robots to contend with, as well as the mysterious spotlight.

Ada went south to investigate.

The party focused their attention on the robots, who turned to more lethal measures. The left bot fired a paralysis ray to the west, paralyzing Starkin, and rended the helpless dwarf with his powerful pincher, nearly slaying him outright.

Wil-Li broke free from the tentacle, dancing away, but then Delmar found himself seized.

Meanwhile, Ada found the spotlight’s owner. An Illithid… better known as a Mind Flayer!

Seeing the lone party member, the squidhead ran forward to suck her brains out. Unsuccessfully! (I rolled terribly, ugh) Ada poked the alien with her rapier.

Tagren rushed forward to deal with the right-side police robot, whacking it with two mighty swings of his sword. The bot became seemingly angry, red lights blinking on, reached out, tearing the half-orc’s flesh with its pinchers.

The mind flayer, desperate for brains, went for Ada again… and failed. (I was feeling the squid’s frustration in my poor rolls) Ada stuck it again with her rapier. The illithid dropped a Sleep Grenade and scurried away.

In the battle with the Police Robots, the party got a ridiculously lucky break.

Willhelm Pembroke cast Lightning Bolt at the right-side bot. Hitherto undamaged, the police robot seized-up, electricity arcing, and shut down.

When hit by electricity, the robots have a chance of shutting down, 1% per point of damage. 27 points of damage, and of course I rolled an 11. …sigh…

Yebarinscrud, sensing his moment, began beating on the frozen bot, giving it everything he had. And the others focused down the other.

The party departed before more robots would surely arrive. Tagren scooped up the spindly spotlight.

The depleted party rested in a room to the east they’d previously explored, a mess hall, barricading the doors. The wandering monster dice were kind to them, and they were left undisturbed.