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MERP: Dawn of the Fourth Age Session 13

 


This is part of an ongoing campaign. You can find the other sessions over on the sidebar.
 
This session was played on August 9, 2020. It is based on "What Lies Beneath", a scenario for The One Ring RPG found in The Ruins of the North.
 
11 Urui F.A. 15
 
The fellowship reached Hiraval's manor around noon without further incident. The manor was set against the wall of a valley and covered with vines. There was a fair amount of open ground between the manor and the lip of the valley where the fellowship was currently out of sight. There were some trees to offer cover, but they determined that it would be difficult to approach unseen in the daylight.
 
Dirdan used his invisibility spell to sneak up to the manor. As he approached he could see several figures in the manor's tower, they appeared to be armed with longbows. Once he reached the manor, Dirdan started by making a circuit around its perimeter. He spotted a stone covering the entrance to a crypt on the backside of the manor that was mostly covered with thick weeds. There were faded runes on the stone, but he could not read them. He found that the ground floor was a stable, but it seemed to hold only one horse. He then slipped up the stairs leading to the front door of the manor house. He could hear at least five voices coming from inside, but they did not seem to be bloodthirsty bandits.
 
Elyanis, deciding it was time to start the assault, fired a long range shot at one of the forms in the tower. Her arrow struck true and the man fell back from the window. Dirdan took this as his signal to enter the manor and burst through the front door. He found a young man right inside the door, shocked at his intrusion, and used his sleep spell on him. 
 
A hobbit woman and another young man ran into the room. After a brief standoff, both sides were satisfied that the other were not murderous bandits and everyone stood down. The truce was cemented when Ardaer healed the man, Folulf, wounded by Elyanis's arrow.
 
The current residents of the manor were a band of "adventurers" led by a young man named Elwin (the one Dirdan used his sleep spell on). The band consisted of Fay, a hobbit archer, and three human warriors, Folulf, Arnulf, and Herbert. They had been living in the manor for a few months, and even partially fixed the roof. 
 
Hiraval was not happy about this, he seemed to be obsessed with forcing the group to leave his manor immediately. The fellowship grew concerned that he might break the truce in his ravings, but Elyanis was able to convince him to stand down and allow the adventurers to stay on as help by appealing to their shared Dunedain heritage. He still seemed agitated though.
 
After a brief search of the house, including a water-filled basement, they decided to explore the crypt that Dirdan had discovered during his earlier search of the grounds. Before they entered, Sindawe raised concerns about how skittish the horse in the stable seemed. He also reminded them not to loot crypts.
 
The crypt was fairly simple, just a small basement, supported by columns, with crypts lined against each wall. Hiraval, the first of his line to enter the family tomb for generations, was unable to identify many of those resting there, but he did recognize Huldrahil, the last of his ancestors to reside in the manor. Huldrahil had perished while fighting an evil wizard, according to family lore.

Finding nothing amiss in the crypt, they decided to leave and get some rest. As he passed over the threshold, Hiraval seemed to suffer a seizure, crying out, "I brought them as you commanded," and falling to the ground. As he fell, a specter appeared above the tomb of Huldrahil and attacked the party.
 
The fellowship was able to defeat the undead Huldrahil, but the victory was bittersweet; Hiraval had choked to death during the battle. They decided to return to Bree in the morning, bringing Erdrahil and the adventurers with them. 

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