Tomb of Annihilation: Weeks 6-7

Hi all,

I previously posted some warts-and-all email summaries of the Curse of Strahd campaign I ran in 2017. It was the first campaign I sent summaries to players by email after each game (I was a bit lazy prior to that). Here’s the follow up campaign – 2018’s Tomb of Annihilation. We used experience points rather than milestones/level-based progression, which led to some ‘xp grinding’ along the way. Each session was 4 hours long. Some of the summaries may be amusing; don’t forget these are unedited emails, so please forgive their somewhat chaotic nature and poor sentence structure/grammar. If you’re a D&D fan you may enjoy them. And maybe even if you aren’t.

Game on!

Steve 🙂

Week 6

The party was released from the prison cage in Dungrunglung by the Grung Tribe’s Shaman, so they could kill crazy King Groak. Steve K’s Rogue climbed over the vine-covered roof of the temple and leapt down on the good king to assassinate him while Daniel’s Bard and Dan’s Paladin performed a musical number for the various Grungs present. Unfortunately, Steve K’s Rogue’s dice rolls turned out to be pretty bad, so the fight was on!

During an extended battle in which Dan’s Paladin utilized Mark’s Cleric as a mount (because Dan likes to ride into battle and William’s beast shape-changing Druid was absent), Steve K’s Rogue’s dice rolls went from worse to worse, Davor’s Ranger underwent a CHA/CON crossover/sex change and Daniel’s Bard was knocked unconscious four times, being revived each time by Mark’s cleric.

Finally, King Groak and his loyal elite guards were dispatched. Mark’s Cleric recovered the king’s golden circlet. Outside the temple, the Tribal Shaman announced the good king was dead, to the cheering of many Grungs gathered outside. Rhoark went inside to find the circlet while the party hightailed it out of there. Discovering it gone, he commanded the Grungs go after the party. Mark’s Cleric, realizing it was the circlet they wanted, threw it into the crowd, who swarmed to get it. The party made their way out of the magical maze, avoiding a Grung patrol and pit traps, then made their way back to the ruin from the other day where they took a much needed long rest. Phew!

Faced with a choice of heading to Firefinger or going back to Yellyark, the party decided to go back to the goblins to show them they had dispatched King Groak as required. On the way to Yellyark they fought some Zombie Girallons and some immature Assassin Vines.

Next week: Yellyark! And off to Orolunga, home of the Guardian Naga! And maybe Camp Vengeance…

Week 7

The party finally arrived back at Yellyark, where Queen Grabstab provided them with a Goblin guide to help find the lost city of Orolunga.

Battling through the jungle against Tri-flower fronds, Giant Crocodiles, Kamadan and Pterafolk, the party arrived at the overgrown ziggurat that was all that was left of Orolunga.

Ascending the ziggurat proved challenging, and required them to mimic the actions of some tiny Chwingas and hold orchids, a parrot feather and swallow a snake (Mark’s Cleric wasn’t very good at that!). Upstairs, the Guardian Naga Saja N’Baza informed them that the lost city they sought was Omu, that the evil Ras Nsi (remember him? He was the one responsible for the undead masses overrunning the land) was in the city and in league with Yuan Ti and that he must be destroyed. She also told them they should seek out the red dragon Tzindelor in the Wyrmheart Mine, who might be able to fly them there. Saja then gave everyone some temporary charms to help them on their quest, and conveniently teleported them a good 10 days travel south (ah, a convenient “let’s avoid some XP grinding” solution).

A battle with Giant Snapping Turtles later and the party was off for further adventures in the wet, humid and ever dangerous jungles of Chult.

Next Week: The Valley of Lost Honor! Fabled Nangalore! Death! Destruction! Dysentery!  

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