(Hackmaster) Burning Trogs Rule! #27: "This Monastery Now Evil Free"

Zorin Redrock - Gnome Titan Fighter.  Veteran of the Barbarian Wars, and hero of Marakeikos due to the retaking of Frandor's Keep. 
Janus Redrock - Gnome Titan Priest of Pangrus.  Cousin of  Zorin Gnome Titan of loose morals and  a hero of Marakeikos.
Gwendalyn Lorax  - Half Elf Druid.  
Terval Sit - Half-Elf Mage
"Whitey"  - Albino Halfling Priest of Yondalla.   Zorin's sidekick.
Coreena Ruddledater- 9 year old halfling torchbearer.
Ramsa - Mute Halfling Fighter - Gwen's Protege.


9th of NonDec 1134:  An "abandoned" mountain monastery of Akana in Yarbay

Gwen healed up the battered party (again), but failed to identify the magic ring.

They wanted to go back to a building near the bathhouse.  They uncover a huge kitchen off of the previously smaller kitchen they found the skull in.  Forcing a second door open, they find a room with tons of rotting corpses stacked like cordwood.

Gwen found another secret door, leading to corridors beyond, but open air, we go left.  They found themselves near large double doors and a very large, but normal looking bell.  Further up was a door into a building.  The bell did not appear special.  

The double doors led to main courtyard with burning corpses.  A twisted monkey attacked Gwen, but Zorin knocked it off of her and killed it.  Breaking through another is a long, dark, dusty room.  Altar was at the far end of the room with Dragonlike creature crushing a snake thing in it's claw.   In it's other claw was a real pearl.  They marked the spot on the map, did NOT take the pearl, and continued on.

Through another door led to another long room,  this time with pillars down the middle.  A side room through a big arch on the left was full of religious decorations, a large dais with cauldron, and three people.  Terval's Color Spray is completely ineffective against them, so Zorin ordered a charged.  The people had red beady eyes and quickly paralyzed the group with their claws.  Just as the Trogs were being gnawed upon, Whitey suddenly burst into the room and turned the creatures, then used healing on them to wound one, eventually destroying it. We all recover a few minutes later and burn the bodies.  In her searches Gwen discovered enchanted leather armor she could actually use! (Leather Armor +1)
 

After searching through a room with four chests, all trapped with some kind of bane, they found a very swanky room, befitting a shrine of evil.   The monk leader and a bear(!?!) were in it.

 

Zorin: "Time to Kill"

 

They quickly slew the monk and bear.

They moved into a new building, full of scrolls.  Upon some research they discovered the monk-things were called "Bhuts".  These Bhuts had an agreement with the Master to guard the pass from people, enslave some, and eat the others.  Other documents referred to passing the Great Pass before reaching the Temple of Death.

Others reference to ceremonies in the Akana Monastery.  The monastery had been there for 500 years, but no records could tell how long the Bhuts ran it.  Even more notes on the mountain pass and on heretical religion of death and its great temple were uncovered.  The Trogs took all of these  scrolls relevant to their mission.

The adjacent building was a storage shed with plenty of fire building supplies to torch the entire monastery.
 

In the last building, they found a full list of troops in the Master's army and another list of all the spies working for the Barthey Empire.   The upstairs was full of armor, weapons, another room of scrolls in weird languages, yet another had an Desert Fighter, who breaks Zorin's arm.  After Zorin slays him, Whitey recommended a full week's rest for Zorin's arm before travelling.
 

21st of NonDec 1134:  Still in the abandoned monastery in Yarbay

Whitey performed some magic stuff and Zorin's arm improves somewhat.  Whitey still says it will take three weeks to heal naturally.  Despite this injury, the Trogs decide to carry on.
 

22nd of NonDec 1134:  Yarbay

Zorin:
We head out,  First we place a sign saying: 

"This Monastery Now Evil-Free"

                                                  -Burning Trogs

Then we torch the goddamn place and move on.                        

Here the Trogs have completed X4:  Master of the Desert Nomads.   Besides Zorin's broken arm, some mummy rot, and the all-around exhaustion of the group fighting the unending hordes of Bhut monks (heheh), they got through intact.  As they move closer to the climax in X5: Temple of Death, they are officially in a hostile land.

Next:  #28:  To Magden