Duty Session 130: Spinner's Deep
After the efforts of many Adventurers to finally clear out the creatures from within the mines on the Isle of Beginnings, the Landers are finally able to return to their work. However, the first miners have reported an unusual room within the first levels of the mine.
The room seems to be the source of the previous infestation, but now shows a strange glowing arcane circle that refuses to allow them to pass. The Landers have reached out to the Hunter's Guild, seeking capable Adventurers to find out what lies beyond this strange device.
What is certain, is that the spiders in the mines now known as Spinner's End, had to have come from somewhere. Danger lies on the unknown path ahead. Are you brave enough to face it?
Difficulty: Moderate
Rec. Party: 3+
Rewards: 2
World Rewards: None
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The mines are alive again. With the spider infestation cleared out, the Landers have returned to work and spruced the place up a bit. Now clean and well lit, the tunnels have new supports shoring up the walls and ceilings, and everything is all well and good. For the most part.
It looks like there's still a Hunter's Guild quest in place regarding looking into the deeper parts of the mines, but at least with the spiders having been handled already the pathway is pretty straightforward into the deeper part of the mines.
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"Th drider mage concerned ma a lot, we are likely marching into some kind of spider cult I'll bet." She seems ready to go and looks to Shiruba for a moment. "Something wrong Shiruba? Aye Goldenblade it's time to find out what's further down." She'll take a look at Akatsuki for a moment. "I'm ready if you are."
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And then, with no warning, the group has an Assassin among them.
"I'm ready." The girl casually responds, briefly checking the kodachi sheathed behind her hip as she falls into step with everyone else.
AKATSUKI has requested to join your party!
With that out of the way though, the party reaches what used to be the boss room. The walls here are... Different from the rest of the mines, the hew and cut is a lot more fine, and there are patterns and runes etched into place, along with a large mural that details many different spider creatures.
At the center of the room is a raised dais on which a circular platform rests, with runes carved along the edges of the circle. Though they dont seem to be in any known language, the runes do appear around the room in various points.
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She just stares kind of blankly, as things around her happen. "Glad you guys have this worked out," she says, feeling a bit bad that she's not helping. "Uh, if there's anything I can do?" ... But kind of, there isn't. Her voice is not melodious enough to make anytning happen.
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Further on in the tunnel continues until it stops at what looks like a dead end, a statue resting at the end of the hall, and it is a strange one; though most of it is hidden in robes it appears humanoid in nature, but with an array of gleaming eyes, pincer-like teeth, and hideous plating.
And it's pointing at the altar right across from it as though expecting some kind of sacrifice before the party can continue.
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When it becomes apparent that some sort of sacrifice is needed, she'll look around for anything valuable. She's broke, herself, but maybe something valuable will be found if she mines around. To that end, she stomps on the ground hard enough to crack the earth a bit, and will go fishing around for any sort of valuable ore. She'll offer up a couple of the shiny rocks she finds, and some of the coins from her inventory, but it's not looking positive, what she comes up with.
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Incense is burned, meat is set upon the altar and-- where did that Assassin go?
It's a few beats before Akatsuki re-emerges with the group, sheathing her kodachi at her hip once again as she holds up a rough gem that looks like it was freshly pulled from the rock wall.
It seems that this is enough of an offering, a new path opens up, leading deeper into the mines. Ominously large and long scrape marks adorn the walls as though something had dragged itself through this way not too long ago, but eventually the path leads into a smaller chamber, used as a break point for other adventurers exploring the dungeon.
One such adventurer is here now, pale and sickly, resting his head agaist the wall, armor and weapons laid at his side.
"... Oh, I was hoping someone would come along." He says with a cough. "My party was killed by the spiders. I've been bitten." He says, grimacing in pain.
"Our healer had the antidote potions, do you think you could lend a stranger a hand?" He asks, eyes full of pain and pleading.
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"He'll respawn at the church." Akatsuki does note, before it's time to move on.
Soon enough the ground grows thick with spider webs the further the group makes it into the depths, reaching a set of spiral stairs that head downwards to what appears to be an underground jungle. Strange glowing plants, pools of dark sludg and mire, and worse... Spiders.
Huge spiders; each the size of a human move amid the trees, some stopping to drink from the noxious pools, these spiders are also aglow with an eerie light, and eventually... They all turn, noticing the very out of place group of adventurers in their midst.
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Fortunately a giant underground jungle is more her style. "Yeah no you eight legged creeps can just stay put!" She starts shooting some of her trademark ice arrows at spiders to freeze them in place and make plants easily crumble out of their way."
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Eventually the decor only grows more strange and eerie, the walls glow green, droplets of acid drip from the ceiling, and a hidden door opens as the group approaches, leading into yet another boss chamber much like the one the group had entered from. But this one is aglow, the etchings on the walls alive with that sickly green color, and in the center of the chamber is a gigantic spider with a humanoid torso, with glowing red eyes burning behind the visor of its helmet as it prepares to attack the approaching team!
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The harrowing trek leaves frozen and fried spiders in their wake, an a chamber like before, but creepier ahead of them. "Anyone else getting a bit of deja vu? Other than being more glowy and toxic it looks similar." Nope. There's the boss. A big boss. "Goddesses above, how big do these things get?!"
But it's wearing armor. To the wolven huntress it doesn't matter if its worn or natural, metal or organic. Armor has seams and joints. Shiruba leaves the front line to the Tank and Meleers, which Gwen should be prepared for with how often they've gone dungeon delving together. "If you can't break armor, aim for crippling its limbs!" Even as she's drawing her bow ready. "ARCANE SIGHT!"
A glyph of The Third Eye flickers at her forehead, while in her own vision the flow of magic highlights the seams in the massive drider's armor. Again and again she fires, sinking arrows into those small gaps with shocking precision, even while moving so she stays behind Gwen's defensive position.
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"ANCHOR HOWL!"
She calls out as she then engages the spider!
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Just like that the battle is heated. Gwen takes to the fore, activating her special skill and drawing the aggro of the giant spider beast. Goldenblade darts in, deadly and graceful, while Merek assaults the spider's very mind, and Shiruba aims for the gaps in that chitinous armor, while Akatsuki darts in and adds to the group's DPS.
Little by little the party inches the beast's health bar down until it decides it has had enough and leaps backwards, hitting the wall hard enough to bring the roof down.
When the dust clears, though, and the spider is reduced to red pixels, a new path is revealed-- one that can't be traversed just yet. But mort importantly so too appears a treasure chest where the giant spider warrior was.
Because what dungeon trip isn't rewarded with treasure?
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Then she notices the level cap on this new portion, and amends. "... Eventually..."
Oh well, still loot! Shiruba pulls a piece of organic metal shell from the treasure chest, huhing softly. "It's like a more advanced version of the previous carapieces."
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"Apparently it goes deeper." Akatsuki points out as she sheathes her kodachi. Not that anyone can go that way just yet. But it looks like that's the end of things. For now anyway; so the Assassin turns about and starts heading for the exit.
"Farewell for now."
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