Abyses 1: Exposition and Goblins

The Meetin’

 * One by one each of you showed up to the assigned meeting place, all well ahead of the specified meeting time.
 * The meeting place was the Rain Drop Pass, a cave said to be the easiest path to the Underdark. Easy being a relative term.
 * All four of you responded to a quest listing to place a sensor on The Worm, a massive purple worm sleeping in the center of the planet.
 * All of you arrived well ahead of the appointed time, the first being Darank an amicable and swole dwarven farmer with a dope-ass voice who doesn’t seem quite used to adventuring or the associated dangers. Wearing a straw hat and wielding a large axe with flowers and thorns engraved on the head that he says is a family heirloom passed to each generation’s gardener.  Darank mentions his family members have gotten lost.  Darank came very prepared, carrying on his back a chest loaded with gear that might come in handy.
 * Next was Demetrius, an overly friendly human monk who grossly underestimated the scope of the quest but is happy to make the best of it regardless. He wears red and gold robes. Despite his friendliness he seems to have trouble remembering names.
 * Third was Gavin, a pretty average looking human cleric of the Ardent, the Kippelian god of Peace and Forgiveness. He wore chainmail, a red scarf, and a wedding ring. Made it clear right off the bat that he took this job to secure the funds and allies he needed to find someone located in the Underdark. He also had some trouble remembering the party’s exotic names.
 * Last but not least was Thorgrum, an elderly dwarven divination wizard. Unlike the other two dwarves in the party he was stick-thin, to the point where he couldn’t move without the help of his gold encrusted cane. He had a friendly reunion with Demetrius. And asked Darank if he’d finished the book he’d lent him, to which Darank responded he hasn’t made much progress. Thorgrum mentioned he hoped to uncover a library or some other knowledge during the quest.
 * The guide waiting at the cave’s entrance when each of you arrived was Drem Dreg, a bald dwarf ugly both inside and out.  His face looked like a topographical map and he greeted each of you with insults. He wore disheveled clothes and black goggles with opaque lenses. He taunted Thorgrum the most, treating him with behavior you might expect from a schoolyard bully.
 * Once their all together the gang shows off their equipment:
 * Demtrius showed the gang the contents of his dungeoneers’ kit. As well as his cartographer’s tools and blank parchment. Mentioning he has the skills to keep track of his progress through the caves.
 * In his chest, Darank carried, among other things, a ladder and an ‘Orb of Direction’ which he mentioned essentially acted like a compass.
 * When Demetrius inquired whether the civilian-looking Gavin was prepared for the demanding journey he pulled out an insignia showing his rank as a guard and showed off his holy symbol, a glass pendant filled with ash.
 * The conversation died down a bit before you were scheduled to meet, but Dreg insisted on waiting a bit longer before heading down into the caves. Minutes later the gang watched what was possibly their last sunrise then promptly descended into the darkness below.
 * Shortly before entering Thorgrum performs a magic ritual, during which his eyes glow white.

The Descent

 * For the first six hours of the journey Dreg seems fully unconcerned. He has the group travel at a fast pace and chooses which direction to go without a moment of hesitation.
 * The cave is not nearly as unpleasant as one might expect exploring the underdark to be, with wide passages and the only creatures being the occasional skittish rat or bat.
 * When you can no longer see the light from the entrance the lenses on Dreg’s goggles gradually become transparent and Demetrius lights a torch. When it burns out he claps his hands twice, causing the wraps on his hands to glow.
 * Demetrius begins mapping the path.
 * The gang broke the silence by trying to get to know each other better:
 * Demetrius has been adventuring for about three years, and helped out whoever needed it during that time. He used to work in the fields with his family, like Darank. He likes being able to look at the results of his hard work.
 * Darank hasn’t been this far from home before, mainly focused on field work and tending gardens until this point. In his few moments of free time he’d drink with friends. He is now looking for his family who he believes is somewhere in the underdark. His family appoints jobs in the clan at birth, he was appointed the role of the gardener, who also serves to defend the inn (usually from weeds).
 * Gavin was in an army for a few years, settled down, then resumed adventuring because of similar reasons to Darank.
 * Thorgrum bet Demetrius that Darank would fart in the next 10 seconds and wins.
 * Dreg says he’s gone on a trip to the worm before, and the last time it took him 14 months, which Demetrius scoffed at.
 * After about 6 hours Gavin begins to look unwell and vomits onto the cave floor, brushing it off as a daily occurrence.
 * Shortly after that you get to a deep line Dreg has carved into the ground, he explains that it is functionally the boundary between the safety of the caves and the dangers of the underdark. He warns you to stay away from walls, pointy or unusual rocks, chests, coins, and to keep an eye on the ceiling.
 * After crossing the line the feelings of unease caused by claustrophobia, stagnant air, and the unfamiliar environment worsen. Oddly enough, the cave gets a bit brighter than it was. This is partly due to glowing mushrooms and specks of glowing minerals in the cave walls, but mostly due to a dimly glowing mist that swirls in the air as you walk past it. The passages are also much narrower, some requiring the party to side step in single-file just to make it through. Dreg now has the gang take a slower pace and has to think a bit before deciding which direction to go.
 * Shortly after, Gavin begins profusely sweating. Blaming it on a hangover, and taking off his scarf.
 * Demetrius becomes worried about resources and warmth, and asks Dreg, among other things, if you will need to conserve your “waste” to burn later. Dreg looks at Demetrius like a crazy person and assures him he knows how to gather the needed resources.
 * Dreg tries to push the group to travel for over 12 hours straight. The party didn’t see a benefit in pushing themselves to the point they become exhausted and vulnerable. Dreg yields and agrees to take the party to a hidden camp he has nearby.
 * Dreg’s camp was further away then he said it was, the party decided to set up camp in a relatively vulnerable area rather than risk becoming more exhausted. Gavin was the only one besides Dreg who still wanted to press on, despite looking by far the most haggard.

Borislav Slavov - Baldur's Gate 3 OST - Goblin's Battle Theme

 * As the Abyss Boys settle down for camp Demetrius begins drawing a map of the area the party had traveled thus far, Gavin begins whittling without much success, Dreg starts carving into the stone wall, and Thorgrum begins casting a spell.
 * Shortly after setting up camp a group of goblins attempts to sneak up on the party. But thanks to Thorgrum’s divining, Gavin’s creative use of a light-blessed crossbow bolt, and Bop the Owl’s successful scouting the party was able to get the drop on them instead.
 * Demetrius gives the goblin raiders a warning in common, and is met with a crossbow bolt. The party gets a taste of what it's like to fight alongside each other. The fight ends with Darank decapitating the leader after Thorgrum traps him in a giant earthen paw, and Demetrius beating two goblins to death within six seconds.
 * After violently showing off his martial prowess Demetrius gives the remaining goblins another warning, this time in a guttural language none of you are very familiar with. It is unclear if the goblins understood him this time as before he could even finish they threw down their weapons, along with an assortment of humanoid canine teeth, and scampered off into the darkness.
 * Looting the corpses only yielded shotty weapons and more teeth. The goblins were malnourished and had no food on them.
 * Dreg then emerges from whatever corner he was tucked away in during the battle and begins desecrating the bodies, pulling their canines out of their mouth, and breaking their limbs with his pick.


 * Gavin wins a game of war against Bop the Owl.
 * The next “day” the corpses from the battle have risen. But because their limbs are broken they have no means of getting revenge on the party. It would normally take weeks, months, or even years for corpses to rise without the intervention of a necromancer, but Dreg simply says things pop back up quickly in the Underdark.
 * Gavin complains of a ceaseless directionless scratching noise, but no one else in the party notices such a sound.
 * Demetrius finds a couple of bizarre fungi nearby and brings them to Dreg, who identifies the large sopping spongy round one as a Waterorb capable of storing fresh water, and the thin tough blue one as Bluecap which can be used as an ingredient in blue bread.
 * Brief breakfast and conversation the gang is back on their way. This time more stealthily and without Demetrius’ light. And Gavin quickly develops a throbbing headache, and clutches his ears, again without any discernible cause.
 * Darank finds a stray bag of coins near a wall, which he concludes is likely a trap. He receives confirmation from Dreg, who then takes the opportunity to casually swap places in the lineup with him and begins guiding Darank from behind.
 * As Gavin’s symptoms worsen he begins praying under his breath, as he does so he wraps his scarf around his closed hands.
 * The session ends with the party wading in a body of water as the cavern passage becomes wider.