Climb the Sea Cavern Wall

The party braved a treacherous 200-foot cliff climb filled with Piercers, a deadly Roper, and near-fatal slips, ultimately defeating the monster and reaching the summit. There they discovered a powerful psychic obelisk and glimpsed an underwater red-stone tower—evidence that the cult's influence stretches far beyond the caves below.

Recap

The day broke over the Wildermarch. The settlement at the edge of the known world was no longer the ramshackle collection of tents it once had been. With a jetty in full swing and travelers arriving daily, the once-haphazard outpost had begun to take shape. Yet, the real growth seemed to lie in the bonds formed between the various members of N.O.D.E.

The session began as the party approached the small, ramshackle hut of Fiddlesticks and his assistant, Farrim. Inside, the gnome with wild hair and goggles was frantically working on his latest brew. He and Farrim were clearly on edge, and it was only when Aldric tried to lend a hand that Farrim, startled by the interruption, fired off a Firebolt toward the door. The chaos was quickly quelled, though, with Lorvial handing out demerits for unauthorized magic, which Farrim was eager to remove by undertaking further exploration.

The path to the cave was still treacherous, with Farrim constantly badgering Kouzlo about strange materials, while Lorvial used his magic to aid in the journey. The party arrived safely at the seaside cave north of camp, the cliff wall entrance previously secured with rope from the earlier Aldric/Kouzlo/Lorvial expedition. From there, the real challenge began.

Shadow and Farrim were brought up to speed on the previous expedition as the party made its way down the yet-unexplored right path of the cave. The wall for the day’s climb lay on the other side of the vast cavern of deep water and glowing crystals. The party each had their own way of managing this portion of the journey - Lorvial, having been trained for such challenges, created an ice canoe with his Shape Water spell and floated across the deep water, while Aldric, encumbered by his heavy armor, struggled with both the climb and the water.

With the group finally assembled, the real work began.

The Climb

Arriving at the base of the 200-foot wall, the party was faced with a daunting challenge. Kouzlo prepared his morning brew, testing and boiling the seawater as he worked to perfect his daily batch of coffee. Meanwhile, Farrim was far more concerned with his own concoctions, pulling out strange devices and reducing his pack size to make his climb more manageable.

The rocks were mossy, slick with algae, and while some handholds appeared solid, others offered little more than false hope. Aldric and Shadow were the first to attempt the climb. Shadow’s Feline Agility was on full display as he darted up the wall and attempted to secure new ropes for the group’s climb. Aldric started with the existing rope before abandoning it in favor of a more direct approach. Bare-handed and making his own path up the face, Aldric moved with slow determination, while others followed Shadow’s path.

As the rest of the party climbed, Farrim, ever the distractible alchemist, lost focus and tumbled down 30 feet after being lured by a strange fungus on the rocks. Lorvial was able to catch him, using the rope to guide him safely back up. With the party moving onward, Shadow used his agile movements to scale the rocks quickly, finding the best footholds and guiding others with ease.

At the halfway point, the party encountered their first threat - Piercers, vicious stalactite creatures that dropped from the ceiling to attack. Farrim immediately recognized them as denizens of the Underdark, and with his knowledge, was able to act quickly. A well-aimed slingshot stone, magically imbued by Farrim, struck true, eliminating one of the Piercers. Shadow, having been the first to encounter the creatures as he grabbed one in his climb, was briefly interrupted as the Piercer he touched plummeted back down to the previous platform and embedded itself in the rock.

But the real danger came next. The Roper, a massive tentacled creature, erupted from the wall itself. Farrim was snatched up immediately, pulled toward the Roper's gaping maw. The rest of the party rallied, attacking with spells and weapons to free Farrim from its grasp.

The battle was intense - Kouzlo unleashed a Cloud of Daggers to sever tentacles, Lorvial provided healing and support, Aldric heaved javelins into the creature’s maw, Farrim leveraged his magic and the versatile effects of his pack, and Shadow used his swift strikes to wear down the creature. However, the final blow came when Aldric, seeing an opportunity, grabbed the last remaining tentacle of the Roper. With a mighty tug, Aldric pulled the creature down to the platform, with Shadow riding it down like a wild beast. As the creature fell, Aldric lined up his blade and delivered a powerful Divine Smite, cutting the creature down.

Loot

• Oil of Slipperiness (from the Roper's saliva)
• Immovable Rod (extracted from the Roper's stomach)
• Mariner’s Splint Armor (extracted from the Roper's stomach)

The Summit and the Obelisk

• With the Roper defeated, the party finally reached the top of the wall. The view from the summit was breathtaking - a vast, sprawling landscape of the Wildermarch, framed by the ocean and the tips of the Great Tree. The setting sun cast the sky in apricot hues, but the beauty of the scene was quickly overshadowed by the presence of an obelisk. Standing tall on the bluff, the jagged red stone felt intentionally placed, its aura charged with some unknown power.
• As Kouzlo approached the obelisk, visions flooded his mind - images of his shop opening and closing, of failures and dreams unfulfilled. The psychic effect almost compelled him to step into the chasm, but Aldric, having resisted the pull of the obelisk's influence, reacted quickly. With Shadow’s help, they formed a human chain, saving Kouzlo from a dangerous fall.
• Looking down into the deep water below, Aldric caught a glimpse of something - a tower beneath the surface, constructed of the same red stone that marked the obelisk. The structure looked eerily familiar, matching the details of the cultist drawings seen in the 11/18 expedition. This new discovery suggested the tower may be another key to understanding the cult's movements and goals.

Key Takeaways

• The Obelisk was a powerful, psychic artifact, similar to the one found in the cultist cave.
• The underwater tower glimpsed by Aldric may be tied to the cult’s activities.
• Loot from the Roper: Oil of Slipperiness, Immovable Rod, and Mariner’s Splint Armor.

Discoveries

• Obelisk of red stone, with psychic effects.
• Underwater tower structure glimpsed in the deep water - likely connected to the cult.
• Possible new locations on the horizon, seen from the summit.