Ed K. (DMing), Paul G. (Zoozeki, Elf Wizard 10), Scott W. (Smudge, Shadar-kai Rogue 8 / Barbarian 2) (Martin, Dwarf Cleric 10), Dane W. (Tudoi, Dwarf Cleric 10), Matt G. (Roscoe, Halfling Bard 10).
Last time, still in the dungeon under the volcano, we avoided miniatures bugbears and joked a cowpoke to death.
Smudge stands on the catwalk over the prison cell holding the tiger and three lynxes. Zoozeki climbs up after Smudge, then calls out "What ho, lynxes!" The lynxes only snarl in response, but Zoozeki notices the tiger wears a gold collar.
Zoozeki detects magic, looks at the tiger, and sees that the gold collar radiates enchantment and abjuration magic.
Tudo climbs up to the catwalk. He thinks the tiger looks smarter than the average animal.
Smudge goes into the next room on the catwalk and sees a giant bony snake. The snake rears up and hisses: "Approach!" Smudge saves against some kind of spell, then retreats to the tiger and lynx room.
"If you can understand me and would like help leaving this room, give me a sign," says Zoozeki to the tiger. The tiger sits and looks attentive.
Tudo opens the outside door. The tiger stalks out and rubs up against Tudo. Tudo feeds it mind flayer calamari.
Zoozeki (who climbs down to the others once its apparent that no one has been eaten) asks the tiger if it wants the collar removed. The tiger rubs its collar against Zoozeki's hand. Zoozeki uses mage hand to remove the gold collar from the tiger's neck. The tiger grows and shifts. It stands and takes on a humanoid form — a human-sized tiger man.
Zoozeki notices (Arcana 27) that this the tiger man's hands are on backwards — a rakshasa!
Smudge gives the rakshasa some clothes.
The rakshasa thanks us and says he owns us a boon. The mind flayers had captured him and have held him prisoner. He has seen at least a dozen different mind flayers. We ask that he help Ootherion, king of the apes, if he's ever able.
Smudge pockets the cursed gold collar.
The rakshasa dimension doors away.
We skip the bone snake room and open the door to the forth prison cell. In the center of the floor, an unlit oil lamp sits. Zoozeki detects that the lamp radiates abjuration and conjuration magic.
Smudge mage hands the lamp into his backpack for later examination.
The party, which now includes several Cajun sailors and three friendly giant lynxes, walks back across the bridge over the lava river to the secret door leading east. The door opens into the room with the iron bars that we've previously seen, adjacent to the circle room where we entered this level.
Let's get out of this dungeon! We climb up to the treasure room. There's no sign of the myrmidons, but a lot of the treasure is gone.
Roscoe dimension doors himself and Tudo up the chimney to the top of the volcano. They lower a rope, and everyone else climbs up, even the lynxes.
From the top of the volcano, we overlook the entire island. Exotic animals chatter and shriek in the jungle. Offshore, our fleet anchors in a protected inlet on the west side of the island.
The plan for next time: head back to the ape city to update Ootherion and warn him that mind flayers are active in his sphere (and might even have played some part in his uncle's insurrection).
[Note: we last encountered (and killed) a rakshasa in our January 16, 2021 session, which happened to be the first session we converted from Lamentations of the Flame Princess rules to D&D 5e rules.]
