Just Past the Scorpio New Moon; Mercury and Venus Retrograde for a Few More Days

Hot off the press: this week's edition of Raven's Hollow Chronicle.

     

 

 

     The regular game remained on hiatus this week.  It's looking like we can resume our adventures in Borca, a Domain of Dread in Ravenloft, next week.

      I had quite a bit of foreknowledge going into this Venus and Mercury Retrograde.  I'm grateful I was forewarned because this autumn retrograde season has been intense to navigate.  Mars, Jupiter, and the South Node are doing their dance in Leo over the weekend, IIRC.

      Today I'll be prepping for the next Ctyri Ctvrt game scheduled for tonight.  This one-on-one game with the player's main PC being an Alchemist works so well in part because that class has an inherent motivation to be out seeking unusual ingredients and materials.  Danika now has her eye on Demon Hearts.  She's brushed up against a cult dedicated to Graz'zt before, so she might be returning to Bad Rajetz to investigate the dungeon below the old tower/grain silo where the cult practiced its debauched rites.  The notes for Session #42 will be released this Friday.

Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles Session #41

The adventurers Vs. Iomnogoron.

 

 

 

Session 41- Inside the Spire of Iron and Crystal Part 7

10/16/2026

• The adventurers begin exploring Egg 3 from Room #49.

• They carefully avoid the traps to get into the tunnel that leads north 

  then east.

• Just outside the entrance to Room #59, they are attacked by 

  2 Slitherrats.  They kill the monsters.

• In Room #59 they meet the Ragged Craw Clan, a group of 15 

  bird-like humanoids.  Danika allies with them and gets a little info 

  on Iomnogoron.

• Rooms, #60, #61, and #62.  They pick up 4 geodes, the 

  Crystal Cutter, and enchant several weapons.

• Room #53 has 2 potion machines.

• Room #52 has the damaged Crystalline Golems.  The teams fight 

  and kill the constructs and collect treasure.

• Rooms #50 and #51.  Hallabera Teleports.

• Hallabera explores Rooms #56, #57, #64, #65, and #63 before 

  returning to #50.

• The teams travel the room that Hallabera did, plus #58 where 

  Hallaberasnipes a Korog Tech.

• In Room #55 they fight and kill 4 Gelatinous Triangles.

• Room #54 Treasure!

• Room #47 2 more Slitherrats are fought and killed.

• Take the stairs in Room #55 to Level 4 of the Egg.

• Room #66 is down the stairs from Room #55.

• A hallway circles around to Room #67.  Stairs lead up to Room #61.

• They find a way to “share” the cloak and enter Room #70.  The 

  mentor, Nattias is trapped in an egg in this room.

• They go to Room #71 and collect treasure.

• They fight and kill Iomnogoron.

• Rooms #72 and #73 are Treasure!

• They exit the Spire of Iron and Crystal and prepare for the journey 

  back to Ctyri Ctvrt.

• The Ragged Craws go to inhabit the former Bugbear Caves nearby.

• The combined parties of Danika and Radomir bury Radomir’s team 

  member Magda.

• 4 Slitherrats killed = 480 XP

• Headless Golem killed = 1100 XP

• Armless Golem killed = 1100 XP

• Bashed Up Golem killed = 1100 XP

• 4 Gelatinous Triangles killed = 240 XP

• Korog Tech killed = 240 XP

• Iomnogoron killed = 2300 XP

• Crystal Cutter

• Gold Neanderthal Skull = 200 GP = 200 XP

• 1310 GP = 1310 XP

• Wand of Cure Light Wounds, 7 charges

• 3 Gems 100 GP each = 300 XP

• Golden Orb Studded with Gems 1500 GP = 1500 XP

• 10 Pieces of Jewelry 100 GP each = 1000 XP

• +1 Staff of Invisibility, 10 charges

• Holy Symbol, +1 to Turn Undead

• Sword, 1d8+1, +2 to Oozes and Slimes

• Scroll of Protection from Dragon Breath

• Spellbook of Iomnogoron

• Golden Wooly Mammoth Statue 2500 GP = 2500 XP

• 2000 GP in Gems = 2000 XP

• Korog’s Wand of Paralyzation, 4 charges

• Total XP = 15,370 XP

• Danika receives 7685 XP

• Hallabera and Pholos receive 3842 XP and 3843 XP

Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles Session #40

Jumping in the egg saves Hallabera from injury.

 

 

 

Session 40- Inside the Spire of Iron and Crystal Part 6

8/31/2026

• Remembering a door they hadn’t entered, the 2 teams make their 

  way from Room #34 to Room #39.  

• In Room #39, they encounter 4 Lightning Beetles and kill them.

• They then check Rooms #40, #41, #42, #43, and #44.  As they start 

  checking out 2 pillars with strange holes in them, a Phase Spider 

  attacks.  Magda Starling, the Magic-User in Radomir’s team, is killed 

  by the monster.

• After covering Magda’s body with a blanket to retrieve her corpse 

  later, the teams play with the geodes and holes in one of the pillars.  

  The pillar transforms the 4 geodes into a Crystal Containing a 

  Small Octopus, a Telescoping Lightning Rod, a Lightning Cloak, 

  and a 1d6+1 Mace.

• They explore a dead end hallway, then backtrack to Room #23.  

  From there they enter Room #24 with its singing crystals on the floor.  

  They find the secret door to Room #26 and encounter an Ochre Jelly 

  that they fight and it splits into 5 before they figure out how to kill it.

• They enter Room #25 and find a grate that has a tube going down 

  from the floor, possibly to a lower egg.

• Entering Room #27, Hallabera triggers the raising floor trap.  He sees 

  an empty egg and jumps in as the floor raises the room up into the 

  lightning field.  Jumping in the egg saves Hallabera from injury.

• Out in the nearby hallway, they equip Hynek with the Lightning Cloak 

  and the Telescoping Lightning Rod.  He is shielded by both as he 

  climbs from the hallway to Rooms #29, #30, and #31.  In #29 he finds 

  a Scroll Case, in #30 he fights a Lightning Bladder and kills it, and in 

  Room #31 he fights a Fossil Skeleton then opens 2 chests trapped 

  with old poison and is unaffected due to the poison’s weakening over 

  time.  He gets a gem and some gold coins.

• They enter Room #28 and pull the grate out of the floor and transit the 

  tube down to the third egg.

• Session ends.

• 4 Lightning Beetles killed = 60 XP

• Phase Spider killed = 400 XP

• Ochre Jelly killed = 400 XP

• Lightning Bladder killed = 240 XP

• Fossil Skeleton killed = 30 XP

• Crystal Containing Small Octopus

• Telescoping Lightning Rod

• Mace 1d6+1

• Lightning Cloak

• Scroll Case

• 450 GP = 450 XP

• Aquamarine 500 GP = 500 XP

• Total XP = 2080 XP

• Danika receives 1040 XP

• Hynek and Zora each receive 520 XP

Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles Session #39

 

Another Wave of Oozanderthals

 

 

Session 39- Inside the Spire of Iron and Crystal Part 5

7/15/2026

• The combined teams of Danika and Radomir continue to explore 

  the 2nd Egg.  They enter Room #36 from Room #37, and find it 

  expands into Room #35 and Room #38.  The lightning overhead 

  starts up again as they explore these areas.

• In Room #33 they are able to study the bucket ladder and its 

  apparatus.  

• They backtrack to head towards Room #39, but are attacked at the 

  intersection north of Room #35 by 2 Lightning Beetles.  They quickly 

  kill the giant insects and proceed to Room #39.

• In Room #39 they encounter, fight and kill 5 Oozanderthals.

• They explore Rooms #45, #23, and return to Room #33 via the 

  southern corridors.

• They take already explored corridors to Room #34 and encounter 

  13 Oozanderthals.  10 of the monsters climb over the walls to circle 

  around and attack from behind.  While the “from behind 

  Oozanderthals” make their moves, the 3 in front of Danika and 

  Radomir’s teams get into a fight with the PCs.  The PCs kill 2 of 

  the monsters before the reinforcements arrive from behind.  The 

  remaining monsters are killed and the combined teams decide to 

  take a breather in this room before exploring further.

• 18 Oozanderthals killed = 2160 XP

• 2 Giant Lightning Beetles killed = 30 XP

• Total XP = 2190 XP

• Danika receives 1096 XP

• Hallabera and Hinek each receive 547 XP

No Game Last Night

 

 

 

 No Game Last Night

One of the players was out due to work, so we didn't play the weekly Ox Gives Way to Tiger, Etc last night.  I think we'll be back at it next Sunday night.

If you like Ravenloft adventures, maybe you would like to check out my Substack, where I am posting a Ravenloft+Shadowdark+Solodark solo game video every once in awhile.  I call this mash-up Sololoft, and it has been a fun challenge to start working in the video medium.  Several sessions are posted and a new one will release this Saturday, September 5th.

We squeaked Ctyri Ctvrt Session #40 in this morning.  Notes for Session #39 will be on the Substack Wednesday.  If you don't want to visit the Substack, the Session #39 notes will be posted Friday here on the blogger site.

 

Ctyri Ctvrt Chronicles Session #38

 

Pushing Buttons in Egg 2

 

 

Session 38- Inside the Spire of Iron and Crystal Part 4

7/3/2026

• Danika and Radomir’s respective parties of adventurers decide it is 

  time to try the Teleportation Units.

• Radomir’s crew uses the unit in Room #2 while Danika’s party 

  observes.

• Danika and her party encounter 7 Giant Worker Ants in Room #1, 

  but Zora and Tomasz located above on the ledge call out a warning.

• Danika and her team fight and kill the giant insects with the help of 

  Tomasz.  After the fight, Zora leaves the ledge to re-join her team 

  and Tomasz re-positions himself on the ledge to wait for his leader’s 

  further instructions.

• Danika pulls Zora aside to get a feel for Zora’s impression of Tomasz.  

  He seems like a good guy from Zora’s POV.

• Danika and her party Teleport from Lvl 1 Room #18 to Lvl 2 

  Room #32.  Radomir and his team have been waiting for them.  

  Radomir is concerned to see Zora, but Danika and her party inform 

  him Tomasz was okay when they saw him last and he is still in 

  position where Radomir stationed him.

• The 2 teams observe the room they are in has no doors, only 3 

  strangely quiet machines.  Each machine has a button that is sculpted 

  to look like a gargoyle’s face.  They are able to see a piece of 

  machinery that is located in a nearby room that juts above the quartz 

  walls.

• They push all 3 Gargoyle buttons, which turns off the lighting storm. 

  (5 turns.)

• They scale the wall and peer down into several different rooms.  

  1 contains a Cockatrice that they kill with ranged attacks.  Another 

  contains the large mechanical apparatus they observed from the 

  Teleport room.  Another has strange humanoid beings (Luhuloi) 

  moving about and through the exterior of the egg like it isn’t solid.  

  Those beings wave and seem friendly, but they don’t speak when 

  spoken to by Danika and Radomir’s team members.

• The 2 teams get off the wall and move into the 

• 7 Giant Worker Ants killed = 210 XP

• Cockatrice killed = 600 XP

• 47 CP

• 3000 SP = 300 XP

• 8000 GP = 8000 XP

• Large Bloodstone 75 GP = 75 XP

• Amber 100 GP = 100 XP

• Small Gold Idol of Nirgal 800 GP = 800 XP

• Painted Gold War Mask of Nirgal 800 GP = 800 XP

• Gold Ring set with Bloodstones 280 GP = 280 XP

• Total XP = 11,165 XP

• Danika receives 5583 XP

• Hynek and Pholos each receive 2791 XP