1 turn left to escape.

** TURN 19 **

Western tunnel:

58 - Tanea - Halfling Shaman you feel protective as the children huddle around you. You ask Cassandra some questions, she replies - "I do not know how the door to the room with the paintings was opened. The are powers here that are much greater than what you or I possess. The children remember nothing of their lives as rats, which is a good thing I think. A side effect of the transformation spell is that they never aged while in rodent form. The benefit being that they are young and innocent in both mind and body."
"I think they will be fine with you in your village. Looking at how they have taken to you, I can't imagine anywhere they would be happier."
Looking at Shin's, Cassandra says "He is in a catatonic state but I think if i send him directly to his home and family, that should hopefully snap him out of it. The bone dagger you used is carved from remains of a defeated Lich, so don't worry that a living creature would have suffered to craft it."

Cassandra taps one of the toadstools with her staff and Tanea looks through a portal to her living room. You get all the children to link hands before leading them through the portal to their new home. You leave the pots of treasure, bone dagger and necklace behind.
As the children explore their new surroundings, Cassandras cauldron appears in a corner of the room. Your mouth waters at the smell of the vegetable soup within and the children rush over, bellies rumbling.
A voice in your head tells you "I couldn't let you leave without any reward. With this cauldron, you and your new family will never go hungry. Just think of whatever you desire to eat and it shall appear inside. Farewell little one and thank you for all you have done."
You have escaped.

4 - Strigon - Drow Necromancer and 74 - Yeenwi - Drow Necromancer - Cassandra turns to face the two Drow smiling.
She touches a different toadstool with her staff a portal opens to a dark but familiar tunnel. "As I am sure you recognise, this tunnel leads to your home city. I dare not open a portal directly into the city given your peoples, er, reputation."
"Take your treasure pots with you and fare thee well. Your help here is much appreciated."

38 - Roy Jenks - Half-Orc Battemage you grab the two treasure pots with a smile and ask to be sent back home. You also enquire about the Witches staff.
Cassandra taps a toadstool and your home is visible before you. "Fare well and trust in your human side. I am afraid that the staff must stay with myself but those treasure pots will allow you to live like a king."

Cassandra gently touches Shin's on the forehead with the staff and he is returned to his home.

Thank you very much, Doc. This was great and it's amazing you actually followed through with all this work (80 people!). Thank you!
--------------------
Tanea, Halfling Shaman (female)
Cassandra's answers to my questions regarding the healthcare of Cora, Portia, Amaryllis, Cade, Kepli, Mungo, Filibert and Hob and Shins calm my worries. I trust, that Cassandra is right and it's best, if Shins returns to his own home. After all, Cassandra is very old and can work powerful magic, surely she knows more about this than me.
Cassandra taps one of the toadstools with her staff and I can see my living room through "the hole" in front of me. A portal. Powerful magic indeed. I lay the bone dagger and necklace on the ground and pay no further attention to the two pots of treasure meant for me. I have no need for wealth. It only attracts greed. As Cassandra gently touches Shins on the forehead with the staff, causing him to "vanish", I let the children link hands. I say goodbye to Cassandra, Roy, Strigon and Yeenwi ... and the Ice Elemental, who then vanishes, and we cross through the portal.
Suddenly standing in the middle of my living room again, I am a little shaken. It looks so ... normal. Like nothing changed ... But everything changed! No ... not everything. Just me. ...
Just as I come to that realization a cauldron, no, Cassandra's cauldron appears in a corner of the room and a voice in my head says: "I couldn't let you leave without any reward. With this cauldron, you and your new family will never go hungry. Just think of whatever you desire to eat and it shall appear inside. Farewell little one and thank you for all you have done."
I smile and my mouth waters at the smell of the vegetable soup within. The children rush over, bellies rumbling, and I think of Roy with his two bottomless pots of treasure, who seemed to be so hungry. My smile gets a little sad. You can't eat treasure ...

Tanea, Halfling Shaman (female)
--------------------
Epilogue
I watch the children play while tending to the garden. They are so carefree. It is good they don't remember, I think. I will tell them, when they are older. For now, let them be carefree.
My sudden appearance, with eight children no less, caused a short time of confusion and a little bit of worry in the village, but everything went back to our normal quite ways, after thorough explanation. I had to retell the story of all that happened many times already. The tattoo, the maze and the paintings are a source of constant wonder. What did it all mean? Well, I still don't know either.
I look to the house aunt Kantris and uncle Thorus live in now. Their daughter with husband and children moved to a different village, and they had no use for the big house all alone. So now Cora, Portia, Amaryllis, Cade, Kepli, Mungo, Filibert, Hob and me live there, and they live in my old home. I chuckle thinking back on moving the cauldron. It wasn't easy, but we managed.
The cauldron and the tattoo helped with explaining. I'm not sure I would have believed myself without those ... and Klamgro. I smile. The Ice Elemental, I had somehow summoned, was actually the same one both times. By now I have summoned him more or less regularly, but sparingly. We talked and, thanks to him, I now know about these things.
I stop what I'm doing and look to the sky. The sun is playing hide and seek behind the little puffs of clouds traveling across the sky. My mind wanders, first to Shins, BenKii, Roy, Strigon and Yeenwi, and after to Roosevelt, Siegfried, Loradan, Gilius, Peloquin and Rufus, even Fish. Lastly I think of Origi, the grey Hag, Gertrude and Cassandra. I let the thoughts and emotions come and go as they please. Nothing else to do now.
Amaryllis' pearly laugther brings me back to the present and I get back to tending to the garden.

kjuvhujkujkuijblki;.lo

I Strigon, drow necromancer, takes my treasure pots, thanks everyone and steps in through the portal to go home.

Current Situation:

!!1 TURN LEFT TO ESCAPE!!

Cassandra's Throne Room:
The adventurers ask a few more questions to Cassandra before she opens portals to their respective homes. Tanea and Shins return to their halfling village along with the 8 halfling children. Tanea leaves behind the treasure but Cassandra gives her the Cauldron that can create any food by just thinking of what to eat. Tanea and Shins have escaped. Cassandra then opens a portal for Yeenwi and Strigon to their Drow homeland. And finally a portal for Roy Jenks' home.

Current Action Summary

4 - sasuke12 - Strigon - Drow Necromancer
I Strigon, drow necromancer, takes my treasure pots, thanks everyone and steps in through the portal to go home.

74 - runnerex - Yeenwi - Drow Necromancer
Yeenwi returns the Cassandra's smile and says:
"I'm not in a particular hurry to return to my home city. If you feel you might be in need of some assistance at your home or just some quality company, I'd gladly accompany you."
If Cassandra agrees, Yeenwi goes with her. If she declines, he waves her goodbye, takes the magical pots she offered and goes through the portal that leads to the tunnel that in turn leads to the Drow city.

Haven't taken turn yet:
38 - ZyloxDragon - Roy Jenks - Half-Orc Battemage

74 - Yeenwi - Drow Necromancer

Yeenwi returns the Cassandra's smile and says:

"I'm not in a particular hurry to return to my home city. If you feel you might be in need of some assistance at your home or just some quality company, I'd gladly accompany you."

If Cassandra agrees, Yeenwi goes with her. If she declines, he waves her goodbye, takes the magical pots she offered and goes through the portal that leads to the tunnel that in turn leads to the Drow city.

** FINAL TURN **

Western tunnel:

BenKii and Tanea have already left.

4 - Strigon - Drow Necromancer picks up his treasure pots and with a bow of thanks, enters the portal home.
You have escaped.

74 - Yeenwi - Drow Necromancer you offer your assistance to Cassandra but she shakes her head. She looks tired.
With a wave farewell, you pick up your treasure pots and enter the portal home.
You have escaped.

38 - Roy Jenks - Half-Orc Battemage with Cassandra unwilling to give up her staff, you take your treasure pots and head through the portal to your home.
You have escaped.

Alone at last, Cassandra lets her illusion drop. Gone is the beautiful Elf and in her place an ancient Crone stands, bent over leaning on her staff for support.
She talks aloud to herself, as she has done for many, many years, "I never thought this day would come. To finally be able to return home, gods know how overgrown my herb garden will be."
She steps into the shaft of light and is gone.

All players have escaped the Western Tunnel.

GAME OVER

Congrats to the Western Tunnel team! Well done, that was some great roleplaying! :)

Thanks for running this, Doc - it was as fun to read as the players obviously had playing it!

Thank you Doc for one of the most entertaining forum games I've been involved with in a while!

Now I gotta go ban some forum users :)

This message will be copy pasted to each tunnel.

I am going to work out who has won what reward and then contact each person in chat. Those that did not escape or did not die trying, even if that death was voluntary due to not being able to carry on in the game, will not be eligible for a reward unless they received an achievement. Sorry if this seems harsh.

Rewards are to be spent in the current Winter Sale.

If you received an achievement and it hasn't been added to post three in the original Enter my dungeon if you dare... Giveaway/Game thread, please let me know as soon as possible.

Thank you for your participation, the game is just an idea without you guys (and gals).

Failed the dice roll.

I'm glad to hear. It was quite obvious that underneath the "beautiful" exterior hides an "ugly" hag. I didn't want her to be killed (or at least attacked) just for being ugly.