The Pit
Found in the undercity of Ide Volcar if you know who to talk to.
It might be called The Pit but you see no pit of any kind here. From what you can tell this might have once been a warehouse floor or cellar, now long abandoned and built on top on. An area of about forty by forty feet has been cordoned off by crates and assembled furniture, a small layer of sand covers the floor. Right now two men, their upper bodies naked, stevedores if the tattoos are anything to go by, are wailing on each other, their hands wrapped with cloth. One lands a solid blow on the other and a tooth flies across the room. The loser falls backward to the floor, followed by a trail of blood and saliva. The loser’s unconscious body is dragged away as the winner walks around, throwing his bloodied hands up in the air, accepting the adoration of the crowd.
Speaking of the crowd, there are more people than you expected, though it’s hard to estimate how many exactly. The fight fans are assembled around three sides of the arena and while a large part are the dockworkers, unskilled laborers and down on their luck adventurers you expected, there are also quite a few people you figure for shopkeepers, clerks, and the like. To one side is an area kept somewhat apart from the rest of the crowd by serious looking bodyguards. It’s filled with what you assume to be rich merchants and members of the nobility.
There is a lot of betting going on, servers are selling drinks which are brought in from a side room and some enterprising individual even has engaged some lads and lasses to bring in food from nearby eateries. As you walk inside you see two new combatants emerging from rooms of to the side. The crowd roars as the next fight begins. The throng of bodies, the many torches and the low ceiling, plus the inescapable, humid air all mix together to form a hot, clammy atmosphere; welcome to The Pit.
Sumac comes over when the party arrives: “Good to see you kids, the real fights are starting in thirty minutes or so. Over there are the fighter rooms if you want to change or work on your weapons or something. Do you have a hype man/woman/person? Any special introductions you want for the fight? I gotta go, find Dosrick, he’ll take care of you.” He walks over to a man dressed in fineries who just entered; “well met lord Idaerun, how are you on this fair eve? I hope everything is to your satisfaction.”
Trainer Dosrick explains there will be other fights and some time between rounds, he also offers to supply certain 'boosters'; “they can’t be detected”. Speaking of; a redheaded woman in a slim purple outfit checks all combatants for magic before each fight. She wears a necklace from which dangle four holy symbols.
Harpin has a talk with her, she introduces herself as Asajj. The gnome recognizes all the holy symbols: Lirr, Olidammara, Boccob, and Ancev. He feels she is a kindred spirit; another warlock! They agree to talk more another day when they aren't both busy and as he goes back to the others he gives her his Feast of Masks confession: "I swear this happened today: We found a realm on the other side of the looking glass, where a snake the size of Ide Volcar attacked my allies and me. So I drank Purified Vindictiveness and made a colossal frog!"
It is decided that Butch and Reb will do the fights and Harpin and Regius will be the hype men and take care of healing and such between fights.
The fights
Gnash
“He hails from the Wood of Sharp Teeth and his favorite food is human babies. He once impaled two men with one thrust and has killed numerous. Will you be next? Do you dare face off against Gnash?!”
Hunched and feral, this furred, hyena-headed humanoid stands slightly taller than the average human. It wears an ill-fitting studded leather armor and wields a spear in a two handed stance.
Harpin introduces Butch: "He rends flesh. He cleaves bones. Mountains quake, maidens faint, and gods flee when he lets his sawblade taste blood. King of culinary killings. Crown prince of violence. Bigger. Badder. It's Butch, the Bloody Butcher!"
The fierce gnoll would have actually stood a chance if the barbarian didn't easily absorb half of its damage.
After the fight Sumac is seen taking an envelope from a few of the rich people. Regius bet 1 to 6 on Butch, the maximum amount; 25 gp. It paid out 4.17 gp.
Yonigu
“Here’s your first clue, she’s slain more than a few. Her fame grew with every bout she went through. This fight will be the one you’ll rue, if only you knew. Maybe it’s better you withdrew, if your life you do value. She likes stew, fondue and ragout. Don’t ever call her a shrew or she’ll paste you into goo. Who? Yonigu!”
This ugly creature resembles a twisted shadow puppet’s silhouette, a wild thing of flared black and brown fur whose pelt juts out from its body at freakish angles. The crouching shadow’s ears are large and floppy, draping shoulder-length, adding to the creature’s unnatural shape. Its eyes are too big for its head. Tremendous milk-white ovals loom on either side of the thing’s wheezy pig-like nose. Its panting mouth is filled with bristly needle-teeth spiderwebbed in disgusting strands of yellowish saliva, all vibrating to the tune of its wheezing breath. It wears ring armor that has seen better days, swings a morningstar around with a lazy grace in one hand and carries a shield in the other.
Regius introduces Reb: <missing>.
The fighter doesn't have too much trouble with the bugbear but does use two of his maneuvers.
A small fight breaks out in the crowd but it is soon resolved. Regius bet 1 to 6 on Butch, the maximum amount; 25 gp. It paid out 4.17 gp. Harpin did the same. Our friends decide that Butch will take the next fight and Reb will do the fourth and last fight.
Bruthwol & Murghol
“These brothers are inseparable in more ways than one, said to share more than just feelings. Here are Bruthwol & Murghol.”
From out of the doorway step two bald, long-bearded dwarfs with dull gray skin, low arching brows, and eyes that seem to absorb rather than reflect the light. They both wear simple black shifts and neither carries any weapons.
Harpin introduces Butch: "Witness again the Master of Meal Prep. He chops, he dices, he slices, he fillets, all while wearing an apron of his foes' intestines. Let him cook while you simmer in your seats. Get ready for a healthy serving of violence. Bigger. Badder. It's Butch, the Bloody Butcher!"
The Duergar martial artists twins might have had a chance had Butch failed any of his saves against their stunning strikes. As it is, the half-orc hits very hard and damage done to one brother does the same to the other, soon they both lay on the sand floor.
An Ankheg in a cage rolled in to promote the next event. Both Harpin and Regius bet, these times the odds were 1 to 5, both of them earning 5 gp.
A cute girl in a servant’s outfit comes up to Butch and hands him a handkerchief almost dripping with perfume and points at her mistress in the crowd. She looks to be a merchant or noble, or the wife of one; she’s dressed in fineries, wearing opulent jewelry and looks to be in her fifties. She waves at the barbarian and blows him a kiss. Butch waves back, awkwardly.
Sumac approaches: “You did good kid, real good. Now listen, I need you to lose this last fight but make it look good, ok? If you wanna see the boss that's what you gotta do.” Reb replies: "I'll see you after the fight".
Az-Laar
“It’s who you’ve been waiting for all night; so let’s not waste any more time. She has a habit of making heads splatter so bring on your one, your only, Az-Laar!”
This creature’s python-thick apish arms and stumpy legs conspire to drag its dirty knuckles through the grimy sand. The stooped giant blinks its dim eyes and an excess of soupy drool spills over its bulbous lips. Its misshapen features resemble a woman’s face rendered in watercolor, then distorted by a careless splash. It snarls as it charges, a sound the offspring of bear and man might make, showing flat black teeth well suited for grinding bones to paste. The hide armor it wears looks like it has never been removed since the first time it was donned and the iron tipped club it carries looks very large and heavy.
Regius introduces Reb: <missing>.
The ogre is carrying a battering ram, and not only that, the moment Reb gets near, she attacks, doing a crazy amount of damage and pushes him away. The fighter has enough movement left to get next to his opponent and attack, using more maneuvers for an alpha strike. It's those that carry the day, that and the ogre missing a number of attacks and doing poor damage when she does connect.
Aftermath
Sumac is furious after the fight, Reb not keeping to the deal will cost them! He tells them to get out of his sight. The lieutenant sounds a bit half hearted though, he definitely enjoyed the fights, our friends think he might still find a way for them to get what they want.
Butch, Harpin, and Regius all bet on Reb for this fight and the odds were a lot better: 4 to 1, meaning each of them made a 100 gp. Putting all their winnings together it comes out to about 320 gp, divided by four it's 80 gp each.
And with that they leave the Pit.