Crypt of the Moaning Diamond

Crypt of the Moaning Diamond, by Rosemary Jones, is the fourth book in the loosely-related The Dungeons series. "There is no going back.

The city is built on its own ruins. Monsters stalk its long-collapsed corridors, hungry for fresh meat. Artifacts from a forgotten age lie in wait, corrupting all they touch. Water rising from the depths steals all hope for survival."

"The Siegebreakers are a tight-knit group of eccentric mercenaries who boast they can safely bring down the walls of any fortress, and will do so for the right amount of coin. But when the walls of their latest job crash down on their heads, trapping them in ruins treacherous with magic, monsters, and ever-rising water, it's all they can do to stay alive. Undaunted, the Siegebreakers are determined to escape and finish the job."

Summary
During Summer in, the city of Tsurlagol has been captured by Fottergrim's army, and the forces of nearby Procampur come to its rescue with a combination of its own standing army and mercenaries. In particular, the Siegebreakers, informally led by Ivy, have the mission of bringing down Tsurlagol's fortifications.

In the war camp, The Thultyrl requests Ivy's presence in his tent; he informs her that her group has but two days left to finish the task of bringing down the walls, because Archlis, Fottergrim's mage, is absent and they wish to attack while he can't bolster the orc's defenses. While conveying the urgency of the situation to the rest of her crew, made up of Kid, Zuzzara, Gunderal, Mumchance and his little dog Wiggles, and accompanied by Officer Sanval, Ivy demands they sap the walls faster. Mumchance warns her that it is a bad idea, as Gunderal has been summoning water to weaken the foundations; while showing her, the tunnel they are digging collapses, taking all of them into an underground level of Tsurlagol, and separating them from much of their equipment.

Underneath Tsurlagol, Gunderal is injured and can't stop the water she has spent the last days from continuing to accumulate, slowly flooding the ancient tunnels; though they fight kobolds, they discover Fottergrim's forces have spent some time in there. After some turns, they come across Archlis, who demands their help in exchange for not slaying them. Against Sanval's judgement, they agree to his terms, helping him get at his goal, the fabled Moaning Diamond.

Their extended antics underground continue to weaken the wall, and after Archlis opens a way out with the artifact, Fottergrim turns on him, considering him a traitor who has abandoned his post to pursue his own trinkets. In the chaos of the fight, the wall is finally destroyed, and the Siegebreakers manage to convince the Thultyrl that it has all been their doing. Sanval joins them as they secure digging rights, hoping to retrieve the treasures of the dungeon, which they left behind in their rush to get out.

Index

 * Characters


 * Locations


 * Creatures


 * Races


 * Organizations


 * Religions


 * Magic


 * Miscellaneous


 * Works


 * Languages