Session #3: The Opinions of Others

The party moved to cluster around Paik's fallen body. They tied him up and revived him. He was as mean and confrontational now as he had been placid before. At first he swore and spat at them, saying he would kill them, that they were thieves and murderers. Some words from Azeri calmed him down, but only to the point that he was barking at them to leave "his" fort. He said the only thing he knew of elves were the ones he had killed. They showed him the scroll they had gotten from the elves in Passage; he couldn't read Elvish, so they read it to him, to no avail. He didn't know, and he didn't care.

The party elected not to kill him, but Paik showed no gratitude, and began to gnaw through the rope with his wererat teeth. The party took a minute to look around, and did find a treasure stash, with 100 GP! They then discovered a crawlspace underneath the northeast turret of the fort. Akta and Taumir crawled out that way, getting a little stuck in the process, but making it. Edge and Azeri elected to walk up the steps out of the basement door, bashing some rocks and rubble out of their way. They all then made their way back to town. (They untied Paik, retrieving their rope, and left before he could retaliate in his weakened state.)

It was late in the day, but they were not ready to rest yet - the filth fever that Paik had infected Taumir with was concerning them. They asked around for a doctor, and were directed to a Dr. Moran. Moran was skeptical that Taumir could actually have been bitten by a wererat, but became alarmed when he learned they'd been up to the fort. Once he realized they were telling him the truth, he offered his services at a discount rate, but the ritual to cure disease was still a lot more expensive than they could manage. The doctor did a little research, and told Taumir that the disease should go away on its own in a few days. The party was nonplussed, and the doctor dismissed them not un-politely. Azeri felt obliged to pay the man 10 GP for his help; she did so out of the stash they had gotten at the fort.

Azeri (who was holding on the money) then divided up the fort loot among the party. Because Edge had gotten the magical sword, she wasn't going to divide him any, but Akta elected to share her portion with him. So Edge got 10, Taumir got 33, and Akta and Azeri got 23 GP each. They all then retired to the inn, ending the 9th day of Eyre.

The next morning, Taumir was feeling better. The filth fever was not all the way gone, but he was in much better shape. The party took stock of their situation and decided that there was probably nothing further to be gained in this one-horse town. Despite the cost and time involved, they decided to keep heading for Korrenberg. The cost to each party member for tickets the rest of the way was 15 GP (plus the remaining won rail ticket got used up).

They boarded the train, and found themselves in a car with about a half-dozen other travelers, most of whom seemed bland and non-threatening. The next stop on their way was to be Hatheril, a village about four hours journey south. At first, the trip there was uneventful - Edge even spent his time working on making a harmonica. Three and a half hours into the trip though, the rail car was attacked by four human men! These bandits demanded everyone's money. The party lept into action, at which point all the civilians dived under their seats. The battle that followed ended with the bandits plastered against the walls.

When it was over, the rest of the passengers warily made their way back up onto their seats. As the dust settled, however, the party realized that one person had remained seated the whole time: a tall human sitting at the back. He congratulated them on their victory, and introduced himself as Zaigot. From the Mark of Sentinel on his arm, they could tell he was of House Deneith, the martial house. Zaigot actually offered to make them house mercenaries, and to give them some incentives to do so. Edge shunned Zaigot entirely, not even listening to his offer. Taumir seemed interested, but Akta was not so kindly disposed towards House Deneith, having had bad experiences with Sentinel Marshalls in Varna in her youth. Azeri was cautious, and privately voiced a lack of interest.

Zaigot said the offer stood until they reached Hatheril, then he would have to be on his way. If they accepted, he would take them straight to the training camp outside Korth.

Rewards

• You have all gained another 1,000 XP and will advance another level! (Please take care of that before next time.)
• From the bandits you loot:
• A set of Darkleaf Armor (p. 228 in the Player's Handbook)
• A holy symbol, the Symbol of hope (p. 237 Player's Handbook)
• 290 GP
• Once all was said and done, from Paik's stash:
• Azeri gained 8 GP
• Taumir gained 18 GP
• Akta gained 9 GP (this includes the extra 1 GP she found on the ground)
• Edge had to spend 5 GP

Session #2: The Darkness in Fort Light

The party boarded the lightning rail in Passage, and traveled to the city of Fort Light (which is just over the border into Thrane). The journey took several hours, and they arrived there late in the afternoon of the 9th day of Eyre.

Fort Light is a sleepy little town. Years ago, there was an active fort there, but during the Last War, it was sacked by an army from Breland, and now only the ruin remains. The town that grew up around it is hanging on, but is no longer prosperous, and the lightning rail stop seems more like a historical concession.

Once in town, Edge went to a local inn and secured the party rooms. They asked the innkeeper for some information. He wasn't exactly a fount of it, but he did give them enough that they decided to go up to the fort. Finding the fort wasn't difficult - it's presence outside the town was very keenly felt. The locals were very open about it being a haunted place.

Once the party arrived at the fort, however, they realized that getting inside and finding out more wasn't going to be easy. The fort's entrances were all blocked by rubble, and the place was in a very sorry state. They decided to try climbing the walls instead. Edge was able to make it up and over (though not without some difficulty) and then used his rope and strength to get the rest of them over (again, not without some trouble). They explored the top of the walls a little bit, but then all went down inside. The inside was similarly trashed.

As they were looking around, a dirty, surly man approached them. Introducing himself as Paik, he asked what they were doing there. They asked him what he was doing here. He said he lived here, and seemed afronted and suspicious to find them here. In response to inquiries about elves and moons and such, he said the only thing of interest in the fort was down in the basement, and that he would show it to them. Akta and Azeri were suspicious of him, and were not sure they should follow, but they kept their concerns to themselves. Edge made a show of leaving his weapon behind when Paik got skittish, and that seemed to appease him (and Edge retrieved his weapon as soon as Paik's back was turned).

Down in the basement, Paik led them into a largish room - and then activated a trap! Azeri and Akta, thanks to their suspicions, were not surprised by the move, and managed to jump away from the floor as it fell out from underneath them. Taumir and Edge were not so lucky, and fell down into a pit, injuring themselves slightly in the process. A swarm of giant rats and animated skeletons came at them. Taumir and Edge were helped a little by the fact that they fell onto raised mounds, and thus had some advantage over their approaching enemies.

Up on the ledge overlooking the pit, Akta and Paik turned to fight each other. Paik now revealed himself as a wererat, transforming into his rat form. Azeri cut through a giant rat that had climbed its way up, then came to Akta's aid. Paik quickly tired of trying to fight them both, and jumped down into the pit, where Edge and Taumir were making short work of the rats, but having a little trouble with the skeletons and a zombie that had joined the mix. By the time Paik joined their fray though, they had managed to cut down most of their enemies. Seeing his predicament, Paik bit Taumir, infecting him with filth fever. Fortunately, the very next blow brought him down.

Rewards

• 800 XP (you should all be at 1,700 XP, and get to level up!)
• That's another two encounters, so that's a milestone and another action point for everyone!
• You found a Level 2 Vicious Sword (+1) (market value 104 GP)
• Akta found 2 GP while searching the fort
• (Don't forget you still have one lightning rail ticket in someone's possession)

Session #1: The Streets

On the 8th day of the month of Eyre, in the year 998 YK, in the city of Passage in the nation of Aundair, on the continent of Khorvaire:

Azeri, a half-elf cleric of Ioun, was walking down the street, minding her own business, when a Spiretop Drake swooped down, bit her, and made off with her holy symbol! She turned to fight and get her property back. The ensuing commotion attracted the attention of Edge, a taciturn Warforged fighter, Taumir, a friendly elf ranger, and Akta, a reserved Tiefling wizard. They made relatively short work of the creatures, and then decided to go get a drink together to celebrate their victory.

While resting at a nearby tavern, they overheard some street merchant outside, an extremely enthusiastic halfling, trying to get people to enter into a drawing he was running. The prize was 5 tickets to the lightning rail, so the party decided to participate (though some of them took a little while to be convinced). To be entered in the drawing, the players had to be blindfolded and guess what substance was in a series of bowls that the merchant presented to them. They missed most of them, but they got an entry into the drawing anyway. After waiting an hour, the halfling drew a name out of a hat -- it was the party's one entry! They had won 5 tickets to the lightning rail!

They talked about it for a little while and decided to use their lucky tickets to investigate the Library of Korranberg in Zilargo, a good distance away. As they were heading to the rail station, however, they were confronted by two elves with pet hyenas who demanded all their money. The party was declined to acquiesce to their request, and a knock-down drag-out brawl ensued. Edge and Azeri nearly succumbed to the hyena's pack assault, but in the end the four assailants were dispatched.

During the course of the fight, one of the elves yelled out in pain, "By the thirteen moon!" This had piqued Taumir's interest, as he had grown up among a enclave of half-elves living near the Starpeaks who were searching for the thirteenth moon. The party did not leave their enemy alive to question him, but after his demise they searched his person and found a scroll indicating that he had some leads on what happened to the Starpeak enclave, and he was on his way to Fort Light to investigate further. The party decided to modify their plan, and head to Fort Light, at least on the way to the University.

Rewards

• 900 XP each!
• On the elves you found 200 gp, which you can divide among the four of you (50 gp each).
• You can divide up the 5 tickets however you wish. They're worth 5 gp each.