Lanamelk led the party through the bustling streets of Dar Reinoth to the Palace of the Three, the Inspired god-queens of the Reidra. As they walked, the party kept their eyes and ears sharp for the news of Khorvaire that was circulating. They learned that just a day or two ago, House Deneith had learned of Zelian's death in Droaam. They'd tried to keep in quiet, but within 24 hours everyone knew, and now tensions were escalating extremely rapidly. Everyone was blaming Droaam for the assassination, thinking this land of monsters was trying to undermine the Five Kingdoms. Breland, Droaam's neighbor, was especially incensed and on the warpath. Meanwhile, House Deneith itself has been thrown into turmoil, as Zelian had deliberately hoarded power and not groomed any heir, so now his lieutenants were squabbling amongst themselves, trying to gain control.
With these matters weighing heavily on their minds, the party entered the Palace of the Three. They had a lot of time to mull them over, as there were a lot of formality and ceremonies that they were required to pass through before they were admitted into the presence of the Three.
In the grand throne room, the Three sat impassive on their dais, while an Inspired male stood at the foot of the dais, announcing himself as the Voice of the Three, and translating between Common and Quori (which was all the Three would speak, and never directly to the party, which they couldn't understand anyway). The Voice relayed a message of great arrogance and condescension, and a order. The Three wanted the party to return to Khorvaire and persuade the king of New Galifar (part of the nation of Q'barra) to use the current turmoil as a platform to expand his influence, particularly over the neighboring Talenta Plains. Their stated reason was that this would bring greater stability and civilization to Khorvaire - privately, the party was aware that Redira had significant ties to Q'barra that were certainly driving this course of action.
The party had questions, and reservations, but it quickly became apparent they were not being asked. Unwilling to get into a fight at this time, they decided to accept, believing they could slip away from the Three's influence once they were back home. They then retired to the chambers that the Three had provided for them. The night passed uneventfully. (Taumir sent along a question about the Thirteenth Moon, and got a curt brush-off the next morning.)
The next morning, 13 Dravago, Lanamelk and some of her fellow Inspired Guardians came and escorted the party down to the docks, where they promptly set sail for Khorvaire! The trip was long, five days in the making. In their boredom, the party considered going to Xen'dirk instead, and seeking fame and fortune there, but decided they'd rather get home instead.
It was evening on 18 Dravago when they docked at Newthrone. Almost as soon as they disembarked, Lizardfolk began to swarm out of the sea around them and attacked! A huge crowd of them rushed the party, pinning them down in a swamp of bodies. Little did the lizardfolk know that this just made it easier for the party to hit more of them at once!
Rewards
XP and GP will be awarded when the battle is over.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
Session #22: The Unintentional Heretics
As the forest fell silent, the party decided to try and find some sort of civilization in this strange land. They easily found a well-used but humble road, and followed it north for an hour or two. They found a tiny farming village, but decided not to risk any entanglements with the locals that evening. They camped outside of town and rested after the fight.
The next morning, 10 Dravago, they were awakened by the sounds of the farmers getting up to go about their daily labors. (The farmer's fields were to the west of the village, so the party had to actively go into town to meet someone.) They hailed a farmer who called himself Zara - he was surprised to see them, and a little perplexed by the sight of Edge, but he seemed unafraid. He said the name of this village was Tranor, in the empire of Reidra. When asked questions about this land and this nation, he seemed both uninterested and unaware of much of anything beyond his village and his fields. He did suggest they travel to the capital city of Dar Reinoth, saying individuals of their mettle and skills would be valued by the Inspired, the mysterious rulers of his country. He then bid them farewell and headed off to his day of honest labor.
The party couldn't think of much else to pursue, so they decided to take Zara's advice. First though, they decided to head back to the clearing where they'd left the dragon's corpse and harvest the skin and scales. It was messy work, especially for Edge. The trip there and back and the time butchering the dead beast cost them most of the morning.
By mid-afternoon, the party had traveled a dozen miles or so north of Tranor when they saw three figures approaching from a distance. They were wary, but didn't see many places or reasons to hide themselves, so they decided to meet the strangers as they came. This proved to be a bad decision, as the three strangers, who were all kalashtar women, were servants of a race called the Inspired, who rule Riedra and had outlawed all worship of anything but the Path of the Inspired. Azeri, cleric of Ioun, was clearly not a follower of such. The women attacked with almost no warning, determined to bring her and the rest of the party down. However, they quickly found themselves outmatched - the party slew two and was able to intimate the last into surrendering.
The remaining woman's name was Lanamelk. When she learned that the party was from Khorvaire, she softened her stance, and like Zara, said her masters would be greatly interested in meeting them. She offered to travel with them to Dar Reinoth and make introductions there. The party agreed, feeling that they could escape from or kill Lanamelk relatively easily should the need arise.
The party and Lanamelk traveled north and west for the rest of the day, and camped overnight. The next day, 11 Dravago, they traveled for a few more hours before reaching a mid-sized city around mid-day. The party entertained the notion of slipping away from her while there, and Azeri did manage to sneak away long enough to buy some spell components, but in the end party decided to see their journey to the capital through. The afternoon and early evening passed uneventfully, and they all spent the night in an obscure country inn along the highway.
Around noon the next day (12 Dravago), the travelers arrived in Dar Reinoth, a great bustling metropolis. As they journeyed towards the center of town with Lanamelk, they listened to the crowds around them. It didn't take them long to discover that the big news, even here, was that Khorvaire was on the brink of war!
Rewards
The next morning, 10 Dravago, they were awakened by the sounds of the farmers getting up to go about their daily labors. (The farmer's fields were to the west of the village, so the party had to actively go into town to meet someone.) They hailed a farmer who called himself Zara - he was surprised to see them, and a little perplexed by the sight of Edge, but he seemed unafraid. He said the name of this village was Tranor, in the empire of Reidra. When asked questions about this land and this nation, he seemed both uninterested and unaware of much of anything beyond his village and his fields. He did suggest they travel to the capital city of Dar Reinoth, saying individuals of their mettle and skills would be valued by the Inspired, the mysterious rulers of his country. He then bid them farewell and headed off to his day of honest labor.
The party couldn't think of much else to pursue, so they decided to take Zara's advice. First though, they decided to head back to the clearing where they'd left the dragon's corpse and harvest the skin and scales. It was messy work, especially for Edge. The trip there and back and the time butchering the dead beast cost them most of the morning.
By mid-afternoon, the party had traveled a dozen miles or so north of Tranor when they saw three figures approaching from a distance. They were wary, but didn't see many places or reasons to hide themselves, so they decided to meet the strangers as they came. This proved to be a bad decision, as the three strangers, who were all kalashtar women, were servants of a race called the Inspired, who rule Riedra and had outlawed all worship of anything but the Path of the Inspired. Azeri, cleric of Ioun, was clearly not a follower of such. The women attacked with almost no warning, determined to bring her and the rest of the party down. However, they quickly found themselves outmatched - the party slew two and was able to intimate the last into surrendering.
The remaining woman's name was Lanamelk. When she learned that the party was from Khorvaire, she softened her stance, and like Zara, said her masters would be greatly interested in meeting them. She offered to travel with them to Dar Reinoth and make introductions there. The party agreed, feeling that they could escape from or kill Lanamelk relatively easily should the need arise.
The party and Lanamelk traveled north and west for the rest of the day, and camped overnight. The next day, 11 Dravago, they traveled for a few more hours before reaching a mid-sized city around mid-day. The party entertained the notion of slipping away from her while there, and Azeri did manage to sneak away long enough to buy some spell components, but in the end party decided to see their journey to the capital through. The afternoon and early evening passed uneventfully, and they all spent the night in an obscure country inn along the highway.
Around noon the next day (12 Dravago), the travelers arrived in Dar Reinoth, a great bustling metropolis. As they journeyed towards the center of town with Lanamelk, they listened to the crowds around them. It didn't take them long to discover that the big news, even here, was that Khorvaire was on the brink of war!
Rewards
- 2,500 XP each. Time to level up!
- 4,000 GP total.
Monday, January 19, 2015
Session #21: The Forest of Fog & Teeth
The party fought bravely and resourcefully. The dragon was powerful, but they had many tricks up their sleeves that often thwarted the dragon's most powerful attacks. Once, the dragon managed to fly through a storm cage and attack two party members at once - but not only did he miss, but the party's defenses and reactions actually knocked the beast to the ground!
As the battle wore on, the party found themselves tiring out. Fortunately, they were able to muster some strong final blows, and at last the dragon fell to the ground, dead.
Rewards
As the battle wore on, the party found themselves tiring out. Fortunately, they were able to muster some strong final blows, and at last the dragon fell to the ground, dead.
Rewards
- 3,500 XP each.
- 5,000 GP total.
- You found a Stormwalker Cloak +3 (Player's Handbook, p. 251).
Monday, January 12, 2015
Session #20: The Unexpected Exile
The party decided that they wanted to get some old questions answered, and that step one in doing that would be to raise Elfrich from the dead. As doing so would take eight hours of Azeri's time, and it was already night, they found lodging and retired to tackle that project the next day.
Raising Elfrich was the work of most of the 8th day of Dravago. Edge kept watch while Azeri was casting the ritual. At long last, it was completed, and Elfrich opened his very surprised eyes. The party demanded to know if he had knowingly betrayed them, and if so, why. He hung his head, and said that, yes, he had done it all on purpose. Zelian had gotten to him, and forced him to do it. They asked why he'd activated the hidden bomb when he knew what would happen - he replied that by that point it was either they killed him or Zelian did, so it didn't seem to matter.
The party was not pacified by his answers, but wasn't about to kill him when they had just spent a great deal of time and money bringing him back to life. They informed him that he owed them for that; he is in their debt. And to repay that debt, they said, he will gather information for them now, and they'll call on him when they need him. Elfich was grateful, and said he planned to set up shop in Ghalt, a city none too far from Passage. After obtaining their leave to go, he fled into the waning light of the evening.
The party decided their next move was going to be to head to Tselem's alma mater in Fairhaven, University of Wynarn, to meet with an old professor of his, and continue pursuing other unanswered questions. Thus resolved, they headed to the nearest House Orien teleportation station. On their way however, they were met by a Dragonborn male named Kriv. Kriv knew they had taken down Zelian, or rather Kriv's master did, and had asked Kriv to 'invite' them to meet with his master.
The party was naturally very guarded, especially since Kriv would not say who his master was (though it seemed pretty likely it was a dragon) or what exactly he wanted. Kriv made it very clear though that he did not intend to take no for an answer, but neither was he in possession of all the facts. The party debated for a time, and then decided to accept. Kriv led them down to the docks on the shores of Silver Lake, where they boarded a galleon going to Drum Keep on the far side of the lake. (Kriv insisted they pay their own way, which annoyed them, so Edge paid for everyone, including Kriv, as a nose-thumbing gesture.)
It was night by the time the boat set sail. The party bedded down in the passenger bunks (such as they were) below deck. The boat arrived at Drum Keep very early the next morning, but the crew did not ask the passengers to disembark until dawn arrived on the morning of 9 Dravago. Drum Keep was a busy though not particularly noteworthy fort, and the party did not really have any reason to linger, so they followed Kriv an hour's journey into the desert beyond.
At long last, Kriv stopped and declared they had arrived, then stepped to one side. A moment later, a great brown dragon emerged from beneath the sand. Kriv's master was indeed a dragon, and his name was Khamsin. Khamsin greeted the party cordially enough for dragon, but quickly made it clear he had a bone to pick with them. Killing the leader of one of the Dragonmarked Houses, at least according to him, was interfering with the Draconic Prophesy. The party asked to know how so, but Khamsin loftily refused to entertain such questions. To him, there was only one course of action - the party must leave Khorvaire entirely, so as to not interfere any further. The party was naturally reluctant, but they were also reluctant to take on a dragon of Khamsin's stature, so they agreed to his terms.
Khamsin opened a portal to Sarlona, the other great civilized continent of the world, and ushered the group through. They found themselves in the midst of swampy, humid forest. It had been morning in Khorvaire, but now they were literally on the other side of the world, and it was evening. The portal closed beyond them, leaving to wonder what was going to happen next.
They didn't have long to ponder. Through the trees a crashing was heard, and then a ferocious green dragon burst into the clearing where they stood. It wasted no time attacking them. The party fought back bravely, wondering if this was just bad luck ... or if they'd just been played.
Rewards
(Nothing yet, since the encounter is still on-going)
Raising Elfrich was the work of most of the 8th day of Dravago. Edge kept watch while Azeri was casting the ritual. At long last, it was completed, and Elfrich opened his very surprised eyes. The party demanded to know if he had knowingly betrayed them, and if so, why. He hung his head, and said that, yes, he had done it all on purpose. Zelian had gotten to him, and forced him to do it. They asked why he'd activated the hidden bomb when he knew what would happen - he replied that by that point it was either they killed him or Zelian did, so it didn't seem to matter.
The party was not pacified by his answers, but wasn't about to kill him when they had just spent a great deal of time and money bringing him back to life. They informed him that he owed them for that; he is in their debt. And to repay that debt, they said, he will gather information for them now, and they'll call on him when they need him. Elfich was grateful, and said he planned to set up shop in Ghalt, a city none too far from Passage. After obtaining their leave to go, he fled into the waning light of the evening.
The party decided their next move was going to be to head to Tselem's alma mater in Fairhaven, University of Wynarn, to meet with an old professor of his, and continue pursuing other unanswered questions. Thus resolved, they headed to the nearest House Orien teleportation station. On their way however, they were met by a Dragonborn male named Kriv. Kriv knew they had taken down Zelian, or rather Kriv's master did, and had asked Kriv to 'invite' them to meet with his master.
The party was naturally very guarded, especially since Kriv would not say who his master was (though it seemed pretty likely it was a dragon) or what exactly he wanted. Kriv made it very clear though that he did not intend to take no for an answer, but neither was he in possession of all the facts. The party debated for a time, and then decided to accept. Kriv led them down to the docks on the shores of Silver Lake, where they boarded a galleon going to Drum Keep on the far side of the lake. (Kriv insisted they pay their own way, which annoyed them, so Edge paid for everyone, including Kriv, as a nose-thumbing gesture.)
It was night by the time the boat set sail. The party bedded down in the passenger bunks (such as they were) below deck. The boat arrived at Drum Keep very early the next morning, but the crew did not ask the passengers to disembark until dawn arrived on the morning of 9 Dravago. Drum Keep was a busy though not particularly noteworthy fort, and the party did not really have any reason to linger, so they followed Kriv an hour's journey into the desert beyond.
At long last, Kriv stopped and declared they had arrived, then stepped to one side. A moment later, a great brown dragon emerged from beneath the sand. Kriv's master was indeed a dragon, and his name was Khamsin. Khamsin greeted the party cordially enough for dragon, but quickly made it clear he had a bone to pick with them. Killing the leader of one of the Dragonmarked Houses, at least according to him, was interfering with the Draconic Prophesy. The party asked to know how so, but Khamsin loftily refused to entertain such questions. To him, there was only one course of action - the party must leave Khorvaire entirely, so as to not interfere any further. The party was naturally reluctant, but they were also reluctant to take on a dragon of Khamsin's stature, so they agreed to his terms.
Khamsin opened a portal to Sarlona, the other great civilized continent of the world, and ushered the group through. They found themselves in the midst of swampy, humid forest. It had been morning in Khorvaire, but now they were literally on the other side of the world, and it was evening. The portal closed beyond them, leaving to wonder what was going to happen next.
They didn't have long to ponder. Through the trees a crashing was heard, and then a ferocious green dragon burst into the clearing where they stood. It wasted no time attacking them. The party fought back bravely, wondering if this was just bad luck ... or if they'd just been played.
Rewards
(Nothing yet, since the encounter is still on-going)
Monday, January 5, 2015
Session #19: The New Paths
The party headed back to Sylbaran, where Elane announced her intention to part ways with them and make her way back to Flamekeep. Her goal had been accomplished, and Zelian was eliminated.
The party arrived at Sylbaran on the 7th day of Dravago, as the spring night was falling.
The party arrived at Sylbaran on the 7th day of Dravago, as the spring night was falling.
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Session #18: The Heroes
The party stopped to catch their breath, reeling a little bit from the fight. As they did, from above, Sheshka applauded their victory. She then informed them that all visitors to her castle are hers to do with as she pleases, and most of the time, for humans, that means they get turned to stone, or worse. Their little vendetta with Zelian has sufficiently amused her, and their victory has sufficiently impressed her that she is willing to give them the gift of leaving with their lives. The party fumed, and Tselem in particular was itching to attack Zelian, but they simply weren't able to mount another attack in their weakened state. So they took her offer, and left the castle. The guards gave them itchy looks as they passed by, but they were able to depart unmolested.
By this time, dusk was hastening on, so the party made their way back to the caves outside of 'town' to rest for the night, and plan their next attempt on Zelian's life. They devised a strategy where they would lead Sheshka to believe that Zelian was about to betray her, and parley another chance to attack him through these means. They wrote fake letters for this purpose, then went to sleep.
The next morning, the 5th day of Dravago, the party awoke, prepared, and headed out. To their surprise and alarm, as soon as they started coming down from the caves, they met Zelian! Their battle commenced, with Zelian being joined shortly by six hulking ogres! The fight was vicious and choatic, but Azeri and Elane surrounded Zelian and laid into him with their most impressive spells. The wicked sorcerer was knocked unconscious by the force of their attacks. At first, Azeri was hesitant to kill him outright, and even persuaded Elane to not go for the killing blow just yet. But then she reconsidered, and Elane needed no encouragement to deliver the final strike.
Moments later, the last of the ogres fell too, and Elane let out a shout of triumph.
Zelian d'Deneith, the power-hungry, filicidal public enemy, was dead!
Rewards
By this time, dusk was hastening on, so the party made their way back to the caves outside of 'town' to rest for the night, and plan their next attempt on Zelian's life. They devised a strategy where they would lead Sheshka to believe that Zelian was about to betray her, and parley another chance to attack him through these means. They wrote fake letters for this purpose, then went to sleep.
The next morning, the 5th day of Dravago, the party awoke, prepared, and headed out. To their surprise and alarm, as soon as they started coming down from the caves, they met Zelian! Their battle commenced, with Zelian being joined shortly by six hulking ogres! The fight was vicious and choatic, but Azeri and Elane surrounded Zelian and laid into him with their most impressive spells. The wicked sorcerer was knocked unconscious by the force of their attacks. At first, Azeri was hesitant to kill him outright, and even persuaded Elane to not go for the killing blow just yet. But then she reconsidered, and Elane needed no encouragement to deliver the final strike.
Moments later, the last of the ogres fell too, and Elane let out a shout of triumph.
Zelian d'Deneith, the power-hungry, filicidal public enemy, was dead!
Rewards
- 3,700 XP. Time to level up to 11, and enter the paragon tier!
Tuesday, December 2, 2014
Session #17: The Long Fight
The party struggled against the remaining two Medusas. They eventually realized that Tselem's stinking cloud wasn't doing what it was supposed to, since Medusas aren't damaged by poison attacks. Azeri and Elane found themselves being worn down by the powerful warriors. Edge and Taumir landed some serious blows, and finally, both vile creatures were disintegrated by lightning attacks.
Rewards
Rewards
- 3,125 XP! Time to level up!
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