Arrowlein - Part 1

After capturing two rather dim-witted bandits, the adventurers pressed on toward the City of Arrowlein.  Kriv escorted the prisoners back to Astra for further interrogation by Kregis.  It is hoped that they may prove more useful than they initially appeared.

The remaining three members - Erik, Aislinn, and Hyacinth - encountered a rather greedy city guard, but they passed by him without incident.  Even in a corrupt city, the name of the Guardians can hold great influence.

Our travelers consulted with the local chapter of the Guardians - a Tiefling named Shen, and a local nicknamed Bull.  They determined from these two oddfellows that they would need to petition the Tribunal of Arrowlein in order to obtain the right hand of King Thorn.  It was also revealed that at least one Tribunal member (by the name of Talrand Red-Heath) was a staunch supporter of the Guardians.  The other Tribunal members, however, might not be so favorable - in particular, Minister Balen.

A meeting was arranged at the Cliffside Inn.  During the interim, Erik asked to pay his respects at the local shrine of Pelor.  Aislinn accompanied him inside, but Hyacinth - as a follower of Asmodeus - chose to wait outside.  The pixie managed to cause some chaos by slicing the ear of a Halfling who propositioned her quite lewdly.  The Halfling tried to report Hyacinth to the guard, only to have said guard distracted by Erik with (true) reports of a disingenuous priest.

Chaos in the marketplace abated, the adventurers continued to their meeting with Talrand.  He did indeed prove to be a useful ally, giving helpful information on the rest of the Tribunal.  Upon his advice, a meeting was arranged with the Tribunal for the next morning.

After leaving the meeting, the characters were ambushed by a gang of Halflings, led by the one previously cut by Hyacinth.  The pint-sized marauders, however, were easily knocked out.  Just as the party was about to loot the unconscious Halflings, the city guard intervened (wishing to loot the Halfings themselves).

The next morning, the three heroes (and Shen) were presented to the Tribunal.  The atmosphere was rather hostile, but the Tribunal was willing to listen.  It was agreed that Kregis should address the Tribunal personally the next day, courtesy of a ritual performed by another friendly Tribunal member.

Left with a day that had nothing scheduled, Shen was asked to inquire with the local underworld about the red-skinned Dragonborn who had been hiring mercenaries.  Aislinn began providing meals to the local street urchins, as well as promising more in return for information. Unfortunately, she also managed to attract the attention of a rather inebriated group of Dwarves.  The Dwarves attempted to abduct her, but they were dissuaded by Erik.

After finding a quieter location to rest, the adventurers were awakened in the night by Shen.  He was returning with word that the Consortium - a local crime syndicate disguised as "a philosopher's organization" - had been solicited by the red-skinned Dragonborn just a few hours prior.

As the session closed, the party was preparing to visit the Consortium in the morning before the second meeting with the Tribunal.

Session 3: The Danger Revealed

Having freed the goblin tribe of its slaver problem, the adventurers gathered the magic pillar & collars in a cart that was pulled by Tenser's Floating Disc.  Also in tow was the surviving slaver - lovingly nicknamed "Bob."  After another day's journey, they reached the keep of Astra - home of the Guardians of the Balance.

Kregis greeted the adventurers warmly, but ill ease set in once the tale was revealed to him.  The old dwarf recognized the mysterious amulet as a genuine artifact of the Blackvine Cult.  This conclusion was corroborated by other information found by Guardians who had investigated other necromantic incidences.  He retreated to his study to examine the talisman, as the adventurers resupplied and rested.

The next morning, the adventurers met with Kregis again.  He had encased the Blackvine amulet in a strange glass that seemed to prevent its ill effects.  The Master of Guardians believed that the Cult had returned in a quest to fulfill an ancient dark prophecy, which foretold of the resurrection of King Thorn as a tool of the world's destruction.

Kregis refreshed the party's memories as to the fate that had befallen King Thorn: After helping establish the Balance, the King had been assassinated by Lord Blackvine himself.  Once it had been subjected to preservation spells, the corpse was cursed by Blackvine as a vessel of  a devastating plague.  The body had been separated into many pieces, with the pieces then being distributed to the farthest corners of the Known Lands.

It was coming to light that the Blackvine Cult was seeking to capture the pieces of King Thorn's body in an attempt to raise him anew.  Under the undead Thorn's guidance, the Cult could lay waste to the land in the name of Vecna.

Kregis sent out word to the Guardians in the various parts of the Known Lands, asking them to gather information on the known pieces of the body.  In the meantime, the adventurers were to start attempting to gather the pieces before the Cult could.  The Guardians would then attempt to purify the body parts to at least eliminate the plague curse.

Being the closest known location of a piece of King Thorn (the left leg, to be precise), the party set out for the city of Emberwane - where the descendants of Thorn still ruled.  After being forced to release Bob the Slaver and running afoul of Odric - Captain of the King's guards - the adventurers finally received a royal audience.  They were met with hostility by King Braxos IV, however, as he intended to set the leg on display at the Shrine of Kings.  He seemed unduly obsessed with bringing commerce to Emberwane as a way of building a lasting legacy.

After meeting with Braxos' resistance, the party was summoned by Queen Nihila to her private chamber.  There she revealed that she did not approve of her husband's ideas, instead siding with the Guardians.  She advocated stealing the leg from the caravan which was to take it to the Shrine of Kings the next day.

The Queen's word taken under advisement, the adventurers were approached by Prince Ketar - the King's scheming brother.  He attempted to persuade the group to assassinate Braxos in exchange for the leg, but he later agreed to assist them in robbing the Palace vault, switching the leg for a substitute.  In exchange, the Prince was guaranteed that the Guardians would not interfere if he attempted a coup.

The adventurer's provided a decent amount of coin to the Prince with which to pay a chambermaid to steal the King's key to the vault.  After that, they ventured to the Emberwane graveyard to obtain a "freshly dead" leg from the local gravediggers.  This accomplished, they awaited the Prince's contact in the Guilded Goblin Tavern.

On the return to the Palace from the Guilded Goblin, the group fended off a robbery attempt by some Kenku thieves.  Rather than slaying or arresting the would-be bandits, the party hired them as lookouts.

The switch went better than expected, with only one close call.  The legs were switched, with Erik able to detect the powerful arcane enchantments upon the ancient appendage.

After escaping the Palace and paying their Kenku lookouts, the party retired to the Wolf and Fox Inn to spend their night in peace.  They departed the next morning, meeting no unusual circumstances on the return to Astra.

Once arriving in Astra, however, the adventurers found Kregis mounting a veritable war band.  The old dwarf revealed that the caravan carrying the (false) leg had been ambushed by (presumably) Cult members, with no survivors.  The Guardians had been preparing to seek the bodies of the party.

The left leg of King Thorn was placed in the deepest vaults of Astra, under powerful spells that prevented access without a specific password.  Torwald and the Guardians would seek to purify the leg as the adventurers continued their mission.

Resupplied and relieved by their narrow escape, the party set out for the city of Arrowlein - a three day journey.  On the first night, they found themselves ambushed by some rather unintelligent bandits.  The two surviving bandits admitted that they had been hired in Emberwane by a red-skinned Dragonborn.  They had been told to "hurt or preferably kill" a group consisting of "a fairy, a living statue, a dragon, and a goliath."

As we ended the session, the party was reaching the gates of Arrowlein, with the two bandits in tow - bound and gagged.

The Story Continues...

As the night wore on, the adventurers continued their investigation of the zombie infestation at the Abbey of St. Tranda.  They found themselves joined by Kriv - a Dragonborn hexblade who had barely missed the company at the Shrine of Kings.  After a quick update on the situation, Kriv joined in the investigation.

An inspection of the chapel turned up nothing suspicious.  Even if the corpse of St. Tranda was seeking new life, it would have been unable to claw its way through ten feet of stone.  There were no clues to aid in the investigation, however.  As such, the adventurers decided to consult Brother Thayer - a former necromancer who had not formed a high opinion of Hyacinth or Aislinn.

Upon questioning, Brother Thayer suggested that the spell in effect was of great and dangerous power.  In his words, it was either an ancient necromancer working with great skill or an untamed talent accidentally unleashing horrible power.  After some persuasion by the Dragonborn, Thayer was convinced to actively participate in the investigation.

It was decided that a holy feast should be arranged.  Anyone with necromantic spirits or powers strong enough to weave the curse would likely react violently to food consecrated by Bahamut.  The last of the Abbey's food stores were gathered into the chapel, and a small feast was commenced.

As Prior Caelor said the traditional blessings, two of the monks grew ill after eating the blessed food.  One was Novitiate Rayen - a young man recently rescued from a necromantic cult.  The other was Brother Ardun - a scholar of great inquisitiveness.

Rayen revealed that he had very little memory of his time in the cult - as if he had been mentally dominated.  His memory only cleared once he had reached the Abbey, at which time his personal belongings had been removed.  This led the company to the Abbey's storeroom, where Ardun was in charge of safekeeping the monks' personal effects.

As it turned out, an amulet was missing from Rayen's possessions.  The amulet was later found in Ardun's room, hidden in the desk drawer.  The strange trinket appeared to belong to the Blackvine Cult - a dangerous necromantic religion that had been hunted to extinction 400 years prior.  Oddly enough, the amulet seemed relatively new.

With the pieces falling into place, Brother Thayer understood the true nature of the curse.  A powerful demon resided within the amulet, channeling through Ardun's unintentional release.  Were it not for the power of St. Tranda and Bahamut, the curse would have been far more widespread.  The most reliable remedy to such a curse would be the host's blood spread upon the amulet - blood released by a zombie.

After some more insight, Rayen suggested that he offer his soul to the demon, luring the creature into the open.  If the demon were defeated, the curse would be broken.  As a backup plan, Rayen offered his life, knowing that he could then be sacrificed to break the curse.  He felt a grave responsibility for Ardun's accidental involvement, and he refused to let Ardun be killed for his mistake.

The adventurers gathered in the chapel with a few of the more stalwart monks.  Rayen spoke a few incantations and lured the demon out of its abode.

After a long battle with the beast, it became clear that it was too strong.  It claimed Rayen's soul and began to retreat back into its natural realm.  Rayen was killed at that opportune moment, and the curse was broken.

The company departed the next morning, after recuperating from the battle.  Astra - home of the Guardians - lay two days' journey from the Abbey.

On the first night of the journey, a small goblin shaman named Pluck intruded upon the adventurers.  He sought their aid against slavers.  Somewhat reluctantly, the company investigated, finding over a dozen goblins enslaved by way of magic collars.

After defeating the human slavers, the adventurers laid claim to several hundred gold pieces and two magic weapons.  They also took with them 14 magic collars, the password to unlock them, and a pole that controls them.

The goblins rescued, the adventurers continued on toward Astra, where they would meet with Kregis.

Session 1: 7/21

The Story So Far...

Coulter brought Erik the (human) cleric to the table, Mary played as Aislinn (a somewhat socially stunted Shardmind Psion), and Conni rolled up an Asmodeus-worshipping pixie bard exile by the name of Hyacinth.

My NPC - Torwal, a goliath paladin - was leader and shepherd of the group.

Erik and Hyacinth both encountered Torwal & Aislinn at the Shrine of Kings outside Emberwane.

They were recruited into the Guardians' investigation of increased necromantic activity.

To that end, they set off to the Abbey of St. Tranda, where a zombie uprising has trapped 14 monks in their ancient home.

It was almost two days' journey to the Abbey, and the night's camp was intruded upon by two not-so-stealthy goblins.

Both were quickly spotted and scared off back into the woods.

Upon arriving at the Abbey the next day, the adventurers handily defeated a dozen zombies outside the gates.

They then decided to enter the Abbey through its kitchen outbuilding, rather than fight two rather large undead giants.

In the darkness of the kitchen, however, they encountered a horrific undead aberration comprised of the kitchen's various meats (after all - dead flesh is dead flesh to a necromancer).

The creature - dubbed "the Sneaksy" by Aislinn - put up quite a fight, briefly knocking out Erik the cleric.

In the end, everyone survived the encounter with minimal damage, even though Hyacinth and Aislinn had both been pounced upon by the zombie meat golem.

With the kitchen secured, the adventurers made their way through the tunnel that lead to the Abbey.

Aislinn decided to make her presence known by pounding on the door and calling for the "smart fleshbags" to answer.

After a bit of confusion, the monks summoned Prior Caelor, the leader of the monks.

An investigation is underway by the adventurers to determine the cause and extent of the necromantic magic.

Torwal has retired to the Abbey's guest quarters, being somewhat in disagreement with the group's methods.

Suspicion has fallen on Seleth, a recent initiate who was seen writing a coded letter and who has a locked box hidden under his bed.

Other monks have been questioned, but nothing conclusive has yet been discovered.

At the time of the session's end, Aislinn was asking the various monks if anyone could build her a new Sneaksy to take back to Kregis (master of the Guardians), and she is reporting her findings to Torwal.

Erik and Hyacinth are investigating the chapel of the Abbey with the Prior's assistance, hoping that the body of Saint Tranda is not somehow involved with the zombie plague.

Welcome to the game.

Hi there.

Instead of constantly hitting "Reply All" on Gmail, I think I'll host some of our game information here. Posts will happen soon, once my home Internet connection returns.