Session 34

I SURVIVED A MOONLIT ZONE...

Thistleburn 5, 4433

7 subjective days passed inside the Forest of Dreams

Characters:

Gorr, ranger 5

Daqqa-Jin, barbarian 4

Robert the Hard Pressed, fighter 5

Salzige Brauen, necromancer 2

Xénos, spy 2

The party fled from the disastrous attack on Fort Behringer [last session], pursued through the moonlit zone by a pack of gnolls led by a half headed moon-giant! After several gambits and tricks including some airborne hijinks with the Four Winds Bar, the group escaped the gnolls' pursuit and reunited with the lake men and the bandit Rauffe, who was sad to hear of Eric's demise.

They returned to the Forgotten Village, where things seem to have declined. Arlen the magistrate was slowly degenerating, Baran the guard-captain was nowhere around and Lauriel the paladin had fallen in combat. Shandril the priestess of Solaris was the de facto leader of the village now. 

They held a sad funeral ceremony for Eric Withakay. The last original member of the party, the silver-tongued orator (or maybe he just got lucky) who had rallied the citizens of Drydale against the witches [yep, all the way back in session 1, three years ago] was dead. A crusader for good who had sworn his oath to a deity from this strange realm and championed its people. After being poisoned in Issachar Dimorites' mansion months ago, death held no mystery for him anymore. At the end of the ceremony, a blinding light flared from the Crucible of Solaris, and Eric's body was gone - transported to the arms of Solaris for his final repose.

After reuniting with their shifty pistol-wielding ally Xénos, the group rested, re-supplied and turned right around towards the moonlit zone, not even stopping to chat in the Night Wolf Inn.

They entered the forest through a different route, passing over a swift-flowing river of fog. They fought some giant carnivorous flies, and progressed towards a ruined tower nearby.

Outside the ruined tower, they spoke to a strange sickly-looking bird with a glowing white aura, like the ones the moon-gnolls kept caged. It called itself Ip-Ip, asking for food. It explained that the tower was the domain of the Carrion King, who lived there with a swarm of giant flies. The party fed it more and told it where to find some giant fly carcasses to feed on further, and it hopped along.

Daqqa-Jin entered the tower, and met the Carrion King himself.

This bizarre and unsightly creature was friendly & civil, eager to talk and bargain. He offered to trade with the party for gems, magic items, living captives, or secrets. The group traded him two secrets:

1 - The story of the magical book Pheldrazash, carried by their old friend Lothos who is being unduly influenced. Lothos is now a member of the Gloaming Tower.

2 - The story of Magrometh the Piper, and how the group released the horde of undead on top of the sacred mountain above the dwarven village Mishell.

For these secrets, the Carrion King told the party where to find Reymund the Pale in a nearby prison, and began a discourse on the kingdom's moonlit zones...

Monsters Defeated:

3 giant flies (87 xp)

Treasure Obtained:

none

Session 13

THE ENCHANTMENT OF VASHUNDARA

About 12 Longrass, 4433

You spent around 2 subjective days in the forest.

Characters:

Gorr, Ranger 3

Robert the Swift, Fighter 2

Suba-Jin, Cleric of Hextor 3

Meep the Dwarf, Fighter 2

Eric Withakay, Cleric of Solaris 4

Lord Fesgate, Fighter 3

Fesgate Cemetery

After resting in the ruined village of Fesgate and searching for valuables, the group moved along the Moonlit Zone forest path. Their friend Lord Fesgate knew the area of old, but the kingdom's curse had changed many things. They came to a large graveyard and he searched among the headstones for his family name. Finding his children and grandchildren buried here but nothing after that, the party supposed that whatever curse turned the land's people into shades happened around that time, two generations after First Lord Raeldus.

A large crypt marked "Estieveran" and decorated with heraldry of a black shield & three yellow swords beckoned with an open door. Fesgate said the Estieverans were a pious family, thought well of in his day. Their eldest sons usually entered the service of Solaris as priests or paladins.

The main floor of the crypt held only smashed & looted burial niches, their nameplates pried off. A corpse lay on the stairwell, wearing burnt leather armour. Robert found a bundle of notes in its backpack, but nobody could read them.

The bottom floor held four burial chambers with their nameplates intact, marked Adinet, Muriel, Manard and Alart. Gorr investigated an old urn meant to hold ashes, finding some black sludge and a few gold coins at the bottom. Entering the rooms, each held a sarcophagus carved with the likeness of its occupant. Opening up Muriel's, the desiccated corpse of the noblewoman reached out, its eyes glowing with a sinister light!

Although Muriel's risen corpse was dispatched quickly, Manard and Adinet rose from their coffins also and attacked the group. Robert was bitten and briefly paralyzed before Suba-Jin cured him and the cleric's divine force drove the undead into a rout. Alart's burial chamber was found empty. The sarcophagus was carved to represent a fighting-man, but the face was left blank - perhaps Alart was still alive when this tomb fell into ruin, or died in a faraway place?

Return to the Forgotten Village

Finishing their circuit through the Moonlit Zone, the group passed back through Eralion's keep. Silent and deserted, the satyrs pressed into his cause had long ago fled. They heard a pack of hounds baying elsewhere in the forest, but did not see them.

The village was in disrepair when they returned. The hounds had attacked and killed a few of the villagers. The consensus was that these "devil-dogs" were sent by Eralion to cause trouble. Everyone was happy to hear that the group had defeated the wizard, and hoped that the pack of hounds would remain in the Moonlit Zone without his evil intelligence directing them.

While the group rested, a few conversations happened:

-The priestess Shandril reminded Eric that as a champion of the god Solaris, he had an obligation to fulfill: donations of valuables like sacrificial animals, holy incense, treasures, art objects or other such things must be made. [500 sp value immediately, and 1500 in the next month. These sacrifices are normally offered at a designated temple or other holy place.]

-The group asked about Alart Estieveran, wondering if he might have a connection to Sun-Eater, the legendary flail once held by a fallen paladin. Shandril said he was the most powerful knight serving King Wakelinus, and roamed the kingdom on quests when the curse fell upon the land. She didn't know where he might be nowadays. [see also Session 7]

- Shandril identified the pouches of sparkling powders as flower extracts. One was a healing dust [1d6+1 hp], the other unknown. She suggested visiting an alchemist who knew more on the subject, and lived further north.

- Shandril also mentioned two other ancient sites of interest: one contained a healing spring, largely safe the last time she visited but a far distance to travel. The other was a ruined city with a shrine to Solaris. It was closer, but guarded by powerful enemies so she left it alone.

-Lord Fesgate and Shandril put their heads together, trying to draw on Fesgate's knowledge of the area in ancient times to create a map of the region the group could use.

Ride to Giantland

The next day (if day & night could be said to mean anything in this region of perpetual twilight), an oddity appeared outside the village. A peacock the size of a house, its feathers glittering and shining. The group approached it with some food, and it bent its head to the ground. Quickly taking its meaning, they all climbed up and sat on its back. It took to the air, carrying them to places unknown!

Flying high over the forest, the group could see many far-away things: a river & lake covered in mist, a distant pastel-coloured field, many moonlit zones which appeared as inky blots on the horizon. Flying west, they left land behind and flew over a vast ocean covered in grey clouds. 

Eventually they came to an island covered in jungle of strange proportions: everything was four times their size! The trees, vines, plants and even animals were colossal. The peacock set them down near an opulent manor-house sized for a giant, surrounded by a lavish walled garden.

A few ghostly creatures guarded the gate. Clad in black metal armour, shrouded in faded grey cloaks. Their faces were not visible, but once in a while they let out a tortured moan or wail. The party took down the two guards with a barrage of ranged attacks and explored the compound.

Gorr climbed a tree inside the wall and surveyed the house. He saw a lake on the 2nd floor, and a garden on the 3rd with another giant peacock lying still.

While exploring the grounds, the group ran headlong into a pair of giant colourful chickens, pecking in the ground for bugs. These animals were quite talkative, and explained that "the Master" had been imprisoned and the grounds overrun with demons & monsters. They were too scared to do anything about it, being only simple chickens.

The group launched an assault on four of the moaning guardians in a covered pavilion at the corner of the manor. They were guarding a six-headed & six-armed giant. Three of the enemies fell to missile fire while the fourth tried to run away. Eric was closest and charged after it, managing to slam a door on its retreat. The spirit turned and desperately retaliated, striking Eric in the spine with its scimitar & paralyzing the whole right side of his body! Luckily Meep the Dwarf was right behind, and struck the spirit down before it could do any more damage.

Meanwhile Gorr examined the giant, bound in heavy chains. His six heads were asleep or unconscious and wouldn't wake up. Three padlocks hung on the chains - one gold, one silver and one bronze. Gorr's attempts to break the chains or dig up the anchor points seemed fruitless for now. 

Exploring the villa further they found a granary, a weapon room with colossal blades hanging on the walls, and a statue of the six-armed giant riding a chariot - in his hands were two curved swords, a bow, a rabbit, a curvaceous woman and an open book.

Coming out of the granary, they were accosted by a huge scorpion scuttling out from under the water-trough. It demanded satisfaction for its hunger, suggesting they leave Eric for it to eat. "He looks sick anyway, you won't missss him..." Robert held it at bay while the clerics cast a Command for it to run away, and the party hustled through a door before it could return.

Gorr: "Can you also Command the right side of your body to work?"

In the wine cellar they met Sheela, an orange housecat the size of a lion! He told them his master was named Karttekeza. The demoness Vashundara [see Session 9] had entrapped him, eaten one of his great peacocks and poisoned another. She was probably in the bedroom upstairs, but her demonic servants were all over the house. Sheela was too afraid to help, and stayed in the wine cellar.

Exploring further, they found the bath: a vast room with a huge pool of clear water. Frescoes of Karttekeza's famous battles decorated the bottom. In the corner was a steam room. The group wondered whether they should take a break and have a soak?

*****

Everyone gained 1 fear point during the battle in the crypt.

[Eric is currently gimping around. He can move at half speed and cast spells with difficulty if he is held up by a friend, who also must move at half speed. Fighting is right out for both of them while Eric is upright. Other penalties may be assessed when I think of them. Justin can play Lord Fesgate for the duration.]

Lord Fesgate

Fighter 3

HP 18

AC 18 (plate, shield)

STR 13, CON 13

Base attack bonus +3

Scimitar +4 (1d8+1)

Enemies Defeated

Manard, Muriel & Adinet - 204 xp

6 moaning guards - 570 xp

Total: 774 experience

Treasure

pouch of off-white dust (healing)

pouch of deep purple dust (unknown)

bundle of notes, unknown language

10 gold coins

Estieveran family signet ring (black shield with 3 gold swords)

gold chain

Session 9

THE SAGE OF LUNE 

15th-18th Meadowlark 

Characters: 

Gorr, Ranger 2
Suba-Jin, Cleric 1
Robert the Swift, Fighter 1
Eric Withakay, Cleric 3
Lothos the Undesirable, Elf 2
Meep, Dwarf 2 

The Trade

Continuing from the cliffhanger last session, Lothos & the 'talking book' Pheldrazash discussed using the crone statues so that the book could use Lothos' body in exchange for teaching the elf some of its magic. After discussing it back and forth, they asked the statues to go ahead. There was a pause, and then they said "IT IS DONE!"

Lothos felt a bit dizzy, but not that much different, and the group decided not to press the issue further. Many odd wonders were discovered on the second floor of the temple:

-Talking wooden statue holding up the ceiling, covered in graffiti. It offered to explain the workings of a few rooms, and asked for an offering in return (explanations are written in the room descriptions). After some sullen negotiations, Eric threw it a few of his (fake) gold coins.

-Candlelit room with a tiny coffin, filled with severed skeletal hands & arms. Pictographs showed a man severing his own hand in a ceremony of some kind. The ceremony allows anyone to make contact with a true Power of the universe (god or demon), at the cost of a hand or limb.

-Room with illusionary walls of a dense, sunlit forest inhabited by naked, giggling nymphs. They responded to the players. Gorr managed to convince one to come closer and take one of his magical cherries and an acorn from Grandfather Tree. He asked it to come out of the wall, but it seemed too scared.

-A bare room with a 4' crystal sphere in the middle, filled with churning smoke. Once in a while, a great golden eye would press itself against the glass from the inside.The group tried rolling the sphere around, but ultimately decided to leave it here for the time being.

In the room with four pillars, Meep the dwarf discovered a hidden switch on the pillar guarded by the brass soldier. It opened on a set of stairs, leading upwards. The group managed to distract the brass man enough that almost everyone could dodge past.

Meeting the Sage

Lothos, Robert, Suba-Jin and Meep climbed the stairs. At the top, a broad cupola was dominated by a pool of still water reflecting the moon. Nine brass soldiers stood at attention, but took no notice of the group. A (real human, not a shadow!) woman wearing delicate robes and ornate jewellery (a gem-studded silver ring, a silver sceptre, silver brooch and an engraved brass bracelet) greeted them warmly, apologizing for any mistreatment by the mechanical soldiers.

Her manners were welcoming, but little details were odd. When she walked in her thin slippers, her feet made a ceramic clack-clacking on the stone floors. Close up her face looked inside-out or inverted, like an optical illusion or something.

The Sage of Lune said that she almost never received visitors and offered to show the group visions in the reflecting pool of past and present things:

Suba-Jin asked about the origin of the land's curse and how it might be stopped: 

This land was once held in balance between the sun and moon. A cultist of Uthummaos, the God of Empty Darkness, drew that evil deity's attention to our world. This grim god spread his demons and shadow creatures throughout the land, and has plunged the world into a perpetual twilight, with no day or nighttime. I do not know how to break the curse, but Uthummaos has four demonic lieutenants in this world who enforce his will. If anything is at the core of the curse's power, it is them. The pool showed a man with indistinct features at the candle-lit shrine, cutting off his own hand and throwing it in the small coffin. Then hordes of shadowy monsters climbing forth from the deep, misty crevasse below Wakelinus' Folly (session 4).

Robert the Swift asked about these four demons and where they might be found:

I know three of their names, but the fourth eludes my sight. Eralion, who dwells deep beneath his old fortress in the moonlit zones. Varthatov, who presides over the First Temple of Uthummaos, somewhere beneath Wakelinus' Folly. Vashundara, the snake-demoness. The vision showed first Eralion's fortress, then the ruined colosseum again, then a woman with coal-black skin sleeping on an opulent bed covered with cushions, wearing only golden jewellery. A gold key hung on her necklace, and her belly was bulging and distended.

Lothos asked a question, but the Sage required a kiss in return. He was unwilling to do this, feeling the situation was too suspicious.

Meep asked about the crystal sphere filled with smoke, and the group learned about the cave squid inside and the ancient cult which once worshipped it. Finally, the group asked if the Sage had any useful items or magic that might assist them in their quest - she mentioned the shrine to Usham Ta, the lucky cat, might contain some treasure if they made the right obeisances, which she demonstrated for them. Not everyone had asked a question, and the Sage begged them to return later so she might grant them further visions.

Investigating the cat shrine on their way out, the religious gestures opened a secret compartment with a chest and a message: 'Tis better to give than to receive! Donate, so the chest never remains empty! They looted some valuable bricks of incense, and left some silver coins and an ornate dagger.

Return

That night when they camped, Gorr felt seized by a blind, unreasoning fear, and could not figure out its source.

Eric had a vision during the night: The forest was light by bright sunshine, and an armoured knight with kindly eyes reached out to him. He knew this was Solaris, the almost forgotten god worshipped by Shandril and a few others. Solaris praised his valour and wisdom in wielding the enchanted mace Lua Saka, asking Eric to abandon his current faith and follow a new path. Eric shook his outstretched hand feeling a sense of joy, acceptance and relief. The god departed, fading into the overwhelming radiance.

After returning to the Forgotten Village, Shandril showed Eric the rites of his new religion and the group decided to return to Viridistan with their loot. 

Returning found the Night Wolf's tavern packed with strange people from the far corners of the world. A stage-hypnotist was performing for the crowd. Eric spotted a group displaying a solar insignia and went over to talk. They followed a deity called the "Unconquered Sun," spoke with strange accents and said they called The Wardale Rogues from Verulamium. They had never heard of Solaris, but seemed friendly enough.

Returning to Viridistan by the coast road, the group passed through the Moon Gate in the great wall and over the Emperor's farmlands. Entering on Market Avenue, they were back in familiar territory for the moment: the greatest city in the empire, beckoning adventure from every door and alleyway!

Remember, temporary bonuses such as the +1 luck from the cat shrine have long expired now. 

If you haven't already gotten back to me with downtime actions (carousing, studying, rumours, etc) please do so!!!

Treasure: 

A huge amount of treasure was redeemed from the last 7 sessions in the Forest of Dreams. Having arrived in Viridistan, it can easily be offloaded & converted to local currency in the city's grand bazaars.

220 electrum coins (worth 3 sp each - 660 sp)

3846 silver

10 copper (1 sp)

50 gold (500 sp)

ancient china tea set (400 sp)

gilding pried out of skeleton's helmets (300 sp)

7 bricks of Forest of Dreams incense (3500 sp)

animal pelts (1100 sp)

coat of chromatic peacock feathers (700 sp)

ivory Y 'crucifix' (1000 sp)

scented Forest of Dreams woods (1000 sp)

cracked quartz disk (400 sp)

TOTAL LOOT VALUE: 13,407 sp

I've deducted cost-of-living (1% of total xp) from your awarded loot automatically, since we're starting next session in the city.

Per character

Suba-Jin: 2289 sp

Robert the Swift: 2287 sp

Gorr: 2128 sp

Lothos the Undesirable: 2075 sp

Eric Withakay: 2081 sp

Meep: 1563 sp

Aladar IX: 500 sp

Viegar Thricescarred: 157 sp

Current XP totals

Gorr, Suba-Jin and Robert the Swift have gained levels! If anyone wants to carouse, let me know before next session.

Session 6 Downtime - The Forgotten Village

Occasionally, adventurers have spare time to work on things between expeditions. These activities are called downtime actions. Anything that might be significant for the game, but doesn't involve immediate danger: buying equipment, constructing a special item, researching new spells, making friends with the locals, running a business, looking up ancient lore at the archives, asking around town for information, etc.

Normally downtime actions are abstracted - we don't care how long they take exactly, just that you get to do something before you go back to adventuring. In this case we do care, because the party is in a strange place and time is a factor.

Players in the last session told me how they're spending their downtime. If anyone else wants to do something, get back to me BEFORE next session or you missed the boat!!!

Trading

In the Forest of Dreams there isn't much of an economy. Some things are available:

Water: At least you won't get dehydrated. There is a small spring not too far from the village with the same metallic, bubbly water as before.

Holy Water (50 sp): Created in the Crucible of Solaris and preserved in a dusty clay jar.

Herbal Tea (200 sp): A collection of forest herbs and dried flower-stems in a packet. Brewing it restores some vitality: 1d4 hit points over 2 hours.

Shadow-Wine (25 sp per cup / 800 sp per cask): The same murky black liquid that Robert & Veigar tried out a few sessions ago. Aged for centuries. Has strange & variable effects.

Incense (250 sp per brick): Made from glowing forest flowers. Comes in four different colours. 

Heliotrope - smells of melon and summer rain & evokes a feeling of serene, dreamlike calm. 

Indigo - burnt leaves & smug sense of superiority. 

Buff - horseradish & warm, fond nostalgia.

Pearl - honey and dry wood & Sunday-morning sadness.

It's worth mentioning that the folk here do not have any food for sale.

Money

The townsfolk do not care about coins! They will trade for any of your metal gear (at 2x book price). Some of the treasure you've picked up on the last few adventures is interesting to them:

Any magic items, the etched metal plate (500 sp), the brick of incense (250 sp), both amulets (200 sp each), the china tea set (200 sp), those old copper helmets (10 sp each). They might also take other strange items you have picked up.

Downtime Activities

Lothos: The Starless Stars is indeed a spellbook with these spells inside: 

1st - charm person, allure, shocking grasp, jump. 2nd - mirror image, scare, arcane lock.

You can spend your whole downtime to study this spellbook, and in that time you can roll to learn as many spells as you like based on your INT.

The second book, Obliteration Without Glory will take work to decipher. Each attempt to unlock its mysteries takes 3 days of intense reading. It may require multiple sessions of study to fully comprehend. There is no telling what might happen in any case, magical traps and safeguards are not unknown in some ancient tomes. Roll a d20 at the end of 3 days and we'll see what happens. Any elf or M-U can attempt this by the way, Aladar can help if he is interested.

Liliya is willing to help. For a favour, she will assist you with one session of reading (+5 to the roll). 

Pheldrazash can help you as well. It thinks you probably have about a 50/50 chance of deciphering the book by yourself. If you consult it to help translate, I will roll for its attempts. Both of your successes are added together, so the book can be deciphered faster. Transcribing things for Pheldrazash does slow you down a bit so one period of study will take 4 days.

It wants you to fetch something for it in return, saying you should consult it when you are back in Viridistan.

The staff taken from the tower basement is a dark blue wood carved with swirling designs. It is likely magical, but a sage or wizard or some other expert is needed to learn more.

Suba-Jin: The seal of Uthummaos (black pit with purple rays emanating) strikes fear into anybody you show it to. It seems to represent some kind of evil god or demon, whose worship appeared around the time the King went mad 1000 years ago. The details are vague, but it appears to rule over shadows and darkness. 

Some of the village folk recall the two-crescent pendant as Eralion the wizard's personal seal. Several folk think it's strange that Eralion had his own fortress. In the ancient days before King Wakelinus' time, royal wizards used to retire to an island in a great lake, not too far from here.

You hear that the Sage of Lune might know more - although she asks a high price for her knowledge, so don't bother going unless your need is great.

Gorr: The amulet you retrieved from the corpse is made of tarnished silver, 2" high and cylindrical, carved all over with exotic runes, images of bones and skulls. It feels light, maybe it's hollow. One symbol stands out, but nobody around here recognizes it:

You are able to chop down a smaller tree. It does not dissolve like the monsters did, and seems to be normal wood, although strangely coloured and exotic.

The shades will let you stay in the village as long as you want. You can keep your gear here, and Shandril assures you that it will be safe while her and Baran are around.

Anybody else who wants to do stuff during downtime, or if anyone has more questions, you know how to find me. Before next game session!

*****

ADDENDUM

Gorr asked about master craftsmen in the hopes of having a bow made.

We are using these rules for commissioning splendid items and creating new magic items through mighty deeds. The leader of the guards Baran had this to say:

"Reymund the Pale was the best bowyer I ever knew. We called him that for he never ventured out to war or hunting. He loved peace most of all, and the feeling of a well-made piece of wood in his hands. A sensitive soul, not suited to the world as it is now, but a good man in his own way. I remember the last time I saw him, when he went off to join the lake-men. Not more than low brigands who call themselves 'rebels' really. We had words over it. Those of us who remain are still loyal to King Wakelinus, mad nor not, and Reymund was never one to take up causes like that. 

Might be he's still with them up by the great lake, but I heard there weren't many left after the King rounded up most and imprisoned them so's we could have some peace around here. If he's among those unfortunates, you'd best forget about him: the King's oubliettes are time-locked within the Moonlit Zones. Nobody ever gets out, and the Zones themselves are dangerous enough."

Session 5 & 6

CRUCIBLE OF THE SUN

Between two and three days

Inside the Night Wolf Inn, room I - The Forest of Dreams

Characters in Session 5

Gorr, Barbarian 2 (Chris)
Suba-Jin, Cleric 1 (John)
Robert, Fighter 1 (Steve)
Meep, Dwarf 2 (Spencer)
Lothos the Undesirable, Elf 2 (Mike)
Eric Withakay, Cleric 3 (Justin)

Characters in Session 6

Gorr, Barbarian 2 (Chris)
Suba-Jin, Cleric 1 (John)
Robert, Fighter 1 (Steve)
Lothos the Undesirable, Elf 2 (Mike)

*****


The Forgotten Village

The group's new acquaintance Shandril led them through the shadowy, ethereal forest kingdom to the nameless village she called home. Along the way, they were ambushed by emaciated grey-green humanoids covered in spikes, like living cactus-men. They attacked by firing bursts of tiny needles from their bodies. These bizarre creatures didn't last long under the hail of fire sent down by the group.

Shandril said that needlemen raids were a constant problem for her people. They lived in regions called "moonlit zones," and sallied forth only to cause mayhem.

The unimpressive village of grimy stone houses was built on a low hill, clear of huge trees. The residents cultivated fields of colourful, glowing flowers. Many of the local shades behaved erratically: standing perfectly still, circling aimlessly or repeating the same tasks. She said that some were like this always, and only the power of her deity Solaris could keep them from degenerating completely.

The sacred relic that made this possible was the Crucible of the Sun, kept in an open-air Temple of Solaris decorated with simple stone pillars and an old statue, long ago knocked over and shattered. The crucible was of intricately carved silver, and radiated a warm & comforting light. Shandril's murky form seemed more solid while she stood near it.

The group learned more of the strange settlement. Nobody could recall its name, but the inhabitants had lived there since before King Wakelinus went mad. They didn't seem to need food, and cultivated the strange multicoloured forest flowers to trade occasionally with strange visitors who used them in the creation of magical powders. 

Rumours also circulated: 

-Bandit & outlaw groups were in open rebellion, but the villagers were reluctant to discuss it. Even Shandril preferred to avoid drawing the King's wrath by dealing with them. 

-King Wakelinus' wizard Eralion had owned a fortress nearby, now fallen into ruin. It was inside a dangerous region called a "Moonlit Zone," and reported to be the home of a vampire!

The gang explored the town, visited the watch-tower to inspect its defenses and buy ammunition, and met some other residents: Baran, a sullen guardsman missing his right hand; and his lieutenant Lauriel, who wore Solaris' symbol prominently on her armour.

Shandril allowed the group to use one of the unoccupied stone houses to rest in and heal. During their sleep, they were woken by the alarm bell on the watch-tower. They assembled at the tower and saw smoke coming from the Shrine. Rushing over, they discovered that some needlemen and launched a raid, stealing the Crucible from under their noses! Without it, the whole village would fall into the soulless madness that threatened to consume the kingdom. Shandril implored the group to help, and sent Lauriel and another spry village guard along to guide them through the woods. 

She also pressed her enchanted mace Lua Saka - its head a smiling bronze sunburst - into Eric's hands, imploring him to use it to punish the needlemen and whoever else was behind the theft, as long as he returned it.


Pursuit

Led by Lauriel, party followed the needle-men's trail into an area of densely-packed trees. It was so tight that only only a narrow road through the woods could be followed. Here the soft, ethereal twilight of the forest gave way to a black & starless night lit only by a full moon glimpsed distantly overhead. They had entered one of the dread Moonlit Zones!

After an hour, Gorr noticed a side-path that could be accessed by squeezing between a few trees. His keen eyes spotted needles littering the ground, and the group deduced that their quarry had gone this way. Taking this side-branch in hot pursuit, a distant light revealed seven needlemen carrying the Crucible triumphantly. The group fell upon their foes from ambush, the first charge bowling over not a few of them. After a short battle, the enemy was destroyed, dissolved into black mists like all beings in the forest, and the Crucible was theirs.

Lauriel advocated for immediate return to the village, but the group wanted to see where the needlemen were going. A key dropped by one of them provided a clue, and after some debate she reluctantly agreed to a scouting expedition but insisted on holding onto the Crucible herself.


The Keep

The path led to a crumbled-down fortress, long ago patched and re-patched with timber and rocks. A bell-tower could just be seen over the wall. The needlemen's key opened the padlock on the door, but Gorr climbed the tower to get a better look at things. Crawling along the outer curtain wall, he was able to knock out the lone sentry in the tower, and take over the vantage point and its artillery piece for himself. Robert joined him up there to provide long-range support for the group.

The rest of the party pressed inside the tower, bypassing some green slime on the floor, and began exploring the ruined fort. They set fire to a tower with a giant spider inside. Inside a tower to the south, they found a hideous sleeping creature - like a massive human with five legs and a hideous sucking lamprey's mouth. Eric whispered "... Istus says hello" before clouting it with Lua Saka. Unfortunately not a fatal blow, the mutant jumped up and began coating itself in icy armour as the temperature in the room dropped.

The sounds of battle drew attention from below. Needlemen began to pour up the stairs. At this point the situation progressed into a general melee. The group retreated outside where Robert and Gorr could blast any needlemen who strayed into the courtyard, and the party began to lay waste. The battle ebbed and flowed inside the tower and outside as the needlemen attacked & retreated. Robert even managed to bullseye one with the scorpion mounted in the bell tower!

There was a tense moment was when a 9' tall shadowy skeleton dripping in red slime climbed up the wall. Its eyes were like two ghostly lamps. It hissed "The doom of Uthummaos shall descend on you!" as it attacked Suba-Jin and Lothos, while engulfing Gorr & Robert in magical darkness. The crew handled this foe with aplomb, as Gorr brought his Continual Light candle out to dispel the darkness and Lothos dealt it a lucky killing blow. As this strange demon dissolved into black mist, the ornate, glowing axe it had carried clattered to the floor. The last of the keep's denizens seemed to be defeated!

[DM's Note: By the end of this session, I had lost track of a few things in my attempt to keep the action moving quickly. I completely forgot that Lauriel and another villager were accompanying the party! They didn't participate in the combat at all. Oops!]


Exploring the Keep

Now in relative safety, the gang set about exploring the keep. They discovered many strange items and not a small amount of treasure:

The strange two-handed axe dropped by the demon on the roof was a sinuous epsilon shape, with an ebonywood handle. It emitted a black 'halo', like a reverse lens-flare. When Lothos tried to pick it up, his hand was blasted away by magic! Some experimentation allowed the group to pick it up with a rope, wrapping it in a cloak for investigation later.

The small chapel below the bell tower was once dedicated to Solaris. Inside stood a tall white statue of a woman cradling an infant with a sword. An elaborate, jagged yellow halo circled her head. Behind a curtain in what would be the priest's quarters was a stone chest full of coins, an amulet engraved with two crescent moons, and an enameled metal seal, depicting a black hole with purple light radiating outwards. Lauriel was frightened by this last item and said the seal was the symbol for Uthummaos, although she was vague about who or what that was. 

Gorr climbed down the well in the center of the courtyard. The water was drinkable, but tasting of minerals and strangely effervescent. Just above the waterline was a leering face carved in stone. In the moonlight, Gorr could just see a stone tongue jutting out from deep in the mouth. He tied a rope around it and pulled - there was a mechanical clank as the rope was sliced off, and the wall opened to reveal a secret room. Inside he found a huge haul of ancient & corroded square silver coins, and a metal engraving that looked valuable.

At some point during their expedition, the party discovered strange pools of rainbow-coloured liquids dripping from their feet. Using his barbarian logic, Gorr first tried to burn it off, and when that didn't work, he turned the most colourful thing he had, and ate a few cherries from the tree of Fading Beauty. The group moved on in haste, thinking it might have been something they had stepped in.

In the base of the needlemen's tower, the floor was covered in filthy carpets. Clearing these aside revealed a trap door:

In the basement was a round room filled with debris, and another trapdoor. This one was shut with silver nails, and someone had wedged silver coins into the cracks! Strange runes in flowing script were etched into the wood, and the same double-crescent symbol seen earlier. The rumours of vampires were echoed by Lauriel, but the group proceeded anyway. Removing the nails & even prying at the trapdoor failed to open it, but Suba-Jin produced the amulet found in the chapel, and it opened as if by magic.

On the second level, six mailed statues stood around a disused laboratory, tables cluttered with jars & bottles. Gorr descended on a rope, trying to reach the door, but within moments the 'statues' were revealed to be armoured zombies! He scrambled up the rope and the group threw down flaming oil, burning the zombies and creating a rancid cloud of black smoke.

The side-room was a small bedroom. A brick of incense in a large burner was still intact, and two books rested on the bedside table: The Starless Stars (looked like a spellbook), and Obliteration Without Glory (a strange tract written in code, with anatomical diagrams of human bodies & organs).

Finally, despite Lauriel's exhortations, they opened the last trapdoor. Beneath were seven tombs. On the large one in the center, a withered body lay dressed in fine robes, an amulet around its neck. It clutched an engraved staff in one hand. A shattered bottle lay on the floor, and papers drifted around. Gorr tied a rope around his waist and the group lowered him down. As he attempted to take the staff, a voice echoed round the room, as if down a long tunnel:

"Wakelinus, my liege. Is that you? It has been so long..."

"I'm here, brother." said Gorr.

"Why? After a thousand years? Oooh, so much time has passed and I ache..."

"Our old enemies have returned" Gorr improvised, while cracking the corpse's withered fingers off the staff. He snatched the amulet from the corpse's neck and frantically made the signal to be lifted up!

"Oh, my King? Is it really you? I thought... NO!" The voice changed its tone as Gorr ascended.

On the second floor, the group slammed the trapdoor shut and Suba-Jin began frantically wedging silver pieces into the cracks while the others climbed. A shadowy silhouette soon crept across the ground: first a head, then shoulders, then long thin arms. When it touched him, Suba-Jin felt the strength being drained from his body. He abandoned his task and the party fled up the ropes as fast as they could! The malignant shadow drained him again, but Suba-Jin climbed up before it could strike him a third time. 

Slamming the last trapdoor shut behind them, the party took up their treasure and fled the fortress as fast as they could. On the path back, they saw a bright light through the trees - but it was too far away to make out anything.

Return

They also noticed the strange liquid colours on their feet, dripping from their bodies at a further rate. It seemed frightening, and some wondered if all the colour was slowly draining from their bodies! Gorr ate a few of the cherries from the Tree of Fading Beauty, and that seemed to bring colours back into his body. He passed out some to the rest of the party, who all ate and were suffused with strange feelings.

Shandril was overjoyed (comparatively speaking) to see the return of the Crucible. She offered for Eric to keep the mace Lua Saka if he wanted as a reward. The party could take a well-earned rest!

Enemies Defeated

15 shadowy needle-men
1 five-legged mutant
1 shadowy red skeletal demon
6 zombies

Monster Experience: 

Meep, Eric - 214 XP each

Lothos, Robert, Suba-Jin, Gorr - 257 XP each


Treasure

The Crucible of Solaris

2 deer pelts, 2 wolf pelts, 1 lion pelt

3830 silver coins

50 gold coins

1 etched metal plate showing a child playing and a sunburst

black & purple seal of Uthummaos

two-moons amulet

brick of incense

black-haloed battle axe

carved wizard's staff

silver cylindrical amulet

The Starless Stars

Obliteration Without Glory

Session 4

 THE FOREST OF DREAMS 2

About a day and a half. It's hard to tell

Characters

Suba-Jin, cleric 1 (John)

Robert the Swift, fighter 1 (Steve)

Veigar Thricescarred, fighter 2 (Kevin)

Gorr, barbarian 2 (Chris)

*****

Exploring the Forest

After the tree-climbing adventure last session, a few of the crew took a rest at the room furniture: Aladar IX, Lothos the Undesirable and Eric Withakay (whose players couldn't make it). Suba-Jin and Robert the Swift were joined by their belated friend-of-a-friend, the Skandik warrior Viegar Thricescarred. In the wilds of the Forest of Dreams, they met a stranger lost between dimensions: the barbarian archer Gorr with his faithful horse Hep.

The four set out on foot towards the great white building spotted last session. Progressing through the shadowy, dreamlike forests brought them to the edge of a great crevasse. A crumbling, pillared stone structure rested at its edge from which dim clattering noises emanated. Approaching with a lit torch, a collection of shadows resolved themselves into armoured figures. Three men of grim aspect - their bodies pure black shadows, their weapons & armour shades of gray. They hailed the party in dark tones and invited them inside.

Inside the structure, nine shadowy warriors were setting the table for a feast. A few dark and insubstantial goat-men tapped into a barrel of dark wine. The victuals laid out looked tempting: great cooked game birds, sliced meats, oddly-coloured vegetables, pungent stews & the glowing flowers that grew throughout the forest. These shadow-people offered places to the group and a few sat down. Gorr was suspicous of the whole thing and wandered the room with Hep asking questions & looking around.

On a sunken piece of land in the middle of the crevasse towered a great ruined coliseum. A set of stairs led down to a narrow stone bridge spanning black & misty depths. The shades called it "Wakelinus' Folly" and said beneath it was a burial-place for ancient gods.



The shades claimed to serve "Mad King Wakelinus" who ruled their whole realm from his distant fortress "in the fields." Their whole world was abandoned by the gods and cursed, but they could not explain the curse's origin except to say it began with the king's madness a thousand years ago.

Soon it became obvious something was wrong - after joining in the feast, Viegar and Robert slowed down, their responses became sluggish and intermittent. Drinking the wine actually made Viegar feel two years young, but it only made Suba-Jin and Robert feel tired. Beginning to wise up, Gorr and Suba-Jin dragged their compatriots away from the ghostly feast. The revelers urged them to return but did not pursue them down the stairs into the crevasse.

Not wanting to explore the innards of the ruined coliseum, the gang climbed up the side with a grappling hook and ascended to the top, almost level with the high ground at the edge of the crevasse. Circling around, they crossed the narrow bridge connecting it to a tall tower on the side of the island, reaching down into the depths below. Strange text was carved into the floor, but nobody could read it.


The Ruined Shrines

Deep at the bottom of the tower, double doors opened into a square room with a deep black pit. A fresh wind blew in from behind, disturbing the dust on the stone floors. Past a series of barren crypt chambers filled with moldering bones, the party entered a sizable round domed chamber. A great white & gold canopic jar stood in the center and a carved marble face in one wall wept endless tears.

They were joined by another shadowy figure: a woman in worn white robes introduced herself as Shandril, a caretaker of the shrine, and asked their business. The group told her they were "just explorers" looking for information about the land's curse. Seeming more spry and aware than other shades, Shandril tolerated their presence and offered advice. She said they were in the "shrine of Weeping Beauty" although she did not know the ancient god's original name.

The next domed room had a narrow walkway surrounded by a sandy floor. A tall statue in the center depicted a warrior with his guts torn out. Shandril warned about "the test of dying strength" and the group entered to see what might happen. As soon as they did, a pack of sword-wielding skeletons emerged from the sands all around and charged! Between Suba-Jin's use of turning, Robert's scroll of protection from undead and Gorr's well-aimed trick shots the skeletons were swiftly disposed of. After the battle a red glow emanated from the statue, passing over each of them in turn.

[Each combatant has obtained a one-time blessing from the God of Dying Strength. When outnumbered in combat and less than full hit points, they can use that blessing to endure against overwhelming odds: granting themselves +1d6 temporary HP and +2 to AC & saves until the end of the battle.]

Another room held a man-sized chrome sphere on a pedestal, reflecting the chipped green frescoes on the walls. The smell of pine and a calm feeling suffused the room. Shandril said she came here for contemplation, but the sphere didn't seem to do anything and the group moved on.

The next room had a day-glo fresco of coloured tiles on the floor. Try as they might, the party couldn't make out any pattern or design, and Shandril was no help either. Touching a green glowing tile, Robert the Swift vanished from everyone's sight! Perturbed by this, the group looked into a few side-rooms. They overturned a chest full of rotted clothing but didn't poke through it much, only picking up a few odd coins that rolled out. Another room held a well-kept bed with no signs of rot or dust. Shandril said it was safe to sleep in. They looked through the large double-doors nearby, but decided they should find out what happened to Robert.

Robert touched the tile, and everyone else in the room vanished. He was alone. He called out but nobody answered. Everything else looked the same, but his comrades were gone. He looked into the side rooms and saw a well-kept bed and an overturned chest full of clothes. He called out again in the hopes that somebody could hear him.

Not sure what else to do, Gorr and Shandril volunteered to touch the fresco next. As soon as they did, they disappeared too. Each character who touched it vanished in their turn.

Robert found Gorr and Shandril by the fresco. Suba-Jin and then Viegar appeared soon after.

The group were all together again, but they were no wiser about what had happened. Tthrough the double-doors and up the stairs, the chamber smelled of rot and leaves. An apple tree grew from a mound of dirt and rubble, strong even in the darkness underground. When they entered the room, the party felt a mild trembling & vibration in the floor. Shandril seemed worried and said she had never felt that during her visits.

Robert was interested in the pile of rubble and dirt beneath the tree. Investigating with his entrenching tool, he saw a spot that looked like an old gravesite or filled-in hole. He set to digging while the others gleefully ate apples from the tree. They were delicious. After 15 minutes, Robert hit something with a clang. He uncovered a black, metallic insectile limb about the length of a sword.

While the group ate apples, the trembling grew in strength. The party withdrew to the edge of the room, leaving the strange metal limb inside as bait for any incoming monster. Instead, the roof began to collapse in a rain of stones and dirt! Thinking quickly, Gorr grabbed the insect limb before the roof buried it, suffering a glancing blow from a falling rock. The group retreated to the chrome sphere, but that room began to tremble as well and they pressed on to the first domed room just before a rain of rocks crushed the mirrored orb for good.

Shandril was a bit disturbed by all this destruction. Gorr took her aside and offered her a philter of love that he had with him. He thought it might lift her spirits since she was cursed with the same dour attitude as the other shadowy folk of this realm. She found the suggestion strange and stopped to consider it.

Meanwhile Robert, Suba-Jin and Viegar had thrown a rope over the giant canopic jar. They wanted to yank the lid off, but they succeeded only in tipping it over. With a great crash, it shattered into a million pieces. Inside, an enormous pulsing heart could be seen - once belonging to an ancient god now beating for the very last time. The heart burst in a blinding flare and from the ground sprouted a giant full-grown cherry tree, stretching up to the ceiling. In a matter of seconds the air was filled with slowly drifting, delicate pink blossoms.



Shandril was nonplussed at this last act of devastation - but the cherries did taste delicious.

The group decided to leave the ruined shrines, climbing up the tower to the outdoors. Shandril offered to lead them somewhere else so they could continue exploring the realm:

-Her home, where she lived among other shades and tended a shrine to her god Solaris.
-The Temple of the Sage, where the Sage of Lune was rumoured to have turned to madness and monsters stalked the grounds.


Enemies Defeated:

14 skeletons 

Each player - 45 xp

Treasure:

15 gilded copper helmets
Ornate china tea set
A flask of tears
old square-shaped coins - 16 copper, 10 silver

Apples and cherries
Metallic giant insect leg