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

Session 3

THE EXCURSIONIST'S GUILD

13th-14th Meadowlark, 4433

Characters

Aladar IX, M-U 2 (Alex)
Eric Withakay, cleric 3 (Justin)
Lothos the Undesirable, elf 2 (Mike)
Robert the Swift, fighter 1 (Steve)
Suba-Jin, cleric 1 (John)

Morning at "The Sign of Olive & Lotus"

Aladar, Eric, Lothos, Meep & Tullius felt somewhat worse for wear after their night in the most upscale club in the Emerald City. Smeared with lipstick, smelling of expensive liquor & opium fumes, they tried to reconstruct their night:

-Eric recalled wandering drunkenly through Cliffside, where he was accosted by a guard patrol for "causing a disturbance." Only by paying a fairly substantial bribe of 275 silver did he avoid a trip to the drunk tank and perhaps an ass-beating from the irreligious guards.

-Tullius Junior was too hung over to go adventuring. Everyone remembered the shouting match he got into with another patron that night. The man had a Ming the Merciless-style moustache, purple robes, a tall conical hat and a Sactioning pin indicating he was a magic-user. The last thing he said was "You whey-faced, lily-livered cur! You haven't heard the last of Unazhon Conchobar!!!"

-Meep the dwarf woke up with soreness in his lower back. As it turned out, he had commissioned a tattoo while in his cups: great gothic block letters read "DWARVES SUXXX." Perhaps there was some hidden reason for this, relating to his departure from the ancestral dwarven under-realms? Time would tell. He was also too hungover to adventure.

A few other down-on-their-luck wastrels decided to come along with the group in search of action and treasure: Suba-Jin, a Tharbrian nomad dedicated to Hextor, spreading the gospel of discipline & violence amongst the horsemen of the steppes; and Robert the Swift, a dim-witted Legion veteran.

The group recalled hearing a strange rumour from another patron during their revelry:

“A printmaker named Ultan, while laying poison for rats in the basement of his shop in the Bazaar, has discovered a door that was not there before! He claims it leads to Wishery, the fabled land of dreams. Ultan charges 10 sp a head to pass through the door - no questions asked.”

Not interested in this tale at the time, they decided instead to pursue a rumour heard previously from a farmer about a mysterious building outside the Great Wall. Hitching up their wagon, they rode out of Viridistan with dry mouths and sore heads towards the Moon Gate.

Midway through the second day of travel, the gang passed through the imposing Great Wall of Viridistan, built by the ancients in days before men walked upright. Farmers, traders, slaves & other folk of all the world's races pass this gate in a never-ending procession to and from the Emerald City.

After asking for directions, a helpful (for once) guard directed the party westward along the edge of the Elsenwood. They proceeded along a clear path amongst well-manicured lawns until they came upon a bizarre, sprawling manor house nestled back near the woods. Four stories high, bristling with towers, angular with its steep shingled peaks, useless in Viridistan's balmy sub-tropical climate. It was built of dark stone and aged wood, trimmed in brass and wound with ivy. A carriage-house and old barn could be seen on the wide lawns in the background.


The Night Wolf Inn

The front porch looked inviting enough with rocking chairs and a large, sturdy iron-studded oak door. Aladar IX displayed an un-wizardlike boldness and ventured inside first.

The entryway was decorated in rich hardwoods (another strange thing in Viridistan, where most buildings are stone, brick or adobe) and washed in amber light from stained-glass windows. A macabre fresco covering the ceiling depicts a girl being devoured by a wolf, while a woman with a sword looks the other way. In the background, an older woman with a crown of roses walks down a path while dark clouds rain bones over the scene.

Behind a broad mahogany desk lounged a handsome middle-aged man with a glass of brandy. He introduced himself as James Everbleed, and offered to rent the group a room. Much discussion ensued. Several rooms were available, of which a few were mentioned by name. Forest of Dreams, Restful Seas, and The Stygian Library (James counselled against taking that one). They asked to see the Forest of Dreams.

They briefly balked at the prices - 40 silver per person, per night! But during their conversation, James mentioned that members of the "Excursionist's Guild" get discounts. Eager to save money, the group asked for more detail and decided to sign up, which James seemed quite happy about. They were nervous about his mention of 'guild quests' but his friendly & open manner reassured them somewhat. After paying an entry fee set by James which varied for each person, he got out his tattoo kit and inked a black wolf's head on the shoulder of each of them.

The other guests in the common room were a strange and diverse lot. Some Altanian warriors in traditional garb, a few sullen and strangely-dressed southern Ghinorans, a misshapen man in robes, and a bright red-skinned man in black armour with horns on his forehead! Apparently guild members themselves, they greeted the party's induction with a cheer and bought them a round of drinks.


Room I - The Forest of Dreams

Stepping through the door in the second floor hallway, the group found themselves in another world! Finely made furniture set up exactly as in an ordinary Inn bedroom stood in the deep shadows of giant trees that shifted at the edge of sight. The vast forest's floor was illuminated by multicoloured flowers that bled into the air like paint meeting turpentine, creating gaseous halos of colour. In every direction, the Forest of Dreams was thronged by fleeting shadows. A trail of golden lily bells led away from the furniture into the distance, and a giant tree, larger than all the rest, could be seen in another direction. Bewildered by this strange world, the group ventured away from the furniture in the direction of the massive tree.

Halfway there, Suba-Jin noticed a colourful sparkle in the shadows: three shimmering, multicoloured peacock feathers. Aladar had his dog "Mincemeat" sniff one and he led the group along a winding route through the forest towards the great tree.

The massive tree stretched hundreds of feet into the air. A whisper of wind surrounded it, resolving into intelligible words as the group drew closer - the tree could speak! It desired news of the outside world and friendly conversation, but the group was more interested in finding some loot. As it happened, the great tree recalled some 'two leggeds' had left a jingling bag in its branches some days ago, but warned about the prismatic peacocks roosting high in the tree which defend their territory viciously.

Aladar summoned his familiar Yegmoz to scout the tree and survey the wider region. It reported a sack left in the branches 100 feet above, and some large colourful birds roosting 50' above that.

Aladar, Suba-Jin and Eric dared to climb the tree to retrieve the loot, hoping to avoid the peacocks' notice. After a few tense moments they found a sack full of strange bluish-silver coins and a note:

"Anastasius:
Here is payment as agreed. Make it swift, for the Horned Empire does not smile upon failure. 

-Habakkuk"

With some loot and a cryptic clue for their troubles, the group made for the Inn furniture to plan their next move in this shadowy & ethereal world.


What Yegmoz Saw

When Aladar IX asked it to fly high and survey the forest. All 'clock' references are relative to the group's facing when they came through the Inn door.

-Line of twinkling golden lights leading from the room furniture to a wide grey body of water at 12:00
-Massive, round white structure of some kind at 9:00, surrounded by an area of darkness
-Great trees and shadows as far as it could see in any direction


Inn Exploration

Enemies Defeated:
none

Treasure:
220 blue-tinted silver coins, stamped with a symbol of flame & the words "Gordzu Kor"
3 chromatic peacock feathers

[NWI] A Letter from the Concierge

Esteemed Member,

Please consider the Inn your home. Feel free to enter any room or door you are able to access. You will not be trespassing! Do remember that the Inn cannot be held responsible for injuries or death caused by such expeditions. 

Also: 

1. Rooms rented are safe so long as you stay with the furniture. 

2. Any valuables you discover are yours to keep free of disclosure. Note that certain objects may prove difficult to remove from the Inn. 

3. Your last will and testament is honoured for one year. Should the beneficiary not be found in such time, your estate becomes the property of the Guild Master. 

4. The Inn offers unique combat training to interested companies. Inquire with James. 

5. The Inn will recognize your new tattoo and allow you to use the entrances on the East Porch, the Tavern Portico and the Servant’s Door in the west. Feel free to open windows, but be advised that doing so may expose you. All non-members are restricted to the entrance on the south veranda. 

6. Do not be slighted if the Guild Master fails to greet you. 

7. Please bring any inquiries or requests to the concierge or the carriage master. Welcome to the Night Wolf Inn! 

—James Everbleed



Guild Membership

First House: Black Wolf
Dues: 250 silver after one year
Tattoo: black wolf's head
Tattoo Effects: +1 AC
Perks: 50% off inn rooms
50% off personal equipment
food & drink on the house
Obligation: Up to one quest per year, not to exceed a two-week commitment

[Setting] City Maps

Landmarks, Boroughs and Elevation.
Click to enlarge.

Session 2

LOVE, DEATH & SAFE-CRACKING IN TARGNOL

2nd-12th Meadowlark, 4433

Characters

Aladar IX, M-U 1 (Alex)
"Sir Karavon" aka Tullius Jr, fighter 1 (Jake)
Lothos the Undesirable, elf 1 (Mike)
Eric Withakay, cleric 1 (Justin)
Meep, dwarf 1 (Spencer)
Veigar Thricescarred, fighter 1 (Kevin)


Leaving Drydale

After their torchlight exhumation, the gang re-interred the corpse of James Blake with a mocking note, taunting whoever might come searching afterwards for his journal and The Great Devourer.

"Meet on the 10th of Blackmoon in Viridistan. Under the Grand Red Statue, look for the man with twelve lit candles."

After recollecting their previous adventures, they decided to follow up a lead at the port of Targnol a few days travel away:

"The rich merchant Philotheos Sten hasn't been around lately. His large estate lies on the edge of town, and nobody has been seen coming or going for several days. Some fear the worst while others remark on the man's riches, accumulated through a lifetime of trading. A few thugs are going to case his place soon. You might be able to beat them to it and see what kind of loot is lying around!"

The port of Targnol was a sprawling mess of crumbling wooden buildings packed with Imperial sailors on leave, dockworkers, merchants, thieves and cutthroats. Notable buildings included a grand temple to Thoth and a mysterious black pyramid containing a sleeping sorceress within a glass coffin. The town offers a standing reward for anyone who can reawaken this mysterious ebony-skinned woman.

Not having an interest in that, the gang met with a local contact of Two-Faced Humphrey's (he had business back in Viridisan, and couldn't accompany them). The man was a sullen and scarred Viridian named Komang. He gave them some basics, and a few trips around town asking questions filled in the blanks:

- Philotheos and his family hadn't been seen in two weeks, but there had been no surge of activity suggesting they were moving house or taking an extended vacation. The current theory was sudden illness or foul play of some kind.
- Old Graham's Gang, a strange and mysterious crew of all-child thieves from Viridistan about whom rumours have swirled for years, were casing the place. They planned to raid it for valuables the next night. Komang offered to put the party in touch with them, but this offer declined.
- Philotheos kept no personal guards, for he lived on the edge of town in a rich area patrolled by (notoriously lazy) Imperial troops.

The party pooled their money and bought a wagon and two horses. On the way up to Philotheos' mansion, Eric and "Sir Karavon" drove while the rest hid under some straw in the back, hoping the "knight" and priest would discourage prying eyes or nosy guardsmen.

As night drew down they pulled into the driveway and approached the great mansion. Disdaining to explore the large grounds, "Sir Karavon" knocked on the door and getting no response, opened it. A distant weeping could be heard, but no foes presented themselves.


Charnel Mansion

The party entered the lightless home and progressed through a set of double-doors into a large parlor and dining-room. The place was trashed. Plates and vessels broken, splashes of blood everywhere, and the source of the weeping: a young Viridian girl strung up to the chandelier, her innards hanging out in a bloody mess!

In terrible shape as she was, the girl regained some lucidity after being released from the chandelier. She told them her name was Ariel, and related a strange story:

“One night after dinner, Father told everyone that he had a very special present for Mother. It was a very pretty necklace! But then a big monster and two smaller monsters came out of the necklace! And the big monster told the smaller monsters to get the lovers, and they jumped on Father and Nanny Alba! Then Mother and Grandma started yelling at Father, and everyone ran away! Then Grandma came to get me... and now I’m here.”

The child's injuries were quite severe and the party wasn't sure if they could help her. In the meantime, they explored the dining room and parlour, spotting an oil painting of a newlywed couple with a copper nameplate that read:

Philotheos Sten and Domitilla Sten. Married Sunstrong 17, 4423

Mounted on the wall above the painting were two fine-looking crossed falcatas that looked functional enough. The group took all these items and left Ariel for the moment to continue exploring.

The two other rooms on the main floor turned out to be Philotheos' office and a conservatory. The centrepiece in the conservatory was a grand harp, and three statuettes of dark blue & yellow marble rested on the mantelpiece: a dragon, eagle and nymph. The group took all of these and loaded them into their cart.

In Philotheos' office, Lothos rifled the great oak desk and found stacks of business papers - deeds, shipping manifests, etc. He pocketed a stack to peruse later, along with a fine stiletto in one of the drawers. The group was drawn to the large, shining silvery cube in the back corner which turned out to be an advanced combination safe! Three number-wheels ranged from 1 to 20. After giving it some thought, they fetched the painting of the Stens' wedding-day from their wagon. Guessing that 17 and 8 were important (Sunstrong is the 8th month of the year), they tried a few combinations until hitting upon 17 - 8 - 1. The shining door swung open and revealed Philotheos' hidden fortune!

It was at this time that Lothos thought to consult the mysterious ancient tome in Eric's possession. Pricking his finger, he wrote on the pages in blood, describing the party's situation and what they knew. Oddly, the book had a ready answer! This disaster was likely caused by the gift Philotheos gave his wife. The book identified it as The Necklace of the Sleepless Queen. It was created long ago by someone called the Dead King, to destroy all love in the world.

Perturbed by this news and not wanting to meet Ariel's sadistic grandmother or the "monsters" spawned by the necklace, the party elected to start the mansion ablaze and retreat safely with their wealth. Aladar IX used his Unseen Servant to carry a torch around inside the house while the others barred the door to prevent any aberrations from escaping. They waited until flames were visible from outside, then rode out of Targnol full-tilt, their wagon full of loot.

Return To the Immortal City

On the road home, Lothos consulted the strange blood-drinking tome again, learning its name: Pheldrazash. It claimed to know many other secrets, and was willing to teach him and Aladar IX a spell that would expand their knowledge for free: Call to Familiar Spirit.

Two days' travel from Viridistan, the party approached the Great Wall: a colossal structure a quarter-mile high and 200 feet thick, built by the ancients in the dawning days of the world for reasons unknown to men. Approaching the eastern entrance, called the Moon Gate, they met a farmer on the road who told them a strange tale:

[EDIT - Sorry, I got mixed up here. I had written Sun Gate before, but Targnol is east of Viridistan so the party actually passed through the Moon Gate.]

"Not too far from here, a brand-new building has sprung up overnight! It's a great structure in a bizarre foreign style, red stone and dark wood with a peaked black roof and pointed square towers, set back from the road on the edge of the Elsenwood. Travellers say it simply appeared one day with no signs of construction, no work crews, and certainly no negotiations with the elves who make the woods dangerous for honest Imperial folk!"

After hearing that rumour, the gang pressed on towards the City of Spices, glad to be home after their bizarre and harrowing journeys. To move their ill-gotten loot, Lothos travelled to the Otherside district where many of his elven kinfolk live in ghettos, segregated from the larger city. His cousin Darius said he "knew a guy," and a meeting could be arranged at the Plaza of Dark Delights that night. The sullen, cloaked Viridian who met Darius & the party was eager to buy most of their loot - his eyes lit up with greed at the sight of the gold trade bars. He wasn't especially interested in the painting, but kicked in a bit of silver for it as part of the whole deal.

Thousands of silver richer than they had ever been before, the party cast about for something to spend their money on. Someone had heard of a pleasure palace for the rich in the exclusive Cliffside district, called The Sign of Olive & Lotus. Anything could be had there for the right price: fine liquor, exotic foods, high-stakes games of chance, tantalizing companions and strange drugs.

Once again installing "Sir Karavon" in the front of their humble wagon, the group rode up the gates of Cliffside, waving their stolen deeds in the guards' faces. Suitably cowed by the presence of a knight who owned such property, they opened the gates. Following the main Cliffsedge Road, the party espied a beacon in the night. A lone tout, signalling late-night revellers down to his place of business, which turned out to be the very establishment they sought!

The Sign of Olive & Lotus was built right into the side of the cliffs, accessible only by narrow, ancient stair carved into the living rock. The view of Trident Gulf during the day is said to be unparalleled. Checking in cost a princely sum of 200 silvers per person per night, for the cheapest suites and a berth for the horses and wagon! The group was led through sparkling marble hallways by a mute eunuch wearing only a sash of gold lamé. Over carpets made from the skins of striped tigers and snow-white northern wolves, past doorways trimmed in gold leaf with smiling silk-clad houris the party reached their rooms.

With a bit of privacy for the first time in a while, Lothos and Aladar IX ignited the special incenses and herbs they had previously brought and each cast the spell that would summon a spiritual helper to their side: Call to Familiar Spirit.

This done, the gang prepared to party as only those in the Immortal City can...

Enemies Defeated: 

none

Treasure:

3 blue & yellow marble statues
1900 copper coins

633 silver coins

10 gold trade bars

a mound of gold & silver jewellery - necklaces, rings, bracelets, etc

portrait of Philotheos and Domitilla Sten, in frame

Ornate grand harp (planned to sell later)
fine stiletto (Lothos)
2 decorative falcatas (Lothos and Meep)
stack of Philotheos' documents, deeds, etc (Lothos)

Total: 
2295 silver pieces

2295 experience

Carousing:
Lothos - 1500 xp
Eric - 400 xp
Tullius Jr. - 1300 xp
Aladar IX - 400 xp
Meep - 200 xp

TOTAL EXPERIENCE:

Lothos - 3795 xp
Eric - 2695 xp
Tullius Jr. - 3595 xp
Aladar IX - 2695 xp
Meep - 2495 xp
Viegar - 2295 xp

[Rules] Spellcasters and Familiars

Many people assume that familiars are animals that a spellcaster has empowered to be servants and allies. Nothing could be further from the truth.

The Holy Inquisition teach that familiars are demons, sent to corrupt sorcerers with power. Others say that they are the ancient spirits that originally taught mankind magic, or spells that have slipped away from their masters and now meddle in the affairs of men. Whatever is true, magic-users and elves may obtain familiars by casting the spell known as Call to Familiar Spirit.

Dealing with a familiar is not a simple master-and-servant affair, but a relationship between equals. 

Once a familiar has agreed to work with you, it can be summoned to your side. But familiars are fickle. Whenever you attempt to summon your familiar, make a Charisma check (equal to or less on 1d20). Success means that the familiar arrives immediately. Failure indicates it arrives in 1d20 hours. If you have annoyed your familiar you automatically fail this test, while familiars that are extremely pleased will always arrive promptly.

Your familiar doesn't really exist before it's summoned. It crawls out of your hair, or scrabbles out of the wall, and leaves in similarly dramatic fashion. It can only be hurt by magic.

Services and Favours

Familiars can perform services for you, but no more than once per day. 

For every service your familiar performs, you owe a favour.

0. Familiars can use the detect magic spell at will, and even share the results with you if you ask nicely (this is so trivial that it doesn't demand a favour in exchange). 

1. Familiars can teach you spells, which you can then add to your spell book immediately and at no cost. The DM will pick &/or roll for the spells your familiar knows. It cannot teach you what you cannot understand. The first spell is free.

2. Familiars can grant you an extra spell slot of your highest level spell for one day.

3. Familiars can give you +2 to your caster level for one day.

4. Familiars can save you from a violent death—but only once, and only if the familiar answers your summons immediately (you make that Charisma check mentioned above). The details of how this actually happens are left to the DM. Once your familiar has performed this favour for you, you become bound to it body and soul. You will never be rid of it. You owe it a favour every time you level up, or every time you gain a negative level.

5. Pretty much anything else you can dream up. Want it to scout out the next room? No problem. That counts as a favour, though.

Each favour is something that the familiar can call in immediately or at a later date. It's up to the DM, and depends on the familiar's goals. If the spellcaster performs the favour that the familiar requests, that's the end of it. If the character refuses, that is a violation the contract with the familiar and the DM will roll on the Breach of Covenant table for the consequences (may include random curses, debuffs, mutations and other punishments). As long as you can convince your familiar that you still have a chance to fulfil your destiny it will not abandon you, although it might get grumpy. It has a contract after all.

Player Character Familiars

Lord Glaumr is a ferret with golden fur and glittering purple eyes. (Getorix)