Month: January 2016

DM Notes
A resistance fighter by the name of Daylin finds the group at the temple and as he is introducing himself he spots a green flame on the road. Its a sure sign of only one thing….The Scourge. Ripped straight out of the nightmares of children the damned creature draws closer. The party moves into the basement to find the book, their pace quickened with the threat of death drawing closer. They find the remains of a vast underground temple with many sleeping quarters. They decend even farther down and find workshops and giant furnaces devoted to crafting.

DM Notes
The wary band finds Vaegog to be a dead and vile place. They find the old temple that supposedly houses the tomb, only to find it crawling with Vaegogian soldiers and workers destroying the holy works of the long forgotten god. The band quickly ends of the lives of the soldiers.

DM Notes
The last thing they can remember is a man asking for their help. They awaken in a warehouse in the docks of Kell Na’Dar with two weeks of memories gone. They find through lots of investigation and running scared through the streets that they were accused of the murder of the Duke. During this time they run across a man who has info of their missing time, he is a noble man past his prime looking for one last adventure to set his blood on fire. Sir Reginald and his trusty manservant Mancy help the party piece together the missing timeline as well as fight off assassination attempts by Torments own brother. With time spent at the Bearded Wench the party slowly pieces together the clues and figures out they were working for a man named Avar the Storyteller. They plotted and planed with various people and it seems did kill the Duke, but only because he was a thrall to the powerful vampire known as the Dark Lady. Also they come to find the Roric died while fleeing the palace grounds. With the Dark Ladies plans foiled she asked for their help in obtaining a ancient tomb from the lands of Vaegog.

DM Notes
Slaves are bought (by Grogmar) and freed (by a pissed Thorry). The party uses the mirror to escape ArkiNath and head to a city. They find themselves in Kell Na’Dar a world away in the country of Durin. They move through the city buying things they will need to survive.

DM Notes
Out of all the things Roric came back with that belonged to Styles, a blue stone key is by far the strangest. It seems to have a life of its own and pulls the party toward something in the desert. They trek into the sands to find a ancient ruin worn to near non existance by the sand and wind. The key however pulls them toward two blue obelisks. With key in hand they cross through and find themselves in another world. Lush green trees and flowers, canals, walkways, and pillars of white marble lay before them, and in the distance a small tower. The party is assualted by magical statues that try to bar their way. They manage to destroy the statues and explore the tower finding the remains of a long dead wizard as well as many wonderful works of magic including a magic mirror that seems to allow the tower to move through the material plane.

Player Notes
“Roric was not with us for very long, but perhaps he had the greatest impact on our journey. He gave to us a blue key that he procured from Styles’s home. I hadn’t even known he and Kevon left to loot the criminal’s mansion. I guess he wouldn’t need anything anyway now that he’s dead.

Oh, and I guess Kevon died somehow. I didn’t really catch what happened to him. Roric just sort of said he was dead. Our first fatality…you know, I should probably say something about the man, about the great deeds he did, how helpful he was to the party…

…

So the key had a mind of its own and pulled us out of ArkiNath and into the desert to two blue pillars. Brother Osho tossed the key between the pillars, and the key disappeared into thin air! Unbelievable! And also, what an odd thing to do! I will tell you, had I possessed the key, I surely wouldn’t have done something as silly as throw it. Who throws a key!? If it was danger that Brother Osho feared, he should have shoved Grogmar in first. Anything on the other side would run away in fear, or perhaps kill him, but at least the rest of us would be safe! Fortunately, whatever magic powers that the portal possessed allowed us to follow through after the tossed key.

What was beyond is incredible! Bright, endless light, beautiful flowers and sturdy trees, and smooth, tall marble pillars. There is also a tower in the distance that we walked toward. But danger found us! Magical statues assaulted us. Expressionless, sturdy, and quite solid. They put up a hard fight! The largest statue, quite intimidating, threw a spear of pure lightning! But they were not strong enough for the likes of us! Our very first battle together proved successful, and also scored Brother Osho that magnificent spear.

Inside the tower we discovered a disgusting and dark creature. Black ooze poured out of every wound we inflicted. I’ve never seen anything like it, and I’m not sure I will again. Cecil stayed back as we slashed and stabbed at the monstrosity. We managed to best the creature, and we took the tower for our own!

Looking back, this is where our journey together really took shape. Before, we were a cobbled together group of no ones, well, except me and Lovejoy, of course. But now we began to band together. We had a portal to another place, a place no one else could come. Only we had the key. We could make this our place of operations…our tactics and strategies headquarters…perhaps a place to call home someday.

But first, someone needs to clean up the ooze.”
– An oral story from Thorry

DM Notes
The crew battle for a chance at freedom infront of a mass of cheering fans. The man in charge by the name of Styles has other plans for them. As the tide of monsters and gladiators mounts panic errupts as magic cast by Torment goes haywire leading to the literal overthrowing of Styles. In the crowd a tiny halfling knight begins to attack guards and start a riot in his attempts to free the retched slaves below him.

Freedom at last…The crew is on the run and in hiding as ArkiNath falls into chaos around them. The death of Styles has shifted the balance of power within the small up and coming city. Roric and Kevan use this panic to break into Styles manor and clear out some precious loot. Alas poor Kevan dies while saving his brother’s life. While the two brothers plunder, the rest of the crew find safe lodging in the rundown and leaning Lion Inn. The halfling by the name of Thorry has agreed to help them escape the city. Then when their lives have hit the limit of chaos the wind blows a stranger into the tap room of the Lion. It is Benjamin Lovejoy the famous writer/bard/adventurer he gets the crew talking of their adventures his quill and notebook in hand.

Player Notes
“So I made it to ArkiNath. It was to be my greatest mission since leaving the tutelage under Master Brightblade…he would be so proud, and impressed! Along my travels, I heard talk of slaves being murdered in the town’s arena. It might have been a bit foolhardy to think that a lone paladin could stop this tyranny, but I was determined to show I was indeed ready for such an important task. After all, Master Brightblade did set me loose upon the world to bring about freedom and change. He couldn’t wait to get me out into the world to prove myself…he told me it was beyond time for me to leave. He did make make me a rank four Holy Light Knight, after all. I have not heard talk of many levels higher than that. In fact, everyone I talk to seems quite surprised when I mention my rank. They must not meet many high ranking paladins such as myself. Or perhaps followers of Rosfur have a much more sophisticated ranking system than other paladins and knights…yes, that must be it.

Anyway, it could not have gone any better. I entered the arena stands with the fires of freedom in my heart. Guards surrounded the pit. The crowd was roaring, cheering for the death of the slaves. How quick I was to gain their favor and show them a better path! Me, a lone paladin! I wiggled my way through the crazy crowd, plotting my point of attack. When the slaves entered the arena and began fighting, I made my move. Amidst the raucous, I stomped to the nearest guard and bashed him on the back. He was a bit tougher than I expected, so I launched myself off a seat and used the momentum to finish the job.

The guards tried to strike back, but I was too small and quick to strike with their crossbows. The crowd came to life, finally seeing the harsh control of the soldiers and their evil leader. They went wild, taking up my cause with passion. Soon the soldiers were overwhelmed by the unruly crowd. I charged up to the ruler Styles to end his campaign of cruelty. But alas, he was already defeated. I rushed to free the slaves below, and that was that! I had done it! Me, Thorry Greygrove! I freed all of the slaves. It is perhaps one of my greatest accomplishments to this day.

I led the no-longer-slaves back to the Lion Inn, and we all became more acquainted. There was Brother Osho, the monk whose pride is so strong that he refuses to admit that I freed him. He is searching for his master who I happened upon on my travels, though it was long ago and I don’t know his destination. Also among the group was Torment, a quiet and strange demon creature, with a tail even! He seemed nice enough, and he apparently killed Styles, so I was happy to have him along. There was also Rorick and Kevon, both thieves from what I could gather, though sadly I did not get the chance to know them for as long as the others. And last, and also least, was Grogmar, the smelly, stupid, disruptive orc.

But our group grew by one rather quickly, for at the inn we found Benjamin Lovejoy, the masterful poet, writer, singer, and adventurer known throughout the world. With talent such as that, I could not pass up the opportunity to have him for a traveling companion, so I recruited him to our newly-formed band of great adventurers.”
– An oral story from Thorry

DM Notes
The crew of the Gilded Gull find themselves drugged and sold off into slavery by Captain Gripp. They are taken in cages to ArkiNath in Ceriana. They are forced to become gladiators who fight for the entertainment of the crowds.

Several of the crew have died off in the bloody and violent arena. The few that remain are Brother Osho, Kevan, Roric, Grogmar, and Torment. Though their numbers dwindle they have started to win the hearts of the crowds in the Red Arena.

Player Notes
“I don’t know much about the Gilded Gull. I was off on my own adventures. I had just finished up my tutelage under Master Brightblade, who taught me how to follow the path of the paladin. I learned so much, and he gave me his old sword as an appreciation for my hard work. So Cecil and I set off…Cecil is my dog, and friend! So we set off to adventure…I love adventure! And adventure found us soon after! What…you want to know about the Gilded Gull? It’s some ship that brought the slaves to ArkiNath, which lies in the Valley of Eternal Shade… that means it’s always dark there. Well, to be honest, my companions haven’t talked much about it. And all who’s left of the slaves is Brother Osho. Well, he’s not a slave anymore…I freed him and the others! I can’t wait to tell you about that! It was astounding! But yes, perhaps you should ask Brother Osho. Oh! I can tell you that Brother Osho is determined to find the Gilded Gull. He even asked the Dark Lady about it! Ooooh…the Dark Lady gets my blood boiling! But I’ll talk about her later.”
– An oral story from Thorry

He had hoped being on the Gull would hasten his journeys about the land and bring resolution to finding his missing master, Dai Osho. Being at sea on calm days had allowed him to explore his thoughts and the teachings of his master. His spirit was bent, yet not broken when Captain Gripp proved false. A small silver lining in the cloud that was slavery was that he received the opportunity to put into practice the hours of training his master had given him. While not an attractive prospect for any length of time, Osho would be lying to himself if he didn’t recognize the flicker of joy he had when the crowd shouted for him and cheered at the speed of his strikes.
– Reflections of a Student, Osho’s Journal