Session 44 (2022-10-30/Starday Pharast 05 - 12, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
The very last thing that happens in the dream is that the ringmaster remembers to take of her ring and toss it to them, saying 'Oh, right, you might need this...' And then, on the ship that takes them to Willowside they wake up to the sound of a ring rolling around the floor of their cabin.
The next day they arrive at Willowside, noticing how thin and malnourished the crowd at the pier looks as the merchants from the ship have a brisk business selling food to those who were waiting for the ship. Several families carrying all their goods board the ship, obviously moving away permanently.
The follow the group back to the town (a mile or so) as it's not safe to travel alone on the roads anymore, on the way they notice recent dinosaur tracks just before they hear someone shouting for help. They find that the local master hunter, Gristarn Vrick, has managed to get trapped by three giant maneating plants of some sort. They kill off the plants and free him without much effort.
Back in town they are met by the mayor who gets them a room at the inn and shows them around town (inn, general store, erastil temple) and tells them that to get to the Marsh Stone Tower they should ask Gristarn how to get there. He readily agrees to get them there tomorrow as tonight's market night. The Banyan boys (the local sheriffs) do their worst to make them realize that a) this is *their* town, b) don't cause any trouble and c) the Banyan boys are assholes.
During the market several Xulgathi riding on some sort of flying dinosaur attack with fire bombs and arrows but are easily brought down by the group while the Banyan boys do nothing useful, other than trying to claim the credit afterward.
The following morning the mayor asks them - as clearly capable heroes - to head out to Fortune's Hall and see what's happened to them. Once there they first enter the stables where they find three starving horses and a horrible undead monster that manages to swallow Taldor and rip Eladrin apart before finally being put down. They take the horses and Eladrin's body before heading straight back to town where they after several days of rituals finally manage to resurrect him. While they were busy with that it became clear that the town was under siege, all roads out are blocked and the woods are filled with dinosaurs and xulgathi.
The group does their part in helping to build barricades and magical wards, retrieving townsfolk that didn't make it back to town in time and getting supplies for the hospital for the next two days. The mayor approaches them again, revealing that the reason the Banyan boys haven't been seen around town for the last couple of days is that she sent them on a secret mission to the sea caves below the town (once the home of the cult of Bokrug they had previously remembered used to exist in Willowside). She doesn't know what exactly is below, but there are legends that something can help the city in it's greatest need is down there, and she thought it worth checking out. But now the Banyan boys have gone missing down there.
The group heads down to the entrance below the general store and are standing in front of the door to the sea caves when Taldor's Soul Spiral ignites, showing that there are undead nearby.
We ended here.
Detta hände sist:
Session 45 (2022-11-08/Starday Pharast 12, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Molle))
On the other side of the door waited several tallow oozes who did their best to engulf the group, but were burnt to a cinder.
Beyond that were stairs that led down to both a water-filled room with several strangely even mounds in them (and a large heap of fish and crab bones near the inlet at the rear), and what seemed to be a temple-like room with carvings of (presumably) Bokrug on the floor, and several zombies leaning stiffly against the wall in the back.
Before the group could quite decide where to go, a number of eyes and mouths erupted from the wall, chewing up the group. Eventually they figured out that the cause was that one of the mounds was in fact a Grikkitog, that very nearly wiped out the group before they managed to put it down. Just as that fight was over Cackle brought Druzzt back, but we had to end the session due to a ddos attack against the Forge.
Session 46 (2022-11-08/Starday Pharast 12, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
Druzzt, Cackle and Eladrin had to handle a few things in Willowside, so the others were helped by a formerly retired barbarian adventurer to continue into the sea caves.
The zombies in the next room attacked as soon as they entered the room with lizard carvings, spewing great gouts of salt water, pummeling with their fists, and to add insult to injury, exploding in a gory fashion when killed. But, killed they were. After that they initially bypassed the obvious trap in the library, instead briefly checking out the meditation room before going back to the water-filled room when they noticed a body floating in it. Alas, that body was an undead of some kind. A short while into the fight a few brightly lit astral researchers from the neigbouring room intervened, insisting that the group shouldn't kill the undead as they had questions to ask it. After the undead was killed an agreement was reached that instead the group should help with the research, so, they all headed for the library, where the possibly not so bright astrals triggered the trap, which summoned a horrible acid/flame/lightning-spewing centipede. With that dispatched, the astrals left back to their research area after several hours of library research.
That out of the way the group - now with Eladrin replacing the again retired barbarian adventurer - headed back to the meditation room. Once there a gargantuan worm of some kind appeared out of the hole in the meditation room, looking intently at them, but not acting until the last of them left the room, when it attacked and did it's best to eat them all. At one point it had swalloed four at the same time. Alas, just when things were looking good for the worm, Druzzt and Cackle showed up and helped dispatch the giant vermin.
After that they rested up for a bit, and went through a secret tunnel to a room with a giant statue of Bokrug that appeared to watch them as they moved through the room. The Banyan brothers were also there, saying that Ledorick was working on animating the statue so that it could help defend the town. After some conversation the group was convinced that Ledorick was possessed, and a fight broke out. Eventually they managed to almost knock out Ledorik, at which point the possessing ghost-like creature left his body and another fight started, this time with Ledorick and his brothers on the group's side, but with a few extra undead cultists brought into the fight by the ghost. After a *long* fight they eventually killed the ghost.
We ended just as the ghost dispersed as it was getting quite late.
Session 46 (2022-11-22/Starday Pharast 12-14, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars))
With the ghost dispersed Ledorick returned to his old self, if somewhat humbled from the experience. He and his brothers started to move all the weapons and gear that was found in the inner room up to the town to aid in the defence.
The group continued on to the last room, the former vesper of the cult. There a strange creature called a Qualaunt faced them, trying to drive them mad with despair, but it failed.
With the sea caves emptied they headed for the town, rested a bit and in the morning agreed to help out with the various hotpots of Xulgath activity (seeDefense).
They decided to first tackle the Pier Road as that led directly to another hot spot, the Willowside Pier, with the hope of opening up for both refugees to run and deliveries of food and supplies being made.
After scouting they found Gristarn at the Pier Road, again. He waved at Druzzt to sneak forward quietly. When the entire group walked up to him, he sighed, pulled out a monstrous cleaver and proceed to attempt to slaughter the group. For, as it turned out, the actual Gristarn was lying dead behind a bush, and what had attacked them was a creature called a Faceless Butcher. When the Butcher was itself slaughtered the group picked up the body of Gristarn, talking about trying to raise him when they got back to town. But, for now, on to the Willowside Pier.
Session 47 (2022-12-03/Starday Pharast 14, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
Just off the Willowside Pier the Geode's Center was being attacked by two sea serpents, that were easily distracted by smaller prey entering the water, which turned out to be fatal for the serpents.
The ship is quite damaged and will take a week or more to repair, but as they noticed the sea cave exit the crew (and city folks) have a safe-ish access route to the ship. (As long as noone disturbs the researchers, or re-triggers the summoning trap...)
After returning to town they immediately headed out to the East road, clearing it's blockade without much trouble. As they were halfway to Fortune's Hall anyway, they decided to head check it out while they were at it. It turned out to be filled with fey tricksters of various sorts. The Doblagub theatre fans were especially troublesome, but were finally dispatched.
While doublechecking that the first floor was cleared they noticed something odd about the heap of junk out back, particularly the two fey hiding behind it, giggling evilly, at which point we ended.
Session 48 (2022-12-06/Starday Pharast 14-15, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars))
When the two fey and their explosive trap had been smashed the group proceeded up the stairs, where they found a pair of Brughadatch and their Cauthooj pet that were soon dispatched. Beyond that was a room with an active summoning circle (using a variant summon fey ritual) that they destroyed. Apparently the druid had attempted to help out with the lack of food by summoning fey that could produce food. Alas, the fey proved unreliable, and the food illusory.
After guiding the emaciated staff of Fortune's Hall to Willowside and a night's rest they figured that they should probably open up all the roads - potentially letting more refugees reach the town - before tackling anything else, so they headed for the Verdant Passage, which they found blocked by a trapped barricade and a group of dinosaur-riding Xulgathis that they are currently fighting.
Session 49 (2022-12-20/Starday Pharast 15, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
After killing the blockade guards and blowing up the blockade they decided to tackle something harder. The Fiend Enclosure. As the pair of demons and their burrowing aberrations burst out of the enclosure, attacking physically and with floating acid clouds the group soon realized that they had indeed gotten their wish.
The gas clouds split up the group, both Eladrin and Cackle were close to dying, and eventuall Taldor did die after being crushed by one of the fiends. That fiend then rushed over to avenge the other fiends and aberrations that had also been slain during the fight.
Session 50 (2022-12-23/Starday Pharast 15, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars))
With some difficulty the last remaining fiend is slain and the group brings their slain comrade back to town, where they find that resurrecting him fails as Pharasma has called him to stand guard at the Boneyard.
Session 51 (2023-01-03/Starday Pharast 17, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
Joined by Taldors human cousin Taldot the group decided to go for something easier, which freeing, being betrayed by and then slaying the Gug labourers turned out to be.
With that easily handled they headed for the Dinosaur Corrals, where they found two guards, several herds of grass-eating dinosaurs and a pack of gargantuan meat-eating dinosaurs, who, once the fight was on, didn't really seem to have a side as such, they just wanted to EAT!
We ended the session just after the first meat-eater died.
Session 52 (2023-01-06/Starday Pharast 19, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
After wiping out the meat-eating dinosaurs and driving off the herds of herbivores the group returned to town.
Then, it was on towards the main encampment, hoping to solve this thing once and for all.
There they found the tower encircled by a mile-deep encampment of various small rowdy groups of Xulgthatis. Noone seemed to patrol the camp, instead if two groups strayed too close they usually fought, with other groups ignoring them rather than joining in.
At one point was a huge siege tower with a massive smoky fire burning outside. They realized the leader of the horde was staying in the siege tower. They decided to pay him a visist.
After - with some effort - sneaking through the camp without being challenged they found a group of xulgathis loitering outside the tower, and attacked them. Unfortunately another group was loitering around the fire, and joined in, along with a fiend that was with them.
The end result of this was that only Druzzt and Cackle managed to barely escape, leaving the bodies of Taldot, Eladrin and Kantou behind.
They scrounged up some help from among the passengers on the boat (the rogue Andrinal, the bard Farlaf and yet another cousin of the apparently very large clan of gnome adoptees, a human fighter named Talmot) and returned the very next day, with a plan that should ensure their success this time.
So far, it's going reasonably well. Katt has fallen, and gotten up, and fallen again, but the rest of the group are in decent health. Unlike the fiend, which was very thoroughly burned to ashes with a series of Searing Light...
Session 53 (2023-01-17/Starday Pharast 19, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars))
With some difficulty the group finally slew the remaining tower defenders. After a short rest around the smoking fire (dumping the defender's bodies into the fire after looting them), the group made themselves invisible and flew up to the top of the tower.
On opening the hatch to the top floor they saw a Gug that ran off calling for it's master, after having thrown an area spell on the mysteriously self-opening door. Said master, Arshkuva the Gnasher turned out to be an undead minion of the Gug that, after getting out of a really irritating silence spell, proclaimed itself Helg Eats-the-Eaters, the secret mistress of the Xulgath horde. Before that she had briefly banished Talmot to a maze of twisty little passages, all alike, but, he managed to get out.
When we ended Helg was again caught in the Silence surrounding Talmot, and it's about to become her turn.
Session 54 (2023-01-31/Starday Pharast 19-, 4722 AR)
((Anders, Carina, Erik, Lars, Molle))
When she realized she was in serious trouble Helg tried to say something, perhaps promising something, but, as she was in a Silence spell, nobody could hear her offer, and she was killed.
After that they went downstairs to wipe out the remaining guards before returning to Willowside.
There they were again hailed as heroes, and after a couple weeks of waiting and preparation there came reports that the Xulgathi around the tower had dispersed, making it safe to approach the tower.