Western Borders Records – Summer, 60AD

 

  • 45 Su – PCs find an abandoned keep with a cockatrice nest. They (wisely) retreat.
  • 43 Su – PCs, Tyler and Lt Maynard head off
  • 41 Su – The PCs, Burt, Tyler and mercenaries return to Burt’s tower from getting the kobold treasure. They were attacked by a strange wolf-woman creature along the way back, two mercenaries were brutally murdered. Burt and PCs chased the wolf-woman off.
  • 30 Su – After returning to Burt’s Tower to obtain additional help to get all the treasure back, the noble allows PCs to keep initial haul, but will hold onto rest until ownership can be determined (Monk Calandro admitted to the letter they’d found)
  • 23 Su – PCs and a group of 20 mercenaries (plus officers) move through the woods and find the kobold village, though at a great cost in lives. They defeat the kobolds by holding the king, and then resisting a counterattack. The king is killed. The PCs find a huge amount (thousands) of coins on the floor of the King’s hut.
  • 18 Su – PCs attempt initial search for kobold village from map found in small castle. They are ambushed quite a bit. They retreat back to Burt’s Tower to get help.
  • 12 Su – Wilizim believes dwarfs were associated with the town of Crystal Point and the large cliff-mounted crystal.
  • 11 Su – PCs encounter warband of bugbears moving to the east.
  • 1 Su – PCs clear castle of orcs and wolves. Lindin adopts wolves as companions. PCs find a treasure map to a great treasure held by kobolds!

Western Borders Records – Spring, 60AD

 

  • 50 Sp – PCs find a ruined small castle in the grasslands of northern Corridin, occupied by orcs.
  • 41 Sp – PCs return to Lord Elfredo’s tower. Translation of dwarf tablets so far:
    • 150 years
    • Great sin! Atone for sin
    • Gathering for great journey
  • 21 Sp – after visiting with various folks in Gireford, the PCs take the Druid Lindin to nearby Druid’s Circle, where he’s inducted into the Circle after participating in a ritual.
  • 7 Sp – Party stumbles across Griffon’s Keep while trying to find the Gire River. They are welcomed with open arms and a celebration. Rem and Calandro are feted as heroes.
  • 5 Sp – Party finds a grassland area with an abandoned ruined village. They hear strange noises in the middle of the night.
  • 4 Sp – Party succeeds in recovering the Artifact of Vicon by distracting the company of militia, bespelling Lorita and her bodyguards, recovering the artifact and running away.
  • 3 Sp – Party find the remains of a ruined temple, with a Champion of Vicon, Leadra, near it! (the woman from 85 Wi 59 looking for adventurers) Leandra reveals that a chaotic cleric, Lorita, her bodyguards and a large group of soldiers are attempting to find a valuable artifact within. The party agrees to help Leandra recover the artifact. They scout to see what they’re up against.
  • 1 Sp – Party participates in the New Years celebration, with Redwald winning the tournament of champions and being awarded an ingot of veganotter by Lord Elfredo. Rem is not as lucky. Phaedra creates light effects show to entertain folks.

Western Borders Records – Winter, 59AD

 

  • 85 Win 59 – The party reaches Lord Elfredo’s lands and are found by his riders. They are escorted to the castle. Lord Elfredo is happy to allow Wilizim to stay while the party heads to Gireford to let Hazam know of his master’s rescue. The party hears of a woman looking for adventurers to help her “recover a treasure” from a set of ruins to the NE.
  • 71 Wi – PCs find hall of records in Dwarf outpost with a ghost of a dwarf (The Watcher) and recover record tablets. They escape the outpost!
  • 70 Wi – after rest and recovery, PCs return to outpost, eliminate the guards and re-enter to find the hall of records.
  • 57 Wi – PCs retreat from outpost and find track to Feltor’s camp! PCs retreat to a small hamlet – Crickton.
  • 55 Wi – PCs find the Dwarf outpost, defeating orc/goblin guards and enter within. After some encounters, they rescue Wilizim, the mage who had been leading an expedition to the outpost and was taken prisoner by Feltor! Wilizim is Hazam’s mentor.
  • 50 Wi – PCs find a hamlet in forest where people act in strange, unwelcoming ways. They find a strange mine and explore it, but don’t find very much to explain villagers’ behavior.
  • 45 Wi – PCs return to Lord Elfredo’s tower to seek a guide to get them to the Dwarf outpost in Obroam’s vision.
  • 43 Wi – PCs defeat Chaos creatures and recover Venomfang!
  • 40 Wi – PCs talk to the Druid Oli ; he lives 1 hr north of sacred space; Druids must learn their spells and skills by returning. PCs travel and find mound of Venomfang.
  • 39 Wi – PCs enter druid sacred space to help Mort become an official Initiate. Mort becomes an Initiate of the 2nd Circle.
  • 35 Wi – PCs return to Gireford. They buy supplies, horses.
  • Mort befriends a bear family
  • 27 Wi – While selling treasure, PCs are robbed by a “Stella” of the crown and valuable gems
  • PCs hire Gustav (cleric) from Church of Light, and 2 archer hirelings
  • 25 Wi – PCs deliver Houdin to the Marshall; attend funeral
  • PCs help village of Varnier’s Field w/bombardier beetle infestation; discover a treasure cache and a strange crown
  • PCs travel to Tannia w/Sheriff Stark and Houdin’s body
  • PCs discover that a bandit group (The Real Woodstalkers) was wiped out by fire/attack, near the ruined Six Towers
  • Adrin leaves Gireford under suspicion of being aligned with Chaos.
  • Obroam receives a letter from Jorann, Priestess of Tangadorn (another PC from the Eastern Borders campaign)
  • Marshall Selfridge’s forces arrive to garrison Griffon’s Keep
  • PCs liberate Griffon’s Keep, drive off Feltor the Black Cleric, who flees back to the Mistress

Western Borders Records – Autumn, 59AD

  • Houdin, son of Marshall Selfridge, dies in Battle of Griffon’s Keep
  • PCs infiltrate Griffon’s Keep via travel circle
  • PCs travel to Tannia, meet with Marshall Selfridge, Kreevras the Wizard.
  • PCs meet Old Pete and learn about Keep travel circles.
  • PCs begin assault on Griffon’s Keep against Black Brotherhood/Orc warband

Notes from Bram: 30 Summer, 60AD

On the 30th day of Summer, the party departed along with a large host (three wagons, 30 mercs, several VIPs, etc.) led by Burt the Babe, heading back to the Kobold camp with an intent to recover the balance of the treasure.

Enroute, when we woke on the morning of the 33rd day of Summer, we found two of the overnight guard were missing – only a dropped sword was found. A search of the immediate area showed some drag marks.

Linden has Birch use the wolf’s tracking skill to help a small group of us search. We move into the woods and ultimately find parts of guards, viciously rended with guts spreadaround and heads placed neatly near a tree. We see deep, bloody, four-fingered claw marks in the ground!

Then we notice that there are no weapons and no armor with the remains…

We pray and bury what remains fo r dead and return to the main group.

Tyler is very distrubred by all of this. We decide to interview everyone (30+ people so it takes half-a-day) and we learn that some reported hearing beautiful singing in the night – a female voice.

We contenplate taking a multi-layered guard approach (guards watching guards, watching guards) but ultimately decide on a pair-of-guards, one with cloth or wax stuffed in their ears, to optimize for not getting caught by some “siren song” but also not having no way to hear someone sneaking up. We aren’t sure it will work, or even help, but it’s what we try,

Since its late we stay, and overnight we are ALL awakened by howling all around! Everyone gets ready.

Phaedra casts a light spell and we see movement at the edge of the light and the howling continues.

Bert gets tired of us “huddling scared”, dons his armor and pulls out a vial of shimmering liquid. Tyler joins him in armor as well ad sais let’s go get them! We agree to follow as well, anxious to end the terror one way or the other

Lancel casts Bless upon us, and we head toward the noise.

Burt calls out to the noises loudly, “COME OUT AND SHOW YOURSELVES!” but then we hear a woman’s laugh! Then a beautiful song starts…

Lancel begins casting silence, guessing where the singing is coming from to target the spell.

Unfortunately, we all start to feel very lethargic, fuzzy minded and slow in all of our actions,

From the darkness wild wolves charge at us!, followed by a woman – well, a bipedal figure part human part wolf!

Bert drinks his potion and beging to transform! Bram steps forward to attack. His sword is a massive hit, but appears to do NO DAMAGE! THe creature smirks.

Phadrea starts casting Sleep and Lancel starts casting Hold Person. Bert tosses his sword at Bram and says “try this one!”

Linden and his wolves engaged in vicious melee with the wild wolves that are attacking us, and we take several hits to both the party and to Linden’s wolves…

Phaedra’s sleep spell goes off and drops 4 of the 5 attacking wolves. Lancel’s Hold Person is spoiled by a wolf bite.

Bram strikes the wolf-woman in the gut with Bert’s sword and draws blood! The creature shrieks in pain and surprise!

Bert has become GIANT now and all of his clothes and armor have torn/falled away. NUDE RAMPAGING NON-GREEN HULK!

The wolf woman, seeing the Giant, the defeated wolves, our approaching party, and her freshly sword-opened abdomen decided to withdraw and runs away!

We try to follow, but are still slow from the enchantment, and she gets away…

Bert is obviously enjoing his huge form and walks back to camp happily showing off – we try to avert our eyes becuase EVERYTHING is proportionally larger…Tyler is more embarrassed than most.

Finally, Bert reverts to normal and the next day we depart for the Kobold village again.

Once we arrive, the treasure is found as we had left it and it takes several days to load it all up in the wagons and get out of the woods.

Lancel mentions “customary tithing” as a half-joke/half-serious comment, but Bert poitns out that we must await the merchant’s inquiry before deciding what to do.

On the 4th day travelling back (41st day of Summer) across the plains, the ground begins to rumble!!!

Multiple many-legged creatures emerge from the earth!!!!!

<END OF SESSION>

ETINERRA LORE – THE HORRIBLE SOURCE OF THE EYE TYRANTS

(originally posted here: https://chgowiz-games.blogspot.com/2017/11/etinerra-lore-horrible-source-of-eye.html)

Summer 23, 945th Year of the Kings
I have done it! I have finally translated the works of the famous mage Fyce Oe’too! At last, the spells and writings that he left in that forgotten tower are mine. This is what I’ve worked years and years for. Master Kelix, afraid of my power that I had come into, tried to scare me with childhood nightmare stories. He was once my teacher, but I have long surpassed him and this was just a vain attempt by him to keep me away from real power and spells of ultimate value!

Oddly, Fyce must have gone mad at the end of his days, for his writings became more erratic, disjointed. It even looks like he tried to destroy some of his works, judging by the scarring on the pages, but he ensorcelled them well and they resisted. I will take precautions.

One of the spells I intend on casting is “The Familiar of the Eye.” The spell hints at a creature of some power, much more advanced that the simple familiars that we all know of. Such a familiar would serve me well as I work to learn and understand the rest of Fyce’s spell. It does require many eyes of various creatures and the blood of humans, elves and littlelings, so I will be busy for awhile.

Winter 19, 947th Year of the Kings
My disappointment is difficult to maintain! After countless ten-days of travel, much gold spent on mercenaries and adventurers, a season of preparation and all I have is a limp, lifeless eye sitting on a gold plate! It is useless! It barely responds to my commands, it has no abilities that I can discern and not to mention all of the eyes I provided were all absorbed into one huge eye. The spell notes allude that one must wait several ten-days for maturation, but unless this thing changes in ways I can’t imagine, I don’t see how this will be useful!

Winter 36, 947th Year of the Kings
The eye has indeed changed! A chitinous shell has formed around the eye, with a large mouth forming at the bottom and the actual eye somewhat shrinking into the body. Several smaller, flexible stalks seem to be growing out of the thing.

More importantly, this thing is starting to show intelligence and arcane abilities! While it still cannot do much, I am sensing that it understands me. I’ve also seen it looking at my spell books! It clearly is attracted to items with magical properties. If nothing else, I have something that can find items of interest for me.

Winter 59, 947th Year of the Kings
It has a name! I was astonished this morning when I commanded it to fetch me some items using it’s newly discovered power of telekinesis. “My name is Q’lyth!” it said – and it’s voice actually projected a hint of petulance! While this creature shows promise, I do hope it doesn’t develop will and intent outside of service to its Master! I would hate to have to punish it or destroy it.

Sadly, I am afraid I may have to lower my hopes for one of my best pupils, Toby. He had shown such promise up till now. He had even expressed an interest in helping to train the creature… Q’lyth, I guess I use its name. In the past ten-day, though, Toby has shown severe regression in his studies and abilities. It happens sometimes – one will reach a crucial point in their training and then they cannot progress. Still, his absent-mindedness is worrying and I am troubled to find that he might have been stealing from my components!

Spring 2, 947th Year of the Kings
Q’lyth has eliminated several assassins with a power that I had not known it possessed! These assassins had come in the guise of merchants with items that I had been seeking for some time. Q’lyth, who has become my most invaluable servant and student, warned me that they were not who they seemed to be. It seemed to expect me to also have this knowledge of our guests, although I did hide my surprise from it. Once the assassins made their move, one of Q’lyth’s eyes projected a power that caused the assassins to die a horrible death, screaming as their insides melted. Once again, I hid my surprise.

After Q’lyth went to his classes to train the apprentices, I researched what power it had used. Death magic is not for the lower class mages and this ray ability is something that I must understand. It occurs to me that Fyce’s writings had hinted at such things but not spelled them out. I’m curious why he was not as thorough of documenting the eye familiar as he was with his other spells.

Spring 39, 947th Year of the Kings
Q’lyth has charmed my students! I happened to cast a dispel enchantment in the area that Toby was standing and much to my surprise, he came out of the spell! Apparently, Q’lyth has had him under its power since mid-Winter. What I had thought was a limit to my student’s power was actually a sign that he’d be bespelled! Toby told me that Q’lyth has also systematically charmed my other students. It has been studying my most powerful books while I am away or asleep, having easily broken through my various enchantments and charms I had placed on them to keep apprentices out.

He does not know what Q’lyth’s plans are, but apparently this creature has reached a point where it feels that it does not owe me any allegiance. No wonder it has been willing to train the students – it’s creating its own school from within mine!

Spring 43, 947th Year of the Kings
Q’lyth has found out that I know of it’s charming ability. It’s response? “You cannot stop me, Askari. I know of your powers. You now know of mine. Together, we can do great and terrible things, not as Master and slave, but as equals.”

It then attempted to charm me! I was able to easily resist, but the sheer arrogance and malice of this monster within my own school is astonishing!

I am unsure of what to make of its offer. On one hand, Q’lyth shows amazing abilities and understanding of arcane matters. On the other hand, how can I trust it? I feel trapped within my own tower!

Summer 8, 947th Year of Kings
I am writing this last entry and then hiding this journal. Master Kelix and his thrice-damned riddles! If only he’d been clear in his warnings to me of these creatures. Q’lyth has become a tyrant! I see now it  never considered me an equal, only a means for it to reach power. Since late spring, it has tried almost daily to overcome my defenses and dominate me. It has openly usurped my position as Master to my students. One poor student resisted and its eye stalks cast a spell, turning the poor girl into a statue!

I fear that I have unleashed a monster onto the lands that I cannot control and may not be able to remove.  I no longer have my wands or staff, Q’lyth has remove their power from a force projected from it’s main eye. It has taken many of my spell books and has had the students rewrite them, destroying the originals! I am studying the few books I have managed to keep hidden in hopes of finding spells to kill it.

I hear many footsteps on the stairs of the tower. I fear that this might be the final confrontation; it has brought my students to betray me.

If you find this, do not cast the “The Familiar of the Eye” spell! For it will only bring forth not a servant, but an Eye Tyrant!

The Journal of Brother Calandro – Entry 1

1st Entry – I will attempt here to record details of my travels, in the hopes that will be of some use to whoever may find this. If recent events are any indication, the party that I’ve aligned myself with will continue to uncover evidence of supernatural evil and Chaos, and if I and the others should meet an untimely end the knowledge may be valuable to anyone after that may also be trying to rid the world of these evils and make it a better place. My only request is that the finder of this eventually return it to the monastery of my Order, the Brotherhood of the Night.

Morning came with a bit of surprise today for Obroam and me, the sight of the rest of our travelling companions shuffling over to greet us, obviously hungover, bruised and battered, and naked as the day they were born.

After taking a moment to recover from this vision (we may never truly recover), we sprung into action, first securing whatever clothes we could get our hands on (Obroam and I chipped in some gold to help but mostly what we found was ill-fitting). Mort offered to go on au naturel, insisting that his own fur was enough of a covering, but I think it’s for the best that he wound up back in actual clothing.

It turns out our companions had left the inn the night before looking for more advanced revelry after our recent victories (I was celebrating in the manner of my Order, with a good bottle of wine). They had wound up at a rough local establishment which we returned to and learned some disturbing news from a poor fellow with very few teeth left in his head… that they had been attacked and robbed from a group that had splintered off from the Woodstalkers but had also kept that name. And through more digging we learned that they may have gone to make base in some very old, dangerous ruins in the area. If only that were the only disturbing news that we were to discover this day!

While checking in at the church on the poor prisoner we had freed from imprisonment & torture, Hazam (whom we also learned was a friend of the local loremaster, Blind Pete), Mila confided in us that she’d seen the head priest Adran acting suspiciously. Inspecting his room, we discovered a box under his bed that was emanating intense warning feelings towards Obroam’s senses as a paladin. I determined that it was trapped with a poison needle, so we wound up taking Mort’s suggestion of opening it with blunt objects rather than toying with the lock.

Inside was an unholy symbol that could only be used in the worship of an evil deity of Chaos.

And so, we now have a new priority: we must hunt down Adran and confront him over this. We were able to convince the local authorities of the need, and the plan is for Obroam and I to go and visit Blind Pete to learn what more we can of this object, while the others complete a mission of their own, and then we give chase to what appears to be a priest that has fallen to the sway of evil. May the Night look kindly upon us!

Obroam’s Journal – 1st Day of Winter, 59AD Cont’d – Page 3

With the enemy on the back heel, we pushed on, attempting to smash through the door. Not an easy endeavor as it was quite study and things were being piled against it.. Before we could breach the door however, the two leaders appeared upon the balcony, wearing plate and bearing unnatural weapons. The robed figured used a smoking implement to summon the thing we feared most in this campaign, the wraith. Saying a prayer to Tangadorin, I left the door to my fellows and went to interpose myself between the unholy abomination and my friends.

As the party worked the door, and unwholesome aura and wailing grew closer until i saw it. Like a thing dredged up from nightmares, part skeletal and part unnatural blackish green energy, a ghostly vestige of a damned soul.  Margo and I readied flasks of holy water and tossed them upon the creature as it approached. This did little to detour it as it reached out with is hand in an attempt to violate me with its touch. But Tangadorin Protects!!! His holy all seeing light shined before me and staved off the creatures boney claws.  Quickly following this Egill was able to turn the undead monstrosity, sending it back to the building it oozed from. 

Turning my attention back to the main building, a skirmish was taking place at the entrance between the last defenders of the dark ones and my team mates. Short work was made of these two and the final push was upon us as the leaders of this group of villains came down the stairs. Unbeknownst to me, Pickles had detained them up stairs for several minutes by jamming a door, buying us the time we needed to turn the dead and defeat the defenders.

With nothing left but them, we advanced to finish this terrible mess. Blows were traded back and forth, their plate armor making it quite difficult to land a decisive blow and even allowing their head priest to push past us and out the door. The necromancer used his magics to puppeteer our priest Egill, having him move in the way of our attacks and defend him, but it was for not as my blade stuck as true as Tangadorins light pierces all darkness, laying him low.

Now we give chase to the last member of this dark coven, he shall not escape justice!

Norry’s Journal – Winter 59AD

I have been wandering these passageways for hours.  There was no way I could even climb back up that wet muddy slide that lead me down here.  The hole in the earth I chose to explore decided to swallow me up. I had no idea it would be slick with mud.  

I have been keeping to the shadows and trying to stay out of site of the strange creatures that prowl these caverns.  I saw several and it is just now occurring me to start keeping track. The next one I see I will make better notes. In the meantime I need to find a way out as its almost dinner time.

What luck! There is a city down here!  Where there is a city there is most likely a pub. The city is strange with buildings with impossible doors and windows.  I will scribble a sketch before I move on. Although, I don’t smell any cookfires I was able to hear some conversations in a language I recognize.  I have spotted a group I hope they are friendly.  

I have a new friend!  He is called an Illum and looks like a walking mushroom!  The people I met are friendly but they already put me to work in inviting more interesting creatures to dinner.  I hope they have enough for all of us. A couple quick sketches and I am off!

The people who live in the city have no eyes!  Well they do but they are healed over. They like to sing in the deep low humm.  They don’t say much else. Illium said they are all form the creator. They didn’t want to come to dinner but they are going to help us in our travels.  They gathered together to sing to a rock and it somehow activated a teleporter.  

WOW!  Our friends transported us to another location in the caves.  The ilium are fighting with some other creatures that are not letting them grow.  It sounds like one of those silly border dispute the tallfolk are always on about.   It makes me sad that its even like that this far underground.  

We fought some of these multi legged creatures and drove them off. We have some great warriors that took care of the situation.  They would bite and grab trying to call us away one by one. Horrible things! Our Cleric was able to talk to one of the beasts. We were very close to the matriarch of the whole…..nest? Who knows what to call these things?

After some more talk the group wants to go back and gather the Illium to back and fight the queen.  I think this is a good idea. Unfortunately, the way back is blocked from a cave in. We doubled back and when we did we spotted an old hidden door!  There could be such interesting things behind it. I want to jump in there and get it open. There are some more experienced in the party that are giving it a go.  WAIT! They are waving me over! I hope they let me try to get it open! Good think I brought my lucky crowbar! More later……

Obroam’s Journal – 1st Day of Winter, 59AD Cont’d

After regrouping, our company advanced upon the den of the Dark Ones with caution. Not knowing if they had more ambushers lying in wait. The abomination that was once Houden shambled to meet us, speaking in a hollow and unwholesome voice, asking us to join them and that we would only perish if we fought. I had his men give it a volley in response. The undead retreated into the building from our fire. With no other deterrent, we set up for the conflict.

We had the charmed orc commander open the doors, and then the fight was on. We gave the forces inside a volley before their clerics told them to advance, what followed was a bloody affair.  A hoard of goblins and a pair of orcs along with Houden, all undead, fell upon us. Blade cut, spears stabbed, blood and ichor ran freely, and people died. Though they knew the risks and their desire to to right by their friend, Houden’s men fell on by one. First Mitch, then Duncan, Larry, and Stew. Each brought down by the foul creatures and their relentless onslaught. Mal, though wounded is still alive and I will do my best to keep him that way, it will already be a sorrowful task to dig five graves tonight. Two of the Dark Ones were also slain in this melee, one being distracted by our Illusionist’s spell, rendering him ineffective for the fight. The Last of their ilk retreated inside and judging from the sounds has mustered a last stand of sorts.

Today shall be the last of this effort. Now is time for the final push, May Tangadorin’s all Seeing Light illuminate our path to victory.