Session Date: 26th July, 2024
Attendees: Parallax (HW), Kangrog (JW)
Missing Members: Senko (BD)
The Crossing
Heading north from Rizden, do the party travel, heading to see Xenth on this endless quest for a mystery goblin we can barely remember.
We are traveling a day or so north, until we are past the river crossing where there will be a signed trail, that heads westward and up into the foothills of this spur of the mountains, to the Windy Vale, where Xenth’s tower has been marked on our map.
At the river, there are also three travelers on the far bank, some looking wet, as though they have recently crossed the river.
Upon recognizing Baelor (who had already recognized them) and his guard, the party rushed the ford, at the same time he was asking (see: screaming at) the armoured figure to “get them” as they had “followed me!”
At that, the Thassian rangers hiding under the Pass Without Trace spell, emerged from the trees and opened fire with crossbows.
Kangrog & Pallarax have to wade slowly across the river, after Kangrog tries to jump all sixty feet in one hopeful, yet mediocre dive.
Putting their respective abilities together including one demonic axe, they create a wall of steam, protecting them from fire (Providing Half Cover).
Unfortunately, the enemy cleric had cast Bless on the troops, and countered the effect.
Finally close enough, Pallarax drags Baelor’s guard into the river with Water Whip into the wall of steam, causing him to die screaming in the shallows as his face slowly boiled off.
Kangrog (too rage-filled to even notice the six or so arrows sticking from his chest) used the screaming guard as a launching pad, leaping at the Thassians with spears and splitting one in half and gaining Inspiration.
A frenetic brawl broke out. and Baelor scampered off on the horses. Kangrog chased the Cleric around the map, Pallarax chose to blow a man inside out by breathing lighting down his neck.
After the combat, the Party found another Cipher Book, this one fused shut by a lock, along with 9 gold.
The armour and weapons were left as they bore Thassian sigils on them.
The bodies were left where they fell, to feed the vultures, one assumes.
The Shrine
The next day, they travel the trail into the foothill’s of the Wardens, the surrounds changing from evergreen to a sparse and rocky vistas. By noon, you are on trails with sheer cliffs to one side, and sheer drop offs on the other, but the trail seems well travelled, and is comfortably wide that you can still walk two abreast without nearing either edge.
A couple merchants have passed you through the day, coming the other way from the valleys above, when asked, they mention there is no dangers ahead on the pass out of the ordinary, that the Baron and the Lady Sorceress keep the area well and safe from most harms.
In the early afternoon, they come across a small Shrine to Kithloth, Lady of Winds, in the side of the pass, that has a strange feeling to it, and under close inspection shows it has been corrupted, with the colours wrong, the symbol of the 4 lines of air was upside down.
An astral projection of a wind spirit is shown to Pallarax, as the cliffs shake and a single dark figure with long red hair blowing in the wind appears emerging from the back wall of the shrine.
She stands draped red in cloth hanging lifeless, staring at you, weeping rivers of blood. Long iron chains, wet with blood hold her wall, and she trashed against them weakly.
Once the source of the curse, a small blood sigil on the rear holding the ward in place is scratched off, she reappears and purges Slerikek from the valley
. As a thanks from the Lady of Wind, another astral presence flutters into your senses, projecting in front of you is many faintly glowing purple lines, fluttering about as if they are the wind itself.
The flicker and flutter for a moment before coming together to form the shape of you, in your monk robes of your home temple. You follow through a series of gestures, that when complete have your form shoot a burst of wind from it’s hands,
The symbols imprint in your mind, and Pallarax now has the Fist of Unbroken Air Monastic Tradition.
The Beholder Lair
Further on that day, as you pass through a small little valley filled with life,
you find first and odd scorch mark and a pile of ash on the ground.
Beyond it a small trail leads off, and as it curves away in the distance, there is fantastically realistic statues a Dwarf and Human, carved in a way to seem like they are running away in terror towards you.
Do you wish to explore the trail further, or continue on your way?
“Fuck that, no”
A wise choice for two level fours.
A visit from Horn
That night, as they setup camp, an unsuspecting gentleman in some fairly nice gear drops by to ask about the mountain of corpses back at the river crossing.
He reveals himself to be Captain Horn of the Nestorian Guard, but you’re pretty damn sure he’s NIS through and through.
He convinces them to sell them the Cipher for 200g, so he can take it back to Nestor for study and possible counter espionage operations as they had been struggling to crack the code the Thassians were talking in (like some random captain would know that).
He admits they were Thassians, and that bad times might be on the way.
Comments he will report in the Beholder’s lair, claiming to have gone inside for a ‘quick look’ on his way past.
A good session, well done all!