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Post by Dungeon Master on Dec 2, 2014 17:20:51 GMT -5
Encounter 1 It’s been 17 days since the Salty Lass departed from the Lanun sea haven of Aylesbury. The route taken didn’t bring them too close to other shipping traffic as they plotted the quickest route possible. Another reason they didn’t encounter any other ships could be that there aren’t many brave enough to trade with the Doviello. Some may have wondered about how the barrels of bananas would fare over the long voyage, but the further north they went the lower the temperature dropped, and the cold preserved the cargo. The mood of the crew has became bored of late as the voyage took its toll. They are currently content, but have yet to see the riches Captain Dagfin promised them at the end of their last voyage. There boredom, however, ended today as land was sighted, when Howard up in the crow’s nest shouted “Land, ho!” What little is known of the Doviello has become the talk of the crew, with rumors swirling. Some say they are backwards barbarians copulating with animals. Some say they’re already so bestial that they can turn into animals. Some say they’re cannibals. All are quite curious to see the truth of the matter. There was no port to be seen. After a couple of hours sailing along the coast, there was no harbor. The map clearly shows there’s should be a town near here called Ildelver, however, after close inspection of the map it turns out that the town is not quite on the coast. The Doviello must call it a port city because its the closest one to shore. Looks like this delivery had to be continued on land. Luckily, that strange dwarf they shanghaied left a mule and cart aboard the ship. The heroes haul one barrel of their cargo a couple of miles inland, through tundra and wilderness. Going through a particularly icy canyon, the icicles suddenly came alive - Frostlings hiding and waiting for easy prey. After a difficult time of putting down the elusive critters, they later crossed paths with a traveller by name of Dumannios, a man with a small but rugged framed dressed in furs and a helmet. It turned out he was heading in the same direction, and Quimby offered him a ride. Dumanios identified himself as a priest of winter, having once lead the largest of illian tribes, he was defeated by Auric Ulvin, who he said is Mulcarn reborn. Dumannios was charged by his risen god to alleviate his shame by spreading the word of the new god of winter. He wasn’t much of talker, but answered all of Quimby’s questions.
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Post by Dungeon Master on Dec 2, 2014 17:33:24 GMT -5
Encounter 2
It was late in the afternoon when the Doviello village came into view. It sits atop an easily defensible hill and surrounded by woods. Smoke could be seen rising from the chimneys of many longhouses. A multi-story lodge sits at the hills highest point. As the heroes walked through town the women gathered up their children from the streets, and headed inside. The few merchants stalls closed up shop. In the distance the clash of metal could be heard echoing in the wind. In the village center, tall and muscular warriors fight with such intensity they seemed to have forgotten they’re practicing. A few of the injured sit to the sides tending to their own various wounds as best they can. An old man wearing heavy furs and a helmet made of bone sits in a wooden throne beside the fighting ring, he is missing his left hand. Most of the warriors stop what they’re doing when you come into view. A few grab their weapons. One barechested hulking brute steps forward. He holds a battleaxe over his broad shoulders and says, “I love it when the prey wanders into the wolf’s lair.”
He introduced himself as Ulfgrad, leader of the tribe. Ulfgrad was aggressive and taunted the heroes mercilessly. When the heroes brought up their trade goods, Ulgrad said, “I did not make this deal. You speak of my father, who wishes to trade our labor for comforts that breed weakness. I made no such deal, and I will not make deals with prey.” They asked what happened to Ulfgrad's father, he replied, “My father, that old fool, I have beaten him in single combat and claimed the right of leadership by combat. I rule now.”
Dumannios stepped in. “I am not with these men foreign to winter’s soil. I bear a message from Auric Ulvin, the king of the Illians, Mulcarn reborn, and the new god of winter. The time is at hand for you to reclaim your former glory. All the tribes of winter flock to his banner. Join Lord Auric and earn your share of the glory to come. Witness the power of winter.” The priest raised his hands, and frostlings scamper out from between the buildings and surround him in a circle.
Ulfgrad said, “My forbears swore allegiance to Mulcarn. They were little more than his dogs. My father had us worshipping Kilmorph, to toil for out meat. Under my rule the wolves will return to their true nature. We serve none but ourselves. When we want something we take it. When we see weakness we crush it. When we wish to fight we find something to kill, and I feel like fighting. Kill them all.”
The heroes were then chased by 30 Doviello warriors through the woods. It was a desperate struggle, but they managed to lose the wolf pack and head to a poor village in a neighboring valley. Instead of well crafted longhouses this village was made up of mostly earthen huts. No one was outside. No smoke can be seen coming from fireplaces in any of the buildings. An older hunter with short white hair is not too far off bowhunting for small game. He looked like he’d been giving a beating recently. “You look like you’re running from something. Be careful. Wolves love to chase their prey.” He then goes back to hunting. His name was Olgrad, and when the heroes pressed him further he told them his tale. "Long ago a wise chieftain led their pack. Then he died and his bloodthirsty son took over. He was a foolish man, starting feuds with other tribes for ‘honor’ and ‘glory’. All he really did was get his warriors killed. Then Olgrad challenged him, won in personal combat, and took his right hand. Instead of killing a helpless opponent, he saw no honor in it, he banished him. Apparently his youngest and last surviving son, foolhardy as well, has been in contact with the exile. He twisted my son’s mind, turning him against me. He even got him to disparage his honor by challenging me for leadership, and the exile rules through Ulfgrad. The others who live here are the elderly who stood with Olgrad. He agrees to trade the stock of furs of their tribe if his son can be defeated, without killing him, and the exile dispatched. He knows of only one that can help them accomplish such a task. There is a hag in the mountains. Olgrad asked the heroes to go to her and ask for her to undo the exiles magic over his son. He would go himself, but she would not bargain with him.
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Post by Dungeon Master on Dec 28, 2014 19:24:23 GMT -5
Encounter 3
The heroes climb the mountain and at its peak found the cave. They warily entered expecting the worst, but found a beautiful women sitting by a fire. She offered them a deal: retrieve the particular corpse from an ancient barrow, intact, and she would lift the curse on the old chief's son. They set off after Howard attempted some awkward flirting.
It wasn't hard to find, as the 'hag' gave them clear directions to follow. Upon entry they noticed the room was warm, too warm. Hundreds of skulls gazed coldly back at them, set in niches in the walls in a checkerboard pattern. Flickering flames danced behind the eyes of each skull, as if someone had taken the time to light hundreds of candles. It made the shadows seem to move. Two reliefs of giant skulls dominated the the western wall, carved from the stone. No light shone from them. Below it was an ancient script carved into the wall, which the heroes identified as old Patrian:
Here lie the heroes of the War of Succession. They liberated us from the tyranny of the evil mages, and lead us through the first generation of the Age of Ice. May their rest be warm. Beware to those who would disturb this holy place, for Bhall protects it.
Howard investigated the skulls closely, discovering there were no candles in the skulls but candle-sized flames floating inside them. Dull red gems peaked through the stone behind the skulls, spread sporadically about the wall. Only fire mana could cause such phenomena. This place was a vein of raw mana crystals. Howard foolishly tried to pry a skull from the wall in an attempt to get at the mana deposit, but the skulls were enchanted from exposure to the mana. Gouts of flame shot forth, giving Howard severe burns.
The Captain decided it was time to continue the exploration. In the next room they discovered what was once a beautiful shrine to Bhall. Finely carved stone pews before an exquisite statue depicted a most attractive woman, larger than life. However, someone defaced the work of art. Part of the sculpture’s face had been knocked off, and the flaming sword she wielded was broken in half. Knicks were found all over her flowing robes. On the woman’s breasts were crudely carved symbols of Camulos, god of chaos and war. They were glyphs of warding and were triggered when Quimby read inspected them, resulting in his being hexed. Finding nothing of value nor the object of their quest, they delved deeper.
A short passage led to a mostly bare room with a large stone table, most likely where corpses rested while prepared for burial. It looked like the place had been lived in recently. In the center of the room sat a makeshift fire pit, equipped with a pot and a spit. The corner had some makeshift bedding, mostly blankets and straw, and crude markings on the wall. The markings seem to be a bunch of check marks, a calendar.
On the other side of a doorway was a hall. A door at its other end and one at its middle. On the left side of the hall, niches were set into the wall within which stood clay urns. One was been shattered, and its contents spilled onto its shelf and the floor. Amid the ash it held were blackened chunks of something that might be bone. The middle door bore writing in the same language at the entrance:
Here lies Saint-General Marcus Stratus Decimus. His passion for our lady was only matched by his passion for battle. Pray he finds peace.
The heavy stone door was locked and wouldn’t budge. The locking mechanism was an inset gap shaped to match an odd shape. Differing recessed layers in the gap made this no ordinary lock. Not quite sure how to get in, the heroes moved on to the end of the hallway.
The room the found was a tomb. Stone sarcophagi were placed in private alcoves, each carved with the visage of a warrior lying in state. Flickering lights dance through the miniscule gap between each lid and sarcophagus. The carvings on the wall were magnificent, a symphony in stonework -- but given the themes represented, it might be better described as a requiem. Scenes of death, both violent and peaceful, appeared on every wall.
The heroes opened the closest sarcophagus, ready for anything. A zombie set on fire rose up and attacked. After suffering several burns they were able to dispatch the monster, but when it was destroyed the creature exploded. Howard was severely hurt, and lay dying. The explosion triggered the other sarcophagi to open and more pyre zombies to come forth. The rest of the heroes backed away, hoping the zombies would attack them instead of the easy prey lying unconscious. Their gamble failed, and the zombies began feeding on Howard and tore him apart. Making sure to stay far enough away from the zombies so that when they died the resulting explosions wouldn't reach them, the heroes used their range weapons to take down the threat. Sadly, it was too late to do anything for Howard.
Inside each sarcophagus they found a polished red crystal with a faint glow to it. Each crystal was shaped into a hand-sized disc, with each depicting a different symbol, a snowflake, a skull, a shield, and a dragon. The heroes figured out that one of these was the key to the generals chamber, and rightly guessed the dragon symbol was the correct key, avoiding the magical fire trap and opening the general's tomb.
A rusted portcullis stood just beyond the door. Looking into the room, the heroes saw a sarcophagus too large for any ordinary sized humanoid. The portcullis was welded shut. It took Quimby some time to force it open, but when he did they found four blackened skeletons dressed in aged clothing and rusting armor laid on the floor in against the walls. They seemed to be in poses of rest rather than violence. The first thing Quimby did was to take all the feet from the skeletons and run them back to the other tomb, locking them in a sarcophagi. Then they inspected the skeletons more closely. These were skeletons of dragonborn. Further investigation determined that the bodies were moved from where they died, and stripped of anything of value. The floor was covered in ash, and the ash had been disturbed. Quimby shed a tear for his fallen fellows, as the others went to collect the general from his place of rest.
The sarcophagus had more ancient patrian glyphs on it. Journey managed to piece it together and read the inscription. It read:
Most Devout of our lady, General Decimus the Bhall-Orc lies here entombed. He is risen.
However the inscription turned out to be an incantation which raised the general. Suddenly a fist punched through the stone lid of the sarcophagus. The general, was clearly devout to Bhall in life, as were his followers. During Bhall's fall from heaven, he and his followers were transformed into the savage races. Having been a large man in life, the general was transformed into an ogre. The skeletons tried to rise, but Quimby's quick thinking earlier kept them from being a threat. The heroes now faced a quandary. They needed to defeat the ogre zombie without destroying the corpse in order to fulfill their bargain with the hag. Using a variety of explosive spells, and hacking at the monster only when the needed to the heroes were able to fell the creature. They made sure to collect every piece of him.
A secret chamber contained what must have been the general’s most prized possessions: his personal armory. Rusty armor and weapon racks lined the walls. Most were unusable, and covered in rust. A variety of useful and ornately worked pieces were salvaged: five jewel encrusted daggers, maul, pike, great axe, gauntlets of ogre power, splint armor, and breastplate. In addition there is a chest containing 400 electrum pieces, 200 gold pieces, 5 platinum pieces.
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Post by Dungeon Master on Jan 4, 2015 18:55:24 GMT -5
Encounter 4
The heroes brought the general’s body to the hag. Most pleased, she fulfilled her end of the bargain and lead the heroes on a short trek into the Doviello’s village. They strode through to the training yard in the village center, all the warriors in their path stepped aside for her. When she reached the Ulfgrad she dispelled the curse upon him with a wave of her hand. The shaman used his magic to attack the hag with a large ball of fire, which she easily dispelled. Ulfgrad, free of the beguiling influence turned on the shama and decapitated him. His next act was to send for all the elders to return. After thanking the heroes, Quimby asked if the Doviello has seen any others of his kind, to which Ulfgrad responded he had seen a white creature like his self and mentioned he was travelling southeast to Amurite lands. The Captain was finally able to finish the trade with the Doviello, and depart for a fairer climate.
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