Second thoughts

Inasia had narrowed her choices down to three primary locations that she could count on Melandrach Olithir being with regularity.  She needed to pick one and prep the location yet was hesitant, for the first time in her career; she was wavering on whether she would fulfill the contract.  The Duke was dead, which meant she was probably smack dab in the middle of a coup d’état.  She could walk away of course; the problem with this was usually when one assassin says no or fails, another is sure to follow. Inasia’s issue was that she liked Duke Calias Bouvet and respected Melandrach.  The elven woman was looking over several bolts of cloth, her thoughts interrupted by The Seamstress, “Your patron suggested this fabric, saying it comes from Moshea..” Inasia accepted the cloth and left The Seamstresses anxious to find and decipher the communication within the cloth.

Kotri Steelreaver

This group of friends she had joined was as strange as her journeys through these "ways" had been. The elf, Rydin, was like no one she had ever met, elf or otherwise. His willingness to trust his friends, even newly acquainted friends just floored her. She had fought beside him and saw his will wash over the battlefield like a wave of continued chaos. But what she wouldn't ever forget was that once he took her hand to help hasten their escape, he never let go until they were both safely away. She had no idea how many years had passed since she last touched another person, and it wasn't until that touch that she believed what was happening was real.

She looked around their cavern lair the Giant had given them, her eyes lighting up a predators smile as they took in Dolgrin hard at work, as always. His was her second touch since she woke in these hells, and grasped it as eagerly as she clung to her hopes that this group of heroes could indeed lead her out.

Back to her patron, the elf, she studied his concentrated movements. They reminded her of martial exercises, and she marvelled that the complicated dance patterns could unleash spells at his direction in between devastating sweeps of his blade. Even as a dwarf she was impressed with size of the blade Rydin bore upon his enemies. He called it an elven cuved blade, and said it was the ancestral weapon of his people. Again, the dwarf felt a pull toward his ancestral pride, a pride that resonated within her.
She stood, staying wher she watched and drew her short sword. She began matching the movements of the elf, darting back and forth against a pretend opponent she envisioned flanked. She had made up her mind, and was all in with Rydin's offer of friendship. If he could lead her out of here, she would follow him any where. Especially if Dolgrin was there.

Barit Coinmail

Barit Coinmail

Barit Coinmail resented being volunteered into Ralikanthae’s elemental unit.  The Volcano dwarf was happy to help the people of Bouvet Keep that had done so much for his people but this alien foreigner was too much.  Since Commander Tramore had ceded his military authority over to the wizard anyone else with elemental talents had been conscripted into a new military unit whose sole duty is to battle the dangers of the Waterwall.  So far Barit had successfully avoided reporting to the new unit due to his clans religious two week seasonal holiday, Skyfire.  The dwarves of flame could only receive their visions from the flames during this two week period and Gargoyle Zarl was able to convince Ralikanthae of their possible importance.  Barit had even experienced a vision, at least he thought it was a vision, even if it did occur during a dream.  So far, none of Barit’s co-clergy saw any importance in the cleric’s dream of a burning stone that revealed sky. Bishop Meldstone assumed the dream arose from Barit’s desire to avoid his new duty and warned him at breakfast that he only had two days of worship remaining.

Barit could not shake the feeling that he had seen the stone in his dream and wished once again he could see the vision from his dream more clearly.  Needing to clear his head and focus his thoughts Barit headed for the shrine of flame in the Temple of War outside the Duke’s Castle. With the Duke away for a wedding the majority of politicians should be busy with whatever they do when they aren’t kissing up to or plotting against Duke Calias Bouvet.  “Hopefully Zaradinae would be working the royal hospice and have time on her hands.” Barit thought to himself as he crossed the skyhigh skyway from Hollow Mountain to Roc’s Nest. 

The particular section of the skyway Barit was travelling had twice been repaired by the dwarven engineers, the mountain paths having been damaged by the sundering and subsequent avalanches.  Barit approached a tunnel that had been created through such a collapse and wondered if his eyes were deceiving him, the floor and wall of the tunnel glowed in the darkness, an elemental fire filling up a five foot section of wall and floor.  Barit now knew where he had seen the stone in his dream, having passed through this tunnel many times before. Barit stepped into the tunnel approaching the burning stone. 

The dwarven cleric’s skin grew cold watching the stone being consumed by flame revealing starlight and sky behind the stone, where outside the tunnel was the bright sunshine of day.  Barit now certain his vision is true watches as shapes form in the starlight with several humanoids stepping through the fire, one clearly a dwarf of unquestionable faith.

Dolgrin

FAMOUS CITIES: Bouvet Keep Capitol City Bouvaldia

Bouvet Keep of  Macron Mountain-the capitol of Bouvaldia, the giant keep is carved from the remains of a dormant volcano that legends claim to have once been the home of the great Fire Giant Macron.  Supposedly the Fire Giant created the keep in payment toYsson Bouvet in exchange for his life after Ysson defeated the giant in combat.  The rest of the Evening Isles believes it more likely that the volcano dwarves that live in the region are a more probable sculptor of the gigantic keep.  The most impressive feature of Bovet Keep is the deep harbor that cuts into the mountain and guards the dukes navy.  Bouvet Keep is the most defensible city in all the Isle’s.  Never, has an invader felled the keeps mighty walls.  The city is reported to be 50,000 strong with another 5,000 people serving actively in the Bouvaldian Navy.

Famous Location:

The Water Wall-The wall ranges in height from 50 to 100 feet in a 40 mile radius some thousand feet from the northwestern coast of Bouvaldia.  The Wall blinds the vanguard position of the isles from seeing where they travel to while also threatening everywhere the Isles travel with a moving wave of destruction.  In the 1000 feet between the wall and the coast, monstrous waves fall off the wall battering the coast.  Occasionally, creatures known to be native to the elemental plane of water have passed through from the wall, creating unique threats for Bouvaldians to conquer.

Water Wall

Bouvet Keep, the living mountain, a nickname earned by the constant construction and expansion of the original keep.  In truth Bouvet Keep was a military base and port for one of the world’s most powerful navies. The stone walls of the Keep were one-hundred miles long and made of mountain. The volcano dwarves that survived the sundering of the isles turned from their sorrow by investing their engineering might towards the sculpting of the northernmost portion of the Macron mountains.  The Duke’s castle and the deep harbor the castle sits above make up the original Bouvet Keep.  The harbor, encircled by two mountains in an enlarged U, is never forgotten once seen, The two mountains are known as Day and Night by the foreign sailors for their unique abilities to enhance light due to their rich mineral deposits. During the day the mountains seem to absorb the light, providing warmth to the castle and preventing reflection and horizon blindness for sailors.  At night the minerals of the mountains glow a rich fluorescence, providing enough light to see and sail by, and so much beauty as to inspire the creation of the Bard’s College Northern Lights.

The Duke’s Castle has had many names through the years, being rebranded and rechristened through its variety of leaders..  In the lean times of recent years skeptical Bouvaldians refer to the castle as The Crows Nest, a reference to the lookout point on a ship but also a sarcastic criticism of a royal family without answers.  Perhaps not surprisingly local superstition connects crows to abnormally long lifespans, death , or as a supernatural creature serving as an otherworldly messenger.  The original castle sits atop the plateau of the mountain that makes up the original keep. 

The original structure beneath the castle has always been called the Roc’s Nest so named for the legendary monster that once laired upon this mountain.  The structure now served as the central headquarters for the Duke’s military and civilian apparatus.  The current commander of the Roc’s Nest is  Chief of Staff  Carvanatos Tramore. Commander Tramore is singularly recognized as the greatest administrator in all of Bouvaldia.  It was a designation that provided him appreciation from his superiors and derision from almost everyone else. The Chief of Staff ‘s greatest talent lay in recognizing talents and shortcomings in people and systems  then redirecting those two resources towards more efficient production.  It was this talent that allowed Carvanatos to accurately evaluate his own talents and shortcomings where he found his military acumen lacking.  Commander Tramore’s solution has been referred to by some of the upper crust of Bouvaldian military as the most selfless act of statesmanship in the history of Bouvaldia.  In a speech before the Counts and Warlords, Carvanatos Tramore nominated Ralikanthae the Sea Master Knight Protector of Bovet Keep, placing all of Commander Tramore’s considerable military power under the wizard’s control while he protects Bouvaldia from the Water Wall.  While some praised the decision, others were outraged and reacted by warning their young Duke against giving so much power to a wizard about whom so little was known.

Carvanatos Tramore

The expansion of Bovet Keep has spread through many miles, claiming seven individual mounts. Each Mount, is rechristened and provided a Warlord leader. Each Warlord gains a seat on the Duke’s council where they sit alongside all of the Counts that rule Bouvaldian lands.  The Mounts and Warlords numbers are also indicative of proximity to the Duke and original castle.  

 

Hollow Mount Bouvet Keep

1.      Hollow Mount: The first expansion is the nearly bereft of all ore from the years of mining.  The mount was strictly a mine during the earliest years of Bouvet Keep, only being converted into a three tiered mountain structure after all the minerals were freed from the mount.  After hollow mount each additional mount converted well before being stripped of all their resource, their three tiered structures mimicking Hollow Mount.  Regardless of mountain, all tiers are identified as 1^st Tier Near Earth, 2^nd Tier Sky High, and 3^rd Tier Cloudhome.  Accordingly citizens of Bouvet Keep would refer to each mount and Tier to identify location, “Hapius the Alchemist? He lives Near Earth Hollow Mount but works Sky High in the same.” Hollow Mount is ruled by the Elven Admiral of the Bouvaldian Navy, Melandrach Olithir.

Melandrach Olithir

      Praecipium Mountain, the most bountiful land in all of Bouvaldia, it provides half of all food for Bouvet Keep and its navy.  The entire mountain is designed to continually utilize everything produced upon it.  Those that are privileged enough to visit Praecipium all mention the swarm of movement and activity visible from great distances in the daylight, and the mountain lights at night.  Praecipium Mountain is ruled by Fumi Laumstaucher, famous not only as a Warlord but also a midwife, responsible for guiding many successful births in Bouvet Keep.  Other midwifes train under the Laumstaucher method.

Fumi Laumstaucher

      Downhill Mountain, normally just referred to as Downhill.  The shortest in stature of all the individual mountains, it was developed into animal husbandry, training, and processing.  The animals travel through life can be denoted by its location on the mountain.  Due to the animals Downhill is also the most odorous of all the Mounts and the term Downhill or Downhiller an insult to all but those who live there.  Downhill Mountain is ruled by Verasqueue Wolair a ranger of impressive skill, if few words.

Verasqueue Wolair

4.      Mount Artis: Crafter’s mountain, the bottom near earth tier serves Bouvet Keep with its ship making and repairs.  The two higher tiers of Artis provide a shared environment for all the craftsmen of Bouvet Keep to work in concert and limit waste.  Since the sundering, great effort has gone towards finding ways to use and reuse or repurpose. Mount Artis is ruled by Javier Kipps, a Halfling knife fighter of such skill that locals claims no armor can stop his blade.

Javier Kipps

5.      Mount Carcerem: The people of Bouvet Keep incorrectly believe this to be the world’s largest prison. Despite this mistaken belief the prison is quite large and bulging near capacity with foreign prisoners. Near Earth Carcerem is reserved for the families of prisoners who were accepted into Bouvaldian military service to fulfill their criminal sentence.  Families that live in this lower region have to put up with constant surveillance and searches but are otherwise unharmed and are well provided for. Mount Carcerem operates under the leadership of the half-elf Epnitious Snoot, a man who identifies himself not as a warden but as a linguist. 

Epnitious Snoot

6.      Embassy Mountain: The Sundered dwarves finally claimed a home and seat at the Duke’s table.  The dwarves identified this mountain as being rich in resource and soon began converting it into a new home for the Volcano Dwarves. Since the conversion, Embassy Mountain has provided a steady new source of silver, iron, copper, and cold stones. Gargoyle Zarl is the Warlord of Embassy Mountain. 

Gargoyle Zarl

7. Stranger Peaks: The newest mount and most controversial, Stranger Peaks is named for those individuals who purchased citizenship from the crown and in return are provided Bouvaldian lands and titles.  While newly purchased citizenship will not require military duty, Stranger Peaks future generations will have to take part in mandatory military service.  The Duke ordered the creation of  the mount  and within a couple years a Warlord.  The most recent Warlord of Stranger Peaks was assassinated and the post has yet to be refilled. The murder of the Warlord is believed to arise from the inner turmoil of newly forming politics in Stranger Peaks. 

10/21/15 Virtues Session 23: Cave Dwellers

Larson

Commander Larson started at the crackling sound and violet flash of lightening; being a citizen of Bouvet Keep he and the loyal Duke’s men were intimately familiar with storms and with it lightening. Looking around several of his subordinates likewise were roused and anxiously moved about. Had the time finally come to die? None of them knew how long they had been in this shadowy realm, but under the aegis of Tenebris it seemed like eons. Many did not remember how they came to be here, but they all remembered the kind hearted Duke Calias. 

“Sir?” one of the sergeants, Odell Emmery, regarded Larson looking for instruction.   

“Everyone be still,” Larson advised quietly, Tenebris suffered no talk among his slaves and even removed the tongues of many to prove such a point. “We do not know what is going on.” But secretly in his heart Larson hoped beyond hope that salvation from this demi-plane of Hell, or wherever they were, was at hand.

Then a roar cut through the chamber where the fifty men, who knew only suffering, echoed threatening to drive them all insane. It was an attack for sure, but from what. Larson looked to his fellow loyal Duke’s soldiers and saw only black terror. Beyond their shadowy prison, elementals moved about answering the dragon’s call. Something more terrible than the dragon had come to claim this realm as its own.

Larson held his fear in check; he had too for his men if not his own sanity.

---

Our session begins after reuniting with both Rydin and Kotri after their brief separation from our whole. They too were allowed to rest and recover in the giant cave, Kotri and Dolgrin however become more 'acquainted'.

After a time Kimit sent Zaphir to retrieve us to ascend up the staircase of 1,000 steps to the giant eastern dwelling. As we travel we notice that many of the giants are of varied stock and do not seem to originate from the same world; even Kimit, we eventually learn, is from Golarian. Guard towers dot the rise, although sparsely manned they seem to protect mainly from airborne assaults.

Kimit’s giant dwelling was an image of peace, balance, and serenity with a water gardens and lush intricate bonsai trees, vines and shrubs. During our palaver Timit calls forth his herculean children who serve us as guests in return for our heroic deeds inhelping his kin against the denizens of Leng.

We explain our current mission through the ways to hopefully arrive to Bouvet Keep. He replies that such direct travel is near impossible without going through transitive planes and demi-planes and to further complicate such travel there is the element of time whereas all planes exist at all times and these planes reckon space-time differently. This is what defeats many travelers because of the underlying chaos pattern many don’t account for. Visualization is the key.

He speaks gravely of Tenebris and that even he avoids that being; a shade dragon and slaver who rules the demi-plane where we must travel. This dragon is relatively well known on the Evening Isles; word was there was a large bounty on the creature in Emmerdin Pac Napiay. They story of Tenebris was that the dragon was from Toril, traveled here from the many portals located in Myth Drannor to the Isles but was a victim of the vanquishing (the wish that banished evil dragons from the Evening Isles) during the sundering.

Dramen suggests a team-up but this would endanger Timit’s end game- residing on this demi-plane (where time runs in reverse) until the era of Macron arrives. Macron who was a master of the Ways in ancient times held a pact with the intelligent races to pool their resources to manipulate the Ways.

Meanwhile Dramen asks to meet Kimit’s most favored wizard and was immediately introduced to Kimit’s teenaged daughter Macroni. We gift her with the demi-plane spells we researched and created while in the Agis of Ages. This pleases Kimit and offers to shelter us for a week in the lower caves to ready ourselves for our next demi-plane jaunt.

Before we depart we exchange signet devices; Kimit’s being a tabard, a gesture as being 'friends of Kimit', a rare gift for our courage and virtue. He does eventually offer the services of his ranger Reack who agrees to lead us to Tenebris' plane but no further.

After the week Kimit takes us to a giant bell of iron decorated with strange symbols and ancient script and when the bell is struck Reack, the giant ranger, leads us through and to where Lapis instantly feels a closeness to transitive earth allowing him to guide us along as well.

Our first transitive demi-plane was a realm of floating landmasses populated by strange flightless avians who came upon us with a vengeance. We dispatch the vulture-like creatures and are able harvest plumage from four of the large creatures (20 spells/potion applications).

As we continue our dimensional traveling Kotri was able to fixate more on her concentration as we enter the sluggish shade plane. Reack takes his leave here and we also feel an entrance into a mythic realm as well as a connection to our hosts.

Battle was joined with the shade dragon and when we defeated him the elementals dissipate and transfer of dominion of this demi-plane is transferred to us. We also made contact with some of Tenebris’ slaves: 50 of Duke Calias Bouvet’s most trusted men from Bouvet Keep who were enslaved during the uprising of Count Keirkin. However these 50 men were restored when we arrived at our destination… in the past on the day Kyras, Syrendross, and Dolgrin was killed at the Count’s wedding.

This presented us with a plan quite naturally; we know who the Duke’s most trusted are, we just need to find them and present ourselves as kindred supporters.

We are awarded 9,600 xp enough for 8^th level. We pick up next session in Bouvet Keep at the DM’s discretion. 

Search and Rescue

Kotri Steelreaver was shaken awake, momentarily confused at the strangeness of her surroundings; she eyed her commander’s squire who had shaken her awake, assuring the young dwarf that she would report to her commander immediately.  The squire departed the dwarves’ extra dimensional space that provided the legion a safe resting place during the Melairkyn crusade.  Despite the guaranteed safety of the magical space Kotri could rarely achieve complete rest there and frequently suffered nightmares.  

City of Brass

Kotri quickly donned her leathers and stepped out of the space the dwarves called their “huts” into the immense heat of the burnt planes outside the City of Brass.  The City of Brass lay just inside the Elemental Plane of Fire along an area that bordered several other planes, riddled with portals and magical dangers. Commander Ikestone’s command tent was a two hundred yard jog from Kotri’s hut giving her enough time to wonder what item or items the commander would require her rescue team to recover.

Estasia

Estasia a beautiful Azer conjurer approached from the Commander’s tent just as Kotri saw the rest of her team nearby prepping their flying carpet, a reward from a local Efreet.  “Kotri, it’s horrible, the Commander and his personal guard have all been taken by Demons!” exclaimed the flaming woman. Kotri let her gaze wander past her Commander’s rumored lover to study the frenzied activities inside the tent where a dozen dwarves of varying ranks all above Kotri’s argued among themselves. Kotri realized that this wasn’t a recovery mission but an attempt at rescue.

Vanos Melair

As Kotri entered the tent she recognized the powerful voice of Vanos Melair order everyone silent before speaking, “Demons have not only come into our camp and stolen possessions nor simply slain but have taken ten of our number to serve as slaves to the debaucheries of the Abyss! I say thee Nay! We are prepared for this day and send our best to save them or end their suffering.” At Vanos’ words the dwarven leadership turned their worried gaze to Kotri and after a moment’s pause, Udall Melair began to explain, “Somehow the demons were able to attack them from within their huts…”

Udall Melair 

10/14/15 Virtues Session 22: Lone Survivor

Kotri Steelreaver

Kotri Steelreaver opened her eyes, aroused by a sound from her unknown slumber. The sound was like breaking glass but with a resonance that was vaguely familiar. Where had she heard that sound before? The moments stretched before her as she remembered where she had heard the tonal shattering; it was when she and her lost legion of Melairkyn dwarves were transported from Toril to the Abyss.

Above her and from the edge of a towering butte of earth several humanoid figures peered down at her and her fallen comrades. They were somber in their countenance, then she realized one was a dwarf!

“Hail and well met! Are you trapped here as well?” she shouted with a voice she hadn’t used in… years?

“Nay good dwarf, we are but travelers upon the Ways.” Came the reply from an elf in a dialect of the realms. Then she realized each of the travelers represented different races, there was even a drow elf.

After a few moments Kotri was in their presence. She felt calm for the first time since she was lost here in this broken wasteland. The elf Rydin Meirdarel spoke of a quest for virtue, something she had hoped for when she enlisted with her fellow Melairkyn, but now she realized that was just a means to an end and that all her choices had lead her here in the fellowship of this realms-elf who offered his leadership going forward.

---

Our session began after piercing the veil between Earth and the Ways with the sensation of falling. The fall seemed more than natural as if we were being throttled through a distorted aperture between realities. Dramen was able to concentrate slowing himself as it appeared we were falling toward a maw-like pit.

Coming to rest upon on a two dimensional dream-like reality we were attacked by strange creatures trapped here by their own demise. After defeating the creatures the environment shattered and we again fall upon a plateau and a broken volatile plane filled with eldritch storms; a wasteland. Below the plateau, fifty feet or so down, we see scores of dwarven corpses and a lone survivor a dwarf named Kotri Steelreaver.

After accepting her into our fellowship we were reminded that traveling the Ways comes at a cost because none of our extra dimensional items of magic worked, what other changes would our travels wrought?

Temporal storms gathered on the horizon prompting us to continue our course. We did not seem to tire and soon realized that time would pass differently as we passed through different areas of the Ways. Other planes reached out to the Ways tearing bits and pieces away creating an incongruence of realities.

We soon came to a narrowing and two paths that seemed to lead the same direction. Traveling further we come to fresh air and idyllic green canyons; we seemed fully rested and untapped as to our personal abilities.

Syrendross briefly communes with Shar and while his host personality was not personally familiar with this portion of the ways Syrendross was able to intuit that time ran backward here at four times the normal rate.

Denizens of Leng

We soon became aware of a battle joined by denizens of Leng and strange planar giants. We pondered whom to aid and soon discovered the denizens to be very evil and that the giants were here to vanquish them. We decide to aid the giants, but lost Rydin and Kotri to toothy-maw pit in the process. However knowing they were not dead we pressed the attack and defeated the denizens of Leng (some of the survivor’s plane-shifting away) and earned the trust of the giants.

We recovered what we could and introduce ourselves to the giants: Arkor, Zaphir, Goring and Pangzel. They explain their elder (named Kimit) could help us find our lost companions after they carry their injured comrades of which there were two.

After an hour of travel we are brought to a breach by which the giants were able to access this level of the Ways: a 300 foot waterfall. The fantastic waterfall would not prove to be such of a much for the giants but the enormous weight of the falls would surely crush the rest of us had not Dramen conjured a crystalline bridge for us to travel under and after another ten minutes we were again taxed for our passage in the Ways and ultimately exhausted.

On the other side we see a giant landscape of foothills, crags and peaks filled with oversized flora and fauna with a central mountain with a large eastern stylized castle upon its zenith. We travel for two hours observing the caste system of giants that numbered around a 100 to 150 species of giant folk. Food scented the air and as we were introduced, gifts of gratitude were bestowed upon us; after a time we were shown a small cave and given food and allowed to rest.

We are awarded 3,840 XP and pick up with a meeting with Kimit the elder before going after Rydin and Kotri.

(3) leather armor +1

(3) studded leather armor +1

Belt of Thunderous charging

Belt of teeth

Belt of dwarven kind

Coin and gems from the denizens of Leng yet to be determined

Welcome to The Ways

Tenebris

D'ziriak

The Lost

                                                               
 

09/30/15 Virtues Session 21: Piercing the Veil

“You killed my son, my only boy.” The corpse of Noel voiced through busted teeth, and rotting flesh pointing at Rydin with a crooked taloned finger.

Overhead the cackling mantical flapped his horrific wings as the cleric Chriay cursed, his silence defeated by the drow arcanist. The moon had retreated behind thick clouds as if hiding from the undead soul knight, the former Sheriff of Hillshade and Denosia the failed cohort.

Noticeably shaken Rydin took up his elven curved blade and silently vowed to destroy the cleric for this atrocity.

“Not so my lady, your son died valiantly defending the innocent.” Rydin answered more to himself that to the undead woman that came at him.

All around the magus his friends took up arms against the undead forms of their old friends as above in the night sky Syrendross took aim at the mantigal. This was the length their adversaries would go to hunt down and defeat the agents of Virtue. We must be wary of whom we befriend, Rydin thought as he surged with insight at the notion of a dwarven cohort.

---

The game session begins after a couple of weeks after our battle with the behir and the discovery of the Aegis of the Ages. In that time Dramen was successfully able to commune with his host Smendric to ensure that agents of Virtue would be tasked with transporting the invaluable treasures and knowledge to a more secure location. In the meantime Syrendross and Dramen commit this location to memory if teleportation was necessary in the future. Dolgrin and Rydin discovered together that while the elves used existing dimensions for travel it was the dwarves that anchored way-points to earth.

We were also able to create modernized versions of ancient forgotten magics as we all waited for members of the Order of the Lynx to arrive as guardians of the knowledge until such time as the Dragons of Virtue and or our hosts secure the Aegis.

On the morning of day ninety-six five knights of the Lynx, led by Echs, informs us that he was made aware of our situation and purpose as well as the value of the Aegis of the Ages. They have come prepared to stay up to a month if need be. Kyras warns them of some of the local dangers including the cottage over the cave, although they have heard of a ‘dark knight’ in this area before, as well as the Ogres Gerdo and Kerkenilin who serve the giant king. Although they did not seem to put much stock in what was likely another giant-come-lately who fancied himself Macron.

Noon we depart to the lower reaches, blasted volcanic regions, and foothills were we first encountered a flying scout that portended a battle ahead. Though Syrendross was able to startle what was known as a mantigal away, we soon encountered the main group tasked with hunting us down.

In the night we came upon a evil cleric and the mantigal who was accompanied by the dead and reanimated corpses of Sheriff Radolia, the widow Queylia, Ranger Denosia and his mother Noel. It was an emotional battle but one we were able to overcome. Using some of our gear lost when Syrendross, Kyras, and Dolgrin perished they tracked us down in an attempt to finish the job.

In the end we gathered our belongings and buried the dead- Dolgrin laying them to rest, and continued down the slopes to the Elemental Font. Two days after leaving Echs and the Order of the Lynx we see that the five score of dwarves at the Elemental Font was now also populated with some refugees seeking refuge from the chaos of the duchy.

 

Osera

We spend time with a dwarven spell-caster named Osera who sealed the font all those years ago and offered to remove her doings. She tells us that concentration and visualizations will help us get to where we want to go- Bouvet Keep. We will undoubtedly encounter several symbols that Kyras, via his host, will use to guide us but to be wary of sigils marking House Teppes that signify evil sympathizers could be present.

We discuss plans; Kyras holds to the notion to travel to Miar Moshea post-haste, but is persuaded that while a good idea it very well could be our next destination after we deal with Count Kierkin and his asshole brother the inquisitor Zaid Aclair. (DM Bovet Keep post imminent)

After a time the dwarves lead us to the Elemental Font whereby Osera unseals the Ways calling upon pacts with elemental lords as Dramen watches enwrapped with curiosity. Once completed the ground trembles creating a stone staircase leading down beneath the Font. As we pierce the elemental veil reality is spun like a vortex as we enter the Ways.

We are awarded 2,000 xp and will begin next session traversing the ancient Ways. 

09/23/15 Virtues Session 20: Aegis of the Ages

“Look Gerdo a drow,” Kerkenilin said to his slow-witted companion. The two ogres were busy gathering tribute for their giant leader but were soon distracted by the sounds of mortal combat.

“Do you think the giant king wants a drowie elf?” bumbled Gerdo speaking aloud earning a club against the side of his prodigious head.

“No you fool, the drow are sly creatures if we side with him then maybe we can bring King Macron word of an alliance as well as treasure for the giant.” Kerkenilin said over the sounds of battle beyond.

Although the two ogres had not entered the chamber beyond, the clamor of the fray reached their dull ears nonetheless.

“Appliance?”

“Friendship you fool, now take up your weapon dumb-ass and let's help the drow.”

---

Our session begins in the chaos of combat against the Behirs and the advanced troglodytes; the battle was well fought and when the smoke cleared we proved victorious earning our third mythic tier.

We discovered a fossilized dragon (regarded as the Sage Dragon) in the chamber that lead down to what we learned was the Aegis of Ages, a repository of knowledge for the evil faction of the Eye before the Dawning. Arcane runes and sigils lined the walls of the fossil as well as the spinal steps that lead to the heartstone. Dragon heartstones come from evil dragons while elemental fonts are from virtuous dragons.

During our descent each of us felt an awakening connection to our Avatars, similar to dying as some of us have already experienced. During this time Kyras is filled with the knowledge that the entirety of the Evening Isles itself falls under his protectorate, that all the isles are his druidic domain.

We are naturally overwhelmed with all these works and going through the repository to understand the Ways will necessitate time. This world was at first a pocket dimension and that some of these works were aimed to prepare this plane for the Abyss or Hell. This dark influence of that time naturally attracted creatures through the Ways, sometimes monsters and at other times Portal People. It was soon realized that whoever controls this information could most greatly affect the rules that govern the magical that encompass this world.

Both dragon factions are looking for this place; the dragons of sin, to likely propel this world to the lower planes while the dragons of virtue would see the coming of a monotheistic Creator.

We discussed spending two weeks to a month here, but a month was likely too long as we would like to prevent the coronation of the Count as the new Duke at Bouvet Keep.

We recover 50,000 gp each in treasure as well as two potions of each level first through third mythic level as well as 4,200 exp.

 

Some of the gear not spoken for:

Amulet of mighty fists +1

(2) Belt of giant strength +2

(3) Cloak of resistance +1

Monks robe

Rod of cancellation

Staff of Tricks

Robe of arcane heritage

Studded leather +3
Drow hand crossbow +2 (w. 6 command undead bolts +1)
Wand of bears endurance (6 charges)

Cloak of Fangs
Ring of Swarming Stabbs
Ring of Jumping

Masterwork chain shirt