#63 The Tobacconist's Shop Claremont's Clouds

Claremont

Five Years Ago…Claremont woke from his nap with a start; his cat Byrne startled by something had leapt from his lap, the cat’s claws providing the motivation for the half-elf to awaken.  Looking up from his chair, Claremont saw two walking elves and a strange, otherworldly looking young man standing in his tobacco shop.  The husband and wife walking elves Aemesthos and Selon Gioldallel were well known to Claremont, the young man he did not yet know. 

“We are sorry to violate the sanctity of your privacy old friend but we are on a mission of mercy and have come to request a great favor” explained Aemesthos.   His wife Selon continued, “The hunters already acquired his parents, if he is discovered before he can develop his powers he’ll become a pawn between dragons.”  Claremont nodded understanding their request.   “How could I refuse those who spared me from the dungeon’s curse?”  

“Thank you friend, his name is Melderon and he was born to two wild elves, a wilder whose bloodline is obviously more exotic than elf.  We have of course trained him in several new tobacco preparations and have brought new strains for your garden..”

The Tiger and the Rook

The Inglenook is a large common-room style inn that appears like a stone keep to the casual observer. Something an elf would build, someone might say. An old sturdy structure, formerly a storehouse for food harvested from the nearby farmsteads near and around Swampland Thorpe before deliveries to the Granary at Five Tower Keep left with more frequency.

The Inglenook is geometrically impeccable with equal opposite sides, perfect curves, and regular angles as well as a checkerboard stone pattern about the floor. In the center of the open concept tap-room directly under a generous opening in the ceiling is a fire pit with a roasting spit comprised of small three foot tall soot covered iron knights who’s sword would behold wild boar over the fire for roasting along stew or whatever was shared among the patrons that day.

The Inglenook is a very popular location for the townies who are looking for a game of chess with the owner as well as with the seasonal farm hands who come to share in a warm meal and curl up in a dark nook to rest for another day in the fields.

The Inglenook has been owned and solely operated for years by one man everyone calls Rook, a very popular grizzled and scarred man with many-a-tale. Rook even claims to have been mauled by a tiger while on the Ancient Road; however in secret he is a branded adulterer and an exile from Dunlap Thorp. 

This attack was a watershed moment for Rook because in his fever dreams, as he slipped into and out of consciousness the tiger rose up and spoke to him. It spoke in a cultured tongue and told Rook where a cache of one of the lost Heroes of Rappan Athuk was located. The tiger-man told the man that from this day forward he was to be called Rook and to enrich himself and settle down at a specific warehouse in Swampland Thorpe. Later that year the man now known as Rook found the cache of wondrous magic, gems and riches and three months later acquired what is now known as Inglenook... blissfully unaware of the plot Rook was unwittingly taking part in.

---

Then one night...

Rook heard the footsteps of the messenger from Five Tower Keep fade into obscurity as he cinched up his belt. Slowly the slow and relaxed sound of John’s wife breathing returned to the dark room. Rook glanced from the message and back to the naked woman on his bed, her creamy curves highlighted in the bright moonlight.

“Ogres,” Rook said to himself soberingly.

He had heard of a horde moving throughout the night moving north east, John himself was one of the scouts that left to investigate the strange occurrence while sending his capable daughter Torvi to Five Tower Keep to warn them ahead of the possible threat. That left John’s wife all alone. This would have normally brought a smile to Rook’s face however this recent news warns of groups of ogre brutes looting at the rear of the convoy. 

It would be first light soon, he must warn the others. 

Five Tower Keep Session 1: 07/26/2018 Legion Company of Lowport

Begin: Ancient Eastern Africa near the Realm of King Kazzurog

Local Features: Lowport, Shabbad, and Rengard; the Coast Road and the paved Ancient Road, Five Tower Keep and Rappan Athuk, the City of Horcton (three days hard journey from there it was said would get you to RA), now Horcton is in ruin and with an overrun of a near by river caused most of Horcton to succumb to the swamps. Also nearby are the Ogre-fens.

Alaric Edgehill: Kind of like a magus with a mystical aura; Alaric is a human who fights with a long sword and buckler. A young adult traveler from Carthage who is indifferent toward the dragon kind and their establishment.  

Drake: A human from Dunlap Thorpe near Five Tower Keep. He fights with a lucern hammer and carries a machete and hates the jungle. Mauled by a tiger as a young age, he is very goal oriented and does not care for dragon kind.

Mesha: Abandoned by her birth parents Mesha is an aaismar who was raised by a fey woman named Heleen and raised at Golden Oaks Thorpe. Mesha was stricken lame when she was attacked by a vicious tiger at a young age. She is a sympathetic healer, is generally kind towards dragon kind, and has a first-world connection when it comes to religion.

Stoutwood Jax: Human who hails from Swampland Thorpe the most southern such community from Five Tower Keep that borders on the swamplands. Stoutwood is also indifferent to dragon kind, however he understands dragon kind serve a purpose but generally distrusts them.  

Melderon Wilder: An aaismar geomancer with ties to Deep Magic ley lines who was raised in Elfhome. Melderon is resentful to dragon kind; he met Inskipp through a half-elf tobacco finisher and pipermaker named Claremont.

Five Tower Keep is a large central tower surrounded by four smaller towers that stand over some 500 individuals that call the area their home. About a day’s journey from the keep are communities called Thorpes where folk who work the farms and fields call home: Dunlap, Swampland, and Golden Oaks.

Center Tower (also Old Keep #6) is the oldest building and still holds a museum of the razing of Rappan Athuk and venerates the destruction of Orcus. The (#10) south-west tower is called Tower of Fighters, most of us are familiar with this tower. The tower of Abbadar (#7) is a bank and a training hub for Five Tower experts but some refer to is as a thieves guild. (#5) Arcane tower is known to have only a single wizard and an apprentice. The fifth tower is known as the Granary (#8) is also the Temple of Aristil and warehouses the food stores.

Inskipp is our impatient handicapped commanding dwarf officer. He has dirty hair, intellectually quick and is seldom without an unlit cigar in his gob and -unusual for his race- Inskipp does not drink. He carries a short sword and a light crossbow and is an expert by profession.

Inskipp

We fight for the Legion Company of Lowport; a group who takes special assignments and supplements the existing armies against draconic actions and subterfuge.

Our characters know the jungle has never been officially mapped; some areas having never been explored.

We begin on a Tuesday when a girl named Torvi arrived ahead of the night with her dog. She has comes from Swampland Thorpe and with news of strange activities last night. On the second night of the full moon (last evening) the farms near Swampland Thorpe saw movement in the darkness of a large number of Horclings and orgres traveling throughout the night. Animals were upset and the direction seemed to be in the direction of Dunlap Thorp. East and north. About an hour before sunrise all movement seemed to be at an end. It was at that time her father went out to investigate and he sent her here to rely the troubling news.

Inskipp takes in the information gravely. The next morning a rider from Dunlap came into town reports much the same as Torvi did the night before. By noon, after consulting with others, Inskipp decides to send us into the field: to Dunlap ahead of this movement of orogs or Swampland to investigate there.

We decide to head to Golden Oaks trying to cut off the horde. When we arrive our news comes at a surprise to the half dozen farmers that come out to meet us. We have a small meal as we discuss options. We plan on heading out to within close range of the moving horde to see for ourselves. Eventually we find a tobacco drying shed where Mesha stakes out. Shortly after midnight orogs and Horclings begin to be seen traveling and heavily encumbered.

We ascertain five groups totaling about 30-35 individuals traveling with a noticeable lack of weapons heading in the direction of the road and perhaps beyond to the Ogre fens. We wait another hour, and see more large travelers, some beyond our range of vision at night. As they move we notice them harvest wild vegetation as they travel; their is a notable absence of animals or beasts of burden.

Eventually Mesha, Stoutwood and Drake approach a group of large travelers while Melderon and Alaric stay behind. Mesha eventually hails a group of Horclings, they stop and they hunker down and hauntingly repeat Mesha’s words of help. Seems they are limited in their grasp of the common language. Mesha approaches a woman Horcling and notices every one of the Horclings have a beaten look. The woman Horcling expresses they run from something/creature called Gyronna who has somehow commanded them to leave the swamps. The Horcling repeats the name often when asked further questions regarding their exodus. When asked to draw the enemy, the woman Horcling draws four stick figures in the ground. We learn the group are going north to the Fens and were taking pains to avoid human settlements. Before they leave, Mesha offers them her trail rations.

About an hour before dawn, their movement stops. We decide to return to Five Tower Keep and report back and arrive between 8 and 8:30, in time for a second messenger from Swampland Thorp with news of Orogs pillaging the surrounding areas. We eventually head to an old blind druid who has some information about the name of Gyronna. Gyronna is an ancient evil demon goddess known as the angry hag of hatred, extortion and spite.

After a brief respite our characters send a message to Swampland Thorpe about the attacks on the farms before our characters head south east perhaps just ahead of the rear aggressors. 

Malta Session 42: 07/12/2018 Into the Deep Vault, Defeat of the Occupiers, and Bugibba on the Mend

We catch up to our characters shortly after our first two encounters with Lete questioning Usage the cleric of Ahriman, god of lord of destruction and nihilism; about the location of Kakakombi, the enemy of Brudiphan, as well as the location of several other people of important from other cities. Meanwhile Lex uses a healing wand on the injured preparing us for the next battle. Usage continues by telling us the vaults are guarded by Bridiphan's guards and that he Usage, could be of use to us. He has no love for the occupiers. The cleric also tells our characters there is another in charge besides Brudiphan, and that individual is Rayit.

We start to formulate a plan: Lex indicates he wants to use the scroll Ta'Tabibu gave as the item he originally wanted from the vault, the name on the scroll is Shapash.

With Lex disguised as a Tengu he gains access to the Vaut and has a brief interaction with tengu who are practicing their disguises into Metas but before long Lex is discovered as an enemy and combat ensues.

Eventually, we dimension door into the inner vault and encounter a large soul ripping mirror in which Jabari and Lex fell victim. The remaining characters confront Rait and a new round of Shitans. Jabari and Lex and Usage were immediately feebleminded; Lete was then later murdered by physiological killer from Rayit.

After several gresum rounds Marco receives a name from Jabari’s bonded cloak- the name of the spirit and in his last words utters the name. This spirt was the crafter of the great soul ripping mirror, which at one time also belonged to an Egyptian pharaoh.

Rayit managed to escape, the spirit of the vault seemingly going after the woman.

Marco manages to survive and revives Carlo. Together they search around and find a mystical Rod of Vicious Ghosts that can and is used to travel to the mirror realm. Here Marco is able to retrieve the other characters, as well as the priestess Kakakombi, Hatkim, Bohenist, and unknown individuals we don’t immediately recognize as well as the real Rayit.

It is unknown what happened to the impostor Rayit, but eventually the spirit returns to the Rod; it is this Rod that Ta'Tabibu wanted. Eventually recognized as a citizen and bearer of the Rod and master of the mirror. 

By now the diversionary attack does reach us and Taboo is eventually given the Rod artifact. Meanwhile the battalion retrieves us and get us hastily out of Bugibba and onto the Bonded Mind.

Over the next week Bugibba would experience a transition back to the old ways- before the Babylonian occupiers. The city will arrange healing and the druids will arrive to heal and restore the characters. In the weeks that follow stories will spread across Malta and at the end of two weeks we are ready to disembark to Ghallis Rock and Ta' Fraben Island.

It should be noted that no recovered items were detailed nor was experience calculated from the Vault rescue.

Malta Session 41: 07/05/2018 A Secret Way Into Ripae 2, An Icy Reception, and These Are The Vaults You're Looking For

Under-Vaults

We catch up with our characters at the dinner-meeting with members of the battalion readying our plans for the assault on Ripae; it is when Unt'wory arrives, he comes with not just the promised darkvision potions for our characters; he also comes with a map from Ta’Tabibu himself: a map of the vaults. A layout of vaults seemingly over our characters first point of entry into Ripae when it all went sideways and all but Lex and Lete were captured.

We are set to put our plan into motion around 11 pm and when the diversion from the Battalion at last occurs... Jabari teleports our characters into Ripae.

Our characters arrive in a terribly cold passage, walls and egress covered in a thick layer of ice; we encounter three individuals guarding an entry. When they fall we recover magical rings and cloaks, a set of keys, 643 gp., 6 potions of CMW, and magical heavy maces. Also, among these three are three scrolls of dimension door and three fire ball scrolls. 

Before long Jabari and Evagara use the Dimension Door spells to take us beyond the iced over room to the under-vaults and what seems like a tengu hatchery. From here our characters decide to head to the next level and hopefully the vault we are looking for. Our characters eventually catches up with Bosen as well as some elves, a ratfolk, an infiltrator and interrogator as well as a cleric Usage.

When the battle was over the only surviving enemy was the Cleric Usage who we saved for questioning...