04/21/2022 Virtuous Age Session 6: Full moon on September 25th, Talking to the Hand, and Further Dungeon Crawling

We begin this session September 1^st, in the lower level of the Pelor mausoleum. We rest in the room
where we found the fallen elf and dwarf.

Zaigan and Kron take the bodies to the fire fields to dispose of them. On the way back Kron finds a trap door and a cellar. He drops a torch that is noticed by the others below. We find out the passages connect.

In the hall of shadows we see the forms coming back, it would take until nightfall for them to fully return.

Aevum Saxo takes first watch

Kron second watch of three hours.

Zaigan third watch of another three hours.

Eabrossi the last watch with Tena sitting out a watch shift for the night. During his watch he heard movement and a door closing somewhere in the dungeon. 

Continuing our delve after a complete rest we, once again come to the door at the end of the hall has a lock. Eabrossi uses the skeleton key and the door opens into a multidirectional hall filled with skeletons and a crawling hand with a ring on its ring finger. Each skull has a gemstone. The battle is arduous, both Zaigan and Kron fall several times.

After a search, the area yields 60 platinum and a ring of jumping worn by one of the crawling hands. Six masterwork longswords, breastplates, and heavy steel shields- each with sun-god symbols. We gather it for later transportation.

We move to a nearby altar with a body upon it. Two daggers pin a young gnome body to the altar, his eyelids removed as he was tortured. One of the daggers was a poisoned blade, the other dagger is simply masterwork.

Around a corner we enter a room with a treasure-hunter gnome sorcerer strung up horrifically with his blood everywhere. He had six CMW potions, divine scroll (remove curse, resist energy, and sanctify corpse) on a belt plus: a scroll with 4 arcane spell levels, a divine scroll with 6 spell levels, another scroll with 2 arcane spell levels, +1 breast plate (Kron), and a bull strength potion. 

We investigate a series of doors and run into a group of ghouls who seem to be presently feeding off a paralyzed human. There were sounds of sobbing nearby.

We destroy the ghouls and discover the human individual has ghoul fever and has been here a number of days. His mind is broken. 

Behind the door, in a small room has a locked chest with four words in reverse inscribed on it. Xagyg dna nosenra evil. Inside the chest: green ink, a quill, book of blank parchment on the cover it says: Gnihtyna is elbissop, woll of rouy smaerd. Some pages are missing. It all radiates divination magic. 

We take the contents of the chest but leave the chest behind to use as a container out of the way.

We explore a nearby chamber door blocked by a riddle. After giving an answer we find the gnome Gwelldar who reaches towards us with a broken messenger tube, collapsing before us.

My betrayal is complete even if my plan isn't. Now I wait, face hidden, for my next opportunity. 

How those children survived is a question that may well haunt me to the end of my days. Instead of lost and forgotten in carnage, they are aware of the danger and searching down the same road as the Jinnborn's parents. 

Could I be so lucky as to have the group of them suffer the same fate? I shall hope so but prepare myself and fellow conspirators for the eventuality that they do not. 

There shall be a new king despite these setbacks and I will suffer the loss of my homeland no longer. An active bloodline of a fallen king is not a fate a wise new king should suffer. Our research on that subject must continue. We must isolate the king until we are prepared to strike and use this time to end the Saxo bloodline

GM Note: There is a mark on the message to indicate that it was sent with redundancy, meaning at least three copies of the message was sent, in case anything happened to messengers.  This is frequently done when delivering into dangerous areas and increases cost.  

We break the session here and pick up next session with our 3^rd character level.

4/14/2022 Virtuous Age Session 5: At the East tower, Snakes by the Lake, and Shadow Zombies

East Tower

We begin this week’s session at the Marshal’s Tower, with Zaigan in a cell for everyone’s safety. Eabrossi notices the marshals keep two maps on the wall of the immediate area. One of them is a working chalk map. Next to that is a framed primary map. The chalk map notes where Marshals have been dispatched and for what purpose. 

The maps show four marshals tower (north, south, east & west), as well as who’s in charge and who is traveling amongst the towers. Zaigan determines the distance between the adjacent towers is 3 hours for a flyer- across directions is 6 hours. The map contains the tablelands as well as chalk marks for rift locations, but nothing detailed as flora typography has a tendency to change.

Abicore

When Zaigan sleeps, he experiences a sharp pain and flash of motion as he seems to be on a hunt. His vision comes to a large creature that other boars are feeding on. Beyond the feeding boars is a unknwon female elven form.

Eleven hours pass when one of the Marshals returns carrying another minotaur. The new arrival is a priest of a god of giants, a keeper of traditions and arbitrator. Abicore Kibruu immediately takes Zaigan’s condition seriously.

The minotaur uses a HEAL spell to purge Zaigan’s disease to ensure success. We tell them of our encounters with the wereboars and the undead. And riddle him with questions regarding the undead priests. He says the symbiology is the same on a old temple on the way to the rift. It too bears the old human symbol of a sun god.

Abicore also warns our group of the schism within the Luna clan and the trolls that we were told of at the Dome. We tell the priest of the note we found on the minotaur messenger that had Talbot’s name on it including how we believe the messenger was killed- by a sting barb. The equinox is month away September 25th. 

The priest indicates the Four Winds and Talbot may also be there. The Four Winds is the trade city for the Rift. The time of the equnox’s are major trade junctures.

Aevum orders the Marshal to retrieve the messenger’s body and take it to the King and show him the barbed sting wound. Abicore will excuse himself (via plane shift) after saying some holy words.

Not long after our group departs the Marshal’s Tower towards the temple Abicore Kibruu mentioned on the way to the Rift.

Kron of the Duskearth clan is somewhat at home in the Rift warn of the abundance of dew, quicksand and sulfuric waters because of the volcanic activity. He also cautions about migrating plant life here and swarms.

Tena

We arrive at a large pond where we are surprised by swarms of snakes. We are able to dispatch them but later we find a ogre that was fallen by a swarm. Kron searches the ogre and finds a poison ring, fine ogre boots and a large great club. The ogre has a tattoo of an ox on his back.

We continue to a noticeable field of quicksand and beyond that- the structure of Pelor we were told about. Here we are attacked by serpent fire elementals. Kron is able to defeat the foes.

We focus on the mausoleum of Pelor and are attacked by a flying acid-belching head. After defeating the undead we find old iconography and altar concealing a passage down.

We explore deeper and after a few turns we find a chamber with a fallen elf and a dwarf. Dead about a week to 10 days the elf has a tear in its throat and the dwarf a similar wound across his abdomen. They were lying close together.

Aevum notices a bloody smear that reveals something odd about a nearby wall. Eabrossi regards these two fallen as adventurers. Aevum detects magic and sees the elf has a potion (of identify traps) and the dwarf has a magic bone index finger key- both have gear of good quality. A rough map is recovered plus a 50 gp potion for each of us and antitoxins

Eabrossi searches the blood smear and find a secret passage that reveals a hall. On the walls along are dark figures and extends 30 feet to a door. Before we get to the door the dark silhouettes peel off the wall and attack us. They tax our resources before we destroy them all. We decide to rest before checking the door with the bone key. Hallway 4.

Zaigan realizes the finger key acts as a chime of opening but only for crypts and so forth.

4/07/2022 Virtuous Age Session 4: Abandoned Stonehouse Town on the Way to the Rift

When we begin, five days have passed. Most of us training and preparing for the road ahead. 

Kron gets a summons from King Saxo. When he arrives Notella Brightbody is there. Kron presents his blade to the king when requested, the king takes it and pronounces worthy as a legendary weapon. Notella states that will carry the hate for Kron and will retain a bane quality of the last thing it slew. (and likely a item with an ego) Kron promises the king to do his best.

Kron as he meets with King Saxo

One subject raised before the group, that before Sanguine’s death she was looking into the lore of the Reflecting Pools. Before the volcano there were two in areas that could have contained such magic, but they no longer exit. 

There is information that a gnome wizard named Gwelldar who is either old enough to remember when or is prehaps related to someone who knows more about the Reflecting Pools.

He lived in the Rift for around 40 years, and therefore someone may know him or knows what happened to him. He was a known companion of Eabrossi’s parents and was known for his liking of maps. (Collecting or making? Unknown)

Also heard about: city or cities to the east have made an offer to the king to pay mercenary fees for the Howlers. (immediate guess is the city of Nimbus) There is also some strife within the Luna clan, so while going to the Rift if we can find out anything about this strife in the Luna clan the thrown would be appreciative. We do learn of two merchants who have complained about attacks when traversing the area.

Eabrossi

We venture to the Rift- a 4 hour journey. Eventually we reach a mostly abandoned clan town after about an hour of travel. The town, called Stonehouse, at one time could have been 5,000 but now only holds 50 individuals. The first thing we see are Orox meandering about and some medium sized individuals. Some of us pick-up a strange whistling near abouts. We decide to pass through the town on our way to the Rift.

As we pass a well, Kron smells something and notices grotesque worms on the figure near the well. They were huecuva wearing tattered priestly vestments of a sun god. They were formerly human or aasimar. Beyond that, the town is empty of life being abandoned for about 5 years.

We proceed to a more congested part of Stonehouse to investigate further where we are set upon by boar-headed humanoids- wereboars! Eabrossi proved a life saver with an obscuring mist spell. We barely manage to kill two of them.

They had: 4 daggers and 50 gold. 

With much of our daily resources spent we decide to depart Stonehouse post haste. When we leave Kron (with an amazing perception roll) spies a low flying creature with a barbed tail, but we all have a feeling of being watched. 

Eabrossi finds a fallen minotaur body in the brush. How it died is unknown, Aevum recognizes him as a messenger with other side interests. His name was Carlo Heavenhearth of the Duskhearth clan. After investigating Kron notices a sting and immediately assumes the sting of an imp.

In the hand is a message token from the Blacktar clan. Eabrossi reads: Neutralize Talbot Autumn Equinox. (Written in giant) Talbot of the Wolf Clan is the leader of the Luna Clan. 

After a short rest we continue to the Rift. We encounter normal foot traffic along the way with the Tableland tribes.

Closer to the Rift, 3 winged minotaur marshals approach and hail us. They warn us about trolls near the entrance to the Rift, alarming because there are 8 to maybe 12 moving together. They warn us of undead minotaurs as well. They approach and offer aid obviously recognizing Aevum and Zaigan.

The marshals indicate Zaigan is infected with lycanthropy and offer to help. They fly Zaigan to a tower and put in a cage for the safety of everyone. The rest of us catch up with Aevum and Zaigan at the Marshal’s Tower. 

We begin next session at the marshal's tower. 

Family and Mentors

Harbeck Fabergé

Harbeck Fabergé: This Jinnborn artisan was a long-time friend of Eabrossi’s family, frequently turning the treasures they found into fine pieces of art that are believed to be valued all over the world.  A friendly and curious fellow, Harbeck is well known for his singular focus when working on his next great piece of art.  When tragedy struck Eabrossi’s parents, leaving Eabrossi an orphan, Harbeck took him in, expanding his education and appreciation for a variety of cultures, languages, and art forms.  Eabrossi’s parents passed away from a strange disease they contracted on one of their treasure hunts. Harbeck always carried a guilt from their deaths, wondering if his friends passed away due to his obsessions.  Harbeck is very close with Eabrossi, counseling and caring for him to this day.

Amaltena

Amaltena: Tena’s mother is the only parent she ever knew.  Whenever Tena asked her mother about her father, her reply was always, “he is in the clouds.”  During Tena’s childhood she imagined her father with the ancient giants of old, having taken to the skies and doing something important. Amaltena was always controversial from her faith in the old god Agamotto to her never taking a mate, Amaltena lived her own life and raised her daughter to question everything.  Amaltena was never prouder of her daughter then when her faithful call to Agamotto was answered and Tena's divine powers were realized.  The two frequently squabble but are quite close.  Amaltena now resides in the dome studying a variety of religions and indulging in her passion for unique foods and recipes.  

Bhishma: Zaigan’s wingless uncle raised his nephew from his fifth birthday until his recent death. Bhishma was bonded to Sanguine Saxo the wife of the king and the preeminent wizard of Mithras, training his young nephew to succeed him in The Order of the Staff.  Zaigan’s early memories revolve around the various games they would play together that were the building blocks for his samurai training.  Zaigan and his Uncle shared a common bond of being the promised first born sons from the Kuru Kingdom.  Zaigan would be the seventh and final generation of first born promised to serve as bonded samurai after the Kuru Kingdom was repelled by the army of giants now known as The Undefeated.  Upon Zaigan’s maturity their relationship suffered under the chafing of youth; student, and teacher.  In the final weeks of Bhishma’s life he was frequently agitated, sending and receiving messages from his far east homeland.  Zaigan’s last memory of his uncle is a good one, as he remembers his uncle taking Zaigan and Aevum fishing.

Bhishma

Notella Brightbody: The gentle minotaur giant Notella Brightbody rescued the ogreborn child Kron Longscar during a battle the Howlers were having with a strange group of ogres and trolls.  Kron was born on the battlefield to a fallen ogre woman.  Kron stole Notella’s heart when the minotaur found the ogre child being protected by three of the Howlers dire wolves, who despite not being domesticated, had been completely calmed by the baby ogre.  From that day forward, Notella and his wife Iaska raised the ogre child as their own teaching him the Duskhearth clan’s appreciation for the Rift.  While Kron always had an appreciation for battle, he never showed the cruelty so often associated with ogres. Both Notella and Kron share a love for ribald humor, food, and the great outdoors.

Notella Brightbody

3/31/2022 Virtuous Age Session 2: The Solarium and the Quasit

We begin dividing some of the recovered items from last session before we proceed down a short hall where we encounter more Doomsayers tieflings and a human half-plated guard leader type.

Recovered: 2 scrolls of cause fear, 6 darts that add 1 point of energy damage. Each had an ornate ‘eye’ key (2), and finally 4 CLW scrolls.

Further into the temple, Tena (Russ) discovers a large magical statue of Agamotto in a chamber that magically reveals the alignments of individuals passing the huge likeness of the deity.

Also recovered: heavy crossbow (Kron), heavy flail (Kron), half plate (recovered from here), 2 potions of CLW, and 5 gold. 4 scrolls of command, 4 sleep spells, 4 CLW scrolls, dead toad, 3 leather armor, 3 sickles and 12 darts.

Further on, our group continues down to a temple complex. We find a door matching the keys we recovered earlier standing just beyond a magical landing. Tena realizes there is a process to entering the temple: revealing our alignments and dawning robes. Doing the ritual process allows us into the next area. 

Beyond the ornate door: A cellarium with a yawning portal as well as another armed guard, doomsayer and Q’xetl a demon quasit- a creature very familiar to Tena. Finally, a duegar dwarf war priest.

In the end, after defeating the enemies, the followers of Agamotto see images in the portal after defeating the demon presence. This is a religious moment for everyone, but for followers of Agamotto this something special and brings a moment of commune with queries to the netherworld.

Q: Did Aevum’s mother Sanguine’s soul make it to the right resting place?

A: No.

Q'xetl

Q: Do we already know the name of the killer?

A: Yes.

Q: Is there a chance for Sanguine’s soul to get to the right place?

A: Yes.

Q: Is her killer a minotaur?

A: No.

Q: Was her murder religiously motivated?

A: No.

Q: Is the killer a member of the kingdom?

A: Yes.

Recovered from last battle: mwk greatsword, light crossbow 20 Bolts, potions of cure light wounds (2); Masterwork scale mail, Heavy Flail,Chain Mail, 2 Cure Light Wound Potions, 50gp

After our brush with the divine we are exhausted, and we decide to return to he grand dome. We are allowed to clean up before going before the king. He admits there are forces against him. Preparations toward this regard include finding ancient artifacts of the giants. It is known that the giants created a way for people of earth to interact with them. Lore regards them as reflecting pools that are known to transport individuals to the mystical giants in their castles.

The Dome City

Recently he has information leads to these reflecting pools. The King believes we can renew our connection to the cloud giants of old. This would give him the necessary clout to dissuade any usurpers. He asks that we quest for this hope for their future. He doesn’t know all the answers, but asks if we would look for these pools.  

We gain our 2nd character level, our respective class equipment kits and 1,000 gp to further equip ourselves.