Session 27: wherein Nate's old foes, Jakob's deceased master, and Posiccuit's guides join the team
Players (Characters)
Scott (Filthy Ike)
Jeremy (Flynn Flamm)
Tony (Brother Jakob)
Rachel (Lotus)
Tom (Nathaniel Graythorne)
DM: Catherine
As the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars sat in the Dancing Bear tavern, Lotus returned from a walk out in the woods, and said "Guys, I'm not high, I swear. But listen, you'll never believe what happened! I ran into the four woodling druids who helped me avenge Cheela! One of them told me 'It is time, Stormchild; Anor summons.'" Some of the party looked over at Nate, who insisted "I had nothing to do with this."
Lotus continued: "The druids told me that Semferia was once a barren waste--intended for battle, not for life. Then the god Anor came into the world, and sought to make it green. His first efforts were dashed against in the mighty battles, for a life is a fragile thing. Yet life is destined to succeed; no unmoving challenge can suppress its nature. Struggle is its nature, and in struggle it thrives. In those ancient battles, Anor sowed the seeds of all life that was to be, and in the end it was victorious.
The Order of the Inevitable Seed (where the woodling druids are from) is devoted to finishing the quest of Anor. It is said that one day the whole land will be a lush continent, and then Anor will ascend to his rightful place in the stars. For now, he makes his abode in the sacred grove on the eastern peninsula. They said it was too holy a place for them, but I was summoned there! It was awesome, a place surrounded by the wildest storms and trees and animals! The druids put their hands together, and took me to the edge of a thicket knit of trees, and then disappeared. The trees wouldn't let me pass until I proved my strength, and there were immense wolves that came after me, but they had no taste for fire. Then I was caught up in a cyclone and lifted up into it. Lightning and thunder kept striking, and I was like a spirit in the storm, and I knew what it was like to be a storm. I was one with the storm!" Nate again piped up "I swear, I haven't cast any spells on her!"
Lotus continued again: "This was way more awesome than your spells. I knew how the winds and rain thought, and I knew the spirit of the storm -- I knew what drove it. I knew its purpose. I knew what it wanted. And all of a sudden, I was standing in a quiet grove next to an immense evergreen, and Anor talked to me. He said 'Well done. I name you the Master of Storms. Return to me when I call, and we shall wash away the shadow.' Then a soft breeze blew over me, and I was standing in the forest outside Ghern, still dripping wet."
A while later, Thameor showed up and started talking with Nate. Soon, the conversation turned to the oracle given to Jakob. At the words "if then the shadow holds the key", Thameor piped up -- "I know what key that is! It's the key to Kirani! It must be! Ten years ago, the prince was passing over the unlit pass, and the key was stolen! Normally this would be no big deal, as the moon spirit within the key simply reforms it in the hands of its master, even if it's destroyed... but whoever took it is very powerful, and has somehow kept the key and the spirit imprisoned. If our great city can again be reached, we may be able to win this dark war. Jakob must return the key!"
Shortly thereafter, Minellin joined the impromptu meeting. He congratulated NMR on their recent work in gaining the Ghern as allies, and Thameor on possibly solving the riddle. He also shared that the armies of Westlay, Waecleft, Tindell, Ghern, the Ivani, and others were gathering in the burned forest to make their stand against Mitzram, and that with the help of the elves of Kirani, they might even stand a chance. He also shared that the party would be sent to Mitzram's capital in two days, and that the tree sap was a highly effective cure for the Thirsting.
As Nate went outside, he saw smoke signals coming from the north. "It looks like the frost giants are having their yearly competitions. I'd love to go beat them all at gambling one last time. And I bet they don't like deserts any more than we do, so if we can get their attention by winning a few of their contests, maybe we can convince them to fight alongside us." The party agreed, and Nate teleported the party to the gate by the frosty mountain. A guard piped up "what you doing here?" Nate responded "I'm here to beat everyone at Seven Skulls and take their money." "You think you can play Seven Skulls?" "Yeah, when I was in your army 155 years ago when you lost the war so badly, I used to beat everyone. Unless the game has changed since then, I'll win." "Game is the same. OK, go ahead, I'm sure someone will be able to use you as slave." "If they survive being disintegrated, perhaps." With that, the party headed up the mountain.
First up was the mammoth-slaying competition. As a mammoth entered the arena, the first giant competitor started throwing rocks at it, and after cornering it, pounded it with a mace. The crowd cheered his decent time of 84 seconds. Other competitors did similarly, though none approached the ages-old record of 28 seconds. Soon, it was Jakob's turn, and he stepped into the arena with Flynn cheering him on. The gate opened and the mammoth crossed the line, starting the timer... and Jakob's pouncing charge, flurry of blows, and mind-shock fist killed it in just under six seconds! The frost giant crowd went wild with excitement! Ike was up next, and with Flynn cheering him on, prepared a shot with Fox's Bite. As the mammoth entered the arena, Ike loosed his arrow and landed a nearly-perfect shot, slaying the mammoth before the clock operator could react. Frost giants were on their feet cheering for the new mammoth-slaying champion. Lotus asked "are we going to be eating mammoth jerky, like, forever?"
Up next was the arena wrestling competition, and Jakob and three giants squared off. One giant attempted to push Jakob out of the center section, but couldn't get a hand on the quickly-moving half-ogre. Another pair of giants pushed on each other, and one slid across the line, being declared "out". Jakob grabbed his opponent and, with a comet throw, sent him 25 feet beyond the "out" line and into the arena fence. The remaining giant found himself in the same predicament -- he couldn't manage to grab Jakob, and Jakob easily tossed him just a few feet short of the other. Nate led the giants in a cheer of "N-M-R! N-M-R! N-M-R!" as Jakob did celebratory backflips.
Finally, Nate played his way into the championship round of Seven Skulls. Though he struggled to lift the massive wooden dice, he was quite capable of reading his opponent's intentions and bluffing, or not bluffing, his way to big wins. During the game, Jakob chatted with the giants who had been so impressed with him, talking about the desert people from the south coming to turn lakes into desert. Soon, word spread in the crowd that the foreigners were just as upset about the new desert to the southwest as the giants were.
At the awards ceremony, Jakob was granted a large golden belt with the logo for the "Wrestling in the Tundra Foundation". Ike was told that, normally, the mammoth-slayer got a mammoth trophy, but since he was an archer, he'd be given gloves taken from an archer they'd killed long ago: Fox's Poise. Nate piped up "I remember that battle. I killed 3 giants by making them fall off a cliff chasing an illusion." "Yeah, good times. Lots of killing. You clever little guy." With that, the giant presented Nate with a large silver twelve-sided die that he could barely lift into his bag. Then Nate addressed the crowd: "giants of Smerdon, we have come a long way, not just to participate in these contests, but to warn you of a great threat. Jackal-headed jerks from the south are coming to turn your lands into a desert, just like they did to the lake southwest of here. A hundred and fifty-five years ago, your enemies fell before you one by one until they united and drove you back. Now, we will all fall one by one before the desert creatures unless you unite with us to drive them back. And they will turn your beautiful frozen wasteland into a horrible hot wasteland!" The king spoke: "we hate deserts, but I'm not sure about fighting these weird creatures." Nate, remembering what motivated the giants in the past, called back "they don't wear armor. They're really squishy and fun to kill." The giants sent scouts to look at the desert-ized lake, and when they reported back that Nate had told the truth, hundreds of giant warriors began their march to meet with the rest of the armies of the north. In the mean time, Lotus asked if the giants wanted more snow. After her superstorm buried the area, they said "OK, that enough!" Lotus made a sad face and asked "don't you want more?"
A few days later, the party met Minellin at the teleportation circle in the eastern forest. The plan was to take some casks of poisoned, fake sap to be distributed in Mitzram (an effective way to take out already sick marruspawn), steal or destroy magic items from an important factory, and scout out a meeting of the Wastelords. Passing through the circle in Marruspawn disguise, the party placed the poisoned casks in a warehouse alongside a dwindling supply of useable sap. Then they moved toward the nearby magic item production area disguised as supervisors from the capital. Several tables were lined up neatly atop dry brush next to an oasis. Three powerful wizards and several subordinates created scrolls at the tables, and four burly guards stood over racks of weapons, armor, and various other items.
Lotus quietly began creating a heat wave, and Flynn switched the Rod of the Mongoose to one ear down to keep the sound of his lute from carrying. Ike positioned himself next to one of the biggest wizards while Jakob positioned himself next to another. As Flynn began playing, Ike released a nasty stench that (due to Nate's luck) drifted right into the nose of the nearby wizard, leaving him choking on fumes. Ike blasted another wizard with Fox's Bite, killing it. Jakob's Ancient Mountain Hammer left the final powerful wizard nearly dead. Lotus increased the wind and temperature all around the tables full of scrolls and dropped some arc lightning on the nearby guards, and Nate cast Otto's Irresistable Dance on the wizard next to Jakob. Jakob leaped toward the guards Lotus had just wounded, killing two of them with a flurry of blows. Flynn knocked over a table of scrolls into Lotus' superheated area. Ike moved away and took a precise shot at one of the two remaining guards, seriously maiming him. Lotus lit up her firestorm, killing the dancing wizard and leaving the nauseated wizard badly burned, and her arc lightning took out the guards. Nate disintegrated the final wizard, and the party started stuffing the shiniest magic items into bags of holding. As several marruspawn wizards approached to investigate the firestorm, Lotus turned the storm into a firebolt to melt the remaining treasure, and Nate teleported the group away. Among other treasures, the party recovered a luckblade, which was used to boost Lotus' wisdom. Flynn kept the blade and saved the final wish for later.
The party moved on to the next phase of their plan: kill a group of guards and replace them, infiltrating a meeting of the wastelords. As the guards made their scheduled meeting in a tiny outpost, Flynn played a loud note. Ike stood between a pair and released noxious fumes, but the guards had been eating chili earlier and hardly noticed. Ike also shot a guard. Jakob tossed one guard into another, Lotus drowned one, and Nate's Phantasmal killer made another die screaming. Ike's five arrows and a critical hit from Jakob killed two more guards, and Nate's Phantasmal Killer destroyed the last one. The party disguised themselves to look like these guards and went into the capital. Just before the meeting, the party exchanged all but one of their red coins for gold at a nearby marketplace; Nate held the final coin as a souvenier. This is what the party experienced at the temple:
To reach the temple of Senneth, you must walk past the bone-fields. Literally hundreds of captives are bound with leather cords and abandoned in the sand to die of thirst. The moans of the doomed mingle softly over the shards of scoured bone continually washed up by the sands. The quiet cruelty of the waste here reigns supreme.
Steps lead up through the mouth of a giant black snake; inside is a marble courtyard open to the air. A huge mosaic on the floor depicts Senneth's holy symbol: the black cobra and the words of fate. There are everywhere depictions of thirst and waste and death. Mosaics, illusions, even live-action drama--here and there around the temple, captive creatures are parched in most elaborate ways.
It is just after dark. The air that had been a blast furnace during the day suddenly drops to a bitter cold. The black marble floor is still quite warm underfoot. It shines under the full desert moon.
Marruspawn clerics and blackscale Yuan-Ti mingle around the edges of the courtyard, performing their minor duties and discussing fine points of dark theology. Toward the center, five marruspawn stand tall in robes, outlining an empty square. These are the guard you are here to releive. At their head stands a tall marruspawn in golden robes who is studiously bowed to by all the rest. Ashne, the head cleric. Seeing their replacements, the guards gladly leave, glad to be away from the dangerous creatures who are about to arrive.
The hour strikes, and the Waste Lords begin to arrive.
A black shadow creeps over the outer wall, nearly invisible in the dark. You can make out the form of a Yuan-Ti superabomination--her black skin writhes with embedded snakes, and her eyes glow yellow in the dark. Her body is covered with arcane tatoos and incomprehensible symbols. The air around her hums with quiet energy. With catlike grace, she leaps--or flies--from the wall and neatly flips twice in the air before landing adroitly in the center of the square.
Ashne intones: "Welcome Omenankh, Instrument of the Inevitable, high priest of Senneth".
The ground vibrates slightly under your feet as rumbling steps shake it. Above the edge of the steps appears the massive head of a jackal, with deeply feral eyes. As he rises over the steps, his ears brush the upper teeth of the snake--he's twenty-five feet tall if an inch, three times the size of the biggest marruspawn abomination you've ever seen. As he reaches the summit, he throws back his head and howls at the moon--and they can probably hear him in the icy north. A dozen of the nearest clerics immediately turn to salt, though one does not. With an approving laugh, the ebony creature thunders into the square.
Ashne intones: "Welcome Aol, Memory of the Ancients, Lost champion of the Marru."
In the distance you hear echoes of deep shouts and growls in some vile tongue, as though all of the abyss were having a party on an airship. The sky grows lighter to the south, and then suddenly over the wall arises the outline of a skeletal dragon surrounded by many winged creatures. A horde of demons begins to circle overhead, taunting all the stone serious folk below. Two massive Balor descend to perch on the wall, and the skeletal dragon descends before them. Then you see its rider--a dessicated woman in black armor, wreathed in flame. She raises a fist to the sky, and overhead the army falls silent. One by one they descend to perch on the southern wall. As she approaches, you recognize her face--it is Kelzun, but she has changed. Fully half her face is covered in demonflesh, and she sports a new pair of horns and wings. Last you met, her sheild bore the unholy symbol of Demogorgon; it now blisters with the rune for insanity. With an inferno blast, she dissapears from where she stands, and reincarnates in the center of the square.
Asnhe intones: "Welcome Kelzun, Queen of Corruption, Usurper and now Youngest of the Demon Lords."
Overhead, the air begins to stir. Sand kicks up in clouds, and soon the sandstorm blots out the stars overhead. It intensifies to a hurricane many feet above the ground, and all you can hear is the sound and fury of the storm. The sound alone shakes the ribcage, and even here on the ground, stinging grit bites your flesh. Some of the clerics--in the process of unfossilizing their bretheren--are interrupted in their task, and mutter low and dark curses. At the center, the storm finally coheres into a massive tornado, which snakes down towards the square. The wind is horriffic, and many of the clerics are thrown off their feet. The twister finally obscures the center of the square with sand, and then lifts again--revealing a man in long blue robes, with the head, wings, and horns of a blue dragon.
Ashne picks himself up and intones: "Welcome Shinsiri, Stormchief, Last of the sand emporers."
Overhead, there is the sound of many heavy wings, and looking up you see a flight of sand dragons. Fully eight collassal beasts beat the air with their wings, and at their head, a massive dragon with long-rotted flesh and holes in his wings. As they approach, you see that the dragons bear riders--marrutact wizards in golden robes, and surrounding their mounts are clouds of mist and forgetfulness. They land near the northern wall, and the air around each wizard crackles with intense energy. Their leader, a collossal dracolich, lands in the square in a blast of intense heat.
Ashne intones: "Welcome Oshirex, Spawn of the Void, Silent Chief of the Dark Secret Woven into the World."
The Waste Lords all arrange themselves around the outside of the square, and a few minutes of low chat ensue. As they make small talk about armies and torments, secrets and powers, it is clear they are all waiting for something. Suddenly, the warm marble is shot through with a deep chill, and each of the Waste Lords grows quickly silent. The stone seems to whisper and then to shriek, and overhead the stars slowly begin to wink out. The form of a black wraith flies over the moon before being joined by another and then another, and the sky is clouded with black. Slowly, like smoke arising from a smouldering fire, a giant black wraith mists up from the floor in the center of the square. His deep red eyes communicate unfathomable hunger. He nods briefly to acknowledge each Waste Lord in turn.
Ashne intones: "Welcome Vash, The Unlit Shadow, Lord of Death Under the Mountain, and Chief of the Waste Lords."
Vash nods his dismissal, and Ashne bows and leaves.
Vash: We are all here. Let us begin.
Oshirex briefly casts a spell, and the waste lords grow silent. Yet it is clear by their faces that they are holding converse, asking and answering questions.
Flynn subtly reaches his hand down and flips both ears up on the Rod of the Mongoose, and he begins eavesdropping on the conversation.
Aol: -- but four days' journey from the scorched fields, where it appears the northerners want to make their stand. They have drawn unlikely allies to themselves, but still Mizram has the upper hand. The battle promises to be long and bloody, but I see no other allies in the region which could further sway the tide.
Omenankh: Kirani may arise.
Vash: I have seen to it that it will not. I stole the key ten years ago, before the Forgotten People began to whisper about our threat, and it is safe in my wraithhold. I shall guard it personally until the end.
Omenankh: Kinari may yet arise.
Shinsiri: It is all one whether it does or not. Mizram may yet lose, and we still prevail; they are but one means to an end. The black sands now saturate the north; the time for total transformation has arrived.
Aol: Is the blood provided sufficient?
Shinsiri: It is. While the armies of the north look west, I can run unhindered throughout the east, and rain blood down upon the wild places. I have summoned one bloodstorm already, and the results are spectacular--the sands consume the plants like dry straw before fire, and the desert is made. Yesterday, I was able to fly two hundred miles, and left behind me a twenty-mile swath of new-made desert.
Kelzun: Then there are two roads to victory. Should Mizram win, we can bide our time while the empire destroys the tiny pockets of life throughout the land. Should they lose, the north is still weakened, and Shinsiri can rain bloodstorms down upon the land unhindered. Most can't survive in the kind of desert he'd summon anyway. We've come a long way since we relied on natural lakes.
Omenankh: The paths to victory are in fact three. After empire comes shadow.
Vash: And the shadow stands ready. My legions of wraiths beneath the mountain stand ready to wash over the land. Mizram may make an empire. The northerners may try to recover. It is all one; when the shadow arises, it shall scour all life from the land, Mizrami, Northerner, or any other.
Aol: You are deceived, my friend. The Marru shall come first.
Vash: Yes, you think we play the fool. Mizram thinks we are its fools, and I think Mizram is ours. But that battle is between powers greater than both you and I. I for one am content to play my assigned part and rule my promised empire; if the fates decree otherwise, I am content with that too.
Omenankh: It is inevitable. The shadow comes, and then the waste.
Vash: What your deity tells you is inevitable, and what he is actually able to bring about, are entirely different things.
Kelzun: Speaking of deities, has anyone accounted for Anor? He called a Master of Storms a week or so ago. I think he might be planning to undo the sands.
Shinsiri: That cannot happen! If he tries, we shall have to slay him!
Kelzun: Are you sure? Anor himself?
Shinsiri: You question what we have become? Immortality means immunity to old age, not death in combat. Anor is a god of storms and rest, and I know storms. I for one do not fear him.
Kelzun: Your funeral. But I expect you're right. We cannot lose the sands.
Vash: Then we are decided. Shinsiri shall scorch the east, while Aol watches the west. If Mizram wins, that is for the best; they shall do much of our work for us. If they lose, I shall swarm forth with the shadow legion and destroy what remains. And if Anor begins to summon a storm, we must all stop what we are doing and bend our effort to destroy him.
Oshirex: It is said. It is done.
One by one, the Waste Lords disappear into the night with their respective armies. The Mizram clerics carry on, reverently oblivious to their callous allies, and the desert moon shines down on the cold marble mosaic. Before departing, Ike steps across Senneth's symbol at the center of the temple, leaving a vile stench behind.
The party returned to Lonely Sparrow to report the news to Minellin, who replied "This is grave news, indeed... yet there is a glimmer of hope. If Jakob can return the key, then perhaps not all is lost. With Kirani, we may yet withstand Mitzram's assault, and perhaps Anor will be able to withstand the Waste Lords. It seems our only hope is for Jakob to complete his quest. And I have recieved word, Brother Jonathan is at Jade Feather. Jakob, you should speak to him." The party went to Jade Feather the next morning, and Jonathan spoke:
"Brother Jakob! I have wanted to meet you; Brother Michael spoke of you often. He was so very proud of you.
"When Father Lawrence sent to me, I refused to tell where to go until I could look you in the face. You have to understand, this quest is impossible--it is futility and suicide. Vash is invincible, and his wraiths are legion. Michael could not possibly have gotten the key out, and you are not even a master yet.
"He sent for me because he had been told he needed one of my black daggers to prevail. I don't use them much; they're little last-ditch rods for getting out of forcecages and the like. He apparently needed to get *into* one.
"We met on the unlit pass, and he led me to a rough hole in the mountain. I volunteered to follow him in, and for days we kept company under the mountains. We were continually beset by wraiths and spellthieves. It took many days to explore the tunnels, but at last he found what he sought: the wriathold of Vash.
"It was a massive chamber under the mountain--a full a mile wide, and nearly half as tall. The walls were bored through with nightcrawler holes, and looked like swiss cheese. All manner of abominations crawled over the ground, but the wraiths were the key thing--thousands of them swarmed in the air, constantly going to and from their dark lord.
"My heart sank, but Brother Michael was intent. 'After all, I am bid to defy fear.' He crept along the roof of the chamber, spider-walking to the apex, and then let go. I watched him fall those many feet to the floor. With the dagger outstretched, he piered the force wall, and entered the anti-magic field surrounding the table holding the key. Picking it up, he wrapped it carefully in a cloth, and then turned to look.
"Vash had come, and the wraiths were thick. With one nod, the fields of force were gone, and the wraiths pressed closer. With a second, the anti-magic field was dismissed, and Michael was swarmed. He could not get out, and so he took a mighty leap at the wraithlord himself.
"I shall never forget what I saw: One black hand reached out and touched him, and then he was no more. That's it--no struggle, no nothing. Just oblivion.
"I cannot understand why the oracle would lay such a burden on the shoulders of Brother Michael. It is an impossible task. I hope you do not take it up."
Jakob replied: "I have no choice. I must return the key." With that, Brother Jonathan handed Jakob one of his special daggers and retired.
As the party reached the beginning of the caves, with little indication as to where exactly to find Vash's chamber, a voice intoned "return the key." It was Brother Michael, or rather, his ghost. "Seek the wraith", he said, materializing and leading the way into a nearby tunnel. Over the next hour, Michael's ghost appeared time and time again to show the way toward Vash's chamber. Soon, a nightcrawler appeared, biting at Jakob but missing the surprisingly agile half-ogre. Flynn began singing and Ike fired five force arrows. Jakob's flurry tore the nightcrawler's flesh in several places. Nate and Lotus both tried to help, but their spells weren't powerful enough. A pack of dread wraiths emerged from the floor, with one attacking Ike and another attacking Nate, who both resisted the withering touch of the wraiths. Michael materialized and tossed one wraith through a nearby wall. The nightcrawler again bit at Jakob, and Jakob again deftly avoided its angry maw. Flynn cast Haste, and Ike's six arrows brought the nightcrawler down. Jakob stepped between the two remaining dread wraiths and pounded one into oblivion while hitting the other with a defensive rebuke. Nate's telekinesis was ineffective, but Lotus' cure spell caused significant harm. The wraith couldn't manage to hit Jakob, and Ike finished the battle with a few more arrows.
When the party finally reached Vash's chamber, Lotus cast death ward on everyone and passed Jakob a crystal that would protect him from wraiths and the like. With haste and inspiration from Flynn, Jakob took off running, covering a half mile in about 40 seconds. As he grabbed the key, Vash and his wraiths swarmed around the wall of force. Vash boomed out "what are you doing with my key?" "Your key?" Jakob replied. Vash brought down the wall of force, and Jakob started running back toward the party. As Vash prepared a spell, Jakob broke the key in half, releasing the moon spirit to return to the elven prince. Vash's maddening whispers dropped Jakob into a stupor, and the wraiths swarmed on him, killing him. Moments later, he rose as a wraith.
As he passed into the ethereal world, he felt the hungers of the wraith at the edge of his consciousness, telling him to turn and consume the living. The soft voice of Vash urged his control. Yet some combination of legendary discipline and psionic training allowed Jakob to deny this for a time. The shrouds and forms of the material world passed away, and he saw things clearly. Vash, the giant wraith, now appeared as a middle-aged man with an arrogant smile; the black billows of his wraithly robes faded away to the material world, leaving only the mundane dress of an accomplished sorcerer. The ghost of Brother Michael looked solid, moving with restraint and grace over some imagined surface. Jakob's equipment laid in a heap on the floor, but he carried wraith copies of those items most dear. The once-tattered robe of Brother Michael that Jakob had worn for so long now appeared whole--if worn.
In the distance, the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars glowed with emotion, wishing to reach Jakob, slay his wraith, and revive him. In another direction, Brother Michael approached Vash from behind as his attention was fixed on dominating Jakob. This was a drill they'd run a hundred times together; Michael trips, Jakob tackles. Jakob flinched momentarily under the massive psychological itch, knowing he had but a few moments before the final descent into madness. He turned to face Vash.
Michael stepped forward and tripped the huge wraith. In the distance, a spell from Nate boomed out loudly "Tripped by a ghost! OWNED! You suck, Vash!" Jakob stepped forward and attacked the unarmored sorcerer-wraith, swinging with mightly blows (285 damage.) Vash responded with a beam of disintegration that missed Jakob, and another that hit Michael, but the ghost-monk's legendary concentration allowed him to shrug off most of the damage. For Michael, time seemed to stand still as he smashed his fists into Vash, and Jakob's searing, mind-shocking flurry (313 damage) slew the Lord of Wraiths.
With their master dead, the dread wraiths began spreading out, moving without purpose. Jakob began to lose control and move with them, but Michael stepped forward and slew him. The rest of the party still wished to reach him, but thousands of wraiths blocked the way. As they closed in, Lotus loosed a sunburst, and Nate teleported the group to the scorched forest.
Minellin soon found the party, greeting them with the news that Kirani had been reached and the elves were massing for battle, and showed them the battle plan. The Waste Lords had three ways to victory: Mitzram could win, Vash the shadow could overrun the land, or they could slay Anor. With Vash dead and the elven army joining the fight against Mitzram, the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars had but one task remaining: protect Anor. Fittingly, Lotus heard his call -- he planned to bring a storm to wash away the black sands, and she would be needed. Before the party headed out, Gindralin, prince of Kirani, approached with a silver paintbrush in his hand and said "I have held this for a hundred and fifty years, looking for the right time to use it. That time is now." He loosed the paintbrush, which began painting a celtic knot on the ground beneath the party.
Suddenly, the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars found themselves in a perfectly hemispherical room, a hundred feet high and a hundred feet in radius. The white roof and floor emitted soft, pleasant light, and no shadows were visible anywhere. A shrine to the north was covered in silver holy symbols of various greater and lesser gods -- Heironeous, Eholonna, Kord, Pelor, Corellon Larethian, and many others. The walls held various inscriptions, again in glowing silver runes: "For those who fight alongside us", "for those who cannot fight for themselves", "for those who have gone before", "for those who are yet to come", and so on. Concepts of unity, freedom, honor, and continuity dominated the messages. A large sign to the south (marked "D&Dbay") described various magical items and their costs, displaying a new group of items every so often, though it wasn't apparent exactly how often. Time flowed vaguely, seeming to both rush by and stand still.
At the center of the room was a large circular table. An image projected above the table showed a perfect map of the sacred grove and its environs. There were four empty comfortable-looking chairs around the southern end of the table. The six chairs to the north were variously occupied, ignored, illuminated, and overburdened by their respective inhabitants. One was a veritable castle of books, another a castle of kegs. A twitchy centaur was on his feet before the party finished entering the room. The ugliest elf they'd ever seen looked up from the magic item console--which he had been continuously refreshing--and seeing Lotus called out, "Hey, baby--wanna see my sword?"
The party, including Ghostly Jakob, reached level 17. The Rubble Rousers remained at level 27.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Friday, June 20, 2008
Session 26, 2008-06-20: Desperate Alliances
Session 26: wherein the Ghern become allies, and Nate's bluff fails
Players (Characters)
Scott (Filthy Ike)
Jeremy (Flynn Flamm)
Tony (Brother Jakob)
Rachel (Lotus)
Tom (Nathaniel Graythorne)
DM: Catherine
After the meeting, Joanna offered the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars 10,000 platinum pieces to help in the evacuation of Old Westlay. Dwarven miners had been working for weeks to get into the city by turning sand to rock and then carving tunnels, but the tunnels kept collapsing and killing the miners. Lotus procured a scroll of Mass Burrow, and the party headed into the most recently created tunnel. Nate used Ghost Sound to create fake rock-mining sounds partway through the tunnel as dwarven miners worked somewhat more quietly at the end. Suddenly, Lotus heard some creatures outside the tunnel, swimming through the sound. The miners ran for the exit while Lotus cast mass burrow, Flynn cast haste, and Nate created an image of dwarven miners still at work. As Flynn began to sing an inspiring song, two large holes appeared in the tunnel roof, and sand and tentacles poured through.
Jakob leaped forward and, with powerful attacks from searing fists, pummelled a crawling apocalypse. Ike, remembering how unpleasant his last encounter with such a beast was, used two arrows to slay Jakob's foe and three more to wound the other. Nate cast unluck to disrupt the second crawling apocalypse's attacks. Suddenly, a group of small scorpions with metal claws broke through the tunnel roof and started clawing ineffectively at the party. Jakob smashed one while Lotus turned three more into salt. Jakob then made a pouncing charge at the second crawling apocalypse, breaking off one of its tentacles. A single arrow from Ike finished it off, and the rest of his arrows killed the remaining scorpions, leaving one with a nasty sucking chest wound and another buried deep in the sand.
After a few minutes, sand stopped pouring into the tunnel, and the dwarves were able to turn what had flowed into stone for easier tunneling. With the help of a disintegrate from Nate, the group continued inbound toward Old Westlay. Soon, the miners had carved out a room just outside the door of Old Westlay, and three wizards arrived to help create teleportation circles. Lotus complained about being in a cave, so Nate cast an illusion to make the walls look like trees. Lotus was soon snapped back to reality by a sound outside -- again, something was swimming through the sand nearby. Flynn cast haste and began singing, Nate used veil to make Jakob look like a feeble wizard, and Jakob positioned himself near the source of the sound.
Suddenly, a sandformed dragon crashed its head through the wall, and sand flowed in. Jakob stood unmoved in the sand as the dragon-like construct bit at him, its teeth bouncing off of his magical defenses. Ike landed five solid arrow shots, but Jakob's fists were unable to connect, and Nate's disintegrate and Lotus' red tide were completely ineffective. Nate recalled studying spells to create sandformed creatures once, and told Jakob that if he could land a well-placed blow he could completely destroy the creature's structure. Flynn inspired Jakob to further greatness, making the sandformed beast's attacks miss wildly. Ike's arrows and Jakob's fists continued to chip away at the beast, and Lotus drained a large amount of its strength. Nate's second attempt to disintegrate the creature hardly scratched it. Flynn continued to inspire Jakob and Ike. The dragon now breathed a cone of sand into the room, dealing substantial though not deadly wounds to the wizards. Ike and Jakob again chipped away at its defenses (down 466 hp) while Nate missed with a disintegrate ray and Lotus' flamestrike was absorbed. The dragon couldn't manage to get a claw on Jakob, and after a series of arrows from Ike, Jakob finally landed the critical strike he'd been trying for (double 20's), smashing the sandformed dragon to pieces.
One of the dwarven miners sealed up the gap in the wall, and the wizards finished casting their teleportation circles. The signal was sent, and the people of Old Westlay began pouring out of the keep doors and into the teleportation circles. Soon, the city was evacuated and the citizens were on their way to the Iron Door, the dwarven city underground. As the party followed behind, Nate and Kerastrix exchanged information about Abel. Abel had been planning to have White Fields secede and fight on the side of Mitzram, but his support evaporated after Flynn's brilliant debate performance. Being selfish above all, and knowing that at this point he had nothing to offer Mitzram, Abel focused his energy on helping White Fields prepare for war.
Minellin briefed the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars on another plan. He wanted all available armies to gather in the enchanted forest, in order to bring the maximum force to bear against Mitzram. He even wanted to get Ghern involved -- spellsinks would be a great resource against a heavily magical army. Since Ghern respected raw strength rather than magic, they had willingly followed the marruspawn abomination who killed their previous king. A strong champion from Tindell had been chosen to challenge their marruspawn abomination leader: Jinle'a Graythorne. The Ninja Mongoose Rockstars needed to locate the abomination and get his escort to hold still for long enough to allow Jinle'a to challenge for succession.
The party took up a position on William's Hill and, disguised as sheep, kept watch over the city. From there, they could see a new desert to the north (created when the wastelords flipped a lake) and burned forest to the east. Lots of hobgoblins passed through the valley below. Soon, Lotus spotted a svaklor -- something like a yuan-ti dragon -- patrolling to the north. As it got within Ike's range, Flynn cast haste and began inspiring the archer. Ike took a shot at the svaklor, easily hitting at a quarter-mile distance. The svaklor summoned a pair of marruspawn who wielded large flaming swords and rode on crocosphynxes. Nate decided to keep the new defenders distracted by creating an illusion of several archers a few hundred feet out. Ike continued putting arrows into the svaklor, killing it before the marruspawn materialized, and then seriously wounding one of their mounts.
The marruspawn used dimension door to position themselves to engage Nate's illusion, and one realized his mistake. Nate used telekinesis to push him off of his mount and onto the ground far below, and Ike finished off the other crocosphynx, leaving both marruspawn on foot. The pair used another dimension door to get closer to the party. Nate used telekinesis to disarm one of the enemies (natural 20, for a net 59 disarm check.) Lotus cast arc lightning, and Flynn sang "you guys are so boned, so boned, you don't even know how boned you are." Jakob charged at one of the enemies and used comet throw to toss him into his ally, leaving both prone. He used his quicksilver boots to position himself behind both prone enemies, and they started to realize that these "sheep" were not what they appeared. Ike drew a brilliant energy arrow and fired it from Fox's Bite, right through the enemy's armor and into his heart (146 damage). The remaining marruspawn tried to flee, but Jakob kept him on the ground and knocked him out. Ike finished off the clueless crocosphynx while Nate probed the captured marruspawn's thoughts, getting details on the enemy camp within the desert.
An hour later, the marruspawn abomination and his Ghern escorts approached the valley. Nate sent the signal to his mother, and the party waited to ambush the all-melee group. As they reached the narrowest part of the valley, Flynn played a loud riff on his lute. Lotus cast red tide to knock over and nauseate several of the escorts, and Nate's great thunderclap stunned a pair. Jakob jumped into the middle of the escorts and pushed the abomination, but couldn't get it off its feet. Ike rained arrows all around the escorts and yelled "stay right where you are!" Jakob stepped back and took up a defensive posture, conjuring a psionic shield, and the marruspawn abomination bashed against it. Jinle'a approached as Flynn inspired her to greatness, and Nate yelled out a taunt: "you're about to get destroyed by my MOM! You SUCK!" Jinle'a challenged the marruspawn according to the Ghern tradition, and with Flynn's inspiration, easily crushed him. The hobgoblin guards stood and declared her high leader.
Nate stepped forward and said "hi, mom." Jinle'a responded "are you still gambling?" "No", Nate bluffed (45). Jinle'a glared and said "don't you lie to me, boy." "Sorry, ma'am." Jinle'a and the hobgoblins led the way back to Nate's childhood city, and he had an ale at the Dancing Bear tavern. He also sent word to his old friend Thameor to collect on the bet they'd made a hundred and fifty-five years earlier.
The party reached level 16.
Players (Characters)
Scott (Filthy Ike)
Jeremy (Flynn Flamm)
Tony (Brother Jakob)
Rachel (Lotus)
Tom (Nathaniel Graythorne)
DM: Catherine
After the meeting, Joanna offered the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars 10,000 platinum pieces to help in the evacuation of Old Westlay. Dwarven miners had been working for weeks to get into the city by turning sand to rock and then carving tunnels, but the tunnels kept collapsing and killing the miners. Lotus procured a scroll of Mass Burrow, and the party headed into the most recently created tunnel. Nate used Ghost Sound to create fake rock-mining sounds partway through the tunnel as dwarven miners worked somewhat more quietly at the end. Suddenly, Lotus heard some creatures outside the tunnel, swimming through the sound. The miners ran for the exit while Lotus cast mass burrow, Flynn cast haste, and Nate created an image of dwarven miners still at work. As Flynn began to sing an inspiring song, two large holes appeared in the tunnel roof, and sand and tentacles poured through.
Jakob leaped forward and, with powerful attacks from searing fists, pummelled a crawling apocalypse. Ike, remembering how unpleasant his last encounter with such a beast was, used two arrows to slay Jakob's foe and three more to wound the other. Nate cast unluck to disrupt the second crawling apocalypse's attacks. Suddenly, a group of small scorpions with metal claws broke through the tunnel roof and started clawing ineffectively at the party. Jakob smashed one while Lotus turned three more into salt. Jakob then made a pouncing charge at the second crawling apocalypse, breaking off one of its tentacles. A single arrow from Ike finished it off, and the rest of his arrows killed the remaining scorpions, leaving one with a nasty sucking chest wound and another buried deep in the sand.
After a few minutes, sand stopped pouring into the tunnel, and the dwarves were able to turn what had flowed into stone for easier tunneling. With the help of a disintegrate from Nate, the group continued inbound toward Old Westlay. Soon, the miners had carved out a room just outside the door of Old Westlay, and three wizards arrived to help create teleportation circles. Lotus complained about being in a cave, so Nate cast an illusion to make the walls look like trees. Lotus was soon snapped back to reality by a sound outside -- again, something was swimming through the sand nearby. Flynn cast haste and began singing, Nate used veil to make Jakob look like a feeble wizard, and Jakob positioned himself near the source of the sound.
Suddenly, a sandformed dragon crashed its head through the wall, and sand flowed in. Jakob stood unmoved in the sand as the dragon-like construct bit at him, its teeth bouncing off of his magical defenses. Ike landed five solid arrow shots, but Jakob's fists were unable to connect, and Nate's disintegrate and Lotus' red tide were completely ineffective. Nate recalled studying spells to create sandformed creatures once, and told Jakob that if he could land a well-placed blow he could completely destroy the creature's structure. Flynn inspired Jakob to further greatness, making the sandformed beast's attacks miss wildly. Ike's arrows and Jakob's fists continued to chip away at the beast, and Lotus drained a large amount of its strength. Nate's second attempt to disintegrate the creature hardly scratched it. Flynn continued to inspire Jakob and Ike. The dragon now breathed a cone of sand into the room, dealing substantial though not deadly wounds to the wizards. Ike and Jakob again chipped away at its defenses (down 466 hp) while Nate missed with a disintegrate ray and Lotus' flamestrike was absorbed. The dragon couldn't manage to get a claw on Jakob, and after a series of arrows from Ike, Jakob finally landed the critical strike he'd been trying for (double 20's), smashing the sandformed dragon to pieces.
One of the dwarven miners sealed up the gap in the wall, and the wizards finished casting their teleportation circles. The signal was sent, and the people of Old Westlay began pouring out of the keep doors and into the teleportation circles. Soon, the city was evacuated and the citizens were on their way to the Iron Door, the dwarven city underground. As the party followed behind, Nate and Kerastrix exchanged information about Abel. Abel had been planning to have White Fields secede and fight on the side of Mitzram, but his support evaporated after Flynn's brilliant debate performance. Being selfish above all, and knowing that at this point he had nothing to offer Mitzram, Abel focused his energy on helping White Fields prepare for war.
Minellin briefed the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars on another plan. He wanted all available armies to gather in the enchanted forest, in order to bring the maximum force to bear against Mitzram. He even wanted to get Ghern involved -- spellsinks would be a great resource against a heavily magical army. Since Ghern respected raw strength rather than magic, they had willingly followed the marruspawn abomination who killed their previous king. A strong champion from Tindell had been chosen to challenge their marruspawn abomination leader: Jinle'a Graythorne. The Ninja Mongoose Rockstars needed to locate the abomination and get his escort to hold still for long enough to allow Jinle'a to challenge for succession.
The party took up a position on William's Hill and, disguised as sheep, kept watch over the city. From there, they could see a new desert to the north (created when the wastelords flipped a lake) and burned forest to the east. Lots of hobgoblins passed through the valley below. Soon, Lotus spotted a svaklor -- something like a yuan-ti dragon -- patrolling to the north. As it got within Ike's range, Flynn cast haste and began inspiring the archer. Ike took a shot at the svaklor, easily hitting at a quarter-mile distance. The svaklor summoned a pair of marruspawn who wielded large flaming swords and rode on crocosphynxes. Nate decided to keep the new defenders distracted by creating an illusion of several archers a few hundred feet out. Ike continued putting arrows into the svaklor, killing it before the marruspawn materialized, and then seriously wounding one of their mounts.
The marruspawn used dimension door to position themselves to engage Nate's illusion, and one realized his mistake. Nate used telekinesis to push him off of his mount and onto the ground far below, and Ike finished off the other crocosphynx, leaving both marruspawn on foot. The pair used another dimension door to get closer to the party. Nate used telekinesis to disarm one of the enemies (natural 20, for a net 59 disarm check.) Lotus cast arc lightning, and Flynn sang "you guys are so boned, so boned, you don't even know how boned you are." Jakob charged at one of the enemies and used comet throw to toss him into his ally, leaving both prone. He used his quicksilver boots to position himself behind both prone enemies, and they started to realize that these "sheep" were not what they appeared. Ike drew a brilliant energy arrow and fired it from Fox's Bite, right through the enemy's armor and into his heart (146 damage). The remaining marruspawn tried to flee, but Jakob kept him on the ground and knocked him out. Ike finished off the clueless crocosphynx while Nate probed the captured marruspawn's thoughts, getting details on the enemy camp within the desert.
An hour later, the marruspawn abomination and his Ghern escorts approached the valley. Nate sent the signal to his mother, and the party waited to ambush the all-melee group. As they reached the narrowest part of the valley, Flynn played a loud riff on his lute. Lotus cast red tide to knock over and nauseate several of the escorts, and Nate's great thunderclap stunned a pair. Jakob jumped into the middle of the escorts and pushed the abomination, but couldn't get it off its feet. Ike rained arrows all around the escorts and yelled "stay right where you are!" Jakob stepped back and took up a defensive posture, conjuring a psionic shield, and the marruspawn abomination bashed against it. Jinle'a approached as Flynn inspired her to greatness, and Nate yelled out a taunt: "you're about to get destroyed by my MOM! You SUCK!" Jinle'a challenged the marruspawn according to the Ghern tradition, and with Flynn's inspiration, easily crushed him. The hobgoblin guards stood and declared her high leader.
Nate stepped forward and said "hi, mom." Jinle'a responded "are you still gambling?" "No", Nate bluffed (45). Jinle'a glared and said "don't you lie to me, boy." "Sorry, ma'am." Jinle'a and the hobgoblins led the way back to Nate's childhood city, and he had an ale at the Dancing Bear tavern. He also sent word to his old friend Thameor to collect on the bet they'd made a hundred and fifty-five years earlier.
The party reached level 16.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Ninja Mongoose Rockstars poster
Again, courtesy Djinn_In_Tonic (click for larger size):
And here's the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars, Live!
And here's the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars, Live!
Friday, June 13, 2008
Session 25, 2008-06-13: Guiding Westlay
Session 25: wherein Flynn thwarts his brother and we thwart some assassins
Players (Characters)
Scott (Filthy Ike)
Jeremy (Flynn Flamm)
Tony (Brother Jakob)
Rachel (Lotus)
Tom (Nathaniel Graythorne)
DM: Catherine
For destroying the goblin army, Minellin presented the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars with rewards for "conspicuous awesomeness". He also noted that, during the cleanup of the goblin army, the Waecleftian soldiers found a note on one of the Marruspawn wizards. It detailed the thirsting's harsh effect on Mitzram, and requested that a particular harvest of "northern sweetblood" be increased, for treatment purposes. A map sketched on the back showed the location of the harvesting operation.
Nate disguised the party as Marruspawn wizards and teleported everyone into the eastern forest. Jakob ran up a tree, just because he could. Ike started looking around and soon discovered a tap had been placed in one of the beech trees, and the sap was slowly draining into a bucket. Lotus cast Speak with Plants and got some information from the tree. A group of Marru had been around, putting taps in several trees in the area. They came around about once every other day to collect the sap, and were due sometime later today. Lotus also discovered the tree's favorite color was green.
Ike found some Marruspawn tracks in an obvious circuit and started tracing them backwards. Soon, the party came upon a large marruspawn who looked to have martial training, as well as a smaller marruspawn whose primary purpose was carrying buckets. Flynn turned Ike invisible and Nate made Jakob look much like the big marruspawn. As Flynn questioned the big marruspawn about his operation, including its production rates and such, Nate probed the enemy's thoughts with a pair of spells. He got details on the marruspawn camp and harvesting operation, including the names of this pair (Miniset and Mirok), as well as some details about the thirsting, an ancient curse from an area called the "black hole". He also discovered the marruspawn called NMR "the scourge of the north", which was not nearly so clever as "the chord of DOOM!" At the appropriate signal, Flynn made it clear the Scourge of the North was here with a loud chord, and Ike's precise shot (137 damage) and a disintegrate spell from Nate (113) slew the larger enemy. Jakob leaped at the smaller enemy and killed it with a powerful swing, and Lotus went back to talking to her tree-friend George. As the party was discussing strategy, Jakob experimented with the sap, finding it destroyed a patch of black sand nearby.
Nate disguised himself as Miniset, Jakob as Mirok, and Ike, Lotus, and Flynn as wizards. The party set out for the hidden marruspawn camp, and with details about the illusion hiding it, everyone but Ike was able to see right through the spells. Nate yelled at the bucket-carriers: "go pick up all the sap we left behind. It's out that way!" He'd hoped to separate them from the camp's more powerful residents to make the fight easier. As the weaker creatures were walking away, a wizard stepped around the corner and immediately recognized the party's illusion, yelling out "we're under attack!" Ike pelted the wizard with poison arrows, and Jakob leaped forward to trip and stun the wizard as well as one of his allies. Lotus drowned the stunned wizard. The bucket-carrying marruspawn surrounded Ike and let out stench-filled breath, leading Ike to exclaim "dude, that was a good one! Now pull my finger!" The fighter next to Jakob tried to stand and immediately found himself back on the ground, and another wizard stepped around the corner where Nate was waiting with a spell of Feeblemind. One more fighter stepped around the corner and, thinking Jakob was the little marruspawn Mirok, tried to walk past to join the fight. Jakob tossed him on the ground.
With that, Flynn pulled out his lute and started singing, and Nate boomed out "the scourge of the north is here!" Ike fired four arrows, killing the three enemies that had surrounded him. Jakob pounded on one of the tripped fighters, leaving him so close to death that a bolt of lightning from Lotus killed him. Nate cast solipsism on the other fighter, leaving him in a dreamworld, and leading Lotus to ask "would you cast that on me later? It looks fun." Jakob and Ike finished off the last pair of lesser marruspawn. The party contacted Minellin to let him know about the outpost, the tree sap, and so on. Minellin teleported in to examine the teleportation circle, discovering it led to the center of a large city within Mitzram. Soon, a group of kingsmen arrived to take the base over.
Two days later, Flynn recieved a summons. As a prince of White Fields, he was to participate in a governmental decision. The party arrived at an open theater in White Fields, where several nobles stood nearest the leader whose position they agreed with. Joanna explained: an army of marruspawn was less than two days away, and the attempts to excavate Old Westlay continued to fail. She suspected Mitzram would offer Westlay the same deal as they'd given Serpenti: serve, or die. Charles of Eonsburg suggested Westlay do the honorable thing, and stay to fight. Kerastrix suggested Westlay flee to the stone tower mountains and seek allies. Abel Flamm suggested Westlay should pretend to surrender to Mitzram and then strike them from within. Each presented a basic statement, and the party moved to stand by Kerastrix.
Kerastrix began the argument: "This is the most dire threat to our kingdom since the War of the Ten Kings. The lesson we learned then is that we must unite or we will lose." Flynn added "we have seen how they operate. You cannot stay and try to serve them partly. You will be slaves at best, and fodder for vile sacrifices at worst. Our only hope is to fight together. It's not honorable to stay and lose and eventually die; the marruspawn want us to do exactly that. We shouldn't fight them on their terms." Abel countered "staying and pretending to serve gives us the most flexibility and versatility." Flynn shot back "there is no flexibility under their rule; you do what they want or you die." Abel again countered "it's least disruptive to our lives if we simply stay here." Flynn's response was devastating to Abel's position: "the marruspawn disrupt everything. If they want something you have, they'll kill you and take it." Throughout this argument, nobles from Abel's coalition, as well as some from Charles', shifted closer to Kerastrix and Flynn.
Charles objected: "we can't abandon Old Westlay! Many of our friends and family are still buried, and we can't let Mitzram simply walk in and conquer them." Flynn answered "by staying to fight, we doom Old Westlay to destruction. We can't win by fighting here." Nate added "we must win, first and foremost. Losing the war is just as bad for Old Westlay as abandoning them; either way, they'll die to Mitzram's onslaught. We have to agree to do what it takes to win, and only once we've decided that can we decide how to rescue them too." By this point, Flynn had persuaded the majority of the nobles that leaving to find allies was the best choice of action. Joanna, on a flying carpet above the middle of the assembly, called a quorum and started moving toward Flynn to declare the decision of the council.
Just then, Lotus noticed some slight distortions in the air, and Jakob heard movement -- invisible creatures were nearby! Lotus cast True Seeing and spotted a group of black yuan-ti abominations with strange tatoos. She called out "assassins!" Jakob's finely tuned hearing let him grab a hold of the nearest enemy, who had been approaching Flynn, and toss it to the ground, where he stood on top of it. That yuan-ti tried to get up but Jakob kept it down. Another yuan-ti leaped onto Menco Flamm's flying carpet and stabbed him with a blurry blade. A third turned the ground beneath the majority of nobles into boiling mud, and a fourth turned a few nobles to salt. Ike, who was standing at a distance in the bleachers (in order to avoid offending the olfactory senses of the nobles) gave himself True Seeing. Lotus tried to drown an abomination, but it was too hearty, and simply spit the water out of its lungs. Kerastrix grabbed and started chewing on one of the spellcasters, and Flynn inspired the party to fight more effectively. Nate disintegrated the invisible blob Kerastrix was busy chewing on, leaving the old dragon with a mouth full of gray dust.
The nobles, surprised by the sudden outbreak of violence, started to flee as Joanna sent for help. Jakob jumped onto Menco's carpet and knocked down the attacking yuan-ti. Still, it was able to stab at Menco, whose lifeless body tumbled off the carpet and into the mud. Another yuan-ti moved beside Nate, and the final one cast flaying windburst toward Lotus and the fleeing nobles. Ike saw Nate was in trouble, so he rained arrows down on the abomination, killing it with a critical hit (and some luck from Nate.) Lotus spit in the eyes of the remaining caster, blinding it and making it that much easier for Kerastrix to maul, though the old dragon, inspired by Flynn's singing, had no trouble tearing the abomination apart. (Nate observed "Kerastrix" rhymes with "ass kicked".) Flynn dispelled the invisibility on the final yuan-ti, allowing Nate to trap it in its own mind with solipsism. Jakob snapped the abomination's neck, and within a few seconds, some local clerics had arrived to restore Menco and other nobles to life.
With the excitement over, Joanna called the meeting back to order, and the assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of joining with any allies who could be found. As the vote was going on, the party realized the assassins had focused on Menco and Flynn first and foremost. Nate suspected Abel may have been involved, so he borrowed the rod of the mongoose and a spell of invisibility from Flynn, and cast probe thoughts on Abel. He learned that Abel hadn't planned the assassination, but was aware of it through some "contacts". The assassins targeted everyone who wanted to flee -- everyone who wanted to do the one thing Mitzram wasn't planning on. Abel had little other information to offer.
The yuan-ti abominations had tatoos with symbols of Senneth.
Jakob reached level 15.
Players (Characters)
Scott (Filthy Ike)
Jeremy (Flynn Flamm)
Tony (Brother Jakob)
Rachel (Lotus)
Tom (Nathaniel Graythorne)
DM: Catherine
For destroying the goblin army, Minellin presented the Ninja Mongoose Rockstars with rewards for "conspicuous awesomeness". He also noted that, during the cleanup of the goblin army, the Waecleftian soldiers found a note on one of the Marruspawn wizards. It detailed the thirsting's harsh effect on Mitzram, and requested that a particular harvest of "northern sweetblood" be increased, for treatment purposes. A map sketched on the back showed the location of the harvesting operation.
Nate disguised the party as Marruspawn wizards and teleported everyone into the eastern forest. Jakob ran up a tree, just because he could. Ike started looking around and soon discovered a tap had been placed in one of the beech trees, and the sap was slowly draining into a bucket. Lotus cast Speak with Plants and got some information from the tree. A group of Marru had been around, putting taps in several trees in the area. They came around about once every other day to collect the sap, and were due sometime later today. Lotus also discovered the tree's favorite color was green.
Ike found some Marruspawn tracks in an obvious circuit and started tracing them backwards. Soon, the party came upon a large marruspawn who looked to have martial training, as well as a smaller marruspawn whose primary purpose was carrying buckets. Flynn turned Ike invisible and Nate made Jakob look much like the big marruspawn. As Flynn questioned the big marruspawn about his operation, including its production rates and such, Nate probed the enemy's thoughts with a pair of spells. He got details on the marruspawn camp and harvesting operation, including the names of this pair (Miniset and Mirok), as well as some details about the thirsting, an ancient curse from an area called the "black hole". He also discovered the marruspawn called NMR "the scourge of the north", which was not nearly so clever as "the chord of DOOM!" At the appropriate signal, Flynn made it clear the Scourge of the North was here with a loud chord, and Ike's precise shot (137 damage) and a disintegrate spell from Nate (113) slew the larger enemy. Jakob leaped at the smaller enemy and killed it with a powerful swing, and Lotus went back to talking to her tree-friend George. As the party was discussing strategy, Jakob experimented with the sap, finding it destroyed a patch of black sand nearby.
Nate disguised himself as Miniset, Jakob as Mirok, and Ike, Lotus, and Flynn as wizards. The party set out for the hidden marruspawn camp, and with details about the illusion hiding it, everyone but Ike was able to see right through the spells. Nate yelled at the bucket-carriers: "go pick up all the sap we left behind. It's out that way!" He'd hoped to separate them from the camp's more powerful residents to make the fight easier. As the weaker creatures were walking away, a wizard stepped around the corner and immediately recognized the party's illusion, yelling out "we're under attack!" Ike pelted the wizard with poison arrows, and Jakob leaped forward to trip and stun the wizard as well as one of his allies. Lotus drowned the stunned wizard. The bucket-carrying marruspawn surrounded Ike and let out stench-filled breath, leading Ike to exclaim "dude, that was a good one! Now pull my finger!" The fighter next to Jakob tried to stand and immediately found himself back on the ground, and another wizard stepped around the corner where Nate was waiting with a spell of Feeblemind. One more fighter stepped around the corner and, thinking Jakob was the little marruspawn Mirok, tried to walk past to join the fight. Jakob tossed him on the ground.
With that, Flynn pulled out his lute and started singing, and Nate boomed out "the scourge of the north is here!" Ike fired four arrows, killing the three enemies that had surrounded him. Jakob pounded on one of the tripped fighters, leaving him so close to death that a bolt of lightning from Lotus killed him. Nate cast solipsism on the other fighter, leaving him in a dreamworld, and leading Lotus to ask "would you cast that on me later? It looks fun." Jakob and Ike finished off the last pair of lesser marruspawn. The party contacted Minellin to let him know about the outpost, the tree sap, and so on. Minellin teleported in to examine the teleportation circle, discovering it led to the center of a large city within Mitzram. Soon, a group of kingsmen arrived to take the base over.
Two days later, Flynn recieved a summons. As a prince of White Fields, he was to participate in a governmental decision. The party arrived at an open theater in White Fields, where several nobles stood nearest the leader whose position they agreed with. Joanna explained: an army of marruspawn was less than two days away, and the attempts to excavate Old Westlay continued to fail. She suspected Mitzram would offer Westlay the same deal as they'd given Serpenti: serve, or die. Charles of Eonsburg suggested Westlay do the honorable thing, and stay to fight. Kerastrix suggested Westlay flee to the stone tower mountains and seek allies. Abel Flamm suggested Westlay should pretend to surrender to Mitzram and then strike them from within. Each presented a basic statement, and the party moved to stand by Kerastrix.
Kerastrix began the argument: "This is the most dire threat to our kingdom since the War of the Ten Kings. The lesson we learned then is that we must unite or we will lose." Flynn added "we have seen how they operate. You cannot stay and try to serve them partly. You will be slaves at best, and fodder for vile sacrifices at worst. Our only hope is to fight together. It's not honorable to stay and lose and eventually die; the marruspawn want us to do exactly that. We shouldn't fight them on their terms." Abel countered "staying and pretending to serve gives us the most flexibility and versatility." Flynn shot back "there is no flexibility under their rule; you do what they want or you die." Abel again countered "it's least disruptive to our lives if we simply stay here." Flynn's response was devastating to Abel's position: "the marruspawn disrupt everything. If they want something you have, they'll kill you and take it." Throughout this argument, nobles from Abel's coalition, as well as some from Charles', shifted closer to Kerastrix and Flynn.
Charles objected: "we can't abandon Old Westlay! Many of our friends and family are still buried, and we can't let Mitzram simply walk in and conquer them." Flynn answered "by staying to fight, we doom Old Westlay to destruction. We can't win by fighting here." Nate added "we must win, first and foremost. Losing the war is just as bad for Old Westlay as abandoning them; either way, they'll die to Mitzram's onslaught. We have to agree to do what it takes to win, and only once we've decided that can we decide how to rescue them too." By this point, Flynn had persuaded the majority of the nobles that leaving to find allies was the best choice of action. Joanna, on a flying carpet above the middle of the assembly, called a quorum and started moving toward Flynn to declare the decision of the council.
Just then, Lotus noticed some slight distortions in the air, and Jakob heard movement -- invisible creatures were nearby! Lotus cast True Seeing and spotted a group of black yuan-ti abominations with strange tatoos. She called out "assassins!" Jakob's finely tuned hearing let him grab a hold of the nearest enemy, who had been approaching Flynn, and toss it to the ground, where he stood on top of it. That yuan-ti tried to get up but Jakob kept it down. Another yuan-ti leaped onto Menco Flamm's flying carpet and stabbed him with a blurry blade. A third turned the ground beneath the majority of nobles into boiling mud, and a fourth turned a few nobles to salt. Ike, who was standing at a distance in the bleachers (in order to avoid offending the olfactory senses of the nobles) gave himself True Seeing. Lotus tried to drown an abomination, but it was too hearty, and simply spit the water out of its lungs. Kerastrix grabbed and started chewing on one of the spellcasters, and Flynn inspired the party to fight more effectively. Nate disintegrated the invisible blob Kerastrix was busy chewing on, leaving the old dragon with a mouth full of gray dust.
The nobles, surprised by the sudden outbreak of violence, started to flee as Joanna sent for help. Jakob jumped onto Menco's carpet and knocked down the attacking yuan-ti. Still, it was able to stab at Menco, whose lifeless body tumbled off the carpet and into the mud. Another yuan-ti moved beside Nate, and the final one cast flaying windburst toward Lotus and the fleeing nobles. Ike saw Nate was in trouble, so he rained arrows down on the abomination, killing it with a critical hit (and some luck from Nate.) Lotus spit in the eyes of the remaining caster, blinding it and making it that much easier for Kerastrix to maul, though the old dragon, inspired by Flynn's singing, had no trouble tearing the abomination apart. (Nate observed "Kerastrix" rhymes with "ass kicked".) Flynn dispelled the invisibility on the final yuan-ti, allowing Nate to trap it in its own mind with solipsism. Jakob snapped the abomination's neck, and within a few seconds, some local clerics had arrived to restore Menco and other nobles to life.
With the excitement over, Joanna called the meeting back to order, and the assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of joining with any allies who could be found. As the vote was going on, the party realized the assassins had focused on Menco and Flynn first and foremost. Nate suspected Abel may have been involved, so he borrowed the rod of the mongoose and a spell of invisibility from Flynn, and cast probe thoughts on Abel. He learned that Abel hadn't planned the assassination, but was aware of it through some "contacts". The assassins targeted everyone who wanted to flee -- everyone who wanted to do the one thing Mitzram wasn't planning on. Abel had little other information to offer.
The yuan-ti abominations had tatoos with symbols of Senneth.
Jakob reached level 15.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Runestaff of Construct Control
Price (item level): 13,500 gp (13th)
Body Slot: - (held)
Caster Level: 13th
Aura: Strong; (DC 21) transmutation
Activation: As spell used
Weight: 3 lb.
This staff looks nearly identical to a pipe wrench.
A runestaff of construct control allows you to cast any of the following spells (described here) by expending a prepared arcane spell or arcane spell slot of the same level or higher.
3/day:
Hide from Constructs (level 1)
Probe Command (level 2)
Scan Construct (level 3)
1/day:
Suppress Command (level 3)
Replace Command (level 4)
Command Construct (level 6)
Body Slot: - (held)
Caster Level: 13th
Aura: Strong; (DC 21) transmutation
Activation: As spell used
Weight: 3 lb.
This staff looks nearly identical to a pipe wrench.
A runestaff of construct control allows you to cast any of the following spells (described here) by expending a prepared arcane spell or arcane spell slot of the same level or higher.
3/day:
Hide from Constructs (level 1)
Probe Command (level 2)
Scan Construct (level 3)
1/day:
Suppress Command (level 3)
Replace Command (level 4)
Command Construct (level 6)
Heightened Spellshard: Unluck
Stars and scales decorate this indigo talisman (throat slot), inscribed in gold with the rune for "Ruin".
Usable 3/day: whenever you cast Unluck with this spellshard as the focus, the spell is automatically heightened by 4 levels, acting as a 7th level spell (+4 to save DC.) Whenever you cast Mass Unluck, it acts as an 11th level spell. Not cumulative with other heighten effects. Does not change casting time or spell level required to cast.
Cost 11,500 gp
Usable 3/day: whenever you cast Unluck with this spellshard as the focus, the spell is automatically heightened by 4 levels, acting as a 7th level spell (+4 to save DC.) Whenever you cast Mass Unluck, it acts as an 11th level spell. Not cumulative with other heighten effects. Does not change casting time or spell level required to cast.
Cost 11,500 gp
New Spells
Shatter Mind Blank
Evocation
granted to Nathaniel Graythorne as Sor 5
Components: V,S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Medium (100' + 10'/level)
Targets: One creature with a Mind Blank effect active
Duration: instantaneous
Save: No
Spell Resistance: Yes
Make a caster level check at +4 (d20+CL+4, maximum caster level 20) vs. a DC of 11+ the caster level of the mind blank effect. If you succeed, the mind blank ends.
Unluck, Mass
Transmutation (note: Unluck has been houseruled to Transmutation as well)
Sor/Wiz 7
Targets: Up to one creature per level, no two of which are more than 30' apart
This spell functions like Unluck, except that it effects multiple creatures.
Nate's Multilayer Ruse
Illusion (Figment/Glamer)
Sor/Wiz 9, Nathaniel Graythorne 8
Components: V,S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Long (400' + 40'/level)
Targets: Area up to four 10' cubes plus one 10' cube/level (S), plus one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30' apart
Duration: 1 hour/level
Save: Will partial or Will Negates; see text
Spell Resistance: No or Yes; see text
This spell creates the same effects as Veil, Hallucinatory Terrain, and Persistent Image, in both an "inner" and "outer" layer. Individuals, objects, or terrain segments may be disguised in either or both layers, and their disguises may differ between layers. Observers normally see, hear, and otherwise sense the outer layer of the spell.
True Seeing negates the visual effects of the outer layer of the spell, but provides a -2 circumstance penalty to Will saves to see through the inner layer. The saving throw DC against the outer layer is at -5 compared to spells at this level, while the saving throw DC against the inner layer is at +5 (the outer layer is more easily seen through, while the inner layer is more difficult to penetrate.)
Unwilling targets can negate the spell’s effect on them by making Will saves or with spell resistance. Those who interact with the subjects can attempt Will disbelief saves to see through the glamer (a single save against both layers; if the result is between the two, the subject sees past the outer layer, viewing the inner layer as real), but spell resistance doesn’t help.
Evocation
granted to Nathaniel Graythorne as Sor 5
Components: V,S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Medium (100' + 10'/level)
Targets: One creature with a Mind Blank effect active
Duration: instantaneous
Save: No
Spell Resistance: Yes
Make a caster level check at +4 (d20+CL+4, maximum caster level 20) vs. a DC of 11+ the caster level of the mind blank effect. If you succeed, the mind blank ends.
Unluck, Mass
Transmutation (note: Unluck has been houseruled to Transmutation as well)
Sor/Wiz 7
Targets: Up to one creature per level, no two of which are more than 30' apart
This spell functions like Unluck, except that it effects multiple creatures.
Nate's Multilayer Ruse
Illusion (Figment/Glamer)
Sor/Wiz 9, Nathaniel Graythorne 8
Components: V,S
Casting Time: 1 Standard Action
Range: Long (400' + 40'/level)
Targets: Area up to four 10' cubes plus one 10' cube/level (S), plus one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30' apart
Duration: 1 hour/level
Save: Will partial or Will Negates; see text
Spell Resistance: No or Yes; see text
This spell creates the same effects as Veil, Hallucinatory Terrain, and Persistent Image, in both an "inner" and "outer" layer. Individuals, objects, or terrain segments may be disguised in either or both layers, and their disguises may differ between layers. Observers normally see, hear, and otherwise sense the outer layer of the spell.
True Seeing negates the visual effects of the outer layer of the spell, but provides a -2 circumstance penalty to Will saves to see through the inner layer. The saving throw DC against the outer layer is at -5 compared to spells at this level, while the saving throw DC against the inner layer is at +5 (the outer layer is more easily seen through, while the inner layer is more difficult to penetrate.)
Unwilling targets can negate the spell’s effect on them by making Will saves or with spell resistance. Those who interact with the subjects can attempt Will disbelief saves to see through the glamer (a single save against both layers; if the result is between the two, the subject sees past the outer layer, viewing the inner layer as real), but spell resistance doesn’t help.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)