Session Forty-Seven Summary (Graveyard of Empires: After the Fall)

From RPG Campaign Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Session 47, June 2 2021

Fantasy-face-rock-tree-woman-dance-thumbnailb.jpg

Introduction

We continue at 1PM on the 12th of Laurilden with the party camped at the head of the Vargwater River beneath the stone visage of a face carved in the westernmost end of the river's gully. The group plans to wait overnight to see if dawn's light causes anything interesting to happen when it strikes the carving. In the meantime, the adventurers also debate using Borthran's astral projection tea to explore the web-like fabrics that unfold into portals to some other place. Will there be wonders to witness in the morning? Are those web portals dangerous to open? What other hazards await the group further into the mountain range? Does the Parlement of Birds make use of Robert's Rules of Order?

Larry's Summary

Borthan brews up some astral tea and Rallion, Velkin, and Brendil each check out 3 places to increase our available information.

Rallion goes to Old Greybeard and appears OK. The totem inside is defaced to include Lolth. The two doors into the maze to reach the tomb of the Matriarchs are intact. The one for the wrong way has an X and what Rallion believes to be writing similar to what he saw in Vilgram (drow?). The other door is unmarked. He then went to the roc's nest and it has been tidied up and is full of all kinds of birds all making the calls of their type.

Next Raliion went to Montoa, the village of the Daughters of the Matriarch and it has more people and is much repaired. Rallion then found Bavmorda covered in blood standing with other Montoan warriors (female) standing over bodies. It appears that Bavmorda made it to Montoa when we parted ways on the surface and is helping secure Montoa and seeking revenge for what the other tribes did to them.

Finally, Rallion went to the imerial base Cesario described. It has patrolling skeletons acting like their normal routine in life. He found the entrance and got a bearing to be able to find it in the future. He saw a skeleton in full plate and a two handed sword laid out and it appeared to look when Rallion entered the room, but laid back down, unable to see him.

Brendil checked behind the face of Brita and it is just stone.

Next Brendil looked in the spider box. There is a short sword and a bracer that appear to be of the same material as the shard Bavmorda lost to the demon when it got stuck and lost in the maze on the way to the Mothers' Tomb. The box has a rod in each corner with a "cap" just under the lip of the lid. As long as this "frame" is intact, it helps maintain the structural integrity of the chest. Above a ceiling of "obsidian" are infinite spiders.

Finally Brendil went to check on Jax and got sucked into the generator. Tik Tok spotted him and it is Asmodeus who sent so many to try and figure out the secret of this place. Tik Tok protected Brendil from the other DVLs. Tik Tok was able to touch Brendil but was unable to accompany Brendil. [Failed save.] But we think it is possible to get Tik Tok out if we want.

Velkin first sought Jarlana and saw her in a tall tower overlooking an "endless" city with odd colored clouds. After the three astral travelers returned we surmised this is the City of Brass.

Velkin relayed to Lungmold to have Druul open the handerchief of Jarlanna one fold. Velkin then went through and saw 30 elves that are not drow but bluish black. The leader had a horn pointed towards the opening, but when no one came through, and Druul closed it, they relaxed. Velkin overheard them talking and it appears that the Winter King has displaced Lolth from her web in Tralvig. The web is enormous and Velkin saw his master the drow magister, master Enrilden. There are 50 openings into the central hub like the one Velkin entered.

Velkin then goes to Lolth and Lolth detects him and asks who he is and he quickly went seeking the dragon who flew most of the party across the Vargwater River. Velkin found a dead dragon ripped apart and ravaged by scavengers. Teh hope was to get a vial of dragon blood, but it must be from a living dragon.

Finally Velkin goes to Allycian and sees her group approaching a ruined city on a mountain plateau (Xen Khel).

With all the party back together we compare notes.

The plan is to build a box around the spider box to keep it intact and use tools (in Old Greybeard) to open a hole in the lower portion to remove the sword and bracer.

We wait until morning and prior to the dawn the depression before the face is filled with song birds. Rallion uses the scepter to speak and learns that they sing praises to Brita, Patroness of the Morning.

Rallion learns that there are four equidistant shrines like the one for Brita to the East of Old Greybeard.

  • One to Guard Against the Lizardfolk - Brita/East
  • One for the Daughters of the Matriarch - West
  • One for the 9 Wanderers - North - Bad/not nice flying creatures - "like" us - Dangerous now
  • One for the Old Fortress - South - Some good flying creatures with 4 legs - Dangerous now

We then feel refreshed. [+1 to hit, damage, and saves until night fall.]

Rallion leads the party towards Old Greybeard and soon finds a totem and leaves a gold coin. 4 more totems are found and Rallion leaves a gold coin in each. WE spot a giant unusual looking wasp flying across our path behind us. We leave it be and continue. 5 more totems are found and Rallion leaves a platinum coin in each. We saw a lot of birds heading to Old Greybeard.

We reach the entrance and Rallion explains that the right pool heals and the left is deadly. We all drink and all the wounded are healed.

Rallion retrieves his gold control circlet, and they find all the rest of the stuff left behind is still there. Rallion suggests that some of the items in Bavmorda's pack might be useful.

Velkin's Scrolls

Velkin Scrolls 20 – Session 47 – Astral Tea Ceremony Laurilden 12, 1pm

Since we’ve searched the ravine over, and we didn’t find a whole lot, we decide to do some scouting using a dose of the astral tea of Borthan’s.

Rallion, Brendil and I settle in to do some astral travelling after a long discussion of where we were going to scout.

Our targets are: Rallion: Old Greybeard, Montoa, the Imperial bunker and his alternate is where the Jungle Cat was encountered.

Brendil: Explore the spiderbox, Behind Brita’s face, Jaeger’s tower/portal, alt is Jax

Myself: The Web Portals, Dragon/Alisceon, Vilgram, Vilgram, Winter King’s seneschal

These are the things we saw

Rallion: 1) Old Greybeard: A few things have changed, a fight has occurred. Broken bolts etc. The offering totem in the center of the main chamber has been defaced. It now has a crude likeness of Lloth on it. Room with party gear: still intact Maze area: entrance: door not to the maze has a Drow Chalkmark on it. Roc Nest: Looks like it’s been cleaned, it’s spruced up and a number of birds fliting about. Many species. The Gathering of the Parliment of the Birds.

2) Montoa Looking a lot better, many more people. A lot of repaired buildings. A few female warriors. Chieftan hut: Khalia is holding court Shelf with clay vessels on it decorated with inscriptions in ancient common. Shaman hut’s storage: being restocked. Secret chamber: Physically obscured further. Bavmorda: There is blood everywhere, much of it on her sword, surrounded by female warriors who have been in recent battle.

3) Imperial Bunker described by Cesario: Skeletal warriors patrolling. Place is many miles NE from Old Greybeard. Almost like you’re in a pocket where the mountains curl around. He goes down, laying in repose on a slab. A skeleton dressed in full plate decorated in dragon embellishments holding across his chest a 2 handed sword blade pointed toward feet. As Rallion arrived, he looked in his direction but doesn’t see him. The armor looks like plate armor, not fancy. He scouts the place. Many many skeletons. Looks like they’re going about their business as they once did.

Brendil: 1) Behind the Face: Nothing, no matter how much he tried to find something. Persistant he is.

2) Spiderbox: From underneath he peeps on the contents There’s light emanating from 2 objects: Shortsword and something is odd about it. Not made out of metal he’s familiar with. Rusty colored, but not rusty. Bracer made of the same material. Obsidian top to the compartment, no latches, triggers or anything. Looking at the metal doodads in the corner of the box, there is a tension bar running up the corner of the box from the lower corner and passes up through the obsidian roof that goes up to the top part of the box, it’s mechanical. He passes through the obsidian sheet and he’s covered with spiders everywhere doing spidery things in a spidery place – there’s only a mass of infinite spiders here... He follows the metal bar to the top of chest and it looks like it messes with the structural integrity of the corners of the box. All 4 corners of the box have a rod going down them. (He gives a visual to Lungmold)

3) Jax: Brendil gets sucked into the battery in the Imperial Embassy. He meets TickTock in the DVL trap and tries to pull him free unsuccessfully.

Myself 1) Pass through Jerhlanna’s kerchief. - squadron of elves awaiting to spring forward. 30 of them. Blue skinned.

Crossbows, swords, chainmail. Symbol: Snowflake thing of the Winter King. Leader has a horn readying to blow. Now that hole is closed. 2nd horn he blows back the way he came twice, short bursts.

Leader and the ones around them speak amongst themselves: Lloth and their priestesses are a tricky bunch. Cant trust ‘em. It was a funnel web opening to the outside. A puckered seam is present in space..sphincter. Tunnel of web up ahead opening up into a large chamber with an orb of webs, gigantic. Size of a large building. Temporary encampments with very many of the elves present.

2) Continuing down the web funnel into a huge open space surrounding a cocoon hanging from the top of the chamber. Many more tunnels leaving the area. 50+ Lots of elves, mixed in are a few drow. Red, green stones, etc. A magister is present, Master Enrilden. He’s in the largest encampment. This looks like Lloth’s inner sanctum.

3) Jherlanna: Outside in a city, dotted with minarets, clouds are crazy mix of sulfurous yellow, red. City goes on forever. On a balcony overlooking the city. Lloth seems to be in the city, large webbed chamber, giant bulk in the center.

4) Lloth – near Jherlanna, suspect they’re in or around the City of Brass. She percieves me and I panic, and blip to the dragon that led the Devil Birds away so we could escape Jaeger’s Tower.

5) Narthox the Bloody, dragon: dead.

6) Alisceon: In a mountainous area. She is still invisible. South of where we were. NW is Greybeard. Southward on a plateau, pieces of a ruined city.

Returning to the physical world, we relay our respective findings to the party. The shortsword and bracer in the spiderbox is recognized to be made of material similar to the Shard but polished and worked.

We plan to build a brace around the spiderbox and use a tool as yet to be determined to open the box from the bottom and get the sword and bracer out.

We camp peacefully for the evening watches being uneventful.

At dawn, flocks of birds descend on the relief of the face in the wall. They’re singing praises to Brita, Patroness of the Morning according to Rallion’s speak with animals ability from the scepter. He also learns there are 4 shrines N,S,E and W from Old Greybeard. - East, Brita - Guard against the Lizardfolk (boon +1 hit, damage and saves until nightfall) - West, Daughters of the Matriarch - North, Nine Wanderers, Harpies are there, dangerous - South, Old Fortress, some good flying creatures with 4 legs there, dangerous

We head out toward Old Greybeard avoiding a giant wasp, many birds heading toward the site and Rallion leaves a gold coin in each totem we pass.

We heal at the Right pool as the Left is deadly at the entrance to Old Greybeard.

We take the items left previously by the party that we think could be useful before going into the Caverns of the Dead.