Charles Plemons' Blog

Game summary for December 27, 2007; present characters included Carn Fodelfex (whisper gnome cleric), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

The party headed toward some of the giant dwellings and came under fire from the inhabitants. They yelled out their intentions, but the barrage continued. From within one room, a bugbear motioned for them. The stinking slave, Broogle by name, begged the party to take him from the city. They agreed they would do so if he would help them find the object they seek. They described the phylactery of Dragotha, but the slave had never seen or heard of it. He helped them find the way down to the Undercity to investigate further.

As they approached the ladder down, they watched five green dragons and a tremendous red dragon assault a fortified giant position. With haste, the Mercenaries attempted to scale the ladder, but Carn and Iapetus plunged into the depths of the gorge. Carn’s magic mended their terrible injuries and was able to fly them back up to join the party. They arrived just in time for an assault by four green dragons. The terror of the wyrms’ approach drove Syvarius, Gazzilfek, Carn, Aridarye, and Broogle into hiding inside a building. Meanwhile, stalwart Taravin, frenzied Grim, and stoic Eolas stood their ground.

The dragons opened their gambit with blasts of flesh-searing acid breath. Eolas unleashed deadly spells, and Taravin and Grim swung biting steel that tore through the draconic scales. One dragon attempted to weaken the two warriors with rays of enfeeblement, but it was too little to make a difference. Within a few moments, the heroes had slain three of the dragons and driven the fourth into a hasty retreat. Soon, the rest of the party emerged from the buildings and returned to the side of the warriors.

Grim nocked an arrow and fired it at the dragons assaulting the giant strongpoint, drawing the attention of the enormous red dragon. It flew overhead, roaring in rage, and most of the party again panicked and ran away. For some reason, the dragon did not engage but instead flew off with the green dragons further into the gorge.

Aridarye began a parlay with the giants in the fortification, and they indicated the dragons had only been sieging the city for a few hours. Aridarye attempted to explain that many dragons would continue to assault the city, but the giants seemed unafraid. He told her the stronghold of the Tiamikal Nul-Shada (hunters of Tiamat’s children, in giantish) was not named Citadel of Weeping Dragons in vain. Aridarye left a message she asked be delivered to King Achaime Silvereye and then rejoined the party. Meanwhile, the group noticed the massive bladed tail of a fang dragon disappearing over the ledge of the upper city. Eolas had heard of such dragons, but had not encountered one. He indicated one that large must be at least a wyrm in age.

The Mercenaries spoke to Broogle to find out where the palace of King Silvereye sat within the city. He indicated it was near where the fang dragon had just gone. With no further ado, the party had Iapetus render them all invisible and Carn teleport them up to the ledge they had just seen. Will their instant transport put them nose to snout with a massive, ancient dragon?

Game summary for December 20, 2007; present characters included Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

After a short bit of fact-finding, the party decided they needed more information via magical spells to locate Kongen-Thulnir, so they used secure shelter to make camp on the edge of Skull Gorge. During one of the watches, the group discovered they were being watched by Gazzilfek, the Ominous Fabler they had met back in the court of Tyrant Tarnheel Embuirhan, in Mintarn. He presented himself as a bard spriggan on a mission for a stone giant chieftain. He indicated he sought information on the Age of Worms as well and wanted to accompany the party and document their adventures. The party knows there is something shifty about the Fabler, but they agreed to allow him to come with them for now.

Morak used find the path to locate the giant city of Kongen-Thulnir and lead the party in that direction. After a few days of travel, the Mercenaries found the cliff side city of kings under siege from dozens of dragons. Wyrms of green, black, blue, and even red scales flew about belching fire and acid and otherwise ransacking the city. For their part, the giants were doing an able job defending the city, with many dragons already dead or badly injured. The Mercenaries decided it was a prime opportunity to slip in under the cover of invisibility. It took some time and effort to descend down to the city and slip through the smashed gates, and their magical cloak faded soon after moving within.

No more than a few dozen paces into Kongen-Thulnir, and the Mercenaries suffered their first attack. A massive, hellish green dragon swooped down from hiding on a tower and breathed acid across the group. It landed nearby and prepared to assault the front lines. Eolas wasted no time unleashing a pair of disintegrate rays at the monster. Grim activated his magical boots and moved close to the dragon. He entered a mindless battle frenzy and brutally assaulted the creature. In desperation, it was able to grab him in its mouth and fling him off of the cliff side down 200 feet to the rocks below; however, his stubborn dwarven skull refused to crack, and he dragged his injured self back to his feet. With terrible wounds and an entire party of adventurers facing it (minus Syvarius and Gazzilfek, who had both fled in terror at first sight of the wyrm), the dragon decided this was more than it could currently chew. It slid off the edge of the cliff and began flying away.

Several of the party members leaned out over the cliff to take parting shots at the fleeing dragon; meanwhile, Grim dusted himself off, calmed down, and activated his flying armor to return to the group. As he ascended, a dozen hill giants burst forth from a building and tore into the Mercenaries. Their clubs landed several bruising shots, and Lyrin was hurled into the chasm. Fortunately, he had feather fall to protect him. Morak and Aridarye began blasting away with fire and sonic spells, and Eolas began gutting giants. Chuck used his acrobatics and stealth to get the drop on several as well. Iapetus appeared in bad position, surrounded by giants, but he was able to withstand the onslaught and land some telling blows of his own. Grim, returned from his rock-slam vacation, tore into the giants while Lyrin used his own magic to make his ascent back up the gorge.

Taravin, the group’s knight in tarnished armor, continued urging for diplomacy, and finally the giants (the last two standing) relented. They knew they had been beaten and were eager to find a way to spare their lives. The dumb brutes were not incredibly informative; however, they were able to tell the party of two groups of giants in power in Kongen-Thulnir, the Riftlords and the Rift Crawlers. They indicated the leader of the Rift Crawlers, Charlgar, was trying to overthrow King Silvereye. Unfortunately, they think Charlgar may have gone down in the initial dragon assault. They have not seen the body but are sure their leader would come to organize them if he were able. The Mercenaries let the giants live, and they promptly fled back into a tower.

Now the Mercenaries find themselves in a besieged city of wicked giants. If the dragons were not enough of a problem, the giants seem to be in some kind of civil war. Somewhere in this chaos lies the phylactery of Kyuss’ general, Dragotha. Somewhere else, a hellish green dragon knows of the party’s arrival and will certainly muster her allies for a second confrontation. No matter where the Mercenaries go from here, violence is almost assuredly imminent.

Game summary for December 13, 2007; present characters included Ashkor (half-bronze dragon lizardfolk barbarian/battle sorcerer/dragon disciple/fighter), Carn Fodelfex (whisper gnome cleric), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

Along with Darl Quethos and company, the Mercenaries returned to the Portal of Storms. There, they were challenged to a single duel by one of the wild watchers, Sayren-Lei. Taravin accepted the challenge and engaged the fey druid. The wild watcher quickly turned invisible and began riddling Taravin with spear thrusts. The other wild watchers felt the fight unfair and allowed Lyrin, Iapetus and Ashkor to join the fray. The fighting was intense, and Taravin lost his life; however, the Mercenaries proved victorious. Afterward, the fountain of dreams appeared, and all present drank from its waters.

The group found themselves, minus Taravin, at Skull Gorge during the first war on Kyuss’ armies. They watched as Dragotha tore through entire legions and thousands of worm-dripping undead unleashed their fury upon the living. A group of druids, the wild watchers before their transformation, entreated the party for aid in slowing the advance of Kyuss’ minions long enough for them to stash Dragotha’s phylactery in Kongen-Thulnir. Lashonna, present but seeming not to recognize the party, turned into a silver dragon and flew off to stall Dragotha and his flying minions. The party agreed to help and waged war against an onslaught of Swords of Kyuss. After Lyin blasted most of them blind with sunburst, a flowing, oozing mass of bone reached the ridge top. This undead boneyard snatched Syvarius in its maw, pinned him down, and ripped every bone out of his body, slaying him instantly. After a fierce pitched battle, Eolas succeeded in disintegrating the boneyard. As the abomination dispersed, the Mercenaries watched as Dragotha killed Lashonna.

The image faded, and the party was back on Tilagos Island. Gone was the extradimensional land of Last Resort, as well as the storm that had so long protected the secrets of Tilagos. Taravin remained dead on the ground, but Syvarius was somehow restored. Aridarye had heard of Kongen-Thulnir and knew it to lie somewhere in Skull Gorge, right under the nose of Dragotha. Quickly the team gathered their gear, their dead, and teleported to Skull Gorge. Of Darl and his allies, there had been no sign.

Game summary for December 6, 2007; present characters included Ashkor (half-bronze dragon lizardfolk barbarian/battle sorcerer/dragon disciple/fighter), Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

Using find the path, the Mercenaries made their way to Thornvale where they discovered a massive thicket almost impossible to hack through. During some aerial scouting, Ashkor and Iapetus discovered a cave emitting fog or steam up on one side of a mountain. The team climbed and hacked their way around to the mountainside and discovered tracks going up to the cave and then hurriedly leaving. Dried blood accompanied the retreating trail.

The party moved up to the cave and cautiously entered. About forty or fifty feet into the cave, they found the source of the steam—a chasm plunging into the darkness with hissing steam bellowing forth. The heat was tremendous. Undaunted, Ashkor and Iapetus jumped the crevasse and landed on the far side. Suddenly, a massive, thick-hided monster with glowing red eyes burst from the covering clouds, its ten-foot tusks aimed for the two adventurers. It snagged and flipped Iapetus up into the air and hurled him into the chasm. The vigilante plunged into the depths and slammed into a lake of boiling water, sinking 20 feet below the surface.

Chaos erupted as the party fanned out and Ashkor soared into the crevasse to save his friend, his wings beating furiously against the scalding updrafts and blood pumping from a terrible goring. Lyrin leaned out from behind his allies and caught the monster in waves of exhaustion, visibly tiring the creature. In retaliation, it nailed him with a disintegrate ray. Taravin bolstered his ally, but it was only through the intervention of Fate that Lyrin survived the attack. The beast moved further into the darkness and swirling steam and disappeared from sight. The team took the opportunity to cross over the chasm and spread out for an assault. The glowing lantern-sized eyes reappeared in the steam, and a series of cloudkill effects poisoned the air. Despite these obstacles, the party pressed their advantage, with Chuck leading the attack with a barrage of magical hammers. Meanwhile, Ashkor grabbed Iapetus when he swam up the surface, and the two made their way back up the chasm. Beardfist and Aridarye unleashed some healing to offset the effects of the burning-hot air. Then, the dwarven priest slowed the monster with a frigid prayer.

With a yell of exaltation and suffused with righteous fury, Taravin plunged into the swirling cloud to bring the fight to the monster. It roared in defiance as the paladin slipped between the great tusks. At the last moment, Taravin twirled Lightbringer over and slammed the point into the middle of the creature’s forehead. The holy blade sliced the evil skin and bone like parchment, and the smite-empowered charge drove the blade deep into the beast’s brain. With a squeal of shock, the monster shuddered and collapsed, dead from the paladin’s brutal attack.

With the nightmare slain, the party nursed wounds and searched the cavern. Slow clapping erupted as the party stuffed their packs with loot. The air shimmered and shapes materialized—Darl Quethos and his evil minions had arrived! The soft-spoken priest of murder, flanked by devilish allies, proposed a truce. He suggested they combine forces in search for the knowledge of Last Resort. He claimed enough blood had been spilled and his interest did not include a fight with the party. After a conference, the Mercenaries agreed to return to the wild watchers and present themselves as one group, successful in all four Trials of Tilagos.

Now the enlarged party moves toward the wild watchers hoping to learn the secrets of Tilagos. The first few hours of travel have been peaceful. Chuck strove to remain hidden for a time, but Darl eventually suggested they could move faster if their sneaking companion would come out and travel at normal speed. Not long after, Lyrin made mention to Darl that the invisible kenku traveling with them might as well show itself as well. Although conversations have been infrequent and conservative, the groups are starting to learn about one another as well as display what they had learned through various magical means. Darl again applauds your tactics against the nightmare beast and recounts how several of his allies were knocked into the chasm, forcing them to grab them and regroup.

Darl is openly seeking the eye of Myrkul. With it, he believes he can install himself as the highest priest of Myrkul’s remaining faith. It does not take long to learn some about the loud and boisterous efreet genie, Malhazar. The flaming creature claims to be an exile from the Plane of Fire, where he came too close to overthrowing the Sultan of the efreeti. The truth of his statement could be suspect, but he says he has never met his equal in use of the blade. His flaming black horse, Black Fire, hovers a few inches off the ground rather than galloping along the turf.

Not much can be determined about the female kenku other than she wears the robes of Myrkul’s faith and carries a variety of blades and a repeating crossbow. She moves with a fluid grace and always appears to be staring at, or studying, members of the Mercenaries. The kenku’s silence is rivaled by that of the twin monks, Jalagar and Sabir. They never stray far from Darl and appear calm and alert. Neither carries a weapon, but that somehow makes them seem even more dangerous. Sabir amuses himself by plucking buzzing mosquitoes and flies out of the air and squishing them.

Finally, there is Darl’s scout, a great horned devil named Nalhazzarath. It seethes with undisguised hatred for everyone present, especially Darl. It is obvious it would like nothing more than to strangle the lot of you with your own entrails. However, whatever binding Darl has worked on the powerful devil is thorough and strong. You shudder to think what rites the Myrkulite had to enact to enslave a devil that makes other devils quake in fear. After sizing up Darl’s team, you feel any one of you could go toe-to-toe against any one of his allies, except this devil. You suspect you could bring him down if you could all confront him at once, but with Darl’s other allies supporting him, the devil may be unbeatable. Perhaps your uneasy truce will prevent you from finding out.

So, allied with a cancer of evil, the Mercenaries press on. The Age of Worms must be stopped, and a key to that is slaying Dragotha. Will the Mercenaries learn what they need from Last Resort? Will Darl’s team prove a problem now or in the future? Will the portal work for a return trip, or will another exist have to be located?