Forest of Wyrd Session # 38 - The Synarian Beast

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 5) 

Thrax (Fighter 3)

The party gathered their treasure and put their minds once more to dealing with the giant eagle nesting in the head above. Based on the legionary standard they'd just recovered, Hobbs thought there might be some connection between the eagle and the long fallen Imperium. So Thrax was dressed in a legionary uniform stripped from one of the men in statis, and placed the standard on the end of a spear. Then standing in the chest opening, he sounded the bugle to get the eagles attention. Which it did, the avian once more flying down to confront the party, but refraining from pecking eyes and  entrails for the moment. Gnarl then cast speak with animals to open conversation. They learned they eagle knew nothing of the Imperium, so Thrax was able to change back into his usual clothes. The eagle (Elsivar) was quite intelligent, and the party learned this as her usual nesting site. She currently had an egg in her care. And her biggest worry was a creature known as the Synarian Beast, a scintillating winged thing she feared would destroy her egg or young fledgling once it hatched. She was quite interested in making a deal with the party; she would help be their eyes and ears if they would destroy the Beast. She also offered her treasure, half now and half after  the Beast was dead. She agreed they could use the colossus as a refugee, but warned the shade hounds frequently appeared in the darkened room by some unknown means. 

The party agreed, but informed Elisixar they must rest and prepare first. The eagle departed, and as it was now evening, the party decided to take their chances here in the colossus. They barred themselves in the secret alter room for the night; a good plan as they could hear a shade hound sniffing outside their door during the night. It unfortunately was still lingering in the morning, for it emerged and howled just as the the party was exiting the chest cavity via rope. Hobbs and Ranza were already on the ground, but Gnarl was just starting to descend and Tharx still stood rear guard. The howl once more drove Thrax mad, and he bulled past Gnarl to escape down the rope. The wood gnome, being made of stern stuff but muttering some unkind words for the big human warrior who nearly plummeted him to his death, escaped unaffected. 

Once safe and away, the party headed for the refuge tower to rest a few days and let Ranza recover from her grievous wounds. Unfortunately it was not there when they arrived, and in fact there was no sign of there ever being a tower there. They decided to push on and return to Mikan and Allisan's cabin to rest in safety. They were once more greeted kindly, though Mikan was somewhat gruff when he learned they hadn't even been near the fortress yet, let alone recovered the sapling for Allisan. They stayed quite a few days as Ranza needed a long rest, and they also obtained three more healing poultices from Allisan before heading out again. They climbed back up the hillside to avoid the trolls in the valley, and headed back to the colossus to meet Elsivar. By this time they'd figured the Synerian Beast must nest somewhere in or around the valley's northernmost tower, and that tower was their ultimate goal. They received from Elsivar part of her treasure (a wand of bees claimed by Ranza)  and then settled into the secret room once more to rest the night. But of course only after once more dealing with the shade hound which once more turned Thrax into a quivering bowl of fear. But it was driven off with no further issue. 

Once more their rest was disturbed though,  but this time by a racket outside. They heard Elsivar and some other creature screaming at each other, and the sound of massive wings cut the night. The party, thinking perhaps the Synerian Beast had come to them as it did in the refuge tower, bust out of the room and headed out to look. Indeed, in the sky above they could see the giant eagle and a scintillating draconic creature circling each other. The appearance of the party seemed to spook the Beast, and it broke away and flew off to the north. The party scrambled to the top of the statue with Elsivar's help, and prepared a trap for the beast. The giant eagle flew off to grab a deer from the forest to use as bait to lure the beast back, then flew out of site so as to not spook the flying creature with it's presence. The party then raised a racket, and soon the Beast did return. It cleverly did not land in the middle of the trap, however, instead clinging onto the edge of the colossus and biting viciously down on Hobbs. Thrax guzzled a potion of heroism, Ranza used her new wand of bees to summon some help and Gnarl laid down a snare and stumble  on top of the colossus's head. Unfortunately, the kaleidoscopic scales of the Beast caused great confusion, and most of the bees turned to attack the party. As Hobbs continued to get chomped, Ranza blinded the Beast. This caused it to get confused and disoriented, such that it stumbled into snare/stumble. There, momentarily pinned and helpless, it soon met it's end under the combined blows of the party, and the body crashed to the earth below.

Elsivar now emerged to cry her thank, and offered over the rest of here treasure; a series of gems hidden inside a hollow human femur. Gnarl recovered from trophies (hide, scales and teeth) from the Beast and then the party got ready to settle in again and rest after a battle well fought. 

TOTAL XP

5720

GAINS

Gems (10sp, 3x75sp, 2x750sp)

Wand of Bees

KILLS/VICTORIES
The Synarian Beast

LOSSES

none

Forest of Wyrd Session #37 - Into the Colossus

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 5) 

Thrax (Fighter 3)

Vergarious (Changeling 3)  

The rest of the night passed without further interruption, and at dawn the next day the party started plotting a plan to access the colossus. Hopefully without disturbing/attracting the attention of whatever laired in the head. In the end. Thrax made use of his potion of polymorph to transform into a hippogriff and carry the party one by one to the open chest cavity. Last up was the invisible Ranza, and at this point a giant eagle head appeared in the eye opening above. But it was content to just stare at the coming and goings, and shortly after ducked back from whence it came.

The party found themselves inside a rather cramped space, from which other passages led off in cardinal directions. Scattered on  the floor were broken and weather-worn pieces of glass, apparently from a window or lens that once filled the chest opening. There was also a scattering of strange brass mechanisms and gears on the ceiling and wall, and a tarnished round metal plate on the back wall. After close examination of all the bits and pieces, the party surmised this formed some sort of viewing or signaling device.  As a backup, there was a tarnished brass bugle hanging on the wall. Vergarious cast detect magic on the room but discovered nothing of importance. 

Turning now to explore further, quick glances down the three narrow passages revealed they shortly ended in rooms. Except one to the left, which ended in a solid wall of darkness. So the party headed there first. Gnarl sparked up his light spear, and pushed it into the room. Surprisingly, it barely pieced the darkness, lighting just a tiny sphere with faint light. Then suddenly from that darkness errupted a ghastly baying, making everyone recoil in fear and driving Thrax into flight through the western passage. Then from the darkness emerged two shadowy hounds, with glowing red eyes and jaws that took up most of their heads. These leapt at Gnarl and Ranza standing in the corridor. As the rest of the party prepared to wade in, the second hound howled and drove Vergarious and Hobbs into flight, leaving just the changeling and wood gnome in the fight. One hound tore viciously  into Ranza, causing massive damage and forcing her to back away. Her colour spray also had little effect. But she and Gnarl held the line, and the two hounds were soon slain. They then went in search of the missing three. Thrax was found climbing a set of stairs which led both up and down the height of the statue; he reported it was blocked at the bottom by the same rockslide they'd seen outside. A quick check above revealed a mess of sticks and stuff; likely the bottom of a nest belonging to whatever lurked above.  

Vergarious and Hobbs were found cowering in the comer of a small room, which itself presented a strange sight. The walls were covered in murals of Imperium legionnaires on the march, while seated about a small table  were four real legionnaires. They appeared true to life, and close examination suggested they were in fact real legionnaires trapped in some sort of stasis. The party tried several experiments  to 'animate' them, but with no success. 

Heading back out to the chest opening, Thrax decided to grab the bugle and blow. After several hoots, he attracted the attention of the creature in the head; a huge eagle flew down and into the chest, lashing out at Thrax with it's wickedly sharp beak. He backed away, and the rest of the party held their attacks, unsure if this were really fiend or friend. The bird then turned and flew out again, returning to the eye opening and disappearing from sight. 

Ignoring the eagle above for now, everyone returned to the legionary room. Ranza found a secret door on one wall; Hobbs opened it by twisting a torch sconce on the wall. It led to another small chamber, this with an altar in the centre. Lying on the altar was a sword and shield. Carved on front of altar was the sun and triple star symbol of the Church of the Three Virtues, and the following phrase: "One must not trust to know even what one sees. Be right". Ranza boldly stepped forward and grabbed the shield, at which point both sward and shield animated and attacked. Gnarl quickly cast entangle, filling the room (and most of the rest of the statue) with a mass of root and twig. This  held the sword and shield, and everyone else, locked in place. Gnarl and Hobbs however were able to move enough to hack the weapons' down, and than all waited for the spell duration to elapse so they could once more go about their business 

Danger now passed, the party turned back to the altar. Thrax grabbed it and pushed, revealing an open shaft below. Poking at the right side of the symbol on the front caused the alter to open up, reveling another shield and sword. These proved both real, safe and magical, and were claimed respectively by the two changelings Ranza and Vergarious. Everyone then turned to the shaft, and Hobbs was roped up and lowered down. The shaft extended about 70', then opened into another small chamber. At the bottom was a small brass box, covered in images of of Imperium legionnaires on the march. Rather than go after it, Hobbs dropped a grappling hook to grab it and pull it up. This triggered a trap at the entrance to the chamber; eight bolts shot out in a grid pattern across the opening. Thankfully  the hedgefey was not hurt by these. 

Once Hobbs and box were back up in the altar room, they proceeded to break open the lock (which they observed was trapped). Inside they found an entwined golden eagle and dragon, at once recognized as the standard of an imperium legion. One could only surmised it had been placed there for safekeeping ...

TOTAL XP

8560

GAINS

Eagle & Dragon standard of the XXI [Mor] Imperium Legion (3800sp)

Shield +1 

Shadescourge (Sword +1, +3 vs incorporeal creatures) 

KILLS/VICTORIES
2 Shade Hound

LOSSES

none

Forest of Wyrd Session #36 - Of Towers and Witches

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 5) 

Thrax (Fighter 3)

The party found a way across the valley and river, and arrived just as the sun was dipping below the line of the hills and more or less dry-shod, at the base of the southernmost tower. The tower itself was  non-descript. It stood about 60' tall and 20' in diameter; about two-thirds of the way up was a series of tall narrow windows and the top was ringed by crenellations. Curiously, it looked to be in excellent condition, as if it has been built just yesterday. Even the wooden door showed no sign of weathering and use. After knocking and hallooing elicited  no response, Thrax and Gnarl headed inside. The door opened easily on well oiled hinges, to revel a largely bare interior. That said, there were 6 comfortable beds tucked in under the buttresses, as well as a table in the center of the room with 6 chairs, and in the corner, a pile of hay.  A narrow stair circled up to a platform just below the windows, and thence to a hatch leading to the roof. There being no apparent danger, the rest of the party joined the duo. On the table Hobbs found a folded table cloth. When he spread it out, it suddenly sprouted a feast of food and drink of each persons favorite meal. After some trepidation, they sat down to eat and were wonderfully refreshed. Though still somewhat worried about just how perfect the tower was for them, they decided that at this point they had no choice but to settle in and rest while they could. 

The night passed without event (except Thrax and Gnarl once more slept poorly, plagued by even more terrifying and gruesome versions of their respective cursed nightmares). Taking stock, the wood gnome and the fighter convinced the others that a visit to the witch was really a necessity. They had no idea how long they could survive their curses, and wanted to seek the witches help in lifting them. Ranza, traumatized by her previous witch encounters and still quite battered and wounded, opted to remain in the tower while Thrax, Gnarl and Hobbs climbed up the hillside to where they'd observed the fire on their first night in the valley. Looping around, they climbed up above the spot to approach from the high ground. As they got close, Thrax and Gnarl noted something hanging from branches nearby. Close examination showed them to be human eyes which eerily seemed to watch them. This prompted Thrax to dig out the Quilt of Augury and ask if the witch could help them; no point in walking into a strange situation if they didn't have to. Receiving a positive answer, the trio decided to continue on, creepy eyes or no. 

They shortly came out  into a clearing overlooking the valley. The remnants of a bonfire stood next to a pile of wood ready for the next blaze; and at the other end of the clearing was a dark cave opening. Gnarl called out, and a few moments latter a woman emerged from the darkness. She appeared as a rather plain middle aged woman, dark of hair and pale of skin. But with pupil-less eyes of otherworldly black. The party opened up a friendly banter, and learned she was Ygrite, a servant of Samnuha the Watcher. Yes, she could help with the curse, and answer questions about the valley. For a price. And so the party dug deep for trinkets and coins. She grasped Gnarl by the sides of his head, pressing her thumbs hard into his eyes. She pressed harder as she chanted some unknown tongue, then released the wood gnome with a jolt and a push. When he got over the stars flashing in his eyes, the wood gnome felt the curse had lifted from him. Thrax, however, would have to return on the morrow as she could call on Samnuha to do such magic once per day. 

Feeling reassured by the non-creepy interaction, the party plied Ygrite with treasure and questions. They learned many foul things flew in the valley air, giant ravens and birds and other darker things. Asked about the skinchangers, she explained they did indeed draw their power from the Dark Mother. The Dark Mother, mistress of earth and darkness, complemented  the other great wood god, the Green Man, whose power lay in tree and sky. And around them were all the other spirits of the wood, Samnuha among them. Describing the strange wooden stature they'd found in Wickerwood Keep, she confirmed it too was a representation of the Dark Mother. Asked about Fortress Iacarta, she let slip that many factions inhabited the place, including among them the Raven Queen. Asked if any of these factions could help them, she laughed and said that depends entirely on what they wanted and how the party approached them. Asked now if there was anything she would ask of them, Ygrite indicated she longed greatly for the Book of Seven Souls. A magical tomb of some sort, she said it was now held by a fey lord who dwelt in the northernmost tower of the valley. Recover it, and she would call on Samnuha to answer any three questions they desired. 

Having run out of questions (and silver for now), they returned to the tower for the night. Once more taking advantage of the magical feast and comfortable beds, they still set watches just in case. Which was good, for on Hobbs second watch they had a visitor. Or an attempted visitor at least. Something large landed on the roof and tried clawing through the stone, and then the unsecured trap door. Hobbs roused the party and everyone rushed up the stairs to find a way to bar shut the trapdoor. But oddly enough, even though they could see and hear the attempts to pen the door, it did not budge. After some time, whatever it was gave up and took off. Rushing to the roof, the party observed an indistinct but large flying shape heading north, giving the colossus tower it passed along the way a wide berth.

The rest of the night passed without incident, and next day Thrax, Gnarl and Hobbs headed back to see the witch to have Thrax's curse lifted. They also took the opportunity to ask about the colossus tower  (for a price of course), learning that it was home to some large flying creature.  They then took their leave, and headed back to pick up Ranza before heading north towards the colossus. They stayed above the troll-infested valley and followed the edge of the hill, approaching the giant tower from the rear. The statue/tower was carved out of the living rock, in the form of an Imperium legionnaire nearly 200' tall. At the base was a massive rock fall, burying the statue up to mid-calf in large boulders. Which was too bad, as based on how the old road approached from the valley floor, the entrance to the tower/statue was somewhere below that tumbled rock. And a few hours digging soon proved the futility of trying to reach the entrance that way. There were some opportunities higher up however. The statues eyes were openings, and the chest had been burst open somehow, allowing entry via that route as well. Mindful of the witches warning, they waited through the day to see if any great flying beast emerged. When none did, Gnarl went looking for bats, charming and speaking to one, sending it into the openings to explore. It retuned swiftly, to report some large bird a prey thing (but not an owl) nested in the head, while the opening in the centre was empty. 

It now being too dark to proceed further, the party set up camp in a hollow in the rubble. Their rest was disturbed by three spectral creatures that approached them from the north. Gnarl, on watch, took the first blow. The chill touch drained his strength away. The wood gnome yelled everyone else awake though, and in short order the three incorporeal being were dispersed, but only buy use of their magic weapons. 

TOTAL XP

225

GAINS

none

KILLS/VICTORIES
3 Shadows

LOSSES

none

Forest of Wyrd Session #35 - Pit of the Skinchangers

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Jonesomon (Specialist 5)
Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 4) 

Thrax (Fighter 3)

Vergarious (Changeling 3) 

Uncertain of where to go from here, the party was easily convinced by Hobbs to go in search of this pit or cave where men fought beasts to become skinchangers. Something in his noble badger heart had been moved by the thought of his forest kin being sacrificed for such a purpose. The broke camp and climbed back up the wooded slope, coming eventually to a deep dell. At the end of the dell a waterfall, tumbling off the hill above, seemed to disappear into the earth. Closer investigation by the stealthy Jonesomon and Hobbs confirmed this; they discovered a passage sloping into the base of the hill, down which the stream poured. And alongside the stream was a narrow ledge or path cut into the limestone. After building a hidden enclosure to hopefully keep the donkeys and Hoppy safe in their absence, the party first had Thrax consult the quilt of augury to ask if they would encounter skinchangers. It indicated "no", so they confidently lit a torch and started to descend. The path was muddy and steeply pitched, making travel slow and precarious. Noting signs of footprints, both man and beast, in the mud,  they searched along the way for any sign that the footprints turned off the trail to pass through a hidden  or secret door. But found nothing. As they descended a bit further, paintings were seen on the wall of the cave, showing man and beasts and hybrids of the two. 

Reaching the bottom, the path leveled out and opened into  a wider cavern. To the left the stream splashed into a large pool that extended onwards in the darkness. Underfoot was white sand that sparkled in their torchlight, while ahead and to the right were two passages. From the one in front a faint flickering light emerged, so after a quick check to the right (finding nothing but old campfires and damp walls) the party headed in that direction. Jonesomon and Thrax entered first, and were confronted by an old man standing in front of a small fire and brandishing a spear. Behind him on the other side of the fire lay what looked like a body, not clear if it was dead of alive.  The old man (Ufra) confronted the two (and the rest of the party as they streamed into the room), weary and warily telling them to not disturb his son; the one who lay on the other side of the fire. In the ensuring short confrontation, Gnarl tried knocking the man out with a blow with the shaft of his spear; this was unsuccessful and Ufra responded with a stab to the wood gnomes belly. Thrax calmed the situation and, after some back and forth with Ufra in coarse Common, drew out some details of the situation. The son was currently in a vision quest, completing his transformation into a skinchanger. Asked for more details of the process, the old said only the ones who would become skinchangers must fight and defeat an animal of the type they've chosen for their transformation. The rest of the details of how they then ended up in the vision quest the man could not say, he himself having never taken that path. Asked where these rituals occurred, the man vaguely indicated deeper in the cave. 

Bidding the old man farewell, the party moved deeper into the cavern complex, following a narrow winding path which would occasionally open into a larger cave. Then suddenly Jonesomon heard from ahead the faint sound of screams and howls, not in pain but with anger and rage.  Using his stealthy skills, the specialist slipped forward for a look. He found a small cave, lit by faint torchlight. Standing there was a huge bear of a man, arms folded over his chest, eye's closed and head downcast. As Jonesomon stood there, another bout of screaming emerged from a side passage, making the standing man flinch. He moved back to inform the party, and they decided to move up. Thrax stepped into the chamber and started to talk to the man, who like Ufra warned him off. The screaming sound was coming from an adjacent cave, where his his brother was in the final throws of his vision quest. Plying the exhausted and famished man with mugs of ale from his robe of refreshment, Thrax got him to relax and start talking more. It seemed that if disturbed during the vision quest, the person would die. After the transformation quest was over, the person would also be unable to control their animal instincts and would be turned loose into the wilderness to hunt and slay and offer blood to the Earth Mother until enough time had passed they they could exert their human side and regain control. Then they could rejoin their tribe in the mountain fastness. Asked more about the rituals, the man (Barska) told only of the hand to hand fight with their chosen spirit animal; beyond that he vaguely refereed to being brought before the Earth Mother. But no amount of ale would get more information from him. 

While Thrax kept Barska distracted, Joensomon once more slipped past to scout ahead. He found a cavern filled with supplies (food, firewood, etc). Heading back, he collected the rest of the party and they all moved on once Thrax had placated Barska. They passed through the storage room, coming to another intersection. To one side they found a torch lit room with a stag, chained to a wall, being cared for by a man. They decided not to disturb that scene, and moved down the other passage. Soon light and sound appeared ahead, so once more Jonesomon slipped forward. He saw what could only be the site of the combat trials. There he observed, lit by huge bonfires, a large sandy cavern which opened onto the pool or lake. In the middle was a crude fighting ring where a wolf and a young man, stripped to the waist and armed only with a knife, circled each other. They were watched by a small cluster of other men and a trio of what could only be the tribal chiefs or shamans. Meanwhile to one side was a small cluster of men around another small fire; one of them appeared to be getting ready for his fight and all were drinking and smoking as they sat. 

Jonesomon backed up and told the party what they had seen. Wary of confronting that crowd, they decided to retrace steps and try wading down the stream/lake instead.  This went well at first, but as the water started to get deeper and and the lake wider, Ranza at the back of the line was suddenly grabbed from below by a mass of hairy tentacles with deadly sharp suckers. She was slashed unconscious and dragged below  the water's surface. Gnarl, just in front of her, activated his shocking grasp spear and stabbed into the mass. With one blow he killed the hairy thing and rescued the changeling. The party retreated and hauled Ranza back to lay her safely on the sand. They also hauled the dead bulbous mass out of the water and slit it open, recovering a bit of coin and gem from its several stomachs. After a fruitless search for it's lair (and hopefully further treasure), the party decided it best to leave. They saw no gain in pushing forward at this time, and Ranza was in hard shape. Climbing back to daylight and recovering their animals, the party decided to cross the valley to the southernmost watchtower, hoping to find a place to rest and recover. There was also talk of searching out the witch, for Gnarl and Thrax were starting to worry about the long term effects of their pact with the white stone ...

TOTAL XP

614

GAINS

17sp

4gp

2 gems (100sp, 100sp)

KILLS/VICTORIES
1 Decapus

LOSSES

none

Forest of Wyrd Session #34 - Too Many Wolves

 DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Jonesomon (Specialist 5)
Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 4) 

Thrax (Fighter 3)

After once more weighing options on how best to proceed, the party opted to continue on with the original plan. They would advance up the east side of the valley and (hopefully) get to Fortress Iacarta with minimal delay and trouble. Gathering up their gear, they moved out and followed the trail back into the forest. By early afternoon, they could see looming over the trail ahead a bare spur of rocky hillside.  Getting closer, Jonesomon and Thrax started to hear faint and sporadic moans emanating from the direction of the spur. Nervous about walking below the face of the hill, they filed back into the trees and climbed up the flank of the hill. Once there, they could see the top of the spur was flat and rocky with just patches of rough grass and stunted shrubs, about a quarter mile across, . And in the centre they could see a rectangular slab of white rock. The moaning continued to rise and fall, but when they stepped out of the woods and onto the bare ground, the moaning stopped and instead a brisk wind picked up, blowing down off the mountains. Approaching the stone, they could see it was covered in writing. Specifically, it was almost completely covered in names, in a wide range of languages, styles and hand writing. Reading a few of the names out loud brought back the moaning, momentarily and faint. While Ranza wrote down a few of the most recent names (to ask Mikan about these people, or others they may meet later on), Thrax used his whip to rappel  up the stone. The top was flat (and name free), and from there he could finally see the rest of the valley and Fortress Iacarta clinging to a mountain face at the northern end of the valley. Climbing back down, Thrax decided on a whim to carve his name into the rock. Gnarl followed, and both felt a surge of inner strength from potential damnation [permanent +2 save vs any curse]. But they also felt a deep icy dagger plunged in the depths of their souls, giving warning the  gift was likely not without some eventual cost. 

By this time, everyone felt a need to get away from the stone and the bleak plateau. They climbed back down to the trail and continued north towards the head of the valley and the Fortress. The rest of the afternoon passed without incident, at least until the sun started to dip low behind the hills and dusk began to fall. Keeping their eyes open for a campsite for the night, they spied a small glade ahead. Hobbs, scouting ahead called the column to a halt; he could see something in the clearing. He and Jonesomon crept forward for a closer work, and spied four human figures. They were dressed in crude furs and rough cloth, and were clustered around something hanging from a tree branch. One moved aside, and they could now see there were two naked human bodies hanging head down from the branch. Both had had their throats cut and were now bleeding out on the ground; and one of the standing men held a bloody knife in his hand. Outraged, Hobbs mounted Hoppy and loped into the clearing, sword raised high. The four men turned to face the threat, and each suddenly transformed into a wolf headed humanoid and charged forward. The rest of the party arrived in the clearing, and Gnarl cast entagle to trap one of the wolf skinchangers. Thrax and  Ranza ran up to join Hobbs, weapons drawn. Jonesomon followed once he was satisfied there was no one coming up behind them. A short tough fight followed, by the end of which three skinchangers were dead, leaving just the entangled one to deal with.  He was in some sort of berserk rage, but when questioned revealed they were sacrificing the hanging men to the Earth Mother, letting their blood feed the earth. Questioned further, the party learned the men were somehow 'created' by the power of the Earth Mother, but no details of the process were forthcoming. Done with questions, they finished off this last skin changer and then burned the bodies. They likewise cut down the two hanging bodies and burned them separately. From each of the skin changers Gnarl recovered from around their neck a wolf's tooth on a leather thong. In a pile nearby, the party found the gear stripped from the hanging men; general travelling gear, light armor and weapons. There as also a leather satchel with a bit of silver coinage and a gem studded belt buckle. 

Though it was late, no one wanted to sleep in this clearing which now seemed more haunted than the wind swept tor. They pushed on a short distance and found a perfect camping spot just on the edge of the trees. As they were setting up camp, they also discovered signs that someone had stayed here before, and fairly recently. A search deeper into the woods recovered a body, badly mangled and partly eaten, with it's head missing. Nearby was a backpack with some typical travel gear, as well as a spell book and 5 jars of bring colored pigment. Though this discovery was somewhat troubling, the party decided to take a chance and stay here for the night after all. They learned the error of their ways when, shortly after everyone else was asleep, Ranza on watch was surprised by a sudden assault from the darkness by a pack of wolves, lead by a huge dire wolf. She backed away and prepared to defend herself,  screaming at the party who slowly started to stir awake. She was further shocked when the large dire wolf opened his mouth and spat three magic  missiles at her! Badly wounded from this and several wolf bites, the changeling stumbled back beyond the fire to guzzle potions of healing while the rest of the party started to enter the fray. While Gnarl and Jonesomon fought off the smaller wolves who attacked them, Hobbs and Thrax tried to even the odds by focusing on the dire wolf. Hobbs tried to have Hoppy catch the wolf with his sticky tongue and pull the animal into the fire. This was unsuccessful, so Thrax used a gust of wind from his new sword to blow the flames towards the dire wolf and his companions, setting both of them alight for a short time. The dire wolf then called up a mirror image to make it more difficult to target, but in the end the combined power of the party slew the dire wolf and four of the others, the one remaining wounded animal running off into the darkness. 

With their blood now up, the party decided to pursue. Gnarl had no trouble following the trail left by the wounded wolf, and after some hours cornered it in a sheltered spot under the trees. He cast speak with animals to question the creature. Asking first about the wolves den (and any treasure therein), he was disappointed to receive a negative answer. He learned little more about the strange dire wolf, just that the others followed him as he was the alpha male.  Asked about the wolf skinchangers, the wounded animal denied any connection. In fact, the men who became skinchangers would capture wolves to then fight in their rituals by which they became skinchangers. These rituals took place in a nearby cave, the Pit of the Skinchangers.

Finished questioning, Gnarl released the wolf with an admonishment to not hunt men again. The party then set up their second camp of the night, heading down over the hill a little way in case the Pit was truly that close by.  The rest of the night passed without incident, and all slept well except Thrax and Gnarl. Thrax had been kept awake half the night by dreams of being chained to the white pillar on the hill while being bathed in wine by headless nymphs. Gnarl meanwhile dreamed he too was chained to the rock, but in his case was being devoured by golden hawks. Neither felt rested at all, and in fact Gnarl was unable to think clearly enough to bring fresh magic into his mind. 

TOTAL XP

1630

GAINS

350sp, 

Gem studded belt buckle [200sp] 

1 Gem [25sp] 

5 jars of pigment [5x15sp] 

Spell Book: 1/Spider Climb 1/Magic Missile 1/Mirror Image 2/Continual Light 3/Dispel Magic 

KILLS/VICTORIES
4 Wolf Skinchangers 

4 Wolves

1 Enchanted Dire Wolf

LOSSES

none

Forest of Wyrd Session #33 - Troll, Tree, Trap

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Jonesomon (Specialist 5)
Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 4) 

Thrax (Fighter 3)

The party spent the day trudging north-east through thick forest, notable mainly for being filled with mainly pine and spruce rather than the oak and birch they were accustomed to further south.  As evening descended and the sky began to darken, they started to see hints of something more than forest ahead. Ranza climbed the tallest tree she could find to get a better look around. Ahead a braided river flowed south through a valley of gravel outwash. In the deepening twilight, she could also see hints of a fire starting to spark to life on a hilltop to the northwest, while to the south a column of smoke rose from the trees. There was some discussion of checking out one or the other signs of warmth and comfort, but in the end they choose to set up camp for the night right here and proceed in the morning. 

After an uneventful night, they arose to  downpour of rain which made travel miserable and visibility worst. Climbing down the wooded hillside, they entered the valley. To the north they could see two towers perched on the hillside to the north, the closest about a couple of miles away and the other a mile beyond that.  But they opted to ignore these for now, and turned south towards the still visible column of smoke. Picking up the remains of a well engineered road, they made good time until it disappeared, washed out at some time in the past. Moving on through the low bushes and gravel, Thrax on point caught sight of something  moving to his left, down behind a low bank on the edge of a pool of water. He advanced towards it to investigate, but before he got too close, the dripping green and slimy form of a troll rose out of the water and lopped towards him. The fighter boldly stepped up and lashed out at it, while Ranza, coming up behind him, blinded the creature. As the troll lashed out wildly, the rest of the party surged forward and joined the fray. After a few solid claws and bites from the troll, they were able to fell the foul creature and the butchered remains fell into the water at their feet.  But almost at once, the dismembered parts started to writhe and move towards each each, and the troll dragged itself up on it's feet again. Once more the party hacked it to pieces, and this time doused the remains with oil and burned them. Except the head, which Thrax opted to keep and spiked it to the end of his whip for future use. 

Continuing south, they once more picked up the old road and followed it back into the forest. After a short distance, they came to a point where a footpath joined the road from the east. Nearby was a clearing, and in that clearing stood a massive oak. And around that tree was built a log cabin, the source of the smoke they'd seen yesterday and today. The party carefully approached the front door, but before they got there, the door opened and out came a massive man. He stood a good head and shoulders taller than even Thrax, and was equally broad at the shoulders. She stood there, sword in hand, and challenged the characters. There was some initial hostility due to a misunderstanding regarding from where the characters hailed; they man thought first they came from the north but was reassured when told they actually came ultimately from the south.  Eventually, the man introduced himself as Mikan and  invited the party inside for food, drink and warmth. They were shortly joined by his wide, Allisan. She was a slim woman of indeterminate age and dark complexion. She also showed signs of not being well. After some time and banter, the party learned she was someone linked to the oak tree, which they now realized was dying. Informing Mikan and Allisan of their ultimate goal, Fortress Iacarta, they asked the pair for information. Mikan informed them many dangers lay ahead of them, from trolls in the valley, to creatures of shadow at the fortress itself. And the further north they travelled, the closer they came to the dark fairy realm. After some time, he also asked that since they were going to the Fortress, would they do him a favor? He noted that as they had already suspected, the oak tree and Allisan were dying. She could only be saved if the tree were replaced by another sprung from one of it's acorns. Unfortunately, the tree had produced none in many a year. But Allisan, years ago, had planted one inside the Fortress, trying to cleanse it of shadow. Would the party recover it for them? He offered the loan of his sword as payment, a mighty weapon of magic, for he noted many of the shadow creatures could only be harmed by magic. This Thrax graciously accepted. He also offered their home as a safe refuge, and Allisan offered her services as a healer and herbalist to prepare healing poultices for them. All this the party accepted gladly, and took advantage of the pairs hospitality to spend the rest of the day and the night in warmth and safety. 

Next day was bright and sunny, and the party started their journey north to the  the head of the valley and Fortress Iacarta. Asking Mikan for guidance, he had little to offer in terms of the best route. The old road lead through troll country, and the witch Ygrite dwelled in the hills above. The trail that branched off nearby led up the other side of the valley but it too had it's (unspecified) hazards. They opted to try the route up the east side of the valley, to avoid the trolls at least. They crossed the gravel flats and a crude bridge over the river, before climbing up the hillside and back into the forest. Late in the morning they approached a clearing, in which stood the remnants of a bonfire. It had obviously just been doused, and still steamed and smoked. In front of it stood a small iron bound chest. Sensing a trap, but also treasure, Gnarl and Jonesomon headed towards the chest. Jonesomon checked for traps and declared it safe, so Gnarl reached out and opened it. Inside was a pile of silver coin and jewelry.  But before they could count it, from under the chest shot a thick mass of black hair. It grabbed Jonesomon and entangled him; Gnarl being a little quicker on his feet got away. As they rest of the party rushed into the clearing to help, from the other side entered three stout figures. Their legs were those of a goat, and their heads were a wild mass of hair. They rushed towards the fire and started to dance. Gnarl cast an entangle spell and caught two of them, but he then had the irresistible urge to join the remaining creature in it's wild dance about the remnants of the fire. The creatures all then laughed a booming, wicked laugh, stunning Thrax and Hobbs into a stupor. That left just Ranza, who turned a pair of colour spray on the korred (and unfortunately the prancing Gnarl as well). But the korred all fell unconscious, and the party quickly finished them off and untangled Jonesomon. Looting the chest, they then dumped the bodies in the hole beneath from which the hair had emerged, poured oil over them and burned them. After a short time of rest and recovery, the party leaded up again and prepared to continue along the trail ...  

TOTAL XP

6550

GAINS

375sp, 

silver skull with ruby eyes pendant on chain [1100sp] 

small platinum wire sculpture in the shape of an egg with a golden topaz at centre [500sp] 

scroll-protection from magic 

potion of heroism

Blade of the East Wind [Sword +2, wielder can cast Gust of Wind twice per day, can Control Winds once per week and can Wind Walk once per month] ON LOAN

KILLS/VICTORIES
1 troll

3 korred

LOSSES

none

Forest of Wyrd #32 - The Quilt Doesn't Lie

DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

Ranza (Changeling 4)

Jonesomon (Specialist 5)
Gnarl (Wood Gnome 5)
Hobbs (Hedgefey 4) 

Vegarious (Changeling 4)

Thrax [NPC] (Fighter 3)

The sun rose bright and hot the next day, and the party shoved the raft out into midstream to begin their journey. Shortly after leaving shore, Jonesomon observed a short figure on the south bank, standing at the edge of the trees and watching them. He called a greeting, but with no response. When Gnarl did the same, the figure (a wood gnome?) raised a hand in greeting and then disappeared into the bush. The party opted to not pursue, and instead enjoyed a leisurely and lazy day floating downriver under the sun. Evening was approaching as they passed the point where the northern river joined the main River of Sorrows. Knowing the huge rapids were not far ahead, the party hauled the raft onto the north shore and set up camp. It was just getting dark when Vegarious heard something rustling in the brush at the edge of camp. As Ranza and Thrax stayed with the mules, everyone else headed into the thickets to investigate. Right away, a flurry of sling stones shot out of the foliage and into the investigating party and camp. Vegarious, glimpsing figures moving in the semi-darkness, lit the night with a colour spray and the hail of stones ceased.  Moving forward, the party found a group of bush imps, whom they quickly dispatched. Then suddenly another spray of stones came from across the river, and Ranza likewise loosed a colour spray across the waters and ended that threat. Hobbs swam across on his froggy steed and found more unconscious bush imps who were likewise dispatched. 

The rest of the night passed with incident, and the party set out once more under a warm sun. They did not make it far before they could see and hear the rapids ahead; a mile long stretch of rock and white water.  To the south was a high bluff which would prevent portage of the raft, whereas to the north the land was flat. There was some discussion of running the rapids and taking their chances, but in the end they poled to the north bank to look around. They found an old overgrown portage trail, and Jonesomon and Hobbs decided to scout ahead. The trail lead through forest before breaking out onto an old avalanche slope, an open span of scrub brush and huge tumbled boulders.  The trail passed once more into the trees and some time later emerged back out onto the river below the rapids. It would be tough going and take most of the day, but they could get the raft down the trail. The pair headed back to let the party know. When they passed through the boulders, the sharp eyed Jonesomon noted something unusual. One of the man sized boulders had moved and now stood atop the rock pile. Looking around, he noted signs that several others had moved at various times in the past, days or months ago. Sneaking up and around, he approached the boulder from the north. He saw no sign of it being dragged there, but it almost looked like it 'walked' up the slope itself. He also noted it was very faintly vibrating or rocking back and forth. 

Hobbs and Jonesomon slipped back to the party and told them what they had seen. There was renewed debate about running the rapids, but it was unclear what danger the rock slope presented. So Thrax consulted the quilt of augury: would taking the portage be a good or bad idea? The threads of the quilt rearranged themselves to show the party bloodied and smashed on the rock slopes. Humm, maybe the rapids were a better idea? After more debate, they decided to take the portage after all, figuring they were at least prepared now for whatever danger lay ahead. With the raft and mules to the rear, the party moved down the trail and onto the rocky slope. They made it just below the boulder when it started to move; it grew little stubby rock legs and proceeded down the slope towards the party. Vegarious hit it with the last shot of her wand of cold, the frosty blast cracking the rock and flaking off layers. Gnarl slowed it a bit with entangle, and the rest of the party charged in behind a cloud of arrows, lead by the raging badger Hobbs. The stone grew arms and fought back, landing vicious blows on several of the party that very nearly made truth of the quilt omen. But repeated and hard blows finally weakened it to the point where the stone split into several large pieces and fell into a jumble of rubble. Sifting through it uncovered a few rough garnets which were chipped out and dropped in the treasure bag. 

The rest of the day passed uneventfully as the party struggled to get the raft back to the river. It being the end of the day as they did so, camp was set up once more. Apart from a slight interruption of sleep as the party was awoken by a bellowing herd of elk in the darkness around them, the night passed without incident and the party rose to a rainy day to continue their journey down the river. They did not get far before Hobbs, riding Froggy on point ahead of the raft, observed something large in the water moving towards them. They watched warily as it came closer to the raft until they could see it was a large catfish. The fish butted up against the side of raft, not too violently but as it trying to change it's course. Gnarl cast speak with animal  to ask what the creature wanted. The catfish, Gurble by name, was a polite and charming gentleman who had a bit of a problem. A giant crayfish had taken over his lair and he was looking for help to evict the unwanted guest. He offered a ring of water breathing to any great hero who could help him. After some discussion, the party agreed and Gurble led them to the site of his lair, a cave in the rocks at the bottom of the river. Gnarl and Ranza  both jumped in, taking turns with the ring to cast spells while the other held breath. They found the crayfish lurking in the cave, and Ranza used colour spray to blind it while Gnarl stabbed it with with spear and shocked it. A flurry of pinching claws and pointy weapons ensued, and in a while the party had a large crayfish hauled ashore to dismembered for lunch. Gurble thanked them once more and then disappeared back to his home. 

Back on the raft, the expedition continued on. They had to portage past another set of rapids, thankfully without incident this time, before they finally came within sight of the village of Coldhome. A centre of iron mining and smelting, it lay under a cloud of black smoke on the bluff above the river. A set of docks lay at the base of the bluff, so the party tied up there and were directed by surly longshoremen up the path to village. They decided to stay a few days to rest and refit, settling into the Crow and Crucible Inn. While comfortable, they certainly didn't feel welcome in Coldhome, most everyone being cold and unfriendly at best. The one exception was Father Altan at the Shrine of St Oda, the Watcher in the Pit. He was a cheerful old man with lots to say. The party went looking for potions of healing, and Father Altan could offer them two (at 600sp each). He called them Tears of St.Oda, and informed the party they came from a spring deep in the abandoned Red Rock Mine, and alas, he could get no more as the mine was now filled with horrid monsters and it was much too dangerous to get to the spring. The party thanked him for his kindness, and filed away the information about the mine for future reference. 

After a few days rest, the party pushed off again.  It was just before noon that they approached their intended landing point at an eastward bend in the river. Hauling up the raft and hiding it well in the brush, they prepared to head overland towards the lost Fortress of Iacarta. 

TOTAL XP

2180

GAINS

5 garnets (25sp each)

ring of water breathing

KILLS/VICTORIES
16 bush imps

The Rock

Giant Crayfish 

LOSSES

none