Meeting Number 20A: September 29th, 2011- Obsidian City and Stormreach. gearing up, research and allies
In game date- Dravago 1-11 (Late spring, month of handling)
(for some reason i can't put the whole session in one post. maybe too long? i really don't think so. we played for about 7 hours, as usual. anyway, the session is divided to two posts, just so the system will accept it)
so, this session came up within a few days after the last one. as mentioned int he previous post, i tried to settle some things through email, but the short time wasn't enough, so we had to deal with things in the actual meeting.
which led to making most of this meeting about... preparation and arranging for the next legs in the campaign (the final ones). though the players on the whole enjoyed, some were bored part of the way (mostly Grum's player who didn't get his quota of "kill!" and Red's player who'se character was busy with boring research most of the time.)
so... this was not ideal. but i hope there were some good times. this time is the last time the party gets any time to organize and prepare themselves. plus, there were a few surprises and challenges here and there.
in many wasy this was Danves' meeting. heshined a few places here and there, giving us good moments,
one small leveling note: Red's player kept changing his mind about his 4th level spells as a wizard (weren't used yet). he chose assay resistance (to battle Rakshasas) and Dispelling screen (with slight modifications, to battle Auressia controlled swarms and possessed)
for those who are more interested in the action, i suggest to skip to the spoiler labeled "so what have we got?" (highlighted in the second post), but there are some funny parts in the middle. for those wanting to learn of the process, and the last days of (relative) quiet, read on...
Chapter 6
Welcome Home?
SpoilerAs the party appeared, battered, bleeding, burnt and more in the middle of the temple, some half giants drew arms, some cried out. there was some big stone giant, a heavily weathered one at the back who raised a boulder. but they all stopped once they saw who these were! (a smaller stone giant eased up the elder one). a cheer went upon them, and some half giants ran to call others. a babbling coccoon enveloped them, but made little sense... Google was the one who spoke giant.
And then Jaela screamed, and collapsed. Gabriel immediatley kneeled by her, try ing to see what happened. her closed eyes moved, face twitching, asif she was dreaming. she would not wake. Gabriel tried to heal her with her last spells, but though it healed her wounds, it did not heal her mind. "Auressia" said Danves grimly. "she got some hold on her".
"speaking of which" said Red with a slightly amused, slightly alarmed voice "i think she got some hold of me too. once the protection against Evil wears off, i'm not sure what will happen..." (the dominate person spell) the party could spare one more circle against evil for her, for a short time, at least till they get their bearing.
the party noticed a bit of change in the half giants armor and weapons- they were of karrnathi design, if a bit beaten. they smiled at this, realizing the half giants equipped themselves with the arms of the keeper's undead soldiers.
Nau (the leader) rushed to the party, and talked with them in Broken Common. he seemed to thank them, congratulate them, and so on, but he was mostly trying to figure out why they were here, and why were they so badly wounded...
Soon Deest and Daku arrived as well (Google's betrothed and mother respectfully) who could speak more. "where is Auxallia?" the party asked, to which she responded "come after me". a small procession went towards Auxallia's chamber, with the psionic generator. Ellesir, the Kalashtar psion/ artificer joined behind, speaking with Red in hushed tones.
oh, one more thing. i passed a note to Danves Player- "you feel a bit odd, and it takes you a while to figure it out- the curse. it's gone. completely..."
i couldn't read the player's response.
DM design
Spoilerwe were fast coming to the last part of the campaign. i felt that it was time Danves makes his own conscious decisions, without any "hovering threat" above him. also, it seemed appropriate with the fall of the silver flame's church. i'm not certain how the player took it though...
on the way to Auxallia's room Deest tried to ask the party as to Google's fate they told her he left them before thefight, but knew not where he is. she thanked them, but seemed troubled.
catching up
Spoilerthe chamber held it's surprises. first there was Khork! only now he had scales, and a more reptilian appearance (became a dragon born). he welcomed the party, except Grum whom he treated a bit suspiciously. at my request Khork wasn't dealt with, we had enough on our plate.
the second surprise- Auxallia was in some sort of a cocoon, silvery with all manner of rainbow colors. the party moaned at this, they kind of wanted her help. "when did this happen?" "a week ago she said she had an epiphany, that she knew what she must do. 2days later the cocoon was completed, we guard her since. "when is she coming out?". Deest raised her shoulders. "we don't know". yeah. the party LIKED that.
it was time catching up, the party told the highlights of their tale (with Deest translating to Nau, and Soom- the weathered stone giant elder). about Auressia, the bugs, her spreading power, and her focus on Jaela. Soom had trouble believing such a small creature heldsuch power, andthe party explained as well as they could. thenews troubled the small assembly greatly.
Nau then spoke, translated by Deest: "you came to our aid when hope was lost. you faced the undead horror, and risked your lives against their leader. our tribe would be gone if it wasn't for you." he then stood up. "and we shall repay our debt, and fight with our friends! the tribe joins your struggle, whatever you wish of us, we'll do!"
some in the party seemed a tad surprised at this. they sort of expected to havet o work for it. but after the success with the keeper, it seemed only reasonable. Soom too vowed his help, but with a less enthusiastic tone. Ellesir was also willing to craft for the party free of charge, provided they supply him with the resources, or magic items which he could draw power from. Daku offered her help with potions.
Basic Strategizing, and the small matter of spell components...
Spoilerthe party then tried to figure out their options, priorities and constraints. this was a jumbledup discussion, so i'll try to summarize it here in points:
- The main constraint: TIME! Auressia obviously still had connection with Jaela, and it;s a matter of time till she'll make her way towards them. how long will that take? the party didn't know . Red suspected a month at least (mobilizing an army so large), gabriel was far more concerned, thinking that if she'll take Arcanix, the mages might offer a faster alternative. Danves also commented that she didn't need her whole army- they were fewer and weaker now. they needed some way to learn their time frame
- which also led to the question- with Auressia spreading across Khorvaire, they need some way to fight her. ideally break her hold over subjects, or disrupt the hive mind, but some spell to fight the bugs might also work. research was a top priority, but unfortunately the only research material here was the Mind Flayer memories' shard from the Silent halls. Red will have to take this chore.
- a more immediate matter: releasing Red from her dominate person spell. Red still had a rope trick spell, in which they'll sleep (and where Auressia can't exert her influence, and a dispel evil at morning will take care of that. at least one problem solved.
- what About Jaela? Red suspected this was something to do with dreams/ nightmares (true). she asked me if there is any way to get in the dreams, or counter them. i said there is a special shard kalashtar sometimes use for that. and luckily Ellesir had one. however the older Kalashtar warned her that only one could go in, and then that one might face whatever nightmare or threat besieging Jaela. the party didn't like this, and tried to think of alternatives.
- can they buy/ sell things in obsidian city? well, no, not other than very basic stuff. but Stormreach has a bustling market! however, since no ship is available, you'll have to trek it there, approximate it 5-6 days. the party hated this, since it might split the party, and the length of the trip there and back might mean they may leave the people of Obsidian city in trouble. they thought of using the teleport stone to shorten the time, but since this was a one use item, they decided to keep it. after much discussion, they decided that Red would stay for research, Gabriel will try and help Jaela (and do her own research), and Grum and Danves would trek to Stormreach (hoping Grum's survival skills will help shorten thet trip). Lareth (the blood of Vol cleric the party saved0 asked to join them! he could use some time in the city. the party suspected him, but agreed.
- resources? the party, though they have quite a few items beyond WBL, were very poor on money. they needed to scrunch up some money. Nau and Soom were willing to give some of their tribes' loot, and the party decided to sell some additional stuff. still, not a lot. several thousands at most. Danves especially seemed displeased. he wanted to upgrade his armor, and enchant a heavy shield (which he can now wield), but Red and Gabriel wanted scrolls, many many scrolls. Khork would not agree to give any of Auxallia's treasure. it is for her to decide.
- What about the warforged titan Elessir worked on the last time? well, apparently it is an obsidian psionic warforged titan! he thinks the giants wanted to use these as soldiers against the Quori. it functions similar to a regular titan, but has some psionic powers and reserve. however, though it follows some very basic command, in order to fight you need to transfer your soul to it, and after some time in it, it may drive you crazy.... yeah... lovely. the party chose NOT to use it.
- what Else can Ellesir do? he could craft for them, but has a very low crafting reserve. the party gave him some of their items (mainly the ones they exchanged once they got the more powerful items from the church- Gabriel's holy club, Danves magic sword and Grum's magic armor to use for crafting. they'll give him assignments by the day. the first and foremost would be to try and charge Red's 8th level dispel magic wand (which they got from the Keeper). it got only 3 charges left.
- Daku could also create some simple potions for the group. the party forgot about her till much later, when she produced some simple ones, i won't go into that)
- information. the party needs information... Gabriel suggested she cast Commune, when i asked her if she has the incense required. (we exchange XP cost for 5 times the XP in materials) the player said he didn't. this prompted me to ask about various other spells of the 5th level which he just got. he lacked material components for most of the costly ones... (this is the first time of the player getting to such levels, and he thought he'll have time to purchase in time). revivify (1000 gp crushed diamonds) was a big issue. so some of the purchasing plans were changed for material components. Danves didn't like this. Info gathering will have to wait. (i didn't mention it, but Divination might have helped as well. still, not my job)
another problem was with Scrying- it needed a 100gp font. butGrum searched much of the night and found Gabriel a font with draconic motifs (the giants worshiped the draconic gods). will do.
DM design
Spoilersome of goal of this chapter revolve around the preperation. so i wanted to give the party all kind of hard choices, from which they can either benefit or suffer. anotehr idea was to act on limited information. (there will be action in the chapter, but later on) some of this is reflected by the following:
- conversing with Soom might gain his displeasure or his help, which might give a HUGE benefit, if the party wil lbe smart enough to think about it, or lose the benefit if not. (some hints about this, and the party;s tries are following in the log).
- Jaela's special challenge can really help, and can really harm the party. it will be discussed more after the party... "deal with it".
- the unknown time limit, and the party's (current) inability to learn what it is. this especially affects the decision to split the party to Stormreach.
- the psionic obsidian warforged titan could be an asset, and a risk. the party didn't deserve a "free" titan to boost.
- i did know ahead of time that Gabriel's players doesn't have the component.s still- it's his fault. but we start reaching levels and options that require resources (he's looking at the pact spells for instance). these need to be inforced, but they put their demand on the party's resources.
- Lareth. he was a statistic block till the party rescued him, and i liked his antagonism of the silver flame. plus- a possible connection to Atur made him a character i could build on. and so i did. would you trust him or not?
Gabriel making friends
SpoilerGabriel's player is a strategist, and he tries to get any possible advantage out of a situation. and in hismind stood one fact- the party never went to the Catacombs of Imasil Kumam the last time they've been here. (the creator of obsidian city. the party could have gone to that place to serach for things to help in the battle, but they ended the battle before that, and Google wouldn't allow looting it). cheking, he understood the weathered elder stone giant was the one to ask.
she made her case to him, tried to say that this was the time to gather all resources, to fidn anything that might help to fight this demon. Soom replied that Imasil Kumam never fought demons, and the place was a holy one to his people, and must not be breached. there wasa further exchange of words, but Gabriel desperate need made her say some... realising this she tried to make up for it, asking to be escorted by Imasil or someone he trusted, to see they only take items of relevence. the persuasion roll was made, and came not so hot.
The elder refused the request, and said that he respect the party, what they did for his people and their allies, but he sees no really need to desecrate the thousands year rest. of his people. Gabriel then made some comment about the silver flame's faith and treating the dead, which was sort of against that of Soom. the negotiation ended poorly.
the party decided to rest. after the mournland and the tough fight at the church, they needed it. they climbed up to the rope trick, taking the still restless jaela and slept.
DM design
SpoilerSoom is a tough nut to crack persuasion wise (HD, class levels and wisdom) but not nearly as was jaela in the church. so it's quite possible. The player's argument however was not quite well thought of (even some of the other party members winced).
what is in the catacombs? would i allow it? of course i'd allow it, but convincing needs to be done. i kep the catacombs as they are, though Soom knows the rites to overcome the obstacles (they would have faced them only if they decided to break in. which would be a breeze in their levels, but perhaps not to just one or tow, after separating, i wanted to avoid that, as it would leave the rest hanging for a long while.
the catacombs held nothing important to the cause, but a few magic items and some loot that might have been used. the most important maybe are fractured spell shards that Red could have learned (3-5 level spells)
Day 1, Obsidian City
Spoileri'm going to count the days of "the retreat" as it helps me keep count on things. the party awoke, memorized spells, and 1 Dispel Evil later, and Red was free. Grum, Danves and Lareth were going to Stormreach. gabriel, though not fully trusting Lareth, asked him to send a message to his superior at Atur when he gets to the city.
Red went to Auxallia's room, reached for the shard, and started to focus on the twisted mad memories of the mind flayer researcher of thousand of years ago.
DM design
Spoilerthe player responded poorly to the game mechanic i suggested for the shard research (see in the previous post) so i figure dout he can probalby get one "revelation" a day on average. we forgo the roll and use this.
on the whole, i am looking for a worthy mechanic of research- general, and spell research in particular (to which i'll get) especially something that will involve the player, since what i opted for got... somewhat boring.
Gabriel was conflicted whether to use Ellesir's Dream shard to try and help jaela. the other players adviced against it, fearing that she might get a grip on Gabriel as well, or learn of the party's strategy. Gabriel decided to try more Dispel Evil.
i wasn't prepared for this, but it seemed a viable option. still, i wanted to make it hard, so i called for a caster level check. the player failed, despite boosted caster level (through divine power feat), though using Action points.
failing that, Gabriel went to the blood Pool again. she tried researching however she could, but found nothing new. then as she went back, she met Soom. again she tried to gain his help and assistance. and the elder told her that the pool was used by the ancient giants to call some sort of fiend, that gave them "fast travel". not much help there.
again she tried to gain access to the catacombs(with Soom's relation one step down to neutral from friendly) and it seemed well, till she said he doesn't know what she sacrificed, and doesn't understand what needs to be sacrificed at this battle (maybe not these exact words, but on the same spirit), which made Soom narrow his eyes. "the keeper which you defeated and his sons killed two of my sons, and my tribe lost more than a third of his young. i do not know sacrifice?" another roll, and another failure. Soom turned and went, his feet echoing. this did not go well.
last thing, the player wanted to try and scry on some poeple. the first was Obraskyr, who failed his saving throw. he saw the dragon flying (whereto he couldn't tell, 10ft radius doesn't show much) and heard other wings accompanying, though he didn't know what creatures. no one was riding it, but that was all she learned.
the player had a spell he wanted to research, raising his Cleric level for a limited time for purposes of turning undead and exorcism, he started to pray (doing research)
Ellesir was tasked with charging the dispel magic wand. at the end of the say 2 charges were added.
at the end of the day Red came to the first revelation from the shard:
- some angelic yet terrifying and "wrong" creatures with all kinds of living attachments to him (armor, whip and more) holds court before several Illithids, of considerable expertise. he describes a project. a swarm, intelligent, psionic. (Rev 1)
yeah, not much help here... however, the research took it's toll on the wiardess' mind. saving two will throws she suffered some wis damage. Gabriel was told to prepare some lesser restoration for tomorrow.
Day 1, on the way to Stormreach
Spoiler3 half giants joined them for added protection. they followed the river. and i mostly disregarded random encounter, as they served no real purpose (though the party suggested the harpies again! :smallwink:) Grum informed me that he decided to forgo another animal companion, and took the Distracting Shot feat from... PHB2? can't remember. on his request i allowed him to exchange his improved familiar feat for a homebrew feat called Marksmanship, which is basically a power attack ranged, but he adds the bonus onl once for bows, not twice. still- better than nothing.
on the way, while Grum was leading ahead, Lareth took up conversation with Danves. "i wish to talk to you if i may. i'm a bit concerned about our tactics. are we going to stay here, in this dump while the demon spread over Khorvaire? Gabriel is too focused and hang up on her faith, but the silver flame just DIED. and Red, well, i applaud her power, but does she really think she could find a power to undo all that! the swarms, the possessions? you felt that fiend's power!"
Danves seemed to think, a bit agitated and replied. "look, i know it looks grim, but it's the only choice we really got. Red will find the spell, and then we'll take the fight to it."
lareth seemed unconvinced. "take the fight to it? to the middle of ti's swarmsand ever increasing armies of posseased?" that sounds like suicide." he stopped a moment before adding "look, you guys said that she's searching for these "seals" right, and one is at Atur, the temple of night. lets get ourselves there with teleports by Orien and whatever, and make a stand there! she took the silver flame by surprise, but she won't take the temple that easily. and we got plenty of undead, which i'll bet she can't control. lets be with an army, with force, at a key location, not out here, alone!"
some of the party seem to think of the idea.. the rest thought that he might be possessed, or have some other interests at heart. Danves however replied to him "look, i know Red, and i trust her judgement. us few couldn't change the scale much at Atur, but we might be able to make a difference this way." lareth withdrew and moved away.
one of the players mentioned that Lareth might animate some dead to help, but Grum objected vehemently. one of his favored enemies were undead.
Day 2
Spoilerlesser restoration on Red, and back to her research (which became most of what she did, which boredthe player. i needto avoid this or streamline this if possible)
Gabriel tried more Dispel evil on Jaela, to no avail. and she tried to Scry on the traveler, but couldn't pierce her save, which seemed quite high. she too returned to her research.
Ellesir was tasked to prepare a "spikes" scroll for Gabriel (though at 5th level). she didn't like it when the Mezzoloth in the church dispelled it. and cadded two more charges to the wand
Meanwhile Lareth tried to talk to Grum, but the half orc seemed filled with purpose and sense of destiny, and his bow disliked the persuasion attempts. Lareth became quiet soon enough.
at theend of the day- Research' revelation:
- a confused and quite detailed memory of trying to find the right bugs and mutating them to the purpose. (you see what seems like a much larger husk of worlds, a little part of you saw at Dur Martop in Droaam, in the blinking medusa room) this is quite long, it seems the bugs were finally collected from what feels like (in the strangeness of The mind flayer's brain), mid west Droaam? (Rev 2)
more mental damage, more lesser restoration.
DM design
Spoilerthe mid west Droaam comment was refering to an adventure the party might have gotten to if they'd taken a different path. i was worried the party might focus on it, deciding to go there, but they barely seemed to notice it.
Day 3, Auxellia emerges
Spoileras the party woke, and went on their morning routine, Deest came bursting- "quickly! come! Auxallia! she's back, and she's beautifull!" the party hurried to her room, where they found Auxallia on her treasure patch- her scales weremulticolored, andshe was feathered, including two wings. Gabriel immediately prostrated herself "a Couatl!"
Eberron stuff, and DM's "fluff homebrew" stuff
SpoilerCouatls have been the opposition of the early fiends, especially the Rakshasa, and have fought with the dragons against them. in a great act of sacrifice, most of them died to unleash an energy that bound many of the powerful rakshasa and leaders. to this days very few remain, even dragons rever them.
one Couatl helped the Silver flame's first saint, Tira Miron to bind the fiend where the church of the silver flame now stands... they are considered sort of "high angels" for the worshipers of the flame"
but how does a Naga turn into a couatl? well, for the details you'll have to go into my other link (the compendium) and scroll down to the serpent lords. basically, nagas grow and can take 3 paths, one of them might lead towards turning to a Couatl, though they don't know it before hand)
Auxallia motioned them closer. they noticed her scales were shimmering and new. "i have returned. i am not fully who i was, but i share some memories of my kin, of the guardians that were here. i see you too have returned, here, to one of the focuses of the prophecy. the key players are gathering, events of great proportions are about to come. let us share our stories, friends, allies, prophecised ones, to battle the evil against us."
Gabriel makes a show of being awed, inspired and the like, while Red tell their tale once again. the Couatl agrees of their plans, but suggest one piece of information, and one advice.
She knows of the blood Pool! it takes a great need ("check!") and a spilling of some great blood ("will do") to usually summon it, but with a small chance of success. it is supposed to summon some fiend known only as "the captain", which can bring very fast traveling, but how she does not know. she does know that it was used to move many people at once. the pool of blood heighten the chance a great deal, with the correct ritual, which she knows. however, thereis mention of some price to the travel, which is... unclear.
also, she reminds the party of the Crystal the found (and lost) at Dur Marrtop, which the Traveler fixed, but not charged. couldn't Ellesir do something with it? the Artificer checks, and a bit later that day comes and tells them he can make it use activated, emitting a sort of "anti-psionic field" in a large radius (60-80 feet, he's not yet sure) which will remain active for 30-60 min (again, not sure). he can do a 2/day activation, or limited charges (7-12) but can be continuos, even all in one go. the party discuss this, and though Red prefers the latter option, the others prefer the former.
however, it would take him 10 (!!) days to make this, and most of the magical crafting energy they gave him. the party decides to go for it.
DM design
Spoilerthe shard will help greatly, but it's not a necessity. the party could use the energy to craft them items instead. again- a choice.
Gabreil, still hung up on the catacombs asked Auxallia to remember if there is something important there, but she said she could not remember. the player let it go after that. Gabriel Tried Dispel Evil on Jaela again, and the last attempt worked! suddenly her body floated, turned to gabriel with Auressia's eyes and sneer and hissed "don't mess with me! she's mine!" before falling to the ground, again unconcious, but the hold on her felt.. lessened. Gabriel was pleased (she burnt about 2-3 action points on this so far). soon...
Auxallia took Jaela to her embrace, trying to care and nurture the chil. another scry attempt on Traveler, again failed. she resumed her research, as Red resumed hers. but not before askinf Auxxalia to take from her treasure. the Couatl gave it all, though it was not much (4400. but what good would it do, now that the "shopping party" was gone?
A sending to Danves: "we're sending 4400 more with some half giants after you. persuade someone to let you buy with money coming (it was better phrased in Hebrew). we trust your skill Danves". the half elf grunted. how was he supposed to do that? quickly a small team of half giants were assembled to take the loot to Stormreach, two days behind...
Red's research took a heavy toll on her this day- 1 wisdom drain. tomorrow morning a restoration was cast on her.
Revelation: - experiments to give the bugs intelligence, psionic powers and some minimal sort of a hive mind. it seems quite a few psionic creatures died in the experiments, including quite a few mind flayers. then- a break though- mutating the creature while submerged int a pool of some giant swimming tentacled brain. (Rev 3)
this did spark some interest. tentacled brain in a pool? i don't know if the players really didn't know, or faked it, but they couldn't think what it is.
don't worry, i'm not going to face them with a 25 CR monster, more a flavor thing, but might supply some clue later on, an important clue.
Day 4- Obsidian City, Jaela
Spoilerat morning, after memorizing spells, Gabreil tried her luck again freeing Jaela. this time she succeeded, and the child, Keeper of the flame seemed to sag, and ease her breaths. a little while latershe awoke, smiling. "there was the most awful dream- Auressia was there, trying to drive me mad. taunintg, whispering hard truth, easy lies, scouring my mind for the secrets of the flame. i was nearly gone, when you Gabriel, my Angel, have saved me!"
She looked at the Couatl with some awe, as both it and Gabriel took care of her. she was no longer filled with the power fo the flame, no longer the radiant high cleric of power. she was a girl- a smart and resourceful one, but yet just a girl.
Eberron Stuff
SpoilerAs was mentioned, the speaker of the flame turns into an 18th level cleric in the church, but outside it it relies on his/ her own powers and items. Jaela is an exceptional child, a 3rd level cleric, quite powerful protective magic items, and she has visions which are a plot tool.
in most Eberron games jaela is supposed to be a quest giver, and someone who can cast really high level spells if the party might need them. i decided to try and make her an actual character (the Five Nations book helped a lot). not sure i portrayed her well.the party half respects her half makes jokes about her. but that may be the lot of most NPCs...
she heard the plan, heard the strategy and problems. upon hearing about the lack of spell ingredients she stopped Gabriel. she reached to her robe, whispered some words and a pocket emerged, from which she took some stuff: a wand of Mass lesser vigor (party like!), 500 gp of crushed diamonds, and 2000 worth of incense. and lastly, two beautiful diamonds- these were enchanted with a resurrection spell, which anyone can use. the party liked that, but also a bit worried- "so high chance of death, eh?" the only other help she could offer was her visions, but they come unbidden and unexpected she could not control them.
DM design
Spoilerso what was the point of this, it seemed quite anticliactic- just spam Dispel Evil and that's it?
well, the party did take a boring Route. i hoped one would go into Jaela's dreams. there they would be a contest over her mind ( a sort of a skill challenge, after each victory/ loss the character is pushed out, to come back the next day). the challenge was supposed to give mroe presence and lifeto Auresiia really, and the keeper second. thrwoing arguments instead of spells, over the keeper's soul looked like a fine idea on paper.
but the party didn't want to risk it, scaredy cats! i left them with a mechanic on the spot that should have made it hard (and maybe encourage going into dreams?) but it failed. the only thing the party didn't get from this challenge was the chanceto learn some of auressia's secrets (had she failed she would have lost some of her temper and "slipped" some thing out.), but that is the price for not risking your own secrets (which could have happened as well).
Jaela was supposed to survive for 5 days before going insane (and a liability), but the party finished before that.
Another failed Scrying attempt ("why is the Traveler so hard to scry?")
and back to research. a sending to the group told them about the ingredients, and lessened the demand considerably. Red, now acutely aware of her low saves, requested to buy her a belt of resistance (like cloak, just different slot). Danves growled- where to get the money?
at the end of the day Gabriel finished her research, so i let her role a religion check. she failed, so she had to research the spell some more (again, not that happy with the research mechanic invented here) the player was frustrated, since he put the minimum into religion to get the synergy (5 points) and that's it.
This night's revelation:
- some time later you notice some experiments that seem to trouble the Mind flayers- weapons from the Dhakanni goblinoids. some crystals that disrupt the link between bugs. it seems temporary, but what if they are charged with enough psionic power? contempt from the mind flayer. the Dhakani are weak, they don't have enough psions... (Rev 4)
Auxallia said she might have something, she needed to search her kin's memories. the party wondered if their shard from Dur Martop is enough, but after some consultation they realized it's not nearly enough.
Day 4- Stormreach, nightly investigations.
Spoilerdue to a succesful survival check, the en-route party arrived there at the night of the 4th day. "finally civilization! after the heat, humidity, insects, plants... ewww!" Danves exclaimed, while Grum seemed sad "civilization, after the quiet, ease, peace and trnquility of the wild. stuffed rooms, overcooked meals. ewwwww!"
the party decided to sleep the night, and buy things tomorrow. Danves, really needing some release after the Mournland and the bloody fight at the church, aid for two whores, while Grum meditated in his room. soon after the party started, Lareth knocked on Danves "i'm heading out, catch something to eat, relax".
Danves suspected him, so he dressed up casually, grabbed some coin, his potion belt an headed after Lareth. Grum heard this commotion, and headed after Danves. Lareth seemed to be in plain clothes, not his armor, but didn't seem to try and evade. Danves found a street urchin ("you know, a David Copperfield kina kid") and paid him some to keep tab on the priest, just in case.
they ended up seeinghim near a Sivis message station. he knocked on the door, and after a minute or so a blinking gnomish woman opened the door.she exchanged some words with him, and let him inside.
Eberron Stuff
SpoilerHouse Sivis controlls amongst other things, the means for a fairly fast communication. their stations can communicate with one another, no matter the distance, and then a courier or someone else take the message to the person intended.
Danves came by and knocked on the doo. the gnome woman openedthe door grumbling "two at his hour? don;t you know ho late it is?" but Danves produced coin, so she let him in, just to meet Lareth in the waiting room. Danves wassurprised (to his credit,the player had no idea how these stations are handled) "oh! Lareth..." "Danves, what are you doing here?" "um, sending a message, and you?" "me too, Gabriel, deluded as she is, though it would be wise to warn the temple."
a few uncomfortable minutes later a gnome with the house' mark appeared, and Lareth went into the message stone room. Danves made sure the woman is dozing off, and drank a potion of gaseous form slipping into the room. disappointingly, he heardthe gnome sending the expected message to Atur: "bugs are possesed by a demon, they seek a seal protected by the temple, am at Xendric, trying to find solution, dispel magic effective." and so on. "i spent a gaseous form potion for THIS?"... then a thought followed "i left two whores for THIS?!?!" Danves returned to the room and resumed his form. he was invited in as Lareth left, fabricating a message and recipient (he had no idea at that point)
Meanwhile, Grum watched from outside, and saw Lareth leave, but instead of heading to the inn, Lareth took to side street. he followed the priest, and saw him trying to converse mostly with goblinoids, the dregs of Stormreach. his keen ears heard the phrase "Initiate and the saint" a few times, but he couldn't figure this out. then he reached near the docks, and Lareth knocked on the door of an unassuming building. the door was opened, lareht showed his holy symbol, and was ushered inside.
The player assumed this might be a blood of vol temple in disguise (they didn't have much friends in Stormreach, the Sovereign host was the dominant religion). after waiting a bit, Grum returned.
As Danves came out, an Urchin grabbed his sleeve, and led him on a similar route of Grum. suddenly the two met. "what are you doing?" asked Grum. "i'm following Lareth, what are you doing?" "i'm following you following Lareth". he told him of what he saw, and Danves recognized the phrase "Initiate and the saint"- it's a phrase of the blood of vol mentioning the followers of the faiths, and those who sacrificed themselves for it, becoming undead or "saints", to protect the others, and further the churhc's goals. they decided that further investigations won't help, and turned back.
DM improvisation
Spoilerthis wasn't planned, but i thought that the players on the "shopping trip" were a bit bored, and so thought a bit of subterfuge might be nice. and then they turned back, jsut as it got interesting... oh well.
As to Lareth, i decided to make him mostly an ok guy, with some differentiating views. i wanted to step a bit away from "blood of vol= evil necromancers" concept. if you happened to read about the religion in "faiths of Eberron", it is a fascinating one!
Day 5 Obsidian City- commune and final revelation
Spoilerwith ingredients in hand, Gabriel wanted to cast a commune spell. but due to the spell's "informative" answers, she wanted to build the questions wisely. another problem is that impose a 1 week minimum interval between commune spells (to be frank, this is due to a previous campaign, in which I spammed the DM with these) Gabriel was able to boost her level by 2, which meant 11 questions.
finally, the players had their questions, and they asked as following:
- "Can Auressia open the seal in the church without Jaela?" the answer: "no". this gladened the party.
- "Does Auressia needs Jalea ALIVE to open the seal?" answer: "yes". another bit of important infromation
- "do the catacombs of Obsidian City holds anything that can help against Auressia?" answer: "unclear". the powers didn't know about the specific items in the catacombs.
- "Did Obraskyr inform Argonessen about the threat of Auressia?" answer: "no". the party was conflicted about this- does it means he's a traitor, or that she caught him before he coulddo it?
- "would the dragons join the fight?" answer: "soon". ok, to tell the truth, the answer was meant to freak the players just a bit (they know what thedragons did to Xen'dric)
- "are there any spies or someone who helps Auressia in Obsidian City?" answer: "no". this was really important to the party. i know i know, it might have been more fun if she had, but there arelimits to her power. Danves' player wondered if the answer extends to Lareth, since he's not IN the obsidian city....
- "can the Traveler be trusted?" answer: "unclear". c'mon, i mean you're asking about the traveler? but joking aside, there is a real reason why the answer was as it was. i wondered why they didn't aks this about Obraskyr
- "was the seal in Arcanix taken by Auressia?" answer: "no".
- "are two open seals enough for achieving Auressia's goals?" answer: a slight pause, and then "unclear". the party are uncertain if that's because they phrased the question wrong, or because it is unknown, or something else.
- "Will Auressia or a force from her be here within a week?" answer: "no". i don't understand why they didn't start with this, and tried to then narrow it down, as time seemed to be the most important. also, this is day 5, so they aretalking about day 12. unknown to them, Auressia's "reclaiming force" intends to arrive on day 13...
- they hesitated and started to think and discusss the last question. then i said that they dally to muchand the spell ends (as mentioend in it's description)
so, at least a week. that's something! Gabriel forsaken the scrying, and returned to her research, as did Red.
at night the final Revelation came.
- rage of the Illithid at a successful infiltration and "sabotage" strike by Elite Dhakani team. They somehow got some psionic power stored, and unleashed it at the right place- the place the binding and psionic enabling of the swarm took place. The core of the psychic web. (Rev 5)
- there is nothing about possession however. it seems this is Auressia's doing.
the party understood several things: "the place the binding and psionic enabling of the swarm took place."- this means the Morunland, the Eston mines, the place of the seal. as Auxallia heard this, she seemed to think, and then added an opinion: "if you're going there, might it be worth of you to try and close the seal? however, we do not know how... and the price, might be high. Now Gabriel knew EXACTLY what i was talking about, but the others were confused, so the player explained- the other seal, the one at the church was sealed that way by a sacrifice of a holy warrior of the flame (Tira Miron) and a couatl. at which point the party turned to Gabriel, who also indicated Grum's player "we have more than one holy silver flame warrior." the party decided not to think of this now.
they also learned that the possession is Auressia's thing, and might require divine research, but they had nothing to from from, unlike the Illithid Shard.
DM design
Spoilerwould i require them to sacrifice a character? require? no. enable if they want to? yes. this sacrifice will grant them a hefty advantage at the final battle, but it's not necessary at all. more than that, there is an alternate way of closing the seal, but it would require Soom's cooperation, and some clue deciphering.
why can't they affect the possessing? they could, if they had taken other routes in the campaign, such as sneaking around the seal's chamber and finding some of Auressia's writing in the rooms beyond, or taking up on the Traveler's first request of help, and so on. but then again, they might not have gotten the illithid shard that way.
choices, actions, and consequences.
Auxallia said she searched her guardian memories, and there might be an object to help them- the Psychic generator is charged by the moons, but the paranoid Imasil feared the Quori might find a way to block that, so he stored a large obsidian crystal in the hidden vaults of the city. he also placed quite a few defenses about them ("ok guys, we know where we're going next!") Auxallia knows how to reach them, but it would be better the giants don't know, hhmmmm?
que in the McGaffin.
continued on the next post...
