Campaign Journal #8: The Lighthouse, Part 1

We return to our heroes as they race south towards Lyrum, with three of the feal-of-dune plants. Again, they make good time thanks to Raehendra's horse handling. The party drives directly to Whir's Worts and finds Whirsyllir preparing feal-of-dune paste. She reveals that the Silver Hare already returned with a great number of plants. However, it turns out that the three plants our heroes found were all female, while the others were male, meaning that Whirsyllir can use them to grow more plants. She explains plant morphology to the party while Barclay goes outside and alerts the town guard (and eventually the alder, Hane Selley) about the Stoneling army. The city is put on alert.

Selley asks the party to help with another issue: the recent earthquake appears to have disabled the lighthouse, limiting ships' ability to enter the bay. He arranges for a boat to ferry our heroes from the mainland to the island where the lighthouse stands.

In the meantime, Sentie identifies the gift from the Catamount: the Amulet of Omens, a magical amulet that can cast augury once per day. Unbeknownst to the rest of the party, Raehendra tries to sell a plant-based drug that Whirsyllir gave her. She fails, gets in a fight with a burglar, and is almost caught by the town guard.

Back together, our heroes are brought to the mist-covered island. Barclay's imp, Aevyr, observes the lighthouse keeper inside, watching for something. The party confronts him and he admits to being involved with a cult which is summoning someone—or something. Barclay peers into his mind and sees visions of cult members conducting a ritual in a cave on the island. The party rushes to this cave and a battle ensues.

The encounter involves 5 Cult Fanatics, which should be a "deadly" encounter for the party. The party mostly surprises them, (mostly) rolls well, and I (mostly) roll poorly for the cultists. Eventually, a tentacle appears through a portal, but it flees as soon as the last cultist drops.

Encounter with cultists

We'll pick up with post-encounter investigation next session!

Soundtrack:

• Austin Wintory, The Banner Saga 2 (2016)
• Stuart Chatwood, Darkest Dungeon (2017)

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Aevyr, his imp familiar
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• Hane Selley, alder of Lyrum
• Whirsyllir, owner of Whir's Worts in Lyrum

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Campaign Journal #7: Backtooth Mountain

Our heroes arrive in Lyrum, several hours after an earthquake (which they experienced on the road). Some buildings have collapsed and many more are on fire. There are injured people in the streets, most with superficial wounds. The citizens and town guard are tending to the wounded, putting out fires, and shoring up buildings.

The party immediately jumps into action. Renn treats the wounded while the rest help with fires and structures. Barclay begins a (positive) whisper campaign about Kodrak. Both Renn and Kodrak are hailed as local heroes. In time, they're directed to Whir's Worts for an important mission.

They arrive and speak with Whirsyllir. She needs a group of brave adventurers to place timed explosive potions in tunnels beneath the city; the task will be exceptionally dangerous, not only from the volatile potions, but because the tunnels are surely occupied with all sorts of creatures. Whirsyllir does what she can to stress the deadliness of the job, until the shop door is thrown open by a returning adventuring party—the Silver Hare—who just completed the mission. At some cost, as they are bloody and singed, and their wizard, Meera Haemuund, has been petrified.

Whirsyllir offers a second mission, to search for feal-of-dune plants about two days north, at the (former) dwarven fortress Backtooth Mountain. The petals of these plants are needed to make a paste that offers protection against magical fumes emanating from below the city. Our heroes decide that they'd rather find and deal with the subterranean threat. Their investigations lead them to the alder of Lyrum, Hane Selley, who explains that a city of Musklig, grotto elves, exists beneath Lyrum. There is a truce between the communities, forbidding either from breaking the seal. Shortly afterward, our heroes are approached by Sivela ("Siv"), Bartholomew & Company's regional manager in the Reeves. She offers them 20 gold each to locate any feal-of-dune plant for Whirsyllir, as the city is in dire need.

Our heroes head north, making great time thanks to Raehendra's excellent horse-driving. They approach Backtooth Mountain to find a squat fortress roughly resembling a molar tooth, plus some outbuildings and walls. They see no feal-of-dune plants, however. They continue to approach Backtooth Mountain until Barclay's familiar spots three plants growing in the grass on the fortress's roof. He also hears activity within the building—which is unexpected, because it was abandoned long ago.

Barclay's (now invisible) familiar risks a look inside and spots three hundred or more Stonelings: goblins, orcs, hobgoblins, ogres, and more. They're excited and chanting "Galix", evidently waiting on something or someone. The familiar is able to dig up and retrieve the plants while listening to the horde inside when nearby. When getting on the final feal-of-dune, Galix (evidently) appears and gives a speech:

"Dearest family, my goblin-kin, my hobgoblin-kin, my orcish-kin, and our friends the bugbears and giants and other allies, [pause] yes, I consider you all Stonelings of the Delver Horde [pause for mild cheers], so let me welcome you our temporary home and thank you for joining us today. [pause for cheering]

"For years, our people have suffered in adversity, seen our friends wither while they [pause] feed their armies, while they [pause] steal our lands, while they [pause] deny us shelter in the very homes we built. They have divided us, throwing scraps to the Tiethans, [pause] those fools. It is only a matter of time before they [pause] break their treaties, as they always have. [angry shouting and cheers]

"But today—today!—the tides have changed. [laughs] They are afraid of the tides, yes, and we shall bring the tides to them. Myrinul is opening and no one knows that city like the Delver Horde. Let us travel the ancient ways, the hidden ways—you know them well—and let us recover what was taken from us. [more cheers] And like the tide, we will crash over and engulf anyone who stands in our way. [rising cheers]

"Now let us go with all haste, to Myrinul!"

At this point, the doors are thrown open and the Stonelings in Backtooth Mountain stream out. The party has hidden themselves on the other side of the raised dwarven road, and are not seen. Barclay's familiar carries the final plant over the horde, the plant visible and bobbing with (the familiar's) fear and exertion. The Stonelings are intent on their travel and do not notice. Besides, who looks up for flying plants? Over the next few minutes, they enter hidden tunnels in the foothills and disappear.

Our heroes return south with the precious plants, on the lookout for Stonelings.

Soundtrack:

Austin Wintory, Abzu (2016), The Banner Saga (2014), and The Banner Saga 2 (2016)

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• Galix, goblin/Stoneling, leader of the Delver Horde
• Hane Selley, alder of Lyrum
• Rickye, inn/tavern owner in Lyrum
• Whirsyllir, owner of Whir's Worts in Lyrum
• The Silver Hare, adventuring guild:
• Aldire, half-elven fighter
• Hainan Halfheart, dwarven cleric
• Irinduith the Ever-Fair, elven ranger
• Meera Haemuund, human wizard
• Nellandus of Gauwhil, human rogue

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Campaign Journal #6: The Road to Lyrum

The Road to Lyrum

While the rest of the party sleeps, Barclay examines the books and loose sheets retrieved from the dungeon. He intuits the disappearing ink used on the journal ("Book #3" from Campaign Journal #3) and concocts a "reappearing" solution, revealing details of the spy's mission in Casseval. He also inspects the page on body movements ("Page #2") and believes it to be a ritual scroll. Later, Barclay and Sentie experiment with the page and discover that it's an ancient version of Feather Fall, written without the common shortcuts and substitutions that are part of modern, fast spellcasting.

Our heroes return the three books to Driffol for their reward. Renn and Barclay successfully negotiate an increase in their reward, from 10 gold pieces each to 20 gold.

Driffol gives Renn a note about the search for his sister, indicating that they have a lead. Renn is upset, feeling that this information is essentially worthless without any details.

Driffol mentions to Raehendra that a librarian has heard of a journal mentioning Greebles and that they're attempting to locate it for her.

With their business in Thyrre complete, the party boards a sleigh for Lyrum.

Partway through their journey, they encounter "Ilfa Thurk" again, who now gives his title as "The Catamount". [Sidenote: Barclay's familiar explains that there are 4 Catlords of the lower planes, one of which has been missing for quite some time. This is likely The Catamount. He and two others work in the shadows. The only truly public Catlord is an orange tiger demon named The Suntouched—but sometimes called Rakshasa.] The Catamount once again thanks our heroes for freeing him, and presents a gift (delivered via a giant-sized demon): a necklace with a cracked red gem pendant. The ground begins to shake—an earthquake!—and the Catamount disappears.

The party resumes their journey to Lyrum, discussing their histories along the way. Kodrak's wife is dead, he has many children and grandchildren, and he is a former caber tossing champion. Renn is worried about his sister—but also worried that he's worrying about nothing because she may be perfectly safe. Sentie talked of the difficulty of growing up in Casseval, not able to be who he is, and he worries that something he left behind may have betrayed the rest of his family. Raehendra clarified that, while her parents were guilty of owning kobold slaves, she was kept from that side of the business and had no idea.

These conversations fill the time until our heroes arrive at Lyrum, only to find it affected by the earthquake. Several buildings are toppling precariously, and much of the city is on fire or smoking. The streets are filled with people helping in any way they can.

Soundtrack:

Austin Wintory, Abzu (2016) and Luna (2017)

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• The Catamount, a demon

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Campaign Journal #5: Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part IV—and a Murder Mystery!

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• Aethert, member of the Pennydelvers
• Ilfa Thurk, a prisoner

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part IV—and a Murder Mystery!

We rejoin the party as they puzzle their way through the "Proceedings of The Longdays Society". The journal opens:

Proceedings of The Longdays Society

These records may not leave the Rose House. All members here are secret sworn.

The writing is spidery and cryptic, not easy to decipher. They make out some topics on the first pages:

• Myrinul now stable, outer Myrun crumbling, must be watched
• Fall of Forric, Clovenhorn and Dreya besieged
• Earthquakes increasing, research high priority

There are four...signatures? initials? nicknames?...at the end of the first page:

• B
• KF
• RP
• MA

Our heroes return the journal to its hiding place and then backtrack to face the suit of animated armor. They display excellent battle awareness, avoiding telegraphed attacks like seasoned adventurers, until Kodrak deals the final blow.

Behind the armor are a dozen prison cells, all destroyed by the animated armor—which Barclay reasons was magically corrupted. A thirteenth cell is untouched. The party opens the cell, discovering a prisoner named Ilfa Thurk. Thurk's clothes are out of fashion and his mind is broken, after living in the cell for (seemingly) centuries. He repeatedly asks for his freedom and the party eventually says that he can go. Thurk then transforms into a cat-like being—or, more likely, drops his illusion—and teleports away.

The party leaves the dungeon only to face arrest for the murder of the three Cassevallan agents. They have a solid alibi—the gnomish artist Heyzzzel—and after some convincing, they're allowed to help investigate the murders. The evidence suggests that the Cassevallans were ambushed outside town, and the attacker(s) used some unknown desiccant poison.

Needing clarification about his orders, Barclay meets with a member of Whitsleaf. He is asked to continue working with Bartholmew—for now—and also to watch himself. The guild is aware of the murders and everyone is on edge....

Soundtrack:

• Combat with the animated armor: Scouter, Scouter (2011)
• Remainder of the session: Daniel Pemberton, The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance, Vol. 1 (2019)

Campaign Journal #4: Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part III

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• Aethert, member of the Pennydelvers

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part III

Our heroes find themselves in a roughly circular room, with a suit of animated armor staring them down through a grated door. In time, the armor turns around and continues its designated path.

Kodrak and Sentie explore through another grated door, triggering a trap. The doors around them close and water begins to fill the chamber. The two investigate a statue in the center of the room, believing that it will reset the trap. They each move an arm and the water begins to drain. At the same time, Renn pries open one of the doors, flooding the initial circular room.

The party continues into a smaller room, with a plaque that reads "A golden tail, a golden head, and spellbound so that light does shed." next to a slot. After some trial and error, Barclay slides in Aethert's gold coin enchanted with Continual Flame. The dungeon is now illuminated by previously-disguised lights.

Kodrak explores a fourth room, this one dominated by two large metal tanks and two alcoves with magical stones. The stones resemble the debris from the earlier scorched room, leading the party to believe that the stones are dangerous.

Continuing on, our heroes meet some merfolk, get some ancient coins and give them rations in return.

After that, the party discovers an opulent room with comfortable tables and chairs, bookshelves, a schematic explaining how to use the metal tank room, and a portrait. A metal plaque attached to the frame reads "Earl Nathye Falkor, Lord of the Falconmarch, with family and court". The portrait shows a man (presumably the Earl), seated, wearing a military uniform. Seated at his side is his wife. Standing next to the Earl is a boy, around 8 years old, wearing a uniform typical of an altar boy. Kneeling next to the woman is a young woman, perhaps 16. Both wear ball gowns. In the background are perhaps a dozen others, wearing suits typical of courtiers—they are also painted with less detail. All of the clothing and decorations seem expensive and were likely fashionable for their time, but they now appear outdated and tacky.

Opposite the portrait is a mirror that reveals illusions, but also shows things as they are now? It's not entirely clear how it works. But looking at the portrait in the mirror shows that everyone is a skeleton, except for the boy next to the Earl and one of the courtiers in the back. The mirror also highlights a book on the shelf that, when pulled, opens a maze-like passage.

At the end of the passage is a domed room made from a cavern. The walls are black and set with metal and gems that form constellations. (They are the same constellations in the sky around the Longdays Festival. That is to say, now.) The metal and gem constellations readily reflect the party's lantern light, illuminating the room. Most of the stalactites have been removed, but a strip of them remains, giving a Milky-Way-like effect across the "sky" of the room. In the center of the room is a cottage and beyond it is an iris door/window.

The cottage contains a quaint kitchen and dining room as well as a meeting room with several chairs. On the wall is a window with multiple shades of green glass—like a stained glass window but almost monochromatic. When the iris window is opened, the equinox sun shines through, turning some green glass to red. (This was inspired by the Lycurgus Cup.) These red beams shine on specific spots on the cottage's floor that, when pushed, open a panel in the wall. Inside is the "Proceedings of The Longdays Society". When moving chairs to push the buttons, the party also discovered a silver ring engraved with the letters "M+R".

Soundtrack: Daniel Pemberton, The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance, Vol. 1 (2019)

Campaign Journal #3: Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part II

 The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

Debut:

• Heyzzzel, gnome, artist

Returning:

• Aerol Thornrend, half-elf, member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Aethert, member of the Pennydelvers
• Arthugh, innkeeper of the New Hill Inn in Thyrre
• Bartholomew, dwarf, owner Bartholomew & Company
• Colin "Flour", human, Renn's drinking buddy at the Ratcatcher's Inn & Tavern in Fellsdare
• Decius, human, priest of Currend
• Deep End, gnome, Renn's drinking buddy at the Ratcatcher's Inn & Tavern in Fellsdare
• Driffol, Bartholomew & Company employee in Thyrre
• Elira, council member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Eyes, gnome, Renn's drinking buddy at the Ratcatcher's Inn & Tavern in Fellsdare
• Lady Ilyavoe, also known as Lady Dawn, the Ironwitch of Fellsdare
• Liliani, elf, Renn's sister; is searching for Decius
• Malde, meat and vegetable vendor in Fellsdare
• Orloz, owner of the Sleepy Brewer Tavern in Fellsdare
• Pietre Sorenson, human, member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Renelm, baker's boy in Fellsdare
• Vanya Starris, human, member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Wealda, captain of the guard of Thyrre

• 6 kobolds:
• Dom, spear and shield
• Heidsi, spearman
• Laurent, swordsman
• Mote, sorcerer with wings
• Thien, bowman
• Veve, gatherer

Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part II

We return to our heroes as they plan a daring attack on the mushroom folk and a hag! Upon entering the bioluminescent mushroom chamber, the mushroom folk investigate them but do not yet attack. A successful Knowledge (Nature) check leads Raehendra to deduce that these are Myconids, which are usually friendly—or at least neutral. Barclay casts some illusionary magic, leading the Myconids away from the hag so the party can attack her...in peace? Can—can I say that? It seems wrong.

Anyways, our heroes descend on the hag and make quick work of her, though she wounds Kodrak well enough. They follow the path behind her and discover the 3 books they were searching for. They also find 2 loose pages.

The details:

• Book #1 is a Corusene Hymnal printed in Fyndallen with handwritten notes in Cordianavol, roughly bound.
• Book #2 is titled The Elven Libraries, a printed volume on the more famous libraries in Elven lands. There are numerous ink stains and smudges but no other text.
• Book #3 is a journal with blank pages. It is well-worn.
• Page #1 has a sketch of a woman and runic text. The text reads "The joining of families at a Marriage. A mother, a girl, a father, a groom. A bride, her sisters, a boy, a grandfather, a grandmother. Geese watch the ground for thrown wheat and herbs."
• Page #2 seems to describe intricate body movements, particularly of the hand.

Our heroes return to the flooded dungeon section and, by turning a wheel, drain the water. They are able to explore the rooms beyond, discovering a guard room, a higher-ranking soldier's room, an armory, and a water closet that a gnomish artist named Heyzzzel is using to paint portraits of the missing prize-winning chicken.

The party continues into the dungeon, across an odd Dwarven bridge, until they hear a stomping noise in the distance. Ahead of them is some sort of living suit of armor!

Soundtrack: Daniel Pemberton, The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance, Vol. 1 (2019)

Campaign Journal #2: Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part I

Main Cast

Our player characters for the campaign:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

Supporting Cast

Non-player characters introduced in this session:

• Aethert, member of the Pennydelvers
• Driffol, Bartholomew & Company employee in Thyrre
• Wealda, captain of the guard of Thyrre
• Arthugh, innkeeper of the New Hill Inn in Thyrre
• 6 kobolds

Non-player characters from the previous session:

• Aerol Thornrend, half-elf, member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Bartholomew, dwarf, owner Bartholomew & Company
• Colin "Flour", human, Renn's drinking buddy at the Ratcatcher's Inn & Tavern in Fellsdare
• Decius, human, priest of Currend
• Deep End, gnome, Renn's drinking buddy at the Ratcatcher's Inn & Tavern in Fellsdare
• Elira, council member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Eyes, gnome, Renn's drinking buddy at the Ratcatcher's Inn & Tavern in Fellsdare
• Lady Ilyavoe, also known as Lady Dawn, the Ironwitch of Fellsdare
• Liliani, elf, Renn's sister; is searching for Decius
• Malde, meat and vegetable vendor in Fellsdare
• Orloz, owner of the Sleepy Brewer Tavern in Fellsdare
• Pietre Sorenson, human, member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare
• Renelm, baker's boy in Fellsdare
• Vanya Starris, human, member of Barclay's guild in Fellsdare

Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part I

We rejoin our heroes in Thyrre, a town of 100 people about 10 miles south of Lyrum. Driffol, an employee of Bartholomew & Company in Thyrre, has booked the party a suite at the New Hill Inn. The suite's patio exits next to the well they are to search—except that Raehendra checks in first and accepts an upgrade from the innkeeper, Arthugh. Now they're on the other side of the inn, in full view of the Longdays (New Year/Spring Equinox) festivities. Sentie is observed by 3 Cassevallan spies and, while trying to find out who they are, is arrested and interrogated by the captain of the guard, Wealda. Meanwhile, Barclay's spider spy (spy-der?) spies on the spies, revealing that they suspect a lot but don't know everything.

At midnight, the party enters the well and discover a dungeon complex. To the left is a short, ancient tunnel ending in murky water. A door in that tunnel leads to a scorched room with twisted metal and chipped walls, as if something had exploded. To the right is a longer tunnel, newer but crude and periodically reinforced with wooden beams. Tracks lead down the right, crude tunnel. The party follows the tracks.

There is a poorly-concealed pit trap that the party ignores for now—although it bothers Barclay. The tunnel soon transitions to iced-over sewer stonework and tilts downward. At this point, the party can hear rushing water ahead of them. Renn and Kodrak slide down the slick tunnel but stop before a crumbling bit of cliff overlooking a rushing underground river. Falling into this water would likely mean certain death.

Renn spots a vague figure across the river, pointing to the party's left. Barclay investigates the pit trap and discovers a door. The party decides to investigate the door. It leads to a den of kobolds, who are wary but friendly after being given food. They warn the party that beyond their den are dangerous plants and a putrid stench.

Our heroes investigate, spotting some kind of mushroom-like people and—is that a hag? They will investigate next week!

Soundtrack: Daniel Pemberton, The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance, Vol. 1 (2019)