Session: Iskren / Rollo / Vultha / Taurio / Zantaroth / Sorval
Xivaskir 10
"I don't know what's going on, but what the hell is going on?" - Rollo 2020
Rollo wakes up at the Snapping Line, somewhat of a higher end establishment compared to the one where he dropped Vultha off previously. As he has his breakfast, he overhears two Gruul clansmen (from clan Smash Smash) talking about a contract they had gotten. Realizing the target of their contract is actually his Orzhovian charge, Rollo hears them out and then heads to rejoin his friends, where ever they might be.
Exiting the Snapping Line, he spots a disturbed looking Orzhovian fellow. Trailing him for a while, the man takes notice of the dragonborn and urges him to join in a small task, the removal of four corpses. Rollo negotiates his reward, which includes a swanky dagger set with a six-legged, one-eyed spider signet.
Arriving at the place the individual set as destination, Rollo sees a magical circle, in which appear four bodies, each of them holding a dagger in their chest with their right hand. They are all naked, but are otherwise unremarkable. Turning to question his companion, Rollo gets handed the money and the dagger after which the man rushes off, calling the guard on a murderer. Some quick thinking, bribing two Gruul to solve the corpse problem and some subterfuge later, Rollo heads to the Primeground estate, talks to some guards posted there and manages to catch up to his friends as they exit the Sharpened Utensil.
"Even I am smart enough" - Taurio
"Iskren, do you have any enemies in murkshade?" -Rollo
The group, once caught up with their respective tales, decides to head straight for the Standing Stones, in order to lay their claim to the airship Vultha saw while in trance. Sorval does take some time to send a small Boros patrol to the Snapping Line in order to detain the members of clan Smash Smash. Iskren pokes everyone to divest themselves of the items carrying the six-legged spider logo.
Everyone does so, though Rollo keeps the dagger he received earlier and throws away a different dagger.
Once they enter the Murk though, they are again beset by the unearthly whispers and find themselves ambushed by specters as they dispatch a lone Krasis near the Wanderer's Chapel.
The battle takes a heavy toll on the party, so they decide to rest in there before continuing on.
Once inside the Chapel, Iskren spies a small Orzhovian signet suspended above the altar, showing to the party that at the very least someone is trying to bring the Chapel back into the fold.
This leads to a discussion between Iskren and Sorval on the nature of worship and veneration.
"Click-click-ZAP" - Izzet contraption
Taurio, enjoying some grass on the Chapel's hill, spies a lone old minotaur, white of pelt. The being speaks to him, cautions him and blesses the party, so as to keep the spirits of the Murk at bay.
They use this to make excellent time to the Standing Stones, where they are confronted by a group of mechanical beasts keeping watch over a tower. From the tower, a pack of besieged goblins asks for their aid. As the party unmakes the machines, they discover them to be crafted by Izzet. The goblins head off, thankful for the deliverance.
"Sploosh" - Iskren's Flask of Boarding
In the tower, a disarmed trap on a locked trapdoor lead to Vultha making himself useful. Then the group descends from a long, winding into a massive docking space, with mysterious patches of darkness the party cannot see into, discovering a familiar shark-prowed airship stationed there.
The crew that notices the arrival appears to be largely Rakdos in inclination, and moderately aggressive at that. After sonically obliterating a ladder, getting over the 20 foot barrier of entry to the ship and dispatching of the direct opposition, the party successfully gains control of the first level underneath the deck, where they find a group of three lizardmen in the ship's prison.
Saturday, June 13, 2020
Tuesday, June 2, 2020
Shademurk: Crime Scene Investigation
Party: Iskren / Sorval / Vultha / Zantaroth / Taurio
Xivaskir 10
Zantaroth, having spend quite some time learning the ins and outs of murkfish eating, wakes up when the tracking signet pulls at his chest. He follows its pull and winds up at the Empty Net, where he is greeted by a confused Vultha lovingly cradled by a loxodon lady. The pair then notices a strange spider-like creature with one eye gazing at them. As they give chase, the being leaves behind but holes in the wall, from which sulphurous fumes rise. They think about this for a hot minute and decide to go check on Iskren, who is wise in these matters, probably.
The morning finds Iskren restless, having caught little sleep with the bloodless finger in his room.
Once the staff begins their morning routines, Iskren gets up and meets pandemonium as the head butler, Erves Hulgren, appears to have gone missing. With a little persuasion, Iskren gets themselves escorted (by Thaya) to the butler's room. A little time with a dagger and the lock on the door means Iskren gains entry into a strangely scented room, where a dirt-filled coffin stands next to the bed.
Meanwhile, the Boros boys get cymballed into awakeness by the morning staff and ushered to the training field. They run their daily routines, have their breakfast and hear of a gruesome happening near the Primeground Estate. A group of corpses was found, drained of blood. Lisanne asks for them to investigate it as they collect their supplies.
The Gruul arrive at Primeground's Estate and are confronted with a safety cordon that has been set, with guards from the Legion holding the population off until an investigation can be launched. This measure does not stop the locals from forming their own theories of what happened, as an old lady eagerly expounds on when the clansmen shoulder their way past her. The front door easily opens for Zantaroth, four servants scared witless by the sudden appearance of a massive lizardman in their halls. Roaring for Iskren, the pair makes their way through the Estate.
Iskren, meanwhile, focusses on the coffin, noting dampness underneath it and a compression of the dirt inside of the coffin that does not match the form of Erves. The window in the room has been forced, with the latch snapped in two. Iskren's search is interrupted by the pair of clansmen bursting in. Iskren wastes no time putting Vultha to work, finding a piece of clothing which is discarded as unimportant, but spotting the coffin was brought in from the outside.
Sorval and Taurio rush to the manor after taking a Skyroc to the Fogger, getting accosted by a gentleman officer, who seems to have all confidence in the pair for cracking the case.
They spot Vultha's head sticking out of the window and join up with the others. While going in, Sorval cautions people to not leave the grounds. Not perturbed by the added company, Vultha spots small marks on the wall, similar to the ones he saw earlier, like the ones made by the spidery being.
Gellan Primeground makes an appearance, to little effect.
The party follows the tracks on the wall, which head up to the roof and then the window of Iskren.
In addition to these tracks, Vultha and Iskren also spot that four people came to Erves' window, two of them with a coffin, two without. Then, two carried something off.
Sorval and Taurio meet with Krovek, another officer of the Boros standing guard outside, in order to investigate the corpses outside and gain some information. Krovek relays that the corpses are dead, devoid of blood and have puncture wounds on their necks. Krovek also shouts his most likely theories for the solution of the case, fluctuating from "Vampires" to "Gruul Barbarians" to "Vampiric Lizard Gruul Barbarian Bears", much to the crowd's enjoyment. Zantaroth discovers the corpses to be wearing Orzhovian livery and to be poisoned with a paralyzing fluid, which was not drawn out with the blood, moreover, they appeared to have died more than a day ago.
Questioning the house guards, there is a mention of a mysterious fog at night, which made the guards zone out. The head butler brought 'a cup of beer' to the guards before this though.
Iskren, getting fed up with the investigation, gathers the servants in the main living room. Complications are abound though, as both Taurio and Zantaroth come across servants who appear to have violently perished, with a black knife thrust through their heart with their right hand on it. Sadly enough, by the time the two can gather their allies, the corpses have disappeared, leaving but clothing behind. Vultha suspects the knives contained a bound spell of teleportation.
After this distraction, Iskren casts Zone of Truth into the living room after explaining that Iskren'll know if they resist. Iskren asks all present if they had something to do with the murder, but only gets the following information:
*Erves was acting strangely the last day.
*He brought beer to the guards and asked the kitchen staff to wash the mugs out immediately.
*Erves personally made a drink for Iskren, who had returned from official business.
*There were 'a five new hires' in the staff and they are missing from the room. (Scullery maid, 2 cleaners, 1 guard, 1 religious advisor)
*Gellan seems generally clueless
After questioning the staff, the party moves outside and smashes the coffin. Retrieving a strange symbol, a metal round with a six-legged, one-eyed creature on it. Seeing this symbol, Iskren recalls the Dimir Guild, a legendary old guild that was supposed to carry information between the guilds but turned bad and were destroyed.
Feeling nervous about all of this, Iskren suggests a new place to stay, to which Sorval responds they know where to get an airship, looking at Vultha. The party then decides to go find said place.
Just before taking his leave, Iskren buys Thaya's contract from Gellan for five gold monthly.
Krovek and Sorval chat a bit, settling the villain on vampires after all, instead of vampiric gruul barbarian bear bear bears.
The party goes to the Boros Barracks, lacking Ojay's service, so using skyrocs, an interesting experience for Zantaroth. They go to the offices of Eliander Fireborn and bring their report to him.
They explain to him that misdirection was employed, show him the dimir sigil, shocking him deeply. While the party is still explaining, Eliander excuses himself and leaves.
The party then heads to the Standing Stones, the airship location according to the vision Arcades Sabboth sent to Vultha. They detour and stop by a small shop, The Sharp Utensil and buy a crossbow for Vultha from the goblin Yazza.
In the street, the party is accosted by Aille, the priestess of Freyalise whom they rescued from the Simic, who tells them to seek out the blessing of one of the 'Gods' worshipped by the locals before venturing into the Murk.
And thus they move on to the next session~
Xivaskir 10
Zantaroth, having spend quite some time learning the ins and outs of murkfish eating, wakes up when the tracking signet pulls at his chest. He follows its pull and winds up at the Empty Net, where he is greeted by a confused Vultha lovingly cradled by a loxodon lady. The pair then notices a strange spider-like creature with one eye gazing at them. As they give chase, the being leaves behind but holes in the wall, from which sulphurous fumes rise. They think about this for a hot minute and decide to go check on Iskren, who is wise in these matters, probably.
The morning finds Iskren restless, having caught little sleep with the bloodless finger in his room.
Once the staff begins their morning routines, Iskren gets up and meets pandemonium as the head butler, Erves Hulgren, appears to have gone missing. With a little persuasion, Iskren gets themselves escorted (by Thaya) to the butler's room. A little time with a dagger and the lock on the door means Iskren gains entry into a strangely scented room, where a dirt-filled coffin stands next to the bed.
Meanwhile, the Boros boys get cymballed into awakeness by the morning staff and ushered to the training field. They run their daily routines, have their breakfast and hear of a gruesome happening near the Primeground Estate. A group of corpses was found, drained of blood. Lisanne asks for them to investigate it as they collect their supplies.
The Gruul arrive at Primeground's Estate and are confronted with a safety cordon that has been set, with guards from the Legion holding the population off until an investigation can be launched. This measure does not stop the locals from forming their own theories of what happened, as an old lady eagerly expounds on when the clansmen shoulder their way past her. The front door easily opens for Zantaroth, four servants scared witless by the sudden appearance of a massive lizardman in their halls. Roaring for Iskren, the pair makes their way through the Estate.
Iskren, meanwhile, focusses on the coffin, noting dampness underneath it and a compression of the dirt inside of the coffin that does not match the form of Erves. The window in the room has been forced, with the latch snapped in two. Iskren's search is interrupted by the pair of clansmen bursting in. Iskren wastes no time putting Vultha to work, finding a piece of clothing which is discarded as unimportant, but spotting the coffin was brought in from the outside.
Sorval and Taurio rush to the manor after taking a Skyroc to the Fogger, getting accosted by a gentleman officer, who seems to have all confidence in the pair for cracking the case.
They spot Vultha's head sticking out of the window and join up with the others. While going in, Sorval cautions people to not leave the grounds. Not perturbed by the added company, Vultha spots small marks on the wall, similar to the ones he saw earlier, like the ones made by the spidery being.
Gellan Primeground makes an appearance, to little effect.
The party follows the tracks on the wall, which head up to the roof and then the window of Iskren.
In addition to these tracks, Vultha and Iskren also spot that four people came to Erves' window, two of them with a coffin, two without. Then, two carried something off.
Sorval and Taurio meet with Krovek, another officer of the Boros standing guard outside, in order to investigate the corpses outside and gain some information. Krovek relays that the corpses are dead, devoid of blood and have puncture wounds on their necks. Krovek also shouts his most likely theories for the solution of the case, fluctuating from "Vampires" to "Gruul Barbarians" to "Vampiric Lizard Gruul Barbarian Bears", much to the crowd's enjoyment. Zantaroth discovers the corpses to be wearing Orzhovian livery and to be poisoned with a paralyzing fluid, which was not drawn out with the blood, moreover, they appeared to have died more than a day ago.
Questioning the house guards, there is a mention of a mysterious fog at night, which made the guards zone out. The head butler brought 'a cup of beer' to the guards before this though.
Iskren, getting fed up with the investigation, gathers the servants in the main living room. Complications are abound though, as both Taurio and Zantaroth come across servants who appear to have violently perished, with a black knife thrust through their heart with their right hand on it. Sadly enough, by the time the two can gather their allies, the corpses have disappeared, leaving but clothing behind. Vultha suspects the knives contained a bound spell of teleportation.
After this distraction, Iskren casts Zone of Truth into the living room after explaining that Iskren'll know if they resist. Iskren asks all present if they had something to do with the murder, but only gets the following information:
*Erves was acting strangely the last day.
*He brought beer to the guards and asked the kitchen staff to wash the mugs out immediately.
*Erves personally made a drink for Iskren, who had returned from official business.
*There were 'a five new hires' in the staff and they are missing from the room. (Scullery maid, 2 cleaners, 1 guard, 1 religious advisor)
*Gellan seems generally clueless
After questioning the staff, the party moves outside and smashes the coffin. Retrieving a strange symbol, a metal round with a six-legged, one-eyed creature on it. Seeing this symbol, Iskren recalls the Dimir Guild, a legendary old guild that was supposed to carry information between the guilds but turned bad and were destroyed.
Feeling nervous about all of this, Iskren suggests a new place to stay, to which Sorval responds they know where to get an airship, looking at Vultha. The party then decides to go find said place.
Just before taking his leave, Iskren buys Thaya's contract from Gellan for five gold monthly.
Krovek and Sorval chat a bit, settling the villain on vampires after all, instead of vampiric gruul barbarian bear bear bears.
The party goes to the Boros Barracks, lacking Ojay's service, so using skyrocs, an interesting experience for Zantaroth. They go to the offices of Eliander Fireborn and bring their report to him.
They explain to him that misdirection was employed, show him the dimir sigil, shocking him deeply. While the party is still explaining, Eliander excuses himself and leaves.
The party then heads to the Standing Stones, the airship location according to the vision Arcades Sabboth sent to Vultha. They detour and stop by a small shop, The Sharp Utensil and buy a crossbow for Vultha from the goblin Yazza.
In the street, the party is accosted by Aille, the priestess of Freyalise whom they rescued from the Simic, who tells them to seek out the blessing of one of the 'Gods' worshipped by the locals before venturing into the Murk.
And thus they move on to the next session~
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)