TOTDL 2: L2 - The Lonely Vale Part 3

 VICTIMS OF THE DEMON LORD

• Calum: halfling magician
• Chikatinga: human priest of witchcraft 
• Einar: dwarf magician
• Me7a: clockwork monk
• Tordar: dwarf spellguard

The Victims enter the property of Clypper and immediately encounter one of his "made-better" sons.  Chikatinga compels him to flee, but as he does another made-better enters the yard.  Me7a confronts him and the group manage to take him out quickly.  They then start roaming the yard.  Chikatinga enters the house while Tordar notices another bigger "made-betterer" around back.  Chikatinga finds the house filled with captives while Tordar engages the made-betterer.  As the fight breaks out, Clypper emerges from his workshop and joins the fray with his drones.  The fight is brutal with much flame being tossed about, but the Victims manage to defeat Clypper and his sons.  They find a mysterious human hide covered with strange sigils in an unknown language that they all can somehow understand.  The hide is the bottom half of a human and it somehow impresses upon the Victims that it wants to be rejoined with its upper half, which is somewhere in the valley.  Finding the hide somehow grants the Victims a new measure of skill and power that normally comes slowly with experience and training.  Clearly, the hide is a relic of great power.

 

The Victims decide to rest in Clypper's house and try to figure out what they want to do next.

 

End of Session

GAME NOTES/FOLLOW-UP ITEMS:

·         Reading the sigils on the hide grants the reader the discovery of 2 traditions; Technomancy and Forbidden, but the price is heavy as the reader gains 3 Corruption and 3 Insanity.  Those of you that learn the Technomancy tradition also become aware of the higher power duality known as the Cog God/Machine God, whose presence you now feel. 

·         There are 6 captives in the house, most are poorly fed and have been tortured a bit, but are otherwise healthy.  What do you do with them?

·         Level up to 3rd, gain your Expert Path and let me know what you take.

·         Add 2d6 silver shillings and gain a new Interesting Thing.

TotDL 2 - The Lonely Vale Pt 1 & 2

 

VICTIMS OF THE DEMON LORD

• Calum: halfling magician
• Chikatinga: human priest of witchcraft 
• Einar: dwarf magician
• Me7a: clockwork monk
• Tordar: dwarf spellguard

Upon completing their task at the Golden Meadows ranch, the Victims fulfill their obligations by returning to Crossings and have a little time to spend on personal pursuits.  However, trouble eventually catches up to them and they decide, as a team, to leave Crossings on a new adventure.

 Joined by their new companion, the halfling magician Calum Dapplespring, who had learned of their exploits from Ephram's Fork and followed them to Crossings.  The group make their way south looking for a place called the Lonely Vale, where Einar hopes to find some of the rare meteorite that he was told he needed to fulfil his destiny.  Me7a also had reason to go to the vale, learning that there was rumor of a Machine God disciple doing bad work out there.  So they make their way to a small town in bad weather to get directions.  They then enter the hills south of Crossings and proceed toward the Old Wood, where the entrance of the vale was said to be near. 

 The weather turns bad again as the group nears the Old Wood, and a hungry bear happens upon them, intent upon finding a meal amongst the group.  But the bear was bested by the combined might of the group and paid for the confrontation with its life.  Tordar skins the bear as a trophy. 

 The group finds the entrance to the Lonely Vale, enter and begin walking along the river, unsure of where to start.  Shortly upon entering, they come across a stranger running naked through the woods.  They catch up to the stranger, who is apparently running for his life from something he believed to be pursuing him.  But when nothing materialized, the group questioned him to understand his panic.  Ranting manically, fearful that he was being pursued, he became even more agitated upon seeing Me7a, who he claimed was one of "them".  The group decide to follow the man's trail to see if they could determine what was chasing him. 

 Shortly thereafter, they come across a one-legged woman checking fish traps in the river.  She calls herself Mary and said that she and her mother lived nearby.  She knew nothing of the stranger, but seemed kind and offered shelter to the group for the night.  They decline and continue onward, crossing the river at a shallow point and continuing to follow the naked man's trail.

 Traveling through the woods, they eventually come to a clearing where a ruined tower sits.  In the clearing, they also find a crater containing a meteorite, but not matching the description that Einar was given.  Einar takes a sample anyway, and the group go investigate the tower.  Within the ruins they find webs containing the corpse of a Wandering Star cultist, apparently killed by the spider hiding in the tower.  The spider senses the group's presence and attacks, but is no match for them and is killed.  The group investigate the tower, and Chikatinga gets his foot stuck in some rubble on the 2nd floor.

 Meanwhile, Einar left the tower and hears voices coming towards the clearing.  He attempts to hide behind a tree and witnesses 2 young local girls enter the clearing, apparently looking for someone.  Me7a, who had fallen out of the tower, also hears the voices and goes towards them, trying to seem as mechanical as possible.

 The group inside manage to get Chikatinga free and watch the encounter from within the tower.

 The two girls call themselves "Maybell" and "Beulah", and are young and very attractive.  They speak at Me7a as if it were not a living creature and claimed that their "Pa" would be very interested in him.  But their priority was to find the man they were pursuing, so they ask Me7a if he had seen him, which he confirms and offers to go with the girls to find him.  The girls decline, but Me7a follows anyway, hoping to learn more about why these girls are pursing the naked man.  But Chikatinga calls Me7a back, as the rest of the group decide to follow the girl's trail to see where they came from.  So the group leaves the tower clearing and head deeper into the vale.

 After walking a few hours, the group comes upon a strange field where cattle lie dead with no apparent cause of death.  Also no tracks indicating how the cattle came to be here or indicating their movements.  Its as if they were just set down dead in the field.  Curious, but the group continue on, following the girl's trail.

 A while later, the group hear the sounds of a camp.  Einar, using his superior scouting abilities, finds the beastmen camp and the group decides to take on the dangerous wildmen.  Using tactics and spells, they get a surprise drop on the creatures and manage to kill the ones they could see, but not before the beastmen alerted their leaders, who were in the cave at the back of the camp.  The leader Warg beastmen exit the cave and join the fight!

 

End of session.  

Upon completing their task at the Golden Meadows ranch, the Victims fulfill their obligations by returning to Crossings and have a little time to spend on personal pursuits.  However, trouble eventually catches up to them and they decide, as a team, to leave Crossings on a new adventure.

 

Joined by their new companion, the halfling magician Calum Dapplespring, who had learned of their exploits from Ephram's Fork and followed them to Crossings.  The group make their way south looking for a place called the Lonely Vale, where Einar hopes to find some of the rare meteorite that he was told he needed to fulfil his destiny.  Me7a also had reason to go to the vale, learning that there was rumor of a Machine God disciple doing bad work out there.  So they make their way to a small town in bad weather to get directions.  They then enter the hills south of Crossings and proceed toward the Old Wood, where the entrance of the vale was said to be near. 

 

The weather turns bad again as the group nears the Old Wood, and a hungry bear happens upon them, intent upon finding a meal amongst the group.  But the bear was bested by the combined might of the group and paid for the confrontation with its life.  Tordar skins the bear as a trophy.  

 

The group finds the entrance to the Lonely Vale, enter and begin walking along the river, unsure of where to start.  Shortly upon entering, they come across a stranger running naked through the woods.  They catch up to the stranger, who is apparently running for his life from something he believed to be pursuing him.  But when nothing materialized, the group questioned him to understand his panic.  Ranting manically, fearful that he was being pursued, he became even more agitated upon seeing Me7a, who he claimed was one of "them".  The group decide to follow the man's trail to see if they could determine what was chasing him. 

 

Shortly thereafter, they come across a one-legged woman checking fish traps in the river.  She calls herself Mary and said that she and her mother lived nearby.  She knew nothing of the stranger, but seemed kind and offered shelter to the group for the night.  They decline and continue onward, crossing the river at a shallow point and continuing to follow the naked man's trail.

 

Traveling through the woods, they eventually come to a clearing where a ruined tower sits.  In the clearing, they also find a crater containing a meteorite, but not matching the description that Einar was given.  Einar takes a sample anyway, and the group go investigate the tower.  Within the ruins they find webs containing the corpse of a Wandering Star cultist, apparently killed by the spider hiding in the tower.  The spider senses the group's presence and attacks, but is no match for them and is killed.  The group investigate the tower, and Chikatinga gets his foot stuck in some rubble on the 2nd floor.

 

Meanwhile, Einar left the tower and hears voices coming towards the clearing.  He attempts to hide behind a tree and witnesses 2 young local girls enter the clearing, apparently looking for someone.  Me7a, who had fallen out of the tower, also hears the voices and goes towards them, trying to seem as mechanical as possible.

 

The group inside manage to get Chikatinga free and watch the encounter from within the tower. Upon completing their task at the Golden Meadows ranch, the Victims fulfill their obligations by returning to Crossings and have a little time to spend on personal pursuits.  However, trouble eventually catches up to them and they decide, as a team, to leave Crossings on a new adventure.

 

Joined by their new companion, the halfling magician Calum Dapplespring, who had learned of their exploits from Ephram's Fork and followed them to Crossings.  The group make their way south looking for a place called the Lonely Vale, where Einar hopes to find some of the rare meteorite that he was told he needed to fulfil his destiny.  Me7a also had reason to go to the vale, learning that there was rumor of a Machine God disciple doing bad work out there.  So they make their way to a small town in bad weather to get directions.  They then enter the hills south of Crossings and proceed toward the Old Wood, where the entrance of the vale was said to be near. 

 

The weather turns bad again as the group nears the Old Wood, and a hungry bear happens upon them, intent upon finding a meal amongst the group.  But the bear was bested by the combined might of the group and paid for the confrontation with its life.  Tordar skins the bear as a trophy.  

 

The group finds the entrance to the Lonely Vale, enter and begin walking along the river, unsure of where to start.  Shortly upon entering, they come across a stranger running naked through the woods.  They catch up to the stranger, who is apparently running for his life from something he believed to be pursuing him.  But when nothing materialized, the group questioned him to understand his panic.  Ranting manically, fearful that he was being pursued, he became even more agitated upon seeing Me7a, who he claimed was one of "them".  The group decide to follow the man's trail to see if they could determine what was chasing him. 

 

Shortly thereafter, they come across a one-legged woman checking fish traps in the river.  She calls herself Mary and said that she and her mother lived nearby.  She knew nothing of the stranger, but seemed kind and offered shelter to the group for the night.  They decline and continue onward, crossing the river at a shallow point and continuing to follow the naked man's trail.

 

Traveling through the woods, they eventually come to a clearing where a ruined tower sits.  In the clearing, they also find a crater containing a meteorite, but not matching the description that Einar was given.  Einar takes a sample anyway, and the group go investigate the tower.  Within the ruins they find webs containing the corpse of a Wandering Star cultist, apparently killed by the spider hiding in the tower.  The spider senses the group's presence and attacks, but is no match for them and is killed.  The group investigate the tower, and Chikatinga gets his foot stuck in some rubble on the 2nd floor.

 

Meanwhile, Einar left the tower and hears voices coming towards the clearing.  He attempts to hide behind a tree and witnesses 2 young local girls enter the clearing, apparently looking for someone.  Me7a, who had fallen out of the tower, also hears the voices and goes towards them, trying to seem as mechanical as possible.

 

The group inside manage to get Chikatinga free and watch the encounter from within the tower.

 

The two girls call themselves "Maybell" and "Beulah", and are young and very attractive.  They speak at Me7a as if it were not a living creature and claimed that their "Pa" would be very interested in him.  But their priority was to find the man they were pursuing, so they ask Me7a if he had seen him, which he confirms and offers to go with the girls to find him.  The girls decline, but Me7a follows anyway, hoping to learn more about why these girls are pursing the naked man.  But Chikatinga calls Me7a back, as the rest of the group decide to follow the girl's trail to see where they came from.  So the group leaves the tower clearing and head deeper into the vale.

 

After walking a few hours, the group comes upon a strange field where cattle lie dead with no apparent cause of death.  Also no tracks indicating how the cattle came to be here or indicating their movements.  Its as if they were just set down dead in the field.  Curious, but the group continue on, following the girl's trail.

 

A while later, the group hear the sounds of a camp.  Einar, using his superior scouting abilities, finds the beastmen camp and the group decides to take on the dangerous wildmen.  Using tactics and spells, they get a surprise drop on the creatures and manage to kill the ones they could see, but not before the beastmen alerted their leaders, who were in the cave at the back of the camp.  The leader Warg beastmen exit the cave and join the fight!

 

End of session.  

 

The two girls call themselves "Maybell" and "Beulah", and are young and very attractive.  They speak at Me7a as if it were not a living creature and claimed that their "Pa" would be very interested in him.  But their priority was to find the man they were pursuing, so they ask Me7a if he had seen him, which he confirms and offers to go with the girls to find him.  The girls decline, but Me7a follows anyway, hoping to learn more about why these girls are pursing the naked man.  But Chikatinga calls Me7a back, as the rest of the group decide to follow the girl's trail to see where they came from.  So the group leaves the tower clearing and head deeper into the vale.

 

After walking a few hours, the group comes upon a strange field where cattle lie dead with no apparent cause of death.  Also no tracks indicating how the cattle came to be here or indicating their movements.  Its as if they were just set down dead in the field.  Curious, but the group continue on, following the girl's trail.

 

A while later, the group hear the sounds of a camp.  Einar, using his superior scouting abilities, finds the beastmen camp and the group decides to take on the dangerous wildmen.  Using tactics and spells, they get a surprise drop on the creatures and manage to kill the ones they could see, but not before the beastmen alerted their leaders, who were in the cave at the back of the camp.  The leader Warg beastmen exit the cave and join the fight!

 

End of session.  

TotDL 2: N1, Session 3 Showdown at Golden Meadows

 The Victims of the Demon Lord

 

·         Chikatinga: Human Priest

·         Einar: Dwarf Magician

·         Me7a: Clockwork Monk (Warrior)

·         Ripples: Elf Adept

·         Tordar: Dwarf Spellguard (Warrior)

 

Picking up where we left off, the Victims were fighting the Meadows' wet nurse, Beryl Zarnie, who, it turns out, is a cultist of some demon she called the "King of Sorrows".  Apparently, the Meadows' baby was being primed to be the vessel for this demon by Zarnie.  The Victims entered the picture and the cultists showed their true colors and the fight broke out.  Once it got to Zarnie, she leapt out of the house and rushed into the nearby barn, but not before awakening the guardian Hell Cow, who proceeded to attack the group.  Chikatinga and Ripples manage to get the barn door open where Zarnie hid, but four more cultists exited and attacked.  In addition, the Hell Cow awakened 3 Hell Hens to join the fight.  The Hell Cow fought Einar, Tordar and when they were incapacitated, went to fight Ripples.  Striking a critical blow, the Hell Cow slays Ripples outright and proceeds to fight the others.  However, with their combined might, the Victims were able to take out the monstrous bovine and focus on the cultists and Zarnie herself.

 

After dispatching the cultists, they converged on the barn, where Zarnie was apparently drawing energy from a man she had strung up at the back of the barn.  The victims attack, disrupting the energy drain, and the final battle begins.  Unable to land decisive blows on Zarnie, the group focus their efforts on the demonic baby and manage to kill it.  This throws Zarnie into a rage, but to no avail as the group manage to kill her as well. With her dying breath, she tells the dead child that he will rise again.

 

Adventure Wrap-Up:

 

You recover Me7a's body and manage to get his key going again.  Why it mysteriously stopped is unknown.

 

Zachary and Nonna Meadows are heartbroken that their child died in the conflict and wish to have all vestiges of the wet nurse and her cultists removed from their property.  She hands over a number of their belongings to the Victims to dispose of, a number of which are enchanted. They also find some of Beryl Zarnie's incantation scrolls.

 

The man in the barn turns out to be former inquisitor, Randolfus, who is apparently cursed and cannot be healed by magic.  Upon recovering a bit he tells the Victims that he could use people like them in his quest to rid the world of these cults that seek to bring about the end of the world.  He invites them to come to him in the city of Sixton if they would like to pursue this goal with him.

 

You return to Ephram's Fork and let the elder know that the source of the disease plaguing town has been discovered and taken care of.  She is extremely happy and pays you the agreed upon amount, including Ripple's share.  She says you can have free lodging whenever you pass through Ephram's Fork again.

 

You return to Crossings and get paid for the fresh milk delivered.

 

End of Session / End of Adventure: Your new adventure begins 2 months after the end of this one.   What would you like to do during your downtime?  Here are some things to consider:

 

·         What are you going to do with Ripples' body?

·         What are you going to do with Fleck?

·         What are you doing with the enchanted objects the Meadows gave you?

·         Are you going to seek work during the downtime? If not, how will you spend the time?

·         Are there any plot points that have come up so far that you would like to pursue further?  If so, how would you like to proceed?

TotDL 2 Cinematic: Sometime before the start of the campaign...

 The apprentice enters the Master's chambers.  She swallows her fears, which have plagued her ever since her master died and was reborn an undead lich.  The mind was still the brilliance that was Katandramus in height of his power, but the body was now a rotting corpse; disgusting and horrifying to behold.  Still, it was the spirit that animated this desiccated carcass that kept her loyal.  That, and the incredible knowledge that it possessed, knowledge of the true nature of reality.

The chambers were dark, lit only by a few candles, for what did the Master need of artificial light?   But the candles were for her sake, of course, for she was still bound by mortal needs, including light to see by.  The vast collection of eldritch relics within amazed her, as did the vast library of works both brilliant and terrifying.  

"Well, has it been done?" The voice came from a dark corner of the room, but seemed to come from a much farther and alien place.  

"Yes, Master.  The seeds have been planted.  The fool Wollerdek has taken the bait, as has Dr Vordair in Lij.  The Seekers of the Wandering Star have already begun their trek to the Northern Reach, where they hope to contact the entity Atropus."

The darkness shifted and moved towards the trembling apprentice.  Blue flames now burned within the eye sockets that once held the blue eyes that she had fallen in love with year ago.  Katendramus' tall, skeletal frame, adorned with lush robes and magical accoutrements, towered over her.  A skeletal hand reached down and gently touched her chin, encouraging her to look upon him.  "Vordair won't be able to make contact unless the copy of the Manuscript is found.  Wollerdek will need to be able to gain it once Vordair arrives.  Have you determined how to unlock the enchantments that keep it locked within the tower ruins near Starfall?"

"Of course, Master.  There is a talisman that is linked to the tower, which is in the possession of the town Elder.  I have nearly finished the elixer that Wollerdek will need to do away with the Elder when the time comes.  Once finished, I will ensure Wollerdek gets it and provide him with the instructions needed to secure the Manuscript to give to Vordair."

"Excellent.  You have done well, my dear.  If all goes to plan, Vordair and his Seekers will set into motion events that will change the face of Urth forever.  Go now, we still need to find the original Manuscript as well as begin preparations for acquiring the Apocalypticon.  With these in my possession, I shall ensure the Demon Lord's favor when it finally makes it's ruinous arrival!"

Swallowing nervously, the apprentice watches as her master turns from her and resumes the unknowable arcane experiments that he tirelessly works upon.   "One last thing Master..."

The skeletal figure resumes it's arcane work and responds without turning, "Yes, what is it?"

"Our spies inform me that Randolfus continues to search for us.  His persistence may hamper our efforts.  We should have killed him when we had the chance..."

Katandramus laughs a deep, hollow laugh, which chills the apprentice to her core.  "Randolfus is an impotent and inconsequential insect.  Should he truly threaten the work, I will care for his demise personally, and gain much satisfaction from it.  But for now, I enjoy the thought of his suffering from the wounds you inflicted upon him and the curse I placed that prevents him from fully healing.  Let the fool believe he can stop me, it will make his failure all the more sweet."

The apprentice bows her head and departs the chambers, certain that her master underestimates Randolfus and that she will need to do something about the former inquisitor at some point.     

Tales of the Demon Lord 2: Trouble in Ephram's Fork, N1 Part 2

 The Victims of the Demon Lord

 

·         Chikatinga: Human Priest

·         Einar: Dwarf Magician

·         Me7a: Clockwork Monk (Warrior)

·         Ripples: Elf Adept

·         Tordar: Dwarf Spellguard (Warrior)

 

As the Victims start to head out of Ephram's Fork to return the spoiled milk, they are approached by Samantha, one of the town elders.  She asks to speak with them in private and buys them breakfast at Prudence Appleton's Kitchen.  She says that if news of the disease that's plaguing the town gets out, the town will be ruined, as it relies on travelers stopping here between Sixton and Crossings and Thorpe. She begs the group to keep news of the disease to themselves, stating that they tried very hard to determine the source but could not and the disease continues to crop up for the last month.  The group offers to try and determine the source…for a price.  She offers 5 gc up front and another 5 if they can determine and stop the source of the disease.  She says another offered to do so, but he never returned.  When they inquire about this other man, Samantha says that she thought him to be an Inquisitor of the Church of the New God, but he did not bear any symbols.  She described him as being lame in a leg and an arm not working properly, and having a scarred face.  He offered to find the source of the disease, but when he left town he never returned. 

 

Upon completing their meal, the Victims take their spoiled-milk wagon out of town to the Golden Meadows Dairy farm.  They enter the farm and speak to a farm hand who claimed to know nothing about the disease plaguing town.  Zach Meadows emerges from the milking barn and speaks to the group as well.  He offers to replace the spoiled milk and is very apologetic.  He also appears haggard, with dark circles under his eyes and looking rather thin and tired. 

 

As they talk, some of the others notice odd behavior from some of the animals.  A cow, a couple of chickens and a goat seem to stare intently, almost menacingly, at the group.  Einar notices that the farm hands don't seem to belong and don't seem to know what they're doing.  Chikatinga goes into the milking barn to talk to Nonna Meadows who is milking a cow, while another farm hand watches her.  The farm hand tries to get Chikatinga to leave when he approaches the door leading to the hog pen, but as Chikatinga draws his blade and goes into the pen, one of the hogs rises up on hind legs, eyes begin to burn with flames and the hog comes for him!  Chikatinga back into the barn but the hog manages to gore him with its tusks.  Tordar enters the barn to assist.  The farm hands draw daggers to attack and the Victims respond accordingly.  Einar uses technomancy to create an automated crossbow.  The fight is taken into the farm house as Me7a pursues a fleeing farm hand and encounters two others in the house.  Zach Meadows warns Einar that watch out for the wet nurse, Beryl Zarnie. 

 

Inside the house, the fight continues.  Einar enters and drinks a potion which causes him to grow to giant sized proportions.  Back in the barn, Chikatinga, Tordar and Ripples finish off the hell hog and the farm hand.  The fight in the courtyard ends and they head to the farm house.  The unfriendly farm hands on the first floor are killed and Einar hoists his companions up to the 2nd level.  Ripples opens the door and finds Beryl Zarnie within, holding Baby Meadows to her teet.  A wave of despair washes over the group as she stands to fight. Einar, Ripples, Me7a and Tordar face her, but when she is wounded, she releases a burst of energy that pushes Einar through the wall and he falls to the ground below.  Chikatinga enters the house and prepares to face the wet nurse, but she attacks the group with caustic breast milk and then jumps out the window, landing unnaturally well in the courtyard below. 

 

End of session.

Tales of the Demon Lord 2: Trouble in Ephram's Fork N1, Part 1

Victims of the Demon Lord

• Chikatinga: Human Priest of Witchcraft
• Einar: Dwarf Magician
• Me7a: Clockwork Monk (Warrior)
• Ripples in the Pond: Elf Adept
• Tordar: Dwarf Spellguard (Warrior)

PROLOGUE:

 

After seeing the people of Starfall depart, the Victims make their own future plans.  Chikatinga, Me7a, and Einar depart for Crossings.  Tordar stays behind and makes an agreement with the ghost mage Salazar to train him in the ways of Battle magic at the cost of his index finger being replaced by Salazar's corpse finger.  Ripples also stays behind to do some introspection, whereupon he receives a vision of the Lady of Dreams and Shadows, encouraging him to follow his fate to Crossings, opening a portal for him to travel there and granting him access to ways of Teleportation magic.  Upon completing his training, Tordar makes his way to Crossings and rejoins his friends.

 

While in Crossings, the Victims do their best to make a living while deciding on where their fate lies.  Chikatinga tries to take on work as a healer, but given the church's stance on Witchcraft, none of the local healers would keep him on long, so he worked independently aiding those who wished their homes cleansed of the horrid smells that plague the city these days.  Me7a did odd jobs as a laborer, but also made contact with the local population of clockworks, establishing a relationship, building a new group of Tempered Souls and perfecting his Monk path.  Einar takes work as with a blacksmith and also gets in with the dwarven community through the local Honored Dead Shrine and Brewery, run by the spiritual leader and master brewer Stohk Ironbrow.  Einar also takes an interest in the clockwork community, being fascinated by the workings of their mechanical bodies.  When Tordar and Ripples arrive, the group begin looking for ways to supplement their income and further their career plans.

 

One thing that all of them notice, is the new star that appeared over Starfall when the Cult of the Wandering Star conducted their experiment, remains in the night sky…and is growing larger.

 

OPPORTUNITY ARISES:

 

While walking by an inn, Me7a is asked to take on a job of returning spoiled milk to a dairy outside of town.  Taking the news back to the rest of the group, they decide to make it a road trip.  The next day, the Victims follow Me7a to the inn and after the milk containers are loaded, they head out of Crossings towards their destination in Ephram's Fork; a 3 day journey. 

 

Initially, the journey is uneventful, but on the 2nd day their wagon wheel breaks and requires repairs, which Einar facilitates with his Technomancy.  The next day brings on them a storm, forcing the group to head into a nearby cave for shelter.  But within the cave they find rotting corpses and a malevolent presence within the cave.  Trusting in Chikatinga's affinity with the natural world, they risk the storm instead of taking chances with the strange fog creature in the cave.  The following day, they manage to make it to Ephram's Fork, but just as they do their wagon wheel shatters, requiring a new wheel.  With the aid of some friendly villagers, they carry the wagon to the local Livery and leave it there for repairs.  They then make their way to the Inn of the Buxom Barkeep, where they order a meal and relax for the evening.  However, halfway through their meal, another patron of the inn becomes violently ill.  Other patrons fetch the local doctor, Doc Bentley, who comes in and asks the group to help him move the patient to his infirmary next door.  Me7a agrees to carry the sick human to the infirmary and the group follows, asking the doc questions about this ailment.  They find the infirmary filled with patients with the same disease, some recovering, some not. 

 

The group returns to the inn, take a private common room and rest for the night.  The following day, they go to the Livery and find their wagon being worked on.  Waiting for the repairs to be completed, Chikatinga learns that others in town that were passing through seemed to take ill as well, but he could not determine the cause.  Once the wagon was finished, the group prepared to take the milk to the Golden Meadows Dairy farm, just outside of town.  They learned that the farm is run by a local couple, Zack and Nonna Meadows, who recently welcomed their first child into the world with the aid of a wet nurse they hired, and they also hired a number of out of towners to help out on the farm while they care for the newborn.  The townfolk they spoke to didn't care much for those workers.  Suspicions rise as the group make their way to the dairy farm…

 

End of Session

Tales of the Demon Lord 2: Level 0, Session 2

 Upon returning to the village, the Victims found the villagers mutated by the voidstone, wandering in a state of shock/confusion.  The worst affected appeared to be Guntar the Jotun, who was also hideously mutated and rampaging through the square.  Upon seeing the Victims, he charged at them in a crazed rage.  Einar found his boss, Aris the Smith, and talked him out of his confused state and Aris went through the square to do the same for the others affected by the Voidstone.  Chikatinga tried to talk the jotun down, but Guntar was too enraged.  Tordar and Einar then attempted to trip up the jotun with a length of rope, but were not strong enough to take him down before the jotun cut a villager in half with his battleaxe.  When aided by Ripples and Chikatinga, they managed to knock the joten prone and reason with him, which calmed is manic rage.

 

Meanwhile, Me7a and Glinda went to Elder Kemp's home and found his servant crying over his dead body.  Glinda asked if he still had the "token" and the servant said that Advisor Wollerdek took it earlier.  Me7a left Glinda there to see if she could do anything for Kemp and rejoined his companions in the village square.  They gathered the survivors and told them to get the other survivors not affected by the stone out of the village.  Helga led them away and told the Victims that she would take them to the Starstone, a landmark on the outskirts.

 

The group searched Wollerdek's house and found a chest full of coins and a drawer full of letters from the University of Occult Philosophy in Lij, the City of Wonders.  It seems that the advisor had initiated the correspondence and gained the interest of Dr Vordair to come to Starfall to study the ancient ruins surrounding town.  Vordair indicated that he needed a tome that was vital to his work and was rumored to be hidden within a ruined mage tower near Starfall, which Wollerdek agreed to get for him.  Me7a told the group about the token that Glinda asked about and that Wollerdek had taken it earlier.  The group regathered at Kemp's house and Glinda told them that the token was needed to acquire a vile tome that was kept within this ruined mage tower.  She used to have the token but gave it to Kemp when she tired of the responsibility.

 

Assuming the tome is the same that Dr Voidair claimed to need for his work, the group took Glinda back to her house and started heading to the mage tower. 

 

Then something strange occurred. 

 

Despite it being mid-afternoon, the sky began to darken and night time came several hours early.  Then the group witnessed a beam of light fire up from Observatory Hill, where Dr Vordair and his entourage were camped to study the ruins.  This beam rose into the heavens and a blazing star that was not there a moment earlier came into being in the dark patch of night sky.  The beam seemed to touch this new star, almost beckoning it. 

 

Fearing these events were connected to this vile tome that Wollerdek and Vordair were after, the group continued on to the mage tower.  Once there they found some kind of magic active within, as rings of power circulated through the interior. They also discovered that the spirit of the tower's original inhabitant still lingered and was trying to drive them away.  Chikatinga braved the rings in the tower and made it to the center where he found an invisible chest had been placed and lay open.  The spirit of the mage appeared to Chikatinga and frightened him out of the box and caused him to get shocked by the protective rings of magic circulating along the floor.  However, he realized that he had inadvertently grabbed an enchanted hat out of the invisible box.

 

Tordek then braved the room as his companions tossed him into the center where the invisible chest was.  He landed in the box and was also approached by the spirit who accused them of robbing him just as the man did earlier when he took his book.  Realizing that Wollerdek had already come here and claimed the vile tome, the group asked the spirit where the man had gone and the spirit pointed to Observatory Hill.  The group asked if they could borrow the hat and the flying rug they found in the chest and the spirit wanted them to give their word that they'd return them.  Giving that, they used the rug to fly a short distance towards the hill, then walked the rest of the way.

 

Upon reaching Observatory Hill, they found two metal orreries apparently powered by Voidstones operating in the camp and several of Vordair's staff dead or mutated.  The group stopped the operation of both orreries which apparently stopped the beam of light that was emanating from the observatory.  They then ascended to the top of the hill and entered the observatory, finding Dr Vordair, Wollerdek and a mutant, who tried to stop the Victims from interfering, and failed. 

 

Whatever Dr Vordair, Wollerdek and the rest were attempting to do here was a mystery that would hopefully be revealed as the group search the observatory.

 

·         End of Session

·         End of Adventure - LEVEL UP AND DETERMINE NOVICE PATH

 

AFTERMATH:

 

The Victims spend the rest of the night and several days following looking through the vast amount of information left by the scientists from Lij.  Various documents reveal that they were part of a secret society known as the Seekers of the Wandering Star, who were awaiting the return of a celestial object that appears once every 88 years.  Apparently, ancient astronomers used Observatory Hill to witness the return of this "star" and built these ruins to facilitate this observation and to honor the being they believed the star represented.  Dr Vordair believed these ruins were the key to making contact with this celestial being that they called "Atropus," but needed a book he called the Manuscript of the Black Sun to do so.  This is apparently the tome that Wollerdek provided from the mage tower.  But Vordair's notes indicate the tome is a copy and not the original, and as such the rituals he sought were incomplete.  Despite that, he proceeded with his experiment to contact this Wandering Star named Atropus, however whether he succeeded or not remains to be seen, as the Victims shut down his experiment.

 

The Victims and the villagers of Starfall are now homeless, as the village is now too dangerous to live in due to the Voidstones that litter the area.  The villagers that were not affected by the stones decide to find another home and leave Starfall for good.  Those who were mutated believe that civilization will reject them due to their mutations, so they decide to move to a place rumored to take in outcasts, a place near the Desolation called Pariah.  Over the next few months, the Victims help the villagers gather their belongings and see them on their way.  Helga, Aris, Guntar and the others bid their farewells to the Victims, thanking them for their aid and begin their long journey north, first to West Hold, then on to Pariah.

 

As for the Victims, well, they have discovered that there is a wide world beyond Starfall, filled with wonders and dangers and those who would use both with diabolical intent.  What should they do next? What do they do with this copy of the Manuscript of the Black Sun? What if this Atropus had been contacted, what does that mean?  Many questions, few answers here, but perhaps those answers could be found somewhere out there…