Smaller merchants are willing to move goods. Those unfamiliar with local histories and legends are also more willing to move those goods to an area where normal humans would be afraid. This is the tale of a small-time merchant, rare smuggler who took a job that may beyond his abilities.
Session Notes: This is a first time player who is also testing my Uncommoner concept. They started at 4th level because they will be joining The Five, eventually.
It is also a solo session.
Hiring
Wandering past the Fine Market in Telse, Doceo is approached by another halfling. This one is from the west, probably Telse. She is strong, lithe. Doceo just sold a few goods that he’d picked up on the way, and has yet to approach the House of Quar.
This new one sees the empty cart, points and offers more work. Bargaining takes place with warnings to not be followed, as there is a slaver trying to track the group down. Doceo gets a higher rate via the negotiations.
His cart is loaded. In the next ten days he must head into Sheljar, a supposedly haunted city, to deliver some basic staples. Two messenger pigeons are sent with him and full payment will be given upon delivery.
Attack of the Worgs
Three nights out Doceo and his two mastiffs are attacked. As the previous nights they head well off the main road. On this eve they find some sanctuary. If not for his loyal companions Doceo’s little smuggling operation would be over quickly. But the three of them take down the two worgs. It is a rough fight and takes some time to recover. These are not normal wolves. The Western Wildes surrounding Telse are stocked with the unfamiliar.
Feral orchards
Another day north towards Sheljar, now half way on his journey, Doceo notices an encampment out to the east. This camp with four tents and several fires is at the edge of sight. There are a variety of races present.
He leaves the road and heads into a feral apple orchard. Continuing on lane in the orchard that parallels the road the halfling feels undiscovered, until he notices a raven that stays about four trees in front of the small cart.
Doceo attempts to scare it off, but all that does is get the raven to stay another few trees away. But it still shadows the cart.
At the edge of the apple orchard there is a small rock wall that demarcation about eight inches tall. The next orchard is pears. Doceo notices the old homestead. He sets a false trail to the barn there, starting a small fire as the storm errupts overhead. The heavy rains, clouds and thunders should provide him cover.
Then he hurries off on the real path. At the next demarcation he doesn’t have time to take down the rocks, instead he finds an old cart and uses it as a ramp. The player suggested this in a moment of player agency.
The spaces between the vines runs east-west rather than north-south. Doceo hurries to the west and the gully at the edge of the property heads up a few lanes and then hides inside the vines. Looking back he notices two humans, a scent dog and a raven. They look confused. They’ve lost the trail and Doceo has escaped these hunters.
As Saffron gets to know Behn and Samul she wrote a song celebrating their homeland.
Night pours over the rolling dunes. First, pink and purple, swallowing the sun-soaked sky. Then red to match the blood-soaked hands. And a whisper in the wind decries: nothing remains now except stars and scars.
Dawn breaks the black horizon. We are thirst, and thirst is all we know. We are sand, wind, sun, and burning sky. We are.
Here, in the desert, We cannot be claimed nor owned. Carried by winds, A mirage of heart and bone And memories built by hand.
I turn toward emptiness. I see nothing, hear nothing. Yet through the silence something throbs.
Here, in the desert, Ahid wraps tight around our ribs Preparing us for battle. We stand at the gates, Men and women, Myths and legends. Ready to fight.
The Five keep growing in size, but are far from completing their quest. The fogs of Sheljar have them on edge. They fear another tunneling nightmare striking their inn-home. Furthermore, the dead walk the night and there is the problem of their still hidden master wandering the bog-city.
Session Notes: A guest player is here on a one-shot. They are playing a non-humanoid. Ixnyx remains at the inn, working on an unknown project.
Shonie is still in Telse, they think. Mansaray’s whereabouts are unknown. His falcon is back with Ixnyx.
Stumbling back from the battle at the temple the group is weary. They fear going back to the island with the city center and its Library of Glight. Over the next day they will set a watch. Sure, the Necromancer will have some time to recoup, but the group needs the health and energy, especially if more wights or tunneling nightmare’s show.
During their rest day Saffron goes fishing with her mage hand. Ajhenas’ heron helps gather fish as well. Samul is mourning the loss of Boo, his trusty lizard. Aamar is in the main room of the inn. Behn took a perch on top of the storage shed to paint the faint images seen through fog. Mo is up there as well.
Encounter: Pet Shop Boys
Limping through the thick fogs is a skeletal form. It has a spear it uses as a staff and a cape. Beside it is the ghostly visage of a massive warhound. Next to that is a tiny skeletal creature. Ajhenas is fishing at the base of the bridge and orders the skeleton to stop. This works, just short of the alarm zone.
“Stop!” Ajhenas shouts. The skeleton and its companions stop. “Approach,” the scout from Kirtin says. A few steps forward. The start and stop commands continue. Leaning on the staff like a weak old man the skeleton does not seem threatening.
Ajhenas mistimes his start-stop commands and the non-enemies, they cross Ixnyx’ alarm system. No longer is Ajhenas audience the two halflings on the storage shed, but the whole group, coming out into the courtyard seeing the creatures on the edge of the bridge.
When Samul exits the building the tiny skeletal lizard sprints towards the massive gladiator, leaping up into his leather shirt’s inner pocket. This thing is, was?, Boo.
Mo’s shortbow and Behn’s crossbow remain trained on the human skeleton. Ajhenas notices the cape is from a different light infantry unit than his own, one that was eliminated during the Awakening. Saffron asks the undying soul if it can talk, it shakes its head. She then follows up seeing if it can write.
Through a long conversation with a skeleton carving words in the dirts of an abandoned isle the Five learn that the skeleton’s master is angry about the destruction of the temple, but extends the offer of an animated Boo as a symbol that the two parties may be able to communicate with less violence. They arrange a meeting with the Necromancer. Tomorrow, the Five will see this man across the collapsed bridge that once connected city center to the grand market. There will be a gap between the adversaries, so while missile and spell fire could happen, retreat into the fogs will be possible.
Encounter: Enter a dragon
With time to prepare the Five (it’s not five, but this adventuring party hasn’t named itself) build a second rope bridge over the gap between where the old massive stone bridge fell apart. That rope bridge is about 60 feet above the water. The stone bridge had a massive rise so smaller sea-worthy vessels could round the market isle.
The also construct a couple simple defenses for the ranged fighters to use as cover. They’ll be shooting at shadowy objects through the fogs, but the cover provides some felling of safety. There are two of these. Some of the group is set to prevent a flanking action. Then they wait.
Marching in step two banks of four skeletons walk to the edge of the bridge. Taking a knee and placing their shields in front the first row provides defense for the second row and their bowman. These are all human sized, but the skulls indicate that not all are human. Two mulkon zombies stumble forward from the rear of the military unit to the edges of the rope bridges. Their massive forms holding the giant morning stars that are common among their living race.
These walking dead provide a defense for a large pitch black cloud of darkness that walks forward. This is powerful magic, not some mere illusion but a black that makes night seem like broad daylight. The group of adventurers is tense. If this meeting comes to violence they have a chance, Behn always thinks they have a chance.
Greetings are exchanged. Interrupting the pleasantries is a resounding screech comes from the sky. The skeletons aim their bows up, as does the group. This is something different – a third side to the potential conflict.
A winged form, somewhat related to the flying lizards of Mehmd comes into view, a second screech. There is a rider.
“DRAGON!!!!!!!” screams Saffron and she sprints away, cowering in an abandoned merchant booth.
And the fight starts. Bolts, arrows and spells fly out at the beast. The rider flings spells back. While in the air the wyvern does a spin move to avoid one of Behn’s spells. Its rider is flung aside into the water. Ajhenas runs down to the shore and Maurice leaps off the bridge chasing the stout form.
The rest focus their efforts on the winged beast, eventually slaying it. When it dies the Necromancer and his companions are gone. That group of Behn, Samul, Boo, Saffron and Aamar look down to the water.
Between the quick thoughts and strengths of Ajhenas and Mo they’ve captured the man. He is about 4 feet tall, with broad shoulders and a beard. He is a spell caster, once using a spell to get away from the group, but they recapture him. He has heavy armor, a hammer and is quite angry to find his mount is dead.
While interrogated he declares that he is a “Proctor of Grace.” He displays some contempt for the “pathetic” spells used in the conflict, and disgust specifically for Behn. Some of the group take this Proctor back to their inn. The rest field dress the fallen wyvern and take its venom from the stinger.
They now have a prisoner who can cast spells beyond what they do (he claims), wyvern parts and are no closer to learning the identity and disposition of the Necromancer.
The loss of Boo still haunts the group as they consider their next move in the audience of a few dozen decomposed bodies. The skeletal remains of a congregation loom over the party, their open eyesockets unmoving but seemingly following each nervous tic, every sideways glance.
Session Notes: The player running Ajhenas wrote this recap. This is the first recap written from a single player’s angle and thereby gives new insights into the story. Samul and Maurice are absent from the session, but they remain in the temple nave. Maurice also helps open a lock. Shonie is still in Telse, they think. Mansaray’s whereabouts are unknown. His falcon is back with Ixnyx. Ixnyx is back at the inn setting some alarms.
Given the disastrous, carefree door opening of Samul only moments prior, it is instead the recently revived Ajhenas who is entrusted with opening the doors of the temple. The Kirtin man still hasn’t fully recovered from the severe head injury that left him floating alone miles downriver. Silently he curses himself for not sensing the earlier trap that left much of the party injured. After due diligence, Ajhenas opens the left door into a back room, with Aamar, Behn and Saffron close behind. Injured and traumatized, Maurice and Samul wait in the rubble. Ajhenas’ heron remains outside on watch. Mitzie, Edgar and Barkley stay with the barbarian and rogue. If the skeletons animate the halfing and human will have some help.
Beyond the door the party finds a simple set of rooms and a pair of staircases. In one room lies a table with a set of unfamiliar books; Behn notes that the books have been disturbed recently. As much of the party examines the mundane items scattered about, Ajhenas goes to a window to look more closely at the side of the church farthest from where they entered.
To his astonishment, the thick fog that hindered their progress earlier appears to have completely lifted in the direct vicinity of the church, allowing him to see outside. There, ten yards out from the church, is a lone pole with a pennant hanging from the very top. A gruff word calls the others to the window, where no one is able to recognize the peculiar symbol adorning the flag. Behn takes note of it for later.
Having seemingly seen all that is there to be seen, the party considers the stairs and decides to travel downwards first. Their descent leads them into pure darkness, greeted only with a nasty stench not unlike a sewer. Saffron and Ajhenas light torches in an attempt to make sense of the room, but to no avail. It simply isn’t worth the risk, and an exploration of the basement is abandoned.
That leaves only the upwards stairs. At the top, nothing greets them save for a few more books with more strange symbols, and two more doors facing towards the back of the building. Behn presses his ear against the right-most door, and hears nothing living. Ajhenas is wary nonetheless, and opens the door with an axe at the ready. And sure enough, upon opening the great wooden wall, a wight blows by him to attack the rest of the party. In a moment of weakness, Ajhenas attempts to bring one of his trusty handaxes down on the nasty ghoul only to get it stuck in the doorframe. An encounter with the other leaves him badly wounded as a rusty sword slashes his chest.
Behn and Aamar have similarly poor luck despite seemingly excellent preparation. An attempt to disarm the opponent leaves both Behn and this new enemy without weapons.
Bernie, Aamar’s bear cub, rushes forth swiping at the wight attacking Behn. Saffron stands back in support. The fellow Kirtin-ite drumming inspiring beats, with secondary rhythm that place that same wight at a disadvantage.
Calling upon his long military career, Ajhenas attempts to isolate this armed creature from the rest of the party. The cut he sustained was deep, and the man has seen how man and beast alike fare with such wounds. His shield equipped, Ajhenas pushes his attacker deeper into the room from which it came, blocking the door with his body. He attempts to push it closed behind him, but fails; a most fortuitous fail.
In the other room, the party appears to have the wight in hand. A series of swipes and spells leave it all but defeated. Behn considers finishing it off, when out of the corner of his eye he sees the struggling Ajhenas alone, staggering with his shield high. Behn calls on one of his most powerful spells (I silently pray for good aim) and fires a bolt over the shoulder of the Kirtin man into the face of the looming creature. The wight lets out a horrific scream, barely clinging to the world of the living. Everybody looks on, anticipating that Ajhenas will run his longsword through the blight and earn his bravery.
But the man is too weak, a lumbering strike misses wide and his body is left open to a critical strike, which falls swiftly after. Ajhenas crumples to the ground, wondering if this is the day he dies, surrounded by foreigners in a foreign land for a cause he doesn’t fully understand. He thinks of his blacksmith parents, of his bonded bird, the halls of the academy and of the many mountains he will never traverse. It’s only when he feels the healing salves on his lips that he realizes just how overly dramatic he was being.
Helped to his feet, Ajhenas sees the smoking remains of the two vestiges of death. The man is not one who speaks, but Behn earned a few words of gratitude. Also to Saffron and Aamar, for their generous use of healing Everflow.
By now the light struggled to survive through the island’s fog. The party checks the accompanying door, which was gratefully empty. Ignoring the remaining upwards steps the party returns to the first floor, where Behln stops just before the party reunites with Samul and Maurice. He reminds the group of the pennant flying outside and how it appeared to repel the fog. After some discussion, Behl bursts through a window and (with help) retrieves the cloth. As soon as he does though, the fog that was held back as if by a glass bowl flows back into the empty space, and a sense of dread envelops the group along with the thick air. Replacing the pennant does nothing. Ajhenas calls for Laurel, who through speaking with Aamar informs them that a green cloud is approaching from that side of the building (and also that it’d be a very good time to leave.)
The group reunites in the main chamber, ready to pack up and go. But the skeletons still sit in their pews, waiting for the sermon that will seemingly never come. Tired, wounded and annoyed, Ajhenas calls for the whole damn building to be burned down. But that idea doesn’t fly. Instead, Aamar sends the others on and lets forth a powerful spell from the center of the room which thunderously shatters the remaining bones.
From there it’s a race to get off the island, away from the now apparent green cloud, and to the party’s base of operations. But as they cross the long bridges that connect the haunted village to the mainland, a bell rings in front of them. Ajhenas mentally braces himself for another fight, particularly when a goblin approaches excitedly. It’s all the party can do to keep him from throwing an axe at the monster. It makes the coming introductions between hottie Kirtin outsider and former captive turned Five member Ixnyx rather awkward.
The green fog approaches no further, the group returns to the inn and the party settles down for rest at last.
Hiding in the abandoned bog city of Sheljar The Five found an home. The once thriving inn is a rare building within the fogs that is in a decent state of repair. As Behn and Ixnyx scouted the city square the others remained on their new tiny island.
Aamar and Bernie rid the store room of a swarm of rats. They also found two vials of the Everflow. Both were from prior to Bishop Ollium’s reign.
Samul repaired or built systems that could bar the doors and shutter the windows.
Saffron and Barkley scouted the east side and the docks, noticing an island across the faster flowing water.
Maurice and Edgar headed out the western trail following it through the garden. Mo found two wheels for the dog-cart and down near the orchard a land broken by pockmarks.
We return to table play.
When the gobkon and Sorcerer return from their trip they are short the mulkon. They speak of an encounter with some dire beast that trips creatures and tosses them into its gaping maw. It is also the source of the Stench of Sheljar. The two do not know if there are more of this bog kraken.
Wounded and needing to heal, Mo recognizes the description of the holes from those whipping tentacles and leads the group down to where he scouted. But on the way along the eastern path Barkley barks at the river. Then Mitzie joins in as well. Floating down in the chill water, at night is some kind of man. A large heron is circling above. That bond clearly still active.
The two dogs jump into the water on command. Their attempts to drag the man to shore fail, but they do slow him down. Aamar sprints ahead and uses his thorn whip to pull the poor soul to shore. That action and the dogs get the man into the dock area.
Aamar uses a full vial of the Everflow to help the hapless soldier of Kirtin. Saffron having recognized the insignia on the light infantryman. Later, she escorts him back to the inn. Ixnyx had already turned one table into a work bench. She was working on some promised alarm system for the bridges. So Saffron took Ajhenas to one of the bedrooms to heal. They also discussed Kirtin, his presence in Sheljar and a certain volcano.
Mo leads Behn, Samul and Aamar down to the pockmarked land. It is immediately familiar to the Sorcerer of Gate. He again speaks to how he won that previous encounter, with Ixnyx and the mulkon doing a bit themselves.
A watch is established when the return. Ixnyx, Behn and the new arrival Ajhenas allowed to heal.
In the morning Ixnyx declares that she needs to install those alarms, and even has a messenger flitter ready for Saffron. This small device will return to a single location with a short message. That location is the fireplace mantel in the inn.
Saffron suggests the group head through the thicker fogs to the east. She wants to avoid that dangerous beast, maybe finding a new path to the city square. It takes two trips in the rowboat to get everyone across. They explore an island market, mostly failed and decaying. The fog is so thick they cannot see too far, but both the Rogue and Behn see Samul pocket a bar of silver.
Heading to the northeast edge of the island there is a huge dockyard. No boats are left, but this is a place where great ships came to Sheljar. There is also a bridge that rapidly rises from the land, heading towards the city square. It ends in an abrupt slice through the stone. On the edge of vision they see the other part of the partitioned bridge.
Saffron and Aamar want to take the rowboat across. Samul and Mo think there is a way between the Barbarian’s great strength and the Rogue’s quick feet they can build a bridge. Behn points out that their dogs couldn’t cross such a rope-bridge. Ajhenas is stuck chuckling as this group that has just accepted him argues.
Done with words the Bard and Cleric of Quar head back to the row boat. Samul is offering to tie a rope to Maurice and just throw him across the gap. But then little Mo sprints up the bridge leaps the gap. The tiny halfling from Ooshar tumbles to his feet with a little flourish. Then he ties off the rope. Samul comes across the rope bridge while Behn rides Mitzie to let the fans of more traditional transportation know what happened.
Now on the island square Behn “leads.” He isn’t in front of the group, but he is describing the things they see. Across the square is the Temple. The group decides to edge around it, but to the right of the open doors is a cemetery. The grounds and graves broken open. The group avoids that and instead goes straight to the steps.
Two gargoyles swoop upon them. Aamar and Samul do most of the work to take them out. All aided them, but the two were the primary targets of the living stone. A bit shaken, a bit weary the pit fighter enters the vestibule through the open doors. Between the nave and vestibule is another set of doors.
A bit naive the Mehmd native flings the doors open and the ceiling gives way. Behn, Mitzie, Aamar, Bernie and Samul survive the crush of stone and wood. Little Boo, Samul’s lizard, is smashed. Aamar’s spells cannot help the little bearded dragon, but they do heal Mitzie and Bernie.
Now, the group proceeds with caution. Mo checks the door. He looks into the nave, and it is occupied, but nothing is moving. There are no more traps, just 16 skeletal heads staring towards the altar.
They enter. Mo again looks for traps in the nave. He finds none, though there are two doors on either side of the altar behind the lectern. As the group fans out none of the skeletons react. There are five more smaller ones, that look like the face of Ixnyx. The larger ones a mix of human and those hobkon that captured their ally.
Frightened that the undead could rise at any moment in a Obscon temple guarded by traps The Five ponder their next move.
Updating progress for The Five has been difficult for a bit. This shall sum up their activities over the last four sessions. Mansaray is still somewhere in the Western Wildes as his falcon is stays close to Aamar. Shonie stayed in Telse and works to provide some information to her companions via messenger pigeon to the caravansary.
Saffron and Aamar arrived at the caravansary on the scheduled date. Maurice stayed in Fort Ooshar a day longer and discovered that his father’s old friend Willan’s children are part of local gang of thieves that have been ordered to follow him. At last check Willan may, or may not, be in Qin along the Southern River. Mo then slips out of Ooshar and catches up to his companions.
At the caravansary The Five (Aamar, Behn, Maurice, Saffron, Samul) head off to Sheljar, and the supposed safety from harm that a place that is either haunted or cursed offers. Along the way there they happen upon a broken repeating crossbow the size of a siege weapon and some marks of a scuffle. This reminds Behn and Samul of their previous conflict so the group heads down the gully.
Working along the path the group finds that it runs up a gully. As they walk this gully the find tracks of a subject that was drug back along the “path.” As they head down they are ambushed by two more giant, tusked humanoids with those immense crossbows. Those two slow the group, but are not a significant threat.
Continuing up the path they notice an encampment with two defensive positions, a few tents, a cave at the far end, a giant thing tied to a stake and a tiny mouthed halfing inside a cage. This is now a rescue operation. The group hates slavers. It doesn’t matter that these are not Kin being kept.
Through a combination of flanking, frontal assault and luck The Five manage to stay alive despite large numbers of opponents. There are three different sizes and two genders they fight. A few run back to the cave and block the entry, leaving the two captives to The Five.
Ixnyx is a goblin. She was held in the cage and works as the translator for herself and the mulkon. Both agree to work with The Five in the near term, as they are now free due to their help. Though a few of the rebel goblins remain unadressed, Isnyx agrees that hiding within Sheljar will prevent other powers from following The Five, because no one would be insane enough to enter this cursed city.
Everyone returns to the caravansary for a brief reloading of consumables, and they head back out on the path to Sheljar. Now seven strong (3 halfings, 2 humans, 1 gobkon, 1 mulkon) with several animal companions they enter the deep fogs that have surrounded the former empire. There is no stench, but there is this thick fog and apprehension.
As they descend toward the bog-city the fogs get thicker, the definition between river and decaying city disappears. But there is a clear entry from the Sheljar Road into the city proper. It is a wide and kept bridge. The span crosses a formal moat of brackish water.
Samul and the mulkon lead the way. The mulkon makes Samul look small. Samul is well over six feet and has a pit fighter’s muscles. A few dozen feet onto the bridge two helmed horrors with their reddish eyes trapped inside a blackened armor that screams death fly into their path. It takes some time, with Ixnyx and Maurice jumping into the water to hide, getting off shots, some of Ixnyx bolts are on fire.
After the horrors are defeated the group knows they will need a sanctuary to establish as a home while in Sheljar. These kinds of creatures, plus the two goblins talking about undead walking at night and a mysterious stench that swallows the Kon, mean fear rules. But, Ixnyx knows there is a square where the airxips landed. It has a library and a temple. They are well defended, but could contain either the power that rules Sheljar (Xelgar) or a Lorebook.
Moseley Bog and Joy’s Wood Local Nature Reserve – Coldbath Brook by Elliott Brown at https://flic.kr/p/dCZmcC
They all head off to the northeast. It is a wandering path through dry land, some fords, some bridges, some walkways. Everything is in disrepair. The stone bridges can hardly hold the mulkon. The fords mean walking through a water where bones rest at night. These bones are of Kin, of Kon, of beasts.
Death is everywhere. They continue walking until there is a stench along another bridge to the northeast, where Ixnyx says his expeditionary flight landed, and later fled. But that stench is a cue. If they continue along that path someone, probably everyone, will die.
The next most direct route is a wooden bridge to the north, except that odor is there as well. As a group they’ll need to find a longer route to the city center. Down to the southwest they find a rickety bridge leading to away from the stench. They cannot see the land where it ends due to the fog, but it is the only path that does not include death. They take it.
After a walk through the deep fog, and a few broken planks, The Five arrive at a place that used to be an inn. It has has a small dock off the common room, place for a animal companions, a storage room that currently hosts a family of rats, but has a decent roof to use as a lookout. Plus there aren’t any piles of bones or old cemeteries on this patch of land. It’s old orchard and garden is currently feral, but may have some food that they can use.
Samul declares this the capital of his kingdom, which brings some surprisingly good humor to the group. They start to create defensive positions. Behn volunteers himself and the two goblins to head out on a scouting mission along the only other bridge. They do take the rowboat, but follow that bridge.
On deadline, hoping to return to the soon-to-be sanctuary prior to sunset they find their way to the city center, which is a triangular space where most of Ixnyx flight landed. The open square fit the main ship and two of the tenders. Another landed off to the northwest. Three buildings flank the area – a library, a temple and a government office. Ixnyx lets Behn know that expedition never got past the entries of the library or temple due to the amount of skeletons and zombies there. They did clear the office of government before the fleet fled the volcano.
Behn targets the temple for their first visit. They have about an hour before they must return to safety, they hope it is safety. Ixnyx has the mulkon picking up some of the remains of Ixkon’s fleet’s visit. She thinks they can build a couple messenger devices, as well as convert more crossbows to the repeating style she thinks is standard.
As Behn and Ixnyx approach the temple two gargoyles swoop down attempting to prevent entry. It’s a tough contest, but with the advice from Ixnyx Behn is able to fight well. A few well placed spells and the fiery bolts from Ixnyx’ crossbow take down the animated statuaries.
The excitement of victory doesn’t last long.
Shortly after the gargoyles are destroyed the mulkon comes running “the stench is coming.”
A small tendril of thing shoots out of the ground whips at the mulkon’s legs, tripping the large fighter. A gaping maw shoots up from the ground a few dozen feet away from Ixnyx and Behn. Small tendrils reaching to the sky. Two larger ones flank the many-toothed mouth slapping the ground nearby with a thwack-thwack beat.
Ixnyx fires a fire-bolt at its mouth-body. Behn leaps on Mitzie to ride the dog, hoping that rapid movement will keep the two safe, or at least together. Eventually the sorcerer locks onto the flaying beast with his witch bolts. Mitzie leaps a few of the whipping tendrils, while the mulkon shoots the mouth with its huge spear sized crossbow bolts and they try to stand up, getting immediately tripped back to the ground.
One of those slappy tentacles trips Mitzie, but the halfing is able to concentrate on his target. Mitzie does not get grappled. The mouth of this dire creature opens and vomits bones at the mulkon. This spew of former victims rips and slams into the poor fighter.
The fight seems a bit repetitive, until the mulkon is incapable of moving. Somehow the bog beast’s little appendages grasp the 9+ feet of muscle, bone and tusk, tossing it into the air towards the gaping mouth. That many-toothed mouth closes on the mulkon, who is swallowed.
Behn, Mitzie and Ixnyx survive the fearsome creature, who on death causes many dozen of tiny tendrils to pop out of the ground and the chewed remains of the mulkon can be seen in the maw, among the teeth.
The group flees, before some noxious cloud can come and to avoid the walking death of night in Sheljar. They return via rowboat to the old inn. Their hearts full of fear, disgust and some sorrow.
Laurelyn looked over her works. Her funds sending a flight out over the Spires of Xelgar were larger than any other. It is her town that gets to host the final rising of the airxips; her vassals that operate the Ship of the Fleet and its three carrax; her pamphleteers that will write the story of these days. Other families had more money, fame, power, but the Ixkon discovered the anti-sink balloons and taut-line messaging that is needed for such a large expedition.
There are two other models like her Airxip Ixkon (of course she gave it the family name), one is slightly larger and with an additional two tenders. Gerarldine played the game well, but proximity to the High Mother could not earn her more than the vital discoveries necessary to cross the Spires. The third broadxip, Arx Golmul, comes from the North. With just two carrax helping it over the Spire it is most likely to struggle with the winds. But the northern community harvests the fuel trees for the bellows and they are experimenting in granting mulkon the right to vote. If the High Mother sees Arx Golmul do well major changes could be forced. It is likely that the Mothers Parliament were outmaneuvered when they approved that flight. No matter for Laurelyn, she is focused on earning her family, all of her family, more money.
Her artists turned out great posters for the launch. Sales are going well and the non-Ixkon living nearby continue to fall under her sway. There was a need for last minute recruits, and the posters helped.
What a perfect day. The winds are blowing towards the Spires. Normally that’s a problem, but today it’s what they need. Two Feyelfs (weeks) floating to those harsh isles and then the steep rise after extensive fishing. After the rise the ships will cross towards a land unseen for centuries, if the math is right the expedition will float for just a Glibbon (month) before landfall.
Captain Yerxian walks beside Laurelyn
“Ma’am, you’ll have to leave or this xip will not float. It is our time, the winds are right and the crew ready.”
“Certainly Captain. You have the cares and wishes of all of Kon behind you. Bring us something wonderful. This is your fleet now.”
There are no large speeches. The High Mother’s words were in every gobkon, hobkon and mulkon’s wallets, pockets or hands. That pamphlet is half orders and half inspiration to be as great as Kon can be. Each ship has a press so that new pamphlets can be made, and with the taut-line messaging system those can be more easily coordinated when at altitude.
It’s been a few days since that awful incident at the shack. They’d left some people dead, with just piles of stones on them and then moved on to the west. Crazy Rohan cast his lot with the escaped goliath Piyu. Teegan was not going to abandon her brother and Master Kellamon could be guilty too.
Estrella thought about leaving, but it would be her and Ashley in this rough wilderness. A glassblower and a messenger pigeon alone in the rough mountains of Western Kirtin would be doomed. She can repair things, but that isn’t useful if you don’t have things. Plus where would she go? How would she find it?
They’re on tight rations now. Finding forage for Teegan’s ram Ha-Lim isn’t easy. Fani’s finding more than enough fish for the meat eaters, but this is rough land. Moving through it is hard.
Ha-Lim slows them down. Everyone deals with it. He’s as much one of them as the rest. It’s an odd group. Two dogs, a terrier that never stops barking and a hound without a sent to follow. Ashley is her pigeon. He could find Korlott, Kirtin-in-the-Sky and home no matter where he is. He’s so smart. But if she sends him off to let the family know what’s happened he’s gone. The group is going to keep moving.
She’d never met a bonded ram before Ha-Lim. Then there’s the heron Fani. What a magnificent creature. It just soars and soars on those huge wings. Can I teach a heron messaging? That might be fun.
They’re also kind of lost – again. It’s easy to think “head west” and know that Sheljar is that way. The Land of Two Rivers is always fascinating, but constantly embroiled in internal strife. Sheljar never offered to help Kirtin, and only one trade family from Qin responded to requests for aid. Estrella doesn’t hate Sheljar for this, but she certainly isn’t excited about the Empire with its guilds, families, companies all competing for power.
“‘Strella, come here!” It’s Rohan. The boy is fascinating. He keeps learning how to apply these funky powers. She runs across the camp.
“What?”
“Look, look” and a he makes a flower unbloom. “Now watch” and it blooms again. He plucks it and puts it behind her ear.
“Get ready to move children,” Master Kellamon says with a smile. A tiny moment of pleasure is necessary. These kids have been away from home for about a week. “Fani indicates to Piyu that the Norther River Everflow is just over that rise and downslope. There’s a town there. We’ll be in the Sheljar Empire tonight. Once we get there we have the protection of the Emperor, but will need to find a guild or family to take us as members.”
Teegan asks, “Which guild is going to take us?”
“I do not know. There are guilds and families based on craft, or trade, or faith, or location. Piyu’s skills with Fani will likely get him attention. Sheljar City has need for birds. He’ll try to connect with a goliath family that raises waterfowl.”
Estrella is happy. Any decent village of Kin needs a messenger. She’s seen dogs do this, but really, nothing is better than a pigeon. She’d find a place, then she’d tell her parents where she was. Maybe Rohan would be in the same town.
The youngsters strike camp. Piyu returns with the weather above his head, another dry day with light clouds. It’s like that massive storm emptied all the waters from the skies. Kell likes that. They should be in that town tonight.
A crush of warhounds rage forward, backed by mastiffs with halfling riders. One flank is guarded towering Goliaths. That northern front is circled by eagles, hawks, ravens with a lower mega flock of smaller birds. The south is already falling back. There a tribe riding bison and elk is crushing the Kingdom of Azsel, but other tribes with their horse and sheep are fleeing. The Confederation of Crinth will lose more land and another tribe to the slavers, unless something changes.
One of the largest Goliaths ever known wades through the mess of bodies of both beast and man. He is Jerald. It is not his tribe that will fall today, but the tribe of his wife. Normally peaceful, he is enraged. His flightless axebeak is surrounded by pestering terriers. He cries out to Belsem as Tellanor falls. A greenish cloud of rot breaks forth from his hands and the little dogs perish. Several of the Halflings are in agony. Another cry and another cloud, more Azselites fall. Those not nearby see this cloud of poison spray and back away. Both sides retreat stunned, for this is new. A legend is born that day. The myths of magic awakened.
Campaign Premise
The World of the Everflow is an episodic campaign designed for drop-in play that will most often join a regular group, but that can also play independent sessions, while exploring a world where every thinking person has an animal companion that is both tool and beloved.
Background
Twenty-one years ago the land of Kin (the people of love) had no magic. Then the Awakening happened. Borders changed as Kingdoms applied these new powers. Quests to discover how it happened, why it happened and what could be done to stop it or further it started. Adventurers young and old left their homes hopeful that they could apply these new, small spells and make names for themselves.
Kin is different now. Still bonded with beasts the people meet strangers with suspicion of odd powers. No one knows what else to expect. What more will happen to the world? Are more legends real?
Grand Conflicts
The Scholars are a secret society of empowered spell-casters who seem to have kept Kin from reaching its full potential. Who are they? Should they have this level of control?
Azsel continues on its expansionistic policy. They are fighting with the Crinth Confederation and threatened Kirtin enough that the century-long conflict with Daoud is put aside.
Two legendary peoples are invading the Western Wildes. The Kon are entering Sheljar in large numbers, leaving some behind. Over at the Cliffs of Galinor and at the Glass Tower the Ken are doing something. Why are the Ken and Kon returning to Kin?
Can you keep the Lorebook(s?) from getting into the wrong hands?
Facets
All thinking peoples have an animal companion
Low magic (Divine casters and arcane casters limited in different ways)
Sand Box play
Player agency helps create the world’s history.
Variant Rules
Mundane versions of partial casters. No Wizards or Warlocks. Cantrip for all.
Gritty realism – long rests require a place of sanctuary and 24 hours of light activity. A short rest is a typical night’s sleep.
One thing that I’ve found as a middle-age man with other hobbies and real-life concerns is that finding a regular group to play every single week is much more difficult than it was in my heyday of 1st edition AD&D during high school, college and the Army. The path I’ve chosen instead is an epic multi-path sandbox inspired campaign. There are multiple storylines being chased, characters that drop in and out of sessions and off-table action run via email, chat and twitter.
Altogether this results in a campaign that is similar to epic fiction (Wheel of Time, Lord of the Rings). The party forms, breaks apart, reforms, expands, contracts as they attempt to make friends, make enemies, solve problems and help to create the world and story in which they play.
A selection of the characters participating in the Everflow campaign.
This is the tracking chart that I use to help track the various PCs. Experience points and gold are tracked by me until they are on the player’s own sheet. Once that happens I make the column blank, because I will not need that information while I create the next encounters and new paths for them to follow.
As I stated when first discussing this large group, episodic campaign, calendaring is also important. The group of three that are in Sheljar are two weeks “ahead” of the group that is at the caravansaray. Maurice is 3 days “behind” the group at the caravansaray. Mansaray and Shonie are semi-retired for real-life reasons. Shonie is now an NPC that group can use to help get intel, etc from Telse. Mansaray will either re-enter the campaign as a PC or an NPC reconnecting a current plot line that’s been abandoned.
Doing something like this creates more off-table work. Not only does the DM/GM need to create encounters, adventures and campaigns they need to use some kind of tracking sheet and calendar, and understand that the non-linear nature of the campaign means that players will forget things. Reminding them should be a bit more involved than a typical 5-10 minutes “in last session” verbal recap.
Provide the players with a digital recap, maps, images and other things that maintain a connection to the story that you are all telling together. Recognize that not every PC will be involved in every plot line. Maybe the hook doesn’t catch with them for either player or character reasons. Allow those players to know what plot line will be the focus of a session and they can either show or not. If they don’t show for story reasons (I haven’t encountered this yet) help them advance the plot hooks that they do like.
Don’t try to run a table session with more than 5 or 6 PCs. All the standard concerns about table time and organization return with that. Feel free to run a mini-session with just 2-3 PCs. They could be scouting an area, or doing a social tier with a local authority. These advance the story, but more importantly let your players know that you value their time. Those characters get rewarded with xp, gp, treasure. The players get rewarded with the entertainment of role-playing.
Be prepared for variable level encounters. With bounded accuracy this should not be as much of an issue as it would be in earlier editions of the game. Establish from the outset what the rules are about death, drop-in character creation, etc and work with your players to make certain that they are having fun with the system as it exists at your table both real-life and via digital communications. Feel free to grant xp for actions taken when the character acts in off-table activities.
By combining story xp and encounter xp you increase the level advancement as well as help social and exploration tier PCs advance. The more players that you include, the more likely you are to interact with PCs that emphasize the different tiers.
Finally, you should probably already understand this, such a campaign requires more organization and isn’t right for casual play. But the payoff is the creation of a story that mimics multi-novel stories, and that’s a lot of fun.
Full Moon Storytelling 