Tag: Playing D&D

  • Session 5 Raiding the Cult of Nak

    Session 5 Raiding the Cult of Nak

    Returning from their scouting trip Saffron and Aamar share their findings. The group left behind tells a quick tale about how Cortez trained other scholars, including a man named Chorl. Cortez expected the Cult of Nak to have Chorl at its head, but as of now, Chorl’s whereabouts are unknown.

    In side voices the rest of The Five tell the scouts that in the past Cortez wipes the minds clean of those that find the Tower, the Lorebook and himself. Only those judged worthy of carrying on knowledge of ancient ways can know what they’ve found. None know if they are worthy, but their quest is to get the Book. Maybe they don’t need to bring it back to Cortez.

    They are going to sneak to that small village. Violence is fortunately certain, and so only Bernie the bear cub and Samul’s bearded dragon Boo come along. Bernie can provide help in the realm of violence. Samul and Boo are a pair. It isn’t an issue of trust, for Shonie and Saffron will stay back with the other companions. Behn and Mo round out the group.

    Travel during daylight is easier. The volcano looms, there is less smoke than usual, but still small signs of something happening soon. They come to the first ridge, where Aamar and Saffron killed the escapee and interrogated his rear guard. There is more caution this time.

    Mo heads to the top of the ridge and pokes his eyes over the edge. There is a group, they found one of the arrows. Mo indicates to his companions that they should stop and ready their weapons. This opposing group is masked, includes a goliath and five humans. There are two eagles and four wolves. Mo is a bit tense.

    Good fortune! They follow another path, and head to the Mo’s right. It’s slow, but The Five can wait. That group heads off and is now distant. Another group of five or six, with their bonds, walks along the next ridgeline. They head towards the mountain.

    The Five think they can slip into town now while those two are away. That would roughly be about a third of the populace, and now Mo notices a smaller group of three across the lahar valley and climbing the distant volcano. Maybe they can get into the largest building and snag the Lorebook.

    Working their way through brush, trees and gullies they make their way to the west edge of the two. Two small cottages sit along the entry path that walks towards a stream. There are bits of forest along the hillside. Mo rushes through the underbrush and gets to the edge, leaving the less stealthy group behind him with about 60 feet of path and grassland in between him and the others.

    Another patrol from the Nakists is in Maurice’s sight. Things could get hairy. This group has an eagle as well and a giant eagle too. Three humans, a goliath and two wolves round out the patrol. Mo takes cover, but not quickly enough. The giant eagle spots him. As it swoops down in an attempt to attack, little Maurice ducks underneath a branch. That bird will have to circle back or find a new target.

    Spotted Mo knows that he will need support. He has it, as the rest of the group surges forward. Between blades, bolts (magical and natural), birds, bears and wolves there is blooding flowing quickly. Only one human from the patrol gets away and flees to the largest of the houses, a two story building that can host a few goliath. A single eagle flies off. The Five are slightly wounded, but move forward.

    They are a few dozen feet behind that patrolman. He slams the door shut behind them and the loud noise of door bar is heard. Samul smashes through the door. His pit chain ripping through the soft woods. Just behind him are Aamar, Behn and Bernie. The brawl will continue. They force their way into the building.

    It is a large gathering place. About 45 feet away towards the back of the long house is a stairway. A man in chain mail holds a large book, the Lorebook, in front of him. There are obstacles. A couple more patrolman and a goliath with an eagle mask, but no eagle block the way. It is a pitched battle. The weakened patrolman doesn’t go down first, but the all fall.

    Anderson commands his group forward. They attack and The Five (but there’s only three and the bear cub. We’ll get to Mo in a bit) respond. It is another swirl of violence and chaos. Bolts of magic slice through the air with two hitting both Behn and Samul. It is a new kind of magic. Off to the side of their vision they notice a poof of smoke from the book.

    The people are handling the guards so Aamar releases his bear cub on the leader. Bernie charges Anderson, the man with the book and wrestles him. It is a man in chain, a huge book and a bear cub throwing each other about. A fortunate claw rips into Anderson, he falls unconscious at roughly the same time as his remaining guards.

    As those three charge into the house, Mo decides to try the second floor. He’s had enough of the violence. His first handhold gives out and a spear flies down past his shoulder. The second time he gets every hold, rushing to the window. Stabbing into the window with his rapier he skewers and throws aside that guard.

    Leaping into the window he sees a goliath with bird on shoulder. It’s an unfair fight, but Mo tries. He’s weakened the other, but falls with a blow to the head. An unconscious Mo is becoming a regular occurrence, as is the slightly halfling’s success at using his rapier.

    After taking Mo to the floor the goliath heads down the stairs in time to see Anderson fall victim to Bernie. Casting First Aid on Anderson the two are prepared to fight. Behn rushes the wounded leader. With a quick swing he falls again. Sacred Flame flows from that goliaths hands. The Lorebook and Behn take the holy fires.

    The rest of the group offs the petulant goliath. Action is swift, but he gets another Flame towards the Book. Behn shields it from most of the fires, taking the heat himself.

    There are no noises in the house. The large greeting and eating area has fur, feather, blood and fire about it. No one knows where Mo is. A quick Aamar shouts “UPSTAIRS?!” and heads there. Samul pops his head out the entry. Behn protects the Book.

    Aamar finds Maurice just at death’s door. The priest of Quar casts First Aid and Mo is back among the living.

    They’ve won! They have the Lorebook, as long as no one else is in the town, or discovers them as they head back to the Glass Tower and/or Telse.

  • Side Mission: Aamar and Saffron go on a chase

    Side Mission: Aamar and Saffron go on a chase

    As most of The Five (now at seven) recover from combat and put out fires Aamar and a freshly healed Saffron rush to the rock outcropping where the group of Nak’s followers leadership seemed to be. It is dark, the embers of the burning trees and corpses does not provide much light.

    Aamar mutters a few words and light emanates from his shield. The rocks don’t reveal much. From Mansaray they learn that a man in chain mail grabbed the book and took flight on one of the massive eagles, but there are tracks. Another man, probably the bowman, fled on foot. There is no light ahead as he scrambles through the rocks and brambles.

    Both chasers and chasee will be slowed for different reasons. There is a chance they can catch him, if they run. And they do. They rush through the night, guided by a bit of Light on that shield the human, halfling, bear cub and sled dog are on chase. They are off in the night, a small group charging after a man with a bow.

    For the most part the trail from the runner goes along the paths of the local deer and elk. At best guess they are roughly maintaining distance. After a couple hours the path crests a small ridge.

    An arrow whistles past Aamar’s shield.

    Just over that ridge are three men. The one with the longbow is familiar. The other two are new. Both have crossbows.

    Aamar, Saffron their companions rush forward. The ambush failed, and they must take advantage. A rapid exchange of blows with the leather clad crossbowmen ensues. The longbow user starts to run. Aamar is off in chase.

    Bernie, Saffron and her dog off one of the two remaining. Aamar’s chase only lasts a few dozen feet. He closes to within a couple feet. The runner takes two swings with a short sword, both miss. Aamar’s small axe cleaves through the runner. There will be no interrogation of that one.

    After Bernie and Saffron take out one of the two that oppose them the other surrenders, begging for his life.

    Here, there will be an interrogation.

    There are a few learnings from this one. He’s poor and willing to soldier for money. He explains that “Anderson asked us to hold here in reserve to protect the retreat.”

    Further along they find that Anderson is not the bowman, but a higher up, perhaps the one in chain that fled on the eagle. Aamar and Saffron discover that just down past this ridge is an encampment of Nak, and Anderson is merely a leader, not the leader. The bandit is sent back to the small village near the Glass Tower to serve Nima, matron of the family that cared for Saffron during the illness.

    They pick through the leavings of the fallen soldiers. Take the money off the one that lives. After creating some distance from the violence Aamar and Saffron finally rest.

    In the morning they trudge along towards the valley and the community of Nak. Now, under the soft light of a partly cloudy day they work towards an active volcano. They move slowly through the cover, not wanting to be ambushed again, and no longer having a reason to hurry. It is close enough to the Glass Tower that they should be able to see the size of the community, its location and still get back to their compatriots. That assumes that everything goes to plan (ha!).

    And now they see the smoke of an active outdoor fire, as well as the thin trickles from household stoves. Saffron, Aamar, and their companions slow the approach even more. Now they creep through scrub, find bushes, scamper in little troughs of land.

    A multi-racial group heads there way. All have companions, eagles and wolves accompany the mixed group of humans, halflings and a loan goliath. Saffron had separated from the Aamar and Bernie. She’s alone with very little cover. The six people of Kin are moving towards the members of The Five.

    Saffron makes a little run to hurry towards another hiding spot. The group of six pause, chat and three return to the hamlet/camp. The other three, including the goliath walk towards where Saffron was. They’ve spotted the heroes.

    A rustle of noise, like a flock of birds comes from a copse of trees off to Saffrons left. The goliath sends his eagle off to investigate. One of the humans, a woman, sends her dog as well. Another rustle and their full attention is drawn.

    Aamar mutters and gestures. The little cantrip did its job. Saffron joins him. And now, thirty seconds later Silence surrounds them. They run, no ears can see and the cover is enough. They’ve managed to escape unharmed, but not unknown.

    The return to the Glass Tower is safe.

    Cortez is surprised to learn that Anderson is a leader, he had expected it to be his former student Chorl. He is also surprised that a semi-permanent settlement would be inside that valley, as it is a lahar. The two saw four small cottages, a medium sized building built to allow goliath entry and a larger structure clearly with a few rooms. There was at least one other building hidden behind a ridge, as there was a trail of smoke coming from that area. Saffron draws a quick map.

    This place probably has the Lorebook. The leadership and most residents (maybe all) are parts of the Cult of Nak, a group that wants the companionship between beast and people to become even stronger, maybe even as one. There is a chance that something within that Lorebook could help that happen.

    Telse is three or four days away. A messenger pigeon was sent, but The Five and Cortez have yet to hear back from the large town.

  • Session One: day wolves, night wolves

    Session One: day wolves, night wolves

    These simple five are part of the born generation. They know they have powers that are unusual, but their parents learned. The all know of an idyllic time that seems naturally unattainable, forgotten. None are lost. They just know that by growing up on Kin in a post-Awakening world violence and turmoil are normal.

    Questing is just a path. For Aamar and Shonie the well-being of Telse matters. Others are searching for money, relatives, purpose. The initial five with their dogs, iguana and bear cub make their way through the streets of Telse for the West Gate where they will collect foodstuffs. A short pause when Aamar and Behn buy a mule to carry their things is all their time in this city of kin and beasts. Passing doorways with varied openings that span sizes for Goliaths down to small dogs the journey starts.

    On the Telse side of the West Gate is authority, civilization. On the western side is one of the many ghettos growing as various others try to jockey for power and influence in the once minor town. Which power controls a gate changes regularly. As the Five leave Telse’ simple life they weave through a crowd of Obscon’s followers.

    A cult that believes the Awakening signals the end times, followers of Obscon take what they want. They do not worry about punishment in the current world, because it is a failing world. One of the faster growing powers on Kin the Obsconders are dangerous in that they want only joy of self, not political power.

    Carefully the Five work their way past this assortment of people. There is no violence, just worry.

    Keeping a standard pace the Five walk along a path through the hills of the Wilde. To the northwest they see Dakhan Thaeeb’s active volcanoes. The rough land of commodity farming where any day could end in fire. To the south is the Ferments, a land of liquors both natural and Kin-made.

    As the afternoon passes fewer caravans pass. This western road is fading to trail as it winds through these hills. With sunset coming our Five hopeful heroes settle into the night. A warm fire with a mix of gathered and brought wood starts quickly. Watches are set. The mule is staked off in the dim light, but still within this common camp clearing.

    Samul’s iguana sneaks inside the warm nook of an armpit. The Western Wildes aren’t the warm lands of Mehmd.

    A watch is planned. Still just over a half day from Telse the idea of an attack feels absurd to the group. The rotation is about preparedness for an unknown future.

    Until late, during the witching hours, when dogs’ hackles rise. Something is near. Eyes glint in the darkness.

    By Night Vision original here https://flic.kr/p/bPpZTe
    By Night Vision original here https://flic.kr/p/bPpZTe

    It is a pack. Four standard wolves and one that looks like it could take down an Goliath roams slightly behind two to the north.

    A battle ensues. Behn sets fire to a tree when his fire bolt misses. Samul’s chain smashes the great wolf across the shoulder and face. Shonie and her retriever take one down. Aamar and his cub take a couple down. This is a winnable event.

    Blood flows. An initial confrontation pushes the group, but not to the edge. Behn fells the final wolf at a couple dozen feet. His crossbow is more effective than his spell.

    After the battle is a time for recovery, relaxation. Samul takes the ear of that massive wolf. His first souvenir.

    Wakefullness comes late. Midmorning after some gathered roots and berries, along with a small portion of the purchased rations is a meal. The wolf bodies are set aside, none of the Five’s animals dine on the flesh of wild beasts.

    They’ve survived. They’ve learned something about each other. They may have learned more.

    As they return to the trail two things come apparent. There is a small dust cloud of speedy rider headed their way, and the dark smoke of a fire back towards Telse.