ROR:Session/19

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Starring: Calum, Haneet, Hilma, Isra'a, Karaz, Tokki
Guest Starring: ???
Challenge: Below
Location: Hook mountain Clanhold
Date Played: 21 May 2016, 30 May 2016

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It's the Black Lung, Pa

Chapter 3: Hook Mountain Massacre - Part 5: Harrowing The Hook

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Gaining Entrance

Statue

Handout to Calum

Read this in its entirety, then ham it up. Spotlight’s on you.

The statue is not a statue, as you can clearly see. It’s a Thassilonian-magic-preserved mummified body of one of the Runelord of Greed’s inner court members.

Your mind fogs and you are filled with the rage of a thousand demon-toddlers who were told, “No.”

How dare he?

The treaty declared that the Storval Deep was to be the boundary between your empires.

You pooled your powers to summon the great beasts into its depths to patrol the borders.

And this – this war manufacturing outpost – is on YOUR side of the boundary. HIS envoy in YOUR Empire.

The ranseur now acts as a staff. It can cast Shatter and Heat Metal (both spells) at will (ie, no restriction on how often), using your caster level. When using one of these, there’s a discernable “streak of purple fire” and “short, high-pitched sonic boom” from the ranseur to the target.

Oh, and to go with it, you have to break something every week. It doesn’t matter if it’s pottery or faces… But at least once a week you have to go full-on temper-tantrum and destroy something wholly. If you do not, you suffer the ill effects as a failed geas (not lesser geas) with no save until you make up all missed fits, and an extra one for good measure.

Geas

If the subject is prevented from obeying the geas/quest for 24 hours, it takes a –3 penalty to each of its ability scores. Each day, another –3 penalty accumulates, up to a total of –12. No ability score can be reduced to less than 1 by this effect. The ability score penalties are removed 24 hours after the subject resumes obeying the geas/quest.

Exploring

Tokki

Cursed with leaden lungs

Danger sits with heavy breath

Wheezing storms and sins

Fork

Tokki

Blocked by poisoned faith

The Runelord faith still runs strong

As giants hold tight

Hags

Tokki

A storm was brewing

In their covenous cauldrons

Bubbling trouble

Forge

Tokki

Sparks, fire, and lead

Creation and unmaking

The clanging brought forth

Shrine

Tokki

Where ancient ones stir

The bodies of the dead roamed

Unholy worship

Outdoor Throne

Tokki

King on a stone throne

Allied with enemy old

To bring our swift end

Enchantments and stones

Bodies and minds assaulted

Both packed quite a punch

Aftermath

Tokki

Plots are unraveled

Two lovers reunited

Yet more evil spreads

Plot!

Tokki

Back to beginnings

Sandpoint is under assault

Muster a defense

Yap's Trinkets

Tokki

Imbibable that removed a good bit of "ghost" gnomishness. Tokki now knows how to smile, etc.

Haneet

Squirrelshape Acorn. http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/animals/squirrel Squirrel as long as acorn is held in mouth.

Hilma

Everfull Goodberry Bag. http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/coreRulebook/spells/goodberry.html Takes a minute to pull out a berry.

Calum

(Unslotted) Medal of Diehard. "Tenacity of the Wolverine"! http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/coreRulebook/feats.html#diehard While wearing, grants the feat. Must be featured prominently and is open to sundering and disarming.

Karaz

Marble of Tiny Water Elemental Swabbie http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG/prd/bestiary5/wysp.html#water-wysp We'll use these stats, I guess.

Isra'a

100 ft of Iron Rope (that has a reverse command word and can be welded back together with castings of Mending).

Chapter 3 Synopsis

Haneet: I CAN TURN INTO A SQUIRREL AND JUMP AND RUN AROUND AND CLIMB TREES!!! And some other stuff, happened, I guess. Like, we went to a dam. It was a damn big dam, and it was made out of skulls and I took a skull but I fell on it and it broke, but I threw a giant OFF the damn dam, which was amazing! Before that, we traveled a longlonglonglong way and it was really boring, and Calum wouldn't let me play with his spell component pouch, which is just silly because I totally let Calum use my chalk to draw a magic circle and he didn't even let me play hop scotch. Which, by the way, is actually really hard on a boat. The SCHOOL FLOODED! But so did the candy. ;( Then there were these hags, and they turned me into a rabbit, but like with antlers, like a deerrabbit.

Okay, so that's the stuff that happened, but that's not the important stuff. Because here's the important part: THE BAD GUYS. They're *everywhere*. And they're doing really bad things, like flooding out the damn dam! Which, by the way, is powered by devils. Or, like, it was. I have to clip a devil's toenails someday.

Oh, and that succubus lady who was a quasit who is like, really annoying, cursed me to love Karaz, which, um, love is a little too strong. He bought me a silver raven, but I think I should probably give it back, because that totally isn't the right thing.

Anyway, the BAD GUYS. They're going to do more bad things, and you know what I think? I think there's nobody else in the world that can stop them. It's just down to us, TEAM SPARKLES!

Um, I didn't tell anybody else this, but we're TEAM SPARKLES now. AND WE ARE GOING TO SAVE THE WORLD FROM THE BAD GUYS AND ALSO THE RUNELORDS WHO I'M PRETTY SURE ARE ALSO BAD GUYS, BUT THEY'RE ALSO DEAD OR SLEEPING OR SOMETHING AND I DON'T KNOW, BUT GO TEAM SPARKLES!!!

Karaz: Well I am surprised to say that my travel companions have not gotten rid of me yet. Hilma even brought me back from the dead once. Tokki healed me a few times. I'm not sure why. Our most recent journeys have taken us far from my little Sandpoint rooms. We have faced natural disasters together, saving trapped townspeople and facing a truly fearsome creature. We found a long term solution to the flooding at a dam made of skulls. There we found orcs, trolls, and even a demon. I never did find out how one becomes king of the trolls though. Not that I think they would follow me, but I am allowed to be curious. We even tried to track down someone's lost love. A fairy maybe? (People are people I don't pay much attention to their race.) She was glittery though, some kind of magic I think. It was strong enough to make Haneet love me for a short time. I guess it must be able to do just about anything. I am confused, on one hand the love wasn't real, but on the other it was the only love I ever had. Is illusion better than nothing? Maybe I should have asked for true love or a supply of that magic dust when we returned. I hope Haneet will at least like the bird when she thinks of our time together. Unfortunately the fairy's lover was dead, even beyond Hilma's ability to fix. We were embroiled in battle again, giants, hags, and others opposed my companions, but I put their life force to use and we prevailed together. When we returned the fairies granted us a request. I thought about asking for a real friend, or to know the truth about whether or not my companions were friends. In the end I decided it is better not to know, especially if the truth is that I am not liked. As long as they let me accompany them, it is enough. Or, at least as much as someone like me will get. I don't have to trouble Callum for baths anymore. That is a bonus with his recent rage problems. I worry about him sometimes. Instead I have Swabbie. He (she?) is a little water person that comes out of a stone and cleans me. Is it my friend? A slave? Do I need to feed it? Maybe if I see Callum in a good mood I will ask. Israa seems better, I don't think the voices in his head cause him as many problems. I am glad to see that. I wonder what these amazing people will accomplish next. And I wonder if they will let me be there to see it.

Tokki

Hmmm, it appears that some of the morose thoughts and rage that has fueled my existence has been quelled a bit. It appears that the potion Yap gave me restored some of my gnomanity. It is good to have some more clarity of mind. Though, my structured mind has served me well, so it would be best for me not to abandon that strength I built so hastily.

To the matter at hand, let me explain what happened over my extended absence from Magnamar. As per the issuance of the city, we were sent to Turtleback Ferry to explore a wide variety of ills that have fallen the area. A missing ship that sank in the lake, ogre and giant attacks in the outskirts, and a fallen fort that was north of town. Not surprisingly, all of these events were connected in one way or another.

It appears that the Runeloard of Greed is playing a heavy hand in this area. The sister of Xanesha, a Lamia name Lucrecia, was a play for most of these events. She had gathered the support of like-worshiping giants to take over the fort areas and cause general havoc in the area. She was collecting souls, just like in Sandpoint and Magnamar, to fuel the Runegates.

We were lucky to make some loose allies along the way, though. After helping save the city of Turtleback Creek from the major ravages of a flood when the dam burst, in addition to driving off an ancient evil that was sealed in said dam, the town took quite a liking to us. It appears that I made a particular ally with the school teacher that once had the arduous task of handling Haneet. I'm afraid that in my clouded state I misread her advances as militaristic as opposed to romantic. If I stop by again, I will have to make reparations for this and perhaps make up for a lost opportunity. Ah, gnomish pranks... ::mumbles:: I wonder she would compatible with gnomish phallic-type 37-G

Ahem! Errr, we also made allies with a group of giants that helped us clear the Runelord bound giants we were against from Fort Ranick. In fact, they wanted to make a contract with Magnamar to be part of the militia that defended the area for certain benefits from the city. My experience as a barrister paid off here as I feel I made a pretty fair contract. As the originator of the contract, I also get to claim a small percent off the top. I can use this to help better Magnamar. I do not forget that the current mayor is strongly influenced by greed, so much that he was considered for a prime sacrifice candidate. I have to do all I can behind the scenes to fix his wrongs and somehow properly remove him in the next elections. Lucky for me, when everyone tried their hardest to work outside the system, no one really pays attention to the person running the straight and narrow since they think they can never get anywhere.

Our last, and most hard pressed ally, is that of the fey in the surrounding woods. Yap is the voice of the local dryad that we brought the corpse of her fallen love. She turned a good bit dark in his leaving, and this luckily brought peace to the woods again. I'm not sure how far a favor from her extends, but we may find some use of it at some point.

All of our woes, though, focused around Lucrecia and a stone giant king named Barl Breakbones. He was in charge of demanding the trolls and giants to break apart the dam, attacking for Ranick, and the host of other attacks around the area. His hideout was in the mountains where they built a lead forge to make their weapons. It was quite poisonous, but we luckily had some protection from the fumes. We were able to win the day, but there was some fallout from the victory that made it bittersweet.

First, Sandpoint is going to be under attack soon from some of Barl's allied stone giants. We will need to rally defenses against this threat. Hopefully Magnamar can lend a garrison of troops. If things are left in the sheriff's hands, we will surely be doomed. The second point of contention is Calum. The old man seems to begin being swayed by the Runeload of Wrath. This is well beyond my knowledge of how to help her. I will need to consult with the church of Eristil and see what I can find out. I want to avoid a direct confrontation if possible since his short fuse already seems to be shorter than usual. An intervention may be the only way, though.

Isra'a

Into the wild I go, tasked with investigating some happenings at Turtleback Ferry and its’ surrounding area. I am still not entirely sure that I am suited for this kind of work – I end up dirty and in far more danger than I should be.

The issue of Runelords continues to crop up – like in Magnimar there was harvesting of greedy souls happening up in Turtleback Ferry. We encountered the perpetrator later when we went to the local fort. She had orchestrated the capture of Fort Rannick with the aid of a local giant clan. We retook Rannick with the help of our own giant allies. Strange times make for strange allies.

As is often the case, one problem gave rise to another – upon returning to Turtleback Ferry from Fort Rannick we found the river had risen and the town was flooding. Along with the flood waters came a beast from old – Black Magga. We helped to stabilize the area and I was rewarded with another encounter with Elyrium. She is moving up in the under-world and I am at part to thank for that. As a token – she left me feeling more nimble… this couldn’t possibly go bad. We decided that we should investigate why the flood waters had been so bad and how Black Magga was able to make it down to the town. This lead us back to the north to Skull’s Crossing.

Skull’s Crossing was being assailed by some remaining giants – we again made some unlikely allies in the form of trolls. After we dispatched the giants and set the mechanics of the dam working once again we tasked the trolls with security. A request for aid was also sent to Magnimar explaining the status of the dam’s operation and condition – they would need to send help to keep it running in the long term.

Lastly, there was some trouble with a dryad, a fey and someone named Barl Breakbones – I chose to delegate tasks to resolve this… I needed some me time. I’ll meet you in Sandpoint.

Hilma We had been tasked with investigating the fate of the soliders garrisoned at Fort Rannick. It was clear from the rumors and fearful talk we heard at Turtleback Ferry that most if not all of the soldiers had been slaughtered, their leader was nowhere to be found, and that without the protection of the garrison, the entire region would soon be overrun by ogres.

We came across three survivors of the massacre at Fort Rannick. They were being held prisoner by a small group of orges that had taken over a farmstead. They confirmed that the fort was indeed captured by the ogres, who were far more organized than is typical of their kind. We strategized with the survivors about the best way to retake the fort.

Once we reached the fort, it was as we had been told. The orges had made themselves quite at home. We quickly devised a strategy to retake the fort before more allies of the ogres could arrive to fortify their position. While I was on watch the night before we planned our assault, our campsite was approached by a giant, a scout from a nearby tribe that was set against the ogres in the fort. We formed an uneasy alliance. While I despise giants, the enemy of my enemy can indeed be my friend, or at least my temporary ally. Of course, the lumbering brutes did little to actually help us retake the fort, but at least they didn't get in our way or attack us.

Once the fort was reclaimed, the giant tribe offered to occupy and protect what remained of it and to create a formal alliance with Magnimar. A treaty was written and we sent it with as much haste as possible to Magimar so that they might ratify it and fulfill its terms.

Upon returning to Turtleback Ferry, we discovered that the nearby Storval Deep had overflowed the dam at Skill's Crossing, sending a torrent of water downriver to flood a significant portion of the town. While attempting to rescue some trapped villagers, a gigantic beast hurtled through the flood waters towards us. Well, actually, it was headed to Claybottom Lake, and I believe it now dwells in the depths of that lake. What horrors it will unleash in the future have yet to be seen, but I worry for the citizens of the area.

Fearly further devastation, we quickly marched up to Skull's Crossing to see what could be done to stop the flooding. This is a truly impressive structure, but it has been too long neglected. Some good Dwarven masons would find good work here, but I doubt Magnimar would be willing to pay the necessary costs. At any rate, a small group of Kreeg were attempting, rather ineffectually, to demolish the dam.

After dispatching with them and seveal nasty denizens inside the dam itself, we discovered the secret of its great power and the reason it had stopped functioning. It was powered by the life force of two devils. One had apparently perished, leaving the pressure-release mechanism disabled. After striking a deal (I know, I know) with the living devil and getting him to agree to not harm any creature on this plane, we released him and two of our own volunteered to power the dam for a brief period to stop the immediate danger. Still, the constant and unseasonable rains in the area were still creating problems.

The nearby woods were also experiencing some troubles, the cause of which was the dyrad Myriana's disraught spirit, having seemingly lost her lover, the former leader of the Black Spears. She sent us to retrieve him, if at all possible. We discovered what was causing the inclimate weather when we breached the stronghold of a stone giant named Breakbones. Under the sway of the Runelord of Greed, he was directing the ogres and giants in the area to wreak havoc. We encountered a trio of vicious hags there. I was able to overcome their heartiness against magic and cause them quite a bit of damage, but they returned the punishment by trapping me in a force box. Of course, my companions were able to destroy them quite handily and I was freed. They were, of course, the source of the torrential storms in the area, and we therefore believe all dangers of further flooding have past. Breakbones' stronghold was also filled with noxious fumes, the result of a weapons forge. Though I believe Torag would be impressed with the scale of their works, their purposes were surely hateful to him, and I hope that now that we have rid the stronghold of the giants, it may be put to better use in serving him.

Of course, that will have to wait, as we have learned that Sandpoint is to be attacked by some of Breakbones' allies, and who knows what part this is to play in the Runelord's scheme (or are several of them working together?)

🎲 DM Section

Encounters

Entrance (CR 10)

2 Armored Ogres (CR 8)

Chokepoint (CR 11)

2 Elite Ogres (CR 8)

Lunderbud (CR 8)

Circle of the Sisters (CR 9)

3 Annis Hags (CR 6)

The Clanhold (CR 13.5)

Elite Ogre (CR 8)

4x Forge Ogre (CR 8)

9x Ogre (CR 3)

Shrine (CR 11)

Lamatar (Frost Wight Ranger) (CR 10)

6x Ogre Zombies (CR 2)

Ramp (CR ?)

Lucrecia (Lamia Matriarch Sorceress ?) (CR ?)

Stone Giant (CR 8)

Throne (CR 12)

Barl Breakbones (Stone Giant Necromancer 7) (CR 12)

Recap Reward

Chapter Synopsis before the next chapter begins

Write-your-own. +1 skill point in a less-than-half-max skill, and 1 feat (subject to approval), except you must write it up as I did for chapter 1, 2.

Rebuild

And an opportunity for a full character rebuild as previously done. (Must be "same character", stats are the same...)

EVERYONE must "rebuild". All previous bonuses are gone except chapter synopsis rewards, and "consumable" recap rewards.