Session 23
OOC: My life continues to be ARGH due to some extended family members who don’t know how to handle their own lives without excesses of drama, so there is no game this weekend. I am taking a few minutes here to type up LAST week’s game, sorry for the shortness.
Spring, Month 6; and Summer, Months 7, 8, and 9
Aella asks Chlodomer to come out to her island. During her absence, judgement requests built up and she needs some help digging her way out of the backlog. Haramer runs things in his absence.
During his months there, Chlodomer is less than impressed with her managerial skills.
He wisely keeps this counsel to himself, however, and does his best to help her mete out justice in good and Lawful fashion. During his time there, Chlodomer gives Aella another zero-interest loan, which she spends on hosting him. At the end of Summer, she pays off the first loan and sends him home.
Galswintha’s research fails, continues, and then is finally revealed to be a spell recreating dragon’s breath.
Vulfelind: "What? That's the big secret?" Galswintha: "I never said it was a big secret, just that I didn't want to discuss it." Vulfelind: "You trapped the entrance to your lab." Galswintha: "Oh, did you find that even after I asked for some privacy?" Vulfelind: "..."
Shadagrunde’s library and workshop are completed, and he successfully researches a potion of cure serious wounds (2,000 gold, 1 month, throw 12+); then fails to research a potion of neutralize poison.
The party drives off a cyclops; clears out a few nearby threats; and fight off a wave of undead when Haramer pronounces judgement on a wizard in Ugly Hill … and the graveyard comes to rescue him.
Throughout Summer, Vulfelind acts as steward for Haramer, and a messenger to Atanung and Orléans. Vulfelind and Shadagrunde forge ahead with the highway, spending their own money “until Galaufabonne can pay us back.”
Almost every hex reaches Borderland status; and Bugbear Forest actually counts as Civilized.
The first pegasus war steeds complete their training! The first-hatched goes to Chlodomer, the second to Galswintha (in return for being Guardian of the Wood and primary agitator for pretty much the whole Pegasus Mountain thing).
Galswintha names her pegasus Archer. Archer is an unmarked amber champagne mare - her wings and fetlock featherings match her chocolate points - with a calm personality.
Hench Spotlight: Genofeva
As part of this session, we explored the current affairs of one of Chlodomer's henchmen: Genofeva de Paris - third daughter of a duke (estranged), high CHA, master horse rider, and skilled commander. Probably Chlodomer's brightest asset, and a bit bitter that Chlodomer declared Haramer as Seneschal.Chlodomer asked Genofeva to clear hex #1809 (Red Cliff Hill), and provided her with funds (and permission to take her cavalry along). Genofeva hired Amarante le Certaine (Chlodomer had released Amarante from service for issues of religious compatibility, but Genofeva is not as committed to the Lady, so a Night-worshipping hench is less of an issue), Galande d’Orléans (cleric of Night), and her cavalry, and went to work.
Red Cliff Hill is a high, dry land with a central, steep and rocky hill and a series of smaller hills surrounding. The rocks and cliffs are ferrous red, with sparse wood.
They destroy a nest of stirges (although everyone is battered), and make camp to rest; the following morning, they spot a gargoyle lair - one gargoyle on watch, vague shadows moving deeper inside. The gargoyles seem aware of them, but unconcerned until they draw close … and then Amarante puts a fireball down the mouth of the cave, and the gargoyle on watch boggles and then flees into the sky.
Nothing else comes out of the cave, and so the party slowly works their way up the cliffside and loot the cave.
Here, they find something really nice: a dwarven shield that matches Genofeva’s (and Chlodomer’s and Shadagrunde’s) and a green-bladed spear identical to Haramer’s. “This,” she says to no one in particular, “ought to get some attention.”
Genofeva lends her sword to one cavalry sergeant and the extra shield to another; and wields the spear and her shield. She makes sure they know this is a loan, not a gift.
They do a sweep of the hex as a whole (they never see the gargoyle that fled again), and finally make it to the top of the central hill.
And set into solid rock at the top of the hill, a spiral staircase descends into shadow. Leaving the cavalry (soldiers not hired to delve dungeons) to guard the entrance, they descend … into the lair of a vampire.
With a few hours of daylight available, they do a quick search, but cannot find the coffin, so they loot what they can and flee to perform better preparations.
That night, however, the vampire discovers the missing treasures and brings the fight to them.
Galande, attempting and failing to turn undead and then attempting to cast a spell, dies of old age on the second attack by the vampire, and Genofeva is herself aged somewhat before the vampire is forced to retreat in gaseous form.
As morning arrives, the party makes a more thorough assault on the lair, and tear the place apart looking for the coffin. At noon, Amarante’s familiar finds a crack in the wall designed for gaseous form, leading to a hidden room.
They begin tearing through the wall with pick and hammer, and as sundown approaches, break through to the other side. The vampire awakens …
… and Genofeva manages to get surprise and stake him in one fluid-but-panicked series of die rolls. Then they behead the paralyzed corpse, pour holy water down the throat and on the head, burn everything to ashes, gather the ashes into an urn to submerge in a river, smash the coffin, burn that, and then flee when the smoke from the coffin threatens to choke them. The ashes are mixed thoroughly with river water, and Galande’s body - still two days from becoming a vampire - is treated in much the same way.
Then they spend two days carefully looting everything, and return to Galaufabonne to recover.