Meet 93, Adv 13, 6/22/24

Firemonth the 4th. 3:30 PM. We were in the Stronghold of Donnegarten, and we were looking over the gauges in the Lift Control Room. There were a number of levers and dials and buttons, but the gauges seemed to give us a heads up on the lift and its position. The thought was next to jump across the space and go to the lift alcove to look over the boiler and the like.

So we went down the large set of stairs, making our way along the inner perimeter of the pit until we arrived at a set of metal ladder rungs heading up to the lift alcove. It was here that part of the party had climbed up to the lift alcove to check out the machinery. The boiler was cold and some of the cowling had been damaged from the Randari attack 140 years earlier, but the gear works were still partially greased and seemed whole. The boiler itself was a 40 gallon tank and the fire pit below could hold maybe 40 to 60 lbs of wood stuff. It was dark and spooky and at some point, those 60 odd feet down the metal rungs noticed a translucent looking soap bubble, maybe 3’ wide, slowly floating its way up. We made quite a bit of noise and somewhere very far below, we heard drums. They began and proceeded incessantly for a good 10 minutes before stopping. Nothing seemed to happen, but we were on high alert.

As the call came to get down, Shim, who was last, felt something feather light snag the back of his neck – and then he was lifted up and off the ladder! A Gargantuan spider, with quite a number of sharp edges and spikes on its 8 limbs, had hit the gnome with a web and was hoisting him up. A struggle ensued and Wilhelm hit Connal with a Spider Climb spell, allowing the monk to run up the vertical wall and try to get there. Shim was being roped closer and the spider was not letting go. Arrows and spells fired off and then Connal joined the fight.

At some point the spider and Shim fell to the platform and the group proceeded to finish it off. There were a number of coarse wiry bovine hairs in its joints and we took some, giving them to Wilhelm who said they were from some long haired cow or a buffalo. Meanwhile the soap bubble looking thing had hit the platform’s underside and was crawling around it, its trail leaving a faint hissing behind as it cleaned the area with its slimy exterior. We made our way off the platform and to the ladder, climbing back down again. The decision was made to head back to the control room and rest as it was already after 5.

We ate and drank, Connal letting the party know we had about 5 days of food and water still left. Dividing up into watch, the party turned in and got some rest. Most of the night was without issue until late..or early…when Eoghan and Wilhelm were on watch. All the animals began looking to the east, ears perked, looking excitedly. Eoghan was using the Dog Amulet to talk to whoever it was, assuming it was a dog of some sort. And what came to the area was an anthropomorphic bipedal coyote-man.

Introduced himself as Telltail, and it was a joy to meet people. Real people. Sweet maker, actual people. It’s been a long time. We talked to the pacing 5’ tall strange man and gathered he had been here a long time. Seems that the Donnegarten dwarves had been ripping tears through to a variety of other planes and shunting them forward somewhere in time. The entire thing was anchored in place by a massive overpowered dimensional anchor holding it in place 666 layers down through the Abyss and locked at the bottom. Deals were made, souls were paid. Telltail was not there for the origin of it.

He came from someplace called the Happy Hunting Grounds and it was supposedly the 21st rip in the Astral plane and some of the avatar aspects fell…here. Before anything could happen though, the orcish Randari came and assaulted Gorokian dwarves. Shutting the machine down and then taking the rest of the dwarves to task before closing shop and leaving. With the rip closed, the aspects could not get home so they’ve been here. Along with other denizens trapped here.

Denizens from the Abyss. Like Lolthian Garaganutan spiders. Zuggtmoy myconids, and Jubilexian slimes and oozes. The group was going to need help if they wanted to get below. The area was flooded and the gates were there. Jubilex or a minion of his was there. They could get help! Help, yes! A great hero to help them, like Hiawatha. There are 2 brothers here, the Red Brother and the Black Brother – alerted by noise, they beat their drums and go on the hunt. They haven’t hunted man in some time. To impress them, and get their help – the group should find Buffalo (they could hear the capital “B” in its name) below…and defeat him. Eat his liver, THAT would impress the brothers and get their help against the Abyssal denizens below.

We thanked Telltail and he left, and the rest of the party woke up and we shared what we had learned. The group had some more information and after eating breakfast, headed off to the lift area again to continue our way down. With a keener eye, we watched carefully as we travelled along. The stone stairs were about 5’ wide and circled the entire interior perimeter of the lift area. Assorted garbage and rubble were on the steps as we proceeded downward. About one and a third cycles around, we came to an area where two of the steps had been broken away – leaving a gap there 28” across, and 24” down. The jump wasn’t arduous, but getting Knox across was going to be a challenge. We went through a short lift of options and remembered the main entrance area up top had many desks. We could go back up there and get 2 of the desk tops, place them diagonally on the steps and gap, and it would act as a ramp for the mule.

Eventually 2 of us ran back up to the office and grabbing two of the thickest and strongest lengths of desktop, came back to the lift and then down it, each sporting a 65# hunk of wood, 2 plus feet deep and about 5’ wide. We made up a ramp, Connal went to the other side and braced it, and the party made their way over with only a little slipping. Knox was eventually led across (hooray carrots!) and we continued on our way.

The next barrier was about 2 cycles down. There was a mass of broken debris here, a mine cart and some 12’ lengths of heavy wooden and metal scaffolding and braces. It had fallen here and got jammed against the corner and the stairs. It was going to need to be removed to get us by. Connal scaled carefully to the other side and using one of the saws we had gotten, he proceeded to cut away what pieces he could, while Dizzy did the same on the higher side. It was difficult and dizzy’s saw became dull and then the handle broke. But eventually we were able to tilt the entire thing over the side, but not before casting Silence on the cart so it would NOT make an unholy racket at the bottom.

We continued on down the spiral until we came at last to the 2nd floor down. There was a similar looking loading area here and we decided to check the area out. There was some moisture in the air and we wandered eastward. Passage spilt after some distance – south or more east. South has a sign that said Foreman and Meeting Room, East a sign that said “Bridge”. We went south. Many mushrooms and fungi on the walls. We were kicking up dust (spores?) as we went and then came to an opening. Some sort of larger office here, most of it had been crushed and thrown about. There were 5 of the same gargantuan spiders we had faced upstairs here. But they had been broken and smashed, 9 to 10 feet tall and something had beaten them up. We could see the same buffalo hair was caught in all of their joints and spikes as well.

While we were searching the room over, Shim noticed that the number of fungi were growing rapidly in the corners of the room. And when he tried to mention it to the group, he was dismayed to see they were all knocked out – staring sightlessly upward! Then the air split open and a rainbow cyclone tore through space and time around the party, dropping them down into a Rosencrantz Bridge and speeding them on their way into the Astral Plane.

Meet 92, Adv 13, 6/15/24

After the long night filled with visions and visits from the Major Eddas, we awoke the next day on Firemonth the 4th full of energy and excitement. Breaking our fast and praying, we climbed back up the mountain again to the entrance of Donnegarten and spent some time looking over the way in. There was a single screw in wheel set in the center of the double door, about 3’ wide and had 5 spokes radiating from the center out. We searched the local area for a possible chimney or air intake and found none.

The decision was made to soak the screw with oil to open it later and we brainstormed a few ideas before just trying to open the thing. It dogged out about half an inch and then froze in place. More oil and work and even Dizzy and Connal working hard with a crowbar couldn’t get more than another quarter inch in the thing. We looped the rope through the spokes radiating out to the wheel itself and tied the free end to Knox the mule and everyone tried to pull the wheel. The rope snapped and the tail end of it hit Knox in the rump, making the mule bray and then run off.

Damn it, shit.

Connal and Dizzy gave chase, and then eventually the rest of the group joined in. The mountain was no place for the mule to run and it took some time to catch up to him and calm it down. Then with more apples lead it back through the mountain until we were at the door again. Retying everything to the mule and making sure nothing was lost, we went back to the wheel again. Wilhelm had the idea with more oil to coat the central screw shaft again and then cast heat metal on it – making the shaft expand slightly and in doing so, break the rusting hold that had been stimying us to date. We worked the wheel and unlocked the door – allowing us to open Donnegarten for the first time in over 140 years.

There was a small amount of air exchange as foul stale air blew out and fresh air rushed in. There was a large entrance area here with a number of old burn and bash marks. The ceiling, 20’ tall, had caved in a few places and there were maybe 30 plus dwarven skeletons on the floor in places. Some had broken bones, others had flatbow bolts in their chest cavity. Two other passages were out of this chamber, one east the other south. Wilhelm had done a Detect snares and pits spell and Dizzy checked the place out.

Signs pointed to stables and pens south and admissions and lift east. There were some counterweights holding the doors open now and we decided to work a series of levers to keep the doors open. Three worked, 1 did not – making the right door fully openable, and the left door partial. We looked over much of the area and the call was made to head south to the stables and pens first. It was about 10:40 when we started going down the hall. More signs of orcish assault and dead dwarves. The ceiling had risen to 25’ tall and curtain webbing and dust was heavy. An old wagon had been dumped on its side here as a break but had been burned and the dwarven bodies beyond showed that they had been overrun. Wilhelm let us know that a section up ahead had a weak ceiling and we should be careful and quiet going past it.

The hall opened to a large chamber with 6 lesser chambers heading off, each acting as a pen section for a variety of animals. A central cartwright area with a 3’ step down took up the central section. The scaffolding and metal runner glides had been pretty beaten up, but we figured to check out the pens first. Starting with the northeast one, the original wood and bar pen door had been torn out and hauled away, busted old wood and metal bars everywhere. It seemed to be a horse or pony pen area based on the size of each stall and the accoutrements found around it. From there the next major pen was more for goats and we did find a small pit area under one of the stalls.

There was a cotter pin that had been set in the eye bolt, but we bent the flanges down and pulled it out before opening it up. Small area, 5’ x 5’. Two dwarven skeletons down here, thinner boned – most likely teenaged. 9 tally marks were scratched on the wall. One of them had a yellowed note in its grasp. We pulled it out and read it. Seems it was a recounting of one of the younger dwarves of the attack and his last days. We closed it up and kept looking. The next 4 pens were originally homes to griffins, hippogriffs, goats, and horses again. We did find another floor trap in the other goat area, but it was empty. At this point we went to the sunken cartwright area and looked around. More dwarven remains and lots of broken and poor condition tools (hammers, pliers, tongs, saws, and the like). We managed to put together two toolboxes filled with whatever was useful that we could find, lashing one to the mule and Dizzy taking the other one. In addition, we took a number of the 6’ metal bars from the pens and stacked them near the entrance.

It was about 1 PM when we returned to the entrance area and decided leaving it open was an invitation that we did not need. So we closed the door (after working the counterweights again) and then shoved it closed and turned the locking wheel on this end until it was closed once more. From here we went east down the hall to Admissions and the Lifts.

More broken areas and dead dwarves. A few here in platemail, but the metal had fist sized holes in it, blasted through both sides. The next hall has a portcullis blocking it, but it had been rent aside. Some kiosks in here smashed up along with guide ropes. Two doors here north and west wall. Both torn open. A few nooses made of cables hanging from a crossbeam from above dwarven skeletons piled beneath it. There were two passages on the far east end of the room – east north and east south. Signs pointed to offices and lifts. We looked over the area with slow care. The two rooms were armories once upon a time, now empty the interior covered in dust and webs. More busted rocks and ceiling areas in bad shape. We did find a single raven feather on top of a broken kiosk which Dizzy took as a sign from Odin that we were in the right place.

We went down the east, north passage. The hall was wide (again, 20’), and very unstable. A few of us stumbled as walking but made it to the admissions offices. A few metal plaques were here, desk signs that Dizzy took. Some more garbage, more signs of orcish assault and dwarven destruction. It was almost 3 PM at this point when we went back to the main hall and then the east south passage to the Lifts.

Along the way we heard a scrabbling sound and something running off ahead. Eoghan was sure it was a canine of some sort, but it did not answer him. The curtain webbing seemed to come to an end here for some reason. Beyond here was a large chamber with a 40’ square pit on the east side going down into the gloom. A set of stone steps ran along the perimeter going down into the dark. A massive dwarven made two fork chain lift was here, the bulk of it recessed into the far eastern alcove beyond the pit. The metal gantry and loading platform looked pretty wrecked and battered but was on the south wall. A sloped area went up to the west to the lift control area. There were some canine prints in the dust going to the pit and down the stairs. Eoghan called out but no answer.

We made a decision to check out the lift control room and there was a single dwarf here next to a simple wood and steel stool. The left side of his skull had been caved in. A control panel with a number of dials and gauges that were all choked with dust and there were 4 levers, 3 buttons, and two 1’ wide thumb driven wheels were on the board. Eoghan wanted to touch them, and he was begged not to. As for Dizzy and Wilhelm, they looked over the pit and lift to the alcove to the machine and the thought was the machinery was most likely steam driven but the boiler that we could see was cold.

It was about 3:15 at this point and Wilhelm’s torch had only been lit for 20 minutes and we were discussing making the jump to the alcove and working on the machine or something else for now.

Meet 91, Adv 13, 6/8/24

We took sight of the area and could see 5 decent peaks north and east of here. We knew 1 of them was the home to Donnegarten and Eoghan took an educated guess to discount the two peaks on the edge, leading us to the valley between the 3rd and 4th mountain – each a bit between 5 and 6 thousand feet in height. The foothills before it were sizable, some of the mounds reaching over 800 feet up. And we set off. The pace was slow and measured, Wilhelm and Eoghan taking us along whatever deer paths we could find. The wind was a constant, running at 25 to 30 mph and as we got closer to the peaks, they acted as a windbreak, forcing more of the breeze across us. Through the valley here we could see at least 3 more peaks.

The decision was made to camp on the other side of the valley crest and it was a bit after 6 when Eoghan managed to scout out an area that was a bit of a hollow from a water wash. We gathered wood, boughs, and other items before settling in for a camp and a meal. We split up the watches (Wilhelm, Connal, Dizzy, and Shim – with Eoghan being excepted for now) and rest well in the night, using the hollow as a fire break and keeping the coals banked low. We awoke the next day Firemonth the 2nd and spent a few hours writing scrolls and studying and praying.

Eoghan had walked about taking sites of the nearby peaks and the land about us. It was another cloudless summer day with no hint of rain (5 days so far). We discussed places to go and we figured on east for now. Dizzy did an augury and confirmed that seemed to be the best choice. So all geared up again and Knox’s (the mule’s) load a bit lighter, headed off to the east, crossing the valley floor and heading off to the next rise between peaks. It was rough go and the terrain was not forgiving but we arrived up and over and looked into the next valley area when Shim who was starting north and east started blubbering and pointing.

“The Mountain,” he muttered repeatedly. “It’s the mountain.”

The mountain that he had been seeing for months now since we acquired the Desmondian Diamond and he had been blasted with two visions that haunt him every day – one being the Norns and their work – and the other being a particular mountain peak exploding and the subsequent blast and climate change kills most everyone. “Alright,” Eoghan laughed, “That’s our destination.”

We walked north and east, taking almost an hour to get to the southwest base of the wooded peak. It was about 5,000 feet tall and had a snow cap from about 3,500 feet up, the forest line getting to just under 3,000 feet. There were no markings or signs that this was the peak and only Shim’s haunted vision let us know that of the 13 or 14 mountains in the area, that this was the right one.

It was about 11 and we hoped to at least narrow down our possible search area. So Dizzy once again called to Sif and did another augury – asking if it was better or worse if the group searches the south half of the mountain. And we got a yes. Ok. Eoghan and Wilhelm did some talking and discussing about possible time to search the mountain and how high up we’d need to go. The group was of the consensus the dwarves would not have an entrance at base of the thing, and the snow line seemed too high. We decided to search off the area between 3 and 4 thousand feet in height where it went from tree line to scrub. It should take us the entire day to search that entire area on the south slope so we went up.

Dizzy had the hardest time with the climb so he and Shim rode Knox to that area and then once up there we dismounted and had Eoghan help us draw into a line. And from there we started looking for anything. Door, chimney, any worked area. The place was supposedly closed and sealed 144 years ago, so there was going to be almost nothing for signs (DC 20), but we looked. After a few hours, Eoghan had us searching the eastern slopes on the south side of the mountain.

Dizzy and Wilhelm encountered a couple of wild Hippogriffs who had torn a family of rabbits apart and were eating them. We didn’t want to alert them to us so they kept motioning to Connal who was watching them some couple hundred feet away. He got Shim and then they used the amulet of telepathy to communicate with the other 2 at what they found. Then he blasted a call telepathically to Eoghan who was ranging in front and silently pissed off at Dizzy for being so fucking slow that he should come back.

We all convened again back with the other 2 and decided that 2 hippogriffs, while maybe good enough for us to encounter, was not necessary for now. Wilhelm let us know they had a 4 mile square hunting area and we just needed to make them move on. The group used a summon monster spell and a giant rat appeared. We sent it into the woods and the hippogriffs attacked it, killing it, and then they got pissed off at their meal and squawked a bit and flew off.

Returning to our search we did spot (Eoghan and Dizzy) a few blocks of an older dwarven mountain switchback road which fueled our excitement that we were on the right track. No sign of the opening so we went to the western slope at this height and looked around. By 6 PM we had to admit defeat and went down the slope a bit to the tree line before we came upon an area to rest for the night. Camp was set up and we arranged watch (Wilhelm, Connal, Eoghan, and Shim). The Aurora Borealis emerged this evening, a ribbon of green and yellow and blue light dancing across the sky. The majesty was enough to silence most of the normal animal sounds and fill the party (those on watch) with wonder. The tobacco that Wilhelm had smoked earlier had relaxed him and he passed the watch baton on to the next and the next.

At some point Connal did sense a large figure skulking about. So he put on his cloak with the frightful visage, giving him a wraith-like look. And then looked out. It was a hill giant, solitary and wandering about. It took a few seconds to spot the monastic and then got terrified. It threw a big rock (20 lbs!) at the monk; cracking him in the chest and rocking him back (14 pts damage). He didn’t say a thing, continued to watch the giant who then freaked out, failed his morale check, and fled. Everything after that was normal – Aurora Borealis continued to shine until a couple hours before dawn.

We shared experiences, studied, wrote spells, and prayed. And then a heal was given to Connal and we went back over our plan. Eoghan wanted us to go back to one of the areas we had been through yesterday and check it again. So we reclimbed the area and started to look again. And sure enough, we managed to find a place where an overhang of rock above a scree of stones showed a doorway (or the top of it beyond). We discussed things to do and spells at our finger tips but it was decided that raw strength and shovel was going to be the watchward of the day.

Wilhelm stripped off his clothes again and transformed into a bear. It was touch and go but he got the gist of it and he, Connal, and Dizzy tackled the 22 tons of fallen stones. It was fast in the beginning but slowed down as the hours went on. Eventually they got too tired to dig on after 3 hours and we broke for lunch. A lesser restoration gave 2 of them their energy back and the 3 of them went back to the door, eventually clearing enough of it free for us to open it.

It was a double stone door, 10’ wide and 12’ tall. There was a metal core of the door as well as the frame and lintel so stone shape was not going to work. A single large rusted and gritted locking wheel was in the center. Shim blasted it with a prestidigitation cleaning some of it but that was it. It was almost 4:30 and we did not want to tackle any more tonight so we took our tools and tired bodies back down to the camp we had made yesterday and camped again.

We ate, drank, smoked, and had a good evening. Connal let us know we had 6 days of food and water left after this point. We set up watches and rested again. Watch set up was the same as the night before and once again, the sky was awash in colors. The bleed from the rainbow bridge was a ribbon running across the firmament. It was majestic. The world was quiet, watching. And on Connal’s watch, a man appeared behind him and asked to share his fire. He was in his late 30’s red brown hair, grizzled warrior type. Connal was concerned, wondering if it was an aspect of the Major Eddas. It was when he let his cloak fall aside and showed his missing hand that he muttered, “Tyr”, and the figure only grimaced a grin.

They shared some smoke, the vapors giving Connal a racing spin and a calm clarity he had never had before. “This is an important place,” the man (Tyr) said. “It was here that the first falling stones spelled the death of many to come. And it is here that we have some to see you once more.”

We?

3 women stepped out of the gloom. A younger woman with the rosy cheeks of a maiden just hit womanhood, clutching a spindle of thread. An older woman was next, the younger one’s mother. She was clad less gaily and her figure was more pear shaped, but she was still a striking woman. She had a set of knitting needles. And last was an older woman, the mother again (and grandmother) of the other 2, some arthritis on her swollen knuckles but a keen eye and a sharp set of cutting shears.

They were the Norns (or an aspect thereof) and Urd, Verdandi, and Skuld spoke with Connal and then the rest of the group (awakening them from a deep slumber). They explained the nature of the skein and that they do not write the future. At all, they merely record it, and they can only record what has happened. No one can see the future – except the all father, and for 1 instance – Shimlagesh.

This location is a nexus point – something important happened here which had them record the massacre of 2 persons in 5 during the Randari War. They rewound the skein to show the rich tapestry of it and then post this situation and how the tapestry was weaker and less dense, less whole; it took many years before it grew rich and thick again and still not as full as it was before. But now if the mountain explodes and Fimbulwinter comes, the tapestry would shatter unless some 9 threads in 10 were cut. And most of the coloring after that would be the brown and grey representation of the dwarven empires.

We needed to find a way to prevent that from happening. And this place, Donnegarten, once again features heavily in deciding the future of Rand.

There was much conversation following and we learned much but eventually weariness overtook us and we turned in again for the night, resting well and awakening on Firemonth the 4th, ready to go back up the mountain and find our way – plumb the long forgotten secrets of Donnegarten.

Meet 90, Adv 13, 5/25/24

With a shift in our plans, we solidified the party as Eoghan, Wilhelm, Dizzy, Shimlagesh, and Connal. With a trek overland we were going to need some mule as well as food stuffs and water. It was maybe 3 days to get there as well as exploring the area to find the long-lost Complex. During the weeks there was an impromptu trip to Ironcamp to get Wilhelm an animal, meet with Dizzy’s family and spend some time with them. Darius had gone off to Stivil and was meeting with Baron Skuddrid. Shim had gone up to the provinces to spend time there, and Connal was taking care of things in town.

The Abbess Cala had asked Connal to intercede with the Patron Guilly MacBorren. There was a new edict coming from the Duke that was putting a limitation on followers of the Ecclesiastic Guild having a dual charter with the Greater Rand Sellsword and Adventuring Guild. There was an influx of cash from the Gorokian Dwarves with had spent some money with the Baron to take over a crumbling ex temple and turn it into a Mission for lost and wayward dwarves. They had asked for some law changes and even Master Bjorn Durkenlurk of Grsag had been swayed by a donation to let it happen.

As for any priests that needed training, they were welcome to come to Tilani and train there, the Gorokian Empire would happily pick up the bill. The universe of priests and monks who this applied to was 27, and even after it passed and the Ecclesiastic council confirmed they would not be enforcing it, still at least 8 members renounced their charter with the Erylond Chapter to avoid any possible problems.

As we were approaching the D day to leave, Dizzy managed to get a piece of lodestone to one of the Wizard Towers and then had it enchanted with a Continual Light spell. We were at home on the 29th and going through our readiness when a trio contingent from the Gorokian Collective arrived and wanted to talk with us. We kept them out of the house and in the garden deflected their inquiries. They wanted to know where we were going, the Terror Dungeon needs to have its depths plumbed, treasures await, and it looks like you are gearing up for a foray. We managed to avoid committing to what we were doing and they left knowing we were up to something but not sure where.

We did some looking around and there was a new statue down the block on the side of a house, pointing right to our place. We paid some local kids to throw rocks at it and knock it off. Successful, and figuring the dwarves had put it there to watch us, we deflected conversation with the neighbors and went home.

Leaving was going to be delicate and we made sure to leave early and out a different gate. We had a new mule and ladened it down with foodstuffs, water, and supplies. We made good time that first day (apples worked on getting the Mule to follow and listen – in fact Connal had the best rapport with it) and we came to Paxian @ day’s end. We went up to White Shadow and found a nice place to stay, sleeping well and feeling good. We left the next day by 9:30 and decided to not head through Canaslan and risk going by Wendover, but to instead head west again and then go north- relying on Dizzy’s notes of Donnegarten’s locale as well as Eoghan’s direction sense.

The land slowly rose and fell, grasslands led to scrub lead to forested sections here and there. A group of wolves had picked up our scent (or the mule’s) and Wilhelm shape changed into a raven to awkwardly learn to fly and investigate. He returned to let us know that 10 of them were to our east a few hundred yards away and were pacing with us. And they were worgs – not wolves. We kept weapons out and moved on and eventually as we had hoped, the worgs decided we were not worth the trouble and ran off to other locales.

We found a place to rest and set up camp, sharing the land with a tribe of wandering orcs from the Four Steel Clan. They were taking a young hunter out on his Adulting Hunt and offered to share the fire with us. We talked and drank, the orc’s did not speak common but there were enough of us who spoke orcish so the meeting and camping was well received on all ends.

The next day we wished them well and moved on, heading north some more. A bit before noon on Firemonth the 1st, we came to a large river and then proceeded to find a place to cross it. Connal had learned to move swiftly over poor surfaces so was able to run across the water to the other side, checking depths as he did so. It was not a good place here so Wilhelm once again took Raven form and flew off west, a few miles down the river found a place for us to ford across. We went there and by 1:30, most of us had forded the 3 to 4’ deep section of the river; Shim carried across by Connal; and Dizzy tied to the mule’s back to prevent falling in and drowning. We were in the foothills of the mountains here and Eoghan was doing some sighting to judge which way was the best to go and which peak looked the most promising.

Meet 89, Adv 13, 5/18/24

We still drifted back in time for the 26 days the “B” team group was in Grymeria. They had been invited to Glagdir Province at the behest of Lord Glagdir to oversee their donation of food stuffs as well as spend time with the locals and helping them with the group's knowledge and experience. Connal opted to stay at the home in case the group came back early. Darius was requested to go to Stivil and spend time with Baron Skuddrid and his cavaliers to learn the skills to become an armiger. Eoghan and Wilhelm wanted to go back to Ironcamp and meet with Arnskar and get another wolfhound and/or mountain lion. They left with Darius on the way, leaving him st Stivil, and proceeded northward, arriving in Ironcamp 5 days later.

They then went to Shebara Dizzrae, Dizzy’s mom, and Frontari, arranged to have dinner with them later, and then went to the Hunter’s Guild to meet with Arnskar. With 10 thousand citizens out currently on the 1st of the 3 Reetersbeard Caravans, the city was light of people. They got good service but as for exotic animals, there weren’t any. Normal dogs and the like, no lupine types. And for cats, the largest they could find was a Giant Lynx, some 4’ long and very intelligent. The Saber-toothed tiger was still there but it was outside Wilhelm’s costs. Eoghan forewent an animal at this time, sticking with Quivers and Jessie. Wilhelm bought the Lynx and then went back to Shebara’s home with Arnskar. The 5 of them had a nice meal and time at a tavern and although Arnskar did make out with Wilhelm, the connection getting to 2nd base, she did not pursue a more carnal night and instead opted to wait for his next visit. They left and headed back eventually to Erylond and Glagdir Province.

Shim was on site and the diminutive gnome was a local celebrity for his time. Lady Vari and her paramour made sure he was invited to most of the meetings with the local gentry and head families and hi was a hit with the children of town based upon his size, demeanor, and his magic. However he was still haunted by his dreams of the skein and its massive shredding as well as the exploding mountain. He was down to about 6 hours of sleep a night, with a few hours of half wakefulness. He was still able to work his spells, but this was taking a toll on his health. His skin was grayish, bags under his eyes, lank and lifeless. The Falsers’ were invited at some point and visited Shim for 2 days. They could not help him dull the nightmares, but they did provide Falser Intoxicating Candy – each one is the equivalent of 3 drinks to a gnome or Halfling – to anyone else, they just have the taste – not the intoxicating effect.

After they had left and some time had gone on, Wilhelm and Eoghan arrived – followed by Darius. The group then went back to Erylond in time for the Reetersbeard Caravan and enjoyed the arrival and festivities.

As for Connal, he spent the 1st week acting as a fill-in proctor for the Church of Sif, teaching young acolytes and neophytes as need be. Abbess Cala and he had reached an uneasy truce for now. She wanted him to be more for her and the church, needing a “hand” to get things done. And the next job was fairly big. Patron Guilly MacBorren, had arrived from the Crown (the Duke), and after giving Connal a stink eye for interrupting the meeting, left; her considerable perfumed bulk leaving in a huff.

The Abbess had let Connal know that a new edict had come down from the Duke and was being penned soon – dictating that anyone who had dual guild memberships in the Adventuring Guild and the Ecclesiastic Guild, must give up one. What? If you are an adventurer – you cannot train in Erylond as a cleric or monk. Patron Guilly was thrilled to present this to the Abbess and she wanted to know what was going on. So Connal was dispatched to find out.

He was going to go to Guilly, who had an apartment here on the Council Grounds, but instead wanted to get an audience with one of the Duke’s Castellans. Eventually he made his way to Center Circle where we went to the Duke’s Conclave and Castle. A variety of people cycled him through until he was sitting with a mid level functionary Castellan. They talked for a bit and it seems that a contingent of Gorokian Dwarves had arrived a few days before the Reetersbeard Caravan and was spreading money around. They gave a donation of 14,607 crowns to the Duke for the rehabilitation of one of the abandoned Temples in the Inner Circle at Temple Row to be used as a halfway home for itinerant dwarves down on their luck.

In return for turning this unused piece of property into something profitable, the Gorokian Dwarves came up with the edict idea and the duke’s people signed off on it. As a thanks, this Castellan had a Gorokian made piece of statuary in his office. Connal left disgusted. He went to Patron Guilly next – she was staying at an apartment on Ecclesiastic Grounds and was currently at lunch.  The rotund Patron was not liked by the staff so they quoted the rites of Baldur’s Hospitality at her and they Connal could sit with her and her many plates of food. He orders a bacon sandwich and they traded barbs with each other. She is doing what’s best for all parties – and the dwarves are willing to help out. Why shouldn’t we accept it? It’s not a big deal. Where do cleric’s train then if not here? There is room for them to train at Gorok if they want and at half the rate they would have to pay here. Connal left more frustrated. He went to see Pha-iyr Carom @ the Adventurer’s Guild next, hoping to get some answers from him.

Pha-iyr did not know of this edict and thought it was stupid. Gorokian dwarves arrived yesterday and tried to get Pha-iyr aid in some cross-joined help but the guild facilitator squashed their request, instead shuffling them upstairs to see Master Bjorn Durkenlurk, the leader of the GRSAG. We also learned that the Gorokian Dwarves had been taking a big interest in the Terror Dungeon this season, tracking who is going in and out. And to make things easier, they had some 60 count of porters, shieldbearers, heavy footmen, and rogues on site for hiring to flesh out parties that might need them. Yeah…not suspicious.

Pha-iyr and Connal went up to see Master Bjorn who was sitting with the number 2, Guilder of the Dead Taris, Priest of Hel. They were at odds with one another, Master Bjorn worried about the guild as a going concern and Guider Taris worried about the people in the guild and not the establishment in and of itself. The dwarves had indeed come by and made a donation to the GRSAG which had Master Bjorn sign off on the edict, Guider Taris thinks it’s a terrible idea. They also wanted to sponsor the addition of new people to join the GRSAG, effectively a recruitment drive to every nearby Thorpe, town, Demesne, and Province to convince young hopefuls to leave the farms and cottages and grab a sword and try their luck in the Terror Dungeon.

Guider Taris thought it was a terrible idea. Pha-iyr was not thrilled with it either. Master Bjorn was ambivalent to it, citing that membership was important and this would further expand the guild. Master Taris then let slip that over the last month and a half, the average “death” as per adventure had risen from roughly 1 every 2 days – to 2 deaths on average per day. A four fold increase. Master Bjorn also had a Gorokian statue in his office and there were 2 crates in here that had Gorokian seals and stamps on them. Guider Taris indicated they were a bribe, thousands of gold from Gorok. Master Bjorn chided him for his misguided idealism and had them leave, he had much work to do.

Eventually the edict was signed but the feeling from the Ecclesiastical Council was that this was an easily enforceable law and they would do what they could to shield their members from the crown. Still, at least a third of cleric/monk adventurers let their membership lapse with the Council to avoid any issues – opting to go to Gorok for training.

As the weeks went on the group had a few meetings but at one of them they had a frank discussion about the two groups of their charter. Their group had saved an angel, a valkyrie. They had glimpsed Asgard through a portal there from Midgard. They basked in the brief view and thanks of the Major Eddas, Odin, Frigga, and the like. They had a gemstone with a complex ritual composing 40 powerful spells that was strong enough to rewrite the skein. They had seen and done things. And the other group just seemed like…fuck ups. We wanted to get to more detail as to what was happening because as  Shim points out – the end of the world is coming. He sees it every day. And the skein is shredded when it happens, some 2/3rd of the souls here just end instantly, and others continue to trail off as the Norns try to keep the tapestry from falling apart.

The group did return and we all shared stories of our adventures. We were contemplating going to the Terror Dungeon, hoping that it had thinned out a bit, but now we were more interested in maybe finding Donnegarten. So the party spent time arranging for new equipment to replace all we had lost during the last adventure and were hoping to head off in a few days to find the lost dwarven research stronghold.

Meet 88, Adv 12, 5/4/24

During the time the group was out adventuring the rest of the party had gotten around to some other things. For the most part, the group had gone to do some work at invitation to Glagdir Province, as honored and respected guests. Darius made his way to Stivil to meet with Baron Skuddrid regarding his acquiring of spurs and squiring for a number of the knight errants in his employ. At some point Eoghan and Wilhelm made their way to Ironcamp to get another mountain lion. And Connal was doing work for the Church of Sif and the Abbess, trying his best to be excellent but also feeling underutilized.

Shim was constantly suffering from late night terrors regarding the image he had gotten from his brief congress with the Desmondian Diamond. The repeated explosion of the mountain plagued his dreams, giving him an exhausted look at best.

The Reeteresbeard caravan had come to town and it was a week-long experience. The first couple days circus troops and road repair crews came through. Minstrels and bards played, and then the caravans themselves hit. They stayed almost 3 days before moving on. 3 thousand merchants and 6 to 7 thousand support staff or farriers, teamsters, guards, cooks, weavers, and everything else in between accompanied the huge rolling mass of dwarven merchants. Then even after they left, it was 2 more days of lesser caravans looking to sell and buy for those that missed out on the Reetersbeard wares and deals.

Shim had attempted to perform some dye works during this time as Glagdir province asked for some months ago, but the actual dyers guild got wind of it and accosted him in the town, getting the local constabulary involved. Shim played up his height and that he was a kid while the dyers wanted him to stop. It was a chaotic situation but Shim managed to escape and avoid the attention of any of the Nightwood Impressors that were in the area.

As for the rest of the party, they did eventually come back and listened to the other half talk about their exploits in Grymeria. They did downplay it and let the matter drift away. As for what was to happen, some training was called for and then a trip back to the Terror Dungeon. The group that had just adventured was going to spend weeks getting up to speed. Thalin had selected a school of magic and went to the tower – but he went to the tower that was not run by an elven archmage. Shim went as his 2nd, and the test was administered, but afterwards, Lector Warnock from Tilani spent some time filling Thalin in on the elven situation and that he for some reason, had done something that flew in the face of the Gorokian empire. More cannot be said as it was a private conversation, but rest assured, Thalin learned much this day.

Meet 87, Adv 12, 4/27/24

The afternoon was a slow go as Elaine and Lori alternated between sobbing terror and grasping clinging on the party members. Amathadwan and his staff were very on point, working with Annalee Mason on getting the two women to eventually get looked after and then some food and drink in them. Various council members and citizen of Grymeria kept coming up to the party with handshakes and thanks for the work they did.

The afternoon bled into the evening and eventually the two women were able to get some rest, and the party managed to have a moment of their own as well. Clothes were dropped off for laundering, we ate a late meal, and had to speak with a number of visitors. Exhausted we fell asleep, knowing that we would have a long day with the Council tomorrow.

We awoke with more celebrity behind us and made our way to the Council Building after making sure that Elaine and Lori were well off. Annalee was going to stay with them and once again, Amathadwan and the staff of the Heart of Vitalia were going to go above and beyond the need of things.

At the Council building we were met with cheers and applause, noting that Duncan Eternal’s chair was empty. Eventually we had some private audience with ICC Marrions who got the entire story from us and was very pleased. We did it without upsetting the treaty between Freemantle and Grymeria and the women were home now and being looked after.

He let us know that Necrolord Duncan Eternal was waiting to speak with us and his assistant, Cassandra Ruggel, a member of his private staff as well as a powerful undead and priestess of Frigga, was going to lead the group to his estate for an audience with him. So they all got up and took a nice walk through town eventually to his acre sized estate. It was nice, not exactly palatial, but certainly the home of a nobleman. She was sharing with the group his importance and a variety of rules that they should adhere to – limited speaking, no familiar gestures, avoid eye contact and the like.

Eventually she was called in and Cassandra brought the group to Duncan. He was seated on a throne emanating both shadow and light. He was robed and cowled, the upper half of his face beyond his nose lost to darkness. The room was a library of sorts, a few windows, and a large map with fairy lights dancing around it. He invited them to sit, a Staff of Might gripped loosely in his off hand. His voice was commanding and shook with a subsonic timbre at times.

The conversation was 2 hours long and meandered over many places. There were many things discussed and the group was deferential to Duncan. We spoke about his early life and years. The disease that affected his wife and son, Bazi’s Plague. Primarily an elven affecting virus, it has also been known to affect other races. Usually limited to Tilani and the environs around it, those affected quickly develop pustule sores all over their body and yellowing of the teeth and bones. Then all the solid parts of the body become brittle (teeth, bones, etc..) and eventually the soul itself also breaks apart and the sufferer not only dies but cannot be raised.

Duncan had taken many jobs into the Terror Dungeon in hopes of finding a cure. Strange herbs, bloods, fluids, fungi – anything he could get out of there. It was when they emerged after 3 weeks, and he ended up as the first Sovereign of the stolen kingdoms that he realized he could not leave. The spell that made him king also made sure he could not leave his lands for a year and a day – during which time his family had died. He had them disinterred and brought to Grymeria but they have not come back and he has tried again and again to do so.

As for the box, some 7 years ago he had come to the conclusion that he cannot die, he crafted a homunculus and had it fused to the body of his long dead son, hoping that since his life force cannot be extinguished here, that would pass to the body of his son. It did not take and instead because it was a part of him – the Land had a macabre sense of humor, and he could not kill it off. So, he and his council came to the conclusion that it would need to be buried away and the magic leeched out of it. Willow trees are excellent conduits of magic so they captured the thing, crated it up, and he had them dispose of it – with explicit instruction NOT for him to ever know where it is. Every 6 to 8 weeks, another homunculus of him appears and his councilors gather it up and again hide it away. There has to 50 of them so far – buried all over Grymeria.

As for the Terror Dungeon – he feels it is not a crucible as some think – sifting out the best of the bunches. Nor does he think its purpose is to get to the bottom level and fight the big bad there- as some of the bards and stories say. He feels the Terror Dungeon is a created thing and for a purpose. And that the Gorokian Dwarves are a big part of it. They were very vested in the Terror Dungeon when it first came into being and it was the passing of the original Lord Bork that had Lord Corface Bork take over and replace the Gorokian contingent in the Keep with his own people. Except for the makers of the Terror Dungeon Amulets – only those dwarves, still there, are able to make the correct piece to allow people to enter.

He has many supplicants and followers – but few peers. So he thanks the group for just chatting and not wanting anything.

We looked over his map and saw all the Sovereign Lands and other places nearby. There was one place called Donnegarten up in the mountains past Freemantle and Shadowthyrst. Duncan said that if it was on the map, the place has to still exist. It was a dwarven research facility, very top notch stuff. Not exactly under the purview of the High Thane of Gorok before the Randari War. But they were doing some research on the Randari Empire and its leadership caste when the orcs found out about it. They managed to seek out its location and then had the place sacked and all its mages, runecasters, and researchers within but to death. Even though he was not aware of its existence, the High Thane of Gorok was offended at the Randari Ympire and eventually forged the alliance that took down the orcs. The sacking of Donnegarten was the catalyst to the entire Randari War. Its exact location has been lost to time but we know roughly where in the mountains it is.

We did note that based upon the pin in the map, if and when another Sovereign Land opens up – it will most likely claim that spot. We suspect the Gorokian Dwarves are involved. Between the Lathandar fountain, the Norn issue, the interest in the Terror Dungeon. It was something we’d like to eventually look into.

As for us, Lord Duncan rounded up our promissory note to 2,500 crowns each and then was going to make arrangements for us to get that in gold coin when we leave. We agreed to downplay the good parts of Grymeria so the place isn’t overrun with adventurers. He was also going to set up his own adventurer guild here for interested citizens. The free passage through the border applies to us – not the entirety of the Vangaurds – they would have to earn his respect.

We left humbled and tired, discussed many plans of options and met with everyone who was going to wish us a good trip. It was a day of hand clasps and thanks but the evening of the next day had the Inquisitors show up along with 12 chests of gold – 2 for each of us, along with a number of low functioning animates. The Inquisitor used a Far Seeing spell to get us to describe where in Erylond our home was. Then the spell took us through the walls to the basement and after making sure he knew where it was – the inquisitor opened a portal to our home in Erylond – and we all stepped through.

Connal was home and he was surprised to see us all. Along with a Wraith and 12 zombies with chests. We were well fed and nicely dressed in well made clothes. We tried to downplay what was what while we directed the zombies to go to our rooms with the chests of gold. Once there they returned to the main room and portalled out back to Grymeria. Dizzy went to the local locksmith to get a dozen locks while the monastic tried to bend Brading’s ear as to what happened but getting only broad strokes of the adventure with no details except odd points of fact.

We were happy to be home and after Dizzy returned with the locks and we all locked up our chests, we were going to discuss what the next plans were and what we were going to do next.