BRIEFING (Friday April 4th 200B) Special forces meeting discusses Baron Lidmar's concern about a vague political threat. The baron does not describe the threat in detail. Bit warns that some groups are deliberately blocking his truth detection abilities and divinations. Also he has reason to suspect the temples are not revealing the full results of their auguries. Unsure who his enemies are, the Baron sends you to find his former advisor, Depressed "Derry" Renthrow. Derry was an oracle of sorts and the baron trusts him to perform divinations on his behalf. The baron supplied a cover story for the group. You we restocking the Fort Willhome garrison with troops to replenish those lost to the goblin raids. TRAVEL (Friday April 4th 200B) The weather is nice and the trip fairly short. The party rode horses to pass in "the sentinels". Forty calvary accompanied the party. On route Briar Rose finds evidence that a band or horsemen (possibly bandits?) are camping in the woods just short of the pass. She sends her wolves to scout, but the party decides not to wait and heads into the mountain pass into the southern wastes. In the pass the party is greeted by a rather odd gate captain. The gate captain kept glancing over his shoulder and made a show out of changing the gate password. ARRIVAL AT FORT WILLHOME (Friday April 4th 200B) The party rides 3-4 miles into the plains around the great rift to find Fort Willhome surrounded by a tribe of goblins. Several foraging parties head out as you watch, leaving the camps empty of wolf riders. Seyella took this opportunity to launch a flaming far strike into the goblin camp laughing at how the camp falls into chaos as goblins run around pointing at the sky. After a few seconds a salvo of return fire raises from the camp and knocks Seyella (still laughing) off his horse. Several war parties head for the party and a plan is quickly devised. The mounted calvary volunteer to lead off the war parties while the party gets someone into the keep and makes arrangements for a counterattack or for the gates to be opened so the calvary can fall back to the city. Ming ran into the Fort (jumping the walls with his amazing "tiger-pouncing leap") Meanwhile the party continues to make plans. Five minutes later, Ming returns to find the party still arguing. The horsemen lured off most of the warbands, but a party of about 50 goblins was coming up the hill to search the area from which the attack was launched. Seeing only two halfmen as they crested the hill, the war party of goblins shunned tactics and ran into combat raining arrows liberally onto their foes. Max flew towards the goblin host carried by an invisible Ming. Briar rose quickly turned the battle by raining spike and thorns onto the plain for hundreds of feet and the party through luck and surprise completely sweeps a force that they later learn contained most of the goblin leadership sent to examine the site of the attack. FORT WILLHOME (Friday April 5-7th 200B) After driving off the warparty and slaying much of the goblin leadership the party entered Fort Willhome and met Lord Derry the sorcerer. There they hear that the goblins are allied with powerful Oni spirits, and that much of the keeps defenders have been falling to poison and treachery. Seyella finds evidence of charmed warriors on the inside of the keep and Derry helps the party identify that the goblins must have been aided by a powerful druid. (all the goblins has very nice wooden equipment that was shaped magically) Derry attempts to scry on the druid. After a brief glimpse of someone conducting a ritual in a small grove the vision changes as if redirected by a false vision and Derry is struck by a magical attack a few seconds later. Quite shaken Derry magically makes himself a drink and is halfway through drinking it when the party realizes that the scotch was poisoned. Derry starts asphyxiating immediately. The party tries a number of spells and finally manages to put him into stasis a few seconds before death. That night there are a few attacks on the outer walls, but the goblin tribes have mostly fled now that their leaders are all dead. The party was preparing to have Derry cured when Seyella noticed a possible assassin trying to get access to Derry's chamber. The assassin turns out to be the Oni air spirit and blasts Seyella to the edge of a coma. Max, inside the room with Derry comes out and attacks the spirit as the guards lend assistance. the spirit makes a mad dash for freedom but Ming sees it coming and runs up the walls to drop on it with a neck shattering blow. Derry is then restored and much debate ensued over what to do next. Apparently Derry gets bored, scrys on the party, learns that the Baron needs him and teleports to the Baron's castle after making arrangements for the Forts continual operation. The party discovers the illusion and is alarmed until they piece together what happened. (ENDED Friday April 7th 200B) Player Characters ----------------- Seyella - A magician whose velveteen robes, languid smile, and decadent behavior hide a shadowy past. A illusionist with a interest in the darker side of fae mysticism. Ming Guanglong - a well built easterner master of the art of unarmed warfare. Son of one of the many Thule warriors caught on this side of the Broken mountains after the war. He was raised with the traditional discipline of the Thule but the personal freedoms of the Baronies. A boisterous drinker, known to be fond of drunken brawls. Max / Mfckntnldn - a mysterious duo. Halfman barbarian by day, elvin aristocrat by night. The personalities are very different and changes are sudden and difficult to get used to. Max (the halfman) is enormously powerful for such a small frame. But he is rather simple and headstrong. Mfckntnldn or "Maas" is aloof and disdainful. "Briar Rose" - female halfman spellcaster often seen wandering in wolf form with her pack around the woods north of Wall. "Briar Rose" is a druid whome seems fond of using summoned intermediaries to act for her. Notable NPCs ------------ Baron Lidmar - Leader of nation in the Southern Allied Baronies. Known to be strict but fair. Derry Renthrow - elderly advisor to Baron Lidmar. An oracle whom often uses his scrying powers to be a voyeur. Possibly exiled from court for his voyeurism or for his incredibly loose tongue. Has a serpent familiar that speaks Lothian well. The serpent seems exasperated that Derry forgets that he can speak. Norris - Guardsman stationed in "Sentinel" pass. Tamara - Scout captian and second in command at Fort Willhome. Extras ------ Horde of Goblins - apparently dressed in red shirts. Equipped with very nicely made wooden bows, Ogre Air Spirit / Shapeshifter - rumored to be a Thule orge spirit. Seemed to be in charge of assassinations and infiltration of Fort Willhome. Apparently kept control of earth spirit using a powerful earth charm. Earth Spirit - controlled by charm? Reputed to be immune / resistant to weapons and magic. Frequently seen in the presence of a large stone dog that seems to be summoned from the stone charm. Evil druid - supplier of goblin bows and training? Former lover of southern noble lady but was run out of Baronies and went mad after lovers death? (possibly enamored with animal / plant crossbreeding or charm/domination depending on who he turns out to be.) Pair of wolves - companions to Briar Rose but now separated from her by an almost impenetrable series of mountains. Items Recovered --------------- Earth Charm - known to cast Summon V (Medium Earth Elemental) Magical Net (Currently Broken) Totem of Air Spirits. (pounded into splinters) XP Summary ---------- 1350 XP per character. Some characters have bonus awards. (jerrod's characters should split experience. (70/30) Jerrod you might want to do what we discussed about Maas's skills) Experience Rewards ------------------ +100 xp for Seyella. (Sepia Snake Sigel) +100 xp for Maas. (roleplaying award) +50 xp for Maas/Max (background hints) Reputation Awards ----------------- -1 Seyella (fairs poorly in magical duels with goblins) +1 Seyella (strong as Max) +1 Briar Rose (prickly character) -1 Briar Rose (left wolf companions on wrong side of mountain range) -1 Max (weak as Seyella) +1 Ming (master of dragon strike. (flying neck-breaking kick)) (you may cash in a reputation for a one time bonus in an appropriate situation. I may use bad reputations against you when I find it convenient)