The characters have been instructed by factions to escort Garaele to the city of Iliphanar in Semphar.
Garaele has a scholar contact to meet and study with. She is looking for more of Gaedynn's works, since the book and notes that the PCs gave her was stolen from her home. The PCs are pretty sure that this was done by agents of the Order of the Gauntlet, not that they have let Garaele know this. Gauntlet members in the party have instructions to take or destroy any of Gaedynn's work that is found.
Gaedynn's book is, according to the diviner Rulinna, in a library in the mountains east of Rauder, guarded by a troll.
At the end of three and a half month's travel, arrive in Iliphanar.
On the road were Zai, Nahendra and Rufilim's birthdays.
It is high summer. Hot and dry.
Staying at the Golden Turtle inn, owned by a gentleman by Elil.
The party saw the Ataman (the mayor), a middle-aged lady called Kater. She told them about the bandit problem and how she had reached out to the Order of the Gauntlet for help. She shows them a map of attacks and says the bandits are tracked into the desert beyond Rauder to the south.
In return for proof the bandits are dead the party gets 500 gold each, though some of this comes in the form of supplies and equipment. All loot is the party's.
The party hire a guide to the desert, a Semphar man called Villay.
Leave Iliphanar, barge across the Goldenflow, ride south at a good pace.
The party ignored the library, their whole reason for being in Semphar, and decided to head into the desert after the raiders.
Arrive at the star on the desert map.
The desert adventure begins!
The party travelled south, following horse tracks. They came across a pair of leaning pillars. Villay showed them how to spot sinksand - a treacherous version of quicksand.
They camped just south of the pillars, out of the sinksand area.
That night they heard the sound of trumpets in the distance. Villay explained that the noise was made by a desert animal called a thunderherder, a worm-like creature the size of a large cat.
The party continued south. Coming to a fork in the trail, they followed the less-travelled route east, towards an oasis they had marked on their map. They camped in the hills.
That night a strange storm arose, raining acid. The party rushed to gather gear and head for shelter. After a short time they found an abandoned tomb, which they rushed into. Nine people and horses was a tght fit, but it was out of the acid rain. However, they were not alone…
A starving landshark attacked the group. After a messy battle, confined in a small room with paniking horses and flying hooves and the smell of horse piss, the party took down the monster. Unfortunately, Diero's horse had its head eaten by the monster.
XP: 1,800 / 5 = 360.
The party left the horse tracks and headed east, towards the oasis. This took them into a dangerous region of sinksand, but they managed to get through.
The oasis was a walled capped well, obviously well-maintained by those who live in the desert.
At the oasis they refilled their water.
As they were setting up camp, a ghostly figure approached them. It was a gaunt, skeletal man, wearing the ripped and faded remains of fine ceremonial clothes. He had an interesting tale.
Early in the morning they were all woken by a massive sound of trumpets. Near the camp, a group of thunderherders were dancing and playing and mating in the moonlight.
The party headed south, moving slowly through large sinksand fields, to the large pyramid marked on their map.