In attendance were;
Kumak Morudall: Half-Orc Bloodrager
Susan: Human Universalist Wizard
Thaddeus Whisperheart: Gnome Trickster
Arriving this session were
Tim: Halfling Ranger
Kronk: Human Haunted Life Oracle
The surviving 3 Redeemers looking down at the bodies of the slain ghouls and the pool where Tiberius's body had disappeared into are startled to hear movement coming from behind. Weapons to the ready a unassuming human man comes around the corner and walks right into them. After poking him to ensure he is real and not another haunt the newcomer introduces himself as Kronk. Seeing the team is in dire states Kronk offers his assistance. Kumak demands that Tiny Nuggets be healed first. Using several spells Kronk brings Thaddeus back from deaths door to something resembling health. Kumak dives into the pool and retrieves Tiberius's corpse, stripping the body of usable gear Kumak is too encumbered to bring the body back, neither Susan or Thaddeus have the strength for the task so Tiberius is laid to rest back in the pool. Thaddeus stays back with Kronk to compare notes while Kumak and Susan explore the room that Aldern came from. Susan spies a broken puzzle box which she identifies as a broken phylactery, Kumak is overcome by a vision of a man, who he suddenly knows is Vorel Foxglove, in the process of consuming a potion that will complete his transformation into a lich when suddenly a crossbow blot shatters the remainder of the potion, his body wracked with arcane energies Vorel screams in agony and collapses on the floor as his corpse rapidly turns into a rotten man shaped pile of mold. Kumak regains his senses to find he is standing over that same man shaped mold patch, consuming portions of it. The realization is cut short by the wracking pain as whatever illness takes hold. Susan collects some notes, paintings and most disturbing what appears to be bits of her hair and scraps of her clothing. On their way out of Aldern's abode Kumak spies a set of well made wind chimes off in a corner. Pocketing them, the Redeemers move back up to the house proper.
The sun not yet risen Kumak doesn't spy any of the dangerous ravens outside. Mounting up on his horse, which had weathered the night inside rather well all things considered, Kumak offers to take another on the horse. Susan speaks up and with Thaddeus riding on Kronks shoulders the group leave behind the nightmare of Foxglove manor.
Choosing between a 6 hour walking speed to Sandpoint or an hours walk to the Asylum the group chooses Sandpoint and in the wee hours before sunrise they spy a campfire and wagons. Thaddeus wishes to approach and as they near an armed guard demands to know their intentions. Some discussion is had and the guard commands that they join him. Taking the reins of Kumak's horse he leads them to the campfire where they find a caged wagon holding several prisoners and 5 other armed fighters. Based off the specialized armor 3 of them are wearing, Susan and Thaddeus identify them as Hellknights. The Captain begins asking pointed questions which the group answers, while lacking manners the Hellknights had not made any untoward moves on their persons. Suddenly two arrows fly out from the darkness. The 2 lightest armored Hellknights rush off to deal with the threat while the group is warned not to make any moves. Complying for several seconds while a scuffle can be heard a few feet into the darkened woods the one Hellknight holding the reigns starts shoving his blade into Kumak's face and making increasingly aggressive demands until the Bloodrager dismounts and swings the flat of his blade against the Hellknights head. Kumak faces against the Hellknight Captain and 2 Sergeants while the fight in the woods continues. Suddenly one of the "prisoners" stands up, his bonds falling off him like rain water, takes one step and in a flash appears outside the cage. The fight is on the verge of going sour with the Captain in the mix but the golly rotund prisoner chuckles and with a touch sends the Captain to see his beloved Asmodeus via a Plane Shift.
Regrouping, the golly Cleric of Cayden Cailean introduces himself as Father Lum. The arrow had come from one of his misguided agents seeking to rescue him, a halfling named Tim. Working the cage locks Thaddeus and Susan manage to free the remaining prisoners. Father Lum offers to take the group wherever they are heading and with that the group returns to Sandpoint slightly ahead of schedule. Over a conjured feast at the Rusty Dragon Father Lum inquires about the group and offers them a contract of 1,000 gold to accompany Tim to Magnimar to "remove" some more Hellknights. Kumak worries that the authorities might take offence if they were to go around and "remove" problems like that, Father Lum attempts to assure him that there would be no repercussions should they agree. The group elects to sleep on the offer and after several hours Kumak attempts to sell some of their wares around town but Sandpoint seems to be money poor.
Susan reading through one of the notes found in Alderns lair finds that he had a townhouse in Magnimar and whatever nefarious organisation he belonged to might be found there. Their destinations seemingly aligned for the moment Thaddeus proposes they agree to the terms.
Notes:
Not a great session I found.
First introducing the new characters, having the Oracle just stumble into us at the bottom of a haunted mansion we had literally just finished clearing out then we all just have to kind of shrug and say "team up?" felt way off to me.
Then as we were riding back to Sandpoint the Ranger stealthed and watched us pass, then followed us until the Hellknights encountered us. Then decided to silently fire an arrow at them and provide no context to clue us in about whose side we should be on. After 2 rounds of not doing anything since as far as we could tell he was a bandit I picked up on the GM's clues to engage. The Ranger cheered that he had caused us to enter the fight but in all honesty I had to metagame pretty hard to keep him from losing his character again.
The Hellknight encounter itself was weird. The Capt was something like a level 8-9 Inquisitor I think. With Father Lum ending up around level 13 based off some abilities. Combat was a drag for the most part, new characters meant that people needed more time to figure out their moves. Much of the session was wasted.
The push to team up and go to Magnimar was jarring. As I see it we would be getting 1,000 gold total to go to one of the most populous cities, commit mass murder against a well funded very dangerous organization and somehow also not attract the ire of the local constabulary.
Based off what I know here, there being a group in Magnimar that was allied with Foxglove, possibly pulling his strings. I think a better move would have been to team up the Oracle and Ranger, stick them in Sandpoint, fast track our travel back from the mansion, then have them arrived last night having lost an ally or two to "The Brothers" (I don't actually know their name only the Wizard read the note, she just summarized it's contents for us). So they are out for payback but need more muscle, we have the local rep as heavy hitters plus wanting to tidy up the loose end of Foxglove makes for a neater package than an Oracle who just wanders in and decides to hang out and a Ranger who is trying to kill some people who mean nothing to us. Coupled with a monstrously high level cleric severely underpaying for mass murder.
Not being able to sell anything is also getting annoying. I acknowledge that the 10.5k gold dagger might not be able to be sold in Sandpoint but I should be able to sell some mundane but masterwork weapons and armor. Instead I got, "the blacksmith only has 400 gold to buy anything". A small town should have a purchase limit of 5,000 gold that a shop can spend on just a single item.
Tuesday 28 August 2018
Sunday 19 August 2018
The cost of victory - Rise of the Runelords campaign session 15
In attendance were;
Kumak Morudall: Half-Orc Bloodrager
Tiberius Lionheart: Human Paladin of Sarenrae
Susan: Human Universalist Wizard
Thaddeus Whisperheart: Gnome Trickster
Cradling Susan protectively Kumak brings her to the library and lays her on a couch to recover. Thaddeus reappears and warns Kumak that she will need to be restrained until the Suggestion wears off. Tiberius remembering his previous experience in the library refuses to enter but elects to stand guard outside. With nothing left to do Kumak and Thaddeus build a pillow fort and rest for the next 5 hours. Dozing fitfully, Susan, Thaddeus and Kumak experience disturbing dreams. Susan that she is being chased by a malevolent being through the house unable to escape, while Kumak and Thaddeus feel themselves being crushed by an ever shrinking house. Thaddeus and Susan wake feeling troubled but nothing more, Kumak however takes the experience to heart, far too reminiscent of the thorn patch outside Thistletop the dreams weigh on his mind.
Using their wands to bring the group to fighting health the Redeemers return to explore the 3rd floor. The first rooms seem to be storage for linens and such. Thaddeus and Tiberius push ahead and find a sort of study at the end of the hallway, across from which soft sobbing can be heard. Kumak enters the 3rd floor windowed overlook and is filled with the unmistakable sense that he is on fire and the only salvation lays in leaping into the surf below. The half-orc manages to push the sensation aside before his body can react though and continues his search. Tiberius and Thaddeus open the door to the sobbing and see a bunched up blood stained sheet shaking ever so slightly along with the sobs. Getting closer Thaddeus spies an eye peeking out from underneath, not looking towards him but towards the full length mirror before it. Creeping along and careful not to move into its eyeline Thaddeus pulls the sheet back and sees that the woman underneath is clearly undead, drawing upon his bardic knowledge he feel certain that whomever she was in life she has become a Revenant in death, any violence she intends would only be towards herself or her murderer. Tiberius recognizes her from some of the visions he has been having in the mansion and upon seeing her undead nature wastes no time and just as Thaddeus shoves the mirror over the Paladin swings his sword into her flesh. Thaddeus moves away from the combat while the Revenant lets out an unearthly scream, sinks her nails into Tiberius's shoulder and with uncanny strength lifts the paladin off his feet and begins clawing into him. Kumak and Susan both chilled by the sound cower momentarily in another room while Tiberius finds himself in a losing battle. Kumak soon regains his limited wits and moves to join the fray, the undead woman soon put to rest.
With nothing further to be gleaned upstairs the group moves to the basement where Tiberius spends several minutes battering down a sturdy door while Kumak and Thaddeus search the remainder of the floor. Lending their shoulders Kumak and Thaddeus pop the door off its hinges and the Redeemers find themselves in a sort of workshop with more stairs leading down. Passing by the stained glass on this level Susan suddenly realizes what has been troubling her about the windows on each level. They are depicting a transformation into a lich. Thumbing through a few books that are so rotted that they crumble as she reads them Susan learns quite a few tips should she ever wish to make a similar transition.
The stairs down lead into a cavern branching off in 3 directions, Kumak takes the lead down one path, followed by Thaddeus. Then Tiberius charges down another with a reluctant Susan in tow. Kumak finds himself in a large cavern with a high ceiling. Looking around he finds a corpse in one corner and as he moves towards it notices something detach from the ceiling and come gliding down towards him and Thaddeus screaming. Thaddeus is overwhelmed and collapses, his body fighting against the paralysis but Kumak having gone into a rage shrugs it off. The battle is fierce, but with Kumak standing overtop the gnome the bat creature can not find easy fare. It lunges at Kumak and dropping his ranseur Kumak finishes it off with his bastard sword. Pulling Thaddeus up the 2 search the body and find an adamantine blade as well as some loose coins and particular ring. Thaddeus recognizes the ring and now knowing what he is looking for identifies the corpse as belonging to Red Shiv, supposedly called so for his blood stained blades but Thaddeus recalls that the name stuck after he was kicked in the bits by a woman and pissed blood for a week. During this time Tiberius and Susan had moved further into the caverns only to walk into a small nest of ghouls. Tiberius backs up to a choke point so all 4 cant surround him but then sees 3 more arrive and move past them down a side passage and appear at the 3rd, unexplored passage. Susan moves back to back with Tiberius and sends her owl down the passage Kumak and Thaddeus went to get help. Tiberius swings his sword taking chunks of flesh off the ghouls while his celestial dog rips pieces off. Susan is soon paralyzed by the ghouls behind who move in to finish her but Tiberius dog backs up to protect her as Kumak and Thaddeus arrives. The battle soon won, Susan and Tiberius heal themselves while Kumak and Thaddeus inspect the 3rd passageway to ensure there are no more surprises in store. Finding a small alcove in the rock and nothing else the 2 are about to leave when Kumak notices that one of the mining picks seems to have weathered the time surprisingly well. Prying the pick free from the patch of mold that has overgrown the area Kumak stirs up a cloud of yellow mold. Kumak has a brief coughing fit and is soon weakened but still in fighting form. Thaddeus however inhaled far too much for his smaller lungs and coughs for almost a full minute, phlegm, bile and some blood coming out the gnomes complexion having gone dangerously pale and gaunt, Thaddeus finds himself light headed and in need to real medical assistance.
Tiberius declares he will take the lead and marches forward but fails to see how slick the winding ramp ahead is and tumbles down crashing into walls as he slides ever further down the 60 foot drop to splash into a pool of water that 4 goblins were playing in. Only on closer look they are not just goblins, they are ghasts. Kumak from his vantage point above cant make the jump to aid Tiberius so he draws his bow and fires an arrow into one. Susan lets loose a single magic missile from her wand but it is all for naught. The 4 ghasts tear and rake at the paladin who under the onslaught finds that even the protection of Sarenrae can not hold up forever as his body seizes. One ghast tears an arm off while another rips his throat open. Between Kumak and Susan 3 of the 4 ghasts are finished, the final one leaping below the water as Tiberius corpse slides below as well. Without a moments pause a door suddenly opens halfway down the shaft and out steps what once was Aldern Foxglove. Now the man has succumbed to ghoul fever and has eyes only for Susan. Kumak retrieves his ranseur and gives Foxglove 2 hefty stabs but the man barely registers them as he makes his way unerringly to his prize only to collapse at her feet and beg her help. Kumak arches one eyebrow and hesitates for a moment before running Foxglove through again. Susan backs away and calling on arcane flames, tries to ignite the undead Foxglove but to no avail. Aldern seemingly retreats back into his undead nature and lunges at Susan cutting a deep gash along her arm. Kumak lets loose a roar and stabs Foxglove again, though the undead form is in tatters from the onslaught Foxglove is still standing, his eyes firmly fixed on Susan. As he is about to leap on Susan and finish her off she focuses her arcane fire and Aldern's body erupts in flames. Screaming her pulls himself free of Kumak's ranseur and plummets towards the pool in an effort to put out the flames. His broken and burning corpse shudders and falls still a few feet from the pools edge and the cavern falls quiet save for the crackling of burning flesh below.
Thoughts:
Was a bit of a rough session. The parties penchant for splitting up wasn't hurting us while exploring the house but really hurt us when we went below.
Apparently if Tiberius had waited one round before attacking the Revenant of Foxgloves wife she would have ran downstairs and fought him for us, which would have really helped with all the ghouls.
Unfortunately Tiberius was too far away to make the jump even ignoring the 60 feet of fall damage. The second round with Heroism from the bard would have needed a Nat 20 but by then it was too late. I realized later that there was a chance if instead of trying to make the jump in one move I could have tried to jump half way down, make the acrobatics to stay upright, then move again to jump the rest of the way down. But then I would have eaten the 10 or so attacks, prob 8 hitting and even with a now +12 to fort there would have been a good chance for 2 paralyzed characters, then a now 10 hp max (due to yellow mold) bard and a Wizard to fight against 4 ghouls plus Foxglove who took close to 100 damage before dying.
Doing the math there was a good chance we could have sold the loot from the house to bring Tiberius back since the healing fund didn't have enough in it he would have had to repay the rest of the party their share eventually. The player elected to instead let Tiberius die and is doing up a Ranger with another dog animal companion. There is also another player from his 5e game coming to try out. So we will be adding a Halfling Ranger and Human Oracle next session.
Kumak Morudall: Half-Orc Bloodrager
Tiberius Lionheart: Human Paladin of Sarenrae
Susan: Human Universalist Wizard
Thaddeus Whisperheart: Gnome Trickster
Cradling Susan protectively Kumak brings her to the library and lays her on a couch to recover. Thaddeus reappears and warns Kumak that she will need to be restrained until the Suggestion wears off. Tiberius remembering his previous experience in the library refuses to enter but elects to stand guard outside. With nothing left to do Kumak and Thaddeus build a pillow fort and rest for the next 5 hours. Dozing fitfully, Susan, Thaddeus and Kumak experience disturbing dreams. Susan that she is being chased by a malevolent being through the house unable to escape, while Kumak and Thaddeus feel themselves being crushed by an ever shrinking house. Thaddeus and Susan wake feeling troubled but nothing more, Kumak however takes the experience to heart, far too reminiscent of the thorn patch outside Thistletop the dreams weigh on his mind.
Using their wands to bring the group to fighting health the Redeemers return to explore the 3rd floor. The first rooms seem to be storage for linens and such. Thaddeus and Tiberius push ahead and find a sort of study at the end of the hallway, across from which soft sobbing can be heard. Kumak enters the 3rd floor windowed overlook and is filled with the unmistakable sense that he is on fire and the only salvation lays in leaping into the surf below. The half-orc manages to push the sensation aside before his body can react though and continues his search. Tiberius and Thaddeus open the door to the sobbing and see a bunched up blood stained sheet shaking ever so slightly along with the sobs. Getting closer Thaddeus spies an eye peeking out from underneath, not looking towards him but towards the full length mirror before it. Creeping along and careful not to move into its eyeline Thaddeus pulls the sheet back and sees that the woman underneath is clearly undead, drawing upon his bardic knowledge he feel certain that whomever she was in life she has become a Revenant in death, any violence she intends would only be towards herself or her murderer. Tiberius recognizes her from some of the visions he has been having in the mansion and upon seeing her undead nature wastes no time and just as Thaddeus shoves the mirror over the Paladin swings his sword into her flesh. Thaddeus moves away from the combat while the Revenant lets out an unearthly scream, sinks her nails into Tiberius's shoulder and with uncanny strength lifts the paladin off his feet and begins clawing into him. Kumak and Susan both chilled by the sound cower momentarily in another room while Tiberius finds himself in a losing battle. Kumak soon regains his limited wits and moves to join the fray, the undead woman soon put to rest.
With nothing further to be gleaned upstairs the group moves to the basement where Tiberius spends several minutes battering down a sturdy door while Kumak and Thaddeus search the remainder of the floor. Lending their shoulders Kumak and Thaddeus pop the door off its hinges and the Redeemers find themselves in a sort of workshop with more stairs leading down. Passing by the stained glass on this level Susan suddenly realizes what has been troubling her about the windows on each level. They are depicting a transformation into a lich. Thumbing through a few books that are so rotted that they crumble as she reads them Susan learns quite a few tips should she ever wish to make a similar transition.
The stairs down lead into a cavern branching off in 3 directions, Kumak takes the lead down one path, followed by Thaddeus. Then Tiberius charges down another with a reluctant Susan in tow. Kumak finds himself in a large cavern with a high ceiling. Looking around he finds a corpse in one corner and as he moves towards it notices something detach from the ceiling and come gliding down towards him and Thaddeus screaming. Thaddeus is overwhelmed and collapses, his body fighting against the paralysis but Kumak having gone into a rage shrugs it off. The battle is fierce, but with Kumak standing overtop the gnome the bat creature can not find easy fare. It lunges at Kumak and dropping his ranseur Kumak finishes it off with his bastard sword. Pulling Thaddeus up the 2 search the body and find an adamantine blade as well as some loose coins and particular ring. Thaddeus recognizes the ring and now knowing what he is looking for identifies the corpse as belonging to Red Shiv, supposedly called so for his blood stained blades but Thaddeus recalls that the name stuck after he was kicked in the bits by a woman and pissed blood for a week. During this time Tiberius and Susan had moved further into the caverns only to walk into a small nest of ghouls. Tiberius backs up to a choke point so all 4 cant surround him but then sees 3 more arrive and move past them down a side passage and appear at the 3rd, unexplored passage. Susan moves back to back with Tiberius and sends her owl down the passage Kumak and Thaddeus went to get help. Tiberius swings his sword taking chunks of flesh off the ghouls while his celestial dog rips pieces off. Susan is soon paralyzed by the ghouls behind who move in to finish her but Tiberius dog backs up to protect her as Kumak and Thaddeus arrives. The battle soon won, Susan and Tiberius heal themselves while Kumak and Thaddeus inspect the 3rd passageway to ensure there are no more surprises in store. Finding a small alcove in the rock and nothing else the 2 are about to leave when Kumak notices that one of the mining picks seems to have weathered the time surprisingly well. Prying the pick free from the patch of mold that has overgrown the area Kumak stirs up a cloud of yellow mold. Kumak has a brief coughing fit and is soon weakened but still in fighting form. Thaddeus however inhaled far too much for his smaller lungs and coughs for almost a full minute, phlegm, bile and some blood coming out the gnomes complexion having gone dangerously pale and gaunt, Thaddeus finds himself light headed and in need to real medical assistance.
Tiberius declares he will take the lead and marches forward but fails to see how slick the winding ramp ahead is and tumbles down crashing into walls as he slides ever further down the 60 foot drop to splash into a pool of water that 4 goblins were playing in. Only on closer look they are not just goblins, they are ghasts. Kumak from his vantage point above cant make the jump to aid Tiberius so he draws his bow and fires an arrow into one. Susan lets loose a single magic missile from her wand but it is all for naught. The 4 ghasts tear and rake at the paladin who under the onslaught finds that even the protection of Sarenrae can not hold up forever as his body seizes. One ghast tears an arm off while another rips his throat open. Between Kumak and Susan 3 of the 4 ghasts are finished, the final one leaping below the water as Tiberius corpse slides below as well. Without a moments pause a door suddenly opens halfway down the shaft and out steps what once was Aldern Foxglove. Now the man has succumbed to ghoul fever and has eyes only for Susan. Kumak retrieves his ranseur and gives Foxglove 2 hefty stabs but the man barely registers them as he makes his way unerringly to his prize only to collapse at her feet and beg her help. Kumak arches one eyebrow and hesitates for a moment before running Foxglove through again. Susan backs away and calling on arcane flames, tries to ignite the undead Foxglove but to no avail. Aldern seemingly retreats back into his undead nature and lunges at Susan cutting a deep gash along her arm. Kumak lets loose a roar and stabs Foxglove again, though the undead form is in tatters from the onslaught Foxglove is still standing, his eyes firmly fixed on Susan. As he is about to leap on Susan and finish her off she focuses her arcane fire and Aldern's body erupts in flames. Screaming her pulls himself free of Kumak's ranseur and plummets towards the pool in an effort to put out the flames. His broken and burning corpse shudders and falls still a few feet from the pools edge and the cavern falls quiet save for the crackling of burning flesh below.
Thoughts:
Was a bit of a rough session. The parties penchant for splitting up wasn't hurting us while exploring the house but really hurt us when we went below.
Apparently if Tiberius had waited one round before attacking the Revenant of Foxgloves wife she would have ran downstairs and fought him for us, which would have really helped with all the ghouls.
Unfortunately Tiberius was too far away to make the jump even ignoring the 60 feet of fall damage. The second round with Heroism from the bard would have needed a Nat 20 but by then it was too late. I realized later that there was a chance if instead of trying to make the jump in one move I could have tried to jump half way down, make the acrobatics to stay upright, then move again to jump the rest of the way down. But then I would have eaten the 10 or so attacks, prob 8 hitting and even with a now +12 to fort there would have been a good chance for 2 paralyzed characters, then a now 10 hp max (due to yellow mold) bard and a Wizard to fight against 4 ghouls plus Foxglove who took close to 100 damage before dying.
Doing the math there was a good chance we could have sold the loot from the house to bring Tiberius back since the healing fund didn't have enough in it he would have had to repay the rest of the party their share eventually. The player elected to instead let Tiberius die and is doing up a Ranger with another dog animal companion. There is also another player from his 5e game coming to try out. So we will be adding a Halfling Ranger and Human Oracle next session.
Friday 10 August 2018
An unwelcome suitor - Rise of the Runelords Campaign Session 12-14
In attendance for these sessions were
Kumak Morudall: Half-Orc Bloodrager
Tiberius Lionheart: Human Paladin of Sarenrae
Susan: Human Universalist Wizard
Thaddeus Whisperheart: Gnome Trickster
7 days pass with little excitement. Susan busies herself with scribing and crafting. Tiberius asks Kumak to help him hunt goblins in the area to ensure the threat is over. Thaddeus talks around town, getting the lay of the land and making a few contacts. The morning of the 8th day Sheriff Hemlock arrives at the Rusty Dragon and asks that the group join him to take a look at a murder.
Taking the Redeemers to the nearby sawmill the group walks in to a grisly scene. Blood is everywhere, a young woman, Katrine Vinder, has been fed through the saw mill and a man, Banny Harker, has been partly carved up and hung up on a hook. The group finds foot prints and a rancid meat smell throughout the building. Some sharp eyes finds a solid foot print in the mud across the river, Susan recommends Hemlock find a Ranger that could use some magic to determine the suspect, while Thaddeus and Kumak volunteer to interrogate the 2 persons of interest, the girls father Ven Vinder, the same father to the young woman who had tired to seduce Kumak so many days ago, and the coworker of the dead man.
Thaddeus and Kumak start with Ibor Thorn, the coworker who claims to have discovered them. Thaddeus presses him while Kumak leans on him, the man is in distress, covered in blood and while he does finally relent that Harker had probably been stealing from the Scarnettis. Thaddeus advises Thorn to keep that last bit to himself and the two move to interrogate Ven. The man is built like a brick house and is looking for a problem to hit. Thaddeus begins to tear him down and as Ven comes to terms to what has happened to his daughter his powerful shoulders slump as his eyes take on a glazed look. Concluding that Ven probably wasn't responsible for the deaths Thaddeus tries to lessen the blow somewhat which draws an offer from Ven. Give him a few hours alone with whoever did this to his girl and he will pay thousands.
Tiberius and Susan confer with the Villister and father Zantus and determine that the stench of rotten meat was probably from a ghoul. Sheriff Hemlock tells them that the murder is reminiscent of another bloody scene they found a few days ago. There was one survivor who was babbling incoherently that was taken to a nearby asylum. Worried about potential ghoul fever Tiberus and Susan collect the Thaddeus and Kumak, mounting their horses the 4 ride for the asylum arriving near dusk. Tiberius begins banging the door with his fist demanding to be let in in the name of Sarenrae, that his station as a Paladin commands authority to enter. A mousy man named Habe hesitantly opens the door a crack and after a quick introduction and explanation he allows the Redeemers into the reception area but refuses to allow anyone into the asylum proper to visit the madman, Grast. The group counter that Grast be brought to them to determine if the man is indeed sick with the affliction and after a few minutes of waiting a clearly ill, both mentally and physically man is brought forth. He mumbles to himself until his eyes fall on Susan, then he stops all shaking and speech.
Giving a short speech about how she has been selected by his master Grast begins thrashing against his bonds and lunges at Susan. Kumak brings the butt end of his Ranseur up and jabs the man in the head knocking him unconscious. A cursory check confirms that Grast is suffering from ghoul fever and has only a short time left before he will succumb. Claiming the unconscious man against the protests of Habe the Redeemers take off for Sandpoint to find healing for Grast but with full dark out the trip is slower than before and soon Grast comes to consciousness and begins giggling from the back of Tiberius's horse. When asked whats so funny he replies.
"The pack, the pack, the pack is here. Here to take you away" and looks right at Susan, "Take you to him"
The group has a moment to take that in when 6 ghouls appear from the darkness and attack. None of the Redeemers are skilled in mounted combat, some dismount of their own volition, others forcibly so by their startled horses. Kumak accounts for one ghoul with each stab of his ranseur and thankfully the ghouls are made short work of. However the group finds themselves without their horses. Picking up Grast they try to reach Sandpoint while the man still has time but luck again fails them and they witness him expire shortly afterwards. Finding themselves about an hours walk from the asylum or about 6 hours hike to Sandpoint the group ensure Grast stays dead and return to Habes.
Habe is disappointed to see them again, more so without Grast and almost refuses to give them shelter for the night claiming the well being of his patients before finally relenting and offering to let them bunk in the reception area. With some pressure he "upgrades" his offer to just inside the building proper, they can sleep in the common room and are allowed to use a privy in another room but that is the extent of their leash. They find as cozy quarters as they can in the situation save Tiberius who stays up and patrols the area and immediate perimeter of the building. It is after one of his perimeter walks that he returns to find a door ajar in the common room leading downstairs. Waking Kumak and asking him to join the 2 descend to what appears to be an operating room with a black robed figure examining a body. Kumak asks what the man is doing, and suddenly both Kumak and Tiberius find themselves standing inside a foul smelling cloud. Flying into a rage Kumak moves to get in range but the man now has multiple copies of himself and even when a strike lands true it seems to hit nothing. The man fires spell after spell into Kumak but the half Orcs constitution is too great and he just shrugs them off. Tiberius finds himself tied up with several zombies. Kumak finally connects one hit against the robed figure who flees up the stairs. Susan, having been woken up by her owl Suzanne, has just finished waking Thaddeus. The two see the edge of a foul smelling cloud at the top of the stairs and a robed figure stumble out of it retching, between mouthfuls of vomit he claims that their friends are below and need their assistance. Thaddeus looks to Susan, then the man, the gnome doesn't quite know what it wrong but the story smells as bad as the cloud. Tapping into his magic Thaddeus suggests that the man go down below and help the two then. As the spell finishes Thaddeus feels the suggestion take hold, and with a mournful look he returns below where Kumak and Tiberius have finished off the undead save one, who the man commands to return to the closet. Kumak and Tiberius move to intercept the man but he is still near impossible to grasp and he pulls a potion and downs it, transforming into a cloud himself. Kumak braves the stinking cloud once more to close the door and tell the others to wedge some clothes under the cracks to prevent his escape then returns down. The cloud moves very slowly towards the far door in the basement and Tiberius lands a few blows causing drops of water to fall until the entire cloud suddenly turns to drops of liquid and falls to the floor. Habe and his two muscle men appear hearing the commotion, take one look towards the open door to the basement and make a run for it. Susan attempts to bar their exit with a magical web but they deftly dodge it and she only succeeds in trapping herself and Thaddeus. The robed mans body soon reforms from the liquid and a search of the building provides a spell book, some small money, 2 wands and a potion. There are 3 patients on the 3rd floor and in the morning Kumak ensures he leaves ample food and water in reach for the men and the group returns to Sandpoint.
Kumak enlists the sheriff and some deputies to return to the asylum and recover the patients. Susan spends time crafting for Thaddeus, while Thaddeus and Tiberius pursue their own agendas for the day. The following day Kumak provides security to Susan, who has been receiving unpleasant gifts like dead animals nailed to her bed frame while she is out. Once she finishes her crafting for Thaddeus, Kumak leaves her in the care of the rest of the Redeemers and catches some sleep, hoping to catch her erstwhile lover in the act during the night. Darkness falls and finds Kumak hidden outside Susans window at the Rusty Dragon. He catches a whiff of rotten meat before a scream rings out somewhere in town. A rustle above confirms what he suspects, ghouls. Flying into a rage Kumak engages 3 ghouls in the alleyway dispatching them all in quick succession however two manage to climb the wall and force their way into Susan's room. One is swiftly blasted back through the window landing in a heap with its neck at an impossible angle. The other is soon sent to its final rest but not before it gets a solid bite out of Susan's shoulder. The redeemers regroup and split off to secure the town. Tiberius and his new dog companion following tracks while Kumak, Susan and Thaddeus move towards the screams. Over the course of the next few hours they account for all the ghouls and find another disturbing note, this one carved into the flesh of one of the ghouls. All signs point towards Aldern Foxglove, the noble they had saved during the Swallowtail Festival, as being the one behind the ghouls and leaving these disturbing gifts for Susan.
Talking to the Mayor Thaddeus determines that there is Foxglove manor to the south where Aldern may have fled to, as well as an old caretaker that could provide clues at a nearby farm to the south. The Redeemers decide to investigate the farm on their way to the manor. Several hours on horseback bring the group to a branching path through a high corn field. Using Susan's owl to get a sense of the maze of trails the group moves through the maze of paths until they reach a cluster of scarecrows who start flailing against their bonds and launch themselves at the party revealing themselves as ghouls. Tiberius, his dog, and Kumak make short work of their attackers and prepared against such ambush tactics the group is able to dispatch several more ghouls before finding a still living girl infected with ghoul fever also strung up. She is far too weak to move and at deaths door but manages to weakly ask about her brother and father. Kumak is conflicted between rushing the girl to Sandpoint for aid and searching for any more survivors but deciding that the hour or so he will spend scouring the area could very well save more lives deems the risk to her life worth the risk. Finding the farmhouse and out building finally Kumak walks through the front door, and into 8 or so ghouls. Quickly surrounded Kumak begins slowly backing through the door, stabbing at the ghouls as he does so. The ones that cant quite reach the half orc smash through the windows where Tiberius and his dog meet them with teeth and blade. Finding what must be the half eaten remains of the father, as well as the manors old custodian the group searches the rest of the corn fields and luck is with them for now, the girls brother still lives, though also infected and in worse shape than she is. Riding as fast as they dare back to Sandpoint, during the nights ride the boy holds steady but the girls already shallow breathing takes on a dangerous raspy note to it. Riding hard into town Kumak dismounts at the temple and wakes Villister and father Zantus, explaining the situation to the clerics they explain they are tapped out but will be able to replenish their spells come dawn, and knowing the danger can prepare accordingly. Each casting a lesser restoration on the children then attempting to remove the disease leaves the children looking healthier but still infected for now. Villister assures them that he will devote a lesser restoration to each of them and will attempt to cure one of their diseases each day while providing care, which should given enough time be sufficient to save the kids. The Redeemers return to the inn to rest up and then depart for Foxglove Manor.
Foxglove manor sits surrounded by ocean cliffs on three sides, its massive size made all the more depressing by the state of the manor. A crumbling ruin sits 50 feet or so from the entrance. Tiberius and Susan with Thaddeus doubled up, move their horses to the ruin to tie their mounts while Kumak rides straight to the front door. A handful of crows dart away from the ruins and fly east. The 3 join Kumak at the door which he had just finished unlocking with a key from the old caretakers, and forcing open. The wood bulges and sags. The manor has a persistent creak, the smell of rot and mildew permeates the building. Kumak notices the scent of burnt hair but no one else makes any mention of it. Moving past the stuffed manticore statue the group fans out. It soon becomes apparent that Foxglove manor is haunted and each Redeemer begins to encounter things that the others don't see but still feels real enough to harm them. Clearing the first floor and second the Redeemers are preparing to move up to the 3rd floor where they have been hearing soft sobs from when an unfortunate haunt takes hold of Thaddeus's mind and convinces him that Susan must die. Since Thaddeus isn't much of a combatant he uses his magic wiles to convince Susan she must leap off the cliff to save herself. Tiberius is unable to reach her in time but Kumak manages to catch up and knock her unconscious just before she walks off the edge. However looking up Kumak sees what was previously a handful of crows is now hundreds upon thousands of them, all staring silently at them before swooping down and attacking them.
Thaddeus having regained his wits leaps out after Kumak, who has Susan's unconscious form in his arms and is battering at a side door to get her inside before the birds can finish her off. Thaddeus holds his torch above his head waving it and succeeds in drawing some of the crows attention but finds he is becoming nauseated by them. Kumak bursts through the door and running into a back room pours a healing potion down Susan's throat, she is in bad shape, but will live. Thaddeus manages to re-enter the manor and the birds disperse, their task of keeping the group in the house completed they show no interest in pursing the Redeemers into the manor.
Thoughts: Some small bickering from the Paladin towards the Bard, the player seemed to want to attack the bard for the perceived attempted murder, ignoring the fact that his own character had already acted against his will earlier in the house. I felt that it was well within reasonable assumptions to think that an ally, who up until that moment had never made any move against the party might have been under duress or mental control from an outside force before drawing their sword. But we will see. I rather enjoyed how the story of the house is playing out. As each character experiences a haunt a new piece of the history falls into place. I kind of wish the GM had the text preprinted on cards and when a character experienced something they read the card, rolled whatever check was required and acted accordingly all without the rest of the group knowing what happened but maybe that wouldn't work as well as I think it would.
Kumak Morudall: Half-Orc Bloodrager
Tiberius Lionheart: Human Paladin of Sarenrae
Susan: Human Universalist Wizard
Thaddeus Whisperheart: Gnome Trickster
7 days pass with little excitement. Susan busies herself with scribing and crafting. Tiberius asks Kumak to help him hunt goblins in the area to ensure the threat is over. Thaddeus talks around town, getting the lay of the land and making a few contacts. The morning of the 8th day Sheriff Hemlock arrives at the Rusty Dragon and asks that the group join him to take a look at a murder.
Taking the Redeemers to the nearby sawmill the group walks in to a grisly scene. Blood is everywhere, a young woman, Katrine Vinder, has been fed through the saw mill and a man, Banny Harker, has been partly carved up and hung up on a hook. The group finds foot prints and a rancid meat smell throughout the building. Some sharp eyes finds a solid foot print in the mud across the river, Susan recommends Hemlock find a Ranger that could use some magic to determine the suspect, while Thaddeus and Kumak volunteer to interrogate the 2 persons of interest, the girls father Ven Vinder, the same father to the young woman who had tired to seduce Kumak so many days ago, and the coworker of the dead man.
Thaddeus and Kumak start with Ibor Thorn, the coworker who claims to have discovered them. Thaddeus presses him while Kumak leans on him, the man is in distress, covered in blood and while he does finally relent that Harker had probably been stealing from the Scarnettis. Thaddeus advises Thorn to keep that last bit to himself and the two move to interrogate Ven. The man is built like a brick house and is looking for a problem to hit. Thaddeus begins to tear him down and as Ven comes to terms to what has happened to his daughter his powerful shoulders slump as his eyes take on a glazed look. Concluding that Ven probably wasn't responsible for the deaths Thaddeus tries to lessen the blow somewhat which draws an offer from Ven. Give him a few hours alone with whoever did this to his girl and he will pay thousands.
Tiberius and Susan confer with the Villister and father Zantus and determine that the stench of rotten meat was probably from a ghoul. Sheriff Hemlock tells them that the murder is reminiscent of another bloody scene they found a few days ago. There was one survivor who was babbling incoherently that was taken to a nearby asylum. Worried about potential ghoul fever Tiberus and Susan collect the Thaddeus and Kumak, mounting their horses the 4 ride for the asylum arriving near dusk. Tiberius begins banging the door with his fist demanding to be let in in the name of Sarenrae, that his station as a Paladin commands authority to enter. A mousy man named Habe hesitantly opens the door a crack and after a quick introduction and explanation he allows the Redeemers into the reception area but refuses to allow anyone into the asylum proper to visit the madman, Grast. The group counter that Grast be brought to them to determine if the man is indeed sick with the affliction and after a few minutes of waiting a clearly ill, both mentally and physically man is brought forth. He mumbles to himself until his eyes fall on Susan, then he stops all shaking and speech.
Giving a short speech about how she has been selected by his master Grast begins thrashing against his bonds and lunges at Susan. Kumak brings the butt end of his Ranseur up and jabs the man in the head knocking him unconscious. A cursory check confirms that Grast is suffering from ghoul fever and has only a short time left before he will succumb. Claiming the unconscious man against the protests of Habe the Redeemers take off for Sandpoint to find healing for Grast but with full dark out the trip is slower than before and soon Grast comes to consciousness and begins giggling from the back of Tiberius's horse. When asked whats so funny he replies.
"The pack, the pack, the pack is here. Here to take you away" and looks right at Susan, "Take you to him"
The group has a moment to take that in when 6 ghouls appear from the darkness and attack. None of the Redeemers are skilled in mounted combat, some dismount of their own volition, others forcibly so by their startled horses. Kumak accounts for one ghoul with each stab of his ranseur and thankfully the ghouls are made short work of. However the group finds themselves without their horses. Picking up Grast they try to reach Sandpoint while the man still has time but luck again fails them and they witness him expire shortly afterwards. Finding themselves about an hours walk from the asylum or about 6 hours hike to Sandpoint the group ensure Grast stays dead and return to Habes.
Habe is disappointed to see them again, more so without Grast and almost refuses to give them shelter for the night claiming the well being of his patients before finally relenting and offering to let them bunk in the reception area. With some pressure he "upgrades" his offer to just inside the building proper, they can sleep in the common room and are allowed to use a privy in another room but that is the extent of their leash. They find as cozy quarters as they can in the situation save Tiberius who stays up and patrols the area and immediate perimeter of the building. It is after one of his perimeter walks that he returns to find a door ajar in the common room leading downstairs. Waking Kumak and asking him to join the 2 descend to what appears to be an operating room with a black robed figure examining a body. Kumak asks what the man is doing, and suddenly both Kumak and Tiberius find themselves standing inside a foul smelling cloud. Flying into a rage Kumak moves to get in range but the man now has multiple copies of himself and even when a strike lands true it seems to hit nothing. The man fires spell after spell into Kumak but the half Orcs constitution is too great and he just shrugs them off. Tiberius finds himself tied up with several zombies. Kumak finally connects one hit against the robed figure who flees up the stairs. Susan, having been woken up by her owl Suzanne, has just finished waking Thaddeus. The two see the edge of a foul smelling cloud at the top of the stairs and a robed figure stumble out of it retching, between mouthfuls of vomit he claims that their friends are below and need their assistance. Thaddeus looks to Susan, then the man, the gnome doesn't quite know what it wrong but the story smells as bad as the cloud. Tapping into his magic Thaddeus suggests that the man go down below and help the two then. As the spell finishes Thaddeus feels the suggestion take hold, and with a mournful look he returns below where Kumak and Tiberius have finished off the undead save one, who the man commands to return to the closet. Kumak and Tiberius move to intercept the man but he is still near impossible to grasp and he pulls a potion and downs it, transforming into a cloud himself. Kumak braves the stinking cloud once more to close the door and tell the others to wedge some clothes under the cracks to prevent his escape then returns down. The cloud moves very slowly towards the far door in the basement and Tiberius lands a few blows causing drops of water to fall until the entire cloud suddenly turns to drops of liquid and falls to the floor. Habe and his two muscle men appear hearing the commotion, take one look towards the open door to the basement and make a run for it. Susan attempts to bar their exit with a magical web but they deftly dodge it and she only succeeds in trapping herself and Thaddeus. The robed mans body soon reforms from the liquid and a search of the building provides a spell book, some small money, 2 wands and a potion. There are 3 patients on the 3rd floor and in the morning Kumak ensures he leaves ample food and water in reach for the men and the group returns to Sandpoint.
Kumak enlists the sheriff and some deputies to return to the asylum and recover the patients. Susan spends time crafting for Thaddeus, while Thaddeus and Tiberius pursue their own agendas for the day. The following day Kumak provides security to Susan, who has been receiving unpleasant gifts like dead animals nailed to her bed frame while she is out. Once she finishes her crafting for Thaddeus, Kumak leaves her in the care of the rest of the Redeemers and catches some sleep, hoping to catch her erstwhile lover in the act during the night. Darkness falls and finds Kumak hidden outside Susans window at the Rusty Dragon. He catches a whiff of rotten meat before a scream rings out somewhere in town. A rustle above confirms what he suspects, ghouls. Flying into a rage Kumak engages 3 ghouls in the alleyway dispatching them all in quick succession however two manage to climb the wall and force their way into Susan's room. One is swiftly blasted back through the window landing in a heap with its neck at an impossible angle. The other is soon sent to its final rest but not before it gets a solid bite out of Susan's shoulder. The redeemers regroup and split off to secure the town. Tiberius and his new dog companion following tracks while Kumak, Susan and Thaddeus move towards the screams. Over the course of the next few hours they account for all the ghouls and find another disturbing note, this one carved into the flesh of one of the ghouls. All signs point towards Aldern Foxglove, the noble they had saved during the Swallowtail Festival, as being the one behind the ghouls and leaving these disturbing gifts for Susan.
Talking to the Mayor Thaddeus determines that there is Foxglove manor to the south where Aldern may have fled to, as well as an old caretaker that could provide clues at a nearby farm to the south. The Redeemers decide to investigate the farm on their way to the manor. Several hours on horseback bring the group to a branching path through a high corn field. Using Susan's owl to get a sense of the maze of trails the group moves through the maze of paths until they reach a cluster of scarecrows who start flailing against their bonds and launch themselves at the party revealing themselves as ghouls. Tiberius, his dog, and Kumak make short work of their attackers and prepared against such ambush tactics the group is able to dispatch several more ghouls before finding a still living girl infected with ghoul fever also strung up. She is far too weak to move and at deaths door but manages to weakly ask about her brother and father. Kumak is conflicted between rushing the girl to Sandpoint for aid and searching for any more survivors but deciding that the hour or so he will spend scouring the area could very well save more lives deems the risk to her life worth the risk. Finding the farmhouse and out building finally Kumak walks through the front door, and into 8 or so ghouls. Quickly surrounded Kumak begins slowly backing through the door, stabbing at the ghouls as he does so. The ones that cant quite reach the half orc smash through the windows where Tiberius and his dog meet them with teeth and blade. Finding what must be the half eaten remains of the father, as well as the manors old custodian the group searches the rest of the corn fields and luck is with them for now, the girls brother still lives, though also infected and in worse shape than she is. Riding as fast as they dare back to Sandpoint, during the nights ride the boy holds steady but the girls already shallow breathing takes on a dangerous raspy note to it. Riding hard into town Kumak dismounts at the temple and wakes Villister and father Zantus, explaining the situation to the clerics they explain they are tapped out but will be able to replenish their spells come dawn, and knowing the danger can prepare accordingly. Each casting a lesser restoration on the children then attempting to remove the disease leaves the children looking healthier but still infected for now. Villister assures them that he will devote a lesser restoration to each of them and will attempt to cure one of their diseases each day while providing care, which should given enough time be sufficient to save the kids. The Redeemers return to the inn to rest up and then depart for Foxglove Manor.
Foxglove manor sits surrounded by ocean cliffs on three sides, its massive size made all the more depressing by the state of the manor. A crumbling ruin sits 50 feet or so from the entrance. Tiberius and Susan with Thaddeus doubled up, move their horses to the ruin to tie their mounts while Kumak rides straight to the front door. A handful of crows dart away from the ruins and fly east. The 3 join Kumak at the door which he had just finished unlocking with a key from the old caretakers, and forcing open. The wood bulges and sags. The manor has a persistent creak, the smell of rot and mildew permeates the building. Kumak notices the scent of burnt hair but no one else makes any mention of it. Moving past the stuffed manticore statue the group fans out. It soon becomes apparent that Foxglove manor is haunted and each Redeemer begins to encounter things that the others don't see but still feels real enough to harm them. Clearing the first floor and second the Redeemers are preparing to move up to the 3rd floor where they have been hearing soft sobs from when an unfortunate haunt takes hold of Thaddeus's mind and convinces him that Susan must die. Since Thaddeus isn't much of a combatant he uses his magic wiles to convince Susan she must leap off the cliff to save herself. Tiberius is unable to reach her in time but Kumak manages to catch up and knock her unconscious just before she walks off the edge. However looking up Kumak sees what was previously a handful of crows is now hundreds upon thousands of them, all staring silently at them before swooping down and attacking them.
Thaddeus having regained his wits leaps out after Kumak, who has Susan's unconscious form in his arms and is battering at a side door to get her inside before the birds can finish her off. Thaddeus holds his torch above his head waving it and succeeds in drawing some of the crows attention but finds he is becoming nauseated by them. Kumak bursts through the door and running into a back room pours a healing potion down Susan's throat, she is in bad shape, but will live. Thaddeus manages to re-enter the manor and the birds disperse, their task of keeping the group in the house completed they show no interest in pursing the Redeemers into the manor.
Thoughts: Some small bickering from the Paladin towards the Bard, the player seemed to want to attack the bard for the perceived attempted murder, ignoring the fact that his own character had already acted against his will earlier in the house. I felt that it was well within reasonable assumptions to think that an ally, who up until that moment had never made any move against the party might have been under duress or mental control from an outside force before drawing their sword. But we will see. I rather enjoyed how the story of the house is playing out. As each character experiences a haunt a new piece of the history falls into place. I kind of wish the GM had the text preprinted on cards and when a character experienced something they read the card, rolled whatever check was required and acted accordingly all without the rest of the group knowing what happened but maybe that wouldn't work as well as I think it would.
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