Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Epilogue (part two)

Ceolwic packs his bags, loads his few things on the back of his Horrid Bear companion. He looks up to the slender towers of Sharn one last time, then turns his gaze east. "Time to go back home, little friend". He jumps on the beast, touches his own breast where long ago a locket rested "We won't let go".

Rat enters the luxurious office, the clerk does not raise his gaze from his paper-work, just addresses him "I understand you're interested in buying some property in Fallen" he begins, "which one exactly?". Rat drops the big stacks of Letters of Credit on the desk, startling the clerk "All of them" he says. The clerk lifts his gaze, astonished. Rat grins.

The scaly figure looks at himself in the silver mirror, holding the greatest of powers in its green oily hands, the power to make your wishes come true. "Come back" he says. "Come back, be who you really are". The scales fall away, pale skin can be seen, a slender figure, agile fingers instead of claws. Where once was a humanoid lizard, now is a female changeling. She smiles "Welcome back, Ibiki"

Elwyn paces the empty deck of the Golden Dragon at night, gazes at stars. Captain, Hero, Savior... is there anything else out there he can conquer? A crackling voice, like living flames, warms his right ear. "We made a promise to you, Captain". Zephyr winds flow into his left ear "We will show you places you've never seen." The mighty elementals roar, the Captain takes his place at the helm. The Golden Dragon soars high, higher than ever before. Into the starry sky.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Epilogue (part one)

With the Godforged's threat removed, the Heroes return to the Cannith's lab in Metrol. The Lumi greet them, forging pacts of eternal friendship. They also deliver several prisoners, former Cyran soldiers and Cannith members. In Merrix study, they also retrieve several journals incriminating the Baron, and a huge stack of Letters of Credit belonging to House Cannith. Ibiki also finds a hidden chest, containing a ring of wishes.

Lady Elaydren and Elwyn decide to travel to Sharn with the Golden Dragon, passing by Vathirond to check on Sarge and his warforged army. The find them recovering from a recent battle against the forces of the Lord of Blades, who tried to force his way into Breland. Now that the Clockwork Fortress and its warforged garrison is stationed in Vathiron, Breland can feel much safer.

Rat, Ceolwic, and Ibiki, together with Dhu'sarra, teleport to Sharn to prepare Elwyn's arrival, and clear his name. They're relieved to see that Sharn has not fallen, but only suffered light damage due to the disjunctors. Their plan to activate the Orrery back in Metrol and infuse Sharn with a manifest zone of Syrania at the moment of Merrix's death has worked perfectly!

When Elwyn arrives, he and the Dogs of War are hailed as heroes, Saviors of Sharn, and are presented with a medal from the Mayor himself. The time has finally come to lay down their arms, and enjoy a well deserved rest. Or is it?

Sunday, February 16, 2014

Session 58 - 10,000 xp

Heroes: Ceolwic, Shazar'r, Rat, Elwyn

The Heroes dimension door on the back of the Godforged, but are immediately followed by Hanjin. Rat summons an astral construct who grabs the half-golem monk, and throws him off the Godforged.

As the colossal contruct flies at amazing speed away from Metrol, the Heroes manage to enter its head, but they find themselves in their own personal "dreamscape", where they must face their deepest desires, and let them go for the greater good.

After this ordeal, they are inside the Godforged's head, still in the Mournland and dangerously near to the Glowing Chasm. They battle against the pure mental energy of Merrix, and Xulo himself, managing to temporarily sever the connection between Merrix, the Godforged, and Xulo.

Thanks to his astonishing willpower, Ceolwic connects with the Godforged, and wrests control of its body from its twin masters. He then commands the construct to open an escape route for his friends to jump away, and propels the gargantuan best into the Glowing Chasm.

Outside, Elwyn spots the Golden Dragon, his Lyrandar skyship, flying near to the Chasm: his crew has not abandoned him, and it's here to rescue them!

The Heroes jump off the Godforged and on the Golden Dragon, just moments before the terrible beast enters the Glowing Chasm, disappearing in a disintegrating blast. Merrix, Xulo, and a thousand angry dragons shout together, their mind, body and souls destroyed forever.

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Session 57 - 5,000 xp

Heroes: Ceolwic, Shazar'r, Rat, Elwyn.

The Heroes explain Merrix's plan (to bring back Cyre by sacrificing countless souls) to the Lumi, and their leader, orrified, promises to assist them. He gives them each a magical potion infused with a sliver of Irian, an artifact of great healing powers.

The Heroes visit the cells level, where they find Elaydren and Dhu'sarra. The two women, both holding a grudge against Merrix, also lend their assistance. The Heroes plan to use the Planar Orrery they found in the complex to channel Syrania's power into Sharn, just when Merrix's disjunctors would make it fall. Since both Elaydren and Dhu'sarra have worked with the Orrery before, they know how to activate it after Shazar'r explains them how to modify its functioning.

After crossing a laboratory where the procedure to harvest souls takes place, the Heroes finally enter the main laboraory, a huge hall where a congregation of Cyrans is listening to Merrix giving a speech. The odds look agaist the Heroes, but an armed force of Lumi arrives, engaging the Cyran's artificer and soldiers, and leaving the Heroes to face Merrix and his bodyguard, Hanjin, a half-warfoged monk of monstrous power.

The living artifact, Xulo, is attached to a wall, high above a podium where Merrix, connected to Xulo through several metal and stone cables, taunts the Heroes to try and stop him. Behind him, the wall is carved to resemble a gigantic draconic head.

The Heroes throw powerful magic and mighty blades at their opponents; fire, lightning, earthquakes, and fell magic is brought to bear by both sides, but Hanjin's and Merrix's defenses, bolstered by the power of Xulo, are not easily defeated.

When finally Rat reflects and harm spell back at Merrix, breaking his body. As Merrix falls, his mind and soul, now released from the prison of flesh, merge with Xulo, and the whole wall falls apart, revealing what was hiding behind it: the terrible visage of a colossal warforged dragon detaches from the wall, revealing the cliff side and the open space beyond.

Fire spreads around the terrible beast, and the Godforged roars in rage. The ultimate battle to decide the fate of Khorvaire has just begun!

Sunday, February 2, 2014

Session 56 - 5,000 xp

Heroes: Ceolwic, Shazar'r, Rat.

After a night of rest, the Heroes teleport back to Metrol, and enter the ruins of the former Cannith hold. There they find a secret passage leading them to an underground compound, where house Cannith performs dangerous experiments related to the manifest zones.

During their explorations, they come in contact with Aerenal envoys, who had been persuaded to help Baron Merrix in the study of the plane of Irian. The Heroes convince them of the Baron's treachery, and they reveal information about the mysterious Lumi, a race hailing from Irian, also at the service of Merrix.

The Heroes and the elves arrive in the Lumi laboratory, planning to also turn them against Merrix.

Monday, January 27, 2014

Party XPs

Last Update: Session 58

Ceolwic - 139,005 / 153,000 - lvl 17

Ibiki - 127,525 / 136,000 - lvl 16

Rat - 125,337 / 136,000 - lvl 16

Elwyn - 114,700 / 120,000 - lvl 15

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Session 55 - 3,300 xp

Heroes: Ceolwic, Shazar'r, Rat, Elwyn.

The Heroes regroup at the Dogs of War's headquarters. They take Sarge with them, and teleport back to the Golden Dragon (still in Vathirond).

They leave Sarge in the Clockwork Fortress, to train the 10,000 warforged they brought from Sharn, finally free from their magical containers. Then they enter the portal at the core of the Fortress.

They find themselves in an abandoned Cannith laboratory in Metrol, once the mighty capital of Cyre. When they exit the laboratory, they find a city in ruins, devoid of human life, but the sky is clear, and lush vegetation grows among the broken tiles, and up the crumbling buildings. It seems Merrix's plan to bring Cyre back to life is indeed working.

Their quite exploration is soon interrupted by living spells roaming about, and then by a deathshrieker, an evil undead creature that causes severe damage to the Heroes. After the battle, the Heroes find themselves in need of rest and magical restoration, and after a few tries manage to teleport back to Sharn.