Session 222: Charity and Kindness

It happened again. Sometimes it happens multiple times a day. Sometimes days or even weeks pass without it happening. But every time, it is the same. For me, it's not unlike the sensation of falling asleep, this strange power I have been given. The noises around me dampen, my attention drifts, then I fall into a reverie and see a scene before my eyes, the exploits of our dear Saviors of Orlane! It is so real: I can smell odors, hear sounds, sometimes even taste flavors! I have been told that my appearance looks odd to observers. My head lops to the side slightly, my mouth droops a little, and my eyes slip out of focus then go completely white. I don't know which deity has bestowed me with this gift, only that it feels divine and important to share what I see. So I retell it to any who will listen. Such as yourself...

Although our heroes are far away in the city of Hochoch, I can still see their goings on (even when they are not very exciting). I perceive Armatzi, Niki, Lalie, Titus, Lhoss, and Gnorcia. They are buying fancy food and drink for their treasure guard, Myr. Myr is a funny little creature. I have come in contact with him only a couple of times, but he is shrewd and all business. Finished with their business in town, Armatzi, Niki, Lalie, and Titus head out for Orlane (after Titus purchases a horse to ride out on). Lhoss and Gnorcia stay behind to train in their chosen specialties. 

Along the road back to us in Orlane, the party happens upon a group of downtrodden refugees. They are fleeing after a giant attack in Geoff. The poor dears ask to be accompanied on their journey to Ironguard Mott. The gracious and generous Saviors of Orlane oblige and then show themselves to be true heroes. Titus notices a man with a broken leg and cures it. The man is much relieved and quite thankful. Armatzi casts a spell to create food for all of the weary travelers and Tatania offers them some dried fruit from her stock. They all accept and eat their fill. Armatzi then offers a gold piece to each adult in the party which causes the grateful crowd to burst into hymns of St. Cuthbert. Tatania offers a glass bead to each child. Their spirits bolstered, the remainder of the journey passes with much more optimism that had been felt before encountering this benevolent group.

Back in Orlane, the group decides to venture out to that old place of death and danger: the barrowmaze. Upon departure, they are joined by two new party members, Maeve and Vayda. This group is a mix of seasoned and inexperienced adventurers. What horrors await them?

Midway through the Dim Forest, the group hears the distinct sound of footsteps. Not those of an animal or a large troop of people, but a disturbance in the brush from... who can say what? Lalie is able to detect evil at any time, simply by concentrating. And by Jove, she detects evil in this place. The sound of movement comes and goes. Lalie is determined to investigate, so she moves in the direction of where she senses the evil. Overhead, some branches break from their trees and ooze off. Lalie feels a wave of nausea at the sight. She momentarily loses her balance and drifts to the side, attempting to catch herself on the trunk of a tree. Instead of a solid tree to brace against, Lalie's hand pushes through into a rotten center. She pulls her hand out to find it covered in writhing maggots. Absolutely horrified and disgusted, Lalie shakes off the insects and rejoins the crew. She directs them to leave this place and move on to the barrowmaze.

Seasoned party members direct the newcomers to an entrance, but make no effort to show anyone how to solve the little puzzle that would allow entry. Maeve is a curious little jester and steps to the front. With a little manipulation of a prominent skeleton head, she reveals a staircase. After some walking, the group encounters a bricked off wall with loud moaning behind it. Lalie, the righteous cavalier, is determined to bash down the wall and face whatever is behind it!

The vision departs and my normal sight returns. I will go about the rest of my day, but I shall forever be your faithful storyteller, 

Vilma

Session 96: Day 5 of Reaping, exploring the city of Hochoch

The party woke on the morning of Day 5 of Reaping in the Swift Coin Inn of Hochoch. They ate a hearty breakfast that, although good, was noticeably lower quality that what is served in Orlane. Kyro was interested in trying to converse with other patrons of the inn, but everyone seemed to have a nervous and uneasy air. To a man, they all sat with their heads down, occasionally glancing around shiftily, but overall giving off the vibe that they were unwilling to talk. The innkeeper was a little less busy than the frantic pace of the night before and Lhoss took a moment to ask for directions to the temple of St. Cuthbert and the sage Daana. The innkeeper was professional without being welcoming and oriented the party. Lhoss also asked if there were any areas to avoid. The innkeeper indicated that Hochoch is a well-regulated city and is mostly safe, although the refugee camp and Shingles neighborhood should both be avoided if possible as they posed potential dangers. Being singularly focused on their exploration of the barrow maze, the group was ignorant of goings-on and had to be informed that the refugees came from the hills and mountains in Jeff that had seen incursions of giants. With a thank-you and a tip for the good information, the party headed out.

There was a little discussion about whether to head northeast and see the sage first or go southwest to the temple, but the sage won out as the initial destination. As the team somewhat uncertainly began to navigate the city, Kyro made out to ask a group of city guards for information about buying a map. He nodded at a couple and they reacted with such hostility, the plan was abandoned immediately. The level of paranoia in the city is palpable and disconcerting. It had been a while since any from the group had been in Hohoch, true, but the hospitality seemed so changed from what everyone had remembered that it was jarring. There were some people out and about in the streets, but each one seemed to be on task and unwilling to engage with anything outside of their focus.

After a bit, a sign reading Crunge's Clock Tower was observed. At just that moment, a loud gong rung out with nine clangs. Atop the 100-foot high tower was a 40-foot flagpole. The sharp-eyed elves were the first to discern nine green streamers flying from atop the pole. Still on the lookout for a map, Kyro thought that there might be some sort of shop inside the tower, but the doors were boarded over and nailed shut. There was some sign of life atop the tower; a single figure who caused a flock of birds to scatter as they went about their work. An attentive adventurer could always be aware of the time of day in the city of Hochoch.

Continuing on (ever vigilant for a map shop) the group noticed fields of fruit trees and field hands. Niki, Feno, and Lhoss noticed a large tower in the distance that they believed to be the tower of the sage. The party passed a graveyard that had several new graves (did it seem like an unusually large number of new graves?) and a quiet neighborhood of well-kept houses. As they approached the tower, they observed a large brass gate surrounding a large estate and a bored-looking person on a chair.

Lhoss was the first to approach and asked the bored guard if they could see the sage. The guard was minimally responsive to a series of questions until Lhoss flipped him a silver coin, to which he responded "come back in two weeks." Gnorcia upped the bribe to a gold and the guard shortened the wait to "one week". Seeing a pattern, Feno forked over a platinum piece and the guard informed us it would cost us 200 gold pieces to see Daana. Clearly only serious customers need apply. Kyro handed over 40 platinum and explained the nature of the group's business. The guard took the coins and disappeared into the tower through what was clearly a magical entrance. After 20 minutes in the baking sun, the guard reappeared and relayed that the case has some interest to the sage. At 4:30, three of the band should return to meet with Daana. He also warned the group not to be late.

Setting the next task to find the temple of St. Cuthbert, the group turned and heard the gong ring out 10 times and saw that there were 10 green streamers from atop the clock tower. Lhoss was the first to notice a soldier staring the team down from the far end of the road they were traveling on. Feeling threatened, the party altered their course, while still traveling in the direction they believed they should go. Then, in the distance, two different soldiers stood at the end of the road eyeing the adventurers suspiciously. There was some contemplation about whether to change course again, but it was decided that nobody had done anything wrong and to flee the soldiers would only make the party look suspicious. They all marched purposefully toward the soldiers with Gnorcia and Lhoss engaging in small talk about the temple of St. Cuthbert and other wholesome topics. The guards cast a suspicious eye, but did not engage. A single high pitched chime from the clock tower rang out which seemed to mark the half-hour.

The smell of sweet bread filled the nostrils of Lhoss and Gnorcia who did not need any other excuse to enter the bakery Hearts and Flowers, but they could ask about a map while they were inside, why not? Armatzi went inside too, because why not? Inside the delicious smells were even stronger with all sorts of mouth-watering baked goods on display. A large blonde woman came out to serve them and Lhoss asked if they made her favorite sweet treat: cinnamon rolls. She was assured that, indeed there were cinnamon rolls. Because she lacked any smaller coin, Lhoss paid in electrum, which the baker took as a large tip. It was a favorable error as this also made the baker, Emily, more amenable to a hospitable exchange of information. When asked why all of Hochoch is so on edge, Emily explained it was because there are spies in town who sell information to the giants, so strangers are viewed with suspicion. Also, a map would be hard to come by. She then informed a naïve Lhoss that giants eat humans. If Lhoss' horrified reaction wasn't enough to secure Emily's opinion, noticing Armatzi was an acolyte of St. Cuthbert (her own deity) put the three cleanly in the camp of "good folks". Also, name-dropping that they were the Saviors of Orlane put a bit of shine on their reputation as well. She graciously supplied the three with a basket of baked goods, directions to the temple, and instructions that the adventurers should register at the keep to dispel any further suspicion. With a heartfelt thank you, Gnorcia, Lhoss, and Armatzi exited and filled in the rest of the party.

Overhead, 12 gongs were heard, and the group found themselves in front of Captain Archibald Martel, the man who would determine if an adventurers charter would be awarded that could allow the group to move freely about the city without suspicion. The group was grilled on their purpose and intention. Fortunately, sufficient evidence was supplied and corroborated that proved the stated causes:  investigating a way to bring Tatania back and the larger charge of finding and destroying Derrik and Nanor. He commended us on our prior successes and urged us to continue the important cause of tracking down Nanor. One caveat: Armatzi was chastised for not visiting the temple of St. Cuthbert first. As a fellow follower of that deity, Captain Martel had strong words for our cleric and also for the druid Niki who had likewise not yet checked in at her place of worship. Nonetheless, the charter was awarded and each member pinned a badge to their clothes. A quiet spot by the river under a willow tree was chosen for a reflective lunch of the delicious baked goods from Hearts and Flowers.

The clock tower chimed a single gong sound and a sole blue flag marked the change of morning to afternoon hours. The next stop was in a forest dedicated to Obad-Hai, the deity of Niki and Feno. Though it is not Zuoken, Lhoss feelt an affinity to the space. Armatzi and Kyro entered with a calmness in their hears, but Gnorcia looked around for a tree to climb. Niki encouraged Gnorcia to hug a tree instead. To her surprise, the tree hugged her back! A druid woman named Eiluned was performing a religious ceremony that involved cutting holly and bathing it in a font. As she turned, her stunning red hair and green eyes dazzled the group. She presented both Niki and Feno with a sprig of holly and encouraged Niki on the sacred quest to obtain the Lesser Ring of Jack, with directions to find it somewhere in the barrow maze. Jack was quite friendly with Eiluned and Kyro wondered aloud if Jack had picked his own name. It seemed curious that Jack should share his name with the very ring Niki sought after. Might Jack have lived lives before this one? Eiluned also commented on the affinity between Jack and Armatzi. Perhaps Jack could serve as a bridge between druids and clerics. Though followers of Obad-Hai and St. Cuthbert might sometimes be at odds about how things should be done, they had a similar purpose and should work together. Lastly, Eiluned invited Niki, Feno, and Lhoss to return at 11:00 that night to witness a sacred nighttime ceremony.

Session 95: Wealsun Day 21 through Day 4 of Reaping

As recorded by Gnorcia: 

Lhoss was determined to complete some thief training before traveling to Hochoch. While she was busy preparing for another day of practice and study, the rest of us decided to give up a little sleep and head back to the edge of the Dim Forest at night to see if we could attract and destroy the remaining ghouls that had been harassing farmers in the area.

I tried to convince the others to distract the druid, Niki, so I could kill a small animal and use the blood to attract the ghouls, but she quickly figured out my plan (Jack the cat was probably listening) and put a stop to it. With a big sigh, Feno pulled out a dagger and pricked his finger, dripping and flinging his own blood on everything as we entered the forest. The night was descending quickly and it was mere minutes before we sensed something evil coming toward us from the northwest. It was indeed a pack of ghouls with something even more sinister leading it.

Fear spread across our small group of heroes. I scrambled up a tree and Kyro followed suit. Armatzi and Niki stationed themselves behind the gnarled tree trunks and prepared to attack, but Feno and Chalkboi set themselves in the middle of the path, weapons ready. The ghouls ran straight for the bleeding Feno and only one noticed Armatzi, swiping at him as it passed. Before he was hit, the cleric managed to cast his turn undead spell on the pack's dark leader and called out, aghast at the creature's evil, fishy stench, "It's a ghast!" Jack took one sniff and dove into Niki's backpack.

The rest of us used arrows and darts to attack from a distance, doing some small damage to the horrid creatures. Armatzi cast turn undead again and one ghoul was feared back down the path into the forest, but it wasn't enough to stop Chalkboi from being hit by another. He was immediately frozen by the ghoul's paralytic poison. Feno swiped through one as the rest of us continued our barrage of darts and arrows. Fortunately no one was hit by friendly fire and the injured ghouls screamed horribly as thick blood poured from their wounds.

Once more, Armatzi cast turn undead and the remaining ghouls turned to run. Kyro and I jumped down to help with the chase as Niki cast an entanglement spell, trapping the remaining ghouls in vines. The ghast, however, was merely slowed by the vines and Armatzi determined to destroy it himself. Running around the edge of the entanglement, he scrambled against the forest's thick brush and branches. He even attempted to throw rocks at the ghast, as if somehow he could slow it further.

Feno thought to skip over the entanglement as he attacked a trapped ghast, but got his feet caught in the spell's twining vines. Niki casually strolled right through the vines and smacked down that ghoul, then headed for the last one that was screaming angrily and pawing at the darts sticking out of its rubbery head. Those were my darts and I wanted them back so I leaped over the vines and onto the ghoul's back, but slipped and fell into the mass of greenery. Niki then finished off the final ghoul just as Armatzi and the ghast reached the same point at the vines' perimeter.

Realizing there wasn't time to swing his hammer, Armatzi reached out with the power of the Gauntlet of St. Cuthbert and blasted the ghast with holy light. It crumbled at his feet and even Chalkboi managed to let out a cheer as the paralysis wore off and the vines soon retreated.

Exhausted and covered in the stench of ghouls, we retrieved what darts and arrows we could and headed back to Orlane, stopping only to leave a note on the door at Hans' farmhouse, telling him the ghouls were defeated.

We spent the rest of the week and the next happily enjoying our time with no undead creatures to battle and a joyful summer festival to celebrate. We were a bit too free with our coin and just as freely listened to the tales of too many drunken townsfolk.

Her training complete, Lhoss joined in the celebration and was warned by the townspeople to take great care to avoid altars because they were very dangerous. Armatzi was told to seek the pools in the barrowmaze for safety, and warned that the mutated creatures there would enslave humans. Feno heard that the entrances to the barrowmaze were trapped, while another dismissed the entirety of it, claiming the barrows were just mounded graves and the rest was all folk tales.

I plied stories from a few more folks, learning that they had heard of piles of magical items in the southern crypts, that a powerful evil warrior and his band used the barrowmaze as their hideout, and the oft-repeated story of an elven maiden recently freed from the barrowmaze. I also heard of runic tablets that would curse all who read them, but Niki was told that some runic tablets contain information and not just curses. We nodded and considered our own experiences with runic tablets both helpful and dangerous.

Chalkboi used his story of being paralyzed by ghasts to start conversations with several people who then warned him that tribes of humans live in the barrowmaze along with mutated people who were guarding powerful treasures, and the same story of a powerful evil warrior hiding there with his band. He also had his story dismissed by someone who, again, claimed it was all hogwash and the barrows were nothing but a valley full of old graves.

As the celebrations were winding down on the last day, we gathered together for a meal in the tavern when a short, hooded figure with a long nose poking out from its hood entered the room. It sniffed, then headed straight for our table. We immediately noticed that it smelled more-than-faintly of fish, but this time fish-loving Jack was not afraid and came out to sniff at the hem of its heavy cloak. The creature squawked quietly at the cat and pushed back its hood, revealing a beaked figure in black and white.

"Zraith at your service!" it said. "I have been sent from my brethren in the south to find a cleric known as Armatzi."

All heads turned to Armatzi, who was earnestly breaking up chunks of meat and vegetables in his stew. Sensing the group's silence, he lifted his eyes and recognized the figure before him as a penguin holding a staff in one flipper. Unruffled by the strange welcome, the waddling bird had nothing but attention for Armatzi, and quickly explained that his clan from the south had been experiencing strange visions and sent him as a missionary.

"I am here to accompany you on your journeys for one month," it finished with a snap of its beak, holding its head up at attention. Armatzi paused, then nodded and went back to his stew. We all laughed and welcomed the odd little bird to our party.

The following day, Niki bought a bedroll and Feno borrowed one from Hilja as we packed up our belongings and set out for Hochoch. We stopped to spend the first night with Hans and his family, celebrating the defeat of the ghouls. Days later, on the evening of day four of Reaping (or day four of the elven month of Goldfields, for those who don't know better) at the beginning of high summer, we arrived at Hochoch, exhausted and tired of eating dry rations. We followed the scent of roasting beef and soon found ourselves at the Swift Coin Inn, where we dined on braised beef, soup, and bread, before securing rooms and turning in for a more-comfortable sleep in real beds.

Session 25: Day 4 of Coldeven Afternoon - The Defeat of Explictica (the Naga)

 Raime - NPC w/Whiskers - Weasel

Calbach - Brad

Armatzi - Alex

Lhoss - Leigh

Gnorcia - Lillian

Chiki - NPC

Angos - Ryan

Ronan - Nick

After resting on the shores of the waters of the underground lake (map rm#37) we all climbed into the boat on the shore and proceeded across the water toward what we hoped would be glory.

As we left shore, Ramne, the trickster magic user he seems to be, cast a new spell we had not seen before which surrounded us in a bubble of magic with properties we did not know.

We crossed the underground lake, heading East as best we could tell, and encountered a creature on a farther shore that struck out at us with a spell that struck the magic bubble and exploded harmlessly like fireworks above and around us.

After the creature (Explictica (the Naga)) attacked, she placed a charm on Ronan who was no longer able to fight do to the compulsion of the spell making him want to please Explictica. Calbach launched a volley of arrows against Explictica and did minor damage. The rest of the party, except Ramne, left the boat and proceeded to shore to attack. Battle ensued during which time Calbach and Armatzi, who had joined the party on shore, were charmed. Gnorcia cast a gaze reflection on herself, which gave her a little respite, but she was then bitten by the vile creature and fell into a stupor. When all seemed lost, Ramne case a dispel magic upon all the charmed persons (who were just standing around, as Explictica arrogantly ignored them). Explictica continued to attack using bite, spells and charms but was eventually defeated by two well placed daggers from Angos. 

The creature's treasures were discovered and a Bag of Holding was seized to assist in carrying the large amounts of loot (Coin, gems, jewelry and the like) out of the caverns. There were many other magic items - Armatzi sampled several potions and determined what they are - fortunately none of them were dangerous.  A couple turned out to be healing potions, and one was used on Gnorcia, who was restored to a wobbling form of consciousness. Lhoss grabbed a horn and blew on it, and was covered by blinding bubbles. She dove into the water and washed them all off. A pair of elven boots were found, and a ring of protection. Ramne claimed a potion and another unidentified ring. 

The group re-united with the former prisoners in the burned out troglodyte hatchery (map rm#34) and claimed the rest of the treasure, placing it into the Bag of Holding, nearly filling the bag to capacity.

Our final discussions were:

What is to be done with the little dinosaur?

Do we finish clearing the rest of the dungeon?

Do we head directly back to the village with Raime (he has asked for accompaniment)? 

Session 2: Hochoch Information

Here is some more information about the town and area that you are in. Hochoch is a city of about 8,000 inhabitants and the people are generally lawful neutral or neutral in their outlook (with a strong tendency towards good). There are temples or shrines to these various deities in town, the base alignments that worship them, with a description of their spheres:
St. Cuthbert - LG(N) wisdom, dedication, zeal
Boccob - N magic, arcane, knowledge
Pelor - NG sun, strength, light, healing
Wee Jas - LN magic, death
Bralm - N(L) insects, industrious
Fharlanghn - N(G) horizons, distance, travel
Geshtai - N lakes, rivers, wells
Obad-hai - N nature wildlands, freedom, hunting
Zuoken - N physical & mental mastery
Pholtus - LG(N) light, resolution, law
Velnius - N(G) sky, weather
Merikka - CG agriculture

It is encouraged that you determine if you are a follower of one of these religions. The priests and druids at these locations will be great sources of information as well, and have resources (such as healing and other products).

The ruler of Hochoch is a Knight of the Watch, which is a strict order (more so in the north-western borders) - this Knighthood is supported by the countries fo Bissel, Gran March, Geoff, and especially Keoland, the primary Lord over the whole region.

The government is formed with this knight, and three others - a local merchant, priest/druid, and mage.

There is one court of justice in the city, an open market square, 4 smithies, and 3 inns

Session 1: Adventures in Greyhawk - Day 22 of Readying

These posts will be for another group that is adventuring in the area of Gran March.

You are currently located in a town named Hochoch in the Gran March. The capital of Gran March is a town named Hookhill, of reasonable size. Gran March is ruled by the leader of an order of knights named Commandant Petros. Petros maintains a standing army of knights and auxiliaries to defend the land.

Some of you may have labored recently in the development of a caravan track between Hochoch and Hookhill (through the before impassable Dim Forest) - if you want to add this to your character profile, come up with a story and detail it below. This will accrue no immediate benefits, but will assist in developing your story and make things more interesting.

You are encouraged to detail your story for the rest of us to understand - you can keep some or all private at your own discretion. You can also provide information directly to me when I create your private thread.

Hochoch has sufficient equipment and stores to provide for your needs now, but availability and prices may change if you don't take advantage of this now. You are all currently housed in one of three inns:

The Green Dragon
The Hogs Head
Bragg's post

You have paid up for a weeks stay and basic fodder as you are preparing for your upcoming adventures.

Some other things that you are aware of: The Dim Forest is located in the western area of Gran march. Hochoch lies at the southern end of the forest, and Hookhill lies to the north east, near a mountain range called the Lortmil Mountains. There is a swamp area called the Rushmoors south and east of Hochoch, and a river named the Javan River flows to the east in a NE-SW direction past Hochoch. A realm named the Grand Duchy of Geoff is to the west, and another realm called Bissel is north of Hookhill.