In Pursuit of a Priest

Rest, recover and sort the stuff from the trip to the druids. Pick up our masterwork weapons and other things that we had ordered. Sell stuff we don’t need. Leena makes several scrolls. Moving into the rainy season of fall. Clerics of Kord and Cuthbert continue working to mitigate the flooding. Jenya mentions that Pell Rygor has been reported seen around the abandoned village. The Cuthbertian head priest left Jenya in charge while he goes to Saserien to find better flood control. Aerrion and Gracie’s continual bickering is getting on nerves, hastening the efforts to move out. Pell Rygor seems to be aiding the refugees in Fallover. Most of his goods appear to come from raided caravans. We decide to travel to Red Gorge as a small band of traders with a wagon or two. Wind up traveling with another caravan going south. Travel for three days before getting clear of the mountains. Quiet travel. They are not an informative group. Two more days and the mountains to the south loom large. During the trip, more Three Dragon Ante gets played. During one game, Jian insists that there is no difference between copper and gold pieces and that they have the same value. Must have been a blow back of some spell experiments! Arrive at Reg Gorge. Find a couple of trade opportunities. Flutes, Pipeweed, horses and silver hack bars. Gracie keeps wanting to buy horses. While nice, horses can be a pain to keep up and keep track off. Brak arranges for a working supper with the local Cuthbert temple. Basic but decent fare. Tell of Pell Rygor. He was here over a year ago. Things were going well until the war up the coast drove refugees to Red Gorge. It bothered Pell that he had to turn so many away. He found the closing of the town to refugees to be unacceptable and left after words with the mayoral council. He had been dealing with other elements. Pell’s actions provoke many of the refugees to riot and damage several buildings. The Cuthbertians dispatched some Templars to apprehend Pell and make good the damages. Pell refused to come. In the fighting that broke out, two Templars were lost as they were forced to retreat.

After dinner, head back to our tavern. Brak hears rumors that most of the poor and refugees seem happy that Pell is gone. Elwin is found by the local HPS and is drafted to be kitchen help. The next morning, discuss what to do. I arrange the trade for 18 bags of pipeweed. We leave 9 with the Cuthbert temple for the trip back. Also buy bags of grain to fill the wagon. Pickup a second wagon and critters. Gracie debates about buying herself a horse. Load up and head toward Fallover. Rough road. Slow but quiet travel. Dark night. Next morning and traveling. Six riders move in front of the caravan. One rides up. Brak starts to speak but Gracie takes over. The riders state the grain would be better with them. We agree to travel with them. For thieves, they seem very polite. Back track about an hour before taking a broken stony trail. It leads to another old road. By the day’s end, all but three riders have gone elsewhere. Led to a campsite. They engage several of us in conversation but divulge nothing of note. Next day, travel about a half day. Arrive at an old keep in a mire. It is old but but some cleanup and repairs have been done. During the night, I overhear a couple of ranked guards speaking in Ferral that Pell is in the keep but leaving in the morning. I am not sure if they think no one can understand them or they don’t care if anyone hears.

Oosana.

XP - Story 500

Off to see the Druids

Leena reports that she has discovered that we need hemlock, amaranth and vervane to make healing potions. Hair from an agile beast will allow a Cat’s Grace potion. We spend the next three weeks resting, training and carousing. One night when returning from a carousing trip, we notice several cloaked figures around our house. Flames are starting to rise as several spots outside. Hear crashing of flasks. Those of us outside, Oosana, Aerrion, Elwin, Snorri and Gracie charge toward the house. Aerrion seems more concerned about his stolen platter. Snorri yells about his booze. All the noise outside wakes Brak and Jian who were sleeping or something inside. The arsonist are wearing the masks of the Jesters. After a brief combat during which I cast an Obscuring Mist, they scatter. Aerrion charges one down and kills him with a rapier in the back. I stabilize a down one for later interrogation. Rory and the city guard discuss matters. Damage is light but will need repairs. The three dead Jesters are unknown to us. The guards drag the bodies off as well as the live one. Darn, was hoping to learn something from him.

Skie is a trader in odd and magical items. He has also traded with the druid enclave at Relefane. A small town called Kingfisher Hollow is three days to the east from Cauldron. Then travel NE toward the coast. A road south leads into the jungle toward Thifol. The druids are there. Skie offers to pay well for alchemical silver. We plan on getting some trade goods for the trip. Might as well earn as much as possible. After two days of travel, we see thick green jungle. On the third day, arrive at Kingfisher Hollow. It is a small but fortified caravan town. Mostly humans. Rest and revel. Aerrion and Gracie cause grief to some caravaners. Travel on the next morning. Cold rainy night. Road is rough and mostly untraveled. Rain quits about noon. Toward evening, we see what might be a green dragon dead by a lake. Aerrion thinks it is a Felldrake. A humanoid body is next to it. Check it out. The body is elven. The trees look like homes for druids. Snorri finds giant lizard tracks but they are odd. Hopping or Flying? Scout around. Really big trees. About 70' across at the base. While scouting, we are surprised by a three headed lizard bodied winged critter. The heads are blue dragon, goat and lizard. It is hovering by me. Figures! Snorri charges and attacks. The critter hits both Aerrion and I. Brak charges and gets a solid hit. It flits behind Snorri and breathes lightning, zapping Snorri, Brak and Gracie. I move to Snorri and cast a CLW as he looks dead on his feet. Critter responds by chomping both Snorri and Brak. Jian hits it with a lightning ball, dropping it. While we recover, salvage what parts we can from the critter for various things. Get about 36 ounces of scales plus claws and teeth.

Elwin and Aerrion look inside one of the trees. A bashed door and signs of battle inside. Entrance too small for the chimera. The rest of us move to support their explorations. Move inside after a bit. A small stairwell leads down. They hear noises like eating. All but Snorri move up. See five elf bodies. Three are dead. The other two are zombie types eating the three. Brak turns them causing them to flee to a corner where we quickly dispatch them. This room looks like a store room. A passage leads to a different tree room. Search the rooms. One room has a bunch of carved sticks inscribed with runes. Celestial. About a hundred or so. Think they are some sort of historical story. Three sticks have arcane runes. A staff also has arcane runes. A motherlode of interesting knowledge if only I could read more of them. Unknown to those of us inside, several large 9' tall bipedal lizard critters rise out of the lake and move toward Jian and Snorri. Snorri hides in the tree and stays quiet. The critters charge toward Jian. She zaps the mules who then bolt thru the charging critters. Jian then runs for the tree’s door. Snorri drops out of the tree and charges a lizard casting a spell at the dead chimera. He hits her, disrupting the spell. Jian blasts the ones now at the door. Snorri keeps attacking the spell caster, dropping her after several solid hits. The melee at the door continues until all but one go down. The last one runs into the lake and escapes. We think it was a scouting party. Load up and quickly depart.

It rains all the way back to Cauldron. As we pass thru Kingfisher Hollow, report about the fate of the druids and their town. The spell casting lizard had symbols for Erythnol, Hextor and Vecna. Try to id the arcane sticks. The staff was made by Jared and is a quarterstaff. Jared calls the triad of gods the Ebon Triad. The staff was a gift to one of the druids. Back at Cauldron, the rain has raised the lake level to the top of the basin. The Kord and Cuthbert priests are working together to control the flooding. Reports of Pell Rygor helping refugees near the haunted village tot he south. May have followers.

Oosana.

Loot from Thiful , druid dwelling:
18ozs Ameranth
18ozs Hemlock
8 vials Verban (ink)
45 ozs of misc alchemical stuff
36ozs of scales from the chimera
chimera blood
~100 Repaphan psalms on the carved sticks.

XP - Kills 1200, RP - 100
everyone gets an action point.