Rolf Wolfsblood: Bald-headed barbarian from the Plains of Galmar
Kane: Student of Eastern mysticism, controller of water.
Ashe - highly skilled elven ranger
Maloran Alberhold - human fighter, ladies man sans charisma.
Talis Makolin - a rakish bard avec charisma
Echelon - a pigeon loving priest of an eastern god of the sea, escorted by his charmed wolf, Pathfinder. He recently discovered a telepathic link with his animal companion.
Velandro - a pious priest of Akana. He had just befrieneded a family of kobolds.
SAME DAY AS ARRIVAL -Silver Palace of Princess Argenta - Valley of Haven
After befriending a kobold and his family, the afternoon was spent kicking in doors, killing random monsters, and getting the kobolds a much needed bath. The party slew a small flock stirges in a bathhouse, and the after the bodies were kicked out, the kobolds went into the giant tub. Lucky for everyone, the kobolds found a liking to the bath oils, so the stench of wet dog didn't pervade the whole lower level of the palace.
ONE DAY AFTER ARRIVAL - Silver Palace of Princess Argenta - Valley of Haven
The only thing that seemed to be part of the palace prior to the curse was a large mosaic room with three large keyholes in the floor. They managed to find two of these keys, and upon inserting them into the floor, they a silver sword appeared on a pedestal. Unfortunately, it seemed to be magically trapped, both with magical attacks and magical summoning, so they continued to search for the lost third key.
The party finally found access to the main level of the palace, and the threats increased accordingly. Hobgoblins, humans, and orcs fought quite disorganized, but they seemed to be in every other room. The opposite rooms were filled with statues... Citizens of Haven in the palace when the ruby took control.
The group moved through the palace garden, filled with vampire roses that snapped at Talis and Maloran, dealing more damage that the bands of humanoids roving the level.
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| Maloran does not take kindly to the Vampire Roses |
The other group, led by Rolf found a very un-barbarian sitting room, set for tea. Annoyed that there had been no sign of the ruby and the group was becoming even more lax and incompetent than usal Rolf went on a rant, He kicked chairs, chucked a plate, started screaming at his fellow adventurers. When he grabbed a tea cup to gesture drinking tea like some weak "civilized" human, he was shocked to hear the cup talk in Thendara's voice
Three crystal notes
Two Silver Statues
One ruby sword
All will smash the Demon's Eye
And lift the curse.
Rolf was delighted to notice that the other party members heard the voice too. He wasn't as crazy as Echelon and that infernal wolf.
Ultimately, Rolf's group met up with Velandro, while Velandro's group was in a running swordfight with a red robed humanoid and a racial mix of minions. The party reunited and the battle continued to move, right into the throne room. Dozens of statues of Haven's citizenry stood inside, including an obvious Princess Argenta (and Sir Ellis to Velandro). Sitting on her throne was a ruby that was at least the size of Rolf's gigantic fist.
With the fight going poorly, the barbarian slew hobgoblin in front of him and ran away! Most were so overwhelmed by the attacking forces that they didn't notice.
Rolf raced to once of the bedrooms. There had been a harp there. Harps make notes! His muscles barely strained as he lifted the instrument off its base and ran back to the battle! Upon entering the Throne Room, he held it to the floor and played as many combination of notes that he could find. Some arrangement that he played must have work, for the ruby shattered into a thousand pieces, the evil human and his minions fled, and the still-intact statues reverted back to their living forms.
The curse had been lifted.
EIGHT DAYS AFTER ARRIVAL - Palace of the Silver Princess - Valley of Haven
Less than a week after the curse had been lifted, the wedding of Princess Argenta and Sir Ellis took place, with the heroes as the guests of honor. Even the Dag family was invited, once they were fitted with tiny formal wear, and an overabundance of ribbons in their fur. There was much celebration and frolicking.
TEN DAYS AFTER ARRIVAL - Palace of the Silver Princess - Valley of Haven
With hangovers finally subsided, it was finally time to take full inventory of their spoils, and prepare to return to Crosedes. As a whole, they had been richly reward with jewels and gems. but the magic items they had obtained tickled their fancy the best.
Velandro obtained a Mace +2
Kane continued to surprise by claiming dibs on Plate Mail +1
Talis was happy to get a well-crafted dagger, but after a review by the sages in Haven, it learned it was a Dagger +1/+3 When Thrown
It was also confirmed and decreed that Dag the Kobold and his family and pledged friendship and eternal loyalty to Velandro. Pathfinder expressed his concern for that act only to Echelon.
By mid-afternoon the goddess Thendara appeared again, this time in a much more corporeal form. She thanked the heroes for their effort and blessed the union between Argenta and Ellis. She then asked the party if was ready to go, and upon their approval, gestured them out the main doors of the palace out to the river.
After everyone turned and began to leave, she whispered to Rolf. The barbarian stayed.
The goddess handed Rolf a sealed scroll. "This, brave Rolf, is for when..... Crosedes.... becomes too small for you," and she disappeared.
As the small procession reached the river, Thendara reappeared. She created a large enough boat for everyone, with enough provisions to get back to Crosedes.
THIRTEEN DAYS AFTER ARRIVAL - Village of Lansluck, Kingdom of Crosedes
After three harrowing days aboard the boat, with far more limited supplies than the goddess had mentioned, and few places to stop alongside the jagged riverbank, the party finally reached civilization. Mooring their battered boat at an actual dock, they went to figure out where exactly they ended up.
They had reached Lansluck, a remote logging town along the southern border of Crosedes! When they tried to explain that they had navigated down the river from Haven, the locals looked confused. Lansluck was the last civilized spot into the Skyforge Mountains. A mile or two upriver, the rapids make travel impossible. On top of that, only Dwarves lived in Skyforge, and they didn't like humans much. The party had plenty of coin, so regardless of their true story, they were happy to stay...
GUARDS!!!
The party turned to see a screaming woman pointing at the Dag Family, which in the boredom of "conversation" decided to go exploring on their own, skipping and frolicking all the way. Kobold skipping and frolicking is easily confused by ignorant humans, and within seconds the makeshift town militia had the humanoids surrounded.
The militia took one step towards them and Rolf leaped into the circle, his massive sword raise high.
"They... are with us." The militia dispersed and Rolf gave a knowing glance for the kobolds to run back to Velandro.
A voice spoke out from nowhere, "Fighting will not get you want you want. You should know that more than others, Echelon. Teach your friends."
The group frantically looked around for the speaker, and finally one of them spied a legless brown-skinned man sitting on the porch of the Brimming Stein, supported by a piece of wood with tiny dwarven wheels underneath.
It was Mohammad, Echelon's long-lost (and supposedly dead) mentor!
GM Notes: Some modules just rub some players or characters the wrong way, and Rolf was not amused by B3: Palace of the Silver Princess. Between the Kobold Comedy Jam (which entertained the rest of the party) and the party getting beaten down by the monsters inside the Palace proper, once Rolf realized the ruby needed to be destroyed and how to do it, he wasted no time solving the curse.
Outside of Velandro, no one else realized that Thendara teleported them from Elwyn's Sanctuary and took them back in time to break the curse. The year 443 is actually near the end of the barbarian lawlessness that the continent suffered after the Prythax Empire fell. Located somewhere within the current borders of The Skyforge, Haven's remote valley would have protected them from the wild horseman.
Of course, it was nice of Thendara to turn forward time so the party didn't emerge out of the mountans into a barbarian wasteland. At least it looked like 1069.
Outside of his predilections for pigeons and livestock and his worship of a strange eastern god of the sea, little is known about Echelon's back story, much less his legless mentor, Mohammad... UNTIL NOW!!! Or... next week's episode.
NEXT #8 - The Story of Echelon
I can't remember if it was the module, the other party members/players, or a combination of both that annoyed Rolf into curse breaking mode. I do remember this session dragging on and taking more time than needed to finish; I blame Wooly.:)
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