Village of Mere, Barony of Gulluvia
Once they got back to town, everyone knew that Brother Barry Manaslow was IN trouble. Injured by a pair of wolf-men in the woods, none of the common remedies, traditional, herbal, or magical seemed to curb, much less stop his ailments.
As the days passed, he continued to get weaker and weaker. By the end of a week, he was bedridden in the church basement, still telling his outrageous war stories to anyone who could hear them...
"At least the war didn't get me."
"Perhaps it's not wolf cancer, it's probably swamp magic from the Lizardmen!"
It was a long and painful process to watch, and many of his friends shied away in his last lucid days. Father Joseph at the Church added the care of Barry to his list of duties, helped only by a young girl, who could tolerate his declining condition... and incessant war stories. Some of those stories might be better put to music. Barry seemed to calm down when she played her mandolin for him.
Days into this long illness, everything was getting hotter for Barry. The air was harder to breath, the sun through the basement window more blinding, the gruel that he could barely stomach was even more grueling.
Things got fuzzy.
As things cleared up, a wagon wheel passed his eye, forcing him to dive out of the way.
He stood up, dusted himself off and he was outside on a road. The wagon he had remembered riding in was in a massive heap. He heard screaming, but could only see a teamster futilely trying to pull someone out of the wagon. It was chaos.
Barry realized he was a boy, no more than six or seven, crying out for mother and father... he then realized that they didn't make it.
He remebered that his family was travelling from original hometown to visit his great-uncle in Gulluvia City. But he also pieced together other scenes and other conversations that were over a young boy's head.
His parents were well-to-do folk, and being blackmailed for something he never learned. The family was taking payment... again... to Gulluvia City to give to this "Great-Uncle."
Barry could only remember the words of his father...
"If something happens, take the money and run into the swamp..."
He secured the coins, and against the teamster's pleas, ran headlong into the swamp.
Young Barry passes through a copse of trees, and emerges into dark, nighttime swamp.
He's holding a pole arm, a spear, and a host of other weapons. While he's not leading a unit of men, he's certainly has a camaraderie with these men.
He traveled alongside these soldiers, creeping up to an unknowing group of lizardmen, but a giant hand grabbed him by the should and turned him around
It was his Captain, Skulk Ironfist.
A great tactician, a fantastic warrior, and a father-figure most of the men secretly need.
"Wait, I want you and your ten men to flank the group on the left. There's even more further into the swamp."
Barry fetched his best friend, Doug, and they slithered through the swamp.
Barry would learn many months later, that a traitor in their ranks, a pixie-fairy scout, gave away their mission to the lizardmen. The ensuing counter-attack slaughtered most of the men, and the pixie-fairies' knock out darts collected a few prisoners. The overall mission was aborted.
Barry and Doug were captured and tortured by the secret joint-lizardman/fairy alliance.
Once they had interrogated them for all the knew, they disposed of them one at a time.
Barry watched his friend Doug get murdered in the prison camp, then put on a spit and cooked over a bonfire.
They ate Doug!
Just as Barry was at the breaking point, Captain Skulk and his band of commandos arrived moments after the Feast of Doug.
Killing all of the enemy, and setting the camp ablaze, Skulk and the surviving humans went rogue, traveling lightly, ingesting hallucinogenic mushrooms and moss.
If you knew the right sage, you could find them, and they would solve your lizardman issue, by killing every single one of them.
Eventually, the Barony of Gulluvia made peace with the lizardman/fairy alliance, and Skulk's group became wanted men on both sides.
Many turned to true mercenaries and caravan guards to make ends meet. One group of merchants gave Barry steady work away from the Captain Skulk, and over a long time he felt better. He enjoyed helping people when it didn't involve killing lizardmen.
One day, the caravan entered Mere. Barry jumped down from his key spot next to the teamster in the lead wagon, walked over to the only church in Mere, and offered his services to Father Joseph.
The scene turns many years in the future. It's peaceful. Barry is digging a grave, but does not see casket, or even who the hole is for. As he finishes, he climbs out of the hole and heads towards the church His protege, the girl with the strong faith and fancy mandolin is there.
But as he walks toward her, she morphs into a little lizard girl, very afraid and cowering in his presence
Barry had killed many, many lizardmen while he fought in the war, and passed that. After the peace, Skulk had the group kill females and children as well. Those thoughts, and the opportunity to put the aside, is what Barry to join the priesthood.
He fell to his knees, put his right hand on her shoulder, and proceeded to tearfully repent every sin he could remember committing, most importantly her own death at his hand.
The lizard girl does not forgive, but she does console the broken man.
DM Notes: With only two players , Barry in dire straits, I felt it best to expand the background of our lovable 1st level cleric with only the basics of background. Mix in some Mitch Albom, and we have a good late-night Hallmark Channel movie in the fantasy genre.
They ate frickin' Doug!!!
And if Barry can survive the the group finding help to cure him, he has a NPC protege. If they fail, Nate has his replacement character ready.
Next: #17 - Curse of the Moon Taint
Once they got back to town, everyone knew that Brother Barry Manaslow was IN trouble. Injured by a pair of wolf-men in the woods, none of the common remedies, traditional, herbal, or magical seemed to curb, much less stop his ailments.
As the days passed, he continued to get weaker and weaker. By the end of a week, he was bedridden in the church basement, still telling his outrageous war stories to anyone who could hear them...
"At least the war didn't get me."
"Perhaps it's not wolf cancer, it's probably swamp magic from the Lizardmen!"
It was a long and painful process to watch, and many of his friends shied away in his last lucid days. Father Joseph at the Church added the care of Barry to his list of duties, helped only by a young girl, who could tolerate his declining condition... and incessant war stories. Some of those stories might be better put to music. Barry seemed to calm down when she played her mandolin for him.
Days into this long illness, everything was getting hotter for Barry. The air was harder to breath, the sun through the basement window more blinding, the gruel that he could barely stomach was even more grueling.
Things got fuzzy.
As things cleared up, a wagon wheel passed his eye, forcing him to dive out of the way.
He stood up, dusted himself off and he was outside on a road. The wagon he had remembered riding in was in a massive heap. He heard screaming, but could only see a teamster futilely trying to pull someone out of the wagon. It was chaos.
He remebered that his family was travelling from original hometown to visit his great-uncle in Gulluvia City. But he also pieced together other scenes and other conversations that were over a young boy's head.
His parents were well-to-do folk, and being blackmailed for something he never learned. The family was taking payment... again... to Gulluvia City to give to this "Great-Uncle."
Barry could only remember the words of his father...
"If something happens, take the money and run into the swamp..."
He secured the coins, and against the teamster's pleas, ran headlong into the swamp.
Young Barry passes through a copse of trees, and emerges into dark, nighttime swamp.
He traveled alongside these soldiers, creeping up to an unknowing group of lizardmen, but a giant hand grabbed him by the should and turned him around
It was his Captain, Skulk Ironfist.
 |
| Skulk Ironfist |
"Wait, I want you and your ten men to flank the group on the left. There's even more further into the swamp."
Barry fetched his best friend, Doug, and they slithered through the swamp.
Barry and Doug were captured and tortured by the secret joint-lizardman/fairy alliance.
Once they had interrogated them for all the knew, they disposed of them one at a time.
Barry watched his friend Doug get murdered in the prison camp, then put on a spit and cooked over a bonfire.
They ate Doug!
Just as Barry was at the breaking point, Captain Skulk and his band of commandos arrived moments after the Feast of Doug.
Killing all of the enemy, and setting the camp ablaze, Skulk and the surviving humans went rogue, traveling lightly, ingesting hallucinogenic mushrooms and moss.
If you knew the right sage, you could find them, and they would solve your lizardman issue, by killing every single one of them.
Eventually, the Barony of Gulluvia made peace with the lizardman/fairy alliance, and Skulk's group became wanted men on both sides.
Many turned to true mercenaries and caravan guards to make ends meet. One group of merchants gave Barry steady work away from the Captain Skulk, and over a long time he felt better. He enjoyed helping people when it didn't involve killing lizardmen.
One day, the caravan entered Mere. Barry jumped down from his key spot next to the teamster in the lead wagon, walked over to the only church in Mere, and offered his services to Father Joseph.
The scene turns many years in the future. It's peaceful. Barry is digging a grave, but does not see casket, or even who the hole is for. As he finishes, he climbs out of the hole and heads towards the church His protege, the girl with the strong faith and fancy mandolin is there.
But as he walks toward her, she morphs into a little lizard girl, very afraid and cowering in his presence
Barry had killed many, many lizardmen while he fought in the war, and passed that. After the peace, Skulk had the group kill females and children as well. Those thoughts, and the opportunity to put the aside, is what Barry to join the priesthood.
He fell to his knees, put his right hand on her shoulder, and proceeded to tearfully repent every sin he could remember committing, most importantly her own death at his hand.
The lizard girl does not forgive, but she does console the broken man.
DM Notes: With only two players , Barry in dire straits, I felt it best to expand the background of our lovable 1st level cleric with only the basics of background. Mix in some Mitch Albom, and we have a good late-night Hallmark Channel movie in the fantasy genre.
They ate frickin' Doug!!!
And if Barry can survive the the group finding help to cure him, he has a NPC protege. If they fail, Nate has his replacement character ready.
Next: #17 - Curse of the Moon Taint
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