We head to Skie's Treasury. Skie clearly moving out. The names of adventuring guilds have been stone shaped flat. Inside the place is bare, Skie is packing a few last things up. She says she's moving out of town for now, but she'll be open for business for us.
"Could you craft a simulacrum, cut its head off, and graft it to your head?" - Erich, suggesting how Tarik could wear two magical amulets at once. 2006-09-17
"Can't people see me for the sweet person I am, and not the crotch head-butter?" - Viv 2006-09-17
We sell our loot. I purchase a pale green prism ioun stone, which will benefit me in a number of ways. I also purchase some supplies.
Skie is temporarily closing the shop. She'll spend the time visiting family in Sasserine.
We head back to my house through the drizzle. The house has not been opened.
That evening it's raining heavily. We scout out a location. We find a restaurant that has been closed. The roof gives a good view of the Spire of the Stern Lady. We climb up. Shensen flies out to scout out the situation. (OOC: Shensen sees cloaked figures moving in.) After about ten minutes or so, there are streams of smoke.
Aidan summons an earthquake. The Spire shudders slightly. The topmost spire cracks and falls into the street. Dust pours out of the windows and doors.
Skylar shows up and congratulates us. He shows us a flier that has been posted around town. It's advertises that Lord Vhalantru welcomes everyone to a midsummer festival in two days time on the second of wealsun. This is unusual. He wishes us a good night.
There is a shrill cry from the Spire. Two balls of darkness exit the front of the building. The balls coalesce into huge black manta ray like beings. Aidan and Kyrin say they're nightwings, a type of insubstantial undead. They take to the air.
Skylar leaves to see to his men.
Shensen hits the nightwings with a vortex of teeth. The nightwings bank toward us. I grant Rassi magical flight. Aidan hits one with a radiant assault summoning a burst of rainbow light. Kyrin invokes a fireball, but it washes off the nightwing without effect. Shensen turns into a troll. I hit them with the largest, most powerful fireball I can. Aidan hits one with searing light; the nightwing fades away, destroyed. Kyrin hits the remaining one with another fireball, but the spell fades away without effect. The nightwing stops. With a strong flap, drops of shadow drip onto the ground. The drop form into greater shadows, a strength draining creature. . Troll-Shensen leaps to the ground. I hit the remaining nightwing with disintegrate, but it is only slightly damaged. Aidan hits it with deific vengence. Rassi flies into the nightwing, stabbing it with her sword. The nightwing strikes back, biting her. As it bites, the magical force in Rassi's sword is briefly pulled away, but the sword holds its magic. Kyrin hits the shadows with a fireball, The shadows fly up and surround Rassi, draining her might. The nightwing flaps its wings at Rassi, freezing her in place. I grant flight to Gadrey off a scroll and he flies out to help Rassi. Shensen runs out. Aidan and Kyrin attempts to blast the nightwing with magic, but it shrugs off the magical effects. Three of the shadows swoop down to attack Shensen. I blow a shadow away with a volley of magic missiles. The nightwing attempts to dispel the magic on Rassi and Gadrey, but one of their rings of counterspell blocks it. Gadrey charges in and cuts the nightwing's head off. The body twists and fades away. Aidan invokes a flame strike on two of the shadows, discorporating one. Rassi swings her blade through one of teh remaining shadows repeatedly, finally tearing the shadow into bits of darkness which fade away. A volley of magic missiles from Kyrin destroys the last shadow.
7800=83199, nightwing, 4 greater shadows
Aidan heals Rassi, restoring her. Shensen is badly drained.
1st of Wealsun
Early in the morning we waken to someone hammering on my door. Shensen opens the door to see a young man with a sheaf of papers runing away, looking scared.
Nailed to my front door is an official message from the Lord Mayor's office. The notice declares the resistance to be enemies of the state. The lists Skylar, the Stormblades, and others. They're to be killed on sight by the guard. At the bottom is a handwritten note. "I know you that you know that I'm not me." Looking closely at the handwriting, it looks like a forgery of Skellerang's handwriting.
(OOC: Ruthar Thracken, priest of Pelor in Sasserine)
Aidan sends word to Ruthar Thracken, a priest of Pelor in Sasserine. He tells Ruthar that the local temple has seen desecrated by the tax collectors. Shensen heads out in falcon form to scout out the West Gate Inn. A bunch of pure blood orcs are being housed. They're wearing blue markings. The Amadio Warbloods, a local orcish tribe, wears blue.
Aidan uses a sending to try and arrange a meeting with the Stormblades. The response says to meet at the lunch bell behind the Church of the Righteous Cudgel.
We use the morning to purchase supplies for the resistance. I teleport them into the Drunken Morkoth's basement. There is a long resistance member. Skylar is ensuring the other cells are dug in as well as possible. The resistance is aware of encampments outside of town, the West Gate Inn, and many abandoned houses have been claimed. The city guard no longer watches the gates; they only do internal patrols. There are only thirty to fifty guards left.
(OOC: Shensen scouts from above. Ash Avenue is abuzz with activity. People are preparing for the festival. Compared to the Flood Festival it looks rushed and slapdash. Half-orcs and tax collectors are patrolling in force. There are still a lot of people still in the city, but they move about very quickly from place to place.)
We pack up Sarcem's armor and head to the Church of the Righteous Cudgel. Two well armored acolytes stand guard outside. One knocks in a pattern on the door as we approach. Someone glances out through a slot. There is some shouting outside, then the door opens. Inside there are one or two hundred people inside. Jenya steps out. I explain our desire. She agrees to hold onto the armor.
Gadrey asks about the effect on the populous. Some of those inside report family members who have been acting strangely. The church will continue to investigate and will let us know.
We fill Jenya in on other news.
We head behind the temple into the alley. We enter. A voice speaks and three cloaked figures appear. They pull back their hoods to reveal Corah, Annah, and Zachary. He's been healed!
Annah steps forward to shake Kyrin's hand. She apologizes for mistreating him. She wants to speak with him tonight, but there are more pressing actions. Lord Aslaxin had the item to restore Zachary, but the temple of Wee Jas convinced him that it would be more cost effective for them to restore him. Todd is not with them. Todd was in league with Vhalantru. Annah slit his throat and dumped the body in the lake.
I summarize the general situation. When I mention the Smoking Eye. That startles her. The group has been attacked several times in the last week. They've been scouting out where the orcs are encamping. Many of these places are holding religious cells that worship "the Smoking Eye," "Adimarchus," and "Kaurophon." The cult is drawing people who were devote followers of other faiths. They observed a ritual in which Tillian, a baker from Lava Avenue, had one of her eyes cored out with a burning brand. Some sort of induction ceremony.
Tonight the Stormblades are planning on infiltrating one of the cells. Annah gives us a copy of their list of cult meeting places or half-orc encampments. The east encampment is being used as a staging area. There are no walls, but there are guards. It's only occupied by orcs and prisoners.
Annah believes that many people who are moving out of town are being ambushed by half-orcs and taken back to the east encampment.
Annah is suprised that people she knows have joined the new cult. We tell her of our suspicions of mind influencing magic. Kyrin suggests that Annah try her bardic abilities.
Annah says Maavu returned recently and has been asking for us. He has a well secured mansion on Obsidian Avenue.
I ask about the state of the nobility. Zachary is quite angry, he calls them cowards. The Lathenmiers and Vanderborens" are probably most openminded. Corah thinks Rassi could convince her parents. Corah isn't happy about it.
Annah asks to get together for dinner tomorrow night. We agree.
Aidan asks about Imer, the bard he hired. She left for Redgorge.
Annah conceals her group with greater invisibility and they leave.
We go to the Temple of Lordly Might. There is a party going on, Asfelkir "tended to the faithful," He killed a few who refused to return. Asfelkir has heard of people leaving town being ambushed.
"Man, touch attacks from priests of Kord have to be brutal." - Erich 2006-09-17
Asfelkir invites us to "enjoy the faith" for a little bit. Aidan says it's a good idea and we have a drink.
Over the drinks we discuss the situation. We consider raiding the encampment to free the prisoners. Shensen can try to scout for us.
We head up to Obsidian Avenue to meet Maavu. His place is far from the cities buildings. The nobles buildings all have prominent guards. One group is a group of adventurers; I recognize their clothing as being from the Greyhawk area. Rassi bounces around announcing that there is beer at the temple of Kord.
Maavu's place is guarded by a pair of gargoyles. The block us with pikes. I announce us, after a pause the gargoyles let us pass. Maavu greets us at the door and hurries us inside.
Maavu tells us that the Chisel is frustrated. Given our position as the head of the resistance (oh, really?), the Chisel would like to know what they can do to help. They've gotten word of the situation out to Sasserine and points beyond. Many people and organizations they expected help from, aren't. The Foreman believes they are being threatened or bribed. I mention the problem with people trying to leave. The Chisel is trying to warn people, but without much success.
The Chisel has a press. I suggest they could run anti-Vhalantru fliers. Maavu thinks this is a good idea. I scribble down my thoughts on things to highlight. I offer to distribute them, but Maavu is confident that urchinmail is still good enough.
Maavu says he was holing up in the Blue Water Academy to avoid some tax collectors. He stumbled across some information on Spellmason that was in a hidden drawer in a desk. He took the book back to Redgorge. Chisel scholars are looking into it, it probably hasn't seen in a long time.
"We give them to an urchin, then teleport him hundreds of feet into the air." - Joe's suggestion on distributing fliers to a crowd. 2006-09-17