AAR: Founding of Merrith

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BrandenV
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AAR: Founding of Merrith

Post by BrandenV » Fri Jan 12, 2018 4:34 am

Mission: Fought off crazy people wearing masks. Let a horror escape into the wild and helped to found Merrith.
Gm: Branden
Date:1/11/18
Difficulty and circle rating: Circle 4 Medium
Player Rewards:
Rilya: 2200 Legend, 525 Silver, 1 Booster Potion, 3 TI points, 2 weeks downtime
Grom: 2200 LP, 500 Silver, 2 Booster Potions
- 1 Booster Potion given back to Rilya
Pethrytholilanista: 2200 Legend, 550 Silver, 3 TI points
Ursula: 2200 Legend, 550 Silver, 3 TI points
Further Information: A horror is now loose on the world.

Jexel
Posts:166
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Re: AAR: Founding of Merrith

Post by Jexel » Sat Jan 13, 2018 4:06 pm

Journal of Grom Skycleaver

Companions

Ursula: Beastmaster
Petroleumholysista: Nethermancer
Rilya: Weaponsmith & Nethermancer

Accepted an escort mission for some colonists who wanted to settle down near the Servos Jungle

Allura Sundermar Elf Illusionist Leader. Ork Scout (J.T Faerun), Human Troubador (Nuvec JaMar), T’skrang Swordmaster (Xaolete JRegh). Five carts sent off plan on using the old cultist kaer as early shelter.

I was curious on why they wanted to go near a kaer with such a history. Once I didn’t get too much information I focused on my job. I figured everyone will not want to talk after being harassed by Rilya.

A unnatural storm appears. We were ordered to circle the wagons and the horses were spooked. Ursula was very good with controlling the horses. During the storm it appears that one of the colonists Leubun has ran off with Vettis’s daughter Rhia. I had to break up a fight between two dumb brothers. This town is off to a great start.

In the storm we heard a mother and a baby crying. The other adepts ran out to check on them. They did not return. Allura and I agreed that we needed to stay back and protect the caravan. At first light we went after the others. It appears someone in the party left marks for us to follow. We tracked them for awhile and ran into Xaolette and four others who were wearing spooky black wood masks with large grins.

Rilya shouted out that we needed to tear off the masks. I believe the masks made them difficult to hit. I took and avoided many blows but was crap at taking any of their heads off. I was holding off Xaolette and another cultist for quite some time. The masks made them immune to my battle shout and eventually the swordmaster and the others wore me down. Xaolette also got a solid hit through my rib cage. I used everything I had during the fight to stay up but was knocked unconscious until Ursula kicked me awake. We finally killed the four cultists that were too far gone and was able to get Xaolette’s mask off.

Xaolette mentioned that the cult was led by a Nethermancer who was trying to summon a Horror. What the hell? When does that get fun? The other guards of the caravan that ran off the night before all had been taken and were forced to wear the masks.

I needed to rest and replenish my karma but there was no time. We had to charge the cavern and stop the Nethermancer before he summoned the Horror. I was wounded and barely able to stand even after taking one of Rilya’s healing potions. I was certain this charge was going to be my death but it would be a glorious death. Xoalette said that he would take care of the other guards but we had to stop the Nethermancer.

We entered the cavern and saw the Nethermancer on a raised rock outcropping summoning a portal into the Nether. Xaolette charged his friends. Ursula and I tried to make our way through some other cursed masked men on the way to the Nethermancer. Rilya and Petroleumholysista who are trained in Nethermancy went straight for the crazed caster.

The nethermancer engulfed himself in darkness. Cutting down the cursed men took some time as all my magic was spent and once again I went to sleep for about eight hours. When I awoke I learned that the Horror had broken through the portal, killed J.T. the Ork Scout and escaped out the cave.

When we arrived back at the caravan Allura still wanted to make her settlement here even with the known dangers.

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etherial
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Re: AAR: Founding of Merrith

Post by etherial » Sun Jan 14, 2018 12:25 am

From the collected letters of Ursula von Knucklebreaker:

30 Doddul, 1421 T.H.

Dearest Mother and Father:

Another expedition to found a town left Throal and we hired on as Caravan guards. They are attempting to settle the area in the vicinity of the Kaer of the Cultists of Raggok. I'm not sure that it's wise for them to settle there, but we do believe the area has been cleared of Cultists, at least. Several days passed mostly uneventfully. Rilya spent them making friends with the settlers. I spent them trying to keep the settlers from annoying Damkina.

On the fourth day, a terrible storm hit. We quickly set to work circling the wagons so that casualties would be minimized. Some of the families had messed up priorities and fritted about their time while the storm raged. I managed to bully some of the horses into position while Rilya did her best to round up misplaced children. Grom helped a family of adult Humans resolve their differences without fatality.

A piercing haunting wail like the sound of a lost child permeated the landscape, and the other team of Adepts went off to investigate. We did not hear from them for several hours, and my companions were chomping at the bit to go after them, but I urged caution. We'd been hired to guard the caravan and we should remain to guard the caravan.

Dawn broke on the fifth day with no word from the search party and we left to go rescue them. J.T. had deliberately left a trail for us to follow and we quickly arrived upon Xaolete and some unknown Namegivers wearing black wooden masks. They silently attacked us, and we were forced to defend ourselves. Rilya was able to determine that the masks were controlling them and while Gronk held off Xaolete and one of the others, Damkina and I set about unmasking the other three. Nista and Rilya acted as support, making the masks and their wearers easier to hit.

We would have preferred to have unmasked Xaolete first, letting him join our side, but he was sufficiently Adept at his Swordmastery that we had to all gang up on him. Exhausted, we drank potions to press on to find his friends before they were rendered unsalvageable. He led us back to a cave where a Nethermancer was opening some kind of portal, presumably to allow a Horror to enter our realm. Xaolete went to rescue his friends while Grom and I took on the remaining minions. Nista and Rilya went to work on the Nethermancer. Unfortunately for us, the minions and their leader were a little too tough for our drained resources, and the Horror was unleashed into the world. We eliminated the minions and captured the leader.

On the seventh day, we arrived at the empty Kaer and the settlers began to make the place their home. Time will tell whether the place has been sufficiently cleansed for them to successfully take the place over -- and also whether the Horror will be making itself a nuisance there or at Throal.

Yours,

Ursula von Knuckebreaker, née Nusserman

PCs:
Grom Skycleaver, male Ork Sky Raider
Pethrytholilanista, female Elf Nethermancer
Rilya, female Windling Weaponsmith/Nethermancer

NPCs:
Allora Thundermar, female Elf Illusionist
Damkina, a Bear
Zimbu, a Monkey

J.T. Ferian, male Ork Scout
Navek, male Human Troubadour, married to Allora
Xaolete JRegh, T'Skrang Swordmaster
Vedis, male Dwarf churl, with family

Violo, male Human Nethermancer

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BattleChad
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Re: AAR: Founding of Merrith

Post by BattleChad » Sun Jan 14, 2018 5:15 am

The Great Library of Throal thanks Grom and Ursula for their contributions.

Journal Rewards: 110 Legend Points and 137 Silver

Arikail
Posts:62
Joined:Sat Nov 04, 2017 1:18 pm

Re: AAR: Founding of Merrith

Post by Arikail » Sun Jan 14, 2018 6:52 am

The Founding of Merrith, A Journal Entry by Rilya, Windling Weaponsmith and Nethermancer

An adept by the name of Elora Sundarmer approached me and a few others to see about guard duty for a caravan that wanted to set up a settlement in the kaer that the Cultists of Raggok were in. Going on this adventure with me were Grom, Pethrytholilanista, and Ursula, as well as some other adepts she had hired, Nivek (A Human Troubadour married to Elora), Xoalete Jregh (T'skrang Swordmaster), and J.T. Ferian (Ork Scout). With everyone prepared, we set out.

We did not go to Borgan's Rest as Elora was most interested in getting there as quickly as possible. I made my way around the caravan, learning about the other members that were coming with to set up this settlement. A few low Circle Adepts, and some mundane people for the most part. A good selection set up to establish a thriving community.

As we got settled down one night, an eerie wind came out of nowhere. I was able to determine it was not natural, brought about by some magic, but unsure as to the origin. After getting the wagons circled up for defense, we heard the cry of a child ring out. Elora wanted to send out the other adepts, leaving me and my companions to guard the people here. It didn't sit well with me, nor with some of the others, but she was leading us, so I deferred to her judgement. As time went on and they did not return, we got more and more worried. They did not return by morning, and Elora agreed we could go look for them, but she only gave us half a day to find them.

Setting out, we did find Xoalete, surrounded by others. All of them were wearing some strange masks, masks I had heard about before. Horror items, the masks enabled a form of possession on the subjects, making them immune to pain and fear, and utterly silent. If the masks were removed, they could be saved (Xoalete was the only one who could be saved, the others had been wearing the masks for too long). We did save Xoalete, who explained there was a Nethermancer summoning something nasty in a nearby cave, with his friends. We set out immediately.

Arriving at the cave, we did find the Nethermancer in the middle of summoning ritual, the portal to the planes open and something emerging. As he saw us, he brought up darkness around himself, not hindering Pethrytholilanista and myself, but Ursula and Grom could not see through it. They approached the men wearing masks as the Nethermancer did his summoning. He proved very resistant to our attacks, and I watched as a horrific head and then even more emerged from the portal. I was dropped into unconsciousness as it stepped out of the portal. I hear it slaughter J.T. on the way out into the world, but the Nethermancer survived and was brought back to Throal. We returned the survivors to Elora, and got them set up in the Kaer. It worries me that another horror has entered the world, and I don't know what it has planned. Soon I will have to see if I can find it.

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BattleChad
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Re: AAR: Founding of Merrith

Post by BattleChad » Mon Jan 15, 2018 2:56 am

The Great Library of Throal thanks Rilya for her contributions.

Journal Rewards: 110 Legend Points and 137 Silver

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