Re: AAR: Clear as Mud, Monday December 27, 2021, 23:00 GMT / 6:00 PM Eastern
Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2021 6:24 am
From the Journal of one Vargo Tusur Stonebreaker, of Hustane "Clear As Mud"
Adventure!! It calls to many Adepts but little did I realize it would involve so many meetings!
First we gathered at the Ghost Pepper seeking others to join our adventure. Rumor had it that lawyers Gajorvi, Jukse, and Hvordan were seeking Adepts. But TEAMS of Adepts. I ran into Kalandar (a Thief) and Melcar (a Swordmaster) again, worthy Adepts who travelled with me during the late Tassidae Farms unpleasantness! We struck up a quick rapport with new Adepts Valoric (a Gauntlet), Redroum (an Illusionist) and Nyx (a Seeker whose real name is much too long).
We agreed to meet at the Klava Mine shop for pastries and coffee in the morning and then to proceed to the Barristers. I had 2 of their apple peach fruit-stuffed pastries and I daresay mother would be wroth with me. I will soon not be able to fit into my armor.
We met with the lawyer for the House Mikul. They are at odds with House Uraeven. (handout received and attached to this Journal entry).
Nyx was so confident in the lawyer that I immediately was caught up and joined!
A Private investigators gained a lot of information but the things that our boss hold to be true:
1) The McGill Clay Works and their relationship with House Mikul are being affected by direct actions from House Uraeven agents
2) House Mikul wants to keep the high quality clay for their enchanted goods division
3) Rubus McGill recently lost his wife and unborn son
4) Nethermantic reports suggest the wife knows she was poisoned
5) Circumstances suggest it was an agent of House Uraeven who died shortly upon returning to Throal after fleeing the scene of his crime and hiding out for a time
6) Rubus has a daughter "Cricket" who has run off rather than face being married off to Joeffrey Uraeven
7) Joeffrey Uraeven has outlived 4 wives and is known to be abusive towards women, with accusations on record
7) Rubus appeared to be driven by business after the death of his wife and even "mind addled" perhaps by mind altering spells from House Uraeven
Our mission, to get hired at the McGill Clay Works to find young Cricket and bring her to House Mikul for safety - so she won't be married off and any spells over Rubus McGill can be broken!
Looks like I am off to Kampung Gajah again! The now familar trip should be exciting! But no boats this time!
Itinerary:
Throal (43.09) through Bartertown (also 43.09, right outside the gates, well traveled)
From Bartertown take the Via Triolvi west to Juniper Hollow (41.10, about a day, well traveled)
Follow the Via Triolvi south to Clear Creek Crossing (44.12, about four to five days, moderately traveled)
Continue south to Kampung Gajah (44.13, about a day, moderately well traveled)
Follow the ruins of the old Via Caucavic cross country east towards Uzhok Pass (46.12) but leave the old ruined road at the Cairn of Upandal (45.12 before you reach the pass) and take the new track north past the Fire Swamp and around to the the Clay Works (still in 45.12). Beware ROUS!
At Juniper Hollow (which sells veggies to Throal) we asked around after travel conditions and to see if anyone had noted a girl traveling alone. We got little information until Redroum was able to get them talking. Redroum found out that Clear Creek Crossing is building a palisade. To which I was able to find out more information in Clear Creek Crossing. They are adapting old Kaer technologies to create a palisade to retreat to if necessary. One of the now retired Council is well known to have visions of accurate nature. She said "The bugs are crawling, the bugs are crawling, the bugs are crawling" and said they needed to build these walls. Given our experience at Tassiddae Farm I am apt to believe her. I will make sure this information gets passed on to anyone I can involved in settlement defenses.
In Kampung Gajah we saw another band (sadly not the elvish lasses from last time) called Dead Fish Stinkin' and they were made up of t'skrang and humans. It was true swamp-band music and very entertaining! There I met some t'skrang mystics and their guardsmen. They were brought to discuss the Shrine to Upandal near Uzhok Pass. The mystics are discussing a "river of astral energy that is coming down from there" and that the Shrine must be preserved. It must be "stitched", having to stitch astral space. That area once held a Shrine to Roshomon (now the Mad Passion Raggok) and the Cult of the Scourge brought an army through there. This adds to information we had from our trip to Tassidae Farm. That beneath the stones of that place there is something buried. A river of astral. They most likely are related.
We also learned that something is stirring up the Fire Swamp. At first we thought maybe Cricket was doing it, she is supposed to be the ancestor of a powerful Elementalist but this is purely conjecture.
Passing towards the Clay Works we came close to the Shrine to Upandal and I saw a message in runes the others did not see. "If your free will was a needle and your consciousness was guiding a hand doing the stitching then this pass must be preserved." There was a gate and protruding stone arching from the ground with tips that glow. This is a much greater mystery!
We also noted that someone has been making excellent (almost Dwarf-efficient) updates to the road to the Clay Works.
We fought some dangerous swamp rodents, and I again must say that my weapon skills leave much to be desired! I must redouble my efforts or risk endangering my companions. Watching Nyx in battle was eye-opening - just single handedly destroying creature after creature! Our new friends fought well, no one broke and we survived to live and fight another day!
At the Clay Works we met Master Rubus and were served by his servant Sebas. Therein we also met Joeffrey Uraeven and his higher Circle Adept bodyguards who were almost magically hidden from us. But my perception exercises have paid off and we saw them. Rubus didn't even recognize his own daughter's name. Obviously under a spell!
We received all the maps of where she might have run to and together with the group and my Navigation skills and charts I was able to break it down into the most likely areas that were unsearched. We made it away from Joeffrey and his men and into the Fire Swamp!
Attacked by muckers (vile mud creatures with maggots on them) we eventually came across a creature, the Lady of Shackles (a woman with glowing wood bracelets glowing with energy) tell Christine "Cricket" that we were there to take her back! In her shadow was Cricket! Somehow they were entwined, overlapping spirits! Also there was some form of horrific creature also telling her not to go back and to join it - perhaps in some perversion of marriage!
My guess is that Cricket had somehow become the Lady of Shackles but was also being corrupted by a horrific spirit.
As we fought yet another beautiful woman appeared and told Cricket that life was about forgiveness and letting go of pain. During this fight the muckers were dropping magical artifacts that were somehow tied to a ward! Once we were able to solve the ward the horrific creature tackled the Lady of Shackles (and Cricket!) through the gate where a fight ensued.
Forgiveness wins out and Cricket won't be married to anyone and blasts the Lady of Shackles into rocks which creates a new Shrine to Jaspree! Cricket becomes the Lady of the Fire Swamp!!! We get knocked out of the swamp and fully healed for our help! The swamp is now very vibrant with LIFE and True Earth, Wood, and Water were being reported.
Truly this was a day of miracles but there are still so many questions! But for now our mission complete we return to the barristers for our just reward. Cricket was found(?), Rubus is healed, and Joeffrey is not seen in the Uraeven compound for some time, obviously under some form of punishment.
This region is rich with stories and adventures. I must learn more about these shrines and this "river" of Astral energy. And "stitching". Perhaps a journey to meet the mystics of the t'skrang is in order.
Adventure!! It calls to many Adepts but little did I realize it would involve so many meetings!
First we gathered at the Ghost Pepper seeking others to join our adventure. Rumor had it that lawyers Gajorvi, Jukse, and Hvordan were seeking Adepts. But TEAMS of Adepts. I ran into Kalandar (a Thief) and Melcar (a Swordmaster) again, worthy Adepts who travelled with me during the late Tassidae Farms unpleasantness! We struck up a quick rapport with new Adepts Valoric (a Gauntlet), Redroum (an Illusionist) and Nyx (a Seeker whose real name is much too long).
We agreed to meet at the Klava Mine shop for pastries and coffee in the morning and then to proceed to the Barristers. I had 2 of their apple peach fruit-stuffed pastries and I daresay mother would be wroth with me. I will soon not be able to fit into my armor.
We met with the lawyer for the House Mikul. They are at odds with House Uraeven. (handout received and attached to this Journal entry).
Nyx was so confident in the lawyer that I immediately was caught up and joined!
A Private investigators gained a lot of information but the things that our boss hold to be true:
1) The McGill Clay Works and their relationship with House Mikul are being affected by direct actions from House Uraeven agents
2) House Mikul wants to keep the high quality clay for their enchanted goods division
3) Rubus McGill recently lost his wife and unborn son
4) Nethermantic reports suggest the wife knows she was poisoned
5) Circumstances suggest it was an agent of House Uraeven who died shortly upon returning to Throal after fleeing the scene of his crime and hiding out for a time
6) Rubus has a daughter "Cricket" who has run off rather than face being married off to Joeffrey Uraeven
7) Joeffrey Uraeven has outlived 4 wives and is known to be abusive towards women, with accusations on record
7) Rubus appeared to be driven by business after the death of his wife and even "mind addled" perhaps by mind altering spells from House Uraeven
Our mission, to get hired at the McGill Clay Works to find young Cricket and bring her to House Mikul for safety - so she won't be married off and any spells over Rubus McGill can be broken!
Looks like I am off to Kampung Gajah again! The now familar trip should be exciting! But no boats this time!
Itinerary:
Throal (43.09) through Bartertown (also 43.09, right outside the gates, well traveled)
From Bartertown take the Via Triolvi west to Juniper Hollow (41.10, about a day, well traveled)
Follow the Via Triolvi south to Clear Creek Crossing (44.12, about four to five days, moderately traveled)
Continue south to Kampung Gajah (44.13, about a day, moderately well traveled)
Follow the ruins of the old Via Caucavic cross country east towards Uzhok Pass (46.12) but leave the old ruined road at the Cairn of Upandal (45.12 before you reach the pass) and take the new track north past the Fire Swamp and around to the the Clay Works (still in 45.12). Beware ROUS!
At Juniper Hollow (which sells veggies to Throal) we asked around after travel conditions and to see if anyone had noted a girl traveling alone. We got little information until Redroum was able to get them talking. Redroum found out that Clear Creek Crossing is building a palisade. To which I was able to find out more information in Clear Creek Crossing. They are adapting old Kaer technologies to create a palisade to retreat to if necessary. One of the now retired Council is well known to have visions of accurate nature. She said "The bugs are crawling, the bugs are crawling, the bugs are crawling" and said they needed to build these walls. Given our experience at Tassiddae Farm I am apt to believe her. I will make sure this information gets passed on to anyone I can involved in settlement defenses.
In Kampung Gajah we saw another band (sadly not the elvish lasses from last time) called Dead Fish Stinkin' and they were made up of t'skrang and humans. It was true swamp-band music and very entertaining! There I met some t'skrang mystics and their guardsmen. They were brought to discuss the Shrine to Upandal near Uzhok Pass. The mystics are discussing a "river of astral energy that is coming down from there" and that the Shrine must be preserved. It must be "stitched", having to stitch astral space. That area once held a Shrine to Roshomon (now the Mad Passion Raggok) and the Cult of the Scourge brought an army through there. This adds to information we had from our trip to Tassidae Farm. That beneath the stones of that place there is something buried. A river of astral. They most likely are related.
We also learned that something is stirring up the Fire Swamp. At first we thought maybe Cricket was doing it, she is supposed to be the ancestor of a powerful Elementalist but this is purely conjecture.
Passing towards the Clay Works we came close to the Shrine to Upandal and I saw a message in runes the others did not see. "If your free will was a needle and your consciousness was guiding a hand doing the stitching then this pass must be preserved." There was a gate and protruding stone arching from the ground with tips that glow. This is a much greater mystery!
We also noted that someone has been making excellent (almost Dwarf-efficient) updates to the road to the Clay Works.
We fought some dangerous swamp rodents, and I again must say that my weapon skills leave much to be desired! I must redouble my efforts or risk endangering my companions. Watching Nyx in battle was eye-opening - just single handedly destroying creature after creature! Our new friends fought well, no one broke and we survived to live and fight another day!
At the Clay Works we met Master Rubus and were served by his servant Sebas. Therein we also met Joeffrey Uraeven and his higher Circle Adept bodyguards who were almost magically hidden from us. But my perception exercises have paid off and we saw them. Rubus didn't even recognize his own daughter's name. Obviously under a spell!
We received all the maps of where she might have run to and together with the group and my Navigation skills and charts I was able to break it down into the most likely areas that were unsearched. We made it away from Joeffrey and his men and into the Fire Swamp!
Attacked by muckers (vile mud creatures with maggots on them) we eventually came across a creature, the Lady of Shackles (a woman with glowing wood bracelets glowing with energy) tell Christine "Cricket" that we were there to take her back! In her shadow was Cricket! Somehow they were entwined, overlapping spirits! Also there was some form of horrific creature also telling her not to go back and to join it - perhaps in some perversion of marriage!
My guess is that Cricket had somehow become the Lady of Shackles but was also being corrupted by a horrific spirit.
As we fought yet another beautiful woman appeared and told Cricket that life was about forgiveness and letting go of pain. During this fight the muckers were dropping magical artifacts that were somehow tied to a ward! Once we were able to solve the ward the horrific creature tackled the Lady of Shackles (and Cricket!) through the gate where a fight ensued.
Forgiveness wins out and Cricket won't be married to anyone and blasts the Lady of Shackles into rocks which creates a new Shrine to Jaspree! Cricket becomes the Lady of the Fire Swamp!!! We get knocked out of the swamp and fully healed for our help! The swamp is now very vibrant with LIFE and True Earth, Wood, and Water were being reported.
Truly this was a day of miracles but there are still so many questions! But for now our mission complete we return to the barristers for our just reward. Cricket was found(?), Rubus is healed, and Joeffrey is not seen in the Uraeven compound for some time, obviously under some form of punishment.
This region is rich with stories and adventures. I must learn more about these shrines and this "river" of Astral energy. And "stitching". Perhaps a journey to meet the mystics of the t'skrang is in order.