Session 68: Cold hearts, burning blood, and juggernauts Report

General Summary

The group awoke in the morning, and prepared thoroughly for the battle to come. Once all was readied (including Boris unintentionally summoning an eight ton pachyderm as a breakfast for the dragon), The Cold Heart of Justice granted a few final boons, then gave Roy a scroll to send them all to the distant dragon lair. Roy read the scroll, and as temporal waves swirled around the group, every person everywhere in the world suddenly fell prone, and the thousands who died as they fell upon deadly threats caused the day to become known throughout the world as "The Day We All Fell Down". The party arrived in a freezing cold ice cave, where the extreme cold immediately caused Jeeves and Roy to become exhausted. In the ice Jeeves noticed footprints leading in, and much farther apart leading out. Roisin Marshfield offered Roy a divine boon that relieved his exhaustion from the cold and enabled him to resist the cold for a short time. Boris suggested moving forward quietly, but Ulfred ignored that and just walked forward before excitedly telling the others he saw the dragon hoard and another tunnel to the right. As the group moved forward the became enthralled with the massive hoard of treasure, coins, gems, and other valuables.

Ulfred noticed there were tracks down the side tunnel, just in time for a Behir to charge forward and launch a lightning bolt at the group, severely injuring everyone except Roisin Marshfield, who dodged the effect. Roy struck the Behir with a strongly empowered and supercharged bolt of magical force that phased through the wall to strike. Ulfred backed up, dodging the Behir's attack, used his mental powers to tear at the weak intellect of the monster, then backed up further, getting too close to the hoard which lashed out so powerfully that it would have killed him outright if Roisin Marshfield had not given a cry of encouragement that enabled him to remain standing. Roisin Marshfield ordered Boris to attack, and Boris struck the hoard with the Might of Borelius, but the impact seemed partly resisted by the immense mass of precious metals. Boris then turned to attack the Behir, rushed up into close range, and tried to strike, but could not connect. Boris conjured a spiritual weapon, and that managed to connect. Jeeves conjured a longbow from his magical hands, fired two arrows, but only one connected. The enchanted hoard then transformed into a whirlwind of coins, chests, bars, and many other valuable items. This whirlwind engulfed the party, and bludgeoned everyone, but Roisin Marshfield dodged it completely, and the rest managed to take some cover from the battering objects. The Behir then attacked Boris, but only struck with a bite. Roy moved around the outer edge of the whirlwind to a better vantage, then conjured living shadows to engulf the Behir, then consumed a magical winter grape. Ulfred teleported out of the maelstrom, moved further away, then attempted to tear at the mind of the construct, and discovered that constructs have no mind to attack. Roisin Marshfield let out a powerful cry of anger, blasting the construct, then rushed out of the maelstrom. Boris moved into a safer position, then threw his hammer at the Behir again, dealing a strong blow, and hammered its skull on the return, then missed with his spiritual weapon. Jeeves then rushed out of the maelstrom, and used Toll the Dead to damage the hoard. The hoard again engulfed the party, Roisin Marshfield dodged entirely with the help of her scarf for the third time, Roy discerned the pattern in the whirlwind and avoided any harm thanks to Ulfred's foresight, and Jeeves predicted the immediate movements, avoiding any damage this time. The Behir's lightning breath recovered, but thanks to Ulfred's foresight it was restrained in Roy 's living shadows, felt its life force begin to leach out into the spell, and thrashed desperately, and unsuccessfully, to break free rather than using its breath to attack. Roy moved out of the hoard maelstrom, fired an ice lance into the hoard, stunning it. Ulfred threw down an origami fist that expanded into an arcane fist the size of a man. Ulfred directed the magic to take hold of the whirlwind and restrain it; succeeding in holding it fast thanks to it's brief stunned condition and the magic of the spell. Roisin Marshfield then moved out of the maelstrom, rallied Roy and Ulfred, healing them a bit, and ordered Roy to attack the whirlwind, which he struck with two beams of arcane force. Boris reacted by throwing his hammer, striking the Behir. Boris then struck the Behir with Might of Borelius, and thanks to Ulfred's foresight the Behir was thrown to the ground with the force of the blow. Boris struck the Behir in the neck with the return strike, and also struck with his spiritual weapon. Jeeves moved out of the maelstrom, prepared to exhaust the creature, and struck with critical accuracy, thoroughly weakening the creature, then struck again for a more normal impact. The hoard returned to a pile of treasure as the whirlwind dissipated, but remained held in place as it recovered from the momentary stunning effect. The Behir was further exhausted by the living shadows, and unable to think with any clarity chose to breath lightning rather than break free. Jeeves predicted the path and dodged out of the way entirely, Roy magically caught the energy of the breath rather than be struck, the magical fist holding the hoard still was destroyed, and the construct was blasted with a massive pulse of energy. Roy released the caught energy as arcane force that destroyed the last of the magic animating the hoard, then fired two blasts of magical force against the trapped and rapidly weakening Behir, striking with both. Ulfred charged in with a scream of rage as Roy exclaimed "You're insane!" and attacked the Behir with a rapier, striking twice, but becoming restrained by the living shadows even as he advised Boris how to better strike the Behir. Roisin Marshfield ordered Roy to attack, and the wizard blasted it twice. Roisin Marshfield then conjured toll the dead, the Behir heard the terrible sound, writhing in pain and horror, unable to get free, the Behir lashed out at the only thing it could harm, swallowing Ulfred, then died. Ulfred, as he was lifted up in the sparking/crackling jaws before being swallowed cried out "I remember! It killed my family!". Roy tried to dispel the Living Shadows so the group could rush in to save their friend, but failed. By the time they were able to get to the Behir and cut the beast open, there simply wasn't anything left. All they were able to recover was a ring of vision that enables seeing the true nature of reality for a short time.

Just as they were freeing up the remains of their friend, another massive creature, emerged from the ice and charged through the group, tearing up the ice floor as it moved. Roy avoided the worst of the impact, but Jeeves managed to dodge completely aside. Roy fired off a cone of acid that severely damaged the beast. Roisin Marshfield ordered Roy to attack, and he tried to toll the dead, but the creature would have resisted if Jeeves had not forseen it. Jeeves tried to fire his bow in coordination, but broke the string and it returned to the hands. Roisin Marshfield then, also tolled the dead, and thanks to her foresight it suffered further injury. Boris moved into the front of the group, then used chains of justice to bind the creature, but although the creature was injured, it turned out to be impossible to restrain. Jeeves moved into position and also tolled the dead, but the creature shook off the effect. The behemoth again charged through the group, Roisin Marshfield completely evaded the assault, Roy dodged some of it, and Boris took the full impact. Roy then launched a time vortex that trapped the behemoth in a swirl of unstable time. Roisin Marshfield threw dust in the air, causing everyone to begin choking. Thanks to Roisin Marshfield's foresight Boris avoided harm, along with the rest of the group, but the behemoth began coughing and choking, unable to breathe and quickly approaching death. Boris summoned an aura of vitality to begin strengthening the group. Jeeves again tried to toll the dead, draining more vitality from the beast, then summoned a pike from his gloves. Thanks to Roisin Marshfield's forsight, the creature continued to suffocate on the magical dust. Roy fired off eldritch blasts, but the magic tore free of his will; thanks to Jeeves foresight Roy managed to maintain the time vortex, however. Roisin Marshfield ordered Boris to attack, but he missed. Boris then tried again to strike, but missed with both attack and return strike. Jeeves tolled the dead, draining more vitality from the beast. The behemoth continued to choke due to Jeeves foresight as Roy 's magic slowed it further. Roy fired a pair of force blasts, connecting with one. Roisin Marshfield moved aside and ordered Boris to attack, but he missed. Boris then used magic to attack again, striking with both initial and return strike, then healed Jeeves a bit. Jeeves started to rush forward, but Roisin Marshfield ordered him to stay back, so he traded pike for dagger. The behemoth finally recovered from its coughing and sneezing fit. Roy fired an ice lance at the creature, learning it was unharmed by cold, but also stunning it for a brief time. Roisin Marshfield threw more dust in the air again causing the behemoth to begin choking. Boris attacked in his usual style, missing on the first strike, but connecting on the return, then healed Jeeves a bit more. Jeeves threw a dagger, but missed. The Behemoth was stunned by the constant shifting time and continued to suffocate. Roy fired another force bolt, tearing a portion of the creature's flesh assunder. Roisin Marshfield consumed a winter grape, then stepped up and slapped the behemoth, shocking it, before stepping back. Boris then threw his hammer again, striking true with both initial and return attacks, then healed Roy slightly. Jeeves conjured the pike again, then prepared to attack if the creature broke free and came close. The behemoth was again stunned by the chaotic flow of time around it. Roy then blasted twice with arcane force, battering it's rapidly weakening body. Roisin Marshfield stepped up, and with a look of sadness laid her hand lightly on the creature's flank, massively electrocuting it and causing a heart attack that finally killed it just as Roy 's time vortex came to an end.

The group took an hour to catch their breath, and Roy then transferred the Behemoth corpse (which was mostly intact) into a freezing pocket dimension with a newly learned spell. Roy then argued that they should go through the hoard to find choice items they might want and bring them back to the dragon rather than "leave the treasure there" as instructed, in hope that they could then keep those items. The party persuaded him to abandon this path, however. Now shivering violently in the terrible cold, Boris read the scroll of Word of Recall to return them to The Cold Heart of Justice's hall. On arrival Boris immediately offered to return the remaining two scrolls he held to the dragon; but she permitted him to keep them. The Cold Heart of Justice, however, did inform Roy that his argument to take treasure items, rather than leave them as instructed, was not in keeping with her strict view of law and order. This meant that while the group had earned assistance, they would not be close associates in the future. The Cold Heart of Justice offered to send them to a place they could not otherwise reach, and asked if Roisin Marshfield wished to find her family, or the retirees and the Ki'Rin.