2023-11-28 Lost on the Path to Morningshade

• Date: 2023-11-28
• Region: Solaki
• Session #: 60

Player Characters

• Mac
• Alan
• Flint Bogtock
• Fredrin & Beverin
• Ferravax

Summary

The party met in the tavern in Breezeville while looking for work.

Ferravax noticed a man eavesdropping as they discussed the job about people disappearing on the road to Morningshade City. She sat down at his table to talk to him.

The man introduced himself as Akari, a farmer, and offered assistance if they accompanied him outside and paid a small fee. Alan offered to give him the blessing of the sun as payment instead.

They followed him into a shady alley nearby, with old crates and boarded up doors and windows.

Akari chanted and granted Alan a blessing of chance for his next journey. Alan made a show of giving a blessing to Akari that would supposedly help his crops grow.

Flint intimidated Akari into giving up more information. He admitted he was a servant of House Lukata, the now-disgraced noble house of Solaki that called Breezeville its home. He chose this shady location for fear of persecution. The farmer left in a hurry afterward.

Searching the alley, Flint found an old standard bearing the insignia of House Lukata.

Mack used detect magic to see if the blessings were real. A small amount of divination circled both Alan and Akari (though Akari's blessing was the cause of both).

Fredrin found a wanted poster depicting some of the missing persons from the road to Morningshade, as well as the reward for a solution.

Flint visited Breezeville Haverdashery next door, where zealous gnomes tried to sell him questionably fashionable clothing.

Ferravax and Fredrin spoke to the town guard about borrowing a cart and drafthorse. They convinced the guards to lend them, with a penalty from the bounty if they were not returned afterward.

Flint, Mac, and Alan went to the local pawn shop. Flint bought a 30gp fake gold bracelet, and Mac tried to get the shopkeeper to throw in a magic item that was also for sale, but the shopkeeper refused. Flint showed the flag, which the shopkeeper laughed at, saying it was barely useful as toilet paper.

The PCs gathered and took to the road, squeezing into the card. Flint attached the flag to the back, dragging it behind.

They passed a guarded merchant cart. The guards knew about the recent disappearances on the road and distrusted the party, but laughted when they saw the Lukata flag being dragged in the dirt.

A day later, a group of people armored in bark and green plant-based clothing stepped out of the foliage near the road, stopping the party. Tree cookie amulets depicting a tree inside a shield identified them as members of a gang called the Children of Nature. They demanded the horse "slave" be set free, and any metal forfeited. Alan pretended to acquiesce, approaching the leader to forfeit his rapier. Then, he threw it in the air and caught it by the handle, and proceeded to stab as a fight broke out.

Two of the Children's rogues escaped, three were knocked out, and one surrendered. The party interrogated him, but he didn't seem to know anything useful. He knew the Children had a camp nearby where travelers were held on trial for the crimes, but wouldn't give the way to it. The party tied up all the captives and took a rest.

While the PCs recuperated, one thug awoke. He claimed to be a spy named Daiki, who wanted to know why the Children of Nature are in Solaki, as the gang hailed all the way from the Spiritwood. He offered information and a reward if the PCs could help him figure out what they were after, how they got here, and who they were working with/for.

Daiki described the layout of the enemy camp: cages in one area, cots and tents in another, supplies and weapons in a different section, and finally the stone amphitheater where trials were held, with a large campfire in the center of it all. Patrols walked around the camp in a circle.

The PCs followed Daiki to the campsite, where they saw the layout he described, complete with cages containg twelve people. Daiki entered the camp and tricked a group of thugs into leaving by requesting reinforcements back at the road.

Fredrin and Mac snuck up to the cages to set the prisoners free, but were caught by some of the Children of Nature. A battle ensued.

During the battle, Mac freed prisoners, one of which helped fight, but was killed for it.

Flint ignited nearby plants to create a diversion. When reinforcements came, they focused on the flames rather than the fight. Flint managed to chop a burning tree down with his greatsword, dropping it onto one of the enemy druid.

They saw the floating hammock among the cot area, and took the floating stick that supported one end of it, which turned out to be an immovable rod. After freeing the prisoners, the party tied up the leader of the gang and fled back toward the road themselves.

On the way back, they passed the deceived reinforcements from earlier, who saw smoke from the campsite. Alan tricked them into continuing on, leaving the party in peace.

While camping a ways down the road that night, the party was rejoined by Daiki.

In the morning, the PCs interrogated Teren, the leader of the sect of the Children of Nature. They had trouble getting her to talk, but Mac was able to charm person her after multiple attempts. She divulged that a group called the Golden Bulwark had escorted the Children from the Spiritwood across the Haunted Realm, and had asked them to help defend the spirits in the area. She indicated that House Vlommengar's pollution was the main focus, but that the gang decided to stop and punish random travelers they had met who affronted nature by enslaving horses and wearing/carrying metal.

The party marched to Kumastead, home of House Modus. They turned Teren in at Fort Kuma for the promised bounty. Daiki doubled the reward as he had promised, and invited the party to visit Port Saru, home of House Niyataru. He mentioned that Niyataru members were known to be actors and spies, among other things, and Ferravax picked up on the hint.

While the party did not make it all the way to Morningshade, they did resolve the disappearances on the road, securing travel in the area.