Storm's A-Comin'
The Sea Near The Gales
17,481 ACP A lone tiefling sits in a ship's cabin, clay tablets stacked in front of him, his hands moving as fast as possible to carve the words into them. Rain pounds against the windows and the occasional lights up the otherwise candlelit room. There's a knock on the door, but he does not answer. There's no time. He must finish writing. He must finish his story. Even if that story is lost to the bottom of the ocean. As long as it exists, someone may find it. Someone must find it. People must know what happened to the Heartlands.
Location: The Wreckage - Unknown
Session Tags: moderate combat, light exploration, (mostly) lighthearted
Date: 07/23/996 Aboard The Unnamed Ship That Has Recently Left The Gales It's been raining for three days now, and a lot of the time it seems like there's just as much water on deck as there is in the ocean. The waves toss the boat around, causing it to veer off course. There's land in the distance. It's still far away, but they can make it. The wind's in that direction anyway, and if the waves cooperate just a little bit... The next morning, a partially-splintered ship rests on the beach, its crew coming to and rubbing their eyes. Land... Unfamiliar land. They made it. Summary
After waking up shipwrecked on an unfamiliar beach, not entirely sure where they were, different groups took different approaches. Arakainos flew up on Taliwen to get a bird's eye view of the surroundings, then flew back down to inform HuSH, Gregor, and Liu what he had seen--something that might be the ship in the distance, and an unfamiliar person waiting nearby. They all went over to the person, who introduced herself as Ripple, here to welcome them to the Wreckage. She already knew about them, and it soon became clear that was due to her connection to Entropy. Ripple confirmed that she was fairly certain no one was dead, and the group started towards the ship. On the way, they ran into some very large crabs, who were dispatched with relative ease. Meat from the crabs was collected for food. After the fight, Ripple suggested that she should be going to check on others. Before she left, the group asked her for some information on other people she knew, which she divulged. She then disappeared into the ocean, and the group continued on their way to the ship. Meanwhile, at the other end of the beach, Dan used his primeval awareness to locate other people. He, Ernest, Ballad, Siora, and snap made their way to a small group of stragglers who were far away from anyone else, where they found Esther. Once they had grouped up, they made their way towards everyone else. On the way, however, they were also attacked by crabs. They dealt with the crabs easily for the most part, except for Dan falling unconscious (due to his own hubris). Once the fight was over, they noticed that someone else was there--a water genasi who introduced herself as Ripple. Once again, Ripple clearly knew about them all already due to Entropy. She seemed rather pleased to meet them, especially Dan, who she claimed was essentially her little brother due to their shared connection with the entity known as Eris. The group traveled to the ship together, also bringing crab meat for food. Ripple accompanied them, answering the group's questions about herself, Eris, and their current location as best she could. She quickly became something of a mentor figure to both snap and Dan. Both groups found half of a stone tablet near the ship (the first by Liu looking for firewood and the second by Brio eating sand), which told the first part of a story written by someone who was apparently from the Gales before the apocalypse. This is now the first lead to learning more about what happened during that event.
Location: The Wreckage - Tibuebos
Session Tags: heavy combat, moderate exploration
Content Warnings: spiders
Date: 07/30/996 Around A Market In Tibuebos "What's that you said? Lookin' for some sorta weird goings-on? Well, you either came to exactly the right place or the totally wrong place. Weird shit happens around this area all the time. Take Kellen over there, for example. Man disappears for three days, we assume he's drowned or been eaten or something, then he pops back up babnlin' about monsters way deep down. Wouldn't believe him, except people have been goin' missin' in that area more lately, so who knows. Could really be a- Hey, where're you goin'?" Summary
At the request of Kotenn, the party took on a mission to discover the entity behind recent disappearances in the sea nearby Tibuebos. They first went into town and questioned Kellen, the individual said to have seen whatever monster was responsible for these disappearances. He was clearly a bit spooked from the encounter, but was able to provide some useful information. The party then split into two groups. The first went to a temple, where they were told about many local sea legends, including those of the mulgwishin, bakekujira, and umibozu, undead creatures thought to prowl the Wreckage's deadly seas. The second group went to a store that was most definitely not a Bass Pro Shop, where they discovered a rather unsettling atmosphere and almost cult-like loyalty program. Dan signed up for the loyalty program under Lukan's name. Eventually, the party set out to the location of the disappearances. As they swam down into a trench, they came upon a small spider who seemed to be living there. Jiang was able to identify it as an infant trench spider, a species of arachnid which often grows to fill the trench they reside in. Soon after learning this information, the party was engaged in combat by the mother trench spider. Though they sustained heavy injuries, and Ballad's magic was suppressed leading to a close call with drowning, they were victorious. At the bottom of the trench, they found a number of shiny items, as well as another tablet from the story of Reverence.
Location: The Wreckage - Dal Nordrird
Session Tags: medium stakes social, games and competitions
Date: 08/29/996 Aboard The (Mostly) Repaired Ship The door to the captain's quarters slams open and a loud bell starts ringing. "Okay, okay, okay! Everyone important, gather up! I have news! In a week and a half, some of the tribes in Dal Nordrird will be having their shared market, and supposedly there'll be a merchant there who specializes in rare items recovered from shipwrecks! So, seeing how things have been going, I want you all to get out there and see if they've got anything useful to us! And maybe do some other shopping while you're at it, our food stores are running low after most of it ended up at the bottom of the ocean. Have fun!" Summary
Summoning the party to the deck, Kotenn informed them about a market in Dal Nordrird where several orc tribes trade their wares, and specifically one merchant who might know something about the stone tablets. The party was given a catalog for the market and sent on their way. Not long after arriving, a person at one of the stands mistook HuSH for Zholl, goddess of flowers. HuSH went along with it, and was given a detailed map of the market. During this time, Ernest went to take a look around and found a merchant who was in fact selling one of the stone tablets. He made conversation with the stall worker for a while, until eventually a more knowledgeable worker returned. HuSH, Ballad, and Liu caught up with Ernest and engaged in some acting to get a reasonable price for the tablet. Many other purchases were made, including: several hot dogs, various food items (such as a significant quantity of oranges acquired by Gregor via an incredible display of arm wrestling), and a few glass shinies, purchased from a merchant who seemed to have a bit of a vendetta against Zholl. The party eventually ran into Kotenn, who was leaving very quickly after accidentally breaking someone's arm. The party stayed for a bit, but left soon after, now in possession of new useful items.
Location: The Wreckage - Halitus
Session Tags: medium-stakes social, moderate combat
Content Warnings: potential mind woogidy
Date: 09/15/996 Around The Streets Of Halitus "Stone tablets, you say? That might have been washed up or lost at sea somewhere? Well, I don't know much about that, but I'm an inlander. Why don't you try going out to Fishtail Bay? The ones there know everything about what goes on in deep sea waters. I'm sure they could be of some help. Be careful, though, they can be a bit touchy." Summary
In the wee hours of the morning, Kotenn summoned the party to the deck of the ship and told them that she was sending them to Fishtail Bay, where there may be individuals who knew about the stone tablets. The party set out and soon discovered that the inhabitants of Fishtail Bay were mermaids. They first met Meris, a ditzy mermaid who continuously forgot why the party was there. She vaguely mentioned that most mermaids in the waters around the bay did not drown people, and those who did were exiled. They reached the mercity, where Meris took them to see Lana, the mermaid in charge. Lana's "office" was very cluttered, so the party, especially Ernest, spent some time helping her organize. She told them about two mermaids, Sereia and Alva, who had been exiled due to drowning humanoids, Alva for fun and Sereia to build a ghost army. The party was somewhat alarmed by this and offered their assistance, which Lana accepted. The party set out to find the outcast mermaids. They were able to find the lair without much trouble, but were spotted on their initial scouting mission. Combat ensued and was severely damaging to the party, but once again, they prevailed. With the outcast mermaids vanquished, they returned to Lana, who gave them a stone tablet she had found, several trinkets, and a stake in the Fishtail Bay economy.
Location: The Wreckage - Kelkrye
Session Tags: heavy combat, moderate exploration
Date: 10/12/996 In A Popular Café In Kelkrye "Four ships just this past week. I mean really, I'm running low on supplies because of this! All of my fruits are imported, if this keeps up I'm going to have to take the berry tarts off the menu!" "I feel you there. Last night I went by Sal's, and it says it's closed temporarily until a supply ship makes it." "What we ever did to make the ocean mad is beyond me. But no point fussing, I guess. Ain't no one dumb enough to go yell at it." Summary
Kotenn woke the party slightly less early this time to inform them that she needed people to go yell at the ocean, and potentially fight a monster as well. After some questioning, which Kotenn had few answers to, the party split into three groups. HuSH and Arakainos went to a tavern at the docks and talked to Gordon, a ship's captain who was able to give them a few answers about the recent disappearances of ships. Ballad and Liu went to the café where Kotenn had overheard people talking about the issue and questioned the people there, getting some answers as well. Neither group got detailed information, however, as there were no known survivors. Dan and T'kuva went to yell at the ocean. Upon doing so, a child washed up on shore, barely alive. Dan was able to determine that they had been saved by Eris. The group reconvened at the café and discussed their findings. Based on their information, they deduced that the creature was most likely an umibozu, which some of the party had heard about from a temple in Tibuebos. They left the child with Ripple and headed off. The party was, unfortunately, ambushed by the umibozu, which dealt a devastating blow to Liu. The injury would have been fatal had it not been for Eris' blessing. The party proceeded to attack the umibozu in return. They once again sustained heavy injuries, but managed to survive the fight and destroy the umibozu. They searched the wreck of ships below the surface and found a number of interesting items, as well as another stone tablet... Coincidentally right where they needed it to be.
Location: The Wreckage - Anadeia
Session Tags: high-stakes social, moderate exploration
Date: 11/22/996 Aboard The Unnamed Ship From The Gales A crew member peers out from the crow's nest, spotting a speck in the distance. "Land ho!" they call down to the rest of the crew. They pull out their spyglass to take a closer look at the approaching land and frown upon seeing the abandoned ruins that line the coast. An eerie wind blows through the sails and they shudder. "Sure glad it ain't my job to go ashore." Summary
After a discussion about their current location, the party sent scouts ahead to investigate what appeared to be an abandoned city. The report back revealed that most of the city was in some amount of disrepair, and the streets were covered in a thick layer of dust. The party went ashore and examined the dust, determining it was human ash in time to stop Brio from eating any of it. They set about exploring the village and trying to figure out what happened. Siora determined that it was most likely an incredibly powerful blast, which instantly disintegrated any people in the area. As the party investigated, they noticed flashes of movement. Liu's familiar was able to find the source--an elven woman bearing symbology Siora had seen back home in her druid circle. They sent Ernest in to talk to her, and though she was resistant, she eventually agreed to tell him her story. She revealed that millennia ago, when Anadeia was still fighting for its independence, the Silenean Empire came to the village seeking a powerful artifact they possessed. Rather than let the Empire take the artifact, she used it to lure the Sileneans in and destroy them--along with the village. After she and Ernest discussed the story for a time, the rest of the party joined them. She and HuSH immediately got off on the wrong foot, but the rest of the party got along well with her and asked her several questions, especially about her symbols. When they realized she was most likely a previous Child of Fire, they asked her questions about the prophecy, which eventually led to the confirmation that Siora was the new Child of Fire and Ballad was most likely the new Child of Memory. The woman also revealed how her loop of the prophecy had ended: the Grandchild of Darkness was assassinated by a Silenean. She also revealed that they thought they had found the Wandering Child, but when that person died and the prophecy did not reset, they realized they were wrong. Further questioning let the party know that the prophecy children are sometimes connected between loops by mundane things, such as their favorite fruit. Eventually, the woman gave Siora the artifact, the party as a whole a stone tablet, and a few items to help the party in the future.
Location: The Wreckage - Kalmarsa
Session Tags: heavy combat, light exploration
Date: 12/28/996 Pinned To The Mast Of The Unnamed Ship From The Gales Hello, dearies! Did you miss me? I hear you've all been rather busy lately! I hope you don't mind me popping in to give you a bit of advice, hm? If you're looking for where things end up--or where certain entities might be interested in making things show up--try Kalmarsa. The waters in the area are simply filled with pretty trinkets and fun discoveries that never quite made it to the resorts there. You're welcome, and I'm sure you'll be seeing me again soon! - E Summary
Having received an assignment from everyone's favorite criminal Entropy, the party set out to explore Kalmarsa. snap stayed on the boat to set up for a sleepover before heading out on the mission the next day, while Ernest, HuSH, and Ballad headed into town. Ernest and HuSH presented themselves as a businessman and his son and joined one of the resort tours, specifically aimed at local ghost legends. While most of the tour was fabricated, they did discover that the legend of a group that went out to sea to kill a whale and never returned was true, and that ever since then, ships, especially fishing vessels, have occasionally disappeared in that area. At the end of the tour, they stopped in a gift shop, where HuSH tried to talk down the price of a very expensive trinket. It didn't work very well, and the pair left--only to run into Entropy, who had "bought" the trinket for them. They mentioned the sleepover to her, and she invited herself along. Meanwhile, Ballad attempted to do some shopping and discovered the horrors of overpriced resort towns. They managed to disguise themself as a service worker and find the cheap hidden shops not targeted towards rich tourists. Back on the ship, snap's efforts gained the attention of both Siora and Arakainos. They joined the sleepover, and the rest of the party returned to the ship. They started the sleepover with a pillow fight, discussed the mission, and then decided to play Truth or Dare. Truth or Dare highlights:
Ernest and Ballad being slowly shoved together by Entropy
Siora getting an answer of "Eisna" after asking Entropy who her first crush was
Ballad daring Ernest to kiss the person to his left (which was Ballad)
snap daring everyone to play pattycake with snap
HuSH unsurprisingly never picking Truth
Arakainos talking about rumors people have spread about him
Siora electing to eat an entire horseradish rather than get a tramp stamp
Eventually, the party dared Entropy to deal with the problem for them, which she did. The party minus snap came along to watch, and found a hoard of stuffed animals and another convenient stone tablet.
Location: The Wreckage - Aubron
Session Tags: medium stakes social, moderate combat
Content Warnings: may include mentions of abuse and neglect; may include religious fanaticism and ineffectual guilt-tripping
Date: 1/19/997 Just Off Shore, Far Away From The Unnamed Ship From The Gales A black-haired woman sits atop the water, seemingly staring at nothing. She frowns, as if noticing something undesirable, and her legs fall beneath the waves. "Not quite yet, I don't think. There's still more to do." The current in the water changes, and with it the direction of the wind. A speck appears just over the horizon, a ship nearly ripping over at the sudden change in direction. The frown is replaced by a smile, and the wind on either side of the ship changes again, bringing the ship into a tunnel leading it to shore. Meanwhile on the ship, a half-orc shakes in annoyance as she starts to notice something falling from the sky--not rain, as she's grown used to, but ash, caught in the strange new wind currents. The faint smell of sulfur breezes over the ship, and the wind and water carry the ship towards a towering smoky mountain. Summary
As the ship approached a volcano, the party was summoned to the deck. Dan immediately recognized the volcano as the one he was thrown into (albeit ineffectively) as a child, near where his biological family lived. He flew ahead with HuSH and Hum, while the others followed from more of a distance. When they arrived in town, Dan demanded to see one of the elders, but was instead greeted by his biological father, who was promptly shot in the leg. His biological mother also attempted to speak to him, but Dan shot her as well, killing her instantly. Dan's father experienced a much slower death, being interrogated by Dan and HuSH and subsequently slowly lowered into lava. As Dan went to the village hall to burn it down and smoke out the elders, the rest of the town was rounded up and asked a series of questions to determine if they were good people. Most of them were not. Dan returned with the elders and told them to choose one to be sacrificed. They chose Hortensia, the newest elder, and Funk killed all the elders except Hortensia. Dan then told the adults to decide whether to have their kids sacrificed or sacrifice themselves. Except for Hortensia, all the adults chose to sacrifice their children. HuSH led the children away while Dan shot the adults who thought it was a good idea to try to save themselves by offering up their kids. Gregor, and later others, looted the town. The kids and Hortensia were brought back to the ship. They went to see where Funk was born, then attempted to communicate with the volcano, which was unfortunately just a volcano and unable to communicate. They continued to not find a stone tablet until they returned, when Dan found two separate tablets in his room: one an entry in the Tale of Reverence, and one a map with the words "I'll be waiting" on the back.
Location: The Wreckage - Eheron
Session Tags: heavy combat, possibility for high-stakes social
Date: 2/5/997 At The Docks In Eheron "Eh, it's just a local legend, really. You think stuff that sinks to the bottom of the see just sits there? 'Course not. Doesn't sink for no reason either. It's a toll for the ocean lord. They say he lives in the deep ocean, hiding under what's all covering the ocean floor. Anything you're looking for, he's probably got it. Careful though. I hear he can be a mite annoyed at those who wake him up." Summary
Upon receiving word from Kotenn that an entity known as the Collector may be in the area, the party made plans to investigate. Kotenn was, as usual, unhelpful, so HuSH, Dan, and Blue went to a temple to ask questions. They walked in on a funeral, to which Dan decided the only correct response was to disguise himself as the deceased. This caused much chaos, and Dan may have started a new religion based around guns being either a weapon of or conduit for the spirit world. This will have no consequences. None at all. HuSH, meanwhile, went into a confessional and spent a good while listing the infinite mistakes he thinks he's made. Eventually, he asked the priest some questions about the Collector, who he learned was considered by many in the area to be a god who collects tolls from those who sail through his waters--usually part of a merchant's stock or some such. Blue also took a look at the shrines to Taleyar and Chyrlathyn. Liu went to a local library to read up about the Collector. She was able to find a journal written by a merchant who once encountered the entity he believed to be the Collector, whose name was Kravedazox. Back on the ship, Siora gathered trinkets from the mermaids to bring as offerings. The party reconvened and HuSH and Liu discussed the possibility of Kravedazox being Eris' brother. Finally, they made their way into the deep ocean, having decided to attempt to speak to Kravedazox before fighting him. The party did manage to wake Kravedazox up, though he wasn't too pleased about it. HuSH and Siora spoke to him first about needing something from him in order to be successful at a very important task. This task was later revealed to be solving the Prophecy of Children, which Kravedazox was familiar with. Kravedazox also asked the rest of the party why they were there, and got varying answers, such as "it was interesting" (Dan, Blue, and Gregor), "vacation" (Gregor), and "babysitting" (Liu). Liu also said that she was looking for something, but would be satisfied to just make a copy of it. Kravedazox was very skeptical of the party's ability to solve the prophecy. In fact, he seemed rather convinced that they would fail. HuSH and Siora gave a number of reasons why they could succeed, which Kravedazox was not entirely in agreement with, but he was eventually convinced not to just kill them to stop them from trying. The party was shown to where they could find the tablet, as well as a number of other things, and Kravedazox also gave them a couple of items he thought they might find useful. The party asked several questions, especially about Taleyar, Chyrlathyn, Eris, and Eris' brother, whose name they discovered to be Espen. HuSH also asked a couple questions about Alphosces. When they returned to the ship, Blue asked HuSH and Liu to explain what they knew. HuSH, not very inclined to do so, instead went into the city. Liu stayed and filled the others in on some of her information.
Location: The Wreckage - Aubron
Session Tags: high-stakes social
Date: 3/11/997 Approaching A Small Island Off The Coast Of Aubron "That's where we're going, right?" "That's what the captain said." "Doesn't look like much." The ship pitches a bit as the currents swirl around it, spinning it in almost two full circles before the crew manages to push through and maintain their heading. "... I never should have taken this job." Summary
The party finally reached the Clan of Eris! Dan zoomed ahead and encountered Alice, a member of the Clan, who was delighted to meet him and took him to meet the Clan's leader. The others also arrived, and were similarly greeted enthusiastically. They met Eleanor, the Clan leader, who took them on a tour of the town including seeing a memorial for all the Clan members who have died, mostly in absolutely dumbass ways. As they were talking, another member came and collected Dan to meet Eris on a cloud. They talked for a while, and Dan received the Cloak of Eris. Meanwhile, Ernest found some gorgeous flowers. HuSH collected some of the flowers, and now there are pretty flowers! The party then talked to Eris briefly and requested her assistance entreating with Chyrlathyn. She offered them what she referred to as an "olive branch"--half of a broken amulet, identified as part of one of the prophetic artifacts. The party then engaged in much socializing with each other and the Clan of Eris.
17,481 ACP A lone tiefling sits in a ship's cabin, clay tablets stacked in front of him, his hands moving as fast as possible to carve the words into them. Rain pounds against the windows and the occasional lights up the otherwise candlelit room. There's a knock on the door, but he does not answer. There's no time. He must finish writing. He must finish his story. Even if that story is lost to the bottom of the ocean. As long as it exists, someone may find it. Someone must find it. People must know what happened to the Heartlands.
Session One: Welcome to the Wreckage!
PC Level: 8Location: The Wreckage - Unknown
Session Tags: moderate combat, light exploration, (mostly) lighthearted
Date: 07/23/996 Aboard The Unnamed Ship That Has Recently Left The Gales It's been raining for three days now, and a lot of the time it seems like there's just as much water on deck as there is in the ocean. The waves toss the boat around, causing it to veer off course. There's land in the distance. It's still far away, but they can make it. The wind's in that direction anyway, and if the waves cooperate just a little bit... The next morning, a partially-splintered ship rests on the beach, its crew coming to and rubbing their eyes. Land... Unfamiliar land. They made it. Summary
After waking up shipwrecked on an unfamiliar beach, not entirely sure where they were, different groups took different approaches. Arakainos flew up on Taliwen to get a bird's eye view of the surroundings, then flew back down to inform HuSH, Gregor, and Liu what he had seen--something that might be the ship in the distance, and an unfamiliar person waiting nearby. They all went over to the person, who introduced herself as Ripple, here to welcome them to the Wreckage. She already knew about them, and it soon became clear that was due to her connection to Entropy. Ripple confirmed that she was fairly certain no one was dead, and the group started towards the ship. On the way, they ran into some very large crabs, who were dispatched with relative ease. Meat from the crabs was collected for food. After the fight, Ripple suggested that she should be going to check on others. Before she left, the group asked her for some information on other people she knew, which she divulged. She then disappeared into the ocean, and the group continued on their way to the ship. Meanwhile, at the other end of the beach, Dan used his primeval awareness to locate other people. He, Ernest, Ballad, Siora, and snap made their way to a small group of stragglers who were far away from anyone else, where they found Esther. Once they had grouped up, they made their way towards everyone else. On the way, however, they were also attacked by crabs. They dealt with the crabs easily for the most part, except for Dan falling unconscious (due to his own hubris). Once the fight was over, they noticed that someone else was there--a water genasi who introduced herself as Ripple. Once again, Ripple clearly knew about them all already due to Entropy. She seemed rather pleased to meet them, especially Dan, who she claimed was essentially her little brother due to their shared connection with the entity known as Eris. The group traveled to the ship together, also bringing crab meat for food. Ripple accompanied them, answering the group's questions about herself, Eris, and their current location as best she could. She quickly became something of a mentor figure to both snap and Dan. Both groups found half of a stone tablet near the ship (the first by Liu looking for firewood and the second by Brio eating sand), which told the first part of a story written by someone who was apparently from the Gales before the apocalypse. This is now the first lead to learning more about what happened during that event.
Session Two: Deep Dive
PC Level: 8Location: The Wreckage - Tibuebos
Session Tags: heavy combat, moderate exploration
Content Warnings: spiders
Date: 07/30/996 Around A Market In Tibuebos "What's that you said? Lookin' for some sorta weird goings-on? Well, you either came to exactly the right place or the totally wrong place. Weird shit happens around this area all the time. Take Kellen over there, for example. Man disappears for three days, we assume he's drowned or been eaten or something, then he pops back up babnlin' about monsters way deep down. Wouldn't believe him, except people have been goin' missin' in that area more lately, so who knows. Could really be a- Hey, where're you goin'?" Summary
At the request of Kotenn, the party took on a mission to discover the entity behind recent disappearances in the sea nearby Tibuebos. They first went into town and questioned Kellen, the individual said to have seen whatever monster was responsible for these disappearances. He was clearly a bit spooked from the encounter, but was able to provide some useful information. The party then split into two groups. The first went to a temple, where they were told about many local sea legends, including those of the mulgwishin, bakekujira, and umibozu, undead creatures thought to prowl the Wreckage's deadly seas. The second group went to a store that was most definitely not a Bass Pro Shop, where they discovered a rather unsettling atmosphere and almost cult-like loyalty program. Dan signed up for the loyalty program under Lukan's name. Eventually, the party set out to the location of the disappearances. As they swam down into a trench, they came upon a small spider who seemed to be living there. Jiang was able to identify it as an infant trench spider, a species of arachnid which often grows to fill the trench they reside in. Soon after learning this information, the party was engaged in combat by the mother trench spider. Though they sustained heavy injuries, and Ballad's magic was suppressed leading to a close call with drowning, they were victorious. At the bottom of the trench, they found a number of shiny items, as well as another tablet from the story of Reverence.
Session Three: Haggle and Trade
PC Level: 8Location: The Wreckage - Dal Nordrird
Session Tags: medium stakes social, games and competitions
Date: 08/29/996 Aboard The (Mostly) Repaired Ship The door to the captain's quarters slams open and a loud bell starts ringing. "Okay, okay, okay! Everyone important, gather up! I have news! In a week and a half, some of the tribes in Dal Nordrird will be having their shared market, and supposedly there'll be a merchant there who specializes in rare items recovered from shipwrecks! So, seeing how things have been going, I want you all to get out there and see if they've got anything useful to us! And maybe do some other shopping while you're at it, our food stores are running low after most of it ended up at the bottom of the ocean. Have fun!" Summary
Summoning the party to the deck, Kotenn informed them about a market in Dal Nordrird where several orc tribes trade their wares, and specifically one merchant who might know something about the stone tablets. The party was given a catalog for the market and sent on their way. Not long after arriving, a person at one of the stands mistook HuSH for Zholl, goddess of flowers. HuSH went along with it, and was given a detailed map of the market. During this time, Ernest went to take a look around and found a merchant who was in fact selling one of the stone tablets. He made conversation with the stall worker for a while, until eventually a more knowledgeable worker returned. HuSH, Ballad, and Liu caught up with Ernest and engaged in some acting to get a reasonable price for the tablet. Many other purchases were made, including: several hot dogs, various food items (such as a significant quantity of oranges acquired by Gregor via an incredible display of arm wrestling), and a few glass shinies, purchased from a merchant who seemed to have a bit of a vendetta against Zholl. The party eventually ran into Kotenn, who was leaving very quickly after accidentally breaking someone's arm. The party stayed for a bit, but left soon after, now in possession of new useful items.
Session Four: Fishtail Bay
PC Level: 8Location: The Wreckage - Halitus
Session Tags: medium-stakes social, moderate combat
Content Warnings: potential mind woogidy
Date: 09/15/996 Around The Streets Of Halitus "Stone tablets, you say? That might have been washed up or lost at sea somewhere? Well, I don't know much about that, but I'm an inlander. Why don't you try going out to Fishtail Bay? The ones there know everything about what goes on in deep sea waters. I'm sure they could be of some help. Be careful, though, they can be a bit touchy." Summary
In the wee hours of the morning, Kotenn summoned the party to the deck of the ship and told them that she was sending them to Fishtail Bay, where there may be individuals who knew about the stone tablets. The party set out and soon discovered that the inhabitants of Fishtail Bay were mermaids. They first met Meris, a ditzy mermaid who continuously forgot why the party was there. She vaguely mentioned that most mermaids in the waters around the bay did not drown people, and those who did were exiled. They reached the mercity, where Meris took them to see Lana, the mermaid in charge. Lana's "office" was very cluttered, so the party, especially Ernest, spent some time helping her organize. She told them about two mermaids, Sereia and Alva, who had been exiled due to drowning humanoids, Alva for fun and Sereia to build a ghost army. The party was somewhat alarmed by this and offered their assistance, which Lana accepted. The party set out to find the outcast mermaids. They were able to find the lair without much trouble, but were spotted on their initial scouting mission. Combat ensued and was severely damaging to the party, but once again, they prevailed. With the outcast mermaids vanquished, they returned to Lana, who gave them a stone tablet she had found, several trinkets, and a stake in the Fishtail Bay economy.
Session Five: Dark Mists
PC Level: 8Location: The Wreckage - Kelkrye
Session Tags: heavy combat, moderate exploration
Date: 10/12/996 In A Popular Café In Kelkrye "Four ships just this past week. I mean really, I'm running low on supplies because of this! All of my fruits are imported, if this keeps up I'm going to have to take the berry tarts off the menu!" "I feel you there. Last night I went by Sal's, and it says it's closed temporarily until a supply ship makes it." "What we ever did to make the ocean mad is beyond me. But no point fussing, I guess. Ain't no one dumb enough to go yell at it." Summary
Kotenn woke the party slightly less early this time to inform them that she needed people to go yell at the ocean, and potentially fight a monster as well. After some questioning, which Kotenn had few answers to, the party split into three groups. HuSH and Arakainos went to a tavern at the docks and talked to Gordon, a ship's captain who was able to give them a few answers about the recent disappearances of ships. Ballad and Liu went to the café where Kotenn had overheard people talking about the issue and questioned the people there, getting some answers as well. Neither group got detailed information, however, as there were no known survivors. Dan and T'kuva went to yell at the ocean. Upon doing so, a child washed up on shore, barely alive. Dan was able to determine that they had been saved by Eris. The group reconvened at the café and discussed their findings. Based on their information, they deduced that the creature was most likely an umibozu, which some of the party had heard about from a temple in Tibuebos. They left the child with Ripple and headed off. The party was, unfortunately, ambushed by the umibozu, which dealt a devastating blow to Liu. The injury would have been fatal had it not been for Eris' blessing. The party proceeded to attack the umibozu in return. They once again sustained heavy injuries, but managed to survive the fight and destroy the umibozu. They searched the wreck of ships below the surface and found a number of interesting items, as well as another stone tablet... Coincidentally right where they needed it to be.
Session Six: City of Dust
PC Level: 9Location: The Wreckage - Anadeia
Session Tags: high-stakes social, moderate exploration
Date: 11/22/996 Aboard The Unnamed Ship From The Gales A crew member peers out from the crow's nest, spotting a speck in the distance. "Land ho!" they call down to the rest of the crew. They pull out their spyglass to take a closer look at the approaching land and frown upon seeing the abandoned ruins that line the coast. An eerie wind blows through the sails and they shudder. "Sure glad it ain't my job to go ashore." Summary
After a discussion about their current location, the party sent scouts ahead to investigate what appeared to be an abandoned city. The report back revealed that most of the city was in some amount of disrepair, and the streets were covered in a thick layer of dust. The party went ashore and examined the dust, determining it was human ash in time to stop Brio from eating any of it. They set about exploring the village and trying to figure out what happened. Siora determined that it was most likely an incredibly powerful blast, which instantly disintegrated any people in the area. As the party investigated, they noticed flashes of movement. Liu's familiar was able to find the source--an elven woman bearing symbology Siora had seen back home in her druid circle. They sent Ernest in to talk to her, and though she was resistant, she eventually agreed to tell him her story. She revealed that millennia ago, when Anadeia was still fighting for its independence, the Silenean Empire came to the village seeking a powerful artifact they possessed. Rather than let the Empire take the artifact, she used it to lure the Sileneans in and destroy them--along with the village. After she and Ernest discussed the story for a time, the rest of the party joined them. She and HuSH immediately got off on the wrong foot, but the rest of the party got along well with her and asked her several questions, especially about her symbols. When they realized she was most likely a previous Child of Fire, they asked her questions about the prophecy, which eventually led to the confirmation that Siora was the new Child of Fire and Ballad was most likely the new Child of Memory. The woman also revealed how her loop of the prophecy had ended: the Grandchild of Darkness was assassinated by a Silenean. She also revealed that they thought they had found the Wandering Child, but when that person died and the prophecy did not reset, they realized they were wrong. Further questioning let the party know that the prophecy children are sometimes connected between loops by mundane things, such as their favorite fruit. Eventually, the woman gave Siora the artifact, the party as a whole a stone tablet, and a few items to help the party in the future.
Session Seven: Truth, Dare, and Pattycake
PC Level: 9Location: The Wreckage - Kalmarsa
Session Tags: heavy combat, light exploration
Date: 12/28/996 Pinned To The Mast Of The Unnamed Ship From The Gales Hello, dearies! Did you miss me? I hear you've all been rather busy lately! I hope you don't mind me popping in to give you a bit of advice, hm? If you're looking for where things end up--or where certain entities might be interested in making things show up--try Kalmarsa. The waters in the area are simply filled with pretty trinkets and fun discoveries that never quite made it to the resorts there. You're welcome, and I'm sure you'll be seeing me again soon! - E Summary
Having received an assignment from everyone's favorite criminal Entropy, the party set out to explore Kalmarsa. snap stayed on the boat to set up for a sleepover before heading out on the mission the next day, while Ernest, HuSH, and Ballad headed into town. Ernest and HuSH presented themselves as a businessman and his son and joined one of the resort tours, specifically aimed at local ghost legends. While most of the tour was fabricated, they did discover that the legend of a group that went out to sea to kill a whale and never returned was true, and that ever since then, ships, especially fishing vessels, have occasionally disappeared in that area. At the end of the tour, they stopped in a gift shop, where HuSH tried to talk down the price of a very expensive trinket. It didn't work very well, and the pair left--only to run into Entropy, who had "bought" the trinket for them. They mentioned the sleepover to her, and she invited herself along. Meanwhile, Ballad attempted to do some shopping and discovered the horrors of overpriced resort towns. They managed to disguise themself as a service worker and find the cheap hidden shops not targeted towards rich tourists. Back on the ship, snap's efforts gained the attention of both Siora and Arakainos. They joined the sleepover, and the rest of the party returned to the ship. They started the sleepover with a pillow fight, discussed the mission, and then decided to play Truth or Dare. Truth or Dare highlights:
Session Eight: Homecoming
PC Level: 9Location: The Wreckage - Aubron
Session Tags: medium stakes social, moderate combat
Content Warnings: may include mentions of abuse and neglect; may include religious fanaticism and ineffectual guilt-tripping
Date: 1/19/997 Just Off Shore, Far Away From The Unnamed Ship From The Gales A black-haired woman sits atop the water, seemingly staring at nothing. She frowns, as if noticing something undesirable, and her legs fall beneath the waves. "Not quite yet, I don't think. There's still more to do." The current in the water changes, and with it the direction of the wind. A speck appears just over the horizon, a ship nearly ripping over at the sudden change in direction. The frown is replaced by a smile, and the wind on either side of the ship changes again, bringing the ship into a tunnel leading it to shore. Meanwhile on the ship, a half-orc shakes in annoyance as she starts to notice something falling from the sky--not rain, as she's grown used to, but ash, caught in the strange new wind currents. The faint smell of sulfur breezes over the ship, and the wind and water carry the ship towards a towering smoky mountain. Summary
As the ship approached a volcano, the party was summoned to the deck. Dan immediately recognized the volcano as the one he was thrown into (albeit ineffectively) as a child, near where his biological family lived. He flew ahead with HuSH and Hum, while the others followed from more of a distance. When they arrived in town, Dan demanded to see one of the elders, but was instead greeted by his biological father, who was promptly shot in the leg. His biological mother also attempted to speak to him, but Dan shot her as well, killing her instantly. Dan's father experienced a much slower death, being interrogated by Dan and HuSH and subsequently slowly lowered into lava. As Dan went to the village hall to burn it down and smoke out the elders, the rest of the town was rounded up and asked a series of questions to determine if they were good people. Most of them were not. Dan returned with the elders and told them to choose one to be sacrificed. They chose Hortensia, the newest elder, and Funk killed all the elders except Hortensia. Dan then told the adults to decide whether to have their kids sacrificed or sacrifice themselves. Except for Hortensia, all the adults chose to sacrifice their children. HuSH led the children away while Dan shot the adults who thought it was a good idea to try to save themselves by offering up their kids. Gregor, and later others, looted the town. The kids and Hortensia were brought back to the ship. They went to see where Funk was born, then attempted to communicate with the volcano, which was unfortunately just a volcano and unable to communicate. They continued to not find a stone tablet until they returned, when Dan found two separate tablets in his room: one an entry in the Tale of Reverence, and one a map with the words "I'll be waiting" on the back.
Session Nine: The Buried God
PC Level: 9Location: The Wreckage - Eheron
Session Tags: heavy combat, possibility for high-stakes social
Date: 2/5/997 At The Docks In Eheron "Eh, it's just a local legend, really. You think stuff that sinks to the bottom of the see just sits there? 'Course not. Doesn't sink for no reason either. It's a toll for the ocean lord. They say he lives in the deep ocean, hiding under what's all covering the ocean floor. Anything you're looking for, he's probably got it. Careful though. I hear he can be a mite annoyed at those who wake him up." Summary
Upon receiving word from Kotenn that an entity known as the Collector may be in the area, the party made plans to investigate. Kotenn was, as usual, unhelpful, so HuSH, Dan, and Blue went to a temple to ask questions. They walked in on a funeral, to which Dan decided the only correct response was to disguise himself as the deceased. This caused much chaos, and Dan may have started a new religion based around guns being either a weapon of or conduit for the spirit world. This will have no consequences. None at all. HuSH, meanwhile, went into a confessional and spent a good while listing the infinite mistakes he thinks he's made. Eventually, he asked the priest some questions about the Collector, who he learned was considered by many in the area to be a god who collects tolls from those who sail through his waters--usually part of a merchant's stock or some such. Blue also took a look at the shrines to Taleyar and Chyrlathyn. Liu went to a local library to read up about the Collector. She was able to find a journal written by a merchant who once encountered the entity he believed to be the Collector, whose name was Kravedazox. Back on the ship, Siora gathered trinkets from the mermaids to bring as offerings. The party reconvened and HuSH and Liu discussed the possibility of Kravedazox being Eris' brother. Finally, they made their way into the deep ocean, having decided to attempt to speak to Kravedazox before fighting him. The party did manage to wake Kravedazox up, though he wasn't too pleased about it. HuSH and Siora spoke to him first about needing something from him in order to be successful at a very important task. This task was later revealed to be solving the Prophecy of Children, which Kravedazox was familiar with. Kravedazox also asked the rest of the party why they were there, and got varying answers, such as "it was interesting" (Dan, Blue, and Gregor), "vacation" (Gregor), and "babysitting" (Liu). Liu also said that she was looking for something, but would be satisfied to just make a copy of it. Kravedazox was very skeptical of the party's ability to solve the prophecy. In fact, he seemed rather convinced that they would fail. HuSH and Siora gave a number of reasons why they could succeed, which Kravedazox was not entirely in agreement with, but he was eventually convinced not to just kill them to stop them from trying. The party was shown to where they could find the tablet, as well as a number of other things, and Kravedazox also gave them a couple of items he thought they might find useful. The party asked several questions, especially about Taleyar, Chyrlathyn, Eris, and Eris' brother, whose name they discovered to be Espen. HuSH also asked a couple questions about Alphosces. When they returned to the ship, Blue asked HuSH and Liu to explain what they knew. HuSH, not very inclined to do so, instead went into the city. Liu stayed and filled the others in on some of her information.
Session Ten: The Clan of Eris
PC Level: 9Location: The Wreckage - Aubron
Session Tags: high-stakes social
Date: 3/11/997 Approaching A Small Island Off The Coast Of Aubron "That's where we're going, right?" "That's what the captain said." "Doesn't look like much." The ship pitches a bit as the currents swirl around it, spinning it in almost two full circles before the crew manages to push through and maintain their heading. "... I never should have taken this job." Summary
The party finally reached the Clan of Eris! Dan zoomed ahead and encountered Alice, a member of the Clan, who was delighted to meet him and took him to meet the Clan's leader. The others also arrived, and were similarly greeted enthusiastically. They met Eleanor, the Clan leader, who took them on a tour of the town including seeing a memorial for all the Clan members who have died, mostly in absolutely dumbass ways. As they were talking, another member came and collected Dan to meet Eris on a cloud. They talked for a while, and Dan received the Cloak of Eris. Meanwhile, Ernest found some gorgeous flowers. HuSH collected some of the flowers, and now there are pretty flowers! The party then talked to Eris briefly and requested her assistance entreating with Chyrlathyn. She offered them what she referred to as an "olive branch"--half of a broken amulet, identified as part of one of the prophetic artifacts. The party then engaged in much socializing with each other and the Clan of Eris.
Arc Recap
Goodness gracious, so much has happened! There's been death! There's been life! Religions have been started to guns! And I guess some information was revealed. With the help of the 10th level spell Definitely A Coincidence, tablets have been collected that reveal the "affectionately" designated Calamity Becky to be none other than Chyrlathyn, the Silenean creator goddess! There's also been information revealed that Eris is a real actual person and not just evidence that Dan is actually insane, and she has a twin brother named Espen (who's really hot), and they're--get this--Chyrlathyn's kids! They also found a couple new prophecy children: welcome to the gang, Child of Fire Siora and Child of Memory Ballad! But what's next? Murder? Despair? True love? Self-sacrifice? Who knows! Guess we'll find out next time on Ouroboros!Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
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