Session 20: Hell-turel Part II Report
General Summary
After finding themselves in an apocalyptic parody of the city they knew, the party fought and defeated a group of Barbazu. In the agreement that they closed with the devils, the party was promised a safe haven at a tavern in the Northern part of town; A Pair of Black Antlers. When the party arrived at the tavern, they found yet more fiends in combat with one another, and decided to help out the devils in a fight against three huge minotaurs, felling the beasts together. The devils, under command by a Hamatula, thanked the party in their own way, and left the adventurers to enjoy the spoils of the fight. However, when they tried to enter the taproom, more demons that had hidden inside mounted an attack. As the final demon fell, the party felt a tremor in the earth as a group of Hellriders rode to meet them on horseback.
Led by an olive-skinned human male named Rochus Pons, the group of Hellriders claimed to be from a survivor's enclave; an outpost situated at Shiarra's Market, a huge square that housed Elturel's guild- and food markets on the daily. After some discussion, the adventurers agreed to come along with the riders, although Ron protested at first. A short walk alongside the riders brought them to a ramshackle-walled outpost with manned gates, and the party was instructed that they had to quarantine for a short while before they could go about their business in the camp.
The survivors had found that Hellriders were prone to 'eruption,' a terrible event where the corrupted soul of the Hellrider would break from its human mold and take the form of a powerful fiend. Though this had happened many times over in the first weeks of the settlement's existence, the party had only just arrived in Hell, and Rochus was not willing to take any risks. After some debate, the party finally agreed to quarantine for 48 hours, and non-hellrider companions Bertha, Lulu, and Caja would keep them company. In the meantime, Garyx and Volo would get a feel for the place.
While in quarantine, Ron finally opened up on the reason for his mistrust - he was shortly under the vampiric High Rider's beguiling influence, and had been charmed into committing atrocities to the commonfolk before the coming of the Companion. The enclave's leader took the same name - Klav Ikaia. Whether or not this was the same person, or how he came to be in power of the survivors' camp, or even how he had survived the Companion's light; Ron was not eager to find out. In order to soothe Ron, and frankly just to pass the time, Leojym planted a potato, and managed to rear a spudling out of it, keeping the delicate plant's leaves safe from Avernus' acid rain with a tarp.
The Shield of the Hidden Lord shared a vision with Fenrir while everyone enjoyed an uneasy sleep under Avernus' uncomfortably warm skies, and upon waking bade the paladin to keep that vision private. Not long after, the young human man who stood guard outside the quarantine cell was relieved of his duty by another person - one that Caja recognized immediately: her sister Nori.
Fenrir Firecam
Ronaldus Swanstone
Caja
Report Date
06 Apr 2023
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