Saving Hallindof

On the shores near the village of Hallindof, a lone brine-soaked selkie awakened. Her name was Shanuku, and she was far from home. She dragged herself into town, introduced herself, and was conscripted into the town's adventuring force - the place was under siege by revenants. Waiting for her in town were Iski and Fayna, who needed all the help they could get. With three adventurers, a pile of clues, and a beginning of a plan, it was time to save Hallindof!

Investigations All Around

First thing on the docket: gather a bit more information. Iski had quite a few animals to interview, and started with the animals that were throwing themselves against the houses of the marked farmers. Through two separate interviews, Iski found out that different animals reacted differently to the cursed presence: the doves chose to attack the houses to try and fight evil, the shrews were curious, and the rabbits worshipped it. The gang also experimented with how to make Four Loco with the fewest possible coffee beans.
Having burnt most of their spell slots, the crew decided to play it safe, leave Iski to meditate, and to have Fayna introduce Shanuku to the village. During their tour, the two accidentally stumbled across the monster, which was lurking in the form of a scarecrow in the fields. The revenant attacked, inflicted an enchantment on Shanuku, and dealt serious harm to Fayna. The group fled, and detained Shanuku (she hadn't disclosed that she was a warlock). Fayna and Shanuku recovered back at the farmer's house with Iski, and the day was mostly spent recovering from injuries and spell use. They also spent some time researching and considering the town, and Iski remembered that the original founders of the village lived in caverns underground, accessible by the temple or the village well. When asked about this, the villagers seemed dimly aware, but the caves were said to not be safe - something lived down there that the town preferred to not disturb.
After resting, the team attended the town hall regarding whether the villagers should stay or flee. Three factions emerged: those who wanted to flee to the neighboring village of Finhov immediately, those who wanted to flee in several weeks, and those who wanted to hunker down and fight. The party rallied all those they could to hunt the revenant of Olstra, as well as whatever lurked in the caverns below. While Fayna and Shanuku readied the militia, Iski spoke with the town's bees. The bees reported that the revenant was lurking in the caverns below the village, toid Iski how to move their ederstone-touched hives, and reported many disturbances in the last year in the countryside. The bees also promised to help stir whatever was down in the caverns out, though it couldn't do much to deal with whatever came out.

The Fight for Hallendof

The militia readied itself, the party clambered on top of nearby rooftops, and the bees swarmed down the Hallendof market well to stir up whatever might be hiding in the caverns below. The first thing that emerged wasn't the revenant, but the beast that had dwelled there for many years: a Shambling Mound, a creature of moss and stone and flesh grown fat from generations of undisturbed growth. It launched from the well, and was bombarded by arrows and javelins. Each adventurer took leadership of a group of townsfolk: each had 5 warriors blocking off a street, and there were another 10 militia members stationed around the detect any potential ambushes. The massed fire from the experienced villagers did a number on the beast, but it flung itself onward towards the bees - and Iski. It was able to smash through Iski's line of militia and onto the rooftop where he was hiding; and with a single strike, its tendrils dragged Iski off the roof and into unconsciousness. Fayna responded by leading a charge of her mlitia into the beast's flank, which forced it to drop Iski and to retreat into a nearby shop. 
Before Iski had gone down, he had noticed something else slip out of the well amidst the chaos. It was hiding in the back, magically disguising itself as a faceless member of the crowd and periodically killing members of the village towards the back of the line. Shanuku noticed it as well at this point, and began blasting it with spells, drawing Fayna's attention. Fayna focused on reviving Iski first, but the creature was advancing on them from behind. Its opening strikes were devastating, and it was able to enchant the wounded Iski against Fayna. The militia was too busy finishing the monster to figure out what was going on with the party, leaving it a life-or-death scramble in the ruined town center. Fayna took serious damage, but Iski was able to break the mental control of the revenant. All three adventurers then unleashed their best attacks (full damage!) in rapid succession, seriously injuring it but not taking it down. It was able to knock out Fayna with a mauling attack before it began trying to flee into the well from whence it came. Iski thorn whipped it away from running and set up Shanuku to destroy it with her most powerful magic: tentacles of writhing chaos that were able to wrap around and utterly erase its cursed form. Iski was able to stabilize Fayna with the healing kit, the militia slew the monster, and the crew was able to ward off the second revenant, Adilgar. 
After some time recovering, the town went back to normal and the crew were ready to wrap things up. Olstra's remaining body was cremated (though Iski stole a finger as a trophy). Fayna helped Nessa say a real goodbye to Adilgar, hopefully leaving both of them more emotionally stable for it. Nessa left the village to seek her own destiny elsewhere. The three adventurers banded together as a party to face the dangers of the wasteland together, and set off for further inland - to see what other villages might be in trouble.

Components

Goals

QUEST GOALS:

• Save the 3 villages (Done)
• Forge a Bond (Done)
• Win Big (Done

Relations

Protagonists

Fayna the Gennoran: A Half-Dryad in her early twenties, Fayna is a girl with a dream: to become a Spring Knight and hero of Uvara! The only problem is that she was born to a peasant family that ran a small inn at the remote village of Rukadov in the Kingdom of Gennorholn . For a normal person, Fayna's birth would doom her dreams to certain death, but through stubbornness and a can-do attitude, she's going for it anyways. She was able to become a paladin of Haru , and a patron knight within the Order has promised her a chance at knighthood if she can prove herself Questing. (Half dryad, Ancestor paladin, acolyte) Iski of Tidewatch: Iski is a Tiefling - a kind of unusual Starspawn , or so everyone believes. He has spent much of his life in the tranquility of Tidewatch Grove, a druid sanctuary run by his family devoted to the study and principles of "homeostasis". He is devoted to his family's beliefs, but has ventured out beyond the traditional world of the Tidewatch Druids to understand Stildane more broadly. He is in his early 30s, is of the Circle of the Coast, and is quite sheltered and academic. Parents are "more tree than person" now. (Tiefling, Land Druid, Sage)
Shanuku the Wanderer: Shanuku is a selkie warlock in her early 30s, a foreigner from a distant land who has only recently arrived in Stildane. She was originally born in the Khilaian Isles and worked as a merchant and sailor, until a bad stroke of luck led to her ship being swept out to Desmian waters. Things went bad, the ship fled to Stildane, and then was taken by the Elder Leviathan known as The Vile Mass. Whether it is the Vile Mass or the Ederstone, Shanuku no longer remembers the faces or names of those she once knew - her last life has been polluted, and she is now isolated and alone. Her pelt has also been taken from her, and she hopes that if she can find it she can restore her old life. (Selkie, Great Old One Warlock, Sailor)

Allies

Nessa of Hallindof: A starspawn in her early 20s, who has pointy ears, red eyes, blonde hair, sharp teeth, and a black forked tongue. Nessa is a hunter of the village of Hallindof who has recently lost everything, and is haunted by a horrible accident two months ago. She blames herself for her town's misfortunes and wants to make things right.

Adversaries

Adilgar the Lost: A feathered starspawn whose mind has been enthralled by Ederstone . Non-violent unless you touch his animals. Has maintained his chill vibes and love for critters. Very detached from reality, but largely ignored by normally hostile beings. Keeps spontaneously dying and then reappearing. Olstra the Revenant: Was once a dryad, but faced the heart of the Cursed Shores and has become something far more. Moves unseen around town, targeting those who spend more time alone. Once apparently very much wanted to leave town and resented it, and those emotions may have been taken and twisted by whatever power puppets her form.
The Old Cave Monster: A creature of moss, stone, and flesh that has long lived underneath the village's sanctuary caves. It has lurked under the village for centuries without causing a major hassle - until the Revenants brought the influence of the Cursed Point into the place and corrupted it. While never friendly per se, it is now outright hostile.

Backdrops

Locations

Finhov: A village in the forests Southeast of Dollinov. Less well defended but larger, Finhov is a prosperous village that receives regular merchant caravans across the waste. Is hoping to start a new bee colony and take in Hallindof's refugees. Hallindof: The largest and richest of the three villages, Hallindof sits between the beachfront and the forest near the hills. It is known for its large star-touched bee farms, which produce pain-killing honey and some very good mead. Hallindof, it turns out, was originally founded by an Ederstone cult that bred monsters in the caves beneath the town.

Plot type

QUEST

Parent Plot

Stilgame: Origins

Subplots

• The Chimera's Gaze

Related Locations

• The Deverkel Wastes