Keth Ravenwood
Keth Ravenwood
Physical Description
General Physical Condition
Very muscly and well-built.
Facial Features
Clean-shaven and has a pair of short tusks.
Apparel & Accessories
Wears heavy, chainmail armor and a tall wizard hat. He carries a longsword and a shield adorned with the sigil of the Wintershield Watchmen.
Mental characteristics
Personal history
Keth was raised in Phandalin, but always felt alienated and like he didn't belong. The one person he felt close to and understood by was his mother, Berelayn, who often told him stories about magic, poetry, and higher learning. This fascinated him and as soon as he was old enough he left for Neverwinter to pursue an arcane education. After being rejected by the academic and magical institutions there, Keth fell back on the one thing that he had always been good at: fighting. He joined the Wintershield Watchmen and, while he enjoyed getting to do some good, he still felt like he didn't quite belong. Eventually, Keth received word that his mother and step-father had been killed under mysterious circumstances and returned to Phandalin.
Gender Identity
Male
Sexuality
Bisexual
Education
No formal education. Homeschooled by his mother and self-taught in areas of history, military strategy, and magic.
Employment
Previously worked as a city guard in the Wintershield Watchmen of Neverwinter.
Accomplishments & Achievements
Taught himself magic.
Failures & Embarrassments
Was rejected from every academic and magical school in Neverwinter.
Personality Characteristics
Motivation
Wants to get justice for his mother's murder, but is more concerned with making her proud and being the kind of person she always encouraged him to be.
Wants to help his friends and keep them and the town of Phandalin safe.
Wants to stop Ebondeath and, if possible, save Raiya.
Savvies & Ineptitudes
Good at fighting and tactics.
Not very smart or good with magic.
Completely lacks any social skills and is not confident.
INFP-T
Likes & Dislikes
Loves magic, books, and learning.
Is untrusting of and awkward around strangers.
Is sensitive to people insulting his intelligence.
Virtues & Personality perks
Is fiercely loyal once a person has gained his respect/trust.
Vices & Personality flaws
Often acts recklessly or shortsightedly.
Second-guesses himself often.
Personality Quirks
Talks really fast when he gets nervous or excited.
Social
Contacts & Relations
Family Ties
Religious Views
Believes that the gods are real but doesn't worship or know much about them.
Social Aptitude
Poor
Keth is a strong, loyal fighter who is fascinated with magic. A former member of the Wintershield Watchmen in Neverwinter, he has recently returned to protect his hometown during a time of strife.
View Character Profile
Alignment
Neutral Good
Age
21
Birthplace
Conneyberry/Phandalin area
Children
Gender
Male
Eyes
Brown
Hair
Black
Skin Tone/Pigmentation
Light Green
Height
6'2"
Weight
190 lbs
Related Plots
Related Reports
- S16. Removed the Red Cloaks Report
- S19. Axeholm Run! Report
- S20. All about town, the off again! Report
- S23. Lighting the Way Out - Trial of the Titan Report
- S25. Logger's Camp Report
- S26. Can I Barrow That Dragonslayer? Report
- S30. To Falcon's and Death Report
- S35. Thunder, Thunder, Thunder Report
- S36. Xanth Xanth Revolution Report
- S37. Dungeoness and Dragons Report
- S41. Ice Cold Pipcycle Report
Closure
Uktar 23, 1492
Well we did it. It’s done. The cultists of Talos are all dead. The ones that we know about at least. It feels… I’m not quite sure. Good, I guess. I’m glad that I got justice for Mom and that we stopped whatever Talos’ plans were in the sword coast. And I don’t feel quite as angry anymore. But I still have so many questions. What was Talos planning with the heart and the lighthouse and everything? Why did the cultists kill Mom? Why did that angel guy help us? Who is he? What exactly happened with Sef? I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to find any of those answers, but at least we managed to stop whatever Mom died for. And the Sword Coast is protected. At least from Talos. At least for now.
Seeing Talos was… a lot. I’ve joked before about killing Talos, and seeing him made all of my anger and rage at him so much more real. But it also showed me how powerful he truly is. I mean it’s one thing to know that a god exists, but it’s another thing to truly see one. Or an avatar of one or whatever. I still want to take my revenge on Talos himself, fuck over all his plans and whatnot, but… I’ll need to be smart about this. Careful.
Then there was everything with the angel and Sef. Or Helaena now, I guess. I think the asshole angel guy saved Sef from the octopus thing somehow and he definitely saved us from Talos, we would have been screwed without his help. But… I don’t know. I don’t trust him. And Sister Garaele seemed… weird when I brought him up. She seemed weird about Se- Helaena too. I’m… worried about her. First she gets taken over by Talos’ octopus thing and attacks us and now she seems so different. Did we really get her back? Or did the angel guy just manage to take over her himself? We’ll need to keep an eye on her. I can’t lose another friend like that. Not again.
Anger
Uktar 17, 1492
Well I finally had the confrontation with Gorthok I’ve been looking for. We killed it. Kind of. Not really. Sent it back to its plane or whatever so it can be summoned again. It’s so… frustrating. Ever since I saw Mom again and found an actual lead against Talos and her murderers I’ve been so angry. I thought that killing the lightning pig, getting revenge and justice and closure would help but of course I can’t even get that. One more thing Talos has taken away from me.
I know I should listen to Eethyl and focus on the cultists who summoned it. And I will, they need to be killed and Talos needs to be stopped, but it just seems so much more… I don’t know. Abstract? It doesn’t seem like Mom was a target or anything when they summoned the pig. And they will pay for the role they had in her death, I’ll make sure of that, but… I don’t know. I’m just not sure that I will feel the same way after killing the cultists that I was hoping I would once the pig was dead.
And I need to do something to change; I know I’ve been angry and distracted recently. I’ve been acting distant and reckless which isn’t fair to the others. But more than that I’ve just been so… angry. I remember when I killed other orcs for the first time at the shrine that I felt… well not sad exactly because they were murderers and cannibals and assholes, but… like melancholic. I know how hard it is to fight against the rage in our blood and how society would've treated them if they had tried to live a different life. And also… I mean, she said he was dead, but I couldn’t helping looking at each one and wondering if I’d just killed my father. But today I didn’t think any of that. I killed so many orcs and half-orcs without even a second thought. I enjoyed it actually, because they served Talos and fuck him.
This isn’t the kind of person Mom would want me to be. This isn’t the kind of person I want to be. I want to be good. But… I’m just so angry. My mom is dead. And if there isn’t a way to fix everything or make it all okay then… how else am I supposed to keep going?
A Night Alone
Uktar 13, 1492
It’s just after midnight when Keth reaches the Ravenwood family’s old farm. He passes by the destroyed house without much of a glance, heading straight to the small hill on the edge of the property. He sighs as he approaches the grave he and Raiya had dug together, running his hand lightly over the small headstone. With a small gesture he creates the illusion of a bouquet of violets resting in front of the grave and smiles sadly, remembering how proud he’d been the last time and how much he’d had to focus to create a non-chair illusion.
“Hey, Mom. It’s… been a while.” Keth kneels next to the grave and sits down, sighing. “So much has happened since the last time I was here. We stopped the Redcloaks. Released a dracolich. Met Eethyl and Sef and Amarille. Raiya got taken. Twice. I’m… not sure we’re going to be able to get her back this time either.” Keth pauses and rubs at his eyes. “She helped me so much last time I was here. And called me her friend. I feel like I owe it to her to try. But at the same time this thing that has her is so powerful and so evil, I’m not even sure we stand a chance of stopping it. And it’s going to hurt a lot of people. Can I afford to focus on doing anything else? On saving Raiya?” He sighs again, this time with frustration. “I wish you were here; you were always so good at knowing the right thing to do. I can never figure any of it out on my own.”
He sighs again and pulls out his mother’s book, fiddling a little with the violet bookmark stuck inside. “There are so many other things I want to ask you about too. What is this book? How did you get it? Did you really know magic? And if you did, why did you waste your life here on this stupid farm? And… why didn’t you tell me?” He opens the book and runs his fingers along the handwriting inside. “I had thought that maybe you were like a secret Harper agent or something. And you couldn’t tell me because you were protecting me and doing the greater good and stuff. But it seems like that’s not the case.” He sighs again, looking conflicted and hurt. “It’s just… we talked about magic all the time! And you know how much I loved it! Why would you keep this from me? And send me off to Neverwinter to learn where everyone was a total jerk when you could have just taught me yourself?”
Keth spends a few minutes sitting in silence, getting no answers from the quiet forest around him. He rubs a few tears from his eyes and closes the book, setting it down on his lap. “I finally got a lead yesterday. About the lightning pig. Moesko. Or at least on some of Talos’ cultists.” Keth leans back onto the grass, sighing. “Everything has been so crazy and happening so fast, especially with me needing to become more of a leader- Can you believe that, by the way? Worst decision Flicker has ever made. But anyways, I haven’t really had a chance to focus on the pig with everything going on. But now… with an actual lead and no other super urgent important matter to attend to… it’s the only thing I can think about. Getting revenge. I’ve tried to tell myself that isn’t what this is; that I’m going after the pig for justice and because it’s the Right Thing To Do and stuff. But honestly… I’m just so angry.”
He pauses for a few moments, finding it difficult to put how he’s feeling into words. “Why did it have to take you? What reason could Talos or his stupid pig possibly have for… You we so good. To everyone. And… I needed you.” His voice breaks and he stops to wipe some more tears from his eyes. He stares off into the darkness of the forest, eyes hardening. “I want to make him pay. Take something from him, show him how it feels. And kill the stupid giant pig. I… know that’s probably not how you’d want me to feel. You never liked it when I got angry and started fights. But it’s so… loud, it’s the only thing I can think about.” He takes a deep breath, the look on his face softening slightly. “I… know I promised you that I’d be someone good. And I’m trying, really, but… I just, I have to do this.”
Keth spends a few more minutes sitting in silence before reluctantly standing. Seeing that his illusion has disappeared, he waves a hand to recast it. “I… should get back to the others. They need me to protect them. But… I’ll try and come see you when I can. And I’ll do my best to make you proud. Bye Mom.” He wipes a few more tears from his eyes and turns, walking away from the grave and the rest of the property. As he gets to the edge of the woods he pauses and turns back, looking one last time at his old home. After a long moment he turns and enters the woods, returning to where the rest of the party is camped for the night.
Trust and Confusion
Uktar 8, 1492 - part 2
I tried to ask Eethyl about what happened when he went wherever and got Damaia’s stuff. I… think he gave me an answer? He always talks so fast and so long and uses all these words I don’t know, I can never really understand him. Something about using the planes to travel? Except he can’t control it? Or can only sometimes control it? I should ask him to teach me more about how magic and the planes work, maybe then I could understand what he’s talking about better.
And then he was nowhere to be found when we were fighting the troll that he talked us into fighting! He said he was just going around to flank, but like… then why didn’t he let us know beforehand? Flanking normally works best when both parties are aware that it's happening. And why would he go to flank, he’s not any good at melee close-up stuff. (Honestly, watching him swing around that little hammer trying to hit things is pretty comical. Like, the absolute worst form I have ever seen.) I mean, he’s run away into his necklace when we were in danger before, but never during an actual fight. He wouldn’t do that, would he? No, I decided to trust him, I need to stand by that. We’ll never get anywhere if we’re constantly doubting and mistrusting each other.
Speaking of trust, Flicker confuses me so much. Like, when a new person with references we trust joins the group she’s all ‘don’t share any of our personal details’ and doesn’t trust them at all. But then when it’s a suspicious old man in an alternate dimension or a undead skeletal horse she’s all ‘I trust you implicitly please join the group as we travel through these dangerous places beset with enemies.’ I mean, maybe the horse is a super smooth guy and I would have been convinced too, but still. I just don’t understand her.
Oh also, is this green dragon she’s ‘looking for information about’ not the subject of the revenge mission Raiya had mentioned the two of them were on? I assumed it was because hunting a dragon seems like the kind of epic quest for vengeance that was always in Mom’s stories and because Flicker had seemed pretty evasive about it. But now that I think about it, being evasive isn’t really out of character for her at all. Does that mean there’s another crazy dangerous monster she’s hunting and hasn’t told us about? Should I try asking her about it again? Is there a way to do that while not coming off interrogativey and making it clear that I trust her and this is a safe place and stuff? Hmm…
Amarille seemed to fit in okay at least. She’s got these weird glowy wings she was hitting things with, which is pretty cool. It’s really nice to have someone else up close to flank enemies with and who can maybe take a couple of hits again. Flicker seems ready to trust her (again, who could say why) which I’m inclined to agree with. I should still probably check with Sister Garaele when we’re back in town just to be sure and a good leader and things though.
Anyways, we got Wolf his magic sword, so mission success I guess. And we killed a weird invisible thing and a troll pretty easily even when we were low on resources (although another few hits and that troll would have taken me out). I’m kind of relieved that we’re headed back to Phandalin after this, there are a bunch of things I need to do there. Most importantly, I need to look through Wilmanric’s catalogue and try to find something that will help against a dragon. I know we have that sword, but now that the number of dragons we’re hunting is up to two and a half… I’d like something for myself to help even the playing field. Maybe a really big net to keep them on the ground? Or… maybe some way to fly myself? I don’t know, I’ll have to wait and see what he can make.
A Whole Bunch of Combat 2: Electric Boogaloo
Uktar 8, 1492 - part 1
Well, I had the chance to talk with Amarille a bit more during watch. It was… I mean, informative is the wrong word; she barely said anything at all, even about information that doesn’t matter and I will literally be able to get from Sister Garaele as soon as we’re back in town. But still, I don’t get the sense that she’s lying to us or planning to stab us in the back or anything. Just that she’s very very quiet. Like, even by my standards. But I think we can trust her. I mean, I’ll still keep an eye on her for a bit just to be sure, obviously, but you know. Good vibes.
…
I hate hallways. And will-o-wisps. And being underground. Maybe Flicker is onto something, it seems like every time we go underground it goes super poorly and we all almost die. I was practically useless the whole fight; I have no range, I can’t heal, I don’t have any good attacky spells. I couldn’t even do the one thing I’m actually good at, which is tanking attacks and defending the others, because of the stupid wisps and their stupid invisible phase-shifty powers. And hallways. I hate hallways.
And of course the one time I use my sword’s special magicy perceptive spell thing is the time that we run into a bunch of invisible enemies. A bit of blindsight would have been very helpful. I should have known; obviously wisps can turn invisible, they’re little balls of light or whatever. I need to plan better and think ahead and be smarter, people are counting on me now.
And then nobody can sit still after we finally managed to kill the will-o-wisps, even though like four people fell unconscious during the fight! Like yeah, let’s run into unexplored tunnels and wake up a skeleton horse, or crawl into a collapsed tunnel, or leave the group to investigate dead wisps, or talk to the aforementioned skeleton horse, or jump over pits of swords! Like, literally everyone but me is so beat up that they could be killed by a light breeze and somehow I’m the only one who wants to take a rest!?! How am I supposed to protect them if they insist on running face-first into danger with no regard for their own safety or my peace of mind!?! You’re all bleeding and hurt and exhausted, just sit still for like ten seconds and let me protect you!
So. Very. Frustrating. Well, it looks like there’s some sort of riddle involving keys next. Fun. Hopefully we can solve it super quickly and get out of this terrible place.
Important Leadershipy Things
Uktar 7, 1492
Well, the conversation with Flicker went pretty well. I’m not sure that I really convinced her to be more trusting and open, but at least I let her know that I’ve got her back and stuff. So overall a moderate success, which is all I can really hope for as far as Important Leadershipy Conversations go. She did seem more gentle with Eethyl after he came back from… wherever, so that’s something.
She asked me about what my Personal Goals are, which like… yeah not sure, but I did show her Mom’s book. I told her I’ve been too busy to show it to anyone else, which is… not really the truth. I’ve been kind of worried that showing it to someone else, telling them about it would make it less… mine? Like it’s my last connection to her and sharing it with someone would take that away. But… it was actually kind of nice; talking about it made me feel closer to her in a different way. Flicker was right, I need to make finding out about the book and Mom more of a priority.
Then I just… left Tibor there with the owlbear. Was that the right thing to do? It was his choice to make and it seemed like he understood the gravity of it, but should I have had us stay and defend him? Owlbears are dangerous and it seemed like an unnecessary risk, especially with everything we’ve already got on our plate. But is that what a good person would do? Defend someone even if it was dangerous and risky and stupid to stay? Even if the person might not actually be in danger and is there because of their own bad decisions? Is that what Mom would have done? I’m so bad at all this leader good person stuff.
…
Well, centaur guy brought another person to join the group. She seems very… Secretive? Quiet? Unsociable? Which means Flicker will either really like her or think she’s super annoying. Probably the opposite of however Eethyl feels just for consistency and maximum awkward tension. But she seems okay. And we really could use the help. Plus, it would be nice to have another person on the frontlines with me again.
It’s just that… after everything with Canarie, and even with Fortune and Damaia… we need to be sure that we can trust each other. And Flicker was looking to me to decide whether Amarille can stay, which is crazy! I mean, letting me choose which quest to take or path to travel is one thing, but deciding who can join the group? I honestly don’t even think that is the kind of decision that should be made by just one person. But at the same time... I am responsible for protecting the others. And Amarille too if she decides to join us. I just… I need to be smart about this. Careful. An actually good leader.
Xanth was being all… right next to Flicker again, but Sef made him go away super tactfully. Or more tactfully than I would have managed at least. Maybe she will end up being a super good talky conflict resolvey person and fix all of our problems after all. She also mentioned that she had lost some of her powers or something, which is… worrying. I mean, god magic is super weird normally and being inside the Shard probably made it extra super weird, but still… I should try and keep an eye on her.
Also, Eethyl tried to get us to do some sort of icebreaker thing, which is a good idea but bad timing. New girl seems okay, but I’m not sure I’m ready to fully open up to her all the way like that. And that’s me, so Flicker definitely won’t be into it. Not to mention that Amarille is pretty sparing with the personal details herself. Maybe I’ll bring it up again in a few days once we’ve all had a better chance to acclimate.
An Even Wholer Bunch of Combat
Uktar 6, 1492
So, delivering goods to the logging camp did not end up being the relaxing, straightforward monster killing adventure I had hoped. I mean there was some monster killing, but a million giant burrowing praying mantises was not what I had in mind. And I had hoped that it would be a chance to help some people and remind us all that we are doing some good here. This was… not that.
When that thing had Flicker underground… there was nothing I could do. I’ve never felt so… useless. Not in combat at least, that’s supposed to be the one thing I'm good at. I’m supposed to be the one protecting the others and there wasn’t anything… If Wolf and that badger hadn’t been there… I need to be smarter. I mean, we knew those things could burrow and were talking about how there were probably more of them, why didn’t I anticipate one of us being pulled under. Flicker was yelling about how Tibor should have done a better job protecting his men, but how am I any different? Flicker looks to me as a leader and if she had died today… that would have been my fault. I need to be better.
I promised her no more underground missions. It seems like that will be… difficult to stick to. The Black Spider lives in a mine and I’d guess Ebondeath probably won’t just be hanging out in the woods somewhere. But like… she was about to start crying. I had to at least try to make her feel better after completely failing her today. I’ll… try my best.
It seems like she and Eethyl are going completely out of their way to argue with each other now. First Flicker is vindictive and angry while Eethyl is totally complacent and then like ten minutes later they’ve flipped and Eethyl is proposing vigilante justice while Flicker is completely calm. Then they were both talking over each other and arguing about what to do next when it seemed like they were in agreement about going to Dragon Barrow first and then to Thundertree. If they could just both be a little less stubborn and actually listen to one another then like 90% of their arguments would be resolved. I… don’t know how to help here. Maybe Sef will be really good at conflict de-escalation and can fix everything?
Also, it turns out Flicker’s been hunting a completely separate dragon this whole time, which is pretty crazy. It’s really made me realize that we actually know very little about each other. Like, Eethyl is with us because he… wants adventure? And Wolf… was an orphan? Eethyl and Sef don’t even know anything about Mom or the lightning pig, unless the others have told them. I should probably try and change that. In the Watch we would sometimes do these icebreaker team building exercises, would that help? Something to think about.
Oh, also we’re hunting an evil ecoterrorist druid now, probably this Reidoth guy. Add it to the list.
Homesick
Uktar 4-6, 1492
Well, we finally had the chance to visit the magic shop today. It was pretty incredible, and I had the chance to pick up some of that awesome wizard spray. Though to be completely honest, I was a little disappointed that Wilmanric wasn’t there. Obviously it was pretty presumptuous of me to assume that he would be, he must be very busy, but I was kind of hoping that I’d get to meet him. I mean, magic items are cool and all, but nothing compared to an actual for real wizard. Also there was a glass staff there which is… a little suspicious. Hopefully Wilmanric will be able to meet with us and he can help us get to the bottom of it.
Other than that, pretty boring day. Sent some letters, did some shopping, carried a cart around. Adabra seemed to forgive us (more or less), so that’s good. The tension between Flicker and Eethyl keeps on escalating, I should probably try to ease that somehow. Add it to the list of things I need to do but don’t have the first clue about how to accomplish. (Stop a dracolich, kill a dragon, fuck over a god, end an interpersonal conflict. All equally daunting.) And Wolf seemed okayish today, but I should probably try to check in with him at some point too.
Leaving Sef behind doesn’t sit super great with me, but I guess she knows where we’re headed so maybe she can catch up. And if not... well she could probably use some rest after all that happened. Sister Garaele is probably the best person to comfort her and explain things and everything anyways. Still felt kind of like we were abandoning her, I hope that isn't how she sees it.
…
It’s nice to know where the Barrow is and have some idea of the dangers there so that we can be a bit more prepared on the way back. Horse guy was kind of a creep (let’s get some stepped up personal space up in this place), but all of his family and friends were just murdered so I’ll give him a pass. He did also give us a lot of information that will be super helpful. And obviously Flicker can handle herself. Still though… who just goes and… propositions a person they just met like that. Not a classy move horse guy.
Those orc camps in the woods sound pretty ominous. Just one more reason for everyone I meet to assume that I’m evil. It could be worse; at least these orcs are spellcasters so people won’t assume that I’m evil and stupid. I wonder if… no, that’s dumb, you have enough going on already without wasting time thinking about that. It’s not like you would even be able to tell. Or like it would matter.
…
We were close enough to Neverwinter today that I was able to just barely catch a glimpse of the towers. It’s left me feeling surprisingly homesick. I mean, I spent most of my time there being so angsty and dejected that it never really felt like I belonged. But now, looking back on it… I miss my time in Neverwinter. I had a good life there. A little lonely, but that was my own fault. And I had my books and Breena and work. Everything just used to be so… simple. No hard decisions, no constant peril, no friends dying or… worse.
Could I even go back to that life now? Now that I know there are evils in the world like dracolichs and lightning pigs and I know I have the ability to stop them could I ever choose to ignore it? Just go back to living a boring, peaceful, simple life? I’m… not sure. Definitely not right now, we are responsible for fixing the Ebondeath situation, but even after that… Is this the life I want? Constantly running from crisis to crisis, never getting the chance to take a breath? That sounds like an exhausting life. And a short one. Is that what Mom would want for me? Is that what it means to be good? I’m… just not sure.
Answers
Uktar 3, 1492 - part 3
Well… that did not go well. Because of us, Raiya’s been possessed (killed?) and an evil dracolich that took the combined efforts of angels, high clerics, and the Harpers to even imprison has been released into the world. So… yeah not great. I’m… not really sure how I feel about it all. I mean, bad obviously, it totally sucks, but Flicker and Eethyl were arguing about whether or not it’s our fault, and like… I don’t know. I agree with Eethyl that investigating the fog to make sure the town was safe was the right thing to do, and there was no way that we could have known it would pull us into the Shard or what leaving would entail. So I guess I don’t feel guilty exactly, but I do feel at least partially responsible. Sister Garaele said that we should consider ourselves lucky for getting out alive, but I don’t know. I think it might have been luckier for everyone involved if that angel had just killed us when we first stepped foot there.
I mostly just feel frustrated that we were even in this position to begin with. I mean, what the hell was Lord Tresendar thinking? “Well, I’ve got the trapped soul of an evil undead dragon here, best thing to do with that is probably to bury it 20ft underground beneath my house, tell no one of its location, and assume that it will cause no problems for the rest of time.” Like, has choosing to bury the cursed evil artifact in the ground ever actually worked? Seems like a pretty terrible plan to me. And then the angel inside the Shard just yelled at us about how we didn’t belong and tried to kill us instead of saying “Hey, this is a prison for an evil dragon soul so if you leave it will possess one of you and wreck untold havok on the world. Also, don’t trust the old guy he’s actually the dracolich I’m here to keep imprisoned”. Even Garaele didn’t say anything about what the Necropolis Shard actually was or how dangerous investigating it would be when we mentioned it to her. We might be partly responsible for letting Ebondeath escape, but it feels like all of this could have been avoided by everyone else being less secretive and making smarter decisions.
And Raiya… we just got her back. I was so sure that she was dead after she got taken by those slavers and then I was so relieved when we found out she was alive and okay. Seeing and fighting alongside her again… I thought everything had finally gone back to normal. Like we had a leader who knew what they were doing again. Like everything was going to be okay. And then for that to be taken away so quickly… it just feels cruel. Hearing that thing’s voice come out of her mouth… it was wrong. Is she even still alive? Is her soul trapped inside her body, watching but not in control? If we kill Ebondeath would that free her? Or would it kill them both? Is there some way to exorcise it from her body first? Is that even something we can afford to worry about or do we just need to focus on stopping it, no matter the cost. I just… don’t know what the right thing to do here is.
Maybe Sef will be better at this stuff, she is a high cleric after all. It seems a little crazy that she is staying with us instead of helping with whatever Big Important Things that Sister Garaele is doing, but she seems nice and I’m definitely not going to turn away the help. She is understandably upset and guilty, but it seems to me like she’s the only one in this whole situation who is actually blameless. I’m not really sure what to say to her though; what do you say to someone who has sacrificed everything in their life only to completely fail, unleash an ancient evil onto the world, and be transported so far into the future that everyone and everything they know is gone? I don’t even know how to reassure Flicker that I’m not going to leave.
Although to be honest, with two more people having left us and Raiya gone again I’m starting to see where Flicker is coming from. I can’t really hold it against Fortune or Damaia, angels and dracolichs are a hell of a lot more than I signed up for too, but it still kind of hurts that they just left us. It feels like so many of the people that we start to trust leave or die or betray us. Although, maybe that’s less of an indictment on them and more of an endorsement of the people who have stayed.
At least I finally got some of those answers I’ve been so desperate for. Be careful what you wish for, I guess.
A Last Goodbye
Marpenoth 26, 1492
While on the road back to Phandalin after visiting the Ravenwood family homestead. (Session 10)
Well… it’s true. She’s really gone. I knew in my head that it was true, but being home… seeing her… she’s actually gone. It’s real. Every time I close my eyes I see her… what was left… and I don’t… I can’t… it just… hurts… so so much…
But I can’t let that be how I remember her; I won’t let it. I’m trying to focus on what she would have wanted, how much she loved me and wanted me to be good, but… I’m so angry. Why would some stupid god send his stupid pig to hurt Mom? She never did anything to hurt anyone in her entire life, for some god to decide to do this- why? Just because he’s an asshole? It’s not fair. I want to hurt him. Kill his pig, show him how it feels. But… Mom never liked it when I got into fights. She really believed in me, that I could be good. I have to try and live up to her example, make her proud. Go after the pig to get justice and protect the people of Phandalin, not for my own anger and revenge. That’s just… an easier thing to say than it is to actually do.
I’m still not exactly sure what happened last night. Was that a dream? A vision? A ghost? Ghosts are one of those things that I know exist in theory, but never expected to actually happen to me. Though, I guess I would have said the same thing once about dragons and gods. I’m going to choose to believe that it was real, one way or another. I’m… glad that I got to show her that I finally did it, at least once. I finally learned magic. And seeing her, talking to her one last time… It really made it obvious how stupid I’ve been. She didn’t blame me and she would never have been disappointed in me. Not for that. She wasn’t proud of me when I left because she thought I was going to become some archmage, it was because I was going. Trying. That’s what was important. I wasted so much time being afraid, time that I could have spent with her before she was gone. I’m… going to regret that for the rest of my life.
It’s funny, I spent so long being terrified that going home and seeing it would make it real. Mean that I’m completely, utterly alone. And it does hurt; there’s this hole inside me where she used to be that I don’t think I will ever be able to fill, and it hurts. But… honestly? I feel less alone now than I have in years. After we finished, Raiya said that she helped me because “that’s what friends do”. I’ve never really had that before. Friends. But… I think it fits. Raiya, Flicker, Wolf… they’re my friends. And while no one will ever mean as much to me as Mom, nothing will ever fill up that hole… at least I’m not alone anymore.
Into the Necropolis
Uktar 3, 1492 - part 2
We got separated from Fortune and Damaia when that angel thing attacked us. Maybe they made it out before the entrance went away? We’ll have to hope that they're together and can make it out on their own; that angel guy is too dangerous and the city is too big for us to search for them.
Wow, there’s so many books! And they’re all about history, magic, and clues to the motives of our enemies, those are like my three favorite things to read about! This old guy might know something about how we can get out of this place though, I should probably focus on asking him questions or whatever first.
Now Flicker wants to go with him (a total stranger) to a secondary location in order to look at grass. With the angel guy around. And the party already split. Obviously I’ll need to go with her, Flicker is super squishy and this place is crazy dangerous. But… the books. Sigh. Maybe I could talk her into staying here and reading with the others? Except… Flicker really doesn’t like being underground. And I doubt the fact that it’s actually a death plane or whatever helps much. And she does like grass. Sigh. I guess Eethyl is probably better than me at book stuff anyways.
Also, some new information or whatever. This used to be an Eladrin city called Illefarn I guess? And it somehow got turned into a plane of the dead or something? I’ve never been to another plane before, I guess that’s pretty cool. Wish it could be somewhere fun like the Feywild or Elemental Plane of Fire instead of this place though. The Keeper said that he didn’t know anything about Glasstaff being here, but he wouldn’t remember anyways so that means literally nothing. As always, everything new we learn just leaves us with even more questions and no real answers. And I’m listening to some old unalive guy talking about which boring tool he uses to cut stupid grass when I could be reading about the lost history of an ancient elf city. Sigh.
…
Well, we got a candle. That’s… a little disappointing honestly. I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting but… like, it’s just a candle. It took us forever to solve the riddle and then we didn’t even know if we’d solved it because, like, why would a candle be important? In the stories, puzzles like this would always play a little song when they got solved by the adventurer, why doesn’t that happen in real life? And why didn’t the Keeper tell us that we were looking for a candle, he was literally reading out of the book that talked about candles but just choose to tell us “You’ll know what to do when you get there”, like what the hell I did not "know" when I saw the candle that it was what we were looking for, it’s just a normal candle. Sigh. At least this means we’re one step closer to getting out of this place, I guess.
A Giant Ancient Underground Ghost City
Uktar 3, 1492 - part 1
It’s nice to be back in town. Although… I’m worried about the Black Network sellswords. Wester is completely incompetent, but I don’t trust Halia and I don’t like that she is using our name to get what she wants. “The Heroes of Phandalin”. Everything was so much easier before everyone was trying to suck up to us. At least I finally had a chance to talk to Sister Garaele. She didn’t know that much more than us, but it’s nice to feel like there’s someone in town who is actually on our side other than Toblen.
The others tried to negotiate a higher fee from Wester, which seemed… kind of pointless? I mean, I have like 700 gold in my bag right now and literally nothing to spend it on, haggling for 8 extra gold each feels like a waste of time. Plus, Fortune and Damaia immediately gave all their money away anyways. And I’m no expert in negotiating, but they seemed… needlessly aggressive? I just don’t think we can afford to alienate potential allies right now.
Also, when did Phandalin become a town full of wizards? Glasstaff, the Black Spider, Wilmanric, Eethyl kind of, me (hah, as if!)… Mom? I can’t ignore it anymore, this is a spellbook. Was she a wizard? Why else would she have a spellbook? But… then why wouldn’t she have told me? I don’t think Dorin knew either. Sister Garaele said she knew Mom; would she know anything about this? I swear, Phandalin used to just be this boring farming town, when did it become this hotbed of crime and magic and crazy shit?
…
Okay, so scratch that completely. There is a giant ancient underground ghost city beneath Phandalin. Full of crazy ghost suits of armor. Have we been living on top of this the whole time? That’s insane! I mean, it’s a whole gigantic city! That’s thousands of years old! I desperately want to explore it and also do not feel comfortable just leaving it here to do its thing underneath the town without knowing what it is and what happened to it and why everything around it is cold and necrotic and ghosty.
But at the same time… Eethyl is right, we’re out of our depth here. We should try and find out more information before just rushing in blindly like we always do. Mortis is into necrotic stuff and worships a death god and got a necropolis shard from Glasstaff, that all fits this place’s vibe (I mean, if there ever was a necropolis) and surely Glasstaff knew this was here. Those two are our best bet for finding out more information about this place. Unfortunately, we don’t have any actual leads about either of them. I hate to say we should just ignore this for now and go find that magic sword, but… I mean, what else can we even do? Tell the town? Who would we even tell? Wester? Halia? And the dragon still is a threat, that hasn’t changed. But how do we just go back to what we were doing before now that we know we are literally walking on top of a giant ancient underground ghost city?
A Whole Bunch of Combat
Uktar 2, 1492 - night
Well, that fight was surprisingly easy. Flicker’s Moonbeam did most of it, but we also worked together really well. Great positioning, good communication, we’re starting to feel like an actual team.
What is everyone doing? Putting wax in our ears for the banshee thing was a brilliant idea, but why is everyone wasting time with thrones and searching rooms while we can’t communicate? The thing is upstairs, we heard it, and we are at a significant tactical disadvantage if we run into more sturges or zombies while looking around. I tried telling this to Fortune, but he didn’t seem to understand (which proves my point). Now people are even splitting up and we won’t be able to hear if they get into fights! I guess I’ll just follow and try to keep an eye on everyone.
Banshees suck.
The spiders are dead. That’s the third fight in a row where I’ve been more or less unscathed but someone else was really hurt. I didn't need to cast a single spell the whole time we were here! I need to be doing a better job of soaking up damage. Should I be acting more threatening? Or maybe just doing a better job of staying in front of the others? But how am I supposed to do that when they're always running headfirst into giant spiders and sturge nests? Maybe I've just been acting too cautious and need to take a more active role in these situations.
That conversation with Flicker was really confusing. It was so weird, it's like she's totally over everything from this morning. I’m so bad at being supportive. She seems okay though, which I guess is all that really matters. It’s just… she was so relived when she found out the others didn’t leave. How do I let her know I’m not going to leave?
Strengths and Weaknesses
Uktar 2, 1492 - day
Flicker was acting weird this morning and was super emotional about her bear dissolving. Should I say something to her? What do you even say to that? I don't know how to make someone less sad. I wish I was better at this stuff. At least Eethyl and Damaia came back. And Flicker seemed like she's ready to trust them, so maybe things will be less awkward from now on.
I’ve also found some more magicy stuff in Mom’s book, which is… odd. Why did she have a magic book? I mean, she must have known about the spell that’s built into it, it’s her book. I have so many questions. I should show it to Eethyl and see what he thinks, he knows a lot about magic stuff. Except… I don’t really want to. It’s dumb, but it feels like this book is my last connection to her and… I mean, obviously sharing it wouldn’t change anything, but… I don’t know. Maybe when we get back to Phandalin.
…
I always feel so useless during this part. Wolf is so good at exploring (too good to be honest, always going off on his own) and Flicker’s magic is so versatile. The only thing I’m good at is fighting, I couldn’t do anything to help us get inside. Should I try and learn more utility, explorey magic? No, focusing on my strengths is the best way to help the group. Needing help and depending on others isn’t weakness, I know that. I just... I wish that my strengths were more than being able to take a punch.
Speaking of which, I think Fortune tackled one of those zombies to protect me, which was… nice. People don’t usually think about protecting me. Though it was also incredibly dumb and unnecessary. I mean, the front line is the one place I can actually pull my own weight and he isn’t very… physically imposing. Or armored. Plus, just from a tactics perspective, people who can heal should really focus on keeping themselves safe first. Still, though. Nice of him.
Those zombie dwarf things are seriously gross. I don’t know what that one did to me when it hit but… that was not fun. We need to be careful, who knows how many more of them are down here. Actually… isn’t that kind of strange? That a bunch of undead dwarves were just hanging out in the main entrance? Giant spiders I could see, “life finds a way” as Eethyl said, but you’d think dwarves would bury their dead. Unless… I assumed that ‘sealed’ just meant the dwarves moved away, but what if they were chased out because of the ghoul things and sealed the fortress to keep them inside? That would have been relevant information for the notice.
Wait, what if it was sealed because the zombies are contagious? Am I infected? Am I going to die? Flicker and Fortune can heal, would they be able to cure me? Maybe Sister Garaele in town? Oh god, I don’t want to die. Alright, deep breaths, there’s no actual evidence of them being contagious. And if they are… well, sunk costs. Maybe keep an eye on Wolf though, he was hit first. If he starts to turn zombieish, then you can panic.
One Long Series of Awkward Conversations
Uktar 1, 1492
Raiya is alive! I need to tell Flicker and Wolf! Oh my god, I was so sure that she was dead, I can’t believe this! I… can’t believe this. I need to make sure its really her. She mentioned that castle she saw in the dream, but… Canarie and that orc guy were both there for that. What if it’s a trick by Glasstaff or the dragon guys so that we stop searching for her? I need to be sure, I owe that to Raiya. Should I tell Wolf and Flicker now? Probably, they deserve to know. But… Flicker was so desperate to believe that Raiya is okay. If I tell them now and it ends up being a trick… I’ll know for sure tomorrow and then I can tell them. One day doesn’t make a difference, right? ...right?
The talk with Flicker went well, I’m glad she wants to stay with the others. And I get where she’s coming from with the caution, but… I mean, if we’re going to all travel together, we need to at least kind of get along. And everyone keeps acting like I’m the leader (which, ridiculous) so I should at least try to soothe tensions.
I’m not sure if I handled the Halia thing the right way. I mean, Wester is incompetent for sure, but… at least I know what to expect with him. Halia seems sketchy and I’m sure she’s got bigger plans in motion. Hell, maybe she was the one working with the Redcloaks if they didn’t steal from her. I think that Flicker had the right idea telling Toblen and having him spread it around. Halia seems… dangerous, and this way we aren’t really picking a side (though I’m sure that won’t be an option for long).
I… What… How… “I wasn’t planning to consume you.” I mean... I mean... Fuck.
Well, trying to lead went about as well as I expected. I think I might have yelled at Damaia a bit, I hope there aren’t any hard feelings. I just… fuck, it’s so stressful being the one making the decision. I think we got to a good place in the end though. Protect the town (and us) first, worry about killing the dragon second.
I seems like Fortune knows something about a cult of Talos connected to the lighting pig. It sounds like he’s on a similar path of justice (vengeance? justice sounds better) which is… nice? It makes me feel a little less alone, at least. Plus, maybe he has some sort of information that can help me find answers.
Also, talking about cults made me think about that letter from Pumba where he talked about Uluran Mortis and a cult of Myrkul! Like, how did I forget that! He was a smuggler who killed his father or something that Pumba asked us to look into. It’s all connected! Everything! But… it also doesn’t actually give us any new information. Man, I never realized there was so much intrigue going on below the surface of Phandalin. In the short time I’ve been back we’ve learned about a death cult, a pig cult, an evil wizard mob boss, and at least one crime syndicate. Hopefully we can try to meet up with that cleric of Tymora soon and she can shed a bit of light on all this.
Wow, Flicker really took what I said to heart and, like, mission accomplished. She was perfectly smooth and it was way less awkward for everyone involved. Have I actually been secretly good at this leading and talking to people stuff all along and never realized it? I mean, my advice worked so well. “I wasn’t planning to consume you.” Nope, my soul is leaving my body again, I’m the most awkward person that’s ever lived.
A wizard! Here in Phandalin! Setting up a magic shop! This is so cool, I wonder what other sorts of stuff he’ll sell? I mean, wizard spray! A spray used by wizards! The others don’t seem as enthusiastic and he clearly has some sort of complicated history with Eethyl, but, like, still! A wizard! I can’t wait to visit his shop when it opens, I wonder if he’ll sell any books? Finally, somewhere in town I can spend all this money!
I was definitely right about being able to learn from Eethyl, he knows so much about magic. I could barely even keep up with all the stuff he was saying about, like, the ‘weave’ and lost schools of magic and primordials and stuff. I’ve always assumed that wizards (and I guess bards and artificers too, but in a less cool way) were the only spellcasters whose magic really came from them, and everyone else just, like, channeled it from something else. But maybe that’s not really how it works, I mean, I barely understand any of this stuff. I should try and keep an open mind, especially if Eethyl is willing to teach me more about it.
Even More Introductions
Marpenoth 30, 1492
Well, it looks like the Redcloaks will no longer pose a threat to us or the town, which is good. And that eye monster is dead. Unfortunately, it’s left us with even more questions than before. Where did Glasstaff go? What was he planning? Is he going to attack us again? Who are Uluran Mortis, Mormesk, and the Black Spider? Should we be worried about this Necropolis Shard and Myrkul stuff? We also didn’t find any information about where Raiya and the other captives were taken, but maybe one of these leads will point us in the right direction.
It seems like, despite my protests, everyone has decided that I’m the leader for some reason. They kept looking to me to make decisions. Which is ridiculous and, like, stressful as hell. But with Raiya gone, someone has to do it. And no one died or got kidnapped today, so it could have gone worse. I guess we’ll see how it goes, maybe they’ll all come to their senses and realize that I’m terrible at this stuff.
At least it looks like we can trust our new companions. I didn’t realize it before because he talks so fast, but Eethyl is really smart. It was fascinating listening to him talk about dragons, and I’m sure that information will be useful. I don’t think he’s a wizard, but maybe he can help me with my magical studies anyways. He seems very knowledgeable and I haven’t made any new breakthroughs since Pumba left, so I could use the help.
Damaia also insisted on bringing some new guy along. He seems okay, even if he clearly doesn’t know what he’s doing in a fight. It looks like he has some kind of healing ability, which we could definitely use. Flicker should really be doing more offensive stuff considering how powerful her spells are (like, holy fucking shit Moonbeam hurts so so much). Also… he called me attractive. Twice. *Blushes intensely*
Wolf told us a bit about his past, which was cool. He… called us family, which… I don’t know. Honestly, I was still trying to wrap my head around Raiya calling us friends. Like, logically I know that getting close to new people doesn’t mean I’m replacing Mom, but… for some reason that was all I could think when he said that.
I had another dream about her last night. And giant boars. We need to focus on protecting the town right now, but I haven’t forgotten about making that right. I wonder if Eethyl knows anything about Talos or giant divine lightning pigs, it’s probably a good idea to do a little research before I go picking a fight with a god.
Introductions and Farewells
Marpenoth 29, 1492
Well, that went poorly. Maybe I should have just shared the drink, but... I don't trust her and, who knows, maybe it would have permanently given me crab claws or something. I guess it doesn't matter, I still wouldn't have trusted her not to sell us out even if we had parted more amicably. Hopefully she takes my advice and that's the last we see of her. Regardless, we should probably be safe here for tonight.
I can't believe they took Raiya. I keep replaying that fight in my mind; if I had stayed with the group would things have turned out differently? I had Expeditious Retreat cast, maybe if I had caught up to Raiya and we faced them together... No, Flicker was right, it's no use thinking about maybes. She seemed to think that Raiya would be fine on her own, but I'm not so sure. Those dragon-faced fucks were no joke and with the state she was in... We need to try and help her. But they were in a cart, even if we could somehow pick up their trail they have such a lead on us. We need to try and figure out where they were going. Maybe we can sneak into the manor and try to find some information? No, that's stupid; sneaking has never gone well for us and it's not like criminals just leave out a big ledger with all their crimes in the open. We'll need to get one of them alone and ask some questions, maybe we can camp outside and try to grab one of them? But that's just going to lead to a fight and I don't love our chances. It went terribly the first two times with five of us and now...
With Raiya gone I need to step up and protect Flicker and Wolf. I need to stop being so reckless and dumb and really think things through. But I don't know what the right thing to do is. I've never been any good at all of this. God, I miss Mom. She was always so good at figuring this stuff out. It doesn't matter, we can make a decision in the morning (evening?) once the others are awake, I should just focus on getting through tonight (this afternoon?) first.
...
Nothing ever goes right for us, does it. Shortsighted again, now Qelline has lost her barn because of us. We'll make it up to her somehow. We need to deal with the Redcloaks first, though. I'll do what I can to try and find information about Raiya in the process, but we're in danger as long as they are still operating and we can't help her if we're dead. I need to keep everyone safe.
These new people are odd. Damaia seemed relaxed and not, like, overly friendly like a spy would be. Eethyl seemed genuine and talked so much, but maybe it's just an act? He knew so much about us, what if he's actually the leader of the Redcloaks and, like, went undercover with Toblen to lure us into a trap? But wouldn't he have kept it a secret that he knows so much about us then? But wait, what if that's exactly what he wants us to think and it's all a part of his plan? No, Toblen trusts him, I should give them both the benefit of the doubt. And we do need the help.
Why would Eethyl think I'm the leader of the group, I'm not leader material. And when he said it the others didn't object, is that what they think? That's ridiculous, who would want to follow me? I'm not smart, or charming, or inspiring, or anything that makes a person a leader. I can barely even manage to be good most days. Am I being too confident and giving off that impression? Should I be making it more clear I have no idea what I'm doing and no one should follow me? No, there's too much at stake with Raiya and the Redcloaks, I can't let my own bullshit get in the way of protecting Flicker and Wolf. I mean, I'm not becoming the group leader or anything crazy, but I can't afford to second-guess myself. Hopefully tomorrow we can finally finish this and get a chance to take a breath.
...
Well, that... could have gone worse. None of us are too hurt (well except Eethyl, what an absolute madman) and it seems like we've cleared this place out. What was I thinking, trying to be all diplomatic? You know people don't like you, you idiot. It's frustrating that the leader got away, but this should put a major dent in the Redcloaks' operations, at the very least. Now we can get the townsfolk's stolen goods back to them and maybe try to find another lead. Plus Eethyl and Damaia didn't turn on us; it seems like we really can trust them. Flicker and Wolf are both safe, which is the most important thing. That's what Raiya would want me to focus on, even if we did just lose our last chance to find out where she was taken.
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