Valindra. Enter Zartan, The Jungle Lord
10 Nightal, The Year of Twelve Warnings (1494 DR)
Day 58 of 79
Ruins of Omu, Jungles of Chult
DM's Note: Unfortunately, three gaming sessions were not recorded prior to this one.
In those sessions, Bolte and Atwix went on a sidequest to help Nip'hto and Alice after they had been petrified by Zalkoré's gaze. Bolte and Atwix returned to Kir Sabal to get help from Asharra. Asharra said she knew of a dwarf druid named Living Stone who could help. Asharra contacted Living Stone who offered to help Bolte and Atwix if they helped him first. Living Stone said the Flaming Fist had opened a diamond mine not far from Nangalore. The Greater Restoration spell needed to help Nip'hto and Alice required diamond dust also. The Flaming Fist were using Chultan slaves captured from local tribes to mine the diamonds. When the group arrived at the mine, they found the Flaming Fist mercenaries had all been slain by members of the Zhentarim who kept the slaves alive so they could mine the diamonds for the Zhentarim instead. With Living Stone's help, Atwix and Bolte killed all of the Zhentarims and freed the slaves. Living Stone destroyed the mine after. The druid then returned to Nangalore with Atwix and Bolte. Using the diamond dust they got from the mine, Living Stone cast Greater Restoration on Nip'hto and Alice, therefore reversing the effects of Zalkoré's gaze.
The next day, Asharra performed the ritual of the Dance of the Seven Winds. The group, now able to fly for seven days, left Kir Sabal. Their guide, a Chultan named Watabe led them towards the lost city of Omu.
Days after leaving Kir Sabal, the group encountered a group of quetzalcoatlus, huge predatory flying dinosaurs. Atwix, using his Mask of the Beast, was able to charm one of the creatures. It defended the group against the other creatures and even served as a guardian while the group spent the night in the jungle.
The next day, the group came upon an unusual sight.
A massive chunk of earth and rock torn from the earth drifted over the jungle, about two hundred feet above the ground. A petrified tree towered above the stone, with its stone roots protruding from the bottom. Between the shape of the rock and the branching of the tree’s limbs, it created the impression of a gigantic stone heart hanging in the sky. The impression was only made more gruesome by the red liquid dripping from the roots.
They saw a cave mouth in the side of the slowly rotating “heart,” and a staircase winding from the cave up to the flattened top where the petrified tree stands. The staircase definitely wasn't natural and looked as though it was carved with tools into the rock.
A female figure stood next to the petrified tree, waving at the flying adventurers.
The group landed on the strange rock and met with the woman, who turned out to be an elf. She introduced herself as Valindra, a Sembian scholarly wizard who in Chult studying the plants and animals along with any enchanted places or items that could be found in Chult.
She asked where the group was headed. After telling her they were headed to Omu, she was rather excited to hear of it. She even went so far as to mention having heard that the Soulmonger, a unique and powerful artifact, was hidden somewhere in the ruins of Omu. She asked the adventurers to return to her when they found the Soulmonger. She said she would like to study it while ensuring that whatever harmful effects it may cause could be contained by her spells. She also offered to have the group spend the night next to the tree if they wanted to. She then left and went into the cave below.
The group felt it wasn't safe staying on the rock, so they flew off and found a suitable campsite in the jungle below.
The next day, they came upon a patrol of Flaming Fists. The group hid in the thick vegetation hoping to let the patrol pass them by.
However, a sudden attack that killed one of the patrol's half-elven scout quickly changed their plans.
A man dressed only in a leather loincloth and armed with a longbow and a dagger had killed the half-elf scout with two arrow shots to her chest.
The other Flaming Fist members immediately responded.
The adventurers decided to join in the fight against the Flaming Fist.
In the end, all but another scout had survived the encounter.
The feral man spoke broken common but was able to introduce himself as Zartan.
Watabe was able to speak to Zartan in Chultan. Watabe told the group that Zartan was a legend amongst the various tribes in Chult. As the story went, Zartan was found as a baby by a band of gorillas after his parents had been killed by a monstrous tyrannosaurus known as the King of Feathers after the Star Goddess, a Halruaan ship Zartan's parents were on crashed in the jungle 19 years ago.
Zartan was raised by the gorillas and went on to become known as The Jungle Lord, as evidenced by the many animals of Chult who consider him their protector.
Zartan said he would guide the group to Omu since he was headed that way as well. Zartan also told Watabe his tribe was not far from where they were and that he should rejoin his tribe and leave the Order of the Gauntlet.
Watabe bid the adventurers farewell.
The adventurers were happy to have Zartan join them as they continued on in search of the ruined city of Omu.
Day 58 of 79
Ruins of Omu, Jungles of Chult
DM's Note: Unfortunately, three gaming sessions were not recorded prior to this one.
In those sessions, Bolte and Atwix went on a sidequest to help Nip'hto and Alice after they had been petrified by Zalkoré's gaze. Bolte and Atwix returned to Kir Sabal to get help from Asharra. Asharra said she knew of a dwarf druid named Living Stone who could help. Asharra contacted Living Stone who offered to help Bolte and Atwix if they helped him first. Living Stone said the Flaming Fist had opened a diamond mine not far from Nangalore. The Greater Restoration spell needed to help Nip'hto and Alice required diamond dust also. The Flaming Fist were using Chultan slaves captured from local tribes to mine the diamonds. When the group arrived at the mine, they found the Flaming Fist mercenaries had all been slain by members of the Zhentarim who kept the slaves alive so they could mine the diamonds for the Zhentarim instead. With Living Stone's help, Atwix and Bolte killed all of the Zhentarims and freed the slaves. Living Stone destroyed the mine after. The druid then returned to Nangalore with Atwix and Bolte. Using the diamond dust they got from the mine, Living Stone cast Greater Restoration on Nip'hto and Alice, therefore reversing the effects of Zalkoré's gaze.
The next day, Asharra performed the ritual of the Dance of the Seven Winds. The group, now able to fly for seven days, left Kir Sabal. Their guide, a Chultan named Watabe led them towards the lost city of Omu.
***
Days after leaving Kir Sabal, the group encountered a group of quetzalcoatlus, huge predatory flying dinosaurs. Atwix, using his Mask of the Beast, was able to charm one of the creatures. It defended the group against the other creatures and even served as a guardian while the group spent the night in the jungle.
The next day, the group came upon an unusual sight.
A massive chunk of earth and rock torn from the earth drifted over the jungle, about two hundred feet above the ground. A petrified tree towered above the stone, with its stone roots protruding from the bottom. Between the shape of the rock and the branching of the tree’s limbs, it created the impression of a gigantic stone heart hanging in the sky. The impression was only made more gruesome by the red liquid dripping from the roots.
They saw a cave mouth in the side of the slowly rotating “heart,” and a staircase winding from the cave up to the flattened top where the petrified tree stands. The staircase definitely wasn't natural and looked as though it was carved with tools into the rock.
A female figure stood next to the petrified tree, waving at the flying adventurers.
The group landed on the strange rock and met with the woman, who turned out to be an elf. She introduced herself as Valindra, a Sembian scholarly wizard who in Chult studying the plants and animals along with any enchanted places or items that could be found in Chult.
She asked where the group was headed. After telling her they were headed to Omu, she was rather excited to hear of it. She even went so far as to mention having heard that the Soulmonger, a unique and powerful artifact, was hidden somewhere in the ruins of Omu. She asked the adventurers to return to her when they found the Soulmonger. She said she would like to study it while ensuring that whatever harmful effects it may cause could be contained by her spells. She also offered to have the group spend the night next to the tree if they wanted to. She then left and went into the cave below.
The group felt it wasn't safe staying on the rock, so they flew off and found a suitable campsite in the jungle below.
The next day, they came upon a patrol of Flaming Fists. The group hid in the thick vegetation hoping to let the patrol pass them by.
However, a sudden attack that killed one of the patrol's half-elven scout quickly changed their plans.
A man dressed only in a leather loincloth and armed with a longbow and a dagger had killed the half-elf scout with two arrow shots to her chest.
The other Flaming Fist members immediately responded.
The adventurers decided to join in the fight against the Flaming Fist.
In the end, all but another scout had survived the encounter.
The feral man spoke broken common but was able to introduce himself as Zartan.
Watabe was able to speak to Zartan in Chultan. Watabe told the group that Zartan was a legend amongst the various tribes in Chult. As the story went, Zartan was found as a baby by a band of gorillas after his parents had been killed by a monstrous tyrannosaurus known as the King of Feathers after the Star Goddess, a Halruaan ship Zartan's parents were on crashed in the jungle 19 years ago.
Zartan was raised by the gorillas and went on to become known as The Jungle Lord, as evidenced by the many animals of Chult who consider him their protector.
Zartan said he would guide the group to Omu since he was headed that way as well. Zartan also told Watabe his tribe was not far from where they were and that he should rejoin his tribe and leave the Order of the Gauntlet.
Watabe bid the adventurers farewell.
The adventurers were happy to have Zartan join them as they continued on in search of the ruined city of Omu.
Session played on January 27, 2021
Adventurers:
Alice (Female Human Cleric of Tempus)
Atwix (Male Drow Fighter)
Bolte Bastardo (Male Half-Elf Rogue)
Nip'hto the Tiptoe (Male Elf Ranger)
NPCs:
Zartan, the Jungle Lord
Heart of Ubtao
Zartan, The Jungle Lord
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