Session 3 - The Volkhvy and Their Minions

General Summary

Vadim, a factor of the Prince of Ladan' arrives from the forest in the night. He was following a party from the west, which soon departs back the way it came. He rests the night, camping out in the fields outside Rurik's estate, and the next day, finds a trail of four people heading east, one of whom has very large feet. Vadim follows the party. He tracks them to.a tiny temple, which has pillars, carved with bearded faces. Nearby there is some disturbed earth formed into cubes. Vadim is unusual, not baptised by not a devotee of the old gods either. Not knowing what to make of it Vadim rests for the night nearby. Vadim encounters a human-sized hare, dead.
Further in the wilderness to the east, Vadim spots and approaches a fishing village. He asks the locals about the party. They point to the northeast. Vadim moves into the forest, picks up their trail again, and prcoeeds stealthily towards the party.
Meanwhile, Hrefna, Vladimir, Taras, and Polkan are in the forest. Artemisa, a local forester and trapper, is guiding the party toward a temple in the forest. They hear buzzing, and a swarm of large wasps approches them. Vladimir uses a sleep spell to down most of them, while the others stomp the rest.
Vadim steps forward and introduces himself. After a brief conversation, the group follows Artemisa uphill, and sights a large wasp nest hanging from a pine. As the wasps they have already dealt with issued from here, it is decided to take a run at this likely depleted nest, as Artemisa says there are other nests all around the hill. Vladimir lures the the wasps out. Along with another swarm, a very large wasp emerges (roughly the same size as the one they killed back at Bychii Brod). Artemisia and Vadim bring down the large wasp. Vadim bemoans losing one of his few arrows, and Artemisia gives him two of hers. Taras kills the rest of the wasp swarm, and advances near Polkan. Daringly, Polkan tastes the wasp honey that is dripping out of the nest. It is apparently good.
The party, which now includes Vadim, heads up a hill, and crosses a muddy depression near the top of the hill. There are voices whistling through the trees. "Why do you tread on sacred ground? BACK! GO BACK!"
Taras: "We come as guests to talk."
Vladimir takes out rhubarb, lights it, flops to the ground, exposes his belly, and the paper is consumed usually quickly. Voices recede. The party hears chimes: sticks and bones tied to trees. A structure with a big gabled roof appears through the trees. The PCs step inside and there is a "woosh" as the place comes alight from a stone brazier.
Sitting on the floor is a bald, bearded man blue symbols painted/tattooed on his head. "As guests, you are welcome" he replies to Taras' salutation. "We are the Lipovane, the people of the linden" the bald bearded man says.
There is a long discourse on how Rurik has turned away from the old ways and should return to them. If he does, the fishing village may resume paying tribute to him, instead of to this temple. At one point, three wolves enter the temple and show their teeth. We agree to stay the night in exchange for bringing back an offering to Perun. Vladimir, Vadim and Polkan go out to hunt, and bring down a deer. The two of them prepare to bed down outdoors,
Hrefna and Taras remain at the temple. Taras strikes a deal where in exchange for ceasing their attacks against Rurik and his family till winter, he will deliver the village's tribute in pelts to the priests. They also meet three younger acolytes  - one man and two women.

Report Date

18 Aug 2024