Session 330 - The Orc Foundry
General Summary
Spring 727TR
The Story So Far
The King is dead. Long live the King.
King Minigath, after ruling the Kingdom of Kaldor well for thirty-three years, has been assassinated. Sir Conwan Elendsa has been crowned King, but the former King's bastard sons have contested this. Meanwhile, in the background, the mysterious Esoterical Order of Lothrim is up to no good.
Through magical means, the heroes have learned that the Esoteric Order of Lothrim has a base in the foothills of the Felsham Mountains. The so-called Orc Foundry, located in an old iron mine, is where they forge weapons for various Foulspawn kingdoms and have two Order of the White Hand captives. The Heroes plan to rescue them.
This is the continuation of Session 329 - The Succession Council.
Location - Ovendel in the Kingdom of Kaldor.
1st Peonu 727TR
Part 1 – A Visit with a Lady Friend
The couple spends several days catching up, and Rycon gives Afaewyn a sword crafted by the master swordsmith Yebisi Netoshi in the distant Kingdom of Melderyn.
Location - Felsham Mountains in the Kingdom of Kaldor.
10th Peonu 727TR
Part 2 – Black Orc Guards
Back on the road, the characters make their way through the Kathelea Hills towards the Orc Foundry. A squad of black orcs lay an ambush, but although they hit hard, they were no serious threat and soon dispatched. The party destroys their signaling fires before the foulspawn can raise the alarm.
Part 3 – The Foundry
The party approaches the Foundry; it has two entrances, the iron mine and forge, where they see smoke emerging from several ventilation shafts and another entrance further up the hill to the Order of Lothrim’s administration complex. This is where the Order of the White Hand captives are expected to be held. There is an internal passageway linking these locations.
The party attempts to sneak into the forge section, find the linking passageway, and then sneak into the administrative section. Unfortunately, Rycon makes a noise and alerts a guard, but the quick-thinking Valeria uses Disguise Self to make the party resemble the black orcs they have just killed. They pass without incident, grunting and deceiving the human and lazy, half-attentive foulspawn. They spot the passage leading up to the administrative section; however, two human guards are too close, so they move further into the complex, looking for an alternative route.
They pass by scores of common or brown orcs toiling at basic forges, producing weapons, including mankars (crude falchions), arrows, and studded and banded armor. The black orcs are lording over them, and there appears to be some resentment.
Part 4 – The Plan Falls Apart
Soon, the characters pass a stone statue of the imposing woman, the infamous Lothrim’s Daughter, and find a side passage leading to a locked door. Dryueh picks it up and spots a human warrior, the Overseer. The heroes sneak up on him, but he is too evasive and cries for help before being killed. Soon, more humans and black orc warriors charge in, and the heroes are in for a bloody fight in the confinement of the mine chambers. Eventually, they defeat the first wave.
Only one human warrior, one of the weaker combatants, is left standing in the Foundry. This guard flees to the statue of Lothrim's Daughter and utters a code word. Suddenly, it jerks into life and menacingly stomps forward towards the heroes. However, with the passage up to the administration complex now clear of enemies, the heroes avoid confronting the Stone Golem and rush upstairs, pursued by the remaining orc guards. Fortunately, the passageway is too narrow for the golem to follow.
Part 5 - Escape Upstairs
Making their way up a narrow stairwell, they entered the administration section of this complex. A warrior emerges from a side passage accompanied by a savage-looking pet wolf. He is a very dangerous fighter. Nevertheless, the heroes focus their attacks on the wolf, and it is soon slain. Shortly after, the remaining guard and black orcs arrive from below. The warrior commands the guard to get help and raise the alarm. However, Dryueh follows behind and kills him. Eventually, the remaining adversaries are massacred.
Further on, the invaders spot a light; another skilled warrior is investigating a sound. This Agrik worshiping knight's mace causes massive damage, badly injuring Rycon, but the evil unholy warrior is cut down, but not before he raises the alarm. From an adjacent room, a female sorcerer emerges. She does not hold back, immediately unleashing Fireballs and Chain Lightnings, knocking Rycon out and nearly incinerating Valeria and Dryueh. Worse, two more soldiers, the prison guards, arrive.
While the burned Valeria distracts the guards, Dryueh kills the Sorceress at the last second and attends to Rycon’s injuries. He is wounded but able to move and fight. One of the guards battling Valeria tells his companion, “Kill the prisoners; I will hold this rabble off.” Dryueh and Rycon race after the guard and catch him in a small prison cell just as he is about to slit the throat of a middle-aged man in chains. He is executed instead. The heroes are surprised to learn that the other prisoner, an odd-looking male brown orc. “Don’t kill her,” the man says, “All is not what it seems.”
Part 6 - The Prisoners
The orc introduces himself in a surprisingly softer, almost feminine voice; her name is Ursuli, and she is a human psionicist trapped in a male foulspawn body. She explains that while infiltrating an orc complex using Possession (a type of psionic Magic Jar), she has not been able to return to her body and has been trapped in orc form ever since.
To be continued.NPC Interactions
Sir Edwin Barthy
White hand agents - Gaerin and Ursuli.
Challenges
Black Orc Guards.
Various human guards.
Rescued Gaerin and Ursuli.Rewards
Some coins, gems, and potions.
Created Content
Nothing this week.
Related Reports
Order of the White Hand - updated.
Player Characters
Valeria - Human - L12 Shadow Sorcerer
Background - Magical Experiment.
Archetype - Beastmaster.
Rycon - Human - L12 Fighter
Background - Rebel Knight.
Archetypes - Liberator Champion/Dual Weapon Warrior/Swashbuckler.
Dryueh - 1/2 Elf - L12 Thief Rogue
Background - Scout.
Archetypes - Vigilante/Medic/Shadowdancer/Wizard.
Next Session
Rycon
Dryueh
Valeria
The Esosterical Order of Lothrim
A nefarious cabal of arcane spellcasters intending to rule the world, led by Lothrim's daughter, a.k.a Dyalne Dulye.
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