Session 03
General Summary
After the fight with the death priestess the group tried to decide what to do next. Camero called
upon the mysteries of fate and summoned a ghostly hand. He asked it some questions and the hand
pointed to different paths through the mist. Deciding to follow the path which supposedly led to
holy water the group set off into the mists with Harley scouting ahead.
Soon they came to another monumental temple. This one was also run down on one side and as
new on another. Harley snuck up and did a reconnaisance. He saw a couple of cisterns, one of
which looks calm and clear, the other of which looked full of algae and in which something dark
stirred. In the centre of the temple was a bridge and stood on that was a bald tiefling with a broken
horn. Two huge undead naga and a few scattered monks, raised as undead, were also to be seen.
After a consultation it was decided that rather than engaging these foes in combat the group would
try to pass the test subtly. Harley pulled his cloak tight around him and muttered a command
word. He faded from sight and then slipped silently and invisibly across the temple grounds and
into the northern cistern. He submerged himself for a short while and felt the calm of the Raven
Queen fill him. In the distance a second Fate Pillar lit up through the mists and a further path
opened up. Harley returned to his companions and the group retraced their steps to where they had
fought the death priestess with a mind to heading off to where they believed they could find a
raven skull next.
Heading down a path which led primarily north the group soon came upon a third temple. Again
this one showed partial collapse and partial fresh plaster and everything in between. As Harley
approached to scout he heard screams of a human nature and a deep loud barritone voice laughing.
Suddenly a red bloody body which appeared to be wearing monk's clothing was flung into the air
and came down with a splat on the ground in the middle of the temple. Not wanting this thing to
kill any more monks the team charged in.
The temple courtyard had three deep pits in it and an archway leading to the north, through which
Gotrek and Morgan saw a huge towering monstrosity. Sora identified it as an undead Goristro
demon - a very unusual and dangerous foe. It saw the two fighters and charged them, smashing its
way through the wall and archway on the way to them. It ran right over them both, knocking
Gotrek flat as Morgan dodged nimbly aside. The others rushed in and the Goristro was
surrounded. Unfortunately at this time two huge shadow claw cats appeared out of the building on
the far side of the courtyard. And marching into view came two extremely unusual creatures.
Camero had read about these creatures. They were known as blackstar knights, and were part of
what was collectively known as the Blackstar Host. In essense they were shards of a greater
primordial known as the Timesus - a creature as old and powerful as the gods with which our
heroes were well aquainted. Timesus was known as the Blackstar and he was one of the
primordials who first discovered Death's Reach back before the Dawn War. He was responsible
for shutting Death's Reach such that the souls which found their way there were trapped, and then
consumed by the great primordial.
Two blackstar knights approached the group from the building, one on each side. They carried big
swords made of the same elemental stuff they were made from. One targetted Sora and the other
ended up in a standoff with Morgan. As Sora tried to escape one it teleported to her side and smote
her with its greatsword, hurting her badly. On top of that one of the shadowclaws teleported to the
other side of her and bit into her back with its cold and life sapping fangs. A timely word from
Saint Braken stopped her collapsing, just.
The Goristro demon was surrounded and hacked down by Harley, Braken and Gotrek. Camero
threw spells into the courtyard, striking many of the foes at once. Morgan continued to occupy one
of the blackstar knights whilst the other carried on striking at Sora. The two shadow claws were
next on the party's hit list and were both quickly brought down, but both reanimated again as soon
as they were dropped.
The Camero rushed into the middle of the fray dodging a nip from a shadow claw but getting cut
by a greatsword for his troubles. He then exploded in fire, hitting all the foes who he had rushed
into the middle of! This crazy or brave move resulted in one of the blackstar knights exploding in
a strange combination of evil energy which blasted the heroes stood nearby!
One of the shadow claws approached Camero, who was reeling from the explosion, and bit deep
into his side. The eladrin mage collapsed on the floor, unconscious. But not for long as Braken
muttered a holy word and healing filled the wizard, bringing him around. The two cats where then
quickly finished off and finally Gotrek and Morgan went toe to toe with the last blackstar knight
and took it down. Morgan took the full brunt of the subsequent explosion in the chest, but was still
standing when the smoke cleared.
What did the arrival of the Blackstar Host mean? Where had they come from? Were they here at
someone's demand? Were they on a side and if so which side were they on? Were they working
for Orcus' minions? This was a mystery which needed to be solved...
Report Date
11 Apr 2024
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