Session Report #11: The Journey Begins
General Summary
The Atmosphere in Sentinel has changed drastically in the three days since the party’s audience with the Empress. Over the past 24 hours, a spiritual demonstration has been taking place at the footsteps of Castle Sentinel led by the exiled Prince Phastos of Old Hegathe. You all remember Prince Phastos as he waltzed into the hall with a Priestess of Tall Papa and a Priestess of Satakal the World Skin, for his flamboyant display of outrage at the Banquet, decrying the King for his spiritual incompetence. The Priestess’ gave a foreboding prophecy, that Satakal the Worldskin has begun to stir in his slumber, while Phastos called for an expedition to the Lost City of Satakalaam to search for the Scale of Satakal.
The party has all seen over the past day, a heavy, presence of Order the Candle Guards, and Imperial soldiers, marching the streets in tandem to keep the peace. Word has spread across the city of the tragedy that took place in Sentinels outskirts. While what has been said to you changes from person to person, what you know is that an incident occurred a few nights ago during one of the Priestess’s rituals. She was blessing the sick and the poor in the slums when something happened. Imperial soldiers arrived and accused the Priestess of having summoned forth daedra and moved to arrest her. What happened next is not known and is where rumors have started. A terrible scream was heard that reverberated across the city, centered on the ritual site. After that, dozens of people collapsed across the area all requiring immediate first aid. The Priestess of Tall Papa was burned with no trial, and the Imperial soldiers who conducted the execution have yet to surface. Phastos has been leading the so far peaceful protest ever since news of the tragedy spread across the city.
Dragging into its second day, Redguards from across the city have taken part in this spiritual protest at the foot of the Castle, with Phastos leading everyone in prayer and in ceremonial rituals to reaffirm the faith of the Redguard people while citizens of Sentinel of various other races have either steered clear of the demonstration not wanting to get involved in a distinctly Redguard problem, or have become antagonistic towards the demonstrators. Over the course of the past day, you have all witnessed a city become a tinderbox, with many locals decrying the unjust murder of one of their faith leaders at the hands of still unknown imperial soldiers. Accusations of daedra worship have been leveled against the Priestess of Tall Papa by the Imperial Legion, with many eye witness accounts of Scamps running loose in the streets, while the commonfolk decry the tragedy that befell many of the people in the Outskirts in the ensuing chaos and widespread collateral damage of dozens of people dropping in the streets and in their homes in an instant requiring immediate medical attention. Sentinel is on edge.
While the party was having breakfast on this morning, they were surprised to see Havem return from his hunting. Everyone was happy to see him after 5 days in the desert. It became clear that something about Havem had changed, as his scales appeared quite different, with golden engravings working their way down his head to his tail and on his arms. After a brief moment of getting reacquainted, Knight Sister Solaine and the Imperial Battlemage's Apprentice, Theodane, entered the townhouse with a message that King was expecting them.
As the party worked their way to Castle Sentinel, they observed the demonstration taking place at the footsteps. It was a somber atmosphere, with many redguards beginning their prayers early and Phastos leading the crowd. The party would be shown to a balcony where King Fahara'jad IV was waiting for them.
The King would explain that due to the events of the past few days, this mission had become a priority for the King and the Empress. During a time when the Redguard faith was being tested, the King believed that charting a path to one of their holiest cities was a way to unite Redguards across the province. He also explain that the lost city of Satakalaam was not lost in the traditional sense, as it is frequented by an exiled clan of Redguards called the Ash'abah. The Ash'abah are a group of Redguards who are ostracized by the rest of their people due to their necessary but deeply taboo role as the ones who destroy the undead within the province. The King would tell them that in order to find the tribe, they would need a guide. The party would become introduced to Darius Bor, a Dunmer mercenary who acts as the King's proxy while dealing with the exiled tribe to shield him from the fallout should it be discovered. Darius would be in charge of leading the group to the southern wastes of Bangkorai to the east of Skaven.
The King would then go on to give an address to the demonstrators to a meager response.
The Party found themselves back at the Order of the Candle Garrison where Saraad had prepared a train of camels and a cart of supplies for the Party to use while on the road. As part of their mission, the Order members would be given a quest to pass along correspondence to Commander Hamza al-Gatha of the Knights of the Hawk in Skaven to ensure cooperation with the Order in tackling the Darkin menace. Cleetus would be instrumental to this mission due to his previous connection and friendship with the Commander. Commander Hamza is an incredibly shrewd and calculating man, and his Knights were the ones tasked with protecting the Kingdom of Skaven as well as Dragonstar.
Before departing the city, Cleetus would manage to confront Darshan after trying to find him for a few days, and gifted him a beautifully crafted ring as thanks for his hospitality. Darshan would relay his own gratitude while at the same time notifying Cleetus that his ex-wife and Darshan's daughter, Katha Kindman al-Gatha along with her new husband Commander Hamza al-Gatha had begun consolidating their lands around the Kindman Family Farm and were attempting to cede it to Dragonstar, the Kingdom to the Northeast within the Crown's circle of influence. Darshan advised Cleetus that it would be vitally important not just for the Forebears but himself as well to ensure that his farm stayed with the Forebears and the Kingdom of Skaven. With all of this in mind, the party began to set out on their journey, with the Village of Morose being their first stop.
On the first day of their travels, the party consisting of: Cleetus, Steve, Havem, Aethrondil, Jonus, Darius, Peeeeen-Ja, Theodane and Knight Sister Solaine set out to the east. Early in the morning, they came across a small squad of Imperial soldiers building a pyre to execute a man suspected of being a Darkin Spectre. After conversations with the party, they decided it would be best to leave the soldiers to their work and allowed the burning to continue.
Travelling for a few more hours, the party would come across a farmer running their way from the distance. He claimed that a Giant had stolen his cows and he needed help to rescue his cattle. Not wanting to leave a man in need, the party set ahead to the location of the Giant encampment. Observing from afar, they noticed a dead elephant corpse lying unceremoniously around a fire with its tusks cut out. Havem would instantly recognize the elephant as having been the one he hunted during his time away. At first, the party would attempt to reason with and speak with the giant, but after many attempts, it became clear they had no way to communicate with the giant and thus the party found themselves engaged in a melee with him, ending in the defeat of the giant and the rescue of the cows.
As the day dragged on and the sun began to fall, the party found themselves making camp along the road and in the ditch. Taking watch with Theodane, Aethrondil would notice a tiny little spirit darting across the dunes. After approaching the little fox spirit with a treat in hand, it would lead the group to a small oasis not far from their camp with plentiful goodberry bushes growing all around.
The party would be awoken by the two of them and shown to the oasis. All seemed to be well until Peeeeen-Ja took it upon himself to swan dive into the cool waters which quickly angered the little spirit. Peeeeen-Ja would be ambushed by a swarm of wasps and a Spriggan, a nature spirit tied to the oasis, who immediately engaged to protect the waters, while the fox spirit would transform into a large tiger who would attack Havem in fury. Most of the party would leave Peeeeen-Ja to his fate, believing him to be responsible for the attack by the typically peaceful spirits. Peeeeen-Ja would struggle for a bit before slaying the Spriggan on his own.
After a hefty day of travel and excitement, the party would return to the camp and hope to get a solid nights sleep.
Report Date
13 Jun 2022
Primary Location
Secondary Location
Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
Comments