Session 013: Screeches and screams
General Summary
Date: Pythion 18th
After some deliberation of where to head next, The Fifth Order settles on traveling to The Mithral Mines. Before making their way into the wilds, they take a detour to stop at Volkan's shop in order to get any last-minute advice and to possibly persuade him into joining the venture. Once there, he made it clear that he wasn't interested in leaving his place unattended until he was certain he could move his operation to the Mithral Mines. He also warned them about the "elevator" trap and the password to circumvent it - dragon (in dwarvish).
The group travels through the north gate of Estoria and into The Greater Steppes beyond. About halfway into the first day of the journey, the party notices a group of circling Harpies following in the distance. At first, the heroes just trekked onward, hoping they would leave them be. 20 minutes or so later, they were still being followed and noticed a large patch of loose earth by the riverbank, an obstacle in their way forward. After some deliberation, the team decided to simply walk around the area. Soon after, they began to hear an alluring melody being sung from behind them.
Hybris and Kyrah are the two that are unable to resist the song of the Harpies, and begin walking towards the unstable earth, uncontrollably. The party tries numerous things to get them to snap out of it. Aura attacks Hybris which doesn't end up helping the situation. Dorianna follows up with a powerful gust of wind that knocks Hybris down and inflates Kyrah's rain suit into a pseudo squirrel suit as she is launched backward into Acacius. She is finally woken from the trance after Acacius dumps a gallon of vinegar on her head.
What ensues next is a flurry of feathers, claws, and screeches as the party is assaulted by the trio of bird monstrosities. Two of them are taken out of the fight with relative ease, but the siren proves to be a more difficult battle. During the encounter, Aura is grabbed and flown 40' into the air. In an effort to bring her down, Acacius looses his Javelin of Lightning, accidentally striking the monk in the process. Ianthe is the one to bring down the siren with an expertly placed crossbow shot as Dorianna lines up to catch Aurelia. Once she's down, Kyrah liberally administers a handful of the healing salve they received from Thobos. Continuing on their path, Dorianna spots a cave they can comfortably rest in for the evening.
Date: Pythion 19th
After traveling for the majority of the day, the party begins to hear the sound of rushing water and crashing falls as they come upon The Great Falls of Arkelon. Moments later, in addition to the falls, the group hears the thundering of hoofbeats cresting over a nearby hillside. A group of centaurs bearing crimson ribbon adornments begin encircling the party. Hyrbis recognizes the group and their leader, Hukar, and he recognizes the leonin as well. The groups exchange pleasantries and Hukar makes a request of the heroes. A few of their clan's members have been taken. They believe the perpetrators to be troglodytes, a vicious race of reptilian creatures. The group agrees.
Following the directions they gathered from the dwarves of Estoria, the team finds the entrance to the mines; unfortunately, it has collapsed. Without more direction, the group splits into pairs and begins investigating the area, looking for another entrance. After an hour or so, Ianthe, with some help from Kyrah, finds a side path that leads to a ledge under the falls. Following the path, the group tries to conceal their presence as much as possible, which seems to work as a reptilian humanoid climbs over the ledge with a net full of fish. They don't take notice of the group and head into a cave on the mountainside.
The party begins to follow, and the sounds of the falls are quickly replaced by the sounds of screams coming from a side passage. Ianthe plans to use her magic to disguise herself as one of the reptilians and heads into the network of tunnels. The first room she comes across contains a gruesome scene: three troglodytes are seen brutally torturing two centaurs. One is trapped in a cage and assaulted by a duo of reptiles. The other is slowly roasting a spitted centaur above a large cooking fire, seemingly alive. With a new sense of urgency, Ianthe messages the group, drops her disguise, and the heroes rush to the room to aid the captives.
A quick battle ensues as the party rushes to free the trapped centaurs and dispatch the assailants without doing further harm. In the end, the caged being is freed and brought out of the cavern. The spitted one; however, wasn't able to be saved, and succumbed to their grievous injuries. Hybris and Acacius bring the corpse to the entrance of the ledge cave and blow the horn that was presented to them. A few minutes later, the tribe of centaurs returns, upset, but grateful for the rescue of Kaluk, Hukar's kin. The tribe mourns the loss of their brother, Hirak, and then invites the heroes to camp with them for the evening for drinks among the starscape.
During the evening, Aurelia spars with some of the centaurs, Ianthe plays a lovely traditional mourning ballad, and Dorianna speaks to the tribe to gain more insight into their way of life. Hukar approaches Hybris and presents him with a trio of blessed vials in return for saving his kin and bringing the body of Hirak back to their tribe.
Date: Pythion 20th
The next morning, the group heads back to the entrance they found and is met with a peculiar sight; a note, written in Thylean common. It reads:
After some deliberation of where to head next, The Fifth Order settles on traveling to The Mithral Mines. Before making their way into the wilds, they take a detour to stop at Volkan's shop in order to get any last-minute advice and to possibly persuade him into joining the venture. Once there, he made it clear that he wasn't interested in leaving his place unattended until he was certain he could move his operation to the Mithral Mines. He also warned them about the "elevator" trap and the password to circumvent it - dragon (in dwarvish).
The group travels through the north gate of Estoria and into The Greater Steppes beyond. About halfway into the first day of the journey, the party notices a group of circling Harpies following in the distance. At first, the heroes just trekked onward, hoping they would leave them be. 20 minutes or so later, they were still being followed and noticed a large patch of loose earth by the riverbank, an obstacle in their way forward. After some deliberation, the team decided to simply walk around the area. Soon after, they began to hear an alluring melody being sung from behind them.
Hybris and Kyrah are the two that are unable to resist the song of the Harpies, and begin walking towards the unstable earth, uncontrollably. The party tries numerous things to get them to snap out of it. Aura attacks Hybris which doesn't end up helping the situation. Dorianna follows up with a powerful gust of wind that knocks Hybris down and inflates Kyrah's rain suit into a pseudo squirrel suit as she is launched backward into Acacius. She is finally woken from the trance after Acacius dumps a gallon of vinegar on her head.
What ensues next is a flurry of feathers, claws, and screeches as the party is assaulted by the trio of bird monstrosities. Two of them are taken out of the fight with relative ease, but the siren proves to be a more difficult battle. During the encounter, Aura is grabbed and flown 40' into the air. In an effort to bring her down, Acacius looses his Javelin of Lightning, accidentally striking the monk in the process. Ianthe is the one to bring down the siren with an expertly placed crossbow shot as Dorianna lines up to catch Aurelia. Once she's down, Kyrah liberally administers a handful of the healing salve they received from Thobos. Continuing on their path, Dorianna spots a cave they can comfortably rest in for the evening.
Date: Pythion 19th
After traveling for the majority of the day, the party begins to hear the sound of rushing water and crashing falls as they come upon The Great Falls of Arkelon. Moments later, in addition to the falls, the group hears the thundering of hoofbeats cresting over a nearby hillside. A group of centaurs bearing crimson ribbon adornments begin encircling the party. Hyrbis recognizes the group and their leader, Hukar, and he recognizes the leonin as well. The groups exchange pleasantries and Hukar makes a request of the heroes. A few of their clan's members have been taken. They believe the perpetrators to be troglodytes, a vicious race of reptilian creatures. The group agrees.
Following the directions they gathered from the dwarves of Estoria, the team finds the entrance to the mines; unfortunately, it has collapsed. Without more direction, the group splits into pairs and begins investigating the area, looking for another entrance. After an hour or so, Ianthe, with some help from Kyrah, finds a side path that leads to a ledge under the falls. Following the path, the group tries to conceal their presence as much as possible, which seems to work as a reptilian humanoid climbs over the ledge with a net full of fish. They don't take notice of the group and head into a cave on the mountainside.
The party begins to follow, and the sounds of the falls are quickly replaced by the sounds of screams coming from a side passage. Ianthe plans to use her magic to disguise herself as one of the reptilians and heads into the network of tunnels. The first room she comes across contains a gruesome scene: three troglodytes are seen brutally torturing two centaurs. One is trapped in a cage and assaulted by a duo of reptiles. The other is slowly roasting a spitted centaur above a large cooking fire, seemingly alive. With a new sense of urgency, Ianthe messages the group, drops her disguise, and the heroes rush to the room to aid the captives.
A quick battle ensues as the party rushes to free the trapped centaurs and dispatch the assailants without doing further harm. In the end, the caged being is freed and brought out of the cavern. The spitted one; however, wasn't able to be saved, and succumbed to their grievous injuries. Hybris and Acacius bring the corpse to the entrance of the ledge cave and blow the horn that was presented to them. A few minutes later, the tribe of centaurs returns, upset, but grateful for the rescue of Kaluk, Hukar's kin. The tribe mourns the loss of their brother, Hirak, and then invites the heroes to camp with them for the evening for drinks among the starscape.
During the evening, Aurelia spars with some of the centaurs, Ianthe plays a lovely traditional mourning ballad, and Dorianna speaks to the tribe to gain more insight into their way of life. Hukar approaches Hybris and presents him with a trio of blessed vials in return for saving his kin and bringing the body of Hirak back to their tribe.
Date: Pythion 20th
The next morning, the group heads back to the entrance they found and is met with a peculiar sight; a note, written in Thylean common. It reads:
"Verily, I doth request you attend me at your soonest convenience. I have quests for heroes such as thee that would be mutually beneficial to your varied species as well as mine." - King of the Troglodytes
Rewards Granted
- 3 x Potion of Heroism
Missions/Quests Completed
Report Date
28 Mar 2023
Primary Location
Secondary Location
Related Characters
Comments