Session 1: Fate draws us Together

General Summary

Our story begins on Galensday the 3rd of Harvestide in the year 3025 AF. [AF stands for after the fall of ancient Aloria] The Fate Bound had been on the road from Hilltown to Little Ferry for almost five days. Other than the occasional traveler they only encountered a few brigands who showed no interest in bothering such a heavily armed group. Near the end of the fifth day, with a storm brewing on the horizon, a wonderful smell wafted across the road. It was from a cooking fire and it smelled delicious. Not far away they spotted a lone halfling tending a fire. They approached and she turned to welcome them with a wide smile upon her face. Strangely, there were six cushions around the fire, exactly enough to seat the party comfortably. The halfling continued to add ingredients to the stew cooking on the campfire. As the party sat down she offered them each a bowl of the stew. At first they were wary, but as the companions tried the stew they were amazed at how wonderful it tasted. It gave them all thoughts of their childhood and the most tasteful meals they had ever eaten. The halfling also offered them ale from a small cask which many of them drank. It was smooth and tasty. Shayne and Arveer were wary at first, but the woman put them at ease with an easy smile and a welcoming glance. The group noticed that she had a small, worn, leather case tied to her belt and as she saw them looking at it she opened it and took out a deck of well-used cards and began to fiddle with them in her hands. She told them her name was Tyrubeli and that she could use the cards to foretell many things about them. Just then it started to rain heavily, accompanied by thunder and lightning, but incredibly the campsite remained warm and dry. Iados determined that somehow there was now a magical bubble protecting the camp. When asked who she was, the halfling responded cryptically saying only that she was a force of nature and that she was here specifically for them. She then asked if they would like her to divine their fortunes. With trepidation the party agreed. She searched the deck in her hands and one-by-one she pulled cards out and handed them to each of the heroes. This is what she drew for each of them and what she told them. Shayne Karth- Death "Death has defined your life so far young drow, but it need not always be so. Beware treachery and subterfuge. They swirl about you like specters. There are those that seek nothing less than the ruin of your soul, but you will have the chance to choose your own path or be doomed to let others decide it for you." Tenzin Lurong- The Chariot "You have been branded with the mark of your forefathers. The Mark gifts you great capacity to swiftly bring healing to others as on a chariot of the gods, but remember there is always a price, an ultimate sacrifice for such power. You must decide if you are willing to pay it or not." Leonardo Gallois- Strength "A power wells up inside you gifting you with not only physical strength, but force of will. Few can stand before you in your divine fervor. A strange symbol haunts your dreams and swims at the edges of your vision. You can use the power of this sigil as you have in the past without finding out what it stands for; an easier path for for sure, or you can seek the source and learn the terrible responsibility it bears." Arveer Bloodbane- The Hierophant "Yours is a noble lineage proud son of the legendary warrior and the modest priestess. Always looking up to your siblings or caring for them you seek vengeance for their untimely deaths and it can be yours, but will it be enough? Remember the fate of your father and your sister’s last words. Finding what you seek may not bring you the peace you seek or it may be all that you need." Fox Markuen - The World "Your mentor filled you with longing for the lands outside your beloved forest and with his death he has returned to Existence, but his spirit lingers. Is he in the fox that haunts you and portends trials to come or is he already with you, entwined forever within your soul? In truth you fear leaving the forest and the comfort of the familiar and known, but the wide-world beckons and you are drawn to it. What you find there may lead you to despair or hope, your choices will determine which." Iadros Mahari- The Devil "You need only to look at your reflection to be reminded of the being that sired you. The love of your mother softened your heart and drives you to nobler purpose, but your father remains part of you, he is in the depths of your soul and you struggle with the fear his diabolical influence will overwhelm you. Remember that sometimes the struggle can be just as important as a final victory. Seek him out or not the choice is yours." The heroes were astounded. Not only had Tyrubeli called them all by name, none of which had been given to her, she also knew their deepest feelings and secrets. Somehow she had been able to look into their very souls and pull out the truth. She then offered to foretell a possible future for all of them. Arveer was upset by what had just happened and stood up and left the circle. At the pleading of his friends he returned. Tyrubeli explained that she could only perform the telling if all of them were in agreement. After much discussion, they all agreed and Tyrubeli shuffled the deck and began to draw cards for them. The first card that fell was The Empress. Tyrubeli explained that this represented nobility and political authority. Their future would involve interaction with an influential female figure in the realms. The second card, above the first was The High Priestess and the halfling, looking into their eyes, predicted that a powerful religious figure or figures would play a role in their destiny, but it could not be seen if it would be for good or ill or both. The third card drawn was The Emperor and this was placed next to The Empress. Now it was clear, the actions and decisions of the Fate Bound would be tied to the very political and social foundations of Valoria. The heroes could potentially shake the world with their actions. The fourth card was Temperance and it was placed at the bottom of the others. Tyrubeli foretold that the meaning of this card was that they would have to control their passions and master them for mindlessly giving in to their desires could lead to ruin. The final card was The Tower. Tyrubeli, after an intake of breath, placed this card on top of all. She looked them each in the eye and told them that this card could only mean that a time of great turmoil was upon them and that the actions of the Fate Bound would influence the destiny of many. Amazed by the telling the heroes sat silently. Tyrubeli told them to remember that destiny is not chance it is a decision. A decision they would all have to make. She told them that they would meet again and with that she walked out of the circle and seemed to disappear. When Markuen went out to look for her tracks he found none. That night before sleep, Arveer and Shayne told the rest of the party about there past since it had already been revealed to them all by Tyrubeli. The whole experience brought them all closer together and they slept soundly. Tyrsday the 4th of Harvestide in the year 3025 AF Upon awakening they felt completed rested and healed and all were inspired to face what was in front of them. It was a sunny and windy day as the heroes continued on their journey to Little Ferry. In the mid-afternoon they came upon a family of four and their guard being attacked by six gnolls. Horrible hyena spawned by demons, the gnolls would surely tear the family apart if not dealt with. Our heroes sprang into action to help the beleaguered family. Two of the gnolls were attacking the human guard, while another two were abducting the teenage boy from the family. One of the gnolls shot the father of the family directly in the chest and he dropped to the ground. Tenzin blessed his nearby friends and then spent the rest of the battle making sure the family was safe using his healing powers to save the father and the mother from certain death. Leonardo and Arveer raced forward felling gnolls and coming to the aid of the guard. Iados attacked from range with his spells and made sure that the gnolls taking the young boy were not able to do so. Shayne moved quietly into the woods and was able to strike from stealth. One of the gnolls was able to escape to the north and the party decided not to follow and to see to the health of the family. The human guard named Druss thanked the heroes for helping to save the family and immediately went to bring the son back to his father. The family was also grateful and introduced themselves as the Smithwick's. Laren and Mistra with their children Becca and Brogan. Laren was a smith looking to set up shop in Little Ferry. As Laren tended to his family, the party decided that although they could easily follow the tracks of the gnolls to their lair that it would be better if they protected the family from harm. It was a day and a half march to Little Ferry and they wanted to make sure the Smithwicks would make it there safely. So with the family in tow, they set out and continued on the road to Little Ferry. As evening fell they set camp less than a day away from Little Ferry. This gave them the opportunity to speak with Laren again by the campfire. They learned that he was looking to open a shop in Little Ferry. He offered to make the party arms or armor free of charge if they would only buy the materials. His children were also fascinated by the appearance of our heroes. They had never seen a drow, a wood elf or a tiefling before. As they spoke with their mother about it in the wagon, Markuen and Shayne teased them, but Arveer pulled them aside as he did not wish the children to be frightened. During the final watch of the night with Markuen and Shayne something odd occurred. Markuen stood up and moved away from the fire. He had a seen a vision of a fox and was determined to follow it. Shayne immediately went after Markuen even though he did not see anything. As Markuen approached the fox it disappeared. When he searched the area, he found gnoll tracks leading back toward the Druthain Wood. Lysday the 5th of Harvestide in the year 3025 AF The day dawned and it was cloudy, but clear. After discussion with the party, Markuen decided that this was an omen that they should follow the gnolls and put an end to them. The safety of the family was still paramount so they continued to travel with them until they could see the town of Little Ferry in the distance. As the traffic on the road had increased and they were closer to a civilized area they decided it was safe to leave the family and go back and deal with the gnolls. Druss asked the party if he could come along as he wanted to pay back the gnolls for what they had done. Before doing so, he gave Laren the name of a contact he had from his soldiering days. He told Laren that if he told the smith that he was a friend of Druss that he would hire him. Laren thanked Druss and asked that Druss look him up when he returned to Little Ferry. With that the heroes ventured forth to return to the place where Markuen saw the vision, pick up the tracks of the gnolls and follow them to their camp. The tracks were easy to find and by the end of the day they had followed them to the outskirts of the Druthain Wood. Night was about to fall and they decided to set a trap for the gnolls. Finding a suitable location they prepared to set up an ambush. They built a large fire and the heroes that did not have dark vision, Arveer, Druss, Leonardo and Tenzin remained there looking out from the fire. Markuen hid nearby in the brush as did Iados and Shayne. As they prepared themselves, they heard the nearby sounds of a camp in the distance coming from just over a nearby rise. Shayne crept warily up the rise and saw that the gnoll camp was below him about a 1000 feet ahead. From this distance he could not see how many were there. Iados came up next to him and they decided to move closer to get a better look at the camp. They crept closer and saw that there were at least 30 gnolls there and a pen with prisoners. They started back to their camp. Back at the camp, Markuen decided to climb up a tree to get into a better position. As he did so a hand was placed over his mouth and a voice in elvish told him to remain quite and go down to the bottom of the tree. As he did so 10 wood elves of the Galanor Clan, which is elvish for People of the Elms, emerged from hiding in the trees and surrounded the party. They asked for the heroes to drop their weapons. The heroes agreed to lower their weapons and listen to what the elves had to say. Their leader introduced himself as Silver Leaf. He told them that they would be foolish to attack the gnolls as there were at least 30 of the fiends and it would mean certain death for the group. He was also surprised that one of his fellow wood elves Markuen would travel with a drow and a tiefling. Silver Leaf asked that they simply leave immediately. He and his men were only watching to make sure that the gnolls stayed out of the forest. If so, they would leave the monsters alone. At this time Shayne and Iados came back and the elves immediately drew their weapons as did Shayne. Before the situation got out of hand, his friends convinced Shayne to lower his weapon. The talk then turned toward the gnolls. Arveer told Silver Leaf that the gnolls were a menace and that they must be destroyed. Markuen asked for the help of his brothers against the gnolls, but Silver Leaf refused saying that their only concern was for the lives in the forest. Leonardo questioned Silver Leaf and why he was so judgmental of others without knowing them. He wanted to know why he cared so little for those outside the forest. This affected Silver Leaf and he took pause. Druss then spoke up pointing out that the elves could use the help of the party and rid the forest once and for all from the threat of the gnolls. He also said that what would it matter to the elves if some of the party lost their lives? Iados pointed out that although he was a tiefling he was raised in the Druthain Wood and that he wanted to protect it. Silver Leaf was surprised to hear that and Iados also told him he had been working all his life to convince others that despite his heritage he would strive to do good. All of these arguments convinced Silver Leaf to help our heroes and put an end to the gnolls. Here ends session one.

Rewards Granted

190 Experience points

Character(s) interacted with

Tyrubeli - a halfing seer with strange magical powers and the gift of foretelling. A self-described "force of nature". She disappeared, but promised that they would all meet again. Druss - a human figther wielding a great sword. A former soldier in the employ of the Smithwick family, he decided to join the Fatebound at least until the gnolls paid for what they had done to the family under his protection. The Smithwicks - a blacksmith and his family from Hilltown encountered on the road to Little Ferry who were saved from gnolls by the party. They are Laren and Mistra with their two children Becca 6 and Brogan 14. Galanor Clan - A clan of wood elves from the southwest area of the Druthain Wood. Their name means people of the Elm in elvish. They are concerned only with protecting their people and their home in the wood. What goes on outside is of no concern to them. In the recent past they have warred with the Fallow clan to which Markuen belongs. Silver Leaf - A wood elf of the Galanor clan encountered in the outskirts of the southwest area of the Druthain Wood. He reluctantly agreed to help the heroes attack a gnoll camp.

Campaign

Into the Maelstrom

Protagonists