Wednesday, December 8, 2021

Session 2 (Legends of the Lost): Giving a Zombie a Piggyback Ride

The heroes reluctantly agreed to Feng's proposal to help him escape with "Uncle Jo", but they asked  Feng to drink from the waters of the Pool of Radiance first. Feng readily agreed and drank from the waters, which leaked out of his torso from several gaping holes. However, it was enough for the chaotic magic of the pool to infuse Feng with a permanent boon to his constitution. 

The party soon proceeded to the rickety rope bridge. Grandalf attempted to scout using his owl familiar, but it was quickly killed by Stirges that dive-bombed him from above. Undeterred, Jack gave Feng a piggy-back ride across the bridge with Klaszi and Logen. While they crossed the bridge the Stirges eyed them hungrily, but the presence of the inedible Feng and his worm, Chon, kept them at bay. 

While the party was still crossing, Logen entered the next room and was immediately ambushed by two Night Horrors shaped as horrific spider creatures. One of them wrapped itself around Logen's head and sank his fangs into his skull, sucking some of the cerebrospinal fluid from his brain. However, due to Logen's unnaturally thick skull and smooth brain the damage wasn't mortal. 

While Logen was getting his brain slowly sucked out, Grandalf -- who wisely decided that giving a piggy-back ride to a zombie was a bad idea -- guided Uncle Jo across the bridge from a distance. However, Uncle Jo was ungainly with only three toes spread across two feet slipped and fell soundlessly thirty feet into the murky water below. He was set upon immediately by several monstrous looking fish with huge jaws before he slipped forever under the water. Uncle Feng yelled out for Uncle Jo half-heartedly and then quickly forgot about him a few minutes later. 

In the next room Klaszi and Jack joined Logen in battle. Logen managed to pull the Night Horror from his head, while Jack, who was fighting blindly, lashed out wildly with his rapiers. The party soon dispatched the horrors with Jack scoring the final death blow against the nightmarish creatures, even though he was blind. 

Sensing freedom was close, the party headed up a long stair-case to the exit. During the ascent Farmak nearly stepped on a slippery green mold-like substance that could have sent him tumbling down the long staircase, but Klaszi noticed and stopped him from stepping on it. The party asked Arboreta, a druid, what the mold was, but she lacked knowledge of plants and animals. 

After breaking down the door to the exit they arrived before a village under an alien night sky and surmised they were not on their home-world of Toril anymore. 

Feeling weary from their adventure in the Tomb they walked towards the village in search of Ale and rest. They saw that most of the buildings were surrounded by a multitude of demon-like creatures intent on dining on the villagers. The protective runes on the dwelling seemed to protect the villagers, but the party was not as protected and the creatures spun around and charged at them intent on eating them. 

Fortunately, the party was near the home of Rerkia Delamere, a famer, who called out to them from his 2nd story window to seek refuge in his home and rushed downstairs to open a back-door. The heroes heeded his advise and rushed inside evading the monsters. 

The heroes spent the night and learned from Rerkia that they Night Horrors come at night to destroy all of the civilized and not-so-civilized races of the world and that it isn't safe to be outside at night unless you are in a warded building. His wife, Vosa, also told the party about their daughter, Bynda, who was missing for the past week and is feared dead. She was last seen near the Apple Orchard and there is a reward if the party can find out what happened to her. She was wearing a silver necklace with an emblem of Ghedra the Protector on it. 

The party, feeling more experienced after their long rest, headed to the town center and provisioned themselves from the various merchants. One of them in particular, Min Zhen, was a descendant of Feng Zhen and told the party the tragic tale of her family and how they fell on hard times after the Red Wasting and went into debt to the New World Associates, a crime family based out of New Port. She's the only member of the family in Sarton, and asked the party if they would retrieve Uncle Zin's Amulet from the Eastern Crypts in the Tomb the party just left. If they agree she'll give them a key to open the door to the crypts and give them two potions of ability for their trouble.

During this time Alluin, who was relieved to be out of danger, took her leave from the heroes and said she would stay in Sarton and try to research the Pools of Radiance to see if she could find a way back to Faerun. 

Next the party went to the Fiery Lass -- still early in the morning -- to eat Breakfast and drink Ale. They learned from the girl tending the bar and making them eggs, Breen Ashdown, that her home was nearly destroyed by Night Horrors 10-days ago. She saw her father die horribly, but her brother and mother ran to the basement. 

Everyone in the village thinks her family is dead, but she thinks they might still be alive in the basement. However, she heard strange noises coming there and is too afraid to enter the basement -- along with the rest of the village -- and has offered the party 250 gold if they will find out what happened to the rest of her family and clear out the basement. 

She also mentioned that her home isn't the only one that's been attacked by the Night Horrors. Several other families have met similar fates over the past 3-months. She says these are caused by a group of unknown terrorists who deface the wards on their homes making them susceptible to Night Horror attacks. The villagers call them the Defacers and suggested the party talk to the magistrate for more information and a reward for stopping them. 

The drunk party agreed to help Breen and headed straight to the basement intent on destroying Night Horrors and lining their pockets with gold. They discovered nothing of note above the basement, but when they descended it looked as if the basement was completely ransacked with smashed jars, boxes, and various debris covering the floor. They also noticed a strange tar-like material on the floor, which made navigating the basement laborious. 

They next entered a northern room where Klaszi cast Sacred Flame on the tar-like substance, which caused a black, ooze-like creature -- some type of Night Horror no doubt -- to coalesce from the tar and attack the party. The heroes quickly dispatched the creature, but not before Logen was mentally assaulted by the ooze. 

Undeterred the party continued their investigation of the basement and soon found a nest of Night Horrors, who attacked the party. The winged daemons teleported behind the heroes and attacked Aboreta, but she turned into a ferocious dinosaur and easily defeated them. In the front line Farmak dealt an especially wicked blow to a large demonic Night Horror, and nearly slew it with a single blow. During the combat hapless Jack, who was blind and couldn't see anything around him, was repeatedly repositioned by the tactically minded -- although still drunk -- Grandalf, who laid into the horrors with Toll the Dead.

The party soon dispatched the creatures with Logen somehow slaying an ooze with a savage head-butt. Afterward the heroes were painted in a colorful mix of reds, browns, and blacks from the blood and viscera of their enemies and their own wounds. Logen lamented the lack of his kilt, which made defecating on his enemies problematic. 

For their heroism the party found the Ashdown's family treasure and collected their reward of 250 gold. They also found a Moon Sickle, which Farmak took, although it was not part of the formal agreement with Breen.