Session 69 - Anima Focus

General Summary

The Saviors of Sandpoint took the risk and settled in to rest within one of the giant bedrooms within the Pinnacle of Xin-Shalast. Quilith cast a spell of Sturdy Tree Fort atop one of the beds, which shouldn't have worked. But being a spell from the school of transmutation, and casting it within the walls of the Runelord of Transmutation, seemed to make the impossible possible. The huge tree sprouted from the mattress, roots wrapping around the rune giant's immense bed, and the multi-storey wooden fortress came to life.   Despite their magical protections, their sleep was far from restful. They were plagued with terrible nightmares that felt as if they took them to the brink of madness.    

In the darkness of slumber, you find yourself drifting into a realm beyond comprehension—a dark landscape where reality and nightmare converge. The dream begins with a whisper, a mere echo of a voice that seems to come from all directions at once, and yet, nowhere in particular.   In this eerie dreamscape, you float weightlessly in a void of swirling shadows and shifting shapes. There is no ground beneath your feet, no sky above, only an endless expanse of darkness that seems to consume everything in its path.   As the dream unfolds, faint glimmers of light flicker in the distance, like distant stars in a cosmic abyss. Each glimmer contains a vision, a glimpse of the horrors that lurk in this dark domain. They appear and vanish in rapid succession, leaving an unsettling impression in your mind.   In the first vision, you witness a grotesque city that defies all laws of architecture and sanity. The buildings twist and contort into nightmarish forms, their facades adorned with grotesque statues of twisted entities. A cold, unearthly wind whispers through the narrow alleys, carrying with it the chilling cries of unseen creatures lurking in the shadows.   The next vision brings you face to face with an ancient, cyclopean structure—a towering monolith of impossible proportions. Its surface is etched with ancient symbols and runic sigils that seem to shift and writhe like living entities. A sense of dread and malevolence emanates from the ancient structure, as if it were a gateway to realms beyond human comprehension.   As the dream continues, you find yourself drifting through a sea of writhing tentacles that snake through the darkness. Each tentacle bears a malevolent aura, as if it seeks to ensnare and drag you into the abyss. The inky blackness of the tentacles seems to absorb all light, leaving only a void of despair in their wake.   In another vision, you encounter a grotesque congregation of entities that defy description. Their forms are constantly shifting and morphing, making it impossible for your mind to grasp their true appearance. The unsettling sight is accompanied by a cacophony of indescribable sounds—a symphony of madness that penetrates your very soul.   Through each vision, you feel an overwhelming sense of insignificance and powerlessness. You are but a mere observer in this bizarre nightmare, a witness to the incomprehensible horrors that lurk beyond the veil of reality.   As the dream draws to a close, the whispers of the disembodied voice grow louder, echoing through the void with a haunting urgency. It speaks of ancient gods, forgotten knowledge, and cosmic entities beyond your understanding. You feel a primal fear, as if your very sanity teeters on the precipice of oblivion.   And then, with a jolt, the dream comes to an abrupt end, leaving you gasping for breath and drenched in cold sweat. The eerie visions of the shadowy realm linger in your mind, haunting your waking hours with a sense of unease and dread—a reminder that some truths are best left unexplored, and some nightmares are too terrifying to be forgotten.

  Still, they managed to sleep. Some more than others. The next morning, the heroes were unable to wake Jayvielle and Mite from their slumber. But before they could do much, the traps they had set at the bedroom door went off. A Warden of Thunder came into the room with instructions to kill anyone he found.   The heroes went into action, with Jatsu and Kilgor engaging the storm giant. Kumiko and Quilith used their arcane assault to bring the pain to the storm giant. The Warden drew a scroll made of skin that Quilith managed to snatch away from him through a creative wind wall spell. The sound of combat woke Jayvielle, and he entered the fray just as the battle ended.   With Cloud carrying Mite, the Saviors returned to the sarcophagus of Karzoug. A wall of force spell protected the doorway to an adjoining room, so Kumiko took it upon herself to remove it via a liberal helping of disintegration. The wall tried to retaliate, hurling a bolt of force back at her in response to the attack, but the power of Khaylus prevailed, and a large hole appeared where there had once been a wall and a door.   Jayvielle passed through the breach and entered the room. Inside the room was a large golden globe with magical fire slowly dancing across it - the anima focus for the missing soul lens. The focus also acted as a portal that lit the way to the Eye of Avarice, the soul lens, and Karzoug.   Of course, the gateway to Karzoug was not left unguarded. Most High Ceoptra, a lamia harridan cleric, stood with two eldritch giants to guard the anima focus. Using the powerful arcane runes tattooed to their skin (in a way similar to rune giants), the giants began dispelling the hero's magical enhancements. Ceoptra used a wall of magical blades to split the party and acted as healing support to the more militant giants. A recovered Mite quickly managed to render the elder eldritch giant unconscious by playing his rendition of "Imma hit you in the groin, like, a whole bunch" on the eldritch giant's tender bits. The younger giant, the elder's son, tried to protect his incapacitated father. A bold move, unappreciated by Ceoptra as Kilgor pounced on now unprotected lamia harridan and introduced her insides to the outside.     The younger giant tried to escape with the numbers against him and was gravely wounded. He reached out to touch his father and dimension door them to safety. For that, the tandem of Kilgor and Jayvielle took the giant's extended arm, then his life. But before the unconscious elder could be similarly dispatched, Quilith whisked the giants away to his demiplane, where he restrained them until he could speak to them further and learn their arcane ways.   When Quilith returned from his demiplane, the heroes regrouped and re-assessed. Everyone was healed, protections cast, and all eyes turned to the anima focus. Karzoug waited on the other side, and the Saviors of Sandpoint did not want him to wait much longer. Together, they stepped through the anima focus and into the Eye of Avarice.

Rewards Granted

• wand of stone fist (CL 1)
• wand of bane (CL 1)
• wand of ghoul touch (CL 3)
• arcane scroll of bull's strength (CL 3)
• divine scroll of discern lies (CL 7)
• arcane scroll of bestow weapon proficiency (CL 3)
• divine scroll of owl's wisdom (CL 3)
• arcane scroll of see invisibility (CL 3)
• divine scroll of zone of truth (CL 3)
• arcane scroll of alarm (CL 1)
• arcane scroll of mirror strike (CL 1)
• potion of cure serious wounds (3)
• potion of cure critical wounds (1)