A New Horizon Sessions 1 - 10

Session 1 The yet-to-be assembled party meet aboard the HNS Guiding Light, where they begin to get a sense of each other during their various hijinks during the night. Snips jumped right into gambling (and was even able mask his troubles with assigning value to coins and bills) as did the young Zuno, who was eager to present himself as a grownup. Meanwhile, Fleas took a shining to the naivety of Tess and sought her help in picking out targets for some light pickpocketing (which the goblin was ultimately unsuccessful with). Fleas and Tess also grew increasingly involved in keeping an eye on the literal child wizard who seemed hellbent on wandering into dangerous situations, including making his way up to the crow's nest where he hung out for a time with the officer on duty, who showed him some minor magical abilities for his trouble.
When Tess and Fleas made their way up to deck to search for Zuno, they encountered an Aarakocra who seemed rather troubled about an oncoming storm, despite the crystal clear weather. Taking his concerns seriously, Tess approached the captain at the helm and insisted that the warning be heeded. Captain Anders did her best to assure them that they had everything under control and had procedures in the event a freak storm did crop up. Fleas insisted to Tess that the Aarakocra was simply nuts, but with almost comedic timing, a crack of thunder rang out across the sea.
At first, the storm seemed to be a simple surprise occurance, but it quickly became clear things were much more dire. Interspersed with the flashes of lightning and claps of thunder were the booms of cannon fire coming from the Guiding Light's sister ship. In the brief moments of light provided by the lightning and the guns, the silhouette of massive tentacles could be seen encircling the ship (Fleas also spotted another, mysterious ship nearby). The Guiding Light maneuvered to render aid, but the crew quickly found they had more pressing matters: bizarre, spider-like creatures with eel heads were streaming over the railings of the ship. An all-out melee quickly enveloped the ship, and the new party found themselves thrust into the middle of it.
The party found that they were able to quickly dispatch the smaller creatures with relative ease, so long as they didn't allow them to land a hit, as their bite proved to be quite potent. Snips found himself poisoned from the venom of their fangs, and Zuno received a near-lethal injury from one of the creatures (though thankfully Tess was able to stabilize him). It was at this time that Lir made himself known to the rest of the group, leaping heroically into battle and engaging with one of the larger creatures, of which he was able to hold his own against long enough for a conjoined effort of the surrounding sailors brought the beast down.
All things considered, the fight was going well until the sea monster turned its attention to the Guiding Light. It became clear during the fight that the creatures aboard were searching for something, as Lir understood the lead monster's commands that it uttered in deep speech. Evidently, what they were looking for wasn't here, and the sea monster began tearing down the ship's masts and sails like they were twigs. During the skirmish, the party had spotted a group of the beasts climbing up towards the crow's nest where the Arcanist up top was presently trying to find any kind of land they could use as cover. Unfortunately, the creatures proved too big of a distraction, and the mast was brought down before he could find land. The Arcanist was able to save himself from the fall with a well-timed misty step, and Tess was able to swing down from the snapped rigging without too much injury.
Also during the fight, one of the larger creatures seemed able to dominate the minds of those it was fighting, as it overtook the helmsman and bade him leap into the ocean. The First Mate dove in after him while the Captain continued the fight, but this left the helm entirely unmanned. Snips also fell to the compulsion of one of the creatures and turned on Fleas, but fortunately was freed by the death of the creature before he could land a serious blow on the goblin. All the while, the sea monster continued to tear into the ship's hull as the sailors manning the cannons desperately attempted to land a hit. Snips surprisingly distracting draconic scream opened up an opportunity for a few solid hits, and Lir used his innate connection with sea life to attempt to communicate with the beast (he was met with a brief telepathic connection with a nigh-unfathomable intellect on the other end, but the connection was terminated as quickly as it was opened), but it was too little, too late: the Guiding Light was done for.
Fortunately, evacuations were successful and everyone who survived the initial attack were able to get onto a lifeboat, which for one reason or another, the sea monster did not pursue. The lifeboats floated throughout the night, and in the morning, the Aarakocra was able to spot land in the distance, for which the survivors rowed for. By mid-day, they had landed on a jungle-strewn island on which they established a basecamp and a signal fire. The party was able to get some rest, and when they had recovered, Lt. Commander John Marshal requested their aid in finding a source of food and water within the jungles, for which they would be compensated should they make it back to civilization. The new party agreed (except for Zuno, who was forbade from going on this dangerous mission, though this did not stop him from following).
They cut a path into the jungle, catching up with Snips who had gone on ahead and had a rather harrowing encounter with a venomous snake. After a few hours of hiking uphill, they realized that Zuno had followed them. They had a debate about what to do with the kid and had elected to take him back to the beach when the child made a discovery. Something akin to an overgrown automaton stood motionless in the undergrowth. There were no markings or writing to indicate its purpose or origin, but before they could get too far into their investigation, a needle from a blowgun lodged itself into a tree mere inches away from the party, the source of which was revealed to be a reptilian face all but camouflaged within the foliage, and it did not appear happy to see the party…
XP earned: 120 each
Session 2 At the urging of Cmdr. Marshal, the party did not immediately attack the lizardfolk that had fired the warning shot. They trepidatiously attempted to communicate, but found the language barrier vast. Tess did her best to appear non-threatening and friendly while explaining that they merely sought water, though this ended up with the lizardfolk thinking she was offering him her waterskin. Meanwhile, Snips was able to deduce enough of the lizardfolk's speech to figure out it was telling them the construct was some sort of "god" adjacent thing and that it wanted them to stay away from it. Unfortunately, the conversation went south when the lizardfolk attempted to leave with Tess's waterskin and Snips pursued. A brief skirmish broke out and the lizardfolk attempted to retreat, which the party ultimately allowed. Marshal recommended they could follow him to see where he had gone or head in the other direction to avoid another confrontation and search for water elsewhere. The party chose the latter, also hoping to find the nest of the massive roc that had swooped down on the survivors camp on the beach and flown off with a few victims in its grasp.
Farther into the jungles they discovered what Zuno deduced to be Atotakan Ruins. They were largely overgrown and scavenged clean (the town's well had even dried up), but Snips was able to find a shiny, potentially magic, doodad, and Flea found a lovely pair of gold bracelets, both still locked away in secure boxes. The ruin and surrounding jungle were also filled with more strange, robotic-looking constructs. Many of these statues bore decorative adornements placed their ostensibly by the lizardfolk. Most notably, the remnants of a road could be seen winding deeper into the jungle. With no other major leads, the party opted to see where it led.
The road was dotted with more constructs and eventually led to an old lookout tower. Unfortunately for them, the road had been divided by a deep fissure in which a number of giant spiders had made their home. They opted to attempt a crossing, and were able to make a sturdy rope-line thanks to Snips shortbow and light-enough frame that he was able to make the first crossing without dislodging the arrow fastening the rope. With a more securely-tied line in place, the rest of the party was able to cross without falling. From the watchtower, the party was able to spot a massive pyramid structure at the heart of the island and what looked to be a body of water before it. With a target in mind, the party continued down the road.
En route, the party inadvertantly found themselves within the hunting grounds of a number of giant wasps. They attempted to not draw attention, but one began stalking Tess, which caused a great deal of distress. A skirmish broke out, and thanks to some decent tactics and well-placed shots, the party made quick work of the wasps with only minor injuries.
Finally, they were nearly within reach of their goal. Unfortunately, it was clear the lizardfolk had a presence here, and the increasingly mountainous terrain made alternative routes unlikely. Spike-lined walls and a crudely made chapel were occupied by at least a handful of the tribesmen. The party again attempted a diplomatic approach. The lizardfolk were again cautious but not immediately hostile. Word had spread to these natives of the strange visitors, and the shaman who occupied the chapel wished to make sense of them. Unfortunately, the language barrier again prevented true understanding between the two groups (Zuno drew a crude picture of water and held up his waterskin, which again resulted in a lizardfolk taking it, though he received a large bug in return). Getting fed up with waiting while the shaman had his men make some kind of signal fire, Marshal reluctantly gave Snips the ok to cause a distraction, which came in the form of lighting a portion of their wall on fire. In the commotion, the party fled back whence they came, but unfortunately, reinforcements had arrived. A half-dozen lizardfolk warriors, including the one from earlier, had arrived in response to the signal. The party attempted to find, but Zuno calling out gave away their position. The lead warrior scooped him up from the underbrush and went to drag him back into the fort. Not comfy with the child being taken alone, Marshal gave the ok to engage. A fight broke out and a number of the lizardfolk were slain (though the leader was incapacitated with Zuno's casting of hideous laughter).
The party was able to lose any pursuit and camped out in the ravine-side watchtower. The night passed uneventfully save for some sneaky jungle creature absconding with some of the party's rations. Finally, they made it back to the main camp and reported on what they had found. The first order of business was relocating everyone to the Atotakan ruin to provide cover against the roc. Once there, Captain Anders brought together Marshal and the party to discuss a strategy for dealing with the natives, and it was unlikely they'd be able to establish a reliable form of communication. Ultimately, the party opted to continue scouting and learn more about the natives and hopefully find either another route to the lake or another source of water.
Back in the jungle-proper, the party quickly picked up the trail of the first lizardfolk they met and followed it to what appeared to be their primary settlement. Zuno sent his familiar, Mike the Hawk, to scout it out, but some kind of foul fate clearly befell it, as the familiar never returned. Opting to scout the old-fashioned way, the party learned the settlement housed several dozen lizardfolk as well as their ample king. Notably, they also had a functioning well within the village. Opting for one more pass at diplomacy, the party decided to see if they couldn't find a decent offering for the tribe (having learned that they appear to enjoy bugs) and set out to hunt down a large bug while they searched for more water. Within short-order, they came across a cave jutting into a cliff-face that was flanked by more Atotakan ruins. Inside, they found it also to be full of thick, sticky spiderwebbing. Clearly, a suitable prize awaited inside. True enough, their torchlight quickly illuminated the many eyes of a giant spider lurking in the darkness…
XP earned: 150 each.
Session 3 The party engaged the spiders (Zuno was retconned as having been sent back to camp), repelling their biting attacks and slaying them swiftly (and likely doing damage to their hearing thanks to the firing of guns within the confined space). However, rather than taking their prize as an offering as originally planned, it occurred to them that they could hear water trickling down from deeper in the cave, and a quick taste-test from Tess revealed it to be fresh water. Emboldened by their easy dispatching of the spiders, they proceeded into the cave to see if they couldn't find the water's source. Along the way, they found more spiders. These ones proved more deadly than the last, and poor Tess was nearly dragged back into their webs (this would become something of a running theme). Fortunately, their combined efforts still overcame the spider's aggression (they almost behaved as if they were unable or unwilling to retreat) and the party found the source of the water: an enormous, partially flooded chamber that they quickly realized was likely beneath the pyramid they discovered by the lake.
It was clear there were still some spiders left within this area, and the party opted to clear them out before sending word to the camp that they had found an unobstructed water source. As it turned out, it was just one massive spider that had laid claim to this chamber as its lair (the party earlier found evidence that the "smaller" spiders from before were being eaten by this larger one) and had been stalking the party, waiting for a chance to strike. Fortunately for them, they noticed it overhead. After a brief staring contest, they attacked the spider just as it lunged down at them. Their combined attacks heavily injured the spider and forced it to retreat, at least for a moment. It attempted to grab Snips, succeeding in knocking the kobold unconscious with its venom, but a well-timed shot from Marshal saw the spider plummet down into the water below, leaving the party free to revive Snips.
With that, the party headed back to camp, arriving as the sun began to sink below the horizon. They reported the situation and took some well earned time to rest. Tess checked in on the remaining survivors, learning more about the meteorologist aarakocra and her fellow harengon, whom she was able to communicate with by pen and paper (the poor rabbit had no tongue, as it turned out). Flea was able to find booze somehow and kept herself occupied for most of the night that way. Meanwhile, Snips got up to mischief: he stole a woman's glass eye from her bag (being "watched" by her husband) and snuck it into the breast pocket of another survivor who seemed to be battling a bout of depression. He watched with glee as the couple attempted to find the eye with the aid of a sailor while the depressed man couldn't bring himself to reveal that he had it in his pocket.
Finally having found a safe spot to rest, the party awoke feeling stronger than ever, having freshly leveled up! That was the good news, at least. The bad news was that they were awoken in the wee hours of the morning by the sounds of combat. The lizardfolk had swarmed the ruins camp and were actively bringing some kind of ritual fire into the middle of everything. The party joined the melee but were unable to push through the lizard's defenses (a pair of the spearmen proved surprisingly tenacious against the group, who could not land a hit on them for some reason) to do anything about the ritual, which they eventually learned was a sacrificial pyre intended to attract the gargantuan roc. During the battle, a perhaps overly-confident Tess was knocked unconscious and Lir was nearly incapacitated by the lizardfolk's raiding leader (whom they had encountered at the lake, previously). However, Snips was able to take advantage of the commotion and pick off a number of the lizardfolk, who ultimately retreated after the pyre was set and infused with the right components to attract the roc. The raiding leader was slain (thankfully before he could throw Tess on the sacrificial pyre as well, as was his intent before Fleas got his attention with a well-aimed shot).
As the lizardfolk retreated, the roc made an explosive appearance; swooping onto the pyre and attacking anyone unfortunate enough to still be nearby, which included many survivors and a few straggler lizardfolk alike. Fortunately, it did not remain for long and made off with its breakfast. The remaining survivors quickly regrouped, healed up, and made for the caves, with Lir laying down a smokescreen to cover their escape from the lizardfolk who were still watching the ruin from the jungle.
Back at the caves, Marshal again gathered the party to scout out the rest of the facility to ensure its safety and get Arcanist Palmer a clear view of the sky to cast skywrite. This time, they made their way to the top and discovered more constructs within the pyramid's atrium, as well as access to outside. At the very top of the pyramid, they found an incredibly complicated-looking door that fortunately turned out to be open (Lir decided he would take a cog from it in the hopes that it might be valuable). Within, they found a central control room filled with steampunk-looking machinery inscribed with arcane markings. On the primary control panel, they found a small, glowing obelisk embedded in a socket (similar, inert ones were scattered throughout the room), with Lir and Tess simultaneously expressing interest in touching it and warning not to touch it, respectively. Ultimately, everyone stood back while Lir placed a finger upon it. Finding it to be seemingly harmless, Arcanist Palmer volunteered to identify it. While he conducted the ritual, the party had a search around for anything else interesting. Snips found some sort of magical ear horn which he promptly sealed off with wax to make a drinking horn, and Lir found a strange sort of helm inscribed with magical markings. 10 minutes later, Palmer had a vague idea of what the obelisk was: it seemed to be some kind of communication device that was broadcasting the command of "sleep." With this revelation, it dawned on the party that this could very well be keeping the hundreds, if not thousands, of constructs throughout the island dormant. Opting to not open that can of worms, the party and the survivors now only had to hold out for two more days before a rescue ship arrived…
XP earned: 240 each.
Session 4 The party waited out the remaining two days until help arrived in the caverns beneath the pyramid with the rest of the survivors. During that time, they poked around the area a little bit more and Zuno found an intact pair of goggles of night. Snips, Tess, and Marshal scouted out an exit route as the cave they entered through was being closely watched by the lizardfolk. Fortunately, they appeared to have abandoned their shrine near the pyramid complex, and the survivors were able to make their way to the beach to get picked up by a trio of elven ships without major incident.
Aboard the ship, they took some much needed R&R time. Flea opened up a bit about her background and flirted heavily with Marshal, who politely declined her advances. Snips set up an impromptu knife-throwing competition to which Juno contributed with the ice knife spell he recently learned. Lir sat pensively and said very little. Snips also learned a few things about the Talhani Isles, specifically its various factions and their corresponding agencies, from a few chats with some of the elven sailors.
And with that, the new party finally reached civilized lands. Marshal paid them out 15 gp per person for their services (Zuno's cut was entrusted to Tess) and bid them farewell. Seeking new work, they made their way to the city center to peruse the communal message boards. There, they encountered a frantic fisherman being pulled away from the boards by guards. Upon seeing an eclectic group of adventurers, the fisherman desperately called out to them for aid in "lifting a curse from his daughter." Intrigued, the party heard him out and bribed the guards to look the other way (all except Snips, who wished to see the bounty listings, ultimately choosing to pursue a bard). The group agreed to meet the man at a nearby inn later that day after they went about town to stock up on gear. Flea purchased a bunch of ammunition, Zuno bought an almanac, and Tess commissioned a pair of boots with pitons attached for kicking.
Back at the inn, the man explained that his daughter has gotten up every night at midnight for going on three weeks now to attempt to walk into the ocean. He claimed to have no idea what could have caused this and only revealed that she possessed a magic trinket from her infancy that staves on an illness that would have killed her as a baby. He had very little to offer as a reward as he had already spent most of his savings on previous attempts to help her, but he would give them a family heirloom in exchange. Wanting something a bit more fiat, Snips pursued leads on his new bounty target and ingratiated himself with the local underworld, such as it is. He looked around for the wanted minstrel but ultimately only found Machi, the troubadour from the ship. Despite his disdain for Machi's guitar playing, the two made an agreement to help each other out: Machi would keep an eye out for the wanted bard in exchange for 5% of the bounty (or the bard's fancy hat).
Later (after Snips had returned), the party was approached by a new person, an unassuming woman called Aliva who they came to learn represented the Confidence Exchange; a shadowy information brokering organization. She was very interested in hearing what became of the HNS Guiding Light and their escapades on the island. In exchange, she offered some insights on the plight of the fisherman, siting her belief that he was withholding information in regards to the curse afflicting his daughter. She also gave Snips a lead on the MO of the bard he was hunting as well as entertaining his desire for further work in the future, assuring him that they'd be in touch. She also pointed him in the direction of the bounty on the pirate captain Iron Eye, as she sought information about his activities.
Finally, in the morning, the party set off with the fisherman back to his home town of Pharos; roughly a three days' journey. Along the way, Tess gently tried to confront the fisherman about Aliva's suspicions. It became clear that he was keeping something to himself, but Tess did not attempt to pry. Otherwise, the journey was largely pleasant until the halfway point, where they encountered the remnants of a smashed up carriage. The perpetrator quickly became apparent, as a lumbering ogre came crashing into the clearing with clear intent to perform the same act on the party's current transportation…
XP earned: 100 each
Session 5 The party fended off the ogre and took its head to collect the bounty on it. Once they were in Pharos, they turned it in to the tune of a cool 100 gp. From there, Simon took them to his family's cabin north of town where they met his wife and daughter. They spoke at length with them, with Tess informing Sarah that her husband seemed like he may be withholding information. Snips poked through Cassandra's room and found her diary where she made it clear she blamed herself for her parents' woes and mused about simply disappearing on purpose. Cassandra echoed these sentiments to Zuno, asking if she'd be able to go be an adventurer with them. Meanwhile, Lir scouted out the bay for clues, but found it to be little more than an ordinary reef. This changed when night fell.
They all agreed that they would let Cassandra perform her nightly walk and see if anything was lurking in the area. Indeed, when midnight fell, they were able to spot a pair of eyes gleaming in the moonlight just above the water. When Lir entered the water, he found it to be far murkier and bereft of life, save for the humanoid silhouette of something in the distance. Before he could determine what it was, he was accosted by a sea spawn, which he slew with a mighty smite (though not before taking hefty damage himself). Immediately after that, Cassandra fell back to sleep in Tess's arms, again with no recollection of what had happened upon waking in the morning. Believing that the creature Lir fought was only a minion, they readied themselves to try again the next night.
During the day, the party got up to some odd jobs. Zuno asked around about the sea spawn and learned some local legends and shanties that spoke of such creatures, but nothing particularly helpful in terms of their point of origin or fighting them. Tess applied her skills with tinkers tools to make a modest amount of gold while Lir also utilized his innate gifts to retrieve lost objects on the sea floor. Snips did some scouting on another potential bounty, a so-called Amikut: a creature that "swims" through the earth like water that has been attacking cattle in the farmlands west of Pharos. He spoke with farmers affected by the creature who told them it attacked lone livestock, usually at night; swallowing them in a burst of dirt and dust. Meanwhile, Flea basically just chilled.
As night fell again, the party prepared themselves to make another attempt in confronting whatever was compelling Cassandra to the sea. This time, a number of the sea spawn emerged from the surf and attacked. They fought fiercely and were able to severely wound Tess while knocking out Flea and Lir (both of whom ultimately stabilized, fortunately). The latter was pulled out of the sea by the spawn that felled him at the behest of its master: Tanya the sea hag. She revealed herself to the party and called out to Simon who watched the skirmish along with Sarah. She revealed that she had come to collect on the deal Simon had agreed to twelve years ago, wherein the girl would belong to her once she turned twelve in exchange for saving her life as a baby. Tess asked if there was anything they could offer in exchange for the girl while Snips offered a middle-finger, which Tanya claimed she'd be happy to take. She also suggested taking Zuno instead. Ultimately, they landed on an enigmatic "favor," for which Tess shook for, receiving a mark on her hand in the process.
With that, Cassandra was safe; at least for a month. Tanya made it clear that if the party failed to live up to their end of the bargain, she would return for the girl. Simon thanked the party for what they did, though it was clear that a major rift had formed between him and his wife with the revelation of this deal. Despite that, they had at least temporarily saved their daughter, and Simon awarded the party his old family heirloom: a trident of fish command. Now it was merely a waiting game to see what Tanya had in mind for the favor the party owed her…
XP earned: 300 each
Session 6 The party did not need to wait long for the terms of the hag's favor to arrive. In the morning, a seagull dropped a small, scaly bag in Tess's hand that contained a runic stone and a note that instructed them to place to stone under the desk in the cabin of a boat called the Daedalus in New Providence. Once done, their debt was paid.
Before heading back to New Providence, the party enacted a plan to lure out and kill the Amikut terrorizing the countryside. Their brilliant plan? Cover Flea in mud and manure and have her act like a cow to draw out the beast. As it turned out, the plan worked. However, the ferocity of the Amikut's attack left Flea on death's door, and the creature fled underground when it was wounded. Not to be deterred, they healed Flea up and tried again. This time, the group was more prepared and were able to slay the beast before it again fled (with only Tess nearly getting shorn in half by its powerful bite). They returned to the town triumphant heroes and were rewarded with free drinks and rooms at the local pub and a hefty bounty in the morning. Before setting off on Simon's carriage, Snips made an attempt to steal a rifle from the guard barracks, but was thwarted by an imposing fence and difficult lock. Determined to find a rifle some other way, the group set off back to the main city.
The trip back as uneventful, save for an encounter with a pair of Sisters of the Wandering Temple, who gave blessings to Zuno's hawk familiar at his request before departing with a guarantee that any Sister will offer aid if encountered on their travels. From there, they bid goodbye to Simon at the gates, but not before Tess insisted he be compensated for the family heirloom he offered as payment for helping his daughter.
Once in the city, the party got to work. Lir went to get the trident appraised and learned from the Crown Mage Eqora that it would likely fetch a price of 500 gp and that she could even find a buyer for him for a modest finder's fee. Tess attempted to create a leash to keep an eye on Zuno, prompting the boy to flee and try his hand at bounty hunting; somehow managing to bring in a petty target through his bewitching abilities. Lir also attempted a bounty but ultimately lost his quarry in the crowds after confronting him. In the same vein, Snips and Flea went about following up on the bounty for the bard Bartholomew Medeley, who the other minstrel Machi had been keeping tabs on. Seeing that the bard was a chronic womanizer, Flea attempted to win him over with her own feminine charm (and a little perfume of bewitching on top). She was successful in pulling his interest, but less so in keeping him away from his current "partner," a married woman who Snips had already attempted to bribe into helping (which she politely turned down). At this time, Lir also made an appearance in the inn, as he was hoping to find some kind of arrangement regarding the bounty some nobles had put out on a pod of orcas (he was able to convince one of the nobles that he could find them a better scenic spot away from the whale's territory). Machi was able to pull Medeley's attention for a moment, but it was clear that it was time for plan B: open fire in a crowded pub.
Meanwhile, Tess (and later Zuno) investigated the docks to find the Daedalus. Having been shooed away by the harbormaster, Tess purchased dockworkers attire and attempted to pose as the "new guy." A few younger dockworkers took the bait (though they assumed she was some kind of mascot wearing a costume), and gave her details on the boat and where it would dock when it returned. Sure enough, the Daedalus moored with the setting sun, revealing that it was owned by a wealthy merchant and his family of three young children. Not to be deterred by the mission she and Zuno (after establishing that there would be no leashes involved in their dynamic) boarded the boat and broke into the cabin (thanks to some dumb luck on Zuno's part on picking the lock with a dagger). They placed the stone as prompted and watched as it seemingly melted into the floor and the mark disappeared from Tess's hand. Zuno then got the idea to sink the ship, as they had fulfilled their end of the bargain. Unfortunately, the fire he attempted to set was quickly extinguished, though whether it was from the work of the stone they placed or some innate enchantment on the boat, they were unsure of.
Meanwhile, back at the Silver Cloud Inn, Snips and Flea made their move. Flea swiped Medeley's hat off his head and handed it to Machi while the former turned just in time to see Snips firing off a shot from his perch above the bar. The arrow struck true, but the bard was still lithe enough to avoid a grapple from Lir before magically becoming invisible. The trio attempted to lock down the bar, but the patrons and employees were none to happy with the group starting a fight inside and proved to be quite a roadblock. Ultimately, they were able to track the bard's movements into the private rooms, but lost him as he was able to make it through a window and vanish outside. All was not lost though, as they later found Machi sitting proudly on the doors of a storm shelter where he claimed Medeley had squirreled himself. Truly enough, the group found Medeley below, who surrendered without a fuss, seemingly having been convinced by his fellow musician. They turned him in and split the bounty between the four of them, with Machi and Lir only taking a modest cut.
So far, the party has found the life of adventuring to be quite lucrative, and now they turn their attention to new opportunities to further enhance their wealth and status…
XP earned: 500 each
Session 7 Tess and Zuno were determined to warn the owners of the Daedalus as to what had occurred. They were able to learn from the ship's log that the boat belonged to one Alexander Hurst, who they were able to track down to a general store in Atherton. He was skeptical of their frantic warning, to say the least. They left feeling at least slightly better for at least trying, and from there they reconvened with the rest of the group, save for Lir, who was presently out searching for a new boating locale for the well-to-do that would get them out of the territory of a local pod of whales.
Snips, still hoping to save up to purchase a rifle, wished to pursue a bounty on a wild giant boar. The rest of the group concurred, and they set off on some pig hunting. They tracked it into a cornfield where the beast attacked and very nearly gored Zuno. Fortunately, the wizard boy's hypnotic gaze stunned the beast long enough for the rest of the party to kill it. Triumphantly, the reported their success to the local farmers who wasted no time in organizing a great pig roast in which the party was given a seat of honor (as well as their reward). During the festivities, Snips goaded Zuno into getting drunk, which seemed to exacerbate Tess's burgeoning nervous break.
The following day, the party went back into the city to find more work and noticed a posting for a missing child. This spurred a still hungover Tess into action. The rest of the group was onboard as soon as she clarified that she wouldn't try to give away anyone's share of the reward. Speaking of rewards, Lir was contacted by an animal messenger in regards to the trident he was trying to sell. The wizard Eqora had found a very enthusiastic (and accidently racist) collector who would buy it for 500 gp. With some fresh cash in their pocket, the party went to investigate the missing child; a gnome called Lanlen. The boys father pointed them towards a nearby orchard that he often frequented as well as informing them of a soothsayer that some of his employees occasionally speak of (as Tess was insistent about the possibility of a hag being at play). Zuno wandered off alone to investigate the orchards while Tess, Flea, and Snips (after making a pitstop at a weaponsmith to inquire about inlaying a rifle with tusk bone) pursued the soothsayer. The crone freely offered a fortune telling with a Maqana fire-reading technique. She revealed that the boy "had been taken by old shadows" and to "search for signs of purple." Meanwhile, Zuno found signs of a scuffle and a piece of fabric from Lanlen's bright blue hat. They followed the trail to the main road to New Haven and decided to head out that way, believing that either the port town or the shadowy jungles were the most likely destination of Lanlen's kidnappers.
Along the road, they encountered acolytes of the Church of Burning Night, who had a chipper conversation with the party as they tried to persuade them into checking out their church back in Northgate in New Providence. The party politely declined and parted on amicable terms. In the morning, however, they found themselves accosted by a monstrous bird of prey with the head of a stag: a peryton. The beast nearly killed Flea, but thankfully, the rest of the party was able to slay it before it could do lasting damage.
Farther along the road, they encountered a fork, with the smaller road leading out to the shore and a small shipyard ostensibly owned by the Talhani Trading Company. They would have simply passed by it, but Snips was able to spot one of the ships at the dock was flying a purple flag. Tess locked onto this and insisted it be investigated. Unfortunately, they didn't get far. It was clear this was a relatively private facility, and when Zuno spotted a nervous tick in one of the crew they questioned, they pounced on him. Lir made some very cavalier threats and Tess full on grappled the man, forcing a confrontation with the yard's guards and crew, and eventually the shipyard foreman. Lir took up the mantle of spokesperson and insisted this was an "urgent matter of the sea," which did not go over well with the foreman, who was prepared to order his men to fire. Seeing as they were heavily outnumbered, Lir summoned a fog cloud and the party retreated as the shipyard guards fired blindly into the cloud.
The party was able to get clear in the confusion. After regrouping (save for Snips, who circled around in an attempt to investigate the ship with the purple flag), the party began scheming how best to proceed, as they knew something was afoot within the yard…
XP earned: 100 each
Session 8 While most of the party retreated to safety, Snips and Lir went about scouting out the shipyard as best they could. Snips made it to the ship flying the purple colors, the Bean, but was unable to find a way to board it without alerting the guards and workers. Likewise, Lir could not find an entry point from the water. Not wishing to risk any further confrontations, the two regrouped with the party. During this time, Tess seemed to become increasingly upset by the situation and wished to travel farther towards the jungles to search for any other signs of Lanlen.
They proceeded well into nightfall and eventually made camp along a dirt road that veered off the main road heading towards an Archanics Expeditionary Basecamp. In the night, someone or something managed to rummage through the camp and take Lir's rations, but they ultimately opted to let it go and continue traveling. Farther down the road, they encountered a wizard and their entourage; employees of Archanics on their way back from a supply drop at their basecamp. The wizard insisted that there were no signs of any child back that way. Initially, Tess still seemed committed to searching regardless, but eventually opted to turn back when the wizard offered them a scroll of locate object to assist in their search. She also encouraged them to look into joining the expedition, which would launch in roughly a month's time, if they were interested in seeking out a fabled Fountain of Youth.
Armed with the spell scroll (which Zuno took some time copying into his own spellbook), the party returned to the shipyard the following night. Casting locate object in search of Lanlen's hat, Zuno learned that he (or at least the hat) were on the ship. Now knowing their target was aboard the ship, the party enacted their carefully laid plan to spring him. Lir and Snips teamed up to cause a diversion on another docked ship; sneaking aboard and lighting some of the cargo on fire. Zuno then beguiled the guard who remained at the front gate with a suggestion spell, allowing the rest of the group to sneak in. With most eyes on the fire, they were able to make their way onto the deck of the Bean without getting caught.
Within the ships hold, the party discovered Lanlen as well as five other assumedly abducted kids; all members of races that were generally small in stature. Unfortunately, they were guarded by two orcish mercenaries. Tess and Lir were able to temporarily incapacitate one by calling them up to the deck above and casting command on him and forcing him to flee. The rest of the party jumped the remaining orc, who managed to put up a decent fight despite being overwhelmed. The party then had a brief respite to begin freeing the kids and looting the ship (locating a few health potions, ammunition, and a magic healing ointment). Unfortunately, the other orc quickly returned with a squad of goons at his back. Tess attempted to bar the door, allowing Snips and Flea to unload bullets and arrows into them, but eventually she was overwhelmed and the men barged into the lower hold. However, a particularly explosive ice knife from Zuno convinced them to simply grab Tess and leave, revealing that "the Magpie" was most interested in recovering her. The party pursued and killed the man carrying Tess before he could get above deck. The sailors working on the ship were also convinced to surrender.
Unfortunately for the party, the shipyard was now on high alert and an entire squad of over a dozen men were waiting for them above. A momentary ceasefire was offered, and the two sides spoke from opposite sides of the stairs. Ultimately, the Magpie's henchman offered to let the rest of the party and the kids go if Tess came with them quietly. Tess had no intentions of doing this, but went along with it in order to stall. Meanwhile, the rest of the party attempted to ferry the kids away through one of the ships portals, down a rope, and into the water where Lir would swim them to safety. One of the kids, a dwarf, was particularly hesitant about going in the water, but they were able to calm him enough that he was willing to try. The party was able to clear everyone away just as the henchman grew impatient and barged downstairs.
The party and the children fled through the night despite protestations from the kids that they were exhausted (they were able to accept the risk of stopping was too great). By midday the following day, they were all back safe in New Providence. The party collected a sizeable reward for both Lanlen's return and the other missing children. With that, they took some well earned rest and grabbed some supplies in town. Most notably, Snips was finally able to purchase his rifle with custom tusk bone inlays. They did not intend to rest long, of course, as there were still many opportunities in the city to earn even greater wealth. Most notably, the bounty on the so-called "Demon of the Landing" had gone up to 900 gp since they were last in town…
XP earned: 280 each
Session 9 While Snips retrieved his fancy new rifle, the rest of the party dealt with Tess's prisoner. The Magpie's henchman was adamant that he be given a guarantee of safety if he was to spill the beans on his boss. Unfortunately for him, Zuno had magic to make him talk (which they only opted to use after mutilating his hands didn't work). Under the compulsion of suggestion, the henchman revealed that the Magpie had gone to the pirate town of Kamakisqa. With his ace gone, the henchman desperately tried to play the angle of getting them to the lawless city, but the party was having none of it. Unwilling to kill him herself, Tess asked Lir to deal with him. The paladin opted to let the sea decide his fate, taking him far out into the bay and leaving him to swim back or drown. While his ultimate fate was left unclear, it was obvious that in his current condition, he was in no shape to perform such a feat of athleticism.
With that unpleasantness out of the way, the party turned their attention towards earning more cash and buying nice things with what they'd already earned: some choice poisons and a Bag of Holding for Snips and an Enduring Spellbook and a scroll of Identify for Zuno, among other things. In terms of work, Lir and Snips began investigating a wanted post regarding a changeling while Tess and Zuno explored the sewers for signs of the people reported missing. Each search provided preliminary results, with the former learning about the posters wife who was supposedly being impersonated for reasons unknown while the latter learned those that wandered deeper into the sewers often didn't return.
Their investigations were interrupted come nighttime as the two groups were reunited by the sound of a bloodcurdling scream. They found the source to be the site of a grizzly murder: a woman slain and her heart literally torn out. A trail of blood led to a fire escape and then the rooftops. Unfortunately, the trail went cold as it led back to the streets, though asking around revealed that a tall man in a long coat and hood was witnessed hurriedly walking away from the side street, confirming to the party that the killer was likely humanoid, at least in outward appearance. Without much else to go on for now though, the party returned to the Roasted Chestnut for some rest.
The following day, the group as a whole went to investigate the changeling claims, heading to the Church of Burning Night's chapel in North Gate where the job-giver's wife/doppelganger had been seen recently. The priests were thrilled to see the party again, less so when they learned they were only looking for someone. The head priest was reluctantly cooperative, but revealed that he had, in fact, seen the woman they sought, and that she was often in the company of the acolyte Daniel, who lived nearby. The party investigated his apartment (after breaking in, of course) and found that he had indeed been entertaining a woman named Helen (the same name as the woman they sought). The party opted to then hide in the apartment until he returned, which he did in just a few hours in the company of Helen herself. The party confronted them and talked them down from doing anything rash, where Helen revealed what was really going on: There was no changeling, only a body-double she had hired to cover her tracks in an increasingly convoluted plot to cover up a fling of infidelity. She offered to pay 400 gp (50 more than her husbands listing) for them to keep their mouths shut and not report back to her husband. Not particularly interested in getting involved, the party happily accepted and went on their merry way.
With that out of the way, it was time to check out the sewers. Knowing only that people who wandered deeper into the systems beyond the shantytowns that proliferated around the major entrances, they decided to follow suite and wander in. After a couple hours of wandering, the party noticed that the tunnels had become suspiciously clean. Unfortunately, they failed to notice the source of the cleanliness, a large gelatinous cube, which Lir and Tess quite literally walked into (though only the latter was trapped). Fortunately, Tess was able to wiggle free and the party was able to vanquish the ooze before it ate anyone else. The party reported back to city hall and collected the reward, meager though it was.
During all of this, Flea has been away on business of her own, though she promised that she would reunite with the party in a few days' time. In the meantime, their was still much work to be had in New Providence. At least two expeditions were in need of hired help and of course, there was still a killer on the loose…
XP earned: 140 each
Session 10 Realizing that they'd acquired quite a good bit of money, the party went and upgraded their armor. Tess jumped from her rather pitiful leather armor to heavy chainmail while Snips traded in his "well-loved" leathers for studded (still dyed black, of course). Emboldened by their fresh fits, the party opted to take their operation out onto the high seas, pursuing the harpies that still plagued the deep sea fishing locale.
At the docks, they began searching around for someone willing to ferry them out, ideally for as little cost as possible. During the search, Zuno checked in on the Daedalus to find that it was no longer in its usual spot. Disquieted, but not willing to investigate further as to its ultimate fate, they turned their attention back to finding a worthy ship. And find one they did in the form of the Damnation of the Tides, a small, old fishing boat captained by an eccentric, peg-legged, one-eyed sailor called Captain Ransford. He was even willing to take the party out free of charge, as he held a personal vendetta against harpies for allegedly taking his brother as well as his eye. Despite the ramshackle nature of the ship, the party agreed.
About halfway into their voyage, the small ship was attacked by a trio of harpies. The party experienced firsthand how dangerous they can be, both with their hypnotic song that threatened to pull Snips into the ocean and in their talons that nearly rent Tess asunder. However, they were able to overpower the harpies and opted to press on in search of more. In the interim, they spoke more with the captain and learned that he'd be willing to ship them to the pirate town of Kamakisqa for a small fee of 30 gp and the retrieval of a lucky heirloom he lost nearly a decade ago (his lucky anchor, as he calls it).
On approach to where the main group of harpies were reported, the party encountered a signal fire off in the distance. They weighed their options as to whether it was a trap, but ultimately decided to check it out. There, they found a shipwreck with a handful of survivors: a minor noble and what was left of his entourage. The party agreed to rescue them so long as they were alright with dealing with the harpies first, to which the survivors readily agreed. With the Damnation heavily weighed down, they approached the jagged island that played house to the gossip of harpies.
There were no good places to make land, and as the party did not wish to risk getting too close to the jagged rocks, they opted to attempt an aquatic approach. Snips nearly got lost in the surf, but miraculously, everyone was able to reach the rocky cliffs and pull themselves up onto relatively even ground. From there, they spent a good portion of the day climbing up to the peak where the harpies circled overhead. The heat and the excursion proved exhausting to both Lir and Zuno, but ultimately, they reached the zenith, where they found a nest that Zuno promptly set ablaze. Enraged, the harpies attacked, attempting to throw them off the cliff-face. Fortunately for the party, they were not successful, and despite causing a few heavy injuries, the harpies (including the reinforcements that arrived from elsewhere) were defeated and their heads collected. There were even a few gold coins to be found within the smoldering remnants of the nest.
With their trophies in hand, the party (very carefully) descended the slopes and returned to the Damnation and took an uneventful trip back to New Providence where they collected their reward for the harpy heads and a modest bonus from the saved noble. With another successful mission under their belt, the party now continues to seek out new sources of wealth and adventure within the bustling port city…
XP earned: 400 each