KWN.4.5 The Curse of Avarice

Session Preface

By the next afternoon, Vosh'ri's guidance is no longer necessary to find your destination. As you draw closer, the gnoll's tracks become obvious, their haphazardous prints in the mud, their clawmarks carved into the trees, their victim's bloodstains splattered and dried across the stones.
You smell the gnoll's den before you see it, a rancid stench leading you onward. You soon discover the source. Scattered along the way are the carcasses of assorted creatures, savagely mauled, their remains rotting away. You instinctively realize these were not the prey of a hunting predator, but the victims of insatiable bloodlust.
As afternoon passes into evening, you stand before the mouth of Morndinvuddrrin. The ornate, smoothly hewn stone entryway of dwarven design has been worn down by centuries past. A pair of empty sconces sit on either side of the entry way. Just beneath them, you observe a familiar pair of sigils. One, the sign of Yeenoghu, a demonic script creating the appearance of a smiling maw. The second, the same glyphs, with an additional symbol overlaid which transforms the smiling maw into a pair of claws.
As you make your final preparations, a heavy darkness falls over the forest. A foreboding dread permeates the air. It weighs on your chest, like a hand gripping your lungs, tightening with each breath.

Session Summary

The party first investigate the exterior entrance, denoting a dwarven inscription they cannot read before Aethuriel proceeds in to scout the initial entrance chamber. Drawn first by the skittering sound of insects coming from a tunnel to the south, Aethuriel soon after finds a pair of rust monsters eating from piles of miscellaneous tools and equipment. Not wanting their weapons to be corroded by the creatures, the party draw their attention and defeat them from a distance with the trained efficiency of their months of experience together up to this point.
Pressing on, Aethuriel observes a unique sconce in the shape of a dwarven arm holding a pickaxe and discovers a secret chamber when turning the pickaxe into position. Within, the elf finds more miscellaneous gear along with three precious gems - a fist-size jade, a smooth amber, and a jagged black onyx, all of material worth. After Aethuriel retrieves the stones, Pax notices a change in Aethuriel's demeanor, but says nothing of it.
In the next chamber, a trio of gnolls sort through pilfered materials under the watch of a larger, more sinewy gnoll. The companions get the drop on their foes, but when one gnoll escapes into an adjacent room, they soon find themselves becoming surrounded by the monsters. Shrouding the hallway in magical darkness, Pax forces the gnolls to bottleneck between Tristain and Aethuriel. In this formation, the party is able to carve through the some-dozen gnolls and their captain quite effectively. In a pivotal moment, Tristain's steadfast defense and poise despite being assailed from all sides inspires Pax, who watches in surprise as one of his arrows flies true with a streak of gold intertwining with the hemocraftic ice-blue shimmer. Already certain the arrow will find its mark, Pax notes the arrow with curiosity before returning to the moment at hand.
As the heat of battle disappates, Aethuriel frantically searches the room for a coinpurse he heard fall sometime during the fight and scours the room for other items of value, finding a few other scattered coins. The companions decide to rest and prepare for whatever threats will face them deeper in the mines. During the short rest, Pax conducts his alchemical routine, mixing and meticulously preparing a variety of potions and brews. Aethuriel refreshes himself with a moment of meditation and reflective prayers. He then observes Pax with scholarly interest as the blood hunter drinks the concoctions and his face warps temporarily, he veins darkening, his eyes flashing red, before returning to normal. During this process, Pax sees in his mind's eyes, the red outline of Yeenoghu's smiling face, seemingly watching him. Meanwhile, Tristain, unharmed from the battle, keeps watch, discovering a note, which reads:

"As my connection to my lord deepens, I leave my old concerns behind. His hunger is all that matters. It is greater than me; it is greater than us all. It is His mark. He made us. He drives us. He eats what we eat. He kills what we kill. He will come if we eat well. He will come if we kill well. He will come if we eat well. He will come if we kill well. We will kill and He will eat, and we shall be He and He shall be we, never alone, never afraid, never hungry."

Upon reading this note, Pax burns it away with his hemocraft and warns the party of the dangers they will face. He goes on to explain how this act, of seeking more power from Yeenoghu, is a repulsive and traitorous act among blood hunters. He shares more on how each blood hunter individually wrestles with the walking the line of becoming a monster to fight monsters. While some go rogue in pursuit of more power, the blood hunters do not condone such activity and Barmon's courting of Yeenoghu is particularly damning. As such, Pax urges the party to press on and make quick work of stopping whatever dark evil is at work in this place.
Moving quietly through a series of descending tunnels and staircases, the party find what appears to be the ritual chamber. A trio of gnolls, impaled on massive iron spikes, scream and cry in unsettling mixes of anguish and revelry, their eyes an opaque crimson. These signs confirm Pax's fears - Baron, the lycan they hunt, is directly mixing hemocraft and demonic rituals in a dark search for power. The party burst into the room, making quick work of the gnolls keeping watch over the ritual chamber.
The party examine the iron spikes and the altar upon which they are built. Tristain discovers a small child's doll made from a potato sack, perhaps dropped by a former sacrifice in this very room. His thoughts are disrupted when the gnolls upon the iron spikes fall concerningly quiet before undergoing a grotesque transformation into towering were-gnoll monstrosities. As the party watches in horror, preparing to face these new threats, a towering figure approaches from the northern tunnel. Standing nine-feet tall, the were-bear Barmon approaches, holding a three-headed flail made of shadows and skulls in one of his bloody, clawed fists. "You are too late!" the lycan shouts, raising his flail to strike the knights.

Session Overview

Date Played:
July 24, 2022
Party:

• Aethuriel
• Pax
• Tristain

Time Passed:
Elient 11, 1493 AM - Elient 11, 1493 PM
NPCs:

• Vosh'ri
• Barmon

Loot:

• 3 gems worth 100gp
• Blacksmith’s Toolkit
• 64gp, 16sp