The Return: Session #22

General Summary

The heroes woke from a night's rest after saving the Skull's Crossing dam. After a conversation with Jaka and Vale, they arranged a plan to rescue Fort Garnet's commander from the Kreeg ogres. The remaining Black Arrows knew where the Kreeg called home, but they had never had the numbers to make an assault. Vale volunteered to lead the heroes to the mountain, and possibly help them climb the steep cliffs.
The unnaturally unceasing heavy rains made the travels to Hook Mountain arduous, and the steep cliffside proved intimidating to climb. Tiny Tymm offered a magical solution, but the heroes took the some time to search the mountain for an alternate. Bartuk was able to find the trail the ogres used to reach their home. While better than scaling the mountain and using a lot of magical resources, the trail was made for ten foot tall ogres and proved a challenge.
Reaching the top, the found the entrance to the Kreeg cave home. A couple of lazy ogres were guarding the entrance, and the heroes were able to quickly dispatch them before they could warn others.
Entering the Kreeg home, the heroes found tunnels twice the size of the ogre inhabitants. A forty foot tall statue encrusted in jewels wearing the symbol of the Shung hung around its neck.
The heroes had already defeated many of the Kreeg ogres at Fort Garnet and at Skull's Crossing, and the cave was lightly populated. The large common area had three particularly lazy ogres arguing about which had killed the largest foe. An illusion by Tiny Tymm taunted the ogres to the entrance of the cave, where the heroes ambushed them. It was a close call, but they defeated them before they could run for help.
Facing many tunnels branching off from the common area, the heroes followed one brightly lit tunnel to find an armory. Ten ogre slaves were being forced to make armor and weapons by two ogre guards. The heroes attempted to sneak closer to the guards for an ambush, but were noticed by the slaves. Kurdan attempted to persuade them to be quiet, and while the confused slaves considered what to do.. the heroes were able to defeat the guards. With some discussion, the heroes learned the slaves were also Kreeg ogres. When their clan was taking over by someone they called "the big one", these ogres resisted the new order and were enslaved. The heroes convinced three of the ogres to help them overcome the "big one".
Further explorations revealed a hastily sealed room. Bad odors came from behind the barrier, and the ogres said the "winged ones" were being kept there. Fearing a dragon, the heroes moved on.
In the tunnel, the heroes found a shrine to Quitic that held the corpse of Commander Bayden.
The throne room of the Kreeg ogres was an icy room due to a hole in the cave ceiling. The ramp leading to the throne was lined with twenty foot tall statues and the throne itself had a stone statue on it.
The heroes carefully made their way up the ramp when they saw the statue move. The figure sitting on the throne was a creature of legend--- a stone giant, and he was not alone. Another stone giant was above them and Lucrecia was present as well. A brawl broke out as Kurdan engaged the stone giant near the ramp, Tiny Tymm engaged the spellcasting one on the throne, and Burtak supported both of them. Vale and the three ogres also joined the fight, but the slave ogres proved to be little match against these powerful foes.
Bartuk brought enfeebled the guard with his powerful magic while some counter spells from Tiny Tymm kept the spellcaster from controlling the battle. Lucrecia attempted to magically seduce Kurdan to fight for her, but being in a rage made him immune to her magical wiles.
As Kurdan slayed the guard, Lucrecia attempted to turn invisible and flee. She was struck down by the magic of her own ally, as the spellcasting stone giant, Barl Breakbones, surrendered to the party.
The heroes were hesitant to accept the surrender, after having run into Lucrecia a second time, but they gave Barl an attempt to make his case.
Barl explained he was sent here by his cousin, Mokmurian, to do the bidding of their mutual master: Karzoug-- the Runelord of legend thought dead for a thousand years. Neither trusted Barl, and for good reason-- he felt no loyalty to either and wanted out from under their thumb. They had sent him on this mission to find ogre servants to keep him out of trouble. Barl hoped to escape their service and hoped the heroes would prove to be their undoing.
Barl was able to give the heroes some background on the ones orchestrators of all their trouble:

• Mokmurian and Barl were arcane scholars at the Benu Academy. Mokmurian was proud of his Shung heritage, and that earned him few friends or trust from the college.
• They joined an expedition to the fallen city of Haven to study the magical volcano. While there, an explosion from a cloud above rained red crystals upon their camp.
• Ignoring orders from their instructors, Mokmurian used his magic to ascend into the cloud and found an elven castle upon a floating island. The explosion had been from a figure entombed in red crystal-- Karzoug the Runelord!
• The seemingly dead body was able to speak to Mokmurian's mind. It offered him great magics and power for his service, because while the Runelord's body was free-- his soul was still entrapped elsewhere.
• Mokmurian took the body, abandoned the expedition, and disappeared into the wilds of Onitsha.
• When he returned, he was transformed from a human to a stone giant. Karzoug had taught him powerful magics and the means to transform those with Shung blood into this form.
• Mokmurian began to recruit others with Shung blood, including his cousin Barl, and reactive runewells around Kaduna through servants loyal to Karzoug (Xanesha and Lucrecia) and stooges (goblins and cultists).

Barl also explained that behind the barrier in the cave were harpy witches they were forcing to use their magic to keep the heavy rains falling.
After sharing that, he offered the treasures he had to the heroes and made his exit with a promise he had no intention to ever see them again.
The heroes decided the enslaved ogres were still the very ogres that had tormented the lands for years, and they slayed them and the harpies.
Going through Barl's treasures, they found a note sent to him by Mokmurian. Ordering him to ready his ogres, because Mokmurian had planned a raid of stone giants and a dragon. A raid on the heroes home of Barrowmista!
Worried, the heroes prepared to travel to Barrowmista, but first they returned to the Whitewillows. They found the fey swamp dying and Myriana falling deeper into despair. 
Returning Lamatar Bayden's body to her, she used her fey magic to reincarnate both of them. She returned to her fey formed, but the nature of her magic transformed her love into a fey as well. Lamatar lived, but would forever be bound to Myriana and the Whitewillows. In thanks, Myriana gave Bartuk the Blessing of the Whitewillows.

Rewards Granted

20,000 gold


A bag of holding


A wand of burning hands


A cape of the mountebank https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/Cape%20of%20the%20Mountebank#content


A decanter of endless water https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/Decanter%20of%20Endless%20Water#content


Leather Armor +2


Long Sword +2


Torc of Barl 


Blessing of the Whitewillows 

Character(s) interacted with

Jaka Sovark 


Vale Temros 

Report Date

27 Jun 2021

Primary Location

Fort Garnet