Session 35 - Love and Lies

General Summary

In the basement of Fort Rannick, the Saviors of Sandpoint confronted a human woman wearing a sihedron medallion and cursed armor. Kumiko knew the woman as Dilay, princess of Laterre and someone she had once called sister. But to the Black Arrow Kaven, she was Lucrecia - the owner of the Paradise barge. The name also told the heroes that she had an association with Xanesha, and was probably up to the same sort of ritual sacrifices. Lucrecia revealed that the love-struck Kaven had given her vital information that allowed her to confront the commander of the fort, Commander Lamatar, while he was vulnerable outside the walls of Fort Rannick. After she defeated him, she let the ogres finish him off. With the commander out of the way and the fort's vulnerabilities at her disposal, it was simple enough to take the fort. When Kumiko confronted Lucrecia with her former life as Dilay, Lucrecia became conflicted and lashed out at the heroes. Using abilities that seemed beyond human (due to the cursed Theyrium armor pieces she wore), she fought the party with reckless abandon. In the end, she was knocked unconscious and subdued. The heroes attempted to remove the bracers and boots that she wore, as they seemed to be exuding some kind of control over her. But the cursed metal would not come free without magical intervention (such as a Remove Curse spell). Kaven attempted to flee but Gallious magically compelled him to return. Jayvielle told him to place himself in shackles, but instead Kaven begged for death. He confessed that betraying the Black Arrows was a death sentence, and it didn't matter who killed him. His life was over. Jayvielle offered him a second chance, believing Kaven had been taken advantage of and could make amends if he truly wanted to. Kaven agreed and continued to guide them through the fort. With Kaven now carrying Lucrecia, the party ascended to the main floor of Fort Rannick. They found the infirmary and fought two ogres that had used the Fort’s resident cleric Irus as a macabre art piece. They continued the search, checking the guest quarters and mess hall before coming to the barracks. Inside the barracks, six ogres were trying to snatch a mask of a horse's head off a seventh ogre. Battle ensued, but when the smoke cleared (literally as Mite had set most of the ogres on fire) two of the ogres were unaccounted for. Gallious found that the doors to the courtyard had been opened by the burning ogres, and the sounds of many roaring ogres could be heard from somewhere in the courtyard.

Rewards Granted

Lucrecia (Dilay) carried a scroll that listed every citizen of Turtleback Ferry who received a Sihedron tattoo from her as “favorite customers of Paradise.” Kaven’s name was on this list with a circle around it. The list itself had the header: “Those who have agreed to grant their greed to the master’s need.”
She also wore a Sihedron medallion.
Her bracers and boots were both magical, but cursed items that she could not remove. Only a Remove Curse spell could free her from the armor, and its control.
In the infirmary, the heroes found a potion of Cure Moderate Wounds that had rolled under one of the sick beds.

Missions/Quests Completed

Discovered Lucrecia and learned how she was marking "greedy souls." But the tattoos did not seem to be part of the ritual or were only part of it. So how did she intend on collecting the greedy souls?
Learned how the ogres took Fort Rannick and wiped out most of the Black Arrows. They waited until Commander Lamantar was outside the fort communing with nature, and the second-in-command Jakadros (and Kaven) were away from the fort on patrol.

Campaign

Rise of the Runelords

Protagonists