Session 26: A Beautiful Day in the Decay-borhood
General Summary
Buckle in, folks, this was a session without a combat so you know it's an RP and lore-heavy one!
The session began with a little bit of nighttime shenanigans (and definitely not the sexy kind). Leaf and Calloway "left" their heads, psychically projecting themselves in an attempt to get more information before the group left for the village. Before they did, they noticed thick thread of psychic energy flowing from Emelia's Book, through her nose, and into her head. The energy felt similar to the ambient energy around them. Leaf initially tried pulling the "thread" out of Emelia, but saw that a piece of what looked like Emelia's psyche was attached to it, so instead severed the connection between the thread of energy and the book. A burst of psychic energy erupted, damaging Leaf and Calloway and sending them back into their bodies for the rest of the night.
Upon waking, the group saw that the book wasn't attached to Emelia the way it had been after previous nights' sleep; no mycleial growths or tendrils or anything. Leaf was able to remove the book from her and put it in the Bag of Holding, but the party was unable to rouse Emelia, who appeared as though in deep REM sleep. She was, however, pliable and able to walk on her own. Without another plan, they headed to the village to seek help.
As they passed the room where they had fought the "Umber Hulks", they noticed that the room had no sign that any fight had happened there.
The group approached the town and hid behind a wall while TA-2 scouted ahead. An archway in a defensive wall announced "Welcome to Agarica". The archway lead to a main thoroughfare which ran straight up to a decrepit Spelljammer dominating the center of the village... (See sidebar for description)
After TA-2 surveyed the town without being accosted, Leaf, Khalog, and SNTR-1 entered, leaving Calloway, Emelia, and TA-2 outside the walls. The Agaricans appeared extremely unsurpised and relatively uninteresting in the unusual group moving through their town. About half of the population were Thri-keen, insectoid people from the Astral Plane. There were two "Warforged", which appeared to be constructed of organic material, much different from how they are made on the Material Plane. A Drow woman was running the farms, with apparent lack of maliciousness. A plasmoid seemed to repair and mold the walls. A Githzerei woman sat on a "porch", apparently painting -- Khalog seemed very wary of her, perhaps because their people have a long conflict with each other. She was also the only person they passed who seemed to take much notice of the group.
Having seen that the Spelljammer was partially a stage for public speaking, the group headed there first. It indeed turned out to be a community center, or town hall. There were people inside, but they seemed to lack focus or direction, almost as if they were just wandering around. Eventually they made their way to what used to be the bridge, where they met Thak-tcha, the village elder. A diminutive Thri-keen with swirling, mycleium-covered carapace, she approached and welcomed them to the village. It wasn't ominous at all! Don't be so paranoid.
Thak-tcha hadn't ever seen the affliction Emelia suffered, but offered the group a home. While talking to her, a few things stood out: she said there was an agreement or contract with Ylmyo-Aldon which granted them longevity; she referenced that the Agaricans don't sleep; she asked which of the portals they had come from; she said they wouldn't remember their home plane soon; she told them the flying creatures that had been pursuing them were called Latrophytes, the soldiers of Ylmyo-Aldon.
Not wanting to stick around the unnervingly placid Thak-tcha, they were sent off with the plasmoid Orlfoxen, who brought them to and modified a house for the group. After hanging the provided privacy curtains, the Coast Guard decided it would be best to get back to Port Shimmerly to try and fix what happened to Emelia, especially once they realized she was still in her head... but something else was in there, too. Just before Khalog Plane Shifted everyone out of the Domain of Decay, they saw the Githzerei woman with a large sketchbook in hand, looking as if she had something she wanted to tell them.
The group arrived at the secret Teleportation Circle in the jailhouse, which was empty of prisoners. Sultana was awake depsite the late hour, but allowed the group to get Emelia to Mili-bohn before debriefing him. On the way to the Temple of Kraa'thom, the party crossed the river, and noticed it was clogged with long strands of multi-colored filamentous tendrils. SNTR-1 and Calloway investigated, and SNTR-1 managed to collect a sample after noting a very faint enchantment aura coming from them.
Meanwhile, Leaf and Khalog took Emelia to Mili-bohn's hut. She didn't anticipate them, but let them in and allowed Leaf to regurgitate the events of the last few days like an excitable kid. Dominhall had moved from the hanging hammock to a bed, where he was reclined but seemed somewhat aware of what was going on in the room. MIli-bohn said she didn't have spells prepared that would help Emelia but could do something tomorrow... but when Leaf said Jaysennia's name, he bolted upright and reached for Leaf. Through their touch, he telepathically communicated, implying that retrieving Jaysennia may be the only way to "stop the decay".
The session began with a little bit of nighttime shenanigans (and definitely not the sexy kind). Leaf and Calloway "left" their heads, psychically projecting themselves in an attempt to get more information before the group left for the village. Before they did, they noticed thick thread of psychic energy flowing from Emelia's Book, through her nose, and into her head. The energy felt similar to the ambient energy around them. Leaf initially tried pulling the "thread" out of Emelia, but saw that a piece of what looked like Emelia's psyche was attached to it, so instead severed the connection between the thread of energy and the book. A burst of psychic energy erupted, damaging Leaf and Calloway and sending them back into their bodies for the rest of the night.
Upon waking, the group saw that the book wasn't attached to Emelia the way it had been after previous nights' sleep; no mycleial growths or tendrils or anything. Leaf was able to remove the book from her and put it in the Bag of Holding, but the party was unable to rouse Emelia, who appeared as though in deep REM sleep. She was, however, pliable and able to walk on her own. Without another plan, they headed to the village to seek help.
As they passed the room where they had fought the "Umber Hulks", they noticed that the room had no sign that any fight had happened there.
The group approached the town and hid behind a wall while TA-2 scouted ahead. An archway in a defensive wall announced "Welcome to Agarica". The archway lead to a main thoroughfare which ran straight up to a decrepit Spelljammer dominating the center of the village... (See sidebar for description)
After TA-2 surveyed the town without being accosted, Leaf, Khalog, and SNTR-1 entered, leaving Calloway, Emelia, and TA-2 outside the walls. The Agaricans appeared extremely unsurpised and relatively uninteresting in the unusual group moving through their town. About half of the population were Thri-keen, insectoid people from the Astral Plane. There were two "Warforged", which appeared to be constructed of organic material, much different from how they are made on the Material Plane. A Drow woman was running the farms, with apparent lack of maliciousness. A plasmoid seemed to repair and mold the walls. A Githzerei woman sat on a "porch", apparently painting -- Khalog seemed very wary of her, perhaps because their people have a long conflict with each other. She was also the only person they passed who seemed to take much notice of the group.
Having seen that the Spelljammer was partially a stage for public speaking, the group headed there first. It indeed turned out to be a community center, or town hall. There were people inside, but they seemed to lack focus or direction, almost as if they were just wandering around. Eventually they made their way to what used to be the bridge, where they met Thak-tcha, the village elder. A diminutive Thri-keen with swirling, mycleium-covered carapace, she approached and welcomed them to the village. It wasn't ominous at all! Don't be so paranoid.
Thak-tcha hadn't ever seen the affliction Emelia suffered, but offered the group a home. While talking to her, a few things stood out: she said there was an agreement or contract with Ylmyo-Aldon which granted them longevity; she referenced that the Agaricans don't sleep; she asked which of the portals they had come from; she said they wouldn't remember their home plane soon; she told them the flying creatures that had been pursuing them were called Latrophytes, the soldiers of Ylmyo-Aldon.
Not wanting to stick around the unnervingly placid Thak-tcha, they were sent off with the plasmoid Orlfoxen, who brought them to and modified a house for the group. After hanging the provided privacy curtains, the Coast Guard decided it would be best to get back to Port Shimmerly to try and fix what happened to Emelia, especially once they realized she was still in her head... but something else was in there, too. Just before Khalog Plane Shifted everyone out of the Domain of Decay, they saw the Githzerei woman with a large sketchbook in hand, looking as if she had something she wanted to tell them.
The group arrived at the secret Teleportation Circle in the jailhouse, which was empty of prisoners. Sultana was awake depsite the late hour, but allowed the group to get Emelia to Mili-bohn before debriefing him. On the way to the Temple of Kraa'thom, the party crossed the river, and noticed it was clogged with long strands of multi-colored filamentous tendrils. SNTR-1 and Calloway investigated, and SNTR-1 managed to collect a sample after noting a very faint enchantment aura coming from them.
Meanwhile, Leaf and Khalog took Emelia to Mili-bohn's hut. She didn't anticipate them, but let them in and allowed Leaf to regurgitate the events of the last few days like an excitable kid. Dominhall had moved from the hanging hammock to a bed, where he was reclined but seemed somewhat aware of what was going on in the room. MIli-bohn said she didn't have spells prepared that would help Emelia but could do something tomorrow... but when Leaf said Jaysennia's name, he bolted upright and reached for Leaf. Through their touch, he telepathically communicated, implying that retrieving Jaysennia may be the only way to "stop the decay".
TLDR:
Emelia gets coma'd. The group visits Agarica. A less-than-glorious return to Port Shimmerly.Bookkeeping:
Report Date
25 Sep 2023
Welcome to Agarica
The environment is carefully molded to make use of the strange resources in the Domain. Buildings seem to grow from the pliable floors, having been molded somehow to create the correct shapes. None of the psychic energy flows through the town. Stoma doors are held open by irrigation pipes made of what looks like the heads of drones split apart and stuck together into long lines. Inside is a massive cavernous room, terraced with layers of the same material the cell walls are made of.A central structure dominates the village – what used to be a large spherical spelljammer, the metal long rusted away, replaced by a network of fibrous tissue and covered in a patchwork of moss-like lichen and slime molds. Radiating out are a variety of tubes, cobbled-together wires, and bridges connecting a melange of buildings made out of the slightly transparent cell matrix of the plane. Massive curtains of woven fibers lay over most of the buildings, and you can see on a few of them insect-like humanoids weaving replacements.
There is a terraced water filtration system, with water being pumped trhrough the pipes to the ceiling and then dripped down the terrace, ending in a resevoir that directly irrigates the "farm" of rich soil, mainly growing mushrooms. On one of the walls, a "nest" of large tube-like structures seem to be the housing for the many Thri-keen. There is a small number of shops and such; the town is about the same size as Port Shimmerly, though it does not seem to have the same luxury amenities the resort town boasts.
On one part of the defensive wall (which does still contain the flow of psychic energy), multiple of the glowing orbs are grouped, as if all the rooms that were merged to create this large cavern had their orbs corralled into one spot.
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