Session 24 Recap: "Lair of the Ghost Lord"
General Summary
In the eerie calm of the volcanic cavern, Fortune's Favored took a much needed moment to catch their breath after the defeat of the massive Cinderslag Elemental. As they rested, Vigo seized the opportunity to explore the area and the great pillar jutting up and out of the lava below. Drawn to it, as if by some external force, Vigo reached out to touch the strange metal and promptly vanished before the stunned group, leaving them utterly perplexed on where their firey cleric had gone.
Fortuneately, they did not need to wait as Vigo returned after a few moments of abject panic with a smile plastered on his face from ear to ear. He excitedly claimed to have met his god, Heiyr, the Shaper. He explained that the god had told him they would need to find a way to create a weapon out of Aetherium that would be capable of slaying a Forbidden One, though the how of such a task was something they would have to figure out once the immediate threat of the Silent Dark's Army had been dealt with.
The party made their way back out of the sweltering tunnels, and were greeted by a gaggle of armed and shocked dwarves who were stunned to see the group emerge from the depths of the mine relatively unscathed. In exchange for their help, the dwarves agreed to send a battalion of mercenaries to Crimsonwich to help aid the city in it's preparations against the approaching army. The group was then presented with a lavish feast and comfortable rooms, as well as a discount from the Guildmaster himself as they stocked up on some additional wares and goods for their journey South into far more dangerous territory.
After a night spent in fine company, the group parted ways Knight Captain Grayson and flew South for the Betrayer's Scar and the Lair of the Ghost Lord himself. The land became more and more desolate the further the group flew and by the time the sun was setting , they had spotted the twisted, broken landscape that was their destination. Thorns and brambles made of shards of glass blanketed the rocks and valleys torn into the very flesh of Iria itself, while the withered husks of dead trees stood as a mockery of the vibrant forest they ought to have been. In the center of it all was a tree that seemed to have a perverted the nature of life itself, grown to a massive size and towered over the rest of this menacing landscape. As the party landed and began to search for a way to begin their approach, they were greeted by none other than Lilith Starshroud, one of the named generals of the Silent Dark.
Unlike the rest of the cabal's members, Lilith was oddly cordial to the party and informed them that the Ghost Lord was too busy for their "social call". She also seemed relatively unconcerned by their presence, despite their unscheduled arrival. Instead, she summoned a behir from seeimingly nowhere and set it on the party. However, that plan quickly failed as the creature was banished back to its home plane in the span of seconds, leaving her with little other option than to divy the group up by teleporting half of them straight to the Ghost Lord's main chamber. But rather than remain separated, the rest of the party on the surface merely followed the others through, leaving Lilith behind entirely.
Upon entering the chamber, the Ghost Lord was less than pleased at the sudden intrusion, however Xerren intervened in an uncharacteristicly jitterly manner as he offered up the Phylactery without resistance nor terms. Despite the oddness of his behavior, the Ghost Lord was all-too happy to accept back his phylactery and wasted no time at all crushing and killing each and every member of the Silent Dark throughout his lair and drew their blood to the altar where none other than Alariwyn hung in the midst of a transformation. Though he decalred he did not want to be disturbed during the process, he did grant the party time to speak with the druid and learned she had come to her master of her own free will and asked for his help in this. One by one, the party exchanged words with her, attempting to both rationalize her choice, as well as convince her to stop before it was too late, but Alariwyn seemed to be resolute in her decision only declaring that she would arrive in Crimsonwich in two week's time. As the party trickled out of the Ghost Lord's Lair, Yvonne took a moment to add her blood to the ritual with one last hope that it would not be used, before the group took back to the skies with their goal complete though Lilith was nowhere to be found.
Xerren's condition on the other hand, only continued to get worse. Bizzare behavior that had started as they approached the Scar devolved into him losing conciousness entirely, propmpting Verna to tie him to herself and forced the group to return to Slatefist Hold in the hopes some rest would help him recover. Fortunately, with the morning came a return of Xerren's senses, as well as an apology and explaination of his actions in handing over the Ghost Lord's phylatery. The group were more relieved by his recovery and what had caused his ailment in the first place to be upset in the least, and after a quick breakfast were back in the air and speeding on to Crimsonwich at last, where they managed to catch up to Captain Grayson on the road just outside a city clearly preparing for war.
Captain Lars Ulvurth met Fortune's Favored at the gates as they explained who they were and were quickly excorted straight to the court of none other than Lord Kerdan Jarmath to learn what awaited the capital city of Edenia...
Missions/Quests Completed
Freed the Ghost Lord from the Silent Dark's control, arrived in Crimsonwich
Faith Affirmed
As Vigo touched the pillar in the mine's main cavern, he found himself brought before a great forge unlike anything he'd ever seen before. And before it, was a man far larger than life itself steadily working something on the great anvil before him. It took no introductions for Vigo to realize he stood in the presence of his god, Heiyr. The Shaper welcomed Vigo briefly, before informing him that a time of great unrest was fast approaching, and that he would need to discover how to forge a weapon of Aetherium, as the means to lay low a god no longer existed on Iria. The war with the Silent Dark was only a stepping stone they would need to overcome before the real threat to Iria unveiled itself, and they would need to be ready for it before it struck, before returning Vigo back to his friends as if hardly any time at all had passed.
Definition of Insanity
As the party crossed over the Betrayer's Scar once again, Xerren found himself in an entirely different landscape with a figure equal parts familiar and not. It welcomed him into the dreamlike landscape where a thousand lifetimes played out before them, all returning to the same moments in time where each group of heroes and adventurers all failed in their journey. The figure taunted Xerren, and claimed the chronomancer was fractured and unaware he was even missing pieces of himself. The figure offered a chance for Xerren to join with him, to become whole once again, only for him to be turned down with Xerren's resolute declaration that this timeline would be the one to finally break the cycle, before waking up back with his friends in the safety of Slatefist Hold.
Report Date
15 Mar 2024
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