Season 9, Episode 15: "The Eye of Cthulhu" Report
General Summary
Crow smiled from Aroden's seat in the Spectacles, letting Flay take in the ramifications of their presence, and tried to appeal to her baser natures. They promised a life without pain, and an end to all the struggling, beseeching her to sleep so that all of this would end. When Flay refused, Crow switched to taunts instead, pointing out that the Dream Team operated best when they had a single target — a single point of concern. So they devised a threat that would attack from multiple fronts, and with a varied purpose, to end their struggle once and for all.
Flay denied Crow a second time, and was banished from the Spectacles just as Zandeer's presence returned, and the Haze cried warning (see Amalgam). Using the book of the Soul Divided, the corrupted Dreamer began to advance forward time, as some great force struck the side of the Aga Jain. TRAVIS was able to save the Dream Team from physical harm (sacrificing Nikkost and wounding other crew members in the process), and in the chaos used his morphing ability to create hands, and summon the time-fluid spirit of Nicholas Carter (now Wyatt).
Wyatt stopped the clock at 5pm (only one hour before the solar eclipse), and called in a "favor" from Absy, asking for a scan of the situation. The Dream Team was beset with visions of their enemies, with preparations beginning in earnest:
- A ritual circle at the abandoned home of Unari Dama, where the Black Owl was leading a ritual with a host of Skinny Men, with the intent to sacrifice Dances with Leaves.
- A desecrated temple to Desna, hidden in the mountain to the northeast. Grays were patrolling the area like it was a fortress, backed up by a massive Gray Goo. Another mile and a half underground, there was a cavern containing a simulacrum of a red-haired woman with no soul inside it, and Hades chanting over a ritual circle.
- A cluster of ruins buried in the jungle to the southwest. The Gorgon patrolled through the trees, along with dozens of cultists from the Cult of the Elder Mythos. Lying unconscious, Unari Dama was watched over by a massive dragon made up of corrupted flesh.
- The riverside that once hosted the town of Ripple, now taken over by a broken black spire. Ragarot stood knee-deep in the water, surrounded by Black Swarm that twitched and shook in repetitive movements around a bound and gagged Fury in the Black. Across the water, Chamas and Abelina crawled out of the jungle, the latter bleeding from her brow, and met eyes with their once-friend.
- The dark side of the moon, where a ritual circle formed from the moondust. A battle was already underway, watched over by Emilia Song and warriors made of white sand, as the lunar dragon Ceres battled with two other dragons in the sky — one made of souls and spirit, the other bound by metal and time. Cornelius struggled in Emilia’s hands, shapechanging wildly but unable to escape her grasp.
- A skyscraper that hung above the city of Maro, where monsters resembling Gray men sprinted towards the tower like panthers, guided by sickly Barathu and a necrotic Chad. They carried Atalanta with them, but were met with gunfire before they could reach their ritual site, as Niko Ciro entered the fray.
- A cavern deep below the city of Maro, where thirteen wretches floated and danced around a circle bound in Dreamsteel, containing the tortured form of Ravin Ricky. Panning back, the image of a single, closed eye, which belonged to a massive Cagn resting at the core of the planet. Overlooking it all, Zandeer perched with the Soul Divided’s book, furiously scribbling the margins.
- Then at last, in the skies of Maro itself, where Sara No-Name and Maximus Erebus stood at odds. Where the darkness of the trench below them stretched in either direction, and the light of Max’s Lantern began to fade, before a set of monstrous, emerald-green eyes — each the size of a building — flickered open in the trench. Sara recoiled as a paw the size of a mountain erupted from the darkness, snatching Maximus out of the air, and the System went wild as two Admins began a clash of wills.
The River Raid
They met up with Chamas and Abelina, intervening in time to save Fury in the Black from being sacrificed, and banishing Ragarot before he could complete the ritual. During these events, Anastasia revealed that she could Skip, and that she possessed a separate ability that allowed her to ground out the forces building around the ruins of the Black Swarm spire. Sustaining heavy damage from their old friend, the Dream Team decided to take a short rest — and another ten minutes — before continuing onward. After an intense discussion, they decided they were going to split up across the ritual sites on the moon and where Unari was being held. MaMa summoned the Wild Hunt with Forao's Hunting Horn, with Flay, Fury, Mist, and Anastasia joining her, and they rode into the jungle with the boon of the Erlking. Isra prepared to Skip the rest of them to the moon, before Chamas revealed he intended to interfere with Sara's ritual, and disappeared with Abelina — leaving only the Witchwarper, Lockette, and the Mercenary left to go.The Jungle Raid
The battle moved to three fronts, as the ritual site in the far north exploded with a foul light, and the System reported a failure in the raid. Knowing in his heart that his parents had just been slain, Mist quieted his emotions, and the jungle raiding party watched as the Wild Hunt met with the Cult. In a surprise ambush, Carsai the King attempted to stall them from their goal, but the Erlking split off to duel him, and they arrived to find the Gorgon and his dragon alone. Seeking to limit any further casualties and to expand his own firepower, Mist dashed through them both with Fury on his back, and began to teleport them and Unari Dama back to Absalom Station (where Qwen was currently failing to deliver the Phasecaster, due to Crow's radio interference). The Black Owl leapt from hiding in an attempt to stop Mist, but instead was taken along with him, clearing both ritual targets from the field. This didn't stop the Gorgon, who started assaulting the party from the shadows. Flay decided it was time to leverage the Soul Fragment of Nekahar, summoning the Wither Dragon to duel with the flesh creature, while MaMa and Anastasia warded her from further blows. The dragon proved exceptionally useful, ultimately killing both the flesh beast and the Gorgon, with the rest of the crew focusing on survival, and MaMa using her powers over Body to save the Erlking. Then it was time to reconvene with the rest of the party, and so Flay gave her final order to Nekahar before she faded, and ordered the dragon to teleport them to the moon.The Moon Raid
Isra, Lockette, and the Mercenary arrived alone, their battlefield already in ruins as Rastelviri and Ceres battled the spirit and time dragons in the sky. Emilia and her moondust horde assaulted the party immediately, focusing in on Isra first, and the Vanguard Aasimar revealed the overwhelming extent of her power. Desparate to save Cornelius, Isra didn't waste time trading blows, and invoked the will of the Shepherd, drawing power from her people as she began the dance of the Men Who Move Like This. Isra's name in the System was replaced with Wynrey, and a second ritual began on top of the first, its purpose and power unknown. Lockette and the Mercenary decided to focus on what they knew, targeting Emilia and Cornelius, as Chamas and Abelina began to cry out warning from the abandoned temple. They sent psychic images of Sara's rebirth, and Chamas used the Book of Nicodemus to send one of the ritual components to Mist — which failed over to Isra/Wynrey due to the distance. In between bouts of gunfire with Lockette, Emilia and the Mercenary traded heavy blows, and the spirit dragon fell from the skies. Still, the Aasimar showed no signs of slowing, and the System chirped as the caverns ritual on Akiton completed.Good Intentions
Mist arrived at the crew's hangar in Absalom Station, the fur on his neck raised at the Black Owl's presence, which was smothered by the presence of the horror that lay before him. Crow stood over an unconscious Fish and Qwen, seeking the source of Bard they'd detected in the hangar, and was delighted to find an even larger source had come to them. While Mist attempted to save his wards, he was no match for the Black Owl and Crow alone, and was forced to watch as the Skinny Man crushed Fury in the Black, and Crow tore Fish apart. Not knowing the full extent of his situation, Chamas and Abelina fled their ritual site and arrived at Mist, adding gasoline to the building fire. Crow absorbed Qwen as the trio furiously fought back at the Black Owl, and Chamas made a terrible sacrifice... Using his newfound powers over Paradise, he repressed the idea of Abelina and Mist, sending them tumbling back across the Mirror. Then the remaining Dream Team were slapped with a nightmare, as Crow ate their way through Fury and Unari, and pulled all of Chamas into their terrible maw...The Dance of Deceit
A Petal away, Isra came to consciousness inside a cavern on Norn, and was beset by the fury of the Men Who Move Like This. Vaughn Blackblood joined in their revelry, attacking Isra with spells and curses, all of which were nullified as Isra exploded with spellpower. She burned the Men Who Move Like This, extinguishing their ritual campfire, as Vaughn began a new ritual (which matched that begun by Wynrey). However, Isra lacked the insight of her friends, and refused to trust the Demon with Cornelius' fate. So she began a dance in reverse, undoing the spell that had brought her here, even as Vaughn put the full weight of his arcane might into stopping her, screaming at her to stay.The Road to Hell
The Wild Hunt moved to the moon, and the dragons remaining were forced to land. MaMa and Flay focused their assault on the time dragon, as the Mercenary and Lockette continued their duel with Emilia. The crew was startled by the nightmare of Chamas' death and notifications of Mist and Abelina's disappearance, but there was not a moment to grieve. Crow's warning proved true, as the group found themselves unable to handle an onslaught on several fronts, especially with their lines of communication broken down. The ritual site at the skyscraper was thwarted by Niko — perhaps due to the aid of the Children of the Forge, or pure happenstance — and all successful ritual sites were suddenly activated, as their energy poured towards the moon, and the gap between the two planets. Only Wynrey and her ritual remained left to complete, her hands blurring with the forms of the Move Like This... Just as Isra came crashing back into her body, banishing her alter-ego back to Norn. A ritual occured in reverse, affecting Norn instead of the Infinity Petal, and the time dragon turned its attention to Cornelius — its rancid breath raining down at Emilia's command. Isra's Tether snapped as her body exploded into a million pieces, the ultimate effect of Wynrey's work unknown, and Cornelius died on top of the ritual circle on the moon. A bridge of foul light arced between Castrovel and Akiton, fueled by the energies of Nightmare and Memory, targeting the in between of what was and what had been. The light tore its way into Leng, burning a hole through the forces of House Penumbra and their defenses, and opened a road to the fabled lands of Golarion. End of Season 9Rewards Granted
Tarot Deck
- Chamas used his Card of Good Hope.
- The Astral Flintlock is currently being held by Lockette.
- The Infinite Band is inert until after the next End Day.
- The Key to the Sky King's Door and the Gravity Boots were destroyed, along with all of Isra's mundane gear.
- One of the group's Road Keys were destroyed, as were all Avenue keys but the Second Avenue Key and Tenth Avenue Key held by Mist.
- The Blade of Odium and all of Chamas' other equipment were absorbed by Crow.
- The Heart of the Jackal King now sits unattuned in Chamas' bedroom on Ezorod.
Created Content
New and updated articles for:
- Eye of Cthulhu
- Elder Sign
- Emilia Song
- Yulon Tranz
- Infinity Scroll of Gestures
- Gormuz
- Amalgam
- Sara No-Name
- Arin Geldenleaf
- Cagn
- Foly
- Thaumaturgy
- Lea
- Vikkar Kozlova
- Puppetmaster
- System
Notes
This game was very challenging to run, as the players quickly spread themselves out all over one half of the galaxy (and beyond!), and Crow's natural ability to interfere with communication networks shut down their capacity to collaborate. There were also six dragons on the table (which I think is a record for me), five distinct groups of minions, and six other combats going on "off screen" that needed to maintained in case the players decided to check in.
I did a lot of hesitating against my gut as things turned dire, but ultimately I chose verisimilitude over mercy, and let things roll the way they were trending. All said and done, I think it was a great game, and I'm interested to see where we go from here!
Flame in the Night
Tesin Movahesh
Thunder in the Mist
Lockette Endrinmaster 12 2.0
Isra
Report Date
31 Dec 2022
Primary Location
Secondary Location
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