Session 004 - The Missing Firbolg
General Summary
After a night of rest, the party decide to continue their journey. They are attacked by Mud Mephits, whom they were defeating successfully, when they heard a groan, which causes the rest of the mud mephits to flee. The party investigates the groan and are introduced to a naked human, who called himself Gahr Reegh. The party provides the naked man with clothing and a weapon. Gahr Reegh informs the party that he was looking for Talavar, Knight-Errant of the Summer Court when he was attacked and robbed by a group of Harengons He discusses a key but notes he does not have it. The party agree to invite Gahr Reegh to their ranks and opt to continue their journey to find Jingle Jangle at Telemy Hill.
The party arrive at Telemy Hill that was skirted in mist. They were greeted by the scent of sweet-smelling fruit, and noted damp, downy, silver-green moss blanketing a gentle upward slope before giving away to a craggy ridge that marked the top of the hill. Dozens of enormous will trees dotted the hillside, swaying as though in a breeze despite the absence of one. Myrtle Shellback was curious about the fruit and went looking for it, failing to find anything. As they transverse the area, the willows begin to talk in low, rumbling voices, and greeted the group. The party explain they are looking for Jingle Jangle. The willows inform the party that three days ago, while rooting through the swamp for truffles, Jingle Jangle was attacked and robbed by brigands. The trees note that she hadn’t left her hilltop den since returning to the hill, and comment that she must be hungry by now. The party thanked the trees and continued up to the hill to Jingle Jangle’s den.
They enter to see worn stone steps leading down into what felt like a cellar. The party notes that it is chilly in there and detect a subtle scent of iron in the air. The party finds that in a distant spot within the chamber, sputtering candles illuminated a multitude of keys dangling from taunt strings that crisscrossed the walls, and that hundreds of other keys were strewn across the dirt floor.
Jingle Jangle introduced herself, and the party introduces themselves. Talia Starfinder offers her music box, Nishara Mistwood offers her food, and Gahr Reegh asked whether there was a great sword laying around. Jingle Jangle thanks the party again, and unfortunately does not have any information about Gahr Reegh’s sword. Talia questions if Jingle Jangle had a key to help Talavar, Knight-Errant of the Summer Court, to which Jingle Jangle provides her with a Silver Key. Further to this, Jingle Jangle recounts the story of her robbery and provides further information. She imparts that Agdon Longscarf was the leader of the harengons brigands, and he wears a bright blue scarf and moves as fast as lightning.
She tells the party that Agdon Longscarf can be found in a series of old wooden catwalks that circle a giant tree stump that is known as Brigands’ Tollway. When the party discuss the lornlings with Jingle Jangle, she informs the party that they are mini clones of Bavlorna Blightstraw, the ruler of Hither. The last part of information that Jingle Jangle provides is that the best guide in Hither was a pincer-clawed scarecrow named Clapperclaw, the Scarecrow. Clapperclaw, the Scarecrow hangs around Downfall and knows the way to the neighbouring realm of Thither, which is ruled by a hag named Granny Nightshade, who is Bavlorna Blightstraw’s sister.
As the party leaves Telemy Hill, the willow trees are grateful for the party’s help, and the trees give Gahr Reegh an iron key, telling him that it will become useful sometime. The party takes a short rest where Myrtle Shellback gifts Talia Starfinder her darts thinking that the half elf ranger would have better uses for it. After the short rest, the party arrives at Brigands’ Tollway.
As the party stands before a foggy marsh, they observe rickety causeways crafted from wooden planks, creating a wide, intricate web above the bog. About three hundred feet away, the causeways converge on an enormous, ivy-covered tree stump that rises ten feet above the fog bank, enshrouding it in a mysterious aura. Gahr Reegh takes the lead, ensuring the safety of the bridge for the party to cross. Finding no issues, they proceed on the causeway.
Suddenly, Nishara Mistwood experiences an odd feeling, sensing the presence of a hunched, hooded figure who has joined the group somewhere along the way. The figure dramatically discards his cloak, revealing a striking 15-foot-long, bright blue scarf. In one hand, he holds a hot branding iron, and in the other, a small round shield.
As Agdon Longscarf throws off his cloak, the sound of bagpipes fills the air from somewhere, and the party recognise the tune as the song sung by the harengon brigands they encountered earlier. Agdon Longscarf joins in the melody, running with a wide grin on his rabbit face, skillfully bounding from one plank to another in a circle around the party. He and his fellow harengons were well-versed in navigating the causeways, deftly avoiding sections that were too weak to bear their weight. The harengons surround the party, and Myrtle Shellback tries to attack one of them, and her attempts fails, prompting the harengon she hit to retaliate.
Subsequently, Agdon Longscarf requests a trinket from each part member as payment to pass through the Brigands Tollway. Meanwhile, Gahr Reegh charms a harengon named Jonathan Vozdat, and they venture off together, seeking some private moments from the group. Nishara Mistwood offers her baby teeth, Talia Starfinder parts with her butterfly wings that she has treasured since the Witchlight Carnival, Myrtle Shellback gives a harengon the leprechaun boots she had been carrying, and Tarin Ganu-Maga gives up her glass slipper.
During Gahr Reegh and Jonathan Vozdat's time away, the harengon returns Gahr Reegh's equipment, weapons, and supplies that were previously stolen by them and then they return to the rest of the group. Taking advantage of the situation, the party seizes the opportunity to question Agdon Longscarf. They discover three crucial pieces of information: Agdon Longscarf was cursed by Zybilna, bound by a pact with Bavlorna Blightstraw that compels him to surrender one stolen item from each person he robs to the hag, and ahead lies the Bullwugs of The Soggy Court in Downfall.
Graciously, the harengon leader offers the party the use of his skiffs to navigate Downfall, and the party leave Brigands Tollway and start their travel to Downfall. The party finds themselves in a fog-covered area, with visibility limited to about twenty feet in all directions. The waterway widens ahead, resembling a lake, and the slow current suggested they had entered it. Croaking voices emerge from the fog, and as the shapes become clearer, they see two rowboats with Bullwugs manning the oars.
Wirth slips into the bog, prompting Tarin Ganu-Maga to try to throw a rope to him. Gahr Reegh decides to dive into the bog to see if he can see Wirth but fails to find anything of significant. To make it easier for Nishara Mistwood and Tarin Ganu-Maga to pull him back up, Gahr Reegh wiggles and drops his great axe to reduce the weight, unfortunately, during this process Gahr Reegh loses his chess set.
Myrtle Shellback takes initiative and jumps into the bog, successfully locating Gahr Reegh's great-axe, but fails to find the chest set or Wirth. Talia Starfinder and Nishara Mistwood attempt to pull Gahr Reegh back up again but their efforts prove futile. In a resourceful move, Nishara Mistwood transforms into a brown bear to lift Gahr Reegh into the skiff. Myrtle Shellback returns the human's great axe to him.
The part notices the four Bullwugs, all dressed in soiled garb typical of The Soggy Court, enjoying a boat ride on the lake. Speaking in croaking Sylvan, the Bullwugs welcomes the travellers to Downfall. They mention their leader, Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court, who would be honoured to meet the part. The Bullwugs suggest that the party should head to a nearby small dock and then make their way through the balloon factory, crossing the steppingstones and the bridge of chattering heads to reach the gazebo, where Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court holds court.
The party comes across a rickety wooden pair with a towering balloon moored to it. Four thick ropes secure the balloon to wooden posts firmly driven into the swampy ground. The balloon's bladder expands and deflates erratically, filled briefly with swamp gas before leaking through numerous tears in its patchwork fabric. A bullywug stands near the top of a ladder, diligently sewing up one of the openings with a long silver needle and catgut. Another bullywug stands at the ladder's base, providing stability. Nearby, three giant frogs wait, their long tongues snapping up passing insects.
Myrtle Shellback suggests using Gahr Reegh's strength to assist with the balloon. The party tries to push Gahr Reegh up, but their efforts fail, causing him to fall into the water below. As boats pass by Gahr Reegh, he attempts to communicate with the bullywugs, but they don't understand Common and he doesn't speak Sylvan. Tarin Ganu-Maga shouts to the bullywugs, urging them to help get Gahr Reegh back up. Responding the call, the bullywugs bring Gahr Reegh back to the party. The bullywugs at the balloon direct the party to see their King.
The part came across a waterway with a row of boulders spaced two feet apart, forming a walking path across the forty-foot-wide lake. The water around the stepstones was murky, and its depth was not visible. Myrtle Shellback bravely ran across the stepstones from one end to the other successfully, even crossing back again. However, on the second attempt, she failed and landed on the middle stepstone.
Out of the five stepstones, four were boulders submerged in the mire. The middle stepstone, to their surprise, turned out to be the top of a Galeb Duhr. Myrtle Shellback's refusal to apologise offended the Galeb Duhr, who grumbled about ingratitude. The creature granted her one more chance, provided she sang a heartfelt apology. Still Myrtle Shellback stubbornly refused, leading the Galeb Duhr to move two boulders away from the tortle, causing Myrtle Shellback to fall into the water below.
The commotion attracted the attention of Merrows, who rose from the water. Myrtle Shellback attempted to sing for an apology but failed and seemed to offend the Merrow's mother. An intense battle ensured, with Myrtle Shellback dealing significant damage, but ultimately getting knocked unconscious. Talia Starfinder stepped into action, wading through the water to reach Myrtle Shellback and healing her wounds.
Meanwhile, Nishara Mistwood transformed into a fearsome beast, biting and clawing at the merrow. Although her bite missed, her claws found their mark, inflicting damage. Tarin Ganu-Maga joined the fight, attempting to attack but initially missing her target. She did not give up, through, and on her second attempt, she struck true, dealing damage to the Merrow.
Gahr Reegh, frustrated with the Merrow's lack of understanding, entered the fray, attacking with his great sword, dealing fatal blows to one of the merrow. As Gahr Reegh moved toward the second Merrow, he threw a javelin, inflicting damage.
In response to the noise, Bullwugs arrived on the scene, scaring the remaining merrow away. The party then came across a wooden structure built on stilts above the lake, its conical thatched roof emitting smoke through a hole at the top. The blacked-out windows and the smell of burned wood indicated a charred mess inside. The room was filled with scattered piles of burned and broken shelves, mixed with whatever had once been stored on them. Hazy smoke wafted into the air from various spots, where smoldering wreckage a threat of reigniting.
In the room, a distressed bullwug in a leather smock hurriedly moved around with a bucket of water, spilling its contents in his haste. Ickrind, Duke of Fetidcreek , the overseeing bullwug, struggled to repair the factory as animated coals persistently reignited new fires. When the party entered, Ickrind, Duke of Fetidcreek requests their support. The party quickly took action, throwing buckets of water at the animated coals. Tarin Ganu-Maga killed one of them, while Gahr Reegh used vestments to wet them, and Talia Starfinder used the soaked vestments to douse the coals further. Myrtle Shellback even tried using salt as a means to combat the fiery problem. Nishara Mistwood, Gahr Reegh, and Myrtle Shellback each killed one of the animated coals.
With the situation under control, Ickrind, Duke of Fetidcreek expressed his gratitude, explaining that two bullywugs were responsible for the fire that destroyed most of the supplies. One of the culprits was Wigglewog, Talavar, Knight-Errant of the Summer Court's balloon piolet, and the other as Morgort, Knight of Warts, the former Knights of Warts. In appreciation of their help, Ickrind, Duke of Fetidcreek gifted the party a brass brooch in the shape of a fly with fluttering wings. He advised them to wear it when meeting Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court, as it would help gain the king's trust.
Curious about Wirth's whereabouts, Gahr Reegh inquired, and Ickrind, Duke of Fetidcreek informed them that he had seen Wirth three days ago. Myrtle took some salt and coal from the wreckage before they continue on towards Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court.
The flat wood-plank bridge, spanning an arm of the lake, revealed a macabre sight as the party approached. Rows of Bullwug heads adorned wooden spikes on one side. Riding Nishara Mistwood as a brown bear, Gahr Reegh attempted to cross but failed, resulting in a fall. Nishara Mistwood swiftly reacted to prevent further harm, dealing damage to Gahr Reegh, who fell unconscious.
At the centre of the bridge, a peculiar figure sat with its feet dangling over one side. The figure seemed to mutter to itself in a mournful manner. However, the nearby severed Bullwug heads suddenly burst into a cacophony of voices, some indignant, others sympathetic.
The party was introduced to Clapperclaw, the Scarecrow, who recounted its tale. After fleeing Thither and Granny Nightshade, Clapperclaw had been waylaid by Agdon Longscarf and his harengon brigands, who stole the scarecrow's head - a magnificent stag stuff. It desperately wanted its head back and felt self-conscious about the replacement: a hollow gourd now askew on its shoulder. Myrtle Shellback stabilised Gahr Reegh, and he promptly asked Clapperclaw about Wirth's whereabouts. Clapperclaw, the Scarecrow's response indicated that Wirth was last seen two days ago.
The severed Bullwug heads reveal that all the heads belonged to deposed monarchs who were killed by usurpers, some of whom now had their rotting heads displayed on spikes as well. Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court, the current monarch, was deemed a weak ruler by all the heads, rumours of yet another coup were circulating adding to the court's instability, and the party learned about Bavlorna Blightstraw's precious pool in her cottage.
The party continued a short while and beheld a grand marble gazebo perched atop a mound of soggy earth; its once-white stone now streaked with green algae. The structure seemed to have sunk unevenly into the muck, leaving the domed canopy askew.
They approached the gazebo, where Bullwug's dressed in shabby clothing lounged on pillows, while a harpist filled the air with delicate notes blending with the croaking murmurs of the gathering nobles. Upon a raised platform, a flabby Bullwug wearing a crown of woven lily flowers sat on an ornate throne, his legs folded under him. He was engrossed in reading a large leather-bound book and paid no attention to the approaching party until they spoke.
"Have you no herald to announce your presence before King Gullop the Nineteenth?" he asked, slamming the book shut as he finally regarded them. Instantly, the sleepy bullwug guards around their monarch sprang to attention, weapons ready.
Myrtle Shellback took the lead and announced Nishara Mistwood with grand titles, introducing her as "Monarch of Witchlight, Archdruid of Sparrow's Call, the beautiful and fashionable Queen Nish." Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court's eyes fell upon the brooch worn by Nishara Mistwood, and he welcomed the party into the gazebo. The King had a problem, and he explained that he needed the party to return a book to Bavlorna Blightstraw's cottage titled "Big Book of Bad Blood" without Bavlorna Blightstraw knowing the King had it in his possession. The book was at the Sinking Palace, and he requested the party to meet him there later. The party agree to help the King.
As Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court addressed the party, one of the Bullwugs handed Gahr Reegh a wine goblet with a note attached. Unable to read it, Gahr Reegh passed it to Tarin Ganu-Maga. Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court noticed the note and demanded to know its content, but Nishara Mistwood quickly intervened convincing the King that such notes were part of her servants' routine, successfully deflecting suspicion.
Upon inspecting the goblet, Tarin Ganu-Maga found a scrap of parchment with words written in Sylvan. The message conveyed urgent information: "Find Illig, Baron of Muckstump, the Baron of Muckstump, at once! The Revolution lives!". Having cleared things up, Gullop XIX, King of the Soggy Court permitted the party to continue their journey to the Sinking Palace. Along the way, they came across a sturdy wooden huut rising from the soggy earth, with two holding cells at the back. Nishara Mistwood approached one of the stationed Bullwugs and inquired about Wirth. The Bullwug pointed to a figure in one of the cells, and Wirth waved at the party.
Report Date
23 Jun 2023
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