The Old Lands - Session 4 (2/24/2025)

Hank’s finished painting of the party. This painting includes a mysterious 4th member named Benjamin. From left to right - Grim, Oberyn, Stevia, and Benjamin

FEBRUARY 24TH, 2025

FULL OUTLINE

The group interrogates prisoners in a bright, sterile, terrifying room within Gyna’s demiplane, using various torture methods like tongs and cattle prods. One duergar named Narf Spittleshiv seems to hold very little allegiance to the evil leaders of Rhaglunieath. It seems he was more compelled to serve by fear and slavery. He agrees to give them any help and information they could want in exchange for helping him escape his servitude.

They successfully help Narf and in exchange, they discover a map leading to a tavern in Carnath called The Roadhouse. They also discover a new town called Duncan’s Creek. Just like the mysterious town from the beginning of the campaign - this seems to be a long established town that came out of nowhere and no one can seem to remember anything about. Whatever anomalous effects have been going on are definitely concentrated there. They also learn the ultimate goals of the evil drow empire of Rhaglunieath. It seems they serve or seek something called An Teàrrachar Analach (Tar-Rach-char An-ah-loch)- a great godlike being from realms beyond Kol. Their ultimate goal is to initiate an apocalyptic event called Annwn o Tân Parhaol (A-Noon O Tan Par-Howl).

The party is visited by Hank. Hank shares a painting of the group that reveals they had a mysterious 4th member. It also reveals the party (and others) are significantly impacted by the memory anomaly. The scope of its impact shocks the party.

The party travels to Duncan’s Creek and then Carnath. They also decide to bring along their new duergar friend, Narf Spittleshiv. After some strange encounters involving a magical fog and thralls, they finally get to Duncan’s Creek. The town seems to be filled with abandoned homes. They focus heavily on the home of a bard that slowly lost their family and mind. They see strange drawings of a creature with multiple heads alongside deranged ramblings. The party also discovers a tankard of never-ending-ale in a tavern in the town.

The party travels for Carnath, but experiences the strange fog again. This time they seem to witness a strange creature observing them. After a long, tense night, they finally arrive at Carnath and go to the Roadhouse. The tavern which is eerily empty and covered in gore. Upon investigating, they find signs of a primordial creature affecting memories, causing nosebleeds and memory loss. They also uncover notes about an artificer named Bert Davidson, Grim’s father. The notes reveal that the Patriciate had an interest in following Bert and discovering his whereabouts. They notes also reveal Grim's father had four families.

The group then investigated the town. Many of the homes seem to be empty, as if ditched. Others seem to have undergone the same attacks as the party investigated in the Roadhouse. The town's foggy conditions and the presence of a creature with multiple heads add to the mystery.

The group decides to return to the Roadhouse for further investigation. The group discussed their recent adventure, focusing on Bert's search for the "ring of essence" and their discovery of a lantern head made of obsidian with a teal stone emitting light.

The party is then attacked. Stevia used the lantern head to ward off oozes, but took damage doing so. The party found themselves barricaded inside of the building and noticed thralls with white eyes. They’ve been intentionally trapped in here by whatever or whoever was following them! Thinking fast, Oberyn charges the baricaded door for all he was worth - successfully forcing it open. They discovered the gray oozes caused severe corrosion to the steel dagger and other metal and wood equipment, prompting them to decide to torch the place discreetly. They did not learn anything about the strange ooze upstairs.

The session concluded with the group leveling up and planning their next steps, including investigating the Great Oubliette and the curse of the Dead Zone. Their travels will take them to the Dead Zone, but first they must find a way to safely traverse the dead zone surrounding the Great Oubliette and to open its divine locked doors.

Action Items

• Investigate the town of Duncan's Creek further and try to uncover more information about the disappearances and the primordial magic affecting the area.

• Attune to the magical lantern item and determine its full capabilities.

• Pursue leads on Bert Davidson and the "Ring of Essence" he was searching for, as it may be connected to the larger mystery.

• Explore the Great Oubliette, but after obtaining a “Divine Key” and artifacts helpful for surviving the Dead Zone that surrounds the Great Oubliette.

Decisions made

• The group decided to investigate Duncan's Creek next, a mysterious town.

• They chose to bring Narf (a new ally) with them to the Roadhouse.

• The party decided to burn down the Roadhouse discreetly after encountering dangerous oozes.

Issues & Risks

• The group encountered memory-altering magic affecting Carnath, Duncan’s Creek, and themselves.

• They discovered dangerous oozes and thralls in the Roadhouse.

• There were concerns about a powerful entity called An Tearrachar Analach being released from the Great Oubliette.

Next steps

• Stevia was tasked with attuning to the newly acquired Lunar Butterfly Staff.

• The group planned to return to Gyna’s place (presumably their base) to review the information gathered.

• All party members were instructed to level up their characters.

Funny Quotes

• "Can I sniff it? And would I know if I can eat it?" (regarding the ooze)

• "So obviously it's like super duper stinky, because blood and stuff. But any other smells that we're picking up?" (investigating the Roadhouse)

Outline

Interrogation Setup and Initial Torture Techniques

-The DM describes the setting of a bright, sterile, endless room with instruments of torture and missing officers' pictures.

-Stevia suggests using a cattle prod for interrogation, while Dillon Bradley suggests using tongs.

-Grim, Oberyn, and Stevia discuss using various torture methods, including playing bagpipes poorly and using a metal ball.

-The prisoners are threatened with torture, and Grim uses tongs to pull on a prisoner's tongue while Stevia asks questions.

Uncovering Information Through Torture

-Grim continues to use tongs to torture a prisoner, while Stevia plays a poorly played bagpipe.

-The prisoners are asked about the base and Beau Abernathy’s research, but they remain uncooperative.

-Grim suggests using a metal ball to heat a prisoner's tongue if they don't answer truthfully.

-Stevia casts Detect Magic, revealing an aura of enchantment and divine magic emanating from the prisoners' heads.

Revealing the Prisoners' Condition

-The prisoners start to act as if they are being watched by someone else, and one of them starts to bleed from the nose.

-Stevia suggests patting down the prisoners to find a piece of paper, and Grim yanks the prisoner's pants off. They find a folded piece of paper.

-The paper contains a map pointing to a tavern called the Roadhouse in a town called Carnath.

-The prisoners are asked about the Roadhouse, and one of them starts to bleed from the nose and vomits when questioned. The strange memory anomaly seems to be impacting them.

-The party quickly makes friends with Narf Spittleshiv - a duergar slave with no allegiance the the evil drow empire of Rhaglunieath. They help him escape servitude under the drow and Narf happily joins the group (and Black Church). Narf looks forward to proving his worth and trust.

A Visit From Hank & The Mysterious 4th Member

-Before leaving Qyn’ki, the party is visited by Hank. Hank reveals he’s been following stories of his father around in hopes of meeting him. Hank started tailing the party when he learned of Grim and his arrival to the area.

-Hank is happier he’s met Grim instead of finding his father here. He gives the party his painting of the group.

-To the surprise of everyone, including Hank, the painting is of four adventurers. The mystery adventurer seems to be a tortle cleric.

-The party’s memories are severely impacted by the memory anomaly whenever they try to recall anything about their tortle friend. Talking with Gyna Lombardi and consulting her guest registry reveals their party member’s name to be Benjamin.

Discovering the Roadhouse and Its Secrets

-The prisoners reveal that they have been spying on the Roadhouse and that their boss has been leaking information to them.

-The players decide to investigate the Roadhouse and discuss bringing the prisoners along to use them as security.

-The players recalling finding a +1 breastplate on the body of Daedra and decide to keep it for now. It’s the breastplate of a ranked officer of the Patriciate so its probably best to keep it under wraps for now if they want to keep a low profile.

-The players discuss using a crystal ball for scrying and the potential use of potions of mind reading.

Investigating Duncan's Creek

-The players decide to investigate Duncan's Creek, a town they don't remember, and discuss bringing the prisoners along.

—The players encounter a group of people watching them from a distance, who turn out to be commoners with white eyes. The players suspect they are thralls.

Stevia plays a somber song, which puts the watchers into a trance, and the players throw a ration to lure them closer.

-The players notice that the fog in Duncan's Creek only covers the castle, and the town is completely empty and abandoned.

Exploring the Abandoned Town of Duncan’s Creek

-The players find a crime scene in one of the houses, with signs of a struggle and missing hands.

-Stevia finds a journal belonging to a local bard, who was going through a mental breakdown and writing about primordial creatures.

-The players discover a tankard of never-ending ale in the tavern and decide to take it back to their camp.

-The players investigate the castle, finding more crime scenes and signs of ongoing cover-ups.

Encountering the Mysterious Creature

-The players hear something in the wind and notice a creature with multiple heads and long necks.

-The players decide to avoid the creature and wait until they can get more help.

-The players return to their camp, where Stevia's nose starts to bleed from the memory of the creature. They seem to have forgotten many details about it already.

-The players decide to rest and prepare for their next steps, with Stevia taking notes on their observations (and before more memories slip from their minds)

Investigating the Roadhouse Again

-The players arrive at the Roadhouse, which is covered in blood and has no living occupants.

-The players find notes about an artificer named Bert Davidson, who is revealed to be Grim's father.

-The players discover that Bert had four families and that one of them was in Crystal Falls.

-The players decide to continue their investigation, with Stevia taking notes on their findings and preparing for future challenges.

Bert's Disappearance and the Ring of Essence

-The DM recounts Bert's disappearance, mentioning he was last seen with his daughter.

-Notes indicate Bert was searching for a mysterious artifact called the "Ring of Essence.”

-Further reading of the notes elaborates on Bert's journey, suggesting he might have gone to the orcish capital, hinting at a connection to Hank as well as a potential excursion into the bottomless pit - Affwys.

Discovery of the Lantern Head of the Lunar Butterfly Staff

-The DM describes a lantern head found by Stevia, made of metal and obsidian, with a floating teal stone emitting pulsating light from inside. There also seems to be many firefly like butterflies inside of the lantern head and circling around the strange teal stone.

-Stevia suggests using the lantern head to ward off oozes, leading to a saving throw and taking damage.

-The lantern head suddenly reacts violently to Stevia’s tinkering, and forcefully attaches itself to the strange magical staff Stevia found in a Fey Forest prior to the campaign. Stevia decides she will attune to this artifact when they rest next.

-The group discusses the need to spend an hour attuning to the lantern head, deciding to do it while resting due to the imminent threat of the oozes in The Roadhouse.

Barricaded Door and Oozes

-The DM reveals the door is barricaded from the outside, caused by thralls who have been secretly following the group. The group panics as oozes move towards them.

-Stevia suggests playing music to distract the thralls, but it only makes them sway without affecting the oozes.

-Narf freals out and runs around screaming for dear life. Grim comforts Narf while the group decides to force the door open.

-Oberon successfully forces the door open with a high atheltics roll, and the group decides to leave, sealing the door behind them.

Grim's Disappearance and Plan to Torch the Place

-Grim disappears to scout the area out as the group seals the door. Investigations reveal that gray oozes can corrode metal and wood.

-Stevia suggests torching the place discreetly to avoid suspicion, and the group agrees.

-The group reviews notes, discovering the need for a divine key and an artifact to protect against the curse of the dead zone.

Leveling Up and Session Conclusion

-The session ends with the group leveling up to level 4.

Summaries of Discoveries Relating To Grim’s Father - Bert Davidson

-Bert Davidson (Grim's dad) had a second family. The family was more recent than Grim's and Bert seemed to care for them very much. Eventually Bert and his beloved son went on an adventure 100 years ago.  Neither of them made it back. Emphasize no one knew he a powerful artificer. The notes emphasize he was not known for carrying any magical items of note.

-Bert Davidson had a third family.  This family was also much more recent than Grim's and Bert seemed to also care for them very much. About 75 years ago, Bert was last seen leaving with his beloved daughter for an adventure. Notes emphasize he was known as a powerful artificer in town and he had a magical whistle made out of bone.

-Bert Davidson had a fourth family.  This family was also much more recent than Grim's and  Bert seemed to care for them very much too.  About 20 years ago, Bert left for yet another adventure.  This time he took his beloved twins along. He was known for having a magical whistle made out of bone and a magical briefcase. He never let those two instruments out of his sight or reach

-The Felfists were the last to hear of Bert's whereabouts.  He was working with them for information and lore before going into the Abyss/Afywss 12 years ago.