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<blockquote data-quote="Tolamaker" data-source="post: 9212222" data-attributes="member: 7031495"><p><strong>Session 74 & 75: In the City of the Valley of the Forest of the Shadow of Death</strong></p><p></p><p>The party enters Phorros Irrendra, and sees a deserted forest city. With several locations peeking through the trees, they make their way to a high peak that lets them look over the valley. In a cluster of homes among the trees, they spy a manor house that looks like it has been well kept. Traveling down and to the house, they are ambushed by two drow women, who seek to toss them off the branches to the forest floor. Corban manages to turn the tables, pushing one drow woman off, but casting feather fall on her. Cornering the other woman, they get her to throw down her weapons. As the fallen woman returns, they reluctantly reveal themselves to be Quillathe and Yvonnel, part of the assassination squad against Emperor Coaltongue. They say they were hired by Rhuarc, and they don't know who gave him the job. They were willing to join thanks to the pay, as well as the knowledge that Shahalesti would be blamed for the attack. However, they've been stuck in Irrendra ever since recieving payment, and Rhuarc refuses to tell them how to leave, so they are unaware of how the war is going.</p><p></p><p>When the party asks how they were able to kill the immortal Coaltongue, Quillathe says that "Rhuarc's scimitar allow him-" when a bolt shoots through a window and hits her in the throat, killing her instantly. Yvonnel falls to help her, while the party fights off a shadowy being and several creatures who Tragedies who take on the faces of their loved ones. Once she has some breathing room, Eluriah reaches down and revivifies Quillathe, telling her and Yvonnel to get somewhere safe. Aripos leaves the house to find Rhuarc standing off in the trees. They exchange fire, both hitting each other with sneak attack damage, when Rhuarc grins at Aripos, and disappears. Incredibly angry, Aripos turns himself invisible with his new tattoo, and follows, two invisible assassins running through the trees.</p><p></p><p>The party finishes off the tragedies, and split up. Eluriah and Mishka follow after Aripos and Rhuarc, while Corban and Niel search around for the shadowy figure who has disappeared. Deciding they need to get back to the party, Corban gives Niel flight. With their combined efforts, the group is able to stay just behind Rhuarc, who leads them into a forge, running towards a chest. Niel gets their first, and opens it to find that it is empty, and Rhuarc smiles and disappears under a hail of moonbeams from Eluriah, revealing it was Rhuarc's shadow. The real Rhuarc emerges from the trees and kicks a specially placed stone that leads to the entire building and several logs tumbling to the forest floor.</p><p></p><p>The party wriggles their way free with some pain. They return to the drow, and learn that Rhuarc's scimitar takes the soul, storing them in soul gems. With the party hemming and hawing over what to do, Yvonnel says that she will trade information for information. The party will tell them how to leave Phorros Irrendra, and she will tell them where Coaltongue's body is. The party agrees, and she shows the secret compartment below the manor, where Coaltongue's body lies in a lead coffin, his head and body separated. Niel is ecstatic to find his emperor, while the others restrain themselves from desecrating his unblemished body. With some experimentation, they reattach his head, though he does not rise, even after healing spells are cast. Niel is intent on reuniting Coaltongue's soul with his body, though the other's are unconvinced.</p><p></p><p>Mishka reaches out with her senses to look for fiends and undead, sensing them in several other locations in the valley. Similarly, Eluriah casts a spell to locate Rhuarc if he is nearby. They decide to avoid the cemetery that the demon told them about, instead traveling to the temple. As they go up the steps, a figure arises and tells them to turn back, because "it isn't time yet." The ghostly figure tells them to return when they have the torch. As they try to enter the temple anyway, the figure doubles over in pain, and says "I can't hold him back for very long. Please, leave now!" The party leaves, heading towards the other large house on a hill they saw. As they near it, Eluriah senses the presence of Rhuarc.</p><p></p><p><strong>Post-Session Thoughts</strong></p><p>These two sessions were good, with the Rhuarc fights both being standouts. I really botched the drow fight, and it was nowhere near as interesting as I believe it could have been. I had them ambush on either side of the rope bridge, but really all that meant was that they were both on their own to get ganged up on. In the future, I would probably have them ambush the party after they enter the house, potentially maneuvering them into the trapdoor there.</p><p></p><p>I was surprised to see Aripos run after Rhuarc, and ran the chase as a challenge, with each player contributing. They came out middling, so I figured they caught up after Rhuarc had changed out with his shadow to lure them. If they had done better, I might have let them find the real Rhuarc, though that might have been anticlimactic for Irrendra. But that didn't happen, so I don't have to think about that. The party really hates Rhuarc, which is very funny. I was worried that it wouldn't be fun on a personal level, but I think it's gone pretty well.</p><p></p><p>The way the party is talking, it sound more and more like they are hellbent on [ISPOILER]destroying the torch when they get it. I don't have a problem with that in the broad sense, because I think that would be an interesting departure, but I do wonder where the AP blatantly assumes the Torch is being used. The only one I can think of is that I think the final battle with Leska assumes they are using the torch to get to her.[/ISPOILER]</p><p></p><p><strong>Changes to the Module</strong></p><p>I think I largely stayed true to the module. I mentioned before that I put the temple in Irrendra, and by and large I feel like that's worked out alright.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Tolamaker, post: 9212222, member: 7031495"] [B]Session 74 & 75: In the City of the Valley of the Forest of the Shadow of Death[/B] The party enters Phorros Irrendra, and sees a deserted forest city. With several locations peeking through the trees, they make their way to a high peak that lets them look over the valley. In a cluster of homes among the trees, they spy a manor house that looks like it has been well kept. Traveling down and to the house, they are ambushed by two drow women, who seek to toss them off the branches to the forest floor. Corban manages to turn the tables, pushing one drow woman off, but casting feather fall on her. Cornering the other woman, they get her to throw down her weapons. As the fallen woman returns, they reluctantly reveal themselves to be Quillathe and Yvonnel, part of the assassination squad against Emperor Coaltongue. They say they were hired by Rhuarc, and they don't know who gave him the job. They were willing to join thanks to the pay, as well as the knowledge that Shahalesti would be blamed for the attack. However, they've been stuck in Irrendra ever since recieving payment, and Rhuarc refuses to tell them how to leave, so they are unaware of how the war is going. When the party asks how they were able to kill the immortal Coaltongue, Quillathe says that "Rhuarc's scimitar allow him-" when a bolt shoots through a window and hits her in the throat, killing her instantly. Yvonnel falls to help her, while the party fights off a shadowy being and several creatures who Tragedies who take on the faces of their loved ones. Once she has some breathing room, Eluriah reaches down and revivifies Quillathe, telling her and Yvonnel to get somewhere safe. Aripos leaves the house to find Rhuarc standing off in the trees. They exchange fire, both hitting each other with sneak attack damage, when Rhuarc grins at Aripos, and disappears. Incredibly angry, Aripos turns himself invisible with his new tattoo, and follows, two invisible assassins running through the trees. The party finishes off the tragedies, and split up. Eluriah and Mishka follow after Aripos and Rhuarc, while Corban and Niel search around for the shadowy figure who has disappeared. Deciding they need to get back to the party, Corban gives Niel flight. With their combined efforts, the group is able to stay just behind Rhuarc, who leads them into a forge, running towards a chest. Niel gets their first, and opens it to find that it is empty, and Rhuarc smiles and disappears under a hail of moonbeams from Eluriah, revealing it was Rhuarc's shadow. The real Rhuarc emerges from the trees and kicks a specially placed stone that leads to the entire building and several logs tumbling to the forest floor. The party wriggles their way free with some pain. They return to the drow, and learn that Rhuarc's scimitar takes the soul, storing them in soul gems. With the party hemming and hawing over what to do, Yvonnel says that she will trade information for information. The party will tell them how to leave Phorros Irrendra, and she will tell them where Coaltongue's body is. The party agrees, and she shows the secret compartment below the manor, where Coaltongue's body lies in a lead coffin, his head and body separated. Niel is ecstatic to find his emperor, while the others restrain themselves from desecrating his unblemished body. With some experimentation, they reattach his head, though he does not rise, even after healing spells are cast. Niel is intent on reuniting Coaltongue's soul with his body, though the other's are unconvinced. Mishka reaches out with her senses to look for fiends and undead, sensing them in several other locations in the valley. Similarly, Eluriah casts a spell to locate Rhuarc if he is nearby. They decide to avoid the cemetery that the demon told them about, instead traveling to the temple. As they go up the steps, a figure arises and tells them to turn back, because "it isn't time yet." The ghostly figure tells them to return when they have the torch. As they try to enter the temple anyway, the figure doubles over in pain, and says "I can't hold him back for very long. Please, leave now!" The party leaves, heading towards the other large house on a hill they saw. As they near it, Eluriah senses the presence of Rhuarc. [B]Post-Session Thoughts[/B] These two sessions were good, with the Rhuarc fights both being standouts. I really botched the drow fight, and it was nowhere near as interesting as I believe it could have been. I had them ambush on either side of the rope bridge, but really all that meant was that they were both on their own to get ganged up on. In the future, I would probably have them ambush the party after they enter the house, potentially maneuvering them into the trapdoor there. I was surprised to see Aripos run after Rhuarc, and ran the chase as a challenge, with each player contributing. They came out middling, so I figured they caught up after Rhuarc had changed out with his shadow to lure them. If they had done better, I might have let them find the real Rhuarc, though that might have been anticlimactic for Irrendra. But that didn't happen, so I don't have to think about that. The party really hates Rhuarc, which is very funny. I was worried that it wouldn't be fun on a personal level, but I think it's gone pretty well. The way the party is talking, it sound more and more like they are hellbent on [ISPOILER]destroying the torch when they get it. I don't have a problem with that in the broad sense, because I think that would be an interesting departure, but I do wonder where the AP blatantly assumes the Torch is being used. The only one I can think of is that I think the final battle with Leska assumes they are using the torch to get to her.[/ISPOILER] [B]Changes to the Module[/B] I think I largely stayed true to the module. I mentioned before that I put the temple in Irrendra, and by and large I feel like that's worked out alright. [/QUOTE]
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