Last night I ran possibly my last session of 2015 for this campaign, and it was a fairly restrained effort. The players started in Red Larch, where they observed the believer Bethendur being dragged in for questioning by the constable's deputies, as well as receiving the plot hook about the strange visitors (i.e. the Fire Cult hook). They decided to ignore both of these elements and, after doing some shopping for armour and suchlike, headed out into the hills. Taking the Larch Path towards Feathergale Spire, they came across the bandits and water cultists, as part of the 'Cult Reprisals' for this chapter. The players tried to parley, but happily destroyed the bandits when the latter just attacked them. This fight was pretty funny for the Aarakocra Sorceror flying up out of melee range, only to be nailed by a
Hold Person and hover helplessly in mid-air as bandit crossbowmen pepper him with advantage. Happy days. Anyway, the party won this fight without too much trouble, taking a bandit and the Water Priest captive. They groaned to learn that they had encountered yet more cultists
After some debate over whether to use healing magic to wake the Aarakocra up, since he had gone to 0HP during the fight, the players woke him up and then began interrogating the prisoners. The Bandit was forthright and honest, admitting to being a paid sword. The players kept interrupting him when he tried to answer their question 'who do you really work for?', and so he never actually answered; then the Zhentarim cleric announced that he was cutting the man's bonds, giving him 3gp, and telling him to report to the Zhentarim contact in Red Larch if he wanted to turn his life around. The Aarakocra responded to this by using Firebolt to execute the Bandit. There was much
heated discussion on this point. Most importantly, the players had actually learned nothing of use from the Bandit, not letting the conversation proceed to the point where they would learn about either the Riverguard Keep or Grimjaw's existence. To add insult to injury, the Priest simply smirked at them under questioning, and they were forced to execute him without learning anything.
A fun thing happened with the Priest, actually; the Warlock player had used Command or Suggestion (the 8-hour one) to neutralise him during the fight. After it had ended, but before the players had taken him into custody, the Warlock used his telepathy ability to ask him about who he worked for; I had Olhydra 'come on the line', so to speak, using the telepathic link to command the Warlock, "DO NOT INTERFERE WITH THOSE WHO ARE MINE". The Warlock fell to his feet, clutching at his throat as the sensation of drowning overtook him. This, combined with the Reavers shouting "Olhydra!" at the start of the fight, gave the players the vital sensation that they had learned of yet another BBEG to worry about.
After this happened, the players rested overnight, then headed to Feathergale Spire. Here they decided to have the two party members who had visited here in the past and the Aarakocra* hide out of sight, while the new Zhentarim Cleric and Air Genasi Swashbuckler (a Waterdhavian Noblewoman by background) saunter in and make friends. The plan is that the latter two will obtain rooms overnight, and then let the other players in. So the Zhent and the Genasi wander around the keep, being shown the Hippogryphs (Mauler = bad tempered, Patience = docileish) and having an engaging discussion with Thurl on the need to 'purge the hills of evil'. They showed him the Sharktooth Swords that they took from the Water Cult ambush, and he was greatly impressed at their valour, with the Air Genasi in particular likely to be invited to join the cult.
I took particular pleasure out of having Thurl describe despondently the deception and deceit to be found in the Sumber Hills, relating how one of their brethren had been cut down by the foul betrayal of a guest staying in the tower. The players loved it, even as they hated him for describing their previous stay this way! As they looked around at the feasting table, and exchanged stories over roast duck and venison skewers with the noble knights of the society, the two players turned to each other and said, "Can't we just join these guys? They seem great!"
