NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Joshua Randall" data-source="post: 1128386" data-attributes="member: 7737">"Hear the tolling of the bells…"“Hear the tolling of the bells… What a world of solemn thought their monody compels!”  NNNNNOOOOOOOOO!!!!! A tremendous rolling *BONG* boomed forth from the Wyrmcall. Kell jerked to a painful stop at the end of the bell rope, then began swinging his body wildly to and fro in an effort to toll the bell. Absently, he noticed that his hands were bleeding heavily where they had slid down the rope. *BONG* The Wyrmcall boomed forth again. Kell felt a stab of pain through his temples along with an overwhelming mental command to STOP! He laughed: his momentum was now carrying him back and forth. He could not stop. Below, Brogun was screaming something incoherent in Dwarvish. The mass of townsfolk continued to push the dwarves up the stairs.  *BONG* *BONG* *BONG* Kell’s mind was going. He closed his eyes. Nothing existed now except the sound of the bell. = = = It was utterly still, like a blanket of quiet had been placed over Bellhold.  In the east, the light of Magnamund’s sun broke over the foothills of the Durncrag mountains. As the rays reached the top of the church tower in Bellhold, they illuminated the many fragments of crystal that had been the Dragonstone. A light wind blew up from the south, spreading the crystal dust across the tower’s platform. They glinted in the dawn sun. Then a sudden strong gust scattered the remains of Choth the Nadziran, known as Copperdeath, to the four winds. = = = DM’s note: Here endeth the adventure Of Sound Mind, with the Company of the Red Kestrel battered but triumphant. As I am way behind in my story-telling, I will summarize some of the key events of the campaign thereafter. Otieno was raised by grateful priests of Kai upon their return to Bellhold. He chose to remain with the Company (as an NPC) for the time being. Brogun received word from Zaccarias Zabar, the dwarven master-smith, that the waraxe he had commissioned was ready for pickup in the Durenese city of Ryme. Kell met with superiors in the Herbalish druidical order. They were alarmed to learn of the presence of the Cener druid, Caligraf, in Bellhold, but satisfied that he had been eliminated. The Herbalish questioned Kell regarding his efforts in locating the missing Shard of Gareth, a fragment of the sacred First Tree. Kell sheepishly admitted he had made no progress, and resolved to accompany Brogun to Durenor, where the Shard had been lost. So the party set off to the east, taking advantage of a huge rules blunder to make the trip a short one. (Somehow, I thought that wind walk was a 3rd-level cleric spell instead of a 6th-level cleric spell, and I allowed Brogun to cast it multiple times to speed their journey. Only several sessions later did I realize my mistake.) Arriving in Durenor, they found the entire country in a state of barely suppressed panic. A series of bizarre and grisly murders had rocked the capitol city of Hammerdal, prompting the Knights of the White Mountain to clamp down on traffic in and out of their nation. Roving military patrols were a common sight, and everyone had to carry papers identifying themselves. Brogun, who was officially barred from entering Durenor by a previous proclamation of Eluchir the Truthspeaker, snuck into the country long enough to retrieve his +1 waraxe from Zabar and to meet with Narakh in Hammerdal. (Again, the PCs made good use of wind walk to avoid the roving patrols.) Meanwhile, Kell spoke with several Knights of the White Mountain guarding the entrance to the Tunnel of Tarnalin. He learned that animals in the nearby forest were behaving strangely and resolved to investigate. Reuniting with Brogun, Kednor, and Otieno, Kell led the way into the forest. The group encountered a kakarmi, a shy semi-intelligent forest-dwelling creature no bigger than a raccoon. The kakarmi, after being coaxed out of hiding by Kell, informed the party that someone named Ilthian, who lived “at the center of the forest,” was gathering animals to her. The Company of the Red Kestrel advanced into the forest, battling a group of plant creatures (advanced twig blights and needlefolk, courtesy of the newly-acquired Monster Manual II plus the 3.5 rules for monster advancement). Later that night, they were approached by the very person they were seeking out: Ilthian. She turned out to be a dryad of surpassing beauty (naturally). In her left hand, she carried what appeared to be an intricately carved shortspear. The Shard of Gareth was within their grasp.  Edit: changed the font to something other than the dreaded Times New Roman.</blockquote>

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