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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Daern" data-source="post: 5236280" data-attributes="member: 81800">Sessions 23 and 24: To Go Where Eagles DareThe campaign is really flying off the deep end now.  I'm trying to speed it along, but it is so much fun to enjoy campaign world we've built up, its hard to push too much.  Now I'm sort of following the players a bit.In the last session the players enjoyed the spoils of success after saving the small town of Seaquen.  They were rewarded with powerful magics and the responsibility of representing the town at the court of King Steppengard in Dassen.  Their mission is to convince the king not to allow the invading Ragesian Empire to march across the country and wipe out Seaquen.Meanwhile, it turned out the that the Dionem was actually a Universal Translator, and once they got it working the party took it to the eyrie of the Great Eagles and convinced them to help in the war effort as mounts.  So they flew to Bresk on the backs of Eagles!  On the way they stopped to battle a remorhaz and to confront a maniacal Steppengard Knight who was about to murder a halfling caravan.  They managed to negotiate this without violence.  The Knight Commander seemed to be under some sort of enchantment that was broken by the Bard's words of friendship.Entering the city, the players went about investigating the political situation.  It was obvious that with the recent assassinations and the unstable mental state of the king that events were balanced on a razor's edge.  This was a loose skill challenge.  We rolled initiative and went through the order twice.  After that there were seven successes and one failure and that seemed good enough to me.  The players had a good idea of factions and politics and were ready for the audience with the king.  They were suspicious of an enchantment on the city and worried about their position in the town.The audience featured a lot of me reading text blocks.  I hammed it up to keep it interesting.  I made Glibglamer a halfling and former acquaintance  of the party's halfling bard.  They players then took their turn, presenting themselves and the Seaquen offer of alliance.  I basically let them talk for awhile.  The triple skill challenge seemed awkward and unnecessary.  It was all about having the players explain to me how they saw the campaign and the situation.  Pure narrative and drama.Finally, after some more political intrigue and a wild eyed warning of danger that had the whole party awake all night, the assassin attacked, sneaking into the bard's room and taking him down with poison darts.  The dark elf swordmage/sorcerer was the first on the scene due to a scout position outside the inn.  He chose to begin with an intimidate check, using an inquisitor mask.  He was shocked when the assassing, a dark elf, looked at him and said, "Brother, I am a servant of Madness"!Indeed, I brought back the swordmage player's character from an old 3e campaign that I had only heard of (the new PC was said to be searching for his lost brother), and I brought him back as an assassin!  The one who killed the King's Familiy!  I had statted him up as a 13th level solo, but no blows were struck.  The players were blown away, and starting to hatch plans for switches of identity and all kinds of stuff.  More ideas and plot twists than they know what to do with!It was an awesome session that ended without a single to-hit roll.In all honesty, I am still unsure where I am going with this.  I have decided that the Dark Elf Assassin killed the family while under the enchantments of Madness.  I had him describe the Dreaming Dragon as fragmented by suffering and abiding in the "mountains of madness."  I have given the party all the hooks from the module as well.  There is an arrest warrant out for them, although they do not know that for sure yet.I like the idea that the Torch of the Burning Sky is lodged in the Eye of the Dreaming Dragon, which could be an aspect of the Paladine/Bahumat diety I vaguely have in my campaign world.  The crippling of the Dragon is allowing Danzig(bestial god of tyranny and inquisitors) to speed his return to the mortal realm, along with eternal winter.  Perhaps this is Leska's plan, to return the world to the Danzig Empire.  Anyways, I'd like to get a climactic mass battle in, and I'd like to have the players battle the Dreaming Dragon to recover the Torch.  They are pretty tuned into establishing a war alliance against the empire as well, convincing the Dukes of Dassen, the Elves of Shahalesti etc to join them.Maybe it will go like this: Flee Bresk to Gallo's Duchy, pursued by the Sphinx of the Eight Lands.  Fly to the World Mountain to negotiate with the Titans for entry into the mountain's depths.  Encounter the Dreaming Dragon breathing Flame throughout the astral plane and battle an aspect of the god(Dreambreath Dracolich) in order to remove the torch.  Return with the Torch.  Winter fades quickly as Danzig's influence wanes.  The Ragesian hordes advance.  Rally the troops and do battle with the Torch.  Kick ass.  Take over everything.Just spitballing here.  It could all change depending on what the players do.  At this point they have enough knowledge, power and initiative to run with whatever they want.  I reckon I only have a half dozen sessions left at best... I think we're gonna make it!</blockquote>

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