Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Isida Kep'Tukari" data-source="post: 1316819" data-attributes="member: 4441">"What we have found is very disturbing, but it must be dealt with, and soon."There is a noblewoman in northwestern Low'verok, between the Dragonspine mountains and the Farlight forest.  Her name is Baroness Wendare Varon, and she usually makes her coin with the farms around her stronghold.  However, we've been hearing some terrible rumors from one of our temples out there, rumors that Wendare has been worshipping dark gods to fulfill dreams of power her position cannot grant."Then we had reports of rogue undead plaguing the area for several months.  We sent the Bolt to deal with it, and Jenar performed quite well, destroying all of them as well as what seemed to be an old tainted altar to Orcus, the demon prince of the undead."*You all would know that the Bolt of Heironeous is a name given to a group of the church's best clerics and paladins when they ride forth to defeat evil.  It's something of a parade, with everyone on pure white horses, riding openly and carrying relics of the church.  Its effect is much of one of intimidation as anything else.  Norin and Staeven would know that Jenar is Jenar Galforth, the Grand Forbidder, a man with an exceptional ability to channel power from Heironeous.  Not only is he the most skilled at destroying undead, he is able to turn orcs and goblins, vicious aberrations, and even dragons away should they try to harm anyone under his care.  The Bolt, and Jenar, is only set out to combat very dire situations.*"However, despite their success, we stopped receiving reports of any sort from our church on Wendare's lands.  We sent a scout, only to have him literally crawl into the next town a week later, beaten bloody, poisoned and half dead.  He said that Wendare is using zombies and skeletons to work her fields, zombies and skeletons made from the serfs under her care."What's more, Wendare is the one animating them.  Our scout managed to get onto the grounds and saw her reanimate a serf that her guards had just killed for her.  Because, however, she has been paying her taxes on time and keeps either alive or illusion-covered undead working the fields along the main roads, no one knows it but us and a few other churches."I sought the wisdom of the celestials to see what insight they had into this terrible situation and what they have told me prompted me to coordinate this quest.  Wendare has been worshipping Orcus, and he has, in return, stolen her soul.  Though she was quite evil before, it was more insidious.  Now that the demon owns her soul, she must do as he bids, to a point, even though it had drawn attention to her."However, since Wendare has been practicing so much necromancy, she has gained a large base of power in a very small amount of time.  I have learned that she means to attempt to become a lich.  If she does that she will become very hard to stop, perhaps impossible.  Since Orcus has her soul, he would have a direct line to our plane, and a conduit to pour out his terrible evil power into our world.  "We dare not send the Bolt against her, as she would be able to see it far in advance and complete her ritual before they could get there.  She has layered her lands in spells to avoid them being teleported into, so we cannot do this directly.  I must send you, for you will succeed where the Bolt would fail.  Not only must you get into her lands without alerting her, you must stop her before she completes the steps to lichdom."But," he puts up a finger, "to kill her would be folly.  Killing her would only let Orcus raise her directly, not as a lich perhaps, but I would not care to find out what.  You must restore her soul to her, so that the demon no longer has a direct link to her.  Then, you must capture her and bring her back here.  In order to completely break Orcus hold on his chosen pawn we must reform her, not kill her.  Containing a necromancer of that power will be difficult... but we have no choice.  "Finally though," he says, closing his eyes for a second in fatigue, "you must destroy the undead she has wrought.  All of them.  Wipe their taint away from the land.  This is no easy task I have set for you..."</blockquote>

Verification