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Menexenus's Age of Worms Campaign Journal
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<blockquote data-quote="Menexenus" data-source="post: 4649958" data-attributes="member: 8951"><p><strong>Session 76: The Lost Island of the Order of the Storm</strong></p><p></p><p><em>1st of Reaping</em>. Having met with Lashonna at midnight the previous night, the party members were convinced of the urgency of finding Tilagos Island before Darl Quethos and his minions did. Killick and Talon mounted his Ebon Steed and flew off to find the island, while Alexander teleported the rest of the party back to Greyhawk for some rest and a few hours' worth of shopping.</p><p></p><p> About an hour after noon, Killick and Talon teleported to the garden in front of Eligos's house, where the rest of the party was waiting for them. They informed the party about what they had witnessed from the Ethereal Plane as they had approached the island. They had got through the storm raging around the island easily enough and passed into an area of relative calm. Here they had found a small beachhead... and then nothing - about 5 miles of nothingness - before passing through into the raging storm again on the other side of the "eye." Killick speculated that the area of nothingness was a portion of the Prime Material Plane that was no longer connected to the Ethereal. Rather than risk coming out of the Ethereal Plane into nothingness, they had returned to the rocky beach head. There they had seen the remains of numerous shipwrecks, perhaps 100. They had also seen 8 or 9 shadowy humanoid figures moving about the beach. Some seemed to be scavenging parts from the wrecks while others seemed to be building and still others were setting up a camp. After observing them for a short time, Killick and Talon had entered one of the wrecks a safe distance from the humanoids' activity and emerged from the Ethereal Plane. Killick had told Talon to teleport them immediately back to Greyhawk, without investigating any further. The party prepared to teleport back to the island as a group.</p><p></p><p> They arrived inside the wreck that Killick and Talon had left only minutes earlier. They heard a constant rain and a howling wind beating against the side of rotting ship's hull. Alexander cast a cantrip to ensure that the noise would not interfere with his ability to correctly intone arcane words of power. (It did not.) Killick assured them that what they were hearing was was merely a gentle spring rain in comparison to what they had witnessed inside the storm itself. The party carefully crept out of the shipwreck and into the open. They found 8 or 9 orcs moving about the beach near the newest wreck. They seemed to be trying to build a seaworthy vessel using parts from the wrecks on the beach. Neither Darl Quethos nor any of the other minions that they had viewed in Lashonna's scry attempt were visible on the beach. After observing the orcs for a short while, Alexander decided to step forward and make contact with them.</p><p></p><p> At first, the orcs huddled together defensively, with weapons raised. Alexander and Killick asked them questions, which they were reluctant to answer (without some form of compensation). Killick offered to use his wood-shaping spells to help them craft a new boat to get off the island if they would share what they knew about Darl Quethos. They accepted this offer. The orcs seemed to have worked for Quethos out of fear rather than loyalty. The orc captain told the party that Quethos had hired them in Highport to deliver him and his men to an island in the Nyr Dyv the identity of which he would not divulge until the voyage was underway. Of course, they were not told that the delivery would need to be made in hurricane force winds. However, once Quethos and his "men" were aboard, the orcs quickly realized that they had no chance standing up to Quethos. They had no choice but to follow his orders and hope for the best.</p><p></p><p> After the boat crashed on the rocks, Quethos and his men made for the ancient stone ruins visible at the top of the hill. Quethos has been gone for more than half a day now, and the orcs hope to never see him again. An hour or so after Quethos left, the orcs had tried to follow him into the ruin to make a dry camp and get some shelter. But after only a few minutes within the ruin, they were attacked by loud, angry rocks with lots of ropes. The orc captain had lost only 3 sailors during the crash, but he had lost 6 more in the ruins. He had ordered his men back to the beach and had been trying to figure out what to do ever since. The party asked about what became of Heskin, Lashonna's former servant. The orc captain replied that he had been thrown overboard immediately after being killed. The party asked for descriptions of all of Quethos's people. The orc captain described a red-skinned giant whose skin was burning hot to the touch (an efreet), an enormous black skinned horse with fiery mane that belonged to the red-skinned giant (a nightmare), a sneaky crow-man who almost never spoke (a kenku), a hairy but immensely powerful man with a bull's head (a minotaur), an ogre-sized demon with hideous scales, enormous wings, and vicious looking horns the size of longswords on its head (a horned devil), and two male twins with small horns on their foreheads who wore red silk robes and kept mostly to themselves (tieflings).</p><p></p><p> In appreciation for the orcs' helpfulness (and out of sympathy for their plight), Alexander offered to go beyond the terms of their agreement and teleport the orcs off the island to whatever city they desired after their business on the island was concluded. The orc captain, who now introduced himself as Grogriss, seemed appreciative. He pointed out that most humans would not go out of their way for folks like him. However, he noted that he would continue working on constructing a new boat anyway, since Alexander's offer was contingent on defeating Quethos. Killick suggested that the orcs could improve the party's odds of success by accompanying them. The orcs laughed off this suggestion and bid the party farewell. As they trudged up the rocky hillside toward the ruins at the top of the hill, the wind suddenly changed direction, and the party noticed that the orc ship bore a hidden sail with a pirate emblem on it.</p><p></p><p> After centuries of neglect the interior of the stone ruins had become maze-like. After several twists and turns the party happened upon a relatively largre room dominated by many enormous stalagmites. The room was also different in that there was a strange green glow coming from the center of the room. Although Killick quickly realized that the stalagmites were unnaturally large and not matched by opposing stalactites on the ceiling, Killick had no time to convey this information, as Alexander strode confidently into the room to examine some intriguing runes he had noticed. Suddenly (but not surprisingly) the stalagmites came to life and attacked those they could reach with their sticky strands. The stalagmites were actually ropers. The party members were not concerned. They allowed the ropers strands to draw them closer to the bizarre beasts so that they could deliver extra attacks. </p><p></p><p> It turned out that the party's confidence was well-founded, as all 6 ropers were killed relatively easily. Immediately after combat had concluded, Alexander (who had recently made See Invisibility permanent on himself) caught a glipse of a kenku spying on them from about 50 feet away. Alexander announced the presence of an enemy to the party and charged after it. He turned a corner just in time to see the kenku cast Dimension Door and escape. Killick used Grimlock's scent ability to track where the kenku had come from. Grimlock seemed to insist that the kenku had come from a towering pile of rubble. Killick spoke with his animal friend and asked why he was pointing at a pile of rubble. Grimlock replied that what the party was seeing wasn't really there. Killick looked again and the pile of rubble was gone, replaced by a bedroll, cold firepit, and what looked like a hastily constructed nest. Killick informed the party that the rubble was merely an illusion. Alees checked the site, but found nothing of value or importance. Having lost the kenku's trail, the party was about to return to the room with the green crystals. However, just before leaving - Alexander, who had harbored a dislike for kenku since they nearly killed him in the Ebon Triad's Vecna temple in the mines below Diamond Lake - paused to urinate on the bedroll and in the nest. The party returned to the room filled with dead ropers and found about a dozen glowing crystals, all of which they quickly pocketed.</p><p></p><p> They continued exploring the ruin and came across something that looked important. It was a large circular obsidian disc inlaid into the floor. Its rim was decorated with strange runes. At three points around the disc's circumference, were shallow hollows that looked to be about the same size as the gems they had picked up earlier. The party tried placing 3 of the glowing gems in these shallow depressions. When they did so, they found that the runes on the left-hand side of the disc began to glow as if back-lit from a light within the obsidian. However, the runes around the other two depressions did not glow. The party removed all three gems and continued searching the complex.</p><p></p><p> Next the party came across what once might have been a collection of impressive marble statues which had all been reduced to a pile of rubble. Killick noticed that the dispersal pattern of the rubble was strangely inconsistent with simply crumbling in place. Alexander cast Detect Magic and noticed that the statues retained the dull glow of items that had recently been magical but which were no more. He also noticed a more intense glow from underneath one of the crumbled statues - something different. The party worked together to lift the tremendously heavy stone. Underneath they found the shattered remnants of a gem glowing with blue light. It occurred to Killick that since gems are essentially mineral crystals, Stone Shape might work to repair the gem and return it to its original shape. Killick cast the spell and concentrated to reform the shattered splinters into a single whole gem, roughly the same shape as the green ones. They took the blue gem back to the circular disc, inserted it into the other two depressions, and found that it did indeed cause the runes along the top portion of the disc to glow as if back-lit by an internal radiance. The party surmised that Quethos had destroyed the animated statues that had been left to guard the blue gems and then had taken all of the gems he could find. Either he did not see the broken gem, or he assumed that it was useless to anyone who might be following. </p><p></p><p> The party continued searching the complex for the third and final key to what they assumed was a portal that would take them to the hidden portion of Tilagos Island. Eventually they noticed a red glow coming from up ahead. As they turned a corner, they saw a murky pool in the middle of a junction connecting several corridors. From the thick tangle of moldering driftwood and seaweed cluttering the pool grew and immense black plant whose roots coiled out through the surrounding water and whose twisted trunk supported eight rubbery-looking dark branches that seemed to sway gently in the breeze. The red glow seemed to be coming from within the pool beneath the tree. The party approached the pool carefully, and at the moment the tree began to animate, Alexander cast Maze on it, causing it to temporarily disappear. Killick quickly jumped into the water and turned into a fish. He swam down and retrieved two red crystals. Then the party quickly withdrew with their treasure before the tree-thing could return.</p><p></p><p> Having collected what they were sure was the third and final activation gem, they made preparations to teleport into an unknown situation. When they were ready, they placed the gems in their appropriate depressions and stepped onto the disc together. A swirl of multi-colored energy rose up from the disc, and the party-members were suddenly transported away. Suddenly, there was bright light and there was no more noise from wind and rain. Below them was another obsidian disc, but smooth - without runes or depressions. Above them they saw a bright, overcast sky. They looked around and found themselves on a plain covered with tall grasses. To the right (east?), the party could see a sprawling, dense forest in the distance a mile or two away. To the left (west?), the party could see mountains off in the distance a mile or two away. The party-members were fascinated by what they were perceiving. All the colors, sounds, and sensations were somehow sharper and more intense than anything they had ever perceived before. It was pleasant, but slightly disorienting. After a few moments, Killick looked around and noticed that, although the sky was bright, it was of equal brightness in all directions. There seemed to be nothing approximating a "sun" illuminating this land. Alexander and Killick both realized that the intensity of sensation was caused by positive energy which infused the landscape. They speculated that if an undead creature were brought here, it would be rendered catatonic by the assault of positive energy on its senses. Alexander also perceived that since they were in a pocket dimension that was no longer adjacent to coterminous realms like the Ethereal and Astral planes, many of the party's spells would be useless here - spells like Dimension Door, Teleport, Summon, and Plane Shift.</p><p></p><p> No sooner had the party gotten their bearings than four figures suddenly appeared before them. The four were not identical, but they were all quite similar in appearance. They were tall, lithe figures with alabaster skin and gaunt facial features. They wore a gossamer armor, covered by a cloak of vicious nettles. A halo of churning insects swirled noiselessly about their heads. Each wields a wicked barbed spear carried in both hands. Protruding from each figure's back were four banners attached to poles, one fiery red, another translucent white, a third deep brown, and the last blue as a pristine ocean lagoon. After a pregnant pause in which the four beings seemed to be waiting to see what the party members would do, one of them stepped forward, saying, "I am Tylanthros, guardian of this realm. We are the Last Resort, as surely as the trees and stones and sea and air around you. We protect the secrets of this island from all trespassers. You have mastered the portal of storms, and therefore must be brave, but it remains to be seen if you belong here at all. Why have you come to Last Resort?" </p><p></p><p> Killick answered, "We come seeking knowledge to help us prevent the Age of Worms. We wish to know the secret location of Dragotha's phylactery."</p><p></p><p> Tylanthros replied, "Then you seek the Fountain, although you do not yet realize it. The Fountain of Dreams is linked to all things in Last Resort. The earth, the dark trees of the Doomshroud, the clouds above, my life and that of my brothers are a poart of it. If the waters are concumed, the Order of the Storm's rite is undone. The secrets kept from the world will be released, and the great creatures of legend imprisoned here on this isle shall be unleashed upon your world once more. To find the Fountain you must accomplish four tasks and prove yourselves worthy of the heroes of old. Survive these trials, and you may slake your thirst on what you seek. Fail, and Last Resort shall be your grave. I am Tylanthros, and the first trial is the Claiming of Krathanos's Golden Belt."</p><p></p><p> Tylanthros steps back and one of his brothers steps forward. "I am Beskawahn, and the second trial is the Silence of the Doomshroud's Mournful Song." He steps back and a third brother steps forward. "I am Thadimar, and the third trial is the Death of the Thorn Vale Nightmare." He steps back and the last creature steps forward. "I am Sayren-Lei, and the final trial is the Harvest of the Living Feather of the Roc King." This creature steps back and Tylanthros steps forward again. "These trials complete, return here and we shall show you the Fountain of Dreams. Until then, we will watch and wait."</p><p></p><p> Sensing that the four watchers were about to leave, Killick asked quickly about the progress made by Darl Quethos and his minions. Tylanthros spoke again, "The Hand of the Lich-Lord has come to Tilagos with his flock, seeking knowledge as you do. Even as you linger, they seek to complete the tasks we have named. If they outspeed you, then the secrets of the Fountain are theirs. Who claims the secrets of the Fountain matters little to us, for once these secrets are claimed our role in Last resort has come to an end." With that, the four imposing beings disappeared from view, and the party was left listening to the gentle wind carrying a tremendous variety of birdsongs, the drone of insects, and the occasional roar of distant predators. Suddenly, the party noticed a flash of brilliant lightning striking the moutain tops off in the distance, however there was no sign of storm clouds.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Menexenus, post: 4649958, member: 8951"] [b]Session 76: The Lost Island of the Order of the Storm[/b] [I]1st of Reaping[/I]. Having met with Lashonna at midnight the previous night, the party members were convinced of the urgency of finding Tilagos Island before Darl Quethos and his minions did. Killick and Talon mounted his Ebon Steed and flew off to find the island, while Alexander teleported the rest of the party back to Greyhawk for some rest and a few hours' worth of shopping. About an hour after noon, Killick and Talon teleported to the garden in front of Eligos's house, where the rest of the party was waiting for them. They informed the party about what they had witnessed from the Ethereal Plane as they had approached the island. They had got through the storm raging around the island easily enough and passed into an area of relative calm. Here they had found a small beachhead... and then nothing - about 5 miles of nothingness - before passing through into the raging storm again on the other side of the "eye." Killick speculated that the area of nothingness was a portion of the Prime Material Plane that was no longer connected to the Ethereal. Rather than risk coming out of the Ethereal Plane into nothingness, they had returned to the rocky beach head. There they had seen the remains of numerous shipwrecks, perhaps 100. They had also seen 8 or 9 shadowy humanoid figures moving about the beach. Some seemed to be scavenging parts from the wrecks while others seemed to be building and still others were setting up a camp. After observing them for a short time, Killick and Talon had entered one of the wrecks a safe distance from the humanoids' activity and emerged from the Ethereal Plane. Killick had told Talon to teleport them immediately back to Greyhawk, without investigating any further. The party prepared to teleport back to the island as a group. They arrived inside the wreck that Killick and Talon had left only minutes earlier. They heard a constant rain and a howling wind beating against the side of rotting ship's hull. Alexander cast a cantrip to ensure that the noise would not interfere with his ability to correctly intone arcane words of power. (It did not.) Killick assured them that what they were hearing was was merely a gentle spring rain in comparison to what they had witnessed inside the storm itself. The party carefully crept out of the shipwreck and into the open. They found 8 or 9 orcs moving about the beach near the newest wreck. They seemed to be trying to build a seaworthy vessel using parts from the wrecks on the beach. Neither Darl Quethos nor any of the other minions that they had viewed in Lashonna's scry attempt were visible on the beach. After observing the orcs for a short while, Alexander decided to step forward and make contact with them. At first, the orcs huddled together defensively, with weapons raised. Alexander and Killick asked them questions, which they were reluctant to answer (without some form of compensation). Killick offered to use his wood-shaping spells to help them craft a new boat to get off the island if they would share what they knew about Darl Quethos. They accepted this offer. The orcs seemed to have worked for Quethos out of fear rather than loyalty. The orc captain told the party that Quethos had hired them in Highport to deliver him and his men to an island in the Nyr Dyv the identity of which he would not divulge until the voyage was underway. Of course, they were not told that the delivery would need to be made in hurricane force winds. However, once Quethos and his "men" were aboard, the orcs quickly realized that they had no chance standing up to Quethos. They had no choice but to follow his orders and hope for the best. After the boat crashed on the rocks, Quethos and his men made for the ancient stone ruins visible at the top of the hill. Quethos has been gone for more than half a day now, and the orcs hope to never see him again. An hour or so after Quethos left, the orcs had tried to follow him into the ruin to make a dry camp and get some shelter. But after only a few minutes within the ruin, they were attacked by loud, angry rocks with lots of ropes. The orc captain had lost only 3 sailors during the crash, but he had lost 6 more in the ruins. He had ordered his men back to the beach and had been trying to figure out what to do ever since. The party asked about what became of Heskin, Lashonna's former servant. The orc captain replied that he had been thrown overboard immediately after being killed. The party asked for descriptions of all of Quethos's people. The orc captain described a red-skinned giant whose skin was burning hot to the touch (an efreet), an enormous black skinned horse with fiery mane that belonged to the red-skinned giant (a nightmare), a sneaky crow-man who almost never spoke (a kenku), a hairy but immensely powerful man with a bull's head (a minotaur), an ogre-sized demon with hideous scales, enormous wings, and vicious looking horns the size of longswords on its head (a horned devil), and two male twins with small horns on their foreheads who wore red silk robes and kept mostly to themselves (tieflings). In appreciation for the orcs' helpfulness (and out of sympathy for their plight), Alexander offered to go beyond the terms of their agreement and teleport the orcs off the island to whatever city they desired after their business on the island was concluded. The orc captain, who now introduced himself as Grogriss, seemed appreciative. He pointed out that most humans would not go out of their way for folks like him. However, he noted that he would continue working on constructing a new boat anyway, since Alexander's offer was contingent on defeating Quethos. Killick suggested that the orcs could improve the party's odds of success by accompanying them. The orcs laughed off this suggestion and bid the party farewell. As they trudged up the rocky hillside toward the ruins at the top of the hill, the wind suddenly changed direction, and the party noticed that the orc ship bore a hidden sail with a pirate emblem on it. After centuries of neglect the interior of the stone ruins had become maze-like. After several twists and turns the party happened upon a relatively largre room dominated by many enormous stalagmites. The room was also different in that there was a strange green glow coming from the center of the room. Although Killick quickly realized that the stalagmites were unnaturally large and not matched by opposing stalactites on the ceiling, Killick had no time to convey this information, as Alexander strode confidently into the room to examine some intriguing runes he had noticed. Suddenly (but not surprisingly) the stalagmites came to life and attacked those they could reach with their sticky strands. The stalagmites were actually ropers. The party members were not concerned. They allowed the ropers strands to draw them closer to the bizarre beasts so that they could deliver extra attacks. It turned out that the party's confidence was well-founded, as all 6 ropers were killed relatively easily. Immediately after combat had concluded, Alexander (who had recently made See Invisibility permanent on himself) caught a glipse of a kenku spying on them from about 50 feet away. Alexander announced the presence of an enemy to the party and charged after it. He turned a corner just in time to see the kenku cast Dimension Door and escape. Killick used Grimlock's scent ability to track where the kenku had come from. Grimlock seemed to insist that the kenku had come from a towering pile of rubble. Killick spoke with his animal friend and asked why he was pointing at a pile of rubble. Grimlock replied that what the party was seeing wasn't really there. Killick looked again and the pile of rubble was gone, replaced by a bedroll, cold firepit, and what looked like a hastily constructed nest. Killick informed the party that the rubble was merely an illusion. Alees checked the site, but found nothing of value or importance. Having lost the kenku's trail, the party was about to return to the room with the green crystals. However, just before leaving - Alexander, who had harbored a dislike for kenku since they nearly killed him in the Ebon Triad's Vecna temple in the mines below Diamond Lake - paused to urinate on the bedroll and in the nest. The party returned to the room filled with dead ropers and found about a dozen glowing crystals, all of which they quickly pocketed. They continued exploring the ruin and came across something that looked important. It was a large circular obsidian disc inlaid into the floor. Its rim was decorated with strange runes. At three points around the disc's circumference, were shallow hollows that looked to be about the same size as the gems they had picked up earlier. The party tried placing 3 of the glowing gems in these shallow depressions. When they did so, they found that the runes on the left-hand side of the disc began to glow as if back-lit from a light within the obsidian. However, the runes around the other two depressions did not glow. The party removed all three gems and continued searching the complex. Next the party came across what once might have been a collection of impressive marble statues which had all been reduced to a pile of rubble. Killick noticed that the dispersal pattern of the rubble was strangely inconsistent with simply crumbling in place. Alexander cast Detect Magic and noticed that the statues retained the dull glow of items that had recently been magical but which were no more. He also noticed a more intense glow from underneath one of the crumbled statues - something different. The party worked together to lift the tremendously heavy stone. Underneath they found the shattered remnants of a gem glowing with blue light. It occurred to Killick that since gems are essentially mineral crystals, Stone Shape might work to repair the gem and return it to its original shape. Killick cast the spell and concentrated to reform the shattered splinters into a single whole gem, roughly the same shape as the green ones. They took the blue gem back to the circular disc, inserted it into the other two depressions, and found that it did indeed cause the runes along the top portion of the disc to glow as if back-lit by an internal radiance. The party surmised that Quethos had destroyed the animated statues that had been left to guard the blue gems and then had taken all of the gems he could find. Either he did not see the broken gem, or he assumed that it was useless to anyone who might be following. The party continued searching the complex for the third and final key to what they assumed was a portal that would take them to the hidden portion of Tilagos Island. Eventually they noticed a red glow coming from up ahead. As they turned a corner, they saw a murky pool in the middle of a junction connecting several corridors. From the thick tangle of moldering driftwood and seaweed cluttering the pool grew and immense black plant whose roots coiled out through the surrounding water and whose twisted trunk supported eight rubbery-looking dark branches that seemed to sway gently in the breeze. The red glow seemed to be coming from within the pool beneath the tree. The party approached the pool carefully, and at the moment the tree began to animate, Alexander cast Maze on it, causing it to temporarily disappear. Killick quickly jumped into the water and turned into a fish. He swam down and retrieved two red crystals. Then the party quickly withdrew with their treasure before the tree-thing could return. Having collected what they were sure was the third and final activation gem, they made preparations to teleport into an unknown situation. When they were ready, they placed the gems in their appropriate depressions and stepped onto the disc together. A swirl of multi-colored energy rose up from the disc, and the party-members were suddenly transported away. Suddenly, there was bright light and there was no more noise from wind and rain. Below them was another obsidian disc, but smooth - without runes or depressions. Above them they saw a bright, overcast sky. They looked around and found themselves on a plain covered with tall grasses. To the right (east?), the party could see a sprawling, dense forest in the distance a mile or two away. To the left (west?), the party could see mountains off in the distance a mile or two away. The party-members were fascinated by what they were perceiving. All the colors, sounds, and sensations were somehow sharper and more intense than anything they had ever perceived before. It was pleasant, but slightly disorienting. After a few moments, Killick looked around and noticed that, although the sky was bright, it was of equal brightness in all directions. There seemed to be nothing approximating a "sun" illuminating this land. Alexander and Killick both realized that the intensity of sensation was caused by positive energy which infused the landscape. They speculated that if an undead creature were brought here, it would be rendered catatonic by the assault of positive energy on its senses. Alexander also perceived that since they were in a pocket dimension that was no longer adjacent to coterminous realms like the Ethereal and Astral planes, many of the party's spells would be useless here - spells like Dimension Door, Teleport, Summon, and Plane Shift. No sooner had the party gotten their bearings than four figures suddenly appeared before them. The four were not identical, but they were all quite similar in appearance. They were tall, lithe figures with alabaster skin and gaunt facial features. They wore a gossamer armor, covered by a cloak of vicious nettles. A halo of churning insects swirled noiselessly about their heads. Each wields a wicked barbed spear carried in both hands. Protruding from each figure's back were four banners attached to poles, one fiery red, another translucent white, a third deep brown, and the last blue as a pristine ocean lagoon. After a pregnant pause in which the four beings seemed to be waiting to see what the party members would do, one of them stepped forward, saying, "I am Tylanthros, guardian of this realm. We are the Last Resort, as surely as the trees and stones and sea and air around you. We protect the secrets of this island from all trespassers. You have mastered the portal of storms, and therefore must be brave, but it remains to be seen if you belong here at all. Why have you come to Last Resort?" Killick answered, "We come seeking knowledge to help us prevent the Age of Worms. We wish to know the secret location of Dragotha's phylactery." Tylanthros replied, "Then you seek the Fountain, although you do not yet realize it. The Fountain of Dreams is linked to all things in Last Resort. The earth, the dark trees of the Doomshroud, the clouds above, my life and that of my brothers are a poart of it. If the waters are concumed, the Order of the Storm's rite is undone. The secrets kept from the world will be released, and the great creatures of legend imprisoned here on this isle shall be unleashed upon your world once more. To find the Fountain you must accomplish four tasks and prove yourselves worthy of the heroes of old. Survive these trials, and you may slake your thirst on what you seek. Fail, and Last Resort shall be your grave. I am Tylanthros, and the first trial is the Claiming of Krathanos's Golden Belt." Tylanthros steps back and one of his brothers steps forward. "I am Beskawahn, and the second trial is the Silence of the Doomshroud's Mournful Song." He steps back and a third brother steps forward. "I am Thadimar, and the third trial is the Death of the Thorn Vale Nightmare." He steps back and the last creature steps forward. "I am Sayren-Lei, and the final trial is the Harvest of the Living Feather of the Roc King." This creature steps back and Tylanthros steps forward again. "These trials complete, return here and we shall show you the Fountain of Dreams. Until then, we will watch and wait." Sensing that the four watchers were about to leave, Killick asked quickly about the progress made by Darl Quethos and his minions. Tylanthros spoke again, "The Hand of the Lich-Lord has come to Tilagos with his flock, seeking knowledge as you do. Even as you linger, they seek to complete the tasks we have named. If they outspeed you, then the secrets of the Fountain are theirs. Who claims the secrets of the Fountain matters little to us, for once these secrets are claimed our role in Last resort has come to an end." With that, the four imposing beings disappeared from view, and the party was left listening to the gentle wind carrying a tremendous variety of birdsongs, the drone of insects, and the occasional roar of distant predators. Suddenly, the party noticed a flash of brilliant lightning striking the moutain tops off in the distance, however there was no sign of storm clouds. [/QUOTE]
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