mikeawmids runs Rise of the Runelords (in Savage Worlds)

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Session Seven (Part One) - 12/04/2012

Player Characters

Val : Karrack (Lizardman monk-turned-revolutionary, hero of goblins and founder of Hope/Stinkpoint)

Cariryn : Krogg (Brutish half-orc garbage collector, has traded his wheelbarrow in for a life of adventure)

Mal H : Ben (ludicrously wealthy ranger with a fetish for all things oriental... and eyeballs)

Crusader Hank: Rast (sausage-fingered dwarven rogue with an embarrassing rash, constantly scratching, one eye bulges comically from its socket)

Steboucha : Aereon (Antony's super-magical uncle)

Josh: Snot (some random child, guest starring as Snot the Goblin for one week only)


The eerie sound of weeping continues to haunt the party from the mansion's unexplored attic. Ascending the creaky staircase, the first door they try opens into a drafty observatory, an expensive brass telescope pointing out of a broken window overlooking the storm-wracked Varisan Bay. Soon after Rast enters the room, he begins to feel uncomfortably warm - and within moments, the delusional dwarf is convinced his entire body is ablaze and the only way to douse the flames is to hurl himself through the unbroken window and plunge into the sea! Fortunately, Super Magical Uncle Aereon tackles the suicidal alchemist before his stubby legs can carry him to the brink.
The next room is being used for storage, although it was definitely here that the party heard the sound of a woman crying. They discover the body of a woman hidden amidst the clutter. The dead woman's unquiet spirit rises from her discarded mortal shell and shrieks; “Aldern! I can smell your fear! I’ll be in your arms soon!”
Having inadvertently released the vengeful spirit of Iesha Foxglive, the ghost ignores the party (who are mostly browning their britches anyway) and glides through the wall in search of her murderous husband. Exercising what little initiative he possesses, Krogg follows the spook down into the dark, creepy basement of the haunted mansion, where a hole has been excavated, descending into the sea caves below the Foxglove estate. Pursuing the spectre, the party traverse the shaft. The all too familiar stench of rotting meat rises to meet them.

Exploring the lightless depths, the party find the tunnel walls are covered with a unwholesome yellow fungus. They enter a large cavern and notice a huge, black cocoon suspended from amongst the stalactites. Being Ben, Ben shoots at it. The cocoon unfolds what transpire to be its tattered wings, revealing a giant ghoul bat! The group have interrupted the creature's lunch and it drops the tasty morsel it had been gnawing on - which Karrack is dismayed to note appears to be his giant gecko (which fled down here after the group abandoned their mounts to escape the carrionstorm). Despite being undead and about the size of a bull elephant, the giant ghoul bat still navigates its surroundings using sonar, so if the party stay still, it can't attack them. This doesn't occur to Snot the Goblin, who scampers this way and that like a headless chicken, until the winged nightmare swoops down and snatches the little bugger up in its claws. Super Magical Uncle Aereon tries (and fails) to bring the bat down with magic missiles. Rast manages to knock it out of the air and the creature pierces one of its ragged wings on a stalagmite protruding from the ground. Before the flying monster can take to the air again, Ben entangles it in magic rope and Snot clambers up onto its chest to deliver the coup de'grace (shooting a crosbolt through its exposed ribcage into its shuddering, undead heart). Once the giant ghoul bat has been vanquished, the heroes are free to loot the bodies of those the monster had preyed upon in the past.

Moving on, the party enter a partially flooded cavern guarded by a gaggle of zombiefied goblins. Snot's attempt to befriend his undead kinsfolk is doomed to failure, as the animated zomblins seem more inclined to eat his brain. Several rounds into the ensuring combat, the Skinsaw Man (aka: Aldern Foxglove, aka: that pompous git from Week One) makes his appearance, emerging from the tidal pool with a whole troupe of ghoulish puppets. While the rest of the party engage his minions, Karrack launches a lightning-infused, flying dragon kick at the Skinsaw Man, the sheer awesomeness of which catapults Aldern back into the water. His Lordship does not resurface from the foaming depths.

After defeating the Skinsaw Man and his undead lackeys, the party ransack his sanctum. Karrack is disturbed to find one whole wall of the room has been covered with crude, charcoal sketches of his scaly self. Clearly the grudge Foxglove has been nursing since the whole boar fiasco has deteriorated into a lunatic obsession. Rast uncovers correspondence between Foxglove and his 'mistress', certain passages indicate further clues might be found at the nobleman's townhouse in the city of Magnimar. Attached is a list of greedy souls that this unnamed mistress wishes claimed for her own (yet more mysterious) master, upon which are the names of the men already murdered by the Skinsaw Men, as well as those who would surely have been targeted next.
While the rest of the group poke through Foxglove's stuff, Snot finds himself drawn inexorably towards the far wall of the sanctum, where the yellow mould prevalent throughout the dungeon has formed what almost looks to be a face. Coaxed closer by hungry whispers, the stupid goblin is ensnared by a pair of fungal arms! Super Magical Uncle Aereon blasts the mould man into a cloud of choking spores and the group are forced to flee.

Where the yellow mould made contact with exposed skin, Snot's flesh has erupted in delightful, pus-filled tumours. Super Magical Uncle Aereon immediately prescribes leeches. Leaving the Foxglove mansion, the group are disappointed to discover the horses they left to fend for themselves (when the carrionstorm attacked) have been devoured by the undead birds. On the plus side, the ravens are now too fat and lethargic to bother the heroes as they trudge back to Sandpoint afoot.
Poor Snot is taken to the cathedral, where the acolytes of Desna pray to their Goddess to do something drastic about the goblin's nightmare-inducing appearance. Sergeant Krogg resumes his duties, though his pay has been docked to compensate for the loss of the horses he borrowed from the garrison's stable. Rast continues his headlong descent into madness and synthesises an elixir (from the blood Aereon's leeches sucked out of Snot's tuberous face) that transforms good, god-fearing people into flesh-ravening ghouls.

Finally Ben decides to do something about the list of greedy souls they found in Foxglove's lair and recruits Father Zantus to help implement his ingenious scheme. With the elderly priest in tow, he visits local lumber baron (and greedy bastard) Titus Scarnetti. After making the wealthy lumber magnate aware that his avaricious nature has bought him to the attention of dark forces beyond his comprehension, Ben convinces him to make an unnecessarily generous contribution to the church collection box. However, when Scarnetti agrees to donate a staggering 10,000gp, Father Zantus' old ticker gives out and he suffers a fatal heart attack right there in the merchant's reception room.

Oops.

To be continued....

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Final Session (Part One of Two)

Player Characters

Val : Karrack (Lizardman monk-turned-revolutionary, hero of goblins and founder of Hope/Stinkpoint)

Cariryn : Krogg (Brutish half-orc garbage collector, has traded his wheelbarrow in for a life of adventure)

Mal H : Ben (ludicrously wealthy ranger with a fetish for all things oriental... and eyeballs)

Crusader Hank: Rast (sausage-fingered dwarven rogue with an embarrassing rash, constantly scratching, one eye bulges comically from its socket)

Steboucha : Aereon (Antony's super-magical uncle)


Having (seemingly) banished the ghoulish shadow of doom hanging over Sandpoint, the party are enjoying a well deserved respite from (mis)adventure, when an envoy arrives from Magnimar. Although the death/disappearance of Aldern Foxglove (aka: The Skinsaw Man) bought an end to his spree of murder and mutilation, there have been a number of similar slayings committed in the City of Monuments. Mayor Haldeem Grobaras is frantic to catch the killer(s) before the terrified population lose faith in his leadership. His desperate plea to the party for aid in the (thus far, ineffective) investigation is due to the imminent mayoral elections, which Grobaras fears he will lose if he cannot prove his competence by bringing the culprits to justice.
Hopping aboard a ferry (at the Mayor's expense), the party sail to Magnimar and disembark in the Bazaar of Sails. The envoy escorts them to the Alabaster District, where the most rich and influential of the cities residents dwell within their luxurious mansions and verdant estates.

Mayor Grobaras is a corpulent whale of a man with a a bushy, walrus moustache and mutton-chop sideburns, who is disgruntled to have his (second) breakfast disrupted by the appearance of a group of ragged adventurers. Between (vast) mouthfuls of food, Grobaras explains how the recent string of murders threatens his career and demands that the party bring him the bounders responsible - before the ballots are cast in seven days time!
Recognising that the Grobaras exhibits certain avaricious qualities that may bring him to the attention of the killers, Ben and Aereon try to persuade the greedy mayor to change his money-grubbing ways. Grobaras misinterprets their concern (they don't want him murdered before he can reward them) as an attempt to fleece him out of more gold and he throws a chicken drumstic at Ben's head, then kicks the lot of them out of his mansion.

Finding five star accommodation at a hotel in the Vista district (despite their argument with the Mayor, they are still engaged upon his business and bill their expenses to his office), the party discuss how to find the townhouse of Aldern Foxglove amidst this vast, urban sprawl. Rast pops out to visit his brother, who owns his own locksmithing business in the city, while Krogg returns to the waterfront to make enquiries amongst the half-orc dockers and dunny men. Meanwhile, Ben visits Leis Nivlandis, the man running against Grobaras in the mayoral election and plots to overthrow the man who dared to bombard him with poultry.
The party soon have an address to the Foxglove townhouse. The key they found in the Skinsaw's Man's sanctuary (in the ghoul-infested sea caves beneath the ghost-haunted mansion) grants them access. Although the house seemed abandoned from without and the interior is in a state of disarray, they are met by a curiously dispassionate maid, who seems utterly unperturbed by the appearance of armed strangers. The group are ushered upstairs to meet the Lord and Lady of the household. They are gobsmacked to find Aldern and Iesha Foxglove - alive and well - waiting to receive them. The noble couple and their serving staff are all acting rather odd though - and things kick off when Lady Foxglove tries to brain Karrack with a bottle of wine. When the Saurian monk retaliates, her flesh ripples like pliant rubber and the lizardman immediately recognises the creature as a Faceless Stalker; marsh-dwelling dopplegangers. After exhausting the element of surprise, the Stalkers show themselves to be uninspiring combatants and are soon defeated. While most lie dead and twitching in various stages of bloody dismemberment, one survives long enough for the party to bark questions at it. Aereon realises the wretched creature is under some manner of enchantment and manages to break through the sorcerous conditioning.
Searching the house the party discover two items of immediate interest to their investigation; the deed to the haunted Foxglove mansion and a horrible, leather mask. They learn that Aldern Foxglove had fallen in with a rough crowd (of murderous cultists) called the Brotherhood of the Seven, operating out of a shady sawmill on Kyver's Islet (which Rast already suspected, having found shavings of sawdust at the scene of a recent execution).

Deciding not to take any further action before reporting their findings to the Mayor, Krogg takes Karrack, Ben and Snot out on the lash with the boisterous band of half-orc labourers he befriended that afternoon. Ben soon discovers (to his regret) that humans should not drink orc beer in excess and stumbles out of the tavern in the company of a woman ugly enough to be half troll (he wakes up the next morning handcuffed naked to a bed in some flea-ridden pay-by-the-hour waterfront dive, feeling bruised and abused).
Meanwhile, Rast and Aereon go looking for someone who can identify the magical properties of Foxglove's unsettling mask. They soon encounter an impoverished street magician, who makes the mistake of overcharging them for his decidedly unremarkable services. To teach him a lesson, they force the poor bastard to put the mask on and tell them what it does. His struggles soon lessen and his demeanour turns from miserable to murderous. Rast and Aereon conclude that whatever purpose the mask may serve, its use is not benevolent. Adding to the list of injustices visited upon this poor beggar-wizard, Rast also steals his Hat of Invisibility.

To be continued....

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Final Session (Part Two of Two)

The next morning, once Ben has staggered back from his drunken tryst and Karrack has scrubbed the goblin sick off the curtains (Snot had drunk almost as deeply as the human ranger the previous night, and the party are determined to get the deposit back on their rooms), the envoy of Mayor Grobaras arrives to check on the progress of their investigation. After fobbing him off with half-truths and vague assurances, the party head for the Seven's Sawmill - but they do not go alone! Krogg returns to the Crabby Lady and gathers up as much muscle as can still stand after the last nights epic bender. Recalling the Mayor's promise of martial aid when the dung hits the wheel, Ben visits the Magnimar garrison and recruits a small contingent of armed guards to back up their assault on the Skinsaw cult's lair.

Once the militiamen have established a perimeter around the sawmill, the party and their allies breach the door. The men within immediately don masks and draw blades. The cult leader emerges, swearing to flay the skin off their faces and frame them for his dark Mistress. A chaotic battle ensures, by the end of which, 6 (out of 10) Skinsaw men, the cult leader, two half-orc thugs (Geoff and Dave) and one of Karrack's miscellaneous goblin lackeys lie dead. Unmasking the cult leader, the party are surprised to find the face beneath belongs to Ironbriar, the elven Justice whom the city put in charge of the murder investigation (which explains why it was going nowhere fast, before Grobaras involved the party). Deciphering Ironbriar's coded journals, Aereon learns that the villain had been living a double life for years, misdirecting any enquiries into the cult's activities in Magnimar. Until recently, Norgorber (the God of Murder, Deception and Poison) assigned the cults targets to Ironbriar via disturbing dreams, but recently, a creature described only as 'Wanton of Nature's Pagan Forms' has been manipulating the Skinsaw Men to prioritise specific victims, specifically; the greediest ones. This scheming succubus has made her lair in the crumbling Shadow Clock, a major landmark of the city's destitute Underbridge district.

Having ended the threat presented by the Skinsaw Cult, Ben summons Leis Nivlandis to the sawmill, while Rast is sent to dislodge Grobaras from his mansion. Once the two political candidates arrive, the party reveal how the killers were being led by the very man Grobaras had put in charge of rooting them out! Handing Ironbriar's journals over to Nivlandis, the party pretty much guarantee the man a landslide victory in the imminent mayoral elections. Once the information contained within those pages is made public knowledge, Grobaras will be ruined! Understandably, Grobaras is not best pleased by this turn of events and refuses to pay the group the rest of their money. Most of the party accept that this is not an unreasonable reaction, considering how they have just completely buggered his political career, but Aereon stubbornly hounds the fat man's carriage all the way back to the Alabaster District.

Over the next week, Leis Nivlandis circulates pamphlets throughout the city, revealing how the incompetence of the current Mayor enabled the Skinsaw murders to continue right under his nose. Grobaras resigns from his office and his rival runs unopposed. Nivlandis well remembers the party's roll in his success and rewards them generously. Karrack forgoes all material recompense in exchange for a voice on the city's new governing council, the rest of the group seem perfectly happy to take the gold.

This brings Week 8/8 of the Rotation to an end, though the Rise of the Runelords saga is only just beginning! I hope to resume this adventure path later this year. In the meantime, please find below a list of loose ends - dangling threads of fate that have yet to be resolved....

The mysterious woman ("Wanton of Natures Pagan Forms"), whose unseen hand has guided the murderous actions of Aldern Foxglove and Justice Ironbriar is still at large in Magnimar. Clues uncovered in the Seven's Sawmill indicate she awaits the heroes at the summit of the Shadow Clock in Underbridge.

Why are only the greediest souls being targeted for ritualistic execution - and what is the significance of the seven-pointed Thassilonian rune being carved into the bodies of the dead?

Did Aldern Foxglove survive his confrontation with the party and if so, will his dangerous obsession with Karrack yet result in further tragedy and bloodshed?

For how much longer will Ben be able to resist the demonic compulsion to harvest more delicious eyeballs to appease the infernal parasite squatting in his brain?

After his drunken fumble with a hideous, half-orc wench, the girl's brothers are now scouring Magnimar for a man matching Ben's description, to 'persuade' him to do the honourable thing and ask for their sister's hand in marriage.

Does (former Mayor) Haldeem Grobaras nurse a grudge against the party after they sabotaged his campaign and cost him the governance of Magnimar?


To be continued... in a future rotation!

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Rotation 2 / Session 1 (23/08/2012) - Part One

Player Characters

Val : Karrack (Lizardman monk-turned-revolutionary, hero of goblins and founder of Hope/Stinkpoint. Now serving as political attaché to the new government of Magnimar)

Vic : Grogg (Locally celebrated hero of the underground blood sports conducted secretly by the half-orc communities in Magnimar)

Mal H : Ben (ludicrously wealthy ranger with a fetish for all things oriental... and eyeballs)

Crusader Hank: Rast (sausage-fingered dwarven rogue with an embarrassing rash, constantly scratching, one eye bulges comically from its socket. He has recently discovered a keen enthusiasm for amateur alchemy and is secretly building a flying machine from some tattered harpy wings he picked up somewhere)

Andrek : ??? (Crusading priest of Sarenrae, I forget the character's name)


Andy's character, a crusading priest of Sarenrae, arrives in Magnimar the week after the heroes assaulted the Seven's sawmill and slew the leader of the murderous cult (Justice Ironbriar). He is keen to purge the city of evil and rather put out to discover he's missed his opportunity. Nevertheless, trouble seems to circle this motley crew like vultures in the sky above a dead horse and the hopeful cleric attaches himself to their party, like a remora fish following in the wake of a shark.

Grogg hardly needs further introduction! His is a household name (in certain - dirtier - households) around Magnimar, a hero of the downtrodden and a celebrity in the gladiatorial, blood-sports that the half-orc community enjoy (conducted in secret, as the city watch take a dim view on such brutal amusements). The half-orc is also drawn to the party, unceremoniously forcing himself into their fellowship, much like an ingrowing toenail. His status does not excuse his boisterous behaviour in the city library (after following Andy's character inside to research cult activity in the city) and he is forcefully ejected from the building, while the embarrassed priest hides behind his books and pretends not to know the noisome lout.

His political ambitions frustrated by the parties betrayal, the former mayor of Magnimar; Haldeem Grobaras leaves the city in some haste, leaving his mansion in the Alabaster District unoccupied. Rast breaks inside and pokes around until he finds the fat nobleman's safe. Cracking the combination, the dwarven thief is horrified to find the vault occupied by a set of enchanted bagpipes (thanks for that, random treasure table)! Rast flees in abject terror (having gained a phobia of musical instruments after he was attacked by a haunted piano, while exploring the ghost-infested Foxglove mansion), but eventually masters his fear and subdues the screeching pipes, before trading them in for a new staff (+1 Fighting) for Karrack.

Speaking of Karrack, the lizardman revolutionary now serves as an adviser to the newly elected Mayor Leis, in the field of non-human relations (specifically, goblins). Snot is still around and acting as the Saurian's personal secretary. Karrack is busy working alongside the guild of civic engineers, implementing his scheme to develop the cities poor sewage network, by bringing in goblin work-crews from Hope/Stinkpoint to excavate the reeking tunnels.

Meanwhile, the rest of the party have moved into the the empty Foxglove townhouse, hiring a trio of half-orcs to serve as their butler, maid and doorman. Ben is lording it over their new minions, when he notices three unfriendly fellows watching him from the street. Grogg investigates and learns the three half-orcs staking out the house are the brothers of the hideous, half-orc maiden whom Ben drunkenly deflowered on his first night in the city. Also, the trollop claims she is carrying Ben's child! The brothers demand that the ranger do the honourable thing; marry their sister and provide for the child. Ben considers himself the victim of the loathsome creature's lustful urges and refuses. Before things can turn nasty, Karrack intervenes. The persuasive lizardman convinces the pregnant wench to SPILL THE BEANS (Adventure Card) and she confesses that she is not with child at all, it's just a cushion stuffed up her jerkin, as Ben was too drunk to 'perform' on the evening of their supposed tryst. Her brothers wanted to try and con the guilty 'father' out of some gold. Ben is not amused by the prank and has to restrained from an impulsive act of murderous rage.

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Rotation 2 / Session 1 (23/08/2012) - Part Two

An ominous creaking sound overhead draws the parties eyes upwards - just as one of four enormous, bronze bells plummets towards them. Miraculously, nobody is injured - but the stairs (both above and below) have been smashed into firewood. The entire clock tower shakes alarmingly as the fallen bell crashes through the wall at the base of the spire. Despite the absolute lack of the climbing skill (or any rope), Grogg forges on - it surprises nobody when he slips and falls. None of his comrades seem inclined to help the free-falling half-orc as he plunges passed... Ben rolls his eyes and tries to catch him. Unfortunately, Ben's player rolled snake-eyes, resulting in a CRITICAL FAILURE! The ranger manages to grab the half-orc's flailing arm - but misjudged how heavy Grogg would be in full platemail - and is yanked out into the abyss after him. They both fall about 40ft and are soon making Soak rolls to avoid immediate Incapacitation. Miraculously, both survive! Andy's character descends with more care, in order to cast Heal on their broken bodies.

Karrack and Rast complete the climb and emerge through a trapdoor into the noisy, claustrophobic clockworks, where the massive gears and complex mechanisms that drive the hands of the Shadow Clock grind relentlessly. They are attacked by a group of dopplegangers mimicking the faces of their friends. Neither lizardman nor dwarf exhibit any qualms smacking around these clones - in fact, it's actually rather cathartic to beat up their 'co-workers'. No sooner have the faceless stalkers been dispatched (one is snagged by the machinery and crushed between the enormous gears), when a huge flesh golem wielding a scythe crashes through the ceiling! Ben Kotek and Andy's character join the fray, having clambered up after their comrades, but Grogg (still carrying three wounds) has decided to sit this fight out on the sidelines. The priest of Sarenrae ducks beneath a sweep of the shambling scarecrow's scythe - but is grabbed by the throat and dangled helplessly over the gaping hole in the clockwork's floor. Rast coats his magical returning dagger in ghoul slime (harvested from the bodies of Foxglove's undead horde) and manages to paralyse the golem, locking its bloated, corpse-fingers around the cleric's neck. Unable to break its grip, the quick thinking priest lops off the hand holding him at the wrist. Once the cleric is clear, the rest of the party pile in and manage to shove the golem off the edge of the platform (it does not survive the subsequent 60ft fall).

Having carelessly thrown a couple of fireballs at the scarecrow before being grappled by it, Andy's character has inadvertently set the clock tower on fire. With no means of fighting the blaze, the party continue to climb, hoping to escape the spreading flames. They emerge onto the open spire of the shadow clock, where they find Xanesha, the Lamia Matriarch ('Wanton of Nature's Pagan Forms') waiting for them amidst her nest of pillows and silken drapes. She flirts playfully, but when it becomes apparent the heroes aren't warming to her charms, she assumes her true form (half woman, half serpent) and attacks. Xanesha stays airborne, flying through the scaffolding around the outside edges of the (now burning) clock tower to prevent the party mobbing her in melee. Down on the ground, Grogg intimidates the city watch into opening fire on the lamia. When a hail of crossbolts almost turn her into a pincushion, Xanesha takes notices of the impudent marksmen and swoops towards them as they frantically reload. Her terrible eyes glow green - and those unfortunate enough to meet her gaze are turned to stone! Grogg leaps from statue to statue in pursuit of the matriarch and lands a blow that leaves the lamia reeling. In retaliation, her eyes blaze emerald once more and Grogg is petrified (though still managing to strike a particularly heroic pose moments before turning to stone).

Securing ropes around the angel statue on the spire; Rast, Karrack and the nameless priest recklessly abseil down the outer wall of the clock tower in pursuit of Xanesha. The lizardman fashions a crude lasso and manges to ensnare the flying lamia. With the priest and the dwarf lending Karrack their strength, they begin to reel Xanesha in, like an unusually dangerous trout. Unable to escape, Xanesha flies straight towards the group, her eyes flaring with green light - only for Andy's character to smack her in the face with his shield. Unable to stay airborne while unconscious , the lamia matriarch falls out of the air like a stone. Her elegant neck is broken as the rope around her throat snaps taught with a gristly crackle of bone.

Alone at the top of the tower - with the flames rising around him, Ben makes a quick check of the creatures nest and turns up a long list of names (some of which have already been crossed out) - greedy individuals from Sandpoint and Magnimar, hand-picked by Xanesha to be targeted by the Skinsaw Men. But why were only these avaricious souls zeroed out for the Sideheron sacrifice?

Having defeated the Lamia Matriarch, the party enjoy some well-deserved downtime. Looting the body, the heroes claim a slippery snakeskin tunic, a magical mask that turns people to stone and a magical spear called an 'Impaler of Thorns' (on a raise on the Fighting roll, everyone - friend/foe alike - in a small burst radius must make an immediate Spirit roll or be Fatigued by sadness and despair). Rast returns to Sandpoint and proposes to his beloved innkeeper, Ameiko Kaijitsu. They are to be wed at the great cathedral within the month (the people of Sandpoint are still waiting on a replacement priest, after Ben accidentally triggered the fatal heart attack of poor, old Father Zantus). The rest of the heroes gather in the sleepy, coastal town for the ceremony (and specifically, the cake).

To be continued....

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Rotation 2 / Session 2 (30/08/2012) - Part One

Player Characters

Val : Karrack (Lizardman monk with grand revolutionary ambitions. A political pioneer fighting for the rights of the little (green) man. Vive la Goblin!)

Vic : Grogg (Gladiatorial champion of the downtrodden masses, this muscular half-orc is rarely parted from his beloved axe 'Monica' or his 'lucky' talisman, strung with tokens from previous champions.)

Mal H : Ben (The black sheep of a wealthy family from distant Minkai, after reading the journal of a demon-possessed serial killer, he has developed some worrying hobbies....)

Crusader Hank: Rast (Dwarven rogue with a diverse catalogue of curious scars/twitches. A dabbler in alchemy, with an unsavoury habit of drinking the foul humours he extracts from fallen foes - all in the spirit of scientific enquiry, or course!)

Andrek : Asha (Crusading priest of Sarenrae, also turns out that 'he' is actually a 'she' - and not above using her body to get what she wants!)


The party return to Sandpoint to attend the wedding of Rast and Ameiko Kaijitsu. Pretty much the whole town has been invited to attend the ceremony. While Asha organises flowers and Karrack works on his speech, Grogg is busy getting pissed on complimentary wine. Ben considers gifting the happy couple with a pair of eyeballs from his ever-growing collection, when he asks for Karrack's opinion, the horrified lizardman suggests he consider a less gruesome wedding present. Meanwhile, Grogg drunkenly presents Rast with a box of official 'Grogg the Smasher' merchandise (t-shirts, posters, action figures, fridge magnets, etc).

As the great bronze bells above the cathedral clamour, Rast stumbles up the aisle to join his beloved at the altar. Before the happy couple can exchange their vows, they are subjected to a bizarre re-inaction of Rast's heroic exploits, performed with reckless enthusiasm by a troupe of masked goblins. The greenskin cast as the dwarven lead is even swinging around a replica of Rast's returning dagger on a length of elastic - and one goblin does lose an eye during the course of the performance - causing Ben to eagerly scramble after the wayward orb as it rolls beneath a pew. Karrack and Rast exchange worried glances over the ranger's increasingly erratic behaviour.
Karrack delivers his best (lizard)man's speech then steps forward with the rings. Father Pascal intones the rites of marriage before gods and men and asks if anyone present objects to this blessed union....

SUDDENLY, the tall, stained glass window (depicting the goddess Desna) over the altar bursts inward, showering the wedding guests with garish fragments of coloured glass. A huge, winged reptile with baleful green eyes and ebon scales clambers in through the shattered frame. Astride the wyvern's back is a familiar figure - the ghoulish killer once known as Lord Aldern Foxglove - cackling maniacally as the terrified townsfolk mill around in mindless panic! While Foxglove doesn't particularly object to Rast marrying Ameiko, he strongly objects to how the party broke into his haunted mansion, slaughtered wave after wave of his undead minions then left him for dead(er), floating like a turd in some subterranean tide pool. A horde of zombies boil up from the crypts below the cathedral, led by four of Foxglove's most reliable ghoul lieutenants.

Ben wastes no time casting Blast at the wyvern, shattering the rest of the chapel's beautiful windows in the resulting explosion. Father Pascal squawks with indignation, but is forced to flee for his life when the still-smoking creature hops down, crushing the altar beneath its tremendous weight. Asha is like a kid in a candy store, surrounded by so many of her favoured enemy, she can hardly swing her blessed blade without hitting something with the undead subtype. Meanwhile, Karrack plays the GET SAVAGE Adventure Card (Followers Edge) and the 5 goblin actors scamper into the fray. Grogg is kept busy fending off a second wave of zombies trying to break through the main entrance.

Karrack vaults onto the wyvern's broad shoulders and engages Foxglove in melee, his claws clashing against the ghouls filthy nails. Unable to match the scaly monks ferocity, Foxglove instructs the wyvern to withdraw. The monstrous creature closes its huge talons around Ameiko Kaijitsu and begins to rise. Rast leaps after his helpless bride and the newly weds are both carried into the skies over Sandpoint, as Karrack and Foxglove continue to duel across the wyvern's back.

While Asha, Ben and Grogg defend the folk of Sandpoint from the undead, the wyvern flies higher and further from Sandpoint with each beat of its enormous wings. Karrack severs Foxglove's head with a sweep of his spiny tail and the decapitated ghoul tumbles towards the ocean. Grabbing the reins, the Saurian forces the wyvern to land on the tangled fringe of the Brinestump Marsh, spilling Rast and his battered bride onto the marshy ground. Interposing himself between the wyvern and his wife, Rast chivalrously defends Ameiko from the beast until together, he and Karrack bring the monster down. They encounter a search party of concerned citizens as they trudge back towards Sandpoint and return to find Asha and the sheriff's men piling the last of the zombies onto a roaring pyre in the town square.

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords
Rotation 2 / Session 2 (30/08/2012) - Part Two

In the aftermath of so eventful a wedding day, Rast and his new wife are eagerly anticipating a relaxing honeymoon aboard the 'Paradise' riverboat. Meanwhile, Mayor Leis of Magnimar asks the rest of the party to investigate troubling reports from Fort Rannick and arranges for them to also travel aboard the luxury vessel, as emissaries of the city.

Boarding the 'Paradise', the 'emissaries' receive a frosty welcome from the riverboat's owner, the Lady Lucrecia, who is unhappy to have been burdened with a group of free-loading adventurers, taking up space and generally lowering the tone with their crude table manners and crass company. Her 'Absolutely No Goblins!' policy is not well received, but Karrack relents and decides to not antagonise her any further by smuggling Snot aboard. Initially, Lucrecia attempts to restrict the heroes to their cabins (all except Rast and Ameiko, who are paying guests and can go where they please), but backs down when Asha argues that her vows to Sarenrae require that she worship her Goddess beneath the sun. 'Worshipping' translates to 'sunbathing', distracting Lucrecia's goons as they ogle the scantily-clad cleric's bronzed flesh. Asha's indecent habit of undressing on deck attracts the attention of a wealthy gnome playboy called Conchobhar Turlach Shortstone III (ported across from the Skull and Shackles Adventure Path, as I regretted killing him off so quickly in that game), whose seductive overtures are no more successful in this campaign than they were in the last.
A compulsive gambler, Grogg tries to take a seat at one of the tables, but Lucrecia's guards have been instructed to keep the boisterous half-orc away from the other guests. However, an influential half-orc industrialist from Magnimar (Brogg) recognised his face and insists that the goons allow Grogg inside as his personal guest and that all Grogg's (many) drinks be put on his tab. Grogg gambles recklessly - but wins big! He is invited to join Brogg in the high rollers lounge, but first told he must first agree to be branded with a tattoo, entitling him to VIP treatment throughout the rest of his journey. Grogg cheerfully consents and a seven-pointed star is inked onto his leathery skin.

Several days pass uneventfully, until the boat's leisurely progress east (along the the northern edge of the Mushfens) is halted by the unexpected appearance of a naked swamp giant bathing in the middle of the river. Her patience fraying, Lady Lucrecia orders the men under her command to begin constructing a light ballista on the deck. Karrack pleads with her not to rile up the soapy brute and she grudgingly gives the party until her goons finish building the catapult to move the giant on. Asha immediately strips down to her skivvies and lounges provocatively in plain view of Lucrecia's men, who are now finding it increasingly difficult to focus on the task at hand.
Karrack swims over to talk to the large fellow and learns that he is "on a promise" and must make himself presentable for the lady giant he is courting. Karrack recruits the rest of the party (and a lot of the crew) in his endeavour to make the lovestruck giant irresistible to the opposite sex. Rast retires to his cabin and concocts a pungent aftershave while Conchobhar Turlach Shortstone III instructs the eager giant in the gnomish arts of love. When the giant's would-be mate appears, Ben strikes up the band, serenading the lovers with suggestive melodies. Thanks to the parties efforts, the swamp giant gets lucky and is dragged into the foliage for a little bump and grind - clearing the way for the 'Paradise' to float on eastwards towards their destination.

Before reaching Lake Claybottom, the 'Paradise' ties up alongside the gnomish settlement of Whistledown and many of the wealthy passengers disembark to spend the afternoon exploring the sights of the picturesque community. Conchobhar Turlach Shortstone III offers to give Asha a tour of the town, which she accepts - on the understanding that if he tries to touch her bum, she will kill him. The gnome reluctantly consents to keep his wandering hands to himself. During their exploration of Whistledown, the cleric notices a curious tattoo on Shortstone's wrist, a seven pointed star that she recognises from her research into cult activity in wider Varisa. What could this shocking development mean?!

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords > The Hook Mountain Massacre
Rotation 2 / Session 3 (06/09/2012) - Part One

Player Characters

Val : Karrack (Lizardman monk with grand revolutionary ambitions. A political pioneer fighting for the rights of the little (green) man. Vive la Goblin!)

Vic : Grogg (Gladiatorial champion of the downtrodden masses, this muscular half-orc is rarely parted from his beloved axe 'Monica' or his 'lucky' talisman, strung with tokens from previous champions.)

Mal H : Ben Kotek (The black sheep of a wealthy family from distant Minkai, after reading the journal of a demon-possessed serial killer, he has developed some worrying hobbies....)

Crusader Hank: Rast : (Dwarven rogue with a diverse catalogue of curious scars/twitches. A dabbler in alchemy, with an unsavoury habit of drinking the foul humours he extracts from fallen foes - all in the spirit of scientific enquiry, or course! Recent wed to Ameiko Kaijitsu.)

Andrek : Asha (Crusading priest of Sarenrae, also turns out that 'he' is actually a 'she' - and not above using her body to get what she wants!)

Steboucha : Snot the Goblin (After a short period of absence, Steve returns to the club! Since it would have been awkward to shoehorn Aereon back into the adventure at this juncture, he was privileged to take on the much coveted role of Snot the goblin!)


As Asha confronts Conchobhar Turlach Shortstone III (re: his Sideheron tattoo), a sudden storm rolls in from the Hook Mountains to the north, choking the sky with dark, thunderous clouds. The amorous gnome is sceptical of the cleric's assertion that his tattoo is actually an ancient Thassilonian rune, claiming he was given it aboard the 'Paradise', to mark his VIP status. As the weather worsens, the wealthy passengers rush back to the pitching riverboat.

As Karrack heads for his bunk below decks, he notices someone trying to catch his attention. He is pleasantly surprised to discover that Snot the goblin had managed to sneak aboard the 'Paradise' before it left Magnimar. The wretched creature would have announced his presence sooner, but was trapped inside the crate it stowed away in and has only recently managed to gnaw its way to freedom. Yet the goblin bears troubling news - he is not the only stowaway aboard the riverboat. While confined to his box, Snot witnessed Shalelu Andosana sneaking on board - only to be apprehended by some of Lady Lucrecia's goons. Karrack immediately rounds up the party and sets to tearing the riverboat apart in search of his sometime half-elf girlfriend. Karrack, Grogg, Ben Kotek and the goblin waylay a group of Lucrecia's thugs, while Asha tries to talk Rast out of raising a customer service complaint with the duty manager.
The goon squad tell Karrack that the half-elf stowaway was thrown overboard, but the Saurian monk is convinced they're hiding something. Violence ensues, during which Snot is almost mortally wounded. The injured creature slips on the blood-slick deck and topples into the dark water. The clash of steel draws several wealthy passengers from the comfort of their cabins, who leap headlong to the conclusion that the riverboat is being attacked by pirates! Panic spreads like wildfire as the rest of the vessel's security force mobilise to repel the boarders. Being bloodthirsty (hindrance), Grogg 'forgets' that the party intended to keep one of the mercenaries alive and butchers the feeble human sellswords as effortlessly as a farmer would strike down his livestock on market day.

With only the vaguest notion of where Shalelu might be being held, the party continue their rushed and uncoordinated hunt for the captive ranger. Rast takes the opportunity to loot several unattended store rooms and (after playing the TREASURE TROVE adventure card) finds a Shroud of Lurking Menace (+3 Stealth).

Encountering a knot of Lucrecia's men determined to prevent the party from venturing any further into the bowels of the lurching riverboat, the heroes cut them down and consider the (now undefended) portal they had been guarding. Karrack listens at the door and hears what sounds suspiciously like someone coordinating an ambush on the other side. Retreating to a safe distance, the party cover their ears as Ben unloads a Blast spell on the threshold - obliterating the door (and the walls to either side) and spraying the men beyond with a hail of sharp splinters. Flushed with success, Ben exhausts his remaining Power Points on a second Blast, taking out the thugs still reeling from the initial explosion - then the rest of the party barrel into the breach!
Karrack's player throws down the REINFORCEMENTS adventure card - and 1D6 (2) more friendly goblins pop out the crates they had been hiding inside, slashing at the surprised goons with their jagged dogslicers.

Lady Lucrecia is poised above the prone figure of Shalelu Andosana, whose bare flesh has been branded with the Sideheron rune. Lucrecia drops her mortal guise and reveals herself to be yet another Lamia Matriarch - worse, a vengeful Lamia Matriarch nursing a grudge against the party after they killed her sister Xanesha back in Magnimar! The flying snake woman takes a moment to gloat about her evil scheme; how the souls of any sentient creature that dies while marked with the Sideheron rune speed the cataclysmic rise of her Master - the greedier the souls, the better! To make things even worse, the most invaluable minions of this maniacal overlord are granted Sideheron medallions that allow them to compel those branded with the seven pointed star. Shalelu Andosana lurches to her feet and attacks the party, her face contorted by an uncharacteristic expression of rapacious greed. Grogg feels the same compulsion to betray his friends, but the stubborn half-orc resists Lucrecia's sorcerous invasion of his mind, causing his own Sideheron tattoo to burn painfully against his rebellious flesh.

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords > The Hook Mountain Massacre
Rotation 2 / Session 3 (06/09/2012) - Part Two

SUDDENLY, a series of detonations rocks the riverboat - Lucrecia has conspired to sink her own vessel in the middle of Lake Claybottom, condemning her passengers to a watery grave and their blemished souls to the runewell of her Master! The party battle Lucrecia and her mortal henchmen as the dark water floods the hold of the listing riverboat. Defeated, the Lamia Matriarch blasts a gaping hole in the hull and escapes into the storm-wracked darkness beyond.
With Lucrecia beyond their reach and the 'Paradise' sinking rapidly, the party set to saving the doomed vessel. While the allied goblins struggle with Shalelu (who is still suffering the ill effects of the Lamia's Puppet power), Karrack and Ben race for the wheelhouse and steer the floundering riverboat towards the shore. While Grogg takes advantage of the chaos to loot the high roller's lounge, Rast rescues his beloved Ameiko and the newly-weds glide to safety (Gary is getting pretty good mileage out of those harpy wings) - leaving the rest of the party to drown.

The two tireless golems trapped in the riverboat's waterwheels drive the 'Paradise' into the shallow water along the edge of the lake, tearing the bottom out of the vessel with a god-awful crash that tosses the surviving passengers around like well-dressed scarecrows. Picking themselves up, the party (those that hadn't already abandoned ship to selfishly save their own skins) organise the evacuation of the wrecked riverboat. Once everyone is upon dry ground, Karrack addresses the press of dripping nobles, rolling a CRITICAL FAILURE on his (unskilled) Persuasion roll to restore some semblance of order. The passengers panic and scatter into the dark, ogre-infested woods. Grogg roars for them to come back (failed Intimidation roll), but only drives them deeper into the forest. Lamenting their compound incompetence at anything other than combat, the party return to the mostly submerged wreck of the 'Paradise' to spend the night in relative luxury.

In the small hours of the morning, Grogg (who pulled the short straw and got lumbered with guard duty) spots torches bobbing through the trees to the north. Suspecting that the locals have come to salvage what they can from the wreckage, the group prepare to defend what they now consider to be their plunder. Karrack heads down to negotiate with the horde of opportunistic peasants and bloodshed is narrowly averted.
Meanwhile, Grogg applies his unremarkable intellect to the problem of ridding himself of the Thassilonian rune that he (somewhat foolishly) allowed to be tattooed onto his shoulder. Before anyone can restrain him, the half-orc grabs a burning brand from the parties cook-fire and attempts to purify his body of Lucrecia's vile sorcery with purging flames. This hurts tremendously and achieves nothing - the tattoo is obviously magical and only glows ever more balefully in the centre of his scorched and puckered flesh.

The villagers agree to lead the party to Turtleback Ferry, where they can regale Mayor Shreed with their misadventures and actually crack on with the task of investigating the ogre activity near Fort Rannick.

To be continued....

 

[mikeawmids]

(Savaged) Rise of the Runelords > The Hook Mountain Massacre
Rotation 2 / Session 4 (13/09/2012) - Part One

Player Characters

Val : Karrack (Lizardman monk with grand revolutionary ambitions. A political pioneer fighting for the rights of the little (green) man. Vive la Goblin!)

Vic : Grogg (Gladiatorial champion of the downtrodden masses, this muscular half-orc is rarely parted from his beloved axe 'Monica' or his 'lucky' talisman, strung with tokens from previous champions.)

Mal H : Ben Kotek (The black sheep of a wealthy family from distant Minkai, after reading the journal of a demon-possessed serial killer, he has developed some disturbing hobbies....)

Crusader Hank: Rast (Dwarven rogue with a diverse catalogue of curious scars/twitches. A dabbler in alchemy, with an unsavoury habit of drinking the foul humours he extracts from fallen foes - all in the spirit of scientific enquiry, or course! Recent wed to Ameiko Kaijitsu.)

Andrek : Asha (Crusading priest of Sarenrae, also turns out that 'he' is actually a 'she' - and not above using her body to get what she wants!)

Steboucha : Antony (aka Solaris, the elven warrior monk! Formerly a handsome vagrant with no recollection of his own history, a chance encounter while adventuring with the party unearthed many painful memories - memories that perhaps may have best been forgotten....)


Having waded ashore after crashing the 'Paradise' riverboat in the shallows of Lake Claybottom, the party trudge north along the banks of the river until they spot the picturesque town of Turtleback Ferry nestled on the opposite bank. They cross the water upon a raft fashioned from the shell of an enormous turtle. Waiting for them on the dock is their old comrade-in-arms; Antony/Solaris, the amnesiac elf. After leaving the fellowship in the (somewhat dour) company of a mute, dwarven monk (whom the party rescued from the goblin dungeons beneath Thistletop) and returning to his mountain-top monastery, Antony found that his birthright had been usurped by a powerful rival! Rather than drag the order into a bloody contest over its leadership, Antony chose to leave, returning to the wilds of Varisia to contemplate his future.

Making their presence known to Mayor Maelin Shreed, the party learn that the rangers stationed at Fort Rannick (a group of gruff, capable men known collectively as the Black Arrows) have fallen ominously silent of late. The men that the Mayor sent to investigate have not returned. The party vow to leave at first light and determine the (likely grim) fate to have befallen the silent fort.

Unwilling to expose his new bride to further peril, Rast arranges for Ameiko to remain in Turtleback Ferry, while he goes gallivanting through the ogre-infested forest. Shalelu rejects Karrack's suggestion that she also stay in town while her wounds heal, as the half-elven ranger has pressing business of her own with the men of Fort Rannick....

It is STILL pissing it down with rain as the party set off on the morrow (despite their assurances to the Mayor, Rast's insistence on a hearty breakfast mean it is hours after first light when they finally depart). Several hours into their damp and dreary journey, they hear something crashing through trees, in their general direction. A wounded man - the tattered rags of his leather jerkin bearing the insignia of the Black Arrows - staggers out of the undergrowth and collapses across the trail.
Asha and Antony both rush forward at the same time, bickering over which of them will administer first aid to the mortally wounded man. After the cleric has cast Heal, the ranger recovers sufficient wit to warn his saviours that he is being pursued - just as a pack of snarling hounds erupt from the dense foliage! As the large, vicious animals circle the party, snapping and snarling menacingly, the master of the hunt - a powerfully muscled ogre - lumbers out of the bushes and demands that the party return his 'property'. The heroes are not prepared to yield the wounded woodsman into the custody of this shambling brute and brandish their weapons defiantly. The hounds lope into the fray. Ben Kotek and Shalelu put several down with their opening salvo, while Grogg and 'Monica' (his axe/trademark weapon) hack the rest apart with enough lunatic enthusiasm to land the bloodthirsty half-orc in hot water with Golarion's equivalent to the RSPCA.
Meanwhile, Asha and Antony find themselves facing off against one large and irate ogre. The cleric comes dangerously close to being eviscerated by a devastating sweep of the monster's crude (yet serviceable) spear! This wild attack creates an opening in the ogre's defence that Antony is quick to exploit, striking like a coiled serpent and driving his sword up under its chin and into its thick skull. With a flick of his wrist, Antony frees his blade, slicing off the lower half of the ogre's face and splattering Asha in gore.

Having evaded recapture, the ranger reports that Fort Rannick has fallen to an overwhelming force of ogres from Hook Mountain. The few surviving Black Arrows not immediately butchered and eaten have been scattered like the seeds of a dandelion clock, relentlessly pursued through the wilderness by hunting parties similar to the one the party just annihilated. He and the rest of his patrol had been captured several days previously and detained on a dilapidated farmstead to the north. He implores the heroes to rescue his comrades, before the ogres grow weary of tormenting them and simply eat their heads.