As will be seen soon enough,
many gods are involved. The Bukkenahk ancestors (influenced by Xeras), Hethas (whose game plan is still unknown), Belial and whoever his "crew" is, Allas...
And can anyone truly believe that Dianas has no interest in the outcome of her chosen city-state? Or that the divine battle shaping up will leave the other gods uninvolved?
There were some revelations later on in the campaign, about who's doing what to whom, and if Greppa doesn't cover those in the story, I may write something up on it.
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Up There: In-game, I described a great deal more than what Greppa posted
. However, I also described it as a very hazy experience, and I left a lot of details out to help remind them of that. Here's some of what they recalled over the half hour as they climbed down...
Somehow, the mountain reached into another plane, one where the orc ancestors dwelled and watched their people. There was good hunting, good wars without cost in human life, brotherhood and sisterhood among all orcs of the Broken Knuckle.
And there were factions.
In the distance, some hazy, indistinct distance that was near the horizon and yet visible to all, thunderclouds rose and roiled like the clouds surrounding Uggrahd. The young adventurers only have a vague recollection of it, but they were certain somehow that it was Xeras.
Many of the ancestral spirits had flocked to that ancient cloud for the power it offered, and it was these spirits who had offered up a Child to lead the orcs in Xeras' sway.
Others disapproved, and refused to deal with any god, however tempting the offer. It was these who greeted those who conquered Uggrahd.
"Why did you climb?" The voices were insistent but fuzzily heard, like a multitude through padded walls.
"What do you seek?"
"What are your goals?"
Each of the heroes answered in their own way, but the essence of their answer was the same with each: To find out what was really happening; to save their people from the divine war; to reduce the cost in lives.
It satisfied the Bukkenahk. They had but two more questions. The first, "Will you help us?" and when that was agreed upon, "What gift can we grant you?"
Greppa wished for the power to save his people. In Old Orc, the word is synonymous with strength, and carries with it images and associations of heroes, ancient orc battlegrounds, and the divinely inspired orc warriors who flung back entire warbands with their bare hands. He was granted the strength of those legendary orc heroes, the physical might to bear up under the burdens of his people.
Merideth wished to become the hero she knew she could be. She wished almost silently, communing and trying to project her vision of herself, ten years from now. A warrior-healer. A leader among her people. Tall. Strong. Swift. And as she poured her heart and dreams out before the orc ancestors, her secret desires... they granted it. She had acheived half of it - they gifted her the other half, and she became as much a warrior as she was a healer. With it, they blessed her spear and gave her an orc warrior's charm.
Bellos had always loved the wilderness, even above his own people, and his wish was for the natural world. He wished to be able to protect and cherish it, and he wished for it as his ally. And in return, he promised to devote himself to helping those who needed him. They gifted him with a deeper connection to it, and they bound his soul to the terrain. He became somewhat a dragon, sensing the living earth's distress, but able to call upon its resources at need.
Ffutkuhg humbled himself before ancestors he had not seen since he was a young adult, and begged simply for guidance. And into his eyes they poured a cup of their tears, and washed away the fears preventing his Sight. As his fears melted, he looked at the time to come, and saw many things, and he knew that he was not needed among his people. Age and wisdom could not help his people now, only force. And force was to be found elsewhere.
. Here's my haiku:
