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Tolamaker's Burning Sky
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<blockquote data-quote="Tolamaker" data-source="post: 9063370" data-attributes="member: 7031495"><p><strong>Session 61: First Steps</strong></p><p></p><p>The party finally takes the right tunnel which leads into Castle Korstull. Jorrinova reveals that they heard from their contact that Korstull is full of tiny passageways and service tunnels, perfect for gnomes and halflings to squeeze into. The tunnel leads them to a racetrack-like area, where horse hooves have been baked into once-muddy dirt. As they inspect a small stream that comes from the north, two bloody knights on fiery horses materialize and attack them. Aripos immediately launches a deadly bolt into the breast of one horse, forcing it and its rider to seek refuge in another plane. The other knight rushes to explode in bloody necrosis to batter at Mishka and Gruz. The disappeared rider emerges from space to surprise Aripos, though he and Gruz are abole to finish them both off, while Mishka deals with the other rider.</p><p></p><p>With that attack dealt with, the party and the Millorn clan part ways, with Aripos leading them up the stream while Millorn takes their carts into the wider tunnels. Aripos finds a large wheel that doesn't quite catch the water. Above him, a mage and skeletons try to get the jump on him, but fail. With the rest of the party squirming through the tight passageway, Aripos is pummeled by attacks before Gruz <em>dimension doors</em> himself and Mishka into the room. The mage, an undead gnoll, turns invisible, and futilely fires off missiles and spells, but is subdued by Mishka and Eluriah.</p><p></p><p>Captured, the gnoll reveals himself to be Thordrik, a gnoll who received visions to come to Castle Korstull and partake in the Dark Pyre. His face is ecstatic as he describes the power it offers, and his own death and undeath at its hands in the firestorm. When the party asks why he is in the wheel room, he says he is holding the heart of the castle hostage. "The wheel powers many things within the castle. Until Inquisitor Griata accedes to my demands, I will not let it run!"</p><p></p><p>Suddenly very talkative, the party gets the lay of the land within the castle. Griata apaprently controls the undead within the castle through the power of the Dark Pyre. Several other factions exist within, including Gorkov (a Sindairese noble), and a group of devils "content to desecrate the chapel." Thordrik promises his aid if the party is able to help him assault Griata's hold in the upper levels, and throw himself into the Dark Pyre. "Oh, what a marvelous thing that would be!"</p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Post Session Thoughts:</strong></p><p>THis session went a little slow, due to the fact that I realized I had not completed setting up the Foundry map, so we started a bit late. Couple that with my party's love for capturing people and then deciding whether to kill or help them, there was a bit more roleplay than I expected as well, but it was fun. The Fallen Knight and Nightmare fight was fun, but tampered by 4(!) crits in a row by my players, twice from the rogue. Critting on sneak attack is a lot of dice, and thus a lot of fun, so I forgive her.</p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Changes to the Module:</strong></p><p>I renamed Griiat to Griata, to make him a woman, and I renamed Gorquith to Gorkov, in another case of bad Russianizing. Maybe I'll break out my bad Russian accent for when they meet him.</p><p></p><p>I accidentally made Griata and Thorkrid enemies, rather than allies, due to missing clues that suggest it. Thorkrid is a minor character with the backstory that he had visions of the Dark Pyre, and has come and died here. He's also a necromancer, so I thought that maybe his skeletons had been infected by the Dark Pyre as well. That, alongside his shout of "So long as we stand, the castle’s heart shall not beat!” I got the feeling that he was holding the wheel and elevator hostage, rather than guarding it for Griata like he's supposed to.</p><p></p><p>In the end, I don't think it's a big deal, and it lead to a chance to give the players a bit of a heads up for what they might find in the castle. Also, I got to play a fanatic, which is always fun, especially when the players are suspicious of him. I turned his suicidal nature from the module to a desire to jump into the Dark Pyre, and they're having a hard time believing that for some reason. </p><p></p><p>The druid is already trying to convince people to wait until she can <em>wind walk </em>them up to the top, so I'll have to actually look up whether that's feasible. I remember that the elevator has a wall of force or something like that at the top, so we'll see.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Tolamaker, post: 9063370, member: 7031495"] [B]Session 61: First Steps[/B] The party finally takes the right tunnel which leads into Castle Korstull. Jorrinova reveals that they heard from their contact that Korstull is full of tiny passageways and service tunnels, perfect for gnomes and halflings to squeeze into. The tunnel leads them to a racetrack-like area, where horse hooves have been baked into once-muddy dirt. As they inspect a small stream that comes from the north, two bloody knights on fiery horses materialize and attack them. Aripos immediately launches a deadly bolt into the breast of one horse, forcing it and its rider to seek refuge in another plane. The other knight rushes to explode in bloody necrosis to batter at Mishka and Gruz. The disappeared rider emerges from space to surprise Aripos, though he and Gruz are abole to finish them both off, while Mishka deals with the other rider. With that attack dealt with, the party and the Millorn clan part ways, with Aripos leading them up the stream while Millorn takes their carts into the wider tunnels. Aripos finds a large wheel that doesn't quite catch the water. Above him, a mage and skeletons try to get the jump on him, but fail. With the rest of the party squirming through the tight passageway, Aripos is pummeled by attacks before Gruz [I]dimension doors[/I] himself and Mishka into the room. The mage, an undead gnoll, turns invisible, and futilely fires off missiles and spells, but is subdued by Mishka and Eluriah. Captured, the gnoll reveals himself to be Thordrik, a gnoll who received visions to come to Castle Korstull and partake in the Dark Pyre. His face is ecstatic as he describes the power it offers, and his own death and undeath at its hands in the firestorm. When the party asks why he is in the wheel room, he says he is holding the heart of the castle hostage. "The wheel powers many things within the castle. Until Inquisitor Griata accedes to my demands, I will not let it run!" Suddenly very talkative, the party gets the lay of the land within the castle. Griata apaprently controls the undead within the castle through the power of the Dark Pyre. Several other factions exist within, including Gorkov (a Sindairese noble), and a group of devils "content to desecrate the chapel." Thordrik promises his aid if the party is able to help him assault Griata's hold in the upper levels, and throw himself into the Dark Pyre. "Oh, what a marvelous thing that would be!" [B] Post Session Thoughts:[/B] THis session went a little slow, due to the fact that I realized I had not completed setting up the Foundry map, so we started a bit late. Couple that with my party's love for capturing people and then deciding whether to kill or help them, there was a bit more roleplay than I expected as well, but it was fun. The Fallen Knight and Nightmare fight was fun, but tampered by 4(!) crits in a row by my players, twice from the rogue. Critting on sneak attack is a lot of dice, and thus a lot of fun, so I forgive her. [B] Changes to the Module:[/B] I renamed Griiat to Griata, to make him a woman, and I renamed Gorquith to Gorkov, in another case of bad Russianizing. Maybe I'll break out my bad Russian accent for when they meet him. I accidentally made Griata and Thorkrid enemies, rather than allies, due to missing clues that suggest it. Thorkrid is a minor character with the backstory that he had visions of the Dark Pyre, and has come and died here. He's also a necromancer, so I thought that maybe his skeletons had been infected by the Dark Pyre as well. That, alongside his shout of "So long as we stand, the castle’s heart shall not beat!” I got the feeling that he was holding the wheel and elevator hostage, rather than guarding it for Griata like he's supposed to. In the end, I don't think it's a big deal, and it lead to a chance to give the players a bit of a heads up for what they might find in the castle. Also, I got to play a fanatic, which is always fun, especially when the players are suspicious of him. I turned his suicidal nature from the module to a desire to jump into the Dark Pyre, and they're having a hard time believing that for some reason. The druid is already trying to convince people to wait until she can [I]wind walk [/I]them up to the top, so I'll have to actually look up whether that's feasible. I remember that the elevator has a wall of force or something like that at the top, so we'll see. [/QUOTE]
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