Reign of Winter — Game Session — 032

by: Charles Plemons - June 27th, 2017   Filed under: Gaming, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Reign of Winter 1 Comment

Game summary for June 27, 2017, Reign of Winter campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Denessia Rapidarma (Dwarf Gunslinger/Paladin played by Casey Scruggs), Deska Starseeker (Half-Elf Druid played by Kaliegh Belda), Kenwrec Battleglaive (Dwarf Slayer played by Peyton Harmon), Magnus Erlingsson (Human Cleric played by Chris Harmon), Svala Alehorn (Dwarf Unchained Barbarian played by Todd Hughes), Ten-Penny Tacey (Half-Orc Rogue played by Shane Bradley), and Tulvur Xandersen (Dwarf Fighter played by Taylor Averdick). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The team, rested from their encounter with the demons, continued through the forest toward Artrosa.  Along the way, they encountered a frightening cold rider fey astride a great boreal elk!  The creature dropped an ice storm on the party, but they retaliated with searing light and flame strike accompanied by arrows and bullets!  Kenwrec made it to the creature most quickly and suffered several bad injuries from its frosty glaive.  Most of the team got free of the ice storm and closed in.  Denessia aimed her pistol and shot it right between the eyes as Greta cut the elk out from under it.  The team looted the corpse, and Magnus questioned it with speak with dead.  They learned the fey was following the demons that had come from the frost giant camp further north.

After a few days’ travel, the team arrived at Artrosa.  Deska sent her serpentine owl figurine up to scout and discovered the Maiden statue had an entrance at the top surrounded by bones and a large tree.  She then used the power of the figurine to bring forth a giant owl, and she turned into a giant vulture.  Between them, they were able to ferry the party to the top as Erdija bade her farewells and returned to the centaur camp.

Atop the Maiden, they discovered a powerful witch tree with a disemboweled centaur in its clutches.  The tree demanded a sacrifice to pass.  The team spoke with it for a bit and finally revealed themselves to be Black Riders.  The tree reluctantly offered them a chance to solve a riddle to avoid a bloody sacrifice.  The team listened to the riddle and debated for a while until they collectively figured out the answer!  The disappointed tree allowed them safe passage and warned them half-a-dozen giants and a hammer-wielding centaur had gone in a day ahead of them.

The team progressed and heard two deep female voices arguing in some kind of broken mishmash of Giant, Goblin, and Orc languages.  They were discussing if they should have let the giants, escorted by the hag, to pass.  They thought maybe they should kill them on their way out.  The team entered the room and tried to talk to them in Common.  They learned the voices came from one creature, a female ettin!  She did not understand Common, so she opted to try and kill them.  She put an evil eye on Kenwrec and then forced him into deep slumber.  Svala charged and landed some good hits while Denessia opened fire.  Clever Ten-Penny moved for a flank as Tulvur strode up into the fight.  Deska hit the ettin with a flame strike, but she partially avoided it.  Greta kicked Kenwrec hard in the ribs to awaken him.  Magnus cast blessing of fervor on much of his team to bolster their abilities.  This greatly increased their effectiveness, and the team flanked and slaughtered the ettin with a barrage of rapier stabs, axe blows, and bullets.

Reign of Winter — Game Session — 031

by: Charles Plemons - June 13th, 2017   Filed under: Gaming, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Reign of Winter Add Comment

Game summary for June 13, 2017, Reign of Winter campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: All Might (Human Warpriest played by Andrew Renfrow), Denessia Rapidarma (Dwarf Gunslinger/Paladin played by Casey Scruggs), Deska Starseeker (Half-Elf Druid played by Kaliegh Belda), Ten-Penny Tacey (Half-Orc Rogue played by Shane Bradley), and Tulvur Xandersen (Dwarf Fighter played by Taylor Averdick). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The team won over the support of Korak Kaag of the centaurs.  He told them what he knew about Artrosa, that it allegedly had rooms inside and the doors in the heads appeared only during certain moon phases.  He agreed to send a scout, Erdija, with them to Artrosa.  First, she took them to the centaur city of Vurnirn where they picked up a few resources.

The team headed north through the forest until evening and made camp.  They setup their pavilion and used Deska’s serpentine owl to stand guard.  Deska was awakened to the owl urgently alerting her to danger!  A trio of andrazku demons thundered out of the snow to accost the team.  Greta blessed the party, and Erdija ran out of the tent firing arrows.  Deska dropped a flame strike on one of the demons as the team scrambled out to engage.  One of the andrazku activated righteous might and doubled its size!  All Might and one of the demons began a brutal exchange as Greta and Tulvur fought another.  The third ripped its way into the tent and attacked Deska.  Ten-Penny flanked the one fighting All Might but soon found herself ravaged by the demon’s mutilating gouge.  Tulvur was able to land mighty shots with Icebiter, but the demon was able to devastate him as well.  Tulvur cut down one demon but found the enlarged demon too much to handle.  Denessia opened fire on the demon before her gun misfired and broke.  Deska failed to affect a demon with flame strike but did knock one prone allowing Erdija to kill it with her bow.  Tulvur tried to flee, but the demon teleported to cut him off and tried to murder him!  Denessia saved his life with channeled energy that also healed the demon.  All Might charged around and pressed in on the demon alongside Greta and a revitalized Ten-Penny.  Deska summoned a pack of hyenas and a wolverine which succeeded in surrounding the demon and pulling it off its feet.  At last, Greta landed a critical blow with her axe to slay the creature.

The team nursed their wounds, searched the bodies, and scouted the area.  Erdija determined the demons came from the north as a group from the general direction of Artrosa.  All Might was curious how Abyssal demons arrived on this plane to begin with and if this were a mere chance encounter.  The team patched their tent and resumed their rest, sleeping until dawn.

Small Adventures — Game Session — 006

by: Charles Plemons - June 10th, 2017   Filed under: Gaming, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Small Timers Add Comment

Game summary for June 10, 2017, Small Adventures campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Small Timers. Session included: Elsbeth Blackburn (Half-Elf Druid played by Maddy Smalling), Kylar Van Bane (Human Sorcerer played by Jack Smalling), Kyras Sonata (Half-Elf Monk/Rogue played by Noah Smalling), Reth Steelarm (Half-Orc Fighter/Rogue played by Luke Smalling), and Valetin Krupova (Halfling Paladin played by Jared Smalling). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

J1: Entombed with the Pharaohs adventure, part 3.

The team found themselves trapped in the weight room for a while and was able to make camp and rest.  They tried a number of things to escape, but it was Valetin’s eagle eye which eventually spotted a release lever that allowed them to reunite with Kylar in the hallway by raising the barrier wall.

The group took the golem-powered elevator up to the final floor of the pyramid and discovered a room filled with an equation.  One of the hieroglyphs morphed every so often in some kind of countdown.  The team surmised it had been counting down for thousands of years and would reach zero in just a few more years!

The team then discovered a room with a telescope, and looking through found an encircled rune!  Reth went past them and found a sarcophagus.  He hurled a dagger at it, breaking the seal!  The Pharaoh of Numbers came pouring out as a black mass of ghostly numerical digits.  It began violently attacking the party, even forcing itself down Valetin’s mouth and nose and clawing him from within!  Valetin used smite evil, Elsbeth became an air elemental and flanked it, and Kylar unleashed a barrage of scorching rays.  Kyras and Reth moved in and struck repeatedly.  Finally, the creature was slain.

However, a secret door opened, and the pharaoh who they lost track of on the floor below emerged!  She hit the team with a lightning bolt and then belted Valetin with magic missiles.  The paladin once again used smite evil while Elsbeth wisely flew over to flanking position.  The party closed in and took her down.

The team ransacked the room and collected all the treasures.  They then went into the secret alcove and down a ladder into the last pharaoh’s tomb.  It was there Kylar saw the last encircled rune he had yet to view, and he transformed painfully into a mummy!  He immediately used spider climb to scale the walls and protect himself with mage armor.  The team began trying to hit him with everything they could.  He launched a fireball in their midst, burning several of his former allies badly, but he caught himself in the blast as well.  He died in a fiery conflagration and plummeted to the ground.

Saddened by the loss, the team looted his corpse.

The team fled the pyramid and found much of their treasure turned to worthless lead!  They dumped the junk and climbed on their camels.  Not far out, they discovered Paracount Justilar was almost atop them.  The team began fleeing through the desert using their various talents to distance themselves from their pursuers.  Neferet began slowing them down, and they discovered she was a traitor loyal to the Paracount!  However, Valetin was able to convince her to change loyalties for a share of the treasure!  They escaped the Paracount, returned to the city of Sothis, and there made good on their debts.  The Small Timers then arranged travel out of Osirion and returned to Jalden Krenshar of the Pathfinder Society and turned over several antiquities to the order.

Ruins of Undermountain — Game Session — 016

by: Charles Plemons - June 10th, 2017   Filed under: Gaming, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Ruins of Undermountain Add Comment

Game summary for June 10, 2017, Ruins of Undermountain campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Harm Incorporated. Session included: Boran Gibbs (Human Cleric played by Chris Harmon), Kalil Bakran (Human Sorcerer played by Parker Harmon), Paddy Brandywine (Halfling Bard played by Preston Harmon), and Rumbald Shieldcracker (Dwarf Ranger played by Peyton Harmon). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The team found themselves transported into Trobriand’s Graveyard within Undermountain.  They were immediately accosted by a pair of clockwork guardians.  They used large shields to viciously bash the party.  Boran took numerous hits.  Paddy cast haste to enhance his allies.  Kalil cast lightning arc to devastating effect, damaging both constructs terribly.  He followed it with a lightning bolt that proved too much for them to handle.

The group opened a door and found a pair of scaladars!  The mechanical scorpions whipped their electrified tails as they approached.  Kalil slipped in and cast fireball on both of them.  Boran wisely cast communal protection from energy (electricity) upon himself , Paddy, and Rumbald.  A scaladar charged Kalil while Boran slipped in and tried to move around.  The other scaladar blocked the door as Paddy cast good hope on everyone except Kalil whom he could not see.  Using his bastard sword, Boran destroyed one scaladar as Paddy used a bow to take down the other.  The team found a compartment in a scaladar heap containing some ancient technology.  Using Knowledge (engineering) they were able to determine the basic function of the items, four of which were explosive in nature.

Behind the next door, the group found a clockwork mage, clockwork soldier, and clockwork servant.  Eager to test their new weapons, they hurled an arc grenade through the door and slammed it shut.  The electricity damaged the creatures, and the team charged in.  The clockwork mage hurled a fireball upon the party and followed with scorching rays and magic missiles!  The clockwork servant began repairing the other clockworks.  The team surged in and began fighting the clockwork soldier.  Using its halberd, it dealt grievous injury to several of the team before being taken down along with the servant by Kalil’s lightning arc.  He tried to take down the clockwork mage with greater flaming sphere, but it proved resistant to that spell.  It could not, however, stand up to his scorching ray!

The team opened a final door and hurled all three of their arc grenades through.  They then opened the door and found three clockwork soldiers mounted on clockwork steeds, all damaged by electricity.  Kalil launched a fireball in and destroyed them all!

Reign of Winter — Game Session — 030

by: Charles Plemons - June 6th, 2017   Filed under: Gaming, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Reign of Winter Add Comment

Game summary for June 6, 2017, Reign of Winter campaign, Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, for Phoenix Gaming Club. Session included: Denessia Rapidarma (Dwarf Gunslinger/Paladin played by Casey Scruggs), Deska Starseeker (Half-Elf Druid played by Kaliegh Belda), Kenwrec Battleglaive (Dwarf Slayer played by Peyton Harmon), Ten-Penny Tacey (Half-Orc Rogue played by Shane Bradley), and Tulvur Xandersen (Dwarf Fighter played by Taylor Averdick). Game Master for this session was Charles Plemons.

The giants rushed in with violent aplomb, seven more in addition to the one the party slew earlier.  Great bloodshed followed as the team exchanged blows.  Deska’s summoned herd ran amok among the giants drawing blood and preventing them from moving too much around the battlefield.  Kenwrec began studying the giants and methodically cutting into them.  The Dancing Hut ran about kicking and pecking away with its beak causing grievous injury.  Ten-Penny deftly used stealth and her hand crossbow to deal devastating sneak attacks.  Tulvur charged into the fray in a rage and flailed about with Icebiter, cutting a swathe of destruction.  Kenwrec took as good as he got, and perhaps only through the healing ministrations of Denessia did he survive.  Greta took several massive hits, but she returned the onslaught in spades landing critical hits on two different giants.  The Dancing Hut revealed it possesses spell capabilities by unleashing an incendiary cloud on the giants followed by multiple irresistible dance spells.  The weak-willed dancing giants proved easier targets for the party, and against all odds the team stood triumphant among eight slain frost giants!

The team began nursing their wounds as Greta started some kind of odd ritual with the bodies of the giants.  She danced about and drank their blood while calling upon the power of Thremyr.  This horrified Denessia as she realized Greta is some kind of follower of this dark and wicked deity who allegedly created frost giants.  As a paladin, he was quite put out by her ritual and powers she must possess.  Using his detect evil ability, he confirmed the darkness residing within the mysterious warrior woman.  He told the team he thought she was doing some kind of burial ritual to honor these slain creations of her dark deity.  Still dripping in their blood as she finished her ritual, Greta scoffed and told them the giants possess a measure of Thremyr’s power, power she had now taken into herself.  This did not put Denessia at ease.

The Dancing Hut settled into a spot, and a bone fence rose up around it.  The party made camp for the night and set out the next morning.  Deska determined North, and the team moved deeper into the woods.  About a mile from the hut the team ran into four centaurs.  Kenwrec discovered they spoke Giant, so he talked with them a while.  The team agreed to return to their camp to meet their chieftain.  At the camp, the centaurs were excited because they had never met dwarves, elves, half-orcs, or humans before.

The chieftain, Korak Kaag, emerged from a great tent and spoke with the party.  He revealed he spoke both Elven and Common, although with a heavy accent.  He asked several questions which Deska tried to answer deceptively; however, Korak revealed a centaur scout had been spying on them and observing the Dancing Hut from afar.  He was aware they had emerged from the hut and killed the frost giants.  How he will react to this is yet to be seen; however, Deska did an amazing job trying to talk her way out of upsetting him.