Charles Plemons' Blog

Game summary for February 7, 2008; present characters included Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

After a refreshing camp, the Mercenaries prepare to search the carrion pit for the key in earnest. Lyrin has the idea of casting elemental swarm and summoning a small army of air elementals to scour the caves for the key and wipe out the carrion crawlers. He summons over a dozen elementals who make short work of the vermin and discover a massive Mother Worm deeper in the caves. Morak shields the team with mass neutralize poison, and the elementals carry the party down into the darkness.

The Mother Worm horribly burned Syvarius with a blast of acidic spittle. Meanwhile, the air elementals surround the beast and try to batter away at it; however, its tough hide proves too resilient. It discorporates numerous elementals with its bashing tentacles. Arrows and spells bombard the Mother Worm, but she shrugs off many of the effects. Iapetus and Taravin rush forward and slash away at the beast with their blades. The Mother Worm fights back and severely injures Iapetus and beats Taravin into unconsciousness.

Syvarius pulls out the stops and takes power shots with his bow, while Morak continues battering away at the creature’s spell resistance. Eolas finds the monster at least partially vulnerable to cold and unleashes a barrage of polar rays. Aridarye casts a number of spells to aid allies and attempts several offensive effects against the crawler. With the assistance of Gazzilfek, Chuck makes an effective series of well-placed hammer throws. Finally, Lyrin’s magic breaks the last bit of strength held by the writhing worm, and she dies a horrendous, gore-soaked death.

After the battle, Iapetus uses locate object to find the vault key in the stomach of the Mother Worm. It takes a while, but the Mercenaries cut their way into the center of the worm and extract the key. They quickly exit the carrion pit and head toward the Citadel of Weeping Dragons. Once there, they send a magically cloaked Chuck over to scout. After hearing his report, the party moves up to the battered gates and slips inside. The only signs of giants so far have been the cooling pools of blood outside the Citadel. Is anyone home? Is Dragotha’s phylactery locked away safely in the vault, or have the dragons already retrieved it?

Game summary for January 22, 2008; present characters included Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

After a few minutes of consideration, the Mercenaries return the items taken from the dead giants, and Morak goes about using raise dead upon them. They are then able to convince the giants to let them speak to someone in charge. Within a few minutes, the party finds itself addressing Kagro Thundersmiter, the Heartkeeper. They relay to him the tale of Dragotha and his phylactery, but Kagro dismisses it all as a ploy to get to the heartstone. He warns of the dangers of the siege and takes his leave of them.

Using magic and gold, Aridarye bribes the outer guards for information and learns the Citadel of Weeping Dragons contains a vault, and that is where the heartstone lies. She also finds that it takes two keys to open the vault, and one was stolen by Charlgar of the Rift Crawlers. Meanwhile, Morak communes with Moradin to narrow their search for the phylactery. Armed with this new information, the Mercenaries set off with Broogle the bugbear back to the Undercity to find Charlgar. After speaking with some other bugbear slaves, they discover Charlgar was last seen fleeing into the carrion pits. Wasting no time, the party pursues.

The pits are sealed off with a massive door, which Grim busts open with his prodigious strength. Within, several Mercenaries are trapped when adamantine bars fly down from the ceiling to form a cage. Then, crude nozzles spray poison over the group. Iapetus is nearly paralyzed, but fate and divine intervention prevent it. Grim begins breaking the bars (and his crowbar) until Iapetus can slip through and find the release lever.

The team investigates one room and finds it full of terrified troglodytes who don’t seem to want trouble. The party agrees to leave them alone. They head down another corridor and find a door. Moving through, Grim is snatched up in a cleverly concealed snare trap and finds himself dangling by his ankle fifteen feet above the ground. Within the room, a fully armed and armored Charlgar roars to attack. Grim quickly takes his massive axe and tries to sever the cord about his ankle, but his luck is poor, and he instead severs his foot! With a crunch, Grim slams back into the ground. The Mercenaries swarm through the doorway and begin an assault on the giant. To his credit, Charlgar fights with furious skill, battering the downed Grim to the verge of death. Several return blows from the dwarf, a vicious stab from Iapetus, and the magic of Lyrin proves too much for the chieftain. A search of the body and the room reveals no key.

The next room discovered is actually a massive cave filled with hundreds of carrion crawlers. A large cage suspended over the cavern provides a means for the giants to get to the crawlers and harvest their poisons. Unsure how to proceed, Iapetus uses speak with dead to discover Charlgar hurled the key into the bottom of the crawler pit. The Mercenaries decide to hole up and rest so that they can be at full strength and allow the dwarven priest to prepare spells to protect them from the paralyzing touch of the crawlers.

Game summary for January 8, 2008; present characters included Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

After nursing their wounds and raising their dead, the Mercenaries again set out into Kongen-Thulnir, at approximately 8:30 in the evening, 11 hours into the siege. They pass through some shattered gates and find the palace of the giants in ruins; however, the large citadel on the outcropping still stands.

The party moves unto the bridge and begins their journey to the citadel. After about fifty feet or so, a massive arrow or spear slams into Aridarye, hurling her over the edge and two hundred feet down to the rocks below. Grim immediately used his flying armor to plunge into the darkness to rescue her, or retrieve her carcass. The rest of the team advanced and found themselves under a hail of arrows. The group tried to remain non-hostile and use diplomacy to reason with the giants. The giants halted their fire but warned the team to fall back. Then, Lyrin blocked the view of one giant with a wall of fire, and other party members advanced up the stairs of the citadel. Right as the giants resumed their attack, a massive blue dragon surprised everyone by breathing electricity across the Mercenaries on the bridge.

A new battle was joined, with giants on one side and a dragon on the other. Chuck, Syvarius, Lyrin, and Morak worked over the fire giants. Taravin quaffed a potion of fly and went after the dragon, while Eolas dropped dispel magic repeatedly to get rid of the greater invisibility the dragon had warded itself with. Iapetus bravely attacked the invisible dragon but with little effect. Grim returned with Aridarye and flew out near the dragon. Eolas succeeded in making the dragon visible, which causes Aridarye and Iapetus to panic and run away. The dragon breathed again, and Grim died from the trauma of the electricity shooting through his system.

Two giants fell to half the party, while the rest threw everything they had at the dragon. Taravin pressed his advantage with some tactical aerial maneuvers that prevented the dragon from executing its desired attacks. Instead, it had to improvise and try to shred the flying paladin. Things seemed to be going well for the party. Then, Eolas landed a devastating polar ray, which froze the heart of the dragon, and its dead corpse plunged into the ground. The party quickly stripped the corpses of valuables and stand ready to enter the citadel. Will a handful of defenders await within, or the bulk of the giant forces?

Game summary for January 3, 2008; present characters included Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

The party’s sudden, invisible, appearance on the ledge was instantly noted by an equally invisible fang dragon of immense proportions. It moved toward the party and blasted everyone with chain lightning. Thinking quickly, Lyrin blocked its progress with a prismatic wall. The dragon surprised the group, however, by using teleport to end up pinning them between the wall and itself. Lyrin dismissed the wall.

Aridarye attempted to bolster her allies with a good hope, but she was too close to the dragon, and it landed a critical bite. In addition, its bite appeared to drain her life force away, leaving a tattered, discarded carcass on the ground. Eolas used dispel magic to drop the invisible cloak the dragon had thrown over its form. Iapetus, Grim, and Taravin bravely surrounded the dragon and worked to batter at it, but its defenses of mirror image and displacement, as well as its tremendously strong scales, proved too much for them to regularly overcome. Syvarius laboriously plinked away with arrows, landing one or two here or there. Eolas began a serious regiment of dispelling attempts, slowly whittling down the dragon’s wards. Meanwhile, Lyrin and Morak cast spell after spell; although, they proceeded cautiously after seeing Eolas’ polar ray turned back on him. The dwarven rogue, Chuck, steadily bashed away with his throwing hammers. Although he did not deal much damage per hit, he consistently harmed the dragon.

The three melee fighters found themselves in a difficult situation. The dragon sundered Grim’s axe, and he had no backup weapon. He spent the remainder of the fight in a frenzy trying to punch the beast. All three were repeatedly caught by the dragon’s claws and tail and hurled violently to the ground. Eventually, they managed to flank the dragon, which allowed the rogues to land a couple of serious shots. The spellcasters remained frustrated due to all the dragon’s wards and its ability to evade area of effects. They still hammered at the creature, but the process was slow.

The party thought for a moment they had driven the dragon off when they recognized it was casting a teleport. Much to their surprise, it used the spell to position itself in the midst of the casters. They scattered and fell back, and Lyrin found himself isolated from the group. The dragon quickly took advantage and charged the warmage. A critical hit from the wyrm’s bite killed Lyrin instantly. Now some distance from the group, the party prepared for the dragon to pivot around and charge back toward them. Curses erupted from the team when the dragon instead snatched up Lyrin and fled via magic, taking the simian’s magical horde for its own.

Battered, bloodied, and down several allies, the Mercenaries retreated into the cover of a giant dwelling and walled themselves in. They now seek to rest and gain the prayers needed to bring their fallen back from the dead. What will transpire in Kongen-Thulnir during their 8-hour “time out”?

Game summary for December 27, 2007; present characters included Carn Fodelfex (whisper gnome cleric), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

The party headed toward some of the giant dwellings and came under fire from the inhabitants. They yelled out their intentions, but the barrage continued. From within one room, a bugbear motioned for them. The stinking slave, Broogle by name, begged the party to take him from the city. They agreed they would do so if he would help them find the object they seek. They described the phylactery of Dragotha, but the slave had never seen or heard of it. He helped them find the way down to the Undercity to investigate further.

As they approached the ladder down, they watched five green dragons and a tremendous red dragon assault a fortified giant position. With haste, the Mercenaries attempted to scale the ladder, but Carn and Iapetus plunged into the depths of the gorge. Carn’s magic mended their terrible injuries and was able to fly them back up to join the party. They arrived just in time for an assault by four green dragons. The terror of the wyrms’ approach drove Syvarius, Gazzilfek, Carn, Aridarye, and Broogle into hiding inside a building. Meanwhile, stalwart Taravin, frenzied Grim, and stoic Eolas stood their ground.

The dragons opened their gambit with blasts of flesh-searing acid breath. Eolas unleashed deadly spells, and Taravin and Grim swung biting steel that tore through the draconic scales. One dragon attempted to weaken the two warriors with rays of enfeeblement, but it was too little to make a difference. Within a few moments, the heroes had slain three of the dragons and driven the fourth into a hasty retreat. Soon, the rest of the party emerged from the buildings and returned to the side of the warriors.

Grim nocked an arrow and fired it at the dragons assaulting the giant strongpoint, drawing the attention of the enormous red dragon. It flew overhead, roaring in rage, and most of the party again panicked and ran away. For some reason, the dragon did not engage but instead flew off with the green dragons further into the gorge.

Aridarye began a parlay with the giants in the fortification, and they indicated the dragons had only been sieging the city for a few hours. Aridarye attempted to explain that many dragons would continue to assault the city, but the giants seemed unafraid. He told her the stronghold of the Tiamikal Nul-Shada (hunters of Tiamat’s children, in giantish) was not named Citadel of Weeping Dragons in vain. Aridarye left a message she asked be delivered to King Achaime Silvereye and then rejoined the party. Meanwhile, the group noticed the massive bladed tail of a fang dragon disappearing over the ledge of the upper city. Eolas had heard of such dragons, but had not encountered one. He indicated one that large must be at least a wyrm in age.

The Mercenaries spoke to Broogle to find out where the palace of King Silvereye sat within the city. He indicated it was near where the fang dragon had just gone. With no further ado, the party had Iapetus render them all invisible and Carn teleport them up to the ledge they had just seen. Will their instant transport put them nose to snout with a massive, ancient dragon?

Game summary for December 20, 2007; present characters included Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Grim Firestorm (shield dwarf barbarian/battlerager/frenzied berserker/warmain), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

After a short bit of fact-finding, the party decided they needed more information via magical spells to locate Kongen-Thulnir, so they used secure shelter to make camp on the edge of Skull Gorge. During one of the watches, the group discovered they were being watched by Gazzilfek, the Ominous Fabler they had met back in the court of Tyrant Tarnheel Embuirhan, in Mintarn. He presented himself as a bard spriggan on a mission for a stone giant chieftain. He indicated he sought information on the Age of Worms as well and wanted to accompany the party and document their adventures. The party knows there is something shifty about the Fabler, but they agreed to allow him to come with them for now.

Morak used find the path to locate the giant city of Kongen-Thulnir and lead the party in that direction. After a few days of travel, the Mercenaries found the cliff side city of kings under siege from dozens of dragons. Wyrms of green, black, blue, and even red scales flew about belching fire and acid and otherwise ransacking the city. For their part, the giants were doing an able job defending the city, with many dragons already dead or badly injured. The Mercenaries decided it was a prime opportunity to slip in under the cover of invisibility. It took some time and effort to descend down to the city and slip through the smashed gates, and their magical cloak faded soon after moving within.

No more than a few dozen paces into Kongen-Thulnir, and the Mercenaries suffered their first attack. A massive, hellish green dragon swooped down from hiding on a tower and breathed acid across the group. It landed nearby and prepared to assault the front lines. Eolas wasted no time unleashing a pair of disintegrate rays at the monster. Grim activated his magical boots and moved close to the dragon. He entered a mindless battle frenzy and brutally assaulted the creature. In desperation, it was able to grab him in its mouth and fling him off of the cliff side down 200 feet to the rocks below; however, his stubborn dwarven skull refused to crack, and he dragged his injured self back to his feet. With terrible wounds and an entire party of adventurers facing it (minus Syvarius and Gazzilfek, who had both fled in terror at first sight of the wyrm), the dragon decided this was more than it could currently chew. It slid off the edge of the cliff and began flying away.

Several of the party members leaned out over the cliff to take parting shots at the fleeing dragon; meanwhile, Grim dusted himself off, calmed down, and activated his flying armor to return to the group. As he ascended, a dozen hill giants burst forth from a building and tore into the Mercenaries. Their clubs landed several bruising shots, and Lyrin was hurled into the chasm. Fortunately, he had feather fall to protect him. Morak and Aridarye began blasting away with fire and sonic spells, and Eolas began gutting giants. Chuck used his acrobatics and stealth to get the drop on several as well. Iapetus appeared in bad position, surrounded by giants, but he was able to withstand the onslaught and land some telling blows of his own. Grim, returned from his rock-slam vacation, tore into the giants while Lyrin used his own magic to make his ascent back up the gorge.

Taravin, the group’s knight in tarnished armor, continued urging for diplomacy, and finally the giants (the last two standing) relented. They knew they had been beaten and were eager to find a way to spare their lives. The dumb brutes were not incredibly informative; however, they were able to tell the party of two groups of giants in power in Kongen-Thulnir, the Riftlords and the Rift Crawlers. They indicated the leader of the Rift Crawlers, Charlgar, was trying to overthrow King Silvereye. Unfortunately, they think Charlgar may have gone down in the initial dragon assault. They have not seen the body but are sure their leader would come to organize them if he were able. The Mercenaries let the giants live, and they promptly fled back into a tower.

Now the Mercenaries find themselves in a besieged city of wicked giants. If the dragons were not enough of a problem, the giants seem to be in some kind of civil war. Somewhere in this chaos lies the phylactery of Kyuss’ general, Dragotha. Somewhere else, a hellish green dragon knows of the party’s arrival and will certainly muster her allies for a second confrontation. No matter where the Mercenaries go from here, violence is almost assuredly imminent.

Game summary for December 13, 2007; present characters included Ashkor (half-bronze dragon lizardfolk barbarian/battle sorcerer/dragon disciple/fighter), Carn Fodelfex (whisper gnome cleric), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

Along with Darl Quethos and company, the Mercenaries returned to the Portal of Storms. There, they were challenged to a single duel by one of the wild watchers, Sayren-Lei. Taravin accepted the challenge and engaged the fey druid. The wild watcher quickly turned invisible and began riddling Taravin with spear thrusts. The other wild watchers felt the fight unfair and allowed Lyrin, Iapetus and Ashkor to join the fray. The fighting was intense, and Taravin lost his life; however, the Mercenaries proved victorious. Afterward, the fountain of dreams appeared, and all present drank from its waters.

The group found themselves, minus Taravin, at Skull Gorge during the first war on Kyuss’ armies. They watched as Dragotha tore through entire legions and thousands of worm-dripping undead unleashed their fury upon the living. A group of druids, the wild watchers before their transformation, entreated the party for aid in slowing the advance of Kyuss’ minions long enough for them to stash Dragotha’s phylactery in Kongen-Thulnir. Lashonna, present but seeming not to recognize the party, turned into a silver dragon and flew off to stall Dragotha and his flying minions. The party agreed to help and waged war against an onslaught of Swords of Kyuss. After Lyin blasted most of them blind with sunburst, a flowing, oozing mass of bone reached the ridge top. This undead boneyard snatched Syvarius in its maw, pinned him down, and ripped every bone out of his body, slaying him instantly. After a fierce pitched battle, Eolas succeeded in disintegrating the boneyard. As the abomination dispersed, the Mercenaries watched as Dragotha killed Lashonna.

The image faded, and the party was back on Tilagos Island. Gone was the extradimensional land of Last Resort, as well as the storm that had so long protected the secrets of Tilagos. Taravin remained dead on the ground, but Syvarius was somehow restored. Aridarye had heard of Kongen-Thulnir and knew it to lie somewhere in Skull Gorge, right under the nose of Dragotha. Quickly the team gathered their gear, their dead, and teleported to Skull Gorge. Of Darl and his allies, there had been no sign.

Game summary for December 6, 2007; present characters included Ashkor (half-bronze dragon lizardfolk barbarian/battle sorcerer/dragon disciple/fighter), Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

Using find the path, the Mercenaries made their way to Thornvale where they discovered a massive thicket almost impossible to hack through. During some aerial scouting, Ashkor and Iapetus discovered a cave emitting fog or steam up on one side of a mountain. The team climbed and hacked their way around to the mountainside and discovered tracks going up to the cave and then hurriedly leaving. Dried blood accompanied the retreating trail.

The party moved up to the cave and cautiously entered. About forty or fifty feet into the cave, they found the source of the steam—a chasm plunging into the darkness with hissing steam bellowing forth. The heat was tremendous. Undaunted, Ashkor and Iapetus jumped the crevasse and landed on the far side. Suddenly, a massive, thick-hided monster with glowing red eyes burst from the covering clouds, its ten-foot tusks aimed for the two adventurers. It snagged and flipped Iapetus up into the air and hurled him into the chasm. The vigilante plunged into the depths and slammed into a lake of boiling water, sinking 20 feet below the surface.

Chaos erupted as the party fanned out and Ashkor soared into the crevasse to save his friend, his wings beating furiously against the scalding updrafts and blood pumping from a terrible goring. Lyrin leaned out from behind his allies and caught the monster in waves of exhaustion, visibly tiring the creature. In retaliation, it nailed him with a disintegrate ray. Taravin bolstered his ally, but it was only through the intervention of Fate that Lyrin survived the attack. The beast moved further into the darkness and swirling steam and disappeared from sight. The team took the opportunity to cross over the chasm and spread out for an assault. The glowing lantern-sized eyes reappeared in the steam, and a series of cloudkill effects poisoned the air. Despite these obstacles, the party pressed their advantage, with Chuck leading the attack with a barrage of magical hammers. Meanwhile, Ashkor grabbed Iapetus when he swam up the surface, and the two made their way back up the chasm. Beardfist and Aridarye unleashed some healing to offset the effects of the burning-hot air. Then, the dwarven priest slowed the monster with a frigid prayer.

With a yell of exaltation and suffused with righteous fury, Taravin plunged into the swirling cloud to bring the fight to the monster. It roared in defiance as the paladin slipped between the great tusks. At the last moment, Taravin twirled Lightbringer over and slammed the point into the middle of the creature’s forehead. The holy blade sliced the evil skin and bone like parchment, and the smite-empowered charge drove the blade deep into the beast’s brain. With a squeal of shock, the monster shuddered and collapsed, dead from the paladin’s brutal attack.

With the nightmare slain, the party nursed wounds and searched the cavern. Slow clapping erupted as the party stuffed their packs with loot. The air shimmered and shapes materialized—Darl Quethos and his evil minions had arrived! The soft-spoken priest of murder, flanked by devilish allies, proposed a truce. He suggested they combine forces in search for the knowledge of Last Resort. He claimed enough blood had been spilled and his interest did not include a fight with the party. After a conference, the Mercenaries agreed to return to the wild watchers and present themselves as one group, successful in all four Trials of Tilagos.

Now the enlarged party moves toward the wild watchers hoping to learn the secrets of Tilagos. The first few hours of travel have been peaceful. Chuck strove to remain hidden for a time, but Darl eventually suggested they could move faster if their sneaking companion would come out and travel at normal speed. Not long after, Lyrin made mention to Darl that the invisible kenku traveling with them might as well show itself as well. Although conversations have been infrequent and conservative, the groups are starting to learn about one another as well as display what they had learned through various magical means. Darl again applauds your tactics against the nightmare beast and recounts how several of his allies were knocked into the chasm, forcing them to grab them and regroup.

Darl is openly seeking the eye of Myrkul. With it, he believes he can install himself as the highest priest of Myrkul’s remaining faith. It does not take long to learn some about the loud and boisterous efreet genie, Malhazar. The flaming creature claims to be an exile from the Plane of Fire, where he came too close to overthrowing the Sultan of the efreeti. The truth of his statement could be suspect, but he says he has never met his equal in use of the blade. His flaming black horse, Black Fire, hovers a few inches off the ground rather than galloping along the turf.

Not much can be determined about the female kenku other than she wears the robes of Myrkul’s faith and carries a variety of blades and a repeating crossbow. She moves with a fluid grace and always appears to be staring at, or studying, members of the Mercenaries. The kenku’s silence is rivaled by that of the twin monks, Jalagar and Sabir. They never stray far from Darl and appear calm and alert. Neither carries a weapon, but that somehow makes them seem even more dangerous. Sabir amuses himself by plucking buzzing mosquitoes and flies out of the air and squishing them.

Finally, there is Darl’s scout, a great horned devil named Nalhazzarath. It seethes with undisguised hatred for everyone present, especially Darl. It is obvious it would like nothing more than to strangle the lot of you with your own entrails. However, whatever binding Darl has worked on the powerful devil is thorough and strong. You shudder to think what rites the Myrkulite had to enact to enslave a devil that makes other devils quake in fear. After sizing up Darl’s team, you feel any one of you could go toe-to-toe against any one of his allies, except this devil. You suspect you could bring him down if you could all confront him at once, but with Darl’s other allies supporting him, the devil may be unbeatable. Perhaps your uneasy truce will prevent you from finding out.

So, allied with a cancer of evil, the Mercenaries press on. The Age of Worms must be stopped, and a key to that is slaying Dragotha. Will the Mercenaries learn what they need from Last Resort? Will Darl’s team prove a problem now or in the future? Will the portal work for a return trip, or will another exist have to be located?

Game summary for November 29, 2007; present characters included Ashkor (half-bronze dragon lizardfolk barbarian/battle sorcerer/dragon disciple/fighter), Chuck Ahammer (shield dwarf master thrower/rogue/thunderthrower), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

The courageous Mercenaries plunged into the Doomshroud Forest and soon found themselves in an alien landscape. The trees were dark black and oozing a viscous sap. The bark was leathery and bizarre. The team plodded through the underbrush into the evening before deciding to make camp. As night fell, a depressing keening reverberated from deep in the woods, filling the longing shadows with additional gloom and despair. Figuring this must be the mournful song of the Doomshroud, the team used magic to refresh themselves and pressed on.

Soon, the team came across a clearing with a single massive tree in the middle. Chuck was overcome with sorrow and attempted to go into the clearing, but Morak broke the compulsion, and Iapetus shrouded the team in silence. The tree swayed as it sang a dreadful song from its gaping black maw. As the team approached, it ripped its roots up from the ground and turned to face them. It spoke, but no one could hear what it said. Wasting no time, Syvarius unleashed a volley of arrows, which all but bounced off the plant’s bark.

The tree retaliated with a weird effect, but it failed to slay anyone thanks to the standfast ability of Taravin. The worst damage was to Ashkor, stunning and weakening him for a short time. Lyrin, Morak, and Eolas began a series of fiery attacks, which badly burned the tree. Aridarye used one of her most potent attacks, a resonating bolt, to batter the plant as well. Chuck and Syvarius had trouble harming the monster with their ranged attacks. The tree was now in flames and in dire shape; however, it revealed a horrific surprise. Using the dark connection it held with its grove, it melted into the earth and exploded upward in the midst of the group. It pounded Syvarius with its branches, shattering bones and beating him to the threshold of death’s door.

With one companion down, the team prepared to deal with the threat now in their midst. It was then that Eolas, Scourge of Tilagos, unleashed a mighty sword swing powered by true strike and laden with channeled pyroburst. His blade struck home and cut deep into the tree. As the tip plunged into the trunk, the flame spell within erupted. The explosion was astounding, with fire shooting forth from the back of the tree and fragmented wood spraying into the forest beyond. With a final despairing cry, the ancient monster fell dead at Eolas’ feet.

In the aftermath, Syvarius was healed of his injuries by the cleric of Moradin. Then, the grove was searched, and a small fortune in gold and items was recovered. Within the treasure trove was a gleaming, ornate adamantine rapier known as Pride of Princes. The heavily enchanted blade was snatched up and some debate has begun on who should wield the prize.

With two trials complete, Morak communed with Moradin to find more information about Darl Quethos and his team. The group quickly departed after learning he was earnestly seeking the completion of the remaining trial. For days the team marched, moving from the thick forest out into the plains. On the way toward the mountains, and the Thorn Vale, Syvarius discovered the tracks of Darl and his team. Some time had passed, and the group surmised this was the path taken when Darl and company sought out the Roc King. The group continued on, and when within a day’s travel of the mountains, they finally sat down to rest and recover their mana and strength. Morak again communed to learn more of their enemies.

Will the Mercenaries reach the Thorn Vale in time to claim the victory for themselves, or will Darl succeed in slaying the nightmare, forcing the teams to work together to present the trials completed? Perhaps the Mercenaries will stage a full assault on Darl’s forces to buy time before having to engage the nightmare. Maybe Darl will attempt that first. Only time will tell as a confrontation with the murderous priest draws nigh.

Game summary for November 20, 2007; present characters included Ashkor (half-bronze dragon lizardfolk barbarian/battle sorcerer/dragon disciple/fighter), Eolas Windmaster (moon elf duskblade), Iapetus Hasur (hu-charad giant rogue/scout/vigilante), Lady Aridarye Phylund Brokengulf (human aristocrat/harbinger/ranger cohort), Lyrin Sinbal (simian incantatrix/ring sage/warmage), Morak Beardfist (shield dwarf fighter/rage cleric), Syvarius Strongbow (moon elf archer-ranger/peerless archer), and Taravin Truesilver (human gray guard/paladin of honor/pious templar).

The Mercenaries started debating how to proceed with the Trials of Tilagos. In an effort to gather information, Morak used a commune spell, and Iapetus used speak with dead to talk to a minotaur slain by Krathanos. They determined that Darl Quethos’ team had already acquired the living feather of the roc king and thus completed one trial as well. The Mercenaries were unable to discern what Darl’s group was up to now. They used find the path to locate the Doomshroud Forest and set out toward it.

On the way to the forest, the team passed through the hunting grounds of a girallon behemoth. The monstrous four-armed ape quickly charged toward the group to snag a meal. The Mercenaries sprang into action, with the team fanning out as Aridarye used magic to increase their capabilities. Meanwhile, Syvarius used bloodfreeze arrow to paralyze the monster in its tracks. The Mercenaries made good use of the precious moments to close in with the monster and unleash additional spells upon it.

During the commotion, the ground shuddered, rippled, and erupted, as a massive landshark burst forth. It savaged Lyrin and nearly tore him apart. Only a bit of luck helped him survive the mauling and flee the ravenous beast. Ashkor slew the girallon and turned back toward the landshark. The enormous rhino-shark, maw dripping with Lyrin’s blood, spun about and torn into Iapetus. The rogue was wounded but provided a good distraction for Taravin who charged in behind the beast. Aridarye blasted it with a resonating bolt while Ashkor sliced deadly swathes through its hide.

Despite grievous injury, Iapetus held his ground. With Taravin and Ashkor keeping the landshark occupied, Iapetus lined up for a killing blow. At precisely the correct moment, he plunged Stalker into the space above the creature’s eye and drove the blade into its brain. Instantly, the bulette crashed to the ground and died.

With the hunting monsters slain, the team investigated the hole left by the landshark. A small cavern system was exposed, and a quick exploration revealed an interesting find. In the very back, encased in old dried dung, lay the skeleton of a druid eaten long ago. Several items of power survived the digestion and had been deposited here. The items were quickly claimed, including the eagle-motif scimitar named Talon.

After exploring the caves, the Mercenaries turned back toward the Doomshroud. After a short while, they arrived at the edge of the forbidding forest. What horrors lie within, and what in the world is its mournful song the Mercenaries are tasked with silencing?