Carrion Crown Adventure Path – Game Session – 001

Game summary for February 12, 2013, Carrion Crown Adventure Path campaign, The Haunting of Harrowstone adventure; PCs included Amras Amandill (half-elf inquisitor), Dinendal Ironbow (elf ranger), Gnok Thatek (dwarf monk), Sealamin Laughshield (gnome fighter), and Stoella Carter (human evoker).

The party arrived in Ravengro around 7:00 a.m., just in time to help Kendra Lorrimor by carrying the coffin of her father, Professor Petros Lorrimor, down the Dreamwake toward the waiting grave.  As the party progressed down the path, they were confronted by a dozen farmhands, drunks, and ne’er-do-wells led by ole Gibs Hephanus.  They demanded the funeral procession leave and bury the “necromancer” elsewhere!  Kendra and Gibs exchanged words, and the ruffians assaulted the pallbearers!  A quick scuffle led to six thugs knocked out and the rest running for safety!

The funeral proceeded with the services overseen by Father Grimburrow.  All the team, except for Sealamin, said a few words.  Their ability to speak in public is greatly lacking, and a small scene and disaster followed, with much of the townfolk put off by the strange words of the visitors.

Following the funeral, the party assembled at the Lorrimor home for the reading of the will.  They discovered what the old Professor wished of them.  They also read his journal and learned a bit about The Whispering Way and Harrowstone prison.

Amras, Dinendal, and Gnok headed into town and dropped by Jominda’s Apothecary seeking some healing potions.  With the scene they caused at the funeral, the shopkeeper was not overly thrilled at their presence and offered to sell them a healer’s kit.  Afterward, they stepped outside and talked to a young boy out by the posting poles.

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 011

Game summary for January 31, 2013, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage),  Moto Patton (giff myrmidon), Orophin Calafalas (half-elf bard), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

As the Pisces headed through Realmspace, a sailor spotted a neogi mindspider off the port bow!  The team scurried into action trying to evade the ship.  The team got off a few shots with the ballista, hitting once.  The mindspider caught up and rammed!  The grappled ships came to a sudden halt while neogi and an umber hulk swarmed across!

Several of the Legionnaires were confused by the umber hulk’s gaze.  The umber hulk and Moto engaged in melee, with both sides drawing blood.  Zorn attempted to disintegrate the hulk unsuccessfully.  Amothar unleashed a barrage of magic missiles at the injured hulk, dropping it!  One of the neogi attacked the caster and tried to poison him.  Callisto failed to hurl one of the neogi overboard with her mind, while Orophin bounced a lightning bolt, frying a neogi where it stood.  Elaina called down a flame strike, hitting herself, the remaining neogi, Zirin, and Zorn.  Safana finished the neogi with another magic missile.

Orophin, Safana, and Zirin boarded the mindspider and found a spellcasting neogi!  Orophin and the spider-creature traded magic missiles!  Zirin then cut it down with his long sword of sharpness!  They freed the human slaves and dispatched the umber hulk in the lifejammer helm.

The team then set back out and reached their destination, the Rock of Bral!

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 010

Game summary for January 10, 2013, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage), Orophin Calafalas (half-elf bard), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

The team interrogated the woman, named Arliss, and discovered the berserkers lived on a nearby asteroid.  They went to talk to the berserker’s jarl to trade Arliss for some captives she claimed they held.  The group found the asteroid to actually be a massive living plant with no rock or soil, just enormous entangled wooden branches.

A small team went down to the surface to speak with the jarl about the exchange.  It soon became apparent the jarl cared nothing for Arliss but instead wanted restitution for his two slain krajen.  When the party insulted him by offering a single gold coin, he stated he’d just take their cargo and ordered his men to attack!

The jarl lead the charge, slamming his axe into Amothar’s chest, staggering the elf back!  The berserker’s wokani moved forward and hit three of the team with a nasty lightning bolt!  Arrows sailed out of the vegetation and axemen closed into melee range.  Things looked bleak!  Zirin used feather fall to jump off the ship and come down to the surface and join her companions in battle.  Callisto tried to psionically teleport but failed and instead had to rappel down a rope.  Amothar gave the Legion their first advantage by hitting the jarl and wokani with a cone of cold!  Elaina used cure serious wounds to help the elf recover from the wounds the jarl and a second berserker had already dealt to him.

Zorn used a jump power from his ring of projection to return to the ship where he could use psionics from a distance.  Orophin and Safana both lined up lightning bolt spells, felling nearly half the berserkers.  This just drove the remaining maniacs into a frothing rage, and battle continued in its bloody brutality.  Soon, the jarl and wokani were slain, and things turned against the berserkers.  A few moments later, the team was victorious!

They then discovered a hidden level amidst a pile of skulls and found an “underground” lair with an imprisoned merchant and his wife along with a pile of gleaming coins!

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 009

Game summary for January 3, 2013, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage), Orophin Calafalas (half-elf bard), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

While traveling in the Flow, the Pisces came across a drifting tropical island filled with exotic birds and tangy fruits.  The Legion of the Schwartz was sent in to investigate the air supply, which they found to be fresh and pleasant.  They brought the ship in close to refresh the air supply.  They discovered a “SOS” on the beach and followed a trail into the jungle.  They found a large tree house made of the wreckage from an old Spelljammer vessel.  Up in the house, they discovered a journal and a chest filled with coins and a few magic items.  Reading the journal, they learned the tree house belonged to Captain Bronco Resinous who was stranded 30 years prior.  His last entry from two years ago indicated he was investigating some strange silvery spiders he had seen in the distance.

The team decided the captain was long dead and left as quickly as possible.  Along the way, they found bizarre things such as birds slain by razor blades and smooth-cut tree stumps.  After talking to Captain Robilard, they agreed to leave the island immediately.

The team then continued through the Flow for many days until they came upon the Realmspace Crystal Sphere!  They waited for the portal to open and slipped through.  As they did, they were ambushed by Starbeast Clan berserkers riding krajen!  The tentacle-ringed horrors flew in next to the ship while berserkers swarmed over the rails.  The krajen began smashing the ship while axes and arrows cut into the party.  Zorn was paralyzed by krajen poison.  Amothar tried to use magic missile and found the krajen resistant to magic.  Orophin and Safana began unleashing lightning bolts with devastating results, dropping berserkers and archers right and left!  Callisto put her daggers to work while Zirin fought through the barbarians to land telling blows on one of the krajen!  Zorn, although paralyzed, used the power of his mind to unleash psionic destruction on the krajen, successfully using his disintegrate several times for the first time.  The battle was short and violent.  Finally only a single archer bobbed in the gravity plane eager to surrender.  The team pulled the woman in to interrogate.

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 008

Game summary for December 13, 2012, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage), Moto Patton (giff myrmidon), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

Callisto and Zorn put their heads together and used psionics to heal the infections caused by the heucuva.   With that concern resolved, the team moved further into the temple.  As they progressed, panels in the walls shifted and four mummies emerged!  The fighting was intense, with the party finding their weapons only partial effective!  Even the mighty Moto was barely harming the undead monsters.  With a combination of weaponry and spells, the team eventually brought them down, but not before Amothar, Zorn, and Callisto were infected with mummy rot!  Elaina used her last cure disease spell to recover Zorn, but the others would have to wait until the team returned to a Crystal Sphere.

The team continued and found a throne room with a great mummy pharaoh and his four undead minotaur guardians!  Several of the team were paralyzed with fear immediately, but Safana proved her worth by blasting three of the mummitaurs apart with a single lightning bolt!  The greater mummy tried to hold Moto, but his strange anatomy proved impervious.  It then cast spike stones to try and slow the party’s advance to little avail.  Zirin and Moto closed in and began landing blows, which the mummy returned.  However, the mummy stood no chance and was blasted apart by Amothar’s magic missile!

With the temple occupants defeated and treasures recovered, the team headed back to the Pisces to continue their journey.

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 007

Game summary for December 4, 2012, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage), Moto Patton (giff myrmidon), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

The team found the statue to be a stone golem!  The group engaged, with magical weapons sinking into the stony monster with ease.  It rained several deadly blows on Moto, but the giff withstood the onslaught.  Finally, Amothar drove his harpoon through the golem, shattering it.

As the group looted a chest they found, a massive pyramid drifted into view!  The party jumped into the structure and began exploring.  They soon discovered a room filled with five skeletal minotaurs that animated and attacked!  Safana dropped three with a lightning bolt while the rest were dispatched handily.

Further into the pyramid the team found a chamber with an old sacrificed corpse surrounded by eight heucuva!  The priestly undead attacked viciously but proved no match for the combined might of the team.  However, even after felling the foul beasts, trouble remained:  Elaina and Zorn fell ill to the blasphemous diseased claws of the damned!

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 006

Game summary for November 29, 2012, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage), Moto Patton (giff myrmidon), Orophin Calafalas (half-elf bard), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

Surrounded by wraiths, the team lurched into action!  Orophin began singing and drumming to inspire the party while Elaina used prayer.  Zorn disintegrated one of the undead while Safana conjured a sand lion!  Callisto held her ground while Amothar used his girdle of the frog to leap over his allies and attack a wraith!  Elaina then turned one of the undead.  Amothar used his deadly harpoon to put the third to rest.

Callisto then whipped open another door to find the captain’s quarters.  Moments later, the spectral form of Captain Gutshank appeared and began draining levels!  Amothar used dimension door to enter the room while Orophin wiggled in and unleashed five magic missiles!  Safana assumed wraithform while Callisto and Zorn engaged in some psychic warfare with the undead.  Finally, Amothar’s harpoon laid the undead captain low!  The team looted the room, finding lots of gold and silver booty and some cones of communication!

The group then rushed down the narrow hall into the helm room and found all the wraiths Elaina had turned.  Orophin led the charge with his axe followed by Amothar and his nasty harpoon!  Elaina advanced with her mace and smashed the magical weapon into one wraith, destroying it.  Within moments, the team had cleared the room.  With the ship cleared and equipped with a lifejammer helm, the team abandoned the vessel and destroyed it with flaming magic from a distance.

A few days later, the Pisces reached the Crystal Sphere edge of Greyspace!  Captain Robilard gave them some warnings about limits on teleportation, extra-dimensions, and the explosive nature of the Phlogiston before moving through the portal into the Flow.

A day or two into the Flow, the group ran into a massive dust cloud fouling their air!  This potential disaster could spell trouble with few places around to re-supply air.  As the sailors cursed, the ship rocked and reverberated as a huge slab of stone slammed into the side and ran along the vessel.  On this slab lay a single treasure chest and huge stone statue.  As the team crossed over to the slab, the stone statue turned to look in their direction!

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 005

Game summary for November 8, 2012, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Amothar Skyblade (elf fighter/mage), Moto Patton (giff myrmidon), Orophin Calafalas (half-elf bard), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Callisto (fighter/psionicist), Elaina of Ptah (cleric), and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

As the party approached the edge of Greyspace, they came upon a drifting old eel ship named The Scourge.  Calliso used dimensional walk to stroll over and discovered the ship had fouled air.  She returned using teleport and brought Orophin and Zorn across to the derelict.  The three ventured down into the cargo hold where they found a wraith!  The undead level drained Orophin and Callisto before Zorn destroyed it with disintegrate.

The team pushed further into the ship, found the galley and an old pot filled with human bones.  Then, another wraith emerged!  The group fled and used teleport to return to The Pisces where they picked up Elaina and Safana to assist after debating destroying the ship for a while.  Elaina was able to turn the wraith, and the group moved further into the ship.  They found the helmsman’s old quarters along with a small fortune in treasure and a spellbook!

Soon thereafter, they found the crew quarters.  Much to their horror, three wraiths emerged around them!

Halloween Hootenanny VII – Ghostbusters RPG – Game Session

Game summary for October 27, 2012, Pumpkin Patch Panic (shortened) adventure; present characters included Corey Jackson, Mallory Tillis, Mihashi Fumio, Rakesh Dutta, Roland McIvers, and Stan Blevins.

The night’s adventures began in the midst of a crazy Halloween night.  Already the team had hunted for a werewolf downtown and only succeeded in blasting a beloved pet sheep dog.  Later, they responded to a call at Butcher Mansion where a séance to contact axe murderer Sam Haney went horribly wrong.  The team blasted a bunch of apple spooks who started bobbing for the guests!  They then followed a lead to an old cemetery next to the Stuffin’ Stuff Mortuary Supply Company.

Outside the gates, they discovered a bizarre sign declaring “Pumpkin Patch Off Limits!”  Moments later, a young boy stepped out of the bushes and introduced himself as Chip Chocolate.  Chip asked the ghostbusters to find his friend Lionel and dog Snooty.  The team entered the cemetery and was soon attacked by a trio of ghosties with a love for throwing tombstones!  Proton packs blasted away, destroying several tombstones and burning down at least one tree.  Finally, all three ghosts were trapped, but they had to run back to HQ to empty the traps.

The team then found Lionel and Snooty in an old mausoleum.  Lionel was nearly hysterical and wrapped up in his blanket.  Snooty, strangely, was walking around upright, wearing a scarf and pilot hat, and making machinegun sounds toward an unconscious man in the corner.  The team played charades with the odd dog, took some readings, and decided to leave Lionel where he was for now.

Soon, the group discovered a vast pumpkin patch filled with glowing orange gourds.  A dark figure on a flaming horse appeared and revealed himself as Samhain, Lord of Halloween!  The creature offered the ghostbusters a contest:  smash one gourd and banish Samhain for a year or smash the other and release the ghosts of seven savage murderers!  The ghostbusters examined both pumpkins, took readings, and decided on one.  It was incorrect!  Samhain cackled as the spirits were released and proclaimed Halloween eternal until all were put to rest!  He gave them a sporting chance, however, in the form of a scroll listing the names of the killers, what they did, and how they died.

The team was unsure how to proceed and were returning to HQ when their office associate, Kathy, called over the radio with an urgent dispatch back to Butcher Mansion!  Seems there was some major ghost activity going on!  The team sped off to the massive house and the Halloween party going within.

As they pulled into the drive, there passed by a speeding vampire in a pink Chevy!  The team wheeled about and pulled him over.  They discovered his license was several hundred years expired, and he turned into a bat and flew away.

Perplexed, the team headed up to the mansion and found several police cars out front.  The officers said they could see in some of the windows, and saw lots of blood, but they could not enter the house, and no one could leave.  Apparently unaware of the possible deaths, the party was still in full swing!  The ghostbusters used their proton packs to blast through some sort of force field and enter, but the field sealed behind them.  Inside they found a party raging with people in costume dancing alongside fully manifested ghosts!

The ghostbusters looked around and found the servants’ wing.  In one of the rooms they found body parts and a suit of skin (still dripping) along with a floating axe.  One of the team threw up, which caused another to vomit into his pack!  They went to the bathroom to clean up the mess and found a ghost in the form of a talking poo swirling down the drain yelling “Hi-dy ho!”  The team then found another servant room with a young man impaled and pinned to the wall with screwdrivers in the closet.

The ghostbusters decided to get the guests out and tried to blast through the field again.  This just brought on panic and several injuries.  Then the team had a conversation with a ghost of a cheerleader named Cindy who told them about a mean ghost in the garage.  They entered and found the hulking, pasty white spirit of Michelle Mayor clubbing some party goes with a hammer!  An epic battle ensued with proton packs proving useless.  The team tried hitting her with a jack and shovel, to no avail.  Knowing she had been crushed to death under a car, they tried to run her over with a car parked in the garage but failed.  Finally, the car got flipped over and landed on her toe, which caused her pain.  The team finally jacked the car up and conned her into trying to fix it.  They then released the jack and put the ghost to rest!

Next they went looking for the kitchen where they expected to find the Kelsey triplets.  Inside the three ghosts were slicing cheese, and they quickly attacked!  Hijinks ensued, and Stan found a party goer with a Chad R. Cheese mouse costume.  He quickly traded outfits and ran into the kitchen, scaring the three ghosts (who were killed by thousands of rabid rats) into nonexistence.  In the process, he also ended up covered in melted cheese.  He spent the rest of the evening in the cheesy mouse suit.

The group then went from bathroom to bathroom looking for the ghost of Abnormal Crates, a psycho who killed people in the shower.  They were frustrated and unable to find him when a wet naked woman partial wrapped in a towel came screaming across the foyer yelling about a man with meat cleaver in the bathroom.  The group ran to investigate and found the shower running but no sign of Mr. Crates.  Knowing the ghost was drowned by a cross-dressing football player, Corey put on a dress and wig over his uniform and stood in the shower while the team waited outside the door.  Nothing happened.  So, he stripped butt naked (but for a soaked towel wrapped around his head), and waited.  The curtains whipped open, and Abnormal Crates attacked!  Stan ran in, grabbed the ghost, and gave him a brutal swirly!  He nearly lost his grip from shock when he saw Corey was still naked but managed to drown the ghost and put him to rest.

With only two ghosts to go, the team went looking for Groggy Gruber, a killer of school children who was burned at the stake as a warlock.  Rakesh put on an Angus Young costume, and the group went into the wine cellar.  The discovered scratch marks on the floor and found a secret doorway!  On the other side was a hot furnace room and spike-fisted Groggy Gruber and his hideously burned visage!  One of the team made a Molotov cocktail from the wine and started him on fire, while another took a mop and shoved him into the furnace, but the stubborn ghost clung tenaciously to the opening!  Roland did some quick physics and mathematical deductions, took the mop, and tried to leverage Groggy into the fire.  A moment later he slammed the handle into Groggy’s groin and just kicked him in!  The ghost cried foul on the low blow but disintegrated into vapor all the same.

Finally, Rakesh donned a Boy Scout costume and went out on the patio that suddenly transformed into a campfire scene!  A massive man with a brown paper bag of his head stood before them holding a hook.  The team noticed a small hole in the front of the bag and the appearance of blood all around it and soaking through.  The team hit the campfire killer, Jimmy Lee Kurtz, with all they had, which was to say they were completely ineffective.  Jimmy started hooking the team, causing injury and panic.  Meanwhile a car backfired, causing the ghost to jump.  Another team member did a cartwheel through the air and whipped the bag off his head, revealing a gunshot wound as his fatal injury!  One of the team went running into the mansion, found the trophy room, and snagged a hunting rifle.  Another team member, unsure if a gun was even in the house decided to bluff the ghost!  He pretended his proton pack was a rifle, took aim, and yelled “bang!”  The shock was so great it scared Jimmy Lee right back into the grave!

With a booming laugh, Samhain appeared and congratulated the ghostbusters on raining on his parade.  As he disappeared into a puff of orange smoke, he called out, “See you next year!”

Flight of the Phoenix – Game Session – 004

Game summary for October 25, 2012, Flight of the Phoenix Spelljammer campaign; present PCs included Moto Patton (giff myrmidon), Zirin (dracon swashbuckler), Zorn Seregon (psionicist) along with Elaina of Ptah (cleric) and Safana bent Anwar (sorceress).

Moto kicked open the last door in the dragonfly and discovered two more aartuk.  The fight was short and brutal, and the team searched the ship finding several gems and a forgotten spellbook!  Moto unbolted the lifejammer and carried up top where he discovered more aartuk coming out of the hold!  He smashed one the helm while the rest of the team ran upstairs.  Zirin moved ahead to engage, Zorn tried to active his inertial barrier, and Safana cast conjure sand lion to devour one of the beasts.

The team debated what to do with the dragonfly and realized they had no means of propelling it.  Thus, they abandoned the ship.

A few days later, the alert sounded as the ship slowed from spelljamming speed once again.  Over the railing the team could see a pod of kindori space whales!  After watching for a while they noticed a night scavver entering the atmosphere!  Zirin made sure Ashana did not get herself hurt too close to the rail.  Zorn tried to disintegrate the creature but was unable.  Moto fired arrows inaccurately.  Elaina blessed the party and later hit the scavver with a spiritual hammer.  Safana used a pair of lightning bolt spells to slain the beast!  The crew ate well for days!

Several more days into the trip, they came across the wreckage of The Maiden’s Joy.  Floating on one piece was the unconscious form of a blonde woman.  After a few minutes of debate, the team rescued her and used cure light wounds to bring her conscious.  She revealed the squid ship had been destroyed by a beholder scout vessel!  She was distraught over the loss of the rest of the crew, except for a single petrified man named Hudson they found floating by.  A brief search revealed no other survivors, so the team left the area.

The woman, named Callisto, warmed up to her rescuers and agreed to sign on for six months.  The team learned she is a trained warrior and psionicist and former member of an adventuring company that sought out pirates and other dangers to keep the spaceways safe.