The lizardfolk seem entertained as Tark's tale is translated. They invite you all to the "longhouse," where they will use a plant called the lilbihiahin jillepse, or the "joy plant."
It causes a pleasant euphoria, heals double the normal daily amount of hp if you sleep 8 hours sometime after using it, and most importantly, is considered sacred by the lizardfolk. They tell you it's been known to cause prophetic visions for destined or god-touched folk.
To be invited to participate is quite an honor, as they rarely share it with outsiders.
Klepy is ushered into the longhouse, where he is given a bitter tea to drink.
Klepy:
Spoiler:
Other lizardfolk are there, too, and drink this tea as part of their spiritual tradition, and also because it feels great.
Within about a half hour, it makes him feel elated, yet strangely introspective. Then the visions start. Some are pleasant, others scary. The one he remembers the next day is posted in the discussion thread.
If you want to share Klepy's vision with the other characters, you can. Please just wait until everyone's either had theirs posted or turned it down.
Klepy heals 8 hit points instead of 4 the next day.
Nao explains to you that sometimes, on rare occasions, people catch glimpses of their futures. These events are sometimes pleasant, sometimes not.
Like any vision or "prophecy," they're not set in stone. There's no guarantee that they'll happen the way you see (or remember) them, if at all, but the lizardfolk of the Longtail tribe take them very seriously, and see them as signs or guides to help them survive.
Lizardfolk are very big on survival. That's why they appreciate you guys!
Other lizardfolk are there, too, and drink this tea as part of their spiritual tradition, and also because it feels great.
Within about a half hour, it makes him feel elated, yet strangely introspective. Then the visions start. Some are pleasant, others scary. The one he remembers the next day is posted in the discussion thread.
If you want to share Bucko's vision with the other characters, you can. Please just wait until everyone's either had theirs posted or turned it down.
Other lizardfolk are there, too, and drink this tea as part of their spiritual tradition, and also because it feels great.
Within about a half hour, it makes him feel elated, yet strangely introspective. Then the visions start. Some are pleasant, others scary. The one he remembers the next day is posted in the discussion thread.
If you want to share Velag's vision with the other characters, you can. Please just wait until everyone's either had theirs posted or turned it down.
Velag heals 8 hit points instead of 4 the next day, if he needs it.
Tark:[spoiler]Other lizardfolk are there, too, and drink this tea as part of their spiritual tradition, and also because it feels great.
Within about a half hour, it makes him feel elated, yet strangely introspective. Then the visions start. Some are pleasant, others scary. The one he remembers the next day is posted in the discussion thread.
If you want to share Tark's vision with the other characters, you can. Please just wait until everyone's either had theirs posted or turned it down.
Tark heals 8 hit points instead of 4 the next day, if he needs it.
Unlike goblins, these lizardfolk don't seem to care for "shinies" or art. Their village is conspicuously utilitarian, and devoid of anything beyond the simplest sort of decoration.
Tark's new wand is a good example. It's a real wand, but it looks like a plain old stick you'd find anywhere.
If there are valuables in the longhouse, they're not obvious to Klepy. He's probably too high to notice, anyway.
If you want to share Tark's vision with the other characters, you can. Please just wait until everyone's either had theirs posted or turned it down.
Not only does Tark not share his vision, but the near-fearless Tark now has a phobia. Tark is convinced the vision foretells his death, and should he see any size of the type of creature that he believes will bring his demise, he may likely run and scream like a scared little school girl.
Tark and Fangz are in bad shape. He finds Nao and asks her if their shaman can fix them up. In trade he is willing to offer his services for any task that they might require... preferrably a task that requires flattening things.
On the second day of your stay among the lizards, you're taken to the Lizard King, who lives almost a day further north. You're escorted by lizardfolk guards (6) and by Harroc and Nao. You pass the occasional lizzie camp, and are also beset by another gang of 24 mostly immature boggards.
This encounter would be so trivial to mighty folk such as yourselves (as well as Harroc and Nao, who are no wimps) and an armed escort, we'll do a quick montage:
1. Boggards attack
2. You and 8 lizardfolk totally kick their butts
3. Tark delights everyone with his skull-crushing antics.
Personally, I feel a little sorry for the young boggards who will never know the status of adulthood, cut down in the very flower of youth. :(
You arrive later in the day. There's plenty of fresh boggard to go around.
The Citadel of the Lizard King is rather impressive, at least by goblin standards. There is a wooden palisade of sorts that forms a circle around a tall building, or the remnants of a building. There are at least 2 dozen well-armed lizardfolk standing watch or otherwise hanging around. They stare at you curiously, but given your escort, leave you alone.
The white stone building is about 40' high, but sits at a slight angle. It's old and weathered, with a few arrow slits higher up, and some worn and cracked fascia that was once fairly ornate. A few lizardfolk stand watch at the top.
After your mounts are tended to (they want you to handle the ratdogs), and you've had time to relax and eat, the sun begins to sink, and Harroc and Nao take you inside the building.
There are many halls and corridors inside, illuminated by sconces and a few magical lights. There is a trace of incense in the air, and strange music bouncing through the not-so-level floors and ceilings.
After Harroc talks to a few guards, you are taken to a lower section. No one asks you to remove your weapons or gear. Doors are opened, and you enter a large room.
When the music's over, you're invited to sit around in a circle consisting of lizardfolk, some of whom are holding instruments, while others serve drinks and especially tend to the one who sits at the back of the room. He wears a golden circlet on his head, a robe and cloak, and other bling you just don't see on regular lizzies.
After everyone's settled, he walks over to you, and talks to Nao. She turns to Tark.
This is the Lizard King. He wants to cast a spell on you, Tark, so you can understand everyone, she says.
Male Goblin Rogue(Knife Master and Scout) lvl 5 Assassin lvl 1
Sorry for being unresponsive most of the weekend. I have been REAL tired and uninspired due to this goofy schedule my job has me on now. I need to get used to it. Got lots of sleep last night so I'm gonna lay down a long post here.
After his dream/vision Klepy comes too instantly looking around for the door with the lock. "Where! Wheres it!?" After he realizes it was just a......dream. He rolls out of bed and looks at the lizzies. "Why we here? Where Bucko? He tells Klepy why wes here."
Before Klepy can find Bucko and ask his question, the lizzie who could talk to them would take them to see the king.
The encounter with the baby boggards was a drag. Klepy isn't one for violence unless there is something to be had, weather it is shiny tings or the chance to gain some fame by killing something tough. Otherwise, Klepy would just not want to get involved and save his energy.
Also, along the way, Klepy's kleptomania gets the best of him as he begins taking odd things here and there, seemingly random too. He'd take a makeshift plate, a arrowhead, nail file, or any other useless piece of junk he could stuff into his pocketses.
At the kings hut Klepy listens to the lizzie speak to them. "So wese understands boss lizzy yes?"
At Bucko's comment. "Oh Shinys for Klepy!? Where!?"
Tark doesn't like the idea of magic being cast on him by a lizzie. Tark contemplates. Not sound like good idea. Lizzie magic bad. Except heali magic. Heali magic good. Maybe some lizzie magic is good.
Tark looks around at the sheer number of lizardmen and realizes that if they were going to be attacked, whether by magic or melee, they will probably succumb to their foes. Just in case Tark feel some pain, he prepares himself mentally for battle, and nods acceptingly, yet ridgidly at Nao.
With a wave of his hand, The Lizard King utters a few syllables, and Tark feels a tingle of magic.
Tark:
Spoiler:
Tark has always ignored the writing on the wall, but looking up, behind where the Lizard king had just been sitting, he sees writing. And he can read it! It's in a language he's never heard, spoken or read, but there it is, completely understandable.
Carved into the wall, above another carved image of an almost nude female human (which everybody ignores), is this phrase:
“All praise the beauty and power of Sharson, Runelord of Eurythnia, giver of pleasure and enchantment. May the majesty of Thassilon forever be, and Sharson's beauty rise above all.”
Can you understand me now, Tark? the King asks. I'm speaking Common. You understand me, don't you? I want you to hear the mystery, if it comes.
He returns to his place and sits.
Is everybody in? The ceremony is about to begin.
Beginning to cast a spell, and placing a small crystal in a chalice, he lights more incense and mutters magical formulae while making strange motions with his hands.
I just realized, I don't think I gave Tark a cool point for killing the hydra in one blow. That's just the sort of thing that merits one, so here ya go, Tark: One Cool Point, suitable for framing.
In case you forgot:
discussion thread wrote:
Cool Points:
These are like hero points, sorta. If you do something I think is cool, be it heroic, theatrical, clever, or just funny, you get a cool point. Stupid or unfortunate actions don't get cool points. This is to encourage your inner goblin to work and play hard.
A cool point means that once you have it, you may, at any time, reroll one failed or otherwise unsatisfactory dice roll of your choosing.
You can't have more than one cool point at a time, so you can't save them up. If you level without using a cool point, you lose it.
Velag whispers in Goblin, "Him talking Humminspeak. It simple magic make you get it, but only work one way. Me translate what you say to him, if want..." Velag then eyes the King for a moment, "Unless him already castes mojo on self, too."
Oh, Great Ones who hear all prayer, and answer in dreams! Hear your servant!
How can our peoples survive this onslaught?
The King goes into a sort of oracular trance, sometimes in a stupor, other times looking wildly about. He laughs, then cackles, then screams, then moans, in inexplicable reaction to whatever visions are in his mind. This goes on for a long time until he finally starts to chant.
It's clear he started the party well before you got there. Nao whispers, This is the best part of the trip...
The Lizard King closes his eyes and seems to nod off for a second. You wonder if he's passed out when he suddenly lifts his head and shouts.
Wake up!
You can't remember where it was.
Had this dream stopped?
The lizard was pale gold glazed & shrunken.
The spirits speak, in images, speak
To my wakened dreaming.
They're quiet, they say. So quiet.
Riders under a black moon.
In darkness seeing,
Secrets found, not read
Finding, not knowing,
The small, confounding the dead.
They can't understand!
We play our part; like them to theirs,
Small, yet significant,
Doing for the other what they can't.
The few may stay the many,
The beast can be slain.
The lizard eats the frog,
The wolf, the source of pain.
Each a part, in its part, to its part,
The sundered; mended, reborn,
The balance restored, the little things
Move on to great reward.
I am the Lizard King. I can do anything.
He seems to pass out for a second, then sits still. There's a palpable release of magic, dissipating as everyone seems to feel like they, too, are awakening from a dream. Some of the lizardfolk murmur among themselves in Draconic (Tark and Bucko can understand them), but don't get up.
He looks at all of you and says, It has been many years, little friends, since such a thing as this has happened. The boggards have always been a threat to us, but this outpouring of their kind threatens not just the lizardfolk, but every being in the Mushfens.
An ancient evil arises from the deepest swamps to the east; one that has been long dormant. It is unclear exactly what it is, or how to defeat it. In this, the age of lost omens, our divinations are narrow and hard to master.
There is a temple, half-buried now, of a long-dead goddess, 3 days' journey south of here. There is knowledge hidden there: knowledge that can, in your hands, save the peoples of the Mushfens.
I must go and ponder this further. Nao will help you with anything she can.
With that, he leaves the room with what are probably a couple of hot babes, to lizardfolk.
Nao leads you to some comfortable rooms (the first such rooms you've ever seen, inside the only real building you've ever been in), and will answer any questions you have.
She points out that the King's magic has refurbished the place, and other than being a little off-kilter, it's almost as nice as it was centuries ago.
Rich are the rooms and the comforts there. Red are the arms of luxuriant chairs, she says, showing you what real beds and chairs are.
I'll see you in the morning. The King may want to talk to you before you go. Any other questions?
Male Goblin Rogue(Knife Master and Scout) lvl 5 Assassin lvl 1
Klepy raises his hand inquisitively. "Yeah Klepy haves question! Gobbies er evil ans prouds of its. So why ancient evils sides wit ugly stoopid froggies and nots sa mighty licktoads an ser The Licktoad Efesti Skwad? We is far better choice an froggies"
I'm no expert on the motivations of ancient evils, Klepy. All I know is that the survival of both lizardfolk and goblins, as well as others, depends on stopping the boggard expansion, or there'll be no place here for anyone else. It seems your "Efesti Squad" has a role to play in that, if what the divination told us has any truth to it, she says patiently.
How about you, Tark? Any questions while the magic is still working? Or anyone else?
Velag sighs, Nothing here to make mushies with. Stoopit lizards... Guess me better learn stuffs..., "What you know about temple? Or goddess? Am Froggies more tougher, or just is lotses more of them? Also, got any more of smoke? That stuff goodly!"
Velag sighs, Nothing here to make mushies with. Stoopit lizards... Guess me better learn stuffs..., "What you know about temple?
Or goddess?
Am Froggies more tougher, or just is lotses more of them?
Also, got any more of smoke? That stuff goodly!"
I know where the temple is. No one's gone there and returned, to the best of my knowledge. They say it's trapped and guarded. I don't know how it could be, but that's the rumor.
The goddess was one of the gods of Thassilon, a human civilization that vanished thousands of years ago. That's all I know.
The boggards are like us. Some are tougher than others.
In response to the last question, she pulls a small bag from her belt pouch and tosses it to Velag.
Tark looks dumbfounded. After asked if he has any question, he stands there scratching his head trying to make some sense out of everything.
"Me not understand. We go git knowledge? How we go git knowledge? We kin only lurn knowledge. Me not understand how going to big bad place help save Mushfens."
Tark remembers his promise to help the lizards in exchange for healing though. Tark shrugs. "Oh well. We go dere and repurt wut we find. Maybe find some big baddies to kill while we dere."
"Tark only have one requezt. Me bag gits full so quickly. Dis hyrda head take up so much room already. Does yous' have any of them bags that hold lots? It mebee help us haul back any thingz dat might be useful to yous' too?"
I think the divination indicated that there could be some knowledge to be found there. Maybe an old book or a scroll. Something.
I know how goblins feel about the written word, but the King said there'd be something there. I can't imagine someone would just tell you what we need to know.
As for your request, I wouldn't hold my breath. I'm sure you can leave your trophies here for safe keeping, if you want. The King seems to be quite fond of you. We've never had goblin dogs in this compound, in my memory. Goblins, either, other than Dogstomper, before the boggards erupted.
I gave my things to Velag. Maybe he'll share, if you ask. I'll come for you in the morning. And Klepy, try to not steal anything. We'll know. Good night.
Nao then takes her leave.
You can talk among yourselves, if you want. Might be a good idea. There's a lot to digest on this page, whether you like the Doors or not! LOL
The party sees Tark walk off after Nao. They see him converse briefly with her and they see Tark pointing to the pommel of his maul. Nao points Tark off in a direction which he then follows.
As the party readies to set out in the morning, Tark heads back off to retrieve an "item".
As Tark returns to the party, they see a roll of cloth attached to his earthbreaker. Tark proudly unfurls the banner to show them the standard of the Licktoad Riders of the Black Moon.
Velag nods and says, "Not worry. Not need read words, me can eat them and get knowledge. That what me trained do. Me wondering about Lizard King story -- him talk about lot of pictures, but not sure what him say. He talk about wolf and dead and riders."
The King will probably talk to you later. If you have anything to discuss, you can. Then heal up, prepare spells if needed, and talk to Nao in the morning.
In the morning, you're fed and ready to go. Nao takes you to again speak with the King. Here's his monlogue.
I know you find much of this confusing. I do, too. Divinations are a tricky thing, and if I had some sort of stronger magic to gain a better understanding of things, I'd use it.
The problem both our peoples share is that, unchecked, the boggards will overrun everything around here. The 4 of you can handle a horde of boggards, but can your village? Didn't they send you this way to help some other goblins who are much closer to the threat? If they perish, the boggards will still be hungry and still keep expanding, and eventually come to your walls.
We get along fairly well with the Wind Whisperers. We don't trust them very much, but they stay in their place and we stay in ours, and at least they don't destroy their land and have to expand their territory every year. We can at least talk to them when we have to. We've even traded a little with Dogstomper.
The boggards care nothing for such things. They're a danger to anyone who crosses their path, and their numbers are growing exponentially, it seems.
My vision, as I understand it, hints that we can learn about what it is that's causing this, and that if you know how to fight it, the 4 of you can stop it. We've lost a lot of warriors to this threat already. We can keep fighting, but we're no match for horde after horde. We can't reproduce that fast.
I understand that goblins are very quiet when they want to be. They can sneak past defenses, right into the heart of the enemy's stronghold. I have some good scouts of my own, but they lack the natural stealth your kind are born with, and I've lost many.
What we do know is that the boggards have huge breeding ponds, and their spawn are surviving in far greater numbers than nature would allow. Something or someone is causing that. Stop it, and the balance can be restored.
You can do what you like. He'll answer any questions.
Velag says, "If Lizzy-gods says we go temple, me think we go there. Mebbe secret of Froggy power there - we take and be powerful gobbies. If can't take, we smash, then smash Froggies."
Nao speaks up. There were 2 Wind Whisperers who used the ferry about a week ago. They said they were in a hurry to warn other goblin tribes about the boggards, and try to get help. We couldn't do anything for them. Our people are neck-deep in boggards, too. We've heard nothing else from them. The temple is on the way to their territory, though. It wouldn't be out of the way to check on them after visiting the temple, if you chose to.
The King answers Tark. I understand that the pools are very large. Kill the source of their growth, and they can no longer thrive. Our people will conduct a counter-assault when we know it's been halted. I'm afraid such an effort would be pointless until that time.
He turns to Bucko. I'd like to send Nao with you. She's an excellent archer and I could keep an eye on you by using communication magic with her. She can't skulk through a dungeon like your kind, but she could help you comprehend any information you might find. That's entirely up to you, of course.
Lizardfolk aren't very expressive. Nao says nothing.
The King laughs at Velag's remarks. I like this fellow! He's confident! You'll need that to fulfill your role in this venture. As much as I'd like to say otherwise, the 4 of you can get in and out of there better than anyone else here assembled.
Male Goblin Rogue(Knife Master and Scout) lvl 5 Assassin lvl 1
"Klepy wants tings. Are tings in temple? Shinys maybe? Klepy became a-dolt an great werrier too. So Klepy march in an take tings. Kill bad froggies too if have to. Klepy wants tings more."
He laughs again. I'm sure there will be plenty of "tings" to be found. Your skills will be needed, little rogue, if you hope to come out alive with them.
A group of about a dozen lizardfolk are let in at the gate. Many of them appear injured.
It looks as though my services are needed. Nao will see you to your mounts. Let her know if you need anything else. Good luck, goblins. I hope you decide to save the Mushfens.
He goes to the injured and starts casting healing magic.
