Aubrey's Eberron campaign. (Inactive)

Game Master Aubrey the Malformed

"There is no we," replies Darkheart. "Just you. Lightbringer is remaining here."

Lightbringer nods slowly. "He is right. It was agreed that you could go free, but that I must stay. The Lord of Blades has no interest in you, but in me...? I gave my word." Lightbringer extands his hand and clasps Janosz's forearm. "I suggest you do not tarry."

"I... see. Very well. This is just a small setback; I think we'll see each other soon enough." With a forced smile, Janosz takes off.

"I hope so."

OK, what's the plan? Effectively you can head back to Eston and on to the lakeshore bordering Thrane, or do something else.

I'll go back towards Thrane. However, I was hoping to avoid entering Thrane proper; instead, I was thinking that I would follow the lake south until I can cross directly into Breland. I'll look at my atlas once I get home.

That should be possible, but it's a trek - probably something to discuss with the rest of the party. I assume you'll want to let the rest of the party out as soon as possible - unless you are enjoying the quiet.

Janosz sets off briskly away from the warforged camp. The blank metal faces watch him leave, but none attempt to stop him. Soon he is moving quickly across the blasted dead farmland along the road to Eston, and making good time. Darkheart was true to his word that his progress would be monitored. With relatively little cover in which to conceal themselves, it's not difficult for Janosz to spot a few warforged following discreetly, perhaps a mile behind. It's late afternoon by the time Janosz reaches the outskirts of Eston, and by the time the sun is setting he's through the empty city and out the other side.

His sentinels are nowhere in sight, so Janosz takes the opportunity to open up the tent. Spending the night alone in the Mournland is not an experience to relish.

Aaaaaaand... they're back!

Rolund warily steps out, sword and shield readied, with the Valenar by his side and the minotaur just behind. After a moment of observation and seeing no danger, he lifts his visor to reveal a deep frown on his face.

"Where is the warforged?" he asks the Shadow Marcher.

The changeling follows, looking around. "And where are we? You look like you rode the outside of a lightning rail, Janosz. What happened?"

"We didn't quite make it out of the tunnel before the charges blew. As we came to, Darkheart was there, along with every warforged in the Mournlands; Lightbringer was taken to see their boss, the Lord of Blades. They kept him and told me to shove off."

"We're in the western outskirts of Eston. Considering that we don't have a boat and our canoes aren't seaworthy enough to carry us across Lake Arul. I thought we'd follow the shore until we get to the Brey and then cut into Brelish territory."

"Here," Rolund offers the last remaining drink from one of his jugs of goodberry wine. "You look like you need a good meal. Get inside the tent and have the Purified look after your wounds."

"Then, we'll discuss our next course of action."

Janosz heals 8 hps and a meal.

"The Lord of Blades -and Darkheart - had you in their grasp and they just let you go?"

Gil looks out into the dark. "From what you have said of Darkheart, I have to wonder why."

Damn! Damn damn damn!

How....how many were there?....

after he gets the tally,....

I....I don't want to leave my friend; I.......

damn.....

"Darkheart didn't like it one bit. At least that cheers me up somewhat." Janosz takes the offered goodberry wine and drains it in one swig. "I could use a couple of hours in the sack. Is Ikar's body still around? I gotta figure out some sort of horrible ancestral curse on his remains. This is all his fault." Janosz wanders off to his room and collapses on his pile of sleeping furs.

"Forget Ikar. I have another 'curse' awaiting him."

As soon as Frogshanks falls asleep, Rolund pulls aside the changeling and whispers to her, "Good. I was concerned this would be more difficult."

After a small pause, "Check the Shadow Marcher. See if he hasn't been ensorcelled. We need to be sure he's telling the truth."

Ezreal looks up from the book he was scribing notes into his face impassive while Janosz explains the situation. "That is not an acceptable solution. At the same time we are not up to the task of taking on the Lord of Blades in his apocalyptic homeland surrounded by his army of war machines. Hmmm" Ezreal sighs massaging his temples with eyes closed.

"We need some way to contact Lightbringer from afar without the twisted energy of this place corrupting the spell. I cannot agree to leave him here thinking we were willing to abandon him just like that. Tomorrow morning before we have crossed the mists out of the Mournland I will make an attempt at contact."

Addressing Gil and Rolund he continues, "Since the shade of Karse 'debriefed' us I have been wondering something. I had naturally assumed that Norn's three forged were the prototypes of Project Prosper. Now we know there are twenty or more. The three we have met share the quality of religious faith- atypical at most among the forged. Likely an effect from their corrupted imprinting in the creation forge." Ezreal pauses for a moment and closes his book, "Do we know where Lightbringer was forged? I am not aware of how far back the memories of the war forged extend. Is it possible that even he does not know? Do you think it is a coincidence that he shares a powerful faith with one of the beings bound to these Khyber shards as did Faith?"

Hats off to Aubrey for that exit scene. Pretty sweet and if/when Mothy is ready to come back we may have an epic quest to retrieve his character.

"He did not balk at the task of rescuing me from the cultists of Vol. I owe him the same," Runzyl casts a long, thoughtful gaze towards the mists. There is some reluctance in his demeanor, and his head hands slightly as he continues. "But... he would not wish us to throw our lives away on a suicide mission either, no matter how glorious. If you have a way to contact him, Farlowe, then do so. We shall know the Lightbringer's wishes from there."

"Check the Shadow Marcher. See if he hasn't been ensorcelled. We need to be sure he's telling the truth."

Gil looks at the bone knight for a moment, then her eyes lose focus as she thinks back on the conversation after the party emerged from the tent, seeking any hesitation or sign of magical coercion or control.

Sense Motive 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (12) + 11 = 23

Satisfied that she's done what she can without magical aid, she goes to where the man sleeps, silently casting a spell of detection to see if any unexpected magical auras are present. Finding nothing other than his gear (based on player knowledge of the capture sequence and the spells being dispelled), she returns to where Rolund awaits her report.

"It does not appear that he thinks he is lying and I see no indication that he is being controlled by another. I think it's either the truth or he was fooled in some way to believe it so."

"Yes, Ez. See what you can figure out.
I shall sleep now, only inasmuch as it will aid my powers."

OK, I checked the map. Walking to Breland is about 300 miles. You would have to walk along the shore of Lake Aruldusk and then along a section of the Brey River, heading south, before the river bends west. At that point you are looking at a three-way border between Thrane, the Mournland, and Breland (which is south of the river at that point). That said, there isn't anything much preventing Ez from teleporting you all, except maybe a slightly higher error chance....

Gil:

Not sure who's on watch - your tireless guardians are either dead or gone, but anyway...

The night passes uneventfully. Rolund spends the night coughing up black sputum but is fine by morning.

Does Rolund need to make another roll to keep the disease/curse in check?

If so, Fort save (DC 22): 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (14) + 12 = 26.

Nope - once the forge was shut down the disease went with it. You were just coughing up the dead residue. Not pretty, but healthful.

Cool.

Before the Purified awakens, Rolund drags the body of Ikar outside. Once again, displaying his fell training in the necromantic arts, Rolund kneels before the corpse and places his left hand upon it. The aberrant mark flares to life, as negative energy is conducted through it into the lifeless body. Rolund jerks back in shock when the flesh on Ikar’s body decomposes and putrefies in a flash and melts off until only bones remain. The skeletal body clatters to its feet and looks down with malice before the prone knight.

“Tha… That shouldn’t have happened,” Rolund says in a shocked voice as he stands.

Used Fill in the Ranks to animate Ikar as a Karrnathi Skeleton. Time for another interrogation.

Red spots of light glow within the skeleton's eyesockets.

Ask away.

I'm away this weekend, back on Sunday evening.

While Rolund enacts his ritual Ezreal returns his focus to the spellbook acquired from the war forged caster from the ambush a couple of days back. The book is a mess composed mostly in mathematical formulas and approaches the harassing and use of arcane energy as an engineer might approach building a bridge, but soon enough the mage has the gist of it down. From there it was a simple matter of transcribing the process into the rules and procedures he had learned during his time at Rekkenmark.

The main thing preventing me from teleporting everyone is that I haven't learned teleport yet :p
I was enjoying the overland journey parts of the game so I held off on it, but we are about at the point where I'll need to get that scribed when I get the chance.

Spellcraft for scribing arcane sight to my book is an autopass. DC 18 with a Spellcraft of +19.
Requires 1 hour of study and 3 hours of scribing + 90 gp.

OK - back. What's the plan?

we just want to leave the Mournlands?

As promised first thing in the morning Ezreal begins lighting incense and places his crystal focus shard out in front of him. Concentrating on Lightbringer he stares into the shard drawing up his will and searching for the warforged paladin.

I think for the first day of travel at least Ezreal will remain in tent and scribe some scrolls. I've depleted a lot of them over the time in the Mournland. If we run into trouble during that time I'll run Bor.
If we level along the way I'll pick up teleport and finish out the journey a little faster.

Rod looks on in interest.

Gil rolls her eyes. "Not for me, thanks. I'll march with the other guys.

Do you need to level to Teleport? I thought you could just cast it as it's a 5th level spell and you are sufficient level. On the other hand, if you want to walk, I'm fine with that. There should be a road from Eston to the Brelish border heading in the right direction. Could you clarify?

Ezreal does not have teleport in his book nor is it in the warforged's spellbook. At the moment he has no access to that spell unless I am forgetting some aquired treasure.
When I say once he levels I mean because he will be able to add any two spells to his book then.
Vethran has learned teleport in RotRL. You may be confusing us on this one.

I certainly think I was confusing Veth and Ez initially, and I got a bit confused by your post above where you were scrying LB and thought you might be scribing from the spellbook. All is now understood. The long walk home it is...

"The ones that stay in the tent will cook for the rest of us. Good thing I bought a coupla hundred pounds of onions, potatoes and salt pork. Beans and turnips, too. Ah, the sublime joys of the road." Janosz, fully rested after a few hours in bed, looks eager to set out.

"We'll be followed by some of the bladed guy's minions. Don't give them any reasons to take a closer interest."

"Are you sure having four people when they were following one won't do that for us?"

They already know how many people we have. Some of their scouts who ambushed us got away after the ambush to report back. Unless you think they believe nearly all of us died inside the facility. Also all they have to do is ask LB. I don't think he can or would lie. He might refuse to answer.
Does Darkheart know about the tent? Can't remember.

She's just poking the ranger, you don't have go get all coldly logical on me. ;-)

Hah. Fair enough. I was trying to post that hastily while wrangling a toddler who decided he wanted nothing to do with us on the beach today. This boy was chasing after the bare chested women and we had to stay on top of him to prevent a shock for some snoozing sun bather. ;)
My frustration may have bled trough there. :p

There's a mental image...

Hah. Fair enough. I was trying to post that hastily while wrangling a toddler who decided he wanted nothing to do with us on the beach today. This boy was chasing after the bare chested women and we had to stay on top of him to prevent a shock for some snoozing sun bather. ;)

My frustration may have bled trough there. :p

Frustration at not being able to chase topless women yourself? Know the feeling...

OK, you should be able to make 16 miles a day. If those of you with a movement rate of 20' somehow speed up (or hitch in the tent, although that comes with its own risks) that will increase to 24 miles per day, assuming an 8 hour marching day. So at the slower rate you should be out by day 18, or day 13 at the faster rate. That assumes you have a good road all the way. You can also do forced marches, whereby you march for an extra few hours but must make CON checks (DC 10, +2 per extra hour of marching, and failing the check means you take non-lethal damage and are fatigued - I assume until you have a full night's rest, though it doesn't say). Let me know what you intend, or if there is something clever I've missed.

The new day dawns, wan and unconvincing. The sun is invisible behind the cloud-choked sky, and the only sign of it is the gradual grudging lightening of the sky.

Knowledge (Geography), DC 15:

Does Ez have Overland Flight? I can spam someone with Fly spells, but the best I can do is 12 castings, which won't get us very far, especially if they have to be shared among those traveling.

Doesn't look like he does.

Nope. Best I could do is come out and cast dimension door seven times in a row each day by prepping it in all of my 4th and 5th level slots. That only gains us a total of 5,600 ft. Im going to use some of the travel time to scribe scrolls and add spells to my book from the new spellbook. If we come to obstacles where d-door might be helpful during that time you can call me out and I'll jump us across a river or narrow canyon or what have you.

Isn't Rolund the only one with 20' speed? If he can be convinced to pack away his Halloween costume, we'll march through the Mournlands that much faster.

Rolund begins his interrogation of Ikar as they marched to Breland.

“What was on the papers that the quori was destroying?”

I also have a task for Ikar before we leave the Mournlands. Essentially, I’m going to send him back to find and keep a watch on Lightbringer. If LB should try to escape, Ikar should give him assistance. Otherwise, he’s to keep hidden and avoid killing. When we return to rescue LB, hopefully, Ikar won’t be destroyed and have some intel on the warforged to affect his rescue.

Isn't Rolund the only one with 20' speed? If he can be convinced to pack away his Halloween costume, we'll march through the Mournlands that much faster.

Rod as well.

Isn't Rolund the only one with 20' speed? If he can be convinced to pack away his Halloween costume, we'll march through the Mournlands that much faster.

Bor has the same speed unless you plan to keep him in the tent until we leave which would be a mistake. He's got Perception and Survival skills that may come in handy.

"Papers regarding the warforged project."

Probably what the Cannith ghost told us.

"Where was the quori heading to next?"

"The Dreaming Dark."

Was the scrying successful?