Hot Springs Island - Session 2 - a play report

Cast:

Chelsea: Wind Elf Orthodox Wizard

Valinar: Human Guardian

Tabitha: Dwarf Drowned Wizard

Clara: Human Curator

The Law of Avoidance

After spending the night in the clearing, the party awoke to further examine the "moving bushes" on the boulder piles. They did not appear to be harmful and so the party struck out for the coast and continued traveling west. The black sand beaches stretched ahead of them. After a time their attention was drawn by two things: one, a ring of red crystal stabbing up out of the sand, and inland a tall dead tree standing on a hill above the rest of the jungle.

Tabitha took interest in the ring of crystal and investigated it while the rest hung back, afraid to approach. She discovered several things about them: that the crystal glowed faintly, that when closely viewed there appeared to be a flickering flames inside, and when she applied her magical senses to it it was indeed magical and felt as if there was a space inside it waiting to be filled.

After Tabitha had spent some time with the ring the party decided to move on and investigate the tree on the hill. They made their way through the jungle and approached the large, branching tree. It and the hill were covered in thick red and yellow vines. And standing out in bleach-white contrast, bones, large ones scattered amongst the tangle.

After some debate, Valinar grabbed a branch from the nearby jungle and approached the tree. Before he could get close enough to poke the vines, they began to writhe and pick up the pieces of bones, and after a brief moment of movement there before them hung a complete skeleton of a large creature, similar in size and shape to the Night Axe encountered before.

The jaw began to move in a mimicry of speech and a disembodied voice began speaking. The skeleton seemed eager to engage in intelligent conversation, particularly riddles. The party asked if they could do anything for the "skeleton tree" as they called it, and they were given two tasks: to bring it the fart of a salamander or the tear of an earth imp. Bringing either item would result in them earning some large gems, apparently hidden beneath the mass of vines.

Valinar offered a secret to the tree in exchange for a secret in kind. The "skeleton tree" agreed to the exchange and offered that there was a spring beneath a cliff of white rock to the east where the Night Axe like to go and there "may be someone living there".  The only other notable thing to be gleaned was that the being seemed to have a measure of derision for the Chelsea the Elf during their conversation.

Unwilling to continue exchanging riddles with the skeleton tree, the party continued West through the Jungle. After a time, the came to a clearing in the jungle half a mile deep - old, large stumps protruding from the undergrowth. On the far side they could see 7 large huts amidst several tall black spires of rock. They decided to approach the village through the clearing, narrowly avoiding falling into some sort of hidden pit. They only made it about halfway across the clearing before hearing what sounded like a trumpet call coming from the village. Assuming that they had been spotted and not wanting a confrontation, the party back tracked and headed on to the coast.

As they debated what to do with what was left of the day, they heard a loud voice calling out further down the beach. Again, not wanting to be spotted they hid behind some boulders. Four night axe came meandering down the beach calling out and checking caves. Two of them were different than the others they had seen - these were lean and drawn, skin pulled tight over hard cut muscle, and eyes that burned with intense focus. The group of Night Axe appeared to wither not notice the party, or didn't care as they continued down the beach out of sight.

With that, the party spent their second night in Hot Springs Island.


This adventure on Hot Springs Island is being run using my hack of the GLOG system created by Arnold Kemp and further tweaked by Skerples.

Hot Springs Island- Session 1- a play report

Cast:

Randall: Vulpein (fox person) Drowned Wizard 

Chelsea: Wind Elf Orthodox Wizard

Valinar: Human Guardian

Tabitha: Dwarf Drowned Wizard

Clara: Human Curator

Play Report:

Imprisoned for crimes either real or accused, this group of individuals was offered a way out of their bleak servitude by the magnanimous Martel Company. The offer: buy your freedom by hunting treasure in the Swordfish Isles. En route, the party was branded with a cursed mark, one that would kill them if payments were not made to the Company. Before arriving at their destination a storm hit sinking the ship and killing the crew. The only survivors were Randall, Chelsea, Valinar, Clara, Tabitha, and a handful of other Martel slaves. 

Gathering supplies that had washed ashore from the wreck. Several of the slaves decided to set up a sort of base camp on the beach, while the four set off to figure out where they were and what to do next. 

Not far from their base camp they discovered a beach, littered with whale carcasses; but there was no smell of rot in the air. On approaching one of the carcasses, Randall heard something foreboding inside its belly and chose to leave well enough alone. 

The party made their way Northwards and heard the sound of chopping and some sort of conversation that most of the party was not privy to.  Investigating the sound they discovered two large, gray-skinned creatures gathering lumber. They stood at least eight feet tall, with powerful looking arms and legs, though rather round in the gut, bald heads framing gleaming tusks protruding from their large mouths.
After a moment of listening to their conversation Randall realized that he understood it.

After conversing for a bit the two "Night Axes" decided that the party should talk to "Glavrock", he would know what to do. So, the party was brought to a village, protected by deep trenches and patrolled by more of the these large, ashen ogres.


Glavrock, taller than the two escorts by a head and brimming with authority and calm was sympathetic to the adventurers plight, as the Night Axe too had been enslaved by a man he called Svarku. However, he seemed to be hesitant to ally himself with the party - people he hardly knew - and said he needed time to think of how they could earn his trust. "In the meantime," he said, " if it is treasure you are after, you could seek out the Den of the Great Boar to the north, the old slave quarters of the Night Axe to the west, or the ancient city or tower to the southwest."

Without much else to say to each other the party began to travel along the northern coast and spent the rest of the daylight discovering what appeared to be a cooking spot for the Night Axe and a large clearing of rock and plants.

Where will they go? Will they survive long  enough to acquire some treasure? We'll find out.

This is being run using my hack of the GLOG system created by Arnold Kemp and further tweaked by Skerples.