GoCorral

This session was attended by everyone! Woohoo! Ben, Jamie, Avery, Will, and Tyler were all there initially. Trajan arrived a little later. The session was held over Google Hangouts like usual.

Problems in Greshendale

When we last left the party, Major Dactirian of the rebels hinted that two threats had arisen in Greshendale that they would soon have to deal with.
Hektor asked Dactirian, “What two threats?”
Dactirian said, “The old threat is an ancient evil. A monster called the Dahak.”
Aldarian said, “The Dahak? Isn’t that one of the Titans?”
“No, but close to it,” said Dactirian. “The Dahak was an ally of the Titans during their war with the Olympians. He fought on the losing side and was punished for his crime. Zeus trapped him under a mountain like he did to Typhon. The Dahak festered under the mountain until a group of mages turned the mountain into the magical city of Greshendale that it is today.”
Eathirilu said, “That’s right. Greshendale used to be just a little mage’s village, but then the archmage Tentineh uprooted the Dahak’s volcano to use it as a power source for the floating city.”
Dactirian said, “And as you may know, the Dahak is responsible for Zeus’ current condition. That monster snuck into Mount Olympus and ripped Zeus’ first love, Metis, from his belly. He ran away leaving Zeus poisoned and unable to move or speak. Zeus cannot stop the rise of Blendegad. If the Father God does not return, we may all be doomed to a new dragovinian pantheon.”
Hektor asked, “But why do we need to go to where the Dahak is? Shouldn’t stopping the dragovinians be our primary concern?”
“No, for we need something from the Dahak to cure Zeus. When last you were with me I told you the ancient prophecy passed down by the druids.
Should one of the gods forever close his eyes
Find the weapon that caused him to die
Add it last with great caution
Then pour the mix on the great god’s coffin.
If Zeus is ‘dead’ then we need the weapon that caused him to die to revive him. We need the Pitchfork of Ruin used by the Dahak to poison Zeus.”
Realization dawned on the party and they decided that going to Greshendale might be a good idea after all. There was still that new threat that Dactirian had mentioned though.
The Major continued, “The new threat is the dragovinians. I have spies in the city who have informed me of goings on there. The wizards of Greshendale apparently did not fully think out all the implications of their neutrality. Dragovinians are now allowed freely within the city and free practice of their ‘religion.’”
Eathirilu said, “You mean they’re converting people into dragovinians?”
“And attracting followers with the promise of such a reward, if you can call it that. The converted feed off the followers’ blood. If the conversion continues at this rate… by the end of the month the city will be lost.”
“What can we do to stop this unnatural spread?”
“I don’t know. I don’t have enough men on the ground in Greshendale to risk sending them into the vipers nest where the dragovinian temple is. I’m counting on you to make the difference.”
With that the group packed up, said their goodbyes, and teleported off to Greshendale.

Dahak Research

All teleport spells to Greshendale are redirected to the city’s landing platform, a large stone gazebo on the south side of town. The gazebo exits onto the south side of the Entrance Plaza where a beautiful fountain and a few small market stalls greet visitors. The citizens of the city walked around the market buying and selling their wares. As the party of heroes teleported in they also noticed a few dragovinians buying items and conversing with mortal people.

Amalius said, “They’re everywhere. We should go meet with Talon. He’s in charge around her. If he hasn’t turned, then maybe he can tell us more about what’s going on.”

The adventurers made their way to Talon’s office and spoke with his assistant.
“Mr. Talon is busy until two days from now. Could you come back at ten o’clock then?”
With their appointment set the party felt they had done what they needed for now to address the growing dragovinian presence in Greshendale. Next on their to-do list, the Dahak.

The party went around town looking for sages who studied ancient monsters like the Dahak. Their inquiries directed them to Corwinius, an older journeyman wizard who lived alone, surrounded by books.

The party called at Corwinius’ house. The man opened the door wearing a green robe and slippers and he straightened his spectacles. “Hello. What can I do for you?”
“We’re interested in learning more about the Dahak,” said Tagenadi.
“Excellent! I charge ten gold coins per hour of work. Come on in!”
The party shuffled through the door into a large room with a counter and stools on the left side and a table with an assortment of mismatched chairs surrounded it. A large fireplace lit the room from the back side with various horns hanging from the ceiling over the mantle. Several other doorways led out of the room. The rest of the wall was covered in books, scrolls, and maps. Many of the documents had also spilled over onto the floor, table, counter, and seats. The faint odor of dust and old paper greeted the party’s nostrils.
“Can I get you some tea?”
Amalius, Tagenadi, Torin, and Hektor murmured their, “Nos,” and, “Thank yous,” while Aldarian and Eathirilu accepted.
“Alright, I’ll be back in just a bit while the kettle heats up.” Corwinius moved towards the back door to the left of the fireplace, then paused and went to the fireplace to throw a log on. He looked at the party. “Sit! Make yourselves comfortable! I know I am!” He laughed and left the room in his slippers.
The party sat in silence. Tagenadi prefered to stand. When the tea kettle whistled Corwinius shouted, “Any biscuits or crackers for you?”
Amalius shouted back, “No thank you! We wouldn’t want to impose.”
“It’s no trouble at all!”
“All the same. No thank you.”
In a moment later Corwinius came back carrying a plate with a steaming tea kettle and three tea cups. The old sage now wore a green beret. He offered the tea to Eathirilu and Aldarian before sitting down at the counter. “Now obviously you all know me as Corwinius, sage of monsters both ancient and modern. Otherwise, why would you be calling at my house?” he chuckled at his own joke, “But who are you?”
The party introduced themselves using their real names and titles.
“Glad to have met all of you! Now what is it we are researching?”
The party launched into a series of questions led by Eathirilu about the Dahak. Corwinius answered many of the questions from memory, but of a few he said he would have to consult his books. He excitedly told the party an extended history of the Dahak.

The Dahak was a monster like Typhon that fought on the Titans side against the Olympians. The Dahak lost the war of the Titanomachy and Zeus imprisoned him. Just like the other monsters, the Dahak was trapped beneath a gigantic mountain. The Dahak would strain and push to free himself and in his rage belch fire through the mountain’s top. The straining and pushing resulted in earthquakes and the fire breathing caused the mountain to spew lava into the air. The Dahak’s prison was in fact the volcano that makes up the floating city of Greshendale.

Greshendale used to be a small community of mages below the volcano, but Tentineh changed that by uprooting the volcano to serve as the building block for a new city. The removal of the mountain freed the Dahak who thanked Tentineh. The Dahak assisted with the building and protection of Greshendale. The monster gave several omnielementals, elementals composed of all four elements, to serve Tentineh. The ominelementals now live in the volcanic depths below the city with their common and para elemental offspring.

The Dahak has assisted the people of Greshendale personally in the past and now does so occasionally by bestowing boons upon a few or in rare cases, by entrusting his Pitchfork of Ruin for when the city is in dire need of help. Today, Greshendale citizens pray to the Dahak by throwing a sacrifice into the well at the center of town. Corwinius was unsure if offering something like this was actually effective. He’d heard that some mages detected slight bits of divine magic around the center well, but the source of the divine magic was unclear. The Dahak still lives in the mountain below Greshendale.

Outside of the Dahak’s actions to protect Greshendale the monster also protects the timeline. Whenever anybody uses too much time magic or attempts to subvert Fate’s destiny, the Dahak comes in to fix it. To the Dahak the biggest subversion of destiny is Zeus’ continued position as King of the Gods. Before Zeus there was a cycle. Cronos overthrew Uranos and Zeus overthrew Cronos. The process was supposed to repeat itself with Zeus’ son from his first wife, Metis. Unfortunately for the Dahak, Zeus learned of this prophecy and swallowed Metis whole while she was still pregnant. A few months later Athena burst forth from Zeus, a daughter, not a son. Zeus was safe as he couldn’t impregnate Metis while she resided within his stomach. As his son is the only true threat to Zeus’ power, he cannot be overthrown until his son by Metis is born.

That’s why the Dahak attacked Zeus with his Pitchfork. The Pitchfork ripped Metis out of Zeus’ belly and left Zeus critically injured. The Dahak is now hiding Metis, although no one knows where.

The party asked Corwinius a few more questions about people who had gone down into the volcanic depths of Greshendale to speak with the Dahak in person. Corwinius said there were a few people, but he’d have to research more about them. The party agreed to come back later that evening to see what Corwinius had uncovered.

While Corwinius researched the group went shopping for new magic items and made an offering of gold and diamonds to the center well. Along with the wealth they sent down a letter reading,
“To the Dahak, the terrible,
If you are so inclined, we would like to speak to you, concerning the increasing influence of the Xorians and their threat to the natural order of things as well as how this all relates to the current death-like slumber of Zeus.
We would be grateful if you would grant us this audience.
– Signed Torin, Tagenadi, Amalius, Eathirilu, and Aldarian”

When they returned, Corwinius told them the story of Horman. 150 years ago Horman was a merchant in Greshendale. He watched the shop while his wife went on trade expeditions. One time his wife went on a lucrative but risky expedition that used up all of the couple’s funds. She was attacked by bandits and slain. The cargo was stolen. Horman became a penniless widower in Horman knew the Dahak controlled time, so he wished to entreat the beast to save his wife. As he could not offer anything to the center well Horman went down into the Dahak’s volcano to speak with the monster in person.

When Horman returned he was a broken man. The Dahak had not granted his request. Instead it had said,
“Fate will be what Fate will be.
It is good that you came down to see.
For that is what your Fate will be.
And Fate will know when time has come.
For this message to be redone.”

Horman became a beggar after he returned from the volcano and died a few years later. The party gave Corwinius a several dozen gold pieces for further research on those who had ventured into the volcano.

Into the Mouth

That night the party found an access shaft and went down below Greshendale. They followed the winding passages, seeking a position near the middle at the bottom of the volcano. They passed into a section with earth all around them and small streams of lava slowly flowing by on either side. The thick smell of sulfur filled the air. Eathirilu cast a spell to protect the group from the noxious fumes that collected on the ceiling.

Further down they came to a passageway guarded by an enormous earth elemental. Aldarian had been scouting ahead when the beast suddenly appeared in the smoke. Fearing it would attack him, Aldarian rolled forward through the beastie’s legs and stabbed it to little effect. Amalius told Aldarian to cool his heels while Tagenadi took a defensive position in front of the rest of the group. Eathirilu stepped forward and addressed the elemental in Terran, “We want to go further down, will you let us by?”
The elemental attempted to swat Aldarian against the wall, but the elf dodged the rock’s slow attacks. The elemental said in a methodical grinding voice, “You must present passes to go further.”
A quick telepathic discussion between the party made them realize that getting passes would probably be easier than slaying this elemental and who knows how many others. Eathirilu delivered the party’s response, “We’ll come back with passes then. Keep up the good work. Goodbye!”

The elemental’s rocky eyes stared down Aldarian as the group left the way they’d come. Aldarian pointed his fingers at his eyes and then at the elemental in the “I’m watching you” gesture.

After teleporting to Lakatia for the night the party returned in the morning to go to the City Works Commission that releases passes for going below the city. At the office a corrupt bureaucrat demanded a bribe before he’d hand out passes. Amalius threatened to report the bureaucrat to his superiors, but the rest of the party felt it was easier to just pay the man and move on with their lives. Fifty gold pieces later and the party had passes for everyone.

Torin cast find the path to guide the party’s journey into the depths. They went down towards the lair of the Dahak. The passes aided the party in bypassing an ooze paraelemental in a large sewer pipe and an air elemental in a fan powered air shaft. The group reached a section filled with lava once again. They walked on and on until Torin’s spell directed the party to a gigantic room filled with lava. Stalactites came down from the ceiling and a few flat rocks rose up from the lava to allow a dangerous passage across the room. In the center was a large rock which the Dahak stood on.

The Dahak stood more than ten feet tall with broad shoulders to match. No skin covered his humanoid body. Instead, bulging muscles barely covered his exposed white bones. As his sinews stretched up his neck they gave way to a bare skull with no jaw joint or teeth, only a small oval hole for a mouth. Ram’s horns curled out of the giant monster’s head and accompanying the horns was a mane of fire. The Dahak held the Pitchfork of Ruin at his side.

The Dahak’s deep voice filled the room with an undertone of static, “And the message is redone and Fate will be what Fate will be.”
A little shocked, the party whispered amongst themselves before the Dahak addressed them once again, “Why have you come here?”
Amalius stepped forward, “We came to talk to you about Zeus and the dragovinians.”
“Then speak.”
“Well… We were thinking that you want Zeus to have a child by Metis, right?”
“Yes.”
“And he can’t very well have a child if he’s as close to death as god’s get, can he?”
“The child will be conceived. Of that I have no worry.”
“Well we could make it easier for you. We’ve found a spell that will bring Zeus back to his healthy condition. Then he can do what he does with Metis and you’ll be all satisfied. All we need is your Pitchfork.”
“And you will have it.”
“Excellent!”
A moment of silence followed as the Dahak did not move.
Torin said, “Were you going to give the Pitchfork to us?”
“No.”
“How do we get it from you?”
“There are many ways. You could fight me for it. You could steal it. Or you could bargain for it.”
Torin instantly said, “Bargain! Bargain for it!”
Amalius said, “Surely you’ve noticed the dragovinians rampaging across Cimmeria? They are a plague upon the normal state of the world. They corrupt everything they touch and they live forever. It can’t be Fate’s plan to allow victory for the dragovinians. Give us the Pitchfork and we will vanquish the dragovinians, restoring order to the world.”
“The dragovinians will die if I give you the Pitchfork or not. Their Fate is already set. But I have a different task you could do for me.”
“And what is that?”
“In the east there is a town called Nomingburg. There is a saying I like to describe Nomingburg, ‘A city long divided, must unite. A city long united, must divide.’ Nomingburg has been united for too long. It must be divided. If you divide Nomingburg then I will give my Pitchfork to you.”

The party discussed the ethics of this proposal. Nomingburg is a mostly halfling city that so far remains neutral in the conflict between Xoria and the Alliance. The city is ruled by a group of assassins guilds that recently attacked the Bjorn’s wedding. The guilds are united by the leadership of one halfling, Duke Jingo. Undoubtedly, the Dahak wishes the party to kill Duke Jingo and watch the city divide as the different assassins guilds vie to fill the power vacuum created by the Duke’s death.

An interesting bit of information also existed. At some point Amalius learned that Duke Jingo is the brother of the albino halfling, Stanton, that had a particularly malevolent influence on Amalius’ own past and that of Tagenadi. Stanton was the wizard who altered Amalius’ memories to give him a fake family that was taken from him. Stanton also cast the spell that forced Tagenadi to slay his own parents. Maybe Duke Jingo could be used for some form of revenge?

The discussion as a whole was tabled for later. Either they could do as the Dahak commanded, or come back another time to fight for the Pitchfork. The party said their farewells to the monster and returned to the surface.

The Cerebramancer

The party split up to do a few more errands in the city (more magic item shopping) before their meeting with Talon.

Talon greeted the party as they entered his study, “Good to see you again Hektor, Amalius, Aldarian, Torin. And you have some new friends as well. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Cerebremancer Talon of Greshendale.”
“I am Tagenadi, a crusader against Xoria.”
“I am Eathirilu, druid from Aractrash.”
“A pleasure to meet you even if we live in unpleasant times. Lets talk.”
Amalius asked, “So the dragovinians have come into the city. And they move about freely, killing people and converting them.”
“It’s true and I can do little about it. The neutrality agreement ties my hands. I could call for a council meeting to pick a side in the war or ban the dragovinians from converting within the city, but I fear such a meeting would turn against me. I have few friends on the council and some of them have already turned.
“My greater fear is the Sky Patrol. I’ve seen their members talking with the dragovinians every day. A few of them have already turned, but their leader, Krodius, remains elven. If the Sky Patrol joins with the dragovinians… I fear the rest of the city will be forced to follow.”
“What can we do?”
“I can do little. The dragovinians know I am their enemy. They asked me if I wanted to be given their ‘gift’ and I refused. And as I said I have few friends with power in Greshendale. It’s why I was chosen for this job. Little chance for corruption. Only now it is working against me.”
Eathirilu asked, “Could we start a fight and remove the dragovinians that way?”
“Unlikely to work. You might remove the ones who are already here, but the converts are Greshendale citizens. We’d have to let them back in. Plus, our neutrality prevents us from removing them in the first place. If you acted against the dragovinians directly, then the Sky Patrol would become your enemies. Violence might even spark Krodius’s desire to turn. I wouldn’t advise it.”
Tagenadi said, “Couldn’t we convince people to stop becoming undead beasts? It doesn’t seem that hard.”
“I must remain neutral, but others have tried with little success. How can you turn down the chance of eternal life? An eon to perform your experiments and perfect your magic? I’m not surprised so many are joining the dragovinians. The deal seems good on the surface, even if it has darker truths.”
Amalius said, “Where are the dragovinians based right now?”
“Their temple is a large converted household in this area of town,” Talon gestured to a map on the wall, “but a frontal assault would surely backfire.”
“I’m just trying to learn more about what’s going on. And who leads the dragovinians?”
“Lady Li leads them. She is the Lady of Colchis. A formidable spellcaster I’ve heard. She would command respect here even if she wasn’t leading this new cult.”
Amalius thought for a moment then said, “What if we convinced the dragovinians to leave?”
“I don’t see how you could do that. They’re clever. They know that the mages here can’t resist immortality. They’d need to be forced to leave.”
“Forced to leave… But what if it seemed like they left on their own?”
“What are you thinking?”
“There are Orbs of Dragonkind contained within each of the volcanoes of Greshendale, right?”
“Yes. Each of the volcanoes has a caldera at the bottom. A wall of force holds the lava in and draws power from it. At the direct center of the calderas, just below the lava are small spheres of force, each one probably about three feet across. The Orbs are kept within the spheres. The center volcano has the Silver Orb, the southwest volcano has the Black Orb, the southeast volcano has the Green Orb, the northwest volcano has the Red Orb, and the northeast volcano has the White Orb.”
Amalius said, “What if we took the Red Orb and used that on the dragovinians to get them to leave? They were made by a red dragon. The Red Orb should be able to control them.”
“The Orbs are guarded though. Each by an ancient dragon. And they each power the lights for that section of the city. When the lights go off people will know something is wrong.”
“Have the lights ever gone off before?”
“Sure. There’s technical problems in the underworks all the time.”
“Well maybe you can tell the people that’s what’s going on. Distract them long enough for us to control the Lady Li.”
“Yes… That might work…”
“Tell us more about the dragon guarding the Red Orb.”
“His name is Invernix. He’s been guarding the Orb since the city was young. Tentineh had him under control, but since he died… no one dares go near the Orb. I’d prepare yourselves for a fight. Invernix lives in a cave in the northwest lip of the upside down volcano. Beyond that… Who knows what protects the Orb now? Everyone who’s stupid enough to go down there dies.”
“Sounds like we’re in for some fun.”