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11

World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 12

« Last post by Excalibur on July 29, 2012, 09:01:51 PM »

The hurricane is in full force while our party is stuck in the ruin of an old tower when the rains suddenly die out and a thick fog blankets the area. Amidst the fog, the bodies of dead raptors can be seen littering the ground outside the entrance to the tower.
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Three ghostly human soldiers walk amongst the dead, checking for survivors. They do not notice the party still within the shadows of the tower.

As quickly as the fog appeared, it disappears, taking with it the soldiers and the dead. The rain begins again, followed quickly by the tremendous winds of the storm.

Eight hours later, it is night. The stars look different as if they were out of season. The large shadows in the distance tell Talek that the islands of Ichio and Deiwa are also the islands known by his people as Sorin's Maw. According to legend, whenever Sorin's Maw appeared off the coast, a titanic dragon named Sorin would make an appearance not long after. His wingspan was said to stretch from mountain top to mountain top on the twin islands. Talek also has the feeling that he is home.

Proceeding cautiously, the party emerges from the tower and works their way to the temple. The entrance is surrounded by statues of human soldiers who are wearing the same armor and insignia as those of the ghostly trio. An apparition appears when the majority of the group get close to the entrance. She is speaking in hushed tones and can only be heard by those brave enough to place their ear next to her mouth.

In a voice entirely too quiet, the female human says:

"beneath the waves / a forgotten grave / a killer there of old / facade of shade / it's name forbade / never to be told"

Ella relates the phrase to the scroll she found during her research and, with some hesitation, the party enters the temple.

The temple is in ruin, yet the altar is untouched. Rispah finds a sword's blade, black and cold, sitting on the altar. She gives a mighty shove and knocks it to the floor. Then, the ambush happens, or should have happened. Raptors attack, madness in their eyes, and strike at everyone. The battle is bloody and the party emerges victorious even though Ella was knocked unconscious a few times.

Will Talek attempt to avenge himself by killing the one who took his place as heir to his family? Will the rest of the party aid him in this quest? How will they get back to New Unswich and continue the search for Ella's mother?

12

World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 11

« Last post by Excalibur on July 19, 2012, 08:48:25 PM »

In the midst of discovering what the orcs are doing on the island, the "warning" Filoria gave Squiggy came to pass. Shortly after she left, "Uncle Lenny's" ship was discovered three days out. The standard contact method using carrier pigeons was failing and it was due to the plague that Lenny carries with him due to his curse.
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The quarterly full moon event was about to start and with the help of the captain of the guard and his ship, the party set sail to intercept Lenny and divert him to the possible location of the temple that caused the curse. The captain was able to shed light on the entire situation, seeing as Lenny had served under him in the past when he was a pirate captain. The islands of Ichio and Deiwa, once separate "twin islands," had become one due to the lower sea levels. The temple which brought Lenny's curse sits atop Ichio's flattened peak.

The captain explained that Lenny was under the impression that he had to sacrifice his nephew, Squiggy, in order to end the curse. The captain and his other men sacrificed their wealth and turned to a life of protecting, rather than praying, upon the innocent. Their curses mitigated, they were able to continue their lives without further incident.

Lenny, however, carries a plague that is unleashed when the moons of Quel are all in alignment. The three days each quarter that this happens also causes havoc with Katcy's lycanthropic nature. She involuntarily assumes her hybrid form and becomes bloodthirsty. Unwittingly, one of the captains men, Adrian, happened to be in the locked belly of the ship when Katcy transforms and just as Katcy reaches Adrian's sleeping form, Rispah stops her.

The following days are a race to the Twin Islands, keeping their distance from Lenny, and keeping Katcy under chain until her madness ends. Bobo, however, enjoyed tormenting the wererat during this time, nearly becoming her next victim.

The party has made it to their destination just as the full moon's three days has ended and right before a massive hurricane makes landfall. The ship is in safe harbor and the party half-way to the temple.

Will they be able to save Lenny without killing him? Will Lenny end his curse by sacrificing Squiggy? Only time will tell...

Note: Quel, the world in which this story takes place has four moons: Daran, the blue-green gem of the night sky; Ginpei and Tinpei, the brown and white twins, and Una the grey wanderer. The moons have their own cycles: Ginpei and Tinpei are in close proximity and it seems as if Ginpei is always chasing Tinpei. Their full moon cycles happen the last night of each week. Una seems to wander through the heavens on a meandering path. Her full moon cycle lasts one full week every three months. Finally, Daran seems to be a steady presence in the sky. Much like our moon, there is always one face pointing at Quel. Daran's full moon cycle happens once per month for three days.

Due to the orbits of the four moons of Quel, every three months for three days, the moons seem to collide/merge with one another with one day of an elongated moon then three days of a single moon followed by one more day of an elongated moon.

The current session happened during the first four days, the last day is where we will pick up with Session 12.

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World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 10

« Last post by Excalibur on June 13, 2012, 08:25:55 PM »

This session was a spotlight on Rispah, the trials she had to face in order to obtain a mount, and become a cat rider.
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McKavvity, a noble cat, invoked the ancient blood oath and began the trials with an abduction of Rispah and Squiggy (Rispah's second). Three tests were to be completed to prove her intentions and to earn the trust of one cat.

Out of a choice of five, it boiled down to either a Siamese or a Russian Blue. Church (as the other cats referred to him), the Russian Blue, was Rispah's choice. The trials began soon thereafter.

The first trial was to get Church to purr. Squiggy was allowed to help at any time and step in for an attempt. All attempts failed including an misguided attack by Rispah. After deliberation, Church accepted Rispah's apology and allowed the trials to continue since Rispah's allies generally allowed the manipulation to happen. At the end of the day, three elders declared the trial a failure, but Rispah was allowed to continue with the next one.

The second trial took the pair to a hidden room close to where Dwarves were talking. Rispah was given a hint: WCH. She was to guess Church's full name. In what appeared to be divine inspiration, she said "Winston Churchill," and concluded the second trial with a resounding success.

The third, and final trial tested her nerves, will, and resolve as several cats closed in upon her. At the end, they brandished their claws and swung but instead of slashing her to ribbons, Church pricked her paw, drawing a bead of blood, then pricked his paw to also draw a bead of blood. With the combination of the two, it was declared that Rispah and Church were bound by blood in the ancient ways for five years. During this time, Church would serve as Rispah's mount and Rispah charged with his protection. Afterwards, Church had the option of continuing his servitude or severing it. Rispah has joined the ranks of cat riders.

During the trials, Bristol found some work with the city watch. He was charged with manning the walls and then gathering frogs from the poisoned river. They seemed to be immune from the black ichor polluting the waters.

Katcy spent a majority of her time taking out her frustrations on sandbags. She was not happy with retreating from the enemy on the island.

Bobo spent the majority of his time bedridden after eating toast that Rispah had made. A goblin that had the fortitude to withstand bugbear turds found himself helpless against toast prepared by a rat. In the same vein, Katcy demonstrated her culinary expertise by cooking up an omelet, which unfortunately burned Rispah like acid.

Using his ability to speak with natural beasts, Squiggy enlisted the help of seagulls to scout the island fortress. He discovered that the orcs' numbers had dwindled due to a tunnel collapse. They were digging their way through the tunnels when something happened that forced them to bury the tunnel for good. Squiggy then turned to the help of crows who seemed to be a great deal smarter than the seagulls since they had the ability to count.

Gellac and Ella have been doing research on various topics concerning Ella's mother. Athena has been working to protect the city's hunting parties. Talek is working out ways to take down Ylrish and her spawn.

Finally, Filoria made her presence known once again. She bid Squiggy farewell and told him that his uncle paid her village a visit. She and her two guards were the only survivors after a virulent outbreak of an unknown disease. Filoria sent word that she'd found his wayward nephew and informed Squiggy that the next full moon would be arriving soon...

14

World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 9

« Last post by Excalibur on June 03, 2012, 10:58:04 PM »

Combat. Today was all about combat.

The party discovered that Gellac had already scouted ahead on the island and had been ambushed by Orcs. Pinned down in a ruined guard's outpost, he had barely made it through the night when the party arrived.
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Shortly after they attempted to rest, a group of Orcs led by a half-Bugbear/half-Ogre female arrived on the scene. Battle swiftly ensued with the only member of the party that was surprised also happened to be the only member of the party on watch.

There was a bleak outlook when a direct hit on the Bugbear-ish leader caused her to flee. The remaining Orcs quickly joined her in a tactical retreat.

The party was bruised, beaten, and sore. Their only option at this point was to partake in a tactical retreat as well. After a harrowing escape to their boats, they were able to make it back to New Unswich where they are better preparing themselves for another assault.

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World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 8

« Last post by Excalibur on May 14, 2012, 10:23:52 PM »

In need of funds for new equipment, the group turned to Rispah. Utilizing her connections with the rat underground to obtain "72 bits of shiny." (Rats are not aware of the value humanoid races place on shiny things). In return, Rispah owes 1 black and 2 red favors to the underground.
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New vendors were visited such as Hanzel and Franzel, the half-ogre tailors. Curiously, all of their mannequins are perfect life-like copies of the races they portray. Katcy ran into a dwarf version in her changing room as she changed. Thinking the mannequin was real, she turned and split it down the middle with a single punch when she felt its bushy beard touch her posterior. The mannequins are so real, Rispah is convinced that they are watching you.

Bristol, having purchased a new set of clothes from H&F, set about righting the opinions his first impression created.

Katcy visited the local lore master in an attempt to learn more about bugbears.

Talek discovered that the felin are so competent as merchants that they had actually gotten a hold of more raptor-style armor, simply because Talek had visited them once before (and purchased their last suit of raptor armor).

Squiggy had the magical items they had acquired examined by the lore master. What they found was astonishing! What they thought was a bronze spear of simplicity is, in actuality, the shaft of Wave, an artifact that had been used by the heroes who closed the Entropic Lord's gate on Egesa. Where the artifact's tines are, nobody is aware. But the lore master said that some witnesses of the destruction of the continent saw red streaks of light shooting from the center of the continent where the portal was. It is now certain that at least one of those streaks of light landed in New Unswich just before the tainted went mad.

Wary of wandering through the slums with Ylrish and her sons still lurking about, the party decided to look into Thorne outpost, the same outpost that is overrun by monsters. Their first foray onto the island met with undead resistance in the form of several zombies. The fight was not easy, but the party prevailed. They were aware of monsters inhabiting the area, but the undead were not expected.

A surprise visit by one Filoria of Gand surprised Squiggy this day. It started with a whiff of familiar perfume, then by a particular type of rye/cheese spread found in only one place in his past. Squigward Von Pellinewton (as he was addressed by Filoria) was not in happy spirits as his ex-lover found him and decided to make his life...unfortunately not happy.

What will the party discover on the island? The same island where Frinain was last seen rushing towards only to never be heard from again...

16

World of Taluria, The / [M] Race/World "Book"

« Last post by Excalibur on May 03, 2012, 11:05:27 PM »

Would anyone be interested in a PDF of all the races and junk that I've been putting together for the campaign? Just curious. It might make it easier to find information for character creation and the like.

Anyway, off to bed!

17

World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 7

« Last post by Excalibur on April 28, 2012, 04:26:22 PM »

Captured! Everyone but Squiggy and Athena were captured during the last encounter with Ylrish's sons leading the ambush party.
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Talek has been tortured. Gellac has been tortured. Katcy, using her uncanny ability to transform into a rat escaped torture and had guards searching the underground caves the prison was located in. Gellac was interrogated concerning a spear that Ylrish believes is in the party's possession.

Ella discovered her amulet could not be seen by anyone but her and therefor was the only piece of equipment/adornment that anyone still possessed. She found that it was glowing stronger than before.

Bobo ate poop and found it had a nice, subtle, nutty flavor with a hint of grass...he learned afterwards that it's probably not a good idea to get chummy with his captors, especially those that are big, hairy, and would rather eat him than leave him in a prison cell.

Bristol discovered the business end of a club is not to be trifled with, especially if it is being wielded by a large, brutish bugbear that seems to have a hint of ogre lineage.

While a rat sneaked around the outside, another rat and a sprite sneaked into the prison asking each and every prisoner if their name was Ella. It was revealed that not only did this rat speak common, but she was also sent by "Auntie" to rescue Ella (whom Ella resembles). Ella, speechless and entranced, concentrated on a stone and threw it into Talek's cell. An illusion of a cowering Talek took up residence and shortly thereafter, the party made their way into the prison's sewer system. Katcy took it upon herself to rescue a kenku who was near death.

They emerged into an alley in one of the old ruins of Unswich that had been buried over the centuries. There were signs of shops, housing, and other places everywhere they walked. Tired, hungry, and dehydrated (well, perhaps Bobo wasn't as hungry) the group made their way through the now labyrinthine ruins. They discovered crevasses that fell into the underdark, a old armory/weaponry/blacksmith shop with a strange symbol on a rusted anvil. It was here that Ella discovered a psionically hidden pair of weapons. An axe and a short sword. While traveling through another part of the ruins, Gellac found an unassuming silver ring.

By the time the party had gotten close to finding a source of water, they discovered they were no longer able to wander at their leisure. Ylrish and her three sons (a mute bugbear, a half-orc/half-bugbear, and a full-blooded bugbear named Francis) had discovered where the party had escaped to and followed them. The chase was on!

No sooner had our heroes made it to the exit did Ylrish and her spawn begin pounding on the stone doors the group had gotten shut. With displays of great strength, the bugbear group began breaking the doors down. In the interim, Squiggy, Ella, Bristol, and Rispa (the rat) had gotten through the locked sewer grate behind the Traveling Troll tavern. Gellac was able to pick the lock and free everyone, locking the grate again before Ylrish could recapture anyone.

The town guard has since collapsed much of the ruins, which they hope will end the repeated incursions by Ylrish and Norrick the Rogue.

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World of Taluria, The / [M] A Surprise Race

« Last post by Excalibur on April 23, 2012, 06:33:26 PM »

So, to make things a bit more fun, I created a new race (converted, really) that is sure to make some people smile! You'll find out more when we get together this Friday night!

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World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 6

« Last post by Excalibur on April 13, 2012, 11:42:15 PM »

The day started with a missing raptor. A goblin arrived with a message from Ylrish stating she had him kidnapped and thanking the party for bringing her "my first love." The party was told to go to Ohlo's mansion if they wanted to see Talek again.
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The party obliged, but not before doing research on Ohlo and the whereabouts of his mansion. A map was obtained which displayed a route to the mansion (along with a note: Beware the Spectral Panther -- see XKCD). The party successfully made it past the Spectral Panther Tavern and to Ohlo's mansion where the front doors opened for them.

Bristol threw a half loaf of bread through the doors and then he and Bobo walked right in. Gellac and Katcy were close behind with Ella by the front windows.

Two bugbears (one which looked like he was half-orc, half-bugbear) greeted the party. The half-breed demanded the party give them what "Momma" is looking for. After a short round of demands and declarations that the half-breed wanted the pretty lady and that Momma wanted the lizard, a short battle ensued.

It was obvious that the party was no match for their foes. Katcy and Gellac were knocked unconscious almost immediately, followed by Bobo. Bristol attempted to teleport from the mansion only to run head-long into the protections that Ohlo placed on his home to deter would-be thieves and intruders. Bristol was taken out shortly thereafter. Ella, on the other hand, had made an attempt to flee for help only to be chased down and knocked out by Ylrish's eldest son.

Squiggy and Athena were not available, having departed for a short time for different missions and communing with nature...

The party has been captured by Ylrish's band and she is apparently looking for something she believes the party has. What's going to happen?

Only time will tell...

20

World of Taluria, The / [E] Session Report: Session 5

« Last post by Excalibur on March 31, 2012, 02:14:24 PM »

We introduce two new characters this session: Bristol Tumbleweed, an eladrin avenger who is somewhat of a burgeoning loose cannon; and Athena, a sparok druid.
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The afternoon began with a walk to Dalia's former residence, willed to Ella when the elderly psion passed away. The party heard groaning coming from a water barrel next to the Cauldron and the Sword tavern. It turns out that Bristol, fresh off a the ship (the town guard was able to stop the latest galleon from sailing past the keep and the ship's captain had passengers ferried over) the previous day had been mugged by a notorious human named Norrik. The surprised eladrin was drugged, separated from his remaining funds, and summarily shoved into a barrel. The party had witnessed the crime but thought the assailant to be Ylrish. Unconscious, Bristol was not able to speak out and since he was fresh from a sea voyage, his scent was masked by the surrounding salt air. Talek would not have been able to sniff him out under those conditions.

Norrik is notorious for being able to get in and out of the city despite the best efforts of the city guard. From time to time he gets in, mugs someone, robs a shop, or performs some other act of skullduggery without being caught. The local stable master, Ramis, has been under surveillance for years since he is Norrik's uncle. Nobody has been able to catch Ramis aiding Norrik's entry or exit from the city. It was confirmed that the sewer system/lower tunnels out to Thorne keep had been purposely collapsed ten years ago after Frinain rushed to the aid of the keep during the Goblin Uprising.

Shortly thereafter, the sole survivor of a hunting party, one Athena, glided down next to the group. She was badly injured with a sprain wing and in pain. Through the help of the party's healing skills, she was back to normal (though with a still sore wing) at which point she explained what had happened.

Athena had been assigned to a hunting party in order to preserve the delicate balance of the surrounding wildlife. Due to the inability of ships to bring supplies from sea, the surrounding forests were nearly depleted of wild game. The local temple of Avandra has been assigning agents to hunting parties to either provide aid with healing if there were injuries, or to ensure over-hunting did not occur.

During the hunt, her party was ambushed by an odd group of people. A large, yellow-furred bugbear seemed to be the boss of two orcs who in turn were commanding a pair of owlbears. Athena was not at the front of the group but that didn't stop the orcs from pelting her with sling bullets as she took to the air. Her comrades were already torn asunder by the pair of owlbears and the bugbear. Nearly broken, Athena did everything she could to stay aloft, out of the reach of the orcs' slings and she somehow got the strength to get back to the safety offered by New Unswich's walls.

The party took respite at the Cauldron and the Sword while Athena reported in at the temple. Bristol (Bris to some) discovered the wonderful bread that is baked daily by the followers of Melora at the nearby temple of said goddess. He paid his respects and began a search for work to replace his stolen gold. During the course of his wandering from shop-to-shop, residence-to-residence, he stopped by the stables to retrieve his horse Adrian. Without the gold to pay for the stable fees (fifty gold for the month) to retrieve his mount, Bristol attempted to liberate the animal using stealth. Suspecting tomfoolery, the stable master watched as Bristol attempted entry to the stables without the aid Ramis' aid. Bristol was let in to see his horse and the stable door locked behind him. Ramis then fled to the city guard for help. Bristol, suspecting as much (or that he was being trapped for some other purpose) attempted to break free of the stable. When that didn't work, he tried jumping up to the window a full floor up, only to miss and slam into the wall. By this time, the city guard had arrived and took the eladrin into custody. The night spent in jail was torture, not only for Bristol, but for the guards on duty. After repeated shouting of his horse's name, a guard (by the same name) got tired of hearing his name shouted. Choking this up to "another one of them crazies," the guards ignored Bristol until morning when he was brought before the captain of the guard. Bobo was keeping an eye on this one due to the possible entertainment he could derive from the eladrin's antics...

Meanwhile, Ella, Athena, and Talek investigated Dalia's shack. They found a sack of fifteen gold in a hidden nook in the wall, a very comfortable chair, and a painting of the deep forests of Marglith (most likely the north western forests and possibly from the island where the faerie-sprite war has been occurring). While searching the shack, Ella noted that whenever she faced northwest, the amulet she wore glowed slightly stronger. This happened outside the shack as well as the walk back to the party's house.

Gellac's bout with Dire Rat Filth Fever had ended that night and Squiggy made it a point to check in on the feverish paladin. After the fever had broke and Gellac finally able to properly rest, the paladin began talking in his sleep, "I can't eat any more cheese, Talia! Well, okay, maybe a few more bites...ohhhh, I'm so full..." at which point Gellac awoke to find Squiggy staring at him in amusement. The dream, however, had faded.

Bristol had been released upon the condition that he pay the stable fees to retrieve his horse. Any other attempts to do so otherwise would land him on a chain gang outside the city walls. Bobo took the eladrin under his wing in an attempt to steer him towards adventure and helping with the clearing of the slums of the old city. Bristol is now taking residency (at least for the night) int he room adjacent to Ella's.

And, everyone has leveled up to 2.