Winter Games
Overview
Back to other Scribe Notes: Session - Winter 806 (June-Sep 06 Session)
Storyline involved in this adventure (maybe) can be found here and here and here and maybe here.
General Notes:
For a road map of the area click here. Level: Low, Medium and High. (PL) are party leaders.
GM: Jono - 31 Methuen Road, Avondale. 7:00pm start time.
Tehe(PL), Nicola, Starflower, Sabrina, Aryan
GM: William/Callum - 31 Methuen Road, Avondale. 7:00pm start time.
Human(PL), Mebh, Basalic, Drum, Toledo
GM: Jon - 13 Layard Street, Avondale. 7:00pm start time.
Mordrin(PL), Eric, Boulder, Thorn, Lizette
GM: Greg Graydon Small 'hit team' of a few people with special skills.
GM: Bernard Hoggins. Seagate Support Team.
Prizes so far
- Loot: Lunar Winter Games 806 - Qualifying for the Trials of the Gladiators
- Loot: Lunar Winter Games 806 - Gladiator Prize Items
- Loot: Lunar Winter Games 806 - Qualifying for the Fantastical Games
- New item write-ups as at 1st Sept 2006, with values added, for the Lunar Winter Games 806] - In total this is a 3.4 MB pdf file.
Booklets
- A copy of the PDF booklet for the Trials of the Gladiators can be download here.
- A copy of the PDF booklet for the Fantasical Games can be download here.
Mission:
The Guild Council wants the Guild teams to win. It seems to be very important to them. They have a support building just outside the city, and they are watching all of the games keenly.
Groups One, Two and Three: An invite to the guild to send up to three teams to enter the Lunar Winter Games. Win at the Winter Games in the Arena in Lunar City, in the Lunar Empire.
Group Four: Assist as needed on special jobs for groups one to three. Stop enemy Spys and Assassins.
Opportunities - Master Ranks:
Master ranks in skills. Within the Lunar Games some people will have the Opportunity to work on Master skills. These are in the areas of: Military Scientist, Warrior, Healer, Troubadour for the three main groups. The master rank will take the form of an Opportunity to progress one rank 8, 9 or 10 as long as it is completed within the next 4 years. If it is not completed within the timeframe then the Opportunity will be lost.
The support groups may be able to also gain from Master Ranks also and should talk to your GM.
Other Teams
Guild members log and Scribe Notes
Summary of Results:
Qualification Rounds
- All three guild teams qualified.
The Parade, The Senators and The Tigers
- All three teams met their Senators, and some teams engaged in Tiger hunting.
- One Teams defeated the Hobbit team in a street fight, One Team ran in Tigers, the other team was attacked by Assassians.
Trials of the Gladiators
- All teams fight other teams in the side arenas without magic to please the crowd.
The Fantastical Games
- The seven teams making thus far get to enter the fantastical games in the main arena.
Casual Conversations in Loud Voices
Items of Public Interest or Notice
The following are some odd, noticed, unusual or publicly commented on events that have occurred or are said to have occurred about Lunar City and surrounds during the course of the games.
22nd Frost
- Slave Master Impaled
- The body of Vibius Sallustius Silanus, known to be a particularly harsh slave master, was found impaled on a set of railings on the path leading to the eastern side of the arena complex. How his body was placed there in full view of the night watch without any alarm being raised is a matter of some speculation. He appears to have died shortly after being impaled.
- Balloon Ignites Warehouse
- A warehouse in the docks district was burned to the ground early this morning after an errant hot air balloon lodged in hay bales near the loading dock. The owner of the balloon Manius Gabinius Galeo (a well known eccentric) was heard to say "Those pesky kids are always untying it! Well, now the fats in the pigeons!" The owner of the warehouse is still being traced. No-one appears to have been in the warehouse at the time of the blaze.
24th Frost
- Flesh Golems in the Arena
- Arena officials are puzzled as to how a flesh golem filled with superheated steam managed to appear in the arena during a qualifying match yesterday. One of the guards complained that with the inquisition out of town "It's much harder to keep tabs on these things."
1st of Snow
The Parade from the Block to Lower Lunar City went well with many thousands of people onlooking at the teams.
2nd and 3rd of Snow
Parade moved into the city.
4th of Snow
Maybe as many as 50 HUGE tigers are set loose in the city.
A group from the Games attack and kill the Hobbit team in the Dock section of the lower city.
6th of Snow
- Team Withdraw
- Senator Volparius has left the games to attend to unrest in his home province. Team "We're Trollz Guv" accompanied him "Coz trolls is about fightin an winnin!".
- Warehouse owner revealed
- The owner of the warehouse that was destroyed by fire late last month has been revealed as "Vibius Sallustius Silanus". Silanus was of course not available for comment due to his having been impaled earlier that night. Officers of the guard who are filling in for the absent Inquisition are pondering if there may be some link between the two events.
9th of Snow
- Bodies Found
- Two bodies have been found in a house adjoining the area where the guild party of Human's Team were attacked by assassins. The hapless pair are currently being questioned about what happened. Speculation about what they may reveal is rife amongst interested Senate/games personnel.
11th of Snow
- Senator missing
- Senator Pluvius Minius Dorsuo (sponsor of the Death to Vermin team)has been reported missing by the house of Minius. Rumours abound that the Senator was intimately involved with two comely young women when he was taken.
12th of Snow
- Senator killed
- The charred remains of what necromancers using talk to dead have determined to be Senator Pluvius Minius Dorsuo (sponsor of the Death to Vermin team) have been found in a burnt out warehouse today. Drow team representatives immediately accused the Eressea Wild Flowers of complicity in this crime. The Wild Flowers immediately made statements under runes of truth that they did not perform the crime nor did they hire others to do it.
- Vigilantes abroad?
- With the absence of the inquisition, several itinerants have been turning up garroted in alleyways around the city. The office of the guard noted that although "a few scruffs will not be missed, people should not take the law into their own hands."
13th of Snow
- Inquisition Vanishes
- Ahead of the Fantastical Games (At which point the teams are rumoured to be sent on missions outside the city) Inquistion members who have been banished from the city for the duration of the games have disappeared from the surrounding country side. The thought around the dinner tables of Games officials has been "What are they up to?"
- Sales of Hydra Antivenin
- A flurry of merchants and supposed alchemists have suddenly sprung up around the games village selling what they claim is Hydra Antivenin. Guards officials merely stated "Caveat Emptor"
15th of Snow
- Flurry of Void Cruiser Activity
- Citizens out performing daily activities were surprised and fascinated to note the patrolling void cruiser suddenly divert course collect its two companions and begin sweeping low level searches of the city. A spokes entity from the Sword Worlds Confederation said that "There was no cause for alarm" and that "surprise search manoeuvrers were a regular part of void cruiser readiness exercises."
- Unseasonal spring growth
- Tales from the south have drifted in of unseasonable growth in one of the southern forests, oak trees in a particular area have sprung leaves and a carpet of wildflowers with an intoxicating scent have sprung up in defiance of what should be a cold and wintery area.
16th of Snow
- Exhibition of well known artists work
- Already described as a triumph of colour and light by many leading Citizens and patrons of the arts; the recent collection of "Winter Games" paintings by Otto von Schultz has swept a path through the literatzi and left the general public gasping at the boldness of some of the new works.
- Kraken of Horrors Defeated
Shortly after the Flashing Steel SAG team entered the main arena at 9am this morning, the portal was opened to admit the Kraken. Many brave souls in the unpopular seats at the south end of the arena were swept to their death by tidal wave accompanying its arrival.
Tehe, Nicola, Sabrina, and Aryan emerged from the water on an island that miraculously appeared. Starflower the drake flew across the arena through the maelstroms sent to destroy her and charged the Kraken. Seemingly spurred by Aryan waving a small fan at it the Kraken attacked the island in a rage, trapping the Seagate team in the corner. The crowd hushed as the guild team was about to be destroyed.
Then Nicola struck a blow with her enchanted blade stripping the protective layer of water from the Kraken, Aryan flew through the air to land on the great beast and smite it from above, Sabrina cleaved a tentacle in two to allow Tehe to charge the beast and strike out its eye.
The Kraken threw its tentacles in the air screaming to curdle the blood, but the scream which slew thousands in combats past was denied by the guild team who drew together and delivered the killing blows to the great horror.
- The Southhaven Academy for Girls is now cut off.
- The Flashing Steel team then left for the Forest of Hope, into which 17 teams have gone and none have returned.
17th of Snow
- Hags of Decay Defeated
- In the morning of the 17th Human's (SAG) team defeated the Hags of Decay.
- Giant Spider Queen
- At midday the team lead by Mordrin (SAG) defeated the Giant Spider Queen.
- Mistress of the Moon
- In the afternoon Human's (SAG) team defeated the Mistress of the Moon, cutting off the Sword World Confederation (Calamar) Team.
18th of Snow
- Single Eye of Decay
- The Defenders of Ascalon (Giants) defeat the 'Cyclops of Decay in the morning, cutting off the Player of Games team.
19th of Snow
- Mordrin's (SAG) Team Disqualified
- After they defeated the horrors the Medusa of Light and Shadows and Lord Carzo the Blood Devourer, Minator of the Pained in the arena this morning, Maxramus disqualified the Seagate Team led by Mordrin for receiving demonic aid during the games!
- Flashing Steel Returns from the Forest of Hope
- The Seagate team led by Tehe, presumed lost with the 17 previous teams to the Forest of Hope returned with news of survivors of the previous teams still living in the forest.
- Drow Plot Revealed
- At midday the three Seagate teams stormed the administration block of the arena. They led guards and gladiators loyal to the empire to defeat the Drow and Calimar and reveal that Maxramus had been replaced with a doppleganger!
- Eye witnesses reported that one of the Calimar present was Administrator Betheltagan, but none of the Drow matched descriptions of the Drow team.
- Captured conspirators are being questioned and the fate of Maxramus is still being investigated.
- Maxramus found!
- Unknown forces have found the missing Maxramus and returned him to the Arena. Details surrounding this return are sketchy and a spokesman for the Emperor merely stated that forces loyal to the Empire and the spirit of the games have provided much needed assistance. The Emperor has acknowledged the part the Seagate Aventures guild has played in this along with the Prince of Ranke and other lesser known forces. In the spirit of the occasion and at the behest of one of those forces the Emperor has decreed that all slaves currently on sale in the market be freed.
- End of the Empire?
- Rumours now abound the the final fight between the Senators of Decay and the winning team has more riding on it than at first appears. Some high born families have been seen to be leaving the city. "They're just going on seasonal holiday" stated a Senatorial secretary. Corruscating fields of magical energy have been seen in the vicinity of the Arena and the Inquistion has been recalled to parts of the city.
20th of Snow
- Glacius found!
- Legendary weapon of pure cold Glacius has been seen in the cautious hands of a member of the Seagate Adventures Guild. This near mythical weapon could be all the difference between life and death in the arena. How this weapon came into the possession of the SAG is a matter of much speculation. As a weapon with a history of association with the games use of the icy blade is permitted without penalty. With the ability to freeze men solid and inflict icy damage of a magnitude rarely seen outside of the arctic home of the ice giants; daring punters are looking forward to seeing this weapon in action! (Keep those healing potions and wooly blankets at the ready...)
- Emperor and Titans attend games.
- At around midday the final for the Winter Lunar Games was well attended by the Emperor and many Senators, Titans, Storm Giants and Cloud Giants, as well as a record crowd of some 60,000 people. Teams from the Seagate Adventures Guild, (SAG) won in less than a 30 seconds defeating all three Senators of Decay extremely quickly despite problems.
- With the support of the SAG teams Mebh quickly lead a suprise attack on the Senators of Decay. In the 2nd, and 3rd round of combat Mebh killed two of the Senator's. The 3rd Senator was killed shortly thereafter.
- The SAG team members called for Mebh to win the games and they gained overwhelming support from the crowd and the Titans, and the Emperor also quickly backed the call.
- Seagate Adventures Guild teams win!
- The celebration of the victory lasted late into the night of the 20th. On a private matter the SAG team members victory was soured a bit by the discovery of some sort of Cultist supports of the Senators of Decay and the evil affects they seem to be under.
21th of Snow
- Lunar Winter Games Close
- In the morning of the 21st at the main arena, the Winter Lunar Games offically closed by Emperor Titus Flavous Valentius Stabilius. All members of SAG team members are given Emperors keys to the Empire.
- Problem sleeping
- Aryan quickly decided that SAG members will sort the problem out. He and his group have some ideas.
What really happened...
The following is a list of recent discoveries that are not public knowledge but have been revealed to members of the SAG and their sponsors. (This has been the result of work by an unknown force.)
- Up until recently the Lunar Empire has been an large powerful but introspective force in the world with little ambitions outside its own borders.
With the advent of the Winter Games things have changed. The Emperor is taking note of the outside world and worse making alliances with powerful off plane entities (The Calimar)
The Drow could not stand by and let this happen. So... They replaced the real Max Ramus with a doppelganger with aural alteration and other disguises.
The fake Max then persuaded the Emperor that the finale of the games would be a fight against the "Evil Corrupt Senators" faked of course, some large monsters disguised as the real senators should put on a good show as no-one really knows what the senators look like anyway.
However... On the fourth level under the Circus Arena are a set of four chambers that contain the real senators bound by a magical pact/bond that also powers the anti powers protection that the Empire enjoys. (One of which contained the real Max... which raises other questions as yet unanswered)
The fake Max/Drow has replaced the players of games with a team of his own making. This fake but popular team should have won through to the final and then lost to the Senators. This would provide the Senators with an opportunity to break their magical bonds. The Giants team (and to a lesser extent the X team) cottoned onto the fact that something was up and withdrew from the earlier games in the hopes of cutting the fakes off in the fantastical games.
Mysterious forces have successfully rescued the real Max from the fourth chamber under the arena and he has quashed the disqualifications of the two guild teams.
Moreover the same mysterious forces have discovered that the original games covenant allowed for teams from provinces not senators to challenge in the magical contract that made the games an integral part of the Life of the Empire. (Blood from the floor of the arena flowing through pipes to the fourth level and feeding the devices restraining the three senators)
This means that rather than only five people facing the Senators all three SAG teams can fight an epic battle to prevent the senators from breaking free of their bonds.
The Senators are wearing ankle chains that under no circumstances should be broken. If left undisturbed whilst in the arena for longer than a short length of time they will be able to break the chains and free themselves.
The actions the Drow have set in motion may now only be stopped by genuine Games teams in the Arena. The Empire's Titans will point out that; magical traps and wards of high rank will prevent any but the qualified from entering the Arena.
The Drow hope that these internal ructions will refocus the Empire on its internal workings for a few more decades.
Other things of note.
Pure beings can hurt the Senators most, The senators can hurt the pure the most.
Impure being can hurt the senators the least and are hurt by the senators the least.
The mysterious force has supplied one pure silver hand and a half for use by the parties and suggests that the sword trapped inside the ice elemental would be a good bet too. This sword Glacius has been retrieved and is available for use.