Darkness Falls

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• GM: Miles Jackson
• Time: Spring 813 WK
• Day: Wednesdays
• Level: Medium/High

Return to Korinia - scene of Where Have All The Dragons Gone?, Six go mad on mescaline, Little Girl Lost in the Woods and Lessons in Enlightenment and Respect. A loose end to tidy up - a powerful drow lich necromancer named Eeallice.

Diary

Duesday: Voodoo Hoodoo at the Guild

A Dude with a Deal

As happens at this time of the year, a motley collection of scarred and feathered adventurers meet up with a dude with a deal. This time it is a tall, dark skinned man called L'roy from the plane of Korina. He carries a cane and wears a cutlass - with a strong aura of Voodoo Magic (whatever that is). Justing by the skull mounted atop his ebony cane (a cane so powerful it stunned a DAer) it looks like he knows some necromantic type enchantments. Typical employer really.
As some of those present remember fondly, a couple of years ago, a powerful drow liche necromancer called Eeallice was finally driven off that plane - disrupting all sorts of carefully laid plans (the usual - taking over the whole plane etc etc). Well, she's back, quite a few thousand miles south of her last attempt. Pretty sure she's going for the 'take over the plane' plan again.

The Party

Six Seagaters stay for further briefing

• Sooty – Elven healer & ash mage (leader)
• Dwork - Orc fire blast mage (scribe)
• Theodonna - A not quite human namer
• Dirk - Dwarf warrior with a remarkable constitution
• Hamish - Human wiccan with great restorative powers
• Zanak - Warror priest of Ahura Mazda, shining light of the party

Briefing

Way down south, down beyond the Gaterville bayous and swamplands there is an ocean - where evil is stirring. Necromancers & bands of undead and pirates of all sorts. A group of secretive powerful beings have divined that it is Eealice again - and they want to counter that evil. They've sent L'roy to make that happen.
He can provide a significant advance (let's us buy greaters, potions, amulets and vials of holy water) and will share a drink with us before opening a portal and putting us on fast hot air balloon from Heliopost Depot to Gaterville Depot. Then we're on our own.

Pay

20,000sp advance.
30,000sp on surviving to return.
Additional gifts for success.

W'ansday: Research and Preparation

Researchers scurry and get down dusky books - as we seek out powerful mages to cast protective magic over us, and Seagate alchemists chortle over their mass sales of potions (100 healing potions - and the rest). Easy come, easy go.

• Gaterville is surrounded by swamps and inhabited by shady characters (Hamish should fit right in)
• We discover that the port south of Gaterville is called Port Charles - and is run by the League of Freebooters (a bunch of pirates I imagine)
• The southern ocean has many islands, any one of which could be Eeallice's base of operations (on that plane a least)
• In case we have forgotten it, the plane of Korinia is only thinly separated from the spirit plane. Past work by the guild have stopped powerful beings from the spirit plane breaking through - and taking over.

Th'rsday: A Quiet Drink and Noisy Goblins

L'roy Buys a Round

Would you drink a goblet of liquid with dark purple mist rising from it's murky surface? Well Theo and Zanak tried a DA first and got stunned for their trouble. The rest of us gulped it down - not bad. Tasted liked it looks really.
Was a bit of a test from the big man really - those that drank got a season's boon of:

• Two less points of draining damage (stacks with other draining resistance)
• Take two off die rolls when roll is to strike or cast vs undead (stacks with lesser enchantment)

Korinia Depot

Green Guys in control

Voodoo guy opens a portal (some sort of rune based magic) and we step through (after the mandatory power-up - just in case). It is an airship depot - infested by half-drunken goblins - including Razzy, which turns out to be the boss of the airship we're going to be flying in for the next two days.
L'roy gives Sooty a dark sphere - clutched by a desiccated hand. He'll contact us through it once a day in the evening to a progress report - or we can trigger it and he'll get back to us as soon as he can. Makes me feel real safe. Razzy gets a bag of coins - and leaves us with a few final words of wisdom

L'roy: the spirit plane is dangerous. Try to stay out of it.

Goblins in Control

Two years ago, one Captain Kree of Heliopolis and his Roc troops troops where good allies, so we pay to send a message to the good Captain - asking for whatever assistance he can give (20sp!). Basically: The Liche is back/We're back/There's gonna be a rumble/Get there if you can.

Sooty's Note:  The message is in basic code.  So hopefully he remembers a few things.

We get into a cabin slung under a long hot air balloon (heated by long term heat metal magic).

• Ballistae mounted forward and aft. That's good.
• Goblins carrying on cylinders of highly flamable alchemical liquids. Not so good - we make sure all our flame protection is in place - and wonder about the more serious fate of an explosion - falling! We buy some experimental parachute-things (@5sp!) and put our trust in the goblins (ha!)
  

Take-off is explosively fast (strapped into our seats), but settles down to a fast, high transport
Dusk comes below and the lands go dark. We maintain double watches.

Frysday: The Orc Saves the Party

Fact or Fiction?

As sky lightens with the warmth of dawn, the morning watch spots another ramshackle balloon refuelling depot. Despite the early hour, it is full of half-drunk goblin ballooners – full of aviation fluids and wild tales of driving off attacks by big eagles and pirate balloons piloted by feral goblins further south. We listen for the truth in all this braggadocio (the eagles sound more like griffins to us) - and ponder the future

Goblins out of Control

After a day of fast flight we sail swiftly into the night. Was it magic that made most lose consciousness? Well maybe, but it was the ever-vigilant orc that roused the sleepers and called them to battle the circling attackers (look like black shrouded goblins on griffins - could have some sort of construct fliers).
Air magics (knock-out gas, thunderclap, air blast?) and Arrow Flight enhanced crossbow bolts make us think about how seriously high we are – and how effective these experimental parachutes might be. Most of our goblins are unconscious or dead, but we rally – Theo counters the incoming spells and gives us the time to prepare a deadly counter attack. The black goblins fade away – obviously not expecting such resistance, but not without a final threat.
Dirk drives off the dark goblin atop the balloon - stopping a vigorous cutting away the ropes attaching us to the balloon. A newly roused Captain Razzy feverously reties – saving many of us from an impromptu parachute test.

Reapsday: Gaterville Inns - and Outs

The dawn reveals the distant swamp town

We see more details as we close - not a comforting sight. The wood and steel balloon mooring tower sticks 300’ straight up – like the bent handle on a fry pan full of simmering filth – rank after rank of chaos built ramshackle tenements, filled with putrid slum scum. A bit like the Sanctuary Maze and Sewer districts combined really.

We decide our cover story – we’re pursing one red haired and bearded Black Mark to recover some items he borrowed. According to his Journal he came first here, did some croc-hunting, then down to Port Charles (200 miles south). Some of us have history here before, so we decide on cover names (Zanak: Zod, Dirk: Quazzi, Dwork: Dork, Hamish: Ish, Theodonna: Dona, Sooty: Divers)

We get some information from the goblin airmen and descend into the morass.

Inns For All

The Goblin's Revenge - Greeta the Goblin fire mage

The goblin rents us a room for 20sp (it’s like a wooden strong box on stilts over the swamp, with iron bound door and shuttered windows - they take their security seriously here).
She’s pacted to the Baron Alagor (a fire effretti). This is good news, because we rescued the Baron from Eeallice a couple of years ago - and he may be one of secret backers of this mission. The whole inn in consecrated to the Baron (which kinda messes up Zanak - who is pacted elsewhere) and protected against fire. My sort of girl really. We talk.

• Port Charles has been run for the last year by one Vladimir the Impaler. Greeta can provide transport directly there (a fire portal) - to her other ‘establishment’
• The air attacks really only started in the last 6 weeks
• Krane the Croc Hunter is the best guide (stays bought @ 200sp/day + expenses) hangs out in the evenings at The Salty Croc (Gordy is the #2 guide)

Abby – Urchin at the door

We check for eavesdroppers and find one – an almost supernaturally fast urchin, who is a local information merchant. We pay her to make contact for us with the Thieves Guild – and to keep information about us to herself.

The Salty Croc - Akea ex-croc hunter

We head through the streets to see about a guide. We’re all jostled and fend off fingers probing for loose change. For a change, I’m treated to an intimate touch by a lady (normally of the night), Dirk gets propositioned and probed, but they can’t find anything to get a hold on.
Sitting in the sun outside the Salty is a half-orc with half his legs and half his arms (obviously got up real close to croc teeth) - seems to have more than half a brain. For a few pieces of silver the dark skinned guy tells us:

• All the hunters are out a huntin’ ‘til dusk. He’ll pass a message onto Krane.
• People have been disappearing in the swamps
• Voodoo shaman slavers come from the south in big 30 man canoes, often crewed by undead (small, scaly skinned, wielding weapons and wearing armour)
• He is suspects a local voodoo priestess (Natalia) as being in league with the slavers – a huge black-marble coloured woman with a bone through her nose. Lives out in the bayou.
• The best place to get advice on protection vs voodoo magic is from Volt at the Will o’th’Wisp.
• Snaggletooth (the protective dragon of the swamps around here) hasn’t been seen for a while, rumoured to have been killed by a truly enormous crocodile
• Akea is certain the days are getting shorter (yeah, right)
• We can get more information from Dori, the barmaid at the Ice Dragon’s Demise

Grilled at the Guild - thieves and a vampire

Abby turns up and leads us to a dank alley filled with large armoured orcs – and then inside to a darkened guild stronghold. We tell our cover story and pay (@500sp) to stop the street probings (we’re given a small charm – must see if we can be tracked through it). Sooty joins the guild for more silver (500) to get access to guild records – and a librarian who turns out to be a vampire. She confirms that a crocodile did eat the dragon – about a year ago. And also confirms the days are getting shorter

Will o'th’Wisp - Volt Voodoo Shaman

The rest of us head over to see the cowled, hairless tattooed shaman. Yes, he’s got protection he can sell us, and just by looking at me and Dirk can tell we’re going to need it – ‘cos somewhere in the streets we were relieved of small body fragments, and even now someone was using them to construct a voodoo doll (a three day task) – he can tell these things just by looking at us. Funny how he doesn’t let anybody get close enough to touch him.

• 100 mins (??) Voodoo counter spell 30%: ???sp
• 1 day Voodoo counter potion 30%: 500 sp or 4,500sp for 10 (he’s got 7 available)
• Permanent Amulet vs Voodoo 30%: 2,500sp (he’s got 3)

Volt: the spirit plane is disturbed

Well, Dirk and me have a problem. We have to find our voodoo dolls, dispel magic on them, then dismantle and burn pieces separately. Luckily (kinda) there can only been one voodoo doll controlling a person at a time, so we could keep them which means nobody could start another one.
Abby appears again – other people are paying for information about travellers from off-plane. And, it looks like Natalia the voodoo priestess is behind the inquiries.
We buy all of Volt’s available stock (amulets for Dirk, Hamish and me - potions for the rest) and head back to the guild to pick up Sooty and get some Aura Alternation and Disguise Illusions cast on us (yep, we’re now definitely from this plane – Heliopolis)

Dinner Party - with fireworks to follow

As dusk falls, we head back to the Gob’s Revenge and meet Palace – a specialist transport mage (5 mins notice @100 sp). Zanak vomits and finds the mage is also pacted to the Baron. Krane arrives and stays for dinner.
Greeta agrees that Natalia could be an agent of Eeallice. The voodoo priestess’ place is about two miles out in the swamp, strong enough to have resisted an attack by Snaggletooth, totally fireproofed and protected by water goblins and crocodiles. And it looks like we’re goona have to attack it. What fun!
After dinner, paranoid that we are, we send projected illusions of ourselves back to our strongbox room – which promptly explodes massively (the way goblin balloon propellant could). Only splinters are left floating in the water - around the swiftly diving water goblins that caused the big bang. Fireworks courtesy of Natalia we think.

Out to a Party in the Bayou

Natalia Manse through the mist

Krane takes us out to the Natalia’s swamp manse (1000 sp for delivery to her dock). Approaching carefully, Theo DAs and the rest of us peer through the rising evening swamp mist:

• Solid two story fire protected building (about 80’x100’) on 12' stilts. Verandas at each level.
• Jetty and veranda out the front patrolled by 4 water goblins (water magics, self-bows, scimitars). Jetty 3’ above water, steps left and right from lower veranda to upper veranda. Krane says there are back stairs - very narrow.
• Crocodile pens underneath (greater salt crocodiles)
• On the roof we spot 3 zombies (one a ‘fire’ zombie) and a gargoyle (with dehydration)
• The doors are warded (deafening scream) and windows enhanced (bound glass, enhanced vision).

And that’s just what we can see.

We plan - how do you crack a big nut? With a big hammer.

Sooty has got three earth elementals packed away somewhere, so we get them to make an island firing platform close the house – and then pull it down around Natalia’s ears.
Well, the earth guys do a great job off cracking the nut (split in two, magic pouring out of the windows and cracks), but then they run into something far far meaner than them in the darkness under the house – and pieces of elemental start being thrown out, and signs of a massive (80ft!) crocodile are seen.

The Best laid plans

Crocodile propelled canoes full of goblins with bows and harpoons charge our island – and an impenetrable mist descends on us, but flights of envenomed arrows tell is the green guys can see through it. Hamish desperately slashes at a rope as a harpoon penetrates him - pulls him forward. Zanak triggers Hamish’s healing rune – and then drops full of goblin venom. Theo puts up a warding against crocodiles - and then drops, too
Sooty puts down an ash clouds so nobody can see. Dirk battles with the incoming gargoyle. Sooty heals Zanak’s poison. I cut the harpoon rope on the now unconscious Hamish. Zanak flies up to attack the gargoyle and dies – dehydrated from its horn.
Dirk turns to deal the huge incoming croc (DA: demon lizard!) and is swallowed whole – desperately grabbing a gaseous form potion to avoid a crushing death. I’m sure this is the croc that killed Snaggletooth. Dodging inaccurate bow fire, I try to dehydrate the big croc and Hamish triggers similarly deadly magic – to no avail. Dirk escapes the jaws as the croc changes into a large humanoid female – and calls for the gargoyle to come and get her – Natalia is revealed. A dozen goblins make landfall. We decide to bug out.

Organisation

Loot and Expenditure

Cash Advance

20,000 sp

Each

• Rank 20 Greater: Lucius @8,000 sp
• 20 x 10 pt Guild Healing potions @ 650 sp
• 5 x Water of Healing @ 1,200 sp
• 3 x Vials of Holy Water (free from Zanak's Church)

Buffs

Magic	Rk	Effects	Dur	So	Dw	Th	Di	Ha	Za	P7
Daily buffs		(dawnish)
Corruscade (1Ft ea., Za)	20	+42/21 Defence/Close	31 hours (Enh.Enc.)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Ash Armour (1 Ft ea., So)	15	80pts ablative vs Elemental damage	26 Hours (Enh.Enc.)	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Twice Daily buffs		(Dawnish & duskish). Ritual with Orb
Rune of Willow Healing (2 Ft, Za)	6	3 End a pulse for 8	12 Hours	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Mind Shield? (1 Ft, Ha)	4?	Immunity to Telepathy	9+ Hours?	Y/Pos.	Y/Pos.	Y/Pos.	Y/Pos.	Y	Pos.
Feather Falling (1 Ft, So)	17	Float to ground	9 Hours	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Quarterly refresh		as needed with restoratives/Enh.Enc.
Ash Shroud (2 Ft ea., So)	6	4 End Armour (No stacking)	6.5 Hours	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Fire Proofing? (1 Ft ea, Dw)	6	Protection from normal fires	13 hrs	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Wings of the Phoenix (2 Ft ea., So)	7	37mph flight, Dark ash trailing wings.	7.5 Hours	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Quietness (1 Ft ea. Za)	6	+11% Stealth	6.5 Hours	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Combat Buffs.
Weapon of Flames (2 Ft ea. Dw)	13	+14% S.C. +7DM(+13 vs Undead)	18/28 minutes (Enh.Enc)	2?	6?	5?	1?	3?	4?
Breathing (1 Ft ea., So)	11	Can breath	3 Hours	1	4	3	2	5	6
Holy Light (So/Za)	10	Drain protection + AoE Drain protection	21/33 Pulses	Y	Maybe	Maybe	Maybe	Maybe	Y
Spell name	rk	effects...	99 minutes	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y

Other Buff Notes

Enchanted Area: When down, recipient pays Ft cost rather than caster. Morning buffs cost 2 Ft each. Ritual buffs only cost caster, Quarterly buffs cost 5 Ft per round. Pets/Primary allies will be included in buffs.
Restoratives needed dawn & dusk to keep party at high Ft levels as a result.
Restoratives: Hamish
Healing: Sooty/Zanack (Via Healer)

Times to buff.

Dawn/Dusk Rituals 1 hour + 10 mins for other spells + restoratives/healing. But full/almost full fatigue.

Midday/Night < 1 min to buff but everyone down 5 Ft.

Amulets of Jasper.

Purchased (12,000sp): Dwork, xxxx, xxxx.
Loaned (8,000sp on loss): xxxx, xxxx, xxxx.

Party Skills

• Mil Sci: Dirk (6), Sooty(5, Skirmish, Naval), Zanak (2)
• Ranger: Dirk, Hamish, Sooty (5, Damned Terrains)
• Healer: Sooty (8, No Resurrect), Zanak (6)
• Silent Tongue: Sooty (6), Zanak (6), Dwork (4)

Watch Orders

Normal

• Hamish, Zanak
• Sooty, Dwork
• Theodonna, Dirk

High Alert

• Hamish, Zanak, Dwork
• Sooty, Theodonna, Dirk

Marching Orders

Standard

• Dirk.
• Dwork, Hamish.
• Theodonna, Sooty
• Zanak.

Single file.

• Dirk, Dwork, Hamish, Theodonna, Sooty, Zanak

Calendar

Spring: Thaw (10) 813wk
	Moonday		Duesday		W'ansday		Th'rsday		Frysday		Reapsday		Sunday
		Candlemansa	1	Guild Meeting	2	Study & Prep	3	A Drink, Noisy Goblins	4	Travel Trouble	5	Gaterville	6
	7		8		9		10		11		12		13
	14		15		16		17		18		19		20
	21		22		23		24		25		26		27
Spring: Seedtime (11)
	28		29		30		1		2		3		4
	5		6		7		8	Rites of Thunor	9		10		11
	12		13		14		15	Equinox	16		17	Eostre	18	Seagate Spring Ball
	19		20		21		22		23		24		25
	26		27		28		29		30		1		2
Spring: Blossom (12)
	3		4		5		6		7		8		9
	10		11		12		13		14		15		16
	17		18		19		20		21	Floralia	22		23
	24		25		26		27		28		29		30	Walpurgisnacht