Talsil 24th - 26th
three roads to Saspien
Isabella's Road
Renato's Road
Diana's Road
Experience: 2200 xp each (64,606 total)
Infiltrating Castle Saspien (Isabella), 1200
Addressing the Court of the Night (Isabella), 600
Escaping Castle Saspien (Renato), 3600
Making Amends (Diana), 600
Matchmaking (Diana), 600
Coin: - 25gp (Isabella, Object Reading)
Loot: Three of Wands card (Diana): It is well known that you should take a journey, with the greater the distance proving the greater rewards.
New Companions
Mina Morris: Reserved dhampir mage and associate of the Ravens, she was Diana's 'footsteps' during her extended stay in Barovia. She had a difficult childhood and a macabre flair to her dress, but proved a stalwart, if witty, companion to the Heiress Apparent.
Orso Mallus: Renato's childhood 'friend' and the object of his incessant bullying. Never the less, the rather simple beastmaster proved loyal to Renato upon their reunion and willing to help him clear his name. As with many of the Mallus, he has taken a beastwife in Ladybear, the 300 pound black bear. He himself is a big, bald boy around 6'3" and 260 pounds.
Ladybear: Orso's beastwife, a 300 pound black bear that serves as his sexual partner and guardian.
New NPCs
Marquess Olivianna Ruiz-Lorein: Sovereign of the vampiric port of Tepest, she married one of the last remaining Loreins with any claim to power. He's enjoying an extended holiday on Tir'buk and Olivianna rules in his stead, controlling the landing point for the Tir'bukan houses (earning her the hatred of Loreins everywhere). She has recently fled to Saspien and the protection of Castle Saspien while the war rages along the vampiric coast and within the Sea of Embers, her daughter acting as her remote hand. Izzy discovered her designs to supplant Queen Victoria and suggested already having had the pleasure of the king. It is in her best interests to keep Dante in power, though she is far from trustworthy. Very far...
King Dante Il'spana I: The King of the Night, he is lord of the vampiric empire both on Othyr and Tir'buk. His rule has always been challenged, largely because of his half-blooded nature, but also because of his soft, even sentimental, stances toward the kine/bestiame/non-vampires. He banned the consumption of humanoid blood and strengthened ties with the outside world, joining Saspien with the Northern Alliance. Though a new era of acceptance has risen in regard to vampires in the northern world, many perceive these gains a negative, especially during a war with the Holy Nors Empire in which Saspien is facing the brunt of initial conflicts. Coupled with the fact Dante is aging much faster than a full-blood vampire, his wife openly ridicules him, his daughter marred his reputation by shamefully killing herself (or so the public believes), rivals disregard him daily in court, and he proves unable to properly defend the Saspish Vale from recent Nors incursions, most believe (perhaps himself included) that his days as ruler are numbered. Izzy, through ritual, did uncover evidence that he loves her and misses her still, something entirely opposite her soul-selling mother. He may be involved in some sort of affair with the marquess.
General Janisar al'Zareef: One of three generals of the vampiric armies, Janiser is of the summoner's house, though prides himself a capable dervish instead of his family's customary mages. His armies are gathered in the Saspish Vale, as opposed to the armies massed in Tir'buk and those in Saspien itself. He currently fights a losing battle on the valley front, trying to retake or at least hold the hills outside Lastlight, where Nors by the thousands are landing from imperial Tolerna, Liscar and Dalmera, and uniting with vampire hunters of the Order of Saint Gormite. He seems young to be a general, and rather dashing with swarthy skin and long black hair, though he wears a perpetual worried look, for there is much to worry about. He appears more loyal to the king than to his sire Kalfar, or at least he observes Dante as the highest authority in court, something many others do not.
High Priestess Widofa Lorein: The decrepit high priestess of Hecate in Saspien, one of the few remaining Loreins with any real power to their name. She was not always so, an ancient vampire baroness of a long-dissolved barony many thousands of years old who had removed herself from the political scene, but, with the rising of Hecate she, like many in her house, leaped at the chance of new-found power through the infernal faith. She oversees the Seven Sects of Sin within the goddess's main Saspish cathedral. Thus far, the Queen of Hell regards her as worthy and she holds many strong ties with the fiendish elements in the city.
High Priest Sufrat Il'spana: The spectral high priest of Gabriel in Saspien, he is a dread wraith looming seven feet tall and heaped in ghostly rags, with a tremendous scythe, black crown and blazing, red eyes. He was once a vampire of considerable power slain in the Demon War by Shalraza herself, only to rise again with the coming of Gabriel to serve as shepherd to the reborn vampires. He claims to have a direct connection with the King of Death, valuing his position even more than his house affiliation. That said, he's a staunch supporter of the king and all other Il'spana in office.
Sire Kalfar al'Zareef: The wealthy, eloquent and well-connected sire of House al'Zareef, an accomplished summoner and rival of the royal family. He challenges the monarchy openly at court and carries a large following among the city's envoys and officials. It is no secret he covets the crown, but plays the game so well none have managed to impede his progress toward that end. Dresses in the finest silks and opulent jewelry, and has a devilish appearance with his waxed beard and angled face.
Valenzo Vega: Renato's stunningly handsome and effeminate cousin of similar age, known for his depraved lusts and spotted wandering The Carnival of Monsters. He is the son of the marquess.
Dust: The Saspish Temple of the Night's most famed killer, she is one of only three assassins to have ever have been afforded erasure from the Book of Life, a ritual which removes her name and presence from all history. Wrapped in bandages from head to toe, only those she's marked for death are able to hear her voice. Renato spotted her for a brief moment on a rooftop before she vanished, though it's unclear whether or not she had been staring at him. Renato suspects she may very well have been the assassin who killed Lady Savrano, the same assassin who his father attempted to fend off.
Returning NPCs
Dame Samira von Immol
Burgomeister Ireena Kolyana
Maggie Magthere
Madame Eva
Burgomeister Petre Teodorous
New Hooks
The Coup (Isabella): On the night of Lady Savrano's murder, Renato heard the noblewoman reveal a conspiracy to kill the royal family. Two years later, the political climate is ripe for deposing King Dante. The list of potential usurpers is a long one, headed by Sire Kalfar al'Zareef, but definites are few and far between. Prevent the murder of your father and, perhaps, your mother. Preserve the rule of your immediate family and your eventual birthright.
Sins of the Mother (Isabella): Vrock revealed the terrible truth that your mother was the one who sold your soul to Mara for a single dread secret. What was that secret worth your innocence and immortality? How will you punish her for such a transgression again her own blood?
Revenge of the Son (Renato): Lord Ruiz is most likely being held within the bowels of the Saspish Temple of the Night, where the infamous Shadow Cabinet convenes, suffering the Ninety-Nine Cuts until he at last goes mad and his very soul dies. Both his name and yours have been tarnished in a grand cover up, pinning Lady Savrano's murder as a fit of bloodlust committed by father and son. Few have even heard of the Ordo Templi Nox, despite every district in the city possessing a Shadow Door to their temple, and your actions against the Barovian temple have upped you to number one on their hit list. You must avoid the pursuit of some of Othyr's most skilled killers long enough to enact your revenge on the Shadow Cabinet, free your father, and maybe even assume control of the organization for yourself... if such feats are even possible.
Lastlight: The Nors have landed, establishing a vital foothold in the Saspish Vale, a landing point for hundreds of ships and thousands of troops from Tolerna, Liscar and Dalmera. Combined with vampire hunters native to the valley, they prove a formidable and growing force that even now drives back General Janisar's forces nearly to the city walls. Within the month Saspien will be under siege unless something can be done.
Completed Quests
Matchmaker: Diana fulfilled her promise to Dame Samira by properly introducing her to Burgomeister Petre Teodorous. Things looks promising.
Next Session
Isabella, hidden in the civic wing of Castle Saspien, struggles with whether or not to contact her father or confront her mother. Renato, Orso and Ladybear infiltrate one of the older and smaller Ordo bases for answers. Diana passes into Saspien via the wardrobe and attempts to find her friends and avoid notice wandering through Ravenloft's sister palace.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
87a: Sodden Hold (PART IV)
Talsil 18th
the final battle begins
-
Experience: 1320 xp each (62,130 total)
Deprivation Chamber, 1800
Deactivating the Flooded Circuits, 3600
RP Bonus, 1200
New NPCs
Morgshu the Vile: The Malbolgean, a twelve foot mountain of pinkish, boil-ridden flesh whose massive, malformed head sits embedded in the center of his body. He reeks of putrid gases, dribbles and vomits acid, and can swallow men whole! Worse, on six legs and possessed of supernatural strength, there is little stopping this heap from crossing chambers in a single charge. His devils and he are part of the Distillery somehow, perhaps operators or engineers, and are aligned with the Grand Inquisitor.
Next Session
88a: The Saviors try to overcome the festering evil at the bottom of the hold, a slew of monstrous devils, depraved doctors and priests, the diabolical Distillery and the Grand Inquisitor himself. And where is DeWitt?
the final battle begins
-
Experience: 1320 xp each (62,130 total)
Deprivation Chamber, 1800
Deactivating the Flooded Circuits, 3600
RP Bonus, 1200
New NPCs
Morgshu the Vile: The Malbolgean, a twelve foot mountain of pinkish, boil-ridden flesh whose massive, malformed head sits embedded in the center of his body. He reeks of putrid gases, dribbles and vomits acid, and can swallow men whole! Worse, on six legs and possessed of supernatural strength, there is little stopping this heap from crossing chambers in a single charge. His devils and he are part of the Distillery somehow, perhaps operators or engineers, and are aligned with the Grand Inquisitor.
Next Session
88a: The Saviors try to overcome the festering evil at the bottom of the hold, a slew of monstrous devils, depraved doctors and priests, the diabolical Distillery and the Grand Inquisitor himself. And where is DeWitt?
Friday, October 8, 2010
84b: Fallen
Talsil 19th - 23rd
making safe Barovia
(placeholder)
Experience: 2733 xp each (62,406 total)
Barovia United, 4000
+ retaining Ashlyn's support
+ retaining Angelique's support
+ gaining the Children's support
- losing Ireena's support
The Fall of Zarephath, 3600
+ bloodless victory
Curing the Old Curse, 600
New NPCs
Brother Longeas: Once an unreasonable elven Child of Light, the exposure of Zarephath's evil softened and humbled his demeanor. He named Isabella redeemed in the eyes of the Children of Light and promised to speak on Barovia's behalf to his brothers and sisters. An Etherian ally.
Returning NPCs
Sister Gertruda: Once the priestess of the Barovian chapel of Kalinda, she heeded the call of the Children of Light and made the journey to the top of the Balinoks to help guard the Sunsword. However the village girl retained her reasonable and understanding nature, helping bring about the fall of Zarephath by providing proper witnesses. She's poised to take the reins of the Barovian Children in the wake of Zarephath's fall, and agreed on reaching a compromise regarding Etherian presence at the temple.
Completed Quests
The Old Curse: Without Zarephath to stoke the Sunsword's flame, the Old Curse fades and vampires no longer fear the artificial day.
Proof: Sufficient proof of their templar's treachery was laid before the Children, hidden in the woods during Renato and Isabella's exposing farce. Zarephath has been tarnished by his own deeds and destructive devotion, and subsequently cast into Hell.
Suffer the Children: The grateful Children, even staunch naysayers, have seen the light of reason and now work together with Barovian leaders on a compromise. Sister Gertruda now looks to head the Barovian sect of the Children in whatever form they may end up in.
Next Session (Saspish Nights)
85b: The party infiltrates the grim, sprawling capital of Saspien, where each of them is wanted by one faction or another, intent on foiling a suspected coup of the vampiric royal house, destroying the Ordo Templi Nox, and uncovering who was responsible for Lady Giovanna Savrano's murder. Lofty goals, even for The Dark Three, in a city that devours the strong and weak with impunity. Politics, magic, muscle and faith must be exerted in ways the vampires could never have imagined in order to survive the coming months.
making safe Barovia
(placeholder)
Experience: 2733 xp each (62,406 total)
Barovia United, 4000
+ retaining Ashlyn's support
+ retaining Angelique's support
+ gaining the Children's support
- losing Ireena's support
The Fall of Zarephath, 3600
+ bloodless victory
Curing the Old Curse, 600
New NPCs
Brother Longeas: Once an unreasonable elven Child of Light, the exposure of Zarephath's evil softened and humbled his demeanor. He named Isabella redeemed in the eyes of the Children of Light and promised to speak on Barovia's behalf to his brothers and sisters. An Etherian ally.
Returning NPCs
Sister Gertruda: Once the priestess of the Barovian chapel of Kalinda, she heeded the call of the Children of Light and made the journey to the top of the Balinoks to help guard the Sunsword. However the village girl retained her reasonable and understanding nature, helping bring about the fall of Zarephath by providing proper witnesses. She's poised to take the reins of the Barovian Children in the wake of Zarephath's fall, and agreed on reaching a compromise regarding Etherian presence at the temple.
Completed Quests
The Old Curse: Without Zarephath to stoke the Sunsword's flame, the Old Curse fades and vampires no longer fear the artificial day.
Proof: Sufficient proof of their templar's treachery was laid before the Children, hidden in the woods during Renato and Isabella's exposing farce. Zarephath has been tarnished by his own deeds and destructive devotion, and subsequently cast into Hell.
Suffer the Children: The grateful Children, even staunch naysayers, have seen the light of reason and now work together with Barovian leaders on a compromise. Sister Gertruda now looks to head the Barovian sect of the Children in whatever form they may end up in.
Next Session (Saspish Nights)
85b: The party infiltrates the grim, sprawling capital of Saspien, where each of them is wanted by one faction or another, intent on foiling a suspected coup of the vampiric royal house, destroying the Ordo Templi Nox, and uncovering who was responsible for Lady Giovanna Savrano's murder. Lofty goals, even for The Dark Three, in a city that devours the strong and weak with impunity. Politics, magic, muscle and faith must be exerted in ways the vampires could never have imagined in order to survive the coming months.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
86a: Sodden Hold (PART III)
Talsil 18th
into the laboratory
Previously...
The next generation of Saviors plunged into Sodden Hold Laboratory, negotiating an unexpectedly devious drainage system before confronting the imperial guards: Sons and Daughters of Nor.
During a battle, the party found these zealots deeply troubled and rather suicidal in the defense of the empire’s holdings. Narra determined their brains had been tampered with, irrevocably reprogrammed to love the empire and its emperor.
Worse, some recognized these Sons and Daughters of Nor had at one time been opponents of Emperor Endymion’s rule. Was this the fate of all those who resisted, brainwashing and induction into the emperor’s crazed loyalists? Given how pivotal the movement was to Endymion’s rise, could it be he orchestrated the political unrest twenty years prior which eventually led to his crowning as sovereign? How?
More answers, and in turn more questions, were revealed when the party tracked down the despicable Doctor Hemmler, the laboratory’s presiding Nors ‘scientist’ and heartless torturer. Despite the psychic entity’s insistence on killing him for what he knew, Narra managed to fend off the crushing psionics long enough for the rest of the party to glean some crucial pieces of information...
For one, the psychic entity bearing down on them was Grand Inquisitor Huron himself, proven a terrible psychic who could animate lifeless material and summon forth tremendous telekinetic force.
Secondly, the distillery was an eldritch machine which drained the essence, soul and potential from a subject and concentrated it into a tincture. They’d been performing all manner of tests on the rabble in the cells (elves, northerners, choice unique creatures) and shipping their effusions to Noran, presumably at the emperor’s behest. Rumor had it Endymion was searching for very specific essences to combine into some mysterious elixir. Those who suffered distillation were erased from existence, left only dead husks.
Finally, the Sons and Daughters of Nor had been reeducated at Facility Beta, in a process that could not be reversed. Before Hemmler could reveal the location of this second facility, apparently separate from Facility Alpha where Narra had been trained, the Blue Angel's shield at last gave way and he was crushed, liquefied in truth.
The party pressed on, discovering a sensory deprivation chamber lined with psionic-amplifying glass... blue glass, like the oracle's warning prophecy to Gens. Avoid the blue glass, she had said. Instead Tyvis, Anita and he became trapped inside, even as boiling water from a chandelier-like pipe fixture on the ceiling started to spurt. Tyvis used glacial winds to freeze the nozzles, but it soon became a constant struggle to keep them properly stopped.
As Anita began to hyperventilate, unable to open the secret door they’d recognized across the octagonal span, the one the Grand Inquisitor must have taken to escape the chamber, Gens summoned forth his jade behemoth Fafnir from a figurine not unlike Neverba. The ancient lizard raged against its confinements at Gens’ urgings and blasted an exit with his maul-like tail.
Yet even as the party reunited in a rain of debris, Huron intervened, summoning forth vaguely humanoid shapes in the warm waters of the deprivation chamber, intent on prolonging the Archdruid’s stay...
Experience: 2640 each (60,810 total)
The Big Flush, 6000
Encounter E: Children of the Empire, 3600
Epically Defending Doctor Hemmler, 1200
Epically Escaping the Deprivation Chamber, 1200
RP bonus, 1200
Magic: n/a
Coin: n/a
Loot: n/a
New NPCs
Tarson Belicost (dead): A former Nors orator and outspoken opponent of the emperor who disappeared ten years ago, only to appear again in the hold, reprogrammed as a die-hard imperial loyal unto death to the government he once despised. In his last moments of life, he remembered who he was.
Melisana Belicost: Sister of Tarson and the financial backer of his speaking tours, once a prosperous business woman. Her merchant company went under eight years ago and she disappeared, appearing alongside her brother as another fanatic.
Bethany's Mother: A Norswoman whose mind has been so tampered with she equates the empire with her daughter Bethany, misplaced love and devotion which seems to have driven her mad.
Doctor Hemmler (dead): The prociding doctor of Sodden Hold, a sick and cowardly bastard, who knew much of the secrets of distillation and the facilities. The group managed to draw precious information from him before Tyvis ripped out his throat and Huron flattened him.
New Hooks
Facility Beta: Hemmler spoke of a second Nors facility, Beta, where people's thought patterns were irrevocably reprogrammed to love the empire and the emperor. It seems these poor souls were then released into the world as Sons and Daughters of Nor. Could there be a connection between Beta and the Imperial Gulag?
Essence: Hemmler revealed the distillation process crushed the subject's very soul, potential, and life force, liquefying it at a cost of their existence. It was then bottled and sent to Noran, presumably at the emperor's request. The essence contained power, he said, though the emperor was looking for a very particular kind of essence from very rare individuals to create a mysterious elixir. Who are these rare individuals? What does this elixir do?
Next Session
87a: The final confrontation looms between the despicable Grand Inquisitor Huron, DeWitt and whatever devils, psionic constructs and imperial troops might be with them, not least of all The Malbolgean. But first, saving Tyvis.
into the laboratory
Previously...
The next generation of Saviors plunged into Sodden Hold Laboratory, negotiating an unexpectedly devious drainage system before confronting the imperial guards: Sons and Daughters of Nor.
During a battle, the party found these zealots deeply troubled and rather suicidal in the defense of the empire’s holdings. Narra determined their brains had been tampered with, irrevocably reprogrammed to love the empire and its emperor.
Worse, some recognized these Sons and Daughters of Nor had at one time been opponents of Emperor Endymion’s rule. Was this the fate of all those who resisted, brainwashing and induction into the emperor’s crazed loyalists? Given how pivotal the movement was to Endymion’s rise, could it be he orchestrated the political unrest twenty years prior which eventually led to his crowning as sovereign? How?
More answers, and in turn more questions, were revealed when the party tracked down the despicable Doctor Hemmler, the laboratory’s presiding Nors ‘scientist’ and heartless torturer. Despite the psychic entity’s insistence on killing him for what he knew, Narra managed to fend off the crushing psionics long enough for the rest of the party to glean some crucial pieces of information...
For one, the psychic entity bearing down on them was Grand Inquisitor Huron himself, proven a terrible psychic who could animate lifeless material and summon forth tremendous telekinetic force.
Secondly, the distillery was an eldritch machine which drained the essence, soul and potential from a subject and concentrated it into a tincture. They’d been performing all manner of tests on the rabble in the cells (elves, northerners, choice unique creatures) and shipping their effusions to Noran, presumably at the emperor’s behest. Rumor had it Endymion was searching for very specific essences to combine into some mysterious elixir. Those who suffered distillation were erased from existence, left only dead husks.
Finally, the Sons and Daughters of Nor had been reeducated at Facility Beta, in a process that could not be reversed. Before Hemmler could reveal the location of this second facility, apparently separate from Facility Alpha where Narra had been trained, the Blue Angel's shield at last gave way and he was crushed, liquefied in truth.
The party pressed on, discovering a sensory deprivation chamber lined with psionic-amplifying glass... blue glass, like the oracle's warning prophecy to Gens. Avoid the blue glass, she had said. Instead Tyvis, Anita and he became trapped inside, even as boiling water from a chandelier-like pipe fixture on the ceiling started to spurt. Tyvis used glacial winds to freeze the nozzles, but it soon became a constant struggle to keep them properly stopped.
As Anita began to hyperventilate, unable to open the secret door they’d recognized across the octagonal span, the one the Grand Inquisitor must have taken to escape the chamber, Gens summoned forth his jade behemoth Fafnir from a figurine not unlike Neverba. The ancient lizard raged against its confinements at Gens’ urgings and blasted an exit with his maul-like tail.
Yet even as the party reunited in a rain of debris, Huron intervened, summoning forth vaguely humanoid shapes in the warm waters of the deprivation chamber, intent on prolonging the Archdruid’s stay...
Experience: 2640 each (60,810 total)
The Big Flush, 6000
Encounter E: Children of the Empire, 3600
Epically Defending Doctor Hemmler, 1200
Epically Escaping the Deprivation Chamber, 1200
RP bonus, 1200
Magic: n/a
Coin: n/a
Loot: n/a
New NPCs
Tarson Belicost (dead): A former Nors orator and outspoken opponent of the emperor who disappeared ten years ago, only to appear again in the hold, reprogrammed as a die-hard imperial loyal unto death to the government he once despised. In his last moments of life, he remembered who he was.
Melisana Belicost: Sister of Tarson and the financial backer of his speaking tours, once a prosperous business woman. Her merchant company went under eight years ago and she disappeared, appearing alongside her brother as another fanatic.
Bethany's Mother: A Norswoman whose mind has been so tampered with she equates the empire with her daughter Bethany, misplaced love and devotion which seems to have driven her mad.
Doctor Hemmler (dead): The prociding doctor of Sodden Hold, a sick and cowardly bastard, who knew much of the secrets of distillation and the facilities. The group managed to draw precious information from him before Tyvis ripped out his throat and Huron flattened him.
New Hooks
Facility Beta: Hemmler spoke of a second Nors facility, Beta, where people's thought patterns were irrevocably reprogrammed to love the empire and the emperor. It seems these poor souls were then released into the world as Sons and Daughters of Nor. Could there be a connection between Beta and the Imperial Gulag?
Essence: Hemmler revealed the distillation process crushed the subject's very soul, potential, and life force, liquefying it at a cost of their existence. It was then bottled and sent to Noran, presumably at the emperor's request. The essence contained power, he said, though the emperor was looking for a very particular kind of essence from very rare individuals to create a mysterious elixir. Who are these rare individuals? What does this elixir do?
Next Session
87a: The final confrontation looms between the despicable Grand Inquisitor Huron, DeWitt and whatever devils, psionic constructs and imperial troops might be with them, not least of all The Malbolgean. But first, saving Tyvis.
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