Praemal Tales

Campaign Background: The Seven Spires

2010-10-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

At this point, I should probably remind everyone that the players of the Praemal Tales had played another campaign prior to this one. The Seven Spires started out as an Arcana Unearthed game using a homebrew setting which most notably blended elements from Ghostwalk and Laelith, a Fantasy metropolis designed by the crew of the French magazine Casus Belli in 1986, which also happens to be extremely similar in ambiance and layout to Ptolus, the City by the Spire. By the end of its run, the campaign had become, from a rules’ standpoint, a blend of Arcana Evolved and D&D 3.5.

The First Season of the Seven Spires (September 2004 to June 2005) campaign started in the vicinity of Manifest. From there, the player-characters ended up in Laelith, where they ended up saving the city from the ravages of the Emerald Death (see below).

The Second Season of the Seven Spires (September 2005 to June 2006) involved old and new player-characters who investigated murders taking place in the small community of the Delver’s Cliff. From there, the PCs started exploring the dungeons connecting the Cliff area to the “Cloaque”, the gigantic labyrinth on which Laelith stood. Another thing the Holy City had in common with Ptolus, which would inspire the campaign’s very conclusion in rather surprising ways (see below).

This is relevant to the Jewel of the Mind and the Praemal Tales because I would, during that particular game session, slowly link the characters of the Praemal Tales to those of the Seven Spires, foreshadowing the idea that these were in fact the same souls, the same heroes incarnated as different individuals in particular times, places. Universes.

Let us find out more about the Seven Spires.

The Cast

Amalruth Ironhorn, Unfettered Horned Devil (Benoist P.)
Jezabell, Quickling Winter Witch (Tiana K.)
Mandingo, the Hummingbird Totem Warrior (Domingo M.)
Miriell, Female Dwarven Paladin (Milica T.)
Nacht, Female Unfettered (Lisa Maria S.)
Sa Qebah, Female Shapechanging Assassin (Nerissa M.)
Slydracna, the Mojh Mage Blade (Caroline P.)

From Left to Right:
Jezabell, Miriell, Sa Qebah, Slydracna, Mandingo and Nacht.

The Campaign

The Spellwardens in the first part of the campaign saved Spellhold, school of magic, and the whole city of Laelith from the Emerald Death, a sort of magical plague which appears when the powers of Life and Death are imbalanced (when the powers of Life and Death are tempered with, the powers of Life might compensate on a Cosmic level, which initiates a sort of chain reaction where Life itself becomes an auto-destructive disease that devours its own to survive... the Emerald Death).

This plague created an equal, but reversed, chain reaction from the powers of Death in the region. The Undead, who were until that point monsters mentioned in bard tales and half-forgotten legends, reappeared in the Maze under the city at a dramatic rate. Adimarchus, or "Marcus" as he was known, was a teacher of Spellhold who thought this represented an opportunity to be seized. He was haunted by dreams of incredible power and discoveries, and his will shattered after months of this treatment.

Marcus allied himself with the Pactlords of the Quaan, a most eclectic alliance of monsters including aberrations, fiends and dark elves from other planes. Together, Marcus and the Quaan brought back to life the mummy lord Gwalchmesh, a hideous undead who was the key to an inverted pyramid buried deep below the earth. This pyramid, it was said, was the tomb of the "God Who Was Not Meant to Be", a powerful and corrupt entity which long ago was part of the chorus that created the World.

Marcus and the Quaan meant to open and plunder the pyramid. They thought they could play with power without getting burnt.
They were wrong.

Once the pyramid was opened, Gwalchmesh turned against his masters. The Quaan soon lost confidence in Marcus who quickly became utterly insane. The drow part of the alliance decided to exterminate the other members of the Pact and allied themselves with Gwalchmesh. This is during these events that the Spellwardens became directly involved.

Previously, they were investigating murders in the community of the Delver's Cliff, a small village of adventurers exploring the catacombs below their village not far from Laelith itself. Soon, the Spellwardens knew that whatever the key to the mystery of the Cliff was, it was to be found in the depths of its dungeons. They also were charged to find a teacher of Spellhold... Marcus... who disappeared from the school without any warning. The Headmaster was particularly concerned as far as the well-being of his friend was concerned.

It came as a surprise to the Spellwardens to find out that Marcus was a big part of the problems going on around and under the Delver's Cliff. They also soon discovered that the pyramid was opened, and that the mastermind behind all these events, including the Emerald Death and events way beyond their scope, was the mysterious messiah of the God Who Was Not Meant To Be... the Bonelord.

Shortly after all these elements were revealed to them, somewhere in the catacombs, while fleeing from a Nightcrawler pursuing them, the Spellwardens encountered the horned devil Amalruth Ironhorn who was summoned by their enemies to kill them. But strangely the horned devil, breaking free from his bonds to the Infernal Realms Beyond, wouldn't bring himself to do it. Victims together of a trap in that same area, they were all transported through a dimensional rift to the Land of I'ix, a plane condemned to eternal winter. There, they long searched for a way to escape, and escape ultimately they did.*

When the Spellwardens made it back from I'ix, they emerged from a portal right into a melee between the forces of House d'Astradeen and the drow of the Delver's Cliff. They sided with the forces of House d'Astradeen. The wardens then learned of the death of the God King of Laelith killed by his own concubines (charmed by a vampire from the Delver's Cliff) during one of the ritual orgies of the Palace, and freed Eldariel, a Trumpet Archon imprisoned below the Cliff for centuries.

Along with the Archon and Amalruth, the unfettered Devil, the Spellwardens decided to end the threat once and for all. While the forces of House d'Astradeen went North to help with the drow siege of the Delver's Cliff, the Wardens went South, directly to the pyramid and its main Seal.

They confront a first time the Bonelord in caves near the Seal, but the ageless undead uses a Word of Recall to sneak away while some of his minions fight the wardens. The minions, including Hill Giants and an Undead Troll, put up a good fight, but the Spellwardens were helped by their determination and some old friends showing up right on time (the Ettercap Razuth, ex-member of the Quaan, who was helped by the Spellwardens and accepted in Spellhold for magical training because of them, Edwin, long lost brother of Jezabell and a warforged from Laelith's city guard).

Drawing closer to the Seal, the Spellwardens defeat Gwalchmesh once and for all and in a fit of mercy, let the drow priestess go.

Our heroes finally confront the Bonelord one the last time. After an epic battle during which most of their friends and allies gave their lives, the Spellwardens end up trapping the Bonelord into an Iron Flask. Nacht the Unfettered used all her cunning and skill to pull this off (a memorable fumble on a Will save from the DM helped a lot too, I should point out).

But their deeds are not over. The pyramid slowly opens, and the heroes have to reactivate the Seal. Eldariel tells them the Seal needs the essence of a being of Good to live on. They need to kill her, and she offers them her silver sword: "Only the sacrifice of a being of Good will put an end to this."

This is when the wardens hear Sa Qebah's shout as she commits suicide. During all these adventures, Sa Qebah the were-cheetah, the rogue and monster, the freak, tried to control her urges and amend for the many murders she committed during her life. She now had found a way to redeem herself. She fell to the ground and died, tears at the corner of her eyes.

Silence filled up the room. Eldariel was weeping.

The Wardens stepped closer to Sa Qebah and picked up her body. The Archon picked up the Iron Flask and brought it to her lips. She looked at the wardens as she did so and drank the soul of the Bonelord. She collapsed with a bitter smile on her lips. "This was the only way. Now, the world can change. The world ... has ... changed."

This is how Eldariel the Archon of the Realms of Celestia left this world forever.

After hours of walking and crawling back through the Maze, the Spellwardens found their way out with Sa Qebah's corpse with them. The world had changed, indeed. The city was no longer Laelith, but "Ptolus". The world was no longer Osterande, Realm of the Spires, but the Empire of Tarsis.

Slowly, the Spellwardens learned more about this new world. They were told by an oracle of the Street of a Million Gods that maybe, by destroying the essence of the being they knew as the Bonelord, they also destroyed a part of the world they loved. Somehow, the world was indeed not the same. Similar, and yet different.

Nobody knew who these "Spellwardens" were, nor did they know how they had become so rich so fast. Slydracna the Mojh bought one of the most glorious estates in town. Jezabell the Faen left Ptolus by sea to find her native village, Ogrebound, without knowing if it still existed in this world. Miriell the dwarven paladin went on later quests and, it is said, still helps the Keepers of the Veil from time to time, the only one of the Spellwardens to still be known as an active adventurer. Nacht disappeared while investigating the City's underground societies. Story has it that she was working her way through the criminal organizations of Ptolus to oppose the Balacazar family in some fashion or another, though her reasons for doing so remain unknown.

As for Sa Qebah, she was buried in the Necropolis under a monument funded by all the surviving Spellwardens. Nobody in town really knows why the monument is so appealing. Even awe-inspiring. Nobody knows the name of the person buried there. Children often wonder about this mausoleum and the legacy this unknown hero may have had; they invent stories and come up with great deeds and adventures where always, somehow, the hero ends up saving the day through her own sacrifice...

The memory of the Seven Spires fades away. Even to the surviving Spellwardens, it becomes hard to remember the shores of the High Waters, the faces of familiar friends and enemies. Even Sa Qebah's memory seems to fade from the wardens' minds. Is this world better, safer, or even more decent? The Spellwardens have to make this place their home. No one knows what the future will bring.

THE END

To see more pictures and find out more about the Seven Spires, you might want to check out the Lake of Blood and the Seven Spires End Game (which includes a draft of this post) on ENWorld.

* The Adventures of the Spellwardens in I'ix occurred when Nerissa, Beket's player in the Praemal Tales, and Sa Qeba's here in the Seven Spires, decided she wanted to try her hand at running the game. This allowed me to become a player. During the whole time the Spellwardens were trapped on I'ix, my character was Amalruth Ironhorn, the unfettered Devil discussed above. Once the Spellwardens made it back to the Seven Spires, I resumed my DM duties, and Amalruth stayed around as an NPC, sometimes controlled by me, sometimes controlled by the players themselves, depending on the particular situation.

Session 13 - The Jewel of the Mind (Part 1)

2010-10-07T17:02:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 27, 2007 from 3:30 PM to 7PM.

Details of our interactions prior to the game on that day are now forgotten. Since I recorded the time when the session started, it seems we had lunch together before playing.

This was our penultimate game session. I knew our time together was coming to an end, and needed our campaign to finish with a ‘bang’. The idea up to this point was to let the PCs investigate the plans of the alchemists of the Ogden Suhl further. They would have discovered the construction sites of a few more of the seven alchemical cannons, maybe investigated the experiments of the alchemists with the rifts created millennia ago in Kem by the Wars of Fire, or their prior relationships with the Forsaken, the Fallen and the Necropolis of Ptolus.

But as I realized at that time, most of the players of the game would leave their jobs on the island and not come back for the next school year. We had a handful of sessions to play, 5^th level characters, and a huge finale in the works. From there, I was left with two options: either downgrade the finale to fit 5^th level characters, or drastically improve the efficiency of the players’ characters to make them tough enough to face the threats of Goth Gulgamel and the Ogden Suhl.

As the following session clearly shows, I chose the second solution and found unexpected ways to level up the characters, upgrade their existing equipment, and provide them with allies which they would run themselves, thus ensuring they would be up to speed to face the dangers of the Spire… and beyond.

Session 13 – The Jewel of the Mind

Still the 26th of Rain

The echoes of rocks crashing above the runebearers’ heads fade in the distance. All becomes dark and silent. There is then a feeling of movement and acceleration; a cacophony of many shades and colors, as if experienced directly through their own minds instead of their worldly perceptive organs; strange patterns swirling all around on courses too complex for their intelligence to fathom. There is a sense of twisting and turning; abrupt stops, and acceleration again.

Light. Too much light.
Blindness.
Pain.

They all open their eyes. The forest all around them is quiet, almost silent. A light breeze caresses the high foliage of a century-old tree nearby. There is the sound of a stream in the distance. No bird songs. No animals of any kind. Something is not quite right with this landscape.

They stand up, check on each other.

Beket, Hennie, Simone, Iliana, Hamrick, Oscar… they are all unscathed.

“Do not move.”

The voice came from the low bushes and high ferns further away.

“Drop your weapons.”

They all comply. There is a moment of doubt, though the voice did not seem particularly menacing. The ferns slowly part, and a group of three strange-looking humanoids walk up to them. Their bodies are lean and muscular, covered with a thin fur, two brown, one black. They have long, narrow hound snouts and large, pointed ears which give their faces the vague appearance of jackals. They are equipped with bows, swords, leather shirts and even one with plate armor, just like any other group of adventurers.

“Where are you coming from, and what is your purpose in these parts?”

The runebearers explain they are coming from Ptolus and are pursuing a group of alchemists in the hopes of stopping them from destroying the world. The creatures seem genuinely surprised by their explanation: “We do not know this Ptolus you are talking about. We are the Sibbecai, the servants of Lothian, the redeeming messenger of our Faith.”

Hennie seizes the opportunity: “If you are the servants of Lothian, then the actions of the alchemists threaten your way of life just as much as ours. We should stop them before they destroy all that we hold dear.”

The Sibbecai seem to believe her, but they seem hesitant nonetheless. “We have to bring you before Savvan, our guide and leader. Only he can determine what should be our next course of action. He will be able to see through your souls and find out if you are trustworthy. Will you come with us, or fight us?”

The girls look at each other silently. On one hand, time is of the essence, and they have to find the alchemists as soon as possible. On the other hand, they cannot deny that the Sibbecai’s help is needed. They do not even know where they are. They still need all the information they can possibly get to thwart the Ogden Suhl’s plans.

The walk to the Sibbecai’s encampment is a blur. Still no bird songs, no encounters in the forest. Just the unnatural, quiet peace of it all. As the girls look at each other and their companions, they notice subtle changes in each other’s appearances. One moment, a shade looks much darker than it is supposed to be. At another, the patterns of a cloak look like they have slightly changed. There is something about this place that feels definitely off.

The runebearers, their companions and their guides finally arrive to the Sibbecai settlement, deep within the forest. There, they meet Savvan, a Sibbecai zealot who leads his brethren with an iron grip. He listens to the girls’ story for the next while. After carefully considering what they told him of the Ogden Suhl, the Vallis moon and the possible end of the world, he finally announces: “Lothian alone knows the hidden truth behind your tales. You must prove yourself before the One God, and this requires an holocaust, a sacrifice worthy of Him and His Wisdom.”

The girls do not know what to make of his words.

“I know of unworthy visitors to this Jewel who came to me a little while ago. They are sinners in the face of the One, and must be brought to Justice. They brought one of the Damned souls of the Netherworlds with them, a Demon of formidable power, and it is that wretched creature which must be sacrificed at the Grove for you to prove your worth.”

“Once they realized we would not hear what they had to say, they flew North with the Beast. We sent scouting parties to find them before they could do the Jewel any harm. That’s how my brethren found you. Go now, find these heretics, and bring them all before us. You will then find our help.”

“Be weary, however, for this is Av, the Jewel of the Mind. The forest will play tricks on you, and you must do your best to ignore its callings. Should you falter on your quest, you will be lost forever to the light of the Lord and His charitable Redemption.”

27th of Rain

Thus the runebearers left the Sibbecai in search of these visitors who preceded them. If they are Ogden Suhl and brought a demon with them, this would prove to be a terrible confrontation. The girls and their companions, Hamrick the Halfling and Oscar the Otyugh, explore the forest. It soon becomes clear that the forest indeed tries to communicate with them. Some trees shift places. They find themselves walking into the same clearings they explored earlier in the day, time and time again.

Beket finally decides to climb up a tree to have a peak at their global surroundings. Once she reaches the upper branches of a large oak, she suddenly realizes that the forest stretches in all directions far beyond the horizon. As she silently prays to the Old Man, she suddenly realizes that the faces sculpted in her bracers look at her with real, flesh and blood eyes.

She takes them off, raises them above her head and examines their detail in the sunlight. The entire sculpted faces now seem alive. They smile at her, and whisper: “Do not worry. I am here. Wear us, and you will hear.”

Taken aback by such a turn of events, Beket hesitates for a moment. She remembers Savvan’s warning: “The forest will play tricks on you, and you must do your best to ignore its callings.” This is not the forest, however. These are her own bracers! She decides against the Sibbecai’s advice, and puts the bracers back on her wrists.

Everything suddenly seems clearer. Beket feels the world around her, and the world beyond, as part of herself. She feels as if she was in contact with the Old Man himself, and as such, gets a sense that all that is happening to them makes no sense whatsoever in the grand scheme of things. Everything is part of the grand tapestry, and the grand tapestry cannot be destroyed by the actions of just a few of its knots. Why then must she fight? Why resist at all?

She ponders these existential questions, sitting high on the branch of the oak.

Far below, Hennie and Simone are experiencing similar doubts.

Hennie feels the flames gather around her, and realizes that this whole fight is about her and her place in the world. It is for her to seize all these opportunities to develop and refine her magical might. This isn’t a curse, but a boon to be cherished, and cultivated.

Simone looks at her bow. The very matter of darkness seems to emanate from its limbs and string. She shoots aimlessly. The arrow leaves behind it a trail of black fumes and wisps of darkness. She feels the Dark surround her; infuse her mind, thoughts, conscious and unconscious. Does she have to betray her friends and companions, just like she betrayed the House Sadar before them? Or is this all about her final steps into the arms of Death, and ultimate oblivion?

CRRRACK!

The sudden arrival of an enormous horned beast breaks the charm. Two trees are flattened when the muscular purple humanoid charges through the clearing head first. The Demon! It stops at the foot of the large oak Beket climbed, crouches powerfully… and jumps high up through the foliage like a bullet fired from a dragon rifle! It head-butts Beket on its way up, seizes her at the same time by the arms, and they both crash through the branches and finally back to the ground with in a loud thump that sends pieces of earth and wood fly around them.

“WHO ARE YOU? WHAT DO YOU WANT?” The creature yells as it grasps Beket’s head with one of its massive hands, ready to squeeze it between its oversized claws. The monk is about the resist when she notices a strange look in the beast’s eyes. There is anger within, some amount of fear for sure… but no hatred. No evil. This puzzles her, and she decides to try to negotiate with the creature.

“We hail from Ptolus. We are searching for the alchemists. We need help.”

Another male voice comes from the trees. “This is all right, then. We need your help as well.”

Three individuals walk into the clearing. One is wearing a purple hood and robes; another a plate armor and a massive broadsword of stone; the last one is a minotaur wearing priestly clothes. The one with the purple robes speaks first: “I am Odhanan Baoisgne, and this is Orien de Saeth,” he says as he points to his armoured companion wearing the huge blade of veined marble. He then points to the minotaur: “This, is Shibata.” Odhanan then seems to realize the purple beast is still squeezing Beket’s head: “You can let it go now, Amalruth.”

The creature lets Beket go with a grunt: “You are lucky I am not hungry.”

Orien steps in: “Now, now. They did not start the fight. We did.” He smiles and adds to Beket's attention: “Amalruth is a Devil who freed himself from the clutches of his masters. He only seeks to live on his own terms, and is a valuable asset for our little team.”

He extends a hand towards her: “I apologize for the attack, but we just weren’t sure what your intentions were.”

Hennie walks to the newcomers. “We were sent to hunt down your friend here. The Sibbecai want to sacrifice him to Lothian. Only then would we be deemed worthy of their help.” Shibata, the minotaur, seems very interested by these revelations.

Hennie goes on: “We are here for the alchemists of the Ogden Suhl. We want to stop them from precipitating the end of the world, or whatever they truly want out of the return of the Vallis moon. What are you searching for?”

Odhanan and Orien look at each other. The minotaur answers: “The Cask of Frozen Dreams, a powerful artefact which we must bring back to the Pale Tower.”

Simone and Beket do not seem to understand what Shibata is talking about. Hennie fills in the blanks: “You mean to say… you were sent here by the Malkuth, the angelic powers of Ptolus?”

Odhanan nods: “This is the truth.”

Hennie seems genuinely puzzled: “What is the Cask of Frozen Dreams? Why do you have to bring it back to the Malkuth?”

Shibata the minotaur shakes his head: “We are not at liberty to say. Suffice for you to know that this could be one of the instruments needed to bring about the end of the world. Maybe the alchemists you mentioned are searching for it as well. We need to take it off this pocket plane back to Ptolus, at the Pale Tower. Will you help us?”

The girls are now faced with a conundrum: Helping Savvan sacrifice Amalruth, or band with these adventurers, and recover the Cask of Frozen Dreams. Beket asks: “How can we help?”

Shibata nods: “We need to defeat Savvan and get him away from the Sibbecai. We need to get the Cask from him. He is not what he seems. He is…” Amalruth cuts in, baring his teeth: “I know a Spawn of the Abyss when I see one.”

The Devil straightens up: “He is the ‘demon’. I don’t know how he got there, and how he managed to convince these Sibbecai he is some sort of Holy priest sent to lead them in Lothian’s name, but he is what he is: Evil and power-hungry.”

Odhanan: “Maybe he’s done so with the help of his advisor, this human… what was his name again?”

Orien cuts in: “Zalathar.”

Simone is the first to react: “Zalathar! But he’s dead. We killed him! He’s the one who’s done experiments on us. He’s in league with the alchemists. He’s the key to all this!”

None of the girls’ new companions seems the least bit surprised. Odhanan explains: “This is this place. Av, Jewel of the Mind. It responds to the sentient beings within its reach. Your alchemists probably saw an opportunity there, and brought Zalathar’s soul back from the Netherworld. That or it was just coincidence, a subconscious answer to the alchemists’ desires. I’m sure Av talked to you already.”

Hennie confirms: “It has. It seems to exacerbate my own desires. The selfish ones…”

“The ones you want to suppress,” Shibata points out.

Beket nods in understanding: “We need to attune ourselves to Av’s whispers.” She walks to the tree she climbed earlier. She reaches for her sacrificial dagger, and stabs its bark. Sap slowly starts to bleed from the tree as she pulls her knife from its wound. “We shall drink, and remember.”

The girls take turns and drink the sap from the tree.

At first, nothing seems to happen. But then, then… they remember.

To be continued...

Session 12 - Requiem for a Cannon

2007-09-28T09:20:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 5, 2007 from 5:00 PM to 10:15 PM.

As usual, we meet and have dinner together. This is the first time our friends get to be with our dog, Buster, in our home. We adopted it just a few days prior to this session. The food is varied and great, as one might expect from the excellent cooks that happen to be playing in campaign. I mostly remember the tortillas filled with Nutella and Strawberry slices we had for dessert.

Session 12 - Requiem for a Cannon

Still the 25th of Rain

Our heroes defeated Armenius Shiver and his alchemists. They know he was in league in Zalathar and some Shuul who performed experiments on them for some unknown reason. They also so know that somewhere beyond the galleries spreading from the Lodge they will find some sort of cannon Armenius wanted to protect at all costs. What is the purpose of this cannon? That's what they have to find out.

The girls loot the bodies and search the surrounding area before taking some well deserved rest. They do not know when their next stop would take place, and know that whoever is guarding the cannon ahead is already aware of their presence. With no element of surprise left to them, they might just as well prepare for the worst.

26th of Rain

The next day, the girls progress through the galleries below Old Town towards an unknown destination. They soon reach some sort of old catacombs and decide to explore them.

They walk through vault after vault giving shelter to ancient crypts and sarcophagi predating the modern city of Ptolus. There is no light source but for the sunrods they brought with them. The air is thick with the smell of dirt and rot. As they progress through the surrounding darkness, they can hear the faint sounds of air moving high above. There is no ceiling to be seen.

That's when the first attack comes. As it turns out, some sort of insect creatures, half-human, half-flies, use one of the vaults as a nest and breeding chamber. The combat itself lasts a split second. The dimwitted beasts are no match for our magic and bow-wielding team. They are routed, but the warning is clear enough: these crypts hold more secret dangers than the alchemists' alone, if they ever were to be found in such foul place.

This session's set-up using Dungeon Tiles and various props.

It just takes a few minutes to confirm the warning. As soon as they penetrate the main vault of the complex, one of the sarcophagi slides. A juicy, rotten corpse emerges from the tomb below. Its movements are erratic. It stands up awkwardly and stretches a hand towards them. Its mouth opens. Bloody bile flows onto its chest, and it whispers: "You... are... doomed..."

Simone knows when things are about to get worse, and things are definitely going to get worse in this instance. She sprints at the other side of the vault just as Oscar the Otyugh takes a hold of the animated corpse with its tongue. She reaches a gate opening on a dark corridor. The others run through the vault. Some trap is triggered. In the corridor beyond Simone, a wall section slides mechanically. The undead corpse escapes Oscar's grasp and rushes towards the corridor, soon followed by the Otyugh. It welcomes what it calls "the Master" with a high-pitched voice: "You are coming Master! You are free Master! Yes! Yes! Welcome the Master!"

A hulking form walks heavily through the opening revealed by the side panel. It is half organic, half mechanical. It is a collection of corpses stiched together and covered with a spiked, rusted, wet plating of some sort. The monster growls as it marches on. Its spikes impale the undead wretch at it cries its undying love for the Master. The creature then gets rid of Oscar, pushing the Otyugh aside as if it was lighter than a feather. Blood flows through the rusted orifices covering its plating. It wants flesh. It wants blood. It wants them.

Beket goes in contact with the creature but fumbles and crashes on its spikes. Simone becomes temporarily corporeal and stabs the thing in the back to no avail. Hennie concentrates and extends hear fingers towards their enemy. She shakes them as if they were boneless tentacles. There is a sudden tension in the air. Pseudopods of ethereal darkness from the ground up to the creature. They search for openings and flaws in its armor, insinuate themselves through it, search through the dead flesh and eat the rot from within. The plating cracks loudly. Pieces of the creature's armor crash down and send metallic echoes throughout the crypts. That's just the occasion Beket needed. She sends her fist through the creatures misshapen head with all the strength she can gather. She sends pieces of flesh and rotten pulp flying in all the directions. Some skull within explodes, and bits of brain matter cover Beket's face as the creature tries to keep its footing. She squeezes whatever her fingers can find. She takes a deep breath. She pulls... and pulls... to rip off some sort of enormous, twisted spine from the creature. She throws the thing across the room.

The creature stops dead in its tracks. Its unnatural life stolen from it along with the spine now shaking and wiggling on the cold floor of the vault, its amalgam of a body collapses in a sickening fleshy sound. It is followed by the silence of death.

And then more silence.

Until the girls manage to draw breath again.

Oscar the Otyugh and his friend, Beket.

Flakes of dust float in the air. A few drops fall irregularly from the ceiling of the vault. The girls look at each other. This one was close. Very close. But far from breaking their determination, it only strengthens it. The rest of the exploration is a succession of traps and hostile encounters with wizards and duergars working for the alchemists. The girls know that they are close from the cannon. They push forward relentlessly, triggering, disarming traps, defeating foe after foe... until they finally reach their goal.

There, in a large room that is nothing short of a gigantic shaft reaching up for the surface of Ptolus, a curious structure of basalt looking vaguely like a monstrous hand reaching for the heavens has been assembled by the alchemists. It is surrounded by building platforms, but seems to be operational since strange gems embedded here and there along its surface pulse with a threatening, impious red glow that seems to give life and energy to the machine. Wires connect the structure to the walls of the chamber. Somewhere high on the platforms, a group of Shuul alchemists is waiting for our heroes.

Bullets, arrows and magic missiles are exchanged. Beket climbs up the black structure to reach the Shuul. As more projectiles fly all around, Beket looses her footing. She falls.

Puppy Buster is waiting for the game to be over.

And that's when all hell breaks loose. Just as Beket falls, the markings covering her body suddenly hurt. Hurt very much. The runes are alive. The runes want to save her. They shine like the sun. Wings spread from her back. White feathers meet air. Beket finds a new life within.

The runes are alive. All of them. Hennie's body is now cloaked with flames that do not hurt her. Simone runes make her hear the slow pavan of the dead buried here, perceive their lost hopes, their wishes unfulfilled, their cries for help and revenge. Iliana's runes uncover new layers in her psyche, a sea of deep thoughts she can use and shape as blades to assault her opponents.

The tide turns in favor of the runebearers. The alchemists die, one after the other, paying the price of the treachery and price they put in all these experiments they performed on them. The whole necropolis is shaken by the awakening of the runes. None within can ignore the obvious threat the girls now represent. Blocks of masonry crash here and there. The whole place is about to collapse.

Some of the servants of Armenius Shiver rush to the room. They want to flee from the area. Their leader, Ozhûl, bargains for their lives and reveal what the girls want to know. "The alchemists? They are the Ogden Suhl, the servants of the flame, some of the Shuul who followed the harrow elf and his wretched master once they sucked all the technological secrets they could from the organization."

They ask about the wretched master Ozhûl mentioned. "He too is a harrow elf like Zalathar, but he is the Master. Zalathar was just the Apprentice. Nobody knows his name. Everyone knows he is the one who proposed the construction of the cannons."

The girls are stunned. "Cannons? You mean there are several of them?"

Ozhûl shakes his head. "Seven of them. They're all aimed at the sky. They are all using some Chaositech and some of the secrets of the Shuul. They can shoot straight up, straight to..."

"... the Vallis moon." Hennie understands suddenly. "They want to destroy the Vallis moon."

Ozhûl confirms. "Definitely. Everyone got in for the power that represents. Just a chunk of the moon crashing down on Ptolus... the magical potential is enormous! That's what the Ogden Suhl are after, but not the Master. The Master has another agenda in destroying the moon. He unearthed rituals and means to make the moon come back. Nobody knows what he really wants. He betrayed the Fallen and Forsaken, then the Shuul, all for some goal that has to do with the destruction of the moon and Goth Gulgamel."

Goth Gulgamel. The fortress built by the Skull King on the side of the Spire. One of the deadliest places of Praemal.

Simone and Yorick the familiar.

The girls let the information sink. Simone then asks "How can we get to Goth Gulgamel?"

Ozhûl looks at her like she suddenly became insane: "You sure?"

"Sure."

"Alright... it's your life." A block of stone crashes to the ground and breaks apart not far away. "Just beyond this chamber, you will find a Maw."

"A Maw?"

"A portal. It's alive. Looks like a maw, with teeth and everything. You should step through the Maw. You'll be on your way there."

The whole necropolis is falling apart. Ozhûl asks if he can leave. The girls reluctantly agree: time is running out.

They rush to the next chamber, and exactly like Ozhûl explained, there stands a sort of gate that strangely looks like a maw. They do not waste any time: one after the other, they jump through the gate. Beket, Hennie, Simone, Iliana, Hamrick, Oscar... they all get through. The sound of crashing rock fades behind them.

Nothing is left but silence.

XP Breakdown

Beket and Simone are Level 5. Hennie and Iliana are level 4.
- Combat vs. Insect people - CR 4
- Combat vs. ghoul and "master" - CR5
- Electric trap - CR 4
- Combat vs. Duergar and Wizard - CR5
- Combat vs. ex-Shuul agents - CR4
- Deal with Ozhûl - CR4
XP per PC for Session 12: 1,166 for level 5 PCs, 1,333 for Hennie, 666 for Iliana (player left early).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 12,051 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 11,243 XP.
Total XP earned (Iliana): 9,276 XP.
Hennie levels up.

DM's notes

Another good session. The fight with the ex-Shuul agents waiting for the PCs at the cannon took forever. The awakening of the runes was foreshadowed earlier in the campaign. I wanted it to take place gradually and this is the first of two big awakenings leading to the great confrontation with the bad guys in Goth Gulgamel and beyond.

This is at this point in time that I learned that two (and soon a third) of the players would not come back for the next school year (all the players are teachers in our community). I now realize I haven't much time to finish the campaign, or bring it to some satisfactory closure. Actually, the more I think about it, the more I realize I did not want to end the Praemal Tales, at least not definitely.

This is how this awakening of the runes, the Maw and the deal with Ozhûl came into play. These were ways to speed up the resolution of the game without really bringing in a deus ex machina. It was another opportunity in disguise, really.

It's important to precise that the pieces of the puzzle (the purpose of the cannons, the link with the Vallis moon and so on) were really put together by the players alone. Ozhûl provided some big chunks of information, but the deduction was really theirs. I think that was particularly important in this case. Having such a release of information happen any other way would have robbed the players of any sense of achievement. There was definitely one at the end of this session.

Session 11 - Answers at Last

2007-05-22T14:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday, April 21, 2007 from 5:30 to 10:00 PM.

We gather around 5:30 PM and have our early dinner together. As you might guess, the meals are as varied and short lived as one might expect with a group of hungry role-players like ours. When we are done, we take some time to just relax and digest, as the picture below can testify. We resume the game around 6:30 PM.

I wasn't sure we were going to play!

Session 11 - Answers at Last

25th of Rain

The girls wake up at the Ghostly Minstrel and head back to the Lodge. All has already been done to protect Simone's body after her untimely demise when facing an ogre there, and they can now resume their exploration of the network of underground rooms and galleries beyond the customers' area.

Once there, the girls discover that the bodies of the ogres and yuan-ti they fought they day before weren't moved. They know the monsters employed by the Lodge have taken over the area after they discovered some members of the staff had been replaced by dopplegangers in league with the Alchemists they are trying to find, so they proceed with caution when searching them.

Indeed, they discover the bodies were booby-trapped sometime during the night. This means that either the monsters, the alchemists or both are now more than aware of the adventurers' presence and thought they might come back really soon.

After salvaging what they could of the monsters equipment, the girls go back to the cavern where Iliana originally spied on the ogre cook. Despite their caution, they trigger a trap carefully concealed on the cave's floor while walking in. Not far from them, they spot what looks like a metal bottle topped with a crystal sphere. When the trap is triggered, the crystal sphere falls from the bottle and rolls to the center of the sphere where it starts to spin and levitate.

The girls retreat just before the sphere explodes. Large amounts of chaotic protoplasm erupt from the grenade and quickly take on volume. It shapes itself into some massive... something with two necks, a large belly... scales, horns and claws... an hydra!

Our heroes spring into action. The two-headed creature spits flames at them, hovers around, tries to catch them, but the girls have learned their lesson: they coordinate their efforts to confuse the beast, divide, and finally conquer.

The Two-headed Polyhydra spraying fire on the PCs

When they are done with the creature, the girls explore the cave further. Beyond a stream of water flowing nearby, they find an otyugh chained to a wall. The poor beast calls the girls to its help. It is terrified of the rats swarming all around. It calls itself "Garbage", since that's what the employees called it. The girls will have have none of that: they decide to help the otyugh and baptize him "Oscar".

Oscar knows its way around, and knows that the monstrous employees of the Lodge were the ones who trapped the place while the girls were gone, with the help of the alchemists! The summoning grenade the girls just faced was one of the alchemists' gifts to their new allies, it seems. Certainly, Oscar doesn't explain all this in these terms, since it is not all that bright, but it has witnessed a lot due to the fact that both monstrous employees and alchemists were dismissing his presence as the one of mere item, nothing more than a walking garbage bin really.

Oscar wants to follow the girls and help them find the alchemists. It doesn't have vengeance in mind, however, but rather a particular affection for these adventurers, these two-legged people who were the first to acknowledge its presence as a sentient being worth talking to.

With Oscar's help, Simone's newfound ghost abilities and some rather disturbing ingenuity (tossing a corpse as some sort of test weight around the corners of corridors would have been very disturbing to watch by the faithful of the Church...), the girls easily disable the traps they meet along the way.

Oscar the Otyugh happily munching on a corpse...

Soon, the group reaches a locked door. Simone becomes incorporeal and looks through it: beyond, there is a forge, and a large pool of molten metal. There, two Azers, who look like dwarves with burning beards and hair, are talking together and are obviously bored, as if waiting for something to occur. A fire mephit pierces the pool's surface and taunts them, but they simply ignore the remarks of the smart outsider.

Simone reports to the group. When doing so, the girls hear some movement beyond the door: they have been heard! The door opens wide, and the mephit stands alone in the room, right on the pool of molten ore: "Welcome, my friends! Please come in! I'm afraid my masters weren't as brave as they thought, and they left me with the fortunate task of dealing with your disturbances."

Our heroes, including the girls, Oscar the Otyugh and Hamrick the Bold step forward. The mephit smiles. "Now, you have a choice before you: we either play for a while with charades and see where it leads us, or you die. Now." The girls can't believe their own ears: play charades, in a moment like this?!

"Yes, play charades with me. All you have to do is to sign... here" the imp precises as he produces a burning piece of parchment that is not consumes by the flames all around. The girls try to talk it over with the mephit, but the elemental imp is obviously short-tempered. He gives up his idea of a game of charades and attacks instead!

The mephit attacks after changing into a magma hurler!

The mephit changes into a creature made of magma. It attacks by throwing blocks of molten metal towards its opponents. Simone runs forward in a room the girls did not explore before while Hennie Nagel reads a scrolls to summon a fire elemental she found some time before. To her surprise, Hennie's incantation works perfectly, and instead of a minor elemental, this is a Aarsaklaash, Lord of the Everburning Citadel and Archon of the Molted Skies of Al'Rashan who answers the call! The monumental fire being reaches from beyond and talks to Hennie: "What is it that you want, mortal?"

"Command that imp to leave us alone!"
"This will be done, Sorceress."

The huge elemental turns to the mephit. "FEAR MY WRATH, MEPHIT! Leave the Scion of Nagel to her quest! Begone with you!"

The mephit opens its fiery mouth to protest, but doesn't dare. It sinks into the pool of molten metal once again.

Ahead, Simone reaches a room with stairs climbing up to another level of the Lodge. There, a duergar stands with a chain in his hands. Two bugbears slaves are each tied to one of the chain's extremities. When the duergar slaver sees Simone, he doesn't think twice and flees before she can say anything.

The girls and their companions, including Aarsaklaash, soon join her. They hear the sound of conversations upstairs. They climb up and rush into the room...

The group climbs up the stairs...

When the girls enter the room, they find an aged human scolding the duergar: "So, you choose to leave your post, is that it? You choose your death, my friend." With this, the aged, gaunt man dressed in a military fashion thrusts his blade into the dwarf.

There are many people around the old man. Two alchemists, a young woman armed with a rapier and a dagger, what looks like a wizard of Kemite descent, a Shuul renegade, an Ogre mage armed with twin becs de corbin made of the whitest of horns and a clockwork machine of humanoid shape.

The old man sends the wizard, the ogre mage and the clockwork away to guard "the cannon", as he puts it. He then welcomes the girls: "So, you made it this far? You should certainly be proud of yourselves. You survived the cryotubes, the cloning, the implementation of these runes you bear... you are my own personal miracles, since I, Armenius Shiver, is the one who provided the knowledge necessary to your survival."

The girls are stunned. Armenius Shiver... of House Shiver? Cloning? Are they clones themselves, or the ones of have been cloned?

"We can solve this with honor and dignity... or not!" He fires a dragon pistol on Beket! A tremendous fight ensues, during which Armenius is literally disintegrated to ash by the Elemental Lord who came to Hennie's help earlier, his daughter, the young woman armed with rapier and dagger, succumbs to the combined efforts of Simone and Iliana, all of this while the Shuul fires at the adventurers. The latter finally understand the tide has turned in favor of the runebearers: he leaves the scene before dying like all the others did seconds before.

Fight against the alchemists of Armenius Shiver

At the end of this combat, our heroes now have a lot more answers: Zalathar was in league with this Armenius Shiver and his alchemists. They not only experimented on them, but cloned them (if they are not the clones themselves, that is). There is some sort of "Cannon" ahead which has to be protected at all costs. A cannon for what? That's what our heroes will soon find out...

XP Breakdown
All characters are Level 4.
- Fight against the Pyrohydra - CR 3 (5 characters involved)
- Second trap disabled with Oscar's help - CR4
- Third trap (poison arrows triggered by Beket by tossing a corpse) - CR2
- Duergar Slaver and Bugbears - CR5
- Armenius Shiver and company - CR7
XP per PC for Session 11: 1,410.
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 10,885 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 9,910 XP.
Total XP earned (Iliana): 8,610 XP.
Beket and Simone level up.

DM's notes

Good game session where I had the occasion to test a few of my own designs, like the Summoning Grenade, and where the players had a variety of threats and NPC interactions.

Oscar was definitely a highlight of the game session. I played him like a muppet, with a deep voice, repeating his voice, a bit naive and very (overly) friendly: it was a complete success. The encounter with the mephit could have been much better, but I didn't have the time nor the inspiration to get on with it. I was desperate to get to the finale.

All around, a good session really. I adjusted my prep work on the spot to feel the need of the moment, and nothing went really bad. Prep time is important, but it shouldn't stop a DM from improvising on the spot if it makes more sense at the moment!

Session 10 - A Sudden Twist of Fate

2007-04-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

Saturday, April 14, 2007, from 4:00 PM to 9:30 PM

We invited two new players to join our game.

One shows up today: Stephanie, one of the teachers of the local school (like all the other players of the game). I prepared a character using what I knew of our group's composition: we had a rogue, a sorcerer and a monk. The two D&D archetypes missing to have an iconic party are the Cleric/Healer and the Fighter/tank. I did not want to create a Cleric since Beket would multiclass as one and because the Cleric basically is a support role I think is unfit for people who want to discover the game (unless they are the sole character in the game, that is).

Stephanie inspecting her character sheet.

I want the character to be simple and use straightforward mechanics allowing her to quickly grasp the basics of the game. Further options, spells and rules can be discovered as the game unfolds. To start playing, nothing beats a character with a focus on action: the character does one thing well that has a chance to meaningfully impact the flow of the game, and that's it.

I chose to go with a female warlock named Iliana. The Warlock can be found in the D&D supplement Complete Arcane, published by Wizards of the Coast. It is an excellent character class for newbies since it encourages an active role in combats, thanks to its Eldritch Blast ability. It also has Invocations, which are supernatural abilities always "on", basically. No need to keep track of them all the time. You can just relax and enjoy the game. You can shoot stuff and have fun. Exactly what Stephanie needs.

Some relevant information about the character:

- Iliana, female human witch. She is a Runebearer who doesn't know anything about the marks she bears since she was born. After being rejected from her community, she ended up in Ptolus, trying to make it as one of the numerous adventurers flooding its streets. She was recently mugged by some alchemists. She tries to find out what they want from her and ultimately joins the PCs in their investigation and adventures.
Warlock Level 4.
Feats: Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Weapon Focus (ranged spells), Rapid Shot.

Prior to the game, we also level-up all the players' characters. I prepared everything in advance by writing down all the necessary modifications to the character sheets in my campaign notebook. This allows us to not waste time shuffling through rulebooks to check that modifier or this hit die.

We have an early supper with tacos, salads, home-made bread and sushi. We are all well sated and end up resuming our game around 6:00 PM.

Session 10 - A Sudden Twist of Fate

Still the 24th of Rain

Beket Per Aau-Nu, Heinrietta Nagel and Simone Ahrenameer just defeated a Yuan-Ti and her abyssal minions within the Lodge, the adventuring resort for the wealthy indirectly owned by the Balacazar crime family.

It turns out, as Malkeen Balacazar pointed out to them two weeks prior to their visit, that the Lodge was under new management for some time: some doppelgangers allied with the alchemists who originally tortured them had infiltrated the resort, but the monstrous staff (playing the monsters in the fake dungeons the costumers of the lodge explore during their stay) found out just before the girls came in the picture. Now, the monsters control most of the area and don't seem too keen on discussing things over with our heroes. They have to fight their way through the complex to be able to track the alchemists back to their secret lair, wherever that may be.

After looting the orcs, gnolls and Yuan-Ti on the lower level of the Lodge, the girls are about to climb up the stairs to the upper level when the air suddenly shimmers and bends before them. Patches of color sparkle around and agglomerate to form a smooth and featureless body. It grows, and takes on more details to become a young woman standing tall before them, thin, with dark brown hair, brown eyes and pale skin. She is wearing a long blue coat, leather boots and banded mail. She carries some adventuring gear including backpack, rope and all. She does mean business.

The girls recognize the new comer: she is a runebearer, and was mugged by some people a few days earlier. Zavere had learned about this somehow and had her brought to Castle Shard to rest and recover. She remained unconscious during our heroes' stay there.

She explains that she awoke soon after the girls left for the Black Ladder. She is a new adventurer to Ptolus and doesn't know why she was mugged in the first place. The Lord and Lady of Castle Shard roughly explained the situation to her, but they didn't waste time: they thought it was best for her to join Beket, Hennie and Simone in their quest for answers.

Hennie Nagel wants to confirm Iliana's story before she can trust anything she says. Watching over the stairs leading up to the second level of the Lodge, she uses her thoughtstone and contacts Zavere directly. She concentrates on the gem and soon hears the Lord's voice in her mind. It just takes a few seconds to confirm Iliana's tale. All seems well and good.

When the conversation is over all the girls hear a deep voice resound upstairs: "Dinner is almost ready, boys!"

Iliana decides to sneak upstairs and check out what it is all about. She soon finds herself in a vestibule of sorts. Two doors are in front of her, leading to the customers living quarters. On her left, a book case concealing a secret door was recently swung open. She decides to sneak past the secret door. Just beyond, she finds the corpse of a richly dressed woman in an advanced state of decomposition. On the other side of the secret door, marks of nails and blood. This poor creature had been sequestered here until she died alone in the dark.

Iliana is now standing at the edge of a vast underground cave connected to the Lodge via the secret door she just walked past. At about 60 feet beyond the corner opening on the cave itself, she notices the flickering flame of a brasero. Shadows slowly slither on the natural stone wall facing her; there is some movement down there.

She hides in the shadows and peaks around the corner. She spots an ogre armed with a gigantic cleaver knife. He is about to slaughter some furry animal standing on a huge wooden platform. Nearby, another furry beast lies dead, covered with what looks like large chunks of ice. The ogre is humming a song as he tests the edge of his knife with his bare fingers. He lifts the blade above his large head and suddenly hacks at the beast standing there. A huge grin deforms his face. He does not seem to have noticed her hiding nearby.

A good cook cuts his meat by himself, wouldn't you say?

Iliana decides to retreat. She goes back to the other girls and relays what she just witnessed to them. The group discusses it over for a few seconds and climbs back up the stairs. When they all reach the second floor, they decide to go for the doors leading to the customers' living quarters.

Once there, they realized they have just interrupted another Yuan-Ti and two ogres who were chatting while waiting for their evening meal!

The Yuan-Ti leaps into an adjacent room away from the girls' sight. One ogre decides to run through a guest room while his partner kicks the dining table to project it at the heroes' faces!

As the ogre runs to meet with the intruders, gunshots and bolts of eldritch energy burst left and right. Simone turns around the obstacle through lateral corridors but finds herself face to face with the first ogre who went through the guest room! She quickly shoots an arrow. It fends through the air and pierces the ogre's eye. The hulking monster shakes his head violently before charging. He then hits her with all the might he fosters from the pain and hatred he feels at this precise moment. The blow lands on Simone's bare jaw...

... and sends her flying through the door frame! She crashes on a table at the other side of the dining room. She is unconscious. The ogre's blow crushed half of her face under its impact. The girls fight on. Beket notices Simone's body starts shaking uncontrollably. She runs to her and inspects her wounds. The shakes stop. There is a moment of doubt that is soon cleared up: the body lays there, lifeless. At peace.

Simone is dead.

The rest of the girls' fight becomes a blur. When everything is over, they all stand among the corpses of their former adversaries. Not that any of this matters anymore: Beket kneels beside Simone's corpse. Iliana is just a few steps behind, not knowing how to react. Hennie stands straight, her thoughts quickling racing through her head.

She picks up her thoughtstone and says a name aloud: "Zavere..."

The Lord of Castle Shard connects his thoughts to hers. She explains the situation and as soon as everything is clear to him, the Lord does not waste time. He just tells them to wait and be patient. Silence follows the initial shock and indeed they wait.

Seconds turn into minutes, and minutes into hours. Or so it seems.

Another shimmering wave grows in the air. Patches of color. Another teleportation. A smaller individual appears before them: Hamrick, the bold halfling the girls have been meeting on and on since they escaped from Zalathar's lair. The halfling carries a pair of silver bracers in his hands. He walks directly to Simone's corpse and puts the bracers on her forearms. He stands aside and waits.

Nothing happens at first. Beket, Hennie and Iliana feel like they're waiting for a miracle to occur.

A fine phosphorescent outline surrounds Simone's body. Then, Simone gets up. She looks around and meets her friends' looks of surprise. She smiles at them. She notices there is some sadness in their eyes. She looks around, notices Hamrick but cannot say another word: her own body is still lying there, on the floor.

She looks at her hands. They are translucent.

"A ghost," says Hamrick. "That's what you are. For now."

The girls decide to retreat. Just as they step in the vestibule the ogre "cook" Iliana spied on earlier emerges from the secret door leading to the cave beyond. Another fight ensues. Simone soon finds out she can actually touch her friends physically but cannot reach other people or items. She distracts the ogre's attention enough for her friends to take care of him.

When the cook finally lies dead, the girls take a decision: it is time for them to back off, go back to the surface and make arrangements to bring Simone back to the world of the living.

When the girls emerge from the basement of the Black Ladder an hour later, no customer, no member of the staff dares to intervene. The somber and decided looks on their faces, their clothings torn apart and the various wounds they have suffered thus far clearly show they won't put up with complaints right now.

Dusk is upon them as they reach the streets of Ptolus. They catch a carriage cab and indicate their next destination to its driver: St. Valien's Cathedral, the largest of the nine churches dedicated to Lothian's cult in the city.

The magnificence of the building with its elaborate sculptures, evocative iconography, colored stained glass all around isn't sufficient to divert the girls' thoughts away from their grave purpose. Their steps echoing down the Cathedral's nave, they walk firmly towards the altar. An acolyte steps forwards and greets them formally.

As soon as the adventurers start explaining why they came to St. Valien's, it soon becomes clear from the acolyte's dispassionate tone and careful choice of words that they are not welcome here. He tries to redirect them to St. Gustav's chapel, where the Church "attends to the need of the bold and the unwary who plunge and plunder the dungeon below for a living."

The discussion quickly heats up after the acolyte spots Simone and recognizes her for what she is. He mentions the Keepers of the Veil and how the "creature," as he immediately starts calling her, should be brought to the Necropolis under the Order's watch. Only the intervention of Sister Mara Von Witten, an adventurer devoted to the Church who just happens to catch bits and pieces of the argument stops the exchange before it becomes too vehement for everyone involved.

She gracefully yet firmly sends the acolyte on his way and excuses herself on his behalf.

The girls explain their situation to Sister Mara. She listens carefully. She corrects them whenever she thinks some factual details are wrongly interpreted, but she does so with respect and deference.

She tells the girls the Church can indeed help them bring back Simone from "beyond the veil", as she puts it. She explains that the Holy Rite of True Resurrection could be performed by the Archbishop Adlam Theobold. Unfortunately, His Grace would not be able to perform the Holy Rite before next Theoday (five days from now). The Church of course would "welcome" a donation as a "necessary" sign of Faith on their parts prior to performance of the Holy Rite. The girls do not object.

Sister Mara helps them with the details. The acolytes of the Church help carry Simone's body to the Guild of Morticians stationed not far from the cathedral. There, the body will lay safe while the girls carry on during the next few days.

Tiana wearing Simone's Silver Bracers

Dusk has long morphed into a dark, starless night when the girls finally reach the Ghostly Minstrel where they plan to rest for a while. They discuss all that happened to them with the other patrons of the tavern including luminaries such as Urlenius, Star of Navashtrom, Steron Vsool, Shiva Callister and the two well-known mavericks Daersidian Ringsire and Brusselt Airmol.

Together, they discover the nature of the bracers Simone's spirit is wearing: these, Daersidian points out, are some Bracers of the Silver Shroud. "These," he explains, "are artifacts of great magical value once forged by the Wizards-Priests of Ni-Gorth whose worship is now all but forgotten: they allow their wearer's soul to linger and stay among the living. The soul can then shift between the worlds, become as tangible as each of us or remain incorporeal, as the wearer's sees fit."

The girls are all worn-out. They decide to go to bed. Simone joins the Minstrel himself and talks with him through the night, learning from his own experience of death and spiritual states of being. Such a twist of fate. Much remains to be learned. Much to be discovered.

Just another day in Ptolus, citizens say...

XP Breakdown

All characters are Level 4.
- Combat vs. Yuan-Ti and two Ogres - CR 6
- Combat vs. the Ogre "cook" - CR4
- Dealing with Simone's death - CR 4
XP per PC for Session 10: 1,200 (4 PCs).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 9,475 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 8,500 XP.
Total XP earned (Iliana): 7,200 XP.

The Dwarven Forge set-up for Session 10

DM's Notes

I don't think the death of player-characters has to be a problem in a tabletop RPG campaign. Actually, I think it can be just the opposite: an opportunity in disguise. You can bring about all sorts of dramatic moments or new plot elements when one of the PCs die. This is an important moment. A defining moment even, as far as the characters' emotions go. New perspectives can be exchanged. New information unveiled. New characters can be met, and many events triggered. A death doesn't "have to" matter in your campaign, but it certainly can, in a very productive way.

We may see some dramatic moments show up in the game sooner rather than later, since Simone's player does not actually want to be resurrected (she just finds the fact of playing a dead character really exciting).

The group already invested in the Holy Rite of St. Valien. What happens when Simone suddenly doesn't want to be back from the dead? What will the reaction of her comrades be? What about the Church and the Keepers of the Veil? What about the dark forces looming over Ptolus, such as the Fallen and Forsaken of the Necropolis? There are tons of possible developments, and I'm sure what will end up happening has not been foreseen. It's well and good. It's part of the reason I am the DM: if there weren't any surprises for me in the game, what would be the challenge, really?

Another issue I wanted to talk about is the thoughtstone. It is like a magical cell phone for Ptolusite characters. The stone Hennie uses during this game was given by Zavere to the group so they could keep in touch further on.

I do not want the item to become some sort of deus ex machina provider each time the players are in trouble. Hennie's player tried to use the stone on a few other occasions during the game, but didn't get any response from Zavere.

My rationale is that people like Rill and Zavere may have thoughtstones and provide them to the people they want to be able to contact, but that doesn't make them available all the time to pick up and chat whenever the PCs want. It's like people in real life: when they are attending meetings, doing some work around, or engaging social exchanges that forbids them from just "picking up the phone", they just don't. That'd be just rude to do otherwise, right? Same thing in Ptolus, particularly considering the people owning this stones usually are very well-known and influential citizens. They just don't have the time to chat endlessly over the "stone".

Overall, this was a good game session with some surprises for everyone.

Our new player, Stephanie, liked the game very much, and was pretty much hooked as soon as we started using the miniatures to simulate combats and movements. Something to remember for people I introduce to the game (and this is not the first time I witness it): people really love to have something concrete to play with. When miniatures are on the table, the game doesn't look as "weird" as it may have looked like otherwise: it's not abstract, it's not "too far out" - there's some tactic, some strategy going on, and a bit of acting to make the whole scene look more vivid and entertaining. That's all the newbies need to understand at first. Keep the drama for later. Keep the complex situations out of the way for the moment. There's always time to spice things up later on!

Session 9 - Welcome to the Lodge

2007-04-10T11:08:00.000-07:00

Sunday, April 8, 2007 from 1:00 PM to 6:00 PM

We gather around 1:00 PM. I am a bit late on my schedule: when the players arrive to our place, I am not quite done with the miniatures set-up I started after cleaning up the place, around 11:00 AM. Somehow the time flew by. I woke up in a "Ptolus mode", as I came to call it, and can't wait to start the game.

We enjoy our "brown lunch" (thus branded by Tiana/Simone because of the common tones of all our courses), with curried shrimps, ash brown potatoes, breaded chicken and the like. We take our time, but soon enough, the players naturally migrate from the couches to the table where I set-up a replica of the Lodge at miniature's size by using various elements of Dwarven Forge sets and fish tank props.

We're ready to roll!

Hedgehog delights

Session 9 - Welcome to the Lodge

During the two weeks following their first meeting with Lord Zavere and Lady Rill, Beket Per Aau-nu, Heinrietta Nagel and Simone Ahrenameer decide to stay at Castle Shard while some of their troubles take care of themselves, so to speak.

It soon becomes obvious that making an enemy out of an Imperial Eye wasn't necessarily the best thing to happen to our little group of adventurers. Zavere advises the greatest of caution and asks them to stay while he takes care of the matter with Commissar Igor Urnst directly.

During their downtime, the girls get to know more about the residents of Castle Shard, including Moynath Autumnsong, an elven sorcerer who spends most of his time cloistered in his own quarters, and Narasha the female Satyr who demonstrates quite early on both an overwhelming sexual appetite for any type of male around and great blabbering skills, one often triggering the other and vice versa.

Simone visits her parents at Emerald Hill. All sarcasm aside ("so... you are still alive, my daughter... nice to hear from you again"), they are really glad to see her again. The main reason for Simone's visit, however, is to get in touch with Vania Ahrenameer, her younger cousin, to get her to work at House Sadar while Simone is away. It takes some time to convince her (by guilt-tripping her into doing it, actually), but the elf finally gets her way. She does not have to worry about losing her job at the Sadar estate.

Hennie walks down the street one day and pays a visit to her family as well. She faces Fransin and her laments about the loss of her husband Kurtlan once again. The family is penniless, without any standing or alliances that would work in its favor, and Hennie is harshly blamed for not doing anything about it. "After all, you are an adventurer, aren't you?" Even the Knights of the Golden Cross don't seem in the best of dispositions to do something about the Nagel's dire situation. It seems clear that if Kurtlan is ever to see the light of day again, it will be through the intervention of Hennie and her friends.

Beket stays at Castle Shard and meditates with Rill. It's hard to follow her, since she always seems to speak in cryptic terms and refers to events and topics while seemingly assuming her interlocutors know as much about them as she does, but overall, Beket learns much about self-control in her company. When Hennie asks her about her future as a sorcerer one day, Lady Rill proposes to join the Brides of Magic, but makes clear it would mean she would marry magic itself, thus leaving behind the troubles of House Nagel and any hope of a personal life she could have. Surprisingly, while this is clearly not to please Hennie herself, Beket is in the room when this conversation occurs and follows Lady Rill's explanations very closely.

Later, she makes clear to her new mentor that, even though she still believes in the existence of the Old Man and the Watcher in the Skies, it seems to her she's been misled into believing these deities represented the overall meaning of Creation in the universe. She now believes they are part of a bigger picture she still has to uncover, and further, she believes magic itself to be closely tied to this "grand scheme of things". She comes to worship magic itself.

24th of Rain

After two weeks have gone by, Lord Zavere talks to the girls once more. He explains he's had some measure of success with the Commissar. The girls shouldn't be troubled again by the Imperial Eyes, but they should keep some measure of caution when dealing with the authorities of Ptolus. He also informs them that he arranged a meeting with Alderaan Kernst, the owner of the Lodge they heard so much about, for lunch on this very day.

Alderaan's Lodge, simply known as "the Lodge" by the wealthy families of the City by the Spire, is an underground resort for nobles and rich bourgeois alike. There, people who can pay may enjoy the life of an adventurer for a while, exploring dungeons, killing and looting monsters, without dealing with any of the consequences such a "dirty way of life" implies for the multitude of delvers trying to make a living out of it.

Alderaan Kernst is a famous business man in league with the Balacazars. This confirms part of the tale Malkeen Balacazar shared with them at the Onyx Spider. If the rest of the tale is true, this means something dark is going on at the Lodge, with some of the staff at least sharing some kind of alliance or pact with the alchemists who originally trained Zalathar, the tormentor they have to thank for the horrific experiments they have been subjected to after hunting for ratmen a few weeks ago.

Somehow, to know what the ultimate goal of Zalathar was and to understand the big picture that would have something to do with the so-called "Night of Dissolution", the Runebearers and the Vallis moon, the girls have to first find out what exactly is going on at the Lodge.

The Black Ladder

The girls finally meet Alderaan Kernst at the Black Ladder, a fabulous restaurant located at the corner of the Emperor's Road and Vock Row, in Old Town. It is a peculiar establishment, particularly when compared to the Aristocrat's Table in the Nobles' Quarter. Indeed, the Black Ladder's meals have a reputation to rival even the quality of those presented the Aristocrat's Table, but the Black Ladder is known for taste over presentation while still proposing a wide array of courses for all budgets.

The Black Ladder has enormous kitchens serving hundreds, if not thousands of meals to many, many customers during lunch hours. Its main room looks like an enormous amphitheater carved out of a single block of black marble. Two or three tables can fit the width of each of its tiers. The basic rule at the Ladder is this: the closer you sit from the center of the amphitheater, the rarer and better the courses become, the prices increasing exponentially to follow their overall quality and rarity, of course.

When the girls come in, they wisely choose to stick to the higher levels of the Ladder. Aldeeran Kernst soon joins them: he is a tall, gaunt fellow with a bald head, dark eyebrows and a goatee finely trimmed around his colorless lips. He talks to them for while, trying to understand their interest in the Lodge, and the girls successfully pose as the bored rich daughters of wealthy merchants just wanting to "have some fun".

They pay the basic fee for entrance at the Lodge (100 Imperials per customer, no less) and agree to pay for the lodging, the meals as well as any extras they would require during their stay separately. Alderaan also points out that the Lodge takes a flat 25% share of all their findings in the underground levels of the city. Definitely not a vacation for the poor.

When their lunch is over, Alderaan takes the new costumers down to the basement of the Ladder. There, they reach a oval-shaped room where a basket that could easily hold about 10 people standing aside of each other hangs over an even larger well of unknown depth. A steam engine provides the means of descent for the basket and whoever it carries during its runs. Alderaan steps in the basket, followed by the "newborn" adventurers. A nearby employee starts the steam engine, and they thus plunge down the well...

Havoc at the Lodge

When they finally reach the bottom of the well, Alderaan and his customers walk through a network of irregular corridors up until they reach a vast natural cave. In front of them, an underground lake, a damaged bridge thrown on top of it. Beyond, a solid watchtower, and beyond still, a vast mansion embedded in the natural stone wall facing them. This mansion looks like many one could find on the surface. It looks like it could have been taken apart from there and just rebuilt stone after stone to fit its gloomy surroundings. All around the mansion, torches shed some light here and there upon the unusual setting.

As the girls make their first steps along the lake and towards the broken bridge, they see a man run on it, jump over its chasm and land awkwardly on the other side, towards them, while shouting: "Flee! Flee while you can! They're evewhere!"

Just at this moment, the man receives a gigantic arrow in the back. The impact projects his corpse down the stairs of the bridge at the feet of the adventurers. The shot came from the other side of the lake, near the mansion.

The corpse then starts to change shape... a grey-skinned and featureless creature soon replacing the man that was there. Alderaan Kernst swears loudly and turns to Hennie Nagel. He attempts to stab her with his dagger!

The girls are fast to react. They fight Kernst and kill him as another gigantic arrow is shot at them from the other side of the lake. Hennie takes cover behind the steps of the broken bridge while Simone retreats to do the same thing behind one the corridor walls behind them. Beket tries to cross the lake as fast as she can. The lake is clear and shallow, but it's muddy bottom is particularly treacherous for fast movement.

After just a few steps in the water, Beket suddenly sees a large mass of rot and algae emerge from the lake, right in from of her. The long legs, the bloated body, the multitude of eyes almost paralyze her with fear. A giant, black, hairy and wet spider stands before her, an ettercap rider on her back.

Beket runs for the Bridge. Another gigantic arrow misses her from a few inches. She climbs the stairs as fast as she can, one of Simone's arrow shooting back at the sniper somewhere at the other side of the lake. She runs while the spider and her rider walk through the lake to intercept her. Before she can jump, she already knows it is too late: the spider is way quicker than she is. She has to confront the beast.

Beket attacked by the giant spider and its ettercap rider

She readies herself for a jump, but soon spots a large mechanical balista hovering towards her. What kind of a devilry is this? An orc pilots the balista and shoots yet another enormous arrow at her. Luckily for Beket, Simone has her own idea in mind. She shoots at the hovercraft and sends it into a mad spin in the air. The pilot tries to master its erratic movements while Beket jumps at last, using the spider's face as a springboard to jump higher and reach the machine... but she misses it at the last moment, landing on the other side of the bridge.

Hennie casts a Blood Spikes spell (Complete Book of Eldritch Might). Horns of bone rip the ettercap's flesh apart as its blood coagulates. The creature screams in pain while Beket jumps once one, this time reaching the hovercraft and holding on to it. The machine is still spinning in the air for a second, but the pilot finally finds a way to control it. He plunges towards the bridge to lose Beket and tries to harpoon Simone (who is now running along the side of the lake) in a sudden kamikaze attack. Beket lets the hovercraft go just before in slams into the cavern's wall.

Meanwhile, the giant spider went for Hennie. She manages to stand her ground for a moment, just long enough for Simone to run back to her and help her slaughter the monstrous thing.

On the other side of the lake, a small group of orcs and gnolls were watching the fight as it unfolded. Not too eager to join the fray immediately, they just sit on the benches in front of the mansion and enjoy the spectacle. This says a lot about their sense of duty and abnegation. When the fight quickly turns in favor of the newcomers, they decide to barricade themselves in the mansion, waiting for the storm to pass by.

But the girls are not exactly done with them. After making sure the hovercraft is still able to fly properly, Simone attemps to slam it into the mansion's main entrance to ram her way through, but at the last moment she fumbles on the gas pedal. The hovercraft makes a 'L' shape turn and slams on the cavern's ceiling instead!

Simone jumps out of the hovercraft just before it slams into the ceiling. She lands on the ground and tumbles almost immediately. She avoids the remains of the hovercraft crashing just after her at the spot where she originally landed. It explodes in flames and a huge cloud of thick, oily smoke while she gets up and looks at what she has done.

Simone's safe landing. Sort of.

Just as Hennie and Beket join Simone in front of the mansion, the orcs and gnoll inside try to force their way out. Looks like something made them change their mind. Beket stands her ground and fights several of them at once while a gnoll finds his way through and sprints through the cavern. He believes he's succeeded in his escape, but just as he reaches the exit to the Lodge's cavern, he receives an arrow in the back right between his shoulders. As the gnoll's body crashes to the ground, Simone lowers her bow with a smirk. This one would not go any farther, she points out to herself.

She walks to her target and finds out the gnoll is still alive. She asks why they attacked. The gnoll answers: "The staff! We've been working for the Lodge for a long time, but everything's changed! The staff changed! Doppelgangers everywhere! They've been working with the alchemists, but we don't want to die at the hands of the Balacazars! We have nothing to do with it, and if you're not doppelgangers yourselves, or even allied to these alchemists, you should die nonetheless! Nobody will bring back the news to the Balacazars before we're long gone!"

The gnoll tries to attack Simone in a last attempt to escape, but this is already to late: the elf's bow is much quicker than a fist.

Beket and Hennie have some success to with the orcs and gnolls they're fighting. As soon as they can they step in the mansion, searching for more of these cowards. Immediately, a female voice addresses them from the shadows: "You are violating my domain, foolish girls. Go now, and live."

The girls would have none of that. Beket shouts: "Show yourself instead of making empty threats!"

On one of the tables of the lodge, a form materializes from the shadows. It has a female abdomen, head, arms and shoulders. There are no legs, but a serpentine body supporting her weight from her hips down. She has a greenish skin and white hair. A half-blood Yuan-Ti.

"Leave now," she warns them. Beket makes a step towards her. She extends her snake-like hand and spreads her long fingers as she utters words of power. Three abyssal creatures with disjointed limbs, eyes and maw inverted on their elongated faces, appear to defend their mistress.

The Half-blood Yuan-Ti and her abyssal minions

One of them jumps past Beket and Hennie and crashes through one of the mansion's window, straight for Simone who came back and was walking outside! As all girls fight for their lives, they realize their opponents are far from the usual monstrosities found in the sewers of Ptolus. These ones' blood is alive with mischievous magic that animates it and changes it into nasty tentacles of ichor which reach out for life when the flesh keeping them within is torn open by the blades of the adventurers.

The Yuan-Ti becomes invisible as the girls fight her minions. Outside the mansion, Simone struggles on the ground with the last of the abyssal pets. The fight changes into a strange ballet of wits, guns, fists and claws as the adventurers try to outsmart their opponents.

As it soon becomes obvious they will win this fight, the Yuan-Ti pops out of nowhere as her tail grabs Hennie by the throat. The daughter of House Nagel doesn't waste time. She calls upon the blood spikes again, tearing the flesh of both the Yuan-Ti and one of her minions apart. Beket kills her opponent swiftly and races to the Yuan-Ti. She hits the monster with her closed fist with unbelievable strength dislocating her jaw and sending pieces bone fly through the air as the Yuan-Ti's wretched mouth explodes from the violent impact.

The Yuan-Ti hits the ground, like the others before her. There's nothing here to stop the girls in their quest for answers. Nothing will stop them from understanding at last what's happened to them. Nothing will stand between them and their goal: to find the alchemists and know their fate at last.

Beket's Victory Shot

XP Breakdown

All characters are Level 3.
- Great fight outside of the mansion against a giant spider and its ettercap rider, a doppelganger, a flying balista and its pilot - CR 7
- Fight against the Orcs and Gnolls trying to escape - CR 3
- The Half-blood Yuan-Ti and her abyssal minions - CR6
XP per PC for Session 9: 2,400 (3 PCs).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 8,275 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 7,300 XP.
All PCs Level Up.

DM's notes

This was another great session. We laughed a lot and made sure that there was plenty of action to keep us entertained. I noticed that the players imagine the surroundings of their characters with much more ease now, and don't rely too much on what's on the table in front of them. They also describe their actions much more than before, probably because we haven't been using 3D decors and miniatures during the last few sessions.

There's a certain pleasure in using Dwarven Forge again, and I'm sure it's heightened by the fact we don't use that sort of diorama at every game session.

If you want to see more pictures of this game session (and other moments of the Praemal Tales), don't hesitate to have a look at my Flickr album.

Another thing I'd like to mention: for this session of the Praemal Tales I used the Magic Item Compendium of Wizards of the Coast for the first time. I particularly used the tables to generate treasure randomly according the slain creature's Challenge Rating located at the end of the book. I must say I'm very impressed by the ease of use, organization and overall gaming goodness this book provides. I let the players roll for their treasures after a Search check which basically determines the CR I use (low roll CR-1, average CR+0, high roll CR+1). They like this very much, and apart of one roll I had a player re-roll (On the Half-blood Yuan-Ti, Beket got a plate armor or some such that the NPC obviously didn't have), it worked great. The girls love to roll for treasure.

MIC certainly is a great tool I'm going to use from now on.

Session 8 - Saved by the Shard

2007-03-10T09:02:00.000-08:00

Sunday, March 04, 2007 from 2:00 PM to 5:30 PM

When this session occurs, we all know we haven't been playing for a while and will certainly need to get back on track, so to speak. Professional and personal agendas have been getting in the way lately.

When we gather, we first start by enjoying a few snacks together, as always. This is part of our ritual and allows me, at least, to remember the real reason we are here : not to level-up characters, not to role-play, but primarily to enjoy the presence of each other while enjoying a good game. It's all to easy to forget the real purpose of a role-playing game and believe it's worth resides solely in its "artistic value", its coolness, or whatever else which could make us forget this is a social event first and foremost.

After such a long break in our gaming, the blog write-ups I printed out from the Praemal Tales prove useful : one of the players checked out this site before coming over while the others review the events of the last sessions during our meal. We discuss a moment and then get down to the business, as they say.

Session 8 - Saved by the Shard

Still the 9th of Rain

After leaving the Dark Market and getting back to the surface on Delver's Square, Beket, Hennie and Simone walk directly to the Onyx Spider in Midtown. They know from the slavers doing business under the streets of Ptolus that the alchemists in league with Zalathar, the harrow elf who performed foul experiments on the girls, have something to do with a location known as "The Lodge".

The Lodge, according to their contact, is some kind of "tourist resort" deep underground for the rich and noble who would like to know the excitement of Delving without the risks naturally coming with it. Any rich bourgeois of Ptolus can then become an adventurer for a week-end or more, depending on the depths of his purse, of course.

When the girls asked where they could find more information about the Lodge, they were told to go to Malkeen Balacazar at the Onyx Spider, no less ! Even our new delvers know the reputation of the Balacazars, the most influential criminal family in town.

The Onyx Spider proves to be the gloomy place the girls expected to see when they first heard the name : it is a shady but vast tavern with levitating candles making for a dim light inside. Amidst the candles floating around, a gigantic spider moves slowly within a crystal sphere flying right in the middle of the main room.

Our heroes walk to the bar and ask for Malkeen Balacazar. They are then walked to one of the booths available for the customers in need of some privacy. The man lifts the curtains cutting the people within the booth from the rest of the tavern. There, a man sits at a large table. He is young, with dark air, a tatoo of a black sun covering his right eye. Behind him, a tall and stern figure with such a stance and such a void in his eyes they do not leave any doubt as to the darkness creeping within his soul, if he has one.

The young man was just talking to a dward who also sat at the table. When the girls come in, he leaves in a hurry, always facing the young man, repeating he will have the money... soon. Very soon.

The young man presents himself as Malkeen Balacazar himself. He asks the adventurers what kind of business they'd like to discuss. He doesn't know them and seems extremely suspicious. They explain how they came to know about the Lodge and how there seems to be a connection between its staff and the alchemists who performed experiments on them. Malkeen seems very interested by what they are telling him. He pauses a moment before answering.

This is when Beket starts to act really strangely. First, these were just remarks that seemed "off", somehow. Answers that didn't make much sense, changes in her behavior that didn't seem motivated by anything happening to them. But now, Beket is actually acting up in front of Malkeen Balacazar. She seems to be completely off the hook, going as far as to insult their host directly !

Malkeen asks her if she's doing drugs. Beket avoids the question and gets on a rant that makes no sense to anyone in the room. She leaves the table.

Hennie and Simone make a mental note to find out what's up with Beket as soon as possible, but they have to get answers from Malkeen. He explains the Lodge is a new venture for the Balacazar. They own the Lodge. After all, that not because you're known as a member of a crime family that all your activities have to necessarily be illegal, he adds.

He knows something has been going wrong with the Lodge lately. The Balacazars suspect its staff may be forgetting where its loyalties lie. He proposes something to the adventurers : the staff of the Lodge knows Malkeen and his men, but he would like to know what exactly is going on down there. Maybe the girls could go there and investigate for him too ? He explains that barging in wouldn't do them any good, as for presenting themselves as agents of the Balacazar. Going there as customers, however, could allow them to spot some interesting things and learn more about the connection between the Lodge and the alchemists, since not all customers are expected to make it out alive...

Malkeen Balacazar also explains there are two main areas to the Lodge. The first is the Lodge itself, with its resort, room and tavern for the customers. The second isn't supposed to be known from the customers : it is were the "creatures" of the phony "dungeons" the customers visit during they stay live. Malkeen would pay for their services, and even though he does not indicate any particular amount for rewards, his offer is very tempting.

The girls accept his offer. Malkeen explains how to get in touch with the staff of the Lodge : they can go to the Black Ladder in Old Town. It is a fine restaurant for exotic foods and beverages that also serves as the entrance to the Lodge. There, they could reserve a place as customers of the Lodge. It would cost them 100 Imperials for the reservation, with further expenses for their stay and "adventures" down there.

Everything has been said. The girls leave Malkeen Balacazar.

Beket still doesn't seem to be quite herself, so Hennie and Simone decide to take her back to the Temple of the Watcher of the Sky. There, they meet Helmut Itlestein who was lecturing Ayla, Beket's aunt. As soon as they reach the Observatory room, Helmut tries to persuade them to leave Beket at the Temple so he can watch over her. Ayla gets close to the girls and whispers to them : "This is not a good idea... please... take Beket with you. Don't leave her here..."

The girls then make their way out with Beket while Helmut Itlestein protests as much as he possibly can. There is something wrong with him : he seems way too concerned about the girls and the marks they have on their bodies. Could he have something to do with the alchemists themselves ? That doesn't seem possible, and yet, many impossible things have been popping up in the girls lives of late.

The adventurers go to Hennie's appartment. Whatever's going on with Beket, she must not be left alone. That much is obvious.

Sometime during the night, someone knocks at the door. When Hennie opens, the gaunt man with grey eyes wearing a black cloak, leather pants and a fine rapier presents himself as Wolfran Arkûn. He says he is one of the Imperial Eyes and is sent by the Commissar himself to watch over them and understand what is exactly going on with the Runebearers in town.

He explains his men have been hearing about the girls, what happened to them and the kinds of questions they were asking around, but before they can discuss any further Wolfran spots Beket. He realizes immediately something not right is going on with her. He shows the order signed by the Commissar and insists that he will stay during the night to watch over Beket himself, but the girls will have none of that. They start to argue with the Imperial Eye who visibly doesn't take it very well. He leaves then, saying he will come back with an order for their arrest, since they will not cooperate !

Hennie and Simone then try to talk to Beket to make her understand the gravity of the situation. They might are in trouble, and she has to pull herself back together.

When Wolfran comes back, he indeed has an order for their arrests and the company of several mages of the Goldshield to prove it. The girls try to protest, and as they try to resist, they are subjected to a whole flurry of spells ! In a matter of seconds, the scene fades for them in darkness...

10th of Rain

When they reopen their eyes, they are in a dark room with complete silence but for the sound of water drops falling from the ceiling. Hennie creates a magical light, but it seems spells cannot be cast here, as her attempt fails miserably. She has a mechanical torch with her and uses it : they are in some sort of cave. There is a single door here. It is made of strong iron with a small trap door at eye level to allow people to see from one side to the other. The trap door itself is covered with iron bars. No doubt : they have been magically teleported in the Prison of Ptolus !

Despite some attempts to escape from this cell, the adventurers quickly realize they are definitely trapped. Hennie makes a connection with a wandering rat and makes a familiar out of him. He is renamed "Yorick" and explores the surrounding areas for them. All around, more and more cells. Somewhere nearby, a great pit opening on a multitude of corridors such as the one the door of their cell is leading to. All these corridors are accessible through mechanical elevators moving between the levels of the pit.

After waiting there for several hours, someone comes to visit them. When the door opens, they could not have guessed who was about to save the day : their "friend" of several adventures, Hamrick, the halfling they first met when they escaped from Zalathar's lair !

Hamrick explains he's been coming here on behalf of the Lord and Lady of Castle Shard who have agreed to pay for their release. Beket, Hennie and Simone never met them but are sure glad they can get out before Wolfran Arkûn comes back to taunt them.

They visit the underground Prison of Ptolus as they walk with Hamrick and the guards : most corridors share an uncanny resemblance to the upper level of Zalathar's lair indeed, which would mean the upper section of the Prison at least would date back to the time of Ghul, the Skull King who terrified the region and surrounding lands centuries before them.

The upper level of the Prison opens on the bay of Ptolus. There, a small skiff is waiting for them. After paddling away from the cliff and reaching the docks, Hamrick orders a carriage to take them directly to Castle Shard in the Nobles' Quarter. Far away to the East, the sun rises in a sky of mingled crimson and gold.

Castle Shard, as wonderfully illustrated by The Forge.

Castle Shard truly is a sight to behold. Everything about it seems eerie, mysterious and magical. As the adventurers walk on the bridge that leads to its entrance with Hamrick before them, they cannot but wonder what exactly Lord Zavere and Lady Rill may have to do with the business at hand. They are well known and respected by the citizens of Ptolus, and Castle Shard certainly is one of the attention-magnets of the city, which seems to indicate the Runebearers' disappearances and what happened to the adventurers themselves really is the tip of a much larger and sinister iceberg waiting for them to be revealed to the world.

They meet at the door with the majordomo, Kadmus, who strangely seems to know the girls by their names. He keeps referring to Hennie as "Miss Nagel", and her two friends are thus made aware of her origins. She has to explain to them why she did not reveal her true identity, how she was determined to make it on her own, without the help of her family which had fallen on hard times and thus had much better things to do than solve Hennie's problem and support her financially.

Beket is still acting up strange. This too would have to be explained sooner or later. Hennie and Simone suspect this has to do with the tattoos all three bear on their skins but if so, why would these strange compartmental effects just affect Beket and not her companions ? More questions, still more questions needing answers.

The girls then meet for the first time Lady Rill and Lord Zavere. They are very gracious to them but soon enough they notice something wrong is going on with Beket. It is Lady Rill who comes to her and simply asks her : "Since when ?"

Beket does not answer. She looks at the floor sheepishly.

Lady Rill adds : "You know this is not for me to tell them. If you want help, you need to tell them."

Beket runs away in shame. What is going on ?

Shortly after, as Hennie talks to Zavere, Beket shows up in the room again. Simone walks to her and asks her what her problem is. To her amazement, instead of answering her question, Beket proposes some pollen to her, a drug she's been using for some time. Here is the answer to her strange behavior !

As soon as the Lord and Lady of Castle Shard realize what Beket is doing, it is Rill who intervenes. Zavere runs to her and knocks her out. Rill explains to Hennie and Simone that she cannot tell them what Beket has been doing with herself : this is not her responsability. She and Zavere have a duty to help those in distress within the Castle's boundaries, however. She then tells them the Shard will offer them asylum while Beket recuperates. During the next few days, Zavere will try to gather more information for them. When they are ready, they will be able to face the threat of the alchemists by then.

A long discussion between Rill, Zavere and the girls follows during which the Lord and Lady of the Castle explain how the alchemists tried to get magical knowledge and various advantages by associating themselves with the Chaos Cults and the Shuul, and how they thus tried to play both sides against each other to cover their own tracks, gather more Runebearers they use in their experiments, and how this may have to do with the fabled "Night of Dissolution" and the Vallis Moon. But why would a bunch of alchemists want to trigger the Dissolution after clearly backstabbing the Chaos Cults ? What is there to gain for them, in the end ? This is still a mystery.

When Beket feels better, the girls will certainly try to find out while visiting the Black Ladder and the Lodge.

XP Breakdown
All characters are Level 3.
- Dealing with Malkeen Balacazar and getting out of the Onyx Spider alive – CR3
- XP Bonus for good role-playing – 150 XP/PC
XP per PC for Session 8: 450 (3 PCs).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 5,875 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 4,900 XP.

DM's notes

This was a game session that did not go in the direction I expected, and it was great ! That's the kind of thing I love as a DM : I hate it when the players just follow the line. I feel like the charactes and decors are not really alive when this happens for too long or with too much regularity.

For this session, I expected the PCs to go from the Dark Market to the Onyx Spider, then from the Spider to the Black Ladder, then from the Ladder to the Lodge. Simple enough. One main thing happened to change this : Nerissa, Beket's player, came up with the idea that Beket was doing drugs and role-played her character as such. The fact then that the Imperial Eyes showed up at the wrong moment and that Hennie Nagel started to argue with them triggered their bried incarceration in the Prison of Ptolus and the reappearance of Hamrick leading to the meeting with the Lord and Lady of Castle Shard.

I'm glad the PCs got to meet such iconic characters of the city. This just came up in the game, without being prepared whatsoever. This made the succession of events feel quite real not only to the players but to myself as well. I love it when I can feel a situation as spontaneous and thus more genuine.

Session 7 - Dark Tidings

2007-01-22T17:40:00.000-08:00

Saturday, January 20, 2007 from 5:30 PM to 9:45 PM.

This session started with a wondrous meal provided as usual by the players of the Praemal Tales: chicken pasta, chili con carne, Vietnamese mint and basil noodles, pork chops coated with sesame seeds… we were off to a good start.

Melissa, who was earlier a player in our Seven Spires campaign, joins us during the meal. This is probably her last time with us, since she is leaving the island in a few days. We all enjoyed her inquisitive mind and wondrous talents as a cook, and she is a dear friend of us all.

After discussing for while, Melissa leaves us to our game. I wish all the best for her. I will always remember her portrayal of Miriell the dwarf paladin. She will be missed.

Session 7 – Dark Tidings

Still the 8th of Rain

The girls meet in the end of the morning at the Ghostly Minstrel where they are warmly welcomed by staff and patrons alike. Since they successfully saved the inn's ghost the word seems to have been widely spread. All the patrons know about their exploits.

Zade offers a free meal to them and thanks them again before leaving them to their conversation.

Beket does not seem to be quite herself today: she keeps brushing her friends off and acting in a very awkward manner, as if she was not truly there with Hennie and Simone. She meditates while her friends are talking together, and performs an unknown rite that leaves her companions worried for her.

As a matter of fact, Hennie and Simone get so worried that they leave Beket to her meditation and go to St. Gustav’s Chapel to search for Petran Achenburg, the priest who assisted them many times on their search for answers since they escaped Zalathar’s lair.

When the girls come back to the Ghostly Minstrel, they are accompanied by Petran who took a peculiar interest in their request. He seems to be genuinely worried about Beket and explains this may have something to do with the tattoos they are all wearing on their skins, the results of Zalathar’s experiments during their captivity.

Petran tries to make the conversation with Beket, but she remains uncooperative and aloof. While the priest is trying to get through to her, Beket suddenly comes back to her senses. She has forgotten all that occurred since their arrival to the Ghostly Minstrel: she remembers getting in, greeting Zade and looking at herself in a mirror hung on the wall, thinking her skin looked weird (indeed, her skin tone is closer to ash grey than pink. This is something, along with her unusual size, that has been puzzling her as well as her relatives for some time now).

Then, without warning, Beket grabs the black short sword she took on the body of one of Ram’s muggers and throws it on the ground, shouting “The sword! It’s the sword!”

Petran picks up the blade using napkins of the Ghostly Minstrel to avoid any direct contact with it. He strongly advises the girls to follow him back to St. Gustav’s Chapel. They agree.

Once there, Petran performs a few rituals to rid Beket’s soul of any residual influence the blade might still have on her. He proposes to keep the blade himself, but the adventurers are unwilling to let that happen. Petran then proposes to go to Myraeth’s on Delver’s Square to have the old elf’s opinion about it. This is more to the girls’ liking.

When they arrive, Myraeth Tuneweaver, owner of Myraeth’s Oddities, welcomes them back. They do not waste any time and show him the black blade. Myraeth seems deeply interested in the artifact and proposes 5,000 Imperials for it. Beket and her companions are surprised, and they thus asks Myraeth what he intends to do with it. “Not keep it to myself, if that’s what you were wondering,” he precises.

Beket agrees to the deal. Myraeth pays and thanks her. He then takes the same precautions Petran took before him: after putting on a black leather glove, he picks up the sword and looks at it more closely. “This weapon is ancient, indeed. It was forged during the conquests of Ghul.” The girls recognize the name of the Skull King, the conqueror who spawned armies of horrors to conquer the land around the Spire centuries ago. Myraeth’s eyes are gleaming: “This is a weapon of power, and like all weapons of power, this is a danger for anyone carrying it.” He then slams the blade against his desk as he shouts words of arcane meaning.

The blade explodes with a thousand sparks!

“It was necessary,” Myraeth explains after a pause. “The blade would have fallen into the wrong hands, sooner or later.”

Petran and the girls leave Myraeth to go back to the Minstrel. There, they discuss about the various options available to them. The adventurers want to discover who was behind Zalathar’s experiments. Remembering their encounter with Octavius of the Ebon Hand, they choose to go to the Dark Market. There, they would be able to find out more from the slavers Zalathar’s master was dealing with, according to Octavius.

Petran warns them against the place. He explains how the customers of the Dark Market get there: they usually have to reveal who told them about the place, have to provide a few dozen Imperials and know a password which is regularly changed for security purposes. “Criminals in Ptolus know the value of cautiousness,” he tells them. Of course, the girls ask him how he came to know about such things. “Being a priest doesn't mean I wasn't involved with the wrong crowds at other times of my life.”

The girls know what to do: they need to gather the necessary keys for their admission into the Dark Market. They do not lack Imperials, and they know the name of Octavius. Remains the password: how to get a hold of it?

Simone is the one coming up with the solution: why not obtain the password from House Sadar? After all, Ren is known to manage shadowy businesses, and Simone would be surprised if nobody at the House knew the password to the Dark Market. Her companions decide this is probably the best option available to them. Simone leaves for House Sadar at once, leaving Hennie and Beket at the Ghostly Minstrel.

When she arrives at House Sadar, Simone starts asking here and there who would know the ways to the Dark Market. This is no easy task as it requires both a smooth tongue and gambling skills from the rogue, but Simone finally finds out the password: “strawberry puff”, of all passwords.

Simone comes back to the Ghostly Minstrel with that piece of information, but once she is in front of the inn, she trips over a loose cobblestone! She stands up and suddenly wonders why she was going to the Minstrel… after all, she had some errands to attend to, didn't she? She walks away from the Minstrel!

Inside, Hennie and Beket are waiting for Simone to return. When Simone trips outside the inn, Hennie spots her through the colored-glass windows and watches as she walks away. What has gone into her? Hennie runs after her, and after catching up, she tries to make Simone come back to her senses. It takes a few minutes of confused exchanges for Simone to remember why she was going back to the Minstrel and what important piece of information she has, but in the end, she does so. It is a moment of great relief for the adventurers. Who knows what might have happened if Simone had walked off unnoticed?

Back at the Ghostly Minstrel, the girls talk about their plans for the next day. One of the patrons walks to their table and presents herself: Sheva Callister, retired adventurer. She explains she “couldn’t help” but overhear their conversation. She asks them if they desire any help from the patrons of the Minstrel. “We are all thankful for what you did for Zade, us and the ghost. If we can help you in any way, just say so, and we’ll be happy to answer the call.”

It looks like the girls made some new friends around here!

After talking for a while with Sheva, Beket, Hennie and Simone call it a day. Tomorrow promises to ask for all the energy they can come up with.

But rest would not come that easily.

Returning to House Sadar, Simone finds out the Speaker to the Spears of Aartuat has now officially disappeared. The servants are searching the grounds of the Guest House under the direct supervision of Ren Sadar. It looks like the Master of House Sadar is not happy at all with this turn of events. He treats everyone with the greatest disdain, including Simone when she comes to him. It’s as if he is not even listening to her: he questions her whereabouts, and despite her explanations, he almost accuses her of having a hand in the kidnapping. After the intervention of one of the Stewards of House Sadar, Ren dismisses her and carries on with the search for any clues as to the whereabouts of the Speaker. The Speaker’s eunuchs are nowhere to be seen.

As for Hennie, she decided tonight would be a good night to pay a visit to Fransin Nagel. As she enters the grounds of House Nagel, she notices the garden has not been tended to for quite a while. As she gets close to the estate, its door opens violently, and her niece, Sasha, almost bumps into her. It looks like she was just about to sneak out, judging by the way her eyes shift between Hennie, her back and the gardens behind.

Hennie leads her gently back inside the estate and asks how Fransin is doing. Sasha explains she’s been depressed for the past weeks, since Kurtlan has been framed and convicted for murder, as Hennie knows. It looks like her mood has gotten worse in the last few days.

Hennie goes straight for Fransin’s apartments. There, she finds her aunt in a dark mood. She seems discouraged. When asked how she’s been doing for the past few days, Hennie explains her situation and reveals her marks to her aunt. She does not seem to react as much as could have been expected. With so many woes on her mind, this is actually hardly surprising. Hennie’s granduncle, Yarek, comes in the room unannounced, as usual: he is known to have grown senile during the past few years. Discarding his mere presence, Fransin asks Hennie if she has talked about her marks to the Kaira Swanwing, the leader of the Knights of the Cross. Fransin knows Hennie’s admiration for the knights who were once allied to House Nagel. Hennie explains she did not. Maybe, when the time is right?

Hennie has dinner with the rest of the family. The mood is somber, and conversation is sparse at best. When talking about the various gossips shared around town, Fransin catches the name Sadar and flies into a rage: she accuses Ren Sadar of being the one who framed her husband Kurtlan. Now, he is in jail, thanks to the House Shadows. Ren Sadar should be hanged for what he did, she insists. If there’s some justice in this world, “Lord” Sadar will get what he deserves…

The rest of the dinner is spent in introspective silence on the part of the family members. Too much had been said already. Hennie felt reminded of the reasons which pushed her out the door of this estate a few months ago. As she leaves, Sasha walks with her to the door. She explains she’s met a new boyfriend. His name is Iltumar Shon, and he isn’t noble. She professes she likes him all the same, and Hennie feels compelled to warn her against people who might want to use her and through her, the family. Sasha nods, speechless, and Hennie walks into the night.

The DM taking notes during the game.

9th of Rain

The next day, while working at the Court House, Hennie hears rumors concerning the disappearance of the Speaker to the Spears of Aartuat. It seems Lord Sadar has been asking for the assistance of the Commissar’s Men. The Speaker seemed to be dealing with some criminal organizations in Ptolus, or at least that's the rumor going around lately, so the Commissar isn’t too eager to comply with Lord Sadar’s demands.

When she wakes up, another surprise is waiting for Simone. It seems that last night Yvon, one of the personal servants attending to the needs of Lady Sadar, disappeared as well. The girls at the Guest House whisper about the anger of Ren Sadar and the dark spells he uses when losing his temper… it seems to them that whatever she did to trigger the rage of Lord Sadar, Yvon wouldn’t be attending to the needs of his wife any time soon.

The girls meet with Beket at the Ghostly Minstrel. This time, they are all set and go directly to the Undercity. There, they purchase some traveling rations, not knowing when they would go back to the surface. They then head to the Undercity store branded “Scouts, Guides and Porters” where they meet Travinor Rem, the man who secretly manages the Dark Market, according to their contacts.

Travinor is a middle-aged man with a sharp eye and a soft tongue. He discusses with the adventurers, proposing the services of his men for a fair price. When the girls mention the Dark Market, Travinor’s behavior shifts and becomes much more inquisitive: “Who sent you here?” He asks. “Octavius of the Ebon Hand,” they answer. Travinor’s face expresses what may be disgust. “Never liked the old chap too much… what is the password?” The girls don’t loose their cool, and answer with a straight face: “strawberry puff.” The shop owner smiles: “These passwords, gotta love them!”

After the 50 Imperials fee is paid, Travenor takes them to the back of the store, where the rogue reveals a hidden door. It opens with a complex mechanism concealed within the wall. A block of stone shifts, revealing the entrance to the Dark Market. Travinor turns towards them and smiles: “Have fun, Ladies…”

The Dark Market under Ptolus occupies a few interconnected rooms which long ago belonged to Ghul’s Labyrinth. New doors and entryways have been created, facilitating movement between the stalls. The collection of sellers and buyers of the Dark Market could not be more eclectic: walking through the rooms, the adventurers cross path with a drow selling scrolls, a priestess and her zombie acolytes, kobolds and goblins, as well as many humans, some of which may not have seen the light of the day for years.

Soon, the adventurers reach the area were slaves are sold by a mysterious group known as the Ennin. An assarai, or lizardman, shows a powerful, tall slave for sale. He vaguely looks like a human, but much broader and meaner. He stands tall, over nine feet tall. This could be a hill giant.

Not far away, a hooded man discusses with a strange fellow wearing a dark blue cape and a complex golden armor. His face is concealed by a golden helmet evoking the shape of a human skull, and he is followed by clockwork no taller than a human but with one of its artificial hands looking like a huge metal hammer. The conversation seems to be quite lively: the armored man making gestures and visibly trying to make a point for the hooded man who doesn’t seem too impressed by this behavior.

Hennie gets closer and drops an item on the floor near them. She walks ever closer, pretending to pick it up. The armored man turns his eyes to have a brief look at her while talk.

Deep within the golden helmet, Hennie can see the man’s eyes narrow dangerously. “You…” he whispers as he draws a huge sword with multiple mechanical blades chopping thin air!

Simone and the Alchemist.

Hennie and her companions have to fight for their lives. Beket gets closer and tries to hit the mysterious man, but he proves to be extremely dexterous with his strange mechanical blade. He twists his wrist after blocking Beket's attack and the blades of his sword make an impossible turn down Beket’s leg, slicing through as if it was butter!

Beket falls on the pavement, trying to stay conscious. The battle rages on around her. She hears people shouting and rushing past her. She feels warm and opens her eyes: a nimbus of light is surrounding her. Beket has a look around and spots part of her leg lying on the ground not far away. The nimbus seems to reach through the air… and the leg comes back to her knee!

Their mysterious opponent soon realizes he will not win this fight. He runs away, leaving his clockwork behind to keep the adventurers busy, but they are much too efficient and get rid of the machine in a matter of seconds before chasing after him.

After running through a few rooms, they cut the stranger's retreat. He stops and looks at them, his eyes bright with ingenuity. He reaches for his pocket, and Beket leaps… landing just besides him. She hits him, her fist plunging through armor and skin right to his heart. The man’s eyes lose their shine. They look at the monk, interrogating, wondering why the hand still did not reach the pocket.

The corpse collapses.

Beket, Hennie and Simone find themselves victorious. They do not know exactly what happened to the monk’s leg, and if it has to do with the marks they are all wearing, the explanation for such a phenomenon will have to wait for a little longer.

They talk with the hooded man, who didn’t loose his composure. Most of the buyers and sellers around resume their business. All seem to be used to fights breaking out in the Dark Market. The hooded man explains he disliked the Alchemists from day one. They are far too pretentious, too demanding and attract far too much attention on his business.

While the adventurers were fighting their envoy a few moments ago, he made up his mind to get rid of these bothersome clients once and for all. He explains the alchemists have been interested in purchasing Runebearers from the Ennin. He knows they are up to something big, but he doesn’t know what, exactly. He remembers the envoy came a few times with some of the employees of the Lodge.

The Lodge, he explains, is a tourists’ resort for nobles and bourgeois who would want to experience the thrill of the Delve. It is located deep under Midtown. He knows something fishy is going on at the Lodge, and he knows the Alchemists have something to do with it, but he doesn’t what exactly.

When the girls inquire as to the exact location of the Lodge, the hooded man explains they would want to talk to Malkeen Balacazar at the Onyx Spider. “If you want to get to the Lodge, you might as well ask the man directly.” He laughs.

Before leaving the Dark Market, the adventurers buy a few things. First, they purchase a scroll of fire elemental summoning which gives them the occasion to learn more from the drow about the dangerous business of reaching out for outsiders from Praemal: it seems that whenever something is called and reaches Praemal, it then cannot leave the material plane. Always good to know. Second, they purchase a dragon riffle off a smuggler. This might give them more firepower for whatever stands now between them and Zalathar’s associates.

They leave the Dark Market.

Outside, it is heavily raining. They still have the greater part of the afternoon and evening left to carry on their hunt for answers. The Onyx Spider isn’t too far from Delver’s Square. They can feel it now: they are really close from their prey. It is just a matter of time.

XP Breakdown
All characters are Level 3.
- Dealing with the Cursed Blade – CR3
- Gathering requirements for entry into the Dark Market – CR3
- Dealings with the Dark Market without any faux-pas – CR3
- Defeating the Alchemist and his Automaton – CR4
- XP Bonus for good role-playing – 150 XP/PC
XP per PC for Session 7: 1,125 (3 PCs).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 5,425 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 4,450 XP.

DM's notes

It was a great session for two main reasons:

First, the PCs took control of the game, quite literally. The actually cursed blade event as well as the moment when Simone trips in the street and almost forgets who or what she was doing where elements of the game the players came up with. I had no part in these events, besides rolling with whatever the players came up with. That was really entertaining for me and everyone around the table.

Second, a lot of stuff happened, as you can see. Somehow, the events of the game seemed to unfold naturally, and there was a good mix of personal events versus investigation on the characters’ part.

Leveling-Up

2007-01-19T10:38:00.000-08:00

Saturday, December 16, 2006

During this game session we leveled-up the characters of the Praemal Tales. Some character development becomes apparent after discussing with the players:

Beket is headed towards the prestige class of Sacred Fist, that is to say, a Monk/Cleric combination. She doesn't have any Cleric level yet, but the function of healer and support character is definitely missing. That's a decision I support fully.

Simone is headed towards a prestige class as well: namely, the shadowdancer presented in the Dungeon Master's Guide. It suits the roguish inclinations of the character as well as her association with House Sadar. Simone's player decided it would fit the character to fight "shadows with shadows", which makes sense to me as well.

Hennie's player seems to stick with a plain sorcerer for now. Not a bad decision, if you ask me: the group spellcaster needs to be focussed to be fully efficient and in the absence of a full-fledged fighter within their ranks, there needs to be some arcane fire-power when needed.

I'm still surprised the group didn't come up with a name for the characters' party. I'm waiting for this defining moment to come from the players, according to their tastes and inclinations. It's much better for the players to feel that their name's truly theirs. We'll see how that occurs in the game. Already some NPCs made an allusion to their surprising lack of name as a company of adventurers. It didn't hit home yet, or if it did, I didn't realize it.

Beket, as drawn by Nerissa.

Some thoughts about leveling characters up

A few weeks ago, I was part of a discussion on ENWorld about leveling characters up in a campaign of D&D. There was a surprising consensus that DMs expect the players to level-up their characters on their own between game sessions. If the players don't do their homework by themselves, it would mean they're not interested in the game.

I really disagree with that opinion. I think that leveling-up characters isn't something apart of the game, or some homework the players would have to do on their own to prove their involvement in the game.

I consider it a full part of the game we can all enjoy together.

Indeed, it allows the players to be and remain on the same page as far as the aims of the game are concerned. Let's face it: D&D is a group activity where team-work is important. Leveling-up characters together reinforces this feeling of belonging to a single unit, to progress together towards a better enjoyment of the game.

But leveling-up can be fun, too! Discussing characters options, getting to know the rules better while eating snacks and remembering defining moments of the game that would influence this or that character's development, it all can be quite enjoyable, or at least, it's certainly more enjoyable than reading the rulebook and choosing feats on your own.

Leveling-up characters together brings the gaming group together. It also lessens the "DM versus players" mentality, because the DM doesn't have to check the character sheets like he would be a teacher checking out the players' homework before the game starts again.

I think the whole mentality of the "players' homework" stems from the frustration some DMs out there feel because they would do most of the work to keep the game running. I think, personally, that it is part of my responsibilities, and it is indeed a responsibility I enjoy, or I wouldn't be DM in the first place.

I know this might shock some readers out there, but I truly think that role-playing games constitute a group effort through and through. I think we all, as DMs, have to accept that we are the ones with the most responsibilities as far as the game is concerned in order to move on and make everyone happy around the table. That's part of our role as host of the game.

Session 6 - Meeting at the Docks

2006-12-11T04:59:00.000-08:00

Sunday, December 10, 2006 from 1:30 PM to 5:15 PM

We gather just after lunch and enjoy a few snacks together while Caroline catches up with the game, reading the transcripts of the Praemal Tales.

We resume the game around 2:30 PM.

Still the 6th of Rain

Beket and Simone get back to the Temple of the Watcher of the Skies and House Sadar respectively.

Beket finds out that Helmut Itlestein, the High Priest of the Watcher of the Skies, did not reappear at the temple that day. She has a hard time finding sleep. There are too many questions left answered. Ayla, her aunt who serves as an acolyte to the temple, knows best and leaves her to her thoughts. Whatever the answers to her niece's situation may be, she is sure the answer will present itself sooner or later.

Simone gets back to House Sadar. She doesn't have the same trouble resting that night. Maybe the thrill of adventure actually helps her sleep? After all, she doesn't live to serve as a maid for the Speaker of Aartuat and his eunuchs!

7th of Rain

The next day, after they send a courier to the courts to keep Hennie up to date, the girls meet for lunch at the Green Griffon in Midtown.

There, Hennie explains the courts needed her to serve as a guide for palastani children visiting Ptolus. She led them on a tour of the City Courts, where they attended some audiences and met with some representatives of the Commissar.

Simone and Beket explain their findings, and tell Hennie about the patterns their skins bear. The sorceress examines herself and soon realizes her legs are covered with some sort of pattern similar to the ones described by her friends. There is some confusion as to what these markings mean or what purpose they would serve, but the girls decide to forget about these things for the moment to instead appreciate their meals.

The girls enjoy some meat loaf despite a succulent special of tunnel larvas on a bed of algae with their giant red berries from the Moonsilver forest. Half way through the meal, they are interrupted by the sudden arrival of a magical wisp of darkness in the room. It swirls around the room madly, sometimes showing a hint of shadowy wings amongst the volutes of black light it draws on its path. Suddenly, as Beket dives to hide from it, the wisp lands at lightning speed on their lunch table. It did not disturb anything: glasses, bottles and plates are left untouched, and it just sits there for a moment.

Nella Schaun, the owner of the establishment, comes to them and asks: "Aren't you going to touch the damn thing?"

The girls are surprised Nella seems to know what that thing is. They ask her. She smiles: "You guys are new to Ptolus I see. This is a shadow sending, and a rather showy one at that! Please touch the damn bird so it can deliver its message and let us be done with it!"

Hennie touches the wisp, which then dissipates before their very eyes. They hear a rather dramatic voice then booming in their mind: "If you want to know more about Zalathar the Elf, come at the dead of the night on Pier Seven."

The girls discuss a bit more with Nella. The "shadow sendings", as they are called, are some means of delivery for vocal or visual messages for the Ptolusians. They are quickly becoming extremely popular to the wealthy, since they are magical, quite affordable for their unique properties, and can be delivered to locations and particular people alike. "It seems like you've got a fan", Nella concludes.

The girls leave the Green Griffon and decide to work most of the afternoon to be able to meet this unknown friend of theirs.

While on her way to House Sadar in the Nobles' Quarter, Simone is subjected to a very tight security search at Dalenguard, the fortress that stands at the only public entrance to that area of the city. When asking for explanations to the city guard, she learns that House Dallimothan, or "House Dragon" as it is commonly known, has asked the Commissar to implement these special measures for a few days. Listening to the people waiting to have access to the Nobles' Quarter, she finds out it may be related to the coming of the Traveler, a legendary dragon who visits House Dallimothan once every now and then. If the popular tales are true the Traveller is to dragons what a sage would be to other sentient races of Ptolus: a very knowledgeable being in all kinds of topics pertaining to the worlds of the visible and invisible with an eccentric and somewhat erratic personality to the common man.

Meanwhile, Beket decides to visit the Shadow Sendings' offices on Firestone Street. She discusses for a while with Rondella Loyath, the wizard in charge there. Rondella is falsely welcoming the monk's questions: she is polite and presents herself and her business very well, but some hints of a condescending personality show up as soon as the conversation leads to whoever paid for the particular shadow sending sent to them on this day. Rondella explains about "expectations of privacy", how the "company's policy" is dear to her, and such nonsense. Beket leaves the offices empty handed.

As for Hennie, she spends most of her afternoon at the courts. There, she learns that a dozen people have been disappearing in the streets of Ptolus. She asks one of her friends in the city guard to watch out for any information about these crimes, any rumors and popular tales that would be spreading on the markets and in the taverns of the city. She suspects this may have something to do with their own disappearance a while ago. If these people have been kidnapped by the same group of people Zalathar was working with, this means the situation would be more dire than the girls previously thought.

Just before midnight, Beket, Hennie and Simone meet at the Fish Market of Midtown. At this hour, the vast building overlooking the cliffs above the Docks is completely inhabited. The fishmongers show up early in the morning and sell their fresh goods to the people of Ptolus. It is then a crowded place, up until noon usually, but at this hour of the night, only smells, scattered fish parts and guts not cleaned up in the afternoon linger as an enduring testimony of the kind of business done here on a daily basis.

The girls wait there for a while before walking down the serpentine road to the Docks. Pier Seven reaches far into the ocean. At its western edge, open to the Ptolus bay, lies a wooden platform used by fishing boats to unload the heaviest catches. The adventurers do not have to wait long until a litorian shows up by the same path they used to get there. He stares at them for a moment and picks up a large blue gem from his belt. He looks at them through the gem, smiles, and then simply says: "So you came."

"They are here, my master."

A man wearing a dark toga and purple robes underneath appears out of the thin air. He has a fierce, maniacal look on his face, as if hunted down by someone or something he would just want to rip to pieces. His face and hands are bone white. He doesn't seem to have seen the light of the day for quite a while. He looks at the adventurers and announces: "I can help you find the one Zalathar was working for."

The girls are instantly reticent to have any dealings with the man. The symbol of a Black Hand appears embrodered on the robes he is wearing. A hand similar to the one painted all over the walls of the trashed laboratories the adventurers left a few days ago. The Ebon Hand.

The priest, who presents himself as Octavius, explains that Zalathar's master was once initiated to the Ebon Hand. They would call him simply "the Elf", the "Putrescent One", for he seemed to be afflicted more than any other harrow elf they had ever seen by some terrible, probably magical ailment no one could positively identify. Octavius says he never found out the Elf's name either. The priest rants for a while about him, explaining how the deviant Elf cheated both the Ebon Hand and the Shuul, how he exploited their knowledge and took advantage of their facilities to foster his own plans for magical discovery and experimentation.

Octavius seems fascinated by the girls. He stares at them, asks them if they have marks on their bodies. "You are the only ones who survived, after all. That in itself is quite an achievement." The priest seems to have ambivalent feelings of hate and admiration for the Elf. "He was working on the runes, and their effects thereof. How to develop them, to nurture them even. Many of us thought he was planning on bringing the Dissolution, but there had to be more to it!"

When the girls ask for more precise answers and complain about his annoying evasiveness, Octavius moves on, explaining how the Ebon Hand has to keep a low profile, particularly when dealing with Ptolusian authorities. "If you are on a path for revenge, if you want to hunt the Elf down and bring him to a swift death, the Ebon Hand would be grateful indeed. We know the Elf has had dealings with the Ennin who manage Ptolus' Slave Market. If you want to find him, search for the Dark Market, in the Undercity. There, you can find out where the Elf dwells and put an end to his experiments."

Given the continuous teasing the priest bestows on the girls, they do not at all appreciate the man. They brush him off and tell him to be more explicit, or to go away. He asks them: "What do you feel now? What are the runes telling you to do? Do you see the Moon? Do you feel the reckoning pound within your chest?" He waves at the clouds, and they slowly part to reveal the bright and silvery disk of the Moon high in the sky.

The priest's ramblings become even more unintelligible. As the girls show more and more annoyance towards him, he gets more and more agitated, speaking about the final nights and the end of all, and finally concludes: "You do not want the friendship of the Ebon Hand? Suits you all very well! Do not forget that we helped you!" On these words, he leaves the platform, his litorian servant following closely behind him.

It seems like the girls will have to visit the Dark Market to find out more about this "Putrescent One" the priest kept referring to.

8th of Rain

As Beket, Hennie and Simone stand there on Pier Seven, they notice something is amiss.

Simone is stung by a dart! Ambush! They notice some sahuagins swimming around them and shooting at them with ivory blowdarts. Not far from the pier, a shadowy figure covered in a deep night-blue cloak stands on a boat and casts a terrifying spell, waving at the moon and screaming like a madman!

Things from there become very blurry. Hennie and Simone find cover from the blowdarts, but gleaming spirits of dead warriors appear out of nowhere to assail them while Beket jumps over the waters on the wizard's vessel. Without waiting for a second, she punches him, and with uncanny accuracy, breaks his nose, hurling broken pieces of bone and cartilage through his brain. The wizard does not even realize he's just been killed. He falls on the boat's deck like a puppet whose strings have just been cut off.

Beket has no time to taste victory. Soon, she is assailed by sahuagins who climb on the boat and gang up on her. Even though Hennie helps her by blowing the brains out of one of her opponents with a lucky shot for her Dragon Pistol heirloom, the boat is overrun and Beket falls unconscious to the ground.

From their respective positions, Hennie and Simone can see a bright flash of light bursting from the boat during a split second and giant white wings spread in the dark.

The vision dissipates as quickly as it appeared. Still stunned by such an incredible sight, the two adventurers fiercely hack, slash and shoot at the sahuagins and apparitions.

The ghosts are entirely material, which surprises Hennie. It looks like the rays of the moon unveiled by the Ebon Hand priest earlier affect these creatures and make them vulnerable to physical attacks.

The chaos of the battle that ensues only heightens the confusion of the next few moments.

When everything becomes quiet again, Hennie and Simone realize they are both still standing. All of their opponents have been dissipated or killed, laying dead before them.

Both girls rush to Beket and make her drink one of the potions they carry with them at all time, and soon the monk of the Old Man comes back to consciousness. Everything is fine and well now, even though Beket still feels remnants of the pain triggered by the deadly wounds inflicted upon her a few minutes ago.

The adventurers search the body of the wizard. They find some bracers acting as magical protective and invisible shields brushing off physical attacks directed at their wearer, a wand destined to charm individuals and the most uncanny discovery of all: an ebony box engraved with patterns similar to the tattoos they all wear. These patterns seem to reproduce the configurations of some constellations visible in the sky. The box has no apparent lock or opening device. Something is in the box, but how to get it out of there is a mystery at the moment.

The adventurers leave the scene, weary, tired and decided to pay a visit to the Dark Market as soon as possible.

XP Breakdown
Beket and Simone are Level 3. Hennie is Level 2.
- Ambush on Pier Seven - CR7
Total XP earned: 3,600. XP per PC: 1,200 (3 PCs).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 4,300 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 3,325 XP.
Hennie levels up.

DM's notes

This was a tricky game session. I had two main issues to deal with:

1/ The characters were of different levels. Although not such a big deal as it may seem, it had to be corrected if possible. This is why the ambush (which could have occured in a different place at a different time) occured during this game session. It also explains why it was so overwhelming. It worked great in the game, because whoever wants to get rid of the PCs would want to do it once and for all, and not use the common and lame tactic of multiple attacks on the PCs that would each fit nicely their present abilities for an "average" challenge. No. The bad guys wanted to kill them. Once and for all. Of course, the huge risk was to end up with a Total Party Kill (or TPK) . I was confident the group's configuration could handle it. It worked great, and I feel the group's capabilities were pushed to their limits, but let me just say the bad guys won't make the same mistake twice!

2/ The pace of the game started to slow down right away. While the PCs were at the Green Griffon, I could feel the players needed something to happen. Plus, I was quickly realizing the players had too much information to deal with.

I needed to address the issue quickly to refocus the action of the game into a more proactive adventure for the PCs. Unfortunately, the only viable solution to this problem was to reveal more information to the PCs. I thus had to dance on the edge of a sword, so to speak: reveal too much and confuse the players even more, or not reveal enough and let the players wonder what their next move ought to be for the next few sessions.

All in all, the meeting with the Ebon Hand priest was the most plausible and the most direct answer to the problem. I rolled with it, and it worked fine to some extent.

Unsurprisingly, the players are a bit confused at the moment. I think they're wondering what the heck is going on, but once they get down to the business of the Dark Market the confusion will hopefully clear up on its own.

All in all, this was a good session. A lot of stuff covered in a small amount of time, some laughs, a good challenge, flavorful moments of role-playing, I really can't complain at this point.

Session 5 - Omens and Runebearers

2006-12-03T07:51:00.000-08:00

Saturday, December 2, 2006 from 4:00 PM to 8:45 PM

This time around, only two players show up. Caroline, who plays Heinrietta Nagel, has flown out of town to Ontario. We enjoy our usual meal together before playing. One of our friends joined us, even though she isn't playing the Praemal Tales. We discuss and debate about various subjects, such as the value of advertisement in our society while enjoying freshly baked cheese sticks, two dishes of wild salmon (one baked in the oven with soy sauce and sesame seeds, the other with spices and tomatoes) and rice.

As usual, the food is incredible!

Baked salmon with soy sauce and sesame seeds.

We then resume our game.

Session 5 - Omens and Runebearers

5th of Rain

After Beket and Simone take care of their duties to the Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies and House Sadar respectively, both meet in front of the Ghostly Minstrel to decide on their next course of action. Hennie does not show up. She is probably busy due to her duties to the City Courts.

Beket and Simone decide to wander the streets and taverns of Ptolus for information. Sometimes, it is better to take the pulse of the city than stay cloistered in a library for hours. Hennie's not there, so they might just take it as an opportunity to avoid the dust of old parchments and ominous tomes of ancient lore, at least for now. They ask around for details on Zalathar Greycloak, the man who performed experiments on them, and more precisely about his family. Maybe the Greycloaks are (in)famous to the people of Ptolus, and if so, why are they?

They learn that the Greycloaks are harrow elves with a troubled history of magic and mayhem. Zaen Greycloak, Zalathar's father, was an elf with a passion for magical research. He would perform all kinds of experiments, and seemed to be quite extreme in the way he carried them out. For Zaen, the end justified the means. Some say he was involved with the wrong crowds, some Chaos Cult probably, and destroyed his family's unity in the process. It seems Zalathar hated his father and left the household early on. Whatever the reasons for such a family feud may have been, soon Zaen and his wife Ravana disappeared, never to be seen again from the folks of Ptolus.

Beket and Simone become increasingly worried about the sort of experiments Zalathar conducted on them. They decide to head for St. Gustav's Chapel in Midtown to see Petran Achenburg, the Cleric of Lothian and adventurer who originally hired them to hunt for Ratmen in the sewers.

While the girls explain to him what they discovered, Petran quickly realizes he has to commune with Lothian to find out more about their present condition. They spend the rest of the afternoon in the Chapel while Petran performs various rituals on them.

When the priest is done, he has some new insights on their puzzling situation. He explains that both Beket and Simone radiate magic, although the auras themselves are faint, almost unnoticeable through conventional means. He asks them to strip for him. Of course, both women hesitate to do so. Petran explains he has to have a look at their bodies but would understand if they would not agree. He has taken a sacred vow of chastity, and would not think for a moment to profit from the situation.

The girls agree and show their bodies to the priest. He gasps almost immediately, for both adventurers carry faint marks on their skins. Beket carries faint strands running down her back from her shoulders. These look like wings of some sort. Simone carries faint marks as well but these are around her wrists, up to her elbows. They vaguely look like flames. Both marks are just as intense as light sunburns but their hues are greenish. There is no trace of poison or rot tainting them.

Petran then asks them many questions about their childhoods, if they were subject to supernatural events early on, if they've been in dire situations in their lives that would just have turned out alright for no apparent reason than sheer luck. Both women answer by the negative. This seems extremely puzzling to the priest. He explains he knows about some people with such magical marks on their bodies, but these are people usually born with such traits. He's never heard of people who would actually develop such marks later in their lives. He also precises he hasn't found any trace of Transmutation or any clue that would point out towards an obvious alteration of their bodies alone. It seems their "transformation", for lack of a better word, is more spiritual than physical.

Beket and Simone decide they ought to understand better what these marks may be, and what people with such marks represent. They part for the night, their minds troubled by these new developments.

Simone gets back to House Sadar. Sayem Nadir, Speaker to the Spears of Aartuat, is the guest Simone should attend to, but he is not present at the Guest House. His eunuchs are, however: they treat the servants of House Sadar as if they do not know what commitment and service to their master truly means. This is a straining evening for her.

Beket goes back to the Temple of the Watcher of the Skies. She shares her concern with her aunt who serves as an acolyte there. As soon as she hears Beket's story, she mentions that Helmut Itlestein, the High Priest of the Watcher of the Skies, ought to examine her more closely. Maybe he could explain some things this unfaithful priest of St. Gustav's could not? Beket agrees, and they both head to the Observatory.

Helmut is there attending to some research of his own. When the women arrive and explain the reason of their intrusion, Helmut's behavior, which was absent-minded previously, becomes suddenly commanding and quite worrisome. He orders Beket to show her marks, gasps when she does so, walks to a table nearby, scatters star maps and personal notes on the floor and quickly grasps a feather to start drawing the patterns appearing on Beket's back. He then runs to the telescope and compares some notes with the sketch he just drew.

Beket's aunt is flabbergasted. Beket tries to asks Helmut for an explanation but the High Priest's reaction shows his deep annoyance. He just says she has to open her eyes to the stars and steps back from the telescope. Beket has a look. There, in the vast and dark immensity of the outer reaches, Beket looks at what the faithful call a nebula. Colors and pattern dance before her eyes. They are perfectly recognizable to her: they reflect the colors and pattern on her back. She asks to Helmut what this means, but the High Priest is dismissive, telling her he has to study the matter more closely. He storms out of the room with sketches and star maps, and the two women are left there, under the vast dome of the Observatory, wondering what exactly just happened.

6th of Rain

Beket and Simone meet the next day in front of the Delver's Guild Library and Map Room in Old Town. They discuss the reaction of the High Priest of the Watcher of the Skies and firmly decide this is time to get some answers. They step inside the Library and meet Shad Livbovic, the tower's designated librarian, who helps them find more information about major astral events that may have happened in the past and the relation there might be with some of the bearers of runes Petran was talking about.

They learn, through the diaries written by an arcane explorer of Ghul's ancient libraries, about the "Runebearers": how these mythical individuals seemed to be common place in the past of Praemal and how these were often seen as heroes and people of some important significance to the world. They also learn that major changes in the sky did occur in the past. There is the mention of a moon that disappeared from the sky long ago. The Vallis Moon. How these two phenomena may be linked, the author of the diaries doesn't say.

They spend their whole day within the Delver's Guild library. When they emerge from the tower, it is dusk already. Still more questions. There has to be a thread connecting all the dots.

Beket wants to forget about all their trouble and head for some tavern or whore house but Simone isn't in the mood for such trivialities. They argue at the corner of a street when a half-orc and two dwarves come to them and ask for their purses. The two women laugh at the request, and the half-orc's tone changes from a request to an order as he draws a short sword from his belt.

The fight against the half-orc and dwarves*

Beket and Simone have to fight for their lives. They struggle direly against these tough opponents. Simone falls unconscious at some point, but they are victorious at the very last moment when the half-orc finally succumbs from his wounds. One of the dwarves flees from the scene, and Beket manages to take care of the last courageous mugger. They loot the bodies without a second thought, and Beket realizes the sword of the half-orc is magical. Maybe these weren't simple muggers after all? Still more questions, and so few answers...

XP Breakdown
Characters are all Level 2.
- Asking the Right Questions (Gather Information/Knowledge checks) - CR2
- Defeating the streeet muggers - CR4
Total XP earned: 1,950. XP per PC: 975 (2 PCs).
Total XP earned (Beket and Simone): 3,100 XP.
Total XP earned (Hennie): 2,125 XP.
Beket and Simone level up.

DM's notes

I really appreciated this game session, particularly how the plot of the Praemal Tales so far interconnected with the PCs' backgrounds, and through them, with the materials of the City by the Spire. This is something I had not planned, and this is always a thrill to see unexpected events come out of a game session.

*Also, it was the first time Tiana (Simone) played through a fight without using miniatures. The picture included on this blog was taken after the game, to represent the situation of the characters at that moment. I am quite happy with the way it all went. I was afraid the use of miniatures and battlemaps would somehow lock the players' imaginations in such a way as to require the use of visual aids for combat. I was happily mistaken!

Campaign Checkpoint

2006-11-15T17:35:00.000-08:00

We have now played four game sessions in this Ptolus campaign of ours. Here are a few of the random thoughts (things I've learned, re-learned or confirmed mentally) I've had outside of game sessions so far:

1- It is good to have fun and laugh out loud at the game table. The end goal of a role-playing game session is to have fun. Verisimilitude only matters so long as it increases the fun of a game session. If the players want to have fun through jokes and movie lines and you, as a DM, stop them from doing so because you'd think the believability of the game is the only thing that matters, you would have to seriously question your train of thought and re-prioritize the aims of the game.

2- Using game materials from other sources than RPGs, including plots coming from computer games such as Baldur's Gate II - Shadows of Amn can be great fun. Having played this game many times and loving it dearly made me feel the actual plot elements I used in the Ptolus game much more intensely. Maybe not something to do all the time, but variation is good.

3- Speaking of variation, playing a campaign with some sessions using miniatures, some sessions without, and/or sessions with varying types of visual aids (dioramas in 2D, 3D or all at the same time) is feasible and keeps the game fresh for versatile players who like all these different aspects of tabletop role-playing. It requires some organization on the DM's part, but it can make for a better play experience when done right.

4- Running a game with fewer players makes it tougher for me to DM because I feel the attention of the players is more often driven to me. If I make a mistake, the players are thus far more likely to notice it, whereas, when playing with numerous players around the game table, they are more likely to interact with each other than pay attention to this or that ruling of mine.

5- Running a game with fewer players makes it easier for me to DM because they are more likely to be focused on the adventure at hand rather than sidetrack and debate over the next course of action for a long time. I have less policing to do, as far as the social part of the event is concerned.

6- It's tough to plan a game without first having an idea of how long it will go on. I expect I'll run more than one campaign using Ptolus, and thus do not expect to stop the Praemal Tales any time soon, but this game we are playing may end in a few months since some of the players may leave the place we live in for good. It's particularly tough to plan a short campaign and make it a worthwhile or somewhat "complete" experience for all the people involved.

7- Having dinner before the game can be great, because it re-focuses the game on the actual social part of the whole thing. We play the game because we like to be together first and foremost. The game can be great and fun all we want but the bottom-line is that we wouldn't play together if we weren't getting along first outside of the game.

Food for thought, indeed.

Session 4 - Unusual Crafts

2006-11-13T16:17:00.000-08:00

Sunday, November 13, 2006 from 5:15 PM to 9:15 PM

4th of Rain

After meeting with the Keepers of the Veil at the Siege Tower and accepting their offer to investigate murders for them, Beket, Hennie and Simone are determined to find out the source of all the troubles in and around Exposed Street.

After taking care of their duties to their employers in the morning they meet at the market not far from the crime scenes. They walk amidst the stalls for a moment, looking for the beggar a city guard described to them the night before. This beggar, they were told, would have been a witness to the murders they are investigating.

They are debating their next course of action when Simone catches a glimpse of something or someone hiding behind Beket. It turns out this is Hamrick, the halfling they met down in Ghul's labyrinth, who's attempting to rob the monk of the Old Man! Of course, Hamrick protests to the sudden hostility of his "friends", saying he is just trying to make a living.
"For my children's sake," he professes.
"You don't have any children!" Beket retorts.
"I might one day..."

It soon becomes clear to the adventurers that Hamrick may be of some use, after all. He is quick to precise he knows the area fairly well, and indicates he knows some of the beggars of these streets, "out of professional interest", he adds.

Soon after, they find the beggar they were searching for. The poor old man is being mugged in a nearby street! Beket is quick to act and almost falls when one of the criminals attempts to stab her. The fellow sneers and shouts insults at her while his two companions, a sturdy, muscular man and a mean-looking dwarf, keep on kicking the beggar lying on the pavement. Hennie springs into action and concentrates. The man who just stabbed Beket cries in pain as dozens of spikes emerge from his body in a split second! He falls to the ground, dead, while Simone tumbles past him and takes care of his friends. The dwarf manages to escape, but the sturdy man does not: he is knocked out as he tries to reach for the roofs and stumbles down the street.

The adventurers give him to the authorities after they interrogate him. He says he has been hired by a sinister fellow who showed up at the Skull & Sword (#293, Guildsman District) gave them a description of the beggar to kill and some hard cash to do the deed. They do not get much more out of him, but find a letter of credit signed "KK" on the dead mugger's body.

The beggar, Rham, fears for his life. Beket proposes to take him to the Farmer's Rest (#106) at the other side of the North Market and pay for him to stay for a few days there. He agrees, and talks during the walk. He found the first murder victim, the male halfling going by the name of Ryon selling fruits on the market. He describes how he found him badly mutilated and almost entirely skinned. He also found some kind of piece of hide he would like to keep but agrees to lend to his saviors. This looks like a very pale skin of some exotic animal.

After letting Rham at the Farmer's Rest, the adventurers, still followed by Hamrick, decide to head to the Skull & Sword to start to get some answers.

Sure, they almost start a brawl there -again- but this time they indeed receive some valuable information. They find out there that the piece of hide they've got comes from an elephant, and that the sinister fellow who hired the muggers wasn't much of a talker. "He had a strange appearance though. His hands, see? They were like all red, as if tainted by pigment he'd use over and over again."

Of course, the adventurers also ask about Zalathar, feeling these events may all be related somehow. They learn that the harrow elf was indeed meeting some people here from time to time. It seems like they were no friends at all, judging by the hostility you could cut with a knife when walking close to their usual table, but they were always coming back a few weeks later to discuss some more. Zalathar was always talking of his "master" and how they would clean-up the streets of Ptolus when they would be done with their "project", as he called it. It seems like his drinking buddies were once members of the Ironworkers' guild. They have been rejected from their ranks some time ago. No clear answers for sure, but the adventurers now have new leads.

Before investigating the mystery of Zalathar's pet project any further they want to figure out the murders' mystery once and for all. Putting all the pieces together, they guess the murderer may be working with hides, skin. His hands are tainted. Maybe some kind of exotic tanner of the Guildsman District? They ask around, and with the help of Hamrick, determine there is indeed a tanner known for his particular work in Ptolus. His name is Valenus Savius and he lives near the North Market, just besides the Shrine of the Oracle (#165) of the Temple District, in a rich mansion he recently acquired.

Beket, Hennie and Simone resume their search and decides to head straight for the mansion. The house itself is located right in the middle of a park which is part of the property. The park itself looks wild and luxuriant. Without waiting much after they called from the gates, Simone decides to pick the lock. She succeeds. She and her companions sneak into the property.

They soon realize the undergrowth is alive. They are attacked by some wild animals and amidst the chaos of it all fend their way to the main door. Whoever this Valenus is, he doesn't want anyone coming to the property, visitors and intruders alike.

When the adventurers finally reach the house, they knock. An imp opens the door and greets them. He presents himself as Lord Savius' majordomo, and shows them inside. In the mansion's main dining room, they see an ogre present. The imp turns to them, flying around, and asks on an unconcerned tone whether they broke into the property or not. As soon as they try to justify their actions, the imp turns to the ogre and simply says: "They bore me. Kill them."

Hennie has to fight the imp itself after he fires a magic missile at her. Meanwhile, Simone and Beket join forces to fight the ogre and bring him down as quickly as possible. This is a violent yet efficient battle on the adventurers' part. They now start to acknowledge each other's strengths and weaknesses and use them to their own advantage.

Soon the ogre and imp lie dead in the dinner room. The girls search the place and finally hear some faint noises coming from the basement. They locate a trap door in the corner of the dining room and do not think twice before climbing down the stone stairs beyond.

They soon reach a vast room with a fountain. There, Simone decides to drink. The water is icy cold and extremely refreshing. All around the fountain, some chains secured to the inner side of the pool plunge deep within the waters. Simone pulls on one of the chains and makes a gruesome discovery: at the other end of the chain she finds a large human arm has been fastened to a hook. It bears some runes that have been etched into the flesh somehow. All the other seven chains around the fountain lead so similar body pieces etched with runes. They belong to different individuals of various races. Whatever this tanner is doing in here, he has been doing it to a number of people already.

They hear some noise in one of the corridors ahead. They rush there and peak around a corner. A strange being is walking down the vast corridor ahead of them: it seems to have been utterly skinned and then has had some different patches of leather and skin sewed to his flesh. The monstrosity comes to them. The girls have to fight for their lives once more. During the combat with this hulking horror, Simone finds herself suddenly short of breath. She feels her skin shrink during a split second, and beneath, her blood vessels explode! She feels dazzled for a breath or two but manages to turn and meet the cold eyes of a fair-skinned, dark-haired human who would be none other than Valenus Savius, the tanner and serial killer of Exposed Street. He swears: "You! I knew I was right to tell the elf to finish you before you could wake!"

The combat is fierce but ultimately, Hennie, Beket and Simone find themselves victorious. They have defeated Valenus and his servants. They search the whole place, find the notes of Valenus and a few other items of value, but they mostly now have a confirmation of their darker thoughts: Valenus and Zalathar knew each other! What is this project Zalathar was working on? What type of experiments have been inflicted upon them? To what purpose?

They are now more decided to find the answers to this eluding mystery than ever before. And what of Hamrick the halfling? He came with them through the park and was a witness of the fight against the imp and ogre, but disappeared soon after. It seems like he searched the ground level for something and left whether he found it or not.

The adventurers try to sort all the elements of the puzzle after they leave the mansion. They explain what happened to Phadian Gess at the Siege Tower, and she thanks them for a job well-done despite some failings to observe the property laws of the city. She doesn't seem disappointed in them though. She gives them a reward of her own (in golden imperials) and tells them Zade and the folks of the Ghostly Minstrel won't have to worry about the Keepers of the Veil for the next while at least.

They then leave the tower and bring back these news to the Minstrel. Zade is also grateful, and pays them what he originally promised. It seems like Hennie, Simone and Beket are starting to leave their mark in the City by the Spire. They hope for the best, and fully intend to investigate the conspiracy behind Zalathar's project as soon as they can.

XP Breakdown
Characters are all Level 2.
- Saving Rham from the muggers - CR2
- Defeating the Wild Animals of Valenus' property - CR2
- Defeating the imp and his ogre "pal" - CR4
- Defeating Valenus and the Skin horror - CR4
Total XP earned: 3,900. XP per PC: 975 (3 PCs with Hamrick the Halfling).
Total XP earned in the campaign per PC: 2,125 XP.

Session 3 - Investigation

2006-10-15T08:24:00.000-07:00

Saturday, October 14, 2006 from 5:00 PM to 9:50 PM

Still the 3rd of Rain

Beket, Henny and Simone meet each other just past noon at the Ghostly Minstrel, on Delver's Square. As they come in the main room, they notice Zade, the bartender of the establishment, has a rather agitated discussion with some people covered from head to toe with weapons, full-plate armors, the works.

While everyone's having lunch, Henny manages to talk to Zade about his issue: it looks like the Keepers of the Veil, the holy order protecting the city from the horrors rampaging within the Necropolis at night, would like the actual Minstrel, the Spirit who gives this establishment its name, exorcised permanently. Zade and the Keepers have been discussing the issue several times, and the bartender fears that sooner or later, the Keepers will just stop talking and give in to their zealous tendencies to come back with some sort of Imperial warrant to take the Minstrel away. He asks Henny if they are adventuring currently. As she answers by the negative, he asks if she and her companions would be willing to help the Minstrel out by going to the Siege Tower and try to talk it over with the Seneschal there.

After a few minutes of reflection, Henny agrees to the bargain.

Meanwhile, Simone the elf is getting a bit tipsy due to her lack of endurance as far as dark ale is concerned. A dwarf going by the name of Gorin Tumblestone seems to be really interested in her, but he himself had quite a lot to drink.

Beket doesn't quite get that kind of attention from the Minstrel's patrons but manages to get into trouble with an Assarai with red scales talking over a glass of wine with a local mage. The fight is avoided, but the lizard man doesn't look like he's going to forget Beket's face for a while.

The Ptolusite adventurers. From left to right:
Tiana (Simone), Nerissa (Beket) and Caroline (Henny)

After lunch, the companions leave the Ghostly Minstrel to head directly for the Siege Tower. They know the Zar'at isn't far from the Tower at all, and they plan on visiting Zalathar's apartments after they meet with the Keepers of the Veil.

At the Siege Tower they meet with Phadian Gess, its Seneschal. At their request, she explains how some of some of the Keepers of the Veil would like to solve the "problem" of the ghostly minstrel once and for all. She doesn't agree with their attitude towards the staff and owner of the establishment, but she can hardly ignore her men's opinions. Sooner or later, she says, she would have to reluctantly make a request for a warrant.

The adventurers ask if they can do something to change this situation. After a few seconds of reflection, Phadian points out that they could probably help the Keepers with an issue that came up quite recently to their attention but have had no time -or intention- to investigate so far. Not far from the Necropolis, at Exposed Street, a couple of gory murders have been commited during the night. The City Watch claims this is the jurisdiction of the Keepers of the Veil, since obviously this is the result of the incursion of ghouls or worse into the neighborhood at night. The Keepers do not appreciate when the City Watch relies on them to do their dirty work.

Phadian asks the adventurers if they would be willing to investigate the murders of Exposed Street and find out if these have anything to do with the Necropolis. If that is the case, the Keepers of the Veil would take care of the matter immediately. If not, the City Watch would have to take care of the problem like they should have in the first place. If the adventurers work is satisfactory to her, Phadian proposes to deliver a special authorization for the Ghostly Minstrel to keep its "friendly" spirit resident.

The companions accept the bargain.

After leaving the Siege Tower, they decide it is time to catch up with their original concerns about Zalathar and the strange experiments he and his friends performed on them while they were captive. The adventurers head to the Zar'at, and there try to talk to some of Zalathar's neighbors.

Beket lies through her teeth and pretends the Harrow Elf had debts to pay to the Watcher of the Skies. Henny soon joins to her efforts and together, they manage to sufficiently annoy one of Zalathar's neighbors to extract some valuable information from him:
- "If Zalathar needs to pay some debts, maybe you could speak to his "friends" who pay him visits quite frequently. They are in some sort of business with him, and they're the ones paying, it seems."
- "I heard them talk about meeting in a place called the Sword and Something once. They seemed to be familiar with the place." (he's talking of the Skull and Sword in the Guildmans District, the place where Simone first asked about the news in town after their escape)
- "Don't hesitate to add a few Imperials to the bill. The fellow is pumping money from these guys, and the more pissed off they are at him, the more likely I'll be able to take over his place. See what I mean?" (quite a nice fellow, isn't he?)

After this charming discussion with Zalathar's friendly neighbor, the adventurers sneak in his apartment. Simone triggers a crude trap while opening the main entrance, and requires immediate attention in order to keep her alive. One of Henny's potion seems to be quite enough.

It looks like Zalathar had something he wanted to protect in there: it's time to find out what it is. The adventurers search the whole place and find a few gold pieces, a letter of credit for 1,000 GP from someone named Berhart Von Birne, a dark Crystal Ball which doesn't seem to be magical and various other trinkets. More clues, yet no answers. Great.

Simone, Henny and Beket leaving the Ghostly Minstrel

After leaving the Zar'at, the adventurers walk to Exposed Street. They reach the area just as the sun sets. They see a prostitute working at the corner and ask a few questions.

It looks like Tana, the prostitute, was one of the first hand witnesses of the crimes committed in Exposed Street. She explains how she found the second murder victim, hardly articulates how mutilated and half-skinned she found her, and tells the adventurers what strange natural perfume still lingered about as the Watch arrived.

She asks them if she could get some funds to leave the city and escape the clutches of her pimp. Without asking any further question, they just hand her the money and wish her good luck. Tana leaves them at the corner of Exposed Street.

After they look around a bit, they meet one of a terrified and old watchman out patrolling the streets. He doesn't seem to confident in his own abilities after what happened to these two poor victims. After he checks the adventurers out, he discusses with them about the circumstances in which both victims were discovered:
- They both were found in the street and had been murdered at night.
- They both were partially skinned and had parts of their flesh also missing.
- The first victim name's was Ryon. He was a male gnome selling fruits on the street market.
- The second victim was Morianna, a female human. She was selling flowers on the street market.
- Besides Tana, the prostitute the adventurers just talked to, there is another first hand witness. His name is unknown but he is a frequent beggar in the neighborhood. One shouldn't have too much trouble locating him during the day.

After sharing this information, the watchman takes his leave. It starts to be late for the people of Ptolus, and the companions understand their investigation will now take them to the stalls and streets of the North Market. There is no need to linger for too long here. They leave Exposed Street and get back to their homes. Tomorrow is another day.

XP Breakdown
The PCs are all level 1.
- Extracting information from Zalathar's neighbor - EL 1
- Gathering information in Exposed Street - EL 1
Total XP earned: 600. XP per PC: 200.
Total XP earned in the campaign per PC: 1,150 XP.
All PCs level up.

Session 2 - Back to Ptolus

2006-10-10T15:50:00.000-07:00

Monday, October 9, 2006 from 4:00 PM to 9:20 PM

Thanksgiving. We gather to have our thanksgiving dinner together. Since turkeys in our local store are more monsters on steroids than actual normal-sized birds, we decide to avoid the traditional stuffed beast to instead have Cornish Hens. The results of Nerissa's cooking are actually quite impressive:

The Cornish Hens

These actually follow the nachos and italian dip we have as a starter. Scallop potatoes and squash accompany this main course. We socialize for a while and finish our meal with a home-made lemon pie, pumkin cheesecake and muffins.

We start playing the game around 6:30 PM.

Session 2 - Back to Ptolus

Still the 2nd of Rain

After leaving the halfling Hamrick to his insults, Beket, Henny and Simone walk down Aethel Street in the Guildsman District. They end up in the vicinity of the infamous Skull and Sword, a tavern known for its not-so-sympathetic patrons.

Simone tells her friends that she might find out more about the events that occured since they left the surface. Beket and Henny stay outside the tavern while it starts to rain heavily. While they are waiting for Simone to come back, they spot a half-orc exchanging some sort of merchandise in the shadow of a doorway nearby. Whatever this fellow is up to, this cannot be legal.

The DM's Tools

Simone goes in and exchanges a few rude words with the patrons. Avoiding a fight with them becomes clearly a challenge as several of the customers start poking fun as the "nice little elfish girl". Simone obviously does not appreciate the jokes, but she makes a good job at keeping her cool. After a short conversation, she learns it is now Airday, the 2nd of Rain. Since they left for their Rat Hunt of the Theoday, the 17th of Toil, this means she and her companions have been down there for more than two weeks!

She doesn't ask more, since the patrons seem to quickly loose their tempers with her. She catches a rumor pertaining to the barbarians to the East, who, according to the rumors, would have made a few incursions in the Empire during the past few weeks. Simone decides to leave before starting a brawl.

As she meets back with Beket and Henny, the three of them decide to push on to Delver's Square and try to make it to Myraeth's Oddities before it closes. With the rain pouring on the streets of Ptolus, it is hard to tell what time it is. Probably the end of the afternoon.

The delvers push on and stop by St. Gustav's chapel to check on the bounties for ratmen. They meet with Petran Achenburg, a priest of the Church who gave them a few advice before they left for the sewers two weeks ago. Unfortunately, none of the adventurers seem to remember meeting Petran before. This probably is a side effect of whatever experiments Zalathar and his aids performed on them. They leave the chapel before the conversation gets too awkward, even though Petran seems like a nice fellow truly concerned with their well-being.

As they cross the street, they reach the Square just as Myraeth Tuneweaver closes for the day. They manage to get a few minutes of his time. The old elf seems to be in a good mood as he chats with them about mundane events in town. Simone manages to sell Zalathar's spellbook and a few other items they got on their way out of Ghul's Labyrinth since Myraeth's business focusses on buying and selling magical items. This is pretty much the only store of its kind, and thus a very popular location for all the delvers in Ptolus.

Nerissa (Beket) and Caroline (Henny)
are waiting for the game to begin

After wrapping up with Myraeth, the adventurers take their leave. Whatever happened during the last two weeks, it is now time to catch up with their lives.

When Beket arrives to the Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies, she meets with her great aunt, Ayla, who was really worried for her. They decide to share some tisanes together in the meditation room. They cross paths with Helmut Itlestein, the High Priest of the Observatory, while on their way in. Ayla points out that the High Priest seems worried lately - it may have something to do with his politics, who knows? As they discuss together Beket is reminded of how fond she is of her great aunt, this little lady with such a huge heart she wonders how her tiny chest could contain all that sweetness.

Meanwhile, Henny gets back to her appartment in Old Town. There, she finds Sasha, her niece, who has been staying there for a few days. The teenage girl complains about Fransin Nagel who's been so gloomy and serious these days. Of course, Henny tries to make her understand the House has fallen on some hardships recently, that the members of the family ought to stick together, but Sasha has a thirst for freedom, for adventure. Obviously, Sasha asks again if she can stay at Henny's appartment and follow her on her delves, but the young woman doesn't give in. Out of frustration, Sasha leaves the place, slamming the door behind her. Teenagers...

During this time, Simone was walking down the streets, going through Dalenguard's inpection. When she finally reaches the Sadar Estate, the skies grow dark. She walks through the woods surrounding the estate and meets Rowen, the elvish servant acting as her supervisor at the guest house where she works. Simone has to endure a harsh and long lecture from Rowen before she can finally make it to her bed. It isn't really comfortable, and the place gives her the creeps, but she isn't fired at least.

3rd of Rain

The adventurers attend to their usual morning duties before gathering at Delver's Square. They still catch up on their lives.

Simone serves in Sadar's guest house. A visitor has come to House Sadar from the distant lands of Kem with a host of eunuchs to serve him. Not only does she have to deal with the temper of Sayem Nadir, Speaker to the Spears of Aartuat, but she also has to contend with the eunuchs who do not want anyone but themselves to take care of their master. Between her duties to House Sadar and the jeaulousy of the Speaker's servants, she really has to dodge her way through the morning.

Henny's morning is much more casual. She is working as a low-ranking assistant to the City Courts. She has to prepare the paperwork of some imperial officials for the day, attend to the needs of this or that judge, but this isn't so much a bother. She remains busy, earns enough wages to pay for her appartment without the help of her family: that's all that counts.

Beket doesn't have to do much in the morning besides her daily meditations and the Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies.

All in all, the morning goes by pretty quick. After just a few hours of work, the adventurers are free to meet at Delver's Square. They were speaking of checking out the Temple of the Ebon Hand, just to see if the Cult would have anything to do with the laboratories they managed to escape the previous day. Who knows? In any case, they would also visit the Zar'at where Zalathar was last known to reside, according to his identification papers. There has to be some way to find out what he was up to!

XP Breakdown
Characters are all level 1.
- Role-playing bonus per player-character: 50 XP
XP per PC: 50 XP.
Total XP earned in the campaign per PC: 950 XP.

Session 1 - Escape from Zalathar's Lair

2006-10-01T10:11:00.000-07:00

Saturday, September 30, 2006 from 4:00 to 9:15 PM

Before playing the game, we gather and have a meal together. The gathering of different flavors and dishes is a real treat for the eyes and chops. Beef Bourguignon, mashed potatoes, vegetable soup, home-made burritos, double-chocolate almond bark, cinnamon and banana bread puddings - this is a food fest.

After this succession of gourmet delights, we are finishing the players' characters (PCs) generation. The players choose feats, spells, equipment and roll the base wealth of their characters. Skill total bonuses are calculated. The end results:

- Beket Per Aau-Nu, female human monk worshipping the Old Man, acolyte of the Watcher of the Skies. She knows Helmut Itlestein for being a regular at the Observatory of the Watcher of the Skies in the Temple District. She originally comes from Kem, and has some Celestial Ancestry.
Monk level 1.
Feats: Celestial Ancestry, Lightning Reflexes, Iron Will, Improved Unarmed Strike.

- Heinrietta "Henny" Nagel, female human sorcerer worshipping the Elder Gods, admirer of the Knights of the Golden Cross. She currently lives in Old Town and wants to make it on her own, without the financial support of her House.
Sorcerer level 1.
Feats: Noble Birth (House Nagel), Heighten Spell, Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Firearms).

- Simone Ahrenameer, female shoal elf worshipping Tardeshou, Goddess of Truth, and her brother Navashtrom, God of Strength and Harmony. Simone is a servant to House Sadar, to the great disappointment of her parents living on Emerald Hill. She secretly intends to spy on the House and wants to find out what its schemes and criminal dealings are to better avert them. She does not have access to the most secure parts of the Sadar Mansion yet.
Rogue level 1.
Feats: Weapon Finesse (Short sword), Investigator.

From left to right: Henny, Beket and Simone.

Once the characters are generated, we immediately start playing the game.

Session 1 - Escape from Zalathar's Lair

1st of Rain

Some time ago, Henny and Simone both purchased a membership to the Delver's Guild. They decided to collaborate with a monk, Beket, to start their careers as professional delvers. For their first delve, they decided to hunt for ratmen, since the Church of Lothian is offering bounties on rat tails brought back to the surface.

None of them really remembers what happened. They were exploring some parts of the sewers below the city and had some success during their hunt, until they were ambushed by unknown adversaries. All they truly remember is a bright flash of light. The rest is a succession of images and impressions that could have been more dreams than memories. Their minds drift for a while...

Beket feels like she's falling. She doesn't really feel any pain, but she soon comes in contact with something hard. The ground, probably. She hears a bubbling sound beside her and some sort of rattle in the distance. She opens her eyes and realizes she is soaked in some sort of oily, thick amiotic fluid. She turns and sees her partners floating in glass jars, with breathing masks and tubes plugged to their skins. It looks like they all have been taken prisoners by people eager to practice on them.

Beket doesn't waste any time. She helps her friends to break free from their strange prisons. All pods were they were kept prisoners are wired to a machine nearby that seems to be breaking down, judging by the puffs of smoke and rattling sounds coming out of it.

The adventurers assess their situation. They are now standing on an island, surrounded by stone representations of people dressed with genuine clothing and equipment. It looks like whoever decorated this place has a taste for creepy museums. They notice that they were all dressed up and equipped while floating in the amniotic fluids. This seems strange, since one would expect to be completely undressed while being subject to whatever experiments the people working here subjected them to.

Beket is the first to stop thinking and start acting. She crosses the stream of water surrounding their island of fortune, but as soon as she steps in the water, she is attacked by a predator swimming under the surface! Her companions help her out, shooting at the creature each time one part or the other of the creature's bloated body is exposed to the air in their struggle. After almost drowning from it, Beket manages to break free from the creatures clutches. Soon, it is too badly wounded to keep on fighting. Whatever this was, the adventurers are now warned: wherever they are, the seemingly peaceful cave still harbours unseens threats they will have to avoid if they want to make it out alive.

Each of the adventurers then proceeds with a methodical search of the natural cave and its statues' clothing. They find a few gold imperials, potions and decent weapons. It's as if the sculpted men and women around were "dressed up" for the occasion and provided with all the items they would normally carry, were they truly alive.

The group discovers a strange crystal that seems to have fused with the surrounding rocks. Just as they investigate further, they see the crystal suddenly morph into the rock, revealing an opening before them!

Someone on the other side steps in the cave the adventurers stand in and bumpts into Beket, much to her surprise: this is a bugbear who seems more astonished than she is. He runs away screaming at the top of his lungs - "They escaped! They ESCAPED!"

The adventurers run after the bugbear and meet with his companion, an elf who is grabbing some sheets of paper in haste on a desk nearby and summoning a flame to quite visibly burn them before anyone has a chance to examine their contents. Beket, Henny and Simone spring into action. The bugbear knocks Beket unconscious, but her attacks give the opening Henny and Simone needed to extinguish the elf's flame and defeat him before he has the time to do anything! The bugbear is tougher, but both adventurers manage get rid of him. When the creature finally succumbs to its wounds, it drops a healing potion. Henny uses it on poor Beket who regains her consciousness.

The group searches the elf and bugbear's living quarters. They discover a stack of notes, a spellbook, and enough supplies for them to survive in this cavern for weeks if need be, but they'd rather not have to. The group decides to rest for a while.

2nd of Rain

As soon as the adventurers wake up, they skim through the notes and spellbook of the elf. It soon becomes apparent to Henny that there is a way out. Not far from the elf's desk, there is a ritual circle carved in the stone. Using some of the elf's spell components, Henny manages to activate the circle, effectively a portal to another location. Wherever this portal leads to, this is the key to the adventurers' freedom, and they know it.

They all step in the circle and Henny performs the activation ritual.

Their surroundings fade... and the adventurers now stand in a small circular chamber. The walls here are more regular than those of the caves they come from. In front of them, they see a blue steel door. They suddenly realize where they must be: somewhere under Ptolus, in some area of Ghul's Labyrinth.

They know blue steel doors cannot be forced open. They have no lock or any opening mechanism, for that matter. They have to find the command word that will open this door. They discuss a moment, try a few words, Simone attempts some basic expressions in some infernal dialect. She finally gives up, and shouts an "OPEN!" in frustration. The door then slides open, to the adventurers' amazement.

Beyond the door, the adventurers see a vast room that was used as living quarters for the people operating the labs below. But these quarters have been attacked: the place is completely trashed, and graffitis cover all the walls with depictions each more obscene than the others. Among the depictions, the adventurers notice a black hand's print has been placed in several key positions. Could the Cult of the Ebon Hand have something to do with the assault on this section of Ghul's labyrinth?

Laboratories Living Quarters
1- Teleportation Circle
2- Trashed Laboratory/Living Quarter
3- Group of Kobolds around the fire
3a- Kobold wastes
3b- Kobold pet chained to the wall (wardog)
4- Kobold Chief's quarters (previously storage space)
5- Arcane locked bedroom
6- Not-so-friendly kobold pet in pit (Dire wolf)
7- Trashed laboratory
8- Storage Space
9- Lizardman sentinel
10- Hamrick and the Treasure room behind
12- Sewers
13- Sewer shaft up to the main sewer system

As they step outside the room, trying their best to hide in the shadows, Simone and Henny notice the place is inhabited by a clan of kobolds having dinner around a fire nearby. With Beket, they sneak past them and reach another vandalized part of the complex. There, a lizardman guards an opening to ... the sewers, at last!

The adventurers immobilize the lizardman and question him. It soon seems obvious this mercenary knows something he's not telling. Simone manages to make him talk. The lizardman knows the kobolds have a treasure room somewhere. They use him to guide them through the corridors, but soon a trap is activated, and the lizardman takes several poisoned arrows in the chest. His body shaken by violent convulsions, he dies almost instantly.

Ahead stands the treasure room. A long time ago, this was a guards' room, back when the Ghulwar was still tearing the land apart. The door to the treasure room stands atop a flight of stairs. Before the door, a halfling stands guard and bids them a falsely warm welcome.

The cocky halfling, Hamrick, explains he's been hired by the kobolds. He is very bored and annoyed at "the obnoxious little midgets", however. If the adventurers want to, Hamrick could join them and together they could take the treasure back to the surface. The group considers Hamrick's proposition for a moment, and convince him to have a look at the treasure before taking any decision. While opening the chest and showing its contents to the adventurers, it seems obvious Hamrick has been concealing some of the items to the others' sight and hiding them under his cloak.

Beket seizes the halfling by the ankles and shakes him vigorously: indeed, several items of value crash to the floor. With Hamrick kicking and screaming, they leave the area and use the halfling to guide them through the sewers and back to the surface. Once there, they just release the halfling, advising him to keep out of trouble for the next while. Of course, the halfling doesn't seem to care, preferring to curse at them as they walk down the streets of the Guildsman District.

Whatever the case, Beket, Henny and Simone have more pressing matters to care about. Who were the people operating the labs, and for what purpose? Why did the Ebon Hand, if it had anything to do with it, decide to attack these laboratories? What about their original ratmen's hunt? The lizardman also talked to them about the kobolds who, he said, were originally fleeing the orcs from the Halls of Cordaris. What is really going on in this place? All of these questions, they think, would receive some answers soon enough...

XP Breakdown
The PCs are all Level 1.
Encounter Levels (EL) may be modified from theory to reflect the specific circumstances in which the encounter occured.
- Defeating the creature in the Lake (Grick) - EL 3
- Facing Zalathar and his bugbear bodyguard - EL 2
- Activating the Teleportation Circle - EL 1
- Avoiding the Kobolds - EL 1
- Escaping the Area up to the Guildmans District - EL1
- Gaining access to the Treasure Room while not murdering Hamrick - EL1
Total XP earned: 2,700. XP per PC: 900.

Tools and Resources

2006-09-29T15:43:00.000-07:00

Here is a list of the books, tools and resources actually used during and between sessions of this Ptolus campaign. It does not cover all the resources available to us but those used to design and run the game. This list will be updated as the game evolves.

Miniatures
Ptolus miniatures (Paizo Publishing)
D&D Miniatures (Wizards of the Coast)
Warlord and Dark Heaven Miniatures (Reaper Miniatures)
Confrontation and Rag'narok Miniatures (Rackham)

Terrain
e-Adventure Tiles and Ptolus Adventure Tiles (Skeleton Key Games)
Various Dwarven Forge sets (Dwarven Forge)
Tact-Tiles (BC Products)
Flip-Mat (Steel Sqwire)
3D Map Folio (Wizards of the Coast)
Cadwallon Gaming Tiles (Rackham)
Dungeon Tiles (Wizards of the Coast)

Gaming Aids
Area of Effects Templates (Steel Sqwire)
Combat Pad (Open Mind Games)
D&D 3.5 Dungeon Master's Screen (Paizo Publishing)
Game Mastery Item Packs (Paizo Publishing)
Ptolus Deluxe Vinyl City Map (48"x70") (Fiery Dragon Productions)
Ptolus Sketchbooks vol. 1-4 (The Forge Studios)
Ptolus Map Packs (Skeleton Key Games)

Gaming Books
Ptolus: Monte Cook's City by the Spire (Malhavoc Press)
A Player's Guide to Ptolus (Malhavoc Press)
The Night of Dissolution (Malhavoc Press)
The Complete Book of Eldritch Might (Malhavoc Press)
The Book of Hallowed Might, vol 1. and 2. (Malhavoc Press)
The Book of Roguish Luck (Malhavoc Press)
Beyond Countless Doorways (Malhavoc Press)
Monte Cook's Arcana Evolved (Malhavoc Press)
Monte Cook Presents: Iron Heroes (Malhavoc Press)
Beyond the Veil (Atlas Games)
D&D Player's Handbook (Wizards of the Coast)
D&D Dungeon Master's Guide (Wizards of the Coast)
D&D Monster Manual (Wizards of the Coast)
D&D Player's Handbook 2 (Wizards of the Coast)
Complete Adventurer (Wizards of the Coast)
Complete Arcane (Wizards of the Coast)
Complete Divine (Wizards of the Coast)
Complete Warrior (Wizards of the Coast)
Complete Mage (Wizards of the Coast)
Spell Compendium (Wizards of the Coast)
Unearthed Arcana (Wizards of the Coast)
Tome of Battle: The Book of Nine Swords (Wizards of the Coast)
Magic Item Compendium (Wizards of the Coast)
Dragon Compendium (Paizo Publishing)
Tome of Horrors (Necromancer Games)
Rappan Athuk Reloaded (Necromancer Games)
Gary Gygax's Necropolis (Necromancer Games)

Miscellaneous Inpirations
Baldur's Gate II, Shadows of Amn (video game, Bioware Corp)

Houserules

2006-09-28T14:18:00.002-07:00

This Ptolus campaign uses a few houserules I will explain here. Some are merely details, others are rather important modifications of the uses of the core Dungeons & Dragons rules.

The core ruleset used for this campaign is contained within the D&D Player's Handbook (PHB), Dungeon Master's Guide (DMG) and Monster Manual (MM), Edition 3.5, published by Wizards of the Coast. Additional d20/OGC rules are also used. A list of all the resources used in the game will be soon posted as well.

Main houserules:

(1) The Armor Class (AC) is not a fixed value of 10 + armor/shield modifiers + Dex modifier + misc. modifiers. Instead, the base AC and Touch AC are rolled using d20 + armor/shield modifiers + Dex modifier + misc. modifiers. Only the Flat-footed AC remains unrolled. To touch a target, an opponent's attack roll must be equal or above the defender's AC roll. The only exception is when the opponent's die result indicates a possible critical hit, in which case a confirmation roll is call for. If the critical hit is confirmed, it deals normal damage, not multiplied. †
(2) Maneuvers similar in nature to Stunts and Challenges of Iron Heroes are adjudicated on the spot by the DM. A player describes an action, the DM applies the relevant penalties and benefits or rolls to the action described.
(3) There are no favored classes or XP penalties based on classes selected for a particular character.
(4) All characters get one extra feat at first level.
(5) Initiative is determined by rolling 1d10+modifiers instead of the standard 1d20+modifiers.
(6) The Monk's unarmed damage chart is modified. It is 1d6 at level 1, then becomes 1d8 at level 2, 1d10 at level 5, 2d6 at level 8, 2d8 at level 11, 2d10 at level 14, 3d8 at level 17, 4d8 at level 20 (modified by the character size appropriately, as indicated in the PHB).
(7) Characters get the maximum result on their hit die at level 1, 3 and each third level thereafter.

† Rolling AC as per Houserule (1) basically makes combat more dynamic, particularly when results are translated and described by DM and players. On a balance level, random elements of the game generally empower the player (as opposed to flat numbers which play in favor of the obstacles encountered). When using this houserule, one should consider the potential fumbles and critical results of die rolls on an AC check.

At our game table, a result of '1' on the d20 of an AC roll triggers a possible critical hit from the attacking opponent. He rolls for confirmation, provided his attack roll is still above the total result of the AC roll.

A '20' on the d20 of an AC roll just blocks the attack, even if it is a critical hit (no confirmation roll).

Confirmation rolls in case of a possible critical hit use the fixed value of the opponent's AC, i.e. flat-footed AC, as the target DC to confirm said critical hit.

Last updated on Monday, April 18, 2007.

Campaign Aims: Living, Breathing Characters

2006-09-28T14:18:00.000-07:00

Usually, when I start a role-playing campaign and I am its game master (or Dungeon Master/DM, in D&D's jargon), I have some specific ideas on the types of moods, ambiance and themes I want to explore, just as if me and my friends were starting to write a novel together.

I've been doing this for a long while, but for this Ptolus campaign, I have decided to discard that kind of background design to rather concentrate on the actual game and the tastes of its players.

The reason I am avoiding any underlaying "theme" for this campaign is to avoid the trappings of a novelist's approach to role-playing games. I don't want to "tell a story" or "build a story" with this game. I want us to actually "live" the events of the game. To achieve this, I want to increase to the maximum my reactivity to the players' actions. If I was having any previous idea of what the campaign ought to be, or what type of "story" it would have to tell, I sure would be at odds with the actions of the players' characters at some point, since the players do not know what I may have prepared for the game in advance.

This doesn't mean I won't prepare for the game, won't have any idea of where the events of the game may lead its main characters, but I won't try to enforce a precise succession of events on the players. Instead, I intend to react to whatever they think characters do next. This will make the game's believability increase tenfold, I think.

If there is any goal I have before starting this campaign, it is to have a great time playing D&D, and have me and the players of the game enjoy Ptolus to the fullest extent we can manage.

What I have prepared is the base situation in which the players' characters (or PCs for short) would start the game, with the various motivations of specific NPCs involved with this base situation and events that occured in Ptolus prior to this situation. I also obviously thought of some possible, likely developments based on the players' tastes and inclinations, but that doesn't mean anything would "have to occur" the way I'd want it to.

Some the best RPG sessions I ever played were using Vampire The Masquerade and my home made "Paris by Night" setting. Often, we would just meet on week-ends to play the game and we would just start to role-play events occuring in the game without me having anything prepared. We were just knowing where we would have left the game and were going on with the natural consequences of the previous session's events. It went on like this for quite a while, years actually, and after some time this felt like the place was truly breathing and living without us thinking twice about this or that action's "impact" on an overall theoretical "storyline" we would have had in mind. There was no such storyline. No "impact" beyond the events as they occured "live" in the game.

That's what I intend to do with Ptolus.

Why such a love for Ptolus?

2006-09-25T15:51:00.000-07:00

Before getting into any specifics of the Ptolus campaign we are presently starting me and my friends of Bella Bella, British Columbia, I have to explain a few things about my own relationship with the City by the Spires.

To understand what Ptolus is, you can visit its official website. Let's just say that Ptolus: Monte Cook's City by the Spire is one of the best developed gaming product ever designed. It's a book of nearly 700 pages describing a fantasy city which embraces the style and feel of Dungeons & Dragons.

What does that means? It means this is a city where magic can be found at every corner, where the most unusual people, like minotaurs and lizardmen, dwarves and elves, walk the streets, where the adventure can be found above and below the city level.

But beyond the sheer greatness of the Ptolus book and its amazing production, it is a campaign which was run by Monte Cook, designer emeritus of D&D's Dungeon Master's Guide, since before the Third Edition of the game was born. To make a long story short, Praemal, the world at large, and Ptolus, its adventuring focus point, evolved through the playtests of D&D's Third Edition, and later grew up with it.

For me, running Ptolus, it's like playing with a bit of gaming history, using the works of a good friend of mine, and using the most incredible role-playing city book available at this point. Running Ptolus is nothing short of a privilege and a real treat for my imagination.

When I look at the contents, Ptolus for me has it all: conspirations, exotism, dungeons, dragons, the whole package, really. It's sort of a challenge too, when I see the amazing possibilities the setting provides. At nearly each page I turn, I find new ideas I could use to run a campaign or write a story.

I just referred to Monte Cook as a friend, and he is. I have been involved with other friends on Monte's forums one can reach through his website. This community of gamers is one of the most amazing I have had the chance to meet. This too is important regarding the Ptolus campaign we are about to play, since the community is a constant source of inspiration, excitement and advice regarding this game.

Running Ptolus in this context becomes even more of a privilege, since I am running a special campaign and have the chance to share my enthusiasms with like-minded people who share the same tastes and influences as I do. Together, we have been excited about Ptolus for years, reading Monte and his friends talking about what fun they had using this setting, and when the actual book was announced more than a year before it became available, the amount of raving anticipation had reached a breaking point. We all wanted to run Ptolus, we all were ready for it.

This explains this very opinionated, very hyped post I am writing here. If you ever get the chance to get Ptolus: Monte Cook's City by the Spire, by all means buy it, read it, and enjoy every minute of your ride. You won't be the same gamer afterwards.

Characters Creation

2006-09-17T14:18:00.000-07:00

Today, we create the characters for our Ptolus campaign. One of the players drops out for RL reasons, and we are now at three players and one DM (me).

This is more a boon than a curse, to tell you the truth.

Our Seven Spires campaign had 6 players last year, and even though the game went wonderfully and we were all quite satisfied by it, I knew that for the players, a lot of time had been spent watching other people do stuff during combat situations. I particularly disliked situations where a player wouldn't know what to do, or would have talked out-of-character waiting for his or her turn, and would then declare than s/he didn't know what to do. That would make everyone wait for no benefit whatsoever.

With three players remaining from our original group, there is a chance to get things moving harder and faster. That's cool for the game and I think the remaining players feel the same way as I do.

I distributed the Ptolus Player's Guides last week, and in one player's case, two days before the actual characters' creation.

The first thing that surprises me when we gather: all the players have actually read the entirety of their Guides. And they are all liking it very much.

Nobody has a clear idea as to what they want to play. We spend some time discussing, and I propose to narrow the amount of game mechanics used for PCs, at least for the beginning of the game.

For the Seven Spires, we created some characters using a wide variety of sources. Arcana Evolved, D&D's Player's Handbook, "Complete" series, Complete Book of Eldritch Might, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manual... you name it. It was time to come back to the basics and simplify the game, and creating new characters provides us with the opportunity we needed.

Then, we discuss what would be the ideal starting level for the characters. I am thinking about level 1 or level 3, like we did for our Seven Spires characters. Everyone seems excited to start with level 1 PCs and work their way up the ladder. This is agreed upon and we move on.

We discuss about group dynamics, the types of roles that would be useful in an adventuring group. I tell them that we could go for classic archetypal roles or have a specialized group. During a moment, they almost decide to all play sorcerers and wizards but the decision shifts in about 20 minutes of conversation to a more classic set of characters. Both ways would have been fine by me.

The second thing that surprises me: the players use the information of the Player's Guides right from the start. Instead of creating iconic D&D characters in a vaccuum, they instantly think about previous employments, relations to this or that Ptolus faction. Awesome.

The results. Three characters, two natives from Ptolus, one from Kem.

- Female human monk from Kem (NG) basing her spirituality on a connection between the stars and the body, one reflecting the other. Adept of the Old Man and a frequent visitor to the Temple of the Watcher in the Skies.

- Female Shoal elf rogue (CG) servant to House Sadar. Her parents live on Emerald Hill and do not approve of her service. She in fact wants to "spy" on House Sadar, but she hasn't seen much to date (she's a minor servant as of now and has no access to private quarters and the like).

- Female human sorcerer (LG) from House Nagel (actually from the family. She spent feats on this background and I will make it work out) who lives in Old Town. She has a deep admiration for the Knights of the Golden Cross.

We generate ability scores using 4d6-drop-lowest, then generate skills, saves, weapons and leave the remaining components (mainly feats and miscalleneous equipment) for the beginning of the next session.

I ended up shuffling through the big book for a long while after we parted. There is a lot of stuff I will be able to use in relation to their choices in character concepts!