Reflections on the past and present

Session 3:

Woo! Free levels and background stories for everyone! After tonight things should actually get more interesting. And since I had at least 2 more hours of adventure planned (immediately) and multiple sessions ahead already thought out, I believe future sessions be a lot more fun. I do not like giving one-on-one encounters with individual PCs so don't expect to see such a thing too often. I felt a little out of it tonight and feel I need to absorb a thesaurus so that I may better articulate my descriptions at the game table. That being said, everyone who I asked seemed to enjoy the night, so unless they are hiding that they were actually bored (please don't, I can't correct a problem I don't know about) I find tonight's session was a success! Again, if I messed up details, let me know especially if credit was given to the wrong person. Grammar and spelling issue can be reported too. Thanks!

Now on to the story!

Conclusion of the Werewolf Mystery:

The adventurers went back to the village and questioned the villagers. This entire dialogue is presented in This Thread. To summarize, the party questioned the villagers until they found out enough information to determine who the werewolf was. This was done in a rather unorthodox manner. Naonomi, after hearing Alexander, the village's priest, informing the party that a werewolf my change into its beast form if it becomes angered, threatened, or damaged, proceeded to kick all the male councilmen, sans the old man, in the gonads; (it may be worth reading the thread just for that part because everything was determined by dice rolls).

After determining that the old couple were the most likely candidates for being the werewolf, the old man transformed and fled from the jailhouse. The party pursed and attacked!

The werewolf turned the corner around a building out of sight of the characters and climbed the roof on the otherside. Three of the party memebers pursued into the alleyway, but the werewolf jumped from the roof and onto Gerdrex. While prone Xanandethis helped get the werewolf off of Gerdrex by attacking. The werewolf retaliated by clawing at Xanandethis leaving a medium but painful slice. Kintel then bull-rushed the werewolf into a barrel in which the lycanthrope became trapped.

While helpless, Gerdrex bashed it in the head a few times trying to incapacitate him. Kintel and Kelch both tried to tie the werewolf up, but the werewolf broke out of the barrel and struck at them once more. After several more attempts, Kintel finally succeeded in grabbing ahold of the werewolf allowing Kelch to tie him up. Gerdrex used this opportunity to knock it unconscious.

Back at the jailhouse the party chained up the lycanthrope, who was back into his human form by now. The adventurers asked the alchemist the location where he found his wolfsbane. The party followed his directions and stumbled upon an average-sized patch of wolfsbane which they brought back and fed to the old man. When morning arrived the party woke up the old man and punched him two times (the first knocking him back out, the second making him gasp) to make sure he was no long under the curse.

The old man apologized for his transgressions and thanked the party. The mayor awarded the adventurers with 1000 gold peices for saving his village. Compten also left the party to help Alexander clean up the evil that was left behind in the cathedral.

Mirra's Mirror and the Party's Past:

The party then set off to Mirra. Kelch after being chastised by Gerdrex for stealing the golden idol of Pelor sold the item in question for 95 gold peices. Gerdrex made Kelch swear that he would no longer steal holy objects, and that a blind eye might be turned for any other pilfering.

At the center of Mirra, the party entered the Shrine of Reflection. Inside, they saw a human barbarian with an orb of water in his hand. This barbarian introduced himself as Cryllise and explained that he earned the orb when his clan (of desert dwarves, of which he is an honorary member) defeated a water elemental and that he was sent on a quest by a shaman in his land to reflect upon the mirror and gain more inner strength. At their request, he became a member of the adventurers' party to gain more understanding about the orbs and the power that they hold.

Cryllise went in first. Upon staring at the mirror he gazed at a landscape of desert where he saw his past self and some desert dwarves being driven on a death march. He charged in and killed the orcs. Once the last orc dropped the slaves started cheering at their freedom. Cryllise started losing conscienceness.

After he awoke he was told by his old caretaker, an elder female desert dwarf, to "Go and bring peace like a gentle rain, and be imbued with the power of water. May it help calm your heart and soul despite your aggressions." When he returned to the room the orb of water was now an ordinary clear crystal orb, the element having drained into his being.

After Cryllise, Naonomi went in with her orb of earth. In the mirror she saw her late fiancee, Bareau talking to the leader of the wood elves, Keldrick Lorren'thal about diplomacy attempts with the drow. Bareau then appeared in a dark cavern speaking with a female authority figure amongst the drow. This exchange did not seem to go well.

The scene changed to a forest where Naonomi and Bareau were walking along a trail when all of a sudden there were two arrows in his back. Bareau fell dead and a hate for drow welled up inside of Naonomi as she was transported out of the mirror.

A drow followed her out whom she quickly defeated. After its defeat Bareau stepped out of the mirror and blessed Naonomi's bow (a present he gave her while still alive) saying, "You will be free of my memory only when I am avenged. But do not let anger guide your actions; let reason be your guide. I will be watching over you until we meet again in another life." Naonomi went to give him a hug, but fell through his image. After overcoming the pain of seeing him again she stormed out of the shrine and passed the rest of the party in a fury.

Next went in Gerdrex. He gazed upon the mirror and entered a scene of his past. He saw mercenaries all around ransacking a village. In the distance he saw a young man crying. He approached and noticed that there was a woman lying before him dead. Gerdrex turned and looked at the man's face. It was Gerdrex at a younger age. Gerdrex remembered that this was the point in his life were he resolved to rebel against his former mercenary leader.

The young man had this same resolve in his face while Gerdrex said, "I will help you accomplish what you have in mind." The younger Gerdrex went around slaying mercenaries that he came across while searching for the leader. When he came upon the leader the younger Gerdrex charged, but was knocked to the side unconscious. Older Gerdrex charged as well and finished him off, but there was an unnatural shadow about the mercenary that sprang to life! Gerdrex swung his sword at the shade, but the sword went through. The shade attacked back slowly draining Gerdrex's strength. Gerdrex retaliated by pulling his hand inside the shade and draining his "lay on hands" healing spell into the incorporeal being. This made the shade burn from the inside out completely dissolving its presence.

After the fight, younger Gerdrex awoke and pledged himself to the light stating, "I will live my life according to the virtues of the just and will never take another life without just cause." Gerdrex was left in the mirror room newly imbued with the element of holiness. The white in the dual-colored orb drained into his body leaving the orb black as night.

After Gerdrex, Kintel went into the mirror room with the fire orb in hand. He gazed upon the mirror and was drawn into a scene of his past. He saw in the middle of his old ransacked village three drow scavenging for easy goods. Kintel charged them cleaving into one after another.

At the end of this battle he heard another female drow laughing maniacally at him. He charged at her as well, but was stopped short when she threw a dagger which caught his knee causing him to land in the dirt in front of her. He tried to continue forward, but she threw another pinning one of his hands to the ground. She laughed at him exclaiming, "This dwarven village is only a stepping stone in dominating the rest of your race and ridding these mountains of you pests! When our plans are finished not a single dwarf will ever come in our way again!"

Kintel enraged retorted that he would hunt the drow to the ends of this plane. Suddenly, another dwarf charged the drow catching her off guard. They drew into a furious battle. Kintel suddenly realized that this dwarf was his father while everything around him was fading away.

Back in the mirror room the ghostly figure of Kintel's father appeared in the mirror and blessed Kintel's axe impowering it with his spirit. Kintel's orb also channeled the element of fire into his body leaving the orb clear as crystal.

Xanandethis was next. He approached the mirror, but only saw himself. In his mind he heard a voice, "Your first challenge as a monk is the fight the first hidden master. Every monk's first hidden master is himself. To know conquer thyself is to know thyself, and to know thyself is to be one's own master." At this Xanandethis was drawn into the mirror in a grassy plain staring at an exact copy of himself.

Xanandethis went into a defencive stance, as did his clone. He then relaxed causing his clone to do the same. Xanandethis charged at his clone and started attacking. Both traded blows with one another each skillfully dodging each others' blows until Xanandethis was given a mighty blow causing another clone to come out of his body. He and this new clone attacked the other clone punching further clones out of it. After a while the plains all around him blurred. He and his clones were now balancing atop giant poles a great distance above the ground.

Both Xanandethis and his clones jumped from pole to pole attempting to knock each other off. Xanandethis was eventually successful finishing the last two with a split kick, gracefully landing by himself on another pole.

A strong gust of wind blew against him and his vision causing the world around him to blur again. He was now in the mirror room with the last bit of wind still blowing at him and finally fading into him.

Finally, Kelch entered the mirror room with the dark orb in hand. He approached the mirror and gazed upon a scene of his past. He saw in the distance a small cottage on a hillside amongst a great plain. He saw his younger self go into his old house. Kelch walked inside after seeing his parents tied to the bed and his younger self exiting the house with his newly claimed Ildri. Kelch follow and saw further away not one but two of his older cousin, Ka'na.

The second Ka'na was a dark and evil looking version of herself who turned and walked into the normal looking Ka'na. Ka'na then started casting a spell launching a fireball at the tiny cottage. Kelch filled with anger and confusion charged at Ka'na and attempted to stab her. He ran through her image and in a blinding display of smoke and magic reappeared in the mirror room where Ka'na stood with an heirloom dagger of her own.

Ka'na started casting a spell at Kelch while he waited to see what would happen. Kelch was suddenly struck with a magical bolt of energy that stung like an arrow. Kelch then attacked her with both his short-sword and dagger in hand. Near the end of the fight the dark aura around Ka'na moved to the side as she begged Kelch to kill her and rid her of this evil. He granted her request and finished her with two quick strikes.

Ka'na's image faded away, but her dagger was left behind. It was a dagger very similar to Ildri, but gave Kelch a more serene feeling unlike its sibling. Two emotions battling inside him, Kelch's mind finally settled as he was imbued with the rest of the orb's power.

Aftermath:

The party now must return to Sol'sangre to learn what more can be done to stop the elementals from further invading their plane of existance and to stop whoever it is causing this mayhem.

Rewards:

Everyone is level 6 now!
Furthermore, if you participated in the werewolf thread you gain 250 more exp on top of that.
200 gold each from the werewolf encounter
You will be receiving something special soon to make up for the treasures you would have normally found from levels 2 to 6, so don't worry about that :)!