Dark Sun Marauders (Season 3, Chapter 2)

These posts are from our DnD group's latest game.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  In the previous seasons (the first run by me, the second run by Richard), the party were involved with hunting through Kalak's pyramid, confirming if the Sorcerer-King was truly dead, and retrieving the Orb of Dust.  The group is currently readying Tyr against the invading Urik army. 

Kulo, was angry.  Yes, still angry.  His emotions over the last few weeks had wavered between "angry" and "really angry", which, in part, was what caused the spiked chains he wore around his shoulders to change.

Magic had destroyed the world - but that was magic in the hands of people, defilers who sapped the life energy from everything around them in order to fuel their own powers.  The magic hanging around Kulo,'s neck was different, as was most of the magic that found itself as enchantments in the various (but rare) items he and his friends had discovered.  And thanks to his anger, to his palpable rage, Kulo,'s chains now twisted and warped in his hands far more than they once had.  The links of stone, bone and leather were almost becoming an extension of his own emotions.  The hate radiating from the chain was palpable to those nearby, as it wraps itself around the half-giant.  If the gladiator had known of demons and their kin, he could perhaps have made the connection between what his chains were becoming, and the adornment worn by those in the abyss.  Sadly, this was not the case.

With nothing left to do but wait out the invading force's arrival, Kulo, grew increasingly restless.  The ex-slaves he tried to train seemed to have reached their peak, and taking out his frustrations on them only resulted in hampering both their morale, and Tyr's numbers of able-bodied soldiers. If there was more that he could teach them in the scant few days left, surely he would have stayed.  But they slowly stopped wanting to spar with him, and turned instead to refining their abilities with each other.

When Kuoroar! and Kal'kin opted to help Beren out with a little down-time enforcing, Kulo, begrudgingly came along.  He wasn't the best option for uncovering Urik spies or sympathisers, but neither were any of the others.  Brute strength would have to do where a quick tongue and diplomatic attitude would fail.  Plus, there was talk in the mission outline of hidden weapon stashes! 

Algoth was a merchant, selling pots and urns from many distant cities...but perhaps a few too many from Urik.  Another thri-kreen by the name of Ix'it had been spying on his operations, and so the group moved to check them out.  Naturally, the shop was closed when they arrived, and Kal'kin went and unlocked the door before Kulo, could bash it in.  That made the half-giant angry - angry enough that when he had dragged one of the larger, sand filled urns inside, he decided the best way to confirm there were no weapons within was to break it open.  There was a great mess, but sadly, no hidden weapons.

The others discovered the clue that lead them onwards (this also angered Kulo,), which was a strange marking on the bottom of many pots.  Kulo, recalled it had something to do with a house, or another city, or other power, but filled with his typical rage, he really couldn't recall much more than that.  In the end, they moved onwards, out the back of the shop, and down into the warehouse.  That was where they met the smugglers.

Although, "met" might not be an entirely accurate description.  "Fought" would be closer, "beaten, maimed,  and eventually killed" more accurate yet.  These fellows were lead by another half-giant, and definitely had both strength and speed to their numbers.  Fortunately, whilst Kal'kin brought speed (managing to not only harass the goods line, but take down many of their number), Kuoroar! and Kulo, brought strength.  And, Kulo, might acknowledge after a few strong ales, Beren handled his own well enough.

The fight was vicious from the gladiator's point of view - if it wasn't for Paelias (the replacement Eladrin the templars had offered up), Kulo, might not have lived through it.  That definitely made him grumpy!  As it stood, Beren wasn't in a great position to ever seriously look at procreation in his future, after a few of the smugglers went to work on his more tender bits with their barbed, hooked whips.  Kulo, was proud of his son's battle presence, though even this made him angry - why was his body failing him already? Why couldn't he be stronger, faster, tougher?  And the over-grown insect, Kal'kin, had proven himself an able part of the group, as it - he - leapt about the room, stabbing here and clawing there.  But ultimately, the skirmish still left Kulo, angry.

Some had escaped.  Kulo, had managed to catch the last smuggler who tried to leap through the trapdoor, his chain digging into the soft flesh about his neck, and the smuggler's own weight snapping his neck as Kulo, held the other end of the chain firmly.  But there had been others working beneath the warehouse, others who had taken the goods passed down to them, and who were all gone, by the time the party was in a state to follow.  And so, back in the warehouse, Kulo, fumed.

A Rose by Any Other Name...

Should smell...something something...

DnD Online Games, the site I have been playing, running and discussing DnD and role-playing in general for over 8 years, has had a recent name-change.  After much consideration and thought, we've emerged as RPG Crossing, an attempt to welcome and support players from a range of games, editions, systems, and so on.  Much as I'll miss the old familiarity of "DnDOG", the new name has already proven fruitful, as it came along with a new server, and without a whole lot of old, tired site errors.

What is in a name?

But this is more than a post about where to go for your play-by-post gaming needs (www.rpgcrossing.com, remember! :) )!  The change of name got me thinking about names in RPGs in general.  I have often found the hardest part of character creation is the name.  Choosing appropriate, meaningful names for characters has always been a challenge, a task almost as hard as choosing names for my children!  Although, that example in itself shows a big difference between roleplaying and real life.

Most of us haven't chosen our own names, in our real life.  Sure, some of us may have chosen to take on our partner's name when we were married, or perhaps created our own names if we weren't fortunate enough to be born already awesome.  But I would guess that a majority of us haven't really changed our names that much since our parents decided on them, and had it put on our birth certificate.  That's a big difference between our experienced lives and our role-playing stories.  Maybe we should ask the DM what our parents called us?  Or turn to random name generators for advice?

Family Traditions

I know some folk stick to certain methods for their character's names.  Some might only ever want to use hidden puns or cryptic meanings within them; others name them after famous chess players.  One might elect to use a foreign language to translate a word that has special meaning, whilst another may look about the room, choose an object at random, and then add a "K" to the front.  There are players who only want to play characters called the same name as themselves, or possibly some other name that each of their characters shares.  Maybe a character's name includes their occupation, their race, or even their notable characteristics.

Writer's Block

So what do you do?  Do you go for a quick and easy name, or do you think about making it appropriate for the setting and the history of your character?  Do you name them based on what they will do, or have done? Or is their title given to them by their parents, with no knowledge of who they will become? Does their name stick out amongst like a sore thumb their peers, or has it been adapted to fit the setting? How do you choose your character's names?

Dark Sun Marauders (Season 3, Chapter 1)

These posts are copies of my emails from our DnD group's downtime chatter.  The current adventure is a return to the world of Dark Sun.  In the previous seasons (the first run by me, the second run by Richard), the party were involved with hunting through Kalak's pyramid, confirming if the Sorcerer-King was truly dead, and retrieving the Orb of Dust. Whilst effort was taken to follow Dark Sun canon, there are undoubtedly bits where our story strays or contradicts stuff.  We're aware, and not playing to create new canon, but to have fun.  So, read on and enjoy!

 

Kulo, was angry.  He seemed to always be angry, but after returning from the pyramid, he had anger on top of anger, and his company became hard for the others to put up with.  By the following morning, he was gone, leaving their reclaimed Shom-warehouse without notice.  Not even Bundaberg had awoken to Kulo,'s gathering of his few belongings.

Kulo, didn't travel far; he headed directly for the one place he knew best in the city, and the one place he thought he could let off some steam without bringing undue attention to himself.  Whilst they had searched the markets the other day, he had heard rumours that some slaves had returned to the fighting pits.  Unlike Beren's insane allegiance to his former master, these gladiators returned, not to be slaves once more, but to excel at what they did best - at the only thing they knew how to do.  To fight.

Fortunately, the rumours were fruitful, and he found more than a few able bodies sparring back and forth in the arena.  There was talk about getting another competition running - one in which people chose to fight, that battles weren't to the death, and that victors won the spoils for themselves.  It could be a great way to earn a living, if organised well.  For now, no one had stepped forward to organise it - at least, no one that a majority of others agreed upon.  The hopeful contestants simply sparred, practised, and hoped to make enough to live by from those spectators who felt generous enough to part with some ceramic.

The group was welcoming enough to see Kulo,, though it was hard for him to work out who seemed the most timid: those that knew him from his gladiator days, or as Ulruun the Repugnant's bodyguard, or as one of those who had braved Kalak's pyramid, and returned with the Sorcerer-King's head.  Still, for every would-be gladiator who seemed to step gingerly around his shadow, another two simply saw a heavy-set half-giant, who wore viciously barbed links of chains around his shoulders. 

Kulo, didn't return to the warehouse over the next week, electing instead to sleep at the barracks and spend all his waking hours training with the other fighters.  Part of him just wanted a return to a simple life, but he hated that part, almost as much as he hated Beren's obedience to his old master.  The rest of him knew that there was a mess coming his way - coming all their way - and he wanted to be prepared for it.  He wanted as many people around him prepared for it.  So what if they thought they were merely training for fun and profit?  He was refining  their edge, just as they were sharpening him, making each other stronger, faster, and more equipped for repelling whatever Urik was sending their way. By the end of the week, his skill had improved such that he could add a few links to his chain.  He could now successfully, and repetitively, hit a target standing fifteen feet away from him, and had worked up quite a bit of skill in knocking and shifting people around the battlefield to where he wanted them.  He was impressed, and those that faced him also seemed to be wary of his lashing chains that could drag an escaping opponent to his feet, or could throw away an aggressive foe and leave them standing on their own. 

Kulo, was happy with his training, with the new tricks he had learnt and mastered...but that happiness was more of a reluctant acceptance, compared with the anger that still stewed within him.  There was work that needed to be done, further preparations that needed to be made, and stolen items that needed to be retrieved.  And so it was, after a week long absence, that Kulo, finally returned to the warehouse, to his son Kuoroar!, and to the others that he had fought alongside.  Hopefully, they had some ideas as to just what they would do next.

The Drow of Xen'drik (part 6)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group. The current mini-adventure is an Eberron tale, set in the jungles of Xen'drik, where the party are taking the roles of drow (and one dwarf). Whilst I take great effort to follow Eberron canon, there are undoubtedly bits where my story strays or contradicts stuff. I'm aware, this is my story, and we're not playing to create new canon, but to have fun. So, read on and enjoy!

 

The Plateau

The journey was simple and fast - just like any good teleportation trip should be.  The party arrived on the plateau they had seen from the Azure Tower, and thanks to their invisibility, had some time to look about themselves.  The large plateau stretching out before them was carved out of the mountainside.  It's formation was not natural - it had been cut into the mountain, the displaced rubble tossed down the ravine to fall many miles below.  With a sharp cliff dropping away to their east, and the rest of the mountain towering overhead to the west, they were left with but one other feature: a large, twisting path spiralling up to a peak some hundred and fifty feet above their heads.  Nearly a hundred feet up the path was a large door, leading into the thin, twisted tower, but they couldn't get to the door immediately. 

Between the tower and drow were two groups of five individuals.  Standing around rune circles, arms held high, they muttered strange words, the wind carrying the indecipherable blabber carelessly across the mountainside.  In the middle of them, a lone crystal stood, about five feet wide and nearly twice that tall.  It pulsated with hues of purple and orange magic, and was clearly the focus of their ritualistic chanting.  Other, similarly focused groups were standing around the tower; with his newly enhanced vision, Quayanorl counted five in total.

None of them noticed the invisible drow approaching; not, that is, until Brenna decided that it was best to leap straight to the point.  Fire flew from her outstretched hands, even as her party members ran and scattered, wanting to put as much distance between themselves and the now-visible sorceress.  But even as she regained her visible form, those she attacked winced, but continued with their chanting. 

The Seekers

Quay naturally saw him first, as the shadows held no power over his sight, but he had never met the Umbragen seeker before, and so didn't know the relevance of his presence until Curra's snarling voice came from behind him.  "Ek'ann!"

Ek'ann Torkak looked at her with a nasty smile. "Yes, my dear", he responds, "Delightful to have you join us at last."  As he speaks, two more drow, similar in dress to those they had fought in the giant's ruins (right down to their lacking of legs), appear from the shadows and trail along behind him.  "I do hope you are here to help us, yes?"

It was never really an option for the group to side with Ek'ann, no matter what nonsense he spilled before them.  D'Jhudi'it knew this best of all, but also wanted to know just what was at foot, and so tried to play along.  "We are here to open the portal to Dal Quor, the Region of Dreams, of course...hasn't Curra told you this?  That was, after all, the purpose of our visions!"  The assassin told them of their plans, eagerly enough, though even he suspected their ultimate decision.  "The arrival of the Quori is inevitable...but if we aid them, if we open the door and welcome them in, we will have such power as to make all of the Sulatar's magic seem like mere children's tricks!"

None were convinced - at least, not enough to make them join his side.  In a last ditch effort at persuasion, Ek'ann asked "Curra, you know that the vision we shared showed the Quori's inevitable arrival and victory, and great power to those who would help quicken their coming.  Why fight what has to happen? Why play for the losing side?"  But still, they chose to fight.

The Portal Opens

Ryltar in particular took a beating that day, his body being knocked to the ground time after time, only to be raised up by whatever strange spirits Kami kept whispering to.  At times, it might have seemed that the pirate was playing out some sick desire of hers to watch the scorrow suffer so much pain, not letting him ever quite slip away into Dolurrh's cold embrace.  But Kami, just like everyone else, was fighting for her life.

At first, the party seemed to be winning, taking down Ek'ann's lackeys quickly, and disrupting the rituals at the same time.  but when they though they had the assassin beaten, he showed his final play.  For just as each of the individuals chanting around the crystals was inhabited by a quori spirit (which was released upon the vessel's death), so too did Ek'ann have an other-worldly visitor sharing his physical body.  With a final cry of defiance, he raised his arms and shouted, "Minharath, take me now!".  As blood poured from his wounds, a dark presence seeped from his very body.  A shadow formed, surrounding him and towering over the others, as the quori beast found a way into this realm.

Around the battlefield, some rituals were faltering, whilst others seemed to be working as intended.  Two of the crystals grew dark, as more of the shadow-portals ripped open above them, and more figures stepped through.  Eladrin with blades of mist stood before the crystals to offer defence, even as Brenna destroyed the first crystal, in a backlash that killed the remaining vessels attached to it via the ritual.  But still, a dark loud was forming atop the tower.

The Quori General

It was Bel'Tarayne who took off around the tower, moving solo in order to take out the crystals and cut off the connection to Dal Quor.  Sure, the others had suggested as much, directed him to move that way, but ultimately, the decision was his.  If only they had sent another to aid him, the party's losses might not have been as steep.

As it was, whilst Kami and Ryltar worked at sending Minharath's incorporeal form back to the Region of Dreams, Bel' took down another crystal.  The unleashed quori were too much for him, though, and he fell to the ground, hard.  D'Jhudi'it moved carefully to his side, but despite her best efforts, the mage could only be stabilised, not woken.  And then, as the fourth crystal erupted under deluges of fire and lightning, the creature known as Tras'nhilya broke through realities.

The creature flew swiftly into battle, a nightmarish mass of limbs, tentacles, and teeth, and brought great pain to those nearby.  All those who experienced its attacks would have visions of it disrupting their sleep for years to come, and many of the wounds it caused would never heal properly.  Still, together they stood, trying not to defeat, but simply survive, the monster's attacks. 

It was Brenna who started the battle, with her frantic and spontaneous attack; but in many ways, it was Brenna who ended it, too.  Sneaking around the tower, she faced a wave of quori, and fought through them to destroy the final crystal.  As it shattered, it cut off Eberron's connection to Dal Quor, closing the portals, and trapping the quori in their home plane. But what had passed through did not instantly return.

Tras'nhilya cried out in anguish, not yet fully manifested, and clawed frantically at the fabric of reality.  Its form wavered, losing the structure and substance it once had, but even as a wispy shadow creature, it was still dangerous.  Once more, it moved to rip through them, but this time, with the encouragement from the portal's closure, they fought back with vengeance.  Even as D'Jhudi'it's mind succumbed to the overlapping nightmares from countless quori attacks, Quayanorl and the others moved forward, and destroyed the general's last remaining hold on their realm.  With relief, they watched his dream-like form dissipate into the air.

The Aftermath

Ek'ann was dead, the quori threat defeated and repelled, and none of the vessels left to restart the ritual.  For now, Eberron was safe, though some truth of the fallen Seeker's promise still lingered.  In time, the quori would try to break through once again.  The cost still weighed on the party - D'Jhudi'it was dead, something that Ryltar felt more than the others; Bel'Tarayne's mind had as many scars as Ryltar's body, and would probably never get another restful night's sleep; and they all shared in the horror of the events that had happened.  They had won, but they were weary, injured, and barely able to point the direction to their home, let alone make the trek there.  But, they kept telling themselves, Xen'drik was no longer under an immediate risk of invasion.  At least, not from Dal Quor, and not in any time soon.  Surely, that was something to savour and celebrate.

The Drow of Xen'drik (part 5)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group. The current mini-adventure is an Eberron tale, set in the jungles of Xen'drik, where the party are taking the roles of drow (and one dwarf). Whilst I take great effort to follow Eberron canon, there are undoubtedly bits where my story strays or contradicts stuff. I'm aware, this is my story, and we're not playing to create new canon, but to have fun. So, read on and enjoy!

 

Preparations

"Well, that's all of it, I guess," said Curra with an air of disappointment, as she glanced around the ransacked laboratory for a fourth time.  She had, together with Quayanorl and Bel'Tarayne spent the last few hours searching the room guarded by the iron golem for any scrolls that could prove useful.  So far, they had five.

The plan was simple.  They needed to get to the mountainside with haste, and interrupt whatever was going on, before the visions Curra and the other seekers had been plagued with come to fruition.  They had rested, for what little time they could spare, but now their moment of luxury was at an end.  Preparations needed to be made, plans created, and this Azure tower left.  Anything that needed doing, needed doing now.

"This one is the real blessing," she commented, touching the temporal portal ritual.  The giants had far better ability to step through the realms than mages today, and it was little surprise that such a scroll was found here.  It was a shame that it had to be used, instead of studied further, but there was no other way of getting across the distance in time.  Even if they could call the dragons back, whatever foul preparations were underway at the distant mountain would be finished before they could interfere.  "But the invisibility will come in useful as well." 

Ryltar and D'Jhudi'it might not mind charging into battle, but for Brenna and the others, the cover of magic would give them precious moments to get up to speed and work out what needed to be done - and to find cover, if needed.  Curra wasn't as excited with the other scrolls, but left the on the table for the others to peruse and use, if they so wished.
After examining one of the scrolls for a time, Quayanorl gathered the arcane experts together. “As we all know, the Quori were experts of the mind, masters of dreams and illusions. Although my ancient giantish is lacking, this scroll appears to record the experiments of a giant wizard in penetrating illusions to reveal underlying truths… which may be useful where we are headed… or so it seems to me.”

The ritual did indeed look powerful, promising to give the reader sight that surpassed all others, just as the giants' civilisation had once surpassed all others.  Quayanorl, should he finish the ritual, would be able to see all things clearly, no matter what illusions were put before him, or what darkness came across his path.  He wouldn't be able to see through objects, but this was surely the next best thing! 

As far as Curra could determine, the effects would last about an hour, so Quay would be best off triggering the ritual immediately before they used the teleportation spell.  Curra also passed the second scroll across to Kami.  The drunk dwarf still didn't quite fit into the group, but she had stood by them, healing as much as her connection with the spirits allowed.  The scroll would help that intention, providing an additional boost to the magical healings on offer.

The time was then upon them; final preparations were made, sight was given to Quay, and the cloak of invisibility was spread over everyone.  And then, the teleportation circle was finalised, and the party was whisked across to their final battle...

The Drow of Xen'drik (part 4)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group. The current mini-adventure is an Eberron tale, set in the jungles of Xen'drik, where the party are taking the roles of drow (and one dwarf). Whilst I take great effort to follow Eberron canon, there are undoubtedly bits where my story strays or contradicts stuff. I'm aware, this is my story, and we're not playing to create new canon, but to have fun. So, read on and enjoy!

 

The Ancient City

The ancient white dragon (it was still going nameless, not deeming the party as worthy of sharing its name with) flew the group across many miles of jungle, and deposited them on the outskirts of the city.  It refused to go nearer than the tree-line, haunted memories of their war with the giants keeping it at bay.  Still, it nodded to Ryltar, and bid them good fortune on their quest.  Then, it took to the air, and went to collect the Curra, Kami and the others.

D'Jhudi'it took the lead, as usual, as they moved into the ruined city.  The buildings, ranging from mud and stone huts to more extravagant structures, were all old and untouched for many years, if not centuries.  The jungle had slowly encroached on the land, but the giants' magic still held much of it at bay - as it held many of the structures in as good a condition as when they had been inhabited, 40,000 years ago.  The main structure - the Azure Tower, which rose 1,000 feet above the ground - was an example of their ability with magic.

But first, they had to travel through the outer huts, many of which were barely large enough to fit Ryltar within.  Many millennia ago, their ancestors may have lived in such dwellings.  As slaves, they would have been forced to dwell in them.  But at the moment, they were empty.  Apart, unfortunately, from the mind flayer, and his troops.

Shadows within Shadows

The first of the shadow-infused quicklings leapt forward and struck at Quayanorl and Ryltar.  The beasts were barely the size of goblins, but they seemed to meld with the shadows, darting forth to flank and bring great pain, before withdrawing again into cover.  Along with Ryltar's controlling presence, the combined elemental might of Quay, Brenna and Bel'Tarayne held back the tide.  That was, until the two assassins showed. 

Much like the party, the drow assassins had ebony skin, sharp eyes, and a tendency for clouds of darkness.  However, what they didn't have was a set of legs.  Where most of the others had two legs, they had a vaporous mass of smoke, which drifted and merged with the shadows about them.  They moved easily over the ground, barely bobbing as their torsos floated unnaturally towards their prey. 

Bel' and Quay had heard rumours of this before - Umbragen drow who had given themselves so deeply over to the shadowy presence they followed that parts of their body had actually become shadows.  Usually, such words were dismissed as folklore, but after seeing it themselves, they could no longer doubt.  Brenna especially found their foe to be a nasty enemy, as their poison spread and infected her very vision, causing her eyes themselves to go dark.  She eventually overcame the blindness, but not before Ryltar faced, and was temporarily dominated by, a mind flayer. 

Cleaning Crew and Observation Deck

Further search into the city brought mixed results.  The large canals cut through the streets proved a minor inconvenience, allowing Quay to reveal another of his abilities.  The ancient gelatinous cubes that were bred to clean the canals tried to collect the party, but they decided to leave them be, and continued on to the observation deck.

The platform hovered roughly 300 feet above the ground, supported purely by magic.  Three large metal discs reacted to weight, and rose from the ground to the platform.  However, not all the magic was still intact.  The platform slanted at almost 45 degrees, making movement most difficult.  Ryltar skittered about the area, but it was D'Jhudi'it who recognised the pattern of crystal stones in the floor as matching constellations in the sky above.  Sadly, the sights once given from the platform were no longer viewable, due to its deterioration and dangerous slope.

The Azure Tower

The Azure Tower itself was a mighty structure, with walls thicker than some of the mud huts, and rooms large enough to fit an entire house inside.  Four lifts sat in the eastern wall, though three had fallen, their magic waning over the years, and each in turn crashing to the basement below.  The final lift was till working, and was strangely cheerful.  Happy to have people to converse with after so long alone, the lift carried them through the various levels of the tower, pointing out the interesting locations, such as the observation deck and dining hall; the workshop; and the conservatory. 

The dining hall's security system was still active, so the party first needed to find a crystal card to allow them access past the enchantments.  The first guess was the workshop, but the only thing there, aside from a number of old rituals and giant books, was an angry Iron Golem sentry.  So to the conservatory they travelled!

There, overrunning the entire floor and creeping into those above and below, was an overly large intelligent vine - and it was hungry for meat.  D'Jhudi'it and Ryltar came close to being snacked upon, whilst Bel' and Quay fought off swarms of stirges who sought out their scrumptious skin.  Once the gardening was complete, the vines parted, and some back-burning performed, the ancient skeleton of one of the botanists was found.  His crystalline pass-card was retrieved, and the group finally made it into the top floor.

A View of the Finale

Aside from the ancient kitchen, and tables scattered to allow patrons to enjoy the impressive view, there were stands complete with far-seeing divination spells, allowing for intense scrutiny of distant locations.  Some were free to move and roam about the jungle or the eastern coast, others were set up to look at areas of the distant mountainside.  One of these was aimed at another tower, on a small plateau over halfway up a mountain.  The tower was a strange, twisting display of stone and earth, quite alien to the designs of both the drow and giants of old.  Unlike most of the other locations, there was activity here, a dozen or so individuals scurrying about and performing some sort of preparations.

When the site was shown to Curra, she gasped.  The seeker recognised the site only too well, for it was the tower of her dreams.  It was not an eladrin fey spire, as previously though, but rather, a thing of Quori origin.  This tower was left over from when the Quori had invaded Eberron so many millenia ago.  And it looked like someone intended to start that invasion over again...

The Drow of Xen'drik (part 3)

These posts are copies of the summary emails I write for our DnD group. The current mini-adventure is an Eberron tale, set in the jungles of Xen'drik, where the party are taking the roles of drow (and one dwarf). Whilst I take great effort to follow Eberron canon, there are undoubtedly bits where my story strays or contradicts stuff. I'm aware, this is my story, and we're not playing to create new canon, but to have fun. So, read on and enjoy!

 

The Downed Airship

The crashing, and subsequently burning, airship was of interest, but Curra was not eager to race ahead for it.  This area needed to be searched, and failing to do that was a failure of the mission.  Ultimately, it was decided that three of the party - Kami, who was not expected to be terribly helpful with their searching (and who was starting to grumble about not having any rum); along with Brenna, whose exact role in the team had not yet been decided, were both deemed 'expendable' to the current search parameters.  Though it made her feel uncomfortable, Curra agreed that Ryltar was the best option to head the side-trek.  His speed allowed for greater retreat should things go wrong, and his loyalty meant that the trio would return, should they still be alive.

The trek to the ship took another two days, but the trails of smoke (both from the burning ship and the surrounding trees) made it easy to navigate the unfamiliar forests.  When they arrived, the partially destroyed shipwreck was silent. There were bodies, some killed in the explosion, others dead from injuries suffered in the crash.  Some bodies were thrown clear, only to be impaled on trees, or broken against the ground...or savaged by wild animals.  Only later was it determined as to just what these animals were.

Kami noted that a number of the bodies wore clothes and jewellery familiar with her home province - the Lhazaar Principalities, though like all who hail from the far eastern coast of Khorvaire, they held no allegiance.  Others were clearly Valenar elves, vicious mercenaries for hire, who had annexed a large section of land from Cyre, the nation who had hired them during the Last War. 

The cargo instantly identified the ship as smugglers, even if Kami hadn't been there to offer the same information.  Various treasures, including tapestries, jewellery, and chests of rare (and quite old) coins sat alongside armour, weapons, and other trinkets.  Kami found a shield, whilst Brenna recovered three dragonshards, and pocketed them for further use.

Towards the back of the cargo area, two more disturbing crates of goods were found.  The first were dragon eggs, showing that the smugglers had little concern for their own lives (for stealing from dragons was always a foolish thing, but stealing their eggs was simple suicide).  The second were full suits of armour that, instead of being hollow and ready for wearing, had bodies within them made from wood, metal, stone, and leather.  Kami was again able to offer information the drow did not have - "warforged" was what they were called, a living construct created and used in the Last War.  These all were damaged, however, and none of them responded to anything...but for one. 

Whilst examining them, Kami touched, and felt the cold metal shudder.  It rose, and then seemed intent on following her.  It did not seem to have a mind of its own, like the ones used in the War, but instead was a much simpler construct, set to follow her orders and do as she commanded.  There was little time to test its capabilities out, as the owners of the stolen goods returned.

Angered Dragons

A thunderous earthquake dragon, along with a unit of savage Argonnessen-tribe-barbarians, approached the ship from the forest.  Without waiting, Brenna moved to the top of the ship, and sent gouts of flame to consume some of the barbarians, and the battle was on.  A second dragon, green in colour, circled around overhead with a dragonborn sorcerer on its back.  The two caused great destruction, almost collapsing the ship, and taking down Brenna whilst Ryltar and the brown dragon struggled with each other outside.  Their match ended with the scorrow strangling the dragon, crushing the creature's scaled neck enough to knock it out.  It would have died, too, had not the colossal form of a white dragon brought a swift end to the battle.  Demanding that everyone stop fighting, it berated the drow for their attack on the dragons, it reminded them that it was they, the dragons, that saved the drow civilisation.  Back when the giants were going to quell the slave uprising, when they were going to turn the terrible magics that had stopped the Dal Quor invaders, it was the dragons of Argonnessen who had swept in and ended things, and so saved Eberron from being ripped apart.

There were more pressing matters, too.  The ancient white dragon brought with it news of two more airships searching for their missing vessel, and they were closing in.  The dragon could take down one, but asked for the drow's help (along with the remnants of the Green and Brown dragon's tribesmen) to handle the second.  Agreeing to this, an uneasy truce was formed, and the group waited as the ships rolled in over the trees from the east. 

The Elves Attack

It was only a matter of time before the ancient white dragon defeated the third airship.  The green, along with its rider, flew to the second, leaving the rest to take on the ground troops.  A small skiff detached from the side of the vessel as it moved closer, depositing six Valenar soldiers on the ground.  Outnumbered 2-1, the elves moved in without fear, and set to work on evening those odds.

The remaining barbarians fell before the swift double-scimitars favoured by the Aerenal elven fighting style, and had it not been for Ryltar's fierce control of the battlefield, Kami and Brenna would surely have followed.  But the elves were not expecting fierce and powerful warriors - dragons, or tribesmen, they could have handled.  The drow, and Kami with her restocked rum bottles, proved far more ferocious.

As a second ship fell, its crew being picked off by the hungry dragons, the third tried to escape its inevitable fate and fled to the coast.  It would not get far - it had been badly damaged, and would not last another day in the air, let alone the week-long journey back to Khorvaire.

To the Tower

Once they had seen to their wounds, the party was ready to head out once again.  The white dragon had promised to take them towards a city that had a "tall tower", matching descriptions of the one they were searching, and the green dragon was going to find Curra and the others, and point them in the right direction.

Could their quest be nearing an end?  Had their searching finally brought them to the tower of Curra's dreams?