FAQ  FAQ   Search  Search   Memberlist  Memberlist   Usergroups  Usergroups
Register  ::  Log in Log in to check your private messages


Post new topic  Reply to topic Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3
 Courts of the Shadow Fey [Parsantium] - session notes « View previous topic :: View next topic » 
Author Message
richgreen01
PostPosted: Tue May 29, 2012 11:14 am    Post subject: The Eyes Have It Reply with quote

Patron

Joined: 06 Apr 2008
Posts: 784
Location: London, UK

Hi,

This is, I think, the penultimate write-up. The eye golem was easier for the PCs to defeat than I thought he would be, thanks to Mal'uk the swordmage's ridiculous AC (35!)

27th December (contd.)


Leaving the Hedge Maze of the duskthorn dryad, the PCs head in the direction of the Tower of the Moon after Mal'uk has teleported to the top of the maze walls to check they are going the right way. Ahead, the party hear sobbing and soon afterwards a blind half-elf woman appears. She is improbably named Ardevallissen Thiomoire and is searching for her lost daughter Helliboshe. To find her, she needs to perform the Ritual of Reunion, which requires the largest eye of the dangerous eye golem. The PCs agree to help and continue onward.

The party enter the clearing where the eye golem stands guard, surrounded by pathetic, fearful eyeless beggars, some elves, some shadow fey and some goblins. As soon as it sees the PCs, the golem closes to attack Mal'uk and Reckless Ella in melee. Ella backs away but Khuma and his bear step forward into the breach. Mal'uk proves very hard to hit but when he teleports further into the clearing in an effort to lure the construct after him, his plan fails. Instead the golem destroys the spirit bear and pounds Khuma unconscious. Saethus, meanwhile, is firing magic missiles at the monster repeatedly, and Ella is also launching arrow after arrow. Mal'uk returns to melee and is blinded, but Ella finally brings down the eye golem with her bow.

When the creature dies, there is a blinding flash and dozens of eyeballs scatter everywhere. The PCs pick these up carefully and return as many as they can to the blind beggars, before scooping the rest (including Lord Suvid's) into their bag of holding. Saethus is very excited to get hold of the golem's largest eye (which once belonged to a primordial) thinking this will be something to impress the Esoteric Order of the Blue Lotus back in Parsantium.

The PCs return to find Ardevallissen. Saethus doesn't want to give up his prize so the PCs agree to shed some of their own blood for the Ritual of Finding. Helliboshe and her mother are reunited, and Ardevallissen's sight is restored.

Returning to the clearing, the party decide to investigate the dark cave they saw at the top of the ramp. Inside a pit, held their by magical wards, are a number of angels, demons and devils. They beg to be released but the PCs refuse to let them out. Many are wingless – their wings are in a small building on top of the hill above the cave. Mal'uk takes all these wings, putting them into the bag of holding. He talks to the angels and demons for a while but only manages to confuse them.

To reach the Tower of the Moon, the PCs need to pass through the glass wall which blocks their path. Mal'uk and Saethus both teleport to the other side, losing a healing surge each in the process. Meanwhile, a shadow demon has appeared and attacked the other party members. To take down the wall, Saethus is forced to destroy his newly-found primordial eye. Reunited, the two halves of the party attack the demon but it is insubstantial and hard to damage. Passing Ella's radiant longsword back and forth between herself and Mal'uk doesn't help much as neither can hit the demon hard enough to get it to solidify. Eventually, the PCs just grind it down and slay it.

The way ahead to the Tower of the Moon is now open....

Cheers


Rich
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
richgreen01
PostPosted: Thu Jun 28, 2012 1:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Patron

Joined: 06 Apr 2008
Posts: 784
Location: London, UK

Hi,

We played our final session of Courts of the Shadow Fey on Monday night. Here's the write up. We had a ton of fun playing this adventure!

Visit my blog here for a picture of the final encounter.


27th December (contd.)


The PCs arrive at the Tower of the Moon. The bright light at the top comes from Revich, angel of the Lords of Light. The party call out to him but he doesn't respond. Mal'uk starts casting a ritual under his breath but the others don't realise what he's doing and Ella pushes open the blue glass door.

Inside, the PCs can make out the ghostly form of the Moonlit King behind a glowing wall of lunar force. Brave Ella offers the king some jewellery but he isn't impressed. Then, she hands over the magical shield she was given by Lord Chelessfield, a gift that the King accepts. The ranger continues to talk to the insane monarch who asks the party to spill his blood before he will free Parsantium from scathsidhe rule. Unsure how to reach him to do this, Khuma summons his spirit companion behind the wall of force but dismisses it when the King's giant derro bodyguard approaches menacingly. Ella figures out how to move the moonbeams around with her radiant sword but soon realises this doesn't help the PCs get to the King.

Khuma and Ella use their weapons to smash down the wall of force and attack the Moonlit King. As he fights the party, the shadow fey asks them questions, such as how long has the Queen ruled and where his daughter is. Fortunately, Mal'uk has done a lot of research into the Shadow Courts and is able to answer these correctly as he fights. The PCs work out that the King's madness stops them attacking while he is standing in a moonbeam.

The swordmage protects Ellla, using dimensional vortex to divert the King's attack on to his derro servant, and then teleports the monarch out of his moonbeam so he can be attacked. Khuma seizes the opportunity and unleashes a storm of blades, inflicting two criticals on the King. Ella keep the moonbeams moving around using her sword while the other two PCs and Khuma's bear battle the derro ravager and the moonbeam devil. The King continues to question the party - a wrong answer brings another moonbeam devil into the fray as the first one falls.

The PCs continue to talk to the King. Eventually Khuma goes to mop the scathsidhe's fevered brow - this act of kindness brings the Moonlit King to his senses. He drops his orb of power and slumps to the floor. He offers the party a bargain - he will return the City at the Crossroads to its people; in exchange the PCs must pursue and slay the Demon Lord of Roaches in the Abyss. The PCs agree and Mal'uk is marked with a crescent moon tattoo to seal the bargain.

The PCs are returned to Parsantium instantly. When they arrive, it is a year and a day after they left, the Festival of Lights is in full swing, and no one seems to remember the time when the shadow fey ruled the city. No one, that is, apart from Hidden Ambassador Thelamandrine who thanks the PCs for what they have done. Returning to their apartments, the party are glad to see Krivinn preaching the nobility and majesty of Bahamut outside his shrine to passers-by.

Cheers


Rich
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
einherjar
PostPosted: Thu Jun 28, 2012 2:09 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Patron

Joined: 13 Jun 2011
Posts: 982
Location: Blue Mountains, NSW, Australia

A great final writeup Rich. I've just gone back to the beginning of this thread and read through all of it: in a word magnificent.

You've definitely captured the otherworldly logic of the Shadow-Fey's Courts and presented the surrounding non-player characters as more than statblocks to overcome. I love the fact that many of these folk have their own passions, needs, jealousies etc that they need help with/resolving. Seems there were plenty of opportunities for role-playing, sleuthing, duelling and group combat.

Again, a great writeup and a testament to your GMing and creativity, your players' intelligence and overall the design of thr adventure itself...

Well done everybody!!!
_________________
einherjar/Oceanshieldwolf/Morgan Boehringer

Senior Patron/Captain: Journeys to the West
Senior Patron/Sultana's Chosen: Midgard Tales
Wereapprentice: Bite Me! The Gaming Guide to Lycanthropes
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
richgreen01
PostPosted: Sun Jul 01, 2012 7:13 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Patron

Joined: 06 Apr 2008
Posts: 784
Location: London, UK

einherjar wrote:
A great final writeup Rich. I've just gone back to the beginning of this thread and read through all of it: in a word magnificent.

You've definitely captured the otherworldly logic of the Shadow-Fey's Courts and presented the surrounding non-player characters as more than statblocks to overcome. I love the fact that many of these folk have their own passions, needs, jealousies etc that they need help with/resolving. Seems there were plenty of opportunities for role-playing, sleuthing, duelling and group combat.

Again, a great writeup and a testament to your GMing and creativity, your players' intelligence and overall the design of thr adventure itself...

Well done everybody!!!


Thanks very much - jolly decent of you!

I really can't recommend this adventure highly enough - it was very imaginative, great fun to play and is full of memorable moments.

Cheers


Rich
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
terraleon
PostPosted: Sun Jul 01, 2012 2:41 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Contributor

Joined: 16 Jan 2008
Posts: 2032
Location: upstate NY

Well done! I'm glad to see this so well received. I'm thrilled to know it was a such a good time. I think this is an adventure that transcends its system, and hopefully a conversion is coming soon.

-Ben.
_________________
progressio sine timore aut praejudica - Spectemur agendo
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic  Reply to topic Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3 Page 3 of 3

Jump to:  



You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


DAJ Glass (1.0.8) template by Dustin Baccetti
EQ graphic based off of a design from www.freeclipart.nu
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group