| Session 03: A Tome of Time | |
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| Real World Date | May 24th, 2014 |
| Game Date | March 16, Year 0 |
| Location | Creston Monastery |
| Enemies | Spirits from a Forgotten Time |
| NPCs | Adreyan, Rosemary Highcastle |
| previous Session 02: A Monastery's Mysteries |
next Session 04: A Forested Frolic |
The Party uncovers a long forgotten secret, and the impetus for a long journey.
Synopsis[]
The party explores further into the catacombs. Emilie and Isaac have peculiar reactions to some kind of force in the area. Echoes of an ancient battle play across the walls and a complicated Time Magic spell is discovered, along with a strange map. Another exit to the catacombs is found, and Emilie and Isaac find that Adreyan has been attacked.
Full Account[]
After fighting off the Undead, the party returned to the entrance of the catacombs, seeking healing for both Namfoodle and Tahlarien after being bitten by a ghoul and stricken by disease. However, when they got to the stairs, they realized the entrance had been sealed shut. After a few attempts to pry it open, the party reluctantly decided to head back down and explore the rest of the ruins, in hopes of finding another exit.
When they returned to the pile of corpses, the party found the ghoul had risen once again, even though its corpse was still dead on the floor. In a fright, Namfoodle quickly attacked it with a spell, only for it to disappear once it was struck. Wary of potential illusions, the party then continued on their way.
After walking down a narrow hall and avoiding a spike trap, the party came to a massive cavern. There was clearly some kind of powerful magic affecting this room. Both Namfoodle and Vic sensed arcane and divine energies. Torches were flickering on and off. Voices were laughing and screaming. There was a row of torture tables on the far wall, which the party investigated. Emilie examined a corpse, while Namfoodle picked up one of the flickering torches. He held it in his hand for a moment before it flickered and then returned to its spot on the wall.
Isaac spotted some sort of fresh corpse chained up to the adjacent wall, which he went to investigate with Emilie, Vic, and Kal in tow. (Tahlarien had grown too weak to do anything but move from the malaise.) When approached, the corpse suddenly reached out and struck Isaac with some invisible force. The creature dropped its chains and proceeded to attack the party. Isaac, Emilie, Vic, and Kal fought valiantly, while Namfoodle watched from a safe distance, trying to figure out what was going on. Eventually, the foe was dispatched, but only after it took a severe beating and exploded.
Weary and wary, the party then moved upstairs. They came to a circular room with a matching Heron sigil engraved on the ground, as in the basement of the monastery. Just like the other emblem, it had a secret latch in its mouth, which Namfoodle opened. The floor parted to reveal a small room with three corpses lying in it. Underneath the corpses was an ancient book of some kind. Isaac grabbed the book and opened it. Namfoodle identified it as some kind of ancient elven spellbook, with a single spell written inside that went hundreds of pages long. He then grew dizzy and had to close the book. Two pieces of parchment fell out, one with a decree by the gods stating all Time Magic was forbidden, and punishable by “Death and beyond”. The other was a map of Aetraterra marked with red circles.
Before the party could investigate further, an elven ghost suddenly rose from one of the corpses, warning us we were meddling in affairs we could not begin to comprehend. He was about to elaborate, when a second ghost rose from a second corpse (not the same corpse) and snapped at the first ghost for giving away information. The two began to fight. Isaac and Namfoodle took advantage of the distraction and began to steal books while inching closer to the exit. Eventually, a ghostly wail went out, panicking all but Emilie and Namfoodle. The panicked members fled up the stairs to the monastery. The room became engulfed in flames as time began to flicker in and out. Curious, Namfoodle raced downstairs to see what else was happening, followed by a reluctant Emilie. In the large cavern, they saw the shadows of two factions fighting each other. Namfoodle was about to explore further, when the magic faded. The two returned upstairs and joined the rest of the party, who had at last found a way out of the catacombs.
After some experimenting, the party discovered that Vic licking a specific torch holder on the wall would open a secret door back down to the catacombs. Unsure if we could trust the monks, with the door mysteriously sealed on us, we decided to send Emilie and Isaac to confront Adreyan, leaving the rest of the party behind as an ace in the hole should the monks prove treacherous. When Emilie and Isaac arrived, they found Adreyan unconscious on the seal, battered and bloody. Isaac quickly rushed to his side and healed him. Emilie freed his robes from being caught in the seal. When he awoke, Adreyan couldn't remember what attacked him, and apologized for failing to guard the seal.
Convinced that the monks were still trustworthy (or, at least, trustworthy enough), Isaac got the rest of the party, and Talharien got treated for her malaise. In the end, Adreyan gave Namfoodle the information he needed to continue his search for Rosemary, pointing him to a human monk named Brooke.
Notes[]
- Tahlarien was so affected by ghoul fever that her player was forced to nap the entire session.
- This wiki's name is taken from the decree the party found in this session!