Every campaign gets an Adventure Log, a blog for your adventures!

While the wiki is great for organizing your campaign world, it’s not the best way to chronicle your adventures. For that purpose, you need a blog!

The Adventure Log will allow you to chronologically order the happenings of your campaign. It serves as the record of what has passed. After each gaming session, come to the Adventure Log and write up what happened. In time, it will grow into a great story!

Best of all, each Adventure Log post is also a wiki page! You can link back and forth with your wiki, characters, and so forth as you wish.

One final tip: Before you jump in and try to write up the entire history for your campaign, take a deep breath. Rather than spending days writing and getting exhausted, I would suggest writing a quick “Story So Far” with only a summary. Then, get back to gaming! Grow your Adventure Log over time, rather than all at once.

The year – 1012. The Farun Civil War is ongoing, and the Kingdom of Farun is gripped in the conflict.

Sothe’s story begins in the city of Camillo, where he is a teenaged Human Rouge who works for the local Assassin’s Guild, led by Antnar Xunaste. The Guild is located underneath a trapsmith’s shop, which is owned and operated by Augustus Osgood, the local renowned trapsmith and inventor. He works with Sabnolu, a Drow Wizard who is second in command in the Guild. “Savvy,” as many call her for her brains, was almost a parent to young Sothe.

Sothe’s first mission was to venture into the Mardak Desert, discern the location of a local bandit camp, and slay the vicious leader of the bandits, Abarzim Ishet. After an encounter with two Janni, who were guarding a deposit of precious stones that Sothe looted. After this encounter, Sothe luckily stumbled upon a wayward shrine to Olidammara (his deity) and slept under the safe guard of a powerful Cleric (presumed to be a Contemplative) for the night.

In the morning, he headed to Ishet’s camp (a desert cave). Using his Ring of Invisibility, he easily dispatched the front guards, bypassed some traps, and made his way to fight Ishet. While he killed Ishet, Ishet’s guard, a vicious Orc Barbarian by the name of Vrurag Handscarer, escaped through a secret passageway into the desert. A sandstorm brewed, so Handscarer is presumed to be dead. Sothe looted Ishet’s base, kept Ishet’s head, and spent the night in the cave.

Upon his return to Camillo, Sothe was instructed by a local guard to empty his bag of all possessions. He displayed Ishet’s head to the guard, then turned invisible. Although initially taken aback, the guard rejoiced at the death of Ishet, who plagued the city for a while with his raids.

While taking the alleyway back to the Guild HQ, Sothe encountered two armored soldiers of Farun heading towards the same destination. He engaged them, and was immediately assisted by Savvy and Xunaste from the shadows. Savvy informed Sothe that these two men were Slayers of Farun, warriors trained by Farun’s military to specifically hunt down and kill illegal spellcasters. They were going after Savvy for “unlicensed practice of Arcane magic.” Only Farun’s agents or soldiers are allowed to use magic. “Oops,” Savvy remarked.

Sothe spent the rest of his evening in Camillo within the walls of the Assassin’s Guild, where he spoke with Vasil Rockarm, one of the Guild’s resident fighters, to upgrade his punching daggers (+1). After this, Savvy entered the room, telling Sothe to gather all of his possessions and be ready to leave as soon as possible. The two went to Antnar’s chambers in the Guild, where Antnar disclosed that he wanted Savvy and Sothe to relocate to Norbond, a Northern port city that is under the control of the Justice Blade, a group of Paladins that hails from Azure City to the East. This relocation was necessary because this would place Savvy out of the reach of the Farun Slayers and other necromancers and evil clerics that, according to Antnar, were recruited for the purpose of killing her.

Savvy teleported herself and Sothe to the Norbond branch of the Guild, which is located under a shop known as Marie’s Flowers. Sothe spent the night there, and Savvy assumed control of the branch as the highest-ranking member present. In the morning, Sothe and Savvy heard a mission request from Clint Norvald, a werebear from the village of Khalil in the Forsaken Woodlands. Clint informed the assassins of the tyranny of Orlando Chase, the strongest warrior and leader of the village of Serrem. Serrem is inhabited by werewolves and wererats, and their primary focus is the extermination of Khalil’s residents. Clint came to the assassins as a last resort – no other means of slaying Chase have worked. Chase has killed many of Khalil’s citizens – including near-defenseless children. His regime is truly worse than any other, and with him in power, Khalil stands no chance. Clint informed Sothe that Chase fights with a Spiked Chain, and that Chase is very intelligent and paranoid; his insight into combat, consequently, is unmatched within Serrem. Sothe accepted Clint’s mission, and Clint threatened to kill Sothe if Sothe ever disclosed their conversation, or if he failed and ran.

After Savvy briefed Sothe on the layout of Serrem, Sothe headed out to the Forsaken Woodlands on horseback at 8am. Four hours later, he arrived at noon. He guided his horse into the shade of the trees, where he was attacked by two undead, incorporeal Shadows. His horse ran off in fear, but Sothe was not intimidated. By channeling the power of his deity, Olidammara, into his sneak attacks, he crippled the shadows and moved on (after taking 2 STR damage). Using his ring of invisibility, he snuck into Serrem undetected. He disabled an Alarm-spell trap on the Stable gate to Chase’s manor, and after taking 1 CON damage from a poisoned dart, he bypassed the traps on the gate. He moved into the stable, unseen, but was instantly struck by an arrow that triggered upon opening the stable door. Sothe disabled this trap, and then proceeded to rig and sabotage the horses’ gates to fall apart when used. (He plans to cause a stampede when he escapes). Two guards heard Sothe’s tinkering and came on, only to be quietly slain by the invisible Sothe. Sothe proceeded to the manor’s kitchen, where he eavesdropped on a casual conversation between three off-duty guards. When one guard was called up to Chase’s office, Sothe followed them, learning that “Ashvale” was the code word which could disable most traps in the house.

When upstairs, Sothe saw that one guard went up another set of stairs to Chase’s office, while the other guard (equipped with a longsword) remained to guard the stairwell. In the same hallway, Sothe picked the lock to what appeared to be Chase’s master bedroom. Here, he found Chase’s mistress and used his invisibility to intimidate her. He promised to not kill her if she cooperated. She agreed, and she divulged the entire layout of Chase’s manor to him. She told him that Chase was in his upstairs office, but that stairwell had another password that she did not know. She said that “he couldn’t possibly love anything more than Ashvale, except for, well…maybe me.” When Sothe asked her name, she replied “Lidda.” Sothe then proceeded to tie her up by using strips of bed cloth that he cut, and he promised to release her after he was successful in killing Chase. He left off planning to kill the guard outside of the stairwell.

In the town of Khuldas, our three brave adventurers began their quest:
Morak – a Human Rogue, age 25, whose parents have recently died. Morak’s sister has recently settled down with a farmer, leaving Morak to make a living however he wishes – be it by illegal or legal methods. Morak was hired by the Johnson family to provide security during the ex-mayor Johnson’s funeral.

Etchapikka-aa – a Gnome Druid of about age 42. Etch, as we call her, is a Druid of the Elder Leaves. Her views on the war are neutral, for the most part. She was called to this funeral to pay respects for Johnson, as he was a man worthy of even the druid’s respect.

Arden – a Human Monk of age 18. Only known to a few, Arden’s father was a member of the Veiled Alliance Resistance Forces, and he recently died during the Farun Civil War. Seeking justice, Arden learned the ways of the monk so that he could be prepared for a difficult journey into a world of war – both around him, and within himself as he deals with his inner motives of revenge.

The players met at Johnson’s funeral. As the local priest, Reverend Andrew, blessed the body of Johnson, some hired hands carried his body down to the graveyard in Khuldas. After a few minutes, screams of pain were heard from the bearers of Johnson’s body. Andrew gathered the family into the church while our heroes decided to investigate.

The party soon discovered that the tomb was infested with spiders and scorpions. They fought past groups of creatures as they tried to reach the location of the late Johnson’s tomb. On the way, the party acquired several potions (cure light wounds, invisibility) and a Helmet of Detect Magic and Comprehend Languages. Next to this tomb, they found the queen of these spiders and slew her, thus ending the temporary infestation of the Johnson family tomb. After searching the immediate area, they found a tunnel that lead to a nest (presumably where the vermin came from). Moreover, they discovered a shovel or two, signifying that this tunnel was man-made.

In the tomb of the late Mayor Johnson, the party discovered a Tome of Understanding, a legendary book that is said to make its readers more wise. For some unknown reason, this book was left unopened, and the magic of wisdom still appears to flow through its pages.

After the discovery of the Tome of Understanding, our heroes went to visit the late Johnson’s wife. She quickly pointed out to them that the book that they found was of no value to her, as she could never open it. After repeated attempts, it became clear to our adventurers that the tome was magically sealed by a force unknown to them. The party took residence at the village Inn for the night.

Morak decided that it was time to gather some intelligence on Lord Magrath. He snuck out at night, past curfew, to head to the local rogue’s den. There, he met a contact by the name of Shade, a fellow Rogue. Shade knew contacts in the northern small city of Garilla who could possibly discern the nature of the book – all Morak would have to do is deliver the book.

After learning this, Morak ambushed a guard in a back alley to gain his uniform. With the uniform, he impersonated a guard (disguise) and infiltrated Magrath’s Manor. By eavesdropping on a conversation between Magrath and one of his head guards, he learned that the head guard failed to retrieve the Tome of Understanding, which allegedly contained secret Veiled Alliance plans for the war. Magrath then killed the head guard. Morak looted his dead body and found a document with Magrath’s signature and royal seal.

Morak then performed some further snooping, only to run into Magrath himself upstairs. Not recognizing Morak’s face, Magrath forced him out of his manor, telling him to guard elsewhere.

The next morning, our heroes went to the town square to find out that Magrath would systematically search for every book in the village and burn them until the tome was found. He added that he would start with the local Church of Pelor. Until then, no one would be allowed to leave the village.

(End of Session)

Morak then stole the druid’s helmet of detect magic and comprehend languages, in addition to the Tome of Understanding. He fled the village through the man-made passageway in Johnson’s tomb. Along the way, he encountered Reverend Andrew of the local Church, who instructed him to conceal a few holy scriptures in the tomb for “safe-keeping.” Morak obliged and hid them in Johnson’s tomb.

Morak emerged from the tunnel in a dormant spider’s nest in a cave. After exiting the cave, he found himself in a forest. After a few random encounters, he escaped to a forest clearing safely (thanks to dodging an owlbear due to a potion of invisibility).

Morak awoke and continued his journey, on foot, through the woods that linked Garilla and Khuldas.

Morak encountered a party of Satyrs in the forest. Due to the stolen helmet, he was able to communicate with them in “the language of the forest”, so they regarded him as an ally. Morak made a deal with them: the Satyrs would provide safe transportation through the woods and a +1 crossbow to Morak if he helped them ambush a party of Magrath’s men, who were disturbing the peace of the woods.

They set up an ambush, and were surprised to find that Lord Magrath himself accompanied his men, searching for “the book.” Eavesdropping revealed that he was looking for “the monk and the druid,” so he probably thought that Arden and Etch had the book and escaped. During the ambush, a Cleric of Boccob by the name of Alex and a Dwarven Wizard by the name of Kilim arrived to assist. Together, they killed Magrath and his men, but lost the life of one of the Satyrs. The wizard and the cleric revealed that they were from Garilla’s branch of the Veiled Alliance, and that they had recieved Shade’s message and arrived to ensure that Morak delivered the book safely. Using knowledge, the two new allies learned that the Tome of Understanding contained plans vital to the Veiled Alliance and that the Tome was sealed by the power of Boccob, who did not want the book to be misused. The Tome may only be opened by a Cleric of Boccob in an official temple of Boccob.

Morak then decided that he would side with the Veiled Alliance – after Kilim told him the wonders of Dwarven gold and how it funds the Alliance’s efforts via continuous compounding.

(End of Session)

This session began with Laralan, a Chaotic Good Wood Elf who was a Favored Soul of Ehlonna, the Goddess of Nature. He was stocking supplies in a small Druidic village that belonged to the Elder Leaves. Arden and Etch found their way to the village (as Etch had been there before) and they informed the village elder of the situation. The elder told Laralan that it would be Ehlonna’s will to find Morak and ensure that the Tome was opened, as a government controlled by the Veiled Alliance would be friends of nature, like in the Magocracy. Eager for adventure, Laralan obliged.

Arden described Morak’s appearance to Laralan. He told Laralan that when he found Morak to tell him that he “wants his shit back.” Arden and Etch told Laralan that they would be departing to Ar’ginth, as they had a “score to settle” there.

Laralan proceeded through the woods and ran into Morak and Alex, who were accompanied by two Satyrs. After fending off some dire wolves, Laralan proved invaluable to the party and they welcomed him with open arms – the enemy of my enemy is my friend, they reasoned. Laralan also earned Alex’s trust when Laralan healed Alex, who fell in battle.

Also, to note, Alex’s gender can not be discerned.

By using Forgery, Morak used Magrath’s signature to fake a license for their Dwarven wizard ally. They went through the gates of Garilla safely, but not after gathering suspicion from the town’s notorious Slayer, Duran Shadowblade.

According to the Dwarf, the Slayers have some “dark magic” about them. Their weapons deal more damage to spellcasters, and they can sense magic at will and “merge with the darkness temporarily.” The town is ruled by the military governor, Maxwell Lockman, who was recently adopted into the noble family. It is rumored that Lockman is a powerful fighter, and perhaps a powerful Slayer himself.

The dwarf left the party to return to his cover job as a Banker at the local Bank. Alex brought Laralan and Morak to the secret Veiled Alliance HQ – it’s where the “banknotes” are kept, which is why magical wards are approved by the monarchs there. There, they met a few mages:

• Nathan, the head of this branch.
• Lyra, a charismatic sorceress.
• Bob, a diviner who likes to know the facts.

They filled Nathan in on all of the previous events. They also showed him the Tome, and left it for safe-keeping at the HQ. The party then began to go about their business and rest before curfew was enacted at 11PM.

• Alex straightened out her room at the HQ, had some dinner in the kitchen, and browsed for some books in the HQ’s library. She met with Nathan, who told her that undead have been seen among the ranks of Farun’s army. Alex suspects that Warlocks could be behind this new development.
• Laralan went to Ben’s Bows, a local archery shop, and bought some arrows of shock. He also made a deal with Ben, the store owner, to make some cloaks out of hide in 2 days (i.e. before they leave). He then retired to the HQ.
• Morak went to the Laughing Fiend, the local inn for shady characters. On the way, he met his friend, a fisherman named Argus. He asked Argus how things were going in the West, and Argus told him about some shaky developments and movements of the army – they seem to be trying to retake Camillo. There he met Shade again, who questioned him concerning the success of his mission. Morak asked Shade about the dangers of the Mountain Pass and the seas surrounding Farun. Shade told him that the Pass was outside of anyone’s control – it was home to Demons and eldritch creatures. The only “safe” part would be Thenaun, a Dwarven City tucked in the mountains. Morak took a room in the shady Inn.

The next morning, Morak awoke to find a note slipped under his door. The note told him that Shade had kidnapped Argus, and demanded that Morak come alone to the Abandoned Warehouse at midnight with the Tome of Understanding, as he “wouldn’t want anything to happen to Argus.” Morak told Nathan and his allies at the Veiled Alliance HQ about the note. The wizards decided to cast invisibility spells on Laralan and Alex, while Alex cast silence upon them. This way, his party members could join him, undetected.

Bob spent much time discerning the layout of the warehouse. In the meantime, Morak forged licenses for Nathan, Lyra, and Bob. The plan was this – Alex, Laralan, and Morak would deal with Shade, while the other 3 wizards would free Argus. When Morak went to the warehouse and showed Shade the book and said a code phrase, Alex and Laralan began attacking Shade and 3 rogues he had with him.

Shade fought with a whip and a dagger, and his plan of attack involved tripping his opponent and then attacking them while they were defenseless. Morak kept Shade occupied while Alex smacked Shade’s henchmen across the face with critical quarterstaff blows. Meanwhile, Laralan got on top of a tall crate and shot several of Shade’s men. Shade then tripped Morak and caused him to start bleeding out. Shade then moved towards Laralan, who shot at him. Shade tripped Laralan off the crate, but Laralan managed to keep his balance on the floor due to a Reflex save. Laralan used Updraft to jet into the air and shoot at Shade. Shade made a break for the door after grabbing the tome, but Alex rushed to block his path. With well-placed arrows and a final quarterstaff blow to the head, Shade became disabled (0 HP).

Laralan saved one of Shade’s henchmen from death, due to his beliefs in natural life and redemption. The mages saved Argus, who was a bit beaten up, but alive. Laralan and Alex healed Morak, who then went to talk to Shade.
“Are you going to kill me, Morak?” Shade said. “Or are you going to send me to Farun’s authorities, while I know everything about the Tome and your plans?” He chuckled, blood spewing from his mouth. “I always have one last card up my sleeve.”
Morak decided that he wouldn’t kill Shade – he asked Nathan to hold him magically in the Veiled Alliance HQ. They couldn’t risk him running off to Farun with that information. Before Shade was dragged off, he turned to Morak and said, “Well-played.”

Finally, Duran Shadowblade arrived at the scene, noting that a lot of magical activity was going on. Lyra, being the charismatic one, showed Duran their fake IDs and said that they were there to arrest these criminals. Duran was pleased, but he noted that Morak, Alex, and Laralan were in a suspicious situation. Lyra left with him and his Slayers, mentioning something about a “good night out.”

(End of Session).

Part 1:

The party met up the next morning at the Veiled Alliance HQ. Laralan spent time earlier that night trying to get a room at the Laughing Fiend Inn, but he decided to return to the HQ after encountering Antnar Xunaste and two other humans, who were revealed by the locals to be notorious assassins plotting the death of the alleged Warlock, James O’mally.

Morak asked Nathan many questions about the Tome of Understanding, and the possible locations of other Tomes nearby. Nathan doubted the existence of other Tomes anywhere near Garilla, but he said that it might be worth it for the party to visit the White Tomb, the resting place of Lord Varr and other local Monarchs of Farun. Many of them buried their treasure with them, but Nathan also said that a complete family tree of Farun’s monarchy would be of high value to the Veiled Alliance – they will need to find a sympathetic successor to rule the Kingdom once the corrupt Monarchs are overthrown.

Morak, Alex, Laralan, and Argus decided the next morning that they would head down the Dewton River to reach the Temple of Boccob in the Mardak Desert. On the way, they would take a pit stop at the White Tomb and discover anything that was in store for them there.

Laralan went back to Ben at Ben’s Bows and received his two cloaks, one of which he gave to Morak upon discovering that Morak was wanted for the potential role in the murder of Lord Magrath of Khuldas. After buying equipment from Superior Steel (and dealing with a very racist store dealer who didn’t like Larlan), Alex noticed that the party was being casually followed by Duran Shadowblade, the slayer. Then Alex and the party ducked into an alleyway as Alex received a Sending from Nathan, saying that the sorceress Lyra had not returned to base since she went out to “distract” Duran.

The party met up with a mage from the Veiled Alliance, who Nathan sent to accompany the party. They then devised a plan to get them through the Port Authority to Argus’s ship:

• Laralan paid a commoner to frantically run towards the Authority’s wall to attract the attention of 2 guards. He then cast Darkness on them to cause confusion.
• Alex cast Silence on a side door and the area inside it.
• Morak, using a sap, knocked out the guard in front of the door.
• The party burst inside and silently slew the 2 guards on the other side. They then found an exit to the port.

From there, they burst out running onto Argus’s ship. Argus rallied the men to get the ship ready, but a pack of five guards, led by Duran Shadowblade, came to try and stop them. Argus damaged the wooden gangplank connecting the ship to the dock, so when two guards came on it, it fell. Alex used Hold Person on Duran to stop him in his tracks. Argus, Morak, Laralan, and the mage took shots at the other guards (and eventually eliminated them in the next few rounds). Duran withstood most of the party’s initial assault by assuming some sort of incorporeal, wraith-like form. Once he broke free of Alex’s spell, he tried to climb up the side of the ship. The mage hit him with Magic Missile, and Alex cursed Duran with Blindness. Duran then fell of the side onto the dock. The mage caused him to bleed with a final Acid Splash, and then the boat started to sail away.

Part 2 -
The party made their way down the Dewton River in Argus’s ship. The mage revealed himself to be an elven sorcerer named Ost.

After healing up, Morak talked to the crew to try and test their loyalties. None of the crewmen were immediate red flags, but some of the younger ones seemed more likely to betray their cause to the Monarchy with enough pressure.

As the party sailed towards the White Tomb, they saw an elf, sitting on a floating log in the river, playing a piccolo. Through the power of music, the elf convinced the party that they should rescue him, so they brought him aboard the ship. The elven bard revealed that he grew up unaware of his true name, and he was raised among the royal courts of Galantoris, the Capital of Farun. The bard was ordered to be killed by King Valerian Sarilob once it was discovered that the bard was a mage who could (and probably did) influence the King during his performances. The bard tumbled off the walls of the capitol to escape, so he wound up in the Dewton River, presumed to be dead.

The bard contributed his knowledge to the party concerning the White Tomb. He knew that it was the location of a few fabled magic items. He also knew that any thieves who went poking around there wound up dead one way or another.

The next morning, the ship arrived at the Tomb. They were presented with the following riddle:
“Light and heat I bring to the sky/One moment I’m there, but then I’m gone/What am I?
The answer was lightning. The Tomb opened, and the party proceeded down a hallway. Morak sprung a poisoned pit trap, but Alex fixed him up with a Lesser Restoration spell.

The party proceeded into the main tomb chamber, where Ost summoned a baboon to spring the door’s acid trap. However, in springing the trap, they activated the tomb’s defenses – a Flesh Golem and two Animated Tables. Ost hit the Golem with a ray of frost (or scorching ray?) to slow the Golem; he then blasted the tables with spells and shot his bow at the Golem. Alex dealt damage to the Golem with a +2 quarterstaff after using Bless on the party. The bard inspired courage in his allies, and then supported everyone with crossbow fire. Morak tumbled around the Golem and fought the tables with a rapier in one hand, a torch in the other (to set the tables on fire). Laralan went into the chamber and used Updraft, and then proceeded to slay targets with arrows from above. After a long fight, the party slew the constructs and looted the tomb.

The party found about 15,000GP (approximately), in addition to a Scroll of Summon Monster IV and a deck of cards that was identified as the fabled Deck of Illusions by the bard. The elves found a secret door which contained the extended family tree of the Royal family.

Our heroes proceeded down the Dewton River, leaving the White Tomb. After studying the extended family tree, they noted two oddities in the royal family:

• Charles Lane, as a teenager, ran away from home and is rumored to have descendants.
• Lady Elizabeth Varr, husband to the deceased Lord Varr, has not been seen since her husband’s death.

The party sailed towards the crossing of the Dewton River and a northern tributary, often called the River Nord. The bard and Laralan spotted a Royal ship in the distance, so the party and Argus all hid in storage compartments below their ship’s deck. Charles, Argus’s second-in-command, took control of the ship.

A group of 3 soldiers, led by a Cleric of Hextor by the name of Jane Kyssinder boarded the ship and informed Charles that they would be searching the ship for “illegalities.” Charles saw three cloaked figures on the Royal ship, gathering to cast some form of a dark summoning spell. When Charles questioned Jane, she said that he had “seen too much,” and she took her heavy flail and nearly killed him. This prompted the crew to start engaging the soldiers.

The party exited their hiding places and tried to bait Kyssinder and the guards down the trapdoor, where they could overpower the enemies as they came through a narrow choke point. Kyssinder did not fall for the ruse, as she reasoned that she would draw the party out by threatening and/or killing their allies on deck.

The fight was long. Alex spent most of it buffing the party with spells like Bless and Shield of Faith and healing Charles and other battered crew members.

In an attempt to disrupt the ritual of the figures on the other boat, Laralan cast Darkness, but to no avail – the figures used a means called Devil’s Sight to see through the darkness. Laralan used updraft to soar into the air above deck, and pelt Jane with arrows.

The bard opened by inspiring courage in his allies, and then he moved on deck, where he used his Deck of Illusions. He drew the King of Spades, which created an illusion of 3 Clerics of Ehlonna. Jane did not fall for it, but everyone else did. The illusions later proved useful, as they distracted the figures on the other boat. He then took multiple shots with his crossbow, damaging Kyssinder’s henchmen all around.

Ost shot multiple spells at Kyssinder throughout the fight, attempting to neutralize her. He tried to tumble past her to cast an offensive spell, but she wound up hitting him with her flail – it was revealed that it was a flail of frost. He damaged her with scorching rays and acid splashes, and then he tried to blind her with Glitterdust, but she resisted. He also summoned a celesial eagle to help dispatch the guards.

When Argus charged above deck to help his crew, Morak soon followed. Morak tumbled around Jane and, through a variety of flanks and sneak attacks, dispatched her guards with ease. He and Argus then moved to attack Jane.

The party spellcasters soon realized that the other 3 figures on the boat were Warlocks, and that they were attempting to summon a moderately powerful Devil to aid them. Ost sent his familiar, a raven, to grab this crystal that appeared to be the focus of the summoning. After making some saves, the raven grabbed the crystal and flew away, disrupting the summoning. The raven flew the crystal to Laralan, who cast Shatter to destroy it.

When Jane was injured, she immediately expended a great amount of reserve energy to heal herself. She then moved to Argus, disabling him with an Inflict Serious Wounds spell (bringing him to 0 HP). After a few more rounds of taking hits from Morak, Laralan, and Ost, Jane finally fell to the attack of Ost’s summoned eagle. She was not dead, but bleeding out onto the deck.

The head warlock was revealed to be James O’mally, who Laralan recalled to be the target of Antnar Xunaste and the Assassins in Garilla. O’mally used an invocation to take to the air, and he blasted Laralan with an Eldritch Chain, hitting both Laralan and Alex. The other two Warlocks dispatched the rest of the bard’s fake clerics – after they disappeared, they realized that they were just illusions.

Once Jane was down, the party and the crew used their ranged weapons to shoot down the two weaker warlocks. James O’mally flew away, knowing that the battle was lost.

Laralan stabilized and restrained Jane, so that the party could question her later.
The party earned 825 xp for the fight. (plus more once the questioning is complete)

(End of Session)

Our heroes swiftly arrived at the port of Ar’ginth along the banks of the Dewton River in Argus’s boat. Another boat, hoisting the flag of the Veiled Alliance, left the port and intercepted Argus’s vessel. The party heard the amplified voice of General Aramil, the current leader of the Alliance, who insisted that the party identify themselves.

Alex and Ost gave Aramil the secret Veiled Alliance hand gesture, and Aramil dimension doored aboard Argus’s ship to speak with the party. In short, the party explained the situation, introduced Lady Varr to Aramil, and informed Aramil of King Valerian’s approaching army. Argus docked the ship in the port as the party went ashore.

Morak did not dispute Aramil’s or the Veiled Alliance’s cause, but he argued that the most important thing for the party to do at this moment was continue their mission and bring the book to the Temple of Boccob in the Mardak Desert. Some of the others, such as Bardy (the temporary name for our friendly Bard) and Ost, wished to remain with the army as they attempted to fight off Farun’s forces. The dispute was soon settled by Argus, who revealed that they would be stuck for the duration of the battle, as he had planned from the get-go to stock up on supplies here.

Aramil was grateful for the assistance of our heroes. While Aramil is a powerful mage, it would have been foolish of him to assume that he could win the fight without the aid of others. He said that Valerian’s army was not coming to attack the city – the army was coming to crush the rebels. If the Veiled Alliance had no forces in the area, their influence would diminish and the remaining neutral citizens would fall back under Farun’s control. This gave the Alliance the advantage of choosing their battlefield – they could defend Ar’ginth, defend the port, take the battle to the plains, or even attempt an attack on Martyr’s Rest, where the enemy army was currently camped.

After much strategic debate, it was decided that it would be most advantageous to defend the port. The Alliance’s army was practically split in half – some forces were fighting near Camillo under the command of William Jerving (a Paladin) and Xel’yn Zeron (another Wizard) and were too far away to assist in time. Aramil took about half of their forces and guarded the southern flank of the port gate, concealing himself in the process (a dead leader is not a good leader). He appointed Bardy as the quasi-official “commander” of the Eastern flank’s forces, as he showed good leadership skills.

The party began to organize their forces. Laralan suggested that the Alliance’s archers be mounted on the cliffs outside of the port’s gates, so that they could fire upon troops in the plains below. While this was a good idea, Morak pointed out that any Alliance forces on the plains would be devastated by Farun’s cavalry. To counter the cavalry, Alex pointed out that horses hate mud and will often, unless well-trained, refuse to go through it. At the party’s suggestion, Aramil and some mages used scrolls of Transmute Earth to Mud to cover several parts of the plains in mud to counter the cavalry. Argus and three other Alliance captains readied their ships to use cannons to fire on enemy troops from the banks of the river. Ost and his new friend, a barbarian, loaded up a ballista on the port gate. Laralan joined a group of archers, helping their aim. Alex joined a group of Alliance mages. Bardy joined a group of foot soldiers, with his songs boosting their spirits in the face of grim odds. Morak joined a group of scouts, ready to ambush enemy soldiers.

The battle was a huge success for the Alliance. The foot soldiers who approached the port were decimated by fire from both the archers and the boats on the River. The enemy side lacked a large amount of magic, as the Warlocks did not arrive to Martyr’s Rest on time thanks to our heroes. The cavalry and the Slayers (on horseback) attempted to charge around the cliffs and central plain to hit the archers from a vulnerable side, while a group of evil Clerics began raising undead from the slain bodies to distract the archers. They were slowed significantly by the random patches of mud in the ground. The scouts ambushed the Clerics after Argus’s cannons nearly blew them to pieces from a distance. The majority of the Clerics (of Hextor) were dispatched before they could heal up, but their leader – the mysterious Serah Kyssinder, older sister of Jane Kyssinder, escaped unscathed.

Those few cavalry units and Slayers who bypassed the mud did slay a lot of archers, but they did not slay Laralan, who used his handy Updraft spell to escape over the cliff and join another unit of Alliance forces. The mages took apart the Slayers and cavalry from a safe distance, with aid from Ost’s ballista. At the end of the day, only one enemy unit of cavalry escaped unscathed from the Eastern flank.

The other side of the battle went moderately well. At first, the cavalry were destroying the alliance’s foot soldiers, which made room for a group of Farun’s soldiers to near the gate with a battering ram. The archers were too preoccupied shooting the enemy cavalry and foot soldiers, so the mages tried to dispatch the battering ram. This prompted the mounted Slayers to start attacking the mages – which prompted Aramil to enter the battlefield. The Slayers immediately went to attack him. Aramil summoned an Earth Monolith (a giant earth elemental) and teleported back to a safe distance as it demolished the battering ram and the Slayers. With the ram destroyed and the mages going temporarily unchecked, half of the army that attacked the Southern flank was destroyed; the rest retreated back to Martyr’s Rest.

The party regrouped with Aramil, who said that the Alliance had survived for another day. Aramil was sure that Valerian would not immediately retreat, but he was also certain that because of the excellent defense of the Eastern flank, they would not be able to directly engage the Alliance’s army for a good amount of time.

The party agreed to stock up on supplies at Ar’ginth’s port and then begin heading to the Temple of Boccob in the Mardak Desert.