Session 5 - Wren o' The Wisps
General Summary
The party gathered around the unconscious paladin and attempted to wake him, having to apply some light force to finally bring him around. When they did, he began frantically writing in his journal as his gauntlet began to flash a mildly alarming shade of red. Del steps away to find the paladin’s horse, with Tatil as an escort, and lead it back to town, promising to direct Maxima and Bryn to join the group while he settles the horse. The paladin introduces himself as Wren Traci , then suddenly as he was revealed by the pixies he was gone – in his place was a female tiefling, wearing the same armour. This was his twin sister, also named Wren for short, and she explained that she’d been assigned to save a lost woman north of the party. During this, Bryn emerged from the forest with his new dragon friend, causing a little confusion but no great problem. He also relays that Maxima is as yet still asleep from their rather heavy night.
The party resolved to travel north to assist the paladin, with a little explanation that they are a pair of tiefling siblings who have a soul each, but only one body. Every four days they switch places, and they obsessively keep journals to keep one another updated. During the travel on foot, Fen made more explicit his need for help at his grove – a large portal has appeared in the sky, and undead emerge from it to threaten the sanctity of his valley. A number of the party express support in his cause. Bryn sends his new familiar back toward the town with a message saying they were heading north and instruction to seek out Maxima.
As the group travel northward, the forest becomes more swamp-like and difficult to traverse, and the group begin noticing wooden figures in the trees, suspended from branches. People-sized figures, crudely put together with wood and string. Marty begins a ritual to detect magic, and Bryn hears a rustling in the trees… as Marty realizes that there is necrotic energy radiating from them, and they are moving of their own accord. The wooden figures spring to attack!
With the combined efforts of the group and Wren, they are dispatched with relatively little trouble, though with a little burning of resources on the part of the party’s spellcasters. Despite this, they decide to press on with caution, under the cover of Peiskos’ Pass Without A Trace spell, they continue northward, safely dispatching the dormant, yet-untriggered wooden homunculi without activating them.
They begin to crest a slow rise bringing them out of the swampy area, and Wren calls the group to a halt. They watch as a large, shambling mound of earth crosses their path, seemingly on some sort of patrol. Bryn quietly remarks it reminds him of the earth-controlling mage who had terrorized Alt Dresediel. After a moment to make sure it had moved past, the group discuss how best to continue to track down Wren’s quarry. Peiskos takes a moment to speak to some local birds, trading them goodberries for information. The birds inform him that there are three humans in a cave a little way off to the northeast. Bryn expresses regret that his new dragon friend isn’t present, at which point Niranen informs him that he should be able to summon the pseudodragon easily enough. To Bryn’s delight (and Gwyl’s slight impatience at it not having happened sooner) they are soon reunited with nothing more than a click of the fingers., Bryn’s message delivered.
The group press towards the cave, and pause a little ways off while Bryn sends Gwyl stealthily into the cavern, able to see through the dragon’s eyes and report to the group. Within the cavern are three dead humans, and strange markings on the wall. It seems safe, though, and so the group advance. Inside, the group find the three bodies, none of which are the woman that Wren is seeking, and Marty immediately begins deciphering the arcane sigils on the wall. The cave appears to be part of some sort of magical barrier that is creating a kind of cancelling signal for something vast and powerful within the forest. While Marty conscripts Bryn for assistance in her studies, Tris looks deeper into the cavern and discovers some gold, some healing potions, as well as a couple of as-yet unidentified phials and a couple of spell scrolls. Niranen examines the bodies, finding a couple of gold between them and a pair of ritualistic skull masks.
At a loss as to where to proceed next, Bryn sends Gwyl into the sky to get a bird’s eye view of the area, where he reports a shambling mound coming their way, accompanied by some sort of glow. The group resolve to hide in the tree-lines to observe the approaching creatures before deciding on the next move.
The approaching group is indeed a shambling mound, but this one is accompanied by a glowing will o’ wisp bobbing along beside it. Niranen discerns it’s undead energies and is moved to immediately attack!
As battle is joined, Gwyl senses another will o’ wisp nearby, hidden from sight, and Bryn relates this to the party. As battle is joined, Peiskos blankets the mound and the two wisps in faerie fire, revealing the position of the invisible one.
The fight is hard, and the revelation that the wisps can heal the mound through lightning strikes causes some worry, but eventually the two wisps are dispatched, and the mound begins to retreat. In it’s movement, it reveals a human leg sticking out of it’s back. Niranen and Wren manage to wrench the body free before the mound is finally brought down, and the group find the woman that Wren was looking for… sadly dead.
With time dragging on, the group take the body of the woman and hasten back to town, not wanting to stay in the forest in their exhausted state at dark. They return to town as night comes on, and spend the night at a tavern after linking up with their absent party members.
