Straits of Irithai
Lanterns burn late into the night at the markets as pirates and merchants trade under the silent gaze of shrines, their prayers swallowed by the wind. People come to the Straits chasing fortunes, freedom, answers. The Straits make certain they pay. Its beauty is undeniable; moonlight fractured on black water, firefly lanterns flickering through the mangroves. But beauty hides a blade’s edge, and the Straits cut deep. Here, the sea remembers every soul it touches, collecting those that is desires most.
S2E10: "The Sea Has Begun to Dream"
Watcher:Myr
Bigwater go quiet when sun fall. Myr try listen to it. Much happen. Myr make record for all Steelhawks, still not good at use words. Steelhawks leave Vel’Crag's Moor, ride water-path with Captain Kelthorn, on ship Crune of Morning. Message calls for us, come to new place for help. But something bad come before we get there.
S2E9: "The Sea Has Begun to Dream"
Watcher:Lavendara "Minty"
1. Lvl 6 Warlock/ Bard | Karai
2. Lvl 7 Cleric/Druid | Graham Puh
3. Lvl 6 Druid | El'Drain Elkhart
4. Lvl 5 Monk/ Barbarian | Ashley
5. Lvl 6 Monk | Mea’nie
6. Lvl 7 Bard/ Monk | Lavendara "Minty"
“Finish any business you have here, and leave- as soon as possible.”
Not exactly a warm send-off, huh?
But that’s how this story starts: wet, weird, and full of questions.
We weren't quite sure what business we should prioritize upmost before fleeing to the capital, but, eventually we decided to head for the Margroves to address that, but... one problem. We didn't know how to get there. We had been lead there before by Velmarrow, but, No guides this time, just Caelrin. my bodyguard, who whipped out his cartographer’s tools and plotted a course like he was the sea..
The deeper we sailed, the stranger it got. We found ourselves in a cavern flooded with the weight of time—echoes of relics, whispers in the stone. And standing there, poised and waiting, was her.
We don’t know her name. We only know her eyes. Vampire eyes.
“Steelhawks,” she said, “we have much to discuss.”
She told us the Vow Mother- that haunted bride we’d met before- was reborn.
No longer spirit, no longer at peace. She’s back, but broken. Shattered by everything she’s seen, endured, remembered.
And that wasn’t even the worst part.
The Mist. That swirling, eerie semi-conscious force we sealed away with so much effort?
It didn’t die.
It moved.
“You sealed away a thinking being,” she said, “into another timeline.”
Another timeline. Another world. One where the Mist now festers. One where… maybe we never made it. Maybe they didn’t win.
Suddenly things clicked. Velmarrow- our old enby shopkeep-gone. Replaced by Pela. Still magical, still helpful, but different. A rewrite. A ripple. A shift.
And I couldn’t stop thinking: if the world’s rewriting them… what else is being overwritten?
Another me. Another Caelrin. Another Straits of Irithai.
Are they okay? Are they even alive?
I tried to voice it. Nobody else really wanted to dive into that emotional ocean. Too much. Too soon. But I felt it. Like something in my bones had been… rewritten.
Caelrin. quiet, calculating Caelrin- spoke next. Mist curled around his boots like ghost fingers. He asked her, plain and soft:
“The mist still lingers on me… what does that mean?”
And she answered, soft as death.
“I fear the goddesses and this world have greater plans for you, Caelrin Seavale.”
Then, she was gone....
But first? Shopping. Obviously.
We hit the magic shop- just in time to see the streets sink into the sea. We grabbed gear. Got what we could. I even spotted a rather delicious poster of a very shirtless Mapach. Priorities!
The plan was to reach Velthamar. But fate had other plans.
Us? We fought like hell.
I went down. So did Caelrin. So did… basically all of us.
Everyone hit the deck at some point, bleeding or worse.
Somehow—we won.
The crew, finally realizing who they’d hired, rewarded us with coin and gear. The ship drifted back to calm waters. But my mind?
Stormy.
Because here’s the truth, darling:
We sealed away something intelligent. We unstitched a thread that held this world together. And I know the sea isn’t done dreaming.
S2E8: "Stillness, Briefly"
Watcher:Myr
1. Lvl 7 Bard Monk | Lavendara "Minty"
2. Lvl 5 Druid | Myr
3. Lvl 5 Rouge Ranger | Basura-LongFang
4. Lvl 7 Fighter Rouge | Caelrin Seavale
5. Lvl 5 Monk Barbarian | Ashley
6. Lvl 6 Warbard | Karai
Myr write now what happen. Myr not good at use words, but will try. This record for Steelhawk book, for remember, for next ones who fight.
We sleep some days at inn. Dream bad, not sleep. Many dreams, wet and cold. Some drink smelly stuff to fight dreams. Ashley and Basura drink and flirt. Even with chair. Even with bar.
Then, paper come. Notes. Mayor want talk. Hospital say vulpin-woman awake. Another note about Margraves, where we first talk to goddesses. Too much.
We eat morning food at bar. Grackle still nice, always nice, make goodgood food. Group talk. Vote—go see mayor first. Her office close.
She say “My memories are changing. Things that were concrete are no longer.” World bending. Like tree in storm. Not break yet.
We walk to Margraves. Town feel wrong, with no mist anymore. Streets twist, but no move. Myr feet not know this place, Myr heart want go home, want green. Caelrin feel sky with Druid magics, say clouds not natural. Magic storm, be alert.
Myr not understand. Why child love mist? Mist make people vanish or turn bad?
Caelrin give Lella blue flower, more goodgood Druid magics. Lizard boy ride Basura’s hyena. Good boy. Warforged boy not scared of Myr! Myr show ‘magic stick’, he clap, Myr smile big for him. Karai give them music disk-thing. Miu music, from Vel Marrow. Kids run, laugh, happy. Myr glad but heart still heavy.
What we give, what we take?
Then—earth shake. Big. Like thunder below bone. All sky break open. Clouds fall. Water come. From ocean, from sewer, from air. No people around. Only water, up to waist. Steelhawks all alone.
Then monsters come. Four: big-ugly, fish-skin, bone-face, captain. Captain ugly get stuck in net. Myr zap with lightning magic. Caelrin call for animal friends. Basura fight hard. Giant hyena get hurt, then die. Myr sad for hyena, but no time for cry. Karai and Ashley and Minty fight hard. All are team, work together.
More uglies come. They push us in water, bash us, drown us. Many of us fall. We help each other, heal and fight more. No one give up.
They say, “Surrender now and we shall let you live another day.”
We say, “We are Steelhawks. We do not bend. We do not break.”
Myr trapped. Can’t move. Magic hold still like ice. Longlongtime. Too long. But Myr wait, breathe. Then finally Myr free, finally Myr fight again.
“The elemental lords will show you their wrath is ceaseless. The elemental lords will make you all forget. The mist was the least of your problems.” Then last ugly die. Good. No more uglies.
Myr not know what that ugly words mean. But it feel big. Bigger than Salt Chapel. Bigger than dream.
Now we breathe. We hurt. But we still here.
Myr think the storm not done. But we still fight. -Stillness, briefly. Soon come new roar again.
But Steelhawks will stand!
End of Report.
From Myr. From root and stone and wind. From heart that still beat.
S2E7: "Seal and Silence"
Watcher:Caelrin Seavale
1. Lvl 7 Rogue/ Wizard | Halfling with no name
2. Lvl 7 Fighter/ Rogue | Caelrin Seavale
3. Lvl 7 Bard/ Monk | Lavendara “Minty”
4. Lvl 4 Paladin | Teshi
5. Lvl 5 Warlock/ Bard | Karai
6. Lvl 5 Fighter/ Monk | Aleki the Swift
7. Lvl 7 Warlock | Nanna Da Hutt
Previously:
With the Mistbound defeated, we pressed on across the salt flats towards the distant sounds of tolling bells.
Nana’s familiar, Quazi, disappears, checks the windows, all seemed well at the time.
Nana retreated into her Gene’s vessel on Quazi’s hand and began speaking through our Halfling friend.
We approached the door of the chapel and assessed the looming beast before us. Another door, another formidable wooden foe. Aleki backed up to the water’s edge and charged the door shoulder first. Just before he reached the entrance, two blasts of arcane energy erupted from our Halfling friend’s hands and blasted the door wide open. One foe downed.
As our party took in the surroundings of this salt riddled chapel the door that we bravely fought open, slammed shut behind us and clicked – locking us in. Before we could investigate a being appeared to us all and greets herself.
Our party slowly and timidly acknowledged the woman one at a time, all in agreement. And the Vowmother continued.
”The mist – it whispers. I do not entertain it’s nonsense, but it’s call is impossible to ignore. Well… if you all insist on trying to stop it once more, there’s much to be done, much to be told, much to be lost. Are you all willing to give?”
Karai sighed deeply and spoke: ”HERE WE GO AGAIN! Look! We’ve been doin a whole lot of givin and there hasn’t been any kind of – receiving on our end and I’m kinda sick of it!”
The Vowmother replies: ”You mistake this venture as a scheme. I live and breathe this chapel. A devout keeper of the goddess’ temple to contain what has gone rampant. I do apologize that you feel you have lost too much but I too have given everything I have for this cause. – If you wish to banish the mist for good you must first prove yourselves through trial. The first, a puzzle. If you truly possess the knowledge for such a feat, you will prevail.”
I stared at the Vowmother, took in the surroundings and knew… I knew… absolutely nothing. A snowball had a better chance surviving the hells than I did in solving that riddle. Thankfully my party members were much more insightful than I was.
We started with the mural: The three goddesses on the wall had a faint glowing outline around the objects in their hands. With my “moral support” and the combined efforts of our party we finally caught a break. Teshi thumbed through the religious knowledge in his mind and lead us on the right path to solving the first half. He pointed out that the objects in the goddesses’ hands were misaligned but the exact order was still a mystery to us.
Lurelight (Tiamat) to the left Held a bell, in the middle the Drowned Mother (Raven Queen) Wore a heart on her collar and held a vase in her hands , and on the right was the Spinner Below (Malora) who appeared to be holding a bowl of salt.
Minty’s face curled in thought as she dug deep down, determined to solve this puzzle.
”I GOT IT! Heart is where the sea is and she loves the sea so it should stay there. Just swap the salt and the bell thingy and that should do it. Unless of course anyone has any brighter ideas?”
Without hesitation, our Halfling friends deftly spins the objects in the hands of the goddesses on the left and the right, revealing: Lurelight (Tiamat) to the left Holding a bowl of Salt, in the middle the Drowned Mother (Raven Queen) Wore a heart on her collar and held a vase in her hands, and on the right was the Spinner Below (Malora) Holding a Bell.
The Vowmother turned to our ever confident party and nodded towards the bell. ”Toll the bell to reveal your answers.”
Karai stepped in front of Minty and hoisted the bell above her head and gave it a shake – nothing. No sound, no ring only the air which grew cold and stale. The Vowmother spoke again: ”One, Failure!”
Mist began seeping in through the flagstones of the room and threatened to engulf us entirely. Karai inspected the bell further, perplexed by the absence of sound. ”Yeahp! It has a ringer alright. So why the hell didn’t it make a noise!? IS THIS SOME KINDA PRANK!!?”
As the mist continued to flow, it covered the floor like a dense carpet. We then began rethinking the meanings behind each figure and the placement of the objects. Our Halfling friend spoke up. ”Perhaps we should move the heart to the right and place the bell in the middle? Do we all agree?” I and everyone else nodded.
Lurelight (Tiamat) to the left Holding a bowl of Salt, in the middle the Drowned Mother (Raven Queen) Holding a Bell., and on the right was the Spinner Below (Malora) Wore a heart on her collar Lurelight (Tiamat) to the left Holding a bowl of Salt, in the middle the Drowned Mother (Raven Queen) Holding a Bell., and on the right was the Spinner Below (Malora) Wore a heart on her collar
S2E6: "The Tolling Whites"
Watcher:Karai
1. Lavendara “Minty” 2. Karai - 3. Caelrin Seavale 4. Velo Varrick 5. Munster 6. Cirrus Seleward 7. Khraali
Karai's journal entry:
Tyven looks at the shelves again after I ask for any information on the goddesses, all of this mess seemingly being connected to them. He pulls down a religious pamphlet, document 14, specifically about The Drowned Mother. Everybody listens on as Khraali reads it, and as I sit listening to the words, I shoot up on my feet and repeat the last line in disbelief. "Offer salt at your doorstep in her name, and whisper thanks into the wind lest she forget you in the fog!?" This would've been good information when we first arrived in the city! Pretty sure the mist hates us by now.
As I read over document 14 again, Khraali expresses interest in the people who have been affected by the chapel, so the archivist hands over document 11 to Munster. The passage described the Spinner Below, some ancient sea entity weaving luck and loss alike. Sailors fear her but still court her favor by leaving rope knots and coins in nets at low tide. Seems she rewards clever offerings. Thinking about it, this might be the ancient entity the druids of the city have been worshipping.. unless, there are multiple ancient sea entities. Totally possible. "We should probably stay away from any bright light we see" I say, my words seemingly caused Lavendara to have an epiphany. She says that this sounds suspiciously similar to the goddess of land and sea, Melora, who favors gifts and flattery. Maybe the city druids failed to hold up their end of a bargain.
As we ponder, Lavendara asks for more information on the people affected by the mist. Tyven says this document is usually reserved for hidden eyes, but as friends of Lavendara, we may all get to read it. Thank goodness as well, because document 14 provides a detailed description on people who have gone to the salt chapel and what they are like when they have returned. Most who enter the Salt Chapel never return, but a few do, showing consistent changes; salt-crusted hair and pale irises, lowered body temperature, and grainy skin. They grow detached from their old lives, eventually forgetting it all together. They are drawn compulsively to the mist, and murmur cryptic phrases. Processing all this, my mind instantly pictures the air genasi we met once we left the Vulpin woman at the hospital. She was absolutely thrilled to see us, calling us the saviors who would rid the mist from the land. I assumed she was a fortune teller, but after reading this, I realize she has a personal connection to the salt chapel.
As I go over our encounter with that woman in my head again, I notice in the corner of my vision Lavendara casting prestidigitation on Caelrin's armor. I raise an eyebrow, confused what the purpose was, but quickly put the pieces together as Caelrin says it feels toasty now. Calerin was one of these individuals who was mist claimed, and suddenly showed up in Vel'crag's Moor one day. I see Lavendara raise the coral-crusted spyglass to look him over, but she doesn't tell us what she sees. Probably not any different from last time, where he looked a little nervous and you could see a physical manifestation of the mist as chains on his ankles.
Suddenly, Velo developed a significant interest in Caelrin, asking the marksmen if he knew a man named Grackle. My eyes widened, as I was aware that Calerin had misfired and hit the poor bartender Grackle by accident previously. Velo had apparently been playing damage control for the Steelhawks reputation, and wanted Caelrin to explain what happened, saying they need to have a discussion after this mission. As me and Lavendara attempt to deescalate the situation, the professor mentions in passing something about Lavendara's father. We question her on her background and she reveals that her father is actually a professor here. She says 'Well, he does more than that, he-" but is cut off as Munster throws down another document infront of us, with some very important information in them. In terms of practicality, these are probably the most important documents we've been given so far.
Document 12 describes ancient runes of Vel’Crag’s Moor that predate the town and are believed to hold symbolic power tied to the Mist. Each rune represents a concept and functions like a ritual word, used for protection, remembrance, or guidance. Common ones include Siraya (safe passage), Draga (honoring the drowned), Zefra (fear of being forgotten), and Refugio (safety). These runes are not for decoration, they are spiritual contracts, and misusing them can provoke the Mist. With that being said, we all grab a pencil and attempt to recreate these with little disregard of the consequences, our curiosity proving to be stronger than fear. Munster drew Orane (Justice that waits underwater), Velo drew Siraya (safe passage through foreign waters, score), Khraali drew Illaquro (eyes that see between the veil), and as I put the pencil to the paper, I feel a sensation around my hand that slightly shifts it around, causing me to end up with Yong (cycle unbroken, storm born time).
Tyven also included document 13, which details an incident that occurred eight years ago. Unauthorized runes were carved in a spiral in the Anthereum’s east courtyard, causing warped tiles and faint hallucinations. The runes, “Iskra,” “Caldren,” “Nyree,” “Deseo,” and “Horizon”, were packed with salt. The same night this occured, the courtyard bells were heard ringing faintly overnight. Though removed, lingering effects remain. Several floor tiles remain warped and cold to the touch, and researchers still report mild auditory hallucinations when walking the spiral's path. Sea-witches believe it was a summoning, not a curse. The perpetrator was never found. These runes are useful, but that usage has lingering consequences. The professor explains to us in the past 20-30 years many people don't know about the runes due to the goddess worshipping fading.
Experiencing information overload, I rub the side of my head as I jot everything of note into my journal as we experience it. Lot of stuff to note, not a lot of time. Lavendara successfully casted prestidigitation on the top of a table, etching the symbol of Naga into it to test if it would work. Being successful, she seemed pleased and wiped it away. Definitely useful for the future, and I can cast it aswell! At this point Tyven had moved into the corner and started to pet his bird, hoping we would leave soon. We caught onto this, and satisfied with all the information we've received, thank the archivist for his time and take our leave. As we walked through the corridors to the exit and talked about the runes, Munster had the brilliant idea to turn them into a card game. The plan? Use the arcane college’s printing press to stamp the runes onto cards and invent a ridiculously overcomplicated ruleset. We’re calling it Rugio. It started as a joke, but honestly… with how much symbolic power these runes supposedly hold, this might accidentally become the most magically volatile card game in Karagatan. As we walk out into the misty streets with our newfound knowledge, I take a deep breath and wince as I expect some sort of ailment to effect me any moment now, but loosen up as I don't notice anything. Hopefully that doesn't come up again in the future.
Sounded in line with what we read at the archives. She says she has never been to the salt chapel, and they the city moved away from it for a reason. It was dangerous, as we knew. When Lavendara asks about a general description of the mist, the mayor says it wants what you're least willing to give. While Lavendara says we can either appose the mist or convince it that it doesn't want us, Munster thinks that we could maybe get protection from the goddesses. My thoughts are that maybe these runes are just that.
As we whispered among ourselves, Lady Ferryn calmly placed a vial of Still Breath on the table. She said potion-makers use it for various things—but they don’t really know how it works. That stopped me cold. How do you use something if you don’t know what it does?
Some claim it wards off the Mist—though only sometimes, which isn’t exactly comforting. Maybe it's all in the timing or intent. Others use it to summon the Mist. Hard pass. As we prepared to leave, Lady Ferryn offered a parting warning: “You are guests in the Old Mother’s house. Bow your head and respect her. If you hear the bells stop ringing—run.” No pressure, right? I gave a shaky smile and tried not to picture every bell I've ever heard suddenly cutting out.
She summoned for Captain Redwake over a sending stone to meet us at the docks. Munster asked how we could make the Drowned Mother happy. That’s when Lady Ferryn’s voice turned grave. She said she feared we weren’t preparing to face a goddess, but instead whatever remained in the mist.
Just as I was closing my journal to move on, a sharp, pained scream from Caelren made me freeze. He had just put on the Mist Protection Amulet Lavendara gave him, and the change hit him hard. His eyes went wide, his body swayed, and for a moment, I thought he might collapse entirely. We rushed to steady him. When we asked if he was alright, he managed to nod, voice low. "I'm... exhausted," he said. Whatever the amulet did, it tore something out of him. Maybe the mist.. probably for the best.
They looked like followers of whatever twisted faith had taken root here. The fairy stepped forward and warned us: “Nothing awaits you here. Turn back.” Lavendara was the first to step forward, smirking as she informed them that they wouldn't be able to stop us, then casted halt... which unfortunately failed. Little anticlimactic, but we're just getting started.
~Slithering Devotee
Bell touched~
The Bell Touched Adherent, or the fairy girl, replies "sad, you could've joined us" and lunged towards Caelrin. This humanoid with a snake on his neck, Silibant weakness, also ran up and took a slash at poor Caelrin. Almost as if they were targeting him... but thankfully Velo rushes in and bludgeons the fairy woman with his sacred weapon.
Suddenly, in a sudden stroke of genius, Caelrin proceeds to rip the amulet off and attempted to put it on the Silibant weakness. He proved to be just as slippery as his snake companion, and successfully evaded the grapple. However, this snake was no match for our ferocious little mouse paladin, who rushed in and grappled the man into submission.
~Drowned Apostile
Seeing this opportunity to strike, I attempt to cast a favorite spell of mine, Tasha's hideous laughter, to incapacitate the enemies. Whether it was the mist, nerves, or luck, I missed every one of my targets. As I stand in shock that I missed them all, I felt the ground shift beneath me, mist curling up around my legs, thick and grasping. It clung like wet hands, pulling me in place. I tried to move, but I was thoroughly stuck. Even now, writing this log after the fact, I'm not sure if it was an enemies spell that held me in place, or the mist itself.
-End report-
S2E5: "The Miraculous Drowning" (Straits of Irithai)
Watcher:Karai
1. L4 Warlock/Bard | Karai
2. L4 Sorcerer | Dazey Haze
3. L6 Monk | Silas
4. L5 Paladin | Goblin Slayer
5. L6 Bard/Monk | Lavendra
6. L7 Rogue/Wizard | Halfling with no name
Anyway, we walked in and approached the counter where a nice Tortle stood behind. She introduced herself as a nurse named nurse Obulon Tidewalk, or "Obi".
Previously being a devoted follower of the 3 goddesses, she became a specialist in the mist ever since their disappearance 3 years ago. She starts to explain what she's noted about Veyorth's mutilated body: "As you can see, he has coral growing out of his chest, which turns out are his lungs that were protruding out of his chest. The chambers of his coralized heart were left hollow, being full of mist. Lastly, in the place of his tongue is instead a giant pearl." She sighed, not having the faintest idea how this could have happened, other than the mist, obviously. As I stare at the wooden table his body lays upon, I notice his body almost seeping into the wood. I quickly realize this is also what happened when we retrieved him from the ship, his body almost beginning to merge with the object he was upon. If things continue at this pace, every It's like something straight out of a nightmare. She asked if we had any other questions for her, and while I had none, I noticed Lavendara attempted to open her mouth to speak, but only a muffled cough came out. We thanked Dr. Shyn and exited the room.
The second we stepped out into the hall, I immediately noticed my eyes were finally feeling like normal. Must be because we were out of the mist, I thought. I looked around at my teammates, and most of them seemed alleviated from their symptoms as well. However, I noticed Dazey still shifting her eyes to look around constantly, looking rather stressed out. As I was about to ask her what was wrong, we are approached by a nurse and escorted to a private room for our Vulpin friend, now that she can be seen by a doctor.
The doctor starts to give his diagnostic, revealing that this case is especially confusing because it looks as though the mist is gone from her body. He pointed towards the woman's mouth. "See this mist around her mouth? It's still stuck in her lungs, stuck in her bloodstream. It'll be a while before she wakes up, probably, if ever.." We all stared at the woman. Dazey spoke up, wondering if the doctor had seen this particular woman before. He looked at her, then admitted he had seen her in passing. He believes she is one of those "coin dwellers" who idolize and look up to Vel Marrow. It's like his own little fan club. Dazey asks another question, wondering where the mist came from. He took a moment to pause and think before saying that it has always shown up occasionally when the sun goes down, but as of recently, it has been constant and horrible. It's like a plague that seeps through every crack and stone in the city, even water. Inside, you might think you're safe, but if you don't have runes etched into a building, then the mist is susceptible to entering. Just then, our monk Silas says abruptly that he is not a man of words but instead action, and jumps in bed and cradles the Vulpin. I turn away, confused, to see Dazey looking like she's seen a ghost, staring at me. I raise a hand and ask if she's alright, and as I'm about to place my hand on her shoulder, she makes a blood curdling scream. I instantly back away and cross my arms to make myself smaller thinking I upset her, maybe because she's made of plants and I'm made of fire..? No, when we met in the Keg the other day she was very friendly and we had a nice chat, smoked a little, and left on good terms. I just don't understand what's wrong. The nurse who was in the room, Nurse Bramble Underfern, runs over and comforts Dazey, implying it's an issue with us. I muttered "M-My bad.." under my breath, unsure what to do, when I turned my head over and see Lavendara hovering over the Vulpin.
She is eyeing the amulet that the party created with Vel's help, and before I could ask why, she took the amulet right off her neck. Nervously laughing, I ask why she would take what could have very well been the life support off the woman we went through so much effort to save, since we don't know if the mist will return to her without the amulet. The goddesses removed the mist, but its apparent there is a residual amount still in her system. She stared me in the eyes for a good five seconds, and then said "You will know in due time". At this point, I have questioned every one of my teammates actions at least once. They are wonderful, friendly, strong, all these things are true. But also a little quirky. It wouldn't be home without some extra flair. Assuming the benefit of the doubt, I nod and hope it turns out for the best. Now, Lavendara has equipped the Mist Protection Amulet.
My INSTINCTS tell me this person is just bidding their time, waiting to see who is on the winning side of all this. They just stood back in the last battle we had, in my opinion, weighing his options. I take a moment to separate art from the artist and purchase an unactivated Cap of Water Breathing, knowing that if I'm going to stick around in this place I'm gonna need it. Lavendara buys the same, and dazey buys some potions of water breathing. As we finish up, Vel informs us that the mist has been talking about the stirring up we've been doing recently. If that isn't suspicious, I don't know what is. Lavendara gets the wrong idea and thanks the mist for being proud of them, but Vel says it doesn't sound like praise.
That same monster speaks out "You are trying to stop us, but there's no point. You will fail". Standard denial. As Lavendara manages to slice one, blue blood starts to seep out from the orifice she created. As I'm distracted noticing that, Silas comes in and finishes off the goblin man. Thankfully, Goblin Slayer got a hit in before it was slayed, hopefully relieving his bloodlust.
He doesn't seem not too concerned with the mist, and attempts to reassure us that it always passes through eventually. But considering what the goddess told us about the mist not leaving this time, I'm going to go with her word over his. Halfling asks if he would be able to provide us with any information on the mist. He informs us that while he can't help him, he will bring us further into the college and direct us to his teacher for help. ..
Recommendations/notes for future:
- We have finally arrived at the Arcane College, The Brineglass Athenaeum, on our way to speak with a teacher to get more information.
Vel Marrow is useful but also suspicious, talks to the mist.
The Whispering Coin and the visions of the missing deckhand are unresolved threads.
Follow the air genasi's wisdom and follow our map to go to the salt chapel
Find out how to head to the Salt chapel not through the mist, but "through memory"
-End Episode-
S2E4: "A Breath against the Tide " (Straits of Irithai)
Watcher:Zapp Arhen
1. L7 Rogue/Wizard | Halfling with no name
2. L7 Druid | Zapp Arhen
3. L7 Barbarian/Rogue | Munster
4. L6 Warlock | Be'Lakor
5. L6 Fighter/Rogue | Caelrin Seavale
6. L6 Monk/Bard | Lavendara "Minty"
7. L4 Bard/Warlock | Chime
LEAVING THE SANCTUM OF THE OLD GODS: After finding the sanctum of the Old Gods and Vel performing a ritual to the pantheon, the Mist was lifted from our Vulpin victim. She was safe from the Mist, but remained unconscious. Something is wrong with her still, so we need to get her to “The Doctor” she keeps babbling on about. Since she was safe for now, I felt the need to protect her from the Mist. I did notice that she is quite a beautiful lady though. I’d like to get her name when she wakes up. Something was strange upon the exit, we were all affected differently by the Mist it seemed.
Upon our progression to egress of the religious sanctum, we had a bit of a… skirmish. This wasn’t like the others. They seemed to be more… humanoid. One kept speaking of Ida and that was strange. Talking about saving him and letting him be at rest in peace. The others were completely unintelligible, speaking in moans, groans, and shrieks. They seemed to not have a particular target in the party, but I knew I have to keep the Vulpin woman safe. Vel also stood back and did nothing which was sort of strange to me. We prevailed though.
I still believe that understanding the origins of the Mist is the key to subduing the effects it has on inhabitants of the Straits.
Halfling insisted on moving forward instead of further investigation of the Mist. I disagree fundamentally on this point, as the Vulpin, in my medical opinion is stable. “The Doctor” may be able to help with her condition, so I didn’t put up much of a fight. We need to get her name and see if she has any information on the Mist’s origins.
INTO THE CITY:
On our venture into the city, it was obvious that the Mist was becoming thicker and progressing inward toward the city. We also encountered a man and woman, who appeared to be married. She was on about how her husband gave their daughter to the Mist to save her from an illness. The woman made note of witches. I may have been the only one who noticed. I have to keep in mind that desperate families will do anything for each other. I don’t have that luxury since I lost mine, so I must be sympathetic toward these families. We need to find these witches. We have to go back and talk to that man if no one who we talk to knows who these witches are.
Again, I don’t understand this urgency, causing priority of a being who appears stable over obtaining information when we can, but I’m not leading this investigation.
As we continued to “The Doctor,” we felt the effects of the Mist continuing to weigh on us. I started feeling a strange sense of salt water in my mouth and chest. No matter how much I coughed and tried to get it out, the drowning sensation persisted.
It seems that the Mist has psychological effects which portray as physiological during manifestation.
MISSION OUTCOMES:
- We have arrived to this “Doctor,” who may or may not be able to help this sweet Vulpin victim.
- We have yet to truly investigate the Mist, maintaining our ignorance in this field.
- We found a child of the Mist who seems to know the owner of the shoe found in Capt Veyorth’s quarters.
- Apparently, Caelrin has been touched by the Mist. This was noted by the child of the Mist.
FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS:
- Have a medically inclined individual from the Steelhawks aid in the autopsy of Capt. Veyorth, and report findings to the Director.
- Return to the Salt Temple to question leadership there about the origins of the Mist and why citizens are so willing to give themselves and their loved ones to the Mist.
- Truly investigate the meaning of the visions seen at the shipwreck of Capt. Veyorth.
The vision of the map.
The vision of the scrying deckhand.
- Gather information on the three Forgotten Goddesses of the region.
- Decide who the true allies against the Mist are.
-Zapp Arhen, Steelhawks Intl.
S2E3: "The price of Knowing " (Straits of Irithai)
Watcher:Halfling with no name
1. L6 Fruid | Rhasha
2. L7 Rogue/Wizard | Halfing with no name
3. L7 Rogue | Ida
4.L7 Pallock | Erabor
5.L5 Druid | El'Drain
6. L4 Drogue | Blake
PRELUDE:
We start off where the last party ended, at the Siren's Call Inn after saving the Misty Vulpin coin collector from the “Mist”. It appears that a stranger has approached us with information on how to save this Misty Vulpin. She identifies herself as Vel Marrow, a shifty and cynical looking female human (or humanoid looking) person. She advised that if we sacrifice something (a secret, an item, or a piece of our body) that she would be able to save the Misty Vulpin. We pick up here and everyone has to decide what we are doing? Do we Trust this lady we just met? Many decisions and many things can go wrong…However, sometimes things go…right!
Half the party is not understanding this train of thought presented to us by Vel Marrow.
Back to the issue at hand. Although we have many many issues with this initial train of thought, The Steelhawks did decide to try and save the Misty Vulpin (we dont know her name yet) and honestly, this “sacrifice” is the only option we know of available at the moment. We all take some time and discuss amongst ourselves and decide what it is we are actually giving up. We had 3 options, give up a secret, give up a body part, or give up an item.
Seems half the party was good at giving up secrets, while only 1 gave up a body part and another an item (all items and body parts are not “consumed” this was strictly RP). Once we decided what we gave up, it appears we had to “announce” it, as if it were some verbal component of a ritual or spell.
Upon completion of our intentions/announcements, Vel Marrow asks if we are ready to follow her. Of course we have no idea what is going on or where we are going and she is not telling us any of this info. She is so shifty that we do not seem to trust her, everyone definitely is having mixed feelings about this. Either way, our decision is still the same. We want to save the Misty Vulpin, so we head outside following Vel Marrow and wouldn’t you know it, it's still misty out.
For a lot of us, this was the first time dealing with the mist so we tried to understand this mist. Vel Marrow says the first point of action is to get us protected from the mist. We need to get “blessed” or something along that nature. What could go wrong!
Halfling with no name has no idea what is going on. From her point of view, she shows up, has to give up a magic item and is now surrounded by mist whilst trying to follow someone we just met that claims to know how to “cure” this “infected” Vulpin. Once again, what could go wrong!
Either way, she starts her little investigation here. She studies the mist and can determine that it is more physical than magical. On a pure whim she decides to try and “capture” some of the mist. As her mage hand takes a bottle and scoops up some of the mist, she is successful and she claims her prize, a “Vial of Condensed Mist”. As she tries to study the magical aspect of this fog, she notices that the doors and windows appear to all be covered in Rune Magic, keeping the mist at bay, not allowing it to enter the homes or the windows.
“May we help you?” Halfling with no name asks while tapping him.
The old man jumps, apparently startled by the touch of someone behind him. Halfling with no name finds this a bit amusing and leads a conversation with him. She asks Vel Marrow and the Misty Vulpin. The old man claims to know of Vel Marrow and warns Halfling with no name about the strange ways, nothing specific, just that wherever she goes, bad things happen. When asked about the Misty Vulpin, the old man advises he thinks that this “being” has been touched by the mist and is marked to be reborn, whatever that means.
In these few seconds of conversation with this man, Halfling with no names realizes he seems to have a lot of info for us, or at least a different perspective. She pays 10gp for a bit of his time as she asks for the old man to come back to the party to see if anyone might have other questions or insight into what he is telling Halfling with no name. He accepts but advises he will not follow for long (only to the docks) and he is very weary of Vel Marrow.
Halfling with no name introduces the party to him, and they proceed to ask him more about the mist. Erabor asks him if he knows what the mist is and or what it does. The Old Man claims that when the mist appears, it seems that anything can happen at any time. More specifically, 3 umbrella effects seem to take place.
- It can do miracles, giving people good health
It can bring tragedies, don't need to explain that one,
It can do nothing at all.
So strange.
We continue to question him, asking how he doesn't get taken/affected by the mist. Now it gets weird.
“I ask not to be taken.” He claims however, during all of our inspections of this man, we do notice runes all over him as well, that may be the more logical explanation.
Erabor asks "How do you speak to the mist and who do you “talk to” when speaking?”
The old man believes that everything is connected somehow. He believes its all connected to his gods, he says, "I talk to the mist because it's all connected. Connected to my gods and to this world."
“How did you end up here? What are you doing exactly?” the party asks.
“I just woke up here one day, I had a key, it goes to my shop. I just knew this to be true, but I have no memory before this time.” He says distantly. “I just…was”
OMG His answers seem familiar!
We recall that Madame Lys Virelle (the warforged) also just woke up one day, and “was”.
We ask other more personal questions but didn't really get more relevant info. We still need to decide what to do, follow Vel Marrow or not? We decide since we have already paid the price, we will continue on following Vel Marrow, but are now more weary than ever and our party is on high alert.
While the party was asking questions to this “old man”, Halfling with no name uses a ritual to cast comprehend languages. She wants to try and communicate with the Mist, maybe the mist can understand her?
WELL…. Then the other shoe drops. Upon seeing Halfling with no name trying to talk with the mist, out of nowhere, she gets an info drop from party members.
It appears that some of the party have items, be it magical or not, that deal directly with the mist. Specifically 2 other vials of mist (one called Vial of Still-breath, the other Vial of Blood) AND a horn (in the shape of a conch) that appears to allow them to speak with the mist maybe?
WTH…Might be something we open with next time! Hahah. Anyways after this revelation (dictionary meaning - a surprising and previously unknown fact, especially one that is made known in a dramatic way.) Halfling with no name is blown away by her epiphany about this entire situation. 1. She collected mist without knowing there were 2 other bottles already present. 2. She wanted to speak with the mist, not knowing the party has an item that appears to do just that. And 3, you will find out later. After patting herself on the back about her brilliance (lol) we continue gathering info and ask “the mist” questions.
"We are only fulfilling their wishes" the mist replies
“Where are you taking the people you"abduct "?” we ask.
“They are with the Mother.” was the direct answer.
“Ok, where is Mother then?” we follow up with.
“Mother is everywhere but not where. She lasts despite her absence. The mother is 3 and the mother is 1.” was the cryptic response.
We ponder the last response the rest of the way to the dock, where the “old man” that was spying on us has stated is his stopping point.
As he starts to walk away, Halfling with no name realizes, “OMG we didn't even ask his name! Oh good sir, what is your name!” she exclaims.
“My name is Keffin Niral but most know me as the Drift-Seer. If you need to find me, ask for the Drift-Seer.” is the bomb he drops on us.
Well now this is interesting. It appears the mist controls him? Or is he connected to the mist somehow? We are not sure, but just before he is out of sight, the party beckons Halfling with no name to try and whisper into the Conch and speak with him.
Whispering very quietly into the conch, Halfling with no name says, “Can you hear me Keffin our Drift-seer.”
We see him stop walking, half turn his head, and responds, “Yes I can hear you” and then fades into the mist!!! OMG FUCKING CREEPY COOL.
What the hell was that! A mist being? Could it have been “THE MIST” avatar? Omg so many questions with no answers!
Well, again we are stuck deciding what we need to do, and again we decide to trust Vel Marrow and continue to follow her. We make it to the underbelly of Vel'Crag's Moor, an ancient city in the Margraves. Evidently this is where a previous civilization was built or something like that.
Vel'Crag's Moor was rumored to have been built by Lady Ferryn Caldris, although we can not confirm this. But the material being used here suggests that it is probably true.
As we make it deeper into this undercity, we enter a large room. In this room there are 3 statues. These are the statues of…
- The Drowned Mother would be their version/perception of the raven queen
The Spinner Below would be their version/perception of Melora
The Lure Light would be their version/perception of Tiamat
These are the remnants of the gods that were worshiped around here from before. It takes no time and we start connecting dots. 3 gods, 3 bottles of mist, 3 mist effects… 3 3 3 …. We now believe that Keffin “Mist-Seer” may be onto something.
As we put all the info together (the 3 gods, 3 bottles of mist, 3 Mist effects, in conjunction with all the mist stuff that has been happening and with the clues left by the Keffin the Drift-Seer) we realized we have essences of all 3 Gods IN the vials. The Vial of Still-Breath, Vial of blood, and the new Vial of Pure Condensed Mist.
Halfling with no name wants to place the vials in front of the respective statues to see what would happen. As expected, the mist in the bottles seem to “recognize” the appropriate statue and “activate” inside the vial. We then open the vials! As we do, we see the mist form onto the faces of the statues and they start talking to us! We are not sure if it's the “mist” or the essences of the goddesses themselves.
They appear before us and each one has its own projection.
- The Drowned Mother (see above)
- This spirit is wearing the robe the statue was wearing with the sword at her hip in one hand and the talisman in the other. She looked lost, confused.
The Spinner Below (see above) - This spirit looked as if she was starving, her long hair oil and clumped. She seemed as if she was at sea for a long time.
The Lure Light (see above) - This spirit appears to be a child version of herself, looking scared and alone
They appear to recognize us and we communicate with the spirits.
Erabor asks about the ship and what happened to it.
"Ahh the deck hand. She is still of your plain. She is not with us. You need to find her if you want to find new answers." is their reply.
The party then asks about the mist and why it does what it does.
“They do not understand right and wrong. They don't understand how to actually help people the way people want to be helped.” they reply.
We learn that the mist is NOT the goddesses themselves, but is born (wished into being) by their essences. This is how we are able to use the 3 mists to communicate directly with the ancient spirits. With this in mind, the party asks, “Who is the vessel to convey your message to the mist. To be more specific, who is your avatars for the mist?”
They tell us we are the avatars as we have learned to communicate with them through the 3 mist vials that contained their essences.
This verifies we can use the 3 mist vials to channel communication with the 3 goddesses, but we would need more vials of these mists to do so. Halfling with no name then brings up the Misty Vulpin. She believes if we put the Misty Vulpin on the altar, it may fix her.
The Misty Vulpin’s body is dematerialized as the mist seems to break up into 3 streams of mist and is “sucked” back up into the present spirits and she turns back into just a normal Vulpin, however, she is still unconscious.
So now, we came here to get protection FROM the mist so that we could save the vulpin and others like her. Strangely we manage to save the vulpin BEFORE getting out protection blessing, but we have still already paid the price. We ask about the blessing and Vel Marrow advises we can continue and receive the blessing.
We prepared to receive the blessing, but another bomb was dropped on us by Vel Marrow. Apparently in conjunction with what we have already sacrificed individually, we must sacrifice something as a whole, we have 2 items with us that would work, either the compass or the spyglass. The “bigger” the sacrifice, the more of a blessing we would receive. Why can’t these NPC’s let us know ahead of time lol.
As we discuss which item to give up, it appears that we were split 50/50. We let fate decide and flipped a coin. Giving up the compass was our fate. As we give up our items and the compass as a sacrifice to the ancient goddesses, they start speaking…
“With these gifts, we connect the souls of the steelhawks to this amulet. May the steelhawks persist where the mist grows thickest.” the spirits drone in monotone.
They then begin to chant over and over in an apparent ritual, “To be not forgotten. To be not lost. To be remembered when all is said and done.”
Velmorrow steps up to the alter. She pulls out a knife and cuts her hand to spill her blood across the altar. Strangely, her blood is purple. She then ritualistically places all the sacrificial items on the altar as well.
With all the pieces in place, the ancient goddesses chant one final line, "To be one with the mists is to be lost. To be one amongst the mist is to be ultimate power!"
At that moment, the sacrifices disappear and an amulet appears in their place. We can immediately feel that this amulet gives us psychological protections. We all touch it and it gives us clarity of mind.
Everything happened so fast at that point, The goddesses spirits dissipated. At the same time we decide to put the amulet on the vulpin to try and ensure she is safe. (Player Knowledge - The amulet will be available in future quests).
We end our session here.
RECAP:
This was an all RP session but we covered so much:
- We unexpectedly learned how to communicate with ancient goddesses from a previous era. We assume that if we collect more of the Still-breath mist, Blood mist, and Pure Condensed Mist and bring them before the goddesses alters, we may be able to speak with them again when needed.
We saved the Misty Vulpin from being consumed by the mists. This might be a way for us to save others in the future as well.
We know that Vel Marrow is a communicator for the “goddesses” amongst the mist. She can be trusted even though she is very cynical about her ways.
We know that Keffin Niral (aka Drift-Seer) works with and/or serves the mist. He too appears that he can be trusted.
S2E2: "Three answers Drowned" (Straits of Irithai)
Watcher:Reena
1. Lvl 7 Rogue | Ida Grace
2. Lvl 7 Druid | Reena
3. L6 Drunk | MC Hammerstorm
4. Lvl 5 Fighter | Caelrin Seavale
5. Lvl 7 Pallock | Erabor Melkial
6. Lvl 4 Fighter | Nollid
7. L6 Warlock | Nanna Da Hutt
Party is teleported in on the edge of the city.
They have in their possession the items found in the sunken treasure chest at the end of the last mission.
Ida is the expo and leads the party.
Decide to venture into the city, figuring out where to go as they walk.
Reena wished to find out about the cities druids, who are seemingly connected in an ancient way to the ocean, but they are still away at Valthamar to aid a disruption of natural forces.
The party is walking outside the brothel, The Gilded Lily, when they decide to head inside for any information on the items.
The party is greeted by Madame Lys Virelle, a young woman in her 20s who owns this establishment, and her assistant Brimble Nessa Wagtail, who then show the party their selection of three companions of the establishment.
One of the items the party found in the treasure chest, a coral encrusted spyglass, is magically imbued to show the person looking through it what the person their looking at views themselves as. Ida proceeded to look at all the new people.
An astral elven companion, Virellathei Soraeza, viewed herself as an innocent child.
The orc companion, Grask "Velvet" Vorn, seemed happy with himself.
Finally the dragonborn companion, Xhenthos Rev'kai, viewed himself as older/ mature than he really is, he looks depressed, and is accompanied by a shadow looming over him.
Brimble is holding a baby, viewing herself as a devoted mother.
Finally, the Madame herself, sees herself as a mist enshrouded monster. this catches the parties interest, so they decide to spend some money to interview one of the patrons for any information they can get on the Madame.
Nollid volunteers to speak with one of them, picking the most mysterious of them all, the dragonborn, and as Nollid said, "I wish to just have some therapy time with him".
Thanks to Nanna's familiar Quasii (the Quasit) who sneaked into the private room with the two, the rest of the party (still in the waiting area) can hear their conversation.
Nollid attempts to ask some questions, dragonborn calls him inexperienced and strange, wondering what we're really after.
The dragonborn says he lost someone in the past, and that we cant change anything, but if we insist on finding answers, the party should be more direct, or expect to find a bunch of lies.
He also said the Madame had run the place for years, multiple decades, but she still looks just as youthful as the day she arrived.
With the hour being up, Nollid leaves the dragonborn and comes back to the waiting room.
With the info that they should be more direct, the party decides to be as forthcoming as possible, and admit that they know what the "mist" is.
In actuality, the party had no clue what the mist was or what it did, but thanks to Nanna's deception she made it seem as though the group knew more than they did.
With this bluff working on the Madame, she looks defeated and starts to defend herself. She claims she has no memories of her life before she arrived one day randomly in the down, accompanied by a strange mist that occasionally falls over their city.
The mist is a mystery in the straits. It gives, but it always takes more. Whenever it falls over the city, multiple people are said to vanish, and a new person will appear in the city. She then looks to a member of our party, Caelrin Seavale, a new member of the steelhawks who the Madam recognizes as someone from the Straits, and more importantly, another one of these mist people.
The entire party is shocked, and Nanna uses the eyeglass to see his true self to see what's going on. Caelrin's true self looks very similar to his current appearance, but he looks lost and confused. He also has mist pooling around at the bottom of his feet, similar to how the Madam has mist enshrouded around her when looked at through the parties magical spyglass.
The Madam also tells the party that her brothel is the only place that is a safe haven when the mist arrives (could be useful information in a future mission).
Finally, she reveals that the astral elf companion was the captain's (of the ship the Steelhawks crash landed in episode 1) chosen companion. She was devastated that he was gone because he was very much like a father figure to her, only wishing to sit and speak with her during his paid for time.
Feeling overwhelmed from the information she gave out, the Madam tells the group she is retiring to her quarters, and the party decides to head to a familar face who can hopefully help them appraise some of the items they found on their last mission, Grackle of The Siren's Call, a local bar.
Everyone orders their food/drinks. While the party deliberates which items they should give Grackle to appraise, Ida drops all the items on the bar counter. He is taken aback and over looks them all, but his gaze is particularly focused on a old looking coin among the items.
He states this is The Coin That Whispers, holding it for awhile would make the bearer rich beyond their wildest dreams, but every moment they held it, they would start hearing their loved ones screaming out in pain, suffering, asking for help.
Some party members test this, with Erabor (the one with the strongest mental constitution) being the one to hold onto it.
All the while this was happening, a fox lady was sitting alone a few tables away from the bar as well. One of the party members used the useful spyglass on her, and her appearance was very similar to herself right now with the inclusion of enough gold encrusted jewlery for her to drown in.
While the party spoke with Grackle, the fox's attention was fixated on them and the coin. She got up and ran up to Erabor, asking if she would be able to see it. Her name was Nivaeh of the Copper Veil, and she was very familiarized with coins. Apparently, it was some ultra rare coin that not even she had collected before. With his insight, Erabor could see the little fox was much more curious than she seemed suspicious, and he held it out.
As she reached out and touched it, she let out a pained scream. Instantly, Nivaeh was enshrouded in the mist, which wrapped around her and took the form of a much taller and angrier looking misty fox woman. Just then, other mist consumed creatures started to appear around the bar; a giant crab, a bald humanoid, a long-haired siren, and a giant canine monster.
Before she attacks, Nivaeh started crying out in a desperate voice "please! it's not my fault! I didn't mean to! I didn't know!" Feeling pity for the woman, Reena casted Hold Person on her instantly, paralyzing the woman, something that would take her out for much of the battle.
The party begins defeating the mist monsters one by one. Reena and Erabor focused on the siren and fox lady, Caelrin focused on the bald humanoid creature, and everyone else fought the giant misty crab up in the doorway, eventually defeating it and helped Nanna and her Quasit fight off the large monster on the bar.
Once the mist monsters were all dissipated, Vel Marrow enters the bar and sees that the party was familar with the mist by now. He offers his assistance to help but requires a sacrifice from each party member. This was either in the form of something off their body or a secret. Most of the party chose a secret, but Nanna chose one of her favorite tit hairs.
Future party should focus on ascertaining the properties and history of the remaining salvaged items of the shipwreck that they have in their bag of holding:
Words Carved into the Floor of Crew Cabin
Items found: -A boot
-Vial of still-breath
-Children shoes with engraved runes
-Wood with protective rune from the ship
-Folded Prayer Cloth with a symbol if an octopus that moves slightly each time you look at it
-Pieces of mirror the party destroyed
-A cracked compass
-Mist shell (spoke to the party members when brought up to ear)
-Map of Salt Chapel
-The Coin That Whispers
-Captains logbook that was magically sealed
- End of episode.
S2E2: "Three answers Drowned" (Straits of Irithai)
Ida's Perspective: Oh boy, where do I even start? Vel'crag's Moor was a total whirlwind! The mist swirling around us felt like it had a mind of its own, and those strange items we found? Let me tell you, they were wild! We had a looking glass that showed people's true selves, a coin that wailed like a heartbroken lover, a handkerchief that seemed to have a life of its own, a journal with bizarre entries from the lost captain, a tiny shoe covered in runes, a shell that whispered secrets, and a shell pendant that was waiting to be uncovered. It was like stepping into a bizarre magic show, and I was here for it! As we decided to head to the Arcane College to get some answers about these items, we figured a pit stop at the brothel wouldn’t hurt. Loose lips, right? You never know what kind of juicy gossip you might pick up. Plus, the Madam was said to have her finger on the pulse of the city’s secrets. When we walked in, the atmosphere was thick with intrigue, and I felt a tingle of excitement. The Madam was something else—charismatic and sharp, but there was a flicker of something off when I peered at her through the looking glass. Instead of a glamorous figure, I saw a monstrous being tangled in mist! Yikes! I almost dropped the glass. We learned that one of the workers had been close to the ship's captain, and the news of his passing shattered her. My heart went out to her; she was a mess, and we promised her the shell pendant once we unraveled this whole magical mess. After that, we followed her to the bar, hoping for more loose talk. I was practically buzzing with anticipation when suddenly, all chaos broke loose! A Vulpin got too curious about the mournful coin, and before we knew it, mist enveloped her like a bad dream. The air crackled with danger, and then—BAM! Mist monsters appeared, ready to pounce! Panic surged through me as we scrambled to defend ourselves. “Get back!” I shouted, swinging my weapon with all the strength I could muster. But in the chaos, everything blurred together. I was on high alert, trying to keep my eyes on the mist creatures and my friends. Then, out of nowhere, I felt this wave of dizziness wash over me. My vision started to swim, and before I could even process what was happening, I was out cold. Just like that! The last thing I remember was the frantic sounds of my friends fighting and the feeling of the mist closing in around me. ---REPORT END---
S2E2: "Three answers Drowned" (Straits of Irithai)
~Lavendera aka "Minty" via scrying orb~ Our adventurers had began to recover from the harsh sea as they had just pulled out from the.. unnerving to say the least, they recovered quickly and decided to move forwards and search around town for answers... They had spotted the Brothel in town and decided to go in for a quick peek (totally under the impression that a Brothel was a place that sold soup, and no other intention) to try and get information, answers, something... The party had taken turns exchanging information over their psionic link thanks to Ida's abilities, had booked some 'private' time with one of the companions to try and pry for information about the owner- Assuming that there's something fishy going on with her... Nollid was the one to privately enter a room with a Dragonborn, insisting they talk in a therapeutic way, Their attempts to accrue information had gone.. mixed, but through psionic guidance from the others they were able to get the owner to open up a lot more after she had dismissed her employees- Finding out that, through the magical spyglass contained a way to see into the "true selves", looking around at the owner and finding that.. She has mist around her, and.. seems monstrous in her true self, with Caelrin walking in at the moment- Just so happening to find a glance of him through the telescope, finding his feet covered in a thin, sprinkly mist as well.. The owner of the Brothel had invited them to bar for a drink, where they found the barkeep and a strange Vulpin lady.. The Vulpin wanted a coin that Erabor had on their person, but Nanna and others insisted they keep the coin in their possession.. But as soon as the coin touched it's small snout... Chaos reigns. The Vulpin shattered into a misborn monster kitsune spirit, more mist seeping through the ground and summoning more spiritual beasts, Combat erupted, Weapons drawn, Shots fired, Spells cast, they held the Kitsune spirit in place with a "Hold Person" as they tried their best to subdue her, she begged, pleaded to save her and so the party did everything in their power to non-lethally help her out, as they fought off the onslaught of other monsters- Eventually subduing her and finally, post fight as the chaos in the bar calmed.. They were asked to make a sacrifice to help her, save her unconscious body, they were asked for a sacrifice. A secret, or a part of their body. Under the claims of it not only helping her, the poor Vulpin, but also helping with a pursuit of Steelhawk International™ merchandise.. Each member of the party offered the peace and so... We will have to find out the effects of such, in another episode....
S02E01 "HALF A GRAVE" – Location: Straits of Irithai
Watcher:Zapp
1. lv7 rogue | ida grace mistglide
2. lv6 drunk | mc hammerstorm
3. lv5 sorcerer | louise bellmore
4. lv5 paladin | velo varrick
5. lv7 barbarian | rurin balderk
6. lv5 Druid - Zap
Investigate the Sunken Airship Crash Site of CAPT Elian Veyorth.
- Information on Captain Veyorth’s final moments may now be postulated.,
- The body of Captain Elian Veyorth was recovered.,
- Articles were collected as evidence from the sunken airship.,
- Discoveries of unknown beasts have been made. Drawings of the beasts are included in the report. It is good to mention that if they do not have line of sight, you can distract them.,
- It seems that the sailing community in the region has some amount of knowledge on what is going on based on Flintwhistle’s response to Veyorth’s corpse., Many similar runes and sigils which Captain Redwake used were also found at the crash site.,
The Straits of Irithai | S2E0: Shadows Beneath the Moor
(Watcher) Miu Toriiumi (Watcher) Lvl 5 Bardlock Kiwi
1. Ida Grace Mistglide - Level 7 Rogue
2. Grimsnout - Level 7 Barbarian
3. Rukus Kegstone - Level 7 Barbarian
4. Reena - Level 7 Druid
5. Miu Toriiumi - Level 6 Bard
6. MC Hammerstorm - Level 5 Monk | Expo
7. Barbara King - Level 4 Sorcerer
Report: Miu's POV Hi Mr. Director Panda! MIu here make report! First I'm gonna recap the last mission! But really quickly because Miu have lots to say! You know this, but we were sent out by Mr CEO Steelhawk to explore the Straits of Irithai, build connection with people, be friends with people, and build base down there so we can do mission there! Oh also because lots of people, and very little space for friends to live. So we take flying ship! Like ship with wings, but this ship have no wings just balloon. BUT EVIL HARPY- not my family, my family good harpy, ATTACK SHIP! But part be fine after, so no need worry. We wonder, why runes on ship no protect, was told it protect us. But it made evil harpy attack so me no know if trust. If word the truth. When arrive down at night, party meet mayor then go sleep at inn and now we have lots to explore. Party remember, mayor want speak with us! So party think go speak with her in morning! Mayor name is Lady Ferryn Caldris, the Last Bell - the "mayor" of Vel'Crag's Moor. Miu think super fancy!! Then there other lady, Vireza Syko'thar - Runs Velthamar. Miu think important people to know for future, never know if need help or good word! Is next day, we start at bar, friends come down from room one by one. Me miss Tappie, want to go on mission with Tappie! But it okay, Tappie safe at home with Mellie! Wait... Mellie! What doing with me on mission! Ugh, it okay... Mellie have some issue with stay with me or Tappie. He not very brave yet. Think world scary. And me agree. Like missions. Missions scary, but have to be brave so can save people! Oh, here friends today on mission! Miss. Reena like turning into snake! goblin friend!! Mr. Rukus good friend! very strong, come back to hang out with Steelhawk friends after sail on ship very long time! Miss. Barbara friend shoot fire! good friend! Grimsnout think all plants friends! He sandy friend! Will fix later! Miss. Ida is fun friend! sneaky friend like Mr Sneaky! Mr MC love nature and love expressing self! have big drum! Big friend with big heart! Grackle, that who owner and Barkeep at The Siren's Inn, come in, he speak funny. Not like Tappie, or Canna, or Calla, or Russ, but like... mix of voices. Many voices together. He ask if would like breakfast, we say yes, because have long day, must have to eat! Or else be very hungry when need to fight monster. Party ask, what kind food have? He says "He make many foods, lots of fish... Known for many fish." Reena ask if there mushroom, but he say, "Mushroom expensive, you still want?" Reena say yes. Miu think, expensive because have to import from other place? Miu not sure how commerce works. Mr. Grackle also tell Steelhawk friends, "Be careful here, people nice, below water is unknown." Miu think... Wow... That ominous. Me ask about harpy, how they look. They look like me, but obviously not blue. The party asks more about it, he says: “Shipment from above, sometime monster from above attack ship, many sailor die not because sea but because air.” Party ask, what kind of monsters, "griffons, harpies in air..." Mr. Grackle replies. “We protect sea and land with wishes, magic, prayers. Air unknown, air new.” He continue What kind of magic? like druid, elements? Party have good questions. “Grackle know, big druid grove in capital, there small one, and arcane collage. Much magic in this area, necessary to keep life.” Miu think fun when meet people who speak like me! Party ask, "Why do we need magical defences?" Grackle looks like he thinks about it for a bit. “You know, Gulf of Sorrows?” Grimsnout knows from the tree, MC would know from training. Gulf of Sorrows is a bay that's filled with the brim with monsters, won't attack unless provoked, or considered “othered”, not sure why. “Once monsters all over area, no life, land completely empty, but druids, work with water and land and now monsters are friends. Some monsters, not all monsters.” We ask, air monsters new? “Only rarely, only when attacking big ships away from land. Air ship new, just boat put big balloon. Airship have magic but magic not strong enough.” Part ask more question, is there captain of guard? where attack happen commonly? “No formal police, we have volunteer, navy. Big woman, very strong, her name. different to lot of people.” Then, Mr. Grackle speak in one voice, very clear. We think about what he’s saying, “Uthra” the captain that saved us when crashed, that was Captain Uthra. Full name is Captain Uthra “Redwake” Vohrin - Captain The Brineforged and leader of navy. Rukus figure it out, he very smart and strong! Grackle say, “Mayor always part of city.” Know the mayor is a warforged, she be around very long time, longer than some friends!" He then give us map! We look at the map and see where to go next. Party have all day to explore and learn. So we pick places to go! Mayor still wants to see us, but think, it's okay. Can see later! We go magic shop! Maybe can buy some cool item. When walk on street, notice it very rowdy, like many people kinda pushy and loud. But me used to that, live with Steelhawks. Me notice architecture very nice, kinda square shaped, but with pointy towers! People veyr friendly! Think they like Miu and Steelhawk friends! Local people try and get us to go into their stores, but say, sorry! Have little time, even though that lie... Later, Barb, MC, and Miss. Ida, see its baren, like the trees are in shallow dirt and rock, its a lot of cobble stone, not a lot of farming in the area. It really bad for nature here. Think people not get many fresh fruit from Zaraviya... DO THEY KNOW WHAT STRAWBERRIES ARE???? Later also say, it lots of tourism here, fishing is prominent and a lot fo trade to get by. Miu think that kinda sad... But remember, back some similar. Hope we can help for the future. Barb tell me new word... Capitalism. Me think, "like capital city?" But friends explain to me, then me think... Yes that is what happen here. Miss Ida see everything though, trickers, charlatans, seers that Miu think maybe not real seers, people who have uniqure trinket. But even if that not all true, people here have connection with each other that bigger than that. Miu think it similar to family and Steelhawks. We go to the magic shop!! Called Coin and Conjure, magic-y stuff! Owner is called Vel Marrow (like to morrow hehe). They are a changeling like me! But... They seem to not be able to keep shape very good. Miu is very good at that! They have many potions for us, but maybe useful if can get water breathing potion! Miu ask, "Hewwo, have water breathing potion?" Vel recognize me! Me think have many fans! Then look around store... SEXY DASH POSTERS IN A SPEEDO MY EYES!!! I WANTED TO CRY But me be brave, turn away from .... Mr Panda in tiny swimsuit.... Apparently it's to help for charity so I give it a pass... For now... grimace Since Vel like me and my music, I can get 10% off while all other friends get 5% discount. People really, really like us. There's a lot of knock off items, like bootleg merchandise. There was even fake photocards! I had enough of it and gave them a Miu exclusive! Signed and kissed and everything! Humph! So I buy one potion and Reena buy one. Everyone else don't really get anything so we leave!! We learn there's a community garden, but the druids are in Valthamar meeting due to a disruption in the natural forces, and can't go there because everyone is busy. It make some friend sad, but it okay, so we go to the naval base! Speak with captain and learn more! This place called, Bastion of Tides. Fancy name, very yellow! There big blue flag, for all navy, small flag for pirate groups. Party meets First Mate Flintwhistle - Alias: Twitch, “the Hare of Pale Run,” “That Damn Map Thief” Miu giggle, have many cool name!! Maybe one day Miu get official title #1 Idol Karagatan! “We weren’t expecting guests. Were you here to see the captain?” Flintwhistle says Party say yes! Flitwhistle says "Captain in chapel, she doesnt pray to anyone, but to the ocean, she spends a day or two to pray for the safety of others." We ask, "have they lost a ship recently?" She say yes. Realize... It was our ship ”There was our ship, it had some people from our area. We were not informed before. Below deck, there were two locals who drowned.” We grew sad, didn't know they were there. If we checked... Maybe could've lived... Flintwhistle ask, “they never came up to see you guys?” We say no. We see Captain Redwake flipping through books and standing at the altar. Miu first thought, room not very big. But of course not say out loud! Miu know that be rude! She doesn’t acknowledge us, but that okay. We try see if shrine dedicated to particular god. Rukus and Reena know that this isn’t tied to any deity or local tradition. That what they tell me. They notice some wards around it, but nothing unusual. There’s blood on the altar, dripping from Captain Redwake’s hand. Me think at the time... Ouch! Reena send Lychee who notices a list of lost souls, names of vessels, symbols written in Common, all drawn with a shaky hand. Me thinking, it very emotional process. She’s being very careful about who she speaks to, maybe sensitive topic? We see Uthra has tattoo. If kinda lean in and squint, you see it fluctuates, floating just above her skin like water, under her shirt. It’s an image of an eye with a vertical slit, surrounded by a seven-petaled flower. Thin black tentacles radiate outward like sunbeams or spider-veins, and there’s script written within them. She’s divining right now, that what friends tell me for report. Friends making Miu sound so smart! We don’t know what god this is. It seems to be a local deity, one we’ve never heard of before. Miu make note, ask holy friends if know. Grimsnout creates a flower and places it on the table. He so nice! Uthra wipes the blood from her forearm after Grimsnout do that. She smile at us, but that kinda polite smile, to acknowledge us as fellow fighters. She shares the moment with us. Miu feel happy she smile back. “It seems their soul is lost. They’re not here or there. I can usually feel the lost souls of the ocean... but they are not found.” Captain says Rukus says “Were they gathered before they crossed over?” “You feel that their souls were taken? There are secrets beneath the water—magic, life, even death—that we don’t fully understand. As a pirate, you learn to respect it, but you never truly grasp it. I fear we did them a disservice... by getting off the boat without double-checking that everyone was gone.” “If there’s anything left to recover, we can put it to rest. But it’s strange.” Reena says “They could be floating on driftwood.” “That would be lovely.” But me think Captain no believe that, even if it sad. Reena also says “That’s a nice hat.” “I got it from my mother—and her mother before her.” It kinda get awkward, but it okay. We ask if captain know about magic school. Maybe get info. “Arcana College. Snobs. They’re good for something, I suppose.” Would they have information on the sea? Party ask. “They helped build the ship.” We want to arrange a boat tour. Barb very much wanna go boating and touring. Maybe I should do boat tour! Wait. Luxie tell me that not what boat tour mean. Oh... that what mean. “Some of the crew are out fishing. They should be back by sunrise. Once they return, they can take us out—show us where we’ll be living.” Miu wanna read what inside her book. Me look closer at runes, try comprehend. They’re homemade rune, rooted in arcane practices, but twisted and manipulated into something unrecognizable. Luxie help me with report too! Reena mentions something about druids, hope we get answer on why druid away. “Yeah, there’s a huge grove near the capital city. Not many outsiders go there, it’s pretty well-guarded. But there’s a smaller grove, farther away. There are... issues in the capital. And with what lurks below.” Would the mayor know more about the druids? “Probably, yeah. She’s in touch with them often. She can share some info, but she’s tight-lipped when it comes to private matters.” Captain bring us to war room/meeting room place, better to sit and talk. Kinda awkward when just stand around in place where she do her important prayers. Maybe feel like intruding to me. “While we can’t provide you with a base inside the city, consider this a resting place—a space for us to gather, regroup, and make sure we’re all thinking clearly.” We’ll have an outpost here with the navy, but our main base will be located elsewhere. “Whatever resources you need, food, money, weapons, we want this to work. Things aren’t quite settled yet… and I have a feeling we’re going to need your help very soon.” After speak with Captain Uthra and gather all information, party go to mayor see what she have say to us! Miu think, this very important! We go to mayor building, it looks very nice! Very big! Lots of space for... concert! SOWWI LUXIE! Luxie bonk me in head... Say, me not supposed to say that. But now me can't go back and remove or else Miu pink paper will look ugly. Party walks in, there seem to be no one at desk then, me see just a little bit, a jerbeen say hello! Me say hello back! They name Thimblewick “Thim” Gratchley - receiptionist of mayor! They tell us Lady Caldris waiting for us in office, we thank, then go inside! Inside we meet Lady Ferryn Caldris, The Last Bell. Luxie told me important to put full name of people. We all greet, say hello! She talk to us now. “Hello, Steelhawks. It is so lovely to see you all once again. I was told you’ve been wandering around town, has everyone been kind? Steelhawk International has a certain... mystique. That floating reputation creates myths and legends. Harmless fun, is it not?” We kinda are like, "uhh welll... uhhhhhhh..." Becuase though it kinda cool, the sexy Mr Panda posters will leave me scarred for life... So we mention that and she gives us some items!! Me got a cute necklace! Turns out, it’s a clockwork amulet. Luxie says it's good for me. So me keep. “I hope these items serve as compensation while we finalize your contract. Hmm… yes, I suppose it’s safe to send you out. Be prepared, you’ll be going underwater.” We lucky that we buy potion to help. We also ask, do you know why the druids are gone? “You’re observant. They’ve been called to assist in the capital. There’s a delicate balance here, between land and sea, and the druids are vital to maintaining it. Even their home grove couldn’t handle the oceanic disturbances alone, so they sent additional support.” When will they return? Maybe this issue very big... “I’m hoping soon. We rely on them for what little food we have, most of it is imported. I do hope they return safely. There have been attacks along the route we’ll be taking between here and Velthamar. Something is stirring, causing disruptions. That no good sound to Miu. After we done, Lady Caldris say, bye bye to us, and we go to the waterside housing to meet the captain! We greeted by Flintwhistle who help us get on boat, once we all on, boat go autopilot, powered by the same runes we saw on air ship. But this time, it's burned on and now drawn on. Prolly this is better than the airship. Me not sure why they not do same with our air ship. Humph! Flintwhistle go below deck, Reena try check see if there’s anyone else down there, but it’s too noisy to make anything out clearly, lots of mechanical sounds, not much information. So Miu look for harpy. No harpy. That’s good! Suddenly, a figure at the front of the boat calls out “You’re encroaching on our territory. We are claiming this wreckage as part of the landscape. Then join the watery grave of your fellow shipmen.” Then they fight us! Me give only high lights, because combat is hard. Rukus pushes one of the enemies into the water! I try and tell them STOP, I tell big guy, count all nails in the ship. It work! Then a ugly green lady climbs out of the water and onto the ship say this to us. “You all have made a terrible mistake coming this far. The Deep is only meant for those beneath the wake.” Reena turn into big snake and try to bite. Grimsnout and MC on other side of boat fight three guys. But in end Reena swallows one of the evil guy whole. Rukus decapitates the other guy! We kill them all !! YIPEE!! Then we end here, still on the boat, searching for the shipwreck. To learn more about what really happen! Here Miu concerns. Worries Steelhawk friends fight something dangerous there. They say dangerous creatures in water, that why druid leave to go to capital. If there still problem here, then maybe this place be where problem is! Once problem solved, druids come back. But if this not problem, then there be even bigger scary creature close to main city!! Okie Miu done!
Salt and Skyfall
(Watcher) Lvl 5 Bardlock Kiwi
1. Lvl 7 Druid Miss Naeva
2. Lvl 6 Druid Miss Reena
3. Lvl 6 Fighter Mister Gabriel
4. Lvl 7 Drogue Mister Archer
5. Lvl 7 eldritch knight trunks
6. Lvl 5 bardlock kiwi
We met with Mister Frank and Miss Lagertha in a little meeting room before we set sail to the town. (It was kinds scary cuz they’re both so cool and serious…) They told us to make a really good impression in Vel'Crag's Moor since apparently people are kinda skeptical of the Steelhawks. I don’t know why, though! Everyone here is super nice and strong and helpful! Anyways, they blessed us with feather fall for 10 days just in case anything happened on the journey over. And thank gods they did! It did not go well…we got attacked immediately by a bunch of harpies and the ship crashed and I almost drowned…it was really scary! Mister John Taco Bell tried to repair the hole in the ship’s mast, but he wasn’t able to finish before we hit the water. Thankfully Mister Gabriel saved me before I hit the water too hard and died!