Session 438 - Destruction of Knight of Death
General Summary
29thof Morgat (Winter) 728TR
The story so far
A group of heroes battles the evils haunting the beleaguered Kingdom of Kanday.
Sir Odin, a former Erkan of the Order of the Checkered Shield, has been raised to knighthood.
Remy, a former master thief and gambler, has won and lost fortunes.
Abaddon has traveled the wilderness, wielding a weapon of the gods, perfecting his impressive martial skills.
Edelina, a scholarly priestess of the god of Knowledge Save K’Nor, joins them on their adventures.
This is the continuation of Session 437 – A Dark and Evil City.
The heroes are in the volatile and evil City of Golotha, hunting down the undead knight Sir Morhgan Cade. The party has clashed with the murderous Amorvin (free-willed undead) before and destroyed him; however, his body reforms in an especially prepared sanctum. The heroes have just uncovered this sanctum among a series of old crypts in the sinister temple hill, and disrupted the unholy magic; the next time he tries to regenerate it should be the last and will fail.
As they exit the vault, they are spotted by a solitary priest of Morgath, a brown robed cleric wearing a horrific Hyadak Mask. He is the caretaker of the old temple and is surprised to see the unauthorised heroes emerging from an old crypt
Location: City of Golotha, near the Kingdom of Rethem.
Part 1 – The Groundskeeper
Odin rushes the old priest before he can shout a warning, but with agility belied by his feeble appearance, he easily evades the knight. Suddenly, his Hyadak Mask seems to change; the wood becomes fluid, takes on a demonic appearance, and snarls, invoking terror in Odin. The priest follows up this illusion, touching Odin, and decaying a large chunk of skin and flesh off. Then, from the nearby woods, three huge albino bats swoop in on the heroes. The battle is intense; Abaddon moves forward, assails the priest, and before the evil cleric can do any more harm, he is cut down, but the bats are much more troublesome. Eventually, the large brutes are also destroyed.
After covering up any evidence that the heroes had been among the vaults, the party decapitates the priest and throws his head into a nearby river, and makes their escape.
Part 2 – Hunting Sir Cade
The city is tense. A priest of Morgath, the god of chaos and undead, has been murdered, and a religious dispute is underway among the powerful clergy of the evil god of war, Agrik. The Order of Hepra the Mace is seeking to oust the powerful Apalankh (Agrikan Primate) of Hârn Sir Klyrdes Bisidril.
However, the heroes have other things on their minds, finding Sir Cade. Asking around among the poor, a knight matching his description was seen at the stables in the Arena Town District. The heroes stake out the district's only stable, and fortunately, a day later, they spot Sir Cade among the crowd visiting the stable again. Remy turns Invisible and flies onto the stable roof, listening in on any conversations. The horses are clearly agitated, no surprise given that they likely sense that Sir Cade is an undead monster. The malevolent knight is negotiating with the stable owner, Gorexin of Lorjan. Osteler Gorexin clearly wants to be rid of the knight and sells him a magnificent warhorse. Sir Cade then walks the terrified beast out of the city into the marshy lands near the river. It is an hour before sundown, and Remy is still invisible and flying, follows him, while directing the rest of the party who track from a distance.
Part 3 - Fall of the House of Cade
The heroes make some headway, all of the scoring lucky hits, and the undead's body begins to weaken, but angered by Remy’s quip that his sanctum has been destroyed, Sir Cade responds with a flash of brilliant swordplay that nearly decapitates Odin; only Edelina’s most powerful Healing magic keeps him in the fight. Nevertheless, this late flourish is not enough, and Odin drives his enchanted sword Ironheart through the Almorvin's body, which disintegrates into dust. If all goes to plan when he attempts to reform, he will be forever destroyed.
As it happens, at midnight a few days later, Sir Cade's undead body begins to appear in the sanctum, but Edelina’s divine sigils twist and warp it. Screaming out in impotent rage, the corpse turns to dust for the last time. Edeline watches this with satisfaction using Clairvoyance. The evil that is Sir Morhgan Cade is forever destroyed.
Part 4 – A Religious Dispute
While the party awaits confirmation of Sir Cade's final destruction, they plan to cause chaos among the Agrikian clergy. Aware that Senesharil Andraz Enald of the Order of Hepra the Mace is seeking to oust the powerful Apalankh of Hârn Sir Klyrdes Bisidril who belongs to the rival organization of the Order of Mamaka, Master of Steel. This is an unstable situation with the current young king asserting neutrality in the matter, claiming a religious dispute. However, he has not forgotten Sir Klyrdes Bisidril's military forces, the Order of the Warriors of Mameka, fought to prevent him from gaining the throne in the recent civil war, and his closest advisers are Sir Klyrdes rivals. Sir Klyrdes is closely allied with the powerful church of Morgath, and has been involved in various intrigues against the nearby peaceful Kingdom of Kanday. Odin would like this dangerous, efficient cleric, as well as being a powerful landholder in his own right, removed from power. Besides religious disputes within the various squabbling Agrikian holy orders tend to lead to violence.
The party attempts to impersonate members of the Order of Hepra the Mace, but all of Remy’s attempts to steal uniforms fail. Those noisy washer women almost catch Remy in the act, and he narrowly escapes without being identified.
Instead, the party comes up with an alternative, more direct plan. Abaddon, Odin, and Edelina hide in a dark alley, preparing an ambush. Remy, dressed as a beggar, runs in and “fumbles” a pickpocket on a trio of Order of the Red Shadows of Hepra. Before he is caught, he weaves into the alleyways with the furious Red Shadows in pursuit. In the alleyway, the heroes put on an efficient ambush. Abaddon’s and Odin’s weapon skills make short work of the three men, and Remy slices them up badly after conjuring razor-sharp metal shards.
After the heroes discreetly make their escape, Odin locates another passing band of Red Shadow knights and informs them that the Warriors of Mameka have slaughtered their compatriots. He is very convincing, and when they discover the bloody remains, they are furious. Tensions in the city ramp up and soon erupt in violence; several skirmishes between the rival organizations break out on the streets. The city's Temple District is locked off by the Mamaka’s, and the isolated Temple of the Hepra the Mace seized, guards, and some of its priests are executed. Meanwhile, the Red Shadows seize control of the rest of the city, isolating the Mamakans in the temple district. Both sides call for reinforcements and the crown to intervene as the heroes escape the chaos by sea.
To be continued.
NPC Interactions
Various City folk.
Related Content
Sir Klyrdes Bisidril, Apalankh of Hârn - Updated.Created Content
Nothing this week.
Player Characters
Odin - Human - L16 Ranger
Background - Martial Disciple.
Archetype - Shadowdancer, Investigator, and Fighter.
Abaddon - Elf - L16 Monk
Background - Martial Disciple.
Archetypes - Druid and Familiar Master.
Remy - Human - L16 Aerokineticist (with Metal second gate)
Background - Acrobat.
Archetypes - Wizard, Acrobat, and Thief.
NPC Companion
Edelina - Human - L16 Holy Sage Sorcerer
Background - Astrologer.
Archetypes - Psychic and Time Mage.
Next Session
Remy
Abaddon
Odin
NPC Companion
Edelina Sprunstone
Edelina, a scholarly priestess of the Church of Save K'Nor, wanders the world looking for subjects to research. She has studied psionics, religions, and astrology.
Her current research topics include mythic history, the monstrous Ivashu in all their strange forms, and the Pradeyalkri, the giants and monsters driven from Ivinia by the god Sarajin.
Clan Cade
A minor Rethemi noble clan whose lands were lost during Ezar's War.
Order of the Red Shadows of Hepra
The Red Shadows take pride in individual skill at arms, favoring mass attacks and rarely using cohesive battle formations.
The Order of the Warriors of Mameka
A feared, highly disciplined Fighting Order that employs terrifying alchemical weapons and deadly consecrated blades
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