Session 1: Into the Veil

The session opened with a haunting introduction to Velomorne, a world gripped by an unending grey winter. The year is 1255 ME (Mistfall Era), over a millennium since the first Mistfall swept across the land. Each night, without fail, the mist returns — and those who linger in it too long often vanish.

In the fortified town of Draymoor , where the bells toll not just to mark time, but to warn of the mist’s approach, five villagers have disappeared without a trace — each from a warded home. The Draymoor Council cannot afford open panic. So they turned, in secret, to the players.

Welcome to Velomorne.

A world held in the grip of an endless, grey winter — where the sun hangs low and cold in the sky, and the wind tastes of ash and old secrets. Here, the days are short, the nights long, and the mist... ever waiting.
Over a thousand years ago, in the waning days of the Unshrouded Age, the mist came. It rolled down from the mountains and across the fields, swallowing villages, forests, cities — and something ancient came with it. That was the first Mistfall, and the world has never recovered.

The current year is 1255 ME — Mistfall Era — and what once was myth is now routine. Every night without fail, the mist returns. Civilization clings to survival behind walled towns, watchtowers, and warded lanterns. The bells toll to mark the passage of time, but more importantly — to warn when the mist approaches. Children are taught to fear the silence after dusk. Doors are sealed. Lanterns lit. Sigils carved and whispered prayers offered to Mystra, goddess of the warded light — though some of the town’s farmers quietly offer prayer to Chaunthra, the Frostmother, hoping the mist spares their crops a little longer.

Curiously, the mist does not seem to touch the wildlife. The deer still run. The crows still circle. Only people disappear.

The world no longer asks what lies in the mist. It knows to fear it.

You find yourself in the town of Draymoor, a large, fortified settlement and a place of cold soil, pale skies, and uneasy silences. In the past week, five villagers have vanished from within their homes — supposedly protected by the wards of Mystra. The town council has summoned you — quietly, discreetly. Whether by coin, calling, or curiosity, you've each been asked to investigate.

Not officially, of course.
Officially, everything is under control.

And the townsfolk whisper behind closed doors:
"The lantern dims in their presence."
"The bells are watching."

But perhaps the bells are not watching closely enough.

— Campaign Introduction

The Obelisk

Each party member received a mysterious summons to meet at the Obelisk, just before the Dusk Warning Bell. There, they were met by a silent escort and taken through a hidden entrance into the Town Hall.

Within a small, dimly ward-lit chamber, they met Lord Warden Durn Halvek, a scarred, grim-faced dwarf in mist-stained armour. He issued the task directly and without ceremony:

• Five townsfolk had vanished: Elric Tannor, Mira Dailen, Harlan Vost, Lina Ward, and Jonas Feld
• All lived in the Oldbarrow district, west of the veilgrove
• Their homes had been marked with a lantern symbol in ash by the Lantern-Keeper
• They were to return before the Dawn Bell

He stressed secrecy above all else, warning that panic could destroy the town faster than the mist itself.

Not many walk into the mist and come back whole. Make sure you're one of them.

— Durn Halvek to the party

Investigating Oldbarrow

In the cold quiet of Oldbarrow, the party began their investigation.

Key findings:

• Illion and Craxian Flakwood inspected Mystra's runes carved above the doorframes and quickly discovered they had been reversed and corrupted — not warding out the mist, but inviting it in. The magic was older than modern ritual, and deliberate.
• Alric Thorne , familiar with the land as a Draymoor farmer, identified peaty footprints in one of the bedrooms — fresh, and not local soil. He recognized the dark mud as coming from the Mournfen Marshes, where he has previously collected peat
• One window showed signs of recent tampering — a partially carved rune, as though the intruder had been interrupted. Caught on the edge was a scrap of strange black, rubbery cloth, completely unnatural in texture.
• The party approached the outer gate, attempting to pass themselves off as Lantern-Keepers. The guard was suspicious, but eventually relented after they provided evidence they were working under the Lord Warden’s orders.

Arrival at the Ritual Site

The party followed the trail beyond the town walls, through the mit, until tall, ancient stones loomed in view.

They approached cautiously and found a horrific scene in progress:

• One of the missing villagers lay dead on a stone basin — eyes wide, face twisted in agony, black ichor pooling beneath him.
• The other three villagers were bound and gagged, alive but clearly traumatized, seated near the edge of the ritual site.
• A fourth figure, was mid-transformation — restrained, with metal spikes being driven through her eyes as part of the ritual.
• Three robed figures stood at the basin — skin pale, eyes black, voices echoing through the mist in a chant that pulled at the bones.

The session ended just as the party laid eyes on the ritual, on the edge of discovery.