The Abyss Stares Back

This adventure began following the party's success at learning the fate of Ocsiban at the abandoned fortress north of Promise Junction. After Christine Barberry and the priestess Phaedra bid farewell and returned to Imor, life in the village continued.

The big fight

Emi, the town's Elven messenger, returned from her run and unveiled a new sign, offering scribing in addition to messenger services. Meanwhile, at the temple of Perasin, Dwarven High Priestess Shale prayed for guidance regarding the Sundered who had arrived the previous day. When she exited her trance, however, she noticed that the axe which had been recovered from the fortress, and of which possession was to be fought that afternoon by the Dwarf Klaven and her own subordinate, the half-Orc Pete, had disappeared. She decided to keep this hidden as she returned to the Red Dragon Inn to let Klaven know that said contest would be fought with sumo rules. Klaven complained about not being able to use his armor, to which Pete's friend and fellow half-Orc Stom took offense as a penitent of Fhqwhgads. The half-Orc stormed off to train Pete, while one of the Sundered, naming himself Prauer, said he'd attend the event and encouraged Klaven.

Around that time, Bardo, town librarian Shirella, and Zammocaz met to discuss the planned formation of the mages' guild. Afterwards, Bardo asked Sinjamin, daytime barkeep at the RDI, to use the inn's meeting room, while Shirella talked to Oashute, the town's treasurer, about the administrative requirements. Zammo was tasked with talking to Karresh, the newly returned necromancer, regarding possible sources for supplies in Sandpit. The necromancer stated that he would contact Plubium, from whom he had acquired such supplies in Sandpit, and secured Emi's services to do so.

Halfling rogue Lyden met with Toshiro, high-ranking member of the town guard, about the situation regarding Maul, a troublemaker from the nearby Unkkill farm. He agreed to send word to his contacts, and set off for the farm to gather information about Maul. Meanwhile, Shale and Klaven made an effort to advertise the fight later that day, with local bard-in-residence Gilbert and Bardo spreading word throughout the village. Klaven also arranged for Golbin, the RDI's stablehand, to sell Dwarven ale, which had magically created by Alvin Haler, at the arena.

The time arrived for the fight, and Shale's assistant Sato introduced the competitors. The fight lasted for several minutes, with Pete nearly winning after tripping Klaven on a charge, but the Dwarf was able to slip away thanks to his greased-up body. In the end, it was Klaven who won with a well-executed double-leg takedown, sending the half-Orc flipping out of the circle. As Pete tried to get up, a jet of flame shot down from the roof of the temple, setting his hair on fire. The fire was soon extinguished, and Perasin acolyte Shmo healed both competitors. Afterwards, Gilbert announced that a wrestling tournament would soon take place.

Klaven approached Shale to claim his prize, and Shale finally informed him that the halberd had disappeared. Klaven fumed, but left without incident, while the temple staff talked about acquiring equipment for the tournament. Stom suggested sending a message to Nazivonema, where he, Sato and Pete had been previously employed, to entreat Great Priest Molbo to lend them some. Sato also went up to the roof to check the source of the flame.

Town sheriff Bramus and Toshiro took to discussing the next move for protecting the village, whether it should be returning to the fortress or returning to the tunnels to face the drow. They asked Sinjamin to contact his superiors regarding the disappearing equipment of "Blackie", and later that evening one of the RDI's support wizards, AutumnRose, arrived. She agreed to prepare the necessary spells for the next day. Word was then spread that there would be a meeting of the town staff after breakfast the following morning.

After learning from priestess of art Rin that she would need to rewrite her message to Molbo, Shale sat with Rakeor, Reckem and Isu. Sato reported that he had found only scorch marks on the roof, and those present mused on how to learn more about the demon roaches and the gate through which they were coming to infest the area. Isu suggested that her friend Stan from Sigil would be more knowledgeable, but that she also knew someone named StormWatch who might be able to help.

Before the meeting, the Orcish bard Duper, who had been hiding out in the RDI in fear of the kobold priest Bokbok, borrowed a cloak from Bardo so she could go out to the old mill, where Rin was staying in a room above D&B Clothiers, and ask the Elf to make her clothing more attractive. Pleased with the results, she set off for the temple of Gruumsh to perform repairs she had promised some time ago. She used her feminine wiles as a worshiper of Luthic to convince associate priest Domjot to let her do the repairs, and perhaps be allowed to perform at the Blood, Bone and Brew again.

The meeting proceeded on schedule, and Bramus put forth the options to either continue investigating the fortress, or attempt to drive out the drow of Kiaransalee from the tunnels where they'd been forced to retreat. The possibility that AutumnRose, as an artificer, might know some magic item they could use to seal the gate was brought up. Bardo said that if Levi were to returned, she could seek his insight as well. Karresh, who had been invited to discuss the necromantic nature of some of the fortress events, was eager to investigate, and wondered if the odd patterns of bones in the tunnels below the forest might have been a vanquished bone lurker. Bramus and Shirella, however, argued for returning to the tunnels beneath the temple of Perasin, with the drow presenting a more immediate threat. The logistical issues of accessing those tunnels were noted, and Toshiro agreed to check in on Tula, the swanmay of Lake Varn, to see if she had returned from relocating the winter wolf from the fortress and, if so, consult her regarding the entrance to the UnderWorld located along the lake. If that way wasn't feasible, High Priest Shazbot of Gruumsh would be approached to allow entry through their lower levels. After also noting the forest surrounding the fortress seemed to be the source of the mutated animals that had been plaguing the town, Bramus asked to again consult Rodney, a local ranger. Town advisor Eckhorn believed that things might soon become more active, and that patrols should be beefed up in the near term. The adventuring staff members discussed the magic items they'd collected during their travels, and asking AutumnRose about tapping into the nexus beneath the town also came up.

After the meeting, the staff were sent on their various errands...

Cast of characters

This adventure is being run by John Proulx. Characters involved are still to be determined.

Adventure timeline

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Into the Woods	The Abyss Stares Back	TBA