Want to help? Consider becoming a Patreon.

• Aros – Lightfoot Halfling, Rogue
• Galiena Erenaeth – Half Elf, Celestial Warlock / Druid
  • Dearbhán – NPC, Fairy Dragon (Galiena’s pet)
  • Kavium – NPC, Tiefling Paladin (Oath of Conquest)
  • Darko Wintersage – NPC, Undead Wizard (Flame Skull)
• Baldur – Human, Pack Chain Warlock (Spear) / Paladin
  • Hellina Kaitlyn Deramu – Human NPC, Wererat

• Baldur, who is still wearing his armor, uses the spell Disguise Self to hide his armor and begins walking into town
• Galiena hisses from the bushes, “Could you get me an apple or something?” Baldur waves his hand dismissively at her
• However, before Baldur can move forward, a voice from behind startles him, as it says, “Oh! Good! Guards!”
• Each of them are startled but all recognize the familiar voice of Nikalos!
• He seems far more fit – as if mimicking Baldur

• Nikalos asks what’s going on – and they explain that the guards appear to have a wanted poster of Galiena – for murder and robbery
• Nikalos is surprised, explaining that he’s pretty sure he has a gift for Galiena
• Kavium gives Nikalos a scolding look
• Baldur shakes his head and heads into the center of town
• He approaches Ramgor, Annie and the guardsman of Lord Brenmoon. He also spots other guards of Lord Brenmoon’s going through the village, demanding people to come out of their homes and businesses. “What this all about?” Baldur asks
• The guard shoves the wanted poster of Galiena in his face

• Baldur raises his eyes, “Wow, wanted for murder and robbery,” Baldur notes
• “Yes,” the guard lies (clearly), “in her escape she murdered several guards and robbed them. We came here because this is where we had originally found her and now seek her and her mother, as we believe her mother may be a witch and orchestrated her daughter’s escape.”
• The guard goes on to explain, “I am not sure why she would want to escape. She’d been chosen for her beauty to have the great honor of meeting and staying with Lord Brenmoon himself.” The guard shrugged, “She could have had the honor, had she impressed him, to be one of Lord Brenmoon’s concubines.”
• Baldur looks closely, “Hey wait. I know her. Well, I don’t know her. But I’ve definitely seen her. She was at the beach near Lord Starfall’s manor. She was attacked there by something in the water and drown.”
• “Well,” the guard looks disappointed. “If we can recover her body, we can provide you the reward Lord Brenmoon has offered.”
• The guard signals one of the others and explains what Baldur has said and told the guard to ride to the beach and see if he can find any proof of Baldur’s story; the three remaining guards for Lord Brenmoon bring their wagon towards the Drunken Dragon and explain that they will wait here and do some drinking while they wait for the other to return in about a week
• Aros, after seeing that they’re not after him, also leaps out of the bushes and heads for the Drunken Dragon
• Galeian calls out after him, “Can you get me some apples or cider please?” Aros just gestures with a thumbs up and Galiena sighs
• Gogert Wayfair asks Aros where his other friends are – and when Aros shrugs, Gogert Wayfair curses that it’s the town guards that must be keeping them away
• Aros asks for an apple and one of the waitresses quickly fetches him a freshly picked apple and gives it to him and he immediately takes a bit of it, the cool, crisp apple crackling beneath the pressure of his teeth
• Aros explains to the waitress he’s going on a date and would love a basket of apples; which she goes and fetches; he then adds a bottle of cidar, a bottle of Vikarus and cheese
• The waitress asks if it’s for the halfling outside (Annie Longstocking) standing out there with the attractive tan man (Ramgor). Aros stammers and finally, in a very unconvincing voice, says, “Sure.”
• The waitress proceeds to ask Aros if he knows the tan human – she’d seen him before coming to Greenhaven on his horses, delivering fish trades from Felhorn
• Aros looks outside and sees Baldur, shirtless, still talking to Ramgor and Annie. He turns to the waitress, “Funny story. I met him on the ship that got shipwrecked here. We’ve been traveling together since then.” He pauses, “You do mean the one without the shirt right?”
• “No,” the waitress blushes, “the other one – the tan one. With the magnificent horses.”
• “Oh,” Aros looks at her. “Him. Yes, I know him too. But he’s actually spoken for.”
• The waitress looks forlorn for a moment and perks up again and says, “Well, I should have known. Someone that attractive would not stay single long.”
• Outside, as the guards leave Baldur, he turns and faces Ramgor, “She’s actually alive,” he assures him, easing the concern and shock. “I saw the wanted poster and just came up with a story that she drowned. It’s sort of based on a real incident.”
• Ramgor looks at Baldur, “That’s good to hear.” There’s a moment pauses and he finally asks, “What of her second date? That Paladin of Prenah?”
• Baldur nods, “Oh, he’s alive too.”
• “No,” Ramgor shakes his head, “how is their… relationship?”
• “Oh, that,” Baldur nods. “Yeah. Don’t worry. I don’t think she’s into him. He’s a little too forward. I think she appreciates your more romantic touch, if you will. Either that, or she’s more into your money. I don’t know, to be honest.”
• Ramgor smiles. “They’ve been on their date for quite some time. I suppose I can’t complain. Our ‘first date’ lasted quite a bit as well. And it’s given me opportunity,” Ramgor chuckles, “to talk to her third date, Balgun Sternrest.”
• Baldur and Ramgor speak for a moment more before he excuses himself from Ramgor and Annie and heads back, just outside of town to meet with: Aros, Galiena, Kavium and Nikalos
• Nikalos proceeds to explain that he’d come here to Eagle Rock to deliver the gifts for the children – but he’s found that – especially in Felhorn and Greenhaven – that the children seem to be having terrible nightmares of a hellish creature – and he was going to ask the guards to look into it – but realizes that the four of you are probably going to get to the bottom of it faster than Lord Brenmoon’s dismissive guards
• He goes on to explain that the children claim to see a young girl – in various states of decay – each one worse than the other standing next to it – and another creature – the hellish one – next to it
• Nikalos provides a vivid description of what all the kids have seen – none of their stories every vary – it’s always these three children standing in the same order, same pose, with the other creature

• Nikalos asks who among them is the most compassionate – and the party exchanges glances at one another – wondering, who among them might be the most compassionate? Aros explained it could not be him – he’s a thief who steals – but Nikalos counters that Aros was able to put aside his own typical hatred of goblins and kobolds and not only befriend them – but assist them against a greater darkness – and even forming trade routes for the kobolds and Greenhaven (Clearly Nikalos knows who is naughty and nice!)
• Nikalos extends his hands to Baldur and Galiena who take his hand and feel an energy coursing through them – their arms instinctively reach out for Kavium who embraces – who then reaches out to Aros
• Uncertain what to make of it, Aros leaps in the bushes to hide

• Galiena despite Aros’ incredible roll – seems to magically see Aros and grabs his hand and pulls him out of the bushes – almost out of control – Baldur grabs his other hand – and the circuit is complete
  • A scene begins to unfold…
  • There’s a woman, who clearly lives here on Eagle Rock, several of the things you see through her eyes are recognizable
  • There’s a ripple in the imagery and suddenly she is frantically running – as she looks over her shoulder – all of you can tell she’s near the lake – she is at Lake Kelnor and running – clearly frightened

• Then the image shows something – a man, pale complexation – sweeps down on her – picks her up effortlessly into the air and sinks his teeth into her neck, drawing in her blood – but he stops, lands on the ground – and allows her to live – she is very, very, very pregnant – and each of you sense – that he knows when she bares children that will be more food for him – just then an arrow flies and strikes him in the shoulder and in shock he releases her; you see his point of view as he looks down at the woman he dropped and the man who dared attack him. He laughs and escapes into the pitch darkness of the island.
  • The perspective changes to the male who fired the arrow who slings his bow over his shoulder and checks for a pulse on the woman and discovers she’s alive; he quickly brings her to the closest town she’d run towards – Felhorn.
  • It’s there, even as she lay dying, she manages to give birth to three infants
  • When the vision ends – Nikalos hands Galiena a trident with three tips – on the each of the steel tips is a steel heart
• Nikalos grimly states, his chipper voice gone, “Find the Oni. When you find it – plunge this through her heart – each heart represents the heart of the child. They need to know what they became was not their fault.”
• “What did they become?” Aros asks
• Nikalos looks sad. “When the vampire bite her – the disease of vampirism infected the three infants – they were born inherently with a bloodthirst that they could not explain – but did not have the dependency of the vampire. It eventually drove all three mad. In the end, they disappeared… I believe they’ve somehow become the Oni.”

• As Galiena grips the trident – she feels magical energy surging through it – she gets an additional vision – where she sees the three triplets somehow merged into one being
• Galiena looks at Nikalos, “Just what is this ‘Oni’?”
• Nikalos nods, “If the nursery rhymes are to be believed, the Oni are fearsome bogeymen that haunt the nightmares of children and adults alike – however, they find human babies especially delicious. Their eyes are dark with strikingly white pupils, and their teeth and claws are jet black. By the light of day, an Oni hides its true form with magic, gaining the trust of those it intends to betray when darkness descends. These creatures can change their size as well as their shape, appearing as humanoids as they pass through towns, pretending to be travelers, woodcutters, or frontier folk. In such a form, an Oni takes stock of the selection of humanoids in a settlement and devises ways to abduct and devour some of them. I believe the Oni’s presence is nearby and the children in Felhorn and Greenhaven have both been experiencing nightmares.”
• Nikalos then adds, “If the Oni is not near a child; it will surround itself with death, for that’s where it is most comfortable – and that’s where it would take any victims it has managed to capture.”
• Nikalos’ expression changes to one of extreme cheer as he says, “Well! So great that you are all willing to help! I have faith in each of you! And once the Oni has been given peace, the nightmares will stop tonight – and I will be able to deliver these gifts for the children! After all, these nightmares keeping them awake at night makes it difficult for me to sneak into their homes and drop off these gifts for them to wake up to!”
• Aros asks Nikalos which direction they should go; but Nikalos says he’s told them everything he knows; Aros then turns to Baldur and asks which way
• Baldur tries to figure out what Nikalos means by seeking death
• Then Nikalos whispers, “Have you ever seen an Oni before?”
• Suddenly, Baldur recalls something – the Oni – striking him from the crypt before it’d vanished (See Session 29) and explains they should go back to the graveyard
• Aros explains he thought that Baldur and Galiena had taken care of it – because he’d remained in the graveyard looking for clues of the Oni and didn’t find anything (See Session 29)
• Baldur explains that it disappeared in the crypt that it’d hit him from and they found no evidence of it
• As they make their way to the graveyard – there’s an oppressing feeling that something is very wrong – and Baldur notes that this is a good – but maybe, bad – sign – that the Oni must be near by
• Aros quickly hides… (Another Natural 20)

• Baldur throws Aros into a tree after Aros asks for a boost; and Aros is able to look from up there – and he quickly spots three figures, they’re hunched over, and from this distance seem to have an animalistic appearance to them; they appear to be sniffing at the ground and shamble in an unnatural manner
• Aros attempts to get closer – and begins to slip on a branch – but recovers (Using Inspiration from the apple he’d eaten earlier)

• Aros attempts to assassinate one – however, having slipped – he’s off and misses, despite having advantage; and now sees clearly what these horrifying creatures are

• Galiena hears a slight, odd, roar and Baldur looks at her, “Is that your stomach?”
• Galiena looks offended, “No, it’s not my stomach!”
• “Well, I know you wanted one of those apples,” Baldur says
• “It’s not my stomach!” Galiena repeats. “I think Aros is in trouble.”
• Baldur and Galiena rush over and see that Aros is fighting three ghastly looking creatures that resemble undead gnolls
• Baldur and Galiena rush in to help Aros, yelling at him for attracting unwanted attention
• Baldur slams one with his Dracoshard Spear while Galiena is there with an Eldritch Blast
• Aros, after being pummeled by the three figures, hiding in the bush – but manages finally lands a critical strike

• After taking down the gnoll witherlings, the party resumes their search of their graveyard, when they notice one of the crypts bares the name of a woman – then the name of three others beneath her name – and the party determines, this may be the tomb of the mother and the three children
• Baldur tries to shove the door open but he’s not able to; and thankfully Aros stops him from trying again as he notices the tomb is locked – and also spots a trap on the door – as if the door was locked to keep whatever was inside, inside, and prevent it from coming out
• Aros removes the trap and keeps the vial of poisonous gas, which can be thrown and explode, causing those in a 30′ circle to suffer the poisoned condition if they fail the DC 10 Constitution check
• Baldur gives the door another shove – and realizes it’s extremely heavy – the door is thick – as if, as suspected – they were trying to prevent anyone getting inside, or more importantly, anything getting out
• Baldur gives it another shove and opens the door enough to allow himself and Galiena enough space to enter
• Immediately, the smell of fresh decay greets them – and inside, they see one large sarcophagus and three smaller ones next to it
• Galiena covers her nose, “Well, this is probably the right place, right amount of coffins and also, smells like death, like Nikalos said.”
• As they step inside, they notice that the three smaller coffins are all ajar
• Baldur opens one of the crypts – and to his surprise – sees a young girl, her face distorted – staring back at him
• At that moment, the door which weights several hundred pounds seems to easily shut, trapping Aros, Galiena and Baldur inside
• The crypt is then covered in magical Darkness
• Suddenly Baldur feels something hit his armor, then hiss loudly (Critical Fail)

• When Aros lights a torch – he sees the Oni – and tethered to him through some magical means is three young girls, around the age of 5 with horrific appearances, floating behind the Oni
• Aros screams and shouts, “Galiena! Get Darko! We’re going to need him!”
• Galiena lets Darko out of her bag – and Darko attacks and lands a Natural 20 on the Oni (after complaining that, yet again, there’s no one to possess!)

• The Oni tries to hit Baldur, but Baldur manages to cast Shield to deflect the attack
• However, things begin to go into a downward spiral as Baldur critically fails, hitting Galiena for some minor damage, and Darko hitting Baldur

• Aros notices that most of the wounds the creature is taking seems to be healing slowly
• Aros mentions, “Galiena! Use the trident! The Oni’s wounds keep slowly healing! I think the trident is the key!”
• Galiena tries to use it – and can’t seem to hit – she hands it to Aros – who then, wide eyed – quickly shoves it over to Baldur
• Baldur shoves it into the Oni – and in doing so – a larger female spirit – drifts into the larger coffin, and the three spirits of the girls return to their coffin – and the coffins close – leaving only the Oni’s body slumped on the floor
• Aros sees this and says, “Nikalos mentioned there was something we needed to do.”
• Baldur and Galiena look at each other
• Neither can remember and nor can Aros
• They look at the crypt door and know it’s magically locked – so they know they’ve not solved it
• They lift the Oni into the larger coffin – but still nothing happens
• Galiena tries to recall – there was something about the most compassion
• Aros tries to recall – and finally says, “I think we just need to keep stabbing it until the tomb door opens.” Baldur begins shoving the trident repeatedly into the Oni’s body

• Galiena casts Guidance on herself and tries to remember…

• She vaguely remembers, Nikalos mentioned that it needs to be stabbed or something needs to be stabbed. Baldur stabs the Oni in the heart, but the crypt remains magically locked.
• Aros suddenly remembers, “Nikalos asked who had the most compassion. He handed the trident to you Galiena! I think you need to do this.”
• Galiena takes the trident offers a prayer and brings the trident down on the Oni’s heart – there is a scream and a large gust of wind seemingly from nowhere – and the spirit of the woman rises – she looks beautiful and pure – and the three children’s spirits rise – also cleansed of the curse that they’d been born with – and all three witness and angel who descends and wraps her wings around all four figures and departs – the crypt door at that moment – suddenly opens.
• The party makes their way back to Nikalos who is smiling when he sees them and thanks them, saying he can tell the nightmares are over.
• DM Note – I created 12 Christmas themed items and had the party individually roll to see what gift they got. The idea being the “12 days of Christmas” – so I had each party member roll a d12 to see what gift they got.
• Nikalos hands Galiena – Magical Ugly Sweater
• Nikalos hands Aros – Magical Snowball Terrain Changer
• Nikalos hands Baldur – Magical Wings of Wonder

1 Candy Cane Staff
2 Bells of Jingling
3 Enchanted Nutcracker
4 Enchanted Snowglobe
5 Snowflake Shurikens
6 Frosty Cookies
7 Reindeer Antlers
8 Ugly Sweater
9 Quarter Staff of the Evergreen
10 Nikalos’ Spectacles
11 Anglic Wings of Wonder
12 Snowball Terrain Changer