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• Arhian Vos – Human Monk
  • Pet: Pabu (Young Red Panda)
• Hartmut Helmsworth – Elf Monk
  • Pet: Kalistia (Young Blink Dog)
• Sindri Waggletop – (Forest) Gnome Wizard 
• Rettniss Kulvith – Water Genasi Druid
  • Pet (?): Vindri (Sindri Voodoo Doll)
• Avacyn “Jolyne” Uloth the Merciless – Half-Orc Paladin
• Twilight Skybane – Tiefling Bard
  • Pet: Gem (Sailor Parrot With A Mouth)
  • Pet: C.C. (Copy Cat, Mimic Bag Of Holding)

DM Note – Sindri and Twilight missed last session – so I began with them to get them caught up with the party.

• Sindri snaps out of his trance and looks around and sees only Twilight. “What happened? Where’s the others?”
• Twilight explains that Sindri suddenly went into an odd trance – and then, a voodoo doll that Rettniss had made suddenly “came alive” for lack of better words. Twilight explains that apparently the doll “talks” but only Rettniss can hear it. She says that it has your voice in his head, and that she’s named it “Vindri.” Twilight explains that she’s not sure if the Voodoo doll is to blame for Sindri’s sudden trance, but it is oddly timed. She also tells Sindri, that it appears that the Voodoo doll has learned a “Spell” from Sindri (Fire Bolt). DM Note: All this and so much more happened last session in Session 28!
• Twilight helps Sindri up and together they make their way towards the encampment that had been marked on the map
• They reach a large field full of arrows, as if the hobgoblins were taking some kind of practice with their long bows (DM Note – What actually happened is Avacyn who was fleeing the Hobgoblins had arrows raining down on her head – which happened last session in Session 28)

• Sindri looks to Twilight and asks, “Do you know what’s up with this amulet?”
• Twilight whispers, “Not sure. We all woke up with it. It’s the symbol of Lady Valen Tyne, however. So I assume we’ve been bestowed this gift.”
• At that moment, a large howl rumbles through the heavens – and everyone knows it’s The Great Howl (everyone gains Odin Inspiration, because Odin’s birthday was a few days prior to this game).

• Twilight and Sindri both spot a trail of blood coming into the woods, and then running back out of the woods, in a zig-zagging formation. They determine, by the size and impression of the tracks, it looks to have been created undoubtedly from Avacyn. They’re curious if she did it as a way of allowing them to know where the party went – or if it has something to do with the sixty to seventy arrows in the field. The both agree it’s the latter.
• As they follow the trail – and suspecting that Avacyn was trying to avoid something – they use one of the Inspiration charges to dive behind the rock before being spotted by the Spectator

• Sindri uses his magic to summon the “magical Squirrel Spellbook” – and sends it 60′ away – then casts Minor Illusion to make it look like Avacyn is in the battle field – so that he and Twilight can continue to stealth. Although not firing at Twilight, they fire wildly into the field, remembering how Avacyn had zig zagged previously – and one lands a shot that hits Twilight, but he’s firing so many arrows, he’s not even looking when he hits her (DM Note, this is just flavored for her failed Dex check to quietly make it across the field)

• Sindri and Twilight finally make it inside the cave; where they see a battle has clearly taken place; there are a number of dead hobgoblins and fire scorch marks along the cave floor and wall; and a human, who looks to be in somewhat bad shape, and another human, tied up and on the floor. They also see their good friends, Daggerpoint the Sprite and Locke the pseudo-dragon, sitting on a wooden post.

• Sindri and Twilight begin to make their way down to the main floor when they hear the tied Necromancer, who looks at Rettniss and laughs, “Ah, you must be one of Karliah’s daughters or granddaughters … you look so much like her… and magic… I sense it in you… she will be pleased when you catch up to her… you’ve grown… and that’s exactly what she wants from you…”

• Sindri makes his way closer, looking around. “You guys have been busy.”
• “Yeah,” Korra adds, pointing at several hobgoblins, then seeing Arhian’s robes burned, “What happened here?”
• Rettniss sees Sindri and smiles, “Oh, good you regained consciousness. Good to see you walking around.” At that moment, she also hears Vindri’s voice in her head, “Don’t forget! Put me close to him to see if I can absorb more of his magic! Remember, me and you – we’re best friends.” Rettniss clears her throat, “Sindri, you and I should probably talk.”
• Sindri looks to Twilight, “Hey. Do you hear something? It feels like something is trying to talk to me.” (Clearly an effort to show Sindri was trying to ignore Rettniss, after hearing about the Voodoo Doll incident from Twilight)
• Twilight adds, “Sindri was with me the whole time, how is there so many burn marks everywhere? Including on our companions and the enemies?”
• “Funny you should ask,” Rettniss begins to explain.
• “Did you learn fire spells?” Twilight asks.
• “Let’s be clear!” Sindri injects, “She already knew fire spells!” (Sindri is referencing back to Session 22, when Rettniss decided to use Burning Hands in the bedroom, igniting the bedroom on fire, during a fight with assassins – Twilight, however, had missed that because she’d been rendered unconscious by the magical lyre)
• “I want to be clear,” Rettniss explains, “what was supposed to be a ‘ha ha’ funny joke – changed. So as it turns out, I was bored on one of my watches, and I’d made a Voodoo Doll of Sindri. I was just going to show it to him and tell him how I could do all these things to the doll that would also affect Sindri. For authenticity, while he slept, I did weave some of his loose beard hairs I gathered while he was sleeping into the voodoo doll. I did not ever expect it would do what it did… and this is… for lack of a better word – ‘come alive.’ And not only that, I guess because I used Sindri’s hair and may have made it how my grandmother used to tell me about them – it also seems to have learned one of Sindri’s cantrips – the Fire Bolt spell.” (DM Note – It’s true! I came up with the idea of the Voodoo Doll coming alive to render Sindri unconscious since he was going to be missing Session 28 – and it was just supposed to be for just that session – but it turned out to be so much fun, I kept the Voodoo Doll alive even after Sindri regained consciousness – and the spell was chosen by Rettniss by rolling against Sindri’s Cantrip table – see Session 28 for all of that!)
• Rettniss clears her throat, “So I think we should talk about this,” as she whispers, “because I think it wants to kill you.”

• Sindri stares at Rettniss – his knowledge of Voodoo Dolls is minimal. He knows that often witches and warlocks, those who practice the darker arts, have been known to use voodoo dolls; but also some of the other races that rely on Shamans, rather than Priests, such as some orcs, kobolds, and bugbears, often believe in the power of Voodoo Dolls; but there are groups of humans in some of the regions who also follow the same idea, of the spirits in the world rather than the gods in the world, who put great power in such dolls; unfortunately, he’s not confident if destroying it would cause him any ill harm since it’s a voodoo doll of him
• Sindri snarls, “I don’t know if it’s safe to destroy it – so keep that thing away from me. We will figure it out later.”
• At that moment, Rettniss hears Vindri’s voice in her head, “He will go to sleep eventually. That’s when we will do it. Set me next to him to see if I can get more of his magic. If it works, pretty soon we won’t even need him anymore! I will be as powerful as him – but funner!”
• Rettniss’ eyes go wide as she slams the backpack with her elbow
• Rettniss clears her throat, “Vindri is very good in combat,” Arhian coughs, “mostly, anyway.”
• Vindri’s voice enters Rettniss’ mind, “Hey! Hitting her wasn’t my fault! I was caught up in the moment. Things get really confusing really fast when I get caught up in the moment! It’s not my fault! My brain is made out of yarn!”
• Rettniss explains, “Oh, I might add… it seems to have gained access to some of your memories… but because it’s brain is made out of yarn… it does have a problem focusing… and that causes it to sometimes… misfire. Maybe you can do some magic to help it out?”
• Sindri’s eyes go wide in defiance, “Why would I want to help it out?”
• Meanwhile Rettniss hears Vindri’s voice, “Keep going! Yeah, yeah! I like this plan! Have him cast magic on me!”
• Rettniss clears her throat, “If we can help out Vindri… it’d be like I’d have my own Pabu,” she looks up at Arhian then back down to Sindri and whispers, “but he actually does something!”
• “How did you even make that thing?” Sindri growls.
• “Well, my grandmother, Karliah knew all kinds of magic,” Rettniss explained, “and there were times I would learn from her… normally she taught me just the ways of nature. But she also showed me how to channel spirits sometimes – how, everything is alive – and everything has an essence. I’d seen her make Voodoo Dolls, but I don’t recall her ever teaching me. I’d just seen them. She never showed me how to enchant one. That’s why I didn’t expect it to… come alive.”
• The tied up Necromancer laughs, “Well, well, well. It’s just as Karliah said. She sensed something in you. She knew you’d be ‘the next one.’ No idea what she meant – but she said you’d be the next one – and that you would come looking for her. Sounds like she was right,” the Necromancer continues to laugh.
• Sindri shakes his head. “Avacyn, what was with all the blood in the field?”
• She shrugs and says, “You found us didn’t you?”
• Sindri shakes his head and turns to Arhian and asks for what happened, and Arhian recaps the events (see the frequently linked Session 28)
• Hartmut points to the pillar in the center and explains that the Necromancer was going to shove Bram’s spirit inside a recently slain hobgoblin and raise one of those Hobgoblin Monk like things they’d encountered

• Rettniss turns back towards the Necromancer, “That’s right. How do you even know my grandmother?”
• The Necromancer laughs, “Oh, don’t you know? She’s the one who taught us how to do the Soul Transfer that would have siphoned his soul,” he gestures towards Bram, “into that over there, giving birth to an Iron Shadow. Right from the pages of one of her Grimoire. Turns out, someone stole it – and she heard about Drow getting a hold of the very page we’re talking about – so she knew it was here. She tracked it back to the Broken Lands – that’s where the Adventurers had been. So that’s where she was headed to see if she could find her Grimoire. She needs it for when you catch up to her, she says.”
  • DM Note – Another group found the very page she’s referencing. Drow had come across it after killing some adventurers. Another group of Adventurers found that page after defeating some Drow in the Shadowvale, and debated destroying it; but ended up giving it to the party’s Warlock to hold onto in The Adventurers – Session 38. That page and that knowledge would be used at a critical moment, many sessions later in The Adventurers – Session 66 when that Warlock would sacrifice his own life and soul transfer his own soul into the Abyss, and restore the Artificer’s soul, to allow him to shatter the sphere and release the ancient magic back into the world!
• Rettniss asks why she would teach them
• And the Necromancer explains that she had wanted to make sure it would work as she wanted; she’d used it previously, she claimed for something; but something had gone wrong when she’d done it; so she knew that long ago, the hobgoblin deity had done something similar changing goblin souls into greater warriors, and created hobgoblins (See the History of the Seven Kingdoms of Utsukkuen)
• He goes on to explain, “Once she confirmed it worked several times; and she was doing it from memory, and scribed the spell down to replace her stolen page from her Grimoire that she was out to seek, she left for the Broken Lands, because that’s where she last heard her Grimoire had been – except for the one page that had been ripped from it.”
• “Why are you so willing to share this information?” Rettniss growled.
• “Because the pain and confusion I see etched on your face,” the Necromancer smiled.
• Arhian lists and watched the Necromancer

• Arhian turns to Rettniss, “He’s enjoying doing this to you,” she points out. “I am sure he’s telling the truth – but he can see the confusion and hurt it’s causing you. I say you shouldn’t give him anymore pleasure. I say we take him to the wizards and let the wizard ‘cleanse’ him of his dark ways.” Arhian pulls Rettniss aside and continues, “Do you have any other family?”
• Rettniss shakes her head. “I was always raised by my grandmother, essentially. She often left me to be in the cabin alone – but I have no memories of any brothers or sisters, or even my true mother and father.”
• “What do you know about your grandmother? Can she really be as depraved as this Necromancer says? I feel like he’s telling the truth, at the very least, he seems to know of her name… but if she’s truly powerful, he may know her by name, and all of what he said is some lie to try and hurt you,” Arhian adds.
• “She’s always been kind and nurturing to me,” Rettniss shrugged. “Other than the times she’d leave me alone for days or weeks, she took wonderful care of me.”
• They rejoin the others just in time to hear Sindri ask, “So, Bram, did you learn anything?”
• Bram, who is still wounded, explains, “There’s a number of things I’ve discovered… a massive army of bugbears have been recruited as mercenaries to be a part of some ‘dragon army’ and that the hobgoblins have made an alliance with the chromatic dragons; with the agreement that the hobgoblins serve the dragon army, in exchange, the dragons will help wipe out the hobgoblin’s most bitter enemy – the orcs. I’ve also learned that this ‘dragon army’ is composed of several different chromatic dragons.”
• Daggerpoint adds, “We can confirm that. A green dragon named Kala’Shin, which means born of great evil in Ancient Elven, was seen flying out of the Dwarven Kingdom of Thoridun, which is the one Locke and I were pursing.” (DM Note – Kala’Shin was first seen in another game – The Adventurer’s – Session 26)

• Bram also explains that he’s seen a White Dragon that’s been working with this hobgoblin encampment; it’s not an adult dragon, based on it’s size; it’s younger, but that does not mean it should be attacked recklessly without a solid plan
• Bram also explains that – it may or may not be related, but he’d learned that the Spider Queen, deity of the Drow, was recently resurrected (Lakrona) and killed eight deities (DM Note – The deities she killed were: Airana, Akanda, Drakenfiel, Elenar, Krauzden, Lauhzar, Tavara and Teakak – you can learn more about each one in the Deities section) when she ascended before being banished back to Garengrand (DM Note – You can read about the three primary planes – and some of the religious beliefs of the world in the Deities section of the site). Bram explains that the fact that a dark goddess was able to breach Aftgrand bodes ill – because that means Brengrand (DM Note – Essentially the Prime Material Plane) would be much easier to breach – and some dark deity could make their way here if they had the power.
• Bram also explains that he’s learned that there was an ‘Occult of the Dragon Order’ that operated out of the Broken Lands long before the Sundering – and due to the ever shifting ‘living sands’ of the Broken Lands the exact location of this temple this Occult of the Dragon Order operated from is impossible to pin point. He explains that he believes that critical information could potentially be found there.
• Arhian explains that they need to get out of the cave; the hobgoblins are going to come looking sooner or later
• DM Note – Since Arhian asked, and I hadn’t been really keeping track of the time in game; I told Arhian to roll 2d12 and we’d do military time

• Sindri asks Bram, “Have the hobgoblins come in here to check periodically?”
• Bram shakes his head, “I was up in the encampment until about an hour ago, tied to a post, having rocks thrown at me, until about an hour ago, until I was dragged down here into this cave. So I can’t speak for any behavior the hobgoblins have.”
• Hartmut shakes his head, “We also have to deal with this guy,” and gives the Necromancer a gentle kick, “if we’re dragging him back to the Wizards.” Hartmut pulls out manacles from his bag and says, “I can bind him.” The party agrees, and Hartmut secures him.

• Rettniss takes Sindri’s handkerchief and shoves it down the Necromancer’s throat to silence him and prevent him from crying out for help
• The party straps the gagged Necromancer on Avacyn’s back as Hartmut expends his last two Ki Points to cast Pass Without A Trace which greatly increases everyone’s stealth ability
• Sindri points out that his small legs will not be able to keep up if the party gets in trouble and needs to run; because normally Avacyn would carry him, but Avacyn is already burdened down by having the Necromancer (now unconscious after Avacyn did an unarmed strike to render the Necromancer unconscious) strapped to his back
• As the party is quietly moving across the field, it’s Avacyn’s armor that unfortunately, even with Pass Without Trace reveals her location (Natural 1… due to Disadvantage rolls)
• The party suddenly finds themselves in trouble as alarms ring in the encampment and arrows begin to fly – hitting Avacyn twice
• But it’s what they hear next that sends fear in their hearts
• A loud roar
• The roar
• Of a white dragon!
• The party looks back and sees the White Dragon at the top of the mountain

• The magnificent – yet terrifying beasts – roars again – extends its wings – and begins it’s rapid descent like a bird of prey, eyes focused on the party!
• Sindri shouts, “Wait! Wait! Someone pick me up!”
• Vindri whispers in Rettniss’ brain, “Do we need to save him? Do we?”
• Rettniss shouts, “Wait. Let me wild shape!”
• “I am not getting on your back next to that doll of yours,” Sindri protests, despite the danger.
• Arhian grabs the bag, “Fine, just do this. We don’t have time to debate.”
• Rettniss uses her Wild Shape to take the form of a bear
• Sindri quickly climbs on top of Rettniss and grips her fur, while Avacyn and Hartmut quickly quaff potions before continuing their mad sprint away from the white dragon; as well as about twenty hobgoblins on foot, who the party watched descend from the encampment
• The party manages to stay together, despite their varying speeds

• The party reaches a large clearing in the woods; and they know if they take the time to go around it, it’s going to give the hobgoblins in pursuit time to catch up; but dashing across the clearing is going to expose them to the white dragon flying above

• Twelve hobgoblins (I rolled a d6 one for each; and landed on Rettniss; told Rettniss to roll 1d20 to see how many hobgoblins catch up and fire shots)
• I rolled again to see who they target – and rolled a d6 again – and this time the dice landed on Sindri, who thankfully was able to cast Shield – and hears arrows slamming into his shield he’s extended – and thankfully, the Shield spell manages to deflect all of the blows!
• As the party makes it through the clearing, the dragon having tried to grab Rettniss, Rettniss in bear form picks up a scent of something – Gnolls! And Jackals! However, in bear form she’s not able to speak…
• Twilight doesn’t pick up the scent – but hears the sound of jackals! She quickly warns the party that they’re running towards gnolls
• The party makes a hard turn away from the gnolls – hoping that the gnolls and hobgoblins collide…

• I did another d6 roll – landed on Avacyn; had Avacyn roll a d20 – and only 7 hobgoblins have managed to catch up now and fire their longbows
• This time, the hobgoblins target Hartmut; but only one is good enough to hit – but Hartmut spins midair, hearing the whistling of the arrow, and deflects the arrow away from him, and lands on his feet and continues running
• Arhian, in her haste, accidentally goes too far – and runs into a clearing…

• The White Dragon breathes – and the frost cone is heading directly for Arhian…

• Hartmut seeing this, places his hand on his amulet, and shouts to Arhian about all the things they’ve done together…

• Arhian quickly quaffs her last healing potion…

• The party finally manages to lose the dragon; and behind them they hear the hobgoblins battling the gnolls, causing a nice distraction for the party… and thankfully, Rettniss is able to hide at the last moment to prevent from being seen…

Rescuing Bram Was A Mile Stone! The Party Levels Up!