Players Present: Galliard, Rahn, Nor, Zyldi, Eridor, Seraphina, Elgard, Kanye, Kulu

Players Missing: None

Written by the Almighty DM

Having successfully acquired the Black Orchid from Queen Zaklore, the party departs Nangalore with a young woman named Kwani and her still-petrified friend Shabarra. After a lengthy debate about what to do about this situation, Rhan sighs and (with great annoyance in his heart) uses his Chwinga blessing to un-petrify Shabarra. The two young thieves repay the kindness by attempting to steal a ruby from the party and fleeing into the jungle. “Well, I guess we’ll be fighting them later as undead” quipped Nor.

The party makes it back to the base of Kir Sabal where some Aarakocra monks are waiting to fly them up to the monastery. Azaka Stormfang also rejoins the party, and offers to wait with Q’Washa and Bill down below while the party takes care of business. 

The party tells the tale of recovering the Black Orchid from the Mad Queen of Nangalore to Asharra and the other monks over dinner. Asharra tells the party that the next day might not be so good for doing the ritual because of a storm rolling in, but they would stay flexible and see what the weather did. 

Sure enough, the next day saw a raging tropical storm. During the day of downtime, the party rested up, chatted with some monks, bought a few mundane items, and ate some simple but satisfying food. Prince Na continued being precious, while Princess Mxawanare was absent for most of the day. In the early evening, she was able to corner Elgard and began seductively imploring him to find a relic for her in Omu: “I need you to find the Skull Chalice of Ch’k’gare! This symbol will legitimize my rule and cement my place as Queen of Omu and Chult!” Elgard immediately forgets all of the details and pretends this awkward encounter never happened.

The next morning finds our heroes gathered at the base of the plateau ready for the Dance of the Seven Winds. Asharra looks at the party solemnly and asks “Which of the 4 of you wishes to gain the git of flight?” The party stops. They look at each other. Only 4 of us? What did we sign up for? Did we remember something wrong? As the group begins to discuss among themselves Asharra and the monks begin to laugh. “Just kidding. How ever many of you can fit inside this huge circle. Should be big enough even for the triceratops”. 

Asharra holds the Black Orchid as seven monks begin to dance around the party. As they begin to move faster, a strange wind begins to flow upwards within the circle. Petals fly off of the Orchid and Asharra’s eyes begin to glow white. Faster and faster, the monks chanting grows louder, the wind gets stronger, the air filled with Orchid petals until…..

The ritual stops and Asharra, feathers gone, wings gone, collapses into the arms of the nearest monk. Nephyr assures the party that Asharra will be alright, that her giving up her ability to fly is what allows the Wind Dukes of Aaqa to grant temporary flight to the party. Once the three day power wears off, her wings and feathers will begin to grow back. He urges the party to fly with haste so as to not squander her gift.

The party is able to coax Bill off the ground and they are off! They are able to see the stunning vistas of Chult like never before. The entire first day goes uneventfully, and at night the party is able to find a safe space to rest. 

Early the second day they come upon an unusual sight: a floating earthmote shaped like a heart. This is known to the locals as The Heart of Ubtao, blasted from the land after the god abandoned his people. They see stairs carved into the side that lead into the heart, and there on a ledge a pretty blonde Elven lady waving to them. The party is intrigued and approaches.

The Elven woman introduces herself as Valindra and says that she has been studying the Soulmonger. Scattered about the dank and wet-smelling cave are bookshelves containing old books about Chult, and maps scattered on the desk that look old and inaccurate. She believes the Soulmonger is in the Forbidden City of Omu and is hoping the party can make contact with the Red Wizards that have already entered the city. 

Making note of the gross smell and the lack of any creature comforts or food, Zyldi asks what she eats or where she sleeps: “I am a Wizard and can conjure whatever food I need, and as an Elf I can simply meditate at my desk, no need for a bed”  Seraphina queitly uses her Divine Sense and senses an overwhelming Undead presence coming from Valindra. 

Valindra thanks the party for visiting her, and gives them some parting gifts on their way to Omu: a scroll of Arcane Gate, and a red token that they can present to the Red Wizards of Thay to show their alliance with their cause. 

As they are flying away Seraphina hits the party with a bombshell “Guys, I think she was a lich!” The party is left to wonder why a powerful Lich was so helpful in their quest for the Soumonger…

As evening approaches on the third day, and their powers of flight are waning, [title redacted] come upon a curious sight: a wrecked boat caught in the tops of the trees high above the jungle floor. Pitiful looking survivors hail the party and beg for rescue. The “Star Goddess” was a Halruaan airship bound for Port Nyanzaru when it got caught in the tropical storm that blew in a few days ago. Most of their supplies were scattered, and the survivors have been hiding in the ship from the Ghouls below. Thesselandra, the captain of the ship, asks the party for whatever aid they can provide, because they will surely die soon. Zyldi conjures food for them and they begin to eat. Suddenly a loud crashing noise comes through the upper branches of the trees. The party readies themselves as five Girallon Zombies burst forth onto the ship. These Girallons resemble large albino gorillas with four arms and a bad case of zombification, and they are ready to eat the flesh of the living.

These Girallon Zombies hit hard and fast. In the first round of combat, one of the Zombies goes over to an unnamed airship extra and throws him off the boat to be eaten by the Ghouls below, just to show that they mean business. The party takes some damage but in the end are able to kill these undead apes for good. The battered group decides to rest aboard the ship for the night as this seems like the safest place to be (undead gorilla monsters notwithstanding). During the night Seraphina thinks she sees a tiny dog below on the jungle floor but cannot confirm. Otherwise, the night passes uneventfully.

The next morning Eridor sends Larry the Flying Snake back to Kir Sabal with a message tied around his…neck? waist? Whatever flying snakes have. It reads “Send help to these shipwreck survivors, they are trapped in the trees in undead territory. Three days flight from Kir Sabal, directly between Heart of Ubtao and Omu, can’t miss it”. Q’Washa and Kupalue offer to stay with the survivors to protect them and provide them food, which brings up the matter of payment. Now that Q’Washa is going to split with the party, per their original agreement, he is owed 150gp, with all discounts and per-diems applied. The party begins to debate about this when Nor shouts above the rabble “JUST PAY THE MAN!” and throws his share in. The rest follow. 

Now our heroes journey through the deepest, darkest parts of the jungle on their way to the Forbidden City.

Players present: Galliard, Seraphina, Rahn, Kanye, Nor, Zyldi, Elgard, Kulu

[title redacted] arrives at the gardens of Nangalore. A fantastic ediface rises out from the middle of the gardens, and water streams down the middle to make a wet walkway. 2 large elephants guard the entrance to the gardens. There is still a lot of foliage, though the gardens have clearly been untended for decades.

The party splits off into various groups and goes off into the gardens to explore. Q’washa sees some writing on the wall in the waterway and translates for the group. There are four faces: Stern, Bemused, Serene, and Condescending. Each had a small saying about the prior Queen of Omu, Zalkore. These gardens were made for her, and she was worshipped by her and people and loved betrayed by Therutara.

Galliard casts detects magic, and goes where the smell of magic sends him. He finds a rotting mage corpse. He somehow defies the temptation to reanimate it, and simply loots the body. He finds a small box that further inspection reveals is a folding boat.

Meanwhile, Seraphina and Nor are being seduced by a fly trap. But these two know better than to fall for some luscious leaves. The plant does manage to knock Seraphina unconscious, and Nor murders it as swiftly as he can. Seraphina recovers.

Also meanwhile, Eridor and Kanye are attacked by 6 dwarf zombies. Eridor is also seduced by a plant, and he succumbs to the lovely limbs. They manage to take down the zombies and the charming plant is stabbed and stomped on by Kanye until death beckons it home.

Eridor sneaks into the giant structure that is the central point of the gardens, and he let’s the rest of the party in. There is something written in chultan within the temple that sums up to “It’s not cool to steal. So don’t do it. Seriously, you’ll probably die.” Eridor considers stealing what the statue is holding, but he doesn’t.

They poke their head out the back of this building, and 10 feet below them is a pool of water. Nor decides to don his water breathing cloak, and taking one for the team, he jumps into the water below. After a very quick search, he sees a layer of petrified turtles and fish. In addition, there are two stone humans in the water. Nor makes his way out of that pool of stone death as soon as possible.

Kanye dives in and rescues one of the petrified humans and uses the potion of greater restoration on her. She comes to, and reveals that she stole some things, saw a lady descending from the stairs that Nor is standing (he immediately bolts to a different dry spot), and the next thing she knew, she is waking up here.

The party assumes this lady is Zalkore, and they respectfully make their way to the dome where she had descended. The queen is sitting on a throne in the center of the room. She is completely stoned herself (medicinally), and she is curious about the party. It is clear that she has the upper hand and is not threatened by the party. Her army of cranes drives home this point.

She speaks cordially to the group, and the group is extremely polite in return. They inquire about the orchid that they need. The queen responds that she will take Galliard and Seraphina as her slaves in return. [title redacted] manages to not trade their party members and instead parts with some gemstones and the cloak of underwater breathing in exchange for the orchid.

Before they leave, they tell the queen about the current state of affairs in the Chult area, how Omu is overrun by Raz N’si. She acts as though she is fully aware of everything. However, she does offer some advice saying that it is best to approach the city from the skies, and it is too difficult to determine where you are in the terrain from the ground.

The party leaves, no worse for wear. Not super sure what happened with the lady they unpetrified and her friend? The party leaves in their folding boat.

Players Present: Seraphina, Nor, Kanye, Eridor, Galliard, Rahn, Elgard

Players Present by Proxy: Zyldi

Players Missing: Kulu

10 gargoyles fly around Kir Sabal. [title redacted] readies themselves for battle along with the Aarakocra warriors. The warriors prove extremely ineffective. They aren’t helpful at all. However, from the temple, Ashara comes and begins to ready a spell. Inside the temple, the other Aarakocra monks start to dance and chant. It’s clearly the perfect time for a party.

The battle against the gargoyles is slow going. Pretty much every one in the party uses nonmagical physical damage, and the gargoyles are particularly resistance to this. Elgard uses his magic wisely and casts Shatter multiple times to greatly injure them – he is the definite MVP of the battle.

Second MVP is Seraphina. The party hasn’t had the chance to rest since their ascent into Kir Sabal, and most are damaged fairly extensively. However, Seraphina keeps a watchful eye on the party and ensures everyone stays in fighting shape. Additionally, she sees this as the perfect opportunity to use her celestial powers. She summons forth her wings and flies to meet the gargoyles for battle in the air. She kills many gargoyles (at least 3).

Kanye gets the award for zeal. He jumps onto one of the gargoyles and ends up surfing on it down to the lowest walkway. He is eventually knocked off the edge, but is saved by an Aarakocra. (He is almost saved by a charmed gargoyle, compliments of Galliard, who believes that Kanye is his most prized possession of the Gargoyle series.)

Nor spends his time trying to protect Ashara as she brings down a storm to try and distract the gargoyles. His efforts are valiant, but the flying power of the gargoyles prevents him from achieving his goal as he would prefer. Ashara is greatly damaged and is unable to maintain her storm.

However, Ashara’s efforts to distract the gargoyles proves fruitful. As it turns out, the dancing monks are not having a party but summoning an air elemental to fight off the gargoyles. The elemental proves to be an extremely helpful ally.

Rahn, Galliard, and Dragle are just arriving to Kir Sabal when the battle begins. They are separated from the rest of the party, but jump into battle without question. Zyldi also fights hard in her bear form. Together, they continue to make (literal) dents in the gargoyles constitution.

After 7 gargoyles are defeated, the final 3 retreat like pansies. The party has saved Kir Sabal, but they are concerned that it is their presence that has brought forth this particularly vicious attack upon the city.

Everyone returns to the monastery to have a celebratory dinner. Everyone, that is, except Kanye, who retreats into the first house he sees and lies down for a long rest.

Waxanara joins us for dinner, and we learn that she is trying to use her magic to learn how to fly. Ashara does not look pleased at this. Conversation is tense, but civil. Nara is still a little diva jerk face.

Afterwards, most go to the library to see the books. Along the way, Galliard buys a pearl and gives it to Elgard. He uses it to identify the wand they found at the dragon lair (it is a wand of fear).

At the library, they finally meet the young prince, Na. He is reading and is eager to share his knowledge. The small boy is absolutely precious, and the glances between the party indicate that they think maybe Na needs to be the next ruler. Galliard offers to raise his parents from the dead, but Elgard and Seraphina deflect the offer so as to not give the boy false hope.

Na is learning how to grow Avocados (from a book ‘It’s The Pits’). Rahn suggest that he grow cows and offers him some jerky.

Before they say their farewells, Elgard creates a James the Giant Peach book for the boy.

Later that evening, Nor and Seraphina meet up to try and determine the purpose of the cloak that Nor looted from the dragon’s lair. They try multiple physical feats and different fighting techniques, but nothing seems any different. They give up for the evening thinking they’ll need magical assistance the next day.

The party leaves Kir Sabal the next day and begins their journey to the Lost Dreams garden of Mangalor for the flower that will allow them to fly. Along the way, they continue to try and determine the use of the cloak. Nor asks Elgard to hit him with a fireball (he happily obliges). No difference in effect. Finally, Kanye suggests it will allow you to breath underwater. Not wanting to get throat leeches in case it doesn’t work, Nor dips his head in one of the barrels of drinking water. Success! The cloak (with hood raised) allows the wearer to breath and see underwater. Who knows how this may prove useful in the future?

Players Present: Zyldi, Elgard, Kanye, Seraphina, Kulu, Eridor, Nor

Players Missing: Gallliard, Rahn

The ascent up the plateau is fraught with danger. Old pathways and rotting planks cause several party members to fall and take damage or suffer from exhaustion.

As they reach the edge of the village they are greeted by their friend Nephyr and his friend Cirrus. Nephyr has told the tale of [title redacted]’s heroism atop Firefinger, and how that group of Pterafolk with harass the jungle no more. The birdfolk are friendly and welcome [title redacted] to their village as long as they abide by a few rules:

• Don’t Harm
• Don’t Steal
• Don’t Lie
• Don’t Disrupt Traditions
• Be Helpful with Chores

The dwellings in Kir Sabal are simple structures carved out of the rock face, all joined by a wooden walkway. As they make their way through the village, they notice many children and families. One cute little kid (boy? girl? how do you tell?) named Airy catches Zyldi’s eye. Zyldi asks her (I guess it’s a her? Yeah, Airy is a her) if she can teach her how to make some of the pretty bone jewelry that they are wearing – Zyldi wants some souvenirs for her grandkids. After speaking with Airy’s parents (Talon and Beaker), they gift Zyldi a very pretty necklace as a welcome to their village, as well as a thank you for saving Nephyr.

After ritually cleansing themselves according to the traditions, the party is invited into the Monastery to meet with Teacher. The Monastery is the largest building in the village, and the front room is a dining/meeting room. As the party helps get lunch ready for their meeting, Teacher enters the room. Asharra, Teacher of Tradition, Elder of the Aarakocra at Kir Sabal greets the party warmly and they eat lunch together.

Asharra is old and wise and has seen much. She gives the party the following information:

• She does not know of the Death Curse or the Soulmonger, but knows there is concentrated evil in the lost city of Omu to the south
• Omu is where Ras Nsi currently resides with his army of Yuan-Ti. They want to summon Dendar the Night Serpent and bring about the end of the worldAarakocra scouts keep an eye on Omu but it is well defended
• Tells of the princess and prince that are being sheltered in Kir Sabal: Princess Mwaxanare N’Buso, lost heir to the throne of Omu, Queen of Chult, last of her line, and her little brother Prince Na. Their parents are dead (killed by pterafolk and gravity)
• Mawaxanare is 17 and Na is 6
• The Dance of the Seven Winds can grant the party the ability to fly for 3 days, but in order to perform it Asharra needs a Black Orchid from Nangalore, two days west of Kir Sabal near the River Olung- Nangalore
• “The Garden of Lost Dreams” – is home to many exotic plants. A human queen from Omu also lives there, and has for centuries – what’s up with that? Her name is Zaklore and she knows much
• Asharra does not let her  people near the garden due to the Eblis – Evil intelligent cranes – that live there.

As the conversation is wrapping up, Mwaxanare enters the room. She is dressed in fine clothes and wears a colorful feathered cloak. She is charismatic and beautiful, and immediately lets the party know that they are there to serve her. Seraphina tells her that she needs to be more respectful and is immediately slapped in the face by ‘Nare’s “MageHand”. “You will not speak to me this way” she tells the party.

She takes an immediate liking to Elgard. He impresses her by casually playing with a Firebolt, and they hit it off. The rest of the party’s collective eyes roll out of their heads.

Mwaxanare needs the party to clear the evil out of Omu so that she can restore it to its former glory and take up her “Rightful place as the queen of Chult”. The party needs to have a pow-wow about these developments. Kanye tells the story of how when he was younger his tribe had to team up with an enemy Ogre tribe to take out a rogue Storm Giant. Even though the Ogres were evil and smelled like shit, they were helpful in helping take down this greater evil. Kanye says that now is the time for them to endure some Ogre shit and help this girl so they can destroy the Soul Monger.

As this discussion is winding down, some harried looking scouts return to the village, and hot on their heels are flying stone monsters with the faces of devils – gargoyles! We leave our heroes as they begin the defense of Kir Sabal against this menace from Omu.

Players Present: Kanye, Zyldi, Elgard, Seraphina, Nor, Rahn, Galliard

Players Missing: Eridor, Kulu

[title redacted] is making their way through the jungle a few days after their meeting with Bwayes O’Tamu, the weretiger. As they look for a suitable place to camp, Seraphina gets a bad feeling about their surroundings right as some arrows fly out of the darkness. The party is caught in a Batiri Goblin ambush! A giant log is thrown from the cliff to their right, bonking Rhan on the head. He is annoyed. Arrows come from all sides as Qawasha and Elgard are caught in nets from behind. Emerging from cover in front of the party is a tall stack of Goblins on each others shoulders – 5 Goblins tall wearing colorful wooden war masks, holding shields, and waving spears.

The goblins do a well choreographed war chants as they fight: “Stab stab stab! Kill kill kill! Each little Goblin eats its fill!” “Dagger stab! Arrow fly! Oh we loves to watch it die!”

Once the party gets in action the tide begins to turn. The stack gets knocked down and murdered by the front line fighters, and Elgard dispatches the cliff goblins with some well placed magic. Zyldi turns into a bear and goes into a murder frenzy. Nor and Seraphina take care of the front goblins as Kanye gets his bloodlust out on the ones in the rear. Zyldi runs into the woods and dispatches those goblins in her mama bear death rage.

After the battle, a surviving goblin is found on the cliff. His name is Yik Yak and he promises the party treasure if they let him live. After some tense negotiations, the party finds his treasure cache in the woods: a canoe and a jar of ointment. The ointment is magical, and it is discovered that when applied (as they do to both Kanye and Yik Yak), that disease is cured and 2d8 hp is healed.

Kanye wants to keep Yik Yak as a pet, the rest are mired in a moral quandary about letting an evil creature go free verses going back on their word and killing him. Rhan decisively grabs Yik Yak out of Kanye’s arms and tosses him over the cliff. As Yik Yak falls, a slow motion montage of his life plays over some sappy music before he splatters on the jungle floor below. The party continues their journey.

A few days later they come to a massive sinkhole. The skeleton of a large dragon is deep in the pit and there is lots of wildlife around (frogs on lily pads, fish in the water, etc).

Zyldi reaches out to the surrounding nature and can feel that there is the presence of poison in a particular area on the wall of the hole. She is also able to detect magic near the same spot. After some sleuthing, it is determined that this is where the Dragon kept her stash.

After trying a few things, Galliard casts “Knock” on the wall, causing the secret door to open. Beyond the door is a small cave filled with treasure and magic items.

Galliard and Kanye go into the pool to try and get some teeth out of the Dragon’s skull. Kanye is unable to lift the massive skull out of the muck, but they are able to pull a tooth out. As they do this, swarms of small carnivorous fish begin to attack them. Gal jumps on Kanye’s shoulders and they run out of the water to safety. 

After two more days travel the jungle thins out as they approach a massive plateau. A village is carved into the side of the plateau, and Aarakockra can be seen flying around it. The party approaches the plateau and prepares to meet the Aarakocra of Kir Sabal.

Players Present – Kulu, Galliard, Rahn, Nor, Seraphina, Kanye, Eridor

Players Missing – Elgard, Zyldi

Rahn and Galliard return to the rest of the party. They are dressed as bushes, and now have a cart.

The group questions Eridor’s motives for wanting to join the party and proceed further into Chult. He says that he wants to return resurrection magic so that he can bring his father back from the dead. A vote is taken if he should join, and he becomes a new member of the party.

As they are talking through this, 3 spears come whizzing out of the forest.

ENCOUNTER – Tribal warriors with upside down blue triangles on their forehead (refesher – upside blue triangles are the sign of worshipers of Raz Nasee). The tribesman were dispatched with relative ease. The most notable battle moment that occurred was Qupalu hitting one of the warriors with a rock.

Kanye and Eridor grapple one of the tribesman. Eridor murders him after some pointless questioning. Galliard wants to make it another zombie. This is not voted in. However, it does bring up the thought of not wanting those they have killed to become zombies. As a result, Galliard decides to light campfires over the dead bodies multiple times in an attempt to burn them. Despite the good thinking, it was honestly just cooking their flesh and creating a terrible smell. Nor chops off their heads instead, and the entire party moves a small ways to a new non-smelly campsite.

They next day, after multiple, valiant, but poorly done attempts, they capture a harmless flying snake. Eridor keeps it as a pet. After a controversial vote, [title redacted] let’s it join. The snake is named Larry.

A few moment later, a trio walks toward the party. There are two elves and a human. They wear cloaks made of wool and have a distinctive clasp of a yellow shield and stag. This is the same clasp that Q’washa wears, indicating that there are part of the Emerald Enclave. (…a yellow clasp with a group name of Emerald Enclave?)

The trio offers lunch, and Q’washa seems happy and comfortable. Their leader is named Atwar, and he is open and amiable. Galliard asks them if they know anything about a black armored zombie. This is the first that the rest of the party hears of Galliard and Rahn’s close encounter with the Wight. The Wight goes about and resurrects bodies into zombies. They ask if there is any way that they can prevent people that they kill (in self-defense…usually…see three paragraphs above) from turning into zombies that they may have to fight yet again. Cutting off heads is the best that they can do at this moment.

The lady elf marvels over the map that the party has in their possession. She asks if she can copy their map, and she helps fill in details of their own. With the information that she has provided, the party decides to head to an upside down shipwreck named the Narwhal.

The next day, as the party travels through the forest, they encounter a statue off the side of the road. After their run in with the Golem, they are on edge and study the statue carefully. Galliard is able to divine that there is a glyph like thunder on it that would cause something bad to happen.

• Galliard: “Remember how when [Kanye] throws me there is a big boom? The same thing will happen here.”
• Kanye: “So, I should throw you.”
• Galliard: [Sidelong glace] “No.”
• Kanye: “So I should throw it?”

They simply walk away and leave the statue alone.

The next day, it is raining cats and dog. Everyone is DRENCHED. A tiger walks across the path, and the party freezes. The tiger stops and stares at the party and then begins to walk off. In the distance they can see the broken upside ship. They an also see it is surrounded by Vegepygmys. Some of them are riding mold dogs. (This sounded way cuter until I looked up the picture)

The tiger turns out to be another weretiger. He and Azaka were cursed by the same weretiger. (Seraphina: “You are weretiger siblings.) His name is Bwayes, and he is friendly. They learn he is a cousin of Wakanga. He does not want his family to know he is still alive, and so lives alone in the Narwhal. He has largely forgotten how to socialize. He really wants alcohol (Rahn leaves Bwayes his brewing kit). He is also very happy to learn some gambling games from Nor.

They stay warm and dry for the night, learn a few pieces of info from Bwayes, and the party heads out once more. That evening as they continue on their journey, Seraphina gets an odd feeling. “Hold here. Something doesn’t feel right.”

Crossbow bolts come shooting out of the forest.

(Below is the recount of Rahn and Galliard’s solo escapades after Clarice dropped off Kilgore’s Will and Testament)

After Clarice the Raptor delivered her sad message, Galliard was filled with hope. He was promised a fully intact not-that-old corpse! If only he could find it. After a brief conversation with Qawasha about how to go about finding it, Galliard and Rhan set out on their quest. Rhan knew Galliard would die on his own, and he wanted to do his part to help honor the agreement Kilgore had made.

They followed the trail that Clarice had made and it led them up a ridge. Traveling for most of a day, they came to a high point that looked out over the gorge that fed the River Tiryki. If there were postcards of Chult, this view would be on it – The sun about to set, wild jungle as far as the eye could see, the basin that fed the river – every angle a fresh wonder to behold. There, propped up against a large tree taking the view in, was a freshly dead Kilgore.

After examining her body (a small satisfied smile on her face – or maybe just the onset of rigor?), they noticed skillfully applied makeup that had been covering up the blue veins on her face, the telltale veins of the Death Curse. Suddenly, they heard a noise headed their way. After hiding, Galliard made other noises away from their location so they could get a better look at their new guest. Long, stringy white hair, black armor, a wicked looking blade, that was all they needed to see before grabbing Kilgore’s body and hiding a little further away. The figure came back and stepped fully into view. Intelligence sparked in the eyes, but the creature was obviously undead. A hateful scowl on his face, he began to search the area while Rhan and Gal made their escape.

That night they made camp along the trail back to Firefinger. During Rhan’s watch he noticed 5 strange looking dwarves covered in plants approaching their camp. Waking Galliard, he started the battle with these undead plant-dwarf-zombies. The plant that was controlling the zombies was beset by spontaneous campfires and could get no closer to Kilgore, while the 5 zombies landed a statistically improbable number of critical hits on Rhan. After many fires, healing words, and good attacks by Rhan and Dragle, the zombies were vanquished and the night went on peacefully.

The next evening, having passed by Firefinger and resumed the trail of [title redacted], the 3 remaining Pterafolk attacked! All party members were at one point lifted into the air and dropped (Dragle came within 1 hp of death!), but in the end our heroes were victorious.

That night, during Galliard’s watch, an old woman appeared in camp, plucked a hair from Rhan’s beard as he slept, and then disappeared. No big deal. Rhan doesn’t know.

The rest of their journey proved uneventful save for a small encounter with a poisonous snake and a T-Rex munching on a dead stegosaurus. They killed the snake and avoided the T-Rex.

Early in their journey they built a small cart and began gathering any good wood they found. They knew they were going to meet the party on the other side of a bridge known as Ataaz Muhahah. Rhan’s natural distrust of any workmanship not his own has only been fueled by the shoddy ruins he’s encountered in Chult so far. “I’m going to build my own damn bridge”
Upon reaching the bridge and seeing the statue (large, no gemstone eyes though…), Galliard detected magic on the statue and then cast Identify. He got a quick vision of ancient Chultan priests binding the spirit of an Earth Elemental to the statue to create a Golem. 

A maze was carved on the base of the statue and looked like it had seen recent activity (moss cleared away, etc). Does doing the maze activate the Golem? Or does NOT doing the maze activate it? Gal drew a copy of the maze on paper and sat on the bridge to solve it. Once they were confident of the solution, all three traced the maze (with Dragle taking tedious step-by-step instructions from Galliard) and stepped past the Golem.

Now at the gap in the bridge (and freaked out that the Golem could suddenly activate or they could be attacked by angry baboons), they drove pitons into the bridge and fired ropes into trees with their crossbows to make a network of tied-off ropes from the bridge to the other side. They sat in the cart and pulley-ed it across the chasm.

Having made it across the chasm and recovering their ropes, they looked forlornly back at the pitons they had to leave behind on the bridge. Farewell, small metal spikes. You served us well.

Rhan shed a single tear.

Addressed to Title Redacted:

Here is written the last will and testament of Alison “Kilgore” Lohman. Filed properly with the law offices of Robinson, Robinson, and Crusoe.

“Hey, it’s Kilgore. If you’re reading this then it means I’m dead. Well, sort of. Long story short, when Filbretta died and we all met at her funeral, I knew my days were numbered. Seeking the soulstone was the only way of insuring my inevitable death be delayed, but whatever. I didn’t want a funeral or anything fancy, but didn’t want you to worry either.

I only have in my possession my staff, my sweet dagger I stab things with, a healing potion, and some gold, 663 pieces to be divided evenly between you. Except Elgard.

To Seraphina I leave and my sexuality in hopes that you can calm down enough to get laid once in a while.

To Kanye I leave my love of all things pretty and shiny. May you get distracted at every opportunity.

To Nor I leave regret. You’re pretty handsome and whatever.

To Rhan I leave respect and my sweet dagger. He’d only want respect but a dagger can come in handy.

To Zyldi I leave my quarterstaff, I don’t know what you’ll do with it but you seem the most trustworthy of the group.

To Elgard I leave my healing potion, you’re going to need it.

To Kulu, I give you Elgard’s share of the gold, and scritches behind your kitty ear.

And finally, to Galliard I leave my rotting corpse. If you can find it, you can keep it.

I’ve enjoyed our time together, despite being shorter than I thought it would be. While I wish I could continue on our journey, I have a new adventure to pursue. Thank you all for including me and making me feel loved.

Warmest regards and sincerest condolences on your loss, Kilgore

P.S. I may have figured out how to transfer my soul in to Clarice. You’ll know if it was successful.”

Players Present: Zyldi, Elgard, Seraphina, Kanye, Nor, Kulu

Players Missing: Galliard, Rahn, Kilgore

Splitting the party had resulted in a victorious end, and all came back together at the base of the Firefinger Tower. It was 3am, and only a short rest can be had before moving on. They have decided to head their way to Kir Sabal in hopes of learning the power of temporary flight.

As they start to settle down for the evening a rustling in the brush reveals a familiar Raptor. It is Clarise, and she raptors her way into the camp. On her back is a scroll that she insists that they take. With a wink to the party, (At least, it is assumed it was a wink. It could have just been a blink, but seeing both eyes at one time is a bit tricky) she runs back off into the forest.

The scroll contains the last Will and Testament of Kilgore, their Warlock friend who had been suspiciously absent for some time. Apparently she died? There is a general feeling of confusion and maybe some guilt. The scroll Clarise was carrying explains the Warlock’s death, and the “possessions” she wished to pass along. (Please reference next post to read contents of the will.)

The party, now one player down through no fault of their tactics, rested for the remainder of the night. The next day, Q’Washa was almost squished by a snake, but it’s all good now. The snake provided some great meat for the party.

That evening, 3 giant poison flowers tried to murder them. But the team is accustomed to this death trap that is Chult, and they murdered them as well. Nor just slept through it.

The following day, as they travel through the dense jungles, they see a T-Rex and a Stegosaurus fighting. Everyone agrees that nature must do it’s thing, and they leave it alone. Continuing on their way, they see hiding in the brush a humaniod species called the Yuan-ti. As they make camp for the night, they question Azaka about the Yuan-ti. According to Azaka, if ever she sees the species she kills them without question. And she does just that as she is out hunting later that evening.

The party also had some good chit-chat over the fire where they learn a bit more about each other. Specifically, each other’s ages. Zyldi – 300 yrs old, Elgard – 34 yrs old (so he says…but is lying and likely adding a decade to his age), Seraphina – 32 yrs old, Kanye – 17 yrs old (the freaking baby of the group), Nor – 35 yrs old, and Kulu – old enough to kill.

As they continued their jungle trek, they come upon a large gorge. A bridge spans across the chasm, and below, along the vines, they can hear the monkeys and baboons laughing out their calls. On the middle of the bridge stands a statue of a Chultan warrior, red rubies shining in his eyes, with a pile of broken bones along its base.

Q’Washa walks up to the giant statue and traces a maze that is evident at the base. “I suggest you all do this as well.” The party thinks it odd, and Seraphina has definite reservations as to the pagan nature of this task, but for the sake of the party, she goes along with the procedure. Zyldi, Seraphine, Nor, Elgard, and Azaka are all successful in tracing. They make it to the other side of the statue without issue. However, Kanye is not as successful at solving this rather simple puzzle. The golem comes to life.

ENCOUNTER – Golem

• Nor fails a goading strike to draw the Golem’s attention
• Zyldi turns into a tiger
• Kulu hits the golem and leaps onto his head. She begins to attempt to pry out his eyes.
• Seraphina casts Wrathful Strike which gives extra physical damage, but it does not have an effect on the golem.
• The golem casts slow on the party. Seraphina, Zyldi, Kulu, and Nor are affected.
• Kanye turns to Bill and asks him to charge the golem. Bill is not convinced. However, Bill wants food and agrees if he will get some more later on. He charges, but his piercing damage is ineffective.
• Nor attempts goad once more and successully draws the golem’s attention.
• Seeing that everyone is slowed, Elgard casts Thunderwave to help push everyone 10ft from the golem. It helps Seraphina, Nor, and Zyldi. Kulu is still on the golem’s head.
• The group realizes that they need to run, as no physical damage is effective against this construct.
• Zyldi tries to run off the bridge. There is a giant break in the bridge that prevents them easily running away. She attempts the leap, but the ground crumbles at her feet and she backs away.
• Kulu removes the second gem. But the golem continues unaffected.
• Seraphina is able to successfully cross the bridge.
• Kanye is not willing to run without Bill. And Bill is unable to make it around the golem without first pushing the golem aside.
• Bill makes his attempt to push the golem off the edge. Nor, realizing that Kanye will not leave Bill, also helps push. They are unable to get the golem off.
• Elgard jumps over the gap in the bridge, and falls to his death…Zyldi however manages to snatch his cloak in her claws and catches him (Nat 20!). Epic.
• Kulu falls off of the golem and is now unconscious.
• Nor looks at Kanye helplessly and goes over to stabilize Kulu.
• Kanye debates what to do and tells Bill he needs to run. Bill runs as fast as he can and makes it past the golem. He leaps across the gap in the bridges and makes it across, skidding through some trees. He breaks a leg. (Zlydi is later able to heal his leg successfully)
• Kanye dodges an attack from the golem as he runs past next. He snatches Kulu as he goes.
• Nor runs and makes his jump across the chasm.
• Kanye throws Kulu across and she lands
• Zyldi is also now able to successfully jump across.
• Kanye decides to let himself get pushed, unopposed, by the golem in hopes it will propel him across the edge. No such luck. Kanye plummets downwards.
• Seraphina leaps off the ledge and actives her Aasimar power. She catches him.

Now that they are all safely across the bridge, a very intense argument ensues with the party. Kanye is very upset that everyone left him and decided to run. They all do what they can to assure him that was not their intent. Zyldi ends the argument telling everyone to be silent and drink tea. The party sits in silence and sips.