Rise of the Runelords Recap # 43 [RPG]

[13 Kuthona 4707]

Ilsurian, an independent city built on the side of a
hill overlooking Lake Syrantula.

The adventurers gather at Ilsurian’s Temple of Erastil early in the morning and watch as Sister Woodmere successfully recites a magical scroll to remove the debilitating effects of Artemis’ brush with the Dark Lady.  When Sister Woodmere mentions that she’s on her way to the Ashwood to collect firewood for some of the poorer families in town, the adventurers volunteer to help her out.  The morning passes uneventfully as the travellers try their hands at logging for the first time.  Goragar is bored by the lack of foes near Ilsurian to test his mettle against, but Sister Woodmere warns the group that the interior of the Ashwood is notoriously dangerous (especially at night time) as ghosts, werewolves, and mischievous fey have all been known to lurk within.  She suggests instead that Goragar visit the town’s arena, as all able-bodied adults are required to train with weapons once a week to ensure Ilsurian remains forever free and vigilant against invaders.

That afternoon, Goragar, Kang, and Briza walk to the arena and see several groups training under master instructors on archery, polearms, and swordplay.  Kang evaluates the combatants and picks out the one person he believes is the toughest combatant: a short, wiry man named Solohei who is instructing some of the townspeople in unarmed combat.  Kang tries to persuade Goragar to challenge the man to a duel, but the half-orc says it would be too easy.  Briza, however, is willing to try, and Solohei accepts the opportunity to demonstrate to his students how size and strength are not determinative of victory in battle.  In mere seconds, Briza finds herself on her back and barely able to move.  As the two shake hands after the bout, a trio of the halflings from Pinkeye’s Comeuppance can be seen running at full speed towards the docks.  When the adventurers catch up to them, they shout something about Captain Othlo promising five platinum apiece if they’re on the boat within an hour.  Unwilling to see their means of transport leave without them, the trio of adventurers decide to alert Artemis and Kozen, who have futilely spent the afternoon trying to sell some of the fish Briza caught the previous day at a local market.  With much frantic running and shouting, everyone makes it to the docks in time except Goragar, who decided to return to the stables of the Two Waters tavern to collect his mount and then got lost!

As the crew of Pinkeye’s Comeuppance untie the mooring lines, it becomes clear that it’s not continuing the journey toward Turtleback Ferry: for one thing, no cargo has been loaded, and for another, passengers like Shalelu and Tillia are missing.  Instead, reports of a giant sea creature smashing a boat in the middle of Lake Syrantula has triggered Captain Othlo’s obsession: hunting down the giant albino gar known as Pinkeye that destroyed his previous vessel!   The adventurers on board have a fast, furious debate about whether to accompany Othlo on his mad quest before concluding that if the boat gets destroyed because they didn’t help him, they’ll have to walk the rest of the way north.  Just as the ship shoves off, Goragar and his warhorse can be seen galloping along the pier.  Kang swallows a magical extract and flies over to try to lift the warrior into the air, but the warrior’s massive frame and heavy armor makes the task impossible!  However, Goragar murmurs a prayer to Gorum, and suddenly Kang is as strong as a bull and able to easily fly them both to the deck of the ship.

Hours pass as the boat is rowed towards the spot where the fishing vessel was reported to have been attacked, and then bits of debris and flotsam can be seen.  Othlo, gripping a specially-made adamantine harpoon, orders the rowers to stop their work and for everyone to remain still and keep their ears and eyes open.  When Goragar starts reciting verses from a holy book of war prayers, Othlo orders him to be quiet—but the half-orc persists until the single-minded halfling grabs the book and tosses it into the lake.  “On this ship, I’m your god!” Othlo shouts.  He turns away, only to find that Goragar has slashed him deeply in the back with this sword!  Othlo turns back and tells Goragar to stand down or he’ll plant his harpoon straight through the warrior’s heart.  The other adventurers are stunned by the sudden outbreak of violence and the tense stand-off.  Goragar says that any further insults to his god will be met with death, and Othlo replies that he doesn’t care a whit about the gods as long as he gets his hands on Pinkeye.  Further violence is averted.  Briza adroitly uses a net to fish Goragar’s book out of the water, and Kozen is able to use some minor cantrips to remove the water damage.

Few survive an encounter with one of Varisia's
notorious freshwater giant snapping turtles.

Evening turns into night, and there’s still no sign of a sea monster.  Kang tries to talk Othlo into returning to shore, but the ship’s captain refuses to even consider it.  The adventurers decide they had better get some rest and designate watches.  Barely an hour later, Artemis is on duty when he realizes the boat is shifting and rising higher; Kang’s preternatural senses alert him to the danger even while sound asleep, and he bolts upright to sound the alarm.  The terrifying truth suddenly becomes clear: Pinkeye’s Conundrum is resting precariously on the back of a giant snapping turtle the size of a house, and the ship is about to slide off!  The skilled combatants spring into action.  Kang drinks an extract and flies into the air, Kozen draws upon his connection to the shadow plane to entangle the creature in its own moonlit shadow, and Artemis leans over the ship’s railing and fires an arrow straight down into the shell.  Everything is upside down in an instant, however, as the boat slides and then flips over, capsizing!  Some of the crew and passengers manage to hang on and dangle from the deck in an air pocket, while others are thrown clear.  Briza and Goragar try to jump onto the turtle’s back, but only Briza makes it—the half-orc starts to sink below the waves as the angry creature catches one of the halflings in its jaws and snaps the poor sailor in two!

Kang hurls bombs with his trademark unerring accuracy and blasts off large chunks of the giant turtle’s carapace, while Briza stabs the creature with a hilt-down grip on her greatsword.  But the creature defends itself by catching her up in its jaws, crushing her abdomen as a prelude to starting to swallow her whole!  Artemis’ quick-thinking and amazing climbing ability saves her life, however, as he scrambles to the top of the overturned ship, plants his feet, and fires an arrow into the creature’s neck, killing it instantly!  Kang swoops down to help those still floundering in the water.  Two halflings perished in the attack, and despite everyone’s best efforts, attempts to salvage the boat or at least the turtle’s shell fail.  Clinging to bits of driftwood, everyone is forced to paddle their way back towards shore in the dark, freezing cold water.  Miserable hours later, as dawn streaks the sky, a shivering and bedraggled group pull themselves onto the beach and stumble back to Ilsurian, where they collapse at an inn.

[14 Kuthona 4707]

Sheriff Kyra Feldane tries to reduce
the tension between Ilsurians and the
nomadic Varisians.

The adventurers rest throughout most of the morning and into the afternoon.  Briza explains to Tillia what happened, and the schoolteacher is shocked (especially when Goragar adds in additional details that, although true, are rather gruesome).  Tillia immediately says she’ll arrange a memorial service for the slain halflings.  Artemis spends the day looking into other boats or caravans headed north, but finds that the cold weather and reports of danger have suppressed travel to Turtleback Ferry in recent weeks.  He purchases horses instead.  That evening, Ilsurian’s local sheriff, Kyra Feldane, comes to the inn and asks for statements from everyone about what happened.  Curiously, neither Captain Othlo nor the other surviving crewmembers are anywhere to be found.  The adventurers tell Feldane that the disaster was a clear case of reckless negligence on the part of Othlo, and they agree to come to the town hall in the morning to swear out affidavits against him.

[15 Kuthona 4707]

After everyone visits the town hall, Artemis composes a letter to his wife and arranges for it to be delivered by courier to Magnimar.  The watchman has arranged for the mounts to be ready for departure early in the day, but it takes Goragar and Briza several hours to track down Shalelu at her campsite outside of the town limits.  She reports seeing Othlo and two halflings riding small ponies along the road north, and, when told of what happened, says that she’s the best bounty hunter in Varisia if they need to be apprehended.  The midday sun is at its height as the adventurers, along with Tillia, get underway.  They make good time following the road north on the east bank of the Skull River, with the outer borders of the Ashwood visible to their right.  The day passes without further incident, and the group sets up camp.

Several days’ journey aboard Pinkeye’s Comeuppance has ended suddenly with the ship sinking, part of its crew dead, and Captain Othlo fleeing like a fugitive in the night.  Now, back on foot, the adventurers begin the last stretch of their voyage to Turtleback Ferry in order to determine just what happened to Fort Rannick . . .
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Director's Commentary

The centrepiece of this session, of course, was the battle against the giant snapping turtle.  I just couldn't pass up the opportunity, and it was a great way to bring Othlo's secret motivation to the forefront.  The PCs did surprisingly well, as things could easily have gone very, very badly when faced with a creature that swallows enemies whole.  I wasn't actually expecting the "reckless negligence" tack the PCs took with Othlo, but they were quite irked about his actions!  It also made for an expected change in their mode of travel towards Turtleback Ferry.

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