Rise of the Runelords Recap # 102 [RPG]

[15 Pharast 4708 continued]

 

Having barely escaped a civil war in Urglin, the adventurers find themselves in the rocky wasteland called the Cinderlands.  Known to be inhabited only by orcs, Shoanti, and the occasional predator, few cross the Cinderlands if they have any choice in the matter.  The adventurers immediately begin heading north, but the powerful gusts of winds are enough to knock Ava off her feet repeatedly.  Finally, Morgiana picks up the grippli cleric and carries her.  The adventurers pass by occasional plant-life of a kind they’ve never seen before, but for the most part the terrain is inhospitable and featureless.  After several hours’ hard marching to put some distance between themselves and Urgin, the adventurers set up a campsite.  Unlike the others, Morgiana has not adventured in northern climes and finds the cold getting to her.

[16 Pharast 4708]

 

Another day’s long march ends near sunset with the group reaching the river Kazavon at a point where it stretches off to the north and to the east.  Ava magically conjures stone into the shape of a rough bunker.  That night, Jinkatsyu is on watch while the others are sleeping and he hears a strange clacking sound coming from the outside of the stone wall.  He rushes out to investigate and sees a monstrous scorpion as large as a horse!  Quick as a flash, his rapier darts into the creature’s unarmoured underbelly.  Kang reacts quickly as well, and rather than alert everyone for miles by hurling an explosive, he takes aim with his rarely-used longbow and scores a perfect bullseye, killing the scorpion instantly.  The master alchemist hurries to see if he can recover a sample of its poison, but he’s not used to the messy fieldwork involved in harvesting poison from recently diseased creatures and accidentally spills the venom all over the ground.

[17 Pharast 4708]

After consulting one another, the adventurers decide to follow the eastern branch of the river.  Barely an hour after sunset, as they rest in another conjured bunker, the Heroes of Varisia feel the ground trembling.  They dart out of the bunker and look for the source of the disturbance, only discover it was literally right under them!  A massive worm covered in purple chitinous plates and with a fanged maw perhaps 20 feet in diameter emerges from the ground to swallow the bunker whole before turning its attention to smaller prey.  As a barrage of attacks rain down upon it, it darts down to bite Erik, but the

aasimar slips out of its mouth thanks to a protective spell cleverly cast by Ava.  Even a creature as dangerous as the legendary purple worm cannot long resist the Heroes of Varisia, and it succumbs to their onslaught.  After it's dead, Erik takes the lead in trying to obtain poison from this carcass—but he too fails, and ends up getting himself poisoned in the process!  Once again, Ava steps in to put things right.

[18 Pharast 4708]

 

Another day’s journey passes uneventfully.  Along the river banks, tall grasses grow, marking the northern border of the Cinderlands.  Before dawn, the adventurers find themselves in a scuffle with a roc, but thanks to everyone (save Jinkatsyu) having the ability to fly or fall great distances safely, no one is seriously hurt.

 

[19 Pharast 4708]

 

The adventurers continue travelling east, and at sunset reach the point where the river turns north towards a mountain range in the distance.

 

[20 Pharast 4708]

 

The adventurers begin travelling into the foothills, gradually rising in elevation.

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Director's Commentary

A session devoted exclusively to wilderness travel.  I appreciate the AP's foresight in having random encounter tables devoted to each chapter, as the battles help keep things interesting (and provide some extra XP in case the PCs didn't go to every scripted encounter).  I used the poison harvesting rules from the then-new Ultimate Wilderness.  Ava's become pretty fond of the stone shape spell at this point, and I imagine there are dozens of these little bunkers now strewn across northern Varisia :)