[Campaign] The Last Dominion

[Eosin]

Edsel, the Dark Champions GM, is going to surrender the captain's chair. That means we are picking The Last Dominion Campaign where we left off. There is a whole lotta story that has already happened so I'll cover that before moving into the newer stuff.

 

First, I'll introduce the PCs and retired PCs [we had two folks move since the game started and another only plays sporadically.] Character sheets will be available after they are deconstructed and rebuilt.

 

Active Characters

Arron: A bladesman of no small renown and survivor of the School of Peers. In most battles he uses a quarterstaff unless he means to kill. Arron settled with his friends in Northrun where he has established a new fighting academy. He has become a significant hero to the local warriors after defeating a Kratian Battlelord in single combat. Played by Audie.

 

Freya: An elemental mage infused with the power of nature. Like Arron, Freya survived the School of Peers. Quiet and reserved. Played by Chris.

 

Kaid Wingate: Second son of the Duke of Wingate and a full wizard. Kaid has an affinity for magical fire, which dances at his command. Kaid’s obligation to his family require that he soon choose a wife although he is bound to an elemental river spirit known as Neryn. He has come to Northrun at the request of his father to assist Sir Ambrose Wolf. Played by Kevin.

 

Torean Norhill: A skilled and famous bard in eastern Middea, known for his womanizing ways and his skill with daggers. Recently, Torean married the beautiful warrior-woman Isolde with whom he has a set of twin daughters. Torean suspects that Isolde is the keeper of many deep secrets related to her well hidden power of prophecy. Played by Eddie.

 

Jon of Strathmoor: A knight and heir to the duchy of Strathmoor. Something of a womanizer with a roguish heart. Played by Landon.

 

Retired PCs

Alacran: Kaid Wingate’s bodyguard and a capable warrior. Alacran chafed at the glory heaped upon the other warriors but he knew his job was to defend Kaid. Alacran was released from his service and granted land in Northrun where he resides with his family. Played by Justin.

 

Leonidas: Once a member of the elite royal guards of Vintria called the Immortals. What drove him from the Immortals is unknown but he keeps a low profile. His skill with the elegant Immortals Blade and his incredible reflexes make him a match for nearly anyone. Leonidas fell to the treachery of the hag Yasha and now serves her as a black troll. Played by Randy.

 

Nagus: A warrior infused with the power of the Celestine. Nagus is a fearsome foe and easily recognized as a justicar of Brynn by his unnaturally white hair and freakish size. The justicar hears the voices of the dead creatures. They speak to him in riddles; warning of things yet to pass. Nagus continues to serve Brynn by traveling in the west. He also maintains a shrine in Northrun. Played by Myron.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Cool...looking forward to hearing more. I'd be tempted to move to Oklahoma to play w/ you guys...except of course I'd have to live in Oklahoma

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

The Last Dominion Campaign

 

Flight from Redgorge

The opening gambit of the first adventure starts in the early spring of IC 1076 with two separate parties arriving in the troubled town of Redgorge. Freya and Arron were sent by Lady Brennica, the Countess of Highvale, to seek assistance against the large number of uncommonly deadly Vindel raids that had been plaguing the county since the passes opened. Kaid Wingate likewise traveled at the behest of his father to discover the source of unrest in the neighboring country of Draysen. Kaid, as a representative of the duke, traveled with two guards and the bard Torean Norhill.

 

The walled city of Redgorge had recently lost its much vaunted Captain-of-Arms and staunch supporter of the Draysen family during the recent Vindel raids. The city was beaten and demoralized by the loss but, equally important, the widowed Countess stood defenseless before any noble who wished to aggressively arrange her marriage. In fact, one such nobleman had already made his intentions known. Lagos, a well known and greatly feared lieutenant of Count Kerwin Riddick, had delivered an ultimatum to the city — surrender the countess and her son or he would make his displeasure known.

 

A harrowing escape along mountain trails by the newly formed group saw the duchess eventually delivered to Duke Wingate. Encounters within the County of Draysen with soldiers wearing the standard of Count Bailstone and Count Riddick were noted as being highly improbable.

 

The travelers were joined during their flight from Redgorge by Nagus, a freakishly large albino justicar in the service of the Celestine. At Orenstone, the residence of Duke Wingate, considerable discussions occurred regarding the alliance between Count Riddick and Bailstone as well as consideration that they might be working at the behest of other parties. As to which “other,” no one felt comfortable naming a prince of the kingdom as the most likely felon even if they believed this was the case.

 

Duke Wingate tasked his son to deliver vital messages to Lady Brennica in Highvale and investigate the raids that continued to cause problems in the counties of Highvale and Draysen. Arron and Freya were inclined to return to their homes in Highvale as well, so the group elected to remain together for safety.

 

Trouble at Woodbridge

In Woodbridge, the group — specifically Freya — ran afoul of an assassin. The encounter left Freya in a coma and Elder Haelfur dead (Elder Haelfur was the highest ranked Mendicant clergy in Draysen County). The warriors hired the female woodsman Isolde to track the killer down since they lacked such skills themselves. The trail led to the small town of Lichfield in the lands of Count Bailstone. The cleric’s murder was avenged in an ambush that left no survivors.

 

Isolde seemed eager to leave Woodbridge behind her and asked leave to travel with the group. They were also joined by the Vindel warrior and smith Ivanic. The knowledge of Ivanic helped the group establish that the recent raiding was not done by Vindel as it appeared. The most likely suspects are Count Bailstone and Count Riddick. However, Ivanic’s companionship was marred by some animosity between the Vindel and a few of Kaid’s guardsmen.

 

Several weeks of hunting the “Vindel raiders” in Draysen and Highvale finally paid off. Skilled archery proved the downfall of the lightly armored raiders. With knowledge pried from raiding party it was possible to locate the base from which several such groups operated from in the foothills of the Craghorns.

The raider’s camp proved to be a difficult battle, won only by the awesome power of the wizardry used by Freya and Kaid. Lagos, the lieutenant of Count Riddick, commanded the camp. Arron and Nagus, the Justicar, fought a pitched battle against Lagos who possessed the ability to assume monstrous form. The wounded were-creature used its incredible speed to escape after being sorely wounded.

 

With the threat to Highvale and Draysen crushed, Ivanic the Vindel took his leave of the travelers to return to his home.

[Edsel]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Cool...looking forward to hearing more. I'd be tempted to move to Oklahoma to play w/ you guys...except of course I'd have to live in Oklahoma

 

Yeah, you'd need to put a rifle rack in the back window of your BMW in order to fit in. EDIT: Sorry about that Eosin, I guess I shouldn't be interrupting the story.

[Killer Shrike]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Yeah' date=' you'd need to put a rifle rack in the back window of your BMW in order to fit in. [b']EDIT:[/b] Sorry about that Eosin, I guess I shouldn't be interrupting the story.

 

Shhh!!!! He's getting to the good part....

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Hiblus the Necromancer

Lady Brennica proved to be a skilled hostess and eager for news of the raids. She renewed her oath of loyalty to Duke Wingate through his son and proxy, Kaid.

 

While in Highvale, the travelers rescued Hiblus the Black from the freak show of an itinerant circus where his charred, liquefied form earned him top billing as the “slug-man.” Hiblus readily admitted to deeds black enough to earn death a thousand times over which were attested to by Arron and Freya, both had survived his attentions as youths in the School of Peers.

 

Apparently, Hiblus had opposed Prince Rafn over some deed so foul that even a mass murderer and torturer such as himself could not stand by without trying to stop it. He lost the encounter with Rafn. The knowledge of what prompted him to oppose Rafn was no longer his.

 

To Ridgewall

Ridgewall is the most secure fortress in all of Middea – and boastfully— within the world. The fortress is situated atop a 200 mile long cliff face that ranges in height from 50 feet to 125 feet. The wall, while assailable in many places without rope, prevents any real mass assault. At the foot of the Fortress is a smaller fortification called Breaker Keep – to gain access to the narrow defile leading up the exposed cliff face one must first take the well fortified lower fortress while it defends itself. To make the task more harrowing arrows and worse rain down from the fortress proper. Many of the best generals will not even consider a siege, instead leaving a contingent of men out of bow shot to hem the garrison in.

 

The news learned from Hiblus was alarming enough that Kaid felt Duke Wingate, his father, should be notified immediately. However, the Duke had left Orenstone for the Fortress at Ridgewall shortly after the companions had left a few months earlier. He had indicated plans to spend the summer closer to the troubled areas in the Eastern Marches.

 

The travelers arrived at Ridgewall in high summer with a problem on their hands. Isolde was with Torean’s child and was in poor traveling shape. A quiet wedding was arraigned.

 

Kier Wingate, Kaids’ older half-brother and heir to the Wingate lands, was in command of the fortress. Duke Wingate and Isam Fenthalion, the commander of Ridgewall, were in the field with the armies of the Eastern March. Kier divulged his plans to enter the Ravenswood with a small number of cavalry to meet an army that had skirted his fathers own troops.

 

Into the Ravenswood

The Ravenswood was once an ideal sylvan type woods, but that was nearly a generation ago before the war between Middea and Lorain. The Mad Prince of Lorain, Weslyn Ragnerik claimed the throne of Middea as his own and with the support of Numeria he attacked and seized the land that now bears his mother’s name — Lorain. In the intervening 18 years, seasonal campaigns have fed the Ravenswood nothing but steel, blood, and misery. Now the lands, even the trees, are suffused with the power of death, a power that fuels necromantic magic. The balance of Élan (magic) is slanted so greatly in favor of necromancy that more benign wizards have watched their power wane.

 

Kier's plans prompted the group to enter the infamous Ravenswoods in search of Duke Wingate and his army.

 

[DM Note: Torean discovered a small note from Isolde shortly after entering the Ravenswood. It said, “Beware of the man cloaked in black, if you face him you will die. Use the silvered blade against the nightwalker. It is difficult to explain my visions. I hope that when the time comes it will make sense."]

 

Not long after entering the forest the party was attacked by infernal creatures and one of Rafn’s personal guards. The battle was closely fought. Without the wizardry of Kaid and Freya, there is little doubt that the demonic creatures would have overwhelmed the warriors. [DM Note: The party has never figured out how they were discovered.]

 

Days later, the travelers discovered the dukes army engaged in a running battle through Old Bone Pass with an army bolstered by the strength of necromantic magic. The black arts were being used to harass the Dukes army with attacks by the risen dead.

 

A plan was hatched by the Duke to counter the magic of the necromancer with the wizardry commanded by Kaid and his companions. The necromancer was slain but at the loss of several good men to a black troll who guarded him. The battle itself seemed lost until Torean recalled the cryptic warning from his wife after he mistakenly pulled a silvered dagger that reminded him of the prophecy. The party believes the message to mean that Torean would have died if he had faced the Black Troll [DM Note: a man whose soul has been corrupted] and that the nightwalker was the necromancer (or something worse?) whom he slew with a silvered dagger. The dagger punched through arcane defenses that had rebuffed Arron and Kaid’s most fearsome attacks.

 

The duke continued the fighting retreat while laying a trap the next morning. Several ambushes by the group and others had left the enemy supply train crippled and the army cut off from food and supplies. However, the rumored second army [the one being hunted by Kier Wingate] cut off any further retreat by the Duke. A ruinous battle was fought in the depths of a steep valley that left all three armies crippled. Kaid and his companions prevented the total destruction of his father’s army and were lauded as heroes for the second time.

 

The remains of the army limped back to Ridgewall.

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Cool...looking forward to hearing more. I'd be tempted to move to Oklahoma to play w/ you guys...except of course I'd have to live in Oklahoma

 

Edsel and I both agree that you'd be very welcome at the table.

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Andris Ragnerik

Weeks were spent at Ridgewall without word from Kier Wingate and his cavalry.

 

Kaid spent much of this time under the tutelage of a druid and a water spirit known as Neryn.

 

Soon word came of another visitor, Andris Ragnerik. Andris is the son of King Sorin and half brother to Prince Rafn. Although he is older, he was accused of treason as a child along with his mother. All titles and deeds were stripped from him including his position as heir apparent. The Wingate family does not recognize the loss of status and shelters Andris and his mother (Duke Wingate’s daughter).

 

Eventually Kier returned from the forest with his cavalrymen. He met with Duke Wingate and Andris Ragnerik in private. After hearing several conversations Kaid became convinced that his brother had practiced a bit of misdirection and had actually undertaken a mission for Andris, whom he referred to as his liege or my king.

 

[DM Note: It is apparent to those close to them that the Wingate family intends to support Andris in rebellion against Prince Rafn when and if King Sorin dies.]

 

The end of summer was drawing near and armies were returning to their homes for the harvest. Kaid and his companions, however, were summoned before Andris Ragnerik who had a task for his cousin.

 

The powerful duchy of Envernes has long been in disarray after the murder of its ruling family four years ago. Rumor persists of a young man who claims to be the son of the slain duke. Andris would like his cousin to travel to Envernes and determine if there could be truth to this young mans story.

Kaid and his companions were to travel with the army to Orenstone where they could winter before undertaking the journey north but first they needed to pay a visit the port City of Tharad in pursuit of information.

 

[DM Note: Andris is hoping to secure the seat of the duchy and gain an ally against Prince Rafn.]

 

The Black Abbey

Smoke alerted the travelers that something was not right at the abbey on the distant hillside. The monks inside were slain save for those few who might have had information. The monks were being interrogated by cultists cloaked in strange robes, which were covered in arcane symbols. The horrid battle left several of the group near death and all of them wounded beyond the ability to travel. Nagus the justicar had faired the worst taking a knife blade under his chinstrap.

 

Days of recovery were spent in idle conversation with the abbot. It seems the abbey had been under increasingly aggressive assault for months although they had little of value; however, the leader of the cultists had displayed a keen interest in ancient scrolls that spoke of the creation of the Black Abbey within Tharad. The only other clue was the strong accent of the old kingdoms in the words of the cultists — maybe Imbria or Dracia.

 

As soon as they were able, the group made for Tharad and the Black Abbey with a letter of introduction in hand.

 

The time in Tharad proved to be one filled with difficulty. Several run-ins with a Synod Archon named Haldun left little doubt that the organization was aware of Kaid’s wizardry. [DM Note: The Synod is a "guild" of wizardry and they ensure that rogue wizards do not endanger the public nor the crown.] Another Archon, one from Imbria, had recently arrived aboard a ship with nearly a dozen retainers. Strangely, these men hadn’t been seen in days.

 

While at the Black Abbey, Nagus felt that the impressive walls of black glass were not meant to keep things out but that perhaps the abbey might be a prison to hold some demonic creature. Further efforts by the companions confirmed that there was indeed a powerful spirit of evil trapped within the abbey and that the prayers of the monks kept its prison whole.

 

The party surmised that the cultists must be trying to break the creature out of its prison or to tap into its hellish power in some manner. After some arcane work by Kaid the cultists was confirmed to be the minions of the Synod Archon Nygon Toth who was currently aboard a ship anchored off shore. The archon was immersed in a ritual called “the bridging of worlds.” Unsure of what or how the spell might affect the Black Abbey, the group decided to assault the ship. Kaid incinerated the ship but Nygon Toth was able to escape [DM Note: Holy smokes, he rolled 23 BODY on an AOE Line attack] .

 

Archon Haldun, like Nygon Toth, survived the encounters with the companions primarily because of his diplomatic immunity, although his guardian did not fare so well.

 

Before leaving Tharad, Arron and Torean encountered a young orphan and sneak thief who led them into an indiscreet encounter with the owner of the Good Heart Orphanage. It seems that the manager and owner supported the care of the children by selling many of them to slavers bound for the Radiant Kingdoms. Arron now cares for the orphans with the help of the Black Abbot. No one bothered with the bloody body found in the alley behind the orphanage.

 

Winter had arrived with the group split. Arron, Nagus, and Freya were in Tharad while Torean and Kaid braved bad weather to return to Ridgewall. By winters end Torean was the father of twin girls. The birth was not easy and there were frightening omens that surrounded his oldest daughter.

 

As spring arrived the group reformed at Orenstone. The king had unexpectedly wintered his court at Orenstone, bringing nobles from distant lands to feast on the generosity of Duke Wingate. Refuse and ruin were spread deep across the countryside by the ravenous court. The duchy was financially devastated. In return for financial considerations, several members of the companions were granted lands and titles in Northrun by Duke Wingate.

The duke also asked the party if they would escort a messenger to the town of Redhel which was on the way to Envernes. A nobleman by the name of Sarvos was to deliver certain messages to Calder Middlebrook, the Count of Middlebrook.

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

To Envernes

The companions retained the service of a woodsman named Cetric since Isolde would not be traveling this year. The journey north was longer and more difficult than anticipated.

 

Near Claypool the group encountered one of the Shield Knights which reminded Arron of a prophecy given to him by a circus performer — thirteen shall fall to twelve. Maybe the prophecy referred to the thirteen Shield Knights and the Fallen twelve who were corrupted by Arleth Crow three centuries earlier?

 

The party was delayed overlong at Claypool where they were entertained by the earl and his daughters. Kaid Wingate would be quite the catch for the family should he fancy one of the women.

 

More than two score Vindel refugees were discovered little more than a day north of Claypool. Left with little choice, the refugees were escorted to Claypool where they could find work and food. There were no warriors with the refugees — only women, children, and a toothless old man. The warriors had been killed by overwhelming trollkin raids.

 

Already delayed by three days there was little to do but sit and wait out the snow storm that followed the refugees. Ten days later the companions set out for Redhel.

 

Redhel was a smoking ruin. Several hundred trollkin had massacred the city during the snow storm. Unfortunately, the companions were not free of the trap that had lain in wait of them. A fierce battle ensued with Lagos leading trollkin, mercenaries, and a black troll. Lagos was defeated but there was little way to know that his form would regenerate.

 

Sorely hurt, the party holed up for a few days to heal. The nobleman Sarvos did not survive long after receiving a festering belly wound. He asked that Kaid deliver a sealed scroll to the Master of Gorgoros before he went to the Great Light of Ro.

 

The party spent days laying low lest they be discovered by the army that had so recently been in the area. The inclusion of Lagos could only mean that this was a trap for them or perhaps Sarvos; a trap they would not have survived had the storm not delayed them.

 

Keeping Company with *Yasha

After more than a week of travel from Redhel, the site of a battle was discovered. The mangled body of a justicar lay at the base of a mighty oak which was badly damaged by the impact of his body. Nearby a frightened and bleeding young woman huddled beneath a holly bush, unable or unwilling to respond. Soon, the cause of the damage rose from the soil of the earth to crush the new interlopers. An elemental force made of stone and mud proved to be a deadly effective opponent but the wizardry of Kaid destroyed the magic which compelled the creature to action.

 

The companions deduced that the woman must be some sort of tree spirit suffering from the damage done to the oak. Nagus and Kaid tended to her through the night and by early dawn she was hale enough to show her gratitude to Nagus. The lovely creatures name was Yasha.

 

The Bonewalkers

The days after leaving Yasha were uneventful but slow going. Nagus was oddly weak and had trouble keeping pace. His nights filled with terrible dreams. At last the group arrived in civilized lands guided by the disturbing voices of the dead speaking to Nagus. The group came across a quiet village with a few dozen buildings but not a single fire. From the hill above the party could see dozens of graves in a circular pattern outside of the village.

Investigation revealed the graves to be those of skeletal creatures with odd, warped hands ending in wickedly sharp spikes. Nagus confirmed that these were creatures of the Ennwrathi — they were undead.

 

There was little that could be done against so many. Usually an infestation of Bonewalkers would be detected before they grew so large. The problem would only get worse as the undead creatures marched during the night taking village after village until it met some force powerful enough to stop it.

Looking down from the hillside something else was noted — the scroll from Sarvos was missing. In a white hot moment of clarity Nagus understood that Yasha was not a dryad but a hag in a breeding frenzy. She had taken the scroll while she was alone with Kaid.

 

The companions tracked Yasha into the mountains where they barely escaped a horde of trollkin. Alacran and Cetric lost their armor in the pell mell flight — the weight would have cost them their lives had they not shed it.

 

With little choice, the demoralized party set off for Gorgoros to inform the Archmage Elyion that they had failed.

 

* DM Note - most names and words have some meaning in the game and thus provide clues. Today, years after the event, Edsel figured out that Yasha is a word meaning "female demon." Brownie points for Edsel!!

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

The Pit of Gorgoros

There could have been thousands of messages contained within the scroll but the voices of the dead had warned Nagus of the Skull of Tzavos. In a moment of insight, it was decided that Elyion must have the Skull and that someone is trying to get it.

 

Alas, the party was too late. Bonewalkers besieged Gorgoros distracting the defenders while the theft was carried out. Elyion welcomed Kaid and his friends but was distant and distracted after the discovery that the Skull was missing.

 

Envernes

The summer in Envernes was filled with intrigue and political double dealing. Kaid eventually met with the man who claimed to be the heir to the duchy and was powerfully swayed by his arguments. It helped that the butcher who was appointed to govern the duchy by Prince Rafn could not have been doing more evil if he had tried.

 

The battles and intrigues in Envernes are many and complex. The influence of the Mendicant church is strong so close to the border of Touren [DM Note: A Mendicant Theocratic state.], perhaps even stronger than royal influence. It became apparent that the new duke allowed Patriarch Redeemers to operate within the duchy with impunity so long as they destroyed the sway of the Mendicants. Meanwhile, the man who claims to be the heir struggles to alleviate the crushing taxes and increasingly frequent and powerful trollkin raids from the Trollstone Mountains.

 

When the companions left just before the start of winter they had faced a dragon and dozens of raids by trollkin. Though they were unable to affect massive change, they did manage to break the power of the Redeemers. However, they made a deadly enemy in the person of Father Asa Baranos a powerful and gifted Redeemer who survived. It is likely that Duke Danil Envernes [DM Note: The new duke appointed by Prince Rafn] knows of their involvement and will likewise hold a grudge. They were also able to discover that the source of the trollkin raids was a powerful wizard, or maybe a hag, known as Kamiste Caylor or the White Queen in the language of the common tongue.

 

The Winter at Orenstone

The travelers arrive back in Orenstone with some time before true winter sets in. Duke Wingate has given over the great hall to his nephew Andris Ragnerik and is apparently ready to openly defy Prince Rafn and King Sorin.

 

Little of note occurs during these frosty months save for occasional envoys from distant nobles or others seeking to gain an advantageous position during the inevitable war. Nearly everyone else stays close to home during the hard winter. Kaid, Arron, Alacran, and Freya traveled on to Northrun where they stoked fires and built on their newly acquired lands. Leonidas quietly slips away for parts unknown. [DM Note: The player of Leonidas moved to Texas. The fate of Leonidas is unknown but it is believed that he fell into the grasp of Yasha the Hag.]

 

Torean and Nagus consult with several sources before deciding to bring Toreans daughter to the druids. There is some evil pallor over her that remains despite the best efforts of many good and holy men.

 

After rituals and cleansing, the druids tell Torean that they believe the girls soul is inhabited by the spirit of another creature. Oddly, Toreans mentor died at nearly the precise moment that his daughter was born. Lud was an Erenn and a follower of the old ways. He believed that his soul could only be free if his body was given back to the spirits of the water. When he died this information wasn’t understood and he was buried in the traditional fashion of the Great Fellowship — in the ground.

 

Torean finds an Erenn druid who can lay the soul of Lud to rest but he fears there is a pestilence growing in the lands nearby. Torean and his friends have earned a reputation for being able to deal with these sort of things and the druid will only perform the ritual if Torean will help discover the source of the illness. Torean agrees to do anything within his power if it will help his daughter.

 

Torean and Nagus set out in the foul weather searching for something… It doesn’t take long for Nagus to sense a shift in the natural forces of élan. The two engage Count Bailstone in a life or death battle high in the Craghorns on the narrow stone catwalks of some long abandoned monastery. The Count has the Skull of Tzavos although he obviously has no necromantic powers. Bailstone and the Skull fall from the heights to the rocky crags hundreds of feet below. However, by the time Torean and Nagus work their way down to his body, there is nothing to be found.

 

Toreans daughter undergoes a ritual that puts the spirit of Lud to rest, freeing her from her "illness."

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Hangin Around Home — Northrun

Nagus discovers that a justicar is missing near Northrun when the attendant at the Shrine of Brynn reports that she is long overdue. It doesn’t take long to discover that she was captured in a Vindel raid trying to defend a small village.

 

The companions set on the trail of the raiders who have several days head start. Soon they find themselves approaching Vindel territory and eventually the city of Konstone where the Vindel hold their annual moot.

 

Cetric informs the companions that the moot is open to all and that most likely the young woman will end up as a “snow-wife” to one of the more powerful raiders.

 

Konstone is a muddy sprawl of a town that seemingly exploded into a city overnight. Tents threaten to overwhelm the city and sanitation is everyone’s problem. Yet, merchants from many different lands are present walking among the tents looking at slaves, metals, and goods captured during raids. Hidden among the merchants are soldiers, wizards, and even clerics who are here searching for more specialized “goods.”

 

It doesn’t take long to find the missing paladin Talwyn. She is chained to a pole where men find it sporting to see if she can be tamed. Fiery women (and men) who fight till the bitter end hold a special attraction to the fatalistic Vindel. After some advising and discussion of customs Nagus simply walks up and unchains her.

 

A powerful Vindel raider takes exception and demands some money for her purchase but thankfully the party realizes they will never get out alive if they show weakness. Nagus violently explodes into action pummeling the man near to death.

 

Afterwards the companions are invited to sit in the camp of a respected chieftain named Vorjarin. The Vindel war chief is the grandson of two Celestine making him nearly half immortal himself. There is little doubt that he has powers far beyond what the party is used to dealing with. Arron is questioned about the recent skyfire to the south [DM Note: the green fire that struck near Tharad]. Vorjarin has many other odd questions about “lowland” events some are obvious while others are impenetrable.

 

The impressed war chief ensures that the group knows of several warriors from Lorain who are attending the moot looking for sell-swords. Little comes from this knowledge other than being forewarned.

 

On the return to Northrun the companions spot heavily armored warriors high in the mountains. Keeping to shelter, they track the strange warriors for miles until they are able to intercept them. The men are members of the Kratian Battlelords and the skirmish quickly gives way to a stand off. Arron plays on the knight’s pride and challenges the leader to single combat — the losing side will surrender.

 

The two men proved to be evenly matched, trading blow for blow before the fight becomes defensive. Wary now, the two circle each other probing for an opening. The battle stretches out over minutes with neither side giving. Eventually injury and fatigue begin to wear the steel titans down. Arron shoves aside the final effort of the Battlelord and forces the exhausted warrior to yield shortly before he collapses as well.

 

[DM Note: The battle came down to burning STUN for END. Another Phase and it would have been Arron on the ground.]

 

The party returns with the captured knights to Northrun where they settle down for the winter.

 

Shadow Fiend

Once again spring sees a reunion at Orenstone. This reunion is short and unpleasant. Duke Wingate receives an ultimatum from Prince Rafn delivered by a foreign envoy who Kaid believes is also a powerful wizard.

 

The Prince leaves the duke little room to maneuver by ordering him to appear in Chandra along with his heir and Andris Ragnerik. Andris and the Duke agree that to place themselves in the Princes' power would be certain death. The envoy is rebuffed and dismissed but not before he promises war and death.

 

The Companions set out once more for the city of Tharad. During the winter there was a disaster of some sort and the sea is said to have swallowed parts of the city and thousands of citizens.

 

Less than a day into the journey, they find themselves facing the strange envoy who promised death and misery. There is little doubt that his power comes from the Adversary when the shadows begin to dance at his command. The companions face twisted, shadowy versions of themselves in battle — barely surviving. When the dust has settled there is no one around.

 

The road to Tharad is filled with refugees who have fled the city. Those who survived report that on the Feast of St Evik a green fire fell from the sky into the waters around Tharad. Shortly afterward the sea rose up and swallowed parts of the city killing thousands. The city survived but many have decided to move on because of the miasma of evil that lingers. It seems that strange and terrible things happen for no reason; stillborn children, sour milk, and all the usual culprits.

 

The Companions fear what they know they will find — the Black Abbey is destroyed and the dutiful monks whose prayers stretch back centuries are dead. The massive walls have been pulverized by some unknowable force. Something has escaped that had been imprisoned for millennium. There is little else to do for now.

 

[DM Note: The mighty city of Tharad is reduced but remains a power to be reckoned with by those who think her to be easy prey.]

 

The armies mobilize with the spring but no major battles are immediately fought. Duke Wingate minimizes forces in the Eastern Marches to bolster his garrisons at home. Every side — Lorain, Middea, and Wingate — is snapping up every mercenary force available for hire.

 

Year Four

Spring of IC 1080, the campaign resumes.

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

That summarizes the campaign up to now. There are still plenty of plot threads dangling here and there as well as a passel of enemies who might like to deliver a bit of payback.

[Manic Typist]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Very interesting.

[Nagus Pantojan]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Sucks having moved to texas, now I cannot be their regularly to put the smack down on Rafn's henchmen.

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

You'll be with us in spirit... plus there is always that child you sired.

 

Nagus the Justicar was the terror of the undead and tank extraordinare.

[Savinien]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Looks like a great game.

[NightStick]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

I'm looking forward to this campaign cranking up again!

 

We had some very good times out in the wilderness!

Moving to Gorilla tactics in a city will be FUN!

[TheQuestionMan]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Lets see the Hero Designer Characters!!!!

[Kristopher]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

I'm looking forward to this campaign cranking up again!

 

We had some very good times out in the wilderness!

Moving to Gorilla tactics in a city will be FUN!

 

Hooting, thumping your chest, and making repeated charges at your foe in the hopes that he backs down without actual combat?

 

 

 

What?

 

 

Oh, you meant guerrilla tactics.

[NightStick]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Oh' date=' you meant [i']guerrilla[/i] tactics.

 

Gorilla; Guerrilla; Chimpanzee; Chump; Potatoe; Potata...

Heck, In the end, they are gonna DIE no matter how it's spelled (spelt)

<...you spell it...>

 

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Lets see the Hero Designer Characters!!!!

 

Update time....

 

I am working on the final versions for the various characters. Some of the returning crew are unchanged while others got some minor tweaks (especially the mages). I hope to have them all done by this weekend and posted.

 

During Gencon I purchased the HUGE Ptolus map (around 4*12 feet). Now I find myself craving to bust the bad boy out for the game. I was already researching cities to see what I wanted to do with Tharad which led me to buy the great big ol' Ptolus book (I am not a big Monte fan but his stuff is generally "OK."). I gotta say that I am impressed and, strange enough, the city maps well to what I had already done with Tharad if you pull out all the D&Disms.

 

So, play will start next Saturday with the players arriving in Tharad for grand adventure.

 

Tharad:

This is a large Middean coastal city of around 70,000 citizens. The infrastructure was mostly constructed by the Vintrian Empire during the occupation 350 years ago. The city is crime ridden and possessed of an intangible darkness that has thrived since the Night of Fire 5 months ago. Factions and powers have arrayed themselves among the citizens until no one group is clearly in command. Nominally, within the walls the roaylly appointed Baron rules without question but with the forces of Middea deployed against the threat of Duke Wingate there are few tools left to enforce the edicts of the Crown.

 

Additional elements other than those included in Ptolus:

Arcane

• The Synod (will probably replace the Inverted Pyramid)
  
• Krypteia - dark rumors surround this organization but few seemed to know anything of substance.
  
• Batory - A cadet branch of the royal Ragnerik line mired in allegations of consanguineous relations. Rumored to be led by females with a command of sinister magic.
  

 

Criminal - these are in addition to what is found in Ptolus. Most of the additions are ethnic type criminals who control crime within their hood.

• Kirow - Aquisitions, esp of rare books and exotics. Contacted within the Kaari diplomatic and mercentile compound of the Radiant Kingdoms.
  
• Echaebin - information broker. No known allegiance.
  
• Lykonis - Export slaves to Tamor. Import drugs and exotics.
  
• The Vori - Durazzo crime lord feared for overly voilent tactics.
  
• Kamora - classic "family" mob. Fiercest competition to Belcazzor and Killraven. Part of the larger Boson Gar Organization.
  
• Lansyria Cartel - enforcers and muscle who perform discrete services for the nobility and the baron.
  

 

 

Ennwrathi - undead and demonic creatures who are plotting within the city.

• [Censored] sorry, everybody has to have some secrets and the players are well aware that Bal Samedi was imprisoned in the Black Abbey during the Ennwrathi Wars close to a thousand years ago by the Wizard Tsared (female).
  

 

The players know that something escaped during the Night of Fire (a meteror struck near Tharad 4-5 months ago and during the great storm that followed the Black Abbey was utterly destroyed. Releasing whatever had been imprisoned there - Bal Samedi or maybe other dark things along with the big bad ugly muther). In part, the group is going to the city to investigate what happened but there are also rumors of the ruins of a vast underground city that were uncovered during the catastrophe (again, the players had previously discovered at least a portion of these ruins.) Impressive treasures a rumored to have been recovered by those who have braved the limestone caverns below the city proper.

 

The Mission:

One of the noble families that has long supported Wingate recently fell on hard times. The lord and lady of the house recently died during a shipboard fire and the inheritor has asked the duke for aid against unidentifed enemies. The Duke assumes that this is an attack designed to weaken his support within the pivitol city but right now the truth remains unknown. The lady is somewhat defenseless and could be forced into marriage if her plight were known... However, few know that her brother is missing and presumed dead, leaving her with the fortunes and titles of the house. Right now, the extinction of the noble line is a more serious threat than an arrainged marriage.

 

That is where I am right now. I have several adventure outlines that I'll be introducing maybe even a few from Ptolus but right now they include a handful of reworked Dungeon modules and Murder at the Vulgar Unicorn from Green Ronin. I am sure that the party will be returning to Northrun within a year but for now they will need to settle in Tharad to answer some very important questions.

 

[Edsel]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Lets see the Hero Designer Characters!!!!

You can visit the download page on Eosin's website Pencil Pushers. There is a zip file that contains a lot of Hero Designer stuff. My own player character, Torean, is available on the Herodesigner archive.

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Campaign Decisions

 

I am going to elaborate on why I do what I do in a game — just in case anyone is interested.

 

Some of you may wonder about the whole urban turn in the campaign, which has been previously focused on politics, intrigue, wilderness adventure and war stories. During the long ride to Gencon, Edsel and myself had several conversations about the game. See, there is a campaign problem that continued to grow more pronounced as time went on. The players weren’t much of a group… They are a collection of individuals who don’t complement each other very well. Taken as a whole the group is magic heavy and grossly skewed to ranged combat leaving them strategically crippled. This is a problem that has been compound by the loss of the party tank (Nagus). The strategic issue is that in wide open spaces the party is unstoppable but when they are at wetwork range things get wild and dangerous.

 

This should not be construed to say that any one character is wrong or that the choices made by the group are poor. It means that they play what they want to play and as the GM I am loathe to veto a concept based on party needs. It sucks to be set on playing an XXXX and be told that they party needs YYYY, so you have to change your whole concept. I just don’t do it. I don't like it done to me.

 

The campaign needs to accommodate the players and their desires not the other way around.

 

I needed to find some options for mid-range combat where people could close or drop back to keep some distance. I am not fond of dungeons (despite the presence of a “dungeon” of limestone caves and the ruins of a previous habitation). The answer, of course, was to bring the campaign into an urban environment where each of the characters could manipulate encounters to better suit their strength or their weakness. However, it couldn’t just be any ol’ urban environment and the party would need to make some adjustments (such as - several positive reputations that may cause some long term problems for the group and, most importantly, one of the characters is a major member of a noble family). These are issues that are going to need to be addressed for “game realism” but are more a factor of roleplay than of rules management.

 

POTENTIAL PROBLEMS:

I have several "issues" no matter where the campaign is set. The question is which set of "issues" do I want to tackle? In the city, my major points of concern are the following….

 

• Fire Mage… Yeah, I am gonna need to work on this one lest the whole city be consumed. Luckily, it is a moist environment.
  
• Disadvantages: Some of the players disadvantages become much more problematic within a city, especially if they are trying to keep a low profile.
  
• Famous: Several of the characters are well known and may inadvertently give away their ID.
  
• Character Concepts: These guys were not conceived with an urban game in mind and that may raise some unforeseen issues (armor, failure to adhere to common social mores, skill sets — although there are not any ranger types in the party).
   
  
• Prior experience:
  
• Agile Freaks: The party's DEX scores are inflated to barely manageable levels. I honestly haven’t a clue how I will deal with this one but it is something that our whole group struggles with regardless of the campaign.
  
• They are tough nuts: Realistically, the party is on par with mid-level combatants (say, the fantasy version of LIBRA) but they often perform well above that thanks to a combination of divergent mystical powers, excellent ranged combat, and a martial artist ginsu machine of death HTH guy - not to mention some sound tactics. The difficulty is two-fold. A) The challenges need to be escalated to match the party. Under the right circumstances, the specialized nature of the party makes it possible to experience catastrophic failure resulting in a TPK or something equally campaign imploding.
  

 

So, there is where the game stands and the reasons for the shift in focus. I am eager to find out how this all pans out and if my ideas for stabilizing the campaign work or not…. There are a number of pitfalls already planted but it should be possible to navigate them.

 

Note: The problems are not problems with players or with specific characters. I don't want anyone to think I am suggesting such. This is an assessment of where the group and the campaign are and why I made the decisions to take things the way I have ~ it is the same thing as making adjustments for an all rogue campaign in D&D. This is a discussion about modifying the campaign to the players, identifying special issues, noting any disasters in the making so the GM (ME) can hedge his cards against pulling that joker. I have yet to see a campaign that didn't have issues for the GM to deal with.

[NightStick]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

For those of you who follow our gaming group (The Weekend Warriors & The Last Dominion) you now have a better understanding of why I enjoy playing in both Edsel AND Eosin's group.

 

Both of these GM's continue to astound me with their attention to detail and their love of a GREAT story.

 

I am looking forward to our assault on Tharad.

 

I think....

 

But then again...

[Eosin]

Re: [Campaign] The Last Dominion

 

Tonight is the first game of the new session.

 

I got the characters revamped today but failed to get a player hand out for Tharad/Ptolus 100% done. It'll be interesting to see how the first game session plays out.

 

Randy