Joey, the Rock Crusher (2/2/28)

The plan was simple. They would go to the market to buy the necessary unguents and poultices to reincarnate Brog. But as Ilyana began gathering a following of curious onlookers, Marty cautioned her to keep the affair small. When Ilyana refused, Marty slipped off and buried Brog’s body to protect the tower from being inundated with waves of desperate people demanding their loves ones be brought back. Ilyana was upset when she returned, but rather than tracking down Marty and demanding Brog’s body, she instead took Lexington’s.

With a small crowd watching on, Ilyana reincarnated Lexington. He came back in a dwarven body. They explained to him, as best they could what had happened, but in the end, Lex decided there was no place for him in Malwan. He left with little fanfare to seek his fortune in the mines. Giada suggested he might take a new name, something dwarven, like Joey, the Rock Crusher.

At a council meeting, Justice called for reinstatement of an obscure law conscripting all young men into military training for a year. Given several missing council members the matter was shelved until a full council was present.

While searching for the site of Ilyana’s ritual, Euwyn encountered a crowd of angry citizens who were clamoring for the removal of all non-humans from Malwan, particularly the elves. He was able to talk them down. They seemed almost shocked that the Prince didn’t agree with them.

Tensions still high, the party decided to take Edgar’s latest restored magic item, an instant fortress, and head into the woods to try to find some enchanted cotton.

Lunette & The Blight (Date 2/2/25)

Lunette awoke with startled innocence, thinking Euwyn was Narlock and wondering why so many strange men were in her bedroom. They calmed her down, showed her how her dress functioned, and used her to bypass the archon guarding the top floor. Only Ilyana seemed capable of communicating with her like a person. They gave the floor a thorough search, but other than opening the lab to Edgar for use building magic items, the effort seemed a waste. A waste, to all but Lunette, of course, who seemed quite happy to be alive. Some of her comments raised the idea that perhaps Tiaco was actually the same cat who had served as Narlock’s familiar.

Wanting nothing to do with the situation, Marty slipped off to go to church once Lunette proved to be more of a distraction than a font of knowledge. While he was working there, Kenny Ismort burst into the chapel carrying a wounded man whose body seemed to be fighting with a fast-moving contagion. Marty and Mjelde stopped disease, only to discover that it had come from an encounter with a giant boar in the forest. Kenny claimed that while they were fighting the beast, he had heard it call out Ilyana’s name. Leaving the wounded guards in Mjelde’s care, Marty and Kenny gathered the group and headed to the woods. They found the scene of the fight, but no tracks. Ilyana realized that only a druid could slip through the woods so subtly. Upon returning Malwan, the party found several infected beasts attacking the town. They fought them off, and as the boar fell, it called out Ilyana’s name one last time and transformed back into Brog, her fellow druid and former stalker.

The Lumber Deal (Date 2/2/24)

“We have to learn to work together,” Marty told the Prince. “That’s what Strom wants us to learn.” Euwyn agreed, and in that spirit the party headed into the woods once more. This time to prepare the way for Malwan to absorb the lumber consortium, sending Winter ahead to announce their approach. Things went relatively smoothly with a few hiccups along the way. Drova was pregnant, but it was discovered to be Lothar’s baby and that the two had married recently. Lothar was now leader of the consortium, but he was still kindly disposed to Malwan. Antionne was in attendance, and although he attempted to manipulate the proceedings, his ruse was discovered by Ilyana. In the end, Malwan agreed to a price freeze – absent exigent circumstances. It was a good deal, one in which no one was completely happy.

Ilyana, Winter and Hedge did their part to normalize relations by partying with locals, enjoying their rich, syrupy mead and reveling around the drum circle until the wee hours of the morning. Winter had her first sexual experience with a local named, Garova. Ilyana had fun, but couldn’t escape the feel of eyes on her from somewhere deep in the woods.

On the morning of their return, Euwyn and Marty dreamt of a shining countenance looking down upon them. They sensed it was pleased. When they opened their eyes, they found the bodies were their own.

Upon their return, the party gathered in Narlock’s secret chamber. A brief search of the doll found a tiny, concealed compartment at the base of her neck. The odd stone from Narlock’s underground lab fit it perfectly. Euwyn settled her head back to the pillow and stepped back as magic power washed over the doll uniting seams and softening curves as it passed. As the glowing cocoon faded, what remained appeared to be nothing other than a sleeping, young woman. A sharp intake filled her lungs and her eyes burst open with a start!

Narlock’s Secret Lab (Date 2/2/20)

In a strange formation at the bottom of the lake, the party found a metal door mounted in the wall. Beneath it, a pile of bones rested in silent warning. A powerful ward guarded the door, but Marty wove magical energies – not all that unlike the ones he would have called forth in Strom’s name – that shielded them from the electric burst long enough to bypass the barrier. Beyond the door, was a small room with a single button, but once the button was pressed, the water was expelled from the chamber and the inner wall opened to reveal a corridor. This hall was guarded by mechanical men and robotic dogs with steel jaws. They presented a powerful defense until struck with arcane magic, at which point they stepped forward to scan Euwyn’s body before standing aside.

The laboratory was amazing. It contained, the nearly completed, crab-like submersible. All they needed was some way to get it to the water. But more than that, were several volumes written by Narlock detailing his thoughts on magic, his personal life, and something he called “The Blight.” Ilyana was drawn to a strange blob of foulness contained in a glass aquarium. The “wrongness” of it offended her on a deeply powerful level, but as she was about to share her warnings with the group, one of Narlock’s ancient traps triggered a Rube Goldberg series of unlikely misfortunes resulting in the cage being shattered. The beast released, nearly killed Ilyana by sucking all the moisture from her flesh before it was chased off by the party. Was this the blight which Narlock warned would destroy the world?!

They quickly gathered as much of the chamber’s wealth as they could carry and teleported to the surface.

And, by the way, Drova’s Pregnant…. (Date 2/2/19)

The best plans of the chosen minds of Strom were better in theory than in practice. It sounded so easy. Just go in, pretend to be each other, make excuses to family and loved ones that important work required them to be sequestered for a time, and adjourn to the tower to find a solution. But mimicking someone - even someone you’ve known in your earliest memories - was no easy feat and particularly difficult to fool that person’s closest people. Marty had an easier time of it, but Euwyn’s sensitive nature made it hard for him. He stumbled over his lies unable to come up with a reasonable explanation as to why he would not sleep with his fiancé, moving from sickness to mysterious things that had happened on the trail to wanting to marry her. It was an awkward mess which left Lumi feeling confused and alone.

And it all came at a very stressful time for the kingdom. Money was tight, but General Justice’s speech had stirred in the people a patriotic fervor that was almost disturbing. The people now bowed to the prince in the streets. They had set fire to the Ismort estate. In fact, any who spoke ill of Malwan or its monarchy were viewed with suspicion and contempt. Relania pointed out to Euwyn(Marty) that this had been great for her family and, despite her concerns for the fascist rhetoric, probably good for Malwan - at the moment. She advised going along for the time being. The council took their report and suggested absorbing the lumber consortium to buck up the economy. Marty and Euwyn agreed to set up the initial contacts once they were caught up with the business of their offices.

In the meantime, Edgar had devised a theory about where Narlock’s underwater apparatus might lay. Choosing their magics with care, the party dove into the stygian abyss.

Oh, and by the way, Drova is pregnant…

Freaky Friday (Date 2/2/17)

The cyclone howled like a banshee as its powerful winds ripped down the walls, buildings and towers of Malwan. Ilyana screamed, but her tiny voice could not rise above the thundering storm any more than it could reach the struggling pair. Heedless of the destruction around them, Euwyn and Marty continued their fight, hands locked at each other’s throats, as they hurled petty insults to be swallowed by the wind. All at once, she realized that the dream was senseless and – still more important – just a dream, and not HER dream. This nightmare was coming from somewhere outside herself. She woke to find a dark, fey beast atop her, its weight crushing the air from her lungs as it drank her blood. Her screams woke the party woke around her, and together they chased the beast off, only to wake anew as soon as the creature fled. All seemed safe, until they realized that Marty and Euwyn had switched bodies!

After some debate, they determined that they still had to go back to Malwan to tend to their duties while they searched for some solution to their predicament. When Euwyn reached Strom, and asked, “Who has the power to fix this?” The answer returned seemed to indicate that the switch was actually Strom’s doing. Recalling her dream, Ilyana theorized that Strom wanted the pair to put aside their differences and work together for the very survival of Malwan!

Their first test at passing for each other came at the Viecelli Mining camp. Twidi, the girl whose heroics had helped the party free the camp from trolls a few months back, flirted with Marty in the Prince’s body while Euwyn felt the joy of using his new-found powers of healing.

At the city gate, Kenny Ismort, swore his sword and his loyalty to the Prince’s side and cause, renouncing his own family and titles.

Lydek the Dragon (Date 2/2/13)

In the morning, the party was able to use magic to converse with Gabril. Even so aided, her vocabulary was minimal and conversation were curt and to the point. They discovered that her people were being preyed upon by the yeti, as she called them, as an offering to the “sky god”. The party marshalled their forces and followed Gabril into the mountains. She led the party by ways to an overlook where they observed a yeti village centered around a towering, ancient stone structure, standing thirty feet high with steps leading up to a sacrificial post stained with blood. As the party waited, the sky god appeared. She was a giant, white dragon. During the fight, they learned the dragon was named Lydek and that she was shocked to find the wizards so far from Malwan. She fled before she could be killed. The party told the yeti it was hands off on the humans going forward, reclaimed Gabril’s stolen people and journeyed to the next hex.

Gabril the Savage (Date 2/2/9)

After brief debate, it was decided that the party should not squander the opportunity they had been given. It would have taken them weeks to hike this high into the mountains, and while it would take weeks for them to hike back down, they would be remiss if they did not at least explore while they went. Using Ilyana as an eye in the sky, they plotted the safest routes for their inexperienced climbing skills, and confirmed that the bulk of these icy peaks were barren of visible life. It wasn’t until the fourth day, as they began their descent towards Malwan, that they encountered another living thing.

A woman in rough furs, wielding a massive hunk of wood as a club, battled a snake of freezing blue energy. After a timely rescue, the party determined that she wasn’t completely human. Her features were rough and pronounced, with over-sized teeth jutting out of her jaw in a random fashion. She cowered like an animal and spoke in sharp grunts and gestures. Unable to communicate, they chose to follow her, refusing to be deterred by her brave shows and hurled rocks. When she took off running, Euwyn followed in flight. The woman stared in wonder, then ran harder, then admitted defeat and fell back to her previous brisk stride.

The party followed her to a collection of caves filled with of humans like her. It was under attack by large hairy humanoids. The savage woman rushed forward to defend her home and kin, and would have been quickly overwhelmed if not for the intervention of the party. Still unable to speak to these primitive humans, the two groups settled in to a wary détente.

Meanwhile, back in Malwan, General Justice gave a stirring speech rallying the people by informing them of the dangers present in the world, but assuring them that his past heroics in defense of the kingdom made him the right man to keep them safe.

Through the Vortex (Date 2/2/3)

“Beware the Vortex.” The warning buzzed in their ears, as the party descended through the Increasingly treacherous canyon. The water ran faster and rougher with each passing mile, and there was less and less easy footing on what could be generously referred to as the river’s bank. It wasn’t until they stood over a drop of some twenty feet onto jagged rocks near a grinding rapid, that the party halted their approach, and sent Ilyana ahead in her elemental form. What she found wasn’t the whirlpool she expected. Instead, the river plunged in a cascading fall into a vortex of energy which seem to be disintegrating the liquid after briefly merging with it. Out of curiosity, she decided to test the vortex with a summoned dolphin. The poor creature didn’t even reach it. As it plunged over the falls, a serpent shape of water and energy cracked from the whirlpool and ripped the summoned beast to shreds in an instant.

The party fell back. Marty sought an answer from Strom, but only got a cryptic warning to be careful. Leaving Edgar and Steven a safe distance away, the party did battle with the warped, elemental weird by standing atop the waterfall and hurling missiles and spells from a safe distance while distracting it with summoned creatures. Suddenly, a powerful surge of water swept Euwyn over the falls! Fearlessly, the party gathered their two apprentices and dived in after the prince.

They fell further than they expected. No longer was the vortex beneath them. Here, they could see only mountaintops far, far below them. The wind was biting as it tore passed them so fast it cut like knives. As clouds whipped by, the party gathered together. Edgar shouted caution, that they were too high. Anxiously, they clung to one another tightly as the ground rushed up toward them, until Edgar called it safe. Magic enveloped them, and they drifted down to the mountains. Euwyn summoned a cottage to protect them. They huddled inside wondering where they were and just how they had come to be there.

The Malwanese Marshal (Date 2/2/1)

Marty assembled his team, allowing the Prince to bring Edgar, hoping to make use of his engineering knowledge while giving the boy a chance to test his magics in a field setting. Their first stop was Giuseppe’s Ferry. They arrived late and demanded the use of the Marshal’s house. When the sleepy gnome claimed there was no Marshal house, and that any dealings between him and the former marshal had died with Lexington. Martin intimated an audit might be in order. Knowing that discretion was far better than investigation, Giuseppe was about to capitulate when wires got crossed and the situation suddenly became heated. Marty punched the little man in his nose. More words and threats were exchanged and any assistance the Royal Treasurer was about to give vanished. The party found an abandoned building to sleep in.

That night, a fire broke out in Giuseppe’s home. Marty, Euwyn and Ilyana teamed up to rescue the Treasurer who was greatly shaken by the event. Ilyana found no incriminating tracks in the area. In the morning, they used Edgar’s engineering knowledge and Marty’s magic to finger the guilty party. One of the gnome’s servants had set the fire, hoping to kill his boss and blame it on the Marshal.

Marty outfitted Stevan, the rescued priest, and brought him along. In the ruins of the tower, they encounter a stone giant. Marty cast a spell so they could converse and a tense situation was defused down to an agreement to avoid one another.

At the bottom of the ravine, Hedge was ensorcelled by a nereid, but after swimming naked with her and some giant eels that looked to be partially made of electricity, Marty was able to negotiate for the fighter’s release. As the party pressed on following the river the nereid warned them to, “Beware of the vortex!”

Journey Home (Date 2/1/28)

The gnolls crowded into the chamber chanting in gruff, high-pitched, barking voices, “Strom! Strom!” Marty let the chant roll over the victors for a time before raising his hands and silencing the throng. He welcomed their enthusiastic conversion and, in the Prince’s name, welcomed them into the kingdom of Malwan. A touch of healing allowed the addled priestess, Mjelde to find sleep, and the party followed suit – camping at the summit of the cave complex.

With Bar-bark left behind to rule until a suitable bitch rose among the ranks, the party headed first to Giuseppe’s Ferry to drop off a large portion of rescued slaves. A small handful, including the woman who claimed to be Yuri’s wife, made plans to return home. Euwyn avoided Kenny Ismort, and Marty counselled that the prince needed to go ahead with his challenge to Kenny’s father for the slight at the Midwinter Dance. Euwyn agreed. Everyone was aghast at the thought that Yuri had abandoned his wife and child to languish in slavery. Hedge had a flash of memory and recalled that Ichiban had been his student during their shared time in the other world. And the Prince had a nightmare that he, Lexington, his father and all the people of Malwan were trapped in spider webs. He awoke feeling shaken with an intense fear of spiders.

Upon reaching home, it was discovered that Yuri had not seen Emily (Hashek) for almost two years since she had been led away for sacrifice. He had no idea she was still alive, let alone pregnant with his child, Carly. He wept as he took them in his arms. Euwyn met with Relania who told him the time to take aggressive macho action was past. She counselled that if he still wanted to do something, he should leave no fingerprints.

The council was pleased to hear that the gnoll threat was ended, though some voices seemed dubious. They asked that Marshall Connoly should make a patrol through the area to ensure that the conversion held and to see what wonders the chasm might hold. Marty agreed, but more to the point of exploring than any true concern over the gnoll’s faith.

Death of the Gnoll Queen (Date 2/1/24)

A small group of gnolls in the slave pen explained that they had been placed there as punishment for their worship of Strom. Upon release, they promised to go forth and carry the word of their liberation to all sympathetic gnoll ears, and then to lead those gnolls down to attack the high priestess. Fearing that such help would arrive too late to save Mjelde, the party pressed on, bypassing the lower levels and flying straight to the queen’s tunnels.

Fighting their way through twisting tunnels, the party burst into a larger chamber, occupied by an immense gnoll wearing enchanted armor. Prince Euwyn struck fast and ensnared the entire room in magic webs. The gnoll chieftain roared in rage and ripped through the magic filaments to get at the offending wizard. He was a mighty gnoll, but no match for the party without his team to support him. As he died, he cursed Strom for abandoning him.

In the temple, Mjelde was strapped to the altar, her mind all but stolen by the foul concoction she’d been made to drink. Bellanna stood over her with a cruel looking knife in her hands. Not wasting time on parley, Euwyn enchanted the group with speed, and together, they rushed the dais. Even hasted the party couldn’t arrive fast enough to stay the priestess’s falling hand. Mjelde’s death looked imminent, until one of the gnolls taking part in the ritual cried out for Strom and grappled the priestess, pulling the knife aside. The sub-chief rushed in to assist from a nearby chamber, but was turned back by a wall of fire. He fled the tunnels rather than face the flames.

The fight was theirs! The day, and the tunnels belonged to Malwan. A sizable band gnolls rushed down to see their fallen Queen - her demon servitor already dispatched – and cheered the heroes in Strom’s name.

Gnoll Rescue (Date 2/1/23)

Divinations casts the next morning brought dread news with a hopeful cast. Marty sought Mjelde’s mind and found it clouded and defiant, terrified but holding strong in her faith in both Strom and Marty. Ilyana found a still pool of lake water and in it conjured a vision of the plight of the priestess. Mjelde’s fancy gown had been torn to tatters, her body was bruised and battered and she was bound to an altar. A vile, mangy gnoll priestess forced the girl’s lips apart and poured a foul milky fluid down her throat. When Ilyana described the scene to Bar-Bark, he was surprisingly hopeful. Bellanna was subjecting Mjelde to the ritual of Lamashtu. Eventually the milk would destroy her will and she would become so suggestable that she would take her own life at Bellanna’s command. They had time, but they had to hurry!

Hurry they did! Riding hard on magic horses conjured by Euwyn, they reached the chasm in less than a day and half. The party distracted the exterior patrols with some clever use of urine, then made their way down level by level. They found some pups they could intimidate rather than fight. Next, they found a group of males being preached the word of Strom by a human slave named Steven. He told them of the nearby slave pens. There the party rescued several humans including a woman with a babe in arms who claimed to be Yuri’s wife.

Midwinter Abduction (Date 2/1/21)

Edgar adjusted his coat against the chill. The snow wasn’t bad, but the wind whipping off the lake was a killer. Walking fast wasn’t helping either. Typically, he found it would warm him up but tonight it wasn’t working. He paused to look up at the brightly lit castle. Lumi would be there by now, wearing some stupid ball gown, but somehow still managing to look nice despite her obvious discomfort. She wasn’t meant for high society any more than he was, eventually she would see that, or Marty would see it. He just had to be there when one of them figured it out. Well… be there and get her to notice him. Maybe he could use magic? No, that would be wrong, right? Right! He wouldn’t need to use magic anyway. They had so much in common. They were meant for each other. She’d see it. She had to!  Turning his way toward the orphanage, Edgar felt eyes upon him. He wondered briefly if they were Strom’s and shook at another kind of chill.

If the kingdom was in dire financial straits, the ballroom certainly didn’t show it. It had been years since Malwan had put on a Midwinter Dance and no expense had been spared on this affair. Candles hung in intricate handwoven arrangements of evergreen branches. The dance hall floor smelled of fresh beeswax and linseed oil. Multiple, crowded buffet tables served as islands for the numerous staff to pause at and refill silver trays before circulating with their burdens of powerful spirits or tasty treats. Nobles and royals, and those lucky enough to have gained their notice, were huddled in power-cliques discussing details of trade and prospects for the coming spring. All with their eyes fixed on the door, awaiting the confirmation of the worst kept secret in Malwan.

When the King arrived accompanied by Councilor Pavan – but this time clearly present as his companion, and not in her normal role of ever-present confidant – most of the gathered throng had the decency to pretend to be shocked. They even kept it up when the official announcement was made, that the longest running “secret” affair would finally be validated with a marriage. Even the king’s enemies had to applaud that and grant it would be good for kingdom stability.

As the revels pressed on into the night, several notable exchanges were had:

Lumi took the announcement of the king’s pending nuptials to inquire of Marty, when theirs might occur. Marty was suddenly distracted by a passing tray of smoked salmon, and Lumi – who realized that she had actually voiced the drunken thought out loud – was more than willing to let it slide. Perhaps, Marty hadn’t heard.

Hedge was called away by Edgar, who arrived claiming he had been assaulted in the street by masked thugs who seemed to be attempting to abduct him. The two left the party to investigate.

Kiros Ismort, had the audacity to claim that the King’s remarriage might be good for the kingdom, rather than handing power into the hands of an inconstant woman like Relania Bell. A heated exchange followed, where the lady was directly accused of a scandalous affair with the known traitor, Lexington Starym. Hands went to swords, but no blows were exchanged.

While Marty was pushing Euwyn to duel the loudmouth Lord Ismort, Yuri was discovered unconscious on the balcony. He had been assaulted by gnolls dressed in black and moving like shadows. They had taken Mjelde!

A search party was quickly gathered. Giada and her dog were brought in to track the gnolls. When Hedge was found, there was some concern that the thugs might have been gnolls as well, but Edgar felt certain they were humans. The party left Edgar to recover from his injuries, and brought Hedge and Ichiban to bolster their ranks.

A few miles outside of town, a band of gnolls attacked with javelins and spiked whips. They also had a powerful pig demon at their command. The group managed to fight them off with aid from the timely arrival of Ilyana and a badly wounded Bar-Bark. They had quite the story to tell…

The faith of Strom had been spreading quickly among the gnolls, and the high priestess did not like it. To restore her people’s fear and respect for their demon lord and send a message to the people of Malwan, she planned to sacrifice Mjelde!

Gaint Battle (Date 2/1/20)

The giants didn't want a fight, but they refused to leave as well. Words were exchanged. They grew hotter and hotter until the first boulder was thrown, then the battle was joined. The giants hit hard and, but for the power of Strom, Malwan might have been in need of a new prince! As well as a few additional council vacancies.... Shortly after the battle was joined, the mysterious carriage became cloaked in shadow. Then Graham emerged and began questioning the party as to their purposes. Prince Euwyn responded by removing the vampire's protective darkness!

Hissing, Graham leaped back into his carriage. Two horses, snorting smoke, their hooves afire, appeared in the harness and began galloping hard away. The prince enclosed the swift moving vehicle in a globe of ice, preventing escape. While the fighters held the giants at bay, the party gathered around the igloo. At first, it seemed the fiery horses would pound through the wall, but they abruptly stopped. Seconds ticked by, and the party waited on edge, until the ice wall suddenly vanished to be replaced by another globe of darkness. There was no visible sign of Graham this time, so Ilyana dropped the entire carriage, steeds and all, into a deep pit. As the creatures crashed at the bottom, crying out in distress, it seemed - for a moment - that victory was theirs. Then, the fireball struck! Graham had not fallen, and it seemed he was now angry. The party fled.

Back in Malwan, preparation continued for the Midwinter Dance, but plans for the Prince to announce his engagement were preempted for a larger event: A royal wedding!

At the event tonight, the King will announce his own engagement to his Councilor and long time friend and confidant, the Lady Illora Pavan.

Inevitable Giants

There was a lot of talk as the party walked home. Euwyn, at first, wished Winter well, but after talking to Mjelde, he convinced her to stay. Eventually the heroes reached the city where they encountered Graham from the Sky Tower who was dancing with Ilora’s in her private chambers. The power of Strom chased him away. The party gathered their forces and went to do battle with the hill giants, but when they arrived they found a mysterious black carriage parked in their midst.

The Unfinished Lab (Date 2/1/11)

Euwyn felt eyes on him before he opened his own, and the gaze which greeted his upon waking, was penetrating and icy blue. “Can I help you?” he asked Winter. The girl jumped – twitched more, really. Every move she made was quick and sharp, even the involuntary ones. She looked as if she was about to bolt at the question, but then found some store of courage and stayed to ask the Prince her questions. Her new powers disturbed her, but more than that, she worried about how others perceived her now, and asked if the Prince experienced similar stigma now that he was “different”. They chatted for about an hour as they waited for the others to wake and prepare for the day’s exploration, and Euwyn did his best to reassure the young woman that she had nothing to fear from her abilities. He added that he would do what he could to help her develop them. She let slip that he was far less monstrous than she had been taught to expect by her family in the outlands.

Euwyn folded space and jumped beyond the barrier. On the other side the interceding field was easily removed at the push of a button. Two dwarves and one Tian were held in stasis within tubes. The dwarves were listed as “subjects” while the Tien man was identified as an “anomaly”. Each was listed as the “source” for an emotion (anger, jealousy & zeal). This was merely a curiosity until the party was overwhelmed with anger while searching the attached offices. The source was a red puddle of semi-sentient ooze. Until it was destroyed, they were overcome with feelings of anger and engaged in fierce, ongoing shouting match. They decided to leave the remaining two vials untouched.

They battled an excavator which nearly liquefied Mjelde’s lungs, before Hedge’s blade managed to break it. They found some extracted ore and a few magic-seeming objects that possessed wondrous powers, but did not register on Euwyn’s ability to detect “magic”. Before returning upstairs, Hedge tried to extract one of the dwarves from its case. The body of the dwarf was eventually freed, but with it came a foul-smelling liquid which chased his compatriots to the surface. The tunnels were filled with a small fortune in various mineral ores (silver, gold and adamantine). They were guarded by another blob of sentient liquid. This one was highly combustible, but the party was wise enough not to ignite it, destroying it with blades, instead.

Bear Hunting (2/1/10)

In many ways, it was unreal. Just days before, Euwyn had been walking in the rolling hills north of Black Lake, and now he and his companions were high in the mountains traversing a snowy pass under the ever-present weight of a freezing wind. Well, a wind that should be freezing. Fact was, the prince felt completely comfortable. They all did. What a difference magic made in the world! Ilyana’s transformation powers had lifted them to these great heights, and Marty had called down the power of Strom to shield them from the elements. It was all so amazing!

When Winter and Ilyana found a mutilated, half-frozen mountain goat buried in a snow drift, it had been odd. Winter believed it had been killed by some great beast, though the tracks Ilyana found were almost too big to be any known animal. Rather than let the monster terrorize the area, the order of the hunt was given.

They tracked the beast to its lair, and met and fought a great bear with white fur and bizarre crystalline growth jutting from its skin. Though it’s blows were powerful, one beast was no match for their team.

After the bear fell, they ventured deeper into the cave which quickly passed from natural cavern to roughly worked passageway. The tunnel led to a mine - a dwarven mine. The main room looked to have been the site of ancient pitched battle where dwarf fought against dwarf and not a life was spared, but the party had little time to wonder at the cause before the bodies animated and attacked. Their numbers proved troublesome for a time, but in the end teamwork and magic won the day, with the power of Strom playing a vital role. It seemed Mjelde was blessed with a gift even Marty did not possess – she could channel the flowing life energy of Strom to destroy the servants of unlife.

Inside the storage-house/barracks, the party found the payroll and a magic device with a programmable alarm system. Ilyana spotted a secret shaft hidden behind a failing ward of illusion. At the bottom of the shaft was what looked like a laboratory of the Ancients, with dwarves preserved in suspension. Not just dwarves, but also a human, but one with features more like Hedge than Euwyn. After some debate, it was determined the party would rest and on the morrow, use Euwyn’s magic to bypass the magic barrier which protected the lab.

Hot Spring / Overlook (Date 2/1/8)

The ordeal in the Cage put fire to their heels, and the party fled back toward civilization. Either they eluded all pursuit, or – as was widely speculated – none was forthcoming. Once they felt they were clear, they put some questions to their new recruit, Barsai. His knowledge was minimal, seeming to think the war with the empire was a recent event and not a historical one. The working theory became that he had only minimal self-awareness. The hope is that it will grow as he continues to interact with the party. His management was given over to Hedge. Winter was treated similarly. Marty and Prince Euwyn offered to continue her training and to explore her strange condition. She accepted. Zimudar’s arm was buried in the city. Reincarnating him was deemed too expensive.

Back in Malwan, it was found that the kingdom’s recent expansion had stalled and exhausted its coffers. After meeting with Relania and the team, it was decided that exploration should be their mandate since open resistance was getting them nowhere. Continuing with their theory about improving people’s abilities through contact with the Euwyn and Marty, the party brought Mjelde and Winter with them to explore the hills north of Black Lake.

First night out they encountered a giant, or possibly a group of giants, but they avoided them rather than fight. In the next hex, they found a beautiful, natural hot spring. Hedge showed them how to properly enjoy it. Marty tried to spy on the girls, but was thwarted by well-placed clouds of steam and Ilyana’s all-seeing eyes. Euwyn spotted a family of rare, black swans, which Ilyana and Winter were able to quiet long enough to gather some feathers needed to complete Narlock’s magic fan fragment.

Finally, they reached the mountains. A sheer wall of rock rose up before them. With minimal climbing gear and mountaineering experience, the party opted for a magical approach. Ilyana took the form of a giant bird and lifted them high into the range. There, they found a scenic overlook from which they could see the Sky Tower. They were reminded of a vision from nearly a year ago, a strange sense of deja vu. A rough, but navigable pass cut away from the overlook leading deeper into the mountains.

New Year Battle Royal (Date 2/1/1)

The blow fell and Euwyn swam for a while in darkness. It was peaceful and calm, with no pressures or responsibilities. He thought he might float forever not knowing where the darkness ended and his body began, but suddenly, all at once, he wasn’t alone. There was another there in the void with him. “Happy New Year little prince,” it whispered, though it’s voice was like thunder in the void. “Is this it? Really? I would have thought you would be much further along by now. So sad... It looks like you’ll scarcely be able to mount a defense on my arrival. Well, you still have two years left. Try not to waste them.”

Euwyn awoke to confusion in his head and chaos in the world around him. Rough hands carried his limp body with ease as he was lugged like cargo toward the vast cage at the center of town. There his captor identified himself as Ensi Hablum, ruler of the Clan of the Cage. He chastised the Prince for invading his lands and said he would pay the price for not staying behind his walls. Hablum’s viewing box was raised into the air on massive ropes as his consort, Yarla crushed the prince in a vice-like embrace.

The Cage was a massive arena and the throngs mobbed the sides making a wall of flesh wherever the slats left vacant. Euwyn noted that many of the masses, including the Ensi, wore tattered remnants of imperial garb and armor, but there was little time for wonder as the gates below were thrown open and his friends were thrust into battle. Marty and Hedge were forced to scramble for their weapons along with a pair of local barbarians. They fought for survival against a trio of monsters. While they battled in arena, Ilyana attacked in the form of a giant mastodon. She threw volcanos, sleet and lightning before cracking the cage with a mighty charge. Hedge and Marty fought their way free and rescued the Prince, also, managing to save a barbarian named, Barsai. His companion, Zimudar, was not so lucky, but Marty snagged his severed arm on the way out in case Ilyana might be able reincarnate him. Together they fled back to civilization.

Clan of the Cage (Date 1/12/30)

Winter was cagy, speaking in quick declarative sentences and darting her head about at every sound no matter how faint. The girl seemed uncomfortable and on edge, but it wasn’t until Ilyana transformed herself into an air elemental that she revealed why. Taking the druid aside, Winter confided that since meeting the Prince she had developed strange powers, most notably her ability to grow claws and a beak. Unimpressed, Ilyana dismissed the girl’s powers as having to do with animals, leaving the impression that – far from being shocked – the Prince would find the revelation scarcely worthy of note. Eventually, she did reveal her powers to Euwyn, who did indeed acknowledge them with little more than a shrug. Marty tried to postulate that a similar thing might be occurring as happened with him, that his powers were rubbing off on those near him. Euwyn admitted it was a possibility.

After the first day, the party had little need for Winter. Though she was acting as a guide, she confessed she had never been this far south. After three days, the party came to an intentionally, burned zone three miles across. It stretched as far as they could see in both directions and everywhere the savanna was dotted with ornamental skulls on small posts. They saw these as warnings, but pressed on. Eventually the frost-covered, open ground gave way to plowed fields, ringed by a crude fence. The occasional placard read, Clan of the Cage. They pressed on until they encountered a patrol, which they hailed. The guards responded with arrows. The party responded to these with volcanos and the guards fled. Moving forward, the party found a small village. In the distance loomed a large lattice-work structure that did indeed look like a giant cage. When the guards returned, they did so mounted and at full charge with a massive man at the head of their party. They called a wall of fire, but the man leapt right through it. As his riders circled, he stepped up to Hedge, turning aside the ronin’s enchanted blade with his metal infused skin and took the warrior down with a dervish whirl of daggers. Blood burst from the wounds wherever they struck. Ilyana cast burrow on Giada and the pair fled, hoping to link up with Winter who had escaped with the horses.

Behind the Barrier (Date 1/12/26)

A dragon! Cavalier boast and mighty assertions faded as the reality of the task began to sink in. The Prince of Malwan could not risk his life so foolishly. Strom himself had told Marty not to go, which was good enough for the young priest. “The barriers will destroy you,” Strom had said. That mean there were barriers, it was that simple. After much debate, it was decided that Ilyana and Hedge would go, given their unique natures and/or relative expendability.

All was going well, they had bypassed the dragon without incident and the ground had turned craggy. The great ocean was coming into view, but Hedge had been having issues. Things felt ephemeral. Sounds muted, sights foggy, even Ilyana seemed to fade periodically. All at once, as the coastline broke and turned to the northwest, a great cliff dropping down to the ocean, Hedge felt himself all alone in a silent universe. He looked behind him, Ilyana was gone, all was gray. He looked back, but the ocean had been replaced by the Black Lake. He was in Malwan, just a short walk from where the busy docks bustled with the day’s catch. He quickly tracked down Shelby and the two of them hurried to reconnect with the now unprotected Prince!

For Ilyana, things went slightly differently. One minute Hedge was there, the next he was gone! Sure, he had been talking strangely the last few days. Her disappearing, his hand passing through rocks and what-not, but when wasn’t Hedge talking strangely? She hadn’t expected him to up and vanish. She setup camp and waited for him to return. It was a long wait. To stave off bored distraction to which the girl was prone, communication was established with Marty and the pair were able to discern several facts. There was a barrier. It was invisible, but it marked a dimensional ward, each side its own separate reality. The fisherman on the ocean spoke of Malwan as a tiny, isolated city somewhere up in the mountains, and attempts to scry and send across the barrier failed outright. After a few days, Ilyana returned just in time to link up with the Hedge coming the other way.

The party brought Shelby up to speed and dissuaded her from attacking the dragon. Instead they journeyed home, took care of affairs of state and put together an expedition through the farmlands to the southwest determined to try the barriers there.

At the frontier fort, they acquired the services of Winter as their guide.

Wall? (Date 1/12/15)

Yuri laughed his heartiest, belly laugh once the Prince tracked him down at the theater and told him of the dream message. The mere thought that the Empire was inaccessible, blocked by some great powerful barrier seemed ludicrous. He had journeyed back in forth several times in his youth, and though it had been years since he’d been back, he volunteered to escort Euwyn and his crew personally, claiming a small, empire-run port town known as Lindenrock, lay just a few days from the great gorge.

The party’s departure was delayed briefly, however, as Marty felt the need to bolster the group’s divine protections, enchanting their weapons with holy power. While Euwyn and Hedge waited for that, Ilyana and Giada got bored and went on ahead.

The elven girls made their way to the gorge, using the forest as cover. They saw a great winged beast surveying the canyon on frequent flights, and chose to approach with caution. Managing to avoid the dragon, they descended into the gorge but found it largely dull and uninhabited. They decided to press their luck. Searching the forest south of the gorge, they found a great rent in the earth. A strange steam rose from the entrance, and the place was pungent with an acrid stench. No sooner had the cave come into view than the dragon emerged, charging the pair as if alerted to their presence. Ilyana became separated from Giada, but when she paused to reconnoiter, the beast dropped out of the sky! There was nowhere to run, but rather than attack, the dragon instead asked questions, revealing several odd facts. Its task was to keep people contained, but it didn’t see Ilyana as falling to that mandate. He also mentioned, that the Fey Queen had a similar duty. Urging Ilyana to return to “where she belonged” the dragon slunk back to his cave.

The Prince arrived and the elves related their findings, but rather than being deterred, Euwyn was determined to bypass the beast. Though Strom had warned ominously not days prior that the wards would destroy them, he ordered the party to head south to try to circumnavigate the beast.

Message Received (Date 1/12/8)

Euwyn wasted no time getting to work. Immediately upon his return to his tower, he set to unraveling the mystery of the tower ghosts. He didn’t bother to check in with the council. He didn’t stop to see Relania. He didn’t discover that the city had completed the grand road and officially founded the city of Giuseppe’s Ferry. Edgar had to come tell him that the magic fan he had been tasked with examining was missing feathers from a rare breed of black swan. Euwyn was all business! Of course, that didn’t help when inspiration was lacking.

Giada’s suggestion of trying to lure out the “pervy” ghost by tarting up Ilyana and lying in wait, was nixed immediately by the druid. In fact, it was theorized that they would likely need a newcomer, someone who hadn’t been exposed to the ghost before, to guarantee its appearance. They sought out Mjelde and decided to have a slumber party. The priestess was game.

Drinking wine and listening to music in the grand ballroom, the party talked the night away. They teased Edgar about his feelings for Lumi. They discussed the prince’s feeling for Relania, Gaston and Kenny. Mjelde gave back rubs. Ilyana wandered off and confronted the Shield Archon on the steps. For some reason, it didn’t attack her and its aura failed to panic her. They shared several long, silent moments. She named him Steve. She asked him about the ghost, but Steve simply knew it as an intruder, an intruder in a “state” he could not attain.

Eureka! Angels didn’t sleep! Every visitation began when the subject was awaking from sleep. Doubting it could be that easy, Euwyn called forth his most powerful sleep enchantment and targeted himself.

Suddenly the others disappeared, and Narlock was seated with Euwyn relating a tired litany of facts in a bored, distracted manner. Euwyn stopped him and told him he was there and aware this time. Narlock was astounded and spoke quickly. He had been trying to contact Euwyn for some time. They had met many times before, but upon waking Euwyn and the others always forgot the meeting, having not been in the proper mindset. He hoped this time would be different. The message was this: “Escape! Malwan was trapped. There was no land beyond the mountains, the chasm, the elven fort, the badlands. He had to use his magics, the power of Strom, his friends and allies, and whatever else he could find, and lead the people of Malwan (ALL the people of Malwan) to freedom.”

Suddenly the dream faded into a horrible reality. An unimaginable terror of tentacles and teeth tore into the party. Frozen in fear, they were powerless to stop it. Even when Steve joined the fray, he was almost no match for it. Ilyana wanted to help, but feared her powers would be useless. Knowing she couldn’t hurt the creature, she instead leaped between its blows and Steve, taking the damage that would’ve killed the angel. Emboldened Steve landed the killing blow and vanished back to his perch.

Graham (Date 1/12/6)

Graham cut an odd figure. His pale skin and red eyes seemed otherworldly, but his features were clearly those of human with a touch of elvish blood. His first words were in the strange, alien tongue of the tower, but when he saw looks of confusion he quickly switched to the Common tongue of Malwan. He claimed to be the caretaker of the tower, but showed little to no interest in greeting the party as visitors. Mostly, he seemed surprised to find them – or anyone – on the first floor. He busied himself with assessing the damage, winding up the one working robot to begin cleaning, as he avoided the parties many inquiries. “The Tower of Trials isn’t prepared,” he said, adding. “You’re too early anyway. How did you even get in?” For a short time, the party had him trading answers question-for-question. Graham seemed most interested in civic details of Malwan. How many cities did it have? What was the population? How long had the current king ruled? The party got little in return, and eventually angered Graham enough that he returned in heavy armor and attacked them. Driving them from the tower, though clearly taking pains not to kill them.

Using a haste spell to avoid the giants camped outside, the party ran to the hills with several stolen pieces of property (a pair of skulls, Narlock’s notes and some ledgers from the office). Their investigations revealed several things. The skulls belong to an elf and a human who seemed to live in the time around the breaching of the fey seal at the forest fortress. Both had been captured by a bright light. Narlock’s notes spoke of his plans to face the trials and his worries about the fate of Malwan should he fail. The ledgers contained a series of reports on the various racial populations of Malwan concentrating on the six races found in the display room next door (human, elf, boggard, goblin, duergar and gnoll).

The party had also made attempts to talk to the “ghost” which occupied what Graham referred to as “the guest room”. At first, it responded to queries, moving up and buzzing around the questioner, but seemed to grow quickly frustrated, retreating into whatever pocket of space its kind folded into. They made plans to try to contact the ghost of Narlock’s tower on their return to Malwan.