Coulerain Campaign - Session 3 Recap

The Party find themselves in Dawn Rock, the southernmost district of the city of Rels which is currently under siege by sea.

Three guards gather horses to escort the Party east along the city walls towards their goal. In the south they notice a dust cloud rising and above it - a black silhouette swiftly approaching.

The Party run for it, galloping across the farms outside the city but the silhouette nears ever closer and they recognize it for what it truly is, a dark wyvern ridden by a crowned black rider.

One of the guards stays behind to fend off the beast but his horse is taken in the beast's mouth and torn to pieces. The Party take shelter in the narrow streets of the Forlorngate district but the wyvern and its rider are hot on their heels.

The populace panic and a wild magic surge causes Jotaro to teleport 60 feet ahead of the Party, leaving Valiar alone on a horse he cannot control.

Another guard stops to fend off the beast, managing to stick a spear in between its teeth but is also quickly taken by the jaws and made into mincemeat.

Cammie and Satsumi double back to take young Valiar while Jorian runs by Jotaro and grabs him, continuing the Party's flight.

At the final corner the road is blocked by two caravans of two traders arguing who should go first. Kai uses his bone spike to lift one up and convince the other trader to move along. But they are slowed down and the wyvern is again at their tail.

The final guard takes his horse and faces it but the crowned figure on top sends some spell at his chest and he turns after slumping in his saddle, his eyes glowing with undeath.

The undead wight rushes at the Party and spears Cammie in the shoulder but is quickly taken down by her companions.

As the Party flee outside the district they are still pursued, endlessly it seems by the wyvern and its rider. Until a shining bright light cuts across the sunset sky from the east and beats the wyvern back, just as it is about to sweep down and grab at the Party.

The Party travel eastwards along the road and on their first camp discuss the figure that pursued them. Jotaro's noble education leads him to remember that a similar figure, that of Ara'Dur, the Dark King, is mentioned in many Lorian myths and legends and that the other parts of the world have similar stories.

In the morning Valiar expects a nobleman's breakfast which causes Kai to want to strike the boy, which he attempts but is stopped by the swift and sharp teeth of Satsumi, who lunges at the Wizard to protect the boy. After some convincing the situation is disarmed and no one is further hurt by Satsumi's bite or Morri's flame whip.

The Party continue their travels and at a point are forced to leave the safety of the road. After a day of riding they come upon a lush green forest which sticks out in the dry savanna grass.

Inside the Party are graces by the fragrances of numerous flowers and are shaded from the harsh sun by the thick branches overhead. In the center of this small forest they find a small pond and a glowing flower.

Jotaro again helps with the lore, he remembers stories about Lorian Ara'Med, The Last King, and how he was treated with a flower petal which brought him back from death. But the Lorian Flower was meant to be extinct.

Cammie looks over the expensive diamond that the flower has grown roots around but cannot find a way to safely extract it. The tree branches rustle and eventually one of the trees come to life in front of the Party and pull the precious flower away.

Jotaro tries to communicate with the Treant who makes a sing for a ring, but when Jotaro dons the golden ring the Treant sheds a tear.

Morrigan talks with the Treant and shows the patience to hear out his slow words. He tells them he feels great sorrow for their task and names them "Amarthernilir", Princes of Fate or Prince of Doom, depending on the translation which is unclear.

The branches continue to rustle. Two hunters take them by surprise and with some new weapon one of them fires a blast of fire and steel at the Treant, dealing it great harm.

The Party fight off these intruders, one of which falls dead in the pond after he attempts to lunge at Cammie, another gets captured by more Treants who have sprung up.

Morrigan heals the first Treant after he has been blasted by the flame and steel and in gratitude is granted the Flower of Lorian. The Treant believes their fate will be tied to it and goes back to plant a new seed that will feed off the body of the intruder, who has already been dragged down by the roots and put in place to do so.

The Party question their captured hunter and he tells them about his nearby camp of hunter friends. His name is Haw, he seeks them no harm and he was no big fan of his Big Bro, as he calls him, although they have no familial connection. Haw talks the Party's ears off and manages to convince them to spare him.

Haw then leads the Party on towards his camp which is a few hours away. There they find what he told them about, twenty or so hunters wearing heavy cloaks willing to accept them for the night and dine with them.

The fire is lit and the food and drink is distributed. Morrigan and Kai mistrust the band of hunters and leave to camp a few minutes away.

At some point during the early hours of the night three horsemen arrive and pass by Morrigan and Kai. The hunters show them great respect when they enter their camp and their leader, a man in his late 30s with his hair tied in a tail behind his head, shows great interest in the party.

He asks them about their nearby friends and tells them they should join them, as he has important information to divulge. The man he is working for, he claims, is the man they are seeking in the east.

Kai and Morrigan are brought to the camp by Cammie and in a few moments Jorian's keen senses let him know that more men are coming. The Party is surrounded.

The man with the ponytail asks Haw to come in front and show his white tabard. He then uncloaks himself to reveal a similar one, with the sole exception of one red stain in the shape of a hand in the middle.

The men call him Lieutenant Gold Lefthand, he is the subordinate of the leader of the Red Hand Company, which the Party have heard bits and pieces about. He doesn't much like the presence of non-Lorian races and seems disappointed that Jorian and Jotaro, a human and half-elf would keep such company.

The Lieutenant extinguishes the fire and asks the Party's mages to reignite it but they find their magic is suddenly not available. The Party are asked to surrender their weapons and they comply, the Lieutenant tells them he dislikes them but nonetheless, it was fate that brought him here and it is fate that the Amarthernilir, as he also calls them, hold in their hands.

Haw refuses the opportunity to earn his red hand because the Party treated him relatively nicely given the circumstance and he is tied up along with them.

Once left alone, Cammie dons the golden ring and manages to free the others. Haw tells them they could escape via the river nearby, but that holds too great a risk as the whole camp is between them and it.

The Party are slowed down by Haw's ropes and they are discovered. The Lieutenant offers them to surrender again or he would have to make an example out of one of them.

The Party refuse this time and the Lieutenant grabs at Kai, Morrigan and Cammie but misses.

Kai dons the ring and finds that the effect the Lieutenant has on normal magic rules not over the newly found magic inside the ring. He summons a bone spike in an attempt to tear off the Lieutenant's steaming black arm but it only manages to anger him. The Lieutenant grabs at Kai and missed.

Morrigan then passes a dagger to Jorain which the Lieutenant sees and does not agree with. He reaches forward to grab her instead bu his grasp is short.

Jotaro dons the ring and shoots the Lieutenant's arm with magic missiles but they do not seem to damage it. The Lieutenant takes a step back and closes the flaps, inviting the Party in the open where they can settle their dispute.

The Party sneak through the back of the tent instead but Cammie is not about to leave Satsumi behind, a mistake that almost turns out lethal. She trips and falls, knocking down the tent and giving away the fact of their escape attempt.

The Lieutenant picks up Cammie by the neck and throws he beside the fire where his men hold her down and extend her arm. The Lieutenant prepares his axe but enraged, Satsumi tears free of her ropes and saves her companion by jumping on the Lieutenant.

The rest of the Party sneak away by climbing the short cliff that the tents faced. Haw throws Valiar up and stays behind. Jorian lights the tents of the camp on fire and Haw jumps over the flames and lunges at the Lieutenant, distracting him for long enough to allow Cammie and Satsumi to gather their bearings.

The camp is then attacked by an onslaught of Treants, one of which pushes past the men and picks up Cammie and Satsumi, after which it climbs the cliff and takes the rest of the Amarthernilir into its branches.

Another Treant grabs their equipment but is cut down in a single swift strike by Lieutenant Gold Lefthand who makes quick work of the attackers. In its last act of life, the Treant throws the equipment toward the Party and they catch it.

The Treant carries them to safety and in the morning leaves them. Morrigan asks why they came back, and the Treant answers that they were repaying a favor.

The Party travel on foot the rest of the way and finally glance upon the highest peaks of the Chernit mountains.
The longer they look at them the closer they seem to see and eventually they make out a white-gray figure on top the highest peak.

The figure extends his arms and claps them above his head, in the next moment he is standing before the Party. He mentions the long road they have traveled and the troubles they have been through.

He takes off his hat to reveal a bald head. It is Dun'Istar, the man they were sent to find by Little Bird and Wellion Qa'Sax. The Party have reached their destination, the first of many. Dun'Istar tells them they have a lot of work to do and that they better get started.