June 5, 2010: With a Little Help from My Friends

This is all from recollection. Ray was taking more detailed notes.
== Dramatis Personae ==
* Aria - warforged bard 7 (Westerling)
* Kava - dragonborn paladin 7 (Westerling)
* Kristof - human wizard 7 (Westerling/Regis Vale)
* Mungo - shifter rogue 7 (Westerling/Brighton County)
* River - shifter warden 7 (Westerling/Brighton County)
* Teodahr - elf ranger 7 (Westerling)
* Vitrano - deva avenger 7 (Malringer)
== Reporting In ==
After a quiet night in the recently cleared Vertan's Hold, members of The Hard Way (THW) used a Sending ritual to notify Sir Niviar of their mission's success.
"Keep cleared. Send garrison. Heading to town of Vertan." (and some other stuff, Ray has the detailed log)
Sir Niviar replied:
"Does Vertan still stand? Please investigate. Holding garrison force for now." (and some other stuff, Ray has the detailed log)
== New Friends, New Tasks ==
Entering Vertan town, THW was met by a contingent of the local militia and directed to a nearby inn to wait for the town council to meet with them. The three members of the council arrive a short time later:
Garyn - a farmer
Fossyr - a merchant
Selia Dorn - a warrior
River started off by offering greetings on behalf of the Kingdom of the West, and relating how they had cleaned up Hold. She then went on to describe how the dragon spirit had bestowed the Hold to Kava after being freed from the squammous thing. She then offered the protection of the KotW in the form of a garrison to occupy the Hold.
Negotiations ensued. The townspeople allowed as how they would welcome the presence of the garrison as long as it meant no taxation, even though they realized that could change in the future. They also wanted some help with a problem involving the dissappearance of townsfolk that they hadn't been able to stop or solve. The bodies the THW had found in the keep didn't account for all of those missing by a long way.
THW indicated that they weren't really authorized to make promises on the taxation question, but as long as the townsfolk were reasonable in providing assistance, we could probably help with their little problem.
== Poking Around ==
After THW reviewed the records of the town's investigation, and interviewing the members of the council, the got the feeling that Dapper dude and Farmer dude had more to say than they were willing to do in public. River asked to see Garyn's farm and he offered to show a kidnapping spot. Aria went along to provide backup in the diplomacy/intimidate departments. Venturing out into the country side, River was shown the last kidnapping site, and determined that the victim was taken by men on horseback. When questioned further, Garryn said he'd been reading old archives, and that the disappearances were not as recent as THW had been told, they'd been going on for years, but the evidence had been covered up.
Kristof got Fossyr alone and grilled him as well. He seemed to think that all of the disappearances could be attributed to the presence of the aberrations in the Hold.
Mungo started poking around town, and something made him curious about an individual. He followed the fellow to a dingy tavern, where he lost him after seeing him speak to a group of people at a table. Luckily, on his way back to the inn to rendezvous with the rest of THW, he spotted his quarry and another person carrying something that looked like a body into a single-story building that turned out to be the local temple to Hecate. As likely a place as any for a bunch of aberration worshipers!
Experience:
Skill challenge: Find the temple xp 10% (Level +05%)
== In the Temple: Ground Floor ==
THW burst in the front (only) door, and found themselves in a room with two wide rows of benches, and a pentagram at the far end. A door in the corner looked like it led to stairs down. Two robed figures stood behind a three templars of Hecate. Alternating skeletons and infernal armor ringed the rest of the room.
Trapped between the rows of benches, many of THW were immobilized by the enemy wizards right off, then charged by the templars, skeletons, and infernal armor. Cagey use of area attacks destroyed most of the constructs and undead quickly, while River, Vitrano, and Kava engaged the templars, however the templars proved elusive targets and penetrated to where one could engage Kristof. Mungo slipped through and engaged one of the wizards, but was attacked by a templar returning to defend his master.
River and Kristof tied up two of the templars while Aria flanked the wizards trying to escape down the stairs, and Mungo, Vitrano, and Kava engaged from the middle, dropping a templar and blocking the escape of one of the wizards. The other was dropped by Mungo(?) before he could escape down the stairs. The rest were quickly dealt with. THW took a short rest to catch their breath.
Experience:
Moderate encounter: 10%
No treasure
== In the Temple: Basement Level One ==
The stairs ended in a narrow doorway that opened into a room that was narrower than the ground floor room above. Another pentagram blocked the way to five robed figures arrayed across the back of the room, with two templars who guarded either side of the room.
As soon as they opened the door, THW came under magical assault, once again immobilizing them. River teleported in and engaged one of the templars, while Teodahr shot, Mungo threw, Kristof cast and so on. Anyone entering the pentagram was assaulted by voices from the Far Realms that incited madness and fratricide. Once free, Kava engaged the other templar while Vitrano aided River. Once they made it into the room and past the pentagram, THW were able to defeat all but one of the Hecate worshipers. One escaped out the back of the room.
Experience:
Moderate encounter: 10% (Level +25%)
May 8, 2010: Helter Skelter
June 19, 2010: My Favorite Mistake
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