Wildecards

The Wildecards were an adventuring party active from 251-253 Collapse Era. Though they tried to do the right thing, they grappled with the grey morality and evil present in Indratera, often paying a high price. Their greatest enemy was self-sabotage. Their name was a parody on the Wildegards.
== The People ==
=== Core Members ===
Name 	First Appeared 	Last Session Part Of The Party 	Fate
Ty'riel 	"I - Jury Duty" 	[Player left campaign, so the character is off "somewhere"]	[Player left campaign, so the character is off "somewhere"]
Leonis 'Leo' Zosma 	"I - Jury Duty" 	"XII - Caraway" 	Disappeared after drawing Void from Ormander's Deck
Copper 	"I - Jury Duty" 	"XIX - The Winter Revolution" 	Executed by communist revolutionaries after selling their soul to Ormander to become last King of Halcyon
Caricc 	"I - Jury Duty" 	"XI - Prison Break" 	Killed by an Accipiter Scion during the prison break
Emet 	"I - Jury Duty" 	[Player left campaign, so the character is off "somewhere"]	[Player left campaign, so the character is off "somewhere"]
Erros Redthorne 	"I - Jury Duty" 	"IX - The Accipiter Market Fire" 	Taken by the waters in Accipiter
Hljóð 	"I - Jury Duty" 	"V - The Fall of Cavatch" 	Killed after facing a hundred-handed one outside Cavatch
Rhydia 	"II - Jarren's Well" 	"XIX - The Winter Revolution" 	Chose to retire when the party went back to Halcyon
Olphira Redmond 	"II - Jarren's Well" 	 	
Orion Moonsinger 	"III - Employed by Vampires..." 	 	
Lord Kragar Stonebreaker 	"VI - Dinner with Cannibals" 	 	
Moredred 'Nine-Toes' Marrow	"VII - The Battle of Bard's Crossing" 	 	
Billy Boftan 	"VII - The Battle of Bard's Crossing" 	"IX - The Accipiter Market Fire" 	Killed by the vampire Octavian di'Romila after trying to extort him for gold
Cutzah 	"IX - The Accipiter Market Fire" 	 	
Dolbrek Halfboot 	"X - The Four Way Arrest" 	[Player left campaign, so the character is off "somewhere"]	[Player left campaign, so the character is off "somewhere"]
Beren Bythwell [NPC] 	"II - Jarren's Well" 	 	
Fat Ernie [NPC] 	"II - Jarren's Well" 	"XVII - Ormander" 	Chose to retire when the party went back to Halcyon
Lavina [NPC] 	"I - Jury Duty" 	"XIX - The Winter Revolution" 	Bayonetted to death by monarchists during the Winter Revolution
Urisaz No-Ears [NPC] 	"X - The Four Way Arrest" 	"XVII - Ormander" 	Killed offscreen by The Hound of the Brazensows
Tenkozo 	"XII - Caraway" 	"XIX - The Winter Revolution" 	Disappeared after drawing Void from Ormander's Deck
Caspian 	"XIV - The Curse of the Manor" 	"XV - The Upper East Wing" 	Disappeared after drawing Void from Ormander's Deck
Sir Yarak Scayleigh 	"XVIII - The Narrows Massacre" 	 	
Valen Redmond 	"XIX - The Winter Revolution" 	 	
Nael rem Arvus 	"XX - Solvenger" 	 	
Kala Netzi 	"XX - Solvenger" 	 	
Erik Máni 	"XX - Solvenger" 	"XXIV - The Shroud of Heinrich" 	Sold his soul to Ormander, then willingly drowned by Nael to acquire the Shroud.
Seela [NPC] 	"XX - Solvenger" 	"XXVIII - A Tale of Two Scientists" 	Briefly joined, owing a debt after the party saved her
Kitchi [NPC] 	"XXI - The Order of the Crimson Shroud"	"XXVIII - A Tale of Two Scientists" 	Briefly joined to work as the party's boatman
Crow Woman [NPC] 	"XXV - Datrian Dreams" 	 	
Sork 	"XXVI - The Siege of Solvenger" 	"XXVI - The Siege of Solvenger" 	Briefly joined to assist in the defence of Solvenger
Barnabas Bixby 	"XXXI - The Savages of Treeknife" 	"XXXVII - Long Live the Party" 	
Slashzah [NPC] 	"XXXI - The Savages of Treeknife" 	"XXXVII - Long Live the Party" 	Stowed away with the party only briefly
=== Notable Allies and Enemies ===
Name or Group 	Notes
The Law 	In Session 2, the party killed deputies and almost killed Sheriff Valka. In Accipiter in Session 9, they burned down an oil warehouse. The mother of the sheriff, and owner of the warehouse, Lucrezzia Reeves, had the party arrested in Session 10 by numerous bounty hunters and law groups. A mounted policewoman also killed the party's employers' father, Gail. After escaping from prison and killing the warden, the party didn't see them again until Session 39, when they eschewed redemption and instead enacted violence, killing Lucrezzia and reviving her, and traumatising Valka.
Vampires 	Vishara, Octavian, and Gail di'Romila, a trio of vampires who initially employed the group in Session 3. After the group's arrest in Session 10, Gail was killed, and the siblings held a grudge since. They captured and tortured Kragar in Session 37, but the party bombed their villa and killed them in session 40.
Werewolves 	From Session 4 to 7, the party was harassed by a pack of mangy werewolves led by Zhila and Karov, as the party juggled the full moon and their journey on the exposed plains. In Session 7, the party fought and destroyed most of them at Bard's Crossing, and took Xánwyr from Zhila.
Cannibals 	From Session 5, the party's horses were poisoned by Headhunter Vreigardt booby traps. The party met and tentatively allied with a band of these cannibals led by Yâlagh the Cruel, before fighting them in Session 7 at Bard's Crossing.
Cranberrians 	In Session 8, the party came to Cranberry Brook and met Mercury, a iron-masked cult leader and Copper's estranged brother. The townsfolk were very simple and friendly. The Black Blade nudged Caricc to kill Mercury, and the di'Romila vampires massacred handfuls of the fleeing townsfolk.
Huckleberrians	In Session 13, the party came to Huckleberry, where Kragar had acquired Brazensow Manor. Over the next few sessions they befriended several notable figures in town including Valentín, Cristoph, Bendetta, Luthen, Hiram, and Victorissimo. They also briefly met Lord Henrick Brazensow, but he had a heart attack and died the day after they met him because he learnt the party had destroyed an artifact yew protecting his manor from The Hound of the Brazensows. The Hound also proved an enemy of the party, killing Urisaz and the manor servants offscreen, and turning Kragar into a destitute oathbreaker.
Communists 	In Session 18, the party met several Fascist politicians (who were fit to defect soon) and later almost fought Tamerlane at The Narrows Massacre. The ensuing session, he and his revolutionaries arrived alongside Valen to force the party and the Ministers to execute their friend King Copper. However thereon, he owed them a debt and the party was told they were revolutionary heroes. The party also spent several sessions trying to stop Tamerlane and Lantsov's wedding from being attacked by loyalists The party returned in session 37/38 and collected this favour, gaining the service of the 12th Ambercoat Grenadiers and their artillery.
Cultists 	In Session 20 onwards, the party found evidence of, and then fought members of, the Order of the Crimson Shroud led by Malachar, the lutist Valaska, and the banshee Sedna. The party defeated them in Session 27 after a long and bloody campaign of vengeance.
Scientists 	Dr Emryn Shrapnel and Professor Ralov Abraxas, two feuding scientists from Adzvolta who the party befriended starting in Session 28. They travelled with them, as well as the Doctor's assistant Brakki and the Professor's gang consisting of Bluegill, Erola, Flint, and Obadiah. The Wildecards travelled with them aboard the St. Esmerelda Train until Session 35, when the Loyalists destroyed the train and killed the train crew. They were all revived, except for Flint and Obadiah. They parted ways with the party amicably yet haunted in Session 37.
Treeknifers 	In Sessions 31/32, the party briefly befriended both Hjola Landohr and her timber workers, and White Tiger and her Wylie Cacklers. The party opted to appease Hjola so they could leave as fast as possible.
Loyalists 	In Sessions 33-37, the party hunted down The Loyalists-in-Exile, Halcyian fascist monarchists who were trying to assassinate the communist leaders. The Loyalists bombed the party, destroying their train and killing several members who were later revived.
The Devil 	Throughout all of this, the Devil, Ormander, posed an ally and an enemy in equal measure. He provided cursed goods to the party in Session 12. Copper sold their soul to him in Session 17 and Erik sold his soul in Session 24. He sent his Seventh Wing to try to kill the party in Session 27. He took great notice of the party's anger and hubris, pulling strings from the beyond.
== Campaign Overview, Session by Session ==
The Sessions
Session 	Ttitle 	
Chapter One - The Danderillon	Chapter One - The Danderillon 	Chapter One - The Danderillon
1 	Jury Duty 	Several jurors presiding over the trial of the mage Lavina in Fascist Halcyon are united through a wild surge of teleporting magic, and subsequently escape from some tunnels under Jarren's Well.
2 	Jarren's Well 	The party takes on members and ambushes a prison transport, killing several deputies and intimidating the local sheriff. They free an architect, as well as a robber named Beren.
3 	Employed by Vampires... 	The party takes a lucrative job escorting three vampires - Octavian, Vishara, and Gail di'Romila - eastward to Aomodos, and slays some vampire hunters.
4 	...and Hunted by Werewolves 	On the road, the party is harassed repeatedly by a bloodthirsty pack of werewolves and their savage leaders, Karov and Zhila. Both sides suffer grave injuries.
5 	The Fall of Cavatch 	Hindered by poisoned horses after tripping Headhunter snares, some of the party investigate a town under siege by giants, and tragedy strikes when Hljóð is killed by a hekatoncheires.
6 	Dinner with Cannibals 	Fleeing to Bard's Crossing on the eve of the full moon and the werewolves close behind, the party crosses swords with some Headhunters, who they tentatively truce with.
7 	The Battle of Bard's Crossing 	A massive battle breaks out between the moon-fuelled werewolves, the Headhunters, and the party. The werewolves Karov and Zhila are killed, the latter losing The Black Blade to Caricc; and the huntress Yâlagh is slain by Kragar in retribution for the death of his best friend some years ago.
8 	Massacre at Cranberry Brook 	The party comes to a small halfling village ruled by Mercury, a charismatic cult leader in an iron mask who was once Copper's brother. The Black Blade drives Caricc to slay Mercury, and the ill-equipped villagers try to fight back, but the di'Romila vampires slaughter them like animals.
9 	The Accipiter Market Fire 	Fleeing the massacre, the party rests in the city of Accipiter. Billy tries to confront Octavian but is killed by the vampire. Copper is recognised from wanted posters, and a fight breaks out in the Grand Market. Mordrede burns down the Halcyian Oil warehouse, and the party flees, hampered by exhaustion.
10 	The Four Way Arrest 	Bounty hunters from Datria, the army from Carmogan, Wildegard cavalry, and the guardia of Accipiter converge on the party on the shores of Anoq. Most of the party is arrested, and Lucrezzia Reeves takes the Black Blade. Gail di'Romila is slain.
Chapter Two - The New World 	Chapter Two - The New World 	Chapter Two - The New World
11 	Prison Break 	With the help of Rhydia and Leo who escaped arrest, the party and their cellmates stage a prison riot and escape after five months' hard time. They are reunited with Beren and Lavina, but Caricc is killed by elite guards. The party flees with nothing but the clothes on their back and takes a ship to Lakay.
12 	Caraway 	The party takes on goods and jobs in the large tropical port of Caraway. Kragar dons a set of cursed demon armour, and kills a dockworker, possessed by voices. The party flees into the salt flats. Leo draws Void from the Deck.
13 	The Hound of the Brazensows 	After taking on supplies and exorcising the armour from Kragar, the party travels for weeks to the farming town of Huckleberry. Some of the party encounters a spectral devil-dog in the Devil's Alley and breaks a petrified yew. The party comes to Brazensow Manor, which Kragar has the deeds for, and meets Lord Henrick, who then has a heart attack.
14 	The Curse of the Manor 	Lord Henrick dies of his heart attack. The party investigates the curse of the house; its scions destined to become invisible mute servants bound to its grounds. They fight several spectral foes in the family graveyard and lure the hound away.
15 	The Upper East Wing 	Caspian draws Void from the Deck. Some of the party decides to investigate a locked wing of the manor. They fight suits of armour, voodoo poppets, and bath oozes, and find clues left by Romulus Brazensow that might help defeat the Hound.
16 	Huckleberry Cathedral 	The group ventures into town to sell furs and meets the inventor Luthen and the fortune teller Valentin, but are roped into helping Sister Benedetta, a nun who saw giant jade krait snakes in the scaffolded Cathedral. The group unlocks an ancient mechanism to a secret chamber below.
17 	Ormander 	The party delves into a chamber full of thousands of skeletons and finds a treatise on contacting the enigmatic Devil Prince Ormander, owner of the demon armour and the Deck. Copper makes a bargain with him to become King. The next morning, thousands of people came to the Manor to congratulate the sole heir of the now-dead Queen Volterra of Halcyon.
18 	The Narrows Massacre 	The party runs out of time to deal with the Hound before a royal escort takes them via Fort Thunderlord to board a ship to Halcyon; several members stay behind, horrified at the prospect of ruling the fascist nation. The party comes to blows with the Chief of Secret Police, Emilya. Once in Halcyon, the royal carriage takes a wrong turn and is up by a public hanging of two mages. King Copper goes on stage to speak, but the communist agitator Tamerlane bombs the crowd and a violent riot descends over the Narrows.
19 	The Winter Revolution 	Revolution spreads across Halcyon. The party's carriage crashes in Rix Park, where Emilya is killed by a pipe bomb. Tenkozo draws Void. The party flee toward the Imperial Palace of Mirrors, but are almost stopped by the loyalist Captain Miko, whose soldiers bayonet Vivian to death. The party takes shelter in the throne room with several Ministers and the PM, but Tamerlane and his revolutionaries force their way in. The party is forced to take King Copper to an abandoned mine outside the walls, and in the snow, they let them give a speech before executing them by firing squad.
Chapter Three - Rakkimar 	Chapter Three - Rakkimar 	Chapter Three - Rakkimar
20 	Solvenger 	After eight months of recovery, Valen, Mordrede and Beren come to Solvenger in Rakkimar. They meet a local group of adventurers and dine with Mordrede's family. They save a fur-trapper, Seela, and kill dracoyetis at her camp, but her friends have gone missing.
21 	The Order of the Crimson Shroud 	The party helps a whaler named Kitchi, who saw suspicious people in Qanoyaq Sound. On the ice, the party fights several necromancers - belonging to a cult that decimated Mordrede's old village eight years ago, and to which Nael's mentor belonged to. Their troubling return spells worry.
22 	The Haunting 	More members of the party arrive. The united group returns to Solvenger to find the barracks at Blackthorn Fort are haunted and many soldiers are possessed. They investigate, kill the brainwashed guards, and begin to fight several cultists of the Order, including the banshee-ghost Sedna.
23 	Exorcism 	After exorcising Sedna and killing almost half of the town's guards, the party learns that Malachar, leader of the cult, has returned from the dead after eight years to seek the legendary Shroud of the God-Lich Heinrich. The party rapidly prepares after they learn that the Order plans to attack Blackthorn fort tomorrow.
24 	The Shroud of Heinrich 	Erik sells his soul to Ormander to beg for protection for Solvenger. Nael ventures down beneath the barracks and finds the forgotten tomb of Heinrich. Nael has to drown Erik in the water, but in doing so is able to acquire the Shroud, which gives him control over death.
25 	Datrian Dreams 	The Shroud pulls the party into a reverie of Datria in 1490, on the day of the Violet Catastrophe. They meet Crow Woman, an amnesiac trapped in the dream. They fight spirits bearing the faces of those they know, dispel the dream-beast Oneiros, and return to the present with Crow Woman in tow.
26 	The Siege of Solvenger 	Valen prays to Saint Esmerelda for a blizzard to cover their defense. Yarak fools the cult into delaying the attack. The party and the Solvengerens stave off exhaustion and hypothermia from the blizzard, until the cult finally attacks. Nael uses the Shroud to kill the lutist Valaska. Mordrede and Malachar (who is shrouded with fiery angelic wings) have a gunfight with their revolvers.
27 	Victory 	The party beats back the undead at the walls and kills Malachar, but from his corpse emerges the Seventh Wing of Ormander, a giant demonic avatar. The fight is bloody, but the party barely triumphs, with the help of Nael praying to Heinrich, and Crow Woman healing everyone with an angelic balm that arms them with golden swords. The party and townsfolk unleash coordinated fire on the conglomerated mass of zombies, and win the day. They bury the dead, repair the Fort, and spend some time recuperating.
Chapter Four - The Train 	Chapter Four - The Train 	Chapter Four - The Train
28 	A Tale of Two Scientists 	After the first sunrise in Rakkimar three months later, Kitchi ferries the party to the Eldskar peninsula. They come to Adzvolta, where two scientists (the Doctor & the Professor) are feuding over an electric train they both made.
39 	A Tale of THREE Scientists 	The party learns that the two scientists were both coworkers of a third, the Dean, who was killed by a polar bear, driving a wedge between them. They venture into the bear's den to find the Dean's bones hoping to Speak with Dead and ask him how to proceed. They fight several ferrow-beetles and emerge with his remains.
30 	Railroading 	The party fights carnivorous moths and reunites the Doctor and Professor. With the scientists, assistants and various members of the Professor's gang, the party boards the St Esmerelda Train and sets off westward, covering thousands of miles in mere days.
31 	The Savages of Treeknife 	The train stops at the logging village of Treeknife due to trees on the track. The party is tasked by the domineering local foreman, Hjola Landohr, to deal with a local infectation of Cacklers (hyenafolk) and she will clear the trees in return. The party speaks with the Cacklers and their chieftain White Tiger, whose husband is Cutzah's sleazy brother Slashzah.
32 	Back on Track 	The party blocks the Cackler tunnel and is granted passage by the loggers, as well as Landohr's thanks. They leave town without even needing to fight anyone, and the train continues on to the lovely city of Sedia. There, the chief of the military Academy, Centurion Martus, tells them he may have a job for them.
33 	The Iniquities of Monarchism 	The party resupplies in Sedia and meets Belle, a master thief and fence. The party hears the job from the Princess-Elector; to hunt down a sect of extremists ahead of Tamerlane and his fiancée's wedding in Sedia, to preserve international relations. They identify several promising leads.
34 	The Late Baron Orvin 	The party fails to negotiate a higher fee from the Princess-Elector; she almost mistakes their conscience for weakness. The party pursues a lead and speaks to the Baron Orvin at the docks; they get him drunk, then try to kidnap him, but must stave off a barfight and a smoke bomb. Cutzah interrogates and tortures him in a grisly display, before Beren puts him out of his misery in digust.
35 	Revenge is a Dish Best Served Hot 	The party grapples with the weight of their actions. Before they can get a good night's sleep, the Countess Nara leads an ambush and destroys the train, killing the crew. A bloody battle breaks out between the unarmoured, wounded Wildecards and the legions of Loyalists.
36 	May The Hell You Find Be of Your Own Making	The tide of the battle turns, although Valen, Cutzah, and Nael all suffer heavy injuries. The Countess is slain, and the party learns that Crownprince Nadir is the ringleader. They vow to press the advantage, but spend valuable time in a deep and emotional argument over the fact that they can never seem to be 'the good guys'.
37 	Long Live the Party 	The party storms the loyalists' last refuge and crushes their plot, executing Crownprince Nadir. Their recuperation is interrupted by Kragar's kidnap by the di'Romila family from all those years ago. They say their last goodbyes to the train crew and head through a portal Barnabas opens for them, ending up in a Halcyian bunker.
Chapter Five - The Finale 	Chapter Five - The Finale 	Chapter Five - The Finale
38 	Comrades, One and All 	The party explores the bunker, and Cutzah becomes null to magic. They then catch up with Zenya, Kerenka, and Tamerlane, and are given the service of the 12th Ambercoat Grenadiers to escort them for their mission to rescue Kragar.
39 	The Black Blade 	The party reaches Jarren's Well. At a parlay meeting with Lucrezzia Reeves, they kill her to take the Black Blade, before reviving her. Squabbles ensue among the party over who should take the sword.
40 	Blood is Thicker than Water 	The Grenadiers bombard the di'Romila villa and the Wildecards storm the wreckage. Their toughest fight yet unfolds against Octavian and Vishara. Cutzah is almost killed, but the party triumphs thanks to the daylight. Kragar is free.
41 	? 	
42 	The Wildecards 	
== Their Detailed Adventure ==
=== Formation of the Wildecards ===
The founding members of the Wildecards - Leo, Copper, Caricc, Ty'riel, Emet were all coincidentally on jury duty in Fascist Halcyon at the trial of the arrested mage Lavina, when she cast a spell that transported them all into the Esokenovo barrows in the Mantle, where they met Erros and Hljóð. They made their way out and took on supplies in Jarren's Well, plus taking on Rhydia and Olphira. Initially, they were hoping to prepare to rob the Naysayer bank vault - they attacked a prison convoy to free an architect who could help, and in the process decimated the Jarren's Well lawkeepers and humiliated Sheriff Valka - but then realised they had not enough worldly experience to take on the vault job. They parted ways with Lavina, the freed robber Beren, and the gang member Fat Ernie.
=== Escorting Vampires & Fighting Werewolves ===
Now heavily wanted by the law, the Wildecards met Orion and took on a job in Jarren's Well from the local rich di'Romila vampire family, hired by siblings Vishara and Octavian to take them and their sickly father Gail to Aomodos. Some time after fighting off vampire hunters and embarking upon the journey, the Wildecards got into conflict with a pack of rabid werewolves led by Zhila. They tangled with them on various occasions whilst following Firth southeastwards. After a skirmish, their horses were wounded by various poison traps left behind by Headhunter native tribes of the local area. Whilst camping on the shores of the Dvoryac river, the group was desperate to find fresh horses. Several of them opted to split off and travel through the night to Kavatx to find fresh mounts. However, upon arriving, they found it under siege by giants. Here, Hljóð was slain, and Emet accidentally let the giants into the town. The group reunited, and decided to press on as the full moon loomed. 
They met Kragar and made it to Bard's Crossing on the evening of the full moon planning to shelter for safety against Zhila's pack. However, on the bridge-town, the group encountered Yâlagh and several Headhunters, as well as recruiting Mordrede & Billy. A tenuous alliance was formed - the enemy of my enemy is my friend - but, mere moments before the werewolves' arrival, Kragar learnt that the Headhunters had killed his old friend, so he lashed out. The werewolves arrived and an intense three-way battle happened. Zhila arrived and nearly killed Copper and Mordrede using the legendary Black Blade Xánwyr, but Caricc disarmed her, and Rhydia stabbed her to death with a silver arrow. The Wildecards prevailed, killing most the Headhunter and werewolf packs. 
=== Trail of Destruction in Cranberry Brook and Accipiter ===
Pressing on, the WIldecards came to the halfling village of Cranberry Brook, in a waterlogged bog. The townsfolk were isolated and innocent, but it turned out that they were led by a self-styled shepherd and Father who turned out to be Mercury - Copper's estranged adoptive brother. Mercury was keeping the townsfolk placated by 'disappearing' any travellers who got too close or too nosy. Spurred by the evil spirits within the Black Blade, one night Caricc interrupted Copper and Mercury's tearful reunion to kill the cult leader. The townsfolk and their speaker Soren tried to stop the Wildecards. The situation spiralled out of the party's control; the di'Romila vampires emerged and began slaughtering and feeding on the fleeing townsfolk. Leaving the town in ruins and a hurry as the survivors lit pyres to call the Wildegards, The party moved on to the city of Accipiter, the gateway of the Danderillon. Here, Erros disappeared never to be seen again. Alone, Billy tried to confront the vampire Octavian in his quarters for money, but was eviscerated. Whilst shopping in town, Copper was recognised from bounty posters. The party fought a large platoon of local guard, allied with Cutzah, and, in the process they burned down the Halcyian Oil storage depository (killing workers and guards alike). The party fled to the shores of the Anoq basin, the law not far behind. Some time later, several groups of lawkeepers and bounty hunters converged on the party - Carmguards, the Accipiter Guardia, Wildegard riders, and independent bounty hunters. The Wildegards mostly surrendered, though Leo, Octavian, Vishara, Rhydia, and Olphira escaped capture - however, Gail was killed by a Rider. Caricc was relieved of the Black Blade by Lucrezzia Röus - who it turned out had hired the hunters after the party wounded her daughter (the Sheriff of Jarren's Well) and burned down her oil depository (she was oligarch of Halcyian Oil). The arrested members of the party were thrown into Accipiter Lariat House Jail and given a fifteen-year sentence. In jail, they met Fat Ernie again, as well as Beren, who had turned his life around and was working as a guard. They also met the deaf orc Urisaz and the squat dwarf Dolbrek.
=== Jailbreak & Escape to Lakay ===
During the first six months of the group's darkest point, Rhydia and Leo worked hard to assist from outside, with the help of Beren to smuggle things in. Rhydia was given a Deck of Many Things, planted in Selim's stock by Devil Prince Ormander. Rhydia created a gang called the Bottlers, and Leo founded the Arcanist's Guild, plus he also recruited Lavina to rejoin them - she was going under the name Vivian. The group staged an escape early one morning in 252 C where a feigned alteraction turned into a huge prison riot. They had to leave their belongings, but broke out into the main underground hall, where Rhydia and Leo's groups dug a tunnel in to help them. However, Caricc was decapitated by an elite Scion guard. The Wildecards fled weeks south and took passage on a ship bound for Caraway, Lakay, after Kragar drew from Rhydia's deck and became owner of a manor in the Bronze Hills - and summoned Tenkozo to join them. 
In Caraway, the party bought supplies and goods. Kragar bought a set of demonic skin-armour which fused with him and forced him to kill an innocent dockworker - after quelling Copper's PTSD, the party fled town again. Leo drew Void from the deck and died. Orion exorcised Kragar of the armour and they sold it to bandits in Lilac Springs en route to the Bronze Hills. Coming to the town of Huckleberry, the party encountered the Hound that haunted Brazensow Manor. They met the sole scion of the family, Lord Henrick, but he died of a heart attack after the party told him they had broken a petrified yew tree in the Devil's Alley nearby. They also recruited Caspian, but he later died. The party explored the graveyard, chapel, and abandoned East Wing to learn that the family had made a pact with Devil Prince Ormander 200 years ago to protect them from the Hound's hunger, but the protection had grown weak as the yew tree had been chopped down. Later, in town, the party met the fortune-teller Valentín and the nun Sister Benedetta, who asked them for help in slaying giant snakes that had infested the cathedral. After doing so, the party discovered that there were ancient devil-worshipper catacombs under the cathedral, full of found hundreds of bones and an altar. 
=== The Halcyian Revolution ===
They communed with Ormander himself; Copper sealed a Faustian bargain to Ormander, wishing to become king. The next morning, the Wildecards awoke to find thousands of people on the doorstep - Queen Volterra of Halcyon had suddenly died and revealed Copper to be her estranged heir. The party was split - some members stayed in Lakay as the rest, alongside their new friend Yarak, were taken to Fort Thunderlord and over the sea to fascist Halcyon. On their first day in town, as the communist and anarchist partisans had been riling up unrest during the interregnum, a hanging of two mages was firebombed by Tamerlane, and a riot began spreading. The Winter Revolution had begun. Atfter Cutzah crashed the royal carriage trying to help everyone flee, Tenkozo drew Void and died; and Vivian was bayonetted to death by the Fascist Jackboots. The party sought shelter in the Palace of Mirrors, but then were held at gunpoint by the communists led by Tamerlane and alongside Valen, Olphira's husband. The group was forced to accompany the communists to Gilded Heath, where they were made to execute their friend, King Copper. The party was given Tamerlane's blessing and left, still shaken, as a civil war began that would result in the establishment of the Communist Republic of Halcyon. 
=== Fighting the Cult in Rakkimar ===
After eight months of recovering at the manor, Rhydia decided to retire for the time being in Lakay. Valen and Mordrede travelled to Solvenger in the winter of 253 after Mordrede's mother wrote and asked him to come home. There, they combined with three adventurers - Erik, Kala, and Nael. This group helped a local trapper, Seela, fight off several dracoyetis. They also helped a whaler named Kitchi, who had spotted people at his whaling grounds. This revealed to Mordrede and Nael that a blood-cult they thought destroyed had re-emerged - the Order of the Crimson Shroud. The Order was searching for the Shroud of Heinrich the Lich God beneath Solvenger. The party fought off a ghost named Sedna at the town barracks but, in doing so, had to kill about half the (possessed) guard forces. Soon after, the Order threatened a siege on the town. Erik sold his soul to Ormander to protect the town. Nael descended beneath into the caves beneath the barracks and acquired the Shroud, but he had to kill Erik to do so - thus fulfilling Erik's deal with the devil. Some of the party was dragged into a brief dream sequence, replaying the events of the Violet Catastrophe, acquiring a new companion, Crow. Then, the siege occurred. The party and townsfolk prevailed, but the battle was arduous and bloody. Many guards died, the fort was heavily damaged, and the party had to best not only the cult leader Malachar (who Mordrede believed he had killed years ago) but also the Seventh Wing of Ormander, a huge demon. Crow Woman also revealed herself to be an (amnesiac) angel briefly. After the battle, the party celebrated, mourned, and rebuilt.
=== Return to the Danderillon ===
After three months waiting for the first sunrise, Kragar returned, however he showed the party that Urisaz had been killed by the Hound. The party set off southward after learning that their friends in Huckleberry had fled after a cult had emerged there. They came to the town of Adzvolta upon the Eldskar Peninsula. Here, they helped two feuding - Dr Emryn Shrapnel and Professor Ralov Abraxas - to put aside their differences to finish working on an electric train. The two were feuding after the death of their mentor, Dean Othrys Anžir, but the Wildecards found his body (fighting several Ferrows and later Blackfeld moths), healed the rift, charged the train and set off westwards. They travelled 1800 miles in only four days, stopping at the town of Treeknife where they found ancient trees blocking the track. They found themselves caught in another feud, this time between the cut-throat Hjola Landohr & the Alver Timber Company versus White Tiger and the savage Wylie Cacklers. They recruited Barnabas, and decided to collapse the Cackler cave in. Landohr paid them and they left quickly with her blessing. They moved on to Sedia, where they were asked by the Princess-Elector de'Seditus to hunt down and kill Halcyian monarchists who were plotting to kill Tamerlane & Lantsov, who were going to come to Sedia to be married. The party followed some leads and tortured the Baron Orvin to death for information. That night, the Countess Nara led the loyalists who blew up the train, killed most of the crew, and fought the party. It was bloody, but the party triumphed, killing her and most of the loyalists. They decided to press the advantage, storming Vreigardt Hill Water Works and capturing Crown Prince Nadír who they took to the Princess. She ordered them to execute him and they were thus rewarded handsomely with 150000 gold, and noble titles. They recuperated before setting off to Halcyon to search for the kidnapped Kragar. Barnabas used a portal to send them to the city.
In Halcyon, they escaped the Desolation Row bunker (not before Cutzah became a nullblood). After resupplying, they entreated Tamerlane for help, and he gave them the service of forty soldiers, the 12th Ambercoat Grenadiers led by the Marshal. The group set off east, stopping briefly to see Lavina's abandoned house before making it to Jarren's Well again. There, they met Silvia (now sheriff) and attended a parlay meeting with Lucrezzia Reeves. However, after Kala cast a spell, the deputies got jumpy, Cutzah was insulted, he drew, and a fight broke out. Lucrezzia was killed but revived, after Nael had taken Xánwyr from her body. Lucrezzia and her daughter fled as the party won the sword, and spent some days squabbling over it before Moredred was given it for safekeeping. The party pressed on to the banks of the Juron and the Grenadiers shelled the manor with incendiaries and demolition bombs. The Wildecards stormed the outbuildings and fought Octavian and Vishara, who got the drop on Nael and Cutzah. Moredred shot Octavian, and Olphira sliced Vishara to death. Kragar freed himself from the dungeon in the well, and was grateful and surprised the party had come to save him after their argument.
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