Session 1

5/26/18 - Rayne, Wit, Nisrene, and Mulch/Ellywick

## Rayne:

**These are the accounts of the first adventure of the Firbolg Rayne.**

**I left town with a Wizard, a Bard, and a Sorcerer. I was a bit worried about our team makeup, as we did not have anyone who could really take a blow but me, and that was stretching it a bit.**

**We decided to head west, and as we travel, look for the flashing lights in the forest. The goal was to follow the river until it turns south, then head north as to get a lay of the land.**

**Soon after leaving, we were attacked by a Dire wolf. Not to fear though, I was able to calm it and persuade it to leave with my animal friendship spell. What a scary moment! Such a beast to come after us so close to the gates!**

**We continue to head west, set up camp and rest successfully through the night. The next day we hear a feint sound of a harp. After much cautious approaching, we find it is coming from a square bush.**

**We continually decide to cautiously check it out. After many investigations, I finally am able to learn it is an illusion, and there is dug up ground underneath it.**

**In fear that it is somehow a bomb, we all stand back, and mulch uses his mage hand to dig up the ground. Realizing his mage hand is only the size of a gnome hand, we quickly realize, this is going to take way too long.**

**I decide to bravely walk up and help dig up the spot. We realize it is a set of bones. I use my medicine profficiency to figure out it is the remains of a gnome, and notice a key on its neck.**

**Before i can grab it, the skeleton re-animates, and attacks me!**

**After a short fight, we take down the skeleton quite easily, and receive a note from its body, and a key.**

**The note reads something like, “ This guy brought shame upon himself and brought a scourge to us, head west where the grass meets the stone, something something, and that we adventurerors, should do something about it”**

**Somebody picked the note up, so im happy about that because I cannot remember the note well. All I know is we decided to head west to find where this key goes, and try to help whoever wrote that note.**

**As we head west, I use my survival skills to guide the group.**

**We find a break in the forest, and I use my athletics to climb a tree. I basically hop up it without breaking a sweat and notice a grey stone jutting up from the ground wayyy out in the distance to the northwest in the grassland.**

**We decide to take a look!**

**After some hiking, we make it to it. It seems like some kind of monolith, or religeous man made structure. 4 feet by 4 feet in width, and 25 feet in height.**

**There is some writing on it. Wit realizes it is dwarven language, but written by an elf. Saying “ You little dwarfs should just stay in your holes where you belong” Harsh words!**

**There is also some elven scribbles praising a diety of protection i believe. My memory is hazy on this piece as well.**

**After this, we decided to head back south and keep looking for “where the grass meets the stone”.**

**On our travels, we come across a fierce Giant Eagle. It quickly lunges at mulch and incapacitates him. Lady niserine in desperation casts sleep, accidently then puts not only the eagle, but herself and wit to sleep due to the aoe of the spell. I manage to resist the spell and stay awake.**

**Taking advantage of the situation, I heal Mulch, which then gets him up to get an attack in. Mulch attacks, does a small amount of damage, but wakes up the eagle.**

**The eagle then wakes up, and directly attacks me, taking me down in one hit. Not looking good.**

**I don’t remember who hurt it, but I do remember wit saved my life by stabbing the eagle as it tried to flee, before I bled out. He then healed me with cure wounds. Life savor!**

**This account is getting long. But we decided to head due west. Before long we had to take a rest gain. This time a long rest as some of our spells were exausted.**

**During the rest, during watch 2, we got attacked. While lady niserine and Mulch were asleep. I failed to see the incominig intruders, but wit just does. It is two skeletons and a skeleton on a warhorse.**

**Before we can stop it, the skeleton on the warhorse tramples Mulch in his sleep, instantly making him bleed out.**

**After a hard fought battle, we are unable to stop Mulch from dying. We all each almost die during this battle. Many times thinking this would be the end of us. Somehow we survive, and finish our rest. While burying Mulch.**

**In the morning, we realize we should head back. We cannot survive much longer without a 4th party member, and these enemies are very difficult.**

**We head back, and back, and back. Then a goblin on a worg interupts our travel at night. Another hard fought battle with some sound technique, and we manage another victory.**

**Shortly after we find Firkins landing in the morning.**
**Exausted and ready for some rest. We take leasure in the town tavern where we find Mulch’s sister. We give her our deepest sympathies, and she decides to join the crew for one last small adventure.**

**We head due north to see what we can find.**

**After heading norht, we find a rocky beach expanding far north. Realizing some rumors of goblins, we decide to play it safe, and head west on the woods line.**

**Boy were we wrong.**

**As we try to set up camp and sleep through the night, we again, are attack during our sleep. Which means only 2 were awake at the time of the ambush. 2 Satyr’s, very strong, steam roll us at our camp. Another battle that nearly killed us all and used all of our healing spells as we all drop and get back up. Good thing we had 2 people with healing spells.**

**Miraculously we survive with everyone living. This, then we decide, is time to call this adventure before another person dies. We make it back to Firkins and cheers with some beers on a few close calls.**

**Wit with some astounding attacks, while coming in clutch with healing, Mulch just being poor Mulch, monsters had it out for you this trip, Lady Niserine with that dang magic missle and hilariously poor use of sleep! No really though, nice work everyone. Mulch, you are in our hearts.**

## Lady Nisrine

We departed from the safe haven of Firkin's Landing at dawn. When we set out there were four of us: Mulch, a serious but lively sorcerer gnome with blue eyes that almost flickered, Wit, a half-elf bard whose commentary lived up to his name, Rayne, a quiet but observant druid Firbolg, and last, but obviously not least, me, the noble and generous Countess Nisrine Ahlorsath.

My team had decided to investigate the Hearthwood forest in the hopes of finding some trace of those "fairy lights" folks claimed to have glimpsed. We knew it was a long shot, not being a full moon, and in the end we weren't successful in ascertaining the cause of the lights. However, we did make some equally interesting discoveries, albeit at a great cost.

The walk west started out pleasant, but not long after started, a ferocious direwolf charged through the woods and attacked us. Rayne was able to charm the beast with both his earthy magic and a strip of beef jerky from his rations. The direwolf's fierceness turned into a dog-like friendliness, before pattering away into the woods with a farewell nod towards our druid.

We rested for a little bit and patched up Mulch before continuing on our way. Soon, the soft sounds of a harp floated through the trees. Following the music led us to a perfectly cube shaped brush. Rayne determined it was an illusory spell hiding something in the soil underneath. Thinking it unwise to directly touch anything, Mulch materialized a perfect copy of his small gnome hand to scoop the soil aside. Rayne eventually decides to risk it and goes closer to help. Eventually some dwarf bones are revealed, as well as a brass key attached to a cord of leather.

Suddenly, the bones leapt up into a skeleton and attacked. A challenging struggle ensued, but I'll admit, I had underestimated the three land creatures on my team. All of them were surpassingly good at battle. We were able to finally put the dwarf's remains to rest. The attached key was enscripted, "Thr'um was a joke in life. He shall be a joke forever more...His greed ruined us all. His soul has no home in the halls of our people. Perhaps someday, you, shrewed adventurer, can rid our hallowed home of the scourge he incurred. West of here, where the grass meets the stone, below the Sacred Steppes, it waits..."

Eventually, we came to open meadows, about a day west from Dirking's Landing. We rested for the night under the protection of the trees and Rayne nimbly climbed one for a better view. He could see a large dark stone mound or pillar to the north. Once we got closer, we found a 4ft by 4ft by 24ft rectangular prism of dark stone, spotted with black soot and scrawled dwarven script. Interestingly, Wit believes it's not written by a dwarf. One of the notes said, "Tiny cretins stay in your holes in the mountains" and another implied worship to the Helm, the God of Vigilance or Protection. Again, a god not particular to dwarves.

We continued west through the meadows, but out of nowhere a Giant Eagle swooped down at Mulch and nearly took off one of his appendages with a nasty slash of his talon. Our gnome fell to the ground, unconscious. I managed to cast a spell of sleep at and watch as the eagle falls to the ground, dozing, and then Wit collapses in sleep as well, before I myself feel a drowsiness overtake me. Although this isn't what I intended, I must admit, I am both surprised and impressed with my own strength as a spell caster!

When I was woken, the Giant Eagle had thankfully, been slain by Wit and Rayne. We continued west until nightfall, at which point we made camp. Tragically, the night did not go as planned. I was awoken by the sounds of battle. Two skeletons were charging the camp along with a skeleton war horse. Unfortunately, Mulch was caught beneath the crushing hooves. We used every spell we could at the oncoming skeletons and did manage to finally best two of the attackers before I could rush to Mulch's side and try to stabilize him.

It was too late.

Wit and Rayne finished off the last Skeleton and then buried Mulch while I created a magnificent grave marker. I crafted it out of one of the Giant Eagle's talons. On it I carved "Here lies Mulch, the best land creature of them all." Then we headed back to Firkin's Landing and made it without too much trouble (just a goblin on a warg while we're trying to sleep).

At Firkin's we were greeted by a gnome with the same shocking blue eyes as Mulch. She introduced herself as Ellywick, Mulch's sister, and with a heavy heart I revealed his fate. She decided to join us on our next excursion out into the Hearthwood forest.

This time we traveled to the north. During the day little occurred. But during our sleep two satyrs attacked us. It was a difficult battle, but with our combined skills we managed to triumph. We returned home again, deciding on a more serious and safe rest before adventuring again.

Your favorite Triton,

Lady Nisrine

I, the player (Crystal), would like to add some things (Nisrine being a less than objective narrator). Sleep is an awesome spell, but don't cast sleep on a target within 20 feet of yourself (oops!). And try to cast it later in a battle, when the enemy has, hopefully, very few hit points left.

## Mulch

Mulch’s Travel Log

I’ve left my homeland and tribe and traveled to Firkin’s
Landing, an outpost town on the edge of the Black Lake. There are many adventurers looking for traveling companions here, and it wasn’t difficult to
find three others to form a party. I don’t know them well, but they’re stout folk all – a hearty Firbolg, a clever half-elf bard, and the noble triton Lady Nisrine. We set out west into the Hearthwood Forest at dawn, following the river. We had only traveled for several hours when we came across a creature
that far surpassed our squishy selves - a massive Dire Wolf. I was immediately attacked, and lost consciousness for the rest of the fight. My valiant companion Rayne managed to charm the wolf and convinced it to leave; I fear that we all would have perished if not for his magic.

After taking a brief rest, we continued into the forest. Some hours later, we discovered harp music emanating from a strange cubic bush. After some careful investigation, we saw through this illusion, and discovered the remains of a dwarf buried underneath. We found a key around its neck, and a note explaining that this dwarf had been cursed before he dies (we kept the note for future reference). After reading this note, the skeleton promptly reanimated, but put up little resistance under our combined attack.

We carried on, and eventually came to the edge of the forest
through which we had been traveling. By climbing a tree to gain a vantage point, we were able to spot a small spire of rock sticking up from the grasslands in front of us. We made our way to the spire, finding it covered in dwarven and elven runes. The dwarven runes held a warning to some unspecified
small mountain creatures, warning them to “stay in their holes”. We searched the stone well, but were unable to find a door which the key we had found would
open.

Finding the search fruitless, we left the spire and continued across the plains. Not long after, we were attacked by a Giant Eagle. Again, I was attacked first and knocked bleeding to the ground. This fight was a close shave – only the bard Wit’s final thrust was enough to keep the eagle from flying away. Things had not been going well for me, but after some healing from my companions, I felt ready to continue on. We made our way back to the forest, as we were weary and eager to return to Firkin’s Landing to rest and
recover. We made camp and set a watch. I write this as the Lady Nisrine and I are on the first watch; we will be relieved soon, and all seems quiet. Hopefully, tomorrow is a peaceful day, as we’ve had a successful first
adventure so far.

[This is the first and final entry in Mulch’s travel log.]

## Ellywick

Ellywick’s Travel Log

I watched my brother Mulch leave our home some time ago, going off in search of adventure. I was content to stay behind for a time, but that time was short. Mulch and I had always been similar, and seeing him leave sparked wanderlust in me. Soon after he left, I followed him to Firkin’s Landing.

The journey to this small town was uneventful. However,
nearly as soon as I arrived, I met with terrible news. My brother was dead. Death was a part of life in our tribe, as living in the outlands was difficult. Even so, I was shaken by the news. His adventuring companions told me how he was almost useless in battle, but brave nonetheless. Upon hearing this, I resolved to join this inexperienced but tough little band, and left with them the next morning.

We ventured north, sticking to the shore of the Black Lake to guide us. We made it to the Broken Strand without incident, and struck west, away from the Black Lake. Turning south, we began to make our way back to Firkin’s Landing, as a voice from the sky told us that it was almost 1:00am and that we had to “wrap it up”. Whatever that means.

That night, we made camp and set a watch. It wasn’t long before two tough satyrs appeared from the forest and attacked us viciously. I could tell that the others had some experience, as they seemed used to seeing their companions (and themselves) fall in battle, only to rise again at the power of a healing spell. I was glad they were with me. We defeated the satyrs by targeting one at a time; a heartening victory. We made our way back to Firkin’s Landing, glad to have gained some experience and explore a new part of the region.