Session 4: Leaving Gardicore

*For a list of all sessions, see the page Sessions.*

The party wakes up in their various locations to the sounds of rain. Athleo wakes early to the feeling of little hands digging through his belongings. The Godling takes the jar away from Athleo, and though he initially attempts to get it back, he gives up fairly quickly and allows the Godling to keep it.

In the room he was sharing with Inkcap, Mourd finds a pile of plant matter where his friend should be, topped with Inkcap's wooden hand. As he approaches the pile, the hand comes to life and latches onto the straps of Mourd's bag. Mourd enters Roxy's room and discovers that she now has a cat sized dragon companion named Sparky. He asks Roxy what she thinks about the hand, then brings her back to the pile of plants. Roxy finds a long white mushroom with pink spots on its cap.

While Athleo stays indoors and begins making breakfast, Roxy, Mourd, Looney, and the Godling exit the guild hall. Roxy attempts to plant the mushroom in the ground outside to little effect, and Mourd suggests trying to plant it in the crater of the Drunken Dragon, again to little effect. Roxy returns to the guild hall and Mourd journeys over to the river where they fought the wolves.

Looney (to no avail) attempts to communicate with the Godling about the jar, asking where he got it and why. Looney makes a child leash for the Godling, then returns inside.

At the river, the deaf child the party saved teaches Mourd Sunscar Sign Language. Mourd asks the child to take him to his father, Vicar Maxwell, at the church of Pelor.

Athleo makes breakfast for everybody, and as Mourd is missing and Roxy goes to bathe, Athleo seems to get increasingly agitated and menacing, going so far as to curse at one of Roxy's coworkers. When Mourd doesn't return, the party seek him out and find him at the church, onstage with Vicar Maxwell in the middle of service.

Before the end of the service, the wooden hand moves on its own towards the door of the church, plants seem to erupt from the dirt outside, and build into the form of Inkcap. In response to this very obvious disruption, Vicar Maxwell dismisses the congregation so he may speak to the party privately.

The Vicar invites the party into his home. He offers to answer any of the questions the party has, but over the course of the conversation, the party offends the Vicar. He asks them to leave, and Inkcap attempts to charm him, which just further increases his outrage. Mourd imitates the Godling in front of the Vicar, who reacts in fear. He claims that any creature that speaks that language would drive mortals mad. The party leave his house, and Looney splits off from the rest of the party.

Again, Looney attempts to speak to the Godling to no avail. However, this time, he allows Looney to look inside (and then take) the jar. After, Looney reconvenes with the group.

The party picks up some items, and they gets Stragos's potion identified as a potion of stone skin.

They stop into Captain Sharp's office to say goodbye to her, and she gives them a letter of introduction and tells them who they should be meeting with in Plortsburg: a wizard called Odalite, the Opaque. Roxy and Captain Sharp's years-long flirtation culminates in a private romantic moment where they kiss, then the party leave the town.

On day one of their two-day journey to Plortsburg, the party passes a graveyard on a hill. Athleo feels a spiritual restlessness coming off this graveyard in waves, so the party decides to investigate. They all approach and as they do, a skeletal hand bursts from one of the graves towards Inkcap's face, and the session ends.