Session 301

# January 26th, 2023 - You All Meet in a Prison

## You All Meet in a Prison

The session began in a damp and dark prison cell under the city streets of Black Landing. The group of wretched looking souls were brought in one at a time over the last few days. This night, there were five in the same large cell in a closed off room to itself, and over the long boring hours they introduced themselves to one another. A reclusive and quiet human named Watch, an even more reluctant to speak wood elf named Raven, a talkative half elf named Orsais, a silver female dragonborn named Daelain, and a brass male dragonborn named Joakim.

Eventually, the noise of a small group of guards came and they entered the room, illuminating the space with torch light. At their head was a regal looking bronze dragonborn in expensive robes, carrying an exquisite wooden staff. He introduced himself as Alburt E. Alegator, and offered the group of spellcasters a unique opportunity. They could join the Red Sun’s mercenary army and help the region against the invading dragonborn army from across the seas, or they could rot in prison. The wood elf quickly agreed, seeming extremely anxious being underground. The rest agreed as well, for it was clear they would die of neglect where they were. The city was jam packed with people flooding into the haven of its walls, and people were thrown into the underground stockades for any offense without a care for their lives.

Alburt then asked for the paladin to be brought in, and a human in chainmail entered with another guard. He introduced himself as Carlton Brightshield, and Alburt explained he was one of a number of paladins that recently arrived from the monastery at Elturiel looking to assist. Alburt could not just let a group of prisoners free without oversight, so Carlton would serve as the leader of this spellcaster unit. Alburt explained that the Red Sun, and most of the Lord’s Accord were at a severe lack of troops and struggling against the massive invasion. The Red Sun could barely keep “order” in the city let alone put together any sort of offensive. He was of the opinion that a group of spellcasters could be particularly effective during these times.

So, the current leader of the Red Sun, Cadmus Orcblood, gave Alburt the freedom to put together this unit and see if they could help the war effort. Alburt then set the group upon their first task immediately, by motioning for the guards to bring in ‘the spy’. The guards left and returned shortly after dragging the barely living body of a bronze dragonborn. He was beaten, covered in wounds and blood, and his rags were in tatters. Alburt explained he and a group of other bronze dragonborn were caught rowing into the harbor of the city in the dead of night in a relatively small dinghy. There had been other attempts for spies to enter the city, and so full-dragonborn groups were heavily scrutinized.

Carlton healed the dragonborn so he became lucid and was able to answer their questions. The quick talking Orsais jumped in and began asking the dragonborn, who said his name was Fax, about the situation. Fax admitted to rowing in with his clan mates, but repeated what the guards said he had been consistently saying. He described his quiet life on the volcanic islands east of the city in the Sea of Storms, that this was his groups first journey away from their home - their coming of age quest. When pushed, Fax said he specifically was an apprentice sage, and was tasked with bringing back rare magical ingredients and knowledge of spells the clan did not have. The others in his group have various quests, but he doesn’t know anything about them currently, as they were all separated and Fax isolated for his magical abilities.

While possible that this dragonborn was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time, as he insists knowing nothing about about an invading armada of dragonborn, Alburt said that Carlton and the group should pay close attention moving forward, but saw no reason to keep Fax down here. Alburt offered Fax the same deal as the others, and he agreed with no real other option. The wizard reiterated that Carlton had the authority to end the life of any of them that did not follow his orders, even if the paladin didn’t look quite comfortable with the prospect.

## Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept it

Alburt escorted the group out of the prison level and into one of the armories within the city walls. The group recovered their equipment (or replaced it), and took advantage of gathering any basic items they did not possess. Extra weapons, armor, and packs with two tendays worth of rations each were obtained. Fax pleaded to obtain a small diamond, a missing component for him to cast one of his most useful spells, and he was able to find one. The quartermaster had plenty of inventory, but did not have enough soldiers to use it. Finally, they were escorted to a medium sized common room in the walls to meet with their first charge. Alburt gathered them around a table with an important looking human nobleman that was already drinking.

The noble was introduced as Lord Joffrey, and Alburt explained that the lord worked a large network of spies, and had been in communication with a group of supposed rebels of the invading army. Their group was secretly camped south of the Trollclaw Hills, where the enemy just recently captured a guard tower overlooking a ravine along the main Coast Way road. Their mission was to first escort the Lord and general army supplies to the Red Sun encampment a few dozen miles south of the Trollclaws, and then escort Lord Joffrey to the rebel camp. There, Lord Joffrey would offer the rebels the supplies they brought (some would be left with the army camp), and convince them to join with the party's spellcaster unit to retake the tower. In exchange, the rebels would be given protection, freedom, and a place in the Red Sun.

Alburt indicated that at the worst case, if they could not retake the tower, that they should destroy the bridge. The route was the main chokepoint this side of the Trollclaws and the forests along the coast that separated the region of Black Landing from Ironbay to the north. The only way the landing would survive an attack from the invaders is if it came from the sea, where Black Landing still maintained a large naval force. If the enemy was able to bring a large army south by land, there was little they could do at this time. For everything they and the network of the Lord's Accord knew, it appeared the enemy was currently reinforcing their hold over Ironbay, and only sending out smaller groups poking and prodding the surrounding regions.

The now occupied barrack is where the party spent the rest of the night, sleeping and resting however they could, before setting off in the morning with Lord Joffrey and the five wagon train that had been prepared for them. They escorted a number of porters who were overseeing the wagons and supplies, each horse drawn, but their party was the only protection. Hundreds of beggars were passed in the streets before they made their way out of the gates and shantytowns around the city, and they passed at least four different thefts or fights breaking out around them. Once they got on the Coast Way proper, things were much easier for the next six days. They were passing through heavy farmland, rolling hills and grassland dotted with small forests, with small villages along the road every few miles.

On the afternoon of the sixth day, as Lord Joffrey was looking for a good place to break for camp the caravan began to crest another hill, and the group heard strange sounds. The lead horses started reacting wildly, for about thirty feet off the roadside were three giant scorpions completing the kill of an elephant. The elephant was on its side moaning as the scorpions repeatedly stabbed it with their stingers, but upon hearing the horses turned and started rushing towards the caravan. Wagons wheeled as the horses broke in fear, with the porters trying to keep them under control as the party rushed to the top of the hill to confront the beasts.

Watch quickly weaved and ran past them, climbing a nearby tree with surprising agility. Raven revealed himself as a druid as he shapeshifted into a raptor-like dinosaur (a deinonychus) charging one of the giant scorpions. Carlton stood fast and engaged directly with his warhammer and shield, while the dragonborn unleashed magic - between Daelain, and Fax they unleashed *magic missiles*, *lightning breath*, and a *lightning chromatic orb*. Orsais hung back and sang an *inspirational song* for his companions, while Watch hurled rock-shaped *eldritch blasts* from his high ground in the tree. Carlton took one of the giant stingers to the chest, and while the pierce of the stinger didn’t penetrate deeply, the scorpion injected a massive amount of poison into the paladin, which almost dropped him to the ground.

Carlton had to *lay on hands* himself to keep moving, and the group was able to kill the three scorpions without anyone, or any more animals, dying. It took a little time to gather and calm the horses, and Lord Joffrey returned from the bottom of the hill (where he hid like a coward), and instructed that they should make camp nearby as night was falling. The group went some distance off the road into the woods and made camp, butchering and cooking some meat from the elephant.

That is where the first session ended, on the sixth night after leaving Black Landing.

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