Session0032

Episode 0032 - The Best Plan is No Plan
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**Setting:**

The Feywild - May 13th-15th, 211 AW
**Synopsis:**

* The party makes formal agreements with Queen Ostara in exchange for their assistance in preventing the Last Frost's advance, then departs for the Winter Court to confront Queen Yule.
* While traveling out of the Realm of Spring and entering into the Realm of Winter, the party encounters a group of chwingas, and battles against a lonely sorrowsworn.
* Arriving at the Winter Court, the party speaks with Queen Yule about their task. She agrees to withdraw the Last Frost from the Realm of Spring, on the condition that the party find and kill her traitorous daughter, Camellia, who resides atop the nearby Mount Samhain.
* The party traverses deeper into the Realm of Winter to Mount Samhain, where they make camp at the foot of the mountain to rest before their expedition.
* In the middle of the night, Brook attempts to reach the top of the mountain alone to speak with Camellia, but is driven back down the mountain by her guards.

## May 13th

**NOTE: Bolded text was retroactively roleplayed at the beginning of session 33.**

Before the party departs from the Spring Court, Queen Ostara requests that they come to formal terms regarding their agreement. She explains that in exchange for their aid in turning away the advance of the Last Frost into the Realm of Spring, she will offer them each a favor of their choosing. Producing a plant which seems to magically record their arrangements, she asks each party what favor they desire.

Tippiti asks Ostara to return his lost dog, Tap, to him, and to grant him a longer lifespan. Ostara agrees to this arrangement.

Malkoth requests for free and safe passage to and from the Realm of Spring, without any of the usual time- or memory-altering effects of traversing the plane. He also asks for a teleportation sigil to be installed at the Spring Court. Ostara agrees to grant him safe passage, and assures him that any time he leaves the Feywild, no more time will have passed on the Material Plane. She says that she cannot have a teleportation sigil installed, however.

Konohana requests that Brook be granted her dance with Primrose, which she requested earlier. Ostara agrees to this arrangement, noting that she had already made a similar offer to Brook, who refused and stormed off.

Gragnok asks to be granted the time-manipulation abilities of a brigganock. Ostara grants him this request, and also says that when he departs the Feywild, no more time will have passed on the Material Plane.

Dan D requests to be transformed into a humanoid form - possibly a leonin. Ostara agrees to this arrangement.

**After using a *divination* spell to ask his deity what he should request, Patches requests to be immune to the time dilation effect of leaving the Feywild. He also requests to always be exceptionally attractive when he shapeshifts, and to be be given an awakened shrub as a pet. Ostara agrees to this arrangement.**

When it is Louche's turn to state his desire, Ostara preemptively tries to talk him into some arrangement other than lifting Passeri's curse. Magically reading his thoughts, she offers to assist him with his son, or to return his lost memories to him. Nevertheless, he requests that Passeri's curse be lifted, and that he be allowed to court Primrose. He also requests that his travel back to the Material Plane will not include any of the usual time- or memory-altering effects. Ostara agrees to this arrangement, but says that the choice about courting Passeri is Primrose's, not hers.

Meanwhile, after making their requests, Konohana and Malkoth head outside to talk to Brook. Konohana tells her about the request he made from Ostara, and Malkoth suggests that Brook should make a request of her own if she intends to help with the Last Frost, suggesting that she could possible be made into a true fey. Brook declines, though she does intend to help with the Last Frost, citing her dislike for Ostara.

Outside the Spring Court, having completed their arrangements, the party rests and makes preparations for their journey into the Realm of Winter, and enjoys the Spring Court's festivities.

Louche asks Brook about fey royalty, and how the lines of succession work. Brook explains that succession works largely as expected, with parents passing their positions down to their eldest children. Louche also asks her about her own personal motivations, and she explains that she left the Summer Court on poor terms with her mother, and would like to make amends with her. She further explains that she was tasked with protecting the Changewood by her father, Prince Aster.

Malkoth returns to Cletus, and spends the remainder of the day learning about bumble bees. The two also formalize their agreement for Malkoth to sell bumble across the planes.

When Primrose and a large procession of revelers exits the Spring Court and begins a dance, Louche dances with her briefly. While dancing, he asks her about Titivilus's visit. She explains that he came asking about Passeri and the Psalm of Assimilation.

Later, Louche shares some of his synthetically-created drugs with an eladrin named Yabrutha, who gives him a hallucinogenic mushroom in exchange.

Eventually, the party finds places to rest, and sleeps until the next Zenith.

## May 14th

At the Zenith, Louche performs the Psalm of Awakening.

Patches prepares a *remove curse* spell, and uses it to end Malkoth's attunement to the frumious bandersnatch. When he does, the frumious bandersnatch is destroyed.

Having completed their preparations, the party sets off toward the Realm of Winter, utilizing Brook's ability to shapeshift into animals to provide them with a colossal dragonfly mount.

As the party is nearing the Last Frost, they encounter a group of chwingas on a riverbank. The chwingas offer the party magical water which grants them minor boons. In exchange, the party offers them some small gifts, including a bucket and a daisy chain.

Shortly after, the party reaches the Last Frost at the edge of the Realm of Winter. Before entering into the Realm of Winter, they stop to discuss their plans for how to complete their task, concerned that Queen Yule might have spies within the Realm of Winter. They debate how much they actually need to accomplish per the specifics of the agreements that they made, but Malkoth insists that he wants to do right by Ostara, in the interest of remaining within her good graces. They discuss trying to find Camellia and assisting her in her coup, but Louche warns that the Queen of Winter likely rivals archdevils in power, and that the party is likely no match for them. Ultimately they decide to go to the Court of Winter and evaluate the situation before officially deciding, for lack of any other clear lead.

As the party enters the Realm of Winter, passing through the Last Frost, they encounter a hunched humanoid figure and some misty spirits which attack them as they approach. The party battles and defeats them.

Proceeding deeper into the Realm of Winter, the party eventually stumbles upon a rock-like fey creature carving a face into a boulder. They speak the creature for a short time, which reveals that it can animate boulders into living creatures. After Louche aids the creature with its carving, it points them in the direction of the Winter Court.

At the end of their travel day, the party makes camp, utilizing a *tiny hut* and *hallucinatory terrain* spell for cover.

## May 15th

At the Prime Zenith, Louche performs the Psalm of Rest.

After a few hours of travel, the party arrives at the Winter Court. They find it to be a much more quiet and somber locale than the Spring Court, comprised mostly of hovels, and occupied primarily by winter eladrin. Approaching the court, they are greeted by a pair of guards who inform them that Queen Yule is expecting them, and they are brought inside to meet with her.

As the party is presented to Queen Yule, she asks them their business, taking special note of the denizens of the Realm of Spring, who are more out of place than even the Material denizens. The party explains their business, and the task that was given to them by Queen Ostara. Queen Yule magically reads their thoughts as they speak.

After hearing their situation, Queen Yule explains that her daughter, Camellia, is plotting a coup, and resides atop the nearby Mount Samhain with a consort of about a dozen loyalists. She says that if the party kills Camellia and brings back her head, she will retreat the Last Frost from the Realm of Spring for 70,007 Prime Zeniths. When the party agrees to this arrangement, she formalizes it using a similar magical plant as the party saw in the Spring Court. As part of the arrangement, she grants the party safe travel through the Realm of Winter until their task is complete.

Brook refuses to formally agree to the Queen's arrangement, stating that she is merely a guide, with no interest of her own in the situation. Queen Yule seemingly appreciates her candor and pragmatism, and also offers to welcome Brook into the Winter Court and make her a true fey, if she wishes.

Before the party departs, Queen Yule asks the party why they are doing Queen Ostara's bidding, and what favor she is granting them in exchange. Louche explains the situation with Passeri and Primrose.

After finishing their meeting at the Winter Court, the party sets out toward Mount Samhain. After a few hours, they arrive at the foothills of the mountain, where they make camp once again using a *tiny hut* and *hallucinatory terrain* spell.

In the middle of the party's rest, Brook sneaks away from the campsite, and uses her shapeshifting abilities to begin flying up the mountain on her own. Blackjack spots her leaving and alerts the party. Louche sends Brook a message using a *sending* spell, and Brook explains that she is going to try to talk to Camellia. After some discussion, the party decides to leave Brook to fend for herself, and goes back to sleep.

Meanwhile, Brook proceeds up the mountainside. On the way up, she spots an area of unstable terrain on the mountainside, surmising it to be an avalanche risk.

As she presses higher up the mountainside, the wind begins to become extremely strong, and Brook finds that she is unable to continue flying. Still a number of hours away from the mountaintop, she lands and begins climbing the mountain. As she is climbing, she comes upon a pair of winter eladrin guards, who fire arrows at her. She takes cover and reverts to her normal form, demanding to speak with Camellia. The eladrin refuse unless she agrees to throw away her weapons and spellcasting equipment, stating that they know she's plotting with Yule to kill Camellia. After a brief standoff, Brook manages to escape, and returns back to camp to rejoin with the party.