Main Story 0: Forest of Novelty

**Next:** Main Story 1: Intro.doc

The Forest of Novelty is where the party begins.

The party awakens in a dull meadow, carpeted with short grass and littered with vaguely stunted flower growth.

The empty mood the space leaves you with is due in part to the absense of sound and the uncomfortable lingering brought about by the still air.

The party glances at each other, and each stares back with a sense of familiarity. Before anyone braves to speak a word and cut the silence, a rustling in the greenery lining the clearing tears it instead.
In almost an instant, a hobgoblin for each of the members attempt to take their mark.

-- Cue badass borderlands style character intro, each character having their name and title announced with some badass battle action to make the players orgasm--

--This serves as a way for the party to remember why they are there together.--

On the corpses of the hobgoblins the player with the highest passive intellegence finds a map, which seemed to allow the hobgoblins to traverse the forest without having their minds wiped like party.

Upon finding the map, It displays a compass rose that changes appearence ever 5 seconds, with a symbol in opposite directions. One is a hammer (St. Cuuthbert), while the other is a skull (Necromancy god). The party may make a decision to choose which symbol they may pursue. Cue encounters within the Forest of novelty.

((Side Note: The party has no recollection of why they were in the party. Perhaps the 3rd party candidate knew they would be valuable and led them into the forest to mind wipe them, giving them new perspective on the war.))

Encounter ideas: Generic beast encounters.

A friendly NPC if they get too roughed up or someone dies: Halfling Bard who resides in the forest, carries the skull of their best friend: Stinny

They will have a cave inside which they reside, filled with sleeping injured small animals, and a few housecats. There is a small garden in the back of the cave, of plants floating in glass tanks. Most are strands of wild berry bushes, but there is one plant that is almost completely enclose in glass, a blue plant glowing with its own shine. Party may attempt to steal or bargain for this, but they must fight or help the bard by tending to the small animals or helping him retrieve an addition bone of his friend from a cave.

The cave you may help him with is a cave of spiders, cue very difficult spider encounter. They are afraid of fire as fire is not common in the forest. They must make dc 15 charisma saves against fire or be frightened. When the party enters and fights the spiders, if they win they must sprint to grab bones of a skeletal halfling corse, with a halfdecayed silk hat of reasonable size. Each party member only gets to grab one bone, before they are all told they feel a great looming danger. If they stay for longer than a round or attempt to grab another bone: 2 phase spiders appear and stand over the corpse. With an insight roll, you can tell the spiders are protecting an arcane focus. (1st magic item, may only attune to the player with least intellegence who is a spellcaster. They may use this as a spellcasting focus, and gain +1 intellegence if they wielding it)

**Next:** Main Story 1: Intro.doc