Term 3 Adventure Summaries

Week 1 - Prison BreakHaving heard about the arrest of their acquaintance Dresc, Tegan and a reluctant Numaril set about freeing him and the other arrested man Teron. They first acquired the Void Totem from Laslow's mercenary camp by posing as potential buyers and then visited Henri Simnel to get a capture stone under the pretext of service to the city. Tegan gained access to Aestas' prison and reconciled with Dresc, learning that the archer was held in a secure cell fitted with a spell-nullifying stone. As the stone could not be removed, Tegan secured Dresc' magic belt and used its' spell echoing function to disable the stone whilst Numaril performed the binding ritual right outside the prison. This prompted a visit from a projection of a man named Kinic. Kinic asked Tegan to meet him on one of the mountains dividing the North and South before disappearing. With Dresc now securely binded inside the capture stone, Numaril and Tegan made their escape. However, a complication arised when trying to leave the city which prompted Numaril to Confuse both the guards whilst the pair ran.After having left Aestas, the pair decided to visit the man that appeared before Tegan. After a long journey South, the pair made it up Kinic's mountain. He introduced himself as a Void mage with some Deeps knowledge he gleaned a long time back and took both the adventurers to The Void using his detaching dagger. Kinic told Numaril and Tegan about his glimpse of a future where the world is enslaved by shadows. Numaril suspected it as the work of the Master, prompting the figure itself (or merely its' reflection) to make a brief but unsettling appearance. Kinic said that he believes the totems could be a source of power to rival the Master's and that he knows the Mind totem is currently residing in the vault of Aestas. Agreeing that the Master must be stopped, Tegan and Numaril pledged to help claim the Mind totem or find others that would be able to do so.

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Week 2 – Desert of Life

Mortimer, Dresc and Geraint set off with the aim to resurrect the spirit Arbosa, the spirit of the Kexus-nel desert. After some convincing, they managed to acquire some spiritual energy from Henri Simnel, in exchange for helping him out with his spirit technology. They then headed further north, briefly stopping at Kexil’s hearth. Tracking the life energy around them, they managed to find an area with very high concentration – a clearing far to the north of Aestas.

The clearing contained some very aggressive wilds mages, guarding a man with a shield. The man seemed to not be quite there and disappeared, leaving the shield behind. When two of the mages started fighting he reappeared, vaguely attempting to block the blows. The wild mages managed to convince Mortimer to be aggressive towards the shield, but he failed to deal any damage to it. Dresc realised that the shield was likely the item they were looking for.

The party left and returned in the night, attempting to steal the shield under cover of darkness. The man attached to the shield refused to move however. Mortimer then attempted to persuade the shield to his side by refusing to fight, even as he was being stabbed by a wild mage. Though moving, the shield did not react. Eventually the party realised that they had the capability to kill the man, but declined to do so. Instead they set out to the centre of the desert, in order to resurrect Arbosa with the energy they already had from Simnel.

Despite some resistance from local bandits, the group managed to complete the ritual to resurrect Arbosa, who appeared to them but failed to understand her past, having no knowledge of it. Her territory extended barely 200 steps, but Mortimer vowed to spread her influence.

Week 3 - Of Dragons and Men

Colonel Phoebus and Tegan accepted a quest from Eric Valkia to capture one of the volcanic fire fragments that appeared in the South with the sudden emergence of several volcanoes in the Mists. After a shaky journey which involved a rarely-seen successful bandit ambush, the pair finally managed to make their way to Nivalas. Taking advantage of the rising temperatures caused by the volcanoes, the townsfolk have installed hot springs which the party briefly enjoyed before setting off further south.

Tegan and Phoebus did not get far, however, as the scorching heat in the Mists turned their weapons red hot and gave them nasty hallucinations. Retreating back north, the party found a stranger that had a similar problem to them but who was helped out by an eccentric shadow mage from overseas called Uther Frostwalker. The party was instructed to go east to find him.

Fending off more fire creatures on their way, Tegan and Phoebus finally located Uther resting in a cave. After some chatter with the flamboyant magician, Uther used a ritual to bless the pair with a cooling aura that warded off the heat of the desert. The party pressed on south, finally reaching a clearing with the volcano in sight.

The clearing was populated by several fire creatures, as well as the newly-formed spirit of the volcano (which later decided to call itself Drako) and its' pet dragon Bartlebee. Avoiding the dragon and fending off other fearsome monsters, Tegan and Phoebus finally located a volcanic fragment birthed by the volcano. After binding it, the two quickly made their exit as Drako stated its' intentions of creating another dragon by causing a volcanic eruption. Returning the bound spirit to Eric Valkia, the pair collected their well-earned trinkets and returned home.

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Week 4 – I Guess I’ll Die

Mortimer, Numaril and Lyly decided that they were going to steal the mind totem, based on information they had acquired that it was located in Councillor Note’s office. Though Numaril was wanted by the Wardens of Aestas, with sufficient trickery they managed to get inside the walls and reach the central government building. Proceeding through each floor, they encountered the agricultural department, Warden HQ and the treasury. Finally they reached the Councillor’s office, and used the Void Totem to become invisible. Mortimer chatted to the councillor about totems while Numaril and Lyly searched the offices, eventually finding the password to the vault in one of the draws of his desk. Creaking of a cupboard made him suspicious however, and when the councillor locked his office door behind him the two were forced to sneak out a window.

The group then opened the vault, and after nearly being locked in discovered the mind totem in there. It would not travel with them while invisible however, so Lyly ended up out another window carrying it, with the other 2 on the ground with some Wardens. Lyly jumped and was healed by Mortimer, who with his back turned was swiftly incapacitated by Councillor Note. Numaril exited with the mind totem, but was swiftly recaptured when he was caught off guard by a particularly mentally resistant Warden. Lyly managed to fend Wardens off of him, then they swapped totems and Lyly ran through Aestas, mind totem in hand. They managed to pass through the gate, but gate guards chased her a long way out of Aestas. Eventually she turned around and fought, besting the two, though the mind totem was damaged in the process.

Mortimer meanwhile was stuck in the Councillor’s building. Try as he might to return to the Kexus-nel via his connection to it, the Councillor seems intent to keep him right where he is…

Week 5 – The Grand Magistar

This week at the Shadow temple, people came from miles around to come to what the mysterious playwright and actor known as the Dramaturgist was titling their greatest works. Lyly and Captain Phoebus joined others in bringing the play to life. This was the tale of a Prince who was poisoned by the Grand Magistar, who wished to take control of the kingdom. The Prince’s lover and his butler journeyed to find the Left Hand, a mysterious man who weaved magic and the only one who could save our dear prince.

When they found him, the Left Hand realised that only by defeating the three Magistars of Beasts, Fire, and Mind could they hope to reach the Grand Magistar himself. With great daring they managed to fight each in turn. They then journeyed to the Grand Magistar, and the Left Hand used powerful shadow magic to appear to look like the prince. The Magistar thinking he was defeated revealed his grand scheme and fled, allowing the group of plucky heroes to return to the prince and heal him of his poison. The prince then espoused the power of believing in your comrades to fight the evil poison of nature, but things took a turn when the prince paralysed Lyly and revealed himself to be The Master, announcing his return to his people, the people of the south.

In the aftermath, the Dramaturgist discovers that the Mural of the Raven that he used to great effect to change his actor’s appearances has been removed from the temple, and the original actor he hired to be the prince is found in a cupboard in the temple (well, what’s left of him anyway).

Week 7 - Tying up Loose Ends (then making loads more loose ends)

The Dramaturgist and Colonel Pheobus set off north in search of the life totem, which had been previously found but not recovered. They managed to find the clearing it was located in, but all that remained was a couple of wild mages, who said that people reeking of civilisation had came and taken it. The party later learned from a hunter in the desert that Henri Simnel had been spotted with an entourage heading north.

The party then journeyed to the village of the 3 witches, where they reasoned they had located the totem of the wilds nearly 6 months prior. The witches lead them to the totem, which was hiding in the forest and seemed magically inert. The Dramaturgist pretended to be a wild mage and the party took the totem, heading back north. Upon reaching the grove of Arbosa in the desert centre, they gifted the totem to her. Animals seemed to immediately begin to grow in the area, and the party left as it became more overgrown.

Finally they journeyed onwards to find again the wild mages from before, to whom they told the tale of the totem. They talked of the Queen of the Wilds, and how there is a story amongst the wild-folk that the holder of the totem is their Alpha

Week 8 - The Chosen of Skoi

Pursuing the Deeps totem, Dresc and Tegan arrived at Spiderditch and found a city teeming with smaller and bigger problems. Figuring that the totem will only present themselves to those that reflect Skoi's ideals, the pair decide to tackle the townsfolk's issues and forge strong connections with them.

One of these myriad problems was a shadow fragment that was stalking the outskirts of Spiderditch and attacking anyone unfortunate enough to get in its' way. The hunt for it turned out to be far harder than Dresc and Tegan initially thought due to the fragment's ability to paralyze them both whilst fleeing, but eventually the fragment would be slain.
Returning to the village, the two were welcomed by the melancholic tunes of a travelling musician who had fallen for a local girl. He wanted to give her a rare kind of flower that grows in the Deeps but the general surroundings were protected by a self-proclaimed Defender of Nature. Uncovering the man's hypocrisy (as he was wearing said rose around his lapel), Dresc and Tegan engaged in a fight and won the rose back.
Dresc and Tegan were then sent on a hunt for an old golem that was recovered by a researcher but then stolen from him by a band of ruffians. The ruffians are easily located, confessing to the theft and returning the golem but claiming that a vital piece of its' walking mechanism was stolen by a pair of imps. The pair recover the piece and deliver the golem back to its' delighted finder.
The final task that Dresc and Tegan undertake involves two neighbours involved in a fued. The first neighbour claims that the other's per spider destroyed its' fence, but the other refutes any accusations. The pair resolve the argument by convincing the pet owner to keep his spider on a leash and volunteering to journey into the nearby spider cave in order to find some silk to use as a leash. Whilst there, they find a smith's son who had wandered into the mines to save the village by defeating the massive spider lurking deep in the cave. The same creature attacks Dresc and Tegan, but they beat it back and escape back to Spiderditch with the child.

After returning the silk and the missing child, the pair notice the statue in the middle of the town glowing slightly. Upon touching it, both are transported to a realm outside time and space where Skoi herself appears to them. Touched by their efforts to uphold compassion and friendship in a world tainted by the Master's lies and deceit, Skoi offers both the adventurers the position of being her champions. Accepting, Dresc and Tegan are transported back to Spiderditch with Skoi's Hourglass (the Deeps totem) in their possesion.

However, in that moment a group of Wardens sent by Councillor Note arrive in town and demand that the pair relinquish Skoi's Hourglass. They refuse and engage in a fight with the platoon, helped out by all of the villagers of Spiderditch that they helped. Beaten back and ashamed, the Warden captain in charge of the expedition flees whilst swearing revenge.

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Week 9 - No Gods, No Masters

Colonel Phoebus, Numaril, Tegan, and Geraint arrived at the Citadel of Dawn, the largest defensive position in Hellenite territory and the location of the Cup of The Master. They have received intel that an attack is imminent, and no sooner have they primed the cannon on the wall, devout followers of The Master begin to attack the fort. The assault is unrelenting, with the gate finally being breached by a giant Thunderboar despite the intervention of Skoi on Tegan's behalf. The party retreat to the vault, which is breached by The Master and his body guards. Numaril turns the first guard to the party's side with mind magic, only for the master to Obliterate his way through. The Master touches his cup, but before he can utter a word of a spell he is knocked to the ground and the cup is recovered. He manages to crawl into the shadows behind Tegan and down him, but with no remaining guards is forced to back off without his prize.

24 hours later; Mortimer, Dresc, Lyly, and Teron are hanging round a bar in the north when they hear word that The Master has resurfaced in Lutamas. He has declared his dominion over the Southlands and is converting people to his cause in the city. Determined to end this once and for all, the group discuss their options and head north, hoping to recruit the help of the spirit Arbosa. They reach her to find that her oasis in the centre of the desert has grown into a jungle. Arbosa explains that she cannot physically head south with the party, but sends some of her new-found Wild mage followers to meet the party in Lutamas. The group head south rapidly, finding The Master and 2 identical duplicates in the middle of a speech. He decries the party's insistence of freedom, calling them to look at the progress Aestas has made under his influence. Before he can finish the party attack. With the Wild mages they outnumber his followers, but at a key moment Mortimer is downed and The Master, seizing the opportunity, finally Obliterates the life mage. On his last breath, Dresc invokes again the power of Skoi, and the party are ripped from reality and bound to time gone by. They re-appear just before the fight turned against them, and this time successfully keep Mortimer alive, who in turn keeps everyone else alive. They eventually manage to drive a weakened Master away. Though Dresc, Lyly, and Teron remember the whole fight, it transpires that Mortimer was unaware of the reality he was destroyed in.

With The Master's influence in Aestas revealed, records tampered are slowly corrected, and eventually most of the adventurers we have been following are allowed back into Aestas. A large number of The Master's followers were killed in the events of the past 2 days and he has clearly been weakened, but there is no doubt that he is out there somewhere, plotting his return. For now at least, the spirits of the surface will flourish, though The Master has once again left his mark on the world of Unity.