Session 17, Arc III

The Long Warm Winter

Played 9 July 2025 Watch the session

The party found themselves at a crossroads, debating whether to travel south to retrieve their companions or send a message instead. After examining their maps and discussing the distances involved, they learned that Lyikdia had been overtaken by the Veurim Empire, with the road to Easthills now blocked. They decided to send Muscle the jackal and Dexter with a hastily written message to their friends in Vainlake, instructing them to meet at Myrefall. Bones cast speak with animals to communicate with Muscle and the horse, successfully persuading them to undertake this dangerous mission with a natural twenty roll. The message, written in Bones' poor handwriting, warned of the coming war and Fe's missing parents.

The remaining party members began their journey toward Myrefall through increasingly arid terrain approaching the Destitute Lands. They made good progress on their first day of travel, finding shelter in a small oasis with trees for the night. Bones took first watch and checked the weather, predicting rain for the following day. During the night watches, Yomidrogo fell asleep during his shift, but the party woke safely in the morning despite the missed watch.

Four days later, Muscle successfully delivered the message to Kailyn and the others waiting in Vainlake. Kailyn spotted a horse approaching with Muscle riding on its back, and the jackal jumped off to deliver the message tied around his waist. The poorly written note spoke of meeting at Myrefall and the war threatening Lyikdia. The companions in Vainlake had already heard reports from town criers about fighting with Veurim forces, though no casualties had been reported yet. They prepared to leave Vainlake immediately to reunite with their friends.

The journey from Vainlake to Myrefall proved treacherous as heavy rain and wind reduced visibility significantly. Kailyn used magic to slightly improve their sight through the storm, but disaster struck when one of their horses was bitten by a venomous snake. Kailyn quickly used cure wounds to heal the snake bite, but their troubles were far from over. Three giant constrictor snakes emerged from the desert terrain and attacked the party, forcing them into combat during the fierce storm.

The snake encounter became a desperate battle as the serpents attempted to bite and constrict party members and their injured horse. Kailyn put Dexter on her shoulder for safety and cast entangle, though all three snakes successfully saved against the restraining magic. She attacked with her scimitar but missed, while Muscle bit one of the snakes and Nillituh attempted animal friendship, which also failed. The snakes pressed their attack, with one successfully biting the horse again. Kailyn retaliated with frostbite, causing one snake's skin to turn grey as cold damage coursed through its body.

As the battle intensified, Yomidrogo and Fe arrived to help their companions. Yomidrogo unleashed a devastating fireball that dealt massive damage to the snakes, followed by a firebolt that completely incinerated one of the serpents. Bones moved closer and cast a psychic attack, while Nillituh used his longbow with deadly precision. The tide of battle turned as the party's combined magical and martial prowess overwhelmed the remaining snakes. When the creatures attempted to flee, Muscle delivered a killing bite to one, tearing it apart with his powerful jaws.

The final snake fell to Yomidrogo's mysterious dark green energy blast, but this victory came with disturbing consequences. After using this strange power with purplish hints, Yomidrogo failed a wisdom saving throw and became deeply distressed. He fell to his knees crying and shaking, and when Kailyn approached to comfort him, he accidentally attacked her with an Eldritch Blast, sending her flying ten feet backward. Yomidrogo appeared confused and claimed not to remember the attack, sparking intense debate among the party about his trustworthiness and whether this was truly their friend.

Kailyn cast Zone of Truth to force honesty from the group, and tensions erupted as Nillituh expressed deep distrust and even suggested killing Yomidrogo. Under the spell's influence, Nillituh admitted his hatred of magic and racism toward elves, while Yomidrogo apologized and explained he couldn't control whatever was happening to him. The party used potions and healing magic to treat Nillituh's horse, which had collapsed from the snake venom. Despite the internal conflict, they decided to continue their journey to Myrefall, though trust had been severely damaged.

The party arrived at Myrefall around eleven at night during a fierce storm, finding a rough desert city with mud-filled streets and basic accommodations. They discovered two lodging options: a converted barn tavern run by a scarred goblin charging seven copper per person, and an underground tavern run by an elf charging five silver per person. The party split up, with Yomidrogo staying at the expensive inn while the others chose the cheaper barn. During their stay, Bones learned from the goblin innkeeper about drug activity in the back alleys of the city.

Curiosity led the party to investigate the suspicious back alley behind the goblin's barn, where they discovered several large wooden barrels blocking the narrow passage. Using a crowbar, Bones opened the barrels and found red translucent crystalline substances similar to materials from the slave mining caves where Yomidrogo had been held. The discovery suggested the goblin innkeeper was involved in the same operation that had enslaved their friend. When Bones made noise opening the barrels, someone came to investigate, but the party successfully hid using stealth and minor illusion magic.

The party woke the next morning to harsh storm conditions with seventy-kilometer-per-hour winds and five-meter visibility. All party members except Yomidrogo failed wisdom saving throws and gained madness effects from staying overnight in the Destitute Lands. Bones developed an intense hatred for the area and desperately wanted to leave, while others gained various madness effects. Determined to interrogate the goblin about the mysterious substances, Bones attempted to kidnap the innkeeper but failed to knock him unconscious, prompting the goblin to draw a dagger in self-defense.

Yomidrogo quickly cast a reduce spell, shrinking the goblin to tiny size, allowing Bones to stuff him into their bag of holding. The party stole money from the goblin's desk and fled the tavern into the harsh weather, where they found their horses shivering but alive. They debated between two routes to Easthills: through the Desia Shallows or directly through the mountains. Nillituh's ranger expertise suggested the mountain route would be faster despite the difficulty for horses. Tragically, during their four-hour journey through increasingly mountainous terrain, the goblin suffocated and died in the bag of holding due to lack of air.

As the party reached the edge of the Destitute Lands, they discovered a mysterious magical border where the storm suddenly stopped and sunny weather began. The transition was unnaturally abrupt, with a hard line where clouds simply dissipated. Yomidrogo's detect magic revealed strong conjuration magic in the area, while Nillituh's religion check recalled fairy tales from his homeland about time distortion and children who disappeared only to return as elderly men. Despite the uncertainty about this magical phenomenon, the party decided to proceed through the sunny area with caution.

The party began their ascent up the Itumue Mountains, marveling at the massive snow-capped peaks that stretched beyond their vision. They made good progress despite the steep terrain and decided to rest for the night on a mountain ledge rather than push through. During their camp, Bones attempted to develop a communication system with Dexter using clicks and sounds, while Kailyn reflected on her missing parents. Yomidrogo and Kailyn had a heartfelt conversation about his recent blackouts and the party's damaged trust, with the night watches proceeding without incident.

The next day brought new wonders as the party continued climbing and encountered snow for the first time, with many party members having never seen it before. Yomidrogo used his golden chalice to purify snow into pristine, crystal-clear water for everyone. By mid-afternoon, they had reached halfway to Easthills, climbing about a thousand feet and enjoying spectacular views of the landscape below. However, Nillituh's keen ranger senses noticed something disturbing: there were no animals or birds in an area that should have been teeming with wildlife during prime season.

Bones' arcana knowledge revealed that the absence of wildlife indicated the presence of a large predator that had scared away all other creatures. The party's animal companions, Muscle and Dexter, showed nervous energy and confirmed through speak with animals that something felt wrong in the area. Kailyn wild-shaped into an eagle to scout ahead, where she met two other eagles who mentioned the area had been unusually quiet since a recent storm. Their conversation was violently interrupted when a massive roc, four times the size of an eagle, suddenly attacked and killed the other birds.

The party found themselves facing a gargantuan flying creature with a wingspan nearly two hundred feet across, one of the most terrifying and rare predators in existence. Combat began as Kailyn, still in eagle form, cast a sleep spell that caused the massive roc to fall unconscious and plummet two hundred feet to a ledge below, taking significant fall damage. Bones immediately followed up with a third-level moonbeam that dealt radiant damage to the awakened creature. The battle had begun in earnest, with the party positioned on a mountain ledge while their enormous opponent recovered below.

The roc proved to be a formidable adversary as it flew back up to attack the party with devastating talon strikes. It dealt twenty-two points of damage to Yomidrogo, who retaliated with hellish rebuke for twenty points of fire damage. When the creature attempted to grapple Yomidrogo, he miraculously rolled a natural twenty to escape its grasp. The roc then turned on Bones, dealing twenty-eight points of damage with its massive talons, causing him to lose concentration on his moonbeam spell. In response, Bones successfully cast reduce on the creature, shrinking it from gargantuan to huge size and reducing its damage output.

The battle intensified as multiple party members coordinated their attacks against the reduced but still massive creature. Nillituh cast tidal wave, dealing forty-eight points of bludgeoning damage and knocking the roc prone, giving the party advantage on their attacks. He followed up with hunter's mark and multiple longbow attacks using his sharpshooter feat. Dexter surprised everyone by transforming into a giant space hamster and attacking the creature. Yomidrogo unleashed a devastating fireball that dealt thirty points of fire damage when the roc failed its saving throw, followed by additional fire bolt attacks.

As the battle reached its climax, the roc made desperate attacks against the party, dealing massive damage to Kailyn and knocking her unconscious. Bones used his magical orb to cast a prayer of healing that restored fifteen hit points to multiple party members and revived Kailyn from the brink of death. The recovered Kailyn delivered the killing blow with a third-level ice knife that pierced through the roc's stomach and head, finally bringing down the massive predator. The creature's frost-bitten body went cold and grey as its wings collapsed to the ground.

After their hard-fought victory, the party set about harvesting valuable materials from the slain roc. They collected massive talons, each about ten feet long, along with tough feathers ranging from fifteen to twenty-five inches in length. They gathered four vials of roc blood and harvested four roc pelts, each roughly half the size of a horse. The party secured these valuable materials to their horses for transport, with Nillituh receiving a great axe plus one that had previously belonged to Naeco. They marked the location on their map for potential future return, knowing they couldn't carry everything.

Their celebration was interrupted by sounds from a nearby cave, where Bones discovered two baby rocs in a massive nest. Each baby was about three times the size of Nillituh, crying for food and their missing parents. Through speak with animals and telepathy, the party learned that the mother had gone for food while the father had gone elsewhere, meaning they had likely killed one of the parents. The babies appeared innocent and childlike despite their enormous size, simply trying to survive in the harsh mountain environment.

An intense debate erupted among the party about what to do with the orphaned baby rocs. Some members wanted to take one or both as potential mounts or companions, while others worried about the surviving parent tracking them down for revenge. The babies would recognize their father's scent on the talons the party was carrying, making the situation even more complicated. Concerns were raised about separating the siblings, feeding such massive creatures, and the practical challenges of traveling with baby rocs.

Yomidrogo proposed using deception to convince the babies to come with them willingly, suggesting he could mimic their parent's voice. Despite strong objections from some party members, he decided to attempt this plan. Using his actor abilities and the party's magical assistance through bardic inspiration and guidance, Yomidrogo mimicked the parent roc's voice and told the babies that their parents could no longer care for them. He instructed them to go with the party for their own good, claiming it was for the best. The session ended on a dramatic cliffhanger as Yomidrogo rolled a natural twenty on his deception check, leaving the fate of the baby rocs and the party's future hanging in the balance.