Part 1: Friendly Fire
In the port of Cove, two of the Lords (Hir Herman and Frederick) are throwing a large festival outside the Cathedral to celebrate their opening of an orphanage. The square is packed with hundreds of citizens.
Gratuitous picture of Nanny Jackaline.
Members of the Blood Hound bounty hunters, Red Jenny (Nick's), Cole (Pete), Jackaline (me), and Aunt Bunny (Claudio) are in the crowd searching for servants of another city leader, Hir Hiedi. She is suspected of framing Hir Frederick for a recent assassination attempt on the city Magistrate Hir Godfrey. For political reasons, an outright accusation is not optimal, thus some evidence must first be uncovered.
The party splits up and works the crowd. Jackaline spots one of Heidi's men and starts to chat him up. Before she learns anything, she spots a yellow cultist in the crowd. She signals to Cole, who punches the cultist in the back of the head, rendering him permanently unconcious.
As Cole assures nearby observers that his new friend is just "dead drunk" and Jackaline examines a mysterious clay pot that the cultist was carrying, the celebration begins when the Bishop comes out of the cathedral and starts to address the crowd.
About then all hell breaks loose. A woman and two men rush the podium, shouting threats against the Hir. In several places throughout the crowd, Yellow cultists smash clay pots onto the ground. 4 arrows strike the Bishop and explode, sending him flying into pieces like a blood sausage.
Jackaline casts a mass daze on the assassins near the podium. Hir Heidi (in white) starts to flee.
A child Yellow cultist smashes a pot nearby. Jackaline sees a dozen large teeth fall out and start to vibrate. She assumes these are Teeth of the Hydra that turn into skeletons. The group learned in an earlier mission that Capt Montague and Bernie had smuggled these into Cove and delivered them to another cult- the Sons of the Sun.
Elsewhere in the crowd, the teeth erupt into skeletons and attack , generally starting with the misled cultists that broke the pot.
Cole rushes to save civilians from slaughter.
His great sword is of limited use but he bashes away with his new Ring of the Ram until his fatigue runs low.
Jackaline creates fire around the vibrating teeth, cooking them before they spawn. She creates fire around another group that Aunt Bunny has "glued" into place.
Jackaline rushes back to find her charge, Princess Gnocchi, who has hidden under a stall.
A lusty barmaid has spotted Gnocchi's silver cross and attempted to take it. Jackaline bashed into her from behind and knocked her flat.
Many people, especially the town leaders rush back into the cathedral for safety.
Around the square the threat is slowly reduced, Aunt Bunny uses created and shaped fire to dispatch skeletons on the far side of the event. Cole, wounded, takes care of several. Red Jenny spots Hir Heidi fleeing the crowd with her bodyguard (a mercenary we know named Amos) and starts to follow her. Jackaline goes back for the unbroken pot of teeth. It looks like disaster has been averted.
Then, out of the night sky, comes 2 byakee carrying a barrel with lit fuses. They suicidally crash into the cathedral, erupting in a large explosion of green fire.
Many are killed instantly in the 10d6 explosion.
Hir Frederick escapes through a window. Red Jenny assists him, patting out flames and pinching his purse. (15gp!)
Hir Hermann is not as lucky. Heidi's manservant and bodyguard Andros are also killed.
Red Jenny finds Amos. He tells that "Heidi " was not Heidi, but a servant girl under an illusion disguise. The party tracked her to her house and questioned her. The servants name was Ana and she was to pose as Heidi, who has skipped town along with 2 bodyguards, a woman Morgana and a warrior Kukullen. They think she is headed for the Wind Tunnels at Bright Pass.
In the aftermath of the cult attack, Hir Frederick organizes a retributive strike on the Carrin population of the countryside.
Part 2: A walk in the country
With little time to waste, the party heads after Heidi, Servant Ana, ex cart and Gnocchi in tow. Amos would have joined, but his mistreatment of Ana caused Bunny to "entomb" him.
The stop at a sacred grove to speak with the Three Narns, who Aunt Bunny had met previously. They gave some advice and directions, and sold Cole and Jenny some dubious "fate cards".
In the woods the group is ambushed by several crow bears (no pics). Jenny is badly wounded after being carelessly sent ahead by Jackaline. In a desperate situation she puts her back to the ground and fends off three bears, poking one in the eye, until help aarrives. Eventually the party comes to a field . They must cross several miles of open terrain.
Jenny is scouting ahead when two great mountain wyvern attack.
Jackaline creates a wall of flame, Bunny and Cole shoot missiles, all to no effect. The wyvern envenoms the ox with it's stinger.
Jackaline casts "control limb" as it passes over and causes it to crash nearby.
Cole rushes over to attack the downed beast.
Seeing its mate in danger draws the other wyvern to attack Cole. Realizing no one in the party can deal enough damage to hurt the beasts, Jackaline controls the other wing and has the wyvern fly away. It's mate following.
Nearby, Cole meets an Impbat that takes a shine to him. They converse in one of the esoteric languages Cole speaks. The Imp says he saw Heidi pass 2 days ago, and 4 strange men a day before. Could they be the snipers in Cove? To speed up, we decide to leave the ox behind in a shelter shaped by Bunny.
Good thing, too, as the next encounter is a bulleted buried in the field with about a mile to go to the Misty Woods. Bunny sees it with her earth spells. It appears only sensitive to vibrations, so if we can get off the ground we might get by it.
Aunt Bunny uses levitation spell on everyone and then tows us along with her flying broom. And they call her a witch!
The last hurdle passed before entering the Misty Woods.
In the Misty woods the party comes to the ruins.
Birthday cake break. Chocolate cannoli.
The ruins of an ancient civilization.
First the party deals with some lizardfolk that live near the ruins. One takes a dislike to Jenny and wants to fight her but cooler heads prevail. The lizardfolk explain the ground rules. We must sacrifice something to enter the ruins. What should we sacrifice and who should do it?
It is finally decided Cole will go into the tomb and offer gold.
Cole speaks with the spirit. He is interrogated but lies successfully through his own ignorance. They accept 10gp as an offering. Cole comes back with 15gp to spare, which he keeps, but is conflicted.
Next, part 3: into the ruins
