AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

*ARCHIVED* Sub-forum for the original West Marches Discord campaign

Moderator:etherial

Locked
User avatar
etherial
Posts:964
Joined:Sun Nov 27, 2016 11:04 pm
Location:Berlin, Massachusetts
Contact:
AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by etherial » Fri Jul 27, 2018 5:08 pm

Rituals of Cleansing
Time: 2018-07-26@23:00 GMT
GM: etherial (Gronk)
Circle: 4
Difficulty: Medium

Player Rewards:
Avalandohamagannahnieventhallailmar, 3 TIPs, 2200 Legend, 100 Silver, training in 3 Purifier Discipline Talents
Blaethynn: 3 TIPs, 2200 Legend, 550 Silver
Dubhan: 3 TIPs, 2200 Legend, 550 silver
Fenrir: 3 TIPs, 2200 Legend, 550 Silver
Quis'Tan: 3 TIPs, 2200 Legend, 550 Silver

Downtime Actions Available:

Blaethynn: Alchemy (Rank 4, Step 15) (Booster Potion, Kelx's Poultice. Kelia's Antidote)
Blaethynn: Craftsman (Rank 4, Step 19)
Blaethynn: Forge Weapon (Rank 5, Step 16)
Blaethynn: Item History (Rank 4, step 15)
Dubhan: Alchemy Step 11 (Rank 4, Booster Potion, Kelix' Poultice, Kelia's Antidote)
Dubhan: Research 24 (Rank 5)
Fenrir: Animal Training (Rank 1, Step 7)
Researchers may spend 20/2 Silver for +3 Steps

Further Information:
The Raggok Kaer is no more. A massive oak tree known as X'Arol's Solace has grown in its place.
X'Arol, slightly unhinged Exemplar of Jaspree, is no more.

ender3rd
Posts:182
Joined:Fri Oct 06, 2017 2:19 am

Re: AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by ender3rd » Sat Jul 28, 2018 1:54 am

I write in great sorrow. Though I did not know her well, nor think that well of her utter fixation on nature everywhere X'Arol, Questor of Jaspree, was one of the few who remembers a time before the scourge. She will be missed. Let the story of her last act be known and the Legend of her Name live on, for she gave her life in a good cause - killing horror constructs, preventing their continued infestations and reducing the influence of Raggok. The trip started when my fellow Obsidimen Avalandohamagannahnieventhallailmar and Xyjkira began looking for a group of Adepts to assist the town of Merrith with the perennial constructs coming from the breached kaer below.

We reached the town by going through Borgan's rest as usual and with no noteworthy difficulties. Upon arriving at Merrith, after the customary greeting ceremonies, we found that there was disease throughout the town, likely caused by horrors. After a short time we descended into the kaer to find that it had been inhabited by Jehuthra. Despite my precautions I was webbed early in the fight and had great difficulties performing to my typical level in the maze of webbing and injuries. Once the Jehuthra were dispatched we took a break for perhaps an hour and a half to recover ourselves as best we could before performing the ritual we intended.

Xyjkira - a Purifier of some renown and another Namegiver with experiences predating the scourge planned to join with X'Arol to perform a massive cleansing ritual which would clear out the undead and such in the kaer as well as rededicate the site to Jaspree, at the expense of Raggok. Needless to say the undead did not approve of this. We were to guard the pair from those things which would inevitably attack. As the fight turned out I protected the western flank from the ghouls that attacked there as well as providing minimal assistance with the flesh beasts from the east. Unfortunately those of my companions with the ability to fly did not seem to be willing to perform that most fundamental job of the bodyguard. To wit, taking a hit so that those being guarded do not. While I held the ghouls at bad a mix of cadaver men and flesh beasts surrounded and attacked both of those performing the ritual. From what I could see X'Arol took the whole of the corrupted kaer into herself as she was ripped apart by undead. This sacrifice seems to have pleased Jaspree because X'Arol turned into a tree which bears her name, X'Arol's Solace.

The growth of that tree necessitated a fighting retreat as the kaer lost structural integrity. This was accomplished without much difficulty as the undead were being ripped apart in droves. Pyrric victors we returned to Throal.

User avatar
BattleChad
Posts:422
Joined:Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:43 pm

Re: AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by BattleChad » Mon Jul 30, 2018 2:31 am

The Great Library of Throal thanks Quis'Tan for his contribution.

Journal Rewards: 110 Legend Points and 137 Silver

Reyntrannin
Posts:270
Joined:Mon Apr 23, 2018 3:59 pm

Re: AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by Reyntrannin » Mon Jul 30, 2018 3:15 pm

From a letter to an unknown recipient

I’m sorry to have missed our meeting, but an urgent call came, and I found that I had to answer it immediately.

You see, word came that the settlement of Merrith, which had been founded on top of the ruins of a Temple of Raggok, was having problems with an rapidly encroaching infestation of the undead. An Elementalist friend of mine Named Avalan was putting together a team to head to the temple and cleanse it of its taint once and for all. I, of course, immediately agreed to assist them, along with a few other Adept acquaintances of ours: Fenrir, a Windling Shaman, Dubhan, the Dwarf Wizard, and Quis’tan, an Obsid Spirit Rider.

After some research into ways to cleanse a temple dedicated to a Mad passion, we determined to enlist the help of a specialist, specifically a Purifier that Avalan had heard of Named Xyjkira. His advice, upon hearing of our plan, was to also enlist the aid of another Passion, because the only way to clear the influence of such a powerful being would be to displace it with the power of another, like, being.

It took some searching, but we found a Questor of Jaspree who was reputed to be quite powerful, one X’Arol, a T’skrang who had been imprisoned for interfering with trade. We interviewed her in the cell she had been placed in, which was dark, dank, and poorly ventilated, and, after some protests on her part, got the Questor to agree to aid us if we could get her out of that place. Summoning a justice of Mynbruje, X’Arol’s parole was obtained, along with a blood oath that she wouldn’t destroy any settlements or return to Throal.

Thus, we arrived in Merrith escorting a Powerful Questor who was more than slightly cracked in her perceptions of permanent dwellings and the largest Obsidiman I’ve ever seen.

Merrith itself was not in good shape. Her citizens were suffering from a plague of some sort. Since we needed to rest from our journey (and fish X’Arol out of the river), those of us with physician’s training tried to offer some succor to the people of the settlement. We did not have enough time to make a significant change, though, as our escortees announced that we should get into the temple and cleanse it as quickly as possible.

The temple, which once was somewhat well-lit from the sun that could penetrate its cracks and crannies, was now pitch-dark, with nothing inside clear to see until we entered it with our torches. It took a few moments of examination before what I was seeing made sense, but then it was too late. The material blocking the light was the iron webs of Jehuthra, and while we were still deciding whether to proceed, they struck. Although they did manage to take us by surprise, fortune was on our side, causing several of their initial attacks to glance off our armor or miss us entirely. They did however manage to score a few deep wounds upon us before we managed to put them down and clear their magical webbing.

We then took a brief rest to recuperate while X’Arol and Xyjkira prepared their ritual space on top of a very old blood stain. They informed us that once the ritual commenced. We would have to hold off the undead that came to try and interrupt.

This was not an understatement, within moments of the start of their chanting, several groups of constructs came from the lower areas to try and make a meal of our cleansing team. Things went well at first, we put down the first wave of fleshbeasts and turned our attention to the ghouls that came from the other side of the circle, but before we could finish off the last of the ghouls, a group of cadaverfolk came shambling forward. Avalan held his position to try and block the creatures from closing on the ritual circle while the rest of us (except for Quis’tan, who remained to clean up the ghouls) flew about and harassed them, but we could not kill them quickly enough and began to be overrun as more fleshbeasts and ghouls joined the fray.

Several of the new fleshbeasts were able to surround X’Arol and began beating her badly before we could get them under control. As we finally turned our attention to trying to clear the space once again, all appeared to be too late as X’Arol fell to the assault, with the stain of the old blood covering half her body and mingling with her own last beating drops of blood.

But then something amazing happened, most likely a last burst of power from the dying T’skrang as she called upon her Passion. A tree, which appeared to be formed of her blood, burst forth from the ground and began tearing open the roof above us. We grabbed Xyjkira and began to beat a hasty retreat out of the temple, with the tree sprouting tendrils from the ground which throttled and tore apart the undead that tried to give chase.

After that, things are still a blur for me, but it seems that the cleansing was a success, even though it did cost the life of the Questor (which may be a double blessing for Barsaive, considering her focus on destroying all buildings and civilization).

Anyhow, that is why I was not able to make our meeting. So would you like to get together in a week so we can complete our conversation?

User avatar
BattleChad
Posts:422
Joined:Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:43 pm

Re: AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by BattleChad » Wed Aug 01, 2018 10:54 pm

The Great Library of Throal thanks Blaethynn for his contribution.

Journal Rewards: 110 Legend Points and 137 Silver

Fusilliban
Posts:105
Joined:Wed Jan 03, 2018 5:45 am

Re: AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by Fusilliban » Wed Aug 01, 2018 11:18 pm

from The Observations of Avalandohamagannahnieventhallailmar

I received a letter from the town of Merrith last week. The nearby kaer, which I have written about before, remained tainted by Raggok. Her madness continued to draw more and more undead there, perpetually risking the lives of the local Namegivers. They asked me if there was anything to be done permanently. This sounded like a task worthy of adventurous companions, so I gathered:

Blaethynn, Windling Weaponsmith (and now also an Elementalist! How wonderful!)
Dubhan, Dwarf Wizard
Fenrir, Windling Shaman
Quis'Tan, Spirit Rider and fellow Obsid

We immediately set out researching options for cleansing. Mostly Dubhan. Dubhan can read so quickly! I had heard rumor that Wizards could do this, but I had never seen her do it. I wonder if they are also able to appreciate what they are reading faster, or if it dulls the experience. After some time, I wondered if my old acquaintance Xyjhar would know. Xyjhar and I had many talks together in the liferock, and as he is a Purifier, I thought he would encourage the purification of a kaer. Xyjhar's response was clear, and Dubhan's reading confirmed it (quickly): Only the power of another Passion could so quickly dislodge Raggok. We needed a Questor, and a powerful one.

We were in luck! The nearest powerful Questor was in Throal itself! And her location was well-known. X'Arol was in a prison. Apparently, the authorities of Throal took offense when she began using her connection to Jaspree to turn roads back into wild lands. We asked if she would help, and she said she would do nearly anything if we could get her out of her imprisonment. We spoke to the jailor - herself a Questor, of Mynbruje - and struck a deal! She was allowed to leave, on the condition that she not return to Throal, not destroy any further settlements, and assist us in cleansing the kaer of Raggok's presence without delay.

We arrived in Merrith without any travel complications. (We did stop in Borgan's Rest to have a swim. This was not complicated.) The people of Merrith had fallen victim to some kind of disease. We did what we could for them - checkups, Heated food - and went below. The top floor of the temple had been taken over by Jehuthra, who we dispatched quickly. Many of my companions have fought Jehuthra multiple times, now. Even Quis'Tan is getting used to it, which is very difficult - Jehuthra can make webs made of metal, which impede movement, which is never pleasant for a Spirit Rider. We defeated the Jehuthra so quickly that Xyjhar and X'Arol barely had time to interrupt their conversation about the nature of astral space, and that Blaethynn never needed to make use of my backpack.

The immediate environment being safe, Xyjhar and X'Arol looked around. Many of us had been there before, but this was their first time in this place. They agreed that it was heavily tainted, but that it could be consecrated to Jaspree. They prepared a great ritual, and told us to stand guard - their attempt to displace Raggok would surely draw all her minions. We offered to protect them with spells, but they made it clear that if they needed such protection, they fully expected it would be because we were dead.

They were entirely correct about the minions. Their ritual had no effect, at first, and we stared out into the dark, lit only by a few torches. Then, the undead came.

More undead than I have seen before, or wish to see again. Fleshbeasts, Cadavermen, and ghouls. None were especially strong, but there were many. Quis'Tan and I stood strong, each on either side of the ritualists. Our companions harried them from the air. This was good for the safety of our companions, but bad for the safety of the ritualist. X'Arol died, but in doing so turned into the largest tree any of us had ever seen. The place is cleansed.


P.S. My spells were ineffective against the undead, and Lightning Bolt seemed dangerous to use. Something about Xyjhar's calm presence encouraged me to use my natural strength, and I began laying into the Cadavermen with my bare hands, aided by spells from Fenrir and Dubhan. It was effective and satisfying, and I have resolved to speak to Xyjhar further about this.

User avatar
BattleChad
Posts:422
Joined:Sat Sep 23, 2017 7:43 pm

Re: AAR: Rituals of Cleansing

Post by BattleChad » Fri Aug 10, 2018 1:35 pm

The Great Library of Throal thanks Avalan for his contribution.

Journal Rewards: 110 Legend Points and 137 Silver

Locked