Saga Diary - Scions of Nathas

Games Discussion Ars Magica
21

Well it turns out that the dwarves, despite being outwardly friendly and fairly open have an extremely complicated and byzantine political situation with extremely calcified social mobility and super conservative laws. The (now dead) high king got his position not only through cunning politiking, but also through a pact with the mighty volcano spirit, a pact the PCs prevented him from following through on. They have since found that the situation, politically and socially in the Dwarven kingdom was so bad that an entirely new Dwarven kingdom was founded by huge numbers of young dwarves who went into self imposed exile to find a better life. They've not had much to do with this other Dwarven realm yet.

As for the Elves, the ones they've encountered are the remains of the nation they are in. They fled into the mountains and occupied a huge abandoned Dwarven city. They are greaterly reduced in number but seem to be holding the dwarves off quite easily (almost entirely because the Dwarves are so busy backstabbing each other they can no longer function effectively as a kingdom). These Elves are haughty, proud and not entirely sure they approve of the PCs looting the ruins of their old realm. The one elf the PCs found (Illium) doesn't seem to know quite what to make of these elves, he claims they are "different", more proud, angry and aggressive than the elves he knew. Current belief is that the elves had to get very militant to survive the war and the dwarves, they might have left behind much that was gentle and kind to focus on power and aggression.

As for the Dwarven town/fortress they found, debate is currently ongoing as to whether they will offer it to their new Dwarven allies. At the moment they can see the virtue of a powerful fortress of allied Dwarves, but at the same time, the Dwarves current proximity to Dragmos (where all the humans live) allows for easy access to the Dwarven nobles, craftsmen and troops. Giving them the fortress would make it hard for the Dwarves to reinforce them in times of trouble.

22

I meant moving EVERYBODY to the empty dwarven city, not just the dwarves. The humans as well. Drogmos does not sound like a great place to be if any problem arises, really, and as far as they know they can be attacked at any moment for what I read. However, having a 1500 grog pool, I guess they should be training some to be guards. or a militia at least. 1 in 10 being trained (quitw a low number, really) gives you 150 warriors, even if they are militia quality having 150 warriors to reinforce thwe walls is quite something to take into account, specially given that at least 2 of your characters have military training (the paladins) I guess that this is something that the leaders of the community (the PC) would have guessed by now.

Nice one about the dwarves. They always seem to be the dependable race in most settings. Having them as the byzantine faction is a shift I had never seen before, and I really like it. :smiley:

Still waiting for those orcs that shirobishi mentioned to appear. Or are they the men in the woods?

Xavi

23

Aaah, I see what you mean.

Well, no, they won't abandon Dragmos. Dragmos is such a good settlement site because it allows ready access to the sea which is beyond teeming with edible fishy life. Its entirely possible to sustain all the citizens of Dragmos solely through fish (although it would get a little dull). Also, the Dwarven fortress is a fortress first and a town second. While there are farmlands spread around the fortress, they aren't anything like as rich as the fishing in Dragmos. Not to mention the Ocean spirit is readily accessible at Dragmos (since it used to be a centre of its worship).

The coast line that their little patch of heaven is one consists of massive collection of high cliffs. Its only at Dragmos and at a few points south that they've seen the cliffs disappear to make way for either river deltas, swamps on (in the case of Dragmos) a lovely sandy beach. Basically it would be hard to fish as easily elsewhere.

And yes, they have recruited a militia that all adults must serve in, with the elven wargear recovered from the Dwarven fortress, that militia is about to get one hell off a level up in effectiveness (scalemail, swords, spears and shields for everyone!).

I'm trying with all the races to do something different enough that the players can't rely on stereotypes from other settings. So far the dwarves have turned out to be byzantine and obsessed with their own politics. The elves (that they've met) are aggressive and arrogant. The little green men of the forest (basically goblins) are primitive and tribal, but open to trade and (mostly) happy to talk instead of fight. The fishmen still stink though.

The orcs haven't been encountered yet, except for the PCs watching a group of dwarves annihilate a much larger group of orcs. Discipline and morale beats fury and aggression everytime.

24

Heh. orcs as steppe population vs byzantium? I can see the orcs being the good savage, protecting their lands from the predatory dwarves. :mrgreen:

Nice one on the militia. You only need walls to defend now :mrgreen:

Fishmen can easily be an expansionist militaristic race with a penchant for chicken (read: dragon) meat. They can be doing draught works to INCREASE the size of swamps across the continent. They hate dwarves because they control metal and fire. Or they can be peace loving people, only interested in their carps and trouts and were only fighting the PC to protect their children.

looking forward to the next one. The acid door (massive penetration included) is something I will hang on my lab next saga for sure!

Cheers,
Xavi

25

A score years ago, a friend a I had began to design a fantasy universe for fun.
In it, we took and subverted all the tropes for Elven Kingdoms, giving them the fascism of nazi germany (they hated the intruders and killed them on sight), the decadence of ancient rome (they spend a lot of time drugged because of the "enlightening" visions it provided them), and the energy comsumption of, well, modern america* (Their kingdom was replete with magic, giving them an insane standard of living, but they depleted elemental forces in all surrounding countries to fuel it, which was the cause of the fall of an undersea kingdom).

You might want to do something similar: It's good to be an elf, less so to be something else, and it sucks to be their ennemy.

We also had the orcs as an advanced space race that had crashed on the planet, which gave them a "magic" that was utterly alien to other races.

26

As Gribble has hinted at, Food Supply is the main issue (well, and humans don't do that well underground for long periods of time).
The two settlements (Dragmos and Riverside) are mainly built around the food sources. Due to a lack of significant trade at this point (and the fact that the only dwarven trading partners we had have just decided to enter a major civil war), there are no suitable other food supply routes. Dragoms is the only steady large source of animal protein and has some decent farmland and orchards. Riverside is pretty much the best farmland for hundreds of miles around. There is no realistic way of abandoning this and replacing it with alternatives at this point.Keep in mind that we are still pretty isolated.

There would maybe be the option of trading for food with the Minotaurs on a large scale, but the warpstone to reach them is at Dragmos....
For better or worse, we are stuck there there.

There are a few plans afoot , such as creating a large enough escape fleet and putting up a few defensive towers, but all this is a bit in the future. The fortress is important, though because it would introduce a defensive fall back for a good number of people (but probably not all of them) that could be moved along the coast. There is also another abandoned/unfinished coastal city in the vicinity that can/will be settled some time in the long term. Time to convince people to make babies :slight_smile:

For the moment, I suspect we will form a human/dwarven garrison and rotate people in and out on occasion. It is an important point that also ensures we have a claim to the region in the north.
Oh the fun of the politics involved :slight_smile:

27

Given that Gribble hasn't had time to update things recently, allow me to do a few summary posts about occurrences in this saga, which are slowly beginning to take a turn towards a mildly epic scale...

With the dwarves settling in, food and raw material supply stabilising (apart from metal) and even a basic trade economy developing again, the most immediate problem developing appears to be that of a supply of vis. Most of the Mages/Druids are rapidly approaching ageing roll territory and magic items don't really suck their power from thin air either... Wyndham has been investigating the local technology of Manses (essentially automated vis stills that can be deployed in high auras) for a bit but requires more specimens to investigate. As such, an expedition to the old war port of Dur Suravasti is undertaken by ship. Upon arrival, it is obvious, that the city has been razed, but was nowhere as destroyed as the other cities encountered so far. As a result, there are plenty of items and materials (especially metal) that can be salvaged and a collection effort begins almost immediately. However, it becomes obvious, that in many of the city's cellars, there appear to be numerous undead left.... Exploration continues generally around the pockets of undead with extreme care, given they are not very observant, and many appear to be locked inside the cellars of their former dwellings.

Of particular interest is the mage college and a great number of interesting items are acquired. Or particular interest, however, is a typical portal ring located in one of the buildings. While Gendo tries to determine the type of magic used in the portal, (spont. InVi), he twilights (again) to the annoyance of everyone present. Bets on the length of his twilight are quickly taken.
When he comprehends the experience, he gains substantial insight in the gate itself, finding that it is a portal leading to the secret great hall of the College, but the portal got 'stuck' due to outside influence seven years ago, and he realises how he can open the portal again. After some mental arithmetic, it transpires that this is exactly the time our refugees arrived on this world...
Upon opening, the gate spits out a stream of nearly 1000 Nassian refugees, who have not not lost a day since the destruction of their homeland.... Some further investigation reveals the presence of a druid amongst them and the fact that they appear to be from the same gate that Ser Ira utilised. While confusion reigns, quick explanations are given and a 'base camp' is established in the grounds of the Mage College.

However, it transpires that the undead population of the city is significantly bigger than initially estimated and during nightfall, a large number are approaching the college Some desperate defences are put together via Walls of Thorns and hand to hand combat and a secure area in the centre of the college is established. It is then decided that the civilians are best transported into the remote great hall via the not working portal, moving them out of the reach of the undead. A call home is made and the large transport barges and a flotilla of smaller ships is sent on its way to transfer them back to Dragmos.
After some large scale exploration, a plan is decided upon. Observation reveals that the undead seem to be reliving their last day over and over. As such, a large central square is barricaded off, except for a few entrance ways which can then be closed of with spells (good old Wall of Thorn...) The undead are then lured into the square with some CrIm spells depicting a shouting enemy army. Once inside the square, they are destroyed with some area effect PrCo spells). Rinse and repeat for a few nights. The rest of the undead are hunted down by small kill teams led by everyone's favourite Paladin in Training, Aed, who distinguishes himself again over those few days. The Druid under the arrivals, Eleanor Vayne, is a bit of an odd one, with a heart beast of a tree (!!). Nonetheless she is quite useful over the following days [new player].

A few more days of exploration and [strike]loot[/strike]acquisition follow, and result in encounters with intelligent ghosts, the interrogation of an undead enemy army scout, the discovery of an automaton factory lab and some other minor incidents. The manse (the original reason) is also discovered and Wyndham dives into a study of it for the next season. A couple of weeks after the arrival, the barges and the flotilla finally make it and the new arrivals are transferred to Dragmos where a huge party begins...

28

Wow, thanks for bumping this with an update, I didnt catch the thread originally, but have enjoyed spending the morning reading "episodes" in between work. Really hope the updates continue, this is great great stuff!

Although my own imagination has been put to shame :blush:

29

Onwards and upwards....

Year 9
Spring

Spring begins with the finalisation of the negotiations over the Scarlett Fortress with the dwarves and a formalisation of the negotiations in Council. Clan Shatterpeak now 'leases' the Scarlett Fortress (former Dwarven Stronghold) from the Council of Dragmos for the (very reasonable) cost of 10MP per year for the next 100 years. They also pledge allegiance to the COuncil of Dragmos and gain f few seats on the council and the assembly.

In subsequent discussions, it is decided to follow on with the search for the Hag Ravel, to see if fertility magic can be learned, since time may soon be of the essence, when it comes to the issue of Longevity Rituals and their consequences.
A suitable translation/copy of one of the Faith Lore books is packed, and the usual suspects make their way by ship to the Sravasti River and up past Dur Suravasti and to Gortyn. After a further 3 days upriver, the conjunction of the two rivers forming the Sravasti is reached, and in its centre, a castle on a cliff is what is most likely the Hag Lurgo's seat, where more information about Ravel is said to be found...

Upon approach a staircase around the rockbase , comes into view, which steeply rises towards the castle. writings seem to cover the surface and appear to be slowly moving. At the end of the ascend, the castle gates await. Upon use, the doors open directly into what is probably best described as a convoluted library, rather than a gate house. Books are floating about, removing themselves from shelves and replacing themselves, with some of them staring at the new arrivals.... (One of the grogs reports a humanoid shape covered in fuzzy red hair ducking out of sight behind some shelves uttering a quiet "Ooook!" but that is considered too outlandish to be taken seriously.)

After bravely and not so bravely advancing into the building the visitors are greeted by what is likely to be Lurgo, floating in mid air, (and looking very much like her little sister Capra without her glamour). She is surrounded by books and scrolls floating around her and letters and writings trailing through the air like streamers... After basic exchange of pleasantries an exchange of books and information is agreed to, with surprisingly little immediate negative impact for the visitors. Lurgo is a little put out that she isn't asked about the matter of fertility magic herself. This is also indicated that the book she offered in exchange for the book on Nassian Faiths, is a tome on Fertility Lore (Tract lvl10). She also provides the requested 'directions' to her mother's whereabouts. This being concluded, nobody desires to remain much longer in the library castle and a quick exit is made...
Upon later inspection, it transpires that the 'directions' aren't so much a map, than a instructions for a hedge 'ritual' which will allegedly transport the people involved.... The grogs are sent a safe distance away and it takes a day or so to finish preparations Upon completion, all present are picked up by vines emerging from the ground and are whisked away, re-awakening inside liquid filled pods.. after some panic, the armed parts of the group manage to emerge and free the rest from their fruity prisons... They have arrived in Ravel's domain.

Close to the vines, a little "Hag's Hut" is spotted and upon approach, Ravel emerges, looking all like the old hag she is (somewhat bigger than her daughters it seems). After some discussion/explanation she agrees to provide the requested information, in exchange for a future, but as yet un-specified favour. Alternatively, she hints she might be displeased for wasting her time.
Given that this decision has been on his mind for some time, Gendo (foolishly) agrees, and is subsequently swallowed by her (!!). She then explains to the stunned onlookers that he will be going through a 'pregnancy' with her, resulting in him being born with the knowledge he desired...
The process takes about a season and is unpleasant for the remaining people, as it is for Gendo, given they are forced to wait hand and foot (literally in some cases) on Ravel, who appears to enjoy the discomfort and awkwardness she imposes upon them. Wyndham, for some reason is her preferred target.
Gendo, meanwhile takes the opportunity to study the process of pregnancy 'firsthand'. When the time comes for Ravel to give birth, Wyndham appears to be the only one with the stamina to assist the process, and at the end is left holding the (screaming) baby ("Waaaaaaa!"). At this point, Ravel suddenly becomes agitated and teleports everyone back to the point they originated. In the confusion, Wyndham also still has one of Ravel's claws that was used to cut Gendo's umbilical cord.

Eleanor takes a quick trip to Dragmos, sending the ship (and a wet nurse) to meet up with the group at the mouth of the Dur Sravasti River. The trip home is uneventful (compared to the recent occurrences) and Wyndham happily and constantly fusses over baby Gendo (coochi coochi cooooo!). In fact, after discovering that he is growing unnaturally quickly and it's likely that it's a fully sentient adult Gendo brain in a baby's body, he is even more gleefully patronising to 'Baby Gendo'.

Upon arrival the explorers learn that both Riverside and Dragmos have been attacked by centaurs with a loss of 30 lives. Wyndham loses his s**t, and swears to wipe out every last one of them! He is only partially calmed down by the rest of the Council.
After much discussion, it is decided to track the centaurs but not to undertake any attacks until the town is at least secured at a basic level. Plans for a palisade and a moderate moat are drawn up and put into action, as well as a further plan to introduce a longer perimeter palisade at a later date.

Summer
Fortification work takes until close to the end of the summer and once the wooden fortifications are complete, plans for stone fortifications are drawn up by Michael (Florus' husband)and are prepared for, once the necessary stone material can be procured (magically or otherwise). Riverside is also further fortified, though a strengthening of its palisade and the introduction of a small moat.

Meanwhile, Eleanor keeps a regular watch over the Centaurs who seem to be on a tribal incursion into the north from their original habitation zone in the south. The complete group is about 200-300 strong and consists of a full tribe with about 100 fighting 'men'.
The attack on Dragmos was clearly an opportunistic act, aimed at raiding, rather than war (no matter how much the Druid claims it was war). This is clearly indicated that the number of victims, at 30, is significantly smaller than the number of attackers, suggesting that deaths were 'incidental'. The conclusion is that the attack was likely a raiding party taking advantage of an undefended target.
The Centaur lifestyle appears to be semi nomadic, similar to that of a number of ancient plains and desert dwellers of Nathas' past. Based around hunting and the occasional raid on other communities.

A number of possible plans is discussed, aimed at sending an appropriate message to the centaurs. From discussions with the dwarves, as well as the Illium, it appears that the centaurs are likely to return if they see the Nassian Enclave as a soft target. If they return with substantially larger numbers, they would be much more difficult to defend against. The elves kept the incursions limited through the use of highly brutal military tactics, coupled with a degree of psychological warfare.
After long debates it is decided upon that it should be possible to put the entire tribe to sleep with some effort. Wyndham prepares to invent a 'truth' spell that he can use to identify the warriors who have taken place in the raid.
It is planned that the leader and those will have their hoof tendons cut, effectively removing them from any further fighting. Gendo also asks Boris Jr. (whose father was killed in the attack), to create a branding iron with the Nassian Phoenix which will also be applied to the fighters in question. It is considered likely, that the so injured centaurs will be either exiled or killed since they would be a drain on the tribes resources. The important point that is being made is that they have clearly been punished by those they attacked, and that they had no way of defending against this. The resulting shock should be enough to keep them from returning for at least a few years.

Carrying out the plan, a group approaches the centaur encampment and stops about an hour away from it. Wyndham and Latifa notice a distinct smell and following it, discover a large amount of what is likely bear scat. While examining the surroundings, they note a bear's growl in the distance and Wyndham decides to follow the growl, despite the fact that Latifa refuses to accompany him. Dome distance away, he comes across a small clearing with a small altar on one side and a large white (female) bear in the centre who accuses Wyndham in perfect archaic Nassian of trying to track her down and kill her. despite his affirmations of the opposite, she attacks and after a brief struggle (in which Wyndham is moderately wounded and is clearly out of his depth despite being in "Battlecat" form).After a couple of attempts to yield, she accepts that and in the subsequent discussion, it transpires that she is apparently one of the ancient magelords (cue much booing and hissing) who escaped before the Nights of Death. It appears she is the one who developed the heartbeast ability that the druids now call their own. She agrees to tutor Wyndham in the future.
Wyndham and Latifa return, but do not explain what they encountered...

Gendo, in the meantime (who has aged to about teenager level), has prepared his invisibility spell and rested up and is ready to enter the encampment. He quietly makes his way to a quiet area in the centre of the camp and prepares to cast the incapacitating spell when the leader of the centaurs notices him (curse you, secondary sight) and begins to charge towards him. Gendo manages to just about finish the spell, avoideing being cut down but dropping all centaurs and collapse himself with exhaustion.

The remaining members of the expedition get to work with Wyndham selecting those that participated in the attack. Who are branded and 'operated upon'. All centaurs are stripped of their weapons which are piled up and burned. Any loot from Dragmos is collected and they are left to wake up by nightfall.
Upon awakening, about half of those crippled immediately take their own life, the others are killed by their remaining tribesmen. Another 10-15 die in the subsequent power struggle until a new leader is decided who leads his tribe back south immediately. After a day or so, there appears to be some discussion of they should turn west towards Dragmos, but it appears they have lost their appetite for raiding the city.

Wyndham declares his apprentice John a full Druid, which is considered cause for a feast (how unexpected).

Autumn and Winter
Downtime

30

The incredibly brutal punishment of the centaurs by the players was quite shocking. I figured they'd just kill a bunch of them.

10 points to those who know where i plucked Ravel from.

31

Hmmm.... speaking of brutality, Do I need to remind you of recent events...?
For all onlookers, wait until you see the next few years events and then judge for yourselves... :imp:

Planescape: Torment. I'm old enough to have played it... (And I think I still have my copy around somewhere...)

Anyway, Year 10's events when I find a few minutes today...

32

Woo, looking forward to the next instalment, although I should stop polluting the thread now :smiley:

33

Year 10 and the plot(s) start to thicken...

Spring
Downtime season, spent developing the relationship with the Minotaurs, providing agricultural assistance, etc.

Summer
The summer sees a number of different activities.
Some discussion is had with Illium and Nethos regarding the "round eared mage' or "ugly elven mage" who apparently has been travelling this world for quite some time. Nethus has little information but notes that the man in question has met Finsuran a number of times and was apparently well-travelled.
Dur Katlimu
Gendo takes the "Eye of the Phoenix" (the new designed large yacht) on a short trip to Dur Katlimu to scout out a suitable location for a hidden Manse there and investigate the 3 gates in the warehouse that were discovered at the previous visit. Apparently 2 are unlinked (or have the endpoint destroyed) while the third leads to a position ESE of Dur Katlimu to a location neither explored nor known of so far.
A brief visit is paid to the Dwarves at the Scarlett Fortress (cue a large dinner), niceties and pleasantries are exchanged and a plan is made to begin a joint enterprise between the Dwarves and Humans in locating and exploiting a suitable quarry. Gendo semi-embarrasses himself discussing Dwarven Birthing methods with the Lady of the House.
In the morning a group of 7 Dwarves are accompanying Gendo back to Dragmos to set up shop in Dragmos. One of them, Huerla, pledges her allegiance as a Warrior and, from hints made during the previous evening, appears to be related to the leading line of the Clan.

The Beast
In the meantime, Wyndham decides to follow on from his previous meeting with "The Beast" and after a discussion with Garvid about magewar history, where the Beast is clearly identified as one of the most dangerous and vicious of the Magelords, decides to find her and spends the rest of the season being inducted in the first stage of The mystery of the Secret Name. Officially he is "following up on finding the "White Bear"

Capra
Eleanor decides to pay a visit to the hag Capra the Vain to see if she can find out more about her own background. Things go well and they strike up a reasonable relationship, but Capra asks her to "bring her a man" and she will investigate Eleanor's heritage . For the purpose, she provides her with a potion that makes those who drink them easily influenced. Eleanor finds a sailor who is somewhat lacking in intelligence and convinces him to spend a night with a "very pretty friend who is very shy". The sailor is easily convinced and led to Capra's hut, where Eleanor leaves him for the night. Upon wanting to pick him up in the morning, Capra notes that she can't have him back for at least two weeks, "until his skin has grown back"....
She then uses some of Eleanor's blood to provide her with a vision of her conception between her mother and a being that looked very similar to an elf.
Eleanor decides to 'convince' Capra to release the Sailor by using her own potion, but Capra notices and seriously injures her by throwing an earthenware jug in her face. As she is about to disembowel her, Eleanor manages with quick thinking and some eloquence and acting, to convince Capra that she was jealous of her beauty and wanted the sailor for herself.... Capra reconsiders and tells her to come back in two weeks.

Lurgo
After some discussion (as usual), a small expedition (Eleanor, Gendo, Aed, Hurla, assorted Shield Grogs and crew) take another quick trip to Lurgo's Castle to query the hag about the "Round Eared One", as well as a query about Eleanor's heritage in exchange for two of the Nassian Library books.
The trip is quick, with only two brief interruptions where some ruins are spied in the "Dread Marsh" and Eleanor flies to investigate. It transpires that the marshes are covering up what appears to be the ruins of a city or similar and the place is filled with ghosts of Elves and Lizardmen. Also, two LGMOTF are discovered spying on the group at the foot of Lurgo's caslte but are quickly captured and bound. In the morning their bonds are loosened and left while the group ascends to Lurgo's castle. (It is unusual to encounter LGMOTF at night since they seem to have no form of night vision).
Eleanor's heritage is only hinted at during a brief private discussion between Eleanor and Lurgo, and Eleanor is informed that the best way to find out would be to have a child (which she would have to hand over to Lurgo).
The discussion about the human(?) mage is a little more fruitful. Apparently "The Shadow Mage" or the "Shadowy One" has been around for a few centuries, and has visited numerous civilisations across the continent. The Wood Elves (located E and NE of Dragmos, "but not too far east") know a lot more about him, and he has by now settled in the Goblin (LGMOTF) Nation further to the south.
During this she explains that Nathas and the New World are "very close together" and that there often were visitors who came over (or went both ways?). Throughout history, there were a number of smaller groups who came across and some survive to this day. She also mentions that the third gate terminated on this world and that the remaining people are "still" surviving. However, her price for revealing the remaining location would be a copy of all the Nassian books in the library. Lurgo also reveals the existence of ancient Nassian refugees that came to this world and suggests that she might be able to tell the party about the location of one of these groups. Her payment would be three books on the Shadowy mans teachings (presumably what he has been teaching the LGMotF) as well as a copy of any written material they recover from this group of Nassian refugees. The party make a note of the offer but do not accept.....yet.

The Shadowy Man
A brief discussion is held and it is decided that the "Eye" will stay close to Lurgo's castle on the river. The Away Team, in the meantime, will make its way into the Goblin nation to the SE, to locate the Shadowy Man, and, if possible, make contact. On the daily call to Dragmos, Gendo reports the situation and suggests that the scribes and remaining apprentices immediately start with the copying of the Nassian texts and Lab texts.
After a few days travel through the woods towards the SE, Eleanor spots movement during her morning recon flight and, following the movement into the deeper woods in the shape of a bear, notices indications of goblins herding trapirs through the woods, while riding on large spiders. Returning with the rest of the group and following the track for a while along, finally leads to some goblins leading them of that track towards a clearing containing the statue of a bear. It quickly becomes obvious that Eleanor's bearform is considered a god (possibly originating from the Great White Bear that Wyndham is currently investigating?). After a few attempts at language, it appears that some draconic may be understood by an older priest, although the only words he is capable speaking seem to be "I appreciate it". The group are offered trapir meat and honey while Eleanor is offered a fresh albino trapir to kill and eat. Later on during the meal an incredibly old goblin (it later turns out he is over 50), appears, carried on a sedan chair by four strong younger goblins who appears to speak draconic reasonably well. After a little discussion it is decided that he will accompany the group since he has nothing better to do and would like to see "The Master" in his lifetime. His name, in draconic, is Yo'da [groan...]. Cue party and vast amounts of spider venom brandy....
The following day, a trip towards the Master's whereabouts is begun, and after a few days, the group arrives at a 'Hall' shaped of trees and stone slabs, blocked of by a huge Wall of Thorns. inside is a maze formed of grass patterns. Following the maze it appears that it is of surprising complexity and length. Following the maze properly will, after about 8 hours, lead to a nexus after which the maze traveller will become partially removed from the level of existence he/she started on. With numerous mistakes first Gendo and later Eleanor and Yo'da make an attempt at solving the maze, quickly running into food supply problems along the way. With some magic employed, as well as some dogged determination (and some luck), Gendo manages to break through 8 levels of the ever more complicated maze to reach the final level at which he finds the "Shadowy Man" sitting on a rock in the centre of the maze in apparent deep meditation or final twilight from which he can not (or does not want to be) roused. With each level, writing becomes visible on the walls and reviewing it, it transpires that it is a (lvl 8 ) book on 'Enigmatic Wisdom'. After some review, Gendo decides to recall the path through the maze from his memory and makes his way back checking on what types of books they represent. (It later turns out that levels may have more than a single book but they need to be read in sequence.)
Eleanor is able to survive in the maze through hunting as a spider and so decided to study one of the books in detail for a season while the rest returns to Dragmos to progress the preparations to search for the first gate in a season or two:

The rest of the season is spent as downtime, notably:
Gendo enchants a single "Carpet of speedy lateral translative movement"
Wyndham: Is "still looking for the Great White Bear".
Hasty copying of all original Nassian Books commences for this and the next season.

Autumn
Downtime Season

Winter
Lurgo Expedition (Eleanor, Gendo, Aed, Festos, Geeorg, Hurla, Wyndham): After the copying of books finishes, they are rapidly transported up to Lurgo's castle, where she is interrupted torturing a number of (likely Linisfarne based) elves. She provides the group with a brief view of a map showing the current location and situation of the remaining group of humans. to the centre-east of the continent (SE of Linisfarne). She also shows that they are currently enslaved by orks and are forced to be working in a type of mine or quarry... although it is unclear what the purpose of this site is. She also offers a bit of information on how to get there 'safely', in exchange for 'something else'. Against advice, Eleanor offers her 'most precious memory' to her and is given, in exchange, the travel memories of one of the Linisfarne explorers, confirming the southern borders of the Linisfarne Empire, as well as the northern borders of the Goblin Nation. interestingly it also reveals the location of some living trees, who seem not-to-pleased with the Orks and were seen to be in a state of war with them. If this a separate nation or just a Linisfarne Borderforce needs to be ascertained...
After communicating this information Eleanor quietly retreats while the rest is discussing the situation, and takes flight in birdform to scout ahead (and forget what she has just lost). Gendo, Wyndham, Aed and Hurla (Wyndham and Latifa as mini lions) take the Carpet south, in parallel to the river towards the east while avoiding the Denedrach ('flying people') Nation south of the Ork Mountains, who are fiercely territorial. With some magical tricks they sneak into the Ork Mountains by night and find an inaccessible high spot on a mountain side with a good view of the mining pit. After a days observation, Eleanor returns and she and Wyndham sneak into the various Ork Fortresses around the region and make contact with 2 groups of humans.

Generally gleaned information is as follows:
There are approximately 6 groups of people containing between 150 and 250 people each
They are held in separate fortresses close by the mining site
They are locked overnight in a large prison cave, within which they cave reasonable free reign
There was a higher level mage with them who tried to cover their escape when the orks attached but he did not survive
The orks have apparently removed a few spellcasters from the group but no information about them is available
They have not detected the priest (Ebenezer) who leads one of the groups
The gate arrived on the world two years ago (late in year 8 PG)

While Eleanor manages to keep her arrival low key, Wyndham does not and news of his arrival spreads soon within that particular group of survivors. After some discussion, both Druids withdraw via shape changing again and report back. Discussion on possible solutions arise.....
They include mass illusions, straight on combat, etc. and are all thrown out. Once the problem is reviewed backwards, to identify a possible travel method for the number of people in question, the overall solution presents itself fairly neatly. A mass(circle) teleport spell with Arcane connections can be utilised for both, the breakout, as well as the overland transport. Unfortunately, it is a little out of the league of all present casters. With some effort, however, a plan can be devised whereas Gendo could lead the lab effort to create the lvl 40 spell in 2 seasons total, by utilising Sorel's, Ignacio's, Ira's and Wyndhham's (who has to sit on one of the balconies) support. The number of lab members is made possible by Latifa (transferring her Leadership skill bonus temporarily to Gendo.

Plans are drawn up and a number of preparations are made to use ropes for quick definitions of the circles and preparations of a group of people to clear 'landing sites' along the escape route and to collect arcane connections to those landing sites. In the meantime, Ebenezer is arranging (twice) for a set of arcane connections to each of the 14 prisoner caves to be collected and left out in the pit to be picked up by Eleanor.
Ebenezer also picks up hints of possibly another spellcaster and a possibly gifted child being held somewhere in Fortress 5, which appears to be a sort of headquarters for the Ork Wizards.

Hint: And year 11 is even more fun!!!
Xavi, here are your Orks... :slight_smile:
Sorry generally for the length of these updates, but I'm simply editing our Chronicle wiki posts for this rather than writing things from scratch... If it is too much, please feel free to complain...

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No complaints at all! Keep up the good stuff :smiley:

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GM Observation: It appears that there might be two sub-species of Orcs. The ones encountered in the mountains of the North appear to be quite savage, darker skinned and fight as warriors, individually and fiercely. The Orcs of the mountains in the South East appear to be slightly smaller, lighter skinned, and to have some form of hierarchy and discipline in their society, although to date, the PCs have only seen orcish military, never civilians, labourers or children, which presumably must exist. The Orcs of the South East also seem to have reasonable proficiency in magic (cast in heavily accented Elven, suggesting its origin) where as the Orcs of the North do not.

Although very little is known of the South Eastern Orcs, the Dwarves that the PCs have befriended know an awful lot about the Northern Orcs, especially how to kill them. In fact, frequent Dwarven pogroms might be responsible for the lesser development of the Northern Orcs.

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Get out the popcorn...
On to the events of Year 11, which sees a rather awesome subplot develop :slight_smile:
We've left our heroes in year 10 while they were planning to spring nearly 1500 people from captivity/slavery under the Orks of the Eastern mountains. Preparations are underway......

Spring and Summer
Downtime Seasons While "Flight of the Phoenix" is prepared from scratch as an unprecedented lab collaboration (Circle based mass teleport).
Aed and John guide a number of labourers in clearing some teleport sites along the travel route, collect appropriate ACs and prepare small supply caches.

Autumn
Raid on the Orks
Brennan and Ignacio decide to stay behind and ensure Dragmos is safe, given recent incidents with the centaurs. While the city wall and the palisade are up, a concerted attack would still be problematic.

The attack group is planned to split into two: An incursion/strike team (Florus, Ira, Aed, Festos, Eleanor, WyndHaygar, Gendo) and a base team (Sorel, Latifa, Geeorg, Yaanin). The strike team travels to the Ork Fortress using the ACs while the base team covers the distance using the translocation carpet. On the way back they will remove levt behind evidence, obvious ACs, etc, allowing for minimised intermediate times between jumps. John and a number of the sailors and soldiers will take some of the ships to the first holdover point.

The initial plan is to remove the captives from all fortresses to the base point, leaving Fortress 5 as the final one. After removing all captives to the first base point (about 30 km from the fortresses) where they are organised and protected by the base team, the strike team will after a brief rest, re-enter Fortress 5 from either an AC that an Ork collected from the mid levels while under Ebenezer's influence, or from an AC that Eleanor collected from the roof of the same fortress. Between each jump a brief rest of 2-10 minutes is needed to make sure Gendo is able to cast the spell properly (given there is a good chance of expending fatigue).

Everyone arrives at the first base point at the beginning of the night and the plan is set into motion a little later. Each Fortress has 2 large holding area for captives, which is emptied separately. Everything goes according to plan for the first four fortresses, but at the fifth, an ork is spotted peeking through the observation window in the entrance gate.He is quickly silenced and blinded by Gendo while Ira smashes the lock and breaks out into the corridor outside. While she dispatches the Ork she notices another who is running off and she asks [strike]Wynd[/strike]Haygar to bring him down, which he does (after some shouting). The inhabitants of the 2nd cell are quickly brought across and everyone is teleported out despite the over fatigue Gendo collects. Sorel, [strike]Wynd[/strike]Haygar and Eleanor quickly take the carpet to the outside of the fortress just emptied, to intercept any runners that might be sent between fortresses while Gendo recovers. No runners seem to be passing, though, unless they have bypassed then undetected or there are tunnels or other means of communication.

After about 2 hours rest the plan is changed. Given that the Orcs might be alerted, it is decided to free the civilians from fortress 5 next (including Ebenezer) since this is the home of the Orc magi and it would be unwise to give them more time to prepare. So, fortress 5 is hit and to everyone's surprise, there appears to be no change to the situation. The orks in the tunnel are quickly removed and the second prison is emptied and everyone brought to the base point.
Fortress 7, having been kept as the final one, is taken on and jumped into, just in time to see Orks leading the last set of captives out of the first cell. Cue mass combat and heroic battle music....

There are about 6 Orks still within the cell, being set upon by various members of the strike team, while the remaining captives scramble to the sides. The orks turn out to be surprisingly resilient, e.g. they are generally able to soak a PoF without too much trouble...(or Gendo's PoFs are a bit weedy). As such, melee tends to stretch out longer than hoped. Some members of the strike team make it out into the corridor and, calling the remaining people on the corridor back into the cell, attempt at stopping the Orks from killing the remaining captives. From one side of the corridor, an ork mage appears, attempts a fire spell on Gendo who comfortably MRs this and in return passes a blindfold onto the mage. The mage then disappears, presumably teleporting out... that side of the corridor is quickly sealed with a Wall of Thorns.
In the meantime, other members of the strike team ([strike]Wynd[/strike]Haygar, Ira and some of the Men at Arms) have made it out of the cell, and are beginning to deal (with good success) with the remaining Orks on the other arm of the corridor which the captives have been led down... Ira in the meantime is busy opening up the second cell and sending the second group of captives across into the first cell so all can be transported out in one move. Ebenezer (being very much a non-combatant) in the meantime is preparing the circle for the eventual departure spell...
Suddenly the voice of the disappeared ork mage is heard again, shouting at the guards to kill all the humans?!?! It appears his disappearance was really down to a simple PeIm invisibility spell, rather than a teleport... With some quick repositioning the mage is likely trapped between two WoTs and in the meantime, the Orks are slowly beginning to fall, thanks to some combative Mages and Paladins. Once the dust settles and all survivors are located, about 35 civilians have been lost to rampaging Orks before they could be killed, while the strike team members have only suffered minor injurues. Everyone teleports out to the base point. People are beginning to think they are giving the Orks more credit or intelligence than they deserve...?

After some recovery time, the attack team proceeds back into Fortress 5, this time on the 'middle level', for which the ork under Ebenezer's influence has provided the AC. The group arrives in a corridor which appears to have hundreds of small (Ork?) effigies hung up on chains from the ceiling, which are assumed to be ACs to some of their followers (and are , hence, destroyed). Florus follows the corridor in one direction (quietly), and arrives n a small hall where 7 ork mages are apparently in the process of casting a communal spell .
Eleanor follows it in the other direction, discovering a number of cells, which are empty, except for a cell containing a human child with a rather intense stare who seems to have expected her and what is likely the 'missing' human mage, tied up and secured appropriately, poth physically and some (PeVi?) wards.
The child is quickly freed, as is the mage and the other end of the corridor is followed, where it is discovered that the orks have noticed our arrival and have prepared for combat (fking fks!!!).

Combat ensues and turns out to be difficult, given the Orks preparation and proclivity for invisibility spells.
Notably Aed's sword is destroyed in the second combat round, but he acquires an orkish scimitar with some rather awkward runes. After some forward and backward which does not really put either side in a clear advantage, with various spells countered with spells and items, such as invisibility is partly negated by the creation of very bright light, the marionetting of Huerla by one of the orks is countered by Erebus' attempts at similar effects, etc.
In frustration, Florus decides to utilise Aeglos' (Magical elven spear that was made to combat the Orks) 'Sharp enough to split the earth' ability to drive a crack through the room, resulting in substantial loss of structural integrity of the tower... A hasty retreat down the corridor is undertaken, backed up by a large WoT. A quick examination is made of the remaining room (that apparently nobody had noticed) revealing a crude library containing 12 books on lecterns. Given the limits of the teleport, they need to be carried by individuals and due to injuries, etc. only 8 books seem to be able to carried so a quick selection of the most interesting looking ones is made, before the jump back.

In conclusion, overall, the orks have lost 1 or possibly 2 of their mages, while the strike team retreats with two men at arms on medium/heavy wounds (??) and otherwise only minor injuries ([strike]Wynd[/strike]Haygar and Aed on Lt, Huerla on Lt or Med). Given the outcome, it appears that with the proper element of surprise, a more favourable outcome would be likely acheivable.

Retreat to the Base point, a brief rest and the mass jump to Dragmos is undertaken. Cue massive party/feast and a long night, and subsequently, a Long Council session during which a number of matters are discussed:

  • After minor tests, Erebus is recognised as a full mage (although this nominally activates at winter solstice). He has a somewhat checkered past back on Nathas and Ira is highly suspicious of him. Gendo had actually been a legal consultant on his case, and clarifies that he apparently found out during his harrowing that his Watcher Covenant consistet of a bunch of necromancers. The little girl in the cell next to him was intended as a sacrifice in a dark ritual. He decided that rather than sacrifice an innocent, he'd rather kill his master and the remaining mages.
  • Discussions are held about making Ellotis the next major settlement, given the new influx of people. WyndHaygar and Ebenezer put the suggestion to the population during an open meeting
  • Discussions are held upon raising a small settlement/outpost in Dur Kattlimu to make use of the harbour and to provide a suitable halfway point for shipping supplies.
  • Some discussion about governance is raised and for the moment, the grand council is extended to include all spellcasters. Proposals are drawn up for a more formalised process
  • Early discussions are raised over a quick return to the Ork Mountains to ensure a lack of retaliation by the Orks.
  • Plans for raising an Aegis are accelerated rapidly

The rest of the Season are spent with preparations for settling Ellotis. It appears about 700 people are interested in moving, a sizeable proportion of the new arrivals, as well as a number of journeyman craftsmen and women, who see it as an opportunity to establish themselves. A number of the dwarves (both, Shatterpeak and local settlers) express an interest in taking over the old Dwarven Quarter of the city.

The move is planned and carried out in multiple stages: In the first wave, the advance party consists of Men at Arms, Casters, and a small group of craftsmen. After establishment of a presence in the city and clearing of any remaining hazards, and minor repairs, the second wave, consisting of the craftsmen, peasats and labourers arrive, and begin making the city habitable by clearing the terraced valley walls for agriculture, making furniture, and clearing out rubble from damaged zones. Fortunately, Ellotis has survived the war relatively untouched and within a few weeks, the final group of families and dependents arrives.

After initial clearing and preparations, the Spellcasters moving across are beginning to take over appropriate spaces, mainly in and around the Rock. Erebus is having a tower built by Ignacio adjacent to the Rock while Ebenezer is taking over part of the Rock itself.
During the process, some scouts discover a cave not too far from the city, that contains a metal ring fixed in the floor of the size that numerous other discovered portals have displayed. After some examination, Gendo determines that this is the inactivated end of the portal leading to Dragmos, with its other end not yet discovered. This welcome bonus does open the option of establishing a quicker travel route beyond Gendo establishing a teleport service between the sites, and puts renewed emphasis on the arrangement with Nethus to find/provide access to the locations and technology of the portals.

In the meantime, a small group of sailors and craftsmen begin outfitting part of Dur Kattlimu as an outpost. This includes taking over the harbour level to prepare warehousing and mooring spaces and to convert one of the mooring areas into a large dry dock. Population is intended to stay small for the moment, since the city does not have any significant defences or fortifications. As such, a permanently manned watchtower is built at the top end of the great stairwell, which can warn the people below in case of an approach by hostile forces. The outpost will, for the moment, retain enough seagoing vessels to ensure everyone can be evacuated directly. A winch platform/crane is constructed at the top, to facilitate bringing goods up for further transport. The outpost's main function is as a central trade/transport hub, to supply areas not linked via portals, such as the Scarlett Fortress, and to collect goods from the north west areas to transfer them to Dragmos.

Winter
Downtime Season

Notes:
It may be worth noting that creating a lvl 40 spell took 5 spellcasters and 2 seasons, which is a bit much for well established mages, 10 years out of gauntlet.... However, it is worth keeping in mind that this situation is fairly unusual. The Mages/Paladins/Priests/Druids were all pretty fresh but generally quite specialised. Unfortunately, a large number of them was then saddled with apprentices very early on (first gaming session). As a result, a lot of what woulds usually be further specialisation in most cases, had to go into teaching the apprentices or getting arts established to be able to open an apprentices' arts. As such, most of the early arriving characters have quite some breadth of skills and arts, but very little depth. IIRC the highest single art of the original cast is 15. The new arrivals are significantly more specialised since they have not had this restriction.
Overall this situation makes for rather interesting play, despite the unusual boundary conditions. for example, it is only now, that the characters have managed to establish labs much beyond the most basic states. The first Features and Foci are only now beginning to appear. Another 10 years and things may look very different, though.... :mrgreen:

[i]Next time in Scions of Nathas:
Drama, Terror and Despair
Watch as the evil Ravel comes to clam her prize
Watch the Storm hitting Dragmos
Watch one of the Apprentices go through the Gauntlet and the Harrowing

All this, and more, in the next episode of ..... Scions of Nathas[/i]

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Indeed, as Shiroboshi points out, the first few years were so dedicated to survival, exploration and apprentice care that the main characters have had little time to really spend on upping their own abilities. Amongst the original arrivals we have no talismans, one familiar and no sanctums (something new I added). They do however have an extremely large collection of powerful magical items, including some horrifically deadly weapons, not to mention a good library (although split between three languages).

It will be interesting, now that they have moved beyond the basic survival phase to see how they develop now.

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I was hoping something more from the orcs. :frowning: so far it seems that wall of Thorns ois your solve-all spell! :mrgreen: We really like that one, but we have never seen such a spell so widely used.

The new magi are PC or NPC? I guess the second (especially since they are being located in other places than your central location), but just to be sure.

Xavi

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The new Magi are PCs.
Well, one new Priest, one new Magus who is a 2nd character for a player. The new Druid from a little back is a primary PC.
Most people now have a Main character and an apprentice or so. I'm trying to convince Gribble to introduce Companion Types in the game as well... :slight_smile:

WoT has come in useful since a lot of our opponents have recently been less than mentally quick. and they came in handy for retreat actions, closing off corridors, etc. Don't forget that most combat scenes included either a few (in the last bit) or a few hundred civilians that needed to be shielded/protected...

The Orcs seem to be a bit on the slow side indeed. Very rigid actions, etc. However, they are mundane combat monsters and are very difficult to fight (one has soaked two PoFs w/o indication of injury). The mages were a bit more of an issue and it subsequently transpired, they were doing an InCo spell with something that looked like an AC, clearly trying to work out where we had moved the civilians. (That was one of the reasons we now have an Aegis over Dragmos, cast by one of the priests).

Generally, spell lists for the magi are surprisingly short. I think in the 4 years since the start there were about 3 spells actually invented and only about 6 spells learned between them all. There simply wasn't enough time to do anything else... This is changing. Haygar has just spent an entire year making two new spells for his familiar and his own lion form. There are plans for a lot more others as well, now that we don't have to worry about bare survival any more (or at least for now). I expect a lot more lab-time and item/spell work in the future...

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Our PCs have also yet not really fought much in the way of highly developed foes, its been very much primitive foes.

Things could turn ugly indeed once i start throwing competent spellcasters at them.