Shian Sat Campaign Log

[Zyraen]

13.2 Regicide
18-May-13[/b]
Worn out from dealing with the wraiths, the Heroes took a much needed rest and after Ardon was fully restored with a single(!) heal, he seemed anxious about how his father the Emperor and his uncle Feldon might be doing. Leading the Heroes through the palace, they found 5 royal guards strewn in front of some double doors, with 4 dead and 1 unconscious, an ominous precursor to the dimly lit private chambers beyond.

Peering around a divider, the Heroes would see the bloodied paladin Feldon Shianis on one knee by the bed, his radiant sword driven through a figure on the bed, likely the Emperor. The Emperor did not seem to be alive, the bed sheets stained with blood as a trickle of bugs were crawling out of his form towards the far side of the chamber away from the Heroes. The bugs appeared to be just like those reddish black spider-like bugs that had formed the Plague Swarms (see 12.0 to 12.3). Meantime, at the head of the bed hung another large radiant sword, in mid-air, but on looking closely they would notice what looked like an armored knight with in plate with the emblem of the Shian empire, and his body seemed ghostly as if like the wraiths, and around him an aura of dim light spread about. He seemed aware of the Heroes, but did not attack yet, instead noting to those he could see telepathically "I have been waiting for you."

Seeing this bloody sight, the aggrieved Ardon prepared to attack, but not before others acted first. The Wraith Knight partly countered an attack by summoning a Voidpit, before moving over to the middle of the room and sending a burst of blinding radiant shadows about, telepathically using Power Word Kill before striking with his radiant blade that seemed to cut through space and time to slash at distant enemies. As the doors slammed shut behind the Heroes, two other smaller, shadowy wraiths appeared, using similar but necrotic wraithblades to opportunistically weaken the Heroes before drifting away to stealth in the dim light, and Feldon pulled his sword from the brother's body and charged one of the Heroes. For his efforts, he was quickly knocked unconscious by a succession of attacks, before the Heroes focused their energies on the large Wraith Knight.

As the lesser Wraiths were detected and started to get beaten down, the Wraith Knight seemed more compelled to attack Ardon, but despite a few close shaves the Heroes were able to keep the Wraith Knight occupied long enough so there was a chance for Ardon to recover. Eventually wearing away its great durability, they forced the Wraith Knight to flee by phasing through the walls of the chamber, leaving the Heroes with Ardon, the unconscious Feldon, and the body of the slain Emperor Beldon Shianis.

As they rested, they also received a message from Talon (see 11.2, 12.0) who they had previously released on certain conditions. The Assassin was honorably warning them of a "hit" being ordered on the party's Healer.

Ardon, Jit Babo has contracted Abyssal Rot Plague (stage 1)
Sylvannas, Arranis has contracted Abyssal Rot Plague (stage 2) : -2 to Fort, Reflex, Will

Characters (Players) - 43E (Even) / 74% XP 16 in 3 Sessions
Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 2.5 / ? XP 16
Varius (Jeth) : 3.5 / 5 XP 15
Arranis (Shaun) : 1 / 5 XP 15
Mal+ (Rubern) : 0.5 / 5 XP 14
Argon+ (Alex Kong) : 4.5 / 5 XP 13
AFK - Elhan* (Ian) : 0.5 / 5 XP 15
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 1.5 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy) : 1.0 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Morgan+* (Andre) : 0 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Warlock+ (Liang Bao) : 3.5 / 5 XP 12
New Char XP+ : 2.5 / 4 XP 12

+ - bonus XP due to Level Gap and/or RP bonus
* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 15: 50% more XP for those of Level 13 & 100% more XP for those of Level 12.

Reputation : 4 People / 10 Military / 6 Infamy / 2 Justice / 1 Elves

Party Treasure
4x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 belong to Sylvannas, rest belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan)

Individual Treasure
+1,000 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Arranis, Mal, Argon (No looting, but Ardon would reward generously)

[Zyraen]

13.3 Vengeance of the Betrayed
26-May-13[/b]
After a rest, Feldon Shianis came to as more Royal Guards arrived on the scene. The Heroes took him aside to interrogate him, and Feldon revealed that the slain emperor Beldon Shianis was the second son and hence not the rightful Emperor. According to Feldon, Beldon had himself confirmed this, and asked to be put out of the suffering the disease was causing to him. Feldon also seemed relieved that he was no longer in the position to judge who would be the next Emperor, willing to be executed for regicide, and said if Pelor wills it, the rightful Emperor would ascend in Beldon's place.
He seemed reluctant to reveal the Wraith Knight's identity, initially only noting it was not a normal wraith but a spirit that recalled its life, and one that did not needlessly include the innocent in its revenge. After being probed more, Feldon revealed seems the Wraith was a General who perished about 25 to 30 years ago in service of the Empire, possibly on Beldon's orders. Asking among the Royal Guards and recalling history, the Heroes guessed the Wraith Knight was one General Balthus Aventis, who was notable as the only member of the Aventis that managed to attain the General rank but perished during a mission. The time of his passing coincided with the time that Beldon became Emperor, and when Marlon Merenthis left the Military and relocated to Berklin. The Heroes decided to conceal this information from Prince Ardon, not letting him know that he might not be the rightful heir after all. Predictably, the attempt by the Royal Guard Ritualists to resurrect the Emperor failed, with no response from his soul.

Meantime, news arrived that Duke Galion Merenthis had been slain within fifteen minutes of the time the Heroes caused the Wraith Knight to flee. Investigating his death, his daughter Lirian confirmed that it was the Wraith Knight with some Wraiths in tow that defeated her and slew her father. Recovering their Sending Stone, the Heroes contacted Lord Marlon Merenthis, who confirmed their suspicion - all those years ago, he and then-Major Galion Merenthis had reported of General Balthus Aventis' successful return to the East Garrison from his rescue mission from Yuan-Ti lands, about the time when the previous Emperor had just passed away and during the mourning period where the Crown Prince Beldon was not yet Emperor. However, Galion's father relayed orders to have Yuan-Ti ambush Balthus' ship as he was sailing from the East Garrison to Azure River then up to Shian City. Marlon objected vehemently, as it was a betrayal and Balthus was his brother-in-law, but orders were to be executed. After the sorry event he and Galion returned to confront Galion's father, and was informed he was just relaying orders, presumably from the Crown, at which point Marlon decided to break off ties with the Military and the main Merenthis family, striking out on his own in Berklin.

With Feldon not being able to arbitrate, some uncertainty about who was behind the murder, and Ardon not yet officially named the Crown Prince, it seems that the dispute would be handled by the widely well-reputed impartial Magistrate Jeneva. She was previously a lady of the Merenthis family, and then wedded into the Aventis family, but at some point she left the Aventis family, breaking off ties to be a stand-alone. Some asking around revealed she was bereaved about 25-30 years ago. When the Heroes visited her, she remained predictably tight-lipped about her decision, only revealing the Premier Duke Aventis was investigating both murders and her focus was to arbitrate the right person to be the next Emperor, and that Ardon's younger brother had not yet come of age.

Uncertain that Ardon would be crowned Emperor, the Heroes contacted Xyphrenos seeking for the real Hereditary Seal to support Ardon's claim. Fortunately, the Heroes were just able to sense Scrying magic used on themselves to try and pinpoint Xyphrenos' location, but they managed to take some time to set up countermeasures by getting another ritualist to perform Masking Shroud. Xyphrenos agreed to provide the Hereditary Seal but only to the heir of Reldon and Valytha, so he would not provide it for Ardon, since that would be a breach of his duty to Emperor Reldon.
Amidst all this, they took a detour back to the palace, asking Prince Ardon about his imminent ascension, and his plans since they were unsure how he would react if they had Xyphrenos bring out another claimant to the Throne. It seemed that Ardon felt in touch with the people and the challenges the Empire faced, having served on the frontlines and witnessed sufferings of soldiers and villagers, and was ready to take the crown if need be. The Heroes stopped short of telling him the full truth that his father might not have been the rightful Emperor in the first place.

The Healer then wandered off largely separated from the rest to visit imperial uncle Celdon Shianis seeking a orb with its origins from the Shadowfell, and was told he would be given it once this whole nasty business was resolved and the true mastermind brought to justice. Returning back from the meeting with just 2 party members with him, the three of them were ambushed by a band of asassins, posing as Royal Guards, but with the Defender taking a grievious wound for the Healer and the other dazing most of the enemies, they managed to escape to safety.

Regrouping and returning back in the Shian City proper, the Heroes once again found themselves stopped by Clay Golems, Wizards and Guards from the Aventis family, reminding them quite pointedly they had an overdue request to meet the Premier, Duke Xanthus Aventis. They did not seem willing to take No for an answer.

( Abyssal Rot Plague has ended )

Characters (Players) - 44E (Even) / 84% XP 16 in 4 Sessions
Sylvannas+ (Merlvyn) : 4 / ? XP 16
Varius (Jeth) : 4.5 / 5 XP 15
Arranis (Shaun) : 2 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - Mal+ (Rubern) : 1.5 / 5 XP 14
Level Up! - Argon+ (Alex Kong) : 1.5 / 5 XP 14
Level Up! - Morgan+ (Andre) : 1 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Elhan* (Ian) : 0.5 / 5 XP 15
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 1.5 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy) : 1.0 / 5 XP 14
Level Up! / AFK - Warlock+ (Liang Bao) : 0.5 / 5 XP 13
New Char XP+ : 0.5 / 5 XP 13

+ - bonus XP due to Level Gap and/or RP bonus
* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 15: 50% more XP for those of Level 13 & 100% more XP for those of Level 12.

Reputation : 4 People / 10 Military / 6 Infamy / 2 Justice / 1 Elves

Party Treasure
4x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 belong to Sylvannas, rest belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan)

Individual Treasure
-588 Gp to everyone for Masking Shroud Ritual
-20 Gp to everyone for 2x Sending Ritual sent to Xyphrenos

Edit: Increased the "base" for Starting as it is only 0.5 from Level Up.

[Zyraen]

14.0 The Stolen Birthright
08-Jun-13[/b]
After some tense discussion, the Heroes decided to accept the Premier's invitation. The Premier, Duke Aventis, stood up to receive them, and from his questioning he sensed they were withholding some information regarding the murders he was investigating. He was already suspicious of the Heroes before they came and asked that they be placed under arrest, but their reasonable attitude led him to change his approach. The Duke then chose to leave all his men behind, personally sending the party to the exit of the estate, and that was when they provided the information surrounding the demise of the Wraith Knight Balthus Aventis and how Beldon Shianis might not have been the rightful Emperor during his time.

Duke Aventis then quietly revealed that though his cousin Balthus had perished, the mission was successful in rescuing the oldest son of the previous Emperor, who was none other than Celdon Shianis. If not for the loss of Balthus and his ship, Celdon might have arrived at Shian City before the coronation, yet by the time Celdon actually arrived back in Shian City, his younger brother Beldon had already been crowned Emperor. Robbed of his birthright and unacknowledged by the Merenthis family that brought him up, Celdon turned to Duke Aventis' father, who took pity on him and negotiated a deal with Beldon to have him be recorded and confirmed as his younger brother. Meantime, Duke Aventis' father had guessed that Balthus' demise after initial success might have been on orders by either Beldon Shianis or the previous Duke Merenthis, but there was no proof, only conjecture.
The Heroes suspected that someone must have provided Dalanar the information about Balthus and asked the Duke about this, to which he replied that only Beldon Shianis, Celdon Shianis, Duke Galion Merenthis and himself would be aware. But two of the four have already been slain, leaving only himself and Celdon alive.

The party became concerned for the safety of Lady Jeneva and paid her a visit, but she seemed fine. When pressed about the identity of the Wraith Knight Balthus Aventis, who was her husband during his life, she revealed that after the death of Duke Galion Merenthis, her husband's spirit had paid her a visit, telling her he had come to set things right, and had likely gone on to a peaceful rest. Though she did not say anything explicitly, she seemed to know what the heroes knew about Celdon, and seemed to have reported her meeting with Balthus to someone in authority. She did not seem inclined to favor Ardon as the next Emperor, and mentioned that if someone wanted her dead, she would probably be already deceased.

The Heroes then went to the palace to meet Celdon Shianis, they told him what they already knew. Celdon pointed out that his younger brother, the murdered Beldon Shianis, had treated him much better than he had expected, and that was why he was willing to put his own life on the line to protect Ardon. When the Heroes asked him about Dalanar, he was initially evasive but eventually admitted that he met Dalanar a few years ago, and shared with him some details about his life. He seemed quite certain that the Dalanar he had met was no vampire, just an Eladrin, but also said he had not met Dalanar in person for a considerable period of time.

Last of all, the Heroes dropped by to visit Ardon and told him about all they had uncovered. He did not take the truth of his father's position very well, feeling that a grave wrong had been done to Celdon, and if it was Pelor's will that he not be the next Emperor, he would be content to return to serve the Military along the borders of the kingdom. Ardon did however, understand the truth of Feldon's motivations and planned to try and get Feldon Shianis and Marlon Merenthis released.

Uncertain what to do, and utterly unable to find a trace of the vampire Dalanar, the party retired to an inn and then set up a plan to try and bait the assassins targeting the party's Healer. Hopefully by capturing them, they could find out who and where was the person who ordered the hit. The ensuing attack that was sprung was vicious and bloody, and both the Healer and the one disguised as her were almost killed a few times. Fortunately, they prevailed, though two of the assassins managed to escape.

Characters (Players) - 45E (Odd) / 6% XP 17 in 5 Sessions
Sylvannas*+ (Merlvyn) : 0.5 / ? XP 17
Varius*+ (Jeth) : 1.0 / 5 XP 16
Arranis+ (Shaun) : 3.5 / 5 XP 15
Jit Babo+ (Andy) : 3 / 5 XP 14
Austen+ (Liang Bao) : 3.5 / 5 XP 13
Zedd+ (Chien Hsiang) : 3.5 / 5 XP 13
Quinn+ (Yi Jeng) : 3.5 / 5 XP 13
AFK - Mal (Rubern) : 2 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Argon (Alex Kong) : 2 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 2 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Morgan (Andre) : 1.5 / 5 XP 14
New Char XP+ : 2.0 / 5 XP 13

+ - bonus XP due to Level Gap and/or RP bonus
* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 15: 50% more XP for those of Level 14 & 100% more XP for those of Level 13 (adjusted for Encounter)

Reputation : 4 People / 10 Military / 7 Infamy / 4 Justice / 1 Elves

Party Treasure
-1 Cure Medium Wound Potions (used on Sylvannas)
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+1,000 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Arranis, Jit Babo, Austen, Jedd, Quinn

[Zyraen]

14.1 The End of the Line
15-Jun-13[/b]
The Heroes interrogated the captured Assassins, and apart from learning there was a Gem present to drain the Healer's soul, definitive leads as to the one who ordered the hit would lie with the main Assassins' Guild. Rather than endanger the Healer needlessly, they chose not to pursue this lead, terminating the captives with extreme prejudice.

When they consulted Lord Marlon Merenthis (see 1.3, 4.0, 4.2, 10.0), he advised two paths forward : to spy on Celdon Shianis (see 13.1, 13.3, 14.0), or to locate Xyphrenos (see 9.3, 9.4) since Dalanar the vampire (see 7.4, 8.5) was interested locating the Dragonborn. The Heroes decided to meet Xyphrenos, and after using Masking Shroud to block off Scrying made against them, visited and persuaded Xyphrenos (who was actually a bronze dragon) to agree to lure Dalanar into his lair. The Heroes set up an acid pool, then left the lair but returned through the waterways back to the lowest floor. They also drank potions and prepared powers to protect against the enemies' attacks and auras, as they waited in the lowest level of the lair.

As intruders arrived, Xyphrenos' guardian, Karanar the lich (see 9.2, 9.3, 12.0), appeared bloodied from battle in the upper chamber and reported that the vampire came with a lady observer and many Wraiths, though about half of the Wraiths were destroyed by Karanar before he had to flee.

The first wave of enemies was a wave of Oblivion Wraiths. The next round a Wraithlord - likely the vessel used by Balthus Aventis (see 13.2), but without any radiant powers or blind - joined the fray, but his potent psychic aura was largely nullified by the Heroes preparations. The next round an elderly lady joined in, about 40 plus years old and resembling Magistrate Mirian Kystada (see 5.3) but garbed in purple and gold, and wearing an Amulet with an large Onyx Gem (see 10.2). Her powers resembled those of the Lady in the Gem, sending deathly waves of restraining and dazing powers and surrounded by an aura of death. In the fourth round, Dalanar himself arrived, and though his freezing attacks were partly nullified by a Hero's powers, he focused most of his efforts against Xyphrenos.

Despite overwhelming odds, the Heroes used up most of their resources and managed to defeat all of their assembled enemies, including the anti-healing Wraithlord and deadly life-draining lady. Dalanar attempted to flee in mistform, but an initial miscalculation on his part and a timely readied attack by a Hero bloodied him beore he could phase through the ceiling to the upper levels. However, at a Hero's suggestion Xyphrenos tore a large chunk of the cave ceiling open, opening the way for the Heroes to get one last chance to take out the fleeing vampire, and they eventually managed to subdue and capture Dalanar. All that was left would be to extract information from their long time nemesis, who is also the probable mastermind behind the death of Emperor Beldon Shianis.

Characters (Players) - 47E (Odd) / 51% XP 17 in 2 Sessions
Level Up! - Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 2.5 / ? XP 17
Level Up! - Varius (Jeth) : 3.0 / 5 XP 16
Level Up! - Arranis (Shaun) : 0.5 / 5 XP 16
Level Up! - Jit Babo+ (Andy) : 1 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - Argon+ (Alex Kong) : 0 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - Mal+ (Rubern) : 0 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - "Drag-Paladin"+ (Andre) : 0 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - Zedd+ (Chien Hsiang): 2.5 / 5 XP 14
Level Up! - Quinn+ (Yi Jeng): 2.5 / 5 XP 14
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 3.5 / 5 XP 14
New Char XP+ : 4.0 / 5 XP 13

+ - bonus XP due to Level Gap and/or RP bonus
* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 16: 50% more XP for those of Level 15 & 100% more XP for those of Level 14.
This Encounter counts as 2 Encounters / Sessions with double XP.

Reputation : 4 People / 10 Military / 7 Infamy / 4 Justice / 1 Elves
( Reputation effects yet to be felt / made known )

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
-172 Gp to All (10 for Sending, 162 Masking Shroud. Water Breathing courtesy of Xyphrenos.)
-800 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Arranis, Jit Babo, Argon, Mal, Drag-Pal, Quinn (Potion of Resistance)
-320 Gp to Zedd (Potion of Regeneration)
+3,800 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Arranis, Jit Babo, Argon, Mal, Drag-Pal, Quinn, Zedd (reward from Xyphrenos and loot)

[Zyraen]

15.0 New Reign and New Challenges
29-Jun-13[/b]
The Heroes had the lich Karanar trap the unconscious Dalanar in a Force Cage so he could not mistform away, while they questioned him. After the Heroes confirmed that he was indeed involved in the plot for the throne and intended to support Celdon's bid due to knowing his past claim, though his means of using the Wraith Knight was his own idea, and the Heroes debated if they should kill him. Dalanar was stoic throughout, until he learned the Lich's phylactery was in another plane, whereupon he seemed to get vexed. Karanar suggested that Dalanar be banished to another plane permanently, and can conveniently serve as his Phylactery guardian, and the Heroes decided to go with that disposal of their foe.
Meantime, the unconscious host of Kistarra's spirit stirred after being separated from the Onyx Gem, and identified herself as lady Marian Kystada, the wife of Celdon Shianis and younger sister of Mirian Kystada, magistrate of Berklin (see 5.3, 10.2). She tried to hide the fact that she was aware while Kistarra was in possession of her body, and after some grilling, acknowledged she had met Dalanar when he was still an Eladrin together with Celdon in the past. She affirmed that she was unconscious when Dalanar enacted a ritual to have Kistarra take control of her, and she asked the Heroes to bring her back to the palace so she could be reunited with her husband.

With no other outstanding matters of note, the mourning period was completed and predictably, the arbiter Jeneva announced her decision to choose Celdon Shianis as the new Emperor, backing her choice with evidence supported by Duke Aventis and records provided by others. Celdon was crowned Emperor and proved to be a gracious and thankful liege, giving thanks to his God Kadrigar, and commissioning a temple to be built in Shian City to his honor. He also at Ardon's request pardoned Feldon Shianis and Marlon Merenthis, while promoting Ardon to Major and Galion's son Darion Merenthis to Commander-General, not holding any old grudges against them.
Emperor Celdon Shianis also rewarded the Heroes richly, as thanks for banishing Dalanar who was the one behind the Wraith Knight and who had also captured his wife for his nefarious purposes. To the healer he gave the Orb, saying it had kept his hope alive, through which he came to know his god Kadrigar, and he hoped that the Orb that she desired would bless her and keep her safe also.

In the aftermath, the Heroes were visited by a mentor of their healer, an old Elven Mage called Amor`Eneth. He informed them of dark shadowy powers gathering beneath the surface, and sought them to put an end to it or at least delay it while he researched more information about what was going on. Though the Heroes were initially reluctant and suspicious, his starry means of transporting them to where they needed to be proved eye catching enough to have them use it without asking too many questions such as regarding rewards.
The Heroes found themselves underground and after traversing a cavern full of hindering spider webs, they engaged with a drider and two drow that could take on demon forms. The enemies were deadly but in the end they managed to prevail, though the defender ended the battle severely injured.

Characters (Players) - 49E (Odd) / 2% XP 18 in 4 Sessions
Level Up! - DM / Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 0.5 / ? XP 18
Level Up! - Varius (Jeth) : 1 / 4 XP 17
Arranis (Shaun) : 3.5 / 5 XP 16
Bardlord (Rubern) : 4 / 5 XP 15
Drakshar (Andre) : 4 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - Zedd+ (Chien Hsiang): 2.5 / 5 XP 15
Level Up! - Quinn+ (Yi Jeng): 2.5 / 5 XP 15
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy) : 3 / 5 XP 15
AFK - Argon (Alex Kong) : 2 / 5 XP 15
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 3.5 / 5 XP 15
New Char XP+ : 3 / 5 XP 14

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 16: This Encounter counts as 2 Encounters / Sessions with double XP.
50% more XP for those of Level 16 ; 100% more XP for those of Level 15 ; 150% more XP for those of Level 14.

Reputation : 5 People / 10 Military / 8 Infamy / 6 Justice / 2 Elves

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
Orb Artifact to Sylvannas (Quest Item Reward from Celdon Shianis, in lieu of group reward)
+5,000 Gp to Varius, Arranis, Drakshar (group reward from Celdon Shianis)
Lv 10 Item OR 5,000 Gp to Jit Babo, Bardlord, Argon, Quinn, Zedd (group reward from Celdon Shianis)
+1,600 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Arranis, Bardlord, Drakshar, Quinn, Zedd (loot from Drider)

[Zyraen]

15.1 Opening Waves
06-Jul-13[/b]
The Heroes gathered the 3 medallions, and used a Comprehend Languages Ritual to understand some writings, that read "The First shall be the Last, and the Last shall be the First" atop 3 slots for the medallions. The party arcanist placed them in the correct order using Mage Hand from a distance, causing the door to dissolve into bronze spiders and clear the way for them. Meantime, they were informed by Amor`Eneth via the medallion he gave them that the Drow ritual appears aimed at making an upcoming solar eclipse permanent, plunging the world into night, and they have to stop it.

Moving beyond the opening into a giant chamber, the Heroes were met by armed goblins and 1 kobold in tattered clothes that seemed compelled to fight them. Before they had time to rest more enemies would arrive, skeletons with bows and broadswords, followed by exploding zombies and runescribed mummies. Despite the considerable number of enemies, the Heroes cooperated and coordinated with impressive precision, even batting one unfortunate foe across the room a few times as it tried to get off a ranged attack, and dispatched all of them with alacrity. This excluded the kobold, which feigned death after getting hit once, and seeing that it did not seem to be hurting them, the Heroes decided to let it be for now.

Characters (Players) - 51E (Odd) / 53% XP 18 in 2 Sessions
DM / Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 2.5 / ? XP 18
Level Up! - Ardent (Shaun) : 1.5 / 4 XP 17
Level Up! - Hadarai (Rubern) : 3 / 5 XP 16
Level Up! - Jit Babo (Andy): 2 / 5 XP 16
Level Up! - Zedd (Chien Hsiang) : 1.5 / 5 XP 16
Level Up! - Quinn (Yi Jeng): 1.5 / 5 XP 16
Level Up! - Argon (Alex Kong) : 1 / 5 XP 16
AFK - Varius (Jeth) : 2 / 4 XP 17
AFK - Drakshar* (Andre) : 0.5 / 5 XP 16
AFK - Alex* (Alex Liang) : 0 / 5 XP 16
New Char XP+ : 0.5 / 5 XP 15

* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 17: This Encounter counts as 2 Encounters / Sessions with double XP.
50% more XP for those of Level 16 ; 100% more XP for those of Level 15 ; 150% more XP for those of Level 14.

Reputation : 5 People / 10 Military / 8 Infamy / 6 Justice / 2 Elves

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)
2 Ritual Scrolls* found on Mummies (Any 2 Rituals of no more than Lv 16)

Individual Treasure
-2 Gp to Everyone (Comprehend Language ritual component)
+2,500 Gp to DM-Sylvannas, Ardent, Hadarai, Jit Babo, Quinn, Zedd, Argon (loot from Enemies)

[Zyraen]

15.2 Four Gems for Eight Legs
13-Jul-13[/b]
Hearing some rumbling above, the Heroes moved beyond the chamber to come to one with a motif of a large Spider in the middle, and with one tunnel off the side, and the sounds of ritual chanting continued. Through the Oak Tree Medallion, Amor`Eneth warned that the eclipse would occur in about 15 minutes time, so the Heroes had that amount of time to try and stop the Drow from succeeding in their nefarious plot.

Following the tunnel, they encountered an Umber Hulk guarding a Sapphire on the Pedestal, with some teleportation magic. Unable to activate it, they slotted the gem into a slot in the Spider's Legs, and there were 8 slots altogether. This opened another tunnel, with a shadowy panther guarding another gem. Realising that they did not have enough time to take a lot of rests, the Heroes steeled themselves and opened passage after passage, and though they faced against a fearsome Purple Worm that split itself into 3 parts, followed by a venomous shadowy serpent, they did not stop to rest until they had recovered in all 4 large, precious, valuable gems - sapphire, ruby, amethyst, onyx - that were inserted into 4 of the 8 slots.

Hopefully they would have what it takes to complete collecting them all before it was too late, even as the kobold they had elected to bring along seemed increasingly more unsettled.

Characters (Players) - 53E (Odd) / 14% XP 19 in 4 Sessions
Level Up! - DM-Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 0.5 / ? XP 19
Level Up! - Varius (Jeth) : 1 / 4 XP 18
Level Up! - Hadarai (Rubern) : 2 / 4 XP 17
Level Up! - Zedd (Chien Hsiang) : 0.5 / 4 XP 17
Level Up! - Argon (Alex Kong) : 0 / 4 XP 17
Level Up! - Drakshar (Andre) : 0 / 4 XP 17
AFK - Ardent (Shaun) : 3 / 4 XP 17
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy): 4 / 5 XP 16
AFK - Quinn (Yi Jeng): 3.5 / 5 XP 16
AFK - Alex* (Alex Liang) : 2 / 5 XP 16
New Char XP+ : 3 / 5 XP 15

* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 17: This Encounter counts as 2 Encounters / Sessions with double XP.
50% more XP for those of Level 17 ; 100% more XP for those of Level 16 ; 150% more XP for those of Level 15

Reputation : 5 People / 10 Military / 8 Infamy / 6 Justice / 2 Elves

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+3,400 Gp to DM-Sylvannas, Varius, Hadarai, Zedd, Argon, Drakshar (loot from Enemies)

[Zyraen]

15.3 On The Last Leg
27-Jul-13[/b]
Next they proceeded to despatch more guardians of each gem, a Phoenix guarding a Sunstone, a starry Hydra guarding a Diamond, and a Lightning Creature guarding a Moonstone, and all were large valuable gems. The enemies seemed increasingly dangerous though, especially the Hydra. As it took damage it grew more heads and became even more dangerous, with its multiple attacks bringing down more than half the party at a time, and its poisoned bites coming close to claiming lives. If not for selfless actions by all the Heroes, they would have come to grief, but fortunately they stood fast and managed to destroy the creature.

Nonetheless, each Gem brought them all closer to the end it seems... in more ways than one. Since now the Heroes were only left with one last gem for one last leg, but with many critical resources used up and hardly time to regain any of them.

Characters (Players) - 55E (Odd) / 84% XP 19 in 2 Sessions
DM-Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 2.5 / ? XP 19
Level Up! - Zedd (Chien Hsiang) : 0.5 / 4 XP 18
Level Up! - Argon (Alex Kong) : 0 / 4 XP 18
Level Up! - Jit Babo (Andy): 0 / 4 XP 18
Level Up! - Mage (Andre) : 0 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Varius (Jeth) : 2.5 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Ardent* (Shaun) : 1 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Hadarai* (Rubern) : 0 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Quinn* (Yi Jeng): 1 / 4 XP 17
AFK - Alex* (Alex Liang) : 0 / 4 XP 17
New Char XP : 2 / 5 XP 16

* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 18: This Encounter counts as 2 Encounters / Sessions with double XP.
50% more XP for those of Level 18; 100% more XP for those of Level 17 ; 150% more XP for those of Level 16

Reputation : 5 People / 10 Military / 8 Infamy / 6 Justice / 2 Elves

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+1,500 Gp to DM-Sylvannas, Zedd, Argon, Mage, Jit Babo (loot from Enemies)

[Zyraen]

X.X Interlude Playtest - Monsters Inc.
03-Aug-13[/b]
In a distant part of the world, some undead and aberrations - Beholder, Death Knight, Mindflayer, Phantom, Roper - joined up to attack a village. They managed to knock out most of the fleeing villagers, and in their haste to capture "food" they did not prepare for the Heroes that were arriving to drive them off. Burning fire surrounded Avengers that raced to their undead targets, while the dragonborn knight led from the front and a pyromancer wreathed in deadly flames and called down pinning pillars of fire upon her enemies.
Though the Heroes appeared to stand a good chance initially, this was soon put paid as the Death Knight protected the Phantom healer, and the Mindflayer's Psionic Blast with Beholder's deadly lightning eyerays bloodied one of the Avengers, who could only watch helplessly as it was held in place by the Roper, before being taken out.
A strategic withdrawal by the Phantom caused the remaining Avenger to have to charge behind enemy lines, separated from his Dragonborn ally thanks to the blocking Roper. The burning flames of the Pyromancer did grievious harm, until the Death Knight shrugged off the flames and ignored them, and instead of falling unconscious, the Roper mustered its last energy to eat bodies of the fallen - Avenger "Flavored Souls" first - so that it would not succumb to the inferno. Eventually, all the Heroes lay dead at the feat of the ghastly creatures, and likely ended up as tasty meals.

While the monsters were recovering in their Lair, an elder Copper Dragon arrogantly took upon itself the task of eradicating the abominations. Though its initial rampage into the lair seemed fearsome, with the Roper extended its reach to grab it so it could not reach the Roper, and the Beholder using its special Freezing Ray to root it in place time and again, the dragon found itself rooted in an unfavourable spot, barely able to engage only the Death Knight. After losing focus due to the Mindflayer's psychic attacks, then being barraged by the unerring Beholder eyerays of shocking Lightning and freezing Ice, even as the Death Knight hacked away at it relentlessly while the Roper interfered with its claw attacks, the Dragon fell shortly with nary a pathetic whimper.

Characters (Players) - 55E (Odd) / 44% XP 20 in 2 Sessions
Level Up! - Roper+ (Jeth) : 0.5 / 4 XP 19
Phantom / Death Knight+ (Rubern) : 2 / 4 XP 18
Beholder / Mindflayer+ (Andy): 2 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Sylvannas* (Merlvyn) : 0 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Zedd (Chien Hsiang) : 2 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Argon+ (Alex Kong) : 2 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Mage (Andre) : 1.5 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Ardent*+ (Shaun) : 3 / 4 XP 18
AFK - Quinn* (Yi Jeng): 3.5 / 4 XP 17
AFK - Alex* (Alex Liang) : 2.5 / 4 XP 17
New Char XP : 0 / 5 XP 17

+ - gained XP from previous Playtest
* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 18: This Encounter counts as 2 Encounters / Sessions with double XP.
50% more XP for those of Level 17; 100% more XP for those of Level 16

Note: There was also a previous Playtest session, 1 session worth of XP has been awarded for that, and 0.5 to those not present. Bonus XP was awarded to the previous Playtest GM Shaun.

[Zyraen]

15.4 Mission Impossible Remix
08-Aug-13[/b]
The final guardian of the final gem turned out to be a lurking green dragon that split into clones, and after much ado the Heroes put it to rest and took its Gem, pausing for a crucial recovery, before bracing themselves and placing the final gem into the spider. This undid the Eight Trigrams that sealed the portal, and it opened to bring them to the upper chambers, and thankfully, after the portal was activated the gems dislodged themselves, accounting for the very sizeable number of precious stones.

Entering the portal, they emerged into a chamber above, where 3 drow - one matron and two mages - appeared to be guarding a ritual with a gargantuan portal in the middle of the room, along with 2 pet spiders. These must have each been a considerable figure in the Underdark, for just as the stakes were high, the odds seemed impossible, and the Heroes were further constrained and misled into attacking four red ritual crystals in the hope of disrupting the ritual. This proved a costly mistake, if not for the Fire Wall set up by the Wizard, they would surely have come to grief, but friendly fire came into play as the cunning drow slid the party's unconscious warlord towards the fire wall, where it consumed him before anyone could respond, and his burnt body was sucked away into the portal.

Despite the impossible odds, the Heroes somehow managed to carry the day, defeat the drow and destroy all the gems. However, as the ritual came to an end, the portal itself expanded, drawing them all into the dark dreary world beyond.

Characters (Players) - 59E (Odd) / 52% XP 21 in 2 Sessions
Level Up! - Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 0 / ? XP 21
Level Up! - Varius (Jeth) : 1.5 / 4 XP 20
Level Up! - Hadarai (Rubern) : 0.5 / 4 XP 20 - Slain
Level Up! - Jit Babo (Andy): 0.5 / 4 XP 20
Level Up! - Quinn (Yi Jeng): 3 / 4 XP 19
Level Up! - Alex (Alex Liang) : 2.5 / 4 XP 19
Level Up! / AFK - Ardent* (Shaun) : 3 / 4 XP 19
Level Up! / AFK - Zedd* (Chien Hsiang) : 2 / 4 XP 19
Level Up! / AFK - Argon* (Alex Kong) : 2 / 4 XP 19
Level Up! / AFK - Mage* (Andre) : 1.5 / 4 XP 19
New Char XP : 0 / 4 XP 18

* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 20: This Encounter counts as 4 Encounters / Sessions with appropriate XP.
50% / 100% / 150% more XP for those of Level 19 / 18 / 17 respectively.

Reputation : 5 People / 10 Military / 8 Infamy / 6 Justice / 2 Elves

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+8,250 Gp to DM-Sylvannas, Varius, Hadarai, Jit Babo, Quinn, Alex (loot from Enemies)
+9,000 Gp to All (Whole Party)

[Zyraen]

16.0 The Shadowfell
10-Aug-13[/b]
The Heroes came to a dreary world that seemed to be misted over, none other than the Shadowfell, where the body of their fallen companion lay. Here light sources were dimmed, vision seemed blurred in swirling shadows. They appeared to be on some plains with knee length grass, one side extending all the way towards a beach in the horizon, with something like darkened sea. In two other directions were two different ends - one a forest beyond which some obsidian-like structures were, while the other was a dustlike desert waste with some broken crags and jagged ground, leading to a castle, and from the top of it swirled what looks like a pale cyclone up into the sky over it. Those familiar with the lore of the Shadowfell expected the place to be in perpetual night, only it wasn't, with what seemed to be fine dusk towards one side, the side towards the sea and obsidian distant buildings, almost opposite in direction from the castle.

Rather than dwelling too much on the geography of the place, the Heroes quickly attended to raise their fallen, and it seemed oddly effective, with the normally 8 hour long ritual taking only 10 minutes as their companion stirred. This ritual seemed to be some anomaly however, rapidly attracting the attention of flying wraiths from on high. The Heroes sought to evade them by hurrying to the forest's edge and hiding within, and the Wraiths hovered over an open area maybe to see if their quarry would expose themselves. The Heroes seized the initiative to attack the rotwing wraiths, soulbinders, and a lurking fell wraith dragon. Though it took them a fair amount of time due to being caught in multiple Auras with debilitating effects, they eventually put paid to the undead creatures.

Carrying on through the forest with little incident, the Heroes came towards the obsidian structure, that seemed to be a 50' high ring of smooth black stone around what looked like a city of sorts. Though much of the plane seemed to absorb light, even the leaves and stone, the obsidian stone wall seemed to shine, but was dark when looked at directly.

Characters (Players) - 60E (Odd) / 75% XP 21 in 3 Sessions
Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 1 / ? XP 21
Varius (Jeth) : 2.5 / 4 XP 20
Hadarai (Rubern) : 1.5 / 4 XP 20 - (Death Penalty for 1E)
Jit Babo (Andy): 1.5 / 4 XP 20
Level Up! - Ardent (Shaun) : 0.5 / 4 XP 20
Level Up! - Quinn (Yi Jeng): 0.5 / 4 XP 20
Level Up! - Alex (Alex Liang) : 0 / 4 XP 20
Mage (Andre) : 3 / 4 XP 19
AFK - Zedd* (Chien Hsiang) : 2.5 / 4 XP 19
AFK - Argon* (Alex Kong) : 2.5 / 4 XP 19
New Char XP : 1 / 4 XP 18

* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 20: 50% / 100% / 150% more XP for those of Level 19 / 18 / 17 respectively.

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)
-5,000 Gp to Hadarai (Raise Dead Cost)

Individual Treasure
+5,250 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Hadarai, Ardent, Jit Babo, Quinn, Alex, Mage

[Zyraen]

16.1 The Ghost of Nightshadow
17-Aug-13[/b]
While travelling around the stone wall, the Heroes found a pair of doors of sable wood, with humanoid guards observing them. Seeing the Heroes seemed peaceable, they let them into the city, which they found out was called Nightshadow*, since the place used to be considerably gloomier. After a visit to the trading area, the Heroes found their way to the building where the City Council that ruled the village was, and it looked like a dark spire but had been chopped off in the middle, with the spiral stairs opening to a dais with eight segments, with seats for each. A caretaker was present who provided the Heroes more information, directing them to make an appointment to meet with the Council later that day. Alternatively, they could visit a mausoleum / musem where lay Kradgar, a Mage that made Nightshadow what it is today, whose will runs many things in the city, and whose body and ghost can be found in that place.
Entering the place, they found the interred body with the ghost of Kradgar who informed them that if they intended to leave this Domain of Dread, they would have to defeat the Darklord Urishtar, a Shadow Dragon who makes her abode in the castle with the swirling cyclone. He also mentioned that Urishtar has a vortex of souls that diverts the spirits of the dead to strengthen her power, and that she holds the last of Kradgar's Orbs, that the party's healer was seeking. In the greater scheme of things, it seems there was trouble brewing against the Raven Queen in her realm of Letherna, so once they have departed this Domain of Dread, the Heroes can continue from there to see how they might aid her.

In order to reach Urishtar's fortress, apart from wandering over the dusty desert wasteland and likely attracting the attention of the many wraiths in her service, Kradgar informed the Heroes there were some other ways. One was to visit the Oasis in the desert, where a pair of guardians contested over an Obelisk that could bring the Heroes forward. Another was to visit the ruins of Kalidnay near the coastal line, some distance from the city, where a Nightwalker might provide means of access to her fortress. The last was to brave some subterranean undead kingdom(s), that passed under the wastes and would eventually lead to the Shadow Dragon's fortress.
The Heroes decided to take the route to Kalidnay and pay the Nightwalker an unsolicited visit. They reached the ruins with relatively little incident, before they were almost predictably attacked by servants of the Nightwalker, in the form of Bodaks and Soulflames. The engagement was rather brutal with many of the Heroes falling unconscious at various points, but by bringing out their best before their foes, they managed to finish them off without any deaths.

* - For those who missed the session, more information on Nightshadow will be provided in the Information Log.

Characters (Players) - 61E (Odd) / 3% XP 22 in 0 Sessions
Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 2 / 3 XP 21
Varius* (Jeth) : 0 / 3 XP 21
Hadarai (Rubern) : 3 / 4 XP 20 - (Death Penalty for 2E)
Ardent (Shaun) : 2 / 4 XP 20
Quinn (Yi Jeng): 2 / 4 XP 20
Argon* (Alex Kong) : 0.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy): 2 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 0.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Mage* (Andre) : 0 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Zedd* (Chien Hsiang) : 3.5 / 4 XP 19
New Char XP : 1 / 4 XP 18
* - yet to level up

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 20: 50% / 100% / 150% more XP for those of Level 20 / 19 / 18 respectively.

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+5,400 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Hadarai, Ardent, Quinn, Argon

Edit: Adjusted for a typo on a character's XP. Reduced the lv 21 session requirement to be 3 instead of 4.

[Zyraen]

16.2 The Spire of Kalidnay
24-Aug-13[/b]
Venturing further into the ruins of Kalidnay, the Heroes found themselves faced with a towering spire of obsidian and ivory. Fortunately they detected it was an illusion, and managed not to fall into the pit that awaited them : it turns out the same tower was inverted into the ground as a tower-shaped pit, identical to the illusion. The heroes also stopped to decipher a sign that was part of the illusion with a ritual, that read
"Here lies the Sorcerer-King Kalid-Ma. Do not enter this place, lest your blood be on your own hands. - by order of High Templar Thakok-An"

Entering the place and scaling down the "insides" of the tower that was eight floors deep, the Heroes managed to survive a trap and tumbled down to the sixth floor to avoid some explosive fiery trail from the top. There they were confronted by some larva-like humanoid figures that seemed to be sentient psychic swarms, while dodging a persistent boulder trap, nothing too difficult for experienced adventurers like the Heroes.

As they recovered, an image of a black robed and hooded pale-skinned female spoke to them, and asked them the purpose of their trespass. The Heroes learnt the Nightwalker was once the Sorcerer-King Kalid-Ma, and the image of the lady was his High Templar Thakok-An. She offered to let them through a passage to Nightwyrm Fortress to find Urishtar, provided they helped her by entering the world of Athas and reclaiming the true body of Kalid-ma from its incarceration somewhere in the Tyr region.

The Heroes agreed, and along the way also found out Kalidnay used to be the capital of regions around Tyr, and now Tyr was the key city-state in the area ruled by a Sorcerer-King known as "Lightbringer". With knowledge from a Hero and confirmed by Thakok-An, it seems Kradgar the Ghost of Nightshadow is also known by the name of Lightbringer and somehow remains Sorcerer-King in Tyr. From Thakok-An they learnt that Lightbringer and his companions overthrew Kalid-Ma in the past, in the process reducing Kalidnay to ruins, and he eventually became the new Sorcerer-King. They also found out the current High Templar of Tyr is called Kistarra (see 5.2, 10.2, 14.1), though their knowledge of the name surprised Thakok-An. As an aside when the Heroes questioned some noticeably missing detail, Thakok-An grudgingly added it seems the form of Kalid-Ma's body is a Shadow Dragon, also called the "Night Dragon", though Thakok-An assured them it would be amenable to following them back to the ruins of Kalidnay. To assist with it, she provided them an Orb that would let them communicate with her while in Athas, and also eventually let her communicate with the body of her Master.

Characters (Players) - 62E (Even) / 34% XP 22 in 1 Session
Level Up! - Varius** (Jeth) : 1.5 / 3 XP 21
Level Up! - Hadarai (Rubern) : 0.5 / 3 XP 21 - (Death Penalty for 3E)
Ardent (Shaun) : 3.5 / 4 XP 20
Quinn (Yi Jeng): 3.5 / 4 XP 20
Level Up! - Argon** (Alex Kong) : 2 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Sylvannas* (Merlvyn) : 0 / 3 XP 22
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy): 3 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 1.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Mage* (Andre) : 1 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Zedd* (Chien Hsiang) : 1 / 4 XP 20
New Char XP : 2.5 / 4 XP 18

* - yet to level up
** - they played themselves 1 level higher this session, hence the next Encounter they are treated as 1 level lower.

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 21: 50% / 100% more XP for those of Level 19 / 18 respectively.
Everyone (including AFK) gets 0.5 more XP for bypassing an Encounter.

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+6,750 Gp to Varius, Hadarai, Ardent, Quinn, Argon

[Zyraen]

17.0 The Dark Sun
31-Aug-13[/b]
After the Heroes passed through the portal to Athas, they felt their consciousness separating from their bodies, and they found themselves inhabiting undead wight bodies in rags. They clawed their way out of the tomb and found themselves in the ruins of Kalidnay, with non-hostile undead wandering the ruins, and a black sun beating down hotly upon them. They learnt from the Orb that their consciousness inhabited this body through mental will, and they had to use defiling energy to manifest their items and powers in this realm, either by draining themselves, their allies, or those around them. Common sense told them that with their now-unconscious bodies remaining behind in the care of Thakok-An, and they should be careful not to lightly renege their mission to locate and free the Night Dragon.

After examining with interest a section of the desert where the sand seemed more separate from each other to make a watery substance, and talking with a Soulflame who was once a Templar of Kalidnay, the Heroes set out across the desert, in the direction of the nearest city-state of Tyr, with their undead bodies experiencing little fatigue. They encountered two battling bands, a merchant caravan being attacked by giant ants rode by humanoid six-armed insectoids (later identifying themselves as Thri-kreen), and effortlessly took out both sides of 10 humanoids in all, though they tried to flee. They did not kill any of those defeated, and used the merchant caravan to travel towards the city-state of Tyr, and sneaked into the city successfully, while robed and gloved to conceal their undead nature. The Heroes sought information of magical items that might provide hints as to where the Night Dragon was interred, and found out that the High Templar Kistarra was away in Draj, although the Sorcerer-King Kradgar of Tyr was present in the city.

From there, they decided to strike up conversation with two Tyrian Templars, pretending to be fellow servants of Kradgar. The Templars offered to speak to them privately, though one of the Heroes impressed on them that he was once a fellow Templar, the remaining 4 found themselves separated by force-cages, each in 4 separate "cells" where the force-cages acted as one-way walls. After some questioning where the Templars accepted the idea of the Heroes being undead and offered to contact Kradgar to verify if their story were true. As they were about to leave the Forcecage cells the Heroes sprung an attack, although each of them were separated individually, and their enemies were shortly joined by an obsidian bone golem. With the Heroes surviving the blows from the Templars, one Hero successfully pickpocketing a crystal focus to escape his cell, and the rest working together to destroy the obsidian golem and successfully trapped 2 surviving Templars in the cells. The two survivors soon realized their bad situation, and while busy trying to lower the Forcecage they were trapped in, they offered general information about Tyr amidst trying to pry information about these strangely powerful yet oddly ignorant undead, albeit unsuccessfully.

Characters (Players) - 63E (Odd) / 72% XP 22 in 2 Sessions
Sylvannas* (Merlvyn) : 1 / 3 XP 22
Varius (Jeth) : 2.5 / 3 XP 21
Hadarai (Rubern) : 1.5 / 3 XP 21 - (Death Penalty for 4E)
Quinn* (Yi Jeng): 1.0 / 3 XP 21
Alex (Alex Liang) : 3 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Ardent* (Shaun) : 0 / 3 XP 21
AFK - Jit Babo (Andy): 3.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Argon** (Alex Kong) : 2.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Mage* (Andre) : 1.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Zedd* (Chien Hsiang) : 1.5 / 4 XP 20
New Char XP : 3.5 / 4 XP 18

* - yet to level up, ie treated as one level lower than your XP
** - played 1 level higher in the past, hence the next Encounter treated as 1 level lower.

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 21: 50% / 100% more XP for those of Level 20 / 19 respectively.

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+7,000 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Hadarai, Quinn, Alex

[Zyraen]

17.1 A Wild World
07-Sep-13[/b]
Sparing the Templars and getting them to contact their High Templar Kistarra, the Heroes negotiated with her with remarkable success. Kistarra provided them two items to ensure that Kalid-Ma could be neutralized after being restored (see Information Log) and provided directions to an area in the desert. In return, the Heroes agreed to spare those servants of hers that might oppose them.
Travelling into the deserts of Athas, the Heroes found themselves set upon by two huge beasts. One was a ray-like creature that swooped from the air and another shark-like creature that burrowed under the ground, but eventually both fell to the Heroes and they continued on their way.

Characters (Players) - 64E (Even) / 95% XP 22 in 3 Sessions
Level Up! - Sylvannas (Merlvyn) : 2 / 3 XP 22
Level Up! - Varius (Jeth) : 0.5 / 3 XP 22
Hadarai+ (Rubern) : 3 / 3 XP 21 - (Death Penalty for 5E)
Level Up! - Quinn+ (Yi Jeng): 2.5 / 3 XP 21
Level Up! - DM-Jit Babo (Andy): 0.5 / 3 XP 21
AFK - Ardent* (Shaun) : 0.5 / 3 XP 21
AFK - Alex (Alex Liang) : 3.5 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Argon** (Alex Kong) : 3 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Mage* (Andre) : 2 / 4 XP 20
AFK - Zedd* (Chien Hsiang) : 2 / 4 XP 20
New Char XP : 0.5 / 4 XP 19

* - yet to level up, ie treated as one level lower than your XP
** - played 1 level higher in the past, hence the next Encounter treated as 1 level lower.
+ - retroactive half session XP for out-of-table RP. awarded on 13 Oct.

Note : The Party that has gone through 4E / 6E / 8E (Encounters) have extra 20% / 40% / 60% XP. This is reset to 0 on Extended Rest or 2 consecutive Short Rests, and is used to measure the XP awarded to the Benchmark Character.
Party Level 21: 50% / 100% more XP for those of Level 19 / 18 respectively.

Party Treasure
3x Cure Medium Wound Potions (held by Sylvannas.
1 each belong respectively to Jit Babo, Arranis, Elhan?)

Individual Treasure
+6,250 Gp to Sylvannas, Varius, Hadarai, Quinn, Jit Babo