Campaign Chronicles

One Month after the Summer Solstice (Seventh Moon, 1000 ALB) As the group begins to gather back together, Niklas, still not feeling fully recovered from the injuries inflicted by Malekith , leans down to take a mouthful of grass.  He chews thoughtfully for a few moments before declaring that it is “Not bad”.  He starts to walk in the direction of the town when he pauses and moves closer to the nearest party member, Ra'ziir.  The ranger pokes Ra'ziir's flank sigil with his nose to see if it “activates” anything but nothing happens. Raz raises one eyebrow and asks, “Scratch and sniff?” Niklas sheepishly shrugs, “My apologies. Was just testing a theory,” before taking a bite of another mouthful of grass. The bladesinger turns in Raven's direction and concentrates on the permanent telepathic bond spell he shares with the other elf...er...horse, “Raven?”  Raven hears the thought and replies, “Still here. You good?”  The former swordsman looks around, counting horses to see i

Sometime in the late fall of '92 and early spring of '93, I ran a campaign that revolved around a group of adventurers who called themselves the Knights of Daggerford.  The group lasted through two iterations with new adventurers replacing the originals as members died or retired.  The second group of Knights battled and killed a manticore early in their career and harvested its wings.  I no longer remember what the wings were originally intended for but the party ended up fashioning a leather harness, attaching the wings to it and strapping the entire contraption to a dairy cow. They named the cow, “Sid.” From a distance, the wings looked real and were effective in frightening away superstitious goblin tribes.  Unfortunately, the cow wandered off and although a search was conducted, no sign of Sid could be found.  A sober memorial service was held and the Knights went on with their lives. Occasionally, a farmer from one of the outlying regions would report seeing a four-legged

One Month after the Summer Solstice (Seventh Moon, 1000 ALB) Cedron looks around, Well played, Loki, well played.”  He notes that he is the same blue hue of the Witching Cloak with a yellow tail and mane.  The symbol oh his hip is that of his god, Malazzarr, imposed over a musical note.  “This is quite a new experience. I've been known to 'horse' around a bit but I have never taken it this far.” He turns his attention in the direction he notes Raven's voice coming from. That horse is white with a barely perceptible blue tint and a black mane and tail.  An image of crossed swords adorn his hip.  “Call out so we can identify each other!  Has anyone seen our stuff?”  Raven paws the ground with one of his forehooves, churning up the earth beneath his foot as he looks around, taking count of those present. Niklas, a light brown horse with almost hair, shakes his head.  “Yet something else new today.”  He thinks about how he had always felt close to nature and wondered what i

NOTE: WHEN I WROTE THIS ADVENTURE, IT WAS INTENDED FOR THREE PLAYERS IN PARTICULAR WHO HAVE SINCE MORE OR LESS DROPPED OUT OF THE CAMPAIGN BUT I PUT A LOT OF EFFORT INTO THIS AND HAVE NO INTENTION OF WASTING WHAT I THINK IS A PERFECTLY SERVICABLE ADVENTURE. Day Five of the Odinsleep; (12:06 pm) After days of constant battling on the fields outside of Asgard  the party decided to travel to Loki's tower to confront the enemy in his lair.  Despite setbacks along the way , the adventurers defeated Malekith the Accursed .  As the heroes prepared to do battle with the God of Mischief, Loki slashed the air with his hand in a sweeping motion and shouted, “ BEGONE !” There was a blinding flash of light and then everything went dark. An unknowable amount of time passes.  Grotto calls out to his companions, Niklas calls out to anyone who may be in the void.  Ra'ziir imagines himself becoming one with the cosmos.  Shadow tries to make sense of what is happening.  Cedron slips his “silent c

Day Five of the Odinsleep; (12:06 pm) Loki rolls his eyes, “Oh, please.  Do you really intend to follow through on this farce?”  Loki looks in the direction of the hidden adventurers, “Come out, come out wherever you are.” Raven grits his teeth, struggling to hold his swords up and at the ready, “We can do this all day.  Surrender, recall your army, don't make us embarrass you in your own home.”  Via the telepathic bond spell he shares with Ra'ziir, he asks the bladesinger, “On three?” Ra'ziir silently responds, “On three, got it...”  The elf-emental shifts his feet, preparing to attack on Raven's signal. “One...” Kysek concentrates, willing his sword, Blackflame, to emit its field of silence, hoping it will shield him from Loki's voice long enough to cast a spell of defense.  Shadow, meanwhile, falls back a few steps, the power of the god, near to overwhelming the drow.   Drax stares in horror as the very presence of Loki assaults him.  The assassin forces himself

Day Five of the Odinsleep; (12:06 pm) From within the folds of the Witching Cloak, Cedron, Grotto, and Niklas see Loki's arrival.   Niklas looks to both priests, “Thank you both for coming to my aid, I felt like a wolf trapped in a snare, knowing that the end was near.”  He chuckles, “If that bruise looked the way it felt, I'd wager I'd have been a serious contender for an Orc beauty contest.” “I'd wager you would have won that contest, Nik.” Cedron replies.  The bard takes a deep breath, humming a soft tune that heals his body and bolsters his spirit.  “Could this be yet another god?” he wonders as he gazes upon the newcomer. Grotto shudders, “Tough fight ahead.  We better heal ourselves so we can make sure we stay alive long enough to keep other alive!”  Grotto prayers once more, calling upon Hanseath to mend his broken body once more. A smile spreads across Loki's face.  The God of Mischief laughs, “Oh, come now. Is that how you greet your betters?”  His face tu

Malekith the Accursed* CR: 25      Align: CE      Race: Svartaflar Class: Sorcerer 14/Vitki 6 Family/Clan Name: Black Bile Clan    Homeland: Svartalfheim Patron Deity: Allied (occasionally) w/ Loki and Surtur Sex: Male      Age: 1,050 (Immortal) Birthrank: 6 of 6; born Uktar 15th, 320 DR      # of Siblings: 5 brothers (all deceased) Height: 6’9”      Weight: 185 lbs.      Hair: White      Eyes: Blue Appearance: Malekith is tall and fit.  The right side of his body is white and the left side is black.  He has long, flowing white hair and dresses in red and black finery.  While in the Armor of the Wild Hunt, Malekith towers 9' tall, his eyes glow green and his head is crowned by a set of stag antlers. Str: 55 (+27)/63 (+31) in armor Fortitude: +17 (+19 in armor) Dex: 33 (+11)/31 (+10) in armor Reflex: +19 (+18 in armor) Con: 28 (+9)/32 (+11) in armor Will: +17 Int: 17 (+3)                     Initiative: +15 (+14 in armor) Wis: 17 (+3)               

Day Five of the Odinsleep; (12:06 pm) Ra'ziir glances to his left and, motioning with one hand, utters the words, “Viburnum Swam Snilloc.” Suddenly, an explosion of snow and ice erupts from a point just a few feet beyond his fingers and pelts four of the fiery hounds with snowballs.  The frozen spheres flash to steam as they hit the hellhounds' flaming skin.  The dogs yelp, more from surprise than actual injury.  The Elf-emental surges forward, trying to fight his way over to Malekith but the volume of canines between him and the svartaelf make this nigh impossible.  He settles for carving his way through the pack, beheading one of the dogs with his vorpal blade and striking another three times in rapid succession.   The ranger's entire face feels like it has caved in on one side.  Bright lights dance before his eyes.  Niklas rolls onto his stomach and feigns unconsciousness while whispering “Leichte Wunden Heilen”.  The pain abates only slightly but the ringing in his left

This scene takes place in the Elephant Tower in the City of Shadizar on the world of Hyboria.  To say that it strays from the canon tale written by Howard would be an understatement but I had recently learned about the Half-Elemental template and wanted to introduce it to the group so I made some changes. Ra’ziir enters the room. He rests the tip of his fiery sword upon the polished ivory floor and watches the suffering of the beast. The bladesinger’s brow furrows as he tries to recall his studies at the Guild of the Lion’s training hall in Evereska. Despite his training, the elf is unable to recall any outsider that precisely matches the appearance of this pitiful wreck of a creature. Its body resembles that of a Marut, an Inevitable from the Plane of Mechanus – a powerful being who seeks to collect the souls of those who try to cheat death but its head looks like it belongs on a Loxo, a race of pachyderm-headed minotaurs who live in the southern reaches of Faerûn. Malazzarr gazes upo

Day Five of the Odinsleep; (12:06 pm) Ra'ziir shakes his head and concentrates on the telepathic bond he has with Raven, “Finish off that Jotun and get up here.  I've found something special for you....”  The bladesinger focuses his magic and utters the words, “Speculum Imaginum”.  As the Elf-Emental rushes forward, seven identical images appear around him.  Malekith's eyes dart back and forth, rapidly assessing and thrusts with his gleaming spear.  The spear's point obliterates one of the illusions as Ra'ziir calls upon the crystalline heart he was gifted by Yag-Kosha at the Tower of the Elephant in Shadizar, empowering his strike as he slashes at the Svartaelf.  Malekith bends backwards at the waist to avoid the blow, his hair sweeping the floor as the obsidian blade passes by overhead but it isn't quite enough to slip the strike.  The Gift of the Blood and the Jewel surges, sending a pulse of arcane energy down Ra'ziir's arm and through his blade to

Typical Giant of Jotunheim These giants tower some 50’ tall and have pale blue skin, white or blue hair, and red eyes.  They wear furs and carry massive two-handed axes. CR: 31 Gargantuan Outsider (Cold, Quasi-deity) Barbarian 20      HD: 14d8+126 plus 20d12+180      Hp: 658 Init: +2     Spd: 130’ AC: 24 (-4 size, -1 Dex, +16 Natural, Hide Armor); t: 5; ff: 24 (never flat-footed) – DR10/epic or DR5/- - (whichever is better) Attacks: (BAB +20/Epic +5; Grap +54) ;  +37/+32/27/+22 Masterwork Gargantuan Greataxe: 6d6+25 (19-20/x3, additional +1d6 damage on Critical Hit plus Fort save DC37 or die) or +23 Rock: 3d8+17 (20/x2, 120’) SA: Rock Throwing; Mighty Rage 6/day; SQ: DR5/- -; Fast Movement; Giant Blood; Immunity to Cold; Improved Uncanny Dodge (can’t be flanked by a Rogue of less than 24th level); Low-Light Vision; Quasi-Divine traits; Rock Catching; Tireless Rage; Trap Sense +6, Uncanny Dodge; Vulnerability to Fire;  Align: CE     Saves: Fort +30    Ref +12     Will +14 (additio