Campaign Timeline

On their way back to home base after successfully completing an escort mission, the party (adventurers from The Gilded Blade) ran into some trouble. Spirits of slain creatures plagued the forests and howled for vengeance. The party decided to investigate and soon found the source of the disturbances -- an ancient grove and its guardian leshiy, corrupted by foul magic. 

The party defeated Gogloth, the druid responsible for defiling the sacred grove, and cleansed the leshiy of its corruption. After a much needed rest, they then continued on their journey back to their local guild chapter in Ordzina to check in and, perhaps, find another assignment.

The party safely returned to the local Gilded Blade chapter in Ordzina, where a warm meal and comfortable beds awaited them. Before too long, though, their next assignment came to them. A member of the city guard pleaded for their help in investigating the disappearance of several parishioners (and guards sent to find them) in a nearby church. The party agreed to help.

In the church they found traces of the same fungal corruption which they earlier encountered in the leshiy's grove. Blood trails led to the locked door which opened into abandoned catacombs. After finding the key (with some difficulty), the party entered the crypts, where they found two parishioners surrounded by large, insect-like creatures. 

Figuring that the rest of the parishioners must have been nearby, the party ushered the two survivors to the main floor of the church and continued onward, further into the catacombs. 

After ensuring that the first two survivors that they found made it to safety, the party ventured further into the abandoned catacombs. There, they found evidence that the church above was built over the ruins of a temple dedicated to Radan. They also found evidence of a severe infestation, and soon traced it to its source. A spider the size of a bear awaited them, as were two of the guards, seemingly under the spider's thrall. 

The party defeated the spider while avoiding severe damage to the guards, who were freed from the spider's thrall with her death. The party briefly communicated with the spider's spirit, whom the learned was named Xur'xaal. Xur'xaal informed them, among other things, that a strange, spore-covered druid had killed and corrupted her... and taken her last viable egg. Before fading away, she beseeched the party to save the egg.

After searching the remainder of the catacombs, the party failed to find the other parishioners and guards. They did, however, find a portal nestled within the giant spider's lair, which they suspected the parishioners had gone through. The party opted to return to the local guild chapter to rest, knowing that they could not face what was potentially in store for them on the other side of the portal after their brutal fight with the spider.

Side Story

Another party, based out of the Gilded Blade chapter in Akzou, took up a case to help a sun elf find her missing sister. Along the way, they saved a family of nomads from fire elementals and the lava fields that they presumably created.

After some time, the party found their client's sister in caves where the the sun elves' ancestors left behind pictographs and other relics, some related to their ancestral enemy, Eldusmaal. Fire elementals had taken the sister captive, and the party narrowly managed to save her -- and themselves. They were handsomely rewarded for their efforts, but left with a sense of unease about the rising elemental activity in the area.

After resting for the night at the local Gilded Blade chapter, the party returned to the catacombs, ready to step through the mysterious portal. Unfortunately, the party was split up when the fungi surrounding the portal was destroyed, temporarily disabling it.

With some effort, the party restored the portal, and just in time to aid those who had gone ahead. Waiting on the other side was Gogloth, the druid that had corrupted the leshiy. The party defeated Gogloth (again), then set out to search for more survivors.

They did not immediately find any. They did, however, find the bodies of two parishioners next to a locked cage containing a wounded displacer beast and her cub. While they deliberated over what to do with the beast, they heard a snarl behind them...

The party fought off two displacer beasts who appeared to be suffering the same corruption as the leshiy and Gogloth. Reluctant to consign the injured mother displacer beast and her cub to the same fate, the party released the beasts, who continued to follow them through the caves.

After some careful searching and skirmishes with more corrupted beasts, the party finally found survivors. Among them were two guards (Fyodor and Gorag), three parishioners, and two drow (Triel and Belaonar). The parishioners claimed that some among them had been taken by Gogloth deeper into the caverns and had never returned. The party set off in search of them with a renewed sense of urgency. 

The party followed the ancient underground roads to the gates of an abandoned drow city. They were confronted by the restless spirits of drow guards but managed to talked their way out of a skirmish. 

Unfortunately, the other beings that awaited them were less amenable. The party fought their way through spider traps until they came upon the ruins of a temple dedicated to Radan and other drow deities.

The temple, like the church above, was taken over by fungal growths. Strange pods littered the room. The party soon found that they contained the bodies of some missing parishioners (who were corrupted beyond help), and that the largest one contained another "clone" of Gogloth. The party defeated the corrupted parishioners and the seemingly mind-controlled drow scout guarding the largest pod, which left (to their knowledge) only Gogloth to deal with...

The party woke the defeated drow scout and questioned him, first. The scout (Imryl Dhunnal) seemed disoriented and wholeheartedly believed that the had earlier encountered the party attacking his clan lands. The party restrained him, fearing him too dangerous to let free, then decided to release Gogloth from his pod. They attempted questioning him as well, but their efforts were fruitless; in his brief moment of lucidity, Gogloth's answers were cryptic. Whatever controlled him reined him back in before he could elaborate.

The party destroyed the Gogloth clone and settled in for a much needed rest. When they woke, they pressed Imryl into service as a guide in exchange for his life, as he expressed some familiarity with the ruins. 

After some time of rushing through the abandoned halls, the party arrived in a chamber where a giant deathweaver awaited them. The deathweaver attempted to take control of the party, but in the end failed to defeat them and escaped deeper into her web. As the party fled further into the ruins, Peter noticed that he was carrying a hitchhiker -- Erelva, Xur'xaal's missing daughter. After some questioning, the party allowed her to come along.

Battered from the fight with the deathweaver, the party holed up in the most defensible position that they could find for a much needed rest. During the night, Queenie noticed that Imryl was nowhere to be found. When he returned, the party questioned him; he claimed to have been scouting ahead, and the party accepted his explanation, though with some skepticism. Queenie, the most skeptical among them, attempted to discretely cast a spell that she thought would sever the link between Imryl and whatever was controlling him. It backfired spectacularly, creating a rift between them.

Despite his encounter with Queenie, Imryl continued in his duties. As the party continued closer to the portal room which would lead them back to the surface, they encountered strange, warped humanoids who attacked them with little warning. One of the creatures killed Triel with a single blow. Queenie took this opportunity to make a secret offering to Feyndor, a weakened deity with whom she had briefly communicated in the days prior, and offered Triel's body as a vessel. Feyndor readily accepted.

Unaware of what transpired, the rest of the party continued to follow Imryl to the portal room. 

The party followed Imryl into the portal room, where they were immediately greeted by a rumbling voice. It belonged to an immense alien being who, judging by their brief but heated conversation, seemed to have some familiarity with "Triel."

The false portal keeper offered the party safe passage to the surface if they gave up Triel and Erelva. Naturally, Triel didn't think too kindly of this offer, and neither did the party. A fight ensued, with half of the party distracting the portal keeper and the others attempting to guide the civilians to safety.

Imryl and Peter managed to activate one of the portals, though neither had any idea of where it might lead. On the urging of both Onyx and Triel, who attempted to distract the portal keeper, Peter led the civilians through the portal. Meanwhile, the fight continued, until the party finally felled the false portal keeper. His essence seeped back into the ground and the rest of the party rushed through the portal, in no way eager to see if the false portal keeper would return.

Once through the portal, the party found themselves standing on some type of ruins in the middle of a forested area. They decide to destroy the portal to prevent anything from following them, then settle down for a rest. "Triel," convinced that Imryl is beyond help, sets about killing him, but is talked out of it by Onyx. "Triel" takes a moment to speak to Peter in private about the curse looming over his family. In the morning, Belaonar and Triel bid the party farewell and set off to an undisclosed location with the displacer beast and her cub. 

After a much needed night of rest, the party prepared for their return back to civilization. They decided to follow the river close to their campsite towards the nearest settlement. Along the way, they encountered pallid elf scouts, who let the party know in no uncertain terms that their presence was unwelcome.

When the party attempted to cross the river to distance themselves from the Witherwoods and the pallid elf scouts, they were stopped by the resident water spirit. The party at first attempted to find loopholes or negotiate their way across, but the spirit shot down all attempts. She only agreed to let them cross if they found her friend — a dragonette named Ydhailys, who set off to warn two other adventurers of the dangers in the Witherwoods. To sweeten the pot, she offered safe passage all the way to the city of Ordzina for the party and the civilians that they were escorting.

The party reluctantly agreed, and left their civilian charges in the care of the water spirit. After several hours of fending off malevolent spirits in the Witherwoods, the party came upon the splintered remains of a wagon, which didn't bode well for the missing adventurers — or for their mission. 

Though their earlier find proved an ill omen, the party forged deeper into the Witherwoods, harried by echoes of its former inhabitants. As they sneaked through the ruins of A'va Edhil, they heard cries for help in the distance. The party traced them to their source — a lone, seriously injured pallid elf archer cornered by ghouls. 

The party lent the archer their aid and, after a brief exchange, the archer offered to return the favor. She had seen the two "archeologists" that the party was after, and had a good idea of where they were headed.

The archer — who introduced herself as Neseriel — led the party to the remains of a watchtower, where they found the two archeologists bound to an altar and surrounded by four shadowy figures. A fairy dragon was curled up, seemingly lifeless, near the altar. All that was left to do was come up with a plan of attack.

With a plan set, the party stormed the ruins of the watchtower. They were able to stop the foul ritual in time to spare their quarry, who they then bombarded with questions. The "archeologists" — a wiry tabaxi and an imposing warforged — had few answers, however; they were unable to find the sword that they had been tasked with retrieving, and seem to have lost the amulet that was entrusted to them. 

The party explored the ruins of the watchtower before settling down for a quick rest. During the night, several members were plagued by strange visions of what had transpired in the tower centuries ago. The shadowy figures were once clerics who, in a desperate bid to turn the tides of war, had attempted to raise the spirit of Zathrian using the same sword that the "archeologists" were sent to retrieve. In the visions, the ritual went horribly wrong; instead of raising the spirit of Zathrian, the clerics summoned a dark creature who went on to consume those who had brought it into the world, and perhaps brought with it the monsters and darkness which now plagued the Witherwoods. 

Onyx received another, more immediately worrisome vision. Crush, an old rival, had apparently taken the sword that the archeologists were after — and that unleashed the darkness. Her village would very likely be in danger. 

With this new knowledge, the party set off for the river with a renewed sense of urgency. 

With the two errant "archeologists" in tow, the party began making its way back to the river. Along the way, they encountered even more worrying sights — tears in the veil, from which corrupted fey-like beings sprang forth, and large winged beasts swooping down from the darkened skies. Neseriel and Imryl took the lead, though a barrier of brambles — which Neseriel recognized as a remnant of her people's defenses from the Century Wars — stopped them in their tracks. 

Beyond the barrier lay two dormant constructs who bore the insignia of the Arris house, and a feyward tree. Behind the party, however, lay greater threats. Peter, after a moment of hesitation, stepped forward and declared his presence to the constructs, who immediately fell in line as if recognizing him as one of their long-lost commanders. The party continued on their path to the river with the constructs and feyward tree to guard them, and the elves hanging far past the tree's reach.

The constructs proved their worth when corrupted fey ambushed the party. However, the elves were caught in the crossfire, and Imryl was gravely injured by the feyward tree. Peter dismissed the constructs and the tree as soon as the "archeologists'" wagon came into view. Though they were at first reluctant to carry out Peter's newest command, they eventually obeyed and wandered back into the heart of the Witherwoods. 

The "archeologists" dug through the remains of their wagon, and seemed dismayed by what they found — or rather, didn't find. The shattered remains of the amulet that had been entrusted to them lay on the forest floor, which did not bode well for their contract. Or their safety.

Defeated, they return to the river banks with the party. Imryl's condition has worsened, as has the dragonette's, who the party learned is Ydhailys. Fortunately, though, the river spirit kept her word; the civilians that the party had left in her care were safe and well-fed, and greeted the party warmly.

The party takes a much-needed rest around the warm bonfire and converses with the civilians, as well as the "archeologists" that they had just saved. In the distance, Onyx sees a worrying sight: the silhouettes of two dragons in the clouds above the mountains, tangled in mortal combat. 

During the night, shadow hounds came to steal the remains of the amulet from Tales. Queenie and Peter immediately give chase, with Onyx following shortly after. The shadow hounds failed to shake their pursuers and instead attempted to negotiate with Peter, who was poised to reclaim the amulet. 

Peter, filled with doubt, hesitated. Onyx closed the distance and intimidated the hound into relinquishing the amulet, as it was surrounded. The hound obliged and was allowed to escape without further harm. 

The party returned to the camp, and Tales woke from his slumber shortly after. In his confusion, he thought Onyx the thief. The party explained what had transpired during the night and, after some tense discussion, both parties agreed that it was best to bring the amulet to the Silver Spirit for study — and, hopefully, repair. 

Fyodor agrees to take Tales and Carver under his wing in the meantime, and the party parts ways with all but Gorag and Imryl. The river spirit agrees to transport the party to the base of the mountain range that Onyx and the Silver Spirit call home in exchange for their promise to bring Ydhailys to the Silver Spirit for healing.

As the party traveled towards the Svelagr Mountain Range, the river spirit weakened. She was forced to stop halfway through, where the barrier holding back the terrors from the Witherwoods was compromised. The party immediately set to work repairing the barrier with the hopes that doing so would allow the river spirit to focus her strength on the journey. 

While most of the party stayed behind the barrier to protect Tom, who was mending the faded glyphs, Queenie stepped past it to face the monsters. Unfortunately, it would be her last act. The cleric was quickly felled by a flock of terrible birds, and the rest of the party was unable to reach her in time to save her.

The party retrieved Queenie's body and continued the journey upriver on foot, allowing the river spirit to rest and regain her strength. Few words were exchanged that night as the mood remained grim. Neseriel, perhaps spurred into action by Queenie's death, proposed bringing Imryl to her elders for treatment. After some discussion, Imryl and the party agreed, and the two elves left the camp.

Meanwhile, the survivors planned their next steps...

An unfamiliar minotaur arrived during the night, claiming to have been sent by a friend of Queenie's to see to her burial. He introduced himself as Tyrion, a paladin set on cleansing the corruption from the Witherwoods. The party, though naturally wary, allowed him to tend to Queenie's body and sit by their campfire.

The minotaur, however, did not come alone. A revenant followed him from within the Witherwoods and taunted him. Tyrion faced the revenant alone, but soon found that he was outmatched. Thankfully, his new allies came to his side before the revenant could claim victory, and Tyrion slew the foul creature.

Tyrion offered to join the party on their quest, deeming it a worthy one, and the party accepted. They set out once more for the mountains, which now loomed oppressively over them.