Yew Near plans

Was anything planned? Did I ask this already and forget?

The Midnight Book

I've been working on those spell descriptions, from the Midnight Book. They're in ad+d format, so I'm converting as I go. There's bard spells, wizard spells and cleric spells. I'll send them out to Degolar when I'm done. So if you want to peek at the grimoire, ask him.

Kilminsk Bearfucker, Son of Bitch.

The ranger, ever perceptive, knew that something strange was going on between two of his new "friends." Something... dirty. His mind, being fully disturbed, could not accept this as any normal half-elf's would. Their actions gave him odd needs and desires -especially those of the woman. His perception of her was the worst, perhaps, and he grew jealous. He would stand quietly and watch her, ever closer, wishing that he had the parts that she did.


*Just so you all know, Gobula is absolutely nothing like Kilminsk. That boy just ain't right. Seriously, is there some kind of mental institution in the Greyhawk world? He should not be allowed near the general public.

Seriously, what does everyone want?

Personally, I'd like a space hooker. But I could make do with the Complete Warrior or something random and creative.

Leveling

Degolar gets his first 6th level spell now. He only gets one, and he can cast it twice daily. I'm looking through the list and trying to decide what single spell is most likely to be useful on a daily basis. Here are some of the options I'm considering, but I'm open to suggestions and recommendations. What does the party think?

Mass Charm Monster

Disintegrate

Chasing Perfection

Summon Monster VI

Greater Dispel Magic

Geas/Quest

Prismatic Eye

a note uncovered.

This note was found in a burnt-out house within the borders of Perrenland, in the Sepia Uplands during the travels of a wandering priest of Pelor. It was entrusted to Qaan’apar Kher, Bishop at the Shrine of Pelor at Eru-Tovar, at the mouth of the River Black. The priest Hadrian uncovered record of it and had a copy made, then the copy was sent from Eru-Tovar to Verbobonc.

581 CY – Coldeven 18. A few weeks ago, on my travels through Highfolk, I was taking my ease in the Blackslate Tavern. A young man asked to sit at my table. My old ring went cold when he sat down. A strong feeling of malice and hate almost oozed from him. He must have known my history then, for he greeted me in the way of the Cult of Tharizdun. I recognized the gestures he made but I didn’t repeat them. Not as I once would have.

The man called me by name and asked what I knew of raising a champion. I feigned ignorance, but he didn’t believe me. He was powerful then, more powerful than me at that age, when I was a Doomdreamer, and he would have been high in Tharizdun’s favor.

He seized my mind then, when I wouldn’t willingly give an answer, and I couldn’t keep him from the information. My vision swam. I remember hearing someone scream, then I woke up a while later, my face soaked in beer and sweat. I knew he had the information he needed though.

I have no idea if the one who invaded my mind is going to raise an avatar of Tharizdun, but I fear that he could collect the necessary components to do so. I was behind the creation of the last avatar, so thankfully defeated in the battle of Emridy Meadows, I realize that now, and thievillain knew somehow of my involvement.

After a time, some memory of this night returned to me. I believe that he unknowingly implanted a part of himself in my mind when he took my memories. In my nightmares I see a monstrous dragon’s head, severed, a cold body of a man, and the precious stone which we took long ago after the banishment of the dwarves from their home south of Verbobonc in the Kron Hills. True, one of their number reclaimed it, a Saltheart Lord, but the damage was done by that point. These components could be able to be used, in concert with a few others, easily obtained, to raise a new avatar of Tharizdun.

I feel that I must impart the weakness of the last avatar to give any chance of stopping a future menace. Avatars are susceptible to magic, but rarely do the weapons of hand combat affect them. This is not to say that magic will always penetrate their defenses. An avatar can weaken you with a touch and people are easily cowed by the presence of one so mighty and godlike.

Varachan, of Perrenland.

M - For Your Eyes Only

Agent Quickshade reporting from the field.

I proceeded from Falcons Crest along the Old Svalich Road to scout for potential business opportunities as assigned. Unfortunately, it appears the area's reputation has been effective in keeping it relatively cleared out. There were few travelers and almost no commerce on the road. My first night, I stopped at the Weary Horse Inn. I was preparing to pilfer at least a few pouches when a messenger from the Burgermeister of a village further down the road burst into the common room. He begged for assistance and a few of my marks volunteered to help, so I threw my lot in with them. We were warned the woods are unsafe at night and all needed a rest anyway, so we waited until the morning to depart.

We traveled all day, finally arriving at Borovia in the late afternoon. Unfortunately, it looks like the call for help was genuine and we may be too late to help--all of the residents we've encountered to this point have become brainless undead. They are easy enough to dispatch, but they may point to a greater evil in the area. At least one of my companions is a righteous crusader who will not rest until we find the answer to that question and eliminate it. I'm not sure if the others are similarly driven or are simply opportunists hoping for riches, but it looks like we're all in this for better or worse. I'll try to report with more complete information soon, and in the meantime try to have some fun with the adventure of it. All for the glory of the Caravan, of course.

(And my one attempt at finding gain within my companions' pockets just produced worthless junk, but I'll keep trying so as not to return empty-handed.)

-------------------------

(That's right, his name is 'ban. O-ban. And he's licensed to kill.)

and then what?

You guys might start thinking of what you want to happen to your characters at the campaign. Are they going to retire to a farm and raise sheep? Start their own adventurers guild? Buy an inn and retire? Sainthood? An eternal unlife in the abyss? Let me know and I'll see if I can make them live happily ever after. If, of course, they survive the next few sessions. *glares at ... (rolls a d6) ... Degolar.*

Oh, and feel free to email them to me. You don't have to post them here if you don't want to.

Anyone Make a Bardic Knowledge Check?

Too bad we don't have Degolar or another bard with us on Tiger's Ravenloft campaign. He or she might be familiar with the following song, which seems to have some similarities to our current situation.

Moribund The Burgermeister

Caught in the chaos in the market square
I don’t know what, I don’t know why, but something’s wrong down there
Their bodies twistin’ and turnin’ in a thousand ways
The eyes all rollin’ round and round into a distant gaze
Ah, look at that crowd!

Some are jumping up in the air - say “We’re drowning in a torrent of blood!”
Others going down on their knees, seen a saviour coming out of the mud
Oh Mother! It’s eating out my soul
Destroying law and order, I’m gonna lose control

What can I do to stop this plague, spread by sight alone
Just a glimpse and then a quiver, then they shiver to the bone
Ah, look at them go!

Bunderschaft, you are going daft? Better seal off the castle grounds
“This is Moribund, the Burgermeister, I’m gonna keep this monster down,
Somebody sent the subversive element; going to chase it out of down.”
No-one will tell what all this is about
But I will find out.
I will find out. I will find out.

This thing’s really outrageous, I tell you on the level
It’s really so contagious must be the work of the devil
You better go now, pick up the pipers, tell them to play
Seems the music keeps them quiet, there is no other way.
Ah, close the doors!

“We’ve tried potions and waxen dolls, but none of us could find any cures,”
Mother please, is it just a disease, that has them breaking all my laws,
Check if you can disconnect the effect and I’ll go after the cause
No-one will tell what this is all about
But I will find out
I will.

New blog!

Naaran will be chronicling our new adventures, from her own, unique, perspective.

Not for the young peoples

Ok, so I decided to randomly search for things on blogger, and I did a search for my sis, kiki . So I'm looking through the things, and I become a bit curious about one of the things that was found. Well, I had a look and found something that should not be.

Naaran Anaraan

"Oh, my dear child, you've done quite well for a halfling, but you really must learn some fashion sense. Those colors are completely unflattering for you, and we don't even want to get into your hair!" Tossing back silken silver hair, Naaran's warm violet eyes with their first faint signs of wrinkles regard you with goodwill. "Don't fear, dear, we're here to help."

E, Human Monk

"..."

His icy blue eyes stare as if reading your soul like an open book.

Oban Quickshade, Clan Defender

. . . says, "Walk softly and carry a big axe."

(Just a quick first impression of your new Halfling Rogue.)

Gobula the Fire-Evoker

Does anyone have any recommendations for which two schools of magic I should take out?

Does anyone need any long documents printed for free? I get 150 pages a week from UMKC, and I am going up there tomorrow to print out my spell list.

a sending.

My Master-

We have unearthed the holy Crook at last! Soon, our Dark Lord will be free! Our departed brethren have left us other gifts which also may prove useful. An axe has been freed of countless generations lying dormant in the earth, as well as some smaller trinkets. The rod that was lent has come in very useful in rededicating the Holy altar, and we have just recently found the entrance to the Black Cyst. I can only guess that this is where the Horn lies.

Faithfully.
Thukos, Third of the Triad.
15 Coldeven 596 CY (two days ago)

Ravenloft Party Negotiations

The last time we created a party we didn't have an arcane caster, so it seems to me a good idea to confer a bit before character creation to make sure all of our bases are covered. So far I've played a Bard/Sorcerer/Sublime Chord, a short-lived Druid, and a Wizard-Evoker, so I call dibs on a non-caster this time. I don't have anything too specific in mind yet until more of the party weighs in, but I'm thinking something roguish.

In the comments here, Jason mentioned something about an offensive-minded priest or paladin. What about everyone else?

And I have a few questions at the end of those same comments that Tiger may want to address before our character concepts get too developed. It would be good to have a bit of agreement on the alignment continuum for the sake of party unity.

friday tease.

She lay at rest for centuries in a cobweb-shrouded catacomb. At rest until a few months ago. Her pink-skinned contemporaries brought her back, at first with the blood of rodents and vermin, so that she did not regain her strength too quickly. Now, with prisoners and the occasional guard, she has nearly recaptured all of her former power.

“A favor, from her? Thukos must have lost his mind,” he says to himself. “I don’t see why he couldn’t attend to this himself. ‘More important task, Hedrack has summoned me’, ha.” he thinks to himself. The dark-skinned shaman pads his way down the stairs on callused feet, the glass beads in his ratty hair clacking together. Nervous about being indebted to such a powerful child of night, he chants softly in a long-dead language, enhancing his natural defenses with magic. As he walks down the cold stone hall, past the stone manifestation of Tharizdun, he binds together a small jade figurine of a man and a vari-colored feather with a strip of cured leather, dyed blue. His mutterings become more forceful and he makes curious gestures with his free hand, directed at the talisman he carries. He reaches the stone wall and, in a hush voice, whispers the password. Faint sigils illuminate on the stone and the door disappears, leaving behind a curved archway.

Through a stone doorway a hundred feet away, she senses something. Movement, somewhere close. Thukos hasn’t sent any captives down for far too long. The blood-hunger rises quickly in her mouth. Power, vitality. She licks her lips and her eyes gleam in the darkness. Time to feed.

Thanksgiving.

I'm not going to be able to prepare enough stuff to play both on Thanksgiving Fridayand next Saturday. So, I'm cancelling my game on Thanksgiving Friday. Sorry. Its just too much to do in too short of a span.

And, Tiger. I didn't drop off your MM today. Sorry. Let me know if you need it before Friday.

What I hate about D&D....

It's a fantasy game, set in your standard magic fantasy world. But low-level mages are so under-powered as to be absolutely fucking useless. And damage reduction is bullshit. Now relinquishing the soapbox. (tough going in Icewind Dale today)