The Stag in the Forest

The Myste-Hass Calender

Youtube Recording

https://youtu.be/n9XHOz6xT88

https://youtu.be/NAWXiDAGH4c

25/11/21 - 14/12/21 - 21/12/21

Gartok gathers Harbinger, Rasvyn, Dramos, Maolmhuire, Datura and Corym to discuss the possibility of heading north from the Tower of Dariss towards the Great Green. Maolmhuire attempts to gain some armour from the Helvettian quartermaster at the tower, Gallo.

Gartok seeks out Bern, asking for advice on heading to the the Great Green. She says to stay clear of Mother, she will say anything to get what she wants. Bern indicates that The Bear King is of fey lineage and is not the bear that appears on Gartok's path so frequently.

Harbinger places her hands on the alter of Dariss and hears Susnous communing with a multitude of voices. Alarmed, she throws Susnous away from the alter. It becomes apparent that Susnous believe she is a vessel for the gods to hear us. These voices react to Dramos, indicating that he is a godless individual. The voices say that "this is not how it is supposed to be. There should be a distance between us and them. But, this Morthel is a threat to the balance and interference is great." Fate's voice is amongst the six heard by Dramos and Susnous.

Dramos, Corym and Datura each use Susnous to commune with the Gods.

Rasvyn and Maolmhuire procure goods from the trading merchant in the caves below the Tower of Dariss. Then Maolmhuire gains a horse and cart from the Helvettians. The horse is called Terance. The Helvettian informs Maolmhuire that he is a brave boy and should be told often. But, you shouldn't work the reins to hard.

The group set off, moving towards the Helvettian fort at the mountain pass. Snow if falling unseasonably early. Arriving, they discover the Helvettian camps have been strafed by the dragon. No foot soldiers appear to have moved in, but the command tent was thoroughly burned. A number of tents had been put down and a group of humans (9 or 10) moved north.

The entrance to The Temple of Resurrection is exposed, surrounded by falling snow from the mountainside.

Rasvyn scrys on the city of Bruidor. He sees an abandoned landscape covered in snow, but there is smoke rising from far into the city.

On the southern bank of the lake beyond the northern pass, three two-headed creatures and two ogre creatures are arguing. The creatures ask the party if they are lost and advise heading back south because this way leads to danger. They talk about being hungry, but it appears they've been instructed to leave goliaths.

During the combat, Maolmhuire raises two undead, the bodies belonging to two dead Helvettians acquired at the camp that was at the northern pass. The priest of Garr had smuggled the bodies beneath straw on the cart. When Gartok and Harbinger raise issue with his loyalty to Garr, Maolmhuire promises that he intends to speak with the dead and then lay them to dead at a later date.

Dramos discovers a sack that the creatures were arguing about; inside is the corpse of a baby owlbear. Before the group can gather and discuss the encounter, a large group of owlbears descend upon them, including a gigantic winter-claw owlbear.

A blizzard sets in and it becomes apparent that the weather is unusually bad. Corym sits for an hour, whilst a bone-numbing chill exhausts Rasvyn, and creates a magical fortress dedicated to Dariss. The party gets along rest.

In the morning, Altibo communicates with Harbinger in words. He expressed dissatisfaction with frequently being forced to herd the other horses and notes an elderly man stood outside the fortress walls. This individual notes Corym's power and religion, along with questions on the other adventurers. You can call me Sulon. This man has been north and notes the permeating cold, but also the increasing heat of far north. He claims to be a travelling individual, interested in just learning and the path ahead. As Croym leaves, he says "absolute pleasure Corym. I shall remember that name." He claims to have been resting in the mountains until recently. Later, when fighting Mordon the party learns this individual was Zull, one of The Twelve Avatars, a follower of Dariss.

Speaking to Gartok, the man says he goes where he pulled and his advice would be to see Gartok's enemy, Mordon annihilated. Do not capture him. Destroy him. You must put him to the ground and then continue to beat him. Use everything you have and his body must be destroyed utterly until only his spirit remains. When spirits are separated from the body they are weakest. He continues, "Maybe I'm just trying to give you a little bit of luck". Datura notices the man is fascinated with Gartok and wants to give him a blessing. His eyes also focus on on Maolmhuire. He moves west.

Approaching Bruidor, it becomes apparent that a number of pillars have been destroyed. Also, the blizzard seemed to be worst where we rested. There is a goliath encampment on the south side, and smoke rising from within the city as well. Skirting the edge, the group notice a 60ft crater with humanoids patrolling this dip. Some of these individuals spot the group and mount up to meet the adventurers. They claim the lands are the property of Morthel. One goes to blow his horn and the party intervenes, killing both. Riding on, Altibo leads the scouts horses away and Maolmhuire covers their tracks in an attempt to loose followers.

The group pass a town with a wooden wall, smaller than Myste-Hass but clearly occupied. Moving on, they arrive at the Great Green. Just inside they see Mordon outlined in the forest.

Mordon commands Gartok to accept his role, to act as a new vessel for him. It is time to cast off the visage of the stag; it is the time of the bear. If he refuses, it will be Mordon's role to send him to the afterlife.

Gartok rages and rushes into the fight. Harbinger joins him, but Mordon seems immune to radiant damage. Unable to hurt this creature with radiant and narcotic, Maolmhuire calls to Garr who strips Mordon of his power for a brief moment. Rasvyn rips the mask from the Avatar. Corym calls upon his God and Dariss responds, sending a beam of radiant damage that does harm Mordon.

After a long, tough fight, Datura fires a bolt directly into his head, killing the body. A tornado of radiant energy bursts from the body and Corym sends a bolt of radiant light into the mist. The avatar is destroyed.

Fights begin over the mask, while Harbinger stomps around like a T-Rex.

The Lord of the Hunt seeks us out at the edge of the forest. He has sensed a disturbance, but he does not seem to recognise the presence of Mordon. He claims we are trespassing within the Great Green. He admits that Mordon has done much damage in the Green. Yet, his kind is repeatedly drawn here. The god of death and the god of war has been drawn in here. He grants the party time to rest, claiming we have done a service to the Great Green. Gartok asks for an audience with The Bear King, claiming he is a friend of Benedictor.

The Lord of the Hunt is alarmed to feel nothing from Dramos. He felt death on Maolmhuire and Datura, arcana on Rasvyn. He feels confusion from Gartok. He feels war on Corym and Harbinger, along with something else in the latter.

He allows us to rest. Before sleep, Maolmhuire asks one of the Helvettian corpses he has been transporting about how he died at the Helvettian Garrison near the Temple of Resurrection. He saw the dragon attack from the south.

Altibo and Hootie have not returned when the party awakes.

Datura sees an incorporeal version of Maolmhuire sitting on a log, talking but without sounds.