Tuesday, November 21, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 75 - Time Ghouls When You're Fly-People

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey...

Session 75 - 16th of November, 1397???

This week's adventurers:

Mayfly (Magician 5)

Mechtilde (Fighter 4)

Ulf (Magician 4)

Verinka (Changeling 3)

Liminal Space (Changeling 3)

Krupe (Cleric 2)

Poppy (Fighter 1)

Voorhis (Cleric 1)

Hirelings: Niklaus (Fighter 1), Helusch (Magician 1)

A New Nightwick?

Last week, the party explored level four of Nightwick Abbey for the first time. Tired from our delve, we return directly to our homes for rest and do not notice that the world has changed around us.

In the morning, however, we notice that the guards now sport a badge with a white hand on a red field and that they have a more "sinister aspect" to them.

In the village, attached to the building that serves as the local church, is a large cubic steel shrine. We further find out that Lord Eckhard, Lord of Nightwick, has been dead for five years and Sir Albrecht rules in his place.

The final blow to our sanity is when we discover that it is currently the year 1397, not 1392 - we have apparently lost 5 years in the abbey. However, the villagers who we are familiar with have not noticed our disappearance - to them, we departed yesterday to the abbey and returned that night as usual. No one else notices that something is amiss.

Tuesday, November 7, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 74 - The First Delve in Level 4

Previously, in the Dark Country...

Session 74 - 2nd of November, 1392

This week's adventurers:

Blossom (Rogue 5)

Mayfly (Magician 4)

Mechtilde (Fighter 4)

Ulf (Magician 4)

Verinka (Changeling 3)

Liminal Space (Changeling 3)

Krupe (Cleric 1)

Lemony Spice (Changeling 1)

Hirelings: Niklaus (Fighter 1), Helusch (Magician 1)

Downtime in the Village

Ulf has spent the past two weeks scribing a scroll of Continual Darkness. Liminal Space searches for rumors of magic items of fey origin and discovers a record of a Staff of Dispelling used by a demon during the Siege of Nightwick.

Two new hirelings offer up their services to our party. Niklaus is a Man-at-arms from the Realm with a hook for a hand, and Helusch is a Bogdani magician who offers her services as an apprentice, however she only knows the spell Shield. Ulf hires both of them in his service in exchange for a half share of treasure and xp each.

Down to Level 4

This week, after having done battle to the south last week, we decide to return to the newly-opened level 4 of Nightwick Abbey. We plot a route through level three, entering by the graveyard, and make it to the stairs without issue.

We descend down the spiral staircase and come out upon level 4. We are standing on a 30' x 30' landing. A baptismal fountain faces us, filled with foul black water, on the western wall. Hallways branch off to the north and south and there is a door to the west.

Friday, October 20, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 72 - LEVEL 4

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey...

Session 72 - 19th of Shocktober, 1392

This week's adventurers:

Blossom (Rogue 5)

Mayfly (Magician 4)

Mechtilde (Fighter 4)

Yevegniy the Coward (Cleric 4)

Verinka (Changeling 3)

Ulf (Magician 3)

Cherwe (Cleric 3)

Liminal Space (Changeling 3)

Krupe (Cleric 1)

Bluegum Lemony Spice (Changeling 1)

Downtime in the Village

During the two weeks of downtime we had, Blossom decides to search for rumors about the bandits to the south. She discovers that they likely have informants within Nightwick village.

Liminal Space researches Bloatus and ways to kill it. He finds an account from the Siege of Nightwick where a creature called the Piteous Worm is mentioned in conjunction to a man named "Balodis" who can produce a terrible heat that melts any around him.

Verinka recovers the magical sword "Slasher," that we "acquired" from the Great Goblin and had be lost when its previous wielder left the party.

The Changeling formerly known as Bluegum has become star struck by Liminal Space and has changed her name to Lemony Spice in honor her hero.

Liminal Space spends the week gourmandizing and gets terrible indigestion - he will have to rest every 3 turns down in the dungeon to "spew out of both ends."

Tuesday, October 10, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 71 - The Metaphysics of Phantasmal Force

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey...

Session 71 - 5th of Shocktober, 1392

This week's adventurers:

Mayfly (Magician 4)

Mechtilde (Fighter 4)

Verinka (Changeling 3)

Ulf (Magician 3) 

Liminal Space (Changeling 3)

Bluegum (Changeling 1)

Hirelings: Gutteral Noises, Henr, Laur, Assman

This session was such a mess that it took two write-ups to cover. Read more about it at I Cast Light!

Downtime in Lychgate

Ulf spends the week searching for rumors about the Hund Prest and learns two things about him. First, during the night he rides across the bishopric, attended by his "hounds," as we learned last week, but by day sleeps in his old lodge in the middle of the Little Heath and second, many have slain him before but he always reappears the next year. A weapon "of particularly supernal puissant holiness" might be able to banish him to the Pit forever. We suspect the the Shard of God, the holy weapon currently held by Blossom, might do the trick.

Mayfly and Liminal Space both go carousing - Mayfly enjoys a night on the down drinking with the Corbies, but Liminal is poisoned by the Brotherhood (of Thieves and Assassins) and starts the session down 5hp.

Several potential hirelings offer up their services to us in Lychgate and we hire two of them.

A woodsmen named Henr offers his services for 10sp per month plus 10sp danger pay if combat should occur on a delve. Ulf hires him.

Laur, a crossbowman recently of Badder's Company who had a falling out with said group, offers up his services for 10sp a month and 10sp danger pay. Liminal hires him.

Into the Abbey

We uneventfully return to Nightwick Village with the Corbies in tow and decide to return to the Gardens of level 2 to continue exploring there. Delving down into the abbey, we quickly pass through level 1 and reach level 2 without incident.

Tuesday, October 3, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 70 - Solving Problems With the Power of Friendship and Money

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey...

Session 70 - 28th of September, 1392

This week's adventurers:

Mayfly (Magician 4)

Cherwe (Cleric 4)

Yevegniy the Coward (Cleric 4)

Verinka (Changeling 3)

Ulf (Magician 3) 

Liminal Space (Changeling 3)

Krupe (Cleric 1)

Bluegum (Changeling 1)

Hirelings: Gutteral Noises, Ditl (Cleric 2)

Downtime in the Village

Liminal and Blossom have spent the past couple of weeks in search of a cure for Mechtilde. Blackleg to the south holds potential, as do rumors of a saint in the forest to the southeast, but as far as we know, the rebels who bested Lord Eckhard in battle still reside there. We decide instead to go to Lychgate to petition the Bishop for healing.

Hearing of our journey, Lord Eckhard pays the party 100sp to deliver a letter from him to the bishop, sealed with his was seal to prevent prying eyes.

Verinka, Krupe, and Bluegum all go carousing during the week. Verinka winds up hungover, Krupe offends the local church, and Bluegum loses all of her money and barely survives a poisoning attempt.

On the Road to Lychgate

Fall has arrived in the world of Nightwick, the air is damp as we set out at dawn to go north to Lychgate, carrying Mechtilde along with us.

Sunday, September 17, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 69 - A Not Nice a Day for Mechtilde

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey...

Session 69 - 14th of September, 1392

This week's adventurers:

Blossom (Rogue 5)

Mayfly (Magician 4)

Mechtilde (Fighter 4)

Cherwe (Cleric 4)

Ulf (Magician 3) 

Gerung (Magician 3) LIMINAL SPACE!!! (Changeling 3)

Krupe (Cleric 1)

Bluegum (Changeling 1)

Hirelings: Assman, Gutteral Noises

Downtime in the Village

Lord Eckhard, Lord of Nightwick, has returned from his work putting down the peasant rebellion in the south. The battle apparently went poorly, as less than half of his forces returned home with him. We find out in the Medusa's Head, the local tavern, that the rebels are under the leadership of Yim Yimsley and led Lord Eckhard and his troops into a trap in the Great Swamp.

Fortunately, it seems like the rebels have not followed the army back to Nightwick to besiege it.

Unfortunately, strange events have come to Nightwick. Some members of the militia and other notables of Nightwick, all of Realmish descent have going missing. Dog-like barking has been heard off in the distance in connection with the disappearances. The Bogdani villagers have started hanging garlic and wolfsbane on their doors. Ulf follows their lead and spends the week buying up the remaining garlic and wolfsbane in the village, hanging it up outside their house.

Mayfly investigates the disappearances and discovers that everyone who disappeared has ancestors in the region going back to the days of the Sword Brothers and were likely members of the order. 

Bluegum buys more armor with her first haul of treasure and Gerung returns to the Bogdani sewing bee late at night with a sackful of coin. An agreement is made and, a few days later, Liminal Space strolls out of the Fog-Bound Forest, reincarnated by Father Winter! As a side effect of the spell, his skin now has the appearance and texture of a Hummel figurine.

Liminal is back, and better than ever!

Mechtilde researches the geometry of Nightwick Abbey, in search of a way to retrieve the lost treasure from last week. She learns two things about the abbey, sending for a book from Lychgate with writings on the matter. First, the abbey "makes space" in an infinite way and, second, it can invent rooms and the "history" of the room is seemingly back written.

Down into the Abbey

For this auspicious session, we decide to return to the realm of the Manimals (one of the levels 2) and mess around down there.

We make it to the entrance landing of the floor uneventfully and are faced with the familiar doors north, east, and south.

Zombies?

We debate opening the door north and just fireballing the zombies behind it, but after Blossom fails to open the door we immediately abandon the plan. The door vibrates in its archway and makes a noise halfway between a scream and a laugh.

This weirds us out so much that we decide to go south, to an area we've never been in before.

Sunday, September 10, 2023

Nightwick Abbey - Session 68 - Devilman Diplomacy

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey...


Session 68 - 7th of September, 1392

This week's adventurers:

Blossom (Rogue 5)

Mayfly (Magician 4)

Mechtilde (Fighter 4)

Yevegniy the Coward (Cleric 4)

Cherwe (Cleric 4)

Verinka (Changeling 3)

Ulf (Magician 3) 

Gerung (Magician 3)

Krupe (Cleric 1)

Bluegum (Changeling 1)

Downtime in the Village

Gerung returns to the sewing bee from two weeks ago, and inquires about reincarnation services for his recent master, Liminal Space. They claim they can perform such magic, but require 2,000sp to do so. The magician is short on cash at the moment, and so starts the Liminal Reincarnation Fund in the village to raise the money.

Ulf spent the past two weeks learning the spell Phantasmal Forces from the spell book he and Gerung received.

A new player graces our group, prepared to die horribly in Nightwick Abbey! Bluegum the Changeling arrives in the village and quickly joins the party, interested in retrieving the treasure hidden beneath the earth.

We previously "rescued" three cultists from the abbey as well. St. Samson, who we previously cured of being stone, has stuck around in our house and has been lecturing the cultists, admonishing them to return to the Church of Law.

Assman, another former cultist who we took out of the abbey, gives us some information about the Bleeding Baroness and her cult, which he was once a part of. He tells us three bits of information:

  • The Bleeding Baroness is called the Lady by her cult as she is perversely venerated as the founder of the Church of Law within her cult. Assman is also very upfront in telling us that "it's kind of a sex thing."
  • She is served by Berserkers, who we've previously fought, that gain their power by drinking the Baroness's blood.
  • The Bleeding Baroness is incorporeal - she is a type of ghost, though apparently her blood is corporeal enough to drink??? Assman can't explain this part, he was fairly low on the cult hierarchy.

Down Into the Abbey

It's the 7th day of the 7th month and we decide to celebrate such an auspicious day by returning to the gardens on level 2 to fight the Manimals again.

Nightwick Abbey - Session 75 - Time Ghouls When You're Fly-People

Previously, in Nightwick Abbey... Session 75 - 16th of November, 1397??? This week's adventurers: Mayfly (Magician 5) Mechtilde (Fighter...