The Fifth Eclipse - Session 25: Unwilding the Hunt

Party: Claudia De La Quinne, Vholanthus Sumquaes, Daisy Dandeigh Deveraux, The Captain, Wenceslas

As the group searches through the Fountain Room, near the remains of the creature known as Fand, they discover a pile of runes and occult script that links into the avian plague that had beset Wenceslas. Theories are created as to how the corruption of the place was affecting the inhabitants and what the party could or should do to stop it.
Vholanthus and Wenceslas find traces of a Dragon Line (an ancient leyline said to come about when a dragon dies) in the foundation of this Elfhame and see that it is water-aligned, the fountain acting as a capstone on a fount of power so great, it hampers the Dark and forces the world to remain stable around it.
Two powerful magical items (a crystal spear and a fighting cloak) are found by Claudia and the captain while the research goes on.
The trophy hunter in Daisy gets the upper hand and parts of the fallen foe's insectile exoskeleton are scavenged until... the sounding of a horn breaks the silence.
The stained glass starts cracking as the illusion of grandeur is dispelled and shattered before the eyes of the party.
Decay overtakes the massive structure of the Fountain Room.

Red light glows where the multi-hued windows once were.

A Wild Hunt rides at the behest of Tamas Lin, seeking to end those that slew his caretaker.

The party, jolted into action, dashes away to safety with Wenceslas in the lead until the sorcerous elf disappears.
Shocked at his absence, the group turns back while unbeknownst to them, Wenceslas enters direct communication with the Shadow Queen again and deposited in front of the Bull Aaxte. Wenceslas tries to reason with the fae animal but to no avail as it pushes past him into the narrow confines of the labyrinth.
The party heads into danger and confronts the Wild Hunt head on, Tamas Lin riding his Dark-spawned steed into the fray with his knights by his side.

Aaxte catches up a moment later and the party is captured in a pincer movement between a vengeance-crazed bull and a vengeance-crazed runelord of old. Battle ensues, where each member of the party displays amazing heroics, from the Captain saving his allies from harm where he can to the powerful forms of Vholanthus holding off the mad Bull. From Claudia giving an accounting both of her own and her God's strengths to Wenceslas blasting sheer power through the Bull (and Emiel loving the attention it is getting), leading to its eventual demise, while Daisy winds up taking the Crystal Skull off of the body of Tamas Lin with her umbrella-blade after the elf-lord is so damaged by the heroes that the ruse disguising himself with noble mien is discarded and the truth of his corruption came plain to see.  

Then, the rush to escape the collapsing elfhame is on but as the party darts into the final dark passage, the ominous sound of wings echoes all around them.

The Fifth Eclipse - Session 24: Fae di(e)plomacy

Party: Claudia De La Quinne, Vholanthus Sumquaes, Daisy Dandeigh Deveraux, The Captain, Wenceslas

The group explores their current situation, as they find themselves at the entrance of an Elfhame labyrinth. Behind them, salt-formed structures seal off the arrival cave, with a lingering hint of proximity to the coast present in the sand. In front of them looms a dark tunnel. Wenceslas pulls out a torch and the group sets off into the unknown.
The moment darkness surrounds him, Wenceslas hears a voice warning him of the madness of Tamas Lin, a being the party has not encountered yet, telling him the mad lord of this Elfhame would ask them to destroy that which could save them. Bright green eyes fade into the black and the others note that Wenceslas comes back to the waking world. He shares the information and the group worriedly advances down to a beautifully decorated gothic room, where the light comes in through stain-glass windows depicting scenes of elves engaged in hunting down all sorts of prey. At the far end of the room, a group of people manifests from a dark pool of liquid. They attack the party, but are slain and revealed to be a pair of People Mimics. 

They move through another dark corridor into a large room containing a massive blazing fire, the Hearthroom, where a pair of knights welcomes them as guests of Tamas Lin. Having heard the name, the party plays along and no conflict takes place, though upon leaving everyone in the party sees the fire is a burning humanoid figure.
The location where Tamas Lin holds court is an elaborate stone basilica, which echoes the motives of earlier rooms, but intensifies it all. Seated on a crude throne that radiates power and flanked by six knights, Tamas Lin takes the form of a striking elven knight-king. Besides his throne sits, in a clear crystal box, the skull of the Necromancer.

Various members of the party note that while the throne gives off powerful life-aligned energy, Tamas Lin himself is little better than a walking corpse, the corruption rotting him through to the core.
Claudia notices through the power of Scorchwyn how all around her is an illusion and the elf-lord is little better than a lich in a crumbling castle. Wenceslas gets his insight by offering a small amount of items to the Fae and seeing through the deception by being up close. Vholanthus's highly tuned druidic senses feel how wrong the energy in the room is.
However, they behave as perfect guests and take advantage of the 'omniscience' Tamas Lin proclaims to have to make their way out without getting harmed in the process. He tells them to seek out the Red Bull, which is in league with the Shadow Queen and seeking to harm the Elfhames and their Runelord defenders.
In order to help guide them, he bids them seek out the Fand, his steward.

The group goes and finds the Fand (with the help of one of the Duluhan serving Tamas Lin), which seems be a terrific monster disguised as an older female elf, taking care of a lot of birds. Implanting the birds with runeshards. Sending them out into the world to find 'Those who could help the Elfhame of Ildathach'. As Wenceslas nears her, she cannot contain herself and stabs him with a hidden dagger. 
Combat ensues and both the Fand and the Duluhan are slain, leaving the party in the Fountain Room without a guide and having violated the guest-right of the Elfhame... but only after their rights were set upon by the residents.       

The Fifth Eclipse - Session 23: the Fire and the Chateau Blanc

Party: Claudia De La Quinne, Vholanthus Sumquaes, Daisy Dandeigh Deveraux, The Captain, Wenceslas

Noticing the smoke drifting in from the corners of the house, Wenceslas quickly checks out of the window, dodging a crossbow bolt and lighting an attacker on fire. The man runs away. 
Realising the troubles ahead in the near future, Wenceslas then books it to warn the party.
Outside, Vholanthus (still in griffon-form) removes the innards of an assailant while spiralling up in the air, before dropping him to the ground in a heap of gore.
The basement-dwellers, including Jean-Jacomo, head upstairs to grab their items, avoiding most of the spreading fire, though Daisy has a door-related mishap which is quickly rectified by an agitated Claudia.
Daisy and Claudia both throw their belongings onto their bed and tie up the bedsheet to have as much of their things with them as they can. Noting the fire rising at an alarming rate, Daisy works together with the Captain to create a vine-bridge that allows for an exit from the building without having to deal with the downstairs inferno.
Meanwhile Wenceslas calmly picks out the books he knows are valuable for the Elfhame research in the room of Vholanthus and moves to gather his own gear before walking down the stairs, miraculously avoiding the flames and saunters out of the house.
The aggressors outside, meanwhile, have a very angry griffon to deal with, which doesn't set the balance in their favour. One of them gets dive-bombed into oblivion, for example.

The guards, led by captain sergeant Pedro, try to arrest the Fifth Eclipse until Jean-Jacomo and Claudia manage to convince them that the group is innocent. They are banished from the Plaza Equinus. Two of the eggs were rescued by Diane Lafayette (a house servant) and begin to hatch while Pedro loses his shit in the background.

Considering the state of affairs, the party listens to Jean-Jacomo's idea ("Let's stay at nonna Rosa, she will never seek us in her own house!") and shoots it down, instead drugging the young noble with some of Wenceslas's mushrooms.
Asking Heremine for her ideas, the party go to the Chateau Blanc, a gathering spot with a reputation that enables youths who wish to lay low for a while to remain unobserved and probably supplied with various illicit goods. Being (at its core) a hostel for Galetto, both discretion and lodging is available for the party there, of which they gladly partake. An underground room, fully furnished and private, sees their arrival and they begin to plot what to do next. Vholanthus and Wenceslas discuss the silver arm as it contains many aspects of magic. Wenceslas utters his concern about the corrupting nature of the item, while Vhol thinks it safe to use within sensible limits. 
Channeling his thoughts through Emiel, while feeding the chicks some lightning, Wenceslas gets a vision of riding a two-headed albatross.

And then, the floor falls away, knocking the party out for a bit until they come back to their senses in a familiar structure... the entry to an unknown Elfhame... a Labyrinth!

Vertange Location: The Chateau Blanc

Located at the edge of the Jardin, the Chateau provides a number of services for those who have either the coin or the noble lineage to warrant it. Established a good fifty years ago, this watermill-turned-hostel attracts a particular sort of visitor. Those who want to explore the nature of mankind, the effects of mind-expanding experiences or just hear the latest underground poetry slam go down... they all drift here.
It's a pretty small operation, and No-Name earns a bit of extra cash and information by allowing those from the Patrician class to come and do their milling at the Chateau. The Ostari take advantage of that permission to form ties with the Galetto that reside in the Chateau, sometimes even managing to get a direct link to one of the promising noble youths that is down on his luck.

Innkeeper:
No-Name, the current owner, is a habitual user of hallucogenic products and propagates their use among the affluent Galetto that frequent his establishment, though he tends to be high on his own supply whenever things are slow enough.

Staff:
Albrecht Sombri, a human youth of some twenty summers, is the current leader of the informal housekeeping staff. Together with Severin L'Equichant and Sebastien Du Treve, he created a fellowship known as the ASS-boys, always ready to assist those in need with whatever worldly troubles come to the fore. 
Ironically, the young man has a lot more discipline than any of his companions, so he frequently tries to get folks to forget the group's nickname (while Sebastien keeps shouting "Leave it to the ASS-boys!" or "If there is a problem, just ASSk!") while running the kitchen or providing new linnen to the guests.

Severin L'Equichant is one of the rare members of that family that absolutely hates horses. He was bitten, kicked, unhorsed and (he is pretty certain) shat on by them for ages, so when life provided him the Temps du Galetto, he basically made a break for it and linked up with the distinctly unhorselike Albrecht. The Chateau Blanc has given him a lot of time to develop his skills in not-horse-riding, for which he is very grateful.

Sebastien Du Treve could be considered a chip of the old block. Sturdy, muscular and reliable, his biggest downside is a simple mind in a loud body. Consistently ready with catch-phrases indicating the gluteus maximus, he is the sole reason the concept of 'ASS-boys' stuck. He is beloved by all the guests but sometimes he wonders if there could be more to life. Such as meat. There should be more meat in the ASS-boys, he feels.

Group 1 - Session 1: On a merry jaunt

Party: Fir, Rachel and Gryven

It has been a while since the party last had to deal with the realities of dwindling funds, but such times arrive. We find three of our friends at the Abbeverato, listening for potential leads.
A group of local merchants discusses the effects of the bandit raids out in the countryside, while a contingent of off-duty Varangians contemplate the trade routes by sea as an alternative to the caravan-style land options that seem to be waylaid often now.
Fir first approaches the locals, but finds himself and his allies mocked for being non-human. Realising nothing good would come of pushing the interaction, the brave Simiah heads to the Varangians and gets a warmer reception. The elite mercenary guards explain that they have been out in the countryside but have been unable to react quickly enough to the bandits to actually catch a meaningful number of them. Moreover, it seems the brigands have sworn themselves to secrecy to the point that interrogation seems to fail. 
Coins are promised for assistance as the party decides to make use of light rivercraft transportation to quickly get to the scene, their lower number an advantage they have over the larger groups of guards. 
Gryven knows a guy named captain Falco, who is ready and willing to have his sloop (the Spray) crewed by the party and upriver to scout.

Checking the pattern of attacks, the party deduces a logic behind them, with a monthly interval. They head to the last village that was hit and begin their investigation. They spot markings on trees and rocks, speckled with a white paint pattern that indicates... something? When they reach a hill overlooking the raided village, Fir accidentally pushes a rigged boulder and falls down a shaft into the hill.
Down there, the remains of a temporary encampment lie, now guarded by enslaved spiders and rats. The party eliminates these pests, including one massive spider-creature which is run through by Fir.

They scour the lair for information, with Rachel discovering the spot was in use by a scout who took careful notes on what to hit and where, while Gryven finds several cages in the back where the guard-beasts probably were kept. The group sets about dissecting the giant spider and looting the place for any valuables, finding some minor magical items in the process.

[Party hits level 2]

The Fifth Eclipse - Session 22: Home sweet home

Party: Claudia De La Quinne, Vholanthus Sumquaes, Daisy Dandeigh Deveraux, The Captain, Wenceslas

We rejoin the Captain and Wenceslas, who are outside still, as the guard and several De La Quinne attendants arrive on the scene. A lot of passerby start gathering and the leader of the guard squad, a sergeant, asks the captain a number of pointed questions that do not specifically link in to the current situation. He takes some notes as he adds up the sites of public disturbances where the Fifth Eclipse was spotted.
The Captain does his best to defuse the situation and explains that they just try to solve these unrelated issues rather than let them run wild in the city.
The kicker is that the sergeant also requests if the Captain saw Jean-Jacomo after the tea at Julia's place.
The Captain feigns ignorance and requests the city cleans up the corpse before it bloats.

Inside, Jean-Jacomo is brought to the storage cellar (which doubles as a dubious holding cell) while still strapped up with animated vines, giving her and Claudia a chance to huddle and concoct a plan to win over Jean-Jacomo.
Plan A involves a low-cut dress and two glasses of wine. Plan B is more complicated, including a dramatic reveal of Claudia's side of the story.
Plan A works like a charm on the adolescent target and Jean-Jacomo strongly seems to want to assist the young lady with whatever burdens she may choose to lay upon him. He feels like he is never allowed to take action and is smothered by the sheer privilege that his mother keeps heaping upon him as heir of the house. He also explains that his mother is always right and his sister was daddy's favourite.

Meanwhile! The Captain and Vholanthus head back inside but are disturbed by the majordomo from the De La Quinne estate with his escort of eight fellows. The man offers to send his fellows in as guards to assist in keeping miss Daisy safe. The Captain reassures him that the lady is well protected. The man insists. The Captain tries to close the door. The man puts his foot in the way. The Captain allows the fellows to stand outside of the house and guard the perimeter.
As the majordomo heads off, Vholanthus changes shape and follows him to see what he can learn.

Once out of sight of the mansion, the majordomo changes shape to a beggar that roams the street. Vholanthus confronts him but gets ambushed by (what we can only assume to be) allies of the shapeshifter. Sorely outnumbered, the druid chooses safety over catching his prey and returns to Daisy's house.

Claudia and the Captain talk a bit to figure out how to tackle their prisoner and she walks in to the room to fully reveal the story, with Daisy softening up the situation and the Captain encouraging Jean-Jacomo to be a strong man.
Jean-Jacomo, initially not realizing who his sister was, does imply that he has been told she was sent to the Foundry of Scorchwyn outside of the City. He is somewhat shocked to find that his father may have been killed by the family to keep control of certain areas and to keep Claudia out. But at that point, matters come to a certain head.

Vholanthus approaches the house as the fellows left outside set fires at each of the house's corners. 

The Fifth Eclipse - Session 21: Flight from the garden

Party: Claudia De La Quinne, Vholanthus Sumquaes, Daisy Dandeigh Deveraux, The Captain, Wenceslas

As lady isidora makes herself even less beloved than she would have been without making Claudia's life hell, Claudia and Wenceslas find themselves with the prime opportunity to get their hands of Jean-Jacomo. Explaining to the befuddled boy (who had been composing his finest works in order to make a good impression on the adventurous Marquisette Daisy) that his life was in danger, the pair of cunning deceivers steal him from the garden under the guise of being sent to save him.

Polite conversation is joined in order to allow Claudia and Wenceslas to make their hopeful getaway, with a new guest arriving for Damiano, who launches into a tale of 'fighting the bandits' and suggests making use of the not-inconsiderable talents of the Fifth Eclipse to do so. The guest, a goblin captain named Jean-Claude De Bouchee, seems very eager for this to become a thing, as manpower is apparently low at the moment. The pair of wanna-be riverguards imply that a fleet of inland vessels could be raised and used to strike swiftly and decisively against the brigands around Vertange.

Cornpone, meanwhile, spots Claudia and Wenceslas leaving, after which he returns to tell Daisy of this, but miscommunication abounds and sudden dread fills those remaining at the table that things have gone very badly in the garden. 

Meanwhile, diverting the attention of the Captain even further, Veronique seems to have taken an interest as this bachelor with an outstanding martial reputation lets slip that he is single. She ruthlessly corners the martial master and he quickly realizes he has to move to assist... the Fifth Eclipse! Clearly the messenger pigeon carried bad news that needed resolution most violent!
Daisy and the Captain rush off, leaving Vholanthus at the table to talk magic with Sabine, until a massive shadow flies overhead, a gargantuan avian creature that is in dire need of slaying seems to be heading in the direction that Daisy and the Captain ran off in.

The pair, as they dart through the garden in the hopes of saving their friends, see a dead assassin and tracks of their friends with a third person. Considering everything, they make haste and rush off to find their friends.
Once outside of the estate (using the noble's exit in the garden wall), the group reunites and focusses on luring the massive bird to a spot where they can fight it. Jean-Jacomo is brought to the house the party has at the Equine Plaza and quickly all don their armour so that the fight can ensue. 
While the Eclipse shows exactly why they are the best current adventuring party in Vertange, Jean-Jacomo does try to make his escape, but Daisy's vines drag him back into the house as eventually the Captain manages to lay low the foul beast with a massive stroke severing the creature's neck.