Pyria’s D&D Adventure Log | September 2019

This blog post serves as a campaign log for my Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition character, Pyria Almareth.

• Previous Session (Session #10 08/22/2019)
• Session #11 (09/05/2019)
• Session #12 (09/12/2019)
• Session #13 (09/26/2019)

Session #11 (09/05/2019)

Ohana ripped one of the tapestries off the wall. It revealed a halfling clung to the bricks trembling with fear. The halfling dropped to the ground. The sound of metal scrapping against the floor was heard and a dragonborn woman swiftly rolled out from underneath the bed. She was clothed with a leather jerkin. She had a longsword strapped to her side. Her sword was the source of the scrapping sound.

Ohana moved to the door in a defensive position with his staff out. The two strangers’ breathing was labored. Visible blood stained the halfling’s clothing.

Sehl tried to calm the pair down, but his actions did little to ease the tension in the room.

“Who do you work for,” asked the dragonborn.

Ohana nudged Pyria to speak up. Oh, that’s right, she thought. She cleared her throat and introduced herself, “I am Pyria Almareth, daughter of Baron Borgadus Almareth IV of Carse.” She felt a hint of pain as she continued, “I am also betrothed to King Argamir’s son, Locklier Argamir. The king’s son was poisoned by a wizard, Zorasis, back in Carse. We followed him here.” A sense of urgency crept into Pyria’s voice, “The king’s son doesn’t have much time. We have to find the cure and get back to Carse before it’s too late.”

“You’re seeking the wizard then,” replied the dragonborn.

Pyria nodded.

“So are we,” the dragonborn replied. “We are on a mission from the temple Evandra.”

Pyria raised an eyebrow. She was a little surprised by their common interest in Zorasis. Pyria asked, “Why do you seek him?”

“My name is Shalaa,” the dragonborn said. “My companion here is also a member of the temple. You can call him My Fingers.”

“What did the wizard do to offend you,” asked Pyria.

“I just found out about him,” answered Shalaa. “We went here to find out about the demon army. I’m sure you know North Warden is under demon siege.”

“After we’re done here, we’re supposed to go to North Warden to meet Stovokor,” shared Pyria.

Shalaa continued, “So we came here looking for answers, and what we found was this sinister castle. We were ambushed by a group of Kua-toas on the second floor. We disposed of them, but we were badly injured and tried to find a place to rest. We are not well.”

Ohana offered up his potion of healing.

“So what are you going to do now,” asked Pyria.

“I am afraid we failed. This place is beyond saving,” replied Shalaa. She looked disappointed.

Sehl stepped forward and said, “I got an idea: why don’t you join us.”

“How did you get in here so easily,” questioned Shalaa.

Sehl answered, “We climbed.”

“The wizard named Zorasis has made this his home. This place is crawling with things that have made this their home over the years,” replied Shalaa.

“Did you see the walking eyeballs,” asked Sehl.

“When we first arrived we were attacked by a group of orcs in the murder room. This is how we learned of Zorasis. I called upon the power of Evandra and we were able to survive the battle. One of the orcs appeared to be talking to Zorasis. Although, he was no where to be seen. Zorasis knows about my presence. This mission was a failure,” said Shalaa.

Ohana tried to encourage Shalaa, “We chased him here, so he knows we’re here too. He does not know our numbers.”

She responded, “Sneaking around is one of our specialties. We made it to the third floor with no problems, but out of nowhere these fish-like people came out. They have spell caster warriors, and they seemed very fanatical. We don’t know what they are fanatical about.”

“I know they kept a pet in the sewers,” replied Sehl.

Ohana shared, “Zorasis was Demok’s house wizard before the fall.”

“And we know Zorasis is dead,” replied Pyria.

“How do you know,” asked Shalaa.

“We fought him in Carse,” Pyria replied, “some 2000 miles away. He made a portal and we followed him here.”

Shalaa shook her head, “This is definitely out of my league. We must find a safe passage out of the castle. We must rest. My Fingers is seriously injured. I called upon my deity as much as I can.”

“We believe Orcus is at play here,” said Pyria.

Shalaa limped to the bed and flopped down. Interesting, thought Pyria. Despite dragging her feet, Shalaa did not make a single sound as she moved the to bed. My Fingers leaned against the wall grabbing his shoulder.

“You aren’t kidding when you say you’re sneaky,” said Pyria.

Shalaa scoffed and said, “what little good that did.”

“Despite your sneaking they still detected you,” mused Pyria aloud. “Like eyes all around the castle?”

Shalaa shrugged and responded, “I don’t know.”

Ohana recalled the time they were sneaking in the sewers. Despite how silent he was as he approached the Kua-toas in the sewers they still found him.

“How much of the third floor have you explored,” asked Pyria.

“Not much,” replied Shalaa. “If you come in from the front gate, there’s a set of stairs that sent us up here. We went up a great wall and picked one room at random to rest in. Then we heard you coming and hid because we were afraid it was more Kua-toas.”

“How about we give you some crossbows and you can rest,” suggested Sehl.

Shalaa remained skeptical that she and My Fingers would be of any value in the castle anymore. “What do you expect us to do,” she asked.

“Stay in the back and shoot,” replied Sehl.

“I am no marksman.”

“Never say never,” chimed in Pyria.

“I am out of prayers,” said Shalaa frustrated. “My silent abilities do not seem to be of use. I only have this sword. Do you expect a meat shield?” The dragonborn paused and looked at her boots. “I’ll tell you want, take these. Maybe they’ll help you more than me.” Shalaa removed her boots and slide them across the floor for someone to grab. Pyria inspected the boots.

“If you want to escape the way we came in, we can lead you there,” offered Ohana.

Shalaa gave a curt nod and said, “I think it is in our best interest to leave. I think these will help you more than me.”

“Boots of Elvenkind,” said Pyria. She admired the boots. They were a rare magical item that allowed its wearer to walk around nearly undetected.

“A gift from my teacher, Ellariel, to me,” responded Shalaa. Pyria turned to Sehl, “Squire Sehl, I believe these will be useful for you.”

Ohana returned to room after briefly stepping out. The goblin said, “The way is clear, I can guide you.” He led Shalaa and My Fingers safely back out the way the party came in.

“Good luck guys,” said Sehl.

“Tell them we’re coming,” said Ohana.

“Tell them we’re coming, and we’ll need fast passage back to Carse,” added Pyria. “It’s a matter of utmost importance: to save the prince.”

---

The party resumed their search of the castle. Back in the hallway, Ohana opened a new door. Inside the room was a wrecked bedroom. Splintering wood, chairs and feathers scattered across the room. There was a strong stench permeating throughout the room. Anyone who caught a whiff of the scent gagged. It was a terrible odor. Pyria sent Pip into the stinky room to scout.

“Eww, that’s gross,” complained Sehl. Sehl checked the neighboring door to escape from the bad odor. He heard something and whispered, “There’s something on the other side.” Sehl entered the room. Inside he found a small, but well kept room. There was a cabinet with an ajar door, a basin with a pitcher and a table with a wax candle.

Meanwhile, back in the stinky room, Ohana struggled to focus due to the smell. He took a step deeper into the room and an humanoid creature erupted from one of the smashed wardrobes. One of the guards charged past Pyria to the room and exclaimed, “Shit, I can’t see a thing in there!”

Rosalie sneaked into the room. She quietly maneuvered around the debris in the room until she stepped on a broken board. To her surprise the noise triggered another creature to emerge from the wreckage. These strange humanoid creatures were pale skinned and somewhat muscular. They had large long tongues, sharp teeth and smelled like death. Pyria recognized the creatures from her study of demonology. They were Ghasts, enhanced by the power of Orcus. Similar to Ghouls, but far more intelligent. These creatures were capable of laying traps and could direct the lesser ghouls around. They have also been know to speak in common. Ghasts were incredibly evil, disturbed creatures.

Ohana grasped his quarterstaff with both hands and slammed the weapon onto the ground. He shouted, “Get back beasts! You have no power here!” Ohana recited his prayers.

Two more Ghasts emerged from the debris, and each creature begun a horrendous scream. One of the Ghasts responded, “Your prayers will not save you here, you green imp!” Ohana exited the room.

“That’s right! Run,” taunted the Ghast.

Ohana shouted, “Light! LIGHT!”

Bastilion pulled out some flint. He lit a torch and tossed it into the room. The old, dried up furniture quickly caught fire. Pyria approached the doorway. She whistled for Pip to return and said, “Orcus may have made you intelligent, but I will make you you dead.” Pyria fired Eldritch Blast hitting the Ghast closest to the doorway. Sehl entered the room and swung his long sword at the same creature. One of the Ghasts near the middle of the room leaped off some wreckage. It charged towards Sehl running on all fours. With claws out, the creature swiped at Sehl, but the elf was quick and dodge the attack. The injured Ghast moved towards Rosalie. It reached out the grab her, but she was able to avoid its touch. Another Ghast ran out of the room and into the hallway. As it passed Sehl, Sehl slashed at it with sword. “Hey, where are you going,” he asked.

The creature lunged for Jessicat, but the tabaxi dodged the attack. The guards fired upon the creature with their crossbows, and Ohana delivered the final blow to the creature. The goblin was wary from his past encounters with undead followers of Orcus. As the body dropped he shouted, “Don’t trust them! Finish them off!”

Pyria fired two quick shots of Eldritch Blast killing the taunting Ghast.

“That’s what you get. Talk shit and you get hit,” yelled Sehl.

A couple guards ran into the room firing crossbow bolts at the remaining Ghasts.

“You’re no match for,” shouted Sehl as he lopped off the remaining Ghast’s head.

“Burn the bodies,” shouted Pyria. The guards torched the ghast bodies. The flames quickly spread throughout the room.

Once things had settled down, Sehl returned to the room he explored a moment prior. He rummaged around and found some documents in a drawer. These were official documents about Castle Demok. He also found some clothing in the wardrobe. The clothing was in good quality and could be sold, but there was nothing out of the ordinary within the room. Rosalie entered the room and grabbed some clothing. She was more than ready to change from her undead disguise from the brothel. Bastilion did the same thing. The scoffers were dressed like noblemen. Better than undead.

Sehl inspected the final door in the hallway. It was already opened by Shalaa and My Fingers. On the other side of the door was a gigantic hall with tapestries of beautiful landscapes. At the North and South walls were statues of Alyana, of the 42nd and ruler of Demok, and Shero Demok. Shero was Alyana’s father. The hall connected two floors of the castle together. There was a pair of stairs leading up which flanked a larger set of the stairs going down. Sehl left scope out where the stairs leading up led to.

As they passed time for Sehl to return, Ohana inspected a door off the great hall. Pyria approached the Alyana’s statue. She admired the elf’s likeness in stone. Jessicat quietly walked up the stairs to join Sehl.

At the top for the stairs, Sehl found a large room. Inside the room was a massive table fit for large feast. On the wall was a large stain glass window. The stain glass depicted a battle. It was a chaotic scene. Sehl scanned the room. He noticed something lurking under the table near the main windows. Sehl could hear movement, but he could see nothing. Someone was in this room with him, and whoever it was it was headed straight towards him.

Session #12 (09/12/2019)

The large table in the room erupted towards Sehl. He was taken by surprise as he was smacked by the corner of the table. Sehl staggered backwards. His hair started to blow like there was a wind in the room. A moment later an incredible force blasted Sehl from behind. Downstairs, everyone could hear the sound of a loud crash. Pyria darted up the stairs. She reached the top and could see Sehl’s long hair blowing in the wind and the remains of a thrown table.

“Sehl, are you alright,” called out Pyria.

“No,” shouted Sehl.

Confused, Pyria asked, “What happened.” There were no enemies in sight.

“I don’t know,” replied Sehl.

“Who attacked you,” asked Pyria.

“I have no idea,” answered Sehl. “It’s invisible! Let’s get out of here.”

Pyria shouted to the party below, “There’s something up here and it’s invisible!” She blindly fired two Eldritch Blasts into the room.

“Whoa! Whoa,” exclaimed Sehl. “It’s me!”

Bastilion joined Pyria and threw one of his daggers. It planted into an invisible body directly behind Sehl. The invisible creature plucked out the dagger and threw it towards the stain glass windows in the room. Sehl swung his sword towards the same spot Bastilion tossed his dagger. His blade connected. Sehl heard a faint whisper, but he couldn’t make anything of it. The guards joined the fray with their crossbows at the ready. They fired bolts but only one was able to hit the invisible creature.

Out of nowhere, Pyria was hit with an immense amount of pain. It started with a cool breeze before ending with a huge impact to her left side. She yelped out in pain and blindly fired another pair of Eldritch Blasts. She missed the creature again. Bastilion moved up to a tapestry in the hall and jammed a dagger into it. He ripped the tapestry and cursed. “It’s over here somewhere,” he shouted.

The invisible creature moved around the room again. This time its movement was detected. Someone pointed out where the creature stood. With the information, Pyria was able to finally land a hit with one of her Eldritch Blasts. Ohana moved in and unleashed a flurry of blows onto the creature.

From the floor below the sound of a door slamming echoed above. “Hey Pip, go check out that sound,” Pyria commanded to her pseudodragon companion. She did not utilize her pet often in battles as she often forgot how resourceful he could be. Pip had blindsight, no more guessing where the creature stood. The pseudodragon could relay exactly where it was telepathically. Pip couldn’t speak per se, but he could communicate in his own way. “Hey Pip, can you see the creature,” asked Pyria. Pip shared a vision of the invisible creature was escaping downstairs.

The party returned to the lower level and searched for the their invisible attacker. Pyria noticed a door to the south opened. The floor inside the room was lined with barrels, debris and broken glass. It was a mess. Pip relayed a new vision of something moving among the debris in the room. Pyria shouted, “Guys, it’s in here!” Jessicat joined Pyria at the doorway and fired an arrow. It hit something. Sehl ran into the room ready to face his attacker. Instead, he was greeted with a pair of giant beady eyes. It was a giant rat! The entire room was infested with them. These vile rats looked diseased. The rodents were foaming at the mouths. One scampered up to Sehl and bit the elf. Sehl felt the immediate effects of the diseased bite. The wound was warm and inflamed. Ohana caught up to Sehl and swung his quarterstaff at the rodent ending its life. He struck another killing it, and kicked the remaining one next to him. Ohana punted the rat across the room and it died from the impact.

The ground in the room began to rattle and the glass in the room started to swirl. All doubts that the creature escaped were gone. The whirlwind of debris collided into Sehl. He could not withstand the force of the attack. Sehl collapsed to the ground and fell unconscious. Oh no! Sehl, thought Pyria. She entered the room deeply concerned by the current situation. Pyria killed two rats with her Eldritch Blasts. Pip relayed a new vision of the invisible creature exiting the room from another doorway. Pyria shifted her focus to the second doorway in the room. In that moment of distraction, she was quickly overwhelmed by a group of rats. One bit her on her leg. The wound burned and was inflamed.

The whirlwind of debris moved to Rufus, the Carse guard in golden plate armor. The force of the whirlwind lifted Rufus and sent him crashing into a stack of barrels. His body was motionless as a pool of blood flowed from his smashed head. Rufus was dead.

Pyria killed another rat next to her and ran out of the room into the hallway. She was on the wall walk of the castle. The invisible creature was up ahead. Jessicat followed Pyria. The tabaxi fired an arrow and missed the creature. Rosalie joined the women. The scoffer tossed a dagger, but she also missed.

Back in the storage room, the remaining rats were taken care of. Sehl was stable, but unconscious. Unfortunately, there were no healers among the party.

Ohana exited the room and swiftly moved up to the creature. He swung his quarterstaff and only felt air. He tried again. The quarterstaff slammed into the creature. Ohana followed up with a pair of kicks. Pyria could hear a strange sound, words she couldn’t make out. Pip relayed a vision of the invisible creature launching itself 15 feet upwards to a set of windows above. The room was back on the 4th floor. “Don’t lose him,” commanded Pyria. Pip flew off and followed the creature into the room. The pseudodragon telepathically relayed what he saw:

• Eight sleeping pallets on the floor
• A couple of brooms
• Clothing laying about
• Six Kua Toas

Two Kua-toas stood by closed door with their weapons drawn. Pip could hear the same vocalization Pyria had previously heard. The door in the room flung opened. It led to the same hall where this fight had begun. The Kua-toas noticed Pip. He tried to escape into the hall but the Kua-toas blocked his exit. He would go down fighting. Pip stung one Kua-toa, before his time came to an end.

“Pip is gone. We no longer have eyes on the creature,” announced Pyria. She and the others ran back through the storage room where Sehl laid. Jessica returned to the stairs that led to the 4th floor. Ohana was right behind her. Pyria paused a moment to check on Sehl. She verified he was no longer in danger of dying before she joined the rest of the party upstairs. Jessicat spotted a previously closed door wide open with a Kua Toa sticking its head out.

Session #13 (09/26/2019)

The party returned to the banquet hall where Sehl was ambushed earlier. Pyria entered the room. Inside she found an ornate set of double doors. Pyria was sure that is where the invisible creature fled to.

Meanwhile, Jessicat focused her attention on the room full of Kua-toas. She fired an arrow inside hitting one. Ohana joined the fray and lured one of the Kua-toas outside of the room. It was in line of sight of Pyria. She fired off two Eldritch Blasts killing the Kua-toa. The remaining Carse guards entered the room full of Kua-toas. Another Kua-toa died. Ohana shifted his focus back to the invisible creature. The goblin moved to the room within the banquet hall. There was an opened window in the room, and he could find no trace of the assailant. Ohana exited the room and said, “Tend to the others. He has escaped again.”

Pyria returned her focus to the remaining Kua-toas. She walked up to their room and fired a pair of Eldritch Blasts. One missed, but the other hit. The creature died. Just when she thought the encounter was over, Ohana opened a door revealing an ancient Kua-toa. The goblin prayed loudly, rebuking the creature. The ancient Kua-toa cast four sacred flames and sent them hurling straight towards Pyria. Fortunately, Ohana’s prayers distracted the Kua-toa enough to reduce the impact of its attack. It still hurt, however. Pyria was left severely wounded from the attack. Between the upset stomach, invisible punch, diseased rat bite, and now burns from a sacred flame, she could barely stand on her two feet. She fired two Eldritch Blasts toward the Kua-toa and staggered out of the way.

Ohana was on a rampage. He killed several Kua-toas inside the new room. Panicked, one of the Kua-toas summoned dark angels. Not a couple, there were eight to ten. The dark angels swarmed the room as they flew around, obscuring visibility to those standing outside the room. Before the dark angels could inflict any damage, Ohana killed the one who summoned them. As the creature drew its last breath, the dark angels disappeared.

“You dare assault my children,” scolded the remaining Kua-toa. The creature was bulked up and looked stronger than the previous Kua-toas they had encountered. Its difference in appearance was much like the possession of the man at the morgue. Pyria suspected the Kua-toa was now an aspect of Orcus.

“Orcus,” she called out.

The Kua-toa ignored her.

Pyria wanted to trigger a response from the creature to confirm her suspicions. “Thanatos,” she said.

The Kua-toa replied, “I don’t know what you are getting at, but kneel. You can kneel now or later, unwillingly.”

Pyria was unsatisfied with the response. She wanted to get more information from the Kua-toa. She decided she would play along with its demands. As she knelt, the Kua-toa smugly said, “That’s right. Kneel before the God of Death.” There it was, a confirmation of sorts. She lifted her head to meet its eyes and smirked. She unleashed a blast of arcane energy and force of it took off the Kua-toa’s leg. Jessicat walked up to the dying Kua-toa and stabbed it with Shigga’s spear. The radiant energy from the weapon sheered the body of the Kua-toa. The fight was over. Pyria flopped on the ground. She was tired, exhausted and her entire body ached and burned.

“We need to regroup back to where Sehl is,” announced Ohana. Pyria groaned as she hopped back onto her feet and her made way back to the storage room where Sehl laid.

And Rufus.

She had almost forgot about the slain Carse guard. It pained her to think of what family he left behind so far away from home. Ohana instructed everyone to help build a pyre to honor Rufus and to protect him from being corrupted. There was plenty of wood laying around the room from the broken crates and barrels.

---

Ohana opened a box. He found a set of cards, not playing cards, but cards were organized in a similar manner. The cards had strange pictures on them. Pictures of champions and noblemen of Demok ancestry. The people on the cards were performing a variety of activities. Each card depicted difference scenes and different people.