Then the refugees of the old world on the other side of the ocean arrived. Lead by the Wandering Knave, Fool of Crossroads and Gallows, these devout followers of the archfey pantheon streamed from magic portals and built a fortress around their collapsed savior. Despite the harsh wilderness conditions they faced in this foreign land, the varied peoples felt fortunate to escape the Iron Saints' purge. While they had lost loved ones, homes, kingdoms they were still alive and had a chance to build something better.
Four human generations have passed. The refugees, now the Congress of Knaves, built fortresses and canals amid the great lakes of the Timberlands. They have parlayed with the local, animal-folk. With the Mustel, otter-like peoples of the lakes, they have treaties. With the Tabaxi nomads, they have formal understandings. With the bear-like Agrothier, they share a wary sense of avoidance and apprehension.
The congressional colonies now expand their territories. Old horrors have taken notice while new fiends seek to take control of the burgeoning nation. Only a few heroes stand in the way of both. Though, they are ignorant of the perils they will face in the Timberlands.
Our Heroes:
Gwaedd used to be a river pirate, but the mustel bard saw the errors of his ways when his siblings-in-crime were wiped out by their greed. He seeks to turn over a new leaf and be like the heroes of his youthful imagination.
Last Wild Rose of the Longest Night was traded to a fey of the Ebony Court for a favor his father craved. Such is the fate of firstborns in a world where the archfey are divine. Finally free of this contract, Wild wishes to forge his own fate as a ranger.
Orym, a half-orc, is a gunslinger by trade. A former mercenary, Orym now uses his skills to investigate a rising tide of unimaginable evil after losing a brother to the madness of the Waning Court.
Siegfried loves adventure almost as much as he loves knowledge; and he loves them both almost as much as he loves a good time. The satyr wizard wants all the experiences the world has to offer, preferably that to be found in taverns and libraries.
Sykes is haunted by a family curse she cannot shake. The Waning Court dogs the steps of her eladrin bloodline. However, the assassin's blades are ready to cut them down to size.
Working for the Second Horizon Exploration Company they've already experienced high adventure at the western edges of the Congress of Knaves. They stumbled on a dark cult using the Mulberry Inn and Tavern as a front. At first, they thought nothing of the stink-eye the patrons of the roadside inn gave them. After all, the owner had a bright smile and a lovely voice. It wasn't until they saw the blood-soaked madness the mead from the Mulberry created at a nearby lumber mill, and the way it turned humanoids into living honeycombs for direfliesto fester, did they realize they had a cult to deal with. Deal with it they did, though they now realize a larger waning cult is at work.
From there they escorted a drug-addicted hunter deeper into the western woods. They sought a fantastical monstrosity, a giant crab who's inner fire never faltered. After convincing a crew of mustel river-pirates the errors of their ways and recruiting the help of a druid they found the super-heated crustacean. After a pitched battle, the heroes claimed the trophy they sought. That night,demon-masked poachers attempted to take the heroes' prize but were driven off. Oh, and they found an orphaned owl-bear cub.
On the way back to turn in the prize, the assembled heroes came across a group of Loga Orcs of the Free Woods who asked for their assistance in investigating a series of trees covered in fresh, strange markings in the Tongue of Enuk'Lun. They were attacked by a stone golem shortly after and most of the orcs were slain. Those that remained begged for heroes' help in finishing their quest, and of course, the cadre of explorers agreed. They found sarcophagi under each marked tree. The stone coffins were embossed with the Grim Visage of Enuk'Lun. Uncanny artifacts and desiccated remains were found inside, but not explanation was found as to who was marking the trees and what had already dug up one of the tombs. The orcs thanked them, called them friends and the heroes made their way home.
These series of multiple-choice adventures helped solidify character ideas with a party starting at level five for session one.
Comments
Post a Comment