Summary
Kythorn 14
The party arrives in Milvarune, a fortified port city in southern Thesk at the end of a pass dividing the Dragonjaw mountains. They check into an inn and Kiri offers to perform to get a discount. Local rumors deal with the plague and a possible sighting of an asian dragon nearby, hundreds of miles from its homeland. They ask about a githyanki healer and the innkeeper sends them to a potion shop that employs a female githyanki alchemist. Risa and Caeli head there. They meet the half-elf owner of the shop, Fine Elixirs. He says he does employ a githyanki woman named Sistryl and sends her out. She is not forthcoming about healing, saying she is just an alchemist. Caeli tries Detect Thoughts on her, but she detects Caeli and closes her mind to the spell, then reads Caeli and Risa. She agrees to talk a bit and Caeli distracts the shop owner by discussing and purchasing some potions. Sistryl agrees to meet the party at their inn after work. Caeli and Risa return to the inn.
Mirag goes out in search of knowledge about his warhammer's stone and meets a wizard who advises him that it is possibly a demon's summoning stone; with the right spell you could summon and control the demon. She gives him some general advice, but warns that the types of wizards who are likely to know demon summoning spells are not to be trusted.
Sistryl arrives and asks to speak privately to them, they all settle into Andre's room; it's the biggest. She explains she is a widow, her children are being held by her in-laws as heirs to her husband's titles. She was forced into exile and to give up using her powers to heal as long as her children are safe. But, her in-laws didn't consider their wording carefully, her oath is only valid as long as they protect her children. If the party can kidnap her children and return them to her safely, the terms of her oath will be broken. The party agrees to rescue the children, they are being held in a small githyanki fortress here in Faerun. She will teleport the party there at midnight tomorrow.
The party spends the next day planning and preparing and Sistryl returns at midnight. They join hands and she teleports them far to the west, arriving in forested mountains just after local sunset. They look down at the small keep, there is but a single front door, two guards pace the roof and there is a trapdoor into the keep. They approach the keep stealthily and some of the party climb or are thrown up by Mirag and Andre. Mirag casts Jump on himself and Andre, but they can't quite make the roof. Kiri tries casting Sleep on the guards as they meet, but they shake it off and are alerted. Mirag helps Andre to the roof, then heads around to the front door. Caeli and Thorn wound the two guards, then Risa and Andre finish them. They head to the trapdoor and look down into a guard room starting to fill with githyanki warriors and Caeli hits them with Shatter. Mirag begins trying to break down the front door with his warhammer. Andre drinks his Potion of Haste and becomes a windmill of smites and death. Thorn, Risa, and Caeli join Andre in defending the roof as githyanki officers and warriors charge up the steps. Kiri summons a Spiritual Weapon and helps the party. The githyanki are tremendous fighters, most of them wielding two handed swords that deal vicious damage. Caeli and Thorn take severe wounds. Mirag joins them on the roof and he and Kiri deal out healing spells to keep their comrades going. Thorn, Risa, and Andre keep killing attackers and a literal pile of dead forms at the roof entrance. Eventually, the pressure slows as the armed and armored warriors on duty are slain and githyanki roused from bed show up with weapons but no armor. The slaughter concludes with the last warrior and they are able to enter the keep and locate Sistryl's two children and bring them out. They quickly loot the warriors, grabbing several magic items and treasure. Sistryl apologizes that she cannot teleport everyone at once with the children. She takes the children and Andre and Kiri to Milvarune, then returns for the rest of the party.
(GM's note- the battle turned into a real meat grinder. The commander and two officers went down fairly early in the battle. Of ten kills, Risa had four
Assists, including one killsteal after Andre did 90 hp to the commander. Thorn had two assists and Andre had two assists and two solo kills. Caeli and Kiri did a bunch of damage, but didn't deliver any killing blows)
Back in Milvarune, she settles her children and says she will return in the morning to carry out her promise to Risa.
Kythorn 16
In the morning Sistryl comes to the inn and asks if she can read Risa's mind for where they need to go. Risa thinks of her monastery and Sistryl takes the image from her mind and teleports them to the road outside the front gate. Risa brings Sistryl inside and introduces her to the monastery leaders, they agree to take Sistryl to see Qah Laing, he is still in a coma, his condition unchanged. Sistryl lays her hands on his head and studies him, then lifts her hands and says she cannot save him. He has been atttacked by magic like that of a lich's, his soul was stolen from his body and trapped while the wizard possessed his body to infiltrate the monastery. His soul is still trapped, if Risa can find the object holding his soul and release it, he should recover. She transfers memories to Risa and shows her the wizard, a bird-like creature, once human, but deformed by evil. He lairs in what looks like an old abandoned mine complex in the Firward mountains on the north border of Rashemen, near Narfell. After Risa speaks with her superiors, Sistryl returns them to Milvarune and bids the party farewell and thanks them.
Silly Quotes and Smart Remarks
Discussing Sorcerers' battle plans
Jack "Sorcerers are NNBC; Never Not Be Casting"
Normally, the default answer for a wizard is "I cast Fireball!", but Caeli has Lightning Bolt, so…
Brittany "I cast Lightning Bolt!"
Jim "In a tavern?"
Brittany "Then I cast Shatter"
Jim "Oooh…"
Which led to us explaining to Katya and Evan how Jack's first character, a Lawful Good cleric, went to prison for manslaughter.
The quest is described
Jack "We're rescuing children…
Caeli is a Dragonblood Half-Elf
Brittany "I'm a scaly human elf"
The party is discussing approaching the keep stealthily under Mirag's Pass without a Trace spell
Jim "Bear in mind, it's night" Pause "<groan> BEAR in mind"
Jack gets a bad initiative roll, which we call "cleric speed"
Jim "I know why you roll poorly; you're a druid, that's a kind of cleric
Jack "I'm only half-druid" (Mirag multiclassed into fighter)
Jim "What, you're only druid on your mother's side?"
Lots of githyanki charge the party
Katya "More people to beat up"
Nick "Sounds like Potion of Haste time"
