We continue to play. Aerendir/Balasar's player quit the game, he might come back later. Finnean player switches back to Scarlett. Baâ's player takes a break, might take a long, who knows. Long Campaign Fatigue kicks in, that's normal. I'm going to continue the game even if I have 2 players, can't stop now.
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Session 137-138: Jungle Honeymoon
The party prepared for the ceremony. Mario would not only be crowned, but he would also marry his beloved Vittoria. The group took care of any preparations. Even Mario had a moment to reconcile with his daughter Gianetta. The party then moved to the ceremony time. First, people came in droves, thousands of people came to see the coronation or be nearby. A moment for the ages, especially that it was on the sacred hill. Many guests, from around the world. The party could meet up and talk to old friends and acquittances. Only the Oasis and Mario's and Vittoria's family didn't come. The Frost Giant came, telling that no other Giant will dare to interfere when he is here. Jarl Balgruuf came to bring a present - jeweled mammoth tusks. Other delegations came with their gifts too. The Vale gave a special scabbard. The Actur gave a gold statue of High King Actur. Brightaxe brought an axe called Liberator. One of the adventuring parties gave potions of fertility. The gnomes gave a music box. Elementi Revivo pair mithril necklaces for the pair. There even was the dwarf the party met long ago, working for the Great Empire, he bought a bottle of vodka. The party took their time to talk to people before the ceremony took place.
Kyrdun
Coast Claw
Sedyryn Humanoid Form Illusion
The most important talks, that revealed some information, was that two new dragons came to the ceremony. There were five dragons in their humanoid forms, three the party knew - Defender (Lord Magmos), Palarandusk (Rearlin) and Naevys (that University elf). The two new were Kyrdun, that later revealed himself as a bronze dragon that came to pledge his loyalty to the group's cause, while the other one was Sedyryn's humanoid form, an illusion. The second talk was with King of the Vale. There will be a problem with the kingdoms at the meeting and Mario is invited. It will be either the Alliance or be alone since the Vale and Canyon are in a bad strategic situation to defend against the incoming army of the Great Empire, that talked with the halflings, dwarven nations, Oasis and monster cities. They even talked to Ishmael but he was here for a moment, he wanted to be for the wedding and skedaddle since he didn't want to be seen by the cardinals, it would make problems.
The wedding went smoothly. One of the clerics of Valena led the ceremony. The pair had specially crafted rings of wood and metal, made from the little tree that's sprouting from the seed they planted months ago. Old couples that had their tree still would have more refined rings of wood, a sign of long marriage. After they made their promises, said yes and kissed the pair were supposed to go to the forest to run around and roll in the ground, then, not cleaning themselves, go to their bed. After all, it is done, they would take a bath, a new beginning for them. They couldn't go anywhere to complete the first part since there were thousands of people, but the Barons had an idea. They were invited to their house and to go to the cellar, where the holy hill is located. Later they would go to one of the bedrooms and complete the ceremony. When that was done, Kyrdun came to the Mario announcing his plans and wished to pledge his loyalty after Mario was crowned king.
Regiala of the Canyon King
Before that happened. Mario was given the regalia. It was made from different materials. The crown is from the Tree of Life as a base, then "silvered" with mithral. Jeweled with different jewels, the main was a fire opal with a golden-crowned key in the center (symbol of the future kingdom). Other jewels meant other things like Dwarves, Dragons, Elves, Orth and other cities. There were a golden scepter, purple worm boots and a robe made with mithral. There was even an orb of rulership, given by the church of Lord Sun. Everything made by their close allies and friends. While most of these things weren't magical, except for small enchantments that allowed these items to last forever. The crown later was enchanted by the Cardinals (it gave +2 CHA without attunement) and the orb allowed to cast Daylight (once, only by the wearer of the crown).
The coronation begun. The cardinals teleported in. When that happened, Raerlin, Defender, and Kyrdun changed into Dragons to stand behind Mario, as a sign of their alliance/fealty to the new king. There were a long ceremony speech and exchange of promises by the King.
We have gathered here as witnesses to the founding of a new state and the coronation of the head of the new king. The Kingdom of Contego has gone through many difficulties to become what it is now. And the heroes at their controls repeatedly showed their subordinates that they are in good hands.
Mario kneels.
Let no evil stand in the way of your future. Walk in the dogmas of the Trinity, let therm be a lantern in the dark for you and advice during problems. Rule with an honest heart, honor, and justice. Mario de Capodimonte. On behalf of the Trinity Church, the Loving Mother Valena, Judge Eris and the Righteous Blade Ilios, I, Arch Cardinal Militiades Third the Peaceful, is my honor to crown you.
Are you ready to take the oath?
"Yes"
Do you promise and swear that you will rule the inhabitants of the Kingdom of Contego in accordance with designated laws and customs?
"Yes"
Will you to your power cause Law and Justice, in Mercy, to be executed in all your judgements?
"Yes"
Will you do everything you can to maintain the laws and faith in the Trinity?
That in mercy and love people would believe and serve the Loving Mother, Valena?
That the population would live by established law, and that criminals would be adequately punished, as it says in the faith of Judge, Eris?
That you would rule honorably and justly, that every stain on your honor and your crown would not go unpunished, as it says in the faith of Righteous Blade, Ilios?
"That in all, I swear. I promise the Trinity, you all my witnesses, that I will keep my promises."
A crown is placed on the head.
Let your reign be long. Long live King Mario the First de Capodimonte! Mario the Restorer! Long live King Mario!
Long live King Mario! The crowd shouts.
Arise, King Mario I de Capodimonte, King of the Kingdom of Contego.
After that, there was a blinding light coming from the crown. The clerics were startled, this wasn't part of the ceremony. The crowd didn't know so they cheered. Cardinals only squinted their eyes. The crown was enchanted and the lands around them turned green. The holy hill returned to its former glory. The gods have spoken. The cardinals excused themselves since too many people in one place could lead to some problems. They would teleport out. This was also the moment the bronze dragon bend the knee and took an oath to serve the Kingdom of Contego and the Golden Shield.
After all of this was done. Elhaeltôr asked people to come to visit him. He had something to reveal. The main plot of the campaign was revealed here (well, maybe part of it, there's still a lot to reveal). Harthion Goldleaf, Elhaeltôr previous incarnation, after the fall happened, the drow. He searched for a way to escape this world. He helped the elves to repair their ship. However, there was a problem. The world was ending soon and he couldn't stop it. The world would break and the elves wouldn't be able to escape. He needed to do something. This was the legend that carries that Heroes Save The World. During each near-extinction cataclysm, the heroes show up and save the world. Then they die like some sacrifices. Harthion/Elhaeltôr came with a plan. He would create such heroes to give his allies time to repair the ship. He broked a deal, allied himself, with Eye of Many. He would lose his memory, become weak and create a group of heroes. All of the campaign is due to this. The party gathering. The party rescuing people. Elhaeltôr insisting on saving stuff. All of this was preplanned by Harthion and Eye of Many. That's why the latter didn't interfere with the party, only once, when Elhaeltôr's curses started to break. He saw a flaw that he wanted to fix. This is why the Eye of Many wasn't at the forefront of the campaign this entire time. His plan was going as planned. There are no coincidences. Elhaeltôr said he is sorry for everything and was willing to go away if the party wished so. However, they affirmed that to them he is Elhaeltôr and their friend, at least some said that. The party would have to plan their next steps. Now they know what the stakes are. They need to save the world and to do so, they need to travel beyond the sphere, that binds the world and fight against the darkness that are the lords of Eye of Many. How they do it if they are ready and other questions popped up. Right now, they would need to prepare. The party discussed their next course of action. There were couple of suggestions. Talk to the Travellers, the archfey that might know where Mother of All Dragons is, she is the key to salvation or rather her Life Spark, since it was a weapon against the darkness in the void. Take care of Elhaeltôr stuff in the forest and on the island. Also, they could try the far south, to check on Lord Sun's emergence place.
Scarlett was for this and she later revealed that the amulet she got belonged to a Quickstep, the uncle of Finnean. Finn would stay in the kingdom for a while longer but would send spies to gather information about his uncle in Quadropolis, where he died. This would be the key to understanding who were Scarlett's parents. The party decided that they would Gate the Traveller to their world and talk to him, next they would go to the Far South with teleport. The spell was successful and the archfey was neutral on being Gated ("It was long ago since last time"). He said that he knows where the Mother of All Dragons rests but he can't go there, her prison, made by beings of the void blocks access. There is a continent on the way, populated by the first race, the beings that were before the dragons. Their home is also defended against magical travel. He revealed that somebody else asked about this before - clad in dark armour with diamonds. This description fits the Great Emperor. He also said he has some kind of vehicle, ship that is able to fly to the continent and he is working on making it able to go the Mother of All Dragons. The Traveller said to look for him if they want to get to the continent and that is their journey, not his. With this information, the party starts to doubt that the Great Emperor is their enemy. They gather together and teleport to the Far South, seeking answers in Lord Sun.
Far South
Ziggurat of Sun
Thanks to Solange's book, they were able to teleport to a description of the first temple of Lord Sun. However, when they got there, it was filled with people around the temple. Thousands, tens of thousands of people came to the temple. It looked like a ziggurat and the stairs were filled with people going to the top. The party had some problems with the weather but didn't stay to chat. They did scare the people around them but didn't talk to them. The deeper they got, they saw that some people aren't fully human. They had some lizard/snake elements. Snakefolk are a rarity among Lizardfolk. There are many stories that they bonded with humans after they came and using magic they well able to combine their souls or something like that. The Yuan-Ti (they aren't called in the campaign but let's keep calling them this until they get a real name). When they got close to the ziggurat, they were stopped by the serpentfolk but Solange was able to convince them to let them pass and ignore the queue.
Serpentmen, True Followers of Lord Sun
At the top, they were stopped again. They saw two large serpentfolk (abominations), a triceratops and a "cleric" that has his hand changed into snakes. He was taking one by one of the volunteers to check their blood. Then decided if they will be a future sacrifice or not. Nobody was scared here. Everybody was happy to come and willing. One was even rejected which made him angry and only the serpentfolk were able to convince him otherwise. Solange was able to go next, while the party stayed behind. He talked with the priest and it was revealed that their leader is called Lord Skuthus and he will call you if he wants to see you, not the other way around. Seeing that the only peaceful way of meeting with this leader is by becoming a candidate for the Blood Sun ritual, Solange gave his blood like the previous people. However, when his blood touched the blood-filled bowl, all of it turned to water. The priest was angry and it made all the serpentfolk hostile. The party fought against them but the cleric was able to escape deeper into the temple.
When the party got inside, they arcane locked the entrance and started their delve deeper. The first chamber had the relic that was once used to sacrifice people, the sacrificial stone slab. Nobody used it for centuries. The walls were filled with symbols of lizards, snakes, humans and the sun. The party was able to find where the cleric escaped and ventured down, following a trail of blood from the candidates that couldn't see in the dark and hold their bloody hand on the right side of the wall. Along the way, they found one of the candidates that were happy to be chosen and wanted to go. The party dropped them quickly unconscious, fearful that they will be sacrificed. Last time they did the Blood Sun ritual it was five years ago. Which would work with the Great Empire of Freedom formation and expansion timeline. The next room had "islands" separated by a drop filled with holes, fire traps, and connected with bridges (some destroyed just now). The serpentfolk defended this place but the rogues were able to get behind, turn off the trap and killed some. The party killed everybody, except for one that escaped. They had 3 ways to go and decided to follow the blood of candidates. This was also the corridor that the escaped took. There they heard them talking in draconic. They called the party "the great enemy", that they are here to stop the Blood Sun ritual and such. The party saw that this room had couple of serpentfolk. Two large abominations, another cleric with changed hand and a serpentfolk that had to be higher on the hierarchy (better robes, head of a serpent, full body scales). Behind them was a wooden wall, where the candidates were, they were grilling food for themselves and were happy. The party rushed in, killing the large monsters. The human cleric tried something but was killed before he could use his power. The serpent cleric was taken alive (unconscious). The candidates were angry and threw rocks at the party, there was no reasoning with them.
The party later interrogated the cleric. Apparently, the Blood Ritual gives them powers and they were preparing to attack the north. The sun turns red at that time. They believe themselves the descendants of the real worshippers of Lord Sun and that Solange is nothing but an impostor. That the blood turning into water is a sign of it. Asked about where Lord Skuthus might be. The cleric explained that he either met with "the avatar" to the left or went to the right were the sacrificial hole is and further the main part of the temple. The party decided to check on the avatar, the snakefolk followed them. In the next room, they saw an even bigger serpentfolk, with many heads. He spoke that he is the avatar, chosen. That they are mere mortals before him and why they came. The party again said that they come peacefully and Solange asked again about the blood. This was the moment that all of them hissed and attacked.
Combat Screenshot
