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Dunmari Frontier - Delwath Solo Session 2

Shadows of the Fallen: in which ancient battles haunt the present

Featuring: Delwath, Aristaea, Iascaire
In Taelgar: Oct 06, 1748 DR to Oct 09, 1748 DR
On Earth: Friday Aug 05, 2022
Forest of Nightmares

Delwath and companions journey through the Forest of Nightmares, confronting haunted battlefields and freeing Tanshi bound by cursed armbands.

Session Info

Summary

  • Delwath and new companions Aristaea and Iascaire plan to visit battlefields in the Forest of Nightmares.
  • In a deserted Deno’qai village, the party experiences flashbacks of the Battle without Hope, seeing the Godcaller’s last stand and the hobgoblin wizard’s demise.
  • Fighting sorrow creatures and shadow visions, they locate and destroy Cha’mutte’s Shadow Armband, freeing spirits Yalik’i and Nisir.
  • At the Battle of Darkfire site, they battle demonic trees and beasts to sever and destroy another of Cha’mutte’s Armbands, freeing spirit Yezali.
  • The party retreats to Ko’zula forests for rest after their encounters.

Timeline

  • Oct 06, 1748 DR: Arrive at the hunting camp, meet Aristaea Mountainhands and Iascaire
  • Oct 07, 1748 DR: Set off with Aristaea and Iascaire for the Forest of Nightmares. Arrive at the battlefield of the Battle without Hope. Fight haunted spirits, uncover the location of a shadow armband, destroy it, freeing Yalik’i and Nisir.
  • Oct 07, 1748 DR, late afternoon: Depart battlefield of the Battle without Hope. Walk through the night.
  • Oct 08, 1748 DR, mid-morning: Arrive at the site of the Battle of Darkfire. Remove the armband from the dead body of a massive demon while fighting demonic beasts and trees. Destroy armband, freeing Yezali. Head back to safety of Ko’zula land to rest.

Narrative

We begin in the hunting camp, where Delwath meets Aristaea and Iascaire, and they discuss the battlefields of the Forest of Nightmares: the Battle of Darkfire, where Yezali fell; the Battle of Ye’mote, where Midri and K’onisati fell; the Battle of Endless Dark, where Taraka fell; and the Battle without Hope, where Yalik’i and Nisir fell.

After looking at some maps and discussing routes, the group decides to head for the Battle without Hope first. Traveling through the Forest of Nightmares is eerie, for there is almost no sound, no animals, just the occasional creak of the trees in the wind and the whisper of ghosts in the distance, the occasional hint out of the corner of your eye that something is moving in the distance.

The battlefield on which the Battle without Hope was fought is now a deserted, abandoned Deno’qai village, a small collection of huts in a clearing in the woods. But there are odd signs of a simlacrum of life: clothes still on a line, rotting away but neatly hung, a fire pit where bones have been piled but there is no fuel or meat to cook.

In the village, the party encounters flashbacks of the past, of the battle that happened here. Aristaea sees the central green filled with warriors prepared for battle, when hundreds and hundreds of Hobgoblins accompanied by flying demons emerge from shadow portals and attack. An air of malaise hangs over the village and infects the warriors, for they don’t attack, just stand waiting to be slaughtered. The only one who reacts is the priest, who shapeshifts into a giant bird to battle the hobgoblin commander, who is wearing one of Cha’mutte’s Shadow Armbands.

The vision fades as the rest of the party fights a shadow creature with long spikes for arms. As the shadow creature is killed, and the party continues to explore, another vision, this time experienced by Delwath. The battle continuing, the tanshi bolstering the Godcaller, fighting across the village square with the hobgoblin commander.

This continues, exploring the village and fighting with nightmare visions of the past, while the occasional creature of sorrow and despair attacks, and eventually the party pieces together the scene of battle, that the Godcaller fought the commander to a standstill, but the hobgoblin wizard spoke a word and struck him dead. As the Godcaller falls, two spirits – tanshi – attack the wizard, striking him down, but vanishing as they struggle to remove the armband from the hobgoblin’s dead body. Identifying the location where the wizard fell, the party digs up his dead body after killing more of the sorrow creatures, and destroys the armband with Iascaire’s fire magic, freeing Yalik’i andNisir

After a short rest, the party then heads to the Battle of Darkfire. Approaching the battlefield, the party sees the vast body of a dead demon lying a clearing, Cha’mutte’s Shadow Armband around his wrist. Beginning to approach, the trees and beasts of the forest, flush with demonic energy, attack. The trees are vulnerable to Iascaire’s fire, and Delwath uses the magic of Narengril to create a magic circle impenetrable by demons. Still, the battle is difficult, as the armband cannot be harmed by fire while on the demon’s wrist. Eventually, Delwath’s shadow beast severs the armband from the demon’s wrist, and Iascaire is able to destroy the armband with fire before the party is overwhelmed, freeing Yezali.

We end the session as the party retreats to rest in the safety of the Ko’zula forests.