Overland by Air

This session saw the company heading the long way home. I had three side treks written to entice the players into adventures on the trip, but they just would not bite on most of them. The direct attack on their ship by a flying ghost ship did not go as planned when the magic user used a control weather spell to destroy the ghost ship.

Session 165: The Long Way Home

Lakima (human magic user), Eathwund (human fighter), Aldus (human cavalier), Domago (human cleric NPC), Ian of Darkhollow (human cavalier NPC), Luna (charmed Human Fighter NPC).

The Company of the Black Dragon is in Irllendom, having just saved the Earldom from destruction at the hands of the Orcs of the Mountain King and the Witch of Black Marsh. They rest for a week to allow Ian, the squire, to recover from his near-death experience and prepare for the long way home.

Once Ian can travel—but is still unable to fight—he is carried aboard the Cloudstealer, and the other members of the company board the ship. Lakima consults with the crew and sets the course for the passes over the Kings of Old Mountains. The ship ascends into the clouds and heads south. Crossing the mountains is done without issue, though it gets frigid. Once on the other side in the lands of Lockeland they descend and stop the ship for the night.

The next day, wild griffons pursue the ship until they catch up. Lakima casts a charm monster spell on the lead griffon, and it lands on the ship. The griffon is clumsy on the deck of the ship stepping on barrels and seating, breaking some of the wood supports. It calms down once it is fed some raw meat. The second griffon circles the flying ship for an hour before tiring and landing on the ship and demanding to be fed. The griffon that is not under a charm flies off as night falls.

The next day, the crew struggles to work around the enormous, clumsy griffon that insists on sitting on the deck near Lakima, who works at the helm.

“I want to make it to Peake’s Crossing,” Lakima calls out to the crew. Cowan calls out a bearing to Lakima. Late in the afternoon, Dagmar, who is on watch, calls out black smoke on the horizon. It is soon apparent that buildings are on fire in Peake’s Crossing. Aldus and Eathwund head to the ship's bow and call out that several buildings are on fire in the main square. Lakima sets the ship down in the main square, and they see a crowd of locals forming a bucket line to the river. The fire is raging out of control despite the efforts of the locals. More buildings are threatened. Lakima, Eathwund, and Aldus descend rope ladders to the ground.

“Make way, Make way!” Lakima shouts at the crowd. The guards quickly help move back the crowd for the trio. The reputation of the adventurers has been made recently in Peake’s Crossing. Lakima summons a water elemental from the river and sends it into the fire, quickly extinguishing the blaze. The town guard manages to pull four survivors from the ruins of the buildings, one of whom is Valon of Edgerton, a former company comrade.

“Eathwund, Aldus!” Valon shouts, then coughs up smoke, “I found a dragon horde!”

Several people in the crowd start shouting angrily at Valon. They soon learn that a red dragon landed in the square and set fire to the Silver Stag Inn, where Valon was staying. Valon has been in town for a few days, bragging about finding the treasure horde of a red dragon. Soon, the crowd gets more aggressive and begins calling for Valon to be hanged. The town watch holds them back and arrests Valon for his protection.

“Guys, help!” Valon calls out.

“Wait, wait!” Lakima shouts. Lakima tells the guard captain that it would be best to put Valon in the stocks in an open area where the dragon can easily get hold of him. The guards, and especially Valon, are shocked by this statement. The guards are unwilling to condemn a man to death on the rumor that a dragon is after him. The guards confer and decide to order Valon to leave town before sunset.

“You had better round up all of the gold he spent from the dragon horde,” Lakima says, “A dragon can smell its gold.”

Warning posters are set up around town, and town callers are instructed to order everyone who has interacted with Valon to return the gold he gave them for services. Valon tries enticing Lakima and Aldus with the news that he just took a single bag from the dragon horde. He tells them that much more treasure awaits if they join him.

“It is not our concern,” Lakima says, dismissing Valon.

Returning to the ship, Domago asks if that is Valon he saw being pulled from the fire. Lakima tells him that it is. Valon has gotten into some local trouble, which is none of the Company’s concern. Domago does not ask any further questions. That evening, the company will stay at Peake’s Crossing. Lakima, Eathwund, and Aldus go to a local tavern for dinner. At the tavern, a gnome named Veric asks to sit and talk to them. Veric is from Winterhaven and has heard about the reputation of the Company.

“I am part of an adventuring company like you guys,” Veric says and points at two dwarves sitting at a nearby table. “We call ourselves the Three Dwarves.”

Lakima points out the obvious problem with that name, and Veric tells them he was adopted by the dwarves. Veric asks if they plan to go after the red dragon horde. He is disappointed when he learns they are hurrying to get home and have no plans to disturb the dragon. Veric ponders this and tells them that his group might take a crack at the dragon.

“You had better get a few more dwarves before going after a dragon,” Lakima says.

The next day, the company sets out again. Lakima tells the crew he wants to stop at Leadra’s Row. This is only a slight change from a direct course to Edgerton. They arrive in Leandra’s Row just after noon and set the ship down in a meadow near the Abbey of St. Leandra. A few curious villagers approach the marvelous flying ship, as do a few nuns of St. Leandra. Lakima asks to speak to the Mother Superior of the Abbey. Mother Millis remembers Lakima, Domago, and Eathwund and assures them that the fey creature they caught is still imprisoned in the caldron trap they created. Lakima asks the nuns to remain vigilant and tells them they cannot stay. The ship soon leaves Leandra’s Row.

The ship now makes a straight course for Edgerton. Across the horizon, they see storm clouds approaching from the east. Lakima begins looking for a good place to land to avoid the storm.

“Ship ahoy, approaching from the east!” Dagmar yells out from the crows nest.

All aboard the ship race to the rails and watch the approaching storm. They can just make out the shape of a flying ship on the storm's edge.

“Does it look familiar?” Lakima shouts out, assuming this might be the ship he created for the merchant's guild that was later pirated.

“Three masted!” Dagmar shouts.

Recalling that the merchant ship had a single mast, Lakima warns,” Get ready to repel boarders. This could be a pirate!”

The ship continues to head directly for the Cloudstealer. As they close the distance, they realize it is twice the size of their ship. The ship looks like a deep-water ship that has not been converted to fly. Seaweed and water pour off the ship, its sails are in tatters, and human skulls line the railings and bow. They see a crew of ghosts manning the ship while the ship appears sold, but it looks like it was dragged from the deep.

Eyeing the approaching storm almost upon the Cloudstealer, Lakima casts a control weather spell, summoning a tornado, and directs it at the ghost ship. The tornado grabs hold of the ship and drags it into the clouds. The high winds are too much for the old wreck, and it is torn apart, tossing debris down from the clouds. Lakima has the Cloudstealer head down for the safety of a landing. The Cloudstealer lands in a forest clearing as the rainstorm descends over them.

The charmed griffon tries pushing its way into the tent on the deck of the Cloudstealer, tearing the fabric. So Lakima climbs down to the ground, with the griffon following him. He erects a large tent on the ground and decides to spend the night. The griffon settles in beside him, and Luna and Aldus join him. Eathwund organizes the crew on the ship into watches.

That evening, the crew of the ghost ship attacked the camp. Twelve ghost pirates attack, and Domago drives off six of them with the strength of his faith. Aldus and Eathwund defend the campsite and the ship. Lakima casts magic missiles at the ghosts. One ghost flies to the ship's sails and hacks away at them. The griffon tries to drive it off but cannot affect the ghost with its claws or beak. When the pirate captain is badly injured and flees, the rest of the ghost crew joins him, and the griffon gives chase. Lakima tries to yell for the griffon to return, but it is quickly out of sight.

The following day, there was still no sign of the griffon. The Cloudstealer resumes its journey toward Edgerton. As they pass over a forest, a lookout yells out that a griffon is chasing them from astern. Lakima decides not to slow down. The griffon is left behind.

The Cloudstealer arrives over Edgerton in the early evening. Once the ship has docked, the exhausted company heads down into the Manor House. Alayna and Huntley are there waiting for them. They are relieved to learn that nothing important happened while they were away, so everyone sleeps after a meal.

The next day, Alayna gives Lakima a message from Duke Robert. The message arrived while they were away. The first of the flying ships has been constructed at a secret location. The Duke needs Lakima to come to his Hunting Lodge, where the ship was built, to enchant it to fly. Lakima sends a message back that he will come in a few days. 

A week later, the group flies to the Duke’s Hunting Lodge. The Duke shows the Company the flying ship he has constructed at a secret site near the Lodge. Lakima prepares the spells needed and gets to work. During the five days it takes Lakima to enchant the ship, fire elementals attack the ship-building site twice—first four minor elementals and then one major elemental. Eathwund and Aldus drive the elementals off with help from a water elemental conjured by August. The attack damages the ship, but Lakima does not lose concentration on the enchantment. When he is done, the ship lifts into the air. Lakima gifts the Duke with the Bowl of Commanding Water Elementals to protect the ship. In return, Duke Robert promises to give the Company a villa in Dolmvay.

Over the next few weeks, Lakima installs magic portals in the School of Magic in Edgerton linked to the Bridgeway and the Queens’ Library in the City of Glass (after asking the undead librarian Nikosi for permission). The group discusses the attacks on Duke Robert’s new flying ship. Duke Robert felt sure it was the work of the infamous wizard Bargle.