Environmental disaster

Another Session report as I try to get caught up. This one from 2 weeks ago. For this one, I had two adventures prepared - one that the players could not really avoid and one that they could and did. It left me scrambling to keep ahead of them. I used a modified version of "Curse of the Web Witch" by Matthew Kline of Creations Edge Games for the Moon Gate and parts of "Darkwood's Secret" by Justin Bacon published by Fantasy Flight Games for the Darkwood.

During this session, the player's wizard used a Fireball spell in a dry, winter forest with the expected consequences. After a few sessions with 5 players, we are down to 4 players again.

Session 50: The Darkwood

Players: Lakima (Magic-user), Eathwund (Fighter), Alonso (Human Fighter), Aashdashon (Human Necromancer), Domago (Human cleric NPC), Lantosh (Human Fighter NPC), Fenris (Human Thief NPC), Slabs (Bugbear NPC), Aron (Human Monk NPC).

After a few days spent resting as guests of Princess Argenta in the Palace of Haven the heroes leave with an elven guide. Naeren Nalil guides them on a long walk through the feywild to the location of a Moon Gate on the tributary of the Farstride river.

On arriving they discover that the woods around the Moon Gate are covered over in huge spider webs. The webs are enormous in size, stretching 30 feet in diameter. Naeren tells them that this is not how the Moon Gate looked when last he passed through 200 years ago (a week ago to the elf). They follow a clear path into the woods are they are immediately attacked by a pair of humanoid spider creatures (ettercap). Lakima and Domago become stuck in a sticky web trap hidden by dead leaves.  Meanwhile, Aron, who was scouting ahead is stabbed twice by an ettercap and then poisoned by its bite. Aron falls to the forest floor unconscious.

Eathwund and Alonso push forward and attack another of the creatures while Aashdoshan sends his skeleton minion to attack it as well. Fenris runs over to help Lakima get free of the webbing. Seeing that Aron has fallen, Aashdoshan moves to his side and enacts a strange magical ritual in which he transfers life-force to the fallen monk. Domago who is still stuck in the webbing tosses Aashdoshan his last potion of neutralize poison. A moment after Aashdoshan finishes the ritual and administers the potion, Aron sputters awake.

The fighting continues with the adventurers pushing the ettercap back into the forest down a side path. The creatures fall to the ground and are killed but let out loud shrieks as they die. Just as the heroes pause to catch their breath they spot several more ettercap coming towards them from the side trail. Lakima yells for everyone to get back and he throws a fireball into the center of the pack of creatures. Naeren can be heard yelling, "Wait! What about the trees!" as the explosion wipes out several ettercap and sends the two survivors limping in retreat over a stone bridge the spans the Farstride river.

Naeren comes up to Lakima and tells him that the fire he has started stands between the company and the Moon Gate. As they watch the fire sputters out for the most part. Some trees continue to smolder.

Aashdoshan sends his skeleton minion further ahead to scout. The skeleton approaches the bridge and the heroes see the two fire-injured ettercap on the other side. They also see numerous giant spiders crawling out from the underside of the bridge. Lakima again hurls another fireball. This one detonates on the far bank of the river with an explosion of flame. The ettercap are incinerated and numerous giant spiders emerge from under the bridge on fire. They are consumed by the flames fairly quickly. The fireball blast also ignites many of the trees of the forest and a forest fire starts to blaze away on the far bank.

Naeren again warns them that the fire is spreading in the direction of the Moon Gate. Eathwund, Alonso, and Aron quickly run across the stone bridge. Ahead of them, they see three giant spiders fully 6 feet long in size waiting for them. The rest of the adventurers soon catch up. As they watch the spiders stay back, blocking their path ahead but seemingly held at bay by the growing fire. Lakima casts a Lightning bolt and one of the spiders is killed. But the remaining spiders retreat into a tunnel of spiderwebs between the trees. Lakima looks at Naeren who nods, "That is in the direction of the Moon Gate!" The heroes move toward the narrow path that the giant spiders have taken. They see a 10 foot in diameter tunnel through the forest wrapped in spider webs. The two giant spiders wait before an eight-foot-tall stone archway that is completely draped in spiderwebs. Glints of gold and silver peak out from the foot of the archway. Lakima cautions against approaching but his charmed Bugbear lets out a roar and runs at one of the spiders. Eathwund quickly follows. The bugbear crushes one spider and Eathwund kills the other. Eathwund lights a torch and starts burning the webbing away from the archway. As he is concentrating on that task he hears the bugbear growl and move past him. From out of the trees emerges a strange, fey creature. Part scorpion, part spider, and part humanoid female. The odd creature slashes at the bugbear and Alonso with sharp claws. Eathwund finishes burning away the webbing over the gate. He can see the stars shining in the gateway. While Eathwund, Alonso, Aron, and the bugbear battle the spider-creature in melee the rest of the heroes use missile weapons. The creature is struck several times before hitting the bugbear with its poisonous stinger. The bugbear collapses to the ground. The fey creature then turns its attacks onto Alonso but the fighter is able to deflect its blows with his two-handed sword. After several tense moments, the creature is finally struck down. They quickly examine the Moon Gate and find dozens of gold and silver spider tokens spread at its base. As the fire is getting closer, Lakima asks Naeren "How do we work the Gate?" Naeren replies that they only need to jump in. Lakima goes first followed by the elf and Aashdoshan. One by one the adventurers step through the Moon Gate. Eathwund comes last hauling the enormous body of the bugbear.

The heroes find themselves stepping out of a similar Moon Gate located in a quiet forest. The temperature is much colder but the forest is much more sparse than the feywild. A familiar sun beams down upon them. Naeren takes a little bit of time to get his bearings. He points out the tall hill on which the ruins of Haven stand. A jumble of rocks for the most part. Then he points out an overgrown road of paving stones. The forest has started to reclaim it but it is still clearly a road. He tells them this will lead them in the direction of the Bridgeway. The adventurers take a moment to reflect and discuss where to head first. They are all anxious to get back to civilization. Lakima and Eathwund point to the road and decide the best course of action is to head to the Bridgeway and portal directly to Edgerton. Aashdoshan tells them he would like to join them. However, Aron tells them this is where their paths will diverge. He has accomplished what he set out to do in breaking the curse on Haven. He has other tasks in mind. Aron takes his leave and heads south. Naeren tells the adventurers he will take them at least as far as the Bridgeway. He has been tasked by his Princess with speaking with the Grand Duke in Dolmvay but the Bridgeway is on his way there.

Their final task before setting out is to bury their Bugbear companion. He may have been placed under a Charm to serve them but many of the heroes profess that they considered the bugbear a companion. A simple hole is dug and the body is placed in it. Aashdoshan draws some ritual marks on the bugbears' forehead. Then Domago wipes the marks off telling the necromancer that the body should not be disturbed. The hole is filled in and rocks placed over the top of it. Naeren seems a little off-put by the placement of a bugbear burial mound in what was once the town of Haven.

Naeren sets off following the trail with the adventurers following him. They march for an entire day through the woods. The road turns into a wide trail and then a narrow path through a forest that gets steadily wilder, darker, and more congested. As evening arrives the Elf calls for a halt and they make camp. Around the campfire, Naeren confesses that the woods have changed dramatically since he last passed through them. For him, it has only seemed a few weeks since he took this trail. But it has in fact been over 200 years. He tells them of his concerns for the state of the forest. The forest is quiet and oppressive. He says that it feels to him like an extension of the Darkwood. When asked for an explanation he tells them that the Darkwood is a small area of the forest where Dark Fey creatures gather and hold dominion. The elves of the Athan Forest (as he calls the Kings Wood) made a Pact with the Dark Fey. As long as they stayed in their part of the forest the elves would do the same and no conflict would occur between them. Now that the elves have been gone from these woods for 200 years it seems that the Darkwood has spread. He warns them that many dark fey creatures inhabit the Darkwood and some of the normal forest creatures are evil and twisted.

They set out again the next day. The trail becomes more difficult. In some places, it disappears from view or other paths overlap it as if the forest is trying to get them lost. Naeren stops frequently to get his bearings. When he is asked several times if they are lost he assures everyone that he knows the way, "Things have just changed!" They have a brief encounter with Assassin Vines in a particularly dark part of the forest with vines choking the trees lining the path. Then they stop again for the night. The camp is set and some downed wood is collected for the campfire. At the end of Lakima and Lantosh's watch, a cold fog begins to move out of the woods. The fog stays low to the ground and is kept at bay by their fire. As Lakima goes to awaken Aashdoshan he spots a bright light drifting through the woods. He warns Aashdoshan and Domago about the lights, "Will-o-whisps! Stick close to the fire and we will be safe." Aashdoshan and Domago watch the lights for several hours but they never move nearer. Eventually, they leave, and the fog dissipates.

The next day they start to make slightly better time. Naeren tells them it should be a day and a half more of travel to reach the Bridgeway. The forest starts to get a little brighter. The path is gone by now by Naeren seems to know the way. In the afternoon while walking they hear something enormous crashing through the woods seemingly following them on a parallel path but they quicken their pace and leave it behind. That night when they make camp the forest almost looks normal. The next day they reach the Bridgeway before noon.

The Bridgeway looks fairly deserted. They see few signs of the goblin army and no sign of their horses. Eathwund knocks on the door and the custodian Ezmeralden answers. The custodian is happy to see them and he calls for their ostler Nash who has been staying at the Bridgeway. Nash tells them he constructed a lean-to shelter for the horses in the woods. Ezmeralden asks them about their adventures in the Feywild and asks how they managed to return. In the conversation, Naeren learns the identity of the Elven ambassador who hired them. He tells them that Wynather is his uncle. Discovering that his uncle is in Edgerton, Naeren says he will join them on their trip. After a pleasant meal Ezmeralden sets the artifact to show the Asboro bridge in Edgerton. The adventurers carefully lead their horses across the bridge and appear at the foot of the bridge in the town. Aashdoshan uses magic to cover their arrival in a gust of wind and dust. But some townsfolk are still startled and a few run away screaming by the sudden appearance of the adventurers.

Naeren asks for directions to the Elven estate and takes his leave for the group. He tells them they will meet again soon. Aashdoshan accepts an invite to the Chapter House of the Black Dragon Company. Arriving at the Chapter house Huntley takes their arrival in stride. He tells Lakima that his apprentice is not in today having told him that he had an errand in the market. Everyone gets settled and Lakima heads over to see his fiancee Alayna. Aashdoshan asks Eathwund about a likely spot to get some tinkering done and he is directed to Clearwin's Oddities. After a little bartering Clearwin agrees to affix the Eye to his new Bone Staff.