WotBS EmeraldBeacon's Burning Sky (online game)

[emeraldbeacon]

Thought I'd follow in @Tolamaker 's shoes and list some thoughts about my journey through GMing this campaign path. The party as a whole has largely stabilized, after some early shuffling and turnover. The Dramatis Personae:

Fen Ravenwing, a Taranesti Arcane Rogue. Once an extremely young princess in Phorros Irrendra, she managed to escape the genocide, with only a child's understanding of what happened. Her noble heritage now concealed, she seeks to help her people recover their homeland, and their pride. As the last of her blood line, she has a legitimate claim to the highest noble titles of the Taranesti people of Phorros Irrendra, and stands as a true rival to Shaaladel, should he ever discover her true lineage.
Varis, a Droalesti Twilight Cleric. An orphan himself, he witnessed some of the aftermath of the Shahalesti attack on Phorros Irrendra. His twin sister left his temple almost forty years ago, after she heard of atrocities that a young Half-Taranesti boy witnessed in the forest of Ycengled Phurrst... His sister is actually one of the two that took young Rhuarc in, and together, built a plan to undo the ambitions of both Ragesia and Shahalesti, by destroying the torch.
Malakai, a Dragonborn Hexblade Warlock. Once a Ragesian soldier, he experienced a freak, random magical awakening shortly before the Scourge began. In fear for his life, he fled to Gate Pass, and has been running ever since... both away from his former army, and towards his strange patron. Malakai has actually been contacted by a distant wisp of the Stormchaser Eagle's spirit, bound to the world and supporting it, even as Leska plans to destroy it. Desperate for a champion to stop her, Malakai was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Bast, a Dwarven Wild Magic Barbarian. A man running from his past, Alabaster Dashgoban is the nephew of one of Dassen's sitting lords. Already an impulsive individual, he gained inexplicable (and largely uncontrollable) magical powers when he unknowingly became host to a Trillith. The Trillith is "Zeal," and it represents itself as a wolf, an image it drew from Bast's memory, as a symbol of the house he essentially abandoned.
Tovolar, a Halfling Dragon Spirit Monk. Strong-willed and hot-headed, this warrior carries a severe Napoleon complex, but also a strong desire to help the weak. His pure focus attracted the attention of a notable draconic spirit, which has agreed to share its power... for now. As a champion of the Stormchaser travels, so do does its rival, and the Flamebringer dragon (or what remains of it) has empowered Tovolar to walk the same path, and perhaps to set in motion some degree of pennance for its previous actions.
Miguel Tall-Foot, a Gnome Drakewarden Ranger. Previously a wanderer of the wild, he joined a commune of nature-loving individuals, who began to teach him their own draconic lore. It wasn't long before a draconic spirit made contact, and they set off on a journey of discovery together... but just what is that spirit, anyway? A bizarre conglomeration of draconic powers, the spirit is a semi-corporeal amalgamation created by Pilus' experiments, including dragonscales taken from both the corpse of Syana, and the mighty Phaaughsmat.

 

[emeraldbeacon]

So far, Tovolar has been great fun to torment with "short" jokes. He's developed quite a passionate hatred of Haddin, after he unceremoniously dominated the halfling monk, and forced him to execute the Ragesian Inquisitor hunting him. Thus far, he's insinuated several times that he intends to kill Haddin... but I have a feeling that a moment is going to come when Haddin gives him a piece of his mind about how the two of them aren't so different after all.

Bast told a lie to the party about fighting a massive salamander in the gorge beneath the crumbling bridge in Innenotdar, to explain for his absence and burns down below... which only made the ACTUAL encounter with a salamander, later, even more hilarious. Sadly, said salamander rolled terribly during the attack, and was unable to drag anyone into the flames.

The party was able to piece together the connections between Indomitability and Anyariel pretty early on, though they're still trying to fill in gaps in the story. It should make the later puzzle pieces much easier to include.

I'm toying with the idea of having Nelle, the unicorn, offer each the ladies in the group (Torrent, Crystin, and Fen) one of his hairs as they leave the waterfall cave. I'm not sure if it would be anything more than a symbolic gesture, but would you say that using a unicorn hair as a bowstring would imbue the arrows with enough of its power, to be considered magical (for purposes of overcoming resistance)?

I'm also wondering how much patience Indomitability would have with the party, which has (thus far) agreed to free him by "silencing the forty" (and therefore have been granted his boon, for now). Would their detour upriver get his attention? If so, how strenuously should he demand their obedience, lest he revoke his boon?

 

[Tolamaker]

Tovolar, a Halfling Dragon Spirit Monk.

Malakai, a Dragonborn Hexblade Warlock.

Miguel Tall-Foot, a Gnome Drakewarden Ranger.

This is a super dragon-heavy campaign. Sounds like a great opportunity to have certain trillith drawn to them in RP based on which ideal/attribute they are closer to.

I'm toying with the idea of having Nelle, the unicorn, offer each the ladies in the group (Torrent, Crystin, and Fen) one of his hairs as they leave the waterfall cave. I'm not sure if it would be anything more than a symbolic gesture, but would you say that using a unicorn hair as a bowstring would imbue the arrows with enough of its power, to be considered magical (for purposes of overcoming resistance)?

I always like magical weapons that don't need the +1. Plus archers are often starved for magic items. On the other hand, you could always treat it similar to an Immovable Rod. A simple magic thread that can't break. I'm sure they could find plenty of ways to use them.

 

[emeraldbeacon]

This is a super dragon-heavy campaign. Sounds like a great opportunity to have certain trillith drawn to them in RP based on which ideal/attribute they are closer to.

My plan is to have the Drakewarden's spirit actually be one of Pilus' discarded creations, a semi-etherial amalgamation of numerous draconic bloodlines. The Dragon Spirit monk, on the other hand, has a tenuous tie to the spirit of either Khor-el-Jiese or Time... I'm not entirely sure which way I'm going. Bast, as well, actually has a Trillith dwelling within him (a red wolf named Zeal), that's creating the wild magic surges whenever he rages. Now that the players have heard the names Trilla and Trillith, Bast is probably going to have a dream about the others Trillith that he's already met (a black horse representing Justice, a barn owl representing Foresight, and of course, the flaming stag that is Indomitability).

The Dragonborn Hexblade, however, actually has a connection to what remains of the spirit of Jhial-el-Avilona; I'm reasonably sure the player is dead-focused on his character having ties to ancient and powerful dragons, and I thought it would be a nice subversion.

 

[Bill T.]

I figure that the unicorn hair should let you summon Nelle like the appropriate Summon Nature's Ally spell. Seda, the seela druid in my group's party, summoned a unicorn the old-fashioned way, and I couldn't resist having it be Nelle.

 

[emeraldbeacon]

I figure that the unicorn hair should let you summon Nelle like the appropriate Summon Nature's Ally spell. Seda, the seela druid in my group's party, summoned a unicorn the old-fashioned way, and I couldn't resist having it be Nelle.

I always like magical weapons that don't need the +1. Plus archers are often starved for magic items. On the other hand, you could always treat it similar to an Immovable Rod. A simple magic thread that can't break. I'm sure they could find plenty of ways to use them.

The character opened up Nelle's appearance by choking up, and saying that Unicorns were basically sacred to her people... so that's why she's getting the hair (I decided to give one to the other "maidens" of the party, too - Crystin and Torrent - so it wouldn't seem ENTIRELY like I was favoring one player).

My plan is to give them a relatively high arcana check if they ask what it does, then just say, "You really don't know exactly what a unicorn hair can do. Maybe you can do some research at the Lyceum, or just... try things with it?"

 

[emeraldbeacon]

Tonight, the party left Nelle the unicorn and head downstream, encountering the devil Kazyk. They were singularly unimpressed by his offers of alliance, and rejected his offer. Since they hadn't fought yet, he picked a fight... and rolled terribly for initiative, without any element of surprise. One imp was dead before it could even act, thanks to a critical Eldritch Blast. Kazyk tried to hit-and-run, but as the Drakewarden kept sending his fire-immune buddy into the underbrush, he quickly had to teleport away. Later, heading back to their tower base of operations, they met Tiljann, who was promptly almost killed, then started fangirling all over the cleric who revived her in the middle of the fight.

Amusingly, Torrent has started to develop a reputation as someone who can't hit the broadside of a barn... either her crossbow bolts go wildly off-target, or she hits, and rolls a 1, for 0 damage.

Lastly, is this a minor error in the Roll20 module, or is Tiljann secretly from Krypton?

 

[Tormyr]

Amusingly, Torrent has started to develop a reputation as someone who can't hit the broadside of a barn... either her crossbow bolts go wildly off-target, or she hits, and rolls a 1, for 0 damage.

Just like in our game.

Lastly, is this a minor error in the Roll20 module, or is Tiljann secretly from Krypton?

You're killing me.

 

[Tolamaker]

Amusingly, Torrent has started to develop a reputation as someone who can't hit the broadside of a barn... either her crossbow bolts go wildly off-target, or she hits, and rolls a 1, for 0 damage.

Just like in our game.

It is known. Spiritual weapon was her saving grace in the Fire Forest.

 

[emeraldbeacon]

In tonight's session, the party concluded their fight against the Seela rebels holding Tiljann hostage. Managing to knock them all down without any escapees, they questioned both Tiljann and the rebels about the reason for the attack... after some tense discussions, the rebels admitted they just wanted the suffering of their people to end, and it was people like Tiljann prolonging it, while Tiljann was still hopeful for finding an actual solution to the fire, rather than just surviving it... and that finding "something beautiful" meant that her hope was not in vain.

The party began to put more information together, connecting "the forty" that they were to "silence," to the singing seela to the south. In her part, after explaining some about the Song of Forms, those party members who understand Sylvan caught some of the lyrics, and clocked the line about the living blade.

There were some quiet and sad discussions during the night, including Torrent bemoaning her own deficiencies, and debating whether or not it might be worth making a deal with a devil after all. Crystin was asked about her visions, and was able to convey that she did have some connection to Nelle's dreams, of the "children of Trilla." Later on, Haddin finally asked about the case of Ragesian Intel that the rest of the party had kept hidden from him (until the devil Kazyk announced its existence). He offered to open it (he knows Knock), so everyone could actually look inside, but was declined. He also infuriated one of the party members (whom he previously Dominated), by pointing out - with at least a bit of legitimacy - that they were the same, willing to do whatever dirty deeds needed doing, to survive.