051 - The Numarii King

This session began where the last one ended, in the middle of an interrogation of an orc sergeant that had been put to sleep by Kasper's elf twig hoodoo voodoo. 

Thannolf bent down to the orc's face and repeated his question. The orcs smiled but didn't answer. The northerling lost patience and locked his elbow at a very awkward angle. The orc tapped out from pain and told the company that the dwarves should still be loyal to Farathu. Halin kicked him as they decided to let him go. The only way out was back to his bethren (and into certain death).

K18 - Cold rain over Mirkwood

This session introduced our new PCs and se the stage for the next chapter of the campaign. 

The dust is settling over Browek Bridge

At the end of the last session, the Mirkwood elves had learned from the dwarves that there was an orc nest with live elven sacrifice deep underground. Gormiel, the leader of the elves, managed to secure one of the key from Khazek. Four of them entered Sarn Goriwig, four accompanied the dwarves back to Browek Bridge while two other remained at large. After a few hours of grueling hiking, the orb was safe within the dwarf fort. 

On the following day, Drolf appropriated the second key of Sarn Goriwig and handed it to Gror. Drolf announced that the Ardacer was to leave to open the road while Gror would stay behind to hold the bridge. Gror, worried about giant spiders and orcs, ordered the Ledge-Lot to close the perimeter and the rangers to take stock of the surroundings. Gror's hold on the troop was very good (MoS 3), and his defensive plan excellent (MoS 3). The combination of patrols by the rangers and his own axmen allowed him to build a precise mental map of the surroundings (Intelligence Analysis, critical success).  The bulk of the orcs had melted away soon after their expedition within the tower. The reasons of this scattering was unknown, but probably related to the death of the wizard. 

Khazek, now solely at the head of 21 rangers, launched into increasingly far reaching patrols. His command of the troop was adequate (MoS 0), his tracking effort highly effective (MoS 7), which was instrumental in providing Gror with a clear situational awareness. About a few days later, Gormiel linked with the ranger. The tower was sealed, and elven wraiths were haunting it for now. Khazek realized that Gormiel was uncomfortable with the situation. Gormiel told Khazek that Prince Imeptanen was on his way to Browek Bridge to resolve the dispute over the ownership of the orb and the tower.   

K17 - Yavanna's eye

Heading back to the light...

The dwarven company turned to Drolf for guidance. Gimvar's shoulder was mangled and the ranger was on the cusp of collapse. The wraith had had the best of Donarik, which was laying on the ground, breathing weakly. Gimvar, usually a go getter, reminded the company that to get in the Obsidian Tower, they had to bypass a large force of Mirkwood orcs camping a few kilometers down the vale.

Vadek was fidgeting with the obsidian rod. The air coming from beyond the gate was bad. Any dwarf could tell that unless some mechanical pumping of air from the surface was arranged, that this cave would soon become dangerous. Drolf, Kalin and Khazek seemed to be more interested in the daggers pulled out of the elves. Without much debate, they agreed to try to get out of the tower before the trap sprang on them for good. 

They dragged Donarik up the tunnel, into the great hall where the Huorn died. As they passed by the hall's door, Khazek noticed that the elven wraith was circling slowly above the green orb. Donarik was put down against the stairway's walls. Gimvar and Kalin sat down for a rest. Khazek, Vadek and Drolf entered the hall to inspect the orc once more.

K16 - The cystic mire

The company of dwarves had barged into an obsidian cave.  In this cave, a statue of the now dead green wizard towered over an orc's nest. Drolf jumped down and hit an orc hard that the orc expired on the spot. Kalin and Vadek engaged the two other orcs that had once worked by the mud pit.  The orcs didn't last for long.

The tactical map of the cave as used on roll20.

K15 - The orc's nest

This report is the second part of Session 10 - The Botanical Educations of dwarves. The first part can be found here. This report is incomplete and will conclude during our next session. +Douglas Cole posted some notes about this session here. 

Barging in...

The companions caught their breath after the fall of the huorn. The defunct tree straddled from the edge of the cliff down to a small opening leading down deeper under Sarn Goriwig. The dwarves decided to explore the way down in hope to find what the wizard didn't want them to find.

The orc's nest under Sarn Goriwig

The tunnel was winding at a steep angle. It lead some 50 yards below into another large chamber made of obsidian. The dwarves were advancing at a good pace and found themselves on an elevated platform. The platform turned into a wooden bridge. The pavement of the bridge crossed most of the room some 2-3 yards above ground. The front dwarves spotted right away an orc archer on guard beside a rough statue made of wood. To their right, there were at least two more orcs working around a large pit of mud surrounded by pillars.

The dwarves charged ahead at full steam. Donarik stayed behind to take aim while Khazek, Vadek and Drolf rushed through to get to the archer. Uncle Kalin and Gimvar slid down the way to get to the other orcs faster.

Drolf blocked an arrows and overran the archer with a sweep. The orc tumbled to his knees as Donarik's arrow hit its chest. Seeing Khazek and Vadek barging in, he slipped down the way to hide by the base of the statue.

049 - One big, elaborate dwarven joke.

The Entrance of the Numarii dwarves.

Walking knowingly into a trap

The gate under the mountain was adorned by two large statues of drakes. The gate itself was made of solid steel. At its center, there was a ring. Two flames shone like bright beacons atop pillars from which the mechanism of a draw bridge was secured. A canal crossed the hall, some 3 meters deep. Dark water was flowing from left to right through a pair of grates.

The company looked around in suspicion. Irina was the first to cross the bridge. She approached the steel gate and kicked it. Her toes absorbed the shock: no sound was heard. This door was in a wholly different league as the last three. Arnadil drew from his past as a fortification engineer to inspect the draw bridge. He noticed that the floor off the far wall was in fact a platform. The platform was made of slates and a steel structure that was bracketed at both ends and off the pillars opposite to him.

While Halin was prompted to inspect the structure, Nilppi got Thannolf to help him fathom the canal. There was only about a foot of water, and the current was marginal. Nilppi lowered himself with the help of a rope. The water was foul smelling and oily on its surface. Nilppi didn't made much sense of the steel structure underneath the floor until Halin got himself down there. The old masterdwarf had carefully removed his armor before taking a dip. It became obvious to him that the brackets holding the platform were moving components of some larger mechanism. Halin noticed that the platform would probably swivel down if the mechanism was triggered.

Nilppi, unable to grok dwarven engineering, headed to the upstream grate. At first, he thought that he heard a noise and stopped. He stretched his neck and drew his torch though the bars to see farther outward. A shockwave of roars rammed into the grate. A wall of claws and bony faces pressed senseless against the bars. Nilppi stepped back, some other members of the company readied their bows.

By the time that they had decided what to make of this. The brawling ghouls had turned against each other and drifted out of sight. The clamor died down. The company turned to the gate. The whole thing smelled bad. The choice left was walking into the trap, or go home.

Waddling in the wading pool

They knew that things would have to get bad before they got better. Two ropes were strung across the hall. They ran between the dragon statues: one on the ground and one at chest level. A third rope was tied to the ring on the door. Kasper, Nilppi and Irina got themselves on the ground-level rope such that they would not fall down if the platform was to collapse. The rest of the company returned to the near side of the canal to tug on the third rope. The pulled on the ring, which slid out smoothly. 

Nilppi jumped in style.

Predictably, the platform swung down into the water and the grates opened at both ends. The gate clicked open. The three company members balanced themselves against the wall. Kasper grabbed the door and slipped beyond. The disappointment was sharp when he realized that the gate lead to a room the size of a closet which housed the trap's mechanism. Nilppi dodged the claws of the ghouls by shoving Kasper into the closet. Irina considered jumping in, but one of the ghoul was in the process of chewing up the rope on which she stood. 

 Nimrodel and Finbert were shooting freely into the pit. Arnadil took a leap and knocked a ghoul off balance on his way down. When the rest of the company realized that he was now in close combat against 6 raving ghouls, they began jumping in as well. Nilppi first, then Kasper dove with his longsword swinging. Thannolf took a flying jump and snapped with his knee the head from one of the ghoul's spine. The ghoul fell in the water, then stood back on its feet. 

The melee was made of an unstructured mix of good and bad guys. Arnadil got clawed on his chest and blood started to drip from his armor. His attempt to retaliate was more spiteful than effective: his sword hit the ground and bent his wrist at a questionable angle (critical fail, crippled hand for 30 minutes). Thannolf, still hot in the collar from his super cool entrance grappled the ghouls from behind and tugged at its head. Halin hit hard but failed to silence the beast which fell only after Thannolf sliced its head with his sacred Lossoth knife. That was the last one still standing.

The company discovered that the ghouls didn't want to stay down. They had to hit them until their bodies were mechanically destroyed. Once that the smallest parts of the ghouls were too small to be articulated, only a floating mess of writhing flesh was left drifting to the right grate with the current. 

The Palantir commission as a novelty act

Climbing out of the pit was a trivial affair, but would lead only back to the entrance. A summary exploration of the upstream hallway lead them to an octogonal room. The room appeared to be the bottom of a chute set at its center. The chute was a mere 1m by 1m, but how far above was its origin couldn't be estimated. Nilppi tried to climb up but slid back down. By tossing a grappling hook, the company figured out that the chute was about 3m long. However, the grappling hook didn't caught on anything near its upper rim. 

The company decided in the most bizarre chain of reasoning to make a human pyramid so that the lighter and more nimble member could climb up to the chute's top. To convince the GM, there was threat to fetch video of cheerleader teams performing said action. The GM finally got swayed when the company threw into the plan the trunks used to make the battering ram. Kasper, Thannolf and Kasper were to make the base, supported by the battering ram's components. Arnadil, towering over his 7 feet made the second layer which took the construct into the chute. Nimrodel, nimble and light elf climbed up, then the hobbits. Irina managed to pull herself to another octogonal room. The beams from the ram were passed upward and Irina secured the ropes. In about 15 minutes, even the stoutest company member had made it up to the top.   

The only way out was a set of stair, running parallel to the stairs that lead to the hall. At the top there was a dead end and two small levers. Irina spotted in the dust many recent tracks of orcs and evidence that the far wall swiveled around a hidden axis. Pulling on the level brought them at the foot of a new set of stairs and to another secret door. Crossing the second door took them back behind the third wooden gate that they had rammed through about an hour ago. Irina tracked a large number of orc tracks in the dirty floor. Evidence of outdoors dirt could also be found. The company headed up the stairs and noticed a cool and fresh draught coming from higher up. 

The subterfuge revealed

The company walked through a storage room turned into an orc barrack. Beyond the door, they found themselves outdoors on the other side of the mountain. A path ran down into a close valley. It went back up at the other end, some 1500m away from the door. A camp of orcs was bustling with activity on the mountainside. Beyond the camp, there was another gate carved into the cliff. Arnadil used his looking glass to scan the area. He estimated the number of orcs to 50 to 70. He also noticed higher up on the cliff side there was an elaborate opening. 

The complex behind them seemed to be a decoy to mislead invaders. Halin shrugged at the Numariis' strange ways (The players are actually thinking that the Numariis could be some kind of duergars). The company was acutely aware that it was just a matter of time before the orcs would notice the death of all of their gatekeepers. Irina and Finbert, the resident hobbits in the company, volunteered to scout along the valley road. Finbert stumbled, lost his cool and came back to the gate right away. Irina kept on climbing, identified a hidden spot on the mountainside, but determined that she would be detected if she dared going further. 

The company pondered whether wait 15 days to get the support of Sir Galdor and his the soldiers of Gondor, or somehow trick the orcs into a winnable battle near the exit of the false Numarii gate. 

048 - Knock knock, who is there?

The Lossoth warriors of Arthon

Nilppi of Arthon, Lossoth Warrior overjoyed to join
the demon slayers from the south

After talking with the Arthedain chieftain in Arthon, Thannolf headed to the Lossoth area of the village. He was received with suspicion by the lossoth leader. His attitude changed radically when Thannolf's identity as one of the demon slayer was clarified. 

To Thannolf's greatest surprise, the Lossoth of Arthon did not appear to be great fans of Mulkan and its antics. Thannolf was treated with a large meal and hours of interesting conversations. The Lossoth leader offered the service of one of his top warrior, a middle-aged man called Nilppi. Thannolf tried to learn more about the Numarii dwarves and their relationship to the Winter drake. Unfortunately, nothing new came out of this interview. Thannolf and Nilppi took leaves of the chief and returned south to Kalt to link with the rest of the company. 

Khareo's Tale #6 - The back streets of Lorthalen

Hired sword wanted

The Lothal sisters weighed their options. They figured out that they would need some brawn to assist if they were to leave town. They posted ads around the city markets [ successful influence check with local merchants, +1 for advertising ].  Mary tried to skimp on salary, but eventually settled to offer 35 silver crowns per month plus a vitality amulet. A number of candidates knocked at the door [ Propaganda-10, +1 city size, +1 advertising, -1 failed use of "common sense/IQ" as supporting skill, +1 increased wage, +1 Charisma, +1 Status, +1 Wealth. Target:15. Success by 1 ]. A bankrupted bakers who had been convicted for fraud and desperate for work, a scary looking father of four looking for a better paid job, and a retired Navy officer with area knowledge in the Golden Archipelago. The sisters settled for Horatio Mar, the more expensive retired navy officer. They scoured the dock area for a ship heading for Lorthalen. They settled with a captain to depart on the following day against 4 silver coins each and the pledge to share the workload with the crew.

The trip was difficult but interesting. They learned much about seafaring and made friends among the sailors.

K12 - The Evil Eye

Recollections from Donarik, ranger of the Ark.

"Bimbo" the troll gets a hatchet blow in the kidneys and another one in the guts
from an unseen dwarfy thing. 

Once that the screaming in our heads stopped, we noticed two large trolls coming out of suspended animation from alcoves in the walls. Khazek-boy and I shot but hit the wall instead. I dropped my bow, drew my axe as I stepped back. I hit the troll really hard in the face and knocked him senseless. As he was teetering, I hit him again on its skull. This seemed to snap him off of his stupor. The troll grabbed me and used me as a projectile on my leader. Khazek dodged, I landed heavily on the ground. Rough day.

Around me, Khazek took over to push the troll back. Drolf and Vadek were about to fell the other troll. A number of orcs were streaming into the hall. Khazek and Vadek covered my flank as I stood up again. Kalin and I pushed the troll back into its alcove and finished him off as the rest of the battle unfolded.   

Khareo's Tale #5 - A devil's untimely end

In this session, the Lothal sisters are trying to finish the work started in the last session where they confronted a devil that was destroying the life of a noblemwoman. The devil turned out hard to kill, and the first contact ended in a withdrawal from Merbaum (the devil). 

Looking for Lorenz Lothal

The day after the confrontation with Merbaum, the sisters assumed that things would get quiet. They decided to head for the court of Sharna III to investigate the circumstances of their father's disappearance. They met with someone from the chamberlain office. It turned out that this man, named Karmen, personally knew their father. He left the sisters in a lobby while he knocked at a few other doors.



When he came back, Karmen told the sisters that their father has set out on a diplomatic mission to Lorthalen, a sovereign island in the Golden Archipelago. He set out on an independent sailship, never came back. As a result he was declared missing and his salary was terminated a month ago.

The sister went back home and worked for the rest of the day. Martha drew a star chart for her father and found out that within the last 6 months, her father had indeed been in the Golden Archipelago. Not a lot more could be read from the chart. At least the two pieces of information corroborated.

Tracking Merbaum through Khareo

Merbaum entered back into the sisters' lives with the knock of a door. Lady Fremton was waiting on the threshold with the crumbled remains of an amulet in her hand. She explained that the vitality amulet had shattered into the night. Mary recognized that Merbaum had possibly attempted to do her harm, and that the amulet had stopped the ritual. Mary advised Lady Fremton to wear the ring that she made to poison Merbaum since it was also a vitality amulet.

Both agreed that Merbaum would not let got of this easily. They anticipated a time where Lady Fremton could end-up without Mary's protection. Something had to be done, soon. The problem mainly was that there was no way to find out where Merbaum was in the first place. Lady Fremton didn't want to return to her flat for the time being.

The sisters splitted to attempt to find traces of a devil in Khareo. They knew that Merbaum was probably preying on other wealthy citizens in the city. However, the odds of finding any of them bragging about their curse were very low. Mary, whom had a fantastic rapport with the business community, decided to tap into this network to scrounge for rumors. She asked around for anecdotes about recently destitute or otherwise gloomy upstanding merchants. Unfortunately, a full day of running around left her empty-handed.

Martha was at a lost for rumors: most people that she knew treated her either as a child or as a weirdo. She got sneers from neighbors and shooed away from market stalls. Her best bet turned out to talk to Sheriff Stanton, a grumpy horologicalist with enthusiasm for tax collection. Martha had fallen in his good book by being so openly at odds with the local Architecturalist congregation.  

Stanton came back to her a few days later with the tip that a goldsmith called Elmira Acker had suddenly closed shop and isolated herself from her social circles. If her problem came from Merbaum, then he really had found the best kind of professional to harrass.

The curse of Elmira Acker, goldsmith.

Merbaum tangled into the net while Martha takes her sweet
time aiming.

When the sisters knocked at the closed shop's door, they were quickly turned away. Martha interjected and mentioned Merbaum by its name. The goldsmith, a woman in her forties, let them in and asked about everything that they knew about the devil. Her story was similar to Lady Fremton, except that her husband had left her a long time ago and didn't get killed by it. The sisters inspected the goldsmith shop and her adjoining apartment on the upper level. They then hatched a plan. Mary convinced Ms. Acker to invite them over that night so that they could ambush Merbaum. Hopefully, to wipe him from her life for good.

On the way home, Mary bough a net in the style used by demonstration fighters at festivals. She spent the rest of the day figuring out how to throw the darn thing. Martha loaded both flintlock pistols and wrapped them in a piece of canvas. Merbaum was about to get a taste of Lothal medicine.

The ambush according to Chloe ( Martha )

Later into the night, the sisters went back to the goldsmith shop. They consulted with Ms. Acker to find a good ambush setup. Usually, the devil came from the back door and got fed on the counter of the shop. Mary and Martha found dark corners in the store to hide.

Merbaum arrived late into the night. He was rude and threatening to Ms. Acker. She led him down to the store and manipulated her lantern such as to have the sisters on the other side of the glare. Merbaum landed on the counter and began wolfing down a few gold pieces.

Mary threw her net at him. He recoiled to dodge but slipped off the counter and landed on the ground, completely tangled. Martha walked to the powerless fairy and carefully shot him to the heart. The devil was leathery tough! Once the smoke cleared, Martha could only see a graze on his chest.  While she switched pistol, Mary hopped on the counter. Martha shot at Merbaum again: a great rift opened in his chest and yellow sparks were streaming out of it. Merbaum had given up on escaping the net and was instead trying to chew his way out.

Merbaum realized that a dodge retreat is impractical atop a
glass counter. 

Mary jumped down to the ground and trample him. She snapped her vitality amulet off her neck and shoved it into the rift. A surge of white light filled the room and the screaming got the best of Martha who fled to the upper level. Mary had been badly burnt by her last move and couldn't move her hand anymore. The devil tried to plead with Mary to let him go: Mary would have none of it. Martha came back in, snapped off her amulet from her neck and shoved it in the rift as well. Merbaum's body was now smoking, his mouth frothing. The sight and the pain from her burn sent Mary retching to the floor. As Martha was about to draw her foil, Merbaum stopped writhing and became silent. The devil had eaten his last golden meal.

The ambush by Sophie ( Mary Lothal ).

Peddling the body

The sisters had a hunch that a devil's body would fetch a good price from an alchemist. After a bit of negotiations, they managed to sell Merbaum's body to one of them for the great sum of 500 silver ( nearly a years' salary). It could have proably fetched a lot more, but this would have required an amount of leg work that the sisters weren't ready to put forth.

Mary and Martha realized that they now had enough money to support their mother and family home while they travel to Lorthalen to investigate the disappearance of their father. Hopefully Mary will be able to recover from her crippling burns on her right hand!


GM's notes: 

1. A net is a very potent weapon in GURPS!
2. Sophie had the brilliant idea to use the white magic of a vitality amulet to poison the devil: this is pure awesome!

K11 - The obsidian tower

Phew, is has been a month since the last session of Reclaiming Khazad-dum. We left our dwarven heroes in the midst of a magic attack on top commanders of the dwarf vanguard.

Diary from a Murik "tumbletorque", war drummer of the Ice Lot

An air of confusion and excitement had overtaken the camp. The rants of the sergeant major were overridden by the Attack-Lord's own monologue. People were digging holes and filing them back in. A bad scene.The victory to take the bridge had been followed by another to the north and vast amount of ale had been seized. The word on the lines was that the ale would be kept as personal loot by the brass. This rumor didn't please the dwarves. Our commander, Kalin "Stronghold", a noble from Aglarond had entertained us all in the afternoon with his antics. As the night fell and the orcs became restless, the commanders were all of a sudden nowhere to be found.

044 - Dashing through the snow

... with a 900 lbs crystal ball!

Act 44, Scene 1 - Dashing through the snow

After cleaving the Palantirs from the altar, the two living members of the company set on foot to reach the Raven before nightfall. Sir Galdor was weighted down by his armor. Halin offered to carry his hauberk to lighten his load. To maximize their speed, they decide to travel on the hard ice of the fjord, which should put them on sight of Mulkan at some point. Finbert, as a wraith, decided to follow the two and scout ahead. 

The snow was falling with increased intensity. By the time that the pair was passing east of Mulkan, the visibility was less than the width of the fjord. Finbert flew over to the village to take stock. The Lossoth of Mulkan were picking up the pieces after the wave of destruction of the afternoon. Halin and Sir Galdor never realized that they had passed the village.

Khareo's Tale #2 - The pendant and the foil.

Act 1 is an introduction to get the players to settle into their characters. I picked two of these events as they involved fun play from each PCs. 

Act 1, Scene 1 - Martha's swashbuckling at the fair

GM's note: I thought that a bit of action to send the campaign off would work well with a 6 years old gamer! Chloe isn't familiar at all with Martial Art's combat options, but I narrated the combat as best as I could, using figurines and acting, and proposed options for her. She totally loved the ideas of feints and to use the serendipity engine to find combat openings. It worked very well: the action was fast paced and engaging. All that I needed to do is to translate what she wanted to do in GURPS terms, and tell her her target number before rolling. 

Mary and Martha went for a whirlwind tour of the Chilkarro Market to pay off outstanding tabs. The month of July had been good for business. At the fair, Martha spotted a fencing tournament and decided to enter. Her opponent was a tall man: not as fast moving as she was, but definitively with a longer reach. To win the 10 silver crowns, all that she needed to do was to score three hits. Martha played safe at first: a few parried strikes were exchanged to size up the competition. Then, she carefully evaluated her opponent and waited for him to slip and leave something open. While he was looking at her smallsword, she slapped him with her off-hand [ Serendipity Engine Opening, off-hand attack +1 to strike / -1 to defend vs waiving the ability to dodge this turn. ][+]. This blow was just enough to shock her opponent and get him to miss on the counter-attack. Martha made a feint low then scored a point on the man's chest.

K10 - The orc with the plaid sash

Prelude: What Khazek knows about Sarn Goriwig
The hunters from Thranduil hall reported to the Ark-lot, via Khazek Strongmoss, that the obsidian tower of Sarn Goriwig appeared to be occupied again. Khazek has heard of this tower from the Lore of Mirkwood. He knew that the tower was a large glass construction which was built by Morgoth in the first age. It seved as an outpost in Mirkwood and a gate to the underdeep. When the Necromancer was expelled from Mirkwood, the tower was deserted. However, the presence of "fresh" orcs suggested that Sarn Goriwig was occupied again by a new overlord. 

Act 10, Scene 1 - The ranger's raid over an orcs' forward depot.

The Attack-Lord of the Ardacer sent the Ark-Lot North to move to contact with the orc's main body. Gomar Flameaxe, Herd-lot of the Ark ordered his crack ranger guard to open the march. This guard was lead by an impetuous member of the Royal family called Khazek Strongmoss. Training dwarves to fight like elves was a difficult task, but he was getting better at it. Khazek proceeded North off the path, keeping his 13 rangers under close control.

043 - To kill a demon, a picture story.

Act 43, Scene 1 - The temple guards of Mulkan

Three Lossoth temple guards to the rescue of Elder Tiani.

After sucking Elder Tiani dry of his life force, the company left the previous session with a number of charging temple guards. The bad news was that their weapons were clearly visible in the shadow world and this meant danger for them. The wraiths, wrapped in cool flames, flew above the charging guards that didn't flee following Kasper's casting of the Panic spell.

Arnadil remained close to Tiani's body while the hobbits and Thannolf swooped from the guard's rear. The Lossoth used their hooked swords to attempt to disarm Arnadil, but managed to get grazed by the sneaking wraiths from behind.

042 - Cliffside swordfight

As the party has split, this encounter was played off sequence to speed up the coming session. Its outcome remained secret to most players in the campaign until its consequence were revealed to the rest of the company. This encounters is a continuation of a previous one: "We're not in Kansas anymore". 

Act 42, Scene 1 - Leaving the Imenstone Shrine

The two "surviving" members of the company left the Shrine and decided to follow their wraith friends along the top of the cliff. Their destination was more than likely Mulkan, and the time to get there was anywhere between one and two hours. At first, the fog was thick and the sky unnaturally dark. Sir Galdor and Halin both waved their warding totems at the bone terrors lurking maybe a dozen yards away. Soon, however, the fog lifted and the light came back. The bone terrors faded and were soon left behind. 

Halin lowered the totem, put it against his shoulder and wrapped his arms around the pole. Soon, Sir Galdor was dragging the pole in the snow.

Halin spotted five figures heading in their direction at the edge of sight [ He was shortsighted, but has spectacles and managed to roll a critical success on his Perception check. ] [+]. This unusual warning allowed Halin and Galdor to descend into the cliff side and seek concealment. 

041 - Five wraiths over Mulkan

Session 14 - Frost Wedging part 3 of 3. 

A chip from the Imenstone

This session report covers the adventures of the Palantir Commission members who have crossed into the shadow world. Its timeline is intertwined with the previous story (Act 40). 

Act 39 - Lossoth Tales...
Act 40 - We're not in Kansas anymore
Act 41 - Five wraiths in Mulkan 

Act 41, Scene 1 - The eye of the storm

Arnadil banked on his leather glove to keep the Imenstone from affecting him. This theory went out by the window. The tumult of the world of the living was suddenly replaced by a void. Little of the world around remained: there was a standing stone close to his head, but it was crystal clear and didn't look to be solid anymore. The shard was clasped tightly in his hand. Astor, his gondoling sword, was glowing like a mirror in the sun. He turned around and saw Kasper and Finbert in similar predicament as his. Where his other friends stood, there were only faint outlines, barely a shade darker than the background. Arnadil noticed that the amulets were also glowing, and in his pack, one of the ruby encrusted in the key of the library of Annuminas. The three friends nodded at each other, planning to let go of the shards and return to the world of the living. Neither Kasper nor Arnadil managed to let go: against their better judgment, they chose to remain in the shadow world while Finbert vanished. 

040 - We're not in Kansas anymore.

Session 14 - Frost Wedging part 2 of 3. 

A chip from the Imenstone

The company is exploring here the possibility to cross into the shadow world in order to advance their quest for the Palantirs. 

Act 39 - Lossoth Tales...
Act 40 - We're not in Kansas anymore
Act 41 - Five wraiths in Mulkan 

Gwirith 29th, Midday 

Act 40, Scene 1 - Going up...

The air was thick like pea soup, a heavy sleet was washing the ice bank. Reitu pointed at the cliff where the fjord meets the bay. "It is easy to find, good luck, Southrons". The fact that their guide flatly refused to follow wasn't enough of a warning of things to come. The company crossed the icy kilometer to the foot of the cliff. The ambient light started to shift from white to blue. A rhythmic wind ebbed from the heights. The trek up the cliff would take 10 minutes. From the chiseled rocks overhead, the skeleton of a giant walrus peeked forward, but then recoiled at the sight of the warding totems. Finbert cued the company to two other tall skeletal figures lurking in the gray backdrop. Halin, Galdor and Kasper kept the totems high as the company resumed their hike upward. The demons kept on recoiling, kicking stones that tumbled down to the company's feet. At one point, one of the bone terror slipped downhill beyond sight. The light faded to a deep purple. The flight of countless bats could be heard, making circles above their heads. 

When they reached the edge of the cliff, the rhythmic breathing had gotten intense and seemed to originate from a circle of standing stones. The snowy ground was a vast boneyard, thousands of bats were grasping at any rough surface available. The only sound to be heard was the low breathing from the Imenstone shrine. The bone terrors could approach closer due to the lower light, but the totems still kept them at bay.   

039 - Old Lossoth Tales to keep the children awake

Session 14 - Frost Wedging part 1 of 3. 

After an eventful day in the Lossoth village of Mulkan, the company headed back to the shore to beat the terror of the night and quickly update elder Taaso on their success in stirring the hornet's nest among the keepers of the Palantirs. 

Act 39 - Lossoth Tales...
Act 40 - We're not in Kansas anymore
Act 41 - Five wraiths in Mulkan 

Act 39, Scene 1 - Returning to Hlechui

The company walked the 10km back on the frozen water of the fjord. The mood was good because interesting points were scored during the day. They headed to the fisherman village of Helchui to report to Elder Taaso. Taaso took their news coldly, and reiterated that he would step in only if Shapithui (the demon) was to be let loose. He stressed that his responsibility as an elder was the welfare of the Lossoth people, and that he would not condone harm to his kind. He expressed doubt that the Southrons had fared half as well as they claimed. This irritated Arnadil who forcefully reminded the elder that the company was capable to take the Palantirs out of the great white north.

Thannolf cooked up a plan to get Reitu (their Lossoth guide) to go back to Hlechui and spread the rumor that the witchcraft done by the Southrons was bound to get Farathui (The drake hatchling) enraged. It would follow from this that the Lossoths should brace for a new onslaught. Reitu agreed to drop this misinformation on the account that if the rumor gets to Mulkan, it may sway the more moderate elements to surrender the Southron stones to the company and get rid of the threat.

K08 - Warmongering into Mirkwood

In this session, we're shifting the campaign to another group of characters. The Ardacer is a military Attack (a kind of unit containing some 350 dwarves). Their task is to open the way and improve the road to Khazad-dum such that the main force will be able to transit when they set out 30 days later. 

The Characters

There are four PCs in the Ardacer storyline. Drolf  ( +Justin Aquino ) is a wealthy dwarf from Iron Hill who has cultivated his personal legend as a hero of war for his whole life. His last feat was to convince the King of Erebor that he was the man to open the march to Khazad-dum at the head of dwarf mercenaries that he himself had bankrolled and outfitted. The first shoe has dropped for Drolf as he got his wish and is now  leading the Ardacer into Mirkwood. Kalin  ( +Alex Safatli ) is an erudite, master crafstman and staunch chauvinist. He has lived his life in the shadows of his brother Gimli and father Gloin. To appease the contingent from Aglarond, Thorin III has granted Kalin the Title of Lot-Herd of Ice: one of the better units of the Ardacer. Khazek Strongmoss is a PC that participated in the previous storyline. Khazek ( +Jason Woollard ) is a young and impetuous dwarf from Aglarond. His demeanor and incredible luck in matter of social interaction has made him a favourite of King Thorin III. As a result, he landed the gig of master trainer for a crack unit of open-sky dwarf rangers (Khazek, unlike Jason, is no teacher yet). Finally, Vadek is +Arne Jamtgaard secondary character in this storyline. Vadek is a straight-laced professional soldier at the head of the Axmens of the Ice Lot, this puts him in charge of 7 guards and overall some 49 dwarves. His main duty is to protect Drolf. Vadek is no politician, he has no sense of humor and functions strictly on a need to know basis.