Session 10

So ends Balentyne...

The Knot quickly recovers from their ordeal with the fallen commander Havelyn & proceed to search the area.  They dis-alarm & break into the chest in the Commander's office & seize the keep's treasure in the name of their dark lord.  Quell & Galen check the commander's room where Quell, unbeknownst to Galen spots the family bible of the commander & pockets it without the dark wizard noticing.

Emmerick meanwhile is busy donning the blackened hell armor, formerly of Mitrian nature, that adorned the late commander.  He had Yvainne's help of course.  Straps & such must be good and tight.  And who better than the sadistic death priest to help.

Brother Summit & Mardus distributed what limited healing they found in the Keep's treasure, as well as the remaining resources they had, to get everyone in semi-working order.  Though, there efforts were interrupted some what when, a signal horn was heard from below.

Having seen the catapult that rests on the roof of the keep from Quell's long range recon mission, our dark band rushes to storm the roof top.  The three guards were taken unaware as they seemed to be communicating in confusion with a patrol below.  And they stand no chance against the servants of Hell.  The only major damage taken was a lucky crossbow bolt to Yvainne, which she's able to shrug off.  Unfortunately, they find the roof top catapult was already in a state of dis-repair & unable to be used.  The knot take the forms of watch men in the hope it will aid in battlefield confusion.  They then fire the signal horn and are relieved to hear, a moment later, one long loud horn call come out from the valley to the north.  Then with all haste, they light the catapult on fire and repel (with limited success) off the roof top, as guards attempt to break through the trap door they had hurriedly sealed behind them.

A pitched battle along the ramparts of the keep ensued after that.  The Knot quickly disabled the wench that controlled the great seal over the servants entrance.  And then rushed for the gatehouse.  Along the way they were peppered with arrows, with Brother Summit deflecting a great many.  A band of guards with an acolyte attempted to stop Brother Summit when he got isolated, but the deft Monk was able to leap over ramparts to relative safety   And the war band was only rewarded for their vain efforts by a well placed fireball from the former magistrates own wand by a quick thinking Galen.  Throughout the fight most of the Knot looked as guards, but Emmerick, bored and wishing to flaunt his new armor decided dropped all pretenses and lead the charge on the gatehouse in his full regalia, marking him a servant of Hell.  Wither Cardinal Thorn would have been proud or enraged that his secret band of Asmodeus send to destroy the devout of Mitra would so openly display the mark of their faith was unknown to Emmerick, but he little cared.  He would have the glory denied him.

With improved teamwork & arcane support, the Knot quickly took the gatehouse.  With a heavily fortified archery position they held off multiple counter attacks. Using fireballs and arrow volleys to devastating effect.  In a short while the walls are overrun with bugbears.  The knot take the form of their allies to prevent any "not so friendly" fire.  Except for Emmerick, who still flaunts his dark lord's symbol.  The first wave of bugbear to take the gatehouse look confused to find their kin there.  Until one spots Emmerick & gives a knowing nod.  In broken common the creature says "stay, safe here"  The group realizes it is one of Blackmane's men.  Shortly after the Lieutenant himself arrives and informs the group he & his men are to stay guarding them from the other rampaging bugbears.  He seems unhappy about his baby-sitting assignment but is smart enough not to explicitly state it.

While the knot waits & beholds the destruction they helped to wrought, their old friend Grumblejack arrives & greats them.  Clad in leather armor & a giant club he's quick to embrace his friends.  Even if the hugs hurt some of them a bit.  While they wait, Quell is quick to break the seal, signalling their work is done.  It's not long before Tiadora arrives with a reward from the Cardinal, and further instructions.  While the completely unprepared and  un-alerted town of Aldencross is still being ruthlessly sacked the Knot is quick to leave by barge, destined for Farholde, with a brief stop off before to unload their large Ogre friend who lives north of town in the wilds of the Savage North.

The trip is mostly uneventful.  It's slow going, with unexplained stops by towns along the way.  When some of the knot question Tiadora about the delay of odd stops by towns, she simply explains to them she is giving them a taste of hell.  The knot leaves questioning at that.

Right before arriving in Farholde, they get a briefing from their patron.  Cardinal Thorn meets them on board the barge, clearly arriving via magical transport.  The Cardinal is quick to the point.  Their mission is to find the Horn of Abaddon, an ancient ruin south of Farholde that was a fortress temple to a dark daemon of pestilence.  Explore it, break the seal left by a former king of Mitra.  Then summon the dark being & gain it's magical disease, something called the Tears of Achlys.  Then leave.  Thorn knows little else other then that a previous knot already tried & failed.  Lead by the elf, Aiden Kael, they found & reported the rough location of the site, but then nothing else.  Thorn wants this done & he's employing extra help.  The seventh knot will be available to assist them.  Also, a prominent noble in town, Baron Arkov Vandermir, a follower of Asomdeus may be of help.  Tiadora will introduce them after they arrive.

Their patron provides them another clay seal to break, in case the need arrises.  Then he departs.  After that they unload Grumblejack, and the next morning the barge arrives in Farholde.  Tiadora informs them that a meeting has been arranged in two days time with Baron Vandermir.  Until then, they can use the time as they see fit.

The knot is quick to gather information around town.   They find some interesting rumors and they also manage to find the location Aiden Kael was staying.  They get rooms at the Wandering Frier Inn and ask the Inn Keeper about Aiden, saying they were friends, meant to meet him at the Inn.  The Innkeper informs them that Aiden has been gone for weeks & his room is overdue.  Galen quickly offers to pay the bill in full, if he could simply be allowed to look around & find out what happened to his friend.  The Innkeepers gives him a key.

Upon entering the room Galen finds a map sitting on the table, a map clearly labeling the location of the Horn of Abaddon, their target.  It seems the trip will be easier than expected...

Session 9

With no time to think, the group quickly grabbed what gear they could off the fallen Magistrate, fleeing the alchemists shop as smoke, acid & fire began to spread.  As Brother Summit was the last to flee out the back door, he saw the city watch come rushing in through the front door, quick to grab the fallen soldiers & magistrate of Balentyne.

With all due haste, Mardus, Galen & Quel rushed to the tower.  Mardus taking the appearance of Tacitus, while Galen & Quel looked like the two guards who accompanied the now most likely dead Magistrate.  They quickly talk their way past the door guards.  On the way in, Galen notes the large seal of Mitra that hangs above the servants entrance appears able to be winched down & cover the doors of the keep.  A fact he notes for later.

Knowing time was limited & that the tower would be alerted soon of the slaying of Tacitus, the group went immediately to Tacitus' laboratory.  Quel searched around & found a locked box he was able to crack & get the magistrate's spellbook.  Galen, using arcane means found a magical cauldron of brewing.  Mardus, with Galen's help managed to active the Ice Golem creature confined in the laboratory.  Unsure of how to use it, Galen & Quel, using magical invisibility, ran ahead while Mardus attacked the Golem & fleed, leading the rampaging creature in his wake.  All three rushed out of the keep & slipped away, but in the process they alerted the guards of two facts.  One, someone dressed & looking identical to Tacitus was able to enter the keep & slip out unseen.  And two, that due to random doors opening ahead of the fleeing Tacitus, someone must have been magically invisible...

Over the next couple days, Mardus & Emmerick, using the disguises of concerned priest & Knight of Alerion leave a message with the guards, offering their services to Commander Havelyn.  The response they got was a terse one.  "Simply stay in town and help out the guards as needed, the Watchtower is on lock-down until further notice."

Likewise, Brother Summit was not allowed, though the Dwarfs were asked to relocate from the town to the Tower, ending Brother Summits covert access to the tower.  And Yvainne's access was blocked to, as no town servants were allowed in until further notice.

After the days went by & there would be no opportunity for further mischief from town, the knot decided to make a decisive attack.  Quel broke into the store room & poisoned the supply of food there with the stolen arsenic   They waited a day for the poison to kill off as many soldiers as possible.  Then on the night of the 16th day after they first arrived to the town of Aldencross, they launched their first overt assault on the Watchtower.

Using the secret access tunnel they again entered via the basement store room.  Using silence spells, they quickly eliminated the outer tower of all guards, all under the cover of silence.  Their first target was Commander Havelyn, who they hoped would be asleep for the night.  They used invisibility to stealth over to keep that housed the commander.  Having learned their lesson from the Ice Golum, they knew, even under invisibility, the guards at the main door to the keep would notice the door opening & would signal the alarm.  So they used the veil Taidora gave them back in the Prison to create a window in the side of the keep & entered.  They covered the outside with a cloth in the off chance a passing patrol might notice it.

Knowing someone would eventually see the magical window, they hurried upstairs.  Employing silence along the way, they managed to get nearly to the top of the keep, killing off guards as they went, all under the cover of silence.

Near the top landing, a guard managed to slip outside of the silence & alert the guards outside the Commander's room.  The knot members rushed up & finished off the guard, but the two guards outside the Commander's office were able to slip into the room & bar the door.

Galen, using a Knot spell, got the door open.  And they found the two guards inside, with a very alert & armored Commander Havelyn, along with a battle ready Brother Donnigan.  It seemed the Nessian Knot would have to stop hoping for anything from their dark god.

The battle that ensued was brutal.  Early on, Emmerick attempted to use his invisibility to stealth in, only to find that Brother Donnigan had an Invisibility Purge spell going.  Forced to stop, Emmerick attempted to go toe-to-toe with Commander Havelyn, but was unable to withstand the punishment & had to fall back, calling on help from Mardus, Brother Summit, Galen & even Yvianne to step up & help out.  The two guards kept going down, only to be brought back up by healing from Brother Donnigan.  Donnigan, managing to shield himself early in the fight with a Sanctuary spell, was nearly invincible, as he continued to heal his allies.  Only Quell was able to penetrate his protection, but he was unable to do enough damage to effect the healing beckon of Mitra.

Eventually the Sanctuary around Brother Donnigan failed, and that's when Brother Summit struck.  In a matter of seconds he had the Mitrian priest pinned & it took but moments for Quell & Mardus to end the Mitrian Priest.  With his healing support down, Commander Havelyn struggled to stay standing and eventually a battle worn Quell managed to land the killing blow & ended the life of Lord Thomas Havelyn, Commander of Balentyne Tower, Lord of Aldencross, son of the late Lord Richard Havelyn.  And just in time, as all the members of the Nessian Knot were barely still standing.

As most in the knot attempted to catch their breath, Emmerick, as if listening to far off voices, struck at the Mitrian sun-burst on the fallen commander's armor & from the blow, stretching out like spider webs, black & red markings appeared.  They spread & eventually engulf the whole of the armor, turning the shining Mitrian armor into blackened Asmodeus symbol-ed armor.  It seemed though there is no hope to be had, there are plenty of rewards from the dark god to his most faithful servants.

Session 8

The covert sabotage & assault on Tower Balentyne begin in earnest.

Following the demise of Captain Varning's patrol, the Knot returned to Aldencross and began plotting their next move.

With the acting troupe moved into the Tower to being their main performance, the Knot begins their first assault on the tower itself.  Their sights set on the rockery, the hope being that the noise of the play, which from their earlier watching they knew could get quite load, would help hide them.

Lacking specific intel on it's location, and still not completely sure the location of the secret entrance to the tower relative to other features, they send a team it with maximum stealth.  Quell leads the way, with Galen loaded to bear with both scrolls & memorized invisibility and vanish spells and Yvainne along to provide divine support & her powerful burst channeling to take out the ravens in the rookery with optimal haste.

While the stealth group enters the lower tower, Brother Summit attends the play with Isenbauch's team.  And Mardus & Emmerick, using their crowns & Mardus' acting ability, are sure to be spotted by tavern goers as they play the roles of their missing companions (Yvainne, Galen & Quell) to provide an alibi.

The assault team, using a bit of luck combined with Quell's observations & advice ahead of time from Emmerick based on his experience as a soldier, manage to find the rookery.  Along the way, they find the major arrow reserves of the entire keep, unguarded, which they opt to leave and destroy if there's time.  Then the plan starts to fall apart.  They try to trick Mad Martin out of the Rookery, but he won't leave and instead gets scared & sounds a signal horn.  Quell fumbles trying to unlock the door.  All the while the horn sounds & ravens make a massive racket.  Galen comes through, using his ring to recall & cast a Knock spell to unlock the door & allow the assault team.  They are quickly attacked by a swarm of angry ravens.  Quell focuses on taking down Mad Martin while Yvainne unleashes a torrent of negative energy throughout the area.  In under a minute the Rookery is in shambles.  Yvainne & Galen try to make it look like the birds attacked Mad Martin, but lacking time they do a horrible job.  A point Quell is quick to make.

They have to flee quickly, relying on arcane means to slip by a patrol arriving to examine Mad Martin's horn call.  In the dash out, Quell stops for nothing, with Yvainne quick on his heels.  Galen however, unwilling to leave the arrow stores intact, risks being seen & using arcane fire, sets the arrow stores ablaze.  Somehow, through luck & magic, Galen also manages to slip out unseen.  The fire & attack bring the play to an abrupt end.  And all in attendance, including Brother Summit are questioned, before being released.

The Knot, continuing their attack, turn to more covert methods.  Verifying the cloths of Captain Zac Edderly  that had a woman's perfume fragrance smelled the same as Mrs Caitlyn Mott's perfumes, and Mrs Mott's distraught look over the necklace Quell found, the knots next move is to use fake letters to force a meeting between the alleged lovers, that Captain Mott would know about in advance.  Quell, still tormenting Mrs. Mott by wearing her necklace openly in the market, does slip away long enough to steal some writings of both Captains & provides them to Galen to use as examples to forge some notes.  Mardus, using his urchin persona delivers the notes to the keep (separately to ensure Captain Mott gets his last) as well as to Mrs. Mott.  And the plan works without a hitch.  While Caitlyn & Zach are embracing, in a secluded area of the local park, Captain Mott catches them & challenges Zach to a dual, at dawn the next day.  The knot members hiding around the park grin in satisfaction.

The following day, on a field near the Keep, Captain Mott, the enraged cuckold, strikes down Captain Zach Edderly.  All while a distraught Caitlyn watches on in horror.  Emmerick & Mardus are able to conveniently arrive in their Knight & Priest persona, just in time to see the killing blow.  Emmerick is quick to arrest Captain Mott for dueling unto the death, while Mardus, playing his part, attempts to comfort the weeping Caitlyn.  By the end of the day Captain Mott is sent off in chains to Branderscar prison to await his fate.  And the tower is without two more Captains.

But the Knot would not be done yet.  No.  Another target was in their sights, the Magistrate Tacitus.

They already saw the odd ice construct in the Magistrate's laboratory back when Emmerick & Mardus were playing their part as "investigators".  So, using that, Quell & Galen worked up a forged letter from the Alchemist, stating that he had been sold an odd piece of ice that didn't melt, to be delivered to Tacitus.  The bate sent, all that was left was the trap.  The Quell, Galen & Mardus quickly dispatched the Alchemist & stilling what was of value.  Then the knot set up in the shop.  Mardus taking the role of the alchemist in the main store.  Yvainne waited upstairs, a stone with the silence spell on it in her hand and a loosened floor board at the ready to drop the stone into the store below.  Quell & Brother Summit waited in the back room.  Galen & Emmerick waiting out front.

Tacitus arrived, though, the knot didn't realize he'd be ready for trouble.  He brought two guards with him & he was magically buffed with Stone Skin, a fact they quickly realized in combat.

Arriving with one guard staying outside, Tacitus & his other guard entered & he quickly asked to be shown the stone.  Mardus, acting as shop keep tried to get him to come into the back room so he could see it.  Tacitus refused & insisted to see it out in the main room.  Mardus when back, swapped places with Brother Summit who returned with a wrapped cloth.  That is when Yvainne dropped the silence stone & the fight broke out.  It was a very risky fight, Tacitus was only able to be kept in check by the silence stone.  Emmerick once had to bull rush him back into the shop, and the stone's effects.  Alerting bystanders on the street of a fight.  And Brother Summit had to hold him down to prevent more casting.  The fight ended up causing a fire to break out.  Fulled by academical reagents, it damaged Mitrian & Asomdian followers alike. In the end, Tacitus fell, due to Summit's constant restraining him, along with Mardus' elemental & Emmerick's anti-paladin touch of corruption.

The knot had little time & began to flee the burning building, hoping to avoid the town militia who was likely arriving soon...