Dolmenwood Session 45
Only one session behind in my write-ups after this! The latter half of the group’s fairy barge trip up North ends up more like a sight-seeing travelogue as the group takes advantage of the relative safety of the Blackbird Queen’s barge and notates strange sights on their map during travel.
When the group requested their first detour to Fog Lake, I had the requestor do a reaction roll to see if the fairy crew would agree. I ruled that any further detours or stops to let the party off would require a favorable reaction roll (9+), otherwise the crew would essentially say “we aren’t stopping anymore unless you’re getting off for good.”
Dramatis Personae
Utrid (Human Fighter 5)
Sir Marrow Molossus (Human Knight 5)
Locke Darkshanks (Human Thief 6)
Karook (Human Cleric of St. Signis 6)
Gunkuss Wallerbog (Woodgrue Fighter 4)
Merwind (Human Wizard 1)
Session Report
The party wakes up on the barge at Fog Lake, ready to continue their journey. The three people that were rescued from the lamprey monsters (Lyren, Chydewick, and Jappser), are taken home to the Woodcutter’s Encampment. Extremely grateful, though short on cash to pay their rescuers aside from some pocket change, all three vowed to give the party a place to crash if they ever needed it. Lyren also gave the group a good luck charm that she found in the bog, in the hopes that it will be of some help to them - the broken off tip of a pearlescent horn from some creature, which radiates a feeling of comfort.
A Series of Strange Sights
Bidding the docks of the Encampment adieu for the second time in as many days, the barge once more heads for the swamp of Hag’s Addle. The first half of the day, they pass through a section of swamp that has dark pools of brackish water scattered throughout. The crash of the ocean sounded through the mire intermittently, though the party decides not to investigate further - both to not get into trouble and not risk the barge leaving them behind for demanding too many detours. The elves, all the while, whisper to each other none-too-quietly about the Hag. The party gathers that the Hag is the banished sister of the very fairy queen whose barge they float upon; and the bad blood between the two concerns the elves.
Merwind the wizard feels a pitiless malevolence as the barge creeps through the heart of the swamp, a feeling familiar to the party and thought to be connected to the ley lines that run throughout the wood. Another mysterious sight greets the crew as the barge slides through the murky water - greenish mist off in the distance that curls around the trees punching up out of the murk. As has become common during this journey, the party makes note of the strange phenomenon but moves on. The party questions the crew about the mist, but while Captain Trick-of-the-Light has seen it before they haven’t investigated any further. They manage to make their way out of the heart of Hag’s Addle before stopping for the night, slightly lessening the unease felt by the fae crew.
The next morning, the barge makes its way upriver to the lake which dominates the center of the Dolmenwood. An hour or so into the day’s journey, the elves and Penny Tailwhistle (Locke’s Grimalkin retainer) suddenly become listless and disinterested in anything other than steering the barge. Gunkuss is less affected, but feels a distant malaise. Questioned, the fae crew admit that this happens when they come to this part of the Dolmenwood and believe it has something to do with the ancient banishment of the Cold Prince. Merwind perceives another odd sensation, that of a throbbing warmth from somewhere below the river.
Just before the River Hameth dumps the barge into Lake Longmere, the party passes a rickety cottage on the southern shore. Red drapes cover the windows, while a crudely painted image of a sultry woman dominates the door. A sign offers “Respite for weary fishermen!” Unsurprisingly, the party is suspicious and declines to investigate.
Underwater Utrid on the Lake
Finally, the swamp is fully left behind and Lake Longmere stretches out wide before the barge. The captain acquiesces to a request to venture just a bit out into the lake before sailing up the coast, so that the party can investigate something strange barely visible under the water. A few hundred yards out into the lake, the party can see an underwater manse of domes and spires. Intrigued, Utrid decides to smoke the sticky gilly herb that he bought from an alchemist quite a while ago. Gills open up in his neck as the herb takes effect, and Utrid dives into the water. Diving down to the manse, Utrid doesn’t spot any openings at first glance aside from the large front doors. He takes a direct approach and knocks on the huge doors. Shortly thereafter, the door opens a crack and suspicious, bulbous eyes peer out at him from beneath hair of matted algae, wriggling tadpoles, and worms (the creature is not inclined toward visitors, but the reaction roll was very good).
Annoyed, the amphibious figure demands to know what Utrid’s business is. After some back and forth, it is established that the creature is a boggin and that the boggin and its compatriots would be willing to trade ore mined from the lake for mining tools and new miners. Utrid explains that he had no way to bring down potential miners without them drowning as he was out of sticky gilly. The boggin considered this for a moment, before promising to provide a means of breathing underwater if Utrid vowed to actually bring back goods for trade. After receiving confirmation from the fighter, the boggin pulled two bottles from somewhere and proceeded to fill them with putrid green vomit from its own mouth. The boggin cheerfully explains that if Utrid rubs the vomit on the mouth and nose of the new mining crew, they’ll have no problem coming down to the manse. Utrid takes the barf potions with zero trepidation, which probably says either something about Utrid or the group having spent so much time in the Dolmenwood.
Brief Session Postscript and a Preview
When Utrid made his journey down to the manse, we had just lost a player to sleepiness, so once Utrid came back up from his short misadventure we ended the session. Despite the lack of action, this was a fun session. The group is really using their access to the barge to the fullest, taking notes on all the weird shit they find so that they can come back later if need be. This is one of the longer sustained trips they’ve taken without meaningfully hitting any settlements, which has resulted in an interesting travel vignette feel.
Next session, travel continues and the group finally make landfall before blundering directly into a bunch of ogres.