Chronicles of the Accursed Campaign Thread (Group 1)

Duwamilly cures 8 HP to Bridgette.

Quote from Painted_Beyond >>

Duwamilly cures 8 HP to Bridgette.

[[ OOC: @DM: Is the effect visible? Bridgette seems, I'm not saying completely healed, but at least less suffering? ]]

Duwamilly's spell eases Bridgette's pain a bit, though she's still clearly in pretty rough shape. She sighs and and sinks further into her pile of pillows.

"That's good," she says, giving Duwamilly a grateful smile. "Not gonna lie, I was getting a little bit worried near the end there..."

"Things will get better soon!" Duwamilly is sure "That scamp Firion's assault has failed and he will certainly not be able to replicate such an effort any time soon. Now I and the other Accursed will consult Matic on any details of the short procedure that will be necessary to free ourselves from our Curses, so the power that the super-scamp aspired to can be kept in safe custody by Matic himself!"

"To the overpowered scamp, all that's left to do is try to steal this from me" the ex-preceptor giggles, taking out the Bottle of Boundless Coffee "to try to wake up his oh-so-mighty dragon-goddess-wannabe! Do you like a coffee, by the way?" she offers to the other.

After joking with Bridgette some more and trying to lift her spirits, the gnome cleric is eager to go and meet Lord Akkron and put an end to the danger of the Curses once and for all...

Delvindra hangs back silently while Milly speaks, her relief at Bridgette's survival overcome by the sheer number of dead, dying, and wounded. Before Duwamilly finishes her conversation, Didi wanders off to find a healer and see where her more mundane skills can be of use.

(In mechanical terms, Delvindra is using the Medicine skill and/or help action to assist the healers. I imagine this is just a story point but in case the DM wants a skill check... 13)

(OOC: No need for a medicine check, this entire section is purely narrative)

Duwamilly's jokes elicit a good chuckle from Bridgette. Regarding the gnome's chat with the mayor, she eventually got him to promise to look into the matter. It isn't clear how much influence he actually has over who gets resurrected or not, though.

The bartender tells Yasmina that unfortunately she does not have any grapes, though she does have cheese and crackers which are also on the house.

Eventually, Duwamilly apparently decides that it is time to see Lord Akkron. One of the clerics of Boccob informs her that he is not in his fortress at the moment... the last time anyone saw him he was descending into a particular burial vault, which the cleric is able to give Duwamilly the location of.

"Approach him delicately," the cleric tells the gnome. "That vault is where he usually goes when his spirit are at their absolute lowest."

"I'm grateful for what you have, especially during these grim circumstances." Yasmina says with a friendly smile to the elven bartendress, then relaxing at the bar, enjoying her wine, cheese and crackers until she is collected by the others to visit the lich.

Duwamilly tries to gather all the Accursed and lead them to meet Lord Akkron.

Milly successfully gathers Yasmina as she finishes up her wine, cheese and crackers at the bar, the red-haired half-elf rested and ready to face the lich once more.

Delvindra is far less rested, but every bit as ready, to see things through. With quick apologies to the healers, she takes her leave of them and joins the other Accursed.

With the party gathered, it is time to see the lich yet again. Milly is able to guide you to the crumbling crypt, which apparently serves as his sanctuary in dark times like this.



As you enter the ancient tomb, you can hear a sound... it's... music. A ghostly tune echoing through the lonely halls. As you get closer, you realize that it is a lullaby, sung softly with a tired voice of one who has suffered much.

When you find him, the great Lord of the Shaded Isle is kneeling in a burial chamber with his back to you. His staff lies on the ground, and his ancient skull rests against a little stone sarcophagus. You realize that the ghostly voice is his. He doesn't even seem to notice that he is no longer alone in the crypt.

Delvindra reaches out and tugs gently on Duwamilly's arm before silently gesturing back out of the room, reluctant to intrude on what is clearly a personal moment.

Duwamilly agrees to give Matic his privacy... It's easy to guess that he's (at least spiritually) with his poor daughter right now - and after everything he's been through, the gnome cleric has no intention of to steal this moment from him. She silently leads the Accursed back outside, muttering: "Let's wait until he's finished..."

Just outside the crumbling crypt, the gnome cleric gathers in prayer, silently suggesting to her beloved Garl Glittergold to hurry up and make the Lord of Shaded Isle have a moment to laugh too. 'I know, Garl, that the gods have a timeless perspective...' she concludes '...but you have by now clearly made me understand that it is precisely for this reason that it is convenient for you divine beings to have clerics... intermediaries between divinity and mortality, who help you, with their mortal point of view, to better understand creatures that are so different from you - even though you love them so much. So, trust me, Garl... it's time for Matic to start laughing a little again! It's time now'.

Cal will approach the defeated Lich and if he would allow it rest his hand on the god-like man because he knows all too well this kind of loss. 

Yasmina is only too happy to leave the ancient tomb, she had quite enough of those lately and she didn't mind waiting outside for the lich to finish his mourning in almost solitude, using the time to practice her dancing to keep herself in good shape for the challenges that are surely yet to come.

Delvindra glances over at the Half-Elf's dancing. No so very long ago she would have been scandalized by something so inappropriate in the face of so much death and suffering. Instead, an unconscious smile creeps onto her lips. In a world with so much death and suffering, the greater sin would be deny the small joys of life.

Delvindra admires the grace and beauty of Yasmina's movements in a way that only someone who has dedicated so much of their life to mastering the movements of their own body can. Placing a gentle hand on Duwamilly's armored shoulder, Mina casts a glance in Zander's direction.

She savors the moment, the comeraderie, the bonds that they've formed, etching them deep into her mind. Whether death takes her in an hour or in ninety years, she wants to hold this moment in her heart for the rest of her days.

The lich remains immobile for a few more moments, but as the lullaby draws to a close he raises his head and finally seems to notice that Cal has joined him. He does not look at you immediately, and he does not reject the comforting hand on his shoulder.

This place was supposed to be where I would rest as well, he says at last. But... I cannot join her... not yet...

He remains for a few more minutes, silent and unmoving. Then, finally, he sighs and slowly rises to his feet. And it is now clear that the battle took not just an emotional, but physical toll on him as well. His bones are acid-burnt. Many are visibly fractured or crushed. It is hard to tell for sure whether the fact that he is still standing is testament to the durability of the undead or to his sheer force of will.

But... it seems that the time has come for you at least to rid yourself of the darkness that hangs over your head, he says, meeting the Paladin's gaze. Come, your friends I'm sure are waiting for us.

To Cal's shock, the lich stumbles as he tries to get to his feet, putting a hand on the Paladin's shoulder to catch himself. He sighs and uses a spell to pull his staff back into his hand. He steps out of the burial chamber to meet the rest of the Accursed.

It is good to see all of you again, my friends, he says tiredly. If you are ready, I can send you to the Ethereal Plane, where you can rid yourselves of these curses that have afflicted you, once and for all.

With a wave of a hand, he produces a fairly large metal box.

This should be able to contain the dark artifact which you are about to create, he explains. At least long enough for you to bring it back so I can place it into a more permanent form of containment.

It does not seem like the lich is feeling especially talkative at the moment... he sounds like he is just as ready to be done with this as all of you are.

(OOC: Before Milly tries it... Lord Akkron is an undead. Cure wounds, and most other healing spells, would have no effect on him, and Milly would be well aware of that)

[[ OOC: Well, I (the player) remember that, in other campaigns, Matic is healed by positive energy, as if he weren't an undead... However that doesn't change anything - because Duwamilly (the character) isn't in other campaigns, so she would assume that things are as you just wrote. ]]

"Ready!" Duwamilly proudly shows the vessel she has prepared to contain the curses. As she had announced in the past, it is one of her mechanical toys... A toy representing Firion approaching a sleeping dragon... Firion brays... The dragon wakes up and, angry, bites him! Firion then runs away to his starting position, the dragon starts sleeping again and the mechanical cycle repeats itself!

"Send us to the Ethereal Plane, my Lord!" the ex-preceptor smiles enthusiastically "We'll be back soon! Maybe one of these days you should build yourself a Shield Guardian, you know, my Lord? Imagine that some nobles whose children I educated had one... and they certainly run much less risk than you! But yeah, I know, I know, I digress. Let's go on our planar trip".

"But you..." the gnome cleric concludes "you are a good soul, my Lord, take good care of you, please. Just think abut that Shield Guardian thing" she winks.

“I am ready to defend them with my life.” Turning to Cal,”if I fall in battle, I will pass Snicker on to you to take care of.”

While waiting for the lich to finish it's mourning, the red-haired half-elf continues her practice, now and then glancing over at the others with a small smile. She had been on her own for most of her short life but somehow she had grown accustomed to their company now and she felt their presence inspired both hope and resolve to fight the mad archmage, giving her life a purpose she never really had felt before.

As the lich emerges from the ancient crypt she quietly and gracefully moves closer to listen, nodding to their host's words, getting an amused smile as the ex-preceptor assumes she has advice to give to this immensely powerful being. With a polite nod she declares she is ready to depart for the ethereal plane. The half-elf was well aware of the general theories of the planes but apart from visiting the pocket plane of her master's luxurious palace and what the recent visit's to the astral space and the celestial mountain she had not yet she had no experience with planar travel. Glancing over at her companions, Yasmina readies herself for a new experience...