Session 29

Assassins on the Road to Naldum (November 8th, 2019)

Tryx and Rurik purchase horses and gear up for the 4 week journey to Naldum. Tryx casts divination to speak with his god, Berronar Truesilver, and learns that the Ingotspire will not erupt in the coming seven days. As they are leaving Anchorage they notice a hot air balloon off in the distance. A week into their trip they set up camp near two travelers: a fire genassi, Agris, and his goliath bodyguard, Kalroth. After initial tensions they realize they are all traveling to Naldum, and join together. Each day the hot air balloon can be seen on the horizon and seems to be getting closer. Midway through the journey the party is attacked by a burly assassin with a club, and another assassin firing arrows from the hot air balloon. The assassins seem focused on Rurik, and he is nearly killed by arrows before Tryx revives him. Tryx is able to bring the balloon down with a lightning storm, and Agris hastes Kalroth who is able to defeat the larger assassin. Together the party kills the archer assassin. Upon searching their bodies and the balloon basket, the party learns that the pair were involved with the Skyreach Circus and were hired by the Pruitt family to kill Rurik for 1000 gp.

As the party passes through the Bellowing Tips mountain range, they near Naldum and see that the walled city is under siege by a 200 foot tall behemoth. The city’s defense force struggles to keep the creature at bay, and the party keeps a wide berth and enters the city via the front gate. As the sun sets, the creature, dubbed the Calamity, retreats to the mountains for the night. Inside Naldum’s walls the citizens recover and prepare for tomorrow, and the party learns that the creature has returned every morning and retreats every night for the past six weeks. Kalroth reconnects with Jennora, a priestess and his onetime paramour. Meanwhile the rest of the party heads to the temple of Berronar Truesilver, and meet Tryx’s mother, Aleris. She is the chief healer at the temple, and explains that the Elder Council that governs the city (Melgar, Orobok, Lurtrum, Korlag) is split on whether to fight or evacuate the city. She reveals that no one knows what has caused the Calamity, but she suspects Tryx’s father is involved because he arrived around the time of the first attack and hasn’t been seen since.