Click here to read the previous session on 11-18-08 – Deliverance

We completed our fourth session of a new Dungeons & Dragons (4th Ed.) campaign. The campaign takes place in the Seven Bridges Valley. All four players were present for this session.

Rhogar – Dragonborn Protecting Paladin of Bahamut
Ghesh – Dragonborn Devoted Cleric of Bahamut
Plear – Elven Archer Ranger of the Raven Queen
Aelor – Elven Two-Blade Ranger of the Raven Queen

The adventure began with the magical scroll, which has a new message for the group each week, giving them the simplest command they have received yet, “No mercy.” This is in reference to the raid they were about to conduct on a prison to rescue Captain Harkahn.

On the way to the prison, the group was initially spotted. A group of four Halfling scouts was sent out to find them. However, the adventuring party was able to wait and ambush them. Upon the Halflings’ defeat, it was discovered that they bore the emblem of the local Duke.

The group continued to approach the prison through a dense forest. Upon arrival, they realized that the guard was very lax, most likely due to the remote location of the jungle. They waited until a large force of twenty or thirty guards marched out of the castle, and then moved inside. As they began to move inside, they stopped as a large hypogryph with a dark clad rider flew into the center of the castle area. The group watched as the rider got off its mount, delivered a message scroll to a prison guard, and then flew off.

The prison guard takes the scroll and heads down into the underground portion of the prisons. As the party begins to move, a messenger of Bahamut quietly taps Ghesh on the shoulder and whispers into his ear, “Conserve your strength.” Ghesh listens, and then follows his companions underground.

As the party enters the small dungeon of the prison, they can hear two guards talking down at the end of a cell corridor. They notice that one appears to be feeding meat to something inside a cell, while the other talks to him about the “Cambion” that just delivered a message. The group waits for a good moment and attacks the two guards. The battle is quick, with one guard going down immediately and the other shortly after. Once they are defeated, the group begins to search for Captain Harkahn.

Ghesh and Aelor realized that a weakened human, who was unable to speak, was located in the far corner cell where the guards were originally standing. So they opened the door and went in to get him. Then, a monkey-like humanoid with a chain wrapped around his arms jumped down and attacked them. The party fought him within the cramped cell but the fight eventually spilled out into the hallway. They defeated the creature, which was possibly the toughest individual creature they had faced up to that point.

The healers quickly helped Captain Harkahn and the rest of the party began freeing the mostly Elven prisoners in the dungeon. They headed towards the entrance. Upon peering out, they discovered that the dark clad rider, a Cambion, was returned. And he had the entire group of prison militia, that the party had originally saw leave, with him.

The group exited the dungeon and began a distanced discussion with their enemies in the courtyard. Once both sides realized a resolution could not be reached, the fight was on. The enemy group consisted of the dark clad rider, a wizard, multiple Halflings, Human rabble, and other guards on the wall. The total numbered around twenty individuals.

As the fight started, Plear was able to quickly move away and circle behind the enemies. But, the rest of the group was stuck in a corner, next to the castle wall and dungeon entrance, when the enemies rushed in and surrounded them. The fight was long and difficult as the group expended nearly every power they could. At one point, they were able to nearly take down the dark clad rider, but his hypogryph mount swooped down from his perch atop the castle wall and rescued him.

The adventuring group was able to defeat the prison guard though, and their trek back to civilization with Captain Harkahn awaits.