Kingmaker: Ep. 21

The Owlbear Adventurers enjoyed a brief respite in the centaur camp, having successfully returned the tribe’s sacred bow. Their celebration was cut short when the matriarch, Silvermane, confessed her true worry: her daughter, Xanthe, had disappeared. Xanthe was last seen heading towards the forbidden Valley of the Dead after spotting a large, shambling figure there. Driven by a sense of duty, the adventurers accepted the quest to find her.

Equipped with healing tinctures, a scroll of restoration, and Silvermane’s personal dagger as a token of trust, the adventurers were escorted by a grim centaur named Bristle to the valley’s edge. The journey was tense, marked by the sight of a colossal hawk circling Talon Peak and tales of a long-vanished silver dragon. Bristle left the adventurers at a grim boundary of bone totems, unable to cross due to a sacred taboo.

Inside the valley, a palpable silence hung in the air. the adventurers discovered Xanthe’s hoofprints mingled with the tracks of enormous, bony feet. Choosing stealth over valor, the adventurers crept past a patrol of 20-foot-tall cyclops skeletons and followed the tracks to the far end of the valley. There, the adventurers found a wide river with a mysterious, man-made spire rising from an island in its center.

After a perilous rope traverse across the rushing water, the adventurers’s arrival on the island was met with a screech from the cliffs. A massive, green-scaled wyvern with a venomous tail barb launched itself into the air. A chaotic battle ensued, with Izzy blinding the beast and the party scrambling for cover. Realizing the fight was a losing proposition, the adventurers discovered a hidden entrance at the base of the spire and dove inside, one by one, seeking refuge from the territorial monster.

The passage led down into a dark antechamber. As the adventurers explored the rubble-strewn room, they were ambushed by two skeletal ogres with horse skulls for heads, which burst from weakly mortared walls. A desperate fight in close quarters began, with the creatures summoning swarms of biting flies that filled the room, making their escape from the wyvern seem like a mere prelude to the dangers that lie deeper within the tomb.

OUTLINE:

A Matriarch’s Plea

The party was approached by Silvermane, the centaur matriarch.
She revealed her daughter, Xanthe, has gone missing in the forbidden Valley of the Dead.
The party accepted the quest to find Xanthe.
They received healing tinctures, a Scroll of Restoration, and Silvermane’s dagger as proof of their mission.

Journey into Forbidden Lands

A centaur named Bristle escorted the party to the valley’s edge.
They learned of the gigantic hawk of Talon Peak and a former silver dragon’s lair.
The party entered the Valley of the Dead, a place marked by bone totems and ancient cairns.

Stealth and Discovery

Ashla discovered Xanthe’s hoofprints mixed with giant, bony tracks.
The party spotted and successfully snuck past a group of 20-foot-tall cyclops skeletons.
They followed the tracks to a wide river with a mysterious spire on an island.

Wyvern’s Fury

The party crossed the river to the island using a rope traverse.
A large, green-scaled wyvern attacked them from a cliffside cave.
During the chaotic fight, Izzy blinded the beast and EW fell into the river before recovering.
The party retreated from the overwhelming foe into a hidden entrance at the spire’s base.

The Tomb’s Guardians

The party descended into a dark, rubble-filled chamber.
They were ambushed by two skeletal ogres with horse skulls for heads.
The creatures unleashed a swarm of biting flies that filled the room.
After a difficult battle where Eternal Warrior was knocked out, the party defeated the ogres.

NPCs:

Bristle: The curt and fatalistic centaur who guided the party to the edge of the Valley of the Dead. He believes the party is walking to their doom.
Silvermane: The formidable matriarch of the nomadic centaur tribe. She is the absolute leader and tasked the party with finding her missing daughter, Xanthe.
Vorodakai: An ancient and great evil whose tomb is located in the Valley of the Dead. The centaurs patrol nearby to ensure he remains in his slumber.
Xanthe: Silvermane’s young, impetuous, and willful daughter. She has disappeared after going to investigate a strange sight in the forbidden Valley of the Dead.

ITEMS:

Jade Bracelet: A small, seamless jade bangle found amongst treasure in the tomb’s antechamber.
Kelsinger: Izzy’s longsword, which can be commanded to sporadically burst into flame.
Scroll of Restoration: A cleric spell inscribed on a strip of bark, given to the party by the centaurs.
Silvermane’s Dagger: A personal dagger with a bone hilt and a flintnapped obsidian blade. Given to the party as a token to show Xanthe they are friends.

LOCATIONS:

Centaur Camp: A nomadic camp of feral, matriarchal centaurs located to the west of the Sordlands. They are currently allied with the party.
Isle of the Dead: A small island in the middle of a wide river at the end of the Valley of the Dead. It is the site of a 100-foot-tall, man-made limestone spire.
Talon Peak: A large, single mountain south of the Valley of the Dead. It is the hunting ground of a colossal hawk known as the ‘Great Bird of the Mountain’.
Valley of the Dead: An ancient, eerie valley containing the tomb of Vorodakai. It is considered taboo for centaurs to enter and is patrolled by giant cyclops skeletons.

FACTIONS:

The Centaur Tribe: A nomadic and matriarchal tribe of feral-looking centaurs who patrol the lands near the Valley of the Dead. They are fiercely protective of equine animals and distrustful of ‘two-legs’.

QUESTS:

Find Xanthe: The matriarch Silvermane has tasked the party with entering the forbidden Valley of the Dead to find and rescue her missing daughter, Xanthe.

PLAYER CHARACTERS

Ashla: An Aasimar fighter and a former guard. She left her post because she was ordered to eradicate centaurs, an order she refused to follow, showing her strong moral compass. Now, ironically, she finds herself allied with them.
Brother Carl: A human Priest of the god Ord. He is described as being high in wisdom but very low in intelligence, leading to a blunt and sometimes reckless demeanor. He is quick to taunt enemies and pray for his god’s guidance in battle.
EW: A Tengu fighter who was once human. He harbors a deep-seated hatred for mages and actively seeks them out to add to his list and eliminate them. He is a skilled warrior, though his stealth skills can sometimes be lacking.
Izzy: An Oread Priest who follows the god Yama. He is a capable divine spellcaster, able to blind foes and heal his allies. He wields Kelsinger, a longsword that can be activated to burst into flame.
Yohei: A Kitsune Gunslinger who is known for his pithy statements and aphorisms. He is a ranged combatant who has also dabbled in fortune-telling with a deck of cards to aid his allies, though the results can be unpredictable.