Blood River, Ep. 8

The Newcomers left Agniz aboard a Drayman’s Guild boat and reached Aerofort by dusk. News traveled with them: Jacob Junior had been restored after mysteriously becoming a statue, though the experience had left him shaken and newly eager for adventure.

At the docks, Mira returned a coin pouch to One-Eyed Jim just as Nine Fingers arrived with a gang demanding repayment for lost goods. Jim fled, and Mira sent his pursuers racing in the wrong direction. The next morning, the party crossed the North Mirefen Swamp to the alabaster Tooth Fort, where glowing orbs opened its doors at a spoken command.

Inside, The Newcomers found evidence of the hobgoblins they had encountered on an earlier visit. A fresh patrol attacked in the central chamber, but the party defeated them and carried their armor back to Aerofort. When they returned, every corpse had vanished. Deeper inside, they found more slaughtered hobgoblins, two fallen elves, and a hobgoblin woman tending an enormous orb in the Hall of Empress Quen.

Edwin touched the orb, triggering a countdown and releasing a crowned, rainbow-scaled serpent. It turned the air to wine, nearly drowning Ygritte as the fortress shifted toward Limbo. The Newcomers escaped just before the entire tooth vanished, leaving only a crater. At Aerofort’s temple, they learned the creature was likely a protean, and that the Broken Skulls’ presence at the fort might signal a wider threat.

OUTLINE:

Downriver to Aerofort

The Newcomers guarded a Drayman’s Guild boat from Agnes to Aerofort.
They heard that Jacob Junior had been restored after being turned to stone.

One-Eyed Jim’s Trouble at the Docks

Mira found One-Eyed Jim at a dice game and delivered a coin pouch to him.
Nine Fingers arrived with seven companions to pursue Jim over lost goods.
Jim fled while Mira directed his pursuers the wrong way.

The Tooth Fort and the Broken Skulls

The party crossed the North Meirfin Swamp and entered the rune-carved alabaster fort.
They explored doors controlled by glowing orbs and found evidence of earlier violence.
They defeated a six-strong hobgoblin patrol, recovered equipment, and returned to Aerofort to rest.

The Orb in the Hall of Empress Quen

On their return, the party found that the fort’s corpses had vanished.
They discovered fresh hobgoblin dead, two fallen elves, and surviving hobgoblins beside a huge orb.
Edwin touched the orb, triggering a countdown; a clash with the hobgoblins followed.

Wine, Limbo, and a Vanished Fortress

A crowned serpent emerged and transformed the surrounding air into wine.
The party hauled the drowning Ygritte free and escaped as the fort vanished into Limbo.
A temple identified the creature as a likely protean and noted the Broken Skulls’ growing presence north of Aerofort.

NPCs:

Agnaza: The namesake of Agnaza’s Forge, which the party had explored before this session.
Empress Quen: A figure named by the Tooth Fort’s entrance orb; the party did not establish her identity.
Esmeralda: A River Warden who served on Aerofort’s council.
Jacob Junior: The bait-shop owner’s son, restored after being turned to stone and now troubled by nightmares.
Jacob Senior: Aerofort bait-shop owner and member of its three-person council.
Madame Rose Quartz: A leading figure in the Drayman’s Guild.
Nine Fingers: A tattooed, branded man missing part of a pinky who pursued One-Eyed Jim with seven companions.
One-Eyed Jim: An eyepatched gambler and acquaintance of Mira who fled Nine Fingers after failing to deliver goods.
Storn: The millwright who ran Aerofort’s mill and served on its council.
The crowned serpent: A rainbow-scaled serpentine being released from the orb, later identified as a likely protean of Limbo.
The Heidemark Brothers: Brothers named among the Drayman’s Guild’s leading members.
The hobgoblin skald: A well-spoken hobgoblin woman found touching the great orb; she fought the party and was killed.
The temple acolyte: An Aerofort temple attendant who had reported that Jacob Junior was brought in as a statue.
The temple representative: A temple contact who explained the likely protean’s connection to Limbo and discussed the Broken Skulls.

ITEMS:

Bloodstone pendant: A pendant taken from a fallen hobgoblin and later valued in Aerofort.
Blue ink: Ink Edwin used in an attempt to cover one of the Tooth Fort’s glowing lights.
Daisy’s trombone: The instrument Daisy played at the docks and during the expedition.
Drayman’s Guild boat: The vessel The Newcomers guarded on their uneventful downriver journey.
Hobgoblin arms and armor: Chain mail, shields, swords, bows, and arrows recovered after the patrol fight, with much of the equipment sold in town.
One-Eyed Jim’s coin pouch: The pouch Mira delivered to Jim shortly before Nine Fingers arrived.
Round riverstone: A stone bearing three painted eyes, recalled during the expedition as something to bury at a crossroads.
The great orb: The huge orb in the Hall of Empress Quen that Edwin touched before the serpent emerged.
The Newcomers’ shared map: The party’s map of settlements, routes, and discoveries, including the reported giant-tomb ravine.
The Tooth Fort’s command orbs: Glowing red orbs that responded to spoken requests and opened doors.
Ygritte’s war axe: A replacement for the axe that had previously broken in her hands.

LOCATIONS:

Aerofort: A riverside town with docks, a temple, a council, and The Newcomers’ shared headquarters.
Aerofort docks: The site of One-Eyed Jim’s dice game and Nine Fingers’s pursuit.
Aerofort temple: The temple where Jacob Junior was restored and where the party later sought an explanation for the serpent.
Agnaza’s Forge: A forge in the hills north of Agnes that the party had explored before this session.
Agnes: The upriver town where the party began the session and had previously warned of a possible goblin attack.
Ashland: An upriver settlement known for logging large, old-growth trees.
Goblin Town: A settlement the party had visited previously and mentioned during the dockside and fort encounters.
Hall of Empress Quen: A chamber within the Tooth Fort containing an enormous orb, a serpent statue, and the site of the fort’s disappearance.
Limbo: The other plane toward which the Tooth Fort shifted before vanishing.
North Meirfin Swamp: The wet, mosquito-filled route between Aerofort and the Tooth Fort.
The giant-tomb ravine: A ravine south of Agnes, reported by other adventurers to hold giant carvings, tombs, undead giants, and treasure.
The Newcomers’ headquarters: The party’s shared Aerofort base, which acquired a war room and a classroom.
Tooth Fort: A tilted, rune-carved alabaster fortress shaped like a giant tooth; it vanished into Limbo, leaving a crater.

FACTIONS:

Aerofort council: The town’s governing council, comprising Jacob Senior, Esmeralda, and Storn.
Aerofort militia: The town’s small force, mustered when local trouble demanded it.
Broken Skulls: The hobgoblin faction encountered in the Tooth Fort and reported north of Aerofort.
Drayman’s Guild: A largely dwarven transport and merchant guild that hired the party to guard its boat.
River Wardens: A group that once patrolled the river and now chiefly helped guard Aerofort’s waterfront.

QUESTS:

Guard the Drayman’s Guild boat: The party accompanied the guild vessel safely from Agnes to Aerofort.
Investigate the Broken Skulls near Aerofort: The party learned that Broken Skulls hobgoblins had occupied the fort and were increasingly visible north of town.
Investigate the Tooth Fort: The Newcomers entered and explored the alabaster fortress; its disappearance brought their expedition there to an end.
Return One-Eyed Jim’s coin pouch: Mira found Jim at the docks and handed him the pouch.
Watch for the threatened attack on Agnes: The party had warned Agnes of an earlier reported goblin plan; no attack had been confirmed.

PLAYER CHARACTERS

Daisy: A bard who played the trombone and looked for ways to help amid the fighting. Daisy warned the others when Edwin became absorbed by the great orb and helped the party escape the transformed chamber.
Edwin the Blue: A daring swashbuckler with a taste for blue ink and acrobatic swordplay. He experimented with the fort’s command orbs and touched the great orb that unleashed the serpent.
Mira: An adventurous member of The Newcomers who had previously worked as a guard and knew One-Eyed Jim. Mira returned Jim’s coin pouch, diverted his pursuers, and fought the hobgoblins at the Tooth Fort.
Ygritte: A bullfolk skald and fierce close-quarters fighter. She cut down hobgoblins, sent the survivors to sleep, and nearly drowned when the air in the Hall of Empress Quen became wine.