Sacrificed

April 10, 2019

The group gets a good rest at Maldar's and in the morning, goes to Lady Luck Tavern for breakfast.  While they are there discussing options, a crier arrives and says that all half elves and elves in good standing who wish to remain so must pledge their allegiance to the Duke by the end of Eleasis.  The group looks toward Jinn who says he will do what the party does as he has no love for his father.  They decide to head to the temple of Lathandar and see how LIam and Luc faired.  

When they arrive at the temple, the acolyte says that Luc and Liam aren't back yet and they have been wondering what happened!  The group decides to go check it out.  They go to the drain near Chauntea's temple and back into the cistern area.  The door is shut but Maldar soon realizes it's just shut, no trap or lock.  They hear groaning from the other side and go through to find the paladins on the floor, all in pain from wounds.  Hang goes to remove poison on one of the paladins but it doesn't work and she wonders about that.  Moving on the ceiling, Maldar finds Luc, who is next to Liam's body.  After looking around, they find three of the fifteen paladins and save them with antidotes as well as Luc.  Luc takes the paladins out but the group stays to go check the other room.  

They find bodies of the naga, ophidian, and yuan-ti but don't see Paine.  When they move to the stairs, the see the lever has been removed to activate them.  Maldar opens it up and sees its a complex magical item involving gold wire and gems and he doesn't want to try and activate it or it could be ruined.  It's also obvious the lever had a gem that would activate it and it's gone.  However, using the power of the belt, Dorn smashes through the floor to get to the stairs.  Soon, they are back in the cavern with the portal.  They try a few variations and eventually find that Black Helm Tower does connect near Orlbach's tower.  They go through the portal to find themselves in the grove that gave them their first glimpse of the tower.  Most are looking at the groves and crops that they see ahead but Dorn does spot the dragon before it lands!

At first, the dragon is willing to talk and says that its sire doesn't want anyone going to the tower so they should head back.  They discuss it for a while but then know they have to go to the tower and attack.  The dragon uses its power to turn the ground to marsh, making it tough to move around.  Dorn opens up with a leap twenty feet forward to avoid the marsh and attack the dragon.  It's a ferocious onslaught of an attack, cutting deeply into the dragon.  The dragon then breathes, nearly bringing Hang down and dropping Jinn, who had just cast Haste on Dorn.  Hang revives Jinn while Dorn, Maldar, and Tyrel attack the dragon.  Hang manages to get Beacon of Hope activated, happy that it works, and make it easier to resist the aura of unease the black dragon has.  The boost to healing is helpful as well.  Soon, the group has the dragon surrounded and assaulted by Maldar, Dorn, and Hang but they are also getting splashed by its acidic blood.  Dorn is able to take it down.  

The rest but only for a few moments before going to the tower, where Orlbach and Garvena greet them.  He apologizes that he can't help but he is supposed to stay neutral and not interact much with the outside world, no matter how much they do want to help.  They get the group healed up, and restocked on oranges.  They find out about who could be the Naga's boss and what that means.  Who Thoss is, a black dragon, where Thoss is located, the swamp nearby, and what Thoss might want, to oppose the sarrukh, the creators of the lizardfolk, naga, and yuan-ti.  Garvena goes to collect what is needed for antidotes while Hang goes and communes with Auril.

Hang casts a spell to find out what he has done and an ice golem appears before him.  The golem says that Auril will allow Hang to heal and help her friends but no one else will gain the benefit of her spells anymore.  However, were Daggerford to get a temple and Auril some worshippers, then Hang could help others again.  Hang had thought the spell to cure the poison had worked but then the paladin's poison hadn't been cleansed.  It also turns out that Auril likes the black dragons and didn't want him hurt.  It turns out that Auril also opposes the sarrukh and would see them defeated.  

The group gets what they need from Garvena and head back to Daggerford.  We end two days later, just before they arrive back to Daggerford.  

5500 xp

GM Notes

• I played the black dragon as well as I could, I think, and it might have gone differently had its breath weapon ever recharged.  Doing 54/27 acid damage was brutal. 
• I'm happy that Adam, Hang's player, was not surprised that the chaotic evil goddess might be capricious. 
• Again, I was happy with my background music.  Better on descriptions. 
• We actually got through several days!  Okay, they were travel days but still. 
• I think more was explained and I think it went well.  Again, I like it when my plans do have some logic, or good drama, not random things that are happening.   

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