Gaming Session 10 (Mar. 19, 2005) (Total XP 908)

29th Emerald: Heracles the White Goblin gives the party a tour of Delium. Elias does homage at the bright, fiery Temple of Jacinth, making a 26 GP offering there. He gets acquainted with Thyestes, an assistant to the High Priest of Jacinth. Elias spends some time at the various taverns in Delium, but is unable to gather much more information about Pharsalus. He also hears of an "abomination" terrorizing travellers on the Road between Mytilene and Delium, and of the handsome (10,000 GP) reward offered by Lord Alcestis of Mytilene to anyone who can rid the road of this terror.

30th Emerald: Elias interviews a survivor of one of the "abomination's" attacks, and learns of a large (8-10 ft. tall) humanoid of grisly countenance, stinking of rotting flesh, dressed in flowing, black robes and hiding in a fungal, subterranean hot spring marsh that is infested with shocker lizards. The creature has super strength, seems immune to magic, was not easily injured by normal weapons, and seemed to recuperate its strength from the electrical attacks of the shocker lizards.

After some debate, the party decides to head neither toward Mytilene in search of reward, nor to Pharsalus, where the way seems too unsure, but toward Knossos in the south. They learn Knossos is a journey of about 1,000 miles from Delium, and passes through three major Goblin cities: Chalcis, Thebes (capital of the Green Goblin Dominion), and -- wonder of the Underdark dominions -- Delphi.

Delphi, they learn, is the largest, most ancient city in the Goblin dominions. It was once the capital, millennia ago when the Goblin dominions were republics. And it is still the religious capital of the empire, where the Great Temple is located, where the Grand Goblin must perform the annual ritual of the Obsidian Blade or lose the Divine Blessing.

The party sells Anax's old possessions -- with the exception of his old chess piece, appraised by Xu at a value of 2,000 GP -- and adds the funds thus accumulated to the party treasure. Elias identifies the magic items they have gathered. The party then divvies up the treasure (with the exception of the chess piece, the Goblin mask, and the bead of force, which remain in the party treasure). Heracles, upon receiving his fair share of 213 GP, heads north, up the Amphipolis Road toward Pharsalus. After spending some time in the shops and temples of Delium buying supplies and scrolls, and the party agrees to set out westward, on the road toward Chalcis.

31st - 32nd Emerald: Uneventful travel. (24 miles.)

33rd Emerald: After travelling 10 miles, encounter with swarms of rats. XP reward per player, for defeating 4 Rat Swarms: 286. (12 miles.)

34th - 35th Emerald: Uneventful travel. (24 miles.)

36th Emerald: After travelling 2 miles, encounter with an Ettercap and monstrous spiders, hidden among some massive stalagmites. Xu and Cuauhtemoc got caught in a web trap, and the spiders surrounded the party and managed to web Elias and Orton, but eventually the party emerged victorious. XP reward per player, for defeating the Ettercap & 2 monstrous (medium) spiders: 193. 300 GP in the Ettercap's lair. (12 miles.)

37th - 39th Emerald: Uneventful travel. (36 miles.) On the 38th Emerald, the party leaves the open plains under the great cavern, as the highway leads, yet again, into a tunnel.

40th Emerald: After travelling 4 more miles, the party reaches the sleepy village of Trikala, little more than a large cave with an accumulation of small dwellings surrounding a shrine and a single inn. The party continues another 4 miles, and enters a small cave where water is dripping down from the ceiling into a crystal clear pool. As they pass the pool, they are surprised by four large beasts covered with razor sharp quills (Howlers), that leap at them from the shadowy recesses of the cave. After a fierce combat, with the help of Cuauhtemoc's stunning blows, Elias' courage-inspiring singing, Sebastian and Xu's deadly attacks, and the Sprite's scorching hands, the party emerges victorious, though badly damaged. (The fighters came very close to dying.) Orton applies his healing touch, and removes the quills impaling Xu, Elias, and Sebastian. XP reward per player, for defeating 4 Howlers: 429. There are 8 perfectly formed quartzite crystal spar at the bottom of the pool. (8 miles.)

Gaming Session 11 (April 2, 2005) (Total XP D'mitrius, Elias, Gwil, Orton, Xu: 129; Cuauhtemoc, Sebastian: 143)

40th Emerald: The party moves on after defeating the Howlers. (4 miles)

41th Emerald. (12 miles.)

42nd Emerald: The party travels 6 miles before arriving at a section of the tunnel with a stream, and encounter a glowing green rock that saps their CON. Beyond the rock, they are attacked by a shapechanging creature that was disguised as a bugbear cadaver. XP reward for D'mitrius, Elias, Gwil, Orton, Xu, for defeating the shapechanger: 129; XP for Cuauhtemoc & Sebastian: 143. Treasure: 500 GP and a magic ring (ring of protection +1). They reach a fork, and continue due west. The party travels 6 more miles. (12 miles.)

46th Emerald: After 18 miles, the party reaches another vast cavern -- great subterranean plains. The Goblin roads here appear better travelled and safer. They encounter a Goblin merchant caravan. After another 40 miles the party arrives at the village of Tolos. (58 miles.) The inhabitants of Tolos are concerned about the war, and what Grand Duke Sebastian might do. They choose not to remain for the Festival of Shadows on 1st Amethyst.

8th Amethyst: Party arrives in Chalcis. The inhabitants of Chalcis are on edge about a possible Black Goblin invasion. The party rests in Chalcis for 3 days while Elias and Orton craft some wands, and Elias does some information gathering (Elias -60 XP). He learns from a trustworthy source that the court of Grand Duke Sebastian is concerned he might attempt a coup of his own, and establish relations with the Republic of Haldeve.

17th Amethyst. Kalimnos (60 miles).

19th Amethyst. Kastoria (20 miles).

22nd Amethyst: The party arrives at the northern edge of the Badlands. After travelling 2 miles on 22 Amethyst, the party suddenly finds itself surrounded by dozens of glowing red eyes, and rat-like chittering...

Gaming Session 12 (May 7, 2005) (Total XP D'mitrius, Elias, Gwil, Orton, Xu: 1,522; Cuauhtemoc, Sebastian: 1,622)

22nd Amethyst: The Big Battle with the Jinxkins. XP reward for defeating 36 Jinxkins: 386. XP reward for defeating 8 small Dire Rats: 343. XP reward for defeating 7 medium Dire Rats: for D'mitrius, Elias, Gwil, Orton & Xu, 450; for Cuauhtemoc & Sebastian, 500. XP reward for defeating the Jinxkin Shaman: for D'mitrius, Elias, Gwil, Orton & Xu, 86; for Cuauhtemoc & Sebastian, 107. The fey who was assisting the Jinxkins in their attack made a clean escape, after knocking Gwil out of the air. After the battle, the party spends the rest of the day and the following night camping out and resting.

26th Amethyst: The party reaches the village of Pylos without further incident. (40 miles.) With Orton's healing efforts, no one contracts filth fever from the rat bites. Efforts to gather information about goings on in the Empire and about the Jinxkins or the mysterious fey who accompanied them come to naught.

27th Amethyst: Three miles south of the village, the party is attacked by 2 Displacer Beasts. XP reward for defeating the Displacer Beasts: for D'mitrius, Elias, Gwil, Orton & Xu, 257; for Cuauhtemoc & Sebastian, 286. Treasure: 3 sacks of delicious, edible pale-orange lichen and 9 cave pearls (Xu appraised at 35 GP each). The party returned to Pylos and sold the lichen for 840 GP. (It is a delicacy in the Goblin dominions!)

Gaming Session 13 (June 4, 2005) (Total XP for each party member: 143)

35th Amethyst: The party arrives in Thebes without further incident. They explore the city. At the city archives Cuauhtemoc, D'Mitrius and Elias learn about the Gloura, about the legend of Vorax, and about the legend of the Obsidian Blade. Talking with Goblins in the capital city, they learn that Grand Duke Sebastian has broad support in the capital. Many dislike the Decree of Gorgon.

Gwil and Orton craft Gauntlets of Ogre Power for Cuauhtemoc (Gwil -160 XP).

39th Amethyst: The party departs Thebes.

11th Topaz: The party arrives in Delphi.

37th Topaz: The party arrives in Knossos.

38th Topaz: They find Sergius Lefkoz at the Temple of Obsidian. He takes the black creature from them to do research on it. From Sergius they learn about the role of Lord High Mage Praxiteles in the Civil War, and learn more about the nature of the conflict between Emperor Atanas and the Lord High Defender Agamemnon. Lefkoz explains that due to the divinations of the enemy, they need assistance from individuals the diviners would not think to scan (i.e., outsiders). He asks the party to help recover the bones of Constantinos Porfira (a former Keeper of the Vaults in which the Obsidian Blade was kept), so they can commune with his spirit and perhaps learn something about the theft of the Obsidian Blade. The party accepts this new mission to the Tombs of the Ancients in Delphi. XP reward for arriving in Knossos and presenting the black creature to Sergius Lefkoz: 143.

Chapter 4