The party finished off the fleshy aberration boss and a wave of Morlock reinforcements, delivered a severed ghoul-leader head to the Morlock king "Boss Scrug" (getting knighted and another worthless "title"), retreated to Otari through the foggy Fen at night, rested and leveled up to character level 4, then dove back into the keep. They cornered an invisible, buzzing, silver-vulnerable devil ("the boy") that turned out to be a contracted servant of Belcorra. To save its life it shared a memory revealing that the legendary adventurer Otari Ilvashti died inside the keep, not above it, and left a "save me below" message. The session ended on a cliffhanger in a library where they're stealing necromantic books from a ghostly librarian.
The party had killed the ghoulified werewolf-hunting bounty group (the "Fangbreakers") and a tall aberration "sorceress" boss whose dropped staff exploded and destroyed their gold. They cut off the boss's head and were mid-fight when this session opened.
| 00:00:14 | Pregame banter and recap Stream/Discord technical issues are sorted out, then Veve's player (D) gives a recap: the party talked to an Otari villager about a werewolf-hunting bounty group (the 'Fangbreakers'/'Vanbreakers'), found that group turned into ghouls and killed them, then fought and killed a tall aberration boss who dropped a staff that exploded (destroying loot/gold). They cut off the boss's head, returned to a kobold/Morlock group, were given a 'title' as a reward, disliked it, and combat broke out. [S15 · 00:03:11 · turn 0026 · scene 001] |
| 00:05:03 | Combat: aberration boss and Morlock reinforcements Initiative resumes mid-fight against a large fleshy aberration that shrieks (forcing Will saves), spews acid (a crit deals 16 acid damage plus splash), and sickens Cid. The party (Venris, Cid, Veve, Abbas) grind it down with strikes, lingering composition, and divine lance while repeatedly being sickened and forced to retch. A pair of Morlocks ('swarming stance' jumpers) burst in through a door; the party kills them and one fleeing Morlock escapes through a slammed door. The party closes doors to slow incoming reinforcements (four more Morlocks/scavengers sighted) and ends initiative to heal up. [S15 · 00:09:33 · turn 0081 · scene 002] |
| 00:46:48 | Healing behind the door and looting the boss Out of initiative, the party barricades a door, retches off sickness, and heals with battle medicine, treat wounds, and Veve's healing focus spell. They loot the aberration's body (its head comes off easily) and find a rolled-up parchment map of the downstairs floor in its robes, which lets them complete missing rooms on their own map. Cid scouts a nearby barghest lair (water-dripping cavern, mud-and-bones nest) but finds nothing valuable. They decide to head back upstairs toward town the way they killed 'the dragon.' They hear Morlock footsteps fleeing downstairs and discuss why the reinforcements never attacked. [S15 · 00:57:55 · turn 0610 · scene 003] |
| 01:05:10 | The Morlock king Boss Scrug and the knighting Tracking footprints and following the orb/buzzing-door hints, the party returns upstairs to the Morlock king 'Boss Scrug.' Venris presents the ghoul-leader's head; Scrug, who speaks Common, mistakes them for heroes, introduces his new family of Mitflit offspring (silly Milly Nilly etc.), swears the Morlocks will not invade Otari (Venris senses he is lying / would have done it anyway), and 'knights' Abbas with a Sotari tradition that involves kissing the disgusting queen's hand. The party gets XP/'a title' for completing the Morlock-related quest. Abbas notes the bright light over the room with the purple worm earlier. [S15 · 01:20:00 · turn 0845 · scene 004] |
| 01:31:24 | Night travel back to Otari The party leaves the keep at night during a new moon. The Fen is thick with fog; they arrange lights and travel in a box formation through swamp and forest, avoiding any spotted lights (possible fireflies/will-o-wisp threat) and noise. Abbas glances back at the dark Gauntlight tower. They recap loot/kills (sorceress, three barbarians, the staff lost to the void). They make it safely to Otari (a stone-ringed town) late at night and decide to rest. [S15 · 01:32:10 · turn 0976 · scene 005] |
| 01:47:10 | Otari downtime: inn, Carman, the rockfish, weapon repair In Otari at night: a drunk NPC named Carman throws knives at the tavern wall, puts his arm around Cid, rambles about a hidden stash at 'Smugglers' Refuge' north of town, and is rebuffed when he propositions Cid. Veve pays for a room at the 'Rowdy Rockfish'-style inn (the innkeeper lady teases her). Everyone takes a long rest and heals to full. In the morning Venris needs his bent runed kukri repaired but has no gold; the town blacksmith is closed (he was up drinking with Cid). The party reports the Fangbreakers' fate to the bounty merchant (Clean-O) who still wants the werewolf 'Jasper' confirmed dead. They find a second blacksmith at the market who repairs the kukri for 5 silver and offers a rune transfer (4 gold, takes a day). [S15 · 01:49:29 · turn 1142 · scene 006] |
| 02:13:33 | Break and level-up to 4 Long real-life break (~02:13 to ~02:53) for a late player. The party levels up to character level 4 and discusses new feats and choices: Venris takes Mobility, Lore (Cavern) expertise, and Dread Marshal Stance (intimidation-based fear aura, debated assurance use); Abbas/Cid takes Raise Symbol (free raise shield + saves bonus, auto-crit vs vitality/void) and Dubious Knowledge (failed Recall Knowledge yields one true and one false answer). Veve gets Combat Reading (see monster strengths/weaknesses) and Impressive Performance (perform in place of diplomacy), and swaps Guidance for Void Warp. [S15 · 02:58:57 · turn 1435 · scene 007] |
| 03:11:00 | Return to the Vaults and the silver sword closet The party plans completionist exploration of the keep (recapping unexplored rooms: the eye door, buzzing door, multi-eyed/mouthed crazy-making abomination, Belcorra room, downward stairs, etc.). Returning at midday/foggy, they enter a cleaning closet lined with tools where Venris finds and pockets (into the bag of holding) a silver sword/silver-headed cane amid brooms and buckets. A loud clatter alerts a pair of buzzing creatures behind a door. [S15 · 03:21:23 · turn 1640 · scene 008] |
| 03:25:28 | Combat: the invisible buzzing devil A winged, mandibled, buzzing devil (later 'the boy') opens the door and attacks Venris. It is highly resistant to all physical damage except silver, and weak to holy/piercing. After taking hits it casts invisibility (no verbal/somatic components noticed) and the table spends a long time on detailed PF2e invisibility/undetected/hidden/seek rulings, agreeing the constant buzzing keeps it 'hidden.' It evades the party (broom-throwing included). A separate door reveals a chamber with two dust-covered broken clockwork automatons/robots. The devil eventually goes silent and the party loses track of it before re-engaging. [S15 · 03:53:39 · turn 1962 · scene 009] |
| 04:11:43 | The bat swarm and capturing the devil The devil summons a large swarm of bats (immune to precision and to grapple/prone/restrain). Venris obliterates the whole swarm in one big crit (26 damage, no precision). The devil ('the boy') is then spotted on the floor on all fours; Veve uses Point Out so the party can target it. Cid snags-and-strikes it down to near-death, and it begins telepathically begging for its life, claiming it was forced/contracted to be here. [S15 · 04:11:57 · turn 2137 · scene 010] |
| 04:25:32 | Interrogating the devil and Otari's memory The party restrains the contracted devil (constructed by 'the Velcora'/Belcorra and bound by a contract to clean the washroom). It does not know where she keeps the 'phylactery/crux.' To prove its usefulness it shares a memory: a badly wounded rogue stumbling from rubble through a ceiling collapse into the washroom, sealing the door with a bloody handprint. The party identifies this rogue as the legendary adventurer Otari Ilvashti (Roseguard) — thought to have died above the keep but actually died inside — who left a 'save me below' message and went toward the green-light room. The party releases the devil (will destroy its contract if found) and notes the two broken automatons and a crude childlike hell-mural on the walls. [S15 · 04:29:59 · turn 2341 · scene 011] |
| 04:44:36 | Chasing Otari's light and the library ghost The party retraces where Venris last saw Otari's chasing light, checking doors. They find a small alcove/teleportation circle (silvery inlaid runes, similar to a portal room but with ash/scorch marks) behind a secret shelf door, and confirm a door leading back toward the loud mind-warping abomination (which they avoid). In a library/scriptorium they encounter a ghostly librarian (a 'master' speaking Sakroth/Sakros) who treats them as tardy apprentices. Playing along, they loot necromantic books ('What the Worm Knows', 'Secrets of the Soul', 'Grave Feasts', Morblin's-list books) and a magical chain shirt + a portrait of a smirking drow from a skeleton's hands. Cid opens a secret door (another Corral/shelf). The session ends on a cliffhanger as the ghost notices them and combat looms; the party plans to lie their way out rather than fight (silver and cold iron are ineffective vs the ghost). [S15 · 04:59:23 · turn 2605 · scene 012] |