Raaaant! Raaaage! {Splot}

After sleeping in the storage sheds, the party set out in the morning with their new barbarian meat shield in tow. Their objective was the tower where they would obtain papers for the new party members.

En route they spotted in the distance a group of humanoids travelling towards an oasis in a rocky outcrop. Intrigued, the party chased off after them - the fleet of foot (or hoof) in the lead and the evil duo trailing behind.

Their quarry was quickly reached and then blocked from proceeding, much to their dismay. The monk, exuding an aura of calm, tried a few attempts at talking to them but this only made things worse and one of the travellers soon cried out in dismay.

From their vantage point out in the desert, the trailing cleric and warlock could make out a winged lion on top of a rocky mound take flight and swoop down towards the rest of the party.

The barbarian rocked on his camel as he traded arrows and claws with the lion creature. As it had to fly over the monk, the calming influence of the monk led the magical beast to land and talk. Soon, it became baffled as the paladin tried to explain how she came to be in the company of the ineffably damned and travelling to the Pit Fiend's Tower. Only the removal of violent emotions stopped the creature ripping the newly-arived priest and warlock to pieces.

The warlock, now being blanked by the obviously good entity, started a rant of outrage, spittle spraying from his lips. As the air turned bluer, the lion creature focussed even further on the paladin and monk before him, which only incensed the warlock further.

Finally being pushed over the edge by the warlock's attempts to bring the creature's wrath upon the party, the scout shot the source of the ranting. The warlock, without dropping the levels of invective in his voice, started trading eldritch blasts from above with his tormentor and the barbarian (who seemed up for a fight, regardless of who with). After a few rounds, a large strength-assisted arrow lifted the warlock's head from his shoulders and all went quiet. By then the good members of the group had retired to a tented area in the oasis.

The soothing waters of the lake

The new party scoured their communal memories for a new place to investigate and agreed up on the Lake, an area near the outer edge where it was believed that an expanse of water still remained in the desert despite the life-sapping heat.

After a few hours of travel, on foot or mounted, a steam-shrouded lake came into view, probably a mile across. As they approached, the party could make out long narrow piers jutting out into the water, each guarded at the landward end by a pair of armed Nupperibo.

Filled with curiosity, the scout and the warlock although not together, skirted round the Nupperibo via nimble skill or arcane lore to investigate what was at the end of the pier. As they made haste to the pier's end, Nupperibo guards hot on their heals, they saw a Cornugon thrashing about in the water. Bat wings broke the surface, followed by a spray of soap bubbles and blood-coloured dirty water. The ogre-sized creature seemed more in need of scale polish than rescue and the pair of adventurers quickly retreated back the way they came, again avoiding the slow-footed and even slower-witted Nupperibo.

Back on land, the party investigated some small sheds which just seemed to contain cleaning materials (for scouring down gore-soaked devils) and various bridge repair tools and materials. Behind the small buildings they soon noticed a black-robed camel rider patiently watching them...

Buckling my swash

Looking for transport, the swashbuckler started searching for a rich merchant to con out of their hard-earned lucre over games of chance. Chatting to people around Station, he managed to pick up enough droppable names to get him into "The Labourer and the Penguin".

The sign outside had a labourer and a penguin sweating and each drinking a stein of beer. Inside could be seen, stuffed and mounted in a large case designed to look like a block of ice, a Giant Killer Penguin from the frigid lower levels. This turned out to be a quiet tavern and with mercantile business being conducted peacefully in a number of alcoves and rooms.

After chatting to a few lonely merchants, the swashbuckler decided it would be much easier to just trade in his magic coin for a camel instead.

Cut Scene #2

The paladin spent another aimless day walking around Station, the air tainted with the lingering odour of evil thoughts (and sometimes action). At one point, sensing a wondrous calm descend upon her, she looked around and saw a poorly clothed man standing nearby. Recognising him as one of the group of slaves she had helped rescue before her party had reached Station, she approached him. She found his soul to be full of good and, fearing the garrison members would make grisly sport at his expense, quickly lead him away to a safe location.

Cut Scene #1

The Monk of Hextor and the Knight bade farewell to the rest of the party and set off towards the rising sun and the Fire Giant's castle. In a few days they would have delivered the Pit Fiend's ban on the proliferation of Red Dragons and so earned their just rewards...

All change

New academic year brings new players.