November 5th & 6th – Of Watcher’s and Wolves
With the fort of Daven’s Reach up and running again, trade caravans began to flow back and forth on schedule to Newhope. A group of adventurers followed the trail of the Mordok shaman to the Onsallas outpost, the most remote Ulven settlement and fortification before Mordok territory.
Upon arriving, the adventurers were met with a cold demeanor as the Pack Longfang guards assigned to the outpost were hesitant to trust the newcomers. Just the night before, the outpost was attacked and one Ulven warrior was killed and another was dragged off by the Mordok. The adventurers set up a tavern in the outpost and began to interact with the guards and try to gain their favor.
Scouts reported seeing a red haired woman nearby and upon further investigation discovered it to be Arya Earthwalker, a crazy Syndar who lived in the swamp. Although alone and apparently unarmed, the Mordok did not kill her and appeared to leave her alone. After being sent off to find random objects for her and trying to understand her crazy banter, she then cast a spell on Aden Haleth Von Horst, apparently some sort of protection spell.
A small group of adventurers left in search of the Mordok camp in order to retrieve the captured Ulven warrior. Along the way, they discovered old and abandoned watch towers in the swamp that belonged to Pack Blackwing. Inside one of them, they found an old Ulven corpse and a journal explaining more information on Pack Blackwing’s attempt to tame the swamp. The group was ambushed by Mordok hunters along the way, but they discovered the Mordok camp. In it was the chewed on and dismembered remains of the captured Ulven warrior, which were scooped up and taken back to the outpost.
The Mordok hunters constantly used poison on anyone they attacked, but the outpost was well stocked with Pineed Sap that was used to counter and cure them. The nearby Pineed Trees were being harvested of their sap regularly, but the Mordok slipped past the defenses and performed a ritual inside the trees. Although they were killed or driven back, the Mordok had wilted a tree and tainted its sap. Rill, the Daughter of Gaia assigned to the outpost, gathered other clerics and spiritual casters from all three races and performed a cleansing ritual on the tree. The taint was destroyed and the corruption was removed, but it is clear that the Mordok know of the Ulven’s use of the Sap to cure poisons and now has a way of corrupting it. The Pack Longfang Priestess in the nearby village has sent scouts with word of this to nearby Clans to warn them of this new threat.
Tension between the Ulven and the colonists were further stretched when a group of humans intended to take over the outpost. They knocked a number of warriors unconscious and it appeared they had no intention of killing the outpost guards, but when another party of Ulven and Humans arrived, they fought back and retook the outpost. Most of the humans were killed but a few had escaped. It is not sure what their agenda is, just how many colonists are involved, or if there is a faction responsible for the attack.
A pack of Graytide warriors travelled through the area and stirred up some trouble with some of the humans in the outpost. Tensions were on the rise as their opposing view of the colonists began to escalate into debates and confrontations. This reached a breaking point when Khulgar Graytide confronted Freya Rev Anda to an honor duel for an event that happened in the past with Pack Graytide and Pack Sjóúlfur. The unarmed and non-lethal duel took a deadly turn when Khulgar Graytide intended to kill Freya, but she beat him back and won the duel. As the Graytide warriors were driven out of the camp, they shouted angry words and insults to the Longfang warriors at the outpost. It is not yet known what impact this will have on relations between Graytide, the other Ulven, and the colonists.
After things quieted down, there was an assassination attempt inside the outpost. A man, posing as an envoy for a noble in Newhope, got into the outpost and attempted to kill one of the adventurers, with a poisoned dagger. The guards attempted to stop him, but he was able to get away. During his escape, the outpost guards and adventurers noticed that he too was a Syndar.
Later in the evening, a large raiding party of Mordok led by the Shaman came out of the Dirge Swamp. When the outpost prepared to repel the attack, the raiding party changed course and moved towards the village. The outpost guards and their adventurer allies charged to meet the attacking Mordok in hopes of stopping them before they reached the village defenses. A large battle took place as the Mordok got closer to the village. Between attrition and the power of the Shaman’s push spells, the Mordok were on the verge of breaking away to assault the village when Aden Haleth Von Horst charged in to deal with the Shaman. The true power of the magic cast by the red haired Syndar was revealed when all push spells were ineffective against him. Led by Aden, the adventurer’s charged the lines and slaughtered the remaining Mordok and killed the Shaman.
As the adventurers and guards return to the outpost to fix their equipment and rest, there are still a number of questions that have gone unanswered. Even though the Shaman was finally defeated, scouts in the area have reported increased movement of Mordok and the possible sighting of an Alpha Mordok in the Dirge Swamp.
Photos from the event!