A recounting of the events occurring in the Shadows in Moonlight campaign
A recounting of the events occurring in the Shadows in Moonlight campaign
Adventuring Party
- Cerulean, the Elf Hunter Druid.
- Kai, the Human Acolyte Cleric of Sebakeus.
- Magnolia, the Luhskeag (Catfolk) Merchant Ranger.
- Rina, the Halfling Commoner Rogue.
- Sivelina, the Elf Artisan Sorcerer.
The Ochre Hills
The party cut their teeth as adventurers rescuing a farm boy from a small cult of Orcus and protecting the village of Westbridge from dragonborn raiders. After stopping a coup attempt among the dragonborn, they discover a lead pointing at the village of Stonebridge, suggesting that something will happen on the night of the full moon.
Arriving in the village, they discover sickness among the cattle and the wildlife. Delaying their investigation, they instead wait in the village overnight to learn what their lead referenced. In the dark of the night, the party is attacked by shadowy figures at the edge of their vision and one by one are knocked unconscious by the small bolts the figures loose from the darkness.
Prisoners of the Drow
It’s days before the party fully regain consciousness to find themselves in a drow prison, along with 2 dozen women and children from Stonebridge and nearly a dozen others, mostly from the Underdark. They waste no time irritating their captives by claiming that Llolth is dead, as it is common knowledge among the Church of Sebakeus that the god slew her before his ascension to godhood. They spent the rest of their first evening befriending the other prisoners as best they could and resolving to escape somehow.
Fellow Prisoners
- Araunshea, the enigmatic drow.
- Buppido, the insular muldwarf (molefolk).
- Derendil, the polymorphed elf/quaggoth.
- Jimjar, the charming kobold.
- Ront, the bullying orc.
- Sarith Kzekarit, the depressed drow.
- Shuushar, the pacifist deep one.
- Stool, the young myconid.
- Topsy and Turvy, the twin halflings.
- Wigstan, the elderly soldier of Stonebridge and father of Mildburg.
- Mildburg, the strong-willed innkeeper of Stonebridge and mother of Wilburg.
- Wilburg, the curious village girl of Stonebridge and Mildburg’s daughter.
- Ermenhilda and Eadwin, elder sister and friend of Wilburg and younger brother.
- Goderun, villager of Stonebridge, and Willehad, her son.
- Aethelburg, villager of Stonebridge, Aethelswith, her daughter, Sigstein, her son, and Wuldric, her son.
- Cynwise, villager of Stonebridge, and Cynuise, her daughter. After taking a day to gather what supplies they could and begin planning, fortune gave the party an opportunity. Another drow faction launched an attack on the enclave, and in the chaos, the party made a break for it with their fellow prisoners. All except Sarith Kzekarit, who was asked by Araunshea to stay behind and delay any pursuit as long as he could.
The Underdark
Free of the drow, the party were still trapped deep in the Underdark with no clear way out. For 9 days, they party traveled through the Underdark the nearest settlement, the deep one city of Shooglopp, foraging for supplies along the way. They avoided danger when they could and fought savagely when they couldn’t and finally, they reached their destination.
Shooglopp
All was not peaceful in Shooglopp. The city was divided by an increasingly violent dispute between the traditionalist worshippers of Dagon and the newly empowered followers of Mother Hydra. The party tried to keep a low profile, but problems arose when Turvy suddenly transformed into a giant rat hybrid in the tavern. After subduing him without major injury, the party split with half of them rushing back to the bulk of their companions to check on his sister, Topsy. They arrived to find everything in disarray. Topsy had indeed changed and Buppido had taken that opportunity to try and murder one of the Stonebridge children. He was fortunately stopped and then fled as the party arrived.
The party had little time to rest though. A mob of Mother Hydra followers began to get her outside, demanding the outsiders be handed over as sacrifices. Convinced by the pacifist Shuushar to not fight the mob, the party instead chooses to flee to a ship and escape the city. Along the way, a giant albino hydra emerges onto the docs and at the same moment, another drow shows up and offers to let the rest of the party go if they hand over Araunshea, which is when she suffers a seizure and speaks a prophecy before collapsing. The party blinds this newcomer and continues their flight to the docks. As they sail away, they can only watch as the hydra begins to wreak havoc on the city.
Mindreh, the city of dragons
Arriving in the city of dragons a week later, the party is led by Jimjar through the city streets, who reveals that he is not just someone of importance in the city, but that he is the favored son of the city’s founder and god, Vezim, the dragon god of the forge. The party is given shelter by Vezim who rewards them handsomely for rescuing his son and invites them to the city’s anniversary celebration as his personal guests.
At the celebration, the party meets numerous dignitaries, both from the city as well as visiting. They learn the drow are in the midst of a civil war with each faction represented by an ambassador at the party. Among them is Zakndori, representative of House Maer’Shyn and the same drow who’d tried to capture Araunshea in Shooglopp. They also meet Bernhard, a human from the Underdark city of Deepvale who claims the city knows a path to the surface. While socializing at the party and trying to subtly learn more about the Araunshea’s prophecy, they also facilitate the reunion of Araunshea with her long-lost brother, Edonil; each had believed the other dead. Well traveled, Edonil tells them that every myconid bed is built around a portal and that with the proper portal key, they could use to find a safer path home. He also provides them with the portal key to a location where he has friends who will help the party if told they were sent by him.
The party spent another week in Mindreh, seeking out information, building relationships, and planning their departure. They learn that many folk throughout the city and the Underdark have been dreaming of a pale woman of their own kindred beckoning them into darkness and begin to suspect this figure has some control over those who answer her call. Unsettled, they decide to escort Topsy and Turvy to Deepvale, before taking Stool to his native myconid bed to follow that path out. Finally, they left for the city of Deepvale in the company of Bernhard. Araunshea, Jimjar, and Shuushar stayed behind, thinning the groups’ numbers.
Through the Underdark
The journey to Deepvale is longer than any other, taking three weeks. Almost two weeks into the trip, the party is ambushed along a narrow riverside passage. Finding themselves face-to-face with the drow they’d escaped from over a month before, accompanied by Buppido. The party splits their forces, half of them protecting the villagers while the others push forward to drive off the drow. In the end, the lead drow priestess is slain and Buppido is taken prisoner.
The junior priestess retreats and calls for a truce with the party. She vows to leave the party in peace and says that she plans to seek the truth of Llolth’s fate and where she can be found. To seal the truce, she executes the lead priestess’s lover, her own cousin. And then she takes the remaining drow and departs. The remainder of their journey is uneventful and finally, they reach Deepvale.
Deepvale, the City of Beasts
Deepvale is another chance to rest before making their final journey out of the Underdark. The party settles in, socializing with the locals who are all therianthropes, and bickering with each other over how responsible Buppido is for his own actions. While in the market, Magnolia spots the familiar figure of Keeper Daragor, priest from the town of Westbridge. She’s fairly certain that he sees her as well before he disappears into the crowds of the city. Setting out to track him down, they party learns that he arrived with a young woman. She proves easier to find and they track her down, They find Eryn GIlly apprenticing at a local blacksmith. She panics when she recognizes them and tries to run, but doesn’t make it far as Sivelina puts her to sleep with a quick spell.
From Eryn, they learn that everyone else in Westbridge is dead, slain when she transformed into a werewolf on the full moon. Keeper Daragor brought her to Deepvale as a sanctuary with others of her kind. The party is suspicious as the deaths in Westbridge started well before the full moon. Meeting with Daragor over dinner, he claims to seek a place of magic power for his goddess and invites the party to help him search for it.
The next day, the search the caverns around Deepvale and finally locate this cavern, The Chalice. It is here that Daragor reveals his true nature. A werewolf as well, he attacks the party. Alone and outnumbered, he is soundly defeated and the party takes him back to Deepvale as a prisoner. Along the way, they learn that Daragor was responsible for the massacre in Westbridge. It’s now been several more days and the party are beginning to make their preparations for departure on the last leg of their Underdark journey: the myconid bed.