Synopsis:
Spoiler
It has been 50 years since the city of Phlan was a small but growing city on the shores of the great MoonSea. Trade sailed into to Phlan, past the fortress of Sokal Keep where the watch scanned the sea for pirates, into the small harbor at the mouth of the Stojanow River. Galleys, pinks, cogs, and schooners came from the merchants to the south, braving the sea to this small northern port. Townsmen offloaded pungent spices, dark woods, reptilian leathers, filmy cloth, gnarled barks, hammered steel, veined marbles; the riches of the southern shores. From the north came thick-bearded men of the bitter plains, granite mountains, and icy swamps beyond, leading caravans burdened with silky furs, heavy wool, rare ores, straight-beamed woods, and the ivories of beasts long-forgotten in lands further south. Slowly, with patience and endurance, the caravans plodded to Phlan meeting others, friends in the dwarves of the Dragonspine and elves of the Quivering Forest, foes in the orcs who came from the Tweenhill gap or the reptilian race of the swamps. In Phlan northerners and southerners met, haggling, cheating, lying and drinking. Phlan was well on its way to becoming a prosperous trading town.
And then the dragons and their armies came. At first the men of distant villages stopped trekking to Phlan. No trader came back with tales of new discoveries. The distant outposts slowly disappeared. Then refugees began to arrive. At first they were solitary survivors straggling in to lose themselves in the maze of the slums. Then families arrived perched on plodding wagons. They told stories of neighboring villages set to the torch, the humans slaughtered—or worse. Trade dropped off. Fewer caravans arrived. Fewer ships came to collect the scanty cargoes. The merchants were concerned. Scouts were sent. They returned telling of hordes of orcs, goblins, ogres, and giants doing what they had never done before--marching as armies with order and discipline. It was the fear of their commanders, fearsome dragons, that held them together. Towns closer and closer to Phlan fell, the stream of refugees increased. Cautious merchants packed their goods and left. Greedy merchants hurriedly amassed fortunes from the frightened people while keeping one eye always on the door. The Council fretted and fussed. Some wanted appeasement, some favored an army, and still others poured money into the walls of Phlan. But no strategy was ever agreed upon. When the armies finally came, Phlan was simply not prepared. For a day the Council watched the lines drawn up outside the walls—ranks of leering, skull-painted beasts dragging obscene machines of war. They could not surrender, for they knew there would be no mercy from these cohorts. Valiantly, but futilely, they mustered their men. Their spearmen were ready to meet the charge. From the start of the attack, the humans were defeated. They were out-numbered, out-fought and out-generaled. The first wave struck from the air—wheeling flights of dragons after dragons swept over the rooftops, setting ablaze vast portions of the city. As the flames licked over the chimneys, the attackers charged into the trapped militia. The Battle of Phlan was a massacre.
In 50 years, however, the dragon armies have flowed and ebbed, leaving behind pockets of despair and desolation. These isolated domains cannot withstand the unstoppable flood of human dominance. Men have returned north of the MoonSea and are determined to reclaim their lost homes. Such is the case in Phlan. Although the city proper, its districts and its fortresses are still held by the twisted offspring of the original conquerors, good men have managed to gain a foothold in the ruined city. Fired by the feelings of destiny and progress, they have set their sights on reclaiming all of Phlan and restoring it to its former glory. To this end, they are backed by a new Council, a consortium of the children of the original merchants of Phlan and new, eager speculators.
And then the dragons and their armies came. At first the men of distant villages stopped trekking to Phlan. No trader came back with tales of new discoveries. The distant outposts slowly disappeared. Then refugees began to arrive. At first they were solitary survivors straggling in to lose themselves in the maze of the slums. Then families arrived perched on plodding wagons. They told stories of neighboring villages set to the torch, the humans slaughtered—or worse. Trade dropped off. Fewer caravans arrived. Fewer ships came to collect the scanty cargoes. The merchants were concerned. Scouts were sent. They returned telling of hordes of orcs, goblins, ogres, and giants doing what they had never done before--marching as armies with order and discipline. It was the fear of their commanders, fearsome dragons, that held them together. Towns closer and closer to Phlan fell, the stream of refugees increased. Cautious merchants packed their goods and left. Greedy merchants hurriedly amassed fortunes from the frightened people while keeping one eye always on the door. The Council fretted and fussed. Some wanted appeasement, some favored an army, and still others poured money into the walls of Phlan. But no strategy was ever agreed upon. When the armies finally came, Phlan was simply not prepared. For a day the Council watched the lines drawn up outside the walls—ranks of leering, skull-painted beasts dragging obscene machines of war. They could not surrender, for they knew there would be no mercy from these cohorts. Valiantly, but futilely, they mustered their men. Their spearmen were ready to meet the charge. From the start of the attack, the humans were defeated. They were out-numbered, out-fought and out-generaled. The first wave struck from the air—wheeling flights of dragons after dragons swept over the rooftops, setting ablaze vast portions of the city. As the flames licked over the chimneys, the attackers charged into the trapped militia. The Battle of Phlan was a massacre.
In 50 years, however, the dragon armies have flowed and ebbed, leaving behind pockets of despair and desolation. These isolated domains cannot withstand the unstoppable flood of human dominance. Men have returned north of the MoonSea and are determined to reclaim their lost homes. Such is the case in Phlan. Although the city proper, its districts and its fortresses are still held by the twisted offspring of the original conquerors, good men have managed to gain a foothold in the ruined city. Fired by the feelings of destiny and progress, they have set their sights on reclaiming all of Phlan and restoring it to its former glory. To this end, they are backed by a new Council, a consortium of the children of the original merchants of Phlan and new, eager speculators.
Party Backgrounds:
Elf Rogue
Spoiler
Level: 4
STR: 14
DEX: 16
CON: 15
INT: 12
WIS: 11
CHA: 13
Luyuriel was born and raised in the enchanted forests of Eluniar to noble elves. Growing up, she was always enthralled by the training regiments of the soldiers and sought to become a mighty fighter herself. Her parents, as expected, did not agree and expressed a desire to see Luyuriel take up the more "lady-like" profession of musician as well as seek a proper husband. This, Luyuriel passionately rebelled against and at last made the decision to up and leave Eluniar to follow her own path and fulfill her curiosity of the world beyond the forest.
Level: 4
STR: 14
DEX: 16
CON: 15
INT: 12
WIS: 11
CHA: 13
Luyuriel was born and raised in the enchanted forests of Eluniar to noble elves. Growing up, she was always enthralled by the training regiments of the soldiers and sought to become a mighty fighter herself. Her parents, as expected, did not agree and expressed a desire to see Luyuriel take up the more "lady-like" profession of musician as well as seek a proper husband. This, Luyuriel passionately rebelled against and at last made the decision to up and leave Eluniar to follow her own path and fulfill her curiosity of the world beyond the forest.
Human Priest
Spoiler
Level: 4
STR: 15
DEX: 15
CON: 16
INT: 11
WIS: 17
CHA: 15
Phuu Glomps is an orphan. The kindness shown to him at the orphanage where he grew made him take up Priesthood so that he too could help others whenever possible.
Level: 4
STR: 15
DEX: 15
CON: 16
INT: 11
WIS: 17
CHA: 15
Phuu Glomps is an orphan. The kindness shown to him at the orphanage where he grew made him take up Priesthood so that he too could help others whenever possible.
Drow Rogue
Spoiler
Level: 4
STR: 15
DEX: 16
CON: 12
INT: 13
WIS: 11
CHA: 10
Xeiyrr is a former soldier from one of the noble houses of Tzarkai amd one of the affamed Drow cities. Out of some combat exchange with a rival Drow from one of the other noble houses, he failed the challenge and fled his former home and life since he seems to be exiled.
Level: 4
STR: 15
DEX: 16
CON: 12
INT: 13
WIS: 11
CHA: 10
Xeiyrr is a former soldier from one of the noble houses of Tzarkai amd one of the affamed Drow cities. Out of some combat exchange with a rival Drow from one of the other noble houses, he failed the challenge and fled his former home and life since he seems to be exiled.
Episode 1:
Spoiler
Luyuriel, Phuu, and Xeiyrr arrived at the docks of Phlan by ship with naught more than the clothes on their backs and their weapons. It was morning and many merchants and civilians were already out and about their daily duties. Luyuriel heads to the general store and pickpockets some silver from a patron while browsing the store's goods. Phuu and Xeiyrr follow after, spotting pigeons along the way. Luyuriel finally decides on 100 feet of hemp rope and a hooded lamp for her purchase and pays the storeowner for the goods. Shuffling her newly-bought items into her satchel, she heads out of the store with Phuu and Xeiyrr following behind. The three of them go over to the city council building to peruse the bounty listings when they overhear a sailor wailing near the docks. They head over to hear the drunken sailor rambling on about the river water.
"There ain’t no point in tryin’ to row up the river, lubber. ‘Tis poison sure, through and through. Why’d eat yer planking right out for sure it would! It’s a most unnatural fouling, I’ll warrant ye."
This gives Luyuriel an idea and she tells Phuu to head back to the store to get a glass bottle. Upon returning, the party goes to the nearest river to fill up the bottle with its nasty, filmy water. Once sealed up, they proceed to go to the slums to help clear it for the 200 gold reward. They examine the first house they saw, which was soon discovered to be bare of anything remotely useful. After getting back out onto the streets, they hear noises and head in the direction of the source. Hiding behind a corner, they peer over to see a group of kobolds walking away from them. They decide to bide their time and wait for the kobolds to disappear to avoid a fight. Noon became evening by then. Luyuriel scampers over to the building across the street and cautiously pushes open the door with daggers out. On the other side were three orcs huddled around a body. Upon seeing the door open, the closest of the orcs rush at Luyuriel and wounds her. With the weight of the rope in her satchel, the elf rogue was slow to move out of the doorway but manages in time for Xeiyrr to land a devastating hit on the first orc with his daggers. Luyuriel is struck again before Phuu comes armed with his mace. Phuu uses his magic to heal Luyuriel's wounds and the elf rogue proceeds to take out the rope from her satchel to fling it at the second orc's feet. The second orc gets entangled in the rope and falls on his back. Xeiyrr asks Phuu to hand him the river water and the drow rogue coats his daggers with the purplish liquid. As the third orc rushes at them, it stumbles upon the second orc and gets entangled in the rope as well, falling flat on its face. Luyuriel uses this opportunity to attack and damages the orc significantly. Phuu goes in with his mace to finish off the third orc. The second orc was still alive, sandwiched in between the lifeless bodies of its comrades. Xeiyrr goes in and kills off the last orc.
With all three orcs dead, Luyuriel clears the bodies away from the door and the party proceeds to examine the bodies to find nothing but rusty weapons and cloth. They then go to the body that the orcs were huddling over and find a satchel near it. Xeiyrr picks up the satchel to find some gold pieces and a flint and steel. The drow rogue presumes the body to have been a blacksmith while Luyuriel calls dibs on the flint and steel. The party then divides the gold evenly amongst them.
Luyuriel, Phuu, and Xeiyrr arrived at the docks of Phlan by ship with naught more than the clothes on their backs and their weapons. It was morning and many merchants and civilians were already out and about their daily duties. Luyuriel heads to the general store and pickpockets some silver from a patron while browsing the store's goods. Phuu and Xeiyrr follow after, spotting pigeons along the way. Luyuriel finally decides on 100 feet of hemp rope and a hooded lamp for her purchase and pays the storeowner for the goods. Shuffling her newly-bought items into her satchel, she heads out of the store with Phuu and Xeiyrr following behind. The three of them go over to the city council building to peruse the bounty listings when they overhear a sailor wailing near the docks. They head over to hear the drunken sailor rambling on about the river water.
"There ain’t no point in tryin’ to row up the river, lubber. ‘Tis poison sure, through and through. Why’d eat yer planking right out for sure it would! It’s a most unnatural fouling, I’ll warrant ye."
This gives Luyuriel an idea and she tells Phuu to head back to the store to get a glass bottle. Upon returning, the party goes to the nearest river to fill up the bottle with its nasty, filmy water. Once sealed up, they proceed to go to the slums to help clear it for the 200 gold reward. They examine the first house they saw, which was soon discovered to be bare of anything remotely useful. After getting back out onto the streets, they hear noises and head in the direction of the source. Hiding behind a corner, they peer over to see a group of kobolds walking away from them. They decide to bide their time and wait for the kobolds to disappear to avoid a fight. Noon became evening by then. Luyuriel scampers over to the building across the street and cautiously pushes open the door with daggers out. On the other side were three orcs huddled around a body. Upon seeing the door open, the closest of the orcs rush at Luyuriel and wounds her. With the weight of the rope in her satchel, the elf rogue was slow to move out of the doorway but manages in time for Xeiyrr to land a devastating hit on the first orc with his daggers. Luyuriel is struck again before Phuu comes armed with his mace. Phuu uses his magic to heal Luyuriel's wounds and the elf rogue proceeds to take out the rope from her satchel to fling it at the second orc's feet. The second orc gets entangled in the rope and falls on his back. Xeiyrr asks Phuu to hand him the river water and the drow rogue coats his daggers with the purplish liquid. As the third orc rushes at them, it stumbles upon the second orc and gets entangled in the rope as well, falling flat on its face. Luyuriel uses this opportunity to attack and damages the orc significantly. Phuu goes in with his mace to finish off the third orc. The second orc was still alive, sandwiched in between the lifeless bodies of its comrades. Xeiyrr goes in and kills off the last orc.
With all three orcs dead, Luyuriel clears the bodies away from the door and the party proceeds to examine the bodies to find nothing but rusty weapons and cloth. They then go to the body that the orcs were huddling over and find a satchel near it. Xeiyrr picks up the satchel to find some gold pieces and a flint and steel. The drow rogue presumes the body to have been a blacksmith while Luyuriel calls dibs on the flint and steel. The party then divides the gold evenly amongst them.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Edited by ZeroTigress, 10 May 2016 - 10:56 PM.
A shame I can't guess who's who because I'm not part of the RC group 
and I know very little about D&D other than what a relative of mine told me, but keep writing and drawing 
