A Meeting With Fate

Part 1
The party have been sent on a mission by the High Priest to North Gresham in order to investigate the disappearance of Earl Harkenson and have taken a detour on their way to enjoy the Star Tides festival at South Gresham. We pick up with Alice (and the party following closely behind) following a mysterious floating orb of light to an alcove in an alleyway where the party meets a fortune teller/Tarot card reader who offers them a reading.

Suspicious of the shady lady, the party nonetheless accept her free reading. She splits the party into two halves to do their reading and draws Tarot cards for the two groups. Blomf, Alice, Flightless and Blitz draw the Strength card which depicts a shrinking and weakening giant. Malik, Damien and Cassia draw the Fool which shows a man with an orb in hand casting a spell that gradually grows less powerful.

The woman warns them of difficult things in their future and swirls some magical marbles in her hand before suddenly magically transporting the party into a dimension within the cards.

Blomf, Alice, Flightless and Blitz (the Strength party) end up in a sandy desert like landscape with a fountain of black fog-like liquid that births their own shadows given physical form.

Malik, Damien and Cassia (the Fool party) find themselves in a cave system and are faced with large brains with legs (Intellect Devourers) that emerge from the ground.

The Strength party face their shadowy mimics, with Flightless scared but tries to help in the fight a little, and the creatures drain the party’s strength between attacks, making them weaker and weaker as they progress until they can barely lift their weapons. Alice comes very close to losing almost all her strength and as such the very strength required to keep her body functioning and alive.

Blitz is knocked unconscious and about to die but in a moment of divine intervention by Valkur (read: the power of a natural 20 roll on a death save) is awoken and brought to his feet but is quickly knocked unconscious again by a brutal attack from his shadowy counterpart.

The Fool party manage to resist the psychic attacks of the Intellect Devourers (but it is later revealed by Blake that had they succumbed they would have instantly been felled).

The two parties manage to overcome their adversaries and they are returned to the alleyway outside the Tarot card lady’s alcove and find no trace of her or the alcove there now. With Alice and Blomf barely strong enough to carry themselves, Damien, Malik and Cassia manage to carry the downed Blitz between them as they head to where Malik left the carriage.

Part 2
The party head back to their carriage through the festival whilst carrying an unconscious Blitz between them. They head out of the city and Blitz awakens. With Blitz’s healing magic and some rest the party recover from their ordeal somewhat. They make it to North Gresham by the evening.

At North Gresham there are similar celebrations but to a less extravagant extent.

They head to the Great hall and attempt to get an audience with the Baroness to speak about the Earl but with no official identification get turned away by the receptionist.

The party spot find an official-looking man, Edwin Taft, amongst a parade and the party decide to divide their efforts. Damien and Alice (the stealth team) head after Taft to see if he has any answers or influence they could use. Malik and Cassia investigate a cool building. Blitz and Blomf take Flightless to search for a place to stay.

Malik and Cassia, in a large glass domed building, witness a lecture (aided by illusion projections) on the astronomy of Aurelia and the astrological signs. Malik and Cassia receive their astrological stones and signs and Cassia takes a pamphlet of the signs so she can identify the rest of the party’s signs. Afterward, Malik and Cassia talk about their families and Malik reveals his father’s name to be Steve. Nothing will ever top this reveal for the rest of the campaign.

Blitz and Blomf explore a few different inns, including a cheap, cheesy tourist-trap inn with called the King’s Kingdom, but eventually find a nicer place called the Night’s call.

Damien and Alice manage to catch up to and speak to Taft and he says he as seen the Earl and agrees to meet with them the next day at the Great Hall.

The party meet up at the Night’s call as evening falls and they discover all their astoglogical signs before seeing a parchment on a cork-board that advertises the ‘Clash of Champions’ contest by the North Gresham waterfall for a grand monetary prize. Intrigued, the party decide to check it out the next day.

Quotes
“Are you gonna kill me?” Kylie (Alice) to Blake (DM)

“I didn’t roll an 8 strength score for your character, it’s not my fault” Blake, the cold-blooded DM

“No, we’re not fixing everything you say stupid in post!” An exasperated Blake

“I am a very lucky duck” Kylie after two very near misses whilst an inch from death

“I’m just looking at this gorgeous map that we have behind Alex Mohr’s giant head” - Katy