Game-Summaries:2/8/2020 Recollections

Recollections by Cassio

Chapter 43 excerpt So you want to be a hero by Cassio

War was upon us once again, only this time it was at the doorstep of Windy Bluff. After what felt like an eternity of idle chatter and waiting in fear by both the Magistery and the conventicle it was finally now time to act. We have heard tales of nothing but death and destruction happening up north and with orders to do nothing but wait it was almost unbearable. I communed with the king of the large littles (big giants, but little spines), Surtur and he answered: He would not help us in the battle to come. His power would be with myself and ember throughout the coming conflict, and finally and most importantly: who was pulling the strings behind the dreadhorde? no one other than the former god of the dead Nerull it would seem.

We had two weeks to prepare and prepare we did. I spent most of my time recruit friends and allies from Avernus and bolstering the local garrisons at Windy bluff. Master CI spent his time marshaling the garrison of Shanju keep and leading scouting parties to track their movements. Friend ember moved literally the earth and land to prepare the battlefield for the hordes arrival. Coating the landscape with Tar and oils, she made mountains and trenches to funnel their forces into choke points. Amon went to work finding out about the artifact itself. It would appear The Yellow was already here at Windy bluff guarding this thing called "the Edifice" It appeared to be a large stone hand jutting from the floor as large as a throne. Amon went on and on about it's importance or some such but I paid no mind. As soon as he confirmed we could not move the item we had more pressing issues at hand.

Preparations made the dawn of battle was upon us. Many hero's would be forged this day.

The dreadhorde was impossibly large, and that was not counting sea of thick fog covering their large numbers. Ember simply waved her hand and changed the weather around us to disperse the fog, and with that the first wave was upon us. A contingent of these dreadhorde soldiers and the zombified remains of the townsfolk we abandoned came rushing toward us. True to the reports, these soliders shrugged off everything that was not the flame. Fortunately for our side, Ember was in rare form. Sending waves of flames into their ranks, and providing boons to Ci so his arrows struck not only true, but made their mark. With our first wave done Victory was short lived as wave after wave of these beasts crashed against us. and Repelled them at every juncture we could.

As we were contending with antimagic fields summoned by a contingent of Dreadhorde Arcanists a horde of zombies must have made it inside the city. There was a huge explosion of light and power from Windy bluff. Amon mentioned something akin to a "turn undead on a massive scale" Whatever it was, every undead for miles and miles around the city simply ceased to be. The dreadhorde despite this massive discharge of holy energy was unaffected. A knowing gaze told us what we all knew, The yellow had used the artifact and she did likely not survive it's activation. There was little time to mourn though as another wave of the dreadhorde pushed through. Floating high above their numbers a Dreadhorde General commanded more waves of Soldiers and Arcanists. The unending fight was beginning to take it's toll on us all, and there was no end in sight.

Ci myself Ember and Amon knew this was not a fight we could win. as the third wave of Dreadhorde approached, we argued over who should flee to warn the order and who would fight to the bitter end. To think there were people as stubborn as myself in our ranks.

Amon's eyes lit up and shouted to us "I understand now....They are Aberrations! Not the undead. That's why the Turn did not work on them. Hold them off the best you can" With that I summoned a Cassio Listeed and he raced off to Windy bluff as the third wave crashed into us.

Ember devested their ranks with magic that tore literal Fissures into the ground, Ci danced through their ranks like the wind, and I the magnificent Cassio Lista brought all the flames of House red to bare. Their forces decimated we looked to the form of a Gigantic beast with the face of a crocodile erupt from the Fog of war. This was a Dreadhorde God-Eternal It towered above the battlefield with 4 Generals at it's side. I gave both Friend Ci and Ember knowing looks, this would be our end. As the battle waged on, blasts of energy and suicidal explosions from the generals first brought down Ember, then friend Ci. if it was not for my Protective aura's I would have perished long ago. The last one standing I was about to meet my end when a massive blast of blue energy washed over all of Windy bluff. The dreadhorde in all of of an instant screamed and cried out as they turned to ash around us. We had done it. We had survived.

We found Amon in the Edifice. The stone hand crushing his body like a ashen logs after a nights fire. It appeared The Yellow had suffered a similar fate. Removing his body from that monstrosity we had no time to mourn or grieve. The warning bells began sounding once more. What is that? Tentacles?