September 17, 2022

Hook

Shepherds Retreat Session 2

Plot Synopsis

The adventuring party elected to rest in the Southern Forest for the night, following the attack of the panther. Watches were set up and for the most part the night passed uneventfully, although there was a notable event pertaining to the rudimentary alarm that Weyne set up. NPC noted a sound from that direction and found the alarm to be missing some of its components. The party pushed on early that morning regardless, following a south by south-west path toward what Hijalcubo and Coltingus recalled should have been the center of the forest. After several hours of travel they noted a change in the landscape. Trees that once looked healthy now seemed twisted and gnarled, but still horribly alive, and the forest floor slowly transitioned into a swampy mire that should not have been there. The Swamp extended as far as they could see and was filled with all manner of stagnant puddles and strange swirling vortexes of particulate matter. Preliminary investigation revealed the particles in the air to not be the aging sap that the party had come to know all too well, however after attempting to travel through one of these clouds on their path, Weyne and Homer contracted a degenerative muscle disease, which Coltingus was able to diagnose. Now on a timer, the party endeavored to travel faster, dodging hazards and combating a mutated tree monster that, with its last breath infected Hijalcubo and NPC as well, leaving Coltingus the last healthy adventurer in the party. By evening, the party encountered a flock of rotten and decaying sheep, led by an impish, grotesque shepherd. The party attempted to restrain the demon and get it to answer some questions, which succeeded. Homer soon attempted to execute the demon, but suffered a critical weapon malfunction and became unable to do so. After failing to kill the demon, it continued to explain what it was doing. Apparently it had been appointed to watch over the flock of sheep by a "Shepherd" who fled somewhere, and offered to lead the party to where it was taking the rest of the sheep, seeing as they had been infected partially with what it called "The Grove". It explained that they would only die to the diseases they contracted because they were not "In the Grove", and to be "In the Grove" one would need to be in contact with the strange sap the party had been encountering. NPC decided to ingest some of the sap, which irreversibly altered his body into a state of perpetual decay and regeneration such that his body now existed in a chaotic stasis, while at the same time altering his mind so that he gained an admiration for this demon and all like it. The party became even more panicked at this and once more threatened the demon, which pointed them in the direction of the Shepherd's home, where for their sake they hope lies help or answers, for the swamp holds many dangers and many of them now live on borrowed time.

Noteworthy Postgame Events