Session — May 13, 2026

Session — May 13, 2026: Into the Stormhorns

Party Members Present

Session Summary

The session opened in the aftermath of combat at an House Osrin residence in Elden's Crossing, with the party mopping up the last of the golden-headed enemies and Bacharuss Family intruders. The killing blow on the final golden-headed foe triggered a chilling vision from Dambastra — the black snake god — who appeared in a moment of black-and-white unreality to cryptically declare that the golden substance spraying from the enemies was "destiny" and "the future." Vindvenford received his own outdoor vision: the mountains transforming into black snake scales with golden trails leading into the Stormhorns. With the Silver Bell of Elanor Osrin recovered and examined, and the party leveled to 14 during a four-hour rest, the stage was set for the journey ahead.

Captain Groak — a Grung mercenary piloting the battle-scarred airship The Rolling Thunder (formerly the Ironwind, a decommissioned Covenant of Silver vessel) — offered the party passage to the Stormhorns in exchange for providing cover during a medical supply run for the Cormyrean Imperials. The turbulent flight delivered the party to frozen mountain peaks where the air itself was thin and the snow concealed something sinister: spores from a spreading parasitic infection. What appeared to be a friendly wooliped — a six-legged mountain beast — turned out to be parasitized, erupting into a nightmarish Russian nesting doll of aberrations when mercy-killed. The party's old nemesis Myrkh — a druid who fell to Dambastra's influence — was spotted cackling from a distant ridge, reigniting old grudges.

The journey continued with a brutal troll attack on fleeing Benchester medical camp refugees, the evacuation of survivors aboard the Rolling Thunder, and ultimately arrival at Halvor — a moss-covered dwarven settlement with ancient tethered skiffs and a pricing board bearing the ornate "O" of House Osrin. The session ended on a tantalizing note: a scribe in faded red-turned-brown robes recognized Zolat and said, "I know you like" — hinting at hidden connections yet to be revealed.

Key Events

• Osrin Residence Skirmish concludes — Last golden-headed enemies and Bacharuss intruders eliminated; Hop delivers a cinematic acrobatic kill ("the green streak spoken of to this day")
• Dambastra's Vision — The black snake god appears in black-and-white unreality after the final kill, speaking of "destiny" and "the future"; Vindvenford separately sees golden trails through the Stormhorns
• Silver Bell of Elanor Osrin examined — Arcane runes reveal slow, blessing, portal/gate, and tomb-ward enchantments; inscribed "Fabricated for Elanor" with the Osrin family lineage in magical runes; stored in Tao's Bag of Holding
• Level 14 achieved — All PCs gain significant new abilities (Diamond Soul, permanent Hunter's Mark concentration, Improved Divine Strike, Blindsense, Bonus Action Invisibility, Tongues)
• Groak offers passage — The Grung captain of The Rolling Thunder strikes a deal: airship ride to the Stormhorns in exchange for escort duty during a Cormyrean Imperial medical run
• Parasitized Wooliped encounter — A mercy kill on an infected wooliped erupts into combat against nested aberrations; Zolat incinerates the remains with Flaming Sphere
• Myrkh sighted — The druid who fell to Dambastra's influence, spotted cackling on a distant mountain ridge (~400ft away); party fury reignited
• Troll attack at Benchester — A troll decapitates a refugee before Vindvenford kills it with the auto-cannon from elevation (52 damage); a second troll retreats
• Key revelation: trolls are immune to the spreading parasitic sickness
• Arrival at Halvor — Ancient dwarven port settlement; a scribe with the Osrin "O" symbol recognizes Zolat: "I know you like."

Characters Appearing

Party Members

• Tao — Tortle Shadow Monk
• Vindvenford — Half Cloud Giant Ranger (Hunter)
• Silus — Gunslinger Cleric of Kelemvor
• Hop — Frog Monk
• Zolat — Axolotl Rogue from Eelmeet
• Hop — Grung Monk (Jordan)

NPCs

• Groak — Grung captain of The Rolling Thunder
• Lilith — Vindvenford's retainer, serves the Oshitzu clan
• Dambastra — The black snake god, god of secrets (vision appearance)
• Myrkh — Druid, former party member who fell to Dambastra's influence (distant sighting)
• Hector Halvor — Famed dwarven smith (referenced)
• Lord Halvor — Ruler of the dwarven settlement of Halvor (referenced)
• The Benchester Dwarf — Military/medical liaison, evacuated aboard the Rolling Thunder
• Eadaz / The Mushroom Queen — Referenced; in the Stormhorns seeking arcanic insect creatures
• Myrkh — Druid, Hop's player's previous character; fell to Dambastra's influences (referenced)
• Papa Croakus — Referenced; the party's greater objective

Locations

• Elden's Crossing — Party hometown; session opens here
• Stormhorns — Mountain range; party's destination and primary setting for this session
• Halvor — Dwarven settlement in the Stormhorns with an ancient moss-covered port; session ends here
• Benchester — Destroyed secret medical encampment on the mountain roads
• Threetrees — Visible from the Stormhorn peaks
• Tidal Rock — Visible to the north from the peaks
• Castle Aris — Fortress visible to the north from the peaks
• Ironclaw — Settlement on the western side of the swamps
• Micah's Rest — Settlement with massive waterways
• Farsea Swamps — Visible below the Stormhorns
• Cormyr — Kingdom east of the Farseas; golden trails lead toward it

Factions & Organizations

• House Osrin — Osrin residence was the scene of opening combat; the ornate "O" appears again in Halvor
• Bacharuss Family — Thayan noble clan; intruders at the Osrin residence
• Covenant of Silver — Original builders of The Rolling Thunder (Ironwind)
• Coralheart Family — A city guard wearing their crest was present at the opening skirmish
• Oshitzu Clan — Catfish/halfling warrior merchants of the Farsea Swamps; Vindvenford married into them
• Cormyrean Imperials — Military force of Cormyr; Groak runs a medical supply contract for them
• Swamp Gods — Referenced via Papa Croakus connection

Items of Note

• The Silver Bell of Elanor Osrin — Powerful magical artifact with slow, blessing, portal/gate, and tomb-ward enchantments; inscribed with the Osrin family lineage; fabricated for Eleanor Osrin; currently in Tao's Bag of Holding
• The Rolling Thunder — Battle-scarred airship (formerly the Ironwind), a decommissioned Covenant of Silver vessel; 2 explosive munitions remaining
• Sentinel — Silus's named holy firearm with voice module ("cycling ammunition," "mercy mode activated"); 4d10 base + up to 5d8 with divine enhancements
• Auto-Cannon — Heavy firearm (4d10 × 4 shots/round); Vindvenford gained proficiency this session; used for the cinematic troll kill

Lore Revealed

• The Spreading Sickness: Eadaz's mutations — a result of her attempting to obtain the key to Osrinrell, which is stowed deep in a bug nest that has overgrown an old tomb of a key master. Manifests as parasitic/fungal infection spreading through the Stormhorn mountains. Infects wildlife, causing spore release, vitiligo patterns, and eventually parasitic aberrations bursting from hosts. Spores resemble snow.
• Trolls are immune to the sickness — they remain functional even when infected, making them uniquely dangerous guardians of the mountain paths (the "troll fence").
• Dambastra's golden trails — Paths of golden energy visible during Dambastra's visions, leading from Elden's Crossing through the troll fence and into the Stormhorns toward Cormyr. The golden-black substance from the golden-headed enemies is connected to these trails.
• Dambastra's status debated — The party disagrees on whether Dambastra is still trapped in tanks or projecting influence while imprisoned ("weird god features").
• The Bug Egg Quest — The party's objective in the Stormhorns: collect eggs and excrement from insect creatures whose diet of the swamp tars produces the purest arcanic effuse. Connected to Eadaz's research.
• Halvor's Osrin connection — The ornate "O" symbol of House Osrin appears on a pricing board in the dwarven settlement, with a scribe recognizing Zolat — suggesting Osrin influence extends deep into the Stormhorn settlements.
• Oshitzu clan details — Catfish/halfling humanoid warrior merchants of the Farsea Swamps; Master Oshitzu is "curious" about Vindvenford's motivations.

Combat Encounters

1. Osrin Residence Skirmish (Continuation)

Enemies: Golden-headed humanoids, Bacharuss family intruders | Outcome: Victory

• Hop's signature acrobatic kill: ran up an enemy's chest, kicked the face, launched to a second enemy
• Golden-headed enemy's skull split open releasing black pitch and orange-gold goo
• Triggered Dambastra's black-and-white vision

2. Parasitized Wooliped

Enemy: Infected wooliped → tentacle-eye aberration → hovering eye-stalk creature | Outcome: Victory

• Vindvenford attempted to tame it (22 animal handling) before discovering the parasitic infection
• Mercy kill triggered a cascade of aberration forms (Russian nesting doll of horrors)
• Zolat grew Flaming Sphere inside the corpse to incinerate all remaining eggs/spores
• DC 16 Wisdom save vs. squealing noise — Tao failed

3. Stormhorn Troll

Enemy: Infected troll (immune to the sickness) | Outcome: Victory

• Troll decapitated an NPC cleric before the party could intervene
• Vindvenford killed it with auto-cannon from elevation (52 damage across 4 shots)
• A second troll and additional silhouettes retreated upon seeing the party's strength
• Corpse defiled and burned to prevent regeneration

Notable Moments

• 🐢 Tao re-moistens — The Tortle monk waddles off to a puddle during the rest period to re-moisten his shell. Silus binds his cracked shell with a medicine check of 24.
• 💀 "The green streak spoken of to this day" — Hop's acrobatic kill chain: running up one enemy's chest, kicking the face, launching off to kill a second. Peak small-but-deadly energy.
• 🐍 Dambastra's creepy vision — Reality goes black and white. The snake god peeks into the room from multiple angles. "That's destiny. That's the future." Deeply unsettling.
• 🎯 Vindvenford's mercy kill — Pets the sick wooliped, then shoots it in the back of the head. "Sentinel reports mercy mode." Then it erupts into a Resident Evil 4 nightmare.
• 🔫 Auto-cannon from the high ground — Vindvenford's elevated position troll kill with the auto-cannon (52 damage) was called out as the session's most cinematic moment.
• 😡 "WHERE'S THE FUCKING MONEY?" — Myrkh spotted cackling on a distant ridge. The party's collective rage was palpable. Hop and Zolat have never met him; Vindvenford and Silus have been telling stories.
• 🐉 "HEY, LISTEN. I DON'T FEEL GOOD, BRO." — Zolat's newly summoned celestial pseudo dragon delivers its first warning with zero chill.
• 🔥 "YOU GOT TO DEFILE HIM" — The Benchester dwarf's insistence on defiling the troll corpse. Cultural practice? Regeneration prevention? Either way, intensely committed.
• 😏 "I know you like." — The mid-credit scene: a scribe in faded red robes recognizes Zolat and drops a cryptic line. Zolat smiles. Cut to credits. Perfect cliffhanger.
• 💪 Silus's damage breakdown — The party collectively loses it calculating Silus's per-shot damage at level 14: 2d10 + 5d8. "That's insane."

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