| Session Date | February 10, 2024 |
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| Base XP Gained | 4000 |
| Player Notes | ZZ's Notes |
Prepared for battle, Mordecai cast silence on a coin and the strength-enhanced Hans tried to burst open the next door. After only the third try, the door burst open to reveal five ratmen clearly aware of the party’s presence despite the silence. A short, sharp melee resulted and the ratmen dropped quickly. One tried to run to the north wall in an apparent attempt to open a secret door, but he did not manage to do so before being cut down.
Before the party could do anything, a force of 8 more wererats had rushed the silenced party from the front while another force appeared to the west, more or less flanking the party. Unbeknownst to the rest of the party, an invisible Sirius had slipped south and saw a third force preparing to rush the party from the east! It was going to be a complex battle, to say the least. Fortunately, Sirius was able to hit most of the attackers from his direction with a web spell, missing only two who moved to attack him, but blocking further reinforcements from that direction. On the west flank, Deaglan threw a bead of force into the attackers, entrapping three, blocking the west passage and only allowing a few disoriented ones to attack the party from the west. Moments later, a fourth force erupted from a nearby door to the south. The result was a confusing, spread-out melee, but one in which the party had managed to at least somewhat limit the number of ratmen.
Most of the action was straightforward melee combat, though Sirius used a grease spell to disrupt some of the southern ratmen. In the northern fight Helga threw an eye of the ice spider and blasted several ratmen, though not fatally. At some point, Sirius felt an impingement on his mind but was able to shrug it off (they later determined a ratman had drunk a potion of human control, though in the thick of the fray they feared a nearby spellcaster). Z had activated his ability to haste himself, but one of the ratmen had apparently taken a potion of speed himself, while another had consumed a potion of giant strength and managed to do some real heavy hitting. Another ratman fought with a poisoned blade and managed to strike Mordecai, though Hans was able to get him a potion of sweetwater before he succumbed. A slog, the ratmen had numbers but lacked the strength of the party and, after a long grueling fight with no quarter and no retreats, the ratmen finally fell. Of those trapped in the sphere of force, Deaglan backstabbed one the moment the force field ended and shot another as he fled. Meanwhile, Sirius torched the webs to the east, burning up any surviving wererats therein. It was a long and glorious battle!
With ratmen dead or fled, the party began to plunder the bodies and examine the rooms they’d all come from. The ratmen were not exactly rich, but the party did collect a fair amount of gold and some other items from them. After searching all the new ratman rooms, the party decided to check out the secret room they knew of. Deaglan noted liquid on the secret door mechanism but was able to clear this crude attempt at a trap. Interestingly, the party noted a slight hint of perfume amidst the rat reek, and this room seemed much nicer apportioned than the rest of them, and for a female. The rumored leader of the ratfolk had clearly fled, taking anything she had of value with her.
The party also took time to return to the ratman shrine they’d seen the previous year. There they found the rat god statue broken and laying in a pile. Before it was a black, silk cloth draped over a small table, with a bunch of cut off ears laid before it. Something had been on the table based on the wrinkles, and likely had been recently removed. The party assumed it was something related to the worship of Mezekai the Murderer.
Coming out, they spotted a Dark Folk lurking nearby. Hans had cast ESP but all he got was a strong sense of amusement. The Dark Folk were pleased as the party had apparently wiped out the ratfolk for good, which was much to the benefit of the Dark Folk. Further, they had done it without an agreement for any sort of pay. The Dark Folk they’d rescued had reported in and now the Dark Folk were ensuring the ratmen, whom they called Deceivers, would not return to this area. No doubt someone else would move in eventually, but the Dark Folk did not care. He did tell them that the surviving ratfolk had apparently cleared out to the north, not through the market.
The party now headed there, seeing some other Dark Folk prowling around stealthily. The clientele seemed about the same minus the ratmen from the cult group (there were some clearly acting as guards for a Mind Flayer). Meanwhile, the party paid for another night of lodging and food, conducted some healing, and otherwise rested the remainder of the night. That night, Helga and Hans dreamed of the dark desert under a purple sky with an alien city in the distance. It was a disquieting and intense dream, not at all pleasant.
That morning in the common room, the weird guy with the Babylonian style beard was eyeing Hans and Helga. Hans tried to ESP him but got nothing. So, they tried a more direct approach and went to speak to him. He was rather vague and noncommittal on giving information, saying in response to questions that he was not a teacher but merely an observer, primarily of the present and future. He said they had met before and would meet again as the party was at the center of important things. What was important is that they had seen what is coming. Sirius, with his robe of eyes, had trouble focusing on the man and could see a bit of a golden glow around him, a slight distortion like a heat mirage, perhaps. No one else saw this. When asked if this had something to do with Yrimith being nigh, he said YES! The Absis was coming and there was little he could do to aid or prepare them. In standard fantasy style he told them it was up to the party to learn on their own. He could not (or would not) teach them further, though he admitted that others might have answers or solutions, just not him. He seemed genuinely friendly and interested in the party otherwise, not at all like The Recorder or Karyn, the Agent of Chaos. He named himself Menezar.
Rested and at least partially recovered, the party considered their next action…