End of the 2nd Era
So we finally completed the 2nd part of the epic story that the gamers have been playing for the past three years. They started so long ago with a small issue of bandits at a river crossing and since then they have battled were creatures, travelled to the centre of a world, been involved with a conspiracy involving the Gods themselves (including discovering that the twin-sister of one of the characters was on the enemy’s side), fought an immortal, a demi-arch of Orcus who was called Thanatos (Death) as this started in 2nd Edition Skills and Powers, they killed him as he fled through a portal into his own plane, which in turn destroyed the river of time and destroyed them.
They were then reborn on the Forgotten Realms world as 4th Edition Paragon Characters, the world now being merged with their own land (some of the realms were now the kingdoms of old Mystara (an extra touch to the already messed up FR – but it fits with the new scenery)). They returned to their homeland to discover that the sister was alive (sort of) and was now called the Empress of the Night and ruled the whole of a continent with her Vampire Minions. Our heroes had to travel around, raise an army, fight stronger and stronger Vampire lords before discovering that the Soul of the sister was trapped in the dead body of the immortal they killed which floated somewhere in the Astral Sea.
So they travelled to the Astral Sea and went to an Oracle who directed them to hell and a servant of Orcus who was imprisoned there- whom they freed to find the body of Thanatos (they had to promise to free him to get the information). They found the body, fought there way into the heart (the body being filled with evil demons and creatures who were awaiting their arrival to conduct a ritual to try and raise Thanatos) find the soul and then escape.
They then returned to the continent and laid seige to the tower with a mighty army, with that as a distraction they went inside, fought several very powerful wights, vampires, and a large Dracolich before confronting, renedering unconscious the queen of the night and completing a ritual to restore her soul and destroy the foul thing that inhabited her body.
Their victory was met with a bigger surprise as one of the NPCs (Surec) was in love with another (Clara – now Queen of the land by Royal heritage) and asked her to wed him. Their characters now take a well-earned break of a year to recover, see friends marry and administer the lands given to them for their mighty deeds.
Meanwhile there are still forces gathering in a distant horizon and there are many ends left loose, what of the dreams of death haunting one of the characters? What of the images of future godhood that appear to another? And will the Consort finally become King of his own lands? There are also Dreams of the Raven Queen’s chapels being attacked and a God who has been thwarted by them twice who will not tolerate them interfering for a third time….
Until then though, we take a mid Epic break…and play something different for a few sessions…now, where were those worlds I had planned?
Well we havent lost the knack – 1 exarch of Vecna duly dispatched with a couple of desecrations and assorted undead stuff. With a little help from a posh sowrd
Scariest thing is still all these advisors and stuff that keep following us around.