Drink Talk Roll Extended #21: School of Sirocco

Session Recap

Picking up where last session left off, the living party members continued mourning Ulrich’s death in the last battle. They quickly and sadly divvied up his things. Some for sentimental value.  Some for their value for the quest.  They also searched the mysterious attackers finding only a dagger with an intricate snake pattern on it. It seems they weren’t coming down for much more than a raid.  Under their masks, these raiders had the same sickly green Elf-like appearance and black paint on their faces. 

Amra once again interrogated Headmaster of the School of Continued Progress Calvyn Silvergard about his knowledge of the raid and the raiders. Calvyn claimed to know nothing about who they were or why they raided this SCP grounds. He didn’t even think anyone would have that kind of airship technology for at least a century. Amra finally decided it was time to turn in Headmaster Silvergard to the proper authorities and took care of that while Khorr saw to Ulrich’s funeral arrangements.

At the funeral parlor, Khorr began to regret that he didn’t know enough about Ulrich to know what kind of coffin he would want. An offhand comment from the parlor worker about how it would take a miracle worker to bring their friend back set off the idea in Khorr’s mind. He quickly learned from the worker that he had heard from a guy who heard from a guy (and so on) about a miracle worker. It was all a little fuzzy because he was getting drunk at a tavern known as the Black Whirlwind.  

The party quicky arranged for some temporary storage of the body while they sought out that tavern and hopefully the miracle worker. They found it a lively place with the monks of the Crane Monastery celebrating their own victories and losses in the recent raid. Khorr started drinking with their leader Suzanne Kudelia that talked about loss and the monastery’s principals of reciprocity which fully cements the desire to resurrect Ulrich.  

As this was going on, Jedah and Amra were drinking in the tavern when Jedah noticed a figure sitting in the back where shady figures always sit wearing a robe with the same snowflake symbol of the Winter Court on the hood. Going over to interrogate, they find the mysterious figure is a woman and a Shadow Elf like them. She seems slightly familiar to Jedah but he can’t pinpoint why.  

They ask why she wasn’t toasting Ulrich when the rest of the tavern was doing so.  She asks about Ulrich’s last name and realizes that Ulrich is dead and she’s talking to his companions. She starts panicking slightly as she tells them they either have to come back to the Winter Court with her now or flee because Darius the Winter Court Soldier will be coming after them to reclaim them forcefully. They do their best to convince her to cover for them for as long as she can to give them a head start. She agrees to do so just as Jedah and Amra are whisked out the door.

While Khorr had been drinking with the Crane Monks, he was also talking to the bartender who said he was the one who knows the miracle worker who can bring Ulrich back from the dead. From what he heard, they would have to bring an offering of wine to the church up on the hill and the guy will see them. He sells them the wine and offers to accompany the party up to the church. At the church, he reveals that he’s the miracle worker.  His name is Sirocco.  He’s a cleric in service of the nature goddess Arisa. He’s also the new party member played by Hao.  

Sirocco asks them to hand over a nut from the Divine Tree as a material component.  The whole party looks at each other but none of them knew that. Sirocco explains to them that if they don’t have it, they’re going to have to retrieve it from the Divine Tree in the Forest of the Gods on an island in Hozumi. For a small price, he’s willing to accompany them to Hozumi and help them retrieve the nut.

The party agrees and spends some time wondering what to do with the Robins which Jedah and Amra have only just realized aren’t automata themselves. After tracking down the third Robin in Meridan, they party consulted the Sisters for their opinion and they said that they didn’t care where they went as long as they were all together in one place. The party decided to take them along in case they accidentally attracted any more raids.  

With that, the party set out southward through the Valley of the Mist towards the city-state of Terna. As the fog rolled in over the party, Amra immediately felt uneasy as he realized this area was a point of overlap with the Feywild. Up ahead in the distance, Amra spotted something vaguely humanoid approaching them…. And, that’s where the session ended. 

Short Rest

You may have noticed the part of the session where I pointed out, “We’re probably not going to have combat tonight.” I figured that after the last session ended with the loss of Ulrich and this one would start with their mourning, I decided it was probably right to have an unexciting session and I think that was for the best.

I love sessions with thrilling life or death combat or some kind of perilous adventure across hostile terrain but these kinds of sessions are useful too or even tense social situations like a party where the fate of kingdoms could be on the line. Pacing at its best is almost always peaks of tension and then valleys of relaxation to allow those things to properly sink in.

This session in particular gave the characters time to decompress and explore how they handle their grief. Ulrich’s death may end up being Amra’s Uncle Ben moment that takes him off his slide into despicability and moves him towards the path of a hero. On the flip side, I wasn’t entirely sure of what Sirocco’s personality was going to be like but having him and being a source of energy when everyone was down also allowed for things to start picking up just as they got the hope that they could bring Ulrich back. I’m looking forward to seeing how he meshes with the group and hopefully, brings some peace and order to them.

Well, that’s it for this week. Stay safe. Have fun and until next time, keep on rolling.

-J.D.