Hell and Glory

Eric's Hell and Glory Page.

Maps are based on my notes, which is to say, they aren't terribly accurate.

As I play Sarad and am most aware of the events that affect Sarad, the story tends to dwell on him. Events are based on brief notes taken during the game, then ignored for weeks. So, there are likely errors. Such is life.

PCs

NPCS

Pantheon

Indra - God of war and sky.

Brahispati - God of laws and the veda.

Agni - God of the hearth and fire.

Rudra - God of storms and disease.

Summaries

990418 Sarad and friends arrive in the city of Kirti, which has recently be devestated by tidal waves, earthquakes, storms and more. The king is but a young man, and is aided by the King Regent Saheed.

Indran priesthood attempted to ban temples other than Indra and Brahispati in the upper city of Prasada. In addition, they encouraged the city to attack another city state to replenish food lost in the cataclysm. Kvin, priest of Agni, argued against them in a public debate which ended with minor magical harrassment by both sides.

Word that Edrajala is raising forces wearing blue is heard. The Edrajala guards have strangely vacant expressions.

The party explored the devastated island of Vanym/Chinnapucacha. Large ants and bees, a foot or so large, wandered the ruins. Jungle plants had quickly sprouted in the brief time since the cataclysm flattened the island. The party encountered both locatha and sea elves, both creatures of the sea, which wanted to know what has happened here. At the surviving shipping yards, the workers were wary of insect attacks.

990508 While staying at Pathik's, Sarad was attacked by and possessed by the ghost of the murdered Count Shailendra Rakshaka. The possessed Sarad stormed across town looking for Rakshaka's body. Supported by the party, the party stormed into the compound of the merchant Ronak and found the body walled up in a celler. Ronak, however, was nowhere to be found.

9905?? The party joined a hunting expedition with the king, fearing that an assassination attempt may occur, but nothing of note happened.

The party investigated the smooth stone Stupa. The Stupa is hollow, and strange passages lay inside. The party doesn't find an solid information. After battling with a Kraken which escapes, the party left.

990606 Sarad has recovered from the possession, but is tainted with the count's memories. A long time ago the count's ancestors had made a pact with spirits, Rakshasa. The family performs dark rituals, giving the spirits access to the real world. In exchange, the family was served by some of the spirits. The spirits are masters of illusion and politics.

The party headed to Pathik's lands, the Northern Wastes, for several purposes. The first is to seek more food for the city, and the second to seek a temple where the Rakshakas could contact the Rakshasas.

There, the party discovered that harvesting of a fertile river plan was slowed by attacks by strange creatures which attacked farmers from below. The party dispatched the ankhegs and scouted the wastes. The party was attacked by some desert trolls which were quickly killed.

Finding the temple, the party met with the Rakshasa. The Rakshasa were willing to resume their previous arrangement with Sarad. Bhuta, one of them, was sent with Sarad to be sent back when Sarad decided whether or not to accept the offer.

990612 The party finished its sweep of the northern wastes. There is a brief encounter with more Rakshasa that both sides walked away from. The party encountered a large monster with the body of bronze lion and wings and killed it.

Back in town, there were riots over the food shortages. Both the Prasada and Edrajala guards were expanded to deal with the riots.

Kvin's followers were kidnapped with a warning that he should stay out of politics. The party raided the house where Atman's black leather armored thugs held the captives. Aided by the avatar of Agni, the thugs are slain and the captives rescued.

Chendra revealed to the party that before he was an ascetic, he was a successful civil servant in Chinnapucacha and a talented psionicist. Disagreements with his psionic school caused him to leave. He set his wife and daughter up financially securely and wandering into the wilderness. He returned an ascetic. Before he could meet his family, the island was destroyed. He had since had dreams indicating that his wife and daughter may still be alive, possibly in the caverns below the city.

990627 Court was held to discuss the city's defense. A possible treaty with the sea elves is refused, as is the possibility of using the city's stone "Glory Boats" for defense instead of hauling food.

The jungle plants on the ruined island had quickly grown into a lush forest. The giant insects reached the mainland. Rumors suggested the insects come from the city's extensive underground. The party investigated the underground. While there, the party encountered the sapphire dragon which once ran the psionic school Chendra and Pathik learned at. Further in, the party encountered demons, which were quickly dispatched but not without injury. Further in, a strange hive full of humans in cacoons was found. The humans looked like they were slowly being turned to demons. Omar fireballed the hive, and a horde of demons attacked. After killing a few, the party dimension doored out of the underground and floated back to the city.

990708 Edrajala's military force was discussed in court. The party explained what they have found under the city to varous people, but to no avail. Before a decision on Edrajala was reached, another city-state attacks.

An attack by sea is repelled by Prasada's magical rail guns. The attack by sea is only a fient to mask an attack by land, but Agrama had planned for such an attack. He fought off the attackers.

Pathik avoided an assassination attempt. He has had several attempts on his life recently, probably related to his rivalry with Atman and Ronak. In addition, he has become the Angel of Disinformation, the master of information for the thieves guild.

A dream given to Kvin led the party back to the Stupa. In the underwater chamber where the party fought the kraken, the party found a white doorway which opens to Ratri's name. The party was flushed down a passageway and falls unconcious.

The party came to in the "arena of the gods". After facing three challenges of ice trolls, a white dragon, a were-wolf barbarians, the party earned Ratri's favor.

The goddess prophesied that the party will comes to the hall of the high king, where their wishes will control the world. The goddess ordered the party to remove the curse on the high god's home, to raise the city back into the heights, and return the king's people to their rightful home. She warned the party to make only one wish each. She specifically charged Chendra to wish for the Ring of Gaxx, that he may deliver it to her.

The party comed to back in the Stupa. 990724 The party swims out.

Kvin used divination to seek Chendra's family, and received the reponse "Guild hall, drain pipe, necropolis, then in / ausdi (forest), shrijupalla (plague), Charon's boat, escape."

The party again explored the city's underground, wandering through basements, natural caverns, sewers, and underground lakes before coming to another demonic hive. The party snuck away.

More exploring led the party to a large crypt, the "necropolis." (But only after breaking out of a random person's basement to rest and then breaking back in.)

990808 The party bluffed past some grave diggers and finds a connection into a basement in Edrajala. When Omar was sent up to determine where in Edrajala the party was, a magical geis placed on him by Edrajala forced him to betray the party. The party fled and encountered a group of spirits, the "Nate-han-ah". The spirits (vampires) where at war with the demons, and agreed to help the party. The spirits led the party past large hallways filled with dead.

The party came to the large forest inside Edrajala. There they met a deformed old woman, Medulenka who claims to have been waiting for the party. The party followed her deep into caverns formed from the forest's roots. There Chendra was given a flake of the plague stone, shrijupalla.

The woman then led the party further down to a large cavern where ants worked. A stream (The styx) ran through, and dark Charono demons poled across. Beyond the stream large black demonic towers stood.

990828 The party paid their way across and explored beyond the towers. The party found a huge cavern with racks of cacooned people in it. The party located Chendra's wife and daughter, both had been partially transformed into demons. While freeing them, the party was attacked by demons and fled back to the river Styx. During the fight filled with illusions from the demons, Pathik and Roshan waded into the Styx and lost their memory.

The party fled up the Styx in a Charona demon boat. Chendra's wife was found to be totally demonic and was dumped into the river. Up the river the party encountered another fireball throwing demon. Before the party dimension doored up to the city, Roshan was slain by a fireball.

Back in town, Roshan is reincarnated as an orc and given his old memories by Saheed, but he will need years to recover to any extend. Most of Pathiks memories are recovered by Saheed. Chendra's daughter, Adrika, was mostly fine, but had permenant small demonic horn stubs on her head.

Saheed informed the party that all of the dark skinned black caste residence of Nakasaki had disappeared. The people were refugees from afar. Saheed sent the party to investigate. Chendra discovered that the hand he touched the plague stone with has turned into flesh toned tentacles.

990905 The party explored the south short of Nakasaki. Finding a temple of the people, it appeared that a prophecy of some sort was fulfilled and that their god "called them home." A large norse ship was found, and it evidence showed that a large number of these ships had been hidden around town. The party suspected the people used these ships to leave before dawn. One group of Nakasaki failed to escape, and had been killed by demons in the temple.

The party returned to Prasada to find the war has begun. Twenty dark demonic buildings had appeared around the city. Edrajala has declared war. Saheed had asked for a divination and was told, "Your enemy comes in waves three / from the pole of wizardry / You won't stop this insurrection / till one side ends in full destruction."

Prasada had only 1,500 guards, Edrajala had at least ten times as many. The party snuck out of Prasada and past Edrajala guards to meet with Kvin. Kvin sought another divination, "Blue wave breaks on palace shore. Swarm time balks at emerald light. Wade then through hell's fiends and more to bovine lord where one must fight." The party snuck back to Prasada.

990912 On the first day, Edrajala created a magical illusion over the lower city. The illusion of rippling water masked the Edrajala guard attack. Early waves are turned back easily. When Edrajala wizards turn portions of the stone cliff to mud ramps, then back into stone, the fight becomes serious. The party helps and the Edrajala forces are driven back at terrible losses. At least 10,000 Edrajala guard are killed as are hundreds of Prasada guard. Early waves are turned back easily. When Edrajala wizards turn portions of the stone cliff to mud ramps, then back into stone, the fight becomes serious. The party helps and the Edrajala forces are driven back at terrible losses. At least 10,000 Edrajala guard are killed as are hundreds of Prasada guard.

During the battles, Prasada's rail guns fire at the enemy, but are eventually destroyed by a massive light weapon atop Edrajala's main tower.

The second day a huge swarm of giant ants and bees, each the size of a small horse, attacks. Mounted on the boy king's dragon (normally tranformed into a magical sceptre), Chendra uses the plague stone to disperse the insects. Almost all of the Prasada guard are dead.

That night, the demons attack. The horde of demons is followed by a huge demon with bovine features. The party sneaks past the first wave of demons. Omar confronts Bael, the bovine lord while the rest of the party and fire elementals from Kvin distract the rest of the demons. After an amazing shapechanging fight, Omar defeats Bael.

Still magically empowered, Omar destroys the light cannon and illusion creator atop the wizard's college. He demands that the wizard's bow to him, but they dispell the magics on him and he flees.

Status