Session 50 - The One Where They Watch The Grove Burn

 

30th December 2023

In-game timeline: DR1489 Marpenoth 29 - Uktar 1

Our "Heroes" have managed to discover, and rescue, the adult villagers from Moonfall Cavern. It seems they take themselves here, and lock themselves up, in order to avoid them harming each other, and others, when they change into their animal form on the night of the full moon. The tangleweed is able to restrict this Change to only a single night, and helps them to avoid succumbing to The Curse completely and potentially changing their… outlook on life.

Mahtis and Carro are understandably worried about the effects of being bitten. Elder Eldred Greylock explains a little about The Curse, and it seems that they will not change for another month, and they do have a chance to remove the curse from themselves, though the number of times they are bitten does make it harder to do so. This is a problem for another day.

For now, the villagers are worried about the fate of their children, especially as it seems that the innocent looking young gnome, to whom the party entrusted young Suriel, is behind the whole child-abduction thing. Most worrying for now is that there is no tangleweed left in the village, and this could cause problems for the adults in the next couple of nights.

Our "Heroes" magnanimously agree to head to Tangleweed Grove to get some more of the herb, as the adults of the village are weakened and in no state to make the journey themselves.

The party head out, opting to take the route via the hills rather than risk the edge of the swamp. Carro's skills in this terrain do manage to help them spot a large ogre, dragging long, spiked chains behind him, before the ogre sees them, and they quietly pass him by without being spotted.

They reach the grove, at the edge of the swamp. Taking the less obvious route into the grove itself enables them to avoid a large crocodile that is hidden at the edge of the grove, but the party are taken by surprise when a couple of wolf-hybrid creatures emerge from the swamp and fire flaming arrows into the grove itself! The marsh gas that is collecting in the area ignites and the tangleweed in the grove starts to burn.

Risking burns, Mahtis and TC quickly run into the grove and grab some of the precious herb. TC uses his Mage Hand to grab more of the weed, whilst in an uncharacteristically callous act, Mahtis summons some black bears to run into the flames to try to fetch some more. Between them all, the party do manage to get a good few handfuls of the tangleweed before the fire forces them to retreat, and the group head back to the village, somewhat dejected.

The news of the burning of the grove is badly received by the villagers, as they relied on the source of tangleweed there, and it will be some time before the plants can regrow. However, the handfuls of the herb that the group managed to get hold of is enough to stave off The Curse for this lunar cycle at least, buying the villagers some valuable time and garnering their gratitude towards the party as our "Heroes" settle down for another night after yet another busy day…