Quartz 4

Session 29

20 min read

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  • The party returns to Hillford and goes to bed!!

Day 3 Preparations

  • We wake up at Foo’s bar!
    • We’ve come to expect visions, but we’ve received none — those with a 10+ passive insight realize that we haven’t had a dream since Iron Forge, AKA when OSIRIS ascended with the Pyramid
  • Kaya heads down first, getting some stuff from Foo for the road
    • She gets a flask of “pocket wine” for the road and a sandwich!! (+1 sandwich because Foo KNOWS she’ll run into someone who needs it) (he knows us so well 🥰)
    • As Foo hands her the sandwiches, he says “I look forward to seeing you later… After the battle.”
      • IZZIE NOTE: THIS SOUNDS FLIRTATIOUS WITHOUT CONTEXT, BUT HE’S BEING COOL AND NORMAL
  • Cordelia remains in her room, meditating over how she’s going to “fuck these bitches up” ⇐ Lily’s words
  • Quén is still in bed, thinking about the night before
    • They spied a little on their mother!! She looks alive and well, just bored — looking outside a bay window at the field where the big battle will take place
    • They leave a few letters - some written a long time ago, others recent - with one in particular telling her that they’re “going on a trip to help the military with some stuff” and not to worry about them, because they’re “in good hands”
    • They roll out of bed and join Kaya on her trip to the Capital, receiving a sandwich and the same message as she did from Foo.
  • Cal looks for Vallen, but Vallen didn’t return to Hillford with us — he remained in the Capital with V
    • Instead, he stays at the bar to drink
    • ROLLS FOR SURVIVAL TO UNDERSTAND THE LAYOUT OF THE BATTLEFIELD (12: he “does just fine”)

Returning to the Capital

  • Kaya and Quén arrive at V’s office, only to find a note telling them to meet him outside the Capital. They assume he’s at the site of the future battle, planning there
    • They make their way to the lower city, and are followed by Cal!
  • Cordelia meditates for 2 hours before heading to the Capital herself (she leaves at the same time as Cal)
  • Kaya and Quén pass through the city, and see:
    • People outside the walls - mostly soldiers - making the rounds helping citizens and preparing the city for war
    • People are boarding up their windows

Arriving at the Battlefield

  • V is standing at a wooden table on the edge of the battlefield, wearing battle attire:
    • IZZIE’S GONNA BUST!!!!! (don’t tell anyone tho)
    • V hasn’t acknowledged them yet — he’s still drawing up plans
  • We greet V, and he gets RIGHT down to business: he wants Kaya to turn the entire plain into an elevated battlefield
    • He tells her that she might uncover some ruins, and to place them as such (he shows us a map, apparently drawn in crayon)
      • The map was drawn by Cal!!
  • Quén inquires about the mask: it’s so that - when things get tough - the troops will never see him lose hope
  • V mentions that Vallen will join us later: he’s in the Keeper’s Tower, but refuses to tell us exactly why
    • Quén gets the sense that there’s DEFINITELY a reason why Vallen isn’t joining us, and V isn’t telling us specifically because the thing he’s keeping from us is something that we won’t like
  • V asks Kaya to show him how to move earth (so he can use his magic to copy her abilities), but when he attempts to - for some reason - his moved earth caps out at 15, whereas Kaya can move 20 (atp)
  • Cordelia and Quén are directed to dig holes with shovels
    • Quén looks at the shovel with a haunted expression
    • Cordelia struggles to dig, at which point Julian shows up and - at Quén’s request - helps Cordelia by teaching her how to dig (probably Ghost-style tbh)

BATTLE PREP

  • Quén casts:
    • Enhanced Ability+ on Kaya, granting her a +1d8 to her initiative roll and advantage on DEX checks and rolls
    • Warding Bond on Cal
  • Quén warns Kaya that OSIRIS didn’t target her during the last battle, and there is likely a reason for that — Kaya agrees that it’s ominous
  • Cordelia reaches out to Quén, taking their hands. She affirms that she cares about them deeply, and that she respects them as a spellcaster. She also says that she’s looking forward to seeing what they do after this battle
    • Quén squeezes her hands, telling her that her words mean more to them than she could know
    • I LOVE FRIENDSHIP :(((( YAYAYYYYYYYY
  • SIDE NOTE: QUEN CAST DEATH WARD ON CORDELIA’S BROTHER AND CORDELIA
  • THE BATTLEFIELD
    • Rolling hills, pocked with trenches
    • Moss-covered pillars and barriers
    • Running water on all sides
    • Pressure plates that explode with a fire trap

The storm begins to roll in

  • V turns to us:
    • “I have one last preparation… and then I will return (back to the Capital). Good luck, all of you.”
    • A rift cracks open in what seems like space-time itself, and V walks through it. As he leaves, the rift closes behind him and there is no trace.
  • The walls of the Capital morph, opening up. THOUSANDS of Clover soldiers begin marching through, surrounding the arena we stand
    • Some of the front-liners point at us, whispering
    • PERCEPTION CHECK: NAT 20!!! CORDELIA SEES HER BROTHER!!!!!!
      • He’s a few rows back - 100-200 ft. out - and although he’s far away, she recognizes him by the color of his hair
      • SHE SEES HIM SEE HER!!! OMG
      • While she’s looking at him, she signs to him that she loves him 🥺🥺🥺 bro family wins… I love them sm
        • HE SIGNS BACK THAT HE LOVES HER TOO!! BCS HE ALSO KNOWS SIGN LANGUAGE!!!
  • We begin to hear marching in the distance. From the trees. It’s roughly half a mile out
    • A few trees begin to shake and fall, as we see - in the very far distance - what looks like an army
  • In the distance, we see a singular, floating silhouette. Cape and all.
    • CJ PLAYS THE OMINOUS PRE-BATTLE MUSIC
  • Thousands of warforged begin to march out from the woods. In the sky, the same silhouette from our dreams: cape billowing in the wind, spear in hand. OSIRIS.
    • “CLOVER. This. Is. Your. Finality.”
    • As the warforged march upon Clover, OSIRIS floats down and lands directly in front of the party.
  • “You five. It is time. Give me the Orb, or I will unleash an era of metal.”
    • Quén simply says “No”. Cordelia squares up and looks OSIRIS straight in the eyes.
    • “Then this will be your end.”
  • Looking at OSIRIS, we see that he hasn’t made any effort to repair himself since we saw him last, and the Pyramid shudders and sparks in his chest. Where the sparks land
  • The warforged around him begin to rush the battle.
  • As the battle begins, the same rift that the Keeper used tears open, and The Father floats through
    • His mask is a mirror-chrome finish, and he addresses OSIRIS, asking an obvious question about whether or not he is after the Orb
  • ANOTHER RIFT OPENS??? THE KEEPER WALKS THROUGH WITH VALLEN
    • VALLEN HAS WHITE HAIR NOW??? BLOOD DRIPS FROM HIS MOUTH. HE DRANK HUMANOID BLOOD.
  • AN ANIME FIGHT BEGINS. THE KEEPER AND VALLEN ARE FIGHTING THE FATHER RN. IT LOOKS COOL AS FUCK. THEY’RE LITERALLY FLYING AND IN THE AIR. IT’S NUTS.

The Battle Begins

  • As the monologues happen, CJ lets Quén cast Spiritual Weapon :D
  • WE GET TO DECIDE OUR OWN INTIATIVE!!!
  • INITIATIVE ORDER
    • Quén
    • Cal
    • OSIRIS
    • Kaya
    • Cordelia
    • Julian

ROUND 1

  • Quén
    • Mist pools in their hand through a gap between their glove and sleeve, forming a familiar longsword in their palm. They send it spinning towards OSIRIS, scratching him across the chest for 11 radiant damage.
      • This is a 3rd level Spiritual Weapon
    • They cast Haste on Cal
    • They warn Cordelia to get behind cover, and dash across the battlefield to spread the party out
  • Cal
    • Smiles WIDE, says “I’ve been waiting for this.” and RUNS IN TO ATTACK OSIRIS HEAD-ON
    • Deals a total of 19 damage and adds a Wounded stack to OSIRIS
      • Creatures must make a DC 15 CON save, or else takes 1d4 necrotic damage at the start of their turn (EVERY STACK OF WOUNDED IS +1D4)
    • Rolls a DEX save to avoid OSIRIS’s sparks (ROLLS A NAT 20)
      • OSIRIS TAKES 4 POINTS OF DAMAGE AS THE SPARK HITS HIM INSTEAD!!
  • Kaya
    • Uses a ki point to attack with both her action and bonus action, deals a total of 15 damage as she punches the fuck outta OSIRIS
    • Dodges out of the way and uses her movement to get out of OSIRIS’s range (doesn’t incur an AoO because of Mobile)
  • OSIRIS
    • Kaya sees him turn, and - almost as if he moves space itself - teleports in front of her.
    • She looks down and sees the spear go through her stomach — she takes 70 points of damage AND GOES DOWN
    • He raises his hand, the grass around her dying and green energy flowing from the dying flora into her body. She is pulled to her feet and is healed for 10 HP
      • “Again.”
  • Cordelia
    • Upon seeing what OSIRIS did to Kaya, Cordelia’s hair floats around her, and her cards pull themselves out of her deck — she LOCKS TF IN!!!
    • She pulls Wheel of Fortune which allows her to pull 3 additional cards.
      • The Hanged Man: OSIRIS flips upside-down
      • Justice: Every time she takes damage or deals damage, she adds 1d8 damage to her next damage roll, dealing necrotic
      • The Magician: She gets a +5 to her next __ or saving throw
    • Cordelia looks OSIRIS directly in the eyes, and gets a twisted look in her eyes as the pulled cards burn away around her. Her clothes and hair rise with the pure arcane energy around her as the realization settles in for all of us that she is NOT fucking around.
  • Julian
    • Casts Cure Wounds on Kaya, healing her for 30 HP

ROUND 2

  • Quén
    • Goes to cast Guardian of Faith, knowing that they do not have the energy (spell slots) to do so. They take 15 points of damage, and as they tear their hand upwards through the air a misty guardian appears in front of Cordelia
      • The guardian’s shield is initially blank, but a symbol gradually manifests on its surface:
      • They also feel their fingertips begin to die as they pull upon magic that they simply do not have.
    • They swing their arm around in the same motion, tearing their radiant sword across OSIRIS’s chest for another 11 damage
  • Cal
    • Throws a Greater Healing Potion at Kaya for 12 points of healing!!
    • Deals 12 points of damage and an additional 2 stacks of Wounded to OSIRIS
  • Kaya
    • Hits once for 12 damage!!
    • Uses her movement to dart away and stand next to Quén’s Guardian of Faith
  • OSIRIS
    • Teleports in front of Quén (incurs an AoO from Cal, hits and adds another Wounded stack)
      • “You cannot protect your friends.”
    • He casts Lightning Bolt as an arc of lighting tears itself from his outstretched hand and hits Cordelia for 28 points of damage
    • Takes 12 points of damage from Cal’s Wounded (4d4 necrotic)
  • Cordelia
    • Pulls Judgement, summoning a clone of herself
      • THE CLONE COPIES CORDELIA’S SPELLS OH MYG OD
    • SHE CASTS FIREBALL. THE CLONE ALSO CASTS FIREBALL!!!!!
      • ROLLS 16D4. GETS 53 POINTS OF DAMAGE
    • As Cordelia’s cards float around her and she and her simulacrum move in perfect sync, forming dual fireballs in their hands and firing them at OSIRIS
    • KAYA, QUÉN, AND CAL ARE TELEPORTED OUT OF HARM’S WAY BY VALLEN!! MY KING, MY GOAT!!!
      • “Be careful next time… *looks at Cordelia* Nice.”
    • As the smoke clears, the Pyramid in OSIRIS’s chest is a little more cracked. OSIRIS looks like shit.
  • Julian
    • The flames that hit OSIRIS quake next to him.
    • He splits the fireball Cordelia just cast, slamming it back into OSIRIS for half the damage of the original (26 points of damage)

ROUND 3

  • Quén
    • They lock eyes with OSIRIS, simply saying “Watch me.”
    • They heal Cordelia for 16 HP with a 2nd level Cure Wounds
    • In the same sweeping motion that they touch Cordelia’s shoulder, they claw their hand through the air, sending their blade across OSIRIS’s chest, dealing another 12 points of radiant damage
  • Cal
    • Cast Eldritch Blast on OSIRIS. Two bolts of pure shadow BURNS into OSIRIS dealing 20-something force damage
  • Kaya
    • Cast Erupting Earth on OSIRIS, dealing 4d12 damage
    • Kaya pulls a POWERFUL stance, pushing her foot into the ground. Her fist glows red as she flexes, and fire SHOOTS UP FROM THE GROUND, ERUPTING AROUND OSIRIS
      • AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! OH MY GOD!!!!!!!
    • Sprints up to OSIRIS and manages to get within 10 ft. of him
  • OSIRIS
    • His feet now touching the ground, he raises his hand. Every creature within a 60 ft. radius must make a CON save
    • The Pyramid glows a deep red as OSIRIS raises his hand, and as he casts Sunburst, a massive column of radiant light turned into something decaying and necrotic hits everyone within a 60 ft. range, forcing us to make CON saves
      • THOSE WHO SUCCEED AREN’T BLINDED!! (i.e. all of us)
      • EVERYONE TAKES 34 POINTS OF DAMAGE
  • Cordelia
    • Pulls herself up, and from the cards floating around her pulls The Emperor
      • Choose a creature within 75 ft. and force them to make a DC 15 WIS save. If they fail, they must spend their next turn falling to their knees and praising you.
      • FOR FUTURE REFERENCE: THIS WILL COUNT AS CHARMING A CREATURE FOR ALL FUTURE INSTANCES
    • OSIRIS is standing on the ground, and he ALMOST falls to his knees
      • “I will not praise you, you sadistic fuck.”
  • Julian
    • Looks to Cal and casts Shield of Faith
    • Cordelia and Kaya roll a Perception check
      • Kaya (25), Cordelia (9)
      • As Julian casts this protective spell over Cal, Kaya turns and sees that he is shaking

ROUND 4

  • Quén
    • “You cannot go down now!” Casts a 2nd level Healing Word on Cordelia, healing her for 7 HP
    • “Cal, do you trust me?” Uses their Channel Divinity: Safe Passage to teleport Cal 45 ft. in the air
  • Cal
    • SPINS THROUGH THE AIR LIKE A BEYBLADE AND DEALS 24 POINTS OF DAMAGE
    • For ever 15 ft. of distance fallen, he gets to deal an additional 3d6 to the creature he falls on (same rules used for Vallen in the previous OSIRIS fight)
  • Kaya
    • Punches OSIRIS 4 times, dealing 6 damage
    • Darts out of the way again using her movement/Mobile
  • OSIRIS
    • Forces Cal to roll an INT saving throw (21)
      • OSIRIS is breathing heavily (for dramatic effect). He turns to Cal, looks him dead in the eyes, and snaps his fingers. Cal takes 49 points of damage (halved to 24). Quén takes half of this damage and goes down
    • Lifts his hand and pushes Cal 20 ft. away
  • Cordelia
    • Pulls the Death card. LILY CELEBRATES. BUT OSIRIS IS IMMUNE TO SLEEP!!!
      • The card burns away in front of her, and through its ashes she sees OSIRIS laugh at her
    • SHE CASTS FIREBALL AGAIN, dealing 28 points of damage BECAUSE OSIRIS FAILS HIS DEX SAVE. LMAO YOU DUMB BITCH. GET FUCKING GOT.
  • Julian
    • Touches the ground. All of us feels a warmth at our feet as green fire springs up from the ground and heals us for 5 HP

ROUND 5

  • Quén
    • Touches Cordelia’s shoulder once again, casting a 1st level Cure Wounds and healing her for 10 HP
    • Drinks a Potion of Greater Healing, and heals 15 HP
    • Falls back a few feet, standing next to Kaya
  • Cal
    • When Quén goes down, we see something that we haven’t seen in a long time: Cal’s neck twitches.
    • He reaches into the folds of his clothes, pulling out the mask. As he puts it on, the eyes begin to glow red, and from the top of his head to the tips of his feet, his clothes stain black. His sword turns black, and as he grabs the hilt and rips it apart it burns red and turns into TWO FLAMING RED SICKLES?? THAT’S SO FUCKING SICK!!!!!
      • THE MASK ALSO HASTES CAL. CJ ALLOWS FOR HASTE TO STACK IN THIS SITUATION

HOW DO YOU WANT TO DO THIS

  • OSIRIS ATTEMPTS TO HIT CAL AS CAL CLOSES THE DISTANCE. HE GOES IN FOR ONE PUNCH. CAL SLICES THAT ARM OFF. ANOTHER PUNCH. SLICES THAT ARM OFF TOO. HE GETS WITHIN A HAIR’S DISTANCE AND SLICES OSIRIS UP THROUGH THE CENTER, SENDING THE PYRAMID FLYING
  • OSIRIS FALLS
  • JULIAN CATCHES THE PYRAMID WITH HIS BARE HANDS
    • AS HE DOES SO, WE REALIZE THAT THE FIGHTHING HAS SSTOPPED. AND IT’S BEEN OVER FOR A WHILE.
  • A rift opens - the same that V and The Father used -

ACT 1 ENDS

  • Cordelia scrambles over to Vallen’s bags, and reads one of the letters:

LETTER GOES HERE

  • Quén can’t bring themself to stand, and instead crawls - on their hands and knees - to the spot where Vallen used to be. They clutch at the dirt where he last stood, digging at the bloody imprint of his shoes. They attempt to cast Revivify on what - they assume - remains of him, but the spell fails.
    • As this happens, the rest of the party hears a scream. They have never before heard a cry nearly as devastated.
    • They also vomit, and curl up on the ground in a fetal position.
  • At some point, Quén gets their hands on the second letter that fell out of Vallen’s bag:

LETTER GOES HERE

  • Cal looks up at the ruins of the Capital as he removes the mask, and the black robes that saw him through his victory over OSIRIS fade away. He mutters something about failing once again as tears begin to roll down his grime-streaked face.
  • Kaya walks over to Quén, tears rolling down her face as they rub their back in the closest thing to comfort as she can muster.
  • Cordelia grips Vallen’s letter in one hand, dirt from the ground in the other. She looks up at the sky, rain streaking down her face.
  • Quén attempts to cast Sending on Vallen, begging him to let them know if he’s still alive. The message does not go through.
    • OOC NOTE: CJ rolls a d100 to see if the message goes through (rolled a success), but the message still doesn’t go through. I don’t know if this means that Vallen is ACTUALLY on another plane of existence or if CJ was rolling just to maintain the mystery.
  • Izzie rolls a WIS saving throw at disadvantage (18 and nat 20)
    • Quén crawls over to Julian, and as rain pools around their knees. They grab his collar and slaps him across the face, casting a first level Healing Word on him, forcing him awake and screaming that they killed the Keeper, their best friend, their mother, and everyone in the Capital.
  • Kaya suggests that we take a moment to regroup and collect ourselves, and in response Cal says “nope” casts Expeditious Retreat on himself, booking it towards the city to see who is left.
  • Cordelia looks around, clutching Vallen’s letter. She looks at Quén, with their back turned towards the group. She looks at Kaya, and she looks at the space where Cal used to be. Then she looks at the sky, rain hitting her face.
    • “I wish that no god who could have saved them ever knows peace again.”
  • Kaya sees a halo around Julian’s head: a little rainbow of light. Streaks of black weave themselves through the rainbow, and as they do it shatters.
    • In response, Julian says “Fuck”
    • He turns to Kaya, asking her “Fuck are you doing here?”
  • Kaya walks up to Julian and DECKS him in the face. He falls to the ground.
    • She grabs his shirt, coming in close. “You have… so much to answer for.”
    • Julian: The fuck did I do?
    • Kaya smiles: You’re going to remember real quick
  • Cordelia walks to the edge of the platform - the end of the battlefield created just for OSIRIS
    • She hears Kaya deck Julian, say something to him, and jumps off the edge of the platform, casting Feather Fall on herself. When she hits the ground, she simply begins to walk.
  • Quén does not join the rest of the party, instead choosing to fall into the mud and cry

Entering the Capital

  • Instead of the bustling sounds of people talking and going about their day, it is dead silent.
  • As Cal and Kaya walk through the Capital, they pass through the lower city and enter the upper city, they hear sobbing.
    • IT’S IN THE KEEPER’S TOWER. THEY BOOK IT TOWARDS THE SOUND
    • IT’S OZWIN!!!!!
  • OZ IS SO THANKFUL THAT THEY’RE ALIVE, BUT HE’S CONFUSED. HE ASKS WHERE EVERYONE IS.
  • Cal runs up and grabs Oz, asking why “it” didn’t take him. Oz doesn’t know, and Cal begins to wonder why it didn’t take us either.
    • Oz asks where the Keeper is, saying that he would know what to do. Kaya simply shakes her head in response.
    • Oz asks after the soldiers, and Kaya explodes, asking where Oz has been and what he’s been doing this entire time.
  • Cal and Kaya feel a presence behind them: in the doorway is an elven teenager, roughly 15 years old. He asks them: “Where is everybody?”
    • In this moment, they realize that not everyone disappeared.

Cordelia walks away

  • As she walks aimlessly, she hears a familiar voice behind her: “Delia, what are you doing?”
  • Cordelia turns around, staring him the eyes. There isn’t a trace of fear in any of her actions. She takes a deep, heavy breath, telling him that she’s ready now. In response, Balthazar says “No you’re not.”
    • Cordelia turns and begins to walk again.
  • She hears the shuffling of cards behind her, and as she walks she realizes the scenery begins to change, and she finds herself walking down the steps of the Barracks
    • Balthazar realizes that there was one more of the Seekers, snaps his fingers, and Quén appears on the floor of the Barracks. They do not move.
  • Oz is horrified then relieved at Balthazar’s presence, saying that he might know what to do.
    • Cordelia observes that - since V is dead - Balthazar is the de-facto leader, since he was the last Keeper. Balthazar says that’s not why he was here

Balthazar reveals the truth

  • Balthazar tells us to find our friend. We’re like ???? and he’s like “bruh the vampire that was crying on my porch”.
    • WE’RE LIKE HE’S ALIVE??
    • Balthazar pulls out a jar from his cloak, showing us a purple spark jumping around and hitting its glass walls. He tells us that “one of these” tried to hit him earlier.
    • He condescendingly explains that - if the Pyramid destroys all life and the Orb creates life - what happens when the two collide? (they move living creatures somewhere else)
  • BALTHAZAR CONFIRMS THAT VALLEN IS ALIVE!!!
    • EVERYONE WHO GOT HIT WITH A SPARK WAS SCATTERD ACROSS SOLMARA
  • The teenager from earlier is sitting, rocking back and forth. Kaya gives him her spare sandwich from Foo
  • Balthazar tells us that - according to The Father’s speech - he plans to break his kingdom free go to Solmara — that is, The Father plans to break through the Fog, starting in Spade.
    • Balthazar advises us to regroup and, once we’re ready, use the key to travel to his house. He will also provide us with a boat.
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