Chapter Two

{|
| class="alignleft" |
| class="alignright" |'''[[Ruins_Of_Archaea:Chapter_One|Chapter One &rarr;]]'''
|-
|}
==Karel Keep==

===Characters===

<div><ul class="thumbs">
<!-- <li>[[File:Avantimanisha.jpg|200px|thumb|none|"Avanti" Avantimanisha, Female Havlin Paladin]]&nbsp;</li> -->
<li>[[File:Eldon.jpg|200px|thumb|none|Eldon, Male Elf Mage]]&nbsp;</li>
<!-- <li>[[File:Ertrank.jpg|200px|thumb|none|Ertrank Leicht, Female Dwarf Ranger]]&nbsp;</li> -->
<li>[[File:Jakob_(Michael_C_Hall).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Jakob, Male Human (Vaerinjar) Warrior]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Ogilvy.jpg|200px|thumb|none|Ogilvy Prettyheart, Female Havlin Warlock]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Zhuur-Al_(Elistraie).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Zhuur-Al, Female Zinjan Rogue]]&nbsp;</li>
</ul></div>

===Noteworthy Persons===

<div><ul class="thumbs">
<li>[[File:Alzbeta_(Dove_Cameron).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Alzbeta, barmaid at the Bloody Bucket]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Bendik_(Mark_Benton).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Brother Bendik, priest of Pekha]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Josef_(Daniel_Kaluuya).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Josef, priest of Uzzah]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Ruza.jpg|200px|thumb|none|Ruza, curate at the temple of Uzzah]]&nbsp;</li>
<!--
<li>[[File:Dagmar_(Archie_Panjabi).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Dagmar]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Drahoslav_(Jeremy_Irons).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Lord Drahoslav zur Karel, Margrave of the Mistmarsh and Ealdwood]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Eliska_(Janeane_Garofalo).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Eliska, the witch]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Jarmila_(Jenna_Dewan).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Captain Jarmila, cavalry]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Kopecky_(Tom_Selleck).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Commander Kopecky, bailiff]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Lexa_(Gemma_Chan).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Lexa]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Marevak_(Pedro_Pascal).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Marevak, advisor to Lord Drahoslav]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Reznik_(Ian_Somerhalder).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Captain Reznik]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Svetlana_(Claudia_Schiffer).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Svetlana, clerk at the Reading Room]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Timofej_(Trevante_Rhodes).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Sergeant Timofej]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Ursula_(Nicole_Beharie).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Ursula]]&nbsp;</li>
 -->
<li>[[File:Valentin_(Benjamin_Bratt).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Valentin, guild master]]&nbsp;</li>
</ul></div>

==Game Sessions==

===2021-07-26===

The band travels through muck and mire to the egg chamber of the lizardfolk tribe, where they meet a lone human, on his knees and praying. The priest rises and asks them if they are there to witness the miracle. The band says they "will be right back", and retreats.

They verify with the lizardfolk shaman, who confirms that yes, this "soft skin" was an ally of Redeye, and a servant of the dragon, and that she wants the band to [https://youtu.be/U6cake3bwnY take him out of the picture].

They manage to kill the priest, Cernobog, but not before he and his summoned fiendish servants kill Jakob. "The Black Sun will rise!" he exclaims. Oh no!

And what about that big slimy egg? Eldon has read about dragon eggs, and they are always described as "scaly", not "slimy". Zhuur-Al stabs it, and hundreds of long, thin, chalk-white worms spill out of it, and start heading for the lizardfolk eggs. Eldon uses a thunderclap spell to destroy them, sadly damaging nine lizardfolk eggs in the process (don't worry, there are a few hundred more).

Deciding that it's time to leave, they carry Jakob's corpse with them and leave the egg chamber through an underwater passage.

The band gets back to Blackwall Keep, to find that the lizardfolk who had been laying siege to the tower have left. Lt. Yanko and the remaining ten soldiers are packing up and getting ready to go, too. They carry as many of their fallen comrades as they can, hoping that the priest at Karel Keep can revive them.

The band arrives at [[:File:Karel_Keep.jpg|Karel Keep]], a massive structure on top of a cliff, with a small village at the bottom of the hill, below. They place Jakob in the care of the temple of [[Ruins_Of_Archaea:Deities#Uzzah|Uzzah]], who is able to revive him (although he will be weak for a few days).

The band gets lodging at the Wayfarer's Rest inn, gets a meal at the Bloody Bucket tavern next door, and Zhuur-Al gets a massage at the bath house. While at the Bloody Bucket, the band meets Brother Benik, a priest of [[Ruins_Of_Archaea:Deities#Pekha|Pekha]], who says he has already heard of their exploits at Blackwall Keep, and he buys them a round of drinks as a token of gratitude.

<div><ul class="thumbs">
<li>[[File:Bendik_(Mark_Benton).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Brother Bendik]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Cernobog_(Anthony_Carrigan).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Cernobog]]&nbsp;</li>
</ul></div>

===2021-08-02===

While enjoying some free drinks, the and is approached by Valentin the guildmaster. Apparrently a large shipment of goods from Stonegate Pass was scheduled to arrive a week ago, and never did. He would like to hire the band as mercenaries to venture north and investigate. He would, of course, be delighted if the merchant and his entourage are found and safely delivered to Karel Keep... but if the band should find the merchandise, they will rewarded.

On discovering that the band is not a chartered mercenary company, he offers to take care of that while they are gone. He also offers to equip them (within reason) for the excursion.

The band equips up at the provisioner and heads north. On the second day of the trip, they find what they believe to be the remains of the caravan. Several spears were left behind by the attackers, but not the style of javelin made by the lizardfolk.

The band followes the trail into the Cairn Hills, and the atmosphere begins to grow unsettling. The trees appear to be twisted, and the undergrowth becomes menacing. As dusk approaches, the trail abruptly turns to the right. Ahead to the left is a cave entrance. Thinking this might be a trick, they approach the cave.

From the shadows of the underbrush and nearby trees, red eyes focus on the band!

[[File:Critters_02.jpg|720px]]

<div><ul class="thumbs">
<li>[[File:Alzbeta_(Dove_Cameron).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Alzbeta, barmaid at the Bloody Bucket]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Bendik_(Mark_Benton).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Brother Bendik, priest of Pekha]]&nbsp;</li>
<li>[[File:Valentin_(Benjamin_Bratt).jpg|200px|thumb|none|Valentin, guild master]]&nbsp;</li>
</ul></div>

===2021-08-09===

The small furry, rolling monsters -- little more than fang-filled mouths -- attack, with devastating effect. The band kills over a dozen of them, and some of the monsters retreat, but not for long. During a brief lull when the small monsters have been chased off, the band flees north, in the direction they think the people from the caravan were taken.

They meet some dwarven miners, who are leaving this area after an unsuccessful expedition. The mines in this area are all played out, the dwarves say, and the monsters are too numerous for a small group like theirs to deal with. Perhaps the band will do better. But watch out for the ogre!

===2021-08-16===

The band tracks the abducted merchants to a cave... a goblin cave! They battle goblins and even an ogre, but the fight is not over...

===2021-08-23===

The band kills a lot of goblins and hobgoblins, but have not yet found the abducted merchants from the caravan.

The band finds a concealed door leading to further old mine tunnels, but (after killing a LOT of hobgoblins, but being severely injured themselves), they decide to barricade that door and backtrack to the tunnels they had previously seen. They find the quarters of the goblin chief (now deceased), but postpone searching it until later. They had captured a dozen or so goblins, but the goblins escaped while the band was resting.

The band rests again before opening a door leading to ... even more hobgoblins!


[[Category:Ruins Of Archaea]]
[[Category:Fantasy]]