Divided you’ll Fall

As we’re taking a short break, here is everyone’s current situation.
The Party is currently split into three groups.
Chen, Wer, Thesis and Elogyn are at the damaged fortress with the Monsters for Good and the Grey refugees.
Eolar, Durin and Bodush are the guests of General Oolf, leader of the White army. They are an hour or so inside the Southern White territory.
Ned is in the secret Elven Township with Joey the Elven warrior.
Mendez is hundreds of miles away in his home city.

No More Heroes Anymore

As a DM I’ve obviously hit a potential problem; What motivates the party?
Why are the characters doing the things that they’re doing? Why is each of us adventuring?

Looking at the past adventures, a few things become clear…

The Pirate Wreakers: For Gold and recognition.
The Runaway Gambler: For Gold.
The Darkening Wood: To restore a Church of St Cuthbert.
The Magnificent Seven: Just trying to get back to Seawell.
Munagon: To help the Gnome villagers
The Id, the Ego and the Super Ego: Still just trying to get back to Seawell.
The Baron’s Captive Daughter: Gold, glory and a potentially noble cause.
The Duchess’ Lover: Mendez was ‘enchanted’ by an evil bitch Bard.
Dead Mayor Walking: Gold and Political influence for the Church of St Cuthbert.
The Three Towers: For Gold and then to protect Good and Neutral.
A New Mission: To take over an existing church of Chaos and replace it with a Church of St Cuthbert. (Also as a place to dump Eolar’s dozens of acolytes.)

Eolar’s reasons so far have been the most obvious… Expand the Church of St Cuthbert.

But what about everyone else?

Mendez adventures mostly for the gold and the glory. (Mostly the gold.) This makes him easily set in motion. He is actively good though and wants to forward that goal. “Death to evil!” (As long as the situation isn’t life threatening.)

Wer. I have no idea what motivates Wer, why or what?

Ned. See Wer.

Bodush seems to have a secret agenda. Unfortunately I have no idea what it is. I fear we’ll all find out eventually though.

Durin. It seems battle and adventure are key with the Dwarf.

Thesis. He’s a worry.
‘Trained for war, educated in combat and schooled in fighting. Thesis’ father had imparted his knowledge and love of killing deep into his psyche.’
… I think Thesis just likes hitting things.

Chen’s reasons seem as lost as he himself seems to be. He’s taken on the mantle of ‘Guardian of the Middle’. If there could be an extreme middle, he’d push for it.

So far we have three main motivating forces…

1) Eolar and the Church of St Cuthbert.
2) Gold.
3) Fighting against Evil.

Whoever’s DMing next has got a battle on their hands just to keep the party interested.

Love yoursElf

Breaking off from the kiss, the handsome, green eyed Elf warrior looks down onto Ned’s beautiful face.“I knew you’d return.”
“So sure were you?” she smiles back up at him.

A Slog Back in Time

Thesis continues up each unyielding step. His eyes are downcast and he barely registers the Sorcerer Bodush as he catches up.
“Nice armour.” He sniggers as he continues past.
An hour or so later, the Elven Druidess Ned appears before him going in the opposite direction.
“Wha? Ned, Where are you going? Has something happened to the others?”
Ned looks embarrassed for a moment and then answers, “I have a bad feeling about what lies ahead. Death is in the air and I’m just not ready to face it.”
Looking down at the little Elf, Thesis feels a pang of sympathy; Elves are comely but so fragile. It’s hard to believe they live so long.
Ned wishes Thesis luck and tells him that Bodush has caught up with the others and that he’s less than an hour behind.

The Valley at War

Ned opened her eyes and saw Chen kneeling over her. "What happened??"
"There was a blast of energy soon after the white lady disappeared! It was so strong that you passed out!" Her headache seemed to confirm the last bit. Chen helped her up and they went to the nearest window. The battle seemed to be over and the ground was covered with slain wolves. There was a moment of relief when they saw Durin and Mendez walking from body to body to make sure it stayed that way.
They walked down the tower, constantly watching out for the night hag. They met Durin and Mendez near the portcullis where the guards were carrying the bodies of their dead friends towards the tower. They spent half a day carrying and burning bodies before going back up the tower where they decided to stay over night. Ned led them to rooms that she remembered from the earlier search and that looked like guest quarters. Mendez who was the first to look out of the window urged the others to come and look.
In the distance to the west they could see the battle. The twilight was illuminated by huge magical lights and explosions; the whole north-western part of the valley was a warzone. After watching the spectacle for a while they were able to make out huge elementals and even the giants near the green tower. It seemed as if they slowly moved north.

The next morning they decided to leave. The war was still raging in the distance and the party wasn't good at sitting and waiting. The grateful guards gave them horses and only Ned decided to fly and scout. After half a day they reached the village they stayed at the day before. Slowly riding through crushed defenses and smoldering ruins they saw women and children crying over the dead bodies of men lying in a row near the village centre. They had had no chance and the wolves had completely raised the village in under an hour. Filled with rage the four heroes moved on, determined to join the forces who fought against this abysmal evil. They met a few stray wolves who seemed to have fled the battle, most of them heavily wounded. The travelers made short work of them and moved on quickly. Resting on a small upheaval later afternoon, they saw the battle concentrating on the area around the black tower. The rest of the valley seemed calm with only columns of smoke giving evidence of the recent fights.

The next morning they reached the black tower. Throughout the night they had hunted down wolves that tried to escape the battle or had assisted hunters and druids taking down groups of fugitives. The ground was covered in bodies - humans, animals and wolves alike. Every creature seemed to have joined the fight. Groups of fighters moved towards them checking the bodies on the ground indicating an end of the fights. They arrived on the yard of the black tower just in time to witness the final showdown. They could see the white and the green lady together approaching a huge werewolf lord who was kept in check by five huge earth elementals. One of the giants was lying heavily wounded near the group, surrounded by at least 30 dead werewolves. With the elementals opening a corridor, the lord slowly turned, looked at the two women and with a roar started to charge. The two women stopped, looked at each other and in unison, raised a hand. The werewolf, suddenly surrounded by white and green energy, slowed down in agony and was forced to the ground a few yards further. Slowly, his convulsing body started to levitate. As the two women moved closer, they raised their hands, moving the hybrid body upwards. With a sudden burst of energy emerging from the two, the body was dashed against the wall of the black tower where it was fused into the obsidian material, leaving behind a grotesque wolf shape above the entrance.
"Looks good, don't you think?" The white lady started to smile. Both women looked at each other and bowed. They turned and while the elementals vanished one by one and the remaining fighters cared for the wounded the white lady approached the group. "Loranna told me about your heroic actions. Without your help, this valley would have descended into darkness. We owe you a great debt of gratitude! Please join us for the celebrations at sunset the day after tomorrow."
Lorna appeared next to her "My mother invited you to stay at the green tower till then!" Surrounded by so many beautiful women, Mendez immediately accepted the offer in the name of the group. Lorna bowed to the white lady and turned to the group. After a few debates, the group decided to be eagles this time.

Cry Havoc and Let Loose the Dogs of War

It didn’t seem like much; Rescue the ‘White Lady’ before the wolf army arrived.
What Mendez hadn’t bargained on was the swiftness of the wolves and the impregnability of the ‘White tower’.
The daughter of the ‘Green Lady’ summoned huge creatures of earth, wind and fire to block the innumerable wolves, but hundreds still made it to the outer wall.
Torn between running and trying to save the human soldiers, Mendez looked to Durin. The choice was clear; Mendez and Durin had to hold the gate while the unarmed Chen and Ned attempted to rescue the powerful ‘White lady’.
His life in the hands of the Monk and the Druid, Mendez fought with bow and sword until exhausted. Durin lasted longer but they were soon overwhelmed. Death was imminent and while still defiant, Mendez was weak with fatigue and facing too many opponents.
Submerged under a pack of wolves, Mendez anticipated the fatal bite…
And then there was light. Blinding but liberating. The wolves that weren’t killed instantly, fell back or fled outright.
Mendez and Durin were saved.

Eolar Rocks Banner

New Banner to finally exploit Eolar's odd Holy symbol pose and welcome Ned the 'What's-going-on-here?' Druid.