Episode 11: "Stomp!"

Quest Information

 * 14th Arah Abu, 837
 * Title: The Faulty Summoning
 * Level: 4
 * Location: Ag-Rakade

Primary Cast

 * Ket-Ramat, soldier-scout
 * Shoklen, swamp ranger
 * Lugal, Mage of Learning

Supporting Cast

 * Ibbi-Adad, lieutenant in the Ag-Rakade militia and superior officer to the party's militia members
 * Hannasi, Justice for Ag-Rakade
 * Various townspeople

Summary
Ket, Shoklen and Lugal proceed to the Great Hall of Ag-Rakade to discuss their recent missions with Ibbi-Adad, their commanding officer. With them is Hannasi, the Justice for Ag-Rakade. Over the last few weeks, the party has uncovered not one but three plots involving magical (or at least pseudo-magical) experimentation. All of this has very ominous tones for Ibbi. Ibbi relates tales of the last Giant War. Twenty years ago, Ibbi; the militia commander Tat-Babu; and other militia members traveled north, to the borders of Az-Korethi, to fight back a legion of giants. It was a terrible war: the first one in living memory where the might of wizards factored heavily in combat. It was horrific: fireballs and acid storms wreaked terrible havoc on the front lines.
 * The party arrested long-time resident Attil'Kusu for experimenting on fey creatures, including a dryad they rescued and returned to her home glade on the outskirts of the village. Hannasi has been interrogating Attil since his arrest, but the wizard may be transferred to the capital, Bakretah, in the coming days. He has not been particularly forthcoming with information.
 * The party discovered and slew a crazed necromancer, caught disturbing the family crypt of Entara, the Chief Matriarch of Ag-Rakade. Apparently this mage was trying to steal the bones of Entara's ancestors for some nefarious purposes. Lugal is still trying to decipher the necromancer's cryptic journal.
 * The party stumbled across a team of people who have been cross-breeding three different species of plants to develop dangerous baneberry trumpeters: flowering plants that shoot poisonous darts at those who approach too closely, turning them into strange plant-human hybrids. These "gardeners" fled before they were able to be captured, but the party was able to uncover specimens and rootstocks of those plants, and another cryptic tome (this time an accounting ledger written in a strange script that may have its sources in nearby Hurrethe).
 * Shoklen also points out they seem to be fighting an unusually high number of undead: the bog mummy in the halfling village of Bearden's Crossing; ghouls in the basement of the gardeners' house; and the ghostly apparition in the Moon Druid's crypt.

"There once was a time", Ibbi recounted, "when it was just you against an enemy, steel vs. steel. You would train your troops, and they would train their troops, and the better warriors would win. But wizards changed everything: a well-placed fireball could take out dozens of men in a single shot, and then the wizard could turn invisible and move to another spot to do it again. We never encountered power like that before. We had to develop new tactics, and in the end, we only achieved victory because humans, halflings and dwarves outnumbered the giants. The toll was terrible, we lost so many, and we knew we needed to change our ways."

Ibbi continues to tell the story of the formation of "special forces" units like the party's. "We knew we could no longer just marshall our forces and fight, spear-to-spear. We had to spy on our enemies, and maybe even some friends, so we could keep ourselves aware of developments in magic. Not only that, but we had to find ways to root out enemy spellcasters and wipe them out before they had a chance to shoot off those fireballs. It was that mission for which you were being trained."

"Unfortunately, it appears that wizards are researching even greater weapons than acid bombs. They are starting to mess with the fabric of the world itself. Fey creatures, the realms of the dead, even the very grass we walk on. This is incredibly ominous. We should alert the High Matriarch in Bakretah, that may end up being your next mission."

At that moment, a stiff, foul-smelling breeze wafts into the Great Hall. Outside, the yellow light of a sunny day turns a sickly green color. A swirling mass of green energy erupts just outside the door, and a massive creature steps out of the energy. The only thing visible is a giant hoof, which strikes the ground with a thunderous roar. A wave of sonic energy rips through the building, collapsing it on one side, and plunging the party into darkness.

The dust settles, and the party is injured but alive, as is Justice Hannasi. Unfortunately, Ibbi-Adad, loyal militia member and their commanding officer, suffered massive head trauma from a collapsing column and is no more. The party scrambles out through a hole on the opposite side of the building, to see a village torn apart by chaos. Apparently, the gigantic beast that erupted from the green energy vortex brought friends. Swarms of small creatures -- some resembling obese, gangrenous children; and others resembling leathery pig-faced boys with massive claws -- are attacking the countryside. They appear to be led by a hideous goat creature wielding a large halberd, with three small, bat-winged humanoids flying about, apparently acting as scouts and messengers. Significant numbers of these monsters spot the party, and rush to attack.

Through a combination of Lugal's magic, Shoklen's bow strength, and Ket-Ramat's skills with dual short swords, the party defeats their immediate adversary, but they realize more of these beasties are attacking the villagers. The party hears the deafening roars of the giant beast, and turn just in time to see the collapse of the Temple to Nissaba, goddess of agriculture and beloved patron of Ag-Rakade. Just visible through the dust cloud, the party spots a giant, horned head with a long snout and fiery eyes. However, they can't get too good of a look. Moments later, a tremendous shriek of pain erupts from the beast. A green, swirling energy vortex surrounds the creature, followed by a strong rush of wind towards the vortex, and then a brilliant flash of light followed by a smell of rot and decay. The monstrosity is gone, just as surprisingly as it came. The three small flying creatures chatter to each other in some unknown language, look at the party, wink, and then vanish. Seconds later, smaller vortexes and flashes of light surround the surviving unearthly creatures attacking the village, whisking them back to wherever they came, leaving a trail of death and destruction in their wake.

The party looks about at the carnage wreaked upon the village. What exactly has happened here?

Outcome

 * Shoklen the swamp ranger is nearly killed by the goat creature, and appears to be infected with some dread disease, thanks to the black halberd it was wielding.
 * The Great Hall and the Temple to Nissaba both appear to be destroyed.
 * Ibbi-Adad is dead, and clearly there are many casualties in the village.

Rewards

 * Ket-Ramat, Lugal and Shoklen each receive 600 xp.