DM: ReddestMage

Leader: Lashi
Scout: Cally
Trailblazer: Tor

Mission: Meet Yarsby in Port Mirandia and investigate a nearby farm.

After the last two missions, I was sure that checking out a farm would be a walk in the park. Why is everything on this damn a island a fight for your life? At least I didn’t die.

Day 1, Weather: Fairly hot
Our group of six gathered at the Potted Plant in Port Mirandia and met up with Yarsby. He had been sending scouting parties to survey the area but one group hadn’t returned. We were to head west to the farm they had been sent to, investigate and return. Having gotten our mission, we departed towards our destination.

On the way, Cally spotted some strange fruit growing by the side of the road. They were like watermelons, but striped green and yellow with light blue flesh on the inside. We decided to take some with us on the journey back and moved on. Eventually we spot a lone building in the distance and head to it. Surrounded by pumpkin fields and with a dirt path leading to it, we stand before the farmhouse.

Though in off-season, the pumpkins are growing wild and healthy. Lots of crows sit in the fields, not seeming to care about the well-dressed scarecrows scattered about. Ou-Kan thinks the crows are watching us and we cautiously approach the house, keeping an eye on the birds. Knocking on the door gets us no response and we decide to split up as half the group goes to check out back. Lashi yells about seeing blood splatters in the house through a window and we spot small figures moving in the fields.

Hordes of small constructs made of farm tools rush out of the fields, the scarecrows stretch and come to life and the crows begin swarming, cawing and gathering in the sky. Ou-Kan casts a spell on us both and we begin slashing and slamming into the puppets with great speed and vigor. The scarecrows attempt to mess with our minds but we hold steady. The puppets manage to overwhelm Ou-Kan, furiously stabbing him all over. A wave of lethargy washes over us both and we’re helpless amidst the puppets and crows.

I watch the scarecrows create crowns of jagged iron on two of my companions as the puppets stab me into unconsciousness. The others manage to get me and Ou-Kan back into the fight, eventually killing all the puppets and scarecrows, with their crows fading out of existence. We gather ourselves, search the bodies and move into the house. We’re greeted with a rancid smell, dust, blood trails and footprints leading to a trapdoor. We put a table on the trapdoor and begin taking a short rest.

Our rest is interrupted as the table begins to rock, something trying to get up from the trapdoor. Leo’s weight on the table isn’t enough as he and table are thrown aside as a flesh golem clambers up. After being shot up by magic it quickly goes back downstairs with us following close behind. The golem is killed, but we still hear more sounds further in the basement. Leo and Ou-Kan rush in first, coming face-to-face with two more flesh golems, a large bone golem and a much larger scarecrow wielding a huge scythe.

I teleport into the fray and a strange instinct takes over me. I outstretch my hands and feel the 3rd eye on my forehead open up and glow with cold blue light. Next I know, a cone of freezing energy is shot towards the enemies. Despite my efforts, the bone golem assaults Ou-Kan and brings him down. Then the large scarecrow cleaves his body in two and laughs maniacally. Blind with rage, I shoot more cold energy into them, but the bone golem effortlessly cuts, bashes and slams me down to the ground.

Ogis wakes me up with magical healing and I see the reaper standing amidst the broken bones of the large golem. Laughing maniacally, it spins and strikes us all with it’s scythe. With Lashi falling, it again seems to regain strength from the death it causes. Barely hanging on, we all do what we can to hurt this embodiment of death. Leo acts very bravely and compels the demon into a duel, drawing it’s attention and allowing us to regroup a bit.

One of the flesh golems knocks me out and Lashi has to feed me a potion. By some miracle, Leo is managing to dodge the Reaper’s attacks and keep it’s attention. We all focus on the Reaper and keep chipping away at it. I go down again to the flesh golems, but when I wake up the nightmarish scarecrow is lying motionless on the ground. Barely hanging on, we finish off the two flesh golems and get everyone back conscious. We’ve won, barely.

Regrouping after the harrowing fight, we search Ou-Kan’s body and read his will. We wrap him in a blanket so no organs spill out, then start taking a short rest in the dark basement. The rest goes without issue, apart from a small mouse scaring us.

Feeling a bit better, we properly search the basement and upstairs. Our findings include: treasure, a magic wand, a bloody circle of arcane runes in the basement, Yarsby’s orders to his scouts and the diary of the farmer who lived here. The diary starts harmless enough, but turns into mad ramblings of crows watching him, whispers and footprints in the house. The last entries are all in Abyssal, telling about some “Progression” from 1 – 80.

After discussing the possible possession of the farmer and the ritual circle possibly summoning demons, Leo creates a ghostly servant. He then commands his servant to enter the circle and begin rubbing the runes off. This triggers an unexpected explosion as the circle combusts and the runes vanish.

Noticing how late it is, we decide to barricade the house and sleep in the bedroom. Thankfully the night is mostly uneventful. Lashi does claim that she saw a city in the clouds on her watch though. Looking around outside, everything seems the same. We pick up a few pumpkins and begin heading back to Port Mirandia.

Day 2, Weather: Clear
Travel back to town is quiet and nothing decides to bother us. Passing by the weird watermelons, we pick a few and keep going. Arriving at the bridge just outside town, Cally spots a tombstone a bit off the road. Going closer and reading it, Cally completely freaks out and runs towards town. Leo magically translates for the rest of us and reads: “Cally, bastard of Kelemvor and follower of a false faith”. We leave it alone.

Back at town we head to the Potted Plant and report back to Yarsby. We tell him of our findings and he goes very pale. He is also strangely annoyed that we destroyed the arcane circle without discussing it with him first. With our mission complete, Yarsby pays us our reward and we say our farewells to him and to each other.

Signed – Tor

Important notes:

Lashi saw a floating city in the clouds. It was very early into the night and we were west of Port Mirandia.

Someone or something is creating graves for adventurers still alive. Is it some magical phenomenon of the island or just an attempt to freak us out?

Yarsby was strangely annoyed that we destroyed the arcane circle. Does he know something we don’t? Look out for strangeness when dealing with him in the future.