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Great Basin Session (2023-01-22)

·448 words·3 mins
Matt Schwennesen
Author
Matt Schwennesen
Ph.D. Student and Tabletop Gaming Enthusiast

When we last ventured to the Great Basin…

The members of the Task Force and their allies where in a dire situation. After breaking into a remote monastery in the Niven Imperium to slay Keburipemi, one of the Harbingers of The Shattering and the current leader of the largest crime syndicate in the Basin, you engaged the monks and sages on the first floor of the temple. In quick succession, Obsidian Flow and Firefall caused most of the task force to become bound, blind and burning. Amidst the chaos, Oisin’s body fell to the floor from the ceiling.

With both sides reeling from the effects of Firefall (including the monks who were all hit with friendly fire and blinded themselves), Niwa struck down one of the sages. This action further disrupted the recover on the monk’s side and widened the slim chance of opportunity that had been presented to the Task Force. Coupled with numerous channel energy discharges from Jusa, you were able to find your footing and push back on the onslaught.

Notable highlights from the ensuing melee included:

  • Zorro casting Aqueous Orb to extinguish some of the nearby braziers and scoop up several of the monks, dragging them across the monastery and eventually knocking them unconscious.
  • Jusa, while blinded and entangled in obsidian, functioning as life support for most of the Task Force with penalty of channel positive energy discharges.
  • The enemy sage casting Wall of Fire, encircling all of the still bound task force members.
  • Meru dispelling the Wall of Fire the round before it would have killed Redfern.
  • A last ditch attempt by the remaining sage to cast an Apocalyptic Fireball.

Eventually, you prevailed through strong teamwork and supporting one another. All of the sages where slain and all but one of the monks were disposed of. Meru negotiated with the last monk, bargaining on the name of his dead lord that in exchange for his life and freedom he would show you the passage down. He also mentioned that the figure on the ceiling was likely an Avatar of Keburipemi. After a performance of a rhythmic dance, a large gate opened in the engraved wall of a dragon raining destruction upon a village.

We now resume as you enter the caldera of the volcano on the store of a lake of lava. Before you sit three masked figure, carefully clothed in formal Niven outfits and masked so that no part of their bodies are visible. In the center sits a red mask with an open mouth and closed eyes. To their right is a black mask with piercing blue eyes, and on the right is a yellow mask with closed eyes and mouth.