A Coup Against Aku
| A Coup against Aku | |
|---|---|
| Date | 10/12/23 |
| Storyteller | Doug |
| Tier | Master |
| Player Characters | Zeal, Hiromi, Satori the Insatiable Armorer, Serene Leyvald, Grist Vanafeld, Kali |
| Rewards | 350 xp, 6000 gp, Efreet, Ring of Energy Resistance (Greater) (Cold) (large), Potion of Fire Resistance (Greater) (Formula) |
| Result | Success |
| Author | Zeal |
| Downtime | 6 |
Log
Some weeks after the prior strike that took out Kai, Aku's son, the Greater Kodama called for us one final time. We needed to help win the final battle by killing Aku directly. Onadbyr organized a force of 50 soldiers alongside around 10 associates, us included, to be sent there with supplies. Most of the team took the plant down to the grove, but us 6 decided to take the long way down of jumping into the miles-long pit. We arrived at the grove and went to meet with the Greater Kodama, first meeting Ai the dryad. She explained the situation to us during our several-day trip to the base camp. After we destroyed their supply line, the ogres and giants retreated to bunker down in a singular location; The temple containing the Guardian of the Grove. The battle was set to start on the day we arrived from the portal, and given the fortified position of the enemy, the Kami forces would elect to instead starve them out. Ogres were stupid and gluttonous; they would inevitably get desperate when told food was running out. With any luck they would rebel and make our job easier. Based on the looks of the people living here, there was a worry among the group that the kami might not hold out much longer. They looked worn down, as any peaceful people would be after many months of war. Guess we couldn't afford to fail, then.
Whether or not that came to be, we arrived at the camp and met with the Greater Kodama. From there they updated us on the situation and our plan to resolve the issue permanently. The ogres had gotten desperate three days in and tried to break through, but were pushed back with some moderate effort. Only three Oni had been spotted throughout the battle, most were likely staying near to their boss within. All the metal and rust in the water told the tale, the Oni had been poisoning the water here with metal and rust to the best of their ability. Spite or a tactical safeguard against an aquatic assault, it was foul to look at. Taking the temple, surrounded by mist and fire, was not our objective. Our objective was to kill Aku, by any means necessary. He was the final foothold of the enemy forces, and without him they would crumble. He would not be alone, but nor would we. Some of our soldiers and associates would handle medical efforts, but our more combat-proficient would join in the battle to push inward. We would also be joined by the Greater Kodama, who would catapult some seeds into the temple area. These seeds would rapidly grow once they land, and they would use them as a means of teleportation to get us as close to Aku as possible. It was the fastest and most effective plan we had, as going in through the front door might leave us too worn to take him on.
Satori was our best info source on Oni, but even he didn't have much on Aku. 80 years ago, when Satori was back in the Old Country, Aku wasn't leader of the clan. That left us a blind spot in the form of how much experience Aku had, both as a leader and as a warrior. Kai was no pushover though, so we had to assume Aku could do everything he could and more. Entering into the tree line, we appeared deep into the temple. The Shrine to the guardian was in sight, guarded over by a floating ethereal Katana. Behind us was water of the non-dangerous variety, a rarity in the Grove. Before us were ogre gluttons and kobolds, the latter of which were in the process of running for their lives. Up the stairs were Onidoshi, fire giants, a tattooed Oni and a well-armored giant. It wielded Aku's halberd bearing that black energy that turned devastating misses into equally devastating hits. Beyond even it was Aku, who turned from the shrine to look at us. Black smoke floated about him the same way it floated about the halberd, a different visual to our Oni and Kitsune of the party. Those three could instead see the black horse heads of some god of the old country, a boon of this evil alignment.
We soon learned of the true start of this conflict: The Kodama had poisoned the Oni's water back in the old country, wiping out around 80% of their people in only three days. The Kodama and the Oni had always been in contention, but this act amidst a rough time for everyone, alongside running away, was what broke the clan. The Tsuimoto clan vowed to destroy the Kodama no matter what and had abandoned everything to hunt it down. Even Lady Nanbyo, their god. Worse still, The Grove had done nothing to deserve this. The Greater Kodama had led the Oni here and gotten many innocent people killed, all for fear of facing the consequences of its actions. Some of our group were considering letting Aku claim his vengeance, and believe me, I'd considered it too. But Aku was not without blame. He was a fiend of ill repute, torturing and killing for the joy of it. He had to die, above all.
Aku shot past us like a bolt of lightning, separating the Greater Kodama from us to face him in 1-on-1 combat. We left them to it for the moment, focusing on taking out the now-encroaching forces of Oni, Ogre and Giant. I held one of the stairways, facing off against several foes with occasional healing from Hiromi. Satori took some bad hits early on and had to play it more safely going forward, while Serene moved up the other set of stairs to flank the rock throwing giants. Grist and Kali supported with defensive and offensive tools, with Hiromi providing overall magical support. We were holding our own well enough until the Greater Kodama began wearing down. Aku's regeneration was powerful, and the Kodama couldn't handle his powerful offensive with the large burning katana he swung about. So, Kali shot an arrow at him.
He dropped the Greater Kodama from where he had been beating him with his bare hands, the creature residing now as a barely-living half of a body. Aku saw through Kali's invisibility, striking with a brutal blow of fire and blood that left her at near-death with just the singular strike. She fled and Serene rushed to assist with some healing balms prepared prior to our journey here. Despite fighting an onidoshi and a fire giant at the time, I yell out to Aku and draw his attention. He walks past everyone toward me, and once I kill the Onidoshi I prepare for his attack. the sword at the shrine above impales me with a spiritual sword, which soon after detonates in a burst of fire. Thanks to preparations beforehand and my own resilience, it does little to me however. Satori flanks the giants and helps me rid us of the two while Aku approaches, pulling out a potion. The halberd-wielding giant strikes down Kali in a burst of fury, but a light from Serene shines through and brings her back soon after. Wherever she found those wings, they're doing wonders.
Meanwhile, new forces burst from the doorways to either side of the room. Giants and ogres, as well as the one Satori accidentally married back when we killed Kai, attempt to enter the room. The only thing holding them back are the efforts of our fellow associates: Miles Ender, Illiam Elro, and Clam to be specific. They couldn't handle these forces by themselves, but they delayed them as long as possible from assisting their leader. The last giant with the halberd puts pressure on the rest of the group while Satori and I finish up with the giants, Aku feeling the pressure of both of us and going into smoke form to bypass us and get to the upper floor. We would have rushed him down, but the summoned sword brings down fire upon several spots of the floor and forces us to fall back. He drinks the potion in his hand, which allows him to move faster, then begins casting spells of fire, divine and not, down on our heads. I move to help with the halberd-wielder while Satori pursues Aku, continuing to wear him down despite using those horse-heads to heal himself. After we finish off the halberd-wielder, Satori binds Aku and Serene dives in once more to attack again. Satori tells him he can have his revenge on the Kodama, but as Aku stands up to do so, Serene strikes him down.
Our fellow associates can no longer hold them back, falling unconscious as the injured waves burst in. I kill two immediately, and despite their leader's death they do not retreat or surrender. We do what is right and slaughter them. Grist heals the Greater Kodama, and he is led back to the shrine. Revealing it to be a well inside, he spends the next few hours purifying it. We assist by removing the metals from the water, and with the battle done we are able to focus on this. The guardian, an ancient forest dragon, emerges with barely life left within him. Accusing of the Kodama, rightfully so, he exiles him and intends to close all portals to the Grove from then on.
Despite some arguments on all sides regarding if we think the punishment is fitting for the Greater Kodama, we let him leave. Grist had killed Satori's wife with a vampiric maiden spell, Satori claimed the clan banner, Aku was dead, and the Greater Kodama was punished. Regardless of what happens now, the job is done. Let this be a message to all lawbreakers and evildoers: No matter how fearsome your reputation, we will bring you down.