Aulrics Peak Hunting Grounds
Aulrics Peak Hunting Grounds I [PBP]
| Aulrics Peak Hunting Grounds I [PBP] | |
|---|---|
| Date | August 1, 2023 - August 11, 2023 |
| Storyteller | Indi |
| Tier | Expert |
| Player Characters | Cyrus, Kali, Kit, Siltmean, Vreal |
| Rewards | 350xp, 625g (600g was claimed by our group. 25g was set aside to cover funeral expenses for Vreal) |
| Result | Success, but at a cost |
| Author | Kali (Foster) |
7 days downtime.
This should have been a simple scouting mission and it was for the most part. We tracked down traces of the creature, a behemoth shrike, in the area around Aulric's Peak. However, a member of our group was disintegrated when he set off a glyph of warding and then moved in front of the beam that it activated. I'll start at the beginning.
Each member of our group arrived at a larger gathering looking to hire associates from Onadbyr to assist Rams Gate in dealing with dangerous creatures that had begun to cause trouble in the area known as behemoths. The behemoths had a connection to the leylines around Rams Gate and so were a legitimate danger to the residents of the area rather than just a nuisance. Our group gathered and chose the shrike hunt due to the capability of most of the members of our group to deal with airborne enemies.
Once the various groups were chosen, we accompanied Huntsmaster Kjac to Rams Gate and were given directions to the known territory of our quarry. We were also told a bit about the farslayers, who were former residents of the area who seemed to have quite a lot of experience in dealing with the behemoths.
Kit, being the most proficient of us in tracking and navigation, took the lead throughout the hunt. Siltmean spent his efforts keeping us hidden as we moved through the area, Cyrus took to collecting rations and an aether substance that we learned helped us to hide our scent from the creatures. Vreal, assisted by Kit's owl Oranges, kept an eye out for any dangers in the area. I helped to organize our group in the various tasks.
The first day of travel went smoothly. We were able to avoid getting into any fights with the local wildlife and we found several bits of information about the shrike, including a sample of its down. After analyzing the down, our group was able to determine that the down would protect the shrike from any blunt-force attacks. We also discovered that our group was letting off a smell that seemed to be attracting the local flora. Cyrus discovered a liquid aether substance that was able to suppress the scent for us.
The second day is when things began to go a bit more poorly. Early in the day we came across a sizeable metal structure that seemed to be buried in the earth. I was able to discover traces of magic on the structure and eventually narrowed that down to a glyph of warding. Vreal moved forward to try and disable the glyph, but it went off in spite of his efforts. When the glyph began to fire into the structure, Vreal moved in the way of it and was immediately disintegrated. The activation drained all of the ambient magic in the area (which explains why the magic was powerful enough to so easily disintegrate Vreal) and so we were able to approach without fear of the glyph going off again. Kit collected Vreal's belongings to bring them back to Onadbyr and discovered a worn iron trunk, apparently what Vreal had moved to shield from the glyph blast. Inside, we found several ceramic bottles, a journal, and an iron pole with a crystalline structure inside of it. After losing Vreal, we decided to spend the rest of the day regathering ourselves before making a decision on if we would turn back or not.
We spent the remainder of the day recovering and looking over the journal. The journal detailed information about both our quarry, the shrike, as well as another creature called a skarn (a large armadillo with a rock shell). Regarding the shrike, we learned that its wings are vulnerable to being cut while it is in flight. The journal also mentioned that the shrike does have powerful eyesight, however the creature does require some light to see.
We woke the next day and even though Cyrus wanted to immediately return back to Onadbyr, our group chose to continue forward. Our attention was much more focused as we approached the peak where we assumed the behemoth nests. We got confirmation of this a few hours later as Kit's owl companion Oranges alerted us to the Shrike's presence just in time for us to conceal ourselves. The creature was out hunting and it easily caught a wild boar as it's prey. Quite an impressive feat for any avian. We were able to learn a bit more about the creature after seeing it hunt. The creature's reflexes seemed to be excellent, though it did seem a bit frail for a creature of it's size. The creature also had some capability with magic, though I assume that was mostly innate. The boar was killed by a casting of Slashing Gust.
We continued forward and were able to identify the Shrike's roosting ground before we made the decision to turn back. The trip back was quiet while most of our group finally took the time to process the death we had experienced. We reported our findings to Huntmaster Kjac, who sent out birds to recall the other expeditions. I hope they fared better than we did. Death on any expedition is difficult and this is the second I've been witness to. A reminder, I suppose, to not become careless.
TL:DR on the Shrike- Resistance to bludgeoning, weakness to slashing while in flight. Low-light vision. Good reflex saves, poor fortitude saves, decent will saves. The Shrike is capable of casting 3rd level spells.