Danse Macabre
| Danse Macabre | |
|---|---|
| Date | 10/30/25 |
| Storyteller | Tire |
| Tier | Legendary |
| Player Characters | Zeal, Serene Leyvald, Grist Vanafeld, Shadefrost |
| Rewards | 450 xp, 51200 gp, Sturdy Shield (Supreme), Belkzen Deadsmasher (greater), keen rune, defiled Costa (greater) |
| Result | Success |
| Author | Zeal |
| Downtime | 25 |
Associates investigate reports of an undead army, leading to a clash with a shard-powered monstrosity of undeath.
Log
Our job in this instance was to investigate a report regarding a roaming army of the death, more organized than we'd like them to be. They destroyed towns within the region with concerning proficiency, so it was deemed necessary to send us out to crush them before it could get any worse. We spoke with the reporting refugee of one of these towns, a man named Garfield. He told us of its remarkable organization, and the existence of what he called an "Undead Siege Engine", a 50 foot tall frozen skeleton of a creature that skitters about on its rib cage. Not having much else to tell us given the necessity of fleeing over examining the enemy, we ask him no further questions and set out.
A few days later, we neared the village last reported to be attacked. Sure enough, the place was demolished down to almost nothing. Serene's airborne scouting reported back that the siege engine still remained in the town, a fish-like giant skeleton that matches that description. As we went in to rid the world of it, we found it boasted both impressive reach, not surprising for its shape and size, and an aura of cold that was made worse by how cold it already was in the region. By my examination it seemed to be the corpse of a leviathan of some sort, and I suspect it would've been all the more deadly in water than on land. While we healed up and examined the area, Shadefrost located the trail of the army. The size and lack of bodies in the area told us this place was destroyed and "recruited" between a week and 10 days ago, matching up with Garfield's timeline. Even the stables were empty, so either more escaped with the horses, or even the animals were added to the army's mass. Confident as I am in our abilities, I much prefer more survivors over more foes.
Following the trail, more villages are found torched with no bodies or survivors. They do not appear to be trampled however, telling us that leviathan may have been the only one they possessed. Odd that they left it behind then, but an organized foe may have found the creature a liability to keep around for all that I know. Eventually in our travels we spot some undead near a large mound. Human-sized, one mounted. My bevy of experience with this particular foe told me it was a graveknight, though I was not prepared for the particularities of this one.
As we approached, and mind that this was during the time of endless darkness, I had my pendant glowing to provide light for others around me. As such, it was jarring for all, myself included, when I suddenly swapped places with a zombie atop the mound several hundred feet away. Several mobs of undead, led by some assassin-looking sorts, rained arrows upon me while some inconsequential zombies tried to stall me from escaping the trap. The graveknight sparred with me for a bit, and while he was not the worst threat I've ever faced, my armor was being strucked by several dozen arrows non-stop throughout our fight. As I made for cover to let my regeneration aid my survival, the graveknight swapped Serene with another of the zombies. Poor choice on their part, as her speed and wide-swipes allowed her to decimate the zombies and archers with relative ease. A last zombie is swapped with Grist, who while less prepared for the volleys, was still a capable spellcaster and bane to these undead monstrosities. All the while, Shadefrost had been raining down her own shots from several hundred feet away, never needing to worry about closing the gap before she could strike our foes.
As many of our enemies fell, their bones began pulling away to the north. Before I can act on the realization a ritual is being enacted, it is complete. The rest of the undead are pulled into a singular giant mass, backed by a smaller, jackal-headed creature. This giant ice mummy boasts a shard of urgathoa in its chest, and even after we bring it down, it still does not stay dead. Its aura of fear makes fighting it difficult, on top of its notable durability and strength in the first place. The jackal creature heals it with necrotic energies, but thankfully Grist is able to dispose of it before it causes further issues.
As we investigate the area, I make sure to collect the shard before it can cause further issues. Unfortunately it, for some reason, bursts into a powder-like substance that got on Serene and I. So far I feel no different, but it is worth noting. Grist also disintegrated the armor of the graveknight, adamantine as it may be, as we all remember the tragedy of the Ashenforge Guild Hall.
The undead army is destroyed, the shard of Urgathoa is seemingly destroyed as well. May all of Urgathoa's followers be doomed to the same pits they sent those villagers to.