Category Archives: Journal Entries

Journal entries for the Jade Regent campaign

July 27th, 2019

Character: Olmas

The Annals of the Order of the Dragon

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as told by the cavalier Olmas Lurecia himself.

Starday, 22 Sarenith

Musician he, collected blood,
And spent some time inspecting
“Inquisitor!” he shouted out
Truly, what we were expecting.

The wizard, then invoked her spell
And made the dead one speak
All raptly watched and listened close
to hear the oni freak.

“Okay!” she said, rubbing her hands
The sea of watchers parted.
“We only have the questions four
and ought not stop once started.”

“The first,” she said and stared it down
“is where are nobles kept?”
The dead one squirmed and wriggled
I swear, his eyes – they wept.

“The place, you know, the quiet place
The place of meditation.”
His face contorted in a snarl
A common affectation.

The second question, hard and fast
With little pomp or show.
“That place of meditation …
Among you – who would know?”

The face again, that ugly face
Squinted, leered and cried.
“Commanders all would know that place
Until such day they died.”

With pity none, the wiz went on.
“When captured, prisoners new,
They’re taken where?  End up where?
The place now! Tell me, true!”

The oni would have struck the wiz
And tried to spit right at us.
“The new ones – AARGH – the place they go
Depends upon their status.”

Both looked exhausted now but yet
One question still remained.
“Hey Minion – now? You must reveal
Your true commander’s name!”

If looks could kill then all would die
But that’s not how this works.
“SOKA” it gasped, its face contorted –
Then silent.  At last, a perk.

Four questions asked and answered,
In one exhausting session.
Beware the day she says to you
“Got time for a quick question?”

I guess I’d never really watched a speak with dead that closely.  Or maybe this oni was particularly reluctant.  But I’d never noticed the (pointless, in the end) resistance that the subject still puts up.  Even if it cannot win, the victim still clearly resists answering the questions.  It kind of made me look at Kali in a new light … it seemed every bit as much a battle as any I’ve fought.

Dasi’s blood bio didn’t surprise us, but we were a little surprised by the answers from the dead oni.  They were surprisingly helpful, despite its obvious reluctance.

We talked a bit away from Ameiko.  Who should go to the island?  Ameiko, obviously.  And we theorized that if Ameiko went, Shalelu would too.  But what about Koya?  She might prove a valuable healer …   but she was also relatively frail and vulnerable.  She could easily swing from healer to victim should anything attack us.

And let’s face it – if the visit to the island was required to take the throne, then the Jade Regent would know that too.  If would be foolish NOT to assume there would be obstacles awaiting us.

Koya offered to do a commune spell which would allow us to learn more about the Jade Regent’s world.  Kali wanted to know more of the lineage of the Jade Regent and hoped these questions would provide her that – nut we were limited to yes/no questions this time.

Is Meida pregnant?  (Yes)
Is it the JR’s child? (Yes)
Is she keeping this a secret (Yes)
Is the JR’s mother still alive (No)
Did Anamurumon have her killed? (Yes)
Is the JR’s father still alive? (No)
Did Anamurumon have him killed? (Yes)
Is the JR a descendant of Anamurumon? (Yes)
Does JR know this (No)

So if I understand correctly, this has several implications.  The JR does not know his heritage, and there are some who find that to their advantage.  We know this because Meida is pregnant with the JR’s child, yet she is keeping this secret.  Why would this not be a joyous moment for the proud parents?  Because the physical appearance of the child may reveal more to the JR (or the court) of his true heritage.  That is, the child likely will not be human.

Kali believes that this information will be invaluable in the hands of the Emerald Branch and will lay the groundwork for a more legitimate heir.  Should one appear, for example.

She will see if she and the Branch can stir the pot.

Meanwhile, we also learned more about the island.  It allegedly is surrounded by five gates, which must be traversed in a particular order – both Suishen and Dasi suggest clockwise – while presenting the orb.  So much for secrecy – presenting the orb is the equivalent of blowing a horn for the Five Storms and painting a target on our back.  But I guess we’re pretty much at that point, aren’t we?

There were discussions about who would be captain, and what kind or size of boat to get, and what prep (spells) we should have in effect as we approach the island.

And finally, around noon, we left.

We arrived and passed through the gates with little problem, circling the island and reappearing at the nondescript pier we first saw.  However, now there appeared to be an outbuilding just beyond the dock, and a path from the dock.

We disembarked without incident, but upon entering the building discovered shrines to Pharasma and Takeo.  Further within we discovered two sisters who has been sent to deter us.  These lovely ladies, it turns out, had 20′ long necks and a poison bite … not exactly a perfect date.  They apparently could produce an aura of silence and darkness easily, but Suishen cast Daylight, which at least negated the darkness.

From the conversation we overheard as we quietly approached, it seems they were here precisely to prevent the quest we are on.  Unfortunately for them, they failed.

A blood bio on their bodies didn’t reveal anything we hadn’t already figured out in combat.

We did a pile of “treasure” but an inspection left us feeling this was either grave-robbing or altar-robbing, and we made a note to keep an eye open for plundered gravesites.  Ameiko felt it might be okay for us to borrow items that were not consumable and did not leave the island. To that end …

[751] light steel shield +3
[752] magic feather (treefeather token)
[753] strand of prayer beads (lesser)

We passed through another gate (did not seem to require the seal) and entered a graveyard.  There was a kiosk at the entrance with various incense.  Dasi took some, suggesting as well that those carrying ancestral weapons may wish to also take some.  Olmas and Kali did.

But we hadn’t gotten too far into the graveyard before we found ourselves surrounded by 9 shadows.   Literally surrounded – this did not seem to be a chance encounter.  Kali came up with a brilliant idea to protect us all from deadly strength drains.  She created an anti-magic field around her, which extended to protect our party.  As an artifact, Suishen was unaffected by the anti-magic field, which meant he could attack any shadows within the field.  Not being particularly smart, they did enter the field … and that meant that their draining effect had no effect.  Although other magic such as belts and cloaks were also disabled, that proved to be little impediment.  The shadows, eventually, were dispatched.

Shadows aren’t known for carrying a bunch of belongings around with them, so no treasure.  Doubtful that they have many victims on this island, either.  I suppose it is possible these are shades of the dead here, but it seems more likely to be another Jade Regent laid trap.

It occurred to me, as well, that perhaps without the seal being out we were really triggering defenses of the tomb.  I thought if we ran into another obstacle, perhaps we should identify ourselves.

I had a chance to test that theory just scant seconds later.  As we approached the end of the graveyard and a small bridge over a creek, some of the gravestones and debris around them all gathered together, taking a monstrous vaguely bipedal form which blocked our paths.  I took a couple of respectful steps back and announced “Please make way for the rightful heir to throne, the Amatatsu heir.  We come only to honor those rulers who came before us.”

And then it attacked. Sigh.

But before I could close with it again, Ivan shot it full of arrows, Kali zapped it with a disintegration ray and Zos had some sort of controlled panic reaction which looked like five or six bombs went off all at once.  It died.

We healed the group, and looked ahead to the bridge.  What else was awaiting us?  It has been a busy day.

Character: Kali

Kali’s Journal, Sarenith 22, 4713

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Sarenith 22, 4713 (morning, Kasai)

Communing with a deity is like being cured of cataracts. All the haze and uncertainty and guesswork is replaced with this abject clarity, a change that is so stark that it is practically painful.

“Is Renshii Meida pregnant?”

YES.

“Is it Takahiro’s child?”

YES.

“Is she keeping this a secret?”

YES.

Again and again the answers came, each one a lightning strike of divine truth.

“Is Takahiro’s mother still alive?”

NO.

“Did Anamurumon have her killed?”

YES.

Koya was straining against her contact with Desna, or whichever servitor had answered in her place.

“Is Takahiro’s father still alive?”

NO.

“Did Anamurumon have him killed?”

YES.

I was practically shaking, feeling the weight of what we were learning. Answers from a deity come with a permanency and surety that makes them more real, more absolute than anything you know or have experienced. Like, you could come to question everything about your life, your place in the world, even who you are, but these truths would endure.

“Is Takahiro a descendant of Anamurumon?”

YES.

Does Takahiro know this?

NO.

After her spell ended, we sat in stunned silence.

When we first met with the Emerald Branch here in the city, we gave them a list of questions around Takahiro, Anamurumon, and Meida. Mostly, they were shots in the dark.

From the journals, we knew Anamurumon was obsessed with fathering an offspring that could pass as human. A half-fiend would likely be bound by the same divine laws as an oni, but a half-fiend that appeared human could mate with a human, and produce a child of their own. That would result in a tiefling, and being of mostly human blood the child could, in theory, fall outside the divine restrictions. If Anamurumon stayed close to this child, exerted influence over them, he could essentially take the throne by proxy.

Soto Takahiro refers to Anamurumon as his “grandfather”. In Minkai, this can be a term of affection just  like “aunt” and “uncle” back in Varisia, but…could they actually be related? We didn’t know. But, according to the Emerald Branch, Takahiro didn’t know, either. “Takahiro has made inquiries in the past about his parentage, but we do not know what, if anything, he discovered. This at least suggests that his grandfather also did not know, or was not forthcoming to young Takahiro with that information.”

Another question for them was how faithful Takahiro and Meida were to one another. They told us Takahiro is something of a philanderer, which we were more or less expecting to hear. Meida is significantly more faithful, though there was still a big surprise to be had: “One of our contacts is a samurai whose daughter is employed as one of Meida’s handmaidens. She recently asked her father about the possibility of quietly securing the services of a midwife who could be trusted for her loyalty to Minkai and willingness to be discreet.” You do not “quietly” hire a midwife who can be trusted to be “discreet” unless you are trying to hide a pregnancy.

Before this morning, all we had were these suspicions, but now? Now we have some idea of just how fragile the Jade Regent’s grip on power really is. How much does he really know about Anamurumon? Obviously, not very much, because his “grandfather” has been keeping a lot of secrets from him. Some very significant secrets, which include the murder of his parents. To say that is huge would be a ridiculous understatement. This is the sort of thing that makes enemies out of friends, lovers, family. And how much does he know about his lover? Again the answer seems to be, “Not as much as he should”.

As for Meida, herself, we don’t know what game she’s playing. Obviously, you can’t hide a pregnancy forever, but trying to hide one at all suggests a lack of trust between her and, well, everyone. Whatever her angle is, it depends on that staying a secret for as long as possible.

We met with the Emerald Branch again this morning and asked them straight out if this was information they could work with. You might say that their response was an emphatic “Yes”.

Which is good, because we’re going to need their help again. We’re taking Ameiko to the Shrine today and we don’t know how long we’ll be gone, mostly because we don’t know how big of a trap we’ll be walking in to. That means the Emerald Branch will have to keep the rebellion and the Amatatsu heir visible both in name and in spirit while we’re away.

It also means that the situation with the kidnapped daughters, also known as the hostages, is going to have to wait. Though we are pretty sure we know where they are being held, thanks to the posthumous interrogation of a Typhoon Guard commander, it’s deep in the palace and that’s not a raid we can just pull off without significant planning. If we can pull it off at all; we may have to take the throne first, or at least commit ourselves to that path, which is something we can’t do until Ameiko receives her blessings from her ancestors. However that works.

I am resigned to the notion that there will probably be casualties among the hostages. While there are no executions scheduled for today that we know of—the one that was seems to have been cancelled because the two prisoners escaped over night—that doesn’t mean that there won’t be any last-minute changes. And if we aren’t back before tomorrow…

Well, I don’t really want to think about that.

(afternoon, Imperial Shrine)

We did find a trap waiting for us here, but like all things Five Storms it was so poorly organized and so obvious that they may as well have put up signs. I am not kidding: what gave it away was that we actually heard bickering. But I guess there’s not much else to do when you’re stuck on an island waiting in case, and I quote, “one of the other families shows up. How likely is that?”

How likely, indeed?

From the sounds of their adolescent squabbling, this was another one of Anamurumon’s famous “The Five Storms is known to keep their word” deals, where he promised to marry one of them or father their child or gods know what else and like idiots they believed him. They were even fighting over him in advance. Where does he find people this gullible?

Not that they were “people”. They were, in fact, what Dasi called rokurokubi, which is apparently Tien for “woman with a 20-foot-long neck”. It was creepy and disgusting, watching them stretch out and snake their heads around the room, like naga with a human torso. Anamurumon sure can pick them.

The rest of the shrine has been…disturbing. I don’t think it’s Anamurumon’s doing—not directly, anyway—but something here is definitely amiss, as we’ve been attacked by shadows and a giant construct made from gravestones. Somehow, I don’t think this is how visits to the Imperial Shrine are supposed to go. When the heir comes to receive blessings from their ancestors, I don’t think the island is supposed to try and kill them.

We were so desperate for information that we actually consulted Suishen. Yeah, I know. Don’t judge us. Not only did he not know anything about the Imperial Shrine, he literally had never even paid attention during the few times he was brought here. Why? Because there was “no fighting” and that made it “boring”. Ironically, this non-answer was an answer in itself, as it confirmed that none of this is supposed to be happening.

I hate shadows. We were walking through a cemetery for the advisors of past emperors and other notable figures when they emerged from the graves to attack. We were completely surrounded from the start, which gave us nowhere to go. When one of them descended on Koya, I knew I had to do something but there was a shadow on top of me as well which limited my options. So I choose a radical and dangerous tactic: I cast a spell that suppressed magic and supernatural phenomenon. At which point I promptly fell 30′ to the ground. But it put me close enough to Koya to protect her from their touch, so mission accomplished.

It’s a good thing I’ve learned a thing or two about how to fall without dying.

Character: Ivan

ivan’s journal

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The Oni in this city are worse than an infestation of rats. It seems to Ivan that in Kasai the rats have taken over the city. These Rats have taken it upon themselves to weed out those that do not conform to their whims. They even had the nerve to try to make Hatsue their latest public execution. Regret shows on Ivan’s face as his thoughts go back to the woman at the city entrance when they first arrived in the city. He faces the fact that doing nothing likely resulted in her death and that he is partly to blame for not taking action.  Ivan is not really sure how long he was staring at the spot on the wall behind Ameiko but his view was suddenly blocked by someone.  Ivan’s eyes quickly adjust and refocus on the person standing before him.

“If we can’t get a boat until tomorrow I want to go shopping for new clothes.  It’s not safe for a woman like me to wander alone in Kasai so I will need an escort” says Koya excitedly

Before Ivan even has a chance to respond Koya continues with “I should be safe with you and Hatsue as my escorts.”

“Ah” replies Ivan

“I am trying to decide if Hatsue would look good in pink or not. What do you think about Hatsue in a pink outfit?” continues Koya in a cheerful voice

“Shouldn’t you make sure she likes pink first?” replies Ivan

Ivan is relieved when Isao quickly finds a boat and he learns that they will be departing later today. Maybe Koya will change her mind about buying Hatsue clothes by the time we get back from the island Ivan thinks to himself. Realizing that this is a battle that he cannot win Ivan decides to leave this in the hands of fate.

As they walk through the city to the docks Ivan wonders why the group so easily accepted allowing Hatsue to come with us to the island.  He is very surprised that no one voiced an objection. Ivan concludes that they must be thinking that he is just doing this to keep her close. Admittedly there judgement about him is correct but he decides to keep the other reason hidden for now.

“Fate is very strange. It seemed impossible to find a way to get Hatsue to the island and yet fate makes it all seem like it was preordained.” thinks Ivan to himself

Passing through each of the gates Ivan can’t help but notice that Amieko seems a little nervous and unsteady. Olmas is dutifully standing next to her and Ivan hopes that Olmas will notice if she starts to fall out of the boat. Ivan ponders on the question of who would be the first to save Olmas if he falls into the water and what would happen if he dropped sushen.

After passing through the final gate the island reveals its true nature. To Ivan’s surprise he can still since Isao back in the city. Ivan just observes the others as they step onto this mystical island. Everyone seems to be a little bit excited about the island of the kings but Ivan can clearly see the toll this is having on Ameiko. Ivan finds the whole heir situation very confusing as his instincts are to comfort her and tell her that we are all with her but he is pretty sure that is not appropriate anymore.

The Jade regent guardians apparently were lonely according to Olmas’s recount of what he overheard. Ivan could not help but notice that the guardians seemed to target the males with their curses. For a just a moment after hearing Olmas say that he is not worried about the supposed curse Ivan considers not interfering. Ameiko did not say a word but her eyes sent the clear message to Ivan that Olmas is acting like an idiot. Ivan removes the curse from Olmas and ponders whether this was a lust curse or as Kali suggests would turn them into one of them.

“At least I am not the only person that stupidly walked into a graveyard not expecting shadows. I should have at least protected Ameiko and Koya from undead but luckily the antimagic spell saved most of the group. I am really glad that the gods decided to give me deathward, Radella with deathward would be even more dangerous than Hatsue. I better just keep that part to myself. ” Ivan thinks to himself.