Session 121

Heroes (lvl 17): Amani, Deet, Gunnar, Hassan, Regall, Ryel

677 Winter

A year passes since the gathering at Seaharrow. In that time, the Heroes' lives continue to change even as the war against the Gorgon enters its final stage. Several of them have welcomed heirs into the world, while others await the births that will secure the next generation.

For Deet, however, the question of children remains far more complicated.

Seeking an answer to her curse of infertility, Deet turns to her sister Alyona, High Priestess of Kriesha, and asks her to intercede with the goddess. Kriesha answers—but her blessing comes with a terrible price. For seven years, Deet will be fertile, and during those years she must bear at least three children. The first two may remain hers. The third, however, must be surrendered to Kriesha. Should Deet refuse, the goddess promises that the first two children will bear a terrible curse. It is a gift, but one that binds Deet's future to the will of the goddess.

Then, in the winter of 677 MR, the armies of Cerilia begin their final push toward the Gorgon's Crown. The war has raged for years, but now the time has come to bring it to an end. The united armies of the continent march together, with the Heroes at their forefront.

Their first battlefield is a vast expanse of burning wheatfields. The Gorgon has set the land ablaze, turning the countryside into a killing ground. Smoke fills the air as flames race across the fields.

The Gorgon's forces meet them there.

At their head stands a Death Knight general, supported by terrible Brazen Gorgons and an army of savage Orog berserkers. The battle is brutal. Fire consumes the fields around them while steel and sorcery tear through the opposing armies. The Heroes fight at the heart of the chaos, breaking through the Gorgon's forces and finally driving them from the field.

The first battle of the final campaign is won.

But there is no time to rest. Beyond the burning fields lies the next obstacle: the ancient Broken Causeway, the road that leads deeper into the Gorgon's lands.

The army marches onward.

Session 120 - Start of Season Five

Heroes (lvl 17): Amani, Deet, Gunnar, Hassan, Regall, Ryel

676 Winter

The Heroes gather at Seaharrow, where the great kings and queens of Cerilia assemble for what may be the final council before the war against the Gorgon. The gathering is not only political. Three marriages are celebrated, binding some of the continent’s most powerful rulers together as the armies prepare for the final campaign: Hassan marries Nura, Gunnar marries Siobhan, and Amani marries Wilros.

Amid the celebrations, Ryel has a quiet conversation with Anomander. They speak openly about Ryel’s ultimate fate. Ryel appears increasingly determined to take Anomander’s place in the Shadow World, becoming the guardian that keeps the darkness contained. Anomander does not oppose the idea. In fact, he continues to support it. His greatest desire is to become mortal again and return to the “real” world, leaving the Shadow World behind.

Ryel also seeks out Thalion, determined to understand the mysterious lord’s true motives. Thalion gives him a simple answer: he wants the Gorgon defeated. Nothing more. He has spent too long watching Cerilia suffer under the Gorgon’s shadow, and he wants the continent finally free of his menace. Once the Gorgon is defeated, Thalion says, he will leave Cerilia—“to join his father.”

Anomander, meanwhile, confronts Amani over her decision to marry Wilros. He is convinced that the marriage is yet another manipulation by Thalion and urges Amani to stop allowing others to decide her future. When Anomander threatens to leave her side, however, Amani turns his own argument against him. If he truly believes that she must make her own choices, then he must respect the choice she has made—even if he disagrees with it. Her words convince him to stay.

Finally, the kings and queens gather for the war council. Old alliances are renewed, promises are made, and the final military plans are agreed upon. Across Cerilia, the armies are ready.

The march against the Gorgon is about to begin.

Season Five - Prologue

A Year of War

For one year, the war has consumed Cerilia.

The six bearers of the Crowns of Dominion have stood at the head of a vast alliance, joined by some of the last great Elven and Dwarven realms. For twelve months, armies have marched, fortresses have fallen, and thousands have died in the long struggle to reach the Gorgon.

Now, at last, the final battle approaches.

From the south, the Anuirean armies, joined by Elven and Dwarven forces, have fought their way through the mountain passes. Every mile has been paid for in blood.

From the east, the Brecht fleets have supported the invasion, while armies push through Khurin Azur and Dauren, opening another front against the Gorgon's lands.

From the west, the Rjuven have marched from Jentilak into the ruined lands of the Giantdowns, bringing yet another army against the Gorgon.

From the north, the Vos have unleashed their aerial forces. Riders on wyverns and dragonnels have crossed the skies, accompanied by two ancient silver dragons—the parents of King Gregor. Their infantry has followed by sea, sailing through the Krakennauricht to join the invasion.

And from the south-east, the Khinasi and Masetian armies have made remarkable use of the Ruide River, transporting men and supplies rapidly through the Giantdowns and into the Gorgon's Crown. Their advance is protected from above by the allied dragons, the young Belzekyr and his mother, Tuornen.

For a year, the armies of Cerilia have converged on a single destination.

Kal-Saitharak.

The fortress of the Gorgon.

The armies are finally in position. The last great offensive is about to begin.

But before the final battle, there is one last gathering.

The Gathering at Seaharrow

Our story begins not on the battlefield, but one year earlier—or rather, in the days immediately before the final assault.

At Seaharrow, in Boeruine, the seat of Regall, the great rulers of Cerilia gather beneath one roof.

The six bearers of the Crowns of Dominion are present.

Kings and queens.

Princes and generals.

Elven lords and Dwarven kings.

Commanders who have spent a year fighting their way toward this moment.

For the first time in generations, the greatest powers of Cerilia stand together with a single purpose:

to destroy the Gorgon.

Maps cover the tables. Messengers move constantly through the halls. Generals argue over routes, supply lines and the final assault. Outside, thousands of soldiers fill the camps surrounding Seaharrow.

But there is another reason for the gathering.

Four of the great figures of the age are about to marry.

Their unions are not merely matters of love or politics. They are acts of defiance against the war that awaits them. Each marriage ensures that a bloodline will continue should its bearer fall in the coming battle.

For tomorrow, they march toward the Gorgon.

And none of them knows who will return.

Tonight, however, there is music in Seaharrow.

Tonight, there are weddings.

Tonight, kings and queens put aside their crowns of war for crowns of another kind.

And tomorrow, the final campaign begins.

Session 119 - End of Season Four

Heroes (lvl 16): Deet, Horgin, Rhys, Nura, Hassan, Ryel

676 MR - Autumn

The heroes inspect the Void Closets, opening two narrow chambers that each contain a Sphere of Annihilation. The rooms are traps of absolute destruction, and even brief exposure leaves lasting pain. The spheres are left undisturbed, sealed away once more.

They continue to the Vortex Bridge, a chamber of shifting tiles suspended over a raging gravitational well. Each misstep drags body and spirit toward crushing force, but through trial and careful pattern, the correct path is found and crossed.

Beyond it lies an underwater trench mirage. Illusory oceans surround the heroes as they move through a dream of crushing depths. A sentient shark drifts through the false sea, offering strange, unsettling wisdom before allowing them to pass.

At last, the heroes reach the prison of the genies, the final threshold before the Suncrown. Four beings wait within—djinni, dao, marid, and efreeti—bound as the last guardians of the relic. They cannot allow the crown to be taken, yet they listen as the heroes present Nura as its rightful heir.

The argument sways three of the genies, but the efreeti of fire demands proof. A duel is called. Nura accepts and emerges victorious, sparing her opponent rather than destroying them. Mercy, not domination, proves her claim.

With their duty fulfilled, the genies are released from their ancient bonds and fade from the world. The Suncrown is finally claimed, resting in the hands of the one it was always meant to serve.

LEVEL UP!

Session 118

Heroes (lvl 16): Deet, Rhys, Hassan, Ryel

676 MR - Autumn

The heroes enter the Hall of Discordance, a long chamber where magic and sound intertwine. Along the walls, enchanted instruments rest in carefully carved niches, each humming with restrained power.

At the far end of the hall, sealed doors await a performance worthy of passage. Mere noise is not enough—the magic demands mastery. The heroes rise to the challenge, and it is Rhys who succeeds where the others falter. His performance resonates through the hall, and the doors finally open.

Beyond them lies an ancient library, heavy with dust and silence. Five statues of eagle-headed men stand watch among the shelves, unmoving and severe. When the heroes reach for the books, the guardians respond. Stone animates, wings spread, and battle erupts among the stacks.

The statues are shattered one by one, their vigilance ending in ruin. In the aftermath, the heroes search the library’s remains, recovering several magical scrolls and tomes—fragments of knowledge wrested from a place that no longer remembers its keepers.

Session 117

Heroes (lvl 16): Deet, Horgin, Rhys, Nura, Hassan, Ryel

676 MR - Autumn

The heroes hold all four artifacts needed to open the way to the Temple of the Suncrown. Drawn by their combined power, they travel into the desert, where an ancient elemental obelisk waits beneath the sun.

At its base, the artifacts are placed into four sealed sockets. The obelisk awakens, and in the distance a rocky formation trembles as three doors open along its face.

The first proves to be a deception, a false passage meant to mislead. The second is sealed by shifting runes and layered enchantments. The heroes solve the magical puzzle and force the way open.

Inside, the temple answers intrusion with violence. Two trapped chambers test precision and resolve, but the heroes endure and press forward.

They emerge into a hall of silent jade statues. The stillness breaks as the statues animate and attack. Stone shatters under steel and spell, and the guardians are destroyed.

The Magian (dead)

 

Awnshegh

Little is known about the Magian's history. People know that he arrived from the east, most probably Djaper. He has come forth with little about his history, making him an enigma. The Magian did gather his ghost knights together in Djaper and came to Cerilia on a boat. There he defeated the ruler of Pipyret and absorbed his bloodline. He is allied with the Raven and the Gorgon, but the alliance seems to be one of convenience.

Session 116 - killed by Ryel