Wrath of the Righteous (Completed)

[Richard Loh]

02 Gozran 4715; 09:19

With a slight mishap in teleportation, Aravashnial, with Good Question and Sir Charge-a-lot had some shenanigans in which Sir Charge-a-lot attempted to do a barrel roll with the mage on the back.

All this while, Edith was watching with wide eyes through scrying as maneuver caused both the cavalier, and the mage to fall off the saddle. Luckily, with feather fall, Aravashnial managed to save both himself, and Sir Charge-a-lot, although he is now immensely unfriendly to Sir Charge-a-lot. 

Edith quickly came in, and gave Aravashnial a face-saving excuse stating that the location has now been changed. 

Exploring the Material Plane portion of the Midnight Fane, the Heroes, with Alleycat, Aravashnial, Ayavah, and Queen Galfrey, cleared the entire complex of demons. 

They also drove away Minagho, the lilitu demon, and found the desiccated husk of Yaniel. Erasmus broke the curse with his laying on hands, and Elave stabilized Yaniel with her heavenly fire. 

Queen Galfrey suggested resting, and bringing Yaniel back up to speed, for anybody who was in that desiccated shape was bound to have suffered tremendously under the hands of the demons.

[Richard Loh]

Time: Unknown

Yaniel on recovery, unlocked the full powers of Radiance to Erasmus. Queen Galfrey opt to bring Yaniel back to Nerosyan to recover from her ordeals. 

On closure of the portal, the Queen's fate is unknown, but the Heroes were ambushed by a half-invidiak ankou, whose name, Nezirrius, was legendary in the Midnight Isles, as that of a famed assassin, hired by Minagho herself.

Only knowing that they are on the isle of Vazglar, the Heroes wanted to travel to Alushinyrra, the capital of the Midnight Isles to gather information. Hopefully, with a large gathering of humanoids, the Heroes can travel incognito amongst the deadly inhabitants of the Abyss.

Arueshalae has given the party multiple contacts in Alushinyrra, they are:
1. Nocticula herself, although to attract her attention, you must work to get them.
2. Vellaxia of the Rapture of Rupture. An enterprising succubus who enjoys entertainment.
3. Shamira, the Ardent Dream. A nascent demon lord who rules over the isle of Alinythia, the isle where the city Alushinyrra is based.

[Richard Loh]

Time: Unknown

The remaining people at Drezen was alerted to a gruesome murder in E&E, Elave, and Edith's store. 
A few items were found missing, but further investigation concluded that Staunton Vhane's armor came alive, with him back as a graveknight.
Joran Vhane, was slain by the graveknight, for refusing to join his brother in embracing Baphomet. 

Back in the Abyss, the arena fight was short, and bloody, with the Heroes of the Fifth Crusade killing both Gelderfang, and Minagho in quick succession. 

With this, they attracted Nocticula's attention, who asked them to meet her at the Vault of Graves.

[Richard Loh]

Time: Unknown

The Heroes of the Fifth Crusade travelled the length of Colyphyr to look for the Nahyndrian Mines. They stumbled upon a horde of gathering vrocks, led by an ancient green dragon. They seem to be amassing for an assault on the Fifth Crusade in the Worldwound.

They also found the barge which was originally used to carry the Nahyndrian crystals to and from the Midnight Isles.

Aravashnial laid an arcane mark in the portal's vicinity, hoping that if need be, this portal can be used as a way back to the Material Plane. The Heroes thought that this path could lead straight into the demon army's heart. Good point! But it will be a backup escape route.

Avoiding the demoniacs at the gate, the Heroes met an omox demon called the Fulsome Queen. She requested the party for help in clearing her home of the shadow dragon, and the "ants" who are digging into her home.

The party dispatched the abyssal harvester, and have discovered the shadow dragon's hoard, but did not remove the hoard as it is extremely time-consuming to recover so much treasure.

Areas Explored:
J1-J4 (No treasure recovered yet)

[Richard Loh]

Our planes travelling Heroes of the Fifth Crusade ventured into the depths of the Ivory Labyrinth, home of Baphomet.
Baphomet boasted that he has corrupted Iomedae's Herald, and visited by the goddess herself, the Heroes ventured without any hesitation.

Burning open the lock of the Ineluctable Prison, they ventured into the depths of Baphomet's original prison, where they slew the following:
- Uffrandir, a tarn linnorm
- Ylleshka, the prison's Warden, a 12-armed, 2-headed marilith
- Alderpash, the first Runelord of Wrath
- Plorig-Stagul, the primary torturer

With enough keys in hand, the party can finally teleport to the Herald's Prison.

Areas Explored:
H1, H4, I, J, K, N, O

[Richard Loh]

Conclusion (08 Neth AR 4715)

After spending six months pursuing their own goals, the Heroes of Golarion finally gathered to help Rob in curing himself of the fiend trapped within him.

Cpaken recommends facing the demon in it's homeland. The Dreamlands. Suggesting that Absalom's population should stabilize the demon, the Heroes naively brought the entire party over. With Lord Gyr's blessing, the party slumbered. 

In the Dreamlands, they confronted the demon, also known as the High Priest of Azathoth, an avatar of Great Cthulhu himself.
Whilst dreaming, the gripplis with their lightning guns and scythes slaughtered some of the Heroes in their sleep. 
Only the great fortitude, and magical protections protected Rob, Erasmus and Shiranui from instant death.

Dispatching the dream form of Cthulhu, upon waking, they realized that whatever was happening in the Dreamlands are actually happening in Golarion itself. With Ashava's power, Shiranui quickly uses miracle to grant instantaneous resurrection to his companions.

Little did the companions knew, that the Yithian lightning guns the gripplis were wielding came directly as gifts from the cult of Cthulhu. Cpaken, having studied the Necronomicon, has relied on Rob's victory to try to use Cthulhu's power for himself. The Great Cthulhu wanted to reach the Starstone and gain access to it's powers. The party, with Elave's mythic time stop spent hours poring over the Necronomicon in order to learn it's secrets. 

With the Elder Sign, they sealed off the Starstone Cathedral from Great Cthulhu. Rob also slew Cpaken with a volley of well-placed arrows. Great Cthulhu, temporarily freed from control by Cpaken begins to summon his master, Azathoth.

The rift tore open and Azathoth begins to emerge on Golarion-1. With substantial firepower, and copious amounts of empowered meteor swarms, Azathoth was blown apart, and eventually, Great Cthulhu was destroyed and sent back to slumber. The archangel, Michael, was again summoned by Elave, and it was through him, that the Great Cthulhu was banished once again by Michael's finishing blow.

With multiple demigods banished from Golarion, the Heroes of Golarion embarked on their own personal journeys.

Sir Charge-a-lot, with his lover, the ancient silver dragon, Terendelev spent the rest of their days travelling the length and breadth of Golarion, righting rights from wrongs. Eventually, their off-spring, will take up their parents' mantle and right the wrongs ever present in their world.

Shiranui, initially stayed in Absalom to help rebuild and save the people whom have ravaged by the appearance of Great Cthulhu in their midst. A fan club begins to develop around the charismatic Shiranui, with Alleycat, her ever loyal companion (read: simp) staying close by her side. When her duties are done, she departs Absalom without a word, and fanfare, leaving many to wonder where she has gone.

Erasmus, realizing that there is nothing he can do, returns back to Drezen, to assist in cleansing the Worldwound of the remaining demons. It will take decades, but both Irabeth and Anevia Tirabade are extremely thankful for Erasmus' desire to stay and help. Whenever a particularly powerful demon is sighted, Erasmus will be sent to eradicate it.
Erasmus never once forgets Narah, his loyal squire, whose soul was trapped in Riftcarver, and lost to the ends of time as Deskari's body tumbles into a millenia-long drop into the Abyss.

Feeling guilty of the widespread destruction caused by the appearance of the massive Cthulhu, Rob felt guilty and stayed in Absalom for a while. Thanks to his presence, when a massive horde of creatures assaulted Absalom, it was his presence alone that single-handedly saved an entire district. With legends of his archery spreading far and wide, Rob eventually retires to Drezen to assist Erasmus in clearing the Worldwound.

The erudite Edith, with the Necronomicon in hand, decided to travel the planes. Wishing to undo the corruption caused by the Worldwound, the journey eventually leads her from Alushinrrya to another planar city. Sigil, the City of Doors.
From there, the trail leads her to a desolate, and scorching world, known as Athas. It is rumoured that powerful psionicists/mages have the ability to command psionic enchantments. Magics so powerful that it requires the mental discipline of a psionicist to control.
Venturing into Athas, Edith was eventually confronted by several Sorcerer-Kings whose magics coupled with their psionic enchantments seems to rival her own. She was eventually forced to hide as the various City-States were mobilizing against her. With her incredibly fast reactions, she will always be one step ahead of the hunters. A fact which surprises even the most powerful of them all, Borys of Tyr.

Elave decided to retire in Drezen, running her inn "Fuckdemons". She expanded her magical business, and soon, her abilities to recharge wands (which was practically unheard of) begins to spread throughout Golarion. Spellcasters of all sorts gathers at Drezen to seek her unique services.

What of their companions?
The Winter-Sun barbarians stayed in Drezen, led by Jestak. Given a purpose, and recognition by the ruler of Drezen, the barbarians thrived. Annually, they hold "Angry Barbs" tournaments in which they are catapulted from the defensive siege targets to strike at distant targets. The best flying barbarian is given the title "Red".

Arueshalae disappears from Drezen one night. Her duty to the people of Drezen are done. There are continuous reports of a gorgeous woman helping travellers in need, leaving food and water for crusaders who are isolated in the Worldwound. She disappears just as quickly as she appears, leaving many of the rescued crusaders to wonder if she is a mirage. A figment of their imagination. The only proof of her existence is the food in their stomachs.

Horgus Gwerm excelled at being the treasurer of Drezen. Despite his initial bluster at the companions, Horgus was eventually humbled at having served the greatest Heroes of the land Golarion has ever seen. Throughout the remainder of his life, he served Drezen willingly, and with no shred of selfishness. He has found his place, and there is nothing for him to prove any more.

Irabeth, with her wife, Anevia Tirabade ruled Drezen fairly. Irabeth, while remaining idealistic, is tempered by Anevia's street skills, which made a powerful combination in detecting false hoods and rooting out any crime or cults before they can take root. They eventually adopted several orphans to call their own.

Ayavah, joined Edith for a while when they travelled to Alushinrrya as she truly believes that Nocticula, the Succubus Queen is genuine in her redemption. It is said that Nocticula, did find her redemption, and although she rules a layer of the Abyss, the taint of evil slowly fades from her land.

Aravashnial eventually returned to Kenabres and slowly rebuilds the Riftwardens. Understanding Edith's powerful counterspelling abilities, Aravashnial began a course titled "Defence against the Dark Arts" where their specialty is counterspelling before the enemy can react.

Queen Galfrey returned to Mendev and ruled Mendev for the remainder of her mortal years. With the Fifth Crusade decisively ending the Worldwound once and for all, she no longer has the need for the Sun Orchid Elixir. Her advisors, not used to the aging Galfrey wanted to procure it for her, but she vetoed their decisions. She has earned a well-deserved rest and a place by Iomedae's side as her Herald when she passes.

St. Michael, with his experience in facing demons so much more powerful than himself, served with distinction in the Heavenly Hosts. Ever so humble, he declined any rewards or accolades. Often reminding himself that "Pride is a sin", he swiftly takes his leave once his objectives are complete.

Drezen
A permanent foothold of humanity, it will take centuries for the land to regrow, but with Drezen and their immortal Heroes standing tall and vigilant, the Worldwound will eventually flourish like the age-old Sarkoris once again.

[Richard Loh]

A quick explanation of what was in Rob!

Originally, it the 'Sealed Evil in a can' was meant to be a mighty Rakshasa, its name: Rashikan, also known as The Laughing Tempest. But that was just a cover up to the brutal truth that was actually Cthulhu!

The Sodden Lands once had a Northern nation called Lirgen that were mostly comprised of astrologers obsessed with prophecy and the stars, the Saoc Brethren. When Aroden's death came which they did not foresee, it destroyed the nation. A few of the surviving astrologers tried to reclaim their glory by desperately looking deeper into space but ended up looking into something that shouldn't be seen... something dark and ancient within the void of the stars stared back at them. It drove them to a certain point of madness that convinced them to insidiously form a cult that would one day awaken The Great Old One.

The cult eventually stumbled upon the Grippli tribe that Rob would eventually be born in and tried to corrupt their Fiend Keeping ways but couldn't quite complete the job other than to implant a dormant Great Old One. The Fiend Keepers could of course hold the ancient evil at bay and keep it asleep by avoiding any misdeeds done. Unfortunately, try as good willed mortals would... the lingering evil and madness will seep into some who are not strong enough to resist the temptations of great power and Rob's mentor was one of them.

And thus this was how The Call of Cthulhu DLC mini expansion pack came to be when the Mythical Heroes of the 5th Crusade finally finished the main story!