Session 5 - Showdown

Synopsis
Now face to face with the terror that was Akmagura, the party prepared themselves for battle. The giant man attacked them from the shadows, slashing with his wicked glaive and attempting to bring the party down one by one...but they were too strong for him. Attempting to make an escape, Akmagura turned himself invisible and fled towards the entrance to his lair. Visati was able to detect his location, and with several well placed strikes, knocked the beast out of his invisibility. Seeing her chance, Lydia ran Akmagura through with her rapier, killing him once and for all.

Upon closer inspection, it was revealed that Akmagura was an Oni, a demon-like giant-kin that had been kidnapping the children with his abilities to put them to sleep and travel unseen throughout both the night and the day. With most of the children recovered, the party left Malorem's sewers and returned to the town-proper. The Hand was extremely grateful for their help, and rewarded the party handsomely for their work. Exhausted and beaten, the party returned to the Crooked Cockatrice so they could rest before they proceeded to complete the other bounties they had undertaken.

The next morning, the party awoke and set out to find the Rendskull Bandits, a group that had been terrorizing local travelers and even townsfolk if they got too close. They were ordered to bring in their leader, Kovali Easten, alive. After tracking the bandits for several days, they encountered them holed up in a cave amidst the foothills outside of town. With brutal efficiency, they quickly took down all but one of the bandits and their leader, with Kazimer taking proof of their deaths by cutting off their fingers. On the return journey, they discovered that the bandit they had let live was a simple 17 year old boy by the name of Garret, who had joined up with the Rendskull bandits after his family had kicked him out of their home. Feeling sympathy for the boy, the party took him under their wing and eventually presented him to Shava. The firbolg agreed to have Garret work for her so the former-bandit wouldn't be subjected to Nadant's harsh laws. Kovali, however, was not spared, and died during a brutal execution that evening.

Before the party fully turned in for the night, Micaiah, Tyr, and Lydia all made their way to a magical shop they had visited earlier that day called ''Azure Curiosities. ''The shop was owned by a kind dragonborn man named Lazul, and after a shaky encounter, Micaiah wished to return and set things right. The group spent several hours at the shop as Lazul and Micaiah descended into talks about arcane theory. He introduced his wife, an air genasi called Serafina, and explained that he had fled Igthadian in order to marry her. After a long and friendly talk, the group returned to the Crooked Cockatrice for the evening.

The party has decided to take their leave from Malorem after they slay Rimefang, the great white wolf.

New NPCs Encountered

 * Lazul Vidigal
 * Serafina Vidigal
 * Garret Annar
 * Kovali Easten

Recurring NPCs

 * The Elite Hand
 * The Hand
 * Vosera Clavelle
 * Lyria Teldror
 * Deckard Agare

Party Makeup
At the end of this session, the party was Level 4.
 * Kazimer
 * Lydia
 * Lythrana
 * Micaiah
 * Tyr
 * Vasati