📜 Session Overview

The day began quietly, with the party waking beneath the roosts of Wyrmhallow, preparing for their departure toward Vysteeri. Before taking to the skies, they spent their remaining hours in focused preparation—training not just their bodies, but the strange powers awakening within them.

Tyelkoron worked to refine his shifting, testing the limits of control over his displacer beast form. Warwick subjected himself to relentless punishment as Broj hammered against his shield, honing his defensive discipline through sheer impact. Sinora practiced shaping her arcane shields into more complex, tangible forms, pushing beyond simple barriers. Sorina observed the clash of Warwick and Broj with a healer's eye, carefully experimenting with subtle internal manipulation—learning how to aid without harm. Xerocomath poured over books and maps, grounding the coming journey in knowledge and memory. Agelaius, ever practical, completed chores around the Manticore Tavern and claimed an unfilled barrel as payment—quietly taking it from the creature's stores once his work was done.

By evening, the group assembled at the Crow's Nest, the highest tier of Wyrmhallow, where massive pteranodons waited atop reinforced plank platforms. It quickly became clear Broj's size posed a problem, forcing the guards to hastily expand the transport platform. The moment the party stepped aboard, Sinora cried out in pain—the Oni's sigil on her shoulder flared to life. The mark, dormant while they were on Theros, now burned with renewed purpose.

The flight began regardless.

Their route would take three days, with nine platforms in total—three per day. Only every third platform bore a magical shield, making each night's rest a fragile sanctuary. As they traveled, the pteranodons struggled under the added weight, and Sinora's pain worsened. Attempts to heal the mark failed; even magic slid off it like water from stone.

Before long, they spotted pursuit.

Four figures followed at a distance—an Oni and three cultists, riding massive vultures through the sky. The hunters remained hours behind, but always present. Always watching.

They reached the final platform of the day and settled in beneath the shimmer of its magical barrier. As firelight flickered across the platform, the tension eased into something quieter. The party spoke—not of plans or enemies, but of themselves.

Each shared how they came to walk their chosen path.

Warwick spoke simply—he became what others told him he could be, shaped by expectations of magic and birthright. Broj told of being the runt of his family, raised alongside giants, taught rage by friends rather than blood. Tyelkoron spoke of inheritance—power woven into lineage, unavoidable. Agelaius described a childhood of fights and punishment, forged in a temple where combat was the only language he knew. Xerocomath recounted decades spent beneath the earth, learning that words could conquer where blades failed, and how patience built empires. Sorina spoke of a clerical family that used divine gifts for control and profit—and her choice to turn those gifts toward healing instead. Sinora shared her isolation beyond the city walls, raised on books, taught to hate by a city that feared what she was.

Later, during night watch, Tyelkoron and Sinora spoke privately. He confessed his anger—at the group, at Loid, at himself—for allowing innocents to die, and for not stopping it sooner. They did not absolve one another. Instead, they bonded through shared resentment and emerged with a fragile, mutual understanding.

The night passed without attack.

At dawn, they took flight again—only to discover the Oni and cultists had flown through the night and now raced ahead of them toward Vysteeri. The sight of the Oni reignited Sinora's pain, and through their bond, Sorina felt it too. Desperate, Warwick, Sorina, and Sinora attempted to remove the mark with powerful magic. Warwick's arcane-enhanced efforts prevented the curse from spreading to Sorina—but the truth became clear. The mark was blood magic, bound to life itself. It could not be undone. Only its creator's death would end it.

Then Tyelkoron stepped forward.

Carrying a curse of his own—one tied to Gorrath, the Malice-Scaled—he attempted to intervene. As his hand touched Sinora's shoulder, the mark reacted violently. A fiendish claw burst through her flesh, seizing his arm and dragging it into her body. Tyelkoron's eyes burned crimson as his vision filled with flame. A voice spoke in deep, unknowable speech, its meaning unmistakable.

A gift of power.

Tyelkoron accepted.

He tore his hand free. The sigil vanished from Sinora's shoulder and reappeared on the back of his own hand. In his palm burned a living orb of fire—contained, waiting. The blood magic curse was gone from Sinora… but something else had taken its place.

Unaware of the full cost of what he had accepted, Tyelkoron stood bearing a new mark—one tied to flame, fiends, and a pact yet to be understood.

The party landed on the day's first platform in uneasy silence, resting beneath its wards as they contemplated what had been lost, what had been saved, and what darkness now traveled with them toward Vysteeri.

⚔️ Key Events

• Morning Training: The party spent their final hours in Wyrmhallow honing their abilities—Tyelkoron refining his shapeshifting, Warwick and Broj training defense, Sinora practicing arcane shields, Sorina experimenting with healing magic, Xerocomath studying maps, and Agelaius completing chores for a barrel.
• The Crow's Nest Departure: At evening, the party assembled at Wyrmhallow's highest tier to board massive pteranodons. Broj's size required platform expansion, and as they boarded, Sinora's Oni sigil activated with searing pain.
• Pursuit Discovered: During their first day of flight, the party spotted four pursuers—an Oni and three cultists on giant vultures—following hours behind but never losing sight.
• Campfire Stories: On the first night's platform, beneath magical wards, the party shared their origin stories around the fire—revealing how each came to walk their chosen path.
• Tyelkoron and Sinora's Understanding: During night watch, Tyelkoron and Sinora spoke privately about their shared anger over failing to stop the deaths of innocents. They bonded through resentment and reached a fragile understanding.
• The Hunters Advance: At dawn on the second day, the party discovered the Oni and cultists had flown through the night and now raced ahead toward Vysteeri.
• Failed Curse Removal: Desperate to help Sinora, Warwick, Sorina, and Sinora attempted to remove the blood magic mark. They discovered it was bound to life itself—only its creator's death could end it.
• The Transfer: Tyelkoron, bearing his own curse tied to Gorrath the Malice-Scaled, touched Sinora's mark. A fiendish claw erupted from her shoulder, dragging his hand inside as a voice offered him power. He accepted.
• The New Mark: Tyelkoron tore free with the sigil transferred to his hand and a living orb of fire in his palm. Sinora was freed from the blood curse, but Tyelkoron now carried something darker—a pact yet to be understood.

👥 NPCs Encountered

🔍 Important Discoveries

✨ Character Moments

📝 DM Notes

This session was primarily focused on character development and tension building rather than combat. The campfire scene allowed each player to explore their character's backstory organically, creating deeper connections within the party. The failed attempts to remove the curse built genuine tension and helplessness before Tyelkoron's dramatic intervention.

The reveal of Tyelkoron's connection to Gorrath added new depth to his character while providing the narrative mechanism for the curse transfer. The fiendish bargain he accepted opens multiple story threads for future sessions—particularly regarding the true cost of his "gift."

The pursuing Oni and cultists serve as both immediate threat and long-term antagonist, though their decision to race ahead toward Vysteeri shifts the dynamic from chase to potential ambush, raising stakes for the party's arrival.

Player engagement was high throughout, particularly during the backstory sharing and the tense moments surrounding the curse removal attempts. The Tyelkoron/Sinora private conversation was role-played beautifully and set up the sacrifice moment perfectly.

🎭 Looking Ahead