3/16/2022 Last session ended with the party running into a room to escape the horde of vampires. We started this session inside that room. It is a large room with many markings on the floor and a snake-like humanoid standing before a portal. Unlike the previous rooms with portals, the markings on the floor are much more extensive with five groupings surrounding a giant star figure. Chance correctly deduced that there is a temporal element to this portal. The creature beckoned the party closer and introduced itself as Slora'kushus, or Slora for short. Slora is, in fact, a Slith, the race of immortals that enslaved the first mortals of Tumeria. Slora's master was one of the seven Slith lords, but his master ultimately turned on him over a dispute involving a valuable spell book. Slora was plucked out of time from the conflagration of his laboratory by the portal, saving him from certain death, but also keeping him trapped in place. Slora discussed many things with the party. He revealed that he had watched our progress through the complex and was very pleased, calling up an illusion showing other parts of the complex where vampires were spilling into another world. Slora also mentioned in passing that Karst, the Baron of Quivera, had once visited the complex seeking to learn how to become immortal. Additionally, he told the party that the Slith themselves were once human, but took on their current form in order to become immortal. Slora offered a bargain for the party. He would give them certain items: a scroll of resurrection, a scroll of reincarnation, a scroll of teleportation, 2 anchs, and a staff that could be used to make the magic seals on the ground to ward off vampires. In order to receive these items, all the party had to do was go through a portal in a room down the hall, travel to the nearby Orc fort, and clear the basement room containing certain items of interest to Slora. The portal would take the party to another part of Zhalindor, an area on the southern end of Tumeria. As a gesture of goodwill, he granted a Wish to Xaris, who wished that the metal-eating chaos beings in the first room we encountered would die. It was promptly so. Slora also gifted Xaris a set of plate armor and wagered and lost a sun stone to Chance. And with that, the party set off. When they entered the room down the hall, they found two Orcs sitting by a campfire directly in front of the portal. The party nonchalantly approached while whistling casually. The Orcs were dumbfounded and did not know how to respond. Xaris handed a shield to one of the Orcs as a peace offering. This further confused the Orcs who seemed to grow agitated. The party dove through the portal and were not pursued. On the other side of the portal, they could see the fort some distance away, separated by a deep gorge. A bridge spans the gorge, but an Orc town sits at the foot of the bridge. The party decided to shuffle away into cover and hide until nightfall. At dusk a contingent of about 10 orcs approached just as the two Orcs from the campfire came back through the portal. Suddenly 40 imps came pouring through the portal and were quickly cut down by the Orcs. The Orcs assigned two new guards to enter the portal, and the remainder disbanded and headed back towards the town. The party moved further away from the town and encountered some creatures watching them from the woods. The creatures served Slora and asked that we ignore them and act as if they were never there. Chance then used a token to summon a giant bat, which carried the party two at a time to the deserted roof of the Orc fort. The party entered the fort's tower which held stairs going up and stairs going down. Zelis cast detect magic and determined that there was magic coming from both above and below. Hoping to find extra loot, the party decided to first go up the tower before heading to the basement room they were sent to clear. On the first landing, there was a library with a mix of books on topics ranging from agriculture to military tactics. Chance looted five valuable-looking tomes and the party continued upwards. The next landing appeared to have magical Darkness emanating from it. Chance used his sun stone to counteract and dispel the Darkness. In the room was a shadow creature, cowering before the light of the sun stone. Using his trusty sword, Kekax, as an interpreter, Igny conversed with the shadow creature and learned that the chamber above belonged to the "master," a creature named Moloch. When the shadow creature refused to let the party go up, battle ensued and the party defeated the shadow creature. The party went up into the final chamber of the tower. The party felt enormously lucky to discover that the chamber was not inhabited. A bejeweled chest in the room was registering to Zelis as a source of extremely powerful magic. The party opened the chest to find a rune sword; however the sword lacked a hilt. Nonetheless, it seemed a powerful artifact and Igny quickly wrapped it and put it in his pack. At this time, the party heard a commotion from the Orc town; it seemed that the light of the sunstone in the tower had been noticed by the town below and the alarm was being raised. The party was running out of time. Quickly, the party ran down the stairs, but found the first floor of the fort to be empty. However, Xaris found a hidden stairwell heading further down. The party went down the stairs to find a large basement room containing many stored objects. There were four Orcs in the room, one of whom was huge. Without delay, the party began fighting the Orcs. Using his Wand of Wonder, Chance turned the huge Orc to stone! The other three Orcs fell not long after. The party heard a bellow from above: "MY SWORD!" As the last Orc fell, a portal opened in the room and the creatures from the woods came through to secure the goods in the room. The party quickly retreated through the portal, and just as they left an enormous figure wrapped in flames (presumably Moloch) began firing powerful magical bolts at Slora's servants. The portal carried the party to the place where they had summoned the giant bat. They made their way back to Slora inside the ancient complex without incident and received the promised rewards. And with that, the session ended. TLDR; the party did a favor for a snake-man by killing some Orcs in a fort. They also stole a hiltless rune sword along the way. Session MVP: Chance

The Zhalindor Campaign has been very blessed to have a series of Chroniclers over time.  They have include: Eric Zylstra, Mark Thomas, and most recently Sam Schmitz. A huge thank you to Sam in particular. You will see in the pages that follow what a great job Sam has been doing. All of these Chroniclers help make Zhalindor come alive. Enjoy!