AU Notes!

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END ACT ONE:
- Pickpocketed vendors each day with Astarion, so Act 1's end had the party sitting at, like, 40k gold or thereabout. RP land I say 'a lot of gold'.

- I am also a loot goblin, so assume all loot has been collected to the best of my abilities.
- Including the EA tadpole gifts as there is dialogue in the full game that pertains to them.

- End Act 1 saw the party at level 7 with the following:


Characters and Classes!:
Jal'Nar - Storm Sorc/Oath of Vengeance Paladin.

Laezel of Crèche K'liir Fighter - Battle Master Gift: Psionic Pull Tadpole: Force Tunnel.	Shadowheart Cleric - Trickery (for now) Gift: Survival Instinct Tadpole: Hesitating.	Karlach Cliffgate Barbarian - Berserker Gift: Endless Rage Tadpole: Hesitating.	Wyll Ravengard Warlock - The Fiend Gift: Supernatural Attraction Tadpole: ???
Gale Dekarios Wizard - Evocation Gift: Reflective Shell Tadpole: ???	Astarion Ancunín Rogue - Assassin Gift: Inkblot Tadpole: ???

APPROVALS:
Laezel: Exceptional
Shadowheart: Exceptional
Karlach: High
Wyll: Exceptional
Gale: Exceptional
Astarion: High


OTHER:
- Jal'Naar slept with Laezel (got high enough approval with her) and Astarion (Tiefling Party) over the course of Act 1.
- Jal/Lae is endgame, with Jal and Astarion very close platonic life partners.
- Karlach's heart *will* get fixed.
- Shadow/Kar ship is canon to the AU by end of act 2.
- Shadowheart will end up a Life Cleric/Shadow Sorc.
- Sye (GW) is immortal because Bhaal is a dick and his LEAST Favoured child Must Suffer.
- Imoen is a vampire who runs a Thieves' guild, is Great-Grandmother to Wyll and Karlach, who are cousins. She also mentors/ed Nine Fingers. Also she treats her Spawn like they are people. Not all True Vampires are like Cazador.
- Saverok will be dragged back from Bhaal's enthrall.
- Orin is forcibly turned into the Slayer and the Red Wedding is extremely bloody, even by Bhaalist standards.
- Aisling, one of Imoen's Spawn is with Jaheira the Last Light. She is not a minder; Jaheira thinks she is!
- Imoen shows up like an hour before the Tadpole Party head into the Mausoleum, so she doesn't to get to spend much time around Jal.
- Wyll and Karlach are both ??? 'granny Immy/Imo???????????' because for a time, Imoen tried to pass as not a Vampire re: the tiny twin chaos machines she adopted off the streets.
- Halsin stays back with Thaniel and Art once the Shadow Curse is lifted. He has a Duty to this land.

- Minsc and Boo hints in act one, but they show up in Act two; this is more to mess with Jaheira; not everything revolves around the Party, who bully the Emperor into also protecting Minsc.
- The older BG cast are there to help and offer guidance, not take over the story. The Absolute is the Tadpole Party's worry.

- There are Four living Bhaalspawn by the end of Act three and one of them REALLY wants the Absolute Dead.


LINKS:
Pre-Game
Nautiloid
- Write up https://bhaalbornmess.dreamwidth.org/621.html?thread=4973#cmt4973
- Dialogues https://bhaalbornmess.dreamwidth.org/621.html?thread=7789#cmt7789

Act 1
- Write up https://bhaalbornmess.dreamwidth.org/621.html?thread=8557#cmt8557

- Dialogues
tbc

Comments

Pre-Game

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Re: Pre-Game

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- Bhaalspawn. How he came to be while Bhaal was dead is unknown, and the canon's answers are from rather biased sources. But we know he's miraculous in some fashion and is Bhaal's Favoured Golden Child.
-- The AU's take is that his egg was laid and then placed in stasis. It was one of many, but the only one that survived the intervening years.
- Egg hatched 41 years before the game. He grew up as a typical child for a time; about 10-13 years, taking into account how dragonborn age, before Bhaal's influence reared its ugly head. His foster parents were either his first victims or amongst his first.
- Given Jal'Naar is a Sorcerer AND also a Paladin, it can be assumed he fled into an Oath of Vengeance Order and trained for a while before Fel found him and... yeah, his whole order got murked and his Oath broke.
- He was then inducted into the cult of Bhaal and more or less had zero way to get out and/or and stay out.
- He was responsible for the serial killings of Blood in Baldur's Gate, some 15 years before the game.

- At some point, he came up with the master plan for the Cult of the Absolute so he could be the best murder Bhaalspawn ever because that's what Bhaal made him for. It's Fine.
- Eventually fell victim to a jealous Orin (his niece?) and ended up with a tadpole in his brain. Insertion was highly abnormal. Thank you, Orin.
- He then ended up in the mind flayer colony under Moonrise as Kressa Bonedaughter's pet for about a tenday before being shipped out to the Nautiloid.

I'm sure this is Fine and won't come back to haunt people- oh wait. :)

Nautiloid

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Summary

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• The first thing Jal did when out of the pod was to swear bloody vengeance on whoever did this to him. It's Fine, he's Fine.
  • This is NOT fine; he's the amnesic Chosen of Bhaal. With an Absolute spawn in his head. Thanks, Orin!
• Teamed up with Gale, who got out at the same time as him.
• Lobotomised Us because it's fun to picture a brain with holes.</font color="RED"> He still feels bad about it.
• Added Laezel to the growing party. Team Get To Helm!
• Vs. Imps was fun. Wizards and Sorcerers are Squishy. 
• Jal had a moment re: the two sacrificed cultists in Shadowheart's area. 
• Freed Shadowheart because it was the right choice.
  • Failed the Arcana check (Shut up, Gale. You also failed!) and ran around looking for the key to the console.
  • Lae'Zel and Gale had Thoughts about the Changed at the Drop of a Lever, while Jal sat in a chair and heard voices that seemed to know him? It was weird. 
• Killed Commander Zhalk after getting the Everburn Blade via a very lucky Drop command from Shadowheart. (Exploding barrels = fun!). Also killed the Mindflayer and Cambions.
• Once everyone got thrown overboard in the crash to Faerun, Gale tried to land safely and got stuck in the waypoint b/c tadpole did actually nerf him.

(TOP)

Dialogues

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Re: Dialogues

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The blood in your head thrums and pounds. That pounding blood obscures who you are. An overwhelming loss of memory. How you ended up amidst these hellish flames is just as hidden.

You have nothing in your skull, besides your name and a headache. But you are in danger.

1 - Curse whoever did this to you.
The torturer behind this cruel prank will meet your malice when you get out of here.

Killing. Now, that sounds like your first good idea.

2 - Say your name. You have a part of yourself.
The Dark Urge. Whatever that is. That is you. You will claw back the truth, but first you have to claw your way out of here.

3 - Take a deep breath, shake your head, and start anew.
Time to get out of here, and then you can shed light on the dark of the matter of yourself.

---
Jal: Ngh. My head..... [Shortly after he gets out of the pod.]

---

[Gale joins the party. It's short; they both have better things to worry about.]

---

[We find Us.]

Us: Yes! You've come to save us from this place, from this place you'll free us!
The exposed brain quivers in expectation.
Us:Please, before they return. They return.

Who am I talking to - a man or a brain?
Us: A newborn. Born new from this husk.

You realise you're talking to an intellect devourer, a minion of the mind flayers who abducted you.

You sound afraid. Why?
Us:The enemy. So many enemies.

Inspect the exposed brain. [Passive Medicine roll passed]
You notice oedema - a swelling of the brain causing pressure where it strains against the shell of the skull.

I think you're past the point of saving. Tell me what to do.
Us:Remove us from this body - from this case free us. Please!

1 - Break the skull.
2 - Gently prise the brain from the skull.
3 - Attempt a cerebral extraction, staying mindful of the swelling.
The brain lifts from the skull, but you notice an opportunity - you could cripple the strange creature, making it more subservient should it prove a threat. Your fingers twitch with the desire to rip its tender, moist meat to shreds.

1 - Mutilate the brain.
2 - [Dex] Imagine a brain full of holes. A brain like your own.
3 - Spare the creature - any injuries might weaken it.
The creature seems unaware of your interference. It relaxes in your hands.

Us:We are free. Our freedom is ours. Friend.
The creature pauses, listening. Something behind your eye seizes in recognition.
Us:We must go to the helm. At the helm we are needed.

1 - What's at the helm?
2 - I helped you once, but that's all I can do.
3 - I'll go - but not with you
The brain tenses, as though querying an unseen advisor.
Us: Do you not hear it? We will not survive here. We are needed to navigate - we are needed to leave this realm.

What should I call you?
Us:Us. We are us.

All right, let's go.
Us:To the helm we go. We are going to the helm.

Us: Friend. We are going to the helm.
The creature reaches into your mind, its thoughts rattling against yours. Something inside you squirms in recognition.
Us: Friend. We will go to the helm now.

Come on. Follow me.
Why was I forced onto this ship?
Us: To know you. To love you. To give you our gift.

Something was put in my eye. What was it?
Us: A gift. A gift to make you as we are. Soon you will be so beautiful. So powerful.

Can you tell me where we are?
Us: In a realm, where we have fled. We have fled to a realm called Avernus. First of the Nine Hells. We are escaping a great evil.

--

Lae'zel encounter here.

(TOP)

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Sacrificed Cultists

The man isn't dead, but he's totally unresponsive.
You're but one step from oblivion's stupor yourself - still wading through your empty skull to think a single thought.

Life flickers in his eyes, but he seems totally unaware of his surroundings.
A fleeting image washes over you... An unwashed operating table... your innards without. The headache grows worse.

---

Shadowheart: You! Get me out of this damn thing!
Lae'zel: We have no time for stragglers.
Gale: The more we help. the easier taking the helm will be.
Lae'zel: Tsk. Very well, but be quick about it.

Look for a latch that might open the lid.
The construction is too alien. Nothing looks familiar.

1 - There's no time - I need to get out of here.
2 - The pod's stuck fast. I can't free you.
Shadowheart: Wait! That can't be. There has to be another way. Please!
Lae'zel: It cannot be helped. Come.
Us: Safe if she stays. Safe if we go.
Gale: There must be more we can do, though!

I'll go look around - there must be some way to get this thing open.
Shadowheart: Try that contraption just next to the pod - they did something to it when they sealed me in.devnote

This thing's magically linked to that console - let me see what I can do.
Shadowheart: Hurry! Please!

There's magic at work here. Determine what kind.
The magic's configuration is like nothing you know. Nausea climbs further up your throat the longer you try to discern its nature.

Gale, could you?
Gale: Certainly. [Gale too fails an arcana check and has no idea what magic this is.]
Lae'zel: Are you satisfied? We need to go.
Us: Leave the one, the one must be left!

Stay calm - I'll find a way to get this open.
Shadowheart: Keep looking!


-----

Lae'zel: Tsk'va! How many hosts have these ghaik infected?

A dazed woman is trapped inside the pod. She doesn't notice you.

[Jal pulls a leaver. Opps.]
The newborn mind flayer stares at you, weak and dazed.

Lae'zel:Foul ghaik! Transformed by a lever. That must never be our fate.
Gale: Gods, it's horrifying... and a touch fascinating.
We need to get out of here - before it's our turn.

-------

I found some sort of key - it might free you.
Shadowheart: Good - try using it on that machine next to me.

The console appears dormant.

Insert the rune into the socket.
The console hums steadily, awaiting command.
But what is its purpose? Will it free the captive, or transform her like that other unfortunate?

Place your hand on the console again.
Suddenly you feel a hideous squirming in your head. The parasite. Then discomfort fades, and another sensation washes over you. Connection. Authority. You feel the biomechanical brain of the console process your command... and yield to it. A shiver runs across your mind... You feel sated. Something stirs deep within you, hungry and alert... it's taking something you'll never get back.

[Shadowheart's just been freed from her pod aboard the nautiloid, thanks to the player. She's fallen to her knees after being sealed in a constrictive tube for some time, and is now gathering herself/muttering to herself.]

Shadowheart: How long was I in there...?
Shadowheart: At last... thought I was done for.
Shadowheart: Got to get up. Got to keep moving.
Gale: Are you alright?
Shadowheart: I thought that damn thing was going to be my coffin. Thank you. Both of you.
Your mind lurches into her thoughts. Her gratitude is mixed with wariness - because you have a gith with you.

Shadowheart: You keep dangerous company.

Dangerous company's what you need in a fight.
Shadowheart: Fair point. Looks like there's plenty of fighting ahead.

Did you feel that just now? We were in each other's heads.
Shadowheart: I did... It must be because of those parasites they put in us...
Shadowheart: We need to deal with that, but first we've to get off this thing... Let me come with you. We can get off this ship, and watch each other's backs along the way.

All right then, let's get going.
Shadowheart: One moment.

What's that?
Shadowheart: It's nothing. Trust me.
Lae'zel: Enough of this chatter. We need to get to the helm - now.
Gale: She's right. There's no time to spare.
Shadowheart: Then lead the way.

(TOP)

Act 1

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Summary | What path lies before me

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Red is an Urge Choice

Jal'naar stands over the dead body and has a Time now that he actually has time to Process Things.

Shadowheart is recruited first - he doesn't try and steal the artefact. He legit tries to wake her up.

Gale (and Tara) are at the first waypoint found (the one by Jergal's temple).

• Shadowheart deals with pulling Gale out, while Jal'Naar suppresses the Urge To Maim.

They deal with mindflayer-controlled fishermen and a few intellect devourers shortly after.

Astarion is recruited following daggers to the neck because Jal failed his perception roll. Then they kill the dying Mindflyer.

• Jal stomps on it's head as he gives into an Urge to make it Messy and Bloody.

Lae'zel is recruited, though they don't get the information about Nettie before the tieflings leave.

They clear out the temple to Jergal, and gain Withers as a camp follower. He seems to know Jal'Naar, who is basically a clueless himbo with 'a few issues' at this point who wants to hoard books.

Camp Night Stuff here.

They find the Emerald Grove the next arvo, and help out at the Grove's gate. It was rather bloody. This will be a theme with Jal's fights! Sorcerer-Paladin who's really good at killing.

• Jal pulled the Paladin card to keep Aradin and Zevlor from punching each other.

The group learned about Nettie from Zevlor. They have their own troubles, so they can't really play hero at this point, though. Zevlor understands.

• Do not punch Aradin.
• Seriously, Do not punch Aradin.

They talk with Rolan and Co, and Gale points out that Loroacan is a bit of a cad, but they manage to keep Rolan and co from leaving the Grove.

They recruit Wyll and get the tiefling kids to smile (Tara gets some pets from the kids much to her (hidden) delight). Lae'zel reluctantly helps Greux with his fighting skills. (This will keep him alive in Act 2)

Get robbed by Mattis and Selphy after they got conned. Everyone lost some stuff.

Talk with Kagha

• Save Arabella; this was touch and go re: not giving into the Urge to cause a child's death. But they got her out safely thanks to Wyll and Gale, even if Astarion was a dick about it after wards.

Learn about Shadowheart's wound on her hand. It's...Fine.

Convinced Nettie to hand over the antidote.

Poked a bird to death; the party only see the aftermath and an upset Jal.

Get the locket from Arabella's parents for saving her.

Sleep is wonderful and Jal buys his Oath back ASAP that evening.

• Astarion feeds on a rat or two that night. He's not happy, but he's also not game enough to try anything in a Sacred Druid Grove, thank you very much.

(TOP)

Re: Summary | What path lies before me

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Red is an Urge Choice

The Party spy Mirkon down at the beach and go investigate at Wyll's urging.

• Jal and Gale go down to Harpies gutting them and have to be revived via scrolls; the party learn that Gale should be revived ASAP if he dies. He won't say why.

Chat with Volo; there was no dragon, Volo. (Astarion robbed him)

Kicked Timbur due to the Urge.

They save Nadira, though it takes Wyll and Shadowheart to get her Soul Coin as Jal'Naar struggles with an Urge to push her off the ledge.

They do not tell Ethel about the tadpoles.

• Jal has a feeling or two because she was nice to him even though he confessed to dark thoughts about wanting to kill her via death in boiling soup.

The Party have a (another)collective WTF moment when Jal says he likes dwarf stew better.

• Okta is Okta about it. She's Too Old For This Shit, boy.

Talk to Zevlor - they agree to do something about Kagha.

• They are no heroes, they just want a cure and this is the easiest way to do things. Also look, the Grove is a safe place to rest. Keeping it safe helps them.

They poke about Kagha's things, learn about the swamp and decide to deal with that first, as it'll buy them time to find and deal with the goblins.

• Also as everyone tells Jal and Laezel, Shadow Druids are BAD news. Really bad. As in will kill us too!
• Nothing motivates like self-interest!

• Laezel is not happy as she believes that a Crèche is the fastest way to do things, but she does see the wisdom of it, if only because it means they buy time for her to find Zorru.

That night Jal tells those who need to be told about the darkness and his rancid blood. It... sorta eases some worries, yet, noone is really taking it as seriously as they should be.

They think it might be the tadpole, while Gale thinks maybe a curse that isn't playing nice with the tadpole, as if it was the tadpole, they'd all be showing signs of this.

Astarion takes his chances later that night and slips out to feed on a boar.

(TOP)

Re: Summary | What path lies before me

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Red is an Urge Choice

Talk with Alfira and help her with her song.

• She wants to join them, but the group convince her not to. They very rightfully point out that her group needs her, if only for morale. They promise to find her at Baldur's Gate. She's sad, but she does understand, more so given by now she's heard about Aradin's group.

The Party head out, find a secret entrance to the grove, poke around and find some goblins torturing a druid. They save a soul b/c Wyll insists and is the Dad of this dysfunctional mess TYVM. Jal struggles with his Urges here as it would be so, so easy to end the druid's life.

After the druid is healed and he runs back to tell the grove, the Party find a boar that's been drained of blood. Astarion is shifty, but again, everyone has secrets so it's Fine. Wyll goes 'hold on a second bro' but Astarion's in denial - and the group decide it's nor worth to push him.

They run to Edowin and Co shortly after and while an attempt is made to heal Edowin, they fail as his wounds are too deep and too server for the healing magic currently have acess to. Jal manages to convince them they he and his group are True Souls for a bit, but then one of the others opens their mouth and-- cue blood. Lots of blood.

They make camp that arvo and as they talk, Quil joins them and they learn about dragborns over the hours until they head to sleep.

Jal Killed Quil due to the Urge.

While Jal confesses to things in the morning. the group believe it's the tadpole and or whatever curse that's been placed on Jal'Naar.

They take a wrong turn and end up horribly lost looking for the swamp because NO-ONE is good with survival, and Wyll is useless because he hasn't been in the region. It's Fine, They're Fine.

Owlbear cave.

• They leave the mother and cub alone!!!!

Shadowheart is all huffy about the Selune shrine, while Jalnar is just ... brb pragmatic about it all because they really don't know what can be useful or not and cue Shadowart not liking it but also agreeing because Jal has good points. /SIGH!!!

• cue a few hours of actual debate over this as they walk and there's more than a few side eyes re Shadowheart as her Shar is showing but everyone's too polite to tell the two clueless idiots with them LMAO. Also Shadowheart is one of them for better or worse.
  • Also everyone else is 'we have bigger problems than the obvious Shar worshipper'.

They find and adopt Scratch because the amnesiac serial killer wants a pet dog; I mean, everyone wants a pet dog, and Scratch is the mascot.

They find Karlach and recruit her. Wyll is not happy about it, but he admits he's been deceived and while they could potentially kill and resurrect Karlach latter that evening, Wyll is terrified of Mizora finding out.

• They do talk about that plan, but given Wyll can't talk about the Pact, and Karlach being uncertain if it'd even work, they agree that it's probably better not to test fate. Devils do not like being tricked.

They find the Risen Road Toll house- lots and lots of blood. Jal is just a pissed off Paladin in general because he doesn't like the False Paladins. There are five of them, and they end up being bailed out by Syeira, who is the true Gorion's Ward.

Sye is witness to Jal's instinctive 'hands in guts ignoring everything else while he plays with guts' and Karlach's rage after the fight.

• Astarion 100% attempts to Robs her and is caught, but she's very chill about it all.

• She gives the party some +1 weapons, and Karlach gains the Blooded Greataxe from her.

They get directions to the swamp then part ways.

The find another boar the next morning and Wyll side eyes Astarion who is ansty as Jal inspects it, but again, bigger issues.

That night: Astarion tries to drink from Jal, and Jal meets Fel and gains the Deathstalker's mantle.

• Jal tells everyone about it b/c Jal is an honest boy who was really weirded out by this.

Everyone agrees there is more going on with Jal than they know, but given they're all on the dusty road, they don't really have the resources to figure out what. Yet.
(TOP)

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Red is an Urge Choice

They accidentally side with Ethel and end up killing Mayrina's brothers. Opps.

They find the swamp, and after some exploring and finding the bloodied camp and The Addled Frog, come to realise it's not as it seems.

They find the Old Stump and the proof that's needed. (Wood Woads and mud mephits = so much muddy. So Much.)

They find the old teahouse, thinking to stay the night with Ethel.

Everything happens in the teahouse as in canon.

Jal gets the hag-eye as it's better he does it than anyone else, thank you very much. The Group are s l o w l y coming to realise that Jal would sooner lose things of himself than lose his friends.

• Gale looks very alarmed that the Tadpole has been changed via Netherese Magics. That said, he hasn't yet confided about the orb as Tara brought him a magic item in the night.
  • Tara has urged him to tell the party.

And then Jal is rightfully pissed off when it turns out Ethel couldn't do what she said. They had a deal, Hag...

They murder Ethel down in her lair after dealing with (most) of the Mask Puppets. They then ransack her teahouse. Freeing Mayrina was a bonus at this point, and it's Wyll and Gale who break the news to her that the hag wanted to eat her baby.

• Jal splits off from the group while they ransack Ethel's house to leave a symbol of Bhaal behind in the hag's lair as he's not in his right mind, but by the time he rejoins the group, he's better. Ish.

Mayrina gets her husband back (as a zombie) and starts the first steps to becoming a necromancer.

They camp that night in Ethel's place.

More camp night talk. Mizora shows up and Wyll is turned into a devil. Gale confesses about the Orb while Tara frets over him. The group agree to do what they can to help keep the Orb under control.

They meet Gandrel the Gur nearby the next morning, and he's disheartened that the Hag is dead. They Do NOT kill him - they send him off on a while goose chase re: Astarion's location. Once he leaves, Astarion's right put out, but everyone convinces him it's better to leave the man alive than risk more Gur coming after them.
--

They head back to the grove the next morning to deal with Kagha.

Kagha survives. The Shadow Druids do not. It was a tough fight.

They get their stuff back from Mol. During this meeting, Jal has a thought about her magic - Mol doesn't know it yet, but she is a Wild Mage.

The party then set out to the Goblin camp to deal with that, but end up distracted with Wakeen's Rest following seeing smoke in the distance.

They deal with Gnolls and the Zhent.

They arrive in time to aid with raider stragglers who remained behind, and free Florick and Benryn.Jal almost slips with Benryn; the Companions are the ones to free him.

They agree to go after the Duke as they are looking for away to Moonrise, too.

They do not tell Zarys that they 'accidentally' killed Rugan and opened the chest. They lie and say it was lost in the attack.

Clearing the Blighted Village takes two days while Wyll feels helpless to help his father; they don't know where Moonrise is, and they do need to clear the goblins out before they can do anything else otherwise they'll have goblins and cultists on them every step of the way. It's very bloody.

• They get lump's war horn.

• Astarion gets the Necromancy of Thay tome.

• Phase Spiders are Terrifying and several people need to be resurrected.

Clearing the Goblin camp is fine for the most part, as they manage to take out Priestess Gut without arousing attention.

They free Liam (though the party has to take over before Jal slips and breaks his oath), Volo, and the owlbear cub (via bullying the goblins into letting it/him go. Though they do poison the goblin's drink before they go back inside.)

• They later go back to the cave and find the cub's parents dead.

Jal gets Loviatar's blessing. (Two of the other companions get it too.)

• Everything is going well; Shadowheart confesses to being a Sharan which is 'Okay, whatever' by this point.
  • Jal'naar has an Urge when talking to Minthara.

The rest of the camp is killed AFTER Mithara and her war party has left.

They free Halsin after a short, but brutal fight in the Worg Pens. Halsin leaves right away to get to the Emerald Grove, while the Characters race back as well.

Camp stuff here.

• The companions are worried about Jal, and it's revealed that Fel is hanging out in Camp to keep an eye on his dear rotted Master. Jal has so many questions but Fel isn't telling anyone anything.
  • Wyll wonders if Jal is a demon's child.

• Lae'zel ponders if Jal is a Chosen of one of Fae-run's gods and the Party collectively look at each other, and then it's Astarion who brings up the Bhaalist symbol in conjunction with the rest of Jal's general bloodlust.

• Jal is extremely uncomfortable with the idea that he could be a Bhaalist of any stripe; his blood is sick, and his mind filled with torments and intrusive thoughts of the worst kind. He's cursed, not Chosen.

That night the whole camp is woken by screaming nightmares from Jal. No one gets any true rest that night.

The Emerald Grove defence is *hard* and bloody - so much blood as Jal takes out his frustrations about everything on the Absolute's cultists. Every ally survives.

• A lot of people note that Jal'Naar, even in the thick of bloodlust, does NOT turn on his allies.

Only Minthara survives the battle as she is knocked out and shoved into bushes by Karlach, as the thinking is that nature will take care of her.

Halsin shows up, and he learns that it wasn't the druids that manned the walls and did the defence, but refugees and the adventuring troop. He *is NOT* happy with the druids and rightfully reads them all the riot act.

After they have defeated the Goblins, they FINALLY find Zorru right before he leaves, and Lae'zel does her thing. Not everyone agrees with how things were handled, but Jal is pragmatic. Being nice is good and ideal, yet, sometimes you need to get information.

They agree that they're unlikely to find a githyanki patrol right now to see if they can get the location of a crèche, so they vanish into the Underdark, ideally to scout around and see if they can find this old temple and this path to Moonrise and avoid the Shadow Curse.

Cue about seven - eight days down there as they do a bunch of quests, free gnomes, find the Sharan temple, well, part of it, find the Adamantine Forge, then, after all that, learn the elevator to Moonrise is busted.

Back to the surface, and after collecting Halsin who's now ready to leave, they head towards the mountain pass, where they run into the Gith patrol after spotting the Red Dragon. A fight breaks out because no one was able to lie to the Gith, though they are almost straight up dragon food before Voss decides he is merciful and then leaves with his red dragon. Gith are murdered, a map to a crèche found, and onto the mountain pass they go.
(TOP)

[dangerhands]

Red is an Urge Choice

The mountain pass takes about two days before they reach the Rosymorn area and everyone wishes they had horses.

They run into undead and after a brutal fight, they learn that the Duke was brought this way, and that there are Githyanki in the area.

They make a 'deal' with Lady Esther to get a Githyanki egg, though they have no intention of honouring the deal given the way she talks about the egg and the eventual child like it's an experiment.

• Lae'zel will get the egg and she will raise it.

• Jal also unknowing buys a full set of Bhaalist armour 'because it looks cool'.
  • What he doesn't say is that it reminds him of 'home'.

That afternoon, they run into Eliminster and invite him back to camp. Jal'Nar is not impressed with him at all. Or about anything the man has to say.

• Jal brief ponders the idea of poisoning the man.

• Tara is very much also NOT impressed.

The next morning, they enter the crèche.

• The first day with the Crèche is talking to everyone (save those that progress the Plot) and getting the lay of the land. Everyone follows Lae'zel's lead here, as one wrong step could see them dead.
  • They save Varrl's life; Wyll and Karlach find out more about Orpheus.

The next day they deal with the Za'thisk, and then move the plot forward.

Jal comes to the conclusion that he's very, very tired of everyone thinking that he's some kind of killer for hire or someone who'll do murder at the drop of a hat.

• Something about that makes his guts twist in revulsion.
  • He refuses to kill the Dream Guardian despite not trusting her (and the face is hauntingly familiar in ways he doesn't like.) He is NO-ONE's attack dog.

• they get the Blood of Lathander and intend to take it to one of the Lathander temples in Balder's gate.

Getting out of the Crèche is a slog and a bloodbath and Jal looses himself to the slaughter; by the time they are out and away from the temple, there's been more than a few Bhaal Symbols drawn on the walls.

The party is convinced that Bhaal or someone who follows Bhaal cursed Jal'nar.

• This doesn't explain the Lack of Memories, tho.
  
  ... End of Act One.
  
  --- To be confirmed
  
  Sye finding Quill's grave and the Bhaal symbol.
  Sye finding the very bloody Blighted Village.
  Sye possibly finding the Bhaal Symbol at Ethel's.
  Sye learning about the Grove's defence and how bloody that was. She looses the party as they went into the Underdark.
  Sye thinks she's looking for Bhaalists, not the party.
  
  (TOP)