Cycle of Millennia 2021 Session 30: Warped Reality
Here is week 30 of my 2021 Dungeons and Dragons Campaign Cycle of Millennia. The universe is out to lunch. A Warped Reality doing as it wills.
Don’t forget that this campaign has been ongoing for over three years. There is a lot of story to cover and I’m writing a book series to document it all. I am adapting this adventure into a book series. The first three are on Amazon.
!!!Trigger Warnings Abound!!!
This campaign takes place in an incredibly unpleasant setting. The party has dealt with Human Traffickers, Sex Slavery, Child Sacrifice, The Apocalypse, Genocide, Wicked Cults, and other related topics.
There is a God of Madness that is fond of causing auditory and visual hallucinations, makes use of psychic gaslighting, commands the literal legions of hell, and all around causes untold suffering in the setting.
Essentially, nothing is off the table in this campaign. If the above ideas are not ones you want to think about, I do not think this blog series is for you. That is not a problem and does not indicate any failings on your part. I am a storyteller that does not shy away from the darkest topics. It would be horrible for me to not warn my audiences of this in advance.
!!!Final Trigger Warning. Past this point there be dark topics!!!
The party came face to face with horrors from another dimension. Such creatures were beyond even their understandings. Nothing prepared the group for the terror they felt looking at monsters unlike anything they had witnessed in all their travels. Even the Demons of Kranaak’s realm paled in comparison to whatever the group faced now.
Grez at least was determined to find out if such monsters bled. He charged in first determined to force his way past and confront the Death Knights that he knew stood nearby. From close behind, Hadron and Caic fought beside him. They simply couldn’t run as fast
As Grez managed to defeat one of the creatures, it screeched in agony and managed to tear a hole in time space itself. The Monk, normally one to easily avoid such attacks, managed to slip up. He found himself almost 40 feet away from where he stood even seconds before.
Caic wasn’t as lucky. While the Monk had defeated one of the creatures, two more, different than the first stood at ready. And it seemed that their unique properties allowed an even worse interaction with the warped space. The effects which proved harmful to Caic did worse than harm these other creatures. The terrifying energies actually rebounded off them and back towards the Paladin.
The Forces of the Universe:
In moments, what seemed like an easy victory was flipped on its head as Caic found himself near death. A good thing Velkora still lurked in the rear realizing how foolhardy it was to charge in with the others. She managed to keep the Paladin healthy enough for the three frontline fighters to finish the other two eldritch creatures.
Once beaten the party continued forward. The strange effect on the cave didn’t seem to be lifting. In fact, the drug addled air seemed to be growing thicker by the moment. Still they pressed on. Even the creatures of nightmare the Charice Faitful seemed capable of conjuring wouldn’t stop them.
Soon enough, the group encountered more Charice Faithful Summoners. They begged the party to leave. Pointing out that they all were on the same side, and that the group only aided Nihilinn by interfering with their work didn’t work. Naturally, the party had already interacted with one of the Neutral Gods and didn’t like the result.
More Nightmares:
Rightfully pointing out that a God that counted minions out of nightmare as its prime servants wasn’t save to interact with, they refused the offer. And so they fought against another creatures of horror from some Abyss even past Demonhood. This time, weaker yet far more numerous numbers of Eldritch creatures attacked. Grez managed to be in the front once more and felt his flesh slowly being burned.
But in one explosive attack, he cleared the weaker creatures away. They might come from an unusual realm, but they were no stronger than rank and file Undead. In fact, they were less durable than Zombies.
But past this second group, a third coven of Charice Summoners brought forth another group of the more powerful Eldritch Horrors. Even though the party was more familiar with their tactics the second time around, they ended up in a precarious position as they didn’t finish off the leader enemy nearly as fast.
Most of the group, Hadron being the exception are on their last legs. And assuming they survive the onslaught of nightmares, they have to deal with two Rogue Death Knights. And these enemies control Time and Space itself. If rank and file Eldritch Horrors wielding the forces of the universe can bring the group to near death, just what can two intelligent and powerful servants of Nihilinn accomplish with that same power?
Wrap Up:
The party is running low on resources, and the Eldritch Horrors keep appearing. Just what is going on in this temple? And will the party live long enough to solve the many mysteries around them?