Session 35 - Crown of Madness

After the King's evil schemes had been exposed, chaos erupted in the banquet hall. Nina Glibglammer showed her true form: a meatbally mad mass of writhing necks with cackling heads. Mergrim charged into the room and shouted for the guards to protect the nobility which began running for the exits. Siveril, Zunigri, and Marxiros entered into melee with the Mad King and his personal guard while Nina chased the others around the room spreading confusion and madness in her wake. Saphire focused fire on the hydra-like Nina while Louie was focusing on support and hiding underneath tables. After suffering multiple bites, Saphire was polymorphed and returned to BIG MONKE and began smacking the ever-living-madness out of poor Nina. When Nina was finally vanquished, her writhing body collapsed into a black hole emitting nightmarish visions before finally disappearing. The mist flowing out of her dissapearing body eerily alike the one flowing out of the first inquisitor the group killed.

"What have I done?" Steppengard exclaimed, falling to his knees. With Nina destroyed, sanity seems to have returned to the King. His face sunken with horror and disbelief, the King simply stands there aghast. One of his soldiers hands him the crown that was knocked free during the fight, but the King doesn't don it. Instead, he laments about his failures as a king in "letting" that creature control him. He comes to the realization that he has wronged Lord MICHAEL Gallo most of all. While the King drove the country towards destruction, Lord Gallo was the one who saved it. The King doesn't think himself worthy to wear the crown and throws it to the ground. Zunigri picks it up, tells him to deal with it, stop throwing a tantrum, and promptly crowns him King again. The Third Ragesian army will arrive at the borders of Dassen in two weeks, so preparations must be made and there is little time for sulking.

For our heroism in saving the entire nation and all its lords from certain death and destruction, Lord Megadon gifts us some disputed fishing water. As we know, Seaquen considers themselves autonomous from Dassen and apparently the ownership of these waters is disputed. I think we also gained some land? Regardless, I'm sure Seaquen would absolutely love to buy these waters from us to own them for real. Speaking of Seaquen, we received word from Simeon summoning us back to Seaquen. They have received word of our success in securing an alliance with Dassen and are eager to send us on some more errands, or at least discuss the next steps in this war.

After some research in Bresk we find an old folktale description of a creature referred to as a "Tragedy". It is created by murdering a few hundred tortured people. The Tragedy shares a lot of traits (damage/condition resistances/immunities) with Wraiths and other similar undead. Some other miscellaneous info about Nina is that calling her decor spartan would be a massive understatement. It seems that whatever creature she was had no need for worldly possessions. Her room as completely empty. We also learned that she had started acting mad 1 year ago, which is long before Emperor Drakus Coaltongue was killed and the Scourge started.

Zunigri did also remember to pick up her new armour before leaving the newly healed land behind.

Having finished our affairs in Bresk, we left the capitol behind us. The road south towards Seaquen is much easier than than our original journey north. Winter is beginning to give way to fairer weather. The snow is thawing and the sacred soil of Dassen lies bare to the approaching spring air. With the arrival of spring and the melting snow comes the knowledge that the mountain passes between Ragesia and Dassen will soon once again be traversable. As we return victorious to Seaquen, a part of us are still burdened with the knowledge that the real war may very well just be about to begin.