Machines and Magic Test Campaign 1 Record

-TBD once actual is posted-

Day One (Night, Pre-Campaign)

Fang and Saidin, in an attempt to steal food supplies, sneak through the two day exclusion zone surrounding the military outpost Fort Ularund. An unfortunate incident leads them to being seen a day into the exclusion zone and on that first night the two are captured.

Day Two (Campaign Beginning)

Fang and Saidin are marched, manacled at the wrist, toward the military compound. There are several buildings, as well as signs of an airfield somewhere around the back. The two friends were detained by some bastard dwarf, who searched them thoroughly and confiscated their few possessions – as if they had much to begin with, greedy sod. The dwarf holds a gun to Fang's head. While Saidin acknowledges this capture brings them closer to their potential food supplies, the issue of manacles and the dwarf's gun at his friend's head give him pause. He refuses to cast Fireball while both himself and Fang are in such close proximity to the target of their ire, thus putting a damper on all escape attempts.

Saidin does make several rude comments about the dwarf's beard however, and makes it clear that their desire was to get food and that the dwarf is practically starving them. The dwarf doesn't care.

…

Upon the walls of the compound, a half-elf performs his patrols. During his watch he spots the three approaching figures; two unknown, manacled individuals, and his ally, the dwarf hunter. He elects to go down and greet them just before the gates.

…

In the fort's mess hall, a half-elf summoner sits and enjoys his meal – while Fang and Saidin starve. The food leaves much to be desired but his positive outlook allows him to appreciate its nutritional benefits. Despite his natural inclination to the positive, however, he still feels a little down. He has come to this place seeking work and monetary compensation for aforementioned work, but has so far has been unsuccessful in obtaining either.

As he completes his meal he looks up. His eyes lock with another's, a mysterious man wearing a grey cloak and colourful scarf. The man beckons for him to follow, and curious, he does. As he moves into the corridor beyond the mess hall however, he finds the figure has disappeared.

…

The dwarf continues to march Fang and Saidin toward the open gates. Knowing of their attempt to sneak into the base, the dwarf scoffs and mentions that the gates would have been difficult to get through seeing as they're shut at night. Neither Saidin nor Fang mention they probably wouldn't have used the gate anyway, but save the information for later.

The half-elf soldier from upon the wall comes down and hails the dwarf; apparently his friend or acquaintance. The dwarf and half-elf mention one another's names in their greetings. The dwarf is Thurick, the half-elf Eldarion.

Thurick explains the circumstances of Fang and Saidin's capture to Eldarion, who sighs and mutters about how this is becoming a reoccurring problem.  Thurick requests permission to enter and see one of the men in charge of the base, a powerful hunter. He receives permission, and with Eldarion as an additional escort (to provide further protection in case of 'unfortunate' incidents, such as Saidin Fireballing them into oblivion), the four continue on into the base.

…

In the corridor beyond the mess hall, the half-elf witnesses Saidin and Fang being marched through the base by Thurick and Eldarion. Using his lenses' abilities, he can determine two sources of magic – Saidin, and his staff, which is being carried by Thurick at this time. Saidin, having noticed the half-elf and his curious expression, concludes that the other has noticed something about him and indicates subtly that he should 'keep his mouth shut.' Regardless of whether or not the half-elf noticed this message, he doesn't alert Saidin's captors to anything.

The half-elf attempts to follow the four as they traverse the compound, but is stopped at one of several checkpoints by a gun-wielding guard. Sensible despite his excess positivity, the half-elf decides to wait. The other half-elf, Eldarion, also remains.

…

Meanwhile, Fang has broken out into song, a song which apparently reminds him of the dwarven captor. While not particularly talented in the musical arts, his song of choice, 'Lola', bemuses Saidin and irritates Thurick. Fang is eventually quelled by a few well-aimed glares from the dwarf.

Thurick leads the two into a room. There is little of note in the room despite a chest, a handful of knick-knacks, and its inhabitant, a ranger clerk. Obviously important to some degree, the man is both scruffy and intimidating, with a dagger lodged in his desk and a bow and sword resting nearby.

Thurick refers to the man as Hunter Strider and proceeds to report the situation to him. To Saidin and Fang's disgust (the word 'bastard' features heavily in their thoughts), he asks permission to have the prisoners executed.

The Hunter denies him however, and tells him off (which understandably amuses those he hoped to murder for the crime of hunger, the git) and then informs him to take the two to the holding cells.

Before he departs, Thurick requests to look through the various riff-raff around the room for any items that may be of use to him. The Hunter allows him and Thurick pokes about for a bit before picking out a Cloak of Camouflage. He leaves the other items, along with Saidin and Fang's gear, which he puts in the chest. Saidin makes a note of this for later, when he and Fang attempt their escape.

While this occurs, the two half-elves outside make conversation. Or rather, the overly peppy half-elf from the mess hall – who introduces himself as Vincent, though Thurick, Saidin and Fang do not hear this – talks at Eldarion. When Vincent asks why he cannot enter the Hunter section of the compound, Eldarion informs him that, if he were wise, he wouldn't want to go in there even if he could.

…

Thurick places Fang and Saidin in their cell then leaves, allowing the two to look around their current quarters. The cell itself is not particularly large, made of stone and nicely mortared, with iron bars and door forming one wall. There is also a bench in the room, uncomfortable but adequate. There is a guard posted at the door, who also presents them with a meal – the reason Saidin and Fang are here in the first place.

The meal consists of disgusting gruel, an unpleasant grey in colour, and a clay pitcher full of murky water. Used to surface fare, Saidin and Fang seat themselves upon the bench and take their meal. Privately, Saidin muses that the only thing he misses about his home city is the food – and possibly the wine.

Once their meal is finished, to Saidin's simultaneous amusement and despair, Fang picks up the clay jug and throws it at the guard. It only hits the bars as opposed to the guard's head, and unamused and ignoring Saidin's protests, he enters and drags Fang outside onto the green.

To Fang's displeasure, the guard complains all the while about the attempted attack. (Apparently it is wrong for starving and unfairly imprisoned individuals to be upset with stingy guards). The guard then takes up his cudgel and clobbers Fang with it, the sod.

To Saidin's disgust and the rest of the compound's joy, word of the beating on the green is passed around and soon the majority of the base has gathered to witness Fang being bludgeoned. In the crowd are Thurick, Eldarion, and Vincent, the latter having elected to follow the two friends around. Thurick and Vincent cheer the guard (and, on Vincent's part, Fang) on. Eldarion remains silent.

…

Back in his cell, Saidin is enraged by the treatment of his friend. An inspection of the room reveals no way out, however, and its size makes the use of magic impractical and dangerous. He is about to give up when, all of a sudden, a figure appears.

The figure, garbed in a grey cloak and colourful scarf, looks to Saidin then taps on the lock. Then without a word, they disappear.

Surprised, Saidin heads over to the door to investigate. As he suspected, the door is now unlocked, and swings open at a touch. Delighted by this spot of luck, he decides to sneak over to the Head Hunter's chamber and steal back his and Fang's possessions, then pay the compound back for arresting them and beating Fang – hopefully, with copious amounts of Fireball.

Saidin is not particularly stealthy in his sneaking, but as the base is nigh empty he reaches Hunter Strider's rooms unnoticed. The chest is unlocked and Saidin easily loots his and Fang's personal effects.

As Saidin begins to make his way back through the base, however, a terrible sensation suddenly flares within him. The gibbering voices and strange images that have haunted him all his life dance behind his eyes, taunting him, and then all of a sudden a terrifying, blood-curdling noise echoes through the camp.

MRGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGLGL!

Then all about the camp, horrible, frog like creatures pop into existence. Creatures from the Far, but not ones that Saidin recognises beyond their name – Murloc. With that knowledge, Saidin rushes frantically through the camp toward the green, seeking out Fang.

…

Meanwhile, outside on the green, panic descends. Guards who had previously been cheering and hollering as Fang was beaten now rush about, desperately trying to return to the combat positions they had been in before they had woefully elected to leave them. Everyone present prepares as best they can to fight back against the foul, frog-like creatures that have suddenly appeared.

Even after being beaten and dropped to the ground, Fang bolsters himself and attempts to nick the sword of the guard who assaulted him. Unfortunately he fails and the guard notices and aims a kick at him. It hits but still Fang endures, gripping onto consciousness despite being exceptionally weary.

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the green, Eldarion the soldier now prepares his attack. He draws his shotgun and shoots a single point blank shot at a murloc, but misses entirely. Thurick the hunter makes his own attempt with his revolver but also misses. The cheerful half-elf Vincent attempts to summon a fire elemental; his concentration is impeccable, but the fire elemental fails to take form and he depletes four (4) charges.

It is then Saidin arrives, stopping just inside the entrance threshold. He sees that the green is absolutely covered in murlocs. He glances about, spotting Fang, then attempts to cast Fireball from his staff. Unfortunately he fails to do anything.

Four murlocs then charge at Eldarion, Thurick, and Vincent. As neither of those three individuals are Fang or himself, Saidin doesn't consider them priorities for protection. Regardless of Saidin's concerns, however, the dwarf Thurick manages to hit one of the charging murlocs. The bullet rips through its foul form, killing it, and green fluids explode from its body.

There are still three surviving murlocs however, and they slash at their targets. Their attacks fail to penetrate the armour of either Eldarion, Thurick, or Vincent.

Fang is protected from attack by the soldiers who had previously jeered at him, their bodies acting as a makeshift wall as they stand around him. Fang notices Saidin standing at the compound's entrance however and makes a run for it, reaching Saidin successfully and obtaining his gear.

Eldarion draws his chainsword and makes a frenzied attack against a single murloc. The chainsword tears the creature into gory pieces. Thurick follows his companion's lead and makes an attack of his own, firing his weapon and blowing one murloc to pieces. Feeling particularly proud of himself, Thurick then fires again and kills a second murloc in a similar manner.

Vincent again attempts to summon a fire elemental. He is unable to concentrate enough to call upon the creature and thus the summoning fails and he loses one (1) charge.

Saidin raises his staff and tries to call forth a Fireball. He fails to do so and, due to his failure, the voices in his head grow louder. He recognises the Far's attempts to call out to him, however, and is ultimately able to resist it and subsequent corruption.

Several of the murlocs make a sudden turn, having noticed Fang's movement. Realising he no longer has the guards' protection, they attack Fang but fail to hit the stalwart outlaw. A similar situation occurs across the green, as four murlocs attack the other three. All miss save the single murloc that attacks Thurick. Its attack is too weak to harm him however and the dwarf ignores it.

Fang prepares to make his attack against the two murlocs that have approached him. He draws his rapier and lunges forward, waving it about wildly. He misses both murlocs.

Eldarion has more success against his foes, slaying another murloc with his chainsword in a bloody display. Thurick takes his turn and makes a fantastic shot, blowing another murloc into gory giblets. After this, he reloads – placing three bullets into his pistol.  The half-elf Vincent, ever positive, makes another attempt to summon a fire elemental. He fails again and depletes another (1) charge.

Back at the entrance, Saidin again tries to call forth a Fireball. He is unsuccessful and privately considers himself unlucky in all magical ventures today thus far – though fortunate in that the voices of Far have not become any louder.

Thurick fires a reactionary shot against another murloc and blows a hole in its body. A single murloc manages to make a successful attack against Eldarion, hitting his leg and damaging him.

Fang prepares an all-out frenzy attack against one of the two murlocs that have engaged him. To his and Saidin's delight he performs spectacularly, slicing the filthy beast in twain.

Across the green, Eldarion destroys another murloc with his chainsword, letting out a heroic cry. It is then Thurick looks around and notices that the trio are no longer being assaulted by murlocs. He returns his pistol to its holster and approaches the nearest building – the compound's mess hall – and successfully climbs atop it. He sits and observes the chaos.

The cheery Vincent again attempts to summon a fire elemental, presumably to aid the soldiers still fighting the remaining murlocs, but fails and depletes two (2) charges.

It is then Saidin calls upon his staff's magic and successfully summons a great orb of jade flames. With a glowering smirk he casts the Fireball into a group of five murlocs causing them to immediately incinerate in an epic inferno of green.

As Saidin's fireball connects and burns the murlocs, the creatures begin to fade. Regardless of whether they are alive or dead, they disappear with a strange sound. Their sudden disappearance leaves everyone confused – even Saidin, who muses that despite his connection to it, the Far is ever incomprehensible.

Many of the guards are injured or dead, though Saidin struggles to sympathise with them after their treatment of Fang.

Vincent approaches one of the wounded and kneels beside him. After examining his injuries he claims, ever positive, that it's 'only a flesh wound' and the man should be fine. The rest of the guards gathered round stare at the viscera spilling out of the injured man's stomach. Meanwhile, Thurick climbs down from the top of the mess hall and he reloads his weapon. Eldarion does the same with his shotgun.

While the others organise themselves, Fang and Saidin plan their escape. Having obtained the meal they desired and recovered their personal effects, Saidin believes they should attempt to sneak away from the base before they are recaptured.

Unfortunately, Fangs ears are still ringing from the earlier gunfire. As such, as the two are creeping around the edge of the building, desiring to seek confirmation of their plan, Fang shouts it at the top of his lungs. Almost immediately after Thurick fires a shot, which ricochets off the building near Fang and Saidin, but hits neither.

Before the situation can escalate, the door of the compound (which conveniently closed after Saidin exited it) slams open. Admiral Liadon of Fort Ularund steps out, having remained in his office for the duration of the fight. The elf's hair floats about like a silver mist, a sign he is one of those strange folk from the air plane.

The elf looks around the chaos of the compound then roars “What in the Nine Hells is going on?!” Frozen in place, everyone watches as he glances around before adding, “This compound is in unacceptable condition! UNACCEPTABLE!”

He then proceeds to point at Thurick, Eldarion, Vincent, and, most bizarrely, Fang and Saidin, commanding “You five, go investigate!” before disappearing back into the compound. Saidin whispers to Fang that they should follow along and try to blend in.

The chosen men gather, except Eldarion who goes to fetch Fang and Saidin's possessions – unaware that the two have already liberated them. Fang makes a snarky comment to 'Lola', who glares who responds with 'It's Thurick!' Saidin comments that he is unable to hear him through his hideous, floating beard. Fang comments that Thurick is 'a weirdo with a beard-o' and Saidin cannot resist a snicker.

The Admiral pokes his head out the door again and repeats his command for the group to investigate the situation. Their shenanigans quelled, Saidin claims to Thurick that the creatures are obviously of the Far. He states that their unusual appearance seems outside the realms of possibility for creatures of other planes. Saidin's belief is also reinforced by the increase in visions and gibbering voices he experienced when the creatures appeared, but he keeps this to himself.

Thurick nods in response. He then departs for a brief time to restock on ammunition. He utilises his renown in the base (bolstered with additional infamy due to his superb performance in the previous battle), requisitioning twenty-six (26) bullets for his revolver and seven (7) for his musket.

Whilst Thurick gathers ammunition, the half-elf Vincent takes the time to introduce himself to Fang and Saidin. Vincent, ever positive, praises Saidin's magical abilities. Saidin, feeling rather disinclined to genuinely compliment or makes small talk with a man who cheered whilst Fang was beaten, gives him a back-handed compliment about his performance in the battle. Vincent either ignores it, or it goes straight over his head.

Vincent continues attempting to converse with Fang and Saidin, but the latter interrupts his attempts, stating that Eldarion wishes to speak with him while Saidin himself wishes to have a private word with Fang. Vincent, ever cheerful, goes of in search of Eldarion, who has just returned from his quest to fetch Saidin and Fang's already collected effects.

Vincent asks Eldarion and Thurick if there is a magical storeroom; Thurick informs him there is none on the base. After having a private word with Fang about the increased visions and voices he experienced during the attack, Saidin and Fang join with the other three to compile their information.

Thurick and Eldarion both confirm that this is the first attack on the base in a while, and certainly the first made by murlocs. Saidin and Fang find this easy to believe, seeing how the entire compound was so eager to see the latter beaten.

Saidin mentions that they popped into existence but faded out, and that this fading only occurred after he eliminated a sizeable group with his attack. Fang, acting on a strong feeling in his gut, states that they 'retreated' after many had been slain. He wonders aloud if this means there needs to be a large number of creatures in one area for them to remain in this plane. He brings up the fact that they likely needed someone on this plane to summon them and that the summoner would need to have been located nearby.

Saidin is quite impressed with his friend's thoughts on the matter. Thinking over all the odd happenings of the day, he mentions the strange, grey-cloaked, bright-scarfed figure he saw – he leaves out how this individual released him from his cell. Vincent recognises the description but neither Thurick or Eldarion recall him as a member of Fort Ularund's staff.

We ask Eldarion to gather the people of the compound so that Vincent might detect magic upon them. Eldarion manages to gather a decent number of both guard and staff, though none of the hunters respond to his request. Vincent finds no magical traces upon them.

The group decides to search the camp for clues as to what occurred. Fang and Saidin form a group, as do Vincent and Eldarion. Thurick heads off on his own. While Fang, Saidin, Vincent, and Eldarion have limited success, during his exploration Thurick sees a brightly-coloured scarf disappearing around a corner.

Recognising it from Saidin and Vincent's descriptions, he pursues it until he reaches the compound's airfield. He spots the scarf hanging over the edge of an airship, bound down by several ropes. He wastes little time gathering the group and reporting what he's found. He guides the group back to the airship in question.

There is both a tie rope and a rope ladder hanging from the edge of the airship. Thurick manages to shimmy up the tie rope while the rest of the group climbs the ladder. Fang leads the way, followed by Eldarion, then Saidin, with Vincent bringing up the rear.

The deck of the ship is reminiscent of a caravel sailing vessel, with balloons attached to aid in flight. It appears empty and unmarred, with no crew members or staff aboard. Finding nothing of note, including the scarf, the group decides to investigate the hold.

What lies within the hold may have been better left unseen. The place is a bloodbath, evidence of a massacre strewn about the room. Blood and other unidentifiable fluids decorate the walls, forming strange and twisted symbols. Corpses litter the floor of the hold, dismembered and scattered across its surface, stomachs split open and viscera dragged out to mingle with all other manner of gore. What remains of the victims' faces is frozen in horror and fear, tear tracks dried upon their cheeks.

Thurick and Vincent are torn between terror and disgust, sickened by the by both sight and stench and understandably distressed by the blatant dehumanisation of the victims, the lack of empathy required to slaughter so many so cruelly. The two leave hastily, Vincent retreating to stand on the deck, Thurick rushing off to report to his superior officers.

Eldarion, Fang, and Saidin steel themselves against the slaughter, maintaining their calm. The three decide to search amongst the bodies for any further evidence. Eldarion and Fang move through the bloodied, mangled corpses, but find nothing.

As Saidin searches however, he spots a glint in the gloom. He approaches carefully and kneels among the disembowelled corpses, pushing aside the remains to look upon a golden ring marked with a single, strange rune...