Quartz 4

Session 04

6 min read

date: 2026-04-05

Session_Drafts

  • Starting at Besanlon after the Siege of Ratmen

  • Aiming for Fort Dranin, to pass through to Fort Valengueux

  • Awoke to town dignitaries thanking us for saving the town

  • Travel to town hall to meet the Mayor Lieke

    • Says its a miracle we were here to defend the town
    • Almost all adventurers have moved onward for the Great Hunt

  • 8 hours travel between Besanlon to Fort Dranin

  • Fort Dranin

    • Arrive later than expected, a few hours before sunset
    • Show the gate house the Duke’s Seal and the letter from Mayor Lieke
      • Pass through easily and are directed to the commander in the keep

  • Commander Renu Bleckmens of Fort Dranin

    • Informed by messenger bird of the Ratmen Siege, and the successful defence by the party
    • The army had assumed the Ratmen attacks had stopped, and guards became lazy
    • With the closeness to Brittany, the guards in Fort Dranin stayed wary
    • He says the main danger to them is the Fort Valengueux
    • The pass between Forts is completely locked down
    • Asked to help with a sensitive matter nearby
    • Dranin forces sent out a scout team into Brittany
      • 4 man team
      • Commander is expecting war to erupt any moment and wants up to date knowledge
      • Only received a messenger pigeon 1 week ago
        • The last pigeon they had
        • All further knowledge needs to be delivered by hand
        • Last message says they had found an unusual site in the South-West mountains with magical presence
          • The Zig of Gurpo
      • Due to return to the keep 2 days ago
      • Likely they were picked up by the Bretton border guard
    • All magical sites are of massive import during war
    • We are tasked with rescuing the scout team preferably alive
    • If the Brettons find out the origins of the spy team that may begin the war
    • The Intel report needs to be retrieved
      • Is encrypted with a cypher with the cryptographer of Fort Dranin
      • Not impossible the Brittons can crack the code
    • Preferable if we don’t kill anyone unnecessary
    • Take all other intelligence possible
    • If possible, assassinate the other commander (Gilot Bougit) in a way that won’t trace back to the Wallonians
    • Give them a passphrase
      • Absolute Dutch-sounding bullshit
      • Wir heeben in seerios probleem
    • Enemy commander is known to be a regional noble
      • Not very committed to his troops or position
      • Likely in a short posting at the border and will leave soonish
      • Enemy dungeon is located below the keep

  • Fort Valengueux

  • Assault on Fort Valengueux

  • Stealthed through the mountain pass with pass without trace

  • Dimension doored into the keep

  • Climbed down into lower atrium

  • 4 Doors

    • West - Barracks
    • East - Office
    • North - Mess Hall
    • South - Dungeon

  • Read thoughts show commander is stressed about possible upcoming war

  • Preparing for a siege not an attack

  • Have been undersupplied by Vermandois

  • Head down dungeon stairs 8 lvls

  • Return to office and wait 30 mins

  • 3 noble guard looking guys go from office to barracks

  • 1 noble guard is slurped into the bag of holding

  • Kill Gilot Bougit

  • Missing report

  • Unsent letters

    • “Frerault ale is shit, sent stuff from Metz”
      • Metz is Brittany capital in South-East
      • Frerault is central Brittany
    • A half-written letter to king of Brittany
      • Advising to go the diplomatic route and not start the war; add notes to sow distrust
    • Leave a note to Vermandois Emperor saying worries about assassination

  • +1000gp of gold and gems

  • Intel about troop and supply movements of tactical import

  • Wand of secrets finds a secret door behind to bookcase with no traps

  • Better lit than the main dungeon staircase, also goes down 8 floors

  • Head down to dungeon to rescue scout party

  • In disguise, Luc is Mage, BB is noble guard, J is prisoner

  • One scout has a singular stab wound to the back of the neck as the cause of death

    • He is the cryptographer

  • All beings are put into the bag of holding and dimension doored out

  • Arrive back at Fort Dranin at midnight

  • Go straight to the keep to see commander Bleckmens

  • Give all reports, info, and commanders thoughts

  • Offers any assistance we need

  • Team of scouts explain the ruins they found were in the shape of a large Ziggurat

  • They revealed no info during torture

  • The scouts give us the best path to Gurpo without being detected

    • Slightly circuitous route that avoids the fort and all major roads

  • Mentioned there appeared to be some sort of arcane lock at the entrance

    • Text and/or puzzle needed to be solved
    • They wrote down what they could see
    • Luc uses comprehend languages to find out infernal
    • Says “…Altar of the Lupine Lord…”

  • Commander gifts +200gp from his personal reward pool

  • Says he will also tell the King of Wallonia in Rotterden about our assistance

  • That we are a major asset that allowed for success without imperilling the country

  • Luc ‘speaks with dead’ the stabbed scout

    • Passed out during torture but wasn’t killed by it
    • Only awoke hearing movement in the room, then died
    • When at the Zig, used detect magic to sense the door was enchanted, and there were other magical things behind the door of various types
      • Abjuration on the door
      • Transmutation and divination inside 30ft of door
    • During internment the commander came down to torture them for fun
    • The previous day the commander came down and during torture was preoccupied with muttering to himself about ‘that bitch’, and ‘Vermandois’
    • For last question he gives us his last words and requests

Lore dump

  • Grim Jester is an enemy we fought in the Fey Wild in previous campaign
  • Southern Eoris states aren’t in participating in the War
  • Hear the house of LaFayette has taken control over a neighbouring duchy
  • Southern duchies don’t respect the rule of the current house of the sun throne
  • Are using the war as a way to jockey for power and prestige
  • Vermandois Empire has been historically decentralised since the Age of Strife and the collapse of the Vrankish empire
  • Vermandois and the Sun Thrones ability to project their power in the empire has diminished over time
  • If Vermandois is attacked, duchies will defend
  • Any offensive actions most places won’t assist
  • King Arnauld of Vermandois
    • Rose in the last year
    • 16 years old
    • No current heir
  • This was was launched as a means of authority and to show a tough face for a uncertain ruler
  • Rumblings the southern states might be supporting another candidate for the Sun Throne
    • Possibly Charles LaFayette?
  • One of the biggest supporters of offensive action in Vermandois
    • Grand Vizier - Hector Chapais
    • Regent and tutor of king Arnauld
    • A true believer of the king
    • Publicly viewed as a fatherly adviser, but respects his authority
  • Slight twinge of doubt in Lucs mind that the ‘tricks’ might be somewhat magical?
  • Vermandois capital region has 2.1 million people
  • Smaller than Angevin Empire by half
  • Kingdom of the Sun has 129k troops in alliance
  • Vermandois has 40k troops under direct command
  • “Infiltrating Fort Valengueux” - Session Title
  • Redo Luc’s Mystical Amulet as a character quest
  • Separate main and side quests

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