SotS Inc/The Story So Far

X Worldbuilders:

GM James R

Season 1: Welcome to SotS Inc.

Chapter 1: Indoctrinate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “The Case of the Missing Amblecrown” Members: Quarter Dorf, Fitz, Killer, Mr. Detoor Success?: Yes. Membership acquired for all four, Donna Amblecrown was recovered.

Chapter 2: Investigate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Need help in not smash (Unsmash?)” Off-screen Quests Handled: “BRAVE TEST SUBJECTS NEEDED” Members: Fitz, Killer, Q, Slite Surely Success?: Yes. Membership acquired for “Slite Surely”, the well was fixed. Meanwhile, vials for the test subjects quest were acquired, but the quest members were cursed by the various trials.

Chapter 3: Underestimate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Turn my Wife Back” Members: Quarter Dorf, Fitz, Killer, Slite Surely Success?: Yes. The wife was turned back...as to how they managed it...it’s best left unquestioned.

Chapter 4: Translate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Help me Fix Roof” Members: Quarter Dorf, Fitz, Q Success?: No. The “roof” remained “unfixed”, and the members committed (and were caught committing) several crimes along the way, causing their rankings to drop and their sentences to be extended.

Chapter 5: Deliberate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “World Renowned Theatre Group Auditioning...” and “Ushers Requested” Off-Screen Quest(s) Handled: “SUPPLIES RUNNING LOW” Members: Quarter Dorf, Killer, Mr. Deetor, Q, Slite Surely, Anema Success?: Partially. While the Theatre Troupe did find a solid performance in Q (who is still deliberating over whether or not to take the role and travel the world), the members got cocky when also attempting to create a trap for the Usher job...and were sidetracked by the criminal agendas of Detoor and Quarter Dorf.

Chapter 6: Recuperate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “A Horse and a Thief” Members: Q, Slite Surely, Entire Sninky Success? Yes! The tools were recovered, though the horse looked like it never belonged to the client in the first place, and the bricks were just a scattered mess. The players also stopped the hobgoblins from attempting to kidnap further tradesmen...at the cost of starting a Hob-Orc war.

Chapter 7: Exterminate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Accompany our VIP”

Members: Q, Slite Surely, Anema, Entire Sninky, Slite Frazzle

Success? No. Poor Kazak the dog was poisoned on the Iron Horse that the players were escorting him on. But who was the poisoner? The Council of Wrath.

Thank you, my selfless friend(s). 

As my gift for accepting such a dangerous mission into the mountains of Pteris, I have bestowed you with vouchers to the inaugural trip of the Perturb Iron Horse. Kazak is being escorted to the base of the Pteris peaks via Iron Horse, and I am honored to have such (an) altruistic individual(s) like you(rselves) join him on his trip to Hissar. Please note that the Iron Horse is vacating U.S.S.S.C on the Afternoon of the forthcoming Ninesday, if you are late, the duties of protections will have to lie with another party. 

And do believe me when I say I have contacted other parties. Kazak deserves the utmost protection, which is why I have doubled down on my efforts to contact any available protection agencies in the area. Do not fear competition, however, as each contacted party will receive equal reward in the face of success.  

Safe travels, adventurer(s).  

Chapter 8: Shadowgate

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Damn those Vermin”

Members: Fitz, Q, Slite Surely, Anema, Entire Sninky, Slite Frazzle

Success? Yes! The bastard gnome who ran the projects that experimented on 11 and set up his life as a living hell was killed...or so it seems. However, if you’re a fan of Anema, they might have also killed him too...

Season 2: The Hunt for Zugs

Also see The Hunt for Zugs

Chapter 1: The Hunt for McFlair

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Investigate Ostrom”

Members: Q, Slite Frazzle, Entire Sninky, Patches, Vespertilio

Success? Sort of ! They did not find Zugs but found a solid lead, a place where Zugs was confirmed to have been seen about 40 years ago.

Chapter 2: The Hunt for the Shadowfell

In this chapter the team arrived in Jewelspar and also broke Zachary out of prison, while also doing some crazy stuff like performing Nobility Wed at the Jewelspar palace as a distraction for Kinky Gutsy.

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Find my Missing Son”

Members: Entire Sninky, Entire Killer, Eww Entire, NC, Dangle Literally-Jaundice

Success? Yes. They paid scryers to locate the son and discovered he was either killed or transported to another dimension, the mother grieved. However they caused a lot of drama within SotS as they struggled with either defending rogue agent Entire Sninky or going against the company!

Chapter 3: The Hunt for Home

Quest(s) Undertaken: “Low Mysterious Clouds”, “Bandit Interception Interception Needed”, “PLEAS STAHP GAHBLIGS”, “Lord Kitty is Preganete!”, “We need a cure!”, “Dimber Damber in Danger”

Members: Q, Entire Killer, Eww Entire, NC, Dangle Literally-Jaundice, Janky Willis

Success? Yes. The “Dimber Damber” was successfully rescued from his court sentence and death row. All current members are now familiar with the Shadowgate, which means that the hunt can truly begin.

Chapter 4: The Hunt for Corporeality

Quest(s) Undertaken: Find Zugs McFlair

Members: Hillevi, Krik-Et, Charn, Captain, Janky, Anema E Core

Success? Yes. After traveling through all of history and time via the astral and ethereal planes, they found the assistance of a scholar who was able to direct them to the year they needed to be at. Once there, they found Anema E Core, who happily brought them straight to Zugs.

Chapter 5: The End of the Hunt

Quest(s) Undertaken: End Zugs McFlair’s Reign of Terror

Members: Iris, Elza, Captain Duskella, Charn

Success? Yes. After finally finding Zugs, Charn revealed that he himself was a victim of Zugs’ terrorism. However his time with Killis and SotS gave him a new sense of forgiveness, and through diplomatic talks, the SotS Inc members, in conjunction with Atnas Clause himself, convinced Zugs to go back to his life of hiding and repenting, far away from the material plane, where he promised himself to never return.

"On the 17th of Torustell (Now known as December), the Founders had taken another march to Breme, home of some of their least favorite memories...But one light in this dark frost was Atnas. A year after they last met, the Founders were invited to dinner with the jolly man to see how much progress had been made. This opportunity allowed Anema to check on the status of his most prized possession. Recent fatal events have left much mystery regarding the Horn, and dinner with friends was a great excuse to travel back north. Complications arose as Anema had to abandon his hunt. Out of the chilly storm arose a group of foreign travelers. Keeping the holiday spirit in mind, Anema....invited them all in for dinner."

Season 3: Cons and Conviction

Chapter 1: Take the Liberty

Notable milestones: Fixed the ship, found some crew, saw off Charne, Prince Zach, and Killis. Started a political upturn in Jewelspar, and chose a team name: The Shadow Queens.

Players: Hillevi, Krik-Et, Iris, Duskella, Braeden, Juris, Vimes

Success? Yes! The newly liberated team was able to survive getting ambushed not by guards or cops, but by a group of radicals who believed Prince Zach were behind recent assassination attempts on his father. Though it took quite a bit of wrestling and even more philosophical debate, the players were able to convince the radicals and the king otherwise, leading to Prince Zach’s coronation as the new young, hip, and relate-able king of Jewelspar.

In this chapter the crew returned to Jewelspar, where they bartered with Shadar Kai in Shadespar to get ahold of some blackstones and also helped Zachary Luddite take the throne from his father and make magic legal again.

"Our ten days in Jewelspar seemed to soar by in a blur of giants and new crew mates. King Zachary’s coronation occurred and our own beloved Hillevi was named queen. I have never seen a more regal and elegant woman; she looked more beautiful than even in her days in Nobility Wed. She carried herself upon that throne with the grace of one groomed for the position. That seems like such a long time ago, even now.

Our friend in the City Guard, Vimes, set about getting us back the runes to ensure the Shadow Queen would run. Iris studied magic. Krik-Et began developing a delicacy yet unknown to this world, something she refers to as Thrice-Cream. Hillevi, sweet Hillevi, was enjoying her life as the queen." - Duskella's Captain's Log

Chapter 2: Take Cover!

Notable milestones: Vimes was promoted to Captain, Braeden and Juris stood trial before the city on charges of kidnapping the king, and got off lightly, with 2 months of serving in the city miliita. Oh yeah, and Jewelspar was attacked by a storm giant, leaving most of the southern district in ruin. Starting the first week off strong, King Zach. Janky returned.

Players: Janky, Braeden, Juris, Vimes

Success? Yes! While they didn’t get off easy, the boyz used their new military responsibility to inspire and lead platoons of soldiers into the heart of the battlefield where it took over a hundred men to subdue to the giant. Except for Will. He spilled the soda.

In this session, a storm giant attacked Jewelspar. "Our sweet moments of bliss in Jewelspar were cut short by the arrival of a storm giant, who was slain by Vimes, Braedan, Juris, the City Guard, ourselves, and, to my surprise, Janky, who arrived in Jewelspar serendipitously to round out our crew. Also filling in the ranks were a former SOTS member, Alakrin, and two half-giants, Vladimir and Olga. "  - Duskella's Captain's Log

Chapter 3: Take a Stab in the Dark

Notable milestones: Duskella finally managed to get 15+ people on her crew, and the competition was squashed. Janky found the group, and now all that’s left is to get the runekeel working.

Players: Iris, Ilakrin, Duskella, Heath, Olga, Vladmir

Success? Yes! While the city dealt with the aftermath of the magical attacks, Duskella and the potential few the Shadow Queens deemed worthy were able to slip back to the Shadowfell where they were interviewed and tested. However the plan tests came to a halt as the Blackstone carriers who were after the ship came back for vengeance. Luckily everyone survived and reclaimed the ship.

In this session, Iris and Duskella set up a variety of challenges, including fighting off Shadar-Kai ambushers, in an attempt to put together a skeleton crew for the newly christened Shadow Queen. Other notable attendees of the challenges included Olga and Vladimir Petrov, as well as newly pardoned ex-SotS member Ilakrin. "With a few more days post the storm giant attack, we gathered a few more crew members (Lola, Behold, Patricia Cake, and Cleopatra) and set out to accomplish our own missions. "  - Duskella's Captain's Log

Chapter 4: Take Your Mind off of Things

Notables Milestones: The Shadow Queen vessel hits the seas, the boys and the queens finally play nice and join forces. Duskella’s curse is removed, her demons drowned, and Hillevi killed.

Players: Iris, Hillevi, Duskella, Janky, Vimes, Jruis

Success? Yes. At a Cost. The demons were slain, and the ship managed to take off for it’s big voyage, but unforunately the heroes were not fast enough to slay the demon before it swalled and digested Hillevi whole.

In this quest, a fake posting was put up to get Julian Winter out of SotS, and the crew hit the high seas, only to encounter pirates and a leviathan.

Duskella's Captain’s Log of the Fated Day

"When we set sail at the end of the week, our crew consisted of myself, Krik-Et, Iris, a royal bodyguard Toby, Vimes, Braedan, Juris, Alakrin, Olga, Vladimir, Janky, Lola, Behold, Pattie Cake, Cleopatra, a strange silent man named Detritus, and our own Queen Hillevi. Vimes and the other members of the Guard asked us to bear them to Nymphsview, to solve the mystery of the strange letters and the storm giant’s appearance in Jewelspar, so that was our first stop.

The nightmares plagued me again, worse this time, on our first eve at sea. I called Iris, who is cautious about going to Nymphsview for some reason, to my chambers. Just before she removed the curse from my mind, we were attacked. In the ensuing battle, we lost Detritus, Lola, and Behold, and the Shadow Queen took severe damage. We docked in Dwalevale, or something like that, for a week, to repair the ship. While there, we picked up four new crew members: Red, Scarlet, Crimson, and Ruby.

Immediately upon returning to sea, I called Queen Hillevi, Janky (who revealed his name was Julian), Krik-Et, and Iris to my chambers. With my trust in them, I was going to have Iris lift the curse. They were instructed to protect the crew, to finish the mission, at all costs, even if it meant my life. Before that, however, each of them was given a black stone to protect them in case of emergency. And, perhaps most importantly, I finally bestowed upon all of them the title of Shadow Queens. Not everyone gets to wear that badge, but I trusted them, I knew they would uphold the honor of our lineage. Then Iris laid her hands on me and lifted the curse.

I wish I could describe the horror I felt in this moment. And the agony. But this is time for facts, not for emotions, so I will simply say this: A creature of enormous size ejected itself from my mouth like a serpent from a corpse and destroyed our galley, the captain’s quarters, the kitchen, the helm, so much of the ship. This creature, a Leviathan, began to attack our crew, but did not strike me. It killed Pattie Cake and Cleopatra, then devoured our Queen Hillevi in a single bite, then Vimes and later Juris.

After what seemed like hours of fighting, but must have been less than a minute, the creature had all but cleared the deck of creatures. It then loomed its horrific head to my own and laughed a monstrous laugh, before dissipating into the night air, leaving behind an unconscious Vimes and a weakened Juris. As it faded from my vision, I remembered the rest of the tragedy that was my childhood: The pirates I had been raised by had raided my village and killed my parents. They then dragged my sister Dawn and me into the center of the town, where they told me one of us could go and the other would stay with them. I, of course, had offered to go, to allow Dawn to try to live a normal life, thinking perhaps I could return to her, and they feigned letting her go before the bastards killed her in front of me. I felt grief, fear, anger, hatred, unlike any I could picture.

Something in those emotions must have manifested in a creature, the Leviathan that had attacked my crew on the ship, and it murdered my attackers. Perhaps this creature was defending me, I don’t know, but as it retreated into me, I lost consciousness. In my haze, I remember being referred to as the Infected and being dragged aboard the Shadow Queen, where I spent the remainder of my days. I remembered, too, the fierce joy I had felt after I became captain, which had apparently released the Leviathan upon the crew, who stranded me in a lifeboat and fled to the Shadowfell to save their own cowardly hides.

I then remembered that three had been swallowed, but Queen Hillevi had not returned with the others. She had been slain in the fight against my demon and was lost to us. This demon, which was born from the death of a sister, died the same way.

We go now to Nymphsview at as fast a speed as Olga’s conjured winds can manage. For now, we forget the injuries of the ship. For now, we all sleep together, a family united in our tragedy. For now, we rush towards a city wherein we may find the magic to restore our fallen friend. Despite Iris’ misgivings about the city on the horizon, we must go, if there is even a chance to bring her back. Of this “great magic” or the source of the giants, I do not know. But I know that I am a captain and I lost a member of my crew. I lost a member of my family. I lost Hillevi and it’s all my fault."

Chapter 5: Take the Day Off

Notables Milestones: The boys attempt to save a town by tracking down an assassin, and try to get the tools needed to resurrect Hillevi. Braeden dies at the hands of a necromancer and Juris finally finds the orb that’s been beckoning him...only to get trapped inside.

Players: Ilakrin, Janky, Vimes, Juris, Braeden, Mousefolk Logan

Success? No. The team made it to the mountain and intimidated the necromancer, causing him to use his powers against them. In the following skirmish, one member was dead, and the other was trapped. Ultimately they didn’t even take any of the massive diamonds they needed for the resurrection.

Chapter 6: Take your Eye off the Ball

Notable Milestones: The queens land in Nymphsview, their ultimate destination. Solomon reveals himself to Iris again for the first time in centuries, and the team is held captive by his guards. However they escape! And they kill a massive Chimera!

Players: Krik-Et, Iris, Anema, Ilakrin, Duskella, Janky, Vimes, Juris

Success? This is where it gets tricky...Was their goal to survive? If so then Yes. If their goal was to not cause any trouble then No. If their goal was to get a deal to revive Hillevi then Yes and No. If their goal was to have an awesome epic battle then Yes.

Chapter 7: Take a Turn for the Worse

Notables Milestones: The team landed itself in the very heart of Nymphsview, where the terrorist organization holds it’s most dear items and artifacts. They ultimately kill plenty of the guards and even manage to steal a handful of the artifacts...But at the end of it all, only Vimes makes it out alive.

Players: Krik-Et, Iris, Duskella, Janky, Vimes

Success? NO. A near total party kill ensues as the team attempts to con the organizations highest archmages into thinking they’ve kidnapped Solomon, their leader. One Time Stop and explosive charge later, the only surviving adventurer of the trip finds himself trapped in a now dead Solomon’s office...

Having defeated the Chimera and escaping from their prison cell, Solomon broadcast into the vault what he believed would be his last message to his sister:

"Dear Sister, I'm hearing now that you've broken into my Vault. I have probably been alerted too late, but on the chance that your body can somehow tolerate the magics long enough, I want you to know before you die, I am thankful for what you did. None of this would be possible if you hadn't robbed me of my power and gave me my drive. When I retrieve the eye off your corpse, I am going to destroy it. I've already proven to myself that I can best you even without my spells. I'm sorry it had to end like this."

Final Captain's Log

The seas were rough today, as we sailed into Nymphsview. It seems only fitting that rocky tides should mark the end of what has truly been a rocky journey. To think this all began with simple crimes we once committed… 

For, you see, all went wrong as we got closer to Nymphsview We repaired the ship, but we then raced to Nymphsview, where we encountered Killis, who led us into the labyrinthine mines below the city. Once there, we found out that this Killis was Solomon, Iris’ long lost brother and the de-facto leader of the city, who had an army of Thri-Kreen at his disposal. This drove a wedge between Iris and Krik, who believed that her surrogate mother had been lying this entire time.

Still, this didn’t seem to be as grand a failure as it could have been, as we struck a deal with the charismatic leader and were led to what we presumed would be a room for us to stay in. That is, until the Thri-Kreen in question shoved us into portals leading to a jail cell. Determining our best option was escape, we fought valiantly as a team, defeated the Chimera, and began to speed out of the tunnels. However, we were soon cornered and raced for the vault, where the strongest magic is said to be held, led by the real Killis. As we stepped in, however, the door slammed shut behind us, trapping Juris and Anema behind.

What is this vault we hide in now? What fate lies in store for our friends who did not make it in? What fate in store for those of us who did? Will we be able to find the information out about why Jewelspar is being targeted? Will we be able to resurrect Hillevi?

Despite all the darkness that has led to this moment, despite the loss we have faced, a part of me still has hope. A part of me, lost somewhere in my childhood, believes that we will make it out of this, that Iris will conquer Solomon, that Krik will understand that we are her true family, and that Hillevi will once again reign as queen. For now, we wait, trapped in this vault, hopeful and fearful and praying to the gods that we may sail again.

Chapter 8: Take a Bow

Notable Milestones: After much deception and conning a resurrection cleric into thinking they were Solomon and his guard, the surviving team managed to resurrect Queen Hillevi. After fleeing the flaming anarchic hellscape of Nymphsview, they made their way back Jewelspar, where they used Solomon’s notes to decipher the CLUEs and solve the case!

Players: Anema, Juris, Vimes, Jesse Marciniak as Jon Mayer

Success? YES. With the queen restored to the throne, and the criminals behind the storm giant attack now behind bars, Captain Vimes can retire himself to a luxurious lifestyle, forever known as the man who singlehandedly saved Jewelspar from the brink of destruction.