Paragon Protocol Arc 5: Evils Converge

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Overview: As the many enemies of the party converge in the Hells, the party continues on their quest to recover all six runes of the Shattered Mountain and to restart the River Styx. But the Ordained will not let the party's actions go unpunished, and the scheming archdevil Glasya may have her own plans in mind for both the Giants and Ratatrosk. But when the party uncovers a secret that could tear the whole realm apart, all Hell breaks loose.

Malevolence in Malbolge

After fleeing Duumal and saving Elytria from execution, the party capture their breath in Mammon's palace in Minarous. As they rest, the party's infernal cleric Nyrgoth assist Mammon is a vast amount of land purchases across the Hells. But the party knows their enemies won't rest and neither shall they. Mammon teleports them to Malbolge and onto the deck of the Golden Galleon, only to find themselves in a fraught situation. The dragon Barroth the Unredeemable had escalated his war against Philani, now aided by Iron Devils supplied by the Lord of Dis, Dispater. Veyleria, Envoy of the Archduchess, teleports onto the ship once more, telling the party that it is not a good time for them to be in Malbolge, right before a dragon devours her whole.

The party flies the ship to Drossmere, the seat of Barroth's power and where they know the Fire Giant member of the Ordained, Vorgath Embermaul, keeps his forge. Delving into the tunnels beneath Drossmere, the party finds Vorgath packing up his forge, seemingly preparing to leave Malbolge. With few words shared between them, the party battles Vorgath and his forge constructs. As the fight continues, the Black Dragon Greela Venomseer arrives to avenge her murdered brother. In the end both Greela Venomseer and Vorgath Embermaul are slain, and the party retrieves the Fire Rune. Knowing that it wouldn't be long before Barroth discovered that the party had murdered both his smith and his herald, the party quickly board the Golden Galleon and flee to the next layer of the Hells, Maladomini.

The Golden Galleon Falls

The party arrives in Maladomini, a rotting city of feces and filth. As the party travels, they discover that they are being scryed upon, only for it to be to late as the Ordained attacks the ship. The Cloud Giant Stratia Nimbus buffets the ship with hurricane force winds before the Storm Giant leader of the Ordained, Thrya Cloudbreaker, summons a bolt of lightning that causes the ship to explode, sending the party plummeting to the ground. The party crash into the ruined landscape of Maladomini scattered and wounded. They quickly discover that they are being hunted on the ground by the Hill Giant Angrboda and a large force of Goliath Shattered Mountain cultists.

Evading the Cult of the Shattered Mountain, the party regroups with each other, Mammon, and Ratatrosk at a secret pathway between Maladomini and the 8th layer of the Hells, Cania, a structure known as the inverted tower. The Inverted Tower is an upside down structure made of flesh where the gravity of its inhabitants in flipped. The tower's caretaker, a flayed wolf-headed archdevil named Azu the Dog Prince, allows the party passage after Mammon pays him off. The party descends through the towers many floors before reaching the bottom. Beyond the tower's last door is a chain hanging in the open air of Cania, descending into the freezing blizzard below. The party prepares to journey into Cania but Mammon informs them that he will not be joining them, saying he has business in Duumal.

Truths Revealed in the Frozen Hell

The party descends the chain into Cania and quickly begin to freeze to death. Seeking refuge in a cave, the party's druid Dina conjures a grove for them to rest in. After getting some much needed rest, the party finds the grove is disturbed by a trio of outsiders which they discover to be two Ice Devils and the wizard Ranzos, Archmage Apprentice to Mephistopheles, now sporting a leg made of silver to replace the one the party stole from him. The party raises their weapons, expecting a fight, but Ranzos shares that he is not there to steal the runes from them. After his failure in Duumal, he was disciplined by his master and now his master seeks an audience with the party. The party inquires where Mephistopheles is at that moment, and Ranzos shares that the archmage archdevil was currently in the process of battling the wizard giantess Thrya Cloudbreaker, trying to stall her push into Nessus.

Ranzos brings the party to his wizard tower in the underground and heated city of Mephistar. The party explores Ranzos' tower and discovers many diffrent things.

In the Court of the Queen of Lies

TBD