Recap #14 - The Black March

• The party headed out of town using Shandra’s map as a guide.
• 3 days later they were preparing camp in an abandoned ruin when a paladin came crashing through the brush. His description matched Jaryn’s.
• Turns out it was a group of assassin doppelgangers sent to take you out. Word of your quest has been travelling ahead of you. You bested 2 of the 3 assassins but the 3rd got away.
• True to Shandra’s map, 4 days later you find the beginning of the pass into the mountains known as the Black March. Your guide bids you adieu.
• A few days along the path you are attacked by a group of shadowhounds. Some good tactics help you best these teleporting hunters.
• 2 days later the group finds that the path opens into a large valley. In the distance they see their path go passed a walled citadel. Not knowing what to expect here the group debates for many hours (seemed like it in real life too!) about how to handle it. Eventually Ethan sneaks up under the cover of darkness and discovers that the walls of the citadel are hung with the corpses of Naarash’s followers. They group decides to present themselves to the gates and, after informing the gatekeepers that they are enemies of Naarash, they are quickly let in.
• The citadel is known in the area as Adakmi. There seem to be roughly 2000 people within its walls. After resupplying themselves the group looks for information as to what to expect at the Pillars of the Night. They are told that taking the path there would be suicide. They need to find a moonboat. They also hear rumours of a paladin and his tiefling friend passing north along the path several weeks earlier.
• Unsure of what a moonboat actually is, the group follows some leads and are met by a dwarf named Glasur. He informs the group that he can take them north in his moonboat – which is a boat drawn by two large dire pike strong enough to pull a boat upstream through the mountains.
• Plans are quickly made and the group meets Glasur the next morning. For 6 days they make steady progress (about 20 miles per day). They come across several burnt out villages. On the 6th day they round a corner and see the sky darkening with smoke. Glasur thinks it a Deathsquad attack on a village.
• The group gets closer and disembarks. They do indeed find a village under attack. They manage to fight off the dragonborn soldiers, a mage, and a bugbear strangler. Nenia even manages to somehow get the bugbear to garrot himself while standing in a fire!!!!
• After the battle the surviving villagers thank the group, let them keep the diadem of acuity from the mage, and confirm that they also saw a paladin and his companion pass north seeking to kill the leader of the cult. They said he looked half-mad.