Episode 01 - A Beginning

Beginning Day: 6th of Lowsun, 2566th Year of the 4th Age

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Our journey begins at a crossroads.  Aelar, a half-elf Rogue journeys to the isolated hamlet of Standing Stone, responding to a general call posted in neighboring cities and towns for adventurous spirits to lend martial aid to the small village.  At a crossroads, he meets the Halfling Bard Merla,  well into her second century, who is on a personal quest to sample the famous Rowntree Lamb raised and produced exclusively in the region around Standing Stone. Exported (at exorbitant prices) throughout the Fey Coast, few who can afford to indulge in the delicacy have a mind (or the constitution) to undertake the long journey through the relatively untamed wilds to sample the cuisine at its source.  Aelar stops to join Merla as they get to know one another over a lunch of travel rations.  While eating, the Druid Kyla, hair a tangled mess of leaves and twigs, comes into view, responding to a specific summons, seeking her aid by name.  

After a short while, the three agreed to make the remainder of the journey together, and set off on the old, and disused looking road.  Not much farther past the crossroads where they met, the road quickly became overgrown, with only a few wagon ruts to mark the way as it headed into a denser forest.  Distracted by, and frankly trying to avoid, the company of her new fellows, Kyla briefly lost her way in the woods, before being found by her companions.  As the night grew long, the three decided to set up camp in a small clearing that contained the remnants of an old fire.  While attempting to gather some dry wood nearby, Kyla was ambushed by a Thorn Blight, while a larger humanoid Vine Blight attacked Aelar and Merla back at the campfire.  Although they fought valiantly, they were caught of guard, and the battle had begun to go poorly when out of the darkness a towering dragonborn Paladin crashed into the fray, bellowing the name of his God Bahamut, and obliterating the Thorn Blight with a swing of his might morningstar.  The four then turned their attention to the Vine Blight, dispatching the creature and pinning its remains to a nearby tree, but not before Aelar was knocked unconscious.

Through shear power of devotion to Bahamut, the Kaladan the Paladin, who it turned out had been fishing at a nearby lake and heard the commotion, stabilized Aelar, who then recovered slowly throughout the night.  Our ragtag band of adventurers now numbered four, and night came and went without further incident.

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Ending Day: 7th of Lowsun, 2566th Year of the 4th Age