Monday 3 September 2018

GURPS - Times of Turmoil: Session 2

14 April 2017

Characters:
Thorm - Dwarf with a big two-handed war hammer and blood lust (around 160 points)
Rowley - Sergeant, now with a squad (around 160 points)
Arakasi - Mystic monk with psi-abilities (around 170 points)

We left the party having just cleared the ground floor of the library in the western wing of the palace. After bandaging and healing the injuries, the group was relieved by a second party of soldiers who would continue clearing the first floor. They headed out to camp to rest up and have some lunch.

After about an hours break the group is asked to assemble on the training ground and Sergeant Rowley is assigned a squad of men:

Rowley, Sergeant
Thorm, Corporal
Eric, Private
Fredric, Private
George, Private
Malice, Private
Arakasi, Healer
John, Torch bearer and cook

They formed up at the training ground, next to a squad led by Sergeant Rick, the man who showed them the ropes in the Library previous session. There congregation was large, with most of the camp assembled. A short while later they saw the captain and the Arch-wizard Auralus ascend a wooden platform at the end of the field. Auralus looked old and withered, raising his bony arms to ask for silence. He then began to speak with a magically amplified voice, relating how their work in reclaiming the blasted lands and cleansing the Imperial Capitol had now reached the throne room, in which it was hoped that the remains of the Emperor and his advisers be located. A large contingent of soldiers and mages were going to unseal and enter the throne room in the afternoon and the results of the investigation would be proclaimed in the evening.

Rowley and his squad were instructed to join in the effort and were assigned the right flank. They were to report anything they found, hold the line and defend the mages from anything within. Tension within the camp was mounting along with the excitement at the possibility of revealing the fate of the Emperor and the probable locus of the disaster that had been brought on the capitol region.

Entering the throne room

The squad led by Rowley jogged through the corridors, joining up with more groups of soldiers. As they arrived at the large double doors barring the way to the throne room the sheer scale of the operation started to dawn on them. In the halls, hundreds of soldiers were lining the walls with clusters of wizards interspersed here and there. As soon as the group reached the doors they heard the signal to advance. The doors opened and the massive circular throne room appeared before them, dark and brooding.
In the middle of the room a dome of a glimmering translucent amber-like material framed the shape of two men, concealed inside.
They did not have long to stare at the two in the middle before lurking ghouls shrieked down from the rafters and the corpses of long dead soldiers reached out to steal the warmth of the intruding living, however, both threats were soon defeated with sword and fire and the room secured.
Before the dust had settled, a murmur rose among soldiers and wizards alike as they approach the amber like dome and see its contents.

In the middle of the dome, face to face , stood the Emperor and the Terror.

Rituals gone wrong

The wizards immediately set to scrying and examining the dome and soon a party of 14 of the most experienced mages formed to attempt to break what was deemed to be a Stasis Seal, free the Emperor and capture or kill the Terror. Soon, the ritual was under way, with flashing lights and sparks of many colours dancing around the room. The air became charged with unfathomable energies and despite their long years of facing magic on the battlefield every soldier was soon growing nervous.

As soon as the ritual was completed, the very fabric of the universe seems to bend and everyone in the room experienced vertigo. While the dazed men and women around the room regained their faculties an electric blue gash tore through the air above the dome and a magical swirl 15 metres tall appeared. Inside a blue creature seemed annoyed to be dragged from whatever dimension it came from and started to lash out with arms and electric arcs at the wizards and soldiers surrounding it.
A hard battle ensued with many casualties, but in the end Rowley and his men managed to distract it for long enough that a group of wizards managed to banish it in a crash of electric discharge which felled everyone to the floor.

We're off to see the wizard

After everyone had a rest and healed their wounds, Rowley and his group were commended for keeping cool in the faceless face of the unknown monstrosity. As is common in the army, their reward is more work: To protect the envoy which would be sent to the foremost expert on stasis magic to ask for help in solving the mystery of this arcane dome.