This post will be a shortened synopsis of the last two games –
The heroes were infiltrating the sahuagin lair when we last left off. They continued on and managed to clear even further into their den and found some prisoners, including on of Kordan’s older brothers. He told Kordan that their brother Morek was missing. Continuing on, the group eventually found a tunnel that led up to a huge cavern that housed what looked to be a small section of the ruins of an elven city left over from the Sundering.
The group fought various monsters within the ruins including displacer beasts, trolls, a roper, and a couple of cloakers. They found out that the strange creatures aiding the sahuagin were actually troglodytes, and they made a deal to destroy the sahuagin leadership so the troglodytes would no longer be indentured to them. They were then directed to the western portion of the cavern where it plunged back into the depths and eventually led to a huge temple to the elven gods, though it was defaced and re-purposed to be a sahuagin temple. At the temple entrance they fought a vicious sahuagin general and his personal guard. They defeated the general and moved inside. As they did so a sahuagin priest and two magi assaulted them along with two summoned water elementals. After a long, hard battle, they defeated the priest and his magi, only to be left facing the results of the sahuagin’s final words – their goddess, one of Nexara’s titans. Though it nearly cost several of them their lives, they managed to bring down the massive manifestation of evil.
They celebrated for a short time with the sea elves and merfolk, and then were returned to the surface. Once there they made their way quickly to the city of Aerinvale. They were guided to meet with one Magistrate Ian, who told them that a meeting with the Council of Magi would not be possible for a few days. He then directed them to an inn to stay in. While there they were almost attacked by assassins while they slept. It seemed that the assassins were followed by a half-elven bard and a desert gnome wizard. The bard, Lyra, informed the group that the cult was at work within the city, and that the assassins were tied to the cult and that Magistrate Ian was a cult member. She also mentioned that Councilor Chandler was missing, the same Councilor that the gnome, Ne Hupo, had been sent by her people to find in hopes of getting a cure for her emperor. They joined the group in hopes of eliminating the cult within the city together and finding the Councilor. Later that evening Lyra told Moonshadow that she knew her parents and confirmed that they were dead, but that her older sister (which she had no knowledge of previously) was not.
They quickly found the lair of the assassins, werewolves led by a vampire. The fight with the inner circle of the assassin’s guild was brutal, with the vampire charming Kordan into attacking and slaying his comrade Arthurius. After the fight they were escorted by the Marshal of Aerinvale to the council chambers. Arthurius’ body was taken to a temple of Merous where he was raised from the dead so that he could continue serving the cause of light.
The council revealed that a strange lizard creature had been found at the borders of their nation, near death with an army of ogres and giants at his heels. The army had since camped at the nation’s borders and seemed to be awaiting something. The creature was brought in, and Ne Hupo revealed that he was one of her people, and she change din front of them, revealing herself to be a hornhead saurial (think large two-legged triceratops), the royal form of the sisarials (think highly intelligent oriental lizardmen). Apparently the sisarial had stated something before he died – that the emperor was dying, and not just any emperor, the Gold Dragon Emperor. Apparently Councilor Chandler had been researching using inherently magical creatures such as dragons, fae, and elementals to power magic in order to bypass using eldritch crystals. Knowing that her liege was in trouble, Ne pressed to return home, and the group agreed to accompany her.
The Council of Magi agreed to teleport them to Ne’s homeland (after using scrying devices to find it). Once there, the group traveled to the monastery that led to the lair of the Gold Dragon Emperor with all haste. Despite the beautiful, dinosaur filled jungles, the group pressed on. They found signs of devastation all throughout, including empty or destroyed villages. Something had happened. They found the monastery surrounded by Nexara’s armies. Oddly enough, the army allowed the group to enter the monastery unmolested, and they made their way to the main lair chamber.
Within they saw a sick and potentially dying Gold Dragon Emperor, his life-force being used to feed a portal to Baator. Even as Councilor Chandler continued his spell, he informed the group that they would not stop the inevitable now, that Selania had already been here and gone and she had what she wanted. He then stated that he would finish his spell as his guardian killed them. That’s when a pit fiend stepped through the portal and attacked the group. During the fight Morek, Kordan’s missing brother, showed up wearing a Nexaran uniform asking Councilor Chandler if he needed aid. Kordan, with grief heavy in his heart, turned and shot his brother, killing him. After a hard fought battle, the pit fiend was brought low by a concerted group effort.
Chandler then noted that he had other means of channeling magic, holding up a cage with what looked to be a twilight fae within that bore a strong resemblance to Moonshadow. She knew instantly then that her sister was within that cage. The councilor then called for aid and teleported away as an entire army moved in to eliminate the heroes. Kordan held his ground, telling the others to go through the portal to escape. Arthurius tried to stay as well, until Lyra told him that they might need his abilities should they end up in a demon infested lower plane. Moonshadow went invisible to escape with every intention of finding her sister.
Nexara’s army moved in, and the last anyone saw of Kordan was him and his rifle becoming one as he eliminated ogre, elf, dwarf, human, goblin, and orc alike as they rushed into the room. As the portal closed they saw the great Gold Dragon Emperor weakly raise his head and breathe out a great gout of flame that devoured everything in its path. Including Kordan.
As the heroes got their bearings they realized they were in a city, not one of the lower planes. And as they looked they saw that the city stretched out before them, and eventually started sloping upwards, and up, and up, until they noticed that the city was a giant ring. They didn’t realize it, but they had entered Sigil, City of Doors…