Night was falling fast as they ventured deeper into the Drakwald, following the tracks of their lost horses. Qavitrae and Felrick, ever the scouts, moved silently ahead, the howls guiding them in a macabre U-shape back towards the road. And there, in a clearing, they found a scene straight out of a nightmare.

An overturned Four Seasons coach, bodies strewn around it like broken dolls. A mutant man, his head grotesquely deformed, hacking at the horses with an axe, his laughter a mad counterpoint to the sickening thud of metal on flesh. A woman, her head that of a wolf, collapsed and whimpering as another mutant tended to her wounds. Two more - one with the legs of a goat, the other a reptilian hybrid - completed the grim tableau.

As Felrick notched an arrow, taking aim at the wounded wolf-woman, Qavitrae’s mind raced. These mutants were dangerous, that much was clear. In any village, they would be hanged or burned without a second thought. But they also had the horses they needed, and they blocked the path ahead. There was only one course of action.

The ambush was swift and brutal. Felrick’s arrow found its mark, drawing a yelp of pain from the wolf-woman. Qavitrae’s Lament of the Ages weakened the reptilian mutant, even as he yelled for the others to attack. Nora, her eyes alight with fascination at these bizarre creatures, charged forward with a war cry.

In the melee that followed, it was Nora who shone brightest. With a stunning display of her Blitzer skills, she knocked the goat-legged mutant off his feet, sending him sprawling in the mud. Thindruk’s Knuckle Duster connected with the big-headed mutant’s skull with a sickening crunch. Wanda’s axe bit deep, silencing the brain-mutant’s wails.

As the last of the mutants fell, Felrick’s arrow finding the fleeing lizard-man’s shoulder, a grim silence descended. The goat-man, his dagger thrown at Nora’s feet, pleaded for mercy. But in this world, in this time, mercy was a rare commodity. Qavitrae’s knife across his throat was the only answer he received.

The wolf-woman, her life’s blood ebbing away, spoke of desperation, of being cast out, of attacking coaches for the gold to survive. Wanda’s questions were brief, her axe swift. The lizard-man, defiant to the end, spat that there was no forgiveness for the likes of them. Felrick’s axe to his neck was almost a kindness.

As they searched the bodies, pocketing coins and trinkets, it was Nora who made the most unsettling discovery. A pair of boots, sticking out from behind a bush. A body, a dwarf, bearing an uncanny resemblance to Thindruk. A letter, bloodstained but legible, speaking of inheritance, of titles and lands and a fortune waiting in Ubersreik.

Thindruk’s reaction was inscrutable as he pocketed the letter and the affidavit that named him Kazzrik Lakkarsson. The others, Nora in particular, exchanged glances of confusion and suspicion. Doppelgangers, perhaps? Some strange omen? But there was little time to ponder, for the sound of hoofbeats heralded the arrival of the roadwardens.

Sergeant Fluster listened to their tale with a grim expression, his men helping to clear the road of the wrecked coach. Gunnar, the coachman who had fled, was found and brought back, his face pale and his hands shaking. Nora’s insistence that the dead dwarf was a portent of doom for Thindruk was met with uneasy silence.

The journey to the coaching house at the end of the Seven Spokes was a somber one, the roadwardens’ escort a small comfort. The inn, when they reached it, was a welcome sight, bustling with activity. Qavitrae and Felrick, ever the opportunists, started up a gambling game, while Gunnar and Holtz regaled anyone who would listen with tales of the mutant attack, their voices growing louder with each free drink.

As the night wore on, rumors began to circulate. Merchants spoke of the strangeness of Altdorf, with its wizards and colleges of magic. The Altdorf Zoo, shut down after the Emperor’s griffin went on a rampage. Whispers that the Emperor himself was ill. Talk of the upcoming Schaffenfest in Bögenhafen, a welcome distraction from the darkness that seemed to be gathering.

Morning came, and with it, the final leg of their journey. Gunnar and Holtz, hungover and silent, drove the coach at a rattling pace. The walls of Altdorf, when they finally came into view, shimmered white in the setting sun, the tall spires reaching towards the sky like the fingers of a giant hand.

But as they approached the city gates, each of them couldn’t shake the feeling that their true trials were only just beginning. The dead dwarf, the inheritance, the strange events in Altdorf - they were all pieces of a puzzle, one that they would have to solve if they hoped to survive what was to come.

In the fading light, Altdorf loomed before them, a city of secrets and shadows, of danger and opportunity. They had made it this far, but the real journey, they knew, was only just beginning.

Session Notes
  • At dawn, the adventurers discovered their coachmen, Gurren Holtz, were deeply drunk and difficult to rouse, delaying their departure from the inn.
  • Thindruk entertained Lady Isolde with tales of Altdorf’s grandeur during the delay.
  • The journey began under heavy rain. Along the treacherous road through the Drakwald forest, they discovered a slain coachman, killed by a ghoulish mutant who then attacked their coach.
  • In the skirmish, Felrick dispatched the mutant with his bow. Qavitrae managed to halt the coach’s dangerous descent.
  • As night approached, the adventurers prepared to delve deeper into the Drakwald to find their lost horses and investigate a blood-chilling howl.
  • Qavitrae and Felrick scouted ahead stealthily towards the source of the wolf howls, concerned for a creature in distress.
  • The howls led them in a U-shape back to the road ahead. They spied an overturned Four Seasons coach with dead bodies around it.
  • A mutant man with a large, deformed head was hacking the horses to death with an axe, laughing maniacally. The wolf sounds came from a collapsed woman with a wolf’s head, wounded and being tended by another mutant.
  • Two other mutants were present - one with goat legs feasting on a corpse, and a reptilian man who appeared the least wounded of the group.
  • Felrick noted most of the mutants had makeshift weapons and wounds, except the well-armed reptilian man.
  • Qavitrae and Felrick snuck back to gather the rest of the group to ambush the mutants, as they blocked the path and had the needed horses.
  • The group understood the mutants to be dangerous and needed to be dealt with, as mutants are feared and often hanged or burned in villages.
  • Qavitrae and Felrick rejoined the group and shared that there are varied mutants on the road ahead, one of which seems badly wounded. The mutants are going after horses attached to another coach and are in the party’s path.
  • The mutants are feasting on the remains of Gunner’s former comrades. Gunner is trembling with a blunderbuss in his hands, not used to attacking mutants.
  • Nora is fascinated by the bizarre appearance of the mutants, comparing one’s pointed head to her ball.
  • The party attempts to sneak into position to ambush the mutants. Felrick, Qavitrae, and Wanda succeed on the stealth check, but Nora and Thindruk fail.
  • Felrick takes a shot at the badly wounded wolf mutant with his hunting bow before the mutants notice. He hits for 14 damage, grievously wounding her further but she ignores the injury.
  • Combat begins without the party getting a surprise round. Qavitrae afflicts the reptile mutant with Lament of the Ages, reducing damage he can do to her.
  • The lizard mutant yells for the others to cut the party down, then moves back to ready his crossbow. The other mutants, except the immobilized wolf, turn to face the party.
  • On his turn, the lizard mutant takes 3 AP to load and aim his crossbow.
  • Gunner fails a morale check, throws down his blunderbuss, and flees.
  • The axe-wielding mutant charges Nora, bringing his axe down on her head, but she parries the blow.
  • Felrick reloads and shoots the lizard mutant, critically hitting for 11 damage. The mutant fails to dodge and suffers a moderate elbow injury, impairing his ability to use the crossbow.
  • Nora prepares to charge as the rest of the mutants advance on the party’s position around the coach in the road.
  • The lizard man with the crossbow is backpedaling and trying to put the coach between himself and Felrick.
  • Nora considers attacking the horse chopper, but decides to go after the open brain mutant instead.
  • The open brain mutant swings his axe wildly at Nora, but misses. Nora barrels past him.
  • The goat man with a spear tries to ready himself as Nora charges at him.
  • Nora uses her Blitzer ability to attempt a takedown on the goat man for 0 AP. She makes an athletics test and succeeds with a high degree of success.
  • The goat man fails his coordination check to resist and is knocked prone by Nora’s takedown. Nora ends her turn, keeping 1 AP to defend.
  • Thindruk charges the big-headed guy and punches him in the head with his Knuckle Duster. The big-headed guy is grievously wounded but only moderately injured due to the Knuckle Duster’s limitations.
  • Qavitrae tries to inspire her allies but they are too focused on the fight to hear. She throws a knife at the prone goat man but misses, sticking it in the mud. She reserves her last AP.
  • The pointy-headed guy reels back from Thindruk’s punch, grabs a spear, and lunges at Thindruk, moderately wounding him.
  • The wolf lady, very hurt, spends an AP to stand and another to pick up her spear. She throws it at Nora but it sticks in the mud.
  • Wanda starts a Litany of Hatred prayer to Ullric, targeting the brain guy, goat guy, and pointy head guy with an Intimidation roll.
  • Wanda then attacks the axe-wielding brain man in front of her. She hits his shoulder, grievously wounding him. He drops to the ground wailing in pain, lost to the battle.
  • The prone and intimidated goat man clumsily gets to his feet and lunges desperately at Nora with his dagger, trying to stab her in the chest.
  • The lizard man with the crossbow, seeing his companions defeated, turns and runs down the road, trying to keep the coach between him and Felrick.
  • Felrick spends 2 AP to move for a clear shot on the fleeing lizard man. Despite a 20% penalty, Felrick hits, putting an arrow in the lizard man’s shoulder. The crossbow is ruined as the lizard man stumbles and drops it.
  • Nora considers going for an execution blow on the downed brain man, but thinks she may not be the right person. She decides to attack the goat man with the dagger using her knuckle dusters.
  • Thindruk spits in the cone-headed man’s face, blinding him until his next turn. Thindruk then attacks him with brass knuckles, beating him to death in the mud.
  • Qavitrae picks up a blunderbuss and aims at the wolf woman, but misses the shot.
  • Wanda finishes off the paralyzed man on the ground by cutting his head off with her axe. She then chases after the fleeing wolf woman, catching up to her.
  • The goat man, badly wounded, throws his dagger at Nora’s feet and pleads for mercy.
  • The mutants are all grievously wounded. The wolf woman and reptile man are bleeding out and close to death.
  • Qavitrae executes the goat man who surrendered, slitting his throat and saying he gave the same mercy the mutants showed the coachmen.
  • Wanda questions the wolf woman, who says they attacked coaches for gold and coin to survive after being cast out as mutants. Wanda then kills her.
  • Nora knocks down the fleeing reptile man. He defiantly says there’s no forgiveness for mutants like them and to just kill him.
  • Felrick retrieves the reptile man’s broken crossbow, drops it, then gets an axe. He offers it to Nora to execute the reptile man or do it himself.
  • Nora and the others finish off the remaining mutant lizardman, with Felrick delivering the killing blow to the neck with an axe.
  • The group searches the bodies of the dead mutants and coach passengers, finding some coins, a gold ring, and a silver locket on the lizardman. Felrick takes the lizardman’s hunting sword.
  • Wanda struggles to remove a mail shirt from one of the dead coachmen to use as armor.
  • While the others search, Nora walks the perimeter and spots a pair of boots sticking out from behind a bush. She waves Wanda over and they discover the body of a dwarf who looks remarkably similar to Thindruk, down to the jewelry in his beard.
  • Nora calls Thindruk over, confused and thinking the dead dwarf might actually be him at first. When Thindruk arrives, they compare the two and confirm the dead dwarf just bears an uncanny resemblance.
  • Wanda notices a bloody piece of paper sticking out of the dead dwarf’s coat pocket. She carefully removes it and hands it to Qavitrae to read, as it’s written in Reikspiel.
  • The letter states that Thindruk is the sole living relative and beneficiary of the late Baronet Larkerson of Ubersreik. It instructs him to go to the law office of Dietrich Baer-Kessig to sign an affidavit confirming his identity as Kazzrik Lakkarsson in order to inherit the title, lands, and 20,000 gold crowns.
  • Thindruk raises an eyebrow at this news but doesn’t share the full contents of the letter with the others. He instructs them to keep searching for the affidavit document mentioned.
  • Upon further searching the dead dwarf who resembles him, Thindruk finds another piece of paper - an affidavit signed by witnesses swearing the bearer is Kazzrik Lakkarsson.
  • The group arrives at the scene of a crashed coach and dead mutants on the road
  • They find a dead dwarf who bears a striking resemblance to Thindruk among the wreckage
  • The dead dwarf was carrying papers indicating Thindruk has come into a large inheritance from an estate in Ubersreik
  • Thindruk pockets the papers without sharing all the details with the rest of the group
  • Nora becomes suspicious that something strange is going on with Thindruk, possibly involving doppelgangers
  • A group of five roadwardens arrive on horseback from the south to investigate the scene
  • Thindruk explains the situation to Sergeant Fluster, the leader of the roadwardens
  • Qavitrae, Wanda and Felrick go into the woods to find Gunnar, the coachman who fled during the mutant attack
  • They find Gunnar and bring him back to the road
  • The group helps the roadwardens clear the wrecked coach from the road
  • Sergeant Fluster asks Thindruk if the dead dwarf was his brother due to the resemblance, but Thindruk denies any relation
  • Nora insists the dead dwarf is a bad omen and they need to protect Thindruk or he will die
  • The roadwardens escort the group’s coach to the next coaching house at the end of the Seven Spokes just outside Altdorf
  • They arrive at the busy inn after dark
  • Qavitrae tries to gather rumors about what’s happening in Altdorf
  • Qavitrae and Felrick start up a gambling game with some of the 30-ish people staying at the inn
  • Gunnar and Holtz, the coachmen, complain loudly about the difficult day and mutant attack to get free drinks from other patrons
  • Felrick uses his Way of the Gnome ability to ridicule Gunnar and Holtz, telling the tale of two bumbling drunks and deflating their good mood at surviving the mutant attack.
  • Qavitrae suggests to Wanda that she tell Hahnemann and Goltz a story about drinking and driving to their destination, as they are still drinking heavily.
  • Wanda excitedly tells the group they found documents indicating a long-lost baronet, implying they will become rich, though details are unclear.
  • Nora uses her Cosmopolitan skill to gather rumors about what’s happening in Altdorf. She learns:
    • A merchant felt Altdorf was strange, attributing it to the many wizards and colleges of magic there.
    • The Altdorf Zoo has been shut for weeks after the Emperor’s griffin Deathclaw went on a rampage, killing attendants and visitors in a bloodbath. There are rumors the Emperor is ill.
    • A group of commoners recommend the upcoming Schaffenfest agricultural fair and tournament in Bögenhafenen over expensive Altdorf for those seeking fun.
  • Thindruk and Felrick seek medical treatment from a woman stitching up another patron’s wound. Thindruk haggles the price down to 3 shillings. The treatment reduces his Moderately Wounded condition to Lightly Wounded.
  • The woman offers Thindruk laudanum to heal completely but warns it will cause 1 corruption. Everyone gained 1 corruption from looting the dead mutants.
  • Felrick cleans the blood off a valuable buckler shield looted from the dead and decides to keep it. A tabard with blue and gold insignia was tucked away.
  • The group discusses the cost of arrows, armor, and shields. Felrick buys cheap fowling arrows. Fur armor is given to Nora who lacked any protection.
  • In the morning, hungover Gunnar and Holtz drive the coach at a rattling pace without a word. The long final leg takes them past a coaching house for lunch.
  • Late in the day, the white walls and tall spires of Altdorf come into view, shimmering in the sunset, as the coach approaches the city gates.