Red Riders of the Drinking Crow Sessions #74-76- Introducing Bors the Bald

 Agera wanted to know what her employer's fellow adventurers had been up to. She had spent the week running errands for Crambo while he continued to develop his new spell in relative seclusion. At the Drinking Crow, the Child of Permoa found that Copra Kaan was still absent--offering his services to the 111th Company. Bludoon still toiled at the Last Meal. Armeen still focused on the Shrine of Danu. This, though, isn't to say that she didn't know any of the adventurers posted up at the tavern.

She joined the victorious party from last week raised glasses to a job well done. They also drank to Petra P finding a way to stand out from her copy cat street performers through the incorporation of floating glass spheres into her act. The groups' cups were being kept full by an adoring shadowkin youth named Teela Rin.

As thoughts turned towards future adventures, Bors Redbeard seized the moment to share a lead he had gained from the duelist Wolfgang over at the Burning Witch. Wolfgang told of a powerful magic-user, calling himself the familiar name 'Valtropis', who possessed the power to create mindless life. He directed, from his manse in the western end of the Great Cavern, a excavation project conducted by beings each uniquing created for their individual tasks. Bors wanted to visit this Valtropis and see what bargain that could be struck so that Bors could gain a vessel for his spirit that did not carry the scars and injuries from his efforts to save Orm from its sacking by those undead reavers that called themselves the Worthy.

The combination of Red Riders, Dragon Slayers, and other adventurers offered their support to Bors in this endeavor. Well, all but Bex. The vat born adventurer at first seemed to object to elements of this plan involving sorcerers that created life from vats but these topics, like so often with Bex, seemed to be shuffled away as her attention became lost to other elements of the plan. Eventually, the following party headed off to the Great Cavern:

• Agera (Level 3 Fighting Mutant)
• Akash (dungeon terrier), deceased
• Avani (dungeon terrier), deceased
• Avani (vat born dungeon terrier)
• Bex (Level 2 Vat Spawn)
• Bors the Bald, formerly Bors Redbeard (Level 5 Dwarf)
• Sunya Strong (Level 4 Fighter hireling)
• Father Bert (Level 5 Errant Friar of Arishem the Judge)
• Petra P (Level 3 Elf)

The party returned to the surface weeks later. Father Bert and Petra's skin had a rejuvenated quality to it. Agera now sported a head twice the size it once was. Bex claimed to possesses a gravitational control over water. Bors Redbeard was missing. Or at least the Bors everyone knew was. A lime-skinned, beardless being with the size of a dwarf was among them claimed to be Bors. The Red Riders seemed to back this assertion. He called himself 'Bors the Bald.' Similarly, Petra P was without her two dogs but called a hairless dog checked with a pale pink and blue pattern "Avani". Also with them were a pair of Lunar Elves: Ruaiat and Aerual.

Rob B. collaged this image of Agera with her large head by combining his own drawing of her with two found images.

Sunya Strong parted ways with the Red Riders and headed towards the taverns of Orm to share terrifying encounters with rage-filled beings, lavish spa treatments offered by the Sorcerer King Valtropis, being caught in an almost party ending ambush of seven crystal beetle, and the arrival of the Black Pyramid near Valtropis' manor in the Great Cavern.

The Red Riders themselves went their seperate ways. Agera went off to retrieve her employer Crambo: the Black Pyramid was here! Father Bert stocked up on his dragon sausages like a man uncertain how long he would be gone. Petra P searched for Copra Kaan. After a night in Orm, the Red Riders and their elfin companions returned to 'The Complex' to venture into the Black Pyramid.

Bors the Bald as designed by his player Shahnawaz

Bex and Bors the Bald were not in their number. They opted to stay in Orm. Bors reflected on recent events in his journal writing:

I’ve fought a dragon, and many other horrors in that damnedable complex, but beetles, BEETLES? Those are the things that almost killed us? Valtropis had just finally finished this body in a rush, so it doesn’t have all the capabilities that it could have, but it does have all the parts I’m used to (except for the hair). On our way up to the machine to switch my consciousness, when we were ambushed by some crystalline beetles, they cracked Sonia the Strong’s skull and cut the good Father’s achilles tendon, and they made Ageera and Petra P go down a few times. I almost threw this body at them in an attempt to distract them and have the party run away, but it was Bex’s success and encouragement that we turned the battle around. In another stroke of luck, we met two Lunar Elves, one had a healing staff that fixed Father Bert’s tendon and the crack in Sonia the Stong’s skull. We were also able to transfer my consciousness to this body. Green and hairless is not what I expected to be, but at least I have my legs and my strength still. I cannot graft on any parts like Copra and Bex can, but I can at least still put up a good fight.

Experience Points

• Gentlemen hunters defeated 3 x 75xp
• Gaunt hound killed 1 x 50xp
• Smoke Heads defeated 6 x15xp
• Crystal beetles battled 7 x 75xp

Player Character Cut

• 178 xp ea. (89 xp to Sunya Strong)

Write-ups, art, or maps submitted at play reports earn PC Level x 100xp. Let me know if Bex or Bors would like to perform a downtime activity.