The session started with Chella, the captured cultist, and ended halfway down the dungeon beneath the Stairs of Allegiance. In between? Deception and lore drops. As well as unexpected uses of forbidden artifacts.
One of the best parts of the night was how much the players leaned into roleplaying with Chella. Rather than interrogate her at swordpoint, they bluffed. Passed the checks. Played like they genuinely wanted to join the cult. Played like they really cared that she’d been left out of her mission team (Chella called it ‘stairbreach’). And it worked. She opened up.
The Historical Society, the cult, has a clearer face now. A doctrine. Tenets. Belief in a hidden Fourth God only visible after you’ve started to unravel. A museum holding truths only the broken can perceive. It’s a strange thread, and now the players have something to follow.
From there, they reached the festival. And despite my suspicion they’d breeze past it, they didn’t. The Artificer found a tinkerer selling clockwork beasts, which planted a seed for his next subclass decision. He even earned a boost for his Homunculus Servant out of it. Small cute RP scenes like this make such a big difference.
The stairs? They didn’t brute force them. With the Enforcer absent they didn’t have the tools to get the passcode from the authorities. So, they improvised. Used the feather. Unraveled part of the wall. Got in. Not what I planned, but perfect for this table.
They cleared the first floor quickly and hit the combat on the second. It was grindy. They’re low level. They won’t last much longer. But that’s the point. This is a loop. They’ll see more next time around. For now, they made it further than I thought they would.
Another good night.
