Present

• Presto the Wizard
• Erdudfyl the Ranger
• Torg the Fighter
• Áron and Adhamh, changeling followers from Eglantine Grove.

Missing in Action

Inghinn (Elvira) the Thief; Tristan (“the poxy Bard”) the Bard; Shank (a very private person) the Thief

Background

Play starts in the foothills of the Devil’s Beacon Mountaints in Cantref Mawr

Ifan the Black, Bandit with a Bounty on his head
Wanted for banditry, slaughter, and crimes against the gods.
Ifan is new to the area, increasingly infamous.
Presto knows of a magical treasure, defended by an unnatural threat.
Rumors of the undead coming from the hills to the west. (“West” is western side of Cantref Elfael)
Undead are known to fear the sun. Some may lair underground, some may lair in dense wilderness.

The Druid Elspeth has a simple proposal for Erdudfyl. Journey to the village of Ruiger Moor, which has cut off contact with the grove for more than a week. Find out what curse afflicts the town, and if possible, resolve it. For this, the group will receive the favor of the Druids of Eglantine Grove. As assistance, two of the changeling youths (Áron and Adhamh) will provide guidance and assistance. Erdudfyl agrees; and Erdudfyl, Meurig, Áron, and Adhamh depart shortly thereafter to try to arrive in the village before the sun sets ushering in the darkest night of the month. And there is thunder in the mountains…

Play

Day 14, late afternoon. Spring Season (the Budding new moon tonight)

The party is traveling cross-country in the foothold of the Devil’s Beacon mountains (the southern boundary of the kingdom of Brycheiniog) to the village of Ruiger Moor (from the Druids enclave of Eglantine). They come across a strange looking (and sounding) barbarian in scale armor, penniless and whispering to a grim looking greatsword his half of the conversation.
Torg the fighter is always looking for adventure (he says with a knowing wink), and is in between mercenary contracts. He’s in the mountains hunting dragons or Chaos brutes, whichever comes first. Some measure of pity and practically results in his joining the quest to defeat the Terror on Ruiger Moor.

The “village”, when they arrive, is modest enough. Six acres of arable land, elevated on a gentle rise from the bog and moor of the valley, surrounded by a ditch, and the remains of a palisade. A simple wooden structure that bounds the ditch, and signs of a significant amount of livestock traffic.

Inside the palisade, trampled and burnt remains of crops, plus a dozen buildings or so including: a wooden longhouse with stone foundations, a handful of peasant wattle and daub residences, a sad wooden structure that’s likely an imperial shrine, a stout stone granary, and dueling furnaces fed by the ubiquitous peat moss for baking bread (and smelting big iron). The buildings also show signs of a recent conflict, including grimy charcoal remnants of more wattle and daub structures.
The folks who remain are gathered in the longhouse for safety, under the protection of Priv Arianrhod, who speaks for the village. Erdudfyl and Torg take turns being honest and inappropriate, and many things are learned.

The weather turns rough on this night of a new moon; and between gales of wind, blowing rain, and the crack of thunder, the residents of the longhouse hear screams of terror from nearby (outside).

The Terror on Ruiger Moor is here.