Recap - 2026-01-01

In the aftermath of the battle to rescue Angelus, most of the party regrouped in the hallowed circle around Chamenal, the deva. Chibro and Josiah, having determined the immediate threat to be over, decided to instead return to the boat with the chest containing the Chaos Matter scavenged from Pythagius.

Josiah and Chibro both separately inspected the crates, and despite the odd masked men having pulled the tops off, there did not seem to be anything misplaced. They both saw the contents: Two halves of a massive crossbow, with a bolt the size of Chibro’s forearm, and a thin filament attached to the bolt.

They put the lids back on while chatting with Tabi. The small plasmoid guide was concerned that this mission would be considered unsuccessful by their employers as someone was able to take off the lids, but he agreed they should still continue on.

Dreri, having managed to clear her boat of the mushrooms and rot that the bulazu had filled it with during the kidnapping, was both incensed and worried. She encouraged the party to quickly finish their business so they could continue on.

In the meantime, Chamenal again requested the party bring Dreri to her, as she wanted to see if she was her lost compatriot, Festova. After talking with Angelus, she offered to commune with the gods on his behalf, and provide answers to three of his questions. In doing so, she hoped she would show her goodwill and encourage the meeting.

Angelus agreed, and asked three questions:

Am I destined to end up with Dreri?
- Chamenal answered: No.
Am I doomed to be a fallen aaismar forever? Or can I find redemption?
- Chamenal answered: Unclear.

His third question was whispered, so no one else could hear it, but the response from Chamenal was a resounding yes. This seemed to affect Angelus slightly, but he did not share the question with the group.

The group left to go get Dreri, who refused to leave her boat, only agreeing to go when Angelus suggested they just pick up her boat and carry her and it to Chamenal. They did this with relative ease, and Chamenal was taken aback when she saw the aaismar in the boat coming toward her. She declared Dreri to indeed be Festova, but Dreri was unsure.

Angelus decided to stay and listen to their conversation, but the rest left them in peace and headed to the Molten Curtain to hopefully exchange their coin. The interior was blazingly hot, with several pools of lava peppering the floor, and a handful of Magma Mephits stewing in one of them. One mephit offered Josiah a seat, saying it’s nice and warm and toasty. Josiah declined. Instead, he and Chibro headed to the bar to talk to the bartender, an enormous female fire giant with flaming red hair (sometimes literally), and a face that was lined equally with frown and laugh lines. Also sitting at the bar, chatting with the fire giant in Primordial, was a large awakened bear, who seemed amused by the travelers.

Tag decided to sit down across from a golden haired and golden attired elf and offer to play a game of Dragonchess (despite having never played the game before).

Gobbie engaged with a group of shirtless hobgoblins, the leader of whom quickly rebuffed him when Gobbie refused to sit and cook in the heat with them. As Gobbie talked with the leader, Zrul, one of the hobgoblins passed out from heatstroke, and passed away not long after. Zrul forbade Gobbie from helping him, and Gobbie left. Kor sat down and began to participate in their ceremony, learning some key details from Zrul in the process:

He and his men are from the plane of Acheron, on the endless battlefields there.
They were given leave to come to this plane and this place and build their tolerance of heat, as their battalions mission upon return would be to delve beneath the surface of the first level of Acheron and make a key strike against the enemy’s lava-fueled encampment.
They arrived with two dozen men, and are down to six.

Gobbie stopped and took in the rest of the patrons, seeing:

Six firenewt warriors sitting around a table near the bar, their large black eyes unblinking as they watched him.
Another fire giant, a male with a massive set of armor with a large glowing rune set in the center, belched in his sleep, surrounded by a half dozen empty casks.
A fire salamander sat reclined over multiple chairs, watching the room with lazy eyes, having given his seat up for Tag to play against the golden-haired elf.
A large two-headed dog sat in front of a clearly ceremonial set of fire giant armor.

Back at the bar, the bartender (and, they soon discovered, the proprietor and owner of the Molten Curtain) introduced herself as Naghig. She offered Josiah a drink, and he asked to drink what she drinks. She laughed, and the bear creature offered to pay for his drink to see that. She handed him a drink, molten hot, and he declined to drink it after all. When Josiah asked if she could convert their soul coin bounty into gold coins, she agreed, if the players would do her a favor.

Put simply: She was once beholden to a terrible master who made her fight in the blood war. She escaped him, but only while she is in the Molten Curtain. If she leaves, he will recapture her. Even now, an agent of her former master, an Ultraloth, lingers in the Night Market outside, hiring non-fiend creatures to enter and attempt to slay her.

She knows the only way she will ever be free and able to live her life outside of the four walls of the Molten Curtain will be if her master thinks she is dead. So, she asks the players to fight her in the Night Market, kill her, and then take her head to the Ultraloth. Allow him to contact her master, confirm her death, and then kill him, and recover her head, and Vurus, the enormous drunken sleeping fire giant, will resurrect her.

At the table nearby, Tag notices the golden-haired elf is distracted by the goings-on at the bar, and inquires whether he has feelings for Naghig. The golden-haired elf laughs this off, sharing instead that he is sure that if Naghig is able to leave, she will do so, and this place-the only safe place for non-fiends on the plane of Gehenna-will be lost without her burning spirit to maintain it. He is saddened by this, but will not interfere. Tag manages to win a game, and charms the elf in the process. The golden-haired elf shares with Tag:

The Crawling City is not just a mobile city - it is a creature, massive beyond measure, alive, growing into the very walls of the city. Be careful of what you speak of within the walls, as they literally have ears, and report back to the head of the Yugoloths there. But more importantly, there is a rumor of a magic item buried in a forgotten hall in the Lacerti district. It wouldn’t be easy to get into, and there’s almost a guarantee of danger. But the item is claimed to be the Pyxis of Pandemonium, something believed to be stolen from the plane of Pandemonium by the Yugoloths long ago and left to rot.

Tag, grateful for this information, and feeling that the elf has some deep well of hidden power, offers for him to join the party. The elf casts a truth spell, affecting everyone in the Molten Curtain, and probes into Tag’s motives. Determining Tag to be on the level, he still declines, but seems to approve of Tag and his party, and indicates he will not hinder their plan to kill, free and resurrect Naghig.

Kor continues to sweat alongside the hobgoblins, and another drops into unconsciousness. Kor shrugs it off and continues to converse with Zrul. When the zone of truth is cast, Zrul begins to panic, sharing that he doesn’t want to be doing this, and is upset he has lost so many men. He shows Kor his sword, declaring it to be a Sword of the Planes, though Kor has no idea what it does.

The group discusses the plan, and then, beginning to become overwhelmed by the heat, take the glasses of Nectar that Naghig offered them and leave the building. After meeting back up, they decide to take Naghig up on the deal, but need to figure out the details.

Dreri and Chamenal finish their discussion, with Dreri telling Chamenal:

He (Angelus) has offered to take me with him to Sigil. He doesn’t know me, but he has offered me this chance at freedom. You want to take me to a place I don’t understand, with people I don’t know, without curing me of the memory I have lost. I will not go with you. I would rather travel the Styx for the rest of my days if I must.

Chamenal, clearly upset but not angry, dismisses the hallow and leaves the plane, telling Dreri that she will return for her if Dreri changes her mind.

The group puts Dreri’s boat back in the Styx, and Chibro discovers that Dalgumok, their abishai friend from the previous fight and tour guide to the Night Market, has taken the lid off one of the crates and is discussing the contents with Tabi.

Chibro demands to know what he is doing, and Dalgumok tells him he is just curious, and then explains what the contents are.

It’s a massive, magical crossbow that contains a finely‑infused filament.
When the crossbow is mounted on a construct (or the Crawling City itself), the filament can be used to anchor that object in place, functioning much like an immovable rod on a city‑scale.
Its purpose appears to be to keep the Crawling City stationary so repairs can be made.

Dalgumok warns Chibro to not let anyone know what this is.

“The Crawling City cannot stop moving. It is a function of the city itself, much like some sharks must continue swimming, the legs must continue to move. If the city ceases to move, it will cause “issues.” This crossbow is a magical anchor, allowing the city to be immobilized without harming itself. I would imagine that the only reason the city itself need to be paused like this would be if there was an issue, and it was in need of repairs that could not be done while the city was on its constant march. The city itself will be vulnerable while it is anchored, especially if it truly is damaged. It would be a perfect time for an enemy to strike.”

Chibro replaced the top of the crossbow and returned to the group.

As Chibro walks by, he is unawares that down the street from him, still chatting with the tipsy grell named Togek, Greebo is suddenly dwarfed by a large figure.

So:

You all have agreed to Naghig’s deal. You will fight her publicly, kill her, take her head, deliver it to the Ultraloth, let him send his message back to his superiors that Naghig is well and truly dead, then kill him before he can leave with his trophy, and take her head back so Vunur the other Fire Giant (assumedly a cleric of some sort) can resurrect her.
The caveat is that the Ultraloth is aware that her fire newts will fight on her behalf, but Naghig is adamant that you all cannot kill any of her fire newts.

There will be a chance for a short rest in the Sweat and Soot if needed.

Fun Roleplay Info

There was a chance that Dreri would have gone with Chamenal if the players had treated her differently. The only reason she didn’t is because of three pivotal moments:

Angelus’s offer to her of a place where she could be free, and part of something (Sigil).
Tag’s kindness in offering up a memory to fix her boat.
Angelus’s treatment of Greebo. She was livid at the fact that the party knowingly and intentionally exposed him to the River, but has seen how Angelus seem to genuinely care for him, or at least is willing to take him along. The fact that he’s done that reinforced to her that he is serious about helping her. Greebo intentionally tried to kill the party, or at least harm them, and they wiped away his rough edges and are offering him a new life. If you would do that for your enemy, it reinforces to her that you would do it for her.

Song of the Session

I Got a Name - Jim Croce

Previous Session: Sigil - 2025-12-18
Next Session: Sigil - 2026-01-15

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