Part III of Escape from Old Korvosa is a jumbo session. It’s actually the end of Escape from Old Korvosa and the beginning of A History of Ashes. And the hits keep on coming!
First, we find Vencarlo at long last! Once we escape, he passes on the mantle of Blackjack to one of our heroes. But that’s not what Annata wants the most from him… She tries to provoke him into starting up a romance, to little effect. In reality, the DM admitted that he wasn’t comfortable role-playing the romance. Which was a little surprising to me, as our DM is gay. “Between the two of us, you’re the one who’s uncomfortable with this? Damn, I guess I need to be hitting the gym!” The rest of the party was no help; they just suggested I start writing Annata slashfic.
But before we leave the city… Annata feels obliged to speak out! Yes, I actually prepared that whole speech (entire text is included in the session summary). So sue me, I’m a roleplayer. Educated folks and people with enough of the Old Country in their blood may recognize the bit towards the end that I included as an homage to Irish patriot Michael Collins.
Then we move into A History of Ashes. I have to say, we were pretty nonplussed by the Byzantine plot laid out before us. “To find out about the relics in the Queen’s crown, you need Guy#1 to tell you, but to do that you need to perform Heroic Task 1, but to do that you need Guy #2, but to do that you need to perform Heroic Task 2, but for that you need Guy #3, but for that you need to perform Heroic Task 3.” Michael Kortes, we have our eye on you. The action setpieces better be spectacular to make up for this lead-us-by-the-nose plot.
Annata is in a weird place right now. She is starting to see the hand of destiny laid strong upon them. It had already been impressed upon her that the two men she was fighting alongside were a Korvosan Guard and a Sable Company Marine, which is very symbolic of the founding of Korvosa. But now with venturing out among the Shoanti, she is starting to wonder if she’s Saint Alika the Martyr in this tale. As a Korvosan city girl, she has been told since she was young that Shoanti are barbarians, pretty much into arson, rape, and murder in whatever order occurs to them, depending on how much they’re out of their primitive minds on fermented horse urine or whatever. So mentally she’s hovering between “chosen of Sarenrae” and “martyr complex.”
So now we’re in a weird dungeon with two Brotherhood of Bones weirdos. Laori was all right, but Annata’s not sure about these two. They did help kill the latest wave of Red Mantis assassins though. And did the author really think the tentacle beast was going to be a surprise? The second we heard “drop down to dark water” we all said “Yep, it’s Helm’s Deep.” Although apparently the tentacle beast in Lord of the Rings is really at the entrance to the Mines of Moria. Eh, who can keep all that Tolkien stuff straight.
Geek Related 