Session 49: Wascally Wabbit

Date: Apr 22nd, 2026

Summary

The party gathered at the Smithy in the Spokes to rest and take stock of their situation. Tark and Syndle reflected on the blessings granted by the Sacrament of the Falling Fire, which shielded them from contamination, bolstered their resistance and allowed them to sleep undisturbed even within the haze. With renewed strength and a clearer sense of purpose, the party turned their attention to the matter of the Pale Man, the mysterious supplier of potions that kept the Iron Helms alive in this blighted place. The plan was simple: intercept his next delivery, negotiate his return to the Amethyst Academy's fold, and if words failed, take his head back in a bag and let the Academy sort it out from there.

Before the Pale Man's arrival, the party saw to more immediate business. They loaded up two delirium geodes and a barrel of smaller shards — the Iron Helms' surplus stock — and hauled the cargo back toward town, bypassing the Hooded Lanterns at the bridge without so much as a sideways glance from the garrison. River, their contact at the Amethyst Academy, received the shipment gratefully, paying out a generous sum in gold and gems and promising the remainder in credit. The party restocked on powerful healing draughts and new magical knowledge before turning right back around toward the Smithy, a third delirium geode set aside as a potential bargaining chip for the Pale Man himself.

Eldrick Runeweaver, the Academy wizard who had been pushing for this meeting, declined to make the journey in person. Instead, he sent his homunculus — a small magical construct the party quickly dubbed Homie — to accompany them, explaining that through its eyes and ears he would observe everything, and should history call upon him, he would appear. The party accepted this arrangement with varying degrees of enthusiasm and set off back through the Spokes, arriving at the Smithy to find the Iron Helms hammering away at their war wagon and mining delirium as if nothing had happened. The bodies from the previous attacks had been cleared, and the dwarves greeted the adventurers warmly.

The party debated whether to warn the dwarves of their intentions toward the Pale Man, ultimately deciding to say nothing. They spread out quietly, positioning themselves on rooftops and near the smithy's cannons, and waited. Ned activated his magical amulet and began scanning the surrounding area for signs of approaching power. It was not long before a disturbance rippled through the haze, and a fancy passenger carriage came rolling up the ruined lane — pulled by two perfectly ordinary-looking horses and driven by a figure twice the height of the carriage itself, an absurdly oversized man whistling to himself as if this were the most natural thing in the world.

As the carriage drew closer, Ned's amulet revealed something deeply strange. The carriage itself was barely touching the ground, held aloft by a faint transmutation enchantment, while the horses and the towering driver radiated illusion magic. The carriage door swung open and a gentleman stepped out wearing a mirror mask, one arm raised in a rigid, formal greeting — though the arm jerked back into his robes with an odd, abrupt motion. Two small figures that looked like miniature humans rather than proper halflings climbed out behind him, lugging a crate of potions toward the waiting dwarves in exchange for barrels of scrap delirium. Ned approached and introduced himself as a representative of the Amethyst Academy, offering the masked figure a consulting arrangement on behalf of the Academy. The figure confirmed he was Friedrich von Lichten, but Eldrick's voice whispered through Homie almost immediately: that was not Friedrich.

Homie darted forward and yanked at the robes. The cloak did not come fully off, but it opened just enough — and two cadaver arms on sticks clattered out of the sleeves and fell to the ground. Reginald, the Iron Helms' mage watching from a window, cast a dispelling wave of magic that tore away every illusion at once. The halfling porters twisted and swelled into squat, pig-like creatures. The horses folded and inverted, revealing themselves as upside-down, spider-legged abominations. And the grand, mirror-masked figure of Friedrich von Lichten collapsed into a rabbit — a literal rabbit, perched atop a pair of stilts, blinking at the assembled adventurers with enormous eyes. The towering driver, Grint, turned out to simply be a very large man in different clothes, who stared at the rabbit and said, flatly, that the ruse appeared to be up.

The rabbit, to his credit, was remarkably composed. He explained that he was merely a custodian, running errands for his master, and had thought it would be a nice touch to dress as the Pale Man so the customers would feel the boss was personally involved. He described the real Pale Man in terms that made the air feel colder: a stillness, a void that walks, the quiet that follows the last scream. He offered to show the party the way to his master, but hesitated, worried that bringing such a violent-looking group might displease him. When the rabbit attempted to climb back into the carriage and leave, Syndle launched into the air and brought the flat of his axe down on him twice in rapid succession, dropping him unconscious before he could take another step. Ned scooped the rabbit up and stuffed him into a magical bag for safekeeping.

What followed was swift and brutal. Oira slowed Grint, the pig-creatures, and one of the spider-horses, leaving them sluggish and vulnerable. Tark raged and flew straight at the nearest spider-horse, hacking into it with savage fury. Xakarium unleashed a crackling bolt of lightning that tore through the carriage and scorched Grint and the pig-creatures where they stood. The crack of thunder rolled out across the Spokes, and somewhere in the haze, something enormous heard it. Oiroa called down divine wrath on the bloodied Grint while Yazzy followed up with a roaring fireball that obliterated the creatures into a column of fire and smoke billowing into the grey sky. A distant roar answered it.

The crystalline dragon came in low and fast, sweeping over the smithy in a single devastating pass. It opened its maw and unleashed a massive cone of mutating necrotic energy across the camp. Several Iron Helm dwarves simply ceased to exist. The rest of the party braced against the onslaught, and those who could not fully resist the breath found themselves changed. Yazzy began to flicker at the edges like poorly tuned hologram. Tark's hair lifted and drifted as though he were submerged in deep water, fine and ethereal. Oiroa's legs reversed at the joints, bending backward like a grasshopper's, her base speed somehow increasing despite the grotesque transformation. Xakarium felt something push through the skin of his arm — a fleshy tentacle, coiling and flexing, that he found he could extend to strike at enemies just beyond his normal reach. The dragon roared once more and vanished back into the haze, apparently satisfied with the chaos it had sown.

Oiroa, moving on her reversed grasshopper legs with grim determination, made her way through the wreckage and called upon every reserve of divine power she had left to mend her companions and drag the surviving dwarves back from the edge of death. The dwarven cleric was hauled over and healed alongside the party. Grint and the rabbit, both unconscious but breathing, were left alive — they were the only ones who knew the way to the Pale Man. The Iron Helms stared at the smoldering ruin of their clan, the dead scattered across the yard, and at the increasingly strange-looking adventurers who had brought all of this down upon them. The party, battered and mutated, began to plan their next move: when the rabbit woke up, they would have some very pointed questions for him about where exactly his master called home.

Memorable Moments

"The fearsome 'Pale Man' is revealed to be a rabbit on stilts with cadaver arms on sticks stuffed into sleeves, accompanied by pig-creatures and upside-down spider-horses."
—

The homunculus grabs the robe mid-negotiation, causing the whole elaborate disguise to collapse in the most absurd way possible

"He is a stillness, a void that walks. He is the quiet that follows the last scream."
— The Rabbit

The rabbit custodian, exposed and defeated, describes his true master the Pale Man to the party with unsettling reverence

"Oiroa, her legs now reversed into grasshopper limbs from the dragon's mutation breath, hobbles over to heal her allies after the devastating attack."
—

Immediately after the dragon's retreat, Oiroa prioritizes healing despite her own grotesque transformation

"Yazzy's fireball destroys the war wagon the dwarves had been laboriously building, prompting the dwarves to scatter screaming 'Dragon!' as the actual dragon then arrives."
—

The party's own magical excess draws the dragon straight to them, and the dwarves assume the dragon caused the explosion

Scenes

Rest and Reflection at the Smithy

The party discusses the benefits of the Sacrament of the Falling Fire and plans their next move regarding the Pale Man and the Iron Helms.

Logistics and Delirium Deals

The party discusses the logistics of transporting delirium to the Amethyst Academy and negotiates a trade deal with the Iron Helms.

Return to Town and Resupply

The party fast-travels back to town to deliver their cargo to River and spends their earnings on magical supplies.

Return to the Smithy and Preparations

The party travels back to the Dwarven Smithy, accompanied by Eldrick Runeweaver's homunculus, and prepares to intercept the Pale Man.

The Arrival of the Pale Man's Carriage

A mysterious carriage arrives at the smithy, revealing a strange oversized driver and a figure claiming to be the Pale Man.

The Pale Man's Deception Unravels

The homunculus exposes the imposter, revealing a bizarre group of creatures in disguise.

Skirmish at the Smithy

Combat breaks out as the party attacks the imposters and their monstrous guardians.

The Dragon's Crystalline Breath

Attracted by the magical noise of the battle, a crystalline dragon ambushes the camp with a devastating mutating breath attack.

NPCs

River

A tiefling mage of the Amethyst Academy who receives the party's delirium shipment. She pays 9,000 gold in cash and gems and owes the party 8,500 gold in credit. She is described as more of a lover than a fighter and declines to accompany the party to meet the Pale Man.

Eldrick Runeweaver

A wizard of the Amethyst Academy who is interested in getting the Pale Man to cooperate, partly to restore Leonora's sanity. He declines to accompany the party in person but sends his homunculus to observe and communicate telepathically, confirming that the figure at the smithy was not Friedrich von Lichten.

Homie

Eldrick Runeweaver's homunculus, a small magical construct that allows the wizard to see and hear through its senses. It physically exposed the rabbit imposter by grabbing his cloak during the confrontation at the smithy.

Reginald

A fifth-level mage nicknamed the 'window mage' by the party, associated with the Iron Helms at the Smithy. He cast a spell to dispel the illusions surrounding the Pale Man's carriage, revealing the true forms of the rabbit, pig-creatures, and spider-horses.

Gurdy

A member of the Iron Helms who facilitated the trade of delirium for potions with the Pale Man's associates at the smithy.

The Rabbit

A creature that used stilts, cadaver arms on sticks, and a mirror mask to impersonate the Pale Man. He claims to be merely a custodian running errands for the real Friedrich von Lichten. He was knocked unconscious by Syndle and stuffed into a bag by Ned, surviving the dragon attack and set to be interrogated next session.

Grint

The oversized driver of the Pale Man's carriage, revealed to simply be wearing different clothes. He was slowed, poisoned, and beaten unconscious during the skirmish, but survived the dragon's breath attack. The party intends to keep him alive for information.

Bojacks

Monstrous, upside-down spider-like creatures disguised as horses that pulled the Pale Man's carriage. They attacked Tark with impaling limbs and sprayed corrosive mucus that melted his armor. They were killed during the battle.

The Pale Man (Friedrich von Lichten)

A mysterious figure who is the real supplier of potions to the Iron Helms. He did not appear in person; his rabbit custodian described him as 'a stillness, a void that walks' and 'the quiet that follows the last scream,' living not far from the smithy. The party's goal is to find and negotiate with him.

Locations

The Smithy (Spokes)

A dwarven outpost in the Spokes where the Iron Helms are mining delirium and building a war wagon. It served as the site of a chaotic battle against the Pale Man's imposter crew and was subsequently struck by a crystalline dragon's breath attack, killing several dwarves.

The Spokes

A dangerous area between Emberwood Village and the city where the party travels to and from the Smithy. A random encounter check was made here without incident.

Emberwood Village

The party passed through here on their return trip, delivering delirium to River and resupplying before heading back to the Smithy. The Hooded Lanterns were back at the garrison and did not interfere with the party's passage.

Items

Sacrament of the Falling Fire

A holy rite that grants the recipient immunity to contamination, resistance to necrotic and radiant damage, advantage on saving throws against being charmed or frightened, and the ability to benefit from long rests within the haze. The party reviewed these benefits during their rest at the smithy.

Delirium Geodes

Large, valuable meteorite crystals worth approximately 5,000 gold each, used as the primary cargo for the party's trade deal with River. Two geodes and a barrel of smaller shards were traded for roughly 14,000 gold worth of value. One geode was set aside as a potential bargaining chip for negotiations with the Pale Man.

War Wagon

A heavy dwarven transport vehicle being reinforced by the Iron Helms at the smithy. The party considered using it to transport delirium but ultimately opted to carry the geodes instead. The wagon was destroyed during Yazzy's fireball in the skirmish.

Potion of Superior Healing

High-quality healing draughts purchased by party members from the Academy's contacts. Each costs 450 gold and restores a significant amount of health, purchased for emergency use.

Magical Amulet

An item used by Ned to detect and identify schools of magic. He used it to identify the transmutation aura on the Pale Man's carriage and the illusion auras surrounding the driver and halfling porters, granting him advantage on the arcana check.

Mirror Mask

A mask worn by the rabbit imposter to hide his true face while posing as the Pale Man. He claimed it showed 'the reflection of society and what it's become.' It fell away when the homunculus exposed him.

Magical Bag

A container used by Ned to quickly stow the unconscious rabbit imposter during the heat of battle, keeping him alive for later interrogation.

Corrosive Mucus

A sticky, acidic substance sprayed by the Bojacks that melted Tark's armor, caused ongoing acid burns, and reduced his armor class during the skirmish.

Spells

Dispel Magic

Cast by Reginald to strip away the illusions hiding the true forms of the rabbit imposter, the pig-like creatures, and the spider-horses, revealing the Pale Man's delivery crew for what they truly were.

Slow

Cast by Yazzy to drastically reduce the movement, actions, and armor class of multiple enemies including Grint, the rabbit, the pig-creatures, and one of the Bojacks, making them significantly easier targets for the party.

Poison Spray

Used by Yazzy to release a puff of noxious gas targeting the spider-horses and Grint, though the enemies managed to resist the worst of the toxins.

Fire Bolt

A small mote of magical flame cast by Ned to strike one of the slowed Bojacks, dealing fire damage.

Lightning Bolt

A powerful stroke of electrical energy unleashed by Xakarium that tore through the carriage and struck Grint and the pig-like creatures. The loud crack of lightning attracted the attention of the crystalline dragon lurking in the haze.

Toll the Dead

A sound of dolorous bells used by Oiroa to inflict necrotic damage on the already heavily injured Grint, leaving him severely bloodied.

Fireball

A massive explosion of fire cast by Yazzy, combined with psychic blades, that decimated the remaining pig-like creatures and destroyed the war wagon. The explosion further signaled the party's location to the crystalline dragon.

Healing Word

Used by Oiroa to mend the wounds of allies during and after the battle.

Mass Healing

Oiroa employed high-level restorative magic twice after the dragon's breath attack to mend the party's wounds and stabilize the surviving dwarves, expending her remaining fifth-level spell slots.