Curse of the Azure Bonds - A D&D 5e adventure

[Nade]

You wake to the sounds of two dogs barking.  Just another day, you think to yourself. 

But is it.  Is it just another day?

Who are you? Who are you really? Do you think you are brave adventurers, seeking to make your name and fortune in a realm of wonder and danger. Tell me, my friends, how deep are you willing to go to uncover a truth that wishes to remain hidden from prying eyes.

This is a story of a group of friends. Friends who have been together since the dawn of their fledgling careers. Friends who believe that they are.....will be.....there for each other, through thick and thin. No matter what may happen.

We will test your belief. We will take you on a journey unlike any that you have been on before. We will take you to the darkest places at the edge of your consciousness that you fear to tread. We will put your loyalty and friendship to the test in ways that you cannot possibly imagine.

And remember......this is just the beginning.

The Pool of Radiance

Once, this place was a place of beauty. Once, the air was alive with elven sorcery. Once, this was a bustling place of trade and commerce. It was a hive of activity and life. But that was a long time ago. Since then, generations had passed, and it had fallen into decadence and ruin.

The shadowy figure walked alone in the ruins. Around it were crumbling stone edifices. Reaching out a hand to touch it, the figure, face hidden in shadow, traced a finger across the broken ruin of what would have been a tower of shimmering gold. That was another age. An age long gone now.

Shaking its head, the shadowy figure spoke in a low, rasping voice.  "Foolish mortals. You build your great towers of stone. You create imposing fortresses and look to cement your legacies to survive for eternity. Yet you do not understand."

Reclining to one knee, the figure reaches out a hand to the earth below it. Scooping up a handful of dirt, it watches impassively as the earth trickles between its fingers, falling back to the ground.  "Everything that you create, everything that you build will one day fall to dust. No matter how great the foundations, or how strong the legacy created, it will inevitably trickle away to nothingness in the grasping, fleeting minds of mortals that can barely comprehend the greatness that they could achieve should they wish it."

Standing, the being walks forwards. All around him are the broken remains of a once-great city, stretching as far and as wide as the eye can see. Intertwining with the stone ruins were green vines and foliage. The stone structures were overgrown with vegetation. Beyond the shattered stone landscape, an ancient forest circled around the city, enclosing it almost within a circle of darkness as the trees looked to stretch their leafy canopies overhead and block out the sun. The ruins were dangerous, infested as they were with many fell and powerful creatures, yet the figure walked brazenly without a care in the world. In some ways it was right to do so. Its reputation preceded it and none would dare to intrude or disturb it. Doing so would be the equivalent of cutting one's own throat out.

A cool wind blew through the rubble, coalescing and swirling around the figure. Yet if it felt the breeze, it certainly gave no indication as such. If such mortal things bothered it, it was certainly not apparent.

In the center of this broken paradise, there was a large patch of bare earth around which the stone structures encircled. Within the depths of the shadows cast from these shattered stone monoliths, a thousand pair of eyes glittered ruby red malevolence in the dark. They looked at the figure, and their hatred and desire to feast upon warm flesh emanated outwards from them in waves of pure hatred. In the center of this clearing, there was a large impression in the earth, burrowing downwards into its depths. Framing it and rising outwards from this impression were walls made of solid stone. It looked, for all intensive purposes, like a large pool. And from the burning, steaming waters that frothed and boiled within its midst, that was exactly what it was.

"It is done, Master."

The voice echoed around the shadowy interiors of broken ruin as the speaker came forth. A floating, bulbous spherical creature approached the dark figure, defying the laws of matter and physics as it came towards the robed figure, who raised its head at the appearance.

"Everything is in place Dexam?"

The floating orb had a number of writhing stalks protruding from its main body. Each of these stalks ended in a small eyeball, all of which were looking towards the speaker as they wriggled like a serpent. The bulk of its body was composed of one gigantic, large eye which gazed impassively at the dark figure. Beneath its eye, its mouth was curled upwards in a lazy smile, revealing rows upon rows of razor sharp teeth. Yet despite its fearsome appearance, it bowed its eyes deferentially.

"Yes.  They are ready to strike."

Nodding its head almost imperceptibly, the dark figure took first one step, then another, into the pool. The waters roiled and they bubbled furiously, exploding on occasion in furious pockets of gas and air. The temperature around it was almost scorching, yet the boiling water did not affect or harm the being as it raised its arms to either side.

"Good. You have done well Dexam. The others, they think so small, looking to achieve their foolish mortal desires. But I.....I want more from this little experiment. There is so much we can achieve, so much we can do if we only look to make our ambitions that much......bigger."

Suddenly, behind the figure, the water exploded upwards in a geyser. The water twisted and shaped as it swirled around the dark robes of the cowled being. Lightning shot outwards from the figure, becoming absorbed by the water as it encased him in a swirling storm of vengeance. Despite the noise that came forth from the crackling maelstrom, the figure's voice echoed above it all.

"My influence extends. If all goes well, then the Pool's reach will extend across the length and breadth of Toril. I will create multiple, living Pools of Radiance, and all shall know my name."

The ruins exploded into the shadowy murmurings of a thousand sibilant, serpentine whispers. The voices all chanted one word, over and over again as they paid homage to the creature that stood before them in all its majesty.

The dice had been rolled. In a sleepy area of the Moonsea, the game had begun.

The Azure Bonds

You wake. As you wake, you are assailed with shadowy memories. Dancing shadows that flit and flicker at the corner of your consciousness. Every time you reach out with your mind's eye to try and pluck one of these memories, the ghostly image dissipates and fades, banished back to the great, ghostly ether from whence they came.

The disparate fragments that you can pick up are terrible though, and hint at truly horrible events. Swords encased by flames strike out at you. Shadowy figures dance in and out of your midst, slashing out at you with envenomed weapons.

Drow.

The images of ebony skinned warriors, their eyes gleaming with sheer malevolence as they look to cut you down.

But, as you wake slowly with heavy-lidded eyes, and glance around to see your friends similarly wakening, you wonder how this could be? If drow had truly attacked and overcame you, then surely you would already be dead.

Wouldn't you?

The sound of two dogs barking distracts you from your musings. The sound echoes from down below. Looking around, your surroundings appear to be a clean, if slightly sparse room devoid of furnishings save for one freshly made bed in the corner, next to the window. Below, it is possible to see the evening hubbub of carriages and wagons passing by. Overhead, the sun is starting to descend, and the sky is bathed in a veritable cacophony of purple's, red's, orange's and yellow's. The sight is breath-taking, and any other time it would be something that you would go outside to sit and enjoy with a mug of ale by your side. Today though, there are other, more pressing concerns at hand.

On the floor, packed neatly are a number of backpacks, leaned against the wall. Perhaps they are your belongings?

It is at that point that you notice your arm. The entirety of each of your right arms have been covered by an ornate, gleaming tattoo. This tattoo is marked with strange and arcane symbols.

What has happened? Who has done this? And to what end?  Most importantly of all, what do the markings signify?

An answer that, unbeknownst to you in your blissful ignorance, will tear your very world asunder.

***

Welcome, people of E, to my humble pitch for a Dungeons and Dragons 5e game.  This will be predominantly a mystery, as you struggle to decipher the meaning of the titular curse of the azure bonds.  It is a game that is set in the Daleland and Moonsea areas of the Forgotten Realms as detailed in the below links.  Particularly, you will begin awakening in a tavern in the town of Tilverton known as the Windlord's Rest with little memory as to how you got there or how you obtained these strange tattoos. Then it will be up to you to uncover the mystery and work out what is going on.

For the purposes of this adventure, it will be assumed that you know and have travelled with each other a while.

You can find more information on Tilverton below, although please note that this adventure takes place in a time period set before the above Wiki entry:-

https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Dalelands
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Moonsea
https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Tilverton

I do not require people to be experts (or even knowledgeable) of the D&D ruleset, because this game will be predominantly story based and I am happy to run through the rules as required.  I should note in advance that Discord will be mandatory for the game as I intend to make all dice rolls through there.

If you are at all interested then could you please post your character concepts below in the following format:-

Name:
Race:
Class:
Alignment:
Personality:
Background:
Appearance:

I am, at this time, looking for five players for the game to join a character of my own creation.  If there is anything you're not sure of, or questions you need to ask then by all means ask them.  I've deliberately stayed away from posting any D&D mechanics or build information as for now I'm only interested in ascertaining interest and character concepts.  We can tackle the mechanical aspect of this once we have the required amount to start.

[Laughing Hyena]

I do remember this story and played it on the old mac. It was definitely a fun time as a kid.

Amyway, I cannot join but just wanted to put my voice to this thread and say this is gonna be fun for those joining. Get in on this.

[AndyZ]

One thing I want to ask: I’ve been curious to try out a Wood Elf Ranger but with the Tasha variants, so would those be allowed, or would I be better off finding something else?

[Nade]

That is a very good point actually, I have not listed any acceptable sources.  Generally, for the most part I am happy with anything that comes from an official WotC source.

Playtest or homebrew material though is not under consideration for the game.

[AndyZ]

WIP:

Name: Lynnara of Stonewood Forest
Race: Wood Elf
Class: Ranger
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Personality:
Background: Outlander
Appearance:

[Chulanowa]

Oh, I'm interested. Though, does familiarity with the Azure Bonds / Pools of radiance storyline create a problem? I mean just hte existence of other PCs means it can't possibly go as-written but...

[Nade]

No, it is not a problem.  If you are referring to the novels, they happened before the events of this game, however you may well come across characters of the novels inside here .

I will be putting my own flourishes on this so do not fear on that side, this may well not play out how you expect it to, so feel free to put in your character :).

[Chulanowa]

however you may well come across characters of the novels inside here .

Will Dragonbait be sexable Cool! I'll get something up soon-ish!

[Nade]

I should probably use this moment to state that although I’m not against the idea of a romance subplot in game, I’m very much a fade to black person when it comes to my own character, as per my O/O’s linked below I’m more about the heroic fantasy aspects than the erotic side of it. 

https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=338375.0

That said, the smaller, bit-part NPC’s will be off limits for that for the most part, but I’m happy to entertain a romantic subplot with my main playable character for the game bearing in mind my O/O’s.

If anything develops between the PC’s I’ll set up a separate thread for those postings so I can keep the main game / story thread clear.

[Hexed]

5e huh... Anything actively off limits race/class wise from the official stuff? Some folk just don't enjoy dealing with some races or classes after all.

[Nade]

Nope, nothing off limits.  If it’s in an official source it’s good as far as I’m concerned.

[pdragon]

What level would we be starting at? I know you said you didn't want to dive into mechanical stuff and just wanted character concepts, but for me personally it's a lot easier to come up with a character concept if I know how strong we'd be starting off as. For example the background for a level 1 novice ranger is going to be a lot different from a level 3 ranger that has the extra flavor from their subclass.

[Nade]

Not a problem.  We are starting the game at level 3

[pdragon]

Name: Joyce "Tree Top" Ebonquill
Race: Halfling
Class: Swarmkeeper Ranger
Alignment: Neutral Good
Personality: Having spent so much time as a scout, often by herself for days at a time, Joyce is a bit more quiet and reserved than most joyous and jubilant halflings. That's not to say she isn't friendly or sociable, but it takes more work to coax it out of her, finding it easier to open up with close friends (or after knocking back a few drinks). Once she's opened up she has a doting nature contrasted by a snappy sense of humor, managing to carry a lot of motherly energy despite her age and size.

Background: Joyce was born in a cozy little village named Fleetnest. It was a community made up of halflings, gnomes, and goblins, having allied together against an encroaching tribe of orcs generations prior. Joyce was the daughter of a fletcher and the town record keeper, enjoying a humble but cozy upbringing. She experienced a surprise growth spurt as a teen, that never seemed to stop, making her a proverbial giant amongst her diminutive peers, something she was teased for constantly. Despite this she excelled at stealth and tracking, eventually becoming a ranger scout, the village's main form of defense against would-be attackers.

During her stints out in the wild, Joyce would often use her downtime to explore the forests and valleys, venturing out further and further each day. One day she would by chance stumble upon a hidden grove, with trees that appeared to sprout black leaves. These leaves were actually the wings of hundreds upon hundreds of crows and ravens that perched there, a flock of spirits who watched over the forest. Fascinated, Joyce would return to visit the grove many times, slowly bonding with the spirits, and through her amazement grew an itch to travel the world and discover even more wondrous things.

However one day she was followed by a group of orcs and ambushed inside the grove. She was a decent enough fighter, but was far out numbed and out matched. It seemed she would be left at their mercy, when to her surprise the flock came to her aid, descending upon her attackers and driving them away. After that day a portion of the flock remained with her, always at her side, always watching over her, and it was their companionship that finally gave her the courage to set out into the world on her own.

Appearance: Standing at a staggering 3'11, Joyce towers over most other halflings, to the point she is sometimes mistaken for a dwarf instead. She has soft, sun blushed skin and thick hair that shifts between black and dark brunette depending on the light. Her figure is exceptionally curvy for her size, betraying how fleet and agile she actually is.

[AndyZ]

Okay, count me as still in, but I’ll wait to see what others make first rather than worrying about getting poached again.

[Armphid]

I'm interested in this too.  May I ask what the expectations will be in terms of both posting and Discord participation?

[Nade]

Sorry all, so after starting this ad I’ve realised that I’m really not in a place to take this on after all.  I’m going to have to put this on ice for a bit while I work some stuff out, sorry all.

[Hexed]

Life comes first. Good luck with things.

[Laughing Hyena]

Take care of yourself, and enjoy things when you can.

[RedPhoenix]

Sorry all, so after starting this ad I’ve realised that I’m really not in a place to take this on after all.  I’m going to have to put this on ice for a bit while I work some stuff out, sorry all.

Be well!

[Thera Regina]

Is this like Neverwinter??

[Sepulchritude]

This failed to launch several months ago.