The Discovery of Plipholm - 08/05/20

404 Travel Log Day 1: Friday Travelers: June, Lucy, Tortleeni, 404 Neutral Fauna Discovery: We encountered a new species enroute to Shaman's Fall. It is a species of mammals Lucy has dubbed "Giant Swampybara". It is a large sized rodent with strong maternal instincts to protect its young. We were able to avoid conflict by steering clear of the young Swampybara. See Tortleeni for an estimate of their market value. Shaman's Fall Situation Report: The situation at Shaman's fall was unchanged from the last reported visit with one exception. A few spike traps had some dried blood on them, but nothing else. The net traps were untriggered. Dangerous Artifact Discovery: After visiting Shaman's Fall, the party turned north toward the Plip (froglet) encampment's suspected location. If I recall correctly, about an hour north of SF we encountered a floating orb. It bared a striking resemblance to a bubble of oil. Tortleeni jabbed it with his quarterstaff; the staff entered and exited smoothly. Upon closer inspection I was unable to determine the school of magic that produced this bubble because it's aura was a mess. It was as oily and rainbow colored as the orb itself. We were given information about this orb later in the day. Hostile Fauna Discovery: While attempting to dicern more information about the orb, the party was acosted by a huge constricting snake. It was quickly dealt with. It's severed head was taken as a trophy to be given as a gift to the Plip. Hostile Fauna Discovery: As we were leaving the orb, a black dragon (50ft from snout to tail, with 50ft wingspan) landed on the headless corpse of the snake. It spoke in the 3rd person and refered to itself as Sarkany (sark-ah-nay). It claimed to "see all in this swamp". From our observation, it was more than capable of pursuing us but chose not to. We quickly left.

Friendly Settlement Discovery: Plipholm. Bad Water Report: We were stopped in the swamp on our way north from SF by a squad of orange Plip. They ferried us to their encampment in coracles. They will not swim or walk through the swamp in this area due to what they call "bad water". It would serve us well to follow suit next time we venture here Plip Dossier: The Plip are small frogfolk that live under the branches of a great willow tree named Aerfaeder. The plip are arranged into a loose caste system based on their color. The can communicate over long distances with messenger flies. Here is a rundown of their colors: 1. Golden Plip: Quantity: 1, Name: Marrow, Note: Leader. 2. Purple Plip: Quantity: Few, Note: Wise and intelligent. Spellcasters. 3. Orange Plip: Quantity: Many, Note: Strong and aggressive. Main defenders of Plipholm. 4. Green Plip: Quantity: Majority, Note: Smaller and weaker than orange Plip. Enjoy frolicking. 5. Blue Plip: Quantity: 1, Note: One lick sent Tortleeni and June into a hallucinogenic trip. They were able to speak with the Plip while in this state. The poison had no effect on me.

Aerfaeder Dossier: Aerfaeder is an ancient willow tree that has lived for hundreds of years and is extremely protective of the Plip. It has many watertight baskets that cascade water from one to another. The Plip live in these baskets. After a ritual performed by the Plip we were all capable of communicating directly with Aerfaeder. It provided us with the following information:

1. The 'bad water' refers to the waters in the area surrounding the tree. It is becoming thick and caustic due to a toxin flowing from a stream running north. The tree said that something huge died in the waters to the north and has been rotting for 100 years or so. There is speculation that a tree called "the weeping tree" roots itself in this decay and is the source of the Bloodbarians. The Plip will not be able to survive in their current location forever due to this bad water.

2. The oily bubble/orb we encountered is an unintended byproduct of whatever calamaty befell the Magisters. Whatever it is, it was implied that it was extremely dangerous and Aerfaeder forbids it to be brought near the Plip.

3. The Magisters drove out the dryads and other benevolant fey creatures, allowing the Winter Court to take over the wilds across their nation. The manfaced dogs that come out at night belong to the Winter Court and seek out mortals to prevent them from settling beyond the Magister's step, the territory of the Winter Court.

4. Aerfaeder can uproot and walk.

5. Aerfaeder cryptically mentioned that if we wanted more information about the dwarves we could venture east to see the folly of dwarves. Aerfaeder mentioned a connection between mindless Warforged and the dwarves to the east. Note: I would strongly suggest an expedition involving me and Bardrin for this area.

7. The twisted mangroves were once like Aerfaeder but were twisted by the magister's magic. We were warned to not harm healthy trees but that any corrupted were free to harvest.

8. Sarkany is, as Aerfaeder poetically said, "arogance made flesh". It's claims of being able to see all in the swamp are lies.

Manhound Encounter: After speaking with Aerfaeder, it was late and we were welcomed to stay the night. During the night, while June and Tortleeni slept off the drug, Lucy and I gained insight into how Aerfaeder protects the Plip. A manhound entered the encampment in the dead of night. It sniffed around and seemed to look right at Lucy and I but it did not attack. After sniffing out the rest of the camp, it left. Diplomatic report: June and Tortleeni offered gifts to the Plip and they were well received. The Plip requested metal weapons to help defend themselves. Aerfaeder warned that it would ruin us if we brought the Plip into any unnecessary conflicts. 404 Travel Log Day 2: Saturday Diplomatic report continued: A short excursion with a purple Plip was made to SF to determine whether or not it was a suitable location for moving their encampment, it is. A future excursion might be made to assist their move. They will send a messenger fly when the time is right. Bloodbarian encounter: The party stopped at the freezer again to attempt to retrieve the remaining barrels but were interrupted by a Bloodbarian approaching from the north, along the road. It demanded we hand over Lucy, a request we refused. The Bloodbarian called himself Vider Tradson and had red hair and a beard braided into 3 bundles. It mentioned that the 'weeping tree' thirsted for Lucy's blood, very macabre. After a short group effort, the bloodbarian was slain. It's viscous fluids were too quick to soak into the road and we were unable to gather a sample. We returned safely after the encounter with the bloodbarian