Path to the Crypt

As the group begins it's journey, each of you recognize the mentor you've had in town. This is the person who's taught you a few things and a skill or two as you've started your path. Rogar sees Father Rantal Prasst, the human cleric of Erastil wave at him, his background as a soldier and a cleric, helping to forge Rogar's way. Rabb sees her tiger companion leave the company of Olmira Treesong, the human druidess who some say has lost her mind. This morning before Rabb left for the ceremony, her mother told her that it was Olmira that had sent her on this quest, one of many odd tasks she's had Rabb do.

Xeno sees Guard Captain Gregor Wisslo, the human fighter who took Xeno under his wing and providing him with a bit of coin to buy some supplies for this quest. Wisslo gives Xeno a nod and places his fist across his chest, pride beaming from his face as his newest recruit leads this ragtag group of younglings out the village gate. Lein glances around and sees both Holgast the scatterbrained wizard who helped him forge his magic and Guardsman Golfond Kir, the man who honed his martial skills.

As the group is just about to step out the open town gate, Max hears the familiar voice of his sometime mentor, Moltus Vargidan, sorcerer, father of almost a dozen kids and quite possibly insane man. With his white hair all askew, Moltus says in his cracking high pitched voice, "Have fun storming the crypt!" He then cackles to himself, as one of his servants steers him back toward his home.

The group continues down the path presented by the map each person had put together. The path sends the group south through the Fangwood forest. Everyone knows that while the path is probably safe, it doesn't mean there won't be something dangerous here and there, so vigilance is probably a good idea.

((Each of you does have a mentor, well the base classes do, the others will sorta mix and match, the cleric is a former warrior so the warpriest makes pretty good sense.  I assumed you all worked together to put the map together.))

About an hour out of the town, a couple of you smell something in the air. ((Please give me perception checks everyone, that includes Aya))

The Adventure Begins

After the defeat of Asar Vergas and the death of Ekat Kassen, the surviving townsfolk drew closer together in mourning -- and in pride at what they had come together to accomplish. Old feuds were forgotten for a time, and the traditional Nirmathi independence of spirit bent to an appreciation of what the community as a whole could do. As the generation that had fought alongside the paladin aged, however, they were unhappy to see their children and grandchildren falling back into old habits, holding grudges that drew lines of division in the town, now simply called Kassen, and disregarding the hard lessons of community that their forebears had paid for in blood. The town elders came together to devise a way to convince the youngsters of the benefits of working together, and so the quest for the Everflame was born.

Once in each generation, generally every five to seven years, the young adults of the town participate in a coming-of-age ritual that recreates the quest of Ekat Kassen and his followers into the wilderness. On the late autumn day that marks the anniversary of the day Kassen set out on his last march, the chosen young townsfolk gather in the square and are solemnly sent off with a lantern from the Greathall, to light it at the eternal flame in the crypt of the fallen paladin and bring it back to town to be preserved through the cold winter, a symbol of the town's history and resilience. What happens while the fledgling adventurers are away is a secret closely guarded from the younger residents, but when they return a few days later, the town holds a great celebration in their honor, using the fruits of the year's final harvest. Those who return with the lantern are hailed as the heroes of Kassen and are henceforth viewed as fully-grown citizens, marking the end of any apprenticeships. The Everflame celebration, therefore, is often the background for engagements and weddings, as well as land and business transactions as the heroes prepare to enter adult life.

Although most of the inhabitants of Kassen have gone through the quest for the Everflame, all seem to have taken an oath not to tell anyone uninitiated what exactly is involved in the ritual. Most adults only smile secretively when asked by a child. If approached during the Everflame celebration, returning heroes are equally unforthcoming; some will rumple the children's hair and tell them not to worry about it, while those more fond of the limelight will spin wild tales about wrestling trolls or defeating squadrons of orcs from Belkzen. Every child in Kassen seems to know of a vague and distant relation some generations ago who died during the quest, but as their own time approaches, the adolescents grow more dismissive of the dangers, rolling their eyes and declaring it's only some lame trick of their parents that couldn't possibly be all that interesting. After that, most young people are too busy in apprenticeships and jobs and courtships to give much thought to the ritual ... until the morning a folded paper is slipped under their door, summoning them on the morning of the 4th of Neth to the town square and the quest for the Everflame!

As the morning breaks, each of you travel to the town square, finding only the others who have been selected to the quest. Feel free to introduce yourself, even if you may know who the others are.