Tonight's Background: Orange is the New Black

Whatever the circumstance, whether highway traveler or explorer, mercenary or merchant, you have been waylaid and captured by Gnolls and brought to their dark prison cave. There were many others grouped in adjacent cells but over the days, one by one, they were taken out and you never saw them again. All the other cells have been cleared out with the exception of yours (where you are all gathered) and a smaller cell where the beasts have kept young children whom they are saving for some final devilish need. Jute is held in that cell while her father Zahl is held in the cell with you (the party). Zahl has been held here for days and has seen the rest of his family taken, one by one, by guards never to return. He does not know what has happened to them but fears the worst. Zahl has heard talk of someone called “The Big Guy” and that there is a symbol of an eye painted above every cave opening.

You know that there are Gnolls wandering about, Gnolls who's eyes are a pale white as if they were being controlled by some outside force. There are also Orc guards that have handled the prisoners who do not seem to be under that control but are acting of their own malicious accord.

Though you have been kept alive with rancid water and rotten meat of some kind which none of you have touched you all have been healed of all wounds by Su the cleric who has also been captured.

In short you have full hit points but no armor or weapons.

Clerics (and druids for that matter) can start the session with all their spells.

Magic-users will only have 2 spells remembered before they were captured, their spellbooks missing at the moment.

Experience points for the survivors of the last adventure:

6 Mephits: 1,440

10 Gnolls: 300

Sending Xuthal to hell and destruction of Earth Stone: 800

Total: 2,540

Most of you will have new characters except for Mike and Zach if I recall.  Tim, I don't recall if your ranger survived, my notes are a bit scattered at the moment.  If you haven't rolled up characters yet you can do it this evening using the compete rules for race and classes.

Tonight's Background

With the public murder of Lord Blackmoor, a fierce battle broke out between followers loyal to the fallen lord, his sellswords, the priests of Mithra and the priests of the Dark Gods. Caught in the middle of all this were our fearless adventurers who held in their possession the sword Blackrazor and the Soul Gem.

Fighting their way out of the city erupting in civil war yet again, the party high-tailed it on stolen horseback to the town of Blackmoor and the temple of Morpheus with elements of all the fighting factions in hot pursuit. The path to Blackmoor was paved with blood as Televon, wielding the bloodthirsty Blackrazor hacked down the party's foes.

Entering Blackmoor in secret, the party split up, with Televon and Skwanky returning to the temple of Morpheus carrying the bloody and soul filled magic sword and the Soul Gem while Gnarly and Maximus the Giant Slayer, under the cover of night, commandeered a row boat and paddled across Lake Blackmoor and into Brush Wood. 

At dawn, the two companions reached the opposite shore as an autumn rain began to fall.  Looking back they saw fires burning on the horizon where the town of Blackmoor would be.  Maximus and Gnarly worked their way into Brush Wood but as evening approached, the temperature dropped and the rain turned to sleet.  To make matters worse, they stumbled upon a hunting party of Gnolls who  pursued them to the entrance of a ruined Abbey....