The Summer Tournament

The long awaited Summer Festival held by the great city of Havvel has finally come. From all corners of the realms of Men, the dense woods of the Elves, the deep mines of the Dwarves, and the tribes of Orc, they come to be tested in the games that the annual festivities entail. Soldiers, jousters, entertainers, mages, and archers all come to enjoy the sport and competition. 

The Lord Havvel comes to greet those who have come. He gives a rousing speech and the crowd cheers as the games come to an opening...

The destruction of Havvel

Upon the second day of the the tournament a mage comes and offers a challenge to anyone on the stage. a young wizard approaches, hoping for a friendly battle to start the day. As the challenge begins the young mage finds his opponent is not friendly at all. The newcomer takes his staff and breaks the young wizards leg, taking advantage and blowing him off stage with a burst of magical energy.

The victor removes his hood, and upon his face lays the mark of a dark cult, the worshipers of Anabel, the embodiment of Evil amongst the gods.
He tells all to lay down and pray to Anabel to save their souls, for all will die this day in Havvel. From his back he draws a sword that he plunges into the stage where darkness sprouts forth like a flame. A demon stands before him and the crowd as panic ensues. assassins that lay in wait begin to cut through the crowd as the Demon waves its arm towards the tower, and from the peak of the top most roof falls the ornament, a crest of Havvel. A thunderous crack is heard as the great tower falls from its base and topples into the ocean below the cliff.

For the rest of the day the great town of Havvel burns as evil takes root, claiming that they will rise and conquest will be swift.

Saving Lord Havvel

     Having gained some friendship during the first day of the Tournament, Griselda the half orc, Gryn the dwarf, and Alexander the human pull together in hopes of saving the Lord Havvel from the fallen tower.
     They fight at the gate of the city, hoping to create a free path for people to escape. They quickly destroy the assassins at the gate and they find an open path to the base of the Tower Havvel.
     Inside the base of the tower, the party finds several assassins of Anabel in wait. With little struggle the party overcomes them and climbs up to where the tower cracked from its perch. Below them is the tower, tilted upon the cliff and sinking into the waters. They all enter, praying the tower will not collapse further. The cries of soldiers, trapped from the collapse call out to them and the party cannot resist the appeal for help.
     Gryn continues towards Lord Havvel while Griselda and Alexander help the soldiers. Gryn finds the entrance to the stairwell to Havvel's quarters, however the door is above him. With rope and hook he manages to ring the threshold of the door and climb up over a fresh pool of sea water that has begun to gather in the top of the sinking tower.
     Griselda is next to climb the rope, taking advantage of her speed and catching up with Gryn. Alexander takes the wounded men to the tower top where the pool of water blocks their path. In an attempt to stay alive, Alexander and the wounded by his side fight through several of the warriors of Anabel as they come into the sinking tower to take the head of the Lord.
     Havvel is found and freed from his bed that crushed him against the wall as the tower fell. Together with Gryn and Griselda, the Lord comes to fight what is left of Alexanders foe in the center of the tower. The battle was harsh, almost claiming the lives of the party, but in the end the only fatal wound suffered was taken by Havvel. As he lay dying among the fallen enemies he gives his sword to the party, telling them that Lords of the cities of Men will know this as his symbol. Take it and help the others against the evil here. With his final words the party hastens themselves out of the tower.
     At the exit stands the demon however, and in a vain attempt to escape they leap from an annex window into the ocean below...

Into the Presonian Woods

The party escapes from the tower of Havvel and finds their way to the rocky shore where they manage to climb up the cliff side where they meet the court wizard's apprentice who had managed to escape the city. He recommends that they all head north to Presons where they can all talk to the Lord there and attempt to get aid for the war against this evil.
     They manage to sneak through the open ground, having only to kill a small scouting party of the worshipers of Anabel. Hastily the party traveled until they came to the woods that protected the Ivory City. The Presonian Woods stood before them, the tall pines foreboding.
     After several nights of camping and long days of travel, the party came to the top of a ridge where below they could see the Ivory City, Presons. It was burning, the black smoke rising from the North quarter. Elves suddenly appeared, bows drawn and an arrow pulled to the string. They spoke only to Gryn who was the only capable of speaking elven, a strange talent for a dwarf.
     After some attempt to negotiate the party was separated from their weapons and taken to the elven camps where a large force waited to invade the city. After long hours of being held int he elven stocks, the party was brought before the general. He spoke in the common tongue of man, so all could understand him, and he was elegant, sitting in his armor and adorned with the elven ornaments of a noble class.
    He asked of the strange party to do him a favor, and he could spare them, a rare treat for the likes of a dwarf among elves. If they would take the sword of Havvel into the city, take it to the leader who has banded the defenses together, the elven war host would be much appreciative. It would seem that the leader is a young knight, a nephew of Havvel who loved his Uncle dearly. The thought of his death could cause the leader to preform an action that would be regrettable.
    Hoping to keep their lives, the party accepts the request of the elven general, and they are taken to the gates of the Ivory city where the fate of those inside has yet to be determined...

The Taking of Presons

When the party enters the Ivory city they are greeted by two soldiers drafted from those being held hostage within the walls. Chyle, a bard, and Kyras, a ranger of Vanessa. They offer help and join the party in hopes of escaping the city. 

     The new members lead the way to find Basimick, the young leader of the defence of the city. He greets himself and the party offers the sword of Havvel as the elves had wanted but Griselda warned of the elves intent. Basimick thanks them for the sword of his Uncle, and thanks them again for the information, claiming he would have done something rash if it weren't for them saying something.
     Instead of having a deadly blunder, he decides to retake the North Quarter from the elves in a full charge into the elven camps. The only issue would be the elven skirmishers that scout through the ruined streets. If the party could fins them and destroy them then there would be no warning of the incoming charge.
     The party heads out into the fog of the North Quarter accepting the dangerous mission. After several skirmishes the party rids the area of the skirmishers. The next step would be to deceive the elves. The party moves towards the elven camps and take out several guards to get a better position to sound a horn that the elves are waiting for.
     After sounding the horn the elves barricade to the flanks and Basimick lead the charge into the opposing flank, easily taking the elves by surprise and destroying the force that stole the North Quarter. Victory came, and the defense of the wall was restocked.