Adventure Summaries

Summaries of the adventures undertaken by the Covenant of Sagehollow.

Spring 1190 - Lenton Prison Breakout
After a game of football in Stratford got out of hand, Robert Giscard sent his newly-appointed right hand, Guy of Gisborne, to arrest the participants. Seeking to stamp his authority on Sherwood, guy sent them to Lenton to await a public execution.

The mages all set off to conduct a jailbreak in order to gain some covenfolk. Rian summoned a handful of wild boards from the nearby woodland to cause a distraction, informing them that the basement of the jail held a wealth of food. He then opened the door with magic and the boards merrily charged in to gorge themselves, while the guards all ran over and then pondered how they could intervene without being killed.

While this was going on, Essel and Evelyn snuck up to the prison and puled the roof open with magic to get the prisoners out, fleeing and leaving a mocking note signed by Robin Hood. Arianwen (in gyrfalcon form) spotted Guy and his retinue on their way, so she created an illusion of more boars blocking their path. When the first of them put his lance through empty air, they swiftly realised that "witchcraft" was afoot.

Now free, the footballers reluctantly agreed to serve the weird mages for a year, after which they would decide if they wanted to stay.

Summer 1190 - Exploring Sagehollow
A mysterious doorway appeared within the caves beneath Sagehollow. A small group was assembled to investigate, including Arianwen and the newly-arrived “knight”, Lady Tessora. After consulting with Evelyn, they figured out that a specific poultice needed to be created and applied to the runes around the doorframe to turn the stone within into some kind of portal.

After applying it and entering, the group determined that it was a regio, within which were several other (inoperable) doorways, and a collection of ruined buildings and charred skeletons.

After exploring the remnants of libraries, laboratories and living quarters, the group entered a room that seemed to be frozen in time, with a knightly figure kneeling amidst roaring flames, being thrown at him by a mage – the kneeling figure being shielded from them by angelic wings.

Arianwen figured that the spell, in combination with the angel’s protection, ended up causing a wizard’s twilight in the area which dilated time. She had no idea how to end the effect, so Tessora dropped to her knees and prayed to the angel Midael. He granted his aid, ending the time dilation. The mage, facing the backblast of his own spell, immediately crumbled into ash, and Tancred began gasping for air, with the wings disappearing.

After gathering his bearings, he introduced himself as Tancred, knight and loyal servant of the Order of Hermes. He explained that the covenant in its previous iteration was of House Diedne, and he had led the assault on it during the Schism War. Given all of his associates were long dead, he decided to continue his service of the Order by joining the covenant.

Autumn 1190 - The Cambridge Fayre
Essel decided that the next covenant for her to visit was Schola Pythagoranis, and brought along Cass, Falko, Islwyn, Oskar and Silk. While stopping off at the Red Boar, they came across Iudicium, a Guernicus from Blackthorn and the senior Quaesitor of the Stonehenge Tribunal, along with a bodyguard and a speaker, who were headed the same way and elected to join the group.

They were later attacked by bandits on the road who seemed to be targeting them specifically, and after interrogating the one surviving bandit, discovered that they had been sent to attack a man matching Silk’s description and those he was with, by a man named Gar Lawrence, who Silk had no recollection of.

Iucidium and his cohort left the group at Cambridge, where Essel let the grogs attend the local fayre. She tried to persuade the mages at Schola Pythagoranis to attend the next tribunal, but they said they’d only do it if Julia of Voluntus supported her.

When the grogs looked around the fayre, they noticed that there was a child named Thomas competing in the melee who had made it a shockingly long way through. An old woman, Mathilda, claiming to be Thomas’ faerie godmother, asked Islwyn for help – Bomburkhan, a suspected demonic imp, had given Thomas the power to get to the final and build up his pride before letting him fail, and possibly even die.

The grogs followed Thomas to a clearing in the nearby forest, but were seen by him and accused of being goblins. Silk rolled with this and span a yarn about needing Thomas’ aid, and after roping in Essel, Cass, Oskar and Islwyn for aid, managed to put on a slapdash piece of theatre to tie Thomas up for long enough for him to forfeit the final.

Silk then competed himself, in which he won. Cass competed in an obstacle course and became a local celebrity, Oskar won a pig in a guessing game, and Mathilda taught Islwyn how to make charms.

Spring 1191 - Red Moon Rising
After Rian began receiving night terrors involving his death at a castle, he matched it to a real Castle, Boristrum, and after gathering Cirice, Tancred and some grogs, set off to investigate it.

The castle was inhabited by a large number of travellers, who behaved suspiciously. The group followed some of them to the nearby forest, where they met with a mysterious shadowy entity called Fandaniel, a type of being known as an Ascian. They spoke of a ritual being performed that night, at the rising of the red moon.

The group then left, and after being tailed by some of the travellers, doubled back and attacked them before racing back to the castle. All of the remaining travellers lay dead, and once the group were in their midst, reanimated them to attack before he disappeared.

Most of the group were badly injured during the ensuing fight, and Rian ended up alone and wounded on the roof of the keep. Fandaniel reappeared behind him, impaled him through the back, and then cut off his head.

A short while later the undead collapsed, and the surviving members of the group found a nearby Gifted folk witch called Granny, who healed them. She then told Tancred that she would have her associates look for more signs of these Ascians and report back.

Spring 1191 - Visions at Wishborne
Evelyn, accompanied by Lady Tessora and a few grogs, set off to deliver her bespoke enchanted armour to the Templars. They encountered the Templar Ser Baldevere on the road, who brought them to Wishborne Manor. After being shown the armour’s enchantments, they were happy and took it. Brother-Priest Cyrus bade the group go to the nearby St. Brigit’s Cave, to partake in a ritual and receive some spiritually important visions.

Evelyn received one of her facing a viking raid by the sea in which she fell, and Tessora received two – one in which she failed to keep Evelyn on the path of harmony and humility, in which they butchered the other inhabitants of Sagehollow, and another in which they were peaceful and made the world a better place.

The group returned to Wishborne, in which Baldevere returned with many relics recovered thanks to the armour, and Cyrus offered to build a church in the area near Sagehollow, operated by a retired templar, and having regular templar patrols of the area. Not considering the implications of having such a presence at the covenant, Evelyn and Tessora enthusiastically agreed.

Spring 1191 - The Lidby Leet
Arianwen, alongside several grogs, met Ser William Peveral, a Forester-in-Fee, at his castle in Lidby. She presented herself as a noblewoman looking to improve her marriage prospects by owning land in Sherwood, which he was receptive to.

Peveral was accompanied by an Ethiopian knight, called Yeshua but often referred to as The Black Knight. Peverel is an eccentric horticulturalist, who owns a cinnamon tree alongside other exotic plants, and has as a pet a mysterious white fox.

The group also learned that covenant members had been seen and taken note of coming and going from Sherwood by locals, and also that some local crops were apparently “scared” to grow out of the ground.

The leet was held the next day, which was also attended by Guy of Gisborne, who appeared to recognise Arianwen and Old Giles from the trial at Normanston. Arianwen laid out her proposal for assart rights, which Peveral was midway into accepting when Guy interrupted, insisting on her providing proof of nobility. He gave her six months to return to Wales and secure it and bring it to Robert Giscard’s brother for verification, at which point he would be “delighted” to approve her appeal.

Talking to Peveral afterwards, he said that he gets along fine with Guy, but was surprised by his interruption. He suggested going to Giles of Vennes and Baron Richard of Blyde - close friends of the king - for aid in outmanoeuvring Guy, as neither of them are fans of Giscard's.

Summer 1191 - The Miracle of Summerbridge
Tessora received a vision from the angel Midael, telling her to go to the village of Summerbridge and “find the way to paradise”. Gathering Tancred and several grogs, she set off, stopping in at Normanston and Danecastle on the way. At the latter destination, Tancred and Tessora’s two squires had a practice fight in the stables, wherein both participants failed to land a hit on one another until they collided heads and fell over, moaning. Their spirits swiftly recovered when Tancred helped them up and Tessora congratulated them on fighting courageously. Upon reaching Summerbridge and talking with the priest, Father Edward, they learned that the village had been hit by a plague, which was then healed by a man named Jonathan, who claimed to be instructed by an angel named Castanel. He was then heralded as the villages’ new holy leader, and began holding sermons in which he reinterpreted The Bible to relay its “true meaning”, in which women exist to absolve men of their sins and otherwise obey them at all times. His followers – known as the Children of Eden – consist of the entire village besides Father Edward, including the former headsman, Alwin. Seeing as the villagers all seemed to be good people who had been led astray, rather than actively malicious, Tessora promised to do everything she could to resolve matters peacefully. The group then attended Jonathan’s sermon and then engaged in a theological debate afterwards, in which he remained convinced that Castanel spoke the truth. Returning to the church, Edward and Tessora explained to Tancred about the merits of encouraging sinners to repent, rather than delivering divine punishment by default, leading to an epiphany from him. He and Tessora then renewed the shaken faith of Father Edward, and the trio planned to hold a sermon outside the church the following morning, sharing their experiences with the divine and preaching the actual words of the Bible. The group set up camp outside the village, and during the night, Chimi heard the church bells ringing. After racing back, they saw that the inhabitants had dragged Father Edward out of the church and burned him at the stake.

After Tessora strode into the square to confront Jonathan, the fire behind her formed into a humanoid shape who stepped out, revealing itself to be a fallen angel named Zodiacus, masquerading as Castanel.

As the villagers fled or dropped to their knees in terrified awe and Tessora drew her sword, he raised his hand and the village’s far gate exploded inwards. In rode four knights, who Tancred raced to hold off on the bridge.

Haeddi grabbed Chimi to run to the church and look for relics, Alison led the kids to follow them to take shelter, and Adelaide slipped off to don the mask that had been found in Normanston that she’d quietly stolen from Sagehollow. With it she spoke with the spirit of Father Edward, who helped her to raise a handful of skeletons, which she instructed to aid Tancred as he fought the knights.

Tessora exchanged blows with Zodiacus, but it was clear that he was a superior combatant. Alfred charged in to help, but was swiftly batted aside with a heavy wound. Chimi found a broken sword and handed it to Tessora right as Zodiacus disarmed her own, but she was quickly incapacitated by a swing that cleaved straight through her shield.

She found herself in a pure white space in front of Father Edward, who informed her that she had been chosen by God to be His sword on the earth. He also advised that going on Crusade in the Holy Land doesn’t absolve one of their sins.

She awoke again in front of the daemon with her wounds fully healed and the missing length of the sword in her hand being formed out of golden light. She swiftly struck him down, and then prayed. A gateway to hell opened behind her, dragging him in.

Meanwhile, Tancred decapitated the first knight and the two others, seeing Tessora’s smiting of their presumed liege, fled. The last was then tackled off his horse by the skeletons summoned by Adelaide and torn apart, which Tancred attributed to another miracle.

Tessora spoke to Jonathan, who she permitted to seek forgiveness in the Holy Land, before she picked up Edward’s remains and took it to the church. There, she used one of her newly-granted abilities to prevent Alfred’s wound from worsening.

A funeral was held for Edward that morning, after which the headsman told Tessora and Tancred that the villagers would be leaving to make a pilgrimage of penitence, and offered them whatever supplies they desired from the village.

Summer 1191 - The Red Boar Lock-In
When the grogs heard a lock-in was being held by Al Murray at the Red Boar for his regulars, they decided that it was the ideal time to pay him a visit and negotiate regular “donations” to him in exchange for using his establishment as something of a drop point and meeting place for any business coming into Sagehollow.

Other attendees included a Goblin band, a pair of Satyrs, and two nymphs; one river and the other wood. They formed one team, and the grogs the other.

Several contests were held, each earning a number of points for each team, with additional points being earned for each drink imbibed.

Old Giles won the wrestling, Lohse the song and dance contest, Silk the card game, and the River Nymph the beauty contest.

During the contests, one of the satyrs approached Old Giles, offering to give him youth in exchange for losing eye, which he declined. The other approached Aroh Byait, offering some faerie wine in exchange for his account of the battle at Boristrum Castle. He accepted due to his alcoholism, and found himself without any memory of that adventure.

Silk was the judge of the beauty contest, and after opting to declare the River Nymph the most beautiful, the Wood Nymph cursed him to be forever hassled by the woodland of Sherwood, and the River Nymph took him upstairs to have sex. Unbeknownst to Silk, this was considered equal to finalising a marriage – though he did gain a minor blessing when in water for his troubles.

The drinking contest was won by one of the Satyrs, and lastly was the hectic bar stool race, which was won by the other Satyr. Prizes were doled out, and the grand prize was given to the participant with the most points accrued; Silk. He was given a mysterious and no doubt mighty hat of sturdy material of unfathomable craftsmanship, possibly a relic from ages past, or even perhaps an artefact from the distant future...

Autumn 1191 - The Basilisk of Longlake
Cirice learned from the metal cats that the Viking hero V killed a basilisk on the island on Longlake, with the aid of a potion made by her ancestor Ceridwen.

She assembled a grogs and Will and set off for Longlake. After gathering information, they encountered a pagan woman being harassed by the locals, which they broke up. Talking afterwards, she told them that she was fleeing Guy of Gisborne and seeking the covenant to shelter her. Inferring that the group were members, she promised to help them in their exploration of the island as thanks for them rescuing her.

After hiring a boat to take them to the island, they saw that another basilisk was living there. The combatants, having buffed their shields to reflect its gaze, killed it before dismembering it for materials.

Cirice and the pagan explored the cave that the basilisk came from together, coming across statues depicting V, Ceridwen’s granddaughter, and her husband, the necromancer Arawn. They then came to some kind of sepulchre. Using their different spheres of knowledge to translate and comprehend the many inscriptions and carvings on the walls, they read the story of the Cauldron, which lay on a plinth in three pieces, and V, whose greatsword also lay shattered before them. There were two tombs; one for Arawn, and another for Percival (one of King Arthur’s knights). They also found a map to an island on the opposite side of Ireland. Exploring other sections of the cave system, they found many basilisk eggs, which they opted to spare as protectors of the tombs, and a hidden underwater exit to the island. Cirice collapsed the main entrance to the tombs from the caves making it the only way in, and the group returned to Sagehollow – including the pagan, who Cirice decided was useful enough to bring despite the unease of the others.

Autumn 1191 - The Goose Fayre
Several grogs attended the Nottingham Goose Fayre, ostensibly to buy geese for the covenant. Oskar diligently bought a gaggle for a good price whilst fleecing his customers, and with that the group entered the various games being held.

Alistair won the Hook a Goose and the Goose Dress-Up contests, winning a fine black cloak and some magic beans. The latter, when planted, would grow into a giant beanstalk, atop which resided a “great monster” with a pet goose, which would lay golden eggs.

Giles won the Guess the Weight of the Goose and the Fisticuffs, with his arthritis rendering both his arms useless in the latter and winning via kicks. He won an emerald brooch and a mastiff puppy.

Lohse won the singing contest, with second place going to a remarkable string of performances by Hamlet, Oskar’s pig. Lohse won a sparrowhawk, and Hamlet was given a goose.

Gilly won the melee tournament after an exhausting string of duels, winning a cavalry horse. Before the final she was very fatigued, so Oskar unleashed a goose-fat-covered Hamlet into the arena to buy her time to recover while the guards tried to wrangle him.

The archery contest was won by a disguised Robin Hood, and upon being given the prize of a longbow, he revealed himself to the crowd before escaping amongst them before Guy of Gisborne’s men could capture him.

All of the contest winners were also rewarded with a goose.

Winter 1191 - The White Stag
Arianwen, Torvi, Chimi, Islwyn and Osanna set out to thwart the royal hunt taking place for the White Stag of Sherwood Forest, as it is a source of vis for the covenant. After some discussion, Chimi raised the idea of talking to the Black Dog, the guardian of the forest, and after hearing her description of it, Torvi recalled that it was a pagan spirit named Rylon.

Armed with that information, they went into the forest, called for it, and talked. It had a keen interest in Osanna, and agreed to help turn the hunting dogs on their masters in exchange for the covenant finding him a mate from Ireland.

After Chimi led the dogs to Rylon’s territory, they attacked their masters and sent the nobility fleeing. One of them, who Arianwen recognised as Prince John, was thrown from his horse and hit his head, being left by the others in their panic.

Torvi emerged from hiding to tend to his wounds, and was soon joined by the others when he sat up. Arianwen fed him some bullshit about being a noblewoman and the others being her retinue, which she didn’t question; presumably not willing to look a gift horse in the mouth.

The group took him to the Royal Hunting Lodge, where he rejoined his worried fellows and gave particularly foreboding words to Guy of Gisborne and Robert Giscard for abandoning him to his fate. When Arianwen mentioned her denial of assart rights, John was outraged and promised her he would approve it personally.

Meanwhile, Chimi met once more with Rylon; the White Stag joined them, and bowed to her in thanks. Rylon then told her of a stone tree within Sherwood, which through context should hold vis (or something else of significance to the covenant).

Spring 1192 - The Heir of Farnesfield
Essel sent a group of grogs to bring Rohen d'Aincourt, stepson of Marian and the heir of Farnesfield, to Sagehollow. The plan was for her to take the guise of “Ser Humphrey”, and claim that Sagehollow was a secret hunting lodge being built as a surprise for King Richard. Ser Humphrey was willing to protect Rohen from the assassination attempts of Robert Giscard’s men and support his claim to Lordship – the plan being to reveal “Fairhaven” as a covenant of mages when Rohen was in too deep to back out, and thus have him firmly in the covenant’s pocket.

The group found Rohen with one wounded knight, Ser John – the others had died in an earlier attack. They reached Newark being followed by several of Giscard’s soldiers, and slipped into a tavern. That afternoon, the soldiers tracked them down to the pub and attacked them there, badly wounding Ser Robert but being driven off.

He was left at the hospital while the others travelled to Lexington, the castellan of whom (Anselin the Butler) was an old friend of Rohen’s father. There, they spoke to the headsman, a famously wise old farmer named Toki, and then Anselin himself. They discussed Rohen’s current troubles and who was responsible, and Anselin promised him his friendship.

They then continued on towards Sagehollow, running afoul of more of Giscard’s men in the woodland on the way. Islwyn and Percival conducted themselves commendably and drove them off once more, killing and wounding several.

Rohen was blindfolded due to “Fairhaven’s” secrecy, and he was taken to “Ser Humphrey”, who clarified the situation and his offer. They then went to Farnesfield itself, where Rohen talked with several of the overworked villagers, who told him of their numerous issues under the extortionate and selfish leadership of Giscard’s man, Ser Walter.

The man himself then fought Rohen in a public debate, which Rohen won when Cuthbert delivered a letter from Giscard begrudgingly allowing him to reclaim lordship of Farnesfield, on the condition that he donated a considerable amount of money to King Richard’s Crusade.

Rohen then went to his dilapidated family manor, where the slightly mad ghost of his father resided. Rohen was then left to work through the huge pile of issues the village faced – which promised to take up much of his time and resources for the foreseeable future – while the others returned to Sagehollow.