Impact!: Session One

So, in order to understand what happened this session I need to go over the incredibly nasty history of Krakeru and The Lone Keep.

Who is Krakeru, you may ask?

Krakeru, a dark elf cultist, was the beginning villain of The Undertow. He was the end result of generations of inbreeding and murder, in an effort to create the dark elf messiah called the Yetekaida. He raped his own daughter, the main character Mikansia (who was played by Lena), and tried to break her will to make her join him in overthrowing the cult that had so defined his life, The Lone Keep. Mikansia refused his offer, killed him, and then found The Lone Keep (which was orbiting above their planet) and knocked it out of the sky. 

Well, inside The Lone Keep were dozens, possibly dozens of Eldritch Eggs. Eldritch Eggs are gigantic structures that are formed when a person fully gives into despair, causing a link between Rayona, the Dark Ocean (what most people think of as The Far Realm), to appear. Eldritch Eggs can allow the dead to come back to life.

When The Lone Keep hit the ground all of the Eldritch Eggs within were pulverized, filling the atmosphere with a substance known for linking the living back with the dead. 

The last time we saw Krakeru he had been grabbed by his long'time foe Akseli to aid Mikansia in saving the elven kingdoms. 

This session is a week after The Lone Keep hit the ground, killing four armies on the continent of Armo. Krakeru, who is a ghost, hasn't been grabbed by Akseli yet. That's a little while away. There was a massive four-way war going on between minotaurs, orcs, wolves, and roden. In the climactic battle the Lone Keep smashed down, killing almost all of those present at the battle.

Before the session we got Lena's character cleared up: his name was Tekoshai, an orc who was renowned for his luck. He was named because he was the only one to survive The Lone Keep falling into the battleground.

Tekoshai

B1. I will check out the structure the sky devils crashed to look for information and a suitable trophy for my collection”

B2. Minotaurs are only useful at the end of a harness or spit. 

B3. Those who aren’t causing pain are enduring it; always make sure you’re the first. 

I1. If someone challenges the hierarchy, put him in his place immediately. 

I2. Always use others when expedient

I3. Always protect yourself at all costs

Traits: Life is Death, Born to Rule Them All, Enemy of the Sun, Silent Hatred, Intense Hatred, Savage Consequences, Unrelenting Savagery, Where There’s a Whip, Sixth Sense, Sadistic

Last time I'd talked about burning up Idiota, the minotaur. He's an outcast minotaur who has just been  informed that somehow he's the one now in charge of the united wolven packs. He's not surprised, unlike the rest of the world.

Idiota

B1) The tower of mass destruction must have weapons of mass destruction hidden inside.

B2) These strangers are out to get me

B3) I will not be persuaded from believing I'm the rightful heir to the throne.

I1) when startled attack

I2) before entering a room, scan for danger

I3) once in a room scan for all possible exits

Traits

Elves are bastards, rightful heir to the throne, Bando brand, crust dwellers ( Minotaur tunnelers) brand, wandering soul brand

The remaing nations sent out Idiota, Tekoshai with his gang of orcs, and five roden, to investigate The Lone Keep. Which was somehow standing, none the worse for wear from falling from the atmosphere. Idiota muttered this was clearly the orcs' fault. Tekoshai's whip came out.

You know what I can't find in the Burning Wheel book, even now?

The freaking whip skill.

Spent five minutes trying to find it after being told by Lena that whip wasn't in a single orc lifepath. I just sorta assumed there was one. If there is and we missed it let me know! I decided to make it an Agility versus Agility test. Which Tekoshai won, overwhelmingly. Idiota stepped in, trying to grab the whip, but got cracked acrost the back. "The name's Tekoshai. Best to get used to saying it, cause I'm in charge", snapped Tekoshai. Idiota didn't argue.

As they got closer the dread of the Keep affected all but Tekoshai; those Steel tests were rough. But one good Command roll saw Tekoshai bringing the whip to everyone, forcing everyone back towards the Keep. It is here I must apologize to Will: he's genuinely one of the funniest people I've had the pleasure of knowing, and had Lena and I rolling in the aisles the whole session. This all sounds very dark and drab, but apparently the spirit of early Spider-Man has taken full possession of Will, because getting him to shut up in the middle of my dark and serious prose is impossible. And absolutely hilarious.

Anyways, so Idiota and the other orc were going to check out the Lone Keep, while the others waited. Idiota told the orc that he would turn on him given the first opportunity. The orc felt likewise. Idiota noticed that the Lone Keep stones were constantly shifting. There was a large opening where a portcullis used to be. The orc went in through the opening, trembling.

Idiota didn't.

Idiota came back to Tekoshai. "You said I needed to find a way in. Didn't say I needed to go in it myself." Cursing, Tekoshai sent Idiota and another orc back.  When they got there Idiota saw an elf standing in the opening, who invited him in. Minotaurs had been given the genophage treatment by elves millennia ago, so Idiota told the elf to fuck off, as he was no friend of any elf, ever. The elf protested his involvement with such an enterprise. But he was willing to help restore the minotaurs to glory, if Idiota would only listen to him. Idiota waved to Tekoshai and the rest to come join him, and told the elf to go on.

The introduced himself as Krakeru.

He invited Idiota into The Lone Keep. What followed was five minutes of Will cracking joke after joke about how stupid Idiota was for going in. And then Idiota went in, as Lena and I were starting to get stitches. But only after making sure there were four exits in the next room, which was extremely large. Tekoshai came up to the entrance but didn't go himself, choosing to listen by the opening. 

Krakeru offered Idiota a weapon that would allow the minotaurs to claim the glory they deserved. Idiota said he wanted to see the weapon. Krakeru vanished, and then reappeared with a vial. Opening it, he offered it to Idiota, who drank it. A minotaur who reminded Idiota of himself appeared. The strange minotaur congratulated Idiota, for it was time to restore the minotaur race.

Krakeru appeared next to Tekoshai, who tried to stab him with his spear out of surprise.  The spear went straight through Krakeru, who informed Tekoshai he was dead. Tekoshai, suspicious of the sky devil (And Lena trying to laugh off the dark humor of becoming besties with... well... Krakeru...) asked what that meant. Why was Krakeru here, if he was dead? Krakeru said that all he wished was to provide his weapons to the living... provided they were of one mind. Undivided.

What followed was five minutes of Lena and Will asking what the hell that meant, while I kept dropping ever greater hints that Krakeru would only deal with one faction; the one that still lived. After about a minute I kept dropping hints simply because I found it funny.

But eventually the roden charged the orcs. While Tekoshai dealt with all five roden at once, one of the orcs ran after Idiota, who ran into the Keep itself. Tekoshai killed the five roden, impaling the last one to watch him suffer. Grinning hideously, Tekoshai took an axe and sawed off the roden's foot, relishing every twitch of anguish from the roden, who couldn't scream due to a spear in the gut.  Hanging the foot off his belt, Tekoshai told Krakeru they were all of one mind. Krakeru aproved, and Tekoshai found he didn't hate this sky devil so much.

Idiota found himself in a large room, where ghostly eldritch eggs were materializing (they normally take months to years) into depressive cups in the ground. Idiota asked what this was. The minotaur he was with said this was the beginning.