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1.7.3 Afternight

characters level up to 7 the chosen (of osgilliath) have revealed themselves every night creatures attack hammerfall from the catacombs below the city, no-one is safe. People are killed or those too weak to resist are dragged back into the catacombs to await some horrible fate. With the dawn the creatures retreat. plans found on the speaker tell of a resurrection ritual and a second coming of hannah the forsaken. It seems the preparations are nearly complete and the ritual will take place at midnight in 5 days.

Opening Monologue

Night did not pass. It was endured.

Behind barricades of splintered oak and blood-slick stone, you held the council chamber. Steel, flame, and blood—spent in equal measure. The Speaker lies dead. His voice silenced. His plans and the things he has set in motion remain.

At dawn, the claws withdrew. The screams faded. People start to emerge from similar barricades to yours. Hammerfall lives… for now.

But the truth is laid bare.

The Chosen of Osgilliath are revealed to us. Their secrets and dark plans shown to the light.
Each night, the catacombs vomit horrors into the streets.
Each dawn, they retreat—dragging the weak below.

You have seen the speaker's own plans.

Five nights remain.
At midnight, under the same sky that birthed her 500 years ago…
Hannah will rise again.

The city does not know.
But you do.

And beneath your feet—
she waits.

What do you do?

Scene 1

Survivors - for now

council chambers orgrim, one-tusk, harald, yennen and the pcs

Loot and state of things

Balder joins Haralds retinue as Steward and tries to keep the united Norse tribes +2 weapon potency from Ivar resilient rune from Ivar 500gp for killing the speaker level 3 wand of heal

Scene 2

Tyr's Halls of Justice

PCs journey back to the Catacombs to retrieve the Runes and open the way to the Chosen's Sanctuary.

Room 1 - entrance

Its an arched entryway currently sealed by a stone wall which has nearly no imperfections, the stone is cut and joined to make it seem as if it is simply one large piece. The wall has a scale embedded into the stonework and below this there is a rough circular hole which seems to have a drain at the base, it is maybe 30cms roughly in diameter. The players have previously stuck a wooden unlit torch into the hole and activated a mechanical grinding sounds which briefly lacerated the wood to the sounds of cracking and ripping before withdrawing. The stone wall however did not open.

Worn, almost invisible unless cleaned or closely inspected there is etching around the scale,

Not all blood weighs true.
Not all hands should judge.
Only the first children may tip the balance and see justice through

Gunnar upon seeing the elven text can have a little interdiction with Loki. You suddenly feel a pressure against you. Your air is forced from your lungs. And then a familiar voice, low and amused, just behind the ear (Loki):

“Funny thing, isn’t it?”
“A door that measures worth... in blood… and here you stand.”

A soft chuckle.

“Go on then. Bleed for them.”
“Let’s see which half of you the stone remembers.”

As Loki speaks: - The scale briefly appears cracked in half, a broken measure

Room 2 – The Hall of Measured Wrongs

A long, narrow hall of polished white stone.

Along both sides:

  • Elven reliefs carved into the walls
  • Each depicts a crime and its punishment

At the far end:

  • A raised stone dais
  • A single inscription:

Reliefs

1. “The Mixed Bed”

An elven woman lies beside an orc.

  • She is awake, calm
  • The partner is shadowed, indistinct

Next panel:

  • She stands alone before a council
  • Her hair is cut
  • She is turned away from a great gate

Inscription:

“To choose beneath oneself is to be left beneath.”

2. “The Children’s Game”

Elven, human, and orc children playing together.

  • The elf throwing a ball against a wall, tentatively some urchins a human and orc boy come from the shadows and look on. The elf boy calls them into the game, they take turns hitting the ball against the wall, laughing

Next panel:

  • Elven adults arrive
  • The elf child is pulled away
  • The other children are struck and driven off

Final panel:

  • The elf child stands alone, corrected posture

Inscription:

“We do not lower ourselves to the base races”

3. “The Open Hand”

An elf hunter encounters some Norsemen by the river. They are fearful of the man but desperate request aid, food and assistance to patch their boat. The elf hunter shares his travel rations and provides wood and simple mending magics to enact simple repairs. He smiles, generously.

Next panel:

  • Other elves watch, disapproving

Final panel:

  • The elf’s bow and magic components are stripped from him.

Inscription:

“What is given without measure will be taken without end.”

4. “The Broken Boundary”

An orc crosses into elven protected forest crossing beyond boundary stones and trees marked with Odin's rune. He kills a wild horse and cuts down a tree to make a fire. He is starving.

Next panel:

  • Orc is bound in living roots
  • Forced to watch as:
    • The forest regrows over his camp
    • His tools rot, his kill taken by the land
    • Slowly he dies of starvation and the living roots knit together as a new tree

Inscription:

“Those who wander without leave choose where they fall.”

5. “The Faithless Hand”

An elf trades secretly with Norse for profit. Sailing upriver from the city.

Next panel: Elven soldiers intercept the goods. The elf stands trial amongst his peers and his branded. His Norse customers are dispassionately cut down as they try to flee.

Inscription:

“To turn from the root is to be cast from it.”

## Mechanic – The Living Judgment

As the party moves through the hall:

  • One relief animates
  • Figures step out into reality as spectral constructs

They reenact a case.

**Player Choice

Make the Party the Court

When the relief animates:

  • Each PC is assigned a role by the hall:
    • Accuser
    • Defender
    • Witness
    • Judge

They don’t choose—it’s imposed.

1. Enforce Elven Law

  • Punish harshly (mutilation / death) of barbaric races, brand/exile/humiliate elves

Result:

  • Specters nod
  • Room remains cold, unchanged
  • Exit door opens
  • BUT each PC gains:
  • “Mark of Alignment” (temporary effect)

2. Temper Justice (Mercy)

  • Lesser punishment / restitution

Result:

  • The adjudicator hesitates
  • The hall cracks slightly
  • Do another case

3. Reject the System

  • Call out injustice
  • Condemn the elf / system

Result:

  • The entire hall reacts violently
  • Combat vs Spectres of Justice
  • True Favor of Týr

Session Notes

Temple of Tyr was opened as Gunnar gave his half elven blood to be admitted entry to the old Halls of Elven Justice. Much to Loki's amusement. In Room 2 the PCs decided to uphold the Elves punishments and showed themselves to be in alignment to the Elven Laws despite their brutal punishments of other races and cruelty to their own people for simply associating with the lower races.