Knights of the Open Table: Sessions 1-4
Session reports for the first four sessions of my open table Mythic Bastionland game, played sporadically over summer. Seven of my friends played across these sessions, but we unfortunately didn't get to play much. It's been amazing from the referee side, very easy to prep and a lot of fun to run. The final combat (an omen from the Catacombs) was brutal, the first time I've properly seen the high lethality of this kind of game.
SESSION THE FIRST
Company:
- Branwen, the Ring Knight
- Wymer, the Seal Knight
- Eli, the Mule Knight
- Gerald Whey, the Pigeon Knight
- Isolde, the Moss Knight
The Ring Knight, Seal Knight and Mule Knight met two cousins, the Pigeon Knight and Moss Knight, on the shores of the western lake, as was foretold by the Seers. The Company travelled northwards towards a mossy river crossing, meeting a funeral procession for the Moth Knight, who had ruled a faraway realm but was to be buried in home soil. The company paid their respects, but learnt that the Moth Knight had not ruled wisely, and gave directions so that the travellers could avoid the Great Plain and ensure their Lady's peaceful rest.
At the crossing, the Moss Knight enquired with the wizened tree that formed this bridge about whether the Grey Prince, who her and her cousin sought for military assistance, was still alive, or whether his descendants now lived. The old tree knew that the Grey Prince had lived since at least the Moss Knight's grandmother's time.
As the company continued onwards, the Mule Knight got distracted by a pool in a clearing as they searched for herbs with which to brew tea. They found a milky pool, which smelled faintly of bonfire, and reflected momentarily an aged visage to the Moss Knight. After some investigation, the company decided to leave the pool be and set up camp for the night, which passed without incident.
The company finally arrived the following afternoon at the Grey Prince's Keep, where they spoke with an itinerant worker Caldan who had sighted a strange webbed horse on their journey north, and filled them in on the populace's attitudes towards the Grey Prince and his court. They were soon to meet the Lady Peryn, envoy to the Grey Prince, who they learened was unpopular and suspected of having designs on the holding. She greeted the company once they entered the Keep, then left them with a servant Goyon, who gossiped about a secretive meeting of seers taking place that same evening.
SESSION THE SECOND
Company:
- Eli, The Mule Knight
- Gerald Whey, The Pigeon Knight
- Fen, The Boulder
The company were put in separate rooms, and Goyon told the Mule Knight, Boulder and Pigeon Knight to wait awhile after the dinner gong before coming to the Great Hall if they wished to attend Eldermass. With a few hours to kill, the Boulder helped various vassals in the market outside the keep while the Pigeon Knight and Mule Knight obtained ribbons in exchange for the Boulder's services. After seeing the Grey Prince returning from the hunt with a gaudily dressed companion, the company also retreated to the keep and awaited their signal.
Goyon announced the company at the feast and they met the Grey Prince, who was amused by their infiltration. They were also introduced to the Halo Knight Tyack, a confident younger knight, half-sister to the Weald Lord, and staying at the keep this summer for diplomatic purposes. Others present included the elderly herald from Brackenwald.
While two seers from the realm could not attend, the Celebrated Seer and Tapestry Seer were present. Eli conferred with the Tapestry Seer, asking after the myth of the crown. They were told that while seers recognised the Twelvewood Diadem's wearer as rightful ruler, knights would see them as an interloper. In exchange for this counsel, Eli swore to make simple the potentially messy issue of Lady Peryn, against whom actions were being taken this very evening.
The rest of the company had seen a flustered Peryn leave after conversation with the Halo Knight but when The Pigeon Knight tried to glean something from her, the two ended up in a good-natured duel. The Pigeon Knight was ultimately defeated and the company made their excuses, heading out into the night where things the players have asked not to be disclosed occurred... those at the keep know however that Lady Peryn has not been seen since.
As Harvest turned to Winter, the Boulder went on pilgrimage, learning that the Purged Seer's sanctum can be found in springs near the lake at the north of the Realm. The others remained at the Grey Prince's Keep, where the Mule Knight earned a favour from the Prince after catching a troublesome boar and the Pigeon Knight earned one from Goyon, who is likely to take Lady Peryn's seat on the council as envoy.
SESSION THE THIRD
Company:
- Wymer, The Seal Knight
- Gerald Whey, The Pigeon Knight
- Ser Saddleton, The Saddle Knight
Taking their leave of the Grey Prince, who had limited supplies over Winter, the company readied to head south. They heard that the fairly smart son of Lady Peryn, Knotte, was ready to be a squire, and the Pigeon Knight took him on. The company rode to the edge of the lake, where they saw a knight, squire and horse wrapped in webs and being eaten by large storks. Chasing off then killing some of the birds, they set a pyre for knight and squire, and continued on their journey, through the Great Plain.
As they rode through the plain they were not opposed, though they did encounter a hawk howling like a wolf, perhaps an omen of worsening times to come. Indeed, passing from the plain to the hilly fields south of it, they saw the Brackenwald herald Alnect under attack from a group of tiger spiders. Rushing in to aid the herald, the company did not realise there were more spiders lying in wait. Despite a valiant attempt, the Seal Knight was felled. The rest of the company, unable to rescue the body, rode through the night to the Weald Lord's Fort, arriving battered as the dawn broke.
SESSION THE FOURTH
Company:
- Reyka, The Mirror Knight
- Gerald Whey, The Pigeon Knight
- Ser Saddleton, The Saddle Knight
As season turned from grey to green, Wymer's squire Reyka was knighted by the Giant Seer, an acolyte of whom befriended The Pigeon Knight over Winter. Reyka reunited with the company at the start of spring, on a mission to recover the body of her mentor. But the company would meet a fate yet more ill...
At the north edge of the Weald, the company saw a rushing river of bones, headed West. They rode on, finding a fused skeleton near where the party had encountered the spiders. The ground sunk beneath them, and they found themselves in an arena of bones, with six of death's creations before them. The battle was quick and bloody, with each knight falling in turn, the Saddle Knight nearly holding out against all odds but ultimately also being defeated. The company were no more.