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You left Argynvostholt behind, for now, and descended into the valley. As you approached the last field before the dark woods the fog started to thicken heavily and you heard the sounds of an epic battle ahead, swords clashing and voices crying out.

Suddenly the fog started to take the form of soldiers on horseback charging across the field and colliding with armoured pike-bearers wearing devil-horned helms. Hundreds of of soldiers collide in a storm of screams, and as each soldier fell in battle, it turned into a column of fading mist.

The horsebacked riders wore armour you recognised from the Revenants in Argynvostholt, and they were being pushed back toward the castle. Then you heard a thunderous roar, and seconds later an enormous dragon made of silver mist glided overhead, dispersing enemy soldiers with each flap of its mighty wings. Slicing through the air overhead, it cuts a swathe through the fog before disappearing in the direction of the keep.

Just as quickly as it started, the scene dissipated into nothing, and you were left standing in wonder at what you had just witnessed. You turned back to the road and headed West.

---

A long dreary walk later you arrived at a crossroads that directed you South to the Winery. As you approached you could see the vineyards to the South of the path, many of them without fruit and the vines withered. A light drizzle began to fall, and you could see a building in the distance that must be the Winery.

Ahead to the North was a large stand of trees, and you were surprised to see a man wearing a dark cloak and cowl standing at the edge of the trees and beckoning you over.

Garn said he could sense no ill will from the figure, so you cautiously moved toward him. As you did several other hooded figures stepped out from the copse — was it a trap? It was too late if it was, so you boldly approached. They urged you to hurry beneath the shelter of the trees, pleading with you to get out of sight quickly.

Inside the trees you found a gathering of five adults and four children. After introductions you discovered this was the family that runs the Winery, led by the elder who introduced himself as Davian Martikov. With him were his sons Adrian and Elvir, his daughter Stefania, and her husband Dag and their young children.

---

You immediately suspected he was related to Urwin Martikov, the innkeeper of Vallaki’s Blue Water Inn, and told him Urwin had requested you investigate what had happened to the wine deliveries.

Davian surprised you by cursing the name of Urwin — his estranged son as it turned out. Something had happened between them that he was unwilling to speak of, but it was clear he suspected Urwin of taking something of great value from the family farm.

---

Davian explained that the Winery had been attacked recently by evil Druids and their tree blight allies, driving the family out several day ago. Two weeks before that the Vineyard had been attacked by someone Davian called Baba Lysaga, an ancient witch like creature that led a force of animated scarecrows into the vineyard and destroyed the plantings where Red Dragon Crush grape was grown.

You asked who this ‘Baba Lysaga’ was, and he couldn’t offer much insight — but he did say she flew in on the skull of some kind of gigantic creature. He also explained how the Druids were from somewhere called Yarrow Hill that lay further South, and that they worshipped a gigantic tree blight called Wintersplinter.

He begged for your help freeing the Winery from the clutches of the Druids, admitting that his family were no match for those within. You agreed to help as best you could, and recruited young Elvir to help you navigate the Winery. He was super keen, and showed you an excellent kitchen knife he had found for just this purpose.

---

Early the following morning, before dawn, you crept down to the Winery. It was two stories high, and young Elvir explained there was also a basement where wines were cooled. Elvir was ordered to warn you if he saw anything out of place, particularly any tree blight types.

You decided to enter via a side entrance, and as you made your way toward it Elvir whispered (quite loudly): ‘the vines are walking!’. You looked to the South and he was right, there were dozens of misshapen tree like figures lurching toward you.

There was no time for caution so you rushed inside the house, and were lucky enough to find the door was able to be barricaded from within. Just in time as you heard the scratching and rustling of tree limbs reaching against the outside of the door.

Elvir let you know the next room was a large open one containing the wine vats. He started to elaborate on the technique of ‘vatting’ before Garn quietened him by threatening to cut his tongue out. Lucky you are the good guys.

---

Zane crept inside and confirmed the fermentation vats were indeed there. Clusters of agitated ravens perched in the rafters. As you watched from the doorway, you heard a figure moving overhead on the balcony walkway. An arm reached out and poured a vile looking green fluid into the vat closest to you. Elvir was horrified — they were poisoning the wine!

You crept into the room and moved around to a spiral staircase leading up and down. You took the stairs up to deal with whoever was up there. Swiftness seemed the best bet, so you charged onto the balcony to attack.

Ahead of you stood a wild looking woman dressed in a gown of animal skins and a headdress with goat horns. She cackled when she saw you and called out, and suddenly you heard a skittering noise as scores of knee high needle blights came swarming up the stairs toward you.

---

Zane crashed into the woman, striking her heavily twice, before Garn moved in and finished her with a massive uppercut from his hammer, sending her head over heels into the vat below. Viktor and Xarann engaged the blights, as did the raven flock which dived into the fray. Zane attempted to tightrope along the railing and failed, but recovered with grace. Garn tried the same thing and somersaulted along it with ease. Show off.

The blights fell quickly, though some managed to most unpleasantly embed themselves into Viktor’s legs. Elvir was thrilled: ‘this is aweeeesome, you got them all!’.

---

You moved through the rest of the top floor, clearing the rooms one by one. In a room that contained a printing press you encountered another Druid, this time with two vine-like blights. The Druid was so caked with dirt and mud she was almost not human, her face covered with a moss veil. She and the vines fell quickly, and you found a small key in the cabinet she was searching.

In an empty bedroom you found a register of all the wine deliveries for centuries. Elvir eagerly quizzed you on the various codes therein — ‘can you guess what BW stands for?!’ — though he couldn’t explain the very early entries that simply had ‘S’ next to them.

In the room above the loading dock you encountered another manic Druid, a man with wild hair, rotting teeth, and skin painted with blood. He waved a wicked looking gnarled staff over his head, made from jet black wood, and triumphantly gabbled out something unintelligible.

You killed him, of course, slaying him in mid-air as he jumped down and before he could do anything else. Xarann very cautiously examined the staff, it’s power as obvious as it was mysterious, and Garn warned it was of great evil before stashing it on his back.

---

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Ground floor was next, but you found nothing of interest. Wine barrel storage, a barrel making workshop, and a raised balcony area (that the key you found unlocked) where grapes were stomped for wine.

Elvir told you what lay below in the basement — the wine vault, a cool room full of old bottles and racks. Quietly you moved down, and found there were several figures moving around behind the large rack full of glass bottles. You decided on a pincer action, sending Garn and Zane one way, Viktor and Xarann the other.

Unfortunately Viktor tripped over a stray bottle and alerted the intruders to your presence. Covered in tattered leather stood another Druid, this one wearing a crown of full sized antler horns, and with him were five needle blights, human sized tree figures bristling with thorns.

The Druid let out a laugh before unleashing an incantation that exploded into the room with a thunderous roar. The wine bottles all shattered and you were thrown back into the stone walls by a wave of sound.

Zane and Garn lashed into the blights, who retaliated with a volley of thorns that were blocked by raised shields. Xarann cleverly webbed in two of the blights, trapping them in place, while Viktor cast a finger of fire at the Druid. Alas he missed, but the webbing caught fire much to the displeasure of the trees trapped within.

After that there was little resistance, the Druid casting another desperate blast and the blights being thwarted by fast shield work.

---

The Winery fell quiet as you realised you had cleared everything inside. Elvir showed you the cave where a nasty looking mould was cultivated to keep the temperature cold, and you moved back upstairs.

As you left the house, Elvir pointed South, and you saw that the vineyards were all walking — the blights were withdrawing. Victory was yours!

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Session played: 26 August 2019