westwhere | hatthevar

hatthevar | blood rains

Drawn to undead creator Matthias, the party heads into Hatthevar — former wasteland of myth and superstitions, now city of ghosts.

The first log of Hatthevar spans until 31 January.

A small part of the event is open to players both in and out of the game, who can bring dead characters in the bazaar!

HATTHEVAR

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The party enters blood-rained Hatthevar during a daily one-hour truce between the citadel and the undead forces that assail it. At the gates is undead Lord Rathakku of the Brotherhood, keen to usurp his distracted maker Matthias; in the skies dart the forces of dead wind lord Anurr, who has no love for the Brotherhood.

Hatthevar’s ghostly champions — including enormous ghosts that consume men and floating spirits that strangle with chains — defend the grounds. Matthias neglects the war, persistently summoning spirits from various worlds and points in time to revive them.

KNOCK, KNOCK

Wispy, shadowy silhouettes closely watch the lone gate of Hatthevar. The party infiltrates at sunrise.

Characters who have died, practise necromancy or are death-touched enter freely. The living must consume Karsa’s foul potions that absorb their shadows and partly mute their powers to pass for dead. Holders of Matthias’ severed limbs or organs, or of dark mirror shards or dark water, are closely watched by the dead and perhaps pursued.

Everyone must create new names and stories covering their identity and circumstances of death. Crafty ghost sellers will try to learn your true name to capture you in slavery.

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Spend a few days acquainting Hatthevar, its constant rains, vicious gambling dens, bazaars, oracle halls, wish shops and nests of memory thieves.

Show kindness to the newly revived spirits who struggle to remember themselves and roam in the citadel’s bazaars of curiosities.

Optionally, some characters are struck by misfortune. Capture a crafty, palm-sized spirit rabbit to improve your luck… or stumble upon a larger, dark hopper to ruin it.

Most sleeping quarters are available at downtrodden inns or in lavish gambling dens, for exorbitant prices. You can’t shake the feeling of someone watching through holes in your walls.

MATTHIAS

Three days after arriving, the party receives a note from Matthias that reveals the origins of his pact with the dark water to propagate the dead in Akhuras. Matthias says he has been working to bring the spirit of his dead daughter Cosette through the beacon for revival. She materializes briefly in Hatthevar but disappears before he can find her. Retrieve Cosette, and he will surrender the party his power over the undead.

Full note

” Well, hello! Is it nippy beyond the walls? Not cold here, just… the rain. Tried wishing it away, but… waste of money, those wish shops. Not like, what is it you call it? The dark water? It’s ancient. Back in Ellethia, we thought it came from the sea. All began with a mirror shard. That, and constant pressure to race against decades of Taravast research into curing death. We got there first! That’s… my claim to fame: I wished death gone.

It was work. Work ate me. Then, the dead woke up, killed everyone, and there wasn’t much of a profession left. Or of Ellethia. The dark water wants flesh, so… I’ve made it death lords and armies, and I’ve left parts of me to anchor it. In return… it gives me revival. But, look. I had a… daughter. Cosette? Blonde and eyes green and blue and like her mother’s, and only five summers old, but she thought she was so clever, kept telling her doll so. That’s all you’re left with. Memories. She died, of course. I’ve been working to resurrect her, and her spirit shows up every few days in Hatthevar. She disappears before I can find her.

I’m not… good at bargaining. I’m a magical engineer, really. Tinkerer! But my time’s running short, isn’t it? Just look outside. And all I want is Cosette. You want the beacons? Have them. You can have my power whole. I’ll give it. Some of you will need to help hold the walls up, and others might want to look into the funny business in the lagoon, if it’s linked at all to Cosette, though I doubt it. But, truly. Bring me Cosette, and the deed’s done. You can have everything.”

The Merchant distrusts Matthias’ proposal, but sees potential leverage and urges the party to investigate the girl and the lagoon. From here onward, everyone heads to their assignment:

COMBAT

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Assigned: Bucky Barnes, Carol Danvers, Deimos, Emilia, Jiang Cheng, Luffy, Natasha Romanoff, Nynaeve, Stephen Strange, Wrath, Wrathion, Zoro

The first line of defence against the swarming undead, you must hold off swathes of enemies across three territories:

THE WALLS

Despairingly tall and uncomfortably narrow, overseen by Matthias’ ghostly cannibal titans, who neglect to discern between friend or foe in their broad, relentless strikes. Blood rains pour down thick and nearly blinding. From the skies, you face the frost-breathing 10-15 meter-tall wyrms of undead blizzard lord Anurr, unaffiliated with the Brotherhood. Stick together: when alone, Anurr’s winds speak to you of your deepest doubts and fears, compelling you to surrender — or to let go of restraint, briefly berserk, and attack your own.

■ Serthica survivors may call their dragons to assist. Through Jon Snow, the party can also summon the giant, but slow and poor-sighted frost dragon Irenia to help on three occasions.

THE COLD PLAINS

Just outside of Hatthevar sprawls a desert-like cold plateau, where treacherous dunes shift to swallow you whole and the bestial forces of the Brotherhood’s most capable undead general, Rathakku, hide in wait. Hard-shelled, slippery and sleek his creatures lie buried and thrust up their arm-rows of hundreds of blades that cut into the legs of passers-by, drawing them into sand.

THE UNDERPASS

A series of subterranean tunnels connects Hatthevar with the cold sand outposts. Scour the myriad of dusty, tunnels and purge it of large scorpion-human hybrids that carry multiple weapons and whose sting leave men hallucinating. Oversized serpents abound, their venom prone to paralyzing their prey. You can make or procure antidote potions from Hathevar. Matthias’ ghostly titans are closing off all tunnel entrances to Hatthevar — don’t end up sealed in on the wrong side.

! Collectively, the party must kill at least one frost wyrm, one scorpion/serpent and one sand lurker to keep all three levels safe. Turn in your threads before 28 January… or let the citadel suffer in part II.

EXECUTION

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Assigned: Five, Lockwood, Mo Ran, Vanessa, Yelena, Wen Kexing, Zhou Zishu

Your objective is to locate Matthias and secure the beacons that are currently in heavy use. Securing one or more beacons will help you get home.

■ Your best bet for intelligence are the treacherous networks of underground memory thieves and slavers, who attempt to steal your freedom or your recollections.

■ Your next option is the gang of Erkul, who ruled over local oracles and Hatthevar whole before Matthias’ arrival. Coarse, slippery but cunning, Erkul sullenly nurses his weight in wine at the gilded Sanctuary, Hatthevar’s foremost gambling den. Street sources say the establishment’s passcode each day this month is a fruit name. Erkul’s crew sell highly potent opiates.

■ Ransack some Whispering houses for information, equipment, poison or arsenal. Small, dusty, cluttered and often creaking, Whispering houses hold a wealth of dangerous artefacts, from haunting poltergeists you might accidentally release by reading out their names from tomes to flying rope that throttles you. Large dread hounds instil blood-curdling fear in anyone who looks into their eyes.

■ The five beacons of Hatthevar are only briefly active each day as Matthias makes his summons. They are guarded by swarms of colossal leonine-shadow creatures that only attack if they feel any fear in your soul (of it, or anything else), pouncing to claw and shred you apart. To claim a beacon, Karsa may provide a cold, coal-like token that must be placed in the middle of the transport dais, within inevitable sight of the shadow lions. You must wait 15 minutes in place for the token to take root. Report your conquest before 28 January!

■ Every six hours, Matthias sends ravens to check on the shadow-lions. You must either trick them, leave the lions alive or capture the ravens.

CARE

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Assigned: Allison, Eda, Hermione, Kamala, Lan Sizhui, Sanji, Winnie

Carer’s have the lion’s share of all duties — and the party’s few lingering resources. You must look after the group and the ghosts of Hatthevar: meandering, disoriented and fragile, the spirits who were freshly wrenched from death’s snare become easy prey for the Undead Brotherhood, the elements and the ghost slavers. Rescuing or attending vulnerable spirits can gain you allies.

■ comfort ghosts who recover from revival or struggle with their memories. Many are stranded in the Whispering houses or chained into servitude in the gambling dens.

■ rescue spirits from the immense slaver clan of Ras’Kalur, which tricks newly summoned, dazed spirits in the bazaars to sign away their freedom, promising someone to look after them. Ras’Kalur’s people often raid streets and shelters, forcibly dragging spirits back into their camps at the outskirts of Hatthevar.

■ barter to rent or buy abandoned taverns to give the party a resting space during their stay in Hatthevar. You may need to pay locals in favours, from helping them carry out petty acts of revenge to making up with a grudge-bearing wife or paying penance to their ancestors.

■ heal, cook and provide for combatants on the walls, taking care not to fall in the crossfire or frost wyrms or of allied but negligent 12-feet ghostly titans.

■ as the least suspicious party members, negotiate for information or supplies on behalf of the group: make friends with gambling den owners and the two-bit shady crooks who know their daily passcodes to enter, or with the regulars of the Whispering houses.

INVESTIGATION

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Assigned: Ben Hargreeves, Benedict, Caitlyn, Cal Kestis, Jon Snow, Merrin, Nami, Rin, River Song, Wei Wuxian, Wen Qing

■ You know from Matthias that, as a result of his beacon summons, the spirit of his daughter Cosette appears every fifth day in Hatthevar for a few hours at midday. Despite this, a young girl matching Matthias’ description (5-6 years of age, green-blue eyes, blonde, prone to laughter) is never seen. Matthias alerts you whenever Cosette appears.

■ Day of first appearance: Matthias feels her presence in the bazaar, where the day’s main attraction is a puppet show that draws a heavy crowd. At midday, a chime sounds, and the puppet show performs the sad story of a daughter quarrelling with her father over his absences. The daughter-puppet flees into the woods, while the puppet-father refuses to reconcile and follow her. The girl is killed by animals, and the puppet-father grieves, heartbroken. All the women or girls in the crowd, including you, find they burst into tears.

■ Day of the second appearance: Matthias senses Cosette is in the alley of Whispering Houses. You notice the typical bustle of the alley and shady movements, as discreet, embarrassed, or desperate patrons scuttle. You see no small girls but hear of three trades that took place at the Whispering Houses, carried out by different women: one bought a memory, one sold one, one had a memory replaced. Pay for a memory trade to learn more.

■ Day of the third appearance: Matthias feels Cosette near the Oracle Hall. The hour passes by the time you climb the stairs and are received. The Oracle confirms only one person has visited — a blonde woman — and says to “tell your master that an hourglass keeps track of new time, but can’t give the old one back.”

You get three clue questions/character and should communicate with fellow investigators. Please share key findings by network before 25 January!

EXPLORATION

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Assigned: America Chavez, Buggy, Connor, Elayne Trakand, Lan Wangji, Licyn, Red, Wen Ning

The river Liu neatly divides Hatthevar, its clean waters progressively darkening towards the edges of the citadel, where they pour into a vast, serene and heavily misted lagoon. Veterans sense an eerie chill from the familiar dark waters that so often accompany the undead.

Like Matthias, Karsa says a strange power sleeps at the heart of the lagoon.

■ travel by raft with a companion through the lethargy-inducing fog, as tar-like people peer up from the waters or swim below, never quite attacking you unless you fall into water. They (and the currents) try to upturn your boat.

■ Scattered lit candles drift on water as you advance. Pick one up, and you find one of the floating creatures of Hatthevar has joined your raft, carrying a rope-chain. It says it and its kind are former oracles and truth-speakers of the citadel — and urges you to speak, pledging to kill the first person who lies before you leave water.

■ Farther out, you discover four half-sunken ships that have crashed into each other over time, their decks now forming a rocky square-like structure. You can carefully navigate your raft to reach this construct, or make your way by hopping onto floating deck parts and the debris of other rafts.

■ Once aboard the square structure, you find all the decks are heavily rotten, creaking and prone to collapse. You hear a maddening, shrill scream that steals control of your now convulsing body, until you find yourself driven closer and closer to the end of a plank or a deck hole against your wishes — unless you are physically detained until the shrieking ends.Sharp-toothed mermaids swim below.

■ Reach and explore the curious ships’ graveyard, to peer into the black well in the middle of the square infrastructure.

QUESTIONS

NPC INBOX

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[ Once they receive Matthias' offer, things change. Five knew that he must have been tracking them, and their covers were so weak that he wonders how they haven't been chased off by now. It had to be because he wants something from them, and it's no surprise what that thing is.

He considers calling Anurr about once an hour, to find out exactly what he's trying to do here. Before he thought he understood him, but now it seems he's out to conquer the world, and the sting of that betrayal makes it harder to strategize. He could attempt to manipulate him to get his help with the beacons or throw his trust into Matthias to keep his word, and neither option feels worth the risk.

If his powers weren't subdued reaching a beacon wouldn't be an issue. As is, they're currently less-than reliable, so he keeps out of sight and surveys the beasts guarding them. He can tell he's not the only one, but he barely glances at whoever joins him. Ravens circle overhead as the beacons activate to bring in more spirits. Watching it happen, a belated thought occurs to him. ]

Do you think it was his daughter all along? [ The reason they were brought here. Was it all Matthias blindly searching for help to find his dead daughter? He shakes his head. It was bad enough when they were told they were meant to be used as bodies in an undead army, but this... All this time all they've been is fucking collateral. ]

[She isn't supposed to be here. This is not her lane. Kamala hasn't been neglecting her duties either. She can't help pulling on this thread. It feels too much like Najima and Dar-Benn. Someone's good intentions coupled with great cruelty and indifference lead to a terrible outcome for everyone in their path. They are all living with the consequences of someone else's pain.

She investigates when she has a spare moment or is on the way to something else. Five being here is just more incentive to stick around. They are both weakened right now. She wants to have his back.

At the question, Kamala meets his eyes with a deep sadness someone her age should not know. She knows this story. The ending isn't going to be pretty. It never is.] Ever since we got here? Yes. I think this is all about Cosette.

[She crosses her arms over her chest and looks ahead. Her voice never raises above a whisper.] This is what it's like back home, Five. People want something so badly and it isn't even a bad thing to want. They make everyone else live with the consequences that come with getting it. I can't be with my family because he wants to rip his daughter out of Heaven.

[She isn't angry. She gets it. They all wanted their loved ones back after the Blip. It is sad.] I wish I knew what she wanted.

[That's what haunted her since they got the letter. It feels like a significant thing. She hasn't heard anyone else ask the question yet.]

[ That may have been an obvious question after all the evidence they've come across. Five shouldn't have asked it out loud, but Kamala responds exactly like he could have predicted. It hits in a way he wishes it didn't, and he has to turn his head to look at her directly when she finishes speaking.

Of course she's already sympathizing with the enemy. He isn't the one who should be convincing her not to, considering what he did. He became a killer who couldn't stop meddling with the course of history until his family survived, and see where that's gotten him? Two out of six is better than none, but he can't give himself any bonus points for bringing the long shot back from the dead when Matthias seems to have been behind all of it.

That doesn't suddenly make him not dangerous. Having justifiable motivations isn't enough. ]

Not everyone can get what they want. [ He doesn't mind being a hypocrite. Saving his family also meant saving the world, so his conscience is clear. ] You think that it would make a difference if she didn't want to come back? If he took it this far, we can't trust what either of them say.

Did you already-? [ If she snuck off to talk to Cosette he needs to add a few more words. ]

[Kamala doesn't argue the first point. He isn't saying anything she doesn't know or hasn't been told a million times by her mother. Sometimes she does need to hear it. She is a teenager despite all the heavy stakes she has lived with. This isn't one of those times.] I know it doesn't matter what she thinks. He is going to do whatever he wants.

[Kamala shakes her head in disapproval, frowning.] I don't think he remembered her name. Did you see that question mark? Abu could live as long as Thor and never forget the names he gave me and Aamir.

[She circles back to his question.] Talk to him? No. I don't want Matthias playing with my head. I want to talk to her. [Hence her snooping around places she does not belong. Kamala doesn't bother with the subject of trust. She makes no promises.]

[ Memory is a sensitive subject with Five, and likely always will be even if he gets his back, but he had glossed over Matthias forgetting her name. He doesn't like having more parallels with the man, so he'll let that one sit with him for a while before commenting. It's a bad idea to start wondering what he'd do himself if he had those powers and lost patience with trying to find his family by chance.

He only gets a second of relief that Kamala has no intention to reach out to him again before she says she'd rather talk to his daughter. Finding the girl is a priority to handling Matthias, but he can already tell she has sympathy for them that will be difficult to overcome. ]

Talk. [ He looks suitably horrified at the idea. Kamala is a better candidate than him, considering his 'talk' with the Beastmaster's child, but that doesn't mean it won't be putting her in just as much danger. ] Kamala... you know that what we're dealing with isn't just a father missing a daughter. She's key to everything that's happened here.

How we handle them impacts the entire world. If she decides to go back to him or not, that's it. We don't have a card left to play.

[Kamala keeps her eyes trained on Five. While he is horrified, she is resigned to the unhappy ending coming their way. She plans to fight it. That's who she is. She already knows this can't end in sunshine and rainbows. It hurts her heart.] I know we're dealing with someone who has done horrible and probably unforgivable things. Possibly the only good thing he wants is his daughter returned to him.

I am saying she should decide what she wants to do. She isn't a toy to keep from Matthias. She's her own person. Whatever happens to him... those are his consequences. I'm not getting in the way of that. I won't ask anyone here to show him mercy because maybe he loves his daughter. I think she should say in her fate as long as it doesn't hurt anyone.

[ Of course that's her takeaway. Kamala is smart, and more realistic than he gave her credit for when she doesn't hold any illusions about Matthias, but pragmatism has never been her strong suit. Five doesn't really disagree that his daughter deserves a chance to refuse her father, but it isn't as simple as that. Nothing is ever that fair. ]

It might. [ Hurt someone. Not everything is as innocent as it seems. ] If she's dead, and doesn't have a body, she could try to possess someone. She could possess you.

Chasing after the dead has consequences. Sometimes all they want is to live, and it doesn't matter how innocent they are when they get that chance.

[Kamala doesn't argue. He's right about this. It could all blow up in her face. Who will save her? Maybe everyone's favorite dad. He has the whole spirit thing down. It's still a serious risk when the goal is now go home to her parents.

The thing is she cannot ignore someone in need. That's not who her parents raised. The teen blows out a sigh and just owns the potential consequences.]

Then I get possessed. I know there are consequences for doing the right thing too. Three Avengers died to bring back half of all life where I come from. Monica is gone because she chose to stay in another universe to save both of them. I am not better than them. That doesn't mean I stop being me.

[ What's she's saying is admirable. She's brave but still so young, and she sounds like she'd trade her life for a dead girl to give her a fair shot at choosing her fate. Part of him is envious of her idealism, but he can't just let that go without objection. ]

Their sacrifices were to save the world and bring back billions of lives. I'm not saying you can't, but your sacrifice needs to count. [ Unlike him. He's done that, again and again, and he always winds up back here. ] I just think you should be careful.

[Kamala hears him out patiently. It is the right thing to say at the moment. Her expression softens. Kamala can understand his concern. She appreciates it isn't followed by an attempt to control or boss her around.] I am being careful.

[She gently taps his shoulder.] I'm here with you. If things get bad, we bail each other out. That's what we do.

[ There's a stark difference with how Five treats her and how he'd react if one of his siblings had the same idea. It's not because Kamala isn't like family to him by now, but even at her age, she's proven to be smarter about these things. Her biggest weakness is something he envies, an innocence that makes it easy for her to sympathize with anyone. Even Five.

He tolerates her touch on his shoulder; something he's been getting better at. Kamala and Ben in particular seem to express themselves by physical connection. It's a kind gesture that he only needs to rewire his brain to accept. ]

It's going to get bad. [ He hates to say it, but it's better to be mentally prepared. ] But we won't fail. If it looks like we can't win, whatever that looks like, I'll grab whoever we need and we make a run for the beacons.

You're not getting stuck here.

[Her smile fades as she accepts the outcome. Kamala knows. She's survived bad situations before. She can do it again. That's the name of the game. Kamala knows the stakes too well. It's one thing for her parents to know she is putting herself in danger for the greater good. It's another if their daughter never comes home. She can't put them in the limbo Hell so many lived through during the Blip. Their pain would never end.

She nods slowly.] Okay... I won't fight you. If you call it, I'll go. Whatever happens after that, at least we know we tried to do the right thing. Sometimes it just doesn't work out.

[ He hates that it has to be a choice for her, to do the right thing and find out that's not enough. She's already had to find that out with her friend. Five doesn't like it any more than she does. The thought that he might be leaving this timeline's version of his siblings to an uncertain fate isn't one he wants to dwell on. (Which means he's done nothing but dwell on it.)

Sometimes life is like that. And sometimes dying with your family is the only happy ending you get. ]

Not from my experience. [ He sighs, there's no good way out of this from what he can tell, but there is a chance for Kamala to get home to her family. ] Sometimes the right thing doesn't look like it at the time. You're at least young enough to keep going.

approaching the beacons

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