![[Publish/Assets/Session Headers/2026-08-12 — The Horn, the Flesh & the Shredwings.png]] # 2026-08-12 — The Horn, the Flesh & the Shredwings > [!quote] Session Hook > The horn finally changed hands, but the War-Slough changed the party in return — and something with wings found them before they could reach the Demon Nest. --- ## Overview The battle for the horn ended almost as soon as it resumed. Lurr rejected one last chance to surrender it, endured a final barrage, and teleported away — only for [[The Party|Lilly Pallywally]]'s Spirit Guardians and the lingering acid from [[The Party|Casanova Frankenstein]]'s spell to finish him during his escape. [[The Party|Unit-NULL]] recovered the horn, while Casanova harvested two tusks and five teeth from the fallen nalfeshnee. The party declined another hour of treasure hunting in the Canyon Trove and chose to press toward the Demon Nest and Oruo's phylactery. The War-Slough collected its price first. A DC 15 Constitution save left five party members physically warped, from fleeing ears and tentacle arms to a whip-tail and a five-foot flying speed. Then [[The Party|Tahara Rahma]] lost the route while guiding the party through the Slough, drawing two shredwings down from a circling flock. One burrowed into Lilly; the other merged with Tahara and dragged him into the air. Clever magic turned Tahara's attacker into a dolphin and sent it toward the Abyss with Banishment, but Tahara must maintain concentration for the full minute to keep it there. The second shredwing survived. The session ended mid-combat with it still airborne and [[The Party|Dr. Herbert Who]] beside it in the sky. --- ## Key Events ### 1. Lurr's Last Stand The session resumed at the top of the turn order with Lurr bloodied, clutching the horn, and still furious that the party had entered his home. He now described the whispering weapon from his past as a *mace* rather than a sword: it had promised they would fight devils together, then tried to steal the horn. Whether he meant Ara-Ara's new weapon or another blood-forged relic remained unanswered. [[The Party|Tahara Rahma]] closed the distance with *vampiric touch*. [[The Party|Ara-Ara Avannatto]] followed with Sacred Flame for 18 radiant damage. Lilly summoned Spirit Guardians with instructions to leave Lurr alive, while [[The Party|Celeste Valentin]] punched him twice and finally secured another grapple. Casanova struck with Melf's Acid Arrow, and Dr. Herbert Who — run by Tahara until he arrived — added Frostbite. Lurr teleported free and spent everything he had trying to escape. Lilly's overdue Spirit Guardians damage struck first; Casanova's acid burned again at the end of Lurr's turn. The nalfeshnee collapsed as the horn rolled from his hand, insisting to the last: > [!important] Lurr > **"Lurr no give you horn."** ### 2. The Horn Changes Hands Still moving under the last seconds of Haste, Unit-NULL sprinted to the body, scooped up the horn, and announced, *"I got it, friends."* The party now possesses the object Rex sent them into the Canyon Trove to retrieve, though it has not yet been delivered and the promised ten soul coins remain unpaid. Casanova stayed behind long enough to dismantle the fallen nalfeshnee. A rough start became a successful harvest after Flash of Genius and nearby paladin support: **two nalfeshnee tusks** and **five nalfeshnee teeth**, heavy but usable as future crafting ingredients. ### 3. The Slough Rewrites the Party The party's accumulated exposure to the Canyon Trove triggered a DC 15 Constitution save. Five failures produced five flesh warps: - [[The Party|Tahara Rahma]]'s ears tore free and scurried away, leaving him deafened. - One of [[The Party|Celeste Valentin]]'s four legs lengthened, reducing her speed by 10 feet. - [[The Party|Unit-NULL]]'s ears became tiny wings, granting a 5-foot flying speed. - [[The Party|Lilly Pallywally]]'s arms became tentacles with fingers at the ends, increasing her reach by 5 feet. - [[The Party|Dr. Herbert Who]] grew a whip-like tail that can strike as a bonus action. The party knows the changes may not all be permanent, but the duration and cure remain unknown. Ara-Ara and Casanova escaped unchanged. ### 4. No More Digging Rex and Lurr had both claimed that more powerful weapons and relics lie beneath the Canyon Trove's bones. The party could have spent another hour searching, but the failed saves made the cost of delay painfully clear. They chose Oruo instead: leave the Trove, follow the Infernal Map, and make for the Demon Nest. Tahara passed the first navigation save with help from Lilly's aura, but the next roll turned against him. He lost concentration on the route, and the party wandered into an exposed stretch of the War-Slough. A flock of shredwings began circling. Two peeled away to attack. ### 5. Talons Under the Skin Lilly opened with three Eldritch Blasts, landing two and forcing one shredwing back. Tahara answered with Toll the Dead for 33 necrotic damage before crawling beneath a low rock shelf. The shredwings retaliated with a grotesque hunting tactic. The first drove its talons into Lilly's shoulders and merged with him, dealing 47 damage in the opening impact. His Saddle of the Cavalier kept the creature from carrying him — and Celeste — into the air. The second attacked Tahara despite Silvery Barbs, burrowed into him, dragged him from cover, and lifted him five feet off the ground. Damage dealt to a merged shredwing was split with its victim. Casanova let out a Disorienting Blast that exposed one attacker, then landed a massive Fire Bolt that revealed the fiends' fire resistance. Ara-Ara surrounded the fight with Spirit Guardians. Celeste twice tried to wrestle the shredwing free from Lilly, then threw her black axe into Tahara's attacker; the blow hurt fiend and cleric alike. ### 6. "Release" Unit-NULL had the cleanest answer to Lilly's predicament. She used Command and gave the shredwing one word: **"Release."** It obeyed, tearing itself free before Lilly's next turn and sparing him another burst of burrowing damage. The other shredwing remained fused with Tahara. Dr. Herbert Who arrived at the table, surveyed the problem, and chose the most literal transmutation available: he turned the fiend into a bottlenose dolphin. Tahara landed upright with several hundred pounds of dolphin still embedded across his shoulders. Lilly offered Vortex Warp on his next turn. Tahara had a faster solution. He cast Banishment on the dolphin; its borrowed Charisma failed by one, and the transformed shredwing vanished toward its native Abyss. Tahara crawled deeper beneath the shelf and is still concentrating. If he holds the spell for the full minute, the fiend stays gone; if concentration breaks early, it returns. ### 7. One Shredwing Remains The released shredwing endured overlapping Spirit Guardians, struck Lilly once more through Silvery Barbs, and flew about fifty feet above the battlefield. Casanova clipped it with poison, Ara-Ara landed another Sacred Flame, and Unit-NULL threw two javelins without finding the mark. Celeste readied herself to grapple it if it came close. Dr. Herbert Who tried to end the fight with Sleep, but the fiend had too much fight left. He flew up beside it and attempted his new whip-tail attack, still learning how to use the mutation. The session ended there: one shredwing banished, one alive and airborne, and the broader flock still circling somewhere beyond the canyon shelf. --- ## Notable NPCs | NPC | Type | Notes | |-----|------|-------| | **Lurr** | Nalfeshnee | Died while attempting to escape with the horn. His final turn was ended by Spirit Guardians and lingering acid damage. Referred to the whispering weapon from his past as a *mace* and maintained that it had lied to him. | | **Shredwings** | Flying fiends | Hunt by driving their talons into a target and merging with it; damage to the fiend is shared with its victim. One was polymorphed into a dolphin and banished toward the Abyss, pending Tahara's concentration. One remains alive and airborne. | | **Rex** | Devil broker (referenced) | Waiting near the War-Slough border for the horn. The party has recovered it but has not yet collected the promised ten soul coins. | --- ## Locations - **The Canyon Trove (W4)** — Lurr died here, the horn was recovered, and the party declined to spend another hour searching its buried relics. - **The War-Slough route toward the Demon Nest** — Tahara lost the trail while following the Infernal Map. - **The canyon shelf** — A low overhang used as cover during the shredwing attack; the party remains here in unfinished combat. --- ## Decisions & Consequences | Decision | Consequence | |----------|-------------| | The party continued attacking Lurr after he refused to surrender the horn | Lurr died during his escape; Unit-NULL recovered the horn | | Casanova harvested Lurr instead of leaving immediately | Gained two nalfeshnee tusks and five nalfeshnee teeth | | The party declined another hour of Canyon Trove searching | Avoided more voluntary exposure and prioritized Oruo's phylactery, leaving other rumored relics behind | | Tahara continued as navigator after the flesh warping | The party became lost and triggered a shredwing encounter | | Unit-NULL commanded the shredwing to release Lilly | Lilly was freed before his next turn and avoided another automatic burrowing hit | | Dr. Herbert Who polymorphed Tahara's attacker into a dolphin | The fiend became vulnerable to Tahara's Banishment and vanished toward the Abyss | | The party used Banishment rather than killing the merged creature | Tahara was freed without cutting the fiend out of him or sharing more damage, but must maintain concentration for the full minute | --- ## Open Threads > [!warning] Unresolved > - [ ] **The surviving shredwing** — alive, airborne, and still engaged with Dr. Herbert Who beside it > - [ ] **Tahara's Banishment** — the dolphin-form shredwing returns if his concentration breaks before the full minute > - [ ] **The circling flock** — only two shredwings attacked; the rest remain nearby > - [ ] **The horn** — recovered, but not yet delivered to Rex for the promised ten soul coins > - [ ] **The flesh warps** — Tahara, Celeste, Unit-NULL, Lilly, and Dr. Herbert Who do not know how long their changes will last > - [ ] **The whispering mace** — Lurr now explicitly called the weapon that approached him a mace and said it lied; whether it was Bob remains unproven > - [ ] **The Demon Nest (W3)** — still the next destination, with Oruo's phylactery beneath the ichor lake > - [ ] **Other Canyon Trove relics** — left behind when the party chose not to risk another hour of searching > - [ ] **Damon Charles** — still missing since the River Styx > - [ ] **Paladin of Bahamut's undisclosed news** — still never delivered --- ## Combat Summary ``` Encounter 1: Lurr the nalfeshnee — Canyon Trove (W4) Status: RESOLVED — Lurr dead; horn recovered by Unit-NULL Final round: Tahara Vampiric Touch hit Ara-Ara Sacred Flame, 18 radiant Lilly Spirit Guardians, nonlethal instruction Celeste Two unarmed hits; grapple secured Casanova Melf's Acid Arrow; lingering acid active Herbert Frostbite, 11 cold (reduced) LURR Teleported and attempted to flee; overdue Spirit Guardians + end-of-turn acid killed him Unit-NULL Hasted dash; recovered the horn Encounter 2: Two shredwings — route toward the Demon Nest Status: UNRESOLVED — one banished; one alive ~50 ft in the air Round 1: Lilly 2/3 Eldritch Blasts hit, 18 force; pushed target Tahara Toll the Dead, 33 necrotic; took cover SHREDWINGS Burrowed and merged with Lilly and Tahara. Lilly took 47 on impact; Tahara was dragged 5 ft up Casanova Disorienting Blast; Fire Bolt exposed resistance Ara-Ara Spirit Guardians Celeste Two failed grapples; black axe damage split between Tahara and his attacker Unit-NULL Command: "Release" — freed Lilly Herbert Polymorph — Tahara's attacker became a dolphin Round 2: Lilly Spirit Guardians; prepared Vortex Warp Tahara Banishment on dolphin — concentrating beneath the shelf; must hold the spell for 1 minute to keep it gone SHREDWING Saved against one guardian aura, failed another; hit Lilly once for 14, then flew out of melee reach Casanova Poison spell landed; resistance reduced damage Ara-Ara Sacred Flame, 19 radiant Celeste Readied grapple if the fiend comes within reach Unit-NULL Two javelins missed Herbert Sleep failed to overcome remaining HP; flew beside the shredwing; bonus-action tail strike missed Flesh warping before Encounter 2: Tahara — ears fled; deafened Celeste — one leg lengthened; speed -10 ft Unit-NULL — ear-wings; fly 5 ft Lilly — tentacle arms; reach +5 ft Herbert — whip-tail; bonus-action attack ``` --- ## Loot & Acquisitions | Item | Who | Notes | |------|-----|-------| | **The horn** | [[The Party\|Unit-NULL]] / Party | Recovered from Lurr after his death; still owed to Rex under the party's bargain | | **Nalfeshnee tusks ×2** | [[The Party\|Casanova Frankenstein]] | Harvested from Lurr; approximately 18 lb total | | **Nalfeshnee teeth ×5** | [[The Party\|Casanova Frankenstein]] | Harvested from Lurr; approximately 4 lb total | > For a full loot breakdown see [[Session Loot]]. --- ## Party This Session | Character | Highlights | |-----------|------------| | [[The Party\|Tahara Rahma]] | Opened the resumed fight with Vampiric Touch, then lost his ears to flesh warping and became deafened. Navigated the party off-course, dealt 33 with Toll the Dead, survived a shredwing merging with him, and is concentrating on Banishment to keep its dolphin form in the Abyss | | [[The Party\|Ara-Ara Avannatto]] | Burned Lurr for 18 with Sacred Flame, escaped flesh warping, raised Spirit Guardians during the shredwing attack, and landed another 19 radiant on the surviving fiend | | [[The Party\|Casanova Frankenstein]] | His lingering Melf's Acid Arrow helped kill Lurr; harvested two tusks and five teeth. Gave the party an opening with Disorienting Blast and revealed the shredwings' fire resistance with a huge Fire Bolt | | [[The Party\|Celeste Valentin]] | Punched and grappled Lurr in his last round. One leg lengthened and slowed her by 10 feet; she repeatedly tried to wrestle a shredwing away from Lilly, then readied another grapple beneath the shelf | | [[The Party\|Unit-NULL]] | Retrieved the horn, grew tiny ear-wings and gained a 5-foot flying speed, then freed Lilly from a merged shredwing with a single Command: *"Release"* | | [[The Party\|Lilly Pallywally]] | Spirit Guardians and its delayed damage helped finish Lurr. Grew tentacle arms with extra reach, opened the shredwing fight with Eldritch Blast, survived the encounter's heaviest hit, and used Silvery Barbs repeatedly to protect the party | | [[The Party\|Dr. Herbert Who]] | Joined after his character had already grown a whip-tail. Turned the fiend fused with Tahara into a bottlenose dolphin, enabling its banishment, then flew up beside the surviving shredwing as the session ended | *[[The Party|Damon Charles]] did not appear this session — still missing since the Styx.* --- ## Table Notes - The Plaud recording was mistitled `COA 7/12/26`; the confirmed session date is **2026-08-12**. - The recording runs approximately 2h 49m, including pregame conversation and trailing audio. - Session ended mid-combat after Dr. Herbert Who's turn, with one shredwing still alive and airborne. --- *Session recorded on Plaud · File ID: `e55638c4fea303d967fc203d54078103` · Duration ~2h 49m*