Savage Tide Session 48

(brief synopsis from last session)

The party were resting up in  Dacien's retreat, when Mendel felt the hairs prick up on the back of his neck. Dacien's detect scrying was trigger, as the image of a strange exotic woman appeared in his mind, peering over a pool of rainwater, and clutching two red-stained cobblestones in a blood-soaked rag.

She was idly watching Mendel through her sensor, biting her lip and playing with her hair. A symbol hanged around her neck that Dacien recognised - as an unholy symbol of Talitha, the entropic immortal of thievery, murder and lies. She eventually spoke, and only Mendel heard her  invite the party to Porphyry House, a little petulant they had not been already.

On returning to the city, Antony went looking to buy some real estate. He examined the district around a tower they believed to belong to Kedward Bone. The first house he knocked on was answered by an old gnomish woman who mistook them for body part sellers for the golem business. None of the properties were particularly lavish and well built. Eventually, they found an abandoned slop house come drug den, and started making it their own. However, as the party entered the city to plan their attack on the Harpies, they saw signs they might be being watched, as tiles fell off the roof of a nearby house.

The party planned an assault on the Birdcage to rescue Harliss, which involved an invisible Zhedd and Banshee scouting ahead, and then retuning to the party who were split in two less conspicuous groups. The city gates were shut and "Unite against the Seven Strangers' daubed in paint on their surface, so the city felt even less welcoming than before. Subtlety was lost on the party when it came ot the assault, as Banshee and Zhedd appeared on the streets, and then they teleported en masse into the gilt cage that held Harliss. Confusion effects disrupted the party's efforts, as the tower erupted into a mass brawl of harpies, a demonic statue, and terrified brothel patrons. Eventually the party regained their composure enough to regroup with the unconscious body of Harliss and flee the building. After a small sidetrek to recover a geased Mendel who was setting out to become the town's newest, biggest and not-so-brightest gigolo

One harpy managed to flee the Birdcage, and the city seemed to be on alert as the party regrouped at the doss house. Harliss started to answer their questions...