Session 04 VTT Journal & Encounter Brief — The Knight of Magepoint, The Straw Sentinel, & Farmstead Respite

• Campaign: The Hellfire Club | World of Greyhawk (576 CY)
• Real-World Date: Wednesday, September 2, 2026
• In-Game Date: Sunday, 2nd of Goodmonth (Dusk) – Moonday, 3rd of Goodmonth (Morning), 576 CY
• Setting / Location: Rillard’s Barn, Farmhouse, & Upper Fields, Elmshire
• Platform: D&D Beyond Maps VTT | 2024 Revised D&D Rules (5.5e / SRD 5.2.1)

High-Level Tactical Summary

Emerging from the crypt tunnels into Rillard’s barn, The Hellfire Club reunited Rilly June and the unconscious Tayr the Paladin with Ol’ Rill. As the party prepared to rest, a mounted knight courier bearing the cobalt-and-gold livery of Archmage Tenser arrived with an urgent mandate summoning Will the Wise to the Fortress of Unknown Depths in Magepoint. A brief subterranean skirmish erupted when an animated blighted Scarecrow ambushed Ratatouille in the upper root conduits, which the party neutralized with dispatch. Taking a complete Long Rest at the farmstead, the company cleared all exhaustion, healed all wounds, divided their crypt hoard, and established Tayr as the defender of Elmshire before mounting their horses to ride north.

Operational Timeline & Key Tactical Beats

• Safe Harbor & Reunion with Ol’ Rill:
  • The party surfaced through the earthen trapdoor into the barn, carrying the stabilized captives.
  • Ol’ Rill met them at the threshold, offering the hearth of his farmhouse for Tayr and Rilly June to recuperate.
  • Settled the 200 GP bounty for cleansing the blighted cellars.
• The Summons of Archmage Tenser:
  • A galloping heavy destrier crested the farm lane carrying a courier knight of the Circle of Eight.
  • Wearing enameled cobalt-and-gold plate bearing Tenser’s crest, the knight presented a wax-sealed vellum scroll directly to Will the Wise.
  • The Mandate: Tenser commended the party’s valor in Elmshire and ordered them to bring the lead-sealed Talisman of the Eldritch Eye to the Fortress of Unknown Depths in Magepoint without delay.
• The Straw Sentinel Skirmish (Ratatouille’s Rescue):
  • Precious the farm cat chased Amelia’s companion Ratatouille down a field burrow beneath the crops.
  • Amelia shifted into Rat Wild Shape to stage a rescue, discovering Ratatouille cornered by an animated, blighted Scarecrow construct rooted into the ceiling turf.
  • Amelia reverted to Elf form, stowed Ratatouille safely into her pack, and battered the construct with radiant Starry Wisp.
  • Above ground, Nog the Dwarf and Max the Mighty excavated through the root-bound topsoil, dropping down prone into the subterranean passage.
  • Max delivered a decapitating strike, severing the construct’s wooden spine and ending the lingering blight.
• The Farmstead Long Rest & Reallocation:
  • The party completed an uninterrupted 8-hour Long Rest within Rillard’s farmhouse:
    • Will the Wise and Nog the Dwarf cleared their Level 1 Exhaustion.
    • Hit points and spell slots were fully restored to maximum.
    • Tayr the Paladin awakened fully healed and consecrated his vigil to guard Rillard Farm, Ol’ Rill, and Rilly June.
  • The party divided the 10,200 GP hoard and prepared mounts for the ride north toward Graveyard Cove and Magepoint.

Spoils Divided & Ally Status

• Treasure Allocated: 10,200 Gold Pieces (Crypt Hoard + Ol’ Rill Bounty) divided among strike team members.
• Relics Retained: Ring of Mind Shielding, 4x Potion of Healing, Poison-Soaked Kukri.
• Allied Deployment: Tayr the Paladin (Halfling Paladin 4) stationed at Rillard Farm as regional defender.
• Immediate Vector: Ride north along the Midbay coastal highway toward Graveyard Cove.