What has gone before
1) During the war many years ago, Baldekos the Betrayer performs some dark ritual, likely involving a sacrifice, to unleash a terrible doom on Nagthilian, home of the eark elves. Some of the dark elves in the city are turned into tendrils of mist that hunt and kill other dark elves, raising the slain as more tendrils of mist as they do. The city is destroyed.
2) Some time later, the Mass appears, initally near Goblinskull. Later the Mass attacks Kelethin, everyone is slain or flees. Scouts find the Mists in Kelethin the next day.
3) Similar events at Rivervale, the Mass attacks, Mists appear afterwards.
4) Now, many years after the initial events, attacks by the Mass begin but are driven off or simply cease after a time, with no Mists left behind. Newport is attacked first, then later Erudin.
5) In Erudin the Mass seems to have some sort of direction or goal. There is some sort of rift in space that appears during their attack, but it later disappears. The Mass moves its attack from Erudin to Mistwoods and then to the Valley of Erimal and down into First Ruins.
6) The Mass then returns to Mistwoods and shows a surprising intelligence, it speaks (through a Flayed One?) to the weary heroes battling it. It proposes to call off attacking cities if it is allowed to open a portal in Mistwoods. To buy time, this is agreed to, despite the ensuing ritual requiring a sacrifice of innocents that is tacitly condoned by the defenders.
7) Baldekos the Betrayer showed up some time later and mocked everyone for their failure against the Mass, then offered to show how to defeat it. He led some heros to Nagthilian and tried to enter the inner city, but the effort was foiled by the Mists. Baldekos slipped away.
Points from the Prophet
Baldekos' initial ritual that destroyed Nagthilian went utterly, disastrously wrong. Presumably he knows this.
The Mists that appear at Kelethin are weaker than the ones at Nagthilian since they don't expand their influence and take over the entire wood, just the tree-city. Similarly the Mists at Rivervale are weaker still, they cannot appear during the day.
The Mists at Nagthilian created the Mass, and the Mass brings its creator along with it, using it against the places it conquers.
Baldekos knows the Mass' weakness, if he could be induced to tell it. Force is unlikely to be a solution. Baldekos currently walks the streets of the cities of Dalaya, undisguised, presumably to spy on us for some reason. Nobody recognizes him, for few living have seen his face.
The Mass cannot be destroyed by battle, each one slain simply returns to the Body and is reborn.
The Mists at Kelethin can be destroyed, even must be destroyed. He had no idea how to manage this though.
Questions
1) What is in First Ruins that attracted the Mass?
2) What is in Nagthilian's inner city that Baldekos wished to show?
3) What could induce Baldekos to tell us the Mass' weakness - or is he sincere in his desire to help us already? Is he more afraid of the Mass than he hates us?
4) What is on the other side of the Mass' portal?
1) During the war many years ago, Baldekos the Betrayer performs some dark ritual, likely involving a sacrifice, to unleash a terrible doom on Nagthilian, home of the eark elves. Some of the dark elves in the city are turned into tendrils of mist that hunt and kill other dark elves, raising the slain as more tendrils of mist as they do. The city is destroyed.
2) Some time later, the Mass appears, initally near Goblinskull. Later the Mass attacks Kelethin, everyone is slain or flees. Scouts find the Mists in Kelethin the next day.
3) Similar events at Rivervale, the Mass attacks, Mists appear afterwards.
4) Now, many years after the initial events, attacks by the Mass begin but are driven off or simply cease after a time, with no Mists left behind. Newport is attacked first, then later Erudin.
5) In Erudin the Mass seems to have some sort of direction or goal. There is some sort of rift in space that appears during their attack, but it later disappears. The Mass moves its attack from Erudin to Mistwoods and then to the Valley of Erimal and down into First Ruins.
6) The Mass then returns to Mistwoods and shows a surprising intelligence, it speaks (through a Flayed One?) to the weary heroes battling it. It proposes to call off attacking cities if it is allowed to open a portal in Mistwoods. To buy time, this is agreed to, despite the ensuing ritual requiring a sacrifice of innocents that is tacitly condoned by the defenders.
7) Baldekos the Betrayer showed up some time later and mocked everyone for their failure against the Mass, then offered to show how to defeat it. He led some heros to Nagthilian and tried to enter the inner city, but the effort was foiled by the Mists. Baldekos slipped away.
Points from the Prophet
Baldekos' initial ritual that destroyed Nagthilian went utterly, disastrously wrong. Presumably he knows this.
The Mists that appear at Kelethin are weaker than the ones at Nagthilian since they don't expand their influence and take over the entire wood, just the tree-city. Similarly the Mists at Rivervale are weaker still, they cannot appear during the day.
The Mists at Nagthilian created the Mass, and the Mass brings its creator along with it, using it against the places it conquers.
Baldekos knows the Mass' weakness, if he could be induced to tell it. Force is unlikely to be a solution. Baldekos currently walks the streets of the cities of Dalaya, undisguised, presumably to spy on us for some reason. Nobody recognizes him, for few living have seen his face.
The Mass cannot be destroyed by battle, each one slain simply returns to the Body and is reborn.
The Mists at Kelethin can be destroyed, even must be destroyed. He had no idea how to manage this though.
Questions
1) What is in First Ruins that attracted the Mass?
2) What is in Nagthilian's inner city that Baldekos wished to show?
3) What could induce Baldekos to tell us the Mass' weakness - or is he sincere in his desire to help us already? Is he more afraid of the Mass than he hates us?
4) What is on the other side of the Mass' portal?