13th Age 2025 Demon Campaign Notes

Written by Labyrinth on January 07, 2025, last edited February 16, 2025.

Session 1

Opens in Red Wastes, in a fight against some Dismembered Zombies, and few Five-Arms.

Core idea:

The fallen paladin Gaspard the Golden’s armor is being put to rest in an ancient gilded shrine, and Katarina has prepared for this, by starting a ritual to empower Sparagmos there. The demon Sparagmos (Dismemberment) is ascendant, while Zanureniy (Drowning) has been stalled by Gaspard’s actions, but not dealt with entirely. Katarina is preparing for the incarnations of Ballos (Hunger) and Kavralmus (Scorching), in Horizon and Forge respectively, with the Horn and the Eye respectively.

Opening fight: Three dismembered shamblers, two five-armed, and a limb-given. (Boltstrike Pillar intro fight, core p.300)

Transition into shrine proper – a small ziggurat on a dune. Some banners, trails of blood leading to the shrine. Long hallway with dismembered corpses strewn throughout, arms and legs scattered across the floor and hanging from ceiling.

Midway fight, shrine interior, ritual chamber: Some actual cultists! Probably just three 2nd-level archers and a troop? Should be actual cultists, not victims. Wandering Arms for archers, Double Joints for the troop. (Orcs, core p.242)

Breath-catch, read Katarina’s note, perform rite of burial on Gaspard’s armor. Investigate, hypothesis, etc. Eventually leave. All limbs in entryway have fallen to the floor, forming a runic circle, incarnating Sparagmos.

Finale: Sparagmos; partial incarnation. Probably an Imp made to be Large 3rd level. Lots of status effects, arms grabbing party members, joints popping, etc. (imp: corebook p.210, 2x hp, claw attack does 8, chains on natural even)

Session 2

Mostly roleplay, sets up stakes in Horizon, with leads towards Forge?

Important characters:

Jared and Breeze will be on their way to the Grand Tower in Horizon, for some interdisciplinary studies hosted by Alex.

Katarina might pop up somewhere in town, as drama dictates.

Session 3

Party used all their icon benefits to track down where the Horn is going, and through what passage, and when! Pretty strong stuff. They also got the Orcs of Horizon to cause civil unrest near the point-of-passage to funnel it down further. So there’s gonna be some conflict!

Fight 1: The Passage

These cultists are delivering the horn into town. Party will waylay them!

Fight 2: The Scramble

The party (hopefully) has the trunk with the Horn inside of it. It’s painful to be around, painful to look at, and makes on nauseous to hold.

And the Diabolist’s goons know exactly where it is. They feel the terrible weight of it settling on their hearts. They will have it back.

Also one of them is an intellect devourer trying to get the Horn themselves.

Session 4

Here’s some loot to disburse after the last fight:

Fight 3: Horizon Aflame

The party fought Katarina, saved Breeze, killed Phillip, and escaped to tell the tale! Later, they met with Will while escaping town, who extracted some information from them. They’re heading to Forge with Jared and Quinn.

Session 5: Into Forge

The party will be arriving in Forge for a bit of an RP session. They are tracking the Eye of the Diabolist, which is likely involved in a ritual for summoning Kavralmus (Demon of Scorching) taking place there. Here are some objectives:

Here are some factions and key members:

The Black, ruler of Forge is also a vampire. Richard and Dazud may have suspicions. Kelazud feigns indifference. Dazud and the vault-guard suspect a machine uprising from below.

The party decided to delve below Forge and ally with the dwarves. Notably, Selthorne gave into corruption and joined Katarina as her left hand, with the promise of Agony as his weapon.

Session 6: Five Clocks I

They met the Drow commander Akiko, a new player character, and started the Five Clocks mini-module, meeting Hinge in town. Hester followed him to his hideout, and then brought the rest of the party in while he was gone. They met with Lever and Clickspring, who eventually led them on an uneasy journey down into the Lower Reaches to meet Drive and Latch, who reveal their plan. After some uneasy negotiations, they decided to assist the clockworks, instead of kill them.

Session 7: Five Clocks II

Here are the two planned encounters:

Fight 1: The Singing Stone

Lever and Clickspring are going to pop open a geode, which unfurls to reveal a quartz dragon. It’s singing disables Clickspring entirely, before Lever strikes it and cracks its shell, and is swiped aside in retaliation.

Large 4th level wrecker [DRAGON]

Initiative: +17, +1 (Gets two turns: Roll once, use both modifiers)

Diamond Claws +10 vs. AC - 20 damage

Natural 11+: The dragon can make a Shattering attack as a free action.

[Special Trigger] Shattering +9 vs. PD (each enemy engaged with the dragon) - The target is dazed (save ends).

Natural 18+: The target is confused instead of dazed.

Resonance +8 vs. MD (1d3 nearby enemies) - 20 thunder damage.

Miss: Half damage.

For the first attack roll only, use the natural dice roll to see when the dragon regains Resonance.

Murderous: The crit range of the dragon’s melee attacks expands by 2.

Shake off: At the start of each of its turns, the dragon can roll a save against one save ends effect on it.

AC 23
PD 19HP 300
MD 20

Fight 2: Some Elementals idk

The party took on all of the fights and assembled the ritual materials for Latch and Drive, who finished carving the sigils into the ground. Drive began to sing, starting the ritual.

Session 8: Five Clocks III

The ritual involves a long singing from Drive, who channels his voice into the singing stone. The name of the god, Kse-Serevalaveresesk sounds out. Akiko and Sev pick up on the shared Elvish-Draconic root of this name, a long-past god of their respective peoples. The ritual completes, drilling a hole into the god’s front teeth, through which party entered the mouth of Kse-Serevalaveresesk.

Once inside, the party all fell asleep, alongside the clockworks, entering the realm of Sereval’s dreams. A tranquil river. Ruins. Twilight on the horizon. Flat plains. Lightning in the sky. The river is black. Helmut keens that the river must be Sereval’s blood, so harvests it with a clockwork siphon, which upsets the god’s psyche. The river furrows, ripples, coagulates, and resists their intrustion. The river is darkness, and the sky is knowledge, filled with lightning. At each step, the party attacking their memories, while drawing out some truth of their world through Sereval’s blood.

Hester was split into another dream, with the clockworks. Latch was obliterated, while Clickspring and Hinge were beat badly enough that Helmut had to mend them. Hester had been knocked out completely. They took her and the singing stone and the clockworks to Vault-Below-Forge, to explain themselves, offer tribute, and petition the Dwarf King for redress. He agreed to help them restart the Great Brass Womb (a new Icon of the Age) and they fled surfaceward to stop Katarina’s plans. Akiko had evidence that they had kidnapped twenty-seven elves, and were planning on sacrificing them.

Session 9: Birth of Caldera

Sev and Akiko both rally the lizards and dwarves of Forge respectively, and get them to assist with evacuation. Hester seeks out Katarina, and finds her cohorting with Judge, examining Vault-In-Forge, the adamantium fortress housing the current Age’s treasures. Helmut takes Lever to The Brass Contraption for tune-ups and upgrades, which take a bit of time, which he passes by speaking with Connor. Connor mentions Kelazud has gone missing. Elezar finds Jared with his wife, and lets them know that Forge is about to explode. Jared makes himself useful and rallies The Blue to help with evacuation.

Connor meets up with Hester, and they track Katarina and Judge to where the singular ritual is to take place. Hester goes in for the kill once her friends have assembled, but Judge thwarts their attempts, and invites them to see the marvel that will unfold. Helmut sneaks into a closet to begin a ritual, which Katarina interrupts, offering him the closest seat. Judge walls off Elezar, Sev, and Akiko, while Hester moves in to poison the sacrifices. Helmut attempts to disintegrate Katarina’s ritual with his own, but fails, while she cuts down the final sacrifice, transplanting the Eye of the Diabolist into Kelazud. The hellhole opens, and Forge becomes Caldera, with the party split.

Session 10: The Eye and Kevralmus

Fights 1a and 1b happen at the same time.

Fight 1a: Kevralmus, Partial Incarnation

Helmut and Hester are split off from the party, and are left to fight a Vrock by themselves.

When defeated, the Partial Incarnation curls up into a burning cocoon, and melts the Great Hall around it.

Fight 1b: Kelazud, Burgeoning Command

Kelazud attempts to control a wide array of onlookers and cultists, imprecisely.

When defeated, Kelazud stumbles off into the hellhole, possessing a cultist who runs off into Caldera.

Hopefully the party reunites after this point! Depending on what they do, they can meet some of Judge’s goons, who are raiding the Barracks Ward, or try to halt the progress of Kevralmus or Kelazud.

Fight 2: Kevralmus, Slag-Maker

If the party decides to deal with the cocoon:

Fight 3: Kelazud, Command Realized

If the party decides to stay on Kelazud’s case:

Fight 4: Brasstooth and the Hatchets

Remember gang, Judge says mages die first.

When defeated, Brasstooth attempts to flee. Good skill check or icon dice prevents this.

The party ended up taking on fights 1a and 1b.

Session 11: Escape from Caldera

The party took on Brasstooth and the Hatchets from Session 10’s prep, and then a basilisk on the way down the mountain towards Foothold.

Helmut’s complication with the Great Brass Womb is that the Crusader takes too keen a notice of the clockworks following them along, which will lead to contention down the line.

Meanwhile, the party has arrived at the gates of Foothold, where the Crusader and the Emperor have set up a war camp, to hold off the demonic menace overtaking Foothold. The party has gathered intel on where Selthorn’s camp is inside the city.

Session 12: The Sacking of Foothold

Selthorne, Left Hand of the Diabolist

The party successfully infiltrated Foothold and joined an encampment of survivors. The chain of command had entirely broken due to casualties, and a few dozen city-guardsmen were all that remained of the fighting forces. Akiko rallied the troops, Helmut called down smothering rain to provide a smoke-screen, and Elezar taunted Selthorne out from the shoreline, where he stood his ground and slew the orc, staking him with the Crusader’s relic to keep him in suspended animation.

Hester saw Agony, the Dagger, but was unable to hold it for more than a moment.

Session 13: Into Caldera

Having the requisite material for a counter-ritual, the party returns to Caldera. Katarina, wielding Agony once again, wounds the circling black dragon Kse-Larosalasoralesk.

Gale and Sidewind meet up and thank Hester for saving Gale back in Horizon, and Sidewind ‘gifts’ her Brilliance, the lightning bolt.

Sev gets Larosal to rush Katarina off the top of the mountain and drive her back into Caldera.

Inside, they meet Kevralmos, The Slag Maker, fully incarnated:

Reminder on grappling rules:

  • Always engaged.
  • Disenage at -5, unless you hit them first.
  • If grabbed, only melee and close-quarters attacks allowed.
  • If grabbd, no opportunity attacks.
  • Grabber gets +4 to hit subsequent attacks.
  • Grabber can move victims around. Can drop and leave them with no OA.

Lever makes it out of the Hellhole and sheds some melted armaments, and informs the party that Caldera is crawling with undead, and that Jared is somewhere in the city.

Session 14: Hell Of Our Own Making

The party is in Caldera, near the Hellhole of Scorching.

To enter the Adamantine Vault, the party needs to get past the door. Katarina’s Hellhole perfectly intersects it, allowing her free access. Jared offers a way in, asking for Helmut’s help in a ritual to trap her inside.

The ritual consumes his blood-stained scimitar as a ‘human sacrifice,’ and opens up a minute hellhole just wide enough to occlude Katarina’s and lock her inside the vault, while granting access to the vault to the party, with Jared’s help.

Inside the vault, Kelazud commands a legion of undead to retrieve two stained-glass triptychs from deeper within, which Katarina inspects. The first triptych depicts the moon above the sand dune, flanked by the eighteen-eyed hunter, and the blue-beaded vulture. The second triptych shows a burning eye over an ocean mountain, a labyrinth within the sea, and the dweller beneath granting audience to silvered figures.

Judge has disappeared deeper within, attempting to find and jump-start D1, the prototype clockwork kin.

Final Fight