User blog:SatyreyesDM/The Lupine Wars

As Zaradene's savior and senior hero, Seth was frequently called upon by Chance Aldym to give advice in the town hall situation room, and Chance frequently asked for Seth's party's help on behalf of the city. When the eastern province of Solamnia came under attack by a horde of werewolves, or "lupines," Chance saw an opportunity to curry favor with the Solamnics and dispatched Seth, Lutesinger, and Rilla to give aid. Thus did Seth and his party become embroiled in the Lupine Wars.

When they arrived, Seth and his comrades reported to Sir Marcus Omnial, Solamnic Knight of the Rose, in the eastern capital of Vogler. Progressive for a Knight of Solamnia, Sir Omnial had no qualms about accepting these unusual candidates - a wizard and two women, one an elf - into his ranks. Seth and Rilla were assigned to Corps A, Silver Division, Squadron 2: a group of eight offensive fighters. Lutesinger was put in Squadron 3, the defense team. After mopping up some skulking lupines outside Vogler, Corps A marched to the hard-up city of Kalaman, which Omnial's intelligence indicated was under siege.

On their way to Kalaman, Seth and Rilla got to know their commanding officers and comrades. The leader of the squadron was Sir Hedox Crivett, a Knight of the Sword who unfortunately was much given to drink and abuse of power. His second-in-command was the affable but troubled strategist Luther Crownguard, who like the rest of the squadron could not abide Hedox's incompetence. Less seen were Sir Unther Lanthanaum, the head of Corps A, and Sir Ulane Noire, the administrative leader of Silver Division.

Upon arrival at Kalaman, the corps discovered that the city was not under siege at all! But the local lord, Sultan Ja-el, was acting a little suspicious - and after a couple lupines waltzed into a bar where Seth and his party were eating, Luther quickly inferred what was going on. Ja-el has already surrendered the city to the lupines. The altercation between the Solamnic Army and the lupines in the tavern broke Ja-el's agreement with the shadowy leader of the lupine mass, and the lupines attacked Kalaman hours later. Silver and Gold Divisions fended them off with no deaths, but sustained several bites. Also spotted was a strange creature that looked like a violet wolf with human hands and an unsettling, almost human head; this would later prove to be a barghest. Seth and the others were unable to take the creature down before it retreated into the woods.

The troops spent the next few days fortifying Kalaman. Seth got to know some of Squadron 3's soldiers, including Edmund Malthus, an Alchemist of the Eye. One day Seth received a letter from a Palanthan sage named Sirrus Chaid, who Seth had written to by pigeon regarding the timing of lupine transformations. In the letter, Chaid revealed that Nuitari, the moon governing the transformation, would next be full that very night! Seth and Luther ran to organize the men against the secret lupines in their midst. In the process Seth ran across Mira Choral, an Alchemist of the Golden Dawn from Gold Division. Seth and Luther finished their preparations in time to prevent widespread carnage inside the city, but the lupines attacked from outside the city as well. Thanks largely to Seth's magic, the combined forces of the uninfected soldiers were enough to hold off the lupine threat and take the transformed soldiers captive. Rilla was among those afflicted with the virus but was cured by the administration of belladonna.

Soon after this episode, Seth was recruited by Silver's Squadron 4 (the black-ops team) to join them in going after the barghest. Contacting Seth by night, the group set out for the marshes of Estwilde. After a close call when the group's ranger refused to rescue his compatriots from quicksand because "claiming those unworthy of its secrets is nature’s way," the group finally tracked the lupines to their subterranean den. The cave complex was almost completely dark and it took some hack-and-slash and some genuine caving for the party to find its way to the center, where the evil sorcerer Raskadim waited. It is Raskadim who was behind the attacks, commanding two barghests to organize the lupines and do his bidding through geas. Seth used a scroll to banish the barghest in the room, and then the party took Raskadim down, at which point one of their own - rogue Loras Demisol - transformed into a lupine himself! He revealed that he had been using the party as tools to take over leadership of the lupine army. Fierce melee ensued, but the barghest returned to battle on the PCs' side just in time to even the odds, and Seth and his party won the day.

With Raskadim gone, the lupines dispersed and Kalaman and Vogler were saved. Seth and his friends received plentiful thanks and reward from Marcus Omnial before shipping back home for a well deserved rest.

Sadly, the story has an unhappy epilogue. Luther Crownguard had disobeyed orders repeatedly, effectively seizing control of the squadron from the incompetent Hedox Crivett. At a Solamnic trial in Solanthus, Seth testified against Luther, as well as Hedox and Marcus Omnial, who stood accused of besmirching Solamnic honor by allowing undesirables into the ranks. All three were convicted and sentenced to prison terms. Luther and Seth remain on good terms.