Session, 2026-05-16, The Hollow of Gluttony

The party splits between the owl bear’s cave and the Barrows crypt, learns the truth about Isar’s expedition into the Hollow, witnesses the fog claim little Shiloh, and fights a slender antlered Wendigo that turns out to be Isar himself, the Gluttony totem. After the kill the party is pulled into an astral plane, meets the Keeper Toma, and learns that Tiamat is set to be unsealed in roughly two years unless the seven sin totems are destroyed.

Cast

Player	Character
Dustin	Dorian Oric
Jackson	Tharion Papadakis
Matt	K’roaa’ka
Nathan	Roland Hartbane
Rachel	Lilith Rozanov
Lexy	Azalea Fern
(DM)	Brandon

Reveals & Canon So Far

• The dark pall is a prison. The fog is bound to seven sin totems sealing the dragon goddess Tiamat from re-emerging. Destroying all seven is required to fully seal her.
• Tiamat is on a clock. She is prophesied to be unsealed in roughly two years (real time). The party now has a hard deadline.
• Isar Recmir = the Gluttony totem. The Wendigo the party killed in the fog was Isar himself, corrupted by Tiamat’s outside magic after his expedition cannibalized itself in the Hollow.
• Sin → God mappings (per Toma, partial):
  • Gluttony — Isar (now destroyed)
  • Greed — Kezmet (Lilith’s patron, direct conflict)
  • Wrath — Basil (the dwarven god who ascended)
  • Pride — the Domini
  • Lust — possibly Elythrael (Tharion’s patron, direct conflict)
  • Sloth — a “Tartorus” / Tarrasque, slumbering somewhere in the realm
  • Envy — unknown, likely far to the west
• Toma is a Keeper of the Realms, not a god. Functions as a messenger between mortals and the seven-totem prison plane.
• Bahamut is sealed too. He was sealed several hundred years ago. Walks the realm without godly powers. Plot thread: unsealing him.
• The gods congregate ~once every 100 years. Next gathering is roughly two years out, aligning with the Tiamat unsealing.
• There are two white stags walking the realm. Toma confirms it. One is part-white, part-green and walks where nature is healing. Isar mentions a historical one tied to the Far East / Hogarth lore. Roland’s quest is bigger than one stag.
• The 13 Verdant Lords are leaders of the verdant realm, most tied to Amaresis. Toma confirms; recommends seeking them out.
• Achilles the Jester is back. Heralded Azalea into the inn with a trumpet and a scroll, then tried to pickpocket the ring. Failed. Calling himself “Jack the Traveling Jester, the Ripper.”

What Happened

Morning at Weber Hollows (Tharion’s group)

• Tharion buys Bubbles leather armor from Jamarius the Glorious for 35 gp. Jamarius shows him the tipping ledger (15/20/25% gratuity). Tharion refuses. Running gag: “gratuity man.”
• Tharion meditates at a dying tree on the camp. A cardinal sent by Elythrael lands on his shoulder. Confirms via Speak with Animals:
  • The fog covers the lower levels every night now.
  • It has been getting more frequent over the past week.
  • The animals feel an insatiable hunger during it. Same “feed” message as last session.
• Flinter, Nora, and Shiloh approach from the lord’s house. Flinter greets Roland (calls him “Cluth” — out-of-character meta beat from the table). Roland fills Flinter in on everything from the prior night: the crypt, the changed murals, the constructs, the empty casket, the owl bear, the ring.
• Flinter wants to pay respects at the crypt. Party agrees to go.

The Cave Stakeout (Lilith + K’roa’ka with Bubbles)

• Holding position above the owl bear’s lair, waiting for him to leave at nightfall (per the plan from last session).
• Lilith’s coin habit comes up — K’roa’ka asks; she explains it tells her what to do (she’s “stuck here” because the coin said so). Locks in her Kezmet tie publicly.
• Gambling to pass the time. K’roa’ka tries to befriend a gecko with Animal Friendship ritual — gecko fails the save initially, runs off.
• Dorian arrives (he split to tinker) and drops both his +1 weapon and +1 AC infusions to give:
  • Himself: Boots of Elvenkind (advantage on stealth)
  • Azalea (when she joins later): Slippers of Spider Climbing
  • Permanent until he drops them.

The Crypt — Flinter and the Empty Casket

• Flinter, Nora, Shiloh, and Roland’s group reach the crypt. Flinter is shaken by the changed murals — he doesn’t recognize the meaning.
• The family kneels and offers respects (palms up, empty-handed gesture).
• Tharion sneaks to open Isar’s empty casket while the family is praying. Stealth roll: 2. Shiloh notices first, whispers to him. He keeps going. Eventually Flinter sees — frustrated, asks what he’s doing.
• Tharion shows them there’s no body. Flinter pauses, looks at the flickering murals, and drops major lore:
  • The murals now imply Isar went into the Hollow with an expedition.
  • The Hollow = the cave system Weber Hollows sits on top of. Same name as the lower realm.
  • Isar’s group was looking for “some sort of portal” or a way to “mechanize the resources within” the Hollow.
  • There was a cave-in. The bodies were never recovered.
• Tharion casts sacred flame on a torch and inspects the mural for divine residue. Reads it as necrotic, supernatural, but not divine — “tied to dark forces, not from any god I know.”
• Roland casts Message (12 words, ritual). First message: a deliberately stupid test phrase (“small penis”) to figure out how the spell works, much to Tharion’s confusion. Once he understands the rules, he gives an actual update: “We went with Flinter to the crypt. He revealed Isar wasn’t there.”
• Plan: head to the cave-in site and wait for the town’s nightly lift to reveal the cavern.

The Hollow Cave-In Site

• Roland, Tharion, Azalea, and Flinter walk to the cave-in. From the outside it’s mostly stone overgrown with green foliage.
• Roughly 6:30 PM. Party settles in to wait.
• Conversation: maybe when the town lifts, the cave-in unblocks. Flinter and the family head back to town.
• K’roa’ka stays with Echo back near the owl bear’s cliff. Glue and the dog stay with the camp. Roland’s retainers had already broken camp earlier.

The Fog Returns

• Fog rolls in, denser than last night. Three dead trees sprout from the ground near the cave — small saplings, dead on the inside.
• CON saves (DC ~13) to resist the fog’s draining effect. Tharion fails — picks up 1 level of exhaustion (minus 1 to all stats, on top of being able to track up to a death-cap).
• The town lifts on schedule. The cavern beneath unblocks.
• Voice in the fog imitates a child. Tharion’s Insight check pierces the illusion — it is not Shiloh. But the lure pulls him; he starts walking toward it involuntarily. Lilith (in her grung form) grabs his tail (nat 19, then 20-tier double check) and yanks him back. Saved his life.
• The owl bear emerges from its cave, mournful as ever. Lilith and K’roa’ka tail him from ~5 ft, silent.

Into the Hollow

• Roland’s group rushes into the now-open Hollow cavern to shelter from the incoming owl bear and the fog.
• Inside: a massive hollow chamber. ~15 decomposing skeletons in matching cult-like white robes and pointed white hats. Journals scattered on the floor.
• Journal 1 — “Burgundy Esquire”: Day 7, ran out of food, starvation setting in. Pages ripped out at the end.
• Journal 2 — “fucking Steve” (sic, what was written): Day 2, Isar promised them a way out. They placed their faith in him.
• Journal 3 — Isar’s own journal. Gold-trimmed, Amaresis sigil, split in half:
  • Day 16: “I fear that we are all on the brink of committing taboo.”
  • Last entry, pen fading: “I hunger.”
• Lore lock: the expedition cannibalized itself in the Hollow. Isar’s spirit became something else. The fog is the consequence.
• Theory at the table during reading: not all gods are good; Amaresis might not be what they thought. (Foreshadowed correctly — see Toma later.)
• Skeletons have nothing of value to loot beyond their garments. Single exit. Party leaves.

Combat: The Wendigo (Isar, Gluttony Totem)

As they exit the Hollow, a divine light briefly disperses the fog. They see:

• A tall, slender, blood-covered figure with antlers and long thin arms — feasting on the half-eaten body of Shiloh. She had wandered into the fog while everyone was distracted.
• The owl bear was hunting this thing the whole time. The owl bear lunges into combat first.

Initiative rolled. Order: Nathan (Roland) high, then the Wendigo, then party + owl bear interspersed.

Wendigo mechanics observed:

• Ravenous Howl — DC 14 Wisdom save. Frightened — cannot move toward it. 1d4 turns. Most of the party failed.
• Gluttonous Aura — Con check at start of your turn if within 5 ft. Fail = 1 level of exhaustion.
• Bite dealt 13 necrotic and healed the Wendigo for the same amount. Multi-attack hit Roland for 30 in one round.
• Took half damage from piercing (Lilith’s bow underperformed). Force damage went through. Slashing/bludgeoning okay-ish.
• Tied to three dead trees that sprouted earlier. Killing one weakens it noticeably — “fog becomes lighter, lets out a discomfort roar.”
• Could misty-step / phase-shift between the trees while the fog was up. Once the trees fell and the fog dispersed, it lost mobility.

Combat highlights:

• Roland opened with Bless (party gets +1d4 on attacks/saves). Then later went two-handed longsword + Divine Favor + Divine Smite. Connected hard.
• Dorian stayed back, used calibration hammer (his improvised intelligence-scaling melee — does force damage) for 12, then ordered G.L.U. to follow up with Force-Empowered Rend.
• G.L.U. later used Deflect Attack (reaction) to impose disadvantage on a Wendigo strike against Roland — likely saved him from a second instakill.
• K’roa’ka used Hunter’s Mark + favored enemy (fiend) for damage spikes. Coated arrows in poison at one point.
• Azalea in brown bear form, then reverted mid-combat to cast Healing Word on Roland after he dropped.
• Lilith stayed hidden, used the cave wall and the owl bear for cover, popped sneak attacks. Eventually landed a nat 20 sneak attack with shortbow — 31 damage with crit dice (lodged an arrow into the Wendigo’s skull).
• Bubbles the goblin was critical — when Roland dropped to 0 from a 30-damage multi-attack plus the bite-and-heal combo, Bubbles ran over, dug into Roland’s pocket for a health potion, and force-fed it to him. 2d4+4 = 12 HP. Roland alive.
• Roland’s killing blow: Bubbles climbed onto Roland’s shoulder using the arrow lodged in Roland’s back as leverage. Roland brought his warhammer down two-handed and caved in the Wendigo’s skull. Its innards spilled, body decayed to black ash.
• From the ash: a single green leaf totem. As Dorian reached for it, it floated away toward the village tree.
• Owl bear visibly relieved. Returns to its cave. K’roa’ka follows.

The Astral Plane — Meeting Toma

A blue ethereal glow surrounds the party. They are transported to a small astral chamber. They cannot touch anything tangible. They are greeted by Toma, described by the table as “Mulan-esque” / Asian.

Toma’s role:

• A Keeper of the Realms. Not a god. Functions like a messenger / Hermes role.
• Has been watching the party from afar. Knew they were destined to help.
• Explains the seven-totem prison: seven pillars in a coliseum-like space, one totem behind each pillar. Each represents one of the Seven Deadly Sins. Each is required to keep Tiamat sealed.

Major lore drops from Toma:

• Tiamat is set to be unsealed in roughly two years (real time). Hard deadline. (Dustin literally set a phone timer for two years at the table.)
• Bahamut was also sealed several hundred years ago. Walks the realm without godly powers — could in theory be unsealed. Party (Dorian especially) immediately took this as a side goal.
• The gods congregate roughly every 100 years. Next gathering aligns with Tiamat’s unsealing.
• Devils, demons, and angels are real and the realm is in an ongoing war between them. Gods take sides.
• Two white stags walk this realm. Amaresis is usually seen as part-white, part-green, appearing where nature is healing.
• The 13 Verdant Lords are leaders of the verdant realm. Most have close ties to Amaresis. Toma recommends seeking them out.

Sin → totem mappings (partial, per Toma):

• Gluttony — Isar (destroyed)
• Greed — Kezmet (Lilith’s god — direct conflict)
• Wrath — Basil (the dwarven god who ascended)
• Pride — the Domini
• Lust — likely Elythrael (Tharion’s god — direct conflict)
• Sloth — a “Tartorus” / Tarrasque-like creature slumbering somewhere in the realm
• Envy — unknown, likely in the far western area, will be apparent when they reach it (the sin poisons the land around it)

Boons granted:

• Devourer’s Vitality — all party members heal double from health potions, permanently.
• Astral phase / Astral projection — party can phase back into this small astral chamber between adventures (not in combat) to ask Toma or the trapped totems questions.
• A Scroll of Resurrection for the party (one-use). Roland holds it. Logic: without it, if anyone drops, they’re gone and the mission fails.
• Shiloh is resurrected as a token of appreciation. Half-eaten body restored.

Isar speaks (calm, sentient again):

• Apologizes. Says he was gluttonous in life — hungry to expand, to thrive in modern civilization. Betrayed Amaresis.
• Gives blessing.
• On the white stag: “There once was one in white that passed through the Hollow. Born to a stag, a few bits of believer, he was strong. One like Ericar Cover and Lord Far, from the Far East — past the parts of our birth, before civilization took it.” (Hogarth / Far East lore tie.)
• To Roland: “Go forth, young stag. The actions you’ve done would do him proud.”

Back to the Material Realm — Inn Scene

• Party returns. Shiloh wakes up on Azalea-bear’s back, no memory. Told it was a dream.
• Townspeople approach with torches looking for Shiloh. Flinter relieved when he sees her.
• K’roa’ka stays at the owl bear’s cave to perform first aid on the wounded owl bear.
• Everyone else enters the inn. They have a secured suite.
• Achilles the Creepy Jester is in the inn — dressed as a herald with a trumpet and scroll. Announces Azalea’s entrance (“Please welcome Azalea Fern from the Fey Wild”), confetti card poof, walks out, then reappears performing tricks on a balcony.
• Performs juggling — including the ring, party’s coins, a skillet from the kitchen.
• During a smoke-bomb finale, Azalea feels a tug at her back pocket — Achilles tried to pickpocket the ring. Her sticky-finger infusion caught him. He laughs (“my sticky fingers, you got me twice”).
• He calls himself “Jack the Traveling Jester, the Ripper” — new alias on top of Achilles.
• Hands the party a new card from his deck (D4 random roll): the Chicken card — represents Pride. Tells them to “use the card” when needed. The card is part of “the game we are playing.”

Session ends in the inn, party with a new card and a clock.

Plot Threads Opened / Advanced

• The Tiamat clock. Two-year ticking deadline. Seven sin totems must be destroyed before she unseals. The campaign now has a spine.
• Sin totems direct conflict with party gods. Tharion follows Elythrael (probable Lust totem). Lilith follows Kezmet (probable Greed totem). The party may have to destroy aspects of their own patrons.
• Bahamut is sealed and walks the realm. Dorian (the godless) immediately latched onto unsealing him as a goal.
• Hollow cave is now traversable. The town’s nightly lift unblocks the cave-in. The Hollow is the same cavern Weber Hollows sits on. Worth a deeper return trip.
• Shiloh remembers nothing, but she did get eaten and resurrected. There may be downstream consequences.
• The owl bear is now an ally. Mate’s death avenged. K’roa’ka patching him up.
• The Jester gave the party the Chicken (Pride) card. Mechanism unclear — he says they should “use it.” Possibly a totem locator. Possibly a trap.
• Aradorn’s Speak-with-Dead ring was never used this session. Still in party inventory.
• Roland’s white stag quest is bigger than expected — Isar implies historical/Far East ties (Hogarth, Ericar Cover, Lord Far) the party doesn’t yet understand.
• Toma’s astral chamber is now a recurring location. Party can return between adventures to ask questions of trapped totems.

New Wiki Pages from This Session

NPCs: Toma (Keeper of the Realms), Jamarius-the-Glorious (Weber Hollows merchant — gratuity bit)

Locations: The-Hollow (cave system beneath Weber Hollows, expedition site, mass grave)

Concepts: Seven-Sin-Totems (the prison-keys sealing Tiamat), Devourers-Vitality (party boon — 2× potion healing), Astral-Phase (party boon — return-trip astral access), Chicken-Card (Pride card from Achilles)

Updates: Tiamat (two-year unseal clock, seven-totem prison), Bahamut (sealed, walks the realm without powers), Isar (Isar Recmir = the Gluttony totem, now destroyed; Hollow expedition led to cannibalism), Achilles (“Jack the Traveling Jester, the Ripper” alias, gave party Chicken card), Thirteen-Verdant-Lords (confirmed ties to Amaresis), Shiloh-Barrows (eaten, resurrected by Toma, no memory), Kezmet (probable Greed sin), Elythrael (probable Lust sin), Bubbles (saved Roland’s life via force-fed health potion)

Open Questions Raised This Session

• Who is the second white stag Toma mentioned? And who/what is the historical “Hogarth / Far East” stag Isar referenced?
• Envy is in the west — where, and tied to which god?
• Pride is the Domini — who is Domini? Not yet established.
• Is Achilles working with Toma, against her, or for himself? The Chicken card targeting Pride is awfully convenient.
• Can the party actually unseal Bahamut without breaking Tiamat’s seal in the process?
• What happens at the 100-year god congregation in two years if the totems aren’t all destroyed?
• Does the owl bear stay put, or follow K’roa’ka now?

Source

Voice recording captured live via ~/Desktop/session4-listener/, AssemblyAI nano speech model. Full transcript at 2026-05-16-vitas-nova-session-4-full-mic-transcript in session-capture/dm-resources/transcripts/. Dual-source (discord + mic) partial transcripts also present: pre-break, post-break, partial-1118.