Campaign Report: Against the Cult of Polyvotis

Following up on leads we discovered in a sunken temple off the coast of Kos Island in a previous quest, our party sailed to the nearby island of Porphyris to investigate possible cult activity on behalf of  of the Titan Polyvotis. Our party consisted of Pelias, Cleric to Poseidon; Ishkuro, Mesopotamian weather mage; Shovelless, Half-Elf Ranger (along with his saber-toothed cat animal companion Titania); Trodecarn, Dwarf Fighter/Combat Engineer; and Holtsmeistur, Dwarf Rogue/Combat Engineer. 

Upon reaching the main town, the port of Mandraki, we made contact with the priest-in-charge of the local temple of Poseidon and prevailed upon him to provide us shelter, sustenance, and information. We learned that the temple had recently been vandalized and that the slum quarter of the city had become increasingly marked by lewdness, gang activity, and violence -- all possible indications that followers of Polyvotis, "Lord of Profanity," might have been active in the area. Investigation led us to a vile underground tavern called the Sty, where we discovered foul magic and learned was being used as recruiting station for a cult dedicated to the vile Titan and that it was sending new prospects to a hamlet further inland. Not wanting to leave an active enemy to our rear, we resolved to raid and shut down the sty and, upon returning to it fully armed and armored, gave those present fair warning of what was going to occur. None availed themselves of the opportunity to leave and Pelias proceeded to evoke a Holy Smite, causing a Poseidonic wave of force to engulf the main hall of the tavern, disintegrating many of the patrons and grievously injuring or blinding others. The other party members then dispatched the handful of remaining cultists, the party ignited a bonfire in the Sty that destroyed the abandoned building above it, and when the structure collapsed in on itself Ishkuro summoned a rainstorm to prevent the blaze from spreading throughout the town. 

Next morning we ascended the volcanic mountain that dominates the island, entered its caldera, and there, among groves of unkempt olive trees and live oak, discovered a small hamlet. We were disgusted to find its inhabitants engaged in all forms of debauchery, to include an orgy in the village hall and infants being suckled by a sow in the sty behind it. Shovelless followed tracks leading further into the caldera and, in a wooded area, we encountered a herd of feral pigs being directed by a large infernal boar; we slew two of the normal pigs and the demonic leader, after which the remaining swine fled. 

Continuing to follow the tracks, we eventually came to a cave mouth in one of the volcanic craters located at the southern end of the caldera. Fat, heavily armored Trodecarn unilaterally decided to investigate this entryway and, even as he saw that it opened up into a pillared temple chamber with an altar at the end, alerted the creatures within as to our presence. Our element of surprise lost, we slew two pig-faced humanoids, one we believed to be a wizard of some sort, and what was apparently a pot-bellied pig familiar, and forced the rest to retreat down a spiral staircase into the depths. 

Pursuing our enemy into a long underground chamber, we encountered a mixed force of pigs and more pig-faced men. The first of the pigs we fought exploded and, when we realized they were prone to do so, Trodecarn cleverly threw a bomb into the midst of the others and demolished them all at once in a massive explosion that left a pulverized pile of remains spread across the floor of the cavern. We then continued to fight the pig-faced men, who were resistant to damage from our weapons and led me to believe they might be Wereboars of some ilk. Shovelless, Trodecarn, and Holtsmeistur formed a battle line against the creatures, and all were seriously injured in the increasingly desperate battle, while Ishkuro and Pelias supported the action with spells, to include multiple instances of divine healing. We finally managed to overcome the cultists, who we subsequently discovered to be men in pig masks under the effects of protective magicks that reduced the damage of non-magical weapons used against them. Victorious but spent, we decided to retreat from the dungeon in order to recover as much as possible and recoup our magical resources in some secure location and then resume our attack against the cultists of Polyvotis.