Chapter 1: Exodus

By the time you saw the first of the Araneae, it was already too late.

The spiderlike creature was just the harbinger of the massive swarm that descended upon the peaceful valley where your village once stood. An unending tide of skittering legs and clacking mouthparts, crafting a relentless tide of jagged glass instead of webs in their wake. The people of the village tried to fight them, tried to turn them away, but their efforts were in vain. Nothing could be done to stop the inexorable creep of glass as it overtook the village.

You did the only thing you could do. You fled. Packing what supplies they could gather in a short amount of time, you and your fellow villagers loaded up a series of wagons and set off before your homes could be completely overrun. You pushed the caravan hard the first few days to put distance between you and the Araneae. Now, at last, you're far enough away to have a moment to stop and catch your breaths.

But what will you do? Where will you go? These questions and more weigh on you as you gather around the campfire...

Agûz racks his partially mechanical brain for any knowledge of the Areneae, but he comes up short. He and the other people of the village had only heard whispers and rumors of their recent appearance in the world, but it always seemed like they were a distant danger. They never expected the arachnids to attack them until it was too late.

As you continue to sit by the fire, a rustle in the nearby underbrush gets your attention. Some of the other members of the caravan have been keeping a watch on the camp, but now you begin to hear cries of alarm coming from the camp's perimeter.

What do you do?

In the darkness, Chiara sees something large moving through the underbrush. A horse-sized insect with an armored carapace. As she shouts a warning, it bursts into the clearing, its sharp claws digging at the ground as acidic spittle drips from its mandibles! Based on the cries of the other caravan members, the beast is not alone!

The huge insect reels as the energy leaves a sizzling hole in its carapace.