"Dapper" Dann, RIP

A few months ago I decided, with the other campaign I was in with family stalled out, I wanted to be in a long running campaign again. So I looked at startplaying.games and found an ongoing campaign that had one slot open. I joined as a level 10 Aberrant Sorcerer, my first ever full caster.

The DM was great, running a session 0 for me to make sure I was a good fit (and his table was a good fit for me) and he even helped me flesh out a backstory as to WHY Dann was an Aberrant Sorcerer. I'd already decided he was anxious and paranoid and worked for the Thieves' Guild as a sort of "magical consultant and mover of high powered magic items." The DM was able to bring in the WHY - Dann had been living on the streets, destitute, and took a deal from a shadowy figure. The deal was to get a Mindflayer parasite that probably wouldn't kill him or turn him into a monster. Worth a shot, and better than living on the streets. It worked, he awoke with new powers, and for 10 years worked for the Guild.

He just happened to be in the same city as the party when a dragon army was attacking and something in him (his own conscience? the parasite?) urged him to help. So he ran to the front lines and ... helped. Over time her got closer to the party although not revealing the secret behind his powers.

Eventually we had a mission to liberate a town that had been taken by the dragon army. We kept our plans a secret, even openly talked about a different plan and coordinated the REAL plan through Dann's psychic connection ability. But even then, someone scry'd on us and we got ambushed.

Things were looking REALLY rough. Our wizard was down, two other members bloodied, and Dann was at 1HP.

See, Dann was a tiefling but he was born to orcish parents. That gave them the ick, and when he was 13 he was sold to as merchant who basically just dropped him in a city and forgot about him. Hence the "destitute and homeless" condition.

So when Dann took a bunch of lightning damage that should have killed him, he popped up at 1HP (thanks to the DM allowing us a "heritage" that I took Orc and gave him that ability). So at 1HP, Dann cast Mass Suggestion. There were so many enemies around, including two young red dragons. The Mass Suggestion targeted 12 creatures around Dann, who was on top of a tower. 9 of them failed their saving throws, including their main caster and both young dragons. Dann commanded them to drop their weapons and flee north, the fight isn't worth it.

They did.

Saved all our butts. It was one of, if not the, most epic moment of me playing D&D. Just so much fun and cool.

So we knew someone was spying on us and selling us out. Apparently even before Dann joined the party, things were happening that pointed to a mole on the city council. We found some evidence that it was one of three mages on the council. So we had to confront some mages.

We unmasked one of them as the mole, and he turned into a full on ADULT Red Dragon. While we were in a large office of the castle. A fight ensued, we were rough but hanging in there until the dragon did a dimension door to escape being immobilized (Dann's counterspell failed) and unleashed a cone of fire on all of us. We all failed our DEX saves, but Dann went to 0HP and.... died instantly. Incinerated. Turned to ash.

Then the dragon ran off like a shithead. The party was devastated and pissed that this damn city had claimed ANOTHER friend (another party member died just before I joined). The paladin of the party gathered Dann's ashes and cast Gentle Repose, but there's no one in town with the magic needed to bring Dann back from that....

So Dann is dead, enter... Stann. The Orc Fighter/Monk who is searching for his little brother...