This is Tim's best effort yet. Don't miss it!
Showing posts with label Gothridge Manor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Gothridge Manor. Show all posts
7/30/13
Manor #4 Is Now Out and About
This is Tim's best effort yet. Don't miss it!
4/25/13
Good Stuff at My Door
The last few weeks of work have been hellish. I even had to miss our Monday Night Gaming Night and Bard's first GURPS session. However, getting good stuff left at my door makes up for some of it. Here is what came my way:
The Mini Manor: Faces Without Screams. Great stuff from Tim (Gothridge Manor). BTW, you can now get your GM Games five ways.
And my booty from the Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day Sale at Frog God Games: Rappan Athuk
And, if that were not enough, I decided to empty out my piggy bank (my money from my music gigs) and get Swords & Wizardry Monstrosities, also from Frog God Games, on sale for Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day:
The Mini Manor: Faces Without Screams. Great stuff from Tim (Gothridge Manor). BTW, you can now get your GM Games five ways.
 | |
| This cover is awesome! Nice job, Jason. |
And, if that were not enough, I decided to empty out my piggy bank (my money from my music gigs) and get Swords & Wizardry Monstrosities, also from Frog God Games, on sale for Swords & Wizardry Appreciation Day:
4/10/13
My Thoughts on Morale Checks
When it comes to morale, I generally do the following:
Improvise on the Fly: Like Tim, I usually just make a decision while the action is happening.
Roll Dice: On the rare occasions when I use dice to determine morale, I just roll a d6 and make up my target right before I roll. An example: Things going bad for the orcs? They'll surrender with a roll of a 1 or a 2, run away with a roll of 3 or 4, and fight on with a roll of 5 or 6. Easy peasy. No tables. No fuss. And it only takes a second. I've never actually used a morale table from a ruleset.
Create Thresholds: On a few occasions, I have set certain thresholds by which a creature or NPC will run, surrender, or otherwise give up the fight. Maybe it is a percentage of hit points. Maybe it is a percentage of creatures who die. Once the threshold is hit, the creatures or NPCs try to find a way out of the encounter. I base this approach on Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom--when the lions and hyenas meet, they usually do not fight to the death. They fight until dominance is established and the other party runs away.
The reality is that I never think about it in terms of "morale;" I think it about it terms of what a creature or NPC will do in an encounter. I have run encounters where I have used more than one of these approaches. I am a pragmatist when it comes to gaming. Whatever works and adds to the session is the direction I go.
When it comes to morale and running an encounter, what works for you?
4/6/13
Montporte Session 3 Notes
A few of the players were unable to make the session because of work and family commitments. We also sent Josh packing after realizing he had promised his daughter he would play video games with her. After sending him on his way, we were down to two players: Tim (Gothridge Manor) and Bard (The Clash of Spear on Shield). We quickly dispensed with the usual pre-game chatter and jumped into the dungeon.
Cast of Characters
Adzeer Mattiu, Hunter of the First Circle (Half Orc, 1 Lvl Hunter): Tim
Dante Rathburn (Human, 1 Lvl Warlock): Bard
Spensol (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Ian (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Diana (Human, Torch Bearer, Goat Driver): NPC
Larramore “Little Larry” (Kobold, 1 lvl Marksman): NPC
The Map
The Session
Session 3 started where Session 2 left off—the party had defeated four jinomes (undead gnomes) in the corridor (Area 1 on the map) through the clever use of caltrops. Adzeer Mattiu could see the door to the east and decided that was the direction they need to go. This led them into a large room (Area 2 on the map).
This room (Area 2) was filled with the remnants of long low wooden tables and benches, laid out in rows (like a cafeteria, to use a metagame description). The tables and benches were simple but very well made, of heavy construction. There was a prayer, written in an archaic version of the Dwarven tongue, on the west wall of the room:
Ye gods and goddesses
Fathers and mothers from of olde
Bless these thine gifts
That they may strengthen us
To do thine work in this life
And in the life to come
There was also something written with large letters on the east wall of the room. The party recognized that it was in the Gnome language, but no one in the group was able to read it. The room was searched and there was nothing of note in the room outside of a lot of food/beverage stains on tables (mainly on the west side of the room).
The party then moved through the door into the next room to the east (Area 3 on the map). The party found a dead jinome (undead gnome) lying on the floor in the southeast area of the room. They cautiously moved over to the that area of the room to inspect the body. They discovered it had four small arrows in it. There were also another half dozen arrows lying on the floor of the room. Based on the pattern of arrows, Dante guessed that the arrows were shot from the corridor in the south wall of the room.
Adzeer Mattiu carefully peeked around the corner of the southern corridor and looked south. He was able to a portion of another room (Area 4 on the map). He could see a some bodies lying on the floor—a dead kobold, a dead jinome, and some sort of white furry lump. There was the smell of livestock wafting down the short corridor. He could also hear a soft bleating, “Baah baah baah.”
The party slowly and carefully moved down the corridor from Area 3 to the room in Area 4. This room had the remnants of wooden beds and straw-filled mattresses, with something in the Gnome language written on the walls. Of more immediate concern were the dead bodies on the floor—seven kobold corpses, four more jinomes, and the body of a cave goat. All had met a violent end. Even an uninformed observer would recognize the obvious battle scene from the evidence.
As the party searched the room, the most obvious items were the three small round boats (coracles), each made of a light wood frame and covered in waterproofed skins. Two of the boats were severely damaged but one was still seaworthy (using the word “sea” in the broadest sense possible).
The group also discovered three live cave goats in the corner, each with saddle bags filled with provisions and equipment. There was lots of palatable food, waterskins, 8 paddles, and 4 inflated sealed bladders. A search of the bodies uncovered a small amount of coins, two vials, and 8 daggers (one made much better than the other seven). Using the Lens of Melnar, Dante identified the two vials to be potions—water breathing and healing draught (1d4). Dante’s Detect Magic spell did detect a dweomer with a bit of kick to it on the dagger.
Adzeer Mattiu was the first one in the group to notice the trail of kobold blood heading out of the small corridor in the southern portion of the west wall in Area 4. It led to a door (Area 5 on the map). He tried the door and found it secured from the inside. Adzeer Mattiu shouted through the door a command to surrender (in Kobold). After a bit of conversation, the door was opened revealing yet another dungeon restroom and a wounded kobold. Adzeer Mattiue healed the kobold, whose named turned out to be Larramore. He was dubbed “Little Larry,” given a bite to eat, and was invited to join the party.
Little Larry explained that he and his party were looking for an ancient sacred area of some sort, long held to be important to the kobolds. They knew very little about it or its location, but had surmised that it might be in the Montporte Dungeon. Little Larry also had crude map, with descriptions written in Kobold. Adzeer Mattiu was able to read and translate the map.
Using the statue with the gas trap as the point of reference, the party determined that they had lost contact with the orcs by travelling too far north and east. They decided to retrace their footsteps back to the statue (between Areas 6 & 7 on the map) and then head south. At this point, the party included two player characters (Adzeer Mattiu and Dante Rathburn); two NPC henchmen (Spensol and Ian) carrying a boat; a rescued prisoner, now acting as a torchbearer and goat driver (Diana); an NPC kobold (Little Larry); and three cave goats.
Along the way, the group encountered a gelatinous cube, almost running into it before seeing it (Area 6 on the map). Dante’s quick use of flaming oil burned the cube, leaving in its place a pile of detritus. There were lots of bones, rocks, pebbles, and pottery fragments to sort through but their efforts paid off. They found 22 silver bars (50 s.p. each) and 2 gold bars (50 g.p. each), plus a tarnished simple copper ring and slightly singed scroll inside a bone case (no one in the party could read it).
The party carefully moved south past the statue so as to not trigger the gas trap to Area 7. They decided to explore the corridors to the east before opening the two doors on the west wall. The corridor opened up into a large room with the remains of human-sized bunks (Area 8 on the map). The north and south walls were covered with frescoes. Though heavily water-damaged, the party could see clouds, rocks, flames, and waves, similar to the decorations in the huge room they discovered at the end of Session 1.
They searched the beds as they went and found a small bone scroll case with a fold up piece of papyrus paper. While the writing suffered a lot of water damage, the legible portions were written in archaic Common and described some daily activities, such as study of the Elements, learning from the Master Teachers, purity of the Soul, and discipline of the Mind.
Just as they finished reading it, they heard some scraping scuttling sounds to the east and continued to move into the room. They caught a glimpse of two large insect creatures moving away from them. They followed the sounds around the corner at the east end of Area 8 and caught up with 2 bombardier beetles in Area 9. These were quickly dispatched.
The party then moved back into the corridor and opened the two doors on the west wall, revealing two more potty rooms (Areas 10 & 11). Dante checked out the clay pots beneath the hole in each seat and was rewarded with a silver bar (50 s.p. value) in Area 10. Adzeer Mattiu was horrified by Dante’s explorations of the chamber pots, letting Dante know in no uncertain terms that Dante was not to touch the party’s food.
The parade of people, goats and boat moved south and past through the door into Area 12. There they found a dead spider and a dead orc in the middle of the room and two live giant spiders in a web in the southeast corner. After some very poorly executive attempts by Dante to use flaming oil, the spiders moved from the web toward to the party and they met together in a pitiful exhibition of melee on both sides. Finally, despite themselves, the party killed off the two spiders.
They looked west into the corridor leading out of Area 12. It was filled almost to the ceiling with rocks. They looked like they had been piled there recently and matched up with what the party had discovered during Session 1 (also labeled Area 12, quite coincidentally). The party realized that they could crawl over the pile back into the area held by the orcs. And with this knowledge, Session 3 came to an end.
You can check out Tim's recap of the session here and Bard's headline version here.
Cast of Characters
Adzeer Mattiu, Hunter of the First Circle (Half Orc, 1 Lvl Hunter): Tim
Dante Rathburn (Human, 1 Lvl Warlock): Bard
Spensol (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Ian (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Diana (Human, Torch Bearer, Goat Driver): NPC
Larramore “Little Larry” (Kobold, 1 lvl Marksman): NPC
The Map
 |
| 1 Square=5 feet |
Session 3 started where Session 2 left off—the party had defeated four jinomes (undead gnomes) in the corridor (Area 1 on the map) through the clever use of caltrops. Adzeer Mattiu could see the door to the east and decided that was the direction they need to go. This led them into a large room (Area 2 on the map).
This room (Area 2) was filled with the remnants of long low wooden tables and benches, laid out in rows (like a cafeteria, to use a metagame description). The tables and benches were simple but very well made, of heavy construction. There was a prayer, written in an archaic version of the Dwarven tongue, on the west wall of the room:
Ye gods and goddesses
Fathers and mothers from of olde
Bless these thine gifts
That they may strengthen us
To do thine work in this life
And in the life to come
There was also something written with large letters on the east wall of the room. The party recognized that it was in the Gnome language, but no one in the group was able to read it. The room was searched and there was nothing of note in the room outside of a lot of food/beverage stains on tables (mainly on the west side of the room).
The party then moved through the door into the next room to the east (Area 3 on the map). The party found a dead jinome (undead gnome) lying on the floor in the southeast area of the room. They cautiously moved over to the that area of the room to inspect the body. They discovered it had four small arrows in it. There were also another half dozen arrows lying on the floor of the room. Based on the pattern of arrows, Dante guessed that the arrows were shot from the corridor in the south wall of the room.
Adzeer Mattiu carefully peeked around the corner of the southern corridor and looked south. He was able to a portion of another room (Area 4 on the map). He could see a some bodies lying on the floor—a dead kobold, a dead jinome, and some sort of white furry lump. There was the smell of livestock wafting down the short corridor. He could also hear a soft bleating, “Baah baah baah.”
The party slowly and carefully moved down the corridor from Area 3 to the room in Area 4. This room had the remnants of wooden beds and straw-filled mattresses, with something in the Gnome language written on the walls. Of more immediate concern were the dead bodies on the floor—seven kobold corpses, four more jinomes, and the body of a cave goat. All had met a violent end. Even an uninformed observer would recognize the obvious battle scene from the evidence.
The group also discovered three live cave goats in the corner, each with saddle bags filled with provisions and equipment. There was lots of palatable food, waterskins, 8 paddles, and 4 inflated sealed bladders. A search of the bodies uncovered a small amount of coins, two vials, and 8 daggers (one made much better than the other seven). Using the Lens of Melnar, Dante identified the two vials to be potions—water breathing and healing draught (1d4). Dante’s Detect Magic spell did detect a dweomer with a bit of kick to it on the dagger.
Little Larry explained that he and his party were looking for an ancient sacred area of some sort, long held to be important to the kobolds. They knew very little about it or its location, but had surmised that it might be in the Montporte Dungeon. Little Larry also had crude map, with descriptions written in Kobold. Adzeer Mattiu was able to read and translate the map.
Along the way, the group encountered a gelatinous cube, almost running into it before seeing it (Area 6 on the map). Dante’s quick use of flaming oil burned the cube, leaving in its place a pile of detritus. There were lots of bones, rocks, pebbles, and pottery fragments to sort through but their efforts paid off. They found 22 silver bars (50 s.p. each) and 2 gold bars (50 g.p. each), plus a tarnished simple copper ring and slightly singed scroll inside a bone case (no one in the party could read it).
The party carefully moved south past the statue so as to not trigger the gas trap to Area 7. They decided to explore the corridors to the east before opening the two doors on the west wall. The corridor opened up into a large room with the remains of human-sized bunks (Area 8 on the map). The north and south walls were covered with frescoes. Though heavily water-damaged, the party could see clouds, rocks, flames, and waves, similar to the decorations in the huge room they discovered at the end of Session 1.
They searched the beds as they went and found a small bone scroll case with a fold up piece of papyrus paper. While the writing suffered a lot of water damage, the legible portions were written in archaic Common and described some daily activities, such as study of the Elements, learning from the Master Teachers, purity of the Soul, and discipline of the Mind.
Just as they finished reading it, they heard some scraping scuttling sounds to the east and continued to move into the room. They caught a glimpse of two large insect creatures moving away from them. They followed the sounds around the corner at the east end of Area 8 and caught up with 2 bombardier beetles in Area 9. These were quickly dispatched.
The party then moved back into the corridor and opened the two doors on the west wall, revealing two more potty rooms (Areas 10 & 11). Dante checked out the clay pots beneath the hole in each seat and was rewarded with a silver bar (50 s.p. value) in Area 10. Adzeer Mattiu was horrified by Dante’s explorations of the chamber pots, letting Dante know in no uncertain terms that Dante was not to touch the party’s food.
The parade of people, goats and boat moved south and past through the door into Area 12. There they found a dead spider and a dead orc in the middle of the room and two live giant spiders in a web in the southeast corner. After some very poorly executive attempts by Dante to use flaming oil, the spiders moved from the web toward to the party and they met together in a pitiful exhibition of melee on both sides. Finally, despite themselves, the party killed off the two spiders.
They looked west into the corridor leading out of Area 12. It was filled almost to the ceiling with rocks. They looked like they had been piled there recently and matched up with what the party had discovered during Session 1 (also labeled Area 12, quite coincidentally). The party realized that they could crawl over the pile back into the area held by the orcs. And with this knowledge, Session 3 came to an end.
You can check out Tim's recap of the session here and Bard's headline version here.
3/27/13
More Good Things in the Mail
Tim also sent me some giant graph paper for giant maps of giant dungeons. They are 2' x 3', with 1/4 inch squares. Thanks, Tim, for being so generous. Maybe you'll find a giant roll +2 paper of zine production in the giant dungeon.
3/14/13
Montporte Dungeon Session 2 Notes (Blood & Treasure)
So we made the switch from AD&D 1e to Blood & Treasure after deciding to add a once-a-month dungeon delve to our Monday Night Gaming Group, with me as GM/DM/TK/LL/CK/Ref. You can read my notes from the first session here. If we were playing every week, I might have been tempted to try GURPS Dungeon Fantasy but that seemed like a lot of work for 3 hours/month of playing (as I am a GURPS newbie, which would mean lots of additional prep). Anyway, I digress.
The Cast
Adzeer Mattiu, Hunter of the First Circle (Half Orc, 1 Lvl Hunter): Tim
Duncan Kern (Gnome, 1 Lvl Illusionist/Thief): Dan
Leif (Half-Elf, 1 Lvl Mage/Cleric/Trickster): Josh
Spensol (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Ian (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Diana (Human): NPC
The Session
The brave adventurers had just finished killing a black floating amoeba type creature plus three orcs. They found a young woman, about 20 years old, lying on the floor in a catatonic state (Room #1 on the map above). After several unsuccessful attempts to revive the woman, Leif scooped up some of the cytoplasmic goo from the floating amoeba and wiped it on the woman. Much to the surprise of everyone (including me), the woman stirred and then slowly came to her senses (I gave this a 1 in 6 chance of working and then rolled a "1").
The woman's name turned out to be Diana. She remembered very little of her ordeal, only that she and some others were taken captive by a band of orcs. She had no recollection of being brought underground and had no useful knowledge regarding the orcs or the rest of the human captives. The player characters tried in vain to convince Diana to return to the surface, where she could wait with a few members of the adventuring party who were guarding the horses. She was unwilling to wander the dungeon alone so she the group assigned her the role of torch bearer.
The party then left Room #1, passed through Room #2, and encountered two orcs standing guard near the east end of #3. The orcs charged and were quickly dispatched. Leif discovered a trap attached to the door to the east--he was able to disarm a weighted axe designed to chop into the chest of the unwary.
After disarming the trap, the party continued east through the door to the statue in area #4. They checked the approach to the statue for traps and found a trigger in the floor. Upon closer examination, they discovered that the statue (made of bronze) had a lot of discoloration around the nose and the nostrils were actually openings of some kind. They guessed that the statue discharged acid or gas and that it was connected to the trigger in the floor.
The party moved north into Room #5 and surprised a group of giant rats who were feeding on the almost skeletal remains of two kobolds. The rats were put to sleep, dispatched to Cheese Factory in the Sky, and the kobold remains were searched.
The group continued north into an east-west corridor (area #8). They first opened the door into a small 10' x 10' room with two stone chairs against the far wall. Each chair had a hole in the seat with a ceramic bowl on the floor below it. They had little chance to ponder the potty chairs as there were two animated skeletons in the room.
The fight with the skeletons turned out to be the party's toughest encounter so far on this adventure. Rather than attempt to turn the skeletons, the party figured that they would make quick work of two skeletons. Because of the small space, the party couldn't go "all in" and so it was an even match. While the skeleton attacks were non-lethal, the party had no luck even striking the skeletons. Leif was able to toss a net over one of the skeletons, giving the party tactical advantage (-2 to the skeleton's armor class and attack role). The skeletons were finally dispatched.
The party then turned their attention to the door on the north wall. No traps were discovered and Adzeer opened the door, only to have a bolt zip by him and stick into the door on the south wall. A close call, meriting quick glare from Adzeer towards Leif and Duncan, the trap removal guys.
The room (Room #7) had a remnants of wooden barrels and crates, plus a small iron chest. Leif checked for traps and found a trap trigger but was unable to disarm it. He picked the lock and carefully opening the trap. His caution rewarded him with a near miss from a small dart. The box contained 5 rolls of silk. The bottom and top roll had some rust damage, but were partially salvaged. The middle three rolls were in great shape.
While searching for a false bottom in the box, a group of jinomes entered the room and surprised the characters. Jinomes are undead gnomes, with the ability to weaken their opponents through hideous songs and crazy laughter. Immediately, they got the jump on the party, paying particular attention to Duncan (the party's gnome). Recognizing the peril and fighting back his desire to destroy the jinomes in combat, Adzeer opted to turn the jinomes. His supplications were answered and the jinomes scurried from the room.
Leif went back to the iron chest, found a false bottom, and uncovered 10 silver bars. The party then prepared for the jinomes return, with Leif littering the floor in corridor (area #8) with caltrops.
Sure enough, as predicted, the jinomes returned and failed to notice the caltrops. The caltrops took their tool, which allowed the party to make quick work of them. This is where the session ended for the evening.
We had a late start and an early finish, but the party was able to do a bit of exploration this session. They only discovered two orcs and they failed to find any more humans, so they have a lot of work left to do.
Check out Tim's post on this session.
2/15/13
Five For Friday 8: Five Questions for Tim Shorts
Hey, kids! Today we are thrilled to have Tim Shorts as part of the blog to answer us up on 5 questions. I get to game with Tim on a regular basis and, thanks to his invitation, I am part of a groovy Monday Night Game Group. You can find Tim at his blog, Gothridge Manor, and you can check out and purchase his gaming products at GM Games.
What was your weirdest gaming experience?
Weirdest? I think gaming is a weird experience in itself. I remember a game at a convention where a guy (I guess more kid) got so upset his character died he slammed his head on the table. Hard. He caught a 4-sider on the right side of his forehead. It was stuck there. It bled. He cried. I laughed. What can I say, I thought it was funny. Not sure if that's weird, but it's the first thing that came to mind.
Why in God’s name do you choose to publish adventures and The Manor? Isn’t life hard enough? (a two-fer)
I've been writing since I was 17. Mainly fiction of various genres. I love the process. Gaming is such a great way to flex your creativity. The Manor and the adventures were a natural step from there. I've always wanted to do my own magazine. When Christian did Lovaitar I thought "Wow, it can be done." I live in a literary wasteland. I'd only heard a little about zines. Ivy comes from Jersey and she ran with a group that printed their own horror zines. And they were great. And all this time all I really needed was a long armed stapler. Life is hard enough without banging my head on the wall writing The Manor, but when its done and I get to look through it and all the great art Jason Sholtis, Johnathan Bingham, Dylan Hartwell, and my ginger haired wife, Ivy, have done to support my idea it is just cool. Plus there has been a good response to The Manor. The OSR crew are good folks. I'm just here to have some fun with it. So making the zine makes life a little better not harder.
If you were an orc, what would be the name of your tribe?
Sucking Chest Wound. First thing off my head and I like it. Cue it up for the next Manor and get Jason on the phone for me.
What are your three favorite gaming rules or systems? Why? (another two-fer)
I'm going to cheat. I like all the retro clones, probably Swords & Wizardry and Blood & Treasure are my favorites. Then I have to pick what really got me into gaming and that was AD&D. Then GURPS. I've played a ton of games in a ton of genres rolling 3d6s. Some people think GURPS is too crunchy, but you doesn't have to be that way. It's a tool, a Swiss Army knife of systems. Just use the right tool for the right situation. You don't use them all at once.
What was the name of your favorite player character (played by you)? Give us some details (not a two-fer…a question and a command, I guess)
I've had some fun ones, Stew 'the Spike' Nool who was a thief, but thought he was a magic-user. Ronnable, a irritable Dwarf who bit stuff as much as axed it. I played twin half elves, Tamelight and Wildfire who kicked the crap out of an order of monks and took their temple. Ashling a semi-psychotic elf you had the pleasure of adventuring with. Slice Handler, a dagger throwing fiend who took advantage of Unearth Arcana when it first came out. But the best was Draco-Lindus. His career lasted on and off over four years. He started out as a slaver mercenary. Became a mercenary captain. Somewhere in there he kidnapped a duke and ransomed him off getting throw out of the lands of the City State of the Invisible Overlord. Become a champion of a god. Reclaim lost lands on a back of a dragon. Building a small kingdom. Joining the Overlord who had kicked him out. When the Overlord died, it was the reason civil war broke out and changed the landscape of the entire campaign. That was pretty cool.
Thanks, again, Tim.
2/2/13
Montporte Session Notes (AD&D 1e)
Adzeer Mattiu, Hunter of the First Circle (Half Orc, 1 Lvl Fighter/Cleric): Tim
Duncan Kern (Gnome, 1 Lvl Illusionist/Thief): Dan
Luven Lightfingers (Human, 1 Lvl Thief): Rob
Holat (Human, Woodsman/Tracker): NPC
Anders (Human, Holat's teen son): NPC
Spensol (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Ian (Human, Soldier 1 Lvl Fighter): NPC
Argus (Human, Militia 0 Lvl): NPC
Tomas (Human, Militia 0 Lvl): NPC
The Prelude
The Captain of the Guard of Montporte recruited the aid of the player characters to find a band of orcs and rescue the humans they have abducted. The characters have followed the orcs north from Wootspil through wooded foothills to a steep gorge carved by a small creek. The orc trail ends near a stream bed, amidst steep rock outcroppings, dense forest, scrub, and bramble (the star at the top of the above map).
The Start
As the adventuring party investigated the area, they found (a) a fresh trail of blood heading up the steep embankment away from the creek and (b) a poisoned arrow stuck in a tree (of kobold origin). After plucking the arrow out of the tree, the party followed the trail of blood and found a dying orc shaman at the end of it (he had been hit with two poisoned arrows).
Two of the characters (Adzeer & Duncan) were able to speak orcish.The shaman was delirious and blind, but the party was able to find out: (a) a war party of 25 orcs had come into the area a few weeks ago, looking for kobolds; (b) one of the orcs discovered an small opening, leading into an underground area while chasing a rabbit into heavy brush; (c) the orcs moved their camp underground; (d) the orcs starting following a "new god," who was living underground (a bitter disappointment to the shaman--"blasphemy!"); (e) the orcs brought several humans to their underground lair after some raids; and (f) the shaman and 4 other orcs were jumped by some kobolds when they emerged from their lair (the 4 other orcs were dragged away). The party dispatched the shaman and sent him to meet his one-eyed goddess, as he had requested.
The characters went back down to the creek bed, searched some nearby brush, and found a small opening in the ground looking as if it just been reopened (a small pile of recently excavated stone was nearby). There was a brief debate as to whether the party should chase after the kobolds or enter the hole in the ground. Duncan settled it: "I'm a gnome, I wanna go in the hole."
The Adventure
Leaving Holat, Anders and Tomas to guard the horses (as per the Captain's instructions) the party descended into Room 1 (map below) and surprised two orcs. The battle was joined by two orcs from Room 2, one of whom began shooting arrows through one of two arrow slits between the two rooms. Duncan was able to stab a short sword into the arrow slit and broke the orc's short bow.
The party moved through the complex, finding a few orcs at a time here and there. They also found two dead human males--a half-eaten one in Room 9 and one tied to column in Room 13 (he was peppered with arrows). Room 8 featured a simple marble throne with a hole in the seat (and broken pottery underneath the hole). Rooms 13, 15, and 16 had frescoes on the walls with soldiers engaging in martial training (sort of like training posters).
In Room 17, the party met up with three skeletons and a dead singed orc. One of the skeletons toasted the party with a burning hands spell. When the party destroyed the skeletons, they disintegrated in a shower of sparks and ash.
The session ended in Room 18 where the party met up with 3 more orcs and some vague amorphous black shadowy blob creature (see pic to the left). As combat ensued, the party found themselves forced to make a saving throw each round. Failed saving throws resulted each time in a lost wisdom point and an additional -1 penalty to hit. During the combat, Argus failed a morale check and fled the scene. After a long battle, the party prevailed. Adzeer wondered if this blob being was the orcs' new "god." After searching the room, the party discovered a young adult human female laying on the ground. She was alive but in some sort of catatonic state.Room 18 featured paintings on each of the diagonal walls--one wall had flames, another wall, waves, a third had rocks, and the fourth, clouds. There was also a strange ancient magic permeating the room.
The session ended in Room 18. Tim (Gothridge Manor) also has a post about the session.
[Editor Note: I am giving in to peer pressure and adding this as an addendum...Luven pooped in Room 8. Yes, the DM didn't really want to talk about the in-game BM in my blog, but there it is. Surely there needs to be some sort of taint rule connected with this.]
 | |
| 1 Square = 5 Feet |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)