Session 02 played on 11.15.20
Foreword
After session 1 I instituted a semi real time system for running downtime behavior between sessions. This is a concept I got from AD&D first edition (1e) from reading the 1e DMG and playing in a 1e campaign. The idea is that the game session takes place in the game world on the same day of the year that the session took place in real world. November 8th in the real world and game world.
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| Warg Riders |
Additionally, downtime that takes 3 days to complete will take 3 real days to complete. Meaning players have about a week of days in the game world to work with because that's how many days in the real world between sessions. This may have the strange effect of what our 1e group called "Time Compression" wherein a party decided to travel to a dungeon that is two weeks away; thus making them inelgible to adventure in a session that takes place 1 week away!
Wild!
We'll see how this group of players handles that. Player downtime requests were all over the place!
One player is rumormonging about the upper crusts of the Keep and attached village, the elven ranger wandered off into the forest to "talk to the animals", while another player is attempting to case some good buildings to burgle. What hath I wrought?!
These divergent player interests allowed me to let the dice tell me where the hooks and game world would go. I'd have never thought to tell a player "hey the animals tell you about a 'white lady of the forest'" if a player hadn't inspired me to come up with some answer to his downtime request. The dice truly have oracular power.
That said, the players opted to go back to the dome shaped dungeon deep in the Viaspen forest; which they have deemed the "Blister of Doom".
Session Report
The party traveled into the Viaspen forest leaving in the morning. Some 8 hours later they arrived at the high dome of black rock which they had delved the previous week.
The Viaspen forest, despite being overgrown and treachorous to travelers, offered no challenge this day. No random encounters or unfortunate events. BriarWhisper (PC L1 Elven Ranger) had wandered the wood during his downtime learning from the animals that smash-faced green men riding huge rabid wolves had captured some humans on the outskirts of the forest "before the leaves changed".
The party was unsure if these monsters had gone back to the Blister or not but they were on the lookout.
Entering the crack in the side of the stone dome, the party noticed the small dogbrothers who held watch at the entrance the previous week were nowhere to be found. They entered the strange temple under the dome and went west along the wide stucco covered hallway, their torchlight flickering dancing reflections off the polished brick floor. Turning a corner the party hit a dead end of black rubble with a wooden and iron wrought door on a side wall. Gaius (PC L1 Fighter) easily pushed the stuck door in.
Inside was a medium room with a skeleton covered in webs and a ragged leather curtain crossing a hall leading out of the room. The party bypassed the corpse and curtain and found themsevles in a long stone closet. Before they had time to investigate they were surprised by two dog sized spiders that dropped down on them and attacked.
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| Leo takes a dive |
One of the spiders bit into and ripped off Leo's face (PC L1 Cleric) leaving him unconscious, perhaps dead (?) on the ground. Don (PC L1 Fighter) kicked the diabolical thing off his compatriot. The other spider failed to bite into the flesh of any other adventurer as it hopped around nipping at their legs and dodging the falls of massive steel weaponry which echoed into the small chamber. It eventually scurried out of the room to flee as the other spider was smashed by the intrepid heroes.
The party found a garnet gripped in the hand of a rotted corpse vicitim of the spiders. Hektor (PC L1 Paladin) used Lay on Hands to pull Leo back from the cold hands of death. But the cleric was shaken and must needs return to civilization to rest for one week.
The party bravely fled the dungeon.
At the doorway they were stopped by voices in the darkness outside the range of their torchlight who appeared to be telling them to halt. Halt? No. Charge!
The two door guards, by Hektor the Foe Hunter's reckoning, turned out to be Gnolls. Beastmen trained to fight with as much discipline as the Auran Legions! It showed, since Gaius took a nasty slash from a glaive that nigh felled him before the party surrounded and slurried the brains of the Gnolls; a handful of gold ducats for their trouble.
Upon return to Turos Tem Gaius donated 10 GP to the hospital for the healing services from Priestess Genelen (NPC Priestess and Hospitaler). Leo was made comfortable in the hospital to rest from his injuries, nightmares of facehuggers dancing through his fevered imagination. The party stayed in the village a day to recover an rest a bit and search out a new compatriot to replace the lost Leo.
Dama the Venturer, a replacement PC for Leo, seemed to fit the bill perfectly! What party couldn't use a merchant as they crawl across a monster infested wilderness and deep into the depths of hell itself?
Back in the Viaspen forest the party did not make it to the dungeon without incident as before. Goblin warg riders! Perhaps the ones the ranger had heard so many animal squeaks about. BriarWhisper noticed the warband before the party was upon them and was able to back up his compatriots from an unfortunate encounter. The riders had 5 human commoners tied at the hands and were leading them on a chain towards the black dome dungeon some few hours away. Surely an ambush was called for!
The party got off a few missile attacks on the wretched little beastmen but their morale did not break quickly. Hektor was quickly felled as a warg rider was upon him and ripped out his throat whilst its rider stabbed with a spear. Don was not far behind, face-down in the underbrush.
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| Dama strategic retreat |
The party fought bravely as blood painted the Viapsen vines. Except Dama who appeared to break morale as he took off into the trees back to Turos Tem! Was this our greatest ally, indeed?
Two warg riders stormed off at his heels.
BriarWhisper, just before being knocked from his treetop ambush point by the ravenous canines charging the tree itself, was able to get a clean shot off at the goblin king. The little monarch didn't die but his fear of death did overtake him and he rode off as fast as his beast would convey him. Soon all of the goblins, despite their overwhelming numbers, fled behind him; leaving the party victorious if down possibly two of their number. The human captives were left behind by the beastmen.
Dama (PC L1 Venturer) on the other hand, was forced to bribe the remaining goblin who had chased him some hundred yards away. One wonders if death or the pain of handing over hard earned coin was more painful for the merchant.
The party wasted no time checking on Don and Hektor, rolling over their bodies and praying to the gods that their time had not yet come. Hektor's time had come, unfortunately, and it was time he be burned so that Calefa could usher his soul to the afterlife and have Turas weigh his valor. As a loyal paladin of Turas, the party had reason to believe Hektor's chances to dwell in glory in the halls of Ammonar were high.
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| Scales of Turas |
The party brought Hektor's body back to Turos Tem wherein it could receive a proper funerary pyre. The party was awared 20 GP for each of the human captives and celebrated among the citizenry as heroes of renown.
Player Characters:
Present 11.15.20:
Briarwhisper (L1 Elven Ranger) played by RM. Liquid treasure Gained in Session 2 was 50 GP, 10 SP. XP gained in Session 2 was 139. Current Total XP: 570
Dama (L1 Venturer) played by RR. Liquid Treasure gained in session 2 was 50 GP, 10 SP. XP gained from Session 2 was 75. Current total xp: 75
Donald the Guardsman (L1 Fighter) played by MP. Liquid treasure Gained in Session 2 was 50 GP, 10 SP. XP gained in Session 2 was 139. Current Total XP:570
Gaius (L1 Fighter) played by VoC. Liquid treasure Gained in Session 2 was 50 GP, 10 SP. XP gained in Session 2 was 145. Current Total XP: 596
Leonidas the Inquisitor (L1 Cleric) played by RR.Liquid treasure Gained in Session 2 was 0 GP. XP gained in Session 2 was 67. Current Total XP:498
Not Present:
Darius LeVay (L1 Assassin) played by JB. Current Total XP:451
Felix (L1 Thief) played by Nicholas. Current Total XP:431
Deceased:
Hektor (L1 Paladin) played by Moai. DECEASED. Cause of Death: goblin warg rider throat removal surgery in Session 2.
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