Adventure: Food of the Gods (DM: ryryguy, Judge: renau1g)

[ryryguy]

Encounter 1: Burning Plantation!

The adventurers charge (or creep) into the swirling smoke, about to discover what awaits them on the other side...

[sblock=Minor Quest]Save Krassus! (100 XP)

Rules:

I'm treating Krassus like a pseudo-minion. I'm not tracking hit points, it's just the number of times he gets hit that matters. He can take more than one hit before dying, but I'm not going to tell you how many. However, I will let you know when the next hit will kill him.

Krassus can be healed; any effect that would allow him to spend a healing surge will restore one "hit". (He does have a limited number of surges though; I'll tell you if and when he runs out.)[/sblock]

[sblock=Combat Start]
You may have any weapons or items readied that you wish (no need to spend actions on that).

[sblock=Map]
(I shrank this map, since it's just for initial character placement.)

[/sblock]

Azryah, and any other characters who advance cautiously, may place their tokens between columns 4 and 15, in row U or lower. (You may make a stealth check at no penalty.)

Papolstaanas, and any other characters who advance more quickly, may place their tokens between columns 3 and 16, in row S or lower. (You may make a stealth check at -5.)

Jynxx, who was a bit farther ahead, can start as if he "advanced quickly" but may still make a stealth check at no penalty. If he doesn't mind making the check at -5 (and having his semi-fragile bard butt way out in front ), he can start all the way up to row Q.

After everybody (or most everybody) gives a placement, I'll reveal more of the map and we'll start in initiative![/sblock]
[sblock=Terrain Notes]
Undergrowth (green squares) - difficult terrain, and provides concealment to Small creatures or prone Medium creatures.

Burning trees (reddish squares) - these squares are heavily obscured terrain (from thick smoke), provide cover, and deal 1d6 fire damage to creatures entering or starting their turn in them.

Smoke (grey squares) - lightly obscured terrain.[/sblock]

 

[Mewness]

OOC: I'm currently thinking we should be occupying two of the columns so as not to be too bunched up. Since Papolstaanas has been a bit impetuous here, I'd say T11 for him. He has his sword and shield out.

 

[LadyLaw]

OOC: Sounds good to me. We'll go with V11 for Azryah then. She's still got her sword at the ready. I did roll stealth with my last post because I said she was being cautious, is that ok, or do you need me to roll it again?

 

[BenBrown]

[sblock=placement]If Papolstaanas is in T11, then Kaeysari will take the other column. I'll put her at U15, and heading towards the thing we can see above the smoke. I suggest that people with lighter armor and ranged attacks should stay towards the rear until we can see what we're dealing with[/sblock]

[sblock=stealth, etc.]
Stealth: 1d20+2=21
Since I won't get to post again until I get home from work tomorrow,
Initiative: 1d20+2=19
[/sblock]
[sblock=Kaeysari stat block]Kaeysari Female Longtooth Shifter Fighter 1
Initiative: +2, Passive Perception: 18, Passive Insight: 13, Senses: Low-light
AC:17, Fort:16, Reflex:12, Will:13
HP:28/28, Bloodied:14, Surge Value:7, Surges left:10/10
Action Points: 1, Second Wind: unused
Powers:Cleave, Reaping Strike, Covering Attack, Longtooth Shifting,
Villain's Menace, Healing Word

Conditions:
[/sblock]

 

[ryryguy]

[sblock=Rolls]No need to reroll stealth if you already rolled it (Azryah and Papolstaanas).

I was actually going to roll initiative for everybody, because in general it makes things go faster. But in this case since we're waiting for everybody to pick starting spots, you might as well roll your own initiative too if you want (it's up to you). Run-up to this fight has been a bit slow, sorry... but hopefully it's just been increasing the tension. Right?

In continued slowness, I've realized that I won't be able to post again with an updated map until tomorrow night as well. And I have something going on after work so it'll be fairly late.

Anticipation! Tension! [/sblock]

 

[Mezegis]

//OOC: I think Chaku will be in T16 then, so we can have a defender and a striker running down each "flank"//

[sblock=Kaeysari, and anyone else close to Chaku]Since you are in the same row as him, Chaku has started singing in a low voice:

They say the bless’ed land is breathing
With each wave that finds the shore
Her soul rises in the evening
For to open twilight's door[/sblock]

 

[LadyLaw]

[sblock=ooc]Don't feel too bad about slowing things down by not being able to be around until tomorrow. I think we've been moving at a good pace so far.

Besides, I believe Kaeysari and Jynxx are the only characters currently approved. Everyone else is still waiting for 1 more; so the longer this takes, the more time the others have to get that last approval.[/sblock]

 

[Charm]

[sblock=Perception & Placement]
1d20+4=22
Prolly move Cillani to X15 Unless someone's got a better place for her to go [/sblock]

Cillani muttered a few curses under her breath and hurried her steps towards the voice.

 

[OnlytheStrong]

Jynxx pulls an arrow out of the quiver, notching it. "Show me why I chose to adventure with you friends. The gods will give you power, but you must provide the courage. Strike swift and sure, and no harm will befall any of you while I draw breath. Onward!"

[sblock=ooc]

Jynxx will move to S11 (mostly cuz I want a better view). [/sblock]

 

[ryryguy]

Through the edge of the smoke, a large hut is visible dead ahead. A sobbing shout comes from behind it: "Oh gods, whoever that is, help me, oh gods help me!" The shout is followed by laughter and someone speaking in Magari.

[sblock=Magari->Dwarven]??? ??? blasphemer ???[/sblock]
Two smaller huts, both on fire, are located to the left. There are a few trees, still alive and standing, in the clear area around the huts. There are also a few more bloody bodies.

[sblock=Note on perception checks]I'll be continuing to post blocks with perception targets. If you have a high enough passive score, go ahead and read 'em. Now that we've entered combat, you can also choose to make an active perception check as a minor action. You can apply the results of these checks to any of the passive perception blocks.

Note: if there is something (such as a Stealthed enemy) where the DC is too high for anyone in the party to beat it with passive Perception, I won't post a block for it! (FYI, Jynxx has the highest passive Perception at 22.)[/sblock]
[Sblock=Perception DC 15]There are some pods or husks hanging from the branches of these trees. They look a lot like the thing that the person depicted in the statuette was holding.[/sblock]
[sblock=Perception DC 22]There is a small humanoid at I9, hiding behind the tree.[/sblock]
On the right side of the hut is what looks like a stone cistern, about 5 feet high. It's flush with the hut (you can't pass between them.)

[sblock=Perception DC 13]There's something in the undergrowth behind the cistern moving around and making rustling noises. It's in M19. However, no one has line of sight to it, so you can't tell what it is.[/sblock]
[sblock=Map](Note, the fog of war is turned on... no one has line of sight into the greyed out areas! And if it matters, you can't see each other across the column of burning trees, that blocks line of sight.)

[/sblock]
[sblock=Status]
Initiative: Azryah; Chaku; Cillani; Jynxx; Kaeysari; Papolstaanas; Bad guys (1d20=1, 1d20+1=2, 1d20=4, 1d20=18, 1d20+2=16, 1d20+2=7, 1d20+4=15) (and BenBrown rolled his own, getting a 19)

Kaeysari and Jynxx can act before the bad guys. Once they have posted, everybody hang on for the bad guys' turn.

19 Kaeysari - U15 - 28/28 (10/10) AP: 1 - Stealth 21
18 Jynxx - S11 - 24/24 (8/8) AP: 1
-- BAD GUYS (15)
7 Papolstaanas - T11 - 35/35 (13/13) AP: 1 - Stealth 8
4 Cillani - X11 - 23/23 (7/7) AP: 1
2 Chaku - T16 - 33/33 (12/12) AP: 1
1 Azryah - V11 - 28/28 (9/9) AP: 1 - Stealth 17
-- KRASSUS (0)[/sblock]
[sblock=Terrain Notes]
Undergrowth (green squares) - difficult terrain, and provides concealment to Small creatures or prone Medium creatures.

Trees (4 squares each around the green tree pictures) - provide cover against enemies on the other side of the center point, where the trunk is. Either horizontal or vertical direction counts for determining "other side". I.e., for the tree at N8 - N9 - O8 - O9, if a creature is in N8, it has cover against enemies who are in rows O or higher, or who are in columns 9 or higher.

Burning trees (reddish squares) - these squares are heavily obscured terrain (from thick smoke), provide cover, and deal 1d6 fire damage to creatures entering or starting their turn in them.

Smoke (grey squares) - lightly obscured terrain (provides concealment).

Huts - Blocking terrain. Can be climbed with a DC 15 Athletics check; climbing distance is 2 squares (so requires 4 squares of movement to reach the top). It is unclear how much weight the thatched roofs can support...

Cistern - Blocking/hindering terrain. You must make a DC 10 Athletics check to clamber over the rim; failure wastes 1 square of movement. You may remain on the rim and move to an adjacent cistern square with a DC 10 Acrobatics check; failure means you fall off the rim into the water (no damage, but see below). You may also simply choose to enter the water. The water is difficult terrain. Once inside, you need another DC 10 Athletics check to get back up on the rim. From the rim you may enter non-cistern squares normally. (Sheesh, sounds complicated! But basically the idea is checks to move onto and around the rim, or you could just go through it requiring you to go over the rim twice, once in and once out.)

Drying tables - Blocking terrain. DC 10 Athletics or Acrobatics to jump up on top. Moving on the top is difficult terrain.[/sblock]