HS1 The Slaying Stone
Session 2 Part 1
And so the PCs set out for a full days hike from Treona's tower to the what was Kiris Dahn, and is now Gorizbadd- home to Goblins and Kobolds. The weather is remarkably fine, cold and fresh but a weak sun spreads a little warmth. En route the PCs attempt a little light hunting, concerned that they only have around three days worth of trail rations each, they fare badly at first but eventually- with a little more time and effort it is Rogar the Halfling that manages to spot a faun in the woods. Alas his sling stone flies high and wide, Neb however settles the issue by firing a magic missile into the poor creature- punching a hole through Bambi in the process. The PCs feast for a while and then take what they can to further supplement their meagre provisions.
They now have around four days worth of food each.
Late afternoon the adventurers approach Gorizbadd, and in the last failing light do a little scouting, the entrance to the ruined town, the only bridge intact over the river that encircles the place is well guarded- Goblins, although numbers are difficult to make out.
Further in smouldering camp fires signal the sprawl that is the Kobold Slums, again the PCs cannot make-out numbers, the light is fading, even Maldor who shins up a tree to find a better vantage. The frontal approach is quickly rejected, although Jeb at first wishes to attempt to parley with the Goblins at the gate- his suggestion is slapped down.
The PCs make their way east, through dense woods, which requires many skill checks to find the trail, or else circumvent clogged terrain- fallen trees, thick vegetation and the like- Resolute trail blazes with Drake using his Nature lore to help out. The PCs arrive at the river which encircles the town- an ideal spot, there looks to have been a shallower crossing here at some time in the past.
With Rogar leading the way the group manage to wade across the stream, three feet deep in most places, the Halfling is required to swim a little and emerges freezing cold on the far side.
Drake however is less agile and/or athletic- he tumbles midstream, thrashes around for a while and then disappears beneath the water- the combination of the freezing cold and submerged rocks leave him quickly battered and bruised and gasping for air. However the PCs have seen fit to rope those crossing, the rope in question also tied to a sturdy tree- Drake is rescued eventually but Resolute and Rogar both have to dive into the stream to secure the young Cleric of Pelor.
The result of which is three of the six are wearing sodden clothing, are freezing cold, and the temperature is dropping- the group, lead by a teeth-chattering Rogar make their way entirely in cover (wading through the shallows of the river, ducked below the bank) to an abandoned farmstead, a lonely structure a little away from the rest of the town.
After a brief scout of the building they dive in, light a small fire, ensuring first that it is well out of sight and attempt to dry off.
The map below shows the PCs route into Gorizbadd, note this was a simple Level 1 Complexity 1 Skill Challenge, although I never told the PCs this, just did my best to describe the hazards and suggest (at first) skills that may be appropriate at this point. The one failure came from Drake en route and resulted in his brief trip downstream. The PCs emerged fairly unscathed, although Drake had lost a couple of Healing Surges- Resolute and Rogar making good Endurance checks to avoid a similar fate.
Follow the blue line- it's a clue.
The rest of the fresh meat is consumed, watch posted, and an excellent position found in which the PCs can observe any events in the ruined town, the adventurers then retire for the night.
Those on watch are also given pencil and paper, to record anything they spot during their duty, during the course of the evening there are three such events.
Firstly soon after the PCs retire activity in the Kobold Slums reaches its peak, clearly the Kobolds exist in great numbers, at least 50 or so perhaps, a dozen camp fires burn and their yaps and squawks pierce the cold night air, they seemingly do not wander too far from their abodes however.
Secondly on Rogar's watch a torch-lit procession moves down the main road to the gate, this causes all activity in the Kobold Slums to immediately cease, the Kobolds do their best to extinguish their fires and find cover. Less than thirty minutes later the torch lit procession heads back the way it came to the north of the town- odd.
The third event, spotted on last watch by Drake, is a smaller number of torches which move around the front of the Kiris library- the large building just to the north of their position, and enter- the group do not exit.
The PCs rise at first light, about 5 AM, eat a quick breakfast, wrap up warm- the weather is distinctly colder, and the sun is failing to break through the clouds, and plan the next stage of their adventure- first stop is the Kiris Library. Caution is the order of the day, there's clearly someone already in there.
The above map shows the events monitored during last nights watch.
Using a combination of Perception, Insight, Dungeoneering (to pick the route with the most cover), and Stealth; the PCs dash across the road, and north, to the first objective. This is accomplished with only a brief moment of panic, Jeb en route trips in the road and lands sprawling, luckily there's no one to see and the Githyanki is quickly dragged out of sight.
Cautiously Rogar sneaks into the Kiris Library, inside is a ruin- a shell, all of the books and every splinter of wood is gone, fuel for the Goblin's and Kobold's fires. A thorough search however reveals a well travelled path through the fallen masonry and detritus, it leads to a short flight of stairs that descend into the basement- voices, Goblin voices, and torchlight. A brief plan is hatched and Rogar sneaks down the stairs.
Next time- The Tomeripper.
Session 2 Part 1
And so the PCs set out for a full days hike from Treona's tower to the what was Kiris Dahn, and is now Gorizbadd- home to Goblins and Kobolds. The weather is remarkably fine, cold and fresh but a weak sun spreads a little warmth. En route the PCs attempt a little light hunting, concerned that they only have around three days worth of trail rations each, they fare badly at first but eventually- with a little more time and effort it is Rogar the Halfling that manages to spot a faun in the woods. Alas his sling stone flies high and wide, Neb however settles the issue by firing a magic missile into the poor creature- punching a hole through Bambi in the process. The PCs feast for a while and then take what they can to further supplement their meagre provisions.
They now have around four days worth of food each.
Late afternoon the adventurers approach Gorizbadd, and in the last failing light do a little scouting, the entrance to the ruined town, the only bridge intact over the river that encircles the place is well guarded- Goblins, although numbers are difficult to make out.
Further in smouldering camp fires signal the sprawl that is the Kobold Slums, again the PCs cannot make-out numbers, the light is fading, even Maldor who shins up a tree to find a better vantage. The frontal approach is quickly rejected, although Jeb at first wishes to attempt to parley with the Goblins at the gate- his suggestion is slapped down.
The PCs make their way east, through dense woods, which requires many skill checks to find the trail, or else circumvent clogged terrain- fallen trees, thick vegetation and the like- Resolute trail blazes with Drake using his Nature lore to help out. The PCs arrive at the river which encircles the town- an ideal spot, there looks to have been a shallower crossing here at some time in the past.
With Rogar leading the way the group manage to wade across the stream, three feet deep in most places, the Halfling is required to swim a little and emerges freezing cold on the far side.
Drake however is less agile and/or athletic- he tumbles midstream, thrashes around for a while and then disappears beneath the water- the combination of the freezing cold and submerged rocks leave him quickly battered and bruised and gasping for air. However the PCs have seen fit to rope those crossing, the rope in question also tied to a sturdy tree- Drake is rescued eventually but Resolute and Rogar both have to dive into the stream to secure the young Cleric of Pelor.
The result of which is three of the six are wearing sodden clothing, are freezing cold, and the temperature is dropping- the group, lead by a teeth-chattering Rogar make their way entirely in cover (wading through the shallows of the river, ducked below the bank) to an abandoned farmstead, a lonely structure a little away from the rest of the town.
After a brief scout of the building they dive in, light a small fire, ensuring first that it is well out of sight and attempt to dry off.
The map below shows the PCs route into Gorizbadd, note this was a simple Level 1 Complexity 1 Skill Challenge, although I never told the PCs this, just did my best to describe the hazards and suggest (at first) skills that may be appropriate at this point. The one failure came from Drake en route and resulted in his brief trip downstream. The PCs emerged fairly unscathed, although Drake had lost a couple of Healing Surges- Resolute and Rogar making good Endurance checks to avoid a similar fate.
Follow the blue line- it's a clue.
The rest of the fresh meat is consumed, watch posted, and an excellent position found in which the PCs can observe any events in the ruined town, the adventurers then retire for the night.
Those on watch are also given pencil and paper, to record anything they spot during their duty, during the course of the evening there are three such events.
Firstly soon after the PCs retire activity in the Kobold Slums reaches its peak, clearly the Kobolds exist in great numbers, at least 50 or so perhaps, a dozen camp fires burn and their yaps and squawks pierce the cold night air, they seemingly do not wander too far from their abodes however.
Secondly on Rogar's watch a torch-lit procession moves down the main road to the gate, this causes all activity in the Kobold Slums to immediately cease, the Kobolds do their best to extinguish their fires and find cover. Less than thirty minutes later the torch lit procession heads back the way it came to the north of the town- odd.
The third event, spotted on last watch by Drake, is a smaller number of torches which move around the front of the Kiris library- the large building just to the north of their position, and enter- the group do not exit.
The PCs rise at first light, about 5 AM, eat a quick breakfast, wrap up warm- the weather is distinctly colder, and the sun is failing to break through the clouds, and plan the next stage of their adventure- first stop is the Kiris Library. Caution is the order of the day, there's clearly someone already in there.
The above map shows the events monitored during last nights watch.
Using a combination of Perception, Insight, Dungeoneering (to pick the route with the most cover), and Stealth; the PCs dash across the road, and north, to the first objective. This is accomplished with only a brief moment of panic, Jeb en route trips in the road and lands sprawling, luckily there's no one to see and the Githyanki is quickly dragged out of sight.
Cautiously Rogar sneaks into the Kiris Library, inside is a ruin- a shell, all of the books and every splinter of wood is gone, fuel for the Goblin's and Kobold's fires. A thorough search however reveals a well travelled path through the fallen masonry and detritus, it leads to a short flight of stairs that descend into the basement- voices, Goblin voices, and torchlight. A brief plan is hatched and Rogar sneaks down the stairs.
Next time- The Tomeripper.
