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D&D 5e Into The (Keep on the) Borderlands (B1&2) #032 Monster Mash.
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<blockquote data-quote="Goonalan" data-source="post: 8475973" data-attributes="member: 16069"><p style="text-align: center"><strong>The Unexpected in the Caves of Chaos.</strong></p><p></p><p><strong>Session #0014: Hunting for Nik Nik.</strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>PCs (in alphabetical order)</strong></p><p><strong>Krago of the Mountains </strong>(Pete) Male Mountain Dwarf Ranger (Folk Hero) Level 3.</p><p><strong>Lappoy the Unexpected </strong>(Rob) Male High Elf Wizard (Sage) Level 3.</p><p><strong>Mohag the Wanderer</strong> (Pete) Male Human Barbarian (Outlander) Level 3.</p><p><strong>Sho-Rembo</strong> (Dave) Female Stout Halfling Druid (Hermit) Level 3.</p><p><strong>Sir Glen</strong> (Dave) Male Human Paladin of Lathander (Noble) Level 3.</p><p><strong>Sosspan </strong>(Dave) Male Dragonborn Wizard (Spy) Level 3.</p><p><strong>Trebbelos</strong> (Pete) Male Tiefling Sorcerer (Charlatan) Level 3.</p><p></p><p><strong>NPC's </strong></p><p><strong>Corbis </strong>Male Human Guard & wannabe Sidekick.</p><p><strong>Scrubs</strong> Male Human Guard & wannabe Sidekick.</p><p><strong>Tribbits</strong> Male Human Guard & wannabe Sidekick.</p><p></p><p><strong>Dead PCs (in alphabetical order)</strong></p><p><strong>Afton Barr</strong> (Dave) Male Half-Elf Bard (Entertainer) Level 1.</p><p><strong>Estra Zo </strong>(Pete) Female Wood Gnome Rogue (Urchin) Level 1.</p><p><strong>Farned of the Leaf Lord </strong>(Dave) Male Wild Elf Cleric of Rillifane Rallithil (Acolyte) Level 1.</p><p><strong>Tassit </strong>(Dave) Female Human Monk (Hermit) Level 1.</p><p><strong>The Mystical One</strong> (Pete) Female Human Warlock (Outlander) Level 1.</p><p><strong>Yor</strong> (Pete) Male Dragonborn Fighter (Folk Hero) Level 2.</p><p></p><p><strong>Dead NPCs (in alphabetical order)</strong></p><p><strong>Wormwood</strong> Male Human Guard.</p><p></p><p><strong>Note, you can click on the pictures here to make them bigger (if you didn't know this already).</strong></p><p><strong></strong></p><p><strong>Day 22: Being the 22nd Day of Mirtul, in the year 1493 by Dale Reckoning, known as the Year of the Purple Dragons, just after 11-ish.</strong></p><p></p><p>So, the Unexpected are in the former lair of chief Nok Nok of the 'Shattered Spear' orcs, the orcs are all dead, or at least the fighting ones are.</p><p></p><p>Chief Nok Nok's magical black mace has been passed over to Krago (he's the only PC that employs a mace), while the orc chief's magical shield has been donated to Sir Glen.</p><p></p><p>The paladin of the Morning Lord is AC 22 atm, he doesn't hit much but... he holds the line.</p><p></p><p>Lappoy has taken possession of a scroll of Fireball, you should see his grin, and the rest of the orc's lair has been searched.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147686[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>The orc's storeroom, nothing much worth taking here.</strong></p><p></p><p>However, chief Nok Nok's chambers are full of surprises.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147687[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Including a hidden treasure chamber (behind a curtain) and a concealed door (behind the same curtain), and beyond the portal- another secret room.</strong></p><p></p><p>But here's the thing, what to do about the non-combatant orcs? The Unexpected want to get on and go adventuring again, and so... after a five minute chat the decision is made to let them go.</p><p></p><p>The non-com orcs are therefore ushered out of the lair, and from there out of the ravine, their final warning- “No coming back now. Or else we'll kill you!” Mohag, who speaks orcish, is all heart.</p><p></p><p>Then, that done- and without incident, the Unexpected reassemble for part two, just to say best guess is- this route (through the secret chamber) is going to lead them into the lair of Nok Nok's big brother, Nik Nik's lair. The home of the 'Bloody Blade' orcs.</p><p></p><p>Classy.</p><p></p><p>The PCs, and the players, are of the opinion that the orcs really needed to hire a marketing team- the Bloody Blades, and the Shattered Spear tribes, the alliteration is nice but the names need a bit more oomph!</p><p></p><p>But first, and as quietly as they can, the Unexpected make an investigation of the secret and seemingly long-time unvisited concealed chamber, it's like a meeting room.</p><p></p><p>There's a bunch of stuff to find in here, but first there's a pair giant centipedes to deal with, Sir Glen locates these two angry large insects the hard way- by kicking over the bucket they were happily living beneath.</p><p></p><p>Only one of the little bastards bites the paladin, and the poison doesn't stand a chance against Glen's holy blood (or else he makes his save by miles).</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147688[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Note this picture shows the glowing Glen- Sosspan cast a Light spell on the paladin, he's not making stealth easy.</strong></p><p></p><p>Sho-Rembo smashes a centipede down with a whirl of her sling, while taking a few steps back to let the cavalry in.</p><p></p><p>Sir Glen slices the other but fails to kill it- so embarrassing.</p><p></p><p>The paladin, having just been talked down by his colleagues for suggesting he use an inspiration point to finish the job, or at least to get another crack at the centipede, well... he gets bitten again, and this time its a Crit.</p><p></p><p>Thank heavens he passes his poison save again.</p><p></p><p>Sir Glen is on less than 10 hit points.</p><p></p><p>Krago rushes over and slams the big insect dead with his newly acquired magical black mace.</p><p></p><p>That's how it's done.</p><p></p><p>[Giant centipedes 100 XP]</p><p></p><p>But then the rest of the room is searched, and there's a few gems and some coin to be found, but more importantly there's another door beyond, and best guess is... this is going to lead into the second orc lair.</p><p></p><p>And...</p><p></p><p>They're right, probably.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147689[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Sturdy door to the north, passage continues on- and there's a torch in here, so... inhabited.</strong></p><p></p><p>Krago & Sho-Rembo head off for a minor sneak about, or at least to the end of the passage to see what lies beyond.</p><p></p><p>And what's beyond is... a short passage south that heads directly out of the cavern, an equally short passage to the west that leads into a smokey, filthy orc common chamber, rammed full of the brutish humanoids. Lastly, to the east, a longer passage leading to a guard room, perhaps, certainly there are a bunch more orc warriors that way.</p><p></p><p>In short- the exit, and two caverns full of orcs.</p><p></p><p>Then however the less than stealthy folk get into action. Mohag and Sir Glen (newly healed) clamber into the corridor and somehow conspire to fall over each other, stealth rolls = '1' x2.</p><p></p><p>The door in the northern wall of the passage is wrenched open by an chain mail wearing orc, the angry brute is just short of eight feet tall.</p><p></p><p>The orc takes in the scene and begins screaming.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147690[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Stuck in the middle with you.</strong></p><p></p><p>Krago rushes over to block the hefty orc in the doorway, and then with an inspiration point he stabs the bastard.</p><p></p><p>Then... for some inexplicable reason he decides at the last moment to step aside from blocking the doorway.</p><p></p><p>This will turn out to be a very poor decision.</p><p></p><p>More orcs come running from the south and Sho-Rembo is very quickly facing off against a pair of them, the halfling druid gets sliced.</p><p></p><p>Another orc, a nasty-looking female warrior, races out of the northern chamber (actually Nik Nik, the chief's, chambers) and smashes Krago with her morningstar, the ranger is hurting.</p><p></p><p>Sho-Rembo has seen enough- and there are yet more orcs coming from the south, easily half-a-dozen of them, possibly twice as many, she disengages and runs back to safety, dodging through the longsword armed orcs as she goes.</p><p></p><p>Lappoy scrambles forward and fires three Magic Missiles in to the female warrior orc, she doesn't fall, she looks irked.</p><p></p><p>Then out of the door comes big chief Nik Nik, the platemail wearing goon slams his handaxe into Krago, and suddenly the ranger is doing real bad...</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147691[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Krago needs a way out.</strong></p><p></p><p>But then Sir Glen steps in and uses an inspiration point to fire up his Sacred Weapon (+ Cha Bonus to hit). The paladin Crits the badly wounded female orc warrior, and rolls... minimum damage ('1' + '1').</p><p></p><p>Where have I seen that before?</p><p></p><p>There is screaming.</p><p></p><p>Sir Glen is hard to hit, but harder still to land a significant hit on an enemy.</p><p></p><p>Mohag is swiftly raging, Frenzied and Reckless. The barbarian heads over and smashes the female orc warrior down, that was the chief's consort- Nik Nik isn't happy, therefore the barbarian smashes the chief too.</p><p></p><p>Mohag hits big all of the time.</p><p></p><p>More orcs come rushing from the southern passage, Krago gets skewered by a longsword, and the dwarf is down to six hit points, and cut off from his friends.</p><p></p><p>So, no picture for this bit but imagine- there's a wall of orcs approaching fast, then Krago on his lonesome, then some more orcs, then the rest of the Unexpected.</p><p></p><p>Sosspan rushes in and tags the platemail wearing chief Nik Nik with a Shocking Grasp, the dragonborn is putting his body on the line.</p><p></p><p>More orcs keep coming, and...</p><p></p><p>Krago gets sliced again.</p><p></p><p>For five points of damage.</p><p></p><p>You should have heard the player's squeal.</p><p></p><p>Krago is on one hit point.</p><p></p><p>The eight foot tall chief's guard attempts to wrestle himself into the melee, but Sir Glen stabs out and... kills him.</p><p></p><p>Me and my big mouth.</p><p></p><p>The paladin comes good in the end.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147692[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Krago needs to heal, or better still- get the hell out of dodge.</strong></p><p></p><p>But there's nowhere the ranger can run to, he's therefore forced to guzzle down a healing potion, and stay put.</p><p></p><p>Tribbits shoots a crossbow bolt into chief Nik Nik, and its a Crit.</p><p></p><p>Another orc comes rushing around the corner and straight into the fracas- Krago gets stabbed again, and he's back down to just two hit points.</p><p></p><p>Sho-Rembo gets a good look ahead, and then launches her Moonbeam into the densest bunch of orcs further on down the corridor, they burn, although none of them fall.</p><p></p><p>Trebbelos flings a Fire Bolt into the chief (and it was a hard shot -5 to hit, with lots of bodies in the way), and for max damage.</p><p></p><p>Nik Nik is bloodied, and screaming at his warriors to kill the Unexpected.</p><p></p><p>So pissed (and hurt) is the chief that he disengages, takes a step back into his chambers, and then slams the door shut, leaning hard on it to keep it wedged.</p><p></p><p>Lappoy fires three more Magic Missiles into the nearest orc that he can see (fighting in corridors- not easy at times), wounding it badly- it's all he can do through the crowd of bodies blocking the passage, and... that was his last spell.</p><p></p><p>Mohag steps in and smashes another orc down dead.</p><p></p><p>Its what he does.</p><p></p><p>Sir Glen follows the barbarian forward and gets to Krago with a Cure Wounds.</p><p></p><p>The tables have turned.</p><p></p><p>The orcs at the front of the press are now stuck in Sho-Rembo's Moonbeam, and they're being radiant toasted, they're still cutting and slicing however.</p><p></p><p>Mohag soaks up a Crit.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147693[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>Note chief Nik Nik is on the other side of that door, praying that his guys are going to dig him out of this hole, and swigging healing potions, of course.</strong></p><p></p><p>Sosspan launches a Shatter spell into the wedge of orcs- they suffer, but only one of the brutes succumbs to the thunder.</p><p></p><p>Another orc receives radiant death courtesy of the Sho-Rembo's Moonbeam.</p><p></p><p>And then another...</p><p></p><p>Krago uses his last spell for another Cure Wounds (on himself) and then staggers back to his friends.</p><p></p><p>There is cheering.</p><p></p><p>Oh, they're all playing so very nicely together these days.</p><p></p><p>The bastards.</p><p></p><p>And yet another orc dies in the Moonbeam.</p><p></p><p>Gah!</p><p></p><p>Sho-Rembo sends her Moonbeam shinning forward, down the corridor, illuminating a bunch more orc victims.</p><p></p><p>Lappoy, still far away from the action, manages to take another orc down with a Fire Bolt, yet another Crit.</p><p></p><p>Mohag decapitates an orc warrior, but gets sliced right back by another.</p><p></p><p>Krago flings a handaxe into an already badly radiant burnt orc, it dies.</p><p></p><p>Trebbelos ends an orc with a Fire Bolt, but there are still more orc warriors ahead- including at least two that keep dodging out into the passage to fire their crossbows at the PCs.</p><p></p><p>But this pair are not getting too close to the slaughter (or the Moonbeam), and are also staying out of sight as much as possible.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147694[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>At which point however a much rejuvenated chief Nik Nik (having swigged down a pair of healing potions) flings open the door and lays into Trebbelos. Who is very surprised to see the chief, as he (Pete) said at the time- “I forgot there was even anyone in there.”</strong></p><p></p><p>The tiefling sorcerer is sliced, triggering his Hellish Rebuke, Nik Nik gets singed, but only a little. The orc chief therefore follows up with a handaxe attack that leaves Trebbelos gibbering and on just three hit points.</p><p></p><p>Nik Nik retreats into his rooms, and around the corner and just out of sight.</p><p></p><p>Mohag smashes the last orc he can see down, with another Crit, and then rushes into the northern chamber in search of the chief to kill. The big barbarian has an inspiration point to spend- and so he does, he runs Nik Nik down.</p><p></p><p>And slices him with...</p><p></p><p>Another Crit, and rolls just short of maximum damage.</p><p></p><p>And that's just short of maximum (2d12) with a greataxe.</p><p></p><p>Nik Nik is suddenly in a very bad state.</p><p></p><p>But this is to the death.</p><p></p><p>Sir Glen rushes after Mohag and makes his way to the fight with the chief, he attempts to cajole the orc brute into surrendering (with a '2') but that doesn't work.</p><p></p><p>Nik Nik screams all the louder, calling for his warriors to rush to his side.</p><p></p><p>Corbis follows in and shoots Nik Nik with his crossbow, and, yep, another Crit.</p><p></p><p>Seconds later Sosspan hits Nik Nik with a Fire Bolt, and still the orc survives, and still he screams for his warriors to rush to his side.</p><p></p><p>Chief Nik Nik is on three hit points.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147695[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>The death of Nik Nik?</strong></p><p></p><p>And the Bloody Blade orc warriors are really trying, several of them rush through the Moonbeam (that hurt) trying to get to their chief, one of them slices Krago.</p><p></p><p>The ranger is still too close to the fracas.</p><p></p><p>Krago cuts his attacker down.</p><p></p><p>Hurrah!</p><p></p><p>But then just moments later is shot by one of the two crossbow wielding orcs, still dodging in-and-out of the passageway.</p><p></p><p>Back in the northern chamber Chief Nik Nik cuts and slices Mohag some more- the barbarian is bloodied.</p><p></p><p>Meanwhile back in the corridor yet another orc warrior launches itself through the Moonbeam and... slices Krago.</p><p></p><p>The dwarf ranger falls- he's down and dying.</p><p></p><p>Mohag swings wildly but fails to connect with the chief.</p><p></p><p>As does Sir Glen.</p><p></p><p>There is squealing in the players ranks.</p><p></p><p>There's a lot of rolls getting made, but no hits- from both sides.</p><p></p><p>Seconds later the second crossbow wielding orc sinks a bolt into Tribbits, the wannabe sidekick, and now he's down to just one hit point.</p><p></p><p>Back in the chief's room and the Unexpected are desperate to take down Nik Nik, but... Corbis misses the chief with his longsword, and then Sosspan does the same, only with a Shocking Grasp (and he had advantage on the roll).</p><p></p><p>The players are really groaning and grousing now.</p><p></p><p>Everything/one is against them.</p><p></p><p>More orcs make it to the fight.</p><p></p><p>Trebbelos Shocking Grasps an orc warrior, Corbis slices another- and yet both enemies stay on their feet and in action.</p><p></p><p>Chief Nik Nik keeps on slicing Mohag, the barbarian is now heavily wounded.</p><p></p><p>Lappoy Shocking Grasps an orc that is threatening the High Magicker, and then when it doesn't fall he spends an inspiration point to do it again, and he does, and it dies.</p><p></p><p>An orc warrior cuts down Trebbelos, the tiefling collapses unconscious. The orc rushes on attempting to get to Nik Nik's side.</p><p></p><p>Sho-Rembo goes after it and bludgeons it to death with her Shillelagh.</p><p></p><p>Then, at last...</p><p></p><p>Scrubs shoots chief Nik Nik dead.</p><p></p><p>Just to say that the orc boss lasted just short of three turns with just three hit points left.</p><p></p><p>[ATTACH=full]147696[/ATTACH]</p><p><strong>At last!</strong></p><p></p><p>The other orcs are very mostly dead too.</p><p></p><p>Mohag ends his rage, and then gets to Trebbelos with a healing potion.</p><p></p><p>Sir Glen gets to Krago with a healing potion too.</p><p></p><p>The crossbow firing orcs keep on dodging back into the passage and, well... firing their crossbows, but Mohag and Sir Glen eventually clear the pair off- the barbarian yelling threats while the paladin parades the corpse of chief Nik Nik.</p><p></p><p>The rest of the Unexpected having dodged into the chief's room to stay out of the firing line while this is going on.</p><p></p><p>A short while later, Sho-Rembo with the last moments of her Moonbeam probes the way ahead- further down the passage, the adventurers are just in time to see the last of the orc non-combatants escape the lair, lead away- it is presumed, by the few orc warriors left (just two of them).</p><p></p><p>The war is won.</p><p></p><p>[Chief Nik Nik and the tribe 1950 XP]</p><p></p><p>The rest is, well... a well-earned rest, and mo-money.</p><p></p><p>And the treasure... a few more coins, including a hidden stash of platinum in Nik Nik's chambers, a rope of climbing to tie this sack shut (taken by Mohag) and a magical handaxe, which Mohag also takes. The chief and his consort also had a few nice pieces of jewellery.</p><p></p><p>The lair is fully explored and then... well, that's all for this time except to say that the Unexpected have decided not to head on back to the Keep. They're going to spend a night here in the Caves of Chaos, occupying the two orc lairs- taking an extended rest, but also keeping an eye on nocturnal activity within the ravine.</p><p></p><p>At least that's the plan.</p><p></p><p>Scrubs has enough XP to become a Sidekick, the plan is he's going to be an Expert- so the Unexpected have someone to help out with locks and things, skills the mercenary picked up during his previous jobs.</p><p></p><p>That's nice.</p><p></p><p>The pot is up to £66.</p><p></p><p>Stay safe and well you lovely people.</p><p></p><p>Toodles for a bit.</p><p></p><p>Cheers the Unexpected and goonalan.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Goonalan, post: 8475973, member: 16069"] [CENTER][B]The Unexpected in the Caves of Chaos.[/B][/CENTER] [B]Session #0014: Hunting for Nik Nik. PCs (in alphabetical order) Krago of the Mountains [/B](Pete) Male Mountain Dwarf Ranger (Folk Hero) Level 3. [B]Lappoy the Unexpected [/B](Rob) Male High Elf Wizard (Sage) Level 3. [B]Mohag the Wanderer[/B] (Pete) Male Human Barbarian (Outlander) Level 3. [B]Sho-Rembo[/B] (Dave) Female Stout Halfling Druid (Hermit) Level 3. [B]Sir Glen[/B] (Dave) Male Human Paladin of Lathander (Noble) Level 3. [B]Sosspan [/B](Dave) Male Dragonborn Wizard (Spy) Level 3. [B]Trebbelos[/B] (Pete) Male Tiefling Sorcerer (Charlatan) Level 3. [B]NPC's Corbis [/B]Male Human Guard & wannabe Sidekick. [B]Scrubs[/B] Male Human Guard & wannabe Sidekick. [B]Tribbits[/B] Male Human Guard & wannabe Sidekick. [B]Dead PCs (in alphabetical order) Afton Barr[/B] (Dave) Male Half-Elf Bard (Entertainer) Level 1. [B]Estra Zo [/B](Pete) Female Wood Gnome Rogue (Urchin) Level 1. [B]Farned of the Leaf Lord [/B](Dave) Male Wild Elf Cleric of Rillifane Rallithil (Acolyte) Level 1. [B]Tassit [/B](Dave) Female Human Monk (Hermit) Level 1. [B]The Mystical One[/B] (Pete) Female Human Warlock (Outlander) Level 1. [B]Yor[/B] (Pete) Male Dragonborn Fighter (Folk Hero) Level 2. [B]Dead NPCs (in alphabetical order) Wormwood[/B] Male Human Guard. [B]Note, you can click on the pictures here to make them bigger (if you didn't know this already). Day 22: Being the 22nd Day of Mirtul, in the year 1493 by Dale Reckoning, known as the Year of the Purple Dragons, just after 11-ish.[/B] So, the Unexpected are in the former lair of chief Nok Nok of the 'Shattered Spear' orcs, the orcs are all dead, or at least the fighting ones are. Chief Nok Nok's magical black mace has been passed over to Krago (he's the only PC that employs a mace), while the orc chief's magical shield has been donated to Sir Glen. The paladin of the Morning Lord is AC 22 atm, he doesn't hit much but... he holds the line. Lappoy has taken possession of a scroll of Fireball, you should see his grin, and the rest of the orc's lair has been searched. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1401.jpg"]147686[/ATTACH] [B]The orc's storeroom, nothing much worth taking here.[/B] However, chief Nok Nok's chambers are full of surprises. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1402.jpg"]147687[/ATTACH] [B]Including a hidden treasure chamber (behind a curtain) and a concealed door (behind the same curtain), and beyond the portal- another secret room.[/B] But here's the thing, what to do about the non-combatant orcs? The Unexpected want to get on and go adventuring again, and so... after a five minute chat the decision is made to let them go. The non-com orcs are therefore ushered out of the lair, and from there out of the ravine, their final warning- “No coming back now. Or else we'll kill you!” Mohag, who speaks orcish, is all heart. Then, that done- and without incident, the Unexpected reassemble for part two, just to say best guess is- this route (through the secret chamber) is going to lead them into the lair of Nok Nok's big brother, Nik Nik's lair. The home of the 'Bloody Blade' orcs. Classy. The PCs, and the players, are of the opinion that the orcs really needed to hire a marketing team- the Bloody Blades, and the Shattered Spear tribes, the alliteration is nice but the names need a bit more oomph! But first, and as quietly as they can, the Unexpected make an investigation of the secret and seemingly long-time unvisited concealed chamber, it's like a meeting room. There's a bunch of stuff to find in here, but first there's a pair giant centipedes to deal with, Sir Glen locates these two angry large insects the hard way- by kicking over the bucket they were happily living beneath. Only one of the little bastards bites the paladin, and the poison doesn't stand a chance against Glen's holy blood (or else he makes his save by miles). [ATTACH type="full" alt="1403.jpg"]147688[/ATTACH] [B]Note this picture shows the glowing Glen- Sosspan cast a Light spell on the paladin, he's not making stealth easy.[/B] Sho-Rembo smashes a centipede down with a whirl of her sling, while taking a few steps back to let the cavalry in. Sir Glen slices the other but fails to kill it- so embarrassing. The paladin, having just been talked down by his colleagues for suggesting he use an inspiration point to finish the job, or at least to get another crack at the centipede, well... he gets bitten again, and this time its a Crit. Thank heavens he passes his poison save again. Sir Glen is on less than 10 hit points. Krago rushes over and slams the big insect dead with his newly acquired magical black mace. That's how it's done. [Giant centipedes 100 XP] But then the rest of the room is searched, and there's a few gems and some coin to be found, but more importantly there's another door beyond, and best guess is... this is going to lead into the second orc lair. And... They're right, probably. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1404.jpg"]147689[/ATTACH] [B]Sturdy door to the north, passage continues on- and there's a torch in here, so... inhabited.[/B] Krago & Sho-Rembo head off for a minor sneak about, or at least to the end of the passage to see what lies beyond. And what's beyond is... a short passage south that heads directly out of the cavern, an equally short passage to the west that leads into a smokey, filthy orc common chamber, rammed full of the brutish humanoids. Lastly, to the east, a longer passage leading to a guard room, perhaps, certainly there are a bunch more orc warriors that way. In short- the exit, and two caverns full of orcs. Then however the less than stealthy folk get into action. Mohag and Sir Glen (newly healed) clamber into the corridor and somehow conspire to fall over each other, stealth rolls = '1' x2. The door in the northern wall of the passage is wrenched open by an chain mail wearing orc, the angry brute is just short of eight feet tall. The orc takes in the scene and begins screaming. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1405.jpg"]147690[/ATTACH] [B]Stuck in the middle with you.[/B] Krago rushes over to block the hefty orc in the doorway, and then with an inspiration point he stabs the bastard. Then... for some inexplicable reason he decides at the last moment to step aside from blocking the doorway. This will turn out to be a very poor decision. More orcs come running from the south and Sho-Rembo is very quickly facing off against a pair of them, the halfling druid gets sliced. Another orc, a nasty-looking female warrior, races out of the northern chamber (actually Nik Nik, the chief's, chambers) and smashes Krago with her morningstar, the ranger is hurting. Sho-Rembo has seen enough- and there are yet more orcs coming from the south, easily half-a-dozen of them, possibly twice as many, she disengages and runs back to safety, dodging through the longsword armed orcs as she goes. Lappoy scrambles forward and fires three Magic Missiles in to the female warrior orc, she doesn't fall, she looks irked. Then out of the door comes big chief Nik Nik, the platemail wearing goon slams his handaxe into Krago, and suddenly the ranger is doing real bad... [ATTACH type="full" alt="1406.jpg"]147691[/ATTACH] [B]Krago needs a way out.[/B] But then Sir Glen steps in and uses an inspiration point to fire up his Sacred Weapon (+ Cha Bonus to hit). The paladin Crits the badly wounded female orc warrior, and rolls... minimum damage ('1' + '1'). Where have I seen that before? There is screaming. Sir Glen is hard to hit, but harder still to land a significant hit on an enemy. Mohag is swiftly raging, Frenzied and Reckless. The barbarian heads over and smashes the female orc warrior down, that was the chief's consort- Nik Nik isn't happy, therefore the barbarian smashes the chief too. Mohag hits big all of the time. More orcs come rushing from the southern passage, Krago gets skewered by a longsword, and the dwarf is down to six hit points, and cut off from his friends. So, no picture for this bit but imagine- there's a wall of orcs approaching fast, then Krago on his lonesome, then some more orcs, then the rest of the Unexpected. Sosspan rushes in and tags the platemail wearing chief Nik Nik with a Shocking Grasp, the dragonborn is putting his body on the line. More orcs keep coming, and... Krago gets sliced again. For five points of damage. You should have heard the player's squeal. Krago is on one hit point. The eight foot tall chief's guard attempts to wrestle himself into the melee, but Sir Glen stabs out and... kills him. Me and my big mouth. The paladin comes good in the end. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1407.jpg"]147692[/ATTACH] [B]Krago needs to heal, or better still- get the hell out of dodge.[/B] But there's nowhere the ranger can run to, he's therefore forced to guzzle down a healing potion, and stay put. Tribbits shoots a crossbow bolt into chief Nik Nik, and its a Crit. Another orc comes rushing around the corner and straight into the fracas- Krago gets stabbed again, and he's back down to just two hit points. Sho-Rembo gets a good look ahead, and then launches her Moonbeam into the densest bunch of orcs further on down the corridor, they burn, although none of them fall. Trebbelos flings a Fire Bolt into the chief (and it was a hard shot -5 to hit, with lots of bodies in the way), and for max damage. Nik Nik is bloodied, and screaming at his warriors to kill the Unexpected. So pissed (and hurt) is the chief that he disengages, takes a step back into his chambers, and then slams the door shut, leaning hard on it to keep it wedged. Lappoy fires three more Magic Missiles into the nearest orc that he can see (fighting in corridors- not easy at times), wounding it badly- it's all he can do through the crowd of bodies blocking the passage, and... that was his last spell. Mohag steps in and smashes another orc down dead. Its what he does. Sir Glen follows the barbarian forward and gets to Krago with a Cure Wounds. The tables have turned. The orcs at the front of the press are now stuck in Sho-Rembo's Moonbeam, and they're being radiant toasted, they're still cutting and slicing however. Mohag soaks up a Crit. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1408.jpg"]147693[/ATTACH] [B]Note chief Nik Nik is on the other side of that door, praying that his guys are going to dig him out of this hole, and swigging healing potions, of course.[/B] Sosspan launches a Shatter spell into the wedge of orcs- they suffer, but only one of the brutes succumbs to the thunder. Another orc receives radiant death courtesy of the Sho-Rembo's Moonbeam. And then another... Krago uses his last spell for another Cure Wounds (on himself) and then staggers back to his friends. There is cheering. Oh, they're all playing so very nicely together these days. The bastards. And yet another orc dies in the Moonbeam. Gah! Sho-Rembo sends her Moonbeam shinning forward, down the corridor, illuminating a bunch more orc victims. Lappoy, still far away from the action, manages to take another orc down with a Fire Bolt, yet another Crit. Mohag decapitates an orc warrior, but gets sliced right back by another. Krago flings a handaxe into an already badly radiant burnt orc, it dies. Trebbelos ends an orc with a Fire Bolt, but there are still more orc warriors ahead- including at least two that keep dodging out into the passage to fire their crossbows at the PCs. But this pair are not getting too close to the slaughter (or the Moonbeam), and are also staying out of sight as much as possible. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1409.jpg"]147694[/ATTACH] [B]At which point however a much rejuvenated chief Nik Nik (having swigged down a pair of healing potions) flings open the door and lays into Trebbelos. Who is very surprised to see the chief, as he (Pete) said at the time- “I forgot there was even anyone in there.”[/B] The tiefling sorcerer is sliced, triggering his Hellish Rebuke, Nik Nik gets singed, but only a little. The orc chief therefore follows up with a handaxe attack that leaves Trebbelos gibbering and on just three hit points. Nik Nik retreats into his rooms, and around the corner and just out of sight. Mohag smashes the last orc he can see down, with another Crit, and then rushes into the northern chamber in search of the chief to kill. The big barbarian has an inspiration point to spend- and so he does, he runs Nik Nik down. And slices him with... Another Crit, and rolls just short of maximum damage. And that's just short of maximum (2d12) with a greataxe. Nik Nik is suddenly in a very bad state. But this is to the death. Sir Glen rushes after Mohag and makes his way to the fight with the chief, he attempts to cajole the orc brute into surrendering (with a '2') but that doesn't work. Nik Nik screams all the louder, calling for his warriors to rush to his side. Corbis follows in and shoots Nik Nik with his crossbow, and, yep, another Crit. Seconds later Sosspan hits Nik Nik with a Fire Bolt, and still the orc survives, and still he screams for his warriors to rush to his side. Chief Nik Nik is on three hit points. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1410.jpg"]147695[/ATTACH] [B]The death of Nik Nik?[/B] And the Bloody Blade orc warriors are really trying, several of them rush through the Moonbeam (that hurt) trying to get to their chief, one of them slices Krago. The ranger is still too close to the fracas. Krago cuts his attacker down. Hurrah! But then just moments later is shot by one of the two crossbow wielding orcs, still dodging in-and-out of the passageway. Back in the northern chamber Chief Nik Nik cuts and slices Mohag some more- the barbarian is bloodied. Meanwhile back in the corridor yet another orc warrior launches itself through the Moonbeam and... slices Krago. The dwarf ranger falls- he's down and dying. Mohag swings wildly but fails to connect with the chief. As does Sir Glen. There is squealing in the players ranks. There's a lot of rolls getting made, but no hits- from both sides. Seconds later the second crossbow wielding orc sinks a bolt into Tribbits, the wannabe sidekick, and now he's down to just one hit point. Back in the chief's room and the Unexpected are desperate to take down Nik Nik, but... Corbis misses the chief with his longsword, and then Sosspan does the same, only with a Shocking Grasp (and he had advantage on the roll). The players are really groaning and grousing now. Everything/one is against them. More orcs make it to the fight. Trebbelos Shocking Grasps an orc warrior, Corbis slices another- and yet both enemies stay on their feet and in action. Chief Nik Nik keeps on slicing Mohag, the barbarian is now heavily wounded. Lappoy Shocking Grasps an orc that is threatening the High Magicker, and then when it doesn't fall he spends an inspiration point to do it again, and he does, and it dies. An orc warrior cuts down Trebbelos, the tiefling collapses unconscious. The orc rushes on attempting to get to Nik Nik's side. Sho-Rembo goes after it and bludgeons it to death with her Shillelagh. Then, at last... Scrubs shoots chief Nik Nik dead. Just to say that the orc boss lasted just short of three turns with just three hit points left. [ATTACH type="full" alt="1411.jpg"]147696[/ATTACH] [B]At last![/B] The other orcs are very mostly dead too. Mohag ends his rage, and then gets to Trebbelos with a healing potion. Sir Glen gets to Krago with a healing potion too. The crossbow firing orcs keep on dodging back into the passage and, well... firing their crossbows, but Mohag and Sir Glen eventually clear the pair off- the barbarian yelling threats while the paladin parades the corpse of chief Nik Nik. The rest of the Unexpected having dodged into the chief's room to stay out of the firing line while this is going on. A short while later, Sho-Rembo with the last moments of her Moonbeam probes the way ahead- further down the passage, the adventurers are just in time to see the last of the orc non-combatants escape the lair, lead away- it is presumed, by the few orc warriors left (just two of them). The war is won. [Chief Nik Nik and the tribe 1950 XP] The rest is, well... a well-earned rest, and mo-money. And the treasure... a few more coins, including a hidden stash of platinum in Nik Nik's chambers, a rope of climbing to tie this sack shut (taken by Mohag) and a magical handaxe, which Mohag also takes. The chief and his consort also had a few nice pieces of jewellery. The lair is fully explored and then... well, that's all for this time except to say that the Unexpected have decided not to head on back to the Keep. They're going to spend a night here in the Caves of Chaos, occupying the two orc lairs- taking an extended rest, but also keeping an eye on nocturnal activity within the ravine. At least that's the plan. Scrubs has enough XP to become a Sidekick, the plan is he's going to be an Expert- so the Unexpected have someone to help out with locks and things, skills the mercenary picked up during his previous jobs. That's nice. The pot is up to £66. Stay safe and well you lovely people. Toodles for a bit. Cheers the Unexpected and goonalan. [/QUOTE]
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D&D 5e Into The (Keep on the) Borderlands (B1&2) #032 Monster Mash.
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