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<blockquote data-quote="the Jester" data-source="post: 2220527" data-attributes="member: 1210"><p><strong>The Sea Witch</strong></p><p></p><p>The head of Ricklin is a persuasive argument when our heroes return to the mansion. Though somewhat battered, Hortense and Federico have managed to heal the worst of the party’s wounds. However, they are covered in blood, since they have been about a very bloody business today. </p><p></p><p>“Look,” says Ezeekiel to the quaking guards, “we want our friend back, right now. And then we’ll give you twenty-four hours to leave. One of your ships survived. Get on it and get out of here, and don’t come back.”</p><p></p><p>A few minutes later Brickneck is hauled forth, his eyes haunted. He is not too badly mangled; the torturer had only done a little work on him, hoping to intimidate information out of him by giving him plenty of time to dread what was coming. Still, he’s been horrifically tortured <em>a little,</em> and Hortense immediately sets to tending the dwarf, soothing his pain.</p><p></p><p>Martini is looking to the sky, which is dark with smoke. In the distance, flames are dancing across rooftops. “We should go help fight the fire,” he says. The party rushes back towards the docks and finds a huge conflagration spreading slowly into the town. Several bucket brigades have organized and are pouring water on it as quickly as they can, and our heroes pitch in and fight the fire all afternoon. They hear crazy stories of how a magic bear 10’ high rose from the water and shot red beams from its eyes that lit the docks on fire. </p><p></p><p>“Wow!” exclaims Federico in mock astonishment.</p><p></p><p>Legends grow in the telling.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p>Our heroes spend the next several weeks trying to set Sritivara up so it won’t collapse into anarchy. With the aid of the druid Monli, they begin setting up a framework for elections. Grizliwentho and his Green Tigers help to maintain order; they seem to be switching at least somewhat from being a street gang and becoming more like an informal police force. </p><p></p><p>Both Naomi and Brickneck bear the scars of their captivity. Though Naomi was not tortured, her capture ruined her eye, thoroughly crushing her piggy little eye. Fortunately (?) it is on the same side of her head as her ruined ear. </p><p></p><p>Several of our heroes make donations to the Heather Peachtree fund that they set up. Jawbreaker thinks deeply about the incident. Why didn’t things work out? She wasn’t supposed to be paralyzed, she was supposed to be stunned so that he could carry her off by the hair as his wife! That’s how things are done, right? He’s very confused. He did <em>something</em> wrong, and he feels terrible for the girl. But- <em>what</em> did he do wrong?</p><p></p><p>During this period, Federico befriends a halfling druid named Humphrey. Humphrey and his dog, Bogart, soon are accompanying the kobold everywhere. Bogart wears a collar that lets him speak. More and more, our heroes look like a dog pack with a few halflings along for the ride.* </p><p></p><p>Monli puts forth a candidate for interim mayor of Sritivara. This is a half-elf who looks like you took a wild man, Tarzan-style, and stuck him in a suit. He is constantly scratching himself, but manages to be personable enough and to seem intelligent enough to earn our heroes’ support. Soon he is appointed interim mayor. </p><p></p><p>The party is concerned about Dyshim’s ability to defend itself. It has no native army. There is barely a town watch in Sritivara. They need to drum up some potential defenders. Hortense has grown in power, and she has achieved the ability to issue <em>sendings.</em> Now she does, informing the other towns of Dyshim of recent events concerning the Zacradosian fleet. A dialogue ensues with Thane Hilge Urnskurm of the Bloody Fist, a clan of warlike dwarves, which ends when Hortense agrees that Sritivara will send a group of representatives north to talk to her at her home. And, of course, that group is our heroes.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p><em><strong>10/5/369 O.L.G., 11:45 a.m., up the coast of Dyshim</strong></em></p><p></p><p>An hour north of Cod, a small fishing village, our heroes first encounter trouble, in the form of some strange sea-dwelling cat-like monsters. They are fierce and hungry for a halfling supper; but our heroes fight them off successfully. </p><p></p><p>“I wonder if we’ll find the cave that sailor talked about,” muses Beau. In Cod the party had spoken to a crippled ex-sailor who had told them the story of a terrible witch who had withered his legs. According to him, no one could ever find the hag’s cave again. But after he told his tale, our heroes noted that he had entered the cave at sunset, and Federico had recalled certain tales of magical gateways that open only at certain times. The party has determined, since it’s on their way to the Bloody Fist, to see if they can find this cave. They are adventurers, after all.</p><p></p><p>Indeed, when the sun sets the group is along the beach, near some landmarks the sailor had described in his tale. As the sun slowly settles into the western waters, the clouds go magenta and then purple. And slowly, a cave entrace becomes visible.</p><p></p><p>Our heroes enter the cave cautiously. The witch that withered the sailor’s legs had first attempted to seduce him; and he barely escaped alive. They will trust nothing.</p><p></p><p>Including the <em>fireball</em> that shortly envelopes them all. A huge, ugly woman with filthy skin pockmarked by oozing zits, her hair the color of marsh, screams laughter as the flames billow around our heroes.</p><p></p><p>Jawbreaker roars at the indignity, and suddenly his body surges forward, growing as he rushes at the witch. He’s a bear! He charges forward, but she clouts him across the temple with her first. Then she grins, whispering eldritch words, and her hand begins to glow with a hazy brown light. She swipes at Jawbreaker’s arm but misses. </p><p></p><p>“She’s trying to wither you!” shouts Ezeekiel. “Foul witch!” Beaneath him, his mount springs forward, with the witch giving Zeke a clout across the head along the way, and swings his axe at the hideous hag. She dances aside, but winces as it slices along her ribcage. It sounds like he’s hitting steel. His eyes widen.</p><p></p><p>“You’ll pay for that, boy!” she shrieks. Warily, keeping her guard up, she casts another <em>fireball.</em> <strong>Kabooom!!!</strong> Naomi staggers, stumbles, falls to her hands and knees, gasps and then finally collapses.</p><p></p><p>“Nooo!” shouts Federico.</p><p></p><p>Grimacing, Beau hits the hag with a <em>ray of enfeeblement</em> while Brickneck leaps in and pounds her in the chest. Then Zeke swings his axe in a mighty overhand blow, <em>smiting evil,</em> and there is a crack of thunder when he connects! The witch gives a terrified cry of pain and winces back, staggering to one knee. Ezeekiel <em>smites evil</em> again, and this time his axe crunches through bone and flesh, severing her head at the neck. </p><p></p><p>The party takes her leg back to the crippled fisherman.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p></p><p><em><strong>10/7/369 O.L.G., 5 p.m., up the coast of Dyshim</strong></em></p><p></p><p>It’s the smell of delicious halfling cuisine cooking over the fire that draws the swarms of little lizard chickens, as our heroes come to call them. Dozens of little sharp-toothed beasts, closing in like a huge... swarm. Our heroes are just trying to do what halflings do, just trying to have a nice hot meal. And all these little needle-toothed lizards have to come in and muck it up!</p><p></p><p>Slowly our heroes pick up their weapons as the little dinosaur swarms start to move in towards them.</p><p></p><p>“Uh-oh,” says Sandy. There is a flash of teeth.</p><p></p><p><em><strong>Next Time:</strong></em> Who will fall in the battle of the lizard chicken swarms?</p><p></p><p></p><p> </p><p>*Humphrey is, of course, Federico’s cohort- the lil guy took Leadership. He’s a druid who is angling for the Master of Hounds prestige class (homebrewed Cydra prc). The party just keeps getting more dogs!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="the Jester, post: 2220527, member: 1210"] [b]The Sea Witch[/b] The head of Ricklin is a persuasive argument when our heroes return to the mansion. Though somewhat battered, Hortense and Federico have managed to heal the worst of the party’s wounds. However, they are covered in blood, since they have been about a very bloody business today. “Look,” says Ezeekiel to the quaking guards, “we want our friend back, right now. And then we’ll give you twenty-four hours to leave. One of your ships survived. Get on it and get out of here, and don’t come back.” A few minutes later Brickneck is hauled forth, his eyes haunted. He is not too badly mangled; the torturer had only done a little work on him, hoping to intimidate information out of him by giving him plenty of time to dread what was coming. Still, he’s been horrifically tortured [i]a little,[/i] and Hortense immediately sets to tending the dwarf, soothing his pain. Martini is looking to the sky, which is dark with smoke. In the distance, flames are dancing across rooftops. “We should go help fight the fire,” he says. The party rushes back towards the docks and finds a huge conflagration spreading slowly into the town. Several bucket brigades have organized and are pouring water on it as quickly as they can, and our heroes pitch in and fight the fire all afternoon. They hear crazy stories of how a magic bear 10’ high rose from the water and shot red beams from its eyes that lit the docks on fire. “Wow!” exclaims Federico in mock astonishment. Legends grow in the telling. *** Our heroes spend the next several weeks trying to set Sritivara up so it won’t collapse into anarchy. With the aid of the druid Monli, they begin setting up a framework for elections. Grizliwentho and his Green Tigers help to maintain order; they seem to be switching at least somewhat from being a street gang and becoming more like an informal police force. Both Naomi and Brickneck bear the scars of their captivity. Though Naomi was not tortured, her capture ruined her eye, thoroughly crushing her piggy little eye. Fortunately (?) it is on the same side of her head as her ruined ear. Several of our heroes make donations to the Heather Peachtree fund that they set up. Jawbreaker thinks deeply about the incident. Why didn’t things work out? She wasn’t supposed to be paralyzed, she was supposed to be stunned so that he could carry her off by the hair as his wife! That’s how things are done, right? He’s very confused. He did [i]something[/i] wrong, and he feels terrible for the girl. But- [i]what[/i] did he do wrong? During this period, Federico befriends a halfling druid named Humphrey. Humphrey and his dog, Bogart, soon are accompanying the kobold everywhere. Bogart wears a collar that lets him speak. More and more, our heroes look like a dog pack with a few halflings along for the ride.* Monli puts forth a candidate for interim mayor of Sritivara. This is a half-elf who looks like you took a wild man, Tarzan-style, and stuck him in a suit. He is constantly scratching himself, but manages to be personable enough and to seem intelligent enough to earn our heroes’ support. Soon he is appointed interim mayor. The party is concerned about Dyshim’s ability to defend itself. It has no native army. There is barely a town watch in Sritivara. They need to drum up some potential defenders. Hortense has grown in power, and she has achieved the ability to issue [i]sendings.[/i] Now she does, informing the other towns of Dyshim of recent events concerning the Zacradosian fleet. A dialogue ensues with Thane Hilge Urnskurm of the Bloody Fist, a clan of warlike dwarves, which ends when Hortense agrees that Sritivara will send a group of representatives north to talk to her at her home. And, of course, that group is our heroes. *** [i][b]10/5/369 O.L.G., 11:45 a.m., up the coast of Dyshim[/b][/i][b][/b] An hour north of Cod, a small fishing village, our heroes first encounter trouble, in the form of some strange sea-dwelling cat-like monsters. They are fierce and hungry for a halfling supper; but our heroes fight them off successfully. “I wonder if we’ll find the cave that sailor talked about,” muses Beau. In Cod the party had spoken to a crippled ex-sailor who had told them the story of a terrible witch who had withered his legs. According to him, no one could ever find the hag’s cave again. But after he told his tale, our heroes noted that he had entered the cave at sunset, and Federico had recalled certain tales of magical gateways that open only at certain times. The party has determined, since it’s on their way to the Bloody Fist, to see if they can find this cave. They are adventurers, after all. Indeed, when the sun sets the group is along the beach, near some landmarks the sailor had described in his tale. As the sun slowly settles into the western waters, the clouds go magenta and then purple. And slowly, a cave entrace becomes visible. Our heroes enter the cave cautiously. The witch that withered the sailor’s legs had first attempted to seduce him; and he barely escaped alive. They will trust nothing. Including the [i]fireball[/i] that shortly envelopes them all. A huge, ugly woman with filthy skin pockmarked by oozing zits, her hair the color of marsh, screams laughter as the flames billow around our heroes. Jawbreaker roars at the indignity, and suddenly his body surges forward, growing as he rushes at the witch. He’s a bear! He charges forward, but she clouts him across the temple with her first. Then she grins, whispering eldritch words, and her hand begins to glow with a hazy brown light. She swipes at Jawbreaker’s arm but misses. “She’s trying to wither you!” shouts Ezeekiel. “Foul witch!” Beaneath him, his mount springs forward, with the witch giving Zeke a clout across the head along the way, and swings his axe at the hideous hag. She dances aside, but winces as it slices along her ribcage. It sounds like he’s hitting steel. His eyes widen. “You’ll pay for that, boy!” she shrieks. Warily, keeping her guard up, she casts another [i]fireball.[/i] [b]Kabooom!!![/b] Naomi staggers, stumbles, falls to her hands and knees, gasps and then finally collapses. “Nooo!” shouts Federico. Grimacing, Beau hits the hag with a [i]ray of enfeeblement[/i] while Brickneck leaps in and pounds her in the chest. Then Zeke swings his axe in a mighty overhand blow, [i]smiting evil,[/i] and there is a crack of thunder when he connects! The witch gives a terrified cry of pain and winces back, staggering to one knee. Ezeekiel [i]smites evil[/i] again, and this time his axe crunches through bone and flesh, severing her head at the neck. The party takes her leg back to the crippled fisherman. *** [i][b]10/7/369 O.L.G., 5 p.m., up the coast of Dyshim[/b][/i][b][/b] It’s the smell of delicious halfling cuisine cooking over the fire that draws the swarms of little lizard chickens, as our heroes come to call them. Dozens of little sharp-toothed beasts, closing in like a huge... swarm. Our heroes are just trying to do what halflings do, just trying to have a nice hot meal. And all these little needle-toothed lizards have to come in and muck it up! Slowly our heroes pick up their weapons as the little dinosaur swarms start to move in towards them. “Uh-oh,” says Sandy. There is a flash of teeth. [i][b]Next Time:[/b][/i][b][/b] Who will fall in the battle of the lizard chicken swarms? *Humphrey is, of course, Federico’s cohort- the lil guy took Leadership. He’s a druid who is angling for the Master of Hounds prestige class (homebrewed Cydra prc). The party just keeps getting more dogs! [/QUOTE]
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