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[Zeitgeist] Chronicles of Unit 42
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<blockquote data-quote="d2OKC" data-source="post: 6011826" data-attributes="member: 97351"><p>While this was probably the shortest session we've played so far, it is probably also the longest recap for a session. There really is a lot of stuff that happens in the Third Act of Axis, and it was a lot of fun to play through with my group.</p><p></p><p>===</p><p></p><p>After successfully opening the seagate for the Risurian forces and then defending the lighthouse long enough for their ships to break into the harbor at Axis Fortress, Unit 42 had little time to rest and recuperate. They soon saw the R.N.S. <em>Impossible</em> sail through the sea gate and dock close by, and Captain Rutger Smith climb the switchback to where they waited, cigar box in hand.</p><p></p><p>He was dismayed to hear that Unit 23 was killed in action, and promised to send someone to find Burton where he had been left behind. However, he complimented Unit 42 on exceeding expectations once again, and shook hands with Gareth Carter in a show of mutual respect. He handed out expensive cigars rolled with Leaf of Nicodemus, but instructed them not to light them until the duchess was captured, and explained that they believed she was holed up in the keep inside the inner wall. It would now be up to Unit 42 to extract her, since the other team was gone.</p><p></p><p>For their efforts, Smith offered to send a small unit of soldiers along, and the constables readily agreed. They met their new charges: Sargeant Glassman, Danny (a young kid recruited only weeks before being sent to retake Axis Island), Papa Carl (an older man, who got bored of his farming life), and Henry (a competent, but quiet soldier).</p><p></p><p>At that very moment, the hull of a nearby ship erupted in flames.</p><p></p><p>From their vantage point, on the lighthouse, the constables could see the smoke-wrapped figure as it leaped from ship to ship, leaving chaos and fire in its wake. Almost as soon as they could process what was happening, the figure had jumped over the walls and disappeared into the fortress. The Captain cursed and the constables followed him down to the wreckage to see what they could find. And what they found wasn't pleasant.</p><p></p><p>There were charred and bloated corpses strewn about the ships and the water nearby. Fiery hands raised from the deck of the ship, trying to burn anything they could get in their grasp. Quickly, the constables began their investigation and were able to surmise a few things.</p><p></p><p>The magic was clearly fey in origin, Victor Bays noted, and made by a very powerful warrior.</p><p></p><p>Reginald Battersea added that he remembered hearing of such a warrior, who fought in the First Yerasol War, trying to rescue a Danoran noblewoman from captivity, making a legend of himself in the process.</p><p></p><p><em>Asrabey Varal</em>, Gareth Carter confirmed. If that was who they were up against, they were in a lot of trouble, indeed. A chill ran through the constables, despite the fire blazing around them, as a courier approached.</p><p></p><p>The courier was there to tell them they found a makeshift brig in the stables, and there were several tieflings among the prisoners. The constables took this opportunity to see if they could find Nathan Jierre, and followed the young man to the brig. When they arrived, they learned the prisoners were not speaking, under the orders of a man named Marseine. The constables approached him, and he told them he would only help if they would arm his men and set them free.</p><p></p><p>At first, they hesitated. So, Marseine sweetened the deal by telling them he had information on the duchess's whereabouts. Again, they weren't sure, so they asked what he planned to do if they released them. He told them his plan was to join the attack, and get back at the duchess's troops for stealing his home away from him. They finally relented, arming each of his men (ten in all) with a sword and Marseine with a pistol, under the condition that he and his men come with them to find the duchess. Marseine agreed, and even told them of the hatch at the top of the tower they could climb through (though, they did not appease him enough to offer his key to get in).</p><p></p><p>Marseine took them around the fortress, and when they got to a good position, near the wall, he and his men turned on the constables, and attacked them. It wasn't much of a fight, even as exhausted as the unit was. His men were all dispatched quickly, and Marseine not long afterward. At that moment, Asrabey Varal made another appearance.</p><p></p><p>The eladrin knelt at the base of the inner wall and pulled out a glowing orb. The landscape quickly began to shift as his immurement started its magic. The constables saw him charge through towards the keep, skipping over the hedge maze as he went and again leaving a trail of fire in his wake. They saw the magic shutting down and quickly followed through behind the eladrin, making sure to grab the orb on their way.</p><p></p><p>When they got to the other side they found themselves stuck. The maze was on fire, and their soldiers couldn't follow through or risk burning alive, according to the overly-honest Glassman. The constables sent them back, and decided to brave the hedges, and get to the duchess as quickly as possible. As soon as Gareth Carter entered the maze a fey voice could be heard over the crackle of the fire. "I wasn't able to stop your fiery friend, but I will stop you!"</p><p></p><p>The fight with Gille Dhu was quick, but frustrating for the constables. He constantly kept them tied down with the vines from the hedges, but Casimiro del Garra and Reginal Battersea were able to use their maneuverability and range and Unit 42 was able to get past the fey creature. Now, all that was left was the keep, the duchess, and the fiery Asrabey Varal.</p><p></p><p>Taking Marseine's advice, they scaled the side of the tower and Reginald was able to easily pick the lock on the hatch at the top. They slowly opened it and heard the end of a conversation between Asrabey, the Duchess, and Nathan Jierre. Just before the eladrin was about to kill the Duchess, Gareth shouted at him to stop and the constables jumped down onto the top level of the keep, looking down on the eladrin and his quarry. They parlayed with Asrabey for a few minutes, ultimately finding his demands unacceptable, and he quickly fey stepped into their midst, trying to take them out, despite his own fatigue. </p><p></p><p>Unit 42 found themselves completely outmatched, and without their more powerful abilities, they had no way to slow down the eladrin. While Asrabey's lion-crested shield chewed on Gareth, Asrabey twirled through the rest, dealing fire damage on top of fire damage, quickly wearing them down. </p><p></p><p>The Duchess called out to the constables to heal her so she could help fight, and Gareth jumped to the lower level and used his training as a Yerasol War Veteran to get her back on her feet. She unleashed a powerful psychic attack on the eladrin which temporarily banished him into the Dreaming, leaving them a few seconds to run for their lives.</p><p></p><p>They scrambled down the keep's stairs while the Duchess occasionally stopped to hold off Asrabey, each time sending him back to the Dreaming, until they reached the still-flaming hedge maze. They each tried to run through it the best way they knew how with the angry warrior hot on their tail. Finally, just as Asrabey had charged into the maze to kill the Duchess she unleashed a final psychic blast, sending him back to the Dreaming for good, and giving them time to finally rest.</p><p></p><p>The Duchess surrendered herself to the constables, as she was completely exhausted from the fight, and quickly explained Nathan's role in her arrival on the island, to which the tiefling requested asylum from his aunt and his home country. The constables were willing to grant it, and when they saw Lya Jierre's ship come in to port that evening, after the battle had been won, they hid Nathan in the lower levels of the Impossible while they signed her treaties and accepted the invitation to her wedding to the King.</p><p></p><p>===</p><p></p><p>The highlight of this session was clearly the fight with Asrabey, even though the players felt more than helpless against him. None of them had dailies left (except for the wizard who, of course, had to leave just before the encounter began), and none of them had abilities that did damage on a miss. If it hadn't been for the Duchess, they would have been screwed. However, the swordmage always saves his Yerasol War Veteran power for a desperate situation like this, and it was perfect. The Duchess never missed against Asrabey, and her ability to send him to the Dreaming until he saved made the encounter very tense.</p><p></p><p>I never expected the fight with Asrabey to make it back down to the hedge maze, but it was awesome. I always love getting to reuse encounter areas, because it gives a feeling of internal consistency to a game, so them having to escape through the fiery maze from a crazed eladrin assassin was a great way to end the adventure. They barely made it out, too. I think by the time we finished there were 2 healing surges left in the group, and no encounters or dailies. If the Duchess hadn't been there, and rolled well, they would have surely been killed by Asrabey. Instead, they once again completed their mission by the skin of their teeth, and earned a ton of respect from Captain Smith in the process.</p><p></p><p>No real cool models for this one, like I did for the lighthouse, but I was pretty proud of the way I drew up the maze. I like being able to draw up these complex maps before hand on my paizo flip-mat, and this one was especially fun, since we got to use it twice.</p><p></p><p>Kudos to RangerWickett and the entire team for this wonderful first adventure. They can't wait to get started on the next one.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="d2OKC, post: 6011826, member: 97351"] While this was probably the shortest session we've played so far, it is probably also the longest recap for a session. There really is a lot of stuff that happens in the Third Act of Axis, and it was a lot of fun to play through with my group. === After successfully opening the seagate for the Risurian forces and then defending the lighthouse long enough for their ships to break into the harbor at Axis Fortress, Unit 42 had little time to rest and recuperate. They soon saw the R.N.S. [I]Impossible[/I] sail through the sea gate and dock close by, and Captain Rutger Smith climb the switchback to where they waited, cigar box in hand. He was dismayed to hear that Unit 23 was killed in action, and promised to send someone to find Burton where he had been left behind. However, he complimented Unit 42 on exceeding expectations once again, and shook hands with Gareth Carter in a show of mutual respect. He handed out expensive cigars rolled with Leaf of Nicodemus, but instructed them not to light them until the duchess was captured, and explained that they believed she was holed up in the keep inside the inner wall. It would now be up to Unit 42 to extract her, since the other team was gone. For their efforts, Smith offered to send a small unit of soldiers along, and the constables readily agreed. They met their new charges: Sargeant Glassman, Danny (a young kid recruited only weeks before being sent to retake Axis Island), Papa Carl (an older man, who got bored of his farming life), and Henry (a competent, but quiet soldier). At that very moment, the hull of a nearby ship erupted in flames. From their vantage point, on the lighthouse, the constables could see the smoke-wrapped figure as it leaped from ship to ship, leaving chaos and fire in its wake. Almost as soon as they could process what was happening, the figure had jumped over the walls and disappeared into the fortress. The Captain cursed and the constables followed him down to the wreckage to see what they could find. And what they found wasn't pleasant. There were charred and bloated corpses strewn about the ships and the water nearby. Fiery hands raised from the deck of the ship, trying to burn anything they could get in their grasp. Quickly, the constables began their investigation and were able to surmise a few things. The magic was clearly fey in origin, Victor Bays noted, and made by a very powerful warrior. Reginald Battersea added that he remembered hearing of such a warrior, who fought in the First Yerasol War, trying to rescue a Danoran noblewoman from captivity, making a legend of himself in the process. [I]Asrabey Varal[/I], Gareth Carter confirmed. If that was who they were up against, they were in a lot of trouble, indeed. A chill ran through the constables, despite the fire blazing around them, as a courier approached. The courier was there to tell them they found a makeshift brig in the stables, and there were several tieflings among the prisoners. The constables took this opportunity to see if they could find Nathan Jierre, and followed the young man to the brig. When they arrived, they learned the prisoners were not speaking, under the orders of a man named Marseine. The constables approached him, and he told them he would only help if they would arm his men and set them free. At first, they hesitated. So, Marseine sweetened the deal by telling them he had information on the duchess's whereabouts. Again, they weren't sure, so they asked what he planned to do if they released them. He told them his plan was to join the attack, and get back at the duchess's troops for stealing his home away from him. They finally relented, arming each of his men (ten in all) with a sword and Marseine with a pistol, under the condition that he and his men come with them to find the duchess. Marseine agreed, and even told them of the hatch at the top of the tower they could climb through (though, they did not appease him enough to offer his key to get in). Marseine took them around the fortress, and when they got to a good position, near the wall, he and his men turned on the constables, and attacked them. It wasn't much of a fight, even as exhausted as the unit was. His men were all dispatched quickly, and Marseine not long afterward. At that moment, Asrabey Varal made another appearance. The eladrin knelt at the base of the inner wall and pulled out a glowing orb. The landscape quickly began to shift as his immurement started its magic. The constables saw him charge through towards the keep, skipping over the hedge maze as he went and again leaving a trail of fire in his wake. They saw the magic shutting down and quickly followed through behind the eladrin, making sure to grab the orb on their way. When they got to the other side they found themselves stuck. The maze was on fire, and their soldiers couldn't follow through or risk burning alive, according to the overly-honest Glassman. The constables sent them back, and decided to brave the hedges, and get to the duchess as quickly as possible. As soon as Gareth Carter entered the maze a fey voice could be heard over the crackle of the fire. "I wasn't able to stop your fiery friend, but I will stop you!" The fight with Gille Dhu was quick, but frustrating for the constables. He constantly kept them tied down with the vines from the hedges, but Casimiro del Garra and Reginal Battersea were able to use their maneuverability and range and Unit 42 was able to get past the fey creature. Now, all that was left was the keep, the duchess, and the fiery Asrabey Varal. Taking Marseine's advice, they scaled the side of the tower and Reginald was able to easily pick the lock on the hatch at the top. They slowly opened it and heard the end of a conversation between Asrabey, the Duchess, and Nathan Jierre. Just before the eladrin was about to kill the Duchess, Gareth shouted at him to stop and the constables jumped down onto the top level of the keep, looking down on the eladrin and his quarry. They parlayed with Asrabey for a few minutes, ultimately finding his demands unacceptable, and he quickly fey stepped into their midst, trying to take them out, despite his own fatigue. Unit 42 found themselves completely outmatched, and without their more powerful abilities, they had no way to slow down the eladrin. While Asrabey's lion-crested shield chewed on Gareth, Asrabey twirled through the rest, dealing fire damage on top of fire damage, quickly wearing them down. The Duchess called out to the constables to heal her so she could help fight, and Gareth jumped to the lower level and used his training as a Yerasol War Veteran to get her back on her feet. She unleashed a powerful psychic attack on the eladrin which temporarily banished him into the Dreaming, leaving them a few seconds to run for their lives. They scrambled down the keep's stairs while the Duchess occasionally stopped to hold off Asrabey, each time sending him back to the Dreaming, until they reached the still-flaming hedge maze. They each tried to run through it the best way they knew how with the angry warrior hot on their tail. Finally, just as Asrabey had charged into the maze to kill the Duchess she unleashed a final psychic blast, sending him back to the Dreaming for good, and giving them time to finally rest. The Duchess surrendered herself to the constables, as she was completely exhausted from the fight, and quickly explained Nathan's role in her arrival on the island, to which the tiefling requested asylum from his aunt and his home country. The constables were willing to grant it, and when they saw Lya Jierre's ship come in to port that evening, after the battle had been won, they hid Nathan in the lower levels of the Impossible while they signed her treaties and accepted the invitation to her wedding to the King. === The highlight of this session was clearly the fight with Asrabey, even though the players felt more than helpless against him. None of them had dailies left (except for the wizard who, of course, had to leave just before the encounter began), and none of them had abilities that did damage on a miss. If it hadn't been for the Duchess, they would have been screwed. However, the swordmage always saves his Yerasol War Veteran power for a desperate situation like this, and it was perfect. The Duchess never missed against Asrabey, and her ability to send him to the Dreaming until he saved made the encounter very tense. I never expected the fight with Asrabey to make it back down to the hedge maze, but it was awesome. I always love getting to reuse encounter areas, because it gives a feeling of internal consistency to a game, so them having to escape through the fiery maze from a crazed eladrin assassin was a great way to end the adventure. They barely made it out, too. I think by the time we finished there were 2 healing surges left in the group, and no encounters or dailies. If the Duchess hadn't been there, and rolled well, they would have surely been killed by Asrabey. Instead, they once again completed their mission by the skin of their teeth, and earned a ton of respect from Captain Smith in the process. No real cool models for this one, like I did for the lighthouse, but I was pretty proud of the way I drew up the maze. I like being able to draw up these complex maps before hand on my paizo flip-mat, and this one was especially fun, since we got to use it twice. Kudos to RangerWickett and the entire team for this wonderful first adventure. They can't wait to get started on the next one. [/QUOTE]
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