Against the Shadows VI - A Faded Glory Story Hour

[Old One]

Re: Sniff

Sad goodbye to Rose...

Guessed right about that rage thing... Too bad. But great update, Old One! Quintus: Let's call him the Intimidator

Darklone -

Rose's death was indeed quite sad and you were spot on to be worried about the rage expiring. Quintus usually does a pretty good job of intimidating people, but he is also pretty shrewd about using the skill.

Given the situation (ie, a dozen of their companions laying dead in the room from blade, bolt and magic and faced by a crazed, blood-covered man with a lit oil bomb), the two Shadowblades decided they had had enough!

~ Old One

 

[Broccli_Head]

Just wanted to let you know that I am still here! Sad, sad thing about Rose.

Glad that Rowan and Quintus did not perish. Always had a soft spot for rangers and love Q. as the 'never back down' sorcerer. BTW, he won't get 5th level spells until 6th according to the PHB. Then again, OO, I know that you modify things for the world of Emor.

 

[Rel]

Just checking in after my absence due to Life. Great update, Old One. Your excellent writing has not lost its edge in any way. You could probably rest on your laurels a bit if you wanted to. But I'm glad you don't. It continues to inspire me. Thanks for that (now if I could just find the time I need to put that inspiration to good use).

I have mixed feelings about the death of Rose. I hated seeing any of the characters buy the farm (for a minute there, I thought for sure it was Drusilla). But in another way, I'm glad it was Rose.

I tend to stereotype barbarians into the "My highest honor is to die valiantly in battle!" category and Rose fell prey to this in my mind. This was the toughest fight the party has faced in a long time and Rose's heroics seemed a worthy, if a bit untimely, end to his saga. If I'm wrong about his aspirations about dying in battle, I'm sorry.

He will definately be missed as he was the only "true" fighter type in the group (what with Rowan going Rogue). But with Lew going the Paladin route, I don't believe that Rose's player should feel constrained to making another fighter type.

Anyhow, I'm glad the suspense is finally over and I look forward to more updates.

 

[Lela]

Tortise: I just realized that you now have a good RP reason to search out spells (and thus take your 4th Ranger level). You could remember tails of the great Druids getting magical powers, similar to a Clerics healing powers, from the Earth itself.
Now that you have lost a friend that you think you could have saved with magical healing, you could seek the powers of the forest. Spend a week meditating, wandering, and soul searching. Spend time with animals and plants but be away from any and all humanoids. This is time to develop a pure rapor between yourself and the Great Mother.

When you return you would most likely have an animal companion to boot (Animal Friendship is a 1st lvl Rgr spell). That and some healing magic (enough to save a companion’s life if need be) should be reason enough for Rowan.

Now, this will create some fun moments when Lew finds out that Rowan is using blasphemes magics. I look forward to see how a Church Knight would be forced to handle this one.

 

[Pillars of Hercules]

Taps for Rose

Pillars of Hercules salutes Rose, brave Brigante! He fought and died well, and was role-played to the hilt throughout.

I also salute the party for avenging Rose's death in minutes.

 

[Lela]

And now for a little treat!

Up next, a little taste of what the Lela Awards© are going to be like. Sit back and enjoy.

 

[Lela]

And now, THE LELA AWARD© PREVIEW!

A character who has touched us all and given each of us a moment of laughter, joy, and, now, sorrow. Someone who touches our lives and lets us feel that we are protected. This is just one of the amazing moments Rose has given us.

Let's watch,

The Brigante felt the hands holding him tighten their grip and his shoulders sagged in despair.
. . .

Despite their best efforts, they could not even get the burlap sacks pulled from their heads, although Rosë was doing his best to chew his way free!

. . .

Rosë growled in frustration. He had managed to gnaw partly through the sack covering his head, but could see little in the dim light.

Truly a barbarian of great strength and character. A warrior, a friend, and a father. You made us feel protected. Your strength helped hold back the tides of evil that plague the land. We’ll miss you.

(Just make sure you show up for the Lela Awards© buddy, I’m sure Orison will let you come if you ask nicely and you'll actually receive physical awards if you come--it'll be worth it.)

 

[Darklone]

Re: Re: Adrenalin!

There are still Shadowblades lurking about...plus the wizard behind his locked door. The party is down to three effectives and all three are pretty beat up.

What happens next?

Yeah. That's the question Well, I think I am used to the bad habit to let hostile wizards escape everytime... duh. Real bad habit. It hurts.

Let's see what the group will do!

 

[willpax]

Great update!

A touching and exciting battle! Very good tactics in a bad situation.

What should the players do now?

Run. Grab the dead and wounded and get out of there. Look for more help in their current struggle (providing a justification for bringing someone else in).

I don't care to speculate on new charcter classes, but I am interested in a few campaign flavor questions:

Does the Church of Osirian disapprove of earth magics in general? and, if so, What form does that disapproval take?

Are non-magical rangers tolerated, but once they start dabbling in magic, they are viewed with suspicion?

Do magical rangers try to hide their powers?


One other point: this group's loyalty has much to do with the fact that they all grew up together. Might there be some tension/need to earn trust related to any newcomer at this point?

Keep up the good play, all.

 

[Lela]

Scary thought

I just had a thought. Think of the conflict if "Boss Braithwaight" became the new character. That would be interesting--to say the least.