Session 10 (Sept. 13, 2020)
[There was a little change in the group's composition around this time. Moonlit Snow left the group roughly around this time period; Ravokris, an elven wizard, joined in this session. After this point, the group has basically been stable.]
26 Tar-Skard
They keep heading north; the bears keep accompanying them. They keep giving the bears some food, and the bears continue to accompany them.
Ravokreth joins up with them—he was traveling in the wilderness, and they’re traveling in the wilderness, and he seemed friendly.
Marching order:
Noah up front
Elyn
Cart with Ravokreth
Iados Rein
That night, there’s an encounter. Very heavy footsteps approach. Thump-thump-thump.
Noah calls out in Giant. “Who goes there?”
“Me Thog!” [I think "Thog" and "Daisy" are the same giants as Floyd and Margaret from a couple sessions ago, but the names were forgetten.]
“Thog! I’m Noah. I saw you on a date.”
“Yeah… yeah… I remember.” Thog seems sad.
“Fly-y thing came. Shot Daisy. Came this way. I’ve been following ever since. Put Daisy back at parents. Had to pull giant arrow out. Me find them. They rude to me—I be rude to them.”
Noah tells them about the uruks.
“No urk came down. Just big spear. You think they came here?”
“A couple days ago.”
Thog meets the bears, and pets them. “Bears good. Bears guard lair.”
Thog tells them about 7th Region. They don’t take many slaves now, but they take captives. They’re now out of the 7th Region—this Region 6.
“They attack you?”
“They mostly were going after me.”
“Who your enemy? They charge more than I can count to capture.”
Noah hastily draws out the raven taking flight. “They’re the northern house people.”
“Hanal? Never go to Hanal. Hanal very dangerous,” says the 14 foot tall giant.
“Okay. Be careful. Not want to lose small friends. I find ship. I hit—not care if Region 7!”
27 Tar-Skard
Day and night pass peacefully.
28 Tar-Skard
They have not gone far when they come across the second of the ruined caravan. Equally smashed, many dead guards. There is horse meat, but it’s getting to be inedible. Same type of uniforms on the guards.
The PCs search the caravan for food. This one has had its cargo taken. But they do find some hard tack, fresh water, a barrel of pickled sardines.
Noah succeeds in grabbing a fish, only to topple into the Great River. He cannot swim and is floundering badly. Elyn points out the problem to the bears, and the bear swims out, grabs Noah by the scruff of the neck and carries him to the shore.
Noah trades lessons in strangling for lessons in fishing from Elyn.
Ravkoreth casts a shocking grasp at the river in an effort to fish. All sorts of rainbows spiral through the water, and 12 fish float to the top. He snares the dead fish out of the water, brings them over, and lays out the fish between Elyn and Noah.
29 Tar-Skard
Peaceful.
30 Tar-Skard
Another day passes peacefully. Towards the end of the day, they find the remains of the third caravan. This caravan has been torn apart most completely. And this time, there are corpses that are not guards. Also, it was clearly a running battle for at least a mile.
Ravkoreth fishes again, with Shocking Grasp. Little mini-lightning bolts expand out, each hit a fish, and then carry them back. There are six fish.
31 Tar-Skard
They hear rapid, heavy footsteps approaching.
“Hi. You stop here. Trolls.” Thog points back the way he came. “Okay. Thog stay here. Thog good guy. Thog help you if trolls come near. Bears good, trolls bad.”
They wait a while. No trolls come. But they hear sounds up ahead some ways. After a bit of time, Thog goes back to scout. “Trolls killed several deer. Trolls go back to cave. You go now. Thog go back to Daisy. Thog not catch flying thing.”
The group hurries on while the trolls are at their cave.
1 Zar (Midsummer day)
There is a considerable cacophony to their right, away from the river. The bears come in and walk closer to them. There are dozens of voices arguing; they’re not speaking Common or Elven. Noah and Ravkoreth go to scout, trying to be a little stealthy.
There are 30 goblins in a clearing, squabbling like mad. Periodically, the chieftain (they think) waves a piece of paper. Then the rest of the goblins shout and squabble even more.
Noah suggests that they cast some light to project a shadow, and yells, “Goblins, it is I, the Great Goblin!”
Noah proceeds to tell the goblins that they must unite and all yell together. He tells them they must yell at the sun to make it go away because then good things will happen.
Whimsey’s laughter is heard in Ravkoreth’s ear, and the shadow becomes much larger and much more goblin-like. Whimsey seems to favor Noah greatly, and is reshaping him to look like the Great Goblin. They’re all looking at Noah, but they’re looking above him. After a moment, the shaman slowly falls to his knees and responds in broken Common. “The sun? The sun, Great Goblin?”
“Yes, you see I have seen a future where the sun attacks the goblins.”
“So we yell at the sun?” (Another interjects “It always burns us!”)
“But in the future it may incinerate all of you. But if you yell at it enough, each time it will disappear. So you must yell at the sun.”
“Then we should abandon this and ignore it.” The shaman shakes the paper.
“Show it to me so I can decide.”
The shaman gives it to another goblin, kicks him forward. Noah takes the paper. The paper says in three different languages, of which he reads one (Common), “By command of Great Lord _____, of Region 7 of the Argoni.” It offers a great reward and has a pretty accurate woodcut of Noah. It says that he accidentally escaped from a noble who would like him back, and the Seventh Region has been commissioned to capture him.
“It was brought to us by one of the flying ships. They’re dropping these off as they fly along this route, saying that there is a reward, and they must not reach the North. They are dropping it everywhere that there might be ones who would serve it. But we will yell at the sun instead.”
The goblin voices are raised in unison: cursing the sun.
2 Zar
Day passes uneventfully.
At night, they see a voller floating overhead. It’s moving steadily south, along the path.
3 Zar
Day passes peacefully.
4 Zar
The cart is bracketed by three black iron javelins. Floating above the caravan, wings pinioned out, is a large and very elderly harpy.
There is a chemical smoke coming out of the ground where the javelins hit.
“Surrender your valuables or die!”
Noah starts berating her. She says that her javelins are poisoned with deadly scorpion poison.
“Besides it’s not as bad as taking on 30 drowan guards. And those all got taken out by that monstrous one and its servants that teleported in.”
Noah intimidates her into flying off.
5 Zar
Passes peacefully.
[End Session 10]
[There was a little change in the group's composition around this time. Moonlit Snow left the group roughly around this time period; Ravokris, an elven wizard, joined in this session. After this point, the group has basically been stable.]
26 Tar-Skard
They keep heading north; the bears keep accompanying them. They keep giving the bears some food, and the bears continue to accompany them.
Ravokreth joins up with them—he was traveling in the wilderness, and they’re traveling in the wilderness, and he seemed friendly.
Marching order:
Noah up front
Elyn
Cart with Ravokreth
Iados Rein
That night, there’s an encounter. Very heavy footsteps approach. Thump-thump-thump.
Noah calls out in Giant. “Who goes there?”
“Me Thog!” [I think "Thog" and "Daisy" are the same giants as Floyd and Margaret from a couple sessions ago, but the names were forgetten.]
“Thog! I’m Noah. I saw you on a date.”
“Yeah… yeah… I remember.” Thog seems sad.
“Fly-y thing came. Shot Daisy. Came this way. I’ve been following ever since. Put Daisy back at parents. Had to pull giant arrow out. Me find them. They rude to me—I be rude to them.”
Noah tells them about the uruks.
“No urk came down. Just big spear. You think they came here?”
“A couple days ago.”
Thog meets the bears, and pets them. “Bears good. Bears guard lair.”
Thog tells them about 7th Region. They don’t take many slaves now, but they take captives. They’re now out of the 7th Region—this Region 6.
“They attack you?”
“They mostly were going after me.”
“Who your enemy? They charge more than I can count to capture.”
Noah hastily draws out the raven taking flight. “They’re the northern house people.”
“Hanal? Never go to Hanal. Hanal very dangerous,” says the 14 foot tall giant.
“Okay. Be careful. Not want to lose small friends. I find ship. I hit—not care if Region 7!”
27 Tar-Skard
Day and night pass peacefully.
28 Tar-Skard
They have not gone far when they come across the second of the ruined caravan. Equally smashed, many dead guards. There is horse meat, but it’s getting to be inedible. Same type of uniforms on the guards.
The PCs search the caravan for food. This one has had its cargo taken. But they do find some hard tack, fresh water, a barrel of pickled sardines.
Noah succeeds in grabbing a fish, only to topple into the Great River. He cannot swim and is floundering badly. Elyn points out the problem to the bears, and the bear swims out, grabs Noah by the scruff of the neck and carries him to the shore.
Noah trades lessons in strangling for lessons in fishing from Elyn.
Ravkoreth casts a shocking grasp at the river in an effort to fish. All sorts of rainbows spiral through the water, and 12 fish float to the top. He snares the dead fish out of the water, brings them over, and lays out the fish between Elyn and Noah.
29 Tar-Skard
Peaceful.
30 Tar-Skard
Another day passes peacefully. Towards the end of the day, they find the remains of the third caravan. This caravan has been torn apart most completely. And this time, there are corpses that are not guards. Also, it was clearly a running battle for at least a mile.
Ravkoreth fishes again, with Shocking Grasp. Little mini-lightning bolts expand out, each hit a fish, and then carry them back. There are six fish.
31 Tar-Skard
They hear rapid, heavy footsteps approaching.
“Hi. You stop here. Trolls.” Thog points back the way he came. “Okay. Thog stay here. Thog good guy. Thog help you if trolls come near. Bears good, trolls bad.”
They wait a while. No trolls come. But they hear sounds up ahead some ways. After a bit of time, Thog goes back to scout. “Trolls killed several deer. Trolls go back to cave. You go now. Thog go back to Daisy. Thog not catch flying thing.”
The group hurries on while the trolls are at their cave.
1 Zar (Midsummer day)
There is a considerable cacophony to their right, away from the river. The bears come in and walk closer to them. There are dozens of voices arguing; they’re not speaking Common or Elven. Noah and Ravkoreth go to scout, trying to be a little stealthy.
There are 30 goblins in a clearing, squabbling like mad. Periodically, the chieftain (they think) waves a piece of paper. Then the rest of the goblins shout and squabble even more.
Noah suggests that they cast some light to project a shadow, and yells, “Goblins, it is I, the Great Goblin!”
Noah proceeds to tell the goblins that they must unite and all yell together. He tells them they must yell at the sun to make it go away because then good things will happen.
Whimsey’s laughter is heard in Ravkoreth’s ear, and the shadow becomes much larger and much more goblin-like. Whimsey seems to favor Noah greatly, and is reshaping him to look like the Great Goblin. They’re all looking at Noah, but they’re looking above him. After a moment, the shaman slowly falls to his knees and responds in broken Common. “The sun? The sun, Great Goblin?”
“Yes, you see I have seen a future where the sun attacks the goblins.”
“So we yell at the sun?” (Another interjects “It always burns us!”)
“But in the future it may incinerate all of you. But if you yell at it enough, each time it will disappear. So you must yell at the sun.”
“Then we should abandon this and ignore it.” The shaman shakes the paper.
“Show it to me so I can decide.”
The shaman gives it to another goblin, kicks him forward. Noah takes the paper. The paper says in three different languages, of which he reads one (Common), “By command of Great Lord _____, of Region 7 of the Argoni.” It offers a great reward and has a pretty accurate woodcut of Noah. It says that he accidentally escaped from a noble who would like him back, and the Seventh Region has been commissioned to capture him.
“It was brought to us by one of the flying ships. They’re dropping these off as they fly along this route, saying that there is a reward, and they must not reach the North. They are dropping it everywhere that there might be ones who would serve it. But we will yell at the sun instead.”
The goblin voices are raised in unison: cursing the sun.
2 Zar
Day passes uneventfully.
At night, they see a voller floating overhead. It’s moving steadily south, along the path.
3 Zar
Day passes peacefully.
4 Zar
The cart is bracketed by three black iron javelins. Floating above the caravan, wings pinioned out, is a large and very elderly harpy.
There is a chemical smoke coming out of the ground where the javelins hit.
“Surrender your valuables or die!”
Noah starts berating her. She says that her javelins are poisoned with deadly scorpion poison.
“Besides it’s not as bad as taking on 30 drowan guards. And those all got taken out by that monstrous one and its servants that teleported in.”
Noah intimidates her into flying off.
5 Zar
Passes peacefully.
[End Session 10]