sword-dancer
Explorer
Another story hour I must follow.
Cormanthyr Spring
ShawnLStroud
First Post
Rel said:
Thanks, Rel. Oh, and thanks to everyone who's complimented the thread.
I've had some real world difficulties crop up, but I'll post again sometime tonight.
Broccli_Head
Explorer
another fan!
SLS, I like the premise of the PCs starting off as captured slaves in Cormanthyr. They definitely have to use their wits. Will be great to follow and see what happens.
How many players do you have? Does each player have one PC?
Can the priests and/or sorcerers regain their spells? Did you start them at 1st level?
SLS, I like the premise of the PCs starting off as captured slaves in Cormanthyr. They definitely have to use their wits. Will be great to follow and see what happens.
How many players do you have? Does each player have one PC?
Can the priests and/or sorcerers regain their spells? Did you start them at 1st level?
ShawnLStroud
First Post
Episode 1 (continued)
The rest of the day is spent in silence; the entire coffle trudging along at a quicker pace (if that were possible). If anyone looks up from their feet, there seems to be an orc who cuffs or snarls at that person, forcing their eyes down. Our heros numbly notice that the rest of the coffle has no trouble handling the grueling pace, even some of the older grandparents.
Several hours after sundown, the coffle stumbles into a large clearing. One of the tattooed orcs strides up and down the coffle, shouting "You get down now! You rest now!"
Slowly, the members of the coffle attempt to slump to a comfortable position, but not fast enough for the orc raiders.
The members of the coffle are kicked and tripped into laying down. Their elbow straps are released, and there are groans and shrieks as numbed, long-constricted blood vessels are suddenly flooded with life and sensation. Again, as was done in the morning, a pair of orc raiders circulate up and down the coffle, offering a ladle of water, then a ladle of cold, soupy gruel. It's been a long day, and our heros succumb to hunger -- having long ago succumbed to other, less savory bodily needs.
After that, several orc raiders move up and down the coffle, untying and taking more of the women from Tavolo Green to the farthest part of the clearing (some 70 feet away) for another hideous "Victory Party."
A group of four younger orcs build a small campfire midway between the "party" and the rest of the coffle, and are obviously the first set of sentries for the night. Two of the sentries look longingly at and call encouragements to the rest of the orcs "enjoying" themselves at the far end of the clearing. The raid leader has had a lean-to shelter constructed for herself with a small fire in front, and disappears inside it.
For the first time in almost two days, our heros are left to their own devices; albeit uncomfortable and bound. Huddled and tumbled together, each pair in the coffle makes discoveries and plans.
"We've got to get out of this situation," Tannon whispers to Erev-ba. "I'm afraid we'll be the next victims. Can you think of why they haven't ever picked us?"
"Hmmmmm. I don't know." answers Erev-ba. "Maybe we smell wrong..."
Tannon becomes aware that part of her discomfort is because of something sharp laying underneath her. She begins shifting her weight around, and is finally able to pick up the sharp item -- a broken off pork rib bone, its splintered end both pointed and sharp. She looks at Erev-ba and smiles. "I have our way out of here, I think"
Erev-ba smiles back, "I always have a way out. I've just never had the time or privacy to use it." She turns her right hand toward Tannon, then produces a large, sharpened coin. Both young elves lean forward, then begin cutting at their bonds.
Jared and Tethka are together. "Girl, we've got to get out of this, you hear? These orcs ain't actin' normal. I don't know what they'll do now, and that scares me. I been huntin' these bastards for twenty years now, and I've never seen a band act like this. They left FOOD behind, do you hear? Orcs don't leave food behind! It don't make sense."
Tethka merely looks at Jared with weary eyes. " Unless you have something to cut these bonds, I cannot help you. I've been trying since we got here to break them, and they won't."
Jared grins, then reaches carefully back over his head, and comes back with a small knife. "I always keep an insurance policy on a string, girl. People see the medicine pouch on my chest and never think to see how long the back is. Give me your hands, then we'll get out of here. Maybe we can cause a commotion and lead some of the stupider orcs out into the woods. We jump 'em there and we'll get us some weapons. You with me?"
Tethka looks at him for a moment, then mutely holds out her hands.
Edo and Dain are tumbled together, their faces almost touching in the dark. Dain is still having trouble with breathing, his nose swelled to almost twice its normal size and clogged with crusted blood.
Edo whispers, "We must free ourselves, friend, so that we can rescue the inhabitants of Tavolo Green. Are you with me?"
"I can barely breath, but I can try to help." Dain answers.
"What skills do you have, Brother Elf? I myself am a Priest of Torm, and have been blessed with his power. Some of His blessings include healing. Is there aught I can do for you?" hisses Edo.
"I can weave some spells, human, " answers Dain. "With luck and timing, I believe I can lead off most of the orcs, then you can try to escape. If this works, then we can meet back here at midnight tomorrow. What do you think? And, if you could do something about my face; I can barely breathe."
Edo reaches into his torn cassock and pulls forth a pendant in the shape of a metal gauntlet. "Do you accept the blessing of Torm, Brother Elf?"
Dain looks at Edo for a moment, then nods in assent.
"The in the name of Torm, who protects the weak and guides the strong, I bid your torn body be healed. Let his divine power sweep away your wounds and weariness."
Hidden by their bodies, a blue-white glow passes from Edo's pendant, through his outstretched fingers, and into Dain's body. He closes his eyes, the opens them. "That's good, human. What may I call you?"
"I am Edo, of Torm. And you?"
"I am Lhathordainadin Mordre. You may call me Dain." The slight elf looks up at the stars, then back at his coffle-mate. "I am aware that you carried me, Edo. I owe you a debt; and that means something to me. But this will have been in vain if we cannot escape these cursed rawide bonds!"
Slowly, each of the pairs begins to notice that they're trying to speak to another. By inches, they creep together and formulate a quick plan. Dain will create a diversion to lead away as many of the orcs as he can, and in the confusion, the group will slip away. Edo is opposed to this, but in the end agrees to slip away in order to find weapons so that he can then
rescue the rest of the coffle. Jared and Erev-ba look at each other and smile, then shinny away through the darkness. Almost immediately, they disappear into the knee-high grass of the clearing.
Next time... A Battle!
The rest of the day is spent in silence; the entire coffle trudging along at a quicker pace (if that were possible). If anyone looks up from their feet, there seems to be an orc who cuffs or snarls at that person, forcing their eyes down. Our heros numbly notice that the rest of the coffle has no trouble handling the grueling pace, even some of the older grandparents.
Several hours after sundown, the coffle stumbles into a large clearing. One of the tattooed orcs strides up and down the coffle, shouting "You get down now! You rest now!"
Slowly, the members of the coffle attempt to slump to a comfortable position, but not fast enough for the orc raiders.
The members of the coffle are kicked and tripped into laying down. Their elbow straps are released, and there are groans and shrieks as numbed, long-constricted blood vessels are suddenly flooded with life and sensation. Again, as was done in the morning, a pair of orc raiders circulate up and down the coffle, offering a ladle of water, then a ladle of cold, soupy gruel. It's been a long day, and our heros succumb to hunger -- having long ago succumbed to other, less savory bodily needs.
After that, several orc raiders move up and down the coffle, untying and taking more of the women from Tavolo Green to the farthest part of the clearing (some 70 feet away) for another hideous "Victory Party."
A group of four younger orcs build a small campfire midway between the "party" and the rest of the coffle, and are obviously the first set of sentries for the night. Two of the sentries look longingly at and call encouragements to the rest of the orcs "enjoying" themselves at the far end of the clearing. The raid leader has had a lean-to shelter constructed for herself with a small fire in front, and disappears inside it.
For the first time in almost two days, our heros are left to their own devices; albeit uncomfortable and bound. Huddled and tumbled together, each pair in the coffle makes discoveries and plans.
"We've got to get out of this situation," Tannon whispers to Erev-ba. "I'm afraid we'll be the next victims. Can you think of why they haven't ever picked us?"
"Hmmmmm. I don't know." answers Erev-ba. "Maybe we smell wrong..."
Tannon becomes aware that part of her discomfort is because of something sharp laying underneath her. She begins shifting her weight around, and is finally able to pick up the sharp item -- a broken off pork rib bone, its splintered end both pointed and sharp. She looks at Erev-ba and smiles. "I have our way out of here, I think"
Erev-ba smiles back, "I always have a way out. I've just never had the time or privacy to use it." She turns her right hand toward Tannon, then produces a large, sharpened coin. Both young elves lean forward, then begin cutting at their bonds.
Jared and Tethka are together. "Girl, we've got to get out of this, you hear? These orcs ain't actin' normal. I don't know what they'll do now, and that scares me. I been huntin' these bastards for twenty years now, and I've never seen a band act like this. They left FOOD behind, do you hear? Orcs don't leave food behind! It don't make sense."
Tethka merely looks at Jared with weary eyes. " Unless you have something to cut these bonds, I cannot help you. I've been trying since we got here to break them, and they won't."
Jared grins, then reaches carefully back over his head, and comes back with a small knife. "I always keep an insurance policy on a string, girl. People see the medicine pouch on my chest and never think to see how long the back is. Give me your hands, then we'll get out of here. Maybe we can cause a commotion and lead some of the stupider orcs out into the woods. We jump 'em there and we'll get us some weapons. You with me?"
Tethka looks at him for a moment, then mutely holds out her hands.
Edo and Dain are tumbled together, their faces almost touching in the dark. Dain is still having trouble with breathing, his nose swelled to almost twice its normal size and clogged with crusted blood.
Edo whispers, "We must free ourselves, friend, so that we can rescue the inhabitants of Tavolo Green. Are you with me?"
"I can barely breath, but I can try to help." Dain answers.
"What skills do you have, Brother Elf? I myself am a Priest of Torm, and have been blessed with his power. Some of His blessings include healing. Is there aught I can do for you?" hisses Edo.
"I can weave some spells, human, " answers Dain. "With luck and timing, I believe I can lead off most of the orcs, then you can try to escape. If this works, then we can meet back here at midnight tomorrow. What do you think? And, if you could do something about my face; I can barely breathe."
Edo reaches into his torn cassock and pulls forth a pendant in the shape of a metal gauntlet. "Do you accept the blessing of Torm, Brother Elf?"
Dain looks at Edo for a moment, then nods in assent.
"The in the name of Torm, who protects the weak and guides the strong, I bid your torn body be healed. Let his divine power sweep away your wounds and weariness."
Hidden by their bodies, a blue-white glow passes from Edo's pendant, through his outstretched fingers, and into Dain's body. He closes his eyes, the opens them. "That's good, human. What may I call you?"
"I am Edo, of Torm. And you?"
"I am Lhathordainadin Mordre. You may call me Dain." The slight elf looks up at the stars, then back at his coffle-mate. "I am aware that you carried me, Edo. I owe you a debt; and that means something to me. But this will have been in vain if we cannot escape these cursed rawide bonds!"
Slowly, each of the pairs begins to notice that they're trying to speak to another. By inches, they creep together and formulate a quick plan. Dain will create a diversion to lead away as many of the orcs as he can, and in the confusion, the group will slip away. Edo is opposed to this, but in the end agrees to slip away in order to find weapons so that he can then
rescue the rest of the coffle. Jared and Erev-ba look at each other and smile, then shinny away through the darkness. Almost immediately, they disappear into the knee-high grass of the clearing.
Next time... A Battle!
ShawnLStroud
First Post
Re: another fan!
Broc (can I call you Broc?);
I currently have 6 players, although at the time of this episode I only had 5. Each player has only one character. You get to guess who the NPC is (heh heh).
Priests and sorcerers regain their spells IAW the standard rules... but nobody's had the chance to renew anything as of yet. (I have priests and paladins get their spells after their prayer time. I think it adds color, and it certainly adds tension to the table in this game.)
Each of the characters started off at 1st level, except Dain and Erev-ba, who are "apprentice" level, multiclass characters. Hmmmm; there's a clue. Can you guess who the NPC is now?
Broc (can I call you Broc?);
Broccli_Head said:
I currently have 6 players, although at the time of this episode I only had 5. Each player has only one character. You get to guess who the NPC is (heh heh).
Priests and sorcerers regain their spells IAW the standard rules... but nobody's had the chance to renew anything as of yet. (I have priests and paladins get their spells after their prayer time. I think it adds color, and it certainly adds tension to the table in this game.)
Each of the characters started off at 1st level, except Dain and Erev-ba, who are "apprentice" level, multiclass characters. Hmmmm; there's a clue. Can you guess who the NPC is now?
Broccli_Head
Explorer
answer?
Not anymore! I thought it was the old guy!
Not anymore! I thought it was the old guy!
ShawnLStroud
First Post
The Coffle: Conclusion
Dain, carefully crawling through the grass of the clearing, slowly makes his way across to the opposite side of the clearing. Some 60 feet from the coffle line and some 80 feet from the raid leader's lean-to, he turns over on his back and begins to count under his breath.
The three remaining coffle mates (Edo, Tannon and Tethka) slowly slink through the darkness to the southeastern-most part of the clearing. Being careful to straighten the grass behind them, they wind up in a shallow swale, almost completely obscured by the grass and some scrub brush growing at the crest of the small hillock.
Laying on his back, Dain composes his features and mutters a quick incantation, making a subtle series of gestures. A few seconds later, he shimmers in the starlight, and a young-looking orc raider sits up and rises at the southeastern edge of the clearing. Stepping forward to some trees, he undoes his trousers and relieves himself against a tree. Looking into the forest, he suddenly snaps open his eyes, then shouts, "Hey, they're getting away! The Meat are getting away!"
The stars glitter in the spring night as the call revounds from the trees. For a second, time seems to stand still -- for the orc raiders disporting at the northern edge of the clearing, for the cofflemates still strapped together on the ground, for the raid leader in her lean-to, and for the guards at the far western end of the clearing. Then, as one, two of the guards at the fireplace leap to their feet, snatching up hand weapons, and speed across the meadow toward their compatriot. As they leap over the supine slaves on the coffle rope, they notice that, indeed, several of the slaves are missing. Their compatriot, still urninating against the tree, points and says, "There! In the woods! There they go!"
As if a bell was rung, the raid leader steps from her lean-to, assesses the situation, and begins barking orders. "Schrot! Grab your teams and come with me! Zhazzbat! You keep four back and watch the rest of the slaves! NOW! Let's go!"
It takes an amazingly short time for the partying orcs to be kicked and grabbed into a coherent group, and the raid leader charges into the trees at the western part of the clearing, chasing the escapees she can see going around a tall bush. Her 16 raiders follow her like hunting dogs after a scent, howling invectives. The "orc" that had sounded the alarm follows behind, helping to guide the hunting party and providing sounds for the seeming of the escaping party. One of the heavily tattooed orcs begins grabbing the freed women at the "party" site, and two other raiders help him secure them back in the coffle.
One lone orc, standing too close to a bush at the western edge of the clearing suddenly is jerked backward into the brush. Starlight glints off something in a feminine hand that sweeps across the throat of the young orc, while another feminine hand covers his mouth. The combination of actions stifle the cry of alarm that dies, stillborn, in the orc's throat.
Fifteen feet back in the brush, Erev-ba and Jared grin at one another over the dying orc and help themselves to the his weapons. Erev-ba takes the battleaxe, shortbow and arrows, hissing, "I'll hand off the axe to one of the others. You sure you'll be alright with just the daggers?"
"Girlie, a shiv is all I need to take on that tatooed beast. You
get them kids back over here -- as good as I am, I can't kill four
orcs by my lonesome. I'll count to 13 five times, then I'm takin'
the big one out. You hear me? We can free the whole ding-dang coffle ifn we take out these guards. We'll never have another chance!"
One hundred feet into the forest off southeastern edge of the clearing, a short, whispered discussion is taking place. Standing close together, Edo, Tannon and Tethka have reached a crossroads.
"By Torm's hand, I need all of you to help me rescue the villagers!" Edo is agitated. His mission in life is to protect the weak. He continues, "We can't just leave them out there! How will you all sleep at night if you escape but leave all those helpless villagers to the attentions of the orcs? What kind of people are you?"
"I'm the kind of person who doesn't want to be enslaved. If we attack the guards with nothing but our hands, we'll die for nothing," hisses Tethka. "It makes more sense to get back to our gear, then track the raiding party and pick our moment! We try to free them all now, we could be killed -- who then would free the villagers? Your God? I didn't see him doing you any good when your hands were tied!"
"Surely we can come to a peaceful understanding here," whispers Tannon. "The three of us can do very little by ourselves. We should seek out more help. Then, surely, we can effect a rescue. I have to agree with this human here. Attacking with no plan and no weapons would be sure suicide for you, and foolhearty for me."
Already Tethka is carrying a stout cudgel, picked up from the ground just inside the woods. It's not much more than a stick, but it will protect her in a fight.
The three spin around as a dark figure stalks up to them. "I could hear you a mile away! Do you WANT the remaining guards to come and find you? There's only four of them, but I'm thinking they could take you unawares just like I did!"
Tannon is the first to reply, "Erev-ba! Are you alright?"
"Sure I am, Tannon. Say, can any one here use a battleaxe? This bastard is heavy, and besides, I've got me a really cool bow."
Tethka says, "I could use such an axe, if anyone else doesn't want it."
Edo looks doubtfully at Erev-ba, then at Tethka. "I don't use battle axes. But if you can use it, then let's go back and rescue the villagers. You heard her say there's only four guards left. Surely we can attack suddenly and, with surprise and Torm's blessing, win the villagers' freedom."
"I agree. This does change things." Tethka says. Tannon merely nods.
"Then hurry yourselves up! Jared's gonna attack the big tattooed bastard in a second! We gotta take out the rest of the guards so that he doesn't have to fight them all," says Erev-ba, "There's no time to waste talking!"
Tethka takes the proffered battleaxe, then hands the cudgel to Edo. "Say a prayer, priest. We're not out of the woods yet."
"Hmmmm. Right."
As one, the four turn back towards the clearing. It's now or never.
Seconds later, they peer out into the clearing from behind some brush. The old man has begun his attack already, and has engaged the heavily tattooed orc. From a distance things don't look good for the old woodsy, and they're about to get worse. Two of the other raiders are racing over to where Jared and Zhazzbat are fighting, daggers against great axe.
Erev-ba suddenly nocks an arrow and lets fly at Zhazzbat. "Go get 'em. I'll make it difficult for any one of 'em to concentrate on you."
With speed, the three coffle mates spring into the clearing, sprinting toward raiders. Tethka is the first to strike, and scores a clean hit on her chosen prey. Sadly, the scales of his armored torso turn most of the axe edge away, and the raider merely spins around in surprise. He grins at the slightly built human girl before him, then raises his own battleaxe and pounds it on his shield. "You die now, MEAT!"
The next twenty seconds are a blur of flashing blades, the sound of wood on bone and falling bodies. At the end of it, Tethka is clutching at a wicked cut on her arm, being supported by Edo, while Tannon cuts loose the remaining villagers.
Farther north, Erev-ba slowly closes the staring eyes of Jared. "You were brave, old man. But you should have waited. You could have got out of this thing alive." She slips his daggers back into his hands, then goes back to the rest of the group.
"We've got to get these people out of here, now. Anybody got a plan?"
"Let's just go. We'll get a plan when we've got the time."
The next few hours are stressful. There are sixty people from Tavolo Green, twenty of whom have been badly misused by the orcs. One of them, a woodsy-looking girl named Jessica, mentions that there's an old fort some few miles from the clearing. It's got a partial palisade, and the orcs might not know where it's located. She leads the way down the twisting,
half-ruined track that leads to the old fort. Tannon, Tethka, Edo and
Erev-ba keep to the back of the group, watching and waiting for the orcs to follow them. After some three hours of walking and hiding, the whole group walks into the ruined fort.
Four days later, the villagers, their rescuers and Dain arrive at the remains of Tavolo Green, to be met by a squadron from the Riders of Mistledale.
Dain, carefully crawling through the grass of the clearing, slowly makes his way across to the opposite side of the clearing. Some 60 feet from the coffle line and some 80 feet from the raid leader's lean-to, he turns over on his back and begins to count under his breath.
The three remaining coffle mates (Edo, Tannon and Tethka) slowly slink through the darkness to the southeastern-most part of the clearing. Being careful to straighten the grass behind them, they wind up in a shallow swale, almost completely obscured by the grass and some scrub brush growing at the crest of the small hillock.
Laying on his back, Dain composes his features and mutters a quick incantation, making a subtle series of gestures. A few seconds later, he shimmers in the starlight, and a young-looking orc raider sits up and rises at the southeastern edge of the clearing. Stepping forward to some trees, he undoes his trousers and relieves himself against a tree. Looking into the forest, he suddenly snaps open his eyes, then shouts, "Hey, they're getting away! The Meat are getting away!"
The stars glitter in the spring night as the call revounds from the trees. For a second, time seems to stand still -- for the orc raiders disporting at the northern edge of the clearing, for the cofflemates still strapped together on the ground, for the raid leader in her lean-to, and for the guards at the far western end of the clearing. Then, as one, two of the guards at the fireplace leap to their feet, snatching up hand weapons, and speed across the meadow toward their compatriot. As they leap over the supine slaves on the coffle rope, they notice that, indeed, several of the slaves are missing. Their compatriot, still urninating against the tree, points and says, "There! In the woods! There they go!"
As if a bell was rung, the raid leader steps from her lean-to, assesses the situation, and begins barking orders. "Schrot! Grab your teams and come with me! Zhazzbat! You keep four back and watch the rest of the slaves! NOW! Let's go!"
It takes an amazingly short time for the partying orcs to be kicked and grabbed into a coherent group, and the raid leader charges into the trees at the western part of the clearing, chasing the escapees she can see going around a tall bush. Her 16 raiders follow her like hunting dogs after a scent, howling invectives. The "orc" that had sounded the alarm follows behind, helping to guide the hunting party and providing sounds for the seeming of the escaping party. One of the heavily tattooed orcs begins grabbing the freed women at the "party" site, and two other raiders help him secure them back in the coffle.
One lone orc, standing too close to a bush at the western edge of the clearing suddenly is jerked backward into the brush. Starlight glints off something in a feminine hand that sweeps across the throat of the young orc, while another feminine hand covers his mouth. The combination of actions stifle the cry of alarm that dies, stillborn, in the orc's throat.
Fifteen feet back in the brush, Erev-ba and Jared grin at one another over the dying orc and help themselves to the his weapons. Erev-ba takes the battleaxe, shortbow and arrows, hissing, "I'll hand off the axe to one of the others. You sure you'll be alright with just the daggers?"
"Girlie, a shiv is all I need to take on that tatooed beast. You
get them kids back over here -- as good as I am, I can't kill four
orcs by my lonesome. I'll count to 13 five times, then I'm takin'
the big one out. You hear me? We can free the whole ding-dang coffle ifn we take out these guards. We'll never have another chance!"
One hundred feet into the forest off southeastern edge of the clearing, a short, whispered discussion is taking place. Standing close together, Edo, Tannon and Tethka have reached a crossroads.
"By Torm's hand, I need all of you to help me rescue the villagers!" Edo is agitated. His mission in life is to protect the weak. He continues, "We can't just leave them out there! How will you all sleep at night if you escape but leave all those helpless villagers to the attentions of the orcs? What kind of people are you?"
"I'm the kind of person who doesn't want to be enslaved. If we attack the guards with nothing but our hands, we'll die for nothing," hisses Tethka. "It makes more sense to get back to our gear, then track the raiding party and pick our moment! We try to free them all now, we could be killed -- who then would free the villagers? Your God? I didn't see him doing you any good when your hands were tied!"
"Surely we can come to a peaceful understanding here," whispers Tannon. "The three of us can do very little by ourselves. We should seek out more help. Then, surely, we can effect a rescue. I have to agree with this human here. Attacking with no plan and no weapons would be sure suicide for you, and foolhearty for me."
Already Tethka is carrying a stout cudgel, picked up from the ground just inside the woods. It's not much more than a stick, but it will protect her in a fight.
The three spin around as a dark figure stalks up to them. "I could hear you a mile away! Do you WANT the remaining guards to come and find you? There's only four of them, but I'm thinking they could take you unawares just like I did!"
Tannon is the first to reply, "Erev-ba! Are you alright?"
"Sure I am, Tannon. Say, can any one here use a battleaxe? This bastard is heavy, and besides, I've got me a really cool bow."
Tethka says, "I could use such an axe, if anyone else doesn't want it."
Edo looks doubtfully at Erev-ba, then at Tethka. "I don't use battle axes. But if you can use it, then let's go back and rescue the villagers. You heard her say there's only four guards left. Surely we can attack suddenly and, with surprise and Torm's blessing, win the villagers' freedom."
"I agree. This does change things." Tethka says. Tannon merely nods.
"Then hurry yourselves up! Jared's gonna attack the big tattooed bastard in a second! We gotta take out the rest of the guards so that he doesn't have to fight them all," says Erev-ba, "There's no time to waste talking!"
Tethka takes the proffered battleaxe, then hands the cudgel to Edo. "Say a prayer, priest. We're not out of the woods yet."
"Hmmmm. Right."
As one, the four turn back towards the clearing. It's now or never.
Seconds later, they peer out into the clearing from behind some brush. The old man has begun his attack already, and has engaged the heavily tattooed orc. From a distance things don't look good for the old woodsy, and they're about to get worse. Two of the other raiders are racing over to where Jared and Zhazzbat are fighting, daggers against great axe.
Erev-ba suddenly nocks an arrow and lets fly at Zhazzbat. "Go get 'em. I'll make it difficult for any one of 'em to concentrate on you."
With speed, the three coffle mates spring into the clearing, sprinting toward raiders. Tethka is the first to strike, and scores a clean hit on her chosen prey. Sadly, the scales of his armored torso turn most of the axe edge away, and the raider merely spins around in surprise. He grins at the slightly built human girl before him, then raises his own battleaxe and pounds it on his shield. "You die now, MEAT!"
The next twenty seconds are a blur of flashing blades, the sound of wood on bone and falling bodies. At the end of it, Tethka is clutching at a wicked cut on her arm, being supported by Edo, while Tannon cuts loose the remaining villagers.
Farther north, Erev-ba slowly closes the staring eyes of Jared. "You were brave, old man. But you should have waited. You could have got out of this thing alive." She slips his daggers back into his hands, then goes back to the rest of the group.
"We've got to get these people out of here, now. Anybody got a plan?"
"Let's just go. We'll get a plan when we've got the time."
The next few hours are stressful. There are sixty people from Tavolo Green, twenty of whom have been badly misused by the orcs. One of them, a woodsy-looking girl named Jessica, mentions that there's an old fort some few miles from the clearing. It's got a partial palisade, and the orcs might not know where it's located. She leads the way down the twisting,
half-ruined track that leads to the old fort. Tannon, Tethka, Edo and
Erev-ba keep to the back of the group, watching and waiting for the orcs to follow them. After some three hours of walking and hiding, the whole group walks into the ruined fort.
Four days later, the villagers, their rescuers and Dain arrive at the remains of Tavolo Green, to be met by a squadron from the Riders of Mistledale.
ShawnLStroud
First Post
GM's Notes on the Coffle
Well, there you have it. The first adventure in my campaign. As you might have guessed by now, Jared was the major NPC -- who died well and bravely by attracting the attention of the 2nd level barbarian Orc, Jazzbat.
I decided not to even try to detail the battle in the adventure, because the actual game took place at the end of November. I'm currently writing up the next few game sessions for this (look for that in the next three days or so) story hour.
Next time:
Ashabenford Nights: Our heros arrive in the big city and find out things aren't really what they seem. One heo finds out who she truly is, and several dream important dreams.
Well, there you have it. The first adventure in my campaign. As you might have guessed by now, Jared was the major NPC -- who died well and bravely by attracting the attention of the 2nd level barbarian Orc, Jazzbat.
I decided not to even try to detail the battle in the adventure, because the actual game took place at the end of November. I'm currently writing up the next few game sessions for this (look for that in the next three days or so) story hour.
Next time:
Ashabenford Nights: Our heros arrive in the big city and find out things aren't really what they seem. One heo finds out who she truly is, and several dream important dreams.
Broccli_Head
Explorer
How where the rest of the orcs duped for so long?
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