Let's Play #2 Goodman Games DCC53
Sellswords of Punjar (Level 1)
Session 1.
Encounter #3 Area 1-4 Bazaar of the Bizarre.
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The Bazaar of the Bizarre is located in area 1-4 of the map.
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The adventurers burst in to the Bazaar, a musty and foul-smelling curiosity shop- stuffed with shelves and racks full of all manner of street ‘found’ junk. They get all agitated- offering those spotted within (two swarthy-looking ruffians) a way out- leave now or face the consequences. Erais gets particularly angsty, lots of stuff about 'letting Amaunator's Light into their dark and hideous souls'.
There follows a short chat in which the adventurers are likewise invited to leave, only not so politely put, something to do with 'sex' and 'travel'. By this time a ratty fellow has sorta appeared on the scene, the guys can't see Arthuro the Fence- he's hidden in a doorway behind the Bazaar's counter, but they can hear him whispering instructions to the two ruffians.
It gets to fighting very quickly.
The Bad Guys... 425 XP Level 1 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
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Skamos slams a Magic Missile in to one of the ruffians, and then scurries away to hide behind an over-stuffed shelf. Riardon meantime pins the other with an arrow.
A ‘20’ from Riardon, this time for 22 points of damage and the Human Tough is almost bloodied in an instant.
The two ruffians gang up on Corrin but the halfling paladin keeps them at bay, although he fails to land an attack of his own.
Scurvy looks for a better position, for which read safer and away from the bad guys, the dwarf tries to climb one of the racks stuffed with all manner of guff- the Bazaar’s wares. Alas a shelf snaps and Scurvy almost falls, he has to search for a new hiding place.
Erais meanwhile goes looking for the whispering Arthuro, eventually spies the dishevelled rogue and moves forward, the Sunlord is caught by Arthuro’s thrown dagger en route.
Skamos, still in hiding, throws another Force Orb in to the mix- timing it perfectly to hit both of the ruffians, they’re bloodied, one of them staggering and on his last legs- Riardon fires again and takes him down.
The remaining ruffian begins screaming for someone called ‘TIMMY!’, then dodges forward and menaces Corrin with his mace, the halfling paladin avoids the attack more by luck than judgement, courtesy of his Second Chance power.
Scurvy catches Arthuro with a thrown dagger, the fence takes up his compatriots call- ‘TIMMY!’, then dodges back behind the counter, and out of the action.
Corrin slices the remaining ruffian, who is now battered and bloodied- and not long for this world.
Fire erupts around Arthuro, leaving the counter blackened and smouldering; the beggar rogue however is too quick and escapes Erais’ Sacred Flame.
Skamos gestures and points and another Magic Missile flies from his hand, this time aimed at Arthuro- but the rogue is too quick again, he dodges back out of danger.
Dave, who plays Skamos, was given the choice of either the auto hit Magic Missile or else the roll to hit variant, he chose the latter- it does more damage.
Riardon’s bow sings and the remaining ruffian flops to the floor dead.
Emboldened, mostly by a lack of other enemies, Scurvy leaps on to the counter and swishes his blade at Arthuro- and again the rogue is much too quick. Arthuro, all the while, continues to scream for ‘TIMMY!’
And sure enough, Timmy appears.
A curtain is thrust aside and squelching from a small muddy looking store chamber comes the aforementioned (actually aforescreamed) Timmy, an Otyugh- a small and ancient-looking foul smelling squat tentacled aberration.
NEW Bad Guys... 600 XP Level 1 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
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Timmy closes fast on Erais then lashes out, the Sunlord ducks just in time. Corrin sees his opportunity and closes in on the foul beast, issuing his Divine Challenge to the noisome creature. The halfling paladin cuts hard but Timmy easily keeps the little fellow at bay.
Scurvy is momentarily distracted by the new arrival- Arthuro strikes with his Easy Target attack and almost bloodies the dwarf, slashing at his legs and leaving Scurvy hobbling on the counter.
Erais fires off another Sacred Flame, this time at Timmy- the spell misses, scorching a bunch of the stuff on the shelves instead.
Skamos continues to stay out of the way, he fires off a pair of Magic Missiles (with an Action Point- the PCs have two each at this juncture), although only one of which hits Timmy, the scabby Otyugh doesn’t even flinch.
Riardon moves to get a clear shot and fires, and then fires again- he follows Skamos’ lead (another Action Point), his bow thrums but again only one of the missiles connects, Timmy shudders once and then gets back to flailing at Corrin.
Disappointing.
Scurvy lashes out at Arthuro, again to no effect, and then sucks up the hurt- the dwarf’s wounds close over as he gets his Second Wind.
Corrin and Timmy continue to slash and slap at each other frantically- alas neither is blessed with the finesse needed to connect.
Erais shoots a beam of radiant light, a Lance of Faith, at Timmy- it too hits wide of the spot, scorching the curtains behind the Otyugh.
Skamos and Riardon continue to fire in to the melee, as targets present themselves, both are however bad shots- or so it seems.
Scurvy slashes again at Arthuro, but again the grinning rogue is too quick for the dwarf, the fence slashes back with an Acrobatic Strike. He tumbles on to the counter and is deftly on his feet- facing off against Scurvy, who staggers back blood gushing from his wound.
Scurvy is bloodied in an instant, caught by Arthuro’s critical hit.
Timmy lashes out with a meaty tentacle and catches the less than agile Corrin, scooping the slight halfling up in to the air and crushing the life out of him.
Corrin instantly strikes back, twice- in quick succession (another Action Point) but fails to connect with either of his attacks.
Erais mumbles and chants, seconds later the grinning Arthuro suddenly looks terrified, overcome with fear the rogue leaps from the counter, taking a stab to the hand from Scurvy as he departs at speed. The keeper of the Bazaar dashes for a set of stairs, he rushes up them taking three steps at a time gibbering and wailing like it’s the end of the world.
Erais grins, then sprints forward to lay a hand on Scurvy’s bloody slashed legs- the dwarf’s wounds, once again, heal over.
Skamos and Riardon fire again, and this time… both missiles run true. Timmy staggers back, almost dropping Corrin, the ancient Otyugh makes rasping squelching sounds and bleeds profusely, finally bloodied.
Scurvy, reinvigorated, leaps from the counter and tumbles closer to Timmy, lashing out at the aberrant, the creature avoids the blow and back pedals furiously- heading for the scorched curtain and its muddy lair.
Corrin however has other ideas, held upside down suspended over Timmy’s head (?) the halfling lances down with his sword and buries six inches of the radiant blade in to the beast’s brain.
Timmy slowly, and in stages, collapses- Corrin staggers free of the Otyugh’s grasp and gets to his feet grinning.
Just in time to hear Erais shout, the Sunlord points back up the stair, rushing down the steps are several mangy humans, dressed in what look to be dog-skins.
The Dog Brothers are in to the action.
NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1100 XP Level 5 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
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This is the encounter that keeps on giving…
Skamos peeks out from his hiding place and makes frantic shapes with his hands, seconds later flame erupts in the stairway, the first four Dog Brothers are caught in his Scorching Burst, their flea-infested skins and hides are crisped and burnt, as is their flesh.
The Dog Brother at the head of the queue staggers forward and takes an arrow to the shoulder, from Riardon, he leaps the counter- continues on and cuts hard at Skamos who ducks behind a set of shelves just in time.
The second Dog Brother charges at Erais and stabs the Sunlord in his side. Erais is bloodied.
The third makes the bottom of the stairs and then spins out a dagger, which fortunately sails well wide of the Sunlord.
The last two Dog Brothers, snarling all the way, continue to scramble down the stairs and in to the action.
Suddenly there’s a loud foetid squelching parp, back in the curtained doorway Timmy’s corpse explodes sending wobbling chunks of foul flesh all over the chamber- squirming in the wreck of the beast are a clutch of foot long grey maggots.
Two of the foul worms crawl forward, with surprising speed; in search of food- they find Corrin.
NEW NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1150 XP Level 5 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x2
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The halfling paladin slices one of the maggots in two, avoids the others flailing bite and rushes to Erais-
“Fight on my friend.”
Corrin declares, his touch brings new strength to the Sunlord as he Lays On Hands.
Scurvy slashes at the nearest Dog Brother- already scorched the foul human staggers back bloodied. Erais targets the same fellow; his Sacred Flame alas is awry, so he follows up with a Lance of Faith (another Action Point) and scorches a hole in the middle of the miscreant’s head.
Erais uses his Power of Amuanator to deliver six extra points of radiant damage and secure the kill.
Arthuro, unseen by any of the adventurers, peeks through the curtains at the top of the stairs; he seems to be grinning, enjoying the show.
Skamos scarpers, ducking and dodging a Dog Brother’s blade, the tiefling fires off another Scorching Burst at the last two Dog Brothers just getting in to the action, the one already scorched burns some more and staggers, bloodied.
Riardon sights the Dog Brother formerly menacing Skamos, he aims and fires, his arrow lodges in the mangy human’s neck- blood spurts and the foul fellow dies.
Another ‘20’ from Riardon, the ranger has his eye in.
The curtain at the top of the stairs is suddenly ripped aside; standing silhouetted there is Irocar, the Dog Brother’s leader. The war captain has his longbow in hand, he aims and fires, the arrow thuds in to Skamos’ shoulder, the tiefling strangles his cry, bloodied.
Irocar grins and barks! Then strides down the stairs.
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NEW NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1325 XP Level 6 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x2
Human, Fighter- Irocar Level 4 Soldier
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And now we're on to a Level 6 Encounter, stick around this could get deadly- which is pretty much what I said to the players at the time.
There are three Dog Brothers left standing, although two of them are less than healthy, their leader’s arrival however lifts their spirits- the trio snap and snarl, and bark their reply.
Slightly odd.
The first Dog Brother rushes at Riardon and menaces the ranger.
The second and third head for Scurvy, the dwarf rogue is suddenly and viciously outmatched- sliced and stabbed he falls.
Scurvy is on -3 hit points, the players are getting nervous.
Another pair of the grisly maggots crawl out from the wreckage of Timmy the Otyugh, that’s three now in the action.
Two of them make for Erais, they catch the Sunlord by surprise, biting and chewing on his calves, Erais screams and spins around to face them, his wounds however continue to bleed.
Erais is taking two points of ongoing damage- the Otyugh Grub’s ongoing damage stacks.
NEW NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1375 XP Level 6 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x4
Human, Fighter- Irocar Level 4 Soldier
“What’s for tea?”
Scurvy opens his eyes and asks- where is he?
A ‘20’ on Scurvy’s first Death Save.
“You’ll be getting my fist!” Arthuro shouts in reply from the top of the stairs, safe behind Irocar, the angry fence waves his fist about a bit to reinforce his point.
Corrin rushes over to the fallen Scurvy, cuts and burns with his Holy Smite the as yet uninjured Dog Brother that menaces his companion, the halfling then thumps the dwarf on the shoulder-
“Get up! Get at ‘em!”
Scurvy’s cuts and bruises once again heal over, the dwarf grins.
Erais meantime, losing blood fast, dodges back swatting without effect at the two grubs menacing him- he mutters and mumbles holy Healing Words, his wounds are almost gone.
Skamos to the rescue, the tiefling drops another Scorching Burst crisping two of the three grubs and freeing Erais from their terror. Not content Skamos mutters and points- a Magic Missile smashes in to the Dog Brother now facing off against Corrin, it too is bloodied (after another Action Point).
Riardon suddenly blinks out… and then back in again, his Fey Step positioning just in line with- Thunk, his arrow hits and the aforementioned Dog Brother is taken down.
What a team- the adventurers share a grin, as do the players.
Too soon.
Irocar takes the last few steps at a rush, spills his bow, draws his sword and charges on- arriving just in time to stab Skamos in his gut, the tiefling looks down at all the blood and the mess of his insides and then thumps to the floor- dying.
Irocar howls his delight; the two remaining Dog Brothers echo his call, and then get in to the action. The first rushes at Scurvy, who shuts his eyes, lolls his tongue out and plays dead (Bluff 21), the Dog Brother stabs out at Corrin instead but the paladin parries the blow. Scurvy winks at the now scowling halfling paladin.
The second Dog Brother catches Riardon with his blade, only a nick however- the ranger dodges back and with a Fox’s Cunning fires his bow, and misses the mangy human from point blank range.
And yet another pair of the grisly maggots exit Timmy’s carcass- one makes for Erais, bites the Sunlord, and menaces him further. The second gets Corrin’s attention in a similar manner, the halfling looks horrified as his wound pulses blood- he’s bloodied.
The last maggot bites in to one of the Dog Brothers, no-one in the Bazaar is safe from these monstrosities.
NEW NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1425 XP Level 6 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x6
Human, Fighter- Irocar Level 4 Soldier
“Ha ha!”
Scurvy leaps to his feet and stabs out at the Dog Brother he hoodwinked earlier in to believing he was dead- he almost spills his blade- that’s not right.
He tries again (courtesy of an Action Point) and this time does indeed drop his dagger.
Well, that was a ‘1’ followed by a ‘1’, nice attack rolls.
Arthuro meanwhile moves a little way down the stairs, readying his dagger, the fence however keeps his distance, content to shout and offer advice.
“Scrag ‘im Irocar!”
And,
“Stab ‘im in ‘is crown jewels!”
Corrin meanwhile is all action, he calls the closest Dog Brother to him out with his Divine Challenge, stabs the fiend with his holy blade, leaving the forlorn soldier stumbling and tripping over his own feet. Corrin stretches and reaches down- tags Skamos, the tiefling’s eyes flutter open- he’s alive.
The halfling is still not content, he takes a moment to settle his own nerves; he gets his Second Wind (after an Action Point) and readies himself for more action.
Erais extricates himself from the battle, although the Sunlord is stabbed in the process, he weaves his hands and chants solemnly, suddenly Irocar is bathed in a Cascade of Light, which burns. The Dog Brother champion screams.
Irocar’s hit for 23 points of radiant damage by Erais’ Daily power.
But like Corrin, Erais isn’t finished, a Lance of Faith strikes Irocar next, scorching him further. Irocar has to grab at the counter for support- he’s bloodied.
Skamos clambers to his feet, using the shelves for support, he finds himself much too close to the action and decides quickly not to get involved, he takes a moment to catch his breath and get his Second Wind.
Riardon shifts back a step, sites his bow precisely and fires, the second to last Dog Brother succumbs to his wounds and flops to the floor.
“Fight me!”
Riardon declares and pointedly stares at Irocar.
Irocar grins, lashes out his blade at Skamos and cuts deep, re-opening the tiefling’s freshly healed wounds; Skamos looks dizzy for a moment and then slumps back down to the floor again. Irocar’s blade continues its arc and bites in to Corrin- the paladin doesn’t look happy, whereas the Dog Brother leader looks ecstatic- he’s Unstoppable.
Irocar uses his Unstoppable power to gain 13 temporary hit points.
The last Dog Brother stabs at Scurvy, alas he’s still subject to Corrin’s Divine Challenge, he burns even as he misses with his blade, and has to grab on to Irocar just to stay on his feet.
But not for long… a stray squirming grub bites a great gaping hole in his right kneecap, the Dog Brother concertinas and collapses- dead.
And yet another pair of the grisly grubs exit Timmy, there are now five of these foul worms crawling around the Bazaar taking chunks out of the combatants.
NEW NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1475 XP Level 6 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x8
Human, Fighter- Irocar Level 4 Soldier
This fact is brought home to the adventurers when two of the foul creatures manage again to tear chunks from Erais’ legs, the Sunlord staggers also.
Scurvy grabs out two of his daggers and launches them in a Blinding Barrage; the first just nicks Arthuro, the second catches Irocar in the forehead leaving a great bloody rent in his scalp. Blinded by the blood the Dog Brother leader flails wildly with his blade.
Scurvy judges his moment, leaps from the counter and buries yet another of his daggers deep in to Irocar’s chest (after an Action Point), only his determination keeps Irocar alive.
That’s enough for Arthuro, the fence hot foots it down the rest of the stairs and in to a nearby chamber- frantic noises issue from within, he seems to be engaged in making his exit.
Corrin smartly salutes Irocar, he challenges him, and then less than a second later skewers the last of the Dog Brothers with his blade- Irocar is dead.
Erais meanwhile screams for help, and forlornly swats ineffectively at the grubs menacing him.
Skamos coughs up a great gout of blood, the tiefling’s eyes are still tight shut.
That’s a failed Death Save.
Riardon heads behind the counter, away from the grubs- where’s Arthuro gone, he spies the fence climbing out of a window in what looks to be a bedroom, presumably his. Riardon’s bow sings and an arrow thuds in to the woodwork next to the fence’s hand, Arthuro jumps with surprise and falls out of the window- thumping in to the alley hard and knocking the wind out of him.
The grisly grubs menace the remaining adventurers- the result of which is Scurvy is bitten twice and left staggering from blood loss, Erais is bitten only once but with the same result- the pair are nearly out for the count.
Erais manages however to kill one of the worms, Corrin and Scurvy miss their targets- things are getting desperate, it doesn’t help that all three of the adventurers are still bleeding profusely.
And the last two grubs exit Timmy and creep in to play.
That’s five of the Otyugh Grubs still left crawling around the Bazaar.
NEW NEW NEW Bad Guys... 1525 XP Level 7 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x10
Human, Fighter- Irocar Level 4 Soldier
And now we’re in a Level 7 encounter.
Skamos continues to cough up blood, as he fails his second Death Save in a row.
Dave, who plays Skamos, looks like thunder- there’s a lot of nervous laughter around the table.
Riardon rushes back in to the Bazaar- abandoning his pursuit of Arthuro, he fires at a grub- and misses.
The grubs however continue to bring the pain; Corrin is bitten twice, Erais and Scurvy once each. Corrin and Scurvy are dizzy and light-headed, Erais is too far gone- the Sunlord collapses.
Erais is on -1 hit point, and I’m trying to help the guys here- the Otyugh Grubs are now moving randomly, overwhelmed by all the flesh that’s available for them to feast on. On their turns the grubs slither away from their previous attacker set to find a new foe- thus ensuring the adventurers get myriad attacks of opportunity against them as they depart. The guys miss every one of these- the grubs are AC 15- not impossible to hit.
It’s all too much for Scurvy, the dwarf suddenly sags and collapses from blood loss.
Ongoing damage reduces Scurvy to 0 hit points.
Meantime Arthuro, now on the outside of the Bazaar, picks himself up and flees back down the alley and out in to the night.
Corrin cuts one of the grubs down- the halfling however almost collapses from the strain of his actions.
Skamos chokes, one last time, on his blood- and dies.
Third Death Save failed in a row.
Dave gets up, without saying a word... and goes home.
Riardon shoots and kills one of the grisly grubs- there are just three of them left, however he attracts their attention, a pair of the foul creatures scuttle over and bite the eladrin ranger.
Corrin battles the other grub; the titanic struggle is a stalemate for now.
Scurvy suddenly moans as his body shudders.
The dwarf fails his first Death Save.
Riardon dodges back and fires again, another grub is sent to hell- just two left, alas both the survivors are on target, Riardon and Corrin are bitten again, the former now bloodied, the later- Corrin, barely hanging on.
It doesn’t help that the halfling misses the mark with his sword, and is still bleeding from his wounds.
Corrin is on one hit point.
Quietly, in a corner, Erais lays still- the colour suddenly fades from his face- the Sunlord is overcome by a deathly pallor.
Erais fails his first Death Save- he’s also still taking ongoing damage.
Riardon scuttles back some more, and then fluffs his shot; the grisly grub closes him down and rips another mouthful of flesh from one of his legs.
The grey maggot facing the staggering Corrin is likewise on target, the halfling stumbles, and then tumbles- the paladin is dying.
There’s just Riardon left (on five hit points), and two grubs of course.
Scurvy continues to convulse, if anything the shuddering gets worse.
That’s a second failure on his Death Save for the dwarf.
Riardon shuffles back some more, this time takes a moment to suck in air, the ranger gets his Second Wind, fortune favours the eladrin as at that exact moment all his wounds cease to bleed.
It doesn’t last, the grisly grub bites again, and Riardon bleeds afresh.
Corrin suddenly yelps, an unnerving sound, the paladin mumbles half-formed words, Erais looks paler still- his blood seems to be flowing away from all of his extremities, his hands are cold white and lifeless.
Corrin fails his first Death Save, Erais his second, the pair are also still taking ongoing damage.
Is it all going to end here?
Riardon, on his own now, shuffles back again to give himself the room he needs and fires again- the second to last grisly maggot is spiked by the ranger’s arrow- dead. The eladrin tries to keep the last grub at bay by kicking out at it, the creature writhes and lurches but fails to land its attack.
Riardon calmly takes another step back, almost on to the stairs now, and fires.
The last grub dies.
No time to lose!
The eladrin rushes over to the still convulsing Scurvy, who at Riardon’s first touch instantly calms, or else… no pulse, the dwarf is dead.
Scurvy fails his third Death Save.
Corrin yelps again, mumbles wildly- Riardon rushes over, he must be able to save the halfling.
Corrin fails his second Death Save.
The eladrin is quickly to work, Corrin is still alive- there’s a chance… and so it proves, seconds later Riardon grins, the halfling paladin’s pulse is strong and stable.
No time to celebrate, Riardon rushes around the bazaar and finally locates Erais, the priest.
He gets to work, moments later the Sunlord stirs.
Two PCs dead, one player gone home- a level 7 encounter bested, and two-and-a-half hours for the encounter, and at no point did it feel like grind.
1525 XP Level 7 Encounter.
Human Tough Level 2 Brute x2
Human Rogue, Arthuro the Fence Level 4 Skirmisher
Old Otyugh, Timmy! Level 4 Soldier
Human Dog Brothers Level 1 Skirmisher x5
Otyugh Grub Level 1 Minion x10
Human, Fighter- Irocar Level 4 Soldier
Comment: And with that we call an end to the first session, certainly the last battle was titanic, it's a shame Skamos and Scurvy were killed but the PCs kinda got lost in the middle of the fracas. There were opportunities in which they could have edged back to a choke point; and when the grubs were about simply moved to higher ground, they instead seemed content to go toe-to-toe with an ever increasing number of bad guys. In part this was due to the slow feed of enemies into the mix, had the monsters all come at once then perhaps the PCs would have recognised the problem sooner, as it was- in a compact combat, they were often isolated and left to fend for themselves.
The first session took a little over three-and-a-half hours to play out; two combat encounters, although the above was a brute, and one trap encounter. The PCs will address the situation they're in next session- only three of them left and with very limited resources.
As for Dave, well we can only hope.
