Rel's Faded Glory Campaign (Thank You Old One!)
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Rel
Liquid Awesome
Against the Kobolds (Part 3: Do they stay or do they go?)
"We what?! You almost just died, lad. You want to give them another shot at you?!" Spoke Raven in disbelief.
Speaks chimed in too, "I must agree with Raven. We are all wounded and I have little magic left. I think it would be imprudent to stay here. Let us pull back to the tower and rest until we are able to regain our strength."
Rhys' resolve remained, "Look, these 'Kobolds' have magic similar to mine. They have cast many of their spells on us and I don't think they can have very many left at this point. If we go rest, so will they and we'll have to face those Lightning Bolts all over again. I'm not too keen on that. Besides, I have a plan…"
The group took a few minutes to discuss their plan with Speaks and Raven wary of the whole idea. But Rhys' force of personality won the day and he began to gather a number of scrolls that he would need. And with that, the plan was set in motion.
First, Rhys used his wand of Burning Hands to set fire to the Web that trapped them in the narrow corridor. He put the wand away and then used a scroll of Invisibility on himself. Following that he used one of his Spider Climb spells. He then used another scroll to Locate Krase's Mithral breastplate. He sensed it's presence deeper inside the mine. He then used one of his minor spells to reach out with his mind and grab his Everburning Torch and send it floating back down the narrow corridor, some 30 feet ahead of him. He proceeded back down the narrow passage, headed deeper within the mine.
Speaks and Raven watched him walk away and then made their way through the dying embers of the burned out web, headed toward the mine exit. They cautiously made their way back through the main intersection and back to the short side passage to the empty equipment storage room. There they paused and waited for any signs of the Kobolds.
Rhys meanwhile made it back to the shaft where they had slain the sleeping Kobolds just minutes before and turned to his right, headed deeper into the mine. As he went, he moved cautiously and kept his concentration on holding the torch out in front of him. He continued forward until he came to one of the diminutive side tunnels only large enough for a Kobold to fit through comfortably.
Wishing to avoid any possibility of colliding with a Kobold emerging from the side tunnel at an inopportune moment, he climbed along the wall above the mouth of the small tunnel. Once past it, he continued forward. As he did so, he glanced back and spotted a Kobold behind him, cautiously advancing to keep pace with the "mysterious floating torch". Rhys ignored him.
Meanwhile, Speaks got ready to start a distraction and drew from his robes the Everflowing Bottle. He braced himself against the tunnel wall and activated the magic of the bottle, causing a "Geyser" of water to shoot forth with great force. He held the Bottle steady against the back pressure and began to send hundreds of gallons of water pouring down into the mine.
In the distance, Rhys could hear this sound and smiled, knowing that it would distract some of the Kobolds away from his scouting mission. He continued on, arriving at another of the 5-foot wide passages that entered the main shaft at an angle. Glancing across the shaft from the passage, he saw the glimmer of a silver vein in the opposite wall. He deduced that the side passages must have been where the silver ore had already been excavated. Noting this, he continued forward.
Not far beyond that point, he saw something shimmer beneath his floating torch and discovered that the floor of the shaft was covered with water. As he approached closer, he saw the water continued as far down the shaft as he could see. Surely the water that Speaks was unleashing from the Bottle hadn't started to flood the mines already? Perhaps this portion of the mines had been flooded to begin with. He noted that the passageway continued to slope slightly downward and it might become submerged entirely up ahead. He figured he'd better check it out. He climbed up the wall and onto the ceiling and continued forward slowly.
He continued down the passage for some 60 feet or so with the ceiling dropping closer and closer to the water level. Finally, he could see by the torchlight ahead that the shaft became entirely submerged. He turned and began to crawl back up the shaft, moving his torch back to its station 30 feet ahead of him.
But as his torch began to illuminate the shaft ahead, he could see that clustered at the edge of the water were four Kobolds. And sitting amongst them was the black reptilian shape of the Shadow Dragon. His allies had assured him that the dragon was only a shadowy replica of a real dragon, but it certainly looked real enough right now. He paused briefly but quickly realized that he had no real choices. There was only one way out and it was right past that group. He advanced toward the waiting group.
His torch arrived at the group ahead of him and the dragon suddenly lunged out and bit down on it, causing the torchlight to dance. Rhys hurried ahead, knowing that in a few moments, he would probably lose his light source entirely. The torchlight flickered as the dragon masticated the heatless light of the torch and then all was dark.
Rhys continued to climb forward, knowing that at the moment, he must be right over the heads of the Kobolds and just inches from the dragon. His eyes went wide with terror when he heard the sound of a large muzzle sniffing close to him. Then, pain shot through his leg as the dragon's jaws clamped down on it. But he did note that the pain was less than he would have expected. Perhaps Speaks and Raven were right about the dragon not being the real thing. Regardless, in the utter darkness, without any means of defending himself, he was at the mercy of the beast. He scurried forward along the ceiling as fast as he could go.
A second later, the dragon bit him again, along the torso this time. The wound was minor but Rhys knew that time was still on the dragon's side. He had to get back to the main shaft where Speaks and Raven were and get there fast. At the moment he finished forming that thought, he was struck suddenly by a pair of arrows, presumably fired by the Kobolds just below him. If they could see him now, he was as good as dead. He hoped that they had just gotten lucky and continued to scrabble ahead along the ceiling.
As he went, he kept near the right wall of the shaft and his right hand felt out for the next side passage. He couldn't be sure but he guessed that the passage led back to the central mine shaft and that would put him closer to Speaks and Raven. His right hand reached out for the wall and felt it falling away to the northwest. He had found the side passage. He pressed forward with the dragon nipping at his heels (and occasionally catching one for minor damage) and arrows bouncing off the walls and ceiling, always right after the dragon bit. (GM Note: The Kobolds couldn't see him but whenever the dragon seemed to bite down on something and they heard a grunt of pain, they would shoot at either side of the dragon's head. After that first time, they never hit Rhys again but they did hit the dragon twice.)
Rhys raced along the ceiling of the side passage and the sound of the geyser of water being unleashed by Speaks became louder. If the dragon didn't kill him first, he knew he could find his way out. Moments later, the sound again grew appreciably louder and he turned his gaze to see a distant rectangle of light: The mine entrance.
He hurried that direction and took a moment to concentrate on his Amulet of Communication. "Speaks! I'm coming for the mine entrance followed by a dragon and a bunch of Kobolds!"
Upon receiving this message, Speaks yelled for Raven to get ready to cover Rhys as he approached. Raven readied his bow and aimed down the central shaft waiting to shoot anything that dared show its head. He didn't have to wait long.
Speaks spoke the command word and turned off the Bottle. As things grew quieter, they could hear the yipping sounds of Kobold speech down the corridor. Then, the black shape of the dragon came into view, biting at something unseen near the ceiling. Raven fired his bow down the passage and his arrow skipped off the scales of the beast.
Rhys could see his friends now. Apparently, one of them had cast a Light spell on a small stone and tossed down the corridor ahead of them to provide illumination. He continued along the ceiling. The dragon seemed to be having a hard time getting his jaws around him lately and he certainly didn't want to experience that sensation again. He crossed the main intersection and spotted some movement down the side passages but didn't pause to examine it. He saw Raven fire another arrow behind him and knew the dragon must be closing in again.
Speaks readied himself to attack the dragon and saw that a number of Kobolds were trailing the beast up the main corridor. First among them was one that looked familiar. It was the one that had cast the Lightning Bolts earlier! A warning cry rose in his throat and then the world exploded in crackling light.
From the fingers of the Kobold flew a blast of lightning that, while not as far ranging as the previous ones, filled the entire corridor. Rhys never saw it coming. His natural instincts kicked in and he hugged the ceiling but still couldn't escape all of the blast. The damage inflicted by the dragon had taken its toll and the young Sorcerer fell to the muddy floor of the mine shaft unconscious and near death. Had he been conscious, he may have taken minor consolation at the fact that the dragon was also caught in the bolt and its shadowy form dissipated in a puff of smoke.
Raven, standing nearly immobile in his thick carapace of steel took the full brunt of the blast and also fell over unconscious. Speaks managed to get between two of the most powerful arcs of electricity and only took part of the damage. Glancing around, he saw that Raven was down and Rhys (still invisible) was nowhere in sight. He was alone.
Enraged, he hefted his long-spear and charged the Kobold Sorceress. He struck her low in the torso and she crumpled to the ground. The other Kobolds around her looked on with shock as their leader fell. But they still outnumbered the human and maneuvered to outflank him. One tumbled by and came up behind the Druid but another slipped on the waterlogged mud floor and paid the price. Speaks plunged his spear all the way through the chest of the creature and out the other side (critical hit). The other Kobold stepped forward and delivered a vicious slash across his thigh while he was distracted.
Speaks moved deeper down the hallway, toward the intersection but out of reach of his attackers. As he went, one of the Kobolds struck at him but his superior Mobility kept him safe from the attack. The Kobolds moved back in to attack and Speaks thrust his spear at one and missed. The Kobolds also missed but had moved back into flanking positions.
Speaks could tell that these Kobolds were good at fighting this way. He could also see the bleeding, smoking form of Raven lying in the mud near the mine entrance and knew that time was running out. He moved quickly to disengage from the Kobolds and once again, his training at staying mobile during combat saved him from their blades.
It appeared that the Kobolds were just as happy to let Speaks disengage. As he fell back, they grabbed the fallen Kobolds and fled around the corner. Speaks Summoned a Swarm of rats in the middle of the intersection to keep the Kobolds away while he dealt with his fallen comrades.
He first used a minor healing spell on Raven to stop his bleeding. Then he cast about for some sign of Rhys. He had never seen him come up the hall and assumed that he must still be Invisible. His eyes passed over a seemingly bare patch of muddy floor and then something caught his eye (Speaks' player rolled a 6 spot check and then used a "Fate Chip" to re-roll, getting a 15 on the second roll.). He saw a vaguely humanoid impression in the mud and felt around, encountering Rhys' body. He cast another minor healing spell to stop his bleeding and then dragged him into the side passage that led to the equipment storage room. He quickly returned to the main shaft and grabbed Raven's unconscious form as well. As he did, he could see some more movement and hear noises deeper in the mine. He was sure they were being watched.
Once he had Rhys and Raven safely in the side passage, he used his Wand of Healing to heal Raven to consciousness. When the dwarf came to, he handed him the spare Wand of Healing that he had been saving and said, "Start healing yourself. We need to get out of here soon."
Raven took the wand and looked around. Rhys was nowhere to be seen and thought it best not to ask about that (Rhys was right next to him, invisible with -8 HP). Raven set about healing himself with the wand.
A few moments later, the Druid and the Cleric were feeling much healthier, although still not fantastic. Speaks told Raven that he suspected the Kobolds were waiting for them to poke their heads out into the main shaft. To illustrate his point, he Summoned a Dire Rat in the hallway just outside the passage they hid in. Instantly two Magic Missiles struck the creature and it fell to the ground senseless.
"See?" said Speaks.
"We need to get out of here. Soon and fast." Replied Raven. "Where's Rhys?"
Speaks showed Raven that Rhys was right there with them, unconscious and still invisible. Raven stroked his beard thoughtfully and reached into the seemingly bottomless Haversack that he wore. He pulled out a potion. "I know I walk slower'n you most of the time. But this elixir will help with that. I'll get the lad and you follow me out." He slung Rhys over his shoulder and made his way to the edge of the main shaft. He drank the potion and then dashed out into the hallway.
Before he had taken more than a couple of steps, six Magic Missiles shot from further down the main shaft and struck the dwarf. He staggered under the assault but did not fall. He turned and raced for the exit of the mine as fast as he could go (which was twice as fast as normal thanks to the potion of Expeditious Retreat).
As he emerged from the mine into the cool morning air, he smiled.
That's when the two Kobolds lying in ambush above the mine entrance shot him in the back. The first arrow struck him in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground and pushing him beyond the realm of consciousness. The other arrow would have killed the dwarf but it didn't strike him. It struck the invisible, unconscious Rhys hanging over his other shoulder.
Back in the cave, Speaks heard the dwarf cry out and then heard his heavy armor come crashing to the ground. Feeling that he needed additional speed, he concentrated and transformed into the form of an eagle. Then he flew out into the main shaft and banked right toward the exit. He too was struck with a volley of Magic Missiles (only 4
) as he hurried to the freedom of the outdoors.
As he burst out of the mineshaft, he saw Raven lying on the ground and saw a pair of arrows streak by him from above. He made a tight turn in the direction of the arrows and saw a pair of Kobolds crouched behind some bushes further up the ridge. He moved in their direction and they broke and ran. He longed to chase them but his friends needed him. He alighted next to the dwarf and transformed back into human form.
A few feet away, he could see a dusty, muddy outline that must be Rhys. He used the wand once to heal Rhys before turning his attention back to Raven. He knelt over the dwarf and used the healing wand again to bring him to consciousness.
Speaks told Raven to check on Rhys and get ready to move if the Kobolds pursued them. Looking further up the ridge, he could see that the Kobold archers were still watching them from a cluster of bushes. Speaks Entangled that area and saw the Kobolds struggle against the bushes.
He turned back to Raven who was looking at him somberly. "How is he?"
Raven replied sorrowfully, "The lad's dead."
NEXT: Torrents
"We what?! You almost just died, lad. You want to give them another shot at you?!" Spoke Raven in disbelief.
Speaks chimed in too, "I must agree with Raven. We are all wounded and I have little magic left. I think it would be imprudent to stay here. Let us pull back to the tower and rest until we are able to regain our strength."
Rhys' resolve remained, "Look, these 'Kobolds' have magic similar to mine. They have cast many of their spells on us and I don't think they can have very many left at this point. If we go rest, so will they and we'll have to face those Lightning Bolts all over again. I'm not too keen on that. Besides, I have a plan…"
The group took a few minutes to discuss their plan with Speaks and Raven wary of the whole idea. But Rhys' force of personality won the day and he began to gather a number of scrolls that he would need. And with that, the plan was set in motion.
First, Rhys used his wand of Burning Hands to set fire to the Web that trapped them in the narrow corridor. He put the wand away and then used a scroll of Invisibility on himself. Following that he used one of his Spider Climb spells. He then used another scroll to Locate Krase's Mithral breastplate. He sensed it's presence deeper inside the mine. He then used one of his minor spells to reach out with his mind and grab his Everburning Torch and send it floating back down the narrow corridor, some 30 feet ahead of him. He proceeded back down the narrow passage, headed deeper within the mine.
Speaks and Raven watched him walk away and then made their way through the dying embers of the burned out web, headed toward the mine exit. They cautiously made their way back through the main intersection and back to the short side passage to the empty equipment storage room. There they paused and waited for any signs of the Kobolds.
Rhys meanwhile made it back to the shaft where they had slain the sleeping Kobolds just minutes before and turned to his right, headed deeper into the mine. As he went, he moved cautiously and kept his concentration on holding the torch out in front of him. He continued forward until he came to one of the diminutive side tunnels only large enough for a Kobold to fit through comfortably.
Wishing to avoid any possibility of colliding with a Kobold emerging from the side tunnel at an inopportune moment, he climbed along the wall above the mouth of the small tunnel. Once past it, he continued forward. As he did so, he glanced back and spotted a Kobold behind him, cautiously advancing to keep pace with the "mysterious floating torch". Rhys ignored him.
Meanwhile, Speaks got ready to start a distraction and drew from his robes the Everflowing Bottle. He braced himself against the tunnel wall and activated the magic of the bottle, causing a "Geyser" of water to shoot forth with great force. He held the Bottle steady against the back pressure and began to send hundreds of gallons of water pouring down into the mine.
In the distance, Rhys could hear this sound and smiled, knowing that it would distract some of the Kobolds away from his scouting mission. He continued on, arriving at another of the 5-foot wide passages that entered the main shaft at an angle. Glancing across the shaft from the passage, he saw the glimmer of a silver vein in the opposite wall. He deduced that the side passages must have been where the silver ore had already been excavated. Noting this, he continued forward.
Not far beyond that point, he saw something shimmer beneath his floating torch and discovered that the floor of the shaft was covered with water. As he approached closer, he saw the water continued as far down the shaft as he could see. Surely the water that Speaks was unleashing from the Bottle hadn't started to flood the mines already? Perhaps this portion of the mines had been flooded to begin with. He noted that the passageway continued to slope slightly downward and it might become submerged entirely up ahead. He figured he'd better check it out. He climbed up the wall and onto the ceiling and continued forward slowly.
He continued down the passage for some 60 feet or so with the ceiling dropping closer and closer to the water level. Finally, he could see by the torchlight ahead that the shaft became entirely submerged. He turned and began to crawl back up the shaft, moving his torch back to its station 30 feet ahead of him.
But as his torch began to illuminate the shaft ahead, he could see that clustered at the edge of the water were four Kobolds. And sitting amongst them was the black reptilian shape of the Shadow Dragon. His allies had assured him that the dragon was only a shadowy replica of a real dragon, but it certainly looked real enough right now. He paused briefly but quickly realized that he had no real choices. There was only one way out and it was right past that group. He advanced toward the waiting group.
His torch arrived at the group ahead of him and the dragon suddenly lunged out and bit down on it, causing the torchlight to dance. Rhys hurried ahead, knowing that in a few moments, he would probably lose his light source entirely. The torchlight flickered as the dragon masticated the heatless light of the torch and then all was dark.
Rhys continued to climb forward, knowing that at the moment, he must be right over the heads of the Kobolds and just inches from the dragon. His eyes went wide with terror when he heard the sound of a large muzzle sniffing close to him. Then, pain shot through his leg as the dragon's jaws clamped down on it. But he did note that the pain was less than he would have expected. Perhaps Speaks and Raven were right about the dragon not being the real thing. Regardless, in the utter darkness, without any means of defending himself, he was at the mercy of the beast. He scurried forward along the ceiling as fast as he could go.
A second later, the dragon bit him again, along the torso this time. The wound was minor but Rhys knew that time was still on the dragon's side. He had to get back to the main shaft where Speaks and Raven were and get there fast. At the moment he finished forming that thought, he was struck suddenly by a pair of arrows, presumably fired by the Kobolds just below him. If they could see him now, he was as good as dead. He hoped that they had just gotten lucky and continued to scrabble ahead along the ceiling.
As he went, he kept near the right wall of the shaft and his right hand felt out for the next side passage. He couldn't be sure but he guessed that the passage led back to the central mine shaft and that would put him closer to Speaks and Raven. His right hand reached out for the wall and felt it falling away to the northwest. He had found the side passage. He pressed forward with the dragon nipping at his heels (and occasionally catching one for minor damage) and arrows bouncing off the walls and ceiling, always right after the dragon bit. (GM Note: The Kobolds couldn't see him but whenever the dragon seemed to bite down on something and they heard a grunt of pain, they would shoot at either side of the dragon's head. After that first time, they never hit Rhys again but they did hit the dragon twice.)
Rhys raced along the ceiling of the side passage and the sound of the geyser of water being unleashed by Speaks became louder. If the dragon didn't kill him first, he knew he could find his way out. Moments later, the sound again grew appreciably louder and he turned his gaze to see a distant rectangle of light: The mine entrance.
He hurried that direction and took a moment to concentrate on his Amulet of Communication. "Speaks! I'm coming for the mine entrance followed by a dragon and a bunch of Kobolds!"
Upon receiving this message, Speaks yelled for Raven to get ready to cover Rhys as he approached. Raven readied his bow and aimed down the central shaft waiting to shoot anything that dared show its head. He didn't have to wait long.
Speaks spoke the command word and turned off the Bottle. As things grew quieter, they could hear the yipping sounds of Kobold speech down the corridor. Then, the black shape of the dragon came into view, biting at something unseen near the ceiling. Raven fired his bow down the passage and his arrow skipped off the scales of the beast.
Rhys could see his friends now. Apparently, one of them had cast a Light spell on a small stone and tossed down the corridor ahead of them to provide illumination. He continued along the ceiling. The dragon seemed to be having a hard time getting his jaws around him lately and he certainly didn't want to experience that sensation again. He crossed the main intersection and spotted some movement down the side passages but didn't pause to examine it. He saw Raven fire another arrow behind him and knew the dragon must be closing in again.
Speaks readied himself to attack the dragon and saw that a number of Kobolds were trailing the beast up the main corridor. First among them was one that looked familiar. It was the one that had cast the Lightning Bolts earlier! A warning cry rose in his throat and then the world exploded in crackling light.
From the fingers of the Kobold flew a blast of lightning that, while not as far ranging as the previous ones, filled the entire corridor. Rhys never saw it coming. His natural instincts kicked in and he hugged the ceiling but still couldn't escape all of the blast. The damage inflicted by the dragon had taken its toll and the young Sorcerer fell to the muddy floor of the mine shaft unconscious and near death. Had he been conscious, he may have taken minor consolation at the fact that the dragon was also caught in the bolt and its shadowy form dissipated in a puff of smoke.
Raven, standing nearly immobile in his thick carapace of steel took the full brunt of the blast and also fell over unconscious. Speaks managed to get between two of the most powerful arcs of electricity and only took part of the damage. Glancing around, he saw that Raven was down and Rhys (still invisible) was nowhere in sight. He was alone.
Enraged, he hefted his long-spear and charged the Kobold Sorceress. He struck her low in the torso and she crumpled to the ground. The other Kobolds around her looked on with shock as their leader fell. But they still outnumbered the human and maneuvered to outflank him. One tumbled by and came up behind the Druid but another slipped on the waterlogged mud floor and paid the price. Speaks plunged his spear all the way through the chest of the creature and out the other side (critical hit). The other Kobold stepped forward and delivered a vicious slash across his thigh while he was distracted.
Speaks moved deeper down the hallway, toward the intersection but out of reach of his attackers. As he went, one of the Kobolds struck at him but his superior Mobility kept him safe from the attack. The Kobolds moved back in to attack and Speaks thrust his spear at one and missed. The Kobolds also missed but had moved back into flanking positions.
Speaks could tell that these Kobolds were good at fighting this way. He could also see the bleeding, smoking form of Raven lying in the mud near the mine entrance and knew that time was running out. He moved quickly to disengage from the Kobolds and once again, his training at staying mobile during combat saved him from their blades.
It appeared that the Kobolds were just as happy to let Speaks disengage. As he fell back, they grabbed the fallen Kobolds and fled around the corner. Speaks Summoned a Swarm of rats in the middle of the intersection to keep the Kobolds away while he dealt with his fallen comrades.
He first used a minor healing spell on Raven to stop his bleeding. Then he cast about for some sign of Rhys. He had never seen him come up the hall and assumed that he must still be Invisible. His eyes passed over a seemingly bare patch of muddy floor and then something caught his eye (Speaks' player rolled a 6 spot check and then used a "Fate Chip" to re-roll, getting a 15 on the second roll.). He saw a vaguely humanoid impression in the mud and felt around, encountering Rhys' body. He cast another minor healing spell to stop his bleeding and then dragged him into the side passage that led to the equipment storage room. He quickly returned to the main shaft and grabbed Raven's unconscious form as well. As he did, he could see some more movement and hear noises deeper in the mine. He was sure they were being watched.
Once he had Rhys and Raven safely in the side passage, he used his Wand of Healing to heal Raven to consciousness. When the dwarf came to, he handed him the spare Wand of Healing that he had been saving and said, "Start healing yourself. We need to get out of here soon."
Raven took the wand and looked around. Rhys was nowhere to be seen and thought it best not to ask about that (Rhys was right next to him, invisible with -8 HP). Raven set about healing himself with the wand.
A few moments later, the Druid and the Cleric were feeling much healthier, although still not fantastic. Speaks told Raven that he suspected the Kobolds were waiting for them to poke their heads out into the main shaft. To illustrate his point, he Summoned a Dire Rat in the hallway just outside the passage they hid in. Instantly two Magic Missiles struck the creature and it fell to the ground senseless.
"See?" said Speaks.
"We need to get out of here. Soon and fast." Replied Raven. "Where's Rhys?"
Speaks showed Raven that Rhys was right there with them, unconscious and still invisible. Raven stroked his beard thoughtfully and reached into the seemingly bottomless Haversack that he wore. He pulled out a potion. "I know I walk slower'n you most of the time. But this elixir will help with that. I'll get the lad and you follow me out." He slung Rhys over his shoulder and made his way to the edge of the main shaft. He drank the potion and then dashed out into the hallway.
Before he had taken more than a couple of steps, six Magic Missiles shot from further down the main shaft and struck the dwarf. He staggered under the assault but did not fall. He turned and raced for the exit of the mine as fast as he could go (which was twice as fast as normal thanks to the potion of Expeditious Retreat).
As he emerged from the mine into the cool morning air, he smiled.
That's when the two Kobolds lying in ambush above the mine entrance shot him in the back. The first arrow struck him in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground and pushing him beyond the realm of consciousness. The other arrow would have killed the dwarf but it didn't strike him. It struck the invisible, unconscious Rhys hanging over his other shoulder.
Back in the cave, Speaks heard the dwarf cry out and then heard his heavy armor come crashing to the ground. Feeling that he needed additional speed, he concentrated and transformed into the form of an eagle. Then he flew out into the main shaft and banked right toward the exit. He too was struck with a volley of Magic Missiles (only 4
) as he hurried to the freedom of the outdoors.As he burst out of the mineshaft, he saw Raven lying on the ground and saw a pair of arrows streak by him from above. He made a tight turn in the direction of the arrows and saw a pair of Kobolds crouched behind some bushes further up the ridge. He moved in their direction and they broke and ran. He longed to chase them but his friends needed him. He alighted next to the dwarf and transformed back into human form.
A few feet away, he could see a dusty, muddy outline that must be Rhys. He used the wand once to heal Rhys before turning his attention back to Raven. He knelt over the dwarf and used the healing wand again to bring him to consciousness.
Speaks told Raven to check on Rhys and get ready to move if the Kobolds pursued them. Looking further up the ridge, he could see that the Kobold archers were still watching them from a cluster of bushes. Speaks Entangled that area and saw the Kobolds struggle against the bushes.
He turned back to Raven who was looking at him somberly. "How is he?"
Raven replied sorrowfully, "The lad's dead."
NEXT: Torrents
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Rel
Liquid Awesome
In the first four months of the campaign, no character deaths. In the last month, two. Hmm.
Ilrath would say that it is because they don't have him with the party anymore but he is full of macho bravado anyway.
I feel kind of bad because Rhys was just coming into his own as a Sorcerer. He was only 35xp short of his next level when we started this session.
I also felt bad because he had survived against all odds from his daring (foolhardy in the opinions of many) plunge deeper into the mines in an attempt to locate the main Kobold lair and possibly find Krase's possessions. He even survived that brutal Lightning Bolt at the end, only to get killed acting as cover for Raven.
The dice are fickle things. I rolled astoundingly well for the dragon and Kobolds in the first couple rounds they attacked Rhys. Then I couldn't roll above a 6 for what seemed like forever. Then the Lightning Bolt came and I rolled 32 points of damage on 6d6. I rolled a 17 and 18 for the Kobold ambushers attack rolls. Like they say, "Lady Luck is a bitch!"
Ah well, his next character sounds like he'll be a blast. Thanks for reading.
Ilrath would say that it is because they don't have him with the party anymore but he is full of macho bravado anyway.
I feel kind of bad because Rhys was just coming into his own as a Sorcerer. He was only 35xp short of his next level when we started this session.
I also felt bad because he had survived against all odds from his daring (foolhardy in the opinions of many) plunge deeper into the mines in an attempt to locate the main Kobold lair and possibly find Krase's possessions. He even survived that brutal Lightning Bolt at the end, only to get killed acting as cover for Raven.
The dice are fickle things. I rolled astoundingly well for the dragon and Kobolds in the first couple rounds they attacked Rhys. Then I couldn't roll above a 6 for what seemed like forever. Then the Lightning Bolt came and I rolled 32 points of damage on 6d6. I rolled a 17 and 18 for the Kobold ambushers attack rolls. Like they say, "Lady Luck is a bitch!"
Ah well, his next character sounds like he'll be a blast. Thanks for reading.
Darklone
Registered User
Mourning for Rhys
Bad things happen not only to bad people. Well, probably Rhys saved Raven by covering his shoulder...
Too bad. I really liked this not to typical sorcerer (his levels are very common but not his behavior, skill selection and spells).
He was somewhat unique. Now I am looking forward to the next member of that unique group
Bad things happen not only to bad people. Well, probably Rhys saved Raven by covering his shoulder...
Too bad. I really liked this not to typical sorcerer (his levels are very common but not his behavior, skill selection and spells).
He was somewhat unique. Now I am looking forward to the next member of that unique group
Of All the "Dumb Luck"...
Rel -
How ironic...Rhys makes it through all that, just to be taken out by an arrow meant for someone else - talk about bad luck
!
Just out of curiosity, how did you adjudicate the hit on the invisible Rhys? I am looking forward to reading about Rhys statue and the next victim, er...PC!
~ Old One
PS - What happened to Tavis?
Rel -
How ironic...Rhys makes it through all that, just to be taken out by an arrow meant for someone else - talk about bad luck
!Just out of curiosity, how did you adjudicate the hit on the invisible Rhys? I am looking forward to reading about Rhys statue and the next victim, er...PC
!~ Old One
PS - What happened to Tavis?
Speaks With Stone
First Post
Dumb Luck
Actually, the first calculation of the dice showed Raven dead. But then Rhys' player pointed out that since Raven was running he should have gotten a bonus to his AC. This shifted one of the hit rolls to just barely missing, which Rel then attributed to cover. I think it was a similar ruling to the one that had the kobolds shooting the shadow dragon earlier.
So we went from a dead Raven to a dead Rhys in a quick rules check.
So far in 2 attempts into the cave both Raven and Rhys were put down no less than 3 times each. Through some spellcraft checks, we have roughly placed the kobold sorceress at a minimum of 8 levels of sorceror. Add to this the home court advantage, the darkness advantage, and the numbers and you begin to see just how outclassed we were.
Couple that with a particularly fool hardy plan and it's amazing all 3 of us weren't killed. While I was fighting the flanking kobolds, I was fairly convinced that I had virtually no chance of saving both of my downed companions. Luckily, the kobolds weren't looking for an extended fight. If only we had gotten Rhys up and running instead of soaking all the healing into Raven and myself we may have all made it. Unfortuneately, the ding dang wand wouldn't cure more than 3 hps at a time. I have had abyssmal luck in general and I've tried to limit my use of spells that require any dice rolling on my part. I think it's because I'm using dice that Rel gave me for Christmas.
Hopefully the painful lessons of the kobolds will remain with us for a while.
Actually, the first calculation of the dice showed Raven dead. But then Rhys' player pointed out that since Raven was running he should have gotten a bonus to his AC. This shifted one of the hit rolls to just barely missing, which Rel then attributed to cover. I think it was a similar ruling to the one that had the kobolds shooting the shadow dragon earlier.
So we went from a dead Raven to a dead Rhys in a quick rules check.
So far in 2 attempts into the cave both Raven and Rhys were put down no less than 3 times each. Through some spellcraft checks, we have roughly placed the kobold sorceress at a minimum of 8 levels of sorceror. Add to this the home court advantage, the darkness advantage, and the numbers and you begin to see just how outclassed we were.
Couple that with a particularly fool hardy plan and it's amazing all 3 of us weren't killed. While I was fighting the flanking kobolds, I was fairly convinced that I had virtually no chance of saving both of my downed companions. Luckily, the kobolds weren't looking for an extended fight. If only we had gotten Rhys up and running instead of soaking all the healing into Raven and myself we may have all made it. Unfortuneately, the ding dang wand wouldn't cure more than 3 hps at a time. I have had abyssmal luck in general and I've tried to limit my use of spells that require any dice rolling on my part. I think it's because I'm using dice that Rel gave me for Christmas.
Hopefully the painful lessons of the kobolds will remain with us for a while.
Rel
Liquid Awesome
Re: Tavis
Nobody mentioned the little weasel during the fight. As a matter of fact, I did remember to roll a Reflex save for her when the Lightning Bolt hit and she failed. Since she has improved evasion, she only took half damage but that was enough to put her unconscious. Nobody bothered to look for her in the aftermath and her present condition is unknown.
As far as ruling for Rhys providing cover, I used the normal "Cover" rules which say that if a shot missed you because of the cover, the cover gets hit. Technically, it should have been a lot easier to hit the lightly armored body of Rhys than the heavily armored dwarf, but I wasn't out to kill the character and I didn't feel like making up some "house rule" for it on the fly. That's just the way it worked out.
I'll try to post the rest of this session over the weekend sometime. The machinations of Speaks and Raven in the wake of Rhys' death are clever and interesting, but will they work? Stay tuned!
Nobody mentioned the little weasel during the fight. As a matter of fact, I did remember to roll a Reflex save for her when the Lightning Bolt hit and she failed. Since she has improved evasion, she only took half damage but that was enough to put her unconscious. Nobody bothered to look for her in the aftermath and her present condition is unknown.
As far as ruling for Rhys providing cover, I used the normal "Cover" rules which say that if a shot missed you because of the cover, the cover gets hit. Technically, it should have been a lot easier to hit the lightly armored body of Rhys than the heavily armored dwarf, but I wasn't out to kill the character and I didn't feel like making up some "house rule" for it on the fly. That's just the way it worked out.
I'll try to post the rest of this session over the weekend sometime. The machinations of Speaks and Raven in the wake of Rhys' death are clever and interesting, but will they work? Stay tuned!
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