Well now, what's this? Rel is delivering an update
earlier than promised? Surely a sign of the appocalypse.
I managed to get home a tad early today and sneak in some update time before my wife and child got home. This is a big one and the most riveting part of the fight yet. Hope you enjoy it:
An Incredibly Brief Respite
Scar lunged. His hammer struck along one shoulder of the Dark Druid and his spiked gauntlet struck the other. But Scars meager strength as a result of the shadows leant little force to the blows. Raven stepped in behind the Half-Orc and called upon the grace of Moradin to
Restore some of Scar's strength but his tired prayer only brought a bit of relief (rolled a 1 on restoring the Str damage).
Outside the compound, Speaks alighted amid some low bushes and resumed his human form. No sooner had he gained his footing and bearings than was enveloped in yet another column of fire. The bushes around him erupted into flames tainted with the sickening taste of evil. Speaks rolled away from the worst of the flames into another cluster of bushes. As he scrambled beneath the plants of the Northland forest, time almost seemed to come to a halt.
He stared at a branch of the bush above him and could see where the main trunk turned from a greyish brown to a fading green of new growth. The bright green leaves on this branch hovered over him in contrast to the deeper green leaves of the older growth. It was summer. And even amid all the evil and fighting and death around it, this plant kept on living and growing. Even sitting in the middle of a horde of undead, life found a way.
As Speaks watched, the branch suddenly sprouted thorns and spikes and descended upon him, enveloping him in its grasp.
Inside the pavillion, the Dark Druid looked at the odds and didn't like what he saw. His form collapsed in on itself and his bird wings began to carry him aloft throught he same hole his master had fled through moments before. Scar swung wearily with his hammer but only succeeded in dislodging a few tail feathers.
Scar looked around and saw that he and Raven were alone in the large tent. He knew it wouldn't last. He guzzled down a potion and felt its soothing magic immediately start to work into his wounds. Then he stepped over to the edge of the tent and kicked open one of the chests there, figuring that until somebody else showed up to try and kill them, there was no reason not to do a bit of looting.
Raven called once again for the power of Moradin to
Restore his strength and again his call was answered in only the most meager fashion (yet another 1 on Lesser Restoration). His disappointment descended upon him like the weight of his armor and he began to try and struggle free of his greaves and vambraces.
Speaks knew all too well the spell he was up against. He had used it to great effect just a minute earlier. If he didn't struggle, the
Briar Web couldn't hurt him. He lay still and listened for any sign that his friends were in trouble.
Scar moved near to the far exit of the pavillion and kicked open another chest. Inside lay a pair of potions atop a bed of silver and gold coins. He grabbed them and shoved them roughly into a belt pouch. Outside he spotted the tangled mass of grasping grasses and weeds that Speaks had used to immobilize that side of the camp. Thorny blades of grass flew through the air and a nine foot tall skeleton broke free of the entanglement and moved purposefully toward the pavillion. "Raven, we're about to have a visitor!"
Raven started from where he was fumbling with a buckle on his arm guard and grabbed up his hammer once again. He moved as fast as he could under the incredible weight of his plate mail, trying to get to the doorway where Scar stood ready with his hammer. Before the Dwarf could get there, the hide of the tent ripped open and there stood the skeletal ogre. It traded blows with Scar with the Half-Orc coming away slightly worse in the bargain. Raven watched as the undead ogre was joined by another who tore itself free from Speaks'
Briar Web, the grasping plants pulling away a rib and deeply scratching one of the creature's leg bones. Scar howled in defiance as the huge pair of skeletons descended upon him.
Hearing Scar's cry, Speaks knew that it was time for him to act. Trying to pull free of the thorny bushes that had him was suicide. Instead he let the wild flow into him and shrank as he assumed the form of a badger. Before the grasping thorns could tighten upon him again, he dug between the very roots of the plants that grabbed him. He dug down and began angling to the side.
Weakened as he was, Scar knew his odds in a straight out fight against these undead giants he faced. But he knew something they did not. Dodging past one of their sweeping claws, Scar ducked between the ogre skeletons and into the safety of the
Briar Web. Thanks to Raven's magic, Scar enjoyed a
Freedom of Movement that the ogres did not. One of the ogres pursued Scar and the Half-Orc watched with glee as the thorny branches tore the creature apart.
The other ogre turned its empty eye sockets on Raven and swung a claw at the dwarf as he healed himself of some of his wounds. Raven stepped into the doorway of the tent and came into view of another pair of the ogre skeletons that guarded one of the entrances to the compound. They immediately began to mindlessly move toward him and were, in turn, grappled by the enchanted branches which dug their thorns into bone and ripped limbs from their frame.
Now that he was safely within the confines of the briar patch, Scar put away his hammer and pulled out his bow. Spotting the form of a skeletal bat circling overhead, Scar drew an arrow and fired, causing very minor damage to the bony creature. Nearby, Raven stayed just out of reach of the skeletal ogre near him and used a scroll of healing upon himself. The mindless skeleton struggled in vain to reach him and with every move the vines and branches tightnened around it, digging in thorns and breaking bones.
By this point, Speaks had dug far enough to assure that he would emerge outside the
Briar Web when he dug his way to the surface. He stopped and used his magic to further
Protect himself from
Fire. As often as he'd been burned by those columns of flame the Dark Druids were producing, he would likely need it.
Scar kept up a barrage of arrows at the bat skeleton overhead. Thus far the Dark Druids seemed to have no good way to reach him while he hid within the confines of the Briar Web. A grin spread across Scar's face at the irony of it all.
To further gird him against enemy attacks, Raven called upon Moradin to
Aid him in his struggle. Still struggling under the weight of his armor, he edged closer to Scar. He spared a glance at the closest exit of the compound to note it as an alternate escape route and watched as a wall of flames burst into being there. It looked like they'd have to go out the same way they came in.
One of the ogre skeletons still roaming free turned his attention on Raven and started to charge into the briars after him. Suddenly the undead creature stopped and moved slowly away from him. Raven spotted the skeletal bat fly overhead and guessed that the Dark Druid leader had decided he had lost enough skeletons to the shredding vines already.
Outside the compound, a couple of feet underground, Speaks assumed human form and in the dark he fumbled out the healing wand he carried. He hoped that his friends could hold on for just a few more seconds because he sorely needed healing if he was going to continue the battle.
Scar could no longer see anyone to fire his bow at from his current vantage point so he moved forward somewhat and spotted a trio of Dark Druids on the far side of the pavillion. He was outside the
Briar Web, but still within one of the
Entangled areas. He took aim at a female Dark Druid and struck her with his shot. Raven prayed for Moradin's
Blessing and moved a bit closer to Scar.
Close to Scar was perhaps not the most fortuitous place to be however as all three Dark Druids unleashed spells at the Half-Orc. Only two seemed to take effect as Scar first noticed his armor start to grow cold, which he ignored thanks to one of the magical protections granted to him by his companions, and was then surrounded completely by a
Cloud of Stinking gas. Fortunately, Scar's childhood upbringing among the orcs had brought him regularly into contact with similar stench and he avoided losing his breakfast as a result. Likewise for Raven standing nearby whose dwarven penchant for strong constitutionserved him well.
Speaks felt the soothing rush of healing enter his body from the wand. At the same time he used his hand to dig a small hole above him, attempting to dig through the last foot or so of dirt.
Scar moved out of the poisonous cloud and fired another arrow, striking the female Dark Druid again. Raven followed and continued girding himself with magic, this time calling for Moradin's
Divine Favor.
In answer, the Druids let loose more magic against Scar. A large, icy ball popped into being almost beneath him and he barely dodged out of the way (cold substitued Flaming Sphere) and he felt his body fight off another evil magic that he never even saw coming.
Scar fired another arrow at the Dark Druid woman and was rewarded with yet another hit. Close by, Raven, exhausted by spending so much of his energy just to move quaffed a potion that would allow him to move a bit more
Expeditiously in case they needed to
Retreat.
The female Dark Druid guided the
Icy Sphere and struck Scar with it, but his magical
Cold Endurance rendered it largely ineffective. Seeing his casual attitude about the icy ball of death, one of the other Dark Druids decide to test his wards by using attempting to
Dispel his protections. Scar's armor suddenly grew heavy (lost Bulls Strength) and burned with intense cold (lost Endure Elements Cold) as some of the enchantments on him failed.
Speaks was ready to rejoin the battle. He crammed a handful of
Goodberries into his mouth and his other hand almost simultaneously dug free of his underground escape tunnel. As the female Dark Druid disappeared out of sight around the edge of the pavillion, Scar fired fired opportunistically at one of the other Dark Druids rather than leave the safe confines of the entangled area. Raven however charged forward with his newfound speed and moved to attack the fleeing female.
He arrived around the corner just in time to meet her sickle coming at him. He was struck hard enough to be reminded that she was to be respected for her melee prowess as well as magic. There standing next to her was the entirely unwelcome form of the Dark Druid leader who also struck Raven a glancing blow with his rod.
Seeing Raven rush in to attack, Scar abandoned the cover of the entangled area and moved to get a clear shot. This drew some sort of sinister ray of evil from one of the Druids but the Half-Orc shrugged off its ill effects and fired at the Dark Druid leader, missing him. Raven's strike also failed to connect as his weary arms once again hefted his hammer.
Speaks pressed up against the roof of the tunnel, stretching his arm out as far as it would reach. He let in the wild and tried to channel it up into his hand as much as he could. His hand became a claw and his body somehow contracted and surged up to join with the claw as his eagle form shot skyward.
Enchanted as he was, the melee back near the pavillion rapidly began to turn against Raven. First the female Dark Druid, then the leader struck him again with their weapons. The one who had fired the ray at Scar drew a large club and moved to attack the Half-Orc, missing. Scar ran from the Druid near him receiving a glancing blow across the back as he moved by him. As he moved in closer to the melee, Scar flung a jar of Alchemists Fire at the Dark Druid leader to give him something to think about for a moment. The distraction allowed Raven to land a light blow of his own against the elf. Dropping down from the sky to land almost directly between Raven and Scar came Speaks who transformed back to human just as he landed.
In response, the female elf slashed again at Raven with her sickle, drawing blood. Raven gazed at her quizzically as she made an odd gesture with her hand. An instant later the Ice Ball came rolling into him from behind, stinging him with its freezing crystals. Ignoring the flames around him, the Dark Druid leader raised his rod and a green burst of evil flew from it once again, harming all nearby including the woman.
Speaks yelled above the melee, "LET'S GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!" He desperately grasped at the wild magic he commanded and his enchantment encompassed he and his friends. With a flap of his newly made wings, Speaks, in the form of a falcon, ripped at the air and flew toward the heavens and escape. Glancing down, he saw the avian forms of his friends. Why weren't they following? Why were they laying helplessly on the ground?!
NEXT: Just Completely Buggered
