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Struggle and Strife- A scarred lands storyhour
- Thread starter Lars Frehse
- Start date
Lars Frehse
First Post
Hello Snoweel, good to hear from you again.
At this point, the characters had the following levels (I think).
Ben: Druid lvl 4, Incarnate lvl 3
Torn: Barbarian lvl 1, Rogue lvl 3, Wizard lvl 1, Assassin lvl 2
Trepat Ranger lvl 1, Sorcerer lvl 6
Niklas Monk lvl 7, Psychic Warrior lvl 1
Jan: Paladin lvl 6, Mithril Knight lvl 1
I am lagging five sessions behind with my storyhour, and by now, they have all reached about nine total levels each. And to everybody's surprise, Torn still has merely four jobs.
After the next session, I will take their character sheets again and post their current stats. Thanks for the idea.
Nightfall, it surely is a scary place, but the characters are "lucky" since the crone isn't there...
At this point, the characters had the following levels (I think).
Ben: Druid lvl 4, Incarnate lvl 3
Torn: Barbarian lvl 1, Rogue lvl 3, Wizard lvl 1, Assassin lvl 2
Trepat Ranger lvl 1, Sorcerer lvl 6
Niklas Monk lvl 7, Psychic Warrior lvl 1
Jan: Paladin lvl 6, Mithril Knight lvl 1
I am lagging five sessions behind with my storyhour, and by now, they have all reached about nine total levels each. And to everybody's surprise, Torn still has merely four jobs.
After the next session, I will take their character sheets again and post their current stats. Thanks for the idea.Nightfall, it surely is a scary place, but the characters are "lucky" since the crone isn't there...
Well, obviously the monk isn't high enough level yet, since I was disappointed that he was affected by the poison.
I really liked the ambush and stealing scene - I keep trying to picture what would have happened if one of the PCs had cast a hemisphere Wall of Force around the wagon at the last minute.
I really liked the ambush and stealing scene - I keep trying to picture what would have happened if one of the PCs had cast a hemisphere Wall of Force around the wagon at the last minute.
Nightfall
Sage of the Scarred Lands
I guess you and I have differing ideas of what "lucky" is Lars. I mean sure it's great the Blood Crone isn't there. She's wipe the floor with all them. But still, you're talking about the WHOLE of the Dar Al Annot being there with hags a plenty, ratmen, possibly even High Gorgons! But hey if they want to assault it, be my guest.
I mean sure it's great the Blood Crone isn't there. She's wipe the floor with all them. But still, you're talking about the WHOLE of the Dar Al Annot being there with hags a plenty, ratmen, possibly even High Gorgons! But hey if they want to assault it, be my guest. Lars Frehse
First Post
Well, luck is always relative, I guess. And since I had mentioned earlier that now, a few sessions after the events I am describing, the characters are still alive, it is safe to say that they didn't try a frontal assault on the citadel!
Talix, fortunately, none of the characters had the wall of force spell. Strangely, the adventure gives ideas on how to proceed in case the characters defeat the woodwrack dragon! I don't have the faintest idea how any group of that level could pull of a stunt like that...
Talix, fortunately, none of the characters had the wall of force spell. Strangely, the adventure gives ideas on how to proceed in case the characters defeat the woodwrack dragon!
I don't have the faintest idea how any group of that level could pull of a stunt like that...Lars Frehse
First Post
The heart of darkness- part 3
Peering past Leral through the opening in the foliage, they finally saw the mighty Citadel of Serpents in all its horrid splendour. There, in the middle of a massive bowl shaped depression, which was surrounded by a ring of foliage in which the heroes were now hiding, rose a tree larger than any of them could have believed existed.
Due to a green mist that spread its pall over the entire area, they weren't able to see the uppermost branches of the enormous plant that rose into the sky like a defiant claw. The sickly mist got thicker in the higher reaches of Annot Kalambath, but the friends were sure that on a cloudy day, the crown would scratch the clouds.
With the massive crown of the tree blocking the sun, and the mist further diffusing the light, the area around the citadel was dark in mid-day. Gazing through the mist, they saw what looked like humanoid bodies hanging from the branches of the trees, high above the ground, and giant scavengers seemed to be feasting on this grisly meal...
Around the base of the tree was a latticework of lichen bowers, which was grown over with tough, thorny vines and dusty lichens and molds, and the friends were only able to guess just what kind of creatures these bowers were housing.
There was also a network of burrows, which were dug deep into the heartwood of the tree. The friends saw no obvious activity at the moment, but it was clear that they served some sinister purpose for the citadel. Furthermore, there were several enormous thatched mats at regular intervals along the surface of the tree's mighty roots, looking like they were covering entrances to subterranean tunnels within the tree's gigantic root system.
It was a truly depressing sight. It was clear that there was no point in simply storming the citadel. Even though the friends were seasoned veterans by now, they would stand little chances against the masses of foes this gigantic citadel was likely to harbor.
They looked around, trying to find an indication of where they could enter, when Trepat nudged Ben. "There", he said, pointing to a patch of grass next to the closest of the thatched mats. "Do you see the way the grass is pressed down there?“
Ben strained his eyes and then he nodded excitedly:" Yes. There is a rectangular shape. This could have been where they dropped the chest."
They pointed the others to their discovery and Torn agreed to scout ahead in order to check for guards. Close to the entrance, there were three big stakes of woods against which three lifeless bodies had been tied.
Torn moved ahead, his elven cloak hiding him from sight. He moved among the shadows towards the mat, but as he swiftly went past the three stakes, one of the three limp humans jerked to life.
"Help me", he croaked, his voice raw from dehydration. Torn turned around and looked at the dying man. His skin was parched and stretched tightly over his bones and he looked pleadingly at the halforc from eyes which were set back deep in their sockets.
Torn stayed suspicious:" Why were you put here?"
"I am Boaz, and I was a guard, and after servants of Denev had entered the citadel, I and my friends were put out here to die of thirst. If you don't help me, I will end like my friends.“
"All right, then", Torn said. He stayed cautious, but even if the former guard had bad intentions, he was surely too worn down to be of any harm. And even if he would turn out to be a threat, Torn felt he had no choice but to free the man. Even though Torn was an assassin, he didn't enjoy seeing a suffering creature. When he killed, he did so swiftly. He was a murderer, but no sadist.
He cut the man lose, and the moment the strands of roped dropped to the ground, Boaz went berserk and attacked Torn with his long, dirty nails. Torn fought back, and with the help of his friends, who came running from their hiding place, he defeated the ghoulish creature.
Boaz lay on the ground, now finally put to rest, and Ben quipped:" Now that we are all here anyway, we might as well go under the mat together as well."
They raised the map and looked into a dank earthen corridor, which was poorly lit and measured less than five feet across. The tunnel twisted and descended erratically, following the shape of the peripheral roots of the tree.
Some of the finer roots had been hollowed out, and they worked as a ventilation system. However, there was an additional effect as well. The moment the friends crawled into the tunnel, they heard the far cries of prisoners who were held somewhere in the tree. As they crawled deeper and deeper, they all tried to block out the echoes of the shrieks, moans and sobs of the poor souls somewhere else in Annot Kalambath.
Then, just when they thought they couldn't bear it any longer, the tunnel opened into a large, irregular shaped chamber, where the voices of the tortured ones were hardly audible anymore. The smell of foliage and damp soil was more pronounced here and a gorgeous eave of vine dangled over the entrance through which they came.
Except for one patch of solid rock, all of the walls, like the ceiling, were covered with overgrown roots, brambles and vines and there were four exits on the other side of the room. The one patch of rock that wasn't overgrown depicted a well-rendered mural of Mormo. It showed the witch-queen towering over all the major races of Scarn. In one hand, she held a wicked scourge and in the other an enormous brass key, and the twin eyes of her eyes were the only source of light, suffusing the entire area in a dim pall of unearthly green light.
Slowly they went ahead towards the four exits, as Trepat noticed that there was neither earth nor rocks behind the brambles to his left. He told his friends, and Ben said:" I think I can pass through the overgrowth without disturbing it and take a look at whatever is behind..."
Peering past Leral through the opening in the foliage, they finally saw the mighty Citadel of Serpents in all its horrid splendour. There, in the middle of a massive bowl shaped depression, which was surrounded by a ring of foliage in which the heroes were now hiding, rose a tree larger than any of them could have believed existed.
Due to a green mist that spread its pall over the entire area, they weren't able to see the uppermost branches of the enormous plant that rose into the sky like a defiant claw. The sickly mist got thicker in the higher reaches of Annot Kalambath, but the friends were sure that on a cloudy day, the crown would scratch the clouds.
With the massive crown of the tree blocking the sun, and the mist further diffusing the light, the area around the citadel was dark in mid-day. Gazing through the mist, they saw what looked like humanoid bodies hanging from the branches of the trees, high above the ground, and giant scavengers seemed to be feasting on this grisly meal...
Around the base of the tree was a latticework of lichen bowers, which was grown over with tough, thorny vines and dusty lichens and molds, and the friends were only able to guess just what kind of creatures these bowers were housing.
There was also a network of burrows, which were dug deep into the heartwood of the tree. The friends saw no obvious activity at the moment, but it was clear that they served some sinister purpose for the citadel. Furthermore, there were several enormous thatched mats at regular intervals along the surface of the tree's mighty roots, looking like they were covering entrances to subterranean tunnels within the tree's gigantic root system.
It was a truly depressing sight. It was clear that there was no point in simply storming the citadel. Even though the friends were seasoned veterans by now, they would stand little chances against the masses of foes this gigantic citadel was likely to harbor.
They looked around, trying to find an indication of where they could enter, when Trepat nudged Ben. "There", he said, pointing to a patch of grass next to the closest of the thatched mats. "Do you see the way the grass is pressed down there?“
Ben strained his eyes and then he nodded excitedly:" Yes. There is a rectangular shape. This could have been where they dropped the chest."
They pointed the others to their discovery and Torn agreed to scout ahead in order to check for guards. Close to the entrance, there were three big stakes of woods against which three lifeless bodies had been tied.
Torn moved ahead, his elven cloak hiding him from sight. He moved among the shadows towards the mat, but as he swiftly went past the three stakes, one of the three limp humans jerked to life.
"Help me", he croaked, his voice raw from dehydration. Torn turned around and looked at the dying man. His skin was parched and stretched tightly over his bones and he looked pleadingly at the halforc from eyes which were set back deep in their sockets.
Torn stayed suspicious:" Why were you put here?"
"I am Boaz, and I was a guard, and after servants of Denev had entered the citadel, I and my friends were put out here to die of thirst. If you don't help me, I will end like my friends.“
"All right, then", Torn said. He stayed cautious, but even if the former guard had bad intentions, he was surely too worn down to be of any harm. And even if he would turn out to be a threat, Torn felt he had no choice but to free the man. Even though Torn was an assassin, he didn't enjoy seeing a suffering creature. When he killed, he did so swiftly. He was a murderer, but no sadist.
He cut the man lose, and the moment the strands of roped dropped to the ground, Boaz went berserk and attacked Torn with his long, dirty nails. Torn fought back, and with the help of his friends, who came running from their hiding place, he defeated the ghoulish creature.
Boaz lay on the ground, now finally put to rest, and Ben quipped:" Now that we are all here anyway, we might as well go under the mat together as well."
They raised the map and looked into a dank earthen corridor, which was poorly lit and measured less than five feet across. The tunnel twisted and descended erratically, following the shape of the peripheral roots of the tree.
Some of the finer roots had been hollowed out, and they worked as a ventilation system. However, there was an additional effect as well. The moment the friends crawled into the tunnel, they heard the far cries of prisoners who were held somewhere in the tree. As they crawled deeper and deeper, they all tried to block out the echoes of the shrieks, moans and sobs of the poor souls somewhere else in Annot Kalambath.
Then, just when they thought they couldn't bear it any longer, the tunnel opened into a large, irregular shaped chamber, where the voices of the tortured ones were hardly audible anymore. The smell of foliage and damp soil was more pronounced here and a gorgeous eave of vine dangled over the entrance through which they came.
Except for one patch of solid rock, all of the walls, like the ceiling, were covered with overgrown roots, brambles and vines and there were four exits on the other side of the room. The one patch of rock that wasn't overgrown depicted a well-rendered mural of Mormo. It showed the witch-queen towering over all the major races of Scarn. In one hand, she held a wicked scourge and in the other an enormous brass key, and the twin eyes of her eyes were the only source of light, suffusing the entire area in a dim pall of unearthly green light.
Slowly they went ahead towards the four exits, as Trepat noticed that there was neither earth nor rocks behind the brambles to his left. He told his friends, and Ben said:" I think I can pass through the overgrowth without disturbing it and take a look at whatever is behind..."
Lars Frehse
First Post
Well, the poor undead really had no choice but to follow his nature. But in the afterworld, Torn's act of charity will surely be considered.
