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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Goonalan" data-source="post: 4914679" data-attributes="member: 16069">The Friday KnightsSession 4- Sellswords of Fallcrest Part 4 Shadow Born.The Knights are-Astaroth, Human Fighter, love-struck man-mountain, Level 1Cathal, Human Fighter, devotee of Kord, Level 1.Ignaran, Human Druid, the nature nutter, Level 1.Kullervo, Human Rogue, ex-farm boy, Level 1.Astaroth rushes forward, just as the portcullis slams down, the man-mountain grabs it and... bloody hell, lifts in straight back up into the ceiling. CLUNK, it locks back into place- that's his third natural 20 in this scenario, damn on-line dice rollers.Kullervo is saved from a lonely death, the Knights go mental and rush in where fools (quite rightly) fear to tread.The six Goblin archers try to shuffle back but are battered, and scattered- they fall like flies, the Hobgoblin Slavers however are made of sterner stuff, but Wolfie and Ignaran are in the mix. Cathal and Astaroth meanwhile are chopping through anything that gets close to them, the pair are soon at Orliss the Goat, nice moniker, the Dragonborn Warlord, leader of the Slavers defences. The Goat brays and hollers, breaths a swathe of fire, scorching all before him, including one of the Hobgoblin Slavers and then attacks.<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2601/3726123417_ffc6b6764c_o.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />All for one, and lots for all- there's plenty to go around.In short order the Goblins are no more, Gorliss only stays upright by using his Inspiring Word every chance he gets, but it's just not enough, and soon enough he's a bloody pulp. Cathal is so disgusted with him he doesn't allow the Dragonborn to surrender. There are only two survivors, a pair of Hobgoblin Slavers who are off and running- and with the Knights in hot pursuit.No time for a short rest- gulp.Across a rickety wooden platform the Knights head out of the chamber. Below the platform another beach, a skiff moored there, oh and look, a pair of Gnolls loading chests into the beached boat, with two robed figures directing operations and on the other side of the wooden platform a shadowy figure - a drow- Cathal is suddenly wreathed in inky blackness.It goes wrong very quickly- two separate encounters become one, it's beautiful when that happens n'est-ce pas?<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2448/3726124037_4bfe4cf10e_o.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />Excreta, with impetus, meets fan.Already injured, the Knights give ground quickly, which is fortunate as one of the Gnolls, Wrix, smashes the struts holding up the wooden platform. The whole structure crashes down.Which leaves Kullervo dangling briefly, clutching onto and scrabbling at the cavern's rocky wall, he makes his mind up and goes for a controlled descent, dives into the shallows below, surfaces with only minor cuts and bruises. Astaroth is more direct; he launches himself down and at the nearest Gnoll, Reiko, uses him to cushion his fall. Cathal, with a grimace - remembering his last rapid descent in Cutpurse Alley - follows after.Ignaran points and gestures and Drazen, the Drow Rogue, is engulfed in Blinding Bats. Unsighted the Dark Elf battles furiously to stay on the ledge.Then something odd happens, the Human Mage scuttles out of the beached boat and fires a Chill Strike into Vermouth, the Eladrin Mage, and chief Slaver, leaving the Eladrin hurt and dazed, and that about turns it. Vermouth fires off Force spells, and Fey Steps when it looks really bad, back into the boat but...The fight rumbles on a while, Drazen the Drow finally succumbs to the Blinding Bats and Kullervo's magical dagger and plunges into the water- he doesn't surface. The Gnolls are also quick to fall, although Astaroth and Cathal have a patchwork of bruises to show for the encounter, and broken ribs in the man-mountain's case. Vermouth attempts to flee in the boat, he doesn't get far, the Knights concentrate their fire on the fleeing Slaver Chief. Which just leaves one Mage standing- Aeolace, who introduces himself, drops to his knees and begs for clemency, he was lead astray, a misspent youth- it's easily done apparently.[DM Interlude Encounter #9 [1250 XP = Level 6 (now with 5 PCs)] 6 Goblin Archers (Level 1 Minions); 4x Hobgoblin Slavers (Level 1 Skirmisher); Gorliss the Goat, Dragonborn Warlord (Level 3 Soldier), and then- 2x Gnoll Overseers (Level 2 Brute); Drazen, Drow Rogue (Level 3 Lurker) & Vermouth, Eladrin Mage (Level 3 Controller (Leader)). This one was a mess, and took ages, prior to play I couldn't see a way to separate the two encounters, and with the fifth player arriving, and set to switch sides and get the drop on the bad guys, I just thought why not.]There follows an extended discussion regarding the suitability of a traitor, Aeolace, for membership of the rather exclusive, and all-conquering, Friday Knights, which slowly mutates into an extended rest. This after Kullervo is sent back up the rocky slope and a little ahead, down the passage on the far side of the now ruined wooden platform, just to make sure there's no-one else about. The Rogue spots some odd things, more later, and discovers a solid looking iron door which is hot to the touch. He decides that discretion is the better part of valour, particularly as his resources are low, he's out of Healing Surges and already injured, oh and on his own. He returns and signals all clear.Aeolace, Human Wizard, is the fifth member of the Knights, a little bit impetuous, a resident of Fallcrest down on his luck, running with street gangs.  One thing lead to another and the next thing he knows he's trafficking human slaves for a bunch of crooks in the Beggar King's lair, try not to judge, we've all been there. He wants out, and then the Friday Knights come along. Aeolace is played by Paul.[DM Interlude- Nine combat encounters, approximately ten hours of play before the need for a rest, with level 1 characters, that seems to work.]Kullervo gets to work on the chests. Clearly the Slavers were packing their things and fleeing, things were getting too hot to handle - the Knights want to know more- Aeolace fills in the gaps, see below. Kullervo, the young Rogue, finds all of the traps on the chests, eventually, and gets the treasure- semi-precious stones, copper and silver coins, 15 silver trade bars- marked with stamps to show they are Duergar in origin- odd; and a do-it-yourself assassin/thief kit- with poison, blow gun, silk rope, masterwork tools and more- marked as being the property of Vadicion Cainnae, whoever he or she may be.[DM Interlude, Vadicion Cainnae is a “Slayer”, notice the quotation marks-, the “Slayers” mean business- this may be a plot point. As to the Duergar that's Foreshadowing, as are the Bloodreavers- more of this much later.]Aeolace, as stated above, supplies a few more details. The Slavers have been at work down here for a month or more, at first in conjunction with the Beggars, but latterly, after the Beggars took a severe beating courtesy of the Shadowmen (Fallcrest's premier Thieves Guild), with help from the Bloodreavers- the Goblins and Hobgoblins who come from... Aeolace shrugs, he has no idea. The Beggar King himself is ahead somewhere, and changed, from a capering paranoid homicidal maniac to a... Aeolace shrugs again, he's not sure, but he's changed, and hasn't been seen for a while. The slaves are transported through the sewers to... Aeolace has no idea, again.The Friday Knights are somewhat reassured, clearly Aeolace is a low-level miscreant, not management, perhaps he's telling the truth, perhaps he was lead astray, they're certain however that he deserves a second chance. Cathal barks at the Wizard a while, ostensibly making this very point- a second chance to make something of his life, to follow the path of righteousness and... He goes on, and at length gets his point across.Rested up the Knights improvise their way up off the beach and head on down the cavern passage, Kullervo points out the things he found earlier in his scouting foray. The passage ends in a chamber with a huge statue of a Giant Rat, the stone rodent has a scattering of coin at its feet. Aeolace remarks that he was told by Vermouth, the Eladrin Mage, that this is some kind of terrible trap, and he was not to take the coin, the Knights see the sense in this and move on to the metal door.<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3427/3726124295_e3e2cab722_o.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />Anyone got any cheese?The door is not just warm, it's hot- burning; alas there's nowhere else to go, Astaroth kicks it in, and reveals a sight straight from hell.The floor of the chamber ahead is littered with bones, a wave of heat blasts out, the bones are smouldering- licked by spectral flames, in the midst of the mess is the Beggar King, a once bloated corpulent individual his skin now  hangs in folds, like a fleshy robe. The Beggar King is screaming and thrashing all the while- he doesn't look at all well. Cathal takes the plunge and charges in, he needs the Beggar King's head as proof of his demise in order to collect his reward, bursting from the floor come five skeletons, each swathed in flame; the smouldering floor is however safe to stand on.The rest of Friday Knights launch themselves into the fray, the Skeletons fling Flaming Orbs, or else claw at the Knights with their burning talons. The Beggar King however has much more in his arsenal- Shadow Bolts and Bursts deliver Necrotic damage, Flame Gouts burn, and all the while the capering madman screams and struggles with some unseen foe, and yet he still retains control over the Cinder Skeletons, he even possesses the power to teleport the burning undead about the chamber.The fight is protracted and furious, all of the Knights are singed, scared and necrotised in the end. The final blow, the killing blow, comes when Cathal decapitates the Beggar King, and in doing so births something ripped straight from the Shadowfell.Darkness encompasses the room, all light is lost to the black, the flames go out, a bloated bolus of shadow rises up the throat of the tower- and to the roof, the light slowly returns. <img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2493/3726930480_e4fb62bacb_o.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />At last, a hot meal.[DM Interlude Encounter #10 [1025 XP = Level 5] 5x Cinder Skeletons (Level 2 Artillery) & The Beggar King (Level 5 Elite Controller (Leader))].[DM Interlude- Cathal, Kullervo and Ignaran are an extended rest away from being 2nd Level.]Cathal looks at Astaroth, Astaroth looks at Kullervo, Kullervo looks at Ignaran, Ignaran looks at Aeolace, Aeolace looks at the stairs leading up to the roof- and gulps.The Knights catch their breath and then take the stairs three at a time, Cathal, holy warrior of Kord leading the way, singing, “onward Kordian soldiers, marching as to war, with the sword of Koooord, slaying all before.” Alas Cathal couldn't carry a tune in a bucket.The Knights burst onto the roof of the tower, a buckled and broken edifice, riddled with great rents- and come face-to-face with a Shadow Dragon, clearly an immature member of the species, but still...The Dragon flaps its newly formed wings, hovers a moment and then lurches forward- the finale unfolds.All, save Aeolace, are caught in the Dragon's Breath Weapon, and then the DM rolls- and misses all four of them, later, much later, when the session has ended and the players are tucked up in bed, this power will recharge, fingers-crossed, because it didn't for the rest of the damn fight.Thus the Dragon's glory is short lived, at one point it tries to escape but alas some slender sliver of shadow still connects it to the slumped dead body of the Beggar King far below.<img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2448/3726931008_50332a3b07_o.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " data-size="" style="" />Shadow boxing.Tail Slaps and Bites do bits of damage, at one point Astaroth is forced to retreat but only for a moment, his Healing Surge kicks in and he's back at the beast- a war of attrition, and yet it's soon over for the Shadow Dragon, which however has one last trick to pull. The final blow, a blast of energy, a Magic Missile from Aeolace, and the Dragon swells for a second and then bursts- waves of numbing coldness and the deathly certainty of the grave wash over the Friday Knights, who although battered, bruised and weakened still manage to stand to salute the Shadow Dragon's demise and the first glorious rays of the new day sun.[DM Interlude Encounter #11 [750 XP = Level 3] The Shadow Dragon (Level 3 Solo Lurker)].The Beggar King is dead. The Shadow Dragon is dead. The Slavers are dead. The Prisoners have been freed. The Friday Knights are victorious  And yet...With that the fourth session draws to a close, the Knights managed to clock up a further 4388 XP this session, with only three Combat Encounters, however all of them were corkers, and so... good night for, and from, the Friday Knights.[DM Interlude- Astaroth is up to level 2.]</blockquote>

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