pogre
Legend
Episode Four by Shen
A Quick Note: Regrettably, I was absent during a couple of hours of this session. The player who runs Shen bravely took up the pen and wrote this episode.
Episode Four (as noted by Shen, Sage of Rinloru):
Our initial encounter with the orcs left us beaten and bruised… and with a strange cursed sword that now had a direct association with the Tabaxi rogue, Edge, one of my newfound companions that I have begun to consider my friends. The magical expertise required to create such an item is truly fascinating. It is exactly this type of oddity that initially drew me in to the studies of spells and sorcery in the first place, and being that I am still young and a bit naïve, I find myself desiring to record my studies of this sword and the circumstances that led us here, so that I may later study these notes with a different perspective. I recently discovered that another of my companions, the healer Lucius Victoriam Gnaeus, has already had such foresight and has created his own journal of events. I will not duplicate his effort, except to add important details when he is unavailable.
I awoke early in the morning to find that Edge had finally found his target—throughout the night he had been drawn to the demon-sword that had caused him such anguish recently. The connection between them was unusually striking, and even though we all worked to keep them apart during the night, it is obvious now that this bond (or perhaps “manacle”) was meant to be.
I don’t know if it was the influence of the sword, or the anticipation of looting treasure from the orcs (including the primary target of our endeavor here, the gems we have agreed to recover for Calodar, the human we had freed from the orc cages), but Edge was up and ready to get moving. The previous day’s battle seemed to have taken its toll on Lucius and Thock, a half-orc warrior that thankfully has been our ally since our prison escape just a few days ago. Thock and Lucius we sound asleep. It seemed best to leave them be, in what appeared to be a relatively safe/hidden passage, while the rest of us (me, Calodar, and our elf companion, Elros) followed Edge as he ventured again into the orc hallways. Lucius and Thock bore the brunt of much of the orc frontline attack, and certainly they deserved time to rest up and heal. I have to admit that I was more than a bit worried about venturing on without them, but we could not leave Edge alone, especially since the orcs had now been alerted to our presence.
Our plan was to sneak in, past the orcs, and investigate any open passages the might lead to the center temple, which according to Calodar’s sketches, contain a statue in which the gems are embedded. Unfortunately, our plans went awry, as plans sometimes do, when we were discovered by a lone orc patrolling the hallways shortly after we came back through the secret door. We disposed of this creature, only to find another patrolling a short distance away. This orc, too, found death quickly, but future events would not be so easy. Two more orcs patrolled the next hallway; we felt like we must be getting close to the temple. The battle was certainly more difficult, but Calodar ended it with a critical strike to the second after the rest of us killed the first.
We had a problem… not of the orc kind, but rather something much simpler – a locked door. Edge showed his thieving skills by pulling out what appeared to be improvised lock picks. He quickly made short work of the lock, and this allowed us entry into the temple area. A brief glance past the door showed us a few noteworthy items… an altar, a statue, a staircase, and, of course, two guards. These guards were much more intimidating than our previous watchers; they were bigger, wore plate mail, and carried greataxes (Orogs, as one in our group recognized). Edge’s cunning was again on display as he carefully snuck in through the temple door, surely on his way to recover the prized gems.
Edge’s sword, it seems, had other plans for the tabaxi—an attack (attacking / battle seems to be the defining personality of this sword). We immediately rushed in to assist our leader. It became apparent fairly quickly that this was going to be very difficult for our small group. We could only hope that Thock and Lucius would wake, discover our departure, and find the trail of death to the center temple. My sleep spell proved useless in the battle; I had obviously underestimated the orogs. We fought… and fought… and although I had not seen him earlier, I now discovered that Thock had indeed joined us (thanks the gods!).
After a seriously wounded Edge sneaked a vicious blade into the side of one of the orogs, Thock saw fit to antagonize the creature, encouraging it to hit him instead. This may have saved the Tabaxi's life, as the orog changed his attacks to target the half-orc. Edge took the opportunity to escape combat and run toward the statue; he had discovered that its eye sockets contained the gems we were seeking. I should take the time, now, to express how deeply impressed I am with my Tabaxi friend’s variety of skills. He easily climbed to the top of the statue and pried out both of the gems, without damaging either.
Elros, also heavily damaged, retreated from battle briefly and nabbed a few items from the altar. Thock the Mighty charged into battle, raging… (Have you ever seen an enraged half-orc swinging a greataxe in the middle of battle? It is truly awe-inspiring). My magic missile and attacks from others took down one orog, but the other landed a massive hit to Thock. Being at the center of attention, and having already absorbed most of the heavy battle blows, Thock appeared to stagger, as if he were going to fall. But, at the last moment his orcish resilience seemed to kick in, allowing him to remain standing. This allowed our group to finish off the remaining guard.
“We need to get out of here!” Lucius had arrived! He informed us that he had been guarding the secret door, but he alone was not enough to hold off the orcs that were quickly approaching. “Up the stairs,” yelled Calodar! Not having much time to think, and realizing that this surely was our best option, we complied.
After ascending the stairs, we could see daylight in the distance. We ran, past another room with a pool, to the exit on the far side. We made it outside and ran to the nearby hills and valleys as the orcs unskillfully hurled javelins at us (we easily dodged and escaped). We stayed hidden as the orcs searched for us, but soon they retreated.
Studying the landscape, we discovered a small village far away, barely visible. A river, perhaps an hour away, separated us from the village. As we made our plans, to venture into the village and perhaps barter for food, shelter, clothing, and equipment, Calodar informed us that this is where we part ways. He asked for one of the gems (apparently his god had informed him of which was the animus stone he was searching for), and Edge handed it over to him. Calodar was returning to Knurl, and invited us to look for him at the Crystal Goblet Inn there if we were ever in search of adventure.
Elros remained with our party, and we all decided to follow-up with a separate mission—to help our chef friend (Filbert Huggybottom, from the prison) find his sister. We were to meet him in the market on market day in the town of Ludunum. Could the town we discovered be Ludunum? Filbert’s sister was being held by a man named Balor Grim on something called an airship. I’ll have to learn more about this; the technology and mechanism of propulsion must be fascinating!
As luck would have it, the town was indeed our destination. However, we arrived at night, to a rather unfriendly (or perhaps just suspicious guard). They allowed us inside only after seeing that we could provide for ourselves. Having little money at this point (just a bag of gems that Edge had found), we stayed in the cheaper, market/bazaar district, at the Bizarre Inn.
That evening we made small talk at the bar and learned that “market day” was two days away. Thock also learned, to his embarrassment, and to the crowd’s amusement, that duergar barmaids are not to be trifled with, especially in an arm-wrestling match.
We passed time the next day securing clothing, resources, and some simple weapons. The townsfolk were bustling around the streets and the areas just outside the gates, setting up carts and welcoming the caravans that were beginning to arrive. The primary route for many was between Ludunum and a town called Haven. The noble cleric Lucius learned (he has a knack for extracting information) that Haven might also provide us answers to our questions about airships.
Market Day. It was an exciting time around town, with much activity among a variety of people (many different races and social classes). Common agricultural and hand crafted goods were bountiful, but there were also stalls for the more unique needs… mystics and healers and such (I procured a much-needed crystal that will serve to focus my magic).
Shortly before lunchtime, Filbert found us. We learned more about the assignment he had for us. Balor Grim, a cambion (strange human-fiend offspring), was holding his sister Molly on an airship called Grim’s Folly, but the airship has been relocated. Its primary power source is a gem, which Filbert had stolen, but apparently the ship also contained smaller stones that allow for some minimal movement. Filbert did not know exactly where the ship was, but it should be within about a day’s travel from Haven. One of the ship’s mates, a boy called Lucas, has been seen buying supplies there. Having worked on the Folly for some time, Filbert is able to give us a sketch of its layout and rooms.
Lucius worked his magic again with the leader of one of the caravans. He not only secured us passage to Haven, but also negotiated a deal for our services along the way. The journey to Haven can be dangerous, especially for the merchant-types who might be carrying a vast amount of wealth. Groups of bandits have been hassling them, and while they are often able to push back against the thieves, they do lose a wagon or two on occasion. If we were to help guard the caravan and stop the bandits, they will pay us 2 gold pieces per day and allow us to keep whatever bandit-possessions we find.
So… on to Haven!
A Quick Note: Regrettably, I was absent during a couple of hours of this session. The player who runs Shen bravely took up the pen and wrote this episode.
Episode Four (as noted by Shen, Sage of Rinloru):
Our initial encounter with the orcs left us beaten and bruised… and with a strange cursed sword that now had a direct association with the Tabaxi rogue, Edge, one of my newfound companions that I have begun to consider my friends. The magical expertise required to create such an item is truly fascinating. It is exactly this type of oddity that initially drew me in to the studies of spells and sorcery in the first place, and being that I am still young and a bit naïve, I find myself desiring to record my studies of this sword and the circumstances that led us here, so that I may later study these notes with a different perspective. I recently discovered that another of my companions, the healer Lucius Victoriam Gnaeus, has already had such foresight and has created his own journal of events. I will not duplicate his effort, except to add important details when he is unavailable.
I awoke early in the morning to find that Edge had finally found his target—throughout the night he had been drawn to the demon-sword that had caused him such anguish recently. The connection between them was unusually striking, and even though we all worked to keep them apart during the night, it is obvious now that this bond (or perhaps “manacle”) was meant to be.
I don’t know if it was the influence of the sword, or the anticipation of looting treasure from the orcs (including the primary target of our endeavor here, the gems we have agreed to recover for Calodar, the human we had freed from the orc cages), but Edge was up and ready to get moving. The previous day’s battle seemed to have taken its toll on Lucius and Thock, a half-orc warrior that thankfully has been our ally since our prison escape just a few days ago. Thock and Lucius we sound asleep. It seemed best to leave them be, in what appeared to be a relatively safe/hidden passage, while the rest of us (me, Calodar, and our elf companion, Elros) followed Edge as he ventured again into the orc hallways. Lucius and Thock bore the brunt of much of the orc frontline attack, and certainly they deserved time to rest up and heal. I have to admit that I was more than a bit worried about venturing on without them, but we could not leave Edge alone, especially since the orcs had now been alerted to our presence.
Our plan was to sneak in, past the orcs, and investigate any open passages the might lead to the center temple, which according to Calodar’s sketches, contain a statue in which the gems are embedded. Unfortunately, our plans went awry, as plans sometimes do, when we were discovered by a lone orc patrolling the hallways shortly after we came back through the secret door. We disposed of this creature, only to find another patrolling a short distance away. This orc, too, found death quickly, but future events would not be so easy. Two more orcs patrolled the next hallway; we felt like we must be getting close to the temple. The battle was certainly more difficult, but Calodar ended it with a critical strike to the second after the rest of us killed the first.
We had a problem… not of the orc kind, but rather something much simpler – a locked door. Edge showed his thieving skills by pulling out what appeared to be improvised lock picks. He quickly made short work of the lock, and this allowed us entry into the temple area. A brief glance past the door showed us a few noteworthy items… an altar, a statue, a staircase, and, of course, two guards. These guards were much more intimidating than our previous watchers; they were bigger, wore plate mail, and carried greataxes (Orogs, as one in our group recognized). Edge’s cunning was again on display as he carefully snuck in through the temple door, surely on his way to recover the prized gems.
Edge’s sword, it seems, had other plans for the tabaxi—an attack (attacking / battle seems to be the defining personality of this sword). We immediately rushed in to assist our leader. It became apparent fairly quickly that this was going to be very difficult for our small group. We could only hope that Thock and Lucius would wake, discover our departure, and find the trail of death to the center temple. My sleep spell proved useless in the battle; I had obviously underestimated the orogs. We fought… and fought… and although I had not seen him earlier, I now discovered that Thock had indeed joined us (thanks the gods!).
After a seriously wounded Edge sneaked a vicious blade into the side of one of the orogs, Thock saw fit to antagonize the creature, encouraging it to hit him instead. This may have saved the Tabaxi's life, as the orog changed his attacks to target the half-orc. Edge took the opportunity to escape combat and run toward the statue; he had discovered that its eye sockets contained the gems we were seeking. I should take the time, now, to express how deeply impressed I am with my Tabaxi friend’s variety of skills. He easily climbed to the top of the statue and pried out both of the gems, without damaging either.
Elros, also heavily damaged, retreated from battle briefly and nabbed a few items from the altar. Thock the Mighty charged into battle, raging… (Have you ever seen an enraged half-orc swinging a greataxe in the middle of battle? It is truly awe-inspiring). My magic missile and attacks from others took down one orog, but the other landed a massive hit to Thock. Being at the center of attention, and having already absorbed most of the heavy battle blows, Thock appeared to stagger, as if he were going to fall. But, at the last moment his orcish resilience seemed to kick in, allowing him to remain standing. This allowed our group to finish off the remaining guard.
“We need to get out of here!” Lucius had arrived! He informed us that he had been guarding the secret door, but he alone was not enough to hold off the orcs that were quickly approaching. “Up the stairs,” yelled Calodar! Not having much time to think, and realizing that this surely was our best option, we complied.
After ascending the stairs, we could see daylight in the distance. We ran, past another room with a pool, to the exit on the far side. We made it outside and ran to the nearby hills and valleys as the orcs unskillfully hurled javelins at us (we easily dodged and escaped). We stayed hidden as the orcs searched for us, but soon they retreated.
Studying the landscape, we discovered a small village far away, barely visible. A river, perhaps an hour away, separated us from the village. As we made our plans, to venture into the village and perhaps barter for food, shelter, clothing, and equipment, Calodar informed us that this is where we part ways. He asked for one of the gems (apparently his god had informed him of which was the animus stone he was searching for), and Edge handed it over to him. Calodar was returning to Knurl, and invited us to look for him at the Crystal Goblet Inn there if we were ever in search of adventure.
Elros remained with our party, and we all decided to follow-up with a separate mission—to help our chef friend (Filbert Huggybottom, from the prison) find his sister. We were to meet him in the market on market day in the town of Ludunum. Could the town we discovered be Ludunum? Filbert’s sister was being held by a man named Balor Grim on something called an airship. I’ll have to learn more about this; the technology and mechanism of propulsion must be fascinating!
As luck would have it, the town was indeed our destination. However, we arrived at night, to a rather unfriendly (or perhaps just suspicious guard). They allowed us inside only after seeing that we could provide for ourselves. Having little money at this point (just a bag of gems that Edge had found), we stayed in the cheaper, market/bazaar district, at the Bizarre Inn.
That evening we made small talk at the bar and learned that “market day” was two days away. Thock also learned, to his embarrassment, and to the crowd’s amusement, that duergar barmaids are not to be trifled with, especially in an arm-wrestling match.
We passed time the next day securing clothing, resources, and some simple weapons. The townsfolk were bustling around the streets and the areas just outside the gates, setting up carts and welcoming the caravans that were beginning to arrive. The primary route for many was between Ludunum and a town called Haven. The noble cleric Lucius learned (he has a knack for extracting information) that Haven might also provide us answers to our questions about airships.
Market Day. It was an exciting time around town, with much activity among a variety of people (many different races and social classes). Common agricultural and hand crafted goods were bountiful, but there were also stalls for the more unique needs… mystics and healers and such (I procured a much-needed crystal that will serve to focus my magic).
Shortly before lunchtime, Filbert found us. We learned more about the assignment he had for us. Balor Grim, a cambion (strange human-fiend offspring), was holding his sister Molly on an airship called Grim’s Folly, but the airship has been relocated. Its primary power source is a gem, which Filbert had stolen, but apparently the ship also contained smaller stones that allow for some minimal movement. Filbert did not know exactly where the ship was, but it should be within about a day’s travel from Haven. One of the ship’s mates, a boy called Lucas, has been seen buying supplies there. Having worked on the Folly for some time, Filbert is able to give us a sketch of its layout and rooms.
Lucius worked his magic again with the leader of one of the caravans. He not only secured us passage to Haven, but also negotiated a deal for our services along the way. The journey to Haven can be dangerous, especially for the merchant-types who might be carrying a vast amount of wealth. Groups of bandits have been hassling them, and while they are often able to push back against the thieves, they do lose a wagon or two on occasion. If we were to help guard the caravan and stop the bandits, they will pay us 2 gold pieces per day and allow us to keep whatever bandit-possessions we find.
So… on to Haven!
