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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Goonalan" data-source="post: 7793448" data-attributes="member: 16069">We D&D.Session #38 Hoard of the Dragon Queen #24 Fighting on/in Ice.Brothers of the First Light.Lummins (played by Rob) Male Half-Elf Cleric of Lathander Lvl 7Lux (played by Sandy) Female Human Warlock Lvl 7Watt (played by Jackie) Male Human Bard Lvl 7Sgt Bobby Markguth (played by Pete) Male Human Fighter Lvl 7Secondary PCs.Hotlips Houlihan (played by Sandy) Female Halfling Rogue Lvl 7Derek Pilch (played by Jackie) Male Human Druid Lvl 7Hard Bonk (played by Rob) Male Half-Orc Monk Lvl 7Sgt Harald Hardaxe (played by Pete) Male Shield Dwarf Fighter Lvl 7Note, this is session #38 of our game but only session #24 of the Hoard of the Dragon Queen scenario.Apologies ahead of time- it’s a long-one.[ATTACH=full]113345[/ATTACH]And so, we’re in a wide corridor inside the flying ice castle (prop. an unknown Cloud Giant) waiting for Lux’s (Human Warlock) Hunger of Hadar to run its course. Within the compass of the inky black spell are half-a-dozen or more dead Cultists.  Over the far side of the inky bubble is a wounded Captain Othelstan (a tough Dragonsoul), and two Red Wizards (Azbara Jos and Rath Modar), also waiting for the spell to end- Azbara Jos has failed to Dispel the Hunger of Hadar spell three times already (he’s not popular).Both sides however are as of yet unaware that Rezmir and her Guard Drakes are also waiting for the spell to expire, they’re situated just to the south of the spell’s black compass.The PCs (and several NPCs) have a queue of readied actions- I wrote them down at the end of the last session.The spell ends and we get to fighting straight away…Oh, but before we do the Players have been chatting about the vision/s they shared on the road to Parnast- when they were visited by an ‘angel’ of Lathander- a ball of hovering intense light. One of the scenes they witnessed included a great ice wall embedded in which was a galleon, at full sail, and with frozen crew also encased in the ice. The Players, at the start of the session, are speculating as to whether they are going to find the ice-locked ship here, after all the Cloud Giant castle is made of ice. They’re not, but I obviously don’t tell them this- they spend a good while in this session, and those that follow looking for the ship, or at least peering at random ice walls.Back to the fight.Sgt Bobby (Human Fighter), screaming and shouting terrible things (don’t ask), charges in to Othelstan & Azbara Jos (the lesser Red Wizard), at which point he’s out of actions, but exactly where he needed to be. Hotlips (Halfling Rogue) fires her crossbow and hits (with Sneak Attack) and… Azbara is bloodied in an instant.Watt (Human Bard) hits Azbara with two arrows- the second is a Crit, and the Red Wizard drops.That was easy- the Players are overjoyed, too soon- my friends, too soon.Othelstan slices Sgt Bobby (& misses with two more attacks), Lux fires an Eldritch Blast in to Othelstan, and then a another (a Crit) in to the second Red Wizard- Rath Modar.Lummins (Half-Elf Cleric) hits Othelstan with his Sacred Flames.Rath Modar casts Greater Invisibility on himself, he’s seen enough already. He orders his Gargoyle to kill Sgt Bobby, and then departs the castle (which takes a few Turns yet).The Gargoyle instantly obeys, flying out in to the icy corridor and clawing at the Fighter.Sgt Bobby Crits Othelstan, but the Dragonsoul is not even bloodied, and then misses with his second attack & then again with an Inspiration Point.Pete (playing Sgt Bobby) is neither furious, nor sweary… it’s most odd.Watt hits Othelstan with his Dissonant Whispers, and at last the Dragonsoul is bloodied, and suddenly clutching at his temples, he’s off and running- Sgt Bobby slices Othelstan again as he flees.The Dragonsoul however doesn’t retreat far, he rallies quickly and charges back in to the fight- cutting Sgt Bobby twice more.At which point the PCs and the last remaining Cult bad guys (Othelstan & the Gargoyle) spot, and hear, Rezmir and her two Guard Drakes charging in to action.The first Guard Drake gets to Sgt Bobby and bites him, the other repeats the feat with Watt.Lux fires two more Eldritch Blasts in to Othelstan, a hit & another (bloody) Crit.Rezmir, a female Half-Black Dragon, wearing a jet-black dragon-faced mask, and wielding a dull black greatsword (and dressed all in black- think female Roy Orbison with a Breath Weapon) rushes at Sgt Bobby screaming- “Prepare to DIE!”Lummins hits the Radiance of the Dawn button (for 22 Radiant damage)- Othelstan would be dead if not for Tiamat’s Blessing (he automatically heals 20 HP), the Gargoyle, Drakes and Rezmir are also hurt.Rezmir, having spent all of her actions, spends a Legendary Action- and slices Sgt Bobby with her magical greatsword- the Fighter is bloodied and beyond, and now also cannot regain hit points (a property of Hazirawn, Rezmir’s magical blade).Note this last event brings further accusations of cheating from two of the Players- Sandy (Lux & Hotlips) and Jackie (Watt). I briefly explain the nature of Legendary Actions and casually mention the fact that there may be many (many) more obscure or one-off rules/skills/feats that give a variety of monsters a bit of added advantage.The pair don’t sulk for too long.Back to the action.Sgt Bobby is slammed by a Guard Drake’s swatting tail, the Fighter cuts Captain Othelstan again- when will this bastard fall.Seconds later a crossbow bolt suddenly sprouts from the Dragonsoul’s throat, Hotlips is hiding beneath a table and taking pot-shots, she had to spend her Inspiration Point to hit.Othelstan is dead.The Players are cheering again, although still worried that Rezmir may be a tough bastard.Rezmir spends another Legendary Action to slice again at Sgt Bobby, I roll a ‘1’ to exultant cheers, a hit would have dropped the talismanic Fighter.Watt shares a little Bardic Inspiration with Sgt Bobby (‘Come on Bob-EEE, Come on Bob-EE’) and then Thunderwaves the Guard Drake gnawing on his ankle, sending the beast skidding back. The respite doesn’t last long, the Drake rushes back in and bites hold of the Bard’s leg again.Lux screams at Sgt Bobby to retreat (spoiler- he doesn’t) and then unleashes her Blight spell on Rezmir, the Half-Black Dragon fails her save but uses her Legendary Resistance, regardless the Blight spell hurts. Rezmir turns to stare for a millisecond at Lux, the implication being- she’s next.Just to say at this point I’m trying to get Rezmir in to a position where she can use her Acid Breath weapon (and hit two PCs), but Sgt Bobby is pretty much on his own- with Lummins maybe twenty or so feet back, Watt another twenty feet behind Lummins, and Lux and Hotlips even further away. Basically, Bobby is on point with the other four hanging well back.The bastards.Still Rezmir is a tough bugger, the Half-Black Dragon cuts down Sgt Bobby (and there’s a collective sharp intake of breath- Pete, however does not explode), and then stomps over to Lummins (the next nearest PC- Lux is just too far away), calling a Guard Drake over to her side. The pair slice and bite at the Cleric of Lathander, who survives, but is now bloodied.The Players are having doubts, expressed- at times- very loudly.Lummins panics and hits the Radiance of the Dawn button again (and rolls another 22 Radiant damage) the Guard Drake biting Watt dies, Rezmir and the other Drake (& the Gargoyle) also soak up some more hurt.The Priest isn’t done, a much-enhanced Healing Word for Sgt Bobby- and Pete’s back in the fight and grinning like a chimp, although Sgt Bobby is still sprawled on the cold floor atm.Rezmir spends another Legendary Action and slices Lummins again with a Crit, the Priest’s Warding Flare, well… flares, and my attack is at Disadvantage, I roll again- saying goodbye to my Crit, and I roll a ‘2’, that’s right- a miss.The Crit would, of course, have left Lummins unconscious.The Gargoyle (which is on 1 HP) has done what it was told to do (at this point Sgt Bobby is still taking a dirt nap) it flees the scene, going after its master- Rath Modar.The kindly DM elects to try again with another Legendary Action, Rezmir slashes and Lummins is cut badly (but not a Crit- damn them all to heck), and now down to ten hit points.At which point Sgt Bobby gets back on his feet, and rushes in to the melee- he slices Rezmir, and then gets his Second Wind.Double damn! Time for the Acid Breath- next chance I get, even if I can only target one PC.Hotlips, still hiding under a desk, fires a crossbow bolt in to the side of Rezmir’s skull (with added Sneak Attack) it’s a Crit, and the blood drains from my face (your kindly DM). Rezmir, my bestest bad guy, takes 43 damage. That’s not good.The Half-Black Dragon staggers.I’ve also used all of Rezmir’s Legendary Actions so the Half-Black Dragon is going to have to tough it out until her next Turn.Seconds later Watt’s Dissonant Whispers are also affecting the Cult leader- although once again the Bard’s damage rolls are incredibly low- three Psychic damage, Rezmir will take a paracetamol later.Maybe…Lux hits Rezmir with an Eldritch Blast, and then another (and another Crit) and rolls one below maximum damage. Rezmir is suddenly, and violently, engulfed in black fire flames- the mask that the Half-Black Dragon wears seems to fade and then vanish. Rezmir, over the course of the next ten or so seconds, is immolated- turned to nothing more than a smudge of black ash- she dies screaming in agony (which is suitably reassuring). That said a few of the Cult leader’s possessions are left sans owner on the icy floor.There is much cheering in the house.Although not behind the DMs screen. Rezmir wasn’t even bloodied when Hotlips got in the massive Sneak Attack Crit, she went from having 72 hit points to nada in a matter of moments.Bloody Players.There’s just one Guard Drake left, still fighting, the poor bugger doesn’t know when to give up, so Sgt Bobby and Hotlips team up again to kill the beast.That’s that- the fight is done/won, and I feel empty inside- cheated, Rezmir was my best bet for a while, she could have been a contender, she could have given the Players a real scare.Bugger!The PCs chat for a brief while- what to do for the best, all around them is blood and gore- high contrast against the stark white-blue ice of the castle. Healing is the issue, the PCs need to get in a rest, they’re also keen to 1) get a look at the loot left on the bodies of the fallen, and in the newly emptied chambers nearby, and 2) clear up the slaughterhouse they have created.And so, they chat (and relive their previous victory- gah!), and dither, and do neither.Eventually they start on clearing the bodies away- dragging the dead in to the room recently vacated by the two Red Wizards, at which point they of course remember that they only killed one Red Wizard- no matter. Bodies away- then healing, that’s Lux’s orders.Too late…[ATTACH=full]113346[/ATTACH]Mid clean-up operation the giant-sized door at the end of the hall, the one Sgt Bobby had to pull a muscle to get in, is wrenched open (with ease) by Hulda. Hulda is one of the Stone Giants the guys (Hotlips) saw (and avoided) previously. Hulda starts up shouting (in Giantish) and pointing a lot at the dead Cultists et al- he’s not happy. However, Lux & Lummins- of course, both speak the Giant tongue, they translate- the most oft repeated phrases are “Silence! No noise!”, and, “What’s going on here?” Hulda also fetches his massive club out and starts waving it about.The charming duo (Lux & Lummins) get to work, and even I have to admit it’s beautiful to watch at times (the bastards). Watt helps out with a few suggestions, but the Bard cannot speak the Giant tongue and so stays mostly in the background. The story is-They’re Cultists (they all do the Tiamat sign-thing), there’s been a bit of a falling out, stated while pointing at the corpses of a dozen Cultists (nice understatement). Rezmir, the Dragon Cult has discovered, was planning to steal the loot for himself. She (Frulam Mondath- Lux (Sandy) is back in charge of the operation) was despatched, with her companions (Sandy wanted to say ‘underlings’ here but it was clear that few of the other Players would be less than happy), to take care of Rezmir- job done. Followed by a few ‘Tiamat Blessings’ and that’s all she wrote…Lux and Lummins’ Persuasion checks are both 20+. Hulda grunts, and is about to leave, “Wait!” Frulam Mondath (I mean Lux) orders. She has questions, such as- Who are you? Who’s in charge here? Where are they? Are there anymore Cultists? When does the castle depart? Where is it going? And remember, she’s asking the questions in a manner that suggests she expects answers. Even Sgt Bobby has to admit that Lux has the biggest balls of them all. That said Hulda is persuaded only a little and intimidated hardly at all- “Blagothkus rules here”, the Stone Giant states, and then stomps off.The PCs abandon the clear up operation, they need to heal quickly, just in case something else nasty shows up, there’s no time however for a Short Rest (not from the way the DM is grinning at them- and they’re absolutely right, I’m not letting them sit on their arses getting well again in my ice castle).Therefore it’s time to break out the healing spells & Potions, and at the end of the cure-in all of them are still wounded (most only a little) while Sgt Bobby is only just above bloodied- and he’s got no more Healing Potions and had to beg three Cure Wounds spells (all low rolls- shame).That done the Brothers of the First Light start checking the bodies of the fallen and investigating the nearby rooms.There’s nothing left of Rezmir except for her dull-black greatsword (Hazirawn) and also a platinum necklace bearing a clawed emblem (Insignia of Claws), both items are magical, and are gathered up to be examined later.A search of the Red Wizard’s former chambers reveals that the far wall can be made to disappear, or else to open on to an ice platform which is on the exterior of the castle. This, Watt speculates, is how the other Red Wizard escaped (correct). Little can be seen from the ice platform, at first, and then the clouds clear and the PCs realise that the castle has already departed, they’re thousands of feet up, standing on a thin shard of clear ice.They get off the platform very quickly, and back in to the room.At this point the Players also have a little chat about the Red Wizards- remember they’re still after the guy that fireballed the citizens of Greenest, they’ve killed Azbara Jos (the lesser Red Wizard) but they have a nagging feeling that the Red Wizard that escaped was the one that did the deed back in Greenest (and they’re right again- Rath Modar is the fiery killer).The Brothers find a bunch of letters and a hefty ancient-ish tome- but all of the writing is in a language none of them can read (there’s a spell to help with that but none of them have it memorised atm), the language is Infernal.Next up is Rezmir’s former rooms.[ATTACH=full]113347[/ATTACH]Hotlips isn’t sneaky enough (or indeed at all) and yet as the pretty carpet she’s walking on lurches up to engulf her the nimble Rogue leaps aside- I roll ‘5’ & ‘6’, plus bonuses, with Advantage, for the Rug’s attack. Gah!And so- Hotlips’ rapier- slices, Watt- thunk-thunk of arrows, Lummins scorches with Sacred Flames, and Lux finishes the Rug of Smothering with a pair of Eldritch Blasts.Better get to Ikea for a new rug.The Brothers find a chest, Hotlips unlocks it (and thus avoids the trap) but it’s empty (Rezmir’s treasure teleported away when she died).In fact, there’s very little treasure to be had.At which point, a good thirty minutes after their chat with Hulda, the Stone Giant, the PCs retire (again) to the Red Wizard’s room- perhaps the kindly DM will allow them to get in a Short Rest.Not a chance.Forty minutes* later and Hotlips is on watch at the door, the Halfling spots the bad guys coming- they’re hard to miss (see below).*You will note that the bad guys turning up forty minutes later is very deliberate, it’s me (the kindly DM) saying- you could have had a Short Rest. Thirty minutes after the Stone Giant’s appearance the Brothers start their Short Rest, forty minutes in to it the bad guys turn up – 30 + 40 = 70, or 1 hour ten minutes if you prefer, time enough for a one-hour Short Rest. I don’t know if they noticed at the time, but I did. Mwah, and indeed- Ha!The bad guys spotted by Hotlips are another squad of five Dragonclaws (the PCs are wrong again- they’re Dragonwings- twice as tough), and… wait for it… wait for it… a number of very elaborately uniformed Ogres, all of them wearing great plumed ceremonial helms complete with tabards and the like. Ogre flunkies- cool.I was expecting a chat, as were the Dragonwings.The Players, having had their Short Rest disturbed, are less amenable.They press the nuclear button immediately.I’d like to discuss the Players thinking here, but… I have no idea what they were thinking- so a battle with five Dragonwings and six Ogres, this should be fun.[ATTACH=full]113348[/ATTACH]The PCs fling the door open and start up with the artillery (of sorts)- Watt’s Confusion spell leaves a pair of the Dragonwings drooling, while Hotlip’s crossbow Assassination attack is deadly- a third Dragonwing falls dead- bolt through the throat.The nearest Ogre is hit by two Eldritch Blasts, thanks Lux.Lummins tosses a Fireball in to the mass ranks, none of the bad guys fall but the Fire damage is shared around.The bad guys are screaming for revenge and remember while several of them are wounded (or else confused) only one Dragonwing is actually dead.The first Ogre charges toward the former Red Wizard’s chamber, more or less filling the doorway- Sgt Bobby slices it twice (with a Readied Action). The Ogre fails and flails to club Sgt Bobby in reply.One of the Confused Dragonwings suddenly spies an enemy- he cuts down one of his already wounded colleagues- with a Crit, and then shakes off Watt’s Confusion spell. What has he done?The rest of the Ogres are closing in- although they can’t get past their colleague blocking the doorway, and Sgt Bobby who is also blocking the way- the permanent front line. The Ogres fling javelins, they’re terrible at it- no hits.One of the Dragonwings gets in to melee, attacking Sgt Bobby- the guy is a screaming Fanatic, and good with a blade- Sgt Bobby is hit twice and back to being bloodied.Watt is, as usual, working his way through his spell repertoire- a Hypnotic Pattern comes next, the spell leaves three Ogres and two of the Dragonwings staring at the pretty lights- Incapacitated.Hotlips joins Sgt Bobby in the doorway, and with a little added Sneak Attack kills the Dragonwing there that sliced up her brave colleague.The Ogres that are not incapacitated by Watt’s Hypnotic Pattern are confused (not by the spell)- why are their colleagues just standing around doing nothing? The trio start to shake their comrades out of their stupor.“Kill them all!” Lux orders her companions.It’s getting nasty.Lux’s Eldritch Blasts kill one of the Hypnotised Dragonwings, and badly wounds another (the last Dragonwing standing) the Cultist shakes off the effects of Watt’s spell.Lummins drops in another Fireball- although now it’s his turn to roll low damage (just 17 Fire)- one Ogre is killed, but all of the rest are now no longer incapacitated.Sgt Bobby cuts down the Ogre blocking the doorway, and then races forward to slash furiously at the last Dragonwing standing- with a ‘1’. The Dragonwing also swings wildly in reply- no hits.One of the formerly hypnotised Ogres rushes in to the doorway- and smashes Hotlips with its club, the Rogue employs her Uncanny Dodge but still it hurts.Watt launches a Shatter spell in to the enemies (low damage again)- more Ogres are hurt, and the last remaining Dragonwing falls- at last.Hotlips enters stab frenzy mode, the Ogre now blocking the doorway suffers- the Halfling is a terror (particularly with a Sneak Attack).Lux hits the same creature with two Eldritch Blasts, one of them a Crit, it still stands.Lummins fires up the Bless- there’s some hard yards yet to be done, particularly for Sgt Bobby- the Fighter is out in the corridor- an icy slaughterhouse; and taking on three Ogres. He’s taken a bit more of a beating - down to just below 20 Hit Points.Sgt Bobby cuts another Ogre- twice, it’s badly wounded, but he’s still surrounded.The Ogre in the doorway smashes Hotlips again, her Uncanny Dodge soaks up some of the hurt but the Halfling Rogue is now also well beyond bloodied.Watt Shatters as many Ogres as he can get in the compass of the spell- damn it! All of the bad guys survive the ordeal, the Bard has got only one spell left.Hotlips stabs her rapier in to the Ogre she’s facing in the doorway (with a Crit) it collapses and dies, the Halfling rushes over the body of the fallen Ogre and in to position behind one of the three Ogres that Sgt Bobby is fighting. The Halfling stabs the bastard (with added Sneak Attack) and the roaring Ogre is also beyond bloodied.All that’s left of the fight is a beaten-up Sgt Bobby surrounded by three equally beat up Ogres, racing around behind this trio/quartet is Hotlips. Lummins, Watt and Lux- at last- make their way out of the former Red Wizard’s chamber and still keeping their distance start up with the artillery.Lux’s Eldritch Blasts cause one of the Ogres to give up the fight, it screams- drops its club, and rushes back the way it came- to a pair of giant-sized doors that open out in to the Lower Courtyard.“Kill it” Lux orders, “it cannot be allowed to get away.”Easier said than done of course, the majority of the PCs are kinda busy.Lummins fires his Sacred Flames in to the back of the fleeing Ogre- it doesn’t stop running, making it out of the doors and in to the Lower Courtyard.A second badly wounded Ogre decides it has had enough of the fight- it too attempts to flee and following the same route, Hotlips is on the brute mere seconds later (and with added Sneak Attack) the Halfling’s rapier cuts deep- the Ogre falls- dead.Two Ogres left- one facing Sgt Bobby, the other running for its life.Lux and Lummins are both calling for the Ogre/s to surrender, both in Giantish and Common- the Ogres seem to be very loyal to someone. No surrender.Sgt Bobby slices the Ogre he’s fighting- twice, a millisecond later Watt lodges an arrow in the massive brute’s skull- it falls- dead.The Bard is off and running, out in to the Lower Courtyard- magical bow still in hand. The fleeing Ogre is perhaps twenty feet away and running hard- and now with an arrow protruding from its back, but still fleeing.That is until the arrow in the Ogre’s back is joined by a crossbow bolt- nice grouping, and the last Ogre falls. Hotlips rarely misses.The PCs, as always under Lux’s instruction, hustle out in to the Lower Courtyard, they quickly lasso the legs of the dead Ogre there, and then drag it back in to the corridor- out of sight. Alas they struggle for a short while to overcome the weight of the corpse (and inertia) but eventually get the dead body back in to the icy building.Miraculously, and thanks partially to the fact that it’s now evening, they accomplish the task (they think) without arousing much (or indeed any) suspicion. Just to make clear- that’s what I told the PCs after Hotlips and a few others made a few (very low) Active Perception checks. Actually, the corpse removal operation was being observed by Wiglof and Hulda, the Stone Giants, and probably a few of the Ogres (maybe) up on the towers.The PCs shut the doors, and… well, breathe.That was a fairly energetic encounter, at the end of which Lux & Watt are only slightly wounded, while Hotlips & Lummins are both well beyond Bloodied & Sgt Bobby, of course, is down to six Hit Points. He likes to take it to the wire.There follows another short bout of healing, during which the PCs quickly realise that really do need to take a Short Rest, they don’t have enough spell power remaining to get Sgt Bobby (and several of the other PCs up to anywhere near full HP). Or else they could use pretty much all of their Healing Potions- either way it’s going to leave them very short on healing resources should further need arise.And let me tell you, none of the Players think the DM has done with them… they know me too well.So, retreat, in to the Red Wizard’s former abode- a watch rota is drawn up- spying out of the door and in to the icy corridor, which fortunately is still (magically?) illuminated- the PCs hunker down, praying to Lathander, Lord of the Light, that they won’t be disturbed.Guess what?It doesn’t happen, only half an hour in to their second, third- I forget which, attempt at a Short Rest a randomly determined Hotlips (on watch) spots Hulda the Stone Giant nosing around in the passage. Hotlips tells her friends, who all come to watch at the door. The Stone Giant, cautiously, investigates the bodies of the fallen- not a thorough check just accounting for who’s dead, it seems. Hulda however takes care to stay away from the door behind which the PCs hide.After a few minutes of nosing around Hulda heads back the way he came, and has a chat with someone at the door out in to the Lower Courtyard. Best guess it’s the second Stone Giant at the door (it is, he’s called Wiglof), the PCs cannot however hear the conversation- and can’t afford to expend spells to send an Invisible Hotlips over to earwig (listen in).Soon after both Stone Giants head off again, and after a short while waiting to see what happens next- nothing, the PCs go back to their Short Rest.Success. The DM is clearly a benevolent being- Hit Dice get spent and the PCs healing problem is resolved.That however is the end of the session.Apologies for the rambling who did what to whom in combat, but my notes are much better these days, we’ve taken to recording the sessions (on an oldish Nagra), and so I get to hear everything again- I just listen and type, skipping the parts where Pete and Jackie argue over who gets the last bit of Pizza. This session was about three hours long, and if you think we didn’t get a lot done then please remember we’re a very relaxed bunch, some evenings there’s quite a lot of chat and blather between the action, some of it even relevant to the game and the situation.More next time, although we’re nearly at the end.</blockquote>

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