Greetings. Welcome to the first session of /mlpol/'s first running of the classic third edition d&d campaign Red Hand Of Doom.
On this adventure, our heroes, currently three strong, will encounter dozens of trials that will test their strength, cunning, and friendship as they face an army of goblins.
If you'd like to join, there's still room for more in the party. Don't be shy to ask.
Our story begins in Elsir Vale, with our three heroes on the road to the town of Drellin’s Ferry. The three are seasoned adventurers, and exated heroes to boot. Having fought many battles together before, they are confident in their strength. Legend has it of a vast treasure in the Vault of Vraath Keep, hidden deep in the Witchwood; our heroes, have journeyed all this way to seize the vault for their own.
Despite that, they all have their own motivations to travel to Drellin's Ferry:
Sir Whiskers, a cunning and charismatic Tibbet Jester, is travelling to meet up with an old friend of his: Princess Princess Bagel Jennifurr Fluffykinz the fourth. He hasn't met his old friend since he was a kitten, and he's eager to meet with her again. She has arranged to meet up with him in Drellin's Ferry, and to accompany him on his adventure.
Sir Brozal, a mighty Orc Crusader of Pelor, has received a mission from a high-ranking Cleric of his order has received a powerful vision of war descending on Elsir Vale under the banner of a clawed red hand, and has sent Brolaz to the far reaches of Elsir Vale to avert impending disaster... Brozal isn't exactly sure if the vision was real, or if his master just wanted to get rid of him for the year, but he never turns down a good crusade.
Brother Chad, a wise and powerful Druid, has chosen to accompany his companions on their hunt for the lost treasure in the Witchwood. Sir Whiskers requested his aid because Chad is the most experienced woodsman he knows. Chad is wary of this region, for he's heard that it is ruled by a fierce and territorial Druid, but he embarks upon this jouney nonetheless, the secrets of the Witchwood too tempting to ignore.
...So tempting that he seems to have drifted off somewhere with his horse; probably fucking it again or something. Stupid hippie.
And so, let's begin:
>The afternoon sun beats down on you; the air is hot and still. The sparsely settled lands of Elsir Vale are starting to grow monotonous, with a seemingly endless line of dusty flyspecks of towns. The town of Drellin’s Ferry lies a few miles ahead of you. It’s a settlement hard on the borders of the Witchwood, and the best place from which to begin exploring the nearby forest.
This is the part where the players ask obvious questions that I thoughtlessly ignored in the first post, as well as implore about their surroundings.
1820 replies and 62 files omitted.
Brozal takes off his helmet and wipes some sweat from his brow. "I'm not here to bring harm to you or your kin. Simply traveling through to slay some goblins. I'm awfully tired and could use a place to rest. In return, I'd be willing to give you some food."
Rolled 25 on diplomacy.
>>137481The old giant glares down at Brozal, with his single remaining eye. He peers down at Brozal for an agonizingly silent six seconds before his expression calms and appears changes to amused. He sits down with an audible "oomf" and smiles weakly at the little presumptuous orc.
"...Warklegnaw no have guest in LOOOOONG TIME." He says, the trees shaking as he bellows the last two words
"Maybe man-creature share with Warklegnaw?" he says, gesturing to the massive dire-boar roasting on the spit
Brozal sits down near the fire and puts his helmet on his knee. "Thank you for having me. The boar smells delicious. What's your story?"
Just to be clear, the giant hasn't seen the rest of you. He's only seen Brozal.
>>137483The giant is visibly venerable, and sick to boot, his face and joints painfully swollen.
At Brozal's distance, he can see a prominent tattoo on his wrinkled forehead, a symbol that looks like a frowning tusked mouth.
"Warklegnaw king of the Twistusks!" The old giant bellows proudly, before breaking out into an earth-shaking cough.
>>137485"Before we go on, I should probably say that I have a few more friends that have waited a ways away instead of coming with me. Would it be alright for them to eat with us?" Brozal asks while pointing in the direction of his allies and signaling them that everything is okay.
>>137485The old giant rips a leg off of the roasted boar and hands it to Brozal, the tender flesh ripping off with little resistance.
It actually smells pretty good.
>>137486The old giant mutters something unintelligible before nodding gladly.
".. Yes, YES..!" He bellows
His sole eye peers into the distance, landing squarely on Misty, then Chad, then the rest of the party
"Man creatures sit. Man creatures tell story." he says, in a senile tone that sounds halfway between an invitation and an order
>>137486>>137487Me and Misty march towards them as if on cue as he glances to us.
"What do you want to know?"
I kinda just want to chill out on being the party face so I'll let Aral take the lead.
>>137488The senile giant peers curiously at the talking horse for a few seconds, before shrugging
"Warklegnaw no have guests in LOOOONG time.." the giant says, again
"What bring horse-creature?" He implores
>>137491"Just exactly how long have you been a hermit for?"
"Red hand brought us here, we are going to stop them."
>>137489The council stuff and others happened because we had no party face present at the time. Brozal's way higher Diplomacy fits better for face, and for talking long and representing the party. When it comes to sperging about goblins though, he will not shut up, if prompted. Anyway...Aral produces the map, ready to explain and support with proof what Chad just began
>>137492
>>137492"...LOOOOOOOOOOONG TIME!" the old giant bellows, unhelpfully
"..Kin leave LOOOOONG time ago.. say Bald Hill cursed since war. Never come back. But Warklegnaw stay, because Warklegnaw king of the Twistusks!" he continues, a sliver of pride shining through his sullen demeanor
"Warklegnaw born on Bald Hill, and Warklegnaw die on hill too." The giant continues, before coughing once more
>>137492The giant then asked
"Red hand.. What is Red Hand?"
>>137494"A long time?"
>>137495"A large and organized group of goblins."
>>137496"LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooong time..." The giant repeats
"Warklegnaw alone since war. Kin flee to mountains. No want Bald Hill anymore... Poor old Warklegnaw..." the old giant continues.
>group of goblins"Hmmmmph! Gobbos is small. Gobbos is weak. Gobbos is is fear of giants." He says proudly
"Gobbos never march through giant country. Always turn back. Is scared of rocks."
>>137497"The goblins have came in numbers of thousands and intend to take over the region. Before you even think of offering, I can not allow you to join us in our crusade. I will see to smashing them myself."
>>137497"Which mountains?"
"Did you make that giant totem at the start of the path to here?"
>>137498
Adding to that:
"But you would at least need to prepare for them. They will arrive here too, sooner or later."
>>137500"Heehee.. Silly Orc." the giant says with a chuckle
"Warklegnaw sit. Nobody need Warklegnaw anymore..."
>>137501"Kin go West. Maybe up in mountains. Say bald hill cursed. Say Warklegnaw no king anymore..." the giant replies, sadly
"Warklegnaw no see kin in LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooong time... Maybe some is left, up in mountains..?"
>>137502The venerable old giant looks weakly over to Aral, with his single remaining eye. It's now at this distance that Aral can see just how ancient and sick he really is. His face and joints are red and swollen with angry red blotches, perhaps due to some unnamed disease, and he seems extraordinarily lean.
"Prepare? For gobbos? What need?"
>>137503"You are elderly and I would not be able to forgive myself if you were unable to live out the rest of your life in peace. Please do not get involved."
>>137503Because their numbers are legion. All tribes united. Planning to take over all the Vale.
>>137505- said Aral (forgot the quotes)
>>137501>"Did you make that giant totem at the start of the path to here?""Warklegnaw made totem LOOOOOOOOOOOOooong time ago." The old giant says, beaming.
"Totem show giants strong. No man-creatures march in giant country."
Then, he twitches somewhat, glaring angrily into the distance and shaking his fist in a deranged fit
"...Until..." he growls, struggling to finish his phrase as his memory fails him
".. VRAATH!" He roars, stomping his foot and causing the whole fortress to shake
"Vraath march on Bald Hill LOOOONG time ago. Come with army big. Burn fortress. Take chief claw." He growls, angrily, still staring into the distance, as if Amery Vraath were right there, mocking him
"Warklegnaw march on Vraath. Smash castle. Smash hoo-mans. Warklegnaw shoot Vraath, but Vraath get away. Never find him.." He says, still shaking
>>137507"Vraath is dead. I found his body myself."
>>137505>>137504The giant appears dismissive, seemingly not interested in prolonging his own life
"Hmmmph. Warklegnaw only have few winters left anyway. If gobbos march on Bald Hill, Warklegnaw stay, fight and die." He declares
"Warklegnaw sit on fortress. Nobody need poor old Warklegnaw.."
>>137508The giant looks at Brozal quizzically, as if confused that the human he fought nearly two centuries ago wouldn't still be alive.
"Vraath... Is dead?"
>>137509"You may be old, but your wisdom is indispensable. I will see about getting fellow crusaders from the temple of Pelor to aid you in making your way into the mountains so you can be with your people again. I found Vraath's skeleton inside of a secret chamber in his keep. His body was pierced by a poisonous dart or arrow."
>>137511"No.. Warklegnaw look everywhere in man-hut. No Vraath. No Claw..." The giant says in disbelief
>>137512"I have the deed to the keep right here, and I also have Vraath's weapon." Brozal shows the giant the deed and the mace. "In fact, I think if anyone deserves that keep, it's you." He adds while handing the deed to the keep over to the elderly hill giant.
>>137513>giving away the maceAre you sure you want to do that, m8?
>weapon two size categories too small for a giant>not the huge-sized spiked gauntlet, which had a symbol identical to the giant's tattoo and the sigil of the Twistusks
I'm only giving Warklegnaw the deed to the keep. I was showing him that I have the mace, and I intend to keep the mace. Brozal will also give the giant spiked gauntlet to him.
>>137516
The giant stares blankly at the piece of paper.
"..... deed?"
He waves his hand dismissively
>>137517
At that, his expression lights up
"C-claw..!" He stutters, before muttering something unintelligible in giant and snatches the enormous gauntlet up.
He hurriedly fits it over his wrinkled fit, the primitive weapon fitting like a glove. A faint violet glow emanates from the gauntlet's sigil, as well as the giant's tattoo, as the weapon attunes. The senile patriarch seems almost giddy.
The giant looks down at Brozal, seemingly at at loss for words.
>>137519“There’s no need to thank or reward me. Doing good is it’s own reward.”
>>137519“The deed means that you are now the owner of Vraath Keep.”
>>137521The old giant again waves his hand dismissively
"If Warklegnaw wanted man-hut, Warklegnaw would live there already. Warklegnaw stay at Bald Hill-" He says, clenching his armored fist, the sigil glistening with his tattoo, the symbol of his power
"-'cause Warklegnaw KING OF THE TWISTUSKS!" He roars as he stands up, the fortress and the surrounding forest shaking as he shouts
"Bald Hill Twistusks' home. Witchwood giant country." The old giant says, a matter-of-factly
>>137523“We must bring them back to these woods.”
>>137524The Old Giant scratches his head, peering down at Brozal
"... Yes.. Forest is forest giants' home. Hills is for hill giants. Twistusks is no hill giants..." He says
"Witchwood is Twistusks' country."
The giant, now already standing, fastens his pelt (which appears to be that of an owlbear), and rips another leg off of the roasting dire boar, gnawing at it hungrily
>>137525“Maybe we shall set out at dawn to venture to the mountains. Please don’t strain yourself though.”
The ancient giant chews into is porkchop and peers towards the west, towards the sun above the mountains, obscured by the ancient trees.
The drops the bone as he finishes it, it landing with a *thud*.
>>137526He peers down at the orc once more
"Little man-creature slow. No know the way. Take days to find kin. Weeks maybe." The giant says, between bites.
Then he pauses
"Say.. What be you name, little man-creature?"
>>137527“I am Brozal, the Fire Bringer.”
Btw, in game-time, it's about 1-ish PM.
You could certainly camp if you wish. You've been adventuring close to 7 hours. Think about what you want to do going forward.
Also, since this encounter has been resolved, and most of the party isn't present. I'm probably going to end the session here.
>>137529>>137530The old giant chuckles
"Brozal Fire Bringer. Warklegnaw have great thanks. Brozal be always welcome is Twistusks' country." He replies
We will play tomorrow.
To make combat a bit less of a train-wreck this time, we'll try to do most of it in the server.
DAY SIX; EVENING
Okay, so the party elected to stay with Warklegnaw for about 3 hours. After some dialogue, they're rested enough to continue.
The party has eaten. Jorr has fed his dogs, which are surprisingly quick and able to keep up with Brozal's Horse (slowest in the party) easily.
Since this game takes place in the summer, you'll sill have some daylight left by the time you get to Skull Gorge, but not much.
The party has elected to "just march forward", Brozal leading the way, proudly announcing his presence to every creature within several hundred feet.
See
>>135358Let's see how that goes.
Anyone in the party has license to make a Spot check.
I think it's funny that Brozal has -7 to spot and listen checks.
>>137674You are able to see that the forest clears ahead, and that in a few hundred feet, you'll be stepping out into the open, losing the benefit of cover.
"Hello, saddle gooses! I bite my thumb at thee!"
>>137677You don't see anything yet.
I'm going to go do some quick chores, take a shower, and pray that Chad is back by the time I'm done with that.
>>137675>>137676The ground has been rising for the last few miles, and finally the forest itself peters out. Ahead is a stretch of barren ground, about sixty feet wide, ending in a gorge. Roughly a hundred feet wide at its narrowest point, the gorge drops away precipitously to a fast-rushing stream far below. The ancient Dawn Way crosses the cleft on a bridge of stone.
Anchored at both ends to large stone towers with pentagonal roofs, the bridge seems sturdy despite its obvious age. It is, clearly, the only easy way to cross, since the gorge continues as far as the eye can see to the east and west. The four stone towers that anchor the bridge are each forty feet high. A narrow wooden stairway winds around each, leading up to an open-air watchpost at the top.
>>137680[1d20+14 = 22][1d20+14 = 32](Listen and spot.)
A small encampment of a half-dozen tents clusters near the northern side of the bridge. Curls of smoke from campfires attest to some sort of activity. A single humanoid figure stands at the watchpost on the top of each of the four watchtowers, longbow in hand. A powerfully built hound with glowing red eyes and short ruddy fur sits watchfully near either end of the bridge. Yet the most impressive creature present is certainly the sleek and menacing green dragon that perches on the roof of the northwestern watchtower on the far side of the gorge. It lies basking in the sun, but its bright yellow eyes are fixed on the bridge.
And then.
It looks towards you, making direct eye contact with you, then Brozal, then Aral,
John got drunk and passed out, and is being nursed by Jorr
"Ten silver ain't enough to deal wit' this shite..."
By the angry "Gobbogobbogobbogobbogobbogobbogobbogobbo!" sounds you hear with that extraordinary listen check (which didn't even include your racial bonus for horse form), it appears that there are several goblinoids alert of your position.
I'm going to need everyone to roll initiative.
>>137682[1d20+5 = 18] init
>>137682[1d20-1 = 9](initiative)
Okay, the goblins are going to go first, because they had two rounds to buff themselves and set-up as you guys were marching in.
This will continue in the server, because it's just quicker there.
Okay first
>PCs get debuffed
>PCs get gassed
>PCs get burned
>PCs get shot
I think it's going well.
>>137688I hit a goblinoid for 2 whole damage with my bow.
>>137689“We are the Red Hand! We do not know defeat!” The Veteran Goblin shouts, in common
[1d20+12 = 27](concentration)
[1d20+12 = 14](concentration)
[1d20+12 = 30](concentration)
>>137691The first one almost made it, but no. The DC was 28.
Wait
You know you've got 22 Con in Dire horse shape, right?
>>137692No i didn't know, so you add how much shit onto those checks?
>>137693You pass, barely. You keep the spell.
However, you're still at
7 HP.
Summing up the last couple rounds:
>PCs move out of lingering gas cloud.
>Dragon busy finding an item
>More archer shots, Brozal takes a crit
>Brozal flanked by two dogs, at very low HP
>Aral summons Hippogriff
>Chad calls lightning, wounds sentinel
>other sentinels ready actions to disrupt spellcasting horse
>Misty wounds a dog
>Brozal pushes past dog and jumps into the gorge
>muh river
>DM: "Are you sure you want to do that?"
>Brozal hides behind southeast tower instead
>Chad tries sleet storm
>barely manages to cast the spell as archers disrupt him
>goblins turn
>>137695I'm gonna follow this up from where you left off.
>I haul ass towards the forest line with 7 HP>Dragon falls into the Gorge river but comes back up>Misty finishes off the dog>Brozal is squaring off with a dog at the bottom of the tower>Goblins begin their march across the bridge through the Sleet Storm>Goblin Sentinels are clearing the Sleet on the towers with their fire>Aral tries to make a dog bark but game mechanics restrict his Autism>Sad awoo.jpg>Dragon eyes Aral>Aral uses a magic missile wand against the dog instead>Hits but doesn't kill>Brozal misses his Crusader Strike on a dog>He starts walking up the stairs on the tower>Misty comes and kills the dog Brozal missed>I heal myself with Lesser Vigor bringing me up to 8 HP>Goblins turn>Goblin on the south-west tower hits me with an arrow bringing me to 1 HP>Dragon ascends into the sky and does a Diving Charge on Aral dealing 8 damage>Dragon flies away again>The goblins from the camp make it to the bridge>They fire at Misty with a volley of arrows and one critically hits her for 21 damage but the rest bounce off her ass>The goblin on the south-east tower misses his attack on the hippo griff>Aral uses Rapid Shot on the goblin the hippo griff is fighting and deals 9 damage with a critical hit>Bastard bird misses every hit on the goblin >Brozal ascends the stairs and misses his Revitalizing Strike on the hobgoblin >I cast Wall of Smoke on the middle of the bridge and run for the hills with 2 HP and a goblin misses his shot on me>Misty gets hit with a -5 strength penalty arrow>Then the dragon starts to follow me into the forest>The dragon finds me on path to the Dawn Way>The scaly cunt dives down on me with a charge>And deals 12 damage>Which kills me 5 times over>Dead>Misty loses her Empathetic Link with me which causes her to also lose all her intelligence>Sad Violin.mp3I'm gonna leave it here because this shit is gonna take hours to go over for all the chaos that ensued after my death.
>>137698>Aral tries to make a dog bark but game mechanics restrict his AutismI like to imagine he still barked, it just didn't work, because it had no chance to.
>>137699It would have been a bluff check, and Aral wasn't fooling any well-trained, intelligent devil-dog with his 5 charisma.
>>137700Makes sense. I just like the image of this elf barking for no reason during combat.
OOOOOOOOOOOOkaaaaaaay... That session was a catastrophe... 2/3 of the party died, Aral almost died, the enemy has been alerted of the party's interference, and Misty is slowly going insane...
Enemy casualties:
>1 Fleshwound on the Sergeant
>2 dead hellhounds
>a badly-bruised dragon
>several lvl 1 spell slots
I'm not condescending, just considering when I'm going to have you guys level up. Escaping is worth XP too.
>>137699>>137700>>137701I think it's funny to imagine it too.
>>137702Could have gone worse.
>>137703I guess. Could have gone better too...
I think what decided it was really that the goblins were using tactics and planning, but the PCs didn't.
Or maybe I could have been a bit more compassionate with how I played the encounter. Maybe I should have scaled it down. Idk....
>>137698>Both of Bro's strength penalties wear off>The big bird wounds the hobgoblin finally but doesn't kill it>Aral fires at the hobgoblin that the hippo griff damaged and manages to kill it>Brozal drinks a red potion for 21 health and moves down the staircase he's on >Dragon is focusing on Jorr>Misty begins wandering to the woods and Brozal tries to grab her but she rears and critically hits him for 14 damage >Brozal then succeeds and grapples her by burning an action point but does not mount her>Goblin spell scourge walks through the wall of smoke on the bridge with a spiked chain in hand >His anatomy absorbs the magic from the spell i caste then attacks Brozal with his chain but Brozal avoids being tripped by it>The other goblins walk through the wall of smoke and are nauseated by the spell while a goblin archer fires an arrow at Aral that misses >John then proceeds to attempt to get the spell scourge's attention by shouting at him from the forest in front of the party's horses while Brozal screams for a buff from John>John admits he has no buffs or flight in his spell book then 'faints' just before the green dragon belches a cloud of chlorine gas on him which renders him into an 'invincible' state of sleeping>Yes.png>Aral then retreats back to the forest where the horses are and fires magic missiles from his wand and Jorr hits the dragon with his arrow dealing 18 damage altogether to it>Brozal then makes the immense decision of deciding whether or not to attempt to calm Misty and mount my horse then slap her iron ass to get the fuck out of there or get beheaded>He takes the latter option>Brozal then proceeds to attack the spell scourge but misses >Brozal begins singing the lyrics to Baka Mitai>The goblin super soldier laughs evilly as he lashes out at him dealing 11 damage>Misty then makes the wiser decision of bolting out of there with her now 2 intelligence to my dead druid then pushes the dragon of my body while taking 8 damage>Aral then begins to commence his elfish ree'ing at the dragon>The green dragon then replies by giving his mighty REEEE back to Aral in the elf tongue making him momentarily turn into a giant elf filly>Aral then shoots at the dragon with his arrows while moon walking to my corpse but the arrows bounce off the mega filly>Jorr then also shoots at the dragon but the all so similar sound of tank armor begins playing which causes the arrows to bounce off too>The green faggot remembers he has wings then begins to hover above the ground to give a mighty REEE of green cum all over the fags in front of him causing Aral to take 11 gay damage>REEEE.jpg>Brozal then fails his attack on the ultra goblin which pretty much seals his fate as fucked>The green goblins laugh and cheer on their sergeant while still feeling sick>The super goblin then lashes out again while dealing a critical hit total of 22 damage to Brozal>Aral continues to fire at the flying faggot while doing a 360 towards my dead body doing no damage to the massive fag again>Misty begins prodding at my dead dick not realizing she's wanking a dead horse with her 2 intelligence >The dragon then soars towards Aral and critically misses his grapple so it flies back to the bridge with yet another soiled diaper >Brozal then finally deals 16 damage to the super nigger which makes him grumpy so he orders his lower goons to begin to march forward with their energy swords ready>A goblin sentinel on one of the towers gives a middle finger to Brozal then castes Bro's favorite spell giving him a a -6 strength de-buff then the green sergeant hits him for another 11 damage >The rest of the goblins move around their leader in flanking positions with their Vril long swords pointing directly at Brozal>"Any last words?"<“Tell me your name. I am Brozal, the Fire Bringer.”>"AHAHAHAHA!" the cunt cackles "I go by Kral the Shredder, sergeant of the red hand, and your doom.">The 4 surrounding goblins then bear their swords down on Brozal>Pic related>3 of them hit dealing 16 slashing damage and 32 electricity damage>The End Of Evangelion begins playing>The green faggot then finishes switching diapers so he comes flying back towards Aral>Aral then throws his bag of holding to Jorr which he he catches and inspects before then slipping my body into the bag which makes Misty freak the fuck out>Misty then attacks Jorr twice which the first hit bounces off his Mithril breastplate then the second hit connects dealing (?) damage to him>The dragon then finishes drawing his circle so he misses his attack on Aral then lands on the ground south of Aral>The gay goblins then spend the round looting Brozal's blue body and slapping each other asses>Aral then does a barrel roll out of the way of the dragon towards the Gorge>Jorr then proceeds to get the fuck out of there while dodging another attack from Misty with my body in a bag on his back>Aral then casts Burning Hands on the dragon which the dragon saves dealing only 6 damage but the green faggot is now crying even harder so he charges Aral dealing 12 damage>Aral then does another barrel toward Misty this time but the dragon bites for 13 damage while he does it >Then Aral spends an action point to cheese his way to complete the action>The goblins gobble at Aral for his cheesiness >Jorr mounts Brozal's horse>Aral spends his last action point to run away and get on his horse while firing his last arrow at the dragon hitting him in the wing>The dragon thoroughly soiled his last diaper so he decides it's best to leave Aral alone while flying around REEEE'ing about Brozal's loot>The goblins fire their last volley of arrows at Jorr and Aral but all of them miss>Jorr Brozal's horse's ass which sends him speeding down the Dawn Way >Jorr thankfully has the horse's reigns that John's 'unconscious' body has 'fainted' on>Misty is still panic prancing around so Jorr casts charm animal while doing some lewd gestures to her which causes her to immediately shoot off quckly disappearing down the Dawn Way
>>137704>planning>scaling>encounter balanceOr maybe we should've realized sooner that leaving the water subtype PC to fend off 2 hellhounds is a really bad idea.
Or maybe I should've remembered that I have a nice wand of Magic Missile and not fuck around with attack rolls that have penalties upon penalties.
Or maybe I should not have blown the one buff I had prepared on a random encounter.
Or maybe RNG screwed us over, as we didn't exactly roll well on average.
There are those maybes all around, what matters is that we probably learned from it.
I think this would've been beatable, even with all the "marching in" stuff, but that kind of improvisation does have a little learning curve.
>>137739Well, if it's hidsight you want:
A caster might have dealt significant damage to the bridge with Stone Shape, or to the ground it was rooted in with Soften Earth and Stone. Both of those spells were available to the party.
A warrior with Mountain Hammer or an adamantine weapon might have been dealt significant damage to the bridge if that warrior prioritized attacking the pillars, instead of the goblins.
Even without those spells/weapons/strikes, the bridge had HP, and it could be hacked/blasted to pieces. It was the main enemy in the encounter.
An Int-based character could have rolled a knowledge check to reveal the information above with a fairly-low DC check.
Common knowledge about hobgoblins: they'll fight to the death under command of their leaders, but are also prone to scatter once the one signing their paychecks is dead. Identifying and targeting the leaders can mean winning a battle by only taking out half the enemies.
If something is simple enough to be "Common Knowledge" (DC 10), you don't need to be trained in the skill to roll it. Roll whenever you feel like your character should know something that you don't, circumstance modifiers apply.
A stealthy character may have been able to scout the enemy forces, had they gone ahead first.
An arcane caster might have taken out half the enemies with a Fireball.
The enemy may have not had time to retrieve their weapons, take potions, buff-up, and make rally checks, if the walking lighthouse hadn't been marching at the front of the party.
A characters may not have died if they kept track of their own HP, or knew when to retreat with the rest of the party instead of taking on the goblins themselves.
Reading your spells ahead of time is generally a good thing.
Looking over your spell list and preparing it accordingly for the mission is a luxury that all prepared casters should take advantage of.
When a DM gives you two potions of neutralize poison, and you have two poisoned characters, it means you should take them.
Scrolls, potions, and alchemical items are useful in combat. Gold is not. Stock up on consumables whenever you get the chance.
When an NPC gives you a bag with three potions in it, stopping to check what they might be is worth the effort. (META: They were Cure Serious Wounds, Sanctuary, and Bull's Strength mixed with Enlarge Person.)Going forward, I feel like it's in order for me to say that the objective of RHoD isn't just to defeat the entire army yourselves, but to do enough thwart their war effort so that the rest of the continent has some hope of resisting the Red Hand in the future. Most encounters like this one are optional, but whether or not all off Elsir Vale falls to the goblin hordes in their march of doom.
So far, the party now knows that the threat of the Red Hand is no laughing matter. It's a force apparently made up of all the goblin tribes on the continent united: an Army of Doom. The goblins are allies with fearsome beasts, like Minotaurs, Manticores, and Dragons. They've been summoning and binding fiends from Baator, like hellhounds, to do their bidding. The goblin forces include loyal samurai to fight to the death, Mighty Blade-bearers who've mastered mystic techniques, zealous Clerics of a yet-unnamed Dark God, veterans who wield spells and swords on tandem, and fearsome sorcerers who wield dreadful magic. They are powerful, they use military tactics, and they're hell-bent on the destruction of the world.
In the face of Doom, there is still hope. Although the party lost this battle, the war is far from over. The party's decision to evacuate the Drellin's Ferry was a clever one, and although they did not succeed in buying time or slowing down the Red Hand, the earliness of their decision means that Drellin's Ferry will have a head start, and
some hope of not being hounded by pursuing goblins on the path. Brother Derney, the local priest of Pelor, would be distributing Brozal's gold to the needy and making them all the more ready and willing to give up their homes and evacuate on the path to Brindol. Norro Wiston would be attempting his charisma check to persuade the city council to leave, now determined to convince the (((merchants))) like Iromel to prioritize life and reason over property.
As the session ended, Aral was making his way back to Drellin's Ferry with the corpse of the Chad in his bag, looking for a priest to revive him with the Staff of Life. He is accompanied only by the Woodsman Jorr, and the unconscious, narcoleptic Wizard John, who's player hasn't sat through even one session yet...
e_e The summer evening approaches, and Aral has been travelling for nearly 12 hours. He'll have to make camp soon, and roll some survival checks to see if he can evade the goblins and monsters intent on tracking him through the night.
Luckily, he's made a very hospitable friend along the way.
Bumping because I don't want this to be beneath the futa thread.
Have some pics/maps from the last encounter.
I'm going to be very busy for the next three weeks, but I can still manage to run on Saturday this week and the next.
To sum up today's 1-on-1:
DAY 6; EVENING
>Aral limps down the road with Jorr, carrying Chad's corpse
>Misty runs down the Dawn Way
>Aral fails to track her (bad roll), her hoofprints seemingly vanishing
>Aral camps in the territory of the friendly old forest giant Warklegnaw, who has yet to leave his fortress
DAY SIX END
>Ettercaps come to chew his face off in his sleep, get scared off by the giant
DAY 7; MORNING
>Aral and Jorr make it down the road
>Aral spots a randomly-rolled unicorn
>manages not to scare it away
>they exchange words
>Unicorn is mare named Eowyn
>Tells Aral about the local young green dragon, Ozyrradion
>Mentions she's seen Misty
DAY 7; AFTERNOON
>Aral and Jorr attacked by panda-owlbears
>lose Brozal's horse to owlbears
>Aral nearly dies, saved by Jorr
>defeat both owlbears
>take endangered owlbear pelts as loot
DAY 7; LATE AFTERNOON
>Aral returns to Drellins Ferry
>Town appears to be in process of evacuating (last call to buy/sell things)
>Aral goes to the circle of the Old Ones
>Druid uses Staff Of Life to raise Chad
>"What happened to Misty?"
>?????
>Aral spends rest of day buying/selling things
>Looming set-up for Part Two
The map is one last look at Drellin's Ferry. It will be goblin territory soon...
We're nearing the end of Part One. I would like to do the set-up for Part Two soon, and maybe a little side story for both Aral and Chad.
Sir Whiskers is still holed up with his waifu in Vraath Keep, a rather large manticore having moved into the barracks to feed on the singed, beefy corpse of the minotaur. If he wishes to continue participating in the next session, now would be a nice time to say so.
Brozal's player will have to have his new character ready today if he wants to participate in the next session tomorrow.
If any new players would like to play, we're at a turning point in the story that would make it ideal for new characters to join. Anyone interested can just say so here, or mention it in the "Want To Fight Some Goblins?" thread.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrmNzypy8boThe Old Ones (aka Young Ones) praying in the circle.
Cursed marauders on the path to the blighted forest.
Pic related is what inspired me to shoehorn all of this autistic ghost nonsense into one of the party's last downtime days.
I'll sum up what happened in today's session tomorrow.
I may not be able to DM next week, since I'm very busy and don't want to half-ass it.
In the meantime, that should give Brozal's player a chance to make his new character.
Red Hand Of Doom will resume next week, at which point I would like to transition to Part 2, and introduce new characters.
The game will be commencing tomorrow, at the earliest point where I can get everyone online.
DAY NINE; SOMEWHERE NEAR NOON
Okay, at the expense of a little railroading, I'm going to introduce Henry Hamfist and get the party to part two, ending this thread. He has been commissioned as a mercenary by lord Jarmarath of Brindol, in the company of Teyani Sura, Lion Of Brndol, to investigate rumors of war in west, and to deliver a message to Captain Soranna. He has heard of many goblin tribes rallyng under a charismatic warlord, and marauders attacking travelers with increasing frequency. When he arrived, the town was already in the process of evacuation.
Chad and Aral are currently chilling in the tavern, enjoying their last couple days of free hospitality. The quality of service has decreased significantly, with staff skipping town and peasants fighting over food supplies. Nevertheless, Kellin Shadowbanks has remained committed to offering the full extent of hobbit hospitality.
Jorr is shitfaced drunk.
A black-haired woman, her face streaked with the dust of the road, trudges into the common room. She wears a soldier’s tunic of blue and white over a shirt of mail, with the stylized image of a golden lion over her heart. She signals the barkeep. “Ale,” she rasps. “And send for your
speaker. I’ve got ill news for him.”
Where is Henry currently at?
>>138889You are right beside Lady Sura, the black haired woman who just entered the tavern.
She has paid you a generous salary of ten gold pieces to punch goblins that have been attacking her troops along the road from Brindol. (gain 10 gp)
The Halfling at the Bar gestures to one of his remaining staff at the woman's order, who promptly scurries out the door to fetch the Speaker.
Aral and Chad, do you respond?
>>138891Aral doesn't speak up, but he wants to hear the news for sure. He moves a bit closer and awaits the Speaker to listen to what is going on, and observes until then.
Hamfist Henry extends a gauntlet-covered hand to the two elven men while grinning. “It’s nice to meet you both. The name is Henry Amald but back home they call me Hamfist Henry. You can call me by either my nickname or proper name. Who are you gentlemen?”
>>138894This is a handshake
>>138890I will note that although you followed Lady Sura here, she hasn't made very much small talk. One thing you have noticed is that there's a lot more goblins than usual along the road, and you've heard rumors of war.
If you want to find out more, you'll need some dialogue.
The hobbit at the bar pours the lady a drink.
Oh, and there's a badass-looking elf reading a book in the tavern, and a human mage(?) petting a blue horse who's leaning in through the window. There's also a human in leather armor throwing some scraps to three immcuately-trained dogs (looks like Kelin doesn't care about not letting animals in right now).
They look pretty chill.
>>138894>>138895"Aral Tel'thuen'slaugh."
He looks at the extended hand for a moment before realizing that a handshake is what people sometimes do. Then does the thing. That people do.
>>138897Henry gives Aral a firm handshake before going to shake hands with Chad. “I’ve heard there’s some goblins we need to go kill.” He comments while chuckling to himself.
Eventually, the hobbit returns with Speaker Wiston and Captain Sorranna. Both look tired, like they haven't had very much sleep in the past few days.
They chat in some inconsequential dialogue to introduce themselves.
>>138893Aral can hear that The woman is Teyani Sura, a Lion of Brindol (that is, an elite soldier in Brindol’s Lion Guard). she continues to speak to Wiston.
“I ride in the service of the Lord of Brindol. I was part of a patrol sweeping up the old Rhest Trail. Five days ago, we ran into a roadblock—hobgoblins and ogres, waylaying any travelers heading into or out of the vale from the north. They were too strong for us, and we had to retreat. My captain sent several of us riding off to warn folks across the vale to avoid the old Rhest Trail. So here I am.”
>>138898I take the handshake while keeping my other hand on Misty.
"There sure is!"
>>138899The lady also hand Captain Soranna a scroll. She glances at it with wide eyes, apparently surprised, before stowing it away in her satchel.
Henry grabs a nearby chair and sits in it backwards with his arms resting on the backrest. “So where are we going, Miss Lion?”
>>138902"We've arrived. The lady says, flatly."
>>138900>>138897Speaker Wiston chats with Lady Sura for several more minutes, explaining the details of the Red Hand Horde, and later gestures the two of you over.
>>138903Aral responds with simply moving over there.
>>138903As the lady describes the goblin attacks on the Rhest Trail, Norro Wiston ponders out loud: "They must have been looking for Cromar..." he says, grimly
>>138905>>138904The speaker introduces the two of you.
"Meet Teyani Sura, Lion Of Brindol." He say
The woman takes a bow
"I heard that you lads had a run-in with this 'Red Hand' horde. Would you care to describe what you've seen of their forces?"
>>138906"Organized and trained. Magical weaponry. Spell scourges. A dragon."
>>138906"Nice to meet you, m'lady"
>>138907"We've seen a fair share of goblins."
>>138907"A Dragon?" She implores with considerable alarm
"It seems this predicament is worse than what we've heard in Brindol. I only expected a few hundred savages."
>>138908"How many would you say there are? I never thought I'd see the day that the folk of Drellin's Ferry would so readily leave their homes."
>>138910"i would reckon not more than 6 million or less."
Speaker Wiston seems considerably stressed, and not because he's spent the last few days pleading with stubborn merchants.
>>138911>muh six gorillionShe scoffs at that
"Six million? Really? With the
limited number of tribes in the wyrmsmokes? I doubt it."
>>138912"They have grouped together all the surrounding goblin groups together from all over to band together for a march upon the world."
>>138912>>138913"The goblins themselves refer to this as an alliance of ALL tribes. If that isn't a reality yet, it soon will be."
>>138913Teyani swears colorfully and drains her ale. “I’m on my way back to Brindol, then,” she mutters. “That news can’t wait. Guess I’ll need a fresh horse.”
>>138914Speaker Wiston speaks up
"Sir Aral, would you mind showing me that map you found?"
>>138915Aral hand over the map.
>>138912>>138915"What's got you unnerved paper boy?"
>>138916The speaker hands the map over to lady Sura.
The woman looks over the map for several minutes with wide eyes, although apparently unable to read the goblinoid scribbles.
“Lord Jarmaath needs to see this..." She declares
"Would you mind if I took it back with me?"
>>138917"Cromar... He's a retired wizard who lives in solitude in the swamplands up north. I have a hunch that the savages might be out for his head. He's a powerful mage, you see, stronger than Immerstal the Red. He was very prominent when Witchcross saw off the last serious hobgoblin raiding about fifteen years ago. They’d remember that.” he says
>>138918"I'll make some translations on top, then you can take it."
Aral uses the ink and pen he has to quickly scribble the corresponding notes in Common on the map. He also adds "Troop estimates: 6 million or above in number" in the corner.
“He seems to be a man who doesn’t want to be bothered.” Henry comments.
>>138920He continues
“He was like a father to me when I was a boy. He was strong fifteen years ago, but he’s getting old; I don’t know if he’s got enough power to hold off the type of forces you say you’ve been dealing with for long at all.”
>>138920"Notes would be fine." the woman says, nodding thankfully.
>>138921"Yes. That's precisely why he retired. He was indispensable in the war, but he wasn't so keen on being a court wizard afterwards."
Okay, this is going a bit too slowly for my taste.
You hear the sounds or roaring, followed by screams, coming from some distance outside the tavern.
Jorr hiccups
"Huh? Wut? Encounter time already?"
>>138924Aral runs to the window/door
Spot
[1d20+16 = 17]
>>138925The afternoon is hot and still, but a line of thunderheads in the west promises a storm before long. The town bustles with activity, as a motley assortment of militiamen drill on the green. Then someone points up to the sky and cries, “Great Pelor, what is that?”
Townsfolk look up, and in a moment the town is overcome by
pandemonium and terror. With shrieks of fear, people scatter, fleeing into buildings and pulling the shutters closed after them. A sinister winged shape soars over the town—a powerful three-headed monstrosity with vast, batlike wings. The creature lets loose with a horrible wailing cry and then dives toward the people running for cover on the green.
You may roll Knowledge (arcana).
“This is where the fun begins!” Henry says while uncorking a bottle of rum and taking a swig from it.
Okay, combat encounter imminent. Join me in the server so that this doesn't take hours.
>>138926[1d20+6 = 17] Arcana
>>138929With that check, you at least know that this monster is called a "Chimera", white variety.
Jorr grabs his bow. Captain Soranna rushes outside.
The monster is some 300 ft away from the tavern, breathing it's chaos down on the townsfolk.
Pic related is the monster.
>>138932It's the thing that fucked Applejack.
>>138933The lingering scent of apples and maresweat confirms that it is.
Hamfist Henry raises his arms into the air in celebration and climbs on top of the chimera’s body. He then motions for his companions to step up onto the bodily pedestal with him. “Never forget our names. Hamfist Henry, Jorr, Aral, and Chad!” He yells into the crowd of adoring fans while blood dribbles down his face and out of cracks in his armor.
Hamfist Henry is basking in the adoration of the crowd while smiling. “For thirty years, I’ve been dead. Today I am alive again.”
>>138935....
Okay, that thing went down faster than i expected.
All three heads are shot squarely, their eyes glassing over as the beast collapses.
As the Chimera dies, it seems almost confused, as if dumbfounded how it could have been defeated so quickly.
The townsfolk cheer, clapping in celebration and thanks.
....
*rolls some dice*
e_e
The monster was apparently paid generously for its work. It drops a truly absurd amount of treasure:
>Golden Pearl Statuette (of a Unicorn) wreathed in Continual Flame>Golden jewelry worth 500 gp>Iron Armband>Blue Star Sapphire>lapis lazuli
>>138938Oh, and
>Star RubyThis is a bullshit drop. I'd reroll it if Brozal hadn't given away all the party's treasure.
>>138938Hamfist Henry will take the golden jewelry and wear it. He also checks out the iron armband.
Hamfist Henry is flexing and posing dramatically for the crowd while standing atop the dead chimera in an attempt to make them cheer louder. Rolled a 16 on tumble.
>>138938"Neigh"
>>138941"Snicker"
>>138938Chad, with a passive Nature check, is able to notice that the unicorn statue is an Idol of Eponna.
>>138941Everyone claps.
The remaining townsfolk toss some silver coins.
Gain 10 sp
Okay. Aral is skinning a Chimera. That will take him the rest of the day, with Jorr's help.
Brother Derny, who has still not evacuated, comes over and congratulates Henry, and heals him 30 HP with his spell slots.
He also heals Aral back to full health.
I'm going to skip ahead to the evening.
>>138943I'm gonna take the statue.
Okay, later that evening.
Speaker Wiston assembles the party, the town mostly evacuating at this point, caravans leaving.
The town of Drellin’s Ferry is empty. Houses stare vacantly out at silent roads. The sun has just vanished behind the formidable scar on the horizon that is the Wyrmsmoke Mountains. Speaker Wiston takes a deep breath and wipes tears from his eyes with the back of his hand. “It seems we’re about out of time,” he says. “We’d best be going now if we want to keep ahead of the worg riders.”
Captain Soranna nods to you. “You’ve already done us good, heroes. Without your warning, we’d have all been asleep in our beds when the horde arrived on our stoops. You’ve saved many lives today. For that you have my thanks. But I am afraid your work may not be done yet. There’s nothing to stop the Red Hand before they reach the walls of Brindol.”
Henry takes out his bottle of rum that he's been nursing for the past few hours and glugs down a gulp. "Is this Jorr guy a mercenary? Does he get paid?" Henry asks while stumbling in the general direction of Aral and Chad.
>>138946Jorr was being paid 10 gp a day.
>>138943"He is. He does." Aral takes 70 gp and hands it to Jorr.
>>138947>>138948Henry finishes his bottle and tucks it away. "He's useful and I'd like to keep him around." The drunken homeless man says while handing 50 more GP and a bottle of rum to Jorr.
>>138945"Let's get moving then before we become dog food."
"We appreciate your thanks, are we following you?"
>>138948>>138950Jorr accepts the payment and tips his hat.
"It's been a pleasure to work with ye'." The roguish woodsman says
>>138950"Unless ye plan to stay in the Witchwood for a long while longer, i think we'd best part ways here." The woodsman says, scratching his head
"These are my woods. I've been fighting my little one-man war for as long as I can remember, and I'm not about to call it quits. The savages may have won this battle, but it'll take more than a few thousand goblins to drive me out."
To sum up day nine:
>Hamfist introduced
>Hear about blockade on Rhest Trail
>Wiston mentions Cromar might be in trouble
>interrupted by Chimera attack
>chimera btfo'd
>treasure
>town evacuates
>Jorr wants to stay in the Witchwood
>Now Speaker Wiston and Soranna are talking
>>138952"The woods aren't going anywhere. If you come with us and kill goblins by our side, we're stronger and we can drive them out of the region completely."
>>138953>>138955Hmmmmmmm, let me check my notes on this."Eh, I'll think about it..." The woodsman grumbles
Wiston clears his throat.
Who had the healing belt? I might need it with all the damage I've taken/will surely take in the future.
>>138957I think Brozal had it if i remember.
>>138957>>138958No it was Whiskers.
>>138957"Check Chad's bag." Jorr says
>>138955"Could give you a raise and pay in advance, if money is needed."
Little pause.
"Might not be any woods left, not as they are, if we don't act against the Red Hand together."
>>138960Henry checks Chad's bag, removes the healing belt, and dons it. "Thanks!"
>>138962"I doubt it would fit around my barrel belly so i hope you have fun with your new belt and slap some bitches with it for me."
>>138959>>138963I repossessed some of Whisker's equipment and put it in Chad's bag
Hmmmmmmmm... what to do...
...
You hear the sounds of howling, shouting, and multiple screams in the direction of the caravans.
"Eh? One more fight innit' then?" Jorr says with a slight smile, grabbing his bow.
>>138965Well that's convenient, i wouldn't really be able to use the healing belt if i''m in wild shape, right?
Henry sits down wherever a suitable and decent seat can be found. “How should we approach this next battle?” He ponders aloud.
>>138965>>138968Should i cast Owl's Wisdom on Aral?
>>138965>>138965*on the East Bank
A commotion in the street outside sounds out in the night.
“Run! Run! Goblins are attacking the east bank!” someone cries.
From your window, you can see bright flames leaping up from houses and buildings by the road and hear the faint roar and crackle of distant flames.
Speaker Wiston sounds the alarm. Captain Soranna runs over to the old Toll house to muster some guards.
Aral, with his low-light vision, can see several goblin raiders have arrived to harass the caravan as they leave. Several of them appear to be riding worgs, more appearing over the hills.
Goblinoids rain flaming arrows down on the fleeing peasants.
Henry scratches his chin while watching the commotion. “Is running right in really a good idea?”
You're only a hundred feet away from the source of the commotion when you spot a trio of goblin worg riders dashing down the street, whooping and shaking their bows in the air. A powerful hell hound bounds alongside them.
Henry will use all three charges of the healing belt to heal himself. He heals 18 damage and is now at 73 HP.
>Goblins when they thought they were going to have a nice easy raid picking on defenseless villagers but face PC instead
(courtesy of Ham's player)
Well, that was going well, until it didn't.
Okay, the goblins were btfo'd by the party, until the party tried to pursue them while fleeing, resulting in significant damages and a dead windsteed.
Enemy casualties:
>3 dead goblins
>3 dead hobgoblins
>1 dead worg
>1 dead hellhound
>serious wounds
>several spent scrolls/potions
>dignity
Party casualties:
>Wounds
>Misty is kill
>>138980Misty has been revived at the cost of the remaining charges in the staff of life.
A faint "Hohoho!" sounds out in the warm July night.
Okay, I'm going to take a few minutes to calculate the look that Jorr graciously strips and counts for you guys.
The other guards seem to have taken care of their goblins, the retreating with a Dancing Lights signal from the Sorcerer that you just drove off.
In the meantime, the story will fast forward back to here
>>138945 as Captain Soranna and Speaker Wiston track you down again.
Please ask any questions you might have, even if the previous ones remain unanswered.
I'm pausing for now. The game will move to part two next session, and I'll be making a new thread for that.
I'm gonna head back into town and check out the bar now that everyone is evacuated. I'll try to find the cellar so I can bust down the door and take a gander at all the booze that was left behind in the commotion.
>>138984You find a few bottles of cheap ale that wasn't good enough for Shadowbanks to bother carrying.
>>138985Better than nothing. Henry pockets three bottles of cheap ale and then begins roaming around town and digging through all of the abandoned houses and other abandoned buildings. He will also take a shit on the mayor's desk.
"Soranna...you said there is nothing stopping the Read Hand from reaching Brindol. What did you mean? What news did the Lion Guard bring, besides of Rhest Rail?"
>>138987>Why Brindol?“Brindol’s the largest town in the vale. Between here and there it's only small farming communities along the Dawn Way. Brindol has a good wall, and a standing army. If we can spread the word and raise the country, we might be able to stop the Red Hand there.”
>what newsThe Fighter fidgets somewhat
"It was a rather generous job offer, from Lord Jarmaath. I wouldn't normally spring to take it, but circumstances have changed this past week..." She replies, glancing back at the empty, partially-burning town once known as Drellin's Ferry
"As well as some minor details of 'suspicious hobgoblin activity in the north and west', as Lady Sura told us about earlier today.."
>>139139"But what of their army? Why aren't they moving on the offensive, if it is their best interest? Are we expected to stop the tribes with farmers and pitchforks, while Brindol's fighter sit and look onward?"
>>139141>But what of their army?>Why aren't they moving on the offensiveCaptain Soranna just shakes her head in response.
Speaker Wiston speaks up.
"Brindol's forces may be a bit larger than ours, but they're not thousands... They'd have little chance facing an army like that head-on."
>Are we (the people) expected to stop the tribes with farmers and pitchforks>What are your plans now? What of the people of Drellin’s Ferry?“I reckon we’ll head east till we reach Terrelton. We’ll soon see if the horde is following or not. In the worst case, we move on to Nimon Gap, and then Talar. We’ll run all the way to Brindol if we have to. I’ve already sent some riders ahead to spread the news, warn the towns, and alert Lord Jarmaath to the dire news.”
>>139143"We should probably get out of here before we get stormed and slaughtered. We killed many of them and lost nobody so even though they're gaining ground, they're still losing."
>>139144"Where to?"
(We can decide here to go check out the next small town over if you want some brawling before we head anywhere else plot-wise, I guess.)
>>139145“I suppose you could try to stay in front of the horde, keep the worg riders and such from slaughtering the folk of the vale-towns before they can flee. But what worries me most is the reports that the Old North Road and the Rhest Trail are blocked. If we’re going to get reinforcements from outside the vale, they’ll have to come in from the north. I guess I’d say go north and fi nd out if there are any more hobgoblins marching from that direction.”
>>139145>>139147"I think we should escort the people who are evacuating."
>>139148The entire party is here. Who's going where?
The game will be continuing tomorrow.
>>139331As I indicated before, after the looting and the resting is done, Aral is fine with catching up with the last wave of the evacuation just to make sure they get safely at least to the next town. Tactically, hitting the goblins right now might be better, but there is nothing terribly wrong with protecting townsfolk.
>>139148"I suppose you could do that, but most of the town is already long-gone."