Sessions 42-44

RETURN TO FORT BEHRINGER

Thistleburn 19, 4433

Characters:

Daqqa-Jin, Barbarian 4

Robert the Giantslayer, Fighter 5

Xénos, assassin 4

Uriah, paladin 2

Young Joe Spruce, Druid 3

Mardonius, Magic-User 3

NPC - Lord Fesgate, Fighter 4

NPC - Vasu Cervantes, Fighter 2

NPC - The Behringer Boys: Otto, Hans, Stefan, Leonhard

For Eric!

The Wretched Company (joined by the young daredevil Vasu Cervantes, and his M-U friend Mardonius) returned to the Moonlit Zone to liberate Fort Behringer.

With clever ploys they ambushed a starving gnoll patrol and drew a large part of the main gnoll army out of the castle. A flying Mardonius dropped flaming oil to sow chaos inside the fortress. At the right time, the party rushed an abandoned spot on the walls and climbed up into the fort, then Young Joe Spruce cast an entangle spell to further tie up the gnolls.

Xénos boldly followed the fleeing giant Kucmalog up the tower, Robert close behind. The assassin caught the giant in the highest rooms of the tower, but his strike fell short of causing instant death. Robert caught up in time to back him up and the troublesome moon-giant was slain.

The group was almost trapped by the gnolls, but decisive and bold action by Uriah led to a one-on-one duel to the death against their chief Trorgezz. The paladin prevailed [I don't know how! He was a 6th level monster with a magic weapon! Seker smiled on you that day. -DM] and the rest of the gnolls fled confusedly out of the fortress, hungry and lacking leadership.

The party swiftly looted the fortress, except a few ancestral Behringer pieces, and Daqqa-Jin flew back to Rauffe's camp to gather the troops. 

The group discovered a magic mirror and saw many sights with it including the real Sage of Lune, replaced by an impostor and imprisoned - on the moon?!

Meanwhile, Daqqa-Jin was leading the rebels through the forest when they encountered some black-robed priests of Uthummaos, whom he spoke to briefly before blasting them all with the Four Winds Bar's lightning.

The victorious party was visited by an emissary of the Carrion King, who congratulated them and provided a way to contact him in the future, since it seemed they were "going places."

The company returned to the Ruined Town in an effort to right old wrongs: they restored most of the missing pieces in the Solaris shrine (only a halo and some kind of large piece are missing). Daqqa-Jin proclaimed for Karttekeza, sacrificing a valuable black sapphire in an effort to replace the gems taken long ago, then turning the shrine's water back on, washing the evil mud that infested it away. The god's influence is spreading back into the world.

Liberation!

The group returned to the Forgotten Village and discovered it occupied by the Mad King's troops, and their ally Shandril held captive by the traitorous, one-handed sergeant Baran.

Xénos once again showed his skills, shanking Baran through a window as the rest of the group held his attention.

Mike, upon learning Xénos has 17 STR: "and they called him... the Creatine Kid!"

Shandril was rescued and a pitched battle took place through the city streets and fields. These troops were fairly weak and no match for the Company. After more than half their number were slain including all their leadership, the rest surrendered and agreed to join the rebel cause [great reaction roll!]. From now on, some of the flowers grown in the village would be skimmed off and sent northward to the rebels, while the rest go south to the Mad King's troops.

The group left with many new options, clues and plans, but first: selling treasure back in Viridistan!

Monsters Defeated (4229 xp)

Kucmalog, Moon-Giant (1560)

Trorgezz, Gnoll chieftain (680)

1 Gnoll sergeant (100)

10 Gnolls (470)

1 gray ooze (80)

4 moon-moths (284)

Baran (460)

19 king's troops (190)

3 clerics of Uthummaos (405)

8 clerics of Uthummaos (1080 - Daqqa-Jin only)

Treasure Found:

sack of gold coins (200)

sack of gold coins (500)

gold belt buckle (250 sp)

silver crescent blades (200 sp each)

gold ring, studded with diamonds (2200 sp)

7 LARGE silver trade bars (7000 sp total)

giant-sized platemail (4000 sp)

giant-sized shimmering robe (1200 sp)

finely crafted 2-handed sword (1000 sp)

gem-encrusted peacock pimp chain (2200 sp)

black sapphire gem (2000 sp)

altar-stone of solaris [replaced in shrine]

3 metal angel halos [replaced in shrine]

12 holy symbols [10 donated - 2 kept]

seal of uthummaos (magical) [kept]

scroll of protection vs. undead

gold dust of heroism

sparkling moon-moth dust (as web spell)

red & white luckstone

one-handed flail +1

Lion's Blade +0

giant's dagger (shortsword +1)

greatsword +2/+4, frost brand

giant 2-handed mace +2, 13 STR to wirld, casts knock 1/week

velvet jewelry box with fly candy (magical - from carrion king)

Treasure Shares:

100 gp, 3375 silver to each player character

50 gp each to Vasu and Lord Fesgate

[XP totals posted when I get back from work]

Session 33

ASSAULT ON THE FORT

Characters:

Gorr, ranger 5
Daqqa-Jin, barbarian 4
Salzige Brauen, necromancer 2
Eric Withakay, cleric 5
Lord Fesgate, fighter 4 (NPC)

Battles with the Gnolls

The group had enough information from the two surrendered gnolls [last session]. The captives were tied up and left in an abandoned building while the group moved on, following the same tracks of looted objects as before. They saw more ruined buildings, crumbling and abandoned, and an old well.

The group came to a clearing that was bisected by a crude 10' high wall, built from loose and crumbled stones. A snarling gnoll popped up over the top and trained a bow on Daqqa-Jin, while Gorr climbed a tree to get a better view. Daqqa-Jin brought some food for the hungry creature, jumped up on the wall and saw a whole group of gnolls lying in wait. A fight began! Two large birds with glowing white auras were released and seemed to attack at the gnolls' command, but were shot out of the sky by Gorr and Salzige. Eric was hit in the leg and began bleeding out but used a scroll to stop it before he lost consciousness.

After the fight, Dawn Bearer delivered an electric shock to Daqqa-Jin with a "Sorry old chap, really need somebody more compatible, what?" and the barbarian was forced to drop the magic weapon. 

[DM Note - This was my mistake. I actually forgot this rule for intelligent magic weapons several sessions ago. Daqqa-Jin should never have been able to wield Dawn Bearer at all, so I hope you enjoyed your bonus use of this magic item!]

They came to a crossroads with a big stone mile-marker pointing in four directions:
Back the way they came it said Single Tower
To the left, Greater Towers & Red Shrine
To the right, Lesser Towers
Forward, Fortress Behringer

They asked Lord Fesgate about the Behringer family. He said that many of them fell out of favour with Raeldus I around the time he was imprisoned, but he knew not why. The tracks led towards the fortress, so the group progressed that way.

Fort Behringer

The trail led to a walled fort on a hill. The party approached up a winding path but were stopped by some warning bowshots. A crew of gnolls snarled from over the wall: 

"Man-things, you shall not enter here! We will feast on your tender flesh..."

The group weren't sure what to do but decided on the direct approach, charging forward under a storm of arrow fire! Using the Four Winds Bar, Eric blasted a cloud of choking black smoke in front, with paralyzing dust that Gorr had harvested from some magic butterflies - it didn't reach the gnolls, but Daqqa-Jin used his horn of blasting to push it forward over the fort's wall. 

Still using the Four Winds Bar, Eric flew up and spotted a horde of gnoll archers on top of the keep. He flew back down, grabbed the horn of blasting and flew back up at point-blank range, attempting to disable all the gnolls in one swoop. 

The gnolls were alert, their canine eyes keen. An absolute hail of arrows struck Eric while he activated the horn, and the few that remained un-stunned after the blast were able to hit him a few more times. Bleeding from a dozen wounds, he plummeted to earth - stone dead before he even hit the ground [-6 hit points and a roll of 2 on the "Death Table" - nobody can survive that!].  

With barbarian courage, Daqqa-Jin climbed up to Eric's body at the foot of the keep's walls, backed up by Gorr and Salzige's missile fire. Braving arrows and flaming oil, he grabbed the Four Winds Bar and desperately flew away with his comrade's body.

On the slopes beneath the fort, Lord Fesgate gritted his teeth and attempted to shield his friends from arrows as best he could, but several shots made it through his antique platemail [he is at 4 hit points]. A general withdrawal began.

The sound of a windlass & chain cranking can be heard - the fort's gate is opening, and what fresh hell will be unleashed from within??

Monsters Defeated:

11 gnolls (517 xp)
2 birds with glowing auras (380 xp)

Treasure Obtained:

none