At the murky dawn, the group approaches the shadow on the landscape; the monolithic, forbidding wall of trees.
They enter the Dim Forest on the eastward caravan track discovering an unearthly region of permanent twilight where little sunlight can pierce the mist and the bramble tangle of leafless branches above. There is an eerie hush here. The sounds of birds and squirrels are missing. The group moves through the silent wood, with only the crunching of dry dead leaves underfoot upon their ears, and the warning caws of Sephus the Unheeded.
Elden Vodarte and Long Bo note the trees here are younger than the thick ancient treetrunks to the north at the forest’s dark heart. The Dim Forest is till spreading.
With luck, they might cross this grasping tendril of woods in two days and one night.
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Soon the trail runs parallel to a tributary brook of the Realstream. The trees thicken as they approached a fallen log that bridges the rushing stream. Then Vodarte the Ranger heard, off in the woods, a twig snap. He warned the group and suddenly, from beyond the misty treeline on both sides, strange shadows pounced forward, growling, snarling and barking in a cacophony of bloodthirsty malice and terror!
Heinous, ruined, twisted, distorted, disfigured, evil mockeries of wood elves lunge at the party with savagery and bloodlust. Running within their ranks are a large pack of black wolves!
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One inhuman atrocity rode a wolf, and it leapt up on a boulder at the party’s flank. “Kill them and feast!” the rider growled with malevolent pleasure.
“I can smell the salt of their flesh!” crooned another of the feral horrors, licking his sharpened teeth with a long black tongue.
“The woman flesh is mine!” barked one depraved cannibal rapist.
Spears on their right, and bows on their left, the adventurers were besieged and surrounded by the abhorrent Goblin Men of the Dim Forest and their ravenous, savage wolves!
The cloaks of the Goblins were dyed crimson red with the blood of their victims, and might soon be again.
Actions!
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One hex = 10 feet
G= Goblin. W=Wolf. GWR = Goblin Wolf Rider.
At the top and bottom edges of the map are the treelines.
Remember, fighters get one attack per level on Goblins, and the house rule on magic means you can cast any spell in your spellbook. Thanks.
Ingrid feels the thrill of the battle surging through her body. Before reaching for her mace, she produces a small piece of iron from her pouch and utters a short prayer - with each word the iron glows hotter and hotter.
Ingrid casts HOLD PERSON on the Goblin Rider and Goblin 6.
Last edited by Fulci on Tue Jul 21, 2015 9:50 pm, edited 3 times in total.
Hoom draws his short sword from it's sheath and places his back to his fellow party members. He keeps close to the group and will strike any foes that come into melee range.
Whoa! Let's hope it's needed... Btw, +1 damage if I manage to hit a Goblin.
"Fight towards the boulder, my friends! Let's see if we can get it between us and those archers! Softies, get behind someone with a shield! Try not to die!!!" he yells, laughing.
Telkis will try to protect the flank that he's on from the oncoming wolves and will shift towards the boulder if the others do the same. Otherwise he'll just do his best to bust some pelts.
Bo slides into the group behind the fighters in hopes that he can get a spell off before the entire group is dead. Fittingly, he begins to crush up some of the wolvesbane from his belt pouch. He starts casting towards the southeast, trying to snare the 4 wolves and one goblin in hopes of taking them out of the fight.
He lets Sephus fly around through the trees, trying to spot any more enemies that might be hidden.
We better get the upper hand quickly or this will be a short trip for us.
ChubbyPixie wrote:Telkis Brassfang, Gnome Warrior "Fight towards the boulder, my friends! Let's see if we can get it between us and those archers! Softies, get behind someone with a shield! Try not to die!!!" he yells, laughing.
Elden Vodarte, Ranger
Vodarte raises his shield and does his best to defend Telkis and any other "softies" nearby, all while trying to move towards the boulder.
I guess Vodarte moves south of Telkis then, shield raised, and tries to press SW to the boulder...
Mister-Kent wrote:I guess Vodarte moves south of Telkis then, shield raised, and tries to press SW to the boulder...
Telkis is actually heavily armored - my post may not have been very clear - Telkis was basically suggesting protecting the Magic Users, Druid and Cleric, though their ACs aren't too bad now that I look. Long Bo may need some shielding to get off Entangle...
With his back towards the group, Elden Vodarte closes in around the group's spellcasters, hoping to shield them from any incoming missiles with his body. He raises his own bow and fires southward at the clearest wolf target (W6).
In the netherworld twilight realm of mist and shadow, like something out of a dark nightmare, fell wolves and blood-soaked Goblin Men of the Dim Forest savagely besieged the adventurers in order to eat them alive!
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The Briarsgate expedition and the heinous red and black tide attacked simultaneously!
The execrable cannibal orcs let loose a rain of death! Horrific, misshapen archers on the northern shore sent a torrent of black arrows among the party's ranks, piercing Hoom (3 hp) and Ingrid (2hp), disrupting her holy spell and causing it to be lost!
One insidious abomination (G7) hurtled his barbed spear at a hated gnome, Telkis, and missed!
The adventurers stormed back!
Long Bo the Druid moved northeast and then cast a magic spell and green life burst forth from the deathly grey forest! Vines, roots and branches rose up to strangle and hold his enemies, entwining four of the ferocious wolves and the vile spearman on their southeast front!
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They yelped and howled bloody murder, eager to be loose to have their vile revenge!
One monstrous wolf there (W9) escaped the throttling plants and moved freely, though slower.
Grey Mouser slipped between two warriors and attempted the mercurial sorcery he had learned as a wizard’s apprentice, but failed to weave a spell!
Ranger Vodarte fired an arrow at the wolf due south of him and missed!
Noble Pelias loosed two arrows at the malignant goblin wolf rider perched high atop the six foot boulder, nicking him with one!
The revolting, baneful rider barked mocking laughter and then loosed his dogs of war! “Attack! Eat them alive! Make them scream so their mothers can hear it! My cloak needs brightening and my belly needs filling!” he laughed with black, hateful joy.
The westernmost goblin and wolves arced south around the rider’s boulder and joined the writhing, rippling obscene wave of grisly black fur and white teeth that descended upon the young heroes! “RAUGH! ARRUGH! GRRAAH!”
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Slavering, wild, vicious jaws snapped upon Hoom (2 more hp) and Ingrid (3 more hp), and missed Mouser, Telkis and Vodarte!
Then the loathsome wolf rider pounced down from his stone ledge and charged Grothnak with his ebon spear held high! The hideous orc missed but his gigantic pitch steed bit the half-orc’s thigh (2hp), causing Grothnak’s halberd swings to go wild and hack into the wolf behind him that was trying to devour Ingrid!
The valiant party met the brutal wolf onslaught with their own determined ferocity!
Hoom sliced his shortsword across the snarling snout of a feral lupine attacker, drawing blood!
Telkis mirthfully smashed Cranach his Morningstar into a wolf, almost breaking its back! The wild animal still lived; growling, barking and ready to tear him apart!
Sephus the crow cawed ‘I told you so,’ as he ascended up toward the leafless tree branches that loomed weblike overhead.
The foul orc (G6), that had scurried south around the boulder with the westernmost wolves, saw this and gleeful hatred glinted in his evil eyes. Unable to pass up the chance to kill an innocent creature of nature, the degenerate sadist hurled his spear at Sephus! It fell short and dropped into the stream where it was swept away by the rushing current.
The abominable wolf rider snarled to the recovering Grothnak, as they readied to murder each other. “Brother Orc, your heart is not in this fight. Don’t make me cut it from your chest! Join us. Drench your cloak in the blood of these weaklings! Don’t forget what you are!”
Actions?!
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Status:
Elden Vodarte, Human Ranger 2: AC 3, HP 20/20
The Grey Mouser, Half-Elf Magic-User/Thief 1/2: AC 4, HP 10/10
Grothnak Uthglukh, Half-Orc Fighter 2: AC 4, HP 15/17
Hoom Feethos, Elven Magic-User/Thief 1/2: AC 3, HP 3/8
Ingrid Esthof, Human Cleric 2: AC 3(1), HP 7/12
Long Bo, Human Druid 2: AC 6, HP 15/15
Pelias Blanchflower, Human Paladin 1: AC 2, HP 11/11
Telkis Brassfang, Gnome Fighter 2: AC 0, HP 19/19
Magic:
Protection from Evil (Pelias): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Pelias.
Bo’s Entangle: Any creature that is green is entangled for 9 more rounds. A target that is red and green (W9) made their save and only had their movement halved.
Last edited by Inferno on Thu Jul 23, 2015 2:17 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Well, there's your mistake! You brought teeth to a morningstar fight!" Telkis yells in goblin and laughs.
He's sorely tempted to brain the goblin leader, but figures a bird in hand and all that. Anyway he's pretty sure the goblin brute will soon be cleaved twainwise by a certain half-orc's halberd after seeing the crazy way he stabbed a wolf behind him without even looking. Telkis is impressed. He swings laterally, aiming for the wolf's jaw (W4):
"Those archers are trouble. Heironeus, guide my arrows to their dark dessicated hearts!" cries Pelias as he looses two more arrows. He will target G3 then G2.
Clenching his teeth, holding back a wail of pain as the foes in front and behind strike at him. Hoom reaches into a small pouch attached to his side. With his long fingers he grasps an unseen object inside the pouch and with that same hand he then thrusts it outward in front of him in an arching motion. His grip loosens and a fine mist of sand flies forth from his elongated appendages as Hoom speaks a word in elveish "KAIM!"
Casts Sleep on G6. He should be in perfect or nearly perfect range to effect W1, W2, W3, and possibly GWR. If the range is longer than anticipated HF is immune to sleep, IE, PB, GM, GU are all 2 HD creatures and as long as the wolves and goblins are 1 HD creatures we have very good odds that no friendlies will be laying down on the job.
Sleep spell:
Casting time one segment (Lets win initiative)
up to 1 HD - 4-16 (4d4) effected
1+1 to 2 HD - 2-9 (2d4) effected
2+1 to 3 HD - 1-4 (1d4) effected
Ingrid is bleeding from several bite wounds, but the sorcerer next to her is doing worse... She gathers all her strength and strikes the nearest wolf (W2).
With the wall of fighting in front of him, Bo decides to find cover and try to eliminate the threat of the archers behind him.
He will get behind any rock, tree, or log that he can get to easily in hopes of preventing his becoming a pin cushion at the hands of the vicious bow wielding goblins. He then begins casting again, trying to Charm one of the enemy G3 archers.
At the conclusion of his casting he shouts to the creature, Stop firing at us! I have a gift for you! Come over here and I will give it to you.
Gorthnak laughs heartily at the wolf-rider's feeble attempt to bring him to the other side. "You will not escape Vadok so easily!" he growls as he swings the halberd named Death at the rider's neck. "Give Hell my regards!"
The ranger winces to hear Ingrid shout in pain, but focuses on the battle at hand. He's heard her cry out before, seen her endure great wounds in the war against darkness. He knows she's a capable fighter, but it still never gets easier for him.
Drawing cautiously back among his companions, Vodarte fires upon the nearest wolf (W9). From there he'll move towards Ingrid and the heavily wounded Hoom.
Rolls in dice roll history, but cannot link from phone.