Chapter 1: At The End of All Things

[ravenn4544]

Elbenarin glances to his brother as he quietly and efficiently strings his bow. He whispers, "Orcs first? They are in range..."

[rredmond]

Naruthirdor wrinkles his nose in disgust at the smell and the scene ahead of him. "It is too late for the dead, should we not seek out the living and not endanger our lives unnecessarily?" The disgust lingers in his urgent whisper.

Not trusting the wisdom of the rangers or elves, nor the carefree folly of the hobbits and the itchy axe-fingers of the dwarves, having seen this in quite a few battles before. So Naruthirdor brings to mind the power words that will allow him to throw his voice to the south of the orcs as a distraction, or to manipulate the smoke around them as the fire to the north seems too far away. But as yet he initiates no spell.

[ChubbyPixie]

“There are surely other enemies hidden in the smoke - smoke we may well use to hide our own selves from the troll. Let us use our advantage and eliminate first the threat we can see. Take care,” says Gilwennen softly as she unsheathes her bow and fires two arrows in quick succession at the detestable orcs:

Attack with Long Bow (THAC0:20): To Hit: [1d20+4] = 6+4 = 10 Damage vs. s/m/L: [1d6] = 3

Attack with Long Bow (THAC0:20): To Hit: [1d20+4] = 8+4 = 12 Damage vs. s/m/L: [1d6] = 5

[rredmond]

Assured that the company is intent on engagement, Naruthirdor awaits the party to all get attacks and then as soon as the last missile is shot or thrown, hopefully before surprise is lost, he closes in the bands of dark smoke, hopefully decreasing the visibility of the orcs and troll.

Casting Affect Normal Fires and Smoke at max range, 30', and increasing smoke to max effect between us and the bad guys.

[wolfpack]

Elbenwin nods to his brother as he notches 2 arrows.

Orcs first, then we draw our swords and fell the troll.

he fires two arrows at the orcs.

attacks
[1d20] = 13
[1d20] = 17

damage
[1d6] = 6
[1d6] = 1

[Urson]

Therone

Therone says nothing, just snaps off two shots at (O2).

[1d20] = 11+4

[1d20] = 10+4

[1d6] = 1
[1d6] = 4

She holds her ground, ready to fire again.

[SocraticLawyer]

Tinuwen likewise fires off two shots at the orcs.

To hit with arrow [1d20+4] = 7+4 = 11

To hit with arrow [1d20+4] = 8+4 = 12

The creatures' foul stench must have thrown off my aim, she thinks to herself.

[OGRE MAGE]

Folco is startled by the sudden attack from his friends. He quickly tries to join them in the volley, but his fear and uncertainty cause his aim to stray badly.

Sling Bullet [1d20+6] = 1+6 = 7 Damage s/m:[1d4+1] = 2+1 = 3 l:[1d6+1] = 2+1 = 3 first attack roll of the game.......Ya!

[ravenn4544]

Elbenarin let's loose at any remaining targets - Orcs or vile Troll...

Long Bow Attack (19) : [1d20] = 20
Long Bow Attack (19) : [1d20] = 2

Arrow [1d6] = 5
Arrow [1d6] = 2

[dmw71]

Pockets is slow to respond, and can't bring himself to attack that which hasn't threatened him directly. The hobbit watches as those in front of him begin hurling attacks from a distance. "I mustn't get in their way," he can be heard whispering, as if talking to himself through what he needs to do. "This way," he continues his self-dialogue, making sure to route himself carefully behind Tinuwen and Gilwennen in the rearmost rank, and angles away from the group heading southeast for 10 or 15 feet. "Just like you've practiced, so no one will hear you, or see you..." he whispers as he moves; the already barely audible volume of his words fading almost completely as he distances himself from the rest of the group.

He makes a mental note after observing Folco's terrible aim, then lowers himself into the shadows of a bush or rock, in a spot of relative safety. "This looks like a good spot to see that big... thing," he says, turning his undivided attention towards the troll, which he finds utterly fascinating.

"Time for a snack," he says quietly, continuing his self-dialogue, as he reaches his right index finger and thumb into a pocket sewn into the sleeve of his left upper arm and produces a few dried peanuts. As part of a well-practiced routine, he tosses them into his open, awaiting mouth and crunches them quietly without ever taking his eyes off the troll.

Of course Pockets is convinced he was able to successfully move without being spotted, but, you know.

* Move Silently: 31%
* Hide in Shadows: 30%

[hedgeknight]

"Glasik, let's go!"
Seeing everyone else attack, Gilly takes off at a run toward the troll, circling to the right of the Orcs. When in range, she hurls her axe...to no effect.

Hand axe: [1d20] = 2 Damage [1d4+1] = 4+1 = 5

[Inferno]

Northern Mirkwood Forest, Rhovanion, Middle Earth
Night. March 19, the First Year of the Fourth Age
Wet, rainy, cold





As a raging inferno consumes the wood-elf homes around the Elven King's Halls, the company of young heroes surprise some of the the marauding orcs responsible for the merciless slaughter!




Pockets the hobbit hides and watches as the aim of Folco, Glasik and Gilly is spoiled by the rain and the smoke and the flames.

But the rangers and elves fire true. Their bows wreak havoc among the wicked leering orcs, feathering them with shafts that find every crevice in their armor! The trio of hateful malefactors are dead before they know they are under attack!

Then Naruthirdor the elf murmurs something and the swirling black smoke closes like a curtain of soot and shadow to conceal the company from the unsuspecting troll that disappears from view behind the roiling shroud.


Actions?!


Map:

One square = 10 feet.
Bands of light mark areas of visibility. Bands of darkness are smoke, where visibility is 30'.
'T1?' marks the last known location of the troll.


Non-required Reading (rolls and rulings):

• This was the Surprise round for the PCs.
  Orcs are unaware and at +2 to be hit. So one of Tinuwen's arrows hits...
  Tinuwen: arrow damage: [1d6] = 2

PC Status:

• Elbenarin: Male Dunedain Ranger 2: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 30/30, played by ravenn4544
  Elbenwin: Male Dunedain Ranger 2: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 30/30, played by wolfpack
  Folco Boffin: Male Hobbit Thief 3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 21/21, played by Ogre Mage
  Gilda 'Gilly' Ironfoot: Female Dwarf Fighter 2: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 28/28, played by hedgeknight
  Glasik Ironfoot: Male Dwarf Fighter 2: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 24/24, played by Scott308
  Gilwennen: Female Elven Fighter/Magic-User 1/1: Move: 9", AC: -1, HP: 8/8, Spells: 1/1 1st lvl, played by ChubbyPixie
  Naruthirdor Nowe: Male Elven Magic-User 2: Move: 12", AC: 10, HP: 8/8, Spells: 3/4 1st lvl, played by rredmond
  Perrin 'Pockets' Hilltopple: Male Hobbit Fighter/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC: 8, HP: 14/14, played by dmw71
  Therone: Female Elven Fighter 2: Move: 9", AC: -1, HP: 22/22, played by Urson
  Tinuwen: Female Elven Fighter/Magic-User 1/1: Move: 9", AC: -1, HP: 7/7, Spells: 3/3 1st lvl, played SocraticLawyer

PC Magic:

• Affect Normal Fires and Smoke (Naruthirdor): Duration: 1 round

Player Resources:

• In Darkness and In Doubt (the story so far)
  Before The Fall (realms and maps of Middle Earth)
  The Fear and The Shadow (the story so far in images)
  History Became Legend. Legend Became Myth (clues and player notes)

[Scott308]

Glasik Ironfoot

Letting his crossbow hang, Glasik picks up his axe. Let's go trolling, the dwarf says grimly, as he begins heading in the direction the troll was last seen.

[dmw71]

"A troll..." Pockets whispers to himself. The hobbit finds himself wishing he had access to his writing desk at home, where he could barely write his findings, but instead finds himself making a mental note. Which will certainly be forgotten.

The hobbit has heard of trolls before -- he thinks -- and recalls them being labeled as "bad," but this is the first he's actually seen one. They sure do look bad.

When a wall of smoke appears between his position and where the troll was last seen, Pockets remains still, crouched in his spot, certain he's still hidden. He quickly scans the ground for a thumb-sized rock, which he loads into his sling.

The smoke irritating his eyes, he shuts them. He listens intently, relying on his auditory skills to make sure the now unseen "bad" creature doesn't accidentally overcome his attempt to hide.

If the troll both comes into range and attacks one of his companions, Pockets will fire his sling at the beast. Badly.

• Sling stone vs Troll: [1d20] = 4, [1d4] = 1

Otherwise, he remains crouched in his hiding spot, listening.

[ChubbyPixie]

Not realizing Pockets is behind the small boulder, Gilwennen will spring up onto it and scan in the direction the troll was last glimpsed. If it makes an appearance, she'll let fly two arrows at it:

Attack with Long Bow (THAC0:20): To Hit: [1d20+4] = 17+4 = 21 Damage vs. s/m/L: [1d6] = 2

Attack with Long Bow (THAC0:20): To Hit: [1d20+4] = 9+4 = 13 Damage vs. s/m/L: [1d6] = 4

[wolfpack]

Come brother let us encircle the bastard and carve it like a turkey. I will move to the west you east let us use the smoke and try to surprise it.

Elbenwin draws his sword and circles around to the west staying in the smokes edge hoping to find and surprise the troll with his ranger ability.

[1d20] = 12

[ravenn4544]

Elbenarin nods grimly. Bow over his shoulder, he quietly draws his sword and moves east, keeping an eye on the light and dancing smoke. Eyes to the ground for clues of the trolls passing...

[Urson]

Therone

Therone itches to join the others in the troll hunt, but chooses to stay with the non- hunters to provide some protection.

[SocraticLawyer]

Tinuwen keeps an arrow knocked, but does not fire until she sees the troll.

[OGRE MAGE]

Seeing others rushing towards the beast, Folco decides to follow them. Not charging in like a brave Dunedain, but staying to the edges of the smoke and shadows, movingly swiftly and quietly, the hobbit way.

If he can find a rock or tuft of tall grass near the troll to hide behind, he will attempt to get into position to come in from behind the monster.