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Hoom Feethos:

Hoom follows Bo to safety.

Pelias follows, trying not to think of what horrors may lie in the Rushmoors...

Outside the Church of Merikka (21)
Village of Briarsgate, Gran March, Greyhawk
Day Eight. After midnight. Sunday, October 23nd, 576 CY
Cloudy, damp, cold, misty







In the chill darkness beyond the wall of the unhallowed temple, the heroes hear the sickening groan of its iron gates opening up not 200 feet away.

They exchange urgent whispers as Mouser gathers rope and hook. Then Long Bo sends his crow up into the night sky and leads the group north in darkness and silence, between the stone wall and the treeline. Visibility is 25 feet in the diffused moonlight; 60 feet for the elfbloods. Ingrid Esthof falls behind, her armor slowing her pace.

They reach the northeast corner when distant lantern light and shouting break from the wall's southeast corner (at V).

Suddenly, in the direction of the church's front doors, dogs can be heard barking and howling.


Actions?


Map:

X=the heroes. V=the villagers. Lighter areas indicate visibility.


Rolls and Rulings (non-required reading):


PC Status:

• Avril Hollysword, Half-Elf Fighter/Cleric 1/2: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 7/10, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl
  Grey Mouser, Half-Elf Magic-User/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC 5, HP 8/10, Spells: 0/1 1st lvl
  Hoom Feethos, Elven Magic-User/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC 3, HP 3/8, Spells: 0/1 1st lvl
  Ingrid Esthof, Human Cleric 3: Move: 6", AC: 3(1), HP: 4/16, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl and 0/3 2nd lvl
  Long Bo, Human Druid 3: Move: 9", AC: 6, HP: 3/22, Spells: 0/5 1st lvl, 0/3 2nd lvl and 0/1 3rd lvl
  Pelias Blanchflower, Human Paladin 2: Move: 9", AC: 2(0), HP: 4/19, Laying Hands: 0/1

PC Magic:

• Protection from Evil (Pelias): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Pelias.

PC Resources:

• Map of Briarsgate
  NPC List for Briarsgate
  The Story So Far (in words)
  The Story So Far (in pictures)

"Double time," Mouser says to the druid as he stows the rope, and readies his sling, "before the dogs reach the gates?"

Mouser also, as they move, quietly offers to help Ingrid carry anything heavy, "don't worry you'll get it back" he adds with a smile.

Pelias drops his cloak and scatters five days' worth of rations about, hoping to distract the dogs as the party continues to retreat...

cloak, rations deducted

He will also help carry Avril's stuff

Hoom Feethos:

Hoom continues running following the person in lead.

Bo curses under his breath when he hears the hounds barking again. He whispers out loud to the others.
"How many of those blasted animals do these people have?"

"I hate to even think about this but, we may have to split up in order to throw off their pursuit. They wont be able to catch all of us in the dark. Those of us that cant move quickly enough could rush past this line of trees and then backtrack in their same footsteps, climbing and then hiding out in the higher branches. That might throw off the dogs keen senses for a little while."

Certain that the group is running out of time, the druid continues as he flees to the west.

"I am going to make for the windmill, keeping to the trees as best I can. Hopefully we can all get there safely, but if any of us are caught, I promise that once I am rested and have my blessings again, I will do everything in my power to find and rescue you. Good luck!!!"

With those grim words, the druid sprints off into the darkness. He runs down the tree line at the back of the church, hoping that he can make his way to the vineyard next without being caught. He looks back periodically to see if he can spot which direction his friends ran off in.

"Yeah, cause separatin' has been working out really great so far," Mouser says quietly but grimly to the back of the druid. Mouser slows his pace a bit, giving himself time to get his sling out and loaded. "Do we go until we have to make a stand," he asks the party members who are left, "or after we get around the corner and can't be seen, do we go back over the wall and let the druid be the distraction?"

Hoom Feethos:

"We run to the outlying farms. They will give up once we are far enough away. They only want to chase us out of their domain."
Hoom no longer having Bo to guide him, chooses his own path northeast out of town running as fast as he can.
"I've been in their hands once, not again."

Outside the Church of Merikka (21)
Village of Briarsgate, Gran March, Greyhawk
Day Eight. After midnight. Sunday, October 23nd, 576 CY
Cloudy, damp, cold, misty





The chilling sound of villagers shouting and hounds barking cuts through the night.



They hunt the heroes.

"I've been in their hands once. Not again," Hoom the elf explains before fleeing northeast for his life, in the direction of the abandoned farm of the hanged family. Bo the druid takes flight west, escaping in the direction of the hermit and the windmill.

Avril, Ingrid, Mouser and Pelias move west at a slower speed. Pelias throws down his cloak and scatters his rations. Mouser gauges the wall. They begin to lose precious time deliberating how to proceed at Ingrid's pace. Tension mounts. From behind the north wall, they can no longer see their pursuers. But they can still hear dogs howling in the direction of the temple's front gate.

Wise beyond her tender years, Ingrid sees what is happening; what she is causing. When talk turns to reentering the church of horrors, the valiant priestess wipes sweat from her brow and whispers, "My friends, thank you. For everything. But I'm slowing you down. If we're all caught, then They've won."
Ingrid Esthof looks each of her friends in the eye and bravely reassures them, "Please. Go. I'll be fine. We'll meet again at the windmill. I promise. Now go."




Actions?


Map:

B=Bo, H=Hoom, X=the other heroes. Villagers and dogs cannot be seen by the PCs.
Visibility is 25 feet. The rest is from memory.





PC Status:

• Avril Hollysword, Half-Elf Fighter/Cleric 1/2: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 7/10, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl
  Grey Mouser, Half-Elf Magic-User/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC 5, HP 8/10, Spells: 0/1 1st lvl
  Hoom Feethos, Elven Magic-User/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC 3, HP 3/8, Spells: 0/1 1st lvl
  Ingrid Esthof, Human Cleric 3: Move: 6", AC: 3(1), HP: 4/16, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl and 0/3 2nd lvl
  Long Bo, Human Druid 3: Move: 9", AC: 6, HP: 3/22, Spells: 0/5 1st lvl, 0/3 2nd lvl and 0/1 3rd lvl
  Pelias Blanchflower, Human Paladin 2: Move: 9", AC: 2(0), HP: 4/19, Laying Hands: 0/1

PC Magic:

• Protection from Evil (Pelias): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Pelias.

PC Resources:

• Map of Briarsgate
  NPC List for Briarsgate
  The Story So Far (in words)
  The Story So Far (in pictures)

Looking more Grim than Grey Mouser draws his sabre. "Let's cut off your armor," he offers, "leave it behind, it's your only way to save yourself and keep preaching the word of Trithereon!" If Ingrid agrees, then Mouser, hopefully with help from the others, will aid her in cutting off her armor (as they continue to move) and then run towards the windmill and hermit. He's a-scared and a straight line is the best line! If Ingrid doesn't agree, then GM has reached the limits of his gallantry and he makes like a treant and leaves.

Hoom Feethos:

Hoom Feethos continues to run into the night in a direction that will hopefully lead to better fortune. He heads for the heaviest of the wooded areas where he can using his innate and professional skills as a elven thief to mask his trail from his pursuers. Hoom wonders what angle Mouser is working to stay behind. Was the rogue repaying a favor to lead the hunters away or was staying with the group a better option. Either way Hoom wishes his companion good luck and a full coin purse.

Long Bo badly wants to keep running away, he really does. But he knows in his heart that he and his friends will not be able to outrun the unencumbered townsfolk for very long. And they certainly can't outrun the crazed hounds. After seeing Hoom rush off in the other direction, Bo recalculates the math in his head. He begins to realize that without his help, several of his group will likely be caught and either killed, or turned into mindless cultists. Either way, he knows that he can't take on the evil plaguing this town alone. He spins around and rushes back to his friends that remain at the wall.

"Gods be damned! What am I thinking?"

He pulls 2 glass bottles out of his belt pouch and hands a full one to Mouser, quickly speaking to him in a very serious tone. "Drink half of this liquid and give the other half to Pelias to finish. When you start to lift off of the ground, I can't believe that I am about to say this, just grab onto my tail."

The tall druid then slams back the remains of the very last speck of magic that he owns, the other half of his magic potion of transformation. He looks upon Avril and Ingrid and tries to think of something to say that might make this next part slightly less uncomfortable. He fails.

"Are you girls ready for the ride of your lives? Then jump on!"

With that, the druid immediately Polymorphs himself into a majestic black Pegasus. Crouching down, he lets the two females climb on while the others grab ahold and float weightlessly behind. The pegasus takes off into the night sky with his friends in tow, hopefully before the cultists are able to catch up to them.

I sure hope they don't have any bows, the druid ponders as he takes off into the dark sky.

Mouser complies with the druid's plan. He also makes sure that he has some sling bullets ready (to throw, I'm assuming he can't sling while levitating and one-handed )
He also ensures the vial of possible poison is in his free hand. Improvised missile weapons makes him happy.

Pelias is struck by the audacity of the druid's plan. If successful, it should throw the dogs off their trail and keep everyone safe. He can think of no better way forward.

He nods at Bo's plan, and waits for Mouser to drink half the potion - half expecting the thief to down it all himself.

Seeing the paladin's watchful eye, Mouser quickly downs only half the potion, passing it to Pelias on with a smile.

Outside the Church of Merikka (21)
Village of Briarsgate, Gran March, Greyhawk
Day Eight. After midnight. Sunday, October 23nd, 576 CY
Cloudy, damp, cold, misty





Hoom runs for his life from the dangling iron cage that is Briarsgate. He doesn't look back.

Frantic barks and shouts echo in the mist as the elvish rogue steals northeast over an open, moonlit field.




Beyond it, he finds shelter in a thin copse of trees. Behind him in the distance he can see lantern light near the church of Merikka; the men who hunt him.





Hoom creeps through the small wood. Branches overhead momentarily eclipse the moonlight and suddenly Hoom's infravision sees something just thirty feet away! A figure stands motionless among the trees.





It's as warm as a living body and it clearly knows Hoom is there.


Actions?!





Meanwhile, far behind Hoom, all hope is lost. The fleeing heroes splinter as Ingrid pleads to be left behind to a fate worse than death. The bloodthirsty growling of hounds grows closer. Light advances nearer along the eastern wall. The villagers are a noose closing in around the heroes' necks.

And then, Bo the nature wizard suddenly reappears from the darkness and, incredibly, provides the means of their deliverance from this dire nightmare.



Somehow, the druid engineers their escape by magically transporting them inside a fantastical dream. For there can be no other explanation for what happens next:

Long Bo renders Pelias and Mouser weightless with an enchanted elixir that tastes of ice cold air. Then the druid himself imbibes another foaming sorcerous draught and impossibly changes his shape into that of a great black pegasus with fathomless, knowing eyes.



Then, as hounds and men turn the northeast corner of the stone wall, the heroes are suddenly weightless and plummeting upward into the night sky, escaping in the nick of time!

Harvest moonlight is diffused across the ceiling of etheric orange clouds as cool rain mists upon their astonished faces.



Sephus caws beside them in wonder. Avril can't help but laugh, her eyes shedding involuntary tears. Ingrid asks, "Can this really be happening? Or has the cult ensnared our minds at last?"

Their surreal, unimaginable flight takes them west, soaring high above Briarsgate, free from gravity and the slavering jaws of ferocious hounds.

Away from the sinister, searching lanterns near the temple of Merrika (21), the entire village is dark... except for one house: the home of the Gade family farm (19)!
There, a light burns within.


Actions?!


Map:

X=heroes. L=areas of light visible to the heroes. Hoom is off the map, to the northeast.


Rolls and rulings (non-required reading):


PC Status:

• Avril Hollysword, Half-Elf Fighter/Cleric 1/2: Move: 9", AC: 7, HP: 7/10, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl
  Grey Mouser, Half-Elf Magic-User/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC 5, HP 8/10, Spells: 0/1 1st lvl
  Hoom Feethos, Elven Magic-User/Thief 1/2: Move: 9", AC 3, HP 3/8, Spells: 0/1 1st lvl
  Ingrid Esthof, Human Cleric 3: Move: 6", AC: 3(1), HP: 4/16, Spells: 0/4 1st lvl and 0/3 2nd lvl
  Long Bo, Human Druid 3: Move: 9", AC: 6, HP: 3/22, Spells: 0/5 1st lvl, 0/3 2nd lvl and 0/1 3rd lvl
  Pelias Blanchflower, Human Paladin 2: Move: 9", AC: 2(0), HP: 4/19, Laying Hands: 0/1

PC Magic:

• Protection from Evil (Pelias): -2 to AC and +2 to saving throws against evil, in a 10 foot radius around Pelias.

PC Resources:

• Map of Briarsgate
  NPC List for Briarsgate
  The Story So Far (in words)
  The Story So Far (in pictures)

Grey Mouser, 1/2 elf MU/Th floating with a paladin behind a black pegasus carrying the two female clerics
Actions? What beside holding on for dear life?
"Do we head for the light, the windmill or safety of the trees?" he asks out loud, into the rushing air, when they are high enough for the cultist soon to be dead if I can manage it villagers not to overhear. If only the 1/2 orc could see us now he thinks, smiling... then spitting a flying bug out of his mouth.

Hoom Feethos:

"Who's there? Baltus Ardwyck? Show yourself!" Hoom says as he slowly draws out his short sword from his scabbard.

The light at the Gade house piques the curiosity of Bogasus, causing him to angle and turn sharply to the south, further enhancing his passengers unique experience. He flies low over the center of the lake, avoiding any chance of being spotted in front of the moon.

Turning again, he flies low and slow over the top of the lit farm, hoping to see what is going on there. From there he will turn north again in hopes of spotting Hoom.