[Completed] - Ulf/Mission for the Dwarves - May 20, 1 VC

[Starbeard]

Seadu stomps toward the wolf as though intending to strike, hoping to scare it off for good (unless, of course, as Zhym said).

He keeps an eye out for stragglers and watchers while Ulf inspects the dead.

[Keehnelf]

While a dire wolf could carry quite a load (like a heavily armored orc and his kit), you'd be challenged to press it into service.

[Zhym]

Ulf has no intention of riding a dire wolf. But if it's currently acting as a pack animal, we could attack it to get whatever it's carrying.

[Keehnelf]

It isn't currently being used as a pack animal. The orc has light backpack he's currently wearing.

[Zhym]

Okay. Then the dire wolf is free to run away.

[Starbeard]

But Seadu still has its guard up in case it isn't running away after all.

[Zhym]

Oh yeah. Ulf too. If the wolf decides to stick around for some reason, Ulf will hammer it on the nose again.

[Keehnelf]

May 21, 1 VC - 4:50pm

The dire wolf casts quickly about in all directions and then bolts off toward the east at top speed. The party recovers their wits and takes stock of their wider surroundings, ascertaining that no new enemies have arrived or appeared in the distance.

Looting the corpse of the fallen orc, they discover that his longsword appears magical (+1 bonus), and he carries 114 gold pieces in assorted coins in his backpack, along with an assortment of low-quality utility supplies and several days of rancid rations. An unusual gray ceramic flask with a wax stopper is lying at the very bottom of his pack, covered with a dizzying pattern of floral whorls and relief of vines.

[Zhym]

Ulf looks at the sword. Then he looks at the two clerics. Then he looks back at the sword. Then he looks down at his hammer. And his spear. And his shield. He looks embarrassed.

"I suppose I'm the only one who can use this," he says of the sword. "But I am loathe to do so. Swords wielded by the minions of evil have not been boons to those who have inherited them. I believe I will simply hold on to this until we return to town, if no one minds. Then we can determine what we can do with it to all of our benefit."

"The flask, however—do either of you know what a floral flask with vines might contain? Something an orc lieutenant would carry?"

He picks up the orc's helmet. "I wonder if this is magical," he says, his nose wrinkled like he smells something putrid. "That's the only way I'd wear something this poncy. A dragon's face and a plume? Really?" Ulf scoffs. "Might bring some coin, though. Or a reward. Speaking of which, I think Tamerlin posted a bounty on this orc's head. I wonder if we need to bring him the actual head?" Grimacing, Ulf chops off the orc's head, empties the orc's backpack, and stuffs the head in the pack.

Ulf stashes the sword in his pack and spreads the coins around to whoever can carry them. When the party is ready, Ulf leads the way toward the entrance to the tomb, looking along the way for a good spot to set up camp for the night.

"Tell me more about Falles," he asks as they walk. "I admit that I have never been especially religious. But when a god brings someone back to life...well, it makes you wonder. And think."

[Starbeard]

Seadu nods to Ulf. 'It's better to stick with the magic you know than the magic you don't. Let's store it and decide what to do with it back in town. Maybe it could be the dwarvenheim's first wall-mounted war trophy.'

He wrinkles his nose as Ulf removes the orc's helmet. 'I don't know. It may be ugly, but it's certainly an improvement over what was beneath.'

As they walk, he talks about what little he currently knows of Falles. 'He's a mysterious spirit. His presence in this plane seems to have been tied to the dwarves under the Mountain, and has been (more or less) sleeping since their demise. He seems a bit groggy for it.' He looks around for a handy metaphor, then points at the orc's strange sword. 'Most of the thinking races interact with magic in this world. It is something they can breath, learn, and employ to their will. Dwarves have no such power, their bodies and spirits are numb to magical energies. This is just how Falles is, since he is in all ways best described as the Consummate Dwarf. Instead, dwarves are part of a different kind of mystery, which is the spirits of their ancestors.'

He tugs at his shirt sleeve. 'We other races have physical bodies, which must be clothed. But dwarves have bodies that exist in two realms, the physical and the ancestral. You were your ancestors like I wear the shirt on my back. Everything that happens to you, good or bad, happens to your ancestors, and will happen to your descendants when you eventually die and clothe them. It is this transcendent power that gives dwarves your long lives, your dark vision, even your great feats and understanding of stonework. Falles also cocoons himself around all dwarves, and this is why his plight is the plight of everyone of your kind.'

[Zhym]

He wrinkles his nose as Ulf removes the orc's helmet. 'I don't know. It may be ugly, but it's certainly an improvement over what was beneath.'

Ulf laughs. "I cannot argue with that," he says.

"So Falles is in the same shape as the dwarves. Weakened and sleepy but not gone. But what does he stand for? What are the beliefs of a follower of Falles, other than being pro-dwarf?"

If he stands for nothing, what'll he Falles for?

[Zhym]

How far are we from the entrance, anyway? I suppose we could go in without resting, but it'd probably be smart to heal up first just in case the tomb isn't entirely friendly. Besides, I think we're currently the least advanced in time of the expeditions, so it might make sense to advance a day.

[Keehnelf]

Still around two days away.

[Zhym]

Oh! I thought we'd spotted it. Well, we'd best be getting a move on, then.

Does the orc's armor seem special at all, or just heavy?

[Keehnelf]

It's a suit of full plate, damaged but salvageable, made for a human-proportioned wearer. You'd have to try it on to tell if it's magical or not.

[Zhym]

Ulf obviously isn't interested, but does Seadu want to give it a try? Martin?

[Keehnelf]

May 22, 6:10pm

The trio packs up what they can of value, especially the coins, and makes off toward the east for another hour or so before dusk begins to overtake the wilds ahead of them and they are forced to make camp. In mid-morning the next day, they spot what they presume to be the mounted hobgoblin who escaped from the altercation the afternoon before, loping along parallel to them some distance south, well out of hailing range and certainly beyond the range of even the most powerful arrows. The goblinoid shadows them for nearly an hour before peeling away further south, quickly hidden among the folds and crannies of the rolling landscape.

The sun is drifting very low to the horizon and the land before the group is beginning to darken, making travel through gullies and along stony ridges perilous, when the group spots an encampment ahead in the distance, perhaps a quarter of a mile. A band of four gnollish archers is loping quickly in the party's direction, longbows in hand, perhaps a hundred yards along a sharp ridge to the north, looking to rendezvous with another archer, bow strung and arrow nocked, standing among some stones only 150 feet southeast of the party. The running pack issues a series of hoarse, barking cries that is chilling in the near-dark. They are on the hunt.

Actions and initiative!

Please deduct one day's rations.

[Starbeard]

Seadu has no particular interest in trying on the orc's suit.

'His demeanour might change a he awakens more fully, but at the moment he seems to be rather neutral about most things. He has a strong sense of justice, though, which we can see by the curse we're trying to cancel. Although, come to think of it,' he muses, 'I do not think this curse is actually his own doing. Rather, it came out through him, whether he would have liked it or not. In a way he is the sum total of all dwarven spirit, and the injustice that was wrought by Fangir caused a portion of Falles to break off as the curse. I think.' Seadu shakes his head, not very sure of his own circular logic.

'Falles really only requires his servants to hold three things in high esteem. I memorized them fairly quickly:'

"One: To honor the boundary and the bond between living and dead, and to ensure that the relationship between the two remains proper.

"Two: To respect the gifts and sacrifices of those who have gone before you, and not to benefit of their fruits without giving due honor.

"Three: To balance the needs of one's self and one's heritage, in full understanding that the actions of today shape the future of our children and our civilization."

Later, the next day…

Seadu stops in his tracks and retrieves his sling from his belt while assuming a crouch. He withholds his attack unless it seems immediately obvious that the gnolls have already spotted them.

Initiative [1d6] = 5
Sling [1d20] = 16, Damage [1d4] = 2

-1 ration

[Zhym]

Do the gnolls appear to be on the hunt for us, or do they seem to be chasing something else? Which way is the lone archer 150' facing?

Also, we would have used healing spells before camping overnight. Should we roll those, or can we assume that we're back at full HP?

-1 rations

[Keehnelf]

The chills seem to be moving specifically to intercept you. The lone archer is facing in your direction.