Expedition to Castle Ravenloft IC

[stack]

"You also took a beating against the spiders. I would think it odd if you felt well."

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "Yeah, I'm sure it's just the spiders...Those were terrifying."

[Vetril]

Gallard pats Elena's shoulder as he talks to her. Compassion can be heard in his voice.

"We'll restrain you the next full moon, and see what happens. Then you'll know, at least - and if needed, we can work to lift the curse."

The knight stops for a moment, then raises his eyebrows, assuming an optimistic expression.

"Ha! On the bright side, my horse, and possibly the others, is back at the village. A little nervous, but still alive."

[Kish]

You find the horses in front of Ireena's mansion.

It's quite late at night now. If you're setting up camp inside the mansion to sleep, let me know whether and how much you're healing people before doing so (Ireena is down 7 points, Ivyn is listed at 35/43, Elena is currently effectively at 9/23, Brom at 31/52, Gallard at 28/62, and Jonnel at 24/41; one point of Charisma damage should go away overnight, assuming your rest is uninterrupted, but Elena's Constitution drain won't go away unless cured), what precautions you're taking against being attacked, and who's on fifth watch (both Ivyn and Brom declared the sixth watch last time).

[Ionbound]

Elena blearily says, still drained from the spiders' attacks, "I'll take first watch...After that, I need to crash. But...Have some healing, everyone."

5 CLWs and 1 CMW.

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]
[roll3]
[roll4]

[roll5]

Take as needed, I'll grab what's left.

[stack]

Brom aids in the healing. "Perhaps barricading the entries would be a wise precaution." He eyes the heavier furniture.death ward - [roll0]
SMII [roll1]
bless [roll2]

Brom can take 5th I guess

[Kish]

You set up camp in the room where you fought the werewolves; after Elena casts her first Cure Light Wounds spell on her, Ireena helps Brom pile furniture in front of the door.
[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]
[roll3]

The night's sleep goes without incident. The next morning, you need to prepare spells, cast spells if applicable (I believe all the ability damage should be healed by then, but Elena will still have a Constitution of 5 unless someone casts Restoration on her), and decide what you're going to do next.

[stack]

"Well, we made it through the night well enough. Let us go and see if the merchant here has any diamond dust available, we need to get Elena back on her feet."

[Kish]

Ireena scratches her head and comments, "Didn't Ivyn suggest he close up shop and leave town?"

[stack]

"Right. Elena, did you bring any?" Brom has the cash, but would look silly saying "whoops, here's some!"

[Vetril]

Jonnel interjects.

"You might want to look for a jeweler or a smith. Some use the dust to polish the objects they produce with their craft."

In the mean time, Gallard goes outside, to have a good look at Valiant, now that there is enough light to see clearly.

[Kish]

"The town is...very poor," Ireena says in a low voice. "Strahd's been bleeding it dry for centuries. If there are jewels that you didn't bring in this area they're likely to be in his treasure room--but Ivyn said he has diamonds, if no one else does."

Valiant looks fine as far as Gallard can tell. He communicates that there was a threat at the castle (the empathic link won't let him convey concepts as explicit as "vampire," "werewolf," "giant spider," or "green slime"), but it didn't actually reach any of the horses to hurt them.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "Yeah, I have some. I thought I would need it...And I prayed for Restoration today as well." And as she says that, she casts Restoration on herself.

[Kish]

"We should probably take the tome to Madam Eva," Ireena suggests. "Did that ghost say something about a sword, too?"

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "Yeah. We should see what Madame Eva has to say about the Tome...And if she knows anything about the sword the ghost mentioned."

[stack]

"Let us eat then head to her directly then. I suspect her answers will send us back to the castle before long."

[Kish]

After breakfast, you head down the trail toward Madam Eva's camp. The horses appear skittish, but not uncontrollable.

The same group of humans and halflings are lounging at the southwest side of the camp; again, two human guards outside Eva's tent on the northeast side beckon you over.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Vetril]

As the group approaches, Gallard warns the others.

"Beware. I don't entirely trust Madame Eva; for what we know, she might not be our ally - and consider this: she and her entourage never had problems with the werewolves, nor with the Count's servants, despite having settled in the wilds."

Jonnel nods in agreement, after he has evaluated the knight's judgement. Gallard continues.

"Let us see what she has to say about the things we have found."

[stack]

"It seems we have little choice. It is a shame the ghost could not tell us more, though I suppose relying on the dead for information is a dubious prospect as well." Brom nods to the guards and enters.

[Kish]

Inside the tent, Madam Eva looks at each of you with an expression of suppressed excitement. "You have more questions for Madam Eva?" she inquires. "Or have you brought something to show me?"

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Vetril]

Gallard answers the seer.

"Both, to be fair. We retrieved a small statuette of a silver raven, or so it looks like to me.Do you know what that is?"

[Ionbound]

Elena answers as well, "We were told about an artifact called the Sunsword. Can you tell us more about it?"

[Kish]

Eva turns over the statue in her hands. "It has power. Mostly healing power. But no, this isn't something I'm familiar with." She sets it back down and reaches for her cards. "You asked about a blade of light, a weapon for vengeance." She turns over a card and frowns at the depiction of a broken sword. "Strahd attempted to destroy it. He was unable to do so, but he broke it in two pieces. Those pieces are..." She turns over another card, revealing a forest scene, and shows visible surprise before continuing, "in the same place; the card speaks of a place where wanderers rest."

She looks up, more at Ivyn than at any of the rest of you. "You did not find the Tome?"

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[stack]

Brom thinks for a moment. "Where wanderers rest...sounds like an inn. Unless rest is meant in a more final manner? Hmm, only one place I know of about these parts to find an inn, but I am not the expert. Are there any others?"

[Kish]

Ireena is surprised that you're not showing the tome to Madam Eva, though she's not about to unilaterally do so if none of you do.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

What? This? It's troop movements and random martial things from a war long since waged. But... Ok.

Ivyn offers the book to madam Eva

[Kish]

She takes the book and flips through it, stopping on a page near the end, and begins to read out loud. Her voice acquires an odd timbre as she does.

I am the Ancient, I am the Land. My beginnings are lost in the darkness of the past. I was the warrior, I was good and just. I thundered across the land like the wrath of a just god, but the war years and the killing years wore down my soul as the wind wears stone into sand.

All goodness slipped from my life. I found my youth and strength gone, and all I had left was death. My army settled in the valley of Barovia and took power over the people in the name of a just god, but with none of a god's grace or justice.

I called for my family, long unseated from their ancient thrones, and brought them here to settle in the castle Ravenloft. They came with a younger brother of mine, Sergei. He was handsome and youthful. I hated him for both.

From the families of the valley, one spirit shone above all others. A rare beauty, who was called "perfection," "joy," and "treasure." Her name was Tatyana, and I longed for her to be mine.

I loved her with all my heart. I loved her for her youth. I loved her for her joy. But she spurned me! "Old One" was my name to her--"elder" and "brother" also. Her heart went to Sergei. They were betrothed. The date was set.

With words she called me "brother," but when I looked into her eyes they reflected another name--"death." It was the death of the aged that she saw in me. She loved her youth and enjoyed it. But I had squandered mine.

The death she saw in me turned her from me. And so I came to hate death, my death. My hate is very strong; I would not be called "death" so soon.

I made a pact with death, a pact of blood. On the day of the wedding, I killed Sergei, my brother. My pact was sealed with his blood.

I found Tatyana weeping in the garden east of the chapel. She fled from me. She would not let me explain, and a great anger swelled within me. She had to understand the pact I made for her. Finally, in despair, she flung herself from the walls of Ravenloft, and I watched everything I ever wanted fall from my grasp forever.

It was a thousand feet through the mists. No body was ever found. Not even I know her final fate.

Arrows from the castle guards pierced me to my soul, but I did not die. Nor did I live. I became undead, forever.

I have studied much since then. "Vampyr" is my new name. I still lust for life and youth, and I curse the living that took them from me. Even the sun is against me. It is the sun and light I fear the most. But little else can harm me now. Even a stake through my heart does not kill me, though it holds me from movement. But the sword, that cursed sword that Sergei brought! I must dispose of that awful tool! I fear and hate it as much as the sun.

I have learned much, too, about this land of Barovia. Ancient are its ways, ancient beyond the knowledge of the simple folk of the valley. I have walked the ancient ways, secret roads linking three fanes of might, and thus I have become the Land.

I visited the hidden fanes, the Swamp Fane, the Forest Fane, and the Mountain Fane, and claimed their power for my own. Thus I solidified my grasp on this dim shadow of life.

I made the fanes my own, and I have become the Land. I made the fane-servants my own, and they serve me as once they served the Land. By the power of the Dayheart, even the sun holds no terror for me now.

I have often hunted for Tatyana. I have even felt her within my grasp, but she escapes. She taunts me! She taunts me! What will it take to bend her love to me?

I now reside far below Ravenloft. I live among the dead and sleep beneath the very stones of this hollow castle of despair. I shall seal shut the walls of the stairs that none may disturb me.

[stack]

Brom sits in silence, pondering the revelation. Eventually, he speaks, "So, the tale comes out. Strahd's history. The sword we have just spoken of, but what of the fanes? The dayheart?"

[Vetril]

Gallard furrows his eyebrows.

"What are these Fanes he writes of? Some kind of powerful magic? I have a feeling this is something important: maybe it's worth investing some time to learn about these things."

[Kish]

Madam Eva turns over another card; it depicts a noble knight. "To restore the sword once you have both pieces of it, you must bring it to where the light lies dead, slain by the darkness that shrouds the castle."

<pause for questions, then>

She turns over another card. "The Dayheart is..." She frowns at the picture of the winged demon on it. "There is one in your enemy's castle who desires his destruction more than any of you. Two of you already know of her. She can tell you what Strahd speaks of there."

<pause for questions, then>

"Now, the fanes." She turns over another card, this one upside down and showing a picture of the moon. "Before you can destroy Strahd, you must sever his ties to the land. Those ties strengthen and preserve him, even as they warp and twist the land. They are the cause of the living dead who walk this land, as well as the madness that afflicts the wolves of the forest." You think she addresses that last part particularly to Elena, but it might be just your imagination.

<pause for questions, then>

"As for how to sever Strahd's control of the fanes..." The card she turns over, depicting a sunlit lake, looks calm enough, but she sighs as she looks at it. "Your quest is doomed. You must find the three defiled places described in the tome. At each fane, you must kill its dread guardian and place the guardian's body inside. At this you will never succeed." She shakes her head. "I am sorry, young ones, but that is all the help I can give you."

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[stack]

"Two of us know someone in the castle? Who has been there before, aside from Gallard's visit? ANd you cannot tell us more of the fanes and their guardians? Where are they, what guards them?"

[Ionbound]

Elena tilts her head and says, "I wonder if that means the ghost we met. And the fanes...Where are they? What are they, for that matter?"

[Kish]

Madam Eva shakes her head. "There is nothing more I can tell you on those subjects, I'm afraid. I could only repeat what I've said." She closes the book and holds it out to Elena.

"I wouldn't think it would be the ghost," Ireena says. "We all met her, not just two of us, and I doubt she hates Strahd more than I do." She frowns. "That story--it's just so...petty. A lifetime--several lifetimes--of wallowing in how horribly wronged he was whenever anyone in any way went against what he wanted..." She growls. "Well, what did the book say about the fanes? They're places of power, somewhere in Barovia's forests, swamps, and mountains. It seems we should search the wilderness before returning to the castle. As well as finding this place where wanderers rest."

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "Agreed. I wonder if we missed anything in the graveyard when we dug up the holy symbol...It does seem like where travelers rest."

[stack]

Might be easier to search an inn before doing more digging. Need to learn more about these games as well." can you make a sense motive check on madam Eva for Brom? I presume it should be secret.

[Kish]

Sense Motive check results PMd.

[Kish]

"The book says Strahd walked the forests, mountains, and swamps until he found places of power," Ireena says. "We came through mountains and very close to forests to get here; there are swamps south of Barovia. The village, I mean, not the land."

http://chadfauxsho.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/barovia_playersmap.jpg

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "I think we should go through the forests first."

[Vetril]

Jonnel seems dubious.

"Still, it's a big region. If we are to look for these things the Count found, shouldn't we take a guide with us? Surely someone from the village must be familiar with the landscape. Otherwise, it could take us weeks!"

[Kish]

"People who explore the land around here tend not to live long," Ireena says. "There was a wolf hunter who disappeared recently...I could swear there's something I'm forgetting...but we don't have to discuss this in Madam Eva's tent, right?" She looks at Madam Eva, who does indeed appear slightly impatient. "If we've asked her everything we came here to?" Ireena takes the book and picks up the raven statue.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[stack]

Disappointed that they suddenly hit a wall after gaining such good information, Brom follows the others out. Once out of earshot from the camp, he speaks. "It is curious that she suddenly became so closed after freely giving so much information...strange. I suggest we seek this sword before we try wandering the wilderness looking for fanes that we might not recognize if we saw."

[Ionbound]

Elena shrugs and says, "As I said, the Vistani are mysterious, and have their own reasons for everything. And in regard to finding the Fanes, I think we should at least deal with the forest one before anything else. Hopefully, that'll prevent any more werewolf attacks."

[Kish]

Hold that thought, Brom, because:


[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]
[roll3]
[roll4]



As you leave the tent, you notice a sudden tension in the air. Then you realize that the humans and halflings who were lounging around on the southwest side of the camp before are now holding weapons.


http://i62.tinypic.com/1zlzkt5.jpg

Key:
H#: human member of Madam Eva's band.
HL#: halfling member of Madam Eva's band.
G: Gallard.
J: Jonnel.
B: Brom.
E: Elena.
Iv: Ivyn.
Ir: Ireena.
Light grey: Light underbrush.
Dark grey: Dense underbrush.
Blue: River.

[stack]

(Oblivious cleric doesn't notice anything until others post :smalleek:)

[Ionbound]

Elena looks back and forth and then swallows as she says, "...And it seems that the Vistani don't want us to live anymore..."

[stack]

"Well...that is a change of attitude. Perhaps there was more to Eva's reluctance than we supposed." Brom raises his shield. "The shining one's blessings on us all."magic circle against evil on self

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn picks the burliest looking human and casts his charms.

Will DC 18 or friendship is magic.

[Vetril]

Warned by Elena's words, Gallard looks around and immediately steps up to try and prevent the situation from exploding. Jonnel, more cautiously, prepares his hand on the hilt of his sword, just in case.

The knight raises his hands until they are just below the level of his shoulders, and then speaks out, trying to calm the hostile men. He tries to sound reasonable.

"There's no need, please. We are leaving. We will not return, if you don't want us here."

Diplomacy if needed: [roll0].

EDIT: I just realized, while reading the Diplomacy skill description, that I didn't sum the sinergy bonus for Sense Motive - that would add a +2, for a final result of 20.

[Kish]

Responding to Elena's words, Ireena spins to face the two humans behind you, takes a five-foot step to V1, and draws her rapier. When Gallard speaks, she hesitates (and readies her action).

[roll0]
H2 blinks and nods. "We let them leave," he says, but as he does, H1 draws his sword and moves to attack, triggering Ireena's readied action to stab him with her rapier before he slices at her with his scimitar. HL1 and HL2 both five-foot to the southwest and fire arrows at Gallard; the two halflings in the back fire arrows at Jonnel. H4 charges Gallard, swinging his scimitar. H3 charges Brom similarly. H5 moves up to attack Gallard, and H6 moves up to attack Brom. The south side of Eva's tent tears open and she rushes out; as she hurries past the tent south of hers she yells, "Kill all of them but that girl!" She points at Ireena, whose expression of annoyance momentarily nearly eclipses her anger at this treacherous attack. "Don't even think of defying me!" She glares at H2 as she says that last part.

[Kish]

Ireena:[roll0][roll1]
[roll2][roll3]
H1: [roll4][roll5]
H2: (does nothing)
H3: [roll6][roll7]
H4: [roll8][roll9]
H5: [roll10][roll11]
H6: [roll12][roll13]
HL1: [roll14][roll15]
HL2: [roll16][roll17]
HL3: [roll18][roll19]
HL4: [roll20][roll21]

[Kish]

H4: [roll0]
H6: [roll1]
HL4: [roll2]
One scimitar each strikes Ireena (8 damage) and Gallard (6 damage). Two strike Brom, one deeply (14 damage). Three of the halfling's arrows fly wide, but one strikes Jonnel deeply (9 damage). Make sure you've updated your health total; at least one of you is still at last night's listed total.


http://i58.tinypic.com/122dwrc.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet.
H#: human member of Madam Eva's band.
HL#: halfling member of Madam Eva's band.
H#: charmed human member of Madam Eva's band (note that the Charm will be suppressed if Brom gets within 10 feet).
G: Gallard.
J: Jonnel.
B: Brom.
E: Elena.
Iv: Ivyn.
Ir: Ireena.
E: Madam Eva.
F: Campfire.
Light grey: Light underbrush.
Dark grey: Dense underbrush.
Blue: River.


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[stack]

Brom strikes toward the man standing in front of Gallard, hoping to weaken his for the knight's coming blow.att vs T4 [roll0]
damage [roll1]

[Vetril]

Jonnel shouts with a mixture of pain, shock and surprise as his armor fails to completely stop the arrow. He draws his sword and proceeds to team up with Gallard, who has done the same. They quickly attack the nearest foe, hoping to swiftly reduce the enemies' numerical advantage.

Gallard - draw sword, attack H4: [roll0], [roll1].

Jonnel - draw sword, attack H4: [roll2], [roll3].

[Ionbound]

Elena shouts, "Why are you attacking us! We mean you no harm!" as she prepares to strike if the Vistani attack.

Diplomacy: [roll0]

Prepare an action to attack the nearest Vistani, should they attack one of my allies.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

At his new human ally, Ivyn yells: Run around the tent and get in the way of those archers! Close in on the nearest one and protect me!

He then sets his eyes on the archers himself, targeting HL2. And casts their demise
Will disbelief and then fortitude partial DC 22. If both fail, death. If only the will save fails take [roll0] damage.

[Kish]

Brom strikes H6 soundly, and Gallard and Jonnel both strike H4, wounding him severely. Ireena stabs at the already-wounded H1 twice.

[roll0][roll1]
[roll2][roll3]

H2, instead of obeying Ivyn, glances nervously between him and the retreating form of Madam Eva, and then runs off toward the south. Eva, having apparently finished giving her orders and ignoring your words, runs off as well, in a southwesterly direction.

[Kish]

As Ivyn starts to cast his spell, H1 slashes at him.

[roll0][roll1]
HL1 fires another arrow at Gallard; HL3 and HL4 fire at Jonnel again. H4 and H5 attack Gallard with their scimitars, while H6 attacks Brom and H3 moves to do so, triggering Elena's readied action.

H4: [roll2][roll3]
H5: [roll4][roll5]
H6: [roll6][roll7]
HL1: [roll8][roll9]
HL3: [roll10][roll11]
HL4: [roll12][roll13]
Elena: [roll14][roll15]

[Kish]

Luckily, the scimitar that slashes at Ivyn misses by a mile, permitting him to finish his spell, and the halfling's eyes widen in horror. Elena's morningstar strikes true and you hear bones crack.

(Will save auto-failed as modifier less than +2)
[roll0]

As they do, H1 attempts to strike Ivyn again, and Elena's target, battered but not dead, completes his attack on Brom.

[roll]H1: [roll1][roll2]
H3: [roll3][roll4]

[Kish]

The halfling Ivyn targeted drops his bow, his eyes roll up in his head, and he collapses to the ground in a clatter of chain.

All the attacks aimed at Gallard either miss completely or bounce harmlessly off his armor. Both archers' arrows strike Jonnel, but only lightly (4 damage to Jonnel). Elena's target manages to get past Brom's defenses and inflict a superficial but unpleasant cut (4 damage to Brom). Ivyn's assailant's second attempt strikes him deeply (16 damage to Ivyn).

(Messed up, rolled in OOC and got 24; H1 critted Ivyn.)


http://i62.tinypic.com/25i59u8.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet.
H#: human member of Madam Eva's band.
HL#: halfling member of Madam Eva's band.
H#: wounded human member of Madam Eva's band.
G: Gallard.
J: Jonnel.
B: Brom.
E: Elena.
Iv: Ivyn.
Ir: Ireena.
F: Campfire.
Light grey: Light underbrush.
Dark grey: Dense underbrush.
Blue: River.


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)
PCs' turn.

[Vetril]

Jonnel doesn't stop to dislodge the arrows stuck in the brigandine of his mail. Instead, he lunges with his sword towards the original target, trying to impale him on his blade.
Gallard splits his efforts as needed, trying to incapacitate at least two of the men that are locked in combat with him and his companions.

Jonnel - Attack H4: [roll0], [roll1] (Critical: [roll2], [roll3]).

Gallard - Attack H4 and H6, or only H6 if H4 is downed by Jonnel: [roll4], [roll5] (Critical: [roll6], [roll7]); [roll8], [roll9] (Critical: [roll10], [roll11]).

[stack]

Brom keeps clubbing at his target, hoping to take enough pressure off the knights for them to cut trough the enemy.totally missed this, sorry!

att H6 [roll0]
damage [roll1]

[Ionbound]

Elena, discouraged by the Vistani's lack of reply, mutters, "If we must fight than we must, it seems," as she swings her morningstar at the wounded man before her.

Attack H3: [roll0]
[roll1]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

You're in my way he says to H1 as he takes a 5ft step away from him to U2. Ivyn then lifts his hands to cast.

ranged touch attack:
[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]

[Kish]

Jonnel swings and misses; Gallard strikes Jonnel's opponent, who falls, but misses his second target. Brom and Elena both strike their targets, who stay standing but are badly wounded. Ivyn takes a step to the northeast and blasts a hole through the chest of his assailant, who falls to the ground; the beam Ivyn unleashes at Elena's opponent misses and ignites a patch of grass near his feet.

Seeing her immediate enemy fall, Ireena drops her rapier and grabs her bow, firing at H3. Your enemies continue to fight in silence, though they look a little less determined and more desperate now. H5 and H6 slash at Gallard; H3 (if he survives Ireena's attack) at Brom. HL1 shoots at Gallard, HL3 and HL4 at Jonnel.
[roll0][roll1]
H3: [roll2][roll3]
H5: [roll4][roll5]
H6: [roll6][roll7]
HL1: [roll8][roll9]
HL3: [roll10][roll11]
HL4: [roll12][roll13]

Ireena's arrow strikes H3, leaving him barely on his feet, and his slash at Brom comes nowhere near Brom and narrowly avoids cutting off one of his own legs. Once again all the attacks aimed at Gallard fail, the arrow from the halfling seeming to veer off right before it would have struck him, and once again two arrows lodge in Jonnel (5 damage to Jonnel). HL1 takes a step back.


http://i61.tinypic.com/255jkfb.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet.
H#: human member of Madam Eva's band.
HL#: halfling member of Madam Eva's band.
H#: wounded human member of Madam Eva's band.
G: Gallard.
J: Jonnel.
B: Brom.
E: Elena.
Iv: Ivyn.
Ir: Ireena.
F: Campfire.
Very light grey: About to be filled with choking smoke.
Light grey: Light underbrush.
Dark grey: Dense underbrush.
Blue: River.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Sooo... This may be a bad time to mention it... But... Does this mean Madam Eva is also an enemy right now? I feel like that's going to be a problem... Oh hey! More archers.

Ivyn targets the fire burning near the halflings to transmute a thick, choking cloud of ash and smoke.

Casting on the fire that was burning before; assuming non magical. Not casting on the scorching ray extra fire. May need to deal with that later. Preferably centered on the corner P,Q-6,7 so that 20 ft doesn't include an ally. The Fortitude save DC is 17 or suffer -4 to strength and dexterity for [roll0] rounds. I also have no problem delaying this action until the rest of my allies have fired ranged attacks at the archers and before they fire back

[stack]

"Yes, I suspect she is." Brom grunts as he keeps swinging.att H6[roll0]
damage [roll1]

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and swings her morningstar at the same nearly dead man and says, "I'm afraid so, it seems...Not that her predictions aren't accurate...Indeed, she wouldn't have gone to such effort to stop us if they weren't."

[roll0]
[roll1]

If H3 is already dead, take a 5-foot-step and attack H6.

[Vetril]

Gallard and Jonnel seem too busy fighting to contribute to the conversation.
Hoping that the archers would think twice before risking to accidentally hit their allies, Jonnel raises his shield and swiftly approaches the nearest lackey of Madame Eva.
The knight and his companion focus on the remaining gipsies that stand nearby, while trying to form a line behind which the others can find a measure of protection.
With Jonnel to his side, the warriors look for an opening in their opponents' defenses as their steel tests the skill of the gipsies.

Jonnel - Step 1 square SW, attack H5: , (Critical: 1d20+8, [/roll]1d10+2[/roll]).

Gallard - Attack H6 and then H5: [roll2], [roll3] (Critical: [roll4], [roll5]); [roll6], [roll]1d10+3[roll] (Critical: [roll7], [roll8]).

[Kish]

"She didn't seem to want to stop us before," Ireena says as she sights at one of the halflings. "Wait a minute...Didn't the ghost say Eva had the hilt of the Sunsword?"

Brom's morningstar knocks one of the men to the ground. Elena shatters the skull of her target in one massive blow. Gallard slashes the last standing human, and Jonnel steps forward and slices at him as well but misses. Ireena fires two arrows at one of the halflings. As Ivyn shouts a warning and steps back, Brom steps back as well. The campfire abruptly transmutes into a thick cloud of choking black smoke.

Ireena's attacks on HL3:
[roll0][roll]1d20+8]
[roll1][roll2]
Fortitude saves: [roll3][roll4][roll5][roll6]

Gallard and Jonnel need to make DC 17 Fortitude saves, and suddenly can't see anything but smoke. They hear choking coughs, receding to their west.


http://i57.tinypic.com/24c79lj.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet.
H#: human member of Madam Eva's band.
HL#: halfling member of Madam Eva's band.
H#: wounded human member of Madam Eva's band.
G: Gallard.
J: Jonnel.
B: Brom.
E: Elena.
Iv: Ivyn.
Ir: Ireena.
Black: Impenetrable, choking cloud of smoke.
Light green: Light underbrush.
Dark green: Dense underbrush.
Blue: River.

Brom, Elena, and Ivyn, you can tell by sound that the remaining enemies are moving west, but you can't see them; feel free to ready actions or do anything else that you want to for one round. For her part, Ireena keeps her bow trained on the sound where the coughing is coming from.

Gallard and Jonnel, you need to get out of the smoke to be able to breathe again. Let me know where you move, and if you ready or do anything else this round.

Ireena will move to the north if anyone expresses a desire to get past her.

[stack]

Brom stands ready to block the egress of any foes, morningstar high. "What she saw in the cards seemed to frighten her, as if they revealed something she did not know that turned her against us."
readied action [roll0]
damage [roll1]

Should none appear, he will wait for Jonnel and Gallard before circling around the cloud. If the attackers have fled, he will suggest pursuing Madam Eva.

[Ionbound]

If the halflings fled, Elena nods and says, "Give me a moment," as she goes back into Eva's tent and looks around for something that might be the sunsword's hilt.

Search Check: [roll0]

[Vetril]

Gallard - [roll0].

Jonnel - [roll1].

Gallard and Jonnel emerge on the northern side of the smoke cloud, coughing.

"Down there" - the knight says, pointing to his left.

Jonnel spits once. "Puah", is all he says.

Both stop momentarily to overcome the effects caused by the fumes they inhaled.

[Kish]

The enemies appear around the edge of the tent to the west. Seeing that Gallard is a lot closer to them than the rest of you, they hesitate; as an arrow from Ireena gashes the closest one's ear, they turn and flee.
If you stick around long enough for the smoke cloud to clear, you find what appear to be 18 potions and 6 empty bottles on the corpses. Each of them has a masterwork scimitar, masterwork chain shirt, and masterwork buckler; the humans have composite shortbows while the one dead halfling has a basic shortbow.
It doesn't take Elena long to search Eva's tent; it appears Eva took everything inside the tent with her except the table. A massive gash in the south wall of the tent flaps open in the breeze.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena sighs and says, "Such a shame. I was hoping this would be easy." Elena emerges from the tent and announces, "She's long gone, along with everything in the tent. That's one more thing we have to deal with."

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

I think we should pursue Madam Eva south before we lose her trail, if it isn't already too late. If we must combat her, better her alone than her with a bunch of archers. Also, I think I charmed a human who may have followed her.

For what it's worth though, this feels like a massive waste. I find it hard to believe she flipped a card and decided we were so irredeemably attached to violence that she had to attack first for her own safety. Who knows? Maybe she's been playing us this whole time and is nothing vaguely related to a "good" person. Or maybe it's a self fulfilling prophecy.

[stack]

"Any answers we are to find will be in following her. Can anyone discern her trail? I only saw the general direction."

[Kish]

"She shouldn't be hard to follow if she keeps moving like that." Ireena points to the southwest; on the far side of the river you see that, indeed, the undergrowth has been crushed and broken with very little subtlety.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and draws her morningstar and says, "Let us follow, then."

[Kish]

Madam Eva's trail leads through the dense undergrowth to the southwest. Past a pool of water, her trail plunges into the forest; you must dismount to continue following her.

You press through the forest for about five more minutes before it opens out. The ruins of buildings that were once here scatter this clearing. In the center, standing in a cracked stone circle inscribed with runes, is Madam Eva. Outside the tent, with her on her feet, it is more obvious than ever that Madam Eva towers over all of you, but the three snarling figures standing next to her tower over her. She immediately chants, gesturing menacingly in your direction, as the creatures by her side surge forward and swing at the two of you in front with their clubs.

Madam Eva casts Silence at Ivyn. Will save DC 16.

Hill giant attacks Gallard: [roll1]
Ogre attacks Jonnel: [roll2]2d8+7
Ogre attacks Jonnel: 2d8+7

http://i62.tinypic.com/iqk4s6.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Iv: Ivyn
Ir: Ireena
E: Eva
G: Giant
O: Ogre
Grey: The runic circle.
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)

The ogres' clumsy swings bounce harmlessly off Jonnel's armor; the hill giant, on the other hand, strikes Gallard right in the head with tremendous force. (42 damage for Gallard.)

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

Elena rubs the bridge of her nose as she shakes her head, trying to dispel the buzzing sensation, and runs back away from the unusual zone of silence, taking cover in the light underbrush as she unleashes a bolt of glowing light at Eva.

Move to V8, cast Searing Light at Eva

[roll0]
[roll1]

[Vetril]

The violence of the impact is terrible. Gallard stumbles and almost falls to the ground: he has to kneel with one leg to avoid that. His shield held high above his head, the knight faces the larger enemy as best as he can - he even shouts something that might be a battlecry, even if his voice is weak.

"Gallard!"

Jonnel shouts, noticing that his friend is being overwhelmed by the raw power of the giant. That is all he can do, however, because the two hulking brutes that are trying to kill him require all his attention.

Gallard - fight defensively, lay on hands on himself for 7 HP healed.

Jonnel - fight defensively, attack the ogre that is closer to Gallard: [roll0].

[stack]

Brom retreats from the fight, hoping to get clear far enough to remove the silence that prevents him form healing Gallard. withdraw to Z3, unless Ivyn moves instead, in which case he burns death ward for CCW [roll0] healing, cast defensively [roll1]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn withdrawals, skirting the edge of the ogres'a and giant's reach to hide in U-8. While moving, he pulls a vial of acid from his robes.

[roll0] plus modifier for grass if applicable.
I don't know the move silently modifier for a silence spell, but I bet it's high.

[Kish]

Elena runs to the southeast and fires a beam at Eva which misses her and strikes the stones at her feet. Unlike earlier stonework which has been hit by misaimed Searing Light spells, the circle doesn't react at all, the beam simply disappearing without effect, but the giant glares at Elena.

Jonnel's sword slashes deeply into the first ogre. Brom moves to the northeast; Ivyn moves to the southeast and disappears into the underbrush; Ireena moves to stand between the giant and Elena, drawing her rapier as she does, and pinks the giant with her rapier while tensing to twist out of the way of any attacks. As the giant swings his greatclub at Ireena, Madam Eva shouts something, pointing at Gallard, but none of you can hear it...and neither can the giant. The giant's club swings harmlessly past Ireena. Her lips move; you're guessing she says something taunting to the giant, but it remains eerily inaudible. The ogres swing at Jonnel again, one of them taking a step forward; Jonnel's defensive stance serves him well as their attacks batter his defenses. Eva produces a holy symbol of Obad-Hai and holds it out toward you.
Eva casts Bane. Gallard, Jonnel, Ireena, and Ivyn need to make a DC 15 Will save.

Ireena's attack: [roll0][roll1]
Ireena's Will save: [roll2]
The giant's Awesome Blow: [roll3][roll4]
Ogre attack: [roll5]
Ogre attack: [roll6]
http://i60.tinypic.com/nq65c5.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Iv: Ivyn
Ir: Ireena
E: Eva
G: Giant
O: Ogre
O: Injured ogre
Grey: The runic circle.
Light yellow: Silence zone
Light green: Light undergrowth, also part of the silence zone (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth, part of which is in the silence zone (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[stack]

The silence preventing him from effectively aiding his allies, Brom shouts a prayer of cleansing. dispel magic on the silence [roll0]

[Ionbound]

Elena, realizing the predicament her allies are in, bursts from the underbrush and charges the hill giant, aiming to kneecap it with her morningstar and distract it from Ireena and the injured Gallard.

Charge to S7, attack the Hill Giant

[roll0]
[roll1]

[Vetril]

Gallard and Jonnel continue to fight.
The knight feints at the giant, only to suddenly take a step to the right and direct his sword towards the belly of the monster previously wounded by Jonnel: it is obvious that Gallard is trying to disembowl him.
Jonnel takes advantage of the help, and doubles his efforts: his blade dances through the air.

Gallard: [roll0] vs DC 15.

Jonnel: [roll1] vs DC 15.

Gallard - full attack the wounded ogre: [roll2], [roll3]; [roll4], [roll5].

Jonnel - fight defensively, attack the wounded ogre or redirect on the other ogre: [roll6], [roll7].

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn readies the action to run out to within 20ft of Eva should she start casting, and attempt to trap her within the field of silence, upon her attempting to cast any spell.

[Kish]

Jonnel is filled with fear and doubt (-1 to attack rolls and saving throws against fear effects, probably for the rest of the combat).

Brom casts a spell, but it proves ineffective. Elena charges the hill giant, and her morningstar bounces off his crude armor. Ireena says something to Elena, her eyes wide and alarmed, even as her rapier jabs at the giant again, but no one can hear what she says. Gallard slashes the wounded ogre twice, nearly gutting him the second time; the ogre falls to the ground. Jonnel swings wildly at the other ogre, but misses. Eva's lips begin to move again, and Ivyn lunges out of the underbrush and runs into the stone circle.

The giant's eyes lock on Elena with murderous intent; he swings like he's trying to make Elena go flying all the way back to Castle Ravenloft. He almost misses her...but almost isn't nearly good enough (20 damage to Elena). The remaining ogre strikes Jonnel a solid blow (16 damage to Jonnel), and sidles another step to the east as he does.

Ireena drives her rapier ineffectively into the giant's armor, fighting defensively: [roll0][roll1]
And again: [roll2][roll3]
The giant tries to smash Elena: [roll4][roll5]
The ogre tries to smash Jonnel: [roll6][roll7]
http://i62.tinypic.com/15pmsgg.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Iv: Ivyn
Ir: Ireena
E: Eva
G: Giant
O: Ogre
O: Injured ogre
Grey: The runic circle, which is now inside the silence zone.
Light yellow: Silence zone
Light green: Light undergrowth, part of which is in the silence zone (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

The ogre delivers a brutal blow to Elena's chest, nearly knocking her off her feet as a sickening *crack* is heard. However, she turns the hit into a step back and glows as she heals herself, then steps back into the melee.

Take a 5-foot step back, convert Death Ward into a CCW, then step back into melee range.

[roll0]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn will spend his turns shadowing madam Eva, avoiding her reach but keeping her in the silence. When he moves, he'll circumnavigate her to place her between himself and the giants.

[stack]

Frustrated, Brom closes cautiously, casting a spell of healing and holding its power until he can deliver it to a friend in need. move to V3, death ward for CCW, roll the hp when its delivered, holding the charge

[Vetril]

Gallard turns once again to distract the giant, while Jonnel focuses on the remaining ogre, even though he doesn't seem as brave as his friend, if possible.
Nonetheless, it seems that the two are determined to defeat all their enemies.

Gallard - steps to P6, then full attack the giant: [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3].

Jonnel - fight defensively, attacks the ogre: [roll4], [roll5].

[Kish]

Gallard strikes the giant once, a slash that looks barely noticeable on its massive form. Ireena drops her rapier where she's standing and shouts as she runs to the southeast, drawing her bow as she does, "He went after Elena when she attacked Eva--hey, I can hear myself again! I can get his attention!" As she finishes her sentence, she spins and fires an arrow at Eva.

Eva glares furiously at Ivyn. Her massive, clawed hand sweeps downward.

Ireena does indeed appear to have drawn the giant's attention. He holds his huge club with both hands as he tries to knock Elena out of his way.

[roll0][roll1]
[roll2][roll3][roll4]
[roll5][roll6]

[Kish]

Ireena's arrow sticks luridly in Eva's shoulder; it looks like quite a nasty injury, and judging by the look on the giant's face he's (silently) bellowing with outrage, but Eva doesn't slow down as her claws sweep down implacably, seizing Ivyn. (Ivyn takes 10 damage and is grappled.)
The giant's club smashes into Elena, even as the ogre attempts to hit Jonnel again.
Elena's Reflex save vs. Awesome Blow:[roll0]
Ogre attack: [roll1][roll2]

Elena somehow manages, barely, to stay on her feet. (18 damage to Elena.) The ogre's blow once again glances off Jonnel's upraised sword.

http://i60.tinypic.com/10fq43b.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
E: Eva and Ivyn grappling
G: Giant
O: Ogre
Grey: The runic circle, which is inside the silence zone.
Light yellow: Silence zone
Light green: Light undergrowth, part of which is in the silence zone (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

Elena winces and cries out as the same ribs are broken for the third time, but she grits her teeth and swings her morningstar, trying to hurt the giant as she shouts, "Eva doesn't matter! If we don't stop this giant, he'll kill us all!"

[roll0]
[roll1]

[stack]

Brom sees Elena's state relative to Gallard's and makes a quick decision, crossing to her and relieving her wounds.

held charge on CCW
[roll0]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn doesn't resist the grapple, powerless against such a huge foe. As soon as she's close enough, he smashes the bottle of acid in hand on her face.

Not really sure if this is viable, and I'm pretty sure Ivyn takes at least splash damage. But let's go for a melee touch attack at -4 to hit along with some acid damage:

Touch attack: [roll0]
Acid damage: [roll1]

[Kish]

Gallard, who is now flanking the giant with Elena, continues to attack him. Jonnel meanwhile battles the ogre alone. Ireena takes another step south and fires two arrows at the giant. Ivyn smashes a flask into Eva's face. (1 damage to Ivyn, 5 damage to Eva.)
You notice that your aim seems better than usual.

The giant plows through the underbrush and bears down on Ireena. (Attacks of opportunity from Gallard and Elena.) The ogre takes another swing at Jonnel. Eva lets out a silent shriek of outrage and throws Ivyn to the southwest. Ivyn sails through the air and slams into a crumbling stone wall. Gallard's sword strikes the giant twice as it dismissively turns its back on him, finally taking it from "annoyed" to "wounded," but Ireena's arrows and Elena's blow all bounce ineffectively off its thick hide armor. Meanwhile, Jonnel and the ogre avoid each others' attacks.

Gallard's full attack: [roll1][roll2][roll3]
Jonnel's attack, still fighting defensively: [roll4][roll5]
Ireena's arrows: [roll6][roll7][roll8][roll9]
Gallard's attack of opportunity: [roll10][roll11]
Elena's attack of opportunity: [roll12][roll13]
The ogre's attack: [roll14]1d20+8[roll15]
Ivyn takes [roll16] damage.
http://i59.tinypic.com/2qml0lj.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
Iv: Ivyn
E: Eva
G: Giant
O: Ogre
Grey: The runic circle
Light yellow: Silence zone
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

(PCs' turn.)

[stack]

Brom closes his eyes and raises his morningstar. A phantom duplicate flies toward the giant, attacking in his stead as he maneuvers around the undergrowth. spiritual weapon, attacking the giant from T9
att [roll0]
damage [roll1]

move to Q6

[Vetril]

Gallard shadows the enemy, taking advantage of its momentary distraction. He strikes a blow with the point of his sword, aiming at the back of the giant's knee, in an attempt to cripple him.

Jonnel whirls his blade in a moulinette, deciding to hold the ogre at bay until the others can offer some aid.

Gallard - move to S10 and attack the giant: [roll0], [roll1].

Jonnel - total defense.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn, sorely wounded and unable to cast, will stay and watch, readying the action to run up to within 15ft of Eva if she starts to cast something particularly lethal. He clutches his vial of tanglefoot, hoping that his participation in this fight was enough. But against those giants...

The better part of valor... He mouths to himself.

Sitting at 7 Hp. Kind of a bad place for a wizard. Kinda wish I had a crossbow, but 1d6 a round missing more often then not is rather useless.

[Ionbound]

Elena swings at the giant as it passes, then, when it's a decent distance away, charges at it, trying to deal a grievous blow with her morningstar.

AoO: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

Charge Attack: [roll2]
Damage: [roll3]

[Kish]

I did roll the AoOs for both Elena and Gallard.
Gallard moves to behind the giant and strikes him again. Elena charges the giant and strikes him with her morningstar. Brom creates a spectral morningstar which swipes at the giant but fails to hit flesh rather than armor. Ireena runs away to the southeast, into the heavy underbrush.

Eva shouts, "Leave that girl! Finish off the other one, and ignore the rest until she's dead no matter what they do!" Then she pulls a bottle out of her belt pouch and slurps it down in one gulp.

Anyone who attacks Eva between now and my posting that this no longer applies, needs to make a DC 15 Will save; if you succeed on that save you will be able to attack her freely after that. Failing that save means you waste one standard action and cannot attempt to attack her again until I post that this no longer applies.

The giant, who looks hurt but still looks like he can take more punishment than any of you, obediently turns and slams Elena with his tree-trunk-like club. (16 damage to Elena.) Meanwhile, the ogre continues trying to hit Jonnel, his greatclub clashing with Jonnel's sword again.


[roll0][roll1]
[roll2][roll3]
http://i62.tinypic.com/9ia8ns.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
Iv: Ivyn
M: Brom's spectral morningstar
E: Eva
G: Giant
O: Ogre
Grey: The runic circle
Light yellow: Silence zone
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)

Ireena yells, "Get back before he kills you, Elena! Just keep away from him as long as he's chasing you, and we'll kill him!"

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[stack]

The summoned weapon continues its work. att [roll0]
damage [roll1]

At a loss for a way to effectively combat the towering foes, Brom calls on the heavens for aid. SMII for a celestial eagle in V12 to flank the giant.

Why did I even prep SMII? Oy.

[Vetril]

Gallard keeps circling around the enemy, to maintain the advantage. As he steps aside, he sweeps his blade horizontally twice, aiming at the knees.

Jonnel feints once to keep the brute off balance, his sword slashing the air like a snake's tongue. The warrior immediately raises his shield over his head, to maximize protection against the taller creature.

Gallard - steps to R11 (I assume that flanks with the summon), full attack: [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3].

Jonnel - total defense.

[Ionbound]

Elena nods, but slightly distracted she takes a clubbing to the ribs. Her armor protects her from the worst of it and she mutters a prayer of thanks to Ezra as she turns the blow into a roll backwards, trying to draw the giant's attention for her companions to take advantage of.

Make a withdraw action, move to V2.

[Kish]

The blows Gallard and Brom aim at the giant fail to penetrate his armor. A golden eagle appears behind him in a flash of light, and slashes at him with claws and beak, and Ireena fires two more arrows at him, one of which strikes and one of which lodges harmlessly in his armor. As Elena retreats, the giant grimly pursues her, massive club held high (he's using a run action, so he provokes attacks of opportunity from Gallard, the eagle, and the spectral morningstar; they're rolled below). The morningstar lands solidly on the giant's retreating back, and the eagle rips a chunk out of one of his ears. The ogre continues trying to flatten Jonnel, and this time lands a solid blow despite Jonnel's best defensive efforts (15 damage to Jonnel). Eva casts a spell that makes the nasty acid burn on her face disappear, then yells, "Tergalg, leave him and help Zarbarth finish off the girl!"

Eagle's attacks: [roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5][roll6][roll7]
Ireena's attacks: [roll8][roll9]
[roll10][roll11]
Gallard's AoO:[roll12][roll13]
Morningstar's AoO:[roll14][roll15]
Ogre's attack: [roll16][roll17]
Eva's spell: [roll18]
http://i61.tinypic.com/2vanj3t.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
Iv: Ivyn
M: Brom's spectral morningstar
C: Brom's celestial eagle
E: Eva
G: Giant
O: Ogre
Grey: The runic circle
Light yellow: Silence zone
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Very dark green: Forest wall (cannot see through, cannot penetrate at faster than walking speed)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[stack]

Brom charges the Ogre, having no real offensive spells remaining, his strength surging with holy power.Eagle's attacks: [roll0] [roll1]
[roll2] [roll3]
[roll4] [roll5]

Morningstar:[roll6]
[roll7]

using strength surge for +6 str, charge [roll8]
[roll9]

[Ionbound]

Elena turns and swings at the giant, determines to finish it.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[Vetril]

Copied from the OOC thread.

Gallard evaluates the situation, and then turns to challenge madame Eva. Swifly, he closes the distance, stepping into the runic circle and striking a blow with his blade, directing it at the woman's body.

Jonnel stumbles for a moment, then shifts his position to better anticipate any blow directed towards him.

Gallard - charge madame Eva, Smite Evil: 19, 16.

Jonnel - fight defensively, attack the ogre: 8, 4.

[Kish]

The eagle can actually only attack once in the same round it moves to follow the giant...but all three of those rolls are misses anyway.
Elena slams her morningstar into the giant's knee; he bellows in pain, looking seriously hurt at last. The eagle slashes at him but fails to do any damage. The spectral morningstar smashes hard into the top of his head, and he starts bleeding from his ears. Meanwhile, Brom strikes the ogre a massive blow, and Ivyn twists the ring on his finger and disappears from sight as he starts to move forward. Gallard lunges at Eva, entering a zone where he can hear nothing; his sword seems oddly guided to strike true as he slashes her, but it doesn't cut as deeply as he was expecting; all current evidence to the contrary, it appears that his detection when he first met her was not somehow fooled, she is actually not evil. Ireena fires two more arrows at the giant, desperately shouting, "Elena, look out!"

Both Ireena's arrows slam into the giant. Tottering, looking nearly dead, the giant nevertheless brings his club down on Elena with deadly force (18 damage to Elena).
The ogre turns his back on Jonnel and Brom and starts to hurry around a wall to reach Elena; both Brom and Jonnel strike him soundly, Brom's strength still enhanced, and he collapses on the ground in front of them. Eva shakes her head and says one word no one can hear, followed by, "I don't think so, Ivyn." Ivyn can hear her for the first time since she cast the silence spell; she's dismissed it. "I regret this," she sighs as she raises her claws to disembowel Gallard. "I really do."

[roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5]
[roll6][roll7]
[roll8][roll9]
[roll10][roll11]
http://i61.tinypic.com/1256mht.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
G: Gallard
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
Iv: Ivyn (no one but Ivyn knows this)
M: Brom's spectral morningstar
C: Brom's celestial eagle
E: Eva
G: Giant
Grey: The runic circle
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Very dark green: Forest wall (cannot see through, cannot penetrate at faster than walking speed)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

Elena swings her morningstar again, shouting, "Die monster!"

If it's already felled by the time her action comes, she instead points a finger at Eva and shouts, "You will not hurt anyone else!" and unleashes a blast of holy light.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[roll2] vs. Touch
[roll3]

[Vetril]

Gallard replies to Madame Eva's words: "Then stand down, and we might reach an agreement."
The knight waits for an answer, but his blade stays up, ready to strike if needed.

Far behind Gallard, Jonnel moves to engage the giant and shouts a battle cry, as he tries to strike the huge brute as hard as he can.

"There's no need to do this, Eva.".

Gallard - readies an action to attack Madame Eva if she starts casting a spell or attacks Gallard.

Jonnel - moves to T2 U5, then attacks the giant (Power Attack for 5): [roll0], [roll1].

[stack]

Brom turns from teh fallen giant, directing his summoned allies toward the fortune teller, but holding them from attacking until she responds to Gallard.eagle move to K9, ready action to attack if Eva doesn't talk instead of fighting, will
att [roll1] damage [roll]1d4+

Brom moves to N6

redirects morningstar towards Eva, no attack if she surrenders though

[Kish]

Elena strikes the giant in the ribs as he bends over, and he finally falls backwards, the eagle flying up to avoid getting fallen on.

Ireena points her bow at Eva, winces, then moves through the thick undergrowth to X15. The eagle flies over to hover behind Eva as Gallard speaks.

"I'm afraid there is," Eva says, her slash at Gallard not slowing even as his sword slices fairly deeply into her side. "I really hoped you would destroy the Count, but, freedom means very little to me if I'm not going to be alive to enjoy it," she sighs even as her claws, seeming supernaturally guided past Gallard's armor, slice into his arms and she grabs him securely. (Gallard takes 13 damage and is grappled; needs to beat a grapple check of 34 to escape. Anyone can now attack Eva freely.)

Gallard's readied action: [roll0][roll1]
Eva's attack: [roll2][roll3][roll4]
http://i57.tinypic.com/2afz9qh.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
Iv: Ivyn (no one but Ivyn knows this)
M: Brom's spectral morningstar
C: Brom's celestial eagle
E: Eva and Gallard grappling
Grey: The runic circle
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Very dark green: Forest wall (cannot see through, cannot penetrate at faster than walking speed)


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

I have a better idea.

His voice returned, Ivyn starts to cast one his most potent enchantment.

Targetting Eva. Will DC21 or be my BFF.

[Ionbound]

Elena raises a glowing finger and says, "Face the light!" though she holds the spell to see whether or not Ivyn's took effect.

Prepare action to cast Searing Light on Eva if she isn't charmed:

[roll0] vs. Touch
[roll1]

...Really, dice?

[stack]

Brom let's the summons strike first, charging in under the cover of their onslaught. "Why is it that you would not survive? What did you see?"Brom charge [roll0]
damage [roll1]

morningstar [roll2]
[roll3]

eagle [roll4] [roll5]
[roll6] [roll7]
[roll8] [roll9]

[Vetril]

Madame Eva's unexpected strength catches Gallard totally unprepared. He is grabbed and loses his sword. As he struggles to draw his dagger, the knight calls for help.

"She's not normal! I won't last long, assist me!"

Hearing those words, Jonnel rapidly approaches the two enemies locked in combat.

"I'm here! Let him go, witch!" - he says.

Gallard - grapple check to draw his dagger as a move action: [roll0]. If Gallard somehow succeeds, he stabs Eva with the blade; otherwise he tries to headbutt her with his helmet. Attack: [roll1], [roll2].

Jonnel - runs to M11.

[Kish]

Ivyn pops into view as he casts a spell, but his spell seems to have no effect; Brom, the spectral morningstar, the eagle, Elena, and Gallard all attempt to attack Madam Eva, but all miss, Elena's beam vanishing against the stones at Eva's feet. Ireena fires two arrows at her, and like all the other attacks aimed at Eva they fly wide. Eva makes no response to Brom's words this time, grimly rending Gallard with her claws. (10 damage to Gallard.)

[roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5]
http://i61.tinypic.com/6sqf5u.png
Key:
One square: 5 feet
J: Jonnel
B: Brom
E: Elena
Ir: Ireena
Iv: Ivyn
M: Brom's spectral morningstar
C: Brom's celestial eagle
E: Eva and Gallard grappling
Grey: The runic circle
Light green: Light undergrowth (takes 10 feet of movement to move through one square, provides concealment, +2 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth (takes 20 feet of movement to move through one square, cannot run or charge, provides concealment, +5 to Hide checks, +5 DC to Tumble and Move Silently checks)
Very dark green: Forest wall (cannot see through, cannot penetrate at faster than walking speed)


(Gallard's sword: On the ground, not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

When Elena sees Eva tear and rend Gallard, she growls, unconsciously, and shouts, "Let him go!" as she fires off another beam of holy light at the evil cleric.

[roll0] vs. Touch
[roll1]

The failures will continue until the party dies...

[Vetril]

Gallard gasps for the pain: Eva is able to reach his flesh as if the armor wasn't there. The knight tries to punch Madame Eva, but it is clear that his struggles are weakening.

Jonnel grabs his sword halfway down the blade, and tries to stab Eva, while at the same time avoiding the body of his friend.

Gallard - tries to break free: [roll0].
Jonnel - attacks Madame Eva: [roll1] (is he flanking?), [roll2].

[stack]

Brom adds his own beam of light to ELena's. searing failure, i mean light [roll0] vs touch (should to flat-footed since grappling anyhow), additional bonuses below

eagle moves to flank at L12 to give +2 to Brom's attack, aid another (attack) from eagle [roll1] vs DC 10 for +2 to Brom's attack

morningstar [roll2]
[roll3]

[Kish]

Jonnel, Brom's morningstar, and Brom's spectral morningstar all strike Madam Eva, and she drops Gallard on the ground and staggers for a few seconds as Ireena runs toward her.

"Good...luck," Eva gasps. "You'll need it." Then she falls backwards, her eyes glaze over, and her body seems to shrink. Elena suddenly feels a lot less disturbed; the rest of you realize only by its sudden absence that there had been a hum of power in this place, too low to register in your ears. It has utterly ceased, and the Forest Fane is now as dead as its guardian.

Presuming any of you turn over Eva's body instead of just leaving her to lie on her back in the runic circle, you find a chunk of stone has broken off of the stone at the center of the circle, and is glowing pink and green.

You are all Level 8 now (except Jonnel, who is Level 6).

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena sighs and asks, as her head clears, "Am I the only one that feels like all of this was pointless?" as she flips Eva over, saying quietly, "We should give her a burial somewhere..." before picking up the glowing piece of stone and looks at it, flipping it this way and that, examining it.

Knowledge (Religion) to figure out what the stone is: [roll0]

[stack]

Brom waits a moment to be certain there is no ruse. "That was...strange. That presence, that power notable only by its absence...tied to Eva? She was telling us about something just before she turned on us. About severing Strahd from the fanes? So she saw that doing so required her death. A pity she would not tell us, perhaps there would have been another way. I suppose the other fanes have guardians as well. We cannot hold turning on us against her too strongly though, a person will do many things in sudden fear. Let us bury her here, by the fane she defended."

[Kish]

Ireena reaches down to help Gallard to his feet. "Are you all right?" she asks him.

Instead of a massive figure with claws, Elena finds herself turning over the light corpse of a frail old woman, half a foot shorter than Elena herself. Eva's clothing is suddenly extremely loose on her.

As Elena picks up the strange glowing rock, bits of stone flake off from it until it's perfectly spherical, but she cannot identify any religious significance it might have. Eva is wearing a necklace, and the pouch at her belt holds a wand, two small bottles with some form of liquid in them, and an ornate platinum sword hilt.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Well that was... Unexpected. Is everyone all right?

Ivyn will survey the goods, using his knowledge skills as appropriate.

Taking 10 for 25 if the check is without taking leveling into account. 27 if with.

As applicable
Knowledge Religion, Arcana, Planes, and spellcraft

[stack]

Brom lays a hand on the sorely wounded Gallard. "I think we are all a bit rough. Best to cure the worst of it now, just in case."burning remove disease for cure serious [roll0]

[Kish]

"I'm not," Ireena says in response to Brom's words as she walks over to where she left her rapier and picks it up. "I'm only a little bruised. Can we get back to fighting giant spiders? Or at least something that hasn't gotten the memo that I'm property of Strahd, handle with care?" She sighs. "But it looks like we've accomplished something here, if this was one of Strahd's fanes, and...that looks like the hilt of the sword the ghost spoke about. The question now is, how is the blade in the same place?"


Presumably Ivyn will mention these to you; if there's something he'd keep secret, we can sort it out later. The potions are of Magic Fang and Remove Curse; the wand is of Identify. He can't tell whether there's anything magic about the necklace or not; the glowing spherical stone is obviously magical but he can't tell more.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[stack]

"We can search the fane if we think the blade is to be nearby. In the meantime, let us do a bit of digging to bury her. How shall we search for the other fanes?"

[Kish]

"No, I don't think the blade was at the fane," Ireena says, coming over to stand next to Brom. She bends to pick up Gallard's sword from the ground. "Can I see that hilt, Ivyn? Thanks. She said that both the hilt and the blade were together, at the place where wanderers rest, which must have meant the camp itself, since the hilt was there with Eva. And then she brought it here...." Ireena holds up the hilt next to Gallard's sword, showing anyone who looks that the hilt's style is identical to that of the blade of Gallard's sword, "...and we brought the blade here."

She'll give both the hilt and the sword to Gallard, if he'll take it, and then join Brom in digging. "No one ever said anything about Madam Eva being a monster. What Strahd did to the fanes must have...changed her."

[Vetril]

Gallard puffs and wheezes: it looks like he is completely spent. He accepts Ireena's help with gratitude.

"Thanks. Maybe I'm getting too old for fighting monsters."

"...Too old?", asks Jonnel. After a moment, the two start to laugh, as if sharing a joke they obviously understand. Unfortunately, the knight's laughter soon turns to a groan of pain.

"Could have been worse", he comments, while Brom's magic closes the wounds.

Gallard takes his sword and the other parts from Ireena's hand, and examines them. Jonnel quickly joins him, looking at the pieces from over his shoulder.

"How strange. What does this other sword have to do with my family?"

[Kish]

"I was hoping you could tell me how you came to have the blade of the Sunsword," Ireena says.

It takes somewhere between an hour to two hours to bury Madam Eva (less time the more people participate, two hours if it's just Brom and Ireena). "Where do we go now?" Ireena asks.

[Ionbound]

Elena helps bury Madame Eva as she says, "I'm not sure. Perhaps look for the other Fanes, if we have the complete Sunsword. Also...Did anyone else feel really disturbed until Eva died?"

[stack]

"Yes, I mentioned that feeling. If we can reform the sunsword...place where wanderers rest, we can go back to the camp first, if that doesn't work perhaps the inn? Then on to find the other fanes, or information about them anyhow. I'd rather not bumble endlessly about the countryside tooking for them."

[Kish]

"She said that we needed to find the Sunsword at the place where wanderers rest, and take it to where the light lies dead to restore it," Ireena says. "Did you write down her exact words, Ivyn?"
This (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=18113307&postcount=1023) and this (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=18127718&postcount=1030) are the posts in question.

[stack]

"She did ramble a bit, easy to get confused." Brom mutters. "So, do we risk searching the castle for a place to restore the sword or try to find the other fanes to weaken our foe first?"

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Written word and my memory are one and the same. You know, just in case he wasn't sure of our intentions before, he'll absolutely know by the time we're done. Zero element of surprise. If I were him, I'd even go through the trouble to make us all think that this was a viable solution, just to make us that much weaker when we face him. I think we should research alternative ways to slay him should this all be a wild goose chase.

On the subject of wild goose chases, who here is ready to take down a werewolf tribe?

[Ionbound]

Elena swallows, shaking her head, and says, "No. I think...I think this fane drove them mad. We don't have the resources to try to wipe them out, not now. Maybe once we're done with Strahd, but...Not now."

[Vetril]

Gallard slowly puts away the hilt, and sheathes his own blade after wiping it clean. He looks at Ivyn.

"However... You are knowledgeable about magic; can't we use these runic circles against the Count, to weaken him? I'm surprised it hasn't been tried, but maybe we are the first that oppose Strahd."

Jonnel moves closer to Brom and Elena, while he carefully cleans his sword from the blood of the giant. Satisfied, he returns his attention to his companions.

"Yes, I can't believe no priest of the old faith would let this pass. Surely his connection to the land can't be good, if he's dead."

[Kish]

"For...multiple moral and practical reasons, I'm opposed to prosecuting a war with the werewolves that they may not want--may never have wanted--assuming everything we've learned is what Strahd wants us to think, and doing what he tried to manipulate you into doing," Ireena says. "Eva did lead us to the Sunsword, the Tome, and the Holy Symbol; I can't prove that the Sunsword or Tome are going to be useful or are things Strahd didn't want us to have, but the Symbol is definitely what Strahd had stolen, what was able to keep him away before. If you don't need to rest, I think it would be better to look for the fanes before we go to the castle again, though I don't know--but first, were you able to figure out what any of these things are?"

[stack]

"Repowering the items we have recovered would be a great boon, though I am loath to return to the castle to do so for those that seem to require it. As for finding the fanes, the question is how to find out where to begin looking? In the morning I could seek advice from above, unless we have other ideas?"divination is cleric 4. preparing it would eat top level slots quickly, but it ought to point us in the right direction. Cost 25 GP/use.

[Ionbound]

Elena shakes her head and says, "Not really, no. Though I think I have a fairly good idea of where the mountain Fane might be, it's good to be absolutely sure."

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

The book. That's what the divinations said. I think I need to do some reading.

Ivyn will crack open the book and look for clues regarding the fanes. When the party isn't actively traveling or such.

[Kish]

I'm assuming Ivyn told everyone the results of his examination of the items.

Ireena says, "So you can use that wand to identify the other things we have that we haven't identified?" She looks at the glowing rock Elena is holding.

[stack]

"I propose we return to the village for rest and study. If necessary, we can attempt to divine further information in the morning, using whatever we find in the book to guide our questions. Sound fair?"

[Vetril]

Gallard nods once he hears Brom's proposal.

"I agree; we can prepare, and once we know more about the locations of these other places of power, we can elaborate on our line of action."

Jonnel interjects:

"Do you think a smith could reconnect that magical hilt to your sword, Gallard?"

The knight seems dubious.

"From the little experience I have with magic, repairing a magical sword is probably going to involve more than some smithing; that is merely my opinion though."

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and walks from person to person in the party as they make their way back to the village, healing wounds and bruises, hopefully making the hike much more tolerable.

Alright. 3 CSW and 2 CMW for whoever needs them, keeping my first-levels for now.

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]
[roll6]

[Kish]

[roll0]
Your horses rejoin you at the camp, and you ride back to town. As you go, the sky clears; an hour after Eva died, it's a brilliant, cloudless blue.

You arrive back at Ireena's mansion in late afternoon.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

At the mansion, Ivyn will study his notes (written in a pigeon of all his known languages) of what Eva said (though if anyone asks they are recipes for a fruits of the forest pie that may lead to a viable catalyst for harnessing the full potential of a doily), along with the tome the party found in Strahd's castle, looking for references to fanes, what they might do, and this sword.

Taking the 17 and 18 from Elena's heals brings Ivyn back to full.

Applicable knowledge checks for Planes, Arcana, Religion are 27

[Kish]

At the burgomaster's mansion, Ismark greets you, raising an eyebrow at your tattered appearance. "I think we're making progress," Ireena tells him. "We've learned about Strahd's weaknesses and his sources of power and we did something that seems likely to have weakened him."

"He hasn't confronted you himself yet? I'm surprised. I wish I could do more to help, Ireena...I..."
"I know. But these friends have been more helpful than I could have hoped. We'll get him, Ismark. And everything will be different for all of us then."

Ismark goes upstairs. Ivyn studies the book for several hours. Shortly after dusk, you hear a crash of thunder and the sound of rain pouring hard on the boarded windows.

You can't find anything more about the locations of the fanes than that they are places of power in the forests, the mountains, and the swamp. From the map Ireena showed you, the only swamp in the area would be the Ivlis Marsh south of the town; the mountains are mostly to the north, past the castle. Two of Strahd's references to the Mountain Fane segue into complaints about someone he calls Zelena defying his authority and summoning demons. Strahd gloatingly refers to himself as invulnerable on a few occasions; you think he implies that the Forest Fane protects him from detection, the Mountain Fane protects him from physical attacks, and the Swamp Fane protects him from magic, but he doesn't attribute his claimed immunity to the sun to any of them.


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

Let me know if you're doing anything else before resting for the night.

[stack]

(Presuming Ivyn shares)

"We have a name, at least. Perhaps someone in the town can give a direction? Not that anyone who could tell us could be trusted, if indeed they are summoning demons."

[Vetril]

"We have a name, though. This Zelena is probably an enemy of Strahd, but I doubt they'll be friendly to us."

[stack]

"Perhaps the morning's light will bring answers, it has been another challenging day in a long series of them, I vote we rest."

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "Yes, rest seems like a good plan. We can search for the other fanes tomorrow, or look into the sword later."

[Kish]

[roll0]

You set up in the front room of Ireena's mansion as you did the previous two nights. About an hour into Elena's watch, a crash of thunder is immediately followed by the sound of something heavy slamming into one of the boarded-up windows, and Gallard's sword begins to glow.

[Ionbound]

Elena starts when she hears the slam, but wastes no time in drawing her morningstar and shouting, "Wake up! Something's coming!" trying to rouse everyone.

[Kish]

Ireena rolls over and jumps to her feet, grabbing her bow. She aims it at the window that produced the noise, her hand hesitating over two of her quivers before it grabs and nocks an arrow from the one she's been using all along.

[Kish]

Oh, you can place yourselves on the map as you see fit to start.

The window where you heard the bang was between R35 and R36.
http://i60.tinypic.com/a3fj10.png

[Vetril]

Gallard stands and raises his sword like a torch. The eerie glow illuminates his face.

"The dead roam freely in the night. Be ready."

Behind him, Jonnel prepares for a long night. The warrior's face is pale, but he stands firmly next to his friend.

If I'm reading the map correctly, I'll place Gallard at Q31, and Jonnel at P31.

[stack]

Brom wastes no time in rising, grabbing his shield and morningstar and forgoing his armor as he rushes to the sound of distress, newly acquired orb slowly circling his head. Seeing the tell-tale glow of his ally's blade, he allows himself a small smile. "Undead? At least those I know how to handle. Let us stay close to each other, if they are able to enter then they will feel the blessed sun on their faces."taking R29, ready action to (greater)turn undead when any undead get in range. Let me add the +2 Cha to my sheet...

[roll0]
damage [roll1] x 1.5 (up to 12 HD undead affected)

religion to ID undead once visible [roll2] (39 HD total)
Greater, so destroyed rather than turned

this is using his 1/day greater turning, not burning two regular

[Ionbound]

Elena nods as she lifts her morningstar and says, "Indeed. This...This we can fight."

Ready an action to charge at anything that survives the Brombomb.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn lifts his head from the book he fell asleep on. Bleary eyed and stiff, he joins the party (10 ft behind Gallard at Q29). He'll scan the room for anything other than the main assault everyone else is focused on. One can never be too careful. He readies a scorching ray for the first enemy to come within range.


Ranged Touch: [roll0]
Fire Damage: [roll1]
Ranged Touch: [roll2]
Fire Damage: [roll3]

[Kish]

The boards blocking the window fly inward, followed closely by a low lupine form, and then another and another. Fiery rays from Ivyn's hands drop one of them immediately and light another's fur on fire; Ireena unleashes a volley of arrows at the wolves, dropping the one burned by Ivyn and wounding two others; Elena charges forward and smashes one of the ones wounded by Ireena to the floor.

After five wolves have entered the mansion, the sixth one looks different from the others. Fully twelve feet long, it bares terrifyingly sharp teeth, its eyes red and filled with vicious hunger.

The huge wolf isn't breathing.


Brom's shield glows brightly. To Brom's surprise, instead of burning up or collapsing, the huge wolf turns into a gray fog and floats back out through the broken window. One of the wolves lets out a questioning whine, but even as it does, more wolves are pouring through the breach. The next three wolves are large, some nine feet long though not as large as the one that disappeared quickly, and have glowing red eyes. Then more wolves, smaller but still with glowing red eyes; you quickly lose count of how many are coming through the breach now.

You recognize the wolves with glowing red eyes as fiendish creatures.
The big ones are fiendish dire wolves. You're also nearly certain that the wolves with normal-looking eyes are just wolves, not werewolves or anything else unusual that you've ever encountered.




[roll0]
[roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5][roll6]
http://i57.tinypic.com/2pydsh2.png
W3 and W4 are normal-looking wolves. The DWs are the big ones. W5 through W9 have glowing red eyes.


(Gallard's sword: Glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Seeing the rush of forms entering the mansion, Ivyn casts Haste upon his allies.

+1 to AC, initiative, Attack rolls, +2 to reflex saves. And an additional Attack when full attacking. Which we will likely need.

Recomend the first two attacks at full BaB go to the big ones and the third attack at -5 be directed at nearby small wolves. Remember you can 5ft step in the middle of a full attack iirc.

The smaller ones are soft targets! Go for them last!

[stack]

Seeing a grueling fight ahead, Brom blesses himself with the strength of his patron to be ready for combat.bull's strength, from the domain slot that he couldn't convert into healing. Only other spell left is enlarge person (also domain), which we don't have time for.

[Kish]

"Do any of them need special arrows?" Ireena shouts.

[stack]

"Vampire is gone for now. That is about the limit of my expertise."

[Ionbound]

Elena growls as she brings down her morningstar on the dire wolf before her's head, and shouts imposingly, "Be gone, all of you!"

Full Attack DW3: [roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]

[Vetril]

Gallard and Jonnel skillfully step up in perfect coordination, closing the gap between them and the large wolves. Their weapons blur to the sight as they unleash a powerful flurry of blows, thanks to Ivyn's magical aid.

Gallard - step to P32, full attack DW1: [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3]; [roll4], [roll5].
Jonnel - step to O32, full attack DW1: [roll6], [roll7]; [roll8], [roll9].

[Kish]

Elena's morningstar strikes three times, wounding one of the big wolves. Gallard and Jonnel both attack another big wolf, but though all their blows hit home, Jonnel finds its skin oddly tough. (Most of Jonnel's damage is prevented by damage reduction.) "I like this spell," Ireena says as her bow blurs with speed.

The wolves in the back lines run forward to attack. Five more wolves with glowing red eyes come through the breach.

Ireena: [roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5][roll6][roll7]

[Kish]

Two of Ireena's arrows fell the dire wolf wounded by Elena, while two others lodge in the one hurt by Gallard and Jonnel. The fallen dire wolf immediately shimmers and vanishes; one of the red-eyed normal-size wolves surges forward to take its place. Jonnel is bitten twice, Gallard once, and Brom once; the other bites fail to strike home. (Jonnel takes 30 damage and falls prone; Gallard takes 22 damage and has to beat a Strength check of 18 or fall prone; Brom takes 4 damage and has to beat a Strength check of 14 or fall prone. You all notice that the bites seem accompanied by something like an electric shock, but with a disturbingly malevolent edge to it.)

DW1 attacks Jonnel, flanking with W6: [roll0]Trip attempt:[roll1]Damage: [roll2]
DW2 attacks Gallard, flanking with W6: [roll3]Trip attempt:[roll4]Damage: [roll5]
W3 attacks Elena, flanking with W9: [roll6]Trip attempt:[roll7]Damage:[roll8]
W4 attacks Elena, flanking with DW2: [roll9]Trip attempt:[roll10]Damage:[roll11]
W5 attacks Ireena: [roll12]Trip attempt:[roll13]Damage:[roll14]
W6 attacks Gallard, flanking with DW2: [roll15]Trip attempt:[roll16]Damage:[roll17]
W7 attacks Jonnel, flanking with DW2: [roll18]Trip attempt:[roll19]Damage:[roll20]
W8 attacks Brom: [roll21]Trip attempt:[roll22]Damage:[roll23]
W9 attacks Elena, flanking with W3: [roll24]Trip attempt:[roll25]Damage:[roll26]
http://i58.tinypic.com/noj2mf.png


(Gallard's sword: Glowing.)

(PCs' turn.)

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn assesses the situation and takes a step away from the action. He casts another transmutation on the furry beasts.

5ft step left and up one. Casting slow on the Wolves and drawing a silver dagger

Will save DC 19 or be slow.(still updating my character sheet. Myth weavers is glitchy on my phone and not allowed at work).

Targetting the uninjured dire wolf and 7 uninjured Wolves in numerical order. So DW2 and W4-10.

[stack]

Brom wonders at the disappearance of the fallen wolf and the glow of Gallard's blade, but has no time to ponder the question as he lays into the wolf in front of him.attack W8, W5 if 8 falls

[roll0]
damage [roll1]

[roll2]
damage [roll3]

[roll4]
damage [roll5]

[Ionbound]

Elena shakes her head as she smacks the second dire wolf, disappointed by the necessity of her actions

Attack DW2: [roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]

[Vetril]

Jonnel falls to the ground and desperately tries to keep the blade between him and the teeth of the giant wolf, before his throat is torn.

Gallard's Str check: [roll0]

[Vetril]

Gallard is almost taken down, but stands with a roar, shifting his attention towards the beasts that tower above his companion. He lunges multiple times, trying to stab the wolf's neck.

Gallard - full attacks W7: [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3]; [roll4], [roll5].

Jonnel - total defense.

[Kish]

Elena slams her morningstar into the uninjured dire wolf three times. Brom strikes the red-eyed wolf in front of him twice and misses it once; at his second hit, it falls to the floor and disappears. Gallard slices one of the smaller red-eyed wolves savagely even as Ivyn chants. Ireena takes a step back and launches another four arrows at the dire wolves standing over Jonnel.
[roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3][roll4][roll5][roll6][roll7]
[roll8][roll9][roll10][roll11]
[roll12][roll13][roll14][roll15]

[Kish]

The wolf Gallard attacks falls and disappears, as does the dire wolf who was previously injured. Two of Ireena's arrows stick in the remaining dire wolf, who, despite looking nearly dead, makes a vicious lunge at Jonnel, unimpeded by Ivyn's spell, and bites him savagely (11 damage, but with a notable lack of added shock this time).

All three of the normal-eyed wolves withdraw from combat. Two run out through the breach; the third, moving at half the speed it moved when it came in, doesn't quite make it out of the mansion. Even as they retreat, however, the other red-eyed wolves step up to press the assault. One of them attacks Jonnel, three attack Elena and three attack Gallard; the last one moves up to attack Jonnel but moves too slowly to do so yet. One of the wolves bites Gallard (Gallard takes 5 damage, also noting the lack of added supernatural damage this time, and has to beat a Strength check of 13 or be tripped); all the other bites miss.

Brom's check to stay on his feet: [roll0]
DW2 attacks Jonnel: [roll1] Damage: [roll2]
W6 attacks Gallard, flanking with DW2: [roll3]Trip attempt:[roll4]Damage:[roll5]
W9 attacks Gallard, flanking with W12: [roll6]Trip attempt:[roll7]Damage:[roll8]
W11 attacks Jonnel, flanking with DW2: [roll9]Damage:[roll10]
W12 attacks Gallard, flanking with W9: [roll11]Trip attempt:[roll12]Damage:[roll13]
W13 attacks Elena, flanking with DW2: [roll14]Trip attempt:[roll15]Damage:[roll16]
W14 attacks Elena, flanking with DW2: [roll17]Trip attempt:[roll18]Damage:[roll19]
W15 attacks Elena, flanking with W6: [roll20]Trip attempt:[roll21]Damage:[roll22]
http://i62.tinypic.com/2ykak4w.png
Key:
W: Slowed wolf with glowing red eyes.
W: Wolf with glowing red eyes (or the disappearing tail of W4, who was slowed and has normal eyes).
DW: 9-foot-long wolf with glowing red eyes. Badly injured; anyone who attacks this wolf should declare a secondary target.


(Gallard's sword: Glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

Elena lays into the dire wolf, determined to finish the job, then, assuming her blows fell it, moves down the line, attacking the slowed wolf before her.

Attack DW, then W9: [roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]

[stack]

Brom charges forward, looking to clear Gallard's flank with a swing from his weapon.

charge to Q30, attack W6
[roll0]
damage [roll1]

[neoseph7]

Igun Nadirna

Ivyn shuffles over to Ireena and casts Cat's Grace on her, bolstering her archery.

[Vetril]

Gallard swiftly turns on himself to slash the largest wolf three times in rapid succession; his magical sword traces blue streaks in the air as he wields it. The knight seems to be unbreakable, and despite the wolves' best efforts, he simply refuses to go to the ground.
Jonnel dares not move from his dangerous position, surrounded as he is by the beasts: for the moment, he seems to prioritize self defense.

Gallard - full attack DW2; if it dies, redirect any remaining attacks against W11: [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3]; [roll4], [roll5].

Jonnel - total defense once again.

[Kish]

Elena slams the dire wolf to the ground, and the dire wolf shimmers and vanishes. She hits one of the smaller wolves once. Brom charges forward and hits another of the wolves; Gallard slices a third wolf twice. Ivyn moves over to Ireena and casts a spell on her; she shows her teeth in a grin as she unleashes another volley of arrows.

[roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5][roll6][roll7]

"What's going on down here?" Ismark calls, appearing at the bottom of the stairs.

"ISMARK, GO BACK UP!" Ireena screams.

[Kish]

Ireena's arrows fell W6, W11, and W10, all of whom disappear. W4 runs out through the breach and is gone. Two of the remaining wolves attack Gallard, one of them biting him (Gallard takes 4 damage and has to beat a Strength check of 17 or be tripped), and three attack Elena but are unable to get through her defenses, even as they shift to still surround your front line. The glow from Gallard's sword fades.

W9 attacks Gallard, flanking with W12: [roll0]Trip attempt:[roll1]Damage:[roll2]
W12 attacks Gallard, flanking with W9: [roll3]Trip attempt:[roll4]Damage:[roll5]
W13 attacks Elena, flanking with W12: [roll6]Trip attempt:[roll7]Damage:[roll8]
W14 attacks Elena, flanking with W14: [roll9]Trip attempt:[roll10]Damage:[roll11]
W15 attacks Elena, flanking with W15: [roll12]Trip attempt:[roll13]Damage:[roll14]
http://i62.tinypic.com/2d8oqaw.png
W: Slowed wolf with glowing red eyes.
W: Wolf with glowing red eyes.
B: Brom.
E: Elena.
G: Gallard.
Ir: Ireena.
Iv: Ivyn.
Is: Ismark.
J: Jonnel.


PCs' turn.

[stack]

Brom continues laying into the wolves flanking the now prone Gallard.[roll0]
damage [roll1]

[roll2]
damage [roll3]

[roll4]
damage [roll5]

[Ionbound]

Elena's wrath turns to the lesser wolves, morningstar cracking into the one directly before her, bringing pain and retribution in equal measures.

Full Attack W15: [roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]-5=18

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn will run over to Jonnel's withdrawn position and administer a healing potion.


Using the id'ed potion of cure serious:
[roll0]

[Vetril]

Jonnel takes the opportunity to roll away to relative safety and stand up once again. He swiftly accepts Ivyn's help.
Gallard is pushed back and has to readjust to avoid falling to the ground, but once again he stands on his feet.
After taking a split second to give a quick look to his surroundings, the knight turns to help Brom dealing with the wolves he just attacked: the Ravensgate sword slashes thrice in rapid succession, as its wielder aims for the beasts. Blood flies through the air.

Gallard - full attack W12 (then W14): [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3]; [roll4], [roll5].

Jonnel - crawl to O32, stand, and drink Ivyn's potion.

[Kish]

Brom smashes a wolf to the ground with three blows, and the wolf shimmers and vanishes. Elena smashes one wolf to the floor with two blows and strikes a third. Gallard cuts down the wolf struck by Elena (who disappears) and then turns to slice another wolf severely. Ireena lets loose another volley of arrows.

[roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5][roll6][roll7]

The last two wolves fall and disappear. A flash of lightning is almost immediately followed by a deafening crash of thunder; Ismark wavers, seeming about to run back up the stairs, but then sees that the threat seems to be over, at least for the moment. "What happened here?" he asks.
No treasure; only what appear to be two perfectly ordinary wolf corpses and a broken window that was once covered in boards that are now broken marks that an enemy was ever here. You're all aware that summoned creatures would disappear on death or unconsciousness; there may also be other explanations for the disappearances. Ivyn, at least, can guess that the glowing red eyes were most likely a mark of a fiendish creature, and Brom's already mentioned the explanation for the one wolf whose eyes were red but didn't glow.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena frowns and says, "Someone summoned wolves to attack us...And normal ones got caught up in it somehow. We should bury them properly...It's not their fault. They're just animals."

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Is everyone all right? I was not expecting... That. A small contingent of fiendish wolves, sure. Summoned, no less, fits the bill. A vampiric werewolf though? At the least he was less than enthused at the presence of a holy symbol. The smaller wolf that got away may also have had a touch of undead, though I recall no other clues to support that theory.

Either way, it seems a pack of spell casting werewolves just hit the top of our short list of priorities. If you'll excuse me, I need to rethink my spell preperations.

Ivyn will retire to a bed room and study his spell book or sleep until his next watch.

[Kish]

"Summoned fiendish wolves...normal wolves that weren't summoned...and a vampire, you said?" Ireena addresses this last to Brom. "But no werewolves; I was using my normal arrows and they didn't heal anything. This looks like Strahd trying to get us to go after the werewolves, again."

She nods sympathetically at Elena's words. "We should try to rebuild the barricade as best we can, and move the bodies into another room until tomorrow."

[Ionbound]

Elena nods and says, "Yeah...A vampire that was somehow shapeshifted into a wolf makes a lot more sense. The werewolves hate Strahd too, remember?" as she lifts one of the wolves' corpses and carries it off into another room.

[stack]

"I am fairly certain the only undead has the one that turned to mist, as a vampire would. I doubt any lesser undead could have withstood what a vampire did not. As for the normal wolves, I believe vampires can sometimes control certain beasts or take their shape. The one that led this assault should not be back tonight, though I cannot speak for any other minions." Brom helps move the bodies and repair the barricade. know religion if needed to have the above info. I'm assuming he knows that since it is common folklore and he aced his knowledge check about vampires way back.

[Vetril]

Gallard replies to Brom's observation.

"Then we should plan some better defenses; without doubt, the next night will see us facing another attack."

Jonnel puts down his sword and sits for a moment to rest. He passes a hand through his hair.

"How many must we kill to see this done? Day after day, filled with violence. Peace must be restored."

Gallard offers his hand to the warrior, and pulls him up when he takes it.

"We will prevail, I believe. The enemy tries again and again to stop us, yet they are unable to defeat us. Our cause is just, and that gives us the strength to endure."

As the two men join Brom in restoring the room as it was before the attack, Jonnel comments:

"You know Gallard, at times I wonder where you find the will to keep going despite all the obstacles."

The knight thinks for a while, before offering an answer.

"I have faith that things will change for the better. I have a feeling we were called here for a purpose; and that's an encouraging thing, I believe."

[Kish]

You reinforce the barricade and move the two dead wolves to another room before returning to your rest schedule. The storm continues all night, but otherwise your sleep is not interrupted again.

In the morning, you take the wolves outside and bury them; it's easy to dig, as the hours of rain have turned the earth to mud.

[stack]

Before meditating in the sunrise, Brom addresses the group. "Have we made any progress in discerning more closely where we need to go to find the remaining fanes, if that is our goal for the day? I will ask for aid if we need it."

[Kish]

"As far as I know, we still just know they're in the swamp and the mountains," Ireena says. She brings out your map and points. http://i59.tinypic.com/24ywv8i.png "The swamp is here. The mountains are mostly up here."

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn gets up from his rest and studies with a crick in his neck and a bruise where he was slammed by Eva, though magical healing has made the wound little more than superficial. The events of the past few days leave the gnome homesick. He munches on a biscuit while feeding his bat fruit with the rest of the party.

I could use a shop. Do we have much in the way of adventuring profits? I could use a alchemists shoppe.

After looking at the map a bit, Ivyn throws in his two cents: The Marshes look closer, for what that's worth. If we have to do both then we might as well save the mountains north of the castle for last. What should we do about the wolves though? I still would rather not kill an indigenous population of lycanthropes, especially if Strahd wants us to. The possibilities exist for them to be as allies and to redeem them, bring them into the folds of civilization.

Finally updated my character sheet. Could use more acid vials.

[Kish]

"I think you closed the shop down," Ireena replies.

[stack]

Brom meditates for his daily blessings, then fashions a sun disc out of gold coins.

"Shining Pelor, what destination would lead us most quickly to removing the darkness from this land? Should we seek the swamp or mountains first?"

[Ionbound]

Elena shrugs and replies to Ivyn, "I think that when we shut down the forest Thane, that should have stopped the werewolf attacks, at lease according to Madame Eva...Anything else would be Strahd trying to mislead us, assuming she was telling the truth."

[Kish]

[roll0]

You have a vision of what is unmistakably a swamp. Your viewpoint moves down a trail and blurs, and you find yourself looking at a pond. At first the pond appears murky, then you can see to the bottom of it, and you see a runic circle near-identical to the one Eva died in. The vision ends abruptly.

[stack]

Brom rejoins the party. "I have been granted a vision. We have been guided to the swamp. There is a trail that leads to a pool, in the pool in the fane. I do not have precise directions, but I would recognize it when we got close. How many trails can there be in the swamp?"

[Vetril]

Gallard seems wary.

"Many, I'd say, judging from the map. Yet, we should be able to explore a sizeable part of the territory even if we can't immediately find the place. How far is this part of Barovia? Our horses will be less than useful once we proceed deep within the swamp."

[Kish]

"The swamp isn't far outside the village," Ireena says.

[Kish]

The storm continues unabated, cutting down visibility by a lot. As you approach the edge of Barovia, a drenched human woman who appears to be in her fifties runs up to you and yells, "Wait!" She takes a breath and then yells, "You went to the castle? You have to get my daughter back!"

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena looks up and swallows, her throat dry, as she calls to the woman, "Greetings! I...Ah...I promise, I'll do what I can to find your daughter."

[stack]

Brom raises his face plate, water streaming down from the helm's crest into his beard. "Peace woman. What is you name? Who is your daughter and why is she in the castle? How long has she been gone?"

[Vetril]

Jonnel and Gallard move closer to Brom.
Both give a good look at her, but neither speaks, letting the priest be the group's voice.

[Kish]

"Her name's Gertruda! I kept her safe, but she disappeared...two weeks ago now!"

"You're...Mary, aren't you?" Ireena says. "You have a daughter? I never met her." She looks dubious.

"Yes!" the woman yelps. "I kept her safe, but she disappeared! She had everything she ever could have wanted, why did she run away? I fear that the master of the castle has her now. Oh, my poor Gertruda! I know the worst has come to pass!"

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena grits her teeth and mutters, "I have a theory..." as her fists clench even tighter as her anger at Strahd grows.

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Ivyn won't involve himself in the discussion about Gertruda, but will listen to any details provided. Just hiding in the background...

[Vetril]

Gallard looks at Ireena. His eyebrows raise as he inquires about whatever information his ally can share.

"Is this woman from the village?"

The knight then shifts his gaze to the newcomer, giving her a good look.

Detect Evil on Mary.

[Kish]

"Yes, she is," Ireena confirms. "How old is your daughter, Mary?"


Gallard detects no evil.


"How old? Nineteen," Mary says. "I always took good care of her."

[Vetril]

Jonnel bumps Gallard's arm to draw his attention; the knight looks at him and simply shrugs, as if to say "I don't know". At last, the knight offers a promise to the woman.

"Rest assured, if your daughter is in danger, we will do everything in our power so that she is not harmed - but why don't you explain to us what happened?"

[Kish]

"What happened? Two weeks ago, I came home and my daughter wasn't in the house!"

"When did you start worrying?" Ireena asks her.

"Right away! My daughter was missing!" The woman looks at Ireena like she thinks Ireena's an idiot.

"She couldn't have just gone out?"

"No, she never went out! She had everything she needed, and it's dangerous out there...my poor little girl..."

"Nineteen and she never goes out alone?" Ireena raises an eyebrow. "But it is dangerous, especially if--did you search the rest of the town?"

"Yes! I looked everywhere! They laughed at me and called me mad and said she'd probably run away! Why would she want to do that? But Parriwimple told me he'd helped bury the bodies and Gertruda wasn't one of them. He's a good boy, anyway. He left town right after we spoke...something about a gnome, he said. She could be anywhere...Werewolves, zombies, the Count..."

"Parriwimple is Bildrath's nephew and stockboy," Ireena tells the rest of you. While Mary is looking away from her towards you, Ireena raises her eyebrows and shrugs, gesturing toward her mouth.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[stack]

The woman sounds...controlling. Would the girl feel so trapped as to run from her to the surrounding danger? But the fate of allin these lands may depend on our current task, there is no time to delay. "I am sorry, today we have business that takes us down another road. We will certainly watch for any sign of her and make effort to locate her when we next return to the castle."

[Kish]

"If she's been gone for two weeks, another day is unlikely to make a difference," Ireena says. "We'll find her if she's in the castle, Mary."

[stack]

"Let us continue on then. We have some distance to go. Good day, ma'am.'

[Kish]

Mary watches as you pass her and head out of town.

At the lowest point of the valley, the river Ivlis stretches wide and seems to take over the land. Patches of dead-gray reeds and small stands of moss-hung trees herald the fact that you're entering what is unmistakably a swamp, and pools of murky water attract clouds of insects. After 15 minutes of slow, careful foot travel, perhaps a quarter of a mile into this marsh, Ivyn can just make out the silhouette of broken stone walls.

As you make your way toward the ruins, still a hundred and fifty yards ahead of you, Gallard's sword begins to glow, and a large stretch of water blocks your path. It seems pretty deep, but a shallow and narrow stretch seems to offer the best way through to more dry ground. A cloud of buzzing insects hovers in the way, however, droning ominously in a strangely deep pitch. An acrid smell of blood washes over you.


You detect movement in the bushes to your north.

Two wolves are shadowing you. Substitute this map for the map below.
http://i58.tinypic.com/287pt95.png

You see what appears to be a giant, animate mass of plants attempting to hide in the water south of the buzzing swarm. Substitute this map for all other maps.
http://i59.tinypic.com/fcky7p.png




[roll0]


http://i59.tinypic.com/smc1ds.png
Key:
One square: Five feet.
B: The buzzing cloud.
Light green: Light undergrowth, costs 10 feet of movement per square, bushes provide concealment; DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 2.
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth, costs 20 feet of movement per square, running and charging are impossible. Provides concealment with a 30% miss chance and grants a +5 circumstance bonus on Hide checks. DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 5.
Light blue: Shallow bog water, costs 10 feet of movement per square; DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 2.
Dark blue: Deep bog water, costs 20 feet of movement for everyone but Ivyn, makes tumbling impossible and the DC of Move Silently checks increased by 2; Ivyn must swim to pass through deep bog water.

[Ionbound]

Elena looks at the buzzing cloud, then at Gallard's blade, and says, "Well...That isn't promising. What do we want to do about this?"

Spot Check:[roll0]

[stack]

Brom readies his shield, watching Gallard's sword now a reflex. "Ready yourselves, I believe there is worse here than gnats."know religion when something comes into view [roll0]

magic weapon would have been cast before departing, can Gallard or Jonnel use magic vestment, or do they already have enhancement bonuses to armor? Brom has two castings and the last 8 hrs, +2 to armor or shield. Brom doesn't get hit much, so melee gets the priority

ready action to turn undead (greater turning), since the sword is glowing

[roll1] counts as level 9, turns 13 HD + lower
[roll2] x 1.5 = 31 HD total

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Why can't the smell of decaying flesh and stagnant water be that of freshly baked cinnamon rolls? Gods but what a foul stretch of land. And now a plague of locusts blocks the path? That's just typical, really. Somebody tall: be a dear and light a torch on them. That'll dissuade them.



[roll0]

[Kish]

"There's something--" Ireena starts to say, as the cloud drifts toward you. At the last second before it reaches Gallard and Jonnel, Brom remembers hearing about a type of bloodsucking undead insects called bloodmotes and realizes that the source of the sword's glow is already visible. His shield flashes brightly, and the insects in the cloud, in response, light up briefly and disintegrate.

Something makes a loud splash in the water to the southwest of where the cloud was when you first saw it, but the glow from Gallard's sword fades.

What do you do now?

[stack]

"Undead insects. I think I would like to retire here, it is a lovely place. Sounds like we should not yet let our guard down." He turns toward the sound and prepares a ward. ready to cast magic circle against evil on self if the coming creature appears hostile

[Ionbound]

Elena grins and says, "Good job, Brom," as she raises her shield and steps towards where she thinks the thing dropped from the swarm.

[Vetril]

Gallard seems impressed.

"...Undead insects? I've never seen such a thing before. What's happened to this land?"

The nobleman joins Elena to investigate the splash.

Jonnel moves closer to Brom.

"Do you see the place of your vision yet? I hope we find it quickly, because I'm really not sure what me and Gallard can do against these swarms."

[Kish]

"There's something in the bushes to our north," Ireena says. As she speaks, what appears to be a mass of vegetation erupts from the bog to your southeast, reaching out toward Elena and Gallard with tentacles made of vines.

http://i57.tinypic.com/ehnewy.png
Key:
One square: Five feet.
S: The hostile vegetation.
Light green: Light undergrowth, costs 10 feet of movement per square, bushes provide concealment; DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 2.
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth, costs 20 feet of movement per square, running and charging are impossible. Provides concealment with a 30% miss chance and grants a +5 circumstance bonus on Hide checks. DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 5.
Light blue: Shallow bog water, costs 10 feet of movement per square; DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 2.
Dark blue: Deep bog water, costs 20 feet of movement for everyone but Ivyn, makes tumbling impossible and the DC of Move Silently checks increased by 2; Ivyn must swim to pass through deep bog water.


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[Ionbound]

Elena swears quite loudly and vigorously as the tentacles appear from the depths, but she steels herself, taking a step back, and then charging through the water at the monstrosity, aiming to plant a morningstar at where she thinks the main body of the monster is.

Five foot step back to F9, then charge to H9.

[roll0]
[roll1]

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

Looking around the battle site.
Monsters. Yay.

Ivyn draws from his familiar spell selection. A little temporal boost to the rest of the party.

Bonuses as usual.

[stack]

Brom summons the floating weapon once again, setting it to attack the herbaceous mass. spiritual weapon K11, [roll0]

[roll1]

[Vetril]

The knight expected trouble, so when the plant-like creature attacks, Gallard is ready. His sword meets the vines in an attempt to cut them cleanly.
Likewise, Jonnel quickly circles around his friend to provide the support of his blade; the waters splashes as the warrior ventures inside the pool to engage the monster.

Gallard - full attack the creature: [roll0], [roll1]; [roll2], [roll3]; [roll4], [roll5].

Jonnel - move to I8, attack the creature: [roll6], [roll7]; [roll8], [roll9].

[Kish]

Brom summons a spectral morningstar which slams into the monster. Ivyn casts a spell, and all of you, plus the morningstar, become faster. Elena slams her physical morningstar into the mound of vegetation as well, but fails to damage it through its thick "hide"; Gallard's sword similarly slashes the vine tentacles again and again to no avail, but Jonnel manages to slice into the monster once. Ireena raises her bow and fires four arrows at it, her hands blurring with speed, but only one of the arrows actually sinks into the monster. The monster's tentacles lash at Elena and Gallard, glancing off Elena's armor and dealing Gallard a heavy blow (14 damage to Gallard).

[roll0][roll1][roll2][roll3]
[roll4][roll5][roll6][roll7]
[roll8][roll9][roll10][roll11]
http://i59.tinypic.com/kxah4.png
Key:
One square: Five feet.
S: The hostile vegetation.
Light green: Light undergrowth, costs 10 feet of movement per square, bushes provide concealment; DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 2.
Dark green: Heavy undergrowth, costs 20 feet of movement per square, running and charging are impossible. Provides concealment with a 30% miss chance and grants a +5 circumstance bonus on Hide checks. DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 5.
Light blue: Shallow bog water, costs 10 feet of movement per square; DC of Tumble and Move Silently checks increased by 2.
Dark blue: Deep bog water, costs 20 feet of movement for everyone but Ivyn, makes tumbling impossible and the DC of Move Silently checks increased by 2; Ivyn must swim to pass through deep bog water.


(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

PCs' turn.

[stack]

Brom circles into fighting position as his conjured weapon continues its assault.
spiritual weapon
[roll0]
[roll1]

[roll2] (haste)
[roll3]

[roll4] iterative
[roll5]

Brom - double move to J8

[Ionbound]

Elena continues bashing away at the monstrosity, haste speeding her strikes.

Full Attack the thingy!
[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2]

[roll3]
[roll4]
[roll5]

[Kish]

In a barrage of blows, slashes, and arrows, the shambling mound falls apart and sinks into the bog. You hear rustling to the northwest and turn to see, in the undergrowth what appears to be an inhumanly beautiful, auburn-haired young women, draped in a brilliant blue mantle and riding on a dire wolf. She's flanked by two normal-size wolves. "You seek the Drowned Lady," she says, her voice, musical, compelling, and yet somehow...off.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Vetril]

Jonnel's eyes widen as soon as he notices the woman. He quickly gets out of the water, and leans towards the knight to speak, keeping his voice low enough not to be heard by the stranger.

"Fae! Don't trust her, she will try to trick us!"

Gallard looks at the beasts that escort their interloper, and then offers an explanation.

"We do not know who this Lady might be; we are here on an important quest, but we were attacked."

[stack]

"My companion speaks truly, but perhaps without precision. We do not know any by that name, but a person can have more than one. May we ask who you are and what your intent is?"

[neoseph7]

Ivyn Nadirna

I have a bad feeling about this. My good lady! We mean neither trouble nor disrespect. You seem to know our purpose better than we do. Who is this Drowned Lady?


Arcana and Spellcraft for active magical effects which might be present. Taking 10 for 27.

[Kish]

"I am..." she shakes her head. "Valicia. You never get the taste of human blood out of your mouth, you know. The Drowned Lady awaits you, but the Berserker is with her; be wary, you won't dismiss him easily this time."

There is nothing here that you're familiar with.

The woman seems like a nymph, but a nymph who's acting very oddly indeed, and you've never heard of a nymph associating with wolves or werewolves. Regardless, if she was hostile, some of you would likely have been struck blind at the sight of her.
(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[stack]

Brom responds cautiously, "I cannot say that I would know. The Berzerker, would he happen to be a vampire that takes the shape of a wolf? What can you tell us of the Drowned Lady?"

[Kish]

"You know who I speak of, but I'm afraid..." She stops talking to stare at Elena for several long seconds before finishing, "I can tell you no more." All three wolves turn and move away to the north, quickly passing beyond the range at which you can see them.

(Gallard's sword: Not glowing.)

[Ionbound]

Elena blinks as the nymph stares at her and says, "What was that about?"

[stack]

Brom watches cautiously as the woman retreats. "I do not know. I suppose we should be used to the strangeness of this land by now. Let us continue, hopefully other we run into will also be cryptic rather than violent."

[Vetril]

Jonnel gives voice to his thoughts: "I think she recognized you, Elena. Or something you wear, I don't know."

Gallard looks in the direction taken by the wolves, and then his gaze shifts towards Elena, examining her for any significant detail that the nymph might have noticed.

"I would agree, even though I am not sure if there is any significance to it."

"We should not trust anything a fae says, though. They are cunning and full of tricks, quick to lead the unwary man towards his doom."

"So they say. But at least, we didn't have to fight more wolves, and for that I am more than happy to leave them be. Lead the way, Brom - maybe we shall indeed find today the place of your vision."

[Kish]

As you head on, you come to a trail that resembles the one from Brom's vision. (Haste and Spiritual Weapon have worn off.)

Ahead of you, you see what appears to be an old human woman; if not for the storm you'd be able to see her clearly, but as it is you see only that she appears to be standing knee-deep in a pool, oblivious to the rain. Gallard's sword begins to glow.

http://i58.tinypic.com/303k7li.png
Key:
One square: Five feet.
Blue: Deep bog water, costs 20 feet of movement for everyone but Ivyn, makes tumbling impossible and the DC of Move Silently checks increased by 2; Ivyn must swim to pass through deep bog water.