The Lands of Sanetch - Alpha

[Kai-Palin]

Raël

"Of course, Hector." Raël comes over and begins to unlace straps and unbuckle plates of armor. He removes his own chain shirt and lays it on a bed, and unbuckles his swordbelt, placing the weapon in easy reach.

He looks down at the object Hector holds, trying to figure out what it is, and listens intently to Loce's reply.

[Skjaldbakka]

Silquë'mahtar'urulócë (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=1248)

Lócë stands, and gives a formal (if somewhat stiff) bow. "I am called Silquë'mahtar'urulócë. It is a pleasure to meet you, and an honor to serve. Elen síla lúmenn' omentielvo. A star shines on the hour of our meeting."

For those that speak elven:
Loce's name translates to Warrior of the White Dragon's Flame.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

His eyebrow raises up when he sees the slender finger that Hector presents. His face looks questioningly, as if not getting what importance it has. Before raising the actual question, Marius gives a courteous bow with his head towards Lócë when he introduces himself. When Lócë introduced himself, Marius moves back his face with a questioning and raised eyebrow towards Hector.

[Skjaldbakka]

His eyebrow raises up when he sees the slender figure that Hector presents.

finger, not figure.

[Kai-Palin]

Hearing Lócë's introduction, Raël bows to him and introduces himself, walking over to the other elf and crossing forearms in a warrior's salute.

"Tinechor ne Gilmadrith varyae lle. Shield of the Gilmadrith ward you. I am Ang... I am Raël Aerdretas." He chokes a bit on attempting to pronounce his name, as though not used to it.

"So, is there a chance we can reattach that finger? You seem to get into a number of scrapes, friend. But it is good for us that you are so skilled, no?"

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Reattach it to whom again?" Marius asks, not having paid any particular attention to any other hands than his own and that of the baby. "Anyway, to answer the question.. I am not capable of reattaching that finger, I'm afraid. Such things require the Regenerate spell, which I am not capable of casting. Such a spell would require far greater power and I have not heard of a lesser version myself."

[Job]

Hector

Hector refolds the cloth and hands the package to Marius. Unable to rectify the situation, he thinks it best to not dwell on it.

Standing then, Hector gives a nod of thanks to Raël and offers an introduction of his own.
“I am Hector Animos, servant of the ruby sorceress” and adds “if you don’t mind me asking, where are you headed? My companions and I are traveling to Malager, and another competent sword arm would be more then welcome, especially considering the dangers we have faced so far.”

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

As Hector tries to hand the package to Marius, it seems that Marius declines it. He does not take the package and indeed, motions that Hector should keep it. "As I said, I am not capable of reattaching a finger and I will not be able to do so in a very long time, if ever. Nor do I know who's finger this is, so I suggest that whomever originally had it keep it for when a more capable healer is found. My apologies." He shakes his head lightly, but then realises how everybody is introducing himself to Lócë. Turning his face to him, he adds: "Oh, and I am Marius Thanador."

[Skjaldbakka]

Silquë'mahtar'urulócë (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=1248)

Loce takes the carefully wrapped digit and places it into a white leather haversack with gold trim. "I am also traveling to Malager. It would be an honor to travel with such fine warriors."

[iop]

The conversation is cut short by a commotion downstairs. You hear furniture crashing, loud shouts of NO! and STOP!, followed by an ominous silence.

Those of you who rush downstairs find...
...several elves standing around the blackened, shriveled cadaver of the hobgoblin prisoner that is still tied to a chair. Several of them are talking at the same time. Their faces and voices express emotions ranging from surprise to shock to anger and reproach. One of the calmer elves notices you and asks you not to step any closer. Apparently, they had wanted to interrogate the hobgoblin, and they had laid out his meager possessions on the table. The hobgoblin had refused to answer questions, and had somehow managed to lunge forward and catch a pouch with his mouth. This pouch turned out to contain not just money and gems, but also a suicide pill - a "sweet kiss of death". The elf warns you that touching the body will make it explode.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Distressed by the shouts, Marius stands up and is about to walk to it. However, he realises that if everybody does so, it will get crowded and soon. He will leave way for any of the elven clerics to go and wait for the main rush, if it comes, to go there and will join in later, being satisfied to hear what is going on from others. He may have been faster, but considering his lack of spells, he decides that the rational option is better one here, instead of trying to satisfy his curiousity.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce quickly makes his way down the stairs, prepared for the worst. Finding a dead hobgoblin rather than dead elves, he relaxes somewhat. "What secret could this hobgoblin have had worth dying for, I wonder?"

[Kai-Palin]

Raël

Raël hurries downstairs, following Loce. When he sees only the hobgoblin dead and hears the story, he rolls his eyes slightly and mutters something about the disgraceful lack of discipline in the interrogation.

"Well then, wouldn't it make sense to remove the chair to which this body is tied, first? Or will that make it explode as well?

[Skjaldbakka]

"I recommend that we clear the room, and then trigger the trap from a distance. Is it magical or mechanical in nature? Perhaps it could be disarmed or dispelled, rather than set off."

[iop]

The elf seems to have heard Raël's murmur, because he shrugs and says: "We didn't expect that the prisoner would be trying to commit suicide at the first possible opportunity. Also, I have only experienced this method of suicide once, and at that time, I didn't see the assassin eat anything."
He turns to Lócë.
"We were a group of three who had stumbled on the assassin. My friend and I did not heed the words of the overly cautious healer who said that he thought something was wrong with this corpse. My friend wanted to pull a ring off the corpse's finger, so he knelt down beside it. That was when the corpse exploded. I was lucky that my friend was between me and the corpse, because he was ripped to pieces. I was lucky again that the healer was far away, so that he could save my life. I have since learned a bit about how this pill works, but that knowledge is not going to help us. The corpse has become a magical bomb that will go off as soon as it is touched. I don't know whether dispelling would work, but I can see no reason why it wouldn't. However, I don't know whether it would set off the trap either."
The elf pauses.
"It is maybe safer to just put heavy boards around the body to avoid damage to the house, and to then set off the trap, as you suggest. I don't want to risk anyone's life by trying out whether the trap can be dispelled."

[Kai-Palin]

"So is it set off by motion or by a person's touch?"

Rael tries to remove the chair to the yard before setting off the corpse if moving it won't blow it up. If it will, however, he tries to set up heavy obstacles around the body in a manner that will send the explosion toward the door.

Knowledge: Architecture and Engineering: [roll0]

[iop]

"I don't know. But we better don't take any risks", says the elf as Raël approaches the body.
The other elves have stopped arguing, and they start moving furniture away. When they bring in boards, Raël helps assembling them around the dead hobgoblin. Everyone is careful not to touch or move or otherwise disturb the body. After only a short while, there is a sturdy coffin over the body with a hole the size of an arrowhead left open.
All the furniture has been moved outside, in safe distance from both the coffin and the pyre, which is almost ready to be lit. Everyone leaves the ground floor, and everyone on the second floor is advised not to use the stairs. Hadraïn stands at one of the open windows, so that he is partly covered by the wall. He nocks an arrow, aiming for the hole in the coffin. He waits until everything is silent, and shoots.
There is a loud bang, as the corpse explodes. When you go back inside, you see that the boards are broken in many places, and two bone splinters have pierced the boards completely. Most of the corpse is sticking to the inside of the coffin, the rest sticks to the floor. The chair has been torn to shreds no larger than a fist.
As you help clean up and move the furniture back inside, Hadraïn asks you:
"You have spoken of a trapped hobgoblin back at the clearing. Was he trapped the same way? Did this hobgoblin give any indication that he was connected to the other one?"

[Skjaldbakka]

"It was Raël that warned me. I do not know."

[Job]

Hector

After seeing the commotion downstairs, Hector wordlessly returns to the second floor when the construction of the coffin begins and remains there as advised. Alone in the room Hector begins to prepare a circle of salt on the floor, and arranges several candles around the perimeter.

[Kai-Palin]

Raël

Raël helps clear away the wreckage, talking with Hadraïn.
"I believe the other body was trapped in the same way. I could smell the suicide pill. As for a connection, I do not know, but I do not think that hobgoblins are so prevalent in this area that two of them committing suicide on the same night with the same poison is a coincidence. Speaking of which, do you know why and how this attack happened?"

[iop]

"As for why, I have no idea. There are plenty of hobgoblin clans living south of the river. They rarely cross the river, though, and when they do, it is only because they are very desperate. They have come to seek food during a few unusually harsh winters, and it has happened that an outcast comes to try and steal something. But I have never seen anything like this. I don't know individual hobgoblin clans, but this is about the entire fighting force of a small clan."
Hadraïn sighs.
"I really had hoped you could shed some light on what happened, and why the hobgoblins would try to kidnap Mordran and Tamina first. It really makes no sense why they would do such a thing. Have you not been able to observe what the hobgoblins wanted from Mordran and Tamina?"

[Kai-Palin]

"Speaking of which, where is their daughter? She found us and told us where to go."

[iop]

"She... I don't know whether one can call it lucky or not. She apparently ate from the poisoned soup, fell off the bench and hurt her head. We found her bleeding and unconscious on the floor in here, right before the hobgoblins attacked. She was thus spared the gruesome experience of a battle. She is upstairs, recovering.
But you haven't answered my question: Do you know anything about what the hobgoblins wanted from Talindra's parents?"

[Kai-Palin]

"I'm afraid I don't. That's why I wanted to find.. Talindra? you said her name was? I think she might be able to tell us a little more about why they wanted her parents. All she told me was that some hobgoblins came and said they wished to speak with her parents. She didn't like hobgoblins, and hid, and then once inside they kidnapped her parents or something of the sort."

[iop]

Hadraïn shakes his head.

"I had really hoped that you had learned something. This whole story makes no sense. Had they just attacked the inn, it could have been a raid, unlikely as it sounds. But why would they kidnap Tamina and Mordran? To have hostages in case something went wrong? But then, why would they move them into the forest, and not across the river?"

[Job]

Hector

With the circle completed, Hector stands in the middle and grasps his phylactery gently in front of him. As he has done every day for many years now he will allow his mind to drift, in hopes that divine insight will fill the void left by the departure of his consciousness. The ritual is accompanied by a softly spoken prayer: a request for the divine lady to grant meaning and understanding, and hope that the soul lost on this day can pass to the other side in peace.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce

"Perhaps it was a diversion? What other targets are there in this vicinity that they might want to lure us away from?"

[iop]

Hadraïn looks at Lócë.

"A diversion, you say? How could a kidnapping be a..." Hadraïn's voice trails off, and his eyes become distant, as if something suddenly started to make sense.

Everyone in the room turns as the healer comes down the stairs. She is an old elf, whose eyes are like deep pools of water, and whose skin is translucent like parchment. The room falls silent as she speaks in a soft, warm voice.

"Tamina's body has been expertly taken care of by the human healer, but her mind may be forever shattered. Poor Talindra may have lost both her parents today."

These news deal a heavy blow to the elves' mood, and conversations are slow to resume.

"There will be food a bit later, if you want", Hadraïn says abruptly to Raël and Lócë. "I am sorry we cannot be better hosts today, but I hope you understand. Please tell me if you remember anything else about the kidnappers before you leave tomorrow morning."

Hadraïn turns away. He is clearly no longer in the mood for talking.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce

Loce will return to his room to meditate on the days events.

*ready to move on to next day*

[iop]

The next morning, the atmosphere is still subdued. The death of Mordran and the state of Tamina's mind weigh heavy on the mood of the elves, who hardly talk among each other. There are much fewer of them than the previous day, though.
You are served breakfast, and you are given lunch. An elf tells you to just follow the river. He warns you not to enter the forest, as it teems with spiders that are dangerous even for those with a lot of experience of keeping them in check.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius sighs as he sits on the table, feeding himself and the baby. His night had not gone extremely well, with the baby occasionally waking him up and some unrest in his mind. Giving a firm yawn, he almost misplaces some food when trying to give it to the baby. Correcting himself, he gives a small smile towards the baby to cheer it up a bit. But when he returns to his own thoughts, he looks somewhat grim too. Whether this is by his own thoughts or the weight of the atmosphere affecting him, he does not know either. He offers to the elves his healing powers before leaving if they still have great need for it.

Eventually though, he is ready to leave. Seeking out the others, he gives a nood to them. "Good morning. I hope your rest was better than mine. I am ready and how are all of you faring?"

[Job]

Hector

Hector uses the time after breakfast to pack his thing and don his armor. When Marius finds him he is already fully suited, and nods in response to the questions.

“How is the child doing?”

~after response~

“Do you think we should just follow the elves’ suggestion and move on? These hobgoblins are not the usual rabble; they have a great deal of support, funding and magic to spare” Hector’s posture shifts, he seems uneasy.

[Kai-Palin]

Raël

Raël, coming down the stairs, is once again suited up for travel. Catching Hector's question, he joins in the conversation.

"As much as I'd like to help these people, they seem to have support, funding, and healers as well. We really ought to get going. This attack does seem rather spontaneous, not as though it happens often. But while we're on our way, perhaps we can stay on the lookout for any hobgoblin activities in the area."

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce

"I think we should be on our way. They do not require or desire our assistance. Under normal circumstances, this would not stop me, but we are traveling with a small child. It is best to remove it from the area of conflict."

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"The child is doing fine, though it kept me up at night a few times." With that said, Marius yawns, after which he helps the baby to another bit of food. "And as for whether or not to move on, well, I concur with what was said." Making sure to finish up some food for his own as well, Marius then adds something as he nears finishing up breakfast for him and the baby. "Oh, and a favour to ask from one of you. Could some one look out for the baby in the early morning when I am praying? Today he slept quite soundly during my meditation, but it is best for me if my meditative session is not interrupted so I can attune to the blessings of healing in full."

[Kai-Palin]

"Of course, Marius. I have not meant to put all the burden on you, by the way. If you ever wish for me to care for the child, you need but ask me."

After finishing their meal, he takes the child from Marius and walks around the inn, rocking the baby.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce

As he sits down to eat his breakfast, Loce brings up a point that he has not had the opportunity yet to bring up. "How did you come to be bringing such a small child with you on your journey? From what I can tell the path is a dangerous one."

[Job]

Hector

Hector chuckles sardonically, but is quick to correct his laps in composure. “I suppose if you are going to be traveling with us you deserve the truth; the child came into our hands by accident back in Naregal. We were at the inn there when a man arrived and asked that what he was carrying be returned to its proper owner. At the time we did not know that the package would be a child, and thanks to an error in judgment by our gracious host we did not discover the child until the authorities were out of reach.” Hector looks down at the table, concentrating on his hands “If there had been another responsible option we would have taken it, the lady has smiled on us thus far; the child has been safe despite the dangers of the path.”

Before a response can be issued Hector breaks the tension with a smile and says “and our friend Marius here has been doing far more then his fair share, and excellent job at that” while giving Marius a friendly clap on the shoulder.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Handing over the baby to Raël and watching how he walks through the inn rocking him along, Marius casts a warm smile in their direction. However, he also makes use of the moment to stand up straight, raise his arms and stretch his body. Giving a small sigh as he returns to his normal pose, he listens to what Löcé has to say. Sitting down again as Hector responds, he nods, agreeing with what Hector said. When he compliments Marius and gives a friendly clap on the shoulder, Marius smiles to the both of them. As he gives his response, he smiles and once more realises that he is grateful to be of aid. "Thank you, though everybody has done a good job of getting us in one piece along this path." Nodding politely again, he continues to speak. "Though what was said is right, we should be on the move soon again. No need to endanger the baby longer than is necessary."

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce

"Shall we be going then? I see no reason to tarry here, and waste the light of day."

OOC: I think we are ready to move on.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Alright, I concur. I am good to go, let me inform Raël." With that said, Marius grabs his belongings again, stands up and heads outside to find Raël and the baby. Upon finding him, he speaks up. "Good morning again, Raël. We are ready to depart once more. Are you ready as well? And, how was the walk with the baby?" As he said that, Marius motions towards the direction of the inn again, suggesting they go there to meet up with the others. He also looks at Raël and the baby, giving a smile to both and with a questioning look on his face and an offer made by his hands, he suggests that he can take over the baby again from Raël if he so desires.

[Kai-Palin]

Raël

Marius finds Raël pacing around the yard outside of the inn, obvious happiness on his usually-calm face. "Yes, of course, let us go on. The child? He was fine. I'd forgotten how much I like infants."
With some reluctance, he returns the baby to Marius, and they walk back to the inn. Once inside, Raël dons his bone-white chain and sword, and takes up his bow from where it had lain against the wall. He nods to the others and asks, "Ready?"

[Job]

Hector

“Think we are, let’s get underway”

[iop]

The young elf, who seems to be temporarily running the inn, leads you to the door. He tells you once again just to follow the path, because the forest is dangerous. He hesitates at the end of that sentence, but finally just bids you goodbye.

~~~

It is hot, even though it is morning and you are walking in the shade of the trees, and the humid air does not make the weather more bearable. The river glitters through a row of broadleaved trees to the right (these are the trees that provide shade to you). It promises a refreshing bath for those who are not afraid of its impenetrable and possibly treacherous waters. At least the water doesn't smell. To your left, the firs of the forest of Orbaïn form a forbidding wall together with the few bushes at the base of the trees. Your journey is uneventful. The only observation of note is that the baby seems to be much more comfortable on the right side of the way. It starts crying whenever Marius steers close to the fir trees. Maybe it is startled by the silence that seems to emanate from the forest - you only hear birds on the other side of the river.

~~~

It is afternoon when there is a change in smell from "forest" to "rot". Soon you can hear the accompanying sound of flies, and eventually you see a naked human foot sticking out from under a bush on your left.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius had given a courteous goodbye to the temporary elven inn keeper, after which they had set out on their journey along the road. Marius did notice that the baby was more pleased further away from the forest, so he stuck with the right side. During the journey, he tried to stick with Raël, so he could enjoy the baby's company too.

In the afternoon, Marius tried to start up a conversation with Raël, first talking about the weather, but eventually he tried to talk towards the subject of infants, due to Raëls earlier statement how much he liked infants. "So, Raël, you earlier said you had forgotten how much you liked infants. I did not know that as well, have you had experience with in.. fants..?" Marius' speech seems to falter a bit during the end of the question as his nose shoots up, displeased by the change in smell. "Blegh, what is that small?" Soon, however, Marius was answered by the sight he saw. "Ah.. I think I see.." With a grim look on his voice, he nods forward and looks at the naked human foot. Sighing, he doubted this would bode anywhere near well. Standing still, he left it to the others to observe it from a closer perspective.

[Job]

Hector

Seeing the foot Hector readies his weapons and scans the surrounding for any evil impulses while approaching the site slowly.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will moves over towards the body, and pushes the vegetation aside to get a better view.

[iop]

As Hector scans the area, he senses strong evil emanating from the body. The person must have been evil while alive, and it must have been murdered not too long ago - though why should there be such a strong smell? While he is still wondering, he turns his attention upwards to the canopy, just to be on the safe side. And indeed, he senses the weak taint of evil that he remembers from the spiders from the previous night.

Before Hector can share his observations with his companions, Lócë has already approached the bush, pushing it aside. Lócë sees the corpse of a man that looks as if it has been drained of its fluids. The corpse is stark naked and has an ugly wound at its neck that looks like it came from some kind of bite. As Lócë is looking at the body, he thinks he sees movement in the bush. It takes him a moment to realize that the movement comes from a large number of tiny spiders that are crawling all over his arm and that have begun climbing his legs.

[iop]

OOC
Lócë takes [roll0] damage from the spiders. He has to succeed on a DC 11 fortitude save or be nauseated the next round.

All: Although we aren't officially in combat, it may still be a good idea to roll initiative, since we need to play round-based due to the spiders.

[Skjaldbakka]

Fort: [roll0]
Unarmed Attack Roll: [roll1]
Unarmed Damage Roll: [roll2]

forgot to roll initiative
rolled in OOC thread, got an 11 (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=4126771&postcount=213)

Loce staggers away from the spiders, fighting back the urge to vomit as the creatures crawl up into his throat.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"So what do you see? Is it very bad?" Asks Marius from a distance, hesitant to get closer for a look due to the baby most likely not being very fond of a closer approach.

Initiative: [roll0]

[Skjaldbakka]

*cough**cough*"spiders"*retch*

[Kai-Palin]

Raël
Initiative: [roll0]
"Loce!" Raël rushes forward and pulls the other elf away from the body.

[Job]

Hector

Hector halts his advance, unsure of what to do next.

“Those spiders aren’t normal, they are corrupted by an evil influence, keep sharp!”

OOC:delay

[iop]

As Raël grabs Lócë by the arm, he involuntarily squashes a spider, and he feels another spider's hairy legs touch his fingers. Pulling back his hand, Raël makes Lócë take another step backwards. This is a good thing, as it turns out. Something comes flying through the air, and lands right where Lócë has stood an instant ago. Before either Lócë or Raël fully realize that this was a spider's web, they are trapped by a second load of the sticky silk. With barely a sound, two spiders the size of a dog land next to the two elves. Worse, the swarm of spiders that is already crawling over Lócë now starts climbing Raël's legs, too.

The humans do not fare much better: Standing next to each other, they are caught by two webs, and they, too, face two big spiders. At least they're ten feet away from the spider swarm.


Hector can use his delayed action right before the next round starts. Lócë and Raël take [roll0] and [roll1] damage from the swarm, respectively. They need to succeed on a DC11 Fortitude save or be nauseated. Lócë, who has been bitten a few times now has to succeed on a DC11 Fortitude save or take [roll2] strength damage.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Augh!" lets Marius outs as he is surprised by the webby assault. He holds the baby close to him, safe, and tries follow his natural reaction: get out of the web. Using one hand, he tries to push the web off of him, trying to get out. He does not like where this is going, nor the reaction that the spiders would be tainted by evil.

Str check: [roll0]

[Job]

Hector

Seeing the spider leap before him, Hector takes the invitation to strike, praying he can dispatch the creature in one volley and move to protect the child.

OOC:HP: 42/42
AC: 16

Full-round action: full attack, divine might
1st Attack:[roll0]
Damage: [roll1]+[roll2]
2nd Attack:[roll3]
Damage: [roll4]+[roll5]

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce:

Loce pulls out a wand and speaks the command word, a faintly shimmering shield briefly appearing before him. "I don't have any spells to deal with these spiders, Rael, and I don't think stabbing them is going to work either- there are just too many."

[Kai-Palin]

"I admit to being ill-equipped as well. Lets get out of these nets and over to Marius and Hector."
Raising his voice over the chitters and squeaks of the spiders, he calls out, "Keep your limbs tucked in tight so that they can't bite anywhere exposed. Cut the webs with a knife if you have one, Marius. We can outlast these creatures, just be careful!"

Sword in hand, he attempts to cut himself free from the webbing with swift, controlled slashes.

Fortitude save: [roll0]
Attack: [roll1]
Damage: [roll2]

HP: 47/54; AC: 21, Flat-footed: 16, Touch: 15; Auras: Motivate Endurance (+3 Con checks/+9 HP), Master of Tactics (+3 when flanking), Motivate Care (+2 AC); Stance: Tactics of the Wolf; Maneuvers: Battle Leader's Charge, Vanguard Strike, Revitalizing Strike

[iop]

As the spider is jumping down in front of Hector, he swings his flail. With no way to alter its trajectory, the spider is inevitably squashed by the heavy steel. Unfortunately, Hector's second swing goes wide, not even grazing the spider.

Marius tries in vain to break the net, though, and Raël finds that the sticky net is tougher than it looks: His dagger gets stuck in the thick strand, and he has to pull hard to get it out. At least he is able to close his mind to the fact that he is still covered by countless palm-sized hairy spiders.

The three remaining dog-sized spiders converge toward Hector, trying to attack as one. One of them succeeds in biting the partly immobilized paladin and it sinks its poisonous fangs into Hector's flesh.


Raël and Lócë take [roll0] and [roll1] damage, respectively, and succeed on a DC 11 Fort save or be nauseated. Raël has to make a DC 11 Fort save or take [roll2] Str damage from the bites.
Hector takes [roll3] damage from the spider and has to make a DC 12 Fort save or take [roll4] damage.

[Job]

Hector

“Come on then!” Hector shouts with uncharacteristic inflection. He then drags the fail from the incapacitated spider in low arc, his divinely inspired strength showing through the pain and the poison.


OOC:HP 37/42
AC: 16

Saves
Fortitude:[roll0]

Full round action: Full attack, divine might
1st attack:[roll1]
damage:[roll2]+[roll3]
2nd attack:[roll4]
damage:[roll5]+[roll6]

[Kai-Palin]

((Just as a side note, about how much mobility does Raël have while in this net? Enough to shoot a bow?))

Raël

Raël, putting thoughts of small skittering shapes out of his mind, swings a broader chopping stroke at the web in front of him, slashing at the spot he had previously hit.


Fort Save 1: [roll0]
Fort Save 2: [roll1]
Attack: [roll2]
Damage: [roll3] (reduce by 1 if Fort Save 2 is failed)

HP: 46/54; AC: 21, Flat-footed: 16, Touch: 15; Auras: Motivate Endurance (+3 Con checks/+9 HP), Master of Tactics (+3 when flanking), Motivate Care (+2 AC); Stance: Tactics of the Wolf; Maneuvers: Battle Leader's Charge, Vanguard Strike, Revitalizing Strike; Other: none

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Feeling distraught by the fact that he can not get out and is stuck, as is the baby he is carrying, Marius tries to get out once more. Meanwhile, he makes sure that he keeps an eye on the others health, just in case.

Strength: [roll0]

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce

"I don't think I can get out of these webs, but I'll do what I can to aid our friend Hector" A few bolts of silver and gold lash out from his oustretched hands to strike at two spiders near Hector. Gold and silver sparks fly from Loce's outstretched hands as his spell fizzles and fails.


Fort 14
Concentration to cast while entangled 16
2 missiles at one spider: 8
1 missile at another spider: 2
Rolls (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=4231970&postcount=220)

Forgot to roll spell failure: [roll0]

[iop]

Hector's first swing sweeps a spider off the ground with such might that it flies through the air at a tree, where it dies impaled on a branch. His second swing, again, goes wide, as his next target scurries out of the way at the last moment.

Marius fails once more to rip apart the net with his bare hands, though he notices one of the sticky strands getting weaker. Raël is more successful and finally manages to hack himself free, despite one of the smaller little spiders managing to crawl down the skin of his back.

Right as Lócë's tries to cast his spell, the two spiders lifelessly sink to the ground. Lócë is surprised because he was sure his spell failed, then he sees the two arrows that have skillfully skewered the spiders.

Out of the forest steps a familiar elf: Ruudi.

"Aren't you all glad to see me? I always say that tourists shouldn't venture through the forest of Orbain on their own, and of course I am right again. You two", he addresses Lócë and Raël, "close your eyes!".

Hector and Marius see him pull out a flask, shake it, and spray its contents all over their two elven companions. A sickly smell of vomit fills the air, which brings you to the brink of vomiting yourselves, but the tiny spiders seem to be affected much worse: They seem to almost jump off Raël and Lócë, and rush toward the forest.

While Raël frees Lócë, Ruudi helps Hector and Marius with the nets. As Raël and Lócë approach, he demonstratively wrinkles his nose the way only elves can, exclaiming:
"You two should take a bath before you come any closer. You smell like ogre vomit!"

Then he puts his arm around Hector's shoulders and says:
"Aren't you glad I showed up to save you? You could at least thank your savior!"

[Job]

Hector

Rather then answer the elf Hector begins to turn rapidly stealing glances in all directions.

“Not done yet, someone just cast a spell, I felt their presence”

OOC:Hector will cast protection from evil on Marius, and use constant vigilance to pick out any evil auras he may have missed before

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will listen carefully for the sound of any creature he can't see, and hit the general area with glitterdust if he hears them.

Listen Check: [roll0]
Spell Failure: [roll1]

[iop]

As Hector calls out the warning, Ruudi pales.

"Gates of Orcbane!", he curses. He steps over to Raël and Lócë, no longer caring about their smell and grabs Raël by the elbow.

"Quick, we need to get out of the open. Follow me into the forest!"

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador
Sheet (http://www.coyotecode.net/profiler/view.php?id=1188), HP: 47/47, AC/Flat-footed 16 (17 vs evil), Touch 11 (12 vs evil), Under effect from Protection from Evil

Once freed, Marius turns to Ruudi and says: "Thank you, we appreciate the help." When he said that and hears Hector, his eyes widen slightly, in one thought thinking whom that might be and in the other, quickly responding by casting a spell with one hand, using the other to hold the baby close. He casts Status, and then quickly touches both Lócë and Hector, imparting the magic on them. He then smiles at Hector and quickly says: "Thank you.", for he appreciates the blessing cast upon him. When Ruudi curses and speaks up, indicating they need to move through the forest, Marius quickly to follow in the forest. He looks around, a bit with a scare in his face, wondering, half out loud. "Who could that be?"

[iop]

"Spider lords. Cunning creatures that will try and control the minds of unsuspecting travellers. They are formidable foes both with their magic and their physical abilities, and on top of that, they can control the spiders of this forest. Be wary of your friend. If he suddenly acts in an unusually paranoid manner, he might be under the mind control of a spider lord already", Ruudi explains to Marius as he steps past the corpse into the forest.

Lócë strains his sensitive ears, but he is unable to hear anything above the sounds of the river, the rustling of the leaves and the hum of the flies around the body. He does notice that Ruudi makes very little noise as he steps into the forest.

Hector first looks up where he had sensed the tainted auras before the ambush. He notices that there are still four auras, though they appear to move in the direction Ruudi is headed. Then he lowers his gaze. His mind is filled with pain as he looks at almost pure evil. If Ruudi was the incarnation of a devil, he would hardly be worse. Ruudi's aura shines so dark in Hector's mind that it becomes nearly impossible to detect fainter auras in his vicinity.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce, worried at the possibility of some sort of evil paranoi inducing spider, casts a few spells to ward against it's magic, casting a resistance spell on himself and a protection from evil on Rael.

[roll0] spell failure for resistance, other rolls made in OOC thread

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Pondering if he heard about spider lords before, Marius is about to follow Ruudi when he sees Lócë casting spells as well. Finding it a smart move to do the same, Marius then casts protection from evil on Hector. "There you go, returning the favour." Says Marius with a smile, after which he moves towards the forest to follow Ruudi and think further about those spider lords.

Knowledge(nature): [roll0]

[Job]

Hector

Hector gives a nod of thanks to Marius, but leaves his side with seemingly unnecessary swiftness.

“Gentlemen four auras above us, they are headed into the forest” Hector calls out as he makes a beeline to Ruudi. He places a hand on Ruudi’s shoulder and gives a gentle tug, aiming to turn the elf to face him.

“Are you feeling alright friend?”

Despite the apparent concern, everyone notices Hector’s fail could easily be brought to bear.

Sense motive check:[roll0]
Attempting to determine if Ruudi is under a spell/acting out of character etc.

Also ready an action to attack if Ruudi has a violent response, I’m not expecting it to happen

[Kai-Palin]

Raël

"Whuh...?" Raël shakes his head slightly, and the light pink tint fades from the world around him. He had been walking alongside Ruudi, but falls back to stand next to Marius as he feels a lassitude fall from him. He closely watches Hector and Ruudi's interaction, and notices that Ruudi's words are no longer accompanied by bursts of gold centered around his mouth. Raël is rather puzzled as to why he experienced such bizarre visions.

[Skjaldbakka]

"Are you alright, Rael? You seemed kinda out of it."

[iop]

"It's good to be careful, but don't spend too much time casting spells!" exclaims Ruudi, as he sees Lócë and the Marius follow Hectors example.
He steps further into the forest, indicating for you to follow.

"Right beyond here is a hidden path that leads to a secret entrance to the ancient fortress of Orcbane. The spider lords dare not enter there, and we will be safe. Hurry, they're watching your every move through the spider's eyes!"

Hector senses Ruudi's tension as he touches the elf's shoulder. Ruudi spins around and nearly shouts: "What?"
He controls himself quickly though.
"Of course I am not alright. We have to get away from here, and you tourists keep standing around. Come on!"

Hector senses that Ruudi is tense and slightly exasperated, but not the least afraid, or nervous.

Marius remembers a story from a collection of legends that mentioned spider lords. They were described as creatures that were half humanoid, half spider, descended from a fanatic sect of drow who had tried to become more like lolth. They could communicate with spiders, and were extremely dangerous opponents, using magic and deceit to hunt other sentient beings for pleasure. The story had been about a man who had fallen under the control of a spider lord and was tricked into bringing his entire family to the evil creature, which then had the prisoners parade in front of its colleagues to show the elegance of the catch. Only when the spider lord killed the man's daughter, the parents snapped out of the domination, and in the ensuing commotion, the son could escape. He was the only one of his family to live to tell the story.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Spider lords.. I think I remember story of them. They do sound bad. And you are right, we should get a move on." Says Marius, after which he quickly follows Ruudi, pacing along as he holds the baby safely close to himself.

[Job]

Hector

“For someone so sure of the danger you seem not the least bit disturbed Ruudi, and what about the fortress of Orcbane will protect us?”

[iop]

Ruudi rolls his eyes as you push through the thick underbrush as quickly as possible. There is something like a trail here, but it has clearly not been as well maintained as the "hidden way" from last night.

"I am a pro, and you're a tourist. That's why you have wobbly knees and not I. Also, it seems as if you have not even taken the time to prepare your journey. You don't know of Orcbane, the only fortress in the empire ever to surpass the Imperial Castle? And of the orcs in whose wake the spider lords infested this forest? People who come here usually are searching for the fortress, because of the treasure, or because some ancestor's bones are lying here, or for other reasons only tourists can come up with. Anyway, I'm not going to sing a story for you, because I'm not a bard, and because we're trying to get away from the spiders, remember? All you need to know is that the spider lords were on one side, and the defenders of Orcbane were on the other side. Some of the ancient enchantments are still working, which is why the spider lords won't follow us there."

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"But, is this not the path people take to go from one end to another as well? So does that not mean that there are people who come here for reasons that are not at all related to the fortress? Besides, have the treasures of the forest not run out due to earlier visitors?" Marius asks inquiringly, keeping a low volume as he continues to pace along Ruudi, trying to make sure he does not make too much noise and follows politely. "Anyway, I thank you for leading us to a safe place."

[iop]

"I thought it was obvious which is the main path and which is the secret path. But since you're a nice guy, I'll explain it to you. The main path is the one that follows the river, and that is easy to travel. It won't lead to the fortress. The secret path is leading into the forest, and you have to know exactly where it is or you'll miss it. The treasures - if there were any in the first place - are still in the fortress. We do not enter that place out of respect, and aside from us rangers, no one gets out of this forest alive. The spiders and their lords are very skilled at eliminating even very strong foes. Don't think you'll find the fortress, by the way. I am leading you to the entrance of a tunnel that used to lead there, but the tunnel has caved a few miles ahead. It is still a good place to hide from the spiders, though."

[Job]

Hector

“All well and good” Hector nods appreciatively at the information given. “Oh that’s right! I remember you telling us that story at Dravia’s inn about you meeting some spiders; compelling story wasn’t it?”

[iop]

"Well, of course it was a compelling story. After all, it was I who told it. And now you do believe that it was the truth, don't you?"

There is hardly any underbrush anymore. There is just not enough sunlight passing through the dense canopy of the pine trees for anything other than the odd circle of mushrooms to grow on the pine-needle covered ground. There is not much to see in terms of a path. However, someone has spent time removing branches from the trees, that otherwise create a dangerous mesh of horizontal spikes.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Hm, typical environment here. Did you remove the branches, or somebody else? Also, how much further is it?" Marius asks in a friendly manner towards Ruudi. "And thanks for explaining." And with that, Marius continues to walk along, following Ruudi more than trying to walk on the path, since such is difficult to see.

[Job]

Hector

As Marius gives his reply, Hector charges past frantically approaching Ruudi. The Flail formerly at his side begins its deadly arc.

“Lady take you imposter!” Hector screams. His voice carries another, almost feminine, but somehow stronger and far more intense.

The flail head burst into red light as it sails directly at Ruudi’s midsection.

OOC:HP:42
AC:18 (16 after charge)

Full round action: Charge, Smite(assuming evil target), Divine Might, Power attack -1
Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]+[roll2] sub.

Hector will place himself between Ruudi and Marius if at all possible.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Hector! What has gotten into you? Why are you doing that?" Asks Marius, obviously surprised and startled. He takes a step back from the two, wondering what he missed and why this is happening. With a look of shock on his face, he sees the fight unfold before him and he does not know what to do now.

[Job]

Through the melee Hector calls back to his companion: “He’s an imposter Marius; I sense his malice, and the real Ruudi never told us a story about spiders."

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador
Hp 47/47, AC 16

Still quite baffled, Marius looks towards Ruudi with a wondering look in his face, to see what the reaction of Ruudi is. To be on the safe side, Marius moves his hand back and flings his spear from the position of his back. Sighing slightly, Marius takes a deep breath and looks at the two in front of him. What he would have to do would unfold soon enough.

Edit
Meaning that Marius does nothing in the first turn, except for grabbing his spear.

[iop]

"Wha...AAAAH!" Ruudi's surprised shout ends in a scream of pain. "YOU WILL DIE FOR THIS SO SLOWLY THAT YOU WILL STILL BE DYING A YEAR FROM NOW!"

Here's the map

http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/2739/mapcz4.png

And the initiative order
Hector
Lócë
Marius
Ruudi (can't believe I rolled so low)
Raël

Please post your actions. I will not wait for Kai-Palin at the moment, but I hope Skjaldbakka is able to play. I assume that the exchange between Hector and Marius happen right after "Ruudi's" reaction.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce:

Loce advances, and with a few arcane words and a flick of his wrist his hand is wreathed in golden lightning. He lashes out at the false elf, discharging the energy into him.

20 to touch, 23 damage (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=4575609&postcount=234)

[Job]

Hector

Hector follows Lócë strike against the stunned imposter. This time it is a guarded swing; not knowing his opponent’s true capabilities Hector wishes to be prepared for a counter attack.

OOC:
HP: 42
AC: 20

Standard action: Attack, Combat Expertise -2
Attack:[roll0]
Damage:[roll1]+[roll2]

Move action: Ready move
Move next to fake Ruudi after he moves, that should put Hector in threatening range should he try to run and cast a spell, or 5ft step and cast etc.

[iop]

When the sparks of lightning from Lócë's hand envelop Ruudi, only Ruudi's face betrays the pain since the shock has clamped his mouth shut. Ruudi bends and twists as his muscles contract, which at least takes some of the force out of Hector's swing, so that this attack does a bit less damage.

There is fear in Ruudi's eyes as he regains control of himself again.
"I will no' forge' dish", Ruudi says as he takes careful steps backward. Apparently, he has bit his tongue. "YOU WILL PAY!"

Ruudi turns to run into the forest. While he is moving, expertly dodging the tree branches, he seems to change his shape, while at the same time shedding his gear, until he has turned into a giant spider that quickly climbs one of the larger trees.

As Hector wants to step forward to intercept, something humid, no, sticky slaps his face. He finds himself immobilized by another net. Looking around, he notices that Lócë has managed to sidestep the attack, while Marius and Raël have been caught as well. The latter is already hacking away at the sticky silk.
Fortunately, unlike last time, there are no spiders jumping down on you. At least not yet.


Since no one mentioned exactly where to move to, I assumed that Lócë is now on AE107, while Hector is on AD105. Ruudi went to AC107, and from there on straight east into the forest.
@Job: To my knowledge, it is not possible to take a 5-foot step and a move action in the same round. Since it didn't make a difference (and since it made sense story-wise) I made an exception this time.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

This looked familiar. Sighing, Marius started to wriggle or burst out, or whatever seemed most successful on the spur of the moment. Trying to keep the baby from not sticking to the web, Marius took care in his movements. For a moment, he glances up towards the way fake Ruudi went. He wonders how that all could have happened for a moment, but then refocuses on the web he is entangled in.

Escaping Check: [roll0]

[Job]

Hector

The shock of the webs striking his faceplate causes Hector to recoil. He flails ineffectually for a few seconds before he regains his balance and takes stock of the situation. Within a few moments he identifies the offending auras and prepares a counter attack, one not restricted by the webs.

“Four more spiders in the canopy friends, um… retreating” he calls meekly, a certain amount of uncertainty labors on his last word.

His eyes close as he takes a deep breath.

Go now! There! Hector commands, folding his consciousness through the surrounding space. His shadow distorts, arching across the ground and ascending the tree, in clear disregard for the normal constrains of light and dark. It is then made manifest striking out at the imposter.

Rebuke Check: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]

Shadow charges Ruudi (just using MM one)
Attack: [roll2] incorporeal touch
Damage: [roll3] strength damage

[Skjaldbakka]

Silquë'mahtar'urulócë

Lócë pauses for a moment to try and hear the sounds of other hidden creatures scurrying about (15 Listen). He then speaks a few words and gestures, sending a cascade of gold and white sparks flying out to burst on the other side of the tree, engulfing Ruudi (who must make a DC 18 Will save or be blinded for 6 rnds).

[iop]

There is a shout of surprise as the shadow strikes, but when Lócë's spell hits, all you hear is laughter - nothing more. Not even the spiders Hector has warned about seem to make any noise. There is nothing but laughter cutting through the silence of a forbidding forest.
"Ith dith all?", 'Ruudi' taunts.

You see the glowing outline of a large spider momentarily moving out from behind the cover of the tree, and if anyone was paying attention, you would see a faint glow moving further up the trunk of the pine tree.

However, the attention of everyone but Hector is focused elsewhere, and Hector doesn't pay attention to his immediate surroundings. An icy draft has come from nowhere, ghastly ghostly creatures - orcs - seem to be raising from the ground. They stretch their arms and shake their massive clubs and falchions as if they were waking up from a long rest. Then they set their gaze on the closest enemy. One orc ghost is even standing right in front of Lócë, staring right into the elf's eyes. Lócë can almost feel the orc's foul breath.

Raël manages to cut himself free. "Be careful, blade brother. This doesn't look good!" he calls out to Lócë. Then he turns to Marius, who hasn't managed to wiggle out of the net. "Stand still. I will get you out."

Hector seems to be unaware of the ghost of an orc chieftain right in front of him. His face is relaxed in meditation, as he is one with his shadow.
The tree is alive. Very alive. The Ruudi-spider is moving. It is weakening. It flees. But not fast enough. There are four spiders close to it. They are moving to shield the Ruudi-spider. Their life-force is connected to the Ruudi-spider.

Here's the map. Please use the grid coordinates to tell me where you move, in case you do. Grey circles with (X) designate the orc ghosts.
http://img73.imageshack.us/img73/4825/maptf1.png

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Gawking for a moment at the orcish ghosts, Marius momentarily shrugs the sight off of him and focuses on the matter at hand. Looking at Raël, Marius says: "Alright, alright, I'll stand still." And with that, he stands still, but he uses the time to gather his undead knowledge related to these monsters..

Knowledge(religion): [roll0]

[iop]

Marius is all too familiar with spells that raise the dead. However, all these spells take much more than a simple flick of a spider's leg. Since it was unlikely that "Ruudi" was an insanely powerful necromancer, the words of Marius' first teacher of magic must apply: "If something can't be, it's probably an illusion. But don't you ever forget, a well-crafted illusory rock will kill you just like a real one."

While Marius is much less versed in illusions than in spells that actually raise the dead, he does remember the tales surrounding the Dragonwars that talk about how orcs had come flooding over the mountains, even destroying the city of Malager, how the people of Sanetch had driven them back, and how they had built the legendary fortress of Orcbane. Such tales always have a core of truth to them, and it is thus possible that this spell creates a reflection of the creatures that have died in the area. Or maybe it just summons their murderous intent.

[Skjaldbakka]

Silquë'mahtar'urulócë

Lócë turns to face the spectral orcs before him, slashing at them frantically with his mithral rapier.

OOC:

Attack Roll [roll0]
Damage Roll [roll1]
Miss Chance (if incorporeal) [roll2] 1-50 is a miss
Will Save (if illusion) [roll3]

Let me know if I got a Will save, so I can remove Resistance from my active spells, and Rael, don't forget you have a Protection from Evil from me (from before the lull).

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"If that was a spell which summoned them, it seems unlikely they are indeed undead. Perhaps illusions or another effect that summons reflections of the ancient spirits lying dormant here.." The words trail off a bit as it is obvious that Marius is looking at the spirits with vigour. He tries to see if he can recognise what can of spell this is or what it was that Ruudi casted.

Spellcraft: [roll0] 15, thus assuming it is not a cantrip Ruudi casted..

Then, Marius shakes his head. "I'm afraid I can't tell the true nature of this occurrence, whether it be a spell or something else."

[Job]

Hector

Oblivious to the situation developing around him Hector continues to focus on the Ruudi-spider, urging another attack.

HP: 42
AC: ?

Standard action: Attack
Attack:[roll0] incorporeal touch
Damage:[roll1] strength damage

[iop]

Lócë's blade slices through the air - and nothing happens. The ghostly warriors keep staring at him menacingly, but that's all.

Raël strikes the net, though his blade gets stuck. "Next time will go better", he promises after freeing the blade.

Hector's shadow has no problem getting past the spiders, and it drinks some more of 'Ruudi''s strength.

"WHAT IS THIS?! MAKE IT STOP! TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT, BUT MAKE IT STOP!" you hear 'Ruudi' scream.

[Skjaldbakka]

Silquë'mahtar'urulócë

Turning from the non-threatening, if somewhat disturbing, specters around him, Lócë attempts to assist Rael in freeing his ally from the net.

[roll0]

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

With two failing to free him from the net, which is including himself, Marius sighs. Even Lócë's help does not seem to have much effect. He takes another glance at the strange ghosts and mutters: "Seems like they are illusions after all." But then remains standing still, to make sure that he, nor the baby, gets cut as the others work to get him free from the web. "And it seems like it is not Pelor's will to release me from these strains quickly.." is the last mutter from Marius before he waits until another strike from his allies, hopefully freeing him this time around.

[Job]

Hector

“You will do, exactly, as I say fiend” the shadow whispers back “deviate from my will for even a moment, and I cannot guarantee your safety”. It wraps its insubstantial form around the spider, much like a snake ready to constrict its victim. The spider can no doubt feel the chill of unlife stalking its every breath. “Now move back to the road, living sin, one errant gesture and I will unmake you!”

~~

Hector’s voice rings out, odd considering his comatose state not moments ago “Do not attack the spider, he is my charge now, respond only if he becomes violent”

The shadow will move with the spider and readies to attack should that errant gesture happen. If the other spiders follow the shadow will command that they be left behind.

[iop]

'Ruudi' does not answer, but slowly climbs down the tree. The spiders do not follow down, instead, they maintain a position above 'Ruudi'. As soon as Hector complains, they fall back, however.

Meanwhile, Raël misunderstands Lócë's intentions - he believes Lócë is going to cut the net by himself, while Lócë tried to assist by stretching the net with his rapier. Thus, Marius is still caught.
The two elves look at each other apologetically, and easily manage to cut Marius out of the sticky web in their second attempt.

When Ruudi reaches the first of the ghosts, he stops. "Here I am. Now tell me what you want."


http://img67.imageshack.us/img67/4713/mapuj8.png

[Job]

Hector

Startled by the sight of the apparitions Hector is momentarily unresponsive to the spider’s question. After seeing they do not move, he gives the command to advance further. “Lay down next to the elves, do not move.” Hector’s real voice informs his companions, simply “guard it”

[iop]

'Ruudi' stares at Hector emotionlessly through his eight eyes, then he slowly moves toward Lócë. At this instant, life seems to come into the ghostly figures, and those that are in reach start hacking at 'Ruudi'. Hector feels as if boiling oil is poured over his insides, as blows not only rain down on the aranea, but also on the shadow. Hector is nearly blind with pain as his shadow disintegrates.

Yellowish liquid is oozing out of several wounds on the aranea's body, as he looks up from his position next to Lócë. "May your forests burn!" 'Ruudi' says with a final insult as he is about to put something into his mouth.


Hector's shadow takes 28 damage, I'm afraid.

Lócë gets an attack of opportunity (or an equivalent standard action) against the aranea, which is on AE 107

[Job]

Hector

Screaming in shock and agony Hector Falls to his knees, the psychic backlash of his spirit returning to his body unwittingly is too much for him to coup with. He teeters on the brink of unconsciousness as the ghost creatures deliver their final blows to spider, and instinctively reaches up to remove his faceplate only to the hampered by the webs the still cover him; unfortunate, considering the vomit that wells up into mouth and then the interior of his helmet.

Hector murmurs a few unintelligible syllables, but is otherwise still.

One thought keeps resonating in his mind; clear enough to bring doubt as to if it is his’.
Steward of The Lady’s gifts, Steward of The Lady’s gifts, Steward of The Lady’s gift’s…

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Thank you." Is Marius' response when he is cut out, and he tries to dust some remnants of the web off of him. Marius then looks at what is unfolding before him. Not knowing how to deal with 'Ruudi', he is soon distracted and amazed to see the ghosts gain a semblence of life and start hacking away. It seems that it is more likely they are ghosts of old and Marius look at them warily. However, his attention quickly shifts from the ghosts to the ones they attack. 'Ruudi' and the shadow. The disintegration of the shadow causes Hector to feel great pains and Marius quickly tries to take a step closer and see what is harming Hector, moving down on one knee to support the kneeled down Hector. "What is wrong, Hector? How can I help?" He asks, while keeping an eye on the ghosts.

[iop]

As Marius kneels down, a violent blow falls on his back from one of the ghostly warriors. The pain makes Marius' eyes water, but as he turns to see the assailant, the specters are gone.

What happened?

Lócë had swung at 'Ruudi', cutting off one of the spider's legs, but he was too late. The aranea had been able to follow through on its plan, and so Lócë and Raël stared on in shock as the eyes of the creature seemed to dry and crumple within instants. It even looked like the liquid that had been dripping out of the cut leg was being sucked back inwards.
Thus, the aranea died. And all the specters disappeared.

"Suicide pill!" shouts Raël. "No one touch the aranea!"

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius looked for a moment at the odd thing unfolding before the group, where the aranae died, before turning his head away. He was not too fond of such huge aranae and thus when Raël spoke up, Marius simply replied with: "I had no intention to." He rubs out the water from his eyes, breathing more heavily after the violent blow. Regaining his wits, he looks at the others of his group, analysing their current state.

[iop]

Marius himself is bleeding from a fortunately superficial wound on his back. Everyone else has scratches, bite marks and bruises from the previous fight against the spiders. Lócë doesn't look so well, he is suffering from the effect of the spiders' poison, and Hector seems to be suffering without an obvious outside wound.

You are inside the dangerous forest of Orbain. Onward, path leads to a secret entrance of the fortress of Orcbane according to 'Ruudi', in the other direction, it leads back to the main path along the river of Orbain that should lead to the Inn of the East Tower, where you planned to spend the night. To the right of the path, there is some of the equipment 'Ruudi' has shed.
The four spiders Hector had warned you about are nowhere to be seen, maybe they have been scared away by 'Ruudi's death, maybe they have gone to get reinforcements.

Oops, forgot to say that Marius took 6 damage there. By my count (which may be off), Hector has 37/44HP, Lócë 35/44 and 4 str and dex damage, Raël 46/54 and 1 str damage, and Marius 41/47.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Upon analysing the injuries, Marius comes to the conclusion that his healing is not immediately needed, at least not his stronger healing magic currently available to him. He does see that something to ease the poison would be needed, but he does not have the proper spells prepared for that currently. Sighing somewhat, Marius wished he had.

"I'm sorry Lócë, I can't currently do something against the poison, but I will prepare something against it tomorrow. As for the other wounds, they are only minor wounds and I suggest we converse my healing magic in case things get worse." He says, while he does look to each of person's wounds to make sure they are cleaned and will not get infected or the like. "When we rest, I will make sure everybody will be patched up, though. The question is, however, do we move back to path we intended to follow or do we move on? We should not stay at this spot any longer than necessary."

[Job]

Hector

Hector is completely unresponsive to Maruis’ inquiry; instead he slowly draws a previously hidden decorative dagger, and begins to saw at the webs holding him.

~

Once free Hector, stands and removes his helmet, before staggering past his companions back down the path “lets go, there is something I need to take care of.”


ok, finally got some time, been working overtime

[iop]

I assume there is nothing more you want do do, otherwise, you just sneak in a post that happens before the following

You follow Hector, keeping an eye out for any other spiders. Fortunately, it appears that your victory against the aranea has scared off any enemies that may have been in the vicinity. Thus, you make it back to the main path without incident.

You make haste - not only is there time to be made up, you also want to a safe resting place soon. Still, it is only about half an hour before sunset that you arrive at the Inn of the East Tower.

The intense smell of burnt wood gives an early indication that something is wrong, however, since there is neither fire nor thick smoke, you keep moving on. Little later, you are standing before the smoldering ruins of the inn. The fire has consumed the entire wooden structure, all that remains standing are the thick walls of the ground floor that blend well into the ancient ruins of a much larger structure that must once have stood here.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius looks at the burned Inn, looking more than sad at the sight. "How did this happen?" He asked, wondering aloud. He shakes his head as he continues to speak. "Such things should not happen." Sighing, he looks over the burnt place before him once more. He steps closer to examine some of it, but still looks sad. "We must go see if there are any survivors." Marius stands straight again, and looks over the near vicinity, trying to see what would be a good place to start looking. He will also start to look through the burnt wreckage, having noticed that there are ruins of something larger beneath the Inn. Perhaps there is a basement around in which people hid and it could be worth it to look for a hatch or something that would lead to said basement. Therefore, Marius walks through the ruins carefully, trying to spot some clues, something useful.

[iop]

As you look through the wreckage, you notice that there is no metal left. Sure, there are iron nails sticking out of badly burnt beams here and there, but in the ruins of an inn, you would have expected to find the remnants of pots and pans - which you don't.
You are about to abandon your search for a basement, when a board breaks beneath your feet, almost breaking your leg. Although it means getting rather dirty, you go down to your knees to peek into the hole in the ground. As you expected, there is a basement, though from what you can see it contains only food, not people.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Huh, peculiar. No pots and pans." Marius utters to himself, but loud enough for the others to hear. Not much later, he breaks through a board with his feet, and Marius quickly examines his leg, to make sure that it is doing alright, seeing the risk that such an accident entails. Seeing nothing wrong, he goes on his knees and looks through the hole. No people, but there is food. Raising up again, he dusts off the dirt and smudge off of him as best as possible and moves to seek out the others. "I found the basement. Nobody is in there, though there still seems to be some food. This situation really leaves me wondering as to what happened. There are no pots or pans as far as I saw and considering nobody is hiding in the basement, it may be that they knew what was about to happen with the Inn. Though not far enough in advance to take the food as well, though that may be too much to carry. I could not find more clues, and we could check the basement further, but considering the condition of the wood here, we ought to be careful with that. Beyond that.. well, I don't know. Any of you have an idea how to tackle this situation further?"

[iop]

As you look up to the sky for inspiration, you see worryingly dark clouds that threaten a thunderstorm. This would be a welcome relief from the heat and humidity of the day - if there was a solid roof over your heads.

[Job]

Hector

Walking through the ruins conjures specters of wars and battles long over, Hector’s thought drift lazily as he follows Maruis’ search. Ever since the spider’s attack he has been overly quiet.

“I’ll check the basement; I would like to stay here the night if we can find something to act as a makeshift roof. The god’s of this land seem to have turned a blind eye to this forsaken road; no-place is 'safe' I think.”

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Alright, Hector. I will go and see if I can find something for a makeshift roof, but considering the wreckage, it seems doubtful lest we start to use branches and the like." And as Hector walks towards the basement, Marius will move to look about, to see if there is anything left for a makeshift roof. If not, he will look for any nearby trees or bushes, to see if it is possible to create a makeshift roof out of their branches.

[iop]

As Marius steps outside the ruins, he finds Raël crouching on the ground. "There are traces of a large number of feet that trampled everything not too long ago. Yesterday, most probably. Looks like there were quite a number of attackers, but I don't see signs of battle."

When Marius continues toward the thick underbrush, he notices several broken branches in one place. It looks as if someone had tried to force his way through the bushes.



After some searching, Hector concludes that the trap door must have been buried under the rubble. He breaks another floor beam to make a wide enough passage, and he is able to push a second beam down the hole as a makeshift climbing pole.
Hector carefully climbs down, making a mental note that one should hack something like footholds into the beam in case there is a need to get back up quickly.
The cellar is comfortably cool, almost chilly. Hector stands next to several large earthenware pots that are covered with leather, so that they look like drums. Opening the rope that holds the leather down, Hector is able to peek inside the pot - or rather smell, since the light down there is very dim. The pot seems to contain something, vegetables most likely, that is being stored in a mixture of oil and vinegar. It smells delicious.
The cellar is quite roomy. Hector notices stairs that lead up towards where there is now a lot of rubble. In the direction of the river, there are shelves along the wall of the cellar with bedding and other stuff to run an inn, in the direction of Malager (i.e. to the right if the river is in Hector's back), there are all kinds of junk that the innkeepers hadn't wanted to throw away. On the other side, there are shelves with small pots, while in the direction of the stairs, Hector is unable to see the wall. There is just too little light.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Walking back with several collected branches from the thick underbrush, Marius speaks to the two above ground first. "You might want to look in the way of the underbrush too, there is a place with some tracks." He nods in the appropriate direction before continuing. "Seems like somebody forced his way through the bushes. I did not check it further since it has likely been some time since the one passed there. Anyway, I gathered some branches to create a makeshift roof over the part where there is an entrance to the cellar." And with that said, he moves towards the entrance with the branches, putting them down besides the entrance and waiting for Hector to appear once more. Meanwhile, he tends to the needs of the baby he is still carrying as well.

[Job]

Hector

Before exploring further Hector uses his knife to whittle shallow footholds into the beams, not enough for proper climbing, but enough to get traction.

Concluding that action he sits for a few moments, quietly contemplating the death and destruction which has swept over the pass.

If only I knew more about this place…who is responsible? Finding no answers, he continues to search the basement, fumbling about with his hands when there is not enough light to see.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will follow after Hector, searching for any clues that might shed light on the issue at hand.

[roll0] Search
[roll1] Spot (Loce has Elfsight, which is improved low light vision)

"Do you prefer to fumble about in the dark, friend, or would you appreciate some light?"


Will cast light if indicated that is desirable. I might not be able to get back online more than once or twice next week, due to training schedule

[Job]

Hector

Hector tenses noticeably at Loce’s words. “When did you…no matter, some light would be lovely” he says as he puts his hand on Loce’s shoulder. “Hope this helps.”

Cast lesser restoration: regain [roll0] ability damage

[iop]

Lócë casts light, and all of a sudden, he and Hector find themselves in a large vaulted room. The area where the food is stored makes up maybe a third of the room, most of the rest is filled with beds. The beds are lined up with the small end against the wall, and at the foot of each bed, there is a chest bearing a crest. Lócë recognizes the design as elven, but he doesn't know any of the families the crests represent. The chests are locked. The beds look like they have been freshly made; at the very least there is none of the musty smell one would expect if the beds hadn't been used in a while. There are no doors that you can see.

~~~

Marius is busy feeding the baby when Lócë climbs down the pole to join Hector. The baby eats and eats, and Marius is starting to worry that there may not be enough baby food left for the day after. Finally, the little boy is satiated, and Marius spends some time playing with him, dangling shiny objects from his medical chest in front of the boy's eyes.

"Marius", Raël interrupts the relaxing moment, "I have a suspicion of what happened here. There are many traces on the other side of the road leading down to the river, as if someone had crossed it to come and raid the inn, and then again to go home. It looks as if the same thing had happened here that happened at the other inn, except that we weren't around. Maybe there was even a kidnapping here, too - the bushes look as if a handful of people passed through."
Rael takes a few steps, inspecting the walls with his expert eyes to estimate whether they would be any use in holding off an attack. Thus, unlike Marius, he does not have line of sight to the bushes when a figure carefully steps through them. The figure notices Marius, freezes, and then seems to relax.
"Ah, hello. I don't remember your name, but I think we've met before, haven't we?"
Marius immediately recognizes the voice of Ruudi.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius was playing with the baby, and in a way, it was comforting. For the moment, he could focus on making the baby smile, instead of focusing on the horrors that may have swept in this area. Unfortunately, Raël brings it up again, though this is hardly surprising. Marius turns towards him and listens, while teasing the baby a bit in the mean time. His focus is split up a bit, though he listens attentively to Raël. "I hope this mayhem will not follow us.." He says, sighing afterwards. This sigh becomes a lot heavier when he notices the newly presented figure, who introduces himself as Ruudi.

Marius quickly scans the figure, hoping to not find hostility for now. It may be another trap, though, so Marius quickly looks at Raël and motions with his hand to come look at Ruudi. Meanwhile, he takes a deep breath: "HECTOR! LÓCË!" He shouts, trying to get their attention with the shout. Best to be prepared. Marius then starts to put his tools away and lifts the baby, moving the baby as to ease him and try to get some rest, despite the shouting Marius just did. "Greetings, my apologies if I disturbed you with my shout, but do come closer. This whole situation, as you see around you, calls for great caution, the reason why I called my friends. You are Ruudi, are you not? If you are, we have met somebody disguising himself as you, hence another reason for caution."

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce:

If possible, Loce will attempt to make his way back up unseen.

[roll0]

[Job]

Hector

Hearing the call and seeing Loce move with deliberate stealth Hector will hold back until his companion is out of sight before making his way up the beam.

[iop]

"Someone disguising himself as me? Interesting. I can, of course, understand why someone would want to be like me, but would you mind telling me who that was?"
Ruudi takes a few steps toward Marius, which brings him into sight of Lócë who has silently climbed up the beam that Hector had wisely prepared ahead of time.

Marius is unaware of Lócë, since he is intently studying Ruudi. Or is it "Ruudi"? Whoever this person is, Marius notices him frowning almost imperceptably.

"It was an aranea, and you killed it, right? You performed an impressive feat there. You don't need to worry about the hobgoblins who burned down this place. They aren't alive anymore. But you should worry about the other araneas in the forest." Ruudi grabs his bow and readies his quiver as he utters the warning. "But really. For a group of outsiders, you did really well. But you only called two of your friends. Weren't there four of you?"

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Yes, he's around." And with that, Marius nods to the side which Ruudi can not see, but is not nodding directly towards Raël either. "It was a big spider, yes. How did you know?" Marius glares a bit towards Ruudi. "What is your relation with them and how do we know you are not affiliated with them?"

[iop]

"For one, I found the aranea's corpse. You left so many traces that I could even figure out that you had the baby with you. Then, of course, I remember that we met at Dravia's place, at a time when you did not have a baby with you. That is, I met three of you - the second elf only joined you later. Satisfied?"
Ruudi looks at Marius, hesitating. Then he swiftly notches an arrow and lifts his bow to point it at Marius.
"Tell your friends to come out, slowly, and have them put away their weapons. I want to see their hands at all times. If they make a funny move, the baby and you die", Ruudi says coldly.

Raël, who has no direct line of sight to Ruudi, looks questioningly at Marius.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius nods towards Raël, suggesting for him to come out with the motion. He then shouts: "Come out without your weapons." Though the shout was not as loud as the previous time, nor as pressing. Marius did not really know how to handle this in the best way, so he just tried handle this. After all, he was not that afraid of Ruudi's shot, but more worried about the baby.

[Job]

Hector

Being sure not to disturb Loce, Hector exits the basement as Marius shouts his warning to approach unarmed. However taking sight of ‘Ruudi’ holding and arrow to his friend and the child wipes any thought of compliance from his mind; Hector clinches his teeth hard as he advances towards Marius, moving calmly but swiftly to place his body in the elf’s line of fire.

“You piece of ****, you stalk us then threaten my charges!” Hector menaces from behind his skull face-plate. “Trying to entertain your friends, by murdering children...Ruudi?, no no-one is submitting here, we are going to talk this out civil.”

Diplomacy:[roll0]
or if you feel it’s more appropriate
Intimidate: [roll1]

Aid another on Marius’ AC
[roll2]

[iop]

Ruudi tenses as Hector menacingly walks toward him, but he hesitates, and then he lowers his bow.

"You're right. I wasn't going to kill you, anyway."

[Job]

Hector

"So what were you going to do? And where are the rest of you?" Hector replies significantly more calm.

[iop]

Once everyone has gathered, Ruudi puts bow and arrow away, and answers Hector's question.
"There are no others. I am alone here. If you think that I threatened the honorable Marius because he and the child were the only ones that I could harm, think again. You would not have lasted long against me. But as I said, it was not my intention to kill you, not after all you have done. Unfortunately, I am sworn to eliminate any outsiders who have seen too much. You definitely have seen too much. Now I have to find a way so that I can claim that you are going to keep your mouths shut that doesn't involve killing you."

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius sighed. Had they truly seen too much? It was something he wondered, but it mattered not for the current situation. Ruudi was standing before them, questioning how silent they would be in the future. Marius did not see a proper way out, no cunning plan to offer foolproof claim for them to keep their mouths shut. So, instead, he went with the way of truth. "Well, it may not mean much to you, but I offer my word that I will keep quiet about this matter. I realise that this is far from proof that will easily satisfy you, but it is all I have to offer. Trust. I can not speak for the others though." And with this, Marius looked at Hector, Raël and Löcé, trying to look them in the eyes, as if stimulating them to at least offer their word as well.

[Job]

Hector

No other eh, yes, very likely my arrogant friend. Hector thinks bemused by his own sarcasm. Still best not to test, best to let him think…think…

Hector turns to meet Maruis’ gaze, I would strike down these abominations, these insults to the Lady given the chance, but the cost, and the threat…so refined these elfs claim to be, but petty and paranoid they are instead. “Yes, you have my word also” a cringe “on my honor. The rest is up to you to satisfy your masters Ruudi, we will leave”

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will remain hidden, bow at the ready, prepared for any treachery.

[OOC]: I'm working on getting my roommate's computer fixed right now. I navigating with keyboard only at the moment, but I should be able to start posting regularly once I get a mouse. [OOC]

[iop]

Ruudi nods appreciatively as Marius and Hector speak, though Marius notices that he keeps glancing toward where Lócë is hidden, and that none of the reassurances are really a solution he'd have hoped for. Apparently, Raël notices this, too.

"I can assure you that these fine men are going to be true to their word, and they can take care of themselves well enough that no one is going to force any secrets from them. Yet, it looks like your superiors are not going to simply accept the word of strangers, and I can't really fault them for that", Raël says.

Ruudi nods, and Raël continues.

"I suggest the following: I stay with you as a 'hostage', while the others continue on their way. Together with our defeat of the aranea - which should have been your job, weren't you calling yourselves 'protectors'? - I think that should show the other elves that we are on your side."

Ruudi nods again.

"Yes, that could work - Raël, wasn't it? Also, you didn't even loot the aranea's gear, which we can use to demonstrate that you wouldn't try and come looking for the fabled treasures of Orcbane. But if the others are such a fine crowd, why would you leave them?" Ruudi asks.

Raël hesitates, then answers.

"Something... something happened while we were fighting the hobgoblins. I need to find out why it happened, and what it really means. I need some time alone, and maybe I can get it to happen again while I stay here."

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Well, uhm.." uttered Marius, seeing that the conversation did not go much further. "If this is the way it shall be, then I wish you luck with your decision, Raël. I thank you for your offer, Raël, and I hope it will be sufficient for you, Ruudi. However, perhaps it is best if we rest for the day first, and then continue on our paths? It will give us a chance to say farewell to Raël and to gather energy for the different paths ahead." Marius gives an inquiring frown, to see if the proposal is a good one. It seemed like a reasonable proposal to him.

[iop]

With this, the strong tension dissipates, and not only Ruudi takes a liberating breath when he puts his weapon away.

~~~

A bit later, you are sitting around a small fire that is heating up several large chitin tubes that are closed with clay on both ends. Ruudi has explained to you that these are red spider legs that supposedly are a delicacy. Doubtful, you take out the hardened clay with a dagger, and turn away from the overwhelming odor. Ruudi insists that the legs are excellent once they are cool enough to eat, and soon he is slurping away. As you taste more out of politeness, you are amazed. There is a gooey mass inside the leg that has a silken texture and that tastes like heaven. When Ruudi claims that these legs are worth their weight in gold on the market of Malager, you doubt him, but at least his claim that these had become too warm in the fire to still be fit for exportation explains why he would serve them to you. Whatever their worth, the legs taste great and they are a worthy of a farewell dinner for Raël.

Fortunately, all the clouds are doing is menace a storm, so you can sit outside for a little longer, enjoying the warm summer evening. After you have brought up a small barrel of dwarven ale that also needs to be consumed "because it became too hot", Ruudi even becomes tolerable, and his stories become actually funny.

Finally, you go to bed downstairs. Ruudi says that you have seen the place, anyway, and that there is really no need to lay on the hard forest floor if you can sleep on an elven mattress.

~~~

The next morning you are not in a hurry. There is only half a day's worth of travelling before you reach Darsh, the border village of the Kingdom of Malager in which you will stay the night.
After an extensive breakfast, Ruudi calls you over, claiming that he has something to give to you.

"When I came upon the corpse of the aranea, I found something it hasn't stolen from my fellow elves it has killed. I think it should be rightfully yours."

Ruudi holds out a bag of holding marked with the falcon crest that Marius remembers from the hobgoblin's dagger.
Inside the bag are a pair of boots, a ring, a dagger and a smaller bag containing bottles - all of them bearing the falcon crest.

As you examine the items, it becomes clear that all three items are magical. The boots are most likely boosting the speed of the wearer, the ring is shaped in the form of two intertwined reptiles with rubies for eyes and is carrying inscriptions in draconic inside that Lócë translates to "hide", "reveal", "change" and "revert". The magical ability of the dagger is not clear, however, you notice that it is possible to screw off the top of the hilt and fill it with poison from one of the bottles. Then, a button on the dagger makes it possible to dispense the poison through several fine holes along the blade.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce:

Loce will take a moment to examine the ring more closely, casting a spell to allow him to better analyze it.

[ooc]Casting detect magic, analyzing with spellcraft: [roll0][ooc]

[iop]

Lócë notices two weak auras, one of illusion and one of transmutation.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will try on the ring, and see if there are any obvious effects.

[iop]

As Lócë puts on the ring, nothing happens.

[Skjaldbakka]

"If I were to hazard a guess, this ring probably aids in stealth, based on the auras on the ring and the lack of any immediate and obvious effect. I have heard of rings that operate in that manner. I could, of course, be wrong."

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius nods towards Lócë. Then, he turns towards Ruudi again. "Thank you for your gifts. We appreciate it." He says, with a friendly smile. Then, he gets back to preparing for travel. He checks with the others to see if they want to use the bag of holding for, well, holding purposes, in the mean time. Also taking care of the needs of the baby, Marius takes the time he needs. Eventually, when he is prepared again, he turns towards Ruudi and Raël.

"Well, it seems it is time to be on the move again. Thank you again for the items, Ruudi. Since our paths split, I wish you a safe journey. May both of you, Ruudi and Raël, be guided and blessed by the light of Pelor. And Raël, thanks. Be well and safe."

[Skjaldbakka]

"Very well then. Shall we be off?"

[iop]

After the farewells, the three of you head east toward the village of Darsh. It's rather warm and humid already, and you soon start wishing you had left earlier. At least the trees provide welcome shade, and the air gets noticeably cooler whenever the road is close to the river.
After a while, you notice that the road seems to be leading you straight into the clear blue sky - the road must start to descend. The promise of a magnificent view makes you hurry up, and soon you find yourself standing on top of a cliff that is several hundred feet high. To your right the river fuels an enormous three-step waterfall, after which it continues as a meandering stream toward a wide delta and into the sea. To the right of the river, an endless forest stretches over round hills. There is smoke rising out of the forest in a few places, but only one location far south seems to correspond to a larger settlement. Along the river you can recognize what must be Darsh, and another village close to the mouth of the river. In the hazy distance you think you can make out the white walls of Malager, the goal of your journey. To your left, starting at the foot of the cliff on which you're standing, you see plenty of small villages surrounded by fields.
With high spirits you start walking down the serpentines that have been hacked into the solid rock, but soon, you all are sweating profusely, hoping that you may soon reach the foot of the cliff. Only when the path comes close to one of the steps of the waterfall such that you can feel the refreshing spray you find some respite from the mercilessly burning sun. At the second step of the waterfall you rest for lunch, weary of the final third of the never ending serpentines.
Finally, you reach the foot of the cliff, glad that it is only another half hour before you reach Darsh.

Darsh is a heavily fortified. This is not unusual for a border village, but the battlements right below the roofs of the houses that form its outer wall and the gatehouse are quite impressive. Darsh has been built into a bend of the river. Right in front of its gate, a bridge crosses the river that is protected by both the gatehouse and a tower on the other shore. You enter through the open gate onto a cobblestone square that is dominated by a temple of St.Cuthbert in front of which there is a welcome fountain. After a few steps toward the fountain, you stop. You just noticed that not a single person seems to be here.


Oh, I almost forgot: You have just spent four hours in a very uncomfortable heat (it's 3pm now). Please make four fortitude saving throws at DC 15,16,17,18, respectively. Those wearing armor take -4 on the check (heavy armor is -6). For every failed check you take 1d4 nonlethal damage.
Fortunately, Marius has been taking great care of the baby, using up part of his drinking water to keep the baby's clothes moist, so the lil'one is fine.

[Skjaldbakka]

"Something is not right. I think I should scout out the area. I would hate for us to be ambushed again."

Loce will then head out, as stealthily as he can. Not sure how large the city is, but Loce will spend about 15 mins checking out as wide an area as he can, and then return to the group via direct route.

Hide [roll0]
Move Silently [roll1]
Spot [roll2]
Listen [roll3]

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius wipes the sweat of his forehead as he looks ahead. "Smart thinking, Löcé. Go ahead." He says in a somewhat fatigued voice. "May Pelor make sure nothing happens to you as you scout." Marius adds when Löce takes his leave for now. Marius, annoyed by the heat he experienced, moves towards the fountain. He smiles somewhat to the baby he has been taking care off, and makes again sure it is alright. Upon reaching the fountain, he looks at the water. He would like to take a sip or to use it to splash some on his face, but he has realised the absence of people as well. Such is for a reason, and in such times he ought to be careful. Wary, he decides to not touch the water yet. He does sit on the edge of the fountain, however, welcoming the break his legs can now make advantage of, and awaits Löcé's return.

[iop]

Lócë carefully scouts the small village. He blends into what little shadow there is in the early afternoon as well as is possible, and he tries to make as little noise as he can.
Most doors are locked, and a peek through the windows shows that people didn't plan on leaving for good the last time they were here: Tools and ancestors' portraits are still there. There is, however, no sign of a hurried, or even a violent departure.
It is dead silent inside the houses, except for one place: Lócë hears some rummaging noise inside the Royal Inn, the clearly much better of the two inns in town (the other is the Pilgrim's Hostel).

Marius, meanwhile, looks around and notices the absence of religious symbols other than those referring to St.Cuthbert. He remembers that growing up in the kingdom, the clerics of St.Cuthbert had started to push toward marginalizing other religions in the kingdom, and it looked as if they had succeeded at least here in the meantime.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will move up to the inn, and sneak up to window to peek in.

[iop]

Just as Lócë risks a peek, which reveals a large, elegant dining room, he sees a door open and he hides immediately. Someone, no, multiple persons walk with heavy steps across the hardwood floor of the dining room. It is difficult to say how many, because they march almost perfectly in step. The steps approach the window, though they fortunately turn left right before coming too close. Lócë tries to press himself as close to the wall as possible as he realizes that the strangers are about to step out onto the village square.

The strangers do not notice Lócë as they come outside. They are apparently too occupied carrying their heavy load. Two children hold onto a vat full of some liquid, while the man behind them carries another vat in his hands, and several breads thanks to a wooden contraption strapped to his back.

They walk several steps, until they notice Marius.

"Hello stranger!" the man exclaims. "Welcome to Darsh. You must be weary from your travels. I apologize for the welcome today, but everyone is outside, everyone including the mayor, so that we get the hay into the dry in time before the storm.
Why don't you come to my inn to rest?"

The man puts his vat down and starts unbuckling the contraption. The two children put their vat down, too, glad that they get a break already.

[iop]

From what Lócë can tell, the kids' relief because of the break is genuine, while it seems that the man hides some ulterior motive.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Greetings!" Marius said, happy to see some folk after all. He rises and nods, holding the baby, so as to show that bowing is going a bit difficult. "Well, that explains why it was so deserted here. Thank you for the welcome, the name is Marius Thanador. You are right, we are weary, and we would like to go to your inn. But first, we must wait for the return of a friend who went to see if there were any around. When he returns, we will be happy to go to your inn for a rest."

[iop]

"Well, isn't that excellent!" exclaims the man joyously.

"You two: Bring the lemonade to the big linden tree and start serving. If you see a stranger, tell him to come here. Hurry, the hard-working people are thirsty!" he commands the two kids, who grimace as they pick up the heavy vat.

Then, the man turns back to Marius.
"I am sure you will enjoy your hard-earned rest at my inn. We also have a crib for the baby, and for tonight I can provide an experienced baby-sitter so that you can sleep comfortably, if you wish."

[Job]

Hector

Hector adjusts his weight nervously at the man’s attention to the child, or perhaps it’s the new boots he to liberty with during the trek, regardless the questions he asks are unrelated to either issue.

“You wouldn’t happen to know where that smoke is coming from?” pointing to the plumes “…and what’s lemonade?”

Fort saves
15: [roll0] damage: [roll1]
16: [roll2] damage: [roll3]
17: [roll4] damage: [roll5]
18: [roll6] damage: [roll7]

Hector will have taken the boots suspecting them to increase his speed if no-one else is using them; he’ll be able to keep up with the group now his suspicion is correct.

[iop]

"Smoke?" The man's eyes follow the direction in which Hector points, then he answers: "I don't know. Must be a hobgoblin tribe. They are quite savage and don't usually stay at a fine inn as mine, but they are harmless. And lemonade, oh, you will love that. It is a drink I make mixing the juice of lemons with the juice of imported sugar cane and with water - plus some additional ingredients for the uniquely refreshing zing. You will like it!"

Yes, the boots increase the speed by 10ft

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius looks momentarily at the plumes before looking back at the man. He smiles as he hears the talk about lemonade and nods slightly. "Thank you for your offer. I would like to make sue of the services of the baby-sitter. And you sure know how to introduce a drink. It is your own created recipe, I assume? Anyway, I must thank you for the warm welcome, mister..?"

[iop]

"Samir.", the man responds. "Samir at your service. Thank you for your generous compliment - but would you know? I can take your introduction to the lemonade even further. Come here, I have a vat full of it in front of me. Have a cup while we wait for your friend to return."

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will wait in the shadows, his bow at the ready. He doesn't expect the stranger to offer poisoned lemonade, but something seems ... odd about him, and it doesn't hurt to be careful.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"I would like that, Samir, thank you." Says Marius. He moves towards the vat and will take a cup to take some lemonade. When the cup is full of lemonade, Marius will take a sip of it.

[iop]

The lemonade is as excellent and refreshing as advertised. The blend is masterful, so that even with the experienced tongue of a healer, Marius has trouble distinguishing the secret ingredients. Given the effects, however, Marius wonders whether Samir has spiked the drink with dust from red bull testes to ensure that the feeling of invigoration lasts for a while. Yes, the taste is certainly compatible with red bull testes. Nothing one would want to give to a baby, but certainly not harmful to adults as long as one doesn't overdo it, and as long as one is aware of its effect as a mild aphrodisiac.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius nods after taking a sip. He takes another gulp, tasting the drink even more. As he became more aware of the taste, he grins somewhat. "Quite the drink, Samir. Certainly as good as advertised. Hector, you could try some too." Marius nods again and finishes his drink. "Thank you for a splendid drink." He says in a polite fashion. Marius ponders for a moment about the red bull testes, but then shrugs. Hardly harmful if drunk in moderation.

[Skjaldbakka]

Loce will sneak away, and then return to the inn from a different direction, walking in plain view down the street.

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

When Marius notices Löcé again as he approaches, Marius speaks up. "Ah, there he is!" Raising his voice a bit towards Löcé: "Hey, over here." When Löcé eventually arrives, Marius will continue speaking. "There you are. Löcé, it seems that most are out because of the harvest. This.." He motions towards Samir with the empty cup in his hand. "..is Samir. He is the innkeeper."

[Skjaldbakka]

"Greetings, Samir. I am glad your people are doing well. When we arrived to an apparently deserted city, I feared the worst."

[iop]

"Ah I am sorry about this disconcerting welcome. I hope the rest of your stay is going to be much more relaxing. Now that all of you are here, please follow me to my inn so that you can move into your rooms and relax. Also, please forgive me for only providing limited service until the evening, as I will help the rest of the village in bringing in the hay. I am sure you will be able to relax well in your rooms, and I will try and organize a dinner with the mayor for you in compensation for the inconvenience."

Samir leaves his things on the village square and beckons you to follow him into the inn.

I assume you all follow

The entrance hall is not large, but its walls are covered by expensive wood, and there are decorative carpets on the floors. Samir steps behind the counter to retrieve a large golden key that is decorated with most likely fake, yet impressive jewels, and he leads you up the staircase that is in a straight line with the entrance. You can see a second staircase at a right angle with the first that starts climbing right after the door to the dining room. The counter, the door and the other stairs are all to your left (in this order) seen from the entrance.
Upstairs, there is a single door that Samir opens with the key. It leads to small room that has a beautiful door to the right and a door that is almost invisible to the left. You assume the door to the left must be a servants' entrance. Samir leads you through the decorated door into a L-shaped hallway that opens to a living room that faces the village square, and, after the sharp turn, to three lush bedrooms facing the river. There is a bathroom next to the three bedrooms, and, again, a door for servants, and, as expected, there is a door for servants at the far end of the living room.

"I hope this accommodation is to your likings. I can bring bath water upstairs for you, should you want to take a bath right now. However, I hope you will understand that I must join my fellow villagers right afterward."

[Skjaldbakka]

(after he leaves)

"Does anyone else find it odd that we are being treated so well?"

[Job]

Hector

"I find everything about this continent odd" then realizing he is not being helpful Hector adds "yes no doubt, do you think we should abstain from their offerings, and perhaps see where they have gone?"

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius was quite overwhelmed by the luxury. He was led through the inn and when Samir finished speaking, Marius replied. "Ofcourse, ofcourse. Go right ahead, I do not think we will require a bath immediately, right?" He asks to the others. Assuming they say no, Marius adds. "Uhm.. do you.. have something a bit more simple for me? Or perhaps we can discuss accommodations further when you return?"

When he leaves, he looks at the others and listens. "Uhm, I actually think he is being so friendly to get costumers. This is a luxurious place and most likely will cost some coin. In short, he could be hoping to get coin from us. Other than that, his friendliness could just be in earnest. Also, this is a bit too luxurious to my likings.."

[iop]

"Ah, don't worry. For the four of you, taking the master suite is actually less expensive than if you all stayed in a separate room. Of course, if your beliefs prohibit enjoying life, there is always the Pilgrim's inn, where you can share your room with plenty of pilgrims who haven't washed in a while", Samir replies to Marius. "Since you aren't taking a bath yet, I will leave you for the rest of the afternoon. Should you find the accommodation too comfortable, you can always decide to move out tonight, at no charge."
With that, Samir leaves you alone.

[Job]

Hector

“Now that we’re alone…” Hector pauses for a moment before continuing, perhaps not sure if that’s truly the case. “I need to talk to you two. There is something very wrong with our situation, and I would like to know a little more about you if we have to work through it together.”

He sits on the nearest available surface and fiddles with the joining on his armor, a cleaning of his equipment is very much past due. “As you know I serve the lady, Wee Jas, but not in the usual capacity. I’m not a cleric -no- a failed one in fact.” Hector shift uncomfortably, then continues “I was unable to commune, to borrow power, while the others in my master’s tutelage moved on. However the lady did offer me another path: to be her knight, her paladin. If you know of my church then you would find this unusual; to my knowledge very few have ever existed and I have never met another. This is important because I was given something precious, a tool of the lady’s will, but in my carelessness it was taken by the aranea in the same melee that killed him.” He nods to Marius in directing his next comment “You saw it, when I fell to my knees speaking nonsense, I had just lost my link to the shadow. I was using it then to control the aranea similarly to when I used it to scout the carriage we found before the forest.”

“I came to this land to spread the word of the lady, or to find my people here, something I do not discount even given Cuthbert’s dominance. Now it is even more important I find them, I have damaged the link, and I must make amends before my god proper.” Hector sighs heavily “That may be a bit much to tell, and I have more, but I would like us all to share something. Now, to the point, something is very wrong in those woods, even more so then the elves suspect. When I stood beside ‘Ruudi’ I sensed a great power, a festering evil more intense then anything I have experience, and I say that having gone toe-to-toe with a Vrock” he cringes a bit a the demon’s name, as if he hates to have to mention it lest he be called a liar “I know such auras can be faked, but I’m not sure what motivation it could have to use such a spell, especially when it was vital in my detection of the fraud. I fear there are powerful outsiders in play.”

Hector looks up expectantly “Either of you seen anything I may have missed, or any questions?”

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius had been listening carefully as Hector spoke, nodding at several times, amongst which was the time he mentioned that Marius saw him speaking nonsense. He seemed to think momentarily when talking about the religion of Wee Jas, but afterwards nodded as well. Now that Hector is finished, Marius seems to ponder a few seconds before replying.

"Then what do you mean that there is something very wrong with our situation? After all, we have left behind the evil you speak of, even seen it fall before our eyes. And perhaps that evil Ruudi.. impersonator had done some great evil recently? It does sound disturbing, I agree, but we know little of the area there and the real Ruudi did not gave me the impression that we were very welcome there. So what would you have us do? And, what must you do to make amends before your lady, Wee Jas?"

[Job]

Hector

“That’s just the thing; I don’t think we have left it behind. There were more fires when we arrived here then when we were in the forest. The elves might be loosing this confrontation, I’ve never seen an army as well equipped or organized as those hobgoblins, or that have aranea whom they can call allies… I know there is little we can do now that the elves –in their infinite wisdom- have bared us from their lands” he stammers a bit and glances nervously at Loce as if expecting him to take offense, but he continues quickly thereafter. “’let’s just say I want to get to Malager quickly, safer for the child, safer for us, and maybe we can warn of potential danger from the forest as we go.”

“I’ll try to commune with the lady tonight during meditation, that might give me some insight in to what to do next.”

[Skjaldbakka]

"Agreed. I, for one, could use some rest."

*ready for advance*

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"Alright, sounds good. I suppose we will rest here since it is relatively easy and accepting of the offered hospitality." Adds Marius, after which he looks at Hector. "I hope your communing will bring you that insight." And with that, Marius has nothing else to add.

[iop]

You spend a relaxing afternoon. Since there is not much to do in a deserted village, and since it is way too hot and humid outside, you stay in your suite that is, apparently, equipped with a temperature spell to keep it comfortable. Furthermore, the sofas in the living room are so wonderfully soft that you'd need a really good reason to get up - which you don't really have while you are chatting over a chilled drink or two from the very reasonably priced liquor cabinet (there is also more of the house-made lemonade).

When Samir comes back, the sky has turned pitch black. This time there is no doubt that there will be a thunderstorm.
Samir is glad you decide to stay at his place. He mentions to Marius that if his convictions require him to sleep in a somewhat less luxurious bed, there is always the servant's room. Samir asks you to write your name into the guest book. When he sees Marius' name, he asks Marius whether he has a sister, and when Marius confirms this, Samir gets a letter out of a cupboard, which is, indeed, addressed to Marius Thanador. There is no mail for Lócë or Hector.
Samir lets you know that he has managed to arrange dinner with the mayor, Hitasp Dansar for you tonight. Unsurprisingly, Samir would be able to provide you with fresh clothing, and of course, he could have a babysitter take care of the baby while you dine with the mayor.

If you want to give a false name or deviate from what I wrote in any other way, please tell me and I change the story accordingly.
Will you require clothing and/or a babysitter? Do you want to take anything special with you when going to the mayor? Does Marius want to read te letter right away? In public or in private?

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

Marius thanks Samir for his efforts after having written his name in the guest book and taken the letter. He tells that he would like to make use of the service of a babysitter. Further, he accepts the luxurious bed and the fresh clothing, the latter in light of the meeting with the mayor, for which he thanks Samir.
After that, Marius takes a few steps away to open the letter and read its contents. He looks very curious as to what might be contained within.

[iop]

Letter has been PM'ed. If there is no other response to Samir's offer, I will move on.

[iop]

Walking through your suite in the fine clothes after a hot bath makes you almost forget the arduous journey that lays behind you. From the servants' room, you hear the baby squeal in delight as the babysitter plays with him, and so it is without worry that you exit the inn.

As you glance over the village square, the contrast to your arrival is striking. Instead of a silent, deserted place under a merciless sun, the village square is full of people streaming toward the square tower that is both the mayor's home and the last line of defense of the village. Frequently, the villagers glance at the sky - the menacing clouds and the strong, humid wind strongly indicate that the thunderstorm is imminent. And they are right. You haven't gone half way across the square, when there is an almost simultaneous flash of lightning and a deafening thunderclap. Everyone freezes. Though as you hear the incoming swooshing sound of the approaching rain, everyone runs for the large gate at the bottom of the tower. It is only with sheer luck that your clothes don't get damaged with all the pushing, but you do make it just in time. People who enter the tower just seconds after you are already soaked to the skin.

You find yourself in a large hall at the foot of the tower. The floor is covered with rough stone slabs like the village square, and there are long wooden benches and tables to accommodate everyone. On the far side of the hall, opposing stairs lead to a small balcony, where two men and a woman are talking. One of the men is a cleric of St. Cuthbert, the other is most likely the mayor. Thus, the woman may be his much younger wife.

The villagers - especially the soaked ones - hurry past you without giving you too much attention while they hunt for a space at one of the tables. However, when one of the villagers, a guy in his late teens with a scar on his cheek, bumps into Hector, he turns around and sneers: "What is cityfolk like you doing here? This is a celebration for all who helped with the harvest, not for fine people like you who are too soft to do real work!"
"Shut up, idiot! They are surely Hitasps invited guests", admonished another villager the teen. "Go sit down and don't stir up trouble."
Turning to you, the villager apologizes. "The boy just doesn't know how to behave. We hope he'll join some band of ragtag adventurers some day to annoy people elsewhere. Anyway, Hitasp will make a speech - a short one, as always, and then Farivar, the cleric, is going to make a way too long blessing. After that, I will bring you upstairs to meet Hitasp. And... if you don't mind, please stand against that wall over there for the moment, so that the others can come in more easily."

You do as suggested, and indeed, Hitasp, the mayor, doesn't speak for too long. He welcomes everyone, says how proud he is that everyone helped, which allowed bringing in the hay just in time... with St. Cuthbert's help, of course. He wishes everyone a nice party and hands over to Farivar. The priest speaks surprisingly well, smartly mixing praise for the people with praise for St. Cuthbert - except that he fails to stop until the audience grows restless. Finally, there is the blessing, and no sooner has he stopped speaking that there are several men and women stepping onto the balcony from the door in Farivar's back carrying steaming food. It is not clear whether the loud cheers are only directed to Farivar or rather to the food, but the priest doesn't seem to care.

The helpful villager stands up as promised, and leads you up the stairs, where you meet Hitasp.

"Welcome to Darsh, travellers", Hitasp greets you, "It is a great pleasure for us to dine with you tonight. Please follow me."

You are led two floors upstairs, where you cross a long spartan hallway with portraits of probably all the mayors the village ever had. Only at second glance you realize that this must be the banquet hall. There are several doors to the left and right, but you head straight ahead. When you arrive at the last portrait, the one of "Hitasp Dansar", the mayor, you turn and pass through a door. Before entering, both Hector and Marius notice the family crest the mayor is holding in the picture. It seems to have the exact same pattern of the cloth that was around the baby.

The new room is a library. The atmosphere is warm and welcoming here, unlike in the banquet hall. The tall room is lit by two chandeliers that seem to float freely in the air, and the walls are covered with rows upon rows of books, some of which appear to be quite ancient. In the center of the room, space has been made for a dining table that would sit eight. There are five covers. One for each of you, one for Hitasp and one for the young woman who couldn't be much over twenty. There are two servants waiting.

Hitasp walks behind the chair at the end of the table, the woman behind the other one.

"Welcome, travelers, to my humble table. Before we sit down, please let me introduce you to my daughter, Barsine." As you want to reciprocate, he shakes his head. "Please, there is a time for everything. Barsine and I have the peculiar custom to invite travelers to our table so they may share some news and knowledge with us. Once we sit down, I ask you to introduce yourself. Explain who you are however you think characterizes you best. Over dinner, Barsine and I will gladly answer questions you may have about the Kingdom of Malager, and we hope you will allow us to satisfy our curiosity. Finally, as your way to thank us for the meal and the company, we ask each of you to tell us a story - about you, about your homeland, or whatever else that comes to your mind. We are not taking any offense if you do not want to share anything about you, but in that case, we would like to ask you to leave now."
After an near imperceptable nod of Hitasp, the two servants move to him and his daughter to pull back the chairs and to let their masters sit down.

[Skjaldbakka]

"I am Silquë'mahtar'urulócë. I am traveling to Maleger to fulfill an ancient debt of allegiance, passed down to me from my ancestors. I am the descendent of the grey elf hero whose name I bear, who fought side by side with Sirdan and Mordekin at the battle of Myrrdin, where many a vile orc and brave hero met their end . . . (he continues to talk about the battle of Myrrdin for awhile - he is somewhat lacking in storytelling ability, but has a great amount of historical accuracy, for anyone who can tell)"

OOC: I had to make up a name for the battle, since we never actually worked any of the details out on that. /OOC

[iop]

OOC
If any character doesn't want to participate, please mention it. I don't mean to railroad you into this (I do actually expect a (short) story from you, if your character participates), I just wanted to take the opportunity to reveal a little bit of background.
/OOC


"Ah, I do remember that story", Hitasp says, interrupting Lócë. "Recently, a bard has come to this table, who told it to us. I suggest that we listen to it while we enjoy some appetizers. The food is not quite ready, since the kitchen is serving the village first."

Hitasp helps himself to an olive which he eats with a bit of bread that he dips in oil, while one of the servants follows Barsine's instructions to remove a crystal ball from a chest in the back of the room and to bring it to her. With a few caresses of her white hand, Barsine brings the head-sized crystal ball to glow, and as soon as the ball is put on a small pedestal in the middle of the table, the face of an aged bard appears in the crystal ball and starts telling the story of Orcbane. The voice sounds as if it was coming from afar, but it still has a lot of power and expression. Truly, with such a storyteller, the evening must have been memorable for Hitasp and Barsine.

This is the story the bard's face tells:
OOC: Story spoilered for length. I was debating to give you a summary only, but then, why not tell you everything? I/OOC

A long time ago, before Orcbane was built, a great evil befell the lands of Sanetch. Some say, the stones were brought to life when the evil sorcerer cursed his persecutors. Wherever they came from, they were ugly and brutal. They had dark skin, black hair, and red, glowing eyes. They spoke a language that hurt the ears and wielded axes and spears that hurt the flesh. Be glad that they have been wiped from the earth so that not even their people's name survived, only the name by which we cursed them: Orc.
Like the plague they came over the cities of the north, and like the plague they did not leave but a handful of survivors. They destroyed the elven city that stood higher than the mountain, and collapsed the dwarven tunnels; they sank the ships in the harbors and trampled the crop on the fields. Not even the hobgoblins and ogres were able to stop the onslaught.
Whoever was able to, fled south, and soon Sdanek grew from a handful of houses into a moloch of tents and huts. The winter that followed was the most terrible ever. People were dying from hunger and cold, because the prairies of Sdanek did not provide wood for heating nor enough food for the masses. And every day, more people were arriving, humans, elves, dwarves and everyone else who survived the orcs.
We people of Sanetch are tough, though, and as soon as spring came, we started to fight back. We tamed the lands south of the river Sdanek. We tamed the horses roaming the prairies. And we let ourselves become untamed, forgetting the old ways that kept us all peaceful and separated, to become the fierce fighters that the times required. The elves shared their lore with the dwarves, and the hobgoblins taught us to fight with abandon.
We fought the orcs in the hills, and we fought them in the swamps, and even though our losses were great, we were able to stop them from advancing. Tourak, Hero of Mugdal, and Mordekin, the elven lord were the great generals who instilled the troups with courage, and outwitted the enemies’ commanders. Soon, we learnt that the orcs did not build ships. This is when the shipbuilders of Malager shone: Within a month they had turned the forests guarding the delta of Kalote into a fleet of ships that was able to carry our troops behind the enemy lines, and before the year was over, only the forest of Orbain was still in the hands of the enemy.
Even though the winter was cold, the fire inside the hearts of our soldiers never diminished. We built two massive towers, one to the east and one to the west of the forest. Nowadays, the Inns of the West and of the East Tower are the only thing that reminds us of the extraordinary will of our people to build despite the cold and the enemy arrows.
When the winter was over, there were not only the rains of spring, but also the blood of the orcs and unfortunately of many a good man to soak the earth. Fighting in the forest was not only much more difficult, but the forest itself had become dangerous, too. Scores of monsters had followed the orcs, above all the spiders with their lords, the aranea. The elves wept hot tears when they learned how their homelands had been defiled. When it became clear that there was no way to push the enemy out of the forest with an all-out assault, we settled on another strategy: Led by the elves, the rangers learnt to become invisible in the woods and to send deadly arrows into the hearts of the enemies, especially their leaders. At the same time, the dwarves started to hollow out the mountains to eventually resurface next to the paths the enemy used to cross the mountains. It was a drawn out battle, but at least our losses diminished, and we were steadily gaining ground. Of course, all of it was too slow for the hobgoblins and the ogres - every now and then a tribe would lose its nerve and venture into the forest to confront a camp of orcs, usually never to be seen again.
It took the dwarves twenty years to dig their tunnels from Darreh to the mountain pass over which the orcs had come pouring. But on the day they broke through the last layer of stone, every single hour they had toiled was rewarded: The tunnels opened to an enormous camp of orcs, a city almost, and the enemy was caught completely unawares. Our forces were heavily outnumbered, but thanks to the surprise effect and the fierce determination of the warriors charging out of the tunnels into the weak underside of the city's belly, our victory was decisive. Maybe a handful of orcs was able to flee into the forest, but compared to the countless numbers that were purged from out land it did not matter. No orc was spared, tall or short, strong or weak, ready or not. However, they did not burn the enemy camp. Instead, they cleaned the houses from all the filth, and they piled the bodies on the main square, and they burned all trace of the orcs in the center of what would soon be called Orcbane. The fire was seen from the two towers, and the pillar of smoke was visible even in Sdanek, and there was great rejoicing. Aside from a few pockets of spiders and their lords infesting the forest of Orbain, Sanetch was ours again.
How I wish the story would end here. Alas, these were the dragonwars, and the worst enemy is therefore yet to appear. Not that they would catch us unprepared again. Not ever. Therefore, when the garrison on top of the mountain pass reported that the limitless plains in the north were crawling with orcs, the fort of Orcbane was built, partly at the foot, partly on top, but mostly within the mountain. Ah, Orcbane. Why did it have to disappear? But I digress. First, it was built, which took thirty years. Never were there more highly skilled masters joining hands, and their work was a marvel to behold, Some say that there was talk about giants joining our side, some say that the dwarves had found lots of ore, fact is that the ceiling in the main hall of Orcbane was three hundred feet high, with pillars decorated with sculptures of the mighty deeds of our heroes. Some of the pillars were hollow, and inside, a magical fire was burning to light up the hall, but most of the illumination came from the ceiling that was bright as the midday sky the day after a rainstorm. This hall was at the heart of the mountain, and through the corridors and rooms that surrounded it flowed the blood of the lands of Sanetch - our mighty heroes. Stronger and stronger this heart began to beat, and further and further we penetrated the mountain, until, finally, we opened a gate to the limitless plains of the north. Like the waters of purification, the blood of the lands of Sanetch poured out of the mountain and started washing away the orcs. Some of our tunnels collapsed the fortifications that the Orcs had built on the flanks of the mountain, killing the garrisons stationed there, but most of the Orcs died by the sword. Seven days and seven nights we fought, and the orcs fell like grass under the scythe of the farmer, until there was no enemy alive within our reach. Tourak, Hero of Mugdal, who by now had become old and frail, wept for the second time in his life - this time with happiness and relief, and many of those who remembered the bitter winters of the occupation did the same. We believed that with this crushing blow, we had once and for all banished the threat posed by the orcs. We knew, of course, that the orcs would come back, and that the victory would not be as easy. But we were ready. We were not afraid.
This changed all too soon. Five years later, the Watch of Orcbane sent out an alarm, and when Mordekin, the elven lord, climbed the tower of Orcbane, the blood froze in his veins: The orcs had arrived with an army that stretched as far as his keen eyes were able to see, they seemed to be highly organized and disciplined, and they were not alone: the orcs were accompanied by such terrible monsters as chimeras, or two-headed giants, and as was learned later, they were commanded by frost giants. But the worst of the enemies' allies where the dragons. Maybe we were to confident, maybe we had forgotten to fight back when the battle was not in our favor, but I think we were just too little prepared for the ferocity of the onslaught, when the day of the battle arrived. And we were definitely not prepared to lose Mordekin the elven lord, our great commander. He was directing our troops from the tower of Orcbane, when suddenly the dragons swiped down from the sky and covered the tower in fire and ice, until finally a huge dragon came down and simply bit off a chunk of the tower. Our losses were terrible on this day. The fortifications we had built on the limitless plains were swept away like sand castles are swept away by the water, and our soldiers were killed as if they were unarmed. Even the mighty gates of Orcbane would not have withstood the onslaught if it hadn't been for Aitan. She had gathered a group of fearless fighters that floated like a boat on the waves of enemies, leaving nothing but death in its wake. Aitan herself killed three of the enemy commanders, one through a falling dragon, and her men killed four more, until the last frost giant standing called back his troops.
There were many tears for the fallen and no shouts of joy when Aitan was given command of Orcbane and all its forces, for everyone feared her. Aitan’s family had been killed when she was nine, when the caravan bringing them to Orcbane had been ambushed by the spiders. Aitan survived buried under the corpses of her loved ones, and when she was found, she was unable to speak. Some say that her soul had died that day; others even claim that she had made a deal with the devil. At any rate, Aitan was adopted by one of Mordekin's guards, and she grew up fighting the aranea in the forests, never speaking, until she butchered an aranea that had disguised itself as her mother with her bare hands. Her first word was DIE!, and starting with this command, all orders she ever gave were immediately obeyed. And orders were all that ever crossed her lips. Most people were terrified of her, if not because of her reputation then of her icy stare and her commanding voice, but those she allowed to fight alongside her spoke with tears in their eyes of how she fought like a lioness to save their lives if ever they were in danger. Soon, there was a saying that "The safest place in the world is next to the hilt, the most dangerous place next to the tip of Aitan's sword". Even her most loyal comrades, however, never reported any sign of kindness from her side. The closest she probably came to showing emotions was toward Mordran, her adoptive father, who was the only one - aside from one powerful healer, Rhador - whom she allowed to touch her skin. It was Mordran, who suggested giving Aitan the control of Orcbane, saying: "We have learned that our enemies do not give up and always come back stronger. We need a leader who can do the same". Of course, there was great opposition to the appointment of Aitan, not the least because she was a woman, which was a problem with some of the races, especially the hobgoblins, and also because she was human and therefore not expected to live long enough to see the end of the battle. But after the devastating loss, where Aitan had been the only island in the storm, there seemed to be no alternative. During the deliberations, there was one very critical moment: The son of an important hobgoblin chief, considered the strongest of all the tribes, tried to touch Aitan, whether it was to rape her or to ridicule her or just to congratulate her for her deeds, no one can say for sure, and Aitan never told. What is known, however, is that the hobgoblin ended up pinned to the wall with his own sword through his head. When the body was found, there was a great clamor - the hobgoblins wanted Aitan's head, and several others were glad of the opportunity to rid themselves of her. Imagine the shock when Helis, captain of the guard, took his sword and rammed it through the dead hobgoblin's heart. And mind you: This did not just mean that he was defiling the corpse of an ally, he was in fact symbolically killing the hobgoblin again, indicating his complete agreement with his killing. One by one, the comrades of Aitan, all highly esteemed heroes, did the same, until it was clear that Aitan was never to be tried by the hobgoblins, and that there would be no obstacle to her ascent. Afterwards, the hobgoblins wanted to leave the alliance, and they most certainly would have dragged the ogres with them, Thanks to the diplomatic skills of the Paladins of Malager, however, who had always had a very good understanding with the other races, the alliance withstood this test, and Aitan became commander of Orcbane.
It became clear very quickly that Aitan had no intent of respecting taboos. She decreed that the infantry, trusted backbone of the army, was useless against the new foe, and that they either needed to become cavalry, archers, or operators of her massive war machines. She also called upon all the mages of the lands of Sanetch for help. So far, they had only served to enchant weapons and to heal the wounded; Aitan used the seers, especially those among the ogre mages to spy on the enemy, and made most of the other mages into warmages. A few select mages were ordered to start researching the elements to summon elementals to fight on our side. She also promoted the use of poison that was extracted from caught spiders and araneas to weaken the enemies, and she started to send small teams of men into the enemy camp to sabotage their supplies. Many resented these changes, most of all the Paladins of Malager, who claimed that she was performing evil acts, at least until the next battle.
The enemy came with large siege equipment to break the doors of Orcbane, and the dragons charged ahead to eliminate any resistance. When the enemy was near, the Paladins of Malager, led by Sirdan the one-eyed (but, as some say, double-tongued), the hobgoblins, the ogre warriors, the lancers of Mugdal and many of the riders of Sdanek made a sortie. Sirdan had claimed that there was no need of all of Aitan's changes, and she had given him the opportunity to prove it. Sirdan's army fought bravely, and they caused a lot of damage whenever they were able to engage orcs or some of the lesser monsters, but as soon as the dragons let fire and ice rain from the skies, our fighters were in grave danger. When the dragons coordinated their attacks on the Paladins of Malager, Sirdan seemed lost. Fortunately for Sirdan, Aitan never allowed herself to lose a good fighter, not even one who openly opposed him. She commanded Sirdan to call for a hasty retreat, and he obeyed. As our troops approached the gates of Orcbane, chased by the dragons, the air suddenly seemed to erupt with arrows, spells, and such winds that instead of fire and ice, it rained dragons. The enemies who had dared to come into the range of our archers died like flies, and all Sirdan and his troops had to do was to take care of those that somehow managed to pass through the curtain of death Aitan lowered in front of the foot of Orcbane. Seeing that it would be impossible to to push this curtain aside, the enemy turned around before they even sent in their main troops. Aitan had won two battles in one: The attack had been repealed, and Sirdan admitted the superiority of her methods.
Yet, Aitan was not happy. All she had done was to defend Orcbane and the lands of Sanetch, she had in no way defeated her enemy. She feared that people would claim that all Orcbane needed was archers and mages, that it would be enough to sit back and defend, and that the other troops should come home. But she knew that unless the enemy was thoroughly defeated, they would come back, stronger each time. She was sure that the decisive victory could only happen during the next confrontation, because later she would not have enough troops at hand to win. This lead to her most daring and probably most dangerous decision: She went with a handful of her most trusted lieutenants and searched for the hideout of the other most dangerous person in the lands of Sanetch: The evil sorcerer. It is rumored that they found him in the swamps between Naregal and Silute, and what they negotiated will forever be the source of endless speculation - what do you offer to a man who once had an entire town under his spell, who knew the secrets of the philosopher's stone, and whose only goal was to become immortal? All that is known is that a few months later, a group of hooded and masked people arrived in Orcbane, who carried leaden chests, and that an entire sub-section of Orcbane was turned over to them. Rumors spread like wildfire, of course, but nothing was known at all about the newcomers, their sub-section was declared off-limits for everyone else, and they never ventured outside. Eventually, the rumors died again, buried under the heavy workload Aitan put on everyone's shoulders to prepare for the final battle.
Two years later, the day of the final battle of Orcbane had arrived. This time, there were no enemy troops that would perish easily under a hail of arrows - they all were heavily armored, or rode in covered siege engines. And the skies were filled with dragons and other foul flying creatures, such as harpies, manticores, and even demons. At the generals' meeting, everyone had at least a lump in his throat. Except for Aitan, who broke one of her rare smiles. Her plans would come to fruitition. Yet, when the generals left the meeting, under strict orders not to speak of what they had heard, most of them were pale, even though they claimed they were confident of winning. The troops were told to wait for the enemy at the gates of Orcbane, and not to move unless ordered. They waited for several hours, watching the supremely equipped much more numerous enemy approach. Yet they stood fast, not flinching despite the seeming hopelessness of their position. As the flying creatures approached, they waited for the arrows and the rays of magic energy - but that never came. Instead, they saw four bright flashes of light, and moments later, the dragons started to attack their allies. The troops stared in awe as they witnessed the most extraordinary battle ever fought in the skies, and slowly it dawned upon some what weapon the mysterious strangers had brought: The evil sorcerer had found a way not only to control humans, but apparently dragons as well! And the dragons were now fighting to defend Orcbane and they were winning. Still, the enemy advanced on the ground, and the battle would have been honorable, but hopeless, had not suddenly the earth begun to tremble opening huge fissures in the ground that swallowed even giants. Those who did not perish on the spot, which were still many, were often panicking, so that when our armies started to attack, it was more of a butchery than a battle. Yet, the enemy was so numerous still that many of them had the time to regroup and fight back. The battle lasted a week with no interruptions, and even with dragons on our side, it was not clear who would win. On the fourth day, the dragons had killed all the enemy flying creatures, but they, too, had been heavily decimated. On the fifth day, Sirdar fell, killed by the great Jarl of the frost giants, but not without wounding him. On the sixth day, Aitan avenged Sirdar, and the battle was won, yet it took another entire day to kill all of the enemies.
Victory was ours. An army so enormous that the glow of the fire from burning the dead was even seen on the other side of the mountains had been utterly annihilated. We controlled now even dragons. But why is my voice not filled with joy? It is not because of the heavy price we paid for peace, even though the deaths of many heroes should sadden us and always remind us of the immense cost of war. No, it is Orcbane that was lost on that day. Exactly what happened, I cannot tell. Was it an accident or a secret weapon of the enemy or an evil machination of the evil sorcerer? All we know is that when everyone was getting toward the great hall of Orcbane, an explosion shook the base of the mountain, and strange poisons filled the air. Few escaped, and those who eventually made it to the cities made very conflicting claims: Some said that the poison still lingered around Orcbane, making it deadly to approach. Others said that some of the heroes had risen from the dead and were now haunting the lifeless fortress. Some even said that the Watch of Orcbane had survived the disaster, but that they had gone mad, and were now killing everyone who approached Orcbane. The only thing that was clear was that it was not a good idea to approach the former pride of the lands of Sanetch, and everyone hoped that our victory had been decisive enough to make it unnecessary to ever do so again. Thus, Orcbane slowly disappeared from the people's memory, and now there is no one who exactly knows where it lies. Fortunately, it seems that our enemies have been defeated for good. But can we ever be sure that there won't be a time when orcs come climbing over the mountains again?

[Zweanslord]

Marius Thanador

"It is an honour to be your guests, Sir Hitasp. I am Marius Thanador, a Healer. If any healing services are required and they are within my powers, I will be happy to offer them. I am currently travelling to meet my sister, who I have not seen in years." After the introduction, Marius' attention is towards Silquë'mahtar'urulócë who continues to tell part of his tale, after which his attention shifts towards the medieval televisio- crystal ball, listening to the tale of the story teller. Afterwards, Marius speaks up. "An amazing tale, I thank you for allowing us to listen to it." Marius leaves some room for further comments from his companions before he tells a tale of his own.

"This is a tale of something I experienced quite some years ago. I was travelling alone, hoping to offer healing to those in need and to go where the light of Pelor would lead me. I came across the village of Ternagee, a small rural village where cows and sheep adorned the grassy hills around it. All seemed well as I passed through the village and sought a place to rest. I decided to stay at the local inn and the people were friendly. I asked if my services would be needed, but the innkeeper knew of nobody who would immediately need aid.

At the first sign of dusk, however, the windows were shut. I thought it was a little early, but it seemed that the villagers feared those who wandered the night. They told of evil hags who would visit the village at night and turn all those still wandering about in bushes and trees. While I found this odd, there were three others residing in the inn who found this strange as well and wanted to act upon it. They were travellers as well, adventurers in fact. A strong and rough human, Roderick Gruck, a nimble elven ranger, Vadanthia Meliamne, and a cunning half-elven tribal mage, Fred Marker. While the innkeeper would not let them out to explore the area at night, I overheard them setting up a plan for the day after.

They, in turn, heard of my capabilities and invited me to join them in their efforts to find out what was going on. I accepted, for I felt that I could help the people in the village with it. The next day, we stayed outdoors, waiting for anything to come. We waited throughout the eve and night, but nothing appeared. The villagers were scared and wanted us to go away, but one old man was helpful enough to point us to what he suspected to be the source of the trouble. In a forest near the village, one of the hags was supposed to live.

We went to the forest and explored it, eventually finding a small path that would lead to a small and old house. We approached it cautiously, but when we entered we only found a deserted home, with cobwebs and dust. We returned to the village, but dusk had already fallen. As we moved through the forest, we heard something move near us. Wary, we called it out. Moments later, we found ourselves attacked by a fierce wolf. It attacked with a howl and sped by the trees to attack us in our midst. With a swift attack, it had tripped Roderick and threatened the likes of Vadanthia. What followed was a fierce battle, as it seemed that the attacks of Roderick and Vadanthia only caused wounds which the wolf swiftly healed from.

As I healed my companions, Fred Marker prepared his tribal magic to confuse and overpower the wolf. This was no ordinary wolf, as his magic showed. As confusion beset the wolf it changed to become a wolf in the shape of a man. Vadanthia and Roderick tried to beat down the wolfman and they did seem to have success after much strenuous efforts. Vadanthia used a handful of silver-tipped arrows, and these proved to cause lasting wounds. The wolfman manage do strike down fiercely upon them, however, but where the wolfman healed swiftly of the physical strikes of Roderick and Vadanthia, Roderick and Vadanthia healed swiftly with my back up. Eventually, the wolfman turned into a wolf once more and fled. We were unable to catch up and so had to retreat further to the village.

On the way back, we also met an elderly lady. She was almost blind, and told us that she could not handle light very well. She offered to sell us plants, amongst which were flowers and bushes and she seemed happy to finally see some people at night. We thanked her kindly for the offer, but we were in no need of that. When we saw she wanted to go deeper in the forest, we offered to accompany her because of the wolfman threat. She said she did not need aid, but we insisted.

Protecting her, we moved back in the forest, and eventually came back to the cottage we had visited before. It was her cottage, but she never used the normal floor. Instead, she used the cellar, which we had not found and which had been locked anyway. At least, it was supposed to have been, as it was open now. Entering, we found a bleeding man. She moved quickly to him, and we found out that her son had been injured. He told it was because of a wolf, but when I examined his wounds they were not that of a wolves attack. They matched the wounds we had given to the werewolf.

Apparently, her son was a werewolf who had been killing and eating people at the nights of the full moon in town. When the people closed their homes at night, the time the woman sold her plants every so often, she found no more costumers. She left a few bushes, hoping that they would remember her. Instead, they believed her to be a hag who turned people into bushes, since the corpses of the killed people were dragged away..

Unfortunately, a cure for his affliction was not within our reach immediately. We decided to take him along to a bigger city and seek for a cure. Roderick wanted to kill the werewolf, but it would break the mother's heart, so we stopped him from doing so. I was able to provide the lady with better eyesight before we left, so that she was able to see Pelor's light in greater glory again. We explained what had happened to the villagers, but they were still wary. Luckily, the woman was now able to sell her plants during the day.

We travelled to a greater city and there, with divine help, the curse was broken. The son was relieved and returned to Ternagee. I travelled a while with Roderick Gruck, Vadanthia Meliamne and Fred Marker, but eventually our paths separated again."

[iop]

"This is a very interesting story. Indeed, things are not always as they appear, but it is often difficult to see past the façade", says Hitasp as Marius finishes his story.

Time flies when there are stories to listen to. Therefore, you have almost finished the main course, "trout in a bag" - fillets of trout that has been caught in the river in the morning that have been baked together with various spices inside a thin, now crispy, envelope of yeast dough, served on crispy salad leaves with a '28 hobgoblin white that perfectly rounds off the dish.

"It is fortunate that there aren't any werewolves around here", says Barsine. "Although it is said that some of the aranea from the Dragonwars still haunt the forest of Orbain. But we haven't heard of anyone sighting these... could one call them were-spiders?"