|
Post by beowuuf on May 16, 2010 18:36:08 GMT
Wow, so 1-on-1 as Lone Wolf Michelle must be getting used to being close to death but never getting there by now. Meanwhile, poor Silent Falcon could get her head smashed in by a gourgaz! That would be a bit of a shock
|
|
|
Post by Zipp on May 16, 2010 20:31:38 GMT
Well, something I don't convey in these posts is how they roll during the game. Last session, Michelle rolled TERRIBLY. I'm talking, and this is no exaggeration, five 1's in a row, some of those using up her fate points for the session (allows rerolls). By the time they reached the harbour, they were at, like, 6 and 5 health respectively.
I do recognize, though, that DoD is written for six companions, not two. So I've given them plenty of potions and lowered the enemy count a little bit or, rather, giving them evasive options. I even gave an evasive option for the Kwaraz in the sewer but that nutty Storm Rat downed an alether and took em' on. Gotta love bravery. And stupidity.
As a side note, there's no Gourgaz in my version. That was one thing I disliked about DoD. I will always be drawn to the truly impressive introduction to the Gourgaz as given in Flight From the Dark. A Gourgaz who hasn't got his sea legs and is described in the adventure as being basically a klutz... that just doesn't swing it for me. I can see how the giant lizard could be useful as a scare tactic, but I'm going to save the Gourgaz introduction for a more appropriate time. After all, I have plans to take them through the Maakenmire.
|
|
|
Post by Zipp on May 17, 2010 23:31:58 GMT
Dawn of Destruction, conclusion (part 1)
Silent Falcon and Storm Rat steady themselves for the task ahead. They aren't looking too healthy. Silent Falcon is at 11 End and Storm Rat at 6. Their CS is still relatively high though (14 and 16 respectively) so they ready their gear and leap over the barricade, killing a giak who charges them as they come over.
With Said in tow, the two Kai Lords leap aboard the first ship, a naval ship, and go below decks, thinking there may be giaks there. They don't find giaks but they do find a Bronin Warhammer, which Storm Rat takes. Coming above deck again, they find the giaks... they are several ships away and firing arrows at the hapless adventurers. Dodging the arrows, the three prepare to leap to the next ship.
Here, disaster strikes. Storm Rat misses his jump and falls into the sea below the ship. Thinking fast, Silent Falcon grabs a nearby rope and tosses it to him, praying that she won't be hit by the next volley of arrows. Luck is with the trio, though, and they haul Storm Rat out and make the jump to the other ship, Storm Rat just barely making it this time.
The ship with the giak snipers is closer now, which makes the trio easier to hit. The ship the trio are on is a Merchant Vessel. Unfortunately, Storm Rat fails to recognize the symbols on the crates around them: it is the healing symbol of the Redeemers. Not aware that they are amid a ship full of healing items, the three move on to the next ship, this time by climbing the crow's nest and swinging across on ropes that used to hold the sails. Storm Rat takes an arrow in the arm during the climb that brings him down to 3 Endurance, but otherwise the daring leap is made successfully. What's more, Storm Rat realizes as he swings over that the ship they are headed to has cannons... and next to this ship is the one the giaks are on.
Announcing his plan to destroy the other ship, Storm Rat heads below deck while Said and Silent Falcon prepare to fight back with arrows against the giak snipers. But here, their luck runs out. Storm Rat fumbles a dodging roll and is about to be skewered by an arrow. In the nick of time, Said pushes the Kai Lord out of the way... but takes the arrow himself in the throat. Silent Falcon lets loose an arrow and rushes to Said's side. The Vassagonian cannot speak, but he presses an odd iron amulet into her hands before he dies. She is later to learn that this marked Said as an Agent of the Star and, by passing it to her, he has named Silent Falcon his successor in the order.
With a vicious explosion, the cannons fire. Though Storm Rat's plan is ultimately successful in sinking the ship that the giaks have comandeered, the victory is tinged with sadness for the loss of a brave companion. And the two Kai Lords can barely spare the moment to grieve, for they still have the black sailed ship to conquer and a harbour wall to take back.
More coming... find out whether Silent Falcon and Storm Rat survive the finale of Dawn of Destruction!
|
|
|
Post by Zipp on May 19, 2010 23:41:12 GMT
Dawn of Destruction, conclusion (part 2)
With the destruction of the naval ship by cannon ball, the defenders have charged over the barricade and the pincher attack has begun. Storm Rat rushes across some netting connecting their ship to the wall, Silent Falcon shooting down a giak who seeks to cut the netting from underneath him.
Silent Falcon draws another arrow and takes aim on three more giaks who are rushing towards Storm Rat. Her shot hits, but doesn't kill her target. Storm Rat, realizing he is outnumbered, seeks to flee by jumping into the sea. In his evasion, though, he is cut and brought down to 1 END (no GM interference here... just dumb luck, or unluck, of the roll). Silent Storm sees him cut and fall into the sea. She doesn't know otherwise what has become of her companion, nor does she have time to contemplate the situation: the giaks are now turning towards her!
Before the giaks can reach the net, one has fallen to another of Silent Falcon's arrows. The others are then on the net crossing to her. She draws her spear, a perfect weapon for this occasion, and keeps them off balance on the netting, killing them with minimal injury. By the time she is done, Wilhelm the dwarf and the other defenders have cleared the wall and gather near Silent Falcon. There was minimal casualties, though one man that died had a spare potion, which Wilhelm gives to Silent Falcon. They spare a moment of praise for the fallen, including Said and Storm Rat.
The Kai Lord in question is in a bad place: floundering in the sea, almost spent of energy, and slowly being dragged out away from the ships where Grimora fish, which feed ravenously on the dead, are in a feeding frenzy. At the last possible moment, he manages to grab hold of a trailing net hanging from the naval ship and pull himself onto the deck. His return is ill timed, though. Barely has he rejoined his fellow Kai Lord when the beacon, on fire, collapses and falls towards the group. The Kai Lords dodge the fire, but end up separated from the others.
They see they have landed on the side closest to the Stalwart, the ship which has rammed the Ebon Snake and bought all of Toran precious minutes from the invading giak crew. Silent Falcon gives Storm Rat the potion and they head towards the ship, ready to end the threat of the orb of Sunrise.
The exciting finale of Dawn of Destruction coming!
|
|
|
Post by Zipp on Jun 3, 2010 3:12:08 GMT
Apologies for taking so long to write this... decent timing, nonetheless, as I think we are playing again this week.
Dawn of Destruction, conclusion (part 3)
Crossing the Stalwart and making it safely to the Ebon Snake, the two Kai Lords sneak their way below decks, killing the one giak that spots them. Shoving the dead body aside, they go down the stairs into the bowels of the ship. Right in front of them is a door, smeared with black blood that leads off to the left, down a corridor. Another corridor lies to the right. Silent Falcon is all for avoiding the blood trail, but Storm Rat suddenly picks up a premonition (perhaps a sign of budding mental powers? Or just a really good roll of the die?) that down the left hallway is an object exuding magical energy. He also senses the Dark Wizard's presence... but that is down the right hallway.
After a hurried discussion, Silent Falcon agrees to go left first... though she makes Storm Rat walk in front. They round the corner to see the previous owner of the large amount of blood. It is a huge giak, the largest the two have ever seen. It is almost as tall as Storm Rat and its bulk is evident even though it is slumped over, dead, on the ground. Not trusting the body, Silent Falcon stabs at it with her spear. Whether because of this move, or in spite of it, the giak suddenly comes back to life, grabbing the spear-head and turning the blow aside before rising to engage the two Kai Lords.
Now, Silent Falcon's spear works against her in the small space. The giak easily gets within her reach and knocks the spear aside, intending to choke her the death. For a moment it looks like Silent Falcon is going to die. She is brought to 2 Endurance before Storm Rat finally lands a blow that fells the giak.
The challenge isn't over, though, the two doors in this corridor turn out to harbor nasty surprises. One leads into the giak living chambers. Silent Falcon is first to go in and notice the dead body of another (regular-sized) giak, lying in a pool of its own excrement. Storm Rat recognizes the signs of gut rot and pulls Silent Falcon from the room and the reaches of the highly contagious disease. Silent Falcon cannot tell whether she has contracted the virus...
The other door has a trap. To disarm it, the Kai Lords deduce that they need to correctly operate a series of buttons underneath the door handle. The symbols are a circle, a square, a triangle, a diamond, and an octagon. Nervous and near death, the two Kai cannot fathom the puzzle and instead prepare for the trap, setting Storm Rat's shield front-and-center to the door. Then they press the Triangle. Hearing a dull click, they wonder if the trap has been disarmed and they open the door.
Only the barest change in the wind alerts Silent Falcon to the danger... coming from behind her! She quickly shoves Storm Rat aside and then leaps to the ground. The poison needle, fired from a cleverly concealed panel behind the Kai Lords, buries itself in the door. Getting to her feet, Silent Falcon realizes their error: the circle was the only one of the symbols without sides. It was the odd one out.
Cursing their lack of foresight, but praising their quick feet, the Kai Lords enter the room, which turns out to be a ritual chamber of some sort. Despite the bloodied surroundings and the creepy runes scratched into the wood, they find nothing of interest here. Convinced, however, by his premonition that something powerful is in this room, Storm Rat spends a fate point to reroll his search die... and finds something of great power, indeed.
Under the floorboards is a jeweled dagger, a magical artifact which Storm Rat recognizes from his arcane studies (his personal area of interest). The dagger has the ability to shatter magical bonds and shields, a bane of wizards but also a common side arm of more dangerous druids. They also find some questionable meat and an elixir, which they fight over for a moment. Finally, the two agree that Storm Rat, who has more energy left (read: higher CS remaining) should drink the potion and take the dagger... and also be responsible for killing the mage with it. Silent Falcon secretly suspects that she will not survive the mission and prepares herself reluctantly for death.
Storm Rat drinks the elixir and also a fatigue potion, restoring his energy even further. Then the two head back down the hallway towards a confrontation with the wizard. But not all is well in the world... as they leave the room, they see that the large Giak's body is gone.
Cautiously, the two proceed down the hall. They have passed the stairs when the door opposite bursts open and the giak latches onto Silent Falcon. A moment later, it falls down, its last energy spent. It is finally dead. Exploring the room reveals a storeroom, from which Silent Falcon takes oil to light her arrows on fire. Then the two proceed to the final confrontation.
The Final Confrontation, in full detail, next time!
|
|
|
Post by Zipp on Jun 3, 2010 6:38:19 GMT
Dawn of Destruction, conclusion (Part 4)
The hull of the ship has become the Wizard's source of power. Here he has tied up the crew to a magical chain which sucks their life dry and feeds him the power needed to maintain his hold on the minds of the Brotherhood Council of Twelve. He is pouring his energy into the orb he holds, the twin to the orb of sunset... the orb of sunrise. He is so intent on concentrating that he has fallen into a deep trance and is unaware of the would-be heroes' presence.
All this is surmised by Storm Rat and Silent Falcon as they prepare to launch an attack on the wizard. Silent Falcon draws her bow and prepares for death. Storm Rat sneaks to within a foot of the Wizard and then stabs with the dagger.
His premonition ends up saving them. A magical shield protects the Wizard, a shield which can deflect any blow... except that of the dagger. Though the dagger shatters on impact with the Wizard's heart, it destroys the barrier surrounding him and sends iron shards deep within his heart. His eyes flicker open in surprise... and then he is dead.
Peace only lasts so long, however. Suddenly lightning strikes the ship and blasts a hole in its hull (no pun intended). Water seeps in and the two Kai Lords find themselves fighting a losing battle to save the chained prisoners. Several times Storm Rat is almost pulled away into the sea and is only saved by Silent Falcon's quick moves... moves which also recover the dropped orb of Sunrise. Finally (with a roll of 9!), Storm Rat shatters the chains with a well placed blow from the Bronin Warhammer and everyone swims free of the wreckage of the Ebon Snake.
Freed, and enraged, the Brotherhood Council had been the ones to sink the ship. However, now they use their powers to restore calm to the sea and to the harbour. The Kai Lords pull themselves and the crew back onto the wall and are immediately assailed... but not by giaks this time. This time they are hailed by Wilhelm and the survivors of the rush on the harbour wall. The Kai Lords are heroes.
The rest of the story is quickly told. The Brotherhood answers what questions they can. They destroyed the orb of Sunset in their anger, but they keep the Orb of Sunrise for further study. They illuminate Said's act of giving Silent Falcon the amulet of the star, but cannot make a decision yet as to whether to let her in the order. A Kai Lord in the order would be unprecedented. There is also a ceremony, wherein the Kai Lords are granted mastercrafted weapons, some magical items (including a crystal shield that can deflect magic for Storm Rat and a pair of bracers that adds to Silent Falcon's damage dealt) and Crystal Star Pendants. They are also given free use of the guildhall and the harbour and labeled "The Heroes of Toran." Those who were slain are also commended, including the crew of the Stalwart who died providing the distraction the Kai Lords needed.
The Kai Lords are ready, in all honesty, to get back to the monastery and rest up after their ardorous adventure. However, they decide to check in on Harbold first, remembering that he was the point of coming to Toran in the first place. They head into the city. As they approach the Inn of the Golden Sun, they hear a wailing sob.
And with that, we are current!
|
|
|
Post by Zipp on Jun 7, 2010 5:09:12 GMT
The Search for Jaspar Kleth
Entering the Inn of the Golden Sun, the heroes find it has been turned into a place of refugee from the chaos, for those who have lost home and loved ones. They are surprised to see Nyssa crying at the bar and the ill-looking Greyling Dakr tending to her. It seems her mother, Farrah, has passed away from wounds received during the disaster. With little to comfort Nyssa with, the heroes ask instead of Harbold and his fate. Greyling says he knows not where his father is but is concerned about him. When they ask him about the whereabouts of Jaspar Kleth, he suggests looking in the warehouse district.
The heroes head that direction, stopping to use their new discount on items (granted by the Brotherhood) to purchase some potions. They then arrive at the Inn of the Sinking Sun, supposedly a frequent haunt of Jaspar's. The inn is packed and the heroes are recognized by a crowd led by one Jerry, who buys them drinks and talks their ears off. From him, they gather that Jaspar Kleth comes here often and will probably be here tonight. They also hear about a game, Red-Green, that will be played there tonight for a significant amount of money. The current champion, Marcus, supposedly knows EVERYTHING about Toran. They also learn Jaspar's warehouse is number 27.
The heroes decide to spend the day checking out Jaspar's old warehouse, going to the circle where the warehouses are laid out in staggered rows. However, they run into an unexpected obstacle. Toranese guardsmen have been placed here to ensure no one gets into the warehouses. With many of the warehouses damaged in the chaos, there is a concern for looters. Though the heroes say they are the valued friends of the Brotherhood, the guards cannot let them into the warehouses without permission from the Council.
However, there may be another way! As the heroes are leaving the scene, they are stopped by a young child named Larry who says that he knows how to get into the warehouses, if only they'll follow him to his king, King Gil of Urchin Alley. King Gil turns out to be the leader of a pack of well-to-do but bored children. He greets and treats the heroes with exaggerated courtesy and ultimately embroils them in a plot to retrieve his lost sceptor, the Koockaloo, from the warehouses. They also learn that there are cries for help that come out of Warehouse 27 sometimes at night, if one is close enough to hear. They also learn that the Inn of the Sinking Sun houses a secret brothel and that Jaspar Kleth has a mistress there.
After gathering materials for King Gil in preparation for the night's raid, the heroes return to the inn and try to learn more about the brothel. Silent Falcon, her nature becoming more vibrant as she spends more time in the city streets she is used to from her days in Shadaki, suggests that Storm Rat gain entrance to the brothel and try and figure out who Jaspar Kleth is sleeping with. Storm Rat, ever the stalwart Kai Lord, is not pleased by the suggestion. Ultimately, the matter is made moot by the innkeeper saying he knows nothing about a brothel. They then get embroiled in another forced drinking session with Jerry, who laments that the chaos has thrown him into a bad position: he sets up and protects caravans and his latest horse renter has died, leaving him to foot the expensive bill. This will come into play later...
For now, the Kai Lords go back to the warehouse district, where the plan goes off without a hitch. Setting a fire to a destroyed building and creating a lot of clamor and noise, aided by the help of a local drunk and pickpocket, the kids lure off the guards, leaving Larry, Silent Falcon, and Storm Rat, to make their way into the abandoned warehouses.
More Coming!
|
|