EternalWarriors

Act I: The Steading of the Hill Giant Chief

Brief Recap: Last turn, the company came upon the dark one in a passage as they searched the lower level of the steading. He was just entering a door when they saw him, and they attacked. Bruce and Ghotu shot missile weapons at him as Blade and Bronk charged. Ghotu and Bruce charged next. The passage is 10' wide, and the combat occurs at a ninety degree turn to the characters' right. The door is behind the dark one, slightly open. See the battlemap, below, for a layout. Note that the map shows the positions of the characters AFTER the first two rounds of combat, as described below.

Beneath the Steading

Round One:

Blade is first to the dark one, Bronk close behind. The enraged Blade comes in with his long sword, the intelligent giantslayer sword, held high, his short sword held low ready for a disemboweling move if possible. As soon as Blade enters melee range, the dark one's sword flickers forth and cuts him across the right shoulder. [Blade is hit for 12 damage, down to 22/106.] Blade follows through with his overhead attack, stabbing down over the guard of his enemy, and connects, feeling the blade skid off armor beneath the robes. [Hit for 14 damage.]

The dark one hisses as Bronk thrusts past Blade with his halberd. The attack is a miss, and as the robed figure dodges his hood slips back a bit, and the outline of his head can be seen, but no more. Then Bronk and Blade both realize that it was no hiss they heard, but an incantation.

Round Two:

Just as Ghotu and Bruce near the combat, the dark one's voice rises to a crescendo. His left arm shoots forth, and from his splayed fingertips comes a burst of flame that quickly spreads to engulf the entire passage.

Blade dives into the corner to the dark one's right, but is still seared badly by the heat. Bronk is burned badly as well, his left arm and shoulder smoldering after the fireball is past. Ghotu and Bruce have no time to halt their charges, and dive to the floor as best they can, there being no other place for them to hide. Mog and Bibi too are burned as the fireball passes.

[Blade and Bruce make their saving throws, but Ghotu, Bibi, Mog, and Bronk do not. The fireball does 30 damage, 15 to those who make their saving throws. Blade is down to 7 hit points, Bronk is down to 3, Bruce is at 11, Ghotu is at 50, Bibi is at 30, and Mog is at 50.]

Bruce and Bronk are both nearly unconscious, stunned by the fireball's concussive force. They lie where they landed, Bruce struggling to rise and regain his senses. Mog, farther back down the hall with Bibi, behind Bruce and Bronk, runs toward the fight and casts a hold person spell, which his target shrugs off.

As Mog approaches, the torch he carries illuminates their enemy's face for the first time. The visage that greets them is grim indeed, and none of them have ever seen such a creature as this. Hatred gleams in its eyes, which are like small glowing embers set in deep sockets.

Blade, still enraged but badly wounded, rises and swings at the dark robed figure, who tries to pass through the doorway into the room beyond. His flurry of attacks surprises the dark one, and Blade connects twice. [Hit for 12 and 14.]

Ghotu leaps over Bronk's smoking body to attack with his axe. His boot catches on Bronk's halberd, and Ghotu stumbles. He falls to the floor at the dark one's feet.

Humphrey, invisible, steps quietly down the stairs toward the sounds of fighting. As he nears the corner, he hears a sudden burst of sound, almost an explosion, and the passage around the corner ahead is brightly lit for a moment. He moves forward to the corner and looks around it.

He sees a figure in dark robes fighting with three human fighters, who look badly wounded. The dark one is about to escape through a door.

Bibi had thrown herself to the ground to protect herself from the fireball as best she could, but she was still burned. Her right arm is blistered and red, and she smells burning hair. The pain suddenly subsides as a surge of adrenaline courses through her veins, the familiar and frightening feeling of the change. She can feel herself grow stronger, and it is all the harder to resist because this time it takes away her pain, not just her reason.

Bibi is going to make a willpower roll after next turn to resist "the change." She can act normally this turn, though distractions may make it harder to resist. It will be an initiative roll to see who gets to go first, the party or the dark one. If he wins, he will make it through the secret door and briefly escape. If the party wins, they get to attack him before he goes through the door. Please note your hit points, some of you are nearly dead.

Bronk realizing how hurt he is decides that it is time....and hopes that this works. He realizes that Ghotu will probably try an overhand approach on the dark figure so Bronk will feign an overhead blow,spin counter clockwise and deliver a blow to the abdomen. If this connects he will then spin clockwise and swing upward on the other side of the body. He has no time for pain. "Ouch ..he thinks.."

Ghotu leaps over Bronk's smoking body to attack with his axe. His boot catches on Bronk's halberd, and Ghotu stumbles. He falls to the floor at the dark one's feet.

* * * Humphrey, invisible, steps quietly down the stairs toward the sounds of fighting. As he nears the corner, he hears a sudden burst of sound, almost an explosion, and the passage around the corner ahead is brightly lit for a moment. He moves forward to the corner and looks around it. He sees a figure in dark robes fighting with three human fighters, who look badly wounded. The dark one is about to escape through a door.

* * *

Bibi had thrown herself to the ground to protect herself from the fireball as best she could, but she was still burned. Her right arm is blistered and red, and she smells burning hair. The pain suddenly subsides as a surge of adrenaline courses through her veins, the familiar and frightening feeling of the change. She can feel herself grow stronger, and it is all the harder to resist because this time it takes away her pain, not just her reason.

The sound of Ghotu's armor striking the floor snaps Blade out of his rage. With his adrenaline subsiding, the pain started to seep into him. His flesh was charred and blistered and the smell of burnt skin and hair assailed his nostrils. This would be a stupid death , he thinks. The mission is already accomplished, the party is badly wounded and the dark one is trying to flee. "Be gone with you, then." he says loud enough for the dark one to hear, as he moves protectively near Ghotu who is still lying on the floor at the creature's feet.

"No Bronk, let him be," says Ghotu holding one arm up. The dark one takes a step back.

At this point Blade was more than happy to let the creature escape, but he would continue to fight if the creature sought to harm Ghotu who could not defend himself. Hearing Bronc preparing for an attack, Blade shouts "STOP! Let the creature go. " He has no idea if Bronc will listen, but it was worth a try. Perhaps Lady Luck would be with him and actually quell the Rasheman's battle lust. He adds "Bronc, our mission is done....there are pitchers of ale and Vulvanian women awaiting our triumphant return. The sooner we leave here the sooner we can begin our celebration." Blade hoped that his barbarian friend's love of whoring and drinking would win out over his love of fighting.

[I rolled dice to move this turn forward a bit more, and the dark one does indeed escape. I am adding that to the post now. Rob, you should post something that says Bronk listens to Blade, or else the dark one just closes the door too quickly for Bronk to reach him with his attack. I also moved Keith's post down a bit, after rob's earlier post because it seemed to fit better there.]

The dark one, Thae-Rune Ibn, glares at Blade as the fighter speaks. But he himself has been wounded too, and this human fighter has provided him with just the chance he needs to escape. Thae- Rune Ibn does a quick salute to Blade with his sword, and says in a hissing, rough voice, "We shall meet again, foodthing."

Ghotu stands.

Immediately after the dark one escapes through the doorway, Humphrey reveals himself by casting hold portal on the door the creature escapes through. That door suddenly begins shedding a pale blue light from the spell cast upon it. Blade, Ghotu, Bronk and the others look up the passage and for the first time they see a short, almost feeble looking man, bearing a gnarled staff a full head taller than himself in his hand. He wears nine skeletal fingers around his dark robes. His eyes burn of power, but his hands shake of fear, sickness, or old age.

He then says:

"Giant slayers! Now is not the time to fight the Dark One, for he is much more powerful than you, and you are wounded. Let us join together to follow this creature and retrieve the stone of darkness, before he places it alongside his queen, and releases the hell of the lower planes on the Kingdoms. I am Humphrey Beauregard, Guild- mage, Lesser Adept sorcerer, and I am hunting this stone. I would implore you to help me upon this quest, as your fate, as well as my own, depends on it! Time is short. Will you join me?"

"Great another damn wizard," says Blade. It seemed that every time one showed up they were either trying to cast a spell on him or babbling on about saving the world. Either way they were a royal pain in the ass. "Look old man, I don't know anything about you or any stones, except my two very own that are safe and sound. If I had a gold piece every time one of you old geezers showed up ranting about how the whole fate of the world hangs in the balance I'd have more money than all of kings in the world combined. You know all those songs the bards sing about heroes? What's the one thing all of those heroes have in common? They're all dead!...and they probably wouldn't be if they hadn't listened to some nut job like you. So thanks, but no thanks. " Blade's new sword had been "warning" him whenever an enemy was present since he acquired it. It had no adverse reaction to Humphrey's presence, nevertheless, Blade didn't like the cut of the wizard's cloak.

Mog moves forward to speak to the unknown wizard, rod held at his side in his left hand. "We know nothing of this Stone of Darkness. But if you would join us, guild mage, give us healing magic. We have wounded." Then, not taking his eyes off the wizard for more than a moment, Mog hands his torch to Ghotu and begins first aid on Bronk, the worst injured of the company.

Mog whispers to the others, quietly so the newcomer can't hear, "Careful, he be Guildmage. They be a dangerous lot."

Bibi, still at the other end of the passage struggling with her inner beast, hears first Blade's words to the dark one, then she hears Humphrey mention a "stone of darkness." That couldn't be coincidence. Interest piqued in what they are saying, she is distracted just enough for her adrenaline rush to go away. She does not transform. As her lycanthropy attack subsides, the pain of her injuries returns to her. Bibi moves toward the others.

Bronk looks around...

See's the wizard ...

See's blade...

See's Bibi, Ghotu Graver, Mog and Bruce...

A smile comes upon his face like it's his burthday and he says...

"I'M ALIVE!!!!!!!" and starts jumping up and down like a little kid for about 10 seconds screaming this to the top of his lungs!!!

Then, feeling the pain from his many wounds, he casually sits down on the stone floor and says..."Hmmf!!...whores huh?"

"That's right...from Vulvania," says Blade. "they are specially chosen at a very young age and trained in the erotic arts from an ancient tome called the Sama Kutra. They are equally well versed in etiquette, calligraphy, sonnet writing and recitation, and the culinary arts. To call them whores is not really accurate...think of them more as pleasure specialists."

"Do they know CPR?" says Bronk.

Bibi replies as she moves toward Blade "I don't think I'll be giving anyone CPR but I can help in healing." Bibi gets very close to Blade and cast her healing spell (Cure Serious Wounds).

Blade groans with pleasure as his wounds begin to heal from Bibi's spell. [Blade heals 10, up to 17/106.]

After she has cast the spell she leans in even closer and whispers to Blade "I must speak with you away from the stranger." She is very nervous about his interest in the stone. She is also concerned that the company may now not believe that the stone belong to her family.

"Sure thing, Baby..I mean Bibi." says Blade. "Let's talk in my office" indicating a vacant side room.

"I have no healing magic, for I am prepared only for combat. I can understand your concern thief [addressing Blade], but I can assure you that I speak the truth. If you need more material incentive, then consider we will be bearing upon a powerful queen and she is likely to have much treasure--ten times what you have recovered from the Giant's lair."

"I have all the treasure I need wizard. You can count me out as well. I have a business to tend to." Bruce replies

"Well then," Humphrey says, "what if I told you this stone I speak of, if we capture it, if used properly, can make you all kings or queens. It can fulfill all your desires, whether you wish to be royalty or free of some burden." He looks straight into Bibi's eyes.

After Humphrey says this, Bibi and Blade move down the hall to talk by themselves. The other characters wait with Humphrey.

Ghotu holds the torch up to get a good look at Humphrey, apparently not afraid of the wizard at all. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend, or so the saying goes. We have a score to settle with him now," says the warrior, looking at the badly wounded Bronk. The Rasheman warrior is burned badly, and all of the company members are blackened from the fireball. They were all beginning to realize how lucky they had been to survive the encounter.

Ghotu continues: "If you must prevent this dark one from reaching his Queen, then we will help you, wizard. But we're in no shape to chase him now. What kind of a name is Beauregard? Are you from the south?" Ghotu had never heard of any wizard that wasn't from the south. Even all the wizards in the north had been trained in the south. That was where the Guilds were, and the schools where wizards learned "the craeft."

Once down the hall Bibi uses her listening skills to check if anyone followed. If she doesn't hear anything she continues to whisper "It seems to be time for me to share all of my secrets. I should also tell the others but not in front of the wizard."

[If they decide to call the other Bibi tells them all otherwise she tells just Blade for now.] [NOTE FROM DM: it is just Blade with you.]

"The stone the wizard seeks is the family treasure I told you I was looking for. I fear that anyone that would use the dark stone alone would use it only for evil. Which makes me very suspicious of the old man." Bibi reaches for her locket and opens it so that he [or they] can see. "The stone belongs in here and should be used with the other stones. It was stolen from my father." Bibi closes the locket and continues looking down, "This brought a great curse and much shame to my father. The curse was then past on to me. I am stricken with an uncontrollable form of lycanthropy. When I retreated from the dark one I was afraid that I was going to change and put you all endanger. Because when I chance I seem to destroy everything around me. This change occurs when the full moon rises and when I am feeling extreme anger or fear. My Shaman counselor told me that the stone will also allow me to control the changing. So, I hope that you [or you all] can understand why this stone is so important to me and forgive me for bringing such danger with my presence."

[Before they move on Bibi heals herself.] [Bibi heals 5, up to 35/60.]

Check out the newly updated Trophy Room for running totals of all the creatures killed, experience points earned, and treasure gathered so far on the adventures of . . .