Introduction
After finishing the set of adventures centered on the village of Melford, it was time for me to sit back, relax and enjoy the game. Armatio's player took over being DM, and I finally got to play my own character: the witch Valeria. Needless to say that I'd done my homework, and came prepared with notes, summaries, cross- and quick-references, and other props that soon engulfed a large amount of space around the gaming table. It got laughed off and called getting into character playing a woman.
Getting hired
As the party was sitting around their favorite tavern, we were approached by a wiry sailor who attempted to have us meet with his captain. I asked Biznard to hold him down for questioning, but the barbarian was too slow, and the sailor got away.
Nevertheless, we made our way to the specified time and place to find ourselves in a seedy tavern full of unruly sailors. We defused the situation by paying for drinks, and got into talking with the captain. The fool had wandered along with his men into a cave on a deserted island, and found a door guarded by some kind of monstrosity. I let Shamil and Athosian bargain and question the man until words had done all that they could, then intervened with magic to read the captain's memories (identifying the monster) and temporarily enchant him (convincing him to increase our share of the profit).
While the party rested at night, I perused the guild's library to research the threat we faced. Details were sketchy, but it was better than nothing. In the morning we embarked on the ship, and set sail.
Row, row, row your boat...
We spent a week or two on the ship. Unfortunately it was no joy ride, and the captain made us work like any sailor. He made good use of the barbarian's strength, the thief's and assassin's acrobatics, and the witch's... good looks, having her scrub the floor.
We arrived in good health, stocked up with needed supplies - including some life energy drained from an arguably (un)lucky sailor.
Trek up the mountainside
In the morning, we set ashore and began our journey on an overgrown trail. We reached the cave by nightfall, but not without trouble.
The first incident was due to the island fauna. Biznard failed to notice the poisonous snake and got bit. Fortunately, this was nothing that some rest and hard liquor couldn't fix.
Further up the trail, we were charged by a monstrous lizard. It was a tough fight, and we owe a lot to the thief who managed to spot beast even before it trampled out of the bushes.
The barbarian stood fast to receive the charge. It might have been ugly, had I not had the time to open a chasm right in front of the lizard. It was too large to fall in, but at least I broke its charge.
Once it faltered, the barbarian and the assassin pinned it in place, and we slowly whittled it down with hammer, blade and arrow. Someone caught a glimpse of a strange reptilian humanoid looking at us from among the trees, but we could not catch up to it. We rested and carried on with the trek.
The final leg of the journey was a near-vertical climb on a cliff wall. Valeria was surprised by an unexpected vision and nearly fell off, but the barbarian's quick reflexes saved her with only a few scrapes.
Into the cave
It was near dark when we entered the cave, carrying torches. We knew what to expect, and the cave monster did not catch us unprepared. We knew that slashing weapons would only open new mouths on its body, but we could not test the theory, as Biznard thoroughly bashed it to pulp in one go.
Aftermath
There's still the night to spend, then it's time to open the door!
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