Since the Last Post about the fantasy campaign, the character’s all found employment in the city of Sykl. They all signed on with a mercenary captain that was organizing an expedition to a long lost Dwarven stronghold on the west coast of Dwarvia.
After a long voyage by sea they arrived at a valley at the end of a Fjord. At the other end of the valley was where the stronghold was to be. They met up with an advance party that reported the stronghold was now occupied by a considerable number of orcs and goblins. The characters, along with some Elven rangers and dwarf warriors scouted up the valley then off into a spur valley to attempt to locate a “secret back entrance”.
During the scouting expedition the Dwarf warriors struck off on their own and made it clear they wanted nothing more to do with the rest of the group. They made no attempt to be stealthy and battled every goblin they came across. Perhaps they thought they would take back the stronghold for themselves…?
The characters and the Elves managed to locate the back door and then headed back down the valley to report it’s discovery to their employer who had remained with the boats at the base camp.
Upon returning they found all but one of the boats had left. The captains had gotten cold feet when they found the stronghold occupied. They had apparently been lead to believe it would be as simple as walking in and carting out barrels of gold, jewels and armour…
The remaining boat crew also wanted to go home but thought they’d wait until the characters and elves returned. Upon their return a great argument broke out as to whether to stay or not… most of the boats crew wanting to sail at first light…
SITUATION
The characters and other remaining members of the expedition have been arguing about whether to stay and try and recoup some of their expenses in plunder from a few quick raids into the stronghold or just cut their losses and go at first light. Sven, the leader of the expedition wants to stay, the boats’ crew want to go. Sven is so adamant about staying that he eventually insists he will stay on alone if they go…
Before dawn arrives, however, a war party of orcs and goblins does!
SCENARIO
The Characters and expedition members start in the remains of the camp. The boat crew immediately head to their boat and make preparations to leave.
Each turn they will check to see if the boat is ready to go (roll d20 - if the roll is LESS THAN the turn number the boat is ready to leave).
When it is ready to go the characters will have to decide if they want to stay with Sven and fight their way through an army of orcs in hopes that there is some treasure still in the deepest vaults of the dwarven stronghold and then make their way overland with said loot through the near impenetrable mountains of West Dwarvia…. or get out of there with the boat. The boat will only wait for five turns once they are ready…
The orcs and goblins must, obviously, be kept away from the boat. For each turn that there are goblins or orcs in contact with the boat add +1 to the d20 roll to see if it’s ready to go (as the crew are busy having to fight off goblins instead of get the boat ready…).
FORCES
Sven Sigurdsen – WC/NPC
Ag d10, Sm d8, Sp d8, St d10, Vg d8,
Pace 6, Parry 8, Toughness 6 (8)
Skills: Fighting d10, Shooting d8, Notice d8, Stealth d8, Intimidate d8, Knowledge: Battle d10
Edges: Command, combat Reflexes, Improved Dodge, Improved Block.
Hindrances:
Gear: Great Sword (Str+d10), Chain Hauberk
Snorri Gustavson – WC/NPC
Ag d8, Sm d6, Sp d8, St d8, Vg d8,
Pace 6, Parry 7, Toughness 6 (8/10 vs arrows)
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d6, Notice d8, Stealth d6, Intimidate d6, Boating d8
Edges: Combat Reflexes
Hindrances:
Gear: Axe (Str+d8), Chain Hauberk, Shild
Novsk Mercenaries (4)
Ag d8, Sm d6, Sp d6, St d8, Vg d8,
Pace 6, Parry 6, Toughness 6 (7/9)
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d8, Notice d6, Stealth d6, Intimidate d6,
Edges:
Hindrances:
Gear: Leather Armour, Shield, Sword or Axe (Str+d8), Bow (Rng 12/24/48, ROF 1, Dmg 2d6)
Ereinion Luinwe – WC/NPC
Ag d10, Sm d8, Sp d8, St d6, Vg d6,
Pace 6, Parry 6, Toughness 6 (7)
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d10, Notice d8, Stealth d8, Survival d8, Tracking d8
Edges: Command, Combat Reflexes, Alertness, Low Light Vision, marksman, Woodsman
Hindrances: Loyal, All thumbs
Gear: Long Sword (Str+d8), Long bow (Rng 15/30/60, ROF 1, Dmg 2d6), Leather Armour
Elf Rangers (4)
Ag d8, Sm d8, Sp d8, St d6, Vg d6,
Pace 6, Parry 6, Toughness 6 (7)
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d10, Notice d8, Stealth d8, Survival d8, Tracking d8
Edges: Low Light Vision, Marksman, Woodsman
Hindrances: Loyal, All thumbs
Gear: Long Sword (Str+d8), Long bow (Rng 15/30/60, ROF 1, Dmg 2d6), Leather Armour
Ivan McGregor - Dwarf (Lloyd’s Character)
Ag d8, Sm d6, Sp d6, St d8, Vg d8,
Pace 5, Parry 6, Toughness 6 (7)
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d6, Notice d6, Stealth d6, Intimidate d6, Throwing d8, Guts d6, Knowledge (Dwarvish History and Culture) d4, Streetwise d4, Persuasion d6
Edges: Low Light Vision, Brawny, First Strike, Nerves of Steel
Hindrances: Arrogant, Wanted, Quirk (braggart and racist – Dwarves are the best!)
Gear: Long Sword (St+d8), Throwing Axe (3/6/12, St+d6), Kilt, Back Pack, Rations, Flint& Steel, Hammer, Whetstone, Shovel, Knife (St+d4),
Torte – Dwarf (Andrej’s Character)
Ag d8, Sm d6, Sp d6, St d8, Vg d8,
Pace 5, Parry 5, Toughness 7
Skills: Fighting d8, Notice d6, Stealth d6, Intimidate d6, Guts d6, Climbing d4, Survival d6, Streetwise d6, Riding d6, Persuasion d4
Edges: Low Light Vision, Arcane Resistance, Brawny, Nerves of Steel, Sweep
Hindrances: Overconfident, Big Mouth, Stubbourn
Gear: Battle Axe (St+d8), Kilt, Backpack, Canteen,
Brijit Dannerwod – Halfling (Amanda’s Character)
Ag d8, Sm d6, Sp d6, St d8, Vg d6,
Pace 6, Parry 5, Toughness 4 (5)
Skills: Fighting d6, Shooting d6, Notice d10, Stealth d12, Knowledge (plants) d4, Lockpicking d8, Streetwise d12, Boating d4, Persuasion d4, Healing d4, Climbing d6
Edges: Luck, Connections (Theives Guild, The White Hand), Quick, Theif
Hindrances: Doom Monger, Small, Minor Pacifist,
Gear: Clothes, Lock Picks, 2x dagger (Str+d4), back pack, spare clothes, bedroll, Short Sword (Str+d6+2, +2 Fighting), Bow (Rng 12/24/48, ROF 1, Dmg 2d6)
Elessar Luinwe – Elf Mage (Darrin’s Character)
Ag d6, Sm d12, Sp d6, St d4, Vg d6,
Pace 6, Parry 6, Toughness 5
Skills: Spellcasting d10, Fighting d8, Notice d8, Stealth d6, boating d6, Knowledge Arcana d4, Survival d4, healing d4
Edges: Arcane Background: Magic, Agile, Low Light vision, More Power Points
Hindrances: All Thumbs, Loyal, Ugly
Powers: bolt, detect/Conceal Arcana, Light
Gear: Staff, dagger
Weapon Rng X/X/X, ROF, Dmg
Special Abilities:
Urusk Kreuger – Orch Chiefatain – WC
Ag d10, Sm d8, Sp d8, St d12, Vg d10,
Pace 6, Parry 9, Toughness 9
Skills: Fighting d12, Shooting d6, Notice d8, Stealth d8, Intimidate d10,
Edges: Command, Combat Reflexes, Improved Dodge, Improved Block
Hindrances:
Gear: Great Axe (Str+d10), Chainmail Hauberk
Orcs (19)
Ag d6, Sm d4, Sp d6, St d8, Vg d8,
Pace 6, Parry 7, Toughness 8
Skills: Fighting d8, Shooting d6, Notice d6, Stealth d6, Intimidate d6
Edges:
Hindrances:
Gear:
Weapon Rng X/X/X, ROF, Dmg
Special Abilities:
Goblins (29)
Ag d6, Sm d4, Sp d6, St d6, Vg d6,
Pace 6, Parry 6, Toughness 6 (8 vs. arrows)
Skills: Fighting d6, Notice d6, Stealth d6,
Edges:
Hindrances:
Gear: hand Weapon (Str+d6), Shield (+1 parry, +2 toughness vs. Arrows)
Goblin Archers (6)
Ag d6, Sm d4, Sp d6, St d6, Vg d6,
Pace 6, Parry 5, Toughness 5
Skills: Fighting d6, Shooting dX6, Notice d6, Stealth d6,
Gear:
Weapon Rng 12/24/48, ROF1, Dmg 2d6
Wolves (8)
Ag d8, Sm d4(A), Sp d8, St d6, Vg d6,
Pace 8, Parry X, Toughness X
Skills: Fighting d8,
Edges: Fleet Footed
Gear: Bite/Claws Str+d4
Weapon Rng X/X/X, ROF, Dmg
THE GAME
(Remember: click on the pictures for a bigger version)
The Baddies surge towards the clearing with Wolves in the lead!! GRRAAAARRR!!
From the get-go Amanda complained that they were totally EFFed. I ddin’t think they were so bad off. Sure they were wildly outnumbered, but they DID have seven pretty bad-ass wildcards…
In the first turn Elessar fried two wolves with a bolt spell, his brother deaded antoher with a shot from his bow, Brijit took down a fourth one with TWENTY THREE DAMAGE!? The Rangers twook down another two, and shook another… Looking good so far..
The Battle line… on the extreme left of the picture you can see Ivan charging forward… only seconds before Lloyd had been chattering about the awesome shieldwall in the movie 300… Then his card came up and he charged forward….?! HUH?!
At the the beginning of the second turn the rangers took down the last two wolves and Darrin cooked two goblins with bolts….
Then the Goblin archers got out into the open and rained arrows down on the big tall guy dressed in white that was throwing lightening bolts all over… one of them got lucky… REALLY LUCKY – like 30 damage lucky!!? Darrin soaked one wound, leaving him with FIVE!?!?
And that’s kind of where it went all downhill for our heroes. Ereinion, Elessar’s brother and leader of the Rangers immediately stopped killing one orc per turn with an arrow through the eye and tried to drag his brother to the boat… (damn those players that actually PLAY the “loyal” hindrance!)
Brijit “We’re All Going To DIE” Dannerwood killed another goblin with an arrow through the brain… This seems all too familiar… In a previous campign Amanda played an Elf Ranger that killed everything she shot at – even people that she wanted to capture and only intended to injure… (except that this Halfling only has a d6 in shooting!?)
Ivan “Damn the Shildwall I’m Going Out to MEET Them!” McGregor is duely surrounded and beaten to a pulp. I’d be nice to say he sold himself dearly… but I don’t think he got a single blow in… So much for “Dwarven Superiority”.
Everybody in the thick of it.
Hmmmmm… there IS a few of them there.
I think it was turn five that the boatmen were ready. Brijit had already started falling back towards the boat, as had Torte. He was caught, took 3 wounds, recovered from being shaken he was within his move of the boat and getting away… he just had to get away from the four orcs in contact with him… one of them hit as he tried to leave combat and shook him.
MacGregor goes down.
Yeah… I totally didn’t mean to kill the whole party. This is startlingly similar to how our last Fantasy campaign ended – everyone died except Amanda’s character – the difference being I was trying to END that campaign. This has even happened before in THIS campaign (HERE). That little Halfling really is a “doom monger”…
In the end the only ones to escape with the boat were the Halfling and Snorri Gustavson, Sven’s lieutenant.
THE AFTERMATH
Brijt Dannerwood begged the crew of the ship to go back after dark and see if there were any survivors. Elessar, Torte, and Ivan were all found to be alive, though just barely, and completely stripped of their possessions. The wounds had lasting effects. Torte lost an eye – thus gaining the “One Eye” hindrance. Ivan back and legs were messed up, he gains the “lame” hindrance. The arrow through Elessar neck has left him more or less “Mute” in addition to obvious problems with telling people stuff and a further charisma penalty… I’m going to give him a -2 or -4 to spellcasting due to his inability to use incantations…
2 comments:
wow... what went wrong?
I mean - a bunch of tough WC's should be able to hold their ground againt a lot of critters. But they got completely wasted?!?
Thomas :o)
(Taastrup, Denmark)
The extremely lucky shot from the goblin archer that took down the mage... I thought of the line from the movie Return of the King; "A single Arrow can bring down the mightiest warrior, Boromir was pierced by many" - d6 shooting and 2d6 damage can take down big stuff if you keep rolling sixes (which I DID!).
The loss of the mage also meant the effective loss of the leader of the rangers, as he - playing his "loyal" hindrance - stopped fighting and ran to his brother and tried to drag him to the boat...
Numbers also did them in... The fact that they stood their ground rather than slowly falling back to the ship... so many small reasons all add up to one big catastrophe!!
Post a Comment