–Sowing the 24th, 1002 Lordsday-46 degrees, feel wind on skin, leaves rustle, weathervanes begin to move- 230 gp 6 sp, (2 gp per day if out of work), healing kit 5 charges-
–50 xp from Kobolds 200 xp from prospectors/bandits-
-I level up Mendy, to Wizard 3rd. She’s not encountered any scrolls, but she has a book from Master Telgast that contains evocations, and she has studied as an abjurer, so I feel comfortable granting her spells from those schools regardless. The only 2nd level Abjuration in the PH is Arcane Lock…so, that’s what she gets. Evocation has a few more choices, and I like Shatter, so that’s her other choice. The hit point bonus is a big deal for her though! If she makes it back to civilization, she needs to learn Identify (actually, not terribly helpful under standard 5e rules, oddly enough) and Feather Fall, two valuable spells I usually take, but she has not obtained yet-I also prepare an encounter table for the cave. If she survives, I’ll be impressed! One level 3 character can allegedly take a lot of punishment. But not really, when it’s a wizard-Nat 20 +5 to identify the wand (description generated here: https://springhole.net/writing_roleplaying_randomators/magicwand.htm) , No idea what the potion of fire breath does, but she figures out the potion of animal friendship Q: Is the pendant magical YES (https://lordbyng.net/inspiration/results.php for item supplemental properties)-
I wake up at my camp near the Ice cave. Thankfully, dog is still at my side. I decide, looking at this pendant I am charged with carrying, I had best take an assessment of the other things I have accumulated over the last few days. I begin by reciting the detection spell from my book, and learn that the orb is not magical, but that the pendant is.
I turn my attention to the pendant first. It is relatively small, and made of silver. At its center is a green stone with a black oval slit across the center, like a cat’s eye! the silver plate itself is etched with draconic runes that seem to be a spell of banishment. Those are the words i am to recite when I find the circle. The amulet’s powers renew with the rise of a full moon. The eighth and the eighteenth of Culling will be the next opportunity to renew the amulet’s power, since Fortune was full last night, and Fate is also waning as well.
The wand is of a redish hue, with spirals carved down its length, ending with the symbol for force! As I focus upon the weapon, the word “Impabra” comes to mind, and I realize that it allows me to cast a force dart spell from it.
Then there are two potions, one a deep, opaque red. it has a chalky taste that makes my tongue burn. I’m not really sure what it does. The second is a dark brown, almost mudlike but with bubbles suspended within it. It even tastes like mud, but I get the feeling that it allows me to bond with an animal for short time. “So will a bite of meat,” I think as I cap the vial and scratch behind dog’s ear.
I don the amulet and tuck the wand into my belt. They may both be needed soon! I stand up, look to my companion and ask, “Well dog? You coming with me?” The animal whimpers a little, but then follows me towards the cave entrance. I feel the air chill noticeably as I approach. There is ice along the sides of the entrance even in early fall. “A cave of ice? This does not bode well!”
Scene change (combined stealth, 34/2=17), and Wilderness Dressing roll
Dog follows me down into the darkness of the frozen cave. I am surprised to see there is light coming from within, flickering torchlight. That means something lives here! I try to move as quietly as I can. As we pick our way down the steps carved into ancient ice and covered in packed snow, i notice there are little burrows dug into the wall, and into small piles of rocks piled along the walls of the first chamber. Tiny pairs of ratlike eyes peer out from several of the hole, and dog tries to dig out one of the creatures, but it retreats away as the front of its burrow starts to collapse. “Be still,” I warn, but being a dog, he ignores me, eager for the chase!
I continue onward, and rounding a corner beneath a low hung torch, I see that the hardpacked snow seems to glow red, in the pattern of an ancient binding circle. Could this be the ward I am supposed to complete?
Q: Is this the main ward? Unlikely-YES Q: Was the spell already completed? Very Likely-YES-Dressing-Cold wind-Immersion- memory from 5 years ago-
I pull out my book and begin reciting my detection spell. There is a cold breeze blowing through the cave now, it is stronger than before I and I have to hold the pages open with care to read the words. Loose strands of hair whip across my eyes and I feel goosebumps forming on my flesh. Dog whines. For a moment, I flash back to when i was finally masatering this spell, sitting atop Master Telgast’s tower as a winter storm rolled in, tryng to determine the nature of a magical artifact he had brought for me to inspect. Then it comes to me…the ancient thousand year old rite was already completed! The revenant never knew his task had been fulfilled by another!
I rise up, and inspect the corner points of the ward. Indeed, beneath the snow, I see some sort of magical pulse, from an object that must be similar to the pendant I wear. I smile. “Well Dog, our mission here is done! Let’s get out of here!”
But I spoke to late, having completed my task, I had started to relax and was no longer trying to hite from whatever lived down here. So it is no surprise that a couple of kobold guards spotted us! And they immediately slung stones towards us, yelling “Strangers!”
Q: Do others hear? NO
I hurl a bolt of flame, killing one instantly, while Dog lunges at the other, causing it to drop its sling in fear. I rush after the dog, and while the kobold is distracted by the animal circling it, I come up behind and stab it in the back with my own blade. “Good job, Dog!” I say, stroking the animal, which I see has received a pretty serious stab wound to its foreleg. “Be quiet,” I urge, as I hold the animal tight, and listen…wary of the sounds of additional kobolds who may lurk in the dark beyond.
Hearing nothing, I urge the animal to follow me out.
Scene-
We leave the Ice Cave, glad to see that the wards between our world and whatever realm the Revenant spoke of has already been set in place. I then start travelling south, hoping to eventually make my way back home!
-encounter-prospectors-Whoot! Potential friendlies to lead me to safety!-Q: Are their tools obvious? YES- generate leader’s personality “Take Purity” is not a good one to pop up (Refine dissonance, Aid spirits, wants to talk about knowledge—these things are promising if I can avoid trouble) They don’t like the dog, it wasn’t one of theirs!-
Shortly after lunch, Dog, freshly bandaged, starts barking and races over the hilltop ahead. “Come back here!” I yell, and start chasing after him. As i crest the hill, I look down and see a group of rough looking men. They have picks and shovels, along with hunting bows and spears, and wear heavy packs and lead a couple of overladen mules as well. No signs of armor or serious weapons of war.
“Get out of here, dog!” one of the men yells, throwning rocks at the animal. Dog yelps in pain as the man’s eagle eye hits the beast’s injured let.
“Stop that!” I yell angrily at the men. All eyes turn to me, and I suddenly feel very exposed standing on top of a hill by myself.
“Who are you?” Demands one of the men. There are seven of them altogether. More than I’d like to fight.
“I am Mendy of the White Tower”, I call back, “and you’ve hurt my master’s pet dog. I suggest you apologize!”
=intimidation check fails-
“I don’t see your master around,” says the man, “just a mangy old dog and a girl…alone, out here in the wilds.”
I don’t like his look or his attitude. A globe of flame forms in my right hand. “I don’t need my master to fetch his lost dog, nor to deal with the cur throwing rocks at it!”
-Intimidation again, at disadvantage this time, fail again-Q: Does this provoke an attack? YES-
“Go get her!” the leader yells.
“Impetu!” I shout back, hurling a string of arcane darts that slam into the man. The men start rushing towards me, drawing and firing their bows. Two arrows strike dog, and the animal falls to the ground, silent, halfway between me and them! The others send arrows my way, but their weak little hunting bows lack the power to send an arrow so far with any accuracy. I consider retreating, but I don’t want to abandon Dog, nor to I want these guys to sneak up on me later when I am asleep.
I pull out the wand, and hurl another series of bolts towards their leader before dropping behind a rock for some cover from their arrows. I hear one of the men yell out “Diedrick!” and peeking around the corner, grin with satisfaction that their leader has fallen.
Q: Do they panic? NO
Still, they shout encouragement towards each other and draw closer., “Kill the witch!” Arrows clatter all around, and I even have to conjure an arcane shield to deflect one that gets to close. Then I realize, they’ve fallen into my trap! I step out of my cover and rush out and towards another boulder. Stretching out my hand towards the center of their group, I yell “Tonitro” as I dive into cover.
There is a crack of thunder, followed by screams of terror and agony as the stone and bone are ripped apart by the spell. “Let’s get out of here!” one cries, and I look around the corner of my hiding place to see two bloodied men running away. I use my wand to send two darts towards each of them. They fall to the dirt.
I then walk over to Dog. His breathing is shallow, but he is alive. As I bandage his wounds, I wonder at how calloused I’ve become. Thinking nothing of killing a few men who threw rocks at my dog, yet willing to risk my life for a mere animal! “Well Mendy, bloodshed changes us.” I chastise myself, thinking back to Roch, his betrayal, and the casual way he dispatched the helpless wounded.
Q: Have their mules wandered off? YES Q: Do I find the mules? EXCEPTIONAL NO Q: Do I find my dog? NO
Two of the fallen men are still alive. “I’m not Roche”, i mutter as I bind their wounds and then bind their hands and ankles. Then, having taken their weapons and dumped them some distance away, I start looking for the mules that fled from the sound of my shatter spell.
I look for the animals for about half an hour before giving up heading back. But then..I realize I am totally lost. “By all that is holy!” I swear, looking for some sign of my previous passage. Then in frustration, I kneel down and pray to my ancestors for guidance, “Show me the way!” I implore.
Q: Is there a response? NO
After another half hour or so, I stand back up. “Alone again,” I mutter. Then shifting my pack slightly, I start walking south again.
-No encounter, immersion-speech, Enemy to Me, Obscene gesture?-
Q: kobold? NO Q: goblin? NO Q: human EXCEPTIONAL YES Q: Was this a campsite? EXCEPTIONAL NO Q: Any names? YES E: Ambiguous Significance: the Harm of Plans Q: Sir Julians’ party? NO Q: Do I remember them? EXCEPTIONAL YES Q: Did they return? NO E: Action by The dog: the Imitation of Opulence
As the light fades, I hear the sound of crashing waves, and soon I am looking down upon the ocean. And as my eyes scan the horizon, I notice some colored markings on a nearby stone. Someone has taken red chalk and drawn a phallus on it! There is no sign that anyone had set camp here, just sort of a marker that whoever this was passed by. I find another stone with the names “Jamund, Kuta, Mula, Ital and Grenion Threshing, 2 997 to the Emerald Palace”. I shake my head, remembering their audience with Master Telgast. He warned them against their expedition, but they didn’t listen. Jumand was funny. He spoke of himself in the third person, “Juman wants drink!” and that sort of thing. Kuta was an elf who travelled with a pet snake. Ital was a dragon man, one of the very few I’ve ever seen. He was very polite!
I decide to make camp here, and after getting my fire started and putting my wards in place, I begin updating my journal.
Around midnight, a couple of rabbits wander near my camp, but I’ve got plenty of goatmeat on me, so I let them go.
–Sowing the 25th, 1002 Heyday-51 degrees, Rains from dawn to noon, 3 inch torrent! Feel wind on skin, leaves rustle, weathervanes begin to move- 230 gp 6 sp, (2 gp per day if out of work), healing kit 5 charges-
–50 xp from Kobolds 200 xp from prospectors/bandits-
Scene
Just before dawn, I am wakened by the spatter of rain against my cheek. Looking up, I cannot see the moons or stars..but I see streaks of lightning and hear distant thunder. I don’t have a tent, and I am sitting on top of a high ridge overlooking the ocean! I start looking for a cave in which to take shelter from the storm.
-Morning Encounter-common annoyance-become lost-. Q: Do i find shelter? NO Immersion-sight, reflection Q: A ruin? EXCEPTIONAL NO Q: mirror? YES Q: Teleportation? NO Q: soul trap? NO
–
I clamber down the cliff face as the rain begins to pick up, but then I spot something shiny out of the corner of my eye. I walk over and pick it up. It is very old and tarnished, made of silvered glass with a golden rim. I put it in my pack as the rain intensifies. I am soon huddled up against the cliff face to protect myself from the weather, but with so little wind, the rain seems to fall strait down in thick, heavy drops. My cloak and blanket are soon completely soaked! The storm is so fierce, I can’t even see to walk along the shore if I wanted to!
Hours later, the rain still pounds down. My pack is dry, resting in my lap and sheltered by my cloak, but the rest of me is soaked. I saw a few mice stick their heads out of the little holes of their burrows in the cliff face, but they quickly retreated from the storm.
Finally, the storm breaks, and I am finally able to stand up and shake the water from my gear. A few words of magic, and everything is dry once more and the sand that had caked to my breaches falls away, but I’m still a bit chilled by the experience.
I start walking southeasterly along the coast. It’s nearly impossible to get lost if you follow the coastline! I have my eyes peeled for junk washed up from the ocean. I remember, as a child, we would sometimes find a lost boat, or cargo that had fallen from a lost ship. Twice we found whales that had been washed ashore and right into our cooking pots! They each fed the village for a month! Usually, whatever we found was more of a curiosity than anything of value, but it was still a fun game to play with my brothers and sister.
I come to an area of grassland. I remember passing through it with Sir Julian and his company and we spotted some goats grazing in the distance. The grass is overgrazed here, too many goats and poor quality soil I was told. Falco liked to boast of his knowledge of such things! The bastard!
I find a place with a bit of a windbreak from nearby shrubs, cast my protective wards, and then lie down to sleep. Hoping nothing disturbs me now that I know I am finally on my way home!
I wake with a start, well after midnight to a trio of wolves passing close to my wards. They eye me warily, but do not attack. I reignite my campfire…then consider lighting some of the brush near them, but remember everything I haven’t magically dried out is still soaked from the rain. Eventually, they lose interest in me and wander off. I wonder if the rest of their pack is feasting on Dog or the dead and dying prospectors? If they are even still alive?
-Night Encounter-Wolves-Action-regard warily, cannot be surprised-Q: Do they wander off? YES
–Sowing the 26th, 1002 Damesday-48 degrees, leaves and twigs in constant motion, flags extened- 230 gp 6 sp, (2 gp per day if out of work), healing kit 5 charges-
–275 xp from Kobolds 200 xp from prospectors/bandits, 150 xp from wolves (non combat resolution)-
Scene- Immersion-Memory of Sidekick–day’s events-no encounter, become lost (follow the coast exactly instead of the cut across that would save a day), kobolds-
The day after the thunderstorm, I continue following the coastline southeast, knowing the sea will eventually lead me home. I think back to when Roche taught me how to ride. How to evade a pursuer on horseback. And then I remember how I had to use those tricks to escape him! I shake my head and mumble, “The corruption of greed.”
I continue following the coast after lunch, but am kind of surprised to realize that I am now heading westerly. “I don’t remember this,” I mutter to myself, “is this why Falco led us cross country instead of staying within sight of the oceean?” I think back, trying to recall a map of the coast that was hanging in Master Telgast’s study, but I can’t quite recall the details. I spent more time reading the books than looking at the pictures!
As the day wears on, I realize I am being shadowed by kobolds. They are trying to stay out of sight, but there are at least half a dozen slipping from one rock to another, and trying to work their way ahead of me. I feel as though a noose is being tightened around me. Yet they haven’t attacked…no doubt, waiting for the sun to go down.
Eventually, I come to a set of stones where I can cover my back from missile fire while I address the enemy before me. Suddenly slamming myself against it, I whip out the want and shout “Impabra!”, sending two darts towars one of the kobolds, and the third at another. The second one cries out in pain, while the first simply crumbles to the ground, twisted by the sudden impact. “Run while you can!” I shout in Draconic.
In response, there are yipping sounds and the clatter of stones landing all around me as my foes put their slings to work! Two of the stones hit me from the front, battering my ward, and a third stone richochets of a rock and hits me in the back of my head. It’s a painful little cut! Another blast from my wand, and two of the kobolds go down. That’s at least half of my known attackers, but I have come to realize I am more badly outnumbered than I’d thought!
I sling another trio of bolts out, silencing two more of the kobolds. Though they too are hugging cover, my darts are innerrant, while their stones clatter all around. I call out to them “Give up!” but there is no response…none.
Stones have stopped clattering around me. I risk a look, and realize that my enemies have fled! I can see at least five lying limp on the ground. I count my blessings and quicken my pace along the coast, hoping to find a good, defensible place to rest as I do not want to be attacked by an even larger force tonight! I hold a bandage against my head, to staunch the bleeding from that cut. Eventually, the wound clots up, though I suspect the headache may last a day or two!
-survival 15+, no night encounter! Camp “area is unnaaturally cold-Q: Is it deep? YES E: Remote Event: a Betrayal of Opulence (The Treasurer has embezzled an unusual amount of coin from the crown)-
A few miles away, I find a shallow little cave in the seawall. I climb up into it, and begin to shiver. The mouth of the cave reminds me of the cave of ice, and then I realize that this “shallow” cave is merely the entrance to someplace deeper! Part of me wishes to explore, but most of me wants to just get home at this point!
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