Post by GRWelsh on May 30, 2023 12:09:16 GMT -5
Last Saturday, we did something different. Since it was Memorial Day weekend and we were down by three players, we did an alternative option that we had discussed previously, which was to play a game using the secondary characters. Everyone seemed to like this idea. The party was:
- Cassandra, 2nd level fighter (Cindy)
- Osgoth, 1st level ranger (Brian)
- Titus, 2nd level cleric of St Cuthbert (Randy)
- The Traveler, 2nd level cleric of Fharlanghn (Eric)
They started out in Gorna, and for some time now the Traveler had been wanting to leave town and roam around, as was fitting for a worshipper of Fharlanghn. He had some ideas about creating wayside shrines on the road between Hochoch and Gorna, and was studying an atlas they had recently recovered in a scroll tube from a dungeon. Since there was no shrine of Fharlanghn in Gorna, he studied this atlas with Titus at the library of the Church of St Cuthbert. Osgoth as a ranger was interesting in visiting the Hornwood to the west. Cassandra also joined in the conversation, and told of rumors she'd heard about the forest having goblins, ogres, and werewolves in it. Together they decided to travel west to visit a small village on the verge of the Hornwood. On their riding horses, they set out on a fine day in the month of Harvester and rode out the front gates of Gorna, across the river on the stone bridge, and through the rich farmlands and fields. The further west they went, the fewer the farms became and by dusk they came to the Blue Stone Inn where they stayed the night and heard more tales of the forest from the innkeeper's wife. She told them the story of a knight who ventured into the forest to slay a green dragon, and did so with a magic sword. He was looking over the dragon's hoard and had let his guard down and so was surprised by the green dragon's mate, who slew him. Only his squire got away to tell the story, which supposedly happened about a hundred years ago. "Dragons are said to live a long time..." the Traveler commented. The next morning there were gale force winds that blew down from the Crystalmists so the party decided to stay at the Blue Stone Inn for another day. The day after was back to normal, and they road for another half day and arrived at a small hamlet across a ford in a stream named Thornold, and near it was Thornold Hall, a small keep and home to the local baron. They spoke to the villagers and Titus offered his services as a cleric and was told the cow of a local farmer injured its leg and so Titus might heal it. The Traveler spoke to the guards at the entrance to Thornold Hall, and asked for an audience with the Baron. The major domo asked their names and business, and made them wait for a little while, but then led them into the Great Hall with a huge fireplace, long table and timbers in the high ceiling. They saw a man wearing a fur and the gold necklace of his office -- it was the baron. They offered to be of service to him, and so the baron told them of the recent sightings of goblins at night and in the nearby woods. "Take the trail into the woods to visit one of my subjects, the hunter Argon, and he will be able to tell you more." They also learned from the baron that the Grand Duke had passed a law that none of his subjects may enter more than 10 miles within the forest. So, they could hunt, cut wood, and so on -- but only within 10 miles. This was done out of respect for the sylvan elves who lived in the Hornwood. The party also learned that there were druids in this forest and that they had sacred groves and a way of life that dated back for thousands of years. The party left Thornold and traveled about 3 miles and came to the edge of the Hornwood. At the edge it was relatively cleared of dead wood and brush, but as they went a few miles in it became more overgrown and the bright sunlight overhead was dimmed to a greenish glow of dappled light. Osgoth tried to keep them on the path with Cassandra's help as she also had some hunting skills. After about 3 miles within the forest they spotted a small cottage at the other end of a small valley. As they got closer, they could see the smoke rising from the cottage wasn't just coming from the chimney -- the roof was on fire! Also, they could see the door was burst open and a dead horse was laying next to the front of the cottage. They started moving closer but just then, a figure in a green cloak stepped out on the path behind the party. He held a bow and was a middle-aged human with gray-brown hair. "I am Argon the hunter," he said, "Goblins set my cottage on fire! I saw them approaching and got out before they arrived." They exchanged introductions and Argon found out the baron sent them to talk to him. "I had spotted goblins lurking about in the woods over the past fortnight or so. A day ago I was hunting near an old ruins about 10 miles within the forest and I saw some goblins there... They may have seen me and followed me back to my cottage. I saw ten of them burning my cottage, but did not like the 10 on 1 odds. Now that you are here, we have 5 on 1 odds which I like much better!" Together, they advanced on the cottage. Osgoth and Argon took up positions with their long bows behind trees about 20 yards away while Cassandra walked down the trail calling out and trying to get the goblins to reveal themselves. As she got closer, they came out from behind the cottage and some that were hiding behind trees revealed themselves as having short bows. Some missile fire was exchanged and Osgoth, Argon and the Traveler all took hits! The goblins howled and charged up to attack with spears and maces. Titus healed Osgoth up a bit, and within a few rounds all of the goblins were dead. The cottage was burning bright, but enough around it was cleared to not catch the forest on fire. The party generously gave Argon some coins and lent him a riding horse to get back to Thornold. Argon offered to guide the party to the ruins in the forest.
- Cassandra, 2nd level fighter (Cindy)
- Osgoth, 1st level ranger (Brian)
- Titus, 2nd level cleric of St Cuthbert (Randy)
- The Traveler, 2nd level cleric of Fharlanghn (Eric)
They started out in Gorna, and for some time now the Traveler had been wanting to leave town and roam around, as was fitting for a worshipper of Fharlanghn. He had some ideas about creating wayside shrines on the road between Hochoch and Gorna, and was studying an atlas they had recently recovered in a scroll tube from a dungeon. Since there was no shrine of Fharlanghn in Gorna, he studied this atlas with Titus at the library of the Church of St Cuthbert. Osgoth as a ranger was interesting in visiting the Hornwood to the west. Cassandra also joined in the conversation, and told of rumors she'd heard about the forest having goblins, ogres, and werewolves in it. Together they decided to travel west to visit a small village on the verge of the Hornwood. On their riding horses, they set out on a fine day in the month of Harvester and rode out the front gates of Gorna, across the river on the stone bridge, and through the rich farmlands and fields. The further west they went, the fewer the farms became and by dusk they came to the Blue Stone Inn where they stayed the night and heard more tales of the forest from the innkeeper's wife. She told them the story of a knight who ventured into the forest to slay a green dragon, and did so with a magic sword. He was looking over the dragon's hoard and had let his guard down and so was surprised by the green dragon's mate, who slew him. Only his squire got away to tell the story, which supposedly happened about a hundred years ago. "Dragons are said to live a long time..." the Traveler commented. The next morning there were gale force winds that blew down from the Crystalmists so the party decided to stay at the Blue Stone Inn for another day. The day after was back to normal, and they road for another half day and arrived at a small hamlet across a ford in a stream named Thornold, and near it was Thornold Hall, a small keep and home to the local baron. They spoke to the villagers and Titus offered his services as a cleric and was told the cow of a local farmer injured its leg and so Titus might heal it. The Traveler spoke to the guards at the entrance to Thornold Hall, and asked for an audience with the Baron. The major domo asked their names and business, and made them wait for a little while, but then led them into the Great Hall with a huge fireplace, long table and timbers in the high ceiling. They saw a man wearing a fur and the gold necklace of his office -- it was the baron. They offered to be of service to him, and so the baron told them of the recent sightings of goblins at night and in the nearby woods. "Take the trail into the woods to visit one of my subjects, the hunter Argon, and he will be able to tell you more." They also learned from the baron that the Grand Duke had passed a law that none of his subjects may enter more than 10 miles within the forest. So, they could hunt, cut wood, and so on -- but only within 10 miles. This was done out of respect for the sylvan elves who lived in the Hornwood. The party also learned that there were druids in this forest and that they had sacred groves and a way of life that dated back for thousands of years. The party left Thornold and traveled about 3 miles and came to the edge of the Hornwood. At the edge it was relatively cleared of dead wood and brush, but as they went a few miles in it became more overgrown and the bright sunlight overhead was dimmed to a greenish glow of dappled light. Osgoth tried to keep them on the path with Cassandra's help as she also had some hunting skills. After about 3 miles within the forest they spotted a small cottage at the other end of a small valley. As they got closer, they could see the smoke rising from the cottage wasn't just coming from the chimney -- the roof was on fire! Also, they could see the door was burst open and a dead horse was laying next to the front of the cottage. They started moving closer but just then, a figure in a green cloak stepped out on the path behind the party. He held a bow and was a middle-aged human with gray-brown hair. "I am Argon the hunter," he said, "Goblins set my cottage on fire! I saw them approaching and got out before they arrived." They exchanged introductions and Argon found out the baron sent them to talk to him. "I had spotted goblins lurking about in the woods over the past fortnight or so. A day ago I was hunting near an old ruins about 10 miles within the forest and I saw some goblins there... They may have seen me and followed me back to my cottage. I saw ten of them burning my cottage, but did not like the 10 on 1 odds. Now that you are here, we have 5 on 1 odds which I like much better!" Together, they advanced on the cottage. Osgoth and Argon took up positions with their long bows behind trees about 20 yards away while Cassandra walked down the trail calling out and trying to get the goblins to reveal themselves. As she got closer, they came out from behind the cottage and some that were hiding behind trees revealed themselves as having short bows. Some missile fire was exchanged and Osgoth, Argon and the Traveler all took hits! The goblins howled and charged up to attack with spears and maces. Titus healed Osgoth up a bit, and within a few rounds all of the goblins were dead. The cottage was burning bright, but enough around it was cleared to not catch the forest on fire. The party generously gave Argon some coins and lent him a riding horse to get back to Thornold. Argon offered to guide the party to the ruins in the forest.
