[DnD] Crusader (GFF D&D Adventure 2)

Motsognir took some time to deal with his wounds, then got ready to move on with the rest of the group.

He was tired, and had nothing interesting to say.

Healing Surge until full health

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The group takes a moment to catch their breath before they head out to find a place to hole up for the night.

Temp HP rescinded, encounter powers restored
Dagger added to Brigid's wiki
Gabriel's HP +18
Bob's HP +5
Arg's HP +11
Mot's HP +13

There's nowhere I can't reach.

The dwarf slung his axe up onto his shoulder and muttered under his breath as he offered Argumentus a hand up before heading out in the general direction of the city proper, while keeping off the beaten path en route back towards the general direction of the Inn.

"I say we may as well bunk down in an empty place for the night. I'm not saying people know enough about us to know where we're staying, but someone knew enough about us to get us all arrested, so I'm not taking any thrice-damned chances."

Personally, he was half-convinced they should just spend the night in the house of Kord, but that's his solution for everything. Instead, he decided to keep his eyes peeled for a nice, abandoned looking space they could bunk down for the night.

"Whenever we get where we're going, I'll take first watch. But one of us stays awake at all times."

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I followed the dwarf as he searched for a suitable campsite, using my light spell to illuminate the tip of my staff. If I was honest I was rather excited, it had been a while since I did any proper outdoors camping and this would prove an excellent opportunity both to try out my new spell and have a proper read of some of the books I had nabbed from the wizard's house. As we went, I kept an eye out for any suitable game animals, thinking that procuring dinner might be the best use for my new, second-hand arrows.

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The company eventually finds a derelict warehouse to shelter in on the edge of town, and true to his word Bob manages to bullseye a few largish rats (as well as some Insects of Unusual Size). They feast, perhaps not grandly but at least frugally.

Much of the night passes quietly. Sleeping in shifts, no one gets enough sleep to truly feel rested and paranoia runs high. In due time Bob shakes Argumentus from his fitful slumber; it's time to change shifts. Blinking against the darkness, Arg stares out into the silent emptiness of the city outskirts.

Perhaps an hour later, perhaps two (Arg was never much for counting) a heavy clanking sound begins to move inexorably toward the hideout. He readies his weapons, and the noisy visitor at last clatters into view. A man in platemail steps into the firelight; why, it's Lord Broden!

"Good evening, uh, you! I've just come to retrieve my sword, you know. I'm sure you would have dropped it off tomorrow but I'm in ummmmm a bit of a hurry, yes. I must go and fight, err, a terrible demon! Immediately! So please just hand it over, yes! With my thanks and the thanks of..."

(he lifts the holy symbol on his neck and frowns at it )

"...Bahamut. Yes, the Dragon King surely smiles upon your service. So fork it over. Just stop by the house the day after tomorrow and I'll see that you're rewarded properly."

I was speaking idiomatically.

Motsognir pretends to still be asleep, knowing that Gabriel would provoke the situation into a battle soon enough.

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Lucky for the party, I've been through meaner times than this and I was quite adept at cooking varmints into passable vittles.

I took the first shift, seeing as though I was in the best shape of the bunch. It was well past my bedtime of 8:30, but I ain't lettin' no feudin' elves get the best of us. Reminds me of the early days back home, when we were still feudin' with the Davises. Legend had it it started when Old Jeremiah Davis stole my great-great-granddaddy's shoes just before a rainstorm; well, he ain't take kindly to that, no Conmara can countance thievin' scoundrels. It eventually ended when the Davises, weak from inbreeding, all succumbed to typhoid. Just goes to show ya, don't keep it in the family.

I was quite tired when my watch was over, so you can imagine how riled I got when I heard a stranger's voice in our camp. That it was "friend" and not foe didn't help. A weaker person would just bury themselves in their covers, and bear fur blankets are quite comfortable, but I know my manners so I greeted the Lord.

"Mornin', Lord! Pardon me for askin' why you're back so soon though. Ain't there be some zombies or sommat you were persuin' yesterday?"

FELIPE NO

"Oh the... zombies! The zombies, yes. That turned out to be nothing. Just old man Witherspoon in a zombie mask the whole time, tryin' to scare people away from his watermelon patch. Why, if it weren't for those meddling kids and their dog, he might have gotten away with it. At any rate, a much more dangerous opponent is at hand! A fearsome werewolf is haunting the old fairgrounds! To say the least I must go and slay it immediately but without my silver sword it shall surely rend me to pieces. Werewolves, you know. They hate silver!"

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

"Well, it jes' don't seem right to me that someone of your high stature and importance in the community is running around fixin' all these monsters. I mean yes it's right neighbourly of you, but ain't you got paperwork and lordin' and all that to do?"

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Broden seems crestfallen, and his brow furrows.

"Well, to be honest, I'm a Lord in name only. It's a ceremonial thing, I was knighted by the Duke for my community service work. It's fairly routine, although normally those honored are bards and actors, things like that. In retrospect I should have refused the honor, it brought me a lot of undesirable attention."

He coughs.

"Sooooo. Werewolf. Sword."

Out in the darkness, a sonorous howl cuts through the night.

"Pretty please?"

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Argumentus sets about waking up the other party members in a most unbecoming manner.

He then moves to confront Lord Broden.

"You come in dark and deman sword we not know why? You say hunt demon but now you fight doggy! Your story have incon... inca... incontinence! WHO YOU!?"

Intimidate

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Roused early from my slumber, I found the big chap chatting to what at first glance appeared to be the lord who tasked us with this quest in the first place. It seemed a remarkable coincidence that he had found us in this whole city so I pretended to remain asleep while trying to sense any sort of magic afoot here, aware that I was probably not the only person in the city with the powers of illusion (Even if mine were only in potion form).

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

After shaking the rest of the party awake, Argumentus proceeds to grill Broden about the inconsistencies in his story. The paladin is unimpressed.

"Oh, that's.... it's a demon werewolf! Half demon, half werewolf, all evil. I've seen it myself! It's quite terrible. But, ah, he's not going to kill himself! Soooo, sword. Ahem."

The howl breaks through the darkness again, sounding a little more malevolent and demon-like this time.

Intimidate: Failed

Argumentus wakes Bob from his slumber, and he attempts to get his bearings while he surreptitiously smooths out his bed head. Honing his sense of the arcane on the surroundings, he detects nothing amiss until a howling sound breaks the awkward silence between Broden and his interrogators. He squints in the direction of the sound, and the nearly-invisible ripples of a just-cast Ghost Sound linger momentarily in the shadows a few yards to his west. Treachery!

Detect Magic: Success

I was speaking idiomatically.

Whoever we were talking to was clearly up to something although quite what I could not determine. It seemed to me we would achieve nothing through out and out confrontation though. After all, the only reward we had been promised was whatever loot we found at the wizard's house so it didn't really matter who we gave the sword to but the help of a proper lord, assuming our employer had been one and this was not he, would be invaluable in finsing out who had chucked us in that dungeon.

I used my own ghost sound spell to whisper in the ears of each of my companions "There is no wolf, there was a spell cast from over in the shadows, be on your guard and let's try to figure this out before we start killing people". I had no idea if they'd understand me or not but it wouldn't hurt to try I figured.

I got to my feet and engaged Broden in conversation, keeping my senses alert for any further magic activity from the shadows and leaning nonchalently on my staff, that being the best excuse I could think of to have it to hand.

"So, Broden, it was mightily fortuitous of you to bump into us here. Had we known you were engaged in such a noble pursuit, we would have hurried to meet you and not wasted time resting up in this out of the way warehouse. I'll admit I'm surprised that you needed us to go and fetch such a simple thing as a silver sword from that wizard's house though. I mean, you can get silver weapons from most good weapon shops, there's no need to employ a wizard for such things although I must admit it wasn't particularly well hidden, the big mechanical walrus was practially helpful, not a threat at all"

My reasoning was that if this Broden had been inside the wizard's house, he might show some reaction to the mention of a walrus, as it was actually a snake. A simple ruse, granted but I had just woken up and thinking on the fly half asleep was never a skill of mine.

As I spoke, I sidled over towards the shadows, hoping to get a better view of what might be there aqnd hoping whatever or whoever it was wouldn't realise I was on to their ruse.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

This night is full of suprises. The idiot city lady has shown some cleverness after all. Not about telling us about the ruse, that seemed simple enough, but rather that she was bright enough to tell us instead of letting us figure it out for ourselves. Looks like the prior battle twigged these people onto working as a team, not as five separate people who just happen to be in the same place at the same time.

It's rude to interrupt a line of questioning, so I took the time to study Lord Broden's appearance. Does he lie about his faith as he does about his quarry?

religion check

FELIPE NO

As the line of questioning continues, Argumentus begins moving around "Lord Broden," sizing him up and sandwiching him within the party.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

"Yes" says Broden to Bob, "but it is not merely the silver that makes it valuable. The blade has been blessed by Bahamut himself, and is therefore a deadly weapon indeed in the hands of his pilgrims."

Broden coughs.

"You know, such as myself. Obviously, so long as the blade is out of the hands of the righteous, evildoers will seek to destroy it or hide it away, since it presents such a terrible threat to them. Now, friends, you are clearly none of you evildoers. But neither are you invincible! I should hate for something horrid to happen to you all in defense of the blade, since you know not of the vile powers arrayed against you. Cruel as it is, there are surely many who will value the sword far more than they value the sanctity of your lives.

Finagill never mentioned any walrus to me, but it surprises me not at all. He was quite mad in his last days, and a walrus golem is precisely the sort of ridiculous thing that might appeal to his senile mind. For my part I stayed well out of his workshop; I make it a point to avoid magery whenever I can feasibly do so. It is curious stuff and well beyond my understanding."

Bob sidles gradually to the side as Broden answers, seeking the source of the Ghost Sound. He finds his answer quite abruptly, nearly stumbling over a dwarven figure crouched in a doorway. The stocky fellow immediately leaps to his feet, and the firelight flickers harshly over his soot-grey skin.

"Good evening, uh, ma'am! Are you in charge of kitchen purchases for your household? I have here a fine assortment of — (he rifles through his pockets) knives and uhhh (he points a thumb at the warhammer strapped to his back) this durable crab mallet! Well, nevermind, I can see you've got company over so I won't take up any more of your time!"

The grey dwarf begins tiptoeing backward, very slowly.

Brigid casts a critical eye on Broden. On the surface, at least, nothing seems awry about the man or any of his apparatus.

All the same, Argumentus moves between Broden and the doorway, blocking any sudden exit.



Jam it back in, in the dark.

The dwarf sat bolt upright as the large fighter kicked him. He sort of blundered several words as he blinked bleary eyes and quickly searched for his axe and shield.

"How's my hair?"



He rubbed his eyes with the back of his fists as he pulled on his gauntlets and slowly sat up. While the conversation went on, he yawned, stretched, hoisted his axe up over his shoulder and kept his eyes focused on Broden. No Paladin would hold himself like this. Especially not a Paladin of that pious fucker, Bahamut. This man was an impostor. However, the impostor was toe to toe with Argumentus, so he wasn't the issue. The moment Bob tripped over the dwarf, however, he began slowly shuffling over towards the little blighter.

His axe was dropped to drag noisily across the ground as he approached, standing to Bob's left and glowering at the grey dwarf before he spat on the ground and began to speak.

"I imagine there's a horse waiting for you outside you'll want to get on before somebody murders you. Someone who gives a fuck about right and wrong" he said, indicating Argumentus with a nod of his head, "or I do."

"It's there, boy. Right outside this house. Freedom. So why don't you tell me how many of you there are here."

He leaned in and slit his eyes, all but glowing with the fearsome might of Kord.

"Then run for your fucking life."



After a long moment of silence, Gabriel lifted his axe to his shoulder and leaned in close.

"You would not want to be staring like that at me."


Religion check to be sure that Broden isn't Broden.
Move to stand in panel beneath Bob
Intimidate on dwarf, that limp-wristed cock sucker.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Motsognir was ready to attack, but had never been much for provoking. He much preferred being the one who stepped in just after, attacking in defense. He took one step towards the Broden figure, just in case.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Gabe takes a good hard look at the intruder. He doesn't see anything amiss either, but who can be sure? At any rate, the circumstantial evidence seems strong enough and he proceeds to browbeat the gray dwarf into a quivering heap of jelly.

Intimidate: Success

The gray dwarf begins backpedaling ever faster, stumbling over chunks of ruined furniture and broken crates. "Broden" rolls his eyes, and the next words out of his mouth come not in the paladin's clipped baritone but in the harsh and sibilant rasp of a tired woman with something working on her last nerve.

"HOLD IT! Don't you try to run away from me again, Karl. You know what'll happen if you do, and frankly I'm runnin' out of thumbscrews. Rolf, Iggy, come on out. It appears these fine folks have called our little bluff."

A smirking halfling steps out of a doorway to the north, finger on the trigger of his crossbow. To the east, a hulking creature like a goblin crossed with a grizzly bear steps out of a stairwell.

"Broden" lifts his steel breastplate over his head, and as the armor crashes to the floor the paladin's noble features vanish entirely. The figure that remains is not human in the least. A mane of white hair hangs down over her bluish-gray face, and her large unpupiled eyes seem quite comfortable in the darkness.

She shrugs off what's left of Broden's armor, and the black leathers underneath leave all but her smirking oval face nearly invisible in the gloom.

"As long as we're sharing secrets, let me lay the rest of the cards on the table. This Broden you so honorably want to return the sword to, well. He's in no condition to grant you any favors, let's put it that way. He put up a good fight, though. There were six of us when we jumped him. Then to find out he didn't even have the damn sword yet because you clowns decided to go camping! Let me tell you, it's been a long day."

She pulls the symbol of Bahamut from around her neck and throws it to the floor. It shatters like glass, the dragon god's power having fled it. The shapeshifter cocks her head at Gabriel and smiles.

"That's the story, mighty mouse. How do you want to play out the finale? We can all still go home with our heads attached. Do the smart thing, hmm?"



I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

The dwarf grit his teeth hard. He felt like hell from the fight before. He knew if he was still aching, his friends were, too. He glanced over in Bob's direction, perking a brow and shrugging as he kept his axe hefted, and one eye on the dwarf infront of him.

"Well, you certainly got the drop on us, donthcha face-changer? Well now. This certainly has an effect on the landscape."

I was speaking idiomatically.

Argumentus always loved his momma
She taught him good things, Bad things
'Don't trust white people, don't trust white people.
Don't trust white people, they're no good, they're no good,
they're no good, they're no good.
They're just gonna rip you off, they're just gonna rip you off.
Don't trust 'em, don't trust 'em.'

Doppel's gonna die tonight
"GET HER!"

Sure Strike on the Doppelganger
Shield slam if it connects
Move a space north if Shield Slammin
Claim that initiative

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Though hoping to avoid a fight, the doppelganger's crew is more than prepared for one. Argumentus' sudden assault surprises nobody, but he does claim the initiative. Smashing the sword's hilt into the back of her head, he shoves the doppelganger to the floor. She clutches at her head and mutters "Why don't they ever do it the smart way?"

Sure Strike: 5 damage
Shield Slam connects; Doppelganger is pushed and knocked prone

The halfling across the fire reacts almost instantly, firing his crossbow at Argumentus. The tiny quarrel sinks into his bicep, but the big man almost laughs it off — until he feels the poison start to sap his strength.

7 damage to Argumentus; slowed, 3 ongoing poison damage (save ends both)

Bob, Brigid, Bugbear, Doppelganger, Duergar, Motsognir, Gabriel, Argumentus, Halfling

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With a roar, the big chap kicked off the seemingly inevitable fight, hurling the shapeshifter to the floor. I moved to the south, hoping to distance myself from any melee combat, hurling an ice ray at the big goblin thing, hoping to slow it's advance.

Move south three squares, Ray of Frost at Bugbear

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Towering slightly over the prone doppelganger, I take the opportunity to size up the situation. Get a good yawn in, stretch t' avoid muscle damage later, that sort of thing.

Switch mace for horn dagger
Righteous Brand at doppelganger, bonus to Motsognir
Action Point
Wrathful Thunder at doppelganger

Jam it back in, in the dark.