Charles Plemons' Blog

Game summary for October 11, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Nicholae Dragos (cleric acolyte) and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

In the castellan’s keep, the team reunited with Germanus, and Illithor departed for other opportunities.  They returned to the Hearth and Road tavern to recruit new retainers and re-hired Wuldric Mineshield and Arathorn.  Additionally, they hired archer Quintinus Metelko.

Re-equipped, the team returned to the lair of the Bloody Fist orc tribe and began working on preparations for the upcoming battle with the Finger Gnawers goblins and Blades of Doom hobgoblins.  They provided the orcs with the maps they had made of the goblin and hobgoblin lairs.  Nicholae gave a stirring speech to rally the orcs, and Arathorn encouraged their bravery.  Theobald led the orcs through a number of exercises to limber up for the fight and taught them several ways to improve their preparations.  Quintinus and Theobald conferred on military strategy for a while and determined that was better left to the rapier minds of the violent orcish brutes.  Nicholae visited the Get the Gruumsh orc tribe in a nearby cave and tried to talk them into joining the fight.  After failing to appeal to their altruistic nature, he paid them gold.  With a several dozen orcs now ready for war, Nicholae conducted a religious ceremony to bless the battle.

The orcs and hobgoblins met blade-to-blade in the valley of the caves of chaos, and blood ran deep.  The preparations by the party paid off, and the orcs proved extremely deadly.  The battle raged for half an hour as the orcs drove the goblinoids into the caves.  Using the knowledge scouted by the party, the orcs were able to negotiate the terrain readily and slaughter even more goblin scum.  Meanwhile, Nicholae and Theobald worked to treat the wounded orcs and keep them in the battle.  After an hour of battle, most of the goblinoids had fled into the night or lay dead or dying.  The marauding orcs stripped the bodies of valuables while Nicholae collected left ears to prove to the keep the number of goblinoids eliminated.  The orcs then claimed the bodies as dinner and returned to their caves.  As agreed, they left the inner goblin caves to the party.

The team worked through the caves scaring off the occasional goblinoid straggler and stripped the caves of any valuables.  They recovered a small fortune in silver, pewter, and gemstones along with assorted coins and a well-stocked armory.  All told, they recovered several thousand gold coins in value.

After a several trips to the keep to unload spoils, make bank deposits, and restock, the team set out to explore the furthest cave on the lowest level of the ravine.  They discovered an entryway filled with leaves, branches, bones, and decaying corpses.  Sifting through the reeking mess, they discovered a number of loose coins.  However, the rattling of the leaves attracted a swarm of giant rats!  The vermin swept into the party like a tide of chittering teeth.  Several of the retainers were injured, but the party made short work of the rodents.  Afterward, they resumed their search through the garbage and had to fight off another trio of rats.

With the second set of rats defeated, the party stood ready to proceed deeper into the caves in search of glory, riches, and enemies of humanity.

Game summary for October 6, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Illithor (elf veteran-medium), Nicholae Dragos (cleric acolyte), Stanislav Dmitros (fighter veteran), and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

The group returned to the caves and met with the Bloody Fist tribe, including the chieftain, Right Fist, whose hand was coated in dried blood.  The orcs agreed to team with the party to wage war against the goblins and hobgoblins in two days’ time.  Meanwhile, they suggested the party cause disruption and chaos, as they had been, among other tribes.

The party asked about some of the other caves, and Right Fist pointed out where to find kobolds, goblins, hobgoblins, gnolls, and bugbears.  Stanislav informed the party that bugbears were some of the largest and more violent goblinoids, and the group decided to visit them.  Outside the cave, they discovered a sign written in kobold, goblin, and orcish stating, “Safety, security, and repose for all humanoids who enter—WELCOME!  (Come in and report to the first guard on the left for a hot meal and bed assignment.)”  The promptly entered and went to the right.

The team’s light alerted the guards to the left who called out to them in the guttural language of the goblins.  Ignoring it, they pressed on down a slope and opened a door to find a room filled with bugbear men and women who snatched up axes and swords.  Meanwhile, the bugbear guards from down the hallway closed in on the other side, catching the party between a dozen armed and violent goblinoids!

The team fought valiantly but quickly found themselves nursing grievous injuries.  Several bugbears went down, but the party could not hold the line.  Germanus found well with his glaive, and Stefan stepped up to swing his hammer, but even the two warrior retainers were not enough to turn the tide.  The team opened a way through toward the exit and fled at full speed.  The bugbears cut off the escape route of Germanus and Stefan while others ran after the fleeing party.

Stefan fled deeper into the caves, Stanislav was cut down in his tracks, and Germanus fled another direction.  Nicholae was surrounded and beaten into unconsciousness.  The bugbears then bargained with the survivors and ransomed Nicholae for 25 platinum coins.

With Nicholae recovered along with the corpse of Stanislav, the team ran back to the keep to lick their wounds and learn from what went wrong.

The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.

Game summary for September 22, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Illithor (elf veteran-medium), Ralsk Lightbringer (cleric acolyte) and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

With Wuldric Mineshield and Arathorn now hired on, and Ralsk Lightbringer now in the party, the team returned to the goblin caves.  Not far within, they discovered a guard post stationed with six spear-toting goblins.  The team dug in the hallway and waited for the goblins to approach.  Instead, the goblins hurled spear after spear at the party driving them back with numerous injuries.  The team ran away back to the keep to nurse their injuries after learning that Ralsk had no training or skill in healing.

Once recovered, the team returned to find the goblin guard post and tore through them.  They looted the room and pushed on through to find a stairwell leading to a well-made, barred wooden door.  The sign upon it said “Come in—we’d love to have you for dinner!” in Thyatian.  Theobald knocked on the door and demanded all their money.  Shuffling and scraping sounds were heard, and Ralsk poured oil all over the door and floor.  The team fell back and ignited the oil.

The rolling smoke soon drove the party out of the caves, but they saw a trace of smoke from a cave higher up the ravine.  The team moved in and followed the smoke into the other side of the caves.  They discovered a hastily abandoned room with smoke billowing under a door.  They backtracked and went down another corridor to discover a torture chamber with two armed hobgoblins and a room full of prisoners.  A fierce battle broke out, with one hobgoblin cutting down Ralsk with his sword.  Illithor finished the hobgoblin off with a magic missile.

Two of the humans, Vasile and Veleslava Goral, were merchants relieved to be rescued and removed from the menu.  Two men-at-arms, Germanus Andros and Stefan Dodrescu, agreed to hire on with the party for a year without pay.  Another prisoner, an orc named Bronak Brokenteeth, indicated a desire to kill many hobgoblins and asked the team and come back to speak with the Bloody Fists tribe.  The last prisoner was a massive mangy gnoll that Illithor named ‘Carl’ and tried to befriend.  He fed Carl the face of one of the hobgoblins, and Carl then fled off into the caves.

Back at the keep, the team buried Ralsk and released Arathorn and Wuldric from services and outfitted Germanus and Stefan.

The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.

Game summary for September 15, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Grey Mouser (thief apprentice), Illithor (elf veteran-medium), Nicholae Dragos (cleric acolyte) and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

Joined by Illithor and Nicholae, who had been bringing up the rear, the party attacked the goblin and ogre.  The brawl was brutal, with the goblin going down quickly.  The ogre fell back into a narrow hallway to limit the foes who could engage him.  He delivered a clobbering shot to Wuldric Mineshield, cracking several ribs and driving him into the ground.  The battered dwarf had to fall back from the fight.  Grey Mouser ran about the back ranks launching arrow after arrow at the ogre and missing.  Theobald planted his spear in the ogre’s gut while Nicholae hammered its knee.  Howling in pain, the ogre fell back further and vainly swung away at the armored and nimble Illithor who had just hit it with a magic missile.  As the party closed in, Grey Mouser finally found his range and sank an arrow in the ogre’s throat, dropping it dead to the ground.

After ransacking the ogre lair, the team found a side corridor.  At the end four burned and blackened bodies lay in a heap.  The team decided they must have triggered a trap and fell back for the time being.

Advancing slowly, the team came upon a lair filled with dozens of goblins.  The women and young fled out the back while the males advanced.  The party tried to convince the goblins to pay tribute; however, the goblins, fearful and trying to protect their young, were soon provoked to fight.  With reckless abandon, the goblins filled the hallway and fought.  The party parried spear thrust after spear thrust and traded blows with the humanoids.  Minor wounds were accumulated, and a couple of goblins went down.  Things were starting to turn in favor of the party when a well-aimed spear penetrated Katarzina’s armor and skewered her.  The retainer was dead before she hit the floor, her torch falling from her limp fingers.  A sneaky goblin then stomped out the light source.

Plunged into darkness, the fighting got intense.  Quick-thinking Grey Mouser pulled out a tinder box and torches and illuminated the passageway.  Out of arrows, he also drew forth hand axes.  He hurled one into the melee as the team began to fatigue.  More goblins died, but the party lines were softening.  Illithor’s blade ran red with blood, and Nicholae had bound his wounds and moved back to the front.  Stout Theobald suffered several spear thrusts and had to fall back.  Grey Mouser moved in to fill the ranks and found himself impaled upon a goblin spear.  The cackling fiend ripped the haft from his chest as he toppled over into death.

Injured Wuldric advanced back into the fray, and the party drove the goblins back on their heels.  One after another fell, but fighting for the lives of their families, the goblins did not retreat.  They stood to a “man” and traded their lives dearly in blood and agony.  With the foul creatures slain, they had a moment to catch their breath.  Illithor picked up a goblin body and investigated the side chamber once again.  He hurled the body down the hall trying to trigger the suspected fire trap that burned the other four bodies within.  The floppy goblin hurtled through the air, splatted against the far wall, and landed in a heap with no effect.

Unsure about the hall, the team grabbed the bodies of Katarzina and Grey Mouser and fled back to the keep.  Once there, Nicholae conducted two beautiful funeral services.  They then proceeded to negotiate the hiring of Arathorn, an elven mercenary.

The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.

Game summary for September 8, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Grey Mouser (thief apprentice) and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

The team hired Wuldric Mineshield to join in their adventures and heading back to the Caves of Chaos.  They returned to the kobold caves and stumbled upon four kobolds moving through.  During the skirmish, the kobolds broke ranks and fled with the team in hot pursuit.  The party caught them at a doorway and cut them down.  They then proceeded through the door to discover the kobold chieftain and five kobold women!

The chieftain fell back, driving the women forward.  They brandished their crude blades and attacked.  The massive (for a kobold) chieftain stood back with axe in hand.  A large golden chain dangled from his neck, catching the eye of Grey Mouser, party thief.  Several of the kobolds fell, and the chieftain moved in.  Theobald slammed his spear into the kobold who brushed off the injury.  He returned a blow to Theobald, causing heavy damage.  The kobold front was unable to stand up to the combined might of the party and began to collapse.  Soon, the team swarmed over the kobolds and won the day.  They ransacked the room and smashed open a chest full of treasure.  They unfortunately discovered none had any abilities with healing and medicine, so they withdrew back to the keep.

The team got bandaged up, sold the necklace for a small fortune, divided up the loot, and put several things in the vault.  They then went to the tavern and ate and drank well.  Grey Mouser purchased beef roast and honey mead, freely but quietly spending coin.

On the following morn, they returned to the kobold caves to find a massive chamber now empty of occupants.  They found evidence of up to fifty individuals having lived there but no sign as to where they had gone.  The team then left the kobold caves and heading to another entrance.

The team crept in and found a four-way intersection.  They proceeded straight to find a dead end as a patrol of goblins came up behind them.  The two groups stared at each other in surprise for a moment before the goblins crowded in.  One fled down the hall yelling “Bree-Yark!” at the top of his lungs.  A brutal fight ensued, with the party killing all the goblins but with Wuldric and Theobald badly wounded.  They quickly searched the bodies and returned to the keep.

The team reassembled and returned to the goblin caves.  They carefully moved in and surprised a half-dozen goblins in a side chamber.  The party slaughtered all but one in moments, but that goblin kicked open a secret door and tossed a bag of coins into the room.  A grunt and booming laugh followed.  The party fell back on guard as the wickedly smiling goblin was overshadowed by a towering mass of muscle and hate—an ogre!

The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.

Game summary for September 1, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Illithor (elf veteran-medium), Nicholae Dragos (cleric acolyte), and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

With Lucian in his grave, and their wounds tended, the party set back off to the Caves of Chaos with a retainer, Katarzina Markhov.  They debated entering a different cave than previously but decided to again test their mettle against the kobolds.  Katarzina lit a torch, and the four heroes stepped within.

The light drew the attention of more giant rats who scurried forth to investigate.  Battle ensued, with the rats championed by a particularly large and fearsome pack leader.  Although tense, the battle was really one-sided.  In close to a minute the rats lay dead.  The party discovered a silver necklace around the pack leader’s neck.  Further investigation of the nest revealed nothing else of value.

The party headed further into the caves and found several branches along the way.  The group turned along the northern branch and discovered a locked door.  Nicholae used a hammer and iron spike to begin beating the lock out of the door.  Presently, a trio of kobold guards approached to investigate and battle erupted.

One kobold, armed with a crude hand axe, advanced on the team while two archers fired at the party.  Katarzina took several minor hits.  The melee kobold took a sharp blow and ran for his life down the hallway.  Meanwhile, Nicholae closed with the archers with slower-moving Theobald and Illthor trailing.  Theobald hurled his spear at the retreating kobold and missed.  Nonplused, he drew his mace for action.  Illithor and Katarzina slowly drove the archers back while Nicholae tried to treat injuries as necessary.  Eventually, the archers were dead, the retreating kobold was gone, and the party had a moment to bind their more serious wounds.

The break was short-lived, however, as a wandering squad of goblins had heard the ruckus and arrived.  The wicked little creatures charged forward with crude axes held high.  They particularly focused on their hated foe the dwarf.  Despite the struggle they had with the kobolds, the team found their stride and tore into the goblins with zeal and aptitude.  Illithor cast magic missile, exploding one goblin skull like an overripe melon.  Illithor then used Theobald’s spear to kill another.  Katarzina felled a third.  The remaining goblin darted down the hallway with the team in close pursuit.  A vicious backhand planted his axe deep into the chest of Katarzina.  Although alive, she was out of the fight.  The group swarmed in, and Theobald killed the goblin before  he could get away.

Nicholae tended to Katarzina and then resumed his work on the locked door.  The rest gathered coins from the slain monsters.  Behind the door lay the kobolds’ food supply, which the party promptly set ablaze.  They then withdrew from the caves and returned to Castellan’s Keep.

Once at the keep, they sold the necklace for 400 gold coins and purchased plate armor for Theobald and Nicholae.  They also rented some space in the bank vaults to store equipment and valuables.  With a set of spare dwarven chainmail, they went to negotiate hiring Wuldric Mineshield at the tavern while others secured lodging at the inn.

The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.

Game summary for August 25, 2011, In Search of Adventure campaign, Keep on the Borderlands adventure; present characters included Grey Mouser (thief apprentice), Illithor (elf veteran-medium), Lucian Zieroff (fighter veteran), Nicholae Dragos (cleric acolyte), and Theobald Goblinbane (dwarf veteran).

Five young heroes gathered at Castellan’s Keep seeking adventure and fortune within the nearby Caves of Chaos.  They began their journey within the Hearth and Road Tavern inside the keep by talking to some of the individuals gathered within.  They asked half-a-dozen individuals their rates to hire on to an adventuring party to get an idea of the needed investment.  They spoke to Arathorn the elf, Archibald Baker the halfling, Katarzina Markhov the guardswoman, Quintinus Metelko the archer, Ursula Botsaris the arcanist, and Wuldric Mineshield the dwarf.  After determining they lacked sufficient funds, the five set out on the two mile trek to the caves.

Lucian used his wilderness skills to study the terrain and tracks around, and they sought out a less frequently entered cave.  Nicholae and Lucian ignited torches in preparation.  As Lucian moved into the cavern, eight kobolds shimmied down ropes from a large tree and attacked with their crude spears.  Illithor and Theobald suffered minor injuries but helped put the kobolds down quickly.  After looting the bodies and binding wounds, Lucian charged into the cave.

Within, more kobolds awaited, with several readying weapons while two fled down a side passage.  The party moved in, and as Lucian advanced, he found himself dumped ten feet into a flip-lid pit trap.  A brutal fight ensued, and Grey Mouser tried to get within the pit to disable its workings.  He accidentally triggered the trap and crashed into Lucian from above.  The rest of the group eliminated the remaining kobolds while Lucian exacerbated his injuries trying to heal himself.

After rescuing their allies from the pit, Lucian moved into a side chamber filled with trash and debris.  Numerous giant rats swarmed up from the heap and attacked.  The brave fighter went down beneath a gnashing horde of vermin teeth.  The party bought themselves a few moments of reprieve, slaying several rats and dragging Lucian’s body free.  With more kobolds just out of sight to the right and a dozen more rats bubbling up from bolt holes to the left, the team fled back to the keep.

Gathered around the body of their fallen companion, Nicholae attempted to perform his first funeral ceremony.  He was very nervous and got some of the rituals wrong.  Lucian is now at rest but may be married to his casket.  It was all a bit confusing.

Bolstered with a few gathered coins, the equipment from their fallen friend, and some knowledge of the caves, the team plans to launch a second foray better prepared.

The above summary is for a game session of Dungeons & Dragons BECMI / RC edition played by the Phoenix Gaming Club.