So! Last we left our "heroes" in the midst of combat in the Conclave's chambers within Silverhorn Tower, an ancient machine and/or creature that protects the town from the madness of the greenstone from Crater Valley, a day's walk away. The Conclave planned to conscript Agnes and Bazel to some form of military service, which was not taken well. Their newfound friend, Drusilla, turned out to be more loyal to her town than her saviors and is currently fighting against them alongside the two members of the Conclave and the town guards. In the last scene, one of the two guards present failed his morale check and ran out to get help. The dice have spoken that in nine rounds he will return and there will be seven guards to fight the PCs. Onward! Here’s the PCs' character sheets: Agnes, Bazel. And here’s links to the previous posts if you want to catch up: Chapter 1: Part 1, Part 2 Chapter 2: Part 1, Part 2 Chapter 3: Part 1 ToolsChapter 3, Part 2!We begin at the start of the second round of the battle. The combatants are currently Agnes and Bazel vs Drusilla the Thief and a female Conclave Wizard. Round 2 Bazel turns to Drusilla, rage in his eyes. “You dare use Prudence’s weapon against me?!” He’s going to try a Mighty Deed to drop his bow, pull out his dagger to cut and disarm Drusilla. Attack: 19 (4 on the Deed!), 5 damage! In one swift motion, Bazel pulls the dagger from his belt, sweeping it into Drusilla’s weapon arm, cutting her and forcing her to lose her grip on the sickle. Bazel catches it as it falls. Drusilla thinks quick and pulls out the ancient gun! Attack: 10 The shot is loud, but misses Bazel. The Conclave wizard needs to make a morale check as well. Will Save: 14 She can’t speak or cast spells, but she can use the spear leaning against her chair without any words and charges Agnes! Attack: 10 But misses. Agnes ignores the wizard’s attempts for she, too, is enraged at Drusilla for using Prudence’s weapon in such a way. She swings her fiery scimitar… Attack: 5 And misses! Round 3 Bazel swings at Drusilla with the sickle… Attack: 5 And also misses! Drusilla retaliates with the gun! Attack: 10 Friendly Fire (50/50): 93 The shot goes wide, again. Conclave female makes another stab with her spear at Agnes… Attack: Nat 20! Crit roll: 5, +1d6 damage Damage: 11 And severely wounds Agnes in the gut. Agnes, eyes wide, immediately begins a prayer… Lay on Hands: 6 Which is unanswered. Round 4 Bazel makes to defend Agnes by striking at the Conclave wizard. Attack: 8 And misses again! Drusilla tries another shot with the pistol… Attack: 12 Friendly Fire (50/50): 92 Again, it goes wide! The wizard stabs again! Attack: 5 Miss! Agnes makes another attempt at healing herself. Lay on Hands: 17 Healing (2d8): 8 This time her prayer is answered. She’s up to 9 HP. Round 5 Bazel will attempt another Mighty Deed: to hit the gun out of Drusilla’s hand and strike the Conclave Wizard. Attack: 10 It fails. Drusilla is not giving up with this gun thing! Attack: 4 Friendly Fire (50/50): 97 It misses. Drusilla only has two more shots before the chamber is empty. Conclave wizard tries another stab at Agnes! Attack: 6 Miss again! Agnes makes to strike at Drusilla with her scimitar… Attack: 7 Miss! Round 6 Bazel tries another deed to disarm Drusilla and maim the wizard. Attack: 6 Wow! These dice! No one is doing anything! If this keeps up for longer than another round, something random is going down. Drusilla fires the gun! Attack: 10 Friendly Fire: 15 Attack vs Wizard (AC 11): 7 Miss! Wizard stabs at Bazel, thinking that a change in target might help. Attack: 18, 7 damage And finally manages to get a jab in at Bazel! Agnes swings at Drusilla! Attack: 15, 5 slicing and 3 fire damage Drusilla drops to ground, a smoking gash cutting almost clean through her torso. The smell of bad barbeque fills the chamber. Round 7 Bazel makes another attack with the sickle! Attack: 11, 4 damage And cuts into the Conclave Wizard. Conclave Wizard needs another morale check! Will Save: 6 She makes to run away to the secret exit! Agnes free attack: 13, 3 damage + 1 fire Bazel free attack: 10 She gets cut and slightly burned as she makes her way to the passage. Round 8 Bazel picks up his bow and tries to shoot her as she runs! Attack: 9 But misses. Agnes wastes no time and chases after her the second Bazel’s arrow is loosed. Agnes Agility Check: 3 Conclave Wizard Agility Check: Nat 20! She is unable to catch up with her and loses sight of her down a dark twisty corridor. *victory? music* Agnes HP: 9 Bazel HP: 13 The two adventurers look at each other, grim grinning in disbelief in what they have done. “What the hell are we gonna do now?” Bazel asks. DC 10 Perception Checks! Agnes: 10 Bazel: 9 Agnes holds up her hand. “Shit, I think I hear guards coming! Let’s go down this passage!” “Can we close it behind us?” DC 10 Int Checks! Agnes: 19 Bazel: 3 Man, if it weren’t for Agnes... Agnes finds a lever and flips it, and the door closes, leaving them in darkness. Do they hide or try to escape? Hide (d20): 10 Escape (d20): 4 They creep down the dark corridor, finding something of a niche and press themselves against the wall, ready for the worst. They hear the secret door open… Luck Checks! Agnes (Luck 17): 18 Bazel (Luck 14): 5 “Hey, I think I see something in here, come on!” Bazel looks at Agnes and sees her scimitar out of its sheath, glowing. “Well, shit.” Run or fight? Run (d20): 10 Fight (d20): 11 The two wait until the guards are right upon them and jump out, making to strike! Initiative! Agnes: 15 Bazel: 15 Guard 1: 3 Guard 2: 12 The hall is only wide enough for two people to stand side by side, so only two guards will be fighting at a time here. Round 1 Bazel swings the sickle at the first guard he sees… Attack: 19, 8 damage And kills him. Agnes, by his side, swings her scimitar at the next guard. Attack: 12, 5 + 3 fire damage And kills him, too. Guard 3 Init: 3 Guard 4 Init: 8 Two more oncoming guards attack, but there is fear in their eyes. Guard 4 Attack: Nat 1! Fumble roll (1d8): 7 One drops his sword in mid swing! Butterfingers! Guard 3 Attack: 17, 4 damage! The next manages to get a cut on Bazel! Round 2 Bazel retaliates! Attack: Nat 20! Crit roll: 11, foe will die in 1d5: 2 hours. Actually he dies now, because Bazel dealt 8 damage and these guys are weak. With a wicked strike to the gut, Bazel kills his attacker. Agnes looks at the weaponless guard and simply says, “Run.” Word of Command: 8 The magic doesn’t come forth, tho, and the guard makes to punch Agnes! Guard 4 Attack: Nat 20! Crit roll: 4, +1d4 damage, Agnes loses 10’ speed until healed. Damage: 4 The guard manages to really rock Agnes with a right hook, somewhat stunning her. ouch! Guard 5 Init: 8 Round 3 Bazel makes to defend his friend by striking Agnes’ assailant. Attack: 11, 9 damage And cuts his head off. Agnes utters another prayer, fearful that she’s pushing her luck… Lay on Hands: 12 Healing (2d8): 8 Agnes is up to full health (12 HP). I think the remaining 3 Guards need a morale check. Will Saves: Guard 5: 20 Guard 6: 4 Guard 7: 10 One guard stands before the two adventurers, sword in hand, a look of steely resolve on his face. His two colleagues behind him run off. He makes to strike at Bazel. Attack: 3 And misses. Round 4 Bazel retaliates. Attack: 11, 10 damage And kills him. *victory music* “We gotta get outta here,” Agnes says. “I know. You’re covered in blood,” Bazel replies. “So are you. I’m starting to feel kinda bad about all this. Like, all we’ve done is killed people since we got here.” “We saved Drusilla.” “Then killed her.” “Yeah, well, they were gonna lock us up if we didn’t train their militia or something.” “We should never have used that statue. We never should have come here.” “I know.” “We gotta get out of here.” “Yeah, can you pray heal this gash here? It hurts.” “I’ll try.” Lay on Hands: 21 Healing (2d12): 9 Agnes HP: 12 (full) Bazel HP: 18 They make their way down the dark corridor, finally stumbling upon another lever. They flip it. Where does it open to? A secret Conclave chamber (d20): 16 The main outer hallway (d20): 1 Is the female Conclave Wizard in there? Yes (d20): 5 No (d12): 5 I’m going to interpret that to mean that the one they were after isn’t in there, but there is another female Conclave wizard! What level is this wizard? 1d4: 4 Alrighty, let me get a level 4 wizard from Purple Sorcerer… Here we go! Bazel and Agnes take their chances and go into the room, ready for anything. This chamber is full of strange biomechanical protrusions on the wall. In one of the walls is something of a niche with a shelf and something glowing. In front of this space is a robed figure, the hood is down, revealing a woman with blonde hair. She turns, sees the two strangers and quickly puts her hood up. “You must be the strangers assaulting Silverhorn. I don’t know who sent you, but I won’t let you succeed!” She begins the casting of a spell. Initiative! Agnes: 4 Bazel: 13 Conclave Wizard 2: 13 Round 1 Bazel decides to try using the gun. Attack: Nat 1! Fumble Roll: 2 Bazel trips… DC 10 Reflex Save: 5 And falls on his ass! The wizard begins to cast Sleep, but Agnes recognizes the spell and attempts to counterspell with Word of Command: Silence! Spell Duel! Wizard’s check: 10 Agnes’ check: 16 No Spell Duel needed. I’m not sure what the rules want to happen in this case, but I am ruling that since the attacker’s spell fizzled and the counterspell did not, Agnes’ spell will happen normally at that spell check. Wizard’s Will Save: 15 Conclave Wizard 2 will be silent for 1d6+CL: 6 rounds! Round 2 Bazel collects himself as he gets up from the floor. The wizard runs up to smack Agnes with her staff! Attack: 4 Agnes knocks the staff away. The outlaw druidess raises her smoldering scimitar… Attack: 10, 3 + 3 fire damage And lands a blow against the Conclave wizard! Round 3 Bazel, not wanting to risk hitting Agnes with the gunshot, slices with the sickle. Attack: 22, 9 damage The wizard’s head falls from her shoulders. *victory music* Fucking brutal. Agnes and Bazel take in their surroundings, the glowing niche grabs their attention, as it is clearly a focal point of the room. The inner wall glows a soft yellowish white, and a shelf with strange markings protrudes at waist height. An indentation clearly meant for a humanoid hand is present. Agnes can feel some sort of life force or magic emanating from this place. She looks to Bazel and places her hand in the indentation. Exactly what is the nature of the Silverhorn? Artificial Drill Thing/Creature (d20): 16 AI-Powered Spaceship (d20): 6 Random Gobbledegook (use Adventuresmith) (d20): 9 How does the Silverhorn react to Agnes’ accessing it? Bless, Advanced, Knowledge Okay, so, I’ll interpret that as meaning the Silverhorn welcomes her and allows her full access because it knows her connection to the divine? Yeah, something like that. Agnes closes her eyes as her mind is filled with the presence of this ancient not-mind; a presence and a force of will, ready to accept her own… DC 12 Will Save: 7 As her mind begins to crack from the strain of the full force of the Silverhorn, Agnes reaches into herself and focuses her will to keep it together… Burning 5 Luck to meet the DC! Her eyes open and her head rocks back and her eyes emit the same glowing light as the console. Bazel screams, “Holy shit, Agnes!” “It’s okay, this thing, it’s alive but, not, it’s like an animal but a tool… It was made to mine the greenstone by… I don’t know, somewhere else, far away, it’s so old!” Tears stream from Agnes’ eyes as she takes in the information from the Silverhorn. “Well can it help us?” “I think so, I get the feeling it’s willing to,” Agnes says, closing her eyes again. “Can you get us out of here?” she asks the Silverhorn. Can it? Yes (d20): 17 No (d16): 2 How should I rule the operation of this thing? Spell Check (d20): 2 Luck Check (d20): 13 Can Bazel help or make the check if Anges fails? Yes (d20): 14 No (d20): 1 As Agnes focuses her will on controlling the Silverhorn, banging can be heard on the door that they entered through. At some point a barrier of the biomechanical material appeared over it. “We gotta do this now Agnes, we have company!” Agnes grits her teeth and… Luck Check (Luck 12): 6! There is a massive shudder and lurch and the whole room goes sideways. DC 10 Reflex Save for Bazel: 18 Bazel manages to steady himself, while something of a chair has grown out of the floor for Agnes. A great rumbling starts, and all is a cacophony of sound and tremors and after a while it is too much and the two adventurers lose consciousness! Crash Damage: Bazel (3d6): 13 Agnes (2d6): 7 They awake an indeterminate amount of time later. Both are dazed, battered, and spitting blood, but they have survived. The lights in the Silverhorn flicker, there are holes in the walls, and multiple bodies lay around them. Most are guards, a few appear to random people, and a couple are robed. One is clearly the female wizard from earlier, judging by the scorch mark on the robe. With much trepidation they make their way out of the chamber to get a look at their surroundings. What they see is not exactly comforting. They are indeed out of the town, but where they can only guess. It appears to be twilight, the air seems thick and up above is a reddish light, almost like a small, dim, smoky sun. The outline of buildings can be seen far off in the distance, and behind them is a mountain range extending up into the darkness, as if they were on the inside of a globe and the mountains climbed the wall. A rubble strewn path can be seen coming down from somewhere up beyond the light, clearly where they came from. As Agnes and Bazel get their bearings and process what has happened, footsteps can be heard directly behind them from inside the Silverhorn. Apparently they are not the only ones who survived. Dun dun dun!Okay, wow, that didn't exactly go the way I thought it was, but, that's pretty cool in and of itself, right? When I saw that the Silverhorn was in fact a giant drill thing and that it was getting them out of there, I knew I'd have to finally crack open Journey to the Center of Aereth, which is an awesome adventure/campaign setting for DCC. That being said, I don't think I'll use it whole cloth, because it's super dark and terrible, however it will be the base for the next adventure. Perhaps even future ones, if they survive and/or the dice don't take me away from it, ha.
Anyway, thanks for reading, hope to see you next time, whenever that may be!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
RPG materials & musings, along with some fiction, poetry, & other randomness. Updated when you least expect it.
Archives
October 2022
Categories |