DougFungus' Crypt of the Everflame
Game Master DougFungus

• Kerret shouts out "There's something wrong with these Orcs! I think they're some kind of magical illusion! as he hastily reloads his crossbow. Realizing the Pony and their gear might end up running away he darts toward the pony to try and help Vastar get it under control. Unfortunately the reins are in Vastar's hands and Kerret cant find a place to grab the Pony.

  I added your speech from the discussion thread here to eliminate confusion in the dialog chain

• Orc 2 Draws his Greataxe and moves in to attack Vastar.

  Attack with Greataxe: 1d20 + 5 - 1 ⇒ (19) + 5 - 1 = 23 (Hit)

  Damage: 1d12 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 6

  Vastar cant figure out why everybody is saying the Orcs are an illusion. The pain of being struck with the Greataxe is very real. He looks down to see a large slash wound on his chest where the Orc had swung.

• Pip moves backward to avoid being run over my the cart then reloads his Crossbow.

• Lorant fires an arrow from his bow at Orc 1 and hits it directly in the chest. The Orc cries out in pain and rage as it falls face first onto the dirt trail and fades from existance.
  Lorant:

  I added a +4 to your attack for passing the will save

  Lorant seems impartial to the fact the Orc had just disappeared before his eyes. He drops his Bow and draws his Longsword and prepares himself for whatever is about to come.

• Orc 3 moves forward while preparing another Javelin. He throws the Javelin at Pip...

  Javelin Attack: 1d20 + 1 - 1 ⇒ (13) + 1 - 1 = 13 (Miss)

  Damage: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9

  ...and misses.

• Vastar finally manages to get a good grip on the pony's reins and prevents it from moving any further.

• The Pony, realizing it has been beaten ceases to struggle but is still very frightened from all the commotion.

Shortly after Orc 1 disappears the realization sets in for everybody that the Orcs are in fact illusions. Vastar touches his wound only to realize its not actually there. The remaining Orcs immediately stop attacking. They look to the party and nod with approval and then fade away just like Orc 1.

End of Combat.

XP award: 135XP/Person

Seeing the orcs disappear, Lorant jams his sword into its sheathe, clearly not amused by the illusions. He looks towards the trees. "Harold! If these were your doing, I'm going to whip you when I get back home! I'm tired of your games!" He turns back to the group and picks up his bow.

"Vastar, are you ok? You're not hurt? If it was my little brother, he still can't get those shadows right. But...those were more real than anything I've ever seen him do before." Finally, he looks at Kaylee. "What are you doing here, Kaylee? Is Emily with you? Or Davyd?"

Kaylee, see my file in the skydrive. I injected a little background among some of us. Let me know if you object.

No objections, it looks good to me.

Kaylee gives Vastar a quick look over, making sure he wasn't hurt. Illusions may not be able to cause harm but sometimes a person's mind does strange things when its being fooled with. She turns to Lorant after giving the cleric a nod. "I was supposed to go last time but father..." she pauses a second as grief flushes over her. It was common knowledge in the village that Davyd Pruitt Sr. passed away a few months before the last Quest for the Everflame. She shakes her head to clear it away. "I'm going this time to honor him. I don't care wether you, the mayor, or anyone else has to say." She looks at Lorant defiantly as if daring him to tell her to go back home.

"Those illusions still put a real fear in my belly!" Pip exclaims. Turning to Kaylee he says solemnly, "I for one, am glad to have you along Kaylee. I may not have known your father well, but his loss was deeply felt by all in the town, my sincerest condolences."

Kerret nods to Pip, They certainly did seem real enough! Well, I suppose that's one bolt I won't get back. He claps Vastar on the shoulder and grins at Lorant and Kaylee. Still, we're none the worse for it, and even have a new companion to share our journey. Kaylee, you are most welcome to join us! Hopefully with you around, Lorant won't break wind so much. That last time smelled just like an orc!
Kerret sings his crossbow back over his shoulder and retrieves the lantern from the back of the wagon. While the others are welcoming Kaylee, he mumbles a few words in a strange tongue as he turns the tarnished silver over in his hands.

"Um, of course, Kaylee. We'd be happy to have you along." Lorant knew that tone of voice. He wasn't going to argue with the midwife on this one.

He throws a look at Kerret, then says, "Well, I guess we keep going, right? Let's see that map again. Anyone know where we turn off to the Lake?"

Kerret grins at Lorant and says, I think the trail goes south at the Broken Glade, but we should probably check the map to be sure. He looks expectantly at Vastar.

I take a few moments to catch my breath and steady myself, shaking slightly from the adrenaline rush and the weird sensation of massive pain that suddenly disappeared, I draw out the map and lay it flat so everyone can see: Yep, the glade's just a sign that we're on the right track, then we stick to the trail south.

Thanks Pip. Kerret, I pray for the same. She laughs softly. Thinking to herself about where the best trails to the glade.

Let's be off then. Kerret says with a smile. He picks up his spear and shoulders it, then takes the reins of the pony and leads it around the deadfall before resuming the journey along the path toward the Broken Glade.
Handle Animal: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 11
It's a good thing you caught up to us Kaylee, I know I wouldn't want to travel these woods alone, imaginary orcs aside.

Pip hustles back into the cart as it starts to move, this time keeping a better eye on his surroundings.

Eager to slough off my shakes, I walk alongside the wagon until I feel calm again.

The party moves on down the trail through The Broken Glade and on its way to The Grey Lake. The shade of the trees grows darker as the sun in the sky begins to set. Talks among the party turn to setting up camp for the evening.

"We should stop for the night. No sense in flailing about in the dark. Why don't set up our camp on the other side of the lake there?" Lorant points to the far side of the edge of the lake.

It is now getting dark. You can only see roughly 20' in front of you. With the sun setting fast the party heads to the Southern part of the lake and turns off of the trail to find a suitable camp site.

Round 1 Begins

Kerret looks around when the rest of the group comes to a stop. This looks ok. Lets get a fire going and set up the tents.

"Let's move a little farther down, away from the road." Lorant retrieves a torch from his backpack and lights it.

Kerret follows Lorant into the trees and unhitches the pony from the wagon once they come to a halt. He ties the reins to a sturdy branch but leaves plenty of slack for the animal to eat the grass nearby. He begins to brush down the animal with handfuls of grass plucked from the earth.

He speaks as he works. I've seen my father's grooms do this a time or two, it doesn't look to hard. I suppose the next thing to do is gather wood for a fire. Or should we start setting up the tents before the sun sets? I guess I should have brought some torches, it sure is hard to see much out here.

tying up the horse somewhere around AY 48

Kaylee casts light upon a good luck charm she wears around her neck as she leads her donkey alongside Kerret and the horse. After loosely tying her stubborn friend to a tree. Don't worry, I'll gather some kindling for the fire She skirts along the trees, looking for dried twigs and/or dead branches nearby.

AZ 49 for the donkey

"I'll get the tents set up. Pip, can you help me?" Lorant drops his pack and his shield by the cart and grabs two tents to begin making camp.

I too create light to illuminate the way: once we have made a fire I also use my prayers to ignite the wood spark

Round 6 Begins Now

The darkness of night has come upon the wilderness quickly. It is now not possible to see more than a few feet in front of you without a light source. The glow of the moon ripples across the lake. A non-distant howl indicates that there are Wolves roaming these woods.

As the party approaches the clearing to the south the torchlight reveals a fire pit further in. Somebody has made camp here before...

Once the pony is seen to Kerret assists with putting the rest of the tents up. After that is done, he takes a spare piece of firewood and lights it as a makeshift torch, then wanders over to inspect the pit.

When he sees the old fire pit, Lorant grabs his shield and walks over with his torch to investigate.

Hearing the sound of low growling behind her, Kaylee turns around to see a (wolf?) approaching just outside the light of her spell. Drawing her spear, she holds it out nervously, concentrating on trying not to get bitten. Kaylee uses total defense AC is now 15 eh, gentlemen we have some company!

Kaylee?

I transfer my light spell to the top of my bow and nock an arrow.

Kerret perks up at Kaylee's statement. Company? Is it someone from the village?

• Kerret casts Detect Magic.

  Kerret, I PM'd you the results.

  Because you can't setup tents in 1 round I'm going to say that it hasn't happened yet. If you would still like to do so you may in future rounds.

• Lorant draws his Shield and moves to BD-60 to investigate the fire pit.
  Spoiler:

  Survival Check: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12

  Lorant, I PM'd you the results. I also selected BD-60 for you since you didn't specify which space to move into.

• Convinced she heard something in the bushes Kaylee spins around and prepares for an attack from the bushes.
  Spoiler:

  Perception: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4

  Kaylee darts her eyes around quickly through the darkness looking for the source of the sounds. She finds nothing...

• Vastar transfers his Light Spell to the top of his bow and nocks an arrow.

• Pip remains fast asleep in the cart.

Maps are updated

Round 7 Begins Now

Kaylee are you okay? What's going on?

Lorant kicks at the old fire pit. "This hasn't been used in a while." He turns when Kaylee mentions company. "Where? What did you see?"

Kerret raises his makeshift torch and tries to look in every direction.

He speaks quietly, trying to keep his voice from carrying, What is it Kaylee? What do you see? Someone wake up Pip!

Kaylee feels her cheeks beginning to flush as she feels a bit foolish for being so jumpy, but she could have sworn that she heard something. I'm not sure what I saw... I thought I heard something in the bushes though. Did you see anything Lorant?

Lorant shakes his head. "I didn't see anything. But I have a bad feeling about this. Stay close everyone. And Kaylee, wake up Pip. We need all the eyes we can get."

Lorant moves slowly around the bushes, trying to catch at glimpse of anything moving.

Kaylee moves to AZ 56 Pip, Pip! Wake up! She shakes his shoulder gently, while trying to keep an eye out for anything approaching.

I think I heard some wolves howling. They don't sound very far away. Should we set up some torches further out so we can see a bit better?

Kerret hunts around for longer pieces of wood that can be used to set up standing torches.

"Huh?...wha....more orcs?!?!...oh Kaylee..what's going on, where are we? Pip puts his hand on his light crossbow and looks around nervously.

• Lorant moves to BD-63 and continues to look around.

  Lorant, I sent you a PM.

• Kerret moves to AR 59 and lights a torch and drives it into the ground.

  Kerret, there are a few problems with your turn. The first being that AR-58 is an illegal space because there is a massive rock there. If this is what you had planned on I will need you to make a Climb Check and I can move you on top of the rock. The second is that I checked your inventory and never found any torches. I also checked the Stuff on the Cart file to see if you could have maybe grabbed one from there but there are none either.

  I'm going to allow you to place a torch anyway but I need it to come out of somebody's inventory. Lorant I never checked to make sure the torch you lit came out of your inventory either. Everybody please make sure that if you use something to deduct it from your character sheet.

  As Kerret drives the torch into the ground the trees begin to thin, revealing a field of short, green grass that leads to the shores of a wide, calm lake reflecting the overcast sky above. A dense fog hangs over the center of the lake, obscuring the far side. Near the shore of the lake, a dark form lies next to the water.

• Kaylee moves beside the kart and rattles Pip around until he is conscious.

• Pip glances around to see what all the excitement is about.

  Pip, I sent you a PM.

• Vastar ?

Round 8 Begins Now

Maps have been updated

Hmmm...

I begin surveying the area, looking for animal tracks or any other sign of conflict or danger in the place where we intend to make camp.
survival: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (10) + 8 = 18

"Kaylee, there is NOTHING there." Pip says as he points to the bushes. As he is about to turn around, Pip notices a glint of light. "Wha....holy crap! There's a dead guy over here!" Pip races over to the corpse and takes a closer look at what the dead thing is and what is causing the glint.

1d20 + 7 ⇒ (13) + 7 = 20

"A. Dead. Guy?!" Lorant moves over to view the body. "Who is it? Does anyone know him?"

Kaylee jogs over to the body to see if its someone she recognizes. It's a bit of a mess... She begins to look a little pale as she turns away to search for any clues.

Kerret gulps and peers at the corpse, but hangs back, out of they way. His natural curiosity at odds with his discomfort at the presence of a dead body. Is it someone we know? What if it's another illusion?

• Vastar surveys the area.

  Vastar, I PM'd you the results.

• Pip hops from the cart and runs as fast as he can to the body.

  Pip, I PM'd you

• Lorant runs over to the corpse to have a look.

• Kaylee jogs over to the body. She begins to look a little pale as she turns away to search for any clues.

• Kerret moves over slightly to get a line of sight to the body.
  Kerret:

  Kerret, though your detect magic is still active there is nothing new present. Thanks for reminding me though. I have the tendancy to forget these things. Reminders in the future might also be a good thing.

Maps have been updated

Round 9 Begins Now.

"Sweet!...Can I have this?" Pip says as he unsheathes the masterwork shortsword he found laying next to the corpse. "Looks like our friend here had some coin on him as well when he met his demise."

Well Pip, I guess he won't be needing it anymore, so someone should probably have it. Kerret's voice is soft as he looks across the water. He shakes his head and moves back toward horses and the cart.

I'm going to gather firewood. We should have a fire. He walks away from the shore and looks under the branches of the trees for deadfall and kindling.

"Vastar, I think you should see this." Lorant walks over to watch the cart while his friend takes a look at the body. "Can you tell if he was killed by an animal or murdered?"

I'm going to gather firewood. We should have a fire. He walks away from the shore and looks under the branches of the trees for deadfall and kindling.

** spoiler omitted **

The ground in and around the trees has firewood scattered all over it. You don't need to make a perception check to know this since it is quite obvious. You can still take a standard action this round if you like since you wont need to take the time to make the check.

Quelling her stomach, Kaylee faces the body and begins examining it. Using her knowledge of all things natural Knowledge(nature): 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13, her knowledge of the human body Heal: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (6) + 7 = 13, and (to her) a keen sense of common sense Survival: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23.

Kaylee will spend the full round examining and thinking to herself

Kerret begins gathering enough firewood to start a good sized campfire.

I shake my head sadly as I walk over to the corpse: There are a lot of wolf tracks around here. We should be wary.

I move over and examine the corpse might take more than one round, heal check first to see how it died and if animals were involved.

heal: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19
survival: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (5) + 8 = 13