Searching their bodies, the party finds a longsword, a longbow, 20 arrows, and studded leather armor and a light wooden shield on each of them.
Aubrin cancels her spell, then channels to heal everyone.
"Thank you" - the half-orc nods at Aubrin - "Were it not by you, and we would be hard pressed to continue" - then he turns to Farrow, Cildon and Leo - "And thank you also for assisting with the combat. We will have to cooperate to see this through. But please, take no unnecessary risks" - and to the gnome - "Make sure to stay safe and away from the fight - we will need you to assist in persuading others to come along with us. It is as important as fighting, if not more"
After they have searched the corpses, Hedran remembers the sling they recovered before , and addresses Victor once he is feeling better - "Here, I believe this belongs to you? Do you have sling stones?"
A wooden deck surrounds an octagonal structure with broad archways leading to a place of worship. To its left stands a moss-encrusted stone monument. Carved birds, branches and fruits decorate the wooden supports of the temple’s archway. 3 hobgoblin corpses, with arrows sticking out of them, lie en-route to the wooden deck, and the fourth lies on the deck, its heart pierced with a dagger, next to Father Noelan’s corpse, which a lean, hungry wolf with a spiked collar is taking bites out off.
Hedran grips his sword so tight his knuckles whiten - Father Noelan had been the main responsible for making him feel slightly like he was returning home, after a few days in Phaendar...
Now he was there, broken, dead... And that damned wolf!
He took a step forward, a beastly growl escaping from his lips - "I'm going to..."
"The wolf's hungry," Aubrin explains, a hard edge in her voice. "It can't help what it's doing. Even if Father Noelan never deserved it, and would have treated it with the respect it deserved. One more reason to hate hobgoblins."Aubrin declares. "If we fed it, it'd probably not bother us."
The half-orc stops dead in his tracks, then looks over his shoulder at Aubrin and the others he, Azmythe and Robert have been entrusted to protect.
His discipline and pragmatism taking control again, Hedran throws one of his rations to draw the wolf away - "Get out of here!"
"The best thing is not always the easiest thing, ya'know?" Azmythe quickly gathers any necessities. Ordering the townsfolk to do the same. "We only have a few minutes. We'll, like, morn once we're all safe."
Aubrin sighs heavily,”No, I’m a wreck. Before the…incident, I’d have fought by your side eagerly. “ She then says bitterly, ”Now? Whenever I hear someone cry out in pain in a fight…I get flashbacks to that day. When my recklessness killed my partner. And I freeze. That sort of thing gets people killed…that’s why I retired. Besides I’m not any good if I can’t see things more then 10 feet in front of me, can I?”
”IamnotgoodatfightingandIamsmallanddon’thaveaweapon!Andhobgoblinsscareme!”F izzlebang squeaks out.
”Oh, you found my sling?”Victor says, pleasantly surprised as Victor hands the sling with initials V.B. on it.”I mean I know I lost my sling and my fetting knife, which I initialed, but I’d count myself lucky in getting out alive. Which I doubt I would have managed if Azmythe didn’t get to me when he did.”
”Which I don’t know if my mother is or not, now.” Victor says broodingly.”Or Geran and his family, Mura or Ryan either.”
”And no, I don’t have bullets. I bet those hobgoblins stole everything after they stabbed me.”Victor answers. ”Thanks,”[/b] Victor thanks Hedran as Hedran passes him some sling bullets.
”No…Father Noelan…nooooo!” Victor cries out in grief. ”Can you get someone to bring him back like you did for me?” Victor asks the party.
The wolf goes after the rations, and falls upon it like a starving wolf.
Hedran looks at Father Noelan’s body, discovering gnashes on his right forearm, his left leg has its hamstrings cut, a deep cut on his abdomen, but what eventually finished him off was having his skull cleaved into by what looks like a battleaxe. It appears that he put up quite the fight and was already dead before the wolf started taking bites out of him.
Fearing the worst, Robert opens up the shrine door with his longsword drawn.
Wooden statues of both Erastil and Desna – both now chopped and marred by hobgoblin weapons – stand in their own alcoves in the northwest end of the shrine, while alcoves on either side serve as general shrines to the variety of other gods and spirits worshiped by the locals (like Cayden Caliean, Shelyn, Gozreh, Abadar, Calistra, Torag, Iomedae, Irori, Nethys, Sarenrae, Pharasma). A dozen bodies lie near the doorway, along with shattered remains of what might have been benches being used to form a makeshift barricade. Hedran recognizes them as Brian the greengrocer, Orik the milkman, Catherine the weaver, Matthew the Head Carpenter, Ryan the cobbler, Lena the lumberjack, Flavia the trapper, Borek the brewer, still clutching their makeshift weapons of bench legs in their hands. The rest being outside traders he does not recognize.
Robert notices Johnson, one of the traders in the caravan he was guarding among the bodies. A single hobgoblin, with bruises all over it as if it had been bludgeoned with make-shift weapons and a crossbow bolt through its eye lies in a corner. The back door has a pile of benches stacked against it.
A hobgoblin is vandalizing the statues and has its battleaxe stuck on the altar while another hobgoblin is standing guard. ” Semfet! Ons het indringers!” The guarding hobgoblin yells.
Semfet! We’ve got intruders!
"Hou hulle weg, ek kom! En waar is Spike? Hy moes 'n bietjie geluid gemaak het!" The goblin with its battle axe stuck in the altar yells back.
Hold them off, I’m coming! And where’s Spike? He should have made some noise!
”Maybe Kethry, Ben and Geogia are with the other group now?” Geran brightens up after Nigel tells him that there is another rescue party headed through town.
”I hope they aren’t doing all kinds of nasty things to Connie, Gareth and Tolman.” Bella says fearfully. ”Connie and Tolman are just kids and I can’t be there to protect them.”
” Do not wesist? Us Zenj ave been living unda' Cheliax yoke fo' too long. The weason why we fled to a' was so that no one could make us slaves again.” Ajobe states.
”But what am I going to do without my shop? My whole lifelihood is down here!” Daniel moans.
”I think the wisest thing to do is flee. There’s no point fighting battles you can’t win. It just costs needless lives.” Lyria counsels the rest.
”Yes, like animals we must flee from the raging fires of war.” Tammylan adds.
”Home is where the people are.” Jet states, ”I’ve lost the Taproot too, but I’m willing to find a new place so we can start afresh.”
On coming out of Oreld’s fine goods, Geran states,”My house is just around the corner. While we’re at it, lets check up on Victor, Ryan and Mura as well. We can get them to flee with us.” Following Geran, Ratel and Nigel find the smell of smoke getting stronger, it's acrid stench bringing tears to their eyes, as they go in the direction of his house. Then then street opens up revealing Geran’s log cabin, up in flames, sending plumes of thick black smoke into the air. ”No…Kethry…Geogia…Ben….noooooooooo!” Geran gives a heartwrenching howl of grief as he attempts to rush into the blazing inferno in search of his wife and children.
You notice shoeprints of an adult, and two small children coming out of the house, where they are met by heavier bootprints, like those of a mailed boot. Then the foot prints seem to indicate that the shoeprints of the adult and small children being dragged off somewhere else. The tracks get too confusing to follow after running into more mailed boots.
Looking around, Ratel realizes Victor’s house, as well as Ryan and Mura’s shophouse have also been set on fire, and are giving off similar plumes of black smoke.
|
Nigel sighs, and smiles ruefully at Bella.
"I have no idea vhat has happened; hope springs eternal, of course, but given ze carnage being vrought by ze invaders, I vould prepare for ze vorst..."
He then shakes his head at Damien's pronouncement.
"Ze shop may be your livelihood, but it is not your life; you still retain your skills, and vill always have ze chance to rebuild somevhere else, if ve manage to escape... zat is vhat ve need to focus on right now."
When the group comes upon the burning buildings, Nigel's face hardens.
There was no need for that; an invading army should know that infrastructure should be preserved, not wasted. This is just wanton destruction!
When Geran moves to run into the burning building, Nigel restrains him.
"Zink man! No-one could survive zat. Don't commit suicide by running in zere. It is alvays possible zat zey might not have been in ze building vhen it vas torched, but even if zey vere, ze best zing you can do right now, is to survive, and make ze Hobgoblins pay later down ze track; if you throw your life away now, you are just doing zeir vork for zem, and making zeir victory all ze more complete."
"Connie..Tolman..Gareth...I'm so sorry...I wasn't there..." Bella bursts into tears.
"I guess so...but where's the place to rebuild? It's all forest around here." Damien asks. "And sure, Phaendar isn't a big city, but it still has some of the amenities of civilization. I don't know what I'm going to do in the woods!"
Geran collapses in Nigel's arms, a defeated man. "If I had been there...I could have gotten them out before they set fire to the building...I failed them..." Tears begin to stream down his smoke-stained cheeks. "Mura...Ryan...Victor...they're all gone too..."
Quietly nodding his head, Ratel finally adds, "Nigel and Jet are right. But we need to go check on Geran's family before we high tail it out of town." turning to go, "Come on Bear."
While Nigel chastises Geran, Ratel notices tracks on the ground, Placing his hand on Geran's shoulders, Ratel tells him. "Stop mucking about. The more you move the harder it is to see the tracks, Look." He points toward the shoeprints of an adult, and two small children coming out of the house, where they are met by heavier bootprints, like those of a mailed boot. "They came out here." He then points to where the foot prints seem to indicate that the shoeprints of the adult and small children being dragged off somewhere else. "It looks like they got captured here." He then points toward where The tracks get too confusing to follow after running into more mailed boots. "Then we lose the tracks here, amongst a bunch of other soldiers."
Turning to Geran, Then looking around for bad guys. "They got captured, remember one of the Hobgoblins said they were taking slaves. We need to regroup with the others, then get to a safe place where we can plan a rescue."
Nodding to Nigel he nudges Bear, "come on Bear."
"Oh...you're right." Geran admits. "I should have spotted that...but after seeing my house up in flames, yeah, I wasn't thinking."
"Do any of you have a weapon I can use? I feel very much like shooting hobgoblins now." Geran answers, his expression dark. "If nothing else I always have my sickle here." He pulls out his sickle from his belt. "I was at Orelds to get a sharpening stone since the less I see of Kinning, the happier I am."
"Yes, we'll regroup. Then we'll make the hobgoblins pay."
The party then heads towards Phaendar trading post, and find a "dead" hobgoblin that is merely injured, lying to the side of the street. In his backpack is one provision point of food.
Robert strides into the shrine, swinging his longsword two handed at the guarding hobgoblin, yelling a battle cry, ”This is for Father Noelan!” , cutting the surprised hobgoblin from shoulder to hip.
The hobgoblin strikes at Robert with his longsword but clangs harmlessly off his chainmail.
The other hobgoblin manages to pull her battleaxe out of the altar, then turns to the party."We killed that archer and everyone in here that dared resist us. We'll kill you too!"
"You are wrong." Azmythe will Daze (dc 14) the hobgoblin by the alter.
"Huh! Finger waver! My mind is too strong to fall to your magic tricks! " The hobgoblin by the altar declares.
Seeing the 'dead' hobgoblin, Ratel goes to take it's pack, realizing it's still alive. Taking the pack and anything else of value, he looks to Jet and Geran, handing Geran the pack. "This ones still alive, but it looks like it's out of the fight."
Ratel finds also a longsword and longbow on it, with 20 arrows. It's still clad in studded leather armor. Jet moves up to it and makes sure it never gets up again, by putting a crossbow bolt into one of its eyes.
Ratel and Nigel, leading the group, decide to head to Riverwood Shrine.
A wooden deck surrounds an octagonal structure with broad archways leading to a place of worship. To its left stands a moss-encrusted stone monument. Carved birds, branches and fruits decorate the wooden supports of the temple’s archway. 3 hobgoblin corpses, with arrows sticking out of them, lie en-route to the wooden deck, and the fourth lies on the deck, its heart pierced with a dagger, next to Father Noelan’s corpse.
A wolf is tearing into some rations a distance away.
Wooden statues of both Erastil and Desna – both now chopped and marred by hobgoblin weapons – stand in their own alcoves in the northwest end of the shrine, while alcoves on either side serve as general shrines to the variety of other gods and spirits worshiped by the locals (like Cayden Caliean, Shelyn, Gozreh, Abadar, Calistra, Torag, Iomedae, Irori, Nethys, Sarenrae, Pharasma). A dozen bodies lie near the doorway, along with shattered remains of what might have been benches being used to form a makeshift barricade. Ratel recognizes them as Brian the greengrocer, Orik the milkman, Catherine the weaver, Matthew the Head Carpenter, Ryan the cobbler, Lena the lumberjack, Flavia the trapper, Borek the brewer, still clutching their makeshift weapons of bench legs in their hands. The rest being outside traders he does not recognize.
One of the hobgoblins, sporting a nasty gnash from shoulder to hip is engaged in combat with Robert, while the other looks like it just pulled its battleaxe out of an altar.
"Noo...Father Noelan..."Jet utters desolately. "He was like the glue holding us together."
Geran spots Victor with the party. "Victor, how did you manage to survive? Your house is up in flames!"
|
|
Nigel pats Geran consolingly.
"Understandable."
When Ratel notes his findings, Nigel manages to crack a weak smile.
"There, you see? Hope is not extinguished."
When the man asks for a weapon, Nigel looks thoughtful.
"Well, we have some longbows, but apart from that, the only spare ranged weapons that we have are javelins. You are welcome to use any of them."
Nigel nods to the new (obviously hungry) wolf.
He then strides forward purposefully towards the shrine, murder in his eyes, and takes a swing at the injured Hobgoblin.
Stripping the hobgoblin of it’s gear, Ratel lifts the items and asks Geran, ”Can you use any of these? If not I have a sling I don’t use much.”
Seeing his friends threatened by the Hobgoblin. Ratel motions to Bear, ”Attack!” Running as fast as he can, attempting to stay ahead of Bear, Ratel comes in waiving his scozore. Roaring to distract the hobgoblin as he flanks it. ”Aaarrrrgggghhhhhh” Looking at Ratel oddly, Bear simply chuffs at his noisy friend. Moving in quickly, he snaps at the Hobgoblin, attempting to bite it on the hip.
"I guess better captured then dead...we'll be able to rescue them later, right?" Geran asks Nigel and Ratel.
"Sorry, I don't know how to use a longbow, I mean it'd be nice if someone found my shortbow, but it's probably burnt in the fire, or in hobgoblin hands." Geran replies. "I can use javelins and a sling though."
The wolf whines at Nigel back.
Really? You have yummies? Then I'll follow you. My master never feeds me enough. And actually I was supposed to bark if I saw pink-skin two leggers, but hey, I haven't been fed. Food's more important.
Nigel tries to clobber the hobgoblin, but the hobgoblin ducks out of the way and Nigel smashes only empty air.
Bear flanks with Ratel then savagely bites at the hobgoblin's hip, and it collapses on the ground.
|
|
Nigel's face lights up.
"Ah! I knew that I was forgetting something..."
He then hands over Geran's bow and arrows.
Nigel nods.
He then tosses over some jerky, to keep the wolf happy.
Nigel nods in satisfaction, as Bear brings the Hobgoblin down.
One more to go...
Aubrin sighs heavily,”No, I’m a wreck. Before the…incident, I’d have fought by your side eagerly. “ She then says bitterly, ”Now? Whenever I hear someone cry out in pain in a fight…I get flashbacks to that day. When my recklessness killed my partner. And I freeze. That sort of thing gets people killed…that’s why I retired. Besides I’m not any good if I can’t see things more then 10 feet in front of me, can I?”
"A wreck you are not - you have come through for all of us. Saved me more than once already, and we only know each other for less then a couple of hours" - he chuckles, trying to alleviate the situation.
”IamnotgoodatfightingandIamsmallanddon’thaveaweapon!Andhobgoblinsscar eme!”Fizzlebang squeaks out.
"This is scary for all Master Fizzlebang - you are doing great. Just stay close to us" - he nods reassuringly.
”Oh, you found my sling?”Victor says, pleasantly surprised as Victor hands the sling with initials V.B. on it.”I mean I know I lost my sling and my fetting knife, which I initialed, but I’d count myself lucky in getting out alive. Which I doubt I would have managed if Azmythe didn’t get to me when he did.”
”Which I don’t know if my mother is or not, now.” Victor says broodingly.”Or Geran and his family, Mura or Ryan either.”
”And no, I don’t have bullets. I bet those hobgoblins stole everything after they stabbed me.”Victor answers. ”Thanks,”[/b] Victor thanks Hedran as Hedran passes him some sling bullets.
”No…Father Noelan…nooooo!” Victor cries out in grief. ”Can you get someone to bring him back like you did for me?” Victor asks the party.
The wolf goes after the rations, and falls upon it like a starving wolf.
Hedran looks grim as he looks over Father Noelan's body - "Maybe with time Victor, but even then it would not be easy.... And we have no time to spare" - he shakes his head, and was about to say something about a proper burial, but for now followed after Robert.
"Finger waving?" - Hedran steps up to the second goblin, his words deadly calm - "He is more than enough for ten such as you - coward bastards preying on unarmed victims" - he speaks in accented Goblin - "Why don't you try that on me?"
Hedran moves over to the standing hobgoblin, growling at him in their own guttural tongue, and swinging his blade once he reaches him.
"Oh, you found my bow? Thanks!" Geran brightens up as he takes his shortbow from Nigel, as well as 20 arrows.
The wolf gives a muffled whine, while stuffing itself full of jerky.
Uh huh...I haven't eaten this well...for what like many moons.
"I don't know..." Aubrin says uncertainly. "I might get another episode any time. "
"IllsticktoyoulikeglueIdon'twanttobemurderedbyhobgoblins!"Fizzlebang squeaks at Hedran.
"Couldn't we go to Tamran and find Sir Amrivast? Then get him to help?" Victor asks Hedran."I mean he came to the Boneyard to speak to us..."
"Kyk. Hulle het ons van agter die barrciade aangeval. Hulle is vyand." The hobgoblin at the altar states, just before Hedran gives it a deep cut in its chest.
Look. They attacked us from behind the barrciade. They're too dangerous to be left alive.
Robert moves forward, swinging his longsword in a great arc, decapitating the hobgoblin.
Just then, the door on Father Noelan's shack pops open and Rhyna, Tarethelan and Lorethiel come out, their bows drawn. On seeing Father Noelan's body, Rhyna runs out to it, checking for signs of life, then on finding none, falls to the ground weeping, "No...Father Noelan...we were too late...nooo..."
Tarethelan draws his breath with a sharp hiss, "Oh sh*t," he curses."Damnit...this was the one time we shouldn't have followed his orders..."
"He told us to get anyone on the shrine grounds safely into the shack, then hide in there till he told us it was safe to leave..." Lorethiel says sadly.
The first hobgoblin has a longsword, a longbow and 20 arrows on it, while the hobgoblin by the altar has 2 alchemist fires, is weraing padded armor, has a masterwork composite longbow (+2 str) with 20 arrows with a symbol bow-and-arrow carved into it, a handaxe, a masterwork battleaxe, a backpack, a bed roll, a blanket, a mess kit, a small tent and enough jerky for (3) provision points. The hobgoblin at the altar also had a large sack that has a wand, a silver cup worth 15 gp, a hand-sized darkwood carving of a butterfly worth 20 gp, three bottles of outlaw whiskey worth 20 gp each, 100 gold pieces worth of gold dust, 27 small semi precious stones worth 1 gp each, a key, and 276 gp inside a lockbox which is opened by the said key, as well as a round ivory amulet engraved with Erastil's bow-and-arrow holy symbol strung on a leather thong (worth 10 gp).
Azmythe identifies the wand as a wand of magic missiles with 12 charges in it.
Ratel remembers seeing Lirosa, the champion of the archery tournament, wearing that amulet, and knows it belongs to her.
"Ryan!" Victor gasps as he runs over to Ryan's body. "G~$ d%$n it we've known each other since we were kids..."
"I've seen so much death tonight...when will it ever end?"
Geran walks forward and states brokenly, while putting a hand on Victor's shoulder,"They got Kethry and the kids... I don't think we're going to see the end of it anytime soon."
"Be at peace, my friends. Yes. There will be fire and thunder, but know that it will usher in an age of sunshine and fruitful harvest. The time to morn the dead will come, but now we must focus on the living, including ourselves. Now gather all the supplies you can. Take a single memento, if you must. We must hurry."" Azmythe speaks to the townsfolk trying to keep there morale up and minds focused on mission.
At Azmythe's words, Rayna gets up from weeping over Father Noelan's body, determined, "Yes, I'd be damned if I let the shrine supplies fall into their hands."
She then goes to the altar, opens up a hidden compartment and pulls out 150 gp worth of silver dust, an aegis of recovery, and a wand of cure light wounds (21 charges).
"Are we leaving Father Noelan here? I mean he said he always wanted to be buried here, but I don't think he meant when hobgoblins are all over the town." Rhyna asks.
"No" - Hedran states flatly - "We carry him as best as we can. I'll take him myself if necessary" - he adds with a growl.
"Where is Sandra?" - the half-orc stops for a moment, looking around, and remembering the woman who was always kind to him in the past.
seeing the Goblins drop, and Azmythe and Hedran organizing the loose gear and the villagers, Ratel nudges Bear, "Come on Bear let's go watch the door." As the exit, he asks "where else do we need to go, before we go to the bridge?"
"Sandra's still in the shack, with Ibrahim, Tolman, Wallace and Patrick. Sandra and Ibrahim are looking after Norris...he hasn't woken up yet despite Father Noelan's best efforts earlier." Lorethiel explains. "That's why he wasn't presiding over the archery tournament."
"I can make transportation of his body easier." Aubrin volunteers, "But that'll be tomorrow. I didn't prepare the right spells today."
Father Noelan's shack is a humble building with little beyond a bed, writing desk, and a cooking pot. On the writing desk is a dog collar with a name written on it. The shack now is rather crammed with that many people in it.
"Ma!" Tolman runs joyfully at Bella as the mother and son pair are united and share a heartfelt hug. "Fe!" He also embraces his sister.
"Oh Ma...I'm so glad to see you... when I heard all that screaming I was wondering if you were safe or not." Tolman tells his mother.
"I was afraid that the hobgoblins got you too...I don't know what happened to Gareth and Connie..." Bella answers.
"Geran, I saw the hobgoblins...I helped my mom out of the house, grabbed what I could carry and fled with her. Didn't get very far before a bunch of hobs tried to snatch my mom away, and I drew on them. They stabbed me and I passed out. Woke up looking at Azmythe." Victor tells Geran. "I still don't know what happened to her."
"I don't know..Kethry and the kids have been taken by the hobgoblins too..can we mount a rescue?" Geran asks the party.
"Hedran.." Sandra looks up from the unconscious boy she has been tending. "They say Father Noelan is dead?" Her eyes are filled with sorrow.
"What's happening out there?" Wallace asks the party, "I mean those two elves told us to hide..I'm a travelling author and I was just passing through the town and was going to pray to Desna for safe travels...I just want to be out of here!"
"Father Noelan? He was the most generous employer I've ever had. I mean he's always generous with his tips and never gets overly annoyed even if the order is delivered late. You know sometimes there are delays when someone's getting the goods." Patrick says sadly.
"He was a good man, staunch in his faith in Erastil. Even though we are of different faiths, we got along well. He has always been a supporting pillar of the commmunity and will be sorely missed." Ibrahim adds.
Inside the shack are some supplies, a couple of cheeses and some dried rabbit jerky.
Hedran also finds some spare linens in the shack that they could use for transportation of the body.
"We were going to meet up at Kinning's, then cross the bridge and head off into the forest," Robert says. "Is that still the plan?"
"Hedran.." Sandra looks up from the unconscious boy she has been tending. "They say Father Noelan is dead?" Her eyes are filled with sorrow.
"Yes Sandra.... We... I..." - he stammers - "Did not get here in time to help him" - the words come out through gritted teeth - "I'm sorry..."
We killed his attackers though - he keeps repeating the mantra to himself in his head.
seeing the Goblins drop, and Azmythe and Hedran organizing the loose gear and the villagers, Ratel nudges Bear, "Come on Bear let's go watch the door." As the exit, he asks "where else do we need to go, before we go to the bridge?"
"Did you manage to find many more survivors Ratel? How are things out there?"
"We were going to meet up at Kinning's, then cross the bridge and head off into the forest," Robert says. "Is that still the plan?"
"I guess so Robert" - Hedran nods, as he carefully wraps Father Noelan.
"We will probably need all the teachings Father Noelan offered you Rhyna - please stay close, yes?" - the half-orc approaches the young girl - "He will be proud of you" - and manages to smile.
He shows them the bow with the bow-and-arrow symbol carvings - "This probably belonged to Father Noelan? Do you wish to carry it for now?"
"Yes Sandra.... We... I..." - he stammers - "Did not get here in time to help him" - the words come out through gritted teeth - "I'm sorry..."
Tears begin trickle down Sandra's cheeks. "Even after all these years, he hasn't changed one bit...always trying to get people out of harm's way."
"He saved me from bandits before. He nearly died, but he managed to pull through. He was younger back then though...even younger then Robert." Sandra reminisces, her eyes distant.
"Only this time...help came too late...Hedran, don't blame yourself. I'm sure you tried. We failed him too. We shouldn't have hid."Sandra says bitterly.
"We will probably need all the teachings Father Noelan offered you Rhyna - please stay close, yes?" - the half-orc approaches the young girl - "He will be proud of you" - and manages to smile.
"I'd never thought of the day I'd have to do this. Let me see if I can still remember the ritual." Rhyna says sorrowfully as she walks over to the wooden statue of Erastil.
"Withdraw thy protection from this place, Erastil - for its conquerors have murdered thy servant and know only war and destruction. Show them thy wrath - may their hunts be fruitless and their crops barren. Grant us, your worshippers, strength so that we may cross into the Fangwood and find refuge. So mote it be." Rhyna intones.
As she utters the words of power, the party is aware of some presence listening. Then the presence vanishes, and the party feels blessed.
"The shrine is now closed. Anyone trying to use it will now find their prayers unheard." Rhyna pronounces.
"Also, take these." Rhyna gives the party 150 gp worth of silver dust, an aegis of recovery, and a wand of cure light wounds (21 charges), which she recovered from the altar.
He shows them the bow with the bow-and-arrow symbol carvings - "This probably belonged to Father Noelan? Do you wish to carry it for now?"
"I think it would be better put to used in your hands." Tarethiel answers. "I tried to draw it before and I couldn't pull it all the way back. Father Noelan was stronger then either of us."
"If you do manage to bring him back, you could return his bow, but otherwise he'd be glad it was being used against his murderers." Lorethiel adds.
Did you manage to find many more survivors Ratel? How are things out there?"
"Things out there? Hell. My house is up in flames, so is Victor's, Mura's and Ryan's. Ryan's dead, my wife and children have been captured by hobgoblins and Victor's lost his mother, Father Noelan's dead. Frankly, I don't know how things could be worse, but again we could all be dead, or captured by hobgoblins."Geran gives a dark hollow laugh while closing Ryan's terrified eyes, wide open in death, and trying to lay him out in a position of some dignity.
The party then sets forth for the Phaendar Trading Company, with the wolf that was previously eating Father Noelan's body following Nigel like a puppy. Tarethelan carries the unconscious Norris in a piggyback position, his face flushed with fever, who groans and fidgets a little as Tarethelan lifts him into position.
On the way to Phaendar's trading Company, the party runs into a hobgbolin patrol of 3 hobgoblins walking down the street.
As the others join him and Bear outside, he begins to move the group forward. Wanting to respect the others as they begin the mourning process, Ratel moves over to Hedran, speaking softly. ”We found just those you see here. As for ‘out there’ It’s rough: lots of killing, burning, looting and slave taking. Very similar to what you’ve witnessed. And It’s worse, that amulet we found belonged to Lirosa, archer tournament champion. She must be captured or dead. ”
As they move toward the shop, the smoke clears and they see the three hobgoblins.’ Ratel hisses, ”They are too near to avoid, Bear attack!” Moving as he speaks, Ratel runs toward the nearest Hobgoblin, hoping to distract him, he raises his scozore, aiming a blow at the raider. Bear, seeing Ratel move, gives a chuff, moving forward beside his companion, he tries to take a bite out of the same goblin.
Ratel doesn't manage to get enough force behind his strike and his scizore bounces off the hobgoblin's studded leather armor.
Bear however,catches the hobgoblin by surprise and manages to tear a large chunk of his thigh out.
Azmythe will try a spell. Sleep (dc 15) centering on yellow to encompass all three hobgoblins.
Nigel manages to smack the blue hobgoblin on his ribs, making him wheeze.
Robert moves up, and swings his longsword at the blue hobgoblin, but the hobgoblin manages to block the blow with his shield.
Blue tries to slash Nigel with his longsword, putting a deep cut in in his side, leaving Nigel barely standing.
Yellow and Red move up to bear, slashing at him with their longswords, but clank off his newly improved leather lamellar.
Geran and Victor move south and fire on the Orange hobgoblin.
But fearing to hit bear, their shots both go too high up.
Hearing Nigel's hiss of pain, Aubrin freezes,then falls to the ground covering her eyes.
"Abby...it's not happening now, you're with us. You're not alone."Jet tells Aubrin.
Then Azmythe's spell kicks off, just to the back of yellow, and yellow and orange yawn, and yellow falls asleep, but orange with a great effort, shakes off the spell.
Nigel clobbers Blue over the head, smashing his skull like an overripe melon, and the blue hobgoblin collapses onto the floor, dead.
Azmythe tries to help Jet to help Aubrin. "Yeah, like, we're here, ya'know. And so are you. Like, come back to us, Abby. We need you here."
Not sure what this will be.
Diplomacy +1
Heal +8
Azmythe thinks that Aubrin is experiencing a flashback of some kind.
Whatever it is, it certainly must be horrific since Aubrin is now curled up in pain. Azmythe isn't exactly sure if she heard what he said.
Longsword
"We have to get her out of here." He says to Jet, before turning to Daze (dc 14) the last orange. "Help me get her up." Azmythe puts her arm around his shoulders and, with some help, lifts Abby up.
Robert moves up to Orange then stabs him in the stomach, but he still remains standing.
Nodding his approval as Nigel clubs the hobgoblin to death, he turns toward the one in the middle as it attacks Bear. ”Leave Bear alone! Attack him Bear.” Ratel hacks at the hobgoblin with his scizore as Bear stands on his rear paws, biting at the hobgoblin then slashing with his paws.
Ratel runs Yellow through the heart with his scizore.
Bear bites and claws at Orange and manages to get one claw on the thigh, the bite and other claw not penetrating its leather armor, leaving the hobgoblin barely standing.
Geran and Victor fire at the orange hobgoblin. "Hey hitting someone and not trying to shoot your friends is a lot harder then I thought!" Geran exclaims as another shot of his goes too high, while trying not to hit Bear.
Victor's sling bullet falls short of the hobgoblin. "Yeah it's not like shooting at a stationary target."
"Ok, I'm still here," Aubrin breathes heavily, the sides of her head still matted with cold sweat. She then staggers up to her feet and gives Hedran some insight.
The orange hobgoblin tries to slash at the ferocious Bear after him, managing to give Bear a nasty cut on his flanks.
After running the sleeping Hobgoblin through, Ratel looks up in just enough time to see the last Hobgoblin attack bear, shaking his head, ”Get him Bear! He’ll regret that!” As bear attacks the last Hobgoblin, with tooth and claw, Ratel steps past the dead goblin and swings his weapon at the remaining enemy.
Bear shows why you really shouldn't be messing with a bear, biting the hobgoblin's head and crushing it, then mangling his dead body.
The party searches the bodies and on each hobgoblin find a longsword, a longbow and 20 arrows, as well as the studded leather armor they are wearing and a light steel shield.
Longsword, 2 handed
The party manages to make their way past the burning buildings, the smoke providing cover without any further run-ins with hobgoblin patrols.
A signpost by the road announces the clapboard wooden shop and barnlike smithy sharing a single large, stone wall to be the Phaendar Trading Company. The smithy’s double doors stand open, revealing a large, still-glowing forge within. Two slaughtered goats and a dead horse fill an adjacent animal pen. Many fresh scratches and dents mar the trading post’s heavy wooden door, and a chair leg juts through one broken window. A fire emitting plumes of white smoke lick at the thatch rooftop where a red-hot iron has been tossed.
3 wounded hobgoblins, nursing axe nasty gashes to their arms prowl the courtyard that has two bodies in it, the halfling butcher, Perkins and the dwarf mercenary Angmar. Perkin's throat has been slit and Angmar has deep cuts in his chest and torso. A hobgoblin body lies in one corner, his throat severed by a decisive axe stroke.
The party hears cries for help from the building with a burning roof.