There, in the distance, ploughing through the sleeting rain, we catch the first glimpse of our heroes. Starting out in Absalom, the city at the centre of the world, the first heard the rumours of the Fallen Fortress, and old - some say ancient - siege fortress, one of many located in the Cairnlands.
Sealed shut by strong magic wards and forgotten spells, nobody has been able to breach the fortress to get inside. Until an earthquake struck the land and the walls crumbled, leaving open what had been closed to civilisation for so long. Excitement, adventure, treasure, prestige, each of the heroes have their own reasons for moving out here. Who can tell?
Yet here they are. The ruined siege castle now being called the Fallen Fortress rises out of the churned earth of the Cairnlands. No doors or windows mar the otherwise smooth expanse of the tower's walls. The tower is quatrefoil in plan; its eastern wing has largely collapsed, exposing the interior floors to the open air. Only the topmost level seems whole, though its eastern portion hangs precariously over the mountain of rubble left by the collapse. At ground level, the rubble frames a gaping hole in the side of the building that provides access to the tower's darkened interior.
The heroes are about 500 meter aways from the tower.
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Aliben had been quite talkative on the journey to the fortress, mainly because there was another elf traveling with him, but when he say the structure first hand he was silent. This is just another search of ancient buildings like I have done before. Always full of creatures protecting things they know nothing about...
"Let's proceed carefully friends. No telling what is inside."
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Aetherys is a lithe elven girl bearing long, well-kept blond hair flowing down to her waist. Some of it is braided, with small clasps respresenting the Dawnflower. Her eyes are deep blue, and she hardly ever blinks. Aetherys is obviously passionate about her art, losing herself in trances of sheer devotion to her goddess, but is otherwise cold in her relationships with people. Somehow, it's as if only her dances and the amount of faith she'd put in them mattered.
Her body is covered with a chain shirt and silken breeches of azure and silver. She's bearing a rapier at her side. Glancing at the ruins, her face is hard to read, and there's no telling what she's looking for in those ruins. She nods to her elven companion.
Agreed. This is a chance for us to prove ourselves.
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A black-furred wolf padded up to the others. Doesn't look like anyone else is around from the outside, The dusky-skinned Halfling said as he dismounted, giving his friend a short rest. so looks like our claim is so far unsullied. Who knows what's still in there, though. He turned to the others, flashing a wide grin that, along with his expressive black eyes, made him look far more innocent than he really was. So who's first?
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"That sounds like our cue, right Nuzzle?" Radnor says, his voice a cheerful bellow as he strides forward accompanied by his bizarre companion, a creature that looks like a wingless dragon covered in downy blue fur. The burly young man holds a battered lance and wears a wolfish grin as he strides forward towards the hole,
"But first better make with the magic! Dleifecrof! Hcrotlevart!" He chants the later part weaving his wingers and slapping first Nuzzle's furry shoulders then his lance. Its not obvious what magic has been worked on the eidolon, but the lance begins to glow with a soft opalescent light.
"Make way villainy, hero coming through!"
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The Tien-Shu man dressed in simple light-colored cotton clothing was silent for the duration of the journey. He seemed to be more preoccupied with assuring that his bow was ready for any actions that might be needed than he was at making conversation. Upon reaching the sight of the tower, the man named Xan-Tei lifted his head slightly and muttered Hmm... but then said no more.
Your first test has come. Trust in your new companions but trust your own skill more. Do not be afraid to test your limits but not at the expense of others.
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The dust sits lightly on the dark leather armor worn by this wiry halfling. Sharp featured for his kind, there is a taunting, almost devilish glint in his eyes. His garb and gear suggest an explorer used to the road, though he wears it with the panache of a seasoned noble.
With a wide smile across his face, the shaggy haired halfling laughs. "Ladies and Gentlemen, our day has come. Time to delve once more into the dangerous depths. Be prepared for fear, foes, and fury. But in the end, there will be a reward. Stick together, keep your spirits up, and remember, its better to be lucky than wise!" Striding forward, Renli thrusts his walking stick in the air, as though commanding a charge.
Drawing closer to the tower, the heroes hear a brief howl, followed by the emergence of three starved-looking dogs.
Aliben stoically loads his crossbow, while Negi navigates the rubble of his Wolf. Trying to gain momentum for a lance, the rubble hinders movement so much that the intended charge Negi had in mind does not really materialise. A 'twack' sounds just before the wolf comes into range, hitting the southernmost left dog in the side just before it gets skewered on Negi's lance.
Aetherys manages to block the path of the dog that was running for Radnor, while the last dog is moving for Xan-Tei.
While Aetherys is having little trouble fending of the wild dog's bites, Xan-Tei is not so lucky as he incurs a nasty bite.
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Radnor steps forward shifting his grip on his lance so instead of using it properly he is using it as a club, even as Nuzzle races over the rubble to position himself behind the wolf that wounded Aetherys, relying upon his mage armor and thick hide to protect him as the canine takes the chance to snap, but finds its teeth thwarted by the invisible armour.
Once in position Radnor and Nuzzle strike, with club and claw respectively. As the dog twists to dodge Nuzzle's claw swipe it turns into the thick wood of Radnor's lances hand guard and collapsing as teeth, fur, and gore spray outward.
"Get out of here you flea ridden curs!"
Following behind Negi, Radnor also bring up a formidable lance attack, skewering another dog. This one, also, does not live to bark the tale.
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Xan-Tei, obviously lost in his own thoughts, seems a little slow to react to the actions of the hounds. You must pay attention to everything around you! Be aware of all or your life will be lost before you even begin! After taking a nasty bite from the creature, the monk will take a 5' step back and fire two arrows at the hound!
Xan-Tei spring into action and fires a rapid succession of arrow. The remaining dog lets out a yelp as the first arrow hits.
Admitting it is somewhat of a grey area, I considered the spot on the right (partially yellow) as normal, the spot Xan-Tei was standing on (and the one on the south) as difficult. I also counted the Eidolon's move this way. The map isn't terribly clear in this respect. I would add markers to the map for difficult terrain, but it seems to combat is almost over. I'll leave the move as it is.
Renli lands a direct hit as Aetherys follows with a swift demonstration of rapier moves, even though she does not manage to land a hit.
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Aliben releases a hand from his crossbow as he is unwilling to risk hitting one of his new friends. He could be much more precise with his magic however and chants the phrase for conjuring a splash of acid, making a throwing motion it flies through the air towards where he is pointing, the last dog standing.
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Leaving the lance in the corpse of his first kill, Negi draws his sword as Jon advances on the final dog. They strike together in a flash of steel and ivory
Well that was a shame. Negi said sadly as he dismounts and recovers his lance. He then sets about dragging the carcasses away from the entrance.
And so we look at the final moments of battle. Negi rides up to the final dog and delivers a vicious stab. Demoralized by so much pain, the dog flees.
And gets ripped to shreds by Radnor's Eidolon.
As Negi moves the bloodied corpses out of the way, the path to the entrance is free.
As the excitement of battle fades, our heroes start noticing the rain again. The tower has collapsed on the eastern side, leaving bare several floors on that side. Of the ground floor, the eastern room is completely open and easily accessible. Two doors are visible.
A brief maneuver, and Aliben casts detect magic. Although the entire fortress radiates a faint aura of warding magic, there is no particular signal from either of the doors.
As Aliben open the northern door and peeks inside, the light cast on Aetherys rapier illuminates the room, casting long shadows.
The northern wing of the tower seems to have escaped the worst effects of the collapse of the tower, but rubble still litters the floor and everything is covered in a thick layer of stone dust. Thick cobwebs cloak the ceiling and hang down the walls like gossamer tapestries. A single archway stands open in the southwest wall.
As Radnor moves into the room, his lance illuminates the dust, spider webs and rubble that lie inside. Also illuminates is the web that is thrown towards him.
Radnor did not see the web coming, and is entangled by it.
Meanwhile, Nuzzle at his side is also caught in surprise.
Aliben, who spent some time peering through the doorway, and Xan-Tei, with ever-keen senses managed to spot the spider as it threw the web, but were not in time to react. Renli, being already in the room, also notices the spider in time.
A big, fat spider lurks on a web near the ceilin.
Xan-Tei, through all the confusion and cobwebs, stays calm and manages to land an arrow in one of the arachnids eight eyes.
Aliben grab a torch and proceeds to light it.
Aetherys moves into the room, and finds the spider out of reach. She quickly casts daze before the spider can move.
The spider remains stationary near the ceiling.
Renli shoots another arrow, and manages to hit the spider. Negi switches weapons.
Xan-Tei, with unrelenting speed, delivers another direct hit. The spider is still hissing and spitting.
Aliben gets in a good throw, and manages to burn a whole side of the spiderweb. Even though the critter itself managed to move to an undamaged piece of web in time, large part of the webbing have been consumed by the torch.