Findegil does his best to remain quiet and watchful as he moves in front.
The party sounds like orcs who are not trying at all to be stealthy. Do you want to investigate any of these rooms or just keep moving toward the next set of stairs?
"Aye. I have no interest in rooting through the other rooms.", replies Findegil, as he prepares to look into the open door.
”Aye, Findegil. We’re here to find the Shadow,” who probably has the RING, he completes his thought to himself. The rider of Rohan has accepted his suicide mission, but he commits to make the most of his death.
Amalina and Winter stay to the rear of the party, both woman and hound uncomfortable in the tight confines and dim light of the orc fortress. Even as her heart pounds in her chest, she does her best to stay alert for any sign of the enemy or being discovered.
The open room is a modest guard accommodation, complete with a set of simple beds and changes of clothes, including another complete set of orc armor. The room smells terrible, as if the raw excrement from the holding rooms below is seeping through the hollowed earth and stone.
Back in the corridor, Winter perks up. Amalina hears it too: the sound of torment. Far down that dungeon passageway, hundreds, perhaps thousands of muted voices wail and moan. The group moves with more urgency up the next stairway, again pausing to peek while halfway up the stair. The room beyond is roughly circular, about sixty feed in diameter. Along the far end is an open balcony, with a great cavernous space beyond that is lit by some unseen yellow and red source below, out of your current line of sight. On either wall, around the circle, are a pair of circular stairs, one up and one down and both sides.
The two orcs you watched leave their quarters are at the balcony edge, facing into the cavern. The noise of suffering is obvious to all of you now, and it comes from that cavern.
Findegil glares at the orc armour, then turns away.
"Do any wish to don that armour?"
**********
Seeing the sentries, Findegil ignores the dreadful sounds, readies his blade and approaches as quietly as he can manage.
"Perhaps heavier armor for someone heavier than me."
Cereidh ghosts up next to Findegil, and whispers urgently, "These people are long dead! Let us go directly to the Shadow and free Imrien, who still lives."
"Perhaps they will be useful. And the fewer orc guards that survive, the fewer to oppose us."
Findegil is not dissuaded.
The red rider will replace his scale hauberk with Eastern Orc Scale Mail and switches shields. At least from a distance, it might provide an advantage.
Éothain follows the knight of Gondor.
Amalina tries to make her way quietly through the filthy roomand past the distracted guards, but the dim light and sound of so much suffering distracts her enough she hits the corner of one of the beds with her shine. With a hiss tries to stifle a further shouted curse as her tense eyes watch the orcs to see if they notice the noise.
Cereidh moves ahead as if floating, her feet barely touching the floor. But then Findegil and Amalina come up the stair and practically stumble intot he room, making more than enough of a commotion to alert the sentries. The orcs turn and look at you, then turn back, and for a split second you think maybe your ruse has worked. But then both wheel around as the realization sets in that Dol Guldur has been infiltrated!
These orcs are wearing armor like the set you found, and carry scimitars and shields. They are 60' away.
Amalina
Cereidh
Éothain
Findegil
Thorgrim
Orc 1
Orc 2
Éothain
Thorgrim
Orc 2
Orc 1
Cereidh
Findegil
Amalina
Findegil rushes forward, no battlecry on his lips. But ready to urge on his companions as needed with his presence or words.
Captain of Gondor
Once per battle, you may have a nearby ally automatically hit on what was a missed attack.
Cereidh mouths a foul curse not originating in the lands of the elves, and shoots at one of the guards.
Spurred on by the realization that these guards have their foot on the potential anthill that is the mirage-Tower, she lets fly a second arrow at the second guard.
Seeing the orcs take notice, Amalina quickly draws an arrow and fires at the first orc while Winter waits at her side to strike if either one chooses to charge his mistress.
Éothain rushes forward shoulder to shoulder with Findegil.
Eothain and Thorgrim rush up to battle the orcs, which allows the scimitar-wielding monsters to attack!
Orc 1 swings at Eothain, (), and misses.
Orc 2 swings at Thorgrim, (), slicing the mighty warrior!
Thorgrim takes 4 damage!
Cereidh mouths a foul curse not originating in the lands of the elves, and shoots at one of the guards.
Orc 1 takes 9 damage!
Spurred on by the realization that these guards have their foot on the potential anthill that is the mirage-Tower, she lets fly a second arrow at the second guard.
Orc 2 Takes 9 damage!
Seeing the orcs take notice, Amalina quickly draws an arrow and fires at the first orc while Winter waits at her side to strike if either one chooses to charge his mistress.
Orc 1 takes 9+8 damage!
Findegil rushes up right behind his brethren to join the fight.
Orc 1 has taken 17 damage!
Orc 2 has taken 9 damage!
Thorgrim has taken 4 damage!
Eothan, Thorgrim, and Findegil - as you rush to the balcony to engage the orcs, you glimpse into the great cavern beyond. It is a great hollowed space, at least 300 feet long and half as wide. The cavern floor is 20 feet below and the ceiling, rough hewn as it is, extends another 20 feet abover the ledge where you stand.
Massive twisted trees culled from the Mirkwood and then charred black stand like living columns every thirty feet or so, supporting the weight of the ceiling and the hill above. Between them is a menagerie of men, women, and children, elves and dwarves, and a few of the little folk from the Gladden: slaves to the Necromancer. They are working, moving carts and planks, and forging rivets and blades and shafts and wheels, and all manner of war machinery for some inevitable battle.
Some of the slaves are gaunt, bent-backed, and devoid of soul, while others look fresh - likely many of the people of Haycombe were funneled straight into the siege werks upon entering the Hill.
Around many of the standing tree columns are constructed gangways for makeshift guard towers, from which dozens of orcs look down on the slaves with a cruel eye.
With the cacophony of sound from the cavern masking your melee, you have a very short amount of time to dispatch these two orcs before some guard looks up and sees you.
Éothain slashes down with his longsword from the high guard position.
Drawing another arrow, Amalina sends another iron-tipped shaft streaking toward the first orc. Unfortunately the foul air causes her eyes to water and throws off her aim as the arrow shatters against the low wall of the balcony.
This is rough but the entrance is at the far left and the shaded arrows are the stairways. None of the rooms on this map are secret - you have seen all the doors to all spaces. The black starbursts in the large cavren are the culled trees that support the ceiling. Each tree has two orcs standing along a platform halfway up, and the platforms encircle the trees. The orcs you are currently engaged with are represented by the X's.
The balcony is open - no half wall, so Amalina's arrow sails into the cavern...
Any Questions?
With Eothain and Thorgrim by his side, Findegil hacks into the first orc that struck!
Cereidh shoots at the first orc.
Éothain slashes down with his longsword from the high guard position.
Orc 1 takes 17+8 damage!
Maddened that first blood goes to the orc, Thorgrim twists Noctiscide in a powerful arc, coming down on the foul orc's neck.
Orc 2 takes 9+18 damage!
The first orc reaches for something at his belt, but whatever he was hoping to find is not with him. Panicked, he turns his back on you and takes a step toward the balcony, but before he can call out, Findegil's blade runs it through.
Orc 1 takes 25+11 damage and dies!
The second orc fights on, knowing death awaits, but perhaps hoping to hold out just long enough... ()
Thorgrim takes 4+4 damage!
Then Bregghar is leveled upon the final enemy combatant, and the powerful bow rips an arrow straight through its black heart.
Orc 2 takes 27+7 damage and dies!
As the dead orcs hit the floor, a shrill tone rings out from inside the cavern. You look up to see a pair of orc guards on the first tree-tower; one of them is blowing a horn while the other points his spear at you and unleashes a blood-curdling war cry!
In a flash of realization, you sense that every foul monster in the bowels of Dol Guldur is now aware of your presence. Indeed, even the slaves, drained as they are, lurch in your general direction and seem to straighten for the disruption to their torutorus labors.
Éothain looks around for stairs leading up. "Our Enemy would not be in the bowels with the slaves. We need to head upstairs where the lord of this castle would inhabit."
You turn and look at the circular room into which you have just arrived. Now you notice there are two rough-hewn wooden tables om either side, with four chairs each. Double doors sit open flanking the entrance to the stairs you ascended. By the smell of it, and the evidence of used knives and crude plates and empty flaggards, this is a galley and common space for the guards to eat and relax. You assume by the shape of the two stairs on the NE and NW sides of the room that they lead down into the cavern. Where the steps leading up go is as of yet unknown.
"Wait!" Amalina shouts to her companions. "Isn't that the former master of Haycombe and the true reason for our journey here!?" She adds pointing out the man screaming at the orc guards from atop the platform near the center of the siege works.
Maybe we can rally the slaves to our side and at least give us enough time to slay that foul betrayer before being overwhelmed." She draws her bow and sends a shaft flying toward the nearest orc.
Orc guards are now climbing and jumping from their tree tower platforms and coming toward you. They push and trample the slaves underfoot - men, women, and children - none are given a chance to move aside. The slaves begin to panic, bustling about to get clear of this engagement, and many more are trampled as a result. Chaos quickly spreads through the cavern.
Amalina's arrow penetrates the armor of the orc which blew its horn, and it stumbles and draws its spear, then begins to climb down to rush the stairways.
The first dozen orcs will reach the stairs in mere moments. You have enough time to fortify your position and prepare yourselves if you are quick about it.
Choose your fate!
He may know where the ring is being kept!
"We push for the alderman! Make the traitor reveal the way to his master!"
"Oh yes? Pushing out into that mob will certainly enlighten us in short order, although I suspect it might enlighten us more as to what should happen to Imrien and ourselves should we die in this foul dream."
While speaking with vehemence, Cereidh busies herself attempting to barricade the neck of the stairs leading up to them with the tables and chairs at hand.
Éothain starts pushing furniture toward the top of a stairwell to create a bottleneck. After he pushes a second table and his companions catch on to the plan, he goes to the balcony and shouts while brandishing his sword and shield,
"HOLCOMBE, IF YOU WOULD BE FREEMEN, NOW IS THE TIME TO FIGHT! FIGHT AGAINST THE ALDERMAN AND ORCS!!"
Alright, everyone - give me your positions in the room so we can start this battle.
And while you do that, go ahead and make your first attacks.
Findegil pauses, then the wisdom of staying put reaches his ring-addled mind.
"Very well! We can slay the orc filth even more readily here!", he roars as he steps up to besides Thorgim, draws his bow and launches an arrow at the Alderman.
Amalina finishes helping Cereidh and Thorgrim pile up a makeshift blockade and then moves to the edge of the balcony where she targets the distant Alderman with her bow. Winter prowls the edge of the balcony nearby waiting to strike at any orcs attempting to slip up and over the edge near his mistress.
10' squares = 180' to the center tree tower, so, disadvantaged when attacking at Range.
Right now I have Amalina, Winter, and Findegil at the Balcony.
Éothain and Folc man the left stair barricade.
Ok, this is how we're going to do this. Please follow these instructions.
The party has one minute (10 rounds) before the orcs hack through the barricades in the stairwells and overwhelm the balcony. There are 60 orcs. Kill as many as you can in that time - your success will determine if the slaves of Dol Guldur are inspired to rise up against their slavers.
Everyone give me 10 attack rolls, and include any special abilities you want to use. You get Advantage on every roll to hit. During this time, the orcs are unable to attack you. All orcs have AC15
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Amalina begins firing arrows into the horde of orcs while Winter bites and tears at any limbs seeking a grip at the top of the balcony.
Éothain asks Folc to stand beyond harm's way. He slings his shield and replaces it with his handaxe in his left hand. Steeling himself, he readies to defend the barricade.
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Cereidh climbs up onto one of the tables or chairs not yet moved to the barricade, to shoot down upon the climbing orcs and give herself what little distance she may before they're swamped.
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The last table in place, Thorgrim draws Noctiscide and stands still, waiting, watching the approaching greenskin horde. Not a muscle does he move as his smoldering blue eyes gaze enraptured at the orcish tide that rushes toward their fragile position.
As the first orc enters in range of his sword, like a tightened coil let loose of its moorings, Thorgrim SPRINGS into action, his great two-handed sword becomes a never-stopping whirlwind of gore and blood. Orcish parts and entrails are sent flying in every direction as he releases himself to the -heart- of RAGE. Channeling the spirits of the ancient kings Thorgrim weaves a web of steel and death, and with each passing moment another orc's life is sent tumbling down, down to join his brothers as their great wave breaks upon his ever-living rock...
...of STEEL.
Onward into the heart of battle, Fought the son of Odin.
Outnumbered many times Still - he fought on.
Blood poured forth from his wounds Deep into the earth.
Vultures waited for the broken shell That once was a body.
But Odin alone would choose the day he would enter Valhalla.
And in his hour of need he sent forth onto him THE BERSERKER RAGE!
= 148 total damage.
Findegil draws steel once again and begins to weave his own web of dancing death.
Findegil uses Captain of Gondor to get Thorgrim to automatically hit on his missed attack, which I believe adds another 14 damage to Thorgrim's total.