...
Avelina jumped up from her chair and dashed over to the Queen, hugging her armored body as hard as she could, tears beginning to dribble down her cheeks as she buries her face in the Queen’s neck.
”Oh, Auntie! I missed you so much. I knew you would come! I fought the whole time knowing I would see you. I told them all you were okay. Nothing could ever happen to you. You are the bravest, toughest, most valorous person in the world.”
She pulled back and pulled her face into a smile even as tears still flowed.
”Are you angry with me?”
The queen's body went rigid at the sudden embrace from Avelina. Her face revealed how conflicted she felt at the breach of proper deference to her as queen but also the desire to comfort her kin. After a moment or two of merely being hugged, she returned the affection by wrapping her arms around her niece and pulling her close. It was awkward, given her armor but after it was over, a few royal tears were visible at the edges of her eyes.
"With so much death and sorrow, finding you alive, well, and ... so ...," Words failed her so she breathed and composed herself. "Your presence is a shining diamond of hope in this moment. How can I be anything but happy and blessed?" Then the loving aunt again became the queen. "We will talk later. But I am indeed proud of you and what you are becoming. I only regret how I have to send you back into peril. I'm sure your parents would be as proud as I am."
Raine lifted her chin a little. She didn't tend to talk overmuch of her family, and found Avelina's public display of private sentiment to be slightly embarrassing, but she was proud of her family and their name.
"The a'Thiels, your Majesty," she said with only a slightly awkward dip of one knee, as childhood drills in courtesy came fumblingly back to her. "My mother was Melara a'Thiel and my father was-- is, rather, Artien a'Thiel."
Some days, Raine felt the 'was' to be more accurate-- her father yet lived, but he was a shadow of his former self, after all.
"My mother, and my brothers, Ryen and Rodien, fell some ten years ago during the Fourth Crusade, majesty."
Raine couldn't have said what urged her to volunteer the next name that fell from her lips, but the queen's gaze, wise beyond her apparent years, seemed to draw truth unbidden. "And my... father had a brother, as well, but I've... no idea what happened to him," Raine said awkwardly. "Bit of a black sheep. We don't talk of him."
The queen listened to Raine with a pensive look. After hearing about Raine's family, the queen first said, "I shall visit your father as soon as I can and make sure he is rewarded for his service." Then she paused and added, glancing at Avelina and looking thoughtful. "It is possible you and Avelina are related. My sister Cecelia married a man whom I believe had a brother who could be an ancestor of your line. My sister is Avelina's great grandmother," she said to Raine. "You two would be, what? Third cousins?"
Finally she takes a long look at the group. "Well if you have no other questions, we are done here. I recommend you prepare to leave as soon as possible. You should feel free to recruit anyone whom you think might be helpful to your task. We are already in your debt. May the Inheritor bless you and your mission. I will be in the city a few more days. Speak with me if you have any further questions."
The queen rose and opened the door and exited into the company of her retainers and bodyguards.
Raine bowed to the queen. "Majesty," she said in acknowledgment of the offer to her father. "He would... appreciate that, I'm sure, Majesty, but... I beg of you not to tell him where I am. It should break his heart, Majesty," Raine said with awkward haltingness and not her usual brusque tones.
But slight confusion took over her face. "...er... as you say, Majesty. His name was... Rydell, but with all due respect, ma'am, I find it, er-- unlikely-- he married into the noble bloodlines."
This said with some INTENSE side-eyeing of Avelina.
"I will study what maps we have available, ma'am. A force going with us... we'll need to try and approach unobserved for as long as possible. Demons could have all manner of scouts, like bloody little demon imps that can turn invisible. I assume we're just hoofin' it-- er, I mean, we're marching physically to the city, then?"
"I will respect your wishes regarding your father. I can have one of my assistants research the family tree if you are interested. As for maps, we have maps from when we occupied Drezen, although these will obviously not account for changes made since the downfall of the fortress. There is a mostly dry river bed that will serve as a road most of the way to the fort. You ought to be able to reach Drezen in about five days if all goes well."
After the meeting with the queen, Irabeth and Anevia located you and Irabeth said, "I understand the queen has honored you with a mission. I have been briefed on the mission and would like to volunteer to join your forces for the ... mission." She spoke cautiously, concerned not to reveal anything specific in case the conversation was being overheard.
By this time, everyone in the group knew that Irabeth was a respected leader and her presence would undoubtedly make a fine battlefield commander.
"And she is not going anywhere without me!" Anevia added. Her leg had healed by this time. "I am not the fighter 'Beth is, but I am the best scout in the city." As she said this, she glanced uncertainly at Raine and added, "Or at least one of the best."
A few days after the meeting with the queen, a knock at your door led to a reunion with Aravashnial, lacking the strip of cloth he had been using to cover the wound that took his sight. Before he spoke, he looked at everyone. It was clear from the way his eyes flicked from face to face that he could see, but a moment later, he politely said, "At long last, my sight has been restored, may Iomedae be praised. And it is good to finally be able to see you who saved my life."
After greetings and handshakes, perhaps some hugs, he settled into a chair and explained that the Queen heard of his plight and arranged one of her army clerics to restore his sight. "I offered to accompany her, but the queen said you might have need of the last of the Riftwardens on some special mission. If you'll have me, I'm yours to command. While I'm not a great warrior, I know a lot about arcane magic, which might be beneficial in any dealings with the denizens of the Worldwound."
Horgus used to be a noble of relatively low status. He was not known for his generosity nor for his loyalty to the cause of the crusaders. Heretofore, the only cause he seemed to embrace was the preservation and increase of his personal wealth. But the trauma to the city and his experiences under the city, perhaps, seemed to work a transformation on him. Furthermore, his personal wealth was not significantly decreased by the attack on Kenabres, so he seemed to have taken it as a sign that he could actually give up some of his wealth in the cause of defeating the threat of the Worldwound.
In any case, while securing provisions for the march to Drezen, the group had several times used Horgus' connections to purchase supplies. He sensed something was up and offered to give you extra rations provided he could accompany you on the march to make sure the provisions were properly managed.
"It is the least I can do for all you've done for me," he said as he made the offer.
The following is text from the 2nd book explaining the option of how battles can be handled. Read this over and consider your options. One PC has already expressed a preference to use the mass combat rules.
At times during “Sword of Valor,” the PCs will face small armies of demons and cultists. These encounters are intended to be resolved with the narrative mass combat rules detailed on pages 234–250 of Pathfinder RPG Ultimate Campaign. If you’d rather not include these elements in your Wrath of the Righteous game, you can omit the mass combat encounters that take place in this adventure, but you should replace these encounters with more personal combats against demons and cultists to make up for the loss of potential experience points.
The PCs can choose among themselves who’ll serve as their army’s commander—it could be one of them, or it could be an NPC they’ve befriended. Irabeth Tirabade would make an excellent commander, for example. The commander should be someone with a high Charisma score and ranks in Profession (soldier) or the Leadership feat, but these are not requirements for command.
[Note: Irabeth is a 5th level Paladin with Charisma 14. She does not have either the leadership feat nor any ranks in profession (soldier)]
If you can, ask your players to read up on the mass combat rules before this adventure begins. You can also take a moment here to run a few “training combats” for the PCs, where they lead their army against an equal group of crusaders in a mock battle—any damage taken in these training battles isn’t real damage, and is instantly healed at the battle’s end.
While the PCs’ army is currently called the Knights of Kenabres, the PCs are free to rename them to whatever they wish. Remember to adjust the army’s Morale check as appropriate for its commander’s Charisma modifier and Profession (soldier) ranks or Leadership. Normally, a commander knows a number of boons equal to 1 + 1 additional boon for every 5 ranks in Profession (soldier), but at the start of this adventure, the commander is brand new and doesn’t know any boons. New boons can be learned during the course of play as battles are won.
"And she is not going anywhere without me!" Anevia added. Her leg had healed by this time. "I am not the fighter 'Beth is, but I am the best scout in the city." As she said this, she glanced uncertainly at Raine and added, "Or at least one of the best."
Raine offered a shrug and crooked smile to the other woman. "Room for plenty of scouts, isn't there?" she said.
She determined to speak with Aron Kir at some point once she learned of him, to trade shop notes. But first...
Once they left the queen's presence, Raine cornered Avelina at the first opportunity with a vigorously arched brow. "So, her Majesty-- may the gods preserve her-- had to be confused, right?" she said without ceremony. "There's no way we're related!"
Ellena would be interested in looking for either a Strength or a charisma boosting item, if one might be available.
”Should we bring all of our new friends with us? It would be exposing them to danger, but they are all pretty good at some things that could come in handy. If they want to volunteer, I say we take every one of them and put their talents to use.”
The group found that Tauni wasn't around a lot in the days leading up to the departure. When they did come across her, she was inevitably holed up with her spellbook, carefully scribing into the stained tome.
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"I would be glad of all of their company," Anarya adds with a smile. "We certainly wouldn't have gotten this far without all of their help."
As the heroes prepare for their journey, Anarya approaches Ellena. "Ellena, we should have some downtime as we travel. Can you help teach me to fight in heavy armor like yours? I think we are going to be facing greater dangers in the Worldwound than we have ever faced, and I'm going to need more than a chainmail shirt to keep me safe." She smiles. "And I can probably learn a thing or two about fighting from you too. Your skills with a sword are incredible."
”I’d be most happy to help you train. I’m sure there will be plenty of downtime in the evenings while we march there and back.”. Ellena admires the slight woman’s gumption, that was for sure, but she wondered if Anarya’s back would hold up from the weight. If it kept her healer hale and hearty, she was all for it though!
"I'd be happy to have all of you along. After all we went through, I'm sure you're all no strangers to danger anymore."
Karas smiled as he looked over the assembled group with hope in his eyes.
The group found that Tauni wasn't around a lot in the days leading up to the departure. When they did come across her, she was inevitably holed up with her spellbook, carefully scribing into the stained tome.
Tauni need not limit herself to copying spells from recovered spellbooks. Aravashnial can locate resources to allow her to copy just about any spell she wishes. Assume she has seven full days to work.
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A few days before you were scheduled to depart with your army, you were all summoned to a special ceremony to honor those lost in the battle. Everyone was encouraged to appear in his or her best garments, with weapons and armor cleaned.
When you arrived, Quednys Orlun instructed you to join Irabeth near the platform on which the Queen and her clerics would offer the benediction and pray for the departed souls.
After the ceremony, the queen announced, her voice amplified by some magic so it could be heard by the large crowds of crusaders, "We have some awards to give, medals for actions in combat with the enemies of Iomdeae."
She called out various names and all of them were already near the platform in the same general area as the six who destroyed the wardstone. Once all the names were called and their medals awarded, the queen calls out, "We have six more who have earned medals and more. Anarya of Kenabres, Avelina of House Galfrey, Ellena Lovain, Karas Argentus, Raine a'Thiel, and Tauni Desba." She waits for the six to arrive on the platform in a line to her left.
"Five of these six," the Queen gestured to the five nearest her, "fell into the caves below the city during the attack, survived a harrowing journey back to the surface, defeating a Cult of our enemeies, recovering vital information on the identity of other cultists and spies in the city, and redeeming one of them into service of Iomedae. Once reunited with forces of the Crusade, they liberated the house of our late protector, Terendelev, from looters and discovered a treasure of great worth to future generations. They were joined by a stalwart young ranger who joined them as they undertook a peril filled attack on the Grey Garrison. After fighting cultists, rogues, demons, and other monsters, they reached the last large remnant of the Wardstone of Kenabres, being held by the enemy that they might attempt to destroy it in a manner that would have inflicted horrible casualties to all near the wardstones all along the Worldwound. These six defeated the defenders of their prize and destroyed the already damaged and failing Wardstone. In so doing, they were blessed by the Inheritor and all the wardstones instead sent out positive energy that decimated the ranks of the abyss and gave us our chance to regroup. They have given us hope for the future."
She paused and rousing cheers erupted from the armies, or most of them; some still seemed to doubt that the destruction of the Wardstones was wise.
The Queen then awarded one or more medals. All six were awarded the Righteous Medal of Clarity for information recovered from the Lair of the Vile and the Vicious and from the safe houses of the Cult of the Ivory Labyrinth. The medal was a blue circle with a pair of feminine grey eyes surrounded by a circle of silver lightning bolt.
All but Raine received the Righteous Medal of Command, a circular medal depicting a leering demon head before two crossed swords, for redeeming one of the enemy into service of the crusade (for the redemption of Wenduag).
Karas and Ellena each received the Righteous Medal of Valor, shaped like a demon skull pierced by four red swords, for killing Babau demons in the battle for the Wardstone's Destruction. Karas received the Righteous Medal of Vigor, a red hexagon with a white castle on it, for nearly dying at the hands of a demon, but recovering to fight on.
Each of the six was also awarded a gift, which they were instructed to open in private.
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Each gift had the queen's seal on it, indicating it was a personal gift from her majesty.
Anarya was awarded a gift of an attractive silver headband is decorated with a number of small red and orange gemstones (Headband of Alluring Charisma, +2, making her almost unbearably beautiful) and a ring with a blue gemstone (ring of protection +1).
Avelina received a ring as well. It was a ring of spell knowledge II.
Ellena and Karas both received a stout leather belts with a large buckle depicting a bull's head (belt of Giant Strength +2)
Raine received a quiver and a bundle of 8 special arrows. The quiver is an efficient quiver. The arrows are magic arrows, one of each of the following: 1 acid arrow, 1 flaming arrow, 1 cold arrow, 1 shock arrow, 1 ghost touch arrow. (All of these are +1 with indicated ability added). The last three are arrows of slaying: 1 for Magical Beasts, 1 for Evil Outsiders, and 1 for Undead.
Tauni receieved a lesser metamagic rod, Focused.
Raine was startled to receive the gifts, but looks them over with a slow grin spreading. "The demons won't know what hit them," she said with a smirk while closely inspecting the well-made arrowheads that practically sparked in her hands with their magic.
She spent the last night before they were due to set out visiting with her father, and telling him that she might be busy for the next few days-- no, Papa, not anything dangerous, just helping carry messages around for the army, don't you worry...
The lie stuck in her throat, but Raine knew that truth was not always the kindest option. And as long as the gods were willing, she would see him again.
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Avelina was stunned by the queen’s words about Raine. Secret royalty? Her first reaction: if it was true, she did not like this development. Everyone knows that the secret princess is always the one that ends up being the heroine, not the privileged girl. That’s just how stories work. But Raine also possessed a sharp tongue and cynical bent that would hardly fit the protagonist of a story—at least the kind Avelina would read. And the evidence of Avelina’s own metaphysical importance was undoubtably clear.
Then, the kinder aspect of Avelina’s mind took hold and she had a thought. Clearly, dear Raine had not had the proper training, as she had, and would need to be educated! She would have so very much to help her learn. Perhaps that was why Raine was such a sourpuss! It was her sacred duty to help lead her new cousin down the right path.
So, when Raine approached Avelina asking for her opinion, Avelina was decided. “Auntie possesses a sound judgment and wise countenance, so I have no doubt in her. Certainly, the Roll of Arms and geneaologies will have the proper warrants to your lineage. In the meantime....” She threw her arms around Raine. “Welcome to the family, dear cousin! I will have so much to teach you.”
The night before the queen and her army were to set out for the Capitol of Mendev, Nerosyan, the bulk of the army that would attack Drezen was moved down to the river bed through various caves and tunnels. The army consisted of one hundred heavily armored mounted paladins plus the leaders and their support staff. The plan was to begin the march to Dezen while the Queen's army was heading south, with the hope that any spies still in Kenabres would be busy trying to identify the queen's army's strength and would fail to notice the smaller army heading north along the border of the Worldwound.
The queen had recommended a path to take and provided a map giving the general lay of the land, at least as it was the last time the Crusaders controlled the area. The east bank of the Sellen River would be their road for about 80 miles, passing through the village of Valas's Gift at about 30 miles, before reaching a ford called Vilareth Ford. Crossing at the ford they would follow the west bank of the river another 50 miles. Here they would turn inland at the end of a canyon along the Ahari River where there used to be a village called Keeper's Canyon. About 30 miles inland from here they should find the fortress city of Drezen.
The scouts estimated the trip should take about five days, if there were no problems. No one expected there would be no problems. As no food could be expected to be found along the way, the army would be carrying its own supplies of food and water. Horgus saw to it the army had top quality rations, so with luck, the food should last long enough to get to Drezen.
Toward the end of the first day's march, scouts report the way clear to Valas's Gift, a once prosperous farming village, now reported to be a smoking ruin.
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Ellena is fine with Irabeth leading the army. She planned on being too busy reclaiming the banner for the Queen!
Before heading out, the Paladin took the time to polish her helm, armor, and shield to a gleaming sheen. ”Even Iomedae herself woukd think that was pretty spiffy,” she smiled to herself, being completely clean of the various demonic fluids she had accumulated on the way.
She kept Radiance strapped to her side, continuing to experiment with the blade to see if she could unlock any more of its innate abilities. She also kept in close contact with all the heroes that her group had saved. She was especially impressed to see the transformation that Gwerm had underwent...he spent so much of his gold to see the marching army was well provisioned.
Kara's made arrangements to see to Arkalendev and entrusted her in the Queen's care. She always seemed like a good and kind person from all of Terendelev's stories so he was sure she would be in good care.
He reported to the area the letter stated in his same gear from the assault. With the few trinkets found in the manor to remind him of home.
Nervous to be at the head of a column of crusaders but excited to strike back at the armies that had caused Her death,he waited awkwardly for someone he knew to arrive.
Knights of Kenabres. Me, a knight? Tauni straightened at the thought, not quite feeling it despite the blessings bestowed on her. When discussions of leading the force go on, Tauni said nothing. But she nodded sagely when Irabeth's name was put forward. It seemed a natural fit, and Tauni felt confident marching under her leadership.
Day 2: units consumed 3; units found 4; units remaining 48.
Day 3: units consumed 3; units remaining 45.
The army set out for Drezen at first light, riding along the bank of the Sellen river. The weather was overcast for most of the day. Toward the end of the first day's march, a storm rolled over, dropping rain on the area for about an hour. For a short while, something like hail fell, but closer inspections showed not ice pellets but small skulls of some odd animal. They caused no damage, only a disquieting effect on morale for a short time.
Toward the end of the day, the army approached the site of Valas's Gift, which at one time was a small farming community that provided a large part of the food used by Kenabres. The village was apparently attacked by the demons at the same time as they were ravaging Kenabres. All that was left were smoking ruins, with no evident survivors. Just in case, Irabeth ordered the army spend the next day searching the ruins for survivors.
By the end of the second day, no surivors were found, but some food was secured.
The next day, the army broke camp and continued upstream. The weather turned hot, with no clouds and the ride was a sweaty one. The army camped along the river after covering about 35 miles. During the night, the sounds and sights of an abyssal storm could be seen moving south on the Worldwound side of the river. Lightning strikes sometimes caused abyssal rifts which for a short time allowed strange creatures to emerge, most of them buffeted by the storm to their destruction. Fortunately, the storm remained far enough away to cause no harm to the army.
The next day, brought rain, but nothing unusual. At about noon, the army was expecting to connect with a small group of crusaders who had been defending Vilareth Ford. After seeing the destruction of Vilas's Gift, however, the mood was somber and cautious. Then Anevia came running back from her position as advance scout. She signaled for the army to halt and reported breathlessly to Irabeth and the others in the command unit.
"They've taken the ford!" Anevia called out. "The army holding the ford is not too big, mostly tieflings, a couple hundred at most. The leader looked to be a brimorak demon. They don't appear to know we are coming and there is some terrain that could cover our approach should we want to try to ambush them. I couldn't tell if they have any prisoners but they've hung the remains of some on the buildings they hold, sick bastards."
Irabeth orders the army to prepare for battle, then calls the command unit to discuss tactcs.
"I'll make the final decision but if anyone wants to suggest a tactic, please do so," Irabeth states diplomatically.
Review the rules for mass combat.
Battlefield Conditions that apply in this battle:
Ambush (Knights of Kenabres may ambush the tiefling army): The ambusher attempts an Offense check against the target army’s DV. If successful, the battle begins but the target army doesn’t get to act during the Tactics phase. Otherwise, the battle proceeds normally.
Rain: Rain affects modifiers to OM in the Ranged phase as if it were severe wind; this means ranged attacks will be at -4.
Choose the Strategy Track for the first round.
Once the battle is joined, there will be a round of ranged attacks. Anevia's scouting report suggests the enemy does not have ranged weapons that will be effective, so this will be a free round of attack on the tieflings, although the rain will decrease the attack roll.
Then the armies will come together and there will be a series of attacks similar to melee combat. PCs won't have any specific rolls to make during this time. Later, we can role play some aspect of the battle if you like, but the outcome of such fights won't alter the overall battle result.
Each round the commander can adjust the strategy track for the next round.
Reminder: click on the profile of the army to see the stats of the army at present.
"If we have the drop on them, we should you use the ambush to push aggressively before falling into standard battle lines I think?"
The tiefling was anything but used to being in a war council but it sounded like a good plan to himself.
Ellena nods at the tiefling ‘s suggestion. ”If they aren’t aware of us, I agree. Take the battle to those bastards and let’s finish them before they have any idea we are even here!”
Tauni pursed her lips as she considered the situation. With her thoughts on the larger objective, she almost voices an opinion of avoiding the enemy force. But when Karas suggests an aggressive push, the wizard's blood rises. "Yes, we should strike fast and take advantage of the surprise we may have. If we can keep any from escaping, it would maintain the secrecy of our force and mission."
Disentangling herself forcefully, Raine stomped off to requistion a bath.
Raine drank up the scouting report with grim eagerness, drawing an arrow from her quiver to use the arrowhead to scratch a crude map in the hard, broken earth of the formerly fertile lands. She nodded decisively at Karas's words. "Damn shame about the rain," she said. "Or I'd say we strafe them with Nexavaran steel arrows like hell before we close. Let's keep a small but swift mounted cavalry to catch any runners-- we DON'T want word getting back to city proper. Other than that, I'm for it: we hit them hard, we hit them fast, we get them off the fecking bridge."
This was punctuated with a jam of her arrow into the spot on the ground that marked the bridge. "They didn't show mercy to those souls on the walls and we in turn won't show any to them."
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"I agree with Karas. They'll be caught off guard and we can worry less about keeping our forces protected as we attack. We'll be striking before those fiends even draw their swords." Anarya thinks back to conversations she's had with the Knights, remembering how many paladins she had spoken with as she walked among their ranks, discussing faith and morale with the troops on the journey. "I suggest as well that we command the paladins to smite their foes on the initial charge. The more devastating our initial assault, the weaker their retaliation will be."
Anarya turns to Aravashnial. "Can you direct the troops to disrupt the tieflings' magic and prevent them from using it to stop our assault? If we catch them off guard trying to use their magic, we can strike an even more devastating blow."
Anarya looks to Anevia. "Your scouting gave me an idea. Our troops have excellent discipline and we can trust them to operate well when separated. Instead of focusing on disrupting the casters, we could spread the army out. The main force charges over the bluff, catching them by surprise, and a smaller flanking force strikes from the side. It would be a devastating attack, and even though we'd be exposed, the element of surprise would cover us."
"Overall, I think focusing on disrupting the spellcasters will be more lethal and carry less risk, but if I'm wrong about tieflings possessing magic, that effort would be wasted."
She looks up from the map, noticing that everyone around her has fallen silent, all eyes on her. She clears her throat and stands up fully. "Um... any thoughts on my plan? I've been around soldiers in Kenabres all my life so I've picked up a thing or two."
"Tieflings can indeed use magic in battle, but I doubt they can do much more than basic magic such as darkness."
Irabeth considered the advice and said, "We will ambush them and hit them hard. Aravashnial will advise us on minimizing their magic. Iomedae be with us."
The Knights of Kenabres approached ford keeping a small grove of trees growing along the river between them and the tiefling army. Aravashnial advised the paladins in recognizing when a tiefling was about to cast darkness and disrupt them before the effect can initiate. Once all were in place, Irabeth raised a banner with the holy symbol of Iomedae on it and the battle began.
Enemy DV = 12
Tactics Phase
Knights employ the Spellbreaker tactic, increasing the DV by +4, from 18 to 22.
Ranged Phase
Enemy army has no ranged weapons, so only the Knights attack.
Enemy DV = 12
The tiefling army takes 12 points of damage. It only has 9 hp, so it is defeated.
The paladins rode their mounts through the trees and stopped at the rivers edge to unleash a deadly volley of arrows on the unsuspecting tiefling army. The arrows killed or wounded the vast majority of the enemy, even though they outnumbered the paladins 2 to 1. Irabeth led the army across the ford to take survivors prisoner and to look for any crusaders from the defense force that had been attacked.
It will determine if the army gains a new tactic and if the commander gains a boon.
Loyalty check for new commander boon: DC 13
Irabeth gains the Merciless boon.
With the abrupt victory before swords were even drawn, Irabeth gives orders to the paladins. "Secure the ford and remain vigilant for an ambush. This may have been so easy to get us into position for an attack."
Anevia and Aron volunteer to scout the immediate area for signs of an ambush while Irabeth, Sosiel, and Nurah set out to inspect the battlefield for survivors who might be questioned and for any crusaders who might have been taken prisoner.
”We need to search the fort for any supplies. Armies march on their stomachs, of course. Fresh food and water will keep them running happily. And perhaps those demons had magical weapons. Those would improve our squad’s attacks. Praise the Inheritor for the quick and strong victory!”
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Avelina recoiled at the sharp rebuff. She folded her arms and raised her chin. ”I would remind you that I have done nothing other than offer you fellowship and courtesy, and you have only responded with snide comments.” She felt the push to cry, but suppressed it. She would not show weakness here. ”I have not the slightest idea what could motivate you to be so cruel.” Feeling the tears coming, she ran off.
Avelina wanted to lead the attack, truly, but she felt her aunt’s eye too strongly. She would of course never question her own abilities, yet the thought of embarassing or disappointing her aunt even in the slightest tolled heavily upon her. She quietly recommended Anarya for the role, recognizing her presence and piety. Certainly, the idea of Telendrev’s own ward leading the first major counterattack was a good story, and we all know how Avelina loves stories.
”I concur with my dear Ellena. There is much we do not yet know, and ignorance is death in war.” She had picked up that aphorism from her aunt. Though she spoke with confidence, in truth, the meaning had never been particularly clear to her up until this moment.