"A bloody nabasu!" Raine cries in loathing and startlement at the sight of something so foul on this plane. "Cannibal demons! They can cast spells, I've heard-- teleport around, make it dark, make it silent, call more of their kind, and worse! Kill it quick!"
As Anarya completed the consecration, Karas jerked his head to look into the nearby courtyard, and immediately warned of a demon as he dashed toward it. Even with his unnatural speed, he was not able to engage it before it cast a spell.
Tauni, Avelina, Raine, and Ellena felt a smothering blanket of magical energy envelope them and begin to paralyze them. Avelina just barely drove it back and retained control of her muscles. Raine shook it off almost instantly. Tauni and Ellena froze in place.
Round 1
Raine
Tauni (paralyzed)
Karas
Maugla
Avelina
Ellena (paralyzed)
Anarya
Tauni fought against the force holding her in place. But try as she might, she couldn't even lift a finger to trace the symbols for the least of her spells.
Save
Raine yelled about nabasus!
Taking a short step closer, she sent a horde of arrows whistling towards the enemy, trusting that the Nexavaran steel arrows that had availed her thus far against demon-kind would continue to do so.
Raine's first double arrow flies true and both arrows embed in the demon's chest, but the following arrow misses entirely and the next two collide with the demon but his considerable natural tough hide deflects or prevents them from penetrating.
Tauni struggles in vain against the bonds imposed the the demonic magic.
Karas
Maugla (26 lethal)
Avelina
Ellena (paralyzed)
Anarya
Round 2
Raine
Tauni (paralyzed)
Karas darted in on the creature and changed to reveal his claws. He lashed out with inhuman speed.
There is no save on this spell.
Karas' claws hit the demon square in the chest, but none cut deep enough into his tough hide to draw blood.
The demon steps back away from Karas' claws and points at him. A black ray shoots forth and hits Karas squarely in the chest.
For those who could see the demon cast at Karas:
Avelina
Ellena (paralyzed)
Anarya
Round 2
Raine
Tauni (paralyzed)
Karas (4 negative levels)
Maugla (26 lethal)
Will save
Ellena howls in rage as the deomon’s magic again kept her held in place.
Prescience:
Tauni glimpsed the future, seeing where her friends were struggling in the battle with this demon. But even the outrage of that image wasn't enough to break the demon's power.
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Seeing her friends suddenly paralyzed by the fiend's spell, Anarya summoned up her inner strength once more. She focused her halo's light into a bright wall of protection, creating a shimmering, nearly-tangible barrier of light that hovered in a wide ring around her. She strode forwards to her friends, allowing the light to pass over them and, she hoped, free them from the demon's magical clutches.
After her protective barrier enveloped her friends, Anarya turned to look at Karas and gasped. Whatever the demon had just done to him looked horrifying. He seemed terribly weakened by some foul magic from the demon. Her heart fell and fear for him surged through her. How could she protect him from that?
Revised will save with extra bonus-y goodness
Expending mythic surge
As Anarya stepped closer, Tauni felt her power wash over her.
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"What'd you do to them!?" Raine shouted in fury at the demon, noticing several of her friends locking up, and Karas staggering. "Let them go or I'll fill you so full of arrows you'll be crapping cold iron!"
Raine loosed arrows anyway; apparently the 'or' was a false distinction.
Raine's arrows began wide, but by the third, she had found her rhythm, and the fourth sunk deep into one of the nabasu's fiendish eyes. The fury of the gods was upon her, and her eyes blazed with an actinic green as she somehow found the reserves to loose a fifth arrow...
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Karas balked as he felt his life force draining away. He clutched at his chest as the breath left him. As he clutched, his hands found Terendelevs scale. It drew his focus and steadied his vision.
Though he was weak. He knew who's strength would never leave his side. A moment of focus and his claws began to glow with a pure white energy.
A quick step found him in the creatures face again.
"If you want my bones, you'll have to try a lot harder! he called out in rage as his claws swung for the creature.
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Avelina's magic streaks toward the demon, but his strength of arcane power overcomes the magic before it does any harm, the light dissipating like fog in bright sunlight.
Raine's first three arrows miss the demon, who is apparently both very quick and very strong. But her last three not only hit their target, but penetrate the demon's tough hide, causing severe wounds.
Anarya tries to assist the paralyzed Tauni and Ellena, but even with her help, the magical paralysis holds them fast.
Karas activates Terendelev's power and attempts to finished the badly wounded demon off, but again, in his badly weakened condition, he cannot get past the demon's hide, which is as tough as steel.
The demon again steps away from Karas, snarling in pain, and is gone.
Karas collapsed in a weakened heap as his rage left him. He gasped for breath on the ground and watched as his paralyzed companions regained mobility.
"Where'd it go?" Raine shouted, wheeling left and right with an arrow nocked on the string for any sight of the nabasu. "Did itturn invisible? Is it still here? COWARD," she added with impotent fury.
She looked torn between checking on the weakened Karas, or on Tauni and Ellena, or even just remaining vigilant in case it was some demon trick. "Anarya! Is everyone okay? Does anyone know if it really left? I'll get to Karas!"
She hurried to the warrior's side, still expecting demonic claws to tear into her at any second.
will save with extra bonus-y goodness
Ellena again tries to fight off the magical hold the demon had taken of her mind.
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"I think nobody's hurt... I... is he alright?" she called out, unwilling to leave her paralyzed friends. The demon had vanished - invisible? Teleported? She had no idea. It could return at any moment - she maintained her protective barrier as Ellena and Tauni shook off the enchantment, gradually.
When they were free, she rushed to Karas's side. "My love... what happened to you?" she said, cupping the tiefling's cheek with her hand. "What do you feel?"
After a few rounds, the demon does not appear to be present any more. Those paralyzed recover. Those who know about spells that drain energy know that they usually take days to recover. Once the threat is passed and the chapel has been cleansed and the dead recovered, the group can summon help from the army below. Paladins and some of the leadership team will climb the steps and aid in the heroes return over the difficult sections and help carry the dead down to be buried properly.
"Karas looks rough," Raine said bluntly to Anarya, still wary for the demon's return. "I dunno what it did to him. There was some green light..."
The redheaded woman shook her head, and picked a few of her own arrows off the ground, ones that might still be usable. It wasn't easy to replace specialty arrows out here, after all, and even though she had stocked up on a number of the Nexavaran steel arrows before leaving Kenabres, she seemed to be going through them fast...
"Everyone else alright? Let's get to putting these poor dead folk to rest, then."
Raine kept her bow slung over her shoulder, paranoically jumping at every sound as they tend to the dead. It was hard for to believe the nabasu was really gone.
Karas managed a smile at the angel. "I'll be fine,love. I'm just feeling a little drained." he embraced her as she arrived to dote over him.
He sat up ad his fatigue wore aware a few moments later and walked, albeit it wobbly, to help the others.
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The group gathered near the top of the stairs that lead back down to the canyon floor. Ellena drew Radiance to use it to signal to the army below. As the sword rose high, it burst into a bright glow before returning to its usual torchlike glow.
In addition, Radiance is a legendary item (Pathfinder RPG Mythic Adventures 169) that bonds with a mythic paladin as soon as it is wielded in combat—in this adventure, Radiance bonds if a paladin uses it in the final encounter against Vorlesh’s babaus. The weapon has two daily uses of legendary power that recharge each day, but does not currently possess any legendary attributes, for it has yet to be wielded by a mythic paladin.
Once the army recognized the team needed help, they sent paladins and others up to help the team get over the dangerous places in the stairs back down to the canyon floor.
Karas recovered quickly after a few hours and those injured were quickly healed. They camped the night to allow all to rest up and recover.
In the morning, the army moved on up the canyon and it was only a few more hours of marching before they neared the ruins of Drezen. The riverbed rose at a noticeable slope for these last few miles, rising up out of the Ahari gorge, and a stink of smoke and grime could be detected on the wind—a telltale sign of a city fallen to filth and horror.
Founded in 4628 AR by the crusaders to establish a lasting foothold in demon-controlled territory, the warhardened city of Drezen was engineered by talented dwarven crusaders. These dwarves carved the central citadel from a massive, granite plateau, using a style reminiscent of their ancient Sky Citadels, but the city fell before many upper stories or lower levels could be added. As work on Citadel Drezen commenced, greater numbers of stonemasons and architects toiled on the surrounding lands, and it didn’t take long before the city could house tens of thousands of crusaders and the many artisans, laborers, and other supporters of the war effort. River traffic and supply lines from Mendev continued to bring a steady influx of soldiers, even as two massive cemeteries were established to bury those they replaced.
Unfortunately, Citadel Drezen fell to treachery in 4638. The citadel overlooked the dry riverbeds of the Ahari river from the north bank. Only two bridges allowed easy crossings of the riverbed. To the east was a hill known as Paradise Hill. Around the citadel and Paradise Hill, and along the south bank of the Aharai, ruins of a once thriving city provided cover for as yet unknown but undoubtedly monstrous residents. To the southwest lay an ancient cemetery.
Once the army was near the citadel, it paused while Anevia and Aron sneaked around to get the lay of the land.
Aron and Anevia return with the following important information.
Southbank: A large number of tieflings and human cultists alike are camped in Drezen’s southern district, and they’re guarding a large amount of what appears to be captured crusader gear. If the army could defeat this army, it would make the south bank more secure and possibly provide valuable gear for the army in future battles.
Paradise Hill: A large amount of schir demons hold Paradise Hill, once a district of warehouses and food stores that sat atop the high ground east of the citadel. It appears the demons are now using the area as a prison for captured crusaders—rescuing them could provide reinforcements for the army.
Drezen Cemetery: The scouts report sightings of large numbers of undead lurking in Drezen’s cemetery, particularly ghouls. Until these undead are wiped out, they’ll continue to be a dangerous element that could whittle away at the PCs’ troops during the night.
Haunted Vault: The largest vault in the cemetery seems to be surrounded by eerie shadows, as if some vile magic were at work within—the vault should be investigated.
Ahari Bridge: While the rivers of Drezen are dry, their beds and the steep angled gulches still present a difficulty for mounted paladins to navigate. One bridge is destroyed—-securing the remaining bridge will help the army’s mobility when the time comes to attack the citadel.
Drezen Watchtowers: Citadel Drezen is surrounded by a wall and seven watchtowers. Each watchtower seems to be guarded by a few figures, and each is armed with a large catapult. Disabling as many of these catapults as possible makes the siege more effective.
”I say we take out the undead first! I hate the idea of them sneaking around and harming our valiant crusaders under the cover of darkness! Then we finish the demons. After that, maybe the humans and tieflings will have the good sense to flee,” Ellena offers, no real reasoning behind her opinion.
"I'm no tactician, but shouldnt we take the south bank first to establish a foothold? Also I'd like to blind those watchtowers as soon as we can." Karas replied the Ellena with concern about prudence.
He looked to the others to chime in.
Raine studied the map the scouts have made, frowning to herself as she listened to the others. "My gut would say Southbank as well, but whatever we take first is gonna make everything else harder, yeah? Once we have our first big wave, anything we don't kill will draw back and hunker down even more defensive. And from Southbank as a staging area we've got to cross the river, no matter what district we try next. I guess surprise really isn't an option at this point anyway; not like we're a quiet arrival as a full army."
Raine absently chewed the shaft of an arrow she'd broken in practice shooting. (Originally she had meant to chew a stalk of grass, but what grass grew in the twisted lands here had made her hesitate and think better of it.)
She pulled the shaft and pointed at a few districts in turn. "No point in taking the bridge until we at least have the Southbank; we'd lose it as soon as we had it. We can't take out the watchtowers too long before the real push on the Citadel itself, or they'll just repair them. Cemetery's got a lot of unknowns. But if we could take Paradise Hill.... we'd have a high-ground spot that'd be harder for the enemy to retake, a good launch point for further raids out, better visuals of what the enemy's doing on the terrain around us. And we maybe get some poor souls outta there who need out. And could help us with further intel, and force of arms, if any of them can still fight. So I vote Paradise Hill, and then Southbank and the bridge, and then the cemetery.... but I'll yield to what our commander says."
She glanced over at Anarya.
Tauni stood by Anarya, ready to translate if needed. She also offered her own take on the situation.
"The watchtowers concern me as well. If we could sneak and disable at least some of them, it would make any advancement easier. And if we can open up the bridge, the charge our paladins could make would be devastating. If the group of us sneaked in to do this, we could set a signal in case we are discovered. We could have the army attack at the signal to take as much advantage of surprise as possible."
Even as she said these things, Tauni's gaze drifted to where the haunted vault lied, intrigued by what secrets it might hold.
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Anarya looked at the map spread out before them. With Tauni's help translating she made sure she heard all her companions' advice before making a decision. It felt strange to her for the others to look to her for leadership like this, but with their help she felt strangely confident. Together, she knew, they would do what was needed to overcome their enemy.
"I don't like the thought of undead preying upon our troops either, but the cemetery is far from a defensible position. If we took it first, we would have to withdraw and lead a brand new offensive against the other sites. Southbank is critical, but from there our forces would be flanked by schirs to the east and ghouls to the west." She thought carefully. "With that said... I can't see a way for our troops to march on Paradise Hill without first taking Southbank. The knights can't get their horses through the riverbed and the only bridge to the Hill is from Southbank."
She pointed towards Southbank on the map. "We can defend Southbank easily enough, and from there we can launch raids on any of the targets. Once taken, we can push to clear out the cemetery, investigate whatever lies in the vault, and then retake Paradise Hill once the threat of the undead is purged." She looked towards the citadel. "Our forces hopefully bolstered with more troops and equipment, we secure the bridge, disable the watchtowers, and launch a strike at the heart of the city."
"Aye-aye, commander," Raine said simply. "Do you want me to try and more scouting, or will we trust Anevia and Aron learned all there is to be learned?"
"There are two armies in the Southbank. To the west is a Tiefling army and to the east, a slightly stronger army of human cultists. Whichever one we attack, the other will join the battle."
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"We should attack the weaker army first and attempt to rout them before their reinforcements arrive. The last thing we want is a fight on two flanks." Anarya looked at Raine. "We have a good understanding of the terrain and of our enemies, and further scouting would give the enemy more time to prepare for our strike." She looked up at the group as a whole. "We attack the tiefling army as soon as the knights are ready."
"Aye aye," Raine said with a nod at Anarya's words. "Then let our blades and bowstrings be swift."
Key: 1: Tiefling Army is west; 2: Cultist Army is west.
Key:
1: Defensive
2-3: Cautious
4-6: Standard
7-8: Aggressive
9: Reckless
Round 1 strategy: Defensive. +4 DV, -4 OM.
Days
The weather is typical for this part of the Worldwound. There is no precipitation, with a temperature of 25 F.
Anarya: select the Round 1 Tactic and Strategy for the Knights of Kenabres. Then the battle will begin.
Base DV: 18
Base Morale: +4
Modifiers to OM: Aggressive Strategy +2, Smite Evil: +2, Ranged +8
Modifiers to DV: Aggressive Strategy -2, Spellbreaker +4, Defensive Tactics +2
Modifiers to Damage: Aggressive Strategy +3
Modifiers to Morale Checks: Army Attitude +2
Tiefling Army
Base DV: 12
Base Morale: +1
Modifiers to OM: Defensive Strategy -4, Ranged +4, Spellcasting +1
Modifiers to DV: Defensive Strategy +4 Spellcasting +1
Modifiers to Morale Checks: Army Attitude -1
Modifiers to Damage: Defensive Strategy -6
Round 1 attacks
Knights of Kenabres vs DV 12 + 4 + 1= 17:
Tiefling Army vs DV 18 - 2 + 4 + 2 = 22:
The Knights of Kenabres advanced but they had trouble with their initial volley of arrows, which failed to inflict significant damage on the Tieflings. The Tieflings, for their part, started the battle in a defensive posture and this helped them keep safe from the first rain of arrows, but it also limited their ability to threaten the advancing knights. The armies then closed into melee range and the ground battle commenced.
Karas followed the angel into battle at her side. He was so proud to have this strong woman at his side and knew they would cover each other for so many years to come. As he drove from his horse to meet the front lines he had a massive toothed grin and was ready to tear down the enemy for her.
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Anarya's halo shone like a beacon through the chaos of battle, serving like a standard to rally the knights. As long as her holy light shone, the forces of good knew that their commander still fought. Few tieflings got past her bodyguards to engage the aasimar directly, but she stayed close to the front lines, able to direct her forces where they were needed most.
Tauni rode hard with the others, getting caught up in the rush and excitement. Once the enemy was engaged, she struggled to stay with Anarya, augmenting those nearest her with her magic.
Base DV: 18
Base Morale: +4
Modifiers to OM: Aggressive Strategy +2
Modifiers to DV: Aggressive Strategy -2, Spellbreaker +4, Defensive Tactics +2
Modifiers to Damage: Aggressive Strategy +3
Modifiers to Morale Checks: Army Attitude +2
Tiefling Army
Base DV: 12
Base Morale: +1
Modifiers to OM: Cautious Strategy -2
Modifiers to DV: Cautious Strategy +2 Spellcasting +1
Modifiers to Morale Checks: Army Attitude -1
Modifiers to Damage: Cautious Strategy -3
Round 2 attacks
Knights of Kenabres vs DV 12 + 2 + 1= 15:
Tiefling Army vs DV 18 - 2 + 4 + 2 = 22:
Anarya's halo shone like a beacon through the chaos of battle, serving like a standard to rally the knights. As long as her holy light shone, the forces of good knew that their commander still fought. Few tieflings got past her bodyguards to engage the aasimar directly, but she stayed close to the front lines, able to direct her forces where they were needed most.
The enemy was led by a female Tiefling Ranger, who rode behind the front line exhorting her troops to transition to a more aggressive posture. Again, the knights had trouble coordinating and pressing the attack. But the tieflings were doing even worse. In the distance, the sounds of battle horns indicated the army of human cultists was mustering to join the battle.
Raine squinted across the battlefield and sent several arrows whistling over the clashing lines to strike at the tiefling leading the other side. None of them truly found their target, but Raine hoped it kept her from coordinating her troops as well as she might like.
"We've got to drub this lot before the reinforcments arrive!" she shouted over the clash of steel.