"Good, it seems we all understand what we have to do, the question is how do we pull this off so we can succeed in all three tasks?
Ironically, the troll is the easiest one, she WANTS to die. The children is probably the hardest one to manage...putting the fey square in the middle."
"She may have information we can use. The 'barbed ones' who had her before may be these very fey. I'd expect she would quite like to have her vengeance on them before she leaves this life."
"It's hard to find fault with this strategy, except for how hard it might be to succeed.
Nevertheless, I feel it is our best bet to do everything we set out to do.
so let's discuss details, get down to what they call the nitty gritty."
"How to deal with the evil fey, then?"
"My new roomie is a former evil fey working for us. He can probably advise us. Let's go back to the castle first."
Sonechka glances back at the ancient troll. "I doubt grandmother troll is going to want to come back to town with us."
We don't know the terrain enough to be physically sneaky, I suggest cunningly sneaky. We bring the troll, we make the exchange, the we attack, the troll in their midst might give us an advantage.
"If nothing else, it is a good starting point. Can we improve on it in any way?
We could make some restraints that LOOK convincing but falls apart easily...or we could ask her to act ensorcelled maybe...
Nothing too complicated, it would only fall apart if we over think it, but there is always room for improvement they say."
"My only other concern is: can we hurt them with our weapons?"
"Good question, I guess it depends on how powerful they are? Some fey are resistant to normal weapons as far as I know, but I don't think there are any kinds completely immune."
Knowledge Planes
Dolgrym thinks about those evil fey and tries to think about their vulnerabilities and whether the party could affect them.
"We can ask our fey expert."
Sonechka nods at Green and Norton. "Our only practical strategy, I think."
"Have we a way to contact Barndoor from here? As madame Alkaeva said, the troll is likely to be unwilling to travel far with us, and if we leave here here, she might be captured by the fey while we are away.
Grr...how come our enemies always have all the cards, even when they are not playing?"
"Fastest way to travel is flight, not sure how long it would take though.
Sonechka considers Green and Norton's weapons. "They are resistant to even the best steel, vulnerable only to cold iron and flame. We will need to watch our feet; they are known to command plants to capture their foes."
Magic.. (with spellcraft DC to identify)
Red Breastplate DC 28
Leafy Cloak DC 20
Dragon head Amulet with dark red gem DC 22
Other..
4 emeralds
240gold in coin
Sonechka looks around at the group. "Shall I inform the troll of our plan? She seems the type who would enjoy the notion of dying in a final battle, especially against those who tortured her before."
"I see no reason not to tell her what she is in for. You are correct, she might get particular joy in knowing the plan."
+1 Light Fortification Breastplate (large)
Cloak of unknown name CL5
As a free action, the wearer of this cloak can gain the ability to
magically blend in with rural surroundings. This provides a +10
competence bonus on her Stealth checks when in forest, jungle, hills,
or plains terrain. As a standard action within these surroundings, she
can also use the spell vanish 1/day (5 round duration).
Amulet of unknown name CL8
Natural armor +1 + Golembane This amulet enables its wearer to detect any
golem within 60 feet, although he must concentrate (a standard action) in
order for the detection to take place. The amulet also enables its
possessor to combat golems with weapons, unarmed attacks, or natural
weapons as if those golems had no damage reduction.
The elderly troll harrumphs as the talking continues, and sniffs her way toward the fallen and charred young trolls. She stoops to feel her way to the nearer corpse... grumbling something in her guttural tongue.
"Well, the armour is certainly nice, if a tad too large even for me.
But I forsee a time when it might just come in handy.
And if not, we can most likely trade it for something more useful."
Turning to the others, The Green Man nods decisively.
"So, let us fill the troll in on our plan, and then let us get moving.
There are only so many hours in one day, and I want to use them well."
Sonechka nods at Green and goes to tell the ancient crone their plan. "Grandmother, would you like the chance to strike back at your tormentors? We seek battle with the fey who held you prisoner; we have agreed to bring them a victim in exchange for the younglings they currently possess. When we next see them- with you as a sham prisoner- we will attack and overcome them. Will you help us and strike back at the parasites who tortured you?"
She nods repeatedly, then adds in Giant - while carving the least charred meaty bits from one of the dead troll youth... "I will. Good death for a Fury. These click-tongue.. children of the briar.. are a blight in this stretch of the wild. Their kind is only worth what grows.. fed from their rotting dead."
"Ok, the plan is set, only thing left is if we can make some false shackles or not? Otherwise it may come down a little bit on how well Grandma here can act enthralled."
"I'd just wrap some chains around her hands, if we have any. I don't plan on letting them close enough to be able to tell the distance before I start zapping them!"
You get a hold of a length of chain Furiel had spotted within the barn.
The elderly troll drools slightly.. and pants with a low growl as she is wrapped with chain.
(in Giant)"Storm boils inside me.. claws crave... lead me to the briar vermin."
"Well, if anyone has any long lasting spells they want to get ready, this is the time, if not, let us be off."
Sonechka nods. "Time to go."
As you travel toward the alder stool thicket, the old troll says a few words to Sonechka in her tongue "Are you there child? ... The battle is not over if I still live. Should the briarfolk die before I do, you must turn your weapons on me. I will have Urxehl's eyes on me. I must die fighting."
Dolgrym will make sure he uses his wand of Mage Armor as the group approaches. He also casts Extended Bull's Strength on himself, using the extend Metamagic Rod.
You enter the thicket where you'd entered before.. now with the bound elderly troll in tow. You hear the clicking and tongue-cluck chatter of the feyfolk all around you hidden within patches of briar and behind dense patches of thicket. This "chatter" grows louder.
One of the tiny creatures is there in the small clearing in the same spot - perhaps the same one, there to greet you. The chatter stops as it speaks, "We've kept this one before. A younger one.. would have been preferred...."
Then silence.. other than the low rumble coming from the old troll - like the warning growl of a great cat.
Furiel waits to see how things go. He comes up with a plausible way to bring some help.
"It seems to respect my friends."
Furiel summons, and a small fire elemental appears.
The Green Man fights the urge to tense up, wondering if the fey will become aggressive.
With some effort he is able to relax and wait to see how they will react.
"I trust the children are safe?"
The briarfolk leader eyes the elemental as its flames lick dangerously close to the low branches of the nearest weed-skirted stump, then answers Green "Yes.. no need.. to show threat." He glares at Furiel, and lets the large thorn protrude from his mouth briefly before speaking "So many of us.. we could end much larger fires before we get burned."
The briarfolk leader eyes the old troll again. "We would prefer.. a younger one, but... she is fed. Not drugged no?"
It turns back toward the briar patch over the demolished structure, and speaks in clicks, plosive, and percussive sounds. A few of the fellow visible fey behind him lift the hatch, and gesture those unseen below to come up.
As the children slowly peer out the hatch, the briarfolk leader continues its earlier reply "The children.. are always safe here. We only sip their blood while they slumber." It then immediately gestures for those escorting the human children to stop.
"End your fiery man or we will. Leave troll where she stands. You back away... then we will release the children to your care"
Furiel motions, and the fiery creature moves behind him. He waits to see what is going on.
Dolgrym waits to see how the others plan on executing the plan here. He'd hoped to have a better chance at grabbing the children while things were sorted out.
"...gnomes.." the briarfey leader vocalizes "click-pop", and immediately a dozen or more pencil-thin icy projectiles blast into the fire elemental from all sides. For a brief moment you see how many there are lurking hidden around you.
The old troll roars and bursts her chains (in Giant) "Come to me so I can squish you in my fist!"
The briarfey visible to you are clearly stunned, but all three children shriek at the sight of suddenly raging blind troll hag... and they run.
After a moment of pure terror, the mid-teen boy does show the presence of mind to corral the younger two in their flight from the area.
thicket comes up to Dolgrym's shoulders.
Fey get a d20+20 stealth within the thicket.
It is difficult terrain until burned or "busted up" by way of sunder maneuver per 5' square - this will also remove stealth bonus for fey in every cleared square.
"I'll take the kids" Norton shouts to the others.
Then quickly casts Feather Step on Green, granting him freedom of movement in those weeds.
Init.
Furiel looks up and fires a string of webbing that engulfs eleven of the faeries nearby.
School conjuration (creation); Level magus 2, sorcerer/wizard 2, witch 2; Elemental School wood 2
CASTING
Casting Time 1 standard action
Components V, S, M (spider web)
EFFECT
Range medium (100 ft. + 10 ft./level)
Effect webs in a 20-ft.-radius spread
Duration 10 min./level (D)
Saving Throw Reflex negates; see text; Spell Resistance no
DESCRIPTION
Web creates a many-layered mass of strong, sticky strands. These strands trap those caught in them. The strands are similar to spiderwebs but far larger and tougher. These masses must be anchored to two or more solid and diametrically opposed points or else the web collapses upon itself and disappears. Creatures caught within a web become grappled by the sticky fibers. Attacking a creature in a web doesn't cause you to become grappled.
Anyone in the effect's area when the spell is cast must make a Reflex save. If this save succeeds, the creature is inside the web but is otherwise unaffected. If the save fails, the creature gains the grappled condition, but can break free by making a combat maneuver check or Escape Artist check as a standard action against the DC of this spell. The entire area of the web is considered difficult terrain. Anyone moving through the webs must make a combat maneuver check or Escape Artist check as part of their move action, with a DC equal to the spell's DC. Creatures that fail lose their movement and become grappled in the first square of webbing that they enter.
If you have at least 5 feet of web between you and an opponent, it provides cover. If you have at least 20 feet of web between you, it provides total cover.
The strands of a web spell are flammable. A flaming weapon can slash them away as easily as a hand brushes away cobwebs. Any fire can set the webs alight and burn away one 5-foot square in 1 round. All creatures within flaming webs take 2d4 points of fire damage from the flames.
Web can be made permanent with a permanency spell. A permanent web that is damaged (but not destroyed) regrows in 10 minutes.
The briarfey not caught in the web advance... most move right up on you whipping their long clawed limbs at many of you... some hang back and fire icy blasts.
You see four of them charge the blind troll, and wrap around her legs.
Dolgrym casts Slow on the briarfolk, taking a 5' step back if necessary to get out of reach.
DC 18 Will to resist. Can target up to five creatures no more than 30' from each other.
The next web is cast to the south. (between dd ee between 18 and 19).
"You like blood?! How about your OWN Blood!? Let me GIVE IT TO YOU!!!"
The Green Man opens his massive jaws and roars straight at the fey before him, he then swings his massive Earthbreaker in an attempt to smush the horrid little fey.