Frost Firs - Surprise Round - concluded
Firing a hasty shot, Lucian misses the slow moving tree creature. He also orders his bear to attack, and the beast lumbers forward to engage.
End of Surprise Round
Frost Firs - Round 1
19 Trawets
12 Agatha
10 Talon
8 Frost Fir 1
7 Lucian
6 Frost Fir 2
4 Meditrina
Hopefully we can drop one before they engage us. Here goes nothing.
"Concentrate any ranged fire on the same one to try and drop it first.", Trawets shouts as he unleashes another bolt of force.
Frost Firs - Round 1 - continued
Trawets fires off his second force missile again striking the same tree-man which staggers a bit, but keeps coming.
Frost Firs - Round 1 - continued
Agatha advances waving her sword in impressive fashion as she gets closer to the frost firs.
Talon turns to face the second tree-like creature, trying to be careful. His dagger attack strikes the slow-moving tree, but the hard barkskin of the plant turns his blade aside, causing only minimal damage.
Frost Fir 1 (the upper one) charges swinging a branch-like appendage at Agatha. The branch whips against the female barbarian for 5 dmg. A sticky resin coating the fir's limbs splashes over Agatha, but she is able to move uninhibited by the resinous goo.
Using rapishot and his precise shot Lucian will fire twice into the tree, taking a 5-foot back
After the command word is given, struggler tries to bite the tree.
Frost Firs - Round 1 - continued
Lucien cuts loose with a pair of arrows, one missing, but one striking the on-rushing tree-person. The one arrow uses most of its energy to bite through the wooden covering of the frost fir, only slightly wounding it.
The pet bear, commanded to attack by its master, goes after the tree-man with a vengeance, knocking it over as its bite and one claw rake through the hard outer covering, and down the fir tree for good.
The remaining frost fir strikes out at Talon, who scratched it with his dagger earlier. bit the limb swings clumsily over the rogue's head, missing everything.
Meditrina attempts to use her Fire Bolt power from range
Trawets advances forward some and thows a glob of acid at the tree.
Frost Firs - Round 1 - concluded
Meditrina cuts loose with a bolt of fire, but her aim misses the pitch-covered tree, which looks quite startled as fire blasts past it.
End of Round 1
Frost Firs - Round 2
19 Trawets
12 Agatha
10 Talon
7 Lucian
6 Frost Fir 2 (1hp dmg)
4 Meditrina
Trawets throws a glop of acid at the tree thing, but it's involvement in close combat with Talon means that the wizard's aim has to be more accurate, and this time, it isn't.
Flying into her trademark battle rage, Agatha tears into the tree, chopping and slicing and slicing and chopping until the attacking fir lies in shards at her feet.
End of Combat
"Not more madness than many other examples. There are guardian trees and trees that sap your strength. The nature is out of balance, I fear and strikes out at anything. I ... can understand its peril!"
Upon closer inspection, it appears the area cleared of snow holds hundreds of frost fir cones, little seeds might have grown into new frost firs with the right care. It is evident the two trees that attacked you were trying to protect their nesting place.
Talon's search for loot or items of value or interest comes up empty.
Moving on down the path, the group is pleased to see the high ridge start to descend to the Somir Valley floor below. The rocky escarpment falls steeply away one side, but declines gently to the valley floor on the other.
As you descend bloody animal footprints stain the snow a deep crimson, turning to brown, color. The footprints seem to be following the same path of descent that you are taking.
If you reviewed the journal from the dead hunter, you recognize the area from a drawing he made indicating placement of his bear traps.
Talon sees the telltale shape of two large bear traps lying in the snow across the path of the company. Pushing a bit of the snow aside, he can see that they are indeed armed and ready to snap at an unwary traveler who passes by.
As we know them, let us bypass them.
Trawets stands looking at the traps for a moment. "I wonder what they are worth and how heavy they are. If we can afford the extra weight they may be worth keeping for when we camp."
Since he spent most of his life indoors studying wizardry, Trawets has no earthly idea about the weight, use, or value of a standard bear trap. He just knows it looks nasty.
Lucien steers the group around the traps, down to the valley floor, where the bloody footprints criss-cross confusingly. The valley continues to the east, the direction it looked like you needed to go according to the map at the Lodge.
Leaving the bear traps in the snow, but giving them wide berth, the party finishes the descent into the Somir Valley. The pathway expands into a larger clearing where more than a dozen boulder-sized chunks of ice litter the clearing ahead where a strange hut sits perched on tree trunks atop a raised mound of snow-covered earth.
As you enter the clearing, a shivering young Ulfen girl suddenly appears calling out to you "I'm sorry! Don't hurt me! I never meant to call you names!"
"Where are your parents?"
The girl frowns at you. "I only have a momma, and I don't know where she is." With that, she disappears around the corner of the ice boulders.
As Talon moves forward (anyone else moving forward will have to indicate so, or move themselves) he spies the girl again among the icy boulders. "Please don't keep me here. It's so cold. I miss my mother." she says.
Trawets moves NW of Agatha. Can't move my icon.
Trawets moves NW of Agatha. Can't move my icon.
"What is your mother's name?" Meditrina asks, deciding that if nothing else, a name might be able to pinpoint the rest of this girls story.
"My momma's name is Nadya. Nadya Petska. I am Thora." she does a little curtsey before she turns and bolts around the next corner.
"We should bring you home. It is much to cold for a little girl!"
The girl does not seem to hear or heed Talon or Lucian calls to aid her, only turns around the corner, and disappears from view again.
Trawets calls out to the girl after she runs away, "It's ok honey! We're here to help you. There is no need to run."
Talon looks carefully around for threats of any kind, but seeing nothing immediately, he carefully follows the odd girl. He sees her not far away, behind one of the ice boulders.
"I don't want your stupid doll! I want to go home! Take me back!" cries the girl, as if to someone who was not there at all. Once she says that, she starts to head around the boulder and out of sight again.
"Well we go to your home now, and would be delighted if you join us!"
By now, Meditrina suspects something isn't quite right here. The girl seems to be talking to someone that only she can see, and that makes her nervous slightly. "What is the name of the person you are talking to?". she asks, hoping to get a clearer idea as to what the situation is.
The girl cries, "It's the white witch, Nazhena Vasilliovna. She took me from my mother, and she won't let me go. Make her let me go!" Adn with that cry, the child retreats once again, a little deeper into the icy maze of boulders.
Following the girl carefully Lucian prepares for the worst.