Before anyone else can mar the frog's flesh, Faren twists his weapon and clocks the frog on the top of its skull.
The frog gives an annoyed "BLORRP" before its eyes roll back and it collapses, seeming to almost snore in its unconscious state.
A small jade statue of an angelic being lies among the rubbish under a broken table.
The door on the far side of this chamber is ajar, and pushing it open reveals the remains of a room that has now been destroyed, leaving only a view of the fields outside Absalom.
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"My sincerest apologies Lady Brigid. However I could not tarnish my honour by slaying this poor creature when It was possible to do otherwise."Faren looks ashamed at the wound his compatriot now bears and wonders if it could have gone differently.
Faren walks to the next rooms entrance and looks inside.
"What a curious trinket."
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Faren's comment gets a bit of a grunt. "Not nobility, so you don't need to refer to me as one. But I do appreciate the respect and the courtesy of an explanation. So is there anything else besides big frogs that you will have issues with?" Is that a hint of mirth in her tone, masked behind layers of dwarf-raised gruff?
"Thank you. The thought of trying to continue on with my leg like that..." She offers that to Valk.
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"Nobility is not measured by ones birth or station. My birth and blood does not make me noble but, the heart that beats inside me does. As long as your heart and mind ring true with the seven virtues you will be a Lady in my eyes."
Faren grins widely before continuing.
"While I am not particularly partial of toads, it is my sacred duty to protect the wilds and the creatures within them from devastation. Before you ask the dogs earlier were the pets of the civilized world and vermin are not protected by my code either. To slay that toad without first attempting to preserve it would be to go against my order's justice."
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"You must be quite the traveling companion in the wilds." That had a bit of a snark to it, but not in a mean-spirited sort of way, more the gentle-ribbing sort of way. "Good to know. Sorry for getting a wee bit pissy there..."
Seems she's pretty much forgiven/forgotten it.
"Well, shall we?"
Brigid will indicate the other route the party needs to investigate with a tilt of her head.
The small jade statue bears no specific significace, but would likely be valuable to a good church.
The group forms up at the southeastern door and Faren pushes it open.
A brazier of glowing coals sits in the center of this room, its acrid smoke mixing with the ever-present troglodyte stench. A few knives, pokers, and other metal implements lie atop a rusty iron box nearby.
Near the brazier, a vicious trog stands and gestures at Faren.
"Zzrrrhh krisss narrr hrsss shhhrr nhss..."
Initiative:
Round 1
26 Valk :
10 Brigid :
9 Tulok :
7 Silas :
6 Tyranius :
3 Faren :
Now Up: Valk, Brigid
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The half-orc smirks a bit as the trog bellows at the party, then responds in a brief rejoinder in the same language.
She moves into the room with shield raised and ready for possible attack as she starts to sing one last time...
for
Valkyrja zaps the trog while Brigid begins a new song.
The trog hurls a javelin at Faren rather inneffectively before his eyes loll a bit.
Round 1
26 Valk : Zaps trog for 3
10 Brigid : Raging song
9 Tulok : Throws javelin at Faren and misses
7 Silas : Gift of madness vs trog
6 Tyranius :
3 Faren :
Round 2
26 Valk :
10 Brigid :
9 Tulok :
Now Up: Tyranius, Faren, Valk, Brigid
Brigid's rousing words stir Faren to once again cut down an adversary before he presents much threat.
The key around the trog's neck unlocks the chest in this room.
A slot on the door in the southeastern wall reveals a man in manacles laying on the floor within. He looks famished, beaten and practically naked.
As the sound of combat dies out and clearly-not-trogs approach, he calls out.
"Hello? Who's there? You're not... more lizard-people...?"
"Pathfinders?"
The man rubs his eyes and eagerly accepts food and drink.
"As am I. Balenar Forsend is the name."
He extends a dirtied hand.
"Came out to the explore the tower. Bit off more than I could chew. Any chance you came upon my gear and wayfinder out there? That... lizard-headed brute took them from me."
Balenar shrugs, trying to hide the sting of Tyranius's words.
"Outnumbered. Their leader was not so weak, either -- he was larger than the rest and had a white-skinned crocodile at his side."
The Pathfinder gestures towards the door that leads once again to the central stairs that wind up to the topmost level of the tower.
"I expect he's upstairs. We don't need to go incur his wrath though, we could just leave now before he realizes you're here and I'm free?"
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"If we don't deal with him, he'll just get another warband. In addition, as Valkyrja stated, we're here on behalf of the Society via Drendle Dreng to explore the tower. Do we need to remind you about the wisdom of the Society? Explore, Report, Cooperate? We didn't clear all the hazards below, so it is a very risky proposition for you to go back down alone... perhaps you'd be better served sticking with us?"
Brigid puts all the cards on the table, as it were...
The party groups up and follows Faren up to the fifth and final floor, where the trog's leader awaits.
The four wings of the tower are completely open on this level, forming one great, cross-shaped chamber with arched ceilings.
The decayed remnants of a carpet run from the doorways at the end of each wing, meeting in the center, where a spiral staircase drops out of sight below. A large, throne-like chair stands in the middle of the eastern wing
next to a big chest.
Tasskar, the troglodyte, appears to be gazing longingly towards Absalom to the east. The moment he hears the footsteps of Faren creting the stairs and stepping into his "throne room", his head whips back to attention and he snarls while pointing a bony finger at the cavalier.
"Attack!"
Initiative:
Faren, Brigid and Valkyrja get the first step against the trog leader.
Round 1
19 Faren :
16 Brigid :
12 Valkyrja :
9 Tasskar :
7 Silas'ra :
3 Tyranius :
Now Up: Faren, Brigid and Valkyrja
Tasskar takes the full brunt of the fire and winces as Faren slashes a rather nasty wound into his side, an attack that only barely hit as Faren got the drop on him.
Still Up: Brigid
for
for with grab
for
for
Faren lands a deadly strike while Brigid and Valk throw spells at the trog. His companion snaps at Brigid and Faren but both manage to dodge the deadly attacks.
Realizing he must deal with the situation quickly, Tasskar lashes out at Valkyrja to create some space, cutting her and missing biting her.
Round 1
19 Faren : Strikes for 15
16 Brigid : Casts flare
12 Valkyrja : Burning hands for 5
9 Croc : Misses
9 Tasskar : Cuts Valk for 6
7 Silas'ra :
3 Tyranius :
Round 2
19 Faren :
16 Brigid :
12 Valkyrja :
Now Up: Everyone!
Once again Tasskar defies Brigid's flare, but Valkyra's flames are too hot to handle as he burns severely.
Still Up: Silar'ra, Tyranius
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Next Round (Round 3)
The Round after (Round 4)
Still Up: Silas'ra!
Silas'ra, his adrenaline rushing, quickly loads his crossbow and fires off an errant bold.
for
for
for
for
for
While the Pathfinders fail to put the trog down, he and his companion also find it difficult to hit, with only Tasskar's btie sinking deep into Valk's shoulder .
Round 1 Con't
7 Silas'ra : Fires bolt and misses
3 Tyranius : Casts bless
Round 2
19 Faren : Misses Tasskar
16 Brigid : Dazzle at Tasskar again, fails
12 Valkyrja : Burning hands for 11 vs T, 5 vs croc
9 Croc : Misses
9 Tasskar : Bites Valk for 6
7 Silas'ra :
3 Tyranius :
Round 3
19 Faren :
16 Brigid :
12 Valkyrja :
Now Up: Everyone!
for with grab
Faren moves past the crocodile and is able to finish off Tasskar, but it comes at the cost of of the albino taking a bit out of his shin.
The creature bellows out a distressed cry as it lumbers over to its master and begins to nudge him with its massive maw.