Herm sets his feet, and takes off charging at the dog, bringing his hammer down in a powerful blow.
"You will not cross this line beast." Herm draws a line on the ground with his boot.
The burning dog is driven into the ground. Which stops his advance and the might of the blow knocks it out. It continues to burn to its death. On the top of the tower the troll reappears and shouts something.
Kendra quickly crosses her fingers in a complex pattern and speaks a word of power you have not heard before.
In common, she shouts to the Troll, "What was that?"
The troll shortly looks over as it is adressed by Kendra but doesn't care to answer. As Herm moved towards the dogs the others are safe for now as the trollhound attacks him. But it doesn't manage to catch Herm.
Jominda lobs another explosive bomb at the second hound to help Herm to get rid of that monster. But she carefully spares Herm from the explosion.
The bang echoes over the swamp.
Jominda hits the hound and sets it on fire. The troll picks up a large stone and throws it at Herm. But the stone doesn't fly far enough. On the gatehouse appear two more trolls, one of them wielding a crossbow.
"This is escalating quickly" Kendra says, as she she prepares her next spell.
Herm turns to the other hound and swings his hammer at it.
"If someone can shoot at the trolls up top till I get this creature dispatched." Herm asks almost casually.
And another dead burning troll hound lies motionless on the ground, it's ugly face smashed in.
"Well let's make this quick then." Harrold says turning to dig in his pack, "Pick on someone your own size!" He taunts the trolls as he throws a vial to Herm
"What are we going to do now? Can you make Herm fly?" Jominda asks Kendra.
"Well, as long as they can't reach us, we're fine. But we might have to run a gauntlet of rocks." Kendra says.
"But we want to go into the building and get rid of those humans eating trolls, aren't we?" Jominda inquires. "Or shall Herm beat down the door? Or we could simply go around the gatehouse." Jominda suddenly is doubtful about how to proceed.
"Well, at the very least we want to get in. And I don't see any way to do that other than to go through the gatehouse." Kendra admits.
"Herm, do you think we could enter the front door?"
She looks around for another way in, or any damage to the gatehouse itself.
Kendra turns to the Trolls, and once again yells at them in Common. "You can see how easily we dispatched your dogs. Your fate will be the same if you get in our way. We give you this one chance: Leave now and live, or stay, fight, and die."
A two-story stone gatehouse leads into the castle, topped with a crenellated tower at each corner. The main gate is closed. The strong wooden gate is bound with iron and barred from within The doors seem to be intact.
The trolls either ignore Kendra's offer, or don't understand her. Or both. It's hard to tell. Another rock is thrown on the ground, a crossbow bolt shot into a tree, but one rock hits Kendra square on the chest.
"Hmpf."[b] Kendra grunts.
[b]"How did they get up there if they didn't break down the doors? Are they maybe supposed to be there?"
"If I close they will just hurl rocks and fire their crossbows at me, I can make it to the door but knocking it down will take some time." Herm retreats back to the cover of the trees with the group.
"We'll see about that." Jominda tells and flies closer to the trolls. She throws another explosive bomb at one of the stone hurling trolls.
"Jominda!" Kendra yells into the air. "Before you move up there and try to take on three trolls on your own, do you have any more potions of spider climb?"
"Uhmmm, no." Jominda replies. "Maybe Harrold has?
"None of spider climb, but I have something else that might help." Harrold replies. He starts digging around in his pack and passes Herm another vial.
As the preparation takes time Jominda also seeks cover away from the path. "So what's the plan?" she asks.
Meanwhile the troll fights to put out the fire.
"I bang the door down you keep them pinned down?" Herm Says as he sets himself to run for the door.
"That might do the trick, if you're fast." Jominda replies.
Kendra nods, "I agree."
Jominda waits for Herm to down the invisibility and enlarge potions. For herself she takes her mutagen, the barkskin and the cat's grace extracts. "I'll start bombing them as soon as I hear the first bang on the door." she tells and as she hears Herm moving towards the gatehouse, she raises into the air and flies towards the gatehouse too.
"You need a hand there, Jominda, or are you ok?" Kendra grins as she sees the deft Jominda flutter about.
"If you have something to keep that single troll on the right side busy it would be nice. But I hope I'm a hard enough target to get away here." Jominda replies.
The trolls are not fond of that human coming closer and start firing with everything they have at her. Most of the attacks go wide and one is deflected by her armor.
Herm downs both potions, a now much larger Herm moves towards the doors invisibly, at reaching the doors Herm Smashes into them with his Great Hammer.
The bash with his hammer at the door almost destroys it with one blow.
Jominda flies closer and throws another bomb at the one who throws the rocks.
The hit troll catches fire again and also the one with the crossbow gets burnt.
Harrold stands back watching the door buckle and the trolls being burned
The strongest troll with the crossbow reloads his weapon. One of the others leans over the battlement and checks what happens to the door. Seeing nothing he throws a stone anyway. The rock deflects from Herms armor. The other one throws at Jominda, but misses.
Kendra, seeing the damage already done to the door, starts making her way over there, all the while weaving her hands in a complex pattern. As she interweaves her fingers into a figurative web, sticky strands form instantly between the crenelations on each of the gatehouse's corners, creating a massive web all over the top of the building.
The trolls are too big to be hold by the web. Also it immediately catches fire from the burning troll, burning that one and the stronger one.
Herm winds up again smashing the door with his hammer
Kendra picks up the pace, so she will be at the door as Herm breaks through.
Herm smashes in the door. The gates open on a broad chamber with a vaulted roof. Two large fires burn in the room, and spiral stairways climb up in each corner toward the ceiling. The gate on the far side of the room is barricaded with timber and furniture. The burning troll leaves the tower and squeezes down the stairs.
Herm moves to intercept the Troll at the bottom of the stairs as it is at it's most venerable.
"How many do you think were up top?" Herm says over his shoulder to Kendra.
Jominda continues to do what she is best at (besides eating Kendra's sandwiches). But before doing so she flies even closer. She targets the other one throwing stones.
Jominda hits with the bomb and sets the next troll and the other end of the net aflame. Also the biggest troll burns in the net.
The troll on the stairs tries to extinguish the flames. Which he manages. So Herm waits for naught at the moment.
Harrold comes walking up as quickly as his old bones will carry him.
As Jominda is the only remaining target outside she gets shot and thrown at. But the projectiles are not even close to hitting her.
"There's three, I think." Kendra answers Herm. "Let's go up there and help her."