Most of the rooms on the second floor are armories stocked with armor, weapons, shields, equipment, food, supplies, and so on. The provisions and arms here could stock a small army for a small period of time or maintain the city’s defensive forces for an extended period. The loss of these provisions could prove disastrous for Trollheim, especially were the malicious forces of Irrisen to conduct a prolonged or well-staged assault on the city.
You quickly check the rooms and find no one, but then Thessaly sees something out the window to the north of the building.
A small, frozen yard stands between rickety fences to the east of the armory. Target dummies, both for melee and archery training, stand at the far eastern end of the icy field.
Four people, including ones matching the description of Hjort and Runa White, stand in the yard. Hjort starts to taunt you. "Puny Pathfinder scum! Come out and face me, if you dare! It is time the world is relieved of your stink!"
The arrow lodges in Hjort's chest, but doesn't drop him.
"Burn it down!" He shouts, and the crew burst into action.
Hjort runs around to the front of the armory.
Lini cocks a long-stemmed eyebrow. "Nice shot."
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Dulcinea does not delay a moment. She dashes forward past Kayanor and Thessaly, flipping through the air.
She takes advantage of the nearby bales of hay, sticking her landing. She dashes into the group of of foes.
"Were you not expecting for a woman to tumble out of the window?"
She brandishes her rapier with a smile and a wink.
"Neither was I, but there is a first time for everything."
Droogami streams down the stairs and out the door, quickly closing the distance. Dulcinea looks about to fall to her death, when she suddenly twists and flips in an amazing display of agility, sliding into place and drawing a line of blood on the evoker's cheek.
In response, Lazar steps back and casts burning hands, to include his green suited ally as well as Droogami, Lini and Dulcinea.
Runa, raising an eyebrow at Lazar's tactics, ignores the move and chants something unholy, causing a bit of doubt in everyone except Darathys.
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Kayanor shakes his head a bit, trying unsuccessfully to keep the dread at bay.
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"Owch! Look out, Droogami! These guys mean business."
The monk in green starts punching wildly at Lini, hoping to take the cat our of the fight if the rider goes down. Lini is too quick, though, and easily dodges the blows.
Even without understanding what is going on the snake is shaken by the spell. But he follows his master's order and using the space left by Dulcinea's acrobatic the moves through the windows towards the ennemies his master showed.
Droogami, shaken by the foul enchantment, answers the monk's flurry with a flurry of tooth and claw, punctuated by a swing of Lini's sickle.
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Dulcinea spins out of the way of the mage's blast of fire, turning a heavy burn into a slight singe.
She grins at Runa.
"Certainly, you can do better than that? I will give you a moment to consider your options. Your rude friend appears to be trying to set us all on fire."
Dulcinea steps up into the faces of Runa and Lazar, she cranes her head up towards the window, while still keeping her eyes on the two spellcasters.
"Are the rest of you coming? The gnome and I might finish our foes off without you! We have even conveniently cornered them for you."
She pauses to try to get a bead on Lazar, then thrusts directly at Lazar's center of mass.
As the snake climbs down, Kayanor shoots an arrow into the ground near the evoker.
Droogami tackles the monk, pummeling him and bring him to the ground. He is still conscious, but barely, and he is likely out of the fight.
Lazar is not evil, but that doesn't save him from a matching line of blood drawn by Dulcinea's blade on his other cheek.
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"Nice shot," Thessaly whistles to Kayanor's first arrow that takes down the big warrior. She grimaces at Dulcinea's acrobatic hurling-of-herself out the window and down to ground level... that's... not really feasible when you're wearing thirty pounds of rigid steel around your torso. Grnh. Kayanor's got the window claimed as an archer, and he's better at ranged than she could be...
Thessaly turns and hurries from the room, moving until she finds an open one with a window that looks out over the fight. She draws her crossbow as she goes.
Runa calls upon her deity to channel negative energy around her, which pours over everyone.
The evoker steps away from Dulcinea and draws a wand, which he points at her. A quick trigger word later, and a magic missile flies from the wand into Dulcinea's chest.
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Kayanor winces in pain, the color draining from his eyes. "you're next lady."
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Measuring Distance
As a general rule, distance is measured assuming that 1 square equals 5 feet.Diagonals: When measuring distance, the first diagonal counts as 1 square, the second counts as 2 squares, the third counts as 1, the fourth as 2, and so on.
You can't move diagonally past a corner (even by taking a 5-foot step). You can move diagonally past a creature, even an opponent.
You can also move diagonally past other impassable obstacles, such as pits.
Closest Creature: When it's important to determine the closest square or creature to a location, if two squares or creatures are equally close, randomly determine which one counts as closest by rolling a die.
Ydresus' spirit wasn't strong enough to resist the cleric's power and is badly hurt. Nevertheless uncouncscious of his mortality it follows his master's order and charge the creature in front of him.
"Oooow! Droogami! After the spellcaster!"" cries Lini, leaping off the leopards back to heal it's wounds.
Droogami will five-foot step and attempt to trip Runa.
The spellcaster (which one?) is torn and dropped prone by the cat, but still fighting.
Runa again calls upon her unholy god to channel negative energy.
Lazar blasts Droogami with his wand of magic missile.
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Kayanor is shooting from inside, so he's safe (and his HP isn't correct, should be 12.)
"So you choose death?!" another arrow streaks towards the cleric. for
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Droogami will five-foot step and attempt to trip Runa.
Badly wounded, Droogami will leap away (), limping as Lini casts a healing spell. "Hang in there, Droogami. Guard me." she says, slipping from his back and taking cover behind him.
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Darathys screams in pain as the double wave of negative energy floods his body and soul. The muscular taldan boy then moves forward, letting his rage take control over his mind. I won't let this goes unpunished! In his rageful frenzy, he draws closer to the woman who has used negative energy to harm him and brings down his greatsword on her. "Now you will pay! Take this! And this! Feel the fury of the reds!"
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As the tide begins to turn against our heroes, Darathys charges in and cuts both spellcasters in half.
After stabilizing and healing your own, someone surely searches your foes. Runa has a number of documents on her that explain that the an entire plot to kidnap Skagni, and use Hjort to tarnish the Pathfinder Society’s reputation in the Lands of the Linnorm Kings, was organized by a Shadow Lodge agent named Caggrigar and his man in Irrisen, the shadowy Vermund.
"Droogami you clever thing! Well done." Lini coos, as her companion purrs affectionately. Apparently sensing it's job is done, Droogami stalks off to find some place dry to nap.
Unconcerned about the dangerous predator she's just let loose into town, Lini sits herself atop Hjort and pulls a final sheaf of barley from her belt, weaving it this way and that into another corn dolly, a spiral shaped idol of woven corns, listening nonetheless to the contents of the notes. Careful to keep her creation out of the snow, lest the harvests under her care find themselves likewise snowed over. She eyes it approvingly. "Harvest's well and truly over now. Winter coming on. Irrisen's a truly frightening place. We'd best be prepared."
You all feel bloodied, but victorious, and report back to the Society on your progress. Others are send in to help you clean the mess up, and they are able to give you a little more information. It seems that they also have heard rumors now that Rognvald Skagni is perhaps still alive and a prisoner of the Shadow Lodge in Irrisen.
Your time in Trollheim ends quickly when they discovered clues leading to Whitethrone, the capital of Irrisen and home of Baba Yaga’s white witch daughters. You hope to find the kidnapped historian Rognvald Skagni there. Traveling across the border from the Lands of the Linnorm Kings into Irrisen is no small feat, but you manage it by joining a mixed caravan of hunters and merchants headed for Whitethrone on a diplomatic mission. The merchants warn you that Whitethrone has been up in arms against Pathfinders recently, and they would likely need to sneak into the city. Things were going well until terrifying ice trolls and soldiers of Whitethrone’s Iron Guard who, it seems, were not interested in speaking to a diplomatic mission, ambushed your caravan. You narrowly escape with their lives, though most of their caravan does not.
A biting wind blows from the north and snow blows in blinding drifts amid numbing fog. The bone-white walls of Whitethrone, capital of Irrisen and home of Baba Yaga’s white witch daughters, rises into the frigid northern night. Somewhere within is the Shadow Lodge headquarters hinted at in Trollheim where the poor historian Rognvald Skagni is being held. Reaching this point was a difficult challenge, but gaining entry into the city itself presents the greatest obstacle yet.
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Kayanor shows up with a shiny new bow. "I was wondering what to name her, as I think we'll be together for a long while. Then inspiration struck as I was humming a tune from Numeria I heard once. I shall call her, Hawkwind."
Looking over the city, the elf doesn't offer much of a plan, "Getting in.... I suppose we could try to talk our way in. Anyone know what it's going to take?"
There are gates in the walls, guarded by the Iron Guard. Merchants and travelers do occasionally enter, but only during the day.
Whitethrone is a bustling city of nearly 25,000 souls, with snow goblins, ice trolls, winter wolves, and worgs counted among them and possessing the same rights as humanfolk. The average daytime temperature in Whitethrone at this time of year is just above freezing and the average nighttime temperature hovers right around –5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Irrisen is 90% surrounded by imposing bone-white stone walls guarded day and night by the hardy and ruthless Iron Guard. The walls are 40 feet tall and climbing them would be difficult as there are no adequate hand- or footholds. (Entering this way would require a DC 25 Climb check, and stealth.)
Irrisen is a neutral evil nation and visitors would be wise to watch their step as they travel within the city—merchants are barely tolerated, foreigners even less so, and those seen as adventurers (such as Pathfinders) need to watch their step as their kind has a reputation for murdering monsters.
Whitethrone’s harbor on Glacier Lake is certainly the largest breach in the city’s walls, but it also presents the most difficult means of entering the city. Moving, churning ice chokes the harbor, breaking apart and crashing together without warning, sending the unprepared trespasser to a watery grave in frigid waters. The Royal Palace—the seat of the queen of Irrisen—sits in the center of the harbor. Constructed entirely of ice and reaching a height far above the surface of the water, the palace provides a clear view of the frozen lake below. (Entering this way would require survival skills and stealth.)
There is also a known breach in the wall in the Howlings district. The city’s Howlings district is home to most of the lupines who can walk in human form there due to the magics of Baba Yaga. You also know that it is completely insane to try this approach, as it is controlled by powerful beings and you don't have the contacts or bribes in place to allow unfettered access.
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Dulcinea now wears a fresh and shiny breastplate, and her buckler has been replaced with one of far better make.
"Whitethrone? I may have heard a bit of it."
She walks back and forth, though her movement and tempo are more akin to dancing than pacing.
[b]"A massive wall surrounds it, forty feet tall, so climbing in is difficult. Not to mention the Iron Guards that patrol the outside, of course--though I suppose I did just mention them? Ah well. Should we manage to sneak in, there are, oh, 25-something thousand inhabitants to worry about? Not just humans, either. Snow goblins, winter wolves, trolls, and so on live inside, with all the rights of humans."
She stops, spins, and grins.
"Sounds quite dangerous. I look forward to it."