Unrak walks up and swings at the creature!
- Round the Second
- Current HPs: 33/33
Zed produces a miniature shovel from somewhere amd weaves his fingers in an intricate dance of magic. A Spiked Pit suddenly opens up directly beneath the creature's feet.
20ft deep
2d6 spike damage
DC 20 Reflex negates
Zed then directs his earth elemental to ready an action in the event the creature somehow escapes the pit...
to send the beast back to the spiked pit's spikey spikes.
Zed's spell follows Unrak's heavy swing, and the hodag roars its way down the pit. Taranis then engulfs the creature while the others safely back away. Before the monster can do much else, the churning waters and its spike-filled confinement put an end to it.
A few seconds later, the pit vanishes and the corpse is raised back from the extradimensional hole.
Searching the lair, you find:
- three handaxes
- one greataxe of masterwork quality
- one suit of magical armor, which Zed identifies as a +1 studded leather armor
- a magical spear, which Zed identifies as a +1 keen spear
"Risky! Risky but effective Zed. I'm guessing by the gear in here that we're not the first to attempt to fell such a beast."
Taranis looks carefully at the spear, "Such craftsmanship I've never seen in person. This must be Stas's spear."
The baron suggests spending some time mapping near the lair, but returning with proof of the Hodag, "We've done a lot this month. Maybe after mapping we return home."
”I could use some healing, friends.”
You spend the next two days thoroughly exploring the area and adding its features to your map-in-progress.
There is a bit of sun to greet you through the clouds at dawn on [color=teal]15th Kuthona[/color]. Taranis estimates that Solasgaard is a five days' ride, maybe six, if you go back the way you came.
"Let us go East, and then home. We'll get at least a basic idea of what is just West of Solasgaard."
The Huntsmen press eastward, exploring and mapping more of the Narlmarches. On the morning of [color=teal]18th Kuthona[/color], Baron Redleaf gathers the others to assess their progress.
"Let us return to Solasgaard. We've done good work here."
The Huntsmen ride back in to Solasgaard a week later without meeting further incident on the road. Tired, muddy, and disheveled, they hang their cloaks in Castle Redleaf and meet with Akiros, Kesten, Jhod, and Oleg to learn of any happenings in town during their weeks away. Fortunately, Kuthona has proven to be a quiet month. Svetlana Leveton joins the meeting with her husband and warms you all with a bowl of her now-famous moon radish soup.
Augrym takes over the completion of the quests. He first brings a little bit of piece of mind to Stas. Assuming the man doesn't want the head, it'll make a good bit of taxidermic art in the castle. He also does whatever he'd like in giving Lily what she'd like.
Taranis joins Augrym in going to Lily. He lets Brother Augrym make the trip as personal as he'd like, but the Baron suspects there's potential in the lass. He tries to get a read on her before making an offer of apprenticing at the castle with potential for more.
Augrym is accepts the aid for his sense motive check and attempts aid for diplomacy.
Augrym and Taranis find both Stas and Lily at the Witch Hex, the former at the bar and the latter waiting tables.
"You found it!" Stas cries, slamming down his flagon and staring at the spear. He picks up the flagon and rams it into the man next to him. "See, I told you. Fought off that hodag myself, I did. Keep it lad, keep it."
Lily is likewise joyful at your find. "Ooooh, how pretty! For me? You're so sweet. Hold on, let me fetch your reward from the back." She takes the statuette and eyes it lovingly as she heads the back room. A moment later she returns and proudly hands you an old, worn but functional cloak . "And I believe there was something else listed as a reward..." she giggles, stepping up to the half-orc and kissing him full on the lips. "Come see me again, alright?"
She gets back to work. You get the sense that Lily is a woman who knows how to get men to do what she wants...
You spend the last few days of the year preparing the festival for the Night of the Pale. The mood in Solasgaard is cheerful, and the citizens are eager for what the new year might bring.
In the morning, 4720 AR is upon you.
Upkeep Phase
Declare Baron's modifier (Economy, Loyalty, or Stability).
Roll Stability Check.
Consumption has been deducted from the treasury.
Roll Loyalty Check to reduce Unrest, if desired.
Edict Phase
Declare Spymaster's modifier (Economy, Loyalty, or Stability).
Assign new leadership or fill vacancies, if desired.
Claim up to one new hex of territory, if desired. This hex must be fully explored to be claimed.
Abandon any number of hexes of existing territory, if desired.
Pay for up to two terrain improvements to existing territory, if desired.
Pay for construction of up to one new building in your existing settlements. The construction of a single house, tenement, noble villa, or mansion does not count against this limit, but must still be paid for.
Raise new military units, or upgrade existing ones, if desired. Pay any recruitment costs.
Issue any new edicts as desired.
Augrym accepts the gift embarrassingly and awkwardly giggles as well.
"Yes, m'lady. I shall visit as soon as my duties to the realm and to great leader brother friend Taranis allow it."
Income Phase
Withdraw resources from the treasury for personal use, if desired.
Deposit personal resources into the barony's treasury.
Roll an Economy check for tax collection.
Event Phase
No event
Zed oversees a booming month.
After attending to the business of state, the Huntsmen take the roads east, then south across the Gudrin River Ford on [color=teal]10th Abadius[/color]. Here, the craggy hills appear to go on for miles, dotted here and there by thin copses of trees.
"Let us map the area."
You spread out to signalling distance to explore and map the local area. After a quarter of an hour...
Inside is no woman. Instead, a strange creature with the body of a lion, the hooves of a stag, and the head of a badger leers at you with a jackal's grin. It moves to pounce!
Initiative!
Round I
1. Taranis
2. Creature
Taranis is going to stay a bird and withdraw (upwards) From a safe spot he'll fly towards the party, fifteen minutes isn't that far. Once there, he'll alert the party and lead them to the cave in human form.
Even while beating a cautious retreat, Taranis cannot avoid giving the creature a chance to sink teeth into bird flesh. Fortunately, the Baron's armor gets in the way.
MISS
Taranis circles the skies to find the others and returns to the cave, Huntsmen in hand, an hour later. The cave is empty.
"Huntsmen. A strange beast befell me here. It was a strange creature with the body of a lion, the hooves of a stag, and the head of a badger. It leered at me with a jackal's grin! Zed, does that sound familiar?"
"Come brothers, let us search its lair and then hunt it so that it cannot lure another."
Taranis pushes the party into the cave to search it, then moves to find the beast's tracks.
"I know this creature quite well good leader brother friend Taranis.
Augrym identifies the creature as a leucrotta, a consummate hunter with a penchant for mimicry. A leucrotta will often stalk its prey at length to learn their names and habits.
Searching the cave does not take long -- more a crevice than a cave, really. Identifying the leucrotta's tracks on the hard, hilly terrain takes all of Taranis' considerable skill, but to his dismay, a light snow begins to fall an hour into the chase. He continues for as long as he is able, enlisting the help of the others and of Toth, but by mid-afternoon the trail is impossible to follow.
Unrak rumbles This will be a problem. We don't want this thing around, picking off innocents. We have to figure out how to find it and bring it down. Think we could set up a trap, using some of the party as bait?
Frustrated by the snow, the Huntsmen split out to signalling distance again to map the area. The winter days are short, however, and you already lost much to the chase, so it is not long until you regroup to camp for the night.
Sometime in the dogwatch, your faithful watchman Augrym hears a call from the darkness. "Augrym, come here," the voice of Taranis instructs.
Augrym feels a strong urge to follow the voice... but he has not succumbed to it. Yet.
”HUNSTMEN!!!”
Pauses for a moment to wait for Taranis’ attention.
”I think I had a bad dream...”
Taranis answers in a whisper. He speaks as he wakes his companions.
"Was it a maiden calling for aid? Come everyone, wake up. The Huntsmen ride. Augrym. This is the ... what was it? A Leucrotta? Aye. Let us find it."
After quickly waking, Unrak says in a low rumble this thing is a hunter; it's trying to pick us off one by one. If we all go after it, it'll fade. We need to lure it somehow. Maybe somethign like this...
He then makes a show of stretching & laying back down, while grumbling loudly Dammit Augrym...quit with the belly-aching!! Finish yer watch and let me sleep ya great baby!!
Unrak then lays back down, staying awake )
[ob]"No brother, the creature doesn't hunt with fang and claw, else I would agree. It hunts with magic, magic that nearly got Augrym. The creature is the size of a horse! We can follow it. I'm not sure how it evaded me last time, but it should be easy to follow."[/b]
I'm not sure how Taranis failed the previous night, but we should have this. It's why we have the skill :-)[/ooc]
The big warrior stops partway down. OK, let's do it your way. I've got something of a new trick that should help me close with it if it starts to run away...
Unrak gets up hefts his sword, and makes ready to follow the hunting Huntsmen.
"Zed, send Aurora up to get a head start. Grab your valuable gear, and let's go. We'll come back."
we'll come back. Leave it.
"Agreed. Leave it! Come, before we lose any more time! I think it covered its tracks last time, perhaps we can catch it quickly."