"Hmm. Maybe I should stop by him first and make sure he's all right, then.
"Thanks for your help, Zara! I'll let you know when I find any mana ray tails!
"Goodbye, um, Damiano..." Felix's eyes dart back and forth between the crystal ball and the gargoyle before he leaves.
The statue flaps its wings at Felix and he sees now that the thing isn’t made of stone, just very rough skin.
With one stop at the dry goods store to buy a small tent (the centaur girl at the market waves at him as he goes by), Felix is ready to explore the valley proper. The first leg of his journey takes him along the road back to the pass and travels for an hour or so before spotting a very old and overgrown path leading south, from back in the day when it was still safe for townspeople to go to the lake themselves.
Felix hasn’t travelled far down the path however, before he hears a shout for help up ahead.
Felix points at the winged gargoyle with eyes wide at Zara, as if to say, "You saw that, right?"
On his way out of the dry goods store, Felix waves back at the female centaur. He'd stop and talk to her, but he's committed to reaching the lake before nightfall, and he'd also like some time to look around. He'll make a point to say hello when he's next in town.
Felix whistles a tune to a song that he has forgotten the words to as he walks along the road. He is excited that he's finally heading out on his adventure. When he reaches the bend in the road when it turns east, Felix pauses to fit his heavy shield to his arm and draw his sword.
He travels south along the path for only a short time before he hears the shout for help. His face lights up in excitement rather than alarm, and he heads towards the commotion as fast as his 20 foot movement rating will allow.
Felix bursts through some bushes to find a clearing ahead with a large, fallen tree. Next to the tree, he sees a pitiful sight.
Someone has set up a crude metal bear trap. Caught in the trap is a beautiful red fox with blood streaming down its leg. Standing on either side and taunting the poor creature, are two squat, green-skinned humanoids with tusked muzzles instead of mouths and holding crude maces and shields, that Felix recognizes from his correspondence course's Hero's Handbook as goblins. One of them swings at the fox, but the fox nimbly dodges to one side.
"Ha! You missed me, you worthless brute!" the fox says, disdain colouring his beautifully accented common. "I say, is there anybody there who could help me! Help I say!"
So intent on taunting the fox, the goblins don't even notice Felix until he's almost upon them.
Initiative
Felix is first, and the map link is at the top of the page. Let me know if it doesn't work for you, but you should be able to edit it.
His face alight with the unbridled joy of a toddler with a deadly weapon, Felix charges forward to wildly chop at the closest goblin.
”Ah, hello,” the fox says. ”My I am glad to see you! Oh, do watch out!”
The goblin easily jumps back from Felix’s swing. He and his pal move towards the adventurer, clearly planning to flank the young human, but not able to quite get into position.
Felix knocks one mace away with his shield and avoids the other.
”Oh, good show!” the fox cheers him on.
"Thanks!" Felix calls out between grunts from the effort of blocking the mace and his next sword swing. Dancing around his target to avoid being surrounded, Felix swings again.
Another blow bounces off his shield.
”Well done! Now he’s open.”
"Uh huh. Yep. Got it."
Though he doesn’t manage the crit, Felix’s slice is enough to leave the goblin bleeding on the forest floor. Unperturbed, the remaining goblin continues his fruitless attack.
”Hooray!”
"Hooray!"
Felix pivots and finishes off the second goblin with one thrust.
"Oh, I do say, well done all around. So happy that you decided to come along. Now, if it's not too much trouble, I don't suppose you could give me a hand with these jaws now, could you?"
Taking a deep breath of satisfaction, Felix pauses to look around at his handiwork before cleaning and sheathing his sword.
"That's what I'm here f--HOLY MOLY! You're a fox that can talk!"
"Hey there. You're a human that can talk and you don't see me making a big deal out of it, do you? Now, about this trap?"
"Because it's the standard that humans can talk! I've never even heard of a fox that can talk!
"Unless you're saying that you know of lots of other foxes that can talk? Like maybe they keep it secret for whatever reason? But then why would you suddenly be okay with talking..."
Felix blinks a couple times to bring his focus back to the moment and then kneels down to try and open the trap far enough for the fox to remove their paw.
The fox flexes his paw a few times, tries to put weight on it and grimaces. He sets to licking the wound, which, as if by magic, begins to close over. When he's finished, the wound is completely gone.
While he's licking, he says (somewhat unintelligibly), "Oh no, regular foxes don't talk. I'm a talking fox. Been that way my whole life. Nerissel's magic did it. I'm one of her agents, watching the forest, warning of danger. Too busy looking for danger, I didn't see it until I'd stepped in it. Filthy goblins and their filthy traps. Are you hurt? I didn't see either goblin land a blow on you, but if you need a few licks, just let me know. Anyway, I'm mighty grateful that you saved me from that trap. I'll tell Nerissel about you. If your heart is pure and you wish to be a friend of the forest, the White Stag will appear to you. Follow him, and he'll lead you to Nerissel."
"No, I'm no hurt, thank you. Who is Nerissel? Are they the hermit that lives on the lake? What other sorts of danger are in the area?
"I'm Felix, by the way. I'm an adventurer."
”Pleased to meet you Felix. I’m Red. And no, she is definitely not the hermit. Nerissel is the dryad who watches over this valley. Stick to the south and she’ll send her stag to find you, if she thinks you’re worthy. Remember, there’s always someone watching. And a word of advice for you: at always pays to be polite, even to someone rude.”
Red scampers to the edge of the clearing. ”As for dangers, it’s no fun if I tell you now! See you later.”
Felix watches Red slink away into the woods.
"Wow. A fox that can talk!"
Felix sees if the goblins were carrying anything interesting, and then he continues along the path south towards the lake.
One of the goblins must have been the big loser at the poker game last night: not a coin on him. His buddy, however, has an even 10 gold coins.
Felix continues along the faint path for another few hours. A roaring sound announces the presence of falling water well in advance of the adventurer breaking through the tree.
Spielberg Lake is a picturesque body of cold, clear, blue water extending right up to the base of the mountains. Far to Felix’s left, where the mountains curve around the water, a thundering cascade drops from two hundred feet up. He sees no obvious signs of a hermit.
Hearing about something similar in adventuring school, Felix walks along the edge of the lake until he's as close to the waterfall he can get while still on dry land. He's hear tales of people finding treasure hidden behind waterfalls, so he definitely wants to check this waterfall out himself.
There isn’t any obvious way by dry land to get behind, and Felix is sure trying to swim would be the death of him from hypothermia. Fortunately, he doesn’t need to. Next to the waterfall, twenty feet up, is a narrow ledge, and carved into the cliff face is a large stone door. It looks heavy and like it would swing out wide. The roar is almost deafening and the spray has made the rocks and ledge slick and treacherous.
Felix feels at the rocks with his hands and even tries to haul himself up a foot or so, but quickly realizes that the climb is beyond his abilities. He backs up to stare at the door. It seems an odd place for a door, especially on such a narrow ledge. He wonders if it's only one door to whatever lies behind the rock. He takes some time to search the area, looking for another door, cave, or anything of interest.
Felix finds no other entrance and no obvious way to signal his presence to the resident. It’s not like he can just knock on the door from down here, can he?
Felix wonders if there's a resident behind the heavy door in the side of the rock. And maybe they'd be willing to chat?
Felix looks around for some rocks that he can throw against the door as a rude substitute for knocking.
Hypothetical resident. There are lots of rocks suitable for throwing. The door’s AC is 5.
Felix picks up the very best door-knocking stone he can find, and just frickin' nails the door with the rock.
RAP!!!
Judging three knocks is appropriate, Felix follows up with a "Hello!" that is probably drowned out by the waterfall, but he wants to give a resident enough opportunity to hear him. He'll wait about 30 seconds for a response before moving on.
Felix is right in that the road of the waterfall obscures his shouts, but the three loud raps on the door are enough. The door slowly swings open wide and the shortest and hairiest man Felix has ever seen pokes his head out to look around. Glancing down over the ledge, he shouts,”[b]’ello there! Come on up! EU MAGICAE!!” he shouts with a wave of his hand, and a wooden ladder suddenly appears leaning against the cliff face. Felix is quite sure the ladder wasn’t there a moment ago, as it is only just now beginning to get damp from the spray.
The hairy man ducks back into the cave but leaves the door open.
Felix exclaims "Wow!" but the sound of the waterfall drowns him out once again. He climbs the ladder and enters the door.
"Hi there!"
“‘Ello. Come in, come in. Good to see you again. Get's kind o' tiresome sitten here an' thinken by meself all the time. 'Ow are you? 'Ave we met before? I'm 'Enry the 'ermit, ‘Enry the Eighth I is. Me Farther was an 'ermit, and ‘is farther was an ‘ermit, and ‘is farther was an ‘ermit, and ‘is farther was an ‘ermit, and ‘is farther was an ‘ermit, and ‘is farther was an ‘ermit, and ‘is farther was an ‘ermit, and me Murther was an 'ermit sos I come by me job rightly. Don't 'ave too many visitors. 'Ermits don't, you know. (Part o' the job description.) I likes to see a new face, though. Good to 'ear anurther's speaking besides meself. Sos wot can I do for you?"
The cave itself is damp and clammy and smells of wet dog. There’s a rickety table with two rickety chairs, in one of which sits the short hairy man. A channel carved into the east wall carries running water from the waterfall outside. On the opposite side of the cave, a large niche has been carved out for a bed and another for a hearth which roars merrily and does nothing for the cold. The only consolation is that this place must be quite comfortable, if damp, in the summer. A large pile of somehow clean straw is the only other feature in the room.
"My name is Felix Riffin. I don't believe we've met before.
"I'm an adventurer! I just arrived in the Spielburg valley, and a little while ago I encountered a fox that can talk!
"Also, I'm vying for a Hero title that's being offered, so I'm going around gathering things that anyone might need. I had heard from one of the castle guards about you, and since I needed a reason to get out of the town and start exploring, I thought I'd come by and introduce myself and see if there's any reason you might need an adventurer."
”Need an adventurer? ‘Ardly. I am an ‘ermit, I is. Gots ta be self-sufficient. We ‘ermit a keeps to ourselves, we do. Quiet, private folks is we ‘ermits. A 'ermit is one wot lives alone, far away from them wot talks too much or asks too many questions. 'Ermits are shy, quiet types wot don't say much. Me brother 'Arry 'ardly says a word in a year. Me sister 'Ortense 'asn't spoken since she were six. I never talks at all. Yes, we 'ermits nose how to keep a mouth shut."
When Felix can get a word in, he'll respond, "Okay, that's fair. But you also live out here where the action is, so maybe you know of someone else with a problem I can work on?"
’Fraid not! I really don’ts get out much. Don’t ‘ave many callers neither. Erasmus an’ Fenrus pop by ev’ry now ‘n’ then, ‘n’ the brigand warlock comes for tea ev’ry once ‘n a while.”
"You have tea with a brigand who's also a warlock? Isn't that dangerous? There's a reward out for him, you know.
"Who are Erasmus and Fenrus?"
"E's not so bad. Got a good sense o' 'umor, 'e 'as. I get the giggles just to think of 'im. He heh he heh he." He continues to giggle for quite awhile before he gets himself under control.
"E's me friend, 'e and Fenrus. Powerful wizard 'e is. Fenrus is Erasmus' familiar or is that the other way around? I 'ear 'is 'ouse is sumthin' to see up north. I don't make it out much, and 'e's pretty busy, sos I don't see 'em too often. But when we do all get together, you can be sure we'll 'ave fun. 'E loves to play 'is games, 'e do.”
Felix recalls that he has heard of Erasmus before. He needs to do a better job of remembering all of these names he's heard.
"The warlock is a nice guy, huh? Good to know. Where is the bandit camp located, actually? Are there a lot of them?"
”I ‘asn’t a clue, an’ yep, a nice guy. ‘e borrowed the magic mirror wots I borrowed from Erasmus. Reflects nasty spells back at wot cast ‘em. Do unto udders, I always says!”
‘Enry doubles over with giggling.
Felix is beginning to doubt if Henry 'Enry is as good as friends with Erasmus and this warlock as he says he is.
"Well, it's good to meet you. I should get going. Is there anything nearby that's worth seeing before I leave the area?"
”Well, there’s them Flyin’ Falls next to me cave. I’ve done sun flyin’ falls meself: porch gets mighty slippery! If you get a chance to head north, I ‘ear Erasmus’ ‘ouse is quite summit to see. If yer in the neighbour’ood and it’s gettin’ dark, I’d be willin’ ta put you up fer some rations and a few games o’ cribbage.”
"That sounds like an offer I shouldn't pass up!"
Felix agrees to spend the night.
2 days.
After having traded some rations, which the 'ermit promptly swallowed, and spending a rather boring hour of cribbage and listening to 'Enry chatter, Felix hits the hay. Unfortunately, since the fungus on the walls shines at night so the room doesn't get dark, and the fact the hermit talks most of the night, he only gets five hours rest. Felix is fatigued today, limiting him to 4 hours of travel rather than 8 or he will be actually fatigued, should any combat occur.
Felix tries his best to be cheerful towards Enry, but his heart really isn't into it as he dons his armor and says goodbye. He opens the stone door and announces "EU MAGICAE" to see if he can get the ladder to appear.
Whether he conjures the ladder or his host does, Felix climbs down it and decides on a whim to head west, away from the lake, trying to stay within 100 feet or so of the valley wall.
The ladder doesn't appear for Felix, though 'Enry is happy to bring it out for him. Felix turns west and makes his way along the valley edge. The cliff is quite sheer for most of the way, with occasional stretches of gravel-strewn slopes leading to a sheer cliff higher up. Chunks of basalt dot the landscape, but the shade from the cliff edge and the large, robust trees minimize undergrowth, making the wilderness trek easier than it otherwise could have been.
The lack of sleep starts to catch up with Felix, of course, and he finds himself making several stops along the way, once even dozing off for a few minutes against a fallen tree before he catches himself and jerks himself awake. Fortunately, he wasn't eaten by anything during that time. Still, he doesn't make great time and by mid-afternoon, is starting to think about finding a place to camp for the evening.
The sound of whistling up ahead puts a stop to those plans, however. Peering through the trees, Felix sees a man crouched on the ground tending to something in front of him that Felix can't see. The man wears the same kind of armour as the brigands that accosted Felix at the mountain pass, and he can see a spear stuck point down into the ground an arms' reach from the man.
Felix doubts he can successfully sneak up on the man. He crouches down and tries to figure out exactly what the man is doing. If he's tending a fire, it could mean more brigands. He occasionally looks behind him.
Watching for a few minutes, Felix sees that the man is field dressing a deer.
Felix decides to wait for the brigand to finish dressing the deer. Perhaps hauling the deer on his shoulders will give Felix time to approach the man before he fires an arrow or calls for help, especially if the man carries the deer back this way.
He has a spear. It's currently stuck in the ground next to him.
Felix waits a good fifteen minutes as the man finishes his task. Unfortunately, though he lifts the wrapped meat up onto his shoulders, he doesn't come that way, but heads further west.