GM Cellion's Rusthenge + Seven Dooms for Sandpoint Double Feature

Game Master Cellion

Autumn wearily nods in agreement with the others, as though seeing the night sky makes her realize just how tired she is. “A bed would be so nice,” she says while trudging after the others, crossbow in hand.

I’m assuming Vildran provided everyone (except Morga) a light.

Assume lights all around when desired.

You travel through a shrouded night, pale pool of light around your group from Vildran's magic. Fatigued as you are, just putting one foot in front of the other as you trek is all you can muster, and every sound in the wilderness around you is another half-imagined nightmare. The path down the plateau is especially treacherous under these conditions, but you're lucky enough to keep your footing and not tumble into the dark expanse.

What you don't however realize is that the path you're taking has diverged from the one you took to ascend. You find yourselves on a winding ledge that keeps promising to return to ground level but doesn't get there. You continue, expecting to see the familiar sight of farmhouses and fields, but instead just find the path continuing. Just as you think about turning back, a growl rises from somewhere awfully close by.

Four furred humanoids drop down from ledges above your path, cutting off your retreat on both sides. Swords and sickles and javelins are ready in their hands and they seem poised to pounce. Even in your exhausted state, your senses were sharp enough to hear them moments before they landed, so you're ready to recieve them. Everyone except Vildran at least. Map updated!

|||| INIT ||||
San
Morga
Autumn
??? Furred Humanoids x4
Vildran

Party: Fatigued

Looking back and forth between the foes nearest him and their counterparts threatening Vildran, San decides to tackle his problems first. Hopefully Morga can mount a defense until he can help.

Snapping his bow up, San fires two arrows at the closest furry fiend. Not really a fiend but... alliteration! Seeing no other option, he swaps his bow for his spear, ready to receive their advance.

Strike vs Yellow x2, Interact to take out spear

Shortbow (M): 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (12) + 16 = 28
Damage: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (4, 3) + 2 = 9

Shortbow (M): 1d20 + 16 - 5 ⇒ (8) + 16 - 5 = 19
Damage: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (3, 1) + 2 = 6

Reactive Strike if they advance to melee?

+1 Striking Elven Branched Spear (E): 1d20 + 14 ⇒ (8) + 14 = 22
Damage: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (3, 1) + 4 = 8

As soon as San looses a pair of arrows at their attacker, Autumn instinctively raises her crossbow, aiming at the same furry creature. But with the elf preventing her from getting a completely clear shot, she shifts her sight left and pulls the trigger, launching a quarrel at the ambusher’s companion. She follows up with a quick spell, painfully prying into the other target’s mind with intangible tendrils.

◆Strike Red with crossbow
Crossbow attack & damage (P): 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (18) + 12 = 301d8 ⇒ 1
If that's a crit, she will activate her Predator's Claw for a crossbow's critical specialization effect (1d8+1 persistent bleed)

◆◆Cast Phantom Pain (2nd rank) at Yellow. Will save DC 21
Mental Damage: 4d4 + 2 ⇒ (1, 3, 3, 2) + 2 = 11

Morga just sighs. It's one of those days. She casts Bless, then raises her shield, grumbling: "You're going to regret this."

◆◆ Cast a spell, ◆ Raise Shield (AC 23 w/ fatigued)

Indeed, the furry ambushers immediately regret their attack. San lands one shot on yellow barely a moment after the creature has raised a sickle towards him. Autumn punches a bolt into red, delivering a small but bloody wound thanks to the talisman on her crossbow. Yellow fails against her mental trickery and begins howling in pain.

While Morga bolsters the group the yellow ambusher rushes for San, earning a spear in his leg for his trouble. This only makes his agony worse, and he takes it out on San, swinging sickles left and right. Once catches his arm (9 dmg) while he parries the other. Yellow shakes its head but isn't able to clear the lingering effects of Autumn's spell. Red tosses its javelin at San, but its aim is way off. It follows by rushing in and trying to grapple him, but only stumbles into San. (Crit fail on a grapple, so you can decide to grapple it, or you can choose to have it fall prone) Its only stroke of good fortune is that its wound bleeds only briefly before stanching the flow.

The other side of the fight goes only a little less favorably. Blue rushes at Vildran with whirling sickles, catching him with a second swing that gashes his side (8 dmg). Green leaps forward to grab and pummel Vildran, but the wizard manages to dodge its lumbering swings.

|||| INIT ||||
San (9 dmg)
Morga
Autumn
Vildran (8dmg)
Yellow Furred Ambusher (35 dmg, 2d4 persistent mental, sickened 1)
Blue Furred Ambusher
Red Furred Prowler (8 dmg)
Green Furred Prowler

Party: Fatigued, Bless

Prone would be great!

San takes advantage of the furred creatures mistake by turning on it and shoving it to the ground. He follows this up with two quick thrusts while trying to figure out what these things even are. Looking around and seeing he has nowhere to go, he strikes out a third time.

Combat Assessment ◆, Strike, Strike; society +11, lowest save then weakness. Target red first, then yellow

+1 Striking Elven Branched Spear (E): 1d20 + 14 + 1 ⇒ (13) + 14 + 1 = 28
Damage: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (6, 5) + 4 = 15

+1 Striking Elven Branched Spear (E): 1d20 + 14 - 5 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 14 - 5 + 1 = 14
Damage: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (3, 2) + 4 = 9

+1 Striking Elven Branched Spear (E): 1d20 + 14 - 10 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 14 - 10 + 1 = 7
Damage: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (4, 5) + 4 = 13

Taking advantage of the red-furred creature’s ungainly fall and the blessing from Morga’s goddess, Autumn channels an arcane bolt through her crossbow, phasing through San on the way to its target. Then she turns and fixes one of the ambushers behind her with an intimidating glare, as if warning him against coming any closer or pursuing further attacks.

◆◆Cast Phase Bolt at Red (prone)
Phase Bolt attack & damage (P): 1d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 11 + 1 = 295d4 ⇒ (4, 2, 4, 2, 3) = 15
◆Demoralize Blue (Intimidating glare)
Intimidation: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (7) + 11 = 18

If red survives and stands back up, Reactive strike!

+1 Striking Elven Branched Spear (E): 1d20 + 14 + 1 ⇒ (2) + 14 + 1 = 17
Damage: 2d6 + 4 ⇒ (4, 3) + 4 = 11

San skewers a prone prowler, finishing the creature off with a critical hit. He gains a flash of insight as he defeats it, realizing these furred creatures are bugbears and also recognizing that they're likely weak willed despite their fearsome appearance. San strikes twice more at yellow, but the bugbear fends him off with its sickles. Autumn blasts the same yellow bugbear with her phase bolt, slaying it!

In moments you've opened up one path of retreat if you need it... though it seems like you won't at this rate.

Morga and Vildran still up.

|||| INIT ||||
San (9 dmg)
Morga
Autumn
Vildran (8dmg)
Blue Furred Ambusher (frightened 1)
Green Furred Prowler

Party: Fatigued, Bless

Vildran is desperate to dodge the swings of their sickles, and the gash catches him off-guard.

Not good...

He carefully steps away

◆ Step South

and points his staff back at the furry humanoids

◆◆ Cast a spell (from staff): Breath Fire (15 cone over GREE and BLUE)
Fire damage GREEN and BLUE, DC21 basic reflex: 2d6 ⇒ (5, 5) = 10

While she has a spell that would hit both remaining attackers, it's loud enough to alert the whole ecosystem to their presence. Preferring *not* to attract every potential predatory/curious person and creature for miles around, Morga instead opts to send a Divine Lance at the frightened-looking one.

Divine Lance vs. frightened Blue: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (16) + 11 = 27
Spirit damage: 4d4 ⇒ (4, 3, 4, 3) = 14

Then she steps up, allowing Vildran room to scoot behind her. She growls at the attackers: "Run."

◆◆ Cast a spell, ◆ Step

Absolutely wrecked.

The ambusher critically fails to shield himself from a wave of flame originating from Vildran, getting badly scorched. The prowler fares little better. Morga's divine lance strikes the large bugbear's spirit directly and leaves it weak.

Frightened and near death, the blue bugbear staggers away and then turns and runs from the fight. The other remaining bugbear proves to not be on the same page. It yells defiantly and tries to grab Morga. When it can't find purchase it goes to punch her instead and finds her knocking its swing aside. It's only then that it starts backing away.

|||| INIT ||||
San (9 dmg)
Morga
Autumn
Vildran (8dmg)
Green Furred Prowler (10 dmg)

Party: Fatigued, Bless

Yes, run, you're smart to not like fire.

He incants another bolt of flame at the braver furred creature.

This one will learn too.

◆◆ Cast a spell (from staff): Ignition vs GREEN
Spell attack GREEN (bless0, fire damage: 1d20 + 11 + 1 ⇒ (15) + 11 + 1 = 274d4 ⇒ (3, 4, 1, 1) = 9
Critical Success The target takes double damage and 3d4 persistent fire damage.

◆ Cast a spell: Shield

"If the get away, they'll just ambush more people." San stows his spear and takes his bow out again. Carefully aiming between his friends, he fires off two arrows.

Shortbow (M): 1d20 + 16 + 1 ⇒ (16) + 16 + 1 = 33
Damage: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (1, 2) + 2 = 5

Shortbow (M): 1d20 + 16 - 5 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 16 - 5 + 1 = 17
Damage: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (4, 4) + 2 = 10