You wake from the most wonderful sleep that you have ever experienced. The night seemed a welcome respite from the daily struggles of life in the yard. Downstairs, a hot cider of some type is brewing. You can also recognize the sweet smell of meat from the night before along with a new smell of bread made from ground meal.
As each runner completes their morning ritual and gathers downstairs to partake in the morning meal, they notice that the often over-confident tiefling, Cythraul is not among them.
Capra greets them with warm mugs of the hot drink, ”Good morning, I trust everyone enjoyed a good night’s rest?
Capra responds, ”The morning seems like your best option for success. There always seems to be a calm after every disappearance. Perhaps you will catch the vile creature in his slumber. Take rest upstairs for tonight and in the morning, we will aid you up the stairs and into the temple.”
Capra’s offer has you sleeping in a makeshift bed inside of a makeshift structure. The former being the most comfortable that you have ever been while the latter seems fairly indestructible. It is clear that the village has a knack for forging and building.
Capra smiles at the tengu’s crack. Then turns to address Jorrick in a soft, but serious manner. ”The priest was once a very caring and strong pillar of this community. In Holm, we honor the Daystar. It provides us with warmth and protection from the dangers of the dunes at night. One day, three raiders and a sorcerer rode into our settlement and demanded tribute. Our small militia was able to fend them off, but the sorcerer put a curse upon the town. That very night, Holm experienced its first abduction and the red eye appeared next to the temple door. We have being dealing with this problem ever since. I can tell you, as one who sits upon the council, Holm would be much appreciative of any help resolving this matter. Along with gaining favor here, you would have an eternal welcome and be rewarded with a decent portion of the town’s resources. Will you aid us?”
Capra looks at Hollowe and encourages him to eat. ”Go ahead, eat.”
She then turns to Jorrick and answers his inquiry. ”Lizard man, to be more precise. Although I have never personally seen the creature, it is rumored to be one powerful creature that emerges from the temple to snatch some poor being, almost nightly. Most believe that it is some strange and wild magic possessed by the high priest, who allegedly sleeps by day and preys at night. Folks are busy barricading themselves inside their huts right about now. It’s bad for business I tell you! Holm needs to be rid of this menace, whatever it is. I know that for certain! Now eat up while the stinky dwarf still feels generous.”
It is fairly easy to tell that the large human is somewhat low-cognitive. He works away at a pile of hemp rope and stones. ”I’m making a net. I’m going to catch that lizard man and keep him from hurting people.” The stable hand kindly replies to Tortok and even smiles after his reply.
The old woman just weeps into her hands softly as the newcomers pass by.
Grotbaard leads the way into the cantina, pushing aside the makeshift door. There is a middle-aged blonde halfing woman working behind the bar and about three patrons preparing to eat the steamy meal.
Thick clay platters hold stacks of hot, stewed meat and root vegetables dressed in spices. None of the runners have ever known such bounty.
”Cappy! It is good to see you!” Grotbaard shouts out to the women.
”Grotbaard, you stinking heap. I thought the dunes took ya!” the woman replies, ”Come, eat. We’ll catch up after the meal.” Capra, the halfling woman turns back towards the bar to grab a giant clay pitcher of ale for her guests. She points for them to have a seat at a long, mostly empty wooden table.
The woman responds to Jorrick first, ” While I have never seen it myself, folks say that a scaly snake-man with large claws lurks around the village looking for victims in the middle of the night. Some of the victims have been children. Are you here to help?”
Next, she addresses Karsha, ”Many in the village believe that symbol is a ward of a watchful eye, letting us know that we are being judged for our shortcomings, but who really knows?”
Grotbaard pauses for a moment then shrugs. He makes a wide berth as he passes the woman as if she was afflicted with some highly contagious disease before securing his rig inside the stable.
He turns to the others, ” Let us take rest and nourishment inside the cantina and perhaps learn a bit more about this temple creature in the process. What do you say? It’s on me.”
”It is almost dark. It will happen again. Our high priest is barricaded himself inside the temple. Something strange happens at night. Every night, a villager goes missing. It’s him! He transforms himself into some hideous monster and takes someone back inside. Be warned. This place is cursed!”
Grotbaard appears alarmed, not remembering the village in this state when he was here last, which was obviously some time ago.
Perception 20:
The woman is dressed in some tattered garb that resembles that of a shaman. There is a large symbol painted in blood on the top of the pyramid above its opening of an eye.
Beyond the gate is a small cantina with a rudimentary stable next to it. The stable is empty, but a rather large gentleman is working away at crafting something.
Breaker and Gryggax easily find the mylar containers of salt. There are also several five gallon containers under the preparation countertop used for water storage. They are about 24 inches square with a depth of about 12 inches. The blue plastic containers have a circular opening at the top near one side with a six-inch diameter.
The dwarf and his construct stand guard by the door.
Blacklock determines that the ship was well-stocked and equipped to sustain a full crew of eight beings.
All seems eerily quiet as the recruits set to work mixing the concoction of salt and water inside the jugs.
Hollowe learns that the metal cylinder is a telescope that allows him to see pretty far across the dunes. Karsha comes to find out that the flask contains a healing elixir. Kentalla is able to retrieve the arrows along with the dagger and spear. There is little else possessed by the creature.
The night in the small canyon is cold, but uneventful. In the morning, the runners and Grotbaard pack up what little they have and head west along the edge of the dunes with the high, red stone walls to the left. They walk nearly all day spotting no signs of life.
There is a small bend in the cliff wall that quickly opens up into an area not unlike their yard, but many times larger. There is a village occupying the open area with a large stepped pyramid in the center of the mud huts that surround it. A small market exists in the courtyard that is created in front of the pyramid by a lack of huts there.
You can notice a forge at the mouth of one of the caves to the right. The entrance to the village is choked off a bit more than your old yard. The formation of it along with a crude gate made of junk scraps makes it difficult for predators to enter the village.
It is only a few hours before dusk. There is an old woman sitting at the gate, sobbing and trembling with fear.
The crew enters what seems to be a food preparation area. The ready-made rations look like they are in rough shape, but there are many other foodstuffs that seem to be well-preserved. There does not seem to be any dangerous entities at the present moment.
Apologies for the long hiatus. There were no good signals in the woods and then I contracted a tick-borne illness. Hopefully everyone still wants to play.
I am leaving tomorrow to work at scout camp for two weeks. The availability to internet will be spotty to non-existing. I can guarantee at least two posts during that time period. I am hoping that this is not a game killer as I have this world fleshed out pretty well and I am very excited at the possibilities that the settlement has to offer. Hopefully this will just be regarded as a hiatus for you and we will return to enthusiastic game play when the two weeks have ended.
I will be working at scout camp the next two weeks. Internet connection will be spotty, but I can guarantee that I will post at least twice. I am hoping that this doesn’t kill the game. I still plan on completing the current book and hopefully the complete AP. I am hoping that this will just be a hiatus for you and you will enthusiastically return after a slow two weeks.
Kentalla’s arrow finishes off the fleeing creature. Jorrick’s dagger ends the victims of his spell for good.
Hollowe’s search yields a bone dagger per creature and one small bone spear. The taller reptoid has a pouch with a cord of black, shiny chips strung on it. There are about ten chips in all.
Assuming that you follow the dwarf to his cart, I will continue below.
Grotbaard leads the runners carefully along the path in between the high, smooth cliff walls and the end of the dunes to the left of the group. The full moon provides enough light to make it safely. After about two hours of walking, the party does indeed find an alcove in the high cliff wall in which lies a winding sort of small canyon. Wide enough only to fit two to three people abreast.
Winding their way back in there a ways, the dwarf stops in horror as he discovers the rotting carcass of his camel, dried and pressed to the ground. The cart is still intact.
”Fraga! “ The dwarf cries out before lowering his voice to a mere mutter, ”How long was I gone?” he asks himself out loud.
After a time kneeling in front of the deceased beast, Grotbaard gets up and rushes to his cart. The cart contains two chests, both locked. Using his tools, he opens one of them and quickly pulls out a water skin and some flat discs of bread, tearing into them nearly choking, the dwarf sloppily satisfies his hunger and thirst.
The moon lights the small canyon from above.
”I will be off to Holm in the morning. You are welcome to join me. In case you would rather not go, let me get you the reward that I promised, although, truth be told, I would appreciate the company on the journey back there.”
He reaches into the same chest that he opened to get the bread and water and retrieves a metal cylinder and hands it to Hollowe. He hovers over the chest and pulls out another cord of ten black, shiny chips and hands it to Jorrick. He proceeds to grab more things, one for each of the runners. To Cythraul he gives a bag containing two water skins and ten discs of flat bread. To Tortok, he gifts a fancifully stitched, but sturdy backpack. To Karsha, he gives a flask of some sort of purple liquid. Finally, he retrieves a shiny short sword with a jagged razor edge and gives it to Kentalla.
Please except these gifts as tokens of appreciation for liberating me from my captors. They should come in handy on your journey whether you stay with me or go your own way.
Grotbaard builds a small fire to warm up the group and pulls a bedroll out. Sadly, he looks for loose stones to cover the body of his deceased camel in a mound shape.
I’m unsure if I can sleep, but if you are staying, can we take shifts watching out for any dangerous creatures looking to cull us in what remains of the night?
Weary, Grotbaard does lay down with his face away from the rest. You can tell by your experiences from the yard that he is softly crying.
Altogether, the Noqual sums up to 3 bulk and is worth 1, 500 credits.
The computer responds with ”No signs of life forms”. You do not spot the Ambassador’s special cargo anywhere on the bridge. With the exception of the engines and the AI, the systems seem to be functioning normally.
Two creatures fall unconscious immediately. A slightly taller one is able to shield its eyes as if it anticipated what was going to happen. It flees as well leaving the runners in a vast wasteland outside of the cavern entrance under a full moon and a gentle, but cold breeze.
Grotbaard points to his left, the direction opposite from which you hurriedly arrived here and says, ”This is the way that I must go to find my cart and hopefully, my camel. I left it hidden in a small canyon before I approached this place. You are welcome to follow me. I did promise a reward. At daybreak, I will make the journey to Holm, the nearest settlement.”
While still reeling from the wound, Boris doesn’t feel the pulsating pain indicative of the intruding parasite. Perhaps the beast did not have a chance to inject its symbiotes.
Breaker easily re-establishes all life support and lighting systems, shutting down the dim flicker of the emergency back-up emergency light system. However, he cannot override the security of the ship’s log security measures. He does recognize a slot, and when the system requests a security card clearance, he figures that the missing card must be with the missing team.
Shards of Noqual litter the floor of the bridge.
Boris directs Digdig to cover the door while the team investigates the bridge.
For your specific question, it's the internet, and people are going to flake. Almost all of the time, it's nothing personal about you and your game; they just get busy and stop checking the forum. Prevention is worth a pound of cure: background-checking your potential players before choosing them is the best way to avoid people who are likely to disappear on you; however, I've had long-time posters who have been reliable players for years disappear as well. Life happens.
If your players are posting elsewhere but not in your game, you can PM them and ask if there's something about the game they're not enjoying or would like you to do differently. General advice from strangers is less valuable than specific feedback from the people involved.
This is great! Thanks Joana. PbP is definitely not like face to face table top. I have learned that quickly.
You can hear the smack and echo of the sling stones hurled at the first few out of the cave. A spear is thrust by the two that Cythraul and Grotbaard are new as they get charged by them, but to no effect.
The earth explodes under the creature at 10 o’clock that just launched a sling attack, thrusting into the air creating a blood mist as it is ripped apart by the force of Tortok’s powers. Karsha tries to get a bearing on the beasts before acting.
So, how far are we from the enemy? Am I able to target any of the enemies with color spray(15 foot cone) without catching allies in its area of effect?
There are 5 creatures surrounding you in a semi-circle as you leave the cavern. The moon is full, so you can see their silhouettes. They are about 20 ft. away. The cliff is at your back. There are creatures at 10, 11, 12, 2, and 3 o’clock.
In a coordinated effort, Breaker and Blacklock eliminate the last Akata on the bridge. Reeling from his injury, Boris seeks help from Gryggax again. ”Hey Mystic, how about giving me another hand with this bite again?”
The bridge is quiet, but the system still needs to be fully restored.
Grotbaard takes the spear head from his belt after retrieving it from the pressure plate and launches it at a reptilian silhouette just twenty feet away.
1d20 + 13 ⇒ (10) + 13 = 23 1d4 + 5 ⇒ (1) + 5 = 6
A squeal indicates the death of the intended target, as Grotbaard rushes to the body to retrieve his weapon and prepares to engage another creature.
Grotbaard hurriedly leads the way with Cythraul right behind them. They quickly lead the party through the door when all of a sudden, incoming slingstones assault the party.
The stones mostly miss leaving little more than a scrape. It is still dark outside of the cavern, but the moonlight assists you in making out about five or six silhouettes in the darkness, short humanoids with reptilian features arranged in a semi-circle in front of the cave opening.
Boris again feels the painful sting of the razor-sharp teeth entering and exiting his flesh.
Boris responds with a wild hack at the last remaining creature.
Attack:1d20 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9
The counter-attack is in vain as the injured dwarf swings above the head of the beast missing entirely. Gryggax shot also misses, one second behind Boris's response.
Round Four
Blacklock, Breaker
Akatas
Gryggax, Boris
Thank you both. I’m looking for a place to bounce around general ides, not really AP specific. For example, how do you keep players from disappearing during pbp on you?
I’m an old school DM, AD&D, 2nd ED, etc. maybe players are different these days and require something more than I used to wield back in junior high? Stuff like that.
If you want to stay, go ahead. I need to find my cart and camel, then backtrack to a settlement that I visited...days...weeks...maybe months...a while ago. You are welcome to come with. It was a small village, unusual temple, many nice people, goods to trade for. Are you coming?
Grotbaard, with the head of Hollowe’s spear tucked into his belt, utilizes the tools quickly on the chute to secure the stairs, Hurry, this way! he calls as he heads up toward the rune-carved entrance. You can hear movement behind you, but it hesitates to catch up to where you are at. Grotbaard turns to look at you and says, What was the sequence that gained you entrance to the cavern? Impatient, you don’t get the chance to answer before he speaks again, Nevermind! he mutters quickly before taking the head of Hollowe’s old spear and jamming it into the pressure plate on the floor. Won’t matter now, come on! Hurry!
Grotbaard addresses Kentalla first while moving carefully toward the exit tunnel.
These ‘machines’ are warriors forged from bones, metal and wood, powered by magical gem shards. The shards are very valuable and sources of great power. To possess one can be the difference between life or death in some settlements. I’d like to find my camel and cart and get to the nearest settlement to recoup. Besides, I need new weapons.
The dwarf hopes that his explanation to Kentalla would be enough to placate Jorrick as well. He does remark on Karsha’s statement. True, there could be useful items down those tunnels, but at what cost? These creatures ain’t much fear fighting, but their traps can be deadly. Me, I’m anxious to get back to my cart. If you choose to explore them, I will meet up with you outside, but I am leaving at sunrise as I suspect my water has probably been pilfered.
Boris directs Digdig to rush onto the bridge, charging the akata with the flaming blade of the Doshko in a whirl. He fearlessly attacks the alien canine.
Grotbaard takes the spear from Hollowe, quickly snaps off the head and then throws the shaft to the ground muttering, ”I’ll fix that for you later.” Quickly he moves in to the humanoid construct and starts to whittle carefully at the blue gem.
A jolt of energy rushes through the creature in an instant and it suddenly begins to come to life, posturing as if to stand up. In the same quick second, Grotbaard has the gem pried free and the creature falls lifeless to the floor. The dwarf cuts a piece of cloth from the tapestry and wraps the gem inside, tying it off quickly with a loose piece of sinew.
”That was a close one,” he speaks as if talking aloud to himself. ”Follow me and let’s get out of here.”
Grotbaard talks quietly as he leads the way back through the tunnels to the cavern with the three stalactites explaining that before this place was infested, it was a temple. The construct was placed as a sentry by a powerful sorcerer who lives in the north.
At the cavern, you recognize the chute that you went down is now stairs again, but there are also two tunnels to the left that remain unexplored.
Are you following the dwarf out of the tunnels and back into the open desert? Or would you like to explore the tunnels?
When I GM, there is nothing I hate more than botting. But yes if you are willing it would be nice to at least finish the first book. But if you are tired of the pbp shenanigans and want to end it, that's understandable.
Yes, I’m not a big fan of it and truth be told, I’d rather be a PC than a GM. Most of the blunders here belong to me. I already have the other books and would ideally like to finish the campaign. I knew going into this that there would be some turn over, just not as much as there has been. I really liked these four characters, and would like to keep going with the campaign beyond the first book.
I am willing to recruit a replacement for Boris, but after that, I would probably fold if another drops though.
Sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm going to need to drop out of this game. Good luck everybody!
I’m sorry to hear this. I really loved Boris and Digdig, great concept, backstory and very entertaining as well. I felt like this group was starting to gel. Feel free to PM me if you have any grievances or concerns. You will be missed. I appreciate the fact that you are informing us rather than just disappearing as seems to be the fashion on the boards.
@Everyone else, I don’t think that we can continue with just three players. We can pause and recruit, end game or bot Boris, if he allows at least to finish up this book.
Right you are Breaker. Strike the attack and damage from the Akata at your rear flank, you killed it. Apologies for the mix up.
Blacklock, you may use your attack against one of the animals on the bridge.
Save against Fear:1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13
The Akata that Gryggax challenged mentally paces back and forth nervously, trying as much as possible to avoid the intruders. That is the one on the top of the screen, port side bridge.
Grotbaard nods with thankfulness that Hollowe allows him to proceed. He takes the spear and steps up to the tapestry, slowly pushing it to one side.
The movement of the hideous curtain reveals an alcove, a semi-circular, carved out into the rock, about eight feet high and six feet wide, The rotting partial carcasses of three of the lizard creatures, sloppily stacked in front of what looks like a fairly large humanoid construct manufactured from bones mostly. It has four arms and a small quantity of metal dispersed throughout its body including three blades at the end of three of the hands.
A blue gem the size of a fist glows faintly in the center of its chest. It is seated against the wall in a manner that appears as if it is resting.
”Aye, this is what I came for,” the dwarf mutters to himself.
Grotbaard looks at Hollowe before trying to relieve the anxiety of his liberators.
" I caught a glimpse of what was behind there early and I think that it is some sort of machine that only activates when it is touched. If you will allow me, I will assume all of the risk."
"After, I will help you escape this place. They took my weapons though."
Blacklock's pistol trick is flawless and the charge finds its target hurting it terribly.
Immediately following the pistol attack a burst of cone shaped fire unleashes from Breaker's outstretched hand exploding onto the Akata. It welps in pain, but does not seem to be as hurt as it should be for such an immense attack.
The badly injured Akata leaps quickly towards Breaker snapping its jaws tightly upon him.
[00c]Breaker, in my mind, I can't resolve that you would be an organism susceptible to void bite. Make a fort save anyway, but I don't think it is possible for an android to contract the disease.[/ooc]
To the dismay of the dwarf, Gryggax shuts the door to the bridge drawing sharp criticism for his actions. The dwarf reopens the door to engage the Akatas inside.
Boris, if you would like to make an attack before I end round one, you can. I am treating the grenade as a surprise round attack.
Another of the beasts has come to attention because of the explosion and races down the hallway to engage you. It moves aggressively towards your rear flank.
