William shoots at the giant ankheg along with Aerel.
Benedict takes advantage of the hobgoblin's charge and hits both times. The cavalier stands strong, however, and retaliates.
Grum misses once but his follow-up swing connects. The wolf is wounded but continues to fight.
The ankheg reels from the massive amount of damage, as two of Aerel's arrows hit, all of Williams' and both of Amkarang's strikes land. Though grievously wounded, it lashes out at the enemy within range of its mandibles -- Amkarang!
Aerel continues to fire at the over-sized acid-spewing insect.
Benedict dodges the cavalier's swings and attacks again. He keeps moving his feet, wary of the enemy's weapon, and lands another solid hit.
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With a grin plastered on his face, Grum sidestepped the wolf’s lunge, taking across its legs as he did so. Once it fell he brought the sword around, over his head, and then down with all of his might. Blood sprayed over his armor and face, and yet still the smile remained. Feeling intoxicated, he turned to find another victim.
William concentates on the enemies left standing and starts firing.
Amkarang just barely manages to defend himself from the ankheg's bite before retorting with a devastating flurry of high-speed steel aimed directly at the massive insect.
Benedict strikes the hobgoblin once hard, but his follow-up doesn't connect.
Grum fells his foe, and the archers plus Amkarang bring down the massive ankheg. William sends his second arrow to the hobgoblin facing Benedict, wounding him further, but his third doesn't connect.
Alone and wounded, the hobgoblin spits in defiance and throws himself at Benedict, trying to bring him down before he is slain.
His attacks are feeble despite his defiance. He is slain in short order.
Benedict will quickly loot the hobgoblins of their weapons and potions, then get out of the hole and back to the main battle.
"Well done, all. That bug could have wreaked havoc on the defenses."
The siege continues to rage on the streets and against the walls of Longshadow. However, as the last of the tunnellers fall, a quiet descends upon the tunnel. It's dark, and stretches on for a considerable distance though it's impossible to tell without exploring it further.
As it stands, it's a means for the hobgoblins to bypass the walls by going beneath them.
But is it also a means for the heroes of Longshadow to reach the hobgoblin tower without crossing the expansive killing field built up by their siege engineers?
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The wan light of morning provides no respite for the defenders of Longshadow. As the sky lightens, the hordes of assailants are revealed -- even more legions have poured through the black tower over the course of the evening, and this time, there will be no rest during the light of day. Archers and crossbowmen stay ready and vigilant to cover a continued assault against the walls, knowing that a continued press will eventually overwhelm the exhausted defenders regardless of the fortifications. It will prove a costly victory for the hobgoblins, but it becomes evident that they are willing to pay whatever price to achieve victory.
William points down the tunnel, "That is the way we need to go. We have to stop more of them coming in. We should warn them of the tunnel above and where we are going."
"I agree, William. Let's take the fight to them."
Benedict first finds an officer of the city guard.
"We go to strike at the enemy command post. Hold the walls until our task is done - we will not fail you. Nothing else will come this way down the tunnel while we are heading that way towards the tower - we will kill any hobgoblins in our way."
He will then use the second function of the Lyre of Building, warding an area within a 300' radius of the Lyre against any an all structural damage for the next 30 minutes.
"Ready to go. Let us be off."
"Shall I scout?"
"Not a bad idea. Take these if you need them."
Benedict brings out an Elixir of Hiding (Party Loot has 5 total) and a Potion of Heroism (Party Loot has 6 total).
"William, if you have any long-lasting spells or scrolls, don't forget to use them.
If we see Kosseruk, we should throw everything we have at her."
Benedict would like to use a Potion of Heroism once we get close to the enemy base.
The city guard that Benedict summons looks at him in a mixture of hope and despair. The light of the morning has shown how hopeless this town's defense of the siege will ultimately be. The hobgoblin forces are not letting the beleaguered defenders any further respite. Could striking at the heart and head of the hobgoblin war machine be the gambit that will save them?
"We can hold the Legion at bay without your support only until we begin dropping from exhaustion -- twelve hours, maybe a day," he tells him. "I'll let the mayor and the Rangers know. We'll do what we can to keep the walls up. May the gods go with you."
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The tunnel is a long, dark corridor that stinks of ankheg spittle where its acid has dissolved the rocks and earth as it burrowed its way here. It stretches for hundreds of yards in a mostly straight fashion. Aerel scouts ahead, but finds no invaders. The sounds of battle fade and it becomes a long, quiet walk through the darkness.
William nods to Aerel and says "That's a good idea. My light will give us away long before we know someone is there so it would be best for you to stay out ahead and let us know if there is anyone there."
Aerel's scouting finally reaches the end of the tunnel, having encountered no creatures or enemies within. He emerges blinking into the daylight, realizing that he's on the opposite side of the black tower at the center of the hobgoblin's encampment.
A dozen cages of iron and timber fill this area, alongside another two dozen stout iron rods driven into the rocky soil and strung with chains as thick as an orc's arm.
The pens are empty, except for a huge, blue scaled serpent that has six arms. It is prowling the grounds, sniffing at the air and growling at the distant sounds of battle.
This is a behir, a magical beast that has a lightning breath attack.
Aerel tells the others before he heads down the tunnel, "Time is of the essence, so don't wait for me to come back and report in. Just keep coming, I will go until I cannot move further."
When he gets to the end of the tunnel, he pauses to listen intently before stepping into the light.
Upon realizing that a creature, a potential alarm system for the enemy, waits nearby, the elf waits for his allies rather than stepping forward and drawing its attention.
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”I have an idea. And it might just be crazy enough to work.” Grum said. Not waiting for the others he boldly walked forward, and pointed at the creature. ”I suggest you let us walk past you without you while you ignore us!”
His voice was tinged with latent magical power. The question was, would it work?
The monster seems to understand Grum's words, but it's a territorial beast. It hisses in challenge!
It races up to Grum and the others and sends a line of crackling electricity out through the orc warrior, Benedict, and Amkarang!
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Under his breath, Aerel hisses, "Gods above and below, Grum, do you have to do everything the stupid way?" Louder, he says as he shifts positions, "I could have snuck us by! Spread out, don't let him line us up again!"
Benedict drinks his Potion of Heroism as soon as daylight is visible.
So, when the creature attacks, he has at least that going for him.
He move up and strikes with his flail.
It is a wild and inaccurate swing.
William drinks his potion of heroism when Benedict does and readies his bow.
Upon seeing the scaled creature William ponders what it is as Grum strides up.
He moves into the open and takes aim at the creature and fires and arrow at it.
Aerel will drink his potion of heroism and maneuver to make sure he's not lined up with his friends as he prepares to fire his bow next round.
Amkarang isn't able to avoid the blast of electricity, and he winces as the crackling blast strikes him.
He advances around the creature, getting on the other side of it to avoid and more lightning blasts, swinging twice with dubious effectiveness.
Grum lands a solid hit but the electric charge of his weapon does nothing to the behir. William's arrow sinks deep into its flesh through a tiny gap in its scales and it roars in pain and fury! But the massive beast's hide resists all the other attacks the heroes throw at it, so it still lives.
It chomps down on Benedict as he runs up to it.
Unfortunately, the behir's powerful jaws snatches Benedict up and into its coiling body!
Its body ripples as it unhinges its jaw, then gulps down the tactician in one swallow! Benedict suddenly finds himself inside the monster's gullet, being crushed by strong muscles and gizzard stones!
Benedict will draw his dagger (it comes in the Pathfinder's kit and he has used it a few times in the past) and try to cut his way out.
Aerel tries to find a softer spot in the creature's hide and pound a brace of arrows through it.
The behir's meal doesn't sit well in its stomach. The sharp point of a dagger pokes out of a gap between the behir's underbelly scales, then slashes outward. Benedict slips out through the gash and tumbles to the ground, covered in goop.
Even though Aerel's second shot glances off the behir's hide, his first cluster of arrows finds the spot where Benedict had emerged from. The arrows disappear into the beast's belly, eliciting a pained scream.
Grum flubs his first strike, but his follow-up slash is more than enough to end the threat of the gigantic magical beast. It shudders and collapses to the ground.
The monster's screams have drawn the attention of the denizens of the cluster of tents to the north. An entire troop of minotaurs have assembled, and look ready to fight!
"William, Aerel - open fire on them!"
Benedict draws and drinks a healing potion.
Seeing the large group rushing them, William pulls out a wand and points it at the group and a fireball erupts in their midst.
Aerel will try to focus fire on one of the approaching minotaurs.
The fireball explodes in the midst of the minotaurs while Aerel's second shot rips into their ranks.
They march forward while drawing javelins from quivers on their backs. They then hurl them in streaking lines that requires the heroes to dive out of the way!
Benedict draws and drinks another potion.
Aerel reaches up and plucks a bead from the simple strand around his neck and he throws it in the midst of the approaching foursome before retreating to a position behind Grum.
"Spread out!"
William bears the full brunt of two sets of javelin throws. He fires another fireball at the group and moves to make it less likely to hit multiple of the group.
"Spread out!"
The fireballs explode, but the minotaur troop seemed ready for the blasts.