I'm going to give you each a spoilered intro; throwing it together now.
Then, when you get fused with the rest of the party,......I'll fugue you into the main game thread.
Liek:
You are back home in The Warren. You can remember back to more peaceful times, but lately the orcs have been active. You cut your eyeteeth and then some fighting them, to protect The Warren.
You've lost a lot of friends, and family to their incursions, and you've come up fighting, and that's how you'll go down you've decided.
One day you're meditating.
Cheev, a junior warrior and cousin, taps you on the shoulder.
"Sorry, sir. Sorry to interrupt. Forgive my forwardness.
Skaalt bade me give you his summons."
Skaalt, who gave you the name your eggmother picked for you on your namingday, who identified the sword in your soul; who taught you to pull it up out of your hand, who taught you to use it in battle.
Skaalt, The Warren Prime.
Leik will cease its meditations and answer the summons. Must be important, it muses.
Ragnvaldr:
Many of your folk go south, to earn gold in raiding and bring it home to buy a freehold or employ huskarls, to perhaps jockey their way up the ranks in the feuds that never end, maybe even hoping to take a linnorm and earn a jarldom.
You, on the other hand, wandered, trying to follow Pharasma's inspirations.
Journeynig in the southlands, you've heard that Ustalav has a long and unfortunate history with your most hated foe the undead. So you felt Pharasma had put this information in your path, and fought your way across the northernmost parts Belkzen and the Land of the Mammoth lords,........along with a band of would be sellswords heading southward looking for employ at that which the Ulfen are known to trade in just as dwarves are known to trade in steel......that product which is mayhem.
You've found the Ustalav folk to be typical "southern civilized folk...." duplicitous, two faced, fairweather friends one and all. And the Ustalav are particularly xenophobic, especially to other creeds of men.
But,....the Ulfen are also known for their adamant refusal to lie or break an oath (rightly or wrongly), and that fact, along with their skill in battle, makes them useful and highly desired as hired swordarms.
Or axemen.
And so, as Pharasma has led you, you stand before a tent by the side of the road, before a heavily paunched, scarred fighting man of Ustalav, who is flanked by two
swordsmen. It's a small encampment of about 20 men by the side of the road, flying the Banner of Ustalav.
"You looking for work, Ulfen?" he asks. He takes a draw of his pipe, and stares up at you from his seat.
None of them look all that hard to you, except for this guy.
Liek:
He leads you to Skaalt. Skaalt sits in Skaalt's chamber wnext to a table of crystals scattered about, nearly always busy with the demands of The Warren. It's protection, feeding, nurturing,........
"Liek. You responded quickly. Good.
I've been watching you with much satisfaction. You polish the sword and your soul well. You kill numerous orcs. Through your skill and blood and charf the Warren is protected.
But.....there are other warrens. Some, are not protected. Some do not thrive.
Chaaalor!
Another enters. Chaalor looks quite venerable. Left antennae missing. Chaalor's chakras feel to be gloamish, and Chaalor's chitin seems moulty.
"I am Chaalor. I was The warren prime. The warren is no more.
I am Chaalor, of the Warren.
Skaalt speaks up.
"The warren was overrun by orcs. Chaalor is now part of the Warren.
Many of the warren's sons were taken by the orcs."
Chaalor speaks up;
"The orcs took many of the warren. The warren is no more.
They were taken. A scout saw, and followed, and observed.
Chaalor's warren was taken east, and they met humans.
The humans gave the orcs money.
The humans took Chalor's dromites.
The humans took Chalor's egglings.
The warren is no more.
Chaalor is part of the Warren."
inboxed you a question! nooooooo
"Then I must return the egglings to our people."
Leik:
Skalt says, "go to Lepidstadt. It is east of here. The egglings were brought there.
Lepidstadt is a Warren of humans. It is a city, but it is like what humans use for Warrens."
Chaalor hands you an antennae ring.
"one of the egglings was my eggling. My eggling has a matching antenna ring.
This will lead you to my scion. It will help lead you to Lepidstadt."
Ragnvaldr:
I......people interrupt me at home, and I forget where I was at in reading something.
I guess, I need to back up and find a new tack.
Ragnvaldr, take two if you will:
Forget the first intro piece......
You have spent some time at the Echoing Halls of Lost Divinity, a monastery on the fringes of the Shudderwood where your ilk train.
Two months of training in an extremely regimented spartan lifestyle......waking up to pray long before the sun rises,.......weapon drills, calisthenics, followed by long hikes, or hours in the cramped library studying the ways of your most hated enemies the undead,.....two long months of copying manuscripts,.......two long months have left you lean and hungry and your muscles beat into wood.
You get a call from the Head Abbot long after evening vespers.
He's a withered old thing, sitting at a desk next to a depleted candle, a desk scattered with piles of books and old manuscripts.
He looks up at you;
"aaaah. Brother Ulfen," he croaks.
"Brother Ulfen,......I have one question for you. Do you believe in fate?"
Leik takes the ring and places it on his antennae. "I shall leave our warren and return with your eggling, and as many others as i can."
Leik:
Skalt walks over; touches antennae with Chaalor.
"I trust this one. He will not fail the Warren.
The Warren will grow, and thrive, and egg a new Warren."
Chaalor nods at Leik.
"Any questions?" they both say in unison, a product of the minor mindlink brought about by touching antennae.
"No questions. The time has come for action."
Leik gathers its belongings and heads out.
Liek:
you head out.........over the broken lands, and into the hills.
Traveling for days, you see no activity, until an orc patrol. They're about 7 in number. They're nonchalant, grunting loudly, smacking eachother around; doing jock stuff.
You're able to hide behind a tree as they wander westward and you head east, a good 150 yards north of your position.
They don't make you.
If i had more time, i would burn them all..... Leik muses to himself. Regrettably he must continue forth, lest the egglings get farther out of his grasp.
Liek:
You get to a riverbed, in the forest.
There's a fallen tree that serves as an impromptu bridge of sorts.
It's small, but........you're not exactly The Jolly Green Giant...
I cross the log and continue on, undaunted.
Liek:
Ragnvaldr:
"You can have a purpose without fate....."
Liek:
You see one goblin. They were trying to stealth you.
The other one succeeded.
It shot an arrow, which hit for 4 hp in damage.
Initiative.
beat a
and.......here's a map.
let me know if you have any questions........
Liek:
They both plink arrows at you and hit.
Take a total of 5 in damage.
Your move.
move action: create mind daggers
standard action: total defense. (+6 AC)
Leik:
move: 20ft towards them.
standard: defense (same as last time, +6 AC)
Liek:
They attack with morningstars. The bowmen drop bows, and rush up.
They miss.
Liek:
move1: to move back 10ft on the log draw alchemists fire on the move
Free:drop one dagger (dismisses it)
standard: throw alchemists fire at goblin so as to catch them all in splash besides the one i direct hit: ranged touch
fire dmg. 1 splash to the others, Reflex DC 15 negates, 1d6 to the direct hit one next round
Liek:
One goblin down.
They spread out. One shoots a bow again. He hits you for 2 hp.
move: imbue dagger with psychic strike
standard: throw at nearest goblin (attacking defensively, +3 AC on top of normal AC instead of the +6 from total defense)
possible crit
daggers are x2 on crit, and not sure if psychic strike is doubled. it doesnt say one way or another, but i know more often than not, extra damage is not doubled. it isnt precision damage though.
Leik:
One fires an arrow and misses, and skeedaddles. The other one gives you the finger and runs as well.
move: summon 2 daggers
standard: total defense
Leik:
searching the bodies.
then i will find a place to rest to gain some HP back.
Leik:
There's some tree copses hereabout.
Leik will rest, then continue on its journey.
If Leik meets a traveling merchant he will try to sell the stuff he picked up, otherwise he will save it until town.
Leik:
sweet
anyway, I gotta crash. I'm wiped.
Check you guys on the flipside.
catch you tomorrow!
Ragnvaldr:
He sits quietly for a while.
then cryptically;
"Just,.....humor an old man his musings I guess."
He sits there, looks beaten.
Then,
"There are.......events transpiring in Lepidstadt. Sure you've heard snippets here and there.
The Beast of Lepidstadt, a giant.....manlike thing,......has been captured and placed on trial for his....many crimes. The place has turned into a carnival as the......citizenry await its execution.
I have......visions......perhaps, that there is more to it than that.
And so, I send One of us. To see that.....justice is indeed performed.
Oftentimes, one of our number was all that was truly required.
And the rest, well.......I still actually believe in fate. Someone has to still.
Pharasma's blessing on you, son."