rollohi-ch509-script

Timeline Still day seven, month two of spring. In the world above, the Whispering Woods are enjoying relatively fine weather, but below, deep in the chasm into which the river plunges, there is no way of knowing what the weather is like outside. All is dark and seemingly deserted. 

Last episode on Rollohi:

The great company descending for a second go at the chasm is worn thin by a series of random encounters, including a disastrous piercer drop, which killed outright one of the new recruits, Clover. Several of the company are walking wounded only, having received giant centipede stings, rendering them useless for any other activity. 

However, we are going to join the rump of the company, those who, having either been fully healed or taking scarce damage, and including very strong fighters, are ready to keep exploring. They leave behind them a weary remainder in camp, including Ingle and Umbert. The Scouting Rump does not push forward, instead it backtracks, trying to find that original southeast nook off the main entrance, and there it runs into Stirges again. For this second go-round with Stirges, those with longswords find they can parry or slice apart two at once. A good chop from a shorter weapon might do two. A longsword possibly three. A swatting shield, however, will only handle one. In terms of reserve hit dice, there are 20 reserve hit dice between these powerful adventurers on the Stirges, and there are 20 Stirges. And I'm happy to report that all of the Stirges are swatted out of the sky. 

Turn 22, the part cleared area, the Nook, still contains the mess left from the earlier exploration. But no one wants to dig through the filth. Instead, I ask, do the halflings sneak to the access door north? No, they just stay. Instead, the party continues down that southern arm past the note towards where they know that the river part drains away to a lower level. They also know that there's a southern access panel that lets behind all of these ledges. This time, when I asked the Oracle, do the halflings stay with the party? The answer is no. They know this panel, it's the one that they went in originally, and Cied leads the way in, intending to arc around. 

The main party continues heading south towards that broad ledge. And unfortunately for them, three giant ants are currently exploring that ledge. But in the meantime, the sneaking party, at about the same time that the main party sees the ants, runs into an attack from above. A gecko. A giant cave lizard. The gecko snaps with a d8 and misses. 

Round one. Initiatives. The lizard wins. The lizard scores a crit, but in this case, not surprised. It could be parried. However, it needs a crit parry. If you have a d6 weapon, then you must roll a six. And Pod expends all of his hit dice reserve and does manage to parry it. The halflings inflict 10 damage. Cied critting. 

Round 2. The lizard wins the initiative and simply flees, staying to the passage roof. 

Kylie and Elion lead the main group around to where the ants might be able to be approached with some kind of advantage. A broad ledge is to their backs here, but it appears to be bare. The halflings are sneaking around the access and murder holes behind these giant ants. All of these murder holes have been blocked up on the original run. But they do have the option of using the furthest access panel, a third one, to pop out and make attacks on the ants. And perhaps unfortunately, because at present the ants are still uncertain, this may be what Cied does. Undismayed, the halflings continue on, emerging on the far side of the ants. They can use that access tunnel to skirmish out of it. One halfling per round though. 

It's time to roll a new morale check for the uncertain ants. It's still eight, uncertain. There's a whistle from behind the ants, signaling that the halflings are about to attack. 

Round one. The characters win the initiative. Elion hits for two, and Bram from behind the ants hits a different ant for two. The ants are angry. The ant that was struck by Bram's arrow charges him, but it's too big. It can't get through the access panel. The other two attack the Pavises, protecting the vanguard. One Pavise is partly damaged. Eryn and Xantu score on both ants and kill them both with a solid hit each. 

Round 3. Cied crits, dropping that ant to 5 hit points out of 13. Kylie rolls a crit, the ant dies. 

"We should 'aul away Stinger poison and burn it as an ant-idote" Pod puns. Kylie takes him seriously and agrees vehemently. She thinks that burnt ant parts will be an effective deterrent to more giant ants. 

And so, during turn 23, there's some laborious ant mining to chop out poison sacs or at least something that could be burnt. 

During turns 24 and 25, the two parts of the whole company are reunited. Now there remains only the more remote parts beyond that piercer-haunted gallery and the sealed hallway behind the door, of course. But it's time for rest. 

Wood from the crates is used to supplement the fuel that they have, and ant-repellant dust is now created. 

All slightly injured after the rest are now deemed fit. The walking wounded recover, and the clock ticks in to day two down in the chasm. It is day eight of month two, spring. 

And what you may be wondering has the Orc Chief been doing? As I implied last episode, the company is shot with luck. The Orc Chief, down on the next level, had indeed been getting reports as the company drew near, but he misinterpreted the situation. Instead of ordering forays from the guard post, where he is relying on a secret door and trapped passage to protect his access, he decides that secrecy is the best defense. He orders his guards to pull back behind the trapped doorway and leave no trace of their presence or of the secret door. The guards do the first part, but are slovenly and certainly do leave traces of both their presence and - if someone stops to look at those - tracks of the secret door. 

Turn one. We begin with Staff of Healing for two of the company that healed up to some extent overnight, but not completely. These are Truebrag and Xantu. They cannot be further healed today. 

The company has been resting in a cavern with a secure rear and cross passages allowing defensive fighting should they be attacked. Things went quietly overnight for reasons that we now know, and they are now ready to shake out and explore beyond those disastrous galleries where centipedes and pierces reigned supreme yesterday. In terms of supply, the company is now in full health, fully reformed, with repaired pavises, but critically low on cresset oil. 

And at this point, as they spread out into three broad galleries beyond those two, they discover the traces left by the orc guards. I confirm this with a roll on the *one-page location crafter.* The trackers significantly, the company has quite a number of these report. "Threatening multiple." 

Remember the company's fought orcs in the village and knows what their boot prints look like, emerged from and retreated into the wall here. The last gaps of these galleries are explored, and in turn three, Kylie spots the presence of the hidden door without difficulty. The halflings count maybe four or fewer guards, more likely to be orc than other creatures. 

Turn four, trap checking from Jack. He finds that the door is locked, and he rolls 04 on locks against his 35%. Having opened the door and inspecting for traps, he immediately finds a lever or lever, depending on your language group, next to the door. It's in an upright position. And that must mean something. Ingle steps forward and casts Find Traps. The entire roof glows. Experimenting with the lever, Jack rolls 01 against his 30% of Disarm traps. This must be something his thief mentor taught him. With the lever moved to engaged, the roof glows less brightly. 

Turn 5 to turn 6. Rest time and discussion amongst the eight adventurers on whether to retreat or... 

*Case 1. Search here. If there are stores of oil and preferably more food, then keep going. This is the most likely. 

* Case 2. Search for enemies in case these creatures decide to completely block this area, as they did for the other door. Then pull out to resupply. This is the somewhat less likely, and if I roll a 3 or 4 on a d6, that would be the option. 

*Finally, case 3. Return everything as it was, as though the door is still a secret, and leave. This is the least likely by far, representing a twist on their possible action, and would only activate if the majority vote 1 on a D6. 

The first option, the more aggressive, is voted for by the front rankers Eryn, Kylie, and Xantu. However, while Pod opts for the cowardly, I should say not cowardly, precautionary return everything it was, cover it all up, and pretend they never found the secret door, the other four opt for the second option. So the vote is cast. 

I ask the Oracle, do they also ask the company reps to speak? No. So it's option two: Search for enemies in case these creatures decide to completely block this area, as they did for the other door, then pull out to resupply. 

Turn seven. Jack scouts forward. A relatively narrow but extremely well cut passageway this, to a locked door in the west. He locates a seemingly identical lever but leaves it alone. And returns to report. 

Turn eight. The heavies prep weapons and shields, while the halflings ready bows. 

Round one. 

<Knock>

Advance and meet a patrol coming from their right.

Round two. Surprise checks for both sides. The party are not surprised. Orcs patrolling this general area are surprised. 

Number of visible orcs patrolling. Up to a d4. Four. 

Surprise round. Cied, Pod, Hilu, and Bram can all loose past the three frontliners and do so. Cied and Hilu crit, while Pod and Bram hit AC6 for five. Three orcs drop dead. One remains wounded on three of eight hit. 

Round one. Initiatives. Orcs win. The alarm is sounded, and the orcs roll their morale: 5! In good order the other orcs assemble, hidden away in a barracks. The remaining patrol orc falls back at flee pace. Although it's not obvious to begin with, he's headed for a door directly at the far end of the passage that the front rankers are on. It looks very sturdy. 

It's the character's turn. The front rankers advance into the wider passage, about twice as wide as the secret, shall we say, passage that they've just come from. Finding that there is a similar-sized passage heading right as well. They warn the Pavises following up about that right hand passage, and march and stop just past it. The halflings simply keep pace, ready to loose at incoming. The Pavises back the front ranks up, blocking that right hand passage just in case. Reserve crossbows and Elion back them up. The light from the cressets is okay, for the orcs also appear to be using some light. There's no malee opportunity that round. 

Round two. Initiative. Even. The orcs advance while the wounded orc attempts to open the door quickly to allow his company to escape. But at the same time, halflings are loosing. And significantly, while Cied and Pod both score on the front line of the orcs, Bram crits on the rear orc trying to open the door. 

Melee. These guard orcs wield full-size longswords, d8. There's only room enough for three across the passage. And so it breaks into individual duels. 

Orc vs Eryn. Eryn scores five of six hit points, but the orc bounces his blow off Eryn's shield. 

Orc number two vs. Kylie. Kylie scores a nick of six hit points. The orc cuts Kylie for two. 

Orc number three versus Xantu. Xantu crits, killing the Orc, while the Orc striking at the same time misses clean. 

On a headcount, half the original detachment of ten orcs are dead. And only one character has even been scratched. A morale fail now will mean panic. A roll. 7. It is panic. 

The orcs turn to flee, allowing quick advantage attacks. Xantu double crits, killing two orcs in one go. Kylie kills the other unwounded of the next rank. Eryn, following up, kills the badly wounded orc from the rear rank. The last orc scrabbles at the door, screaming in fear as the halflings close in. 

Oracle. Spare it? Yes. 

Ingle demands no arrows, and the front rank pulls back to explore that north-tending passage. While that captive orc is bound, and the barracks briefly searched for oil, food or other useful weapons. It's a stinking mess, so briefly is the operative word. And I should interject here that there wasn't any spare oil. The brazier burning in the passage for the orcs is the only available light source that the characters could resupply from. 

Turn 9. The passage north leads to a locked door. It shows signs that the orcs used to guard it. 

Turn 10. The key to the door that the panicking first orc had been scrabbling at is located. It fits nicely. It's an ironbound door locked from the inside. A keyhole can be seen about four feet off the floor, but in the centre of the door. Because the key has been found and used, no trap is triggered. 

(The module took a great many words to describe exactly how much damage that trap could do. But there you are.)

The real loot is the ten longswords. These, along with scabbards and baldrics, etc., and 80 gold coins are distributed, 50-50 with the retainers. Those who are tall enough to swing a longsword among the retainers, take the swords and is a bounty. The party has 40 gold added to its stores.

And now, since they have done their initial scouting, it is time to retreat. 

Mercifully, there is no encounter roll as the company retreats to the starter cavern, and then up into the woods. And once again, there is no encounter.