Dragonbane: Alone in Deepfall Breach Session 5- Another Day, Another Delve
After Aleric's brief interlude to Outskirt, he is ready to take on the next mission down into the breach!
Stone-Gaze sat for a moment before nodding to Aleric. “I’m glad you’ve decided to continue on. After working with Gorum last night, we were able to piece together what he had learned. It is much more dire than I had imagined… A leader of a demon cult has taken the Worldbreaker shard. The tip of the abyssal spear which split the land and created the Breach! We cannot allow that power to stay in their hands. With Gorum able to describe Where the cultists had initially taken him, I was able to divine the location of a subterranean outpost. You must go and find a devotee of demons named Arioch. He wears the Worldbreaker shard as a medallion on his neck. You must recover the shard and bring it back here so that we can use its power for good!”
Aleric nods, “I’ll prepare myself for the journey. There are few things I need to do before I leave. I’ll set off tomorrow morning, just as I had when I retrieved Gorum.” Stone-Gaze agrees, “Wise choice. I would not want you to stay down there overnight. Time moves strangely in the breach. For now we shall review what the path ahead of you looks like. I’ve been able to see some of the way before you, but still there are things hidden to me. I will tell you all that I can. Come, let us debrief with Gorum.”
The
Second Delve: The Cultist’s Warren
Mission Two: Recover the shard of
the Worldbreaker spear!Threat: Stone-Gaze warns Aleric that the area is extremely unstable. Magma churns below that might burst forth at any moment!
1. Stone Maw: Aleric will first face a giant earthen visage, twisted and warped by time that appears like a mighty fanged monstrosity. Its fangs drip with blood, though Stone-Gaze cannot say if this is real or a vision
2. Unknown: The way is hidden to Stone-Gaze. There is no aid to be offered here.
3. Unknown: The way is hidden to Stone-Gaze. There is no
aid to be offered here.
4. Fool’s Crossing: Aleric will have to cross a crumbling bridge that spans the breadth of a large rift. Orcs encamp on the near side of the bridge and they might prove to be allies. Cultists man an outpost on the far side of the bridge. The orcs are unable to make any progress across the bridge. There may be magic at work!
5. Shadowed Courtyard: Beyond the bridge is an ancient stronghold housing scores of cultists. There is a well that descends into the tunnels below that will give you a more secretive route through.
6. Ratways: Follow the silence deeper into the stronghold. Ignore the voices calling you to refuge, they speak only lies!
7. Ritual Chamber: A wide pit at the center of the room is surrounded by fiendish symbols. Arioch and a pair of cultists reside here in the midst of some vile ritual. Seize the shard from Arioch and return with haste!
Aleric takes in this information, worried about the number of cultists that stand between him and the Worldbreaker shard. He nods to Stone-Gaze, “A walk in the park! I’ll be back before you and Gorum are having your lunch!” He laughs, though his nerves betray his worry to the wise Stone-Gaze. The other wolfkin grabs Aleric by the shoulder. “It is dangerous, yes… But it must be done. And I trust it is within your abilities. Prepare yourself, strengthen your resolve, and you will be successful.” Aleric’s smile falters slightly, then he nods. “Wise words Stone-Gaze. I will prepare myself for the morning”
With that settled the remainder of the evening is tense. Aleric prepares his gear and meditates for the remainder of the evening. In the morning he is solemn, yet he is no longer nervous. With his pack shouldered and his weapons and armor prepared for the new venture into the Breach, Aleric says his farewells to Stone-Gaze and Gorum, making his way down the long stairwell back into the Breach below the Chapel.
1. Stone Maw
As Aleric finally makes
his way out of the stairwell that descends into the Breach, he is taken
aback for a moment at what he sees. Though Stone-Gaze had told him of the
strangeness of navigating the Breach, he was not prepared for how true that
was. Instead of finding himself in front of the plunging pathways that he
had previously navigated, he was instead greeted by a completely new
landscape. The stairway now opened up to a large room with only one exit.
The exit was through a tunnel whose opening had been carved into the large
toothy maw of a crazed looking demon. The massive sharp teeth looked to be
freshly coated in a red liquid. Aleric studied the thing from afar, sure
that this strange bloody maw was some sort of trap. “It makes sense I
suppose. They are protecting their stronghold from intruders… Guarding the
tunnel leading to your front door would be my first steps as well. I guess
there's nothing to be done but get a bit closer and see if I might be able
to get by without setting it off.”
Aleric cautiously approaches the massive demonic stone maw, eyeing the now obviously bloody teeth in the ceiling of the tunnel. “Looks like someone was through here recently, though where is the body then?” He eyes the area around the tunnel entrance for signs of the bodies being dragged away.
4. Fool’s Crossing: Aleric will have to cross a crumbling bridge that spans the breadth of a large rift. Orcs encamp on the near side of the bridge and they might prove to be allies. Cultists man an outpost on the far side of the bridge. The orcs are unable to make any progress across the bridge. There may be magic at work!
5. Shadowed Courtyard: Beyond the bridge is an ancient stronghold housing scores of cultists. There is a well that descends into the tunnels below that will give you a more secretive route through.
6. Ratways: Follow the silence deeper into the stronghold. Ignore the voices calling you to refuge, they speak only lies!
7. Ritual Chamber: A wide pit at the center of the room is surrounded by fiendish symbols. Arioch and a pair of cultists reside here in the midst of some vile ritual. Seize the shard from Arioch and return with haste!
Aleric takes in this information, worried about the number of cultists that stand between him and the Worldbreaker shard. He nods to Stone-Gaze, “A walk in the park! I’ll be back before you and Gorum are having your lunch!” He laughs, though his nerves betray his worry to the wise Stone-Gaze. The other wolfkin grabs Aleric by the shoulder. “It is dangerous, yes… But it must be done. And I trust it is within your abilities. Prepare yourself, strengthen your resolve, and you will be successful.” Aleric’s smile falters slightly, then he nods. “Wise words Stone-Gaze. I will prepare myself for the morning”
With that settled the remainder of the evening is tense. Aleric prepares his gear and meditates for the remainder of the evening. In the morning he is solemn, yet he is no longer nervous. With his pack shouldered and his weapons and armor prepared for the new venture into the Breach, Aleric says his farewells to Stone-Gaze and Gorum, making his way down the long stairwell back into the Breach below the Chapel.
1. Stone Maw
As Aleric finally makes
his way out of the stairwell that descends into the Breach, he is taken
aback for a moment at what he sees. Though Stone-Gaze had told him of the
strangeness of navigating the Breach, he was not prepared for how true that
was. Instead of finding himself in front of the plunging pathways that he
had previously navigated, he was instead greeted by a completely new
landscape. The stairway now opened up to a large room with only one exit.
The exit was through a tunnel whose opening had been carved into the large
toothy maw of a crazed looking demon. The massive sharp teeth looked to be
freshly coated in a red liquid. Aleric studied the thing from afar, sure
that this strange bloody maw was some sort of trap. “It makes sense I
suppose. They are protecting their stronghold from intruders… Guarding the
tunnel leading to your front door would be my first steps as well. I guess
there's nothing to be done but get a bit closer and see if I might be able
to get by without setting it off.”Aleric cautiously approaches the massive demonic stone maw, eyeing the now obviously bloody teeth in the ceiling of the tunnel. “Looks like someone was through here recently, though where is the body then?” He eyes the area around the tunnel entrance for signs of the bodies being dragged away.
Roll: Spot hidden (6): 5; A lucky success!
As Aleric studies the ground leading deeper into the tunnel, he spots
obvious signs of something heavy being dragged away. “Must be some sort of
outpost just beyond that guards this entrance into cultist territory. Take
the bodies away after they fall to this trap. I suppose if I make it through
the mouth, I’ll be fighting my way through the stomach.” Aleric smirks
before eyeing the cave opening more closely. Seeing no tracks or trip wire,
Aleric assumes it must be some kind of pressure plate. Any weight crossing
the threshold sets off the top jaws to smash down onto the head of the
unlucky traveler. “I’ve not got time to engineer some clever contraption to
stop this thing. Might as well just jump through. Can’t catch me if I’m
through the opening before I touch the ground.”
Roll: Acrobatics (6): 1; A critical success!
Aleric takes several steps back from the opening of the tunnel and the
bloody teeth. He ensures that his gear is secured on his person before
running at the tunnel opening. He leaps forward over the bottom jaw and the
teeth jutting from the ground. He rolls, popping up on the other side of the
looming mouth. As soon as he touches the ground he hears a harsh grinding as
the jaws slam down closed behind him. He is startled with how quickly the
jaws shut behind him! “Well that was easier than I thought it would be.
Though I’m sure that set off whoever is left here to drag away the bodies.
Maybe I can surprise them by not being dead in that things teeth.” With that
he pulls out his longsword and straps his shield to his forearm on his off
hand. In the darkness of the closed off tunnel, he sees farther down the
flickering of torchlit. He begins moving towards the lights as quietly as he
can.
2. Unknown- The Cultist’s Guard Hut
2. Unknown- The Cultist’s Guard Hut
GM Note: Normally I would roll on some random tables to decide what the
next point would be, but I like the idea that was set up with the trap,
that there is a small guard post situated nearby to take care of bodies
caught in the trap. So that’ll be the next point in our journey for
this mission!
Aleric, clad in chainmail, is no silent thief in the night. Hemoves slowly,
but does not want to slow down too much. Stone-Gaze’s warning about the
dangers of the lava in this area caused much more concern for him than
alerting a few lowly cultist guards. Still, he moved forward as quietly as
he could muster, though he simply cannot silence the sound of the chainmail
softly clinking against each other. Frustrated, he presses forward down the
tunnel. As he rounds the corner, the tunnel gives way to a large open
cavern. On the edge of what Aleric can see, he spots a small hut built
against a wall of the cavern.
Roll: Oracle- Is the guard outpost currently manned? (odds: Very likely.
Roll 2D6 and take the higher number): 6; Extreme yes.
GM Note: I was confident that the outpost would be guarded, but an
extreme yes leads me to the conclusion that not only is it guarded, but
there are more than one guards manning the station. Not only that, but
one of the guards is already out the door coming towards Aleric.
Obviously they have some sort of signal to know when they need to go
reset the trap and take care of bodies stuck in its teeth. This one is
headed out to do just that.
Gripping his longsword as he peeks around the bend in the tunnel, Aleric
lets out a soft curse as he sees a cultist exiting the door to the hut and
heading directly towards him. Quickly he decides to give up his stealthy
approach. He leaps around the corner and charges forward towards the
cultist, hoping that he can catch him off guard.
Roll: Awareness (11): 15; Failure
Aleric’s charge certainly catches the first cultist off guard, but the
rash action has left Aleric exposed since he does not see the second
cultist who was standing just slightly farther around the corner. This
cultist quickly jumps into the fray as well, leaving Aleric stuck in an
unintended pincer! Aleric reels around seeing he’s fallen between the two
guards. One looks similarly garbed as the previous cultists he faced,
wearing only a simple cloak and a dagger at his belt. The second guard
appears to be more heavily armored, wearing studded leather and a
broadsword hanging at his hip.
COMBAT
Guard- HP 12 | Swords 12 | Broadsword+D4 damage | Studded leather 2 Armor
Cultist- HP 12 | Knives/evade 14 | Dagger+D4 damage
Round 1
Initiative
Aleric (HP17/17)(Army of one: Draw 2 Initiatives)- 2/6
Guard (HP 12/12)- 4
Cultist (HP 12/12)- 9
Aleric sees the cultist fumbling at his dagger as he charges forward and takes advantage of the surprise. With his longsword held high, he runs towards the man and makes a strike with all his force down!
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 15; Just barely a success!
Damage (2D8+D6): 16; The cultist will be down in one swing if he doesn’t avoid the attack!
Still fumbling with his dagger, the cultist tries to dodge out of the way of Aleric’s reckless attack.
GM Note: Because of the surprise of Aleric’s sudden charge at the unaware cultist, I’m going to give him a Bane on his evade
Roll: Cultist- Evade (14; Bane): 10; Success
Even being taken by surprise, the Cultist is able to deftly sidestep Aleric’s attack. Quickly Aleric spins around as he hears the footsteps of the guard charging in behind him. He braces with his shield, ready to block the attack
Roll: Guard- Swords (12): 6; Success
Damage (2D6+D4): 10
Roll: Aleric Parry w/ Swords (15): 16; Failure!
Aleric is too slow to put the shield between himself and the cultist. The attack scores a deep slash in Aleric’s shoulder. He takes 6 points of damage after 4 armor reduction
Round 2
Aleric (HP11/17)(Army of one: Draw 2 Initiatives; Veteran- spends 1 WP to keep the 2)- 2/8
Guard (HP 12/12)- 10
Cultist (HP 12/12)- 6
Aleric grits his teeth, turning back to the cultist. He is still fumbling with his dagger, and Aleric tries to even the odds and take him out of the fight before the two can coordinate their attack
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 14; Success
Damage (2D8+D6): 12; Again the cultist is in danger of being taken out of the fight in one quick slash!
Roll: Cultist- Evade (14): 6; Again he successfully dodges out of the way
Aleric presses the attack, seeing that the Cultist is off guard from evading his last attack. He chances the attack from the Guard and brings his longsword around again on the cultist
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 5; Success
Damage (2D8+D6): 15
Unable to dodge out of the way, the Cultist is caught in the back by Aleric’s hefty swipe. He falls dead to the ground in front of the entrance to the guard outpost.
But just as Aleric kills the Cultist, the guard attacks from behind Aleric taking full advantage of the wolfkin’s risk
Roll: Guard- Swords (12): 13; Failure!
Even with Aleric completely off guard, the Guard is unable to connect with his broadsword. Aleric turns around and faces down the guard. “Well, now we have a fair fight then eh?”
Round 3
Aleric (HP11/17)(Army of one: Draw 2 Initiatives; Veteran- spends 1 WP to keep the 2)- 2/7
Guard (HP 12/12)- 9
Not holding back, Aleric presses the attack on the guard. The numbness in his shield arm is worrying, but he’ll have to worry about the injury after the fight is done.
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 4; Success
Damage(2D8+D6): 16
GM Note: The guard is in a tricky spot here! If he doesn’t parry, Aleric would cut him down even with his armor. But if he does parry with his sword, the damage would exceed the broadswords durability and break his weapon! Now in normal play, you would not know how much damage you are taking before deciding to parry/dodge or not. I have decided to roll to hit and damage simultaneously and ignore the damage outcome when making the parry decision. Here the guard will obviously parry, unknowing that he will either die or his sword will be destroyed.
Roll: Guard Parry w/ Swords (12): 13; Failure! In the end it didn’t matter. Aleric bats aside the guard's attempted parry and drives his longsword deep into the Guard’s chest.
END COMBAT
Guard- HP 12 | Swords 12 | Broadsword+D4 damage | Studded leather 2 Armor
Cultist- HP 12 | Knives/evade 14 | Dagger+D4 damage
Round 1
Initiative
Aleric (HP17/17)(Army of one: Draw 2 Initiatives)- 2/6
Guard (HP 12/12)- 4
Cultist (HP 12/12)- 9
Aleric sees the cultist fumbling at his dagger as he charges forward and takes advantage of the surprise. With his longsword held high, he runs towards the man and makes a strike with all his force down!
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 15; Just barely a success!
Damage (2D8+D6): 16; The cultist will be down in one swing if he doesn’t avoid the attack!
Still fumbling with his dagger, the cultist tries to dodge out of the way of Aleric’s reckless attack.
GM Note: Because of the surprise of Aleric’s sudden charge at the unaware cultist, I’m going to give him a Bane on his evade
Roll: Cultist- Evade (14; Bane): 10; Success
Even being taken by surprise, the Cultist is able to deftly sidestep Aleric’s attack. Quickly Aleric spins around as he hears the footsteps of the guard charging in behind him. He braces with his shield, ready to block the attack
Roll: Guard- Swords (12): 6; Success
Damage (2D6+D4): 10
Roll: Aleric Parry w/ Swords (15): 16; Failure!
Aleric is too slow to put the shield between himself and the cultist. The attack scores a deep slash in Aleric’s shoulder. He takes 6 points of damage after 4 armor reduction
Round 2
Aleric (HP11/17)(Army of one: Draw 2 Initiatives; Veteran- spends 1 WP to keep the 2)- 2/8
Guard (HP 12/12)- 10
Cultist (HP 12/12)- 6
Aleric grits his teeth, turning back to the cultist. He is still fumbling with his dagger, and Aleric tries to even the odds and take him out of the fight before the two can coordinate their attack
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 14; Success
Damage (2D8+D6): 12; Again the cultist is in danger of being taken out of the fight in one quick slash!
Roll: Cultist- Evade (14): 6; Again he successfully dodges out of the way
Aleric presses the attack, seeing that the Cultist is off guard from evading his last attack. He chances the attack from the Guard and brings his longsword around again on the cultist
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 5; Success
Damage (2D8+D6): 15
Unable to dodge out of the way, the Cultist is caught in the back by Aleric’s hefty swipe. He falls dead to the ground in front of the entrance to the guard outpost.
But just as Aleric kills the Cultist, the guard attacks from behind Aleric taking full advantage of the wolfkin’s risk
Roll: Guard- Swords (12): 13; Failure!
Even with Aleric completely off guard, the Guard is unable to connect with his broadsword. Aleric turns around and faces down the guard. “Well, now we have a fair fight then eh?”
Round 3
Aleric (HP11/17)(Army of one: Draw 2 Initiatives; Veteran- spends 1 WP to keep the 2)- 2/7
Guard (HP 12/12)- 9
Not holding back, Aleric presses the attack on the guard. The numbness in his shield arm is worrying, but he’ll have to worry about the injury after the fight is done.
Roll: Aleric- Swords (15): 4; Success
Damage(2D8+D6): 16
GM Note: The guard is in a tricky spot here! If he doesn’t parry, Aleric would cut him down even with his armor. But if he does parry with his sword, the damage would exceed the broadswords durability and break his weapon! Now in normal play, you would not know how much damage you are taking before deciding to parry/dodge or not. I have decided to roll to hit and damage simultaneously and ignore the damage outcome when making the parry decision. Here the guard will obviously parry, unknowing that he will either die or his sword will be destroyed.
Roll: Guard Parry w/ Swords (12): 13; Failure! In the end it didn’t matter. Aleric bats aside the guard's attempted parry and drives his longsword deep into the Guard’s chest.
END COMBAT
Aleric winces as the adrenaline leaves his blood and the pain of his wound
sinks in. He quickly cleans his blade and drags the bodies of the dead
cultists into the hut. He knows he’ll need to spend some time tending to
his wound before continuing, so he quickly strips off his armor and takes
stock of the wound. This will delay him, but better delayed than dead.
Next session, Aleric will need to deal with his wound before pressing on. This mission is already turning more dangerous than the last!
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