The struggle against the tree beast left our adventurers weary of battle, and as they set off to town of Marketplace, they were determined to make it with as little trouble along the way as possible. Mild success with foraging was quickly spoiled by regular downpours.
On the seventh day, the rangers spotted a light in the distance. Caution gave way to the boredom of seven days' crawl across the flatlands of Aundair, and the party decided to investigate. The light was found to come from a lantern hung on a post next to a tiny hut. The only distinguishing feature was a sign, and as the men squinted through the rain, they could just make out the Common: "Signs made to order!"
As the adventurers turned around, conceding a lack of value to be found in the hut, the door opened and an elderly human came out. Clever Maryo was chosen to speak for the party; the old man inquired about their destination, and offered his services in the location of a large village - one said to be usefully closer than Marketplace. Before the man could name his price, Blade whispered that they might as well give him one of the picture books. The others agreed: the necromancer's pornography, while ostensibly valuable, was nothing they would shed tears about.
The book caught the old man's eye, and he promptly brought out a sign pointing to the village. Yet after estimating the travel time, it seemed that there was hardly any difference - so they decided to proceed to the bigger town anyway.
A mere day's travel away from Marketplace, the stony ground turned to swamp. With daylight fading, the adventurers set up camp just short of the water's edge. Two weeks over rough ground, with frequent rain, left them without rations, so Lachlan gladly offered to sacrifice his mule. The fried meat would last the entire party a few days - but it would also surely attract animals! As they lay down for the night, the first watch was taken up by Lachlan and Blacklight's charge - LaLa, the magebred llama, chosen for her dark vision.
Before night crept in, the a few of the heroes were awakened by stifled screams. A pair of tentacled beasts had crept up and attacked the guards. Borlander and Blade concentrated on rescuing Lachlan, for once they saw that Blacklight was awakened by his llama's cries, they knew the other beast was doomed: the wood elf would not be satisfied with anything less than utter carnage.
The battle was short enough that Maryo and Sikomor never even woke up. Having done away with the swamp monsters, the fighters settled back in for the night. Borlander took the next watch, though Blacklight's rage made sleep difficult for him.
The next morning, preparing to cross the swamp in hope that Marketplace was still somewhere on the other side, the men joined Sikomor in a druid song that, they knew from past experience, would invigorate them for an entire day. But as they moved through the fetid pools, their speed was impeded far too much, and they knew they would have to camp another night.
Lachlan offered to take first watch, until it was pointed out to him that whenever the party's weakest melee fighter takes first watch, bad things tend to happen. Even in a fairly dry spot, camping in the middle of a poison swamp is not a good idea. This was made obvious as the ground shook in the night, a sign of the appearance of swamp slugs. This time it was Borlander and Blacklight that had trouble waking. Borlander's veins had not enough elf blood in them, and he had trouble keeping his bow in his hands; Blacklight fared better, but was sickened by the noxious fumes and of far less use in a fight than usual. The first wave of slugs was driven back, though Blade's sword, Maryo's rapier, Sikomor's bow and Lachlan's Sleep spells alone were not enough - even LaLa had to join in.
As dawn approached, the adventurers felt the approach of something far more sinister: a monster slug was around. This time the swamp was the undoing of Blade, who failed to wake up even in the commotion of the battle. Blacklight had only slightly better luck, as he was sucked down into the mud; slinging his spiked chain against a tree branch and strainging to pull himself out, he felt the slug squeeze his body tight, and smaller slugs bite against his armor.
This was exactly the time for one of Lachlan's bright ideas, and the wizard was eager to try out a new spell. Directing his efforts at the sleeping Blade, Lachlan sent him into a fit of Hideous Laughter - something that nobody could sleep through. Once woken and functional, Blade grabbed Blacklight by the scruff of the neck, and helped pull him out just as the slug was preparing to crush the wood elf.
Fortunately the beast was in its last throes, and a good shot from Lachlan's crossbow finished it. The adventurers retreated to the tree, and spent a few minutes fighting off the little slugs.
The rest of the night was peaceful, and the wounded heroes sought relief in sleep and the lasting effect of Sikomor's song - which they found useful enough to repeat in the morning. The day was September 17th, and with only one day's supplies left, the party set off again, through the swamp, towards where they hoped Marketplace was still standing...
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Monday, September 17, 2007
Session X: The Tree Bandit
As the adventurers cleaned the dirt off their clothes and rested among the ruins of Vanguard Keep, they all agreed it was time to move on. Their destination was a matter of contention: Sikomor needed help with his potion to drive back the poisonous swamps that were engulfing Khorvaire (the continent under them), while Blacklight was eager to finish his mission and deliver the magebred llama to Sharn. Maryo wanted to check up on his bakery. And then there was the matter of the fake vorpal sword...
Still, none of the suggested destinations were practical on foot. The adventurers would have to engage the services of House Orien. Fortunately, the closest Lightning Rail hub lay in the town that was simply named "Marketplace"; even in times of impending civil war and little-understood threats to the fate of Eberron, that was a good city to visit if you had bags of freshly looted artifacts.
With little food to go around, the party set off at half pace, with the nature experts scouting surroundings for game. Alas, foraging is not simple in the open plains of Aundair. On the third day, the caravan saw a remarkable tree towering in the middle of the rocky steppe; it took Sikomor no time to identify it as a magical oak, whose acorns are famous throughout the known world for their healing properties. The adventurers hardly expected trouble as Blade began to climb.
With the party's muscle barely ten feet above ground, the men on the ground noticed movement among the branches - not quickly enough to warn Blade, as a flying knife sliced the air, just missing the fighter. Next to this, there was magic in the air and Blade felt that he was unable to move!
As if this was not enough, the tree started sprouting flowers, which quickly turned into giant pears with jaws!
A hideous, hairy monster with knives jumped on the paralyzed fighter, and bit him hard, sending him down to the ground in an ugly crash. A hail of evil fruit followed, biting poor Blade in the face. With Blade unable to move, Blacklight swung his spiked chain, hitting the tree - with no result. As Maryo and Sikomor scurried to safety, the creature peeked out of the tree, revealing its horrifying self and sending another evil pear in Blade's direction. Fortunately, the delectable projectile missed the human and instead hit Lachlan's mule. Far from being enraged or concerned for the animal's wellbeing, the wizard was heard muttering something about beef jerky and getting it over with already...
As wave after wave of arrow and bolt went flying into the tree, it was left up to Blacklight, his dear spiked chain useless in this battle, to evacuate the body of Blade from beneath the menacing tree. Alas, the noble wood elf succumbed to a spell placed on him by the evil creature, and was relegated to stomping around, talking to himself, and aking an occasional swing at the now-conscious Blade, whom he failed to recognize as a friend.
The pitched battle raged on, with heals and ammunition expelled at an alarming rate. Before long - and before Blacklight could grab a javelin and attempt vengeance - the beast was finally overcome. Blade turned once again to the branches, swatting off the toothed pears, chasing the carcass of the unsightly creature and finally finding its nesting place. The tree was full of arrows and the creature's blood. The loot and acorns gathered, and the animal found to be inedible, the adventurers gathered up their belongings and set off once again in 3rd September, twelve days away from Marketplace, driven by visions of soft beds, cold beer, and glittering coin.
Still, none of the suggested destinations were practical on foot. The adventurers would have to engage the services of House Orien. Fortunately, the closest Lightning Rail hub lay in the town that was simply named "Marketplace"; even in times of impending civil war and little-understood threats to the fate of Eberron, that was a good city to visit if you had bags of freshly looted artifacts.
With little food to go around, the party set off at half pace, with the nature experts scouting surroundings for game. Alas, foraging is not simple in the open plains of Aundair. On the third day, the caravan saw a remarkable tree towering in the middle of the rocky steppe; it took Sikomor no time to identify it as a magical oak, whose acorns are famous throughout the known world for their healing properties. The adventurers hardly expected trouble as Blade began to climb.
With the party's muscle barely ten feet above ground, the men on the ground noticed movement among the branches - not quickly enough to warn Blade, as a flying knife sliced the air, just missing the fighter. Next to this, there was magic in the air and Blade felt that he was unable to move!
As if this was not enough, the tree started sprouting flowers, which quickly turned into giant pears with jaws!
A hideous, hairy monster with knives jumped on the paralyzed fighter, and bit him hard, sending him down to the ground in an ugly crash. A hail of evil fruit followed, biting poor Blade in the face. With Blade unable to move, Blacklight swung his spiked chain, hitting the tree - with no result. As Maryo and Sikomor scurried to safety, the creature peeked out of the tree, revealing its horrifying self and sending another evil pear in Blade's direction. Fortunately, the delectable projectile missed the human and instead hit Lachlan's mule. Far from being enraged or concerned for the animal's wellbeing, the wizard was heard muttering something about beef jerky and getting it over with already...
As wave after wave of arrow and bolt went flying into the tree, it was left up to Blacklight, his dear spiked chain useless in this battle, to evacuate the body of Blade from beneath the menacing tree. Alas, the noble wood elf succumbed to a spell placed on him by the evil creature, and was relegated to stomping around, talking to himself, and aking an occasional swing at the now-conscious Blade, whom he failed to recognize as a friend.
The pitched battle raged on, with heals and ammunition expelled at an alarming rate. Before long - and before Blacklight could grab a javelin and attempt vengeance - the beast was finally overcome. Blade turned once again to the branches, swatting off the toothed pears, chasing the carcass of the unsightly creature and finally finding its nesting place. The tree was full of arrows and the creature's blood. The loot and acorns gathered, and the animal found to be inedible, the adventurers gathered up their belongings and set off once again in 3rd September, twelve days away from Marketplace, driven by visions of soft beds, cold beer, and glittering coin.
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