The story so far Part one

Before it all began

Introduction.
As a prequel to the main tale taking place some distance to the south & about 6 months earlier in a sleepy Halfling town

Dramatis Personae.

Lalia - Halfling Thief
Heradin- dwarf  Fghter Mage
 
 Events 

Having had something of a teen age row with her mother about adventuring & lets be honest flouncing out of her family home in a small Thorpe about a days walk to the west, Lalia was sitting in the Market Tavern in the Halfling market town of Little bridge rather cooling her heels but not yet prepared to go back and make things up. When a commotion was heard in the busy market outside which eventually Lalia decided to investigate despite thinking that it was just some feud between farmers being settled by fisticuffs.

In the Market Place Lalia found a  sizeable crowd surrounding something or some one she could not see  and a discussion going on between the members of the crowd as to what was to be done there seeming to be general agreement that something must be done just a considerable difference in opinion as to what and by whom. Eventually the Dwarven drover who was also outside to see what all the commotion was about pushed his way through the crowd & Lalia saw what was at the heart of it. this proved to be a small blonde halfing boy who was quietly sobbing into the skirts of a particularly formidable Halfling matron, more than likely his grand mother or great aunt. the boy was inconsolable & honestly the adults around it were too lost in there argument to be taking an interest in even trying.

Lalia approached the lad in a sisterly way & discovered that the poor lad had been playing on Rose bush hill which Lalia knows is a shrub and tree covered knoll just beyond the bounds of the village when some clawed beast had taken his pet dog Timmi. Elac the boy was terrified that a monster from the tales had eaten him. Over head the argument about who should do something about this continued. It did so until the Dwarf gruffly in the manner of dwarves volunteered to be the one who did something about it.

 
The dwarf asked for volunteers to help him and the crowd backed off a little more so when the dwarf announced that he was an adventurer Lalia however sensing that adventure had just dropped in her lap agreed to help & consoled Elac whist the Dwarf went to fetch his sword.

 
A little later Elac safely off in the hands of his family & the dwarf having returned with a sword the size of Lalia and introduced himself the unlikely pair took the short walk to Rose bush hill here it did not take long to find the tags of the lads clothing left on the brambles in his terrified flight and to track them back to a sink hole. Lalia had never heard of any sink holes on Rose bush hill.

 

Peering down Lalia could see almost nothing & set about manufacturing a torch form a dead branch and some bits of oily rag she had to hand whist the dwarf who could see better in the dark said he thought that he could see worked stone at the bottom of the hole. 

Lighting it Lalia and the dwarf scrambled down the soft earth slope about twenty feet until they where indeed standing on worked stone.  They where standing in a dusty corridor obviously ages old and a few feet form a doorway which gaped open its likely door long since turned to dust by the ages. Venturing beyond it into a square chamber investigation was interrupted when a giant wolf spider drooped in from its point of ambush striking first at the dwarf and running onto the blade of the sword he surprised hastily parried with. Lallia worked her way around the foul beasts flank whist the doughty dwarf kept it at bay and held its attentions with swings of his mighty blade. Lalia seeing an opening drove her dagger into the things back hilt deep & it turned on her dodging she stumbled and its jaws closed on her & she knew nothing but pain until the dwarf forced some foul tasting liquid between he lips and said drink.Her pain eased and the gash in her side closed a little, the beast was dead hacked to death by the dwarves broad sword and a choice lay before them go north south or east. First they went east discovering a long hall with no sigh remaining of its former content or function.  It was possible to go further that way but they decided to turn back and try the north route rather than going all the way.  Turning north they found an odd room with a graven pillar covered with strange sigils. They decided to investigate but as Lalia & her companion approached the column a stone door slid across the entrance sealing the room and every ones eyes began to sting. A look of panic flashed across the dwarves eyes. Lalia remained calm and examining the pillar discovered a raised block with a sigil of a radiant wheel on it pressed it in the door unsealed and the increasing stinging in their eyes and noses waned once more. The door remained closed but with some small effort could be slid back into the wall allowing them to exit They pressed on to the north past an other doorway to the east  into a square room with some rouble in the north corner and heard the whimpering or so they thought at first of a trapped animal, however the more they listened the more unearthly it sounded and the came to doubt it was as simple as that and after a brief examination of the room they moved on to the east into a huge four pillared hall with a central pedestal.  The walls where covered with a low relief carving of robed men & demonic creatures engaged in some sort of a struggle once this had been painted but long years had faded it to nothing but a suggestion of white on the robes & bronze armoured demons.

 

Leaving the dwarf at the entrance Lalia scouted the place out noticing that the mural's centre piece was on the north wall where a spear was grounded in a pedestal rather like the one at the centre of this very room. However as Lalia stepped forward to look at it more closely a fearful creature half like a mantis and half just solid darkness coalesced into existence to block her way & she backed off there after it followed her but did not move beyond the confines of the area bounded by the four great pillars. Lalia investigated the area outside the circuit of the pillars and found a slightly raised sun-wheel sigil on the back of the north east pillar. Pressing it revealed a secret passage heading further east. Lalia went back to fetch the dwarf and lead him around the outside of the room & through the now open door into a corridor beyond. Then after a brief search of the area through a second secret door at the far end, the corridor itself being unremarkable apart form it's rather elaborate decoration in the manner of the previous hall.

The room beyond the second secret door was again elaborately decorated but any furniture which might have given a clue to its function had long since crumpled to dust. So after a cursory search the pair turned south and went though the empty door arch into a sort corridor trough another empty door arch & into what might once have been a library judging by the stone shelves and alcoves in the walls. Of the writings which it once held nothing but dust remains. However on further investigation Lalia finds a raised sigil of the sun wheel As before Lalia pressed the stone & the thing moved there was a gust of stale air & the torch went out & every one was pitched into blackness. Even a dwarf can not see when there is no light at all, however Lalia with calmness and presence of mind managed to get the torch alight again and once lit it revealed an open door in the north west of the  library revealing a smaller  room which was second & intact library.

Here the alcoves are full of scrolls showing their age but largely intact which Heradin was initially very interested in but he found nothing written in any tongue he could read and was disappointed. Mean while Lalia found two large amphora shapes vials in glassed terracotta still sealed with Terracotta stoppers and blue wax each was marked with a sun wheel sigil and looked like an expensive perfume container, each being a little less than six inches long and appearing on gentle shaking to contain a liquid. These Lalia decided to keep. Bing sure to close the secret library door the pair continued into unexplored areas of the little dungeon into a room as large as the library littered with the remains of combatants in rotted bronze armour & scattered similarly rotted bronze weapons. The walls where again decorated with a faded but elaborate mural. However this time there was not chance of investigating the room as soon as the pair crossed the threshold the remains in the middle of the room reassembled themselves into skeletons at least a dozen of them and all that was to be done was to run across the room as fast as possible before they finished.

 

Fortunately neither Lalia nor he dwarvish companion where over encumbered with armour or gear and even on their relativity short legs they made it across looking back to see a packed phalanx of  skeletal undead poised waiting to attack but apparently not to pursue.

 

They caught their breaths in a dusty passage way heading west and having done so continued west past a ancient garderobe which proved to be like much of the rest of the empty apart from a few items of stone furniture which indicated its function. Beyond was a passage way edged with cells all of which where abandoned and empty save one which was it would seem entirely intact. In the dimness of the dungeon it was lit by a soft light. Investigating that one confirmed not only was it still intact but that it was as if the previous occupant had only just stepped out for a moment with a small human sized wooden  truckle bed a straw mattress &n a night stand holding an ancient style of lamp still greasy with lamp traces of lamp oil. However it was rather more than the surprising condition of the rooms furnishings compared to those in the rest of the complex for as they looked round both Lalia and Heradin noticed there wounds healing and the fatigue of the adventure draining form them. Sitting down on the bed for there was no where else to sit and resting a while the twos wounds closed a little more. Moving on again west and following the passage way they found themselves back where they had started the hacked remains of the giant wolf spider on the floor still.

 

As they had not found the Dog & not explored fully to the east Lalia & Heradin turned east through the long empty room they had passed before into what had to have been a kitchen judging by the fire pits still full of long dead ash & the floor scattered with shards of crockery & pot mixed with a lot of bat guano - Lalia knew being local that there had been bats roosting on Rose bush hill time out of mind. Then after a cursory search into a smaller room beyond where they disturbed a number of huge rats some of which fled and some fought. The fight was brief for no rat was a match for Lalia's sling or the powerful swings of Heradin's broad sword and those that fought where soon either dead or also fled. The eastern way however proved to be a complete dead end. So the place had seemingly be searched thoroughly well as thoroughly as could be done by two who wanted not to get killed by the things either seeming to numerous to fight like the horde of skeletons or too powerful like the fiend of shadow. The dog therefore had to be either dead & that would require proof to convince Elac or some where they had been and missed. Recalling the sounds which had been heard in the room to the north thought they should start there this the dwarf agreed to and they made there way to the northern room and searching again they noticed what they had missed the dog had fallen down a hole and was hanging precariously supported only by a tangle of roots and it was his being at ceiling rather than floor height and his whimpering echoing which gave it the unearthly edge to it. Once found it was only a matter of time before sitting astride the dwarfs sturdy back like a child she had him free from the cage roots and cuddled in her arms he was clearly terrified but safe. 

After that it was a bit of a blur for a while certainly they returned to the town the boy was reunited with his dog and an impromptu party was held during which an awful lot was eaten and drunk as is the Halfling custom. The pair where hailed as heroes of the day & there was a lot of congratulations from as many folks as could and they spent the night for free in the towns inn which Elac's parents happened to own & Lalia being a local and quite wounded despite Haraldrin's potion & the healing effects of the strange room got a ride home in the mayors trap and that as far as the townsfolk where concerned was that a fence was built around rose bush hill & the whole matter was left at that.

After it was all over Lalia returned to her home to recover from her wounds over winter & her family rather hoped that her escapade had been enough to cure her of her silly ideas however it had done little more than reinforce the idea & besides there was still unfinished business under Rose bush Hill that needed investigating with something more like one of the proper adventuring parties from the stories. In the spring Lalia left home to gather such....

Skirmishing with Goblin Brigands and why dwarves are always better

Introduction

As a prequel to the main tale taking place some distance to the North West inside the Kingdom of Cosdol, the previous spring in a border fiefdom called the fief of Vaynam.

Part I Taking on the Mission

Dramatis Personae.
Aron – Half elf Ranger

Nyadryn – Brandobian Human Fighter

Thans Thorikkksson – Dwarf Fighter Thief

Location

The Thorpe of Sylais and the road west to the local market town Vaynam

Events

Thans, finding himself at a lose end and rather short of coins in the tinny settlement of Sylais after a mild falling out with his pervious travelling companions about the general superiority of Dwarves, strange how lesser, kindred’s never got that, he did not blame them after all they where less folks nor did he push the natural superiority of dwarves in their faces it just went without saying. So why they had put a sleeping draft in his ale and left without leaving any indication of where he was to follow them was beyond his ken.

Still their loss as he had been the only Dwarf in the company of a group of men who had planed to adventure in the wild lands beyond the Cosolen border, dangerous without the guidance of a dwarf, and not exactly safe even with.

Still after a good fish breakfast it came down to him having to find some paying work so Thans was interested when he heard the half elf that had arrived the previous night talking with one of the local lords retainers and a group of some what irate villagers. Pausing, briefly to listen and ascertain what the discussion was about Thans discovered that it was about a problem the men of Sylais where having with bandits in the woods between the village and the local market town. They had it seems been being waylaid on the way back from market, and forced at crossbow point to unload their carts and wagons before being allowed to drive on. The village headman had quite naturally sent to the local lord for aid.

However when that aid arrived it turned out to be one man from the lords men at arms who it seemed was supposed to organise the local farmers into an militia and lead then against the bandits.  The farmers where having none of this idea and the young man at arms was now looking to recruit any adventuring types around to help him.

All that where available where an Elf looking fellow and Thans, however the headman did come up with a plan which seemed sensible that the three adventurers take his cart into the local market town Vaynam as it was market day and collect every thing the farmers needed and when the Bandits stopped them on the way back deal with them then. This struck all involved as a sensible plan

So the small company took the village headman’s wagon and some goods the villagers wanted sold in town and a list of goods they wanted bought at market and passed along the road thought the woods to the local market town Vaynam without incident though Aron  was convinced that they where being watched by the Bandits. Thans & Nyadryn thought this likely too, and indeed the plan depended upon it.

The company spent much of the day shopping fro the villagers and in late afternoon they set out with a laden wagon for Sylais and in due cause in the middle of the woods as the Villagers had told them found the road blocked by a newly fallen tree. They halted the cart and shortly two short stocky heavily cloaked figures one armed with a massive crossbow emerged form the underbrush along the road side.

Thans Sketch of the Ambush site

Part II Defeating the Bandits  

Dramatis Personae.
Aron – Half Elf Ranger

Nyadryn – Brandobian Human Fighter

Thans Thorikkksson – Dwarf Fighter Thief

Location

The Thorpe of Sylais and the road west to the local market town Vaynam and the hills above the vale in the abandoned dwarf workings

Events

The Bandits stated their demands that the company unload the cart onto the road and that when they did they would move the tree and allow the company and the empty cart to go on its way. After a brief discussion the company decided to appear to comply with this request as previously discussed and all three dismounted the cart and whilst Aron and Nyadryn recovered their weapons from amongst the goods on the cart Thans slipped into the woods to sneak up on the Bandits. Aron readied his bow drew and loosed at the crossbow armed Bandit, as Thans made it into position behind the two bandits on the road. The stupid elf missed but badly enough that the bandits did not even notice that they had been shot at. Thans moved to improve his position whilst scanning the roadside underbrush for further bandits and Nyadryn readied his glaive behind the cover of the loaded wagon.  The elf drew and loosed again his arrow striking true this time just as the Bandits speaker began to become aware that this was not going to the usual plan. The Elves arrow took the crossbow armed bandit at the base of the throat and he fell, Nyadryn  charged and Thans having spotted no additional bandits slipped out of the underbrush un seen by the bandits speaker and behind him.  The Bandit speaker drew his long knife and backed off almost into Thans. Thans’s and Nyadryn struck almost simultaneously and the Goblin leader for that was what the Bandits where died where he stood savagely stabbed in the back and carved in twin at the same time. Elated Thans moved to finish off the crossbow Goblin as several of his colleagues revealed themselves from their positions behind the “fallen tree” and ran into the woods as fast as their little legs would carry them.

It was growing late and the company decided not to peruse, rather moving the tree aside, it having been lowered into place with a block and tackle and carrying on to the village to unload the farmer’s goods and received a free meal at the local tavern as partial reward for dealing with the goblins, and the good folk of Sylais being shocked at the bandits turning out to be goblins as they thought the goblins had been cleared out of these lands in their grandfathers times by the grandfather of the current fief holder.

In the morning after a free breakfast the company set out again to the place where they had been ambushed and by mid morning they had reached there and Aron a skilled tracker easily found the tracks of the fleeing goblins form the day before and the company made its way into and though the woods following them. There destination turned out to be an abandoned mine shaft in the ridge above the vale which the villagers had said had been dug by dwarven prospectors in their fathers times

On seeing the target, Aron and Thans moved to scout the area, whilst Nyadryn remained in cover at the edge of the approach to the mine. The two scouts quickly discovered there was a goblin watchman on top of the bluff above the mine entrance. Aron moved to cover him with his bow whilst Thans snuck up on him. Aron signalled to Nyadryn to come forward, and the goblin spotted him almost right away.

The goblin had a sling and sent a stone in Nyadryn’s direction it hit but caused little harm mostly bouncing off his armour, Aron loosed an arrow into the bushes and seconds latter, Thans stabbed him in the back. The goblin quickly decided running away was the better part of valour fled with Thans in close pursuit slashing at him ineffectually.  The goblin made the crest of bluff and scrabbled down escaping into the mine entrance.

Outside the company regrouped, Thans made a torch, and Aron performed first aid on Nyadryn’s minor wound before they pressed on, into the mine. The mine was as one might expect well made and from the entrance the passage lead down into the hill wide enough for two to walk abreast and high enough that even a tall man like Nyadryn could stand even if he had to swap his glaive for his sword due to the confines of the passage.

A short way inside the mine there was an entrance, the dwarves original sleeping quarters Thans thought where there where three ill armed goblins which the company surprised.  A short fight followed but the Goblins where no match for the company and where soon slain. A subsequent search here found little save the goblins stinking bedding and a few brass coins and three of the ubiquitous short curved goblin knives.

Moving deeper into the Mine the company reached the main workings a relatively roughly worked chamber with the beginnings of a shaft in the middle of it now largely filled with the detritus of the years between the mines abandonment and now overlain by  the goblins rubbish. Four better armed goblins changed forward to meet the company, however they too where soon cut down and the last two goblins cringed at the back of the chamber amongst the haphazard piles of the villagers stolen goods pleading for mercy and offering to help if they where let live.

They where and where dragooned into carrying all the villagers goods down to the road before being chased off. Leaving Thans and Aron as guards Nyadryn walked back to the village to   fetch the villagers with carts and wagons to get it moved further and to cut the story short that is what happened and the villagers where over joyed to recover all their goods and another free meal and several rounds of the ale wives best followed the companies return as did the passing of a small amount of coin as the Villages thought not dirt poor had little cash.

The following day Thans and returned to the local market town Vaynam and sold such goods that the villages had not claimed and dividing up the cash parted as friends.

A Prelude

Introduction

Three travelling companions going to the Caravanserai at A'rakum Manor to seek work as caravan escorts going across the spine of the world from greater Brandovia to greater Kalamar

Episode I – Trouble with Rats part I

Dramatis Personae

Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer

Aetlred Half Elf Ranger

D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter

Location

Melacs farm – on the eastern border of the kingdom of Cosdol

Events
after travelling with each other for a couple of days our putative hero's where with in a days March of their objective when around mid morning whilst passing a road side farm they where waved down by a child. The child asks them if they are adventurers and when they say yes proceeds to lead them through the hedge across the field behind it to her family farm where the family is apparently just sitting down for the mid day meal. The family consists of two adults in early middle age apparently the girl’s mother and father, three young male adults her brothers at a guess and a man in his sixties who is latter revealed to be her grandfather.

The girl announces to the family in general and her father in particular that this group of adventurers have come to help out. there i s a little discussion in the family & some evidence of  internal familial conflict but eventually the father admits he does have a problem the adventurers could help with & offers them a  share of the family meal.

The problem is that some kind of large aggressive vermin has invaded the farms barn & root store & local resources have proved unable to drive them out. Two of the farm cats are dead & the third an ill natures semi feral creature has decided to become a house cat. The whatever they are bit the farmer’s dog & it now won’t go near either the barn or the root store. So the Ratman was summoned and he lost his terrier in the root store and was himself bitten badly on the leg by a rat the size of said terrier and he returned his fee saying he could not help.

The Farmer is worried about where he will store the crops currently growing in the fields & does not really want to go to the trouble of building a new barn & root store at the other end of the farm for fear that this will just get invaded by the big rats as well gaining him nothing.

Telec & Aetlred offered to take a look and went out of the back of the farm house to go and have a look at the larger and nearer barn D'rek took up the offer of a plate of food and leaned his bulk on the wall of the house as the other two moved with as much stealth as possible across the yard and entered the barn.

Inside Aethred was immediately aware of the recent presence of animals when his eyes started to itch and he had to suppress the need to sneeze. However looking round there was no sign of any animals indeed little unusual except the barn was both remarkably empty and at the same time very untidy. Closer inspection revealed the remains of shredded sacks and that the handles of the scattered farm implements had been gnawed at. At the other end of the yard there was a half second floor the latter to which was leaning rather crazily to one side and what appeared in the dim building to be a hole and some disturbed earth.

Mean while outside D'rek having finished his food was approached by the girl who producing a lantern offered her services as a torch bearer if she was allowed to join in the "adventure" D'rek was in the process of explaining that this was not a good idea when her mother intervened calling Elvie back in.

Inside the barn Telec advanced raised his staff and struck the mezzanine floor from below a resounding blew & in the heavens risk lord of chances rolled its dice  

Episode II – Trouble with Rats Part II

Dramatis Personae

Telec Kalamarian Human Priest of the Wanderer

Aetlred Half Elf Ranger

D’rek Brandobian Human Fighter.

Location

Melacs farm – on the eastern border of the kingdom of Cosdol

Events

At the end of episode 1 Telec had disturbed something in the loft of the barn by striking it underneath with his staff so the session began with a swarm of rats he disturbed by doing this swarming down upon Aetlred who was waiting for them. Some just hurled themselves off the edge into the face of the unfortunate Aetlred others scampered down the rickety ladder to join the fray. A brief fur ball of a fight followed as the rats angrily plied there claws and teeth almost exclusively against Aetlred who plied his heavy spear his eyes streaming and his rhythm of strikes interrupted by staccato sneezes. All the while standing some what clear the Wanderer Telec thrust his staff spear wise into the fight breaking backs & crushing skulls. Then it was all over Aetlred was surrounded by the broken bodies of the fury foe & Telec was chasing down the last of them as it tried to flee the barn.

Mean while D’rek stood outside the farm house across the yard chatted to “the girl” who very much wanted to join in with the adventure & slowly ate seconds or was it thirds, he had rather lost track. This was interrupted by Aetlred & Telec coming out of the barn & suggesting that he might actually help. This he agreed to do after naturally finishing off the last morsel whilst Aetlred in the absence of any one else to do so tended to his own wounds.

This done a further search of the barn revealed where the rats had come in a hole gnawed in the wattle & daub wall near the ground in the eastern wall under the loft as well as a well used track leading across the back of the yard through a hedge into north field & to the small stilted root store, This same exploration revealed that the north west corner of the barn had a hole in the floor around which the floor was rather unstable. The company noted this for latter exploration, first deciding to deal with the rats as the mater at hand. So Telec, Aetlred and D’rek moved over to the root store which was little more than a large wattle and daub thatched shed on stilts of finely worked stone.   A quick inspection found several rat sized holes in the walls and in the shed door. It was decided that the store was full of rats & that given it had the dimensions of a granted good sized shed it was unwise to enter & confront the rats inside where they would be at an advantage against combatants of larger size who where employing spear length weapons for the most part. Preparations where made to smoke them out with Aetlred a skilled woodsman starting a smoky fire under the store & then with Telec and D’rek taking up positions to hack or strike any rats which tried to flee. The smoke flushed out the rats and a short fight ensued as the three attempted to cut down the escapers as well as to hold as many as they could inside for the smoke to work its wicked work. In this they where largely successful with only a few rats escaping & running to wards the copse on the opposite edge of the field. These where tracked to a large patch of brambles and dry ferns in the midst of this copse. Once again deciding not to battle the rats at a disadvantage & the bramble and underbrush being dry a fire was set and with care the cover was burned slaying all the rats that yet remained.  In the cooling embers of the fire a worked iron hoop was found the sort which is used on fancy lidded wicker pet transporters & a sign of a loaf of bread riddled with worms was also found cut into one of the scorched trees on the edge of the fire. This sign looked some what familiar to Telec but he could not exactly identify it.

Leaving this mystery for a while as it was late Aetlred Telec & D’rek returned to the store and found on entering it the smoke dead corpses of a score and more baby rats & several nursing or obviously gravid females the main nest it would seem was dealt with.

It was then decided that the hole in the corner of the barn needed to be investigated. Some preparations where made which involved laying the loft ladder across the area of unstable ground around the hole & tying a rope securely to one of the supports of the mezzanine floor above so it hung down the hole.

Aelthred being the lightest descended down this rope and investigated the area below finding an earth cave partly walled by worked stone and backed by a plain but sturdy stone double width door. This door proved to be unlocked and unbarred and at this point Telec joined Aelthred in the area and together they explored beyond it finding a large yard like hall with several doors off of it a stable as well as what was obviously the top of a mine shaft of some sort. All very defiantly deserving of a lot more investigation, however the day had been a long and eventful one & some of the company had been injured so it was decided to leave further exploration till the morning.

Aelthred Telec & D'rek then returned & spent the night at the hospitality of the Melac's family