Grand Duchy 19

Grand Duchy of Adventure

Session 19
June 3, 2014

On the Kloss-Lunk Trail

Soladain 24 of Thaumont, 1001AC

Marcel is ready for battle!

The rain pours through the stone canopy in tiny streams of water, creating a constant dull roar of splashing water. While it is not too difficult to dodge these streams of falling water, it is impossible to get out of the way of the splash coming up from the hardened ground. Everything is soaked. There is no escaping it. Fortunately the falling water does quite a bit to mask the sounds of for adventurers sneaking through a petrified Goblin forest.

When Griffin spies Goblins and dire wolves coming up the trail, he quickly signals for everyone to hide and he sneaks off the trail, hoping that the Goblins will pass him and he can spring upon them from behind.

The first wolf riding Goblin passes but the second one does not. The wolf catches Griffin's scent and starts growling and pawing at the rocky forest, unable to squeeze through the narrow spaces between the trees. The rider calls for two other Goblins that had been following on foot to check it out. As they creep into the forest, they spot Griffin and his crossbow, just about the time the other wolf catches a whiff of Draven hiding near the trail.

Realizing that their surprise has been spoiled, the Grey company spring their attack. Griffin faces off against two Goblins among the trees while Draven, Marcel and Remar battle the first Goblin and his dire wolf mount.

The Grey Company vs. The Wolfskull Goblins!

At first, it seems that the Goblins have the upper hand, but then Remar gets a lucky shot with his magical bolt and knocks the Goblin rider off his dire wolf mount and Draven and Marcel are able to get into flanking position. They quickly send the wolf running while Griffin goes on the defensive and begins a slow retreat through the forest.

The second wolf rider dismounts and chases Griffin deeper into the woods while the wolf charges down the trail towards the rest of the Company. Draven and Marcel are able to present a united front and again get into positions to flank the beast while Remar continues to pepper it with magical blasts from the treeline.

Just as Griffin is making his way back towards the group, the wolf goes down. Remar is even able to take out the other fleeing wolf who was slowly limping away from the fight. Marcel and Draven quickly move into the woods and come to Griffin's defense.

In moments, several Goblins are unconscious and two have been captured. The wounded foes are put out of their misery and Marcel attempts to interrogate one of the captured Goblins. At first, the Goblin only spits insults and lies at him, then Draven intervenes and with the aid of divine magic, compels the Goblin to speak the truth.

Marcel is able to get some interesting information from the Goblin, such as the location and defenses of the nearby Wolfskull lair. He also finds out that a Hobgoblin named Vlack, the leader of the Vlack-krag tribe, were the ones responsible for rallying the local Goblin tribes to action. Marcel recalls hearing similar intel from a previously interrogated Goblin back at the homestead.

More importantly, Marcel learns that the Wolfskull had in fact taken some prisoners in their recent raids and they had all been brought to the nearby Goblin stronghold. Shortly thereafter, Draven's magic expired and the Goblin prisoners were put to death. Before leaving, the members of the company each take and wear a wolfskull cloak taken from a fallen Goblin. It is hoped that it will help mask their scent and help them get just a little bit closer before the Goblins and their wolves detect them.

Encouraged by the intelligence they gained from the Goblin, the Company continues on, following the trail further down into the "stone bowl" in search of the Wolfskull, or Kloss-lunk, lair. After another hour of hiking, they finally came found what they were looking for.

The Goblin lair has been formed by erecting stone walls between the petrified trees. Further fortifications have been made to close up any gaps near the stony leaf canopy above. It looks like a fairly large structure protected on several sides by a dark, swift moving stream. Though this area of the forest is a bit more open, it is still hard to get a good look at the entire structure and it is estimated that it is at least 100 feet wide on each side, possibly bigger.

Draven, Marcel and Remar find a good hiding spot behind some petrified thickets while Griffin heads out to do a little scouting.

The Company hides while Griffin takes a closer look.

Continued on GDA20 - Scouting the Goblin Stronghold

Cast of Characters: 

Garrett "Griffin" Constantine, a Thyatian rogue of a gambler from Penhaligon rolled by +Arne Jamtgaard 

Remar Umerus, an Alphatian battle mage that escaped forced service in the Thyatian army (conjured by +Ben Lipe and) piloted by +Alex Safatli 

Marcel Maas, a down on his luck Traladaran soldier turned mercenary commanded by +Christian Blouin 

Draven Rickart, a Thyatian Acolyte of the Church of Karameikos piously played by +Jason Packer 

and +Jason Woollard as the DM