Grand Duchy 30

Grand Duchy of Adventure

Session 30
August 28 - September 9, 2014

Laying in Wait

Lunadain 11th of Flaurmont

Bailakask No More

Statue of Orcus

The mother werewolf had been defeated, as had several of her pack, including a large dire wolf. Griffin had sustained some minor injuries from a bite from one of the normal wolves and Akaios had taken a pretty nasty beating from the Dire Wolf that had leapt on him and knocked him down before gnawing on his shoulder. No one else appeared to have been injured though there was another casualty, Marcel’s sprig of wolfsbane had been broken and scattered across the floor after repeated strikes on the Werewolf.

Now that the battle is over, a better look can be taken of the area. It is a large space, open to the sky above. There are several smaller cave openings around the perimeter. High above on a rocky point overlooking the wolves lair stands a large, ominous stone statue of Orcus, the Demon Prince. A narrow rocky path appears to lead up along the back side of the lair to the statue.

The lair

Akaios walks over to where the werewolf lays, now a naked Human woman blood pouring from her chest. He looks at her neck and hefts his axe. “Should I do this?” he asks the others.

“That head will do her no good anymore.” Marcel is all for chopping her up but looks for an approving nod from the smarter people in the party. He bends down and gather the wolfbane on the ground in hope to re-bundle the thing.

He looks up, “them statue up there is a good place for ranged folks to hang out. Traps near the entrance and on the path up to the statue?”

Meanwhile, Marcel will be looking for a spot on the cliff-like wall near the entrance, underneath the status, where he could climb up to get height advantage.

Griffin nods to Akaios. “Best separate her head from her body, but leave it there for now.” He looks around the area. “But I don’t think putting the traps near the entrance would be a good idea. My concern is with getting Kalkask’s head as well.  We don’t want to tip him off too soon.”

He limps over to Bailakask’s body. “If this is Kalkask’s mom, I think I’ll put the big trap right near her. And I’ll take a spot on the wall over the door, and throw down the caltrops after the wolves enter - make it harder for them to leave.”

Griffin heads back down the tunnel to retrieve his gear and traps.

The big Thyatian grips his axe tightly then raises it over his head. He swings it down at the neck of the Werewolf with all his might, his grunt echoing off all the walls for what seems like several moments after he has completed the grisly task.

Draven puts his good hand on the big fellow’s shoulder. “Fear not, my friend. What you’ve done here is the work of the gods. Their blessing cleanses you of any guilt you may feel.”

Griffin turns back after a second. “We should probably drag all the other wolf carcasses into one of the side caves. Give the rest of the pack more to be curious about before we spring the trap.” He looks at Akaios and Burik as he says this.

“And Ree, could you climb up to the edge up there and serve as lookout? Watch for the pack and listen for those bird calls from the Elves?”

He points around the corner, out of sight of the entrance. “That might be a good place to hide until Kalkask is well into the area. Then some of us can rush out and try to cut off his retreat.” He thinks for a moment. “But don’t come out until he’s at least had a chance to hit the trap. It could make things much easier.”  He stands at the entrance, lost in thought for a moment.

Akaios, Burik and Remar get to work dragging the lifeless bodies of all the wolves to the other side of the main chamber. “Does this look good?” Remar calls out to his companions on his choice of dead wolf placement.

Feeling troubled after recent events, Iris looks to Griffin to hopefully ascertain something he had in mind for her to do. Her utopian image of this band of adventurers felt a great deal more real after the experiences of violent battle.

Griffin can feel her eyes on him as he tries to strategize. Well, she knows some magic - maybe she can do a sweep of magical stuff. He turns decisively to her, “Iris, I’m not liking the way that statue is staring down on us. Could be cold stone, could be more. Get on up there and check it out. And Draven? Akaios and I got chewed on a bit. Might want to look to that, if it’s not too much bother.”

“Okay, I need to get my traps. Let’s get a move on, people. No telling when the rest of the pack will wander back in.”

Noticing the wounds on Akaios, Draven shakes his head. “You must be quicker to tell me of these things!” He busies himself with a bandaging, trusting to his magics to finish the work.

Griffin falls under his tender ministrations when he gets back with the traps, first bandaging then a quick review of injuries and some magic to heal the wounds.

Setting the Trap

The bright full moon shining into the lair makes it easy enough to maneuver around and do things. There are plenty of good spots to hide out along the wall above and to the side of the main entrance. Ree casts a spell then magically walks up the side of the cliff wall as if it were flat ground. She positions herself above and to the right of the main entrance.  

Marcel thinks better than to perch himself up a wall where his freedom of motion would be diminished. He considers Ree's position and the location of all traps, baits and other companions. He figures out that his best best is well in range of the others, anchoring his position against the wall on his left somewhere underneath the statue. There, he shall meet in combat the returning goblins. The mouth of the path going up will be his fall back position.

Iris is anxious in preparation for battle. Seeing her comrades and discussing tactics with them briefly, she makes the decision supported by Griffin and stands around the corner, out of sight, ready to charge in.

Warily eyeballing the horrible statue overhead, Draven takes a position to the rear, well within reach of his comrades and ready to provide succor should they be immediately wounded or overwhelmed by superior numbers. He may not be spot on with his mace and shield, but he stands at the ready.

Remar nods at Iris and takes up a position near her, just out of sight of the main battle area. With Marcel moving off to the side of the area, Akaios and Burik begin arguing for position near Bailakask’s decapitated form. Both men want to be the focal point of the upcoming battle, want to be in position to gather all the glory like Marcel had in the previous encounter. After a moment, they agree that they can both stand there to draw the Werewolf out. Burik eyes his enchanted blade and smiles, hoping it will give him an edge over his mighty companion Akaios.

Griffin hisses at Marcel, “Comrade, if you stay there, they will attack you and not get to the trap! You need to stay out of sight until they’re all the way across to Burik and Akaios! Remember, we need to keep Kalkask from fleeing - if he sees you he might be able to turn around and escape! Get over near where Draven and Iris are!”

He notices Burik and Akaios as they mill about near Bailakask’s corpse and winces. He grabs his crossbow and hops down from his perch, making his way across the littered dirt.

“Um, guys, just to make sure, you know where all the traps are, right?” He looks at his friends, crossing his fingers.

Akaios scratches his head and looks at Burik, who shrugs. Griffin sighs. “Okay, everyone listen up! The big trap is right there,” and he points to a spot just in front of the headless corpse. He stomps across the bones and dirt to a second spot. “There’s another one here,” and he moves to a third place off to the northeast corner of the lair, “and the last is right here. The hope is that the monster one will grab Kalkask when he charges Akaios and Burik here, limits his movement. The other two are just to slow down the other wolves, limit the chance they have to swarm us.”

“Basically, the brave Akaios and stalwart Burik here will act as a lure to get the other were well into this area. We don’t want him running off - we need his head for the Fairy King of Horses. Once he engages these two, the folk hiding around the corner will charge out, hopefully surprising him and his furry friends. Once he’s well inside, I’ll dump all my caltrops by the door to keep any stragglers from coming in, and then take potshots at the were with my crossbow. Remar, if you’re not engaged, pour all your damage at Kalkask - these guys don’t go down easy.”

He looks to Marcel, “Of course, all bets are off once this thing starts. Look to Marcel to make calls on changes in tactics in the fight.”

He looks around to all his comrades, “Any questions? Thoughts?”

The howl of a wolf can be heard in the distance.

Griffin swears as he looks up at Ree on her perch. She holds up a hand with 3 fingers. He swears some more and races to get back to his post on the wall over the door.

Marcel listens to Griffin’s prompt and decides to lurk into the cave to the right of the bait. This will allow him to spring to their rear faster. He bends down and places himself in the dark, covering his shield with his bedroll, ready to pull the cover, blind his foe and strike first and hard.

Ree calls down from her perch high above the main entrance. Her voice is a whispered yell, “Imryll says that some wolves have been spotted coming from the east. A few miles out still, but moving fast! Get ready!”

Cast of Characters: 

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

Marcel Maas, a homely but sincere wielder of spears aspiring to cooking greatness commanded by +Christian Blouin 

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

Iris Varda, a Thyatian explorer and historian searching for answers and adventure guided by +Alex Safatli  

Remar Umerus, an Alphatian battle mage that escaped forced service in the Thyatian army conjured by +Ben Lipe and currently in NPC mode. 

and +Jason Woollard as The DM