Location: Store Stokka, Rogaland
Weather: a gentle breeze is blowing from the east, with brisk weather. The skies are clear above, but there is evidence of a storm moving to the south of you, potentially three hours away. Feels like 2.6 C.
It rained most of Thursday day, though little worse than a smattering of rain through the morning. In the mid afternoon there was a light rain, unpleasant for Pandred and Willa, who were just planning on starting back by then. Wisely, she waited until the rain lightened around evening, then as she made it back to camp again by dark the rain had stopped altogether. Still, I'm going to rate that moving through a wet landscape counts as 1 point of damage that they both take on their way back.
[I'm going to try a rule of 1 h.p. per 3 hours of rain endured, if shelter is not sought against it ~ in this case, they had to strive through at least one period if they were to get back before dark]
Pandred found that the apothecary in Stavanger was willing to pay her 4 g.p. per gland or bladder that she was ready to sell. She also learned that the glands rarely last more than 24 hours after they've been separated from the source; the party, back at camp, will learn this if Pandred did not take all the glands with her. On the good side, Pandred learns that the gland contents have certain medicinal or fuel properties that will last for two to three weeks after the glands have been removed. So there is still time to take them back.
Pandred, if you will let me know how much actual gold you spend, I will assume that the coin from sales of the glands will count, thus x.p. can be awarded ~ ooo, new stuff!
Come the morning of the 29th, Engelhart can cast the cure light wounds spell a total of twice, one of those to restore Pandred and Willa, since they will be back by the second casting.
I strongly suggest sending one of the party members that hasn't suffered a point of damage to look at the eggs. They will appear to be dead; without sustaining by the beetles, they die quickly. The apothecary in Stavanger will confirm this for Pandred. I'd rather no one lost a healing potential on account of this wild goose chase.
Anything else?
35 comments:
Alrighty. So, I can itemize the list if you like, and in fact, I'll go ahead and do so on the drive.
Total spent is 214gp 1sp
EMBLA: gets 57gp back.
We still have four glands, because Lothar requested keeping some and that was the lower of the two numbers: I expressed doubts they would last longer.
I got 104gp in treasure for selling the 26 remaining glands.
Food
- 2 Bottles of Wine
- 2 Sacks of Onions
- 30 lbs of Salted Cod
Lothar's Goodies
-Bearskin
-Longsword
-Leather Belt and Sword-Scabbard
-Small Wooden Shield, Fir
Essentials
-Bandages, x10
-Healing Salves, x2
-Lantern, Bullseye, x2
-Lamp Oil, 32 oz
-Axe, Woodcutting
-Leather Thong Straps, x3
Things For Me
-Shirt, Mens
-Doublet, Silk
I won't lie, bearing the burden of our party's supply was surprisingly stressful. Especially when it came to the food.
I got the fish, wine, and onions with the intent of augmenting the "bland" potato fare. I assumed the fish and potatoes would comprise most of our food, with the wine used for cooking and general merrymaking, and the onions for flavor. I am not a chef, so I made my best guess on what would keep well and go together for our short journey.
Guessed on which lantern would be better. Assumed the bullseyes would provide some ambient light, and that having two of them would make the chance that they did not do so worth taking.
Got some leather straps, because why not. Replaced some healing salves, because one of these days we're gonna take a beating that one spell can't fix. Got the remainder of the requested goods.
Replaced my burned clothes.
Now let's get in there and kick some plant-based posterior.
I never did answer on how to improve the food, did I? No matter, the correct answer was no answer; some things you just have to figure out. These followers, however, all being good Norwegians, are all happy with the cod and the onions. If anything, they might grumble about having no oatmeal for breakfast; and fish baked in oatmeal is a wonderful thing.
Still, they are content enough. You're fairly safe if you keep to the four main food groups: milk, meat, vegetables & grains. A little beer, wine and such will improve it. Was beer more expensive than wine? Shouldn't have been.
The lanterns will work just as you want. They will throw a little more light than the hooded lantern, but they don't shine in every direction at the same time: you want to put them against a wall, pointing into the middle of the room, rather than putting them in the middle and pointing out. My wiki page on illumination has a pic of a bullseye lantern.
For the record, everyone in the party heals 1 hit point from the rest.
As well, Engelhart can memorize the cure light wounds early Thursday morning; then spend the rest of the day until Friday morning resting, without breaking the "memorizing" rule written on the wiki's Rest page. Then he can memorize a second cure light and cast it any time on Friday.
The itemized list is up, and it looks like I was off by 14sp.
That's 214gp and 15sp spent.
In terms of held items guys, I assume that I have one of the salves, the leather straps, and my replacement clothes.
Lothar obviously gets his requested goods.
Engelhart, I'd like you to carry the other salve if Embla and Lothar don't already have one. No point in bothering the almighty every time we trip.
I don't know what we want to do about the food, bandages, and lanterns.
I do not have one, so if folks don't mind, I'll take the other salve.
The food can go with mine, with the donkey (we need a name for they), and I'll carry one of the lanterns.
I can make with the bandages and the other lantern. Thank you for your effort, Pandred.
I cast the Cure on Embla, rolling a 1 in d4 means she gets 5 hp back.
Now, Alexis, it seems you folks have been talking as if the healing from the spell were dispersable rather than limited to one discrete target, could you clarify this for me please?
I ask because it might be worthwhile to cast the second iteration right away if the healing can be spread around but not otherwise.
Other than that, it's all about waiting for early morning and off we go.
Thanks for picking through all that, Pandred. Quartermaster isn't an easy job, even for a group this small; especially given the intricacies of Alexis' market tables.
With the healing from resting I'm now down 3 HP from my max. I've still got the healing salve I was handed earlier, so Engelhart can carry the other new one. I can carry a lantern as well, since I've got a longsword now I've a hand free for it.
Any word on XP for selling the glands/buying stuff?
I've got a shield now, too, so maybe I ought to put the lantern down before fighting anything... or let someone else carry it...
Engelhart, yes, the healing spell can be dispersed. This is true of all healing spells except for Aid and Heal. Each recipient has to be touched, but of the five you just created you could give 3 to Embla, 1 to Lothar and 1 to yourself.
Lothar, regarding x.p., there was 104 g.p. received and also spent, all on materials for adventuring, so each main character receives 26 x.p. With 10% bonuses, this gives 29 to Engelhart and Pandred.
Very well, then, I shall disperse it as you suggest and keep the next casting in reserve. I'm now at full hp (13).
In the off-chance that me or Lothar level up during a combat, are the effects applied immediately or only pending the combat/day/expedition's end?
That will put me at 20 out of 22. Thanks!
Shall we progress?
I'm good to go.
Aha, yes . . . but where? It certainly isn't up to me to say. Perhaps you're on your way to Iceland?
Good to go as well.
Plan was the barrow, and the plan hasn't changed as I'm aware!
I usher my fellows posthaste to assemble at the barrow doors.
What, afraid we'll all bung off to Iceland without you?
No fear of that, I'm all for plumbing the uttermost depths of this dungeon before I go anywhere else.
I am happy to move forward as well. I'm at 14hp, and that'll do.
Ok, so shall we make a plan of attack?
It seems to me that the lamp is immaterial to the action of the root-things, if they were designed to let through only authorized persons, the lamp I think is not the key to bypassing them. Perhaps they are meant as a barrier that only a druid-type would be able to get through via magic. So my thought is this: one of us approach the roots on one side of the room, hoping that the roots will block the approach of that one person, and when they are sufficiently engaged with that one person, the rest rush through the other side. And if that doesn't work, then we burn it with fire and hack it to pieces.
Another thought I have is that the roots are unrelated to the original purpose of the barrow, but some sort of interloper, kind of like the beetles. Not that influences our tactics at this stage, but I'm curious to the purpose of this place. [Indiana Jones would have been a ranger, I'm pretty sure...]
I disagree. Alexis mentioned they were focused entirely on you, Lothar. Embla was very close by, so there was a possibility for other targets in proximity for them to focus on. The lamp may be something that they are drawn to, either as a "key" to safe passage, or for some other purpose.
The body in the tomb could well have been a Druid or similar shaman, and the lamp might have been a totem or something used to compel the roots, or render them docile for safe passage.
If you want to get meta-gamey about it, they spent 1 AP every round to move, are we suggesting that they aren't capable of more? Possible, but I don't think we're well served to bet on it.
Regardless of the lamp's affect on them though, I agree that your method of passing them is worth trying. I suggest only that the lamp-bearer is the person who goes in first to draw them over.
Close yes, but I don't think she crossed the threshold that Alexis also explicitly stated the roots began taking action as soon as I entered. It may be that the lamp does have a mollifying effect on them, though. It has been present in both encounters we've had with them. It might be a worthwhile experiment to send someone down without the lamp to see how they react to someone without it entering the room. But y'know... curiosity and cats and all that... I'd be willing to try it just to sate my curiosity.
Fortunately, we ought to have time to try a couple of different things. I agree with Lothar that we ought to send someone in without the lamp and see if they respond - it would be nice to know if we could cross the room without having to engage with the creatures.
It might also be interesting to see what happens if we enter with the lamp and then put it on the floor.
I'm good with it. I'll go in with my handaxe and shield. AC 6 should be enough to protect me if things go south.
To clarify: I'll go in once Alexis confirms that we've all actually assembled.
Allow me:
Alexis, could you please shed some clarity as to the chamber's particulars as regards ceiling, walls and especially floor?
There is this uneven difference in coloration on the flooring, up to about 1/4th the room's extent. I shrugged off in the beginning - chalking it up to a misdrawing, given that my walk had had no such shading visible - but now, I'm not so sure.
I thought Embla had picked up on it when she declared her move right up to the edge of it, but now it seems like it was more of a coincidence.
I may be chasing wild geese, but if you'll but humour me.
I'll confirm right now that you're assembled. Can you tell me where everyone else is at the point that Pandred reaches the bottom of the stairs in the Well Room?
Regarding the chamber: the walls appear to be rough-hewn out of the stone itself, not given much smoothing over but with a good, consistent surface.
The "uneven coloring" of the floor indicated where the red glow of the beetle glands was changing the light. It was not a condition of the room but of your actions. Sorry that I did not explain this.
I will be behind her, bullseye lantern in one hand (lit) and javelin in the other.
I'm behind Embla, shield strapped to my arm, and the lit frog lamp in hand. If Engelhart doesn't want to carry the second lantern, I recommend giving it to Bergthora.
I am electing to leave my bow, arrows, and quarterstaff in the first burial chamber to maintain 5 AP.
Yes, Bergthora can have it.
I'll take the back rank, Sling & Shield at the ready.
Good. Before I make a map ~ Pandred, you can see with the bullseye lantern (it is much stronger than the frog lamp was) that the root-creatures haven't moved. If we say that you are in 0816, can you describe your movement into the room?
For the moment, the plan was for just Pandred to move. It will be easier to run this online if you stick to that plan ~ but if you don't want to, please let me know that you'll be moving as well. However, that must happen AFTER Pandred moves, so let him answer first before expressing your own intentions.
I'm sticking with my previous intention to exploit the stairway bottleneck. Fanning out into the open seems downright ill-advised to me.
It just dawned on me, Alexis, if we already are back at the Barrow, I will have cast Bless on everyone I can (no clue as to the religious leanings of the retainers) before we descend those steps.
If you don't see fit to allow it, then count it as my first declared action.
I will advance to 0511, Shield and Handaxe at the ready.
I have no lighting with me.
Engelhart,
I'll allow the bless this time around, because I don't want to be unreasonable. But please try to remember casting the spell before the party settles to take action; it will save miscommunications in the future. I don't want to say it happens automatically ~ we should run it so that you ALWAYS have to declare it; so consider this a warning, but I'll let you off this time.
The next post is up.
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