Hiatus for Notes

I'd like to take a moment to clear up any details.

Rob, I really can't think of a way to describe your "trunk club."  How do you feel about giving it a name, something druidically groovy, that we can try to remember to call it.

When rolling to see the break on a magical weapon, the usual "break die" is rolled twice, and a 1 must occur on both dice for the weapon to break, or lose one from its modifier.  For example, Lothar's weapon would lose its normal +1 effect, but retain +1 of its ability against amphibians and reptiles.  A sword normally breaks on a 1 in 6, so a magical sword breaks 1 in 36.  Rob's club, similarly would break on two 1s rolled on 2d4, or a 1 in 16 chance of breaking.

Which would be a pity, but there are always more magical weapons.

I think that I failed to update the total experience of the party based on the amount of experience gained from the magic items.  Here's my spreadsheet at present on the players, not including the party's attacks on round 16.  Can you confirm my XP totals, or are they hundreds of points off?

Does not include experience for present battle

Does anyone have any questions they've been holding back because there's been a combat?

Ice Lake Round 16 ~ a Gap Opens

For a moment, the creatures are split into two groups; but understandably, the party doesn't want to break ranks, at least not this round, as they're still protecting the mage.

1625 moves to 1624, so that three creatures attack Embla.  1623 misses with a 10, while 1624 misses with a 12.  1722 then misses with a 2, and Embla survives another round.

1822 moves into 1823, and randomly chooses to attack Engelhart, so that there are three on the cleric.  There's quite a little ring surrounding the poor fellow.  1823 misses with a 10, while 2023 misses with a modified 9.  2024 misses with a modified 12 and Engelhart continues to appreciate his armor class.

Two attack the ranger.  1723 misses with a 6 and 1826 misses with an 8.

There are no attacks on the mage, though 1626 does move forward two to plug the gap and engage Mikael.

Rob is attacked only by 2025, which rolls a 13, hitting the druid.  He takes 6 damage, stunning him and throwing him into Mikael's hex again.  2025 moves forward into Rob's hex.

However, it does open a gap that is not filled, even as a creature in the second rank waiting to attack Engelhart begins to move around to fill it.

Following the party's move, the positions stand as follows:

The experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 15 ~ Engelhart is Knocked About

Times like this, it seems the battle is never going to end ... or that it will end very badly.

Embla is attacked 3 times again.  1623 misses with a 2.  1624 misses with a 9.  And thankfully for the assassin, 1722 misses with a modified 10.

Engelhart is attacked 3 times also.  1922 rolls a 12 and misses.  2023 hits with a modified 17, causing 6 damage; but the cleric was at 27 hit points and is not stunned.  2024 then also hits with a modified 18 ... but that only causes 2 damage.

Lothar is attacked twice.  1725 misses with a 4.  1826 misses with a 9.

Mikael is attacked once.  1724 misses with a 7.

Rob is attacked twice.  1929 misses with a 12.  2025 misses with an 11.

Whew.

After the party's move, the positions are as follows:

And the experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 14 ~ Embla's Hurt

Leading off, Embla is attacked from three creatures.  1623 misses with a 4.  1624 misses with a 1.  The larva in 1722 hits with a modified 13, and causes 5 damage.  This stuns Embla, and would throw her back a hex, except for the rule that states she can't be thrown into an enemy's hex. She stays where she is.

Engelhart is attacked by three creatures.  1922 misses with a 9.  2023 misses with a modified 14.  And 2024 misses with a modified 12.

Lothar is attacked by two creatures.  1725 misses with a 3.  1826 hits with an 18.  It causes 2 damage against the ranger.

Mikael is attacked twice.  1724 misses with a 7.  1823 gets +1 to hit, but misses with a modified 9.

Rob is attacked twice.  1925 misses with a 3.  And 2025 also misses with a 3.  I'm rolling an absurd number of 3s.

Following the players' move, the positions stand as shown:

And experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 13 ~ Whittling Down the Party's HP

The crowd has begun to thin, but the party has lost hit points and stunning is probably going to be more of a problem. [writing this before rolling attacks!]

Three creatures attack Embla.  The larva in 1623 hits Embla with an 18, causing 3 damage, not stunning.  The larva in 1624 misses with a 6.  And the larva in 1722 hits with a modified 15, causing 4 damage.  That misses stunning Embla by 1 point, as I believe the 3 points reduced Embla to a total of 17.  Embla is not stunned this round, and (by my calculations) has 13 hp left.

Three creatures attack Engelhart.  1922 misses with a 3.  2013 misses with a modified 13.  And 2024 misses with a modified 11.  The cleric is very grateful for the armor class.

Two creatures attack Lothar.  1725 misses with a 3.  But the larva in 1826 hits with a 19, causing 2 points of damage.  Lothar shrugs it off, not stunned.

One creature attacks Mikael.  It misses with a 3.

One creature attacks Rob.  It misses with an 11.

Following the party's action, the positions stand as follows:

And corrected experience so far.

Ice Lake Round 12 ~ The Circle Tightens

The momentary shattering of the larvae's circle has little to no effect on the creatures, as they again move in to fill up the gaps.  Those that enter into 1823 and 1925, however, don't have enough move left to attack.

Embla continues to face two creatures.  The larva in 1623 misses with an 8.  The one in 1722 misses with a natural 1.

Engelhart still has three creatures threatening.  The larva in 1922 rolls a 5, missing.  2023 rolls an adjusted 5.  And finally, the larva in 2024 rolls an adjusted, unnatural 1.  Engelhart is missed again for a full round.

Lothar only faces two, one on the left and one on the right.  A larva enters the hex 1924 and chooses to attack the ranger, rolling a natural 1.  The other, in 1826, rolls a 3.

There are no attacks on Mikael.

Three attacks land on Rob.  The larva in 1624 misses with a 4.  The one in 1625 rolls a 17, and causes 3 damage.  Rob was reduced to 11 hit points, and this hits.  Rob falls back into Mikael's hex, 1824, and the larva in 1725 advances into the empty space.  Others press in.

The remaining larvae outside begin to shift around the pack, seeking a way to the party.

The party can act now.  Take note, Mikael cannot effectively attack while still in the hex with Rob. (they're "fouled").

Following the player's move, the positions stand as follows:

And experience so far:

Error: shows 6 damage too many against Embla.  Corrected with the next post.

Ice Lake Round 11 ~ The Party Makes Hay

The battle rages on.  The creatures are quite obviously dumb; they continue to swing at you, stumbling on the ice, but the emptiness of their eyes is disturbing and the ghastly wailing they give has begun to wreak upon your nerves.

However, as each one is destroyed, they seem to give a sound that is ... like relief.  As if they are as glad to give up the fight as you would be.

The larvae that enter into 1822 and 1922 move to attack Engelhart, while Mikael is forced to defend himself against the creature in 1924, as Lothar's attentions are placed elsewhere.

Two creatures continue to attack Embla.  The larva in 1623 misses with a 6.  The larva in 1722 hits with a natural 20, which is double-damage after a second die is rolled.  Thankfully, it causes only 6 damage, which doesn't stun Embla.

Four creatures attack Engelhart, all affected by the curse spell.  1823 misses with a modified 15 (would have hit if not for the curse), while 1922 misses with a modified 5.  2023 misses with an Un-1, an unnatural 1, while 2024 misses with a natural 1.  All around, a poor performance.

The larva on Mikael misses with a 3.

Lothar is hit with a 14 by the larva in 1925, causing 5 damage.  Lothar was at 26 before the hit, so he isn't stunned.  The larva in 1826 misses with a 5.

And finally, three creatures attack Rob.  1624 hits him with a 16, causing 5 damage.  Three of this is soaked up by the armor, which falls away, and two by the druid.  Those 2 are not enough to stun.  The second creature in 1625 hits with a 15, causing 3 damage.  That isn't enough to stun, either.  And finally, the creature in 1725 misses with a 10.

The remaining creatures continue to circle in.

Following the party's actions, the positions stand as follows:

And the experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 10 ~ Mikael Feels the Burn

Embla is attacked by two creatures.  The larva in 1623 rolls a natural 1, slipping and missing.  The larva in 1722 rolls a modified 11, also missing.

Engelhart is attack by three creatures.  The larva in 1922 misses with a 4.  The larva in 2023 misses with a modified 2.  And the larva in 2024 misses with a modified 11.

Lothar is attacked by three creatures.  The larva in 1825 hits with an 18, for 3 points of damage.  The larva in 1925 hits with a 19, for 2 points of damage.   And the larva in 1826 misses with a 2.

Mikael is attacked by 1823, which rolls a modified 13, which hits for 2 points of damage.  Mikael is stunned.

Rob is attacked by two creatures.  The larva in 1624 misses with a 12.  The larva in 1625 misses with a 7.  The larva in 1725 hasn't enough move to attack.

Following the party's moves, the positions stand as follows:

And experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 9 ~ Now It's Just a Slog

With a goodly number of their opponents destroyed or stunned, there are fewer attacks.

Embla fields one attack from 1623.  It rolls a 19, causing 3 damage.  A second creature moves into 1722 and attacks, missing with an adjusted 2.

Engelhart is attacked from two larva.  These roll an adjusted 18 and an adjusted 7, hitting once.  Engelhart sustains 6 damage from 1922, which is not enough to stun the cleric.

Lothar, likewise, is attacked from two larva.  These roll a 9 and an 8, both missing.

Mikael is not attacked.

Rob is attacked twice.  1625 hits him with a 16, causing 2 damage.  The magic armor takes the punishment and Rob is untouched.

The other attack on Rob misses with a 6.


Following their move, the positions stand as shown:

Experience thus far:

Ice Lake Round 8 ~ The Party Hits Hard

Alphabetically,

Emba is attacked by three creatures.  Both 1623 and 1624 roll a 6 to hit, both missing.  And 1722 slips, rolling a 1, so there's a miss there, also.

Engelhart is also attacked by three creatures.  I don't have Engelhart's AC at the moment, apparently because it didn't get saved.  1922 misses with an adjusted 13, which only hits AC 7, I presume missing.  2023 rolls an adjusted 15, hitting AC 5, which I assume also misses.  2024 definitely misses with an adjusted 3.

Lothar soaks up attacks from 1924 and 1925, easing matters a bit on Mikael.  1924 hits with a 16, causing 7 damage.  1925 misses with an 11.

Mikael gets one attack, from 1823.  The larva misses with an adjusted 7.

Rob is attacked once.  1625 misses with an 11.

The players can act.

Following their move, the positions stand as shown:

Experience thus far:

Ice Lake Round 7 ~ The Circle Closes

Mikael started in 1924; a red X shows where the first hit on Mikael took place.  Arrows
show the movement of creatures moving up on the party, with one missing ~ the creature in 1725
came from 1425, I just forgot to put the arrow in.

Moving clockwise from Rob ... two creatures move adjacent to Rob and Embla, and each is attacked once.

The attacker on Rob swings wildly, rolls a natural 1, and loses its balance on the ice.  There's no bonus for Rob the following round, but the attack fails.

Embla's attacker rolls an 18, hitting for 3 damage

There's no attack on Lothar.

Engelhart is attacked twice, from 1922 and 2023.  The first rolls an 8, missing.  The other rolls a 1, and also loses its balance on the ice.  Both rolls adjusted by the curse, but I can't roll less than a fumble.

Mikael is attacked twice, from 2024 and 2025.  The first rolls a natural 20, which is then followed by a 19.  I don't believe that Mikael is wearing a helmet or a steel skullcap, in which case the damage is tripled.  I roll a 2 for damage, which is unaffected by the curse ... it causes 6 damage total.  Mikael is stunned by the blow, and thrown back into Lothar's hex.

The second attack would have been a 14, which would have also hit Mikael ... but the mage is lucky in that, by falling back, the creature loses its reach.  It moves into 1924, however, filling the hex as Mikael falls out of it.

The Players can act.

Following their move, the positions stand as shown:

Experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 6 ~ Mostly Harmless

Arrows shown only for movement of the nearest creatures.  Numbers in purple show damage that's
been done to that creature

Both 2023 and 1922 attack Engelhart.  2023 rolls and 17 (hitting AC 3) and hits for 4 damage.  1922 rolls a 3 to hit and misses.

1722 attacks Lothar, rolling a 7 and missing.

1623 attacks Rob, rolling a 6 and missing.  1523 also attacks Rob, rolls a 9 and misses.

The party continues to suffer very little, but there are many left still.

The party can act now.

Following their move, the positions stand as shown:

Experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 5 ~ Closing In

Movement shown only for creatures moving adjacent to the party.

Several larva move in, requiring two or three AP to close with the party, so they don't attack.  In all, this round, there are four attacks: one on Rob, one on Lothar, and two on Engelhart.

Rob is missed by a 4.

Lothar is missed by an 7.

Engelhart is missed by an 10; the other creature tries to climb the small hummock in 2022 and loses its grip on the ice, effectively fumbling its attack (rolled a 1).

The party can act.

Following their action, the position of the combatants is as follows:



Experience so far:

Ice Lake Round 3 & 4 ~ The Slow Charge

As the creatures get nearer, they bunch up, focused on the party.  Their heads and arms appear to be made of spongy fluid, but their jaws open twice, perhaps three times as wide as a humans, and are full of teeth. There is anger in their white-and-grey eyes, and their arms are wide and swinging as they come forward.

If Engelhart moves forward one hex immediately, into hex 1922, he's in a position to affect 12 of the creatures right now.  I didn't plan it that way, but counting it comes out.

Once the players have acted, they just keep coming on, somewhat mindlessly.  Those in orange have been cursed by the cleric's spell.

Then, following the player's move, here are the positions of the combatants.

Ice Lake ~ the Approach of the Larva Army

As the creatures emerge from the fog, it is clear that they are humanoid heads, shoulders and arms attached to slug-like bodies.  They have no weapons, but they look unearthly.

The players take little action, choosing to let the creatures come on ... the last of them emerges from the fog, letting the players see their whole number:

Crossing the Lake

As you begin to move forward as a group, you note that the ambient temperature steadily drops as you get further and further onto the lake.  The sides of the lake reach to the sides of the cavern, offering no other path to your destination.  After nearing the halfway point, snow begins to curl outwards from ahead of you, drifting on gusts of cold air that strike your face and freeze your eyebrows and the edges of your hair.  It is unpleasant, but not enough to daunt you.

These gusts, however, reduce visibility.  You can see no more than 80 feet ahead, where all becomes white.  There is plenty of ambient glow from the lake, however, so that there is no trouble with light; it is just that the blowing snow is too thick to see through.

Then, at the edge of your line of sight, you see things humping along across the lake towards you.  They are white in color and therefore indistinct against a field of white snow, ice and background.  But they are the size of small bears, weighing upwards of 150 lbs. each.  You see no heads, however, no fur, no signs of claws or even limbs.  In texture, they seem more like bulbous flesh than animal.  In the snow, they are hard to count; but there are at least twenty of them.  They are moving towards you at a steady pace.

Now would be a good time to finalize your movement, which weapons you are carrying and your armor class.

Investigating the Lake

Lothar's remonstrations notwithstanding, Rob is lowered to the ice of the lake with the help of Mikael and Embla, until his boots touch the frosty surface.  The lake is solid; it is ice cold to the touch, nearly but not quite the level of a wet tongue sticking to a metal fence pole.  Rob can feel the damp on his hands wanting to grip the ice before pulling his hand away, unharmed.

The surface is gritty with sharply frozen rime and frost, so that it isn't slippery.  If you are wearing soft boots, however, there's a probability that the ice will tear the soles to shreds before you reach the other side.

Please indicate your actions; I know what you've said regarding what you intend to do, but I would like that rephrased as moves you're taking directly.

The Vision

As the last of you touches Prugg's robe, the walls around you melt away and you find yourselves elsewhere. Your senses remain intact; you are not seeing another place, you are literally AT another place, physically and concretely.

In the vision, you see yourselves flying a few feet over the surface of the frozen lake ... as you look down, you can see the spirits of the dead, hundreds of them, trapped beneath the ice, writhing in agony. Their eyes open as you pass, looking up at you and imploring your aid, to ease their suffering.

Upon the far shore of the lake, you feel yourself come to rest on the floor of the cavern, your feet sinking into ten inches of snow. Snow is gently falling. Stalactites and stones rise around you like crystalline teeth, six to ten feet high. You move forward, picking your way between these stones for a hundred paces, before reaching an open space. Here, the cavern is just sixty feet wide and forty feet high, though it extends outwards into the obscuring snowfall.

Across this open space is a wall made of black boughs, wooden limbs and branches, interlaced from wall to wall and from floor to ceiling, forming in impenetrable barrier. There are no tree trunks, no leaves; the wood seems to grow directly from the rock, upwards and downwards. You reach forward and touch the wall. It is warm, and you sense that the wood is alive. It feels as hard as iron, and you sense that it is indestructible.

This wall has a gate, with wooden doors fifteen feet high and each seven feet wide. The doors are wide open. The bottoms of the door are frozen in place and cannot be moved. There is nothing to prevent the party from moving through the wall and deeper into the cavern ... from beyond there are sounds of croaking: a hollow, resounding echo, that never ceases ...

The vision ends, and you find yourselves with Prugg again.

"You do not ask," says the old svirf, "Why we do not go ourselves to destroy this thing.  We tried, once, not long after we came here.  But it is a place of great evil ... and the svirf are creatures of the deepest places in the earth.  We were born of rock above the magma, and moved upwards into these passages before even the elves came to these lands.  We have never seen the light; we are of the dark.  When we went to fight, we were overcome by our own natures; helplessly, drugged by the powers of evil, we turned upon each other and nearly all died.  Only nine of us escaped that day.  Only I am left to remember it.

"We have waited for creatures from the light to come.  You.  Your peoples were born under the sun.  You are not as easily controlled by evil as we were.  That is why we seek to help you.  There are not many enemy, but they require spirits that are not owned by the dark."

This is the last of what he says.

The experience is so powerful, the party members are transformed by it.  You feel yourselves the memories of having been to the gate, as real as any other memory you've had.  The effect is to actually increase your experience.  You each gain 25% of the necessary experience gap that separates you from your next level.

For example, Engelhart needs 7,000 experience total to move from 4th level to 5th (6,001 total to 13,001 total).  He therefore receives 1,750 from this experience (no 10% bonus).  Lothar receives 1,375.  Embla, 1,000.  Mikael, 625.  And Rob, 600.

Please add this to your total experience.

[this power to impart experience directly is a sage ability, under Instruction, which requires 100 or more points of knowledge ~ Prugg, being seven centuries old, is able to do it with much greater intensity than most]

You are each disoriented for some moments, but you may interact again normally.

The Ancient Prugg

Three days pass before you're told that the Ancient Prugg will see you.  During that time, the members of the party are able to make contact with Willa, who will send word to Fjall and Valda further up the tunnels.  You see your weapons being reforged with mithril.  You are given comfortable accommodations, though you discover that the svirf sleep on rock beds without covers or pillows.

You discover what "yarm fruit" is, as you're also reintroduced to the green, glowing pods that you discovered earlier when you encountered the ticks.  You learn that these are a subterranean melon, which sustain one another with ambient light.  They taste sweet, somewhat dry in your mouth (like apricots) and have a slight sophomoric effect that dulls your body to pain and helps you sleep at night.  Each yarm has a single large pit about the size of a human's fist.  They grow everywhere, providing a soft light for much of the svirf's lair, a light that does not compromise infravision.  You're told they are difficult to raise as plants; they would require a special sage ability.

As you are taken through the tunnels to visit Prugg, you come to a chamber where the walls are covered with apparently carved reliefs of svirfneblin.  The carving is remarkably smooth and glossy; the images are kindly, pleasant and restful.  Each one has eyes closed, with a smile, as though sleeping.

At the end of the corridor, with these reliefs on both sides, you are introduced to the Ancient Prutt.  He smiles as you approach, and nods without speaking.  He is clearly more ancient than any svirf you've met.  His visage, his body, is more rock-like than the others; in appearance, he is nearly like that of the reliefs you've just seen on the walls.  He moves heavily, ponderously, as though his limbs are too heavy to lift.

One of the two svirf that have led you here, a fellow named Trag, asks that you be free with your questions, that nothing is hidden here.