Grimacing, Basil attempts to finish-off the boar.
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Basil puts an arrow through the boar's flank, which remains standing through sheer force of will alone.
The tielfing casts a spell, causing a corona of ice crystals to settle on Vegazi, before seemingly melting into her body...
...but she manages to shake off the effects of the spell, much to the tiefling's obvious annoyance.
However, that does not stop the boar from attempting to tear Basil a new one...
...but luckily, a sickening powerful blow is turned aside by his force armor.
Vegazi then attempts to finish-off the boar...
...but instead nearly drops the arrow.
Meanwhile, the imps continue to be tiny nuisances...
...with Vegazi taking another nasty sting...
...although she once again barely notices.
Round 4: Imp(-,-), Basil(-1, -4Dex), I(-), U(-47), Vegazi(-10)
Basil tries to finish-off the boar.
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Basil sends an arrow straight through the boar's left eye socket.
The beast staggers for a moment, then collapses to the ground, stone dead.
The tiefling hisses in annoyance.
"Do you have any idea how long it took to train Umber? You'll pay for that!"
She then pulls out a scroll, and casts a spell, causing a blade of pure flame to spring into existence in her right hand.
Vegazi then tries to shoot the tiefling...
...but the arrow is turned aside by the tiefling's armor.
The imps then try to play their part...
...and both successfully sting their targets!
Sadly, this time, Vegazi starts to look a bit more uncoordinated.
Round 6: Imp(-,-), Basil(-3, -4Dex), I(-), Vegazi(-11, -1Dex)
Basil turns his attention to the imps.
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Basil deals a solid hit to one of the imps, but is disquieted to see that its wound slowly begins to heal.
The tiefling then charges forward to engage Basil...
...burning him quite badly.
Vegazi fights off the effects of the poison, and attempts to capitalise on the woman's distraction...
...and this time, manages a solid hit!
The imps continue to be minor nuisances...
..but don't manage to find any soft flesh.
Round 7: Imp(-12,-), Basil(-11, -4Dex), I(-9), Vegazi(-11, -1Dex)
Wincing, Basil attempts to finish-off the injured imp.
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Basil's first arrow knocks the injured imp unconscious, whilst his second pins it to the ground, where it slowly dissolves into a tiny pool of foul ichor.
The tiefling, blind to her tiny ally's demise, continues to swing at Basil...
...but this time, he manages to dodge.
Vegazi continues to fire at the tiefling...
...again scoring a solid hit...
...whilst Vegazi dodges the remaining imp's stinger.
Round 8: Imp(-), Basil(-11, -4Dex), I(-17), Vegazi(-11, -1Dex)
Feeling more confident that the tide of battle has turned in his favor, Basil targets the remaining imp.
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This time, Basil scores a single solid hit.
The tiefling continues her furious assault upon Basil...
...but only manages to lightly singe him.
Meanwhile, Vegazi continues to pincushion the tiefling...
...whilst the imp manages to jab Vegazi whilst she is distracted.
Round 9: Imp(-12), Basil(-14, -4Dex), I(-27), Vegazi(-12, -1Dex)
Basil attempts to finish-off the imp.
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Basil's first arrow misses, but his second completely obliterates the imps tiny head.
The Tiefling, yelling profanities in Orcish, attempts to decapitate Basil...
...but he manages to dodge out of the way.
Vegazi, however, has better luck, shooting the tiefling in the shoulder.
Round 10: Basil(-14, -4Dex), I(-33), Vegazi(-12, -1Dex)
Basil turns his attention to the sole remaining combatant - the obviously crazed tiefling.
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Incredibly, both of Basil's arrows miss.
Cackling, the tiefling continues to attempt to gut Basil with her flaming blade...
...but continues to have atrocious luck.
Vegazi, on the other hand, continues to pin-cushion her, leaving the woman reeling.
Round 11: Basil(-14, -4Dex), I(-37), Vegazi(-12, -1Dex)
Basil attempts to finish-off the tiefling.
Basil breathes a sigh of relief.
"Well, that could certainly have been worse!"
He then heals his wounds...
...frowning when the wand runs out.
"Blast."
He then tosses the last potion to Vegazi...
...before rummaging through the bodies, and the camp-site, for all the loot that he can lay his grubby little mitts on.
"Vegazi, that is now two of these creatures that have mentioned a Mother wanting to reclaim you. What aren't you telling me?"
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Vegazi shrugs morosely.
"Mother not nice. Vegazi not like others. Vegazi leave, but keep eye on tribe from afar. Never thought this would happen. No idea why Mother wants Vegazi back, after so long."
A search of the tiefling's corpse reveals a selection of interesting items:
Inside the tent is a selection of camping gear:
Later in the journal, the tiefling’s dispassionate accounts give way to personal venting. She writes that Kelseph, her mother and her tribe’s leader, has been acting strangely since the appearance of some minor devils at the Hell’s Fury tribe’s encampment. Ilka believes Kelseph is now answering to the devils, something she feels puts her mother’s leadership in jeopardy.
The last entry discusses the deaths of Jagan and Ogash, and disparages Kelseph’s decision to bring her best assets out of Belkzen to acquire a single half-orc woman for no reason Ilka can imagine. Nonetheless, Ilka refuses to waste more resources in assaults like Ogash’s, preferring instead to find enough leverage to force the town to surrender Vegazi.
The journal mentions Korlum and Grache, two other half-orc children of Kelseph; Kelseph loathes them so much for reminding her of her father’s cruelty that she’s never given them weapons. They are working with Yvogga—a younger daughter of Kelseph—whom Ilka insults in the journal as a “human-lover who needs a magical outsider” to do all her work for her. The half-orcs and Yvogga are lairing in a camp north of Arwyll Stead. The journal briefly mentions Bax as the sibling who most agrees with Ilka that they should use subtlety instead of brash attacks.
Lastly, hidden inside a hollow tree stump at the centre of camp, is a little cache of gems, jewelry, rare stones, and gold and platinum coins, totaling 550 gp in all.
Hmm... Not as informative as I would have hoped...
With a shrug, Basil turns his attention to the loot.
Basil finishes the job of healing Vegazi.
Realising that the journal is in Orcish, he pulls out a Scroll of Comprehend Languages, and casts from it, then quickly skims through the journal, before letting out a low whistle.
"Terrin is definitely going to want to see this!"
However, he lets out a cry of absolute delight when he finds the Scroll of Raise Animal Companion.
"How serendipitous!"
He then turns to Vegazi.
"Come on - we are burning daylight, and we still have not reached Grev's place. Let's keep moving!"
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The last light of twilight is disappearing, as the tired sun sinks behind the western horizon, as Basil and Vegazi arrive at Grev's homestead.
This little house sits on a level field about a half-mile from the road. Trees surround the home and a small garden is planted in front; these splashes of green provide contrast to the otherwise rocky, dusty terrain. The house is built to weather the elements, and has a wide porch, a fresh coat of paint, and windows open to let in the breeze. A sun parlor on the northeast side of the house features large glass windows instead of walls.
Light pours forth from every window in the house, like a giant beacon painting a target across the old steader's back. Apart from that, however, there is no sign of life.
When Basil knocks on the front door, there is initially no response, but with persistent knocking, a gruff voice hollers:
"Alright young-un'; I'm a coming. Just hold your horses!"
Shortly thereafter, a grizzled, white-haired, one-armed human opens the door, spitting a chaw of chewing tobacco onto the ground outside as he does so.
"Can't a man write 'is memoirs in peace? What's so important that you've got be bothering Old Man Grev?"
Basil once again trots out his spiel.
"Sorry to bother you. I'm Basil, and this here is Vegazi. Don't mind her - she's a woman of few words. Terrin sent us to evacuate you, and the other outlying steaders; it seems that there is a force of orcs and devils working over the local region, and he reckons it would be best for all concerned if you all came to Arwyll Stead for the interim."
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The old man snorts in derision.
"Well, I ain't goin' anywhere. Didn't you hear me, boy? I'm writin' my memoirs. No runty littl' orcs and their fancy-shmancy pet devils scare me. Why, I was out adventurin' before you were a glint in yer papa's eye! Now, if there is nothin' else, I suggest that you get a move on... It'll be dark soon."
"It's getting late - I'd rather not make the journey back tonight. Could we stay the night? Perhaps you could show is some of your memoir?"
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Grev's face immediately brightens up.
"Finally," he exclaims, "some adventurers with good taste in literature! Come in!"
When he gets a closer look at Vegazi, however, Grev's face becomes a picture of slack-jawed astonishment. Grev stammers in excitement before bowing his head politely to the half-orc. "You!" he exclaims to Vegazi. "Her!" he cries to Basil. "She rescued Captain Adil and myself many years ago from the Hell’s Fury prison camp! Boy, I thought we were gonners until she showed up to let us out..."
He then rushes inside, returning triumphantly with a piece of paper, on which is sketched a reasonable likeness of Vegazi. "Any friend of this half-orc is welcome here; come in!"
As he ushers Basil and Vegazi inside, however, there is series of cacophonous cawings, and the sound of many wings beating as one, as two flocks of ravens descend from the sky, the red, beady eyes glowing with malice.
Round 1: Basil(-, -4Dex), Grev(-), RS(-,-), Vegazi(-, -1Dex)
"Spread out! Basil cries, "and protect your eyes!"
He then does exactly that, moving 30' away from Vegazi and Grev, before taking a pot-shot at one of the swarms.
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Basil's arrow slams through one of the swarms, knocking numerous ravens out of the sky. The swarm still maintains its cohesion, however, and moves forward to engulf him...
...whilst the other heads for Grev and Vegazi...
Grev, having drawn his sword, takes a swing as the swarm closes in...
...but the birds easily drift by his slow swings.
...and both are distracted and blinded by the swarm!
Vegazi does her best to brush the swarm aside, to no effect.
Round 2: Basil(-1, -4Dex), Grev(-6), RS(-10,-), Vegazi(-6, -1Dex)
Basil manages to fight off the swarm, and, after stepping out of it, fires a brace of arrows through it.
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Basil's first arrow blows the injured swarm apart.
Grev, blood streaming down his face, frantically tries to brush the swarm away, blindly retreating away from the sound of Vegazi.
The swarm follows him...
...and whilst he takes more damage, he manages to retain his wits.
Vegazi, meanwhile, looks to be at a loss.
Round 3: Basil(-1, -4Dex), Grev(-10), RS(-), Vegazi(-6, -1Dex)
"Don't worry, Grev; we will end this!"
So saying, Basil fires on the last swarm.
"Hang on - let me take a look at your eyes..."
Basil sets about tending Grev and Vegazi's wounds.
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Grev breathes a sigh of relief when Basil finishes his ophthalmic first aid.
"It looks like I'm in your debt twice over, boy! Here, come inside for a wee dram o' whiskey, and I'll read you some edited high-lights from me memoirs..."
The rest of the evening passes uneventfully, with Grev reading excerpts from his memoirs... it quickly becomes clear that, whilst he may have been a moderately successful warrior in his younger days, a talented author he is most definitely *not*.
In the morning, Grev gathers his most precious things together (which includes a disturbingly large number of vellum sheets, all covered in cramped script), packs them into some saddlebags, and then gets his mule ready to go.
"Alright then, let's get to Arwyll Stead!"
Luckily, the journey back to Arwyll Stead passes uneventfully.
When the trio show up at the gates to the Stead, a runner is quickly sent to fetch Terrin, who shows up, beaming.
"Thank-you! All six of the outlying steads have now reported in. We could not have done it without you. Here, take this as a reward," he says, handing over a small bundle.
"You should head straight on in to see the mayor - I am sure that he will want an update, and to see what Grev has to say..."
His voice trails off as he hears a sudden commotion off to one side - four Gaavs have suddenly appeared in the air above the town, carrying something, which they drop in the main square, before teleporting away.
The 'package' lands on the ground with a sickening thud, revealing itself to be the corpse of a human male, dressed in the livery of Arwyll Stead.
As soon as anyone approaches, a voice booms in a thick, Orcish accent:
"The Hell’s Fury tribe demands the half-orc Vegazi. Until then, devils will walk among you. Refuse, and this won’t be the last body that falls."
It then continues to repeat the same message, on a seemingly endless loop.
Terrin's face pales.
"By the Gods! That's one of my scouts! I knew something bad had happened to them! Quick - you need to see the mayor, *now*!"
Basil nods gravely.
"Of course! We will go to see him, at once..."
He then heads straight for Arwyll Manor.
I don't want any of the locals to get any bright ideas about handing over Vegazi...
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At Arwyll Manor, the Trio are greeted by a worried-looking.
"Excellent! You have returned."
Mayor Proum listens attentively as Grev tells (at boredom inducing length) all about Vegazi and how she saved countless Steaders several
decades ago.
He is even more interested in the journal that Basil discovered, which puts names and identities to the forces arrayed against Arwyll Stead.
"I am glad that Vegazi is responsible for effectively extending the Arwyll line another generation, but I am unsure what this fact ultimately means for the town, or even what the townsfolk would make of such a revelation. More to the point, I am still puzzled as to why the Hell’s
Fury tribe is bent on exacting revenge against Vegazi after all these years."
He sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose, before continuing.
"In any case, I have sent for a force of soldiers from Vigil to help us sort out this mess, rescue our scouts, and deal with the mastermind behind these attacks. Until they arrive, I have sealed the town gates. For everyone's safety, no-one is allowed in our out - No exceptions," he says, glancing meaningfully at Basil and Vegazi.
"Still, you have my thanks, and that of the rest of the Council, such as it is. I have a reward of 1000gp for you, for all that you have done thus far, with a promise of an additional 1000gp if you manage to keep Vegazi safe until the knights from Vigil arrive. What say you?"
Basil frowns.
"Well, I would be lying if I said that I thought that was wise; we have been told to expect more deaths if Vegazi is not handed over, so it seems to me that the best course would be to try to solve the problem now. That said, I am hardly going to look a gift horse in the mouth."
So saying, he takes his reward and heads back to the inn, to sort through everything that he has to sell, and to work out what he wants to buy.
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Whilst Basil is taking stock of his inventory, and planning his next move, there is a knock on his door.
Upon opening it, he finds Terrin. The scoutmaster’s face is drawn, and he is obviously still wrestling with his grief over the loss of Wate.
"I apologise for the clandestine meeting, but I want to talk to you without the mayor present; whilst Proum is content to lock the town’s gates and wait for more help to arrive, I want my scouts rescued and
out of harm’s way. Thankfully, I think that there may be a way to do this, without causing too much of a brouhaha."
So saying, he hands over a worn iron key.
"Maybe this key leads to a secret tunnel beneath Arwyll Manor, and maybe not," he muses. "What I can say for certain is that, should you manage to find a way out of Arwyll Stead, I would be forever indebted to you if you rescued my scouts and put a stop to this mess once and for all."
With a wink, he then takes his leave.
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Right then!
Having sorted out what he wants to keep, and sell, Basil goes shopping!
He acquires a Wand of CLW, then purchases some of the 'unique' items - specifically, the Efficient Quiver (for himself), and the +1 buckler (for Vegazi).
After that, he will retire back to the inn, to try and Raise his poor wolf.
Basil sighs (inwardly), and pinches the bridge of his nose.
"I hope for your sake that it has not come about due to reading one-to-many 'forbidden' books..."
Nevertheless, he heads into the Archive, to see what is going on.
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Books, scrolls, and arcane miscellanies litter this expansive, cylindrical library. Floor-to-ceiling shelves cover the walls of the three-story repository, and a few hallways branch off to other chambers. Chairs, couches, and other furniture are positioned throughout the room, except in its very center, where several stacked piles of tomes have been precariously assembled.
Frantically rushing around is a young Gnomish female, with flaming orange hair.
"The Books!" she cries, as she haphazardly tosses another volume onto a pile. "This book!", she cries frantically, as she waves another book in front of Basil's face, before tossing it, too, on the growing pile.
"You see what I mean?" says Gallus. "She just suddenly started doing this, as well as every so often muttering something about 'green eyes'. I haven't the faintest clue what is going on, but I suspect some form of Devilish influence, especially given the ultimatum that was issued this morning. Please, help!"
Not entirely certain what is going on, but, fairly logically, suspecting the involvement of magic, Basil casts Detect Magic, and focuses on the poor Gnome.
"Well, she has clearly be ensorcelled... by what exactly, however, I am not sure..."
A thought then occurs to Basil.
"She was pretty insistent about the books... perhaps they contain a clue?"
He then begins to carefully browse.
"Right! That, I may be able to do something about..."
Scrabbling around in his backpack, Basil pulls out the Scroll of Remove Curse, and casts from it, trying to free the poor Gnome from her compulsion.
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The scroll crumbles to ash in Basil's hands, and for a moment, he fears that he may have wasted it...
...but then the magic takes hold, freeing the Gnome from her curse.
"Thank-you!", she cries. "I wanted to tell you more, but I just couldn't bring myself to say anything. The urge to pile up books was just so overwhelming!"
She pauses thoughtfully for a moment.
"You know, just before I lost it, I saw a strange sight: An old woman with dirty pink skin, long white hair, a pair of twisted horns, and glowing green eyes, floating in the air just at the edge of my vision. She smiled at me, and then my mind was filled with the urge to 'sort'..."
Councillor Gallus comes over, and shakes Basil's hand warmly.
"I can't thank you enough, good Sir! Please, take this as a reward."
So saying, he hands over a small sack containing ten exquisitely cut amethysts (worth a total of 500gp).
Basil shrugs modestly.
"I was just in the right place, at the right time."
He then continues his shopping trip, although he now adds a replacement Scroll of Remove Curse to his list...
...groaning when he discovers that there are none available.
Just my luck...
Having completed his purchases, he returns to the Inn to check in on Vegazi, Raise his companion, and get a good night's rest.
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Back at the Inn, there is a larger than usual number of patrons; several give Basil companionable nods (including several of the steaders that he helped the previous day), but an equal number scowl, and mutter darkly under his breath.
Vegazi has wisely decided to have dinner in her room (not that she was particularly social to begin with), but she joins Basil when he makes his attempt to activate the scroll to bring back his companion...
...but after an initial false start, he manages to read his way through the scroll, bending the magic contained within it to his will, and forcing it into his wolf!
The wolf jerks spasmodically, then golden light suffuses the massive spear wound in its skull, filling it in with healthy pink flesh. Following this, the wolf opens its eyes, and with a while, staggers to its feet, and moves to lick Basil's face.
Basil cries openly.
"I thought that I had lost you forever! Never scare me like that, again!"
He then wraps the wolf in a tight hug, before tossing it an entire leg of lamb.