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Voyager35 - 25 June 2004 - Orcs in the Hills
Previous calendar:
- Third Age, Year 1108
- 01 July - Flee Myagmarsuren in the middle of the night
- 06 July - Pre-dawn battle with Ettins
I. The Ettin's Collar
Around ONE head of the Ettin leader was a magical collar. It consists of a dark metal chain bound tightly by a leather sheath. The metal is a special black iron mined and shaped by the dark elves. It has properties similar to adamantine, but is susceptible to sunlight. If exposed, the magic of the collar will dispel immediately - and the metal itself will corrode and crumble within a few hours.
The purpose of the collar was to make the Ettin more susceptible to magical domination. The dark elves presented the collar as a gift and then used enchantment magic to convince the Ettin to gather a small army and march west. This alone would probably not be a problem, but the drow have used this enchantment on a dozen (or more) powerful creatures in the area! When the party reaches the pass over the mountains, they will find a sizeable army amassed - just waiting for further instruction.
II. Travel schedule
As the party left the river valley and proceeded across the high desert, their route grew more difficult - but also a little more direct. The loss in comfort is made up for by the gain in time. The schedule from Voyager #34 has been adapted as follows:
1-7 July : From Myagmarsuren to the tip of the mountain range
8-13 July : to the narrow mountain range running North-South 14-15 July : Search for pass (to the north) 16 July : Cross pass into west 17-19 July : Delve into forest (back south; slow travel) 20 July : First encounter with Elves 21-22 July : Escorted to elven city 23-24 July : Escorted to Sorgol's castle (“Alrik's grave”)
III. Encounters on the road
Modified from the list in Voyager #34. The hermit with a bear was removed and replaced by an army!
1-7 July : From Myagmarsuren to the tip of the mountain range
6 July 1108 Sunrise 4:52 Sunset 19:08 High: 62 Low: 52
3:46 : (night) Local Tribe/patrol/etc.
10:37 : Gargun (Wandering Band): Working/Looking for Work/etc: Questing/etc.
These two encounters were lumped together into the Ettin/Orc combat from
Voyager #34.
7 July 1108 Sunrise 4:51 Sunset 19:09 High: 56 Low: 44
None
8-13 July : to the narrow mountain range running North-South
8 July 1108 Sunrise 4:50 Sunset 19:10 High: 69 Low: 52 9 July 1108 Sunrise 4:49 Sunset 19:11 High: 64 Low: 55 10 July 1108 Sunrise 4:48 Sunset 19:12 High: 73 Low: 51
None
As the party is now out of Bone tribe territory, they will no longer see
the smoke signals commonly used for communication. This is a sort of DMZ
between Bone tribe and Greenleaf tribe and as such, there will not be any
significant encounters.
By the 10th of July, though, the party will begin to see the mountain
range they are heading for. (It will still be ~50 miles away, but is high
enough to be visible).
11 July 1108 Sunrise 4:47 Sunset 19:13 High: 66 Low: 55
20:17 : (night) Local Tribe/patrol/etc.
An hour past sunset, an orc group from the Greenleaf tribe will approach
the camp. Just like with the Ettins, the first probe will be three orc
scouts. Once they gather the desired intelligence (or they are
discovered), they will flee and report the party's position. A full
assault will then commence. This group is heavily armed (Morningstars and
Shortbows) and armored (Scale mail and light shield) and will be led by a
6th level captain. There will also be two 3rd level sergeants and 13
soldiers.
What makes this group especially interesting (aside from the powerful
leader) is that the three leveled orcs ride horses. Sadly for them, their
leader is short on Wisdom and long on confidence. This group should be
dead within a minute.
Captain: Barbarian/6: CR 6; HD 6d12+12; hp 60; Init +1 (+1 Dex);
Spd 40'; AC 16 (+1 Dex, +5 Armor); Attack +11/+6 melee (d8+5), or
+7/+2 ranged (d6); SV Fort +9, Ref +3, Will +0; AL CE;
Str 21, Dex 13, Con 15, Int 10, Wis 6, Cha 11.
Balance +4, Handle Animal +10, Heal +0, Hide +1, Intimidate +3, Jump
+13, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) +3.5, Listen -2, Move Silently +1, Ride
+7, Spellcraft +3, Spot -2, Swim +13; Combat Reflexes, Endurance, Great
Fortitude, Run.
Sergeants: Barbarian/3: CR 3; HD 3d12; hp 23; Init +2 (+2 Dex); Spd 40';
AC 17 (+2 Dex, +5 Armor); Attack +8 melee (d8+5), or +5 ranged (d6);
SV Fort +3, Ref +3, Will +0; AL CE;
Str 21, Dex 14, Con 11, Int 8, Wis 9, Cha 8.
Climb +9, Craft (?) +3, Hide +2, Listen +6, Move Silently +2, Ride +6,
Spot +1, Survival +5, Swim +8; Alertness, Blind-Fight, Track.
Soldiers: Standard Orc: CR 1/2; HD 1d8+1; hp 5; Init +0; Spd 30';
AC 15 (+5 Armor); Attack +4 melee (d8+3), or +1 ranged (d6);
SV Fort +3, Ref +0, Will -2; AL CE;
Str 17, Dex 11, Con 12, Int 8, Wis 7, Cha 6.
Listen +1, Spot +1
12 July 1108 Sunrise 4:46 Sunset 19:14 High: 69 Low: 57
None
13 July 1108 Sunrise 4:45 Sunset 19:15 High: 74 Low: 62
5:56 : Local Tribe/patrol/etc.
11:11 : Ursine: Bear: Sleeping/Hibernating/Dormant
15:14 : Human Adventurer: Hunting Criminals/runaways/game
This is the day the party will arrive at the mountain range. The peaks
are about 4,000 feet above the valley floor on this side and about 5,000
feet above the elven forests on the other side (making them around 6,000
feet above sea level). The range appears much as the Elkhorn mountains
look from I-84 North of Baker City, however, there is no pass visible in
either direction and the party has no knowledge of which direction is the
correct way to go.
The three encounters above are lumped together into the following event:
In the pre-dawn, an orc scout trio will find the party. These scouts come
from an orc war camp situated about two miles from the party. The orcs
are moving north to rendezvous with the invasion group assembling at the
pass and could provide useful information to the party if they opt to
interrogate any. Their leader is a Hill Giant (with a dark elf collar)
who has 8 Ogres as his lieutenants. There are 74 orcs, however 12 of them
are not combatants.
If able, the scouts will return to their camp and report. However, the
leader this time is a tad smarter than the previous leaders - and he will
hold off attacking. If the party tries to avoid this group, the mid-day
encounter will be with another scouting trio and the afternoon encounter
will be with a group sent out to kill the party. This group will consist
of 5 Ogres and 38 Orcs, with the remainder staying back at the campsite.
However, if the party seeks them out, the mid-day encounter will be with
the full camp.
14-15 July : Search for pass 14 July 1108 Sunrise 4:44 Sunset 19:16 High: 74 Low: 58
14:22 : Mutiny/Dissent/Argument/etc.
If, by chance, the party took any orc captives from the previous
encounter(s), this is when they will attempt escape. If not, then this
will be a casual encounter with a group of 30 orc soldiers heading for the
rendezvous at the pass.
15 July 1108 Sunrise 4:43 Sunset 19:17 High: 69 Low: 57
None
While the party will not find the pass (per se), they will find the camped
armies aroud mid-afternoon. If they have done any interrogation, they
should know that this is where the pass is.
There are five armies assembled so far and they are waiting for seven more
to arrive. The Ettins killed in Voyager #34 were one of these armies and
the Hill Giant from July 13th is another. Thus, there are still five
armies making their way here.
The 5 enchanted leaders are as follows: (letters indicate position on map)
(T) Troll Hunter (with 2 regular Trolls)
(1) Hill Giant (with 1 more Hill Giant)
(2) Hill Giant (with 1 more Hill Giant)
(F) Fomorian (MMII, p.105) (no lieutenants)
(E) Ettin (with 2 Ettins and 2 Brown Bears)
Each leader also has around 100 orcs under his command - meaning that
there are roughly 500 orcs present here! However, many of these orcs
arrived independently and owe their "leader" no allegiance.
In addition to the orcs that are already here, the various tribes are
amassing their full armies to act as a second wave. The soldiers that
wait at the pass entrance are merely shock troops. The dark elf
enchantment will carry them deep into the elven woods attacking, killing,
and sowing as much chaos as possible. While they are considered
completely expendable, the majority of them will remain even if they learn
of their fate.
A close inspection will reveal that the armies are not well provisioned,
however they have enough food to last around a week. They are spending
their time training (which results in a few deaths per day) and
weaponcrafting (especially fletching). The regular orc soldiers have
studded leather, but there are ten who wear chain. (While these are
leveled orcs of different ranks, for simplicity sake, assume they are all
third level Barbarians):
Orc Leaders: CR 3; HD 3d12+6; hp 30; Init +1 (Dex); Spd 30';
AC 17 (+5 Chain, +1 Shield, +1 Dex); Attack +7 (Melee, d8+4),
Ranged +4 (d6); Fort +5, Ref +2, Will +0
Str 18, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 8, Wis 8, Cha 6.
Climb +9, Craft (?) +3, Hide +2, Listen +6, Move Silently +2, Ride +6,
Spot +1, Survival +5, Swim +8; Alertness, Blind-Fight, Track.
Soldiers: Standard Orc: CR 1/2; HD 1d8+1; hp 5; Init +0; Spd 30';
AC 15 (+5 Armor); Attack +4 melee (d8+3), or +1 ranged (d6);
SV Fort +3, Ref +0, Will -2; AL CE;
Str 17, Dex 11, Con 12, Int 8, Wis 7, Cha 6.
Listen +1, Spot +1
16 July : Cross pass into west 16 July 1108 Sunrise 4:42 Sunset 19:18 High: 67 Low: 57
None
At the summit of the pass over the mountains, the party will find a
barrier of twisted, thorny vines. The barrier was grown magically and
extends from 10 to 15 feet above the trail floor and blocks the pass for
nearly 100 feet. This portion of the pass is a high-walled canyon and
going around is not practical. The barrier can be hacked or burned
through - given time - but it will probably be easier to use magic to fly
over or move through somehow...
Later in the day, as the path begins consistently heading downhill, the
elevation (and Kesi's spyglass) will provide the party with their first
glimpse of the western ocean (even though it is over 20 miles away).
17-19 July : Delve into forest (slow travel) 17 July 1108 Sunrise 4:42 Sunset 19:18 High: 64 Low: 52
None
18 July 1108 Sunrise 4:41 Sunset 19:19 High: 73 Low: 46
12:56 : Dryad (Forest only)
14:44 : Reptile: Ordinary Snake (poisonous): Sleeping/Hibernating/Dormant
18:07 : Wild/stray Cattle/etc.: Stalking/Hunting or Fleeing Predator
The first encounter in the elven forest will be a Dryad! How fitting!
The afternoon encounter will be (for the most part) harmless, but even
animals in this forest can provide interesting diversions!
Finally, the evening encounter will be just bizarre. It will be an elk
that will wander directly in as the group is setting up camp. It is not
afraid of the party - which hopefully will not be its undoing.
19 July 1108 Sunrise 4:40 Sunset 19:20 High: 66 Low: 61
None
The elves will become aware of the party on this day and will begin
shadowing them to discern whether they are a threat. Unless the party
takes extreme precautions, the elves presense will not be noticed. There
are only two of them, but they have magical means to send information back
home, so the entire forest will be aware of the party from this point on!
In addition, there will be additional unusual animal encounters, but none
worth detailing.
20 July : First encounter with Elves 20 July 1108 Sunrise 4:39 Sunset 19:21 High: 66 Low: 56
None
A total of 18 elves will appear from the forest around the party as they
establish camp in the evening. Unless provoked, the elves will not be a
threat. However, they will *insist* on escorting the party from this
point on.
21-22 July : Escorted to elven city 21 July 1108 Sunrise 4:39 Sunset 19:21 High: 66 Low: 52
18:00 : Lame Horse or Equipment Loss/failure
19:40 : (night) Local Tribe/patrol/etc.
The lame horse should provide no real challenge - as Roderick can correct
even serious injuries.
The evening encounter will be additional elves joining the escort group.
The new elves are there either because they consider the party unfriendly
or because they are curious. Which one depends on the party's actions...
22 July 1108 Sunrise 4:38 Sunset 19:22 High: 67 Low: 52
None
Arrival at the great elven "city". Picture Galadriel's tree houses...
Depending on the party's behaviour, the elves will either treat them to a
feast in their honor - or hold them essentially captive until the morning.
In either event, they will be expected to leave the forests as soon as
practical. Escorts will be provided to take them to "Alrik's grave".
They will be told that the "guests" residing there will be able to direct
the party down to Farflen.
23-24 July : Escorted to Sorgol's castle (“Alrik's grave”) 23 July 1108 Sunrise 4:37 Sunset 19:23 High: 72 Low: 56
10:33 : Local Tribe/patrol/etc.
24 July 1108 Sunrise 4:37 Sunset 19:23 High: 70 Low: 64
None
And here's a quote that is completely unrelated to anything: “I pray the shining beacon of your intellect leads the unwashed semiliterates of /. into the gas chambers of enlightenment.” – http://developers.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=112389&cid=9532947
Bigby's Spells for this adventure:
Level : 0 1 2 3 4 5
- —————— Close = 45' (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Wizard/9 : 4 4 4 3 2 1 Medium = 190' (100 ft. + 10 ft./level) INT 17 : - 1 1 1 - - School : 1 1 1 1 1 1
Total : 5 6 6 5 3 2
Spells known:
0 (All cantrips) 2 Blindness/Deafness 4 Charm Monster
2 Daze Monster 4 Confusion
1 Cause Fear 2 Hideous Laughter 4 Crushing Despair 1 Charm Person 2 Levitate 4 Geas, Lesser 1 Expeditious Retreat 2 See Invisibility 1 Feather Fall 2 Touch of Idiocy 5 Dominate Person 1 Floating Disk 1 Hypnotism 3 Deep Slumber 1 Identify 3 Heroism 1 Mage Armor 3 Hold Person 1 Magic Missile 3 Suggestion 1 Sleep
Spells for the Orc territory:
0 Detect Magic [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 0 Detect Magic [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 0 Light [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 0 Prestidigitation [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 0 Daze [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
1 Feather Fall [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 1 Sleep [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 1 Sleep [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 1 Magic Missile [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 1 Tenser's Floating Disk [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 1 Charm Person [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
2 Levitate [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 2 See Invisibility [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 2 Mage Armor (Extended) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 2 Magic Missile (Silent) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 2 Sleep (Silent) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 2 Daze Monster [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
3 Hold Person [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 3 Suggestion [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 3 Magic Missile (Silent/Still) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 3 Sleep (Silent/Still) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 3 Deep Slumber [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
4 Charm Monster [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 4 Confusion [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 4 Crushing Despair [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
5 Deep Slumber (Silent/Still) [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] 5 Dominate Person [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]