D&D Campaign Session for September 17th, 2000

Volume II: Where there's Smoke, there's Fire

Played with 3rd Edition Rules

The Party:
Selena, Human Female Monk of Ehlonna, 1st Level (Scott)
Ithil, Elf Female Rogue, 1st Level (Dennis)
Kari, Human Female Ranger/Cleric of Fharlanghn, 1st Level/1st Level(Andy)
Reddof, Half-Elf Male Ranger, 2nd Level (Greg)
Glothe, Dwarf Fighter, 1st Level (Caleb)
Azaki, Half-Orc Fighter, 2nd Level (Josh)
Kessem, Female Elf Wizard, 1st Level (Neil)
Mike, Human Male Fighter, 1st Level (Patty)
Kobort, Half-Orc Male Cleric of Heironeous, 1st Level (Bart)

Starting at the Secret Door to the Hobgoblin Caves from the Goblin Caves.

The obscuring mist had blown away and dead hobgoblins littered the corridor as half of the party advanced toward the hallway intersection, engaging a group of 4 hobgoblins with a shaman led by a zombified ogre -- Rube, with his head awkwardly patched back on. Glothe was nearly squished by his club, but delivered the death blow with his last conscious breath. Despite a volley of very large crossbow bolts from the hobgoblins, the fighters advanced, although Mike was the victim of a command spell and then he and the other fighters were caught with burning hands from the shaman. When attacked, the shaman fled and skeletons shuffled in to be dealt with by Kobort's turning. Finally, the last hobgoblin warrior was killed by Glothe and the shaman fled through another secret door.

Meanwhile, at the last pit in the corridor, Azaki, Selena, Kessem and Ithil repelled a party of 6 hobgoblins with a leader.

Once rejoined, the party looted the hobgoblin corpses and burned them; Kessem found a Wand of Summon Ally, and Kobort found a chest which Ithil disarmed -- with a warning to the party that nobody is to let on anywhere that she's a thief, and to not admit to knowing her (a.k.a. "Olla Chazam", description: black hair, dark skin, no tattoo) if any sailor asks. The chest had a false bottom, and the gold was pocketed by the party.

The secret doors were spiked, and the party retired to the central room for the night, only to be harassed from the second watch on, when four goblins approached the pit, tossing javelins. One dead, they retreated from the party's counterattack. The 3 came back to lose another to Ithil's bow; three again came, only to be chased away by Kobort, and the half-orc decided to camp out in the pit from then on. So when three more came, he just climbed up, killed two of them, and went back to sleep until the secret door was bashed down and hobgoblins attacked.

The hobgoblins rushed in through the hallway, forcing the party fighters back with their charge. While the party organized a defense, goblins and the shaman attacked from the far side of the pit. Selena vaulted over the pit, tumbling into their midst and dazzling them with her unarmed skills before succumbing to her wounds. At the end of the fight, 10 hobgoblins, their boss and several goblins lay dead, while only the shaman and one other hobgoblin escaped; with much of the party wounded, the adventurers paused to heal.

Unfortunately, it was several hours before the party was recovered enough to follow the fleeing hobgoblins through the bashed-down, once-secret door. Fortunately, the scythe blade missed Glothe as he stepped on the pressure plate. With some figuring, Ithil and Selena manage to spike the plate, and the party was able to pass. Through deserted halls and chambers the adventurers travelled; the hobgoblins had completely fled before them, and they decided to get the horses.

The horses were already dinner for something, probably kobolds, since the party met and did away with three of them. They gathered up the half of the tack that was salvageable and decided to go back to the keep when they were intercepted by 5 gnolls with nasty bows. With two arrows in his chest, Glothe fell. It took a few rounds to cover the distance, but once the party began to engage them in melee, gnolls began to fall. The leader, a big one with an urgrosh, fell to the combination attacks of Mike, Kobort and Selena; the last standing gnoll, under attack from all sides, viciously skewered Mike just before he himself fell.

Taking care of the wounded, the party travelled back to the Keep.

Here endeth the session.