Traveling to Fang Hills
Set-Up
Scene Setup: An elf named Galdire seeks a company of adventurers to discover the fate of an order of scholars and mages lost in the Fang Hills.
Chaos Factor: 5, (Chaos roll: 6, no alteration)
Play
How far away is the Fang Hills? 1d4 regions (1)
What is the Danger, Terrain, Discover, and NPC encounter rates of this region? 1d6 for each (1, 5, 1, 5)
“If Fang Hills is where you say it is,” Kaylessa began, “we’ll be moving through some difficult terrain which means there will likely be lots of refugees hiding out in small pockets. Most will be in need of help or at least indifferent, but we should be on the lookout for those who are a bit less scrupulous…those like yourself.”
“They’ll keep their distance. Just tell them what I’ve become.”
“True enough. None-the-less, let’s be careful.”
Survival roll for navigation: Kaylessa (2), Taji (1) Fail, fatigued and draw one additional card for terrain
Survival roll for foraging: Kaylessa (3), Taji (5) Success, find food
Notice roll for danger reduction: Kaylessa (5), Ollea (10) Success with raise, reduce danger by 1 and NPC by 1
Danger draw (Enemies on spades): none
Terrain draw (Obstacles on clubs): 2s, 9s, Ad, 10s, Kh, Qh; No obstacles
Discovery draw (Discovery on diamonds): Ah; No discoveries
NPC draw (NPC encounter on hearts): 8h, Qs, 10c, Kd; One NPC draw
Does the party notice the NPC first? Kaylessa (7), Ollea (3), Success
What do they see? Defective (89) Brute (84) with motivation to guard (31) pleasure (55)
The terrain had been grueling. Climbing up and down rocky hills had led into trudging through a rain-soaked valley with the mud sucking at their feet every step which had in turn led to short climb up a cliff face. It would not have been so bad except that Kaylessa had to help Galdire the whole and that help had to be distanced so as to not catch the Disease. It was already wearing him down even further. He was nearly spent for the day, and quite frankly, so was she. Fatigue hung at her every step.
It was then that a jaunty melody quietly made its way to Kaylessa’s ears. She held her hand out for Galdire to stop as she listened. Was that whistling? By Obed-Hai, that’s a mangled form of an old bar tune, she thought. A smile crept over her face. I haven’t heard that since, and she paused, before the fey. The smile quickly vanished.
Stay here, she signed to Galdire and began looking around for Taji before she remembered she had been forced to dismiss him when climbing the cliff. He wouldn’t be rejoining her until dawn at the earliest. She closed her eyes and searched her min for Ollea. My guide and friend, she sent out through her mind, I need your eyes. Without words, she communicated to Ollea that danger may be ahead, and the spirit hawk silently flew higher to get a better vantage point while Kaylessa stealthily drew closer to the whistling.
Stealth roll: 4 vs. notice 6
“Oo goes th’air?” came a booming voice.
Feyluck! thought Kaylessa. She drew her bow and moved out into the open where she saw a hulking elf with a gnarled club balancing over his shoulder. He stood over a small hole in the ground not much more than 3 feet in diameter.
“Cummin’ far da gambles, do ya?” the elf asked. “If ya be hair den you ken of the cards below in yon cave. Ware, though, ya must be wairned that the house has da odds in th’air fayva. Corse, ya knows dat alsready.”
A blathering fool to be sure, Kaylessa thought. “There’s a gambling den below? In that hole?”
“Sees, I knows you knows alsready. Guess dat means you a’goin’ down, sose I steps aside.”
“Are you guarding this place?”
“Ohs, yes! ‘Tis mine jobe to keep da bad ones out an’ pound ’em good if day’s a cheatin’.”
“I see,” said Kaylessa. “Actually, while I appreciate your offer of a respite, I believe I am on more urgent business at this time.”
“Ress pit? Ya means da cook pit? Ohs, yes! Th’airs sum mitey fine a foods dat grows in the da dark and Cookie cooks ’em up good.”
“Again, thank you for the option, but I believe we will pass this time around.”
The brute shrugged his shoulders and waved goodbye as Kaylessa retreated back into the thicker part of the woods.
“It seems we’ve stumbled upon a gambling establishment in a cave system,” she relayed to Galdire.
“Hmmph,” he grunted in appreciation. “That would do me well now, but we must press on. The Fang Hills should be just a mile or two from here.” Then he began to cough wildly.
“Hold it together for a bit longer, Galdire. We must deliver your package. Lives may depend on it.”
“Not the least of which is my own,” he replied. “Lead on. I’ll make it.”
And forward they went.