The changeling, ever the master of deception, assumed the form of the bullywugs he faced, blending seamlessly into their ranks. As the newfound trio grappled and tussled, it became impossible to distinguish friend from foe. To all onlookers ... three bullywugs were involved in a deadly sort of game. A croaking, maniacal laughter echoed through the skirmish as the changeling's mind slipped fully into madness. He had lost himself in the change and was now indistinguishable from those whom he was fighting.
Across the battlefield, the paladin and the shapeshifted druid fought in unison. Yaudara's short spear flashed with divine light as they clashed with the giant toad and its rider. Each of them dealt mighty blows, and the opponents were not able to return the favor.
Meanwhile, the wizard and cleric found themselves confronted by the lone remaining bullywug. It had been swimming toward them, and now stood, spear poised for attack as it emerged from the murky depths of the pond. The wizard took the brunt of the assault as Ichep called to mind one his necromantic charms.
OOC — On the map, all of the vegetation and large boulders provide cover, and the water is hip-deep and will count as difficult terrain. I have zoomed in on the action, but there is more map beyond this snippet. It is ok is your move would take you off of the edge ... I can just zoom out again.
Init - Round 3 Summary 19 - [05/14hp] Rinn. Move. Firebolt vs B1, a miss. 15 - [09/39hp] Giant Toad. Bite vs Grizzly, a miss. 12 - [11/11hp] Balen. Move. Becomes a Bullywug. (Removed from play)* 07 - [13/13hp] Toadstool as self 07 - [29/34hp] Toadstool as Grizzly [AC11]. Bite vs Giant Toad, a miss. Claws vs Giant Toad, a hit! (6hp), BA: Combat Wild Shape (+7hp) 07 - [20/20hp] Yaudara. Move+Dash+Move, Attack+Divine Smite vs Giant Toad, a hit! (11hp) 06 - [08/11hp] B1. Move. Grapple. (Removed from play)* 06 - [11/11hp] B2. Move. Grapple. (Removed from play)* 06 - [11/11hp] B3. Move. Bite vs Rinn, a hit! (5hp) Spear vs Rinn (4hp) 06 - [11/11hp] B4. Move. Retrieve spear. Bite vs Grizzly, a miss. Spear vs Grizzly, a miss. 06 - [11/11hp] B5. Bite vs Yaudara, a miss. Spear vs Yaudara, a miss. 04 - [15/15hp] Ichep. Move. Chill touch?** Ongoing Effects Toadstool — Shillelagh [8 rounds remaining] Toadstool — Wildshaped [1 hour remaining] Ichep — Bless [Concentrating, 8 rounds remaining] ->Blessed — Ichep, Rinn, Yaudara [tokens are marked with blue rings]
*Balen took the form of a bullywug, and now the three bullywugs in the southwest corner of the map are grappling one another and moving around. It has become impossible to tell one from the other ... and all three have been removed from this encounter. Feel free to ignore them.
**After removing B1 & B2 from play, Ichep's designated targets became invalid. Prior to the next round being summed up, in addition to next round's actions, you may select 1 (or 2, if they are adjacent) new target(s) for the spell and we will use the existing rolls to determine the outcome.
Rinn is stunned by the chaos that has unfolded around them so suddenly, with Balen seeming to disappear in the pile of croaking madness and then the bog's marshy waters and brush. Further to confuse him, he's charged by the bullywog in the water, and receives heavy damage from its bite and spear.
He snarls in pain and swears at the croaking enemy, determined to not go down without a fight, but knowing that close-combat is not his specialty. Blood flows freely from beneath his clothes, now cut and torn from the attack, and revealing the deep wounds beneath.
Action Wanting to get out of combat quickly, Rinn uses his quick elvish nimbleness to disengage from the bullywog (B3).
Movement Rinn hastily moves back, wanting to get as much distance between him and the frog as possible. He moves East 10ft, Northeast 10ft, and East 10ft.
Toadstool is not alone anymore and snarls confidently at the amphibians in front of him.
His bear form lunges forward at the neck of the toad and rips out a huge chunk with his jaws. (OOC Should be dead)
Bite (To Hit 8+6=14; damage 7+4=11)
As the giant toad slumps over, Toadstool spits out the bitter, glandular toads flesh, shakes his head and rises up again and pounces on the Rider with both of its claws.
Claws (To Hit 14+6=20; damage 5+2+4=11)
OOC (in quake voice ddddouble kill) The small frogman did not stand a chance. It just splats and gore splashes around.
Stepping around the remains of the toad, Yaudara will strike the remaining bullywug near us with his yklwa, for 11 to hit + 1 Bless = 12 to hit, doing 10 damage, but the low attack roll fails to penetrate the frog's armor.
The tide of battle began to shift in favor of the heroes. The giant toad was able to get in one powerful attack before it died ... but the shapeshifted druid, towering as a formidable grizzly bear, paid it no heed and unleashed a flurry of savage strikes that brought down both the giant toad and one of the remaining bullywugs with a primal ferocity.
Meanwhile, the paladin, though wounded by a minor spear thrust, stood resolute against his foe, his blade met the bullywug's as they clashed in a flurry of steel.
On the other side of the battlefield, the wizard, recognizing the danger, swiftly withdrew to safety. But the cleric found himself confronted by the sole remaining bullywug, its malevolent gaze fixed upon her with menacing intent.
OOC — On the map, all of the vegetation and large boulders provide cover, and the water is hip-deep and will count as difficult terrain. I have zoomed in on the action, but there is more map beyond this snippet. It is ok if your move would take you off of the edge ... I can just zoom out again.
Init - Round 4 Summary 19 - [05/14hp] Rinn. Withdraw. Move. 15 - [00/39hp] Giant Toad. Bite Grizzly, a hit! (12hp piercing + 1hp poison). The Giant Toad died later in the round. ->Grizzly Toadstool has become Grappled (DC13 to escape) and is Restrained 07 - [13/13hp] Toadstool as self 07 - [03/34hp] Toadstool as Grizzly [AC11]. *Bite vs Giant Toad, a hit! (11hp, bringing the Giant Toad to 0hp remining), Claws vs B4, a hit! (11hp, bringing B4 to 0hp remaining) -> This ends the grappled and restrained conditions on the grizzly. -> As the Giant Toad falls prone, B5 uses its reaction to dismount. 07 - [15/20hp] Yaudara. Attack B5, a miss. 06 - [11/11hp] B3. Move. Attack Ichep. A miss.** 06 - [00/11hp] B4. Dead. 06 - [11/11hp] B5. Bite vs Yaudara, a hit! (5hp), Spear vs Yaudara, a miss. 04 - [15/15hp] Ichep. (previous round) Chill touch vs B3, a miss. Toll the Dead vs B3 -> B3, Wis save (DC13), passed!
*The Grizzly became restrained after actions were declared so I rolled additional d20's to account for disadvantage. Both of the rolls were able to hit AC11. Because the first attack succeeded in killin the Giant Toad, the conditions were ended. The second disadvantage roll was not even needed.
**Kisarali has left the tale and this character will be NPC'd for a bit until Ichep can be written out.
Rinn is thankful to Ichep who healed him with his magical words, feeling the soothing warmth flow over his body, closing some of his wounds.
"Thank you, friend," says Rinn to the tiefling cleric and turns his gaze to the bullywog that had attacked him.
Action Rinn again uses the diamond to draw a ball of lighting that he throws through the air at his enemy.
Rinn uses Chromatic Orb at B3. To Hit: 1d20 + 1d4 + 5 = 1 + 4 + 5 = 10 (auto miss). Damage: 3d8 = 6. OOC - Wtf is with these 1?!?! Would use inspiration, but based on RAW, I would have had to call it beforehand (i.e. roll 2d20).
The remaining pair of bullywugs fought with desperation, their croaks resounding through the murky wetlands.
The paladin and the shapeshifted druid had one of the amphibious creatures cornered, but it lashed out violently, dealing a savage blow that shattered the druid's grizzly form, forcing him back into his orcish form, staff clutched tightly in his hands.
Meanwhile, the cleric and the wizard faced the remaining bullywug. Just a moment after the cleric had extended a healing word to the wizard, tragedy struck! The bullywug's spear had buried itself deep into the cleric's midsection!
With a gasp of pain and shock, the cleric's life slipped away. With his dying breath, Ichep's protective charm began to falter. The divine aura that had surrounded the heroes began to flicker and dim, before disappearing entirely.
OOC — On the map, all of the vegetation and large boulders provide cover, and the water is hip-deep and will count as difficult terrain. I have zoomed in on the action, but there is more map beyond this snippet. It is ok if your move would take you off of the edge ... I can just zoom out again.
Init - Round 5 Summary 19 - [12/14hp] Rinn. Chromatic Orb vs B3, a miss. 07 - [13/13hp] Toadstool as self 07 - [00/34hp] Toadstool as Grizzly [AC11]. Bite & Claws vs B5, both miss. 07 - [15/20hp] Yaudara. Spear vs B5, a miss. 06 - [11/11hp] B3. Bite & Spear vs Ichep, both hit, killing Ichep.* Move to Rinn. 06 - [11/11hp] B5. Bite vs Yaudara, a miss. Spear vs Grizzly, a hit! (3hp) -> This attack brings the grizzly form to 0hp remaining and Toadstool's wild shape ends. 04 - [00/15hp] Ichep. Dead.
Ongoing Effects Toadstool — Shillelagh [6 rounds remaining] Toadstool — Wildshaped [on this turn, the wild shape has ended] Ichep — Bless [on this turn, the Bless spell has fallen]
*I did not roll for attacks or damage for this. Normally, a spear attack could not one-shot the cleric, but Ichep's player has withdrawn from the tale and this is Ichep being written out of the story.
Yaudara watches Toadstool transform, offer reassurance, become a wolf and rip the throat out of their foe, and then race off to help the rest of the party.
"Yes, definitely best to not, how did you say it, 'freak out'."
Yaudara then moves and Dashes his full movement speed, trying to get as close to the remaining enemy as possible.
Rinn is again taken aback by another loss...two losses in one battle...how could things have gone so wrong? Have the gods decided that he and his new friends are somehow cursed? Unfortunately though, he does not have time to mourn, as he suddenly finds himself the next target of the bullywug's of the blood-soaked spear.
He needs a way to end the fight now, becoming desperate and knowing that they need to leave this place before more of these croaking monstrosities come for them.
Action Rinn casts a powerful sleep spell on the remaining Bullywug, casting a dusting of magical dust in the direction of the Bullywog.
OOC - Sleep targeting the point 10ft behind the Bullywog. 20ft spherical radius, with Bullywog (11 HP) and Rinn (12 HP, immune) affected in that order. Roll: 5d8 = 29 HP of creatures fall asleep. More than enough to down the frog for 1 min (or until he's mauled by the wolf).
Movement Rinn moves 25ft West and 5ft North, letting the others end this fight.
The druid's form shifted once more, this time into that of a fearsome dire wolf. With a fierce growl, the wolf lunged at one of the bullywugs, its powerful jaws closing around the amphibious creature's throat with a bone-crushing grip.
As the bullywug fell, the wolf wasted no time, swiftly crossing the battlefield with agile strides to confront the final opponent. Meanwhile, Rinn faced the last bullywug alone.
With a wave of the wizard's hand, a powerful sleep charm enveloped the air, and a fine magical dust danced on the breeze, settling over the battlefield like a gentle mist. The final bullywug's eyes grew heavy, its movements slowing until, with a soft thud, it collapsed to the ground, snoring softly in slumber.
As the dire wolf arrived, it wasted no time in dispatching the sleeping foe, its powerful jaws delivering a swift and merciful end.
Toadstool approaches Rinn, sniffs him and darts back to the Giant toad which was covered in trinkets and whatevere the Bullywugs scavenged.
Toads approaches the body of giant toad and starts putting his nose everywhere, clawing everything open and looking for whatever value might be there.
Investigation: 13+2=15 (if sniffing out and investigating still counts towards keen senses, then I rolled another one as if there was advantage 18+2=20)
Yaudara stopped, falling to one knee as he watched the wolf tear the throat out of the sleeping frog. His initial outrage at the killing of a defenseless being was tempered when his gaze fell on Ichep's lifeless body, and he jogged over to the cleric's inert form, confirming he was, in fact, dead, and beyond their ability to save. He rose, turning back to see the wolf loping over to inspect the other bodies, as if it hadn't just committed a murder. Maybe the druid's mind, and morals, change with its body, going as wild as its shape.
But what could they have done instead? Taken the frog prisoner? To what end? Left it tied up in the wilderness, to perhaps be feasted on by other beasts?
"Sometimes in life," his mother's voice came to him, "there isn't a right choice, and all we can do is choose what feels the least wrong."
In the end, he was still alive, and could serve Torm another day. This world is a strange place, Mother.
Rinn is breathing heavily, he having to take a moment for himself to calm down, but glad that that last gambit paid off. He leans heavily on his staff with both hands for a moment to ground himself before speaking.
With a tired voice, he says, "Thank you, Toadstool. Your druidic powers are truly something to wonder at."
He looks to Yaudara as he kneels next to Ichep, and puts a hand on his shoulder to try to comfort the paladin. His words words came out in a halting, somber manner, "Your skills saved us today, Yaudara. Thank you. Torm must be proud."
The elf watches as Yaudara confirm that the cleric was lost. With a few tears flowing down his cheeks, he says quietly to the fallen Ichep, "I just wish my own abilities were as finely hewn as the rest of you; perhaps you would still be with us Ichep. I was honored to call you friend for the time allotted us, but it seems like Fate cut that time far too short."
He closes his eyes and whispers a prayer. He does not know any formal prayers to Ichep's god, Anubis, for it was one he had only recently learned of. As such, he had to improvise, speaking in the Common tongue,
"Anubis, Keeper of the Scales, I pray you to take Ichep into your care. I ask that you would guide them through the night, through the grey sands of oblivion, and to find them and their works worthy of a place of honor in your sacred halls."
Shifting to Elvish, he prays to his own god, "Labelas Enoreth, give me strength. Your ways are ever mysterious, Lord of Time, but I pray that you soon will find us in your favor."
Raising himself slowly, he looks around for the missing Balen, but alas, only finds more filthy pools and twisted trees. He closes his eyes and finishes his Elvish prayer with a plea: "May Fate be kinder to us. I fear that my heart may be next to fail if this sequence of death should continue."
Finally, after a moment to meditate, he lets out out a deep sigh, turning back to see that the paladin is now beside the fallen foe, and clearly conflicted. "He would have done the same," says Rinn, his voice having lost much of its energy, "besides, a death in one's sleep is quick...painless. While it is never pleasant to bloody one's hands with the blood of another living thing, we did what must be done. If my readings about these wet land frog-men are anything to go by, they would have likely have presented us to their amphibious king as slaves or hunting trophies."
Rinn places a hand on the shoulder of the genasi paladin and says, “I likewise disdain shedding the blood of living things. But here in the wilds, one does not fault a prey for felling their predators to save their own life. We were like the snake who happened to strike the hawk. Our venom was to save our lives, not for anything more.”
He stands back up and heads back over towards Toadstool, the large wolf still going through the cargo on the back of the toad. “Have you found anything, Toadstool? We best scavenge what can and take Ichep for burial before more of those bullywugs come to attack us. I’m afraid that Balen is lost…the last I saw him, he disappeared in the dark waters of the marsh.”
Toadstool drops his wolf form after going through the trinkets of the toad. (will find out when DM writes stuff).
"Live and let live. Live and let live. They didn't let others to live. I, I had to, I just had to..."
Rummages through his berry pouch.
"Take these berries, they, they, they help to close wounds, stops bleeding" Sticks out his palm and gives his partners goodberries. "Take how much you want, they, they're good"
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The changeling, ever the master of deception, assumed the form of the bullywugs he faced, blending seamlessly into their ranks. As the newfound trio grappled and tussled, it became impossible to distinguish friend from foe. To all onlookers ... three bullywugs were involved in a deadly sort of game. A croaking, maniacal laughter echoed through the skirmish as the changeling's mind slipped fully into madness. He had lost himself in the change and was now indistinguishable from those whom he was fighting.
Across the battlefield, the paladin and the shapeshifted druid fought in unison. Yaudara's short spear flashed with divine light as they clashed with the giant toad and its rider. Each of them dealt mighty blows, and the opponents were not able to return the favor.
Meanwhile, the wizard and cleric found themselves confronted by the lone remaining bullywug. It had been swimming toward them, and now stood, spear poised for attack as it emerged from the murky depths of the pond. The wizard took the brunt of the assault as Ichep called to mind one his necromantic charms.
OOC — On the map, all of the vegetation and large boulders provide cover, and the water is hip-deep and will count as difficult terrain. I have zoomed in on the action, but there is more map beyond this snippet. It is ok is your move would take you off of the edge ... I can just zoom out again.
Rinn is stunned by the chaos that has unfolded around them so suddenly, with Balen seeming to disappear in the pile of croaking madness and then the bog's marshy waters and brush. Further to confuse him, he's charged by the bullywog in the water, and receives heavy damage from its bite and spear.
He snarls in pain and swears at the croaking enemy, determined to not go down without a fight, but knowing that close-combat is not his specialty. Blood flows freely from beneath his clothes, now cut and torn from the attack, and revealing the deep wounds beneath.
Action
Wanting to get out of combat quickly, Rinn uses his quick elvish nimbleness to disengage from the bullywog (B3).
Movement
Rinn hastily moves back, wanting to get as much distance between him and the frog as possible. He moves East 10ft, Northeast 10ft, and East 10ft.
Toadstool is not alone anymore and snarls confidently at the amphibians in front of him.
His bear form lunges forward at the neck of the toad and rips out a huge chunk with his jaws. (OOC Should be dead)
Bite (To Hit 8+6=14; damage 7+4=11)
As the giant toad slumps over, Toadstool spits out the bitter, glandular toads flesh, shakes his head and rises up again and pounces on the Rider with both of its claws.
Claws (To Hit 14+6=20; damage 5+2+4=11)
OOC (in quake voice ddddouble kill) The small frogman did not stand a chance. It just splats and gore splashes around.
(Target for attack from last turn on B3)
MOVEMENT - To B3
ACTION - Attack B3 (Hit, 7+3=10, DMG: 3+9 Channel Divinity)
BONUS ACTION - Healing Word on Rinn (7 healing)
"Well done, bear."
Stepping around the remains of the toad, Yaudara will strike the remaining bullywug near us with his yklwa, for 11 to hit + 1 Bless = 12 to hit, doing 10 damage, but the low attack roll fails to penetrate the frog's armor.
The tide of battle began to shift in favor of the heroes. The giant toad was able to get in one powerful attack before it died ... but the shapeshifted druid, towering as a formidable grizzly bear, paid it no heed and unleashed a flurry of savage strikes that brought down both the giant toad and one of the remaining bullywugs with a primal ferocity.
Meanwhile, the paladin, though wounded by a minor spear thrust, stood resolute against his foe, his blade met the bullywug's as they clashed in a flurry of steel.
On the other side of the battlefield, the wizard, recognizing the danger, swiftly withdrew to safety. But the cleric found himself confronted by the sole remaining bullywug, its malevolent gaze fixed upon her with menacing intent.
OOC — On the map, all of the vegetation and large boulders provide cover, and the water is hip-deep and will count as difficult terrain. I have zoomed in on the action, but there is more map beyond this snippet. It is ok if your move would take you off of the edge ... I can just zoom out again.Rinn is thankful to Ichep who healed him with his magical words, feeling the soothing warmth flow over his body, closing some of his wounds.
"Thank you, friend," says Rinn to the tiefling cleric and turns his gaze to the bullywog that had attacked him.
Action
Rinn again uses the diamond to draw a ball of lighting that he throws through the air at his enemy.
Rinn uses Chromatic Orb at B3. To Hit: 1d20 + 1d4 + 5 = 1 + 4 + 5 = 10 (auto miss). Damage: 3d8 = 6.
OOC - Wtf is with these 1?!?! Would use inspiration, but based on RAW, I would have had to call it beforehand (i.e. roll 2d20).
Toadstools fur is just covered in blood and gore of his enemies.
A bit too much covered, because he got some of it in his eyes from the last attack.
Regardless of the semi blinded state, he tries to maul the remaining enemy.
OOC: Lets gooooo lowrollaz!!!
Seeing the bear's vicious attack come up empty, Yaudara's respect for the frog-men grows. He stabs at the agile foe with his yklwa.
10 to hit, which doesn't, and 12 wasted damage.
Respect starts to turn to frustration, and he works to suppress it and be ready for the counterstrike.
The remaining pair of bullywugs fought with desperation, their croaks resounding through the murky wetlands.
The paladin and the shapeshifted druid had one of the amphibious creatures cornered, but it lashed out violently, dealing a savage blow that shattered the druid's grizzly form, forcing him back into his orcish form, staff clutched tightly in his hands.
Meanwhile, the cleric and the wizard faced the remaining bullywug. Just a moment after the cleric had extended a healing word to the wizard, tragedy struck! The bullywug's spear had buried itself deep into the cleric's midsection!
With a gasp of pain and shock, the cleric's life slipped away. With his dying breath, Ichep's protective charm began to falter. The divine aura that had surrounded the heroes began to flicker and dim, before disappearing entirely.
OOC — On the map, all of the vegetation and large boulders provide cover, and the water is hip-deep and will count as difficult terrain. I have zoomed in on the action, but there is more map beyond this snippet. It is ok if your move would take you off of the edge ... I can just zoom out again.
Init - Round 5 Summary
19 - [12/14hp] Rinn. Chromatic Orb vs B3, a miss.
07 - [13/13hp] Toadstool as self07 - [00/34hp] Toadstool as Grizzly [AC11]. Bite & Claws vs B5, both miss.
07 - [15/20hp] Yaudara. Spear vs B5, a miss.
06 - [11/11hp] B3. Bite & Spear vs Ichep, both hit, killing Ichep.* Move to Rinn.
06 - [11/11hp] B5. Bite vs Yaudara, a miss. Spear vs Grizzly, a hit! (3hp)
-> This attack brings the grizzly form to 0hp remaining and Toadstool's wild shape ends.
04 - [00/15hp] Ichep.Dead.Ongoing Effects
Toadstool — Shillelagh [6 rounds remaining]
Toadstool — Wildshaped [on this turn, the wild shape has ended]
Ichep — Bless [on this turn, the Bless spell has fallen]
*I did not roll for attacks or damage for this. Normally, a spear attack could not one-shot the cleric, but Ichep's player has withdrawn from the tale and this is Ichep being written out of the story.
Toadstool looks shocked to be turned back into his orc form.
"Ugh, no, no not like that! Different, lets try different, don't freak out Yaudara"
Bonus action
Wildshape into Dire wolf and let out a long howl and bark.
Action
Bite with advantage from pack tactics
Movement
Run back to Rinn, to check up on him. 50 feet of movement brings me right to him. OOC oh I love druids so much
Yaudara watches Toadstool transform, offer reassurance, become a wolf and rip the throat out of their foe, and then race off to help the rest of the party.
"Yes, definitely best to not, how did you say it, 'freak out'."
Yaudara then moves and Dashes his full movement speed, trying to get as close to the remaining enemy as possible.
Rinn is again taken aback by another loss...two losses in one battle...how could things have gone so wrong? Have the gods decided that he and his new friends are somehow cursed? Unfortunately though, he does not have time to mourn, as he suddenly finds himself the next target of the bullywug's of the blood-soaked spear.
He needs a way to end the fight now, becoming desperate and knowing that they need to leave this place before more of these croaking monstrosities come for them.
Action
Rinn casts a powerful sleep spell on the remaining Bullywug, casting a dusting of magical dust in the direction of the Bullywog.
OOC - Sleep targeting the point 10ft behind the Bullywog. 20ft spherical radius, with Bullywog (11 HP) and Rinn (12 HP, immune) affected in that order. Roll: 5d8 = 29 HP of creatures fall asleep. More than enough to down the frog for 1 min (or until he's mauled by the wolf).
Movement
Rinn moves 25ft West and 5ft North, letting the others end this fight.
The turn has not ended, but I will roll everything as Rinn indicated that he expects the wolf to finnish Kermit.
Move up and bite - with advantage and auto crit as the target is asleep.
Toads lets out a victorious howl and starts sniffing around to assess the threat level.
The druid's form shifted once more, this time into that of a fearsome dire wolf. With a fierce growl, the wolf lunged at one of the bullywugs, its powerful jaws closing around the amphibious creature's throat with a bone-crushing grip.
As the bullywug fell, the wolf wasted no time, swiftly crossing the battlefield with agile strides to confront the final opponent. Meanwhile, Rinn faced the last bullywug alone.
With a wave of the wizard's hand, a powerful sleep charm enveloped the air, and a fine magical dust danced on the breeze, settling over the battlefield like a gentle mist. The final bullywug's eyes grew heavy, its movements slowing until, with a soft thud, it collapsed to the ground, snoring softly in slumber.
As the dire wolf arrived, it wasted no time in dispatching the sleeping foe, its powerful jaws delivering a swift and merciful end.
It was over.
"Aaawooooooo, bark, bark!"
Toadstool approaches Rinn, sniffs him and darts back to the Giant toad which was covered in trinkets and whatevere the Bullywugs scavenged.
Toads approaches the body of giant toad and starts putting his nose everywhere, clawing everything open and looking for whatever value might be there.
Investigation: 13+2=15 (if sniffing out and investigating still counts towards keen senses, then I rolled another one as if there was advantage 18+2=20)
Yaudara stopped, falling to one knee as he watched the wolf tear the throat out of the sleeping frog. His initial outrage at the killing of a defenseless being was tempered when his gaze fell on Ichep's lifeless body, and he jogged over to the cleric's inert form, confirming he was, in fact, dead, and beyond their ability to save. He rose, turning back to see the wolf loping over to inspect the other bodies, as if it hadn't just committed a murder. Maybe the druid's mind, and morals, change with its body, going as wild as its shape.
But what could they have done instead? Taken the frog prisoner? To what end? Left it tied up in the wilderness, to perhaps be feasted on by other beasts?
"Sometimes in life," his mother's voice came to him, "there isn't a right choice, and all we can do is choose what feels the least wrong."
In the end, he was still alive, and could serve Torm another day. This world is a strange place, Mother.
Rinn is breathing heavily, he having to take a moment for himself to calm down, but glad that that last gambit paid off. He leans heavily on his staff with both hands for a moment to ground himself before speaking.
With a tired voice, he says, "Thank you, Toadstool. Your druidic powers are truly something to wonder at."
He looks to Yaudara as he kneels next to Ichep, and puts a hand on his shoulder to try to comfort the paladin. His words words came out in a halting, somber manner, "Your skills saved us today, Yaudara. Thank you. Torm must be proud."
The elf watches as Yaudara confirm that the cleric was lost. With a few tears flowing down his cheeks, he says quietly to the fallen Ichep, "I just wish my own abilities were as finely hewn as the rest of you; perhaps you would still be with us Ichep. I was honored to call you friend for the time allotted us, but it seems like Fate cut that time far too short."
He closes his eyes and whispers a prayer. He does not know any formal prayers to Ichep's god, Anubis, for it was one he had only recently learned of. As such, he had to improvise, speaking in the Common tongue,
"Anubis, Keeper of the Scales, I pray you to take Ichep into your care. I ask that you would guide them through the night, through the grey sands of oblivion, and to find them and their works worthy of a place of honor in your sacred halls."
Shifting to Elvish, he prays to his own god, "Labelas Enoreth, give me strength. Your ways are ever mysterious, Lord of Time, but I pray that you soon will find us in your favor."
Raising himself slowly, he looks around for the missing Balen, but alas, only finds more filthy pools and twisted trees. He closes his eyes and finishes his Elvish prayer with a plea: "May Fate be kinder to us. I fear that my heart may be next to fail if this sequence of death should continue."
Finally, after a moment to meditate, he lets out out a deep sigh, turning back to see that the paladin is now beside the fallen foe, and clearly conflicted. "He would have done the same," says Rinn, his voice having lost much of its energy, "besides, a death in one's sleep is quick...painless. While it is never pleasant to bloody one's hands with the blood of another living thing, we did what must be done. If my readings about these wet land frog-men are anything to go by, they would have likely have presented us to their amphibious king as slaves or hunting trophies."
Rinn places a hand on the shoulder of the genasi paladin and says, “I likewise disdain shedding the blood of living things. But here in the wilds, one does not fault a prey for felling their predators to save their own life. We were like the snake who happened to strike the hawk. Our venom was to save our lives, not for anything more.”
He stands back up and heads back over towards Toadstool, the large wolf still going through the cargo on the back of the toad. “Have you found anything, Toadstool? We best scavenge what can and take Ichep for burial before more of those bullywugs come to attack us. I’m afraid that Balen is lost…the last I saw him, he disappeared in the dark waters of the marsh.”
Toadstool drops his wolf form after going through the trinkets of the toad. (will find out when DM writes stuff).
"Live and let live. Live and let live. They didn't let others to live. I, I had to, I just had to..."
Rummages through his berry pouch.
"Take these berries, they, they, they help to close wounds, stops bleeding" Sticks out his palm and gives his partners goodberries. "Take how much you want, they, they're good"