Sometime in the afternoon the snow lets up, and stops.
All is silent and peaceful. A blanket of white covers all, making the world seem less complicated, or perhaps full of potential. A blank canvas! The clouds even lessen and some sunlight can be seen straining down. It has little potency to warm anything, but the increase in light is welcome.
[you can process a short rest if needed]
Orvo has outfitted each of you with wide snowshoes which are well suited for moving about in conditions such as this. He huffs a bit and says, "Well, we better get a move on. Cyro, I noticed you seem quite at home in these environs, perhaps you'd like to take the lead in tracking down a new animal for us? We can put in several hours' work before night falls."
Orvo recommends that you all fan out to increase odds of spotting tracks, but stay within sight of each other and slowly move westward where eventually there is more mountainous terrain (50+ miles away) as the elk and caribou are more likely to be in that direction. He also advises moving slowly and not stomping about.
You all spread out to be about 500’ apart from each other. Cyro and Fro are in the middle of the fan, Orvo on the southern arm, Faloniir on the northern arm. For about two hours you proceed with no sign of any animals. Snow has covered all the world’s history and hidden its secrets from you.
Currently the trees are sparse but in the distance you can make out more dense groupings of trees. In the far distance against the cloudy sky you can see white mountains rising up out of the ground. The sun will soon set behind the mountainscape.
Suddenly there is a rumbling felt through the ground! With an explosion of noise, Cyro and Fro, you can see that Faloniir is thrown to the ground as snow and earth erupt into the air near him. A massive creature is tearing up out of the earth, like an armored centipede with many segmented insectile arms waving in the air. The head is great plates of carapace shoved together with a gaping maw and protruding mandibles. The underbelly glows red and hot, and you see snow burning away into steam from the heat of the monster.
Faloniir valiantly regains his footing as he brings his bow to bear, and he looses an arrow, but it clacks off the armored thing harmlessly. Then the monster dives down at Faloniir, mouth first, and gobbles him up with a mighty snap of its mandibled jaws! Then it turns in a circle and dives back down where it had risen from the ground.
In a moment, just like that, all is still again. But Faloniir is just… gone. Steam still rises from the spot where he stood, the surrounding snow peppered with dark chunks of rock and earth.
Orvo curses something indistinct as Fro runs over to where Faloniir had been.
Fro, you see a bit of a crater here as though an explosion had gone off. At the site of the crater there is churned earth and a bit of a hole, but filled in with collapsed dirt and rock. The snow is blasted away and the ground is warm and muddy as a lot of snow melted in this area. Apparently the remorhaz generates a lot of heat. There are still some patches of steaming snow warmed by chunks of hot stone. Of Faloniir there is no sign... No wait, he dropped something. An arrow from his quiver, no doubt he was trying to nock it before he was snatched. Trying to fight even against something so strong, that described Faloniir, he was a warrior to the end. Now the arrow has been abandoned by its master and lies fallen in the snow. You pick it up. It's an ordinary arrow, well-made, straight shaft of hard wood, fletching made of brown feathers of some kind, and a short, very sharp, broadhead tip made of steel. It's all you have left of your friend.
Fro will take Faloniirs arrow to Cyro, "I have no way of carrying this, you take it and maybe it will save us right when we need it to." She looks at Orvo, "He is gone, and we definitely need another elk now. Shall we keep looking?"
Regrouping with Orvo, you continue the prior strategy, even though it’s twilight now, you feel a pressing need to accomplish this task, after seeing what happened to Faloniir. And you know the animals will be more active at this time into early night.
Just after nightfall you are able to spot a small herd of elk and, enacting a strategy similar to last time, Cyro who has proven to be every bit as savvy as Orvo in this wilderness, is able to wrangle a young calf. You secure it as before and make camp for the night.
Next day dawns still and bitter cold. The snow from yesterday has hardened significantly in the low temperature weather.
This is the beginning of day 13 of exposure to Frigid Woe
Those are some pretty sick rolls. But traversing the Eiselcross isn’t supposed to be fun!
The day passes just as smoothly as the previous. You’ve been able to make up for lost time. The day passes uneventfully and the weather is fair, if cold. Your elk is not unmanageably uncooperative. After camping for the night, a new day dawns.
This is the beginning of day 15 of exposure to Frigid Woe
37 miles of progress made in the Eiselcross
[rolling for weather]
Please make your daily survival check. Also please each of you roll 1d10 “for fun".
Sometime in the afternoon the snow lets up, and stops.
All is silent and peaceful. A blanket of white covers all, making the world seem less complicated, or perhaps full of potential. A blank canvas! The clouds even lessen and some sunlight can be seen straining down. It has little potency to warm anything, but the increase in light is welcome.
[you can process a short rest if needed]
Orvo has outfitted each of you with wide snowshoes which are well suited for moving about in conditions such as this. He huffs a bit and says, "Well, we better get a move on. Cyro, I noticed you seem quite at home in these environs, perhaps you'd like to take the lead in tracking down a new animal for us? We can put in several hours' work before night falls."
“Sure thing. I am used to these environment.”
What should I roll for finding another animal for us?
survival
If you want to form a plan too, Orvo would listen and make suggestions. Otherwise Orvo can direct.
Fro will follow any plan from Cyro or Orvo.
Survival: 15
Orvo recommends that you all fan out to increase odds of spotting tracks, but stay within sight of each other and slowly move westward where eventually there is more mountainous terrain (50+ miles away) as the elk and caribou are more likely to be in that direction. He also advises moving slowly and not stomping about.
You all spread out to be about 500’ apart from each other. Cyro and Fro are in the middle of the fan, Orvo on the southern arm, Faloniir on the northern arm. For about two hours you proceed with no sign of any animals. Snow has covered all the world’s history and hidden its secrets from you.
Currently the trees are sparse but in the distance you can make out more dense groupings of trees. In the far distance against the cloudy sky you can see white mountains rising up out of the ground. The sun will soon set behind the mountainscape.
Suddenly there is a rumbling felt through the ground! With an explosion of noise, Cyro and Fro, you can see that Faloniir is thrown to the ground as snow and earth erupt into the air near him. A massive creature is tearing up out of the earth, like an armored centipede with many segmented insectile arms waving in the air. The head is great plates of carapace shoved together with a gaping maw and protruding mandibles. The underbelly glows red and hot, and you see snow burning away into steam from the heat of the monster.
Faloniir valiantly regains his footing as he brings his bow to bear, and he looses an arrow, but it clacks off the armored thing harmlessly. Then the monster dives down at Faloniir, mouth first, and gobbles him up with a mighty snap of its mandibled jaws! Then it turns in a circle and dives back down where it had risen from the ground.
In a moment, just like that, all is still again. But Faloniir is just… gone. Steam still rises from the spot where he stood, the surrounding snow peppered with dark chunks of rock and earth.
Fro runs to where Faloniir was, and investigates.
Investigation: 13
Orvo curses something indistinct as Fro runs over to where Faloniir had been.
Fro, you see a bit of a crater here as though an explosion had gone off. At the site of the crater there is churned earth and a bit of a hole, but filled in with collapsed dirt and rock. The snow is blasted away and the ground is warm and muddy as a lot of snow melted in this area. Apparently the remorhaz generates a lot of heat. There are still some patches of steaming snow warmed by chunks of hot stone. Of Faloniir there is no sign... No wait, he dropped something. An arrow from his quiver, no doubt he was trying to nock it before he was snatched. Trying to fight even against something so strong, that described Faloniir, he was a warrior to the end. Now the arrow has been abandoned by its master and lies fallen in the snow. You pick it up. It's an ordinary arrow, well-made, straight shaft of hard wood, fletching made of brown feathers of some kind, and a short, very sharp, broadhead tip made of steel. It's all you have left of your friend.
Fro will take Faloniirs arrow to Cyro, "I have no way of carrying this, you take it and maybe it will save us right when we need it to." She looks at Orvo, "He is gone, and we definitely need another elk now. Shall we keep looking?"
Regrouping with Orvo, you continue the prior strategy, even though it’s twilight now, you feel a pressing need to accomplish this task, after seeing what happened to Faloniir. And you know the animals will be more active at this time into early night.
Just after nightfall you are able to spot a small herd of elk and, enacting a strategy similar to last time, Cyro who has proven to be every bit as savvy as Orvo in this wilderness, is able to wrangle a young calf. You secure it as before and make camp for the night.
Next day dawns still and bitter cold. The snow from yesterday has hardened significantly in the low temperature weather.
This is the beginning of day 13 of exposure to Frigid Woe
13 miles of progress made in the Eiselcross
[rolling for weather]
Please make your daily survival check.
Fro daily survival check: 20.. yay
Survival: 18
The day passes uneventfully and you make great time. It's little solace after the devastating events of yesterday.
Your new elk calf is more docile than the caribou was, seeming to accept her fate with much less struggle.
You traveled 12 miles, 2 more than anticipated, due to clear weather and no troubles encountered.
You camp and rest and start it all over again the next day.
This is the beginning of day 14 of exposure to Frigid Woe
25 miles of progress made in the Eiselcross
[rolling for weather]
Please make your daily survival check. Also please each of you roll 1d12 "for fun".
Survival: 21.. nat 20
D12 for fun.. lol. 4
Survival:27
Fun d12:11
Well, we will survive.. but we aint having fun..
Those are some pretty sick rolls. But traversing the Eiselcross isn’t supposed to be fun!
The day passes just as smoothly as the previous. You’ve been able to make up for lost time. The day passes uneventfully and the weather is fair, if cold. Your elk is not unmanageably uncooperative. After camping for the night, a new day dawns.
This is the beginning of day 15 of exposure to Frigid Woe
37 miles of progress made in the Eiselcross
[rolling for weather]
Please make your daily survival check. Also please each of you roll 1d10 “for fun".
Survival: 16
d10 for Fun: 5 better.. snowball fight?
Edit... Actually, Fro will chunk a snowball at Cyro... To hit: 21
( I’ll tell you at the end of the campaign what those rolls are for, but you might be able to figure it out eventually )