Morgan opens his eyes... he hadn’t even realized they were closed. Pain crashes into him all at once: sudden, intense, terrifying.
He grits his teeth, forcing focus through the haze. His hand dives into his pocket, fingers closing around a diamond as he channels the spell.
"Keep it together, Morgie…"
A crackling orb of energy tears free from his grip and streaks forward.
Chromatic Orb, fire damage, upcast to 3rd level. Attack on D: to hit 1 15 (using Heroic Inspiration), damage: 23 (fire).
The orb ricochets sharply.
Attack on A: to hit 19, damage: 18 (fire).
Morgan exhales shakily as the magic settles — only to feel it twist again, eager, unstable... and wild.
(Wild Magic Surge check: 10 — no surge. Tide of Chaos Surge Roll: 63 — "for the next minute, any flammable, nonmagical object Morgan touches that isn’t worn or carried bursts into flame, taking 1d4 fire damage and continuing to burn". Tide of Chaos recharged.)
Finally, if these things are not dead, I'd misty step (Fey Touched, no spell slot) out of there and take my movement to go as far as possible.
Brother Bombur batters both, deeply wounding the monsters. Randa Rises. Her rapid attacks pelt the wounded once, twice, four times! Blasting apart flesh in a way that seems impossible from a simple arrow. One is immediately killed by her first shot and the rest pepper the remaining gibbering mouther that screams in agony, laughs in delight, and bellows in rage as it is critically injured by Randa's assault.
Then Morgan casts a spell almost on pure instinct. Flames engulf the remaining gibbering monster as it was on the cusp of death, sending it laughing to the grave.
The female orc falls to her knees, mourning the mound of once gibbering flesh. She picks up a piece of it that bears some familiar tusks. “Oh Turk… you brave, silly fool.”
Elsewhere, the final blow is delivered by Ayo and her team on their gibbering mouthers. All look Bloodied by the experience, but Ayo smiles and claps Irvan on the shoulder. He smiles back and the crew comes together to congratulate Ayo for helping them get through what was obviously an especially challenging battle. Ayo swells with pride, the feelings of redemption lifting her up.
Then she collapses.
Dermot rushes in, hands aglow. He pumps her with a healing. “Just lost a lot of blood is all. Don’t worry, got this one.” He says, trying to reassure the Fellowship. His face is drawn with concern however. In a matter of moments, Ayo is strong enough to stand again.
“Wow, those things sure have enough teeth. What in the hells were they?” Ayo asks.
“Gibbering Mouthers. It might do well for you in the future to know what you are fighting before you step into their range. If we are to hire you, I recommend you use your downtime here to study the creatures that assail us. It isn’t a good investment for us if we have to expend our own lives to save yours.” The drow male says as he looks at the mourning orc woman with sad resignation.
Citizens leave secure buildings and immediately begin the task of gathering bodies for disposal. Their drawn faces and practiced movements suggest that this is not at all a rare occurrence in their lives. None look afraid, just tired. A weariness of the soul. This extends to the drow in brilliant armor standing before you. He is young and supernaturally beautiful, but his stance and expression are melancholic.
"My apologies," he says. "That was unkind of me to say. Please forgive my boorish first impression. I've seen my men and women die hundreds of times, but it never gets any easier. My name is Verin. Verin Thelyss. I am the Taskhand of this outpost."
"First thing's first, everyone gather round. Let us pray to the Allhammer to heal our wounds."
[I'll start with Prayer of Healing, so everyone gets 11HP + the benefits of a short rest (remember you can use HD to heal that way as well). Randa, I'll throw another 12 your way. Anyone else, let me know what you need.]
While basking in the glow of the Allfather, Ylis addresses Veryn, "Hello there," she waves her spider legs at him "We are the Fellowship of the Wind. Sorry about the losses, we've never met those kinds of things before" gesturing at the rest of the party.
"We heard a little bit about your town on the way here from your guardians out there in the wastes." more vague spider waving towards the gates. "There were doomstalkers, and uh...barracudas, and...something that was melting. Anyway, we're here to find information on" she squints an eye in concentration, "uh...The Jewel of Three Prayers? Do you know of it?"
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
Morgan gives the remains of one of the ugly creatures an annoyed kick. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he limps over to Bombur and sets a hand on his shoulder. He thanks him with a simple nod as he watches the wounds knit themselves closed.
With his other hand, he grips his Bloodwell Vial tightly, drawing on its power to steady himself and reclaim the magic he just spent (Morgan uses the sorcery points to recover the spent spell slot - Font of magic - and the vial to recover the expended sorcery points.)
At last, he turns his attention to Verin. "We were looking for you, Taskhand," he adds to Ylis's question, then falls quiet, listening.
Randa looks terrified as Ayo falls but then relieved as she is attended to, she moves over to the orc woman that had saved her and kneels beside her, "Tell me about Turk."
“Well it seems you have found me.” Verin offers a forced smile but it fades as he searches his mind for any information on the item Ylis asks for. “I’m not familiar with such an item. It sounds religious though. I might suggest looking in the Temple here. It has fallen into disrepair since demons killed all the followers. I am not sure what faith was worshiped there-I’m not especially religious-but it is occupied by some spiritual fellow if I recall correctly. He might be able to help you find some dusty tome with information on what you seek.”
***
The orc woman looks up at Randa kneeling down beside her and wipes away a tear. “Turk… he was my brother. Always wanted to prove his worth.” She says bitterly at first. A smile cracks her lips. “Always wanted to compete with me. I think he thought it made me better to be pushing me. I’ll miss him.” She lets the thought hang for a moment before standing. “But we are all familiar with death to these damned demons and their pets. No use crying over one when I can save a dozen more.”
***
An alarm blares and the people stop what they are doing and head back inside their secure locations. Verin sighs, the weight of the world returning to rest on his shoulders. “I wish I could speak more, but I must secure other breaches. Stay. Recover. When the alarms cease, that is the all-clear. You are free to wander the town as you like. When you have had your fill of it, find me at the Gatehold Barracks. We can discuss possible mercenary work then.” He nods to the group and waves to the orc woman. “Tull, come.”
The orc woman shoves her helmet on and grabs her spear. She looks ready to kill more abominations or die trying. With that, they both leave the group. The alarms are currently sounding, but far from this area. Still, the townsfolk are taking no chances and the streets are only populated by foot soldiers running this way and that to check and secure various places. No one pays any mind to you other than to occasionally urge you to seek shelter.
After about 5 minutes, the alarms stop and the townsfolk exit their secured locations and resume gathering bodies and cleaning up as if this is just another day in the life of a Bazzoxanian. What do you do?
"With glowing hope, a sudden crush. Turns to soft and tender mush. A lurking shadow brings the fear, but hand in hand we'll hold each other dear!"
[Everybody gets 8 thp]
[Randa, Morgan, and Tull have +10 max hp for 8 hours] Aid
Ylis looks around with her 6 eyes and says, "Well I've used up about half of my magic but the rest of you are ok with your powers right?" swaying back and forth on white furry spider legs she waits a few moments then, "So we should check out the temple, yes? Then maybe food, I'm hungry" Which is a tiny bit unnerving coming from the giant spider.
OOC: A is bloodied (50+% damage) D is damaged around 30-ish points.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Morgan opens his eyes... he hadn’t even realized they were closed. Pain crashes into him all at once: sudden, intense, terrifying.
He grits his teeth, forcing focus through the haze. His hand dives into his pocket, fingers closing around a diamond as he channels the spell.
"Keep it together, Morgie…"
A crackling orb of energy tears free from his grip and streaks forward.
Chromatic Orb, fire damage, upcast to 3rd level.
Attack on D: to hit
115 (using Heroic Inspiration), damage: 23 (fire).The orb ricochets sharply.
Attack on A: to hit 19, damage: 18 (fire).
Morgan exhales shakily as the magic settles — only to feel it twist again, eager, unstable... and wild.
(Wild Magic Surge check: 10 — no surge.
Tide of Chaos Surge Roll: 63 — "for the next minute, any flammable, nonmagical object Morgan touches that isn’t worn or carried bursts into flame, taking 1d4 fire damage and continuing to burn".
Tide of Chaos recharged.)
Finally, if these things are not dead, I'd misty step (Fey Touched, no spell slot) out of there and take my movement to go as far as possible.
Makes sense. 21 on the save.
Author of Kid Comet and the Sixth Grade Shadow and other Middle Grade Novels
Brother Bombur batters both, deeply wounding the monsters. Randa Rises. Her rapid attacks pelt the wounded once, twice, four times! Blasting apart flesh in a way that seems impossible from a simple arrow. One is immediately killed by her first shot and the rest pepper the remaining gibbering mouther that screams in agony, laughs in delight, and bellows in rage as it is critically injured by Randa's assault.
Then Morgan casts a spell almost on pure instinct. Flames engulf the remaining gibbering monster as it was on the cusp of death, sending it laughing to the grave.
DM: Combat ended.
DM mostly, Player occasionally | Session 0 form | He/Him/They/Them
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The female orc falls to her knees, mourning the mound of once gibbering flesh. She picks up a piece of it that bears some familiar tusks. “Oh Turk… you brave, silly fool.”
Elsewhere, the final blow is delivered by Ayo and her team on their gibbering mouthers. All look Bloodied by the experience, but Ayo smiles and claps Irvan on the shoulder. He smiles back and the crew comes together to congratulate Ayo for helping them get through what was obviously an especially challenging battle. Ayo swells with pride, the feelings of redemption lifting her up.
Then she collapses.
Dermot rushes in, hands aglow. He pumps her with a healing. “Just lost a lot of blood is all. Don’t worry, got this one.” He says, trying to reassure the Fellowship. His face is drawn with concern however. In a matter of moments, Ayo is strong enough to stand again.
“Wow, those things sure have enough teeth. What in the hells were they?” Ayo asks.
“Gibbering Mouthers. It might do well for you in the future to know what you are fighting before you step into their range. If we are to hire you, I recommend you use your downtime here to study the creatures that assail us. It isn’t a good investment for us if we have to expend our own lives to save yours.” The drow male says as he looks at the mourning orc woman with sad resignation.
DM mostly, Player occasionally | Session 0 form | He/Him/They/Them
EXTENDED SIGNATURE!
Doctor/Published Scholar/Science and Healthcare Advocate/Critter/Trekkie/Gandalf with a Glock
Try DDB free: Free Rules (2024), premade PCs, adventures, one shots, encounters, SC, homebrew, more
Answers: physical books, purchases, and subbing.
Check out my life-changing
Citizens leave secure buildings and immediately begin the task of gathering bodies for disposal. Their drawn faces and practiced movements suggest that this is not at all a rare occurrence in their lives. None look afraid, just tired. A weariness of the soul. This extends to the drow in brilliant armor standing before you. He is young and supernaturally beautiful, but his stance and expression are melancholic.
"My apologies," he says. "That was unkind of me to say. Please forgive my boorish first impression. I've seen my men and women die hundreds of times, but it never gets any easier. My name is Verin. Verin Thelyss. I am the Taskhand of this outpost."
DM mostly, Player occasionally | Session 0 form | He/Him/They/Them
EXTENDED SIGNATURE!
Doctor/Published Scholar/Science and Healthcare Advocate/Critter/Trekkie/Gandalf with a Glock
Try DDB free: Free Rules (2024), premade PCs, adventures, one shots, encounters, SC, homebrew, more
Answers: physical books, purchases, and subbing.
Check out my life-changing
"First thing's first, everyone gather round. Let us pray to the Allhammer to heal our wounds."
[I'll start with Prayer of Healing, so everyone gets 11HP + the benefits of a short rest (remember you can use HD to heal that way as well). Randa, I'll throw another 12 your way. Anyone else, let me know what you need.]
Author of Kid Comet and the Sixth Grade Shadow and other Middle Grade Novels
While basking in the glow of the Allfather, Ylis addresses Veryn, "Hello there," she waves her spider legs at him "We are the Fellowship of the Wind. Sorry about the losses, we've never met those kinds of things before" gesturing at the rest of the party.
"We heard a little bit about your town on the way here from your guardians out there in the wastes." more vague spider waving towards the gates. "There were doomstalkers, and uh...barracudas, and...something that was melting. Anyway, we're here to find information on" she squints an eye in concentration, "uh...The Jewel of Three Prayers? Do you know of it?"
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Morgan gives the remains of one of the ugly creatures an annoyed kick. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he limps over to Bombur and sets a hand on his shoulder. He thanks him with a simple nod as he watches the wounds knit themselves closed.
With his other hand, he grips his Bloodwell Vial tightly, drawing on its power to steady himself and reclaim the magic he just spent (Morgan uses the sorcery points to recover the spent spell slot - Font of magic - and the vial to recover the expended sorcery points.)
At last, he turns his attention to Verin.
"We were looking for you, Taskhand," he adds to Ylis's question, then falls quiet, listening.
Randa looks terrified as Ayo falls but then relieved as she is attended to, she moves over to the orc woman that had saved her and kneels beside her, "Tell me about Turk."
“Well it seems you have found me.” Verin offers a forced smile but it fades as he searches his mind for any information on the item Ylis asks for. “I’m not familiar with such an item. It sounds religious though. I might suggest looking in the Temple here. It has fallen into disrepair since demons killed all the followers. I am not sure what faith was worshiped there-I’m not especially religious-but it is occupied by some spiritual fellow if I recall correctly. He might be able to help you find some dusty tome with information on what you seek.”
***
The orc woman looks up at Randa kneeling down beside her and wipes away a tear. “Turk… he was my brother. Always wanted to prove his worth.” She says bitterly at first. A smile cracks her lips. “Always wanted to compete with me. I think he thought it made me better to be pushing me. I’ll miss him.” She lets the thought hang for a moment before standing. “But we are all familiar with death to these damned demons and their pets. No use crying over one when I can save a dozen more.”
***
An alarm blares and the people stop what they are doing and head back inside their secure locations. Verin sighs, the weight of the world returning to rest on his shoulders. “I wish I could speak more, but I must secure other breaches. Stay. Recover. When the alarms cease, that is the all-clear. You are free to wander the town as you like. When you have had your fill of it, find me at the Gatehold Barracks. We can discuss possible mercenary work then.” He nods to the group and waves to the orc woman. “Tull, come.”
The orc woman shoves her helmet on and grabs her spear. She looks ready to kill more abominations or die trying. With that, they both leave the group. The alarms are currently sounding, but far from this area. Still, the townsfolk are taking no chances and the streets are only populated by foot soldiers running this way and that to check and secure various places. No one pays any mind to you other than to occasionally urge you to seek shelter.
After about 5 minutes, the alarms stop and the townsfolk exit their secured locations and resume gathering bodies and cleaning up as if this is just another day in the life of a Bazzoxanian. What do you do?
DM mostly, Player occasionally | Session 0 form | He/Him/They/Them
EXTENDED SIGNATURE!
Doctor/Published Scholar/Science and Healthcare Advocate/Critter/Trekkie/Gandalf with a Glock
Try DDB free: Free Rules (2024), premade PCs, adventures, one shots, encounters, SC, homebrew, more
Answers: physical books, purchases, and subbing.
Check out my life-changing
"With glowing hope, a sudden crush. Turns to soft and tender mush. A lurking shadow brings the fear, but hand in hand we'll hold each other dear!"
[Everybody gets 8 thp]
[Randa, Morgan, and Tull have +10 max hp for 8 hours] Aid
Ylis looks around with her 6 eyes and says, "Well I've used up about half of my magic but the rest of you are ok with your powers right?" swaying back and forth on white furry spider legs she waits a few moments then, "So we should check out the temple, yes? Then maybe food, I'm hungry" Which is a tiny bit unnerving coming from the giant spider.
"Sooner or later, your Players are going to smash your railroad into a sandbox."
-Vedexent
"real life is a super high CR."
-OboeLauren
"............anybody got any potatoes? We could drop a potato in each hole an' see which ones get viciously mauled by horrible monsters?"
-Ilyara Thundertale
Morgan nods to the
white spiderYlis in thanks, a bit unsure which eye to look at."I've never felt this good… but let's have no more surprises."
He traces a quick sigil in the air and lets magic settle around him as he casts **Mage Armor**.
"Yeah, let's head to the temple. And if we spot a magic shop on the way… maybe we stop and restock healing potions. I've got absolutely nothing left."