21:36, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Ronan, rolled 7 using 2d6+2.  Magic Missile Damage.
21:37, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 1 using 1d6.  Alarm? (1-2/6).
21:45, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 4 using 1d6.  Can Angus end the other one quickly? (4-6).

The hobgoblin by the fire turns around when Ronan begins chanting his spell, but is then blasted against the wall by the magical projectile. He slides down to a seating position, clutching his wound and gasping for air, still alive but badly wounded.
The sleeping one wakes up with a grunt, and looks around confused for a second before he notices his comrade's plight. "Wha...? Argh! Alar-!" The shouting turns into a gurgle as Angus plunges his dagger into the creature's throat. Immediately, he spins the weapon around and launches the weapon into the other hobgoblin's heart with a flick of his wrist. "Ooo!", you hear Tum-tuk mumble excitedly.

A moment later, everything is quiet again. Then, a concerned voice from the room to the east, and footsteps. "Uh-oh", as Tum-tuk eloquently whispers.

Hearing the commotion, Bernhard moves to help Angus and Ronan.

Falan moves in, bow at the ready. He instructs Tum-Tuk to stand just behind him and to the side, and use his sling.

Ronan follows Falan's lead, whatever that might be in this case.

The door swings open, and a hobgoblin strolls in, hand on his weapon (still sheathed on his belt). It takes him only a moment to realize what's happening.

12:20, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 5 using 1d6.  Initiative (1-3 party acts first).

Without hesitation, he turns around and runs east back the way he came, shouting: "To arms! Intruders!"

The rooms to the east are (in order):
-A room filled with crates acting as a corridor.
-Another guardhouse, identical to the one you're in right now. You hear movement of several people there.

"So much for stealth," Bernhard says and moves quickly after the fleeing guard. "We need to end this fast."

With the typical lethality of one of his race, Ronan throws his dagger after the fleeing watchhobgoblin.

22:41, Yesterday: Dungeon Master rolled 1 using 1d6.  Initiative (1-3 party wins).
12:20, Tue 12 July: Dungeon Master rolled 5 using 1d6.  Initiative (1-3 party acts first).


The party runs after the escapee, hoping to stifle the alarm before it gets out of hand.
Ronan's dagger flies through the air with deadly precision. The victim claws unsuccessfully at the weapon stuck in his back, as his last gasps carry his fleeting life away.
The warriors rush to the next room. Inside there are two bunks, a low table with a box to sit on, and two
stools. Three hobgoblins occupy this room, armed with swords. Pinned to one of the walls by several knives is a crude target, drawn on pieces of a broken table top. The other wall is covered in black, dusty drawings. A few pieces of bread and cheese lie on top of a table, next to a small cage containing a pet crow. Against
the wall behind him is a small bag of coal, and the door to the courtyard outside.

23:12, Today: Dungeon Master, for the NPC Thrall, rolled 9,6 using 1d20,1D6.
23:12, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Tum-Tuk, rolled 8,2 using 1d20,1D6.
23:12, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Brother Nerrag, rolled 4,5 using 1d20+2,1D6+2.
23:11, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Black Angus, rolled 21,3 using 1d20+2,1D6+2.
23:10, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Thorik, rolled 15,3 using 1d20+1,1D6+1.
23:10, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Falan Oakenheel, rolled 17,7 using 1d20+1,1D6+1.
23:09, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Dhar-Gradvig, rolled 5,4 using 1d20+1,1D6+1.
23:09, Today: Dungeon Master, on behalf of Bernhard, rolled 19,2 using 1d20+1,1D6+1.
23:07, Today: Dungeon Master rolled 7 using 2d6-2.  Morale (Overwhelming odds & surprise).


Falan slays a foe with a single blow, while Thorik and Bernhard team up to kill another one. Black Angus' blade slices through the hand of the last one, more robust and apparently in charge of the other two. The hobgoblin releases his still-sheathed weapon and clutches the wound instead, whimpering pathetically for his life.


<  <  <  PARTY  >  >  >
Bernhard F5 HP 22/22 THAC0 17 AC -1 M/R: +1/+0
Black Angus F5 HP 22/22 THAC0 17  AC 3 M/R: +2/+0
Brother Nerrag C5 HP 22/22 THAC0 18 AC 0 M/R: +2/-
Falan M4/F4 HP 16/16 THAC0 17 AC 7 M/R: +1/+2
Ronan M5 HP 12/12 THAC0 18 AC 5 M/R: +1(+2)/+1(+0)
Thorik T5 HP 12/12 THAC0 18 AC 7 M/R: +1/+1(+0)
Dhar-Gradvig F3 HP 12/12 THAC0 18 AC 6 M/R: +1/-
Thrall F3 HP 14/14 THAC0 18 AC 3 M/R: +0/-
Tum-Tuk F1 HP 4/4 THAC0 19 AC 6 M/R: +0/+0

EDIT: Realized I forgot to include the first two rolls. Nice critical, Ronan.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:39, Thu 21 July 2022.

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 44):

Wow, that was the hardest! ;-) Thank

"Do we want him?"

Freeing his dagger from its hole within the hobgoblin's back, Ronan saunters over to the groveling one and elects to slit his neck -- no, not out of mercy but out of efficiency.

"That's your answer, Angus. Now, let's scout out the surrounding area and then proceed without having another house party."

"A thought, my friends. Last we heard...moaning as we came into a place, we found those ghouls, did we not? Perhaps we should drag these bodies near the moaning, in case there are more ghouls. They'll come by and consume the bodies--and if there are patrols, they may assume that unruly ghouls collected the bodies."

He paused, then continued: "Or, maybe there are no ghouls, and the slavers will take us for fools."

Finally, he chuckled.

"No ghouls, I believe that moaning was our snoring friend back there. I agree with Ronan, let's keep moving. However, I'd prefer to keep following the footprints up those stairs we left behind."

Bernhard takes a moment to search their fallen foes and check their weapons for anything of use or value.

The slavers' weapons look cheap, but not crude... as if mass-produced. You find a pouch with 17 gold coins on the sergeant's corpse.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:56, Fri 29 July 2022.

"Well, let's get moving again. Where was it we were going to climb up back here?"

In reply to Dungeon Master (msg # 49):

Angus will take the pouch if no one else does, divide it later.

"Judging by their weapons, I'd say this group has a forge here, and likely a large force. We should tread carefully and quietly or else we'll rouse the entire fort and get slaughtered...or worse."

Bernhard will lead the way back toward the stairs, listening carefully as he goes for sounds of alarm or movement.

As you make your way back up, all is quiet. You take the stairs to the top of the building. It seems that it leads to the crenellated battlements that constitute the gate's defense. The footsteps end here. There is a thoroughly rusted knife on the floor, on top of a large dark stain. A cold breeze starts blowing all of a sudden.

To the south, you can see the outermost courtyard, between this curtain wall and the inner gatehouse. It is unlit - the muddy ground glistens when moonlight finds a hole in the cloudy skies.

So no exits from the top of the outer gatehouse?

In reply to Ronan (msg # 54):

None. You stand on the top of a tower-like structure on the wall that covers the northmost portion of the fort - which is the only portion with a walkable wall. The western and eastern edges of this wall are accessed through the second story.

"How about the most foolhardy among us tread along those parapets and report back?" Ronan nobly suggests.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:40, Tue 02 Aug 2022.

Bernhard nudges the knife with his boot and checks the stain.

"Looks like someone met their end here."

From where you stand, the parapets look empty and seem to lead nowhere.

The stain is a dark red, slightly sticky. Probably dried blood.
The weapon seems a remarkably good knife, compared to the weapons you've seen on the hobgoblins. As Bernhard's boot makes contact with it, he gets a strange thought. He feels the urge to pick it up, and use it... On someone.

Falan beamed at his friend elf, a little bit ironically and a little bit seriously. "Well, friend, if you'll tie a rope around me and have your hardy thrall hold onto it, I'd be willing to step out onto the parapet."

Obligingly, the elf rummages around in his pack until he finds the coils of rope and does as he was asked. It's good to act contrary to his instincts, he thinks. Keeps the thralls guessing, those with the cognitive powers to do so.

Bernhard backs away from the dagger.

"I have a feeling that dagger has a curse upon it. No one touch it."