Road to Madari (Part 2)

Disciples of Bone and Shadow

Intro

Previously, on part 1 of Road to Madari… Thythe is feed up with living in Akkar Strand, she decides to return where her parents live, Madari. She heads north-west and encounters a settlement, they reluctantly ask her to get rid of a hunter that has destroyed a floodgate which has caused a catastrophic flood in the village. She takes the mission and heads east, she has a near-death experience, and couple of encounters, then she levels up.

Play report

· HEX J18, Akkar Strand. Thythe finds the remains of a caravan covered by volcanic ash. Whatever was it what happened here, no one was left alive. Thythe doesn’t know what to think about this scene, volcanic ash suggests nearby lava or a fire, but the carts aren’t burned, moreover there are small black spiders everywhere. Better to get out here quickly.

Thythe eats a ration per day, but sometimes I just update it on my character sheet instead of writing anything about it.

Twist: 2 -> 2 +2XP hex

· HEX K19, A.S. She continues heading east, and some Centipede comes into her sight. She deals with it very quickly.

Twist: 2 -> 2 +2XP hex +5XP vermin

· HEX L18, A.S. She comes across a very large tree, it certainly stands out surrounded by black sand and some low hills. She tries to find some herbs, this may be a good place to find something exiting, but nothing is to be found.

Twist: 2 -> 2 +2XP hex

· HEX M19, A.S. A weird sensation accompanies her through this day, she doesn’t know what it is but this land gives her peace of mind and she feels rested.

It is a hallowed land, it is useful to avoid corruption.

Twist: 2 -> 2 +2XP hex

· HEX N18, A.S. Today she discovers some mysterious ruins on her way east. She doesn’t have time to explore them now, but she takes a mental note of their location. The bad news is that the terrain is difficult to go through, so she is going to be delayed.

Difficult terrain takes double time to travel.

The second day travelling through these ruins she encounter a group of Giant Mosquitoes, they don’t seem very dangerous, so Thythe fights them, and she prevails, but she has taken a light hit. She spends some time trying to patch the new wound with a bandage, but she doesn’t achieve anything fruitful. First aid fail

Twist: 2 -> 1 +5XP vermin +2XP hex

She decides to spend a day resting at the edge of the ruins. +5HP

Twist: 1 -> 1

· HEX O19, A.S. Thythe arrives at her destination, she hopes to find the hunter here. This is a rocky region with many small caves excavated in some small hills. She doesn’t see any clear signs of anybody living in the caves at first sight.

Is the hunter hidden? Likeyly Thythe thinks that it makes sense for them to be hidden. Perception check OK She finds some marks in one of the caves that could only have been left by a human, so she decides to explore that cave. She lights her lamp.

  • 0: Entrance. The walls of this caved are covered with small drops of water, there is a lot of humidity in the air.

  • 1: Corridor. Thythe takes the first to the right, but it is a dead end.

  • 2: Room. She backtracks and goes straight, she is now in a big circled room. She hears the sound of water, this cave seems to be connected to an underground spring. Quite convenient, she thinks. Rations + 4

    Is the hunter here? very likely Perfection check OK Thythe finds a young person, they are cleaning some clothes in the stream. Thythe is quite surprised. Younger people aren’t usually capable of threatening other people and actually doing what they did to the folks of the Clear Wood settlement. Does they notice Thythe? Very likely, but... A new character is revealed Reinforcements Is it a person? impossible, but an item is found or lost Action: inform, theme: community The child does notice Thythe, and they are hostile, they yell at her that they are part of a bigger community and that their absence will be noticed. Do they attack? Impossible, and... Change to the physical environment Action: finish, theme: mystery The child doesn’t become more hostile and just continues cleaning the piece of cloth, as they did before Thythe came. Suddenly, the water in the spring dries out, and then, also as suddenly, it continues to flow normally. Is the child causing this effect? Almost impossible Is there something in the clothes? Unlikely Thythe asks them if they know of any hunter related to the Clear Wood settlement. Do they know anyone? Impossible The child ignores her.

    Are other people of their community nearby? Almost certain, but... A new character is revealed Action: restore, Theme: possessions Friendly, servant, offers direct assistance, woman, young Thythe is surprised again when a new face enters this room, she is also young, a bit older than the child, and threats the child with respect. She talks to Thythe, ‘How can I be of assistance?’

    Thythe is a bit worried about the new woman. She has walked in without making any sound, and looks dangerous. ‘I’m investigating a flood that has destroyed a settlement nearby, to the west. They seem to blame a hunter from your area,’ Thythe says. Do they know him? Almost certain, and.. Unexpected event, action-theme: gratify-opposition The woman tells her that she knows who she might be referring to, but suddenly the water in the spring starts emerging violently. The woman and the kid look at each other, she takes the child’s hand and points at the exit with her other hand. ‘We have to get out of here right now, this place will get flooded in no time,’ the woman points out. Thythe follows her and the child to he exit of the cave.

‘Do you know what has happened?’ Thythe asks. Does she know? Equal chances, and... Useful item is found The woman ignores her and picks and object from the ground, it looks like a glass jar with a pink liquid inside.

Random triket generator from our lovely internet.

‘I don’t really know for sure, but this hunter that you’re looking for is not just a common hunter, we have been running away from him for many years,’ the woman says. ‘He just doesn’t give up,’ the woman opens the glass jar and the pink liquid evaporates, then she takes out something that may or may not be human flesh, ‘and he has been using strange artefacts to track us,’ she continues. Thythe doesn’t want to know why is this hunter after them once she has seen what the jar had inside.

Do they know where he is? Almost certain - Thythe asks, and the woman nods. Can they help her locate him? very likely - Thythe asks, and the woman agrees to help her. Thythe wonders if she should tell her about her true goal. She needs to get rid of this hunter, but she doesn’t know how the woman will react. She decides to tell her and take a risk. ‘My goal is to assassinate this hunter,’ Thythe says. ‘Will that be a problem for you?’ Thythe asks. Almost imposible The woman shakes her head, ‘We will be grateful,’ she says as she embraces the child. ‘We need to act quickly then’, Thythe asks her if she knows when the hunter will find them this time In a couple of days? unlikely In a couple of hours? unlikely In some minutes? likely ‘Will you fight him with me to protect the child?’ Thythe asks Almost certain The woman nods, ‘But the well being of the child comes first.’

So, I roll a random archetype for her from the sellswords chapter. She is going to be a burglar.

Thythe readies her bow while the woman takes out a hidden dagger, the child hides between some rocks nearby.

An arrow comes flying towards Thythe as she sees the hunter in the distance. The woman starts running towards him, she needs to be close to be useful. Thythe shots an arrow and misses, then she takes her sword and follows the woman. In close range the hunter has still advantage, he manages to land a few hits to the woman and to Thythe, but after the battle prolongs, he is overwhelmed, it’s two against one. After a few minutes the hunter is killed by the woman, a lump of blood comes out of his mouth, incapable of speaking his last words. +25XP

Thythe and the woman search the hunter’s belongings and split the valuables.

Of course, I get the best stuff: Healing tincture, 2 torches, 5 rations, light armor. The woman gets a short bow, a dagger and 5 rations.

+2XP hex Twist: 1 -> 2

Recap

tldr: Thythe finally reaches the location where the mission will take place. There she meets a child and a woman that help her. They have been hunted by the hunter for years. The woman and Thythe work together to kill the hunter and no one is badly hurt.

Campaign goal: Get to Madari and live a more comfortable life there.

Current mission: Assassinate the hunter that destroyed the floodgate. Done, we need to go back to the patron.

Side mission tracker:

  1. Investigate the hidden cave where the Spawn of Vhol’Est attacked (Hex F18)
  2. Investigate the remains of the caravan (Hex J18)
  3. Explore the ruins (Hex N18)