[Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

[Susano]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

FMH Recap for July 21' date=' 2007[/size']

Finally back in their home port of Areian, the heroes took a few days to rest and relax. Illy met up with all of her sisters, who had come down to the city to wait for her. The group of them got into a massive argument about what they should do next; finally it was decided that Styggiad should join up with the FMH, just to "Keep Illy out of trouble."

 

 

Wait, isn't there an session missing? Last you posted, they were in a keep....

 

At about that moment, Duncan's door burst open and three young children rushed in – a dark-haired boy, a red-headed boy, and a tow-headed girl. "Father!" the dark-haired boy shouted. "There are strangers in the castle, and... oh my god, there they are!" The three children immediately dropped into defensive postures.

 

*groan*

 

I can see where this is going.

 

 

Dinner was going well, but about halfway through, word went out: "There's a Troll loose in one of the lower chambers!" The faculty immediately moved to get the kids to safety. During the confusion, Lord Twilight asked if the heroes wouldn’t mind accompanying his men down into the dungeons to smoke the Troll out.

 

See? I was right!

 

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Wait' date=' isn't there an session missing? Last you posted, they were in a keep....[/quote']

 

Yeah. I didn't have time last week to write up a recap for that session. I'm going to try to do that this week...

 

 

*groan*

I can see where this is going.

 

See? I was right!

 

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

FMH Recap for July 14, 2007

AKA "The Missing Session"

 

> Castilla went over to the door to check it, but

> then they all heard a voice from the other side:

> "You've spent all this time and effort getting

> here, heroes," it said. "Aren't you going to

> come in?"

 

The heroes cautiously entered a huge room – much bigger than the size of the tower would indicate. It was opulently appointed, with rugs, tapestries, and expensive furniture. Justin noted that many of the tapestries looked like they were the banners of clans or noble houses – and many of them were holed, tattered, burned, or even bloodstained.

 

Sitting at the far end of the room was a gigantic throne, rough-hewn out of massive logs. Around the throne were four of the walking dead, each dressed in the tattered remains of adventuring gear (armor, weapons, etc.). Sitting on the throne was a huge man, wrinkled and decayed like one of the Undead, but with the spark of intelligence in his eyes.

 

"So you've come all this way to face the great Fannon?" the lord of the room asked. "Do you know what happened to the last group of heroes who tried to challenge me?" He indicated the Undead slaves surrounding him and chuckled darkly. "But no matter; I can always use more bodyguards!"

 

He gestured grandly, and the heroes in the doorway were engulfed in a cloud of burning, stinking fumes. Trouble, Leth, Justin, and Shauvaughn charged forward out of the cloud and were met halfway to the throne by two of the skeletons, who put up a hard fight – they seemed to retain the skill they once had when they were alive, making them much tougher than the walking dead the heroes fought previously!

 

Illy turned herself and her sister invisible and tried to sneak around the edge of the room, but one of the skeletons spotted them (apparently, spells that fool the senses aren't very useful against the Undead) and threw a ball of fire at them, burning Styggiad badly. Seeing her sister in mortal danger, something in Illy snapped. Without thinking, she summoned an enraged Manticore and sent it after the offending skeleton.

 

Fannon was casting spells at Aed the Giant and at Kaira – he seemed to have a real hatred for them. The two druids were trying to counter Fannon's magic as best as they could, but the cursed ground on which they stood seemed to weaken their own magic. Finally, Aed risked Fannon's dark curses. He dropped his defenses and picked up the tiny Hobbit, charging closer to the fight, where they could better aid their allies.

 

Trouble and Justin ganged up on one skeleton, while Leth and Shauvaughn tried to handle the other one. The Undead monster knocked the Dwarf to the floor, but Leth responded by grabbing the skeleton's bony ankle, picking him up, and swinging him around like a club, bashing one of the other skeletal bodyguards.

 

Freed from fighting the skeleton, Shauvaughn charged Fannon, but with a gesture of his wretched hand she suddenly stopped in her tracks, mesmerized.

 

Once Trouble and Justin finished their foe, they turned to face the Fannon himself. However, they found their weapons to be virtually useless against his impervious hide. Aed came to their rescue, though, enchanting their blades with the power of his gods. Castilla jumped on Fannon's back, wrapping her tail around his neck and covering his eyes with her hands, blinding and enraging him. After Leth finished off his bony foe, he too joined the brawl, and Illy summoned another Manticore to harass the villain.

 

Thus overwhelmed, Fannon finally fell. The heroes saw a black cloud leave his body. A pair of angry eyes seemed to stare at them from the blackness for a brief moment, then the cloud dissipated into the atmosphere.

 

But the heroes didn't have time to congratulate themselves. The tower began to shake and crumble. They felt as though they were plummeting from the sky. Wasting no time, they ran out of the room, down the stairs, and out the door – and just in time. With a roar, the tower collapsed into nothingness.

 

The heroes lay on the grass, panting and exhausted. Finally Kaira noticed that the valley was completely empty – the army Fannon had assembled was gone. Not just gone, there was no sign that it had ever been there -- it was as if it had never existed at all! And on top of that, Aed was no longer with them. Did the brave Giant fail to escape the collapsing tower?

 

"Nay, lads and lasses," came a familiar voice. "The Carraig Daone has gone back home, t' his ain people, t' spread the tale o' yer success." The heroes looked up to see Angus sitting on a large rock nearby, smiling broadly.

 

"What the hell just happened?" Castilla demanded. "Where is the army?"

 

"Tis gone, lass," Angus smiled. "Gone and faded away wi' the morning sun, like the dream it twere."

 

"You're saying that was all just a dream?" Justin asked.

 

"Felt real to me," Trouble said, nursing his injuries.

 

"Aye," Angus said. "A dream in danger o' escaping t' the real world. The nightmare-dream o' an entire people. I brought ye t' this place t' combat it, just as Fannon brought those villains and ne'er-do-wells here t' be his army."

 

"You brought us here?" Castilla asked.

 

"Aye, when first I asked if ye would help, when I took ye to fight Gorshem," Angus chuckled. "Ye were the heroes I were looking for, and I made a good choice, if I do say so meself."

 

"So none of this was really real?" Leth asked. "The army, the tower, Fannon, none of it?"

 

"Oh, 'twere real enow," Angus replied. "And becoming more and more real every day, breaking the lines between what is and what only might be. Once those lines were gone… well, I hesitate t' think what may have happened next. But luckily, thanks to ye, I don't have to."

 

"So are we back?" Castilla asked. "Back in the real world, I mean?"

 

"Aye," Angus nodded. "Yer job here is done. Go home now, knowing that ye take with ye the thanks and blessings of the whole Island."

 

"So how do we get home from here?" Castilla asked. "We don't even know where "here" is!"

 

Angus laughed and pointed eastwards. "Go to the sea, and ye'll find a surprise waiting for ye."

 

The heroes gathered up their gear and began heading east, over the mountains and towards the ocean. "The only question left is," Angus called after them, his voice taking on an unfamiliar tone of seriousness. "Who was it that dreamed the Fannon back t' life in the first place?"

 

Leaving the leprechaun and his cryptic message behind, the heroes soon arrived at the rocky shore. Looking down at the blue waters, they saw a ship anchored just off the coast. It was the Endeavor! When they were safely back on board, they asked Captain Rackham how he came to be here.

 

"Damnedest thing," the Captain said. "This red-headed man came to the ship a few days ago and told us to set sail for these parts. Said he carried a message from you fine folks. He was very insistent and wouldn't take "No" for an answer. So here we are. I guess he was right."

 

The heroes sailed up the coast of Kalon back to the city of Port, where they bid their fond farewells to Shauvaughn. "When first we met, I mistook you," Shauvaughn said. "I thought you were nothing but braggarts, throwing the Fannon's name around just to make a reputation for yourselves. I never thought such a thing as we saw might come to pass. I'm glad to have met you, and proud to have fought beside you. May the gods travel with you, Fearless Monster Hunters."

 

With a smile and a wave, she disembarked from the Endeavor, and the heroes sailed away from the mystic Island of Kalon. Will they ever return? Will they ever again see the friends (and enemies) that they made here? Only time can tell…

[OddHat]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Fun battle scene, and good to see the terror that is Fannon!

 

From the black cloud, I'm guessing you reserve the option of bringing him 'round again.

 

He should have had an apprentice named Fanfic.

 

 

Always great to read these.

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

FMH Recap for August 4, 2007

The next day was the start of the Challenge. All the staff and students gathered together in their robes and regalia in the courtyard. Headmaster Grimmer stepped forward and, in solemn tones, told the students that the life of a Thaumaturgist would be filled with Challenges – not just academic, but also spiritual, mental, emotional, and even physical. "Should you choose to continue this path," he said, "There will be no end to the challenges you face. The Great Challenge is therefore intended to test your abilities in ways that your classroom studies cannot."

 

With that, the door to the main hall opened and a tiny faerie-like creature flew out, holding a number of leashes. Attached to the leashes were a dozen flying carpets! The students grew very excited – they would get to fly! "Each group will choose one person to represent them," Headmaster Grimmer announced. "The chosen student will have to ride his or her carpet through a variety of obstacles, picking up brass rings at each of the tests. Students will be graded on how many rings they collect, and how quickly they complete the course. Points will be deducted from those who fall off their carpets, but that will not be the least of their worries, as the carpets fly quite high and can go quite fast."

 

Trouble asked Duncan if the Challenges would be dangerous. Duncan shrugged. "There is an element of danger to each Challenge, of course, and students can and do sometimes get hurt, but we try to be careful and there hasn't been a fatality during the Challenge for many generations."

 

The students gathered together into teams, and one member of each team was given a flying carpet. Duncan was chosen as the representative for his team. There were three obstacle courses – one for the younger students (fairly simple), one for the middle students (a little tougher), and one for the oldest students (very hard).

 

There were three Challenges in each obstacle course. In the first Challenge, the students had to fly over some tricky ground, picking up brass rings as they went (the younger students were flying over soft, grassy ground, the middle students were flying over rocky ground, and the advanced students were flying over the rocky ocean). The second Challenge had the students harassed by flying creatures as they tried to negotiate another tricky course (the younger students were attacked by sparrows, the middle students by hawks, and the oldest students by flying imp-like creatures). For the final Challenge, the students had to maneuver their carpets through a series of hoops, grabbing rings as they flew through them (the middle students' hoops were set aflame; the oldest students' hoops were burning and size-changing!).

 

Castilla told everyone that sporting events are much more fun if people are betting on them, but the faculty thought the idea was distasteful. After much cajoling, Styggiad took her up on the bet (Castilla bet that Duncan would win the course – she liked the kid's style and attitude). The heroes also got a better look at the small faerie-creature. Turns out it wasn't a faerie at all (or at least, not one any of them had ever heard about!). It looked like a winged teddy-bear. Duncan the Elder told them her name was Peri, and she lived at the school and helped out when they needed it. She couldn't talk, but she could make herself understood well enough (most of the time).

 

With a flash and a bang, the Headmaster started the race! Some students were more bold than others, zipping ahead. Others were clumsier, falling off their carpets at the first Challenge. Duncan was doing quite well, boldly racing ahead of the rest of the younger students. Then suddenly, his carpet veered off course and headed straight into the "senior" obstacle course! He was in terrible danger! The students who were watching the Challenge started cheering – they thought he was doing it deliberately to show off. But as he flew past the heroes, they heard him screaming for help.

 

Castilla jumped up to help, but wasn't sure how she could catch up with the speeding child. Peri grabbed her hair and tried to get Castilla to follow her back inside. Castilla did so and found another flying carpet, rolled up in the corner. She jumped on and, after a moment to get the hang of it, took off.

 

She chased Young Duncan all over the obstacle course, finally catching him just before his carpet dove through one of the flaming hoops. She snatched him off his carpet just as it burst into flames, quickly burning into ashes. Everyone hurried over to make sure he was OK. Though a little scared, he seemed to be all right, and his friends dragged him off back to the school.

 

"How did something like that happen?" Justin asked the Headmaster.

 

"I don't know," Grimmer said, scratching his head. "In all my years here, I've never seen anything like it."

 

"Who enchanted the carpets?" Leth inquired.

 

"That would be Master Thyrza," the Headmaster said.

 

The heroes split up to do some investigations. It seemed like someone was trying to sabotage the Challenge, for reasons unknown, and they wanted to find out who.

 

First off, they went to talk with Duncan the Elder. "Do you have any enemies who might want to come after you?" Justin asked.

 

"Of course," Duncan said. "The Fearless Monster Hunters had plenty of enemies back in the day." He began ticking off on his fingers. "The Necromancer Olfilion may still be around. There might still be cultists to Djavuli around – she's the type to hold a grudge. The Green Dragon of Illich is dead, but it may have had offspring. The Warlord X'Athis was pretty sore at us. The Pirates of the Middle Sea are probably all gone, but there may be spin-off groups. The Riddle-King is supposed to be dead, but you never can tell. And of course, there's the whole Fannon thing that you just finished with."

 

"How about your son?" Leth asked. "Does he have any enemies?"

 

"Enemies in the school?" Duncan thought about it. "Well, it's no secret that my boy (and his friends) are troublemakers. Thryza doesn't care for him at all, and has fallen prey to his antics from time to time. Twilight has gotten the boy in trouble a few times too, and his staff have had to clean up after his and his friends' little "adventures" on more than one occasion. But Miss Fairchilde seems to like the boy, as does Avery and Headmaster Grimmer. And he seems to be pretty popular with his classmates."

 

"How about the boy's mother?" Leth asked. "Does she have a large family who might want to eliminate a potential heir?"

 

"No," Duncan said. "His mother was a sweet girl. She had an older sister who was pretty crazy, but otherwise, no."

 

While Leth and Justin were talking with Duncan, Kaira and Trouble wanted to ask the kids a few questions (as well as keep an eye on them). During a break in classes, they approached the youngsters, who were startled by the appearance of the heroes. "It's them!" George shouted, and all the kids assumed a defensive posture. Kaira and Troubled tried to reassure the kids that they meant no harm. "Has anything like what happened this morning happened before?" Kaira asked.

 

"Don't tell them anything, Duncan!" Rhianna warned.

 

"Yeah," George agreed. "They're with them!"

 

"Nothing ever happened here before," Duncan said. "At least… until you guys arrived!"

 

Before Kaira could ask anything further, the kids ran off, back to class.

 

Meanwhile, Illy went to go talk to Thyrza. "What do you want?" he asked when she knocked. "I'm a very busy man!"

 

"As the man who enchanted the carpets," she said, "I though you might have some insight into what happened this morning."

 

He glared at her. "Just what are you implying?" he demanded.

 

"I'm not implying anything," she said. "I'm just trying to learn what happened, so we can prevent it in the future."

 

"I don't know what happened," he said. "Nothing like that has ever happened to me before. I am at a loss to explain it."

 

"Did you enchant all the carpets?" she asked.

 

"Of course," he said, sneering. "And no one had access to them before the Challenge began – I had them locked in my storeroom, which only I and Lord Twilight have the keys to."

 

He took Illy to see the storeroom, and she enchanted her senses to look around. It was then that she noticed the minute marks around the lock – exactly the kind of marks that someone like Castilla might make if she were picking the lock. When she pointed this out to Thyrza, he was flabbergasted and very upset. She asked if he knew anyone at the school with the skill to pick a lock, and he admitted that he knew no one.

 

Meanwhile, Castilla was prowling around the school grounds when Peri (the tiny bear-like creature) flew up to her, gesticulating wildly. Castilla followed Peri to an old unused storeroom, where she found another flying carpet, obviously hidden here recently. She called Leth, who examined the dusty floor and determined that only one person had been in here recently – probably an adult male wearing soft shoes.

 

Trouble found Duncan the Elder and asked what tomorrow's Challenge would be. After promising not to let the students know, Duncan told the young Saurian that the next stage of the Challenge would be a scavenger hunt.

 

Meanwhile, Castilla went to find the Headmaster, and likewise learned what the next Challenge would be. She did not return from his office for several hours. On her way back to her quarters, she thought she'd poke around the faculty's rooms to see if she could find any more clues. While the Jill was searching Elissa's room, Miss Fairchilde unexpectedly showed up. Thinking quickly, Castilla convinced the Elf that she had let herself in for a "nightcap," and the two of them ended up staying up late.

 

The rest of the heroes stayed out late that night to keep an eye on things around the school, but everything seemed quiet so eventually they went back to their suite and headed for bed. However, Chrissie and Illy noticed that someone had been rummaging through their things – someone had gone through their backpacks, looked at their potions, and even opened up and read through their personal journals.

 

Since nothing seemed to be missing or damaged, they decided to let the others sleep and let them know about the intrusion in the morning.

 

The next morning, everyone checked their gear and found that, like Illy and Chrissie, someone had been rooting through their things (though nothing seemed to be missing or damaged).

 

The second Challenge, intended to test the children’s wits and guile, began bright and early. Everyone gathered together in the courtyard and Headmaster Grimmer called them to attention. He began speaking, but the FMH were arguing amongst themselves so they didn't hear most of his speech. At the end, he handed each group of students a sheet of paper. “On this paper were the clues you need to decipher in order to find the hidden items. I wish all of you the very best of luck!”

 

As Duncan the Elder explained, each item the students brought back would be worth a certain number of points – the easiest items were worth the least, with items harder (and more dangerous) to collect worth considerably more. Furthermore, the paper didn't simply contain a list of items to collect – each item was identified in a riddle, so the students had to decipher the answer to the riddles first, then collect the items.

 

The riddles (and their answers) were:

 

(A lightning rod from the top of the highest tower of the school – worth 2 points)

The giant raised his sword on high, but not to strike a blow.

The thunder god his wrath let fly and tried to lay him low.

The giant parried every thrust and does so to this day.

Bring the hero's mighty sword, if you ken these words I say.

 

(Marku, a reddish grass that grows despite heat and lack of water and is said to protect against the ill effects of heat – 3 points)

The wolf grows fur to beat the cold.

The rabbit does as well.

But the desert's fur grows long and red to defy the heat of hell.

 

(A type of bejeweled fish (known as a pincelfish) in the ocean below the docks – 5 points)

Sparkling jewels of sunken treasure that don't want to be rescued from the briny deep.

If you have a line to measure, these were jewels that you may keep.

 

(A type of large wasps preys on the ground-spiders that live in the plains. They paralyze them and lay their eggs within. Bring back one of the paralyzed/egg-laden tarantulas – 8 points)

Mother Wasp has no milk, but children still must feed.

Nanny sleeps in a bed of silk and tends to their every need.

If you can guess this simple riddle, return with mother's living cradle.

 

(Gather “honey ants” from a giant ant’s nest a few miles from the school – 12 points)

The honeypot the potter made was made of clay and round.

The honeypot the student needs burrows in the ground.

When workers thirst, six legs will bring

A meal for the queen, but never the king.

 

(A large ruby from the hoard of a friendly bronze Dragon named Appareil – 30 points)

An ancient one from a powerful clan sleeps on the lifeblood of the land.

Scales of zinc and copper combined, a mighty heart and a noble mind

Quick as the hare, hart, or hind! Sweet words will loosen, quick tongue will find:

Witch's heart, red and bright, dark as blood spilled in the night.

Bring it home by the light of the sun, carry the blood drop while spilling none.

 

The students scattered. George, Rhianna, and Duncan headed inside to study the clues, and quickly solved the final one. Realizing how the math adds up (one 30-point prize was worth as much as all the other prizes added together), they immediately headed out of the school going westward, towards the barrens where the Dragon lives. They stole one of Thyrza’s enchanted carpets to get there more quickly.

 

Trouble and Chrissie were watching the three of them, unnoticed, and when they saw them heading out they also grabbed a carpet and followed at a distance.

 

Meanwhile, Illy, Leth, and Styggiad thought they should check out the Dragon as well, so they headed that way on foot. Kaira flew overhead in her bird form. The two groups of heroes arrived at the great Dragon's cave just a few minutes after the kids, who had already gone in. Outside, the FMH found the remains of several gazelles, partially eaten. On closer examination, Illy and Kaira found that the stomachs of the gazelles were full of loco-weed, a semi-toxic herb that drives animals that eat it into a frenzy.

 

"Hmm…" Illy wondered. "What would happen if the gazelles ate the loco-weed, then the Dragon ate the gazelles?"

 

"The Dragon would probably be affected by the weed," Kaira said. "Uh oh!"

 

Just then, the heroes were nearly knocked off their feet by a tremendous ROAR! They ran into the cave and saw the most terrifying thing they'd ever seen – an enraged Dragon!

 

Leth froze, filled with an ancestral fear of the great Dragons (thousands of years ago, the Dwarves were nearly exterminated by Dragons). Chrissie and Kaira were also paralyzed with terror. The rest of the heroes sprang into action. Illy cast a spell to pull herself into the ghost-realm and ran into the room, shouting to distract the Dragon away from the terrified children. The Dragon breathed a burst of red-hot fire at her, but it washed harmlessly over her incorporeal form.

 

Styggiad ran into the room and grabbed the children, but the Dragon's foot came down right next to her, blocking off the exit. Trouble grabbed Kaira, yelling at her to snap out of it and cast a spell to cure the Dragon's ailment. Unfortunately, Kaira was still too frightened to act. The Dragon's tail swept down and knocked Trouble across the room (fortunately, he landed on a pile of sand so he wasn't hurt), and Kaira knew that it was now or never. She cast her spell. At almost the same time, Illy cast a spell to make the Dragon vomit the poison out.

 

The two spells had their intended effect. Almost instantly, the Dragon's eyes cleared and he looked down at the heroes. Illy asked it if it were intelligent and could speak, and it made some growling, hissing sounds. She cast a spell to allow her to understand languages, and realized the Dragon was saying, "Of course I'm intelligent. It's you primitive little mammals who don't speak a more civilized tongue… oh, you can understand me now, I see. Explain to me what happened here."

 

Illy told Appariel about the poisoned gazelles and asked if the Dragon had seen anyone on its territory lately. "No," the Dragon said. "I thought I'd have a light snack before the Challenge and saw a herd of gazelles. I swooped down and ate a few, then I felt funny so I came back to my home. Then next thing I remembered, you were here and my house stinks of vomit."

 

Appareil assured them he felt better, and he would entertain the children now. He shooed everyone out of his cave (except Illy, who asked to stay), telling them to clean up the dead gazelle carcasses outside. Chrissie cast a Courage spell on the children to bring them out of their terrified stupor, and left them to convince the Dragon to give them a ruby.

 

Half an hour later, the children left the cave, carrying their prize and none-the-wiser of the FMH's help. The heroes hid in some nearby rocks to watch, then followed the kids back to the school.

 

Illy stayed behind to talk with Appareil. The Dragon looked at her and noticed that she was "not alone" in her head. The Dragon demanded to speak with Wyssian, and berated the crazy wild mage for "committing a crime against life itself." Wyssian seemed unapologetic, but this accusation worried Illy. With the Dragon's words burned in her mind, she hurried back to the University.

 

While all of this was going on, Castilla was sneaking around the school grounds. With the children and facility busy elsewhere, she had free access everywhere. While searching, she discovered a maze of secret passages all over the main building. She found one well-used passage that led from the faculty's wing to the dormitory. She found another passage from the dormitory to the guest wing (where the heroes were staying). And she found a passage from the main courtyard up to Duncan's tower.

 

Since she had access to Duncan the Elder's room, she thought she'd take a look around. She found all sorts of interesting things – the stuffed and mounted heads and skins of various types of beasts and monsters, books in many different languages, vials and bottles filled with potions and/or exotic ingredients, antique weapons of every type imaginable, a set of lockpicks in an oiled canvas roll, lots of gemstones of various types, sizes, and cuts, and many other items of unknown uses and/or origins.

 

Realizing that the day's Challenge was almost complete, she put everything back the way she found it and hurried back to rejoin the others.

 

TBC!

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

From the black cloud' date=' I'm guessing you reserve the option of bringing him 'round again.[/quote']

 

I'm thinking, at some point, I should have all their old enemies team up against them...

 

Always great to read these.

 

Thanks!

[OddHat]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Harry Potter meets the Danger Room. Nice.

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

After the day's excitement, the heroes retired to their suite to talk things over. They decided that they needed to keep a very close watch on young Duncan and his friends, in case something else happened to him during the next challenge. They sent Kaira to talk to the Headmaster and make sure that was OK. Trouble and Leth went to the childrens' dormitory to keep an eye on them. Castilla decided to explore the secret passages she had discovered earlier in the day.

 

Kaira headed to the Headmaster's room, and she found the door ajar and heard voices from within. Quietly, she crept up to the door and listened in.

 

"Too many things have gone wrong," she heard the Headmaster say. "It seems someone is interfering with the challenges, for what purpose I cannot even begin to guess. I'm thinking about whether or not to cancel the final challenge."

 

Thyrza agreed, in his flat voice and terse tones. "Someone is likely going to get hurt. Is the "going on to greatness" legend worth the risk of one of the children’s lives?"

 

Lord Twilight agreed. "Under my watch, we have never lost a student’s life, and I'm damned if it’s going to happen this year."

 

Elissa, however, vehemently disagreed. "In over a thousand years, the challenge has never been shut down. We have tradition to think about!"

 

Avery agreed, for more pragmatic reasons. "People have tried to interfere with the challenge before. Students try to rig it all the time. In fact, that’s part of the tradition – figuring out novel ways of beating the system. I don’t know who’s doing this, but maybe we should consider it as a part of the challenge."

 

Duncan agreed with his two colleagues. "The Challenge itself is meant to be practice for a life of danger and difficulty," he said. "Therefore, a particularly difficult challenge is just more (and indeed, better) practice."

 

Kaira took the opportunity to knock on the door, and the Headmaster invited her to sit with them. "So what do you think?" he asked her.

 

"We think that whoever is doing this is doing it for a reason, and we've got a better chance to catch him if we let it go on," she said. "We also think that the FMH should know about the Challenge beforehand, so we can prepare ourselves (and maybe station people around to keep an eye on things)."

 

"Well, with the extra people watching things, I reluctantly agree to let the challenge go on," Headmaster Grimmer said. "Lord Twilight will explain the next Challenge, and take you down to see it."

 

Twilight protested that the presence of the heroes would mess up the Challenge, but eventually he agreed.

 

Meanwhile, Leth strode around the Dorms, keeping an eye on things. Unfortunately, he didn't overhear much of anything because the children seemed worried whenever he came into the room. Eventually, he gathered that some of the students thought the FMH were the ones responsible for the mishaps! Realizing he was frightening the kids more than reassuring them, he left the Dorms and went outside to finish his patrol.

 

Trouble came down at about at time. He walked into one of the boys' bathrooms and started asking questions, but that seemed to freak the kids out. Sadly, his tail dragging behind him, he left and headed down to the younger kids' floor. He found the boys' room again and managed to get the kids laughing, after which they were willing to talk to him. They told him that they were very excited about the Challenge and weren't worried about it, but they said that Duncan thought someone was sabotaging things.

 

Duncan came in at about that time and tried to flee, but the other kids teased him so he stayed – but he didn't want to talk to Trouble at all. Trouble followed the kids to their dorm room and told them stories until time for lights-out.

 

After lights-out, the FMH gathered together with Lord Twilight. "The final challenge is a contest known as the Maze Chase," he said. "The students are sent down into the catacombs beneath the school. They are to meet contests of skill and wits (avoiding traps and pitfalls, and dodging monsters) until they reach the center of the maze. Once there, they will face a final challenge – a test of all their learning so far. Anyone who bests that one final test will score points."

 

He took the heroes on a tour of the maze, demonstrating some of the traps. They were all suitably non-lethal, and none of them had been tampered with, so it met the heroes' approval. They agreed to follow the students through the maze, making sure nothing untoward happened to them.

 

The next morning at breakfast, Trouble decided to sit with the younger kids instead of with the instructors (dumb boring grownups talking about stuff that didn't make any sense!). He noted that Duncan Jr., George, and Rhianna came late to breakfast. Illy and Kaira grabbed a couple of bagels and headed down to the catacombs to prepare themselves for the day's excitement. Justin, Leth, Chrissie, Styggiad, and Castilla sat down to eat, but Leth noticed something about the wine was decidedly off. When he pointed it out, Justin noticed it too. Castilla, however, had already had two of three glasses of wine, and began feeling a bit funny.

 

She started to get up to leave, but found her legs wouldn't work right. Justin scooped her up and took her back to her room. "I think you've been poisoned," he said. "But Leth doesn't think it's deadly. It just made your limbs go numb. It'll probably wear off in a couple of hours. I'll send Chrissie up to keep an eye on you." Castilla hated being left out of the action, but wasn't in any position to argue.

 

Justin went back to the main chamber and sent Chrissie up to make sure no one tried to "finish the job." Chrissie entertained the very angry jill by singing calming songs to her, and eventually Castilla fell asleep.

 

Meanwhile, Justin, Leth, and Styggiad discussed who could've tried to poison them, and why, but they couldn't come up with an answer. But they were more determined than ever to keep their eyes open for trouble.

 

And then it was time for the Challenge to begin. The students lined up at the grand stairway down to the catacombs and, at the Headmaster’s signal, raced down into the darkness. It doesn’t take long before some students began falling into traps and running afoul of monsters.

 

Justin, Leth, Trouble, and Styggiad wandered around the maze, keeping an eye on the kids to make sure no one got hurt. Meanwhile, Illy and Kaira turned invisible and followed Duncan and friends around the maze. Despite all odds against it, the three kids made a pretty good team, each one playing off each others' strengths. Soon, they found themselves at the end of the maze.

 

A wall of flames sprung up to block their path, and an ominous voice intoned, "You shall not see the end of the maze until you find a way to cross the fire." The kids searched around and found a secret door, which led to a closet full of alchemical ingredients – including many of the items that the children had gathered in the second Challenge.

 

The three kids worked together and created a potion out of the marku herb (the fireproof red grass), and stepped through the flame. The Challenge was supposed to end there, but suddenly several secret doors sprang open and three walking skeletons shambled out, shrieking horribly!

 

Kaira and Illy watched with alarm, but something seemed amiss. First off, the skeletons were shambling, while normally such things are fairly limber. Second, they were making noise – which is pretty much impossible for something with no vocal cords. The kids were panicking and getting ready to defend themselves when Illy cast a Dispel at the skeletons. In an eyeblink, they winked out of existence.

 

"It was just an illusion!" Illy whispered. The kids, finding themselves once again alone, found the exit to the room and fled upstairs, having secured their victory!

 

Meanwhile, Illy looked around the room, casting a spell that would enable her to detect things that were invisible. Sure enough, she spotted someone lurking in the corner. She dispelled the invisibility and was shocked to find Duncan the Elder!

 

Duncan seemed to find it amusing that he was discovered, but Illy was not laughing. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded. Duncan assured them he'd explain everything once the Challenge was complete.

 

That evening before dinner, the heroes gathered in their suite with Duncan the Elder. "You see," he said. "My boy grew up hearing stories about how his old man was a great adventurer. I told him about the action, the excitement, the adventure, the perils and the rewards. But I never once told him about the dangers, the hardships, the horrors, or the heartbreak of losing good friends. That was my mistake. Now, he thinks of it as nothing but a game and he can't wait to play." The old man sighed sadly. "When I was part of the original Fearless Monster Hunters, a lot of young people wanted to join us. A few of them did. We tried to watch out for them and to weed out those that weren't ready, but it didn't always work. Those stories don't get told very often, but as successful as we were, we buried more friends than I care to remember. I don't want my son to be one of those lain to rest on some uncharted island in the middle of nowhere."

 

"I thought I'd take the opportunity presented by the Challenge to frighten the boy, to give him a taste of what it's really like out there. I'm sorry that you all got caught up in it."

 

"A taste?" Illy demanded, practically livid. "An enraged dragon is "a taste"? He could've been killed! We could've been killed!"

 

"No," Duncan said. "Appareil was in on it from the beginning. He wasn't really driven mad by the loco weed, he was only pretending. I spoke with him a few days ago to set it up. He agreed to act crazy, scare the kids a bit. He didn't know you folks would be there, but I'm sure he wouldn't have hurt you either."

 

"Well, what if we had hurt him?" Illy demanded.

 

Duncan laughed. "I know you're all very skilled at what you do, but still think you overestimate your abilities. Appareil is very old, very wise, and very, very powerful."

 

Illy was not assuaged, but the rest of the FMH (after thinking about it for a bit) forgave Duncan for his trickery. No harm, no foul (as the saying goes). "But in exchange for us keeping our mouths shut," Justin said, "Will you let us have the old map?"

 

Duncan smiled. "I would be delighted if the new Monster Hunters took our old map," he said. "It'll help you carry on the tradition."

 

Duncan spent the next couple of days teaching Illy and Chrissie how to use the map. Then the heroes bid their fond farewells to the students and staff of the Sarlarka School of Magic, and headed north, back to Ariaien.

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Big changes in the group this episode!

 

-----

After crossing the open sea, the Endeavor arrived back at Areian. The heroes immediately headed to Hob's Hot Pot for some food and drink. Hob greeted them effusively, and told Castilla that she'd had a visitor while they were away. "A young man, long dark hair, Kidbodder accent," he told her. "Looked rich. Said he was staying at the Flying Maple, a fancy place in the wealthy part of the city."

 

Castilla had no idea who it might be, but she wanted to find out so she excused herself from the others and headed towards the good part of town. The Flying Maple Inn was a large establishment built around the base and into the boughs of an enormous red maple tree. Castilla was stopped at the entrance by a doorman, who asked to know her business before he would allow her in. She gave her name, which he immediately recognized. He asked her to wait in the lobby, and a few minutes later, a young man (accompanied by two bodyguards) came down.

 

"Castilla!" he said, smiling broadly. She didn't recognize him at all, and he frowned. "Has it really been so long? It's me – your brother Cayo!"

 

Castilla was shocked and surprised. "I haven't seen you since we were kids!" she said. "What are you doing here?"

 

"I got your letter," he said. "And I wanted to see my little sister again."

 

There was a period of awkward smalltalk, then Castilla asked, "How are dad and mom?"

 

"Dad is getting older," Cayo said. "He's been sick, so I've taken over the family business."

 

"What family business?" Castilla asked, still confused.

 

"The shipping business," he explained. "The Marta family makes most of its money in shipping. We own eight large ships and a host of smaller ones, doing business along the coast of Kidbod and throughout the eastern Island nations. Part of why I'm here is to work on a business deal to open up most of Pasion to our ships." Then, Cayo dropped the bombshell. "The other reason I'm here is to ask you to come back home with me."

 

"But father kicked me out," she protested.

 

"Father won't live forever," Cayo said. "I'm already in charge of our business; eventually I'll be the head of the household."

 

"But what would I do when I came back?" she asked.

 

"I would make you the captain of one of our ships," he said. "Your experience as an adventurer and explorer would be invaluable to the fleet!"

 

Castilla was tempted and torn. One of her fondest dreams was to someday return home and be accepted by her family, but she had found a home with her friends in the FMH. She told Cayo she would have to think about it. "Very well," he said. "I'll be in town for several more days to finish up my business. I hope when I head back home to Brills, you'll be with me."

 

Meanwhile, Justin wandered off to have a quiet drink by himself. While at the bar, a man approached him – it was Boh Hodgeson, son of Hob. "Can I sit down?" Boh asked. Justin gestured to an empty chair beside him.

 

"Did you come for some payback?" Justin asked. Boh shook his head.

 

"No," he said. "In fact, I wanted to apologize. For… you know. Messing up. After our fight at the Hot Pot, me and the guys got to thinking. We decided that maybe we were going about the hero thing all wrong. Leaping before we looked, you know. I guess we were causing as many problems as we were solving. We took a vote and decided to stick together, but we needed to re-evaluate our tactics."

 

Justin was impressed. "How's that working out for you?" he asked.

 

"Good and bad," Boh sighed. "We got a new ship. We got an official charter from the city of Areian. We're calling ourselves The Hunters' Legacy these days. That's all good. But, well, old habits are hard to break. I realized that I'm not much of a planner, myself. I'm more of an action guy – I see a problem, I want to jump in and solve it. Most of my guys are the same way. So it's tough."

 

"Sounds like your hearts are in the right place," Justin suggested. "You just need someone to direct your impulses. You already want to do the right thing, you just need to make sure you're doing things the right way."

 

"That's it exactly!" Boh enthusiastically agreed. "I talked with my dad about it, and he said that we should try to follow your example. So I have a proposal for you…"

 

"I'm listening," Justin said.

 

"I was wondering if you would join us," he said. "Just for a little while. To help us find our direction. I know you've got other duties, but…"

 

Justin smiled. "It's funny," he said. "I've been thinking lately that I haven't been the best leader for my own team. I've been wondering if I shouldn't take a break from them for a little while. It seems like we've been butting heads more and more often lately."

 

Boh chuckled. "You too, huh?"

 

"You have no idea," Justin grinned.

 

"Oh, I bet I do!" Boh laughed again. The two men talked for a while, comparing their adventures and their respective teams' foibles. Finally, Justin agreed to join the Hunters' Legacy. "But not as leader," he said. "I don't want that."

 

"Neither do I," Boh agreed. "I'll still be leader, but I need a capable second-in-command."

 

"I thought Tawny was your second?" Justin asked.

 

"Yeah, well…" Boh sighed. "Tawny's a great wizard, and if you need the s**t blown out of something she's the first person you should ask. But her leadership qualifications are not so sterling."

 

Thus agreed, the two men decided to bring both teams together later that day to announce the lineup change.

 

Meanwhile, Leth was out searching for rumors of adventure. Hopping from bar to bar, he met an old man with a thick beard, his face shrouded by a hood. For the price of a drink, the man said, "Have you heard that there's a group of adventures calling themselves the Fearless Monster Hunters?"

 

Yes, Leth allowed. He had perhaps heard of them.

 

"Apparently they're the children of a group of adventurers who sailed these waters fifty years ago, you see?" the stranger whispered. "Well, the old Monster Hunters made a lot of enemies, back in the day, and from what I hear some of those old enemies are coming back. I don't know if they're coming out of retirement because they want one last shot at glory, of if they've been active all this time, but word is that they're back – and they're gunning for the new guys."

 

Leth asked who was back and what they wanted, but the old man chuckled. "There's one place you could find the answers you're looking for," he said. "The place where the king wears the largest crown!" He began laughing insanely, and then there was a flash of bright light. When Leth's eyes cleared, the old man was gone.

 

The Dwarf called the barkeep over. "That guy who was sitting here," he asked. "Does he come here often?"

 

"First time I ever saw him," the bartender shrugged. "He came in about five minutes before you did. Found the shadowiest corner in the bar, ordered a beer, and then just sat there until you came in. I figured you knew him."

 

"Strange, very strange," Leth thought.

 

That evening, the heroes all got together. "So why did you call us here, Justin?" Illy asked. About then, Boh and several of the Hunters' Legacy came in. "What are those jerks doing here?" she demanded.

 

"I asked them to come here," Justin said. "That's the reason we're all here. Boh asked me if I'd join his team as his new second-in-command, and I agreed."

 

Both sides of the table virtually exploded. "What?" "How could you do this without telling us?" "I thought I was your second-in-command!" "Who's going to be our leader now?" "We don't want one of those jerks on our team!" "Why do you want to go off with those jerks?"

 

Boh and Justin managed to calm their teams down. "It wasn't an easy decision to make," Justin said. "But honestly, these days I feel I'm doing more harm than good as leader of the FMH. You need a new leader, and with me around that's never going to happen."

 

"And we," Boh told his team. "Are practically adrift. We've got the right talents and skills to be adventurers, but we don't have the know-how. Justin can bring that to the team."

 

There was some grumbling from both groups, but eventually they settled down and grew to accept the new situation. The FMH elected Leth as their new field-leader (with only one dissenting vote – Leth's!). Hob, happy that the two groups were now being friendly, brought them all drinks to celebrate.

 

"Now that that's settled," Leth said. "A bit of weirdness happened to me this afternoon." He explained what the old man in the bar told him.

 

"We should make a list of our parents' old enemies," Illy suggested. "That might give us some idea of who might still be out there, and who would be coming for us."

 

That wasn't an easy task, since the original FMH had been sailing the seas for the better part of a decade and they made plenty of enemies. A short list included The Riddle-King (who enjoyed leaving cryptic clues to taunt his enemies), Hilgar the Barbarian (a bloodthirsty troublemaker who seemed to show up virtually everywhere), the Necromancer Olfilion (who ruled an island kingdom of the dead), the Warlord X'Athis (whose raiders made life in the Morjiim Plains a living hell), and the Green Dragon of Illich (who was dead, but was rumored to have numerous offspring). There were plenty more, but those were the ones that sprang to mind.

 

Boh spoke up. "A month or so ago, we were out hunting pirates when we ran into a ship crewed by the walking dead! We managed to kill all of them and send the boat to the bottom of the sea, but before we did so we found something on the Captain." Tawny reached into her bag and pulled out a bronze amulet on a gold chain. It was an oroborus (a snake eating its own tail), clutched in two skeletal hands. Trouble immediately recognized it as the symbol of the Necromancer Olfilion!

 

"If Olfilion is back, it can only mean trouble," Illy said. "I remember stories my mother told about him. He had a fleet of pirate ships manned by his mindless undead slaves. The FMH sailed to his island to confront him, but were captured."

 

"How did they escape?" Chrissie asked.

 

"Um…" Illy looked embarrassed. "Apparently, the Necromancer fell in love with my mother. She used the opportunity to free the others. I don't know all the details (thank the gods), but apparently, the island was volcanic. The volcano erupted and the whole island sank under the waves, taking Olfilion and his undead army along with it."

 

"That would imply that he's dead," Leth said. "But with Necromancers, you can never tell. If he is back, it sounds like something we need to deal with immediately."

 

The FMH began planning to head out as soon as they could, to search the wide ocean for more undead pirate ships. The Hunters' Legacy said that they had another lead they were going to follow-up on. There had been tales told of an old abandoned church on an island far to the west where strange goings-on were reported. Before they broke up, Boh asked if he could have his journal back – he left it aboard the Endeavor when they lost it. It was a gift from his mother. Despite Illy's protest (she wanted him to pay to get it back), Justin told him he could have it. The groups broke up for the night and headed in their separate directions.

 

The next day, Kaira went to the Endeavor to find out if Captain Rackham needed anything before they set sail. But on her way back to Hob's, someone leapt out of a doorway and grabbed the Hobbit, throwing a sack over her head and dragging her into the alley. "What is the matter with you people?" a voice hissed in her ear. "You're going to search the entire ocean for a ship? What's next? Will you search for a needle in a hayfield? You have a perfectly good clue! Don't you know how this works? I'm going to give you a second chance, because you're new at this, but I advise you not to ignore me – do so at your peril!"

 

With that, the hands that gripped her arms released her. By the time she got the sack off her head, Kaira was alone in the alley.

 

Elsewhere in the city, a young warrior named Finnegan stepped off the merchant ship that had transported him here. He had come to Areian in the hopes of finding work (and possibly glory). He had a few half-remembered stories that his father had told him about a group of adventurers the old man had once traveled with, and rumor had it that those "Fearless Monster Hunters" were back.

 

He spent a few fruitless hours hopping from bar to bar until he ran into a fellow warrior by the name of Justin. Justin told him about the FMH, and where to find them, and Finnegan thanked him and headed off. He found Hob's Hot Pot without any trouble, and after waiting in line for what seemed hours, he finally made it in. It wasn't hard to find Hob, who mistook the young man for a vagrant at first. But after hearing the boy's story, Hob was delighted to meet him. "I didn't know your father," he said. "Magnus left the team before I came on. But I heard stories about him, and I'm so glad you came!"

 

Hob introduced Finnegan to the others, who welcomed him aboard. "Your father was a member of the original Fearless Monster Hunters," Illy said. "So of course you have a place with us."

 

"Besides," Leth told him. "We need another warrior to fill out our ranks."

 

"So when do we get paid?" Finnegan asked.

 

"Paid?" Trouble laughed. "We're not mercenaries! Nobody pays us!"

 

"Then how do we make our money?" he asked.

 

Trouble stared at him mutely. "We're adventurers," the big lizard said, as if that explained everything.

 

"What's the difference between mercenaries and adventurers?" Finnegan wondered.

 

"Well, mercenaries get paid to kill things," Trouble explained. "We kill things, then loot their bodies."

 

"It's sort of like working for a salary vs. working for a commission," Leth chuckled.

 

While they were discussing this, Castilla excused herself. She had some business she had to take care of. She quickly headed back to the Flying Maple and asked to see her brother. Cayo came out, happy to see her. "Have you decided?" he asked.

 

"Yes," she said, sadly. "I can't go. I'm needed here. I want to go with you, but I have a duty here. This is something I have to do."

 

Cayo looked hurt, but he nodded. "Then before you go, I have something for you." He sent one of his bodyguards out to fetch a large, metal-bound chest. He opened it and revealed its contents – silver ingots, coins, and tradestones.

 

Castilla's eyes went wide. "What is this for?" she asked.

 

"Your letter asked for money," he said. "You're part of the family, so this is yours." Cayo hugged his sister and told her that if she changed her mind, she could come back to Brills at any time and he would welcome her back. Filled with mixed emotions, she headed back to her friends.

 

That afternoon, everyone got back together and Kaira related her tale. "Sounds like that Riddle-King guy," Illy said.

 

"And it sounds like he's willing to escalate if we don't play his game," Leth agreed. "So let's try to figure out his little riddle."

 

"The king with the largest crown" could mean anything. But "crown" reminded some people of the crown of a tree. So what is the "king" of the forest? That was an easy one – the largest trees in the world are known as Flagoun trees. They grow hundreds and hundreds of feet tall and have a canopy that can extend hundreds of feet across. Unfortunately, they are very rare; only a handful are known to exist across the entire world.

 

However, Trouble remembered that there is a place in the city known as the Hall of Kings, which is supposed to be built in the hollow trunk of a fallen Flagoun. This sounded promising, so armed with this information, the heroes headed across town to find this Hall of Kings.

 

The Hall of Kings sits on the northern edge of town, about as far from Hob's Hot Pot as you can get and still be in the city. The heroes found it to be surrounded by a beautiful park, decorated with marble and carved wood pillars and towers, streamers and vines. Elves moved around the grounds in ones, twos, and small groups, chatting and laughing. Castilla went in first, hoping she might spot something interesting.

 

When the heroes entered the grounds, a young Elf detached himself from his group and came over. "Good evening," he said politely. "My name is Acastus. May I help you?"

 

The heroes told him they'd never been to the Hall of Kings before, and asked if he could show them around. He was more than happy to take them on a tour. The Hall of Kings is like an enormous museum, filled with artifacts from the history of the Elvish peoples. Acastus was friendly and chatty and knew all about the history of this place.

 

After several hours, he took the heroes into a great, white hall where statues of the ancient lords of the Elvish cities stood proudly. The marble statues were all dressed in the style of clothes they wore when they were alive, including their crowns. Halfway through the hall, Kaira noticed that one of the crowns was askew. Looking closer, she saw a sheet of paper stuck up under the crown. With Finnegan's help, she took the paper (and straightened the crown) and read it.

 

The paper had something written on both the inside and the outside. On the outside, it read:

There are three questions you must answer: First, who I am; second, what I want; and finally, how I plan to achieve my goal. Each riddle will contain a clue where to find the next piece of the puzzle. Who am I? Bide me and mark me, for sometimes I fly, sometimes I crawl, sometimes I race, and sometimes I pass you by, but I will wait for no man… not even the Fearless Monster Hunters!

 

On the other side, the paper read:

Oh foolish foes that stand aghast!

Learn now that soon you'll breathe your last

For now your doom upon you rises

I watch with glee your foul demises.

Let your feeble wits aspire

Initially as you enquire

Over me, your final foe

No more home again you'll go.

 

The first part of the riddle was simple enough to solve – "Time." Illy asked Acastus if there was a clock nearby, and he said yes. "It just so happens the Hall of Kings contains a rather ingenious water clock out in the garden – quite famous in the area. Would you like to see it?"

 

Kaira worked on the second riddle while they walked, and it didn't take long for her to decipher. The first letter of each line spelled out the name, "Olfilion." So they knew they were definitely on the right track!

 

At the water clock, they saw several Elves standing around scratching their heads and looking at the clock. The water didn't seem to be flowing from the top of the clock like it should be. Castilla climbed up the clock and found something resting atop it, blocking the flow of water – a stone tablet. Carefully, she took it down (getting drenched in the process) and brought it to the others.

 

As expected, the tablet had something carved into it. It read:

Ah, a clever piece of work, Monster Hunters. You have found my ruse! Well, I am a man who is always above-board. The next question you must answer is, what is my gambit? Plan your next move carefully, for I still have the initiative!

 

Below that, it read:

No dust on my bones, no stone at my head.

No wind o'er me moans in lament for the dead.

No grave dug with labors, no trees planted near,

Yet I rise with my neighbors. Let the living world fear!

We once sailed the waves, through the fog we did peer.

Now we sleep in our graves until called again here.

 

Again, the first piece of the riddle seemed fairly obvious. It referred to a game of some sort. They asked Acastus if there were anything like that nearby, and he nodded. "People come to the park to play games all the time," he said. "There are chessboards set up near the main gates." Castilla went over to check them.

 

They were tables of marble, black and white, where people could set up to play. Searching them all carefully (at least, the ones that no one was sitting at), she finally found one with something scratched into the marble. On the top of the table, it read:

A warm welcome to all as I bid them to stay,

But the host (not the food) is what's taken away…

 

And on the bottom:

Incoherent moronic flea!

Think that you're as wise as me?

Oh! Inferior concealment!

Guess my name or you're hell-bent!

Ornament of choicer line

All mixed up, oh foe of mine!

 

These two riddles seemed much harder, and the heroes puzzled over them for some time. It finally dawned on them that some of the lines of the second poem were anagrams of Olfilion the Necromancer! It also occurred to Illy that the first poem might be referring to Hob's Hot Pot. Sensing some urgency, she asked Castilla to run as fast as she could to Hob's and make sure everything was OK.

 

Styggiad joined Castilla, and the two of them made their best time across the city. As they approached the docks, they noticed that the streets seemed oddly empty, especially for this time of night (Elves being naturally nocturnal, they tended to take care of most of their business after dark). They also noticed how foggy it seemed to have gotten. By the time they reached Dock Street, the fog was so thick they could barely see three feet in front of them.

 

They were near Hob's Hot Pot, because Castilla could smell the unmistakable scent of his famous food. But over that, she smelled something rank -- the stink of low tide, mud, dead fish, and decay. It was then that she noticed the street was getting crowded again… but when she got close to one of the pedestrians, she was horrified to see his face – half-rotted off. It groaned horribly and reached out for her…

 

Meanwhile, back at the park, Illy cast a spell to speak to Castilla's mind. "Can't talk now!" Castilla nearly screamed over the mind-link.

 

Illy turned to the others. "We need to get to the docks. Now."

 

TBC!

[Enforcer84]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Nice! Was Justin's player swapping him out for Finnigan?

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Nice! Was Justin's player swapping him out for Finnigan?

 

 

Yep.

[Enforcer84]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Well handled. Now you have to have them fight eachohter and have Justin WHup him

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Castilla and Styggiad ran as fast as they could to Hob's. After nearly getting lost in the pea-soup fog, they arrived at the harbor, where they found the streets swarming with the shambling dead! "We have to get to the restaurant!" Castilla yelled, ducking under the grasping arms of one of the undead horrors.

 

The two women ran, zigging and zagging and dodging the slow-moving monsters. Finally, the reached the Hot Pot. It appeared that someone had tried to close the shutters, but they had been smashed in. Castilla jumped through an open window. Styggiad paused at the door to knock down a handful of zombies clustered there. Inside, Castilla saw a number of patrons and staff, hiding under tables. A half-dozen zombies shuffled around aimlessly, but as soon as the Jill entered they began shambling towards her, moaning horribly.

 

Castilla ducked, dived, and dodged around them as they congregated towards her. She ran into the back, where Hob's office was. She found the office wrecked, and spots of blood on the desk and floor. "Hob is gone!" she yelled.

 

"We have to get out of here!" Styggiad said, running into the office. "There's too many of them!"

 

"To the roof!" Castilla said. The two women motivated most of the patrons and staff to follow them. Castilla practically ran up the outside wall, and once at the top, she dropped a rope down for the others. Soon, a dozen people sat on the rooftop, peering down at the hoard of shadowy undead moving through the fog below them.

 

Meanwhile, the rest of the heroes ran as fast as they could (assisted by Chrissie's rousing marching song). They were nearly at Hob's when several figures stumbled out of the fog, moaning and reaching out.

 

"Trouble! Take Kaira and get to the restaurant!" Leth said. "We'll take care of this!"

 

Trouble grabbed the Hobbit and ran up a (mostly) empty alley, away from the army of the walking dead. Leth and Finnegan formed up and began slowly advancing up the street, cutting down zombies as they got too close. But the press of the undead was heavy, and even these two mighty warriors grew tired, letting a few of the monsters get too close and nearly getting dragged down. Illy used her spells to back them up. But one of the shambling dead got through and slashed Chrissie across the back, nearly dropping her. Illy quickly pushed Chrissie into the Ghost-Realm, where the undead (hopefully!) wouldn't be able to harm her.

 

Soon, Trouble found himself at the back door of Hob's. "Anyone there?" he called out.

 

Styggiad heard the lizard-man's voice through the fog and called back to him. "We're on the roof!" she called. "We've got wounded up here. The restaurant is swarming with the walking dead!"

 

"Just what I wanted to hear!" Trouble said. "Kaira, go help them. I'm gonna go kill me some zombies. Or, re-kill me some zombies, I guess..."

 

Before they split up, Kaira called on the power of her goddess and temporarily enchanted Trouble's weapon. Then the Hobbit climbed up to the roof and helped the injured while Trouble rushed into the bar at full-speed. His enchanted mace smashed through the shambling dead, reducing them to twitching corpses in a matter of minutes. Now that backup had arrived, Styggiad leapt down from the roof to help, but ended up getting too close to one of the hideous creatures and taking a serious wound.

 

Castilla climbed down along the wall to see what she could do to help. When one of the zombies got too close to the injured Styggiad, the fiesty Jill grabbed it with her tail and hurled it across the room. Then she spotted something – the zombie that she just tossed had a dagger stuck in its back, with a piece of paper pinned to it.

 

Avoiding the monstrous undead (and the kill-happy Trouble) by crawling along the ceiling, she carefully reached down and plucked the dagger out of the zombie's back. There was a note!

 

By this time, Trouble had finished off all the zombies in the bar. They heard voices coming up the street, and peered outside in time to see Leth, Finnegan, Illy, and Chrissie limping up. The street was finally clear; the danger was past.

 

Castilla handed the note over to Illy, who quickly read it. It said:

 

It appears that you have arrived too late to save your financier! What sort of creature took him away?

Before it was born, its skeleton

Did grow upon the land.

Then near the sea it grew and grew

Until its form was grand.

And though it swims upon the waves,

It died upon the sand.

"Obviously, it means a ship," Illy suggested. "Whoever took Hob carried him away on a ship."

 

"Then we'd better head to the docks," Castilla said.

 

Leth and Finnegan went out to try to track where the undead creatures may have come from, but there had been too many of them to follow any particular trail. It seemed that the undead creatures swarmed up from the edge of the water. Most of them headed directly towards Hob's, but many of the others simply shambled aimlessly up and down the street (perhaps to dissuade rescuers, perhaps to sow panic, perhaps to clear the streets of witnesses, or perhaps all three).

 

The heroes headed towards the Endeavor, still resting at dock. As they approached, a voice called out. "Stan' an' idennify yersels, er we'll open fire, sez I!"

 

"It's us, Shippy!" the FMH said.

 

"Quick, lads, get aboard!" Shippy called down, lowering the gangplank. He and the rest of the crew stared down at the FMH, nervously clutching crossbows, gaff-hooks, knives, and belaying pins. "There be 'orrible things aboot tonight!"

 

"We know," they told him. "That's why we're here. Have any ships come into dock tonight?"

 

"Nay," the first mate said. "Th' 'arbor master order'd th' docks closed when yon accurs'd fog rolled in, just past six bells. There've been nae ships in er oot since then."

 

"Maybe, maybe not," Leth said, peering through the thick mist. He thought he heard something out in the water – the creaking of wood, the lap of water, the tightening of lines... Then his keen eyes spotted something through a break in the fog – a ship, moving slowly out of the harbor.

 

"Prepare to set sail!" he called out. "Men, man the oars! We've got a ship to catch!"

 

TBC!

[Susano]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

But isn't the Black Pearl the fastest ship afloat?

 

[matrix3]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Always a joy to read. Thanks!

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

The crew of the Endeavor broke out the oars and gave chase to the mysterious ship, barely visible through the fog. The other ship outpaced them easily, but soon the Endeavor came out of the harbor. Further from the shore, the fog dissipated and the wind picked up, and soon the Endeavor matched the speed of the other ship. Captain Rackham passed his spyglass around, letting the others see the enemy ship.

 

The ship wasrotted and barely looked sea-worthy -- yet somehow it still floated! Its sails were haggard, grey, and ragged, drooping limply from the listing masts. There were holes in the timbers, and the whole thing stank of rot and mildew. "It's a fast ship," Captain Rackham grinned. "But we're faster. We'll catch up to her before dawn, if that's your desire."

 

The Fearless Monster Hunters went into a huddle to try to decide what to do. They determined it was important they catch the enemy ship, because they weren't sure of Hob's condition (nor what the Undead horrors wanted with him). The Captain wasn't willing to risk his men in a fight with zombies, but the Fearless Monster Hunters assured him that that wouldn't be necessary. "Get us within boarding distance, then get away quickly," Leth told him. "We'll take care of the rest."

 

Thus prepared, the heroes waited. The enemy ship grew closer and closer, and soon they were able to read the faded nameplate: "The Black Rag." Captain Rackham put the Endeavor bare feet away from the enemy's starboard and the heroes leapt across, towards the waiting blades of a dozen Undead sailors!

 

The battle was hard-fought, neither side giving an inch. Leth quaffed a potion of flying that Illy had given him and swooped across the deck, harassing the zombie crew. Castilla bolted away from the combat, hoping to get below decks to find Hob before something happened to him. Trouble, Finnegan, and Styggiad fought toe-to-toe against the horrible crew, dropping many of them but taking several serious hits in return. Chrissie stood behind the warriors, urging them to fight harder and keeping watch for anything that might come up from behind. Kaira called on the blessings of the goddess to help her friends however she could.

 

Castilla opened the door to the Captain's Quarters and saw Hob, stuffed in a leather sack and hogtied head to toe. She also saw the two zombie crewmen left to guard him. "Help!" she cried, ducking and dodging the shambling dead. Leth swooped down out of the air and knocked one of the monsters over the side. As he was coming back around for another go, though, the magic that was holding him aloft suddenly winked out, and he plummeted into the dark water below!

 

Illy tried to run over to help, but got cornered by two walking dead, who nearly forced her overboard! Styggiad took a near-lethal blow, and Trouble rushed over to help her, while Finnegan ran to help Castilla.

 

Finally, the deck was mostly clear of the shambling dead. Finnegan pushed into the room where Castilla saw Hob, and was confronted by the captain of this accursed ship. "You'll die here, breather," he hissed. "And then you'll join my crew, forever…" His hand snaked out and grasped Finnegan's shoulder and the mighty warrior couldn't hold back his scream of pain -- it was like his very soul was being sucked out.

 

In desperation, Finnegan swung his sword, knocking the evil captain away. Castilla used the distraction to move past the fight and untie Hob. She was relieved to find the old man was still alive, though unconscious. She used her potion of healing to revive him.

 

Trouble and Styggiad managed to finish off the last of their opponents, and they rushed to help Finnegan. Illy ran to the edge of the ship and tried to spot Leth, but couldn't see him (luckily, Leth managed to grab hold of the side of the ship, and clambered through a hole in the rotten timbers).

 

The Undead captain tried every trick in his book to drive off the heroes, trying to terrify them into fleeing. But the FMH were stalwart and true. They knew that if they fled, this haunted ship would continue to prowl the high seas and make many other sailors into its victims. Bolstered by his friends' help, Finnegan swung his blade and chopped off the evil captain's head.

 

The rest of the zombies onboard immediately collapsed, and seconds later the heroes felt the ship stop moving and start sinking. They grabbed Hob and ran back to the deck, signaling the Endeavor to come pick them up -- quickly! They barely had time to climb aboard their own ship before the waves swallowed up the Black Rag forever.

 

Dawn had finally arrived, the golden sun peeking up above the horizon and filling the world with light. The heroes collapsed, exhausted, on the deck, happy to have gotten off that death ship in one piece. Trouble, elated with victory, sat at the edge of the Endeavor and watched the sea where the Black Rag had sunk. Then he noticed something else amidst the flotsam.

 

It was a bottle! He reached down and scooped it up. Inside was a piece of paper. As happy as a golden retriever, he rushed the bottle over to Illy and asked her to read it for him. The rest of the FMH gathered around, and she did so:

 

"Follow the star at which no eye can look toward the end of its course."

 

The heroes looked at each other. "The star at which no eye can look is the Sun," Finnegan suggested. The rest of the heroes nodded.

 

"West," said Leth. "We set a course west."

 

To be continued!

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Always a joy to read. Thanks!

 

Glad you're enjoying it!

[Cardinal]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Nice! Was Justin's player swapping him out for Finnigan?

 

I'm loving these recaps!!! I think the campaign sounds like a blast.

 

Out of curiosity, what prompted Justin to swap to Finnegan? They sound like the builds are like for like (warrior for warrior)? Did Lonewalker want to give up being the leader?

 

Also, what world are you playing in? One of your own making or a published one?

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

I'm loving these recaps!!! I think the campaign sounds like a blast.

 

Thanks!

 

Out of curiosity, what prompted Justin to swap to Finnegan? They sound like the builds are like for like (warrior for warrior)? Did Lonewalker want to give up being the leader?

 

I think that was his primary motivation, yes.

 

Also, what world are you playing in? One of your own making or a published one?

 

One of my own making. It's called "Temoris." I started running games in this world 25+ years ago, in AD&D. Shortly after Hero 5th edition came out, I switched it over to a Fantasy Hero campaign. I'm still tweaking it to my taste.

[teh bunneh]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

FMH Recap for September 22, 2007

After sailing through the day, the lookout spotted a small green island directly ahead. Night was falling quickly, and as the Endeavor sailed around the island, they spotted what appeared to be a small village on the coast. The heroes ordered Captain Rackham to weigh anchor, and they set out in the ship's longboat to see what they could find.

 

The small village was is a ramshackle place of wooden houses with thatched roofs, standing on pillars about eight feet off the ground. A dozen small fishing boats (none of which would be capable of traveling out of sight of land) were pulled up on the beach. It looked like a village typical of its type – not rich, but not impoverished either. However, it did look a bit rundown, like people weren't caring for their property as they once may have.

 

The town's streets were completely empty. Doors and windows were shut tight against the oncoming night, but it wasn't deserted -- Trouble smelled the scent of cooking coming from several of the houses. The heroes headed into town to see if they could see anyone, when a small window in what appeared to be the town common house opened and a man looked down at them.

 

"Hsst!" he hissed. "Are ya mad? Get inside, quick!" He opened his door and lowered a rope ladder to them. "Strangers," he said in thickly accented Kidbodish, once they were inside. "And well-armed strangers, at that. We've not seen strangers in these parts for near a year. Who are ya, and what brings ya to these accursed shores?"

 

Castilla and Trouble told him that they were the Fearless Monster Hunters, and they were looking for someone. "Can you tell us what's going on?" Trouble asked. "Why is your island accursed?"

 

The fellow introduced himself as Balty, and his Wife Marie, and their kids. He was a big fellow with one burly arm. The other arm was missing from about the elbow down. "Welcome to the Olvidado Isle," he said. "I run the common house here, since my arm doesn't let me work on the boats anymore. The village did OK for itself, until about a year ago."

 

"A ship came in at twilight. The men who came off of it said not a word, but headed straight into the jungle. There was an ill boding about them, like their air wasn't quite right, but no one got a good look at them. The next morning, the ship was gone and none saw it leave."

 

"Folks say the men who came off that ship headed along the coastline south, to the old fort, because a few days later one of the fishermen spotted the ship again, anchored off the point, and furthermore swore he saw people moving among the crumbled ramparts, repairing it!"

 

"It was then that the horror started. Men who wandered off too far into the jungle – trappers, woodcutters, and the like – disappeared. Same with fishermen and divers who went out too deep, or who rowed their boats out too close to the point. A few days later, Tomas went to put flowers on his wife's grave and found some bastard had dug it up! In fact, most of the town's graves were so desecrated. Poor Tom was inconsolable – he'd only been married a year when his wife took the fever and passed on."

 

"And it only grew worse from there. Now, we don't dare leave sight of the village, not even to collect wood, and there's not a fisherman in town who'll row out past the edge of the bay, and the fish are growing scarcer. And when night falls, we all rush home and board up our houses for fear of what might be lurking in the dark. Every family here would pack up and leave if only we had the means."

 

The heroes asked him about the old fort, but he didn't know much. It had just always been there. He didn't know who built it or why. It was a ruin, and had been for as long as anyone remembered. Back in the old days, sometimes children would sneak out there to explore, but there wasn't much to see – just a dilapidated stone fort with a tower and a stone quay that had partially fallen into the water.

 

Balty didn't know much more than that. He'd seen the ship, and others like it, patrolling along the shore, usually at dawn and dusk, but since that first day they'd never weighed anchor here in the bay. He didn't know the size, the crew, or the names of any of the ships – only that most of them looked like wrecks, but seemed to sail the waves well enough. The total number of villagers who'd vanished he put at about thirty – nearly 1/5 of the total population of their village! Number of graves robbed he'd guess was about the same or a little less. He'd never seen what it was that carried off the missing people (nor has any man now living).

 

He offered to let the heroes sleep on his floor that night – he wouldn't hear of them going outside now that the sun had set. After a restless night, Balty introduced them to the rest of the village. Most of the townsfolk thought the FMH were tradesmen, come to trade fishing hooks, iron knives, pots and pans, and the like for the pearls that the villagers gather through the year. They were a bit disappointed that that wasn't the case, but were happy to learn that the heroes were planning on investigating the old fort and the strange goings-on that had plagued their village.

 

Balty told the heroes that there were only two good ways to get to the old fort. The first was a trail through the jungle, which would take about a half a day to get there on foot. The second way was via the sea. The heroes opted to go there by foot, and Balty took them as far as the edge of the jungle. "No offense, sirs, but I've a family to look after," he apologized before he went back home.

 

The heroes headed up the trail, unmolested. But just as they got within eyeshot of the fort, they noticed someone reconstructed an old gateway across the road. The gate was closed. Castilla snuck closer and saw four dead bodies lying on the ground directly in front of the gate. They looked like dead villagers, perhaps some of the missing fishermen or woodcutters that Balty had told them about. She crept closer, intending to quietly open the gate, when suddenly all four bodies sat up and grabbed for her!

 

Trouble, Leth, and Styggiad immediately rushed to help. Castilla avoided the blows of the shambling dead and leapt nimbly over the wall. On the other side of the door, she saw yet another zombie – this one standing next to a bell, armed with a large hammer. He looked like he was about to sound an alarm, so Castilla swept her tail around his legs and pulled him off his feet.

 

The warriors formed a line to prevent the undead from getting past them and attacking the "squishier" party members. Kaira turned into a bird and flew to the other side of the gate to help Castilla – and just in time, too, as the hammer-wielding zombie smashed her in the stomach, causing her to black out! The Hobbit called on the power of her goddess to frighten the zombie away, but her faith seemed strangely ineffectual against it. Illy climbed over the wall to help as well. Seeing Castilla on the ground, Illy shifted the zombie through the Ghost-Realm and back again – this time, on the other side of the wall!

 

Trouble, Leth, Styggiad, and Finnegan finally managed to mop up the last of the zombies (including the one that Illy sent them), and the heroes were victorious. "Well, it seems we're on the right track," Leth said. "Let's get up to the fort as quietly as we can so we don't run into any more surprises."

 

They crept closer, keeping to the jungle so they wouldn't be spotted. When they got closer to the fort, they saw that the whole thing looked not at all like the ruin that Balty described. It was obvious that there had been a lot of construction work done in the last year or so. They didn't see much sign of occupation, but then Trouble spotted a figure moving on the top of the big tower, and two more standing motionless near the main door.

 

Leth told Kaira to change into a bird and scout out the place by the air. The first thing she spotted was two ships docked at the quay. Both looked like they were in bad shape – perhaps not as bad as the Black Rag, but pretty bad. There was no one moving around the docks.

 

As she few above the fort, she noticed several figures along the base of one wall – it appeared they were working on repairing a major structural collapse there. They moved slowly but with great purpose, and it was apparent even from that great height that they were more shambling dead.

 

"We need to get in there," Leth said. "But the main gate is guarded. I wonder if there's a back way?" He sent Castilla around back to investigate. She quietly moved past the worker zombies and finally spotted a small wooden hatchway in the back – probably where the inhabitants of the fort dumped their waste. Two by two, the Fearless Monster Hunters snuck past the worker zombies and crawled through the hatch. As they climbed through, though, they noticed something odd. Someone recently scratched something into the wooden planking. A poem…

 

Once the veil of death was named

Lasting, final, end of pains.

Full soon the art of wizards claimed

In part the freedom from those chains.

Loosed the tomb, and loosed the crypt

Invaded Death's own dreary hall

Out steps the corpse from slumber ripped

Now march my army, never fall.

 

"We're definitely on the right track," Leth said, catching on to the poem quickly. "The first letter of each line spells out the word Olfilion."

 

The heroes found themselves in a dark room that may have once been used as storage. Castilla took the lead, checking the single doorway to make sure no one was lurking on the other side, and then carefully opening the door. It led to what used to be a kitchen, but was now overcome with dust and ruin. They continued on through another doorway and found themselves in a long corridor.

 

The sounds of construction could be heard from one direction, so the heroes opted to go in the opposite direction. Castilla still in the lead, they crept quietly down the hall. Then she heard something – voices! "Where the hell is the Black Rag? Captain Onassis should be back by now!" the dry, husky voice said. Whoever it was, he was approaching! The Jill signaled the others to stop, and then disappeared into the shadows.

 

Illy quickly cast a spell to render all of her companions invisible, and everyone pressed up against the wall so as not to be spotted.

Confident of her ability to remain unseen, Castilla took a few steps closer to see who it was and to listen to what they were saying. An old man leaning on a cane was hobbling up the hallway, surrounded by a large group of the shambling dead.

 

"You see, of all of them Hob was always the most connected," the man said. "He kept track of all the others. That's how he arranged for this little "reunion junior" of his. I get Hob, I get everyone – names, addresses, closest relatives… hell, even ancestors! The whole deal! Once I've got their families, bada-bing bada-bang, it's a done deal – so long Fearless Monster Hunters, hello prize! The contest is mine!"

 

Then he stopped short, apparently noticing both Castilla and the other Fearless Monster Hunters. "Oh dear," he said. "It's you…"

TBC!

[Enforcer84]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Get the old guy!

[SatinKitty]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Great, as usual, Bill. I hope I get to Game with you sometime. Might you run at Gen Con next year ?

[SatinKitty]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Also love the "Pirates of the Carribean (sp?)" tribute.

[Susano]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Teh Bunnie's gotta come to HERO Con!

[SolitonMan]

Re: [Campaign] The Fearless Monster Hunters

 

Hello, I'm a newbie to HERO System, but I've been reading the boards lately and this storyline has been great! Sounds like your group has a lot of fun, Bill, I hope when I get one together we can have as much.

 

I've been reading this thread for a few days and finally got caught up, I really enjoy the way you incorporate various movie themes (The Seven Samurai, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Carribean) into your game. Great job, please keep posting!

 

Regards,

Dave