Wilderlands 2: In the Shadow of Heroes, Sessions 1-4

This first session of this campaign took place at BGC, before Steve moved off, and included him, Richy, Angela, and David. Session two, we moved the venue to Angela's place and Taylor joined, and in the third session, Paul did, too. The fourth time we met, David rejoined the group, bringing the party up to four members. Though we've had some time-short sessions, things seem to have progressed smoothly and quickly, and the party has accomplished quite alot. Here's a recap so far...

It has been over a year since the attempted siege and coup of the sorcerous traitors and their dread fae minions and cohorts, and life in Bugbear Falls has seemingly leveled out, though with a stronger guard presence and the institution of a strict curfew, as well as severe punishments for those even suspected of being spellcasters.

Despite this, Dal Lago, , has ongoing and newly issued bounties for various monsters and traitors in his neck of the Viridian Empire, which pay out well to those foolhardy brave enough to venture out to get them. It happened that this was just such a time, as two citizens had come to the conclusion that they needed 'more,' though what 'more' was depended on the individual. An entertainer from the Avalonian isles named Sheva sought more riches than just what was beggared from the patrons of the Cliffs, and a Gnome of technical bent named Scotch, whose clan had created reliable firearms and who was contracting their use and sale to Dal Lago's men in the watch and guard. This gnome wanted to test/prove his weapon's effectiveness in an adventuring capacity to further the use (and thus, profit,) for himself and his clan.

To this end, and being short on man-power, which is required for survival in the wild, they contracted two relative newcomers to town, Ashir, an Ifrit from Dimark, in the Desert Lands, as well as his companion, a slight human who seemingly worked for him named Kykas.The four set off from the Falls, headed toward what locals call the Caves of Chaos, a known nesting area for savage and brutish creatures ranging from kobolds to ogres. It was the kobolds which the party were after, as an old bounty that hadn't been discontinued was offering 15 gold per pair of horns from the beasts.


They didn't get far, however, before the group was beset by a giant mantis, intent on feasting on these small little snacks. Kykas quickly lost his life, being torn limb from limb by the massive insect, while the others whittled away at it, and eventually brought it down. With such a crushing blow to morale and with shaken confidence, the party headed back to the safety of the keep, and was attacked by carnivorous vegetation when camping outside the gates because they had gotten back to Bugbear Falls at night.


Upon arriving, Scotch swore off adventuring, having proven to himself, at least, that his weapons were combat ready, and trusting to his craftsmanship to earn him all he needed in life. Sheva went back to work as a dancer, and Ashir generally laid low, being careful to not draw unwanted attention to the fact that he adventured with little to no weaponry. Then came Titanus.


Seemingly clueless and knowledgeable of the world all at the same time, the Oread was quick to spread his prophecy to Bugbear Falls, claiming he was the "Herald of the Storm" and foretelling coming destruction in the form of a storm. Needless to say, the authorities are annoyed, and most residents just think him a little crazy. Sheva, however, struck conversation with him, and shortly, they had decided to venture out into the wilds again. To this end, they enlisted an aesthetic warrior from the Stable of the Rider (church of Famine) and Sheva's adventuring companion Ashir.


The band departed the Falls and had a rather uneventful trip leading to the cave where they had gleaned that kobolds nested in, since they had chosen to rake in gold by collecting the bounty on the creatures. Outside, they were beset by 3 of the creatures hidden in tree branches outside of the caves, slinging into the group, and causing little harm before the group dispatched them, and then ventured into the cave. Shortly after entering, however, Titanus fell into a covered pit which alarmed guards and giant rats, alike, causing many foes to spill into the area, but with smart tactical thinking, the group was able to put down about a dozen of the rats and force the kobolds to retreat.


After this, the party was halted in their further advance by a small warband of kobolds headed by a larger one, who offered a ruby and gold necklace for the lives of the rest of his clan. The group accepted the plea, save for Titanus, who did so only grudgingly, and then was paid in advance by the kobolds to eradicate their goblin rivals from across the canyon where the caves were located. More riches enticed the group, and they set off immediately, finding an empty cave with a large sack filled with small sacks filled with treasure! Though this chamber housed the skeleton of an ogre, presumably the former owner of the sack, the thing thankfully did not animate, and had seemingly succumb to wounds or old age long while ago.


With this haul of coin, cheese, and brandy that took no work to acquire, the party quickly made for Bugbear Falls, deciding to come back at a later time to complete the goblin genocide.This trek would prove to make up for the uneventfulness of the trip there, when they came across another adventuring party facing what could only be a dragon with scintillating blue scales. Both the other party, called The Lady's Seekers, and the dragon itself had taken a few licks, but the beast was quickly dispatched once the spellcasters brought to bear their might, though not before Mark managed to land a blow. Titanus bashed the thing's head in to make sure it was dead and the two groups set to work dressing the creature, taking everything of use, with the more experienced group coaching as they went.


When they finally made camp, another group of adventurers heading home to Bugbear Falls, these the Hammers of Gorum, asked to share camp with them and travel the rest of the way come morning. The assembled groups agreed, and everyone made good conversation and told stories of adventures. When morning came, the three groups set out as one and arrived at the keep early, going their separate ways. Sheva and Titanus to handle finances and contract weapons and armor made of dragon parts, Ashir to create jewelry (his mundane means of income), and Mark to his duties at the Stable of the Rider. After only a day spent in town, the group was again gathered and they headed out to exact their goal of eradicating the goblin tribe in the caves opposite the kobolds.


The trip there only provided the party a glimpse of a wolf and the sight of a creature believed to be an ill omen amongst the church of the rider, a glaring mockery of the Rider in Black, who spreads the ill effects of withering to those whom the Horseman of Famine would otherwise favor. Mark wished to take this news immediately to the Stable, but sporadic hailstorms had him not wanting to suffer the exposure on the long trip back.


And so the party pressed forward, at first re-entering the ogre-skeleton cave and finding a bag they missed completely unmolested on the floor of the cave, but finding no further egress, they back tracked and found another cave which they thought might lead into the goblin's warren. Their speculation was correct, and they managed to survive an early ambush, only to venture further into the complex and busting down the door into a chamber completely filled with hobgoblins. After an awkward apology/flat statement about how the hobgoblins aren't goblins by Titanus, then his replacing the door, the party ventured back down into the lower caves in search of their prey.


There, we left off after they had weathered another ambush by the ravening humanoids.

Cast of Characters
Ashir the Silvered, Ifrit Sorceror (Word Caster) 1 - David
Sheva Suresh, Avalonian Human Bard (Dervish Dancer) 1 - Angela
Titanus, Oread Druid (Storm Druid) 1 - Taylor
Mark, Common Viridian Human Monk (Master of Many Forms/Hungry Ghost) 1 - Paul
Scotch Radister, City Gnome Gunslinger (Pistolero) 1 - Steve
Kykas, Half-Elf Monk (Ki Mystic) 1 - Richard