Session 10: Reflexive Degeneracy

Session report for February 15, 2024. Nine players adventured for one day.

Characters

Arrek, human fighter 1
Bard Warpig, human fighter 1
Bond, human assassin 1
Brother Flint, human monk 1
Divot, halfling fighter/thief 1/1
Five-Finger Viscount, halfling fighter 1 [hat of difference]
Lexis King, human thief 1
Nils, human fighter 1
Solace, human cleric 1

What a turnout! Nine players - one of them brand new - brought great energy to the table. This was a good one.

Because the whole party was level 1 we focused on fundamentals. For the players that meant sticking to the first level of the dungeon and taking the time to get a clean map. They were also learning to work together under a new caller, Nils.

Five-Finger Viscount, in Gunslinger mode thanks to his stylish hat, was the scout of the party along with Divot the fighter/thief. When they were 90 feet apart from the party, they were nigh undetectable in the darkness.

Until Divot went through his first door. You see, doors are often stuck, and tended to close when you went through them. They soon realized that a door could endanger the scout and bring his exploration to a halt. This neutralized the halfling stealth about half the time - something I will remember when Deadleaf is back from vacation.

my fundamentals exercise

DM note: when the players encounter a door for the first time, I roll 1d6. On a 1, the door is open; 2-5, the door is stuck; on a 6, the door is locked and/or trapped.

True to their goal, the players got a good start on the first level map and made their way to heretofore unexplored corridors. At the end of one corridor was door that opened to a simple 20-foot square room.

A debate ensued over whether to double back or search the room for secrets. After a few minutes, Nils made his call: Arrek, Flint, and himself would guard the corridor while the rest of the party fan out and search the room for secret doors.

ding!

The door slammed shut and the room sank to a lower level of the dungeon, leaving the three guards alone in a corridor. Both groups panicked.

"If the party won't split up," I said, "then the dungeon will do it for you."

The elevator stopped and the door was still there. It led to a new hallway. The group resolved to find their way back and sent the halflings up ahead.

A short walk down the hall revealed a side passage. And a large group of orcs marching toward them, hoping to find out who stumbled out of the elevator room. No one is surprised, least of all the players who are starting to suspect the wandering monster table contains only orcs.

The hobbits retreated and the orcs charged! The party made good use of burning oil and the doorway to even the odds.

Solace showed off the power of evil clerics. Cause light wounds made an orc perish while howling in agony, cause fear sent another running, but his command spell was the most effective.

"Ejaculate."

I think I can point to this as the moment Fort Fenrir became a true part of the Trollopulous setting.

Anyway, the orc failed his save and was... indisposed for a few rounds.

Lexis King was killed. Bard Warpig was taken down to zero hit points and bandaged up. Divot cowered behind the door with 1 hp. But overall, the dice were going the party's way, and they whittled the orcs down to half strength.

The orcs made an organized retreat in the face of their casualties, happy to leave the players pinned inside the room. In another fateful call, the party grouped up and pressed the attack.

The tactical situation did not change much once the orcs regrouped, but the dice were no longer in the party's favor. One by one they all fell to orcish spears. The last one to fall was the Five-Finger Viscount who bled out as the orc with the odd proclivities place the fancy hat on his head...

The remaining party members holed up in another room. After a while, they realized the rest weren't going to make it back and headed back home. Nils was so distraught at getting everyone killed he left the Fort altogether out of shame. He did a great job and will return with new character. -DM

It was hard to watch everything go sideways. But when I think of the laughs and good times, and the way such a large group of players pulled together and took on the challenge, it reminds me of every great session I've had. Good game.

THE VANQUISHED
Bard Warpig, human fighter 1
Bond, human assassin 1
Divot, halfling fighter/thief 1/1
Five-Finger Viscount, halfling thief 1
Lexis King, human thief 1
Solace, human cleric 1