Iron & Gold
Credits
This is a solo play-through of the adventure “Ironwood Gorge” by Eric Jones, published by Ludibrium Games.
Because I am not really an old-school guy, things have been converted to (originally) Iron Gauntlets by Precis Intermedia Games and after about chapter 6, Iron & Gold, also by Precis Intermedia Games. Where necessary, I use Mythic Game Master Emulator by Tana Pigeon, published by Word Mill Games.
This is the second Ludibrium Games module I’ve used for these characters, and I enjoy them. (The first was “The Sanctuary Ruin.”)
As usual, rules misunderstandings are mine and I try to present it as (bad) fiction, with game mechanics in footnotes. The italicized subtitles after the chapter title are prompts from Mythic Game Master Emulator; I try to work the intent into the scene. I am not always successful, but it keeps me a bit more honest.
“Ironwood Gorge” is meant to be the basis for a campaign, where the Bleak Tower is a home base for adventures. I have not yet decided whether I will do that; there could be additional Bleak Tower adventures, or they'll wander away until the third adventure in the trilogy is published.
13 - To The Petrified Orc And Beyond
Disrupt Tactics (NPC Positive)
The next dawn found them groggy from lack of sleep. Apparently almost all of them had had nightmares. Hrelgi climbed down from the tree, startling the goblin children, and said brusquely, “Magic was afoot last night. The dreams were magical, but not omens.”
One of the goblins spoke up, and Ninefingers translated. “The nightmares are what the medallions protect you from.” He said thoughtfully, “I had the one from the scout and had no nightmares; Uthrilir had the one from the goblins and also had no nightmares.”
“I cast a protective shield about myself that kept most of them out,” said Hrelgi. From the lines around her eyes, Ninefingers doubted that she had prevented most of them.
“I’m sorry there’s no breakfast,” said Felewin, “or even a stream to clean yourselves in. Ninefingers, can you ask some of the refugees to help someone covering the latrine hole? I’ll help; we all helped in my people.”
“I’ll do it,” said Hrelgi. “I like throwing shit around.”
“Are you going to cover it, or…?”
Hrelgi just smiled.
“Go ahead,” Felewin said. Attempting to instill proper camp discipline was going to be hard with these people.
As they marched, Ijalis spoke to Ninefingers, who gave periodic updates to the others. “Things to watch out for, besides the toads, spiders, and cockatrices we already knew about: dryads that seem to have been petrified with their trees—they lost a child to them. They create illusions of what you want or something. The spiders are sometimes accompanied by spider-centaurs: giant spider bodies with a humanoid body above. And just out of their nest, when they were still in the gorge, harpies.”
“Harpies?” asked Felewin.
“Kind of singing beast, but the lion part looks more like a woman, they say. I don’t know if that’s because it really is a woman or they just don’t see a lot of non-goblin women. Foul-tempered and apparently filthy, but a bewitching spell.”
“Huh. Never heard of them.”
Uthrilir said, “Mountain beasts. They entrance like a singing beast but the back half is more bird than lion. They like the heights. They might like this gorge if the walls are steep enough.”
“You’ve heard of these things?”
“Tales, yes. I’d rather face a proper singing beast because they can’t fly.”
“Stay in the shadows of trees to avoid them,” Ninefingers reported. “We’re not going into the gorge itself, so we don’t have to worry.”
With the knowledge from the refugees, and their own experience, they managed to avoid toads, spiders, ettercaps, dryads, and harpies.[83]
By noon they were nearly at the bridge before the petrified orc. Kagandis stopped.
“We should have encountered a patrol by now.”
“Maybe they’re still cleaning up after the slaving party,” suggested Ninefingers.
“It’s been a week. They can rebuild the bridge in a week.” She moved away from them. “I’m going to check.” Before anyone could speak, she was off into the woods.
Ninefingers said to the other goblins, “She does this.”
Felewin asked Ninefingers what was going on. When Felewin found out, he said, “She’s not wrong, but I wish she had consulted everyone before disappearing.” He thought for a moment and then said, “Best we teach them the rudiments of scavenging for food. It will keep them occupied and serve them profitably in the future. Tell them we’re off to learn.”
In minutes, he had all nine of them, and he led them back, away from the petrified orc and the direction that Kagandis had taken.[84] They had remarkably good luck, finding several sunberry bushes in early fruiting, a sad-mary plant with edible flowers, and two rabbits that they took from the webs of giant spiders before the spiders retrieved them. “Assuming Kagandis finds no problem, we can feed everyone something.”
Kagandis was not back by the time they returned. Hrelgi’s face lit up at the sight of the brace of hares. “Breakfast!” she said. “I’ll start a fire.”
“No,” said Felewin. “No fire yet. If there’s trouble, the fire will bring the trouble to us.”[85]
An arrow sank into the ground at his feet. The goblins screamed.
A woman called, “No need for a fire to call us, we’re right here. And I figure you’re surrounded by those miserable green-skinned vermin.” She stepped into the clearing. She was taller than Felewin, who was big, and she was wearing armour. She carried a longbow. “Every one of them is worth a bounty and they don’t look like they’ll put up much fight.”
Felewin heard a familiar hiccup from the bushes. “Hastwine! You come out here!”
His voice came from the bushes. “Not Hastwine at all!” Hic.
“I want my bedroll back!”
“Nope, I’m, uh, Ropey, Ropey Legend. From the Empire of Tanne.”
“Give me my bedroll!” Felewin said. He couldn’t see Ninefingers in his peripheral vision, so he hoped that meant the Aprak had gotten to cover.
“So you’ve met one of our crew. I’ll have to ask him what you were like, after we kill you.”
“You can try,” Felewin said boldly. The woman had said “our crew,”which meant there were at least two of them besides Hastwine. If she was so confident while seeing so many of them, there were probably four or five of them in total.
Still, if the goblins helped, then this “crew” was outnumbered.
If.
An elf stepped out. He was broad, with one scar visible on his face that only served to make him distinguished.
“I am Taliesin,” the woman said. “In the afterlife, know that Taliesin, Ilmir, and Bodkin were your escorts.”
Uthrilir stepped forward. “It looks like a dozen to three. Your confidence seems misplaced.”[86]
“Them? They won’t help you.”
Felewin drew his sword and charged. He intended to engage her; he hoped she was not as good as he was, but his intent was more to keep her busy fighting defensively.[87]
Ninefingers began the slow movement to get behind them.[88]
Uthrilir moved to the elf. “You’ve thrown the dice, tree-born one. Be prepared for the consequences.”[89] He swung his mace at the elf, who responded as tentatively, both of them testing the other. Taliesin[90]’s swing went wide.
A rock hit one of the goblins, and they scattered, although none of them actually made it into the safety of the woods.[91]
And then Felewin cried out, “I cannot see!”
In the bushes they heard a laugh, punctuated by a hiccup.
Taliesin hit the blind Felewin, hurting him seriously, even as he tried to back up.[92] He managed to back up but she was right with him.
Uthrilir broke away from the elf and hit Taliesin, but her chain mail softened his blow.
In the woods, Ninefingers charged to protect his companion.[93] He hit Taliesin in her leg, not protected by armour, and she managed to stay standing.[94]
Ilmir, who suddenly found himself without an opponent, came up behind Uthrilir and said, “You turn your back on an armed foe. I have little to fear from you, earthworm.”[95]
One goblin ran past Taliesin and tried to hit her, but missed. The other goblins ran for the trees.
From the trees, Hastwine shouted, “Serves you right!” And hiccupped.
Ilmir found himself hit by a dead orc, as Hrelgi impelled one of the orc corpses at him to protect her friend.[96]
An armoured halfling stepped into the area, drawing a sword almost as long as he was. “Don’t throw dead things at my partners,” he said.[97].He swung at Hrelgi, who barely dodged out of the way.
Taliesin managed to turn to face Ninefingers. “Another goblin, and this one with pretensions!” She swung at the unarmoured goblin[98] but missed.
Bodkin said, “You don’t deserve to be alive,” to Hrelgi, and swung — but missed.[99]
Uthrilir struck at Taliesin and hurt her again,[100] while Felewin kept moving backwards slowly.
Ilmir’s armour suddenly turned to lava, and Ilmir screamed.[101]
Ninefingers heard the scream with some satisfaction, but his concern at the moment was Taliesin.[102] She was still standing there, and he feinted once then hit her and cut off her head.
“One down,” he said.
Felewin’s vision cleared, and there was the sound of someone running away. He looked down at his wound. “Father said not to fight without armour.” He began slowly to ready an arrow to loose at the halfling.
Ninefingers stepped between Bodkin and Hrelgi and swung at the halfling.[103]; his blow connected, glancing only a little off the halfling’s chain. Uthrilir missed. Bodkin thrust at Ninefingers[104], who parried.
Ilmir was trying to get out of the armour, but not managing.[105] The burn from the lava killed him.
Another orc flew from the boulder and landed near Bodkin. “We should probably keep one of you alive for questioning,” Hrelgi said.
Ninefingers swung twice at the halfling, Bodkin.[106] The halfling parried the first, and the second connected on the halfling’s chain.
Bodkin[107] decided to stay alert and dodge any attacks.
Felewin was at point blank range, but his arrow grip was adapted to sitting on a horse.[108] He let the arrow go. He thought it might be too high but it sank into the halfling’s thigh.
Uthrilir found his way to Felewin’s side, and laid hands on his wound.[109] The terrible wound in the man’s side closed by divine magic.
Hrelgi appeared to miss with her spell.
Ninefingers tried another pair of blows: the first missed, but the second hit and took Bodkin closer to death.[110]
Felewin reloaded his bow.
Uthrilir took the opportunity ask his goddess to protect everyone.[111]
Hrelgi took reality, twisted it, and turned the ground around Bodkin to water.[112] Bodkin sank to the bottom of the sudden pond, which was twice his height.[113]
“Are you going to let him out?” asked Felewin.
“Maybe,” she replied.
It took a long time, but he went limp. Hrelgi then turned the water into air, and Felewin jumped in to rescue the halfling. He was careful to put the halfling’s sword and knife on one side of the hole before hoisting the halfling to the other side.
Once Felewin was out, Hrelgi said, “Cover your heads; I’m letting the air turn back into dirt.”
Most of the dirt was still in the hole, but some was not, and one of the goblin children started coughing.
“Sorry!” said Hrelgi. “Guess you inhaled some air that wanted to be dirt.”
Uthrilir went over and helped the young goblin. Then he sat for himself, praying. When he got up, there was no sign of his injury.
“Can you help the halfling?” asked Ninefingers.
Uthrilir said, “Do you want me to?” as he checked to make sure the halfling was breathing.
“Not yet. I just want something to offer him during the … negotiation.”
Felewin said, “You do plan for negotiations.”
“Do you have an objection?”
Felewin waved it off and smiled. “I have no skill at negotiation myself, but I used to watch my father at it, and I can appreciate someone who thinks of these things.”
Hrelgi went through their belongings and found rope while Uthrilir undressed the halfling. The dwarf threw all weapons in a pile.
“That’s a thong,” said Hrelgi.
“It’s a sling, and how would you know what a thong is?” said Uthrilir.
“We’re elves. That doesn’t mean we’re ignorant.”
Uthrilir snorted.
“Also I spent time in Westport. You can learn a lot in Westport,” she said as she tied up the halfling.
“Not knots, apparently,” said Uthrilir. He retied the knots and then gently woke the halfling.
Ninefingers looked down and said, “Hello. Your crew is dead or scattered. We have some questions.”
Game Mechanics
[83] GM gives everyone a +1 to Survival whenever they’re in the Ironwood.
[84] He rolls a 2 on his Survival roll, which I would suggest gives him the kind of margin that lets him teach the others, who will have 5 experience points if they already have survival, or a score of 1 if they don’t have survival.
[85] He’s going to suggest suiting up. Do they find the party first? (50/50, CF 7) 47% yes
[86] Hastwine rolls a 5, which is pretty good; he needed 7- so margin of 2. Felewin has a vulnerability to crafting magic, so his Awareness is currently 0. Hrelgi rolling a 7 of 9-, which is a margin of 2 for her, so she recognizes his magic but can’t do anything about it for a moment.
Let’s do some reactions.
Felewin: 8+5 13
Hrelgi: 6+4 10
Uthrilir: 7+5 12
Ninefingers: 8+5 13
Taliesin: 8+3 11
Bodkin: 7+3 10
Ilmir: 7+6 12
Hastwine: 4+6 10
Generic goblins: 5+4 0
Mythic: Is Kagandis hidden from them? (She was being stealthy and expecting trouble, so likely, CF 7: 8. That’s an exceptional yes.They don’t know about her specifically.
Felewin, Ninefingers, Uthrilir, Ilmir, Taliestin, Bodkin, Hastwine, Goblins
[87] His attack roll is a 10 on 10-; her response on 9 on 9-: margin of 0 in both cases. Blades cross.
Felewin, Ninefingers, Uthrilir, Ilmir, Taliestin, Bodkin, Hastwine, Goblins
[88] He rolls 8 on 9- for Stealth; margin of 1.
[89] He misses, rolling a 9 when he needs 8-, but Ilmir misses too, rolling a 10 when he needs 9-.
[90] Taliesin rolls a 12, so she misses. Bodkin rolls a 4, so his stone hits a goblin. We’ve done Hastwine and Hrelgi.
The goblins scramble to the woods: they have athletics 2 and fitness 2, so none of them actually make it, but they are spread out.
[91] And reactions again:
Felewin: 8+4 12
Hrelgi: 6+2 8
Uthrilir: 7+5 12
Ninefingers: 8+4 12
Taliesin: 8+6 14
Bodkin: 7+1 8
Ilmir: 7+4 11
Hastwine: 4+5 9
Generic goblins: 5+6 11
[92] Composure: he rolls 8 and needs 10.
[93] We’ll say it’s surprise, so Ninefinger’s margin is 1+2; Taliesin is busy, so she can’t respond, and Ninefingers does 3 levels of damage. (Sadly, Felewin has taken 4.)
[94] Fitness roll of 6.
[95] He rolls a 5, needs 8-. Uthrilir takes three levels of damage.
[96] She makes the spell easily enough (6 and needs 8-). Does she hit him? The orc corpse is big, and just rolled a 6, so I’ll say it did. Two levels of Fatigue damage for Ilmir
[97] He rolls 8 on dueling (margin of 0) but she rolls 8 on athletics to dodge (margin of 0).
[98] She rolls 6. He is undersized, like all goblins, so that +1 Diff, and she’s insured, so that’s +2 Diff more, and he makes his roll with a margin of 3, so he essentially has a margin of 6, and she has a margin of 3. Miss.
[99] Well, he rolled an 8 (margin 0) but she rolled a 3 for athletics (margin more than 0).
[100] He rolled a 7 (turned into an 8 by his injury) for margin 0, but she rolled a 9 (turned into an 11 by her injury). He has margin 0 but she does not succeed. Her armour helped a bit (1 of 2, but now she is maimed as well)
[101] He has suddenly taken 4 levels of damage.
[102] He rolls a 7 to hit her, and she hasn’t got a move left, and another 7 to hit her (with +2 Difficulty) but this one hits too. The first bounces off armour (1,3,1), but the second doesn’t (4, 6, 5).
[103] He rolls 5, it becomes 6 because Bodkin is undersized; Bodkin parries with a roll of 7. Ninefingers has a margin of 3, Bodkin has a margin of 1. Ninefingers succeeds. Armor rolls are 6,3,4, so 2 get through.
[104] On 8-, he rolls 6 that becomes 7 because Ninefingers is also undersized, and 8 because he is injured. That’s margin 0; Ninefingers gets his one defense and gets margin 1. Ninefingers is unhurt.
[105] He rolls a 10, and his athletics roll is 9-.
[106] He rolls 8 and 6, which becomes 9 and 9 (second attack is +2 Diff). Bodkin manages to parry the first (3, becomes 4 for injury, becomes 5 because Ninefingers is also undersized). That’s a margin of 3, so he blocks the first…but not the second. However, his armour does the second.
[107] Bodkin decides to dodge, and gets 6 which turns into 7, for a margin of 1. Because he’s undersized, that’s effectively a margin of 2.
[108] He rolls a 4, which becomes a 7 because of his injuries. He has 10- in archery, so that’s a margin of 3. We’ve established that Bodkin’s margin is 2. It hits. But does it do any damage? Compound bow does 1 inj and he rolls 6 on the armour roll, so it gets through.
[109] He rolls a 7 on 9-, and then a 3 on the effects. Felewin now has only one level of injury.
[110] Two attacks; first missed (11) but second succeeded (6) with a margin of 3; of that, the armour stopped 2 (1,3,4) but one got through.
Bodkin’s response is to dodge again, and he does it brilliantly: 2, -1 for being undersized, +2 for his injuries: 4. That makes his Athletics by a margin of 4. Hoo-hah!
[111] He rolls 8 on 9- but can help only one person. He chooses Hrelgi, who gets +1 to armour.
[112] She rolled a 3, which is a darn fine margin and she did maybe a horse’s depth of water, and halflings in chain mail are not as buoyant as they might be.
[113] Alas, he doesn’t have composure. He rolls a 5, but he’s untrained in this, so he doesn’t roll under his ability -2.
water
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