Sitting cross-legged on the floor and reading by the warm light of the lit fireplace and several oil-lamps, the four adventures spend several more hours eating snacks prepared by Rifkin and studying the murdered Three-Quarterling's notes and journals.
These notes reveal several answers to some previously confusing issues...
The first being; why was the hidden garden so poorly defended? The Howl seemed frightening but only survived Arowe's initial onslaught due to magical bolstering and fell soon after anyway. The tiny Scorcion seemed more like a squeaky, mentally challenged cheerleader and the Three-Quartering himself, despite his defiance, hardly put up a fight at all!
The answer was luck. Pure dumb luck!
A plan of the hidden garden, shows all the rooms (including secret room) of the underground but cosy cavern complex, the layout of the garden and magical pool, the long winding mountain path entrance and the denuded woodland area immediately surrounding them.
There are several colour shaded in areas, each expanding outward in rough circles, covering larger and larger territories. They are all labelled 'War zones' but with the dates advancing along with the zones increasing size.
These zones appear to be the ever expanding, ranging territory of the 'War'. A hybrid Wolf/Boar. A voracious, omnivorous, apex predator.
Due to it's large physical size and even larger appetite, it has driven off all the natural animals and consumed the majority of edible vegetation.
Liga Bur had noticed some of the damage on the way in but dismissed it as probably the work of a regular passel of wild boars. The Halfling shakes his dreadlocks. He'll make sure to pay much closer attention next time.
This discovery solved two of the Three-Quarterling's problems; The War naturally deters nearby animals from wandering within the magical pools calling sphere of influence and, as hybrid animals are averse to attacking other hybrid animals, this gives any new-born hybids a greater chance of early survival.
The Party must have fortunately missed the War's irregular patrol.
Some connected notes also explain why the Three-Quarterling was keeping the terrifying Beer in the cells. It was a standby replacement just in case the War was killed.
The zone has become quite large over time and there is no avoiding travelling through it, regardless of whichever way you decide to head.
Fortu and Arowe look to Liga Bur... Will they be so lucky again?
Fortu sits back and raises an imaginary glass and toasts
ReplyDelete"here's to the capricious lady luck, may she always ride with us"
Why imaginary? Sir Briefadel left you a bottle of Matha's vineyard's finest white wine each as a Party parting present.
ReplyDelete:)
Fortu has no taste for wine, he hasn't drunk any of it.
ReplyDeleteThat's an interesting piece of character background...
ReplyDelete:)
I get the feeling we won't be so lucky next time.
ReplyDeleteGood to know that the terrifying Beer was only the backup-bad. Sheesh!
So War = worf X boar
ReplyDeleteWorf = wolf X ???
Yeah, I have no idea what a worf is ;/
Such a weird typo! So weird, I felt the need to check the title spelling of the Module cover! :S
DeleteAh, ok, so only a Wolf-Boar hybrid. That will be just fine! The Bee part of the Beer was what really worried me!
ReplyDeleteHaving said that it will probably have a zillion hot points and eight attacks a round.
Typo. Hit points, not hot points!
ReplyDeleteHot points is what Holly Willoughby has when playing twister.
Hooray! Another wayward stray for Liga Bur's ever embiggened menagerie!
ReplyDelete