Merituuli has a miserable time trying to study Decimus’s stab wound—so badly, in fact, that he takes poison damage from it! Kalasääski helps him watch for more bad guys—something that the pair are very good at! He wonders how much wind will be in Bakaris’s sails, but can’t figure it out.
Decimus is able to glean from his understanding of poisons that this one is an ‘injury poison’—applied to weapons, ammunition, trap components, and other objects that deal piercing or slashing damage and remains potent until delivered through a wound or washed off. A creature that takes piercing or slashing damage from an object coated with the poison is exposed to its effects. However, this one seems to require at least two doses in quick succession as he merely took damage and looks worse for wear, but the poison’s effects might be that failing a constitution saving throw would result in suffering the poisoned condition until the end of his next turn, and that he’d also be paralyzed for that duration!
Decimus is very sneaky, almost preternaturally so! He looks for Hunni in the crowd.
Hunni, for her part is able to convince and cajole the crowd with ease, and just manages to sing a passable tune.
Hunni’s Giant Constrictor Snake is surprisingly acrobatic, and of course, quite intimidating, but somehow fails to be as athletic as it normally could be.
Mery is able to tell who the figures on the bluffs are, but can’t remember any particular details beyond the widely known legends of Lord Soth.
When she tries to suss out Ser Michelle’s truthfulness, what insight she can glean gives her the impression that the woman isn’t lying, and doesn’t seem to be trying to hide anything. Especially at the Lieutenant’s look of horror at the village being burned by the kapak draconians. She genuinely seems to believe that they were just to quarter there and that this targeted destruction and death has left her speechless.
Using persuasion effectively, she helps some men walk a little taller despite their demeaning circumstances. She tells some children a captivating story and gets them in order, too. Her attempt to lull some lethal lizards to sleep with a lullaby lacks success—not miserably—but it fails nonetheless.
Coltan’s keep perception is only outmatched by his deft animal handling. His efficient use of strength helps clear the path!
“I suppose that explains why you’ve fought with honour, but I’m not sure the rest of the evil gods army follow your code…” Ser Artanis responds to the lieutenant’s excitement about the manifestation of Takhisis.
“But . . . but the Gods! They’re back!” she says, understanding what he says, but wanting to hold onto something of the past several years. “You have your ‘Aprentice of Reorx’ and we have our ‘Speakers’ as well . . .”
It’s later, after she sees the kapak flee with a mere flex of Ser Artanis’s lance and when she sees the horrors her own side is inflicting upon the hapless innocents that Ser Michelle accepts that until now, literally any god or goddess manifest had been enough to take her in—but now, now, a god that does not wreak havoc and destruction and conquest is one to follow, not an evil goddess like Takhisis—a goddess into whose faith she hadn’t even been born!
Ser Artanis captures and rallies the panicking crowd with his horn, and gives an inspiring speech!
Ser Michelle listens to Modri’s tale and finds a kindred spirit in his hardy tough upbringing—hers was no picnic, either, training as a knight under her father. She blushes as his praise of her honor hits home—and in a little shame at having arrogantly delivered her army’s demands.
Modri is able to use his strength to move some tipped wagons. Then he humorously gets a goat to get out of the way and stop butting into people. Unfortunately he’s not as successful with the crowd.
Ser Michelle even helps out where she can, saving Modri from a javelin throw with a keen eye and a much stronger shove than he might have expected! In the disorder, though, she can’t think of any particular tactics recommended by her army in this situation—maybe she’s just used to a proper battlefield.
The Heroes Meet Up!
Coltan, Decimus, Derrett, Hunni, Merituuli,
Mery, Modri, Mayor Raven, Ser Artanis, and Ser Michelle
Whilst you all worked, some of you may have seen great plumes of flame igniting entire buildings in the village! They got closer and closer.
With the Thornwall group’s help, despite the rampant destruction and burning of the village, the last of the villagers is herded to the wharf safely with no further deaths.
Invasion Encounter
An alchemist in the village passes you by on his way to the boats. You notice him move off to the side, letting others get on the boats instead of him. The crowd thins as the last stragglers are boarded and when you have time for a breath—and just as the Thornwall group approaches—he opens his bag and pulls out seven vials, each with a red liquid that glimmers when he shakes them up.
“Here!” he says, handing them to each of you. “I won’t be needing these, now that I can get on a boat out of here—thanks to you all, the Heroes of High Hill and the Saviors of Vogler. Drink that and some of your injuries will disappear. Normally I’d sell these at 50 gold a piece, but my shop, just down that street, is now a flaming cinder pile and I bet when we reach Kalaman, I won’t have a place to brew or customers for a time. Take care and Reorx protect you all!”
With that, he steps down, off the dock, onto one of the remaining keel boats as it’s rowed away.
The screams of last of villagers, still evacuating onto boats, ring through the smoke of burning buildings. Among the screams rises an unbelievable word: “Dragon!”
Then it comes into view. Pitching this way and that, its scales clanking like steel plates, a black beast draws near the wharf, flanked by reptilian invaders. Flames crackle from the beast’s gaping maw.
Escape from Vogler
This battle takes place in front of Vogler’s wharf, depicted on the map below.
On the first round of battle, the large, draconic beast belches a huge gout of flame into the Wharfinger’s Office—the structure at the north of the map. The building rapidly catches fire.
A blinded bozak draconian with 1 hit point staggers from the Fray and across the battlefield. It doesn’t attack, but it explodes in its Death Throes if killed. The draconian appears in an unoccupied space adjacent to the Fray nearest a random character (Mery).
Characters who succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check or who come within 5 feet of the beast recognize that . . .
. . . it isn’t a dragon, but a mechanical device.
Vogler Battlefield Features
The battlefield includes the following features:
- Burning Building. The Wharfinger’s Office is on fire. A creature that enters the burning structure for the first time on a turn or starts its turn there must succeed on a DC 16 Constitution saving throw or take 5 (1d10) fire damage.
- Fray. The 15-foot-wide area marked by the design at the edge of the map represents draconians facing off against Vogler’s remaining defenders. This area and the village beyond the map are difficult terrain. A creature that enters the Fray for the first time on a turn or starts its turn there must succeed on a DC 16 Dexterity saving throw or take 7 (2d6) slashing damage from opportunistic foes. The Fray can’t be damaged and remains until the battle ends.
- Battlefield Conditions (perception). It’s late evening and there is a lot of smoke everywhere, wafting towards the wharf. However, there are a lot of fires providing quite a bit of light. The sounds of screaming, terrified villagers, the roar of the burning village, the wind whipping up as fires pull air in towards the village from all directions, all create a din that makes communication difficult. The entire battlefield is therefore lightly obscured, meaning that everyone has disadvantage on perception checks that involve hearing, seeing, or smell.
- Battlefield Conditions (movement and hiding). There is debris everywhere. Furthermore, as it—until now—was a functioning and busy wharf, there are stacked crates and barrels all over the place, as well. Areas that don’t look pretty much clear are difficult terrain. Anywhere you see barrels or boxes, you can hide behind them for half cover (barrels) or three-quarters cover (boxes).
Vogler Battlefield Events
During this encounter, roll on the Vogler Battlefield Events table each round at initiative count 0. Also consider rolling on the table if a character enters the Fray or otherwise tries to leave the battlefield.
| d6 | Events |
| 1 | Two Vogler fishers (guards) come to assist the characters. They appear in unoccupied spaces adjacent to the Fray nearest a random character. |
| 2 | A blinded bozak draconian with 1 hit point staggers from the Fray and across the battlefield. It doesn’t attack, but it explodes in its Death Throes if killed. The draconian appears in an unoccupied space adjacent to the Fray nearest a random character. |
| 3–4 |
A draconian gliding overhead throws a fiery flask at one random |
| 5–6 |
Villagers on the docks shout their support. A random |
| d10 | Random Character |
| 1 | Coltan |
| 2 | Darrett |
| 3 | Decimus |
| 4 | Hunni’s Giant Constrictor Snake |
| 5 | Hunni |
| 6 | Mery |
| 7 | Modri |
| 8 | Mayor Raven |
| 9 | Ser Artanis |
| 10 | Ser Michelle |
