Part 1 of the Adventure of the Three Rings (A Four Against Darkness module)
Introduction
Candorra bowed before the Lord of Northport and presented the missive from the Holy Temple in Scotsile. As the lord's minister reached for a it, a commotion broke out from the entrance to the Great Hall. All eyes turned as a young novice burst rushed past the guards, panic in his voice."
"They're gone! They're gone!" he cried.
The guards tried to restrain the youth but the lord motioned for them to let him approach.
"Calm yourself." the lord commanded. The novice took a breath.
"Better. Now explain yourself."
The youth told a tale a woe. Orc reavers had attacked the abbey, which lay several miles to the east. They had killed the prior and several of the monks. They ransacked the place, even stealing the abbey's three sacred rings, and then fled into the Borderland Forest.
"This is dread news." The lord agreed. He then called for volunteers to hunt down the orcs and recover the rings/
"They're just some jewelry" Khamen thought, as he tried to remain inconspicuous. He had no desire to be traipsing into the wilds in search of murderous orcs.
"Wonderful!" the lord pronounced. "Our visitors from the Temple have volunteered."
Khamen jumped in surprise. He then turned, and to his dismay saw that Candorra had raised her hand. He responded with an audible groan of despair.
"What was that?" the lord queried.
Candorra shot an angry glance at Khamen then turned to the lord. She replied "He is just visibly upset by the injustice of it all."
The lord nodded in satisfaction. Khamen was visibly upset, but by what he saw as a different injustice.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Episode One
A few days later Khamen and Candorra were in the forest, tracking down the orcs. They were accompanied by a one of the lord's rangers, Rikk, who was well versed in the forest's perils.
Game Note: For Rikk, I used the unofficial ranger class found in the fan-made supplement Uncanny Against Darkness.
As they followed the orcs' trail, they were plagued by a swarm of bees and a whirlwind, which broke Rikk's bow. Candorra lent him her bow and they continued. Then they were fortunate to come across a young woodsman. He had seen the orcs, hiding in the trees as they passed. He agreed to show the party where they went. As our heroes continued, they passed a shrine and met an herbalist, acquiring some wolfsbane from the the latter,
Deeper into the forest they went. After a while, they could feel the earth shaking.
"Earthquake!?" Khamen pondered.
"Worse!" replied the woodsman. "Quick, hide!"
The party hid in some bushes. Moments later, a giant passed by along the path. As it passed, the giant dropped a body from his gnarled grip. The body plopped to the ground and lay still. They could still hear the giant's footsteps as Khamen snuck into the path and checked the body. It was a dead orc, probably one of the reavers. Unfortunately, it did not carry one of the rings.
The party continued. They discovered fresh orc tracks, fled from a forest fire, and passed an empty cabin. Then in clearing ahead they spotted a pile of skulls. Rikk advanced to investigate their grisly discovery. They heard a shriek from the sky above as a griffin swooped upon Rikk. It slashed him with its talons. Blood oozed from his wounds as he released an arrow, penetrating deep into the beast's chest. It howled in rage as it swung back to attack Rikk again. It rended the ranger once again. By now Khamen and Candorra had rushed into the clearing and entered the fray. Khamen struck then dodged as the griffin tuned on him. As it did so, Rikk managed to get off a shot, The arrow pierced the beast's heart and it fell dead at their feet.
In the pile of skulls they found a magical mace and a potion of healing. They used the potion to cure Rikk's profusely bleeding wounds.
They continued into the forest and came across a fork in the road. There were three paths they could take. Rikk surveyed the ground, looking for tracks. After a few minutes he announced his verdict.
"They split up into three groups, each taking a different path."
After some consultation, they decided to proceed along the path to the left.
What will the find along this path? Find out next time!
Game Note: After a series of adventures, I am no nearer to the rings than the first time. I plan to modify the module a little, turning it into 3 hex crawls. The boss of each hex crawl will be one of the reavers with a ring.
Showing posts with label Dirk Daring. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dirk Daring. Show all posts
Sunday, March 19, 2017
Sunday, April 24, 2016
Thrilling Adventures in Aetheria!
The Tales of Dirk Daring
As the Empire of the Iron Fist threatens the Free People of Aetheria, the forces of freedom have recruited a band of courageous adventurers to take the fight to the Empire. Led by Dirk Daring, they go on thrilling adventures in Aetheria, with the fate of the free world in their hands!
Cast of Characters
Dirk Daring
The commander of the party. He was a celebrated fighter pilot during the Grand War. After the war, he became a stunt pilot. he travels the world performing at air shows across the globe. This gives him an opportunity counter the nefarious plots of the Empire throughout the world.
Dirk is a redoubtable soldier who wears a well-worn leather jacket and carries a pearl-handled pistol.
Sally Sweeting
Don't be fooled by Sally's demure looks. She is actual an accomplished mechanic who keeps Dirk's planes in working order. In a pinch, she can pitch in during a fight.
Sally's agility and luck, along with her .22 caliber pistol, keep her from harm.
"Boomer" Bradley
Nick "Boomer" Bradley is a demolitions expert. He was serving in the Confederation military, working on top secret projects for the government, when Dirk offered him a chance to get out of the laboratory. Boomer jumped at the chance.
Boomer is armed with a light pistol and carries 3 demolition charges.
Mme. Fifi Fatale
The sultry Mme. Fatale is an agent for the Galllian Secret Service. Her government is afraid of antagonizing the Empire openly so they assigned her to work with Dirk's team covertly. Although she is not averse to using her feminine wiles, she is no slouch in a fight.
Fifi is armed with a pistol.
The Mission
Join our team as they embark on their first mission - the Raid on the Wolf's Lair.
As the Empire of the Iron Fist threatens the Free People of Aetheria, the forces of freedom have recruited a band of courageous adventurers to take the fight to the Empire. Led by Dirk Daring, they go on thrilling adventures in Aetheria, with the fate of the free world in their hands!
Cast of Characters
Dirk Daring
The commander of the party. He was a celebrated fighter pilot during the Grand War. After the war, he became a stunt pilot. he travels the world performing at air shows across the globe. This gives him an opportunity counter the nefarious plots of the Empire throughout the world.
Dirk is a redoubtable soldier who wears a well-worn leather jacket and carries a pearl-handled pistol.
Sally Sweeting
Don't be fooled by Sally's demure looks. She is actual an accomplished mechanic who keeps Dirk's planes in working order. In a pinch, she can pitch in during a fight.
Sally's agility and luck, along with her .22 caliber pistol, keep her from harm.
"Boomer" Bradley
Nick "Boomer" Bradley is a demolitions expert. He was serving in the Confederation military, working on top secret projects for the government, when Dirk offered him a chance to get out of the laboratory. Boomer jumped at the chance.
Boomer is armed with a light pistol and carries 3 demolition charges.
Mme. Fifi Fatale
The sultry Mme. Fatale is an agent for the Galllian Secret Service. Her government is afraid of antagonizing the Empire openly so they assigned her to work with Dirk's team covertly. Although she is not averse to using her feminine wiles, she is no slouch in a fight.
Fifi is armed with a pistol.
The Mission
Join our team as they embark on their first mission - the Raid on the Wolf's Lair.
Raid on the Wolf's Lair
A Dirk Daring Adventure
They entered through a little-used side entrance and found themselves in an empty room with 3 exits (1). They took the middle entrance and found themselves in a guard room (2). The guards were all armed with poison needle guns but before they could get a shot off the party opened fire and eliminated the enemy.
This room was a dead end so they backtracked, wound through a corridor (3) into a nondescript office. They found a hidden safe. Sally unlocked it and was almost poisoned by a trap. They found some secret documents, which they kept. They weren't the plans they wanted, however.
The next room (5) was an armory. The lone Imperial engineer saw the party and quickly donned a large, flame-throwing exoskeleton. Boomer used a demolition charge, which damaged the exoskeleton. It then replied by blasting the room with a jet of flame. Boomer and Mme. Fatale were burned. Dirk and Fatale then emptied their revolvers into the exoskeleton. Boomer followed with a well-aimed shot that disabled the machine.
Leaving the armory, the party headed down a long corridor (6). They stopped at an intersection when suddenly machine gun fire erupted. Fortunately, our heroes dove for cover and were safe. They discovered that the guns were a trap. Also, when they hit the floor they found a security pass.
In the next room (7) they were confronted by 3 Guardsmen. Fortunately, they were able to use the pass that they found to bluff their way past.
Our heroes then meandered through an empty corridor (8) and entered a small office. At the desk was an officer of the Imperial Secret Police. When he saw the party, he pulled out a sub-machine gun and opened fire. Dirk and Sally fired back, wounded him. He ducked behind his desk. Lifting his weapon over the desk top, he fired another burst. This time Dirk and Boomer shot, wounding him again. At this point, he surrendered. Our heroes tied him up and searched him. No plans.
The party went back through the corridor (8) and entered the next office (10). Another Secret Police officer! Another firefight broke out. Boomer used a demolition charge to wound the officer, but in turn he wounded Dirk. But the barrage of gunfire was too much and the officer slumped to the floor. Checking the room, they found the plans.
They rushed back through the outpost while chased by guard dogs. At one point a dog latched on Boomer's leg, tearing at his flesh. His comrades was able to defeat the dog and helped Boomer limp from the outpost.
Once outside, they made their way back to Dirk's plane and soared off to safety.
(Using a Four Against Darkness Variant)
Our heroes have been tasked with finding secret war plans of the Empire of the Iron Fist. They surreptitiously flew into Imperial territory, found the hidden outpost known as the wolf's lair, and are now entering it to find the plans.
Here is a map of the outpost:
They entered through a little-used side entrance and found themselves in an empty room with 3 exits (1). They took the middle entrance and found themselves in a guard room (2). The guards were all armed with poison needle guns but before they could get a shot off the party opened fire and eliminated the enemy.
This room was a dead end so they backtracked, wound through a corridor (3) into a nondescript office. They found a hidden safe. Sally unlocked it and was almost poisoned by a trap. They found some secret documents, which they kept. They weren't the plans they wanted, however.
The next room (5) was an armory. The lone Imperial engineer saw the party and quickly donned a large, flame-throwing exoskeleton. Boomer used a demolition charge, which damaged the exoskeleton. It then replied by blasting the room with a jet of flame. Boomer and Mme. Fatale were burned. Dirk and Fatale then emptied their revolvers into the exoskeleton. Boomer followed with a well-aimed shot that disabled the machine.
Leaving the armory, the party headed down a long corridor (6). They stopped at an intersection when suddenly machine gun fire erupted. Fortunately, our heroes dove for cover and were safe. They discovered that the guns were a trap. Also, when they hit the floor they found a security pass.
In the next room (7) they were confronted by 3 Guardsmen. Fortunately, they were able to use the pass that they found to bluff their way past.
Our heroes then meandered through an empty corridor (8) and entered a small office. At the desk was an officer of the Imperial Secret Police. When he saw the party, he pulled out a sub-machine gun and opened fire. Dirk and Sally fired back, wounded him. He ducked behind his desk. Lifting his weapon over the desk top, he fired another burst. This time Dirk and Boomer shot, wounding him again. At this point, he surrendered. Our heroes tied him up and searched him. No plans.
The party went back through the corridor (8) and entered the next office (10). Another Secret Police officer! Another firefight broke out. Boomer used a demolition charge to wound the officer, but in turn he wounded Dirk. But the barrage of gunfire was too much and the officer slumped to the floor. Checking the room, they found the plans.
They rushed back through the outpost while chased by guard dogs. At one point a dog latched on Boomer's leg, tearing at his flesh. His comrades was able to defeat the dog and helped Boomer limp from the outpost.
Once outside, they made their way back to Dirk's plane and soared off to safety.
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