Adventures in a Doomed World: Session 29

I'm playing a mashup of Scarlet Heroes and Basic Fantasy RPG with a few supplements to turn it into a solo fantasy hexcrawl in the world of Eilobar, a doomed land entering its end times. I'm using the Level 0 Character Tumbler, Hexcrawl Adventures and some homebrew rules. The characters started as level 0 peasants and have since levelled up to become heroes.

Introduction

The heroes have almost reached Seethorpe where they hope to speak to the dwarven scholar Thiri, but disease, combat and the death of one of their own have slowed them down.

The Adventure

It's the morning of the 25th day of Rhana's Season and the sun is already long up when the party sets off southwest, skirting around the edge of the mountains that block their path to Seethorpe. In the daylight they can see that the mountain range continues to the southwest, still blocking their way. They really don't want to travel through the mountains, so they go back the way they came, hoping to go around the northern side of the range.

They're crossing the hill hex from south to north so it's going to take two whole days unfortunately. The party makes camp in the hills later that day and goes foraging and hunting.

Stilda makes a check (Difficulty 12)

9 -2 Int = 7. Failure!

Cyna makes a check (Difficulty 12)

5. Failure!

Bryne makes a check (Difficulty 12)

3 +2 Int +3 Lore = 8. Failure!

Ellyn makes a check (Difficulty 12)

7 +1 Int -1 Fatigue = 7. Failure!

Lady Eudocia makes a check (Difficulty 12)

15. Success!

Everyone comes back empty handed except Lady Eudocia, who has found more wild turnips. They boil the turnips that night, but they'll need to find more tomorrow. They're down to six days' worth of horse feed.

The next morning they set off north again, walking for a few hours before foraging in the hills again.

Stilda makes a check (Difficulty 12)

15 -2 Int = 13. Success! 9 XP (3D4)

Cyna makes a check (Difficulty 12)

3. Failure!

Bryne makes a check (Difficulty 12)

11 +2 Int +3 Lore = 16. Success! 5 XP (2D4)

Ellyn makes a check (Difficulty 12)

9 +1 Int -1 Fatigue = 9. Failure!

Lady Eudocia makes a check (Difficulty 12)

4. Failure!

Stilda and Bryne return with a random assortment of wild vegetables and roots, enough for two more days. Again they make camp in the hills then set off the next day. Following northwest around the edge of the mountains, they find more foothills leading west. Bryne estimates they should be about 20 miles away from Seethorpe now.

Terrain event

All the walking up and down hills has left the heroes parched and they are dismayed to discover they've drunk all their water. They'll have to search the hills for a stream or spring at -1 penalty, or continue on and suffer from thirst.

Stilda makes a check (Difficulty 12)

6 -2 Int -1 event penalty = 3. Failure.

Cyna makes a check (Difficulty 12)

5 -1 event penalty = 4. Failure.

Bryne makes a check (Difficulty 12)

10 +2 Int +3 Lore -1 event penalty = 14. Success! 4 XP (2D4)

Ellyn makes a check (Difficulty 12)

7 +1 Int -1 Fatigue -1 event penalty = 7. Failure.

Lady Eudocia makes a check (Difficulty 12)

14 -1 event penalty = 13. Success!

Bryne and Lady Eudocia both manage to find small springs so everyone refills their waterskins and they continue on until the sun sets and they make camp.

I've just realised I didn't give Ellyn her three trait points when she became level 1. We'll assign her: Lore (1), Spellcraft (1)...

And one I'm calling Servant's Eye (1). Having been a maid, she knows all the hiding spots where folk stash valuables, so she can use this trait when searching for treasure.

Another uneventful day passes in the foothills. They're out of food again, so yet another foraging trip is made. I'll only report successes from now on to save space.

Bryne makes a check (Difficulty 12)

10 +2 Int +3 Lore = 15. Success! 6 XP (2D4)

Ellyn makes a check (Difficulty 12)

12 +1 Int -1 Fatigue = 12. Success! 2 XP (1D4)

Lady Eudocia makes a check (Difficulty 12)

12. Success!

Bryne, Ellyn and Eudocia come back with armfuls of edible roots and a rabbit, enough to feed them for three days. Heading west towards Seethorpe, they make good progress in the pleasant weather. "Look." Ellyn says, pointing towards the top of a hill. The others follow her gaze and see a strange looking ruined building.

"It looks like an old temple, but it's not human-made, that's for sure." Cyna says.

It's an "alien place of worship". Does anyone recognise the architecture?

Stilda makes a check (Difficulty 10)

6 -2 Int = 4. Failure.

Cyna makes a check (Difficulty 10)

8 = 4. Failure.

Bryne makes a check (Difficulty 10)

13 +2 Int +3 Lore = 18. Success! 3 XP (2D4)

Let's roll on the Scarlet Heroes "Common Dungeon Inhabitants" table for a change, to see who built the temple:

Wild beasts. Since wolves can't build temples, we'll create a new type of enemy. Beastmen!

"I know that shoddy craftsmanship. Beastmen built that place." Bryne says, a fearful look on her face.

"Who?" Stilda asks.

"Men with the heads of animals. Demons create them from damned souls. They serve as slaves in Hell and occasionally they're found in our world, carrying out foul deeds for their infernal masters." She shakes her head ruefully. "Perhaps these ones were stranded here and tried to attract demonic attention by building an evil temple."

"Who cares?" Stilda replies. "Let's come back this way later and wipe them out, burn the place to the ground."

It will take them another day of travel to reach the edge of this hex, so they make camp on a hillside facing away from the temple. At dusk Cyna climbs the hill and observes torchlights burning in the windows of the ruin down below. They'll have to be extra vigilant while on watch tonight.

Weather event

The next morning they awake to a tragedy. Cyna's horse, Wyn lies on the ground, flies clustering on his lifeless eyes. What happened to him?

Cyna makes a check (Difficulty: 9)

16 +3 Animal Handling = 19. Success! 4 XP (3D4)

She's determined the cause of death, but was it common heart failure or parasites (which would make him inedible)? 50/50

Heart failure.

Using her knowledge from her years spent on farms, Cyna recognises the telltail signs of exercise-related death. Wyn simply wasn't used to going up and down so many hills for days on end, and his heart couldn't take it. Although the thought is quite disgusting, Cyna suggests they butcher the poor horse's carcass and take as much meat as they can carry. It would keep them fed for the rest of their trip, and they can discard the rest when they arrive in Seethorpe.

The others reluctantly agree, since no one enjoys foraging. Lady Eudocia turns pale at the thought, but a stern look from Cyna tells her it's either this or go out foraging for her own food each night.

The following day they traverse even more hills but soon enough they spy the town of Seethorpe in some plains off in the distance to the southwest. Smoke rises from the chimneys - it's the most welcome sight they've seen in days. The following day they reach it, looking like refugees from some war they stumble through the gate in the wooden palisades at the edge of town. Bando's body is still tied to the back of Sig, Stilda's horse, and it's looking rather the worse for wear after several days baking in the sun. The surviving party members are covered in dust with dried blood on their armour, and Lady Eudocia looks more like a beggar than someone of noble birth.

"Oh thank Rhana himself!" She exclaims. "What a frightful journey indeed. I would have died in that swamp if it wasn't for you good women." Eudocia removes 1D4 rings from her fingers and hands them over as payment. Looking down at them, Stilda sees a rose quartz silver ring and a chalcedony electrum ring, both costly items of jewellery that should fetch a fine price in the town.

Lady Eudocia bids them farewell and tells them to call on her at her friend's house before they leave town. She gives them the address and hails a passing rickshaw.

"Now," Stilda says. "Where's this Thiri bloke then?"