Fulhurst Moors #1

Campaign Diary

Fangrir, Potter, and Rok were sent to Greyhaven to deliver the tax of herbs, and to escort the scholar Arden back to Fulhurst Moors (see PC profiles here).

The party was approached by a persistent grey partridge as they were leaving the hunting lodge at Weilbach. Against Arden's protest, Potter insisted on following the bird. The partridge led the party to a ruined stone building in the woods west of Weilbach, where they found Baldor, a hermit, trapped inside a cage of living vines. Baldor explained that he was a caretaker of the woods, and had been gifted a staff from a Hulda, a guardian spirit, to help him in his work. Three days ago, his apprentice Cartan stole his staff, trapped him in a cage of vines, and left to kill the Hulda so he could take her powers for himself.

Potter tried to cut Baldor free, but the vines would regrow each time a branch was cut. Baldor urged to party to find Cartan and stop him before it was too late, and sent the partridge, his familiar, to lead them to the forest pool where the Hulda lived.

Along the way the party was attacked by a bear, sent no doubt by Cartan, which Rok slew with a single sword thrust to the heart.

Arriving at the forest pool, the party found Cartan squatting at the edge of the now frozen pond with a staff in one hand; a thumping sound could be hear coming from below the ice - the Hulda was trapped under the ice and drowning. The party tried to approach Cartan, but Cartan trapped Fangrir with magical vines that sprouted from the ground, and froze Rok's feet to the ground.

Potter tossed a handful of marbles onto the pond surface, and Arden tripped the apprentice. In the ensuing struggle Cartan lost his staff, and Potter broke the ice above the Hulda's face, allowing her to draw breath.

Rok and Fangrir broke their restraints and rushed to the pond. Fangrir thrusted his spear into Cartan's back, killing him. Rok enlarged the opening in the ice, allowing the Hulda to rise from the water. The enraged wood-wife's branch-like fingers extended from her hands and pierced through Cartan's skin and then his flesh, which she then tore apart.

The ice began to melt, prompting the party to get onto firm ground. As he did so Fangrir spied a glint, and picked up a silver bracelet with a single blue crystal shard on it. Arden would later identify it as a Frost Runebound shard.

The Hulda declared that Baldor had shown that he could not be trusted with her powers, and so she reclaimed her staff, but she also granted Potter a boon for saving her life.

The party returned to Baldor, whose cage of vine had disappeared, and there they told their tale to the hermit.

Prepping and Running the Game

So began my return to Terrinoth.

I did not keep a campaign log for our previous campaign as writing them took too much time, but I think they do serve a purpose, and so I decided to try to do so for this campaign, although I will attempt to keep the accounts more brief.

I had planned to start the campaign in Fulhurst Moors, but due to scheduling issue I decided to run a more conventional scenario instead.

The scenario came from Adventures & Interludes for The Hero's Journey, which I abridged and adapted.

While it was not a sandbox scenario per se, I liked the fact that the scenario helped plant a few seeds that I may be able to reap the benefits of later in the campaign.

For a start there was some inter-PC conflict: Arden was a scholar, while Potter was an illiterate peasant woman; Fangrir and Rok both serve under the same mentor, one out of gratitude, while the other plans revenge.

Arden's player plans to 'multi-class' the character to a Mage later, and the encounter with the Hulda may provide a narrative means to allow that.

The Frost runebound shard was included in the scenario to explain Cartan's ability to use ice-based magic, and I was prepared to just drop it into the setting and see what it leads to. By chance it was picked up by a dragonkin character, and dragons (and by extension dragonkin) have an affinity and attraction to magic, so who knows where this will lead us to.

The next session should see the PCs back in Fulhurst Moors, where the hexcrawl proper can begin.

Fulhurst Moors - Cast of Characters

Player Characters

Arden, human scholar. A scholar of legendary creatures at Greyhaven University, Arden had come to Fulhurst Moors to learn from the experiences of Entana and Strigoi (see below).

Fangrir, dragonkin fighter. Fangrir was orphaned when his father, a raider, was killed by Strigoi while attacking Rok's village (see below). He grew up on the streets of Strangehaven. When he learned of the whereabouts of Strigoi, he sought him out to avenge his father, but was defeated in combat. Strigoi offered to take him as a student and train him in combat, until he could defeat him.

Potter, human witch. An orphan in Fulhurst Moors, Potter was taken in by Mother Lenka, the village "wise woman". Since Mother Lenka's disappearance the year prior, Potter had taken over her duties, collecting the village's tax of herbs and wild plants to the University.

Rok, orc knight. When Rok was a child, his village came under the attack by Dragonkin raiders. The villagers hired a band of mercenaries led by Strigoi (see below), who drove the raiders away. Now an adult, Rok had sought Strigoi out to become his follower. He is made a ministerialis (bonded knight) bvy Entana (see below)

Non-player Characters (residents of Fulhurst Moors)

Entana Vernier, human wizard, vogt of Fulhurst Moors. After attaining his Masters, Entana was made the vogt of Fulhurst Moors.

Strigoi, orc fighter, marshal of Fulhurst Moors. Formerly Entana's bodyguard, Strigoi had been appointed marshal of the village.

Gio Gerbo, gnome rogue. A member of Entana's party and the most famous gnome in Terrinoth, Gio travels through the Baronies, singing songs about their exploits when he is not in Fulhurst Moors.

Graenson, human scholar, steward of Fulhurst Moors. Son of the Bursar of Greyhaven University, Graenson was assigned to become steward for Entana.

Annas, human, chamberlain of Fulhurst Moors.

Elrir, human, reeve of Fulhurst Moors.

Non-player Characters (others)

Conquerors and Kings: Battle of Fulford Gate

We were supposed to play this battle in September, but an illness prevented us from doing so, so we were late to the "960" celebration by a month, and our Hastings game will be played in November instead.

Tostig and the advance guard arrive; in the foreground, the book that started my love for the period

This was a chance for my figures to meet some old friends - wahj's Vikings which they last faced two decades ago - and some new opponents - Rafael's Vikings.

The Saxon right holds off the Norse

I used the scenario from Little Wars TV for our terrain, with the lists modified for C&K. wahj, playing Tostig and the advance guard, decided to attack immediately on the left. The Saxons meanwhile pushed their light troops across the stream on their flanks.

The Saxons attack across Germany Beck

When the main body of Harald's arrived, Rafael sent them to attack the Saxon right. The Saxons then launched their army across the creek. The two lines clashed, but neither side achieved a decisive victory. The Vikings then decided to hold off in the centre, and attack the weaker flanks of the Saxons, while the Saxons consolidated in the centre. The double-envelopment would probably have worked, but the game clock had run down before the attacks could develop.

The game ran pretty quickly and smoothly, even though I extended the game clock beyond the usual 36 to allow for Harald's late arrival. This is the sixth C&K game we have played this year, and by now we are all quite familiar with the rules and I did not have to revise the night before the game. I feel we are really reaping the reward for sticking with a set of rules.

Stay tuned for our Hastings game next month.

Return to Terrinoth - Fulhurst Moors

Art by Jon Hodgson

A post for my players as we plan for our next campaign.

The Rules

We will use the Dragonbane rules, with the Book of Magic expansion.

The Setting

The setting is Terrinoth, the fantasy setting created by Fantasy Flight Game. You can find out more about the setting at this wikia, but do be aware that the information may not coincide 100% with my game world.

The Premise

The PCs are all retainers who have pledged their service with the wizard Entana Vernier, who is vogt (lord) of the village of Fulhurst Moor, which lies of the edge of The Mistlands. You may choose a to be a character who is already living in Fulhurst Moor, or a new arrival from another place.

Each session will cover roughly two weeks of in-game time, during which we will resolve the domain/settlement improvements and events, explore the region, and follow quest lines which are chosen by the players or which emerge from the actions of the characters and the NPCs they interact with. Each session should be self-contained, so we can continue our drop-in, drop-out format.

Creating Your Character

We will use the Standard Array for stats: 8, 10, 12, 13, 14, 15.

The Kin and Professions allowed are discussed below. You get a +1 in your key Attribute.

Do also come up with a short-term goal and a long-term goal for your character, as well as an enemy from his/her past and also an ally from his/her past.

Character Kin

The following kins are open (Terrinoth race/Dragonbane kin equivalent: brief description):

• Human/Human: You may choose to be either of Terrinoth (generic fantasy medieval European, specifically German) origin, urban or rural, or from Isheim (fantasy Viking), Lorimor (fantasy medieval France), Torue Albes (fantasy England, with a maritime emphasis), or Al-Kalim (fantasy Arabian).

    Kin Ability: Adaptive. When making a skill roll, may use another skill of your choice.

• Forge Dwarf/Dwarf: Dwarves who live in the mixed human-dwarf city of Forge in Terrinoth.

• Dunwarr Dwarf/Dwarf: Dwarves who live in the dwarven kingdom of Dunwarr to the north of Terrinoth.

    Kin Ability: Unforgiving. When attacking someone who harmed you in the past, get a boon to the roll.

• Lowborn Elf/Elf: Elves who are descended from the first generation (Highborn) elves who came to Terrinoth, and hail from the Aymhelim Forest to the south of Terrinoth.

• Free Cities Elf/Elf: Elves who have taken up living in human cities, mostly in Dawnsmoor, near the Aymhelim Forest.

    Kin Ability: Inner Peace. Heal an additional d6 HP, d6 Willpower, and condition during Stretch Rest.

• Burrow Gnome/Halfling: Burrow Gnomes live in large matriarchal bands and have mostly abandoned interaction with the other races, but occasionally, some will still succumb to the lure of adventure.

• Wanderer Gnome/Halfling: Wanderer Gnomes roam all over the world in communal caravans, making a living as traders, performers, and occasionally even as labourers or craftsmen in human communities.

    Kin Ability: Hard to Catch. Get a boon to Evade roll.

• Broken Plains Orc, Stone-Dweller Orc/Mallard: Once viewed as enemies of Man, orcs have become accepted as one of the 'civilised' races since they switch sides and allied with Terrinoth during the Dragon Wars 800 years ago. Broken Plains Orcs live a nomadic lifestyle on the Broken Plains east of Terrinoth, while the Stone-Dweller Orcs have abandoned their traditional ways and live among humans in their cities.

    Kin Ability: Ill-tempered. Gain a boon when making a skill roll. Become Angry.

• Dragon Hybrid/Wolfkin: Created by the dragons as foot soldiers during the Dragon Wars 800 years ago, these humanoid hybrids were left behind after the war ended abruptly. Once hunted mercilessly by the humans, they have in recent times become more tolerated. 

    Kin Ability: Hunting Instinct. Designate a creature. You can follow the scent of the prey for a full day.

Professions

The following professions are available:

Artisan, Bard, Fighter, Hunter, Knight, Mage, Mariner, Merchant, Scholar, Thief.

The following schools of magic are available for Mages:

Animism (Nature magic), Elementalism (Elemental magic), Harmonism (Bardic magic), Illusionism (Illusion magic), Mentalism (Psychic magic), Symbolism (Sigil magic), Witchcraft (Witchcraft).

The following schools of magic are classified as Runebound magic/wizardry:

Animism (Nature magic), Elementalism (Elemental magic), Illusionism (Illusion magic), Mentalism (Psychic magic), Symbolism (Sigil magic).

Wizards in the setting learn new spells by finding and studying Runebound crystal shards instead of copying them into their spellbooks. This makes it a very challenging class to play in the game.

Optional Rules in Play

Healing

Round Rest: recover 0 HP, d4 HP. Once per combat.

Shift Rest: recover d4 HP, d4 WP. Twice per day (including night shift, sleep).

If another character uses the Healing skill, recover an additional d4HP, but that character may not rest.

Death Rolls and Injury

When character recovers from Death rolls, roll on the following table:

Injury Table

Roll            Effect

20            False hope. Character dies.

19            Lose 1 Strength. Become Exhausted

18            Lose 1 Constitution. Become Sickly

17            Lose 1 Agility. Become Dazed

16            Lose 1 Intelligence. Become Angry

15            Lose 1 Will. Becomes Scared

14            Lose 1 Charisma. Become Disheartened

2-13        Gain one Condition

1              Gain 1d6 of Hit Points. Gain one Condition

Losing a point of stat this way will reduce all the related Skills.

Encumbrance

We will use a house-rule version of the encumbrance rules - characters are assumed to be capable of carrying their personal gear like weapons and armour, group items like tents, cooking gear, and adventuring gear like rope and grappling hooks.

Characters with Strength less than 13 can carry an additional item; characters with Strength 13 to 16 can carry two additional items, and characters with Strength 17 or higher can carry three additional items.

Battle for Bukit Timah Village

Conquerors and Kings: Battle of Arbalo

The opposing sides size each other up

For our August game we once more played Conquerors and Kings, with Martin once more commanding his Early Imperial Romans. The scenario was the battle of Arbalo, where the Romans are ambushed in a narrow pass by the Germans. The battlefield was simple: a forest with a narrow central clear path that opened up towards the German side of the table; the Romans had to exit with at least half of their forces 'at strength' (i.e. at at least half strength), while the Germans had to prevent that.

Martin decided to simplify the tactical problem by essentially deploying on only half of the table, putting his legionaries on the left hand side of the path, with the left flank protected by auxilia in the woods, and the right flank protected by cavalry.

Confused fighting in the woods

The Germans sent out flanking forces on both flanks. The forces on the Roman left was more successful, quickly neutralising the auxilia. The main Roman column pushed on ahead while the battle in the woods was going on, leaving the auxilia to their fate, but when the Germans tried to exit the woods to engage the legionaries, they failed their movement rolls and never made it.

German flanking forces are unable to exit the woods to threaten the Roman centre

The fight on the other flank went in the favour of the Germans too, but the cavalry had played their part in delaying their enemies. The legionaries in the centre continued their push, routing the enemies in front of them, but it was still not enough - only five 'at strength' units made it off the table, making it a narrow win for the Germans.

Conquerors and Kings: Battle of Callinicus

For our July game we returned to Conquerors and Kings. Once again, wahj faced Rafael; we have played several games by now, so the game went rather smoothly.

I wanted a chance for Rafael to field his Macedonian Successor army, and found a suitable battle in the form of the Battle of Callinicus.

The Macedonians and Thracian allies

The battle was unusual as it featured only light troops and cavalry, with the iconic heavy infantry from both sides - the Macedonian phalanx and the Roman legionaries- sitting out. I wanted to see how the battle would have gone on if both sides decided to commit their heavy infantry. 

Romans and Pergamene allies

I had both players deploy their light troops and cavalry as usual, then let them roll for their heavy infantry as reinforcements.

The lines clashed, with the cavalry wings coming to a standoff quite soon afterwards. In the centre, the quality of the Macedonian Agema and Thracians gave Rafael the advantage. Both sides were only able to bring on about half of their heavy infantry by the time the game ended, but the Macedonians were a little quicker on the draw and overwhelm the Roman line before it could be stabilised.

We have played enough games of C&K for me to be confident in using it for historical scenarios. We are planning to play historical scenarios with C&K for the next three months, so stay tuned.

15mm Khurasan Miniatures

A few weeks ago I bought some Khurasan miniatures to add to my existing armies.

Here are some crossbowmen from their (older) Frankish/Norman range, based as Bow/formed instead of Psiloi/skirmisher, to use in my First Crusade games.

Here is a war drum from their Sung Chinese range. There are two drums and two drummers in a pack, so I am passing half of the pack to wahj. I painted mine to match my Warring States Zhao army, adding a spare pikeman I have as a standard bearer. Since the basic style of the Chinese war drum did not change for centuries, I think this will pass as a command or just a decorative base.

The main reason why I made the order in the first place was to get these Nikephorian Byzantine archers. I bought some Nikephorian Byzantine archers from Forged in Battle's War & Empire range to use as Armenian mercenary archers, and liked the way they look, and so I decided to add a couple more bases to allow me to field two units of them in my Conquerors and Kings games.

The Khurasan miniatures are a little thinner and have smaller heads than the War & Empire ones, but they mix together well enough. 

I am glad I managed to complete all of them this week, as I have a terrain project to complete for another multi-player demonstration game which Eugene is planning for August. Stay tuned.