New Frontiers #18

Post by **GM Mad** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 12:03 am

New Frontiers #18

Previously:

Acerion at the Temple:

"Thank you for your invitation, and I must say these halls are quite impressive. I am only in Elcadan overnight as the road I am on extends northward. Eventually I look to place myself within the hordes of invading humanoids and drive that scum from lands that have never been theirs," Acerion proclaims with no wavering in his conviction. "Before embarking upon such a journey however, I have come to offer prayer and also serve in whatever capacity here I may be able to this afternoon."

"A most noble undertaking, Lord Acerion. May you find honor and glory in your quest."

Grondar & Elspeth:

"Thank you kindly, Lady Elspeth. I appreciate your willingness to help me in this matter."

"I am happy that I was able to assist you."

Grondar & Jallarzi:

"Thank you, Lady Sallavarian. And my thanks as well for the fine hospitality you have extended to us; it is greatly appreciated." Grondar bows to the sorceress. Suddenly, a thought occurs to him, and Grondar goes digging through his bags. Pulling out the purple pouch with the tigereye gems, he hands it to her as well. "This pouch should accompany the letter to my superiors."

"You are welcome, Grondar. And you have my thanks for helping us out during this crisis. I will make sure your pouch arrives safely."

Post by **GM Mad** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 12:05 am

Currently:

While riding north to Rennydale, the Guardians find themselves surrounded by a snowstorm and ambushed by ice creatures. Ice Warriors, animated hunks of ice in humanoid form, approach from both sides while three Frost Salamanders bar their passage.

Round 1:

While the creatures approach, several of the Guardians cast spells or use magic items. Acerion blows his Horn of Goodness. Kylie casts Blur on herself and Kharyna casts Detect Invisibility. Grondar's attempt to cast a spell is ruined by the fierce winds. Chareos drinks from a potion.

Up in front of the procession, Laucian chants the words to a Flame Blade spell and succeeds in invoking the magic. A fiery blade appears in his hand.

Sherra locks in on an approaching Ice Warrior and fires. Her first shaft slams into the torso of the Ice Warrior while the second flies wide.

Other members of the Guardians move to better positions. Validar moves beside Swanny, while Swanny steps before Kharyna. Corley and Ivy dismount and move forward to meet the approaching enemy.

At Kharyna's direction, Lara casts a Fireball and her spell is true. A ball of fire explodes amongst the approaching Ice Warriors disintegrating each of them within the area of affect. Nearly a dozen are taken down from the spell. Lilia also attempts to cast a Fireball but her spell is disrupted and wasted by the winds.

Talia tosses a knife at the approaching enemy but comes up short.

Back up front, Sherwood produces a wand and fires a Lightning Bolt from it at one of the advancing Frost Salamanders. The Bolt streaks through the air and slams into the salamander. A pair of shafts from Arocken strike the monster, but don't seem to have any effect.

Post by **GM Mad** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 12:06 am

Round 2:

Kharyna uses her own wand and creates a Wall of Fire along the entire right hand flank. The wall is over 100' long and 10' high. It is currently impossible to see past the fiery wall. Sizzling sounds are heard as the Ice Warriors advance into the wall. One does manage to stumble through the barrier, but falls to the ground after just a few steps, melting into a large puddle that rapidly freezes.

The far end of the Wall of Fire materializes over the right hand Frost Salamander, causing it to cry out in pain. It quickly moves away from the flames.

Sherra fires another round of arrows and gets similar results. One hits, but this time it finishes off her icy foe, while the other arrow misses. Talia flings another knife and misses yet again. Lara fires her own bow and shatters the head of an advancing Ice Warrior.

Kylie attempts to cast Web, but has the spell disrupted by the winds.

Finally, the surviving Ice Warrior reaches the defensive line and is rudely greeted. Validar lands two solid strikes, each one shattering an Ice Warrior. Not to be out done, Swanny likewise takes out two Ice Warriors with her flaming sword.

The trend continues further down the line as Acerion, Ivy, and Corley each take down two Ice Warriors with single hits. Shards of ice go flying everywhere. Grondar adds another Ice Warrior to the pile with his mace, while Po slices one with his shortsword.

Back up front, Sherwood has dismounted and drawn his longsword Lifeshield, and his Flame Tongue shortsword. Rushing the wounded Frost Salamander, Sherwood is surprised to discover that the lizard radiates intense cold. Sherwood's swords move rapidly. Lifeshield connects once, followed by a strike from the Flame Tongue.

Surprisingly, the Frost Salamander endures this assault. At least until Lifeshield connects once more, neatly slicing off the lower jaw of the beasts mouth. The Salamander drops to the snow in death.

The other two Frost Salamanders move in on their six legs. The one furthest left gets within twenty feet of Laucian and the Elfin ranger feels intense cold come over him.

The remaining Frost Salamander rushes Sherwood, who is once again exposed to its cold aura. The aura covers Arocken as well.

Upon reaching Sherwood, the beast rears up and lashes out with four of its claws while its attempts to bite the ranger/mage. Those looking on while see it reach out and bite Sherwood in his left arm and hold on tight!

Post by **GM Mad** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 12:07 am

GM Notes:

The battle map has been updated to reflect the post. Most of the Ice Warriors are gone on the left hand side, while you can't see past the fire wall on the right. The two Frost Salamanders can be seen up ahead.

Since they didn't post specific actions for the second round or those actions listed where no longer appropriate when the time came for them to act, Laucian, Chareos, and Lilia can still act in round 2. Everyone else is in round 3.

Hit Points:

Arocken - 42 of 49
Laucian - 54 of 56
Sherwood - 71 of 81

Now what?

Laucian · Post by **Laucian** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 7:23 pm

Laucian

Chanting the words to his Flame blade spell, he is barely aware of the lightning bolt that is sent forth from behind him. His spell goes off and he is rewarded as a Blazing red hot blade erupts from his hand. He looks around for an opponent to engage. His eyes fall upon one of the accursed creatures. As it ambles closer an intense cold rocks him to his very bones. He tries to shake off the cold the best he can and dismounts as quickly as possible. He will grip the flame blade as if it were a long sword and run as fast as he can to the unmolested creature. Yelling a battle cry he will approach the creature at a fast pace (with the blade arched down). He will greet his adversary face to icy face as he gets within melee range he will do a rising slash with they fiery blade, aiming at the creature's Torso and neck area. {If possible he will use the flame blade to parry the monsters leg blows.} He will continue hacking and slashing at the beast until help arrives.

Chareos · Post by **Chareos** » Sun Dec 07, 2003 7:25 pm

Chareos

Chareos begins watching the flame wall that had be erected to his right one ice elemental strays through the flame. He begins to expel the potion he drank as it stumbles and falls into a puddle of slush. Thinking quickly he stops himself form wasting the potion on only one such creature and begins to look around for another target. Seeing no movement through the wall he turns his head to the left as the line of Validar and the others quickly dispatches a few elementals. He rises in his saddle and spots a few ice elementals as well as the two forms of the six legged creatures, One of which seems to have found a snack in the form of Sherwood. He rides closer and comes to a stop and begins to cast a magic missile spell at the Salamader that has Sherwood captive.

Acerion · Post by **Acerion** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:27 am

Acerion:

"What about you, Lord Acerion? How was your visit to Heironeous's temple? From what I gather, you are not from the Elcadan area? Where do you call your home? For some reason, I get the impression that you're not from this part of Cynalon."

"The temple was quite impressive. I spent most of the afternoon conversing with the High Priest and helping out with various tasks within its halls. You are correct in your guess, as I am not from Elcadan, but I needed to pay my respects and offer up appropriate prayers as I am somewhat of an Errant among my order. I also had wished to find out if there was any news of usefullness to be had. Although it was mostly local matters, a few things revealed to me may have a larger scope, and should I see similair occurances in our travels, I might be able to put pieces to any puzzles together with more ease."

Acerion will pause a moment before continuing, "I hail from Ardelphia, although I do not remember much of it as I have been gone for so long on my pilgrimage. I doubt I would recognize it as home anyway with all it has endured. The surviving members of my family made it to Alexandria, which is where I had departed from on my way to join with the assembling group, but my delay in leaving and the length of the trip caused me to not arrive in time. Had I known one such as yourself would be among the members, I would have ridden harder to make the rendezvous at the inn," Acerion will say as he catches Ivy's eyes in his and holds the gaze for a moment, careful not to stare too long to make her uncomfortable.

"One day I will reclaim my homeland and work to rebuild it. I will endeavor to make Ardelphia stronger than it ever has been before so it will never again sit in the rotting belly of occupation by any force," Acerion will say with conviction.

The trend continues further down the line as Acerion, Ivy, and Corley each take down two Ice Warriors with single hits. Shards of ice go flying everywhere. Grondar adds another Ice Warrior to the pile with his mace, while Po slices one with his shortsword.

Seeing that the ice warriors fall relatively easily to everyone's attacks, Acerion wonders if this is just the first wave of something far more dire to come. Noting that most of the ice warriors are vanquished, Acerion turns his attention to the large lizards up front. Seeing Laucian squaring off against one beast and Sherwood engaged with the other, Acerion acts quickly and moves up next to Laucian. The intense cold begins to wash over him like a drowning wave, but Acerion focuses on his task at hand and moves into position to use his battle axe against the six-legged beast.

Post by **Validar** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 11:50 am

VALIDAR

Validar holds the end of the hastily reformed line, confident that the flames behind them will hold off any ice-formed attackers from that direction. A fireball takes out many of the enemy before they close. When the Ice Warriors hit their line, they are met with steel and quickly destroyed. All down the line the Guardians of the Light smash their approaching foes.

Validar will keep one eye on the remains of the creatures to make certain there is no surprise attack from them reforming. He will also hold the end of the line as it is his, keeping a look to their flank (which is the direction they originally came from). "Stretch out the line to help those to the front, but hold it in case we are met with more foes here," Validar will shout to his right to as many as can hear him. He will then hold formation, but strike at any more approaching Ice Warriors and seek to defend the mages and ranged combatants.

Kharyna · Post by **Kharyna** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 12:12 pm

Kharyna -

Kharyna will see the success they have with the Ice Warriors and she is not suprised. The Icy Lizards have proven a bit more trouble however.

Her first idea is to use the Lightning Bolt stored in her Ring, but she thinks different on that wondering if there might be another wave of attacks coming. She decides to cast a Magic Missile of her own at the Lizard attacking Sherwood, moving a little closer to them in the process, but by no means getting close.

Seeing some of the fighters moving to the front of the group, Kharyna will try to stay in the protective pocket that remains. "I don't see many more of the Ice Warriors," the magic user will call out above the wind's howl. "And I don't see anything else either! Just keep you guard up until this wind dies down a bit!"

Ivy · Post by **Ivy** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:40 pm

Ivy:

Ivy conversing with Acerion:

"The temple was quite impressive. I spent most of the afternoon conversing with the High Priest and helping out with various tasks within its halls."

"I've had the pleasure of speaking to Warton a few times before. He and his followers were always polite to me and my sisters."

Acerion will pause a moment before continuing, "I hail from Ardelphia, although I do not remember much of it as I have been gone for so long on my pilgrimage. I doubt I would recognize it as home anyway with all it has endured. The surviving members of my family made it to Alexandria, which is where I had departed from on my way to join with the assembling group, but my delay in leaving and the length of the trip caused me to not arrive in time. Had I known one such as yourself would be among the members, I would have ridden harder to make the rendezvous at the inn," Acerion will say as he catches Ivy's eyes in his and holds the gaze for a moment, careful not to stare too long to make her uncomfortable.

Ivy will give Acerion a mildly surprised look. If he remembers what Ardelphia was like then he must be far older then he appears. It must have been at least forty years since Ardelphia was overran, if not longer. Long before Ivy was even born! Perhaps this Acerion is of mixed blood and not wholly human, not that such a thing bothers Ivy in the slightest. Still it is a curiosity.

"I have heard tales of the tragedies to the north. Indeed my own small village was overrun years later. Even today old timers speak of the kingdom as it was before the collapse, not as it was now. Given the choice, I think I would have preferred the time before the Great War. It was a safer time for everyone."

Ivy's cheeks will noticeable turn red at Acerion's gallant comment. She can't help but notice his piercing green eyes and can't help but be entranced by them. Perhaps there was something to her earlier thought of Acerion being more than just human? She'll also look away when he does, but a smile can't help creep across her face.

"One day I will reclaim my homeland and work to rebuild it. I will endeavor to make Ardelphia stronger than it ever has been before so it will never again sit in the rotting belly of occupation by any force," Acerion will say with conviction.

"A most noble goal, Lord Acerion, and one that would benefit a great many people. I truly hope that you succeed."

When the attack comes, Ivy goes at the ice men with a wild abandon. She screams a battle cry at the top of her lungs and swings her enchanted mace with all of her might! The first ice man shatters under her fury and a second soon follows. Looking up and down the line, she can see that most of the attackers went down under guardian weaponry.

"That was most satisfying," Ivy will say with a grin to Acerion.

With no foes in sight, Ivy will turn her attention to the front ranks and the approaching lizard things. One has been defeated while another is biting Sherwood! A look of panic on her face, Ivy will run to assist Sherwood. She'll bash the inhuman monster with her mace. However should anyone be obviously wounded, Ivy will disengage and go to heal them. All except for Lord Validar of course.

Corley · Post by **Corley** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:42 pm

Corley:

With great satisfaction, Corley carves into the enemy soldiers!

"Not much of a threat, these walking ice cubes!"

Looking about he is pleased that the others downed the enemy just as easily.

"Well struck, Po! Nicely done, Lord Acerion!"

Noting that a few of the ice soldiers remain and upon hearing Lord Validar's command, Corley will take a few steps forward, but will keep himself between the fair maidens under his protection, Kylie and Lilia, and the enemy. He'll be in position to intercept a lizard should it come too close to them. For now he holds his position and waits for an enemy to approach.

Sherwood · Post by **Sherwood** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:44 pm

Sherwood:

"Tough beasts", Sherwood thinks as the first Frost Salamander goes down. "Perhaps extra-planar. That could explain their hardiness and the cold they radiate." After all, these things are not native to Cynalon, so they had to get here some how. Summoned by someone.

The other salamander comes in and Sherwood avoids its sharp claws, but it bites him in the left arm. There is no pain, or even blood as his personal Stoneskin saves him from harm. For the moment, this is just an inconvenience.

Pivoting, Sherwood will attempt to hack at the monster with his Flame Tongue.

Lilia · Post by **Lilia** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:45 pm

Lilia:

Lilia curses in elvish in frustration when the conditions ruin her spell casting. So much for casting her very first fireball! No matter, as there will be other times for that.

The ice men don't seem to be much of a threat and therefore are not much of a concern. Lilia will ride a few paces forward and draw her bow. She'll take aim at which ever lizard is the more open target and fire arrows into it.

Aswansea · Post by **Aswansea** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:46 pm

Swanny:

A pleased look will come to Swanny's face with the ease the attackers went down. The others were just as successful.

"Not bad work, aye there, Val? All this crushed ice is making me thirsty for a Tropical Surprise!"

With no other threats within range, and confidant that Val can hold the fort, Swanny will make her way towards the front. Time to slice some ice lizard! Wonder if they taste good or not…

Talia · Post by **Talia** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:47 pm

Talia:

Disappointed, but not completely surprised, to have failed to even strike a target, Talia will cease chucking knives and will be content to hold her current position. When the threat is over, she'll go and attempt to retrieve her throwing knives.

Lara Spellsword · Post by **Lara Spellsword** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 7:49 pm

Lara:

Lara will hold her position and have her bow ready to deal with any new threats that might arise.

Sherra · Post by **Sherra** » Mon Dec 08, 2003 11:45 pm

Sherra:

Sherra fires another round of arrows and gets similar results. One hits, but this time it finishes off her icy foe, while the other arrow misses.

Bless Tymora Sherra thinks to herself. Even with only scoring half of her attempted hits, she manages to bring down a warrior. She chances a quick glance up and down the battlefield and sees ice piles everywhere. She also notes how warm it is with all the raging fires around, not that the chill winds were bothering her too much.

Seeing a handful of elusive ice warriors coming in and out of view with the blowing snow, Sherra will lock on to one and wait for the slightly-better range. She will use another volley of enchanted arrows just because the conditions are still not prime.

Grondar · Post by **Grondar** » Wed Dec 10, 2003 12:52 am

Grondar:

"Indeed they are, Grondar. In fact for many years the finest gem cutter in Elcadan was a dwarf by the name of Dorshak Krane. From what I heard he disappeared into seclusion and hasn't been heard since. Unfortunately, my knowledge of current events is not as good as it could be."

"I must admit, Lady Ivy, that I have never heard of him. It is unfortunate that one so skilled has chosen to hide his talent away, but it is not an uncommon occurance among my people." There is a tone of sadness in Grondar's voice as he utters these words.

"It was my pleasure, Grondar. Our orders are fairly close to each other, so I am sure that Azrella would be pleased to assist Berronar. I am sure that your brethren will find the shrine to be a great comfort."

Grondar smiles. "Still, I hope that I will have the opportunity to return the favor in some way. We shall see what the future holds for us."
=====
Grondar is pleased that his mace met with more success than his spell-casting. Still, it is a bit humbling that nearly everyone around him destroyed two of these ice-creatures, but he only managed one.

Noting that nearly all of the ice-men are gone, Grondar turns to look around. It seems that there are some bluish lizard creatures toward the front of the line. Moving forward, he circles around the outside toward the front past Corley and Ivy. If any of the few remaining ice-men approach him, he will defend himself. Otherwise, he loads up his crossbow and targets the lizard creature attacking Laucian.

Kylie · Post by **Kylie** » Wed Dec 10, 2003 1:05 am

Kylie:

Kylie encounters Lara that evening before they leave. The young half-elf is still quite angry, though she makes an effort to be courteous. She'll chat a little, but isn't feeling particularly social at the moment.
=====

Corley wrote:"I am sorry to hear that, milady. Alas, Lady Sallavarian's familiar seems something of a pest. She was barred from the kitchen at Castle Pyris for much the same reasons. It is a pity as I am sure your treats would have been most tasty as usual."

"It seems that Edwina has lived up to her reputation once again. I'm sorry you didn't get to try on of the tarts, Lord Corley, it's a recipe I learned from my mother. Perhaps I'll get another opportunity to make some when Edwina isn't around," Kylie says with a smile.

"I would imagine that the weather is similar, Lady Kylie. The last few winters have been most unpleasant. Many say because the Cold Goddess has been unleashing her displeasure on the world for what happened in Neverwinter. It seems that Lady Kharyna was responsible for that displeasure, not that I find her actions disagreeable. Alas, it is something we mere mortals will have to endure."

"So this all has to do with an offended goddess? That doesn't sound good. I can only pray we survive."
=====
Now it appears to be Kylie's turn to have her spell fall victim to the weather. She bites her lip to avoid screaming in frustration. It seems her bow may be her best option after all.

Looking around, Kylie is shocked to see one of the lizard-beasts clamped onto Sherwood's arm "Sherwood!" she cries in alarm. Turning her horse, Kylie edges forward and toward the right, moving in search of a good angle between Arocken and Sherwood. Once she finds her sweet-spot, she aims her arrow and lets fly, drawing and nocking another almost in the same motion.

Post by **Validar** » Thu Dec 11, 2003 12:15 pm

VALIDAR -

Seeing many of the Guardians of the Light moving forward to attack the Ice Lizards at the front of the column, Validar will move forward as well, continuing to hold the far flank and rear and keeping close enough to the next person to prevent penetration of our line. He continues to study the area searching for enemies and ready to strike down the remaining Ice Warriors when they stray too close.

Post by **GM Mad** » Sun Dec 14, 2003 5:50 pm

Post Continued:

Last of Round 2:

The battle against Auril's forces continues!

Chareos rides closer to the front lines and casts a Magic Missile at the Frost Salamander munching on Sherwood's arm. The spell succeeds and a pair of missiles slam into the beast, but it continues to hold Sherwood fast.

Lilia draws her shortbow and fires at the same target as Chareos. Her first arrow sails long on the wild winds, but the second does hit. Surprisingly, it just bounces off of the icy creature.

Laucian rushes in and strikes the other salamander with his Flame Blade. The enchanted blade tears into the creatures flesh and it rears back in pain. The Elvin Ranger attempts to protect himself from being attack and blocks all but two claw attacks. Those two attacks break through and cause minor scratches.

Round 3:

Kharyna maintains her position of being surrounded by fighters. She attempts to cast a Magic Missile at the salamander engaging Sherwood, but the spell is ruined by the retched conditions.

Laucian strikes his own salamander once more, further burning it with his magical blade.

Close by, Sherwood strikes his salamander with the Flame Tongue in his free hand. The beast is wounded some more, but still refuses to let go of its meal.

Arocken steps in to assist Sherwood, but his sword strike harmlessly bounces off.

Grondar quickly moves closer to the front ranks and draws his crossbow. Two shots are fired off and are wildly buffed by the fierce winds. The two bolts are shot high and pass harmlessly over the intended target.

Not too far away, Lilia continues to fire her own arrows. She misses with both attempts, this time they come up short but miss anyone else in the area.

Kylie tries her luck with the bow as well. Her aim is true and a pair of shafts slam into the side of the Frost Salamander holding Sherwood. The beast rears back in pain and in the process releases Sherwood.

Acerion rushes in to assist Laucian. As he draws closer to the creature, Acerion feels an unnatural chill come over him. He swings his battle axe, but the blow is turned aside by the beasts scales.

Ivy goes to assist Sherwood and Arocken with her magical mace. The Priestess swings, but misses the salamander. She too feels the unnatural cold wash over her, as do any who are close to the Frost Salamander.

Swanny runs in from near the rear of the procession, but is still too far away to reach either of the Salamanders.

The Salamanders rear up once more and go on the offensive. Acerion takes 3 claw strikes for minimal damage. Sherwood remains the other salamanders target and is hit by two claws and the beast bites him as well!

Behind the front lines smaller battles take place. Two Ice Warriors amble towards Validar. He easily avoids their ice axe attacks and destroys one of them in the process. Sherra fires upon the other Ice Warrior and downs it with a pair of arrows.

One of the last two Ice Warriors come at Corley, but misses the target. The other strikes at Po and hits the young man, wounding him. Corley destroys the one attacking him and Po takes care of the other.

Post by **GM Mad** » Sun Dec 14, 2003 5:51 pm

GM Notes:

No more Ice Warriors remain in sight, but the last two salamanders are proofing a bit tougher to deal with. Neither salamander appears to be all that bad off.

Current Hit Points:

Acerion - 29 of 40
Arocken - 38 of 49
Ivy - 46 of 50
Laucian - 45 of 56
Po - 14 of 18
Sherwood - 67 of 81

Now what?

Laucian · Post by **Laucian** » Sun Dec 14, 2003 11:15 pm

Laucian

He charges his opponent and raises his flame blade in an arc as they draw closer. The blade tears into its armor causing it to rear back in pain. "You will regret the day you barred our path" he thinks to himself As he quickly brings his Flame blade back to bare. He does his best to parry the beasts sharp claws, He manages to defend himself against two sharp claws, but two others breach his defenses.
He can feel the claws rip down his arm and chest causing minor gashes to his armor. Ignoring the pain ensued he strikes out with his sword yet again with similar affects.

Out of the corner of his eye he sees the form of Acerion coming to his aid, As he looks for an opening he notices the battle ax glance off its scaly armor. The noble utters words of a worthy foe and the elf agrees. "Undoubtedly so, Its hide is thick and I have struck it several times yet it seems no worse for ware."

From his rear he hears the familiar voice of Corley as well as Swanny coming to our aid.

"Fear not, comrades! After I add my blade to yours, it shall be the monster who shivers in fear!"

"Hello boys! Mind if I help you gentlemen fry this lizard?"

"Your blades are most welcome." Speaking loudly between swings,"I warn you though It hide is thick!!"

Hearing in the distance the voice of Sherwood,

"The beasts need enchanted weapons to harm! Those without magical weapons should back off now!"

Putting Sherwood's advice to good use Laucian will draw back a few steps and draw his mythral blade and place it in his off hand. He will advance on the creature and continue hacking and slashing with both steel and fire.

Chareos · Post by **Chareos** » Sun Dec 14, 2003 11:17 pm

Chareos

Chareos watches as the Frost Salamander's jaws grab a hold of Sherwood's arm and does not seem to let go. Urging his mount forward he stops and succeeds in casting his magic missile spell. Two bolts of energy slam into the feeding salamader. Much to the young mage's surprise the creature does not let go. Seeing the other run forward and try to assist one of their co-leaders, Chareos does the same. He dismounts his horse and runs to Sherwood's Salamander with wand in hand. He will attempt to strike the frost salamander with the wand while uttering the words of power.
{when the battle is over he will look up in the air not wanting to cause anyone harm and expel the potion from his belly)

Acerion · Post by **Acerion** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 4:35 pm

Acerion:

Acerion rushes in to assist Laucian. As he draws closer to the creature, Acerion feels an unnatural chill come over him. He swings his battle axe, but the blow is turned aside by the beasts scales.

The Salamanders rear up once more and go on the offensive. Acerion takes 3 claw strikes for minimal damage.

Acerion will smile beneath his helmet and say to no one in particular, although Laucian will undoubtably hear, "Finally a foe worth the effort. Walking ice was surely not satisfying."

With those words he will adjust the grip on his battle axe and swing hard once more...

Ivy · Post by **Ivy** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 8:56 pm

Ivy:

Since everyone seems in relatively good condition, Ivy will continue to attack the Frost Salamander. She's surprised to see Sherwood to be unbloodied from the attacks he has endured, but then she remembers the magical protection he placed on her days ago. Surely he has such protection on himself and is thus protected from the beasts attacks for a time.

Ivy will continue to whack away with her mace.

Corley · Post by **Corley** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 8:58 pm

Corley:

"So this all has to do with an offended goddess? That doesn't sound good. I can only pray we survive."

"Indeed we shall survive, Lady Kylie. The Cold Goddesses power in this world is not as great as she may think. Other more beneficial gods will not permit the world to cover in ice. This I do promise you."

Seeing the last of the Ice Warriors go down, Corley will now advance to the front lines and go assist Acerion and Laucian with the frosty beast they are battling.

"Fear not, comrades! After I add my blade to yours, it shall be the monster who shivers in fear!"

Sherwood · Post by **Sherwood** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 8:59 pm

Sherwood:

Finally his arm is released by the creature. "Thanks, my frosty friend. I was planning on using that arm in the near future to do this!"

Sherwood continues to use his blades to battle the creature. Now he can bring Lifeshield to full bear. Between that and the arriving help, it should be enough to down this creature.

Noting Arocken's blade harmless be turned aside, Sherwood will call out, "The beasts need enchanted weapons to harm! Those without magical weapons should back off now!"

Aswansea · Post by **Aswansea** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 9:01 pm

Swanny:

Swanny mutters under her breath as she trudges to the front lines. "That's what I hate about large groups-- it takes to long to go from the back to the front!"

Sizing the foes up, Swanny rushes into help that yummy human paladin and his elfin ranger friend. "Hello boys! Mind if I help you gentlemen fry this lizard?"

Whack the lizard with her Flame Tongue.

Lara Spellsword · Post by **Lara Spellsword** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 9:02 pm

Lara:

Kylie encounters Lara that evening before they leave. The young half-elf is still quite angry, though she makes an effort to be courteous. She'll chat a little, but isn't feeling particularly social at the moment.

"Hello, Kylie. Kharyna has spoken a little about you in the past, so I've sort of been looking forward to meeting you, as well as Jallarzi's other apprentice Argent. Admittedly, I'm fascinated by mages and magic and eager devour all the books I can find on the subject. The number of interesting mages in this part of the world is simply fascinating! Granted, they are nothing like Alphatia, but far more interesting to me."

Sensing the Kylie really doesn't wish to speak, Lara will let her go on her way wondering what was bothering her.

Seeing that only the salamanders remain of the attacking forces, Lara will urge her mount a little bit closer to the front. Seeing how arrows are being blown off course by these winds, and with the number of comrades battling them, Lara will attempt to cast Magic Missile at the lizards. (Which ever one looks to be in the best condition.)

Lilia · Post by **Lilia** » Mon Dec 15, 2003 9:04 pm

Lilia:

Frustrated by her lack of success in this battle, Lilia will shift back to her magic and cast Magic Missile towards Laucian's lizard.

Sherra · Post by **Sherra** » Tue Dec 16, 2003 1:26 am

Sherra:

Behind the front lines smaller battles take place. Two Ice Warriors amble towards Validar. He easily avoids their ice axe attacks and destroys one of them in the process. Sherra fires upon the other Ice Warrior and downs it with a pair of arrows.

Not sure if she should chance the winds and fire so close to Validar, Sherra hesitates. The ice warriors don't seem to be very bright, but they close in around Validar on different sides. As his blade makes short work of one of the pair, Sherra sees her opening and fires. Both shots slam home, shattering what appears to be the last of their icy foes.

Sherra will smile at Validar briefly and look around. She sees most everyone converging on the two remaining lizards. Too chancy for a bow shot right now she thinks to herself.

Sherra will remain unengaged and keep an eye out for any more enemies emerging from the blowing snow while also watching to make sure none of the group goes down, and if that should happen, Sherra will make an attempt to pull them clear of the melee so no further damage can be done.

Grondar · Post by **Grondar** » Thu Dec 18, 2003 10:46 am

Grondar:

The bolts from Grondar's crossbow vear off wildly, causing him to grumble irritably. Magic seems a waste of time under these conditions, and he can't seem to hit anything with his bolts. Sherwood's words, heard dimly over the howling storm, confirm the conclusion he had been coming to: his mace was his only real option for being effective in this battle.

Climbing down from the saddle, Grondar leaves his crossbow behind. Readying his shield and mace once again, he approaches the nearest ice lizard. A wave of intense cold sweeps over him, yet he continues to advance. Grondar does his best to smash any available part of the beast, while trying to defend from its deadly claws and teeth.

Kylie · Post by **Kylie** » Thu Dec 18, 2003 10:58 am

Kylie:

Lara wrote:"Hello, Kylie. Kharyna has spoken a little about you in the past, so I've sort of been looking forward to meeting you, as well as Jallarzi's other apprentice Argent. Admittedly, I'm fascinated by mages and magic and eager devour all the books I can find on the subject. The number of interesting mages in this part of the world is simply fascinating! Granted, they are nothing like Alphatia, but far more interesting to me."

Sensing the Kylie really doesn't wish to speak, Lara will let her go on her way wondering what was bothering her.

Kylie rubs her brow. "I appologize, Lara. I'm happy to meet you, though I can only imagine what you may have heard of me," Kylie smirks at this. "I'm afraid I'm not much good as company right now, but I would be happy to talk with you later. Perhaps after we're away from that infernal beast." Not stopping to elaborate, Kylie continues on to her room.

Corley wrote:"Indeed we shall survive, Lady Kylie. The Cold Goddesses power in this world is not as great as she may think. Other more beneficial gods will not permit the world to cover in ice. This I do promise you."

"I pray you are right, Corley," Kylie says, trying to sound hopeful. While they may survive this battle, it is not likely to be the last they will hear from this particular deity.
=====
Seeing her arrows strike home, and Sherwood released, Kylie feels encouraged. Unfortunately, the ice-beast succeeds in biting the mage once again. Having met with success previously, Kylie continues to fire her shafts at the creature.

Post by **Validar** » Fri Dec 19, 2003 11:17 am

VALIDAR -

Seeing that the Frost Salamanders are taking a long time to drop, Validar will move toward the front of the group, but keeps his position to protect the mages and ranged combatants from a rear or flank attack. It is almost more than he can take to watch the others slashing away and not rush in as well. However, these are just some worthless extra-planar creatures which the group should easily deal with. He has already set himself as the anchor of the flank and changing that now could prove a bigger problem.

Passing Po, Validar will call out to the young warrior, pointing where he wants him to head. "Po! Take up a position alongside me and keep your eyes open for any surprises!"

Validar will hold his tighter position, trying to move to within closing range, but also keep guard. Between the others, they should take out these annoyances soon enough.

Kharyna · Post by **Kharyna** » Fri Dec 19, 2003 11:58 am

Kharyna-

Kharyna is a bit miffed by the weather disrupting her spell, especially since she trained for just that very thing while studying in the Halls of Auril. Seeing that spellcasting is a questionable thing, Kharyna will do the next best thing. She will release the Lightning Bolt from her Ring of Spell Storing at whichever Lizard she can get a clear line to.

Post by **GM Mad** » Sat Dec 20, 2003 11:10 pm

Post Continued:

The Guardians continue to battle the Frost Salamanders. More and more of the Guardians near the rear of the procession work their way forward towards the icy lizards. Each gets close enough to feel the unnatural chill that surrounds each of the lizards.

Near the rear, Validar moves forward along with Po, both keeping their eyes open for more attackers. Kharyna prepares to cast a spell from her Ring. However, she can't get a clear shot at either lizard from her current position, forcing the Priestess of Magic to move in search of an opening. There are too many Guardians between her and her targets.

The elfin sorceresses act almost in tandem. Lilia and Lara both cast Magic Missile at the lizard menacing Laucian and Acerion. Their spells are true and six Magic Missiles slam into the lizard.

Upon hearing Sherwood's warning about needing enchanted weaponry to harm the Frost Salamanders, Laucian draws his Mithral blade and goes on the offensive with it and his summon Flame Blade. The magic sword bites deep into the lizard, further injuring it.

Acerion lands two solid battleaxe strikes to the beast and gets clawed in the process. Corley joins them and slashes the salamander with his great sword, cutting huge gashes into its scaly hide.

Eerie bluish blood pours out of the numerous wounds to the creature and yet it still battles on! Grondar rushes in, moving far faster then would normally be possible thanks to his Boots of Speed. One last strike from his enchanted mace finally downs the beast.

Close by, the battle against the other lizard intensifies. Sherwood strikes twice with Lifeshield, slicing into the beast.

Arocken wisely backs off once learning that he is unable to damage the salamander. The beast claws him as he moves away.

Ivy strikes again with her mace, but misses with her follow up attempt.

Chareos rushes in to help. He circles wide around the salamander, lining up a clear shot for his wand. The activates the command words once more and a bolt of light slams into the Salamander's rear flank, searing it.

Kylie fires more arrows, and one strikes the Frost Salamander.

Swanny reaches the front line. With the other lizard down, she goes to assist against the last one. Her Flame Tongue strikes twice and the creature drops.

As the Frost Salamanders fall into death, their bodies seem to shatter into piles of snow and ice that are quickly blown away on the fierce winds. Everything becomes quiet except for those winds. No other threats can be seen in the area.

Post by **GM Mad** » Sat Dec 20, 2003 11:11 pm

GM Notes:

Is it all over with?

Current Hit Points:

Acerion - 26 of 40
Arocken - 30 of 49
Aswansea - 62 of 64
Corley - 34 of 44
Grondar - 44 of 45
Ivy - 40 of 50
Laucian - 39 of 56
Po - 14 of 18
Sherwood - 66 of 81

Now what?

Grondar · Post by **Grondar** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 2:03 am

Grondar:

His new boots serve him well this day. Racing in, Grondar smashes one of the great beasts with his mace. Fortunately, it proves to be the telling blow, and the creature collapses, the unnatural light in its eyes fading away. In moments, its great body cracks, shatters and crumbles into a large mound of snow and ice.

Moments later, the single remaining beast meets its end under a barrage of attacks. Pausing, Grondar heaves a sigh of relief. Still, it is too soon to assume that the danger is past. Looking around, Grondar tries to determine if there are any other threats looming. He has yet to verify whether the flame wall destroyed the ice-men that had been approaching from the other side. He will remain on guard until that has been verified and they are certain that no other dangers lurk.

Normally, he would be seeking out any injured members of the party for healing, but the weather precludes and reliable spell-casting. They will probably have to wait for either the storm to subside or the night's camp before tending to the wounded.

Kylie · Post by **Kylie** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 2:13 am

Kylie:

Once more, Kylie meets with some success with her bow. One of the arrows she fires finds its mark, which is pretty amazing considering the wind. However, it is Swanny that lands the final, fatal blow.

The unnatural way in which the creature - and the others like it - disintegrate serves only to convince her of the abnormal nature of this storm. Clearly there is powerful magic at work here. Kylie is torn between fear of one who weilds such power, and fascination at the thought of such spells perhaps being learnable some day.

With the last of the apparent threats eliminated, Kylie begins to relax. Holding her bow down at her side, she makes certain that she is still near the middle of the group, then waits for orders from their illustrious leaders.

Post by **Validar** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 12:49 pm

VALIDAR -

Seeing that the Ice Warriors and then their nasty companions, the Ice Lizards, have been dispatched, Validar seeks to get them out of this horrible weather.

Validar will move closer to the front and motion everyone to close in. "We should either continue on and get through this weather or else use the magickal encampment now and hope this all ceases by morning! In either case, we should not sit here, whether there are more threats coming or not!" Validar will try to yell above the howling wind and waits for comments to his suggested options. Meanwhile he will continue to look for any more enemies.

Acerion · Post by **Acerion** » Tue Dec 23, 2003 4:09 pm

Acerion:

Acerion lands two solid battleaxe strikes to the beast and gets clawed in the process.

Acerion stands his ground despite the mounting wounds upon his body. The combined might of himself, Laucian, Corley and Grondar, along with the magical attacks, is more than this unnatural creature can bear however, and it expires soon after.

"Well fought," Acerion will call out over the intense winds, looking to each of them in turn and nodding proudly at their combined accomplishment.

He will look over where the other beast is also felled, his eyes finding Ivy to confirm she is alright. Acerion will also see if anyone looks to be in dire shape, but all of the companions appear to be on their feet.

Validar will move closer to the front and motion everyone to close in. "We should either continue on and get through this weather or else use the magickal encampment now and hope this all ceases by morning! In either case, we should not sit here, whether there are more threats coming or not!" Validar will try to yell above the howling wind and waits for comments to his suggested options.

"Agreed Validar," Acerion will bellow back, "sitting here will only risk us freezing in place. I am for pressing on further, but either decision will be suitable."

Sherra · Post by **Sherra** » Wed Dec 24, 2003 5:56 am

Sherra:

Sherra smiles as she watches the others make short work of the remaining lizards. As she continues to scan for additional enemies, Sherra notices Validar trying to get everyone together. She urges her mount up to where a rough circle has been formed.

Sherra agrees completely with the two nobles' suggestion that we don't wait around and suffer the continued effects of this weather. "Let us continue on unless anyone here is greviously injured and requires aid," Sherra offers up.

She herself was not injured, but knows several of the others took damage at the claws and maw of one lizard or another. She will look to Validar and Sherwood to judge what each of our leaders may be considering.

Sherwood · Post by **Sherwood** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 12:48 am

Sherwood:

Finally the Frost Salamander falls. Pretty tough creatures these things. Hopefully this is the end of them.

While making sure everyone is okay, Validar and Acerion speak up.

"We should either continue on and get through this weather or else use the magickal encampment now and hope this all ceases by morning! In either case, we should not sit here, whether there are more threats coming or not!"

"Agreed Validar," Acerion will bellow back, "sitting here will only risk us freezing in place. I am for pressing on further, but either decision will be suitable."

"We continue on," Sherwood calls out. "It would be impossible to summon the dwelling in these conditions. Let us ride until conditions ease up or until we reach the next village along the way. I have no intention of camping out in weather like this. Everyone keep close together. Keep at least one other in your sight at all times. Let's move before more of these ice creatures show up!"

(It takes twenty minutes to cast the spell that summons the magical dwelling, so chances of getting the spell of correctly are just about zero.)

After everyone is mounted up, we continue to ride along in the previous formation. Sherwood does not require any healing at this time. Only his clothes were damaged during the skirmish. He'll have to replace his Stoneskin later on.

Lara Spellsword · Post by **Lara Spellsword** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 12:50 am

Lara:

Kylie rubs her brow. "I apologize, Lara. I'm happy to meet you, though I can only imagine what you may have heard of me," Kylie smirks at this. "I'm afraid I'm not much good as company right now, but I would be happy to talk with you later. Perhaps after we're away from that infernal beast." Not stopping to elaborate, Kylie continues on to her room.

"Until later then," Lara will say as Kylie departs. Unsure what that was all about, Lara will rejoin the others and get to know those she will be riding with better.

The battle is over and Lara is pleased with her performance, but does not make such things vocal. Thankfully she is blessed with the high dexterity possessed by many of her people.

She notes the unusual manner in which the creatures die. They must be extra-planar in origin and were using the existing snow and ice to fashion bodies for themselves on our plane. She also can't help but wonder if Auril did this herself or if some agent of hers was dispatched to cause this trouble. This may not be over with yet.

When the call to move out comes, Lara will reassume her position near Kharyna and will keep her bow ready in case of trouble.

Corley · Post by **Corley** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 12:51 am

Corley:

Corley strikes at the strange lizard with all his considerable might, ripping open large holes in the beasts side. After several swings, the creature finally does fall.

"Well fought," Acerion will call out over the intense winds, looking to each of them in turn and nodding proudly at their combined accomplishment.

"Quite so, Lord Acerion! This creature was a stern test of our skills and yet we have prevailed! If the Ice Goddess thought this was going to stop us, then she sorely underestimated our skill and valor! Well fought all!"

Looking around, Corley sees that the other ice beast is down and the other Guardians have emerged relatively unscathed. He is happy that no one was seriously hurt.

When the order to move out comes, Corley will move back to charger and mount up on the warhorse. He'll maneuver himself into his riding position near Lady Ivy and Lady Lilia.

"That was a most fierce battle, Lady Kylie. I am pleased that you came through it unscathed. If only this wretched storm could be so easily turned back! Let us hope that it will break soon before we freeze."

Aswansea · Post by **Aswansea** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 12:53 am

Swanny:

By the time she reaches the first lizard, it's already gone the way of the sword. "Hey, you could have save a little for me! No matter, I'll just take care of the other one!"

True to her word, it's Swanny's sword strikes that dispatch the beast. "Not a bad day's work, if I say so myself. How about we find ourselves a toasty inn to warm our outsides and some fine drink to take care of the insides?"

Alas, there are no inns in the area and we must continue on. Swanny extinguishes her flaming sword and replaces it in her sheath. She'll make her way back to her horse and climb up into the saddle. She'll continue to ride close to Kharyna in case cold bottom isn't done with us yet.

Ivy · Post by **Ivy** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 12:55 am

Ivy:

"Blue Lady be praised!", Ivy calls out when the ice lizard finally falls and shatters into snow and ice. Ivy will drop to one knee and say a small prayer of thanks for gaining this victory.

Next Ivy will go and see to her comrades conditions. The winds make spell cast difficult, so if any are in serious need of healing she'll simply lay hands on them. Since everyone seems in mostly good shape, Ivy will forego attempting to heal the wounded just now.

She does notice Lord Acerion casting his gaze this way. Ivy will smile back and wave, thankful that he wasn't seriously hurt. Ivy will then look away, slightly embarrassed by her current appearance. Between the winds and the snow her hair must be a mess that will take much time to brush back into shape.

Alas, there is little time for such worries as the call to move out comes. Ivy locates her horse and rides along with the others praying for the weather to break or some sing of civilization to come into view.

Laucian · Post by **Laucian** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 10:37 pm

Laucian

Laucian strikes out with both fire and steel striking the beast with his magical sword. The wounds that the beast has taken are beginning to take their toll as more and more wounds can be seen issuing forth its lifeblood but still it rages on. Acerion was right this is a worthy adversary he thinks to himself as Grondor rushes an strikes the lizard downing the beast.

As the creature falls limp to the ground it begins to crack and shatter. Laucian takes a step back as a fierce and sudden wind sweeps away the mound of ice and snow that was the beast. He quickly looks around to see if any other threats but doesn't see much in this weather. Seeing no threats, "Is anyone injured?" he will ask those close to him. Seeing everyone no worse for wear he will say a prayer to Ehlonna for watching over him and his comrades.

Validar will move closer to the front and motion everyone to close in. "We should either continue on and get through this weather or else use the magickal encampment now and hope this all ceases by morning! In either case, we should not sit here, whether there are more threats coming or not!"

"Agreed, Let us continue on maybe the weather will break. If not we can look for shelter further along."

He will recover his mount and take up position at the front of the column.

Chareos · Post by **Chareos** » Thu Dec 25, 2003 10:39 pm

Chareos

Riding his mount hard he circles the lizard. Seeing an opening he utters the words of power to his wand and a beam of light extends from his wand searing the beast in its hind flanks. The beast falls to the ground bringing a smile to his face. As he watches the others around the beast's downed form he watches as it begins to shatter and be blown to the four winds.

These beasts were not from this plane of existence he thinks to himself as he rides closer to the others. "Well fought," he spots the torn clothing of Sherwood, but there is no blood. He remembers the Stone Skin spell he applied to him in the previous days a most useful spell, one of which he will have to learn and keep in memory.

"We continue on," Sherwood calls out. "It would be impossible to summon the dwelling in these conditions. Let us ride until conditions ease up or until we reach the next village along the way. I have no intention of camping out in weather like this. Everyone keep close together. Keep at least one other in your sight at all times. Let's move before more of these ice creatures show up!"

Chareos gives a nod in agreement and forms up on Po right flank.