The Northern Plains

The party’s new mission is to recover a diplomatic party lost in the Orc lands of the Northern Plains. If they are not found factions in both the Orc tribes and Carandor who opposed the original peace treaty might incite a war. The first port of call is the frontier town (little more than a stockade really) of Cador. There Aelric the town’s warden is to provide the party with a guide into the orc lands. Getting as far as Cador is a challenge, however, as winter has closed in exceptionally early this year. Hence the need for suckers (adventurers) to make the dangerous trip.

The normal way to get to Cador is along the river but it has frozen up and less than a day’s journey is possible using this route. A reception committee of hobgoblins waits in ambush at the point in the river where the party disembark. The hobgoblins are defeated and the party decide not to teach them a lesson by eradicating their village (which would have meant a twenty mile detour). Going is tough in the snow and the local wildlife in the shape of hippogriffs makes a brief appearance to harass the party. But the really nasty monsters only come out at night…..

Happily Dindle has researched the local holiday bungalows and is able to provide the Party with suitable accommodation each night. The next day the party assault an innocent passer-by (frost giant) out walking his dogs (winter wolves) despite the doggies traditional show of affection, bounding up to the party and breathing on them.

The next encounter is a bit more difficult as the party are ambushed by undead with an affinity for snow. Further the leader (controller?) showed a remarkable ability to resist a direct hit from a fireball. The party move to a rocky outcrop to avoid the undead popping up from the snow and eventually destroy most of the undead but not the leader.

The party find another holiday cottage for the night. Next day a remorhaz erupts from under the snow and swallows Lura. The party is distraught to see such valuable equipment go down the neck of a monster and hack it to bits before it can disappear back into the snow. The party learn natural history: remorhaz skin very hot, remorhaz digestive juices very corrosive!

The next day the party find a ravine with TO THE AMBUSH written in large letters at the entrance. Midge scouts ahead and confirms that indeed THE AMBUSH IS IN. The party has gained a lot of experience at being ambushed, however, even if this one comes with an all pervading sense of evil attached. An evil black cloaked figure duly becomes visible and spooks some of the party (the ones that made their intelligence rolls) into running away. The rest get zapped with some very nasty green fire that Lana cannot heal. Faced with such a daunting foe the party adopt their usual policy of valour being the better part of discretion and see if it likes being hacked. Although the process is somewhat painful it clearly doesn’t and disappears. Maybe it has confidence that the orcs pouring arrows into the ravine can finish the job.

The orcs clearly have the upper hand but failed to appreciate the tactical significance of troops being airlifted into position. Before you can say ‘Blackbird fly’ (actually a little afterwards to be exact) arrow fire in raining down on the orcs. Although they are tough they were hired as archers and wilt when the party then engage half of them in melee. The other half are somewhat disconcerted by Dindle’s fireball and leg it, 3 out of 5 managing to survive Lura’s parting shots. The party search the bodies but there is no clue as to who set this up. The orcs have no insignia but tribal scars are later confirmed as indicating they came from the Green Raiders.

Three days after this encounter the party make it into Cador, their remaining wounds having succumbed to natural healing and luckily having had no further combat. Midge talks to Aelric, the Warden, while the rest of the party hit the Cat’s Eye tavern. In the Cat’s Eye a dispute about the seating arrangements quickly turns into a fight outside between Venya (a 6’ 10” northerner) and Roc (a not 6’ 10” dwarf). Venya turns out to be extremely tough but is practically on his knees when he finally puts Roc down. The regulars haven’t seen such a good fight for ages and quickly take to the party. The locals (both human and orc) are all of the opinion that the loss of the diplomatic party is both mysterious (the party was large and well-equipped) and disturbing (good relations between orc and human are essential for prosperous trade).

While this is going on Midge is talking to his contact Cedric in the bar. Cedric is a recent replacement for someone who ‘went missing in the wilderness’. Cedric suspects that something dubious is happening in Cador (or more exactly something dubious that Cedric and his associates haven’t got a hand in – or even more exactly something dubious that Cedric and his associates and the numerous known freelancers haven’t got a hand in). Cedric suspects Cordwellyn a merchant, because he has checked out everyone else. Cordwellyn’s warehouse and private residence have suspiciously tight security.

That night while Balyn, the landlady of the Cat’s Eye, makes unsuccessful attempts on the party’s possessions Midge, Dindle and Cedric check out the warehouse but find nothing suspicious. The following day while the party hire a guide from Cordwellyn Midge does some checking of his residence and leaves a window of opportunity for Cedric to finish the job later. Midge tells Cordwellyn that his manservant is of evil alignment but Cordwellyn shrugs it off, saying the servant is loyal and competent enough.

Cordwellyn hires them Venya, a result which pleases the party until Venya abandons them at the first night’s camp. Almost immediately an assault by large and vicious Dire Wolves forces the party to fight for their lives. Once the wolves are despatched they track Venya who appears to be heading back to Cador until he then veers off onto a rocky outcrop which makes tracking very difficult. After some hours the party abandon the pursuit and get some more rest. The next day they encounter a Green Raider patrol who say they will have to report the presence of the party in Green Raider lands. The patrol are not otherwise hostile although they warn that there is little love lost between the leadership of the Green Raiders and the Bloodaxe clan.

After two more days and two more orcish villages (where some party members were offering premium prices for masking tape) the party come to a long stretch of uninhabited wilderness where that evening an unnatural storm forces the party to seek their traditional tourist accommodation. Unfortunately there is a double booking mix up and some ice creatures try to take possession of the cottage. After a brief fracas a fireball or two persuades them otherwise. While Dindle is impersonating Santa Claus and going up the chimney he hears a faint keening on the wind. Estimating that it might come from a point 200yards from the cottage. Lura, Roca and Dindle stagger out in the snow to investigate. After some difficulty because of the adverse conditions they get half way to where the sound is coming from only to be surrounded by some more of the ice creatures who proceed to pummel Lura and Roc into the snow forcing Dindle (who is in sprite form) to fly them home. Luckily the attack is not pressed any further that night and in the morning a more southerly breeze has forced the storm further north.