The cast of heroes
Arken (Half-Elf Cleric) – leader of the party
Bardan (Human Fighter) – the muscleKnil (Elf Ranger) – the tracker
Korum Proudfoot (Halfling Thief) – the scout
Rioja Hyrule (Human Mage) – the wizard
Kima (Black Domestic Cat) – his familiar
Preparation (Day 296-301)
The requests for aid were responded to during the following
week. Knil received a letter and a package from the Elves which contained a new
magical grip for his bow that would make his shots truer, and a message stating
that a small contingent of archers would be with them within a week. A wagon
was drawn up and left just outside the main southern gates of the stronghold.
Korum investigated and found that there was a letter pinned to it that was addressed
to him. His thievish colleagues from various towns to the north had sent him a
large shipment of weapons, some low level magical, and word that their delaying
tactics were taking its toll on the approaching armies – there was a large one
coming from the north and a slightly smaller one from the south. They would
appear at the gates in around six or seven days time, at the same time as other
uprisings would be occurring throughout the whole realm. Rioja received word
that Thalleus and twenty low level mages would be joining him in a couple of
days and Arken was informed that an Archpriest of Din would be arriving with a
handful of clerics and a dozen or so paladins to help with the defences and the
healing of any who get injured in the coming conflict. Bardan kept an eye on
the training of the household troops, bringing them all up to scratch, just as
he received word from Tim, their steward, that he had managed to procure the
services of a well known mercenary band consisting of 150 veteran warriors, and
that they would appear in the next couple of days.
Plans were discussed and the various leaders assigned to
their duties; the merchants, guildhall and tavern staff would act as runners
and stretcher bearers. The iron golem was instructed to destroy anyone that
approached the tower by any route other than the main pathway. The gates at
both entrances were locked and barred with entrance now only available by the
smaller sally port doors. The guards at each watchtower and along the walls
were bolstered and set to watch for the enemy’s approach, especially over the
weaker points of the walls where the river flowed through and the minor gateway
that led to the dungeon complex.
Over the next few days, the promised aid started to arrive.
They were also assigned their tasks for the defence of the village. The lower
level mages were allocated to each of the ballistae to provide Mend spells and
Magic Missile, whilst Rioja, the head mage and a couple of minor mages led a
back-up support team. The mercenaries were assigned to the walls and towers
alongside the village’s militia, and fifty were kept back as a reserve force in
case of any breakthrough. The clerics were all assigned to the tower to aid in
healing anyone injured, and the paladins formed a core support force for the
eastern gate. The spare ballista was set up behind the main southern gate to
provide a heavy weapon support in case that gate was breached. The elves were directed
to provide a strong core of missile weapons, with a handful outside the
boundary of the village to act as pickets and early warning.
The Battle Gerudos Valley
As evening fell on the last day of preparation, the elves on
picket duty reported that two large armies were approaching from the north and
south. Around the same time, a band of dirty, bloodied men in light armour
approached the main gates. They were a small unit of thieves tasked with
slowing down the approaching enemies. They had taken many casualties, but their
tricks, traps and ambushes had slowed the army down a bit. They were invited
into the stronghold and sent to the inn to have their light wounds dressed and
a warm meal. Just as night began to fall, the guards on the north wall called
out that camp fires were being lit in the distance – the enemy had arrived.
Nothing happened during the night, but the following morning
saw the approach of several siege engines and hordes of warriors towards both
the eastern and southern gates. The siege army would take about two hours to
arrive, but before the eastern gates appeared a small contingent from the
hostile army under a flag of truce. The envoy requested the surrender of the
town and all inside would be spared – all the party had to do was come outside
the walls and all would be settled. The adventurers responded that they would
not surrender, and did not trust the envoy. They sent out a goat as their
representative to add further insult and said that the enemy would have to take
the town as they would not give it up so easily.
About an hour or so later, war horns sounded and a large cry
went up from the approaching enemy. The dragon cult warriors charged the
stronghold carrying siege ladders, supported by a small force of archers, but
then the ballistae and Elven archers opened fire. The enemy took a few
casualties before they reached the gates but carried on regardless. However,
they were surprised by the unexpected numbers of defenders behind the walls,
and slowly they had to retreat. The siege engines closed in to make their
attack, but as soon as they passed a certain point, Bardan ordered the fire
arrows to target the pits of flaming oil. The fire managed to destroy several
of the siege engines, and the low level mages in the ballista towers saw to the
destruction of the firing mechanisms of the catapults. Only a few battering
rams were now left, and these were quickly put to work on the main gates.
Fade to Black
The battle wore on with neither side gaining the upper hand
or making a decisive blow. Evening approached but it seemed to be a little
darker than it should ordinarily have been. The warriors outside the gates
renewed their attacks and the defenders started to waiver when they saw a dark
mass approaching – the Darkness had returned. Orders were barked out to start
lighting fires and braziers to keep the Darkness at bay, but no sooner were
they lit than they were extinguished.
An enormous gust of wind and the clap of gigantic leathery
wings preceded a booming voice heard mainly in the head than by the ears,
“Aspects of Aphyros come forth and meet me!” The adventurers saw that warriors
on both sides of the conflict had cowered somewhat with the arrival of the dark
dragon. The Darkness had reached the walls and was felling friend and foe
alike, the fire in the hearts of the attacking horde soon turned to cold
screams of fear and anger.
The party decided to ride out and meet the dragon at a place
of their choosing outside the gates but away from the ongoing battle. They gave
control of their forces over to the mage Thalleus, the Archpriest of Din and
Tim, their steward. As the gates opened, the Darkness pulled back enough to let
them through, but closed onto the walls again just as soon as they passed. The
party headed to a clearing in the forest not half a mile away, with the Darkness
dogging their heels but not attacking them.
They arrived at the glade at the same time as the great
black dragon. With a final huge flap of its wings, Nephyros alighted on several
large oak trees, crushing the upper boughs, and let out a mighty roar. He asked
the party where he might find Aphyros skulking but the party replied that they
did not know – they were more than a match for this jumped up lizard and didn’t
need the good dragon’s help. This angered the proud dragon and he started to
try to convince them that they were aspects of Aphyros that had to be destroyed
in the same way that his aspects were destroyed by them. Arken tried to respond
that they were not aspects of Aphyros but were acting under their own free will
but he was struck dumb at the command of the powerful dragon lord. Nephyros
leapt down from the trees to confront the upstart cleric but, angered by being
struck silent, Arken swung his mace at him. He landed a solid blow, but his
mace seemed to strike a solid wall of force before Arken himself was thrown
back several paces by the magical recoil. Bardan had seen his companion move in
to attack and he struck simultaneously, only to have the same thing occur to
him. Korum, who had seen this all happen tried to hamstring the dragon, but his
blow was also repulsed and he too was thrown back several paces. The dragon
roared and leapt back into the trees just as the injured trio regained their
feet.
Korum shouted that Nephyros was a coward and should face the
party in a straight fight. At this moment, Knil launched a brace of his best
magical arrows at Nephyros, but they just splintered to firewood upon impact
with the magical barrier. In response, the dragon drew back his head and spewed
forth a huge jet of darkness towards Arken. However, the dark breath did not
reach him as it was blocked by a bright glowing barrier. Nephyros was surprised
by this, but then grinned evilly as he heard the clap of another pair of
enormous wings approaching the glade; Aphyros had arrived to fight the final battle.
Nephyros launched himself into the air, the buffeting of his wings knocked over
the adventurers, and headed directly towards the white dragon.
The adventurers realised they could play no more part in
this aerial dog-fight so decided to return to the village to see if they could
help out in the battle raging there. When they arrived before the southern
gates, they noticed that the ground was littered with the dead and dying from
the Dragon Cult horde, and the remnants of the army had started to retreat. The
walls of the stockade had held up well to the onslaught of the enemy but had
been damaged in a few places. However, there was still a small knot of enemy
before the gates who had decided they would rather die in the service of the
dark dragon lord than run away. Encouraging their horses to a gallop, the party
smashed through this small knot of resistance, and headed towards the gates.
The mage Thalleus ordered the gates opened and a large force of mercenaries
exited and finished off the last of the evil horde.
The Final Battle
Now that the horde had been defeated, all eyes turned to the
skies above. Fear was etched on the faces of all those that watched, as Aphyros
dropped to the forest floor with a wailing screech, closely followed by a
triumphant looking Nephyros. The party now had to make a decision. Arken made
haste to the Temple of Din
The two dragons crashed to earth about a mile from the
village, so the party saddled up once more and rode out to meet their foe. They
could feel the almighty struggles rumbling through the earth as they approached
the scene of the battle. They got to within fifty paces only to see that
Nephyros had the upper hand. Aphyros was bleeding from several large wounds and
his white light was slowly dimming.
Rioja let loose with a Fireball, just as two arrows hit the
dark dragon. The rest of the party moved in to strike the dragon the best they
could. Korum began by slashing at the dragon’s hamstrings, causing a roar of
pain to erupt from him. Bardan and Arken struck with their magical axe and mace
respectively. The dragon, able to deflect his attention away from Aphyron
momentarily was able to strike at both armoured warriors causing them injury.
Another Fireball and magical arrow also found their mark. It was noted by Rioja
that the back-blast that would have hit other party members within the area of
effect of the exploding fireball seemed to be directed away from them by a
barrier of white light – Aphyros was protecting them.
Another hamstring being cut by Korum, and more Fireballs
hitting his upper body led to Nephyros screeching in pain and anger which was
all directed at the mage Rioja. A stream of darkness was aimed at the mage
causing him some discomfort, before he sent back his last Fireball. In the
confusion of the melee, Arken and Bardan were unable to strike their target and
Knil’s shots went wide.
Climbing up onto the dragon’s back allowed Korum to strike
at another vulnerable spot. The dragon could not detect where the source of the
pain was coming from, so took his anger out on those before him. Magic missiles
flew in causing the dragon momentary blindness, and two more magical arrows
from Knil’s bow struck true. The warrior in front of him was the easiest
target, so Bardan felt the full force of the dragon’s claws and bite. Arken
stepped in to heal his friend just as Korum struck another critical blow
diverting the dragon’s attention away from the injured warrior. A final flurry
of Magic Missiles and magical arrows made Nephyros strike back one last time,
missing with his teeth and claws, and his breath weapon was diverted by a
strong barrier of white light.
Fearing that he may now lose this battle, the great black
dragon launched himself into the air. The few minutes of respite the party had
given Aphyros, was enough time to recover some of his powers, and he too leaped
into the air to catch his fleeing enemy. He pulled him back towards the ground
and with his mighty jaws ripped out the throat of his eons old enemy. With a
final pulse of darkness, the black dragon crashed to the earth. The damage he
had sustained in the battle was too great and he slowly turned to stone. The
stone image of Nephyros then crumbled to dust where he lay. Aphyros let out a
huge roar of triumph; his fight was finally over.
The party cautiously approached the venerable white dragon
and asked if it was finally over and whether Nephyros was truly dead. Aphyros
responded that that was indeed the case, and now he must leave them to live out
the rest of his days in peace. Arken asked if the party would be able to call
upon him in their hour of need as a reward for their aid, but the dragon
responded only that he may consider it now that his job here was completed.
Aphyros called out a final farewell and flew off towards the newly risen moon.
Aftermath
The adventurers returned to their village to find that the
clean up had already begun. Bodies were being stripped in readiness for burial
or cremation, their weapons and armour being requisitioned if in good
condition. The enemy were heaped onto a huge pyre but the defenders were buried
within one of the crypts within the dungeon complex with full honours. The
paladins that were killed were entombed within the crypt beneath the Temple
of Din
Over the next few days, the mercenaries received their final
payment and headed off to adventures new. The Elves, mages, and warriors of Din
all returned from where they came, and most of the thieves had already made
their way back to their home guilds.
Life slowly returned to the village, and a celebration was
laid on at Korum’s tavern. All were welcome and all were thoroughly
entertained. However, Bardan became a little unruly and had to be physically
removed – a dumping in the horse water trough brought him back to his senses
and he vowed he would get even with the Halfling.
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