Good morning,
When last we met our heroes:
You pursued the two fleeing spider-people, with Fraud's and Boamund's bite-wounds starting to feel a coldness. They had run across the dusty plaza into another walled area where there was a larger, fairly intact Second Age building whose open doorway was covered by a sheet of webs that still flapped as if something had passed through it. You followed, correctly expecting a trap. Boamund peered inside and saw a larger spider-person with a big axe, standing before a nest or throne made of bones, rubble and webs, across a ruined hall where all the subdividing walls had long collapsed. Seven other spider-folk were there, including the two wounded ones you'd chased, and all were ready with magics. It looked very, very bad… The bigger spider-monster croaked a warning in patchy Seshnegi that you'd caused them trouble but now faced it. Boamund's chaos-sensing magic told him these were not chaotic beings, so he held back. In a tense moment where you debated attacking immediately, the leader created a phantasmal spider-thing to up the ante-you were even more outnumbered. That was enough; you unleashed the attack.
Three of them closed in on Boamund while four threw web-weapons and magics and the leader sent her phantasm at Miguel, who unleashed an arrow at her to little effect. Bog hit the phantasm and it vanished; it was purely magicked mist, a trick. But Boamund was stuck in the doorway with the three spiderkin engaging him, and it began to look poorly for him… at first. However, as the leader closed in, and one spiderkin grabbed Boamund trying to keep him from escaping but Fraud grabbed back and pushed him inward, following inside, the tables began to turn. One spider-monster hit itself with its battle-axe and caved in its face. The disrupt spells from the four rear guard spider-monsters had little effect especially as Miguel healed the worst of them. Bog hit the leader with his Frost-Flail as she engaged Fraud-and then she too managed to hit herself, very hard, in the head, and down she went! The spiderkin were shocked but maintained the fight; there were no other exits from this ruin and they still outnumbered you. Yet you outskilled them. A few more blows from your team, with Bog pushing his way inside, and their numbers reduced to the point where they panicked and began fleeing your way. They croaked that there were prisoners, pointing outside the building, and you could have them in bargain for their lives, it seemed. Boamund honourably let them go; Fraud and Bog tried hitting them but didn't drop any more, and Miguel let them finally go, watching with his bow. Victory! (and how many fumbled dice rolls? At least 3 for them and 2 for you?)
Bog set to happily crunching on the pieces of the leader-spiderkin. You said farewell and followed the fleeing ones to see what was up with these prisoners. Indeed, past this second plaza area there was a small ruined “guardpost” shed where three more spider-monsters were escaping from, and nearby some webbed pillars holding five Giranois, clinging to life with many wounds and exposure (most of them having been fed on for days). They soon explained they were from the Spider-Swamps and had been captured when the Spider-Monsters raided them, with most local families decimated now. You knew you had to get them to safety so they could recover.
(and party luck pts went back to 3 for heroic defeat of the spiderkin and successful rescue-it could have been a real mess!)
You left Bog to his feast. He found a pouch of gold coins in the “nest” which he tossed away in disgust, then he also found a cat's skull that had Alarm magic he could use to protect an area. Eventually satisfied with food for now and bored of the ruin, much as it suited a troll, he departed to explore outside. He found he was not alone here: a huge Monster-Spider leapt down from the web-threads above and engaged him, but he fought back and managed to win a lucky hit that stunned its head and took it out! He warily explored further, seeing where you'd been but also exploring a space on the southeast corner of the ruins where an isolated ruined building squatted in thick cords and mats of web; seeming more webs than stone. The doorway was like a sphincter of spider-silk. He knew this was Big Trouble. Sneaking around, he didn't see any other ways in so he crept inside, pushing the webs away, and finding a dank chamber full of webs and bones and death. It was the Monster-Spiders' lair, and two of them sat resting and feeding inside, so far unaware of him. He wisely fled, barricaded himself inside the building and released the Alarm spell by stroking the cat-skull. Not too long later, he awakened to the plaintive meows of the skull as it collapsed into dust. Uh oh! The barricade was being torn away from outside, and he faced yet another Monster-Spider. He didn't have luck with this one, although he fought bravely and it was a close fight. It finally bit and paralyzed him… and that was it for Bog for now… (party hero pts = 2; brave Bog saved!)
Meanwhile, you had guided the surviving Giranois back to the Spider-Temple, where the swamp-spiders had little reaction but seemed encouraged that you'd defeated the cruel spider-people. You were welcomed to stay and they could rest too. The three-banded-legged spider told Fraud it would accompany you back to the ruins to see what was there. And so you returned the next day. You immediately found that Bog was gone, and seeing the body of the Monster-Spider you figured the worst may have happened. Tracks led to their lair and you faced them down there, with Boamund drawing them outside. It was a tough fight as always: Boamund and then Fraud faced the two creatures while the swamp-spider leapt onto the back of one of them and dealt it numerous nasty bites; Miguel joined in melee and helped. Soon enough you had a hard-won victory, and were relieved to find the insensate Bog still alive in a web-shroud inside. You freed him and considered what to do next; perhaps returning again to the Spider-Temple so he could recover? (or did you return, I forget)
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