Yelm is still fierce and angry in the vault of heaven, and there seems to be fire even on the wind. Hessa, and her poor mount, miss the sheltering shade of the little forest as they plod over the grassy hills.
As Hessa's path draws nearer to Earthshaker Temple, the wilderness gives way to settled lands. She wasn't exactly sure when she left Lunar Tarsh and passed into Old Tarsh; the architecture all looks the same, and all the people look and speak and act the same, but Tarshites who live round Mount Kero Fin and the Earthshaker Temple are the sworn enemies of the Lunar Empire.
A unit of militia soldiers on patrol is the first sign that she has, in fact, crossed into enemy territory; the sergeant wears a straight sword at his belt, unlike the curving scimitars favoured by the Lunars to honour their Red Moon Goddess.
The soldiers show a brief interest in the traveller. Hessa is happy to have someone to talk to besides her horse, and introduces herself as a messenger from anti-Lunar agents in Dunstop, bearing coded tablets for certain parties in Wintertop. They tell her the lords of Wintertop have been quiet of late, and everything in the city is peaceful; they hope her news won't change that. "I'm just the bearer. I've not read it. I don't even know the code," said Hessa, quoting verbatim a Lunar soldier she once spied on in an alehouse to add a soupçon of veracity to her tale. The soldiers wish her luck and send her on her way.
[I rolled their response as a Rumour--
background, government
±4 good fortune/ruin
Roughly / Tranquil
Q: Anything amiss at temple? unlikely : O5 C3 - yes, but... Listen check needed to overhear something; Listen (65%): 16, ok
Q: What is overheard? UNE: mysterious - rumour - community (rolling another rumour, as it seems like a good way to get sub-plots/side-quests/Threads going...)
Rumour: misc- warning
±3 gain/disaster
spread / danger]
The evening sky is hazy and forlorn when Hessa first spots the Earthshaker Temple in the distance. There's a leaden feeling in her stomach as she draws near, but being lost in the crowds outside it seems safer than then making camp at a remove.
[Spot Hidden to find safe-looking group of pilgrims to camp near 50%: 54, oops
Reaction=uncertain, they leave her alone
Q: Do the malefactors appear? 50/50: O1 C7 - no]
After a restless night, she's relieved to be up with the dawn and on the road before most of the other pilgrims have stirred from their slumber. The road leading up through the foothills of is as well-tended as any one might find in the Lunar heartland, and her horse makes excellent time. But there is surprisingly little traffic.
[random encounter = dwarf
reaction = active dislike
I printed out a copy of FANGS for quick monster stats, along with some pages from the Old School Resource Pack, so I'm set for encounters for a while. For this first encounter, I just went with Fangs' Dwarf #1. As usual for the first combat of a campaign, the game mechanics will be shown in greater detail for the benefit of readers who are less familiar with (or endeared of) the game system.]
Just after midday, Hessa comes to a narrow pass with a dead tree felled to mostly block it. A dwarf stands before it, clad in a scale hauberk and a bulbous bronze helm. "Hold you there," he shouts in thickly-accented Tarshite. "Give your gold or not you pass!" Were she a better rider, she could jump both dwarf and barrier, but as he is punctuating his demand with an aimed crossbow, she dare not take risks.
Hessa dismounts at a distance, lest she injure her mount, and prepares to fight. Hessa closes about half the distance to the dwarf, crouching as best she might behind her shield and gripping her spear as if she aims to throw it.
[round 1]
The dwarf mumbles a spell over his weapon, lets her draw as near as he dares, then shoots. The magic makes one bolt into three, but the dwarf's aim is risible, and Hessa hears the missiles whistle over her head. She changes her grip on her spear and advances the remaining distance as the dwarf hastily readies his warhammer & shield.
[Playing theatre-of-the-mind, so for simplicity I ruled that movement would take Hessa's full action. He cast Multimissile-2, so got 3 attacks at 30%: 88, 62, 37 all missed even without adjusting for H's Defence]
Hessa stabs with her spear, but overcautiously, and barely scrapes the dwarf's shield. He makes a clumsy swing with his hammer, and she and even clumsier block with the bottom edge of her shield. The force of the blow is too great for the dried-out leather of the strap. It snaps in half, and the shield falls to the ground at her feet. Perhaps she'd ought to have oiled it like the commander had said.
[Hessa has a SIZe advantage over the dwarf, so wins the initiative, attacking on Strike Rank 6 (vs his SR 7). Neither her attack roll nor the dwarf's shield parry succeeded, so it's a clean miss. Then the dwarf attacks, also missing, but Hessa rolls a 98, Fumble. d% on the melee fumble table = shield strap breaks.]
[round 3]
The dwarf sneers and says words in a language Hessa's never heard, yet cannot fail to understand. She responds with some equally crude Tarshite argot.
Her spear darts out with all her weight behind it. The bronze tip finds a weak spot in the dwarf's shield and bursts through nearly an arm's length, scraping along the side of his stout helm. Hessa lets go the spear, and the dwarf is compelled to drop his shield. His hammer swings angrily at Hessa, but she dances nimbly out of reach.
[The dwarf has a 5% Defence, so Hessa's adjusted attack chance is (40-5=)35%. She rolled an 06, which is under 1/5 what she needed, so the attack Impales, inflicting full base damage (7) + rolled damage (1D6+1) + her damage bonus (1D4) for a total of 15. The dwarf rolled a successful Parry, so interposed his shield. The shield can absorb 12 points, so three points of damage got through to (1d20=) his head, but were blocked by his 4-point helm.
Weapons which Impale can get stuck; the chance of removing them whilst fighting is twice the unmodified chance to Impale (in Hessa's case, 2/5 of 40, or 16%) and happens, if at all, on the following round. She decided not to bother.
The dwarf rolled a 20 on his attack, which would have hit (30% skill) if not for Hessa's 15% Defence.]
Hessa draws her dagger. She hangs back, afraid to get within reach of the dwarf with her shorter weapon. Both weapons swish several times through empty air.
[They both attack on SR 7 now; Hessa hesitates so she can parry (so attacks on SR 8). But no attack or parry rolls succeed for 3 rounds.]
[round 7]
Then the dwarf overextends, and Hessa strikes before he can recover. Her dagger pierces the cuirbouilli protecting the dwarf's upper arm, and doesn't stop until it scrapes against bone. His arm falls useless and the warhammer tumbles from his grasp.
[Dwarf missed, her parry failed. Then she rolled a hit against his failed parry. She rolled 7 damage; -3 for armour meant 4 points got through, dropping total HP to 9 and the right arm (3hp) location to -1.]
[round 8]
The dwarf backpedals, casting a spell over his injury. The magic takes hold, and is in the process of knitting his torn flesh back together when Hessa springs forward with a mighty swing, opening a gaping wound in his thigh. The dwarf falls over on his backside.
[The Dwarf cast Healing-4. As it affects his own body, he doesn't need a focus, so it takes effect on his DEX SR +1/point of POW expended (4+2=6); Had he taken damage, it would have spoilt the casting (but cost no POW). 4 for the Healing + 2 for the Multimissile earlier brings the dwarf's current POW down to 9, but cures all damage he's taken so far.
But on SR 7 he's hit for (7-3=) 4 more damage. With his right leg at 0, he falls.]
[round 9]
The dwarf just manages to draw his scimitar in an attempt to fight from the ground, but Hessa has no difficulty in getting past his guard, opening a terrible bleeding rent in his left shin.
[There's a +20% bonus for attacking a target on the ground. Attacking from the ground halves skill, but parries are unaffected. Hessa hit for 9-3=6 damage to the left leg, bringing it to -2 and the dwarf's total HP to 3.
Q: Does the dwarf surrender? likely (3+): O3 C6 - yes]
As she circles for another go, the dwarf stretches out his left hand and lowers his blade. "Surrender! Not to kill!"
"Fine by me," says Hessa as she saunters over to pick up the crossbow lying in the dust. It's of real dwarven make, probably the finest device she's ever seen in her life. "Oooooh, this is nice. Think I'll have it as your ransom."
[inconsequential random encounters redacted.
Via Cities, the tavern she seeks is of (1d3=) Average quality, as is the food. Its clientèle are mostly warriors and their ilk.]
The Red Moon is a nondescript drinking house in the poor quarter, halfway down a dismal narrow street. The shingle above the door immediately arrests Hessa's attention, emblazoned as it is with a cartoony image of a Lunar hoplite baring his spotty bottom. It's so absurd she laughs in spite of her self, forgetting for a moment the utter blasphemy of it all. And when she does remember, it makes her laughter feel terribly inappropriate, and thus harder to suppress.
Once she's finally composed herself, she goes in. The place is filled with warriors and their hangers-on, a rowdy bunch kept under control by the scarred mound of sinew leaning over a troll-maul by the door. Hessa marches straight up to the bar and tells the barkeep she's been sent to deliver message to Baldakkal.
[Q: Is Baldakkal here? doubtful : O3 C5 - no]
"He ain't here. You'll need to come back."
"Tomorrow night?"
"Mmmhhh."
"Is there anywhere I can stay? You got rooms here?"
[Q: Room available? 50/50: O4 C4 - yes, but...]
"Not here. Try down at the Anvil. That way, two streets over. Tell 'em Rusun sent ya."
The Anvil's not the worst inn Hessa's ever been in, but it's well within her budget (so nearly). She hands over 3 silver coins for food and lodging to the proprietress. The beldam's eyes go wide when she sees them.
"Hey! These is Lunars! I run a respectable establishment here. You pays with Guilders, or you gets another room!"
"I won 'em off a Sartarite mercenary, didn't I? An' he got 'em as war booty. They're the same weight as Guilders, so I don't see what you're on about!"
"Well, that being the case..."
The coins disappear under her skirts. Hessa takes the meagre provender she's purchased up to her room, scarfs it down, then collapses on the lumpy straw mattress.
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