Session 18: Attack on the Boromar Base
General Summary
Approaching the Base
- The session started after Maleakos escorted Frankie away and out of The Cogs. Meanwhile, Dooturr was scribbling a note on his parchment that he has referred to in the past.
- Philip finally spoke up after remaining in silence for most of the conversation with Frankie. He first addressed Verin, saying that we should be much more cautious when the lives of others are in your hands, and avoid fighting unless absolutely necessary.
- He then said he had been attempting to gauge the conversation as best he could, weighing both perspectives as best he could. The problem, it seemed, is that perhaps not everyone in the SCS could be as virtuous as Dooturr, the Boromar Clan as Frankie.
- He went on to say that if the plan was simply to kill all of the Boromar Clan, then is that not just the kind genocide that the Crypt Crew is trying to prevent? What, then, would make them any different from the enemy they are trying to fight?
- The moral implications of this were discussed, with the concession that the plan was not just to kill every halfling they saw. Verin asked Dooturr if there was a chance of diplomacy, as this was also Philip's preferred approach, but it seemed he was not interested. Verin also asked Dooturr how realistic it would be to assemble a force of the SCS. Dooturr responded, saying if he happened to have a direct line of communication, then perhaps in a couple days one could be assembled.
- Philip then propose a middle ground: if a violent assault nor diplomacy was an option, then perhaps a more subtle approach was necessary. Sneak around, find what information they could, and form ideas from there. Importantly, gauge the hostility of the enemy, and only kill if provoked.
- And so, the 6 Crypt Crew, a disguised Philip, Kagastar, Friendly, Dukemarriot, Hap, Sylvain, and Thanos set off for the Boromar base.
The Cave in the Cogs
- Eventually, the Crew made it to the location Starr had given them: a cave in the side of The Cogs, almost 200 feet wide and at least the same in depth. Rubble was scattered about the dirt and stone ground, and rocks littered the landscape. A wooden fence surrounded a gap in the tall stone in the back, and small stone buildings were established inside the fence. Lava pools and chasms also littered the space.
- Guarding the front gate were two massive individuals that looked like upright hippos in military wear, wielding strange mechanical devices, while two more patrolled the outside of the gate. A bored-looking halfling with a bow stood guard in a wooden tower.
- The Crew hunched behind one of the large pieces of rubble, and gauged the situation. They took in as much of the landscape as they could, and Dooturr decided to doot his trumpet and go invisible. He explored more of the landscape, and walked amongst the stone buildings before deciding to attempt to climb the archer's tower. He managed to get past the gate and up the archer's tower relatively silently, but his yell that followed was less silent.
- The startled halfling swiped at Dooturr, managing to land a blow on the invisible skeleton. After he became visible, the hippo guards aimed at Dooturr, warning him to drop his weapon and surrender. The rest of the Crew began to rush in, with Sylvain and Ashpin leading the charge, Philip and Verin keeping their distance. Ashpin and Viribus once again became Enlarged by Verin and blessed by Philip .
- The halfling tackled Dooturr off the tower, who immediately ran towards the back of the base where the gaps in the cliff face was and heard...something.
- The hippo guards, after the target of Dooturr had fleed, instead aimed their weapons at the incoming Crew, warning them to drop their weapons, but still not firing. Ashpin shouted as he charged, saying that if they had nothing to do with the Boromars, then they had no quarrel at all, but continued to charge.
- The guards seemed hesitant to fire, instead opting to prepare a shot for after they were attacked, which they were. One of them was eliminated by the combined Blasts of Verin and Viribus, but he would be the only to fall.
- More individuals emerged from the stone buildings, one of which was a golden mechanical device with the head of a dragon and bolt launchers attached to it. Dooturr, still stuck behind enemy lines, was quickly swarmed by the multitude of halflings emerging from the stone buildings. Another hippo guard climbed a ladder onto the top of a stone building, lying down and taking careful aim at whoever he could see.
- More halflings emerged from tents in the camp, attacking Verin, who had been sticking towards the back of the battle, throwing golden blasts of energy and small golden healing orbs to those who desperately needed them. He tried moving closer to his allies, fending off their attacks with arcane shields.
- The Enlarged Viribus, who managed to slay one of the hippo-like guards, encountered a rather peculiar individual amidst the rubble he was taking cover in. A very nimble bird-like individual, who mocked Viribus with a remark of Viribus' utterance. His blade strikes seemed the find their way perfectly through all the kinks in Viribus' armor, and very quickly ducked out of harm's way afterwards. Even with the help of Ashpin, the creature managed to nimbly escape with uncanny speed.
- Ashpin was on the receiving end of many of the unfamiliar device's blasts, piercing through his armor and even through the gaps. Sylvain was felled by a guard who shot him in retaliation, after bearing down on him menacingly. Through his own healing, as well as Philip's, he managed to stay conscious for much of the fight. Philip was doing all he could to support his friends, but his divine energy began to run out.
- N'nchyk was struggling in the front lines, doing his best to maintain his enhanced cloud of spores. The hippo guards were keeping him at bay, and were mostly resisting his fungus attacks. The slow approach of Dukemarriot and Friendly was for naught, as they were blown to bits by the mechanical device before they could make it in time. Meanwhile, Hap was launching arrow after arrow on the enemy.
- Dooturr became surrounded, and in desperation, climbed onto the same roof where one of the marksman was camping. He managed to land a blow on the unsuspecting foe, but one of the halflings managed to follow him onto the roof, and between the two, they...did something.
- Slowly, the Crew started to become overwhelmed. The golden bolt launcher had Thanos harpooned, and was reeling him in while launching bolts and explosives at the rest of the party. The hippo guards fired shot after shot, thoughts of restraint gone. They, too, were launching explosives into groups of enemies. Quite a few halflings began to approach on all sides, and the bird creature was making quick work of both Viribus and Verin. He then began to make his way to the front of the cave, where Kagastar and Hap were squatting.
- Eventually, Viribus, who seemed out of options, managed to duck behind one of the stone ruins. The hippo guards demanded that the rest of the Crypt Crew drop their weapons, and the fighting began to cease. Some of the halflings began to collect the Crew's weapons and spellcasting foci. Thanos, who had been commanded to attack, mindlessly continued to attack the bolt launcher, which seemed wholly unaffected by his blade's blows, until one of the guards restrained him.
- And so, the guards, halflings, and bolt launcher readied their weapons at whoever moved. Viribus, unsure of what to do, crouched hidden behind the ruins. The fate of Dooturr, Hap, and Kagastar was unknown. Most of the Crew's weapons were confiscated. Much of their magic had been drained. The halfling that had been in the tower grinned smugly and said, "Let's have a chat."
Date begun:
24 Zarantyr, 998 YK
Date ended:
24 Zarantyr, 998 YK
Party level:
6
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