Encounter 2.1.5: Gremlins in the Forest
Preliminaries
The party has chosen to travel to Spirit Lake by cutting through the Feywood forest. Amalthea will warn them that there are portions of the forest not patrolled by the Fey that answer to the council -- she means the gremlins. There are also large natural predators that she hopes you don't get to carried away with as they are important to keeping the balance of the forest.Travel through the forest is at half-speed due to terrain. The party could choose to travel by sticking close to the river, but then they'd have to go through the Lizard Fens (again).
You start your journey through the forest. The groundcover is dense, and though you can occasionally follow natural trails made by the deer or elk that live in the forest, you find the going rather slow. But the first several days are uneventful -- no threatening creatures have showed up -- at least not for the first six days in travel.
As the party is setting up camp on night 6, the Quickling attack will occur - just as the sun is setting. The quickling will attack the most "foreign" creature it sees in the party. Following is the preference order for targets: Orcs, Half-orcs, Dwarves, Humans, Halflings, Goblins, Gnomes, Lizardfolk, Birdfolk, Catfolk, Ratfolk, Half-Elves, Elves, then Kobolds.
As you are setting up your camp, one of you suddenly feels a sharp slashing sensation across the back of your thighs, and as you spin around, you see a greenish blur darting away at surprising speed. A quiet cackling laugh can be heard. A second later, there's a creature - no more than two and a half feet tall - standing about 100' away. It is holding a shortsword that appears to be glistening in the fading sunlight. The creature's skin, long, flowing hair, and even clothing are all drab green shades that are designed to blend well into the forest background. Everybody Roll Initiative.
Party of 4
Encounter will be with 1 Elite Quickling (Lvl 4).Party of 5
Encounter will be with 1 Quickling (Lvl 3) & 1 Weak Quickling (Lvl 2).Party of 6
Encounter will be with 2 Quicklings (Lvl 3).Tactics
The quicklings will be invisible at the beginning of the combat, and the first target will be Flat-footed to the attack. Their combat turns will consist of them Striding their 100', Striking, then Striding 100' away again. On defense, they will use their Can't Catch Me reaction to boost AC by 2 when attacked, and get a 100' Stride after attack resolves. If there are two, the first will attack, dart away, and on the next turn it will Fade From View before moving away again. The other will then attack -- so it appears as if there's only one of them. Only when both end up unable to Fade due to the cooldown will it be obvious that the party is fighting two creatures. But even then, their strategy will be dart in, attack, dart away. Remember that Fighters get an Attack of Opportunity on the darting away.The first attacks from each creature involved will also involve the use of the Lethargy Poison. If the hits are successful, resolve the poison effects. There are no long-lasting ill effects from this poison. At worst, an affected player will fall asleep, but will awaken in 1d4 hours.
Aftermath
The quicklings each start the fight with three vials of Lethargy Poison. Any unused poison will be recoverable from defeated quicklings. Empty vials will also be recoverable. The short swords are the only other recoverable loot - the quicklings don't carry cash.The remainder of the night is uneventful. You all awake in the morning, perform your morning preparations, and then break camp to continue on your way.
THIS ENDS THE CURRENT ENCOUNTER
NPCs/Statblocks Needed
Maps Needed
Plot type
Encounter
Parent Plot
Unarmed Actions:
DisarmGrappleDisarm
Attack
1 Action
Requirements: You are Trained in Athletics. You have at least one hand free. The target can’t be more than one size larger than you.
You try to knock something out of an opponent’s grasp. Attempt an Athletics check against the opponent’s Reflex DC.
Critical Success: You knock the item out of the opponent’s grasp. It falls to the ground in the opponent’s space.
Success: You weaken your opponent’s grasp on the item. Until the start of that creature’s turn, attempts to Disarm the opponent of that item gain a +2 circumstance bonus, and the target takes a –2 circumstance penalty to attacks with the item or other checks requiring a firm grasp on the item.
Failure: Nothing happens.
Critical Failure: You lose your balance and become Flat-footed until the start of your next turn.
ShoveGrapple
Attack
1 Action
Requirements: You have at least one free hand. Your target cannot be more than one size larger than you.
You attempt to grab an opponent with your free hand. Attempt an Athletics check against their Fortitude DC. You can also Grapple to keep your hold on a creature you already grabbed.
Critical Success: Your opponent is restrained until the end of your next turn unless you move or your opponent Escapes.
Success: Your opponent is grabbed until the end of your next turn unless you move or your opponent Escapes.
Failure: You fail to grab your opponent. If you already had the opponent grabbed or restrained using a Grapple, those conditions on that creature end.
Critical Failure: If you already had the opponent grabbed or restrained, it breaks free. Your target can either grab you, as if it succeeded at using the Grapple action against you, or force you to fall and land prone.
TripShove
Attack
1 Action
Requirements: You have at least one hand free. The target can’t be more than one size larger than you.
You push an opponent away from you. Attempt an Athletics check against your opponent’s Fortitude DC.
Critical Success: You push your opponent up to 10 feet away from you. You can Stride after it, but you must move the same distance and in the same direction.
Success: You push your opponent back 5 feet. You can Stride after it, but you must move the same distance and in the same direction.
Failure: Nothing happens.
Critical Failure: You lose your balance, fall, and land Prone.
Trip
Attack
1 Action
Requirements: You have at least one hand free. The target can’t be more than one size larger than you.
You try to knock an opponent to the ground. Attempt an Athletics check against your opponent’s Reflex DC.
Critical Success: The target falls and lands Prone, and takes 1d6 Bludgeoning damage.
Success: The target falls and lands Prone.
Failure: Nothing happens.
Critical Failure: You lose your balance, fall, and land Prone.
Conditions:
Flat-footedGrabbedFlat-Footed Condition
You’re distracted or otherwise unable to focus your full attention on defense. You take a –2 circumstance penalty to AC. Some effects give you the flat-footed condition only to certain creatures or against certain attacks. Others - especially conditions — can make you universally flat-footed against everything. If a rule doesn’t specify that the condition applies only to certain circumstances, it applies to all of them; for example, many effects simply say “The target is flat-footed.”
ImmobilizedGrabbed Condition
You’re held in place by another creature, giving you the Flat-footed and Immobilized conditions. If you attempt a manipulate action while grabbed, you must succeed at a DC 5 flat check or it is lost; roll the check after spending the action, but before any effects are applied.
ProneImmobilized Condition
You can’t use any action with the move trait. If you’re immobilized by something holding you in place and an external force would move you out of your space, the force must succeed at a check against either the DC of the effect holding you in place or the relevant defense (usually Fortitude DC) of the monster holding you in place.
RestrainedProne Condition
You’re lying on the ground. You are Flat-footed and take a –2 circumstance penalty to attack rolls. The only move actions you can use while you’re prone are Crawl and Stand. Standing up ends the prone condition. You can Take Cover while prone to hunker down and gain cover against ranged attacks, even if you don’t have an object to get behind, gaining a +4 circumstance bonus to AC against ranged attacks (but you remain flat-footed).
If you would be knocked prone while you’re Climbing or Flying, you fall. You can’t be knocked prone when Swimming.
Restrained Condition
You’re tied up and can barely move, or a creature has you pinned. You have the Flat-footed and Immobilized conditions, and you can’t use any actions with the attack or manipulate traits except to attempt to Escape or Force Open your bonds. Restrained overrides Grabbed.
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