LotFP - Thelian Islands Campaign wrap up

Well, I thought that after the end of the Caste Zagyg campaign, we'll still be playing this one but, since Joe's face to face campaign (which he's been running for about 15 months) has wrapped up, so has ours.

Although there were only a few sessions, it was a great time and, I make Joe's words mine, everyone enjoyed it, learned a lot and, most of all, had fun. I hope to game again with you guys soon. Joe, Chris, Frotz and Sarah you rock.

Game on!

LotFP - Thelian Islands Campaign

On August 31th we gathered for our #6 LotFP game on G+ hangout.

Having one last day before the fleet that would raid Blood Island was prepared to sail, Antii decided to try his luck once again, this time in a fancy place. He spent plenty of silver on women, lodging, food and beer. He also told all his tales once again trying to impress the ladies. By the end of the night he not only managed to get laid, but the girl became his follower!

First, I named her Lutka which is the Finnish word for trollop (since that's what the NPC was), and then rolled pretty decent abilities (Cha 17, Con 14, Dex 11, Int 12, Str 7, Wis 12). I just couldn't resist placing the 17 on Charisma, and made her a redhead. So I guess now I have my own Flame Princess! ;)

The next day we started the 32-day sea trip to Blood Island. The first ten days passes uneventfully, until a giant squid crossed our path. A week later we encountered a merchant ship from our own clan, with whom we traded some goods and news. Three days later we got scared to death when a giant sea turtle rocked the ship! We were lucky it didn't continue to attack. Four days after that, we encountered more friendly creatures, half horse and half fish, that curiously stared at us. Hrok threw some apples at them, which they gladly ate. The next day hundreds of sea creatures, named locathah, mounted on giant eels passed us by, and then six days later, without encountering any other creatures, we arrived to the island.

It's a rocky island spotted here and there with thick forests. There's a village and a dock, everything in ruins and no one to be seen. Kelbar, who leads the expedition and came to find his father's body and sword, says the villagers fled because the constant attacks of sea zombies and clawed men. We anchored the ship and went ashore in two boats. One group would go to explore a nearby quarry and we would go to the village. The ship would wait for us til the next day and then go back.

The village has a keep in the center and four large buildings around it, a couple of barracks, a warehouse and a common area, all in bad shape. Everything was surrounded by a horseshoe-shaped earth rampart, that ended in a pair of also ruined towers.. We explored one of the barracks and found nothing, so we moved to the other barrack and discovered a trap door under all the debris. Chain mail suits, swords and shields were hidden down there. We went back to the first one and looked in the same place, finding another trapdoor and a couple of kegs of lantern in the room below. We found nothing of value in the common area or the warehouse, so we moved to the towers. While approaching one of them, three sea zombies emerged from the sea and attacked us. We killed them but in the fight Kelbar fell. All the noise attracted four more that were inside one of the towers, so we fired some missiles at them and ran to the keep, where we climbed a ruined wall. From above we managed to kill them before they engaged into melee. In the keep we found a serviceable catapult that was loaded into the magic boat and folded again.

Then, we decided to find the other group that went to the quarry. A river and a densely forested area had to be crossed before reaching the place. We used the magic boat as a bridge to cross the stream and ventured into the woods. In a clear area we came across a couple of sheep, which we found odd. And we were right to suspect, because they turned into worgs and attacked! After killing the foul creatures we found some ruins; a set of five 12' tall marble statues with inscriptions in an ancient script of our language. We didn't know yet but they were of the Old Gods. Inspecting one of them (a screaming warrior with a sword) we found it descended into the ground and into a subterranean complex. Each statue lowered into a different 60'x60'  room and there were two other round rooms, one full of rooms for Hrok's delight and the other with 6 paintings different scenes about a column totem, a battle, a demon spitting lightning at the totem, war against the hobgoblins, some ships at sea, the totem in the hands of the hobgoblins and the Old Gods ooking at the ships. We decided to spend the night underground and make it to the coast at first light.

The next day we rushed through the woods and were surprised by three troblins. Hrok summoned a giant ice toad and we managed to kill two while one fell asleep, and we put the creatures to the flame. Annar fell but Signy managed to heal him enough to find our way back to the coast and to the ship. The other didn't showed on time so we left. Although Hrok asked not to mention the complex we found, Antii couldn't keep his mouth shut and bragged about how he made it with Lutka on every room!

Our journey back was no less exciting. On the second day we came by a horde of more that 100 koalinth (marine hobgoblins) but nothing happened. A couple of days later some friendly sea lions crossed our path and Hrok killed one of them, which the sailor found a bad omen. Almost a week after that we saw a carnivorous whale. We decided to go after it and kill it, and so we did. We cut and salted some of it and tied the rest to the rail. Unfortunately, the next day a dragon turtle attacked us and we only managed to escape by cutting the whale carcass loose. After that, several days later, we saw sea gargoyles and sahuagines who kept their distance. When we were about to reach our destination, we found some tritons on sea horses who left after Hrok threw some apples at them.

LotFP - Thelian Islands Campaign

On August 24th we got together again on G+ for our #5 game. It was a game in which the dices didn't favored me, but I had a lot of fun anyway.

We got back to the village in  our new longboat, baptized "The Fanged Glacier". Everyone was shocked to see us in such a wonderful ship, and Signy said it was "a gift from the Polar Bear", which caused the envy of her, now, former mentor. 

Antii, with after some beers and trying to attract some followers, told what they've found, and how they've fought the ghouls, skeletons and rats, making him the main character of the tale. He also talked about the luminous fungi and the spinning statue. With a +4 bonus I had to roll under my Charisma score (11), but rolled an 18, so no followers for Antii. I guess he went over the top with his tale. Annar and Signy, on the contrary, managed to have attracted a follower each, a young boy and a girl respectively.

The next day everyone said goodbye to their loved ones before leaving the island. Antii's dad gave him his "lucky coin", a worn out gold coin like the ones the group had found the previous days. With a leather chord he tied it around his neck. Many of the survivors from the merchant ship, attacked by the hobgoblin raiders, joined the party as crew for the longboat. Supplies and goods for sale were loaded on the ship, and we set sail to Bear Island, 800 miles away to the SW.

The Fanged Glacier

The first ten day of the voyage were uneventful, until we sighted a merchant ship. We approached and exchanged some good and information before continuing. Four days later we were attacked by four giant eels. We managed to kill three of them (Antii missed every swing at the creatures) and drove away the remaining badly wounded, losing only two crewmen. Two of the dead eels were brought on board, cut into pieces and salted. Before reaching our destination we came across some tritons, who kept their distance, and also dolphins and a giant manta-ray.

After 30 days at sea Antii and Annar went to find a place with good booze and bad women, while Signy went to try speak with the authorities of the city, and Hrok sought someone to sell his mushrooms. Everyone also sold his share of the salted eels for 75 sp + 1d20 sp (I rolled a 19!). At the tavern, having plenty of beer, Antii bragged about he repelled the hobgoblin raid and the giant eels.

- "OK", said JoetheDM, "roll 1d20, only on a 19 or 20 you fail to get laid."

- "Oh no! I rolled a 20!", I said to my dismay.

(laughs)

- "Well, if you roll low you vomit on the girl, if you roll high you fall asleep fail to get a boner."

- "I rolled low..."

(more laughs)

Meanwhile, Signy was received by the shamans of the Bear Clan in the best part of the city, where she warned them of the hobgoblin plans to attack the trade routes, and Hrok, who had found that he needed to go to some caves to sell his mushrooms, drank all he could without being bothered. Signy introduced  her acolyte to the shamans and an initiation ritual was performed.

Signy (right) and her acolyte after the ritual.

The group has now several places to go: continue West to Cowl Island, explore Bear Island, joins a raid against the hobgoblins, or go to the contested Blood Island with its thick forests and a fabled pyramid. To Blood Island it'll be. Antii bought a suit of chain mail and a sword, just in case.

LotFP - Thelian Islands Campaign

On July 27th we had our 3rd LotFP game via G+ hangout.

Having defeated the hobgoblin raiders, we found among them a waterproof scroll case containing a map with all the human trade routes. The hobgoblins certainly had spied in the major human cities. Fearing they might return to get back such precious information, sentries were to be alert throughout the day.

Meanwhile went back to further explore the ruins we discovered last session. Hrok was delighted with his new pet, a perfect man-sized d20, summoned from the Plane of Geometry.

In what once were the bedchambers of the mage that supposedly lived here, we found a chest containing a magic backpack (a Hewards Handy Haversack) and a satchel with more gold and silver old coins than we've seen before (100 g.p. bearing a head in the obverse and a crown in the reverse; 200 s.p. with a hammer and a crown). We came to a collapsed passage and decided to go back to the village, and get some people to clear it. We also talked with Grako, the village elder, and Sleven, the village shaman, about performing a ritual in the sweat lodge to try to foresee what will happen in the near future. It was some crazy stuff about a tree and leaves with bear form scattered by the wind across the oceans, and reaching new lands.

The day after the ritual we returned to the ruins, in which the cave in was already cleared. We discovered a large room with 10 sarcophagi, 4 of them opened (probably the 4 skeletons we encountered here). We opened the others one by one finding: a pair of earrings and necklace, two rings and a circlet, a jewelled dagger, a blue book with symbols, a dagger with winged hilt (it was lost into the night), a suit of chainmail and a sword (screaming man), a scimitar and a poison trap.

On August 10th we gathered for our 4th LotFP game via G+ hangout.

Joe told us he was going to use the sample dungeon (The Tower of Zenopus) on the Holmes Blue Book, which I found really awesome because I never had the chance to play that classic. Sarah suggested we used a shared Google Drawing so we all could see the map. Great idea!

I thought the encounter with the ghouls was our end. Signy got paralyzed, as was the hobgoblin summoned by Hrok, and then Antii, who was trying to sneak attack one ghoul from behind Hrok's large d20, but Hrok moved it ruining his attempt, got paralyzed too! Hrok fled with his dice chased by the remaining ghoul who followed him to the village, where it was hacked to pieces. By the time he went back we were already free. We found a couple of gems and some gold pieces.

We then killed some giant rats (silver pieces and silver dagger), discovered a robed skeleton with its skull crushed (bone scroll case with a scroll of Levitate) , killed 4 skeletons hidden in web covered niches, found a trap door to a collapsed tower (bone wand), a bronze sun dial and a mask we didn't dared to touch and ended in a cave with a fresh water stream and phosphorous fungi. Hrok sent his dice downstream but it failed to return. Giving it up as lost we continued to the NE and found a similar cave. We were about to go back when the dice appeared behind us. Hrok asked it several questions about where it went and seen, but all answers were negative. When asked by Antii  if he had seen anything we were carrying, it answered yes. The dice began rolling to the NW when asked where and we followed.

We entered a big cave with a sandy beach in where there was a strange clarity, even though there was no light coming into it. We could also hear the sea, but couldn't see it. On the beach there were several bodies (we assumed they were pirates), two ruined boats, three wooden chests all rotten and a small wooden box in perfect conditions. The chests contained a huge treasure of silver pieces and gems. The small box had three words carved on it: jolly, dragonship and batten, that when spoken transformed it into a rowboat, a longship and back the box. We got our own ship to get out of the island! An island we always lived in but no one remembered a cave like this. It was then that Signy took everything off and swam out to sea through the cavern wall. It was an illusion! Clever pirates...

After gathering all the treasure, we continued exploring the place and discovered  some hobgoblin skeletons. They were not as old as what we've found so far, so they must know of the place. Then we busted open a door and found a spinning statue. You spin the statue and the door it points automatically opens. Even though he couldn't understand why somebody would do something like that, Antii tinkered with the mechanism enough to understand it.

And with all that the group returned to the village.

Antii Durniksson

He's my first character for the Lamentations of the Flame Princess RPG campaign (DM: Joethelawyer) that we play every other Friday through G+ hangout..

Antii Durniksson son of Durnik son of Eino, the village brewers, lives in one of the many Thelian islands that dots the Northern Ocean. He is a strong and healthy lad, although not very brave, of the Polar Bear tribe. He participates in the warrior-like activities more due to peer pressure and the fear of losing face, than his own free will. He prefers to keep a low profile and enjoys life outdoors on his own, hunting and foraging. He also likes tinker with things, like simple mechanisms and spring traps. If he has the chance, he'll also attempt to lighten the inebriated patrons of the tavern.

He just wants to leave this boring island and live all the tales his grandfather told him about foreign lands. Although the last events on the island, a hobgoblin raid and the discovery of underground ruins, have brought him some wealth and attracted some attention on his person.

Cha 11 Con 15 Dex 10 Int 9 Str 19 Wis 12

LotFP - Theilan Islands Campaign

Last Friday on G+ hangout, we begun JoetheLawyer's Lamentations of the Flame Princess campaign set in a harsh and gritty world.

"You live on an island in the northern ocean. The island is divided in two, with the ocean flowing between the two halves. Most of the island rises from the ocean with no beach. The only sections of the island that actually has a beach is the area where the island is split in half. That gap between islands is perhaps 20-40 feet wide, and is full of jagged rocks. At high tide, the fishing boats are sent out, and at low tide nets are set to trap fish. At high tide again, the fishing boats come back in what whatever haul they were able to land. The island itself is in the far north, between the main island of your clan, and the islands of the hobgoblins. Still, it has some level of protection from long ship raids because no long ship is ever able to navigate the rocks or high cliffs to land. They have to anchor and send in shallow boats at high tide in that narrow strip of land between the islands to even begin to attack you. And there are lookouts to prevent such a thing. Also of note, there are several hot springs on the island. One large one in the village, a common meeting place for villagers after a hard days work, and two others across the island. Other than occasional seals, walrus, and birds of various type, there is no wildlife on the island.
 

Your culture is best described as Viking/Scandinavian in style. Your religious worship is defined by the clan you live in. Your clan is the Clan of the Polar Bear. The other two clans are the Winter Wolf and the Snow Leopard. You fight each other of the typical stuff- wine, women and possessions. Most often though you fight your ancestral enemies, the hobgoblins. Sometimes with other clans, sometimes alone. The hobgoblins occupy the largest island in the area, and always have, since before the time of the old gods betrayal. They are typically stronger, better sailors, and build better ships than your people. Typical ships are long ships.
 

The only other thing your island produces are strong clay pots and jugs. They aren't ornamental or anything, but they are strong due to the rich veins of earth from which such items can be made. The only problem is that the island has to import much wood, as it is small, and mostly deforested. Driftwood is often used. Sometimes you are able to get coal in trade."

The characters (all human) are:

Annar Svearson, a male Fighter played by Frotz.
Signy Bjornsdottr, a female Shaman of the Polar Bear played by Sarah.
Hrok, a male Magic User and "Shitty" his summoned shit monster played by Chris.
Antii Durniksson, a male Specialist played by me.

On the fist session, we finished up the characters and got acquainted with the rules and each other. There was an attack by the hobgoblins to a merchant ship arriving to the village, in which we had the chance to test the combat mechanics. Signy's roar imbued everyone in battle with the spirit of the polar bear, and so, Annar made his name as a fighter by killing several hobs, but Antti almost died in the struggle. Even though both ships were lost, we saved many from the merchant ship, defeated the hobgoblins and captured several, for future sacrifices in the hands of the shaman and magic-user.

Then we explored some ruins that were exposed after an earthquake, in which we found what was left of a magic users's laboratory, bedchambers and library. We encountered some flame-eyed skeletons in what looked like a summoning chamber (lead-covered ). "Shitty" died here so Hrok had to summon another being. I thought this would be the end of our characters, but the dices aligned and he managed to control the creature. We survived the first session.