During their travels in the Reddy Forest the Troupe heard rumours of hobgoblins setting up camp in a Bone Hill Castle. Worried that the hobgoblin fort may lead to more troubles for the town, the Troupe sets off to investigate the castle and see if the rumours are true.
8 Flamerule 1368
According to Martin, the castle is only a few hours south of Reddy Forest. We have a mostly uneventful journey until we come a giant skeleton warrior, it’s bones scraping against its rusted armour.
Viconia tells us that these things can inspire fear, so we reposition while Viconia asks Shar to protect us from the skeleton’s aura.
Fabio and I open with some Magic Missiles as the undead creature lumbers toward us.
The creature shrugs off our magic as if it was nothing. It must have some resistance to the Weave.
Rose charges the skeleton with her spear as Fabio and I summon some protection. Viconia attempts to turn the undead creature.
The skeleton’s sword cuts into Rose’s flesh, almost killing her. She drinks a Potion of Healing and Viconia rushes in close to heal her.
The skeleton isn’t getting hurt by our bullets, so while Mur’Neth and Xan use enchanted missiles, the rest of us switch to our melee weapons and charge the skeleton.
Fabio is almost killed and forced to retreat.
I am hurt too, but we still have some potions to keep us healthy.
Unfortunately we run out, and I am forced to fall back and ask Corellon to restore my wounds.
Fabio is nearly killed again, so he retreats and starts playing his lute for Inspiration.
Rose is next to be forced back, so she switches to her crossbow loaded with enchanted bolts.
Now I am fully healed I rejoin the fight. Mur’Neth’s enchanted arrows run out, so it draws its Heart of the Golem and closes in on the skeleton. It is nearly falling apart by now.
The skeleton is still holding on, smashing into me with its sword again. I fall back and ask the Weave to Blur my appearance while Rose and Mur’Neth keep the skeleton at bay.
The skeleton swings into Mur’Neth, cutting the ooze in half. It collapses into a puddle on the ground. While the skeleton is distracted, Rose manages to force her spear through its skull.
We check Mur’Neth. The puddle is sticky and viscous, but it is clearly dead. The rest of us are cut open and bleeding, except for Xan who came out unscathed. Xan gathers up Mur’Neth’s things and we search the skeleton. The large sword that hurt us so much is enchanted.
Fighting this skeleton has taught Viconia a thing or two.
She gets increased saves against Polymorph and Spells, 1 additional level 2 spell, access to 3rd level spells, 6 more hit points, and 2 more Lore.
With this knowledge she has become closer to Shar, who bestows upon her access to new blessings. She can now animate the dead. I am still wary of necromancers, however.
She can break negative enchantments and curses. We still have Gellana’s curse-removing soap to help us with this for now.
She can inflict blindness and/or deafness on our foes. This can severely weaken any enemy in combat.
She can inflict a disease that drains the strength from evil opponents.
Or just cause physical damage with a touch.
The diseases she inflicts can drain more than just strength.
She can also cure someone, allowing them to see or hear again.
As she can also cure any diseases she or others may inflict.
And she can heal the wounds of those who are seriously injured.
She can dispel magical effects from both the gods and from the Weave.
She can trap an area with a glyph that hurts anyone who comes close.
She can summon gusts of wind that will knock opponents unconscious.
She can purge an area to find hidden or invisible foes.
She can protect her allies from evil.
She can confuse spell casters, causing them to miscast their spells.
She can provide protection from attacks that use Negative Energy.
She can protect her allies from those of a good disposition.
She can remove paralysis from her allies, allowing them to move again.
She can cause a single person to become confused.
She can grant her allies strength in combat.
Finally, she can call upon Shar to blight her enemies.
She thanks Shar for her new blessings. I have also learned a bit more about magic from our recent encounters.
He gets 1 additional level 1 and level 2 spells, 1 more hit point, and 4 Lore.
With our heavy wounds and 1 party member down, we decide it best to return to Restenford once more. Unfortunately we stumble into hobgoblins on the path out of the forest.
Thankfully, Fabio manages to kill one before it can raise its bow.
The other hits Viconia, but she holds on to life for Shar. Both Rose and Xan hit the hobgoblin in the chest and it promptly dies.
We find a Scroll of Sleep on the corpse of one of the hobgoblins. Rose copies the spell to her spellbook.
After we leave the area we don’t encounter any more dangers. We make our way back to Restenford.
9 Flamerule 1368
Before we do anything we go straight to the temple to resurrect the ooze. It costs us 600 gold coins, but at least they are able to resurrect it.
I started having issues after this part where I could no longer load a save. Thankfully I noticed soon enough and I think I know the cause. If you select the highlighted option, Almon goes into the next room to check on Qualton. This gives us a chance to open a secret area without getting caught for stealing.
It looks like if we do this, any save afterward will crash on load. I might explore if there is a way around this later, but for now I’ll just have to pass on the loot that lies below.
While Xan helps Mur’Neth re-equip itself, Fabio takes a look at the arrows in Xan’s quiver. He actually knows what most of these arrows can do. One set of arrows send cold shocks through targets they strike.
Another set of arrows are enchanted to strike with unerring accuracy.
A third set can set targets aflame.
We’re all alive now, but we are still beaten and bloody so we go to Falco’s Tavern in the east of Restenford to rest and recover. We get a room for the night, where Viconia and I use our blessings to heal the wounds the skeleton warrior inflicted upon our party.
After resting, I ask the Weave to tell me what enchantments are upon the cloak Martin gave us. It’s an elven cloak, improving the stealth of anyone who wears it. Mur’Neth is adept stealth already, so it wraps the cloak across its human-form shoulders.
We decide to resupply before we go back to the castle. We are running low on crossbow bolts and sling bullets especially. We could also use some better equipment.
At Smyth’s shop we purchase an Amulet of Protection for Viconia. She will be leading us into battle so the extra protection will be useful.
We go downstairs to see Perk and purchase the ammo we need. He also shows us an alternative to carrying arrows with his magical quiver. We sell our collection of gems so we can buy one for Xan, since he will usually try to keep out of close combat.
Perk also has a Case of Plenty that creates enchanted crossbow bolts which we give to Mur’Neth.
He also has a Bag of Plenty which provides sling bullets. I take this one for my sling.
Our ammo problems resolved, we set off in the dead of night toward Bone Hill Castle.
10 Flamerule 1368
We travel for almost the whole day to get back to Bone Hill. This time, instead of approaching from the north, we come in from the east. I prepare for any encounter by conjuring my Mage Armour.
We approach the castle and find hobgoblins guarding the entrance.
I get the first kill this time.
Before Cat can get close to the other hobgoblins, Fabio and Xan kill them.
We find a couple of scrolls among the hobgoblins’ equipment. The first a scroll to summon a familiar. None of the others care to have familiars, so I keep this one in case I ever need to summon Cat again.
The other opens a portal that can teleport the caster. Rose is interested in this spell, but unfortunately fails to copy it to her spell book.
We decide against a full frontal assault on the castle right now, so we walk around the walls looking for any weaknesses. We find another hobgoblin that Rose kills before it has a chance.
We find a star diopside in a pouch hanging from its belt.
As we wander the walls, we find that they have recently been cleared of plant life. The hobgoblins are preparing for something.
To the south we find a small makeshift fort that seems abandoned.
The catapults nearby seem to be halfway through construction. Was someone planning an assault on the castle already?
We walk the fort’s perimeter and find a skeleton to the north of this fort.
It charges right into our missiles and is destroyed.
We find two more skeletons nearby that are just as easily destroyed.
One of these skeletons was an archer, armed with enchanted arrows that even Fabio can’t identify.
Fabio spots a ghoul inside the fort and without hesitation sends a bullet that cracks its skull open.
We go inside the fort and find another skeleton. Cat manages to take the undead creature apart.
On the ghoul’s corpse we find a jade ring on its wedding finger. It must have been important to it when it was alive.
The skeleton has Arrows of Fire in its quiver. Xan takes them and adds them to his collection.
There is a crate in the fort that is sealed shut. After checking it for traps, Mur’Neth is able to open it.
Inside we find ten Elixirs of Health. These should prove invaluable if we have to deal with poisons or diseases.
There are also some magical boots that we cannot identify.
And also a horn that appears like it may hold some kind of enchantment.
We continue to scout the wall’s perimeter but find nothing else. We have no choice but to charge through the front door. As we cross over the drawbridge we hear a loud ringing sound. There goes any element of surprise we may have had.
The hobgoblins inside come running toward us. We are quick to engage.
We are faced with a sword-wielding captain and three archers. The archers hit Viconia and I, but one of them falls to our missiles as Viconia charges the captain.
The battle turns in our favour as we eliminate the archers. Fabio’s bullet strikes so hard one of the hobgoblin’s head explodes.
We chase down the captain, but it flees through a door into the castle.
We decide not to follow it yet. We want to clear out the courtyard first. Viconia heals herself and we search the bodies of the archers. Apart from their equipment they have some silver jewellery and a bloodstone.
We climb up the wall and find more hobgoblins posted as guards.
They give us very little trouble.
Among their possessions we find a jade ring and a Scroll of Melf’s Fiery Missiles. Rose is interested in this spell so she copies it to her spellbook.
We walk along the wall to find the other hobgoblins posted here.
Cat and Viconia charge them while the rest of us support from afar.
It’s a short battle, one that provides no challenge to us.
They carry more rings and a garnet gem. I don’t think I’ve seen a garnet before today.
They also have some scrolls, one that holds the Luck spell.
The other a Scroll of Blur. They both go into my scroll case.
There is a wheel here that seems connect to something. Viconia starts to turn it and the drawbridge starts to raise. We step in to help and block the entrance to the castle.
Now whatever waits for us inside won’t be getting any reinforcements. We make our way back down to the courtyard, ready to find what lies inside the castle.
