Allansia, on the world of Titan

Map of Allansia (click this link to download)

Allansia, a land well known to those of us that have loved the fighting fantasy setting and continue to do so. 

More to come. Much more...

A change and a restart

The campaign has long since stalled and I don't seem to have it in me to drive it forward at the moment. That's not to say this will always be the case, but I'd like to change the direction of the blog for the time being. 

That is all.

14. Outside the entrance to the ruin

The Lost Temple by 'Asur Misoa'

Currently

This follows on directly from the session entitled Scouting the ruins.

The girls have arrived at the entrance that Traci and the Princess noted opened out into a slightly larger area than the other three when they checked them out previously. It is large enough for the four of them the go side by side quite comfortably. They have lit torches which are carried by Alice and Melissa and upon entering see that the walls and ceiling are coated in a mildly glowing phosphorescent fungi. It doesn't give enough light to see much by so they keep the torches lit for the time being. The entrance turns into a passageway and leads directly to a wide marble stairway, ancient and overgrown with surprisingly lush and vigorous vegetation.

As the girls reach the top of the stairs a terrible piercing cry rings out stopping them in their tracks. It's impossible to tell just where exactly it came from given the echoing sound and limited lighting. What to do now?

The Options

The girls could light more torches in a bid to see further into the gloom and maybe get a little more warning if something should come at them unexpectedly. Or one of them could scout ahead enabling the other three to act as back up if something should happen. Melissa could use magic to obtain knowledge of what's ahead, or they could all simply push on a little more carefully and warily.

The Decision

Using magic doesn't strike them as a good idea at this point given that they may need Melissa's abilities in combat or for any number of other more important acts that may arise. It seems wasteful to make use of her abilities in these circumstances. Lighting more torches may seem like a good idea but they only have a limited supply and there's no real hope of it doing much for their current situation anyway. The sound could be anywhere, or any distance away, or disembodied or just about anything. Scouting ahead is definitely a viable way forward. It limits potential danger to one of the group while allowing the other three to prepare to leap into action if things look like turning bad, and simply pushing on blindly seems very naïve and unwise given the limited knowledge of what's causing the shrieking cries. It's as likely a warning cry that intruders have entered the ruins as it is a cry of pain or terror. 

They decide to send the Princess ahead with the others following on at a distance. She has a torch with her and her cutlass at the ready. 

What happens next

The Princess moves ahead slowly and soon vanishes into the darkness ahead. Her footsteps are clearly heard in the echoing chamber as she descends the wide, marble stairway overgrown with vines and other vegetation. She stops as a large, shadowy outline looms ahead of her(1d6=1). She calls to the others who rush to her side. 

They await whatever it may be that approaches, Traci and the Princess up front, Alice and Melissa behind. Melissa palms quicksilver while the others draw weapons.

Moving on

I'm going to move things ahead now since I feel things have slowed to a bit of a crawl. This is something I have no issue doing in solo play and may do it from time to time as and when need dictates. The primary reason for this at this time is due to Melissa taking a full 6 turns to regain consciousness. That's fine and fits with the narrative and what actually happened, but it can cause things to slow down too much. And since I have only myself to please and nobody to answer to I'm happy to help move things along. So here's what's happened off-screen.

• Traci and the Princess have gone back to Melissa and Alice with their findings.
• All four of them have rested and recuperated and are ready to continue.
• Enough time has passed that Melissa has regained consciousness and is fully recovered.
• They travel together to the ruins and are about to enter via the slightly larger open entrance. 

The next post picks up at their chosen entrance into the ruin.

13. Scouting the ruins

This follows on from the session entitled To the ruins.

Currently

Traci and the Princess begin their search of the ruins in the hope of finding another way in besides the one that's guarded by the beast. Their explorations turn up a total of (1d6=4) other ways in, of which (1d6=3) seem open and clear of any 'obvious' obstructions, while the remaining one consists of a pair of massive double doors, probably oak and are overgrown with brambles. It looks like this entrance hasn't been used in a very long time. All four entrances are large enough to allow the whole party to enter side by side if need be.

Traci and the Princess need to decide which entrance would be the best to enter the ruins by before reporting back to Alice. 

The options

• The three open entrances would seem the most likely, although they all look dark and unwelcoming from here but are clearly man-made as would likely be the case anyway at this ruin.
• The entrance with the doors might very well prove to be the most obvious to enter by since it would clearly have been designed as an entrance point in the first place. Unfortunately, there's no way of knowing if it's actually as innocuous as it seems. Maybe it's a trap designed to ensnare the unwary, or maybe opening it after all this time will notify any inhabitants of their presence and cause no end of trouble.
• Another option is to create some makeshift torches from fallen branches and throw them a short distance into the three open entrances and see if it wields any pertinent info., although unlikely, it may just be enough light to see whether the immediate interior is a large open area or some kind of passageway, or something else.
• They could of course do the same thing but simply walk into the entrances instead of throwing the torches and standing back. This of course would be more risky, but would yield far more information about the immediate interior.
• A final option is to simply take the basic info. about the four entrances back to Alice and wait for Melissa to come round.

The decision and reasons for it

Traci and the Princess decide to venture into the immediate interior of the three open entrances.

• It's a simple enough job to make a couple of torches and take a step or two inside each entrance. 
• Because they're only stepping inside, they're not in too much danger from anything that may be lurking in there. They could always simply run back out again if need be.
• By taking such a small risk, they could gain very useful information regarding which entrance to take.

What happens next

Traci and Melissa investigate the immediate interior of the three entrances and find the first and third entrances(both 1d6=3) lead into passageways big enough for them to walk comfortably down without much trouble, while the second entrance(1d6=4) opens into a slightly larger space.

The first and second entrances(both 1d6=6) show no signs of any recent activity at all and have clearly been unused for a very long time whereas the third entrance(1d6=3) although showing little sign of any recent activity, may have seen some little use in more recent times, though it still has a vaguely deserted air about it somehow.

[OOC: Melissa will regain consciousness in 3 more turns]

12. To the ruins

This follows on from the session entitled Alice takes charge

Currently

Alice heads off in the direction of the ruins with Melissa unceremoniously 'slung' across the saddle in front of her. She takes the same road Traci and the Princess used and encountering no problems(1d100=96) arrives at the ruins having made good time and greets the girls in good spirits.

The girls need to decide how to proceed now, Melissa is still unconscious after all and they need to decide how to approach the ruins or whether to approach at all yet, or maybe wait for Melissa.

The options

• They could scout out another entrance since Traci has already told them of the beast that lurks within. Splitting up could help find another way in. Maybe they take turns staying with Melissa while the others go off searching. 
• On the other hand, they could simply wait for Melissa to come round, but that's likely to be a while, and even if it happens quicker than they expect they don't know for sure when it will actually happen. For all they know it could be weeks before she regains consciousness, or not at all. 
• Are they even going to be safe this close to the opening that Traci emerged from given the proximity of that creature, the beast with her young? Is there a chance it ventures out, maybe during the hours of darkness? 
• Of course, one final option would be to put together a makeshift 'drag' to pull Melissa along and bring her with them, at least while they're skirting the ruin looking for a way in.

The decision and reasons for it

The girls decide to pair up, one stays with Melissa while two go off to scout out the exterior of the ruin. 

• It doesn't make sense to be dragging Melissa around with them when they don't need to. 
• They know they don't want to go in through the opening that Traci came from for obvious reasons, and since they are all well able for trouble if it should occur then splitting up makes more sense. 
• They all agree that just waiting around doing nothing makes little if any sense anyway.  

What happens next

Alice thinks it makes more sense for her to stay with Melissa now just in case she should take a turn for the worse or maybe even start to come round. Traci and the Princess head off to scout out the exterior of the ruins promising to return before nightfall.

[OOC: Melissa will regain consciousness in 4 more turns]

11. Alice takes charge

This session follows on from The party splits

Currently

Alice returns to the tavern with a young mage who sets to work, quaffing quicksilver and summoning much as Melissa would have done herself. The magic to rouse Melissa to consciousness isn't difficult for the mage and so she regains consciousness in(1d6=6) turns.

[OOC: see 'this post here' for an explanation as to why this succeeds now when it didn't before]

Alice realises she needs to find a way to transport the unconscious Melissa out of town, and soon.

The options

• She could hire a lift out of town to the ruins on a cart. This shouldn't be too difficult. Money talks of course and Alice looks innocent and harmless and would be unlikely to worry the driver even if he was aware of the presence. After all it's shown no signs of affecting anyone but the girls so far.
• She could just buy a horse outright and attach some sort of makeshift drag-sled to the back to transport Melissa. Or, maybe just drape her over the horse in front of her, undignified though this may be.
• Waiting it out doesn't seem to be much of an option given that they've already been here longer than they'd initially planned, and the guards are bound to be back sooner or later. The warning to 'get out of town' is still very much on Alice's mind. Still, maybe she could explain and buy some more time given that Melissa will wake soon(-ish).

The decision and reasons for it's success

Alice decides not to waste any more time and asks the landlord to procure a horse for her. She intends to simply have Melissa effectively 'slung' across the horse and ride her out of town towards the ruins herself. 

• The landlord probably just wants rid of the two of them at this point, and he's not averse to the money Alice offers either. He's no fool and can no doubt see he can kill two birds with one stone here.
• Melissa's not going to be complaining about her undignified exit from the town and the landlord will no doubt be very willing to help Alice get her onto the horse. He'll be glad to help them leave.
• The landlord doesn't want to attract the town guard any more than is necessary. His tavern is used by all kinds, some of them less than savoury, so the quicker Alice and her unconscious friend are out of his hair the better as far as he's concerned.
• Alice and Melissa will have to meet up with the other two at the ruin sooner or later, and the other two won't likely enter the ruins without them so Alice really needs to move sooner rather than later. It just doesn't make sense any longer to keep hanging around here when all that can be done for Melissa has already been done.

What happens next

The landlord is more than happy helping Alice. He provides a horse(for a fee of course), and is happy to help Alice get on her way. Alice heads off in the direction of the ruins on the outskirts of town with Melissa slung across the horse in front of her. None of the townsfolk attempt to stop her(1d6=5), and there are no guards in sight(1d6=5).

[OOC: Melissa will regain consciousness in 5 more turns]