After meeting with Jet’Laya, the Troupe travels to the Wood of Sharp Teeth on a mission to find her sister. The journey has been uneventful so far, but visions start to haunt Aegon once again. These woods may be more perilous than the Cloakwood.
6 Elient 1368
As we walk into the forest I am plagued with prophecy. I see an arrow pierce Dynaheir’s skull. A crazed orc barbarian cleave clean through my armour. Magic Missiles burn through my skin. There are many ways to die here.
Gameplay Note
This area is a lot harder than I expected it to be. I’m using Aegon as a tank but, since he has light armour, whenever he gets hit he loses at least half his Hit Points.
I tell the others we cannot hold back. We need to throw everything we’ve got at whatever we encounter in here, otherwise this will be a short expedition.
It isn’t long before we are ambushed by a group of orcs. A few warriors with axes supported by archers with arrows glistening like Ice. I prepare to instill Horror in them before they engage.
Before my spell can hit, Jet’Laya is stuck with an arrow. She grunts in pain, but shouts that she’s okay. The Weave makes the archers retreat in panic. The warriors remain steady in their charge, Barbaric Rage rendering them immune to fear. Still, more than half of our adversaries have been taken out of the fight.
Kivan stops one of the warriors dead in his tracks with an arrow. I meet the remaining pair with my War Hammer.
The orcs are fast and strong, well trained warriors. Though my Hammer and Heart are enchanted, they are able to slip past my defense and bite into my flesh with their axes. I’m forced to rely on my healing magic to stay in the fight.
The archers overcome my spell and turn their bows on us once more. Dynaheir responds by activating her Wand of Fear, sending one of them fleeing from the fight once again.
An orc slices open my chest this time, and I’m forced to resort to healing once more. These orcs are extremely good fighters and I don’t know how to defend myself against them.
It isn’t enough, and even though Kivan kills another orc, Branwen has to rush over to heal me once more.
While I engage the last orc warrior, the others turn to the archers that are pinning us down. Kivan gets his third kill in this fight, firing an arrow straight through the archer’s chest.
Kivan kills the second archer, and Dynaheir hurls a bullet that strikes the other orc in the back of the neck. There’s a sharp crack and its face collapses, dragging the rest of the body with it.
We chase down the last remaining archer. I charge in close, forcing it to drop its bow to defend itself. Alone it is no match for us, and finally drops to a bullet hurled by Branwen.
That battle went better than I expected. I tell the others we should move quickly. No time to rest; if others heard the fighting they’ll be closing in on us already. We quickly strip the orcs of their equipment before we move on.
The orcs aren’t armed with especially powerful equipment. Leather armour, axes, and short bows. The do have Arrows of Ice, however. Kivan adds them to his arsenal.
Surprisingly, several of them have scrolls on them. On one we find a Scroll of Burning Hands. Both Dynaheir and I know this one already, so I store it in our Scroll Case.
Another is a Scroll of Resist Fear. Thankfully they didn’t know how to use it otherwise my magic and Dynaheir’s Wand would have been useless. Dynaheir says she doesn’t know this spell, and copies it into her spellbook.
We also find a Scroll of Battering Ram, which can not only damage opponents, but also crack open locked chests. Dynaheir attempts to copy this spell, but unfortunately she fails.
One of the orcs also had a Potion of Memory, a potion that can restore a wizard’s ability to use the Weave without resting. I pocket this one as it will prove useful when we run out of magic.
After taking what we can from the bodies, we quickly move on from the area. I start to see visions again, orcs filled with a warrior’s rage cutting me down over and over. They show no fear, and no matter how quickly we heal, they hit faster. We can’t hold back. If we do, we will all die.
As if to confirm my visions, a group of orcs surprise us with their screams. Raising their axes they charge toward us and we waste no time in calling upon our gods and drawing from the Weave. They are filled with frenzy, and I can see that the Weave will not influence their minds. I yell that we should focus on inflicting pain. We need to kill them quickly, before we can see the reds of their eyes.
Dynaheir opens the fight with Snilloc’s Snowball Swarm. Snowballs frozen solid appear in the air and speed outward toward the orcs. Many are injured by the sharp blocks of ice.
I follow up by conjuring a Web to old them at bay. Strands of fine silk rise up out of the ground and attach themselves to the orcs.
Branwen asks for the Blessing of Tempus and he grants us fortune in the battle to come.
The orcs let out a unified roar as they enter a Raging state. Most are held back by my Web but one gets close enough to swing its axe at my shield.
Jet’Laya finishes her spell and the ground beside me starts to shift as skeletal hands reach out from the ground. Two skeletons pull themselves out of the soft dirt bringing mace and shield with them. I’m not sure how I feel about using necromancy, but we need all the help we can get in our fight.
I hit the orc in front of me with some Magic Missiles, but before they connect the orc is able to strike my helmet with its axe.
The blunt force of the blow goes through my helmet and into my skull. I feel my ears warm with blood, and I start to feel light-headed. I pull a Potion of Healing from my belt.
I feel my own Webs curl around my feet and stretch up to my body. A single strand of silk reaches out and grabs my elbow, slowing my hand. I desperately try to fight out of the Web so I can quaff my Potion but to no avail.
I hear the sounds of battle fading. Could this be it? Will I die caught in my own Web, or am I in another prophecy? I shouldn’t be so determined to rush into melee every time a fight starts.
Dynaheir tries to save me by sending Melf’s Fiery Missiles at the orcs. Perhaps her burning distraction will give me enough time to survive.
Jet’Laya finishes another incantation to her god, and her hand glows as a Spiritual Hammer is conjured from the divine planes. On seeing my plight she readies her attack.
More skeletons rise from the ground, this time right next to me. Branwen has conjured these undead constructs to try and protect me from the orcs. She closes in on me with intent to heal me back to full strength.
One of Jet’Laya’s skeletons kills an orc held in the Web. Jet’Laya directs them to shift their focus into helping me by fighting the orcs that have gotten close. Dynaheir conjures some Magic Missiles and they strike one of the orcs swing axes at my shield.
My vision starts to blur and the world disappears. I can hear only vague echoes, but I feel the sharp blow of an axe upon my shield. I’m about to close my eyes when suddenly there is a bright light. The sounds of battle, screaming orcs and steel on steel rush into my ears once again. I see the distinct grey face of the orc before me and renew my struggle to be free of the Web. Branwen Cures my wounds and I can feel the world again.
The Webs finally release their grip on me and I am able to fall back away from them. Dynaheir summons another barrage of Magic Missiles at the orcs.
One of Kivan’s arrows strikes true, going straight through an orc’s neck. It drops its axe as it tries to prevent too much blood flowing out of the wound before it gives up and dies.
We keep pressing the attack, backed by necromantic skeletons, with Dynaheir conjuring Magic Missile after Magic Missile. The orcs keep trying to use their Rage, but my Webs keep them at bay.
Kivan kills another orc and it starts to feel like the odds are in our favour. Again and again their axes found gaps in my armour. Cuts and bruises fill cover my torso, but I am still standing. Yet I know I cannot keep holding the line like this. I’m a student of the Weave, not a trained warrior.
I step back away from the Webs and let the skeletons focus on closing into melee. I switch to my Sling to support the undead beasts.
Unable to defend themselves, the remaining orcs fall quickly. I heal myself again before we stop to catch our breath.
After a short break it’s time to loot the bodies. I have the others take watch as I search them. Surprisingly, these orcs have several Scrolls on them. We can’t figure out why they carry these when they can’t use them.
On one orc I find a Scroll of Know Opponent, which can help if we want to target and kill a specific individual. I copy this one to my spellbook.
Another orc has a Scroll that can grant Luck to a target, giving them better chances of success in anything that they do.
They have another Scroll of Battering Ram, which Dynaheir uses to copy to her spellbook.
After we have dealt with our scrolls we discuss our tactics. I cannot hold the line against these crazed orcs anymore. I will end up being carved up. We need a new strategy. We are not warriors. We are a group of mages, priests, archers, and inventors. We must rely on traps and magic to keep our enemies at a distance, use our strengths to slay them from afar. I don’t like the idea of using necromancy, but perhaps a few skeletons would serve better at occupying these frenzied orc warriors.
It’s a short discussion, but everyone agrees. Then it is time for us to move on. The teeth in this wood are proving to be as sharp as its name implies, and I don’t want to wait around to be bitten by them.
