Earlier this month we continued with the mini campaign for Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay.
Minus Jus in person unfortunately but Spevna and MIJ made up for his absence by controlling him as an NPC.
First off in complete jest on Arkwright the barbarians part, the apprentice wizard Stefan von Carstein was tied to their cart and dragged by rope and ankle a good 100 yards.
Considering he was on 0 wounds from the fight at the Wernicke Farm they later decided to let him rest in the cart as they made their way to Frugelhofen with the surviving farm inhabitants. Poor apprentice wizard! (GM)
They decided it would be a good idea to escort the Wernickes to the safety of the village.
On the way to Frugelhofen in the dead of night, tired and exhausted they were set upon by a stray skeleton by the roadside. He was soon retired and put out of his misery. Later they arrived at Frugelhofen to meet Gimbrin and his group of exhausted Dwarves from the mine. They investigated the other farm to the east and found it ransacked and all inhabitants killed. They also lost another one of their kin to a band of undead lying in wait for them.
In the village the inhabitants are frightened of the heroes news of undead gangs on the rampage. They barely have time to collect their thoughts when a screaming skull comes flying out of the darkness and smashes a hole in one of the farmhouses, collapsing the roof and killing 5 villagers.
More screaming skulls fly through the darkness and hit buildings in the village. Arkwright and Fiarel Kaethe'TyrShe decide to investigate immediately. They race up the hillside where the skulls are flying from, just as they reach it's crest a third skull flies over their heads and lands in the village below. On the top of the hill is a skeleton catapult made of bones manned by 3 undead hastily loading it up and causing devastation.
A desperate skirmish follows that puts Arkwright in desperate need of medical attention and a 20 percent chance of death from blood loss every round. After the sun comes up and the dawn crumbles the catapult and it's crew they rush Arkwright to the healer Grandfather Wernicke who luckily manages to save his life. A present of thanks is given to Fiarel Kaethe'TyrShe for their help defending them at the farm and now. A scroll with 3 magic spells on them, cure light injury, heal wounds and cure illness.
Everyone is extremely tired, our heroes have been on the go for 24 hours without sleep and they have fought three fairly big battles and traveled all over the Frugelhorn valley. Sleep is imminent.
They get about 6 hours rest before it's their turn to take watch. Lightning and thunder is appearing all over the Frugelhorn Valley. First in the direction of the mine and then at one of the farms to the east. Next near the west and Wernickes farm. On their feet suddenly Arkwright and Fiarel Kaethe'TyrShe race towards what they can hear on the wind, a sinister moaning and wailing. They follow the sound all the way back to just outside the Wernicke farm.
It is here they encounter a hideous sight. A Necromancer or Lichemaster is raising dead in this area, it seems he has an army of 26 warriors and more on the way. Could this spot have been a burial site of the blue blooded bandits? Maybe so. Two Dwarves they recognise as Thalgrim and Grumbli are brought forward from the group of skeleton warriors and their throats are cut before a bonfire. Some kind of sick sacrifice. The dead assemble and start to march slowly in the direction of Frugelhofen.
Absoloutley bricking it for time our party rush back to Frugelhofen to alert the people and prepare the defenses. With only about 20 to 30 minutes to spare they manage to light torches all around the village, assemble the Dwarves with makeshift missiles and a few crossbows on the barn rafters. Arkwright and some strong fighters are skirmished in the orchard to the west while Fiarel Kaethe'TyrShe and the Dwarves guard protect the village from the front shielding the weak fighters and non combatants. Jus' character meanwhile is sleeping in the milk shed next to Widow La Reux's house at the south of the village.
The first wave of undead arrive and are very promptly dealt with by the missiles and the flank attack from the orchard. Thinking they are winning through their hopes are shattered by a second wave of undead that have circled the village and are enclosing from all sides. At first it seems like there are only about 8 and they are easily defended against, alas a few weak fighters are cut down. They couldn't help but get involved in the fight even though they were ordered not to by our PCs.
Just as it looks like the threat is being repelled the Lichemaster arrives in Frugelhofen waving an insanely carved staff and muttering an incantation of some kind. The fallen villagers who were cut down and all the skeletons who were destroyed suddenly jolt back up to their feet and descend on the survivors. A fireball shoots forward from the Lichemasters staff and engulfs our party and some of the stronger fighters, luckily they are only slightly charred.
"Sound the retreat", cries Hector Broiche "Frugelhofen must fall".
Unbelievable, jaw dropping moment as our party realise no matter how many they kill they just keep coming back for more. Like those rather annoying skeletons in Jason and the Argonauts. Not only that the fallen villages are now revived and fighting for the Lichemaster.
We stopped here and decided it was time for a bucket of fried potatoes. Yes a whole silver bucket, no joke!.
So folks, next time? Tsu or Yokkaichi let me know when would be good. November me thinks? With any luck it will be over by Christmas bar the bloody shouting.
PS: Jus' character luckily and mysteriously survived two waves of skeletons and slept through the whole thing in the dairy shed. But..... he did have a strange dream about Kemler and the promise of fireball knowledge. More of this in a PM Jus.
(When I spell checked this piece, Lichemaster kept being changed to the recommendation Choirmaster).
