On Velaxian Way

The Velaxi Highway, facing east

Current Campaign: The Knights of Eaton

Episode 06: "On Velaxian Way"

Year: 1754 Summer

Location: Avandell, Larkos, Velaxi Highway

PCs: Drake Katos Windsor Margaret Kelleck Simon Aylay Windsor Tasselhof Kelleck

NPCs: Astor Bloodfiend Dylim Gabril Atraxian Garn Simonson Grespin Kelleck Lady Delsaine of Barleystoke Slova the Pale

Previous Episode: "The Inquest Rebellion"

Next Episode: "Contempt"

Previous Campaign: The Thuzuulan Heresy

The knights hasten to Avandell to seek out Croyde in hopes he will help them return the throne of Kandorr to its rightful heir.

Story

Act One: East On Velaxi

After reaching Larkos and seeking the Eatonshiran ambassador, Margaret learns that Croyd Simonson is off in the hinterlands of Avandell collecting on old debts and amassing a small regiment of loyalists. She seeks and buys permission from the lord of that region to move uninterrupted across his lands. Margaret's squad— among them are Simon, Tasselhof, Drake, Katos, the deposed king Garn—supply themselves and trek into the wilds of Avandell to seek him out and attach themselves to Croyd's cause.

Following Croyd's trail leads them onto Velaxi Highway, a major highway that runs parallel to the river Gygas to the south. Velaxi is lively with common traffic and secured by numerous checkpoints and Gygas is thick with riverboats hauling trade from all across the eastern kingdoms. The group relaxes and passes the time entertained by songs and stories from Simon, while Tasselhof busies himself by writing down his experiences and sketches in his journal. Margaret spends her quiet moments preparing tactical scenarios for her calculated return to Eatonshire and sharing her strategic summaries with Garn and Grespin.

On the third evening of their journey as they set up camp a scout reports that a confrontation between a small unit of Avandellan soldiers and a squad of river brigands is ensuing down on the riverbank. Margaret assigns command of a team to Grespin and she leads a team to flank the brigands. They find the soldiers outnumbered and losing and she orders her team forward, but Drake balks at her directive and the two argue intensely as Grespin's team enters combat. Margaret clutches at Drake and drags him into the skirmish zone, but the impetuous lord lashes out at her and she counters his blow with a flurry of punches. Her men, eager to support Grespin's team, enter the fight and engage the enemy.

Across the battlefield Tasselhof witnesses Margaret and Drake fighting and he draws a blunt, concussive arrow and fires it at Drake; it strikes Drake in the temple and he crumples to the ground unconscious. Margaret enters the fight and the brigands, overwhelmed by superior power, retreat to their skiffs and flee onto the waters. Tasselhof picks a couple of them off as they row to safety. Margaret greets the Avandellans and they reveal themselves to be lordless warriors who are sympathetic to Croyd's cause; she hires them on and has them carry Drake back to camp. The warriors—Dylim and Gabril—bring Drake before Garn, who admonishes him for his insubordination and punishes him by assigning him to camp clean-up duties for the duration of the journey.

Act Two: Into Stout Weald

A map of the area of Avandell traveled by the party.

Upon reaching the viscounty of Barleystoke, the group sought audience with Lady Deslaine but found her opposed to their passage and inflexible in her resolve. She was promised but not yet delivered compensation due her from her husband's death breaking the siege of Kandorr City, and until she can be recompensed she vows not to permit Eatonshiran military traffic to pass. Garn apologizes on behalf of Eatonshire, swears to honor his father's debt, and gives her his sword as a token of goodwill. She welcomes his apology and informs the group that, denied passage through Barleystoke, Croyde's party trekked northeast and skirted the Stout Weald, towards Peladun; her trackers say they changed course two weeks into their journey and were last seen entering the Weald shortly before winter. She claims there is no report of him arriving in Peladun.

The group provisions at Corus, hires two rangers and journeys north on the lonely road into the Weald. On the third evening in the forest they are ambushed by one of the many bands of outlaws who make Stout Weald their home—this particular squad of criminals fights ruthlessly and, before Margaret's squad can rally, they slay one man from Grespin's squad and one of the hired trackers. During the mayhem there is much confusion and difficulty due to the lack of proper illumination and Tasselhof fumbles a shot that misses its target and sinks into Garn's neck. The young prince collapses and is at the mercy of his foe, but he is saved when Katos slays the enemy from behind. Dylim is sorely wounded in the fight by the outlaw captain, who is in turn slain by Margaret's hand. After Simon slays their lieutenant the enemy's morale begins to crumble, and their resolve completely withers after Grespin rallies his forces. They turn to flee but they are chased and cut down before they can escape back into the forest.

They assemble around Garn, who is mortally wounded and each men turn out their packs and pass along all their potions to Grespin, who tends to the young lord. Garn survives his injury, but neither he nor Dylim are completely healed and the party must decide what course of action to take. Frustrated and still agitated from the skirmish, Margaret moves to lash out at Tasselhof but she is held back by other members of the party; Grespin urges her to collect herself and focus on the mission and he asks Tasselhof to accompany Drake to oversee the burial of their dead and to search the bodies of the outlaws. Margaret decides to send Grespin's team with Garn and Dylim south to Barleystoke, so that they may restore the wounded and hire on a healer and another tracker. That night they gather for a ceremonial burial and Simon performs a traditional liturgy and song. The next morning Grespin's team departs back south and they continue north into the deeper reaches of the Weald.

Act Three: The Poachers

On the fifth morning the party walks into an encampment of poachers consisting mostly of orcs and half-orcs, who are preparing traps and gear for a new morning. Both groups halt into quiet and stillness as they size each other up and discern that they are equally matched. Simon murmurs to Margaret his conjecture that orc poachers commonly may be bribed or bought outright, and as they speak in hushed tones they see one of the orcs whispering to the others. Katos breaks the stillness by impulsively drawing his knife and hurling it across the field, where it sinks deep into the leg of the whispering orc. The sudden foes draw weapons and charge at the other and one of the orcs bolts into the woods. Katos chases him down a narrow footpath and across a log suspended over a thin river until he finally turns and fights the knight. Their combat is swift and vicious and Katos deals a mortal wound to the orc who in turn stabs the young knight deep in his stomach. The orc sounds his signal horn and collapses and dies while Katos lurches off the footpath, injured and reeling.

Back at the campground the knights gain the upper hand and the orcs lose four of their own, but at the sound of the horn more orcs arrive at the skirmish point and Margaret commands her squad to fall back. They take a position on a hill and quickly fortify it by building a makeshift wall with assorted stones and their packs. From there they fire arrows and stones down at the orcs, who halt their advance and use the trees as cover. Margaret collects her thoughts, focuses on her bracelet and sends a distress call out to Astor Bloodfiend. Within forty minutes the sky darkens and a great wind stirs the trees and Astor appears above them astride a snow dragon. The dragon folds her silver wings and drops vertically into the gang of poachers, crushing two of them. The remaining orcs panic and flee carelessly in divers directions; one orc strays too close and she seizes him in one bite and champs him in half. She turns and blasts a gout of chilling ice at two more orcs and dusts the forest around them in killing frost.

The knights regain their composure and collect their gear as Bloodfiend dismounts, whispers for a moment to his mount, and then warmly greets Margaret. She asks him to tend to her wounded and so as the squad sets up camp for the evening Bloodfiend meditates and collects his strength to heal the men gathered there. Simon, Drake and the rangers find the area where Katos was wounded and based on evidence they deduce that the orc he killed was discovered and dragged off into the woods by another orc. Katos's trail staggers northward and ends at the edge of the log bridge, where they guess he fell into the river. Simon returns and reports this to Margaret, who in turn asks Bloodfiend if he could use his dragon to scout their area for the missing knight. Bloodfiend is weak from healing the wounded and his dragon is weary from the rapid flight but he agrees to fly Simon above the Weald.

Bloodfiend instructs Simon that Ashakre tradition and dragon vanity dictates he must first introduce himself and then petition the dragon for assistance. Luckily, Simon is the most socially skilled member of the squad and his formal etiquette distinguishes him as a worthy rider. The dragon proudly announces herself as Slova the Pale, 23rd Daughter of the Datura Coil and bows so that Bloodfiend and Simon may climb upon the double saddle secured on her dorsal ridge. She kicks once and they lift into an exhilirating spiral arc that presses Simon against his saddle. She rights herself 200 meters above the canopy and Bloodfiend hands his spyglass to Simon and the party spends the next few hours spiraling out from the encampment in search of Katos. He is never found.

As the evening approaches Bloodfiend informs Simon that Slova is growing weary and they must return to camp. Simon asks Slova to make one final sweep to the south and there he spies a glimmering mass of campfires in the woods on the northernmost border of Argonheim, just south of Balthas. Simon makes out the contours of several Chaos Warlords in one of the command tents and he tells Bloodfiend to hasten back to camp. Upon their return Simon reports that they failed to find Katos and the build-up of troops along the Argonheim side of the river Gygas. Margaret calls a command meeting and instructs Drake to lead a team consisting of himself, a tracker, Simon and Tasselhof to Balthas to warn them of a possible attack and to seek Katos in the likelihood that he found his way back onto the path. The next morning Drake's team departs towards Balthas and Bloodfiend informs Margaret that he must report back to Keldoras and so departs.

Meta

Game notes

• played Fall semester, 1991

Points Awarded

• 6 points for all

Season Pool

• 26 points