Lem looked to the sky, and saw nothing but the same blanket of grey that had followed them since Sandpoint. His gaze lowered back to the looming city of Magnimar. It rested upon the same coast as Sandpoint, but that was the only similarity it had to his home. Magnimar was easily ten times the size of the small village.
Lem Starting Deck
Sling
Toad
Burglar
Aldern Foxglove
Lightning Touch
Holy Light
Aid
Cure
Enfeeble
Wand of Force Missile
Sihedron Medallion
BoSarenrae
BoShelyn
BoG
BoPharasma
BoDesna
Great stone walls lined the land borders of the city, and countless ships rested in her port. The buildings were densely packed inside the walls, leaving only narrow alleyways between them. The broad streets were bustling with a mixture of sailors, businessmen, rich and poor. The stench of that many people in one place washed over Valeros. He was home.
Valeros Starting Deck
Spiked Chain
Glaive
Bastard Sword
Shock Longbow +1
Warhammer +1
Grizzled Mercenary
Sheriff Hemlock
Magic Leather Armor
Chain Mail x2
Spyglass
Masterwork Tools
Holy Candle
BoIomedae
BoG x2
Upon entering the city, they reported directly to the Magnimar Chief of Police. He was a portly dwarf, bald but for a long red beard bound by brass rings. He scowled at Valeros and Lem as they entered his office.
"Valeros, let's get one thing straight. I don't like you, and I don't like your methods. You're a loose cannon, and a liability." His gaze then softened somewhat as he looked down to the paperwork that littered his desk. "But I'll be damned if you don't get results. I have bodies piling up on these streets, Val, and I need it to stop. I just hope your partner has been able to knock some sense into that thick skull of yours." He glanced down to Lem, appraising him before continuing. "Get settled in at the village house, and report back at dawn for a briefing on the situation. Dismissed."
As they walked to the nearby village house, Lem broke the silence. "Wow, that guy is kind of a dick, huh?"
"You have no idea. Can you believe he wanted to take away my badge? I told him the fire was an accident, but he didn't want to hear it. All he kept saying was 'blah blah blah, people burned alive, blah blah blah, property damage.' That guy has no idea what these streets are like."
They reached the village house, which was essentially a halfway house for citizens that were displaced from their homes for whatever reason. After settling into their rooms, they met back in the lobby for a drink.
Before long, a woman approached Valeros. Lem paid it no mind, until he saw Valeros start to hand over his weapons and gold. She must have him under a spell! There was no way Valeros would part with his weapons otherwise. Lem snuck up behind the woman, and knocked her unconscious with a solid blow to the back of the head. Valeros looked shaken.
Turn 1
Lem – BoG
Village House
Enchanter – 1 Force Damage – Strength + Valeros + Aid + BoPharasma = D4 + D4+1 + D6 + 2D4 = 12 = Success – 1 Fire Damage to Lem
Recharge Aid = Success
"Wha...what happened?" He then looked down and saw what he was about to do. "She must be an echanter!" he exclaimed.
"Enchantress, actually."
"What?"
"Enchantress. That's the female version. Anyway, what should we do with her?
Turn 2
Valeros – BoG
Village House
Wand of Shield – Intelligence + Lem recharge = D6 + D4+1 = 5 = Fail
Discard BoG explore – BoG
Discard BoG explore – Sleep – Intelligence = D6 = 6 = Success
Shortly thereafter, Lem summoned a guard to take her away. As the woman was being led out of the building, a terrible crashing sound came from upstairs. Dust shook from the ceiling, and rained down on the pair. Valeros quickly covered his mug of ale as a reflex action.
They were prepared to ignore the disturbance, assuming it was just a couple having too much fun upstairs, but the sounds only grew louder. Suddenly, the wooden ceiling began to crack and splinter. The pair dove out of the way just as the boards crashed down upon the spot where they had sat.
Turn 3
Lem – BoG
Guard – Diplomacy – Auto-success
Discard Toad explore – Collapsed Ceiling – Constitution + BoSarenrae = 3D6 = 17 = Success
Cure – 3
Recharge Cure = Success
As patrons scattered from the room, a form stood up from the debris that had come down from the floor above. It was larger than a man, but hunched and rat-like in appearance.
"A wererat." Valeros snarled in disgust.
He wasted no time. Picking up a discarded longsword from the floor, he charged the creature, skewering it before it had time to react. He left it there, impaled on the floor.
Turn 4
Valeros – BoG
Longsword – Melee = D10+5 = Auto-Success
Discard Sheriff Hemlock explore – Diplomacy = D6+2 = 6 = Success
Discard Sage explore – Pidget Tergelson – difficulty increased by 3 – Glaive + Lem recharge = D10+5 + D10 + D4+1 = 20 = Success
Banish Longsword to close Location
The pair left the ruined building after retrieving their possessions. It was clear they would get no rest tonight. That was fine, Lem thought. If he couldn't drink, he could do his second-favorite activity: shopping. They went to a shop nearby, where Lem marveled at the sheer size of the place. It was larger than any building in Sandpoint, and full of exotic goods from overseas. He approached a cage covered by a sheet, and carefully lifted the covering.
As he peered beneath, a scaly maw lashed out to greet him. Lem gasped and fell back, unleashing a blast of his wand out of habit. The cage, and the creature inside, were blasted against a distant wall. There was no movement from the lizard within. Lem looked around, ensuring that no one else had seen his actions, and whistled nonchalantly as he walked away.
Turn 5
Lem – BoErastil
General Store
Crow – Wisdom = D6 = 1 = Fail
Reveal card to explore again from Location ability – Giant Gecko – Wand of Force Missile = 4D4 = 11 = Success
Recharge wand = Success
Reveal card to explore again from Location ability – Potion of Healing = Intelligence = D6 = 2 = Fail
Valeros was, of course, deep in the weapons section of the store. This was one thing he had missed in Sandpoint, a fine selection of weaponry. As he crouched to examine a fine two-handed sword, he heard a cry come from nearby. It was Lem. Rushing to the source of the noise, he saw his partner battling a rotting corpse. It sizzled and popped as lightning coursed from Lem into the necrotic flesh. It fell backwards, smoking. Lem looked to his partner and shouted a warning.
Turning, Valeros saw a man dressed in dark robes. The man was stuffing items from a rack of spell components into a sack that he held.
"Freeze!" Valeros shouted, unsheathing his glaive.
The man glanced up and smiled. He leveled his hand to point at Valeros and began to murmur in a strange language. Valeros wasted no time, and struck the man's outstretched hand. The severed appendage fell to the floor, but there was no blood. Valeros watched, wide-eyed, as bones began to grow from the stump of the man's arm. Muscle and flesh wrapped around the newly-formed bone. The man smiled again, showing yellowed and crooked teeth. He then turned from the pair and ran into the street.
Turn 6
Valeros – BoG
General Store
Caizarlu Zerren – Summon Zombie Minion henchman
Lem – Lightning Touch + Valeros = D10+3 + 2D4 + D4+1 = 14 = Success
Valeros – Banishes sleep to evade
Recharge Lightning Touch = Success
Caizarlu – Glaive + Lem recharge = D10+5 + D10 + D4+1 = 37 = Success
Roll for Caizarlu’s ability – 4 = He is defeated
Shop closed, Caizarlu shuffled into random open location
D6 items added to shop – 1 = Blast Stone acquired
Valeros sprinted after the man, not wanting to lose sight of him in the busy streets. It was still quite crowded, despite the late hour. Lem struggled to keep up, as usual. They followed the man to the outskirts of the city, where a great stone building stood on a hilltop. The sign outside read "Habe's Sanatorium". There were no lights showing through the window slits that lined the walls.
Valeros kicked in the door and charged inside. The place was damp, dark and musty. It smelled of rot and decay. Furniture and decorations lay in shambles across the floorboards. As Lem edged around the room, searching for signs of the man's passing, he saw several tracks in the dust-covered floor. The tracks were not human.
Everything went black as he was struck from behind by something large. Great claws rent into his backside, and teeth lodged themselves in his shoulder. Fortunately, Valeros charged towards the creature in time to drive it off before it gave Lem any critical injuries.
Turn 7
Lem – BoErastil
Habe’s Sanatorium
Werewolf – Strength + Aid = D4 + D6 = 4 = Fail = 9 Damage
Recharge Aid = Success
As Valeros helped his partner up, he sensed movement coming towards them from nearby. He assumed a defensive posture with his glaive, not knowing what to expect. Another corpse shambled into view, shuffling across the dusty floor on broken legs. It's rotted maw dripped with a black ichor as it stretched out a skeletal hand towards Valeros. Valeros cut the thing down easily, but couldn't help but wonder how many undead rested in this place. Was it all the work of the man they saw at the shop?
Turn 8
Valeros – BoG
Habe’s Sanatorium
Zombie – Glaive = D10+5 + D10 = 9 = Success
Discard BoIomedae explore – Night Watch = Diplomacy = D6+2 = 7 = Success
Discard Night Watch explore – Arcane Armor = Intelligence = D6 = 6 = Success
A voice called out from the darkness, "Oooh, what is it you have found, my darling? A new friend come to play with us?" A short, rotund man stepped from a nearby doorway. He looked in horror at the dismembered zombie on the floor. "NO! No, no, nooooo. This won't do at all! Not at all!" he shrieked. He turned back to the room he had entered from, stepping inside. "Come, my pet, show these murderers the price for hurting our sweet babies."
With that, a lumbering werewolf charged into view. It dwarfed Valeros, blood already dripping from it's muzzle. This must have been the thing that had attacked Lem. It dropped to all fours and charged at Valeros, it's eyes shining red in the dim room. Just as it reached Valeros, jaws open wide, a bullet struck it's skull with a sickening crunch of shattered bone. Valeros looked behind him to see Lem holding a sling in one hand while nursing his shoulder with the other. Valeros allowed himself a smile as he nodded to the halfling in appreciation.
Turn 9
Lem – BoPharasma
Location ability – Wisdom 6 check = D6 = 5 = Fail = Discard top card of deck
Dr. Habe - Search location deck for first bane:
Werewolf – Reveal and Discard Sling + Valeros = D8 + D6 + D4 + D4+1 = 18 = Success
Shuffle Dr. Habe back into the deck
Searching the remainder of the floor, Valeros could find no trace of the man from before. It was as though the man had vanished into thin air. His partner, having bandaged his wounds with makeshift dressing, could also find no evidence of the man's passing. They decided to descend a set of rotten wood stairs that led into the cellar of the building.
Turn 10
Valeros – BoDesna
Give Arcane Armor to Lem
Location ability – Wisdom 6 check = Wisdom + Lem recharge = D4 + D4+1 = 5 = Fail = Discard top card of deck
Find Traps – Wisdom + Lem recharge = D4 + D4+1 = 6 = Success
Lem took stock of the cellar that they had entered. A sickly green glow washed over the stone walls of the chamber. It illuminated rows of corpses lying haphazardly on the dirt floor of the room. The stench was overwhelming. The glow itself originated from a great cauldron in the center of the room. The man from the shop loomed over the cauldron as it bubbled. He did not even look up as the pair approached him.
From either side, the corpses began to stir, moving to defend their master. Lem used holy words to put a few to rest, while Valeros simply hacked his way through the remainder. By the time the battle was over, it was too late. The man was gone again. Valeros kicked over the cauldron in frustration. Bubbling, viscous liquid bathed the dirt floor. Lem did not want to give much thought to what could have been in that foul brew.
Turn 11
Lem – BoG
Location ability – Wisdom 6 check = D6 = 4 = Fail = Discard top card of deck
Caizarlu Zerren – Summon and encounter zombie henchmen
Lem – Enfeeble to evade
Recharge Enfeeble = Success
Valeros – Glaive = D10+5 + D10 = 14 = Success
Caizarlu – Holy Light + Valeros = D10+3 + 2D6 + D4+1 = 19 = Success
Check to see if Caizarlu is defeated – 3 = Defeated
Caizarlu shuffled into last open location
Recharge Holy Light = Success
Location close ability = D4-1 cards from discard shuffled into deck = 0
They found a small, seemingly hand-carved tunnel that led away from the building. They followed the narrow passage for what felt like forever. It was level, but varied in height. At times, Valeros needed to crouch and crawl. Lem, of course, had no such problems. Reaching the end, the tunnel led upward and opened into what appeared to be an old mill. It creaked and groaned around them in disrepair. Valeros spotted the glimmer of metal against a far wall. Moving towards it, he was greeted by a set of fine half-plate that rested there. Next to it was a battered chest. Curious, he thought.
Turn 12
Valeros – BoAbadar
Location ability – Wisdom 6 check = Wisdom + Lem recharge = D4 + D4+1 = 6 = Success = Draw random card from discard
Move to Mill
Quarterstaff – Melee = Auto-Success
Holy Candle – 5
Discard Boiomedae explore – Magic Half-Plate = Constitution + Lem BoDesna = 2D8 = 10 = Success
Following shortly behind, Lem saw his partner reaching down to pick up the armor. He also saw the man sneaking up on Valeros with a dagger drawn. Fortunately, the man did not see Lem. Lightning coursed through the man's body as he dropped with a thud behind Valeros. Valeros was unfazed, pointing to a nearby chest.
"Think you can get that open?"
"Well, I can try."
The chest was old, and the lock was easily picked. Inside, Lem found an assortment of goods. Some of the items were mundane and some clearly magical. Lem stuffed what he could into his pack for later examination.
Turn 13
Lem – Boiomedae
Location ability – Wisdom 6 check = Wisdom + BoShelyn = 3D6 = 11 = Success = Draw random card from discard
Move to Mill
Sneak – Before encounter wisdom check = Fail = Discard 1 card – Lightning Touch + Valeros = D10+3 + 2D4 + D4+1 = 16 = Success
Recharge Lightning Touch = Success
Discard BoG explore – Battered Chest – Dexterity + Valeros Find Traps = 3D8 = 14 = Success
D4 random items to hand – 4 = Bracers of Protection, Staff of Minor Healing, Potion of Vision, Potion of Hiding
As his partner looted the chest, Valeros took the opportunity to look around this place. It was old and rotten, just like the sanatorium, but it had been occupied recently. Valeros found makeshift beds and other signs of habitation. As he examined the place, a sudden moaning from outside caught his attention. He moved back to Lem and silently motioned to the source of the sound, outside the mill.
They stepped outside into the dark of night. No moon hung overhead to light their surroundings. There was only darkness, and the creaking of the old mill. They both knew they were not alone. Lem saw them first, firing his wand at a zombie that crawled towards them, it's torso trailing a slick of dark fluid. Valeros spotted another, cutting through it with his trusty glaive. They hacked and blasted the creatures until finally all that remained was the robed man, standing at the edge of the clearing that surrounded the mill.
Valeros moved in first, with Lem just behind. The halfling fanned out to the left in an attempt to flank the man. They could not make out the man's face in the darkness, but the robed figure made no attempt to move. As Valeros thrust forward with his glaive, Lem blasted the man with holy light. The body crumpled to the ground lifelessly. Valeros nudged the robes with his boot.
"I expected more of a fight." He sounded disappointed.
Turn 14
Valeros – BoDesna
BoPharasma – Intelligence + Lem recharge = D6 + D4+1 = 10 = Success
Discard BoPharasma explore – Caizarlu Zerren = Summon and encounter Zombie Henchmen
Lem – Wand of Force Missile = 4D4 = 9 = Success
Recharge wand = Success
Valeros – Glaive = D10+5 + D10 = 20 = Success
Caizarlu – Glaive + Lem recharge = D10+5 + D10 + D4+1 = 16 = Success
Caizarlu ability – 6 = Defeated
"I wonder who he was." Lem mused as they began the long walk back to Magnimar.
"I don't know, but what I do know is that he wanted to die." Valeros looked around, uneasy in the darkness.
"Do you think he was working alone?" Lem checked his bandages as they walked. The bleeding had stopped, which was a good sign.
"I think we'll find out soon enough."
Reward – Power Feat
Lem – 1D4+2 Bonus to a check at your location
Valeros – 5 Card Hand Size
Post-Game Analysis
That was a fun one. It was nice to have an easier scenario after those last few. A lot of great boons came out of this one, which made me wish I had taken more item feats. Regardless, the Staff of Minor Healing and Magic Half-Plate are welcome additions to Valeros' deck. There were a lot of spells as well, but unfortunately nothing that Lem will be keeping. On a side note, I'm thinking of including the acquired feats along with the character's starting decks at the beginning of each episode, just so people can see where the bonuses and card feats are coming from.
I was really excited to get into Adventure Deck 2, and I have the feeling it won't be long before I need to order AD3 as well. Can the pair uncover the source of the evil that plagues the city of Magnimar? Will Lem become a werewolf now that he has been bitten? Where will the pair sleep now that the village house has been destroyed? Find out (maybe), in the next episode!
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