Age of Fantasy Quest: Game 1

“Right then… keep yer mouths shut.” whispered Ulskrag as he peered down the broad steps and strung his bow. “There’s bound to be some of those filthy longbeards about… their stink is all over the place!”

 

As I mentioned in my last post, I’m giving another one-page-rules game a try – this time Age of Fantasy Quest (with the aim of trying to tie it into my Five Leagues from the Borderlands game – in which I’m playing a bunch of orcs battling against the dwarves of Balin’s company during their failed re-colonisation of Moria).

Now I did get a few rules wrong during the first half of the game (or just forgot things here and there) - but it worked out reasonably well in the end – though I think it would be better if I had more table space (though that’s not something I can change at the moment).

Anyway… on with the game!

 

Ulskrag ordered Izdin (his second in command – a large orcish brute wielding a heavy axe) and the rest of the patrol down into the chamber, and had them form a defensive line between himself and the group of dwarves that appeared out of the darkness.

 

The bearded folk were few in number, little more than a patrol themselves, and so the lads (Bagash, Kildig, and Gitnik) faced them head on – charging in (with their spears leading the way), while Izdin came around at them from their flank.

This resulted in the death of all three dwarves – though Bagash was also slain in the exchange.

 

Meanwhile, Ulskrag took his time to make his mark on a pile of stones to indicate the passing of his patrol (as was their custom – it being a means of ensuring the orcs actually patrolled their allotted areas), before moving deeper into the ruinous chamber. 

However, it seemed that their recent engagement, brief though it was, had not gone unnoticed, and more dwarves rushed in through an open archway on this lower level.

This time, the remaining lads (Kildig, and Gitnik) advanced a short distance and set themselves to meet the enemy's charge… and succeeded in beating them back (this time without loss).

Like before, Ulskrag had begun making his mark on the appointed stone – but seeing that the dwarves had not been dealt with, he moved into position to take a shot at them with his trusty bow… but missed dramatically – his arrow disappearing into the darkness of the passage from which they had emerged.

Seeing this, Izdin (his blood still up from the previous encounter) charged into the dwarves, his axe swinging left and right as he cut all three down in a matter of mere seconds.

Both impressed and a little intimidated by this, Ulskrag called Kildig, and Gitnik over to watch his back while he continued with his task (he actually failed the roll to complete this several times during the course of this encounter – so I had him spend two power to turn a failed roll into a success).

 

With the primary mission complete (i.e. both objectives had been achieved) it was time to roll up a secondary objective. This resulted in ‘safeguard’ – which meant that a marker is placed in the centre of the table, and a hero will need to make three successful dex texts when within 3” of it to ‘safegaurd’ that area from enemy attacks. In story terms I interpreted this as the group having to hold that area while Ulskrag daubed the stones with the blood of their enemies - to mark this area as orc territory).

 

However, before doing that he chose to search the area for any indication as to what the dwarves might be up to in this hall (as there was also a search token next to one of the primary objectives)… but this turned up nothing of interest… though the delay meant that more of Balin’s folk had made their way into this area – this time descending from a higher level (i.e. through door 1).

The resulting battle proved costly…

 

...and although this newest threat was eventually dealt with – it cost the lives of Kildig, and Gitnik.

With the halls falling quiet once more, Ulskrag searched another promising area for possible loot, and this time uncovered a strange elixir.

Once again, the delay meant that yet more dwarves poured into the area… and, the remaining pair of orcs chose to hide behind a ruined pillar while this next group (armed with hammers) made their way towards the middle of the hall.

 

Then, with one of the ruined portions of the chamber between them, Ulskrag began raining arrows down upon them…

...before fleeing again.

 

(Now, if I’m reading things right, the AI rules as written state that if an enemy doesn’t have line of sight to a hero they head towards an AI goal – so they never pursue a hero once they turn a corner for example. However, I don’t really like that – so I adopted an Advanced HeroQuest rule, and judged that when a hero disappears from view, its enemies will pursue it for one round (following the direction the hero took)… and if their movement doesn’t bring the Hero back into sight, then, and only then, will they head back towards an AI goal).

So, with the dwarves giving up the chase, the pair decided to investigate another of the chamber’s corners…

 

...but came up empty handed once again.

Now, with the dwarves’ backs turned, the pair climbed a set of crumbling steps that led up to a platform that overlooked the central portion of the chamber, and prepared their final assault.

Ulskrag took aim and loosed his arrows, while Izdin charged in with is axe held high.

However, more of the sneaky beardlings had made their way into the area, and were already heading towards the skirmish in the centre of the room. As such Ulskrag jumped down and joined the fray.

The resulting battle ended with Izdin felling the last of the remaining hammerers, while Ulskrag finally threw caution aside, and charged the newly arrived axemen… slaughtering them all with his orcish blades.

 

With the halls falling quiet again, if only briefly, Ulskrag took the time to daub markings onto the fallen stones in the blood of his enemies (as a warning to any other dwarves that might journey this way).

(Note that I once again failed a couple of necessary rolls to complete the secondary objective – so I used two power to convert those fails onto a sucess. However, this quickly depleted my power score… but I think you can still do that with zero power remaining… but it instead comes off your wound total.)

But no sooner had he finished, the sound of yet more hurried footfalls echoed throughout the chamber… the heavy stomp of dwarven boots - this time approaching from behind (i.e. door 6).

Looking each other up and down, both Ulskrag and Izdin could see that they were in no shape to fight off more of the hated longbeards; both were wounded, and more than half of their patrol lay dead.

So, with their mission complete, they decided to flee the hall – spitting foul curses at the pursuing dwarves, before quickly outpacing them and disappearing into the long dark of Moria.

 

Age of Fantasy Quest: the set-up

In my last Five Leagues from the Borderlands game, my party of orcs arrived at the Uruk Hold (a large orc encampment deep within Moria) after being ambushed by some of Balin’s folk along the way.

Upon reaching their destination, they fell in with a group of returning scouts as they made their way past the outer barricades, and into the camp proper.

Anyway, before I continue with Muzlug and Lagashi’s story (and also because there are other games I would like to try out over the holiday period), I thought I would rewind slightly, and play out a battle using the One Page Rules ‘Age of Fantasy: Quest’ ruleset… and use that scenario to represent the patrol that these scouts were returning from… and maybe weave that into the story somehow (maybe Muzlug & Co. will investigate the same area too… you know… since I already have the table set up ;) ).

However, before I get started, I will say that I’m not playing ‘Quest’ rules as written… and instead of having multiple ‘heroes’ I’m just going to have the one – but he will be accompanied by a small warband that’s worth the same amount of points (i.e. my hero came out to 90 points, so I have put a 90 point list together to represent his small patrol, and together that should roughly equal the power level of two heroes for the purposes of working out the strength of the various ‘waves’ that they’ll be encountering… if you’re familiar with the way ‘Quest’ works, then you’ll know what I mean).

Speaking of which, here’s a picture of Ulskrag’s patrol:

 

Left to right: Ulskrag (orc ranger 90pts), 3 goblin warriors with spears and ‘furious’ (30pts), and Izdin (black orc – 60pts).

Now, this is more of a test game than anything else – so there’s not much of a story – other than Ulskrag being tasked to patrol the area I’ve got set up on my (small) table… and then taking it from there.

 

So, as you can see, the way I’ve got things broken up into 4 quarters (shown in red) is a little unconventional – but that’s because my playing space is made up of 2 magnetic blackboards (which my tiles are attached to)… one larger than the other (hence the L shape).

Furthermore, rather than having the heroes and enemies arrive at random table corners, I’ve instead set things up so that there are six specific entrances (shown in blue) – which, as you’ve probably guessed, I can randomise with the roll of a d6.

Now, as far as the mission goes I’ve selected an ‘Investigation’ – which means I need to investigate two markers (which I’m rationalising as my patrol route), and I also ended up with 4 search tokens as well.

The last thing I placed was the ‘sentries’ (in this case a group of 3 dwarf axemen)… and rolled to see what doorway my patrol would be entering from...

 

...and with that, I think it’s time to start the mission!

(but that will be my next post ;) )

Five Leagues From the Borderlands (part 8) – Ambushed!

Before I begin, I just want to quickly say that I probably played this game over a year ago, and so my memory of it isn’t perfect. I’m also not sure why I didn’t post a bat-rep at the time – but since I recently stumbled upon my notes (and found a few pictures on my hard drive) I thought it would be a good time to share them – especially since I’m thinking of restarting the game (or doing something similar with the newer ‘Deep Below’ spin-off).

Anyway, we left off with our little band of orcs acquiring a ‘contract’ – which involved visiting the Orc Outpost, the Uruk Hold, and the Loot Exchange settlements within 5 turns, and making an 8+ speech test in at least two of them.

I had interpreted this as having to re-establish connections between some of the orc groups that had taken up abode in the various halls of the dwarven complex… and, as such, had decided to return ‘home’ this turn (back to the Orc Outpost) – and gained a ‘friend’ along the way.

CAMPAIGN TURN 4

Town Events: Wandering healer

Hard Times: 2 upkeep (I used 1 ration to offset this)

Activities: Performed a successful speech test (with a +1 ‘friend’ bonus), recruited another follower, and visited the blacksmith to repair Muzlug’s spear.

Research: No result

Trade: Sold 'jars' for 2 gold.

My interpretation:

It turned out that Bagna (the sniveling wretch that befriended the group on their return journey) had the ear of Grob (the settlement's leader), and was able to get Lagashi an audience with him within a few days.

In the meantime, Muzlug was able to exchange some of the loot that they had found for a new spear shaft, and Pushdug convinced him that he probably knew a couple of good lads that might also want in on their escapades.

However, as it turned out, only one of these ‘lads’ was still alive… an axe wielding orc by the name of Dinshat – who was currently being patched up by a healer of sorts.

And since the rest of his band were currently missing (being the heavily armed patrol that had failed to return) he was easily convinced to slink away and join Muzlug’s Mob when no-one was looking.

Later, when Lagashi eventually got her audience with the great orc Grob, he was quick to agree that messengers should be sent down to the ‘Uruk Hold’ on the level below - as whispers had reached his ears of it falling back into Dwarven hands. And, even though he doubted those rumours to be true, he was no fool, and knew it to be wise to be seen to do ‘something’ (sending someone to check for example) …even if only to stave off challenges from those that were all to eager to take his place.

Therefore, Lagashi was quick to relay this news to Muzlug - resulting in the pair gathering their small warband, and heading off in short order.

 

TRAVEL ROLL: Waylaid by foes (petty robbers)

It was already late when the warband moved out – and so it wasn’t overly long before the group set up camp in an empty room at the end of a grand (but ruinous) hall. They even lit a small fire (against Pushdug’s advice) as they settled down – not fearing much due to the fact that they hadn't travelled all that far from the outpost.

Then, during Snagluk’s watch, the quiet, but unmistakable sound of booted feet echoed out in the main hall… and sneaking a look (with eyes well accustomed to the dark) he espied the unmistakable shapes of dwarven figures approaching their position. They had seen the light of the campfire perhaps… and were creeping closer and closer with each passing heartbeat.

THE BATTLE

Now I’m fairly sure I had some comprehensive notes to accompany these photo’s – but all I can seem to find are half a dozen bullet points – so maybe I had intended to write up this bat-rep straight away instead of relying on my notes (as I do remember the whole thing being fairly short and sweet).

Anyway, the set-up looked like this:

And, at the start, the dwarves moved in using the ‘infiltration’ rules (for a defensive battle), before eventually being spotted by Snagluk – who was the only one to act in the quick phase of the first round… but in his panic his shot was well wide of the mark.

During the next few rounds, the two opposing forces rushed to meet each other – but the main dwarven contingent were temporarily halted as tendrils of dark magic swirled around them – making their limbs heavy, and their boots feel like lead (i.e. Lagashi cast ‘bind’).

After dispatching a couple of the filthy longbeards, two of their number turned tail and fled like the cowards that they are – leaving their leader alone to face the consequences of their actions.

Needless to say, it didn’t go well for the lone dwarf… and (acting in the quick phase) Pushdug charged in and cut the fool down with a single blow!

RESOLUTION

Even though this was a travel battle, I think I still treat this like a regular battle – and need to do all the usual ‘resolution stage’ stuff… so:

1. No adventure points gained.

2. No injuries.

3. Advancements... 

• Muzlug 2 XP
• Lagashi 2 XP
• Pushdug 3XP (+1 for killing their leader) he also gains +1 combat skill at lvl 1
• Golb – nothing gained
• Snagluk – gains the pathwise skill.
• Dinshat – gains the battlewise skill.

4. Loot – found a delvers kit.

5. Unusual find – found the remains of a victim (I need to return a token to a random settlement)

6. Settle in – reached the ‘Uruk Hold' settlement.

7. News Travels – Rangers have been scouting the area (+2AP)

My interpretation:

With the echoing footsteps of the fleeing dwarves fading into the depths, the warband took stock. None of them had been injured (other than a few scratches and bruises), and so counted themselves lucky.

Pushdug gloated over the fact that he had warned them about lighting a fire… and this time Lagashi was inclined to agree. However, Muzlug berated the group for letting two of the dwarves escape – stating that the group would now need to move with haste themselves – before the bearded cowards could return with more of their filthy kin.

Despite this, they did a quick search of the bodies, and looted a few supplies/tools of sturdy dwarven make – and also discovered the decapitated head of a large orc brute tied up in a sack.

Dinshat, the newest member of the warband, confirmed that this was Rutgot – the leader of the missing patrol… and stated that news of this should probably be taken back to the outpost.

(note that I used a Story Point to change the location that this needed to be returned to – having it be the Outpost that they had just left – as I thought that fit the story better)

Despite this, Muzlug ordered the group on… and to make it ‘double quick’ since he believed that the dwarves were on to them (as he didn’t want to face a larger force of the beardlings with his own meagre band).

And yet, they arrived at the outskirts of the Uruk Hold (an orc camp that could rival the populace of a small town) without further event, and fell in (and exchanged news) with a group of returning scouts, as they made their way past the outer barricades...

Five Leagues From the Borderlands (part 7) – Delve Aftermath

So, I ended my last (5 leagues) post when I finished the first level of the delve/dungeon (as it was already a long post, and I didn’t want to make it even longer). However, that meant that I didn’t complete the resolution stage – so that’s how I’ll start things off here:

 

(TURN 2) RESOLUTION STAGE:

XP was awarded, and Muzlug’s fate was rolled (I originally got a ‘serious injury’ for him – but decided to use a dose of silvertree leaf to re-roll – resulting in a damaged weapon instead).

Because I achieved the objective, I think I also get to roll on the loot table.

And because I (technically) held the field, I assume I roll on the unusual finds table too.

And to finish things off, I also rolled on the ‘news travels’ table (which indicated that I needed to add a hidden monster lair to the map).

 

TOTAL LOOT FROM THE MISSION:

Mountain’ Bane (weapon) – goes to Muzlug

Camp Gear – goes in backpack

Jars of spices (2 gold) – goes in backpack

Talisman – goes to Golb

Mystical Ring – goes to Lagashi

Icon – goes to Lagashi

 

And since this would be a rather short post if I left it at that, I’m also going to get started on...

 

CAMPAIGN TURN 3

Camp Events: Good location (+2 to ‘hunting expedition’ or ‘forage for herbs’ rolls).

Hard Times: 2 upkeep.

Activities: Live off the land (to offset upkeep cost) & Hunting Expedition (I obtain 2 rations).

Research: Gain a contract (offered by townsfolk to negotiate a deal – they will pay 2 gold). To complete this I will need to visit the Loot Exchange, the ‘Uruk Hold, and the Orc Outpost, and succeed an 8+ speech test in at least two of them. I also need to do it within 5 turns.

As such I decide to return to the orc outpost (which requires a travel roll) – and meet a friendly peasant on the way (i.e. I get to add a ‘friend’).

News Travels: The rangers (orc trackers in my case) have been scouting the area. Add 2 AP

* * *

MY INTERPRETATION OF ALL OF THE ABOVE:

Things weren’t looking good for Muzlug… his black blood was already pooling about him by the time the last of the giant rats had been dealt with.

Now, normally, this wouldn’t have troubled Lagashi much – but this new orc that had appeared on the scene… this Pushdug fellow – she did not like the look of him at all. So, even though she cared little for Muzlug, she at least knew where she stood with the great uruk – so she poured some of the orcish liquor down his throat, and hoped it wouldn’t be too late to save him.

Luckily it was not – but in his fall, Muzlug had managed to break the haft of his great spear. And so, upon regaining his feet (and despite feeling a little groggy still), he snatched the dwarven hammer from Golb’s belt, and claimed it for his own.

The group then took some time to give the place a thorough search, and skinned and roasted several of the dead rats that they had left in their wake (as Snagluk convinced them that they’d make ‘good eatin’). They even had several left over.

After their meal (and once the loot was ‘fairly’ distributed), the matter of Pushdug’s sudden appearance was brought into question…

He was known to Muzlug – and he had apparently been here since the battle in the Dimrill Dale (being part of the host that had taken the first hall). However, most of his own lads had been killed by the filthy longbeards in that conflict… and so when he thought he saw Muzlug back in camp, he followed the group here, to see if it was indeed his former comrade… and if so, to see if he could join the warband.

This seemed good enough for Muzlug – but Lagashi still had her suspicions… though the new arrival also brought news of a troll lair nearby… and informed them that Grob (the orc chieftain) had put a hefty price on it’s head (though not for it’s slaughter – the goal was to subdue it, and bring it back alive).

* * *

On their way back to the outpost, they bumped into a scraggly snaga named Bagna – a snivelling wretch that fawned upon the group, and followed them back ‘home.’

* * *

Back in camp, things had started to heat up. A couple of scouting parties had reported dwarven activity on the level above, and a heavily armed patrol had been sent out… but was yet to return.

It was also apparent that, despite initial appearances, communications between the disparate orc groups that were occupying these halls was in danger of breaking down. Furthermore, the rearming of troops wasn’t as speedy as it might be… and some of the (false) rumours running through the camp (such as the Uruk Hold falling into dwarf hands) were becoming troublesome to say the least.

As such, Muzlug and Lagashi thought it might be worthwhile bringing some of this up with Grob (assuming they could gain an audience) – and seeing if they could convince him to send them out to re-establish connections, and put some of the rumours to rest.

* * *

OTHER NOTES AND FILES:

Since I started blogging about my 5 leagues games, I’ve been asked (in a few different places) about the tokens and exploration markers that I’ve been using (and if I’d be willing to share them).

Now, the crates themselves are just a slight modification of some of the stuff that’s already appeared on my Youtube channel… here’s a snippet from one of my videos where I show how they are assembled...

...but other stuff (like the unknown enemy tokens) are kinda specific to the game itself.

So, I’ve been in touch with Ivan (from Nordic Weasel) – just to make sure he has no objections to me sharing a pdf file that contains all of these tokens… and he’s kindly agreed – so I have uploaded them to google drive HERE.

 

(the 2D tokens have just been glued to thick card)

So, here’s hoping you can put them to use!

(note that I’m still pretty new to the game, so if there is anything else that I need to add, or something that I’ve missed – feel free to let me know)

Five Leagues From the Borderlands (part 6) – Delving the Dungeon!

OK, so in my last 5 Leagues update I did all the preparation for the next campaign turn, and got the table ready for the next battle… so here’s how it went:

TURN 1

Advancing down the steps, Lagashi began chanting words of power… words that summoned a swarm of fell bats in front of her – thus screening her from any danger that might lie ahead.

Soon after, the patter of tiny clawed feet echoed throughout the dungeon, as the rat-like denizens that had made this place their home began moving around… alerting the orc band to their presence.

Hearing this, Muzlug commanded the rest of his lads to gather at the foot of the stairs – and to ready their weapons.

 TURN 2

After his previous experience with the wargs, Golb was not too keen about being up front with the possibility of foes drawing nearer – so he stepped to one side and opened the creaky iron gate to his left – to ‘free up more space’ ...or so he claimed.

No sooner as he did that, a pair of giant rats burst through the holes in the wooden door to the right, and got caught up in Lagashi’s bats. One was killed almost instantly, while the other was sorely wounded… but that too was swiftly dispatched as Muzlug stepped forward, spear in hand.

However, off in the distance, similar scratching/squeaking noises continued to echo...

TURN 3

 

(the ‘king rat’ reaches point 3 and begins moving towards point 6)

With no enemies in sight Muzlug kicked open the door, showering the room beyond in splinters – but revealing no foes. Regardless, he ordered the rest to form up around him.

TURN 4

At the far end of the passage the wall between it and the well room had collapsed… but through it their remained little cracks and tunnels through which the rats could move – and they put them to use now, and appeared without warning upon the orc flank.

NOTE: I had to step away from the table here… and when I got back I forgot where I was, and started turn 5 without activating the rest of my guys. So I’ll rationalise that by saying that they were all taken completely by surprise by this turn of events.

TURN 5

Spotting the rat-like beasts out of the corner of his eye, Snagluk loosed his bow, and stuck an arrow in the lead creature. But this was a huge beast (easily twice the size of the ones encountered previously), and it seemed to hardly notice the arrow embedded in its side (i.e. being a ‘captain’ it cannot be stunned).

Acting quickly, Lagashi stepped in front of him, and with an outstretched hand and a commanding voice, ordered the beasts to halt (i.e. she attempts to cast ‘bind’ – but fails).

Unperturbed, the lead rat closed the distance with incredible speed, and charged headlong into the swarm of bats. However, the bats quickly gained the upper hand – wounding and pushing the feral beast back.

Then on came the smaller creature… rushing headlong towards Lagashi – but neither rat nor orc could gain the upper hand in that brief duel (i.e. it was a draw).

NOTE: Once again, I got distracted… and forgot to activate my last two guys in the slow phase… so, once again I’ll justify that by saying…

Meanwhile, Muzlug and Golb (thinking that Lagashi’s spell had done its job) had continued to survey the room beyond the broken door; taking their time to make sure that there were no further threats lurking in the darkness. But something had gone awry… the rat-like beasts in the passage behind them were still coming… indeed they were upon them!

TURN 6

Snagluk hurriedly fitted another arrow to his bow and let it fly… but even then, was too late in loosing it.

In came the smaller rat, swiftly ducking beneath the wayward arrow, but was thankfully repelled by the summoned bats that (once again) formed a defensive barrier between it and Lagashi.

Then came the rat king (for so it was), tearing bats from the air as it came.

That’s when Golb (thought he) saw an opening, and engaged the beast while it finished tearing the remaining bats to ribbons. However, he quickly regretted his decision, and was forced to hide behind his shield as he was repeatedly beaten back.

Not liking the way things were going, Muzlug stepped up and forced the thing to retreat (though he did not follow up himself… as he deemed it unwise to be caught out in the open, and risk being attacked on two sides).

And, while all of this was happening, Lagashi had planted her feet and began chanting again… this time taking care to utter the words slowly and precisely, and lacing them with all of her malice.

As such, this time when she commanded the beasts to halt, the larger one at least had no choice but to obey!

 

 

(note that during the past two turns the final pack of rats had reached point 2, and were now headed towards point 1 – which would lead them right past the ongoing battle in the passage)

TURN 7

With the main threat temporarily bound in place, Snagluk took his time with his next shot, and slew the smaller creature where it stood.

Similarly, Muzlug weighed up his options, and drove his spear at king rat… hitting it with a blow that would have, at the very least, stunned a lesser foe… but the beast (despite being forced back) seemed unfazed (though still unable to break free of Lagashi’s spell).

Meanwhile, seeing things were improving in the passage (and not knowing that more rats were en route) Golb and Lagashi entered the hall to their right… and began making their way over to something that had caught their eye (i.e. exploration marker 1).

 

NOTE THAT, IT’S AT THIS POINT THAT I DECIDED TO USE THE ‘What about old friends?” CARD TO BRING IN AN EXTRA HERO (as I was getting a little bit tired of being tied up in the same passage). So:

Back towards the way they had came, Muzlug and Snagluk thought they heard the sound of booted feet echoing down the stone steps.

“‘Ere, Muzlug… I thought that was you. Looks like you’ve landed yerself in a spot of bovva’!” came an evil sounding voice… one that both orcs were familiar with. It was Pushdug.

Any questions as to why and how he was here would have to wait – for now Muzlug simply barked “Get stuck in you lazy slug!”

TURN 8 

Snagluk cursed loudly as he did little more than distract king rat with another ineffectual arrow – though, seeing this, Muzlug thrust his heavy spear into the creatures face – wounding it deeply and beating it back temporarily.

The beast then struck back wildly, its teeth thwarted by the large orc’s armour, and was then quickly silenced by Muzlug’s counter attack.

Though any hope of respite was quickly shattered, as two more giant rats burst through the second rusty gate.

The first of the pair fared poorly against Muzlug – and was cut down after failing to land a blow.

The second followed close on the heels of the first… but neither it nor Muzlug could do anything other than fend off each others attacks.

Meanwhile, Pushdug slowly advanced down the passage, and was greeted by Lagashi (who had come to see who it was, and to make sure that this interloper meant them no harm). However, seeing the lone rat near to the rusty gate, she let loose a stone from her sling… temporarily stunning the creature.

And while all of this was going on, Golb began rummaging through the rubble piled up behind the pillar in the room he had entered, and uncovered a dwarvish looking hammer. He wasn’t sure if it was something he’d want to use – but it might be something he could trade back in camp.

TURN 9

In a desperate final attempt, the last rat threw itself at Muzlug, but was cut down – leaving Muzlug and Snagluk free to move towards point 6, while Pushdug and Lagashi headed off towards point 5.

Golb also began to make/sneak his way back towards the passage.

TURN 10

Upon reaching the site of the cave in (i.e. exploration marker 6) Muzlug did a bit of digging around – but clumsily caused more of the wall to collapse… making a tremendous amount of noise in the process (i.e. he sets off an alarm trap that generates two more enemies on the opposite side of the board).

Meanwhile, the rest of the group gather in the chamber off to the left of the main passage.

TURN 11

Pushdug made his way over to a pile of broken and rotting crates, and began to rummage through them. And, while he couldn’t be certain, he was fairly sure something had been stashed there recently – and so he called back to Golb to take over the search… as he himself had seen hurried movement off in the distance… that of two more rats moving directly towards them.

At the same time Snagluk moved into the chamber, took up a defensive position near the stone arches, and loosed an arrow in the rough direction of the advancing rats.

TURN 12

Fitting yet another arrow to his bow, Snagluk gritted his teeth and fired again… but accomplished little more than losing another arrow to the darkness.

Seeing this, Muzlug charged into the room and slew the nearest rat – while Lagashi simultaneously stunned the other with a carefully placed sling shot.

TURN 13

While the others dealt with the remaining rat (this time Snagluk finally managed to take care of one with his bow) and advanced further into the ‘dungeon,’ Golb gathered a few bits and bobs from the rubbish pile that would serve as ‘camp gear’ in a pinch.

FROM HERE ON, SINCE THERE WERE NO ENEMIES PRESENT, I JUST MOVED MY WARBAND TO THE RELEVANT SPOTS ON THE BOARD THAT I WANTED TO INVESTIGATE…

At marker 2 Muzlug thought he saw something hidden… but it turned out to be nothing.

At marker 3 Golb found a (guarded) stash containing bandages (or things that could pass as such), jars of spices (I’m going to judge that the jars themselves are decorative, and worth the associated 2 gold), and a talisman (this last one he concealed from the others).

However, while the party filled their waterskins and rummaged through the detritus, three more rats came scurrying up the steps (from a deeper level) and rushed Muzlug… taking him by surprise again, and wounding him grievously (taking him out of the game).

In the melee that followed, the rats were quickly dispatched (the last one was slain by the newly arrived Pushdug) – and though there were still a few areas yet to be explored, the group decided that they would go no further that day, and tend to Muzlug’s wounds…

...that is...

...assuming he’s still alive!