Thursday 14 December 2017

Basic Fantasy RPG - Part VII

Welcome back for some more Basic Fantasy RPG goodness!

Feel free to read through the earlier posts if you want to see how the party got to where they are!

Before we started the session in earnest we went through some of the rules. At the previous session we had rolled in the ability to dual wield weapons. However after discussion on the BFRPG forum I discovered I had misinterpreted the rules. After a discussion with the group we decided not to go for the whole hearted version as the rules described. Rather we decided to bring in a house rule. Dual wield will be classed as a skill that can be selected by the players (I need to think of a downside). The player who dual wields receives +0 to their main hand and -2 to their off hand. I recognise some may feel this is over powered. However I am a great believer in seeing how changes work then re-tweaking as necessary. So for the moment that is how the skill is working. [Update. At the end of the next session the player who was dual wielding decided it was not a good enough boost to warrant and so is swapping back to a mace and 1 attack.]

At the start of our latest session I took a hint from one of my friends, and an excellent GM (Steve), and got the players to recap what had happened during the previous session. This allowed me to see what they were taking in, how they perceived the session, and allowed me to look to tailor the sessions to better fit the players.

Once the recap was complete we jumped back into the dungeon.

The party moved cautiously down the corridor; at the end of the corridor they could just make out a faint waxy light. Using his Elven Slippers (that was a lucky random roll a few sessions back) the Thief crept up to the corner. Peering around he could make out the shadowy forms of two bandits standing either side of the entrance to a rope bridge; a lantern on the ground by their feet casting the waxy light. Creeping back silently to the party the Thief relayed the information. After a quick discussion the Mage crept forwards to the corner. Using Mage Hand he picked up the lantern and waved it in front of the bandits. Turning pale they made to run across the bridge; then suddenly remembering themselves, and the dodgy nature of the bridge, they grasped the rope guide rail and did a panicked power walk across the bridge while casting furtive glances over their shoulders.

Having cleared the way to the bridge entrance the party advanced to see how things stood. The Thief crept out to the middle of the bridge, taking things very steadily as the rotten planks creaked and groaned under his weight. Once halfway across he could make out 4 bandits. One of the original bandits who had power walked to safety was on the ground, being towered over by a burly bandit who had, from the looks of things, struck him on the nose.

The Thief crept cautiously back to the party and relayed what he had seen. Also remembering he had DarkVision and really didn't need to go on the bridge decided to take a shot with his bow. Notching an arrow he drew back, steadied his arm, and released. (Natural 1) The fletching had obviously become loose as the arrow buzzed loudly in the cavern and flew wildly off target. The bandits took this as a clear sign to retreat behind the cave walls out of sight, before calling out, "we only want the cleric... let us have him and the rest of you can go."

The party had another (see previous posts) discussion on whether Gilgan really ought to just be given up to make all their lives easier. However they decided there was definitely something "up" with Gilgan, and they wanted to know exactly what it was. Instead of handing him over they decided they would cross the bridge and clear these bandits out of the caves. The adventurers came up with the excellent idea of tying their rope around each of them. They did debate whether that included Gilgan, but in the end again decided they better try and keep him alive.

[So I had decided to cross the bridge I would make 3 d6 rolls per character. Any rolls of a 1 would not bode well for the player that roll happened to.]

The adventurers tied the rope around themselves so they were stuck into the following marching order:

Fighter
Cleric
Thief
Mage
Gilgan

Holding onto the guide rope with one hand, and their respective weapons with the other, they proceeded to edge out across the bridge. Edging their way across, the rotting planks creaked and groaned; with a sickening soft crunch the Mage disappeared from view, the rope pulling taught caught Gilgan by surprise and pulled him into the hole behind the Mage. The Fighter, Cleric, and Thief slid backwards towards the hole. Digging their heels in and grasping the rope they hauled, their combined strength hauling the Mage back up to the bridge. The party then dug in to pull Gilgan back up. However their plan was foiled by the Mages slippy feet as he slid straight back into the hole. Finding himself dangling above a chasm for the second time in as many minutes was leaving the Mage not in the best of moods! Digging in again the Fighter, Cleric, and Thief managed to pull the Mage up, then before he could fall in, also hoisted Gilgan to safety. It should be noted that while all this was going on there were 2 critical things occurring with NPCs.

Firstly Gilgan was quite enjoying the whole swinging sensation and was not put out in the slightest. Secondly the Bandits, having peeked round the corner and seeing what was happening, could be heard crying laughing from their position of safety. Watching the party they had concluded they posed no threat, and watching them try and cross the bridge was too much fun to interrupt.


As the party gained the far side of the bridge the bandits moved back out into the open blocking their passage.

Bandit 1: "All we want is the cleric ... you lot can go"
Party: "Why do you want him"
Bandit 1: "Our boss wants him. We went to his temple for healing and he made us all get naked. Said it was fer is God. Den wen we stripped e just laughed. Well boss wa'n't 'appy. So we need im"
The party (again) discussed whether they should just hand Gilgan over. The main points were that he was massively irritating, and really had brought this on himself, and the party could more than sympathise with the bandits. However, against their more mercenary feelings, they decided to help him. The Cleric lent in and whispered in Gilgans ear "Trust us".
Party: "Ok fair deal. You can have him."

The Bandits parted, 2 one side, and 2 the other. The party proceeded to walk between them. Just as they came level with the last bandit they span and attacked. The Cleric whirling his hammers, and the Cleric firing off Magic Missiles. The blue energy shot from the Mages fingers and struck the bandits; the first screamed in agony as his skin blistered and burnt under the magical energy; the second Magic Missile wrapped and warped around the bandit, its blue flame flickering and dying before it could do any lasting damage.

The bandit in charge was taken down by the angry Cleric. Swinging his hammers, he struck the bandit a solid blow into the gut, and as he doubled over the second hammer swung up into the bandits face and taking his jaw clean off.

A second bandit took several ringing blows from the Clerics hammers. The blows span him into a huge double handed swing from the Fighter: his sword taking the bandits head clean off.

Watching the pure butchery on their fellow bandits, the remaining two quicky dropped their weapons and surrendered. The Mage decided to strike one of the kneeling captives. Taking a swing, the Cleric pulled him back at the last second his swing going inches wide of the prisoner. Shaking off the Clerics hand the Mage swung again, this time his hand made contact sending the man sprawling to the ground; his temple connected with a rock cracking open his skull. Lying still blood seeped into the cavern floor. (He was on 1HP when the Mage hit him!)

While the party discussed what to do with the remaining prisoner (the Cleric holding back the Mage who was rather slap happy at this point), they noticed movement from the corner of their eyes. Turning to the centre of the room they watched as 5 troglodytes moved clear of the rocks. The party held firm, neither attacking, nor moving. One troglodyte moved to the front and pointed his spear at the kneeling man.

The party entered into a discussion on whether they really should give the bandit up, but in this instance erred on the side of "better him that us" and dragged the man to his feet, before giving him a shove towards the lead troglodyte. They watched in horror as they saw the troglodytes spear emerge from between the mans shoulder blades. Withdrawing his spear, the troglodytes moved off into the tunnels and disappeared.


At this point the party decided a rest was in order. The Mage had burnt out all his spells, and everyone had taken some beating in the fight.

What I am finding interesting, is that the more we play, the more the players are choosing their battles. Knowing when to run and when to fight is key to staying alive, and they are pulling it together really nicely. They are also getting into the spirit of their characters which is great to see.

The next sessions brings this first adventure to a close and prepares the players for being transported to the Midderlands... but more on that next time!



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