Tests and Trials

[spiderwrangler]

Nope. Jaq will not rub off alone.

((Umm.... Don't expect Kroshav's help, he's unconscious.))

[Rodgeir]

((Ahem. Kids might read this.

Would Jaq mention the (old) healing potions in his and Kroshav's possession?))

[The Lost]

”She n ‘er babe have some sort o transmut’n magic affectin’ ‘er. Medi’m strong in strength. Ah’m worri’d fer thar saf’ty.

When Ah brought it up thou, she got mighty upset n claim’d she didnae wanna talk about tha case, n when pressed she claim’d tha she fear’d meh due to bein’ a suspect n seem’d like she were blamin’meh but Ah saw no fear in ‘er eyes. She than claim’d Ah was threatnin’ ‘er, and Ah did no such thin’.

Ah donnae know tha way she be actin’ seem’d a bit off. It maybeh a curse goin’ through ‘er tha makin’ ‘er act in such a way. Some curses have a way o messin’ with people’s minds n nay let them get themselves cur’d.

Ah had someun almost die to a curse, but Ah could nay do anythin’ about it, n thay made ‘im foght in a war in his condit’n. Ah hope tha ‘e be fine now but...it was gettin’ worse n worse each night n ‘e couldnae trace very well.”

[Dlover]

??: 1D4 = [1] = 1

((At least if Lurn's kept in captivity too long he can probably prepare Sending to let the others know he's alive.))

[Rodgeir]

Taking Jaq's pained silence to mean he has no means of helping return Kroshav to awareness the two uninjured soldiers begin the process of moving him back towards camp while the other two soldiers stay on high alert.

All signs of the light from Lurn's shield are now gone, but a faint whiff of the rancid stink surrounding the trolls remains in the air.

After a couple minutes progress the procession halts as they hear crashing through the trees and the four (plus Jaq?) prepare for a fight until they hear a call of,

"Kroshav? Lurn? Jaq? Hello? Ya all okay?"

Shortly before Celus leads Indra into view, weapons at the ready.

[NotStickFigures]

(Sorry for stupid but funny typo, and slow response. Sigh, power outage and using phone cause stupidity on my part!)

"Yes, we have some old healing potions, but they are erratic at best...could have weird side effects. But let's see what help might show up."
He then is relieved when Celus and Indra show up.

"Thank goodness. Bad fight with four trolls, and they took Lurn captive as they can talk to him and want him to make magic food for them, so we are gonna have to heal up Kroshav, get some soldiers, and make a rescue plan!"

(Kroshav is stabalized, correct?)

[spiderwrangler]

((Yes, one of the soldiers got me stable.))

► Show Spoiler

If needed:_: 1D4 = [2] = 2

[Rodgeir]

((Thanks for the roll Spider, if Jaq isn't administering a potion it will be needed.

@NSF you had the potions identified and found they are erratic in the amount they heal but only failed 10% of the time and caused the poisoned condition.))

The soldiers relax at the reinforcements identification and keep trudging forward with Kroshav as Dama slides out of the trees west of them. Celus joins in helping pack Kroshav commenting with a grunt,

"What is he made of? Solid gold under those scales."

Indra falls back and watches the trees as Dama moves over to Jaq, chewing on her lip and looking back the way the party came from before saying,

"Four trolls? Musta been a family pack. Never heard of trolls taking a captive. Lemme go check their trail, I catch you up."

She slides south.

[NotStickFigures]

Jaq will get out one of the old vials of potion and say, "It should help, but in case he looks worse someone with some medicine knowledge might want to back me up to try to help him."

He will take his time and work on getting the entire potion into Kroshav without spilling, and hope for the best!

[Rodgeir]

((Roll me a d10 Spider!))

[spiderwrangler]

_: 1D10 = [3] = 3

[Rodgeir]

Kroshav sputters to consciousness seeing Jaq, Celus and a pair of soldiers he doesn't think he has introduced himself to yet...or did he?

Swallowing again he is pretty sure that the troll that knocked him senseless took a moment to relieve herself in his mouth. A slimey residue feels like it has permanently coated his mouth and throat.

He burps a little and the flavor renews itself.

Healing potion 3: 1D4+2 = [2]+2 = 4

[spiderwrangler]

"Did that troll pee in my mouth? I thought she liked Lurn... *gack*"

[Rodgeir]

Celus looks at Jaq bewildered,

"It peed in his mouth? Is that normal?"

[spiderwrangler]

"Ugh, someone have a waterskin? I gotta wash that taste out... Oh, hey! You guys found us... ummm sorry about my horses, hope they didn't hurt anyone too bad. Ugh... seriously, my mouth tastes gross. Lurn, can you purify my tongue? Lurn?"

[NotStickFigures]

Jaq rolls his eyes and begins explaining a bit, feeling like that is going to be his lot in life, explaining what the others are talking about if he continues to travel with this bunch.
"It's not pee, these are really OLD healing potions and they taste like wet socks...
And we didn't do well with the trolls, Kroshav, and they carried off Lurn. Once he showed them his spell for making food, good berries, they wanted him as a source of unending food. So we need to go heal up and then go rescue him. Indra went to track where they went, thank goodness, so we'll be able to find him later. For now we just rest and wait for her a bit. Do you have any healing left my good paladin? If you do, you need to use it on yourself.

And now Trolls. What I know about them and saw in this fight. Unless we fight with some fire, or Acid I've heard, they will just keep healing and getting up to kill us. So we need fire and acid. What do we all have here that helps in this way?"

[Rodgeir]

Indra says, slightly offended and quietly,

"Dama. Dama went. Known you a couple weeks now and don't even know my name."

She pulls a small bottle from her pocket and hands it to Kroshav.

"Take a drink, swish it around and swallow. It has a bit of a burn."

Celus shrugs at Jaq's question and says,

"No fire, no acid. Didn't even grab a torch. Was too busy getting kicked by horses. Why was Lurn feeding trolls? They ain't friendly woodland critters."

He gives Kroshav a smile.

The soldiers decide to head back to camp and report, only one staying with a torch.

[Dlover]

((Bit meta, but from what I know Kroshav's paladin-y healing isn't going to be a lot, considering even a cleric has trouble fully healing tanky characters, it may be safer to use a Short Rest and save the magic.))

[NotStickFigures]

"Sorry, Dama, I know all your names, I'm just kinda flustered with the trolls taking Lurn and all..." he says while at least having the courtesy to blush over his blunder.

"We probably have to go back to camp and get some more torches and stuff to take on these trolls and actually win. Or, depending on how they are dealing with Lurn, maybe I can sneak into their camp and untie him or at least cause a distraction so he can leave and run. And the one seemed to try to find me by sniffing a lot, so if they locate by smell, maybe I can find something to hide my scent so that if I do go into their camp, I can be harder to find with their noses."

[spiderwrangler]

"Yeah, I've got healing left, didn't get a chance to cast or smite much."

"Acid?", Kroshav says with a grin. "That I can do! Too bad there weren't more acid hammers."

He stows his sword and pulls out the hammer that they looted of the hob general.

He swish's as Indra suggests.

"Ah, thanks Indra, that helped a bit."

"Sorry about the horses, maybe need a code for next time Lurn get's kidnapped. He was trying to talk our way out, but I think the big one has a crush on him, and he was playing hard to get, and she didn't like that too much. Then he tried to bribe them with food balls, like Jaq said, but I guess that made him even hotter to her."

He looks to the other soldiers, "Maybe I bonked my head, but I don't remember if we've been introduced. I'm Kroshav Xjindraakvar."

((Kroshav's inclination would be to heal himself most of the way and go charging in after Lurn, but if some of the others aren't prepped for a troll fight and are needing to go back to camp, he could be convinced to hold off. He could easily top himself off with Cure Wounds + Lay on Hands, but as you say, he'd be tapped.))

[NotStickFigures]

"Your hammer causes acid damage? Every time it does damage?" he asks.

Thinking a bit he also asks, "Can your new warhorse outrun the trolls you think? We might be able to use him to distract them, maybe get one or two to chase and try to catch him.
OR...we could just have me try to sneak into the camp and see how they are holding Lurn. I think stealth should probably be our first attempt, then chaos and trying to split them up if that fails."

Jaq then starts digging around in his pack to see what he has that might be of help.

[spiderwrangler]

"That's what the cleric at Lurn's temple said. Haven't got a chance to try it out."

"Ealu? She probably can, but it's also dark out, so that might slower her a bit."

[NotStickFigures]

"Yeah, do any of you know, do trolls usually sleep at night or during the day. We might want to wait until light to attack, they can probably see in the dark as well as I can. Waiting until it is light will keep everyone at the same advantage."

[Rodgeir]

Celus shrugs and Indra thinks for a moment and responds,

"I think they are crepuscular but I haven't had much interaction."

This lines up with what Jaq knows about trolls, they prefer to hunt at night but don't mind the sun. Seems likely that they sleep during the day, but how sleep does a troll need?

Whatever Kroshav drank it burns in his mouth and all the way down. The taste in his mouth is gone, mostly because he can't taste anything anymore.

The remaining soldier takes Kroshav's hand,

"Polind, glad you're awake and feeling better."

Ealu would have a hard time in the trees, roots and brush. Maybe a little faster than Kroshav on foot but definitely not her full speed. At night she'd need a light or there is a high chance she'll end up dead or injured like the other horse.

[spiderwrangler]

((While he can just re-summon her with full HP, sending her to be tortured and killed by trolls wouldn't be a viable strategy for Kroshav.))