Off the Cuff Pattern

How about something like this?

Orenger's Ossemble!!!

One of other cool concepts for Earthdawn magic is the idea of creating a Group True Pattern. We come up with our group name and symbol and create a pattern that we can weave threads into that give us bonuses. You can see more details starting on p.233, but I just wanted to put this out there to get people thinking about some group names and symbols as we go through our adventures.

Taurba - After Action Report 2

As feared, the other two groups did not return by the deadline. The other returned scouts were sent in search of the group which headed east to explore whatever was left of Uqbar City. Our group was sent out to find out what became of the group which was sent to scout northward to Lake Akhicha.

We had not been out of the Kaer long before we spotted a structure in the blasted landscape. As we approached, an opposition force revealed itself from concealment. The leader was an honor-less troll, evidenced by his lack of horns. The rest appeared to be orc or humans dressed it desert garb. They outnumbered our group nearly 3 to 1. The enemy prepared to attack but was stopped in their charge by words from Oren.

The opposition halted and proceeded with a mockery or negotiation lead by our Windling. Basically they demanded all of our water and would allow Quinn to leave unharmed with enough water to support the Obsidiman. I called out the troll, stating that I doubted that he would keep his word on even such a lopsided agreement. The battle was joined!

Oren used magic to confound the troll and the first few desert men. I charged the enemy striking a mighty blow with my axe. Things did not go so smoothly after that. Another enemy appeared from concealment and ordered the rest to attack Oren. The enemy rushed forward and engaged the rest of our group. Oren was forced from the sky by arrow fire and had to seek shelter behind our water cart. Quinn, Cetharel and Ermin all were set upon by multiple attackers.

I was soon surrounded though I managed to avoid all attacks set against me. Cutting my way free, I withdrew to the rest of the group to help defend the beleaguered spell casters. Still I was able to avoid my opponent’s melee weapons but soon the distanced archer grew tired of firing at Oren and turned his attentions toward me. I did not fare so well against his arrows. The enemy’s true leader managed to hit me twice. A third blow would have surely felled me. I was forced to drink my gifted healing potion to remain standing.

Reinforcements for our side arrived from the structure in the distance. An Obsidiman and Monsanto Wallenrod appeared and harried the archer.

We managed to drop half of the enemy’s number before the rest decided to retreat. The troll added robbery to his list of dishonors as he ran off with our water cart. Cetharel, Ermin, Orin and I gave chase but we were not able to kill the coward before he out-distanced us.

Quinn had been rendered unconscious during the fight. We were able to stabilize our Obsidiman and bring Quinn to consciousness using Ermin’s extract. Of the fallen enemies, 4 were actually dead. The other 3 we tended to, bound and took as prisoners.

We located the group we were looking for but unfortunately we had arrived too late for most. Monsanto and Anneal FarTraveller both lived. Anneal was gravely wounded and suffered from a sickness. The others, Aris Marn, Tiryn Megara and Gabriel, were unfortunately dead. There were also strangers among the dead. The Obsidiman identified them as a dwarf named Harvel and a human named Zugebrian.

Cetharel performed funeral rights for all the fallen. We said word for our brethren from Kaer Uqbar. The Obsidiman, Gvint, said words for his companions. Our enemies were also given respect as fallen namegivers before being added to the funeral pyre.

Afterward we discussed many things with Gvint. He and Monsanto told us of how they came to be in each other's company. Apparently the scavengers we fought had been an even greater force when Monsanto's group encountered them, maybe as large as double their number. Group 4 managed to fight the scavengers but retreated to the abandoned barracks to avoid being overwhelmed. Gvint and his companions were already holed up inside. They fought a costly battle and siege which reduced the enemy by half but also cost them 5 of their own. Our arrival broke the siege and forced the enemy to retreat.

Further, the Obsidiman told us of the Badlands, in which Kaer Uqbar apparently is situated. He told us of his mission as a Purifier. He explained his mission to cleans the Badlands and restore life to the land. He and his companions were on a mission to explore an abandoned kaer in hope of finding the source of the blight which is at the heart of the Badlands and allowing it to spread. This he believed to be located to the southeast of the ruins of Uqbar City.

He told us of his village of Trosk and many other settlements situated outside of the Badlands where things are green and water flows in the Serpent River. His village is located about two weeks travel to the northwest. Apparently the Scourge has been over for some time. Namegivers The told us of the Providence of Barsaive, the dwarves of Throal, the elves of Blood Wood and of two wars with the Therans. Apparently some tragedy occurred involving Quinn's life rock during the latest war.

We parted company with Gvint with an invitation to look him up in Trosk. We traveled back to Kaer Uqbar with our three prisoners and wounded in tow.

Post Combat Review

I was thinking that there would be some benefit to do a postmortem on our combat from last session. As a group, I think our characters may want to discuss how we should/could do things differently the next time. I think that there might also be some value in optimizing our characters based upon what we now know the outside to be like. Things like equipment and spell selection come to mind. It would be nice if we were collectively aware of our assets in case someone see and opportunity that someone else may have missed.

I believe that our characters would benefit from more training with fighting together. This would help to learn synergies and weaknesses.  We have the opportunity to role play this during our next session and if the players find it valuable, we could also "roll play" it to practice combat for the players. Jon is on board but we need to give him some notice to prepare if we plan to do an actual Danger Room-like, attack to stun session against other friendly adepts.

It is really a matter of how much game time that we want to spend. I could go either way. Playing out a mock combat might eat up much of the session time but might work well to knock off the rust. It might also be a good opportunity to experiment with the other advanced combat options.

Taurba - After Action Report - Supplemental 1

Once we returned to the Kaer, we had to wait for the doors to open. It seemed to take a long time but eventually the doors opened. We were met cautiously by our fellow citizens and each was asked to complete the Greeting Ritual before they would allow us to enter. All save Quinn succeeded on the first try. Quinn eventually succeeded after being given a moment to calm and focus.

Ermin was treated and revived by the alchemist and healer. Even though he was physically in a diminished state, he was not spared the Greeting Ritual. Ermin painted a passable giant spider. Once satisfied, we were allowed entry and the doors we quickly closed.

After we were debriefed, our unit was given leisure time. After bathing and seeing to my equipment, I challenged Ermin to drill with me. His style and approach are very unorthodox. He acquitted himself well in our sparing until he left an opening that in the real world would have proved fatal. He lacks focus but he does have determination. I hope that he will quickly find the balance required to be a serious combatant.

We were advised that we would tell the tale of our mission to the Kaer. It was a bit of a spectacle. Oren told the tale and added some magical flourishes while Erim “danced” in the background. Quinn said a very few words while Cetharel told the haunting tale of the deaths that she experienced and the funeral. I told the parts of the tale involving combat with the spiders. It was good to perform. It was the largest gathering that I can recall. The children were appreciative of the hemp spiders that I made and passed out at the end of our telling.

A second group returned on time. They experienced about what we had but did not face anything like the spiders. There was another telling for the accomplishments.

The remaining two units are overdue. I fear for their safety and suspect that we will soon be asked to venture outside once more.

Can you hear me?

I set up e-mail notifications for both posts and comments for everyone.

If the rate of e-mail is too much for you, I can adjust to remove you from one or both types of notification.

Everyone should have author rights so please feel free to post as you fell appropriate.

Taurba - After Action Report 1

The Outside is amazing … and bright … and hot … and dangerous. It is nothing like we expected it to be.

It took us a little while to get the hang of things outside of the Kaer. Ultimately we decided on alternate course of action. We traveled by dusk and night and rested during the day.

Travel to our objective proved to be a manageable task. The terrain was not easy to traverse but it was passable. The lack of living plants and animals was disconcerting and disheartening.

The riverbed provided some further disappointment as well as some excitement and change in surroundings. The river was not there. Only the bed remained. We discovered some additional plant life and a pre-scourge artifact; a river boat. The boat contained nothing of physical value but did house the remains of 4 namegivers. Cetharel determined that three of the remains belonged to pre-scourge crewmen of the boat. Apparently they died in battle with a sea monster. The fourth set of remains appears to have belonged to a foreign contemporary who died of his wounds from some unknown battle. He had been dead for approximately 5 years.

The remains were laid to final rest with words from Cetharel and a fire fueled by portions of the boat. During the funeral, the light of the fire glinted off of something in the distance. Oren and Ermin rushed to find the source. The rest of us quickly followed after them as trouble was in the making. The source of the reflected light was a large puddle of standing water. It was the bait for a trap set by hideous wildlife.

Ermin fell into a concealed pit where a giant spider laid in wait. He was prone and appeared to be having trouble fending off the beast. I jumped into the pit to protect my fellow citizen and confront the monster. Ermin suffered a bite which paralyzed him. I was eventually able to kill the monster with my axe. Apparently there was a second pit with another beast which Quinn, Oren and Cetharel were able to dispatch.

Our journey was cut short by our worry for Ermin. The effects of the spider’s bite did not wear off. We were forced to carry our stricken comrade back to the Kaer in as much haste as we could muster. The trip back was somber yet more peaceful. We arrived back earlier than our mission allowed but by our estimation we accomplish all that we were asked to accomplish.

Assessments:

Our unit is a versatile bunch of namegivers. Each brings a different and useful skill to the whole. We worked well as a team but there is certainly room for improvement.

Oren is a capable scout. His ability to fly proved invaluable in scouting our route of travel. Oren and Ermin together should not be left to their own devices.

Cetharel was able to gather potentially important information from the dead we encountered. She did a respectable job administering final rights. She needs to work on her confidence in general and drill on the use of her abilities in combat situations.

Quinn used Elementalist abilities to great advantage. The water that we located was made safe for use because of Quinn. Quinn was an asset in combat.

Ermin appears to have potential as a combatant but needs to learn focus; for his own sake as well as the rest of the group. He is reckless and unpredictable. I plan to drill him on combat and discipline if our unit is to remain working together.

The execution of abilities in a real world setting proved to be strange yet exhilarating. I have trained my whole life to kill things in combat and to protect my fellow citizens. This mission provided me the opportunity to do both and I did not find myself wanting.

I hope that the the rest of my unit and the other units found this to be true as well.