Blood in the Snow Part 3 - The Snow Tunnel

In this instalment of Blood in the Snow, the young adventures are going to come up against the Redcaps and a few Zombies.  Stats for both found in Beyond the Wall, whilst stats for hr Redcap leader and sorcerer can be found in the Wicked Dark supplement, all are slightly different to the stats given in the Blood in the Snow adventure pdf.

Stats for Goblin Redcaps

Image of Redcap from Fairies
by Alan Lee and Brian Froud (1978)

These wicked faerie creatures look like small wizened men and are armed with wicked swords and daggers.  They roam faerie lands in frightening bands and dye their woollen caps with the blood of their victims.

Hit Dice: 2d8 (9 HP)
AC: 14
Attack: +3 to hit, 2d4 (wicked blades)
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 40
Notes: True Name (a redcap has a true name which gives his foes power over him), Vulnerable to Iron, (they take double damage from iron).

Stats for Zombies

HD 1d6 (4hp)
AC 10
Attack +0 to hit, 1d6 damage.
XP 15
Dead and Mindless (immune to sleep and charm spells)

Stats for Redcap Leader

Hit Dice: 6d10 (33 HP)
AC: 18
Attack: +7 to hit, 1d8+3 (sorcerous blade)
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 470

Stats for Redcap Sorcerer

Hit Dice: 2d6 (7 HP)
AC: 14
Attack: +1 to hit, 1d4 (ritual knife)
Alignment: Chaotic
XP: 80

Rules: Beyond the Wall by Flatland Games.

Adventure:  Blood in the Snow, Roan Studios

Solo GM Emulator: MUSE 

Scene 2: The Snow Tunnel.

PC's and NPC.  Hugo de Winter the would be knight (PC), Culdus the devout acolyte (PC), Rhian the Forester (PC), Strawberri the Fay Foundling (PC ) Old Mercenary (NPC, Possible PC), Merchant Wife (NPC),Martain Wicklow (NPC), The Merchant (NPC), Karina Lankrit (NPC bard, Possible PC)

Culdus, Hugo, Rhian and Strawberri get back to the tavern.

Question to Oracle "is there anyone out and about in the village?" - Roll 1d6 = 6 'yes and'
Who is it - "Is it Ranogg the old mercenary (most likely)?"Oracle Roll 2d6 take highest score = 3 & 6, so another "Yes and"
Is there someone else with him? Roll 1 d6 = 6 'Yes and'
Using MUNE, for each 6 you roll on the Oracle you get an intervention point, we rolled three 6;s so an intervention takes place.  I roll 1d6 on the intervention table and get, you guessed it, 6 = Wild.
I have no idea what 'Wild' should be so I generate 5 random words and get 'Festive', 'Voice', 'Dance', 'Caring' & 'Exclaim'.
From the first three words I decide to introduce a new character, a bard created using the local performer playsheet.  

The group notice Ranogg standing at the door of the Blue Goose, there is someone with him, someone holding a lute.
 "Karina Lankrit!"  exclaims Rhian and she rushes to embrace her good friend the bard.

Karina - "mind my lute Rhi, good to see you all came out to welcome me back from the winter festival"

Rhian - "The snow has cut off all travel from the city, how did you make it back home?'

Karina - "I didn't think I was going to get home, not in this weather, something drove me on though, us Wintertonians are hardy folk are we not, Master Ranogg here has been telling me about the Redcaps, and if Wicklow would open the door to us, we could all get a warm drink and you could tell use what you found, Rhian"

Hugo - "how did you know about the redcap, Ranogg?"

Ranogg - "let's just say someone has to care enough about you to make sure you don't run in to trouble you cannot get out of".

At that moment the door to the Blue Goose opens.

Martain Wicklow - "come in, get by the fire but shake that snow off 'n you all afore you enter, I don't want pools of water all over my floor".

For now I will play Karina Lankrit as an NPC, she may come in as a PC should any of  the four PC's drop out for any reason.

Once inside the Blue Goose the group warm themselves by the fire, Martain gives them all a hot drink and they tell of everything they saw and found, the Merchants wife is still distraught, she begs them to help find her husband, to rescue him from the Redcaps for it mush surely be they who have taken him.

Martain suggests calling the Eidwik, Steward of the manor house, he could rouse the garrison of Wyvern Guards stationed there, they should be able to sort out the Redcaps.

Question to oracle "do they call on the steward" = roll 1d6 =3, 'no but'.

Hugo -"there is little point trying go get that lot to help, they won't get out of bed without first asking that captain of theirs over at Dove's Crest, but us four could easy sort out those redcaps, Karina, you up to help?"

Question to oracle "does Karina agree to go with them". roll 1d6 = 4 "yes"

Karina - "I am, couldn't let you all go without me, I should get a good song or two out of this".

Culdud has Folklore skill so I allow him an intelligence roll to see if he knows anything more about Redcap Goblins, (INT11, +2 skill bonus, 13+ needed on d20), he rolls 20.

Culdus - "I am sure I have heard of these dread faerie creatures but I just cannot recall..."

Strawberri uses her Faerielore skill again to see if she knows more about the Redcap Goblins, I make this a very hard task for her as she has already checked once and it is not likely she will know much more, (INT 12, -5 difficulty, +2 skill bonus, needs 9 or less), she rolls 7.

Question oracle to see what she knows.
"Does she know how their caps get their red colour?", roll 1d6 = 6 "yes and", (1 intervention point),

"Does she know they die if their caps ever dry out or they lose them?" roll = 3 "no but"

Strawberri - "I know a little more, I know they colour their caps with blood, I can smell it on the cap I found and I seem to remember being told they are venerable to iron, I don't recall who told me but I am sure of it".

Hugo brandishes his sword "and this cold iron here tells me we will find you husband my lady, and I'll bag me some recaps along the way, lets be on out way!".

Rhian - "Good master Wicklow, do you perchance have a shovel?". 

The snow blizzard has not let up, I decided that there may be a chance when they get back to the tunnel entrance that it is no longer visible and they may have to look for it again, and a slim chance they may not find it again.

The 5 hero's, armed with shovels and lighted torches make their way back through the worsening blizzard to where they remember the tunnel entrance to be.

Question to oracle "is the entrance still visible". roll 1d6 roll = 4 'yes but'
Question "is it blocked by more snow?" roll = 3 'no but'

Question "is something else blocking the entrance?" roll = 2 'no',

Question "is the hole now bigger?" roll 4 = 'Yes but' (I decided to ignore the but this time)

Question "is it big enough for us to get through" roll  5 = "Yes"

It looks like someone or something has been in and out of the tunnel several times since the adventures went back to the Blue Goose, in the process the entrance is now big enough for them to enter the tunnel one ant a time.

I ask the oracle if the characters  go into the tunnel in imitative order and roll a 5 = 'yes'.

The characters enter in this order - Strawberri, Rhian, Hugo. Karina, Culdus.

As Strawberri eases herself through the entrance a bareheaded redcap, lurking behind the entrance, recognises Strawberri as one who took his hat, crazed and desperate it lunges its sword at Strawberry before she can react.

Redcap rolls 11 on a d20, +3 to hit, Strawberri AC is 15, so the redcap just misses her with its sword.

Next round of combat, Strawberri is quick to react, through the entrance and on her feet she draws her dagger but fails strike the crazed redcap (roll 12 against AC14).

The redcap is going crazy screaming at Strawberri and tries to strike again, rolls 8 on d20, with +3 bonus, 11, it wildly lashes out at her but misses again.
Rhian is now in the tunnel to but can only draw her sword this time.

Round 3, Strawberri strikes with her dagger again, d20 roll 3, she gets no where near the redcap with its 14 AC.  The redcap aims another blow at Strawberri, d20 roll 16 +3 bonus = 19, this time he hits Strawberri, she takes (roll of 2 on 2d4) 2 hits, she was lucky.

Rhian strikes with her sword rolling 18 +1 bonus = 19, she lands a blow on the redcap, her iron sword does double damage to the redcap, she rolls 10 on 2d8 the redcap grunts and falls, lifeless, to the ground.

Rhian goes to her friend to see how badly she is hurt.  Strawberry is a little shaken but her wound is not that bad, the others enter the tunnel, Hugo draws his sword in readiness, Karina is holding both torches one of which she hands to Rhian, finally Culdus enters, he to looks at Strawberris and rips a strip from his acolyte clothing and ties it as a makeshift bandage around her wound.

Once Strawberri is patched up, the group organise themselves, the tunnel they are in is carved out of the snow, just wide enough for them to walk two abreast and just high enough to walk upright.  Although

cool, the air is not particularly cold, being sheltered from the outside elements. Slush and puddles of melt-water line the icy floor. There is an earthen, almost musty, scent to the air.

The group continue their way down the tunnel, Hugo and Rhian lead, both have draw their swords and Rhian hold one torch, Strawberry in next followed by Culdus and finally Karina.

As they reach the end of this part of the tunnel they come across a slow trickling stream.

Question to Oracle "is the stream deep" (unlikely) - roll 2 d6 take lowest value (6 and 3) so 'no but'

 The stream is about a foot deep at the most, it is cold but not too difficult to wade through, you will have to follow this stream for now but you notice it disappears under a small icy overhang.

Question to oracle, "is it wide enough to walk 2 abreast?" roll 1d6 = 4 'yes but' 

The group carry on walking down the stream with Hugo and Rhian again leading the way, the others in single file behind but as they near the icy overhang the walls narrows, Rhian torch in hand leads the group on.

Question to oracle, "can we get under and beyond the icy overhang (quite likely) - roll 2 d6 and take highest roll (4 and 5) = 'yes'.

You reach the overhang, everyone's feet are getting a little damp now, the overhang is low but you can all pass under it by crouching down.  Once through the overhang the passage widens for a short stretch and you can at least all step out of the stream until it makes a right turn through a very narrow passageway, just wide enough for you to squeeze through one at a time, back into the stream you all go.

Rhian leads the way again, sword and torch in hand's, Hugo is next, Strawberri, Karina with the second torch and Culdus guarding the rear.

As Rhian exits the passageway she spots a pile of debris, logs and sticks lay at the foot of a 5' high rocky ridge,

Ask Oracle "is the tunnel area as it should be" roll d6 = 2 'No'
Ask Oracle "is there something else in this area?" roll d6 = 6 "Yes and" (get a 2nd intervention point),
Ask Oracle "is it a Zombie?" roll 5 "Yes".

Check to see if either Rhian or Zombie are suprised = "no"

not only that but she spots a Zombie and its about to strike her, thankfully it is slow and Rhian is able to strike the shambling rotting corpse first.

Rhian rolls 18 on d20, an easy hit with her sword, she rolls for damage on 1d8 = 2 hits, the Zombie cut but fights on.

Zombie rolls 18 on d20 and lashes out at Rhian with its claws, it rolls for damage on 1d4 = 2, Rhian is cut but not badly.

Rhian strikes again, rolling 15 this time, again her sword strikes the rotting fleash of the zombie, rolling for damage she causes another 2 hits, a poor roll but its enough to put the Zombie out of its misery. 

Rhian steps over the finished zombie and the others are finally able to enter this section of the tunnel.
They pause to take stock of the area and Culdus checks Rhian's wound but it is not serious.

Hugo takes the torch from Rhian and suggest that ,for now, he takes the lead.  He and Karina walk over to the rocky ridge and the debris,  The ridge is full of lose rocks, wood and other rubbish.

I roll against wisdom for both characters to see if the notice anything unusual in the debris,  Hugo rolls 14 on a d20 and spots nothing, Karina rolls a 1, she sees something unusual in the rocks and debris.

Ask Oracle, "is it treasure?", roll = 5 'Yes'

Karina digs out what she hopes to be something important, an old scroll is wrapped it some kind of skin, it seems to have the name of a mage she has heard of from Doves Crest but the parchment is so wet it is almost impossible to read, wrapped around it is a leather pouch which she opens and finds 10sp inside, Culdus, who is now beside them both, takes the parchment, he may be able to decipher it once they are out of this awful place.

Although they are wet, some injured and all running out of enthusiasm for the task, they press on climbing over the 5'  high ridge with ease.

As they descend the rocky ridge, they come across a pool of water, Hugo assumes its still only shallow and steps in, disappearing into the cold water/

Question to Oracle "does Hugo mail shirt drag him down" - Roll on d6 = 3 'No but'

Hugo surfaces "that's a bit deep" he shouts as he takes in deep breaths, he manages to get out but the torch he was holding is now extinguished and way too wet to relight.

Question to Oracle "is there a way to avoid this deep pool" - Roll on d6 = 2 'No'

All of the remaining adventures have to jump in to.

Question to Oracle "do they all make it safely to the dry bank?" - Roll on d6 - 5 'Yes'

Question to Oracle "did Karina manage to keep the other torch alight?" - roll on d6 - 6 'Yes and' (a third intervention point)

Roll d6 on intervention = 4 'Advance Plot'.

They have all made it safely to the bank, Karina has managed to keep the one remain torch alight and Rhian makes the flame from her magic sword appear giving off a second light.  They spot two corpses just ahead of them, these almost fleshless remains appear to have been once human, suddenly they begin to rise up but just as suddenly collapse in a pile of bones, one is pointing to some crude steps in a rocky cliff, it seems to be the only way out and onwards.

I took the "Advance Plot" to mean that the Zombies would not attack them and in fact would show them an easy way to continue, however, as to whether this was to aid them or to send them on to their doom we have find out in the next episode.

Next - Part 4, the Merchant.