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Author Topic: Thob Goes to the Surface  (Read 57451 times)

mightymushroom

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #90 on: October 07, 2020, 06:44:51 pm »

Ack! How did I miss this update?!

I can really envision those statues of necromancers "embracing" Vispol: some desperate human, clinging to the god's rotting feet in supplication, peering upward with a face simultaneously fearful and hopeful, while the empty eye sockets of their divinity stare outward, impassionate, far above their heads.
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Loam

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #91 on: October 14, 2020, 07:04:50 pm »

I noticed the two slabs you examined, the one killed by an echidna man and the one who killed that echidna man. It's very interesting to learn about a world's legends like this.
Agreed; I wish there were more ways of absorbing local lore by talking to folks, reading books/slabs, and so on.
(The echidna man didn't have a very interesting life story, btw... apart from being basically undead Knuckles)



The itinerants kept to the northward road. A day after leaving Trampledlearned they crested a hill and looked down on the land below: at the foot of the hill was another sizable town, but beyond was a sight that took away Thob’s breath in wonder and terror — a boundless expanse of dull blue-green stretching to the horizon, shimmering under the sun; even on the hilltop he could smell salt in the humid breeze:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
The “ocean” Strodno called it, and it was, as he feared, made totally of water. So very much water, as if it wasn’t enough that the stuff fell from the sky, and the humans built a city next to it. What a world the surface was!
   There wasn’t much to see in the empty streets of this new town. A few ruined temples were the only buildings of note: a large shrine, they noted was devoted to Islas Shimmerglimmer:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Here Thob found a statue of a goblin priest, and was surprised to read the name: “Estrur Ambercurse,” the one they had tried to find in the catacombs of Trampledlearned.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “Are all the priests in this world goblins?” he asked Strodno.
   “We’re the only ones left,” she answered, “in any great numbers. Immortality, remember?”
   Further on they found the “Chapel of Dusk,” a temple to Kulur:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
These twin goddesses of day and night must have been quite popular in the old days, for some reason. What did one pray for from a night goddess? Or a day goddess, for that matter? Thob guessed one might pray to Islas to make the sun less nauseating; or, barring that, pray to Kulur to make the sun go away. But Strodno said the humans actually liked the sun, which Thob couldn’t figure, so he let the question drop.
   At the other end of town they approached (Thob with trepidation) the vastness of the ocean. A strip of fine sand, dotted with bits of weathered wood and shells of many sizes and kinds, ran between the land and the sea. The water was rolling in towards the land, pushed by the constant wind, cresting in foam-capped walls that collapsed on the shore and lapped at the sand.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
At first Thob tried to avoid the waves, but the spray of mist they made was, admittedly, comforting. In fact, as he stood there, the tranquility of the water and the rhythm of the waves soothed him. Maybe settling by the ocean wasn’t quite such a dumb idea as he had thought.
   Back in town they looked for a shelter, and found a nearly intact house with preserved furnishings, including a few beds!
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
It’d be the first night Thob spent in a real bed in many days.

Of course there was no booze in this town, either, so at dawn they made for the west, whither another road wound.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Clouds hung over the ocean and the northern hills, and snow blanketed much of the land to the west. They marched through the white landscape under the gray sky, until they caught sight of another town.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Something immediately seemed wrong to Thob about this place — more than the usual abandonment and desolation, that is. He later figured it was his "undead sense" tingling, because as they approached the town, what should dash out of the trees toward them but…
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
… a mostly-dead naked human?
   Its pale skin and white hair blended against the snow, and Thob almost didn’t see it until it was upon him. And when it was upon him it fought with more than usual undead ferocity and agility: this must be one of those powerful kinds of zombie that Strodno mentioned. It even took a sword strike from the goblin, straight to the head, without falling — the blade stuck into the thing’s skull but it kept fighting. At last Thob, barely parrying a punch with his buckler, broke its head in two with a pick-stroke, and it shuddered and collapsed.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Strodno seemed somewhat upset as she looked at the corpse:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “I’ve seen you kill living things without so much as a tear,” said Thob. “Why get troubled over this? It was trying to kill us, anyway.”
   “Yes… and we did what we had to. It’s just — for all that I know this things is dead… was dead… undead… anyway, for all that it still looks human — looks kind of like us.”
   Thob looked again. Now that it was dead the corpse looked a lot less frightening — apart from the gaping wound separating its skull into halves. It did sort of look like a tall, beardless dwarf. He looked away. “Well… let’s just not think about it. Won’t do us any good.”

There was nothing in the new town to merit much attention: the usual ruined temples, castle, walls, and so on, but nothing even resembling a tavern or brewery. Furthermore there were no more roads leading out from this town, and Strodno figured they had visited all the major settlements of the region. If there was alcohol left in this world it was much farther away, and she didn’t know where to go to find it.
   Around the city were a collection of smaller villages and farms. Somewhat idly, not expecting to find anything, Thob and Strodno approached one cluster of houses — when, greatly to their surprise, they saw an armed elf approaching them through the snow, not undead but apparently fully alive:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
She was broad and fat, clad in bronze armor and wielding a length of thick cord tipped with bronze. She called out to them: “Hold, travelers! State your business here!”
   “Uh, well,” said Thob, “we were really just looking around. We weren’t expecting to find anyone here.”
   “You are from these regions, then?” said the elf. “We thought all the people here were dead. You’re the first living folk we’ve seen in months!”
   “‘We’?” asked Strodno. “There are more of you?”
   “Indeed: we’re settlers from the north, come here to find a new home for ourselves.”
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “My name is Cañar Suitorpage,” the elf went on, “and I led the other settlers here.”
   They introduced themselves, and Cañar directed them into the village. The new folk had settled in some of the old houses: humans, the first of their kind Thob had seen living.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
There were also several elves in the bunch: these greeted him with calls to “praise mercy,” just like the elven abbot Nemen had — they must worship the same goddess as he did.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   It was a great comfort to be among civilized, more-or-less normal looking folk once more. The settlers welcomed Thob warmly (Strodno they were a little wary of, for some reason) and allowed them to stay the night with them.

In the morning Thob found Cañar again: he wanted to ask her about where she came from, whether it was as desolate as things were down here, or whether there might be some people still around.
   “You see,” he said, “me and Strodno are trying to get back this sacred relic of Egesh — the goddess, you know — which was stolen by a necromancer, and to do that we need to break into her tower, which is guarded by hundreds of zombies — I’m guessing, since I don’t actually know how many there are, but it pays to plan for the worst — and to do that I’m going to need some booze because I’ve gone far too long without it, and there’s none left around here and nobody who knows how to make any more.”
   Cañar looked bewildered. “That’s… a lot to take in.”
   “What I’m saying is, you know where we could get a drink?”
   “Hmm…” the elf mused. “There are a few sizable towns in the north, but I haven’t been to any of them. Things are rough up there. But you might be able to find something there.”
   “I’ll take any chance I get,” said Thob. “Um… could you point us the way?”
   “I can do you one better,” she said. “I’ve been squatting around here with nothing to do for weeks, and I’m more the adventuring type, myself. I’ve made the journey once, and I think I could lead you back, if you’d take me along.”
   Having a competent fighter in the party seemed like a fine idea to Thob, and Strodno agreed. Cañar suggested that, before they leave, they should visit a nearby hamlet where another group of northern refugees had settled: a place called Auraflings.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “You’ll find another warrior there, a man named Alisa Fadedrawness,” she said. “I wager he’d like to come along too.”
   Auraflings was only a few hours’ walk away, and soon they found themselves in another village peopled by a collection of humans and elves. After searching around for a while they found the man in charge: a tall, narrow-eyed human in bronze mail with a spear and shield. “Alisa!” Cañar called. “Look — natives from these lands!”
   Thob explained there proposal to the tall spearman, who seemed impressed with the dwarf’s and goblin’s exploits, particularly their battles with the undead. “I’ve been longing for a bit of excitement,” he said. “And I won’t mind heading back to the north country. Let’s be off!”
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Now there were four companions on a quest for beer — and stolen relics, incidentally, but mainly beer. Thob determined to set out at dawn for the mysterious lands of the north, where people apparently still lived and booze might yet be found.



I'm going to take a little hiatus for maybe a month or so, now that we've reached a semi-good stopping point. Some RL stuff is coming up and I'll have to figure out how much time I have for this. But don't worry, Thob will return! I've already played the first few updates of Part 3.
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Thob Goes to the Surface (Adventure Mode story, in progress)

King Zultan

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #92 on: October 15, 2020, 07:43:26 am »

Now we've got a proper adventuring party, its like this was destined to become an epic quest.

Also take as long as you need to do your RL stuff as RL stuff is important.
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The Lawyer opens a briefcase. It's full of lemons, the justice fruit only lawyers may touch.
Make sure not to step on any errant blood stains before we find our LIFE EXTINGUSHER.
but anyway, if you'll excuse me, I need to commit sebbaku.
Quote from: Leodanny
Can I have the sword when you’re done?

Loam

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #93 on: December 03, 2020, 01:27:29 pm »

Hoping to get this back underway soon - should have an update this weekend. In the meantime, have a teaser:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
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mightymushroom

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #94 on: December 03, 2020, 06:25:56 pm »

 :o
Oooh . . . so . . . glowy. . . .
Must . . . read . . . secrets. . . .
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King Zultan

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #95 on: December 04, 2020, 06:46:53 am »

Glowy thing, we should touch it.
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The Lawyer opens a briefcase. It's full of lemons, the justice fruit only lawyers may touch.
Make sure not to step on any errant blood stains before we find our LIFE EXTINGUSHER.
but anyway, if you'll excuse me, I need to commit sebbaku.
Quote from: Leodanny
Can I have the sword when you’re done?

brewer bob

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #96 on: December 05, 2020, 06:10:43 am »

Loving Thob's story and can't wait to find out what happens next!

Loam

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface
« Reply #97 on: December 06, 2020, 09:25:14 am »

Part IV: Into the North

With the rising dawn, the four companions set out to the east. Cañar and Alisa said that by following the ocean for some days they could find their way back to their homelands. The party traveled in sight of the waves, keeping the sea to their left as they marched.

Near the edge of civilized, or formerly civilized, lands, they passed through one of the old monasteries and decided to stop for a rest. Thob inspected the temple, wondering if there were any books left lying around, as seemed common in these places. There was a book, in fact, but there was also something much more interesting.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
A slab of solid silver, glittering on a bejeweled pedestal. The thing was too heavy to hold comfortably, but Thob moved it into the light and read the ancient runes cut into its surface—cut with a care far beyond any dwarfcraft:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
He didn’t know what it meant, nor did anyone else; but someone obviously thought it was worth remembering, enough to carve it in silver. He couldn’t take the slab with him, but he tried to memorize the words—he could copy them down and keep them in the library.

As they traveled they talked, and Thob got to know a bit more about his companions.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Strodno he already knew a little, but she began to open up a bit more with him, sharing her worldview. It wasn’t a pleasant one: she had a bitter and aggressive nature, finding excitement only in fighting. He figured being locked in a tower for six hundred years might do that to someone. At least it seemed to make her brave in battle.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Alisa, the human, struck Thob as a fairly brash but trusting sort. Most of the time, though, he was angry with someone or something. He blamed this on getting into arguments with the others, which he seemed to do with some frequency.
   “Have you tried… not arguing so much?”
   “I don’t argue with them,” he said. “They argue with me.”
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   The elf, Cañar, seemed to like arguing, which no doubt irritated Alisa. She wasn’t as temperamental as the others, though she warned Thob away from her “bad side” (probably the side most easily in range of her whip). Though generally scornful of material things, she had a soft spot for certain moving pieces of art.

The next morning they came to the edge of a wood, all snow-covered; Thob felt ill at ease as they entered, though.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Soon enough he saw why: a pair of wrens perched in a tree nearby—wrens big enough to swallow a dwarf whole! What was more, although the moved about, watching the ground for something (or someone) to eat, they didn’t seem exactly… alive.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Undead dwarves, elves, and humans were one thing. Undead giant birds? Thob didn’t think his little team were up to it. They slipped out of the forest and went the long way round.

Nearby the earth was cleft by a great river, around forty dwarf-spans wide, which would have blocked their way had it not been completely frozen over.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Around midday they entered a more salubrious forest, free, as far as Thob could tell, from any large fowl, living or dead. By evening the forest was giving way to patches of desert, stretches of rock fields and badlands interspersed with green dales. He could see the ocean to the north, and beyond, just on the horizon, the specter of distant land:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
They camped in the desert near a frozen stream. In the morning, looking around the campsite, Thob saw they had not been alone that night:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
He guessed the beast hadn’t wished to tangle with four armed adventurers, even if they were sleeping.

All that day they traveled through a dense forested country. Cañar called it the “Foggy Jungles,” though it wasn’t particularly foggy that Thob could see.
   Around noon on the following day the party caught a glimpse of something odd: the distant treeline was broken by some taller-than-usual trees. Cañar and Alisa said they were nearing the old elven realm.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
In about an hour they had reached the first stand of great trees. Thob gazed in wonder at their huge trunks and vast spreading canopies, far taller and broader than any tree he had seen before.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
The elves grew them and lived in the branches, said Cañar. But there were no elves to be seen around here: only a few dark ravens croaked among the mighty trees.
   Ahead they approached another of these “forest retreats,” as the elven settlements were apparently called. Here, however, they were met not with a great tree but a tall, crude tower of stone, surrounded by mounds and trenches of earth:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “Goblin earthworks,” said Strodno, “and watchtowers. These are goblin lands?”
   “They are now,” said Cañar. “Have been for a long time: not many remember the old days except the elves.”
   They passed the tower and entered the heart of the retreat. Here Thob was startled to see, not great trees, but some flora he knew very well: enormous tower-cap mushrooms, bigger than any he’d seen before, and growing on the surface!
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
More mushrooms towered over the trees to the south. Some of these had stores of nuts and berries in them; Cañar said they’d make good provisions, filling but easy to carry.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
There were several elves sitting on the caps of the great mushrooms. They had the same dark skin and yellow hair as Cañar—these must be her people, Thob guessed. He spoke to one of them:
   “Greetings, elf! I am Thob ‘the Mysterious’.”
   “Ah… hello… whatever you are,” said the elf. “My name’s Fewetha.”
   “Who’s in charge around here?”
   Fewetha shook his head. “There’s nothing organized around here,” he said. “In fact there’s nothing organized for many miles around—we just live off the forest. You might try Lushnights, to the north: if anything’s still standing in the Jungle, it’ll be up there.”
Spoiler (click to show/hide)

There was another large retreat close to the south, so Thob decided to check it out before heading north. As they entered they passed through orderly rows of some odd, branching, spine-covered trees—“cactus,” Alisa called them:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Among the flowering cactus Thob saw a large building, all in ruins; it was the first real building he’d seen in these lands. Judging by the size and design it looked like a temple, but unlike the dwarf and human temples he’d seen it was made all of wood:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
The place was all in ruins, of course, but some fine statues still stood. A particularly pleasing piece caught Thob’s eye—the image of a goblin priest (again), but made of pure spessartine gemstone:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Alisa walked up to Thob’s side. “Hmm,” he said, observing the statue. “Doesn’t do anything for me.”
   “Really? I think it’s a fine work.”
   “Who asked you!?” Alisa said, suddenly angry.
   “What?” said Thob. “I was just… replying to you!”
   “Well, I was just… stating my mind! You don’t have to jump down my throat like that! Gods…”  The tall man walked away, grumbling, leaving Thob confused.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
A short ways off was another enormous tower-cap, this one far bigger than the others; it had many smaller stems branching from the main one, a pattern of growth Thob had never seen before in the caverns. This, Cañar told him, was a “Home Tree”—sort of an elven palace, where the important elves used to live.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
There wasn’t much here now, except a pile of old books. Most of them were philosophical in nature, treatises on happiness and individuality written by an ancient elven sage, Olava Styleprinces:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
The only thing living in the Home Tree now was a solitary crow man. Thob asked him how things had been:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “So, pretty slow?”
   “Very. Not much happens here, since the elves were driven out.”
   “Is there anyone still here?”
   “You might try the tavern, or the market.”

The “tavern” turned out to be a patch of bare dirt under the caps of a mushroom grove.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
There were a handful of tables and chairs clumped at one end, and a chest with some weird instruments in it—but no beer, no barrels, not even any cups! “Didn’t elves drink?” Thob asked.
   “Just fresh streamwater,” said Cañar. “Not likely to find any booze here.”
   The market was similar, an open space among a cluster of tower-caps; but there were people here, quite a few actually—elves, crow men, and goblins, milling about among bins of trade goods.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
From the looks of it, all they were selling was meat. “Is that all the elves trade? Meat?”
   “Funny thing is,” said Cañar, “elves don’t even eat meat. Well, not usually. This stuff comes from the goblins.”
   A few of the elves, in between trying to sell him some giant olm tripe, managed to tell him some about the area and recent events. Thob learned that some people—children, in fact—had been kidnapped from their homes by goblin agents:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “That’s terrible!” he said. “What did they want him for? Ransom?”
   The elf looked at him quizzically. “It’s what goblins do,” he said. “Didn’t you know that?”
   “There aren’t too many goblins where I come from. Strodno there’s one of the few I’ve met.”
   “Well,” said the elf, “if you stay in these parts long you’ll meet goblins enough. Down here, in the forest, there’s not so many—but if I were you I’d stay out of the cities. They aren’t known for their hospitality.”
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Thob Goes to the Surface (Adventure Mode story, in progress)

TheFlame52

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #98 on: December 06, 2020, 10:16:46 am »

I see it wasn't the slab we thought it was. I'm loving the character interactions. Also, I've never seen a forest retreat quite like that one. Interesting.

mightymushroom

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #99 on: December 06, 2020, 10:27:04 am »

I actually expected that kind of a slab from the circular cartouche.  It's still a secret worth knowing, maybe.

I enjoyed Alisa's interactions with the party.
"Stop arguing with me!"
"...But I was only trying to have a conversation."
"No, that was arguing. See, you just argued with me again!"
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King Zultan

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #100 on: December 07, 2020, 07:03:09 am »

We should track down that demon at some point and make it part of our adventuring crew, maybe if we're lucky it's some kind of dog demon and it can use its enhanced dog nose to sniff out the booze.
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The Lawyer opens a briefcase. It's full of lemons, the justice fruit only lawyers may touch.
Make sure not to step on any errant blood stains before we find our LIFE EXTINGUSHER.
but anyway, if you'll excuse me, I need to commit sebbaku.
Quote from: Leodanny
Can I have the sword when you’re done?

Loam

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #101 on: December 08, 2020, 08:26:18 am »

I've never seen a forest retreat quite like that one. Interesting.
I think it's because of the goblin takeover - you'll notice the mushrooms have goblin-y names. I guess they cut down the trees and planted more suitable flora fungi. Or maybe these elves are Telvanni, idk...

I actually expected that kind of a slab from the circular cartouche.  It's still a secret worth knowing, maybe.
I enjoyed Alisa's interactions with the party.
I half expected some Viking nerd would try to read the runes  :D That would have given away the secret quickly!

Alisa is one of the most well-developed personalities I've met in Adventure Mode. He's a testament to the personality system's ability to create unique, recognizable characters emergently.
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Loam

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #102 on: December 13, 2020, 08:49:40 am »

On the outskirts of the forest retreat Thob noticed a large camp, a cluster of fires and tents:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
In the camp were many creatures of different kinds, mostly elves and goblins. They were a ragtag bunch, wandering aimlessly among the tents, trying to keep warm by the fires, or sleeping on the ground.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
One of the goblins, a metalworker by the looks of him, greeted Thob as he and his companions entered the camp. He seemed a laid-back, tolerant sort, and willingly told Thob about their circumstances:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “What kind of danger?”
   “The goblin army,” said Mato, as if it was common knowledge. “They came in and took over—those who didn’t want to live under their rule took to the wilderness, like us.”
   “Army?” said Thob. “I didn’t see any army in there. It seemed safe enough.”
   “Oh… well… I guess we’ve just gotten used to roughing it. Come to think of it, sleeping on the ground under a tent isn’t much different than sleeping in a tree.”

Among the elves of the camp there were several who seemed like important personages. Cañar said they were likely the leaders of the old elven civilization, which the goblins had overrun.
   One elf was dressed in a robe and hood made of some kind of coarse fur; she introduced herself as Fewetha Losttree, a “princess” — some kind of elven general. She was concerned about the neighboring peoples, with whom they apparently disagreed about animal rights:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Another dignitary, Enur, called herself a diplomat, though Thob didn’t know what kind of diplomacy he got up to in the forest. He tried to get Enur to talk about himself, but the elf seemed to have a troubled past:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   Another elf wore an odd sort of head-wrap, which Alisa called a “turban”; her name was Zolak Girdermaligned. “Zolak,” said Strodno, “that’s a goblin name, though?”
   “Yes — the goblins put me in charge here,” said Zolak. “I’m the administrator of this retreat.”
   “Then… why are you out here in the wilderness? The retreat’s over there.”
   “Ah, but all the people are over here! The administrator ought to be near the people, right?”

Many of the goblins in the camp were armed and armored. Alisa watched them closely. “I don’t trust these goblins,” he said. “I don’t think they’re really refugees.”
   Perhaps he was right, because suddenly, for no reason Thob could tell, a goblins rushed to attack them! Or rather to attack Cañar—she seemed to ignore the rest of the party. And it was really more of a brawl, since they fought only with fists and kicks:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Cañar defended herself well, landing a strong punch to the goblin’s chest that winded her; but the goblin was strong, and punched Cañar’s leg so hard it dislocated her knee:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Before things got worse Thob stepped in. “You’d better stop,” he said to the goblin, “unless you want to fight all four of us!”
   The goblin, wisely, submitted and backed away. Thob asked the limping Cañar if she was alright, and what the fight was all about: she bore the injury well, but claimed not to know the goblin:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “All the same, better not throw your weight around so much.”
   The hefty elf glared at him. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

The party was exploring the edges of the camp when a strong odor came to Thob on the wind: something like… burning flesh. Suddenly Alisa was screaming.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “Death? What death? I don’t see any death.”
   But the human only trembled, muttering. Thob turned around. He still didn’t see any death—but he saw something worse:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
A horrible, beast, like a tall skinny human, but with four long curving horns and three eyes, and covered in blood—and headed right for them!
   “An ambush!” cried Strodno. “Charge!”
   She ran forward, sword held high. The thing lowered its ugly head and struck her square in the gut. The blow was blunted, fortunately, by her steel leggings, but the shock of it knocked Strodno aside and made her retch.
   Thob, however, was close behind her; Cañar was trying to catch up, but her hurt knee held her back. Strodno wasn’t out of the fight, either; she made a quick swing at the beast, but missed. The monster stretched out a scrawny hand and grabbed Thob by the arm—its grip was terribly strong, and Thob knew that, held like this, he couldn’t break free or dodge away. He had only one chance. As the beast raised its other hand to deal a killing blow, Thob raised his pick…
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
…and slammed it down into the monster’s head, splitting it wide open.
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “A night troll,” said Cañar. “What was it doing out here, in the daytime?”
   “Probably though a camp full of refugees would be an easy target,” said Thob.
   “Looks like it was right,” said Strodno, pointing back into the camp.
   Sure enough, not far away lay the mangled bodies of several elves and goblins. Thob led the team back, surveying the destruction. First they found the remains of Princess Fewetha:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
More bodies cluttered the hills all around:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
One of the dead goblins had a steel mail shirt, which Strodno took—a little gross, thought Thob, but then again the goblin wasn’t using it anymore.
   The “administrator”, Zolak, was apparently unhurt. “What a terrible thing!” said Thob. “With the princess dead, who’s going to lead these people?”
   “What do you mean, no princess?” said Zolak. “I’m the princess now.”
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
   “Wait… you can’t just call yourself a princess!” said Cañar.
   “Why not? Who’s going to stop me?”
   “Come on, Cañar,” said Thob, “we can’t do anything about it now.” But the elf eyed the administrator with suspicion.
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Thob Goes to the Surface (Adventure Mode story, in progress)

King Zultan

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #103 on: December 13, 2020, 10:58:16 am »

What a strange place, one minute everyone is sitting around fires being friendly then we turn our backs and they're killing each other, what a strange place the surface is.
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The Lawyer opens a briefcase. It's full of lemons, the justice fruit only lawyers may touch.
Make sure not to step on any errant blood stains before we find our LIFE EXTINGUSHER.
but anyway, if you'll excuse me, I need to commit sebbaku.
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Can I have the sword when you’re done?

Cathar

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Re: Thob Goes to the Surface: Part IV
« Reply #104 on: December 13, 2020, 01:29:03 pm »

Getting grabbed by an original night troll is probably the most nervewracking experience, probably on par with getting tackled by a group of undead or failing multiple swimming checks in a row.  Congratulation on the hunt, and all hail the new princess !
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