Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General The Afflicted

Chapter 4 - The Slaughter at the Gate

Initiative. Kaedyn rolled a 14+2=16, Vexir a 15+2=17, Ryth-Shan a 14+2=16, Lae'zel a 6+1=7, Shadowheart a 13+2=15, Astarion a 17+3=20, and Gale a 7+2=9. The Bugbear rolled a 22 total, the Booyahg (shaman) rolled a 21 total, Goblin 2 rolled a 14, the Goblin Captain rolled a 13, the Worg a 12, Goblin 1 rolled a 9, Goblin 3 rolled a 4 and Sazza rolled an automatic 22. Aradin rolled a 19 total, Adventurer 1 rolled a 16, Adventurer 2 (the female archer) rolled a 20. Wyll rolled a 21. Zevlor rolled an 8.

Initiative Order. Sazza, Bugbear, Wyll (in a tie, heroes always go first), Booyahg, Astarion (in a tie, PC's always go before NPC's), Adventurer 2, Aradin, Vexir, Kaedyn, Ryth-Shan (though the players could go in any order they wanted between them since they were all three in consecutive initiative positions), Adventurer 1, Shadowheart, Goblin 2, Gale, Goblin Captain, Worg, Goblin 1, Zevlor, Lae'zel, and Goblin 3.

Sazza was a busty female goblin with her head shaved except for on top. She had straight, brown hair that she combed to the left in a wild fashion. Many strands fell across her face, creating a veil for her left eye. She wasn't armed with much, and she wore mostly tattered cloth with leather shoulder pads and boots. On her left shoulder was a adornment of black feathers. She was a special goblin that the DM was reserving for a potential role in the story. Therefore, he automatically gave her initiative so no one would kill her. As the battle began, she was on the west side of the goblin pack. She suddenly transformed into a spider and climbed the rock wall to the top. She was a druid.

Much to her surprise, however, a Tiefling, named Elegis, who had arrived with Zevlor, pounced on her. Sazza screamed in surprise as Elegis tackled her. She struggled and wrestled to break free, but it was no use. Elegis was the stronger of the two.

The Bugbear rushed Aradin, moving 30 feet. It then threw its Javelin at him. It rolled 14+4=18 and hit. It then rolled a 5+2=7 damage. Aradin was down to 23 HP. The Javelin came at him and grazed his shoulder, slicing through his armor and producing a fine cut. "Argh!" he cried, but he shrugged it off.

Just as this happened, a darker-skinned man appeared atop the wall of the grove near where Kanon had fallen. He had a hairstyle similar to Ryth-Shan's except that his hair was dark brown. He was mostly clean shaven with a hint of a beard and mustache framing his mouth. He had a nasty scar across the right side of his face, from his eye almost to his ear. Several scars, almost like claw-marks, ran from his cheek down his neck. He had the same, claw-like scars on the left side of his face as well, even coming down to his chin. His right eye was replaced by some sort of white, eye-shaped stone. It was even engraved to look almost like an eye. This was Wyll, the Blade of Frontiers, and he immediately announced his arrival with a boisterous shout.

"Make way for the Blade of Frontiers!" he cried, and he blew a massive horn that was near the gate pulley mechanism hidden behind the lip of the ridge. The horn made a blast that resounded throughout the entire region, striking fear into the hearts of the enemies of the grove and inspiring its allies. Every allied NPC gained Inspiration. Every PC was already inspired, so there was no effect. Every enemy gained disadvantage on all their rolls for 1 round.

Shortly after this, the Booyahg cast Guiding Bolt and hurled it at Adventurer 2. She rolled a 20 and 18+2=20 and hit. She then rolled 16 for damage, reducing Adventurer 2 to 14 HP. Astarion then slipped up to the edge of the hill they were on, and he fired at the Booyahg. He rolled a 13 and a 2, because he got advantage for being Hidden. 13+5=18. Hit. With Sneak Attack, he rolled 3d6+3 damage and rolled a 9+3=12. The Booyahg was down to 11 HP. She had an arrow sticking out of her back. It hadn't penetrated deeply enough to kill her, but it was enough to get her attention.

Astarion then used Cunning Action to return to Hiding. He made a Stealth check, but only rolled a 5+7=12. The Booyahg spun around just as he dove behind a bush. She failed to spot him, rolling only an 8-1=7 on her Perception check. Since the Booyahg was the only one shot, the DM only required her to roll to see if Astarion was spotted. After all, the others had their back to him, and the Booyahg was at the rear of the goblin group.

Adventurer 2 drank a potion and healed 7 HP to 21 HP. Then Aradin rushed the Bugbear and took a swing. He rolled a 10+4=14 and missed. Using Action Surge, he attacked again and rolled a 2+4=6 and missed again. Frustrated, he used his Inspiration and rolled a 3+4=7 and missed yet again. Aradin was beyond frustrated. No matter what, he couldn't seem to connect with the Bugbear. It kept dodging or deflecting his attacks.

Vexir popped up almost at the same time as Astarion. She fired her crossbow at the Booyahg just as Astarion moved to duck behind the bush. The Booyahg was just turning to look and see what had hit her. Vexir still got advantage. It wouldn't be until after her turn that she was spotted. She rolled a 9 and 13+4=17 and 7+2=9 for damage, because she hit. She then used Action Surge to go again, still getting advantage. She rolled 12 and 15 to hit and 1+2=3 for damage. So she took a total of 12 off the Booyahg.

The Booyahg died before she even knew what had hit her, 3 crossbow bolts sticking out of her. She had one in the back and two in the chest. She fell to the ground with a cry of agony. This meant that Vexir was spotted by all just as she retreated further back on the hill to avoid the line of sight of her enemies.

As for Kaedyn, he was right behind Vexir. When he saw the Booyahg fall, he adjusted his aim at the last second. He immediately fired at the worg, which was closer than the bugbear. He got advantage as well, because he was hiding. He rolled 18 and 7 and hit. He then did 3 damage. The bolt grazed the worg reducing it to 26 HP. Then, like Vexir, he was immediately spotted as he retreated back away from the edge of the hill.

Ryth-Shan acted at pretty much the same time as the other two. He fired at the worg also and completely missed just as all the enemies turned to see them. He rolled two 1's, a Critical Miss. In his haste, he misfired, and the arrow went flying past the monster's head without coming close. He was spotted too as he fell back.

Adventurer 1 shot at the Bugbear and missed. Then she ran to the right of the gate to a boulder to gain a bit of height over the battlefield. Shadowheart got advantage, just the same as her companions, because everything was happening so fast. They may have spotted her companions, but they didn't see her until she fired. She rolled a 19 and 9. She hit and did 7+2=9 damage. The worg was down to 17 HP. Her bolt stabbed into the rump of the beast, but it wasn't deep enough to hinder its movement and abilities. It had a thick skin. She fell back, like the others.

Goblin 2 spotted the party on the hill and cried, "The Booyahg's dead! We're being flanked!" Then he moved up onto some stony lip that gave him a bit of height. It was just enough to have line of sight of the party. He then fired at Kaedyn who had positioned himself between the enemies and Vexir. He rolled a 7 and 3+4=7, and he missed. He had disadvantage on his roll for 2 reasons. First, the horn had struck fear into his heart, and second was because the party was beyond 80 feet, his shortbow's initial range increment. He could shoot enemies up to 320 feet, but anything beyond 80 had disadvantage.

Gale rushed to the edge of the hill a moment later and cast Magic Missile, launching them at the worg. He did 7 points of damage. The three missiles of energy pounded into the creature's side, back and left rear leg. It roared in agony, intent on killing them all. Gale then withdrew to position himself behind his companions.

The Goblin Captain was now beside himself with fear. He had been pursuing the adventurers with absolute confidence. In a matter of seconds, everything had gone to pot. "Fall back! Get to the high ground!" he cried in desperation as he gestured towards the party on the hill. "For the ABSOLUTE!" Then he hurled his javelin at Aradin and withdrew 30 feet away from the gate. He only rolled a 7 and missed. Aradin batted the javelin aside.

The worg used Dash and bounded towards the party on the hill. It moved 100 feet, bounding up stones that made an excellent stairway. It was close enough to get into range of Astarion. Unfortunately for him, he was now in line of site and instantly spotted. However, only the worg saw him. No other enemies could target him.

Goblin 1 withdrew 30 feet to a boulder not far from her. There, she perched and fired at Adventurer 1. She rolled a 14+4=18 and hit. She did 4 damage. Adventurer 1 had 16 HP remaining. It was then Zevlor's turn. He hurled Magic Missiles at the Bugbear using a Level 2 spell slot. He rolled 12+4=16 damage. The Bugbear had 3 HP remaining.

As this happened, Lae'zel drew out her Spear+1 and charged the worg. She rolled a 4+6=10. The worg dove sideways and then swiped her spear to the side. Furious, she used Action Surge and attacked again. This time, her spear pierced the creature's left shoulder, gushing blood out as she yanked it free. She did 8 damage, reducing it to 2 HP. Finally, Goblin 3 spotted Lae'zel and fired at her. It rolled a 4 and a 10 and missed.

Round 2. At the start of this round, Sazza returned to her goblin form. Elegis continued to wrestle with her, but neither was the victor yet. The Bugbear was locked in combat with Aradin. It was fuming in rage. It had not been a full round, however, since Wyll had blasted the horn. Therefore, it got disadvantage on its rolls. Therefore, seeing that its forces were retreating, and knowing it was close to death, it used Disengage to retreat with them, running 30 feet away.

Wyll saw them retreating and decided that Goblin 2 was the closest prey. Taking out his rapier, he cast Misty Step which teleported him 30 feet from the wall to within melee range of the goblin. The spell was only a Bonus Action, and so he had the ability to attack it immediately. He took a swing and missed with only an 8 total.

Astarion dropped his bow and pulled out his daggers. He attacked the worg. He no longer got advantage, but he didn't care. He stabbed with a roll of 16+5=21. With daggers held downward, he sprang upon the worg and drove one of the blades into the creature's eye right into its brain. He rolled a 4+3=7 for damage and killed it. As it let out a final moan and died, he dropped away, rolled down the rocky stairs and came right at Goblin 3's face. After all, he still had enough movement to spare. He rolled 9+5=14 and just barely missed. The goblin ducked to the side at the last second. Astarion's blade was inches from its face.

Now it was Adventurer 2's turn. He pulled out a bow and fired at the retreating Bugbear. He rolled an 8+4+12. The arrow zinged past the Bugbear, missing it. Aradin was next. He chased the Bugbear and attacked. He rolled a 9+4=13 and missed. "Nasty piece of..." he cried in bitter rage. "I'm gonna bash your skull in if it's the last thing I do."

Vexir was next. She ran to the edge once more and quickly spotted the Bugbear. She fired. She rolled a 4 and missed. She used Inspiration. This time she rolled a 17 and hit. She did 3+2=5 damage. The bolt struck the Bugbear right in the chest, piercing its heart. It snorted, stumbled and fell, shoving the bolt through its back as it landed on it.

Kaedyn then joined her on the edge of the hill. He spotted the Goblin Captain and decided he was the next big target. He decided to use a Level 2 spell slot to cast Guiding Bolt. He hurled it at the Goblin Captain and rolled a 1. He chose to use Inspiration and rolled again to get a Natural 20! That meant that he would roll 10d6 damage total. The Goblin Captain looked up as he retreated from the battlefield, and just as he locked eyes with Kaedyn, the blazing bolt from Tyr consumed his face. In a moment, he was dead as his head exploded.

Ryth-Shan only hesitated a moment when he came up next to Kaedyn and was about to fire at the captain. When he saw the shot aimed right for the monster's head, he deviated his own attack to Goblin 1. Goblin 1 was 140 feet away, still within Ryth-Shan's range. He fired, rolled a 2 and missed, and used Inspiration. He then rolled 12+6=18 and hit. He did 6+2=8 damage. Goblin 1 fell dead, an arrow to the throat.

Now Adventurer 1 was free to shoot at Goblin 2. She fired her bow and hit with a 14+4=18. She rolled a 6+2=8 and killed him with a shot in the stomach. As the creature fell, Shadowheart raced up to the edge to fire her crossbow bolt at the last remaining goblin. She rolled an 8 and 14. She got advantage because Astarion was flanking it. She rolled a 7+2=9 for damage. Goblin 3 had a bolt between the eyes and fell of the stony steps even as it dodged Astarion's swing.

The DM awarded the heroes with 121 XP. They now had 1,621 XP.

With the battle over, Zevlor cried. "That was the last of them. Inside. All of you. More may follow. Open the gate!" Other Tieflings, by this point, had arrived to help him, and before too long, the gate was all the way up revealing a clear pathway inside. Aradin and his team quickly retreated within, deciding to obey Zevlor's order and ignore the bodies. Elegis had finally rendered Sazza unconscious, and she was spotted hefting the goblin druid over her shoulder as she headed off north towards the heart of the grove.

Ryth-Shan, however, said, "I'm going to recover our arrows and bolts and search the bodies. Who knows what kind of gear they might be carrying."

"Good idea," said Kaedyn. "Hopefully they'll keep the gate open for a few minutes. Let's spread out and search the bodies quickly."

"Did you hear what their captain called out?" asked Gale as they scrambled down the stone stair to the field of battle. "He called out, 'For the Absolute.' I wonder who or what the Absolute is."

"Let's ponder that once we're inside," said Vexir. Then they quickly tore the gear off of the fallen and stuffed it into their magic pockets. Within only a few minutes, the party was through the gate and into the Druid's Grove. The Tieflings on the wall waited the entire time, keeping it open to welcome them. As soon as they were through, however, it slid shut behind with a loud boom.

Chapter 4 - The Plight of the Refugees

"There are children here, you fool!" Zevlor shouted in Aradin's face as the party approached. He had obviously rushed down off the wall to confront the adventurers before they could retreat too far into the grove.

Aradin was equally outraged. "We was runnin' for our lives."

"You led them straight to us. And you let them take the druid, too. Unbelievable!" Zevlor was obviously about to tear Aradin apart with his hands.

Kaedyn quickly rushed forward to try to defuse the situation. "One fight just ended, and now you're picking another? Relax," he said, wedging himself between the two. He rolled an 18+3=21 for Persuasion and succeeded. He gained 1 relationship with Gale. No one else seemed to care whether the two fought or not.

Zevlor did seem to calm when Kaedyn stepped in, but he said, "Tell that to the dead at the gate." It was clear that Kanon's loss weighed heavily upon him.

Aradin, however, was callous. "Shut it, horns. I'd be lying dead next to the goblins if you'd stalled any longer. Fortunately, this group of adventurers arrived when they did."

Zevlor's anger raised again, but it was at least restrained. "My duty is to this camp."

Aradin continued his vicious tirade. "Oh! God forbid you risk your precious tail. But I shouldn't be surprised. Foulbloods ain't known for courage."

Kaedyn positioned himself so that his back was to Aradin as he looked Zevlor in the eyes. "More violence won't bring back the dead. Stop and think."

At last, Zevlor's anger drained away, replaced by grief. "You're right. There's too much at stake."

"Worried about your precious hides, the both of you," Aradin quipped.

Kaedyn turned on him, expression hard. "Enough! Squabbling is pointless. Why don't you and your companions move on."

"Besides, what's done is done," said Zevlor. "The goblins have found us. We need to focus now on getting out of here."

Aradin spat on the ground. "At least we agree on that." Then he led his companions away deeper into the grove.

Ryth-Shan then approached. "Excuse me," he said to Zevlor. "I couldn't help but notice. Did you say that the goblins found you here? But we killed them all. What makes you think you have to leave?"

Zevlor sighed. "You couldn't see from where you were, but I saw a few goblins heading back west towards their main camp at the old temple ruins. It was pretty clear. They found the grove. They've been looking for it for days now, even before we got here. Not sure why they want to destroy it."

Astarion then turned to the others. He spoke in more hushed tones. "Well. You heard him. More goblins could be on their way. I know we need to find a healer, but staying here is risky."

"We'll have to take the risk," said Gale. "We need to get these things out of our heads."

Lae'zel contributed to the conversation for once. "I agree. I'm not turning into a Ghaik. Besides, this is the red hunter's camp. Zorru must be near."

"This might be our best chance to fix whatever those creatures did to us," said Shadowheart.

"Sounds like everyone is in agreement, then," said Gale with a grin. "Let's go find us that healer."

Astarion rolled his eyes. "Not everyone," he muttered to himself.

Then Zevlor continued, interrupting their private conversation. "Forgive that display. Aradin's a blowhard, but that's no cause for me to join him. I wouldn't have looked to a Drow for help, but I'm grateful all the same. I'm Zevlor."

"Do you have something against Drow?" asked Vexir, brandishing her greataxe now. She eyed Zevlor with a cold and harsh expression.

"I meant no insult," said Zevlor quickly. "It's simply that yours are a people at war with themselves. I've never known them to care for outsiders. Whatever your business, I'd see to it quickly. The druids are forcing everyone out. This attack will only strengthen their resolve."

"Why are they forcing you out?" asked Kaedyn.

"There have been several attacks by different monsters. The druids blame us 'outsiders' for drawing them here. Nobody's welcome anymore."

"Several attacks by different monsters? So the goblins aren't the first attack?" asked Ryth-Shan.

Zevlor shook his head. "Not sure what other attacks they're referring to, but it sounds like there have been others that have somehow invaded this area recently. There is a village to the west before you reach the temple further west where the goblins have established their camp. The village has been gutted. No one survived whatever attack there was there. A bog to the south has the druids concerned as well. There are Gnolls on the road to the north. I can only assume these are all the things they are referring to."

"So they've started a ritual to cut the grove off from the world outside," Zevlor continued. "We can't stay, but we'll be slaughtered if we leave. We're no fighters. We have a few who can defend themselves and others, but that's it."

"This ritual," said Ryth-Shan, "is there no way to convince the druids to stop it?"

Zevlor shook his head again. "I've tried. Kagha, their new First Druid, won't even see me. Hah! She was awfully quick to assume the position. Their former First Druid's only been gone a few days. It's been since that ship crashed. The former First Druid went with Aradin and his crew to explore the ruins where the goblins are set up. He thought, perhaps, all the events were connected somehow; the ship, the monsters in the area..."

Then he paused as a thought struck him. "You know. You... I mean. I know it's none of your business, but Kagha now owes you for saving this place. If you hadn't shown up, there's a good chance they would have, at the very least, smashed through the gate or climbed up the vines to get to the wall here. They could have caused a lot of trouble for the entire grove. As it stands now, the goblins may take some time to reorganize before they send an assault here. You bought Kagha time for her ritual. Maybe she'll listen to you. Perhaps you could persuade her for more time to prepare, if nothing else."

"I'll see what I can do," said Kaedyn." This time, he gained 1 relationship with Ryth-Shan and Gale, for Ryth-Shan had a bad feeling that something was not quite right in the grove. He wanted to see if they could figure out what it was and see if they could fix it. Speaking with Kagha was something he wanted to do. He lost a point with Vexir and Lae'zel. Vexir didn't like Zevlor and considered him a fool. She didn't care two copper pennies for the Tieflings.

Lae'zel also didn't approve, and she let him know. "Bah! We've no time to offer aid to every whimpering pup."

"We'd owe you a great debt," said Zevlor, as if that was somehow worth something to the Gith. "If we're forced to leave now, we won't make it to the city."

"City? What city?" asked Vexir. Now THIS was something that interested everyone.

"Baldur's Gate," said Zevlor. "It's days away from here, along the road to the west. Do you... Do you not know where you are?"

"It's been a rough couple of days," explained Kaedyn. "So we're days east of Baldur's Gate. That is great news indeed."

"You'll find the druids at the heart of the grove," said Zevlor, returning to the matter that concerned him most. "Please, make them see sense. Oh, and if it's of any concern... You're brave to walk around without hiding your heritage. I'll make sure everyone knows that you helped us at the gate. That way, everyone will welcome you. Well, I hope anyway."

"Thanks," said Kaedyn. "That would be very much appreciated. If you don't mind, I'll head up to the wall first to give you time to spread the word. Maybe I can do something for your friend, Kanon. It might not be too late to revivify him. It's a long shot, but I figure it's worth trying."

Zevlor was truly touched by this. "I seriously doubt it. I checked him shortly after the battle ended. It's been longer than a minute, I'm sure, since he died. The Revivify only works if you can make it within a minute after death. His soul has probably already moved on to the afterlife."

Kaedyn nodded. "Like I said. I'll see if there's anything I can do. You never know."

"Thank you," said Zevlor, and with that, he bid them farewell and left. Kaedyn's relationship went up by 1 with Gale.

Chapter 4 - The Tieflings at the Wall

Vexir sneered at him, however. "Why do you care about these fool Tieflings?" she asked.

Kaedyn was already making his way back towards the path up onto the wall. He was jogging. "I care about every soul," he replied. "Even those people consider evil." Then he smiled at her, clearly indicating that she was normally considered evil and he still cared about her.

Vexir snicked at him. "Fool," she muttered. The others followed, but only because they didn't want to stand around doing nothing while they waited for him to return. They also wanted to make sure they gave Zevlor time to spread the word.

So they went up onto the wall. Sure enough, Kanon was dead beyond any hope. Kaedyn bowed his head and said a prayer. As he did, one of the Tieflings nearby said to him, "Aradin's back with his tail between his legs. I'm glad for your help, but I'd hoped you were Halsin."

"And Halsin is?" asked Ryth-Shan.

"The First Druid," said the Tiefling.

"Sounds like you've crossed paths with Aradin before," said Kaedyn.

"Yeah, when he ran off with the druid that saved our hides the first time. Without Halsin... this grove's not so friendly. I'll tell you that."

"Halsin saved you?" asked Kaedyn.

"Yep. We were refugees on the road north of here," explained the Tiefling. "We were ambushed. The Gnolls would have torn us to bits if Halsin hadn't shown up. He transformed into a massive bear and tore into them. He and several of the druids and animals with him sent the Gnolls fleeing into the hills."

A young female Tielfing nearby then interrupted their conversation. She was cradling Kanon in her arms. "He's not breathing. Go find a healer!" she snapped at another Tiefling, a male, near her.

Lae'zel decided to chime in. "Do not embarrass yourself. He is gone."

The Tiefling woman looked up at her with venom in her eyes. "No!" she screamed in Lae'zel's face.

"I'll say a blessing to guide his soul," Kaedyn offered, trying to smooth the situation over.

"We'd like that," said the male. "I'm Mennos. This is Arka." Both were yellow-skinned Tieflings who could have been cousins. Arka had straight, white hair combed back with pupil-less eyes. Mennos had dark brown hair in a braid with the sides and back of his head shaved. He had fiery eyes.

Arka then threw Kanon's body to the ground in a rage. "No! We wouldn't like that. It's pointless. Someone's going to pay for this." Then she grabbed a crossbow and fled the scene.

Mennos chased after her. "Arka! No wait! What are you doing?" And with that, they were gone.

"Should we go after them?" asked Gale as he watched them go.

Kaedyn shook his head. "Best to leave them be."

Feeling guilty for Arka's behavior, another Tiefling female approached. This was Elegis. She had short, dark hair and wore Ring Mail with a bow on her back. "Glad you made it inside," she said kindly. "Doubt we'll be safe here for long, though. There'll be more coming. Goblins hunt in packs."

"You could hold off a horde of goblins from this position," said Vexir.

"Ah, maybe," said Elegis. "But we're not fighters. If they broke through, it'd be a massacre. The sooner we leave for Baldur's Gate, the better. If the road was clear, it would be about a tenday's walk, maybe. But while the goblins are out there, it might as well be the other side of the world."

Kaedyn nodded. "Well, we'll see what we can do to help."

"Thank you," said the Tiefling. "Oh. Could you do me a favor?"

"What's that?" asked Kaedyn.

"There's another Tiefling woman up on the hilltop there," she said, pointing to the east where the grove's natural wall rose to form a hilltop. "She's got long, straight, pink hair. Her name is Nadira. She's our stargazer and lookout. Could you tell her that I need to chat with her about something? My name is Elegis. I can't leave my post here, at this point. I need to keep watch for more trouble."

Kaedyn looked up to the hilltop. "Wouldn't take us much to do that," he replied.

"So, now we're messengers?" said Astarion. "Are we going to run errands for everyone here?" Kaedyn lost a relationship point with Astarion. Vexir, Lae'zel and Shadowheart also didn't approve, and he lost a point with each of them as well.

"What else have you got to do right now," said Kaedyn. "We need to wait for Zevlor to spread the word anyway so people don't just outright attack us." Then, without another word, he made for the cliff, jogging along the wall as he went until he reached a path that led up to the hilltop. The others reluctantly followed along. Only Gale seemed to be content with Kaedyn's decisions.

When they reached the top of the hill, however, they were quite surprised by what awaited them. The pink haired Tiefling, Nadira, was busy staring through her telescope at the surrounding countryside, and so she was oblivious to the reality that a bugbear was creeping up on her from behind. Somehow, the monster had gotten into the grove, and he was about to attack her. Kaedyn and the others had arrived just in time to stop it. The bugbear spotted them just as they spotted him.

Initiative. Kaedyn rolled 7+2=9, Vexir rolled 17+2=19, Ryth-Shan rolled 11+2=13, Shadowheart rolled 2+2=4, Astarion rolled 4+3=7, Lae'zel rolled 19+1=20, and Gale rolled 15+2=17. The DM used Bugbear Chief stats for this bugbear and rolled 10+2=12.

Initiative Order. Lae'zel, Vexir, Gale, Ryth-Shan, Bugbear Chief, Kaedyn, Astarion and Shadowheart.

Lae'zel threw her Spear+1 and used her Bonus Action to draw it back to her using her Weapon Bond. She rolled a 10+6=16 to hit. She needed a 17 and missed. The spear came at the bugbear's chest, but he knocked it to the side with his morningstar. Then Lae'zel summoned it back to her hand.

Vexir used Dash to charge the bugbear, moving to melee range so that he would provoke an attack of opportunity if he continued to try to attack the Tiefling. Gale cast Ray of Frost, but he rolled a 1. Critical Miss. He basically completed his spell with poor timing. Before he lined up the shot, the beam of ice shot from his hands, striking the ground instead of the monster.

Ryth-Shan fired his longbow. He rolled a 14+6=20. He did 4+2=6 damage. His arrow grazed the bugbear's leg. Nothing more. He still had 57 HP remaining. The Bugbear Chief then recovered and took a swing at Vexir. He rolled a 1, swinging at her with his morningstar. She deflected with her greataxe, but he was fast. He took another swing, for he had Multiattack as an ability. His first attack tipped her off balance and left her exposed. His second swing came in with a Natural 20. A blow to the head! He normally got 2d8+3 for damage, but since it was Critical, he got a 4d8+3. He rolled a 17+3=20.

However, Vexir had her Leather Cap which provided Resistance against just the Critical Hit dice. So the Bugbear Chief rolled a 4, 2, 3, and 8. The 4 and 2 would not have Resistance applied, but the 3 and 8 would. So, with Resistance, it would be 4+2+1+4+3=14 rather than 20. Though the bugbear hit her in the head, it was not a skull-cracking blow. Still, she was reduced to 11 HP and was dazed.

Kaedyn saw her get hit, and he rushed 30 feet before attacking. "Vexir! Blast it!" was all he had time to say. He wanted to chew her out for once again rushing into battle before him. He used Healing Word and fired a crossbow bolt. He was out of spell slots now. He healed her for 6 HP. As for his crossbow bolt, it hit the bugbear solidly in the upper left shoulder and stuck fast. Critical Hit! He did 2d8+2 damage and rolled 6+2=8. (Critical Hits don't always mean headshots.) The Bugbear Chief was reduced to 49 HP. Vexir was back to 19 HP.

Then Astarion took a shot with his bow. He rolled a 19+5=24. He got advantage because Vexir was flanking the monster. Therefore, he got to use his Sneak Attack to add 2d6 to his damage. He only rolled 5+3=8. His arrow jabbed into the bugbear's leg armor, barely penetrating.

Shadowheart was last in the round. She used Guiding Bolt and rolled 4 and 20. Critical Hit! Vexir's flanking maneuver really paid off in this case. Though the bugbear had been mostly dodging and avoiding the attacks of her companions, he failed to see Shadowheart's Guiding Bolt until it was too late. She did 8d6 damage. She rolled 28 total. The bolt blasted into the Bugbear Chief's chest armor, searing into its chest.

Round 2. Lae'zel threw her spear again. It grazed the bugbear, and returned to her hand. She did 5 damage, reducing the bugbear to 8 HP. Vexir then swung her greataxe and imbedded it into the Bugbear's skull. She did 11+2=13 damage, finishing it off. The party gained 100 XP. They now had 1,721 XP with 979 more to go to reach Level 4.

"You have good timing," said Nadira after the bugbear fell dead before her. "Never been much of a fighter, so wrestling a bugbear would have gone poorly. I wonder how that thing got in here. Curious. I didn't see it with the others, but it must have come with them. How did it slip past everyone?"

"Not sure," Ryth-Shan replied. "It must have been the other bugbear Zriek spotted with the goblin party. There were two bugbears with the goblin pack. However, only one was at the gate with six goblins and the worg. We should keep an eye out for the rest."

"Zevlor spotted them running back to their camp in the west," said Vexir. "That's probably where they went. The bugbear must have somehow sneaked up here while everyone was focused on the dead Tiefling and that idiot Aradin."

"Zevlor saw a few," said Ryth-Shan. "We should still remain vigilant. Could be one or two lurking around."

Vexir nodded. "I suppose you're right."

Then Nadira gave them all an odd look. She went from being totally friendly to suddenly defensive in moments. She was scared. "Hells! You're not here for heroics, are you? Avernus' stench is all over your skin. Let me guess. Your devil mistress sent you to get her soul coin back. Well, too bad! I earned it fair and square."

"We've been to Avernus," said Kaedyn, "but we're no devil's servant."

"Care to explain why you reek of the Hells?" asked Nadira with heavy skepticism. She was not at all convinced.

"A Mind Flayer abducted us, and its ship went straight to Avernus," Kaedyn explained. As he said this, he pointed over the countryside at the ruined ship. "Please, try to calm down. Do we really look like the servants of a devil?" He made a Persuade roll of 13+3=16 and succeeded. "I swear by Tyr, my god, that we are friends."

"Well," she replied, relaxing a bit as she looked out at the downed vessel. "That's quite the story." Then, she laughed at herself. "And I thought I was doomed. I feel like an idiot. You saved my life, and I repaid you by interrogating you and accusing you. Now, I feel sorry for you."

She pulled out the soul coin she had mentioned and looked at it thoughtfully. With a heavy sigh, she said, "So, you're a real cleric of Tyr?" Kaedyn nodded in response. "You know, I used to think this would buy me a fortune, but a fortune's not worth much if you're dead, is it? I've had nothing but misfortune since I acquired it, and I can't rest. I'm constantly looking over my shoulder, expecting someone to ambush me and steal it from me. Look how I nearly bit your head off about it, and just AFTER you saved my life. I guess... I guess it's probably better if I just..."

She sighed again and held it out to him. "Here. Take this. Maybe you can find a good use for this; free the soul somehow, or something. Consider it payment for saving my life just now."

Then the DM had everyone roll a Religion or History roll, whichever is higher. The DC was 10, for the knowledge was relatively common. The higher the roll, the more a PC would know about what a soul coin even was. Kaedyn, Vexir, and Lae'zel knew the basics. Ryth-Shan and Shadowheart had a bit more knowledge about them. Astarion and Gale knew next to nothing.

Kaedyn took it, somewhat stunned. "Thank you," he said genuinely. "I will, indeed, do what I can to free the soul within. This is a great gift. I truly appreciate it."

Nadira smiled, and it seemed a huge weight had lifted from her shoulders. "You're welcome," she said sweetly.

Then Kaedyn remembered his reason for coming up there as he pocketed the coin. "Oh, by the way, Elegis wanted to see you. She had something she wanted to discuss with you."

Nadira's eyes lit up. "Oh! Thank you so much! I'd better go see what she wants. It probably has something to do with the soul coin, actually." She laughed lightly. "She's been a bit worried about me. Thanks again!" And with that, she was off down the slope towards where Elegis stood by the gate mechanism.

The moment she was beyond earshot, Astarion approached Kaedyn and put his hand on his shoulder. "Bravo!" he said with a greedy smile. "I must say. I thought we were wasting our time, but I guess there are benefits, sometimes, to performing meaningless tasks for people. She said she thought she could earn a fortune with that. How much of a fortune are we talking?" He gained 2 points of relationship with Astarion.

"A soul coin is rather valuable indeed," said Shadowheart. Kaedyn gained 2 points with her as well. "They are made from a special type of iron called infernal iron. Both sides of the coin have infernal script etched onto its surface. Each soul coin is infused with the soul of a single creature. The soul is tormented and filled with despair. As a result, any creature of a non-evil alignment is only able to carry a few coins at a time. A creature of an evil alignment is able to carry as many coins as they wish."

"So we could use them to determine who is evil and who isn't," said Kaedyn with a grin. "We'll just start collecting these and passing them around to see which of us is truly evil." He said this in jest.

"A creature in possession of a soul coin could use its innate powers," Ryth-Shan added. "The coin can be used to drain the life of a target creature. Another ability is that the soul inside the coin can be communicated with telepathically. It will typically answer questions but the soul often gives vague answers. Devils and demons will pay handsomely for one of these."

"But it is possible to release the soul within a soul coin," said Kaedyn. "This can be achieved by casting an anti-curse spell, such as remove curse, on the coin. Once a soul is freed, the coin will start rusting and will eventually be destroyed. If the soul is of a good alignment, they are transported to the realm of their deity. If the soul is of an evil alignment, they are transformed into a lemure."

"Why would we want to release the soul?" asked Astarion. "Sounds like it's worth more in the coin. Who knows how that might benefit us?" The others also pondered this and agreed. Kaedyn, therefore, gained 2 points with everyone.

Kaedyn had a feeling that he was the only one thinking about freeing the trapped soul within the coin, but he said nothing more about his intentions. He figured it was best to keep that to himself. No sense in getting into a fight with them about it. He would cross that bridge when the time came. He then pretended to put the coin into his magic pocket, but he slipped it into a different pocket instead when no one was looking.

"Hey," said Gale, suddenly, as he stared down at the bugbear. "You know. I just thought of this. Why not use the Amulet of Lost Voices. We could ask the bugbear ourselves how it got in and how many more could be in the grove."

"Not a bad idea," said Astarion. "Any objections?" There were none, so he chanted the words of the spell. His eyes glowed as magical energy surged around him. Then the bugbear's body lifted into the air, floating above the ground as its eyes and mouth glowed and emanated an eerie light.

"How did you get into the grove?" asked Astarion.

The bugbear's voice was devoid of life and it sounded like a wheezing, dying creature. "During fight. Snucked around. Climbed up from south cliffs, near big rune."

"Big rune?" said Gale. "I wonder if there's another Netherese portal rune around here."

"Anyone have any other questions?" asked Astarion.

"Are there any others?" asked Kaedyn.

The bugbear didn't respond. "It must only respond to me," said Astarion, then he repeated the question.

"Gresh, other goblin captain. Chased druid. Secret entrance," the monster replied.

"Secret entrance?" asked Astarion. "Where is that?"

"Cliff wall. West of gate. Just off path. Hidden in bushes."

"We should probably report that," said Kaedyn.

"We don't even really know where that is," said Vexir.

"Plus, we haven't even met the druids yet," said Ryth-Shan. "Who knows, but they may want to keep that a secret from the Tieflings and others who are visiting. We should be careful about who we mention that to."

"I agree," said Shadowheart. "Let's not be too hasty about giving up what information we know. If they don't want anyone to know about that secret entrance, they might try to kill us to protect that knowledge."

"Good point," said Vexir. "I agree with Shadowheart." Her relationship score with her went up by 1.

"We should be quick," said Astarion. "I can feel the spell waning. Any other questions?"

"You can ask up to five questions," said Gale. Though he didn't actually know the spell, he knew how it worked. "You have up to ten minutes to ask them. We're fine. We've only asked three so far. Still, make the last two count."

"Why do you want to destroy the Druid Grove so badly?" asked Ryth-Shan, and Astarion repeated it to the bugbear.

"Minthara's command. Drow cleric. Absolute. Kill Tieflings. Kill Druids. Find True Souls."

"Last question," Gale commented.

"True Souls?" asked Kaedyn. "What are True Souls?"

Astarion looked around at everyone else. They seemed to approve of the question. Astarion repeated it. The bugbear replied, "Absolute's Chosen. Special. Powers. Priestess Gut." Then the spell's power waned and ended. The bugbear's body floated back to the ground and became lifeless once more.

Chapter 4 - The Two Merchants and the Gith Interrogation

After their encounter with the bugbear, and their looting of its body, the party made their way at last into the grove. They wound their way back to where they had parted with Zevlor, and they continued on up the main path until they came upon a Halfling vendor. As soon as the vendor saw him, he said, "Greetings, Friends! Welcome to the Hollow here at the Druid's Grove. My name is Arron. Well met!"

"Well met!" said Ryth-Shan, suddenly taking the lead. Everyone was a bit surprised by this, but Ryth-Shan was eager to learn more about what was happening in the grove. He also immediately recognized that Arron had a small shrine to Silvanus along with all of his merchandise. Since Ryth-Shan honored Silvanus, he felt an immediate connection. "Tell me, Friend, what are the troubles here at the grove?"

Arron was a rather friendly sort. He chuckled lightly at Ryth-Shan's question and said. "You would not believe it. Refugees, adventurers... no one in years, and suddenly, we're overwhelmed. Thank you for beating back those goblins, by the way. Most brave of you. Is there anything you need? Act fast if you do. The ritual will be complete before too long."

"Are you really locking down the grove?" asked Ryth-Shan.

"I know it's drastic, but more monsters seem to terrorize this region every day," said Arron.

"What about the people here?" asked Kaedyn.

"We druids will be safe," he replied. "As for those that took refuge here... well... may Silvanus guard them as they continue their travels. It is really not our concern. Is it?"

"You just said the region's overrun by monsters. They won't survive by themselves," said Kaedyn. "Is there anything you can do to persuade your First Druid to NOT do this?"

Ryth-Shan was a bit put out by Kaedyn's interference, and the cleric lost 2 relationship with him. Arron responded before he could, however. "As I said, it's a drastic measure, but the survival of the grove is paramount." The Lightfoot Halfling was no longer as jovial. He seemed to like Ryth-Shan but not Kaedyn. "There just aren't enough supplies to support everyone."

Ryth-Shan tried to smooth things over. "Understandable," he said. Then he took control of the conversation back from Kaedyn. "We're looking for a healer. Do you know of any here?"

Arron nodded. "I pray no goblin arrow has grazed you! Nettie could put you to rights. She should be with the others in the inner chambers below here, but I doubt she'll be taking on new patients. The grove will be locked down soon."

Ryth-Shan nodded. "Thanks, Friend. You've been most helpful. Tell me, what are you selling?"

Arron gestured to his supplies. "Just some bits and bobs I no longer need."

Ryth-Shan turned to everyone else. "Now's our chance to unload some of our things. Let's sell what we have and see if he has anything we could use."

Arron then added, "I'm willing to sell, but I'm not as willing to buy. I need to get rid of most of my gear before we lock the place down, so I'll only be buying things we need here at the grove. There's another merchant, a Tiefling, down the path to your left there. He's selling some better weapons and such and buying others that will better support the Tieflings here. Most aren't fighters, so I think he's looking to get rid of his more expensive gear that they can't use anyway."

"What do you say?" Ryth-Shan asked the group as he turned to face them. "Shall we take some time to buy and sell a few things?"

Everyone agreed that it was a good plan. They'd bounce back and forth between Arron and the Tiefling merchant he spoke of if they had to in order to get rid of most of their items. After a quick exchange with Arron, he bid them farewell with a blessing from Silvanus. Then they wound their way down the path on the left into the heart of the camp. After asking a few questions, they were directed to Dammon, the Tiefling Blacksmith.

"Thanks for fighting off those goblins," he said when they approached. "If you need to replace any gear, just ask. My selection's pretty slim. I had to leave most of my equipment in Elturel."

"That forge is holding on by a thread. Are you a smith?" asked Shadowheart.

"The best," said Dammon. "People came from as far as Neverwinter to buy my swords. Funny how things change when your bloodline becomes a problem. Guess I'll be starting over in Baldur's Gate. I hope people are more open-minded there."

"I wouldn't count on it," commented Astarion, but only a few near him heard it.

And with that, the group began to examine his wares as they tried to see what he was willing to buy. While they did this, Lae'zel suddenly tapped Ryth-Shan on the shoulder. When he looked at her, she gestured to a lone Tiefling not far away. Damays, the Tiefling male who had caged her, was talking to him. "The red hunter," Lae'zel hissed at him. "I bet that is Zorru. Come. While the others waste time buying and selling things, let us see what this Zorru can tell us."

Then Damays walked away, leaving Zorru alone. Ryth-Shan glanced at the others who seemed engrossed in their task anyway, and he said, "Sounds like a plan. Let them do all the boring work." Then the two slipped away and made their way to Zorru. Ryth-Shan gained 1 relationship with Lae'zel.

Zorru did not see them coming until they were almost on top of him. He was busy, it seemed, trying to calm his nerves. As soon as he saw them, he cried, "B-by Mordai's eyes, more of them! My f-friend's blood not enough? Come to rip me open too?"

Lae'zel's hot glare sent shivers down the Tiefling's spine. "In Creche K'liir, a formal greeting begins with a bow." Ryth-Shan supported her, giving the Tiefling a menacing glare. He gained another point of relationship with her.

Lae'zel made an Intimidation roll with advantage, since Ryth-Shan was assisting her. She rolled 15+1=16 and a 10. She only needed a 10, so she succeeded. With the two Gith glaring at him, Zorru began to lower himself to the ground with his hands raised. He was clearly terrified. His knees were even shaking.

Lae'zel looked down at him, her arms folded across her chest. "Lower," she commanded.

"On your knees," said Ryth-Shan with a growl. "She won't say it again." Normally, he would not have used such a tactic, but after the way he saw the Tieflings treat Lae'zel when she was in the cage, he decided her method was probably best. Besides, he found her intimidation tactics quite attractive. He gained 5 points in relationship with her, increasing to 63, for she also found him attractive as he supported her with his own aggressions.

Zorru finally fell to his knees, his head bowed in submission. This pacified Lae'zel. Roughly, she said, "You saw another Gith. Where?"

Zorru seemed about to wet himself. "On the road to Baldur's Gate, near the mountain p-pass. Saw us 'fore we s-saw it. Jammed its b-b-blade through Yul's belly, straight to the other side."

Lae'zel grunted. "No twisting? Kin must have been in a hurry." Then she produced a map of the region. Ryth-Shan didn't even know she had such a thing. "The map. Show me."
Zorru hastily examined the map and pointed to a spot beyond the road off to the west. Lae'zel then snatched it back away from him. "Up," she commanded. "Now leave us. You can keep your innards."

Zorru fled hastily. "Gods protect me!" he cried as he ran.

"You've had a map this entire time?" asked Ryth-Shan. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I confiscated the map prior to meeting you and the others, before I fell into that red hunter's trap," she explained. "I found it on some dead goblins."

"What were you doing after you escaped the ship?" asked Ryth-Shan. "I don't think you ever told us."

She shrugged. "I spent a good deal of time killing the surviving Ghaik, their thralls and their intellect devourers," she told him. "I was doing everything I could to try to find some sort of cure or to force them to take it out of me. It was to no avail."

Ryth-Shan made an Insight roll and got a 14+2=16. He succeeded. He got the impression that Lae'zel had, in fact, fought maybe one or two enemies during that time, but she was exaggerating her activities. She was likely injured and recovering for most of the time. Regardless, he kept this to himself.

Lae'zel then changed the subject. "The locals prove compliant. A useful trait."

Ryth-Shan nodded. "That was an admirable interrogation technique. Very efficient." He gained another point for relationship.

Lae'zel smiled only a little and shrugged. "Chk. A shell so thin requires little to crack it. The 'teeth-ling,'" she said, emphasizing 'teeth,' "was clear. If there are Githyanki west of here, that must be our objective. Purification cannot wait."

Ryth-Shan chuckled. "'Teeth-ling'. Nice." He gained another point of relationship with her. "I don't know this protocol. What does purification entail exactly?

"The Creche holds the Zaith'isk. It will cleanse us of the parasite," she told him. "By Vlaakith's covenant, I know little more."

Ryth-Shan then eyed her for a moment. Were her intentions sincere? He watched closely for signs of deceit. Her eyes drifted downward. Something was off. "There's something else you want to say. Spit it out."

She became cold once more. "An infinitude. We are not friends. I will speak when it suits me, and not before."

Just when he thought things were starting to go well between them, she shut him down. "Fine," he said. "Have it your way."

And then, they heard shouting from an open doorway nearby. Looking in that direction, they saw something rather strange. There was a female goblin in a cage, and Arka and Mennos, two of the Tieflings from the wall, were arguing as Arka pointed her crossbow in the face of the goblin.

Lae'zel snorted. "Looks like they caught a live one. Wonder where they found it. Seems the security of this place is seriously in question. First the bugbear breaks in and now a goblin female."

"I think I saw her at the wall," said Ryth-Shan. "She turned into a spider and tried to climb in. She was taken down by that Tiefling, Elegis. Shall we see what they're up to?"

Lae'zel shrugged. "I suppose. Perhaps the goblin will reveal to us some useful information if we question her."

"Sounds like a plan," said Ryth-Shan, and the two made their way towards the open door.

Meanwhile, Kaedyn and the others bounced around from one merchant to the other to sell all their wares and buy better equipment. They sold the excess armor they'd picked up, the Silver Locket with Papa inscribed on it, the Scroll of Animal Friendship, since Ryth-Shan handled all conversations with animals, the Fire Bolt scroll, since that was a cantrip and Gale already knew it, the extra non-magical weapons such as longswords, crossbows, etc., and all of the silverware, plates, etc.

In return, they bought Astarion a set of Thieves Tools that Arron had in his inventory. Apparently, some adventurers sold the set to him. They then had enough to buy something called "The Blooded Greataxe." Dammon, who sold it, explained, "It is stained brown and reeks of iron. This greataxe once belonged to a killer so deranged, his name was magically scrubbed from all histories. It has a special ability called 'Relentless Revenge.' Basically, when the wielder is at a point where the axe determines that he or she is at about 50% of their health, they will suddenly begin to deal extra damage to their foes."

Indeed, if Vexir's HP dropped to 50% of her maximum health, she'd begin to deal an extra 1d6 damage to her enemies. "This is good," said Kaedyn as he teased her. "You're always running up and getting knocked around. We might as well at least benefit from it."

She gave him a pretend dirty look. "Very funny," she replied. Their relationship went up to 63.

After that, they sold the remainder of their magic scrolls, except for the Revivify scrolls, and some sort of strange gauntlets that they picked up off of the Goblin Captain at the gate. Gale used Identify to inform them that the gauntlets were attuned to some goddess named 'The Absolute,' the same name that the captain had called out to during the fight. Only if someone had the mark of the Absolute branded on them could they use the gauntlets without being cursed. So they chose to sell them for coin so they could afford a Disarm Trap kit, two shortswords for Astarion, and another magic item that fit their needs much more; a magic handaxe called Dragon's Grasp. If the wielder hit with it, the target would be set on fire; with exceptions. Kaedyn equipped this weapon.

"Well," said Astarion. "At least the important people got new stuff."

Gale laughed. "It makes sense. The two of them are our melee people. It's better for them to be well-equipped first. The longer they stay alive, the more we can pummel our enemies from a distance."

"Agreed," said Shadowheart. "Hey. Where did our Gith companions go?"

"Hmmm," said Vexir in reply. She hadn't even noticed that they weren't with them. "Perhaps we should try to find them before we do anything further."

"I can tell you where they went," said a patrolling Tiefling. "I saw them talk to Zorru down by the storeroom." She pointed down the northern path past where some children were doing some basic combat training exercises. "Then they went into the prison area. Not sure why. All that's in there is some caged goblin female."

"Caged goblin female?" said Vexir. "Where did she come from?"

"Elegis, at the wall, caught her trying to sneak in during the fight," replied the patrol woman.

"I wonder if she can tell us anything about this Absolute," said Vexir to the others. "Maybe that's what Ryth-Shan and Lae'zel were thinking. We should meet back up with them and find out." Everyone agreed, and they set out at once along the northern path.

Chapter 4 - Where There's a Wyll, There's a Way

The party made their way down the path only a short ways before they encountered some private conversation between three Tiefling adventurers. They were obviously not members of the refugees for they were arguing about whether they should remain and help them or not. Kaedyn took a quick pitstop and helped mediate between them, convincing them to stay and help. It was annoying to the party, and once again everyone but Gale was unhappy about Kaedyn's constant need to help people. Vexir, Shadowheart and Astarion's relationship went down by 1 while Gale's went up by 1.

Next, they came upon the children working through combat training exercises. An adult Tiefling male was helping to guide them, as was the man known as "The Blade of Frontiers." As they started to make their way past, they heard the human man say to one of the children, "Go on, Umi. Give me your best shot."

The Tiefling boy called Umi took a lunge at him, and the Blade of Frontiers blocked the blow easily. Then he swatted the boy on the backside with the flat of his rapier. "Gah!" Umi growled.

The Blade laughed a little. "Not bad. Again. Keep focus. See how I used your own force against you?"

Umi was dejected. "I can't do it," he whined while shuffling his feet."

The Blade remained positive and confident. "Of course you can. It just takes time. I didn't become the Blade of Frontiers overnight."

Then, much to everyone's surprise, the man's smile bent downward, and his thoughts became the thoughts of everyone in the party. An unknown face commanded their minds; blue skin, gnarled horns.

The moment passed. Vexir looked up at him, making eye contact. "He is infected," she said with a mixture of frustration and surprise.

The Blade looked at each of them in shock. "I'll be damned to the Hells. You were on the ship." Then another strange sensation coursed through them. It was the first time that, during a connection of the minds, that their thoughts were joined, the bond ended, and then it was reestablished. Somehow, in a moment, they knew that his real name was Wyll, and his mind unfolded before them. His secrets became half-revealed.

Vexir pressed him. "I saw a creature in your thoughts. A devil? A demon?"

Wyll was clearly uncomfortable about this. He noticed Umi was looking back and forth between them with an overly curious look on his face. He decided to end his training session with the boy immediately so he could deal with this new problem. "Keep at it, kid," he said, and he patted the boy on the head as he left him to join the party on the path.

"A demon?" said Wyll with a loud voice. He was pretending to be his usual, positive, charismatic self for everyone nearby to hear. "Sounds like that brain-bug's really wormed its way in."

Then, when he was beyond earshot of the Tieflings, he said in much quieter tones, "Let's try to keep this amongst ourselves, shall we? He glanced back to make sure no one was still listening. Then he said to them, "We've all got parasites tickling our gray matter. And I've been having the strangest dreams. Haven't turned into a Mind Flayer just yet, but sooner or later, my luck'll run out. Been thinking I need a healer, and I reckon you've been thinking the same."

Kaedyn nodded. "I hoped someone in the grove might know how to heal us."

Wyll shrugged. "I've been waiting for this druid Halsin to return. They say he's pretty powerful. He could probably help us. Problem is, the goblins've nabbed him. We'd better go find him before we start growing talons and tentacles."

Kaedyn glanced at the others. "We could look for Halsin together," he suggested to them all.

The others seemed skeptical, but Wyll jumped all over the plan. "Excellent idea, but I have a condition."

Vexir eyed him warily. "Go on," she said. She wasn't at all sure she approved of having him as a part of their party, but she was open to it at least.

Wyll seemed relieved that they didn't shoot him down immediately. "Look at these kids," he said, gesturing behind him with deep, heartfelt sympathy. "They've no chance on the road; not while goblins infest it. I've got the grandest of plans. You and me, we kill the goblin horde's leaders. That should scatter the buggers. Frontier justice, I call that. What say you?"

Kaedyn then looked at the others to see what they were thinking. Seeing the looks of uncertainty on their faces, he said, "Isn't it better if everyone who has been afflicted by this are working together to try to find a cure? Alone, we may resist. But together, we can overcome."

Vexir couldn't argue with him on that. She sighed. "What's one more?" she said at last. "Fine. I'm on board. Let's clear the road for the Tieflings." Her relationship with Wyll went up to 52.

Shadowheart shrugged. "The more, the merrier. Right?"

"Well," said Astarion. "I suppose as long as he's okay with what I am, I'm fine with it."

Wyll looked at him curiously. "Are you something more than an elf?"

Astarion's devious grin sent a shiver down Wyll's spine. "Indeed, My Dear." Then, in low tones, he whispered, "I'm an anomaly, you see. So, how serious are you in regards to joining our happy band? Are you willing to join no matter what I am?"

Wyll seemed uncertain now. Then he looked at Kaedyn who seemed uncertain as well. Kaedyn wasn't at all confident that Wyll would be okay with what Astarion was. "Well, I suppose that if the rest of this group is okay with it," Wyll said at last, "then it can't be too bad. There's quite a mixed bag here, after all."

Astarion laughed. "Ah. Well. Yes. I suppose we'll find out." He then drew close to Wyll and spoke in a tone that Wyll barely heard. "I'm a vampire spawn."

Wyll was taken aback. "You're a what?"

"You heard me, Darling. I probably shouldn't repeat it," said Astarion. "As you can see, though, the brain-bug, as you called it, has made quite a few changes to me. So, I'm able to walk around by day without issue... among other things."

"He's free from his master," Kaedyn added. "We're going to try to figure out a way to help him find a cure to the parasite and still be free from his vampirism."

"Or, at the very least, free from my master," said Astarion.

Wyll shook his head. "I must say, I was thinking of many things that you could possibly be, but that never remotely crossed my mind." Then, after only a moment of thought, he said, "Well, I can't help but agree with this guy." He gestured at Kaedyn. "'Alone, you may resist. But together, you can overcome.' Sounds like something a hero would say." He grinned at Kaedyn. "Count me in. Here's to the Afflicted." He slapped his right fist into his left shoulder as if in salute. After all Kaedyn did to assist him in joining the group, Wyll's relationship with him was 55.

"The Afflicted," said Kaedyn with a laugh. Wyll was so positive, he couldn't help but feel better just by being in the man's presence. It was nice to have someone around who he felt comfortable with. Gale was the closest person who seemed to have similar ideals and morals, but Wyll seemed to be closer still. "Seems appropriate. From now on, we shall be known as 'the Afflicted.'"

Vexir rolled her eyes. "So can we get moving now? Who knows what the Gith have done on their own."

With that, the group continued on their way towards the prison. Before, anything else happened, however, the DM allowed them to level up Wyll. To determine HP, they rolled a 3+2=5, so his total HP went from 10 to 15 at Level 2. They then got to choose one of the Eldritch Invocations from the Warlock list. They chose Agonizing Blast and Repelling Blast. At Level 2, he could choose up to 3 Level 1 spells from the warlock list and 2 cantrips. They chose Booming Blade and Eldritch Blast as his cantrips and Hellish Rebuke, Hex and Cause Fear as his Level 1 spells.

For Level 3, his HP increased by 6 to 21. Since Wyll was known as the Blade of Frontiers, the DM determined that he had to choose the Pact of the Blade. There was no other option available, like with most Warlocks. The DM locked that option in.

This allowed him to use an Action to create a pact weapon in his empty hand. He could choose the form that this melee weapon would take each time he created it. He was proficient with it while he wielded it. This weapon counted as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to non-magical attacks and damage. His pact weapon disappeared if it was more than 5 feet away from him for 1 minute or more. It also disappeared if he used the feature again, if he dismissed the weapon (no action required), or if he died.

This was how he, being a Warlock, was able to use a rapier, which a Warlock was not normally proficient with. It was not a genuine rapier but a pact weapon that he had conjured, giving him proficiency at it. His rapier was thus also considered a magical weapon.

He could transform one magic weapon into his pact weapon by performing a special ritual while he held the weapon. He performed the ritual over the course of 1 hour, which could be done during a short rest. He could then dismiss the weapon, shunting it into an extra-dimensional space, and it could appear whenever he created his pact weapon thereafter. He couldn't affect an artifact or a sentient weapon in this way. The weapon ceased being his pact weapon if he died, if he performed the 1-hour ritual on a different weapon, or if he used a 1-hour ritual to break his bond to it. The weapon appeared at his feet if it was in the extra-dimensional space when the bond was broken.

He then received another spell pick for being at Level 3. However, the DM determined that Wyll already knew Misty Step, which was how he teleported from the wall down to the ground during the fight at the gate. Therefore, this spell was already locked in and they couldn't pick it or change it.

As for a spell focus, little did any of the party know, but Wyll's false eye was his spell focus. Thus, he didn't need to hold one or any such thing.

Wyll contributed 25 GP to the party's overall GP. Thus, the party had 30 total Gold Pieces after Wyll joined them.

End of Chapter 4

Decided to go a different format with this. Just kinda hit me. Lol. This method isn't the best I could use.

So, moving forward, going to use Google Docks and update the document regularly when I finish a new chapter. That way, we can save the forum here for comments back and forth about the story and BG3.

Here is the link. I'm going to try to make sure I post it regularly whenever I respond to comments so that individuals reading the post for the first time can receive the link without hunting for it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RSMY91OV1fwnWJk0QtqQ4irYhELyHFBr/view?usp=sharing

Let me know if this link doesn't work. Thanks.

the link does indeed work for me. Good luck with your writing!

Thanks for letting me know. I'm hoping this will make it easier for everyone to read and enjoy.

Latest update added to the Afflicted story. Chapters 8 and 9 now available. I also cleaned up the document providing a table of contents so you can more easily maneuver. Hope you enjoy it!

Conflict has split the party into two. Some relationships are growing stronger. Others are beginning to fall apart as more and more secrets are revealed.

These two chapters include the Owlbear and Scratch the dog... RIP Gomwick! Poor Scratch.

Please follow the link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RSMY91OV1fwnWJk0QtqQ4irYhELyHFBr/view?usp=sharing

NOOOO, the legendary white sheet with black text! *hisses* My eyes q _ q


Anyways, thanks for the update <3 This goes perfect this chilly morning with some hot chocolate!

lol. I know what you mean. I jist figured might be easier for most. These forum posts were getting pretty lengthy at times.

I'm most nervous about the Scratch scene. Scratch is a beloved character now in the game. So I don't want people disappointed with how I'm portraying him and his introductory scene.

The feels during the Scratch meeting. q _ q I am glad I finished my hot chocolate before getting there. Either way - masterfully portrayed! I got such a DOS2 feeling from the conversation (when you speak to the source-dog that lost it's master). "Master? Never ever?"

Scratch's adorable personality shined through well Just one note - I feel like I should point out that Scratch makes it a point ingame that his dead master was "not my master, he was a friend"... Not that I think that your take on it changed anything remarkably - quite the opposite. It felt even more heart-breaking than ingame, imo. :'[

The most intriguing part was probably hearing your take on SH's feelings on Selunê and Shar. Well done!

Sigh of relief!

😁

Thanks for the response. Very encouraging.

Maybe I'll reread the Scratch part. I might have to tweak the Master thing. I really like Scratch, so... he's worth the tweak. 😌

Ah. Yes. After the reread, I definitely see what you meant by the use of "master" in too many places. I even have him now point out that Ryth-Shan keeps calling him his master, but he was his best friend. Thanks for pointing it out.

Happy to help! <3 It was a great read anyways! Looking forward to next part c:

Chapters 10 and 11 now available. WOW! I'm almost at 300 pages and still nowhere near finished with EA. Seriously. This game has SO much content.

Here's the link, in case you need it: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RSMY91OV1fwnWJk0QtqQ4irYhELyHFBr/view?usp=sharing

Oh, I was about to throw a fit about Scratch...

But you fixed it. :] No harm done!

lol. That was the way the dice played it out. I said to myself, "Nope. He's a member of the party. In this story, I'm the DM."

My friends and I have a saying from our gaming sessions way back in a day. We used to play Star Wars RPG all the time, and during one of our sessions my friends were determined to not go in the direction I wanted them to... so I had this space anomaly slam into their ship and force them to crash to the planet I wanted them to go to. They were like, "What the heck! Wait. Were you going to make us go to the planet regardless?" I admitted I was. The story I had made for them required it. I had nothing prepared if they didn't go there.

Then one of my friends laughed and said, "If I gotta crash your starship into the planet to get you to go there, then that's what I'm a-gonna do!"

And that became a running gag forevermore. Any time something similar would happen, they would ask, "Is this one of those situations where you're going to crash our starship into the planet no matter what?"

The same was true with this scenario and Scratch. I didn't care how the dice rolled. One way or another, Scratch would be okay... even if I had to crash a starship into the planet to somehow make that happen.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1RSMY91OV1fwnWJk0QtqQ4irYhELyHFBr/view?usp=sharing

Chapters 12 and 13 now available.