Session 8 - The White Wolf Lodge
After the party was saved by ladies they thought where in distress, they moved on to the White Wolf Lodge. Fortunately one of the escape tunnels from Lady DeBlanc's School for Ladies led almost straight to the border between Bretonnia and the Empire and the White Wolf lodge building sitting atop it. Just as fortunate was the meeting with their comrade Drett. After shaking off his Estelian stomach flue he had decided to randomly search the party at this location.
The Blind Guardian
The group saw the lodge built next to the river Teufel. Two sides not shielded by the river where covered by the steep sides of the mountains and the only approach by land was guarded by a watch tower manned by an armored knight. On closer inspection the knight turned out to be blind. Unchallenged the party moved on and entered the lodge itself. They found the rest of the knights calmly eating breakfast. Asking about the blind watcher the other knights told the group that Ulric protects. Asked if they where willing to help defend Schluesselschloss the knights responded they had been guarding a wooden statue of Ulric in the lodge for four centuries, and they where nog planning to stop.
Alarm
As the group was talking an alarm sounded. Outside an army of orcs was passing by the lodge, invading Teufeltal from Bretonnia. A smaller group of orcs blocked the path to the lodge. From this group a hulking leader stepped forward en started challenging the group in a brutish orc voice with a French accent. The orc demanded a duel but the knights where not willing to lower themselves by dueling an orc. At that point they remembered Kylael had introduced himself as the baron to be. He was summarily pushed forward to do his job.
Duel
Kylael stepped forward and, instead of saluting the orc, drew his pistol and fired. The orc was hit in the arm. Other orcs immediately started cheering. Sneaky manoeuvres make honorable duels interesting. Meanwhile Micky the halfling started playing the most inspiring battle music ever. A group of orcs, playing ribcages and bone drums started playing against Micky. This turned into a second duel of sorts.
Sneaky Grots
Gorgor the dwarf had stayed behind in the loge building and found a black cloaked goblin sneaking around, trying to poison the mead. The dwarf killed the goblin and stepped outside to warn the others. Drett in the meantime checked and found there was a boat big enough to carry them all away down the river if needs be. Barnard was praying to Shallya. As usual the goddess completely ignored the priest.
An honorable orc
The orc tried its best, but couldn't land even a single blow on Kylael. After a few back and forths the bleeding ork admitted defeat. He pulled back and (to everyone's surprise) kept his word. Allowing the group and the knights time to load the statue of Ulric and their horses on the boat and leave. The entire group cast off and set course to Schluesselschloss.
Forgotten details
About halfway towards Schluesselschloss the group got off the boat to talk to Lowe the sheep farmer. As they got out, they had the nagging sense that they where forgetting something. As the boat floated off out of side they remembered what it was. The boat needed to pass trough Tallerhof and the last time they saw the place it was an armed camp, filled to the brim with orcs and goblins. Oops! Well, can't be helped now.
The stubborn farmer
Sheep farmer Lowe was quite willing to sell his flock to the castle. But he was not quite so willing to leave his farm. Despite the orcs and goblins closing in from all sides the farmer kept claiming he had not seen any near his farm. In the end it took a lot of convincing to get him to leave. The group had to agree that they would first go talk to some camping folk on the back of the farmeryard. Lowe wanted these 'fella's' to leave.
Camping folk?
Gorgor joined Lowe as a guard for the herd on its way to the castle. The rest of the group walked over to a copse of trees at the back of Lowe's farmyard. Smoke signalled a campfire. In this case it turned out the campfire was used by a group of ogres, led by captain Snarky Bellybreaker. The ogres took an instant liking to Micky the Halfling as he looked very tasty. Drett managed to negotiate with the ogres. In exchange for defending the castle they would be paid 10 gold crowns as a starting fee and 4 gold crows a day, split in half. The split in half part was added rather glibly and the ogres completely missed it.
Run from the creeps
The ogres closed in around the group and set them all off towards Schluesselschloss. Micky, feeling decidedly unsafe, saw a chance to slip in between the ogres and took off on the back of his dog. As the ogres looked after him in surprise Barnard started praying. Shallya seemed to be listening slightly this time as two ogres fell asleep. With this distraction Barnard saw his chance and took off. Kylael and Drett told the ogres they would get some water to splash on their sleeping companions. They set off towards the river and started running as soon as they where out of sight.
Back at Schluesselschloss (again)
Once again the group arrived back at Schluesselschloss this time leading a pack of sheep. A group of very angry and very wet knights of the White Wolf was assembled in the courtyard. They had been ambushed as they sailed into Tallerhof and had lost both their horses and their boat (and the statue of Ulric). Luckily for the group, they where summoned to attend a meeting in the baroness' chambers. Erik von Schluessel was advocating why he should be made baron immediately.
Session 9 - The New Baron
Erik was indeed advocating his ascension, seal and chain of office or no. Unluckily for him Kylael was actually in possession of both items as the group had found these in the ruins of the monastery. His mother, the baroness and her chief adviser Andreas von Averbach (secretly Kylael's father) where all to happy to confirm Kylael the oldest son and heir. To Erik's grief Schluesselschloss had a new baron: Kylael von Schluessel. His first decree was to fire Pansy the Halfling as captain of the guard. Replacing the cook with the infinitely more competent sergeant Martin.
The Waaagh arrives
There was little time to celebrate. As Kylael was being confirmed baron the brutal sound of orc warhorns sounded outside. The Waaagh had arrived at the castle. On one side of the river, the barbican side of Schluesselschloss, hosted a huge army led by a brute of an orc riding a wyvern. The ogres they had left earlier where spotted among these orcs. On the other side of the river the group spotted two familiar giants. From the wyvern army a goblin rode forth on Erik von Schluessel's warhorse. The one the group had left to run free whilst rescuing Otilla. The goblin carried a staff with large white underpants attached to signify parley. He offered the group their freedom if they left Schluesselschloss. The offer was rejected and a siege was underway.
Treason
Outside a group of trolls started dragging a battery of stone throwers in place. Inside the castle walls someone screamed. It turned out sergeant, now captain, Martin had been stabbed in the back. His corpse was found in the kitchens. A few minutes later madame LeBlanc stepped out of the keep holding a bloody dagger. She had found it in Micky the Halflings packs. As she was a know halfling-hater no one believed madame LeBlanc, A thorough search by the group turned up a bloody trail leading straight to seneschal Reinhart's quarters.
The mad seneschal
Baron Kylael had seneschal Reinhart arrested and held court in the castle's courtyard. Under pressure Reinhart started ranting that everything would be alright. The black orb had spoken. He just needed to go to Ubersreik and be confirmed baron. All thanks to the black orb. Kylael had heard enough and ordered the seneschal beheaded for treason and murder. The headless corpse was hung from the castle walls (from the ankles).
A hail of stones
As the seneschal's corpse was hung the orc stone throwers fired startling everyone in the castle. Silently the group watched the boulders fly at them, over them to hit the orc army on the other side of the river. Misfire! Everyone in the castle started laughing. This did not last as the orcs slowly but surely started to zero in on the castle walls.
Advanced canon repair classes
The group leaped into action. They needed a ranged weapon to get rid of the stone throwers. They found the dwarf engineers and asked if one of them could assist the blacksmith with his cannon repairs. The gold wizard Dieter von Heinz joined the dwarf to lend his own aid as well. Meanwhile the other dwarf told the group that there must be tunnels through the walls of the castle. He was quite sure Schluesselschloss had been build on top of another building which in turn was build on yet another building. Typical human work: sloppy and with no thought of lasting a few millennia.
Broken stone throwers
After a lot of quick work the smithy declared the cannon repaired. It was hoisted on top of the ramparts. From there dwarf engineer and gold wizard fired it at the stone throwers making short work of the entire battery with a few well aimed blasts. Unfortunately by then the eating hall and most of the barracks on Schluesselschloss had been destroyed.
Flying goblins
Night fell, but rest was far off. In the dark a group of goblins fired themselves from specialized catapults. These doom divers mostly managed to splat themselves against the walls of Schluesselschloss, but a few managed to land safely in the courtyard. These 'commando's' tried to open the castle gates. Luckily the group and some guard managed to stop and kill the infiltrators.
A bad night's rest
Kylael had other problems. Despite multiple warning not to wear the magic black and gold armor more then strictly necessary he had been walking around in it full time. Now as he wanted to go to bed, he found out he could not get it off. He was forced to sleep in his armor, dreaming of commanding his very own army of undead creatures.
The fireplace
The next morning Gorgor the dwarf searched Schluesselschloss top to bottom. She wanted to find the tunnels her fellow dwarves had mentioned. Finally she discovered the back of the fireplace was made of brick while the rest of the castle was made from different stone. She broke out the wall and discovered a tunnel. The entire group entered it. They followed its winding course, slowly descending into the depths of Schluesselschloss.
Count Otto III
At the end of the tunnel they found a golden sigil of Sigmar. A copper plate beneath it stated that behind that wall Otto III, count of Wissenald was resting in peace. The group applied crowbars to the wall to gain access to the tomb. On the other side, nestled between thousands of rat shaped skeletons, they found Otto III who was most definitely not resting in peace.
Vampire!
As Otto's teeth elongated to large fangs Kylael tried to jump forward only to discover his magic armor had seized up, freezing him in place. The count jumped at Gorgor, bit and gulped down a lot of blood. Then, with the rest of the party in a state of confusion, the vampire ran off down the tunnel...
Session 10 - Baroness in peril
As the vampire ran off, Kylael could move again. The group picked itself up and started after the vampire. Whilst running through the tunnels they started discussing vampire lore. Desperately trying to remember what killed these monsters. A lot of facts (almost all of them wrong) where remembered as they entered the baroness' quarters through the fireplace. They heard a loud scream from the bedroom. The door was locked and the group had to take its time bashing in the thick oaken door.
Where is Otto?
Inside the sleeping quarters they found the baroness, slightly pale and lying in bed. She told them everything was alright, please leave. Kylael felt his armor almost locking up again and silently left the room. Gorgor spotted two doors. She opened the first and found the toilet. The second door revealed a large walk-in closet. It contained a cape rack that was moving suspiciously. Gorgor charged it and found Otto hiding behind the capes. Dwarf and vampire started fighting and (surprising the GM) the dwarf actually beat the stuffing out of Otto III. The vampire disengaged and ran out of the room.
My leg!
Barnard stood at the door to the closet, ready to carry out Sigmar's will and kill the undead. Sigmar's will? Why yes, after praying for nine sessions straight and almost never succeeding the priest had found his true calling. He was no meek follower of the goddess of healing, but a champion of Sigmar. With the name of his newfound deity on his lips Barnard attacked, was hit by the vampire and slammed into the ground with a broken leg.
My finger!
Micky jumped into the fray, wielding the magic dagger given to him by Dieter von Heinz. The halfling struck and neatly sliced of one of Otto III's fingers. The vampire looked very upset at this turn of events. Micky was a bit worried. But on the ground the priest of Sigmar, broken leg or no, prayed to his deity. A holy fire spread from him engulfing the vampire and burning the unholy creature to ash. As the group looked up they discovered the vampire wasn't the only unholy creature in the room. The baroness had been burned to a cinder as well.
Meanwhile at the gate...
Kylael had left the room and was at the gate. A group of river trolls, aided by the giants, had taken down parts of the barbican. Luckily the steam tank and the knights of the White Wolf had held them off for a bit, but now both tank and knights where down. Only Kylael and his brother Erik remained, fighting off the last of the trolls. They had only just dispatched their final monster when a cry came from the back of the castle.
Of boats and floats
Kylael set off towards the rear balcony. The rest of the group got there as well. Otilla quite helpfully cast a regeneration spell on Barnard, healing his leg and restoring his health. Looking at the back of the castle the group saw black orcs pushing rafts into the water, making their way towards the castle (and mostly getting carried downstream by the current). Suddenly a large boat manned by goblins appeared. It was the ship the Knights of the White Wolf had lost at Tallerhof. The goblins where trying to maneuver the boat sideways so it could be used as a bridge by the rest of the army. Barnard would have none of it. He prayed to Sigmar and a large meteorite hit the ship, scattering bits of goblin over the side and sinking the vessel. Shortly after that the rest of the attack sizzled out.
The black orb
With the battle temporarily calmed Micky took a captured black orb out of his backpack. Where a sense of a dominant personality had greeted him before, this time the orb itself tried to exert its will on the halfling. Micky fought back and managed to win the contest of wills. Suddenly he was the dominant personality in the orb. He called and one after the other goblins started reporting. Micky ordered them to halt the waaagh and go home. The goblin's protested that they where set to blow the wall. Micky told them there was no need. In the end the goblins expressed relief that they needn't fight over the useless castle anymore. It was time to withdraw.
Peace in Teufeltal
It took less then ten minutes before large groups of orcs and goblins started retreating from the walls of Schluesselschloss. Some parts of the former army started fighting other parts and the big orc on its wyvern made a few more threatening sweeps over the castle. But in the end peace descended on the castle. A few hours later ships arrived carrying the relief forces from Ubersreik. Too late to help in the fighting but it didn't matter. Thanks to the party's efforts the Trouble in Teufeltal was over...for now.
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| Bye bye Teufeltal, see you again someday. |
GM's perspective
Okay I was a bit too distracted to post these updates as they happened, therefore ending with three play sessions in one way too large post. On the other hand its always a special moment to conclude a campaign. The group will be back to play a follow-up and all but Kylael and Micky will have recurring parts. These two players have decided they want to try a new character in the next story which we have already made. Right now I'm preparing a fresh story, this time completely my own work instead of building on a pre-made adventure. Now a few notes on conclusion of this story (the post is long enough, why not add to it.
Warhammer Fantasy 4th edition is fantastic
First off the new Warhammer Fantasy 4th system is absolutely lovely. I thoroughly enjoyed GM'ing it and my players had a lot of fun playing characters in the good old Old World. Combat is smooth, fun and dangerous. The advantage system really gives it an edge. The only thing that's still a bit difficult is retreating. When combat goes wrong it is neigh-on impossible for the losing side to get away in one piece. I've solved this for now by house ruling that a having a single point of advantage is enough to safely withdraw (instead of having more advantage then your opponent). This allows creatures to assess the situation (I-test) and then withdraw on a successful roll.
Switching gods halfway through the story?
During the course of the last few sessions the player with the priest of Shallya asked if it was possible to switch over to Sigmar. I think getting fun out of the game is more important then rules and background stuck together. As the GM's its my job to help players have fun (while keeping the story flowing) so we looked for a good in-game reason for the change. Then we found out that Shallya does not allow you to carry weapons. Oops missed that.... This priest had been wielding weapons since session one. That, combined with the fact that he missed almost every prayer roll since session one, gave us a perfect reason for an in-game switch. He had always been destined to actually follow Sigmar. After that it was a simple matter of an in-game dream, a quick change of one miracle on his character sheet and flipping his etiquette skill to Sigmar and he was good to go. Luckily for us he suddenly started rolling successes for his prayer after the switch which just added to the effect.
Vampire destroyed? There goes the follow-up
Running the siege in combination with the search for the vampire was a lot of hard work for me as GM. There were a lot of details to keep track of. Worth it as it was a lot of fun to confront the group with results from their decisions over the campaign; from stolen horses and lost boats on the one hand to directing the soldiers and knights they had recruited on the other. The fight with the vampire surprised me. I had expected Otto to soundly beat the group, stow away for a day and fly off as the main subject for a follow-up campaign later on. Instead the dwarf kept up her killing blows, forcing a critically wounded vampire to flee. Then the halfling cut the poor lord of the undead's finger off and the (newly made) priest of Sigmar cast his holy fire. It was to cool a conclusion to ignore and Otto III provided the fireworks to end the main story with a bang.
The orcs just left?
Another surprise was the ending of the Waaagh. I had planned the (un-)controlled demolition of Schluesselschloss over the course of one more day. I expected the players to cower in a crumbling keep as giant spiders, goblins, screaming black orcs, trolls, giants and an enormous warboss came at them. Only to have the cavalry show up in the nick of time (by boat to be sure). Micky the halfing, making a next to impossible will power roll threw that ending off. Especially after he also rolled well enough to convince the goblin advisers it was time to leave. On the one hand a bit anticlimactic but after the immolating vampire it was an interesting enough twist to go with.
The end?
My group will be leaving Teufeltal for now. Minus Baron Kylael, wearing cursed black armor of night and his loyal entertainer Micky the Halfling, master of the just as cursed black orbs. Hey its the Warhammer world, stay away from magic items if you want to stay sane! I strongly suspect the rest of my group will be called back to their home valley at a later date to save their families. Especially as the rather evil wizard Otilla Jager was already making overtures at the newly made baron. But that is for a later date, for now its time to write a fresh set of linked adventures for my group. To all who read with me, thanks for following, I'll probably will be back with more of these soon. Hopefully posted a bit more regularly.
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