Previously on 24...

[jbkilroy]

Due to the sometimes considerable delays we have between sessions, I've decided to create this thread to help everyone (including me) keep track of what has happened so far.

Please limit feedback to the Pathfinder thread or the 'new game' thread to help keep this one clean; thanks.

April 12

Present:

Steve as Flynn the LN Human Male Rogue
Jay as Raxxus the NG Dwarf Male Cleric
Tom as As(s)htar the CG Human Male Ranger
Billy as Ragar the CN Half-Orc Male Barbarian
Josh as (hmm... don't seem to have written that name down) the NG Elf Male Wizard (Conjurer)

Their heroic exploits this week included

-meeting their primary contact, Lt Gilder (Half-Elf) in response to a call put our for heroic personages to defend the national of Lastwall outside of the traditional military sphere
-were introduced to the leading military council of Lastwall consisting of Commander Shynderol (venerable Elf Male), Cmdr Tinder (Halfling Female), Cmdr Feldrek (Half-Elf Male, and Gilder's father), Cmdr Rusk (Middle-aged Human Male) and Supreme Cmdr Torii (Human Female).  Despite significant doubts in the parties abilities, particularly from Feldrek and Rusk, the PCs (naming themselves 'Far Company') were accepted and given their first mission to scout out supposed border crossing hostiles from the neighboring Orc Kingdom of Belkzen.  This was a CR3 encounter.
-Billy, Steve and Josh went to the local general store to buy rations and a waterskin and met the shopkeeper Atlee and her younger sister Gintel (both Human Females)
-Meanwhile Tom and Jay headed straight for 'The Cracked Tankard', the local inn where they awaited the others while sharing drinks.  Once everyone was together great food and less-than great wine were had and Tom's romantic moves were buzzkilled by the owner, Kelfeshne (Gnome Male).
-The next morning after breakfast Tom went alone to the general store to get rations, meeting Atlee there.
-Several hours out of town, while following a map of the region provided by Gilder, Far Company ran into a group of 4 goblins and 2 orcs.  A well-fought victory followed.  This was a CR2 encounter.

*The overall military commander and diplomatic leader of Lastwall is a Human Male named Ulthun II; his title is the 'Watcher-Lord'.  The party did not meet him, but any resident or visitor to Lastwall would know this so I figured I'd stick the info here.

[jbkilroy]

April 26

Present:

Steve as Flynn the LN Human Male Rogue
Jay as Raxxus the NG Dwarf Male Cleric
Tom as Ashtar the CG Human Male Ranger
Billy as Ragar the CN Half-Orc Male Barbarian
Josh as Maerlas (formerly known as the wizard without a name) the NG Elf Male Wizard (Conjurer)

Wacky hijnks included:

-Our merry band continued north in a search for Orc invaders
-They were set upon by a raiding party of orcs, goblins and goblin dogs
-During the fight they managed to rescue a civilian being held hostage along with her family, despite Ragar falling flat on his ass trying to knock them down (CR3) (could have also won 10000 gp if submitted to Lastwall's Funniest Home Videos but alas nobody had their camera out)
-From the captives they heard of an old mine nearby that seemed a likely place to search
-Spent the night at a local farm that was... mysteriously deserted!! *ominous chord*
-Arrived at the mine enterance where they were set upon by more goblins and goblin dogs (CR3) and talked down to (literally) by an orc who withdrew inside the mine
-After entering the mine were beset upon by a boar set to guard against intruders who gave up and died of a heart attack before our brave heroes could finish it off (CR2)

Hopefully during the next game I'll be able to introduce some named antagonists.

[jbkilroy]

May 10

Present:

Steve as Flynn the LN Human Male Rogue
Jay as Raxxus the NG Dwarf Male Cleric
Tom as Ashtar the CG Human Male Ranger
Josh as Maerlas (formerly known as the wizard without a name) the NG Elf Male Wizard (Conjurer)

Our lovable vagabonds:

-Encountered a trove of random foodstuffs
-Saw something shiny half-buried in some rubble but somehow resisted the temptation to unearth the shinies
-Found a goblin den where 3 goblins and 1 goblin dog were dispatched but not before Jay's character was mauled to unconsciousness by the dog
-After some potion-aided healing, and an amusing almost-union between Steve and a pit trap, you fought an orc and a pair of orc zombies, which were dispatched after a prolonged struggle that saw Steve KOd by an orc's critical hit
-Some more healing later a weird altar was found, along with some human captives whom the party stashed in a previously cleared part of the mine (somebody please remind me to award XP for this, because the altar should have counted as a magic trap effect and I forgot to include it)
-The session ended with Steve discovering the orc leader who seemed rather sad.  Rather than ask him how his day was, Steve is about to sneak attack him with his crossbow.

[jbkilroy]

May 24

Everyone present

A CR3 XP award was given for the shrine from the previous session. 
The orc leader and a skeleton champion were defeated, but a rather... stressed magic user escaped into the fog, leaving only a locked door dead dwarf behind after the fog cleared.   CR4
Searching for a key to the next level, Far Company ran into a goblin 'ambush' that didn't go very well (for the goblins). CR1
In a mine cart repair room, the party came across a dead halfling with the key, as well as a dire bat that Billy managed to kill in one crit. CR2 They received a journal in halfling, but unfortunately nobody could read it.   
Sadly Jay had to leave at this point.
The party left the mine with the survivors rescued last session, but found the local farmhouse to be on fire with everyone gone.
Having gained enough XP to gain a level, everyone advanced their characters as the PCs rested for the night.
The next morning, they returned to the mine and descended to a lower level.
At the bottom of the stairs another skeletal champion was defeated. CR2

[jbkilroy]

June 7

Game called off due to insufficient number of players.

[jbkilroy]

June 21

All players present

-Explored a loungue inhabited by a ghoul and a gnome zombie.  Billy killed the ghoul in a single critical hit after being out for most of the fight from the ghoul's paralyze effect.
(Steve missed the whole thing because he was out getting ice cream at the time)
-Jay found an adjacent secret room when his dwarf-sense tingled.  An everburning torch, masterwork slippers (sneaking) and a magic necklace (later identified as giving +2 to saves vs fear effects)
-Explorered a large central chamber where zombies were practicing their attacks, led by a stronger human zombie.  During this fight, Billy was laid out by repeated slam attacks, but managed to survive.
-Found the kitchen, where the attempt by an intelligent undead to feign humanity was quickly unmasked by Josh firing his anti-undead beam attack at him without provocation.  After greasing the entrance to the room, the fight was won fairly easily.

[jbkilroy]

7/19

Jay was absent, but was there in spirit as his character adventured with the group.

-Steve disarmed a trap leading out of the kitchen.
-A shrine to Aroden was explored, where Tom finished a human zombie that had been disguised as a statue and had his bow blessed by a residue of Aroden's power.
-Looked at the E exit from the training room, but decided not to enter because it looked suspicious.
-Went through the E exit from the lounge, defeating a drowned undead and obtaining a magic spear.  It was during this fight that Tom noticed his bow now bypassed the DR of undead enemies.  Unforunately the rest of this passage was caved in and impassible.
-Returning to the suspicious passageway, it was realized that it was an illusionary level of water on top of a real level, realized when Tom, Jay and Josh fell into it.
-After defeating the trap, the party emerged into a lecture hall, where they were set upon by a pack of shadow creatures.  After beating them, they holed up in the room to rest for the night.
-Entering an expansive chamber with a large coffin, the party reunited with the 'eccentric' magic user who ran from the previous floor, who turned out to be a female human named Zinfeldren.  A long back-and-forth conversation began where Zin seemed to be unclear about who the party was or having fought them before, but was enraged when Tom mentioned something about farms.  During the fight, an enlarged skeleton wounded a prone Josh and laid low Jay's character (also managed to survive).  At a key point in the fight, Tom managed to confuse Zinfeldren, and the skeleton, by asking about ale.  Towards the end of the fight, Zin attempted to escape in a cloud of fog, but was run down by Billy and impaled using the magic spear, then she vanished in a flash of light.

[jbkilroy]

August 30
All players present

After clearing out the underground tomb, the party returned to the mine level to find that it had been cleaned out.  Outside the mine they encountered Theldrek, a talkative orc who claimed to have crossed into Lastwall to retrieve his brother.  Along the way they had also captured various civilians in the area to keep word of their presence from spreading, along with Lt Gilder who had gone to the area for unknown reasons.  Billy agreed to a wrestling match with Theldrek to free the captives from the orc patrol, and won their release with an impressive performance.

Returning to the capital, Gilder (who was evasive about his reasons for being there) became agitated after reading a journal the party found in the mine.  After some... encouragement, he revealed that he was seeking information about an adventuring group called the Dawn Striders, who had disappeared near there.  According to the journal, they had gone to investigate rumors of a traitor within Lastwall.  After finding the mine/tomb they had been defeated, and most of them were turned to zombies.

The party reported this information to the Lastwall defense council.  Upon hearing of the desecration of the tomb, the elderly elven wizard Shynderol immediately teleported away, taking the halfling Tinder along with him.  The party was told that he had a deep personal connection to the place and had probably gone to check it out personally.  Lt Gilder was taken out of the room to be debriefed by his father, Feldrek.  As supreme commander Torii was already in the field, this left commander Resk to ask the party about their histories and motivations; information he intends to check with unnamed 'sources'.

After this, a messenger burst into the room with a report that a remote border fortress was under attack.  Since regular army forces were unavailable, the party was asked to investigate.  Resk left to procure mounts.