Arc 2: Opening Chapter 1, Part 3: Rural Necromantic Country

Two old farming roads intersect at a small forest. Someone watching from far above would see that those roads are part of a network that divides the entire country with mathematical precision into squares. The other three quarters at this specific intersection are fields of wheat - one of it lies fallow but the other two are currently worked on.

The workers are a mix of shabby looking peasants, even more shabby looking zombies and a few skeletons. The living half of the workers all look exhausted and out of any hope, tilling the fields almost as mechanical as the zombies do. In some cases a watcher could even see a family resemblance between a serf and a zombie.

Suddenly the ground at the edge of the fallow field begins to waver. An old stone hut like the ones used to store field equipment rises from the ground. It has no windows or openings other than an old wooden grille. However there is no one left around to see that the inside was massive stone before magic symbols appear that create a magic gate - any living serf bolted at the first sign of something magic happening. Only the skeletons and zombies remain to till the fields.

The first silver foxes that try to speed out as scouts stumble against the grille and are blocked for a minute until a lizardwoman reaches above them to undo the latch and open the grille. After a bit more stumbling a dozen silverfoxes speed out to guard while five Lizardpeople and another dozen silver foxes look around the hut and the crossway.

The Lizardwoman looks around. She was of the pair created for the meeting and had two new pairs of Lizardpeople spawned to help her. "OK, easy pickings first - let's try to capture one of the skeletons and one of the zombies and get a good sample of the wheat. It doesn't look as if the control of those undead allows fighting."

Slowly they circle around one of the zombies with ropes to capture it. It takes them several minutes more than expected because the zombie and the skeleton have strength enhancing magic, but as assumed they do not resist actively other than trying to continue working. "Let's bring them back at once, no need to risk them breaking through their ropes."

Half an hour later they return to the fields, only to be attacked by a group of different skeletons.

Combat Initiated

Apprentice Necromancer "Timothy Kalten", Skeleton A, Skeleton B, Skeleton C and Skeleton D

vs.

Lizardwoman A, Lizardwoman B, Lizardwoman C, Lizardman A, Lizardman B, Silver Fox A,

Silver Fox B, Silver Fox C, Silver Fox D, Silver Fox E, Silver Fox F, Silver Fox G, Silver Fox H,

Silver Fox I, Silver Fox J, Silver Fox K, Silver Fox L Spoiler: Combat: Long Description

Suddenly a sword slashes through the air, almost completely bisecting one of the silver foxes. Four skeletons have launched a surprise attack at the lizards and silver foxes when they leave the dungeon again. Where did they come from? None of the guard foxes gave an alarm. In the background they could see a single human in simple but good clothing yelling commands at the skeletons.

Combat quickly devolved into four different melees as the necromancer didn't make any try to coordinate the skeletons together, but yelled commands to them singly and redirecting them to targets he sees as an opportunity - which isn't always correct.

Melee one is the one with the most advantage to the Lizards - or so it seems. Two lizardpeople and two foxes fight against a single skeleton. The other groups only have one lizard each with two silver foxes (or in one case three foxes) against their skeletons.

Unfortunately the two young lizardmen spawn let that number get to their minds and try to attack with a confidence that is not warranted agains the skeleton - who might be of the same [Limited] Rank as they were, but level four to their level one. One of the lizardmen doesn't see the skeleton's sword move and impales itself on it, but this also blocks the skeletons weapon and let's the two foxes get in their bites.

Melee group two is the lizardwoman who led the group together with three of the foxes. She suddenly realises that the bites of the silver foxes somehow causes sparks and do a lot more damage than her own flailing with a quarterstaff. She decides to let the foxes take her skeleton and falls back out of combat to try and sneak up to the necromancer who is completely unopposed as all lizards and foxes are occupied with handling the four skeletons.

Group three has swarmed their target a bit more carefull than the overconfident first group. As a result they all have been nicked by the sword several times, but no one is really disabled and the skeleton also has received several hits, with one fox even tearing off his non-weapon arm.

Group four had the skeleton concentrating on a silver fox which is now dead, but gave the other fox and the lizardwoman a good opportunity to hit it - unfortunately without killing it.

Back to group one it has used the time when the skeleton's sword was blocked by their comrade's corpse to get several attack in, almost killing the skeleton - until a magic wave from behind revitalizes the magic animating it. The magic wave removes all damage they had already caused in the two minutes of combat.

Luckily the necromancer really doesn't have any tactical education and had not realised either that the foxes were a larger threat to the skeletons than the lizards. He mostly ignored group two while casting his spell toward the skeleton of group one. This allowed the three foxes of group two to tear their skeleton completely apart, although it does cost them one of their number. The two survivors split to help two other groups.

Group three continues its carefull attacks on their skeleton and manage to wear it down even farther, but the skeleton gets in a good hit against one of the foxes that dies.

Group four only consists of one lizard and one fox and is much more carefull now after loosing the other fox in the first minute of combat, but their skeleton is also halfway down in its power. They slowly continue to damage it more with carefull attacks.

The lizard's leader in the meantime vanished into the wheat and tries to run behind the necromancer without him noticing the movement in the fields - it surely helps that the weapon clashes of the combat masks all other sound of her running.

The revitalization was a bad surprise for the first group -- a surprise that cost another fox its life. However the tables turn again when suddenly one of the foxes from group two jumps into the back of the first skeleton.

Group three also manages to destroy their skeleton, turning toward the skeleton of the fourth group just in time to prevent the skeleton from killing the Lizardwoman fighting for her life there. The second fox is also already dead, but the skeleton had to pay for that part of the fight with half of its left leg missing, greatly removing its movability and combat value.

During that time Timothy Kalten was preparing another reconstruction spell to heal the almost dead undead fighting the now increased fourth group, but that has distracted him enough that he failed to see the Lizardwoman jumping him from the nearby fields, making his spell a failure.

There are now two of the original melees remaining with a new one added against the necromancer Kalten. Group one consisting of one lizard and two foxes hold their own against the first skeleton that is again a bit down even after the revitalization two minutes ago. Group two consisting of two lizardwomen and a silver fox finally manages to kill their skeleton as well.

The other fox from group two has joind their leader in the assault on the necromancer, which goes well due to the complete lack of military training in the apprentice.

In the last minute the first skeleton manages to cleave one of the two foxes attacking it in half before collapsing to the attacks, and the necromancer is also killed when the remains of group three and four jump in to help their leader.

Victory Result

All surviving Lizardpeople and Silver Foxes receive Fame +15 (reduces naming cost)

No XP gain as Spawn Core cannot handle XP

Enemy Equipment can now be taken as loot. Special Attention "Summoning Girdle [Very Low]"

"Damn" the Lizardwoman leader curses, holding her side. "Let's carry all corpses into the dungeon. The Guard foxes didn't return so he must have been from nearby and overlooked when they were running outward. You keep an additional watch here until we conferred with the dungeon on what to do, come as soon as you see anyone approaching."

Running through the first floors to the core room she yells a short report to the General "Encountered an apprentice necromancer and his skeletons, no one else around and we were victorious at a high cost. One Lizardman left to guard and watch as well as all original guard foxes. On my way to the core room so that you can tell me what to do next"

Until she gets to his room the General already considered his options and had recalled one of the Naga woman to heal the wounded lizards.

"Well, since the guard you left hasn't come back I assume this was a travelling apprentice accidentally in the area. Please return to gathering, but be extra careful and have the naga I recalled to the first floor heal the wound on your side as well."

"The equipment you gained from the necromancer is certainly interesting, although I doubt that I'll have much use for it. Call it old-fashioned if you want, but I have an aversion to using undead due to where I come from."

"Please get back and check what you can gather in the forest as well as some larger farming equipment. I don't know if I ever need that, but it might give me some other materials. And don't forget to stop by the naga waiting for you on the first floor, so that her milk can heal that wound."

The much smaller group of lizards and snow foxes return to continue gathering from Kaarg. After a few more hours they get the message

[Ping]

You have a new Quest Abort Gathering - Return to Dungeon

Details A Paut'a has almost captured a Silver Fox Guard, and the elves are approaching the entrance in force. You have 20 Minutes to return

Hints I think the elves will take a few minutes to prepare for entering, but don't waste the countdown.

Rewards Fame +1 (reduces naming cost)

No XP gain as Spawn Core cannot handle XP

...

For the last twenty minutes the General watches his spawns return through the magic portals to the first floor. Strangely the spawns to the Dverolion mountains returned in two teams of three each instead of two teams of five, and gunny wasn't among them. And since he couldn't speak to anyone else directly he had to watch them carrying their spoils down into the dungeon and wait until they reach the core rooms.

It's a very bad limitation that I can't speak to anyone without a contract directly, and it doesn't help that both team leaders from the entrance the system called Blackmoss are new spawn that don't know to give a report while working on carrying everything down. It looks as if they have a lot of damaged cores however, wonder where they got them. I really have to look for a way around the communication problem.

Half an hour later all leaders are in the core room and touching the node to communicate.

"So when you entered that abandoned mine called Blackmoss Gunny saw something that caused him to split teams and ordered you to be very careful to get everything from the settlement. And you have absolutely no idea what that was? Where did you get those skeletons and damaged cores?"

"No, he didn't explain anything. The cores, bones and moss were in bags at the main entrance to the settlement when I first returned with my new team - Gunny must have send someone with them out. He also told me to look for any remains of documentation and to remember the settlement layout, but I didn't find anything written. You can check my memories to get the layout, core."

The General checks those memories and muses "That doesn't look like a mining settlement, but again I have no idea what Gunny saw and can't guess just now what it really was. And I expect the elves to storm the first floor anytime now, so I can't send someone to look for gunny. That's a bad situation."

...

Two hours since the alert and still no Gunny. But no Elves either, what are they doing? It's getting dark - they might not see a tiny black water elemental looking out of the dungeon. Let's send one to scout.

So they're camping and guarding? It appears they will wait to enter tomorrow.

[Create new quest for Gunny]

Meet Rescue Group and Return

Details The Elves are making a camp, I don't think they'll enter until tomorrow dawn.

The same goes for the ship at Rivansea and we haven't seen any reaction from Bremarin or the Kaarg City Hope of Freedom either.

I'm assuming you had a cave-in in the mine and sending a rescue expedition with tools to dig you out.

Countdown [06:00:00] Six hours to return

"OK, since the elves are camping for the night and the ship from Rivansea will not travel at night either, we might have another six hours to gather something from Rivansea and Kaarg and look for Gunny. What do you think about Kaarg and Rivansea? Would a return to gathering bring anything more there?"

One of the naga leaders speaks first "I think yes, the underwater flora is very diverse there and we probably got only half the available plants sampled. Most of them are probably useless, but each plant is another chance to find a valuable herb. A few more fishes would also help, especially since you said that you had bad luck with gaining templates from the ones we brought."

"I got the crab and one fish usable for food, but I agree that this might help. What about Kaarg?"

"I don't think so - not unless you want more undead. Even the forest wasn't natural growth but carefully seeded with only what they need to grow, so we already got samples from everything that is available there."

"So four naga are to return to Rivansea - I'll need one healer for the rescue group to Blackmoss. From the ten Lizardpeople I need one to wait here in the core in case of communication needs and one as a pair of hands on the first floor if anything happens. That leaves eight to go look for Gunny. Take every tool you might need with you, and if you need anything from the templates I gained from the equipment both at Kaarg and at Blackmoss, just say so."

"Half a dozen silver foxes each to Kaarg and the empire to look for their adventurers approaching, and a few as messengers ready for the rescue group. I'll keep a hidden water elemental to alert me as soon as the elves prepare for entering or the ship from Rivansea leaves, but that might be a very short countdown. Try to get back quickly if I send another return quest, and if you find the first floor already occupied then abandon all loot as a diversion to get past them down the dungeon floors. Hurry everyone."

...

Three very tense hours later a silver fox with a parchment scroll roped onto his body comes through the portal from Blackmoss. The Lizardman on the first floor takes the scroll and reads it to the General.

"On the way back, but will need three or four hours to carry the loot. Blackmoss was NOT an abandoned mine, but a dead five-floor dungeon using a mine environment. Now it's not only dead but retracted and collapsing, but the loot includes a broken dungeon core, a broken node with the remains of a floor crystal and a lot of other things. Gunny"