So we wrangled a public holiday and a few ppl arrived same time to start this elaborate mini-campaign. All arrive in frozen north on a raft from the flooded south lands gone under a tsunami forever. Each had a loincloth and a random thing. Two elders Karan the Hunter (Fighter3) and Granny (Druid 3) accompany the two players. Hope to get more next game and at least 2 games this month and more if we like it. Special skills the players start with are the tribes technology. The elders saved them as youths and got them this far but most of the mongrel clan died on the way.
Dallas player made Boron the warrior a hunter who was raised to be a warrior executioner with a stone battle axe but he lost it on the trip. Such a weapon has never been seen by most and is to kill humans. He is also a hunter and animal handler who caught animals and fattened up their captured young. He only has a full sewn hide suit worth +1AC and a special d4 healing herb left.
Matt played a halfling named Buns as he knows secrets of grinding grain and making flour and yeast and baking. Also a herbalist, first aider, singer and preacher. He hopes to change class in the future to a bard. He is really good at throwing rocks and knows how to use a tomahawk but lost it. He also has a friend a former slave now a tribe member, named Bars. He knows how to spread seeds around camps and on trails and cultivate tubers. He has a staff and 3 darts. He used to get the grain that Buns made. Buns has named a portable meat stuffed bread snack after himself.
Landed on the beach and pulled apart raft to make a cliff lean-to shelter for granny. Boron climbed a cliff and tore off a gull head and stole six eggs and Buns killed a gull with rock making them all hide. Granny warned them not to eat too many or they would suffer. Boron, Buns and Bars went for a walk next day well-fed and found a bunch of edible kelp they took home and used some as part of their shelter. Kagan and Granny saw a dozen terrorbirds patrol the beach looking for edible flotsam and jetsam surmising they did this often. So while the young went exploring more in hills above the cliff could see the forest to the north, swamp to the west and a frozen-over inlet about a mile wide to the east. Went east and found a delicious fairy penguin colony and then found a tasty dead dolphin. Returning home all feasted and granny buried some whale blubber for a treat next year. Kargan had mad Boron a huge stone axe, not the best but it would kill.
The next trek they went to the swamp and Boron caught a crafty trilobite. On way back, a 4-meter wingspan eagle scratched Bars and knocked him out. Sawa walrus out at sea from hills. Buns drove him off with rocks. Found a cave but smelled burned food and feces so fled home. Heard screeching and flapping in the night but no idea what caused it.
Next, a trek into the new forest that they later learned elves planted only a few years ago and is growing every year. Found a cave with a stone table inside and a stone witch knife they left out of fear. Told Granny and Kargan back home and they wanted to see the cave. They had mostly gathered food and granny wove grass carry bags and mats for the shelter. There was some rope from raft left and firewood too. All packed what they could and headed for the table cave. Granny nudged the knife into a hole and buried it and was satisfied this cave was ok but might have seasonal visitors. Had found human and elf rock carvings but so far had seen neither. Spent time hunting and had a bad accident with a boar that Buns killed after it downed his brothers Boron and Bars. Tusks and leather and meat were good. Granny found some arrowheads but she didn't know what they were for. Found good food and creepy elf fetishes. Granny warned them all about dryads and was sure she had heard one singing in the woods one night. One phantom beast in the woods turned out to be a giant sloth which they knew to avoid and was fairly harmless if you kept away.
Visited the cave they fled before and got closer and aw tiny scaly footprints they realised were kobolds/ Buns sung a kobold welcome song and gave kobolds a penguin offering which they accepted. Swapped some flints for more food and all now had a good firestarter and didn't need to rely on granny's arson skills. Kobolds traded boar tusks for a flint axe head for Buns and a spearhead for Boron. Kobolds offered magic flint if the tribe would kill the huge eagle that could snatch two kobolds a swoop. Boys decided this probably kept kobolds manageable and claimed they were not up to this.
Finally got more food and found remains of big predator meal and found camp where something also shaved wood Boron kept for tinder. Exploring above forest against the imposing mountains they found a huge stone reptilian head with more buried underground. Once out with Kargan found a beast tracking them so they set an ambush. A savage battle with a dire wolf followed and Boron earned its heart and skin to make a wolf cloak and hat. Found a mountain trail and on one of two paths was an icy valley. Found a glacial cave with a strange evil horned face carved above it in ice. Exploring in dimly lit interior found a block of ice with meat and nuts and a wolf pelt, offerings by the looks. Went down a passage and attacked two sleeping white apes on a fur rug. Boron got great edea to skin them as marvelous fur winter suits for the mountains. Another room they found a shaman huffing hemp seed smoke and killed it too. They stole everything they could and fled home.
All the skins they had mad facing a mountain trek possible. Had stocked up on food and were ready to go through the mountain pass to the plateau tundra the kobolds spoke of beyond. Had grown from ordeal and become tougher than their soft southern land life had provided them. Their fur suits were ready and all was packed. Herbs were gathered, nuts and berries and dried meat were packed. Bunz made his hatchet and had improved his sneaking skills and got into throwing multiple rocks. Boron had his new spear and trained more with his huge awesome axe.
This time they took the other path but on way found a cavern enterance full of fungus and mushrooms and saw goblins around a fire so left. Found a new valley this one with huge hundred metre tall trees! The could see and hear distant dinosaurs and streams. Six handsome young men with spears confronted them. They were oiled with pine-scented unguents and seemed urgent. They demanded Boron and Bars come with them and the rest leave forever. Bunz pretended that he saw something fearsome and the fools turned to see. Bunz threw a rock in the leaders head and granny threw a burning pinecone that exploded injuring several in a cloud of smoke and sparks. The tribe all attacked and crushed the handsome youths and bound them all. Bunz saved one from blood loss. Bunz was impressed with this new trick of shouting "look over there!", then attack was another of his great new tricks. Then they heard singing in elvish and Bunz replied in song. Granny warned them it was a dryad and those men were her thralls so they all fled in terror.
As came to another end of valley they saw stone monuments and rock art of elves, gnomes and savage backward humans. Camped under a fallen tree and ate tasty wood grubs. By night heard dogs and a band of gnomes had discovered them. Bunz traded with them and the gnomes invited them to follow. Gnomes wore fine clothes with buttons and offered a thing called a coin, a sharp scrap of metal good for cutting tool or fire starting. This was a special gnome gift. The gnomes had a secret gully through a crack in a rock and the tribe stayed with them. Heard of the constant feuds with elves who were colonising new forests across the mountains. Also of the fearsome cave folk who ate gnomes and other peoples. Gnomes were sure tribe not gnome eaters. Boron liked the gnomes dogs and made friends with them. Gnomes offered humans more copper they helped deal with terror birds....
to be continued...
Wow! What an adventure!
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