Bandit Camp

We made our weary way back through the tower, laden with stuff we couldn't identify (neither could the merchant just outside, which seemed a rather poor business move, probably why he hasn't got a nice shop in town, sells priceless artifacts for the price of the materials) and stopped at Nashkel for the night.

So where next?

"the bandit camp"

"south"

"a brothel"

"somewhere out of this accursed sunlight"

"north"

So no consensus, but I had promised Kivan I would help with his revenge thing and we were packing some serious gear now so it seemed the right thing to do to go after the Bandit Camp. Plus we were getting pretty sick of the bandits and attack is the best form of defense. So we trekked north to Beregost, recharged Edwin's fire wand with the chicken killing mage, stocked up even more on missiles. I donned the belt for disguise as we were going after the bandits who were employed by the same organisation as the bounty hunters. (not that it ever works but you never know). And unfairly, it is much easier to travel cross country as a man. Apart from the obvious, it was now high summer and being able to strip to the waist was a real pleasure in the heat. We struck out north east into the wilds.

We got lost, (call yourself a ranger Kivan?), and headed for a tower we saw in the distance. On the way coming across some ruins occupied by a group of Red Wizards.

"Friends of yours Edwin?"

"Not so much friends as aquaintences, perhaps one could even say rivals"

"Will they attack?"

"No, the witch has been dealt with, for the moment I am in their good books. I daresay that won't last"

As we neared the tower we were surprised by a portal suddenly opening and spilling out a drow. And OMG can this one talk, probably why he's in exile now. Kivan wanted to kill him straight off and was backed up by Edwin. Branwyn wasn't paying much attention, too busy praying to Tempus. Viconia wanted him as a plaything (though I've got a feeling that she's the kind who always ends up breaking their toys) and me, well, another one between me and the enemy, bring it on.

So welcome Baeloth the Sorcerer. He seems to think we should know him such is his fame. I don't know where he comes from, he spun some story about being killed but having a contingency set up that instead his slave sent him somewhere else. The somewhere else wasn't meant to be here though, obviously the slave took his chance and seized the opportunity to get rid of him. For a person that used to run fighting pits, considers himself a celebrity and has a genii as a slave, he's extemely cowardly and begged us not to leave him alone. Are all magic users this needy? First I have Edwin pledging to follow us around for a year, then Baeloth. At this rate we will be overun with wizards.

We carried on through the woods, until we came to a lake where we met some poets, desperate to recite their odes. After 100 verses we all wanted to kill them (but we didn't, it's culture innit), thankfully some nearby bears came to the same conclusion and attacked. Of course we saved the poets, (it's culture innit) and they gave us a harp as a reward. Though as none of us are bards, not quite sure what we will do with it.

But overall we were not a happy group. Viconia kept telling Baeloth to fetch her food and complaining about him not knowing his place (which she was willing to rectify given enough time and some tentacle rods). Kivan glowered and spoke about how Sheverash would never forgive him for traveling with Drow (which is kind of ironic given that Sheverash was never the sort to forgive and forget anyway). Branwen tried to be friendly but was forced to give up when she couldn't get a word in edgeways. Edwin was sulking, majorly sulking. Somebody with better spells, who was getting the promise of being "corrected" by Viconia and who showed no interest in his own advances. And to add insult to injury he wore an archmagi robe. Believe me, we heard a lot about Edwin's opinion of Baeloth, none of it complimentry.

Consequently, we walked slap bang into an ambush by 10 chill bandits firing very nasty ice arrows. Edwin went down first just after he got a web off and a fireball, Branwyn was next as she tried to charge them, then Viconia as she was interrupted summoning a skeleton. Baeloth was at the back casting protections on himself and preparing to run away. Kivan threatened to shoot him first if he did. Caught between bandits and the wrath of Sheverash, Baeloth took the sensible decision to worry about the bandits and joined the fight, casting confusion and fear. Kivan and I pelted them with arrows inbetween chugging potions. It was a very close call.

So back to the FAI dragging the corpses of our fallen comrades feeling rather subdued. Kivan was distraught about Branwen, saying it was the same fate as suffered by his Deheiriananana, at the same time as gloating gleefully about Viconia "rotting in hell". I was feeling awful, it's hard watching your comrades being cut down like that and I realised I liked this band of misfits, I cared about them. Baeloth was strangely silent which was a relief.

But never mind, much poorer and after a night at the inn, arose bright and early to have another try. I'm joking, the previously "dead three" were seriously pissed off and it took a considerable amount of bribery to mollify their hurt feelings.

Then Baeloth announced that he would probably be safer if he left us to our own devices and made his own way in the surface world. Can't say I blamed him, the others weren't so forgiving. But it did make us close ranks and find new resolve. So with a few choice insults directed Baeloth's way, including some about having "greater balls of fire" than him, (come on, how could I resist) and our insistance that he give up his archmagi robe for Edwin as he was chickening out, we set out again for the Bandit Camp.

We snuck up the back of the camp under cover of darkness, summoned our skeletons (where do they come from? I don't like to ask but they are cheerful buggers, laughing away as they hack things to pieces), cast spells of protection and speed and prepared. We found an unguarded entrance at the perimeter with a convenient choke point behind it. The few hobgoblins half heartedly guarding the camp sounded the alarm. And as the main bulk of the camp ran to where we had been spotted, we webbed, greased, fireballed, skulltrapped and shot the whole damn camp to pieces. Everybody rushing into our sights to get slaughtered, the battle tactics of the mentally challenged.

A massacre is hardly adequate to describe the carnage we inflicted. It took longer to pick up all the loot.

Then a quick check in the tents to kill off any malingerers, there were a few not enough to give us any trouble. A cave full of gnolls (pah gnolls, we eat gnolls for breakfast) was dealt with. The large tent of the commanders contained an elf prisoner, Ender Sai, who told us about the "Iron Throne" being behind all this, the iron crisis and the bandits. And a chest with documents telling us about a "secret" mine in the Cloakwood. So it seems there's a large plot to create a monopoly by this "Iron Throne" but that still doesn't answer why I am involved. Of course there were the obligtory chests of gold and gems as well, it makes you wonder why they didn't just divide the loot and settle down somewhere nice rather than hang out in the woods being miserable and poor and causing all this trouble.

But no Tazok, Kivan was so distraught he almost (almost) raised his voice. Branwyn comforted him as only a woman with a double D cup chest can. It seemed to work as well, I've never seen Kivan looking so cheerful.

Once again, but this time laden with riches and no dead bodies, we headed back to the FAI