Conquering the Barbarian Altanis: Session 201

November 7, 2026

Adventurers

Character	Race	Class	Description
Aurella	Elf	Fighter level 1 / magic-user level 1	Exiled and chased out of her tree commune, she now wanders the Wilderlands.
Bragi Twinefinger	Hobbit	Fighter level 3	A stout strong hobbit. As a devotee of the Great Tailor he is always smartly dressed (under his armour) and overly fond of multiple breakfasts.
Castor Mitrakos	Human	Fighter level 1	A Ghinoran sellsword seeking gold and adventure in the Barbarian Altanis.
Herbaecious Roncule	Human	Druid level 3	A sun tanned, grubby, dried-berry-looking fellow dressed in green cloak. Chews a large cigar.
Ivor	Human	Cleric level 2	A young, soft-spoken worshipper of Umannah with thick black beard.
Kenso San	Human	Fighter level 2	An arrogant and self-assured sell-sword wandering Wilderlands to prove he can best anyone.
Siora Qiwarin	Half-elf	Fighter level 6 / magic-user level 6 / cleric level 4	Recognisable by her flame fluted helm of brilliance, and her dazzlingly ice blue eyes. At the beginning of battle she is known to usher a prayer to the Lords of LAW and cause her broadsword to burst into flames. Due to this, many call her the flame maiden. She despises Dwarves.
Syd Grundy	Human	Fighter level 3	Tall, middle aged and scruffy looking man of the wilderness.
Warmund Abendeurer	Human	Fighter level 2	A burly blonde barbarian; Wilbalt's older brother and the stronger of the two.

Sweetrain 19th, Fireday

A horde of wounded and faeces covered adventurers panted. Siora had cast haste on them all. Orcish war horns echoed above them. They discussed with haste and wasted time. There was a disagreement—some wanted to go hunt for orcs, while others preferred to move in order to find a superior position.

Ultimately, they went back up, turned left and down the tunnel, past the petrified pig-faced beastmen, straight ahead, around the subterranean clovers, through the cave with mineral deposits, right, and then left into the cave with a pit trap into which Aurella and Syd had fallen in. Carefully around, and they were once more in the fresh air atop the south ledge.

There were no orcs to be seen, nor heard. It was nearly midnight, and it was darker than usual. By now Siora's haste had expired. Adrenaline wearing off, the company decided to head back home. Thus they turned east, and carefully walked over the wooden gangways snaking along the hillside.

At the other side they found a young veteran, Castor Mitrakos, a Ghinorian sellsword looking for employment. Resurgence of orcish warhorns got him the deal within seconds.

Adventurers formed ranks along the long, narrow ledge. Strongest and best armoured warriors took the front rank; wounded and those armed with bows spread out behind. Siora cast continual light on the hillside, ensuring they see what is coming.

Two dozen orcs turned around the corner, armed with scimitars and clubs. They advanced with murderous glee, even as Castor, Syd, and Bragi killed three of them with missile fire. Siora cast hold person on the vanguard, but only one of the beastmen succumbed to it.

Siora and Warmund charged forth, meeting the beastmen on the wooden catwalk. Flame maiden led the slaughter, burning and maiming two. Warmund and Kenso did not falter, each murdering two more. By this time everyone fought on narrow catwalk, covered with blood, gore, and warm corpses. Two orcs nearly carved Warmund up, but they slipped on all the blood, and lost their footing.

Siora maintained her fiery radiance of death, slaying left and right, throwing the dying into the stream below. Pig-faced beastmen squealed and screamed as they fell to their doom. By now most of the adventurers have joined the melee. Planks creaked and bent, wavered up and down.

Castor had quickly proven his worth, but also learned the dangers of adventuring first hand. He was grappled and pinned down by two orcs. As he rolled around, he stabbed one in its left side; the orc drooled spit and blood all over Castor's face, with some of it leaking into the veteran's mouth. It tried to chew his face off, but he successfully defended himself.

Castor also quickly learned what it means when one is part of a tight-knit adventuring party. Warmund, Ivor, Bragi, and Herbaecious threw themselves into the scrum, setting him free. They chucked the last living orc straight into the river below. The beastman growled until the rock broke his neck.

One survivor managed to get away. It was the one with the horn.

Aurella screamed her lungs off, seemingly the only one noticing that the catwalk was giving in. Wiser adventurers listened to her, and dragged off those less wise, whom wished to plunder the many dead on the hanging planks.

“It's time to go!”

Around this time another war horn blared. This one sounded different. Aurella and Astrid recognised it—a dwarven war horn. But it was time to go.

Sweetrain 20th, Spiritday

It was past midnight. Adventurers had hiked until they were out of the gorge and up on the plateau. Then they hiked north for another league, found a rocky outcropping, and collapsed in cold camp. Castor, being the freshest amongst them, took the guard duty.

His skills were put to the test within an hour. Howla and Vannis, the Moon Sisters of Wilderlands, were shy this night. The darkness suited a pack of wolves whom approached from the north, howling.

Everyone was sleeping firmly. Castor could see large canine silhouettes some two or three hundred yards to the north. He skedaddled to Siora and woke her up. She rolled to her side, got up, retrieved another one of her scrolls and cast speak with monsters.

“Are you hungry?”

Indeed they were. So Siora told them about two dozen fresh corpses, defenceless, still warm. She explained the route they should follow.

“Tell us your name so we can sing it to the sisters upon the sky!”

“Praise Umannah!”

And the wolves howled praises to Umannah.

Adventurers spent the whole day resting.

They reached Ironburg by end of the next day.

“Who will inform the baron of our great success?”

Syd volunteered the story...

About their orderly retreat from the gorge...