Session 26: Goblins and Fangs

Maethordan looked between Oswald and Lodin, "Would it be worth going further a field for help, Bree maybe?"

"That means going back through Chetwood," Oswald commented, "and by the looks of things," he looked from Hoplite, who still looked closer to death than life, though Camellia was tending to him; then he looked at Welton, who was at least now standing, though still bleary eyed. "That didn't seem to go well for the lot of you." After a moment, he snapped his fingers, "Why, you could go up to Archet," he added, considering Maethordan's idea. "Captain Brackenbrook is an ol' sell sword. Some of his soldiers now live in Archet and have positions as guards. Though," he gave it some more consideration and added, "You may need to convince Captain Brackenbrook to 'borrow' some of his men, as that would leave Archet defenseless. Though, admittedly, they've not had the problems with the vanishing livestock as badly as we have had it here in Combe."

Lodin was firm, "These are not orcs, so holding a pitchfork, spear, or torch should be enough to cover each other. Though it may be worth asking Captain Brackenbrook first." Then added, "We could also take some wagons with us to provide cover and create a defensive posture."

Oswald Breeker nodded. "I have a few wagons around the estate for the farm you could use. Though," he muttered under his breath, "a small down payment would be nice, you understand I am sure, should you not return." His eyes go to Hoplite. "Because it does seem very dangerous."

Lodin turned to Maethordan and said, "Archet first?"

"Yes, sounds good," Maethordan then turned to Oswald and calmly explained, "Unfortunately we are not so well monied that we can pay for damage to items you are using to protect your land, all we can do is risk our lives to help you."

Oswald smiled, "Oh, it's not the fact you might damage them. I have workers who can fix a broken cart. It's the not coming back from this business, that is my concern."

Arthanar placed his hand on Lodin and Maethordan’s shoulder, “I’ve given the ingredients to Camellia to help Hoplite. It’s now fate whether he pulls through. Cirion looks good enough to travel again. He may get sick, but that is side effects from the herbs fighting the venom.”

The hunt, along the path from Combe to Archet is sparse. Undoubtedly the Giant Spiders have had a devastating toll on the wildlife balance; anything not caught in the webs has probably fled from the unbearable sense of evil that looms in the shadows; the movement heard, but unseen as giant spiders skitter through their webs, ever-watching, ever fearful of the faint glow blue of Liantefaikar - the Spider-Bane, whose taut string glowed a gentle blue in the presence of the Giant Spiders; even unseen the bow could sense when the Giant Spiders were near.

Unlike the previous time, upon arrival, the guard posted on Archet's gate called for the gates to be open and immediately escorted Lodin, Maethordan, Welton, and Arthanar to Captain Brackenbrook. The Captain looked up from his paperwork and gently pushed it aside as he stood. "I see you come with a new companion," he gestured towards Arthanar. "A pleasure to meet you," he added. "I see the dwarf who traveled with you is not among you. I hope he is well? There's been unusual things happening..."

That moment, a terrified scream ripped through the night. "Like that," the Captain sighed. "A young man from Bree named Fred Stoneacre was screaming inside of one of Archet's caves... the people thought it was a Wight... but it was just this young boy... I am not sure what ails him... but his mind is no longer able to find peace... the look in his eyes goes beyond anything I've ever seen... it reminds me of William before..." His voice trailed off.

Lodin looked surprised. "Fred is here? I guess that answers that question. We heard in Combe he was fleeing the Chetwood blabbering about something getting his brother. We suspect it was the giant spiders that are taking over the Chetwood, though after what you've just said.... maybe not. If he is taken by madness, Arthanar may be our best chance to calm him and maybe get some answers. We came so early before spring because we heard of the troubles in the Chetwood and have now encountered and slain three giant spiders. We are planning to purge the wood, and any men we can put together will make it safer. If some of the hardier folk of Archet were to accompany us, we could encourage even more from Combe to join us. I suspect these foul monstrosities have migrated from the Trollshaws, but whether an expedition can be made is a matter after the threat on our doorsteps."

Maethordan looked at Lodin, then to Captain Brackenbrock and asked, "May we see Fred? It may help us to see him, perhaps we can ask him questions. We may be able to discern something from his ranting. He may have seen or experienced something."

Captain Brackenbrook nodded. "I know of the young man's reputation and that he has a twin brother. He was howling with madness inside the caves... when we investigated, he was shouting that everyone is dead... his ranting reminded me very much of William's before..." He shook his head. "But yes, you are free to speak to him. Though I doubt you will be able to get much from his madness."

Captain Brackenbrook escorted the company to the back, where Fred sat on the floor in a small cell, his arms around his knees, his eyes gazing forward vacantly, appearing as if he had not blinked in hours.

Lodin looked to their elven scholar, "Arthanar, is there anything you can do for him?”

Arthanar kneeled down and looked through the cell. "Fred," his voice had been soft, "tell us what happened?"

Fred's vacant, unblinking stare, made him look closer to a corpse than a living body. "Death came for me... it swore death would come... if we failed... we were warned...." His eyes lifted to Lodin, then back down, "... and we fled... fled to the woods... and there... we saw William.... he was there... like a beacon of death... he laughed... laughed..." at that Fred began to laugh loudly, for several moments, before, his voice toned down again, "and... then... we heard... her... her... she... her... she... her... she was everywhere.... everywhere... run... run... RUN!" He screamed "run" several times for several minutes, before coming back, "...scary scary.... got Harry Harry... but Fred... Fred's not dead... not yet...." At that he had begun to laugh maniacally.

Arthanar stood and looked at Lodin. "I could make herbs to calm him... I do not know if that will help. But I can try."

Lodin observed Fred for a moment - the mention of ‘then we heard her’ had made Lodin curious. Lodin spoke one word, a name. "Henuvacarch."

To which Fred screamed for several minutes, until his voice broke and his screams became silent, his mouth agape in horror.

Lodin turned to the others. "I fear hunting in the Trollshaws is a moot point. It appears the matriarch of this brood is in the Chetwood, and she has allied herself with the Cargûl. Please do for Fred what you can Arthanar."

Arthanar nodded and turned to the Captain. "I will need an area to make the medication to sooth the madness."

Captain Brackenbrook nodded and took Arthanar into another room and cleared an area.

Lodin spoke to Captain Brackenbrook when he returned. "Is there a way back to Bree that doesn't go through the Chetwood?"

Captain Brackenbrook nodded, "There is. But it's a much longer way. If you climb the western mountains that surround Archet - you can skirt Chetwood. But there's reports of goblins in those mountains, supposedly watching Archet. Several of my soldiers have reported the same. It's not just rumor anymore."

"We need to get a message to Captain Skyhawk of what is happening,” Lodin said, “There is a major threat in the Chetwood. A brood of spiders with their queen Henuvacarch is in the Chetwood and we can't wait for a coordinated attack by the orcs and what remains of the bandits, the goblins in the mountains and the marshes, and now these spiders. Any men you can spare without compromising the defense of Archet will increase our chances of success in exterminating these spawns of darkness."

He paused then added, "They at least must be warned, but ideally any men they can spare on this expedition will help." 

Captain Brackenbrook nodded. "I have six men on constant patrol, from the caves to the mountains. Two men on the walls. I have another twelve men who are in my service, as former soldiers. I could spare them."

Captain Brackenbrook called three soldiers into the cabin where he laid out a map of the western mountainside of Archet and explained to the three soldiers what had been transpiring and the dangers within Chetwood and to get to Bree and warn them and see if Captain Skyhawk might have soldiers to spare, to fight the spiders and the goblins and to drive back the shadow.

The three soldiers, Julian and Vance Blackstone and Cooper Fernglade rode into the western mountains on their horses. As night came, several hours after departing, one of the three riders returned, Cooper Fernglade, to Archet, badly wounded. 

"Goblins emerged," Cooper wheezed, holding his abdomen which was bleeding from three arrows that had pierced his flesh, "from the mountains... but that's not all... William... he was there... but he was shouting at the goblins ... commanding them... but he called them... by our name... as if they were ... us..."

Arthanar, who was observing the grievously wounded warrior looked to Captain Brackenbrook mournfully, "Goblin poison," he whispered, "it's already in his veins. His effort to climb down the mountain accelerated it. All I can do for him now is ease his passing until the time comes."

Captain Brackenbrook frowned and placed his hand on Arthanar's shoulder. "Do what you can. I will inform his wife."

Arthanar helped the soldier lie down, and began to immediately work on subsiding the soldier's pain.

Captain Brackenbrook looked between Lodin, Welton, and Maethordan. "If William is behind this..." he shook his head. "He was once what one would call a Reeve for Archet. He knows the town well. If he is delusional with madness, he may lead the goblins against Archet."

Lodin grimaced. Poison was a terrible way to die. His stern gaze met Maethordan’s. "It appears the goblins may be a worse problem than the spiders. At least the spiders will stay in the woods. Shall we go take care of them first?"

"We should be cautious," Welton suddenly spoke up. "The goblins have been populating in the Midgewater Marshes for quite some time... they've been keeping Bree under observation. Why, I do not know. However, when the hard rains of Winter Yule came, they no doubt made their way to the mountain tops that surround Archet to avoid the flooding marshes, which is why the soldiers may have run into the goblins there. From what I've seen," he looked to Lodin and Maethordan, revealing that he'd kept an eye on the goblins during his marauding days as a ruffian, "there is a large number of them. It'd be foolish to go into the mountains after them. They would have the higher ground. If they indeed follow this William, we should wait for them to come to us and fortify Archet."

He realized the attention had been put on him, and he bowed and stepped back. "I did not mean to speak over any of you. I only seek to share my observations as I do not wish more to," his eyes drifted to the dying soldier on the bed, and his words died with that thought.

Maethordan placed his hand on Welton’s shoulder. "If they are that numerous then we should not go and seek them out as they would overrun us quickly. But we should try and track their movements, to see what we are facing so we know how long we have. I have a fair knowledge of the area as clearly do you", Maethordan pointed at Welton. "I think we should do some scouting while Lodin helps these people prepare."

Welton nodded, "As a Ranger of the North, I follow you, brother." His words were sincere, but a sense of fear lurked, woven between the vow of his words.

Lodin suddenly spoke up, "What if. . . . we could lure the goblins into the Chetwood and let the spiders handle them?"

Maethordan nodded. "We could try, but we have to find them first, they also might be aware of the spiders or in league with them."

Arthanar, having done all he could for the dying soldier, "If Fred's madness is to be believed, he mentioned William was in Chetwood, possibly among the spiders or," he heard Fred screaming down the hall again in imagined horror, "or in his madness, he believes he saw William."

Lodin nodded. "Undoubtedly, they're both under the sway of the Cargûl, but if they are being kept separate, there is a reason why. Very few spiders have anything resembling intelligence, they're as likely to eat the goblins as help them. We could also set the Chetwood on fire after luring the goblins in and hopefully handle both threats at once. Though that is obviously quite extreme, and would be quite difficult with the recent rains." He paused, "Though once the webs in the canopy set fire, it will spread very quickly."

Maethordan looked at Lodin, "Let's find them first and see what is happening with the enemy; if we can draw them into the trap, you must be ready if we return with confirmation of the trap springing."

“I wonder if the Great Eagles are near, since they were hunting William,” Lodin said. Lodin stepped outside of the Captain's cabin and looked to the skies; the grey storm clouds hid any signs of the Great Eagles who sought to find any evidence of William... and the canopy of webbing that they'd seen covering the tree tops would have hidden William from their eyes... but if William was on the mountain... he should be easily seen. Still, if the Great Eagles were near, the grey, night clouds, hid them from view…


Maethordan and Welton left to scout the Western mountains; moving under the cover of night, they scaled the Western side of the mountain range. As the company ascended they had begun to smell smoke and evidence of a goblin camp. As they crested over some small boulders and peered down, they spot a small camp of twelve goblins and among them - a human; or at one time, he looked to have been human - his eyes seem to be endless voids, his skin taut over his bones - and he, or whatever it once was - emanated great evil and dread; and two, large wargs sat, staring hungrily at the meat cooking on the campfire.

Maethordan and Welton both gazed down and felt a sense of fear wash over them, but both were able to shake it as they observed what was happening below.

The human figure paced back and forth, "We have let two of the goblin soldiers get by... the goblins are foolish... I don't know where they think they're going... We must be ready... they may return with more goblins... and launch an assault against us... us! Us, who stand brave to defend Archet from the hordes of shadow!"

It became quickly clear, the emaciated figure was none other than William... as the dying soldier had revealed... William, in his madness, was calling the goblins around him by human names... then a dagger, at his side gleamed, even in this gloomy night, with sinister power... and the company almost hear it... as if it were calling to them... but they are free of any charm it may have tried to sway them with....

Noting the twelve goblins, only a few with bows, most armed with spears, crude javelins and swords, Maethordan whispered, "We should go back and gather who we can and come back; there are relatively only few of them and we should be able to deal with them quickly."

Maethordan, knowing that they could not outrun the Wargs, headed back to Archet with Welton. As soon as they arrived he reported, “We have found them, barely an hour away. There are twelve goblins led by William, along with at least two Wargs. There is no drawing them into a trap without killing the two Wargs first. We could return and kill them all but we must be quick as  William could be bringing in reinforcements as he fears attack. William is beyond mad believing that he is saving Archet!”

Captain Brackenbrook rubbed his eyes, more in frustration than actual irritation. "William Stanwick is among them? Curse it all," he muttered. "William helped raise my son," he gestured to a young teenager named Jon, who sat in an opposite room with the Captain's wife. "He helped raise my boy when I was out tending to business as a sell-sword. Kept him safe. Welcomed me here, hired me here in Archet, when I had decided to call it quits. He gave me a chance." He wept. "William was a good man. Damn the curse that has taken him."

He thought it over. "I have seventeen men left. Some are out on patrol, as I said before. The two on the walls, I'd like to keep here. I have about twelve men in Archet, who I could stir. I'd like to leave some here in Archet in case the goblins on the east mountains my men and," he looked to Welton, "he, are aware of, make some kind of attack. In case this is some kind of trap to lure myself and my men out of Archet. How many should we take to the mountains?"

Lodin looked, "What are the options, if any, of evacuating Archet in the worst case scenario?"

Captain Brackenbrook gave it some thought. "We'd need to move through the western mountain - get rid of the goblins there first. If the forests of Chetwood are full of spiders, and the north and eastern side of the mountains are plagued with goblins - then the west is our best option," he nodded. "However, there are elderly and children in Archet. We wouldn't be able to move them quickly. So we'd need to dispatch the goblins to the west - clear a path that they could follow."

Maethordan looked around and asked, "How long for your patrol to return? We could watch them until then and then if they ambush anyone we can ambush the ambushers."

Captain Brackenbrook explained, "They rotate out every two hours, with the other men I have in the village, sharing reports of what they found, if anything."

"I think with six of your men with us we can take down the goblins and Wargs without much trouble,” Lodin said confidently. “I'd recommend, as your patrols come in, keep them in Archet in case of attack until we return, if we can separate William from any goblins that will reduce the threat and we can handle the spiders separately. "

Lodin turned to the elven scholar, "Arthanar, do you have any way of contacting the Eagles to let them know we've located William?"

Arthanar nodded. "If he is near, perhaps a song may summon him." He turned to Captain Brackenbrook, "You mentioned guards posted along the wall. I would like to go there, to get above the noise of Archet's townfolk." Captian Brackenbrook nodded and pointed to one of the nearby soldiers who escorted Arthanar to the wall. From there, Arthanar drew forth a flute and began to play a gentle melody that seemed to lift the spirits, like birds gliding on the winds. A moment later, high above the grey clouds, a loud screech of a Giant Eagle could be heard. Arthanar returned, "Beleram is near. He has heard the song and will await further instructions."

Lodin had listened to the notes of the song; though they were from a flute, he could hear each note and knew how he could play that through the trumpet he carried as he learned the song the Elves of Rivendell called Song of the Great Eagles.


Captain Brackenbrook called six men to his cabin. “The six of you are to go with these four. There’s goblins on the Western Mountains, along with William, and two Wargs from what the Rangers here have reported. We sent three to venture to Bree to gather reinforcements, to deal with the goblins and the Giant Spiders in Chetwood. The brothers, Julian and Vance Blackstone had made it through, but Cooper Fernglade will probably not live to see the sun’s light. He’d stopped to ensure the brothers could escape and in doing so gave his life so that Julian and Vance could succeed on their mission. We must dispatch the goblins before Julian and Vance return, because the goblins will be ready for their return. They should not suspect other leaving from Archet. We may be able to catch them by surprise. I will remain here to command the patrols that return and prepare for retaliation from the goblins should that come. The six of you are to listen to the commands of these four.”

The six soldiers, long in Captain Brackenbrook’s service when he’d been a sell sword and offered protection to travelers, nodded their heads in silent agreement. The descent up the western mountain, under the cover of night, had gone relatively without trouble. However, upon nearing the peak, over the edge, the glint of orange dancing indicated a small campfire was nearby and the smell of smoke filled the air. Maethordan silently nodded, that just over the ridge is where the goblins had been.

However, any hope of surprise was ruined, as the Wargs howled, having caught the scent of the approaching company!


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Fellowship Points:

2 (1 per player) + 2 (Gandalf) = 4

Fellowship Bonus: Gandalf

You can spend a Fellowship point to roll an additional d20 after a saving throw (but before the outcome is determined) and choose which of the d20s is used.

Yule Activities –

Lodin – Gather Rumors - Choose this undertaking to receive a rumor from the Loremaster. Until the next Fellowship Phase, Player-heroes in the Company have advantage on Intelligence checks related to the rumor.,

Lodin – Write A Song - Choose this undertaking to compose a song, choosing whether it will be a Lay, a Song of Victory, or a Walking song (no ability check is required).,

Events -

Maethordan (Ascending Mountain with Welton) Stealth Check - 15

Maethordan Hunting Skill to track Goblins - 22

Maethordan's Charisma Save against William (Wight) - 19

Welton's Charisma Save against William (Wight) - 13

The Company's Stealth up the mountain to attack the goblins...

Lodin Stealth Check (Disadvantage) - 12

Maethordan Stealth Check - 6

Group A of Soldiers (3) - Critical Fail (Natural 1)

Group B of Soldiers (3) - 4

To explain the Critical Fail in story, the Company is unable to do any form of Surprise attack as the Wargs had picked up the scent of the approaching company and combat begins! Combat map below - through the play by post, top row is letters per box (A, B, C, etc) and down from A (beginning in box A is 1, then 2, 3, 4, etc). Each box represents 5'.

Initiative results: