Rangers of Frostgrave - Alone in the Crypt
Just for fun, I’ve decided to run Perilous Dark using the Rangers of Shadow Deep rules, continuing my “Rangers of Frostgrave” storyline. I previously played my Ranger, Serrol, and his companions through Dark Alchemy. I then took two of Serrol’s companions, the conjuror Carov and the Archer Sak through the “The Big Score” scenario from Spellcaster 5 - in that scenario, Carov went to 0 health, and Sak harvested the dragon’s liver and fled, returning to Alladore with Serrol (I posted the writeup of these adventures on Facebook earlier).
I was pondering converting Carov to a Frostgrave Wizard and running him through Perilous Dark with Frostgrave rules, but, quite frankly, I enjoy Rangers of Shadow Deep a bit more. So, I’m promoting Carov to a Ranger (primarily a spellcasting Ranger) and am going to run him through that way. After I try him out in Alone in the Crypt…..
The last thing Carov remembered was the ghoul, its foul breath to his face - his thick gloves the only thing keeping its teeth from his throat.
Then, the ground beneath him gave way, and he and the ghoul tumbled into darkness.
Summoning a bit of magic, Carov conjured a dim mote of light, that flit about him like a firefly. Looking around, he saw that the space he was in was just slightly larger than a coffin. The ghoul, or what was left of him, didn’t survive the fall, but miraculously, the stones missed Carov, sheltering him in a small pocket. Carov carefully tested the pocket, and when he found that the pocket was not in immediate danger of collapse, but with no visible way out, he rested.
Hours, perhaps days later, Carov woke and ate the last of his rations. After what seemed like hours of pushing, Carov was able to shift a stone enough to crawl into a larger space.
Getting to his feet, Carov took a couple of steps, and discovered the skeletal remains of some ancient warrior. In its hands, the skeleton clutched a still gleaming sword. Strapped across his back was a heavy bow and the most ornate, arrow-filled quiver he had ever seen….
“I haven’t touched a sword or bow since before I left for the Cascades, but, since my staff is nothing but kindling, it will be better to have them than need them. Hmm… Enchanted - Sak would love these!”
As Carov was slinging the quiver onto his back, he heard the creak of old bones, and a shuffling of skeletal feet. With the bow in one hand, and his other ready for casting, Carov gazed into the darkness, his eyes and ears seeking any sign of the walking dead. The creak of old armor let him know that these foes wouldn’t go down easily. “Sak - I sure wish you were here”....
Carov headed for a nearby side passage, hoping the armored skeletons would not pursue. In that, he was correct, but the passage led to a door that was jammed closed, well beyond Carov's ability to open. Moving across the crypt, Carov ran to the opposite doorway, taking a shot at one of the skeletons, but missed. By the time Carov reached the second door, two zombies had crawled out of the debris - but, a shot from his bow dropped one of the armored Skeletons. Unfortunately, the second door also was impassable.
Moving out, Carov stumbled upon a small reliquary, and out rolled an obviously enchanted stone, which Carov grabbed [Fate Stone]. Moving for the third door, Carov summoned his magic, and fired two magic bolts, destroying both an armored skeleton and a zombie [Split Cast Magic Bolt].
Carov reached the third door, which was also blocked.
Sweat started to appear on Carov's forehead. Fatigue was starting to set in, but he moved out of the hall, and saw another small reliquary. Hoping for something useful, he opened it, and found a flask with the familiar label indicating it was a healing potion. As he put it in his pouch, another zombie appeared from one of the halls he was heading towards.
Moving forward, towards the zombies, Carov took a shot with the bow he found, missing one. A zombie reached him, clawing, but Carov's reflexes took over, and the zombie fell, unmoving - but, the other zombie reached Carov. Drawing the magic sword, Carov fought desperately, but the zombie slipped past his guard, tearing at his face.
Severely wounded, Carov chugged the healing potion, while defending himself against the zombie, and a second zombie moved towards him.
Carov attacked, and both zombies fell, their bodies stilled at last.
He moved to the next passage, finding the door blocked.
Coming out of the passage, Carov spotted two skeletons moving his way - deciding not to risk his life, he drew one of the magic arrows in the quiver he found, and fired it, destroying one of the skeletons. Drawing his sword as the other skeleton charged him, Carov managed a rudimentary stop-thrust, and the skeleton impaled itself on his sword, shattering.
Sprinting to the next door, Carov also found it blocked. He began to despair - there was only one door left. If that didn't open, he could use that special arrow of crumbling in an attempt to escape, but without knowing how deep he was, he was unsure whether it would even work.
On the way to the door, he almost tripped on what he thought was a large rock, but it was a damaged chest. Briefly pausing, he found a pair of heavy leather gauntlets that were yet supple enough for spellcasting, and in such good condition, Carov had to believe they were enchanted [Gauntlets of Strength]. However, he noticed that there was a huge, hulking zombie -a zombie troll - in one of the passages Carov had already been in. Carov didn't have time to be puzzled by that, however, as the Zombie Troll noticed Carov at the same time. Moving closer to the last door, and heavily wounded, Carov decided to fire the Arrow of Crumbling, collapsing the corridor onto the Zombie Troll. Hoping that he didn't just lose his only chance of escape, Carov moved to the final door, and as he approached, he felt a subtle breeze. The door was shattered by a rockfall, and Carov was able to squeeze through, and crawl up a ruined staircase.
However, his fortune came to an end, as the staircase opened up to a vertical shaft to the surface, at least fifteen feet tall. The night sky In no shape to climb, Carov sat down to rest, hoping no undead found him.
Jolted awake by a shout, Carov realized he had fallen asleep. The sound of a fight came from above - and voices. Beautiful, wonderful HUMAN voices!
Making sure his sword and bow were secure, Carov began to climb.
I was pondering converting Carov to a Frostgrave Wizard and running him through Perilous Dark with Frostgrave rules, but, quite frankly, I enjoy Rangers of Shadow Deep a bit more. So, I’m promoting Carov to a Ranger (primarily a spellcasting Ranger) and am going to run him through that way. After I try him out in Alone in the Crypt…..
The last thing Carov remembered was the ghoul, its foul breath to his face - his thick gloves the only thing keeping its teeth from his throat.
Then, the ground beneath him gave way, and he and the ghoul tumbled into darkness.
Summoning a bit of magic, Carov conjured a dim mote of light, that flit about him like a firefly. Looking around, he saw that the space he was in was just slightly larger than a coffin. The ghoul, or what was left of him, didn’t survive the fall, but miraculously, the stones missed Carov, sheltering him in a small pocket. Carov carefully tested the pocket, and when he found that the pocket was not in immediate danger of collapse, but with no visible way out, he rested.
Hours, perhaps days later, Carov woke and ate the last of his rations. After what seemed like hours of pushing, Carov was able to shift a stone enough to crawl into a larger space.
Getting to his feet, Carov took a couple of steps, and discovered the skeletal remains of some ancient warrior. In its hands, the skeleton clutched a still gleaming sword. Strapped across his back was a heavy bow and the most ornate, arrow-filled quiver he had ever seen….
“I haven’t touched a sword or bow since before I left for the Cascades, but, since my staff is nothing but kindling, it will be better to have them than need them. Hmm… Enchanted - Sak would love these!”
As Carov was slinging the quiver onto his back, he heard the creak of old bones, and a shuffling of skeletal feet. With the bow in one hand, and his other ready for casting, Carov gazed into the darkness, his eyes and ears seeking any sign of the walking dead. The creak of old armor let him know that these foes wouldn’t go down easily. “Sak - I sure wish you were here”....
Carov headed for a nearby side passage, hoping the armored skeletons would not pursue. In that, he was correct, but the passage led to a door that was jammed closed, well beyond Carov's ability to open. Moving across the crypt, Carov ran to the opposite doorway, taking a shot at one of the skeletons, but missed. By the time Carov reached the second door, two zombies had crawled out of the debris - but, a shot from his bow dropped one of the armored Skeletons. Unfortunately, the second door also was impassable.
Moving out, Carov stumbled upon a small reliquary, and out rolled an obviously enchanted stone, which Carov grabbed [Fate Stone]. Moving for the third door, Carov summoned his magic, and fired two magic bolts, destroying both an armored skeleton and a zombie [Split Cast Magic Bolt].
Carov reached the third door, which was also blocked.
Sweat started to appear on Carov's forehead. Fatigue was starting to set in, but he moved out of the hall, and saw another small reliquary. Hoping for something useful, he opened it, and found a flask with the familiar label indicating it was a healing potion. As he put it in his pouch, another zombie appeared from one of the halls he was heading towards.
Moving forward, towards the zombies, Carov took a shot with the bow he found, missing one. A zombie reached him, clawing, but Carov's reflexes took over, and the zombie fell, unmoving - but, the other zombie reached Carov. Drawing the magic sword, Carov fought desperately, but the zombie slipped past his guard, tearing at his face.
Severely wounded, Carov chugged the healing potion, while defending himself against the zombie, and a second zombie moved towards him.
Carov attacked, and both zombies fell, their bodies stilled at last.
He moved to the next passage, finding the door blocked.
Coming out of the passage, Carov spotted two skeletons moving his way - deciding not to risk his life, he drew one of the magic arrows in the quiver he found, and fired it, destroying one of the skeletons. Drawing his sword as the other skeleton charged him, Carov managed a rudimentary stop-thrust, and the skeleton impaled itself on his sword, shattering.
Sprinting to the next door, Carov also found it blocked. He began to despair - there was only one door left. If that didn't open, he could use that special arrow of crumbling in an attempt to escape, but without knowing how deep he was, he was unsure whether it would even work.
On the way to the door, he almost tripped on what he thought was a large rock, but it was a damaged chest. Briefly pausing, he found a pair of heavy leather gauntlets that were yet supple enough for spellcasting, and in such good condition, Carov had to believe they were enchanted [Gauntlets of Strength]. However, he noticed that there was a huge, hulking zombie -a zombie troll - in one of the passages Carov had already been in. Carov didn't have time to be puzzled by that, however, as the Zombie Troll noticed Carov at the same time. Moving closer to the last door, and heavily wounded, Carov decided to fire the Arrow of Crumbling, collapsing the corridor onto the Zombie Troll. Hoping that he didn't just lose his only chance of escape, Carov moved to the final door, and as he approached, he felt a subtle breeze. The door was shattered by a rockfall, and Carov was able to squeeze through, and crawl up a ruined staircase.
However, his fortune came to an end, as the staircase opened up to a vertical shaft to the surface, at least fifteen feet tall. The night sky In no shape to climb, Carov sat down to rest, hoping no undead found him.
Jolted awake by a shout, Carov realized he had fallen asleep. The sound of a fight came from above - and voices. Beautiful, wonderful HUMAN voices!
Making sure his sword and bow were secure, Carov began to climb.
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