Game System: Tunnels & Trolls
[Scene 1]
It is the middle of the night and Kristopher, Sylralei, Kelseen, and Dalen are resting for the evening in the cave that was once inhabited by a nest of scrats. Earlier, Kris and Dalen returned from their failed attempt to signal the Skylark, the naval cutter that has brought the party to Crossbones Island. While they weren’t able to signal the ship, they did have good news in that they saw it still anchored off-shore. While no specific schedule was determined, Syl is pretty confident, based on discussions with the captain while still aboard, that they have roughly one more day before the crew would consider writing them off as lost and return to Sirisea. That is, assuming Midshipman Byrd doesn’t reach the Skylark first and convinces them to leave early.
The best course of action, they all agree, is to get some sleep and try to make some progress in the morning.
During Kelseen’s watch, as happened the previous night, the woman warrior hears some snapping twigs some distance outside the mouth of the cave. [Encounter rolled. Made L2 INT SR to notice the creature(s) before they reached the cave] She quietly wakes the others. Kris and Kel ready weapons while Syl and Dalen prepare to cast Oh Go Away spells. In the darkness, the party spots several large creatures, vaguely human-like in shape. Kelseen wonders if one might be the same creature she saw the previous night down at the foot of the cliff. Eyes that glint in the moonlight watch them for several moments before the shapes move away.
[In this instance I felt a roll on my reaction table was warranted. The result was “Enthusiastic Friendship”. Since I don’t see these creatures coming up to the party and sharing a nice meal, I treated it as they simply leave.
Per my home rules, each character receives 1d6 CON for a night’s rest. The party’s CON are as follows:
Kris: 12 Syl: 16 Kel: 10 Dal: 13 Syl’s WIZ is back to a full 26]
[Scene 2]
In the morning the group agrees to examine what’s behind the wall, however, they still would like to check on the ship and signal it, if possible. To that end, Dalen and Kelseen will use any empty waterskins, healing potion flasks, and helms to carry water from the muddy pond back to the cave. Meanwhile, Syl and Kris will take the rope and Dalen’s target shield and try to scale the cliff again, hoping to signal the ship, providing it is still anchored off-shore.
[Following same climbing rules as Chapter 7, but giving Kris a +5 advantage on the first section due to his familiarity with it.]
Kristopher and Sylralei make it up the cliff to the same point where he and Dalen had difficulty the previous day. This time they travel west instead of east, hoping to find the climb easier. Unfortunately, this turns out not to be the case. Like Dalen the day before, Kris takes quite a fall and injures his leg. Before heading back to the cave, Syl casts Poor Baby on the injured leg, but only uses the amount of magic that she will be able to recover on the trip back. The only good thing about their outing is that they are able to confirm that the Skylark is still present.
Kelseen and Dalen’s task is much more productive. They travel to the pond, gather as much water as they can, and return to the cave. There they douse the wall with the water and rub away as much sandstone as they can using their hands and weapons. Once finished, they gather up their containers and head back to the pond. It takes them six unhindered trips [3 negative encounter rolls] to open up a hole several feet in diameter before they decide to stop and wait for their companions’ return. [I calculated time for both tasks and the cliff journey took longer at 2.7 hours]
Kris and Syl return and tell the others about their journey. Dalen shows them the opening in the wall and points out a series of glyphs he spotted running up both sides of the narrow passageway. [Successful L1 LCK roll]. Syl’s ability to Detect Magic lets her know immediately that they have mystical power.
Would Sylralei be very familiar with these glyphs?
(50/50 | 2[d10]) No She will need to make a L2 INT roll to be able to decipher.
Roll: 10+15=25 success
“I don’t know these specific glyphs,” the elf wizard admits, “But parts of them resemble glyphs I do know. I think they represent some type of shield or barrier, but exactly what kind I can’t tell you.”
“So it could be some sort of trap?” Kristopher asks.
“Yes,” Sylralie answers. “Or it could be a force that will only let certain people pass. Less likely, but it might even be a passageway to another location or dimension.”
“So how do we figure this out?”
“Let’s start with something easy,” Dalen says and picks up a rock. He hurls it at the passageway. The rock flies past the glyphs and falls to the ground several feet beyond. No darts, blades or knives shoot out of the walls, nor is the rock enveloped in flames or bolts of lightning. “Well, it’s not an invisible wall.”
“At least not for stones,” Syl agrees. “However, that doesn't mean the glyphs aren't attuned only to living creatures."
“One of us will have to try and walk through,” Kelseen says, voicing what all were thinking.
“Are you volunteering?” Syl asks wearing her familiar smirk.
Kelseen responds by rolling her eyes and shaking her head.
“Relax, Kel,” Syl says. “ I have another idea.” Holding up her snake-headed staff, she speaks the words of the Magic Fangs spell. The rigid wood of the staff begins to bend, then wiggle as the rod transforms into a live snake a little over two feet in length. A tongue flicks out of it’s now living head. She lays the snake down and tells it to “Go” while pointing down the tunnel. The snake slithers along the ground past the glyphs.
The rod transforms into a live snake a little over two feet in length
[Does the trap work on snakes?
(50/50 | 10[d10]) Yes, and… the PCs are given a preview of what will happen.]
A few feet beyond the glyphs, the narrow passage opens up into a larger cave-like area. Syl allows the serpent to travel a few feet into this larger chamber before ordering it to return. When it returns to the line of magical symbols, it’s head and body turn up and rise several inches as though it was scaling up a wall. Thinking the creature is simply distracted, Syl calls for it again. The snake moves sideways along the passage, tries to turn in the direction of the waiting party, but raises up again, apparently unable to move past the line of glyphs.
Behind the snake, back in the chamber, the party sees a small dark shape emerge from the shadows, almost as if it were a part of the shadow separating from itself. The shape elongates and takes on the form of a snake, identical to the one that was once Sylralei’s staff. As the shadowy serpent crawls toward the cave opening, Syl’s snake turns, coils and prepares to attack. However, before battle can ensue, Syl’s snake uncoils itself, stiffens, and reverts back into a staff. As this happens, the shadowy snake loses form and dissipates back into the shadows.
Kristopher carefully approaches the opening and crouches. Being sure to stay on this side of the glyphs, he reaches his hand out for the staff.
“Wait!” Kelseen cries. “What are you doing?”
“Testing something.” Kris’ arm passes beyond the markings without meeting any resistance. He picks up the staff and pulls it back to himself unhindered.
“It seems you are only trapped once you completely pass the line of glyphs,” Kris surmises, handing Syl back her staff.
“Is it safe to assume that whoever enters the cave will face a shadow version of themselves?” Dalen asks, concerned but with a hint of excitement in his voice.
“That would be a safe guess,” Syl agrees.
“The question is, is the reward worth with danger?” Kris wonders.
“Whoever put this here must have been guarding something valuable,” Kelseen presumes.
Sylralei casts Will-O-Wisp in order to get a better look down the tunnel. Unfortunately, only a narrow portion of the cave can be seen from where the group stands.
“Even if we go in and defeat our shadow selves,” Kristopher begins, “Could we even get out? We have no guarantee the invisible wall will drop and I can’t see any other exits from here.”
[Can the party see an exit from the cave?
(Unlikely - only a small portion of the room is visible | 2[d10]) No
Making some saving rolls and asking some oracle questions it is also determined that from the party’s vantage point they are unable to see any signs of treasure or containers that might hold treasure.]
“I say we take the chance,” says Dalen.
“I agree with the dwarf,” says Kelseen. “Things are getting boring and I am ready to gain some income on this mission.”
Sylralei studies their eyes and can tell all are in agreement. “If we do this, we have to assume that we will be facing copies of ourselves, with our same abilities and powers. Our biggest threat will be my shadow.”
“Thinking rather highly of yourself?” Kel accuses.
“No, but I do think highly of Take That You Fiend. If you are hit with that spell it will probably be enough to drop you, probably kill you. Your armor is worthless against it. The best you can hope for is to dodge, but that’s a roll of the dice.”
“Then,” Kris says, “we just need to make sure we target the shadow Syl first and hope we can strike faster than it can cast.”
The four adventurers ponder this a while in silence until Syl’s eyes suddenly grow wide. She looks directly at Kelseen as a wide grin spreads across the wizard’s face.
“Kelseen,” she says, “I’m about to make you a very happy woman!”
[Before we begin combat, let me explain how I intend to handle damage taken by the PCs. If you are not interested in game mechanics, feel free to skip this section of purple text (but you already know that).
Back in chapter 4, I explained that the difference between the PCs and opponents combat rolls represents the damage dealt to either party. How these points are distributed amongst the PCs varies between the different versions of T&T and I am not a fan of either one. In version 5, points are divided equally amongst all the PCs engaged in melee combat. I don’t like this method because it is not indicative of how combat works. This method assumes each character is targeted equally and is attacked with equal force and efficiency. Character deaths will most likely occur in order from least armor to most.
Later versions of T&T allow the players to distribute damage points amongst the character in a manner that does the least harm (i.e. Characters with the most armor take the most damage, the least armor the least damage. Once all armor points have been used us, whatever points remain are distributed amongst the characters) Once again, this is not representative of true combat. It assumes that opponents focus most of their effort against the characters with the most armor and ignore those with little to none. Death will either occur from the character with the lowest CON to the most, or the party will wipe at the same time since damage will be distributed in a way that keeps all the characters alive as long as possible.
I prefer, and will follow, a hybrid method that takes into account a character's location in the battle, actions they may take, and the mindset of the opponents. Characters who are more likely to be hit due to their position or the focus of the opponent will receive a greater portion of the damage. Below are some examples from the combat which is to follow:
-Characters in the front row might receive 2x the damage of characters in the 2nd row.
-If a character chooses to shield another and is successful, they will receive the damage intended for the character they are protecting.
-If the monsters decide as a group to target a single character, that character will receive a greater portion of the damage depending on how many monsters attack and how successful they are at reaching them.
My hope is that if characters must receive damage, they receive it in a manner that represents what would likely be expected from actual combat.]
[Scene 4]
The four members of Kage Gordain deliberately step past the line of glyphs and into the cave. Last in line, Sylralei does two things as the passes the magical symbols. First, she casts Vorpal Blade on Dalen’s +1 sax dagger that Kris holds in his hand. Then she reaches back to feel if their retreat is indeed blocked by some invisible force. It is.
Next to Syl, Kelseen has her crossbow ready and aimed forward. The plan is for her to identify the Shadow Sylralei first and hit her with a bolt the moment she solidifies, hopefully before she can cast any spells against the party.
In the front are Kristopher and Dalen. Despite the light emitting from the oil lantern that Dalen is carrying, the shadows seem as thick as when they entered. The dwarf sets the lantern down, draws his axe as four dark shapes drift out from the shadows.
(Round 1)
The loose, cloud-like forms shrink and compress first into tall cylindrical forms. Dark arms sprout from the sides of each, the lower halves split into legs, and bulbous spheres form on the tops and become heads. Kelseen aims her weapon at the thinnest of the shapes, ready to fire should it indeed take on Syl’s form. Her suspicions are confirmed when a thin wisp of shadow becomes a staff in the creature’s hands. Kel pulls the trigger and the bolt strikes Shadow Syl right in the chest . . . a moment too soon, as it meets no resistance passes right through. [Failed the calculated L1 DEX roll] A mere second later, the creature finishes its transformation and is a perfect double of the female elf except in color. Instead of the silver hair, pale skin and blue leather, the shadow creature is a mixture of blacks and greys.
All four shapes undergo a similar evolution until each is a black and grey replica of one of the four adventurers. Each creature holds a weapon identical to what the person they copied is holding. Sylralei realizing this quickly shifts her attack from her shadow self to Shadow Kelseen who has a crossbow pointed at the party. She casts Take That You Fiend, but Shadow Kel is slightly faster and releases a bolt before being hit with the magical blast of energy. Luckily, the bolt misses Kelseen, as the warrior barely moves out of the missile's path to lay down her crossbow and draw her sword. [Shadow Kel won SPD challenge against Syl, but failed DEX check] Across the cave, the form that was Kelseen bursts apart after being hit with Syl’s spell and dissipates back into the normal shadows.
Shadow Sylralei and Shadow Kristopher begin to form
(Rounds 2-6)
The remaining three forms charge. While they engage in melee with Kris, Dalen, and Kelseen, who has now moved up to join the men, it is clear that their focus is on Sylralei. Kris and Dalen try to stay between the shadows and the elf, but the creatures are strong and they succeed in pushing through. [PCs lost opposing STR checks] Syl casts Take That You Fiend at her shadow self and is surprised to see the creature continue to advance despite taking the full blast. She backs away and parries with her staff, blocking most of the blows. Her leather armor easily absorbs any strikes that make it through.
Dwarf and human hit their shadowy doppelgangers from the rear as Kelseen uses all her might to wedge herself between the shadows and Syl. She takes a beating but her scale mail easily protects her. The shadows' attention slowly returns to the other members of the party and the seven of them engage in full melee. No single combatant is able to land a solid blow, only small cuts, stabs, and strikes.
“Why isn’t Shadow Syl attacking us with magic?” Dalen calls out between blows.
“They must only mimic our forms, not abilities,” the real Syl answers.
“That seems to be enough,” Kristopher comments, referencing the fact that the fight is rather even, despite the shadow creatures being outnumbered four to three. “They are extremely strong for shadows.”
“You’re not kidding,” Syl agrees. “My Take That You Fiend should have been enough to destroy my shadow-self.”
[Time to talk about the shadow creatures. Per the published adventure, the shadows take on the form of the adventurers in appearance only but do not possess their powers or talents. To compensate, they will work as a team and are very strong, having the same above-average strength. Converting this to T&T game mechanics, I calculated the average strength of the four PC’s, multiplied it by 1.5, and assigned that as the STR for each shadow monster. This gave them a 26 STR and 14 adds. The rest of the stats were identical to the PC the monster represented. The adventure says nothing about how they fight, so I determined that they will use the same weapon as the real character. Finally, I decided that the shadow creatures will not have real armor that will absorb any damage, but instead will have 4 additional CON points added to their counterparts full CON. The results were as follows:
Shadow Kris: 21 adds plus weapon (dagger 2d+6) CON: 22
Shadow Syl: 17 adds plus weapon (staff 2d, dagger 2d+3) CON: 21
Shadow Kel: 14 adds plus weapon (sword 3d+5, cbow 5d) CON: 14
Shadow Dal: 19 adds plus weapon (axe 4d) CON: 24
The Shadow Creatures won rounds 1-6, but the combat point difference was not enough to overcome the PCs armor. The only damage dealt to either side was due to spite points.]
(Rounds 7-11)
The three Shadow Creatures suddenly pull back and stop fighting. The party, already worn down from the battle, take the opportunity to catch their breath.
“What are they doing?” Kelseen asks.
“If I had to guess,” Dalen responds, “I’d say they’re strategizing.”
After a moment, all three Shadows turn as one and advance upon Dalen.
“And apparently their strategy is to attack me!” the dwarf concludes.
The creatures take a few swings at Kel, Syl, and Kris in their effort to get past. The three do their best to halt the monsters’ progress, but the monsters eventually break through. They attack Dalen full force, diverting only occasionally to fend off blows from the others. Due to his small stature and fighting skills, Dalen is able to duck under and avoid many of the blows. Those that he can’t avoid are either blocked by his shield or bounce off his armor.
“Syl, cast a spell already!” Kelseen orders. The wizard responds with Vorpal Blade, effectively sharpening Kel’s and Kris’ weapons. Even with the improved weapons, however, they only inflict minor damage and are unable to stop the Shadow creatures. The two parties go back and forth with neither really gaining any significant ground. [Once again Shadows win every round, but cannot deal enough damage offset armor bonuses. All damage is due to spite.]
(Rounds 12-14)
Having no luck against the bulky and heavily armored dwarf, the Shadow Creatures turn their attention back to seemingly easier prey: Sylralei. Before any of the party realizes what is going on, Shadow Dalen hits Syl in the side with his axe and Shadow Syl thrusts her staff into the real elf’s chest. Syl is thrown back against a wall sore from the attack, but still in one piece. [Syl had to take 5x more damage than the other characters (based on the monsters skill rolls). That calculated to 7 CON points, exactly the number of points blocked by her armor and magic cloak]
“Okay! I’ve had about enough of you,” Syl yells as she charges Shadow Syl. The first swing of her quarterstaff lands a solid blow in the upper right thigh. As Shadow Syl attempts to parry with her own staff, Syl thrust the end her staff into the enemy’s gut. The creature doubles over from the strike and Syl brings the end of her staff down hard on the back of its neck. Shadow Syl collapses to the ground defeated and dissipates back into the surrounding darkness. [This final hit was actually only 1 spite damage, the monster’s CON having been slowly whittled down during the battle.]
Looking up, Sylralei sees that her companions have the remaining two Shadow Creatures occupied. Kelseen and real Kris have surrounded Shadow Kris and Dalen is facing off one-on-one with his shadow-self. As Kris parries with his own shadow Kelseen pokes it in the back. When it spins to face Kel, Kris drives his dirk in between its shoulder blades. Working together, the pair soon dispatches the Dark Kris and sends it back into the cave’s shadows.
Meanwhile, Syl comes up behind the creature battling Dalen. Catching the monster unawares, she drives the butt of her quarterstaff into its back, sending it toppling forward in Dalen’s direction. The dwarf steps aside and gives the shadow a chop with his axe as it passes. The thing goes down and both dwarf and elf pounce on it and send it back where it came from.
[In round 14 the PCs finally win a combat 95-58. With the 37 point difference and spite damage, the two remaining shadow creatures are defeated.
Character stats after the battle are as follows:
Kris: 10 CON Syl: 11 CON 15 WIZ Kel: 6 CON Dal: 8 CON]
Sylralei leans on her staff for support as she catches her breath. She looks over to Kelseen who is bent over, hands on knees and breathing heavily. “Kel, you missed me.”
“Don’t . . . start!” Kel warns between breaths.
“Not to be critical, but have you hit anything with that crossbow?” asks Kristopher who is seated with his back against the cave wall. Dalen, who is leaning against the wall next to him can only shake his head.
“Go easy on her, boys,” Syl chides. “Actually, I’m touched that she couldn’t find it in her heart to harm me, even if it was just a monster that looked like me.”
“I see you had no problem blasting my shadow,” Kelseen points out.
“No, I didn’t,” Syl agrees, quickly adding as a wide smile crosses her countenance, “And it was kinda fun!”
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