Trapped!

The Pursuit
After the undead goblins burned down the village where we took refuge, we were forced to flee once again. We struck out westward, hoping to reach the ruins of Heron Hall. The army of the Undying took up the pursuit, snapping at our heals as we retreated,

We soon found our retreat blocked by a deep gorge. Ranging north and south, we finally found a narrow bridge across the chasm. Rapidly we tried crossing. Soon, however, the Undying were upon us. We tried to hold the enemy off while the main body retreated. The Undying pressed us relentlessly and we were forced across the bridge. Finally, one of their sorcerers teleported some monstrosities across the chasm, blocking our retreat. We could no longer reach Heron Hall!

Instead, we turned north. God was with us, and we soon stumbled upon refuge - a castle! It was built to defend the little monastery of St. Kessog. We quickly garrisoned the fort and prepared for the onslaught of the Undying.

A Call for Help
Before the enemy hordes surrounded us, I Rufus sent out messengers to the north, south, and west. Their mission was to find and bring back aid to our beleaguered garrison.

I was later to learn that one of the messengers, Brother Anselm, reached a settlement upon one of the northern islands. He pleaded with the local Earl, but he complained that they had their own problems to deal with. The next day, Anselm had direct evidence of the Earl's concern. Raiders struck the castle!

They landed in dragon-like ships and swarmed ashore, killing, burning, and pillaging as they went. Using some arcane magic, they blasted open the stout doors of the castle and rushed in. Their charge pushed us from the walls, and they gained access to the castle. However, they did not finish off the defenders but instead headed for the treasure room. They grabbed what loot they could and tried to escape. This gave the defenders time to regroup and counterattack. They hacked down the raiders and recovered the treasure, or at least most of it.

Some of the raiders escaped, however, and rushed to their boats. They shoved off and glided out to sea, laughing and singing raucously, unconcerned for their comrades left behind nor for the death and devastation they inflicted upon an innocent populace.

OOC Notes

• The first part relays the events of our January HFS day. The scenario was a bridge battle. The Undying steamrolled over us, and Cameron broke the scenario with his teleport spell.
• The second part is an account of one of the scenarios at Triune Shores' January day battle. Lore-wise, Rufus is trapped in Castle Kessog, so it did not make sense for him to be at Triune Shores. Thus, I created a different Warden character to represent my presence there. The castle battle involved the raiders trying to steal treasure (spell balls) from a pile in the middle of the castle. We ran the scenario twice - in both cases the raiders only managed to get 1 ball.

Burning Down the House

The Retreat
After escaping from the Undying ambush, I Rufus led our scouting party back to the main body of the Wardens. A horde of the enemy pursued us; we had no choice to retreat, They hounded us relentlessly, but we soon spied a small village. We decided to make a stand there.

Defense of the Village
Our vanguard found that the village was inhabited. They urged the villagers to flee, and covered their escape. As the rest of the Wardens arrived, we took up defensive positions.

The Undying, led by a pack of undead goblins, rushed to the attack.

From https://img1.cgtrader.com/items/304636/5b89385da8/
3drt-undeand-goblins-modular-kit-3d-model-low-poly-animated-rigged.jpg

Our bows were true and our blades were stout; we cut them down like chaff. Rotting, fetid corpses were strewn across the battlefield.

But the Undying were not finished. They regrouped and advanced again, this time with better order. Yet they could not penetrate our stout defenses. Again and again, we threw them back. Then we heard cries of alarm from the rear.

"They're flanking us!"

I turned to see what was happening. A band of the undead goblins had sneaked around unnoticed and were rushing to the village, armed with torches. They planned to smoke us out! I gathered a small party and rushed to the flank. We intercepted the goblins and cut them down, just short of the flammable huts of the peasant villagers.

Then I heard another cry of alarm - this time from the front line. Ekthor was leading a fresh attack. His brutal blade was cutting a swathe through our ranks. I rushed back to the front to confront this menace. We were able to steady our lines and drive him back.

That's when I heard the roar of a fire. The village was ablaze!

Some of the goblins had gotten through and set fire to the huts. Some of the Wardens cut down the goblins, but it was too late. The dry thatch caught easily and allowed the fire to spread quickly. We had no choice to abandon the village!

There was one blessing to the fire, however. The smoke and flame covered our escape. We continued our retreat, with our destination being the ruins of Heron Hall, the former home of the Wardens.

Game Notes

• This is an account of the second part of December's lore battle.
• This time, Ferrum and I (the Wardens) tried to defend a village from Artemis, Xhorja, and Beast (the Undying). Essentially, it is a timed ring the bell, with only one bell (the village). The Wardens had to prevent the Undying from reaching the bell within the time limit. Alas, the sneaky goblin (Artemis) flanked us for the win.

Escape!

Upon receiving a report of the defeat of the Witch Fynders at Cul Cullach's Fangs and the subsequent advance of the Undying, I Rufus led a force of the Wardens to Ember Shoals. I was joined with some volunteers from the Sentinels.

The Ambush
As we made our way into the interior, I went forward with a small scouting party. As we were returning to the main body, a swarm of undead abominations ambushed us.

From http://www.playbuzz.com/zaviorwright10/would-you-survive-the-zombie-apocalypse

We were running a veritable gauntlet. We were able to hack and slash our way through the initial attackers, but then we ran into the enemy force's leader. Swathed in black, with skeletal features, he appeared a formidable foe. As he eyed me, he spoke in a gravelly voice.

"So Brother Rufus, it is time for you to die, and then to join the Undying!"

I recognized the voice!

"Brother Ekthor?" It sounded like a former member of the Wardens who had split off with the Witch Fynders!

"Brother no longer. I now serve the Undying!" With that, he rushed me.

Back and forth we went, our blades flying faster than the eye could see. Thrust, parry, slash - our battle raged, but nether could gain an advantage. Then I heard a call of warning. Some of the Undying were coming up behind me. I turned just in time to dodge a thrust to my back. The blade grazed me, drawing blood. I was now hemmed in by the enemy. It looked like Ekthor's prediction would prove true. Suddenly, the enemy froze in place.

"Let's get out of here!" called Ferrum, one of the volunteers from the Sentinels. He had used his magical power to freeze the Undying. I didn't need a second warning; I rushed down the path toward our main force.

Game Notes

• This was part 1 of our December HFS scenario. We did not have enough people for my intended scenario (which I've forgotten) so I improvised.
• In this scenario, the good guys had to run a gauntlet of bad guys and get to a spawn point at the other end. Once they succeeded, they could go back and try again. We timed the scenario and counted how many times the good guys got across. 
• My intention was to run the scenario twice - each team would have a chance. Highest score would win. We only ran it once so I called it for the good guys.