This is the third post of my new solo campaign using Strider Mode for The One Ring™ roleplaying game, published by Free League Publishing. It is unofficial fan-made content and not affiliated with or endorsed by Free League Publishing or Middle-earth Enterprises. All trademarks and copyrights remain the property of their respective owners. Shared freely, not for sale.
You can find a list of all posts pertaining to this campaign on my page The One Ring™ 2nd Edition.
THE ALLIES FORM A BAND
To start my first adventure, I decided to make Frár I, Son of Felgrom an Ally to Náli using some of the solo tools from Moria™: Through the Doors of Durin, starting with an Ally Card.
Since Náli and Frár are a Band, I used the Moria Mission Worksheet, downloadable from the Free League website.
Notice the Band is small and they have a medium Burden. It's only medium because I decided that their War Gear was more like Prepared than Geared for War. They will be going on a spy mission before the reclaiming begins.
I also gave them a Shared Calling: Reclaimers. This gives me Inspiration when using the Expertise Disposition. A Hunt Threshold of 18 was set because on the first leg of their Journey toward the Greydelve they will be primarily travelling through the Northern Dalelands, which I would classify as Border Lands.
They have a shared pool of Hope, which is 5 points higher than what Náli's Hope would be on his own.
Since there is only 1 Ally, I thought of simply combining the graphics so that the Ally Card took up all of the space where the Mission Roster is located. Instead, I opted to keep them separate for now. Maybe I'll change my mind later. Who knows.
THE ADVENTURE BEGINS!
ᛒᚨᚱᚨᛉ ᚠᛖᛚᚨᚴ ᚾᚨᛚᛁ
BARÂZ-FELAK NÁLI
The Sacred Expeditions of Náli the Red-hewer
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4th of September, 2964. We march out of Erebor with the mercenaries. A few short hours upon the road. Frár the Beardless halts us in the rich green fields of the Northern Dalelands. Orders given.
Some chosen as spies to go in twos, or alone. They must seek the land ahead, even unto Greydelve in the Narrows of the Grey Mountains. They are bidden to move in secret. Keep clear of Elves. Beware the Enemy’s eye. They are to return by November’s first day or sooner. The place: the hill-ruins above the Forest River, West Gap. Frár calls it Keldufast, the River-Fort. A council of war shall be held there, if tidings are brought. If none return… then the host will march. The siege will begin without them.
I have gone with Frár II, son of Felgrom. He wears furs, and is gifted in healing with herbs and salves. Grandson to our captain and my friend.
Winter is but a few short months ahead. Bitter and hard is the cold of the North to all. Yet Frár has waited long, and sees an advantage. He would strike when the Enemy is least prepared. Orcs, and worse, we will take unawares.
If fortune is kind, the citadel may be ours again by the 28th of October [1], and winter’s hand need not aid us. Then perchance Yule shall be brighter for our folk… if we endure to see it.
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[1] Travel Goals: 39 days to Greydelve (arrive October 13), 7 days inside the citadel (leave Oct 20), and 2 days travel to the meeting point (October 22) = 48 days in total. After that, 2 more days at the war council and 2 days march to the fortress. In this scenario, the reclaiming may start as early as October 28 in hopes to be wrapped up before the coldest months of winter.
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At mid-day we parted from the army. Packs heavy upon our backs. Food enough for a few days, hunting anticipated afterwards.
Not long into the afternoon, after a long march, young Frár fell behind [2]. I went to him. He spied a way ‘round the tilled field, muck clinging to our boots. He said it was a short-cut [3]. The path was hidden, narrow, full of holes and stones [4]. We stumbled many times, nearly cast to the ground [5]. Yet we stumbled forward, hearts set firm on our task, though sore of leg [6].
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Journey from Erebor to the Grey Mountains Narrows
[2] Marching Test: MANOEUVRE roll for the Band (TN 16). Failed. Lose (1d) on TRAVEL roll.
[3] TRAVEL roll Failed; travel event will take place 1 hex away in hex 2. Journey Event: Made a Favoured Feat die roll due to Border Lands; rolled a 9 (Short-cut). Note: See the Journey Log at the end of the post for a visual.
[4] Event Detail: Success die result 2 (Secluded Path).
[5] Failed the EXPLORE roll to navigate the wilds. Fatigue Points Gained: 1.
[6] RALLY Roll for the Band: TN 17. Failed. Frár becomes Fatigued.
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7th day of travel. Near the edge of the Narrows, close to Mirkwood [7]. We came upon a great lizard—basilisk, Fágwyrm to the Northmen, Sarnlug to the Elves. Spawn of the Enemy’s first forging—false drakes, yet deadly. I had read of them in old tales and seen their likeness in craft, but this was my first sighting. Boar-sized it was, but stretched in length, its hide dark, its underbelly burning yellow [8].
It struck at scouts, farmers of the Dalelands, who sought knowledge of the dark places to guard their lands. One man lay on the ground, paralysed. The creature threatened to devour him. The others strove to save their companion.
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[7] Marching Test: MANOEUVRE roll for the Band (TN 16). Succeeded. Gain (1d) on TRAVEL roll. I spent 1 Hope to gain (2d) (Strider inspired) on TRAVEL roll. Passed with 2 Success icons, an extraordinary success! The travel event will take place 5 hexes away in hex 7. The Band is down to 15 Hope.
[8] Journey Event: Made a Favoured Feat die roll due to Border Lands: rolled a 6 (Mishap), but decided instead to go with (Despair) to make things interesting. I wanted a Noteworthy Encounter. Event Detail: I chose Servants of the Enemy to incorporate an encounter with a Basilisk!
For the Basilisk stats, I went to The Heart of the Wild supplement, p. 111, published by Cubicle7 and updated its Fell abilities. Here's what I came up with:
BASILISK
Fierce, Hungry
Attribute Level 6
Endurance 40, Might 1, Hate 3, Parry 4, Armour 4
Combat Proficiencies: Bite 3 (4/14, Pierce and Poison), Rend 3 (4/16, Seize)
Fell Abilities:
– Hatred (Elves). When fighting Elves, all the creature’s rolls are Favoured.
– Horrible Strength. If the creature scores a Piercing Blow, spend 1 Hate to make the target’s Protection roll Ill-favoured.
– Thick Hide. Spend 1 Hate point to gain (2d) on a Protection roll.
– Venomous Breath. By spending a point of Hate, the serpent breathes out a cloud of poison. All player-heroes engaged with the creature must make a Protection test or be poisoned.
Basilisk Poison: A character poisoned by a Basilisk is slowly paralysed and falls to the ground after a number of rounds equal to his Strength or Heart rating, whichever is lower. The level of Endurance loss is considered grievous (see p. 134 of the Core Rules). If not healed after one day, the character may make a Valour roll. If the roll succeeds, the poison wears off. Otherwise, the character is permanently frozen and will wither and die within a few months (Elrond Halfelven, the master of Rivendell, is said to know of an antidote).
With all my strength and wrath I hewed at the scaled beast with my mattock. Blows glanced off its thick hide. Useless [9].
The lizard raged. It spewed a cloud of poison. Bitter stench. I covered my face, flailed my arms, drove the vapours away [10].
The noise carried. Wolves stirred at the forest’s edge. Their howls came—long, threatening [11].
The basilisk lunged. Its jaws closed upon my arm. Pain seared me. I stumbled, near falling. Yet my mail held firm. Its teeth did not pierce. My arm was spared [12].
For the Basilisk stats, I went to The Heart of the Wild supplement, p. 111, published by Cubicle7 and updated its Fell abilities. Here's what I came up with:
BASILISK
Fierce, Hungry
Attribute Level 6
Endurance 40, Might 1, Hate 3, Parry 4, Armour 4
Combat Proficiencies: Bite 3 (4/14, Pierce and Poison), Rend 3 (4/16, Seize)
Fell Abilities:
– Hatred (Elves). When fighting Elves, all the creature’s rolls are Favoured.
– Horrible Strength. If the creature scores a Piercing Blow, spend 1 Hate to make the target’s Protection roll Ill-favoured.
– Thick Hide. Spend 1 Hate point to gain (2d) on a Protection roll.
– Venomous Breath. By spending a point of Hate, the serpent breathes out a cloud of poison. All player-heroes engaged with the creature must make a Protection test or be poisoned.
Basilisk Poison: A character poisoned by a Basilisk is slowly paralysed and falls to the ground after a number of rounds equal to his Strength or Heart rating, whichever is lower. The level of Endurance loss is considered grievous (see p. 134 of the Core Rules). If not healed after one day, the character may make a Valour roll. If the roll succeeds, the poison wears off. Otherwise, the character is permanently frozen and will wither and die within a few months (Elrond Halfelven, the master of Rivendell, is said to know of an antidote).
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With all my strength and wrath I hewed at the scaled beast with my mattock. Blows glanced off its thick hide. Useless [9].
The lizard raged. It spewed a cloud of poison. Bitter stench. I covered my face, flailed my arms, drove the vapours away [10].
The noise carried. Wolves stirred at the forest’s edge. Their howls came—long, threatening [11].
The basilisk lunged. Its jaws closed upon my arm. Pain seared me. I stumbled, near falling. Yet my mail held firm. Its teeth did not pierce. My arm was spared [12].
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[9] Close Combat Round 1: To begin, I choose Forward stance gain (1d); rolled a 13, a miss!
[10] The creature spends a point of Hate (down to 2) and breathes a poisonous cloud. I roll a Protection test and get a 19 with 2 Success icons—an extraordinary success. However, I rolled an Eye.
[11] I roll a Feat die on the Ill-fortune table and get a 1: Unwanted Attention. I determine this means that a pack of wolves by the edge of the forest hear the combat and start to howl.
[12] The basilisk attacks with a bite and rolls an Eye with 1 Success icon. This inflicts 4 damage. I choose Heavy Blow for the icon, taking 6 extra damage due to its Attribute Level. That’s 10 damage in one bite! I choose to be knocked back and take 5 damage instead. My current Endurance is now 24 and my Load with Fatigue is 13. Because I rolled an Eye, it is also a Piercing Blow. I choose to have the Basilisk spend another point of Hate (down to 1) forcing me to make my Protection test Ill-favoured. I get a 26 with 1 Success icon anyway; easily passed!
It struck again ere I found footing. Bit my torso. Thrashed to rend my armour. Tore—if only a little [13].
[13] Close Combat Round 2: Because I was knocked back, the Basilisk attacks again while I recover my position. This time it tries to Rend and rolls a 17 against my Parry of 14—a hit. I take 4 damage, dropping my Endurance to 20.
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It struck again ere I found footing. Bit my torso. Thrashed to rend my armour. Tore—if only a little [13].
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[13] Close Combat Round 2: Because I was knocked back, the Basilisk attacks again while I recover my position. This time it tries to Rend and rolls a 17 against my Parry of 14—a hit. I take 4 damage, dropping my Endurance to 20.
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I tried to defend with my mattock, all caution. I swung—and missed [14]. The great lizard battered me, seized my body in its jaws. Mattock useless. All that was left—frenzied attempts to break free [15].
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[14] Close Combat Round 3: I choose Defensive stance, lose (1d), and attack with my Mattock. I spend another point of Hope to gain (1d) (down to 13 Hope). I roll an 8. A miss.
[15] The basilisk decides to continue to Rend, but rolls only 2 Success Dice due to my Defensive stance. Unfortunately, it rolls an 18 with 1 Success icon. This time is does 4 damage plus it Seizes me! I am down to 16 Endurance, approaching my 13 Load with Fatigue. Because I am seized, I can only brawl the creature now in Forward stance. I must get a Success icon to break free from the monster’s jaws.
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From deep within I willed to endure. Drew my dagger, drove it into the beast’s snout, smote the hilt with my fist. Enough to weary it—enough to make it loose me. Yet the hide would not break [16]. No speed left in me to evade. Bitten again—shoulder. Mail held. I tired [17]. Knew not how long I may stand against the basilisk.
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[16] Close Combat Round 4: I must brawl in Forward stance and gain (1d). I spend another point of Hope (down to 12) to roll the Feat die and 4 Success Dice and attack with my dagger. I get a 32 with a 10 on the Feat die (a Piercing Blow) and 2 Success icons. Wow! This means I spend 1 Success icon to break out of the creature’s mouth using my dagger and fists and the other icon to inflict my Strength rating of 7 with a Heavy Blow, causing a total of 9 damage! The creature’s Endurance drops to 31. The basilisk uses its last Hate point to trigger its Thick Hide ability to gain (2d) on its Protection roll. It easily passes with a total of 27 and 1 Success icon. With 0 Hate, the creature is now Weary.
[17] The basilisk gains (1d) and attacks with a bite using 4 Success Dice and rolls a 19 with a 10 on the Feat die (a Piercing Blow). It inflicts another 4 damage, dropping my Endurance to 12 (below my 13 Load with Fatigue) so I am now Weary. However, I make a Protection test and pass with a 23 and 2 Success icons anyway.
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In the end, I swung my mattock at its neck, with care and guarded stance, hoping for a clean stroke. The blade found its mark, cleaving true, and the beast bled swiftly, falling to the earth in a heap, twisting and twitching. I beheld its death [18].
No more travel that day; it was time for rest and healing. I returned to Frár and the men from Dale, to recount the tale. Lodged with them through the night, taking shelter in an old farmhouse upon a hill for safety [19].
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[18] Close Combat Round 5: I decide to remain in Defensive stance, lose (1d), to attack with my mattock. I spend a point of Hope (down to 12) to gain (1d). I roll a Gandalf rune and nothing else! I inflict 7 damage, dropping the creature to 24 Endurance and I have scored a Piercing Blow. The creature rolls a 10 on its Protection test, takes a Wound and dies!
[19] Because I overcame the Journey Event successfully, I do not suffer any additional consequences. However, I do gain 2 Fatigue Points, bringing my total Load to 15 with Fatigue. RALLY roll for the Band (TN 18). Failed. Frár goes from Fatigued to Faltering, so I check the Faltering box on the Mission Roster.
The Band takes a Prolonged Rest with the men from Dale in a comfortable and safe house, and Náli recovers all lost Endurance and is no longer Weary. Yet Frár remains Fatigued after unchecking Faltering.
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17th of September. Far into East Gap. The hills grew strange and perilous. Mists rose from the clefts; the wind cried in the stones. We sought the way but found it not, and dread fell upon us [20].
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[20] Marching Test: MANOEUVRE roll for the Band (TN 16). Failed, lose (1d) on TRAVEL roll. TRAVEL roll: Succeeded with 1 Success icon. We move another 4 hexes. Event takes place in hex 11. Journey Event: Rolled a Feat die for Wild Lands. Result: 2 (Ill Choices). Event Detail: Rolled a Success die. Result: 2 (Disorienting Environs). I decided that this meant there were mists and winds that were causing disorientation. Failed the EXPLORE roll with an Eye. Consequences: Gain 1 Shadow point (Dread); gain 2 Fatigue points (now at 17 Load with Fatigue). I also raise Eye Awareness by 2 for rolling the Eye and for the Shadow point gain (raising it to 3).
To Be Continued...
JOURNEY LOG
CURRENT MISSION WORKSHEET
CURRENT ALLY CARD
CURRENT CHARACTER SHEET
If I have made a mistake somewhere, please let me know. I am just learning how to play the game using Strider Mode and combining elements from the Moria™ solo tools. There's a lot to it! But, I really love what the designers have done. There will be loads more to add when Náli and Frár actually go to battle together and the Clash rules are used.
Leave a comment and let me know how you're enjoying the adventure so far!
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