Fat Rat Games

In the prior couple of sessions, the party had returned to Winterhaven to deal with the Cult of Orcus and the Bloodreavers. Kidnappings had continued, including six children. Our heroes had successfully attacked the main Bloodreaver camp, rescued some villagers, and returned back to Winterhaven. They set out for the Keep on the Shadowfell the next morning. Arriving at the ruins of the keep, they dispatched the hobgoblin guards and headed down some stairs to encounter and defeat additional hobgoblins. Exploring the complex below, they encountered various cultists, quickly dispatching some in their sleep and fighting others. We pick up with the search for the children and the attempt to defeat the cult after this fight with the cultists after the break.

When we last left the Vale’s heroes, they were on their way back to Winterhaven after having dealt with Talavi and the Winter Fey invasion. Word had reached them that things in Winterhaven had gotten worse, with more villagers having been taken (presumably by the Bloodreavers or the Cult of Orcus). So our heroes were traveling with all due haste when they came upon the scene of less a fight and more of a massacre on the King’s Road. Following a bloody trail and odd insect-like tracks, they came upon a “hive.” Investigating invisibly, Gandave entered and was quickly swarmed by kruthiks. This is where we will pick up after the break.

A bit of housekeeping details, as noted in a prior post, Evelyn is no longer able to join us. So Sulrinn has left the party to pursue her own agenda. We also have a new player, Adam, who has joined us. He is playing Aetris, a tiefling paladin, and having heard of the party’s deeds and Winterhaven’s need, has just tracked down the party.

See what’s become of me
While I looked around for my possibilities

—from A Hazy Shade of Winter by Simon & Garfunkel

D&D and time has always had a bit of an odd relationship. There is the old joke about thirty seconds of combat taking three hours to play through while a three hour hike is covered in thirty seconds of game play. Fifteen minute work days followed by 23.75 hours of rest. Spell durations. Days for crafting items or training or what have you. Lots of things about how long it takes to do things or how long things last…mostly in terms of the players characters. None of that is the subject of this post. Instead, below the break, let’s talk about time in terms of the flow of time in a game, the possibilities it engenders, and what may become of a campaign because of it.