Fyn is gone. Panicked beyond belief, our resident wizard teleports away from the scene to seek refuge in the comfort of familiarity. This leaves our party to fend off a giant ice worm and a raving ghost dwarf without the aid of his powerful spells.
Fobias and Trace square off against Karivek. Over the course of the adventure, their gear has improved to a point where they needn’t worry about his incorporeal form. Every swing has a chance to do full damage, and the ectoplasm begins to fly as they connect with their blows.
Krask and Barnaby continue their attention on the larger foe – the ice worm. Its breath weapon dealt significant damage, but it takes more than a little cold air to best this party. The only major problem is the difficult terrain, meaning the group has to be very intentional about their movements lest they incur an attack of opportunity.
Despite its chitinous hide, the worm goes down quickly. This party has some incredible damage-dealing capabilities, and it shows in this fight. Unfortunately, the death throes of this worm cause shards of ice and pulpy balls of flesh to explode across the mountain ledge. No one is safe.
Nobody except Barnaby and Krask, of course, who have overpowered feats to avoid half damage.
As Fobias and Trace finish off Karivek, the ghost dissolves, becoming one with the swirling snow. A half minute later, Fyn reappears and gets caught up on the action. A bit of healing is in order before the party gathers Karivek’s bones and prepares to head back to the cabin. Again, the party hears that terrifying howl echoing off the mountains.
Howl in the Wind
Fyn can’t teleport everyone at once, so he plans to take half of the party a few minutes north of the cabin before coming back for the rest. This leaves Krask and Fobias on the cold ledge, waiting for Fyn to return.
While they wait, Krask suddenly senses danger and leaps out of the way just in time. A huge hulking creature flies by, narrowly missing with its claws. Fobias catches a glimpse of what looks to be the backside of a polar bear, except that there are charred, humanoid stumps for its hind legs.
When Fyn returns, Krask is in a panic. They describe the brief encounter to the wizard, who concludes that they are under assault from a wendigo. Without wasting more time, they teleport back to the group.
The party hastily rushes back to the cabin as the winter storm escalates to a full-blown blizzard. The cold is beginning to make its presence felt, and it’s a cold welcome indeed.
Once they arrive at the cabin, Silas’ form reappears. Trace takes out Karivek’s remains and presents them to the dwarven ghost. At that moment, the ghost of Karivek rises up and the two brothers engage in heated exchange about the past. It appears that time can’t heal ALL wounds, and the dwarves begin scuffling.
That’s when splinters of wood erupt from the cabin as the wendigo reveals itself. Wendigo have the ability to walk on the wind and manipulate the weather, making it none too easy for this creature to beat the party back to the Vekker cabin. It swoops off the cabin and engages the party while the brothers quarrel.
Barnaby and Fobias close in on the beast, with Barnaby making use of his flying boots. But they may have underestimated the wendigo’s abilities, as Barnaby can’t dodge the incoming bite as he approaches. The halfling is in dire need of healing immediately.
Fyn, trying to save Barnaby’s life, casts invisibility on his friend. Normally, this would be a high IQ play, but the wendigo has other plans. Instead of turning their attention on Fobias, the wendigo stays locked on Barnaby. They have Blindsight.
Is this the last chapter in the Ballad of Barnaby Daryngton? What role did the wendigo play in the Vekker’s story? Will the party pick up some warm woolen mittens?