The Battle of Hollin Gate, Part 3 The Finale

 The explosive and shocking finale of The Battle of Hollin Gate!

 

Mortimer launches another Lightning spell on the gate.

Lady Elerina uses her Stun spell to keep Chaos warriors and Beastmen from attacking Mortimer who is causing steady damage to the gate.

Mortimer: *winks at Elerina* We make a good team, dont we?

Lady Elerina: With victory or death in the balance... I will permit your possibly inappropriate speech towards my person.

Mortimer: No. I only meant that we make a good spell casting team...

Lady Elerina: Anais told you me of your easily befuddled ways, Mortimer. *laughs* Sorry couldnt help it. Ok, no more distractions. Lightning blast that gate to oblivion!

Mortimer: Ohhh... ha ha. Yes mi'lady! Oh that naughty Anais!

Paladin Cosette intercepts an ape Beastman that was bounding for Tuddles.

And with a great thwack of his tentacles, Nyarlathotep slays the Watcher in the Water. Tuddles gasps as his pet is brought low. Goodbye Watcher... we hardly knew ye.

And two more Night Gaunts arrive from out of the gate. Which brings a total of 3 Night Gaunts on the board. But where is the third one?

Ah, there it is! It drops down on Poppy! And wounds her!

She makes a Resolve roll and gets away from the Gaunt. And just in time, Sir Haystacks jumps in to tank it! Haystacks tells Poppy to stay back but she moves forwards instead! What does she think she is doing? 

Poppy heroically runs for the gate! Perhaps no one will notice a small hobbit who has set out to achieve the impossible. Poppy's time to shine has come and destiny calls! Hobbits may be small in stature but their time to show their mettle has come! A light shines from the sky and a choir of angelic voices is heard.

Poppy: Here I come, gate! I will destroy you! With only my little wooden staff with an acorn on top of it!

Sir Haystacks: Come back here, Hobbit! I saved your life and now Im responsible for it! Get back here! *tries to go after her but has to defend himself from the Night Gaunt*

Nyarlathotep puts fear into Shrub Beard's mind! Its a vision of a forest fire! With smoke, and heat, and burning leaves everywhere! Shrub Beard cant help but flee, which leaves Anais by herself!

Anais: Noooo... Come back, Shrub Beard! First the Watcher is slain, now Shrub Beard is gone...  Im all alone! Nevermind... I will fight on! Come at me mindless terror beast, if you dare!

But for all her bravery, and even with her magic sword... Anais falls to Nyarlathotep the Crawling Chaos...

Lady Elerina sees her bodyguard has fallen but its no time for sorrow. Not yet. She must fight on! They can still win this battle. She has to protect Mortimer. His Lightning blasts can bring the gate down.

Lord Mysterion vs Lady Elerina.

Lord Mysterion: I will break you, she-elf...

Lady Elerina: Thats Lady She-Elf to you!

Elerina casts an Intimidate spell on Mysterion... and succeeds!

Lord Mysterion routs off the board into the gate itself!

"Where you going dude? Im going home, Donnie. Phone's ringing dude. Thanks Donnie."

On the left side, a Night Gaunt kills another Azer, which leaves one Azer left on that side.

On the right side, the Azer Chief is the last Azer on that side. He faces the other Night Gaunt, but not before he lobs a throwing axe at the gate and damages it! The gate is down to 3 wounds!

Cosette intercepts a Beastman headed for Mortimer.  Cosette is the star player when it comes to intercepts this game. She looks back at Tuddle, hopes he will be ok without her for a bit.

Tuddle makes it to the gate at the same time that Poppy does! Can the Hobbits bring down the gate?

Tuddle: Oh no! This gate is too strong for me to destroy! This is as far as my imagination took me. Can you do anything Poppy?

Poppy: *grunts* Uh.... no. Nothing doing. Just keep trying Tuddle!

Cosette finally defeats her enemy and rushes to the Hobbits. Surely she can do it! There is still time.

Cosette: *whispers a mantra to herself* Time is the substance of which I am made. Time is a river which sweeps me along, but I am the river; it is a tiger which destroys me but I am the tiger; it is a fire which consumes me but I am the fire.

But she also fails to damage the gate! Time is running out!

Mortimer casts another Lightning and damages it! One more point of damage is needed!

Final turn is here! The Azer Chief also arrives. Together with all these heroes here, someone will do it, right? With Baron Orson still fighting at the Mausoleum, and Sir Haystacks fighting a Night Gaunt... this is everyone that can destroy the gate.

Mortimer: Ok everyone heave!

Chief Azer: Blast it to bits!

Cosette: For Rohan!

Hobbits: For the Shire!

But a Night Gaunt lands on poor Poppy and claws her. As she feels unconsciousness approaching, she forces herself to stay awake. Not yet, she thinks! I have to know how this ends! She turns her head and watches...

The Azer Chief is now in combat with the Night Gaunt.

Nyarlathotep slays Mortimer before he can cast another Lightning. Then crushes Tuddles with a smack of his tentacles. This place is a hotbed of tragedy!

The Azer Chief kills the Night Gaunt!

With the final two attacks, Cosette and the Azer Chief make their final rolls...

The Azer Chief fails.

Cosette fails.

And then Poppy slips away into unconsciousness. She thinks to herself, "So this is how the world ends. Bye!"

And a tidal wave of Mythos creatures pour out of the gate of Hollin! The game ends... in defeat!

"I have seen enough to know that I have seen too much."

~~~

Poppy wakes up in a bed! Where is she? Lady Elerina stands at the foot of her bed and gives her a warm welcome. At Poppy's side is another bed and in it... is Anais, who also wakes up. Mortimer walks into the room with bandages over a broken arm. 

Poppy: Where are we?

Mortimer: Isenford in Rohan. After we lost the battle, we picked up our wounded and slain and ran out of there with Nyarlathotep and his creatures at our heels. Baron Orson carried Kipper's body instead of taking some treasure from the Mausoleum. Shrub Beard came back and carried you, Tuddles, and the Watcher in the Water, who had shrunk back to the size of a cuttlefish again. *seeing questions in Poppy's eyes* Im sorry... Tuddle has passed away. We lost Kipper too. And the Watcher in the Water.  You, Anais, and I barely survived. Luckily for us, Butters the Pony and the Beercart was passing by and gave us a lift. He is faster than anyone would have thought.

Mortimer: The Azer Chief and one other Azer are the last remaining Azers in our world. The Interdimensional Port Authority has put sanctions on all dimenionsal travel for now. Many malevolent entities from the Dark Dimension has entered our world. We failed our mission. But we can still lead a defense here in Rohan and in other places. We must unite our world and fight Nyarlathotep and all other Mythos.

The surviving Fellowship members hold a farewell ceremony for Tuddles, Kipper the Squire, and the Watcher in the Water.

Elerina's song:
"Across the evening sky, all the birds are leaving
But oh, how can they know, that it's time for them to go?
Before the winter fire, I will still be dreaming
I have no thought of time
For who knows where the time goes?
Who knows where the time goes?

Sad, deserted shore, your fickle friends are leaving
Ah, but then you know, that it's time for them to go
But I will still be here, I have no thought of leaving
For I do not count the time
For who knows where the time goes?
Who knows where the time goes?"

Cosette's song: (she carries Kipper's swords and sheds tears for her squire, then recites a Rohan dirge)
"Thou wert swift, O Morar! As swift as deer in the desert: terrible as a meteor in the night sky. Thy wrath was as the storm. Thy sword, as lightning in the field. Thy voice, as a stream after rainfall, like thunder on distant hills. Many fell by thy arm: they were consumed in the flames of thy wrath. But when thou didst return from war, how peaceful was thy brow.

Deep is the sleep of the dead, and lowly their pillow of dust. No more shall he hear thy voice, no more awake at thy call. When shall it be morn in the grave, to bid the slumberer awake?

 Narrow is the confines of thy dwelling now! dark the place of thine abode! With three steps I encompass your grave, O thou who wast once so great! Four stones, with their heads of moss, are the only memorial of thee. A leafless tree and long grass which whistles in the wind.

Why then dost thou awaken me, O breath of spring? Thy voice exclaiming, I refresh thee with heavenly dew; when the time of my decay is approaching, the storm is nigh that shall whither my leaves. Tomorrow the wanderer shall come, the traveler who beheld me in my glory: his eye shall seek me in the field, but me... he shall not find."

Poppy's song: (she has the Clam Shell of Grey Havens now)
"I wish today could be tomorrow,
The night is dark,
It just brings sorrow, let it wait.

Thank you for the days,
Those endless days, those sacred days you gave me.
I'm thinking of the days,
I won't forget a single day, believe me."

~~~

Lady Elerina: We lost the book-bearer. who now will carry the book?  *Elerina opens the book to find that the pages are blank* What was the password again? Anyone? 

Everyone tries and fails. Poppy remembers correctly (I solemnly swear I am up to no good), but still the book is blank. The password has changed somehow. Theories?
Poppy keeps the book for now.

So here is the new team: Lady Elerina is the new team leader, Baron Orson seems to have changed his narcissist ways and is second in command of the team. Kipper might not have been the Baron's squire, but his death seems to have affected him deeply. Oh and dont forget the Beercart and the 2 last Azers! The Fellowship also hope to receive reinforcements before the Mythos invasion of Rohan starts. The White Tower of Gondor has sent word that any survivors from another team sent to Eryn Vorn will probably join them. (Thats going to be Balthazar the Blue and his party of adventurers - Adeline, Prince Arioch, Mordecai the Butler, Lenore the Valkyrie, Malekith the Anti-Paladin, Karnov the Barbarian, and McGirk. And again, thats IF any survive their mission!)

What about Mortimer and Anais?

Mortimer is too wounded and will be recovering in the Undying Lands at the Istari Resort Hotel and Rehab. As he arrives there, he is greeted by a certain Grey Wizard named Olorin. And another eccentric Brown Wizard with an unkempt appearance. They talk of the olde days and Mortimer tells them of recent events in return. In time, who knows, Mortimer may return.

Anais also is heavily wounded and will rest in Rivendell Rehab with some elderly Elf celebrities who never left Middle Earth, namely Celeborn and Glorfindel. They give Anais history lessons and she teaches them new and hip lingo to use at inappropriate times.

~~~

Final thoughts:

I thought Tuddle would be the center of the new stories for this blog going forward. But the Dice Gods are fickle. Maybe its Poppy's story all along. She now holds the Book of Pickles and its map. With it, she is now the Quest-giver (or receiver).

Im glad Sir Haystacks survived. he is my favorite miniature of the team. Plus with Lady Elerina's bodyguard out of action, Haystacks will fill that role. Especially since Elerina made him a knight in their first battle - Redhorn Pass. Although, with the Baron's change of character, he might be my favorite ongoing character arc for this team. Which reminds me of Alpha's heroic turn in the Rogues of Rhun.

Oh and thanks to Joe P. and Steve B. for coming out and playing this game with me. Even though they lost, it was a cinematic and nail biting loss that could have been victory to the last die roll. Thanks fellas!

 So not sure what the next post will be. But the next big battle will be the Battle of the Brownlands with the Rogues of Rhun. And we will see if the House of Red Dragons will join up with them afterwards, since they are both in that neck of Middle Earth. 

Cheers,

Mar

The Battle of Hollin Gate, Part 2

 Here is Part 2 of the Battle of Hollin Gate!

 

Kipper squares off against the Night Gaunt and is wounded by its claws. Suddenly the Night Gaunt takes off and flies away.

Kipper: Im grateful its gone... but I wonder where its gone off to? I think those Azers need help. Maybe I will go there? I hope the Baron doesnt waste time looting the treasure in the Mausoleum until after the battle is won.

Suddenly, a Beastman appears. It makes some sonar pings and attacks Kipper!

Kipper: Its some sort of bat. Do you know what they call bats in Rohan? Bats? No. Chicken of the cave. Have at thee, fiend!

Bat Beastman: Ping!

The Azers on the right are attacked by fast moving Beastmen who use their Stampede ability to get into melee combat. One of the Azers takes the high ground.The Azer Chief slays a reptillian beastman.

On the right side, Beastmen stampede into the Azer lines as well. A walrus beastmen slays one of the Azers. Instead of dying, the fallen Azer is auto-teleported back to the Elemental Plane of Fire - banished for a set amount of time from entering our world. Those Dimensional Port Authority agents really enjoy deporting our Azer buddies dont they? Azers are just dreamers. Dreaming of a world where tropical fruity drinks can be had by all...

Deported Azer: Im ok, buddies! Continue on without me. Message me the outcome of the battle, wont you?

Azers: *shaka handsigns* See ya, brother. Tell em back home that our mercenary gig is doing well! Keep the Pina Coladas ready when we get back...

The bat beastman slays Kipper the Squire as Baron Orson is too late to help him.

Baron Orson: Just rest easy there, Kipper. Just hold on, buddy boy. You're gonna be ok.  I will deal with this batman and get you some help. 

Kipper: I'm gonna die! This blood's scaring the shit outta me, Baron! I'm gonna die, I know it!

Baron Orson: Oh, excuse me, I didn't realise you had a degree in medicine! Uh... ah... are you a doctor? Are you a doctor? Answer me please! Are you a doctor? Huh?

Kipper: No, I'm not.

Baron Orson: Ok! So you admit you don't know what you're talking about! So, when you're through giving me your amateur opinion, just lie back and listen to the news! I'm taking you back to the rendezvous, Mortimer's gonna get you a doctor... Poppy! Poppy's gonna fix you up, and you're gonna be ok! Now say it! You're gonna be ok! SAY IT! [sings] You're gonna be ok! Say the goddamn words, you're gonna be ok!

The Night Gaunt that flew away from Kipper is perched at the top of Stunties Bar & Grill. What is that thing up to?

Lord Mysterio and his Chaos gang are at the gate.

Lord Mysterio: Ok, fellas. Make sure no one gets past us trying to damage our gate.

At the center, its battle time! Cosette and Anais are engaged with Chaos warriors. Shrub Beard charges in from the other side and helps out.

Cosette the Paladin squares off with a Chaos warrior with a giant crab claw.

Anais attacks Lord Obscuro. She has her shiny new magic weapon. Lord Obscuro does have a nasty ability - Nullify. Its going to be a battle of magic weapon vs anti-magic power.

Tuddle leads his new pet and points at the Chaos Warriors near the gate.

Tuddle: Sick em, boy. Go get em!

Elerina and Mortimer pat Tuddle on the back.

Elerina: Like they say... "Speak softly and have a bigger pet monster."

Mortimer: Well done, lad. That'll show them to try to move in on our territory. And let me add my two cents...

Mortimer uses his Chain Lightning spell. He fires it off and it hits the Gate of Hollin damaging it, then it ricochets back and hits a Chaos warrior and incinerates it, then it ricochets one more time back at the gate and damages it again! The heroes cheer! The gate has now taken 2 Damage Points out of 10. Chain Lightning is a one use per game spell. But he also has a regular Lightning spell, not as powerful, but he will continue blasting that gate every turn with it.

But Lord Obscuro is still alive at the Summoning Circle which means the "big bad" has arrived and will be accompanied by some yet to be disclosed company.

Its Nyarlathotep the Crawling Chaos! Not only is he beastly in melee combat, he can Mass Siphon at range - damaging targets and sucking their life force and healing his own wounds. But also he is Omniscient! An ability that takes any one successful roll on the Hero turn and forces it to be rerolled but this time with a -1. Then on the Villain turn, it takes any one failed roll, and allows it to be rolled with a +1. 

Nyarlathotep: Pain has a face. Allow me to show it to you.  We'll tear your soul apart! Your suffering will be legendary, even in hell. 

Poppy: Eh... kind of wordy. Villainous threats are scarier when theyre more to the point. Just sayin'...

Tuddles: Oh noes?! Its him! I saw him in a dream. He has followed me into the real world! (see http://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2021/12/mythos-nightmare-creatures-and-hobbit.html) He has alot of friends on the other side. If they all come through the gate... our world is in trouble like we havent seen since the days of Sauron and Morgoth. We gotta destroy that gate at all costs!

We take you to the sky-cam brought to you by Bugman's Brew. 

Overview of the battle. 

"For relaxing times, make it Suntory time."

Now we take you back to the action...

Clash of the Titans. 

Suddenly these beasts with their big Health scores dont seem so big. Since they got lots of attacks and score double damage! And they both have Armor Piercing attacks so -1 To-Saves. This fight wont take long at all... Nyarlathotep has Omniscience though. The Watcher in the Water has... the power of love! For its new friends and its Hobbit master which he aims to make proud. Still Nyarlathotep has wounded the Watcher and seems to be winning this fight.

Shrub Beard batters his way through the Chaos warriors.

Anais makes good use of her magic weapon and slays Chaos Lord Obscuro who instead of using his power on Anais, turned off Mortimer's Lightning spell. But now with Obscuro slain, Mortimer's spell is back again!

Lord Obscuro: Well done. Continued success with your gang.

Cosette the Paladin slays her Chaos warrior enemy. Things are looking up for the Fellowship!

The Watcher in the Water, Anais and her magic weapon, and Shrub Beard gang up on Nyarlathotep! But will it be enough?

~~~

Next post: The finale of The Battle of Hollin Gate!

The Battle of Hollin Gate, Part 1

 Welcome to the battle report for Hollin Gate. Wherein our heroes have taken upon themselves the task of saving Middle Earth from an otherworldly invasion - this time from within Moria itself! The ancient dwarven kingdom has become a portal into the "Upside Down" dimension. A dark place where certain doom and probable woe is certain to befall our heroes. And this time the Dark Powers may get away with it with no meddling kids on BMX bikes to stand in their way. 

Summary
The Fellowship must defeat the Chaos Warriors, Beastmen and the Mythos creatures that were summoned from the gate. Tuddle the Hobbit reads a passage from the Book of Pickles that the Gate of Hollin was built by the dwarves with two special pillars on either side of it, that when destroyed will bring down the mountainside to bury and block the gate in time of war. The Fellowship and their Azer allies must destroy the pillars and save Middle Earth from an extra-dimensional tentacle filled invasion! Tuddle also finds that his lucky charm - Clam Shell of the Grey Havens is making a curious sound when held up to his ear... like soothing distant waves of happier times. Poppy says: Cthulhic-creatures are arriving from the dark beyond, Tuddle! This is no time for calm introspection!

 Left to Right: Lord Mysterion, Lord Obscuro

Voice from beyond the Dark Door: Whom do you serve?

Lord Mysterion:*bows low*  I live for Chaos!~

Lord Obscuro: *kneels* What is thy bidding, my master?

Voice from beyond the Dark Door: Bring me forth into your world, that I may tip the scales of balance in favor of glorious Chaos.

Lord Mysterion: What of the reports of the rebel fleet massing near Sollust?

Voice from beyond the Dark Door: It is of no concern. Soon the Rebellion will be crushed and young Tuddle will be one of us. Your work here is finished, my friends. Go out to the command ship and await my orders.

Both Chaos Lords: Thy will be done, master... 

Nine Beastmen are guarding the Gate of Hollin.

South of the Gate is a Summoning Circle. Lord Obscuro stands in its center cavorting about and making strange gestures. Is he summoning or just pop-locking?

Don't push me
'Cause I'm close to the edge
I'm trying not to lose my head
Ah-huh-huh-huh
It's like a jungle sometimes it makes me wonder
How I keep from going under 

 

A closer view of the Chaos Warriors around the Summoning Circle.

Beastman 1: So, I hear the Emperor is coming... I got five muldoons its Cthulhu!

Beastmen 2: I bet its a Moon Beast! So, I will see your five muldoons and raise you a mint copy of "Bored of the Rings".

On the left side of the battlefield is a small pool of water, a cluster of trees, bushes, and a sign post that says "This way to Stunties Bar & Grill". The sign looks ancient. I dont know if that place is still open. I think it might have been another food establishment that didnt survive the pandemic. Or maybe it was the disappearance of the dwarven race...

On the right side are some rocks, tree stumps, a ruin (Stunties Bar & Grill?) and a mausoleum of some sort. I wonder who is buried in there.

The Azer Chief and some of his fellows teleport into the upper right side of the board. 

Azer Chief: OK boys, we are behind enemy lines. For the glory of the Plane of Elemental Fire... lets get to that gate and destroy it!

On the upper left side, another group of Azers are stealthily approaching the gate from the other side. One of them blows a warhorn! The others scold him. 

Azer Hornblower: But I always blow my horn at setting forth, I will not go forth as a thief in the night.

Azer: Well, I guess thats one way to start the battle. We Azers never did make good ninjas...

 Left to Right: Lady Elerina of Rivendell, Tuddles the Hobbit, Mortimer the Brown Wizard, Cosette the Paladin of Rohan, and Anais the Bodyguard of Elerina.

On the left side, our heroes decide to make their way to the small pond. Im sure they got a hunch that Tuddle's clam shell lucky charm has something to do with the water there.

Lady Elerina uses her Scrye spell. She can use it on 3 locations or persons. She can use it on the Pond, the Summoning Circle, the Gate, the Mausoleum, Lord Obscuro, or Lord Mysterion. She decides to mind-read the 2 Chaos Lords and the Summoning Circle.

Elerina hears Lord Obscuro's plans that he will stay at the Circle and continue summoning.

Elerina hears Lord Mysterion's plans to retreat to the Gate and command the Beastmen. And also to await and greet the coming Lord of Darkness... 

Finally, Elerina turns her attention to the Circle and realizes it is magical and protects those of Evil Alignment with a reroll to failed To-Save rolls.

Left to Right: Sir Haystacks of Ringlo Vale, Poppy the Hobbit herbologist, Shrub Beard the Entling Mound, Baron Orson of Lebennin, and Kipper the Squire of Rohan.

They decide to go help out at the summoning circle while others instead decide to inspect the mausoleum.

Poppy: Pass the word, "we attack at noon", "wet hack moon", "purple monkey dishwasher"

Baron Orson: I bet theres some shiny treasure in there! Lets loot it!

Kipper the Squire: Hopefully its a magic weapon of some sort to help us destroy that gate!

A Night Gaunt flies out of the Mausoleum and perches on a nearby tree.

Kipper the Squire: A Night Gaunt! Valar help us. That thing is durable and it flies!

Baron Orson: *takes out his poisoned blade* Dont you worry, lad. I will kill it. You go search the tomb for something shiny.

Kipper the Squire finds the Tomb is heaped with gold coins and various treasures! But something else stirs in the dark corner... another Night Gaunt flies out!

Kipper the Squire: Next time, tell Elerina to use her Scrye powers on mausoleums!

Baron Orson: At least we found some treasure! Gives us incentive to win this battle, so we can go home with a nice reward. These Night Gaunts have probably been preying on poor travelers up and down Eriador and hoarding these treasures as trophies. Lets avenge them!

Shrub Beard, Sir Haystacks, and Poppy move towards the ruins. From there they can help out in the center and the summoning circle. Or they can take the high ground of the ruins. Or help the Baron and Kipper at the Mausoleum.

Mortimer inspects the pond and sees nothing special about it.

Mortimer: Hey Tuddle, I think this is a job for you.

 Tuddle reads a passage from the Book of Pickles and finds a mention of the Watcher in the Water. Tuddle suddenly remembers he carries a lucky clam shell that he found on the beach in the Grey Havens when he was a boy. As Tuddle takes out his lucky shell, he spots a tiny cuttlefish like creature staring up at him in the water.  He feels compelled to give his shell to the creature. If he does, he loses his Kismet ability. Does he give the shell? He does...

The cuttlefish grows to immense size in the blink on an eye!  Tuddles gains a follower... a Dark Young of Shub-Niggurath. Instinctively, Anais steps up to guard Tuddle from the giant beast.

Tuddle: Its ok, Anais. I think its friendly... *mumbles* I hope its friendly...

Anais:  Oh. Its just like fishing! You know... tall tales. The stories always say "that time the big fish got away." Well, this time you actually got him Tuddle!

The pond may be searched further. Tuddle finds a magic weapon.

Tuddle: Here you go Anais *hands her the magic sword* I hope this helps.

Anais:. Thank you Hobbit. I wont forget this! Its... a Sword of Grievous Strike! Or as some call it the Snicker-Snack Sword!

Tuddle: Oh, a Vorpal Sword.

Weapon of Grievous Strike: If the unmodified To-Hit roll is a 6, this attack negates the enemy To-Save.

Baron Orson stabs one of the Night Gaunts with his poisoned blade and slays it!

Baron Orson: You're no daisy... You're no daisy at all! Poor soul you were just too high strung...

~~~

Next Post: Part 2 of the Battle of Hollin