Part 58: Greendale and Tevrono

Update 052 - Greendale and Tevrono



“So, this General person is to the north. There's a road leading that way, but I don't know how far.”

“And there will be Golems.”

“Yes, there will.”

“I feel this will not be an easy thing to resolve.”

“No, it will not. These things are abominations, even more so than those we have addressed before.”

“Slimes were natural, though bigger. Roaches the same. Giants and Troglodytes were dead, but brought back from the abyss. Golems ... they are completely artificial. There may be nothing we can exploit to properly end them.”

“In the end, brute force works.”

“But we are not the cudgel.”

“We are the rapier.”

But before we go further, I realized I missed something. Actually, two somethings. But getting the second one will require a bit more back tracking than I am willing to do at this point. Before heading north, I go back west.




“Art, your sense of direction is horrible.”

“Yeah, yeah. But I'm hearing it again.”




“But these are the mines where we were ambushed by the Golems.”

“At least I doubt they have the intelligence to gain benefit from the circles.”

“Found a path!”



“Yeah, It's here.”



“How did you miss it the first time?”

“Magic?”

“That explains nothing, and raises more questions than it answers.”




“Let's do this.”





We got some XP from that. But only Delilah went up a level. Oh well.



“Does anyone else get the feeling that these are ...”
“Meant for Art? Yeah.”

* * *




“That is a big wall. A really big wall.”

Same problem the Chinese wall had with the Mongols, if I remember correctly.



“There's not much of a road up here. Should we keep going north?”



“ART! This is EAST!”

“Fine, let's go back west till we find the road.”



“There. That wasn't so bad now, was it?”



“No, this is worse.”

“I don't see any bodies though.”




“Who names a bridge like this? Is this the Azerdon river? Was he the architect or patron?”

“I'm more concerned about those.”



“CHARGE!”



“We don't know who you are, but you're not them. Thanks for the help!”



“No problem.”




“Really. No problem.”

Not pictured: Art casting Divine Thud on the Golems, only to deal less than 20 damage to each. I wanted to see if being the Avatar meant anything to spell casting, but it appears not.



Reload...



“And stay down!”



“Will do.”




“We will all need to be on the lookout now.”



“No.”

“I didn't say anything.”

“You didn't have to.”



“dammit art”



“Eyes on the road!”




“This won't be too much to deal with.”



“I think we're just getting more experienced.”



“Wow”



“He's not kidding.”



I would expect this sort of damage from a dungeon-town, not an active town with friendly NPCs. That's not a good sign.




“Odd place to find a store.”



This wizard is truly ancient. You're almost afraid something is going to fall off of him while he talks to you. “I'm McElton, the wizard. You must be the Exiles.”

“Matthias and company. Yes. Our ... leader came here rather than heading north as was suggested.”

“I'm standing right here you know!”

“Forgive her. What do you do here? This town is nigh-ruined!”

He grunts and says angrily. “I make magic items. Same as I've done for fifty years. And you if came to get me to leave, it ain't gonna' work!”

“Fifty years?”

“At least!”

“Why do you choose to stay? Surely the Army has asked you to leave for your own safety?”

“They're about to abandon my home to those overgrown statues out there, are they? Well, I ain't goin' along with it! This is where I've lived for fifty years, where I honed by craft, and I'm goin' down with the ship! Mark my words! Now, you gonna' buy magic items or just waste my time?”



!!! That is really cheap!



“I can't tell what this place used to be.”

“That's because it was a store room.”



This vigorous, hawkish man wears the robes of a wizard. However, the robes are decorated not with the usual runes or sigils, but with the insignia of a commander in the Empire Army. He looks you over appraisingly. “I am Commander Maertok. You can call me Commander Maertok.”

“I know of you. You are ... officially speaking, adventurers. Let's keep it that way for now. Welcome to our troubled province.”

“You sound annoyed at the condition of your province.”

“Don't get me wrong. Monoroe Province is Hell on Earth right now, but won't be this way forever. We have General Baziron to lead us.”

“We have heard good things about General Baziron. What do you make of him?”

“He leads us from Tevrono. He was the only leader who had the guts to ignore those twits in Gale, and fight the monsters with his head as well as his blade.”

“I like him already.”

“We heard from McElton that you're planning on leaving the town?”

“Yes, sadly. We'll be abandoning Greendale soon. The golems were coming here one or two at a time to attack, and we were picking them off easily. Now, they're coming in bigger groups, so we're going to rejoin our army before we get cut off.”

“Don't let us get in your way then.”




“But the Horsies!”

“Were all evacuated.”

“Well, that's enough for here. Let's go check in with General Baziron.”

* * *





“Curious. I see deer over there.”

“What is so odd about that?”

“It's almost like the Golems are ignoring them. That they are only focused on the Empire.”

“And us.”

“Yes. And us.”




“This looks like a siege force. Let's see if we can go around it.”




“This is annoying. But not needing logistics for a siege makes these things quite useful.”




“I approve.”




“You need any help?”

“No.”




“Not helpful!”




“Inner ring, to defend against the town, rather than reinforcements.”




“Yeah, and the forest is too thick for us to properly move through.”

“Yet, I don't see any Golems...”



“Hail and well met. The General has been made aware of your arrival. Pass in peace.”

“We will. Thank you.”

While you could fight your way through two rings of Golems to get to town, you can sneak around just as easy. Or if you're lazy, like me.



“So, this is Tevrono. This city has seen plenty of war.”



“Very true.”


“Very thick walls.”





“Hail. The general is awaiting your pleasure. He is on his inspections rounds, so you will need to track him down.”

“Thank you.”



You meet Tevrono's weaponsmith. She is almost frantically busy, struggling to keep up with the demands of supplying the soldiers in Tevrono. “I am Tenuta,” she says breathlessly.

“What are you doing?”

“Helping keep Baziron's troops supplied. You can purchase some things too. I still have some of my old stock.”



I'm not going to complain about the selection here. It's obvious she's overworked and all her best efforts are going to the General.

“What is General Baziron like?”

“The General has somehow figures out how the Golems move and act, and figures out ways to kill them. It's an honor to supply his troops. I make weapons, and improve them when I have the time.”

“You can improve weapons?”



Expensive, but Bronwyn has been using a weapon that comes pre-flamed, and Sass has a better weapon coming soon. Art, of course, is sticking with the Alien Blades.



“I wonder if this was destroyed before or after the General began his defences in earnest?”




“Sounds, pleasant.”



Hey! That's a golem gem on someone's bed. They've been keeping trophies! I really should check how many I have at some point.




“Another sleeping building.”




“Want to bet he's in his office now?”

“Might as well check. I'll do the talking.”



“Art.”

“General Baziron.”

This massive man wears the armor and insignia of an Empire Dervish, although he doesn't seem to be in the physical shape for melee. This must be the infamous General Baziron. He stands to firmly shake your hands. “Welcome to Tevrono,” his voice is deep and rough, his skin weathered. He has the look of a man who has spent most of his life outdoors.

“General, what's your status?”

He sighs. “It has fallen to me to lead our forces against the Golems. We, I'm afraid, are their only effective opposition.”

“What makes you so effective?”

He frowns. “Those fools in Gale, they don't realize the golems are a different foe, and need different tactics. Not like the Exiles, or the Shaper cult. We out here in Tevrono have been the only troops to have had any luck against those things.”

“What is your opinion of the Golems?”

He chuckles. “The Golems are lethal foes. However, they have their weaknesses, and I have developed tactics against them. This is good, as we're the only people having any luck.”

“And your tactics?”

“Probably nothing that would help you. You don't move in the same formations we do, nor are you defending a fixed point. But I can give you an example. It's unrelated to the real reason I wanted to speak to you.”

“Well, let's hear this example.”



“Interesting. Now, about that reason?”

“We're doing all right against the Golems, but we need help. We're chopping at them, and slowing them down, but we don't have the strength to find and assault their source.”

“And where do we come in?”

“I've heard of your exploits. You have had luck infiltrating and destroying the enemies fortresses. I would like you to do the same for me. I can't tell you were they come from, but I can tell you one valuable fact.”

“Go on.”

“There are mountains to the south-east. Far up them lives a mage. He visited us, flying down from the sky like a bird. He said someone should go up to see him ... he knows much about the golems. Why he wanted us to go up there, we don't know. But I thought you might want to know. You may be our only hope against the golems.”

“Understood, General. We'll investigate this lead.”

“Thank you, Art.”

* * *



“A flying mage?”

“My precious will help us!”

“...”

“Hello there! You look less ... attached to your job than Art is.”

A man sits alone in the empty inn, working on a map. “Indeed. I am Ozmo. It is nice to see civilians.”

“We're not civilians.”

“Ah, legal niceties. But, I am a map maker. And stranded here, I'm afraid.”

“You make maps?”

He cheers up. “That's my trade! I've been making maps of the area to help Baziron and his troops. If you want, you can purchase a map of the Monoroe Province for only 50 gold.”

“Done!”



“What's with this tree symbol?”

“It's either something important, or it's my mark. Take your pick.”

“Can't it be both?”

“And we're done in town.”



“I have a question!”

“Go ahead.”

“Who are the Shapers?”