MANTENIMIENTO DEL ARBOLADO, ARBUSTOS Y PODAS

In the time between the closing of the western gate portcullis and the PCs’ arrival, Omast has managed to stockpile an arsenal of weapons and supplies at the two barricades facing the gate. The PCs, along with Omast, can utilize these supplies to lay waste to the orc hordes coming through the gate. The following encounters give the PCs several opportunities to use unusual strategies, improvised siege weapons, and large-scale defensive maneuvers against large numbers of orcs—the tactics detailed below provide examples of such strategies. Reward bold or particularly clever tactics when appropriate, but don’t be afraid to let the

PCs wallow in their despair if they make foolish or unwise choices. It shouldn’t take a tactician to know that hiding behind a barricade is safer than running out in the open, and a PC who charges headlong into the oncoming orcs might earn herself an early grave rather than securing a spot for herself among the heroes of Trunau.

Barricades: Two barricades have been set up on the hill leading toward the western gate. The barricades are approximately 3 feet high and 5 feet wide. A barricade has an AC of 5, hardness 5, hp 20 per 5-foot square, and a break DC of 20. It costs 2 squares of movement to cross a barricade. A barricade provides cover, but only to creatures within 30 feet of it. An attacker can ignore the cover if he’s closer to the obstacle than his target. See page 195 of the Pathfinder RPG

Core Rulebook for more details on low obstacles and cover.

Brace and Reach Weapons: Omast has gathered a glaive (which has the reach special weapon feature), a guisarme (reach and trip), a halberd (brace and trip), two longspears (brace and reach), and a ranseur (disarm and reach). The weapons are standing upright in a barrel near the westernmost barricade.

Fallen Orcs: Keep track of where individual orcs fall as they are dispatched by the PCs. While bodies and prone allies don’t normally impede movement, the barricades and the craggy nature of the inner quarter’s hill create a special exception. A square containing a single fallen orc does not require additional movement, but it cannot be charged through; a square containing two fallen orcs costs 2 squares of movement to cross; a square containing three or more fallen orcs costs 3 squares of movement to cross. If the PCs can cause orcs to fall in particular spaces (such as by taking readied actions that trigger when an orc enters a specific square), the number of fallen enemies can quickly pile up, in effect strengthening the barricades.

Flaming Boulder: A large boulder that came crashing into Trunau not long after the raid began sits in the middle of the hill between the two barricades (area L11a). The boulder is nearly 10 feet across, and the PCs can roll the stone down the hill (toward the gates) at almost any angle. Additionally, the boulder picked up some of the same alchemical reagent that set fire to the trees in area L8, and can be ignited with a torch. Starting the boulder on its journey downhill requires a move action and a successful DC 13 Strength check. The boulder travels in a 10-foot-wide line, attacking all creatures in its path. The boulder has a melee attack bonus of +10; on a successful hit, it deals 3d6 points of bludgeoning damage (plus 1d6 points of fire damage if it’s on fire). In addition, any creature struck by the boulder must succeed at a DC 10 Reflex save or be knocked prone. The boulder crashes through any barricades in its path, but comes to a halt when it hits a sturdy solid object such as the inner quarter’s wall.

Rolling Logs: Two bundles of logs have been lashed to the western side of the westernmost barricade, one on each side

of the road (areas L11b). This timber can be cut loose to roll downhill with devastating effect. Releasing the lashings of one of the log bundles requires two full-round actions (thus, releasing a bundle takes one character 2 rounds, and two characters 1 round; four characters could release both bundles in 1 round). Alternatively, a bundle can be released as a standard action by dealing at least 2 points of damage to the lashings with a slashing weapon. When unleashed, a bundle of logs tumbles down the hill in a 20-foot-wide line, attacking all creatures in its path. A bundle of rolling logs has a melee attack bonus of +15; on a successful hit, it deals 3d6 points of bludgeoning damage. In addition, any creature struck by the logs must succeed at a DC 15 Reflex save or be knocked prone. The rolling logs stop when they reach the western curtain wall.

Sharpened Stakes: The easternmost barricade is equipped with sharpened and splintered wooden fences that Omast salvaged from the wreckage of nearby homes. A PC can ready an action to impale an incoming attacker on the fence posts as though readying a brace weapon against a charge. If readied in this way, the fence posts deal 2d8 points of damage to an orc that ends its movement on the barricade in a square threatened by the PC.

a d

e

The barricades encounter in Event 5 can be particularly lethal if the PCs aren’t ready for it, or if they make consistently bad rolls or poor decisions. The purpose of the orc waves isn’t to outright ruin the PCs—rather, it’s meant to illustrate the sheer chaos and tenacity of an orc raid while giving the low-level PCs a fighting chance of defeating large numbers of orcs. Play up the chaos of orc warfare in the orcs’ tactics, which are haphazard and sometimes even outright foolish in the heat of battle. An orc raider might well charge headlong into the PCs’ barricade, waste a round throwing javelins at the Trunauan guards defending the western gate’s battlement, or pause to claw a sack of gold from a nearby corpse while slipping in the muck and blood of his fallen allies.

Assuming he’s sobered up, Omast is a brave combatant who looks out for the PCs, even if it means putting himself in harm’s way. If the PCs are having an especially difficult time, consider reducing the numbers of orcs in later waves or having a few Trunauan militia members show up to reinforce them (use the stat blocks for foot soldiers on page 286 of the

Pathfinder RPG GameMastery Guide for these guards). If all

else fails, Omast throws himself in front of the hordes in a last-ditch effort to allow the PCs to escape over the rubble of the ruined tower south of the gates (area L13). In this case, the PCs gain XP only for the orc waves they actually defeated.