Frostgrave Diary: Null Zone

Hey guys short intro, no ‘regular’ blog this week instead last time I did up one of these big Frostgrave entries some people liked it some people went nope too much for me. But that was on Facebook in a local hobby group, I am hoping with this you can see how you can add narrative to your game and really make some memories so with out further ado.

The Crackle Sticks

Me Gelblin have many legs and many hands so, I move fast, fast. That’s why light stick man like me, me no like fire man who live in his shadow, he has angry face. He have big sack of meat from human town, me like meat. And I gots the shines next to the crackle sticks so me will get many meat…

But it’s so cold outside…

I so lonely only Brunch here, he pointy shooter, and he doing angry stare because he have a shiny pile too…

Me find me friend, he name Goblin, its good name, we not goblin, goblin kick us but he smart name himself Goblin so goblin no kick him. I go out now.

It’s so cold around the crackle sticks they shoot lightning between them, very angry rocks. I call out but no one answers. The snow is piling up over something. Me dig good. Its shiny stick man… he no look so good, I take him back to warm rock cave. Very tired. Where Goblin?

I go back another lump in the snow, its angry face man… should leave here? No… Shiny stick man would be lonely. Being lonely hurt inside like stab pain. Shiny stick man give meat, I give him back angry face… where Goblin?

Shiny stick man is up and talking, he see angry face man and I see lonely stab pain go away. Me do good job! He says he will give me meat. Where Goblin? He says he don’t know, we were attacked, by the shiny people. Shiny people no like us green skins. Shiny stick man would usually be with shiny people but he said something about… something! Where Goblin? Me go back find him.

Me go out find more lumps. Oj more blue than usual. He no move good. Me find more lumps maybe Goblin? Me find Blood-Thor, he so big and angry but he no move. Shiny stick man sent Brunch with me. Brunch big goblin so he make me carry big Blood-Thor, he carry Oj. It not fair me so tired. Very sleepy in the cold snow. I no see Goblin. Brunch tell me quiet about Goblin. He tell me not real goblin. Me know… but he friend. We stay warm together and eat the food. I want to eat meat with Goblin. We go back to warm rock cave.

Snow hard now, snow angry. Shiny stick man say its a blizzard and that I should stay safe, but Goblin still out there. He say I am brave. Me no brave me dumb spider grot. Brave is big Blood-Thor. Me go look for Goblin.

It so cold now. My bones hurt. Me wonder if Goblin’s bones hurt… Me no like hurt, me want warm cave. Me keep going though through angry crackle rocks screaming at each other. Me no stop. Me find Goblin! Me will! There is small lump in snow. Me run over. It Goblin! Goblin is a special grot now he turn blue. Me jealous now he never be kicked. Come on Goblin get up-up. Up-up Goblin. Goblin come up-up? His tired because of angry snow. I bring him back to warm rock cave. Shiny stick man come over to me. ‘Meat now?’ me ask. ‘I am so sorry friend’ he say looking at Goblin. I shake my head, ‘Goblin friend’ I smile. He pat my head and cry. ‘Yes he was, I am sorry my friend’ shiny stick say. Me Gleblin hold shiny stick man to make the stab pain of the loney go away. Soon he give meat to me and Goblin.

White does not mean good

Humans are odd beasts…

And I call them beasts for a reason. They are… let me assure you, they are. We came to the accursed surface with my fellow Dwarven brethren from the depth of the heat-vented cities, the greatest accomplishments in all of the world. Towering spires humans would never see because the light wouldn’t reach but if you felt the stone you would understand their majesty. We left because the runes told us events coming. We had to make our presence known.

The calculations were correct it led us to ancient technology no doubt Dwarven in design. These great stones held within them compressed time used to generate energy. But the surface be damned there is always problems, on the surface, as we arrived to humming processional chants.

Humans are obsessed with heraldry I saw him off in the distance his cream-white robes with gold accents against a crimson red. These are colours of the allies of good and order… That is what I thought how wrong I was. I thought he was followed by steel automata but those things were more than steel they were hate. His language was strange or perhaps it was the way he canted it but he seemed to know I was the leader of our trope right away. I went toward him hoping to reach some sort of agreement on a fair split of the artifacts and mutual protection.

Later that week I would learn what the term fanatics meant. He screamed about how I had tarnished the lands. I was confused and my confusion increased when I saw him call upon the winds of magic for potent harmful energies the ability call for the energy to push a foe away to gain distance between the two of you. An aggressive if defensive action but no… he used it upon his own man to push him forward, to use that creature of steel and anger like a rocket. His ineptitude gave me time, he barely pushed him forward and then I realised… it wasn’t his ineptitude it was the creature of steel and hate, it held the magics back, so heavy resistant was it that it barely moved.

I hurriedly called out to my men, “Abandon the tents, all of the field equipment, grab what you can and return to base camp, NOW!” No soon were my orders issued and my magic put upon my close allies did I see it. At first, I thought it a petty goblin and I thought hypocrite you talk of tarnish but what is that? Then as its screams became clearer… I understood. They were tiny deformed humans made wretched by something… It scream as it came toward me “I WILL BE SAVED” It said from bleeding lips and bloodshot eyes. It was my disgust that kept me from felling it a single blow not my lack of talent, I am sure of that.

As I disposed of the beast my eyes darted around my men were scattered everywhere and then it glided across the snow, like some terrible portent of doom. It was steel, it was hate, it was death, the human knight said nothing, all I could hear was its rasping breath. I still hear its rasping breath every night now…

I fought as any Dwarf should… with skill, with tenacity, with dignity. Though clad in steel it had not even the pretence of civility. It didn’t fight with technique or even disgusting Elven finesse, it fought with simple brutality, strength and savagery. It used its shield as a weapon! As weapon, bashing me in the face, so I couldn’t see its sword, where it couldn’t be use it to cut due to my skilful blocking. it crushed my bones with the flat of its blade. Its helmet was a face and I swear to you now, though made of metal it talked to me. It said…

“Die”

And so I did… Or so I thought… I woke back at base camp… brought back by my young apprentice. He told me my wounds were ‘miner’ as a joke… I didn’t laugh… I don’t laugh anymore. I see the white followed by the steel… I see the beast of iron and I hear it. Every night. Every knight.

Action Hero Apprentice

Who am I? I am the apprentice. Here is the thing, no one wants to talk to the apprentice but then again who really wants to talk to the old fart teaching us magic. We are the ones with the energy with vibrancy with a little of something that I like to call the protagonist spotlight!

My master is always like slow, down, don’t touch that, are those my rune rocks in the oven? And I am like keep up old man, that’s what I said to him at least when we entered this gnarly factory-looking place. He told me of the long, long ago and I am like yeah yeah old man pay attention there are some crazy-looking little dudes over there wielding wicked-looking crossbows and he said there not little dudes their Dwarves and then he got a serious look on his face and he was like oh no and I was like oh no and then the Knight was like OH DAMN! He didn’t actually say anything like that he said something like “For soothe my lord, something something, honour, loyalty, something” and then we all rolled out.

So I am like LIGHTNING! and Shooting out bolts of energy, you may not know it but my master is like wicked cool with magic, his like an old dude but his young at heart you know, none of this pansy ass seeing around corners magic, nah it is all like flaming rocks falling from the sky, lightning and explosions.

Speaking of explosions I am running over there and there was like one of those drunken peasants we brought along with us fighting… And I shit you not his fighting a pink pig on like this factory gantry with a giant chained skull bellow them, and there are explosions EVERYWHERE! I think maybe like my master went all out then there were fireball but maybe the old factory was rigged with some sort of exploding powder anyway so I am like LIGHTNING! Lightning, this dude and lightning that dude and I am all flipping over these creaking pipes and then like all of the metal on my clothes is ripped off onto the floor as there are these giant magnets turning on. Suddenly there is this Dwarf guy infront of me and his all like got this weird get up and I realised. His like that dudes apprentice and “I am like no way!”. And his like “Yes way!”

The FREAKING dude said it. What a legend. So then we have like this magic battle but I am like way more rad them him so what I do is like I call upon the life energy within me to call forth a bolt of Lightning because I am like running out of juice by the time he comes around and I am barely with it. But I like totally take him down and I am like nailed it. Then like the other guy behind the apprentice says ‘That’s right human, nailed it’ and I look down and I got like bolt in my chest and I am like ‘oh no’. Then scream guy behind comes into rescue me and he does the like he ‘OH YEAH!’ and yeah so… I kinda blacked out after that… but I just need you to know like I am like the hero of the story, so you want come up to my room?

The woman at the tavern looked at him and walked away.

‘Damn man… like I didn’t even exaggerate… it was awesome’. ‘Twas awesome’ said pig fighter, ‘ye-verily it did cause awe in all of us, young squire’ oh yeah guy said. ‘Perhaps you should let your companion at least try conversation young apprentice’ said the wizard.

…

But it was awesome right guys?

All of the old men agreed.

Radical.

The Stars are Wrong

I have heard people call this place…

‘The Frostgrave’

The city or rather should I say the ruins of the city have always drawn people to it but never like now. Before it was a great frozen thing, in the centre of the world. Adventure seekers, academics and all sorts of curio collectors would go there… until word got out about it thawing out. I am sure if the wizard could find the half-wit who let that information out into the world he would have him up on a rope. Magic tomes, magic items, magic weapons, magic potions and mythical treasure were all here waiting to be claimed…

The only problem. I think this city knows what it is and it delights in other people hurting one another. It wants to see mages come and die in this place. Why do I say that? It’s simple. We were guided here by the winds of magic. We divined this place and we found the lightning stones but for us they were just a marker, because we were looking for treasure. But the moment we got there…

There was another wizard there, not only that the winds of magic had changed some of my magics had failed me. I saw them attempting a spell, you don’t understand if wizard casts a spell it could be anything until they are finished it is too late… We are professionals. We are treasure hunters by trade, I employ a captain to keep my rowdy local recruits in order until I can get the rest of my team over here. We have rules of engagement.

I blinded him. As I should have, the old man screamed in agony, he continue to scream and used his magic to set area around him ablaze. I was right to blind him the entire place looked like a lava pit by the time he was able to see again imagine what he would have done to me, to my men if I had of blinded him. His screams cause great agitation among his followers. They were greenskins a colloquial term for what people may call goblin kind, referencing all of them from the smallest to the largest. Goblins are emotional creatures, and apparently loyal ones. As the old man screamed, they bellowed a scream with him but not of pain but of anger.

It has to be sentient I am telling you otherwise, why would this keep happening!

Don’t you idiots understand I just blinded the most powerful among you, can you not understand that this is both a defensive and offensive action? I will grab the treasure here and leave you don’t have to die. It is just what is done, its the order of operations. But rage has no reason. I hurt their old man and apparently I had stumbled across the only loyal green skins in all of existence. Then of course…

The stones began to erupt lightning from them.

Magic is muted here, the stones have conveniently placed treasure next to them, the moment that we arrive these long dormant stones’ power awakens not for their original purpose whatever it may be. No instead great bolts of energy shoot between them. Luckily few of my men get hit while many of theirs do. There is an order of operation to things, when encountering an enemy as a treasure hunter you attempt a fighting retreat while hauling as much as you can.

These beasts seem to have no such compulsion, the ones with the enemies apprentice seemed to do just that but the rest near to the wizard were simply enraged. Attacking anyone they could get close to. There was a human with them, she was some sort of alchemist surely she could see reason…

Of course not…

She simply healed the wounded greenskins so they can get back to their killing…

We got as much as we could, the apprentice and a skittering eight-limbed abomination took his ‘shiny’ to the wizard in a vain attempt to heal his blindness. Saying it would make ‘Shiny Staff’ better. The worst thing is my magic waned and he seemed to be recovering, judging by the ‘crew’ he had acquired I did not intend to stick around to see what kind of monster he truly was.

It’s just the operation of things, don’t they understand? Pirates understand, freebooters understand, hell even the navies of the world understand. From the tribals to crimson guards to black sails all of them understand we are just grabbing treasure, we have no real true interest in conflict. But here… with these wizards… they all seem to have been driven mad.

Sir?

Do not interrupt my log.

Sorry sir but the local, he passed.

And?

He is widowed with children me lord.

Send them two gold crowns he was with us for one operation and that would have been his share for this operation.

But sir… that will barely feed a child for a season…

There is an order of operation to things.

Yes, sir.

He was my friend

They knew of it for sometime my companions. I thought it would be hidden knowledge, the goblins are the true natives of this area hiding the nooks and crannies of this wasteland in pockets of lava heated caves. However, as fate always has it there were people not too far away… we arrived to the null pits as what passes for guides around here called it.

My research had brought me here, looking for this place, I was there were ways to negate magic to prevent its affect on other things. This has been lost to time and the results of the experiments covered up, if poorly. The head goblin a hobgoblin named ‘Blood-Thor’ lead the group. Though to be honest I do not know why they chose their hierarchy, honestly the best of them is this skittering little fellow who sticks close to me, its name is Gelblin a cross of a spider and goblin It pulled me from the snow a season ago after we were attacked by glory seekers. I am not sure the people from the abroad lands truly know the damage they do here. They killed his friend, they probably think nothing of it…

At any rate, we are here a few whispered words to the winds of magic and I knew inside these pits, no magic would work. I called out ‘Blood-Thor, you must defend me when I am in those pits I will be unable to speak to the winds of magic in there’ Blood-Thor looked across blankly ‘If I don’t get home you won’t ever have meat again’ He nodded furiously.

As soon as I had finished, a dwarven wizard appeared in front of us after. I had sent one of the spiderlings into the muck searching for the treasure. It would be comical if not for the next thing that happened. Raging creatures of negative magical energy radiating a blue glow from screamed as soon as they sensed the Dwarf’s presence.

Gods be damned but this place has made me into a cynic, my first thought wasn’t help the poor bastard and get those creatures off him. It was… let them deal with him and we can deal with them after. It was no sooner than I said that then did I realise that, there, there was reason for such an attitude, I saw the blue-robed treasure hunters from before. This time I was ready. I quick whisper to the winds and then she blessed the opening with a wall between us. Let him search in the muck and deal with monsters like himself.

Before I knew it they were finished with the Dwarf and on top of me! I knew they were immune to magic but were they immune to the effect magic created? I called upon her once more drawing into those lava ruins and drawing forth fire from the earth two of the blasted creautres were rent from the earth, the Dwarf had taken care of one of the other four my allies were closing in to give me aid. How your vision narrows during such conflicts. There was only one thing we came for, the thing in that central null pit. However, I saw more of them. The adventure seekers and the Dwarves were clashing off in the distance.

All my men who had a chance at grabbing the treasure returned to aid me. They forgot completely about our prize but I guess I should feel blessed that, that was their reaction. The Dwarves and the Adventure seekers for before closed in. Both of their sides went for the treasure, the beast I had become attuned to felt my distress and ran towards the treasure… But it was too late. All around us these foul null creatures had been rising from the muck.

Gelblin saw the cat beast scream through the shadows leaping out of shadow into shadow and finally felt it was safe. By the time I called out to him, it was too late, it wasn’t the adventure seekers or the Dwarves who had gotten the treasure, no… The creatures rose from the mud, muck and filth and then started dragging all of them down. The cat lashed out with insane speed and limped away and collapsed. However poor Gelblin, he called out ‘I get shiny, friend shiny stick’. Even before I could reply they started dragging him under he scrambled for escape desperately looking towards me. ‘Friend help?’ he called out.

I had enough this place, all it was a pit of despair and murder. We would gain nothing here. I ordered a retreat, we recovered everyone…

All bar Gelblin.

He was my friend.