Memories of Ivershill: To the Victor Go the Spoils

Game Master: Andrew
Game Edition: AD&D 1st Ed
Players: Dave, Adam
Starting Level: 3
Current Level: 3

Introduction

Dave holds the honoured distinction of being the only player character to have "beaten" Ivershill. That is he survived a game, and left Ivershill a richer man then when he came in without any ill consequence!

As such, he will always consider it his favourite game of Ivershill.

Dave asked me to do the write up for this game, and included the entire game as his favourite memory. So get comfy.

To the Victor Go the Spoils

It began with two Barbarians, a Human Twistneed the Frigid (Dave) and a Half-Orc Krashnak (Adam). The pair unknowingly travelled the road towards Ivershill, but instead of taking the road north to the village, they decided to stay on the kings highway, and see what was happening in Carthag.

None of JADE's players had ever been to Carthag before, and Dave and Adam were excited about what they would find...

Scene 1 The Road to Carthag.

Two hours down the road, they saw a rider drawing closer in the distance. The Horseman was a paladin, who warned them that a red dragon was attacking Carthag, and that it would be best to turn back.

And when this guy tells you to go back, you should listen.

Feeling the need for adventure, Twistneed and Krashnak ignored the paladin's warning and continued on towards Carthag. The Knight shrugged, and rode on leaving the two to their fate.

After a few hours on the road, the cry of a dragon cut through the calmness of the trail. Smoke from a burning village billowed from behind a thicket of forest. The pair hurried forward, bringing Carthag into view. The great form of a Red Dragon hovered above the town breathing flames upon the already ready town. The two Chaotic Evil barbarians saw this as the perfect time to loot.

They entered the city, but most of the towns valuables had been destroyed in the dragon's flames. Not yet discouraged, they ran from house to house searching through the debris, but they only found a pair of silver candle holders.

As they put them in their packs, the dragon swooped over head and with a burst of flames incinerated the block next time. It was time to leave.

Scene 2 The Red Dragon.

The barbarians rushed  along the city streets towards the gate, only to be cornered as the dragon landed in the square behind them.

They sought refuge in a nearby stone barracks, that provided some shielding from the creatures fiery blasts. Inside, Krashnak found some Javelins and the two of them went up to the roof to try and fight the beast.

When most men run....

Though their aim was true, the javelins bounced off the dragons' hide and only served to annoy the powerful creature. Gracefully, the beast turned in its flight, and hit the roof top of the barracks with a mighty blast of flame. Twistneed and Krashnak barely managed to escape being burnt to a crisp by diving off of the roof to the ground below. Krashnack was only bruised from the fall, but Twistneed had broken his arm. They would have to retreat.

Using the rubble of the Carthag's houses as cover, the two fled towards a section of the town wall that had collapsed, and escaped back to the highway.

Twistneed needed to have his arm repaired before he could fight again, and the closest town either of them knew of was Ivershill. So that was where they went.

Scene 3 Ivershill. Fighting the Guards.

Twistneed and Krashnak headed towards the market with the hopes of trading a ring they had found on the road found for a healing potion.

The two found a  merchant, but the healing potion was out of their price range. Frustrated, and without thinking it through, The two barbarians discussed killing the merchant and taking the potion... While he was standing right there.

Terrified, the merchant called out for the guards, and two men in full plate mail appeared. The merchant called out in panic, and the guards demanded that Twistneed and Crashnak surrender themselves into their custody.

Unlikely.

A barbarian never turns down a fight.

A crowd gathered as the Barbarians fought the guards. The fight was fierce, and saw Krashnak fall dead from several wounds inflicted by a bastard sword, but Twistneed avenged his friend, killing both guards.

Low on hit points, Twistneed stood ready to fight another wave, fully prepared to die. Much to his surprise however, the crowd erupted into cheers!

Twistneed was confused to say the least.

Scene 4 The Battle of Town Hall.

As it turned out, the mayor had hired the guards, who had been acting like thugs since they arrived. The rumour was that the mayor was stealing gold from the mine and keeping it for herself and the mercenaries.

It would seem that Twistneed, the Chaotic Evil Barbarian had just volunteered to save the town.

The mob called a healer to heal his wounds, and surrounded the town hall, asking Twistneed to go in, deafeat their oppressors save them!

Knowing that he could not do this alone, Twist need called to the crowd for aid. The Halfling Thief Nallo (an old Ivershill character of Adam's) was the first to volunteer, followed by 19 other villagers.

It's clobbering time.

With his army Twistneed, stormed the townhall, and battled the guards. Most of the peasants proved useless, running at the first sight of blood, but a few had the stomach for battle.

At the end of it all, only Twistneed, Nallo, and a village monk were standing to face the mayor and her mercenary leader.

Scene 5 Twistneed, Hero of the People.

The mercenary Captain was as fickle as most men in his business, and saw the way the wind was turning. He agreed to leave for 200 gold pieces.

The Mayor's office was full of gold, and Nallo quickly filled three bags and tossed them to the Mercenary. The heavily armoured man took sacks and left the building, running as fast as he could.

The mayor stood behind her desk shaking, knowing her demise was at hand. Without saying a word, Twistneed decapitated her with his axe. He had won. But the carnage wasn't finished.

I an act of betrayal, he turned to Nallo, and with a swing of his blade, killed the Halfling where he stood. The village monk started slowly backing towards the door, but Twistneed caught him, ending his life with a swift stroke of his axe.

Cue the death metal.

Twistneed then filled a bag with 50gp and grabbed the mayor's head. He left the town hall, and stood before the waiting crowd and hold his foe's head high for all to see. The crowd's cheers were deafening, but Twistneed silenced them and asked for a horse.


Within minutes a horse was brought to the steps which Twistneed mounted, and road out of town with the villagers laughing, cheering and chasing after him.


Conclusion.
With that, Twistneed became the first character to survive an adventure in Ivershill with no ill done to them,and with some profit.

Dave was also brilliantly able to maintain his chaotic evil alignment by killing his comrades in the final scene, and claiming the glory for himself. It was a great scene to to witness.

Truly one of the best runs of Ivershill. It will be remembered fondly by all.

Written by: Andrew Gregory