PBEM Journal Notes -- April 2008

[Boric Glanduum]

"My friends, while we have a moment's respite, we must plan carefully. Let me quickly share a few thoughts with you. An ancient saying among my people teaches:

Allindingrurvir de abach vor fuar linding rim;
Zarn de glar vor stigh ainding nyr.

Excuse me," Urdin chuckles and shakes his head, "in Common it would translate as: 'The mastersmith's hand shapes the blade from without; the fatal flaw strikes the axe from within.' What this means is this: The chance to secure against defeat is in our own hands; the chance to defeat the enemy is found within the enemy himself. We must first put ourselves beyond the possibility of defeat and then wait for our chance to defeat the enemy.

"The beast we just encountered was naught but a mere youngling. It is extremely unlikely that he is the lord of the lair. From the space and size in this cavern, we could be facing anything up to a huge, or even a gargantuan beast. The entrances to the cavern alone suggests this. The size of the hoard within the next chamber supports this as well.

"I can see ice within the next chamber. Tymora has also seen ice. That makes it likely that our footing is going to be awkward. I have some spells that may help us in that respect. Any spells or magic that the rest of you have that may aid us? Well, now would be the time to reveal it."

Urdin quickly looks around the cavern again, then continues speaking. "My cousin, Boric--curse his beard!--one thing he did know was warfare. He taught us that there are five essentials for victory.

'First: the victor knows when to fight and when not to fight.' -- we must know whether or not we even can fight. Do we have a chance? Or are we clearly overmatched?

'Second: the victor knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces.' -- if our enemy can be overpowered, we fight. If it cannot be overpowered, we may want to reconsider our goal. Is this a fight we want to try now? Or can we return when we have more might and more strength. Are we willing to sacrifice one or all of us for the good of the Fey'ri?" Urdin nods at Yev'rah. "And yes, Yev', I have not forgotten that you have a stake in this as well. But the Fey'ri have--apparently--a larger stake in this. If we decide to flee for now, we have a degree of victory, in that we avoid loss.

'Third: the victorious army carries one spirit among all ranks.' -- we must work together, as a team, with one purpose. Working together, supporting each other, complementing each other--this is preferable to the chaos of independent action in battle.

'Fourth: the victor prepares himself and waits to take the enemy unprepared.' -- if we decide to stay and fight, we must prepare ourselves before hand, with spells, prayers, and other magic. We must launch our attack or attacks when the beast least expects it. We must watch for unexpected attacks ourselves. This is where one of our few advantages may lie; it is unlikely that the beast is unaware of our presence--we must therefore work to confuse and surprise it. Stealth, deception--these will work in our favor. If we are to survive, the beast must not fully know what to expect from us.

"The fifth factor is less relevant here, as it addresses the need of a military commander to be able to act independent in the field. This was always my cousin's favorite; he hated being told what to do and how to act.

"At any rate, one thing we must know is whether the beast is atop its hoard or no. Without that knowledge, all our other planning is for naught. As the dwar say, 'My bak aith kurn vel aith pene, ta bak gaur grahl geode freg dagmos pagh', or 'If ye ken thy enemy and ken thyself, ye need not fear 100 battles' result.'

"So. What say you all? I know a bit about our foe--generally--that I can share for those of you who may not know about these beasts."

[Greylen]

Well said, Urdin. Being the veteran of many Goblin wars in Cormyr, and yes Ty, you were there as well. I can say with certainty that we must be most careful with how we proceed.

It is unfortunate that we are down a companion at this juncture, as we truly need all the help we can get. But it is what it is and while this was a somewhat unforeseen foray, I do know that the forces we battle here are connected in some way to the forces we have been battling all the way here. A blow here will have further repercussions that just the death of a might Wrym.

You'll have to forgive me, I'm used to addressing troops before battle, not friends, so if I seem to state the obvious, please overlook it as a habit from talking to green recruits. (I'll get to that Ty)

We must determine two things. One, does the magic from this Sigil here extend into the next cavern. Two, the location of the beast himself. Knowing some of Dragon lore, I do know the Dragon will not be too far from it's treasure, so we can be certain it is in the next room... just where.

The determination of the first can be as simple as having someone or something enspelled move into the next cavern. To determine the second, I feel the beast will not reveal it's plans until we are fully committed. Scouting will be useless as the creature will know where we are regardless of skill.

However, If we can move quickly with our strongest moving in first being covered by all with distance weapons or spells, we can spread out to minimize the damage the beast can do with it's most fearsome weapon, it's breath. Most likely the beast will be high up, so as to minimize the capabilities of any fighters we have. I can cast a spell on the ceiling that will make it rather difficult for the creature to stay anywhere near the top... Evards Black Tentacles you have seen me use before. If I maximize the spell, it can cover a good portion of the ceiling, making it difficult for it to fly.

As well, I have numerous spells that can hurt the beast and keep it from escaping. Most of which I can cast regardless of the reach of this Sigil.

ALRIGHT Ty, fine it's your turn.

Finally the windbag gives up the floor... <laugh> You all know how fast I can move when I put my mind to it. So I am proposing that we put that speed to good use and use me a bait.... Pipe-down D. I know I know, but the thing we are missing most is tactical data. I can provide that by making a quick round in the cavern... my only concern being that ice. I'm pretty good at keeping my balance on just about anything, but one misstep and my little jaunt won't be worth a nine-hells vacation spot.

Keep me up, though, and I can outrun the wind itself. <smirk>