Knave 2E Solo - Session 1.4 - I Forgot I Had Oats

I'm taking a moment to assess and do some "clean up" concerning what has happened in Piers' adventures so far.

Knave 2E's travel rules read as follows:

Watches: Most significant travel actions take one watch (4 hours). At the end of each watch, roll the Travel Hazard Die. 

Travel Speed: PCs can move one six-mile hex per watch, up to three times per day. Each watch they travel after the third deals 1 direct damage to each PC unless they succeed at a CON check. Speed is halved in darkness, difficult terrain, or severe weather and doubled when riding.

I said that I spent 1 watch to get to the mountains and 1 watch to explore. That's just too quick. If this treasure existed so close to town, it would already have been discovered, and there's no way that a Pegasus would have nested there.

I'm going to retroactively rule that Piers traveled two whole days and then reached the mountains at the beginning of the third day. Also, the mountains would be difficult terrain. So it probably took another day to reach the Forgotten Dwarf Infirmary.

Piers would have foraged for food. So, let's simply assume that happened, and that any food stuffs that Piers had left over from his foraging is what he left for the Pegasus. Now, it's time to head back and Piers needs to forage for food again.

Without pushing itself, an adventuring party can travel 3 hexes in a day. So, if Piers traveled for two days and discovered the Infirmary on the third day, let's say that Piers is currently 7 hexes from town and that the mountain hex that he is currently in is difficult terrain.

It would be late on the third day. Piers isn't going to try to traverse the mountains at night. So instead he stays inside the shelter of the Infirmary and makes camp. No fire because he doesn't want to disturb the Pegasus. He moves far enough away that he hopes the Pegasus won't see him as a threat, but stays close enough that any potential predators will stay clear out of respect for the Pegasus' territory.

Piers beds down and tries to get some sleep for the night.

I roll on the Dungeon Hazard die because I'm still inside the dungeon (the Infirmary.) I roll a 5. Sign: PCs find a sign of a nearby encounter or a clue to a secret. Signs (page 10) d% 47: Lair scent. 

Okay, easy peasy. 

Piers beds down within the Infirmary walls. He can smell the Pegasus lair nearby. The odor is strong enough that it makes it difficult to sleep, but it is also somehow comforting. Piers feels confident that no other creatures will invade the Pegasus home and that his own human scent will be hidden. With this small reassurance, Piers is somehow able to sleep.

In the morning, Piers makes his way out of the mountains by midday. His stomach is rumbling. He needs to find food. Once he makes it out of the rough mountain terrain he sets himself to the task of finding food. (Perhaps giving his rations to the wounded Pegasus was a mistake.)

Foraging: Spend a watch and make a WIS check to collect d6 rations.

Difficulty is 16 and Piers has +2 on WIS checks. I rolled a 5+2 is 7. No luck. That's 8 hours to get out of the mountains (one watch doubled because of difficult terrain) and another 4 hours foraging (rules state that I must spend a watch). Piers is out of time and must go to bed hungry.

Piers no longer has the benefit of the Infirmary for safety. He camps under the stars and hopes for the best. Also, going without food means that Piers suffers 1 wound. A wound takes up an inventory slot.

Okay, hit the pause button. 

  

  

I totally should have been keeping my eyes on my character sheet this whole time. Piers is a horse groomer. He has Oats and a horse brush. I am fine with saying that he is now out of rations, but he would have left the Oats for the Pegasus. And of course he would have tried to get close to it based on his background. (This makes so much more sense now. I should have looked at my character sheet. I think I was too much in "GM mode.") Isn't it funny how these things work out?

So, no oats and no rations means that I do have room to write in the wound without losing anything. 

Piers' Inventory now looks like this:

1. Sword (1 hand, melee, 1d6 dmg)
2. Cage
3. 10 Rat Traps
4. Dwarven Apothecary Notes
5. Horse Brush
6. Blanket
7. 50 Coins
8. 50' rope
9. 1 torch
10. Wound: going hungry

I'm foraging again first thing. I'm giving myself an advantage bonus for hunting the same area (because Piers is getting familiar with it) and for being extra motivated. That gives me a total of +7 to the roll.

I roll 11+7 for an 18. Piers gets d6 rations. 6! awesome. He eats 1. This won't get rid of his wound. He needs to get back to town for that. But it should prevent further damage.

I have to drop something to carry the rations. I lose the Cage. Two days travel back to town drops me down to 3 rations. Spending the night safe in a warm bed with some real food will get rid of my wound, and Piers ends his first outing successfully.

I'm going to say that the Dwarven Apothecary notes have a value of 2000 gold with regards to XP so that I can push Piers up to the next level. I get to add +1 to three different stats. I choose CON because I really need it. WIS because I actually used it, and CHA because that will let Piers gain a companion on his next adventure, which he desperately needs.

After resting at home and improving his CON, Piers' Inventory looks like this:

1. Sword (1 hand, melee, 1d6 dmg)
2. 3 Rations
3. 10 Rat Traps
4. Dwarven Apothecary Notes
5. Horse Brush
6. Blanket
7. 50 Coins
8. 50' rope
9. 1 torch
10. 
    
11. 
    

This concludes Piers first session. Will he be able to find someone to translate the Dwarven Apothecary notes? Will he return to the mountains to try to tame the Pegassus? What can he do to stop the war? Will he win the hand of the woman he loves?

Only time will tell.

  

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