Kingdom Hearts 2: Final Mix

Original cover of the game back in 2006

So I finally finished it, took me around 50 hours and reaching level 80 before being fed up with the side-questing and just finish it. At least I finished it before AntDude, but maybe not fair since I started like, a month before he started publish his reviews on the games in the series (and by now you can guess that I write these a long time before releasing them, but hopefully he has released his review before this). So lets see, shall we begin with the story as per usual?

Wait, who's this guy again?

So the game starts with introducing us to Roxas, a normal kid enjoying the final week of summer with his friends. Now, watching the movie in the last game I already know his backstory. He is Sora's Nobody, a being that have no heart and is part of Organisation XIII, he's actually their 13th member. He was defeated by Riku and somehow ended up in Twilight Town with memories changed. Of course, if you played the game in 2006 you wouldn't know that since then he was just Roxas, our tutorial character to give an excuse to reintroduce the basic controls from the last game and some added things, like now you can skate on a skateboard. So basically Roxas and friends are trying to make the days go, but Roxas starts to notice people in black cloaks that no others see, times stop at times and beings like heartless and nobodies appear and with them the Keyblade. Exploring the town he finds the girl Namine in a mansion at the outskirts. In the end he finds a mysterious laboratory under it that leads him to what pretty much is a cryochamber. And after all stress and pressure he starts it up... and he disappear as Sora awakens from his sleep, having regained all memories he lost at Castle Oblivion, but the memories from that castle is gone. Really, this section is rather bitter since I assume everyone wanted to play Sora, but from a gaming perspective this made more sense, but you actually gets attached to Roxas even though you know he must disappear somehow and it gets really though when he himself starts to wonder if its real or not and more or less begs to exist.... and then he's gone. Not only that, but walking around town as Sora afterwards feels empty, since no one remember Roxas. No trace of what he accomplished, the street tournament, his friends don't recall him and so on. It's like he was completely erased, like he was a Nobody.... Well, at least I can play with Donald and Goofy again.

Did he change clothes?

And here the real part of the game starts. You leave Twilight Town and meet Yin Sid, the wizard from Fantasia that gives you your knew clothes and access to the Gummi Ship. And you're of. First stop Disney Castle, you are visiting the home of Donald and Goofy. Not much there beside introducing Queen Minnie and whatever Daisy is. You travel to Hollow Bastion that been resettled by the Final Fantasy characters from last game and Merlin... so basically the new Traverse Town. We even have Uncle Scrooge here trying to make some ice cream. Actually preferred Traverse Town to be honest, much more atmosphere. Then the rest of the worlds. There's worlds from Mulan, Beauty and the Beast, Hercules (old), The Little Mermaid (old), Aladdin (old), The Lion King, Pirates of the Caribbean and Nightmare Before Christmas (old). Most of them follow their respective movies and for the new worlds no problem, but The Little Mermaid I've already seen once so I don't need it again, but they had to so they could use some more songs from the movie in a musical. And again, the only ones that uses the movie music is Nightmare, Mermaid and Winnie the Pooh (of course the book is here again) of the old worlds and are joined by the Pirate movies. And to be honest they used a short excerpt from Beauty and the Beast at the end of that chapter. It's only the best Disney movie so of course it had to do it. The only one I don't know is the world based on Tron. Yes, another live-action movie from the 80's that I've never seen and fittingly is accessed through a computer in Hollow Bastion (where also Winnie the Pooh is as well). 

From the same creator who made Animalympics you say?

So you run around, level up, get abridged versions of the movies and I gotta hand it to them, Aladdin they based on the sequel Return of Jafar instead of repeating the same story again as they did with Mermaid. How can they even explain that since I killed Ursula in the last game and they point out that both Oogi Boggy and Maleficent are resurrected while Jafar was seen caught in the lamp in the last game, but Ursula just shows up and Ariel still believes her as if that part of the game didn't happen. Hercules is probably the only one I can't say that much about since it's basically just an arena level, but this time placed in the underworld and you can play with Auron from Final Fantasy X, neat.

The bad guys I presume

So if we go back to the story, why was Organization XIII a threat again. Well, in the span of the game they tried to get Roxas back, and if he wouldn't cooperate they were ordered to kill him, harsh, but hey I haven't read the terms of contract at the organisation. Then they tried kidnap Kairi, which is pretty much I as a player starts to see them as a threat... if I have played the first game and know who Kairi is. And the game tries to fool me in that a man named Diz is a bad guy since he has an evil laugh and plans some dark things with Ansem, the big bad of the first game. Helps that he is voiced by Christopher Lee. Turns out Diz is the real Ansem, a good guy who was usurped by the bad Ansem, not the one he planed with since that was Riku transformed by the darkness into Ansem. But Ansem bad guy is dead, so in this game we have his Nobody instead, Xemnas. And boy is that a cheating bastard. So endgame is that you figure out that Twilight Town also has another version of itself explaining why no-one knew who Roxas was. That Twilight Town has a portal to the World Between Worlds. Sora and gang fights their way through while meeting up with Riku and Kairi who escaped her prison thanks to Namine and later on King Mickey who helped Diz as he was collecting data... of Kingdom Hearts with act as a moon in the world of Darkness? The game has literally dropped me somewhere and I can't explain what happens. I don't even get the plan of the Nobodies. Are they struggling to feel? Or are they just eradicating everything so everyone will be as them? And defeating Hearless with the Keyblade creates the Kingdom Hearts? Or does it create Nobodies? I'm so confused. And I haven't even mentioned with the subplot of Maleficent and Pete going around looking for a Castle to control the heartless. I think they did a heroic sacrifice since after that they don't show, but with this game what would I know?

Pete, former captain of the guard and boss of Mickey Mouse on his Steamboat... how could it go so bad?

Anyway, the machine Diz uses blows up killing him... what he tried to accomplish I don't get. You fight your way to the top, fight Xemnas a couple of times. Everything is fine as you win, everyone but Riku and Sora are able to get in the Door of Light before Xemnas return and you jump on some sort of space ship and destroy him. And then the final battle atop the monster start which is also pretty awesome as you throw buildings at him and then the most cheapest fight start. Cheating bastard I say. I died like 6-7 times because the bastard is able to hide outside the perimeter of the fighting area and then he traps me so I have to play as Riku, before telling what the hell I'm supposed to do while the clock is ticking down. And then the damn quick-time event I just have to prey to god I get right otherwise he drain so much HP that is game over... again. But I beat him. And then we are in the world of Darkness just walking around. We end at the beach I recall from the Recoded movie? They pretty much give up, but a flask post appears from Kairi and a door of light appears. They enter and returns to Destiny Island. They meet Kairi, Donal, Goofy and Mickey, all in CGI. They don't look that good. Credits and then the post-credit sequence when they are alone on the island again (Riku, Kairi and Sora that is) and they get a new flask post from Mickey hinting on a future game. If its the other game on the CD I have to find out another time.

It looks a bit uncanny I must say

So overall a good game, I had fun playing it. Same voice actors, the music was alright and the little assets they borrowed from the movies they made good use of. The worlds felt a bit short though. A bit linear compared to the more maze like worlds from the first game. Gameplay wise... pretty much the same, but they added Drive forms in which you with one or both other characters in your party combine strength so that Sora goes into a ultimate form. And as per usual I ignored it until I noticed right up to the end that I didn't have high jump, double jump or glide which they even included in Chains of Memory... where you didn't even need them. Turns out that to get those abilities you have to grind out your drive forms. So I spent 10 hours getting most of them up the cap of level 7 so I could glide and jump to collect most of the puzzle pieces scattered across the worlds. I have a small nagging suspicion that they mentioned it when they introduced the drive forms, but I forgot about that and didn't bother using Drive since I might need it if a tough boss come by. So instead I went back and forth between a save point and some enemies to beat up so I could save the drive gauge by entering the gummi ship. Glad I did cause I stumbled upon this added area in Hollow Bastion (or Radiant Garden as it's renamed at the end point of the game) where you need to max those abilities, but I came through and then fought my way through some of the hardest heartless encounters in the game. Lucky 80 was enough. I still don't get the motivation of the villains and Sora's own motivation is finding King Mickey and Riku, just as in the first game so that's fine. All it really did was actually tempting me to get a Playstation 4 in order to play Kingdom Hearts 3 when it gets out. And at the current standing there's Nino Kuni 2, Kingdom Hearts 3, The Last Guardian. What do they say? At least 5 games before buying a console? Especially since I know neither of these would end up on a Nintendo console no matter how strong the NX is gonna be. Maybe wait for the Neo which would be an upgraded slim version I guess? I also guess I have to learn to listen to a different Mickey Mouse since the voice actor passed away around the time after the release. And Diz won't have Christopher Lee either since he's also gone. And now I made myself sad. Then again I learn that the voice of Goofy was in the original Robocop from 1987. Best movie ever!

Full Throttle

Get your motor running

Heading out the Highway!

We're back with another Lucasarts adventure games, this time the bikers dream, Full Throttle. Released in 1995 I had a demo of this game portraying the beginning segment of you waking up outside a bar and you had to get your wheels on the road to help your gang, the Polecats. Playing the full game its revealed the main character, Ben, has been asked to escort Malcolm Corley, the head of Corley Motors to a shareholder meeting.  Ben was hesitant, but they needed the cash so the others persuaded him and they are of. Corley and Ben hit it of since they like to talk about their big interest, bikes. Corley Motor is the last company that still produces them, but Adrian Ripburger, the Vice-President are very keen on a new projects... minivans. So you can already guess Malcolm is pretty much dead. Ripburger is the one that knocked you out and left you in a dumpster. You get your key for the bike back and on the highway to catch up with the Polecats before its to late.

During the travels you fight of some other bikers to acquire better weapon until you reach the gorge. So you search for the Cavefish, a mole like gang where you steal a ramp to perform a stunt across the gorge. You catch up, but its to late, Ripburger has smashed Corley's head in with a tire-iron and blames the Polecats. Ben escapes, but somehow get blown up so he is taken Mo, a mechanic. He later learns that the one rescuing him was a photographer, a photographer that captured the act of the murder on film. So it begins a race to catch the photos before Ripburger and stop him from killing of Corley's only heir so he can take over the company. If you don't get it, Mo is the hidden daughter of Corley.

You infiltrate Corley headquarters during the shareholder meeting and use the old ploy of taking away the villains presentation and instead showcasing the murder and playing the recorded will of Malcolm Corley giving everything to Maureen "Mo" Corley. Ripburger escape and while locating the Polecats Mo and Ben are ambushed by Ripburger in the truck he stole from the meeting. An intense, hanging from the truck grill scene later, they have been swallowed up by a wingless plane that belonged to Mo's own biker gang, the Vultures. Ben climbs to the controls and... well I started guessing since I don't get what I'm supposed to do. After seeing my death scene a couple of times I give up and look up the answer. Raise the gears. OBVIOUSLY!!! How am I supposed to get that? Anyway, the plane stops right on the edge of the gore and the truck is hewn forward and dangles down with Ripburger hanging from his coat on the machine gun he used to attack Ben and Mo. So Ben makes the logical solution to fiddle with the controls and disengage them, making Ripburger plummet to his death. Ben enters the plane while the other bikers escape and for him to survive as well you have to move to the left, unveiling another screen with your bike on so you can ride it out with an explosion behind you.

The game pretty much ends at Malcolm Corley's funeral. When its over Mo and Ben parts way since the road is calling him and Mo has to take care of the company. Credits roll to the heavy metal soundtrack and your booted out of the game. I made the gaming sin of ending halfway through, but still. The game feels like Brütal Legend, but honestly with a tighter story. Same guy did the games so no wonder maybe. But there is some puzzles that annoys the hell out of me. First, how am I supposed to get that I have to gather up enough bunnies from the first box and then get another one to clear the mine field? It's contra intuitive, better let him get two boxes at once then. Then we have to find the secret place to kick to open the secret door into Corley's office. You know what isn't fun? Waiting for the timer to reset time and time again while I walk around kicking a wall. At least the key puzzle was simple for the safe. And the final stretch of the game, while cool when you succeed is bogged down by guessing since how are you as first timer gonna get what the input is to stop a runaway plane? Cast is good and so is the music. Heck, the villain is played by Mark Hamill, Luke Skywalker himself. And he is gruesome. Overall a good game with great story and most of the puzzles are fine. Not that many Lucasarts games left to experience. Let's see what the next game will be.

A DnD Tale: Musical Puzzles

The music puzzle from hell!

They continues toward the next room across the corridor and finds a room with the statue of a minotaur. Investigating the statue Kiera find a nice looking quiver and takes it and fills it with arrows. Sarion senses the arcane energies from it and takes it and turns it upside down.The arrows falls our, then another, and then another. They realises it is an endless quiver that Kiera eagerly lays her hand on. The minotaur is Taurus Parashurama, a warrior saint protecting the innocent and avenging wrongful deeds. They leave the room and head south. They enter and finds a statue of Linos Krishna, the saint of music and culture. The room is littered with old instruments that are breaking apart. Except a lyre that only misses it strings that Kiera takes. Going near the statue triggers yet another trap and they are once again trapped in a room. On the wall behind the statue they find an inscription.

Eldars Gaser Avdunstar

Erinrar Galen Afton Annorstädes

Evakuerade Gemytliga Artister

Guidad Elevering

Too most of you it's just gibberish although you might notice a pattern. If you take each first letter of each word you get E, G, A, E, G, A, A, E, G, A, G, E. Separating them in their respective lines you get 4 accords. And if your musical education don't tell you, the 4 accords are the first accords of the song Smoke on the Water. The text also reflects if, but translating it would take away the code so it would look something like this:

Fire's gases evaporating

Remember crazy night far-away

Evacuating happy artists

Guided Elevation

Sounds a bit more ominous actually in english, anyway, that occupied them for a while until I pushed them in the right direction. Kiera played the notes on her flute and the door opens again. They head over to the next room, a a statue of a warrior named Cadmus Rama holding a graceful flail +2 that Sphinx picks up. At this point the player of Sarion complains that she isn't getting any weapon so I point out that I actually put something in the library, but she wouldn't take it. She made Sarion go back alone and while in the library I pretty much made up an excuse so that he couldn't resist the pull of the black book. Picking it up he felt his magic becoming stronger and received a +2 to all Attack rolls (I had to do something since she pretty much only rolls 1 so she can have that boost, if she gets better I can always negate it with some weird dreams from the book or due to its demonic life force cause the undead to rise). The other's went south and entered a garden with a small pond and a statue of a centaur, overgrown with roots and ivy. Each corner hosts a tree and the walls are covered with fluorescent moss and ivy. The centaur is Keiron Buddha the enlightened, a sage of great powers, a pacifist and ensnarer of demons and the link between gods and mortals. As they walk closer they can hear splashes from the pool. Readying their weapons they find a childlike being with green skin, a spring nymph. She introduces herself as Ivy and wonders what they are doing there. They explain that they are searching for a lost child named Marcie. Ivy tells them that she's been here, but the man in the tree scared her away. The man in the tree is a warrior of unknown origin ensnared in roots and branches, almost half-eaten by the tree. She also tells them to avoid the pool in the first room and the final room as it scares her. They take her advice and tries to avoid any flowers on their way out. They still enters the final room and find a lone statue which they can't seem to recall. This one has its name written and is Monoceros Kalki, a unicorn. All they can recall are glimpses of legends and prophesies of Erathis, the god of civilisation.

Finding nothing on this floor they head down to the next. The spiral staircase ends in front of a statue of Kurma, holding a slate with the inscription:

Here lies Fallcrest 28 lords

They are all unique

They are all alone

Tell me who they are

And then tell me who civilisation first are

The room had three more statues, Krishna, Buddha and Rama, placed as a triangle with the staircase in the middle and Kurma just south of it. They hear footsteps and find Marcie behind one of the statues. They also finds 28 panels with 28 letters with small texts on all of them And I won't wright them all out. The reason is that this puzzle is based on the Swedish alphabet that contains letters as Å, Ä and Ö. That's right, 28 letters. A foundation for a civilisation is often the ability to record things and to do that you need an alphabet. The second part is that every panel has a small text referring to a children's education show from the 70's with a lot of songs and sketches so I used that as hints. Lucky for me they had watched it a couple of weeks ago, sadly I made it a little to easy by having it in order so once they figured out the first ones they pretty much used the alphabet as a guide instead of guessing it. They opened up all the panels to reveal the corresponding letter. Now, who is the civilisations first? Lucky for them the last room they entered was Kalki's which I points out that Erathis is the god of civilisation so they start to push in the letters in order. A short rumbling and the statue of Kurma splits in to revealing yet another staircase down. They go back to Ivy with Marcie and goes down the stairs and follows the corridor west. They enter a room with a bunch of dead people, who seems familiar. There's a open stone door that leads west and a staircase upward, but it's blocked by a stone slab. They push it just open to see that they are below the lighthouse again. The slab falls into place and they prepare to head back as the temperature falls. A fog is created on the floor and 5 skeletons arises and battle ensues (what they didn't get was that this was caused by the black book). Most damage is caused as Sphinx swings is flail at Tyrell and Sarion hits Despair in the back with a magic missile and Sarion in turn gets cut by Tyrell's sword. After all that they head back to Ivy and Marcie and brings Marcie back outside. They learn that the caravan is ready for tomorrow and then heads to the Silver Unicorn for a last meal and sleep for a long while.

And here ends the midsummer campaign. If everything goes as planned the next session will be in August, but we will see if everyone can join. Also everyone gone up to level 3 so I have to equip my characters with adequate skills and abilities... and magic loot since the others are stacking up on it.

A DnD Tale: The Catacombs of Fallcrest

Every catacomb gotta have skeletons

The caravan continues to Harken, but due to losing time just unpack and pack on and travels back. Just before leaving an old lady notices Kiera and ask if she has seen her husband, Dauvren Staul. He went on the caravan the last time to Winterhaven and haven't sent word since then. She ask if she can look for him since he can be so engrossed in his work as an archeologist (I also hints that the onyx pyramid was one of his finds he gave to the Duke that then gave it to Kiera). She agree and the caravan is back in Fallcrest. The importer shop has to find more guards since most were scared of by the goblin attack or hurt so they have a day of. Leaving the import shop one of Despair's kids runs up to them and tell them that Marcie has been lost in the catacombs. They all agree to enter. They enter the dark mausoleum of the old lords of Fallcrest. Skeletons litter the place from 100 years ago when the Bloodspear war raged. Orcs, humans, ogres, dwarves, goblins and elves. Piled all around. The sarcophaguses are mostly smashed and anything of value have been taken long ago. The central corridor ends at a dirt wall and on each side through the corridor is five rooms containing the dead lords. They realise that Marcie must be behind the dirt wall since it appear to have had a hole that have been covered up. As usually Sarion is rather ineffective with his magic spells so Sphinx charges the wall, but get his head stuck. He is able to see the other side and he sees light from the walls, created by fluorescent colours painted on the wall. The others pull him out and he tries again. He stumbles on his feet, goes right through the wall and falls down the stairs in the hidden room. After the others stopped hearing him, they continue down. 

They enter pretty much a similar corridor, but much brighter and colourful. They start by looking into every room and then they start from the top. The first room on the left is a pool of water with a statue of a mermaid in the middle on a pedestal. The mermaid is Pisces Matsya, a holy saint for those traveling on water, she is the one that banished the ocean from this valley so that people could settle. The rouge notices some gold and pearls at the foot of the statue, but she obviously smells a trap and ignores is (sad, since I placed two lesser water spirits in the pool that would have attacked her, missed encounter and the idea is so neat I have to figure out a way to use it). The room on the other side is a library with a statue of a turtle, Cehlone Kurma, the guardian of wisdom and knowledge and the saint of magic users. Here Sarion fails to notice the arcane powers, except a black book on a pedestal in the back of the room. He recognises it as Kurma's Black boook. A book that contains the spirits of demons that Kurma captured and bend toward his will. Sadly they didn't take it, every adventurer know that you take anything that isn't nailed down, no matter the dangerous artefacts. If nothing else you can always sell them. 

They go south to the next room, a room divided in gold and silver, night and day with a lion-man statue in the middle and a towering statue of a rhakshasa in the back of the room. The lion-man was Leo Narashima who defeated a rhaksasa demon lord by striking in the twilight since the demon was invulnerable during the night or day. They leave the room and enters the one across. Mostly an empty room besides a statue of a boar-man. Sarion is able to locate a magical dagger in a crevice under the statue. The dagger has a shaft in the shape of a snake and is identified as a assassins dagger +2, and are finally given to Despair. Now what they don't yet know is that when she gets a critical and deals that damage she will start to fall under the spell of the dagger that is a Fang of Zehir, the snake god. This is because she is a worshipper of Zehir from the beginning so I will give her nightmares and in the process influence her to either because more snakelike or throw away her evil god. So nobody tell her alright? The boar-man is Erymanthius Varaha that battled the Yuan-ti and drove the reptilians from the valley. They went south to the next room and inside they find statues of warrior of metal with weapons in hand, 44 total and in the middle a statue of a dwarf. The dwarf is Bes Vamana, a dwarf that grew to the size of a giant and is the saint of metalworkers and miners. As they investigate the statue they trigger a hidden trap and a door closes down behind them and three of the statues awakens, talking about protecting the creator. As they slay the Warfoged captain his eyes turns red and he begins to talk about self-destruction. He explodes and covers the Dragonborn and Tiefling in oil while the others destroys the two warforged warriors remaining. They look around for something to open the door and finds the mechanism at the dwarven statues arm and they pull it up. And so does the door.

Here ends the second session. There is one more next week and after that we return to video game weekly.

A DnD Tale: Forrest Walk

What else is there in a fantasy forest than elves?

So midsummer has come and gone and with it, the gathering of the family which makes it for the continuation of our DnD adventure. Last time the party had been pardon by the Lord Warden for... trespassing? They encountered a secret tunnel to Kobold Manor from the lighthouse and are now researching the Tiamat-cult that have stolen their artefacts of unknown origin.The new session begins as the smith's apprentice knocks on their door and tell them that the smith has finished their weapon (which I retconned from a sword to a bow since the only ones using a sword are my own character that shouldn't steal the main PC stuff and the wizard that rather uses magic). They awake the others and leave, leaving behind my characters Tyrell, the half-elven bard and Argent, the drow ranger. They go down and collects a Screaming Longbow +2 (which I modified so that it only screams when critical since it isn't the best weapon for a stealth mission) that Kiera the Bard pretty much took, but since Sphinx the Paladin had payed for it they settled for a payment plan. Then they split up, with Sphinx going to the temple of Bahamut and seeking guidance. The high priest told him to seek the seer in Winterhaven to ask for help in these dark times. The wizard Sarion heads for the Green Wizard Towers and buys a couple of healing potions since we are figuring out the rules a bit more, meaning healing surges can't be done just anytime you want. He gets it for cheap (20 gp each) since the wizard really wants back the stolen crystal rose. Kiera and the tiefling rouge Despair heads for Sandercots to learn more about the necklace around their necks. And basically learns that it is a 30 square area and it gives electric shocks if strayed beyond that. Despair tried to get her hands on the key ma Sandercot showed, but she snaps the tail and basically tells her that there is another key and Despair shouldn't bother. While leaving they are met up by Despair's gang of kids who she scolds for stealing from them and get back her 10 gp from Charlie, the leader of the gang. Sadly for Kiera another kid takes 5 gp from her so she forces Despair to pay her back.

They met back at the Silver Unicorn and then continues back to the Importer store to look for a job. Opening the door Argent and Tyrell walks out telling them that they are signed up for the caravan toward Harken and then back to Fallcrest and onward to Winterhaven. They enter and haggles a bit and for 30 gp are signed up as caravan guards per trip (10 gp more than my other characters, but they don't actually spend anything and has "unlimited resources"). They set of the next morning and are on their way. They listen in to some of the merchants and apparently the goblins in the area has become more dangerous and organised as of late. They suspect an ambush and scout a head, but they fail spectacularly at seeing anything so when the arrows and spears starts flying they are surprised as anyone else. Around 20 goblins attacks and closes in on them. Horses races, people are hurt or killed and then... more arrows start flying. Goblin after goblin falls with a long feathered arrow sticking out of them as around 50 elves are hiding in the forests around them.The leader is none other than Vorsilder Wolfunter, slayer of witches and skull lords. Yes, I brought him in from the shadows of time and promoted him to a captain of the elven military in Harkenwood. He knows Tyrell and Argent and invites them to help him with the goblin problem. The problem is that they have noticed higher goblin activity since an orc appeared and now they have established a fort with around 300 goblins. Heavily fortified the elven army of 150 elves are cautious to attack and need a distraction. After some planning, the heroes lets Despair and Argent use a flask of alchemist fire that Tyrell prepared for them so that they can sneak near the camp and start a fire on the east and west side. Meanwhile Sphinx dresses up as a Bane Paladin since they have noticed a clear religious schism in the camp as the hobgoblin leaders are following Gruumsh and bullying the smaller goblins to servitude. They are Bane servants. While he approaches from the south, the guards mistake him from Wren, a fallen Paladin that stalks the trade routs in the northwestern part of the valley. Apparently he buys food from the goblins. Sphinx tries to get them to stand up against the oppression, but they don't dare. So when the fires start he rallies them around him and attacks the closest hobgoblin that whips the goblins to train. The goblins bloodlust awakens and they begin shouting Wren and Bane in unison as the camp falls into disarray in a civil war.

As he makes a run for it the hobgoblin leader together with his two bugbear bodyguards steps out of the tent in the middle and see the chaos. He roars at them and spots Sphinx. He hisses Wren and charges at him. After a short intense battle the bugbears and hobgoblins are slain. Meanwhile the elves started their attack, saying any goblin they got their hands on and the rest dispersed into the forest. The day is saved and as thanks they are granted elven cloaks +2, which basically does the same thing as the elven cloaks in Lord of the Rings, highten some defence stats and gives a bonus to stealth checks. They return to the caravan and continues. And that was pretty much everything from the first session, next week the adventure continues.