Giants hurt like, like a lot.

Picking up where we left off before....

the party forms back up and charges down the corridor where there are three healthy hill giants and the terribly wounded one in the back.

Gulp.

The wounded hill giant goes down with a well place kai strike. The other three turns out of be a battle blood and well... lets just say if it wasn't for Pepper and that spell he casts that gives "emergency hit points" when a party member falls. We might be three party members lower than we are now.

The battle was tough and obviously quite bloody. Donner fell, Churchkey fell and Conell fell. Not to mention that Barrett and Pepper were both reduced to near 0 hit points at one point or another.

Long story short. The party was victorious when as they are cleaning up the mess and looting they hear some doors opening down a corridor. The party runs like the dickens. They are in no condition to fight.

The party runs except for Barrett who uses his invisibility potion and his boots of spider climbing. takes a twenty and hides in a perch near the ceiling. Playing reconnaissance, Barrette determines that there are 5 ettens, a fire giant and three strange women with bug like arms and a third eye in their forehead. These women are obviously in charge. Two Ettens go off with the fire giant and return moments later with bolts, lumber, nails etc.

Two other go and play watch up top and the last Etten heads off with the three women. The two with the building materials work for a good 1/2 hour and then return to help guard with the other two ettens and the last etten returns to help take shifts.

Barrett sneaks out invisible and finds the party that is resting in the giant mettle tube about 1/2 a mile away.

The next day the group makes a bit of a venture up to the two "smoke stacks" and realize that going in that way is not only nearly death but they have no idea what is below and is probably way too dangerous. They do venture further up and find that there is another possible entrance into the the caves but this one is blocked by giant tree trunks and braced on the back side with nails, bolts etc.

With this, a plot comes together. Two party members begin to set the wooden blockade on fire with 4 flasks of oil and notching the logs to help start the tinder.

Then, Churchkey... mounted calls out the Ettens on the ledge. As they show themselves throwing javelin's. Bolgrim casts a mass command spell on them. It works. Barrett...with a silent stone in hand, climbs the wall and will eventually throw the stone into the opening to block the sound from alerting the rest of the Ettens. As the Ettens climb down the wall the rest of the party jumps out to attack them.

One Etten makes a save their second round and begins climbing back into the balcony, the other Etten continues to move towards Bolgrim. Barrett, in an attempt to stop the other Etten charges into the room and does a CRAP load of damage. The Etten responds with A CRAP load of of damage. Fortunatly, Barrett is able to kill the Etten before it can respond again.

The party makes quick work of the Etten on the ground.

Gathering themselves back up on the balcony the begin to make their way down into the "Hill Giant Room". Here they encounter an Etten on watch and two others sleeping. The Etten on watch spots Barrett sneaking and screams. The others leap to life while the awake guard charges forward. A bloody battle ensues. At one point the party sees a Firegiant enter the room and leave.

When the party finally takes out the Ettens they can hear sounds coming from behind some huge doors at the end of a 50 foot hallway. The group is watching and searching the room when a three women show up out of know where as a magical cage appears around Connel.

Churchkey orders the group to attack the women and ignor the giant. Use the magical cage as a barrier for the giant. At that the party leaps into action. These women are a lot tougher than anticipated. They leap deftly out of the way of Pepper lighting bolt. One of them lashes out with her warty claw and drains the strength from Barrett. The others step back and cast some spells. Churchkey sloughs off one of the spells and Donner is able to resist another.

The group attacks as best they can doing damage but they are very good at resisting attacks. Pepper casts a wall of fire to segregate two of the women from the one in melee. The group then descends on the lone Hag. When unexpectedly the other two fly over the wall of fire and land ready for combat. When a number of good attacks take place and two of the woman fall. The last runs through the fire and Churchkey charges after.

Churchkey runs down a corridor and yells I'm chasing her when as he runs he comes to a dead end but sees a Fire Giant that also seems a bit shocked to see Churchkey. The rest of the party closes in with the Firegiant but as combat is about to begin the Giant yells in very good common, "Stop... lets talk"

In essense, Churchkey and the giant parle a 10 min time where the giant will gather his equipment and walk away with no combat. When the giant packs up a silver and platinum cage with runes carved into it. At this another discussion ensues. Combat looks almost inevitable. Basically what the party realizes is that the Giant really is a blacksmith and is here because of the magical forge. He doesn't care about the other creatures here other than they keep him protected from the dangers of the demonskar.

The giant offers to help destroy the Hag, give a map of the rest of the caves and will remove the force cage around Connel if they will let him stay.

The Giant puts his equipment down... draws a wand and lets Connel out of the cage. He then introduces himself as Dugobras. Sets his smithing equipment back up and offers to make the party equipment if they need it.

They later find out that this is probably the physically strongest FireGiant they will ever encounter and when they find out he has three attacks per round are quite happy they didn't combat this behemoth of an opponent. Especially after the previous combats. Party members would definitely hit the pavement and hard.

That is agreed upon that he can stay as long as he helps and it is here that we finished.