The Fourth Adventure

[kipper]

Dame Simonetta can only shake her head at the frivolities of youth. She'd rather not express what she thinks of Frederick's behaviour though.

[acodispo]

"WAAAAAAH-HOOOOOOOOO!" howls Willie as they fly down the hill, a call he's been known to make while spelunking in order to hear the echo.

[mgtremaine]

Kiplyn Throws himself on the board somewhat haphazardly while laughing "HA HA HAAAAAA" or perhaps that was really "HAAAAAEEEELLLPPP", it is hard to tell as he flys down the slope.

Nice roll

[mushgnome]

Gravity takes hold and accelerates the toboggan to a terrifying rate of speed. Our heroes feel their stomachs lurch up into their mouths, but Frederick seems nonchalant. He casually turns around to look back and lecture the youngsters with his voice of experience. "The most important thing about the art of Tobogganeering, you see, is to always---"

Oh sweet summer Frederick, soft in the belly from too many pancakes! He forgets that tobogganeering is as much a mental game as it is physical. He was Strong, but his Intelligence has failed him. He took his eye off the track, and didn't notice the fallen pine tree.

Frederick catches a mouth full of pine needles, and with a sproooiiiiiing sound is lifted clear of the sled! The other Hobbets instinctively duck, and the driverless toboggan continues to hurtle down the icy track, now with four riders instead of five. Poor Frederick is left behind, clinging to the tree. "Hold on! Just keep going! I'm okay!" he calls in encouragement.

Quick, what's the Wise thing to do in this situation?

Intelligence checks:
Frederick 18 fail
Kiplyn 7 pass
Willie 4 pass
Wilbur 9 pass
Dougal 1 pass

[mgtremaine]

I'm reacting the order of the rolls and assuming I was in the seat behind Frederick.

Kiplyn shakes his head rapidly at the driverless Toboggan, and tries to slide forward into the drivers seat and mimic the steering he saw Frederick doing. "I don't know what I'm doing so get ready to jump off if this go badly! He shouts at the other hobbits.

[mushgnome]

Kiplyn wisely slides forward into to the driver's seat and takes the reins. Willie wisely moves forward into Kiplyn's seat, Wilbur wisely moves forward into Willie's seat, and Dougal should have wisely moved forward into Wilbur's seat. But Dougal gets crossed up with the other riders, mistimes his slide, and gets bucked from the toboggan. He tries to hold on by one hand, but it's no use: he is knocked loose.

Dougal is sliding on his bottom, down the icy chute in pursuit of the toboggan. Does Dougal tuck his body aerodynamically to go faster, or does he spread out his surface area to slow down?

The toboggan is halfway down the track, hurtling at near-freefall speeds. Kiplyn is in the driver's seat and must use his Dexterity to control the runaway sleigh. Willie and Wilbur can assist by timing their movements in rhythm with the driver.

Wisdom checks:
Kiplyn 10 pass
Willie 10 pass
Wilbur 3 pass
Dougal 17 fail
I'll allow Dougal a thief skill check, like a saving throw: 1d6 = 3, he fails that too!

[mushgnome]

Kiplyn and Willie use their Dexterity to take control of the toboggan and steer it down the track. Wilbur on the other hand, can't find his rhythm and clumsily falls out of the sled! He flops out of the track and lands with a thud, face down in a deep pile of snow.

The final test is of Constitution: the stamina to endure the final section of the course. Kiplyn and Willie do not give up! They ride that toboggan all the way to the finish line.

At the bottom of the chute is a ramp that launches the toboggan skyward! Kiplyn and Willie catch some sick air! In a moment of weightless perfection, they feel a surge of Charisma and feel the Universe is listening. They could shout or scream their good intentions for the New Year, and their words might have some magical effect. For you see, nothing makes the Universe happier than frolicking Hobbets. The act of virtuous play brings Law to the world.

So what do Kiplyn and Willie shout as they jump the toboggan across the finish line?

Dexterity checks:
Kiplyn 7 pass
Willie 13 pass
Wilbur 17 fail

Constitution checks:
Kiplyn 1 pass
Willie 7 pass

Charisma checks:
Kiplyn 3 pass
Willie 6 pass

[mgtremaine]

Too-Bog-Ahn!!!! Kiplyn shouts...

[acodispo]

For no reason that he can understand, Willie shouts:

"Light in the Darkness!"

A strange thing, indeed, to shout here in the bright light of winter day, in the cold bright fresh liveliness of it all -- but perhaps even here, some deep part of Willie is still thinking of the mysterious darknesses they have discovered beneath the earth, and the fact that while they may play in the light for now, soon Willie & his friends will make their inevitable return to the darkness beneath...

[mgtremaine]

As the rush fades Kiplyn looks back up the long run and realizes "Willie do you think we have drag this thingy all the way back up alone. I think we got cheated"