Session 24. (18/9/09)

Though it seems more, the heroes of this series have only been fighting spiders in five of the last seven broadcasts. This will make the sixth, but promises to be the last. Mineo rejoins the party, having had his critical damage healed back in the village. Thinking the ninth spider burrow cleared, Miyoshi sends Yoshi back to the village to report and enters the burrow with Kokuma, right behind Mineo and Kachamaru who uses his Light spell to show the way.

At the end of the tunnel is a large egg chamber, with hundreds of eggs - and six spiders, three normal (three foot!) sized and three large (five foot). Kachamaru tries to cast Stage Smoke to give some defence, but it fizzles, so he hits a medium spider for 10 damage. Mineo hacks at a medium spider for 6 and 9 damage. Kokuma prods a large spider with his tetsubo, doing 9 damage, but is bitten by a medium spider for his pains and poisoned with a L3 fast paralytic poison. Stung, he takes it out on the large spider, but is bitten in return - fortunately he resists the poison, and his system also fights the poison in his system, reducing it to L2. Miyoshi dimes (2 damage) and nickels (3 damage) a large spider, which thanks him by biting him and injecting a L4 poison. The unopposed large spider comes up and bites Mineo for 6 damage and a L2 poison. Both Miyoshi and Mineo fight off their poisonings and reduce the levels by one.

Mineo slashes the medium spider, killing it, then scores a hit on his larger tormentor. It replies by biting him again, increasing the poison to L3. Kachamaru lands two more blows on a medium spider, but there is still plenty of life in it - however, when it tries to strike back it misses and stuns itself. Kokuma hits his large arachnid foe, almost killing it, but then fails to connect on the coup-de-grace. Miyoshi nickels (3 damage) and dimes (2 damage) his large opponent, which again thanks him by biting him and injecting a L4 poison, taking the poison in his system to L7. Unsurprisingly, he is unable to fight it off and his speed attribute plummets from 15 to 8, reducing him to one action per turn. Mineo also falls prey to the poison in his system, reducing his speed from 19 to 16 (but retaining his two actions). Kokuma battles his poison down to L1.

The heroes seem to be tiring and all miss on their next attacks. Mineo also misses on his second attack and Miyoshi doesn't even get one. Kokuma hits and kills his critter on his second attempt, but not before being bitten once again to up his poison back to L3. Kachamaru manages a hit on his stunned opponent, not quite killing it, but maintains his record of not being bitten. Miyoshi, Kokuma and Mineo all fight their poisons down by one level.

Kachamaru casts Flash and dazzles two of the four remaining spiders and follows up by hitting and killing one of the two unaffected ones. Mineo swings and misses but then hits and dazes the large spider he is fighting. Kokuma takes on the medium spider that had been nibbling at his heels and thumps it twice. Miyoshi uses his one action to hit his large spider (another nickel - 3 damage). The spiders are too dazzled to get any bites, but their poison does their work for them, Kokuma losing another 2 speed and Mineo losing 3 speed and, critically, increasing his poison to L3 and losing an action.

Mineo wastes his one action by missing his foe. Kachamaru goes to help Miyoshi and raises the stakes with two hits for 7 (quarters?). Miyoshi finishes off with a dollar hit for 11 damage, killing the large spider. Kokuma pounds the last medium spider with hits of 7 and 8, killing it. Miyoshi suffers another loss of 5 speed, taking him to 3 and dangerously close to passing out. Kokuma also loses 2 speed, but Mineo critically throws off all his poison at once.

The heroes gang up on the last large spider, Mineo having first go but losing his grip on his sword, Kokuma misses, Miyoshi hits for a (good for him) 5 damage and Kachamaru does the honours with a 10-point killing blow. At this point, Miyoshi finally succumbs to the poison and collapses. Kokuma fights off the remaining levels in his system. Mineo applies an antidote to Miyoshi and reduces his unconscious time from 12 hours to one.

The conscious adventurers explore the egg chamber and find about 200 eggs. Kachamaru had tried cooking and eating one previously, and said they tasted nice, but no-one believes him so they stomp all the eggs to mush. Also in the chamber are quite a few bones - human - and the remains of a few weapons. Anything organic has rotted away, but there are some stone spear points and metal arrow points. They collect these up to take back to the village. Mineo says a prayer for the dead (human and arachnoid), then they collapse the tunnel and return to Yakumo.

In the village there is much rejoicing. When Miyoshi comes round his eye falls on a metal spear point covered in ichor. The gunk has eaten into the blade, reducing its accuracy but greatly increasing the damage it can do. He takes it and binds it onto his spear.

It is summer in the Year of the Boar (1467). In the time since the last adventure, the wives of Kokuma and Mineo have each had baby girls. We also learn, belatedly, the shocking news that Miyoshi's first son, Kokako, died before he was one year old. The adventurers now have 16 children between them: Haku (ages 10, 8, 6 and 3), Mineo (ages 8, 6 and newborn), Kachamaru (ages 6 and 2), Miyoshi (ages 6, 5 and 2), Yoshi (ages 4 and 2) and Kokuma (ages 2 and newborn). The fathers, now all 27, have spent any spare time over the winter training (well, mostly training - Kokuma's wife is also pregnant). Miyoshi completed the Precision Strike okuden for sojutsu and improved his tattooing. Kachamaru was studious and improved his wit, improved his kabuki and Ainu magic and nearly learned Darts of Wood. Mineo worked on kenjutsu, kyujutsu and iaijutsu (that's easy for you to say!). Kokuma just studied kyujutsu.

However, it has been a hard winter and the heroes are not unaffected. The various hardships, especially hunger and overwork to feed 28 mouths have reduced Miyoshi and Mineo by 0.4 health, and Kachamaru and Kokuma by 0.3 strength. A good harvest is essential. But, a few weeks before harvest time, Wajin warriors attack Yakumo, whether in reprisal for food raids or just to harry the Ainu out of the area is not clear.

In a change from earlier tactics, the Wajin form four groups: archers, mounted samurai, samurai swordsmen and ashigaru. The Wajin attack Yakumo from the south, where a ridge of the central mountains cuts off the southern fields from the Yakumo plain, the town itself filling the gap between the ridge and the sea. While Haku organizes an evacuation of the women and children, Miyoshi organises the men into fighting units and gets them into good, well-protected locations. The Wajin archers fire on the village and pin down anyone that tries to advance out of it towards them. Kachamaru sees an arrow heading straight for him and tries to cut it down using yadomejutsu, but he misses and is struck for 8 damage. Miyoshi, Kachamaru, Kokuma and Mineo return fire, and all but Miyoshi score hits, though the damage is minor at this long range. Next, the Wajin cavalry rides up to take on anyone that escaped the hail of arrows. The wily ex-Wajin fire at the horses - Kokuma kills one rider's horse, Mineo hits another and it dumps its rider. Miyoshi hits a horse but its rider manages to keep control and Kachamaru misses everything. The unaffected cavalrymen fire back and hit two Ainu and Mineo for 4 damage.

Mineo looks to see who is commanding the Wajin and sees that a shugenja is leading the raid but remains with the archers. As he looks at the distant figures he sees a line of smoke rising: the ashigaru are methodically setting fire to the southern fields and the Ainu's winter food.

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