Zalminen's Beta Diary

Fight two


Chasing down some wisps then....

The heroes wait for the wisps to make the first move but the foes seem reluctant to come closer. Gary passes as well so I get to discard and draw.

Leafstorm uses her Elvish Insight to consider their options and as the first ethereal wisp comes to view, she orders Shalar to move to a better location.

One of the blinking wisps makes the mistake of moving to the dwarf's view and she hits it with a Bungled Bolt. The foe counters with a Powerful Spark against Urambar but the dwarf responds in kind, the spell hitting the wisp's Missile Block. The dwarf just grins and curses the foe with Path Of Knives.

Another wisp blasts Leafstorm with a Deadly Spark and as the elf attempts to counter with a Spark, the spell gets reflected back at her, although harmlessly, thanks to her Mail.
The sorceress tries again, this time proving more successful with her Powerful Spark as the glowing foes hit Urambar with another spell. The elf then darts closer, getting hit by another Devastating Spark as Urambar runs after her, reaching the wisps but knocked immediately back by a Force Bolt. Damn, I was hoping the enemies would target Leafstorm instead.

With the fighter's assault repelled, Leafstorm uses her Acid Spray to attack the foes instead.



As the acid eats at the lower parts of the enemies' wispy bodies, Leafstorm gets hit by another Devastating Spark.

Shalar marches to join the line as Leafstorm gets hit by Mighty Spark, her Mail keeping the elf upright, if only barely.
The dwarf immediately targets the closest ethereal wisp with a Short Perplexing Ray but the foe just Missile Blocks the spell before teleporting to a safer distance, giving Leafstorm a chance to slip to safety.

The blinking wisps retreat as well, one of them taking damage from Path Of Knives. As this move also brings the other one in Leafstorm's line of sight, the elf casts a Hot Spot under the glowing foe.

One of the ethereal wisps tries to zap Shalar with a Devastating Spark but the dwarf's Resistant Hide absorbs the blast completely.

Leafstorm zaps her trapped opponent with a Sorcerous Bolt but the spell gets blocked again.

Roaring a challenge Urambar dashes forward. Although he's only able to reach one of the wisps, his axe makes short work of it, extinguishing the wisp once and for all.



The wisps blast Urambar with a Deadly Spark as Leafstorm's Sorcerous Bolt hits the half-burned wisp. Two more spells hit Urambar but the elf reaches the next wisp, killing it with another Chop. Another foe tries to push the elf away with a Force Bolt but the elf just ignores the effect and charges to engage the farthest foe.



Chop - one wisp down. Leafstorm's Sorcerous Bolt, followed by Shalar's Wall Of Fire - another wisp down.

The last blinking wisp doesn't really stand a chance and even as it tries to teleport to safety behind the huge boulder, Shalar's Surging Bolt extinguishes it, leaving the heroes once again free to continue their journey.

Loot: treasure and Superb Cleansing

 

Fight three


More of those teleporting foes - and three ogres as well.

Leafstorm hits the nearest wisp with a Dissolve Armor spell. The foes immediately blink away, but not far enough to escape the elf's second and third spell nor Shalar's Sizzling Bolt. They did have Reflect Missile in hand but Gary only got to roll for it with two of the spells as the foes were facing the wrong way for the first two spells - and failed on both rolls.

Both wisps target Urambar, one with a Deadly Spark and the other with a Mighty Spark.

As one of the wisps is showing its Defensiveness, Leafstorm dashes closer to it while Urambar does the same on the other side.


Well, those lava spells are going to be pretty important...

Urambar closes the distance to the wisps but the elusive foes just teleport away, leaving the elf alone and cursing.

As Shalar begins her march closer, Urambar gets zapped again.

The ogres march closer as well but the one moving to attack Urambar gets a nasty surprise as the elf's Stunning Blow renders the big foe unable to attack.

As the elf fighter gets hit once more by a Powerful Spark from the magicker, he roars with anger and hits the bruiser in front of him with a nasty Chop (powered by Slicer and Strong Chop).
"Leave him to me", Shalar yells, creating a Wall Of Fire under the big foe.

Urambar lowers his axe - and gets struck down by a Mighty Spark from the wisps.
"Good boy," Shalar quips and casts a Hot Spot, this time at the weaker one of the annoying wisps.

The other one hits Leafstorm with another Mighty Spark but the elf is undeterred and cast a Wall Of Fire of her own, trapping the other ogre with its lava.

As the magicker moves closer, the elf runs to the middle of the bridge and casts a second Wall Of Fire, this time under her ogre counterpart.
The huge spellcaster roars and flings a Devastating Spark at Shalar, doing only half damage thanks to her protective armors.



The courtyard is suddenly full or painful roars as the lava claims two of the ogres and one wisp with its fiery embrace.

As the last ogre has no chance of reaching the middle of the bridge, both sorceresses turn their attention on the last wisp, hitting the blinking foe with their spells.
Bungled Bolt - that gets reflected back at Shalar. Sorcerous Bolt - connects.

Shalar tries to trap the wisp with a Wall Of Fire but the foe just blinks away and reveals that it has another Teleport Self card in hand.

Leafstorm shrugs and uses another Wall Of Fire and although the elusive wisp easily escapes the lava, the ogre is not that lucky and it turns into a living torch, quickly dying thanks to the scorching heat.



Leafstorm looks at the wisp with a slight smile on her lips.
"Think you can outmagic us?"

She flings a Dissolve Armor at the foe who retaliates with a Deadly Spark. The elf just laughs and attacks again with a Surging Bolt.
"Bah, those weak spells of yours won't be enough," Shalar notes, raising her staff as well.
Devastating Spark. Sorcerous Blast.

As the last spell connects, the wisp's glow winks out, leaving the heroes again alone in the courtyard.

Loot: Electroporter Initiate, Advanced Ablution

Since the next fight will include the dragon, Urambar switches equipment:
Infused Greatclub, 2x Warrior's Mace, Angry Attacker and Wariness.
If I get close, it's probably best to hit hard...
The others keep their equipment as I don't know what kind of cards the enemy actually has.

 

Fight four

Shalar is the first one to enter the mighty dragon's chamber. The great foe turns its head to look at the intruders.

"Hey Xanthicus! Your money or your life!"
Leafstorm turns to look at her dwarven ally, rolling her eyes.
"What? That's what we're for, right? Ah, you're right... Hey Xanthicus! Your money AND your life!"
As the mighty dragon roars in anger, the heroes draw their weapons and prepare for combat.


Nice, just the heroes against the dragon. Now let's see what the mighty foe can do...

The heroes move carefully closer, the dragon doing the same.

The dragon's mighty roar suddenly makes to ceiling collapse on the group, the Rockfall hurting the heroes and making it harder for them to move closer.



Undeterred, Urambar pushes on along with Leafstorm. As the sorceress tries to zap the dragon with a Surging Bolt which fails to get past the foe's Shimmering Aura, the foe counters with a Corrosive Breath. The elf curses and creates a Wall Of Fire under the dragon, forcing it to fly to a different location.
This brings it into Shalar's line of sight and the dwarf immediately flings a Dissolve Armor spell at it, extinguishing its Shimmering Aura and allowing both sorceresses to target the mighty foe with the rest of their spells.

Two Hot Spots spring up underneath the dragon. A Spark hits its scales, followed by a Devastating Spark, then a Sizzling Bolt.

The yellow dragon roars as the lava burns its feet and the foe quickly flies to a new spot, this time moving to attack Shalar.



The dwarf backs away but gets hit by a Dragon Claw. The dwarf counters with a Short Perplexing Ray as Leafstorm joins in by flinging another Dissolve Armor ray at the foe, again extinguishing its Shimmering Aura and allowing her Sorcerous Bolt to damage the huge foe.

Urambar finally makes it past the rocks blocking his way and dashes to the main courtyard as Shalar backs away from the dragon.
The mighty reptile notices the elf and flies to devour him.



Instead of an easy lunch, Xanthicus gets a Stunning Blow right between its eyes, leaving the huge foe stunned and an easy target for Urambar's Mighty Bludgeon, followed by a Strong Bash.

Both sorceresses also make it out of the rocky terrain, Leafstorm zapping the enemy with a Surging Bolt as Urambar closes the distance to the dragon once more.

Xanthicus turns to hit Urambar with a Mighty Bludgeon but the elf proves surprisingly strong and his Parry deflects the dragon's attack.



"You fools! I am Xanthicus! I am invincible!"
Urambar looks at the yellow dragon, raising his club.
"You're history..."

One Obliterating Bludgeon later the mighty dragon is no more.

Adventure Complete!


Loot: Dragonslayer Sword (treasure hunt reward), treasure, Glowing Ring - and Superb Flexibility (a legendary skill!)

Next up: Melvelous the Magnificient

 

Well, playing through Compass of Xorr unlocked one of the 'missing' adventures, Melvelous the Magnificient. This adventure would have normally happened before Against the Cockroaches.


And Melvin then goes on to mention how he thinks the normal adventures are far too easy and he's made a better one.


...and now I can't help thinking of Knights of the Dinner Table...

Melvelous the Magnificient (a level 8 adventure)

Before the first fight I switch my equipment to something a little more level appropriate.


Nice figure for Melvelous...

As Shalar blasts one of the orc guards with a Bungled Bolt, another one Taunts her.
"Say that again and I'll feed you your own guts!"

She punctuates her words with a Deadly Spark just as Melvelous creates Stone Spikes under the dwarf. The sorceress quickly evades the trap just as Urambar gets with by an Unholy Curse.
The elf spins around, dashing towards the spellcaster as the orcs close in on Leafstorm, forcing her to retreat from the ugly foes.

Melvelous continues hounding the heroes, zapping both Urambar and Shalar with an Arcing Spark but the fighter immediately retaliates with a Stab.
As the enemy spellcaster curses Shalar as well, Leafstorm joins in on the fun and zaps Melvelous with a Long Spark, then turning to hit one of the closer orcs with a Sorcerous Bolt, then trapping the foe in a Hot Spot.

"You insolent maggots. You've disturbed my treasure counting," the oversized-cloak-wearing foe announces, drawing a laugh from Urambar.
"Count this!"
Chop.

As one of the orcs burns to death, Melvelous' sudden Defensiveness ruins his attempts to cast another Arcing Spark.



Urambar swings his axe again, hitting the enemy spellcaster as Shalar backs away from the approaching orcs. Again Melvelous attempts to cast - and again he fails, Shalar's derisive laughter ringing in his ears.
"Do we really have to show you how to do magic? Who taught you? The village drunk?"
"Guards! Kill those fools!"

Obeying their master's command, the orc guards move to engage Urambar and Shalar. The fighter easily slips away from the slower enemies and once again Melvelous fails when trying to zap the elf.

Shalar also manages to retreat before the orcs have time to hit and Melvelous curses once more as Leafstorm's Sorcerous Bolt hits him in the back.

Shalar still has a Little Zap in hand but as she's still under the effect of Taunt, she can't use it on Melvelous.

The orcs catch up with the fleeing pair.



Shalar's Sorcerous Blast hits the weaker orc just as the foe's Simple Bash knocks Urambar out of melee range. The dwarf then retreats from the other orc while Melvelous again attempts to cast another spell, his Defensiveness once again ruining the attempt.
"Did no-one ever tell you that the thing in your pants isn't a magic staff and no amount of waving it around is going to cast any spells," Shalar mocks.
Heh. Melvelous has had a REALLY awful luck with Defensiveness this battle. It's fun when it's not happening to me

Shalar's Little Zap finishes the weaker orc as Melvelous continues his futile attempts to cast anything at all.

Urambar dashes after the enemy spellcaster and as the foe flees from the elf, the fighter quickly uses his Advanced Battlefield Training to throw his weapon at Leafstorm who deftly catches it and hits Melvelous with a Penetrating Cut.
"Hey, do you have any idea how much this cloak costs! You made a hole in it!"

The last orc catches up with Shalar, hitting the dwarf with a Stunning Blow. Leafstorm hears Shalar's yelp and turns to cast a Hot Spot under the ugly foe.

Damn. Just as the old Hover expired, Melvelous drew another one. Oh well, I can kill him with other attacks just as easily.

The angry spellcaster again tries to trap Leafstorm in a pit of Stone Spikes.



Shalar backs away from the orc just as Melvelous finally manages to cast something, hitting all three heroes with an Arcing Spark. Defensiveness had finally ended.

Urambar dashes after Melvelous as the orc catches up with Shalar. And it was smart enough not to move in a straight line. If it had, it would have ended back in the lava, thanks to Force Blast.

Urambar's Able Bludgeon connects with the amateurish spellcaster. Ss the org guard makes the mistake of bashing Shalar backwards, the dwarf finds herself suddenly close enough to hit Melvelous as well with an Arcane Curse. Her spell gets stopped by the enemy's Shimmering Aura but Leafstorm's Boiling Armor spell makes short work of that.

The enemy casts a Mind Worm at Urambar just as Shalar's Force Blast hits him, leaving Melvelous just barely standing.

Leafstorm slips away from the trap as Urambar moves to surround the enemy from the other side.

Melvelous flings another Mind Worm, this time targetting Shalar.



Urambar's Bludgeon makes short work of Melvelous. And looks like I didn't have to kill the last orc guard at all.

...aaand just as could be expected, Melvin reveals that his alter ego didn't die but just teleported away.

Loot: treasure, Spiked Leather Boots

 

Fight two

The heroes end up in a 'treasure' chamber - except that the treasure is just a bunch of Traplings attacking party.



Urambar (who started in the eastern corner) dashes to engage the nearest trapling. Despite getting hit by a Long Spark from the spellcaster, his clubs start mauling the hungry chest. Three blows later the foe is crushed but the elf gets trapped in Stone Spikes and Melvelous also causes a Cave In on top of Shalar.

Leafstorm zaps the closest trapling as well as two of of the foes start moving towards her.

Melvelous inflicts an Unholy Curse on Urambar but Shalar finally makes it close enough and hits the cloaked foe with Surging Bolt, followed by a Powerful Spark. The enemy however unleashes an Arcing Spark at the elf, nearly dropping him.



Taking heavy damage from the Stone Spikes, Urambar dashes to safety behind the corner, his Parry stopping the trapling's Vicious Bite. He quickly Stabs the strange enemy back.

On he other side the traplings shuffle closer to Leafstorm who hits the weaker one with a Little Zap. The foe retaliates with an Acid Spray that fills the ground around Leafstorm with a corrosive liquid.

Shalar runs to engage Melvelous and despite getting hit by an Arcing Spark she counters with an Arcane Spray, followed by Burning Fingers. The foe tries to trap the dwarf as well with Stone Spikes but the woman is too fast and slips to safety as Urambar Chops the trapling near him.

Gary passes, so the traplings might now be out of moves.

Leafstorm looks at the hungry looking traplings waiting near the edge of the acid and creates a Hot Spot under the weaker one, melting it into slag.



As the traplings skitter into new positions, Urambar slips to safety as even in a single hit would prove too much for him.

Melvelous moves to gain a line of sight on Shalar but the dwarf gets to cast first, hitting the cloaked foe with an Unstable Bolt that manages to slip through the foe's Shimmering Aura.

On the other side:



Hmm. If the foe has no more moves left, I can slip past it along the edge but if it does move at the right moment, it could pin me Leafstorm against the wall.
I could also try hitting the foe with a Hot Spot first and the trapling does move, I'd have a free path. On the other hand I'd hate to miss out on the opportunity to use both Hot Spots against Melvelous so I'll take the risk and just move...

Leafstorm starts hopping along the edge but as the trapling suddenly shuffles to cut off her escape path, she switches direction. As Shalar gets zapped with a Long Spark, the elf Sprints away from the trapling's teeth just as the dwarf retaliates against the enemy spellcaster with an Acid Blast, then slipping out of the quickly forming trap underneath her.



...aand Melvelous draws Hover. Right when I'd have finally gotten to use lava against him. Oh well...

Shalar blasts Melvelous with a Sorcerous Blast as Leafstorm runs to join the fight. The enemy notes her approach and flees, apparently intending to go after the weaker Urambar instead. The fighter is too fast though and just slips behind the corner.

As Shalar has no more spells ready that would help against Melvelous, she heads to cover as well but the enemy suddenly causes a Cave In that hits both sorceresses.



I click Pass, waiting for Melvelous to make the first move. The enemy passes as well but draws Defensiveness.

Getting annoyed with waiting, Shalar moves around the corner, the foe immediately hitting her with an Unholy Curse, then failing to cast an Arcing Spark.

Urambar can't attack, he'd just get blasted to pieces. Leafstorm didn't have enough moves to gain line of sight and I'd rather not use Bungled Bolt while Unholy Curse is in effect. So I just pass and the enemy does the same.

As the rocks dropped by the Cave In finally settle down, Leafstorm dashes to join her ally who gets hit by a Mind Worm. Hitting the enemy with a Boiling Armor spell (which does nothing, no Shimmering Aura this time) she quickly follows up with a Sorcerous Bolt and a Little Zap, bringing the annoying foe down.

And again there's no need to kill the traplings, victory over Melvelous brings the VPs required to win.

...and as could be expected, Melvin announces that Melvelous again escapes just before the killing blow.

Loot: Balsa Staff Of The Magus, Sharp Bashing

 

Fight three

"I don't know about you, but I'm getting tired of fighting this amateur. The only thing he's good at is running away..." Shalar grumbles as they enter the enemy sanctum.



Leafstorm performs a Quick Run towards the nearest orc, Dashing closer to the enemy and once the foe moves to intercept the elf, she blinks back with a Reflexive Teleport before spraying fire at the ugly orc.

As Melvelous teleports closer to the heroes, Shalar runs to the next room as well, hitting the orc with a Powerful Spark, followed by a Hot Spot.

Urambar and the burning fiend also run into the room while Melvelous traps Leafstorm with a pit full of Stone Spikes.



The lava takes care of the first orc as the spikes hurt Leafstorm.

Melvelous keeps using Run cards but doesn't actually move anywhere. Amusingly the doors are too narrow for his huge ego to fit through and he only has few teleport cards.

Shalar flings a Deadly Spark at the burning fiend who counters with a Sizzling Bolt targetting Urambar.

The elf roars and runs to pin down the demonic creature, his three consecutive blows making short work of the fiend despite getting hit by a Flame Spit. This does however also give Melvelous the chance to cast Stone Spikes under the fighter as well and the orc guard the chance to hit the elf with a Stunning Blow.

Leafstorm zaps the orc with a Long Spark, then moves to a safer location.

Urambar nearly doubles over in pain as the flames and the spikes hurt him.



Urambar swings his axe, Chopping at the orc and then Parrying the foe's Stunning Blow.

Shalar moves to a better vantage point and flings a Sorcerous Blast at Melvelous who manages to Missile Block the spell. Ah. The final form of Mr. Melvelous now has those cards in its deck as well. Should've hit the orc instead then.

Leafstorm zaps the orc with a Sorcerous Bolt as the enemy spellcaster unleashes a Mind Worm at Urambar. The sorceress then dashes to gain line of sight at Melvelous as well.

The cloaked foe realizes he's going to need help and Energizes the orc guard, forcing Urambar to pull back but the orc decides to just Taunt the fighter.

Damn. Melvelous still has a Run card in hand...

Shalar begins to march towards Melvelous and the orc quickly moves to cut off the dwarf's path. Leafstorms slips behind the ugly guard and her approach makes Melveous retreat. The cloaked foe's still unable to evade the elf's Hot Spot and Shalar quickly uses the same spell against the orc.



Panicking as the lava eats at his legs, Melvelous quickly teleports one of the traplings towards Leafstorm who retreats.

The traplings try to push through the doorway to get to the heroes but the first one gets a taste of Shalar's Sizzling Bolt, followed by a Hot Spot from Leafstorm.

Melvelous cackles maniacally as he teleports around his sanctum. Leafstorm casts a Boiling Armor spell at the foe but hits only Melvelous' Missile Block.

I move the others around, trying to lure Melvelous to waste his last Run.

As the weirdo in the cloak finally stops, Shalar casts another Hot Spot under him.

As the lava eats the first trapling, the molten stone also makes Melvelous curse at the heroes:
"Stop doing that you useless cretins! You're damaging my cool cloak!"

He hits Urambar with another Mind Worm.



Shalar moves ahead, shoving the trapling back with a Force Bolt as it tries to move into the lava to get at the dwarf.

As Melvelous seems to sense this was done to give Urambar a free path to attack, he moves forward to block the free space behind the lava. What he wasn't excepting was a suicidal elf who doesn't even blink before dashing straight into the lava. The spellcaster quickly casts a Teleport Other spell to fling the fighter away - but the elf just re-appears at the very same spot!
Yeah, it would normally be a good idea to teleport someone into a lava square but Urambar already WAS in that square and he's now still in melee range...



He has time to whack Melvelous once with an Able Bludgeon before the foe finally comes to his senses and just uses a Powerful Spark, knocking the elf out of the fight.
This isn't enough to save Melvelous though. Shalar's Fire Spray combined with Leafstorm's Acid Blast and Hot Spot finally finish the annoying opponent.

Adventure Complete!


And looks like someone's being a sore loser...



Loot: 2x treasure, Assuaging Mace and Hand Of Melvelous (legendary item that's clearly guaranteed for this particular adventure)

Next up: Cardhunt 2 (once I've unlocked it by playing through Black Oaken Heart once more)

 

Ok, now it's time to enter the national tournament Card Hunt 2, apparently to win some PAX tickets for the beautiful Karen. Well, happy to help.

Card Hunt 2


Bwhahaaa. It's the quarter finals and I'm fighting - Wolzarg

Leafstorm quickly uses her Elvish Insight to plan her strategy but gets hit by a Dancing Cut from the dwarf Mighty Karagrik. She quickly retreats but gets caught in her enemy counterpart's Fireball.

Urambar dashes to engage the enemy priest, Lorzil the Wise just as Karagrik catches up with Leafstom. The dwarf whacks her with a Backbiting Strike but gets caught in a Wall Of Fire.

Meanwhile Urambar dukes it out with Lorzil, getting two good blows in but taking several strikes in return.

Shalar heads towards the center. And I get to pass before Wolzarg.



Leafstorm dashes towards the middle. The enemy wizard, Andengal of the Woods, circles around the battlefield but gets targetted by Shalar's Path Of Knives.

Meanwhile Lorzil tries pushing past Urambar but gets a Deadly Spark right in the chest.

Andengal charges to the center despite the pain caused by Path Of Knives but just ends up in the middle of Leafstorm's Wall Of Fire. The enemy elf's Bash is enough to knock Leafstorm out of the fight though.

Shalar enters the middle as well, challenging the enemy control over the victory area.

As Karagrik begins his march towards the fight, Urambar Bludgeons the human priest blocking his way. The human ignores the pain and runs to the middle as well, Urambar in pursuit.

Shalar gets hit by a Big Zap while Lorzil casts a Healing Blessing on herself. The enemy sorceress then casts Boiling Armor on Urambar while Karagrik Charges to the middle as well. Damn! Not only did he have that Charge in hand, the only empty spot in the victory area was right along his Charge line.


..and I still haven't drawn any of the big damage cards.

Urambar tries to hit the dwarf fighter with a Stunning Blow but the foe's Shield Block deflects his club. The dwarf immediately counters with a Chop that hits both remaining heroes, forcing Shalar to back away.
Karagrik then swings his axe again, whacking Urambar down as well.

Shalar flings a Penetrating Bolt at Lorzil who turns to use a Boosted Heal on Andengal. Shalar then continues by cursing the enemy priest with Path Of Knives.

Angengal finally flees from the lava and nearly falls to the damage from the earlier Path Of Knives. And would have falled without that heal from Lorzil.

And Wolzarg gains the last required VP from holding the middle and wins.

 

Attempt two

For this attempt Urambar switches to Parrying Buckler, Hefty Stout Club and Crafted Monkey Boots.
Shalar switches Forval's Chain to Pin Of Blowing Flames and her Electrum Staff to Surging Staff.



And this time the starting positions are better, neither of my spellcasters is in direct danger.

Urambar dashes to engage Andengal of the Woods, hitting the other elf with a Bludgeon and a Lunging Hack.

Leafstorm dashes to cut off Andengal's escape route but the enemy surprises Urambar with a Bash, the fighter proving too slow to Parry the blow.
Leafstorm hits the foe with a Powerful Spark but gets hit with a Deadly Spark in return.

Shalar moves closer to the the middle and although she gets hit by Lorzil's Strong Stab, she retaliates with a Dissolve Armor spell and as the enemy moves she hits the human with a Wall Of Fire.

Meanwhile Andengal continues her spell duel with Leafstorm. The enemy's Big Zap hits Leafstorm but the sorceress counters with a Wall Of Fire, the molten lava ending the spell duel short.

The human priest Stabs Urambar from behind.



The elf fighter dashes between Lorzil and the victory area and before Karagrik has time to reach the fight, Urambar's Obliterating Bludgeon knocks the priest out of the fight as well.

Leafstorm's speed allows her to reach the center way before the last foe and she immediately assaults the dwarf with her spells, trapping the enemy in a Wall Of Fire.

A VP for me for holding the middle. I'm now one VP short of victory so if I can get everyone to the middle and Karagrik can't kill two of my heroes, I win.

Well, Shalar fails to draw enough moves to reach the middle so that plan doesn't quite work.

Karagrik marches towards Leafstorm and the elf quickly pulls back. The dwarf Charges forward, bringing him into contact with Urambar who promptly hits the dwarf with a Strong Bludgeon and parries the enemy's Strong Chop.



The elf counters with a Trained Bludgeon but gets hit with another Strong Chop. This leaves the dwarf weak enough that after both sorceresses join the fight and blast the enemy with electricity, Mighty Karagrik proves not quite so mighty and falls.

Loot: Massive Club, treasure.

 

Fight two

Semi final - and I get to kick Melvin's obnoxious ass. He's even named his heroes Felvin, Melbrog and Melzag!

Urambar frowns, looking at the enemies standing on the other side of the battlefield.
"Hey Shalar... is that your cousin or something?"

Shalar's grin looks positively feral. "...I'm going to enjoy this fight..."



Shalar and the other move closer to the middle, the enemies doing the same.

As the enemy priest comes into Leafstorm's sights, she immediately zaps the foe with a Dissolve Armor spell but the dwarf deflects the spell with a Shield Block. I took bit of a risk by moving to the chokepoint with the elf. If Melbrog has any more moves left, Leafstorm could get hit pretty badly.

Melbrog orders a Team Shift, allowing him to reach Leafstorm and his fighter ally to reach one of the victory squares. The elf curses and hits the dwarf with a Powerful Spark, the foe countering with a Strong Chop. Leafstorm uses a Hot Spot against the enemy as the enemy sorceress casts Winds Of War, moving Felvin to the next victory square.

As the spell also brought the dwarf fighter closer to Urambar, the elf eagerly dashes to engage the foe.

Shalar joins in on the fight by zapping the enemy fighter with Dissolve Armor but the dwarf ignores the pain and Bashes Urambar, the elf's attempt to Parry proving too slow. Damn, again rolled a 1. I was hoping to draw something better from Parry and then use it with All Out Attack but Lady Luck's a fickle mistress...
Shalar flings another spell at the enemy fighter, her Deadly Spark making the bearded foe grunt.



A VP for Melvin. Urambar discards Trained Bludgeon since I'd still like to draw something nice - and this time I do. Obliterating Bludgeon! Bwahahahaaa....

Urambar runs right back towards the dwarf and roaring like a madman launches an All Out Attack. His Obliterating Bludgeon whooshes through the air - hitting the enemy's Block.
Ohh, that would have been 34 damage and a dead dwarf if that roll had failed. I can just imagine the look of terror on Melvin's face when I played Obliterating Bludgeon and All Out Attack triggered, quickly turning into glee as Melvin rolled a four...

Leafstorm dashes past the enemy priest to occupy the nearest victory square.
Shalar does the same on the other side, launching a Surging Bolt right at Melbrog's Shield Block while doing so.
Not giving up so easily Shalar casts again, hitting the foe with an Arcane Curse.

Leafstorm joins in on the fun, zapping the foe with her spells.
Melbrog curses and orders a Team Run, allowing Melzag to reach a victory square as well.

Urambar's attempt to Bludgeon Felvin meets the dwarf's Parry and the foe counters with a Wimpy Simple Bash - again managing to hit past the elf's Parry attempt. Yeesh.

Shalar traps the enemy priest with a Hot Spot.

Both sides have two victory squares so neither side gains VPs.



Shalar's Devastating Spark finally takes out Melbgor but Felvin lets out a Dwarven Battle Cry, inspiring her ally as well as Shalar.

Urambar moves next to his dwarvish counterpart once more and this time his Parry is on time and blocks the foe's attempt to Bash him back. He then Bludgeons the foe, managing to hit a weak spot in the foe's Solid Mail.

Shalar steps out of the victory square to hit Felvin with a Surging Blast, the spell hitting a weak spot as well. She then quickly uses a Wall Of Fire to force the dwarf away from the crucial square and retreats back to her own victory spot.

I get to pass first as Melvin makes an unnnecessary move with Felvin. And I gain a VP as well since I had two squares against Melvin's one.



Shalar suddenly grins.
"Hey Melzag..." she yells at the dwarf on the other side of the stone formation.
"What is it, goatbreath?"
"Hope you like flying..."

There's a sudden scream from the other side as Shalar's Whirlwind Enemies sends both remaining foes flying. With Melzag out of the way, Urambar quickly runs to capture the square Melzag was holding before the foe has time to teleport back.

I pass and Melvin does the same for some reason. No problem, I get another VP.



Shalar hits Felvin with a Surging Blast, her spell once again managing to find an unprotected spot.

"Hey Shalar," Melzag yells from the edge of the battlefield.
"Yes, voidbrain?"
"Hope you like flying..."

Melzag's Whirlwind suddenly sends everyone flying.



"You're still an idiot, you just sent yourself flying as well," Shalar retorts.

Urambar quickly dashes back to capture the victory square nearest to Melzag. The sorceress blasts both him and Leafstorm with a Fireball but the fighter is now close enough to hit Melzag with a Lunging Hack.
The sorceress gets hit but uses a Reflexive Teleport to blink past Urambar to the victory square. The elf just laughs and hits the dwarf back with a Stunning Blow.

With the sorceress incapacitated for a moment, Leafstorm dashes closer and starts blasting the unprotected dwarf with her spells. Spark. Mighty Spark. Wall Of Fire.

Urambar Scampers past the fighting spellcasters to capture the next victory square while Shalar does the same to the last free square. She then casts a Wall Of Fire under the dwarf fighter who is still trying to reach the middle after getting flung away by the earlier Whirlwind.



Melzag falls, consumed by lava.

And that's enough VPs for me to win.



And surprisingly Melvin proves he isn't always that bad.

Loot: Polished Club, Advanced Piety.

To be continued...

 

Fight three



And the last fight is against a Mystery Guest who uses a party of three elves.

Urambar dashes closer to the bridge as the enemy wizard casts a Rockfall spell, hitting both Leafstorm and Urambar with the attack.

Leafstorm uses her Elvish Insight to consider the situation (but only gets a new card as all the foes are elves as well).

As the foes move closer as well, Blessed Anrime, the elf priest, makes her wizard ally invulnerable



As the enemy group gets close enough Leafstorm opens fire, hitting the enemy fighter with a Spark that does no damage, thanks to the foe's Solid Mail.

The foe, Sharp Cucelden moves closer, hitting Urambar with a Dancing Cut that Urambar has little trouble parrying.

Leafstorm immediately takes advantage of the situation and traps the enemy in a Hot Spot. Cucelden ignores the molten rock underneath and keeps up his assault, his Lunging Thrust again meeting only another Parry. And Urambar draws another Hardy Mail. Whee.

Shalar also joins the fight, trapping Anrime in lava as well.



Both trapped foes howl in pain as the molten rock eats at their legs.

Cucelden backs away from the dangerous lava, Urambar moving to pursue him. As he reaches his target, Anrime has used a Greater Heal and Healing Rays to heal some of the lava damage.

Shalar marches closer to a better vantage point while Cucelden's Vicious Thrust helps him slip partly behind Urambar, preventing Urambar from parrying the blow.
The dwarf casts a Dissolve Armor spell, the acidic ray eating the foe's Solid Mail away.

As Anrime moves to engage Urambar as well, the fighter immediately greets the foe with a Mighty Bludgeon to the face.

Leafstorm moves closer as well while Urambar's Parry stops Anrime's attempt to use Invigorating Touch on him. The fighter counters with a Stunning Blow against Cucelden.

The enemy priest's second Invigorating Touch connects and sucks away some of the fighter's life force. This doesn't help her much though as Anrime notices a Wall Of Fire spring up below her and her ally.

"Why is your counterpart just teleporting around back there," Shalar asks Leafstorm who just shrugs.



Galeldirer Earth-Changer apparently drew nothing but move cards this turn...
Anyway, Mystery Guest gets a VP from holding the bridge.

Blessed Anrime becomes Burned Anrime as the lava eats her alive, burning Cucelden pretty badly as well.

Shalar moves closer to the bridge, zapping the enemy fighter with a Surging Bolt but getting sprayed with acid and a Cone Of Cold in return. Leafstorm attempts to hit the foe with a Dissolve Armor spell but the foe proves Hard To Pin Down and slips aside.

Leafstorm dashes closer as well, using a Little Zap against Cucelden. The foe counters with a Dancing Cut against Urambar. The hero roars and whacks the foe with a Bludgeon, finally turning Sharp Cucelden into Flat Cucelden.



Urambar dashes to occupy the bridge.

A VP for me.

Galeldirer attempts to shove Urambar into the acid with Improved Telekinesis but the fighter just uses his Elvish Mobility, allowing both elvish heroes to enter the bridge.

As Galeldirer is unable to find ways to dislodge the heroes from their positions, she is forced to admit defeat.

Adventure Complete!


And a happy end. Awww....

Loot: Crimson Robe, Flashing Longspear, Cleansing Mail, Superb Impaling.

 

I've now finished all the available adventures. With the server reset and the bigger waves of beta invitations coming soonish, my diary will now end. At least for now.

I might do more entries in the future if I happen to feel like it but for now I'm going to concentrate on just playing for a while.

Some statistics about this diary:
- About 1100 screenshots.
- About 80 diary entries in three months, most of them divided into three or so posts.
- Currently a little below 8000 views for this thread
- Over 100 likes

Thanks to everyone, hope you've enjoyed reading these!

 

Wow. Awesome Zalminen. I've enjoyed reading them! Thanks for all the hard work!

 

Thank you for the effort you put into making this, it has kept me thoroughly entertained. Hopefully I'll get the chance to try the game myself soon, 'cause I don't know how else I'll get by Card Hunter fill without your diary!

 

Since I've been also playing multiplayer after the reset, I figured I might as well finally do a diary entry on that side of the game.

Hopefully my opponent won't mind... (I tried asking him after the fight but he left without happening to notice my message)

My MP party is originally based on the free Adventurers starter party (dwarf fighter, elf wizard, human priest), but I've made the dwarf fighter faster with items offering step attacks, changed the priest from a healer role towards a more melee role and made various changes to the elf wizard's equipment whenever I found something better.

Boulderbeard
Level 1 Dwarf Warrior

Puncturing Dagger​

Glimmering Sword​

Excellent Rapier​

Ogre Hide Armor​

Underdog's Shield​

Shifty Skin Hat​

Rusty Plated Shoes​

Novice Ferocity​

Novice Chopping​

​

Leafmaiden
Level 1 Elf Wizard

Oaken Staff Of The Magus​

Opal Battlestaff​

Wand Of Hot Winds​

Brainfire Orb​

Burning Bangle​

Blister Stone​

Firebrand Mantle​

Corian's Boots​

Superb Footwork​

Trained Rifthopping​

​

Isis
Level 1 Human Priest

Scouring Axe​

Axe Of The Dark Soul​

Mail Of The Martyr​

Heavy Wooden Shield​

Nimble Chain Boots​

Alabaster Charm​

Dworia's Soulstone​

Orla's Tear​

Untrained Command​

Trained Cleansing​

​

Strange, the party export taken in the MP keep shows the group as level 1...

--
The calm forest clearing suddenly becomes a lot less calm as a dwarven shout startles the birds in the nearby trees.

"Get the gold! Don't let those elven bastards get their hands on it!" Getting a sharp whack on the back of his head, Boulderbeard adds: "Didn't mean you, Leafy..."



The dwarf fighter's Nimble Strike catches the first enemy reaching the gold pile by surprise but the wizardess quickly retaliates with a Cone Of Cold, freezing the dwarf and his allies alike.

As the shivering pair struggles to move closer, the enemy wizardess Samsara tries to use a Perplexing Ray on Leafmaiden but the targetted elf manages to divert the magical blast with a Surging Block. She's not as lucky against the Dissolve Armor spell hitting her next and the acidic ray eats her Resistant Hide away.

The other elves finally reach the battle, the faster one getting to hit Boulderbeard with a Lunging Hack.



"I hate cold," Boulderbeard roars, unleashing a Mighty Hack on the hapless wizardess and knocking her out of the fight. I got REALLY lucky here. That Mighty Hack is the only big damage attack in my decks and I drew it at a perfect time.

Isis tries to inspire the dwarf with an ancient battle song but only succeeds getting the attention of the enemy fighter Shoat who dashes past Boulderbeard towards her. She quickly knocks the elf backwards with a Simple Bash and the enemy fighter decides to target Boulderbeard instead, hitting the dwarf with a Chop, followed by a Strong Chop.



Isis and Leafmaiden both move closer.

My opponent gets a VP from having two heroes versus my one in the VP zone.



Isis quickly attacks the closer enemy, Serpentarius, with a Raging Strike but the nimble elf easily parries the blow.
Leafmaiden comes to aid and targets the foe with a Perplexing Ray.

Meanwhile the enemy fighter keeps up flailing at Boulderbeard, hitting the dwarf once more with a Shredding Strike and another Chop.
"Bloody elves," the short fighter curses and steps back, hitting the other elf with a Vicious Thrust and a Shifty Stab during his retreat.

Shoat turns his attention on Leafmaiden instead but the sorceress manages to Parry the enemy's Strong Chop, then targets the enemy priest again with another Perplexing Ray.

With the enemies momentarily out of breath, Leafmaiden quickly traps the foes in a Wall Of Fire and dashes behind them, Isis following her lead.



As the lava starts eating at their legs, the elf fighter spins around, hitting Leafmaiden with a Polearm Slash. She manages to Bash the other foe down but gets hit by another Chop that is almost too much for her.



Isis curses like a southern sailor and retaliates against the enemy with a Touch Of Death, wounding the enemy who decides to retreat.

At this point my opponent was probably out of attacks and he resigned the battle.

The battle could have easily gone either way. Without that lucky Mighty Hack the enemy wizard would have been able to pull back and I'd have had to also face a barrage of spells. Even now Boulderbeard only had 3hp left and Leafmaiden had just 1hp at the end.



Loot: Ring Of Smoke, Spinning Top Boots, treasure, Ochre Robes and more treasure.

 

Pengw1n asked me to try out a custom map so it was time send the brave heroes once again to face certain doom. And to kick its ass.

This was played once more on a regular laptop so the resolution is again different from the previous ones.

--

Since I had no idea what I'd be facing the equipment selection was mostly guesswork.

Velvetblade
Level 18 Human Warrior

Blocking Mace​

Puncturing Dagger​

Shadow Spear​

Ancient Runed Breastplate​

Underdog's Shield​

Welk's Helm​

Cheap Fencer's Boots​

Advanced Flexibility​

Novice Chopping​

​

5 x Lunging Hack​

1 x Chop​

2 x Vicious Thrust​

1 x Wimpy​

2 x Leadership​

1 x Crafted Mail​

1 x Nimble Strike​

2 x Tricky Stab​

1 x Dancing Cut​

1 x Powerful Bludgeon​

1 x Mighty Bludgeon​

1 x All Out Attack​

2 x Rusty Armor​

1 x Slicer​

1 x Strong Bash​

2 x Parry​

1 x Desperate Block​

1 x Slowed​

1 x Unreliable Block​

2 x Wounded Block​

1 x Inspiring Armor​

1 x Fumble​

1 x Weak Chop​

2 x Penetrating Stab​

1 x Walk​

​

Mizana
Level 18 Human Wizard

Ironwood Staff Of The Magus​

Sulphuric Staff​

Blister Stone​

Burning Bangle​

Burning Bangle​

Bluestone Pendant​

Firebrand Mantle​

Corian's Boots​

Thoughtful Command​

Superb Rifthopping​

​

2 x Surging Bolt​

1 x Forward Thinking​

4 x Dissolve Armor​

2 x Wall Of Fire​

1 x Nimble Strike​

1 x Parry​

1 x Penetrating Zap​

1 x Acid Spray​

1 x Sorcerous Bolt​

1 x Fire Spray​

1 x Desperate Block​

1 x Winds Of War​

1 x Resistant Hide​

1 x Unreliable Block​

1 x Quick Step​

1 x Sizzling Bolt​

1 x Acid Blast​

4 x Hot Spot​

1 x Surging Blast​

1 x Obliterating Spark​

1 x Dimensional Traveller​

3 x Ember Spray​

2 x Officer's Harness​

1 x Burning Fingers​

1 x Walk, Team!​

​

Silvershield
Level 18 Dwarf Priest

Lifesuck Spear​

Axe Of The Dark Soul​

Glowing Hide Armor​

Heavy Wooden Shield​

Cheap Fencer's Boots​

Dworia's Soulstone​

Unholy Charm​

Orla's Tear​

Novice Ferocity​

Superb Cleansing​

​

2 x Charge​

2 x Lunging Hack​

1 x Impaling Stab​

1 x Simple Bash​

1 x Bad Luck​

3 x Inspiration​

2 x Lunging Strike​

1 x Invigorating Touch​

1 x Mass Frenzy​

1 x Raging Strike​

1 x Minor Heal​

1 x Parry​

1 x Accelerated Thought​

1 x Thick Hide Armor​

2 x Unholy Power​

2 x Unholy Wellspring​

2 x Flimsy Block​

1 x Reliable Hide Armor​

2 x Enervating Touch​

1 x Unholy Frenzy​

1 x Savage Curse​

1 x Devastating Blow​

1 x Touch Of Death​

2 x Weak Chop​

1 x Walk​

1 x Holy Presence​

​

And for those that haven't used it, the custom maps can be played through the multiplayer mode by selecting Casual Game and then Custom, giving you this screen:



You can use the Load button to open the .scn files containing the scenario and the Import button to open the .brd board files made with the board editor.

 

The Book of Faces

Mizana was the first one to stand up, holding her head.
"Eugh, my mouth tastes like a wet donkey.... Why do I always end up waking who knows where whenever I accept a drink from someone..."
"Bah, my brother would say if you know the walls when you wake up, you didn't drink enough," replied the voice of Silvershield as she climbed up from beneath a table. 'Hey Denimclub, time to get up.'
'Velvetblade,' a rather pained voice replied as the dwarf kicked her in the shin.
'Exactly. I think we've got company. The angry kind. For you to kill..'

Velvetblade grinned, climbing up. '...the only Inspiration I need!'



'Yeesh, my arms still haven't recovered from that bloody brew...'
'I can fix THAT,' Silvershield chuckled, slapping the human with a Savage Curse as the first festering zombie began marching closer.
Velvetblade's eyes went wide from the spell but she quickly recovered, running towards the enemies.

Mizana was also finally ready, using a Surging Bolt against the first zombie, then following up with an Obliterating Spark.

Velvetblade stepped forward, ready to enter the bridge and despite a Blob Of Slime hitting her chest, she quickly dropped the first zombie with a Tricky Stab.
The frost sprite tried to attack the fighter with a Frost Jolt but her Unreliable Block proved just good enough to stop the chilling spell.

Ah, there was a VP square at the end and the reinforced door was standing in it. So I'd have to push forward pretty fast.



'Hey Cottonaxe -'
'Velvetblade.'
'- yeah, whoever kills most enemies here gets to feed that book to the scholar who got us in this mess. OK?'
Even from behind, Silvershield could sense that her Little Inspiration had worked.

The green jellies weren't quite as willing to let the heroes do quite that and the ground underneath Silvershield and Velvetblade suddenly turned into mud.

'I'll fix that,' Mizana mumbled, raising her staff.
'NO...'



Before Silvershield had time to finish her sentence, the mud beneath their feet was replaced with a Wall Of Fire.
Before Velvetblade could progress, she was hit by a Chilling Rime, leaving her even slower.
'Oh, snap out of it,' Silvershield cursed, slapping the fighter with spell granting her
Unholy Power. Too bad, no move cards though...

'Take that, you miserable excuse for a sprite,' Velvetblade yelled, making an All Out Attack against the frost sprite with a Tricky Stab, which was nearly enough to extinguish
the demonic creature. And since I forgot she had Savage Curse, it also discarded her Run card leaving her stranded in the lava. And generally in the way. Oh well...

Running past the fighter Mizana reached the other side of the lava. The other frost sprite hit her with a Cold Snap but it did little to prevent the sorceress from frying the closer one with a Fire Spray and then retaliating against the second one with a Hot Spot.
The maneuver did unfortunately allow the second zombie to use its Infected Bite on her, making Mizana reel in disgust and pain.



Yeah, that lava path wasn't such a good idea here, mostly because of the multiple sources of encumbrance...

As Silvershield moved to a better position, the walking corpse managed to stun Mizana with its attempt to go after her juicy Brains!
The sorceress quickly retreated and as the zombie tried to follow her, Velvetblade ran to intercept it, her Wounded Block stopping the Ice Bolts flying from the second frost sprite that was slowly burning to death in the lava. The chilled, slimed killer's Strong Bash sent the enemy sliding backwards but another Blob Of Slime hit her, leaving her barely standing.
Bah, too bad the cards just didn't work together here. Velvetblade's two attacks could have killed the zombie and it wouldn't have been that big of a loss for her to get hit by the acid damage from Festering Guts - but unfortunately there was no way to use both attacks against the undead. If I had used Lunging Hack first, Savage Curse would have caused the Strong Bash to get discarded and the other way slid the foe back, leaving the encumbered fighter unable to reach the zombie...

'Chaaaaaarge,' Silvershield roared, barrelling past Velvetblade to land headfirst on the zombie that managed to look vaguely surprised despite having little that could be classified as a face left.

The lava finally burned away the second frost sprite but Velvetblade couldn't take the heat either and succumbed to the molten stone.



Silvershield decided against getting a shower of guts and pulled back, retreating past the lava.

The zombie tried to follow but soon realized the path was full of molten stone and stopped - only to get hit by a Dissolve Armor spell. This was quickly followed by a Sizzling Bolt that cleared the path. Well, painted the path would be more accurate as the explosion caused by the zombie's Festering Guts covered the little bridge with chunks of rotting flesh.

Another VP for Gary. There was still time left, although I'd still have to beat three green jellies with a slow cleric and a nearly dead sorceress...

Just to be safe, Silvershield discarded Raging Strike. She'd almost certainly get hit before getting to use it and I really don't need extra damage at this point...

As neither hero drew extra moves, I passed and Gary quickly did the same. I really needed to be able to cross the distance faster before venturing out which meant more move cards in hand...



Better... Too bad Mizana was a bit too weak for Unholy Wellspring to be useful...

'I'm going to stomp some jellies,' Silvershield exclaimed, her Charge quickly taking her to the other end of the bridge. Before she had time to do more, the ground in front of her suddenly turned to mud again.
'Let me - '
'NO!!!!'
Mizana lowered her staff again, looking disappointed.

Next turn, another VP for Gary.

As the blobs moved in sight, Mizana had time to cast one last Hot Spot under one of them before falling to another Blob Of Slime.



Silvershield stepped around the corner, surprising the Vulnerable blob but the foe quickly retaliated with another slimy projectile.
The dwarf pushed on despite the gooey slime, the jellies retreating away from the
approaching foe. Unable to catch them yet, she had to settle for jolting one of the
Vulnerable ones with an Unholy Frenzy. They would have tried to keep out of melee anyway so I was free to do this...

Another VP for Gary. He only needs four more which means I probably won't be winning this on this attempt.

The slimes tried to trap Silvershield in a pool of acid and despite the dwarf managing to move away from the first one, the second attack succeeded and ate away the dwarf's Reliable Hide just after another Blob Of Slime hit her.



...aaand the fight was pretty much hopeless at this point. Silvershield did manage to whack one of the jellies but there was just not enough time to reach the door.

It's quite a nasty little map. Frost and slime attacks to slow the heroes down plus festering zombies that prevent progress due to Festering Guts.

 

Attempt two

For the next attempt, I changed my gear a bit.
Velvetblade picked up Militiaman's Pike and Dull Shortsword, Marshall's Boots, Commander's Cap and Ogre Hide Armor.

Mizana switched to a Ring Of Appropriation and Trained Command.

Silvershield switched to Trained Cleansing, Striped Shield and Boots Of The Rhino.



Velvetblade showed a suprising amount of Leadership, causing the others to re-evaluate their options.

Silvershield boosted Mizana with Unholy Power and the sorceress grinned like a maniac as she ran to the doorway.

Despite getting blasted by Ice Bolts, she barely flinced, instead launching her own volley of spells at the frost sprite. Burning Fingers. Sizzling Bolt. Surging Blast.

As the zombies began marching closer, Velvetblade ordered a Team Shift, causing Mizana to retreat from the doorway to safety, leaving behind a still sizzling frost sprite and a festering zombie who was still trying to decide if the mud pit in front of it was safe to enter.



Mizana quickly used a Dissolve Armor spell against the approaching zombies, damaging their Resistant Hide.
Velvetblade entered the doorway next, taking out the frost sprite with a well-aimed Stab.
As one of the blobs hit her with a slimy projectile, she retreated, leaving Mizana free to hit the approaching undead with an Ember Spray.

Second VP for Gary.

The zombies pushed closer again. Mizana quickly used another Dissolve Armor spell before having to Parry the undead's leap at her Brains!

As Velvetblade showed off her Leadership qualities by standing in the back, Silvershield hits the festering creature with an Invigorating Touch, followed by a Devastating Blow, leaving the enemy barely standing.

As both her allies retreated away from the foe, Mizana blasted it with one more Ember Spray before retreating herself.



As the remaining flames ate at the zombie, there was suddenly a loud BOOM and the explosion of Festering Guts nearly took out the second zombie following the first one.



The undead was too dumb to realize the damage it'd taken and it marched on, only to get blasted down by one more Dissolve Armor spell.

Getting inspired by Silvershield's raunchy little ditty, the sorceress ordered her team to dash and although Velvetblade got hit by a Cone Of Cold, Silvershield Charged right past the others to assault the pair of green jellies that were waiting at the other end of the bridge.

One of them flung a pool of acid at Mizana's feet while the other more Vulnerable one got skewered by an Impaling Stab. The blob pair tried to pull back but Velvetblade's order of Scuttle, Team kept the angry dwarf right at the weaker jelly's nonexistent heels and it soon felt more of its strength drain away to the cleric's Invigorating Touch.

Mizana ran past the human fighter as well, surprising the stronger jelly with a Nimble Strike and as Silvershield pulled back the sorceress raised her arms again:



"NOOO! You'll block our path," Silvershield yelled, knocking Mizana's staff back down.
"...spoilsport."

Yeah, I just just getting ready to fry the weaker jelly with acid until I realized there'd be no quick path for me to walk through afterwards...

Despite the cold slowing her movements, Velvetblade finally reached the quarreling pair and stabbed the stronger jelly twice.

Another VP for Gary. It's looking a lot better than last time though.



Silvershield pushed forward and although she got hit by a Cold Snap, her Weak Chop proved quite enough to kill the weaker jelly and to wound the other one even more.

The other one turned to fling a Blob Of Slime against Velvetblade who quickly retaliates with a Puncturing Stab. The green goop tried to retreat but its flight got cut short by Mizana's Surging Bolt.

The last jelly moved closer as Mizana ran to attack the frost sprite waiting in the middle of the stream. She hit the foe with an Acid Spray just as the green jelly created more of under her feet. Unfazed, she launched an Obliterating Spark at the frozen foe.

As the acid claimed the weakened frost sprite, Velvetblade managed to stop a Blob Of Slime flying towards her with a Desperate Block.



Silvershield turned to slap an Unholy Wellspring into Velvetblade's cheeks and she began running towards the last jelly with a roar that made the green foe wobble towards safety as fast as it could.
Mizana grinned and her telekinetic powers launched the fighter forward, her flight turning smoothly into a Nimble Strike that just managed to reach the enemy and the foe quickly got a taste of the human's unholy attacks that cut into its green mass.



The jelly managed to fling one last Blob Of Slime at the fighter before getting cut down by her Tricky Stab.

With only one door standing in the way, it proved no match to Mizana's Wall Of Fire and the heroes were finally free to move on.

I had enough time to move up to the door and beat it in melee as well but since there were couple of squares with line of sight to the door from afar, I took the shortcut of using Wall Of Fire to burn the door down.

 

I added those instructions since it took me some digging to find out how and where to open the scenario. Figured someone else might have similar problems

The map certainly had several 'ah, that's nasty' elements to it. Getting past the first bridge was the hard part, thanks to the explosive zombies blocking the way, the other foes shooting from the side and the difficulty of getting all your units in a position where they could help, but after the first attempt I did have a pretty good idea what I needed to beat the map.

The time - well, hard to say based on just two attempts, especially since I screwed up the first one myself and managed to get lucky with the second one.

The only minor problem I noted with the map was that all the fighting concentrated on the first half of the map and after the jellies it would have been just move, move and move. Well, except for that one diagonal which allowed me to end the fight short with lava without having to cross that second bridge and difficult terrain.

If that diagonal was blocked and there was one more stationary frost sprite (or some other foe) near the end, it would have kept things exciting all the way to the door.

It was a nice challenge nevertheless!