Cautiously, we moved forward, Frostmane leading the way. As the largest, and best protected member of our party, he made a wonderful moving shield wall for the rest of us. Even if one of the rest of us were more effective in a situation, you simply could not ignore a wolf that weighed five hundred pounds, wearing armor made from blue ice. Especially when you were in close quarters.

Your party has defeated 4 Wolves.

Melinda gains 200 XP.

Frostmane gains 0 XP.

Siora gains 0 XP.

Vestele gains 0 XP.

Sure enough, as Frostmane entered the room, four wolves rushed forward, and were immediately met by Frostmane’s breath attack. They did not stand a chance. Striding into the room, Frostmane looked around, and nodded. “There are cubs here. But they look… different somehow. Not like normal wolves.”

I frowned, and stepped around Frostmane’s bulk to get a proper look at the room. Yes, there were wolf cubs in the back of the room. To a one, they were all huddled along the back wall, in a defensive pose. They were frightened, trapped, and clearly recognized that they had no chance against the far larger wolf.

Melinda’s Knowledge (The Planes) check: 1d20+3 = 12

I was no expert on the denizens of other planes, but I’d heard enough stories that I could make some guesses. And those guesses didn’t inspire me with confidence. The cubs were all… different than a normal wolf cub, just as Frostmane said. Their teeth were larger. Their bodies, even at such a young age, more imposing. Their eyes had a reddish glow to them. Oh, and there were the horns, like a demon’s growing from their skulls. Still nubs right now, but still visible.

“You’re right, Frostmane. These aren’t normal wolf cubs. They are fiendish wolf cubs, like the fiendish wolves some summoners draw from the outer planes to fight for them.”

Vestele frowned at that. “No summoner would summon cubs, though. They are too weak to fight, and summons return to their realm when ‘killed’ or the spell ends. And the summoning spells run their course too quickly for a pregnant female to be brought over and give birth to a litter.”

She looked out at the cubs, counting them. “There are twenty cubs here. Maybe four litters? And all of them the same age, or close enough? This cannot be natural, Melinda. There is magic to open a gate to the lower realms, and bring creatures through, but no one would use it simply for wolves, not given the price it typically entails.”

Siora frowned. “Then there is clearly something deeper going on. Malar is the God of the Hunt, amongst other things, and wolves are a favorite of his. If this cult of his had a relic of some kind, that allowed them to bring fiendish wolves forth, and they forced those wolves to breed with the normal wolves, you might be able to get cubs like this. Having such creatures in the material plane would have obvious advantages to Malar’s church, I’m sure.”

Frostmane growled. “We can figure out how they came to be later. Right now, more important is to figure out what to do with them, and to find out how they are being fed. I can smell human carrion where the pups are, and it is fresh. But all I see are legs and arms. Where are the skulls, or the ribs?”

We all looked at each other, the grim realization coming to us at the same time. With a sigh, I said, “Then I suggest we leave the pups be, for now. We can figure out what to do after we finish clearing out the cave. Even if we just leave them be, the worst that will happen is that most of them will die to other creatures of the forest as they are forced to fend for themselves. For now, let us push forward.”

With that thought in mind, we stepped cautiously forward, only for Frostmane to snarl in challenge the moment he saw the creatures in the room. Looking over his shoulder, I could see why. We had found our ‘odd’ dire wolves. And they were ready for us.

Initiatives

Frostmane

Fiendish Dire Wolves

Siora

Vestele

Melinda

Frostmane’s Breath Attack: 4d6 = 19 Cold

Recharge: 1d4 = 1 round

FDW2’s Reflex Save: 1d20+7 = 17 (Fail) (5 Resisted)

FDW3’s Reflex Save: 1d20+7 = 26 (Success, Half damage) (5 resisted)

Frostmane did not hesitate. Seeing two wolves ready to pounce as they turned the corner into the room, he took a deep breath, and then exhaled a cone of icy cold that washed over the wolves. However, neither appeared all too bothered by the cold.

FDW2’s Attack (Frostmane): 1d20+11 = 30 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+10 = 16 (Piercing)

FDW2’s Trip attempt: 1d20+11 = 20

Frostmane’s STR check: 1d20+14 = 32 (Success)

FDW3’s Attack (Frostmane): 1d20+11 = 23 (Miss)

Frostmane yowled in pain as he finally found a foe that he couldn’t simply toy with like they were pups. The two wolves he breathed on snapped at him, one managing to bite him on the shoulder, but somehow Frostmane managed to keep from being thrown from his feet as the dire wolf wrenched its head around. For the first time, it looked as though Frostmane could be in serious trouble.

The only high point, as far as I could see, was that the wolves were hampered by their size. Simply put, they were too large for more than one or two of them to fight Frostmane at a time, and there was no way that they would be able to get past him, to the rest of us. Since most of our group were spellcasters of some sort, that was a big advantage.

Siora’s Caster Level Check: 1d20+7 = 23 (Pass)

FDW4’s Will Save: 1d20+6 = 10 (Fail)

Siora cursed softly, which I could understand. Most of her powers were geared towards dealing with people, enticing and swaying their minds in different ways. Animals, even magically altered ones like the wolves, were not really her forte. Still, I saw her speak an incantation, and throw a pinch of sand from her bag of spell components.

For a moment, nothing happened, but then one of the wolves in the second line, who had been unable to approach before, simply slumped over, and fell to the ground, asleep. Siora clicked her tongue in annoyance. “I felt pushback against the spell. They likely have spell resistance, so be careful!”

Vestele’s Caster Level Check: 1d20+7 = 25 (Success)

FDW5’s Will save: 1d20+6 = 13 (Fail)

Vestele held up her symbol of Malcanthet, and uttered the words of a spell. The wolf standing next to the sleeping one shuddered for a moment, and then went quiet watching Vestele with interest. In a cold voice, she said, “Kill the one in the back, there.” At her words, the wolf turned, and looked at the one furthest in the back, snarling in threat. While that happened, the priestess whispered, “They definitely are resistant to spells, but I have that one charmed, for now.”

Melinda’s Attack (FDW2): 1d20+13 = 33 (Crit)

Confirm Crit: 1d20+13 = 33 (Confirmed Crit)

Damage: 2d8 = 11

Caster Level Check: 1d20+7 = 10 (Fail)

I stepped up next to my furry friend, fist glowing with purple light, rather than the icy blue I favored. Frostmane’s opening blow showed me that cold did less damage to these wolves than it should, so I restricted myself to the normal effect of my magical attack, and managed to connect a solid blow to the dire wolf’s head, rattling it. Unfortunately, the magic I surrounded my hand with fizzled out as it contacted the wolf’s skin.

Frostmane’s attack (FDW2): 1d20+9 = 14 (Hit)

Power Attack (5) Bite: 1d8+15 = 16 (Piercing)

Freezing Bite: 1d6 = 3 (Cold) (5 Resisted)

Frostmane’s STR check: 1d20+14 = 30

FDW2’s STR check: 1d20+11 = 25 (Prone)

Frostmane savagely bit down on the center wolf, the one that had wounded him, returning the favor, with interest. The wolf, barely alive, was thrown to the ground at our feet, while Frostmane growled at the rest of the pack. There could only be one Alpha in this fight, and Frostmane was determined that it would be him.

Melinda’s AoO (FDW2): 1d20+13 = 27 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8 = 5 (Dead)

FDW1’s attack (Melinda): 1d20+11 = 15 (Miss)

FDW3’s attack (Frostmane): 1d20+11 = 14 (Miss)

FDW5’s attack (FDW6): 1d20+11 = 21 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+10 = 14 (DR 5/Magic)

FDW5’s STR check: 1d20+11 = 13

FDW6’s Opposed STR: 1d20+11 = 18 (Success)

FDW6’s attack (FDW5): 1d20+11 = 15 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+10 = 16 (DR 5/Magic)

FDW6’s STR Check: 1d20+11 = 31

FDW5’s STR check: 1d20+11 = 14 (Prone)

The wolves did not take this abuse lying down. Well, except for the one that Frostmane had just mangled. He tried to get up, but had not even managed to rise before my foot came crashing down on his head, with a crunching finality.

The others, though? They certainly were not shy about showing their displeasure. Fangs snapped at both Frostmane and myself, but neither wolf managed to catch us.

In the back, Vestele’s charmed wolf stepped forward and savaged its packmate, under the effects of Vestele’s charm spell. Though, given the way the two wolves looked at each other, the spell seemed hardly necessary. But then, wolves compete and fight all the time for dominance, so this would not go against the wolf’s nature. The other wolf responded in kind. With a jerk of its head, the final wolf cast its charmed packmate to the ground.

Siora’s Attack (FDW6): 1d20+8 = 13 (Miss)

Siora unlimbered her shortbow, and fired at the wolf that had just thrown down the charmed wolf. Her arrow flew straight, but couldn’t find purchase on the wolf’s hide, glancing off its flank. Still, she had succeeded in getting the wolf’s attention, for a moment.

Vestele’s Attack (FDW6): 1d20+8 = 26 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+1 = 7 (Piercing)

Following her sister’s lead, Vestele brought up her crossbow, and fired at the wolf in the rear. Unlike her sister, she managed to hit the wolf squarely in the shoulder, at the base of the neck, her bolt striking hard. I stole a glance at the twins, and saw them both looking focused, but not afraid.

That was good. This was the toughest challenge we’d faced. If we’d been on open ground, instead of these caves, then the wolves would have been able to surround us, attacking us from all sides. Instead, they were forced to go through Frostmane and me, which gave the twins time to further slant the odds in our favor.

Melinda’s Concentration Check: 1d20+8 = 21 (Success)

Melinda’s Attack (FDW1): 1d20+13 = 17 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8 = 2 (Bludgeoning)

Caster Level Check: 1d20+7 = 20 (Success)

Hideous Blow: 4d6 = 15 (Magic)

With the middle wolf dead, I turned my attention to the wolf who had snapped its jaws at me. Careful to avoid giving the wolf an opening, I summoned my powers again. A violet aura surrounded my foot as I lashed out, and this time, it discharged itself into the wolf as it was supposed to.

Frostmane’s attack (FDW3): 1d20+9 = 19 (Hit)

Power Attack (5) Bite: 1d8+15 = 17 (Piercing)

Freezing Bite: 1d6 = 2 (Cold) (5 Resisted)

Frostmane’s STR check: 1d20+14 = 29

FDW3’s STR check: 1d20+11 = 25 (Prone)

Frostmane turned on the wolf in front of him, and surged forward, toothed maw grabbing the other wolf by the leg and wrenching it down to the ground. He’d been wounded early on in the fight, but now he was pressing his advantage in tactics and skill. The other wolves could not keep up.

Frostmane’s AoO (FDW3): 1d20+14 = 24 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+10 = 14 (Piercing)

Frostmane’s STR check: 1d20+14 = 28

FDW3’s STR check: 1d20+11 = 15 (Prone)

FDW1’s attack (Melinda): 1d20+11 = 26 (Hit)

Damage 1d8+10 = 12 (DR 5/Cold Iron)

FDW1’s STR Check: 1d20+11 = 20

Melinda’s DEX Check: 1d20+4 = 7 (Prone)

FDW6’s AoO (FDW5): 1d20+11 = 20 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+10 = 17 (DR 5/Cold Iron)

FDW6’s STR Check: 1d20+11 = 29

FDW5’s STR check: 1d20+11 = 23 (Prone)

FDW6’s attack (FDW5): 1d20+11 = 12 (Miss)

Frostmane’s wolf and the one that Vestele had charmed both tried to regain their feet, only for fanged jaws, almost looking to be moving in mirror of each other, threw them back down, forcing them to rise again, worse for the wear. The uncharmed wolf snapped at its foe once more, but was unable to grab hold with its jaws again. Unfortunately, I did not have time to enjoy that.

The wolf in front of me managed to seize my left arm in its jaws, biting down hard. Gritting my teeth against the pain, despite my fortified body, I was unprepared for the wrenching force of the wolf’s strike, sending me falling to the ground at its feet. Exactly where I did not wish to be.

Siora’s Attack (FDW6): 1d20+8 = 19 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+2 = 9 (Piercing)

Vestele’s Attack (FDW6): 1d20+8 = 24 (Hit)

Damage: 1d8+1 = 5 (Piercing)

Bowstring sang and crossbow fired as the twins proved they were not ignoring the fight. Both attacks slammed home on the wolf in the rear, their magical weapons piercing the wolf’s hide with ease. For the first time, that wolf looked worse off than its charmed foe.

FDW1’s AoO (Melinda): 1d20+11 = 28 (Hit)

Damage 1d8+10 = 12 (DR 5/Cold Iron)

FDW1’s STR Check: 1d20+11 = 16

Melinda’s DEX Check: 1d20+4 = 24 (Success)

Melinda’s Attack (FDW6): 1d20+13 = 27 (Hit)

Caster Level Check: 1d20+7 = 13 (Success)

Eldritch Blast: 4d6 = 17 (Magic) (Dead)

I fought my way to my feet, and, as I did so, the dire wolf’s toothed maw tore into my leg, trying to throw me down. But, this time, I was able to keep my footing. Seeing an opening, I summoned my powers once again, and unleashed them, blasting the wolf in the rear. Its snarls were silenced as the magic left its form smoking from the impact.