Shrine of the Axe Maiden: Part 1

A Kal-Arath Solo AP: The legendary Axe Maidens have stood as Wolftooth Forest’s guardians against monsters and marauders. Now, they have vanished into shadow, and Sindra intends to find out why.

This is an actual play series exploring Castle Grief’s new 1-page adventure:

THE SHRINE OF THE AXE MAIDEN

Using Kal-Arath as the ruleset. I’m creating the character Sindra using the “Pulp Mode” for a more powerful PC, as she will be alone for this adventure. Any game mechanics are linked throughout in the footnotes. Also using my Solo Toolkit.

“A race against time as Wolftooth Forest is set to explode in warfare - can you unlock the secrets of the shrine and see justice done here?” - Castle Grief

Name: Sindra The Berzerker   HP: 7/7     Level: 1     XP: 0/1   Fate: 1

Str: +2     Tou: +1     Agi: -1 *(+1)     Int: -1     Pre: +0

Weapon: Greataxe (2-Handed: d6/a dmg) [Crit: Enemy Knocked Prone]

Armour: Leather Armor (Medium 2) *(Armor Reduces AGI by it's value)

Skills:
1. Berserker: Gain +1d6 dmg for 1d6 rounds. Once over roll 1d6: 1-3 means Disadv on all checks till next rest. Resets on rest

Personality: Corageous & Rude

Equipment: Silver: 22
1. Rations (6)
2. Tent/Bedroll
3. Torches

• Starting In Medias Res > A Powerful NPC summons her to a reception.

  • Who? Jarl Hildred - The warlord vying for control of the region

  • What do they want? > Union > Jarl Hildred gathers warriors from across the lands to his Great Hall for a feast, no doubt to recruit them to his banner.

  • What if you refuse? > Mystery > The message was cryptic, saying only that the Jarl was gathering great warriors with no further reasons

  • What if you accept? > Lore > The Axe Maids, especially their leader Saga, were heroes to her; perhaps the Jarl knew what happened to them…
    

Pointcrawl of the Region

Day 1 - Weather: Cold + Still
Area 1 - The Wolftooth Tavern

She pushed open the heavy oak door and stumbled into the warmth of the Wolftooth Tavern, the last waystation on the lonely road to the vale. It was mostly empty, and a grizzled old man polished a mug by the bar. “Hale and well met, traveler, what brings you to the Wolftooth?” he asked, spitting into a bucket nearby. "I have come to find treasure and glory, and to discover the fate of the Axe Maiden Saga,” she replied.

The mood in the tavern turned as dark as the cold night sky outside. “Tis a sad tale indeed, the Axe Maidens seem to have all perished! Some say it was a great monster, while others claim that the barbarian tribes descended from the mountains and slew them in secret. Some say…” he pauses and looks around before continuing in a low voice. “Some say Jarl Hildred himself had a hand in it! Everyone knew how much he envied the love and devotion Saga got; even his own bannermen respected her more than him.”

He shakes his head sadly, “These are strange and dark times we live in, I hear tell that outlaws gather past the bridge, of raiders coming down the mountain pass, even rumours that the dead stir by the old kingcairn.”

Sindra had always held the Axe Maids in great regard. She couldn’t believe they had all been slain so ignominiously. Warriors such as them should die in glorious battle. At least the scrap of map she had indicated a treasure of great value was somewhere in the vale. Perhaps this was the perfect time to find and claim it for herself and forge her own legend!

Kveld’s Bridge seemed like the safest path south, and Saga set off without delay.

Area 2 - Kveld’s Bridge

A hunter stands near the broad stone bridge.

“Ho Warrior! I need your help,” he calls out.

He offers to mark a secret on her map if she helps him bring down a giant Frosthorn Ram he’s been tracking. She asks his name, and he says he is Torvald. She agrees to help him on the hunt if he will show her the way to the Shrine. They set out into the snow…

A potential ally?

They start to track their elusive quarry down past the bridge, following Torvald’s hunting route that he “swears by”.¹ Hours later, as the twin suns reach their zenith, they finally spot their quarry perched on a rock ledge, casually munching on some coarse grass. “I have no bow, I can help you no further!” Sindra whispers.

² “Stay long enough to see me get the kill!” he boasts, and pulls his bow taut.³ He swears profusely as the arrow goes wide, breaking against the cold cliff walls. The Ram looks up, startled, and tears off uphill!

⁴ Torvald runs off after his prey, “Follow me, we’re gonna catch this thing!” he shouts. “Son of a half-troll…” Sindra groans. She wouldn’t risk her neck for some overgrown goat.⁵ “I already helped you find it, honor thy word and tell me the secret!” she yells after him. The hunter ignores her and runs after the ram, stumbling through the snowdrifts. She sighs and turns around, heading back to the bridge and crossing it before setting up camp for the night⁶.

Day 2 - Weather: Ice Storm! (no travel)

The wind howled and thrashed around her. Icy shards caught in the tempest stabbed at her face like thousands of icy needles. Traveling far was out of the question; she needed to find somewhere to wait out the storm.

⁷ Sindra couldn’t believe her eyes. That same slippery old ram they had been hunting came bounding out of the snowdrifts.⁸ She braced herself and swung her mighty axe as it barreled past her, decapitating the creature in a single stroke. A font of warm red blood marked the white snowdrifts, melting into the surface as it steamed.⁹ Torvald came bounding out of the snow moments later, out of breath. “Looks like I got it,” Sindra gloats with a smirk.¹⁰ “You abandoned the hunt!” Torvald shouted, red-faced. “I slayed the damn thing for you! I don’t even want the kill, just keep it,” she yelled back.¹¹ “Alright, alright! Fair enough…” the hunter grumbled.

“We need to get out of this storm!” He nods, “I think I saw a cave nearby, we can shelter there for the time being.” They trudge through the storm and practically fall into the cave entrance. It was no warmer here, but at least they were safe from the biting winds. Sindra lights her torch and hands it to Torvald as they inspect the cave.¹² She suddenly hears the low rumble of something big moving in the darkness…

¹³ ¹⁴ All she sees is a flash of fur and blue flesh as a massive Winter Troll leaps out of the shadows right at them!

“400 pounds of muscle and hunger with teeth sharp enough to rend flesh”

The blue-skinned creature swings its thick, furred arms in wild strikes. Torvald is surprisingly light on his feet and dodges the great beast. Sindra runs at the monster, weilding her greataxe, but the Troll is disturbingly agile for its size.¹⁵ The Troll lets out a terrifying howl, its knifelike teeth glinting. It bounds over and knocks the wind out of Sindra with its bruising fists, pushing her back.

¹⁶She cuts another slash across its black-blue skin, but the beast keeps coming right for her! ¹⁷Torvald hastily pulls the old iron spear from his back and tries to stab the beast, but stumbles on the rocky floor and misses. The Troll grabs the spear by the shaft as it passes and snaps it like a twig in a single motion!

“Fucking do something, you useless oaf!” Sindra shouts at Torvald. ¹⁸ Before he can even protest, the beast turns and smashes the unarmed hunter in the chest hard, sending him flying across the cave. Sindra didn’t need to check to know that he was out cold, if not dead, from that hit. Was this to be her fate? To die in a forgotten cave, her smashed bones gnawed on by an overgrown ape?

¹⁹ Cold rage seeps into her blood at the thought.²⁰ She roars and leaps at the Troll with her axe held high. She smashes it down onto the creature’s thick skull and knocks it prone. ²¹ Hot black blood spills as the Troll howls again, this time sounding more like a wounded and desperate animal than a predator. It scampers past her with a sudden burst of speed, leaping out of the cave entrance and disappearing into the slate-gray walls of the ice storm. She was not fool enough to follow.

²² The cold suddenly saps away the berserker rage that had filled her veins with molten iron just moments ago. Her body moves sluggishly, as if she’s pushing through a heavy current, so deep is her exhaustion. She stumbles over to Torvald and tries to do what she can to help him.²³ A few moments later, he awakens with a shuddering gasp, spitting up blood. Torvald croaks his thanks to her for saving his hide, her insult from earlier seemingly forgotten.

She wearily checks the shadowed corners of the cave, then sets up camp when she’s satisfied they won’t find any more trollish surprises in this damned hole.²⁴ He asks to see her map and marks the secret he promised to reveal. “See this right here? Whoever made your map of the Shrine didn’t know about this hidden chamber. There’s bound to be good treasure in there!” he explains excitedly.

²⁵ She stashes her map and thanks him. The cold air continues to snap and wail into the cave as the night grows dark. “If this treasure’s real, perhaps some warm golden coins await at the end of this. Enough shitting treasure to buy a longhouse stuffed to the rafters with hot firepits and horns of warm spiced mead…” she thought, dozing off.

---

End of Session: Earn 2XP, Level up to 2!

Sindra gains:

• +1 to AGI stat (Dodging matters! The “armor reduces agility” rule is fun but scary.)

• +1d6 HP (3)

• New Skill “Second Wind: Regain 1d6 HP once a session, at any time”

Notes: First actual play of soloing a module! Also trying out a new way of putting the game mechanics into the footnotes, let me know if yall prefer that.

Leaning into Sindra making “her own decisions” since I, as the DM and player, already know all the secrets in the module. Knowing Torvald’s brother was the one who found the secret mark may have been useful, but Sindra didn’t ask, so oh well…

Shrine of the Axe Maiden has been great so far. It somehow crams a whole adventure region full of deadly encounters, fun factions, and a tight narrative into just one page. Super easy to run, the locations are evocative and the NPCs and factions have clear goals and obstacles. No spoilers, but the way the dungeon puzzles link up with exploring the outside world is just chef’s kiss!

Silver Nightingale's Table of Contents

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1. Encounter > (6) Frosthorn Ram > (Pretty lucky as the first result!)

2. (Reaction > Friendly)

3. (AGI check > Fail!)

4. (Does the Hunter Follow? Yes! and..)

5. PRE Check > Fail

6. Rest > Rations (5)

7. Encounter > (6) Frosthorn Ram > (How does she keep running into this damned goat??)

8. (STR > Pass, Critical Damage 6+4).

9. Was the Hunter nearby? Yes! and

10. Reaction > Angry

11. PRE Check > Pass!

12. Does it look safe? No, and…

13. Reaction: Hostile, Combat Initiative: Enemy

14. Carnivorous Ape (stat block from VBZ)
14 HP, Attack x2: Pound (2d6 dmg), Bite (2d6)
Special: If both attacks hit the same target, deal another 2d6 dmg (ignoring armor)

15. (3 dmg), reduced by armor (2). The second attack was a critical hit, but a FATE! point spent to reroll determined that Sindra was not destined to fall this moment…

16. Attack > 5 dmg

17. Crit Fail!!

18. Troll Deals 5 dmg, Torvald at 0 HP + Succeeds Death save but still passed out

19. Berserker Rage: Gain +1d6 dmg for 1d6 rounds. Once it’s over roll 1d6, 1-3 means Disadv on all checks till next rest. Resets on rest.

20. Crit Damage, 6+3+1, Battleaxe triggers knockdown on crit.

21. Below half health, Morale Check > Fail!

22. Berserker Rage ends: Failed check

23. Torvald restored to 1 HP after combat

24. Shrine Dungeon: Room 7 has a secret passage to a treasure room

25. Does she ask where he got it? No