Adventure in Duskwood
As I was playing my Human Paladin, River, on the Lightning's Blade server early Saturday morning, a call came over the Local Defense channel that Goldshire was being raided. Urging for a little PvP action, I dashed over there. When I got there, most of the enemy had been defeated, but I saw a little bit of action. We held off a few stragglers, then, a call came for a counter-raid. We organized in the Goldshire Inn, and headed south, towards the river which acts as the boundary between the Alliance controlled Elwynn Forest, and the contested land of Duskwood.
The only obstacle was a pack of high level wolves and spiders, which could kill even our highest level raid members quickly. Those of us who survived the first attempt regrouped in the river to try again. After healing, we rushed the shore again, this time, with the aim of avoiding the enemy. I dashed from the river, up the shore line, not stopping until I reached the foothills of the nearby mountains. There I stopped, to wait for the others. But no one came.
Apparently, I was the only survivor of my 25+ member raid party. And here I was, in this dangerous place, with no map, and little chance for survival. It was too dangerous to try to go back to the river. My only chance was to work my way through the foothills, in hopes of finding a road. Surely any road would lead to some sort of town, friendly or otherwise. If I was lucky, maybe I could even find a griffin master and get a ride back to Stormwind.
But first, I had to get out of the mountains alive. I picked my way through the foothills until I found a path that wound its way up the mountain. I followed the path cautiously, but there didn't seem to be any monsters nearby. By and by, I reached the top of the path and came to a gateway.
Now I don't know much about elves, particularly in this game, but that looks like the work of elves to me. Hoping to find some friendly forces, I headed past the gateway. I followed the path for a few yards before the narrow walls of the pass opened up into great valley
And at the center of the valley, this:
The valley was completely empty except for that staircase in the middle, and the portal at the top. This place was seriously creepy. Gathering up my courage, I climbed the steps towards the great portal.
What would await River on the other side of this mystical gateway? What strange lands -- or monsters -- would greet her when she emerged from the other side? Would she even survive the journey through this dark portal?
I steeled my nerves and walked through the portal, and on the other side....
Well, that was kind of a bust. Apparently the portal was nothing but a big, fancy light show. The only thing on the other side was a wall. Disappointed, I took a few more shots of the valley, and prepared to resume my search for a safe road to travel.
Leaving the valley, I decided my best bet would be to continue to move through the foothills. That plan was shattered when I ran into a high level wolf, who quickly began to attack. Losing life fast, I ran away from the wolf as fast as I could. My life-bar had almost been depleted when I stumbled onto a cobblestone road, and a Night-Watch encampment. The wolf, which I imagine didn't want to challenge the level 40 guards, left my heels as I reached the camp. It's a good thing he did, because to tell the truth, the night-watch didn't look like it was too keen to defend me. That's right, ladies; chivalry is dead.
I wasn't really sure which direction to head in, so I consulted a nearby sign post. "Let's see here, my options are... 'Raven Hill', 'Darkshire', 'Stranglethorn Vale', and 'Westfall'..."
...Great.
Naturally, Westfall, to the... west, was the safest choice, and I knew that it was Alliance territory, so I would be relatively safer there. But my adventure in the valley, and my recent near death experience with the wolf had given me a kick of adrenaline, and I wanted to do some exploring before heading back. I turned my back to the road to safer lands, and facing east, looked upon the long, desolate road to Darkshire.
The journey was a lonely one. There was a perceivable absence of other players. Clearly, few, if any, other players had walked this path. I was attacked several times by wolves or spiders who had wandered close enough to the road to spot me. I started the walk with 10 bottles of minor healing potion, and only had 5 left when it ended. Fortunately, none of my attackers followed me for more than a few yards, and I eventually made it to Darkshire with my life intact.
One of the things I had hoped to find in Darkshire was one or two higher level players who might be willing to help me return to Alliance lands. No such luck; the only people in Darkshire were members of the "Night-Watch" (NPC's), and couldn't accompany me. Instead, I found a town surrounded by Undead forces. Unfortunately, the surrounding land was infested by the monsters, and was too perilous for me to fully explore. I did, however, find a griffin master. I was about to hitch a ride back to Stormwind when the town crier began to shout.
"The abomination is headed this way. All defenses assemble at the center of town!" I put off my travel plans for the moment to see what would come of this. Minutes later, a second cry came. "The abomination has come! Forward!"
"Abomination" was right. This lovely fellow was named "Stitches" and had the title of "Gift from the Embalmer." All nearby Night Watch soldiers ran forward to fight him back. I could only stand on the sidelines to cast healing spells and buffs on the Night Watch.
I realized the horror of this town. The few people who lived here did so under constant threat of attack. I was moved by the plight of the townspeople. I decided instead of flying, to see what other horrors awaited me at the other end of the long road through Duskwood.
I ran along the road once again, avoiding the enemies I could, and trying to whether the attacks of those I could not. As I passed the Night Watch encampment I had passed earlier, I noticed that the guards were no longer at their posts. Perhaps they had met our friend Stitches.
Eventually, I came to the decimated village of Raven Hill. The town had clearly suffered a brutal attack some time ago. The only remaining resident was a distant fellow named Jitters, who did nothing but endlessly circle the well at the center of town.
Rather than try to describe this sad burg, I'll let pictures tell the tale:
Some of the more observant may notice the Undead lurking behind the fence in the last picture. The desolate peace in Raven Hill seemed tentative. It was time to head home.
I exited the village and began to walk towards the covered bridge which traversed the river dividing Duskwood and Westfall. I was almost home... BUT WAIT!
As if spawned from the shadows, the Pygmy Venom Spider leapt out behind me. He managed to get in one powerful bite with his razor like pincers before I could cast Devine Protection to protect myself from his wrath. I was wounded, but I was going to make it!
But just as the buff ran out, a rabid dire wold rushed me from the south side of the road. With no further protection spells ready to be cast, the only option left was to run for my life!
As I reached the bank of Westfall with a fraction of life remaining, my attackers fell back. I was safe again in Alliance lands. My journey through Duskwood was at an end.
THE END
map of duskwood
The only obstacle was a pack of high level wolves and spiders, which could kill even our highest level raid members quickly. Those of us who survived the first attempt regrouped in the river to try again. After healing, we rushed the shore again, this time, with the aim of avoiding the enemy. I dashed from the river, up the shore line, not stopping until I reached the foothills of the nearby mountains. There I stopped, to wait for the others. But no one came.
Apparently, I was the only survivor of my 25+ member raid party. And here I was, in this dangerous place, with no map, and little chance for survival. It was too dangerous to try to go back to the river. My only chance was to work my way through the foothills, in hopes of finding a road. Surely any road would lead to some sort of town, friendly or otherwise. If I was lucky, maybe I could even find a griffin master and get a ride back to Stormwind.
But first, I had to get out of the mountains alive. I picked my way through the foothills until I found a path that wound its way up the mountain. I followed the path cautiously, but there didn't seem to be any monsters nearby. By and by, I reached the top of the path and came to a gateway.
Now I don't know much about elves, particularly in this game, but that looks like the work of elves to me. Hoping to find some friendly forces, I headed past the gateway. I followed the path for a few yards before the narrow walls of the pass opened up into great valley
And at the center of the valley, this:
The valley was completely empty except for that staircase in the middle, and the portal at the top. This place was seriously creepy. Gathering up my courage, I climbed the steps towards the great portal.
What would await River on the other side of this mystical gateway? What strange lands -- or monsters -- would greet her when she emerged from the other side? Would she even survive the journey through this dark portal?
I steeled my nerves and walked through the portal, and on the other side....
Well, that was kind of a bust. Apparently the portal was nothing but a big, fancy light show. The only thing on the other side was a wall. Disappointed, I took a few more shots of the valley, and prepared to resume my search for a safe road to travel.
Leaving the valley, I decided my best bet would be to continue to move through the foothills. That plan was shattered when I ran into a high level wolf, who quickly began to attack. Losing life fast, I ran away from the wolf as fast as I could. My life-bar had almost been depleted when I stumbled onto a cobblestone road, and a Night-Watch encampment. The wolf, which I imagine didn't want to challenge the level 40 guards, left my heels as I reached the camp. It's a good thing he did, because to tell the truth, the night-watch didn't look like it was too keen to defend me. That's right, ladies; chivalry is dead.
I wasn't really sure which direction to head in, so I consulted a nearby sign post. "Let's see here, my options are... 'Raven Hill', 'Darkshire', 'Stranglethorn Vale', and 'Westfall'..."
...Great.
Naturally, Westfall, to the... west, was the safest choice, and I knew that it was Alliance territory, so I would be relatively safer there. But my adventure in the valley, and my recent near death experience with the wolf had given me a kick of adrenaline, and I wanted to do some exploring before heading back. I turned my back to the road to safer lands, and facing east, looked upon the long, desolate road to Darkshire.
The journey was a lonely one. There was a perceivable absence of other players. Clearly, few, if any, other players had walked this path. I was attacked several times by wolves or spiders who had wandered close enough to the road to spot me. I started the walk with 10 bottles of minor healing potion, and only had 5 left when it ended. Fortunately, none of my attackers followed me for more than a few yards, and I eventually made it to Darkshire with my life intact.
One of the things I had hoped to find in Darkshire was one or two higher level players who might be willing to help me return to Alliance lands. No such luck; the only people in Darkshire were members of the "Night-Watch" (NPC's), and couldn't accompany me. Instead, I found a town surrounded by Undead forces. Unfortunately, the surrounding land was infested by the monsters, and was too perilous for me to fully explore. I did, however, find a griffin master. I was about to hitch a ride back to Stormwind when the town crier began to shout.
"The abomination is headed this way. All defenses assemble at the center of town!" I put off my travel plans for the moment to see what would come of this. Minutes later, a second cry came. "The abomination has come! Forward!"
"Abomination" was right. This lovely fellow was named "Stitches" and had the title of "Gift from the Embalmer." All nearby Night Watch soldiers ran forward to fight him back. I could only stand on the sidelines to cast healing spells and buffs on the Night Watch.
I realized the horror of this town. The few people who lived here did so under constant threat of attack. I was moved by the plight of the townspeople. I decided instead of flying, to see what other horrors awaited me at the other end of the long road through Duskwood.
I ran along the road once again, avoiding the enemies I could, and trying to whether the attacks of those I could not. As I passed the Night Watch encampment I had passed earlier, I noticed that the guards were no longer at their posts. Perhaps they had met our friend Stitches.
Eventually, I came to the decimated village of Raven Hill. The town had clearly suffered a brutal attack some time ago. The only remaining resident was a distant fellow named Jitters, who did nothing but endlessly circle the well at the center of town.
Rather than try to describe this sad burg, I'll let pictures tell the tale:
Some of the more observant may notice the Undead lurking behind the fence in the last picture. The desolate peace in Raven Hill seemed tentative. It was time to head home.
I exited the village and began to walk towards the covered bridge which traversed the river dividing Duskwood and Westfall. I was almost home... BUT WAIT!
As if spawned from the shadows, the Pygmy Venom Spider leapt out behind me. He managed to get in one powerful bite with his razor like pincers before I could cast Devine Protection to protect myself from his wrath. I was wounded, but I was going to make it!
But just as the buff ran out, a rabid dire wold rushed me from the south side of the road. With no further protection spells ready to be cast, the only option left was to run for my life!
As I reached the bank of Westfall with a fraction of life remaining, my attackers fell back. I was safe again in Alliance lands. My journey through Duskwood was at an end.
THE END
map of duskwood
posted by matthew at 1:31 PM
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