The PCs battle a patrol of Nibelung within a dungeon, such as caves, ruins, or a castle interior. A mini-boss accompanies regulars, keeping the number of combatants low. This scenario is brawler-heavy, focused on intense melee combat.
The battlefield is shadowy and takes place at a T-junction within a dungeon. A balcony above the junction provides a vantage point for the Chanter whose spells dominate the scenario. For simplicity's sake the balcony could be stand-alone or have a locked door that can't be accessed during the swift combat timeframe. If you wish, you could extend the battlefield map by having additional sections in a second level.
The balcony is Height 1 above its adjacent section (and doesn't connect diagonally to nearby hallway sections). Adversaries can all climb freely, but PCs will need Acrobatics vs. 1d6 to climb using setting-appropriate fixtures such as long curtains, slick cave stones, or piled rubble. Entities on the balcony gain +1 to Miss dice levels against ranged attacks from enemies not on the balcony.
Feel free to extend the hallways farther if you wish. You could add some open room sections along them, or (if appropriate) have locked doors that the PCs will have to wait to explore after the battle. The hallways can bend and wind however you wish.
Stone walls that meet at the junction prevent any diagonal movement between the central passage and the north-south one; entities must pass through the central choke point section instead.
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| Adversary | Rank | Role | HP | Init |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nibelung Champion | Mini-boss | Brawler | 30 | 1d10 |
| Nibelung Chanter | Mini-boss | Support | 26 | 1d12 |
| Nibelung Cavalry | Regular | Brawler | 15 | 1d8 |
| Nibelung Charger | Regular | Brawler | 14 | 1d8 |
The Chanter fires Bone Dance directly into melee battle sections, granting a Mob Attack to the largest number of allies it can. If its allies are spread evenly, it'll focus on whoever can use the Resilience buff. It will generally stay on the balcony, daring PCs to try to climb up to it, but it will get away the moment a PC makes it up. The Chanter will not go out of its way to use Nibelung Recovery but will always use it if it has an opportunity without moving.
Other Adversaries will basically just charge into battle. The Cavalry tries to reach ranged PCs, especially casters, while the Charger focuses on debuffing the Resilience of defensive PCs.
The PCs may continue through the dungeon without issue, likely finding loot in nearby rooms.
The PCs are forced to flee, suffering an Injury in the process. Choose the direction based on the flow of battle and where the PCs ended up at its conclusion.
If the PCs are capable of disarming the Chargers, consider giving them backup Actions similar to a Nibelung Scrapper. Maybe lose the Special entry and drop a dice level or two so the players still get some reward for taking away the Pointy Stick.
You can swap some enemies for Scrappers and Nibelung Tossers if you want a bigger battle. This can be especially potent with the Chanter in play since its effects will target even more allies. You might consider swapping the Champion for it with smaller PC counts if you do this.
Alternatively, swap the mini-boss for a Nibelung Caller to reduce the number of Actions played and buffing performed while maintaining a ranged threat.
Mix things up by adding more pets of the nyblings, such as Grime Maws.