#dave and his 28 stab wounds

[thedgeofsleep]

me: is excited for the edge of sleep tv show

also me: realizes that we're probably gonna see the moobles incident irl

[picksblog285]

Clippings

Miami (Florida), 8 results8

Coconut Grove (Miami, Fla.) -- History, 4 results4

Coral Gables (Fla.) -- History, 3 results3

Miami Beach (Fla.), 3 results3

Florida -- History -- 20th century, 3 results3

Haiti, 2 results2

Miami-Dade County (Fla.) -- History, 2 results2

Latin America -- History -- 19th century, 2 results2

Miami (Florida) -- History -- 20th century, 2 results2

Miami-Dade, 1 results1

Explore clippings of newspaper articles, obituaries, marriage announcements, local news and archives at Newspapers.com. Clippings.io will export your Kindle notes and highlights in usable, searchable form — and then plug them directly into Evernote, so they're available whenever you need them, and sortable in.

Poetry, 7 results7

Theater -- Production and direction -- United States -- History -- 20th century, 3 results3

Cuban Americans -- Florida -- Miami, 3 results3

Poets, American -- 20th century, 2 results2

Cuban Americans, 2 results2

Cubans -- United States, 2 results2

American poetry -- 20th century, 2 results2

Cubans -- Political activity -- United States, 2 results2

Human rights -- Cuba, 2 results2

Naturalists -- Florida, 2 results2

(Redirected from Clipping.)

clipping. at Worldcon 2017, Helsinki, before the 2017 Hugo Awards

Background informationOriginLos Angeles, California, United States(1)Genres

Experimental hip hop(2)

industrial hip hop(3)

noise rap(4)

Years active2009(5)–presentLabelsAssociated acts

Rale

True Neutral Crew

Websitewww.itsclippingbitch.comMembers

William Hutson

Clipping (stylized as clipping.) is an American experimental hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. The group consists of rapper Daveed Diggs and producers William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes.(4)

History(edit)

Diggs and Hutson met in grade school, and Hutson and Snipes were college roommates.(6) The group began in 2009 as a remix project, with Hutson and Snipes taking a cappellas of mainstream rap artists and making power electronics and noise remixes of them to amuse themselves. Diggs joined in 2010 and began to write his own raps over their compositions.(5) They self-released their first album, midcity, on their website on February 5, 2013.(7) Though their expectations were low, and despite minimal promotion, the album was well-received, and five months later, they signed to Sub Pop. Their second album, CLPPNG, was released on June 10, 2014.(5)

The group does not see their abrasive sound as a rejection of mainstream hip hop or reaction against it, but as part of a hip hop tradition, including the likes of Dr. Dre and Public Enemy producers The Bomb Squad, who experimented with production and also used harsh, musique concrète-esque techniques in their music. Similarly, they think of themselves as a rap group rather than industrial-rap, noise-rap, or other mash-up genres.(5)

On June 14, 2016, they released an EP, Wriggle.(8) They then released their second studio album, Splendor & Misery, later on September 9.(9) A science fiction concept album, Splendor & Misery was nominated for the 2017 Hugo Awards in the category of 'Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)' on April 4, 2017.(10)

In 2017, the group released a single, 'The Deep'. The song was nominated for a Hugo Award in 2018, their second consecutive nomination in the 'Best Dramatic Presentation (Short Form)' category.(11)

On September 28, 2018, the group's song 'Stab Him in the Throat' was released as part of The Rick and Morty Soundtrack. This album was released by Sub Pop and Adult Swim and featured songs from episodes of Rick and Morty.

On August 14, 2019, the group released a lyric video to YouTube for a new song titled 'Nothing Is Safe', which borrowed heavily from the aesthetics of 1970s and '80s horror films like Halloween and the soundtrack works of John Carpenter. This was coupled with the announcement that their third full-length record, There Existed an Addiction to Blood, would be released on October 18 of the same year.(12)

On September 12, 2019, a second lyric video was released to YouTube to promote There Existed an Addiction to Blood. The track, titled 'La Mala Ordina' featured guest appearances from rappers Elcamino and Benny the Butcher, with additional production from noise artist The Rita.(13)

On October 3, 2019, a music video for the track 'Blood of the Fang' was released to YouTube to promote There Existed an Addiction to Blood.

On November 29, 2019, the band released a three-song EP further exploring the world of 'The Deep'. The EP was also further developed into a novel of the same name by writer Rivers Solomon; the members of clipping. are listed as co-authors. The Deep won the Lambda Literary Award for science fiction, and was nominated for Hugo, Nebula, and Locus awards.

On June 19, 2020, they released the track 'Chapter 319' on Bandcamp, along with a previously SoundCloud-only track 'Knees on the Ground', with all proceeds from the sales donated to organizations dedicated to racial justice. 'Chapter 319' was recorded during the protests after the killing of George Floyd, while 'Knees on the Ground' was originally recorded after the shooting of Michael Brown in 2014.

On August 26, 2020, they announced the album Visions of Bodies Being Burned, a companion piece to There Existed an Addiction to Blood; they also released the single 'Say the Name' on the same day. The album was released on October 23 through Sub Pop.

On November 1, 2020, on their YouTube channel, they livestreamed a performance of the first variation of the socialist anthem The People United Will Never Be Defeated! – playing on a tape recorder, under a small flame, on loop, with the picture slowly distorting – until the 2020 United States presidential election was called. The performance was for a movement called '#BeginWithTheBallot' by Alarm Will Sound.(14)

On December 4, 2020, Daveed Diggs released a video in partnership with the Disney Channel entitled 'Puppy for Hanukkah'. The track was produced by clipping. bandmates Hutson and Snipes.(15)

On December 25th, 2020, a music video for the track 'Piano Burning' was released to YouTube to promote There Existed an Addiction to Blood.

Style and influences(edit)

The group has drawn comparisons to the likes of Dälek, Death Grips, My Bloody Valentine,(4)Tim Hecker and Shabazz Palaces.(16)The Guardian described their sound as 'the sort of shrill thrills you imagine could function as incidental soundtrack music for a documentary about abattoirs or might conceivably be the work of a young band intent on twisting industrial metal into brutal new shapes. With rapping on top.'(4)Rolling Stone called them '(n)imble-tongued, beat-fractured L.A. hip-hop spilled over the abrasive crunches, squeals, clangs, slurps, and static of experimental musique concrète.'(17)

As part of their experimental style, the band adhere to certain stylistic limitations. Their instrumentation is derived from real world samples (e.g. using recordings of bottles being hit or bricks breaking) instead of traditional instruments. Similarly, Diggs writes his rap in second person, all 'I, me' language is off limits.(18)

Discography(edit)

Albums(edit)

CLPPNG (Sub Pop, 2014)

Splendor & Misery (Sub Pop, 2016)

There Existed an Addiction to Blood (Sub Pop, 2019)(19)

Visions of Bodies Being Burned (Sub Pop, 2020)

Mixtapes(edit)

midcity (2013)

Remix albums(edit)

Dream Remx (2016)

REMXNG (2016)

Live albums(edit)

Double Live (2020)

Extended plays(edit)

dba118 (2012)

Wriggle (2016)

Face (2018)

The Deep (2019)

Chapter 319 (2020)

Singles(edit)

'Chain' b/w 'Jump' (2013)

'Something They Don't Know' b/w 'Mouth' (2014)

'Knees on the Ground' (2014)

'Fat Fingers'(20) (2016)

'Body for the Pile' (2016)

'The Deep' (2017)

'Stab Him in the Throat' (2018)

'Nothing Is Safe' (2019)

'La Mala Ordina' (2019)

'Blood of the Fang' (2019)

'Chapter 319' (2020)

'Say the Name' (2020)(21)

'96 Neve Campbell' (2020)

'Pain Everyday' (2020)

Remixes(edit)

'ShowYrTattoo' (clippingRemix) (2011)

'forever' (clippingRemix) (2012)

'howlow' (clippingRemix) (2012)

'hauntedbumps' (clippingRemix) (2012)

'lenguaafuera' (clippingRemix) (2012)

'Hello' (2013)

'this song is a drug deal' (clipping. remix) (2013)

'Story 4: Sleeplessly Embracing' (a remix by clipping.) (2014)

'Wear the Wounds' (clipping. remix) (2014)

'Isombard' (clipping. Float On Remix) (2016)

'Tipsy' (2020)

References(edit)

Clippings Hair Salon

^Raymer, Miles (June 13, 2014). 'clipping.: CLPPNG'. Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 3, 2014. Retrieved October 3, 2014.

^Thomas, Fred. 'Clipping'. Allmusic. Archived from the original on November 27, 2014. Retrieved August 5, 2014.

^'Stream the debut album by Sub Pop industrial rap trio Clipping'. Fact. June 2, 2014. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 22, 2017.

^ abcdLester, Paul (February 8, 2013). 'New band of the week: Clipping (No 1,448)'. The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Archived from the original on August 10, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2014.

^ abcd'clipping. on Sub Pop Records'. Sub Pop. Archived from the original on May 28, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.

^Sherburne, Philip (January 7, 2014). 'Clipping: Los Angeles Noise-Rap Crew Crank Out Scientifically Ugly Party Jams'. Spin. Archived from the original on July 8, 2015. Retrieved May 2, 2014.

^'midcity – clipping'. Bandcamp. Archived from the original on April 3, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2014.

^'Wriggle | clipping'. Clppng.bandcamp.com. Archived from the original on October 17, 2016. Retrieved November 8, 2016.

^'Splendor & Misery | clipping'. Clppng.bandcamp.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2016. Retrieved November 8, 2016.

^'2017 Hugo Awards Finalists Announced'. Tor.com. April 4, 2017. Archived from the original on April 8, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2017.

^'2018 Hugo Awards'. The Hugo Awards. March 15, 2018. Archived from the original on April 2, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2018.

^'CLIPPING – Nothing Is Safe (Lyric Video)'. August 14, 2019. Archived from the original on August 14, 2019. Retrieved August 14, 2019 – via YouTube.

^'CLIPPING – La Mala Ordina'. September 12, 2019. Archived from the original on September 13, 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2019 – via YouTube.

^'Archived copy'. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved November 9, 2020.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

^'Daveed Diggs & Clipping Made A Cute Hanukkah Song For Disney'. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2020.

^Cook, Wil (February 6, 2013). 'Clipping – 'guns.up' (Track of the Day)'. The 405. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2014.

^Weingarten, Christopher. '10 New Artists You Need to Know: March 2014'. Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 23, 2014. Retrieved May 2, 2014.

^hrishikesh (February 18, 2016). 'Episode 65: Clipping'. Song Exploder. Retrieved April 19, 2021.

^Ruiz, Matthew Ismael (August 14, 2019). 'Clipping Announce New Album, Share New Song 'Nothing Is Safe': Listen'. Pitchfork. Archived from the original on August 17, 2019. Retrieved August 17, 2019.

^'clipping. - 30 Days, 30 Songs'. 30 Days 30 Songs. Archived from the original on February 18, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2020.

^Breihan, Tom (August 26, 2020). 'Clipping Announce New Album 'Visions Of Bodies Being Burned', Share Single 'Say The Name': Listen'. Stereogum. Archived from the original on August 27, 2020. Retrieved August 26, 2020.

External links(edit)

Official website

clipping. discography at Discogs

Clippingsio

Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Clipping_(band)&oldid=1018695164'

[bountyofbeads]

Anguish and Anger From the Navy SEALS Who Turned In Edward Gallagher https://nyti.ms/2EU91FB

The men of Alpha Platoon, SEAL Team 7, described Chief Gallagher as “freaking evil” and “toxic” in videos not shown publicly before. The remarks are blistering testimony about their platoon chief, who was protected by President Trump from punishment.

Anguish and Anger From the Navy SEALS Who Turned In Edward Gallagher

Video interviews and group texts obtained by The Times show men describing their platoon leader in grim terms.

By Dave Philips | Published Dec. 27, 2019 Updated 5:24 AM ET | New York Times | Posted December 28, 2019 |

The Navy SEALs showed up one by one, wearing hoodies and T-shirts instead of uniforms, to tell investigators what they had seen. Visibly nervous, they shifted in their chairs, rubbed their palms and pressed their fists against their foreheads. At times they stopped in midsentence and broke into tears.

“Sorry about this,” Special Operator First Class Craig Miller, one of the most experienced SEALs in the group, said as he looked sideways toward a blank wall, trying to hide that he was weeping. “It’s the first time — I’m really broken up about this.”

Video recordings of the interviews obtained by The New York Times, which have not been shown publicly before, were part of a trove of Navy investigative materials about the prosecution of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher on war crimes charges including murder.

They offer the first opportunity outside the courtroom to hear directly from the men of Alpha platoon, SEAL Team 7, whose blistering testimony about their platoon chief was dismissed by President Trump when he upended the military code of justice to protect Chief Gallagher from the punishment.

“The guy is freaking evil,” Special Operator Miller told investigators. “The guy was toxic,” Special Operator First Class Joshua Vriens, a sniper, said in a separate interview. “You could tell he was perfectly O.K. with killing anybody that was moving,” Special Operator First Class Corey Scott, a medic in the platoon, told the investigators.

Such dire descriptions of Chief Gallagher, who had eight combat deployments and sometimes went by the nickname Blade, are in marked contrast to Mr. Trump’s portrayal of him at a recent political rally in Florida as one of “our great fighters.”

Though combat in Iraq barely fazed the SEALs, sitting down to tell Naval Criminal Investigative Service agents about what they had seen their platoon chief do during a 2017 deployment in Iraq was excruciating for them.

Not only did they have to relive wrenching events and describe grisly scenes, they had to break a powerful unwritten code of silence in the SEALs, one of the nation’s most elite commando forces.

The trove of materials also includes thousands of text messages the SEALs sent one another about the events and the prosecution of Chief Gallagher. Together with the dozens of hours of recorded interviews, they provide revealing insights into the men of the platoon, who have never spoken publicly about the case, and the leader they turned in.

Platoon members said they saw Chief Gallagher shoot civilians and fatally stab a wounded captive with a hunting knife. Chief Gallagher was acquitted by a military jury in July of all but a single relatively minor charge, and was cleared of all punishment in November by Mr. Trump.

Video from a SEAL’s helmet camera, included in the trove of materials, shows the barely conscious captive — a teenage Islamic State fighter so thin that his watch slid easily up and down his arm — being brought in to the platoon one day in May 2017. Then the helmet camera is shut off.

In the video interviews with investigators, three SEALs said they saw Chief Gallagher go on to stab the sedated captive for no reason, and then hold an impromptu re-enlistment ceremony over the body, as if it were a trophy.

“I was listening to it, and I was just thinking, like, this is the most disgraceful thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” Special Operator Miller, who has since been promoted to chief, told investigators.

Special Operator Miller said that when the platoon commander, Lt. Jacob Portier, told the SEALs to gather over the corpse for photos, he did not feel he could refuse. The photos, included in the evidence obtained by The Times, show Chief Gallagher, surrounded by other SEALs, clutching the dead captive’s hair; in one photo, he holds a custom-made hunting knife.

“I think Eddie was proud of it, and that was, like, part of it for him,” Special Operator Miller told investigators.

Chief Gallagher’s lawyer, Timothy Parlatore, said the video interviews were rife with inconsistencies and falsehoods that created “a clear road map to the acquittal.”

Since his arrest nearly a year ago, Chief Gallagher has insisted that the charges against him were concocted by six disgruntled SEALs in his platoon who could not meet his high standards and wanted to force him out.

“My first reaction to seeing the videos was surprise and disgust that they would make up blatant lies about me, but I quickly realized that they were scared that the truth would come out of how cowardly they acted on deployment,” Chief Gallagher said in a statement issued through his lawyer.

“I felt sorry for them that they thought it necessary to smear my name, but they never realized what the consequences of their lies would be. As upset as I was, the videos also gave me confidence because I knew that their lies would never hold up under real questioning and the jury would see through it. Their lies and N.C.I.S.’s refusal to ask hard questions or corroborate their stories strengthened my resolve to go to trial and clear my name.”

The video interviews and private group text conversations obtained by The Times do not reveal any coordinated deception among the SEALs in the chief’s platoon. Instead, they show men who were hesitant to come forward, but who urged one another to resist outside pressure and threats of violence, and to be honest.

“Tell the truth, don’t lie or embellish,” one sniper who is now in SEAL Team 6 told the others in a group text in 2017, when they first tried to report the chief. “That way, he can’t say that we slandered him in any way.”

When several SEALs in the group questioned what would come of reporting the chief to their commanders, another wrote: “That’s their decision. We just need to give them the truth.”

It is an unspoken rule among their teams that SEALs should not report other SEALs for misconduct. An internal investigation could close off choice assignments or end careers for the accusers as well as the accused. And anyone who reported concerns outside the tight-knit SEAL community risked being branded a traitor.

“In a perfect world, there would be no risk, but that is not where we are,” Rick Haas, a retired command master chief who served in the SEALs for 30 years, said in an interview with The Times. “The teams are now divided over this, like I’ve never seen happen before.”

In cramped interview rooms in San Diego, SEALs who spoke to Navy investigators painted a picture of a platoon driven to despair by a chief who seemed to care primarily about racking up kills. They described how their chief targeted women and children and boasted that “burqas were flying.”

Asked whether the chief had a bias against Middle Eastern people, Special Operator Scott replied, “I think he just wants to kill anybody he can.”

Some of the SEALs said they came to believe that the chief was purposefully exposing them to enemy fire to bait ISIS fighters into revealing their positions. They said the chief thought that casualties in the platoon would increase his chances for a Silver Star.

Special Operator Vriens told investigators he had wanted to confront the chief in Iraq but had worried that if he did, he would be cut from missions and no longer be present to protect other SEALs from the chief. As he spoke, he struggled to keep his composure.

“I can speak up, stand my ground,” he said in the interview. “He’s just going to do this to a new guy who he can manipulate. So I was like, I’m going to be his right-hand man, so — so no one else got hurt.”

He pressed his forehead into his fists and started to cry. Then he took several deep breaths, rubbed his hands together and tried to continue.

“So I worked for him and I kept my mouth shut,” he said.

The platoon members told investigators that they tried repeatedly to report what they saw, but that the chain of command above them was friendly toward Chief Gallagher and took no action. Finally, in April 2018, they went outside the SEALs to the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Chief Gallagher was arrested a few months later.

The SEALs in the platoon were scattered to new assignments. They tried to keep tabs on the case, texting one another and commiserating over a series of setbacks, including accusations of prosecutorial misconduct, the removal of the lead prosecutor and reports that the judge overseeing the case was being investigated on suspicion of lying under oath.

“This stuff is frustrating to read and makes it seem like Eddie will possibly get away with murder (literally),” Special Operator First Class Dylan Dille texted the group. “Let’s not forget there are 7-12 of us in here who had the balls to tell the truth about what Eddie has done.”

He said he thought the case against Chief Gallagher was strong despite the procedural setbacks. “I am also convinced that we are gonna answer to a higher power someday, and everything happens for a reason,” wrote Special Operator Dille, who has since left the Navy. “Not compromising our integrity and keeping right on our side is all we can do.”

Seven members of the 22-person platoon testified at the trial that they saw the chief commit war crimes. Two men from the platoon testified that they did not see any evidence of crimes. Others refused to cooperate with prosecutors. Crucially, one SEAL who had accused the chief during the investigation — Special Operator Scott — changed his story on the witness stand, testifying that he and not Chief Gallagher had caused the captive’s death.

Three of the men who testified at the trial left the Navy afterward, and have been trying to keep a low profile while they build civilian lives. Others are still in the SEAL teams, in some cases working on classified assignments. Some fear that coming forward has hurt their chances at success in the SEALs, but none have reported any retaliation. All of them declined to comment for this article.

Since the trial, Chief Gallagher has repeatedly insulted them on social media and on Fox News, especially Craig Miller, whom the chief singled out for weeping while talking to investigators.

Chief Gallagher retired from the Navy with full honors at the end of November, and has announced that he was starting a SEAL-themed clothing line.

A few days after he retired, an Instagram account belonging to him and his wife posted a photo of a custom-made hatchet, forged by the same SEAL veteran who made the hunting knife he was accused of using to kill the captive. Before the deployment, Chief Gallagher had told the knife maker he hoped to “dig that knife or hatchet on someone’s skull!”

“Eddie finally got his stuff back from NCIS,” the post said, listing the hatchet among a “few of our favorite things now returned.”

Another item returned to him was a black-and-white Islamic State flag. On Saturday, Chief Gallagher presented Mr. Trump with a folded black-and-white cloth that other SEALs from the platoon said appeared to be the flag.

A post on the chief’s Instagram account said, “Finally got to thank the President and his amazing wife by giving them a little gift from Eddie’s deployment to Mosul.”

🎄⛄🎄⛄🎄⛄🎄⛄🎄

Confidential Videos Show Why Navy SEALs Reported Edward Gallagher Episode 23: ‘The Gallagher Effect’

You can watch the full documentary  now on Hulu and Sunday on FX at 10 p.m. ET.

Producers Jessica Dimmock and Zackary Canepari | Published December 27, 2019 | New York Times |

Combat video, text messages and confidential interviews with members of the Navy SEALs obtained by The New York Times reveal chilling details about the conduct of Special Operations Chief Edward Gallagher, a bona fide badass with a chest full of medals.

Trained as a medic, sniper and explosives expert, Gallagher was the consummate leader of Alpha Platoon, SEAL Team 7, part of the Navy’s elite commando force. But when his own men said he committed war crimes, it sent shock waves up the chain of command — reaching all the way to the commander in chief.

Gallagher’s case continues to roil the Navy even after his acquittal on the most severe charges, and the public debate on Fox News and Twitter has widened the rift between President Trump and some top military leaders.

What exactly happened in Iraq in 2017 that so alarmed Gallagher’s brothers in arms? And why has the case resonated with Trump and his political base?

On this episode of “The Weekly,” members of SEAL Team 7 tell Navy investigators that Gallagher was a reckless leader with a disturbing hunger for violence. They say they spent much of their time protecting Iraqi civilians from their battle-crazed chief instead of going after ISIS. And never-before-released video from the SEALs’ deployment shows Gallagher kneeling beside a defenseless ISIS captive moments before Gallagher plunged his knife into the prisoner’s neck.

🎄⛄🎄⛄🎄⛄🎄⛄🎄

[torturedwarrior]

The Zodiac Killer:

Who is the Zodiac Killer? How many People did he kill? Was he caught? The self-proclaimed Zodiac Killer was linked directly to at least five murders in 1968 and 1969 in Northern California and may have been responsible for more. He taunted the police and made threats by letters sent from 1969 to 1974 to local newspapers, before abruptly ceasing communication. No one was ever arrested for the crimes, despite intensive investigations, and the case remains open. Many books and films have been the subject of the mystery surrounding the murders, including the acclaimed 2007 feature Zodiac by director David Fincher. The Zodiac Killer is the alias of an unknown serial killer living in Northern California from the late 1960s to the early 1970s at least. Between December 1968 and October 1969, the Zodiac murdered victims in Benicia, Vallejo, Napa County, and San Francisco. The killer killed four men and three women aged 16 to 29, with two of the men surviving attempted assassination. The Zodiac itself claimed up to 37 victims were killed. In a series of taunting letters and cards sent to the local Bay Area media, the murderer coined the name "Zodiac." Four cryptograms (or ciphers) were included in the documents. Only one of the four cryptograms sent was eventually resolved.

Zodiac Killer Letters, Symbol & Cipher: on August 1, 1969, each of  three editors received an identical handwritten letter in an envelope without a return address from the San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco Chronicle and Vallejo Times-Herald. Beginning with "Dear Editor: I'm the murderer of the two teenagers at Lake Herman last Christmas," the letters included specifics of the killings of the Zodiac Killer that only the killer could have learned. If the letters were not printed on the papers ' front page, the killer continued to threaten further attacks. Every letter ended with a symbol consisting of a circle with a cross through it, in what would become known as the symbol of the Zodiac Killer

Here are some of The Zodiac Killers victims that had been confirmed and that they police suspected he murdered.

Confirmed Victims:

Although the Zodiac claimed to have committed 37 murders in letters to the newspapers, investigators agree on only seven confirmed victims, two of whom survived. They are:

 ·        David Arthur Faraday, 17, and Betty Lou Jensen, 16: shot and killed on December 20, 1968, on Lake Herman Road, within the city limits of Benicia. Coordinates: 38°5′41.61″N 122°8′38.24″W

·        Michael Renault Mageau, 19, and Darlene Elizabeth Ferrin, 22: shot on July 4, 1969, in the parking lot of Blue Rock Springs Park in Vallejo. While Mageau survived the attack, Ferrin was pronounced dead on arrival at Kaiser Foundation Hospital. Coordinates: 38°7′33.56″N 122°11′27.94″W

·        Bryan Calvin Hartnell, 20, and Cecelia Ann Shepard, 22: stabbed on September 27, 1969, at Lake Berryessa in Napa County. Hartnell survived eight stab wounds to the back, but Shepard died as a result of her injuries on September 29, 1969. Coordinates: 38°33′48.29″N 122°13′54.43″W

·        Paul Lee Stine, 29: shot and killed on October 11, 1969, in the Presidio Heights neighborhood in San Francisco. Coordinates: 37°47′19.47″N 122°27′25.54″W

Suspected Victims:

The following murder victims are suspected to be victims of Zodiac, though none have been confirmed:

 ·        Robert Domingos, 18, and Linda Edwards, 17: shot and killed on June 4, 1963, on a beach near Gaviota. Edwards and Domingos were identified as possible Zodiac victims because of specific similarities between their attack and the Zodiac's attack at Lake Berryessa six years later. Coordinates: 34°28′11.20″N 120°10′7.14″W

·        Cheri Jo Bates, 18: stabbed to death and nearly decapitated on October 30, 1966, at Riverside City College in Riverside. Bates's possible connection to the Zodiac only appeared four years after her murder when San Francisco Chronicle reporter Paul Avery received a tip regarding similarities between the Zodiac killings and the circumstances surrounding Bates's death.[6] College coordinates: 33°58′19″N 117°22′52″W

·        Donna Lass, 25: last seen September 6, 1970, in Stateline, Nevada. A postcard with an advertisement from Forest Pines condominiums (near Incline Village at Lake Tahoe) pasted on the back was received at the Chronicle on March 22, 1971 and has been interpreted as the Zodiac claiming Lass's disappearance as a victim. No evidence has been uncovered to connect Lass's disappearance with the Zodiac Killer definitively.[7]

The Zodiac is also a suspect in the unsolved Santa Rosa hitchhiker murders.[8][9][10]

There is also a suspected third escapee from the Zodiac Killer:

 ·        Kathleen Johns, 22: allegedly abducted on March 22, 1970, on Highway 132 near I-580, in an area west of Modesto. Johns escaped from the car of a man who drove her and her infant daughter around the area between Stockton and Patterson for approximately 1½ hours.[11] Junction 132/I-580 coordinates: 37°38′16.14″N 121°23′55.22″W

The polices nightmare: Lake Herman Road attack: The first assassinations widely attributed to the Zodiac Killer were the killing of high school students Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday on December 20, 1968, on Lake Herman Boulevard, just within the city limits of Benicia. The pair were about three blocks from Jensen's home on their first date and planned to attend a Christmas concert at Hogan High School. Instead, the couple visited a friend before parking at a local restaurant and driving on Lake Herman Avenue. Faraday parked the Rambler of his mother at about 10:15 p.m. in a gravel turnout, which was a well-known lane of lovers. Shortly after 11:00 p.m., Stella Borges, who lived nearby, found their bodies. The Department of the Solano County Sheriff investigated the crime, but there were no leads. More details include, Robert Graysmith, using available forensic data, postulated that another car would pull into the turnout just before 11:00 pm and park next to the couple. Apparently, the killer left the second car and walked towards the Rambler, possibly ordering the pair out of the Rambler. Jensen appears to have left the car first, but the murderer apparently shot him in the head when Faraday was halfway out. The attacker then shot Jensen in the back five times as she fled; 28 meters from the car found her body. Then the killer drove away.

Lake Berryessa attack: On September 27, 1969, on a small island connected by a sand spit to Twin Oak Ridge, Pacific Union College students Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard were picnicking at Lake Berryessa. A white man weighing more than 170 pounds (77 kg) with combed greasy brown hair, about 5 feet 11 inches (1.80 m), approached them wearing a black executioner-type hood with clip-on sunglasses over the eyeholes and a bib-like device on his chest that had a white three-by-three-inch (7.6 cm) cross-circle logo on it. With a gun, which Hartnell believed to be a.45, he approached them. The man with the cap claimed to be an escape convict from a two-word prison in either Colorado or Montana, where he killed the guard and then stolen a car, explaining that he now needed their car and money to get to Mexico, as the vehicle he was driving was "too hot"

At 7:40, the killer rang out of a payphone to announce the new crime to the office of the Napa County Sheriff. He first told the operator he wanted to "trace an assassination-not a double assassination," before revealing that he was the perpetrator.  Only a few blocks from the Sheriff's office but still 43 miles (27 miles) from the crime scene, the phone was found, still off the hook, by KVON radio reporter, Pat Stanley, minutes later on at Napa Car Wash on Main Street. Detectives could take a still wet palm print from their mobile but could never fit it. When a man and his son heard their cry for help in a nearby cove, they located the victims and sought help in contact with park rangers. They were fishing. The first law enforcement officers to come to the crime scene were Dave Collins and Ray Land detectives of Napa County Sheriff. Cecelia Shepard was aware of the detailed description of the attacker when Collins arrived. The Queen of the Valley Hospital in Napa was brought by the ambulance, Hartnell and Shepard. In transportation to the hospital, Shepard lapsed into a coma and never recovered consciousness. Two days later she died, but Hartnell lived to tell his story to the press. Sheriff Inspector of Napa County

The Final Letter that the San Francisco Police gotten from The Zodiac Killer: The Zodiac remained quiet for almost three years following the card "Pines." A letter, published on 29 January 1974 by Zodiac, hailed The Exorcist as "the best satirical comedy I've ever seen" The letter contained a snippet from the Mikado and an unusual lower symbol, which the researchers did not explain. The letter "Me= 37, SF PD= 0" came to an end by Zodiac. So, if The Zodiac Killer was never caught what is the status of the case? The SFPD labeled the case "inactive" in April 2004, citing pressure on caseloads and demands for resources that effectively shut down the case. Sometime before March 2007, however, they reopened their case. In the county of Napa and Riverside the case was then opened. Did the police have any suspects?

In May 2018, the police department of Vallejo announced that it wished to try to collect the DNA from the back of his correspondence. The analysis will take the advanced new method of separating DNA from the adhesive on the back of the stamps, used by a private laboratory. There were five suspected to be The Zodiac Killer which are named: Arthur Leigh Allen, Jack Tarrance, George Russell Tucker, Louis Joseph Myers, and lastly Earl Van Best Jr. The Zodiac killer is supposed to be captured in the same way as the Golden State Killer. A policeman from Vallejo said results were expected in several weeks in May 2018. Nonetheless, no findings were announced by December 2019.  Two famous quotes from The Zodiac Killer: “The police shall never catch me, because I have been too clever for them.”– Zodiac Killer, and “I want to report a murder... no, a double murder. They are two miles north of Park Headquarters. They were in a white Volkswagen Kharmann Ghia. I'm the one that did it.”– Zodiac Killer.

Work Cited:

 "Zodiac Killer - Letters, Cipher & Suspects - Biography." Famous Biographies & TV Shows. 14 Oct 2017. Web. 13 Dec 2019. <http://www.biography.com/crime-figure/zodiac-killer>.

"Zodiac Killer Quotes." Quotes.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2019. Web. 13 Dec. 2019. <https://www.quotes.net/authors/Zodiac+Killer+Quotes>.

"Zodiac Killer - Wikipedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. 12 Dec 2019. Web. 13 Dec 2019. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zodiac_Killer>.

[the-little-crime-writer]

Atlanta “Child Murders”

The curious and controversial string of deaths that sparked a two-year reign of terror in Atlanta, Georgia, has been labeled “child murders,” even though a suspect ultimately blamed for 23 of 30 “official” homicides was finally convicted only in deaths of two adult ex-convicts. Today, nearly two decades after that suspect’s arrest, the case remains, in many minds, an unsolved mystery.

Investigation of the case began, officially, on July 28, 1979. That afternoon, a woman hunting empty cans and bottles in Atlanta stumbled on a pair of corpses, carelessly concealed in roadside undergrowth. One victim, shot with a .22 caliber weapon, was identified as 14-year-old Edward Smith, reported missing on July 21. The other was 13-year-old Alfred Evans, last seen alive on July 25; the coroner ascribed his death to “probably” asphyxiation. Both dead boys, like all of those to come, were African-American.

On September 4, Milton Harvey, age 14, vanished during a neighborhood bike ride. His body was recovered three weeks later, but the cause of his death remains officially “unknown.” Yusef Bell, a 9 year old, was last seen alive when his mother sent him to the store on October 21. Found dead in an abandoned school November 8, he had been manually strangled by a powerful assailant.

Angel Lenair, age 12, was the first recognized victim of 1980. Reported missing on March 4, she was found six days later, tied to a tree with her hands bound behind her. The first female victim, she had been sexually abused and strangled; someone else’s panties were extracted from her throat.

On March 11, Jeffrey Mathis vanished on an errand to the store. Eleven months would pass before recovery of his skeletal remains, advanced decomposition ruling out a declaration on the cause of death. On May 18, 14-year-old Eric Middlebrooks left home after receiving a telephone call from persons unknown. Found the next day, his death was blamed on head injuries, inflicted with a blunt instrument.

The terror escalated that summer. On June 9, Christopher Richardson, 12, vanished en route to a neighborhood swimming pool. Latonya Wilson was abducted from her home on June 22, the night before her seventh birthday, bringing federal agents into the case. The following day, 10-year-old Aaron Wyche was reported missing by his family. Searchers found his body on June 24, lying beneath a railroad trestle, his neck broken. Originally dubbed an accident, Aaron’s death was subsequently added to the growing list of dead and missing blacks.

Anthony Carter, age 9, disappeared while playing near his home on June 6, 1980; recovered the following day, he was dead from multiple stab wounds. Earl Terrell joined the list on July 30, when he vanished from a public swimming pool. Skeletal remains discovered on January 9th, 1981, would yield no clues about the cause of death.

Next up on the list was 12-year-old Clifford Jones, snatched off the street and strangled on August 20. With the recovery of his body in October, homicide detectives interviewed five witnesses who named his killer as a white man, later jailed in 1981 on charges of rape and sodomy. Those witnesses provide details of the crime consistent with the placement and condition of the victim’s body, but detectives chose to ignore their sworn statements, listing Jones with victims of the “unknown” murderer. 

Darren Glass, an 11-year-old, vanished near his home on September 14, 1980. Never found, he joins the list primarily because authorities don’t know what else to do with his case. October’s victim was Charles Stephens, reported missing on the ninth and recovered the next day, his life extinguished by asphyxiation. Capping off the month, authorities discovered skeletal remains of Latonya Wilson on October 28, but they could not determine how she died.

On November 1, nine-year-old Aaron Jackson’s disappearance was reported to police by frantic parents. The boy was found on November 2, another victim of asphyxiation. Patrick Rogers, 15, followed on November 10. His pitiful remains, skull crushed by heavy blows, were not unearthed until February 1981.

Two days later after New Year’s, the elusive slayer picked off Lubie Geter, strangling the 14-year-old and dumping his body where it would not be found until February 5. Terry Pue, 15, went missing on January 22 and was found the next day, strangled with a cord or piece of rope. This time, detectives said that special chemicals enabled them to lift the suspect’s fingerprints from Terry’s corpse. Unfortunately, they were not on file with any law enforcement agency in the United States.

Patrick Baltazar, age 12, disappeared on February 6. His body was found a week later, marked by ligature strangulation, and the skeletal remains of Jeffrey Mathis were discovered nearby. a 13-year-old, Curtis Walker, was strangled on February 19 and found the same day. Joseph Bell, 16, was asphyxiated on March 2. Timothy Hill, On March 11, was recorded as a drowning victim.

On March 30, Atlanta police added their first adult victim on the list of murdered children. He was Larry Rogers, 20, linked with younger victims by the fact he had been asphyxiated. No cause of death was determined for a second adult victim, 21-year-old Eddie Duncan, but he made it on the list anyway, when his body was found on March 31. On April 1, ex-convict Michael Mcintosh, age 24, was added to the roster on grounds that he, too, had been asphyxiated. 

By April 1981, it seemed apparent that the “child murders” case was getting out of hand. Community critics denounced the official victims list as incomplete and arbitrary, citing cases like January 1891 murder of Faye Yearby to prove their point. Like “official” victim Angel Lenair, Yearby was bound to a tree by her killer, hands behind her back; she had been stabbed to death, like four acknowledged victims on the list. Despite those similarities, police rejected  Yearby’s case on the grounds that (a) she was a female-as were Wilson and Lenair-and (b) that she was “too old” at age 22, although the last acknowledged victim had been 23. Author Dave Dettlinger, examining police malfeasance in the case, suggests that 63 potential “pattern” victims were capriciously omitted from the “official” roster, 25 of them after a suspect’s arrest supposedly ended the killing.

In April 1981, FBI spokesman declared that several of the crimes were “substantially solved,” outraging blacks with suggestions that some of the dead had been slain by their own parents. While that storm was raging, Roy Innis, leader of the Congress of Racial Equality, went public with the story of a female witness who described the murders as the actions of a cult involved with drugs, pornograpthy, and Satanism. Innis led searchers to an apparent ritual site, complete with large inverted crosses, his witness passed two polygraph examinations, but by that time police had focused their attention on another suspect, narrowing their scrutiny to the exclusion of all other possibilities. 

On April 21, Jimmy Payne, a 21-year-old ex-convict, was reported missing in Atlanta. Six days later, when his body was discovered, death was publicly attributed to suffocation, and his name was added to the list of murdered “children.” William Barrett, 17, went missing May 11; he was found the next day, another victim of asphyxiation. 

Several bodies had, by now been pulled from local rivers, and police were staking out the waterways by night. In the predawn hours of May 22, a rookie officer stationed under a bridge on the Chattahoochee River reported hearing “a splash” in the water nearby. Above him, a car rumbled past, and officers manning the bridge were alerted. Police and FBI agents halted a vehicle driven by Wayne Bertram Williams, a black man, and spent two hours grilling him and searching his car, before they let him go. On May 24, the corpse of Nathaniel Cater, a 27-year-old convicted felon, was fished out of the river downstream. Authorities put two and two together and focused their probe on Wayne Williams.  

From the start, he made a most unlikely suspect. The only child of two Atlanta schoolteachers, Williams still lived with his parents at age 23. A college dropout, he cherished ambitions of earning fame and fortune as a music promoter. In younger days, he had constructed a working radio station in the basement of the family home.

On June 21, Williams was arrested and charged with the murder of Nathaniel Cater, despite testimony from four witnesses who reported seeing Carter alive on May 22 and 23, after the infamous “splash.” On July 17, Williams was indicted for killing two adults-Cater and Payne-while newspapers trumpeted the capture of Atlanta’s “child killer.”

At his trail, beginning in December 1981, the prosecution painted Williams as a violent homosexual and bigot, so disgusted with his own race that he hoped to wipe out future generations by killing black children before they could breed. One witness testified that he saw Williams holding hands with Nathaniel Cater on May 21, a few hours before the “splash”. Another, 15 years old, told the court that Williams had paid him two dollars for the privilege of fondling his genitals. Along the way, authorities announced the addition of a final victim, 28-year-old John Porter, to the list of victims.

Defense attorneys tried to balance the scales with testimony from a woman who admitted to having “normal sex” with Williams, but the prosecution won a crucial point when the presiding judge admitted testimony on 10 other deaths from the “child murders” list, designed to prove a pattern in the slayings. One of those admitted was the case of Terry Pue, but neither ide had anything to say about the fingerprints allegedly recovered from his corpse in January 1981.

The most impressive evidence of guilt was offered by a team of scientific experts, dealing with assorted hairs and fibers found on certain victims. testimony indicated that some fibers from a brand of carpet found inside the Williams home (and many other homes, as well) had been identified on several bodies. Further, victims Middlebrooks, Wyche, Cater, Terrell, Jones and Stephens all supposedly bore fibers from the trunk liner of a 1979 Ford automobile owned by the Williams family. The clothes of victim Stephans also allegedly yielded fibers from a second car-a 1970 Chevrolet-owned by Wayne’s parents. Curiously, jurors were not informed of multiple eyewitness testimony naming a different suspect in the Jones case, nor were they advised of a critical gap in the prosecution’s fiber evidence.

 Specifically, Wayne Williams had no access to the vehicles in question at the times when three of the six “fiber” victims were killed. Wayne’s father took the Ford in for repairs at 9:00 A.M on July 30, 1980, nearly five hours before Earl Terrell vanished that afternoon. Terrell was long dead before Williams got the car back on August 7, and it was returned to the shop the next morning (August 8), still refusing to start. A new estimate on repair costs were so expensive that Wayne’s father refused to pay, and the family never again had access to the car. Meanwhile, Clifford Jones was kidnapped on August 20 and Charles Stephens on October 9, 1980. The defendant’s family did not purchase the 1970 Chevrolet in question until October 21, 12 days after Stephen’s death.

On February 27, 1982, Wayne Williams was convicted on two counts of murder and sentenced to a double term of life imprisonment, Two days later, the Atlanta “child murders” task force officially disbanded, announcing that 23 of 30 “List” cases were considered solved with his conviction, even though no charges had been filed. The other seven cases, still open, reverted to the normal homicide detail and remain unsolved to this day.

In November 1985, a new team of lawyers uncovered once-classified documents from an investigation of the Ku Klux Klan, conducted during 1980 and ‘81 by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. A spy inside the Klan told BGI agents that Klansmen were “killing the children” in Atlanta, hoping to provoke a race war. One Klansman in particular, Charles Sanders, allegedly boasted of murdering “List” victim Lubie Geter, following a personal altercation. Geter reportedly struck Sander’s car with a go-cart, prompting Klansman to tell his friend, “I’m gonna kill him. I’m gonna choke the black bastard to death.” (Geter was, in fact, strangled, some three months after the incident.) In early 1981, the same informant told GBI agents that “after twenty black-child killings, they, the Klan, were going to start killing black women.” Perhaps coincidentally, police records note the unsolved murders of numerous black women in Atlanta in 1998-82, with most of the victims strangled. On July 10, 1998, Butts County Superior Court Judge Hal Craig rejected the latest appeal for a new trial in William’s case, based on suppression of critical evidence 15 years earlier. Judge Craig denied yet another new-trial motion on June 15, 2000.

[zodiacdemystified]

Part 1: The Murders

Although the Zodiac claimed to have committed 37 murders in letters to Bay Area newspapers, investigators agree on only seven confirmed victims, two of whom survived. I’m going to first break down the seven confirmed victims and what happened to each so that we have a basic understanding of what the police and new papers were investigating.

Lake Herman Road Murders

Where: Lake Herman Road within the city limits of Benicia, California

When: December 20, 1968

Victims: Betty Lou Jensen (killed) and David Faraday (survived); high school students

Details: The couple were on their first date and planned to attend a Christmas concert at Hogan High School, about three blocks from Jensen's home. The couple instead visited a friend before eating at a local restaurant and then drove out on Lake Herman Road. At about 10:15 p.m., Faraday parked his mother's Rambler in a gravel turnout, which was a well-known lovers' lane. However, this area is remote and could have only been known as a lover’s spot by someone who was familiar with the area of Benicia.

It is postulated that another car pulled into the turnout, just prior to 11:00 pm and parked to the right the couple. The killer apparently exited the second car and walked toward the Rambler, possibly ordering the couple out of the Rambler (it is suspected that a warning shot was fired into the right rear window of the vehicle). Jensen appeared to have exited the car first, yet when Faraday was halfway out, the killer apparently shot him in the head. The killer then shot Jensen five times in the back as she fled; her body was found 28 feet from the car. Shortly after 11:00 p.m., their bodies were found by Stella Borges, who lived nearby.

Zodiac Confirmation: On August 1, 1969, about a month after the Zodiac’s next attack, three letters prepared by the killer were received at the Vallejo Times Herald, the San Francisco Chronicle, and The San Francisco Examiner. The nearly identical letters took credit for the shootings at Lake Herman Road and Blue Rock Springs. We’ll dive into the details of the letters later on, but the author of these letters was believed to be the murderer and attempted murderer of Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday (respectively) because the letters contained information about the murders that only the murderer could have known.

Betty Lou Jensen and David Faraday:

Crime Scene Photo:

Crime Scene Diagram:

Blue Rock Springs Murder

Where: Blue Rock Springs Park in Vallejo, California

When: Just before midnight on July 4, 1969

Victims: Michael Renault Mageau, 19 (survived), and Darlene Elizabeth Ferrin, 22 (killed)

Details: Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau drove into the Blue Rock Springs Park in Vallejo, four miles (6.4 km) from the Lake Herman Road murder site, and parked. While the couple sat in Ferrin's car, a second car drove into the lot and parked alongside them but almost immediately drove away. Returning about 10 minutes later, this second car parked behind them. The driver of the second car then exited the vehicle, approaching the passenger side door of Ferrin's car, carrying a flashlight and a 9 mm Luger. The killer directed the flashlight into Mageau's and Ferrin's eyes before shooting at them, firing five times. Both victims were hit, and several bullets had passed through Mageau and into Ferrin. The killer walked away from the car but upon hearing Mageau's moaning, returned and shot each victim twice more before driving off.

Zodiac: On July 5, 1969, at 12:40 a.m., a man phoned the Vallejo Police Department to report and claim responsibility for the attack. The caller also took credit for the murders of Jensen and Faraday six and a half months earlier. Police traced the call to a phone booth at a gas station at Springs Road and Tuolumne, located about three-tenths of a mile (500 m) from Ferrin's home and only a few blocks from the Vallejo Police Department. Ferrin was pronounced dead at the hospital. Mageau survived the attack despite being shot in the face, neck and chest.

As stated, on August 1, 1969, three letters prepared by the killer were received at the Vallejo Times Herald, the San Francisco Chronicle, and The San Francisco Examiner. Each letter also included one-third of a cryptogram (a type of puzzle that consists of a short piece of encrypted text) which the killer claimed contained his identity. The killer demanded they be printed on each paper's front page or he would "cruse around all weekend killing lone people in the night then move on to kill again, until I end up with a dozen people over the weekend."

The Chronicle published its third of the cryptogram on page four of the next day's edition. An article printed alongside the code quoted Vallejo Police Chief Jack E. Stiltz as saying "We're not satisfied that the letter was written by the murderer" and requested the writer send a second letter with more facts to prove his identity. The threatened murders did not happen, and all three parts were eventually published.

On August 7, 1969, another letter was received at The San Francisco Examiner with the salutation "Dear Editor This is the Zodiac speaking." This was the first time the killer had used this name for identification. The letter was a response to Chief Stiltz's request for more details that would prove he had killed Faraday, Jensen and Ferrin. In it, the Zodiac included details about the murders which had not yet been released to the public, as well as a message to the police that when they cracked his code "they will have me."

Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau:

Crime Scene Diagram:

Lake Berryessa Murder

Bryan Calvin Hartnell, 20, and Cecelia Ann Shepard, 22: stabbed on September 27, 1969, at Lake Berryessa in Napa County. Hartnell survived eight stab wounds to the back, but Shepard died as a result of her injuries on September 29, 1969.

Where: Lake Berryessa in Napa County, California

When: September 27, 1969 (a little over a month after the last Zodiac letter)

Victims: Bryan Calvin Hartnell (survived), 20, and Cecelia Ann Shepard (killed), 22; college students

Details: Two Pacific Union College students Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard were picnicking at Lake Berryessa on a small island connected by a sand spit to Twin Oak Ridge. A man in a black hood approached them with a gun, which Hartnell believed to be a .45. The hooded man claimed to be an escaped convict from a jail where he had killed a guard and subsequently stolen a car, explaining that he now needed their car and money to go to Mexico, as the vehicle he had been driving was "too hot". The man had brought precut lengths of plastic clothesline and told Shepard to tie up Hartnell. The killer checked the ties, and tightened Hartnell's bonds after discovering Shepard had bound Hartnell's hands loosely. Hartnell initially believed this event to be a bizarre robbery, but the man drew a knife and stabbed them both repeatedly, Hartnell suffering six and Shepard ten wounds in the process. The killer then hiked 500 yards back up to Knoxville Road, drew the cross-circle symbol on Hartnell's car door with a black felt-tip pen. After hearing their screams for help, a man and his son who were fishing in a nearby cove discovered the victims and summoned help by contacting park rangers. 

Napa County Sheriff's deputies Dave Collins and Ray Land were the first law enforcement officers to arrive at the crime scene. Cecelia Shepard was conscious when Collins arrived, providing him with a detailed description of the attacker. Hartnell and Shepard were taken to Queen of the Valley Hospital in Napa by ambulance. Shepard lapsed into a coma during transport to the hospital and never regained consciousness. She died two days later, but Hartnell survived to recount his tale to the press.

Zodiac: At 7:40 p.m., the killer called the Napa County Sheriff's office from a pay telephone to report this latest crime. The caller first stated to the operator that he wished to "report a murder - no, a double murder," before stating that he had been the perpetrator of the crime. The phone was found, still off the hook, minutes later at the Napa Car Wash on Main Street in Napa by KVON radio reporter Pat Stanley, only a few blocks from the sheriff's office, yet 27 miles from the crime scene. Detectives were able to lift a still-wet palm print from the telephone.

Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepard:

Crime Scene Diagrams:

Note Left by Zodiac on victim’s car door:

Presidio Heights Murder

Where: Cross section of Washington and Cherry Streets in the Presidio Heights neighborhood of San Francisco.

When: October 11, 1969, around 10pm

Victim: Paul Lee Stine; Cab Driver

Details: On October 11, 1969, a white male passenger entered the cab driven by Paul Stine at the intersection of Mason and Geary Streets (one block west from Union Square) in San Francisco requesting to be taken to Washington and Maple Streets in Presidio Heights. For reasons unknown, Stine drove one block past Maple to Cherry Street; the passenger then shot Stine once in the head with a 9mm, took Stine's wallet and car keys, and tore away a section of Stine's bloodstained shirt tail. 

This passenger was observed by three teenagers across the street at 9:55 p.m., who called the police while the crime was in progress. They observed a man wiping the cab down before walking away towards the Presidio, one block to the north.

Two blocks from the crime scene, patrol officer Don Fouke and Eric Zelms, responding to the call, observed a white man walking along the sidewalk east on Jackson Street and stepping onto a stairway leading up to the front yard of one of the homes on the north side of the street; the encounter lasted only five to ten seconds. The police radio dispatcher had however initially alerted officers to be on the lookout for a black suspect, so Fouke and Zelms drove past him without stopping. 

This was the last officially confirmed murder by the Zodiac Killer.

Zodiac: On October 13, the San Francisco Chronicle received a new letter from Zodiac containing a piece of bloody shirt and taking credit for the killing.

Paul Lee Stine:

Crime Scene Photo:

San Francisco Chronicle:

[ocuk-dnd-5e-blog]

Session 7 - 28/09 - A Raging Ranger

Participants

Dave - DM

 Stu - Hendel - Barbarian

Dan - Darvin - Sorcerer

Andrew - Eriden - Druid

Alex - Fyvel - Fighter

Dave R - Galath - Ranger

John - Dwon Fai - Monk

 Mising

Alex H - Chance - Bard

  The green dragon perched upon the edge of the ruined tower glaring down at the group and they looked back visibly nervous. It done nothing more than watch as the zombies began to stumble toward the exit of the building and Hendel. He held the door swinging away with his axe while Galath launched arrows over his head to thump into the oncoming crowd. Gavin went rooting round the back of the building on the orders of Galath, clearly looking for an entrance when suddenly the dragon roared, leaned forward and sent forth a cloud of corrosive gas over the occupied building.

Hendel was able to scramble out the way with a cry but the building, the zombies inside and Gavin were not so lucky as a the building dissolved into a green bubbling mess and Gavin went the same way.

“Noooooooo!” Shrieked Galath, falling to his knees and dropping his bow, sobbing uncontrollably at watching his companion die.

From the tree line appeared Dwon, walked up nonchalantly. “What’s that burning smell? It smells a bit like bear, any burning is normally Hendel…” His voice faded away as he noticed the looming dragon and the melted building.

There was silence, apart from the sobbing Galath, as the dragon looked on quizzically at the group clustered below his tower.

“Greetings Great One!” Darvin yelled, stepping forward and sketching a bow.

“Just kill it!” Hendel shouted at the group his axe half ready and at his comment the dragon shot him a dangerous look but was otherwise silent.

“We have heard word of you from far away.” Darvin continued, shooting Hendel a look. “And we wished to come witness your magnificence in person.”

“There were cultists plotting to kill you and we slew them to ensure you were safe.” Eriden added, edging his way as subtly as he could toward the tree line.

“Indeed we did and we now wish to add to your hoard of treasure.” The dragon continued its silent vigil, merely watching Darvin quizzically. “Can we know your name Great One?” Darvin bellowed.

In response to his request the dragon hissed loudly like the bellows on a large forge and leaned forward off the tower edge, lowering its long neck so its huge head was within ten foot of Darvin. He could see the poison dripping from its mouth, where it landed on the grass between them the grass smoked and withered with a pungent odor. (DM Note; a natural 1 on a persuasion check from Darvin, this group really times its fuck ups well!)

Darvin desperately rummaged in his pack and pulled out the Jade Frog which he threw gently onto the ground between them hoping to appease the dragon, everyone else silently watched and continued to edge toward cover.

“Shut the fuck up.” Hendel bellowed and he lunged forward, axe in both hands raised to slam into the dragons stretched out neck. As he reached the dragon Dwon hit him with a shoulder charge, bearing him to the floor and the dragon reared up into the air above them now back on the tower lip and roared down in fury. “What’s up?” Dwon countered ignoring the cursing Hendel behind him.

“For Gauvain!” Galath yelled jumping to his feet and snatching up his bow he launched an arrow which thumped into the distracted dragon.

At this stage, shit got real, the dragon turned to Galath and roared, unleashing another cloud of toxic gas which enveloped him leaving him twitching, bubbling and screaming on the ground. (DM Note; down in one!)

“Well at least we won’t have to waste our time summoning a new bear.” Dwon yelled as the group scattered for cover. Dwon and Eriden disappeared into the trees, Eriden healing Galath as he ran, Darvin behind a building muttering a few magical phrases as he went but the dragon shook its huge head, shrugging off his suggestions.

Hendel stood his ground and launched his hand axe up through the air to send is slamming into the middle of the dragons skull sticking fast (DM Note; an actual hit, an actual crit with his hand axe!) As the dragon roared in pain and glowered down at Hendel he found discretion to be the better part of valor and scuttled behind a ruined building. Fyvel however, emboldened perhaps by Galath’s defiance, stood his ground and fired off two bolts which thumped into the dragon causing it to roar again.

Screaming his defiance and rage Galath dropped his bow, drew his sword and muttering arcane enchantments sped off across the open ground. One moment the group saw him sprinting toward the tower, a moment later he was up the stairs and behind the dragon (DM Note; Zephyr Strike) and screaming “For Gauvain!” He launched himself through the air and two handed buried his sword into the dragons back. “You fucking killed my bear!” He screamed in its face as it turned a baleful glare on him.

The dragon shrugged its back sending him falling back to the floor and snapped forward, its huge mouth slamming around Galath’s midriff and tearing out a huge chunk from him sending him back to floor spitting up and hemorrhaging blood in alarming quantities. Dismissively the dragon flicked out a claw sending him ruined body tumbling back down the tower stairs. (DM Note; the suicidal bravery did not necessarily work out here!)

“I am Venomfang!” The dragon roared down at the scattering group. “And I will destroy you all!”

“You’re a faggot!” Came Dwon’s reply from somewhere in the tree line.

Eriden appeared from the trees muttering arcane phrases and a moonbeam sprang into appearance searing the dragon and Darvin found some courage to appear from behind his cover to launch a magic missile, with an added “Sorry!” as the dragon roared in further pain.

Eriden, Dwon and Hendel ran toward the tower but as they began to mount the stairs, Eriden once again working feverishly to save Galath’s life, the dragon roared its defiance at Fyvel who continued to pepper it with bolts and sprang from the tower edge, landing in front of Fyvel with an earth shaking crash.

“Fuck.” Fyvel managed before its huge claws ripped through his armor sending him stumbling backward against the wall, bleeding profusely.

Dwon came sprinting back out of the tower and using his almost unnatural agility mounted the dragon, running up its back despite its attempt to buck him off, he loosened the rope from his pack and dived for its mouth trying to tie it shut but instead the dragon twisted its neck and launch him through the air. He flew thirty feet and was about to slam into the wall of a building but using his monk training spun in an agile fashion and landed neatly on the ground, ready for more.

Darvin fired off more magic missiles (DM Note; and offered more apologies) before running away further into town to avoid the angry dragon as Galath stumbled back to his feet, once again muttering his arcane phrases (DM Note; another Zephyr Strike) and screaming his rage he came charging out of the building with a sword in both hands this time. Stabbing the dragon in the flank, once again the dragon turned around and slammed him with a claw in return and all heard the crack of bones as he once again was thrown to the floor like a broken rag doll. Fyvel launched another pair of bolts into the dragon as Dwon charged in from its unprotected flank driving his spear into its side causing it to rear in pain, an Ice Knife from Eriden sent it stumbling further back in pain and as it did Hendel came lumbering back from the tower axe in both hands held above his head and he brought it crashing down on the dragons exposed neck screaming “Axe to the back mother fucker!” It slammed in and the dragons head flopped loose, almost severed from its neck, it did not even have time to roar its defiance.

“I killed a dragon.” Hendel said disbelievingly. “Hendel. Killed. A. Dragon… Hendel killed a dragon!” At this point Hendel had burst into song as he set about severing the dragons head from the rest of its body entirely.

Galath stumbled back to his feet, his face a part melted ruin of poisonous fumes, a gaping wound in his side and huge claw marks ripped across his chest, his armor was a ruin his whole appearance one of rage and despair and once again picking up his two swords he stumbled over to the dragon corpse and began to repeatedly stab it, screaming mostly inarticulately with the odd discernible words about the death of his bear being noticed.

(DM Note; I didn't think it was possible the group could kill the dragon but a combination of some appalling rolls from myself and some fantastic rolls from the group they killed it stone dead!)

As the two were, in one case merrily the other wrathfully, cutting up the dragon corpse Dwon walked over to Darvin. “Are there any useful parts of a dragon?”

“How the fuck would I know?” Darvin replied exasperated.

“You’re the smart one who wears a dress and makes notes.”

Darvin sighed. “Eyes, teeth, probably scales.” Dwon nodded happily and also set to work on the dragon. “Hendel, is this your dragon?”

“Too small.” Hendel grunted as he finally severed the head and it rolled free. “But any dead dragon is a good dragon to me.” He started looping cords round it and went back to singing. “Hendel killed a dragon!”

Darvin went through the ruins of the tower and pulled at a huge haul of gold and some scrolls as well as an axe which he offered up to Hendel.

“This feels pretty powerful Hendel.”

“Ooh another axe!” Hendel replied taking it and testing its weight. “Hew, it says.” Hendel was tracing the runes. “It needs a little work but I’ll make sure I use this on the next dragon!”

“Best go tell the druid.” Darvin sighed, trying to take control of the situation but Hendel almost ran ahead of him, he kicked the door open to Reidoth’s cabin and strutted in, axe held high. “Hendel, killed, a, dragon!” He declared at ear shattering volume.

“He killed the dragon?” Reidoth asked turning to Darvin as he appeared, Hendel still singing in the background.

“He did, he…”

“Where’s the druid?”

“Up by the dragon corpse. I…” Darvin was disconcerted as the elderly druid brushed past him and set off up the hill.

As Darvin and Hendel caught up he was animatedly talking to Eriden and point blank ignoring the rest of the group. They witnessed him hand over a token of some sort to Eriden then he turned into a squirrel and disappeared into the woods.

“He’s very rude.” Darvin groused.

“He didn't even thank me for saving him by killing the dragon!” Hendel said, incredulous. “What did the rude twat say?” He shouted at Eriden.

“I’ve signed us up  to the Emerald Enclave. A chance for work in the future and…”

“He can fuck off.” Hendel cut in. “If he ever calls for help again he can shove it up his arse. Didn't even give me a reward.” Hendel looked crestfallen for the moment and then once again burst into song. “Hendel killed a dragon!”

“This is going to get old, fast.” Darvin muttered to Fyvel, who nodded his assent.

  The group rested for the evening, Galath muttering away to himself about dragons and how he would kill them, Hendel singing to himself merrily and Eriden disappeared to busy himself gathering herbs and what not.

Fyvel tried consoling him but he was so self absorbed he quickly gave in. As he wandered away Darvin caught his arm. “When we were outside Neverwinter, Carleath Moonath mentioned about the conflict between Neverember and the Sons of Alagondar. Does it mean much to you, will it cause us any trouble?”

“The Spellplague is history, the war with Thay is over, the loyalists are scattered. My family are businessmen their only lord is gold and whoever sits on a chair changes nothing to me or my kin. I can’t imagine you would find anyone loudly proclaiming support for the Sons of Alagondar very little is left of them. The Nashers? The Greycloaks? No, Dagult Neverember rules Neverwinter and it bothers me not at all.”

“Fine, just want to make sure we are not walking into anything we need to be aware of.”

“Not on my part.” Fyvel replied.

As this was happening Eriden had disappeared and when the two had finished speaking a bear came ambling into the firelight where they were setting up and wandered up to Galath, nosing into his lap. Galath smiled forlornly. “Thank you, I appreciate the help but I know it is you Eriden, I know Gauvain… but I thank you all the same.”

With that Galath fell to the floor and slept, the rest of the group doing the same.

  As the group set off in the morning, Hendel staring at the huge dragon head he had severed, he called across to Galath. “Does it bother you I killed the dragon that killed your bear?”

“I only care that the dragon is dead” Galath’s mood did not look much brighter than it had the evening before.

“Suit yourself.” Hendel began singing once again as the group started off on the long journey back, Hendel immediately started falling behind.

“Dwon.” He shouted. “Come back with a cart for this.” This being the dragon head he was trying to haul along.

“Only if you stop singing.”

“I’m not promising anything.” Hendel shouted back with a mad grin.

  On reaching Neverwinter the group split and went their own ways, Darvin off shopping, Galath off to re-summon Gauvain’s soul should he find it and Dwon went to collect the groups cart to set off to help Hendel.

As the group were parting Darvin turned to Eriden. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to see my family.”

“Family?” Darvin replied, incredulous.

“Yes.”

“I thought you were estranged from your family?”

“My birth family, this is my wife and children.”

“What!?”

“I live with them in Neverwinter.”

“But you’re never here.”

“I have spent most of my life on the seas to keep my family in the lifestyle they deserve, this is just another way of looking after them.”

“But you’ve never mentioned them before.”

“Well mostly Hendel has been here, and we know what he’s like.”

Darvin nodded sagely at this. “Well.. I hope all is well?” He offered, Eriden accepted this with a smile and disappeared into the milling crowds.

  Later that same day Dwon, Hendel and the cart came rumbling into town drawing shocked looks from citizens as Hendel, perched on the drivers board, sang his way through the streets, almost like a proclamation. “Hendel, killed, a, dragon!”

“Why did I do this.” Dwon muttered to himself shaking his head.

“Because you want to be with a hero!” Hendel declared, catching the muttered comment. “Take us to the Sleeping Dragon, we have business.”

A half an hour later the two of them pulled up outside the inn and, for those inside, the peace was shattered as the door was kicked open with a crash and a moment later a bedraggled, sleep deprived dwarf appeared dragging a huge, severed dragons head behind him causing the patrons to scream, shout and back up as it rolled to a halt, Hendel proudly beside it giving it a slap.

“Hendel, killed, a, dragon!” He declared.” And it isn’t sleeping anymore!”

“Technically it’s asleep forever.” Dwon whispered in his ear. “With it being dead.”

“I don’t call it sleep!” Hendel shot back. “I call it dead!”

Walking past the started patrons as Dwon rolled his eyes, taking a seat, Hendel marched up the to the bar. “You! Innkeeper! How much for the dragon head!?”

“For the dragons head?” The innkeeper replied, part incredulous part quavering.

“Yes the dragons head, I killed it myself!”

“Well actually the group killed it…” Dwon began but was drowned out by further blustering from Hendel.

“Is is real?” The innkeeper asked.

“No I made it out of fucking paper mashie!” Hendel screamed in his face.

“I killed it myself.” Hendel declared, again ignoring Dwon’s objections. “Over in Thundertree.”

The innkeeper poked and prodded the dragon head cautiously although expecting it to suddenly rear up and take off his arm. “I’ll pay you four hundred gold for it.”

Hendel gawped. “Deal, but one thing! When you mount it on the wall, I want an inscription with my name on it… and the group below that, but in smaller letters of course.”

“Fine, fine.” The innkeeper replied handing over the gold and inspecting his new purchase.

  The group met up the next morning at the bank, Hendel walking straight up to his new friend from days previous.

“Hey guys, new axe!” Hendel declared proudly, showing off his new hand axe.

“It’s a little rusty.” The guard replied dubiously.

“It could do with a polish, but I got this from a dragons hoard.” Hendel replied.

“A real dragon?”

“Why does everyone ask if it was real?” Hendel groused.

“Well…” Dwon began.

“Shut up.” Hendel cut in. “I killed the dragon of Thundertree with my mighty axe and now I have two!”

“Impressive.” The guard replied, once again fondling Hendel’s axe.

“If we keep letting him say this, people might believe it.” Dwon whispered across to Darvin.

“On the plus side, it is good for advertising.” Darvin quipped.

  The group once again reached the city gates and were getting ready to head off, belting on equipment and trying to ignore Hendel’s ongoing singing.

“Remember Gundren?” Darvin asked, the group nodded, one or two reluctantly. “I think it’s about time we go to rescue him. We know where the castle is.”

“Well we have earned a lot of money.” Dwon said shiftily. “We could carry on earning good money…”

“We are contracted to rescue him.” Fyvel replied indignantly.

“Well we only agreed to get the goods to Phandalin.”

“Which we did.” Hendel added.

“No, we agreed with Sildar to help find Gundren.”

“It was a friendly agreement.” Hendel suggested. “I didn't sign anything.”

“We agreed it, that is enough.” Fyvel was unbending on this topic.

“We weren’t paid anything in advance.” Hendel objected.

“I wouldn’t pay you anything in advance, ever.” Fyvel countered and the group nodded their agreement at this valid point.

“Look, apart from the rights and wrongs, it offers up opportunities for future employment.” Darvin cut in.

“We don’t need future employment now, we are dragon slayers, the work will come to us!”

“Dragons will come to us?” Darvin asked.

“He’s retarded.” Fyvel offered.

“If you can find us some dragons I’ll happily kill them, but I don't see any, do you?” Darvin added.

“My city is ruled by a dragon, we could kill that.”

“What? Neverwinter is ruled by a dragon?” Hendel looked a little confused and gazed back through the city gates.

“No my birth city, far to the south, it is ruled over by a dragon.”

“I’m sorry, but you want a dragon to rule… and you call me retarded?” Hendel blew out his cheeks in exasperation.

“You don’t argue with an ancient amethyst dragon, Hendel.”

“They’re dragons, you don’t argue, you kill them!” Hendel was, by now, getting exasperated with this burn of the conversation.

“Not all dragon’s are the same Hendel.” Darvin cut in, coming to Eriden’s aid.

“They’re dragons!”

“There are metallic dragons, chromatic dragons.”

“You sound like some sort of dragon lover!” Hendel countered, loosening his axe in its scabbard.

“I do have dragon blood in my ancestry, hence my powers.”

The group stood shocked at this and Hendel took his axe in one hand.

“So what you are saying, is that someone in your family shagged a dragon?” Dwon asked, everyone sniggered apart from Hendel who was still glaring.

“Your mother banged a dragon! Your family is fucked up.” Hendel added, glaring.

“I don’t know how I have dragon blood in my veins. My family could have been blessed by an ancient dragon or… yes an ancestor could have mated with a dragon.”

“So you are half dragon?!”

“No I have dragon blood.”

“If your mother had sex with a dragon, and I’m not sure I understand the physics of that unless your mother is huge, then you’re half dragon.” Dwon cut in.

“Dragon’s can come in other forms.” Someone sniggered. “Not just a huge dragon, they can go about in human form. Also I am not half dragon, that would be a dragonborn, which I am not. I have dragon blood.”

“So what you are saying, is that you have dragon in you.”

“Yes.”

“His mother had dragon in him.” Dwon added with a snigger.

“I wonder what it’s like under a dragon.”

“Eugh.”

“His mother would know all about it.”

“Probably flat.” Were the varied responses to Dwon’s query.

As the two were still glaring at each other, Fyvel cut in and tried to restore some sanity to the conversation. “So Eriden, your city is ruled over by a dragon?”

“It is a gem dragon, and it is benign.” Eriden answered. “As far back as anyone remembers it has not been a tyranny, more a relationship of convenience.”

“A fucking dragon.” Hendel muttered to himself, exasperated.

“Is he good?” Darvin asked.

“Neither good nor evil, he doesn't speak to the common man.”

“Is he made of rubies?” Hendel asked.

“No. That isn’t how this works Hendel.”

“Not all dragons eat people.” Came a voice, and they turned to see Galath approaching, a new bear in tow. “Just like Gauvain doesn't eat people.”

“Gauvain?”

“His spirit has returned.” Galath replied with a smile.

  The group set off for Cragmaw Castle, the argument over preferred employment and dragon based rulers left unresolved but Darvin showing leadership to get them in line and force them toward Cragmaw Castle. Unfortunately for the rest of the group Hendel spent the whole journey signing, fortunately for the rest of the group his short legs kept him at the back and downwind.

As they entered the tree line the group noticed that Hendel had hurried closer and had fallen silent, glancing nervously round the at the trees and keeping a tight grip on his new axe.

“A bit sensitive around trees are you Hendel?” Dwon asked with a smirk.

“Don’t trust trees, don't trust elves.” Hendel muttered glaring at the trees although daring them to move.

A while later the group reached a break in the trees and above them towered Cragmaw Castle, it was a lot less impressive than they had expected with tall towers crumbling down to the ground, walls with gouges in them and masonry scattered at its base and in general the structure was in a state of disrepair. Hendel seem somewhat relieved to be relieved to be leaving the trees behind and ceased muttering to himself in dwarfish.

Fyvel turned to Hendel as the muttering eventually stopped. “I hate dwarfish, sounds like a pig snorting in the muck.”

“Well fuck you too.” Hendel shot back, already seeming more like himself.

“Shut up and wait here.” Galath said to the arguing pair before they really got going and, muttering a few magical phrases to himself, suddenly disappeared from sight and began to move forward toward the castle to scout out. The entrance to the castle had a pair of iron banded wooden doors which looked although they had been torn from their hinges and they lay shattered in the entry way. Beyond this was a T junction corridor ending in four  sealed doors, with another door standing directly ahead. There was no sign of life but the stillness was unnatural and deciding that discretion was the better part of valor (DM Note; not a shocking turn of events for Galath) Galath stole back out of the entry way back to the party.

“Here’s the situation.” Galath began explaining, still invisible, so the group could not decide on a location where he stood and was instead facing every which way of the wind. As Galath was explaining the situation Hendel walked forward, axe rested on shoulder once again singing and back to his carefree self. “Hendel, killed, a, drag…” He didn't get any further as he mounted the steps to the castle entrance a hail of arrows greeted him, three thumping in and sticking out of his torso.

“Where the hell did they come from?” Hendel asked quizzically, then caught sight of some arrow slits on the walls. “Are you in there? Come on out and I’ll hurt worse than these fucking arrows.” Hendel yelled pulling out an arrow and tossing it on the floor in a desultory manner. In return another arrow flashed out and zipped over his shoulder. Roaring Hendel charged toward the doors and burst inside, greeted with a half dozen goblins running at him from either side, weapons drawn. Once paused and shouted something in a language Hendel couldn't understand, another stopped and pointed his sword at Hendel. “You’re fucked dwarf.” Hendel responded by cutting him open down the middle, then the melee was joined.

Dwon, Eriden and Fyvel quickly joined him, fighting back the goblins as Darvin and Galath stood outside launching fireballs and arrows in at the milling goblins. Hendel was stabbed from multiple angles and roared in rage, ignoring his wounds and killing another goblin as Eriden waded in with shillelagh felling any who faced him. As the goblins fell another door burst open and more, tougher looking goblins appeared as well as a half dozen hobgoblins and the melee was once again joined. The group were being slowly pushed back, Hendel bleeding into puddles on the floor when Darvin yelled “drop!” the group, for once, listened and Darvin unfurled a scroll reading out a few magical phrases a huge lightning bolt leapt from the pages tearing down the corridor with a boom incinerating four hobgoblins and as many goblins.

“That’s how you do it.” Darvin said dusting off his hands.

Dwon vaulted over Hendel, as he arched threw the air turning he stabbed down with his spear finishing a goblin (DM Note; a 16 acrobatics roll and a crit with max damage on a spear attack!) and landing with a flourish he turned and slammed his fist into what was clearly the leader of the band of goblins sending it stumbling backward into the wall. The lightning bolt had clearly demoralized the goblin and hobgoblin host and the last few of them fell with Galath stepping up and running through the last goblin as it turned to run.

The hall was a mess of over twenty goblin and hobgoblin corpses with blood and body parts sprayed up the walls and the room smelling like a charnel house. (DM note; the warning of the goblin and the noise of combat pulled four room worth of enemies so it was the group vs 26 foes, all in all something of a brawl!)

“Well that was fun, whose next?” Hendel asked, still bleeding.

  (DM Note; a good session though one bookended by huge combats with the dragon fight and taking on half of a Cragmaw Castle in a single encounter. The fact that these encounters were so large minimized much else happening but thanks to the group engaging so well there was some amusing RP midsession. The dragon fight was the strangest, what I hoped would be deadly (and was probably a Fyvel getting knocked out from being so) ended up as a dead dragon through some utterly horrific rolls from myself. Still, a great session for the group!)