Last time after the massacre among the Morlocs Lencio felt it was time to take out the Hobgoblins and secure their rumored extra-exit. Others felt the same way, and so the idea of an aggressive Hobgoblin Blitz was born.
During Downtime, Dr. Joebold the Kobold had fallen prey to an experiment mishap, but Swordbold the Kobold came with us instead and guarded our rear.

I kind of forgot to take notes, but it will be fine.

We trooped down the stairs to the back of the Hobgoblin lair, where we had once had a run-in with their guards back when. Now: nobody there. However, their back entrance was revolving metal door, not unlike what you sometimes see at zoos, nature parks, or finance institutes etc.

Lencio did not like that at all, for tactical reasons. We wanted to go in hot, not be separated into single file museum visitors. So we went around west to a standard portcullis that had the right location.

Charge!

“Chaarge!” said Lencio, and ripped open the portcullis.
The hobgoblins had a bridge there, a force of four on the bridge, and some weird cannon.
Donald sniped one of the four out of the way, Eban dared a long jump across a wide pit, Robin shot an arrow, and Magic Missiles flew — Eban killed the cannon man and turned the thing against the hobgoblins: it was a water cannon like for crowd control, and he blew the defenders right off the bridge and into a pit.

Blitz victory, even faster than hoped for, and rolling through the first room before they could even lift a weapon.

Playing offense

But we were noticed, and fresh troops gathered. However, Lencio, Obelix and Eban did not stop, they kept moving; took a charge from Hobgoblins and suffered some wounds, but annihilated the defenders. More came up, Donald shot one. Then we rushed them and eliminated them. Young Lizard-warrior McDrake also took one out!
Ever forward, full offensive, that was our warcry!

Suddenly though, a sort of Mega-Hobgoblin came out of a side door, and he had a Hobgoblin wizard behind him. We turned his way and rushed him too, but he was strong — his mighty swings hit our whole front rank at once, like Sauron in the LotR-movie.

(Only that our front rank stood fast and took the hits like a brick wall)

Meanwhile, his wizard friend shot Magic Missiles!

The cowardly wizard did our two heroic Lizard people in…
RIP Lizzie, RIP McDrake! You will be remembered.

But with the combined force of mid-level heroes and magical crossbows, we brought the big fighter down — one of Donald’s hefty crossbow bolts got him in one of his glowing red eyes — and his wizard friends teleported away to safety.

At this point, Lencio had taken a couple of whacks and got down into the single digits, where he had to start thinking how long he could keep this up.

At that very point, Hobgoblin reinforcements struck our rear: No less than nine of them stormed and took on Gal. This was a tight gambit that could have gone either way,

but luckily their crossbowmen didn’t get a clear shot, and she survived a good pummeling; then she struck back with deadly force, and after eliminating the big guy Gal’s friends were free and came to her rescue. A wave of human steel turned the tide: the hobgoblin-reinforcements were slaughtered and their sole survivor ran off into the darkness.

Respite

For a moment we took some healing; got Eban, Gal, Lencio and Obelix patched up. We also looted the barracks; found gold and grog, and an armory, where the archers could replenish their quivers, and Lencio switched his notched old spear for the .

Then, unmolested for the time being, and with replenished HP, we followed the runner.
Faced with three possible ways, Lencio picked south. We looted a second armory (with a sword that looked extremely cursed, which we left untouched), then a storage room. Here we also found a golden apple, that reminded me of Minecraft. Lencio took a bite — and it WAS like Minecraft. Lencio healed a couple more HP and on top of that got 7 temporary hit-points for an hour.

Boss

At the next door, Eban advised to go south first — he expected an alarm triggering when we opened that one, and serious reinforcements coming into our flank. Better to take out those first.

So we went south and found two strong “original” Hobgoblins, 3 HD guys not grown in a cauldron but battle-hardened and experienced.

One of them had 18 Hit points — that one we took out. And while we were busy with the second, the door behind us opened up, and out came the biggest and meanest hobgoblin we had ever seen. The Boss Hob. Twice as tall as a man, and crowned with horns — this monster downed a potion of giant strength and stepped out in our rear.

Curtain — Cliffhanger.

Will this monster-hob end the Beatles?
We shall learn next time.