I was on a long and arduous journey across most of the continent, to reach the source of attacks on these few cities(why is this place so far away?!).
I had picked up a crossbowman, who was going to be my guide to this place, and a pikeman, who wanted to be led to glory.
I'm not sure when, but I lost the crossbowman. I didn't lose the pikeman, but he proved to be entirely worthless. At the sign of ANY conflict, he would start running around, crying, shouting about how bad fighting is or something. I conversed with a couple of beastmen we came across and they complained to me that my cowardly companion had attacked them not too long ago. Also, I had one lousewoman tell me that a few minutes ago, I was attack by a lousewoman.
Anyway, just a hop skip and a jump-from-trees-to-cross-rivers away from the place where the terror lives, when I get thrown into an encounter. "Lions!" it says. The last encounter with lions I had, the lions just sort of sat there and I walked away. Instead, I figured to engage them, thinking my experience with killing a horseshoe crab, a raven, a coyote, and a rattlesnakeman would be enough.
It wasn't enough. I got the lion to critical, but unfortunately my finishing blows refuse to connect, resulting in me getting mauled to death. The lion slowly went back to its friends after the kill.
And what was my companion doing? Lying on the ground, likely in the fetal position, thumb in mouth, crying. What a coward.
I'm a little miffed because of how obnoxiously slow it is to overworld travel. Also, why are these places so far away?! Every quest I got involved a continent-wide march into the unknown.