Story HourPost your ongoing tales from your campaigns, and read those from others for inspiration. Lots of other RPG boards post "Story Hours", but this is where it started!
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A shining portal, a rainbow flash of colour and a momentary sense of something collapsing. Then amongst the crystal shards they are astonished to see a person - a young woman – quickly get up from the floor. A brightly coloured Macaw flaps to her shoulder as she steps back from them and brings her rapier up en garde.
“What do you be doing here?” she asks. “And why not be the dragon gristing your bones, eh?”
“Umm, the dragon has been dead some fifty years or more, that’s why” says Trajan.
Her shoulders slump.
“Fifty years? FIFTY years? But the dragon would torment me regularly in that prison – he would come every… every… I don’t know how often... It was a place of swirling greyness with no time to it…”
This was a little demi-plane with the timeless attribute which I decided that Copperdeath used to keep certain “toys”.
Trajan and M’ir try to help Marie-Anne adjust to the fact that fifty years have passed in the outside world while she has remained a prisoner in time. They discover that she is a sword-coaster, daughter of the owner of what was a reasonable merchant concern. She used to travel on her dads boats, and spent much time training with “uncle Jarr”, a renegade from the Scarlet Brotherhood (an evil band of monk pirates who plague the coastline). After a family tragedy she left the ships for dry land, training as a fighter and attempting to right wrongs throughout the sword coast and further inland. She can fight in the traditional two-weapon style of the Sword Coasters, normally using a sword biter in her off-hand. This and the distinctive tassels on her swords earned her much respect as she travelled the Southlands with her pet Macaw.
Finally, rumours led her path to a town under the domination of a dragon – more true than she had expected. The dragon found her mildly entertaining and more resourceful than most of his pets, so he decided to store her in a demiplane that he had once created, visiting her in order to torment or toy with as he pleased.
And that is where she has just been rescued from. What has happened to her family and friends in the meantime? What has changed in the world? She must wait to find out…
Marie-Anne is a Monk2/Fighter4, with the whirlwind attack feat chain plus a couple of other things. Replacement character for Azrin.
Together, they return to the main hall of the dragon, and decide what to do next about the dragonstone.
They decide that the dragons consciousness must reside in that crystal. Furthermore, it seems to not like loud sound. “What”, wonders Trajan, “About the Wyrmcall, the big bell down in Bellhold?”.
“You must be nuts!” retorts M’ir. “The thing has been twisting peoples minds down there for weeks – what is going to happen if we bring the crystal down amongst them eh?”
Lysander chips in - “What about we send Darra, Syl and K’tan with the children down the inside of the mountain, I’ll go down to the village and tell them that the children are rescued and get the townspeople to meet them at the old mine shaft. I can be pretty persuasive”.
The plan is agreed. Lysander sets off quickly down the cliff to mobilise the towns people. Trajan, M’ir and Marie-Anne follow carefully with the dragonstone in a sack. Darra, Syl and K’tan start to shepherd the frightened children down the slither ramp to safety…
Next: Ask not for whom the bells toll…
__________________ Plane Sailing
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"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
Originally posted by Plane Sailing Marie-Anne is a Monk2/Fighter4, with the whirlwind attack feat chain plus a couple of other things. Replacement character for Azrin.
Next: Ask not for whom the bells toll…
Huih! Monk Whirlwind... Your players all seem to go for high will saves, eh?
Huih! Monk Whirlwind... Your players all seem to go for high will saves, eh?
Let it ring!
Well, she's mostly fighter but with a bit of monk because she is aiming for the "Sword Coast Duellist" prestige class, which requires tumble skill. I think that my Poet class (think a spell-less bard) would have been a better fit with the nationality, but the link in to the scarlet brotherhood is something I can use. What if "Uncle Jarr" went on to become a venerated elder amongst the evil scarlet brotherhood? See "timeless body" in action!
Cheers
__________________ Plane Sailing
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"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
Bidding farewell to the others, Darra, K’tan and Syl start shepherding the children through the caverns and to the slither ramp, back down into the old mine. At least they got the easy job this time.
The children “ooo” and “ahh” at the multicoloured waterfall, but as they start down the slippery ramp one of the children turns to Darra and with big eyes says
“Mr, I’m scared” <lower lip trembles> “Please can I hold your hand?”
Darra takes the small little hand in his own – and suddenly finds his mind almost overwhelmed by a deluge of strange impressions and discordant futures! He takes 7 points subdual damage and staggers back!
The child steps towards him, with the same kind of glint in its eye that you might expect if he was pulling the wings off a fly
“Sorry mister, it was an –accident-“ as he reaches out to touch Darra again.
Simultaneously one of the other children looks over at Syl, who finds his arms gripped by some mental force – but which she is able to shake off. “Right, I’m going to have you” she says, drawing her sword.
“Wait, the’re only kids” shouts K’tan
Darra knows that he cannot take another one of those touches so he steps back and judging the size of the shaft carefully. Once again he twists his fingers and then points out towards the kids and a massive web explodes outwards, catching Syl and all three children. The small children have no chance of escaping from the clinging strands, and Darra then intimidates the child who attacked him in best full-on parental mode.
The kid who attempted to mentally attack Syl is still active but K’tan is able to use his far punch talent to knock him out. K’tan below, Darra above and everyone else trapped in sticky webs, they decide to wait until the webs expire (since they aren’t a dismissable spell that will be about an hour).
Still, at least the other guys must be having it easier, eh?
__________________ Plane Sailing
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"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
As Trajan, M’ir and Anne-Marie reach the top of the scree slope at the base of Steeple Mountain, they can see a stream of people moving out from the town towards the woods and the Old Mine.
They make their way through dark and somewhat quieter streets than normal for this hour in the evening until they are almost within sight of the Wyrmcall plaza when disaster strikes. Rounding a corner, M’ir walks almost straight into someone. While they start bluffing their way away from the man there is a sudden flare of blue light from the sack holding the dragonstone crystal which is mirrored by a flare of blue light in the eyes of the man talking to them!
What is worse, the dozen or so people that they can make out in the plaza all turn to face them with eyes blazing sapphire blue too! A voice issues from a dozen throats at once
“YOU you MUST must SERVE serve ME me NOW now!”
“Quick!” says Anne Marie “Run for the tower, I’ll hold them off”
“FOOLISH PLAYTHING plaything” the voices chant “GET BACK IN YOUR CAGE cage!”
Anne Marie charges towards the group of four townspeople who are between them and the tower and is promptly grappled by the group of them working together. The others speed past her to the belltower door – it is locked!
Back at Anne Marie, she wriggles free from the group surrounding her and then spins into a blur of action – fists and feet lash out in all directions and she is surrounded by four unconscious townspeople.
Whirlwind attack at its best!
At the belltower Trajan is having difficulty battering the door down – his feet must keep slipping on the frosty ground because he is not getting anywhere, and all around the square more and more townspeople are lurching quickly towards them, eyes blazing blue. Lysander had managed to take many out of the town square with his urgent message to meet the rescuers of the children, but now women and children are coming out of their houses and men hurry into the square.
Over it all the voice of the dragoncrystal is heard loud and clear from a hundred throats
“KNEEL! KNEEL AND SERVE ME me!”
“MY GLORY SHALL BE COMPLETE complete!!”
“YOUR LIVES ARE MINE!!! mine!! mine!”
__________________ Plane Sailing
(Enworld Admin)
If you need to email me click here
"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
Actually it is a surprising amount... In the grand finale coming up you will see combat reflexes kicking in too as well as the whirlwind attack
Anne-Marie turns out to be (unknowingly) perfectly designed for this part of the adventure - being part Monk meant it was easy for her to make subdual attacks, nice for keeping the townspeople down without killing them, whirlwind attack and combat reflexes made her a superb defensive backstop for the party!
I'll get writing on the final part and What Happened Next.
Cheers
__________________ Plane Sailing
(Enworld Admin)
If you need to email me click here
"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
Yeah, monk fighter rocks for that thing. Good AC, good at grappling, ... btw. Monks can do subdual damage with normal attacks too? I thought they can only choose while grappling without penalties...
Hah! Darklone leaves towards the rules section for a new thread about how to stop hordes of commoners with a lvl6 char!
Originally posted by Darklone btw. Monks can do subdual damage with normal attacks too? I thought they can only choose while grappling without penalties...
Yep! Can't give you the page number of anything, but I remember it says that Monks can make unarmed subdual attacks at no penalty.
Quickly checks SRD
Quote:
Usually, a monk's unarmed strikes deal normal damage rather than subdual damage. However, she can choose to deal her damage as subdual damage when grappling.
OK, Consider this a house rule then. I see it as a reasonable one, since normally all unarmed attacks are considered subdual. Otherwise it is no easier for a monk to subdue someone with his pounding fists than it is for someone wielding a battleaxe
Just a warning... don't go rushing off to that rules forum too quickly!
Thinks... I was *sure* I read somewhere about Monks being able to freely do subdual damage. I'll have to go through my PHB when I get home tonight
__________________ Plane Sailing
(Enworld Admin)
If you need to email me click here
"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
Finally the door is kicked in. Trajan runs upstairs with the crystal, M’ir grabs hold of the bell rope and waits for instructions, Anne Marie unleashes another whirlwind of blows and takes down another half dozen townspeople, then steps into the doorway to prevent others passing.
Trajan places the crystal under the Wyrmcall and shouts out “Now!, Pull the bell now!”. M’ir starts ringing the bell and thunderous tones hammer into Trajan and the crystal pulses scarlet, cracking across its edges.
More zombified townspeople attempt to pile onto Anne Marie, but her reflexes and skill are punishing, and only one manages to get a grip which four others fall to the ground stunned.
“STOP!! stop!” yell the voices. “I WILL GIVE YOU ANYTHING anything!”
One of the possessed townspeople manages to slip past Anne Marie’s guard and lunges at M’ir, attempting to stop his frenzied ringing of the bell, but he swings around and with a swift karate kick lays out the opposition.
Up above, Trajan is starting to succumb from the terrible sound of the bell himself, but seeing the crystal deteriorating further he slides back down the hatch and cries out “keep ringing, keep ringing”
Anne Marie is surrounded by a pile of unconscious bodies and is a whirling blur of fists and kicks, stunning those attempting to grapple her and all those who surround her.
Then suddenly it is over.
There is a mighty splintering sound from the top of the bell tower, and a howl raises from hundreds of voices before suddenly ceasing – as if a door was suddenly closed on it. The townspeople collapse like puppets with cut strings, and the blue light disappears from their eyes.
The battle is over.
Back on the slither-ramp...
__________________ Plane Sailing
(Enworld Admin)
If you need to email me click here
"It makes as much sense as having Batman kill his parents and then go on to fight mutants from another dimension." - Rykion
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