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Raiders of Oakhurst - A memoir of Erais Gunterson
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<blockquote data-quote="Colmarr" data-source="post: 4249263" data-attributes="member: 59182"><p>We watched the ragged band of survivors until they were out of sight, and then hurried back to Cragg Keep. Fortunately, the dog-men that Sofia had called kobolds and the hobgoblins didn’t seem to have noticed that their prisoners had escaped, and we snuck back through the tunnel without incident.</p><p></p><p>Standing in the dank pit beneath the keep, we held a whispered conversation as we decided how to proceed. The pit was too deep to reach the trapdoor individually but the only other option seemed to be to try to assault the keep via the main gate. Eventually, I hoisted Skamos on my shoulders and he slowly lifted the trapdoor until he could see into the room above. Then I lowered him again.</p><p></p><p>“There are four kobolds up there”, he reported. “They seem to be bored.”</p><p></p><p>Corrin gave a vicious grin. “The let’s wake them up, shall we?”</p><p></p><p>I boosted Skamos again, but this time instead of easing the trapdoor open, he threw it up with both hands. It banged loudly against the wall, but Skamos had already seized the lip of the opening and heaved himself up into the room above. I saw him gesture at something out of sight, and there was a flash and roar of fire. </p><p></p><p>Corrin had retreated to the far side of the pit, and now ran at me. I formed my hands into a step for him and when I felt his weight in my palms I hoisted him upwards with all my strength. The trapdoor was six feet above us and Corrin was only four feet tall. His outstretched fingers brushed the underside of the floor above us, but not high enough for him to grab a hold. With what seemed like agonizing slowness he fell back to the floor across the room from me, and I realised that Skamos was alone with 4 kobolds above.</p><p></p><p>“Oi! Pay attention!” Tira shouted, and I turned to see her standing nearby with one lithe foot held out to me. I formed my hands together and she half-leapt onto them. I lifted with strength drawn of panic and she easily grasped the edge of the trapdoor and swung up to aid Skamos.</p><p></p><p>Corrin and I looked at each other as another fire burst went off above. The halfling was gathering himself to try again when suddenly rope dropped down into the pit. We looked up to see Tira staring down at us. The rope was wrapped around her hands, and she jiggled it invitingly.</p><p></p><p>“Men!” she said.</p><p></p><p>Corrin was up the rope in a moment, and I followed shortly after. The room above was roughly twice the size of the pit. An open doorway divided one wall, and a rotting staircase leaded to another room above us. Otherwise the room was empty but for the kobolds. Skamos had managed to kill two of them while we made our way out of the pit, and Corrin quickly managed to push the other two back and give Skamos and Tira room to breathe. Their spells proved decisive, and the other two kobolds were soon sprawled on the rotted floor.</p><p></p><p>Then we heard bellowing from above us. Even as booted feet moved towards the steps leading down into the room, Corrin was moving to the base of stairs and then upward. Tira followed swiftly, and I did my best to keep up.</p><p></p><p>When I reached the foot of the stairs Tira started to move upward, only to come to a stop as a hobgoblin appeared above us. The creature was massive, fully six feet tall and weighing at least two hundred pounds. Its clothing was poorly kept but for a scarred but solid suit of leather armour adorned with metal rings, teeth and other talismans. Even as it moved into view, it was roaring incomprehensibly and saliva sprayed from between its two prominent fangs. It swung a dark-metal greataxe in a heavy overarm sweep, and Corrin barely managed to catch the deadly on the edge of his shield. The force of the blow drove the paladin down a step.</p><p></p><p>The berserker pressed its attack even as Tira and I leant Corrin our magical aid. Our spells scored great wounds on the hobgoblin’s chest and face even as Corrin stabbed out at it from behind his shield. But still the beast pushed the halfling back. It kicked out at Corrin’s shield and I watched in horror as the paladin tilted off balance, leaving himself unguarded. </p><p></p><p>Almost without pause, the berserker reversed its angle of attack and the greataxe came rushing at Corrin’s head from the side. Somehow Corrin managed to duck out of the direct line of the swing, but the greataxe connected solidly with the pauldron of his plate armour and the force of the blow lifted the halfling bodily and threw him against the stone wall. Corrin’s head struck with a sickening thud and he fell limply to the ground, sliding a few steps down towards us before he came to rest. </p><p></p><p>The beserker jumped over his prone form before it had even come to rest, and I watched in horror as the hobgoblin rushed towards Tira, its greataxe behind its head as it prepared for another massive swing. Simultaneously, I heard the crack of sling stones striking nearby and saw more kobolds gathering outside the room. One of the stones struck Skamos, who swore loudly. Another hobgoblin appeared at the top of the stair, aiming a crossbow down at us.</p><p></p><p>I remember thinking we were all going to die.</p><p></p><p>And then somehow Tira’s dagger was in her hand, extended out towards the descending berserker. The seemingly impotent blade passed through the chestguard of the hobgoblin’s armour and buried itself up to the hilt in the beast’s flesh. The hobgoblin’s body slammed into Tira, but the half-elf somehow stood her ground, face-to-face with the frothing-mouthed creature. Then its eyes glazed and the greataxe fell from its lifeless hands. Tira pushed the corpse backward with a grunt, and then turned her attention to the crossbow-wielder above.</p><p></p><p>[sblock=Author's Note]<em>That's actually how it happened in game. Corrin was felled in one hit by a crit from the beserker that did 20+ damage, and the beserker then moved to attack Tira, only to be felled by a dagger attack that rolled high damage combined with Warlock's Curse. </em></p><p><em></em></p><p><em>When Corrin fell, I did seriously think we were looking at a TPK, and there was much rejoicing as the beserker died. I think I'll remember that moment for quite some time.</em> <img src="data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7" class="smilie smilie--sprite smilie--sprite1" alt=":)" title="Smile :)" loading="lazy" data-shortname=":)" /> [/sblock]</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Colmarr, post: 4249263, member: 59182"] We watched the ragged band of survivors until they were out of sight, and then hurried back to Cragg Keep. Fortunately, the dog-men that Sofia had called kobolds and the hobgoblins didn’t seem to have noticed that their prisoners had escaped, and we snuck back through the tunnel without incident. Standing in the dank pit beneath the keep, we held a whispered conversation as we decided how to proceed. The pit was too deep to reach the trapdoor individually but the only other option seemed to be to try to assault the keep via the main gate. Eventually, I hoisted Skamos on my shoulders and he slowly lifted the trapdoor until he could see into the room above. Then I lowered him again. “There are four kobolds up there”, he reported. “They seem to be bored.” Corrin gave a vicious grin. “The let’s wake them up, shall we?” I boosted Skamos again, but this time instead of easing the trapdoor open, he threw it up with both hands. It banged loudly against the wall, but Skamos had already seized the lip of the opening and heaved himself up into the room above. I saw him gesture at something out of sight, and there was a flash and roar of fire. Corrin had retreated to the far side of the pit, and now ran at me. I formed my hands into a step for him and when I felt his weight in my palms I hoisted him upwards with all my strength. The trapdoor was six feet above us and Corrin was only four feet tall. His outstretched fingers brushed the underside of the floor above us, but not high enough for him to grab a hold. With what seemed like agonizing slowness he fell back to the floor across the room from me, and I realised that Skamos was alone with 4 kobolds above. “Oi! Pay attention!” Tira shouted, and I turned to see her standing nearby with one lithe foot held out to me. I formed my hands together and she half-leapt onto them. I lifted with strength drawn of panic and she easily grasped the edge of the trapdoor and swung up to aid Skamos. Corrin and I looked at each other as another fire burst went off above. The halfling was gathering himself to try again when suddenly rope dropped down into the pit. We looked up to see Tira staring down at us. The rope was wrapped around her hands, and she jiggled it invitingly. “Men!” she said. Corrin was up the rope in a moment, and I followed shortly after. The room above was roughly twice the size of the pit. An open doorway divided one wall, and a rotting staircase leaded to another room above us. Otherwise the room was empty but for the kobolds. Skamos had managed to kill two of them while we made our way out of the pit, and Corrin quickly managed to push the other two back and give Skamos and Tira room to breathe. Their spells proved decisive, and the other two kobolds were soon sprawled on the rotted floor. Then we heard bellowing from above us. Even as booted feet moved towards the steps leading down into the room, Corrin was moving to the base of stairs and then upward. Tira followed swiftly, and I did my best to keep up. When I reached the foot of the stairs Tira started to move upward, only to come to a stop as a hobgoblin appeared above us. The creature was massive, fully six feet tall and weighing at least two hundred pounds. Its clothing was poorly kept but for a scarred but solid suit of leather armour adorned with metal rings, teeth and other talismans. Even as it moved into view, it was roaring incomprehensibly and saliva sprayed from between its two prominent fangs. It swung a dark-metal greataxe in a heavy overarm sweep, and Corrin barely managed to catch the deadly on the edge of his shield. The force of the blow drove the paladin down a step. The berserker pressed its attack even as Tira and I leant Corrin our magical aid. Our spells scored great wounds on the hobgoblin’s chest and face even as Corrin stabbed out at it from behind his shield. But still the beast pushed the halfling back. It kicked out at Corrin’s shield and I watched in horror as the paladin tilted off balance, leaving himself unguarded. Almost without pause, the berserker reversed its angle of attack and the greataxe came rushing at Corrin’s head from the side. Somehow Corrin managed to duck out of the direct line of the swing, but the greataxe connected solidly with the pauldron of his plate armour and the force of the blow lifted the halfling bodily and threw him against the stone wall. Corrin’s head struck with a sickening thud and he fell limply to the ground, sliding a few steps down towards us before he came to rest. The beserker jumped over his prone form before it had even come to rest, and I watched in horror as the hobgoblin rushed towards Tira, its greataxe behind its head as it prepared for another massive swing. Simultaneously, I heard the crack of sling stones striking nearby and saw more kobolds gathering outside the room. One of the stones struck Skamos, who swore loudly. Another hobgoblin appeared at the top of the stair, aiming a crossbow down at us. I remember thinking we were all going to die. And then somehow Tira’s dagger was in her hand, extended out towards the descending berserker. The seemingly impotent blade passed through the chestguard of the hobgoblin’s armour and buried itself up to the hilt in the beast’s flesh. The hobgoblin’s body slammed into Tira, but the half-elf somehow stood her ground, face-to-face with the frothing-mouthed creature. Then its eyes glazed and the greataxe fell from its lifeless hands. Tira pushed the corpse backward with a grunt, and then turned her attention to the crossbow-wielder above. [sblock=Author's Note][I]That's actually how it happened in game. Corrin was felled in one hit by a crit from the beserker that did 20+ damage, and the beserker then moved to attack Tira, only to be felled by a dagger attack that rolled high damage combined with Warlock's Curse. When Corrin fell, I did seriously think we were looking at a TPK, and there was much rejoicing as the beserker died. I think I'll remember that moment for quite some time.[/I] :) [/sblock] [/QUOTE]
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