Pathfinder 1E IC - Tideruler: The Fall of Laholt

[Archon Basileus]

[Ok, I'll rolll Batknight's action now, because of potential consequences]

BATKNIGHT

The knight in black moves like a shadow, avoiding enemies amidst the blood and smoke. Leaving the monk behind, he sees his target brandishing a lance against Alice. He leaps, sword in hand hitting the enemy between the light plaques that compose his crafted plate mail. The knight is hurt once more as he begins to spin his mount, suddenly realizing, with a cold, calculated gaze, that he's surrounded.

He rises his lance, crying towards his other companion - the lady knight, lonely survivor on the southern area of the field.

"WE SURRENDER! PARLEY!" - he maintains his lance high on the air, still agitating himself amidst the black clouds of his mount. Soon enough, the female voice repeats the plead, jousting lance up in the air.

And the Darkest Knight knows they're up to something. He just doesn't know what.

EVERYONE

"PARLEY!" - she takes over, clearly showing authority over the other.

Around the heroes, the field is a mess. Moments ago, grass and rocks met to form a pastoral scene, but now... The fires resulting from the rain still burn, smoke covers the field and a couple of enraged nightmares leap around, trying to keep anyone from coming too close. Blood covers the ground, red and black, and the bodies of the dead mingle in macabre heaps. Beyond, the caves roar. As the drow fled inside, the green knights followed, leading the alessians to a fight in the dark. Cries of triumph and hate can be heard beyond - the battle should be a simple affair for the alessians, now. Upwards, the sun remains dark, as if it had turned black to contemplate the battle and its results. Towards west, griffon riders fight nightmare riders around the spiral tower, and smoke rises from the castle area. The entire settlement was engulfed by the fight, one way or another, apparently.

"We are your prisoners..." - the woman repeats, still studying her foes' reactions. She, too, glances around, trying to portray the happenstances on the battlefield.

The knights wait in silence for the heroes' response



[I rolled morale. After exploding three of them, the remaining knights aren't so eager to die anymore.
Go figure. ]

[MENTION=24380]Neurotic[/MENTION], sorry for the bite. I ended up using the wrong value for Moss' AC. I was concerned not to let the game go stale and accelerated the pace. But the good news is that the note system I adopted works - aside from this misstep! As for Alice, yeah, I considered stoneskin for her... Among other things. The way I thought the scene, he'd shy away from a maneuver given the risk and Alice's 'bendy' nature, so to speak. ]

That is correct, Alice and Arduniel have stoneskin. Thank you, Archon, for quick dispel attempt next time I'm using conjuration for auto effect

[No problem! I think this speeds up the game, doesn't it? Besides, it feels a lot more natural to just have the caster respond to the spell - it gives a Lord of the Rings feel to the thing as magical powers clash - or Masters of Magick, with the neon pellets and the shapeshifting, if you're into that. ]
[MENTION=6847138]Charlotte of Oz[/MENTION], an explanation: since you've given me an action for Alice's analysis, I considered a bonus for the roll. This is why I threw more info your way!]
[MENTION=24380]Neurotic[/MENTION] [MENTION=6801311]KahlessNestor[/MENTION] [MENTION=4936]Shayuri[/MENTION] [MENTION=87106]MetaVoid[/MENTION] [MENTION=1231]Kaodi[/MENTION] [MENTION=6847138]Charlotte of Oz[/MENTION]

 

[CharlotteOz]

At the mention of the word "parlay" Alice withdrew, sword held to her side and pointed at the sky. She doesn't take her eyes off the drow tiefling as she thinks, her mind going through the parry-thrust-riposte of all the arguments about tieflings - that they were untrustworthy, backstabbing devils in mortal clothing, and how she felt as a result that she had to be extra honorable and upright as a result, which meant that she had far less room for lack of care with her promises and words, since she'd be expected to break them and judged more harshly as a result.

She wished, not for the first time, that all this brainpower she dedicated to navigating the social politics of being a tiefling could be dedicated to an interesting alchemistal problem instead. Finally, she spoke.

"I have a duty and I made a promise. I'm not inclined to throw either away on a whim. And I like the sun. It's warm."

 

[Neurotic]

"No parley! You attacked first, you will dissolve!" little dragon advances on the female, puff of green gas escaping his maw as he hisses his threat. While advancing on the female, his threat seems more targeted at the weaker willed male. He may panic and give away things.
"You tell us what, why, when and how to stop it. We kill you quickly and bury you instead of feeding the brood."


[sblock=Actions]
Move: 5' step west to Q14
Standard: Intimidate: 1D20+17 = [15]+17 = 32

[/sblock]

 

[KahlessNestor]

[MENTION=6801311]KahlessNestor[/MENTION]

You can use dispel magic as a counter.

But that requires a Readied Action (normal counterspelling). Arcanists have a variant on countering that is an Immediate Action, which requires a spell slot one higher than the spell being countered. Daxio wasn't holding his action, so would have to use the variant, but doesn't have the requirements. (Teleportation is 5th level).

 

[KahlessNestor]

Laholt/Alessia
Afternoon
Round 11

Daxio backed away from the remaining night trying to hit him even as his invisibility spell faded away. He kept his magic ready, however, should the drow prove treacherous.

OOC: Daxio will move a full 60’ away from the drow toward the northwest, and if they try and cast, he will try his immediate action counterspell (if the spell is 4th level or lower)

Counterspell: 1D20+12 = [15]+12 = 27

[sblock=Ministats]
Conditions: Detect Magic (100 r), Message (1183 r), Fly (107 r)(60’); Smoke 20% miss chance; Sickened (-2 everything)(58r)

HP: 66/122 NL: 0
AC: 19 FF: 14 T: 15
CMD: 20
Fort: 10 Ref: 10 Will: 13
Armed: Dagger
Arcane Reservoir: 4/15/day
Consume Spells: 5/5/day

Spells Prepared
0 (9): Acid Splash, Detect Magic, Ghost Sound, Light, Mage Hand, Message, Prestidigitation, Ray of Frost, Read Magic
1 (6/7, prep 5): Burning Hands, Charm Person, Disguise Self, Magic Missile, Vanish
2 (6/6, prep 5): Darkvision, Hideous Laughter, Invisibility, Scorching Ray, See Invisibility
3 (5/6, prep 4): Dispel Magic, Hold Person, Suggestion, Fly
4 (3/6, prep 3): Charm Monster, Confusion, Greater Invisibility
5 (6/6, prep 2): Dominate Person, Hold Monster
6 (0/3, prep 1): Mass Suggestion

Spell Book:
0: All
1: Burning Hands, Charm Person, Disguise Self, Enlarge Person, Featherfall, Grease, Liberating Command, Magic Missile, Obscuring Mist, Ray of Enfeeblement, Shield, Silent Image, Vanish
2: Darkvision, Hideous Laughter, Invisibility, Scorching Ray, See Invisibility
3: Dispel Magic, Hold Person, Suggestion, Fly
4: Black Tentacles, Charm Monster, Confusion, Greater Invisibility
5: Dominate Person, Feeblemind, Hold Monster
6: Greater Dispel, Mass Suggestion
[/sblock]

 

[Archon Basileus]

EVERYONE

"You tell us what, why, when and how to stop it. We kill you quickly and bury you instead of feeding the brood."

Under the weight of Moss' threats, the male knight plunges his jousting lance against the greyed floor. The thing bends a little, but stands nonetheless. Next, he removes his helmet, and then his mask. His face shows, a darker tone in his skin than most drow's, a pair of red eyes crowned by ocelli, a grey-haired head and dark, curved fangs underneath his lips. He looks defeated, mildly humiliated and a bit resentful, but makes no quarrel. He's about to start talking, but one glance from the woman knight detours his speech. Instead, he bows his head, dismounts and addresses Alice.

"I have a duty and I made a promise. I'm not inclined to throw either away on a whim. And I like the sun. It's warm."

"So we both serve out of duty, maiden. A shame we found ourselves on opposite sides. But listen to our pleas, and you'll soon understand why the likes of us never had a chance amidst the surface-dwellers."

As for the woman, she simply glances over her shoulder as Daxio appears.

"There you are" - she mutters. "You must be a powerful spellweaver to elude even our artificers, human. I'm impressed." - she bends her head, still mounted and unwilling to let her weapons go.

"You tell us what, why, when and how to stop it. We kill you quickly and bury you instead of feeding the brood."

"We cannot lay down our weapons as easily. Duty binds us." - she addresses Moss, glancing at the small creature with pride in her posture.

"If you want reasons, ask the priestess. If you want to stop this, she's the one capable of doing so. We did not come to ransack these lands without justification. We'd never raid a land en-masse and you know it. We're only here because her lackeys stole our most sacred inscriptions, our Tome of the Dead, from us. You want to stop it. Fine. You speak of honor. Even better. Than give back what's ours and we shall leave." - she glances down towards the Dragon.

[Sorry about the color-leaping. I'm still trying to find the right one for the speech lines.]

@Neurotic @KahlessNestor @Shayuri @Charlotte of Oz @Kaodi @MetaVoid

 

[Kaodi]

OOC: Yes, I think I would avoid it. Sorry, Internet has had problems for a couple days. Anyway, even if a nightmare were able to take an AoO in the headspace Batknight is in I do not think he would care. All the sees now (that he notices) are the drow.

 

[Kaodi]

"I know the depravity of the drow too well," growls Batknight, barely restrained. "And while it is true that true invasions of the surface world have not been launched before, not in ages, there is no goodness to attribute it to - merely a lack of opportunity. And the 'chance' you speak of - merely a lack of imagination."

OOC: Do I know what this Tome of the Dead is?

 

[MetaVoid]

But that requires a Readied Action (normal counterspelling). Arcanists have a variant on countering that is an Immediate Action, which requires a spell slot one higher than the spell being countered. Daxio wasn't holding his action, so would have to use the variant, but doesn't have the requirements. (Teleportation is 5th level).

OOC: Yes, it does...unless your DM tells you you can do it.

"I am unwilling to accept the parley after being attacked suddenly, without warning under the condition favoring you so heavily. The only reason you seek parley is to delay us, confuse the issues and maybe gain the book peacefully for which you came with conquest in mind. This is far from whole scale invasion of the surface, but more than enough power was here that you would easily succeed without heroes here to thwart you." Arduniel speaks after careful deliberation.
"You are drow. Or thiefling. Or whatever you are. Lying is your nature. Would you willingly submit to truth magic?"

 

[Archon Basileus]

In this case, DM would have allowed, if only to test the reach of your skills. We'll get more stern with this in future fights, but this is pur opening act.