(Casual D&D IV) A Knight for a Pawn

Oliver staggers under the bolt and drops the bow that Nurthk had obligingly thrown. His momentum down the hill increases... the screeching of the birds, and the roar of the surf... Vesper's agonized wailing... He takes two steps...

...and his vision dims and hearing dampens as the blow connects. The sand is hot and dry. It knocks the breath out of him. He rolls, groaning onto, his side and spits blood and shards of teeth. No more. He couldn't take any more. The narrow chested young man balls his fists and stands, shaking. It is a mistake... a fatal one... to think this shaking is fear. His jaws muscles bunch tight and jagged teeth made further ruin of his mouth. He crouches, takes two steps and...​

...leaps! His arms pinwheel as he flies through the air toward the arrowhawk, a guttural growl escaping his lips. He imagines the feel of the feathers in his hands, the heat of blood flowing over them as he stabs.


OOC:
A variety of rolls, use as needed:

Jump check, 16 - 1 = 15 (Ironically, I don't have Oliver's sheet to get his ranks in Jump... so we will hang in suspense WITH him until I can get his stats. I'm almost 100% positive he has a synergy bonus to Tumble from his ranks in Jump - and vice versa - so at the very least he has +7, but we'll see...)

Grapple, 19 + (BAB?) +4 = 23

Attack/Damage, 17/4 (19/4 if it is the only attack he can make)
Attack/Damage, 13/2

Raven continues his barrage of arrows, trying to take the fierce winds into account.

(OOC : aiming at the big bird. Wind penalties substracted from result.

Attack: 27 dmg 9, 15 dmg 11, 23 dmg 11 (invisiblecastle jammed) )

Cylantro : Female Human

Cylantro ponders her next attack. She is out of magical missiles, fire did little, they shoot lightning so they are no doubt resilient to that as well. Magic missiles seem to be the best course of action and the more the better. She quickly pulls out a walnut wand and aims it at the same arrowhawk. She speaks a word aloud, "Cayenne!", and three glowing missiles fly toward the creature.

OOC: Wand of Magic Missile level 5; range 150 ft, 3d4+3 damage (10)

Xiao Yu, male human monk

"Chop! Chop! Rock is drop," Xiao chants happily. He looks around for the next rock monster, and is somewhat disappointed to find them all gone. With a sigh he assesses the situation with regard to the others. Oliver and the horses seem like the next thing to do.

Keeping a weather eye on the flying things, Xiao moves down towards the horses. Should any of the birds attack, he uses the rocks as cover. Unless they get close enough for him to to hit back. Then its Chop! Chop! time.

Without anyone needing his attention Nurthk's hands were free to focus on archery. He lined up the one he had injured previously, and tried to take it down before the wind became too difficult to shoot through.

[attack: 25, damage: 2
attack: 15, damage: 6

Hiritus sees the arrowhawk (#5) fall. Hoping Fendric is firmly behind him, the paladin winces as the electricity courses through him. The paladin deploys his own healing (lay on hands for 10hp), and continues to protect Fendric with the horse. While staring at the large arrowhawk, he has an idea, and relays it to his comrades at the top of his voice so as to be heard:

"Everyone! If you can't fight, get under the bird!"

Fendric, thinking that that would indeed, be a good idea, plans his dash for the protection of the bird carcass. But before doing so, he chastises himself for not thinking of this earlier, then grips his holy symbol and reaches out to Hiritus.

[Fendric: casts Resist Energy (electricity) on Hiritus. Hiritus now ignores the first ten points of electrical damage each round for the next hour and ten minutes.]

Round 7

Raven handles the wind well, with only the second of his three arrows being pulled off target. The large bird bears the injury without much visible trouble, although it has clearly become quite worn-down by the onslaught.

Tatlock's sling, however, remains ineffective.

Only the first of Nurthk's two arrows connects with its target (#3), and even then it is only a glancing blow, knocking away a few feathers but little else.

Oliver makes a running jump for the bird he feels he can reach, but the creature rolls deftly away from his fingers. He finds himself, then, falling down toward the base of the slope, on course for a rough collision with its surface. (Oliver: 6 nonlethal + 5 lethal damage; Tumble DC 17 negates the latter damage.)

Back up the cliffside, Cylantro's magic missile connects once more with the arrowhawk she battles. (#2) It lets out a loud shriek, wavers for a moment, appearing almost ready to fall, then rights itself in the air.

Hiritus moves a hand to heal himself. (Hiritus: +10 hp)

Seeing the paladin's hands occupied, however, prompts the larger arrowhawk hovering near him to strike with more audacity. It swoops down and bites at Pelor's champion, then deftly swerves in the air and pulls itself up to a position a few more feet away. (Hiritus: Attack 30, Damage 21.) (Note: No AoO due to Flyby Attack.)

The second arrowhawk remains engaged with Cylantro, firing down another bolt at the spellcaster. (Cylantro: Attack 17 touch, Damage 13)

The last, who evaded Oliver's leaping plunge, pulls away from the cliff face a few feet, lest another should try the idea. It fires down at the old lutist, crying with contempt. (Oliver: Attack 24 touch, Damage 4)

Xiao begins his careful-footed jog down the slope; Fendric, meanwhile, casts his protective spell upon Hiritus, then pulls himself beneath the fallen arrowhawk for cover.

By this time, the wind has picked up substantially. (-4 penalty on attacks with missile weapons.) The approaching bowmen slow their stride just a little as they come to a distance of around 120 feet, readying their weapons (angled toward the birds, you'll be pleased to note) to get in a few shots before the building winds make it impossible.

In the cold flow of the air, you can feel the first few droplets of moisture coming down from those ever-darkening clouds.

Round 8
24 Raven
23 Tatlock
22 Nurthk
21 Oliver
20 Cylantro
17 Hiritus
12 Arrowhawks
5 Xiao
3 Fendric

Nurthk grumbles and mutters various obscenities as he continues firing, thoroughly aggravated by the rising winds.

Roll results withheld, definitely misses.

An exceptionally loud item of coarse language rises above the volume of the whipping winds for a moment as the only thing which struck Nurthk's target was his dagger-filled glare.

Cylantro : Female Human

Cylantro feels a bit faint, now. She knows she must take down the arrowhawk, NOW. She aims her walnut wand at the same arrowhawk, speaks the word aloud, "Cayenne!", and three more glowing missiles fly toward the creature. Then she places the back of her left hand to her forehead, gasps "Oooohh!", crumpling to the ground as she faints on the spot. Her own actions possibly dooming her.

OOC: Wand of Magic Missile level 5; range 150 ft, 3d4+3 damage (9); she was at 0 hit points; she performed a standard action which drops her to -1 and unconsciousness; next round starts the stablization rolls...

Xiao Yu, male human monk.

--- Round 7 ---

Xiao continues down towards Oliver, concerned that the old man has done himself an injury. Once there, he will do his best to help Oliver. But unless something comes within melee range, thats not much. Except perhaps to protect his companions back while Oliver attends to the horses. Xiao snatches up a fist sized rock.

"Is Oliver all right?"

Xiao glances down at the horses. It doesn't look good, but Xiao has no ability in healing. Xiao glances at Oliver.

"Do they survive?"