Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Cassael's Lament - An Eberron Story (Updated 5/1)
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Anti-Sean" data-source="post: 2534304" data-attributes="member: 11797"><p>Autumn threw his arms up to the heavens. "What is it with this city? Is <em>everyone</em> here obsessed with papers and packages? You are all mad! And I would like you all to leave me alone before you drive me mad as well!"</p><p></p><p> The human at the head of the shifty looking group stared back at the warforged as he warned the half-orc in a cold, even tone. "Gorm, you might want to let your friend here know that I <em>don't</em> ask twice. And neither do my employers."</p><p></p><p> Gorm spread his hands wide, grinning obsequiously in an effort to ease the tension. "Look, Halvar, I'm just trying to do my job here. I've got wives and a kid to feed. Or maybe it's the other way around, I can never remember. Anyways, do you really want to get in Bron's way? If you interfere here, there's going to be all sorts of unpleasant repercussions for all of us to suffer through."</p><p></p><p> Halvar drew a shortsword from its scabbard; his companions reached for their weapons, following his lead. "The way I see it, Gorm, you're the only one who'll be suffering. I was going to just take the package and be done with you, but now you're going to have to pay for wasting my time as well." He punctuated his speech with short stabbing motions of his sword in Autumn's direction. Kiva's ears folded back against her head as she bared her teeth and growled menacingly.</p><p></p><p> Autumn's fist connected with Halvar's wrist in a wide backhanded swipe, sending his sword spinning end over end down the alley. The warforged pressed forward, slamming his other fist into Halvar's face while kicking through his kneecap with a sickening crunch. As Halvar fell to the ground, Autumn adressed the rest of the group before him. "You may leave now, or stay and join him. The choice is yours!" Halvar's men looked at each other for a moment, and then three of them charged forward screaming a battle cry while the two in the rear aimed their crossbows. Two rushed past Autumn towards the half-orc while the other one closed with the warforged. Autumn batted aside a crossbow bolt with one hand and blocked the warrior's clumsy attack with the other. He grabbed the human's head in both hands, lifting him seveal inches from the ground. He twisted the humans neck roughly to the side until he heard a popping sound, then dropped him and rushed forward to stop the crossbowmen, grunting as a crossbow bolt pierced his chest.</p><p> </p><p> Gorm's shortsword danced and weaved in front of him, parrying the slashes and thrusts of his two foes as best he could as they maneuvered for position. Before they could outflank him, his free hand began tracing a complex pattern in the air as he uttered potent, forgotten words of arcane might. One of the warriors opened two brutal gashes across Gorm's swordarm while he focused on completing the spell, grimacing in pain. His other foe's sword quickly became covered in a viscous grease, slipping from his hand to clatter upon the cobblestones. While he stood there dumbfounded, Gorm lowered his own guard, and thrust his sword deep into the unarmed warrior's belly. Seizing the opportunity, his other opponent reared back for a killing blow before Gorm could recover.</p><p> </p><p> It was the last thing he ever did.</p><p> </p><p> Kiva joined the fray, leaping at Gorm's assailant and knocking him onto his back. He screamed, kicking and flailing in a blind panic as she savaged his arms and face. Kiva's jaws clamped down around his throat, cutting his screams off at their source as she pulled her head back with a hideous tearing sound. Wet, gurgling noises issued forth from the bloody, oozing mess where his trachea was a moment before, trailing into silence as Kiva bounded off in Autumn's direction.</p><p> </p><p> Autumn unstrapped his quarterstaff from his backpack as he ran, reaching the first crossbowman as he was struggling to reload. In one fluid motion, he swung the staff out in front of him with one hand, knocking the crossbow from his targets hands, grasped the staff with both hands on the return arc, and brought it down and across with enough force to take his opponent's legs out from under him. Moving in closer, he reversed his grip on the staff and brought its end down on the prone warrior's face, cracking his skull open. The last of Halvar's allies dropped his crossbow and ran, but Kiva caught up to him with little effort. Autumn stalked towards the last remaining foe and helped Kiva finish him off quickly.</p><p> </p><p> The warforged surveyed the aftermath of the battle, noticing the wounds on Gorm's arm. "You are hurt. Here, let me see that." He spoke a quiet prayer, then grasped the half-orc's arm in his large hands. As Autumn pulled his hands away, Gorm saw that the wounds had disappeared, leaving only a warm sensation as if he had been laying out in the summer sun. He rubbed his arm, peering at the warforged as if he were deciding how to piece together a puzzle.</p><p> </p><p> "You really don't have the package, do you?"</p><p> </p><p> "No."</p><p> </p><p> "I'm sorry about all that. To be honest, you warforged can be tough to tell apart sometimes. Like I said before we were so rudely interrupted, you stand out a bit, so I assumed you were my contact. I should have known better, any contact worthy of the job should have been able to blend in. What was your name again?"</p><p> </p><p> "My name is Autumn. This is Kiva. You are called Gorm?"</p><p> </p><p> "Oh, right...about that... Since I didn't get the package, my contact either got lost or was waylaid or double-crossed us. Whatever the case may be, Bron is going to be more than a little angry. I think it's time for Gorm to lay low for a little while." The half-orc shivered for a moment, and his eyes went a solid grey as his features began to blur and shift, his body shrinking in size and stature. He lost about a foot in overall height, shifting from the stocky frame of a half-orc to a more slender form, details lost under the folds of his now oversized clothes. The patchy tufts of half-orc hair grew longer and thicker, smoothing out into red shoulder-length locks. The rough, pock-marked face of Gorm gave way to that of a pleasant looking human woman. She spoke a quick word of magic, and the half-orc's bulky outfit resized itself and changed into a modest tunic, vest, breeches and boots much more apporpriate for the human's frame. As the change completed, the irises of her eyes came back into view, shaded in a green similar to Autumn's eyes.</p><p> </p><p> The human woman now standing before him offered her hand to Autumn in greeting. The warforged took the change in appearance in stride, shaking her hand quickly and firmly. "Pleased to meet you two - my name is Niv. By the way, I take back what I said about the wo...I mean, Kiva, being harmless. Remind me not to get between her and a meal! So this is your first time in Sharn, I take it?"</p><p> </p><p> Autumn nodded. "Yes it is."</p><p> </p><p> "Well, you've been here for less than half an hour, and you've already commited multiple murders. I think you'll fit right in here! Where are you headed?"</p><p> </p><p> "I'm not sure where yet. Do you think we should report this to the authorities? They will probably... why are you laughing?"</p><p> </p><p> "I'm sorry, that was a good - Sovereigns, you're <em>serious</em>?" Niv laughed louder, doubling over for a few moments. After regaining her composure, she continued. "I'm sure they'll find our friends here sooner or later. I doubt the watch will care enough to investigate the death of a pack of thieves like Halvar. It's probably not a bad idea to clean ourselves up a bit, though." She whispered a few arcane words, and then pointed at herself, Autumn and Kiva. The blood and gore spattered across each of them vanished. "Might as well help myself to Halvar's coin while I'm at it." She looked up at the warforged after looting the corpse, pointing to the crossbow bolt still stuck in his chest. "Hey, you're hurt!"</p><p> </p><p> Autumn looked down at the protruding bolt. "Oh, I had forgotten about that!" One hand closed around the bolt and twisted, snapping it off and leaving the head stuck inside. "I can fix that up a bit later."</p><p> </p><p> Niv stood up and crossed her arms, pausing for a moment before making her sales pitch. "Well, if you're going to be here in Sharn for a while, you'll probably need a guide. Seeing as how I just lost my job, I can offer you my services, if you'd like."</p><p> </p><p> The warforged looked around, trying to make sense of the chaotic jumble of streets and people as he pondered Niv's offer. "We are a bit out of our element. How much do you charge?"</p><p> </p><p> "Oh, I'm <em>very</em> expensive, but worth every crown! We can negotiate a price later," she smiled broadly, "after you buy me a meal and a drink! Follow me, I know just the place!"</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Anti-Sean, post: 2534304, member: 11797"] Autumn threw his arms up to the heavens. "What is it with this city? Is [I]everyone[/I] here obsessed with papers and packages? You are all mad! And I would like you all to leave me alone before you drive me mad as well!" The human at the head of the shifty looking group stared back at the warforged as he warned the half-orc in a cold, even tone. "Gorm, you might want to let your friend here know that I [I]don't[/I] ask twice. And neither do my employers." Gorm spread his hands wide, grinning obsequiously in an effort to ease the tension. "Look, Halvar, I'm just trying to do my job here. I've got wives and a kid to feed. Or maybe it's the other way around, I can never remember. Anyways, do you really want to get in Bron's way? If you interfere here, there's going to be all sorts of unpleasant repercussions for all of us to suffer through." Halvar drew a shortsword from its scabbard; his companions reached for their weapons, following his lead. "The way I see it, Gorm, you're the only one who'll be suffering. I was going to just take the package and be done with you, but now you're going to have to pay for wasting my time as well." He punctuated his speech with short stabbing motions of his sword in Autumn's direction. Kiva's ears folded back against her head as she bared her teeth and growled menacingly. Autumn's fist connected with Halvar's wrist in a wide backhanded swipe, sending his sword spinning end over end down the alley. The warforged pressed forward, slamming his other fist into Halvar's face while kicking through his kneecap with a sickening crunch. As Halvar fell to the ground, Autumn adressed the rest of the group before him. "You may leave now, or stay and join him. The choice is yours!" Halvar's men looked at each other for a moment, and then three of them charged forward screaming a battle cry while the two in the rear aimed their crossbows. Two rushed past Autumn towards the half-orc while the other one closed with the warforged. Autumn batted aside a crossbow bolt with one hand and blocked the warrior's clumsy attack with the other. He grabbed the human's head in both hands, lifting him seveal inches from the ground. He twisted the humans neck roughly to the side until he heard a popping sound, then dropped him and rushed forward to stop the crossbowmen, grunting as a crossbow bolt pierced his chest. Gorm's shortsword danced and weaved in front of him, parrying the slashes and thrusts of his two foes as best he could as they maneuvered for position. Before they could outflank him, his free hand began tracing a complex pattern in the air as he uttered potent, forgotten words of arcane might. One of the warriors opened two brutal gashes across Gorm's swordarm while he focused on completing the spell, grimacing in pain. His other foe's sword quickly became covered in a viscous grease, slipping from his hand to clatter upon the cobblestones. While he stood there dumbfounded, Gorm lowered his own guard, and thrust his sword deep into the unarmed warrior's belly. Seizing the opportunity, his other opponent reared back for a killing blow before Gorm could recover. It was the last thing he ever did. Kiva joined the fray, leaping at Gorm's assailant and knocking him onto his back. He screamed, kicking and flailing in a blind panic as she savaged his arms and face. Kiva's jaws clamped down around his throat, cutting his screams off at their source as she pulled her head back with a hideous tearing sound. Wet, gurgling noises issued forth from the bloody, oozing mess where his trachea was a moment before, trailing into silence as Kiva bounded off in Autumn's direction. Autumn unstrapped his quarterstaff from his backpack as he ran, reaching the first crossbowman as he was struggling to reload. In one fluid motion, he swung the staff out in front of him with one hand, knocking the crossbow from his targets hands, grasped the staff with both hands on the return arc, and brought it down and across with enough force to take his opponent's legs out from under him. Moving in closer, he reversed his grip on the staff and brought its end down on the prone warrior's face, cracking his skull open. The last of Halvar's allies dropped his crossbow and ran, but Kiva caught up to him with little effort. Autumn stalked towards the last remaining foe and helped Kiva finish him off quickly. The warforged surveyed the aftermath of the battle, noticing the wounds on Gorm's arm. "You are hurt. Here, let me see that." He spoke a quiet prayer, then grasped the half-orc's arm in his large hands. As Autumn pulled his hands away, Gorm saw that the wounds had disappeared, leaving only a warm sensation as if he had been laying out in the summer sun. He rubbed his arm, peering at the warforged as if he were deciding how to piece together a puzzle. "You really don't have the package, do you?" "No." "I'm sorry about all that. To be honest, you warforged can be tough to tell apart sometimes. Like I said before we were so rudely interrupted, you stand out a bit, so I assumed you were my contact. I should have known better, any contact worthy of the job should have been able to blend in. What was your name again?" "My name is Autumn. This is Kiva. You are called Gorm?" "Oh, right...about that... Since I didn't get the package, my contact either got lost or was waylaid or double-crossed us. Whatever the case may be, Bron is going to be more than a little angry. I think it's time for Gorm to lay low for a little while." The half-orc shivered for a moment, and his eyes went a solid grey as his features began to blur and shift, his body shrinking in size and stature. He lost about a foot in overall height, shifting from the stocky frame of a half-orc to a more slender form, details lost under the folds of his now oversized clothes. The patchy tufts of half-orc hair grew longer and thicker, smoothing out into red shoulder-length locks. The rough, pock-marked face of Gorm gave way to that of a pleasant looking human woman. She spoke a quick word of magic, and the half-orc's bulky outfit resized itself and changed into a modest tunic, vest, breeches and boots much more apporpriate for the human's frame. As the change completed, the irises of her eyes came back into view, shaded in a green similar to Autumn's eyes. The human woman now standing before him offered her hand to Autumn in greeting. The warforged took the change in appearance in stride, shaking her hand quickly and firmly. "Pleased to meet you two - my name is Niv. By the way, I take back what I said about the wo...I mean, Kiva, being harmless. Remind me not to get between her and a meal! So this is your first time in Sharn, I take it?" Autumn nodded. "Yes it is." "Well, you've been here for less than half an hour, and you've already commited multiple murders. I think you'll fit right in here! Where are you headed?" "I'm not sure where yet. Do you think we should report this to the authorities? They will probably... why are you laughing?" "I'm sorry, that was a good - Sovereigns, you're [I]serious[/I]?" Niv laughed louder, doubling over for a few moments. After regaining her composure, she continued. "I'm sure they'll find our friends here sooner or later. I doubt the watch will care enough to investigate the death of a pack of thieves like Halvar. It's probably not a bad idea to clean ourselves up a bit, though." She whispered a few arcane words, and then pointed at herself, Autumn and Kiva. The blood and gore spattered across each of them vanished. "Might as well help myself to Halvar's coin while I'm at it." She looked up at the warforged after looting the corpse, pointing to the crossbow bolt still stuck in his chest. "Hey, you're hurt!" Autumn looked down at the protruding bolt. "Oh, I had forgotten about that!" One hand closed around the bolt and twisted, snapping it off and leaving the head stuck inside. "I can fix that up a bit later." Niv stood up and crossed her arms, pausing for a moment before making her sales pitch. "Well, if you're going to be here in Sharn for a while, you'll probably need a guide. Seeing as how I just lost my job, I can offer you my services, if you'd like." The warforged looked around, trying to make sense of the chaotic jumble of streets and people as he pondered Niv's offer. "We are a bit out of our element. How much do you charge?" "Oh, I'm [I]very[/I] expensive, but worth every crown! We can negotiate a price later," she smiled broadly, "after you buy me a meal and a drink! Follow me, I know just the place!" [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
Cassael's Lament - An Eberron Story (Updated 5/1)
Top