Five Against the Slavers

[Insight]

OOC: The combat continues...

[sblock=Initiative Order]
27 - Goblin Bowmen
25 - Ettins
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
10 - Ettins
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleavers
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]Grimgal and Jordi are continuing across the pond, perhaps one more rounds' worth of moves away from the shore. Billy and Zindra are at the base of the ridge, to the west of where Jordi and Grimgal are crossing. Keldok has moved up the ridge, advancing on a group of Goblin Bowmen. Billy has immobilized about half of the Bowmen. Goblin Skullcleavers, who were gathered near Dergrenche, the bandit leader, and his Ettin Bodyguards, have moved closer to our heroes. One Skullcleaver charged Zindra.[/sblock]

Seeing a massive half-orc scrambling towards them, the goblin archers retreated, firing their bows fairly ineffectively at their target. One arrow hit Keldok in the chestplate of his leather armor, causing the half-orc to flinch a bit. Other archers sent arrows flying towards the pair of heroes crossing the pond, but their arrows did not find a target.

Dergrenche, hearing the sounds of battle, took a few steps in that direction. "Get them, archers!" he yelled. The axe-wielding goblins looked to their leader, who flung his arm in the direction of the archers and, presumably, the enemy. "You, too!" As the axe-wielders ran towards the combat, Dergrenche, sword in hand, moved towards some tall shrubs. He nodded back to the pair of ettins otherwise motionless in response.

Zindra Sleekmoon stepped back from the golbin who charged her. As she did, the elf reloaded her magical longbow with a pair of arrows. She narrowed her focus and buried two arrows into the goblin. For his part, the axe-wielding goblin moved in and ineffectively swung his axe at the elf.

"I've got this one, Billy," Zindra said. "Help with the archers."

Up the ridge, Keldok the Bludgeoner stepped around the row of bushes and took a swing at a hapless goblin, crushing the little thing's skull with his mace.

Keldok, for his part, opened himself up to the enemy and quickly found himself surrounded. "The more, the merrier," he said. The half-orc quickly wished he hadn't been quite to cavalier. A pair of axe-wielding goblins closed in. One of goblins, apparently, more skilled with the battleaxe than the other, struck Keldok across the back, opening a serious wound.

Grimgal finished crossing the pond and got to the shore. He looked back at Jordi, who was still making his way across the body of water. "C'mon, ya lout," he said.

Billy Silvertongue, the gnome illusionist, stepped well away from Zindra's side. "Just need to find..." He spied a goblin archer between two trees. "Yes!" In his zeal, however, the gnome's bolt of arcane energy flew wide of the mark.

[sblock=Round Two]Goblin Bowmen (10): The 5 Bowmen not immobilized move 4 squares away from Keldok in order to use Great Position for extra damage. 4 of them fire their bows at Keldok and 1 hits Keldok for 6 damage. 1 mobile Bowman cannot see Keldok and so fires his bow at Jordi and misses. The slowed Bowman moves 2 squares away from the immobilized ones and fires his bow at Grimgal; he misses. The 4 immobilized Bowmen fire their bows at Jordi and Grimgal, diving their shots evenly. Due to the attack roll penalty Billy gave the immobilized Bowmen, their attacks all miss.
Ettins (2): Delay
Dergrenche: Move action to get behind cover. Readies Commander's Strike if an enemy moves within melee range.
Zindra: Move action to shift 1 square away from the Goblin Skullcleaver who charged her. Minor action to use Hunter's Quarry on it. She attacks it using Twin Strike and hits twice for a total of 18 damage. Because of her Predator's Hide Armor, Zindra has a +1 to all defenses against the Skullcleaver's attacks until the end of Zindra's next turn.
Keldok: Moves 5 squares, around some cover, to get closer to the immobilized Bowmen. In doing so, Keldok is no longer hidden and provokes an opportunity attack from 1 Bowman (who misses). Keldok attacks one of the Bowmen using a Melee Basic Attack (+2 Subtle Mace) and kills it. Down to 9 Bowmen left.
Grimgal: Effectively slowed while in the water. Double moves through the pond, moving 4 squares. He reaches the shore and is no longer slowed.
Ettins: Delay
Billy: Moves 4 squares so that the Goblin Bowman he is about to target no longer has cover from him. Billy uses Phantom Bolt against the Bowman and misses.
Jordi: Effectively slowed while in the water. Double moves through the pond, moving 4 squares. He is not quite out of the pond.
Goblin Skullcleavers (4): The Skullcleaver near Zindra shifts 1 square into melee range and attacks using his Battleaxe. He misses. 1 Skullcleaver near Keldok moves 6 squares to set up a flank with a Goblin Bowman against Keldok. He attacks using his Battleaxe and hits, doing 14 damage. Another Skullcleaver moves 5 squares to get into melee range with Keldok and attacks using his Battleaxe. He misses. The last Skullcleaver moves 3 squares to the edge of the ridge.[/sblock]

 

[Goonalan]

This is glorious, I hope you keep it up, I love this kind of thing- see my own miserable stat based efforts in my sig.

I will say that the yellow (I think) text is hard to read on the white/pale background- but that could be just my bad eyesight.

Again- fantastic, one of my favourite series of adventures, and a great (and different) story hour style- with enough info (so far) for others to see exactly what you've done as regards the conversion.

Love it.

Cheers Goonalan

PS It wont let me give you anymore XP, I'll be back.

 

[Insight]

OOC: The combat continues...

[sblock=Initiative Order]
27 - Goblin Bowmen
25 - Ettins
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
10 - Ettins
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleavers
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]: Jordi and Grimgal are about done crossing the pond. Billy has moved off by himself to get a better shot at some Goblin Bowmen. Keldok has been surrounded by some Bowmen and Skullcleavers. Zindra has a pesky Skullcleaver trying to engage her in melee. The Goblin Bowmen are pretty spread out. Dergrenche and the Ettins wait to see what comes up to them.[/sblock]

The goblin archers farthest away from their leader saw the gnome move into an easy position to target and let arrows fly. One of these arrows struck Billy, but caused little real injury. The archers next to Keldok drew short swords and paired up with the axe-wielding goblins to give the half-orc a major headache. Distracted by all of the swords and axes lunging at him, Keldok let out a growl. Despite this, one of goblins tagged Keldok quite squarely in the side, causing blood to spill.

At the sight of his own blood, Keldok drew upon his innate nastiness and, targeting a pair of goblins, swung his mace in quite a fury. The erstwhile archer stepped out of the fray, but Keldok struck the axe-wielder squarely in the chest. The axe-wielding goblin stumbled back a step or two, unsure what to do next.

But Keldok was quite wounded now. Zindra looked to the ridge and saw the dwarf cleric scrambling atop it. "Grim! Please, hurry!" Seeing that the dwarf was not going to arrive in time to help Keldok, Zindra sprinted closer to the half-orc and the enemies surrounding him. As she did, Zindra took her eyes off the goblin at her back and the axe-wielding enemy took the opportunity to slash the elf across the back. Zindra was unwilling to stop her advance. She drew a pair of magic arrows to her bowstring and, concentrating on the axe-wielders plaguing Keldok, struck both with well-placed shots. Zindra quickly reloaded and finished off one of the more-injured goblins. "Now, you owe me one, half-orc."

Grimgal, having finished climbing the face of the ridge, looked down at Jordi, who had just started his own climb. "Get on up here, Jordi!" The dwarf drew his mordenkrad and moved adjacent to a goblin archer who wasn't paying much attention.

But Grimgal didn't realize that a pair of ettins was coming for him. The two-headed giants sped forward and closed in on the cleric. Both ettins swung their massive clubs at Grimgal, who was able to sidestep one attack, but not the other. "It's gettin' serious up here!"

Hearing what was going on across the set of trees between himself and the rest of his allies, Billy Silvertongue laughed a bit. "Oh my. I guess I'd best stop fooling around with these louts and help the rather foolhardy half-orc." The illusionist turned his gaze to four goblin archers that had broken off from the rest of the gnome's enemies. He moved a bit closer and let loose with a gout of magical flame, which was enough to engulf the four archers.

Billy then turned to the forested part of the ridge, where Keldok had found himself surrounded. Billy engaged his illusion magic to confound the goblins near the wounded half-orc. The psychic onslaught was enough to overcome a pair of archers slashing at Keldok with their swords and confused the axe-wielding goblin near Keldok.

Jordi finished his own climb. He crossed the top of the ridge and, drawing his warhammer and adjusting his shield, moved next to an unsuspecting axe-wielding goblin.

Dergrenche, who until the point hadn't seen his enemy, smiled. He looked at Jordi. "And now, the main event!"

The axe-wielding goblin Zindra left behind took off after her. As the goblin neared, the elf turned and fired off an arrow, striking the advancing goblin.

[sblock=Round Three]Goblin Bowmen (9): 4 of the Bowmen move 4 squares to take advantage of their Great Position trait and fire their arrows at Billy. 1 of them hits Billy for 8 damage. 1 of the Bowmen adjacent to Keldok shifts 1 square to get into a flank with one of the Goblin Skullcleavers (now both Skullcleavers on Keldok are in flanks with 2 Bowmen). 1 Bowman near Keldok moves 4 squares back to get Great Position and fires an arrow at Keldok. He misses. The 2 Bowmen adjacent to Keldok attack with their shortswords and both hit for a total of 8 damage. Keldok is now bloodied. The two remaining Bowmen move 4 squares (for Great Position) and fire one shot each at Jordi and Grimgal. Grimgal is hit for 8 damage.
Ettins: Delay
Dergrenche: Readies Commander's Strike if an enemy moves to within melee range.
Zindra: Moves 5 squares, provoking an opportunity attack from the Goblin Skullcleaver adjacent to her at the start of the move. He hits Zindra for 14 damage. As a minor action, Zindra enters the Spitting Cobra Stance. She uses Biting Volley against the two Skullcleavers in melee with Keldok. She will use 2 Onslaught Arrows for this attack. Both attacks hit. Taking a gamble, she uses Elven Accuracy to re-roll one of the attacks and gets a critical hit instead! One of the Skullcleavers takes 7 damage and the crit does 22 damage to the other. The Onslaught Arrows give Zindra's allies a +1 bonus to attack rolls against these enemies. Zindra spends an action point and uses Two-Fanged Strike on the Skullcleaver she just critted. Both attack rolls hit and she does 39 damage, killing the Skullcleaver!
Keldok: Uses One-Two Punch on the Bowman and Skullcleaver that have him in a flank. He hits the Skullcleaver, but unfortunately, misses the Bowman, and so does not apply his Sneak Attack damage to them. He will also use Furious Assault against the Skullcleaver. He does a total of 20 damage and the Skullcleaver is bloodied and rattled. Keldok spends a move action to shift out of the flank.
Grimgal: Moves to the base of the ridge. This uses 2 squares of movement. He must now attempt an Athletics check to climb. It is fairly easy to climb (DC 15), and he easily succeeds. Moving up the face of the ridge uses up the rest of Grimgal's first move action, so he spends another (his standard action) to get to the top. He has 3 squares of movement left, so he moves adjacent to a Bowman.
Ettins: The Ettins see Grimgal climb over the ridge and use a move action to get closer to him. Because of their reach, both Ettins get close enough to make Club attacks against the dwarf. One hits Grimgal for 15 damage, making the dwarf bloodied.
Billy: Moves 3 squares closer to the Bowmen he's been targeting. He uses Burning Hands against all 4 of them, hitting 2 and critting 2. All 4 are very dead. 5 Bowmen left. Billy spends an action point to use Enemies Abound on a square that targets 2 Bowmen and 1 Skullcleaver adjacent to Keldok. It hits the Skullcleaver for 15 damage and Billy's allies treat the Skullcleaver as an ally for the purposes of flanking until the end of Billy's next turn. Both Bowmen are hit, killing them. Down to 3 Bowmen.
Jordi: Spends 2 squares of movement getting out of the pond and then moves adjacent to the ridge face. He makes an Athletics check (against DC 15) and succeeds. He finishes his climb adjacent to a Skullcleaver. He is also a 2 squares from Dergrenche.
Goblin Skullcleavers (3): The rattled Skullcleaver adjacent to Keldok attacks with his Battleaxe and hits for 12 damage. The one chasing Zindra around moves 2 squares to a space adjacent to the ranger and makes a melee attack, but misses. As a result of her Spitting Cobra Stance, Zindra gets to make an immediate ranged basic attack on the Skullsplitter and hits, doing 12 damage to him. The remaining Skullcleaver attacks Jordi and misses.[/sblock]

 

[Insight]

This is glorious, I hope you keep it up, I love this kind of thing- see my own miserable stat based efforts in my sig.

I will say that the yellow (I think) text is hard to read on the white/pale background- but that could be just my bad eyesight.

Again- fantastic, one of my favourite series of adventures, and a great (and different) story hour style- with enough info (so far) for others to see exactly what you've done as regards the conversion.

Love it.

Cheers Goonalan

PS It wont let me give you anymore XP, I'll be back.

Thanks for the support and the note about the yellow. I've changed the magic item color to "Sienna". I hope this is easier to read.

 

[Insight]

OOC: The combat continues...

[sblock=Initiative Order]
27 - Goblin Bowmen
25 - Ettins
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
10 - Ettins
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleavers
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]Keldok (bloodied), Grimgal, and Jordi are in the middle of a big mess of bad guys, including a pair of Ettin Bodyguards and the leader, Dergrenche. Billy is off by himself, away from any enemies. Zindra is about halfway up the ridge, close to the action. There are few Goblin Bowmen left and one of the Goblin Skullsplitters is down (and one is bloodied).[/sblock]

One of the goblin archers decided to harass Billy Silvertongue, firing an arrow at the wily gnome and hitting Billy with an arrow. The other archers, mostly dispersed, ineffectively attacked the heroes.

The two-headed giants continued their assault on Grimgal Ironhearted. One of their clubs smacked the dwarf across the face, sending Grimgal reeling.

"This isn't the best time of my life!", the dwarf said, wiping fresh blood out of his beard. He looked to Jordi. "Hey, hero! How's about a lil help over here?" The dwarf slammed his dwarven hammer into the nearby goblin archer, killing the pathetic creature. The attack, imbued with divine power, healed Keldok. "Yer welcome, half-orc!" Grimgal took a breath, saying a quiet prayer to Moradin. He suddenly felt quite better.

Unfortunately, the dwarf's feeling of safety was short-lived. One of the ettins drew close to the dwarf and smacked him over the head. "Owwww! Would ya lay off?"

Keldok swung his mace towards the goblin next to him, but intentionally missed. The move drew the goblin off-balance, allowing Keldok to smash the goblin across the face, flattening the creature on the ground, never to get up again.

Zindra looked to Keldok and Grimgal and back to the goblin pursuing her. Deciding that it was best to finish off the goblin nuisance, the elf turned and fired her bow, badly injuring the goblin, but not quite dropping the axe-wielder.

"Well now," Billy Silvertongue said as he spied the situation brewing atop the ridge. "Perhaps a little more illusory magic will help level the playing field." The gnome extended a hand towards the two-headed giants. "What's that over here? A great chasm! Oh no, my new friends! Don't fall in!"

The ettins stumbled a bit, arguing between themselves (and among themselves) before falling headlong onto the ground.

"I don't believe we have been properly introduced," Jordi said to Dergrenche. The warrior swung his shield into a goblin, knocking the axe-wielder off the ridge. The warrior surged into the nearby ettin, bashing it as it lay sprawled on the ground. Jordi stepped towards the bandit leader. "Don't worry. I've got something for you, too."

"You're no match for my superior tactical mind, human!"

Jordi lunged forward, smashing his magic shield into Dergrenche. The move caught the bandit leader off-balance.

"What... what is this?" Dergrenche said as he wobbled at the edge of the ridge. Jordi gave him a tap. The half-orc flew off the ridge and onto the silty ground below. Thud.

Jordi looked over the edge and started to climb down.

The goblin who'd been chasing Zindra around took another step toward the elf. For her part, Zindra snapped off an arrow at her pursuer, killing the goblin.

[sblock=Round Four]Goblin Bowmen (3): 2 Bowmen move 4 squares to gain Great Position. 1 is in melee with Grimgal and attacks the dwarf with a Short Sword, missing. The other Bowmen take aim at Billy and Jordi. Billy is hit for 9 damage.
Ettins: Both Ettins swing Clubs at Grimgal. 1 hits the dwarf for 16 damage.
Dergrenche: Moves 4 squares into a flank on Jordi (with a Skullcleaver). Uses Commander's Strike against Jordi, but misses.
Zindra: Shifts 1 square away from the Skullcleaver. As a minor action, she uses Hunter's Quarry on the Skullcleaver she just shifted away from. She then attacks him using Twin Strike. She hits twice, inflicting a total of 24 damage, causing the Skullcleaver to become bloodied.
Keldok: As a minor action, he uses Perfect Feint to gain combat advantage against the Skullcleaver adjacent to him. He attacks the Skullcleaver using Disheartening Strike and hits for 23 damage, killing the Skullcleaver! Down to 2 Skullcleavers remaining. He moves 1 square closer to Grimgal and adjacent to a Bowman.
Grimgal: Shifts 1 square towards Keldok and away from the Ettins but stays adjacent to the Bowman. He uses a minor action for Healing Word on himself, regaining 28 hit points (Surge Value + 14) and 2 temporary hit points. He attacks the Bowman using Healing Strike and hits, killing the Bowman. Down to 2 Bowmen left. More importantly, this allows Keldok, adjacent to both the Bowman and Grimgal, to spend a healing surge and add 7. Keldok regains a total of 20 hit points and he is no longer bloodied.
Ettins: 1 Ettin shifts 1 square closer to Grimgal. The other shifts 1 square closer to Jordi. Both attack the PCs with their Clubs. 1 Ettin hits Grimgal for 11 damage and the dwarf is bloodied again. The other Ettin misses Jordi.
Billy: Moves 4 squares to have a clear view of the Ettins. He uses Phantom Chasm on a square between the Ettins, targeting both of them. Both Ettins are hit with the spell and take 14 damage and are knocked prone and are immobilized until the end of Billy's next turn.
Jordi: Shifts 1 square to get out of the flank. He uses Shove and Slap against the Skullcleaver and inflicts 12 damage and the Skullcleaver is marked. In addition, Jordi can push the Skullcleaver 3 squares, right off the ridge! The Skullcleaver takes 7 falling damage and is prone at the base of the ridge. Shove and Slap allows for a secondary attack, which Jordi will use against the prone Ettin adjacent to him. This is a critical hit, which only does 8 damage. The Ettin, however, is dazed (save ends) and marked by Jordi. Because he hit with a power requiring a shield, Jordi now has a +1 bonus to AC and Reflex until the end of his next turn. Jordi spends an action point to use Armored Assault. He moves 1 square (the adjacent Ettin cannot make opportunity attacks at the moment) and attacks Dergrenche, hitting for 10 damage. Jordi is able to slide Dergrenche 2 squares, which throws the bandit leader off the ridge, inflicting another 1 damage. Dergrenche is prone at the base of the ridge and is marked by Jordi. The fighter can continue his movement (part of the power) and decides to use that climb down the ridge. This requires an Athletics check (DC 15), which is successful. Jordi climbs down to the base of the ridge.
Goblin Skullcleavers (2): The prone Skullcleaver at the base of the ridge spends a move action to stand. He then attacks Jordi with his Battleaxe and misses badly. The other Skullcleaver moves towards Zindra, triggering her stance to give her a ranged basic attack against the Skullcleaver. She hits with this attack and inflicts 19 damage, killing the goblin. Down to 1 Skullcleaver remaining.[/sblock]

 

[Insight]

OOC: The combat continues...

[sblock=Initiative Order]
27 - Goblin Bowmen
25 - Ettins
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
10 - Ettins
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleavers
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]Grimgal (bloodied), Keldok, and Zindra are near the top of the ridge, clustered rather closely together. Billy has moved closer to the rest of his companions, but is still off by himself. Jordi has climbed down the ridge face to deal with Dergrenche and one of the Skullcleavers, both of whom Jordi knocked off the ridge last round. Both Ettins remain, but, owing to Billy's illusions, they believe they've falled into a chasm and are prone and immobilized. One of them is also dazed.[/sblock]

The ettins, trapped in their illusory chasm, stood and staggered around. One of them managed to take a swing at Grimgal, but missed wide of the mark. "Me get dwarf," one of the giants' heads said. "No, you get dwarf!" its other head said.

Keldok walked up casually to one of the confused two-headed giants. Using his magic mace, the half-orc battered the giant, causing the lumbering oaf to slide itself between the half-orc and Grimgal, who was waiting in position. "Let's finish this stupid giant."

The dwarf, for once, agreed to cooperate with Keldok. Invoking divine power, Grimgal held his mordenkrad aloft for a moment and swung it against one of the giant's heads. The divine power shielded Keldok.

The ettin turned to the dwarf. "You go away!" He swatted the dwarf away, sending Grimgal over the ridge.

"Up to you now, half-orc!" the dwarf shouted from the base of the ridge.

The remaining goblin archers still pestered the gnome. They fired arrows at Billy, one of which hit and drew gnomish blood.

"Of all the --" Billy looked down at the arrow sticking from his chest. "Where is that healer, anyway?" Billy saw that the ettins were regaining clarity and decided to give Keldok a little help. He cast another illusion spell, creating the mental image that the ettin was fighting someone else. "More of a fair fight."

At the base of the ridge, Jordi continued to take on the bandit leader and the remaining axe-wielding goblin. "I'm afraid that your superior tactical mind has done little to impress me," he said to Dergrenche. The warrior shifted his shield into position and looked to both Dergrenche and the goblin. "Bring it on."

Dergrenche and his goblin ally swung their weapons with great skill, but could not penetrate Jordi's superior defenses. "Buck up, my goblin friend! This foolish human cannot stop us!"

[sblock=Round Five]Goblin Bowmen (2): Move 4 squares to gain Great Position. They fire arrows at Billy. 1 hits for 10 damage. Billy is now bloodied.
Ettins (2): Both Ettins spend move actions to stand. The one that is dazed does nothing else. The other attacks Grimgal with his Club and misses. The Ettin is no longer dazed.
Dergrenche: Spends a move action to stand. Uses Commander's Strike against Jordi and misses. He spends a minor action for Inspiring Word and heals the nearby Skullcleaver to full hit points.
Zindra: Uses a minor action to put her Hunter's Quarry on one of the Ettins. She attacks said Ettin using Twin Strike and both shots miss.
Keldok: Moves 3 squares adjacent to an Ettin. He attacks the Ettin using Duelist's Flurry. He hits the Ettin for 10 damage and slides the Ettin 1 square.
Grimgal: Shifts 1 square to get into a flank with Keldok on the Ettin that the half-orc just hit. Using Dwarven Reslience, Grimgal spends his Second Wind to regain 14 hit points and is no longer bloodied. Grimgal also gains a +2 bonus to his defenses from the Second Wind. He attacks both Ettins using Shield of the Gods. He hits both for 16 damage. Keldok gains a +3 shield bonus to AC and Reflex.
Ettins (2): The Ettin caught between Keldok and Grimgal uses Swat against Grimgal. This hits, pushing Grimgal 2 squares and off the ridge. Grimgal falls and takes 2 damage and is prone at the base of the ridge. The other Ettin is still immobilized and has no enemies in range of its attacks. At the end of their turns, the Ettins are no longer immobilized.
Billy: Moves 3 squares to get cover from the Bowmen who still pester him. He uses Phantasmal Assailant against the Ettin adjacent to Keldok. This hits the Ettin for 18 damage, making the Ettin bloodied. The Ettin is also taking ongoing 5 psychic damage and grants combat advantage to Billy's allies (save ends both).
Jordi: As a minor action, Jordi uses Shielded Sides. Until the end of Jordi's next turn, he does not grant combat advantage to enemies flanking him and gains a +2 power bonus to AC and Reflex. He attacks Dergrenche using Unexpected Shield Bash and hits for 20 damage. Dergrenche, the Skullcleaver, and both Ettins are marked by Jordi until the end of his next turn. As a free action, Jordi will also use Shield Slam against Dergrenche, but this misses.
Goblin Skullcleaver: Attacks Jordi with his Battleaxe and misses.[/sblock]

 

[Insight]

OOC: The combat continues...

[sblock=Initiative Order]
27 - Goblin Bowmen
25 - Ettins
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
10 - Ettins
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleavers
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]Jordi is at the base of the ridge, flanked by Dergrenche and the last Goblin Skullcleaver. Grimgal has been pushed off the ridge and is laying prone near Jordi. Billy, Keldok, and Zindra are near the top of the ridge and dealing with the remainder of the enemies.[/sblock]

Hearing sounds of movement from nearby in the bushes and overgrowth, Billy turned. "I don't think these are all of the bandits," he announced. "Be prepared for another wave."

Keldok and Zindra turned their attentions to the gnome. "I concur," the elf said. "Perhaps they will flee if their leader falls. Jordi?"

"Working on it," the warrior replied from afar.

The gnome, while somewhat faithful in the warrior's skill, did not want to wholly rely on Jordi. When the goblins again fired at Billy, and struck again, the gnome called upon his fey ancestry to vanish from sight. Billy invisibly scrambled away from the archers, trying to find Zindra. Along the way, Billy stopped for a moment to catch his breath.

The gnome was quite badly injured and perhaps about to drop unconscious from blood loss. "Oh, dear," the gnome said quietly to himself. "I might have an idea to buy some time." Billy used his illusion magic to make himself appear as one of the goblin archers.

Still invisible, Billy crept near Zindra. He spoke, quietly, in the Elven tongue. "Cousin," he said to Zindra.

The elf knew this as a "pet name" the gnome used to refer to elves. "Billy?" the elf said, looking around. "Where are you?"

The gnome appeared as a goblin carrying a bow. "Hello, cousin," he said.

The ettins, still stumbling in the throes of the illusory chasm, swung their weapons wildly at Keldok and Zindra. Neither struck true. The illusionary warrior threatening the ettins continued to harass them.

The elf maiden stepped back from the giant's wild swings and fired off a pair of arrows, hitting the giant once in one of its four eyes.

Keldok, taking advantage of the giant's momentary distraction, leaped into the air and struck the staggered giant square across one of its jaws, breaking it. The giant let out a great gasp before falling to the ground with a massive THUD.

At the base of the ridge, Jordi found himself between Dergrenche and the remaining axe-wielding goblin. Dergrenche shouted at his ally. "Now! Now is the time to strike!". In response, the goblin drove its axe-head deep into Jordi's exposed back.

"Now, that hurt!" Jordi yelped. The warrior turned to the goblin and swung his magical shield. The shield glowed at the moment of impact and sent the axe-wielder flying back towards Grimgal, who had just got to his feet. "Your turn!"

The dwarf reared back, mordenkrad in hand, and said a short prayer to Moradin. "Back to the Nine Hells with you, goblin!". Grimgal struck the goblin with a heady blow, sending the goblin nearly to the ground. The dwarf's target glowed with divine power for a moment.

Looking over the goblin, Grimgal remembered Billy complaining about healing. "Oh, yes, friend," he said. "I haven't forgotten you." Grimgal invoked his deity's power once again. He pictured Billy in his head and envisioned the gnome healing. "That will have to do for now."


[sblock=Round Six]Goblin Bowmen (2): The Bowmen continue to focus on Billy. Each moves 5 squares to gain Great Position and also obviate Billy's cover. Each fires their bow at the gnome and 1 hits for 8 damage. In response, Billy uses Fade Away and turns invisible.
Ettins: Each Ettin takes 5 psychic damage. Both Ettins are now bloodied. Both Ettins shift 1 square. The more injured Ettin is now adjacent to Zindra. 1 Ettin swings his Club at Keldok and misses. The other swings its Club at Zindra and misses. Neither Ettin saves against their ongoing damage and granting combat advantage conditions.
Dergrenche: Uses Commander's Strike against Jordi and hits. The Goblin Skullcleaver makes a Melee Basic Attack with a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls. The Skullcleaver crits Jordi, inflicting a total of 18 damage. As an immediate reaction, Jordi uses Shield Riposte and hits the Skullcleaver for 10 damage and, also using his Bashing Shield power, pushes the Skullcleaver a total of 4 squares adjacent to Grimgal. The Skullcleaver is also marked. Jordi then shifts 2 squares towards the goblin.
Zindra: Shifts back 1 square. She attacks the Ettin using Twin Strike. Zindra hits once, inflicting 11 damage on the Ettin.
Keldok: Shifts 1 square towards the Ettin Zindra hit and attacks using Disheartening Strike. Keldok hits and inflicts 30 damage, easily killing the Ettin!
Grimgal: Uses a move action to stand. He attacks the Goblin Skullcleaver using Strike of Judgment. He crits the Skullcleaver and inflicts a total of 40 damage. The Skullcleaver is now bloodied. If the Skullcleaver attacks one of Grimgal's allies before the end of the dwarf's next turn, one of Grimgal's allies within 5 squares regains 17 hit points. Grimgal spends his action point. From spending the action point, Grimgal's Hero's Finemail gives him a +2 to defenses until the end of his next turn. He uses Healer's Mercy, which allows Billy to spend a healing surge (+7). Billy regains a total of 18 hit points and is no longer bloodied. Grimgal is weakened until the end of his next turn.
Ettin: Shifts 1 square into melee range with Keldok. The Ettin attacks Keldok using his Club and barely misses.
Billy: Moves 5 squares. As a standard action, he uses his Second Wind to recover 11 hit points and gains a +2 bonus to his defenses until the start of his next turn. As a minor action, Billy uses Disguise Self to make himself look like a Goblin Bowman. Billy's Bluff check for this power is a total of 34 (creatures must make an Insight check with this DC to see that his is not a Goblin Bowman). At the end of his turn, Billy is no longer invisible.
Jordi: Charges Dergrenche using Threatening Rush and misses. Dergrenche is marked.
Goblin Skullcleaver: Attacks Grimgal using his Battleaxe. He misses. As a result, Keldok regains 17 hit points from Strike of Judgment.[/sblock]

 

[Insight]

OOC: The combat continues...

[sblock=Initiative Order]
27 - Goblin Bowmen
25 - Ettins
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
10 - Ettins
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleavers
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]Keldok, Zindra, and Billy are near each other at the top of the ridge. Nearby is the remaining Ettin. Two Bowmen lurk in the distance. At the base of the ridge, Jordi and Grimgal face off against the remaining Skullcleaver and the bandit leader, Dergrenche.[/sblock]

"Look, cousin," Billy whispered to Zindra. "These goblin archers are real pests. I'm going to see if I can get rid of them. And maybe save Revv and the wagons at the same time."

"Wait," Zindra replied. "What's the plan?"

"Who said I had a plan?"

Zindra smirked.

"Fine. My plan is to convince the goblins that their leader has ordered a retreat and to tell the others. I assume that there are more bandits than just these."

"There's a hole in your idea, gnome," Zindra said.

"I don't speak Goblin." Billy looked at the archer, who were closing in. "I know a few words. Let's give this a try."

Before Zindra could say anything else, and she had her hands full already, the gnome in the form of a goblin archer strode quickly towards the archers. He yelled the few words in the Goblin language that he knew, hoping to sway the archers not only to flee, but to tell the others that a retreat had been ordered and to hurry. Billy could only pray that this gambit would work.

Sure enough, the goblin archers turned to each other and fled into the woods. Billy could not tell if the goblins were heading towards other groups of bandits or not. In any event, they were gone and the ploy had worked.

Billy removed the illusion disguising him as a goblin archer and watched as the rest of the battle played out.

Nearby, the two-headed giant menacing Keldok and Zindra lurched forward. Still under the throes of Billy's spell, the ettin ineffectively swung its club at the half-orc and missed. Keldok jumped aside the creature and bounded behind it slightly, bashing the ettin in its side with a mighty hew of his mace. The ettin cried out with both mouths.

Keldok looked the Zindra. "We must end this before more bandits arrive," Keldok said. "You finish this thing." Keldok turned towards the edge of the ridge. Unfortunately for the half-orc, taking his attention off the ettin was a foolish maneuver and the two-headed giant hacked at Keldok, smashing him in the back.

His balance failing from the attack, Keldok took a dive off the ridge, bounding to the soft dirt below and adjacent to the pond. Keldok landed with a thud, but on his feet and near the bandit leader, Dergrenche.

The dwarf priest's mouth was slackened wide. "You are either brave or a fool, Keldok!"

Keldok turned towards the bandit leader. "I am injured, priest. Heal me, if you would. Then, we can finish this."

Grimgal grimaced. Keldok was possibly brave and a fool, but perhaps with Dergrenche down, defeating the rest of the bandits would be an easier proposition. In fact, they might just split and run. The dwarf surged forward, ignoring the axe-wielding goblin at his back. Grimgal uttered a prayer to Moradin and added something extra for healing the son of an orc. Grimgal took Keldok's wounds as his own, but the half-orc was fully healed in the process.

"Don't make me regret this, half-orc."

Jordi, the warrior, bashed at Dergrenche using his magical shield. This caused the bandit leader to step back, but caused no great harm. Seeing the half-orc jump down, Jordi smiled. He knew exactly what Keldok intended. The warrior repositioned himself, allowing for Keldok to move in.

"Your time is nigh, bandit!"

Atop the ridge, Zindra realized that the distance was short between herself and the two-headed giant. Everyone else was below - or, in Billy's case, had run off on an errand of questionable motive. The elf archer drew a magic arrow to her bowstring. The giant lurched forward, intent on ending the ranger's life. With determination, Zindra fired off her arrow, which transformed mid-flight into a bolt of lightning. The ettin was fried and fell, sliding across the ridge and ending a few feet from the elf.

"One less thing to worry about."

[sblock=Round Seven]Goblin Bowmen: One of the Bowmen moves 4 squares to gain Great Position and to get a shot at Keldok. The attack misses. The other, with no obvious target, double moves to set up a shot at either Zindra or Keldok next round.
Ettin: Takes 5 psychic damage at the start of his turn. Shifts 1 square towards Keldok and attacks using his Club. This misses. Fails saving throw versus Billy's effect and continues to grant combat advantage and take the ongoing psychic damage.
Dergrenche: Uses Stand the Fallen as an attack against Jordi. Hits, doing 24 damage. Jordi is bloodied. The Ettin and Skullcleaver regain 20 and 13 hit points, respectively. The Bowmen gain 7 temporary hit points.
Zindra: Uses Twin Strike to attack the Ettin and hits once for 11 damage.
Keldok: Attacks the Ettin using Blade Vault. This allows Keldok to shift 2 squares before the attack. He also gains Sneak Attack since the Ettin is granting combat advantage. Keldok hits for 23 damage. The Ettin is bloodied again. Keldok leaps from the ridge, provoking an opportunity attack from the Ettin. This crits for 16 damage. Keldok is now bloodied. Makes an Athletics check to clear 2 squares. He must also attempt an Acrobatics check to ignore the falling damage (it is only 2 squares, so he can do this untrained). This is successful. The DM awards Keldok with a bonus action point for his heroics. This must be spent during the encounter*.
Grimgal: Moves 3 squares, provoking an opportunity attack from the Skullcleaver. This misses. Grimgal uses Life Transference on Keldok. Grimgal takes 14 damage and is now bloodied. Keldok regains 35 hit points and is full up. Grimgal is no longer weakened.
Ettin: Moves 2 squares closer to Zindra, which gives Zindra a ranged basic attack from her Spitting Cobra Stance. She uses a +1 Lightning Arrow on the attack and hits for a total of 25 damage. This kills the Ettin.
Billy: Makes a Bluff check against the Bowmen. He gets a total of 34 (rolled a nat 20), which is easily enough to overcome the Goblins' passive Insight, plus any penalties applied to the attempt. He also moves 5 squares away from the combat to sell the Bluff attempt. The DM awards Billy with a bonus action point, which must be spent during this encounter (see below).
Jordi: Attacks Dergrenche using Resolute Shield. Hits for 16 damage. Dergrenche is bloodied and marked. Jordi gains resist 3 all until the end of his next turn. He moves 3 squares, which provokes an opportunity attack from Dergrenche. This hits Jordi for 6 damage. Jordi is now set up in a flank with Keldok on Dergrenche.
Goblin Skullcleaver: Shifts 1 square. Attacks Grimgal with his Battleaxe and misses.


* Note that this is a house rule that I use in my campaigns.[/sblock]

 

[Insight]

OOC: The combat concludes.

[sblock=Initiative Order]
17 - Dergrenche
14 - Zindra
11 - Keldok
10 - Grimgal
6 - Billy
6 - Jordi
6 - Goblin Skullcleaver
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Situation at Present]Jordi is flanking Dergrenche with Keldok. Grimgal is nearby. One Skullsplitter remains, just behind Grimgal. Zindra and Billy are atop the ridge with no enemies left.[/sblock]

The elf, Zindra, moved to the edge of the ridge. She wanted not only to get a better look at how things were going down at the base of the ridge, but also to lend a hand, if possible. Zindra drew a pair of magical arrows to her bowstring. As the bandit leader danced around between Jordi and Keldok, the elf took aim and when the time was right, Zindra let loose, sending the pair of magical arrows, become lightning bolts as they went, nailing Dergrenche twice in the chest. Zindra smiled.

"Things look pretty poor, bandit!" Jordi said as he moved to engage Dergrenche.

"It does not matter. I have a superior tactical mind that will not be outdone by the likes of you rabble." Dergenche, seeing Keldok closing in, took a swipe at the half-orc, grazing Keldok, but not stopping the half-orc's advance. "I will not surrender! Not the mighty Dergrenche!"

With a savage blow from his magical mace, Keldok pummeled Dergrenche, nearly sending the bandit leader to his knees. "I have a better idea," the half-orc said.

"When you have ideas, Keldok, people get hurt."

The half-orc stared intently into Dergrenche's eyes. Both were half-orcs and both knew the lineage that an orcish bloodline bore. "Do not surrender, brother. We will surely beat you down. We will surely kill you and all of your bandits. What legacy will you have then? No great warrior. No great leader. Just a tired fool. Is that what you want for your legacy? Is that how you honor your father? If so, hold still while I --"

As Keldok reared back to prepare for another beating, Dergrenche went to his knees. "You are right. It... cannot be, but perhaps I have been bested on the field of battle. I submit to you, fellow son of an orc. Leave me with my defeat and all that it brings."

Keldok looked to Jordi. The human warrior put a hand on Dergrenche's shoulder.

"You must call off the rest of your bandits. We protect a merchant and his wagons. They must not be attacked, here or on the way to Safeton. Will you agree to these terms?"

Grimgal walked up behind Keldok. "And tell us about other bandits in the area. We won't be ambushed again."

"Fair enough," Dergrenche said. I agree to your terms. You will not be harmed for the rest of your journey."

[sblock=Round Eight]Dergrenche: Uses Inspiring Word on himself to regain 32 hit points. He is no longer bloodied. He shifts 1 square to get out of the flank. This provokes a melee basic attack from Jordi (Combat Challenge), but Jordi misses. Dergrenche attacks Jordi using Bloody Ending, but this misses.
Zindra: Moves 7 squares around the ridge. Uses a minor action to put her Hunter's Quarry on Dergrenche. Attacks Dergrenche using Twin Strike and using two +1 Lightning Arrows in the process. Both shots hit, totalling 20 damage.
Keldok: Moves 2 squares to get back into a flank with Jordi on Dergrenche. This provokes an opportunity attack from Dergrenche, which he takes. Since Dergrenche is attacking someone other than Jordi, this also provokes an opportunity attack from Jordi (Combat Challenge). Jordi's attack will go first and this misses. Dergrenche now makes a melee basic attack against Keldok. This hits for 11 damage. Keldok, with combat advantage from the flank, attacks Dergrenche using Disheartening Strike, adding Sneak Attack. This hits for 28 damage. Dergrenche is bloodied and rattled. Keldok spends his bonus action point to make an Intimidate check against Dergrenche. DC will be Dergrenche's Will +10, which is 31. Keldok gets a 33, well enough to beat the DC. Dergrenche surrenders and calls off the rest of the bandits.

COMBAT ENDS

This also ends the skill challenge, "The Road to Safeton", as a success. This will provide the PCs with certain mechanical benefits in the following encounter.
[/sblock]

 

[Insight]

OOC: Whew. Eight rounds of combat. I decided to sblock the mechanical bits of the story. Check them out, if you wish, or they can be easily ignored. I hope this makes the posts a bit easier to digest. If you're curious about the PCs, I have created a Rogues' Gallery for this story hour. Check the link in my signature. Next up is another skill challenge, this one most likely without a combat.