Rotom was taken aback when she identified the attackers: Kobolds.
A rare sight inside of the city, and especially so for a member of the spell wielding Iejirastrix cast. Her mind paused for a moment trying to formulate a question...but then her partners acted. The violent impact of Liutbrand's arrow into the blood-seers' body derailed the kobold's lighting-rail of thought.
She needed to end the fight, quickly. Maybe these kobolds were simply misguided? That had to be it! The shifter doing the talking was obviously leading them on. Galvanized by her thoughts, Rotom uses the distraction provided by Ogham to take aim at the shifter, missing by just a hair.
With that, Rotom issued a warning in the draconic tongue: “Coal is coming with us. Regardless of what that one ordered you to do, it would not be a good idea to meddle further!”
Alara assessed the situation. For a moment, her fingers flexed with the beginnings of a spell, then she hesitated. Years in the cavalry had taught her that there was no magic more powerful than the timely arrival of allies.
"Get back to the bar!" She called to the others, running painfully back to the bar entrance. As she reached the door she profiled herself in it, not blocking it, but making sure to cut a dramatic silhouette.
"There's a gang out there trying to beat up 'Forged!" She shouted. "They're after Coal! They might try burning this place down next!"
OOC:
I'm assuming there are still some patrons and the barkeep, etc. on hand. I don't know if you'll allow a Persuade here, but she's not technically lying.
Lower Tavick’s Landing/High Walls/Cog Carnival
Far, 27 Rhaan, YK 998 (Early autumn)/1935 Weather: Temperature normal for the season (cool), no wind, light rain (outside the towers)
Round 1
Liutbrand charged into the middle of the street and pulled his bow out when he saw the enemies in the alley. Citizens screamed and ducked for cover when he knocked an arrow in his bow and fired into the alley at the kobold in the robes playing with fire. The arrow caught her in the chest, causing the fire to go out as she staggered back, blood quickly spreading on her robes as she clutched at the arrow, but she didn’t go down.
"Barkeep, where is the access to that alley?" DePoe asked.
Smelt pointed out the door of the bar. “It’s across the street,” she said. He could see where Coal, Ogham, Alara, and Rotem stood in the mouth of the alley, and Liutbrand had obviously fired his bow at someone in the alley. “Follow your friend,” she said, as Korra rushed out into the street, past Liutbrand, and caught up with the others in the mouth of the alley.
Rotom fired at the shifter as well, though her crossbow bolt missed as the creature struggled against the thorny vine that had grabbed him.
Alara ran back across the street to the bar, calling on the patrons and bartender for help.
"There's a gang out there trying to beat up 'Forged!" Alara shouted. "They're after Coal! They might try burning this place down next!"
Smelt, the bartender, looked around at her patrons. “Okay, shutter up, ‘forged,” she told them, pulling a club out from under the bar. Several patrons got up quickly to throw wooden shutters over the windows, or grabbed a large wooden bar for the door. Five of the patrons grabbed clubs or daggers and approached Alara.
“Where’s Coal?” one of the warforged asked.
OOC:
You have 5 Commoners to help you.
In the alley, Coal stepped up next to Ogham. An armblade slid out of his wrist, and he slashed at the shifter, slashing across his chest.
The shifter hissed in pain and snarled. His features changed, teeth and nails growing longer fur and hair sticking up, wounds closing slightly as he shifted. He snarled at Coal and attacked with a shortsword, though Coal parried with her armblade.
One of the kobolds hissed and slid up next to the shifter, stabbing a dagger into Coal’s thigh.
Another kobold stepped to the shifter’s other side and jabbed a dagger hard into Ogham’s side.
OOC:
Ogham takes 6 piercing damage.
Unable to find space in the melee, the third kobold pulled out his sling and shot at Coal.
Coal grunted as the bullet struck one of her cheek plates.
Clutching at the arrow in her chest, the robed kobold pulled it out, whimpering in pain. She cast a spell, and the wound closed almost fully. She tossed the arrow aside and glared at Liutbrand.
END ROUND 1
ROUND 2: PLAYERS ARE UP
[OOC=Encounter set up]
Rotom’s map is roughly accurate. Korra would actually be up with the back rank (or I guess right behind them, as it’s 15’ wide), and DePoe would be sort of “off the map” at the moment. Alley: Coal, Ogham, Rotom, and Korra face a shifter and four kobolds about 20’ away down the alley. We’ll say it’s 15’ wide. The shifter is 5’ away from Ogham and 10’ from the others. Enemies currently have +2 Cover because of your allies in the mouth of the alley in the way (and they’re kobolds), unless you’re in the front rank (though Ogham is now in the way, too.) Street: Liutbrand is 30’ away from the enemies, but has line of sight down the alley. Cog Carnival: DePoe, Alara, and 5 Commonders are back at the Cog Carnival. You are 60’ away from the alley (across the street). You can see the others at the entrance to the alley, but you’ll need to move at least 30’ to get line of sight down the alley to see the bad guys. Initiative: All players go first.[/OOC]
Ogham. 17 AC 15 HP 5/11 PP 15
Rotom. 8 AC 16 HP 10/10 PP 9
Korra 11 AC 18 HP 14/14 PP 13
Liutbrand 15 AC 14 HP 13/13 PP 15
DePoe 12 AC 14 HP 10/10 PP 11
Alara 19 AC 11 HP 9/9 PP 12
Coal 4 AC 14 HP 17/23 PP 14
Civilian 1 AC 10 HP 4/4 PP 10
Civilian 2 AC 10 HP 8/8 PP 10
Civilian 3 AC 10 HP 1/1 PP 10
Civilian 4 AC 10 HP 6/6 PP 10
Civilian 5 AC 10 HP 1/1 PP 10
Shifter 6 AC 14 (cover +2) HP 9+5 thp/23 PP 14
Kobold 1 5 AC 12 (cover +2) HP 5/5 PP 8
Kobold 2 5 AC 12 (cover +2) HP 7/7 PP 8
Kobold 3 5 AC 12 (cover +2) HP 2/2 PP 8
Kobold Acolyte 4 AC 10 (cover +2) HP 10/11 PP 12 2/3 slots
Liutbrand watched as the fire-wielding kobold healed a serious arrow wound with magic. "Wait, is that a..." Liutbrand remembered his youth, training as a druid, and the few friends he had at the circle "Damn it. Focus!" he let loose another arrow at the enemy spellcaster.
Depoe will move out of the bar, following Korra as the barkeep suggested and doing his best to keep in the shadows so that whoever is out in the alley wont see him.
First one kobold lit on fire, then another fell from an arrow. The smell alone would have caused Rotom's stomach to sink, but the angry mob at her back wouldn't allow her to time to process the events. Brandishing her dagger, she rushed the front line. The kobold prayed she wouldn't be mistaken for one of the gang, as she did her best to take one of them alive before the others took their pounds of flesh.
Fortunately, Rotom was as strong as a human, which was remarkable for a kobold, and leveraged that strength to her advantage as she slammed the dagger's hilt into the other kobold's chest, knocking it out. “We are taking that one for questioning!” She shouted to the impromptu militia behind her, hopefully it would be enough to convince them.
Ogham reacts on a soldier's instinct when the dagger pierces his side, and his trusted mace sweeps at the attacking kobold. It connects, but not as solidly as he would've liked; the attacker was a good deal shorter than his instinct seemed to think.
"Back off," he warns those of the shifter and kobolds that still fight, realizing they are outnumbered.
Lower Tavick’s Landing/High Walls/Cog Carnival
Far, 27 Rhaan, YK 998 (Early autumn)/1935 Weather: Temperature normal for the season (cool), no wind, light rain (outside the towers)
Round 2
Liutbrand followed with another arrow at the kobold that had healed herself, this time taking her in the eye, and she fell back, unmoving.
Korra rushed the shifter, her battle axe taking the man across the chest, causing him to stagger back, bleeding, but still standing.
Alara rushed back with five warforged civilians armed with clubs and daggers behind her. She joined Liutbrand in the middle of the street and urged the warforged forward to the alley as she sent a fire bolt into one of the kobolds, leaving it smoking on the floor of the alley.
OOC:
It’s 60’ from the Cog to the head of the alley, so Alara would have to Dash to get back, so she wouldn’t have been able to cast her fire bolt. I’ll put her back 30’ by Liutbrand so she can still fire. And the commoners won’t be able to attack this round for the same reason.
DePoe joined them as well, though he disappeared from sight.
Rotom rushed in and knocked one of the kobolds unconscious.
Coal swung her armblade at the shifter, but with preternatural swiftness, the feral man leaned back, letting it pass over him completely.
The shifter swung his shortsword in a wide arc, driving Ogham and Korra back as he disengaged from the fight and ran off down the alley, disappearing into the crowd.
The last kobold hissed as the shifter ran off, but he stabbed one last time at Coal, who parried it easily.
END ROUND 2; BEGIN ROUND 3
ALL PLAYERS ARE UP! ONE KOBOLD LEFT FIGHTING, ONE UNCONSIOUS
[OOC=Encounter set up] Alley: Coal, Ogham, Rotom, Korra, DePoe, and 5 commoners face one kobold. We’ll say the alley is 15’ wide. Enemies currently have +2 Cover because of your allies in the mouth of the alley in the way (and they’re kobolds), unless you’re in the front rank (though Ogham is now in the way, too.) Street: Liutbrand and Alara are 30’ away from the alley/enemies, but have line of sight down the alley.[/OOC]
Ogham. 17 AC 15 HP 5/11 PP 15
Rotom. 8 AC 16 HP 10/10 PP 9
Korra 11 AC 18 HP 14/14 PP 13
Liutbrand 15 AC 14 HP 13/13 PP 15
DePoe 12 AC 14 HP 10/10 PP 11
Alara 19 AC 11 HP 9/9 PP 12
Coal 4 AC 14 HP 17/23 PP 14
Civilian 1 AC 10 HP 4/4 PP 10
Civilian 2 AC 10 HP 8/8 PP 10
Civilian 3 AC 10 HP 1/1 PP 10
Civilian 4 AC 10 HP 6/6 PP 10
Civilian 5 AC 10 HP 1/1 PP 10
Shifter 6 AC 14 (cover +2) HP 5/23 PP 14 FLED
Kobold 1 5 AC 12 (cover +2) HP 5/5 PP 8 UNCONSCIOUS
Kobold 2 5 AC 12 (cover +2) HP 4/7 PP 8
Kobold 3 5 AC 12 (cover +2) HP 2/2 PP 8 DEAD
Kobold Acolyte 4 AC 10 (cover +2) HP 0/11 PP 12 2/3 slots DEAD
