Hairy Minotaur
Explorer
Jon Potter said:
I vote neither. No wait both. No, I vote whichever is closest to me is the worst.
-
NOW LIVE! Into the Woods--new character species, eerie monsters, and haunting villains to populate the woodlands of your D&D games.
The Realms of Enlightenment: The Grey Companions
- Thread starter Jon Potter
- Start date
I vote neither. No wait both. No, I vote whichever is closest to me is the worst.
Jon Potter
First Post
Hairy Minotaur said:I vote neither. No wait both. No, I vote whichever is closest to me is the worst.
That's the correct answer!
Actually, the creature lovingly named 'the maggot pillow' by the players is probably the better of the two critters to face. It's certainly grosser, but its main attack - an envelop attack that subjects the victim to some pretty nasty flesh-rending damage - isn't nearly as exciting in practice as it seemed on paper. The attack requires a successful grapple attack and the thing doesn't have the Improved Grab feat. So it was basically: move in to start a grapple, get hit and have the attack spoiled then get the snot kicked out of it by the rest of the group. :\
Anyway, both beasties are from Green Ronin's Book of Fiends if you have it and are interested in taking a peek.
Jon Potter
First Post
[Realms #316a] Welcoming Committee, part 2
Huzair fell back, staggering away from his bizarre attacker.
"Wolf is going after some guy running like crazy back to the manor. He and I will try to stop him!" Lela shouted from above, her tiny voice audible to a few on the battlefield below before she zipped away across the rooftops, drawing an arrow from her magical quiver.
Feln was one of those and he let out a growl at the news from above. "Damn wizards!" he cursed, "not meant for combating, that's for sure!" He surveyed the melee for a few heartbeats and reached his decision. To Huzair, he bellowed, "'Oomie! Stay back now! Let the warriors deal with this! Karak! Morier! Guard that wizard!!"
"Keep fighting!" Huzair protested. "I can take care of myself for now!" But Feln was already gone, racing around the building and up in the direction that Wolf had disappeared.
Morier spared a look over his shoulder to see what was transpiring behind him, and it almost cost him dearly. The creature he was fighting seized the opportunity to whirl about and snap at him with its long, sharp beak. It misjudged its prey's position, however and succeeded only in overbalancing itself. It fell awkwardly to its side mewling in alarm and thrashed about to regain its footing. Morier tried to impale it on his greatsword, but it was just nimble enough to avoid the thrust.
Huzair back-peddled until he bumped into Hildegunna and reached out his mind to regain control of the Flaming Sphere while he fumbled at his potion belt for one of his last two healing draughts. The Weave responded to his urgings and the ball of fire rolled to the left and back onto the creature fighting Morier. Smiling darkly, despite the steaming blood painting his face, he drew the healing vial up to his lips, but Hildegunna's hand grabbed his wrist.
"Save it," she said, and clutched her holy symbol with the hand holding her staff, mouthing a prayer for healing from Flor.
"I will take care of myself, thank you very much!" Huzair protested, pointing to the creature nearby. "Kill the damn bird!"
"Shut up," the priestess said and the wizard felt healing energy course through his body. It wasn't much, but it stopped the bleeding and took the barest edge off the pain.
Ledare trotted up to the creature that was staring dumbly at the hypnotic pattern, being very careful not to look at the display herself. She remembered well, the warning that Hildegunna had given her about the spell last time. To avoid a disastrous peek at the spell, Ledare attacked the monster's hindquarters, keeping her shield up against both the spell's entrancing appeal and any sudden attack from the bird-headed thing.
Ravager bit eagerly into the monster's back, causing it to convulse with a sudden wash of pain and snap out of its dazed fascination.
"SPRITE!" Feln yelled from below as he overtook Lela. He was moving incredibly fast, faster than anything the faen had ever seen on two legs. "What are you seein' up there!! We got any more baddies comin' along?"
"I don't see anyone else. Not yet anyway!" she replied, taking aim with her shortbow. She let fly an arrow that arced well and true before sinking with a meaty THWOCK into the fleeing man's right buttock. He screamed and faltered, dropping the dagger he carried in his left hand even as Wolf reached him and clamped its jaws down on the man's forearm.
The animal instinctively tried to drag its prey to the ground, but the man was having none of it. Even doubly wounded, he wasn't about to go down so easily. He slashed expertly at the wolf with the bastard sword in his right hand, striking the animal at the elbow joint and severing the limb completely. Wolf let out a scream of pain that seemed to rip straight through Lela, but the awful silence that followed as the animal's bloody corpse slid lifelessly to the ground was worse yet. [1]
Karak bellowed a battle cry and laid into the rear flank of the creature nearest him - the one whose beak was painted crimson with Huzair's blood. His axe bit deeply, but it was a clumsy hit and seemed to cause the creature little real injury. He followed it up with a second blow, but this one struck the chitinous plates running along the thing's back and was turned aside.
The creature's response to this attack was both bizarre and unexpected. It lit up, its leathery skin went suddenly translucent and its internal organs glowed with kaleidoscopic brilliance. A Spray of Color flashed out all around it, trying to draw away the senses of those nearby, but through force of will, Karak, Huzair and Hildegunna - the only ones close enough to be effected - were able to resist.
Morier noted the brilliant display out of the corner of his eye and fumbled his own attack, leaving him wide open for his own opponent to try the same trick. It flared brilliantly, sending a wash of color over the Eldritch Warrior and knocking him completely senseless in the process. His greatsword fell to the ground forgotten as he tried without success to free his mind from the reality-warping display.
The creature wounded by Ledare hoped to repeat the success of its fellow and flared with rainbow hues. Perhaps it was because Ledare was already averting her eyes to avoid the Hypnotic Pattern or perhaps merely because she too was made of sterner stuff than she appeared. But whatever the case, she was not stunned by the Color Spray and she renewed her efforts to down the thing. Ravager slashed out quickly, raking once across the thing's ribs and then stabbing deeply into its already wounded rear leg. The thing let out a mewling cry and dropped heavily to its knees before collapsing finally at the Janissary's feet to bleed out the last of its foul life into the ground.
"The albino is in trouble!" Hildegunna told Huzair even as she pointed her finger and sent a ray at the nearer creature that traced a line of frost along its neck.
"I can see that!" Huzair shot back, making his Flaming Sphere brush one more time against the other creature's legs, before the magic was spent and the ball of fire sputtered out.
Karak was unimpressed with the bird-headed thing's visual display and brought his waraxe to bear against it. The weapon cut deeply into the creature's foreleg as it was turning to confront him, actually sticking in the bone as if it were a tree and the dwarf a lumberjack. He heaved it free and swung again, but this time his aim was off and the weapon connected with nothing save air.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" Lela screamed, her tiny voice sounding a lot like a bird call. She dove at the man, her face twisted into a rictus of anguish and rage. "Flammifer sphaera!" she chanted and dropped a Flaming Sphere onto the blood-dappled sward. It rolled forward immediately seeking out the man who had slain Wolf and slammed mercilessly into him. The man cried out as flames licked at his body and he started to turn and run.
Which was precisely when Feln's flying mantis kick connected with his jaw, crushing the man's skull and causing him to fall dead a half-dozen paces from Wolf's bloody corpse.
Morier blinked and shook his head, trying to clear it so that he could put up some kind of defense against this thing that wanted to kill him, but he could do nothing to resist its assault. He felt the creature's beak snap painfully at his forearm, and felt the strange limbs adorning its neck paw at his torso. One connected and Morier felt a terrific jot of pain pass through him, but through force of will alone he was able to avoid whatever lingering effects it would have had on him. The pain was just the thing to clear his head, and he desperately looked about himself for his greatsword.
"Radius gelidus!" Hildegunna intoned and sent another ice-blue ray knifing into the monster fighting Karak. Again it spread frost over the monster's flesh, but again the beast seemed unperturbed by the assault.
"Er-pothoc rhyaex-weath!" Husair swore in Draconic and hurled his fever iron shortspear at the creature. The black spearhead sliced easily through the meat below the thing's left foreleg, impaling itself deeply into the creature's chest cavity. The monster tottered unsteadily and fell over with a thud.
Ledare hopped over the spreading pool of blood at her feet and charged at the creature harassing Morier. She stabbed outward with Ravager, sinking two feet of the saw-toothed blade into the monster's meaty side. A gout of hot blood sprayed outward from the wound and the creature writhed in agony, but did not fall.
Deprived of his first opponent, Karak hustled over to the last creature and swung his axe at its right foreleg, taking the limb off at the knee. Thrashing horribly, the creature finally fell over, admitting that it was dead.
"Thank you for the help," Morier said as he bent over and retrieved his sword. Huzair rushed over to him as he stood up.
"Have you never read 'The Manifold Wisdoms of Zarnak, the Brave'?" the mage asked, slapping Morier on the back of the head as he stood up. "Any smart fighter would follow that."
"I don't know Huzair. Was that one of ap-Llewellyn's books?" Morier replied, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. The wizard snorted derisively in response.
"Not only are you only on the Second Circle of spells, but you are an idiot too!" Huzair exclaimed in an exasperated tone. "It says under no circumstances should you buff while you are being attacked. Score the damage and buff when you cannot attack. I guess I will have to refer to chapter seven of that book: 'What to Do When Fighting with Idiots or Dwarves'. Just look out for yourself!"
"Oi!" Karak grumbled. "Watch yer tongue, Wizard!"
"I apologize for my acquaintance's short temper," Morier said to the others present before turning an angry eye on Huzair. "I thought he was made of sterner stuff than that."
"Look at what your stupidity cost me, you piece of drow afterbirth!" Huzair roared, his voice filled with a dangerous rumble. Points of flames seemed to dance in his eyes as he leaned toward the albino, displaying the open wound on his bald head. "You could have let me know you were in pursuit! I guess I have to look out for myself since you obviously have a long way to go as a team!" Ledare balked at that and stepped between the two, interposing her shield.
"That's more than enough, Huzair! We do what we can together against our foes. And we are all new to one another in combat," she said. "Morier advanced to put an end to that foul beast. Your injuries are unfortunate, but not the result of anyone's negligence." Huzair said nothing to this, but Morier wasn't through.
"Huzair, we executed our battle plan exactly as we stated it before any of us engaged the enemy - we made it perfectly clear where everyone's responsibilities lay," the Eldritch Warrior said, his eyes narrowed to disapproving slits. His hands were tightening unconsciously on the grip of his greatsword. "You failed to cover your own flank, even though you knew where I was going. It was your own desire to keep your own faerie ass out of the fray at every possible turn that nearly cost you your own worthless life, and I'll not have you turn this on me. Keep standing back and casting your precious spells to keep you out of danger... see how far it got you this time?" Huzair looked surprised for a moment, but then quickly collected himself and backed away from the albino with a grin.
"So. Morier, your gift is to read minds now too. Excellent secret! Ap would be pleased that you actually have some magic power now," he said smugly and reached into his haversack with one hand. With the other he pointed casually at Morier's head. "What else you got in there? Put the sword down, you know I do not want to fight you. My 'faerie ass' might not take it." He produced a cigar and lit it off his thumb.
"You'll have to excuse me, but I never had time to move my ass away from battle before that thing gave me this close shave," he grimaced, holding the glowing ember at the end of his cigar up close to the wound on his head. "It hurts, by the way. I know now why that man gave me me the info we wanted after I cut him." Morier shook his head, disgusted.
"Despite everyone's best efforts to warn you about the seriousness and difficulty of what we're undertaking here, it seems that you somehow still maganed to underestimate it," the elf said, holding up his own wounded arm for the wizard to see. "It's battle Huzair, battle against an opposition that wants each and every one of us dead... if that's too much for you, perhaps you ought to go back to picking pockets and burning mice at the seaport in Farmin, because despite all your 'Zarnak the Brave' bullsh*t, you just proved to me and everyone around us that you're not at all ready to battle with this group!"
"Whether it fits your definition of brave or not, it is smart for me to cast spells away from the combat. Anyone who knows spellcasting should realize that if I get injured while weaving a spell it will disrupt the casting," Huzair continued, his tone conversational, bored almost, as he plied the cigar along his head wound. "Spells are what I am trained for; melee is what most of you are trained for. If you do not want my services... I will leave. But I know I am valuable to the party and you do too."
"You are free to go, of course," Ledare told him, giving them each a pointed look. "And if the two of you can't pull it together, perhaps you should." The mage shrugged.
"I will keep my mouth shut if that is what you want. Morier will know what I am thinking, anyway," Huzair arched a shaved eyebrow at Morier.
"We are stronger if you stay, Huzair," the Janissary admitted. "But don't forget what we are fighting for."
"Hey, I want to win this thing too," the wizard replied. "Maybe not for the same reasons as you, but Garan-Zak hoped that would come in time." Ledare's mouth curled into a scowl.
"Our struggle has nothing to do with settling old scores or adolescent bravado," she scolded. "You'll do well to remember that."
"If your little pissing match is over," Hildegunna interjected, "perhaps we should check on the ogre and the sprite?"
"No need," Huzair announced. "Sparky says that the running man killed Wolf. Then Feln and Lela killed the running man. That smoke is what's left of him." The mage pointed at a column of black smoke rising up from the edge of the town. He touched the wound on his head and added, "Speaking of which, I should get up there."
He started to move off and then paused, grabbing Hildegunna's hand. "Beautiful Priestess of Flor, you have earned my respect and gratitude," he said, planting a hot kiss on the back of the woman's hand. "Would you care to accompany me to check on our companions?" The cleric chuckled and brushed her blonde hair out of her eyes.
"Only if you can spare one of those cigars for me," she said as they proceeded up across the square toward the distant smoke with Karak at their heels.
Ledare forestalled Morier, saying, ""Do not let Huzair's ramblings reach your heart. You are stronger now, I can sense it." She smiled at him, "The rewards of the Grove are well-placed in you. But we need Huzair's ability, misguided as it may be. Together we make a formidable group. I feel it."
"I know, Ledare," Morier agreed. "It is as I've said all along. Time and time again, this group has met peril by dividing itself." Ledare nodded and looked off in the direction of the manor.
"Who knows what lies before us," she mused before drawing her eyes back to fall upon Hildegunna's retreating figure. She sighed deeply and looked Morier square in the eye. "I will do my best to put my differences aside for the sake of this company. Will you do the same?"
"It was never my intention to let Huzair drive a wedge into the group," the albino said flatly. "No one knows better than I that our power lies in our ability to combine our individual strengths into one force. As I've always said, 'when we divide ourselves we each become as vulnerable as if we had no special ability whatsoever'."
"Well spoken," Ledare said with a nod. She clapped the elf on the back. "I just hope that Huzair shares your feelings."
"I don't think he means anything by his words," Morier told her. "He's always been more than a little hot-headed. I think it's in his blood." The Janissary's expression was confused.
"What do you mean?" Ledare asked and Morier suddenly looked uncomfortable.
"Perhaps that's something that you should ask him directly," the albino said and they started across the square after the others.
--------------------------
Wolf suffered a critical hit from the running man that again did 23 points of damage, exactly enough to take him to -10. Nevermind the fact that he also failed his Constitution check once his leg was cut off and went immediately into shock (meaning that he'd suffer another 23 points of damage on the following round).
Huzair fell back, staggering away from his bizarre attacker.
"Wolf is going after some guy running like crazy back to the manor. He and I will try to stop him!" Lela shouted from above, her tiny voice audible to a few on the battlefield below before she zipped away across the rooftops, drawing an arrow from her magical quiver.
Feln was one of those and he let out a growl at the news from above. "Damn wizards!" he cursed, "not meant for combating, that's for sure!" He surveyed the melee for a few heartbeats and reached his decision. To Huzair, he bellowed, "'Oomie! Stay back now! Let the warriors deal with this! Karak! Morier! Guard that wizard!!"
"Keep fighting!" Huzair protested. "I can take care of myself for now!" But Feln was already gone, racing around the building and up in the direction that Wolf had disappeared.
Morier spared a look over his shoulder to see what was transpiring behind him, and it almost cost him dearly. The creature he was fighting seized the opportunity to whirl about and snap at him with its long, sharp beak. It misjudged its prey's position, however and succeeded only in overbalancing itself. It fell awkwardly to its side mewling in alarm and thrashed about to regain its footing. Morier tried to impale it on his greatsword, but it was just nimble enough to avoid the thrust.
Huzair back-peddled until he bumped into Hildegunna and reached out his mind to regain control of the Flaming Sphere while he fumbled at his potion belt for one of his last two healing draughts. The Weave responded to his urgings and the ball of fire rolled to the left and back onto the creature fighting Morier. Smiling darkly, despite the steaming blood painting his face, he drew the healing vial up to his lips, but Hildegunna's hand grabbed his wrist.
"Save it," she said, and clutched her holy symbol with the hand holding her staff, mouthing a prayer for healing from Flor.
"I will take care of myself, thank you very much!" Huzair protested, pointing to the creature nearby. "Kill the damn bird!"
"Shut up," the priestess said and the wizard felt healing energy course through his body. It wasn't much, but it stopped the bleeding and took the barest edge off the pain.
Ledare trotted up to the creature that was staring dumbly at the hypnotic pattern, being very careful not to look at the display herself. She remembered well, the warning that Hildegunna had given her about the spell last time. To avoid a disastrous peek at the spell, Ledare attacked the monster's hindquarters, keeping her shield up against both the spell's entrancing appeal and any sudden attack from the bird-headed thing.
Ravager bit eagerly into the monster's back, causing it to convulse with a sudden wash of pain and snap out of its dazed fascination.
"SPRITE!" Feln yelled from below as he overtook Lela. He was moving incredibly fast, faster than anything the faen had ever seen on two legs. "What are you seein' up there!! We got any more baddies comin' along?"
"I don't see anyone else. Not yet anyway!" she replied, taking aim with her shortbow. She let fly an arrow that arced well and true before sinking with a meaty THWOCK into the fleeing man's right buttock. He screamed and faltered, dropping the dagger he carried in his left hand even as Wolf reached him and clamped its jaws down on the man's forearm.
The animal instinctively tried to drag its prey to the ground, but the man was having none of it. Even doubly wounded, he wasn't about to go down so easily. He slashed expertly at the wolf with the bastard sword in his right hand, striking the animal at the elbow joint and severing the limb completely. Wolf let out a scream of pain that seemed to rip straight through Lela, but the awful silence that followed as the animal's bloody corpse slid lifelessly to the ground was worse yet. [1]
Karak bellowed a battle cry and laid into the rear flank of the creature nearest him - the one whose beak was painted crimson with Huzair's blood. His axe bit deeply, but it was a clumsy hit and seemed to cause the creature little real injury. He followed it up with a second blow, but this one struck the chitinous plates running along the thing's back and was turned aside.
The creature's response to this attack was both bizarre and unexpected. It lit up, its leathery skin went suddenly translucent and its internal organs glowed with kaleidoscopic brilliance. A Spray of Color flashed out all around it, trying to draw away the senses of those nearby, but through force of will, Karak, Huzair and Hildegunna - the only ones close enough to be effected - were able to resist.
Morier noted the brilliant display out of the corner of his eye and fumbled his own attack, leaving him wide open for his own opponent to try the same trick. It flared brilliantly, sending a wash of color over the Eldritch Warrior and knocking him completely senseless in the process. His greatsword fell to the ground forgotten as he tried without success to free his mind from the reality-warping display.
The creature wounded by Ledare hoped to repeat the success of its fellow and flared with rainbow hues. Perhaps it was because Ledare was already averting her eyes to avoid the Hypnotic Pattern or perhaps merely because she too was made of sterner stuff than she appeared. But whatever the case, she was not stunned by the Color Spray and she renewed her efforts to down the thing. Ravager slashed out quickly, raking once across the thing's ribs and then stabbing deeply into its already wounded rear leg. The thing let out a mewling cry and dropped heavily to its knees before collapsing finally at the Janissary's feet to bleed out the last of its foul life into the ground.
"The albino is in trouble!" Hildegunna told Huzair even as she pointed her finger and sent a ray at the nearer creature that traced a line of frost along its neck.
"I can see that!" Huzair shot back, making his Flaming Sphere brush one more time against the other creature's legs, before the magic was spent and the ball of fire sputtered out.
Karak was unimpressed with the bird-headed thing's visual display and brought his waraxe to bear against it. The weapon cut deeply into the creature's foreleg as it was turning to confront him, actually sticking in the bone as if it were a tree and the dwarf a lumberjack. He heaved it free and swung again, but this time his aim was off and the weapon connected with nothing save air.
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" Lela screamed, her tiny voice sounding a lot like a bird call. She dove at the man, her face twisted into a rictus of anguish and rage. "Flammifer sphaera!" she chanted and dropped a Flaming Sphere onto the blood-dappled sward. It rolled forward immediately seeking out the man who had slain Wolf and slammed mercilessly into him. The man cried out as flames licked at his body and he started to turn and run.
Which was precisely when Feln's flying mantis kick connected with his jaw, crushing the man's skull and causing him to fall dead a half-dozen paces from Wolf's bloody corpse.
Morier blinked and shook his head, trying to clear it so that he could put up some kind of defense against this thing that wanted to kill him, but he could do nothing to resist its assault. He felt the creature's beak snap painfully at his forearm, and felt the strange limbs adorning its neck paw at his torso. One connected and Morier felt a terrific jot of pain pass through him, but through force of will alone he was able to avoid whatever lingering effects it would have had on him. The pain was just the thing to clear his head, and he desperately looked about himself for his greatsword.
"Radius gelidus!" Hildegunna intoned and sent another ice-blue ray knifing into the monster fighting Karak. Again it spread frost over the monster's flesh, but again the beast seemed unperturbed by the assault.
"Er-pothoc rhyaex-weath!" Husair swore in Draconic and hurled his fever iron shortspear at the creature. The black spearhead sliced easily through the meat below the thing's left foreleg, impaling itself deeply into the creature's chest cavity. The monster tottered unsteadily and fell over with a thud.
Ledare hopped over the spreading pool of blood at her feet and charged at the creature harassing Morier. She stabbed outward with Ravager, sinking two feet of the saw-toothed blade into the monster's meaty side. A gout of hot blood sprayed outward from the wound and the creature writhed in agony, but did not fall.
Deprived of his first opponent, Karak hustled over to the last creature and swung his axe at its right foreleg, taking the limb off at the knee. Thrashing horribly, the creature finally fell over, admitting that it was dead.
"Thank you for the help," Morier said as he bent over and retrieved his sword. Huzair rushed over to him as he stood up.
"Have you never read 'The Manifold Wisdoms of Zarnak, the Brave'?" the mage asked, slapping Morier on the back of the head as he stood up. "Any smart fighter would follow that."
"I don't know Huzair. Was that one of ap-Llewellyn's books?" Morier replied, rubbing the back of his head with one hand. The wizard snorted derisively in response.
"Not only are you only on the Second Circle of spells, but you are an idiot too!" Huzair exclaimed in an exasperated tone. "It says under no circumstances should you buff while you are being attacked. Score the damage and buff when you cannot attack. I guess I will have to refer to chapter seven of that book: 'What to Do When Fighting with Idiots or Dwarves'. Just look out for yourself!"
"Oi!" Karak grumbled. "Watch yer tongue, Wizard!"
"I apologize for my acquaintance's short temper," Morier said to the others present before turning an angry eye on Huzair. "I thought he was made of sterner stuff than that."
"Look at what your stupidity cost me, you piece of drow afterbirth!" Huzair roared, his voice filled with a dangerous rumble. Points of flames seemed to dance in his eyes as he leaned toward the albino, displaying the open wound on his bald head. "You could have let me know you were in pursuit! I guess I have to look out for myself since you obviously have a long way to go as a team!" Ledare balked at that and stepped between the two, interposing her shield.
"That's more than enough, Huzair! We do what we can together against our foes. And we are all new to one another in combat," she said. "Morier advanced to put an end to that foul beast. Your injuries are unfortunate, but not the result of anyone's negligence." Huzair said nothing to this, but Morier wasn't through.
"Huzair, we executed our battle plan exactly as we stated it before any of us engaged the enemy - we made it perfectly clear where everyone's responsibilities lay," the Eldritch Warrior said, his eyes narrowed to disapproving slits. His hands were tightening unconsciously on the grip of his greatsword. "You failed to cover your own flank, even though you knew where I was going. It was your own desire to keep your own faerie ass out of the fray at every possible turn that nearly cost you your own worthless life, and I'll not have you turn this on me. Keep standing back and casting your precious spells to keep you out of danger... see how far it got you this time?" Huzair looked surprised for a moment, but then quickly collected himself and backed away from the albino with a grin.
"So. Morier, your gift is to read minds now too. Excellent secret! Ap would be pleased that you actually have some magic power now," he said smugly and reached into his haversack with one hand. With the other he pointed casually at Morier's head. "What else you got in there? Put the sword down, you know I do not want to fight you. My 'faerie ass' might not take it." He produced a cigar and lit it off his thumb.
"You'll have to excuse me, but I never had time to move my ass away from battle before that thing gave me this close shave," he grimaced, holding the glowing ember at the end of his cigar up close to the wound on his head. "It hurts, by the way. I know now why that man gave me me the info we wanted after I cut him." Morier shook his head, disgusted.
"Despite everyone's best efforts to warn you about the seriousness and difficulty of what we're undertaking here, it seems that you somehow still maganed to underestimate it," the elf said, holding up his own wounded arm for the wizard to see. "It's battle Huzair, battle against an opposition that wants each and every one of us dead... if that's too much for you, perhaps you ought to go back to picking pockets and burning mice at the seaport in Farmin, because despite all your 'Zarnak the Brave' bullsh*t, you just proved to me and everyone around us that you're not at all ready to battle with this group!"
"Whether it fits your definition of brave or not, it is smart for me to cast spells away from the combat. Anyone who knows spellcasting should realize that if I get injured while weaving a spell it will disrupt the casting," Huzair continued, his tone conversational, bored almost, as he plied the cigar along his head wound. "Spells are what I am trained for; melee is what most of you are trained for. If you do not want my services... I will leave. But I know I am valuable to the party and you do too."
"You are free to go, of course," Ledare told him, giving them each a pointed look. "And if the two of you can't pull it together, perhaps you should." The mage shrugged.
"I will keep my mouth shut if that is what you want. Morier will know what I am thinking, anyway," Huzair arched a shaved eyebrow at Morier.
"We are stronger if you stay, Huzair," the Janissary admitted. "But don't forget what we are fighting for."
"Hey, I want to win this thing too," the wizard replied. "Maybe not for the same reasons as you, but Garan-Zak hoped that would come in time." Ledare's mouth curled into a scowl.
"Our struggle has nothing to do with settling old scores or adolescent bravado," she scolded. "You'll do well to remember that."
"If your little pissing match is over," Hildegunna interjected, "perhaps we should check on the ogre and the sprite?"
"No need," Huzair announced. "Sparky says that the running man killed Wolf. Then Feln and Lela killed the running man. That smoke is what's left of him." The mage pointed at a column of black smoke rising up from the edge of the town. He touched the wound on his head and added, "Speaking of which, I should get up there."
He started to move off and then paused, grabbing Hildegunna's hand. "Beautiful Priestess of Flor, you have earned my respect and gratitude," he said, planting a hot kiss on the back of the woman's hand. "Would you care to accompany me to check on our companions?" The cleric chuckled and brushed her blonde hair out of her eyes.
"Only if you can spare one of those cigars for me," she said as they proceeded up across the square toward the distant smoke with Karak at their heels.
Ledare forestalled Morier, saying, ""Do not let Huzair's ramblings reach your heart. You are stronger now, I can sense it." She smiled at him, "The rewards of the Grove are well-placed in you. But we need Huzair's ability, misguided as it may be. Together we make a formidable group. I feel it."
"I know, Ledare," Morier agreed. "It is as I've said all along. Time and time again, this group has met peril by dividing itself." Ledare nodded and looked off in the direction of the manor.
"Who knows what lies before us," she mused before drawing her eyes back to fall upon Hildegunna's retreating figure. She sighed deeply and looked Morier square in the eye. "I will do my best to put my differences aside for the sake of this company. Will you do the same?"
"It was never my intention to let Huzair drive a wedge into the group," the albino said flatly. "No one knows better than I that our power lies in our ability to combine our individual strengths into one force. As I've always said, 'when we divide ourselves we each become as vulnerable as if we had no special ability whatsoever'."
"Well spoken," Ledare said with a nod. She clapped the elf on the back. "I just hope that Huzair shares your feelings."
"I don't think he means anything by his words," Morier told her. "He's always been more than a little hot-headed. I think it's in his blood." The Janissary's expression was confused.
"What do you mean?" Ledare asked and Morier suddenly looked uncomfortable.
"Perhaps that's something that you should ask him directly," the albino said and they started across the square after the others.
--------------------------
Wolf suffered a critical hit from the running man that again did 23 points of damage, exactly enough to take him to -10. Nevermind the fact that he also failed his Constitution check once his leg was cut off and went immediately into shock (meaning that he'd suffer another 23 points of damage on the following round).
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Hairy Minotaur
Explorer
Jon Potter said:
This implies she missed her intended target on his body.
Action packed episode! Great job Jon!
although, what's with all the smilies?
Jon Potter
First Post
Hairy Minotaur said:
What? You don't like them? :\
I don't know what the deal is with those things, but sometimes they spontaneously appear when I paste the info into message field. (No, really!) I suspect it has something to do with Microsoft Word, but I'm not certain. Normally, I preview the post and edit them out, but tonight my wife was standing patiently at my side waiting for a moment on the computer so I just hit "Submit" instead.
And then you just happen to read it before I get a chance to go back and edit it to be all nice and pretty. What are the chances?
Anywho, I fixed it and added a missing footnote about Wolf's ultimate demise.
And, HM, you'll be happy to know that I was inspired to new levels of depravity by the "ogre alarms" in your Story hour. As I was coming up with some room descriptions I used that disurbing scene from your game to set the bar for my own BBEG's inner sanctum.
Jon Potter
First Post
[Realms #316c] Making it Worse
Huzair and Hildegunna, both smoking cigars, found Feln standing vigilantly over Wolf's bloodied corpse. About ten feet further on lay the charred remains of the man who'd killed the animal, his body still in flames. At first, they didn't spot Lela; the faen was draped across Wolf's body, her tiny face buried in his fur as she sobbed.
"Lela, I am so sorry," Feln was saying awkwardly as they approached. "My old friend, Windstryder, had a little pet and I know how attached she was... I suppose it is the same for you." He stood awkwardly to the side, afraid to offer comfort to one so small for fear of inadvertently harming her, and unsure of what to do instead.
"Well, wizard, looks like ye were right about th' animal's fate," Karak muttered as he marched along behind the taller pair.
"Sparky saw the whole thing," Huzair explained as the hummingbird flitted up to him and alighted on his finger. "Now you are just a baby, Sparky, but I have big plans for you," he told the bird as he planted a kiss on its diminutive head. then he tossed it high above his head and it zipped off toward the manor. "Do be careful and stay out of the way, sweetheart!" he called and Karak harrumphed, shouldering his way passed the pair.
"Sorry about the 'dwarf' remark back there," Huzair called after him. "I was just using a direct quote." Karak didn't respond.
"I was not brought into this world in this form, Lela," Feln was saying as Karak approached. "I was reincarnated by Great Oak and this is what I became." He thumped himself on the chest. "I know little of how that magic works, but if you would like to get this priestess we're supposed to be rescuing and see what she can do, I would be happy to carrry wolf for you." Lela sat up and smiled, turning a tear-soaked face toward the half-ogre.
"Yes, please, Feln. You are a true friend," she said, a note of hope showing in her voice. "Wolf is worth saving. I would be so grateful for the opportunity to have him back with us."
"Uhhh... Are we going to carry around a dead wolf with us?" Huzair asked, incredulous. "I mean, what are we going to do with it when we are fighting?"
"WE aren't gonna do anything!" Feln growled. "If Lela would allow me the honor, I would like to carry Wolf."
"Come on! We don't need the whole body. Perhaps cut a peice of fur off of the animal and I will hold on to it for her," the mage suggested. "Isn't that how Feln was reincarnated?"
"You are a cruel and nasty dragon-thing who's starting to get on my nerves!" Lela shouted up at Huzair wagging a miniscule finger at him. "I heard their other dragon friend was nice. Why aren't you nice?"
"I have done nothing mean to Wolf. The only one I am mean to is Morier," Huzair said matter of factly. "Morier knows to ignore me and he chooses to do so even when I am correct."
"I'll be sure to make note of that if it ever happens, Huzair," Morier said as he and Ledare finally caught up to the others. Huzair just rolled his eyes at this and went on.
"I suggested taking a peice of Wolf's fur for Reincarnation. That way we don't have to carry the body around. That is not mean; that is what a druid would want," the wizard explained and Ledare let out a resigned sigh.
"I do not presume to know what one of the druidic faith would or would not want, Lela," the Janissary said. "But I think that Huzair has a point here, however poor his presentation of it. I think it's a bad idea to bring Wolf's body with us as we advance."
"See!" Huzair said, pointing at Ledare. "And I even gave Wolf a healing potion when Morier or I could have used it. So do not go around saying I am mean, when I am not." He puffed on his cigar for a moment and then turned an accusatory eye on the others.
"Actually people here have been 'mean' to me first," he went on. "I did not know you found it necessary to harass people from the Ethnegarian Karnate, or perhaps you think I am young, inexperienced and an easy target for bullies." He winked at Morier and the albino shook his head in disgust.
"We only think that because you're young, inexperienced, and an easy target not only for bullies, but for anyone with the ability to think one step ahead of where they are right now," the eldritch warrior shot back earning a reproachful look from Huzair.
"Feln, your rude comment about wizards, after an injury causing immense pain, hurt me as much as the scalping I received," the mage went on, pointing his cigar at the half-ogre. "I will think twice before I cast Protection from Arrows on you again. I can save it for myself!" Huzair started to turn toward Karak, apparently done with the martial artist, but Feln was not quite done with him.
His long arm shot out quick as a cobra strike and clamped down on the wizard's neck, swallowing most of Huzair's bald head in his fist. He easily lifted him off the ground and drew him up close to his bestial face, growling, "Then you won't mind when I side step a baddie and it comes up and feeds on your face... will you, Huzair?"
"Feln! That's enough!" Ledare started to step forward, but the half-ogre had already released Huzair and walked away from the wizard in apparent disgust.
The mage in turn looked ready to spit fire, but he got himself quickly under control and straightening his gear snapped, "There is no reason we cannot be friends if we all respect each others skills and value. Feln, I just know you are to be on the front line and I can be a helpful ally to you in this party if you would let me. I respect your skills, you should respect mine." The albino stepped forward with a consoling look on his face.
"Huzair, honestly, and I say this as a friend - You have got to learn to shut up," Morier said, gripping the wizard's fluted shoulder guard and turning him so that he could look up into his face. "I can't even say 'quit while you're ahead' because you're so far off the mark on this. You simply cannot go about spouting off about how everyone around you is an idiot, and then say something so ridiculous as 'I respect your skils'. Please, please, please, I beg of you... just shut up."
"Yeah, Huzair!" Lela chirped, tearfully stamping her teeny tiny foot with her teeny tiny hands on her teeny tiny hips. "I know it's hard for someone like you to understand but THIS IS NOT ABOUT YOU!!! SO SHUT UP!!!" The mage managed to look shocked and wounded in equal measures.
"Lela. I am hurt. I thought we were getting to be friends." he said in a sullen tone. "But I will get over it. You are just in a time of grief. Again I am sorry for your loss." Then he turned to Hildegunna and Ledare and continued with a tone utterly free of any remorse, "Kind servants of Flor. Not only are you both beautiful, but kind as well. As I said before you both have earned my gratitute. I would have expected nothing less from people of your faith. I hope my master's gift serves you well. By the way your hair looks beautiful."
And saying thus, he bowed slightly, presenting his still-wounded head unsubtley.
Ledare and Hildegunna exchanged bemused looks. Utterly speechless, the Janissary walked away - shaking her head.
"What?" Huzair asked, his face filled with apparently-genuine shocked.
"Ugh..." Morier said as he walked away with Ledare, shaking his head, equally disgusted as she.
"Ledare, I truly am sorry," the albino said to her, his voice just barely audible to the others. "I thought perhaps he had grown up in the years since I last knew him... most do." Ledare discerned the hidden compliment and smiled at Morier.
"What?" Huzair asked again, still unsure of what had just happened. "Isn't anybody gonna heal me?" Grumbling, Karak fished out the stouter of his two healing sticks and prepared to go to work on the mage.
"Your loss is tremendous," Ledare said to Lela while the dwarf doled out healing. "It is understandable if you are not up for this advance. But advance, we must."
"Battle may be something we are becoming familiar with, but Lela has not," Feln protested. "She has lost her most trusted ally and I will not move forward until she has dealt with it properly."
"I understand," Ledare nodded. "We could use you to watch our backs, and be certain that no one escapes the manor, if you wish some time to mourn. Or, you can redouble your efforts and meet this challenge with Wolf's spirit strong in your memory. Either choice is honorable."
Lela brushed tears out of her eyes and scowled up the hill in the direction of the manor. "I'll not have Wolf's death be in vain!" she said determinedly. "I am ready to fight."
Huzair and Hildegunna, both smoking cigars, found Feln standing vigilantly over Wolf's bloodied corpse. About ten feet further on lay the charred remains of the man who'd killed the animal, his body still in flames. At first, they didn't spot Lela; the faen was draped across Wolf's body, her tiny face buried in his fur as she sobbed.
"Lela, I am so sorry," Feln was saying awkwardly as they approached. "My old friend, Windstryder, had a little pet and I know how attached she was... I suppose it is the same for you." He stood awkwardly to the side, afraid to offer comfort to one so small for fear of inadvertently harming her, and unsure of what to do instead.
"Well, wizard, looks like ye were right about th' animal's fate," Karak muttered as he marched along behind the taller pair.
"Sparky saw the whole thing," Huzair explained as the hummingbird flitted up to him and alighted on his finger. "Now you are just a baby, Sparky, but I have big plans for you," he told the bird as he planted a kiss on its diminutive head. then he tossed it high above his head and it zipped off toward the manor. "Do be careful and stay out of the way, sweetheart!" he called and Karak harrumphed, shouldering his way passed the pair.
"Sorry about the 'dwarf' remark back there," Huzair called after him. "I was just using a direct quote." Karak didn't respond.
"I was not brought into this world in this form, Lela," Feln was saying as Karak approached. "I was reincarnated by Great Oak and this is what I became." He thumped himself on the chest. "I know little of how that magic works, but if you would like to get this priestess we're supposed to be rescuing and see what she can do, I would be happy to carrry wolf for you." Lela sat up and smiled, turning a tear-soaked face toward the half-ogre.
"Yes, please, Feln. You are a true friend," she said, a note of hope showing in her voice. "Wolf is worth saving. I would be so grateful for the opportunity to have him back with us."
"Uhhh... Are we going to carry around a dead wolf with us?" Huzair asked, incredulous. "I mean, what are we going to do with it when we are fighting?"
"WE aren't gonna do anything!" Feln growled. "If Lela would allow me the honor, I would like to carry Wolf."
"Come on! We don't need the whole body. Perhaps cut a peice of fur off of the animal and I will hold on to it for her," the mage suggested. "Isn't that how Feln was reincarnated?"
"You are a cruel and nasty dragon-thing who's starting to get on my nerves!" Lela shouted up at Huzair wagging a miniscule finger at him. "I heard their other dragon friend was nice. Why aren't you nice?"
"I have done nothing mean to Wolf. The only one I am mean to is Morier," Huzair said matter of factly. "Morier knows to ignore me and he chooses to do so even when I am correct."
"I'll be sure to make note of that if it ever happens, Huzair," Morier said as he and Ledare finally caught up to the others. Huzair just rolled his eyes at this and went on.
"I suggested taking a peice of Wolf's fur for Reincarnation. That way we don't have to carry the body around. That is not mean; that is what a druid would want," the wizard explained and Ledare let out a resigned sigh.
"I do not presume to know what one of the druidic faith would or would not want, Lela," the Janissary said. "But I think that Huzair has a point here, however poor his presentation of it. I think it's a bad idea to bring Wolf's body with us as we advance."
"See!" Huzair said, pointing at Ledare. "And I even gave Wolf a healing potion when Morier or I could have used it. So do not go around saying I am mean, when I am not." He puffed on his cigar for a moment and then turned an accusatory eye on the others.
"Actually people here have been 'mean' to me first," he went on. "I did not know you found it necessary to harass people from the Ethnegarian Karnate, or perhaps you think I am young, inexperienced and an easy target for bullies." He winked at Morier and the albino shook his head in disgust.
"We only think that because you're young, inexperienced, and an easy target not only for bullies, but for anyone with the ability to think one step ahead of where they are right now," the eldritch warrior shot back earning a reproachful look from Huzair.
"Feln, your rude comment about wizards, after an injury causing immense pain, hurt me as much as the scalping I received," the mage went on, pointing his cigar at the half-ogre. "I will think twice before I cast Protection from Arrows on you again. I can save it for myself!" Huzair started to turn toward Karak, apparently done with the martial artist, but Feln was not quite done with him.
His long arm shot out quick as a cobra strike and clamped down on the wizard's neck, swallowing most of Huzair's bald head in his fist. He easily lifted him off the ground and drew him up close to his bestial face, growling, "Then you won't mind when I side step a baddie and it comes up and feeds on your face... will you, Huzair?"
"Feln! That's enough!" Ledare started to step forward, but the half-ogre had already released Huzair and walked away from the wizard in apparent disgust.
The mage in turn looked ready to spit fire, but he got himself quickly under control and straightening his gear snapped, "There is no reason we cannot be friends if we all respect each others skills and value. Feln, I just know you are to be on the front line and I can be a helpful ally to you in this party if you would let me. I respect your skills, you should respect mine." The albino stepped forward with a consoling look on his face.
"Huzair, honestly, and I say this as a friend - You have got to learn to shut up," Morier said, gripping the wizard's fluted shoulder guard and turning him so that he could look up into his face. "I can't even say 'quit while you're ahead' because you're so far off the mark on this. You simply cannot go about spouting off about how everyone around you is an idiot, and then say something so ridiculous as 'I respect your skils'. Please, please, please, I beg of you... just shut up."
"Yeah, Huzair!" Lela chirped, tearfully stamping her teeny tiny foot with her teeny tiny hands on her teeny tiny hips. "I know it's hard for someone like you to understand but THIS IS NOT ABOUT YOU!!! SO SHUT UP!!!" The mage managed to look shocked and wounded in equal measures.
"Lela. I am hurt. I thought we were getting to be friends." he said in a sullen tone. "But I will get over it. You are just in a time of grief. Again I am sorry for your loss." Then he turned to Hildegunna and Ledare and continued with a tone utterly free of any remorse, "Kind servants of Flor. Not only are you both beautiful, but kind as well. As I said before you both have earned my gratitute. I would have expected nothing less from people of your faith. I hope my master's gift serves you well. By the way your hair looks beautiful."
And saying thus, he bowed slightly, presenting his still-wounded head unsubtley.
Ledare and Hildegunna exchanged bemused looks. Utterly speechless, the Janissary walked away - shaking her head.
"What?" Huzair asked, his face filled with apparently-genuine shocked.
"Ugh..." Morier said as he walked away with Ledare, shaking his head, equally disgusted as she.
"Ledare, I truly am sorry," the albino said to her, his voice just barely audible to the others. "I thought perhaps he had grown up in the years since I last knew him... most do." Ledare discerned the hidden compliment and smiled at Morier.
"What?" Huzair asked again, still unsure of what had just happened. "Isn't anybody gonna heal me?" Grumbling, Karak fished out the stouter of his two healing sticks and prepared to go to work on the mage.
"Your loss is tremendous," Ledare said to Lela while the dwarf doled out healing. "It is understandable if you are not up for this advance. But advance, we must."
"Battle may be something we are becoming familiar with, but Lela has not," Feln protested. "She has lost her most trusted ally and I will not move forward until she has dealt with it properly."
"I understand," Ledare nodded. "We could use you to watch our backs, and be certain that no one escapes the manor, if you wish some time to mourn. Or, you can redouble your efforts and meet this challenge with Wolf's spirit strong in your memory. Either choice is honorable."
Lela brushed tears out of her eyes and scowled up the hill in the direction of the manor. "I'll not have Wolf's death be in vain!" she said determinedly. "I am ready to fight."
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Jon Potter
First Post
[Realms #318] Storming the Castle
Once he'd finished using the Wand of Vigor on Husair, Karak approached Morier and Ledare who were quietly conferring about the manor. "Well, lass, it seems we handled these beasties rather well with only a few minor injuries to Hothead's skull. Feln caught the runner an' we got one dead wolf," he grumbled as he approached. "Poor, wee one. That's gonna be a tough one for her. Faerie's be nae meant for stompin' 'round the world fightin' chaos that is for sure." He spit at their feet for emphasis. "I wish Malak were here. He would know what to do about possible reinventing or resereincarnatin' the wolf. I just do nae know."
"Perhaps Shamalin might have some ideas," Ledare said. "Providing we find her."
"We'll find her, Ledare," Morier reassured the Janissary. He was cradling his right arm in his left as he spoke.
"Oi, White One," Karak grunted, pointing a thick finger at the eldritch warrior's arm. "Be ye needin' a whack from my stick o' healin'?" Morier looked absently at his wounded arm as if he hadn't realized that he was holding it; the magical leathers had already healed themselves, giving no sign of his injury beneath apart from the dried blood that stained the cuff and covered his hand like a glove.
"I'm not too bad off," he muttered unconfincingly. "How's the wand holding up?"
"I think it be almost dried up," the dwarf replied. "But I do nae see a point o' havin' it if'n we're nae goin' ta use it."
"I prayed today for Flor's Protection from Evil," Hildegunna said as she stepped up behind the dwarf. She flicked ash from her cigar and added, "But it is within my power to channel that divine gift as healing energy if it is needed."
"It sure do help to have a full fledged Cleric along that's all I have to say about that," Karak muttered. "But let's use my healin' stick for now. We may need that Protection 'ere our work here be through."
Sparky had given them the lay of the land. The tiny bird studied the exterior and returned a description to Huzair of a fortified home, more keep than mansion. The manor was large, stone and flat-roofed with buttressed walls that looked capable of withstanding a catapult shot. There were lots of leaded glass windows, however, making the thick walls look rather odd. The whole building was set into the side of the hill, and the front of the manor was a full story above ground while two side doors further back opened up right onto the hillside with only a single step. A small paved courtyard was in front of the place, providing relatively level ground for the reception of coaches and the like, with two sweeping staircases that lead up to the front door. Two massive double chimneys dominated the roof - any of the four flues large enough to allow Lela or Sparky entrance if they chose. Other than a bit of smoke coming out of the easternmost chimneys , there was no signs of life from the manor.
"Let's send Lela down the chimney. Let her earn her keep," Huzair said, unconsciously fingering the new grey scar that marred his cranium. "I'm not goig to risk Sparky."
Lela, perched high on Feln's shoulder, stuck her tongue out at the wizard and glared before turning to Ledare. "If you think that would be helpful, I can go down that chimney and see what there is to see," she said with a shrug. "It worked pretty well at the cheese factory."
"You're right - that did aid us last time," the Janissary admitted after only a moment's consideration. "But for now we'll stick to the original plan: Huzair and Feln will move in first. You go with them. Fly around and check out any vantage points that they miss by being on the ground. We will rely on you to report back news of anyone we encounter. The rest of us will be only a heartbeat behind. Your information will help us know how best to proceed." Karak nodded eagerly.
"I know keeps; I am a dwarf. We have to be mindful of defenses," Karak reminded. "If we go in the front, there may be man pits, or rock drops, or gates what separate us from each other. We pick our point of entry and we move in. This be a raidin' party. We strike hard an' fast an' keep movin'. We sow dissention an' confusion among th' enemy. We find the leaders an' we take 'em out. We cover our backs, an' move room to room until we find Heurist an' the girl. We fortify and rest where we can if necessary."
"Let's hope it doesn't become necessary," Ledare said as she took of the Ring of Invisibility and handed it to Feln. "This'll benefit you a lot more than it will me. Flor knows that you're a lot quieter than I am."
"Thank you, Ledare," Feln growled as he took the device. It looked far too tiny to fit on even the smallest of Feln's meaty fingers, but when he tried to slip it on, it sized itself to fit perfectly. Grinning toothily, Feln turned to Huzair and scowled. "If we come up on any guards, let me deal with 'em."
"Whatever you say," Huzair smirked. "Far be it from me to get between you and any sharp objects. Just give me a minute to prepare." And he started layering on the buffs.
The gathering darkness of evening would have aided their approach to the manor if they hadn't been invisible already. Still, the wan light gave them all hope that those less skilled at sneaking about would be able to make the dash from the treeline to the manor without being spotted. The vanguard had nearly reached the side door when a figure that had been sitting unseen against the foundation stood up with a clatter of plate mail. It was another of the warriors that they had faced on their first visit; he had a bastard sword drawn in one hand and a joint of meat in the other. He peered into the darkness, but Feln was happy to see that he was looking in Huzair's direction.
"Who goes there?" the guard shouted around a mouthful of meat. When their was no reply he dropped his dinner and drew a dagger in his off-hand. It was the last action he ever took.
Feln struck completely without warning and reappeared as soon as his fists had crushed the guard's breastplate, turning the body beneath into jelly in the process. But he only stayed visible long enough to hiss, "Be quiet!" to Huzair and then he activated the Ring and vanished again.
The door was unlocked and it opened into a room paneled in richly-stained wood. Several low wooden benches stood against the walls and two large wardrobes flanked the door. There were some child-sized boots beneath two of the benches, caked with dried mud. A closed wooden door led south and a hallway stretched off to the east, lined with closed doors.
Feln squeezed through the doorway and paused, listening. He could hear voices and laughter coming from somewhere down the hallway. Feln deactivated the Ring of Invisibility long enough to signal Huzair to wait. Then he gestured for Lela to check out the hallway. She buzzed off down the darkened corridor while Ledare, Karak, Morier and Hildegunna came across the field toward the open side door.
The half-ogre winced. They made slightly less noise than someone hurling a weapon rack down the stairs. By the time the others had arrived at the side entrance, Lela had returned with her report. The voices were coming from behind the first door on the left, there was the sound of snoring behind two of the other closed doors on the right.
"Wait here," Feln said to the others and he activated the Ring of Invisibility again. Twice the others saw doors open on the right side of the corridor and after a few moments, Feln reappeared beside them, grim-faced. He cocked a thumb towards the revelers behind the door on the left and asked, "What do we do about them?"
Karak raised his axe and cocked an eye at Ledare. "No quarter?" he asked.
The Janissary glanced side-long at Hildegunna and sighed. "No quarter," she reluctantly agreed drawing Ravager.
Feln opened the door silent as death. Inside was a well-appointed den complete with sofas, upholstered chairs and divans. There were several cabinets against the walls that held wine racks although most of the bottles of wine were gone. Several empty bottles were stood or lay on various low tables set about. Six humans in various states of inebriation lounged about the place, passing around a crystal decanter of brandy. Nobody noticed the door open and Feln was able to position himself invisibly without any of the revelers being any the wiser. He struck swiftly, delivering two massive chops with his hands that killed one man instantly. Then the delicate magic disrupted, he appeared behind the sofa and the screaming started.
Lela leapt from her perch on Feln's shoulder and fired her bow into the midst of the scrambling drunkards. piercing one of them in the side. Ledare and Karak burst through the doorway with weapons ready and were upon them before they could prepare. Morier followed on their heels. Hildegunna stayed in the hallway with her quarterstaff ready. Huzair, who wanted to maximize the usefulness of his Invisibilty spell, kept out of the fray, but he kept a Magic Missile spell handy in case it became necessary.
One of the warriors gained his feet and turned unsteadily on Feln with a wine bottle in his hand. Feln struck a pressure point at the man's elbow, deadening his arm, with one hand and drove the other into his opponent's gut. The man fell back with blood frothing from his mouth.
Ledare slashed outward with Ravager, landing two blows with the jagged blade. Neither was telling, however. Lela put an arrow into the wounded man's throat, dropping him at the Janissary's feet.
Karak's waraxe split one man nearly in half and the powerful blow cleaved through to strike a woman who was behind him, wounding her deeply as well. Before she could do anything other than clutch at the wound, Morier stepped up and plunged four feet of alchemically silvered steel through her torso.
In little more than ten seconds, the party of six had been reduced to a solitary woman with a pixie-sized arrow protruding from her hip. She glared at them through a haze of strong drink and rapidly coursing adrenaline, her hand still clinging to the crystal decanter she had been drinking from when the violence started. She came at Feln with it, screaming at the top of her lungs, "INTRUDERS!! INTRUDERS!! IN-"
She was cut off mid-scream by Feln's snap kick. It doubled her over and made her own awkward swing go well wide of the half-ogre. The open-palm strike he delivered to the back of her head drove her to the ground, splintering her face against the floorboards.
Hildegunna looked up as another door opened further down the hall and a man stepped out with a heavy blanket wrapped around his naked body. "Guys! I've got to relieve Nerramas down in the village at midnight. Could you please keep it dow-" he stopped, blinking sleepily at Hildegunna. "Who are you?"
The woman answered by speaking a droning litany of tongue-twisting syllables and weaving her arms as if she were playing an invisible harp. The man's face grew slack, his eyelids drooping to half-cover his pupils. A stupid grin started to spread across his face but at the last moment, he shook off the effects of the Hypnotism.
"You're not supposed to be here!" he shouted, dropping the blanket and running toward the door set in the end of the hall wearing naught but a loin clout. His shouts seemed to rattle the walls, "INTRUDERS!! INTRUDERS!!"
Once he'd finished using the Wand of Vigor on Husair, Karak approached Morier and Ledare who were quietly conferring about the manor. "Well, lass, it seems we handled these beasties rather well with only a few minor injuries to Hothead's skull. Feln caught the runner an' we got one dead wolf," he grumbled as he approached. "Poor, wee one. That's gonna be a tough one for her. Faerie's be nae meant for stompin' 'round the world fightin' chaos that is for sure." He spit at their feet for emphasis. "I wish Malak were here. He would know what to do about possible reinventing or resereincarnatin' the wolf. I just do nae know."
"Perhaps Shamalin might have some ideas," Ledare said. "Providing we find her."
"We'll find her, Ledare," Morier reassured the Janissary. He was cradling his right arm in his left as he spoke.
"Oi, White One," Karak grunted, pointing a thick finger at the eldritch warrior's arm. "Be ye needin' a whack from my stick o' healin'?" Morier looked absently at his wounded arm as if he hadn't realized that he was holding it; the magical leathers had already healed themselves, giving no sign of his injury beneath apart from the dried blood that stained the cuff and covered his hand like a glove.
"I'm not too bad off," he muttered unconfincingly. "How's the wand holding up?"
"I think it be almost dried up," the dwarf replied. "But I do nae see a point o' havin' it if'n we're nae goin' ta use it."
"I prayed today for Flor's Protection from Evil," Hildegunna said as she stepped up behind the dwarf. She flicked ash from her cigar and added, "But it is within my power to channel that divine gift as healing energy if it is needed."
"It sure do help to have a full fledged Cleric along that's all I have to say about that," Karak muttered. "But let's use my healin' stick for now. We may need that Protection 'ere our work here be through."
Sparky had given them the lay of the land. The tiny bird studied the exterior and returned a description to Huzair of a fortified home, more keep than mansion. The manor was large, stone and flat-roofed with buttressed walls that looked capable of withstanding a catapult shot. There were lots of leaded glass windows, however, making the thick walls look rather odd. The whole building was set into the side of the hill, and the front of the manor was a full story above ground while two side doors further back opened up right onto the hillside with only a single step. A small paved courtyard was in front of the place, providing relatively level ground for the reception of coaches and the like, with two sweeping staircases that lead up to the front door. Two massive double chimneys dominated the roof - any of the four flues large enough to allow Lela or Sparky entrance if they chose. Other than a bit of smoke coming out of the easternmost chimneys , there was no signs of life from the manor.
"Let's send Lela down the chimney. Let her earn her keep," Huzair said, unconsciously fingering the new grey scar that marred his cranium. "I'm not goig to risk Sparky."
Lela, perched high on Feln's shoulder, stuck her tongue out at the wizard and glared before turning to Ledare. "If you think that would be helpful, I can go down that chimney and see what there is to see," she said with a shrug. "It worked pretty well at the cheese factory."
"You're right - that did aid us last time," the Janissary admitted after only a moment's consideration. "But for now we'll stick to the original plan: Huzair and Feln will move in first. You go with them. Fly around and check out any vantage points that they miss by being on the ground. We will rely on you to report back news of anyone we encounter. The rest of us will be only a heartbeat behind. Your information will help us know how best to proceed." Karak nodded eagerly.
"I know keeps; I am a dwarf. We have to be mindful of defenses," Karak reminded. "If we go in the front, there may be man pits, or rock drops, or gates what separate us from each other. We pick our point of entry and we move in. This be a raidin' party. We strike hard an' fast an' keep movin'. We sow dissention an' confusion among th' enemy. We find the leaders an' we take 'em out. We cover our backs, an' move room to room until we find Heurist an' the girl. We fortify and rest where we can if necessary."
"Let's hope it doesn't become necessary," Ledare said as she took of the Ring of Invisibility and handed it to Feln. "This'll benefit you a lot more than it will me. Flor knows that you're a lot quieter than I am."
"Thank you, Ledare," Feln growled as he took the device. It looked far too tiny to fit on even the smallest of Feln's meaty fingers, but when he tried to slip it on, it sized itself to fit perfectly. Grinning toothily, Feln turned to Huzair and scowled. "If we come up on any guards, let me deal with 'em."
"Whatever you say," Huzair smirked. "Far be it from me to get between you and any sharp objects. Just give me a minute to prepare." And he started layering on the buffs.
The gathering darkness of evening would have aided their approach to the manor if they hadn't been invisible already. Still, the wan light gave them all hope that those less skilled at sneaking about would be able to make the dash from the treeline to the manor without being spotted. The vanguard had nearly reached the side door when a figure that had been sitting unseen against the foundation stood up with a clatter of plate mail. It was another of the warriors that they had faced on their first visit; he had a bastard sword drawn in one hand and a joint of meat in the other. He peered into the darkness, but Feln was happy to see that he was looking in Huzair's direction.
"Who goes there?" the guard shouted around a mouthful of meat. When their was no reply he dropped his dinner and drew a dagger in his off-hand. It was the last action he ever took.
Feln struck completely without warning and reappeared as soon as his fists had crushed the guard's breastplate, turning the body beneath into jelly in the process. But he only stayed visible long enough to hiss, "Be quiet!" to Huzair and then he activated the Ring and vanished again.
The door was unlocked and it opened into a room paneled in richly-stained wood. Several low wooden benches stood against the walls and two large wardrobes flanked the door. There were some child-sized boots beneath two of the benches, caked with dried mud. A closed wooden door led south and a hallway stretched off to the east, lined with closed doors.
Feln squeezed through the doorway and paused, listening. He could hear voices and laughter coming from somewhere down the hallway. Feln deactivated the Ring of Invisibility long enough to signal Huzair to wait. Then he gestured for Lela to check out the hallway. She buzzed off down the darkened corridor while Ledare, Karak, Morier and Hildegunna came across the field toward the open side door.
The half-ogre winced. They made slightly less noise than someone hurling a weapon rack down the stairs. By the time the others had arrived at the side entrance, Lela had returned with her report. The voices were coming from behind the first door on the left, there was the sound of snoring behind two of the other closed doors on the right.
"Wait here," Feln said to the others and he activated the Ring of Invisibility again. Twice the others saw doors open on the right side of the corridor and after a few moments, Feln reappeared beside them, grim-faced. He cocked a thumb towards the revelers behind the door on the left and asked, "What do we do about them?"
Karak raised his axe and cocked an eye at Ledare. "No quarter?" he asked.
The Janissary glanced side-long at Hildegunna and sighed. "No quarter," she reluctantly agreed drawing Ravager.
Feln opened the door silent as death. Inside was a well-appointed den complete with sofas, upholstered chairs and divans. There were several cabinets against the walls that held wine racks although most of the bottles of wine were gone. Several empty bottles were stood or lay on various low tables set about. Six humans in various states of inebriation lounged about the place, passing around a crystal decanter of brandy. Nobody noticed the door open and Feln was able to position himself invisibly without any of the revelers being any the wiser. He struck swiftly, delivering two massive chops with his hands that killed one man instantly. Then the delicate magic disrupted, he appeared behind the sofa and the screaming started.
Lela leapt from her perch on Feln's shoulder and fired her bow into the midst of the scrambling drunkards. piercing one of them in the side. Ledare and Karak burst through the doorway with weapons ready and were upon them before they could prepare. Morier followed on their heels. Hildegunna stayed in the hallway with her quarterstaff ready. Huzair, who wanted to maximize the usefulness of his Invisibilty spell, kept out of the fray, but he kept a Magic Missile spell handy in case it became necessary.
One of the warriors gained his feet and turned unsteadily on Feln with a wine bottle in his hand. Feln struck a pressure point at the man's elbow, deadening his arm, with one hand and drove the other into his opponent's gut. The man fell back with blood frothing from his mouth.
Ledare slashed outward with Ravager, landing two blows with the jagged blade. Neither was telling, however. Lela put an arrow into the wounded man's throat, dropping him at the Janissary's feet.
Karak's waraxe split one man nearly in half and the powerful blow cleaved through to strike a woman who was behind him, wounding her deeply as well. Before she could do anything other than clutch at the wound, Morier stepped up and plunged four feet of alchemically silvered steel through her torso.
In little more than ten seconds, the party of six had been reduced to a solitary woman with a pixie-sized arrow protruding from her hip. She glared at them through a haze of strong drink and rapidly coursing adrenaline, her hand still clinging to the crystal decanter she had been drinking from when the violence started. She came at Feln with it, screaming at the top of her lungs, "INTRUDERS!! INTRUDERS!! IN-"
She was cut off mid-scream by Feln's snap kick. It doubled her over and made her own awkward swing go well wide of the half-ogre. The open-palm strike he delivered to the back of her head drove her to the ground, splintering her face against the floorboards.
Hildegunna looked up as another door opened further down the hall and a man stepped out with a heavy blanket wrapped around his naked body. "Guys! I've got to relieve Nerramas down in the village at midnight. Could you please keep it dow-" he stopped, blinking sleepily at Hildegunna. "Who are you?"
The woman answered by speaking a droning litany of tongue-twisting syllables and weaving her arms as if she were playing an invisible harp. The man's face grew slack, his eyelids drooping to half-cover his pupils. A stupid grin started to spread across his face but at the last moment, he shook off the effects of the Hypnotism.
"You're not supposed to be here!" he shouted, dropping the blanket and running toward the door set in the end of the hall wearing naught but a loin clout. His shouts seemed to rattle the walls, "INTRUDERS!! INTRUDERS!!"
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Hairy Minotaur
Explorer
Jon Potter said:
Is this the kind of healing that does 2 points of damage to you before it heals 1d8 +3?
Jon Potter said:
Now is this guy armed or unarmed? And can he threaten a square?
Jon Potter
First Post
Hairy Minotaur said:Is this the kind of healing that does 2 points of damage to you before it heals 1d8 +3?
No. Although I've played in a few of Rel's games where the orc healer had a club of healing that functioned in the manner you describe. That was great fun!
Karak's "sticks o' healing" also known as his "whacking sticks" are a standard wand of cure light wounds and wand of lesser vigor. Back when he took his first level of cleric (using the spontaneous divine caster variant from UA), he wasn't admitting to being anything other than a fighter/barbarian. When someone (Vade, I think) caught him healing someone, he immediately gave him the wands. But Karak maintained that a dwarf didn't use a wand and they weren't even properly-sized to whack someobody up-side the head. Which he then demonstrated on Vade. Which of course healed him of 1d8+3. So that's how Karak's been using them ever since.
Now is this guy armed or unarmed? And can he threaten a square?
Well... he doesn't have a weapon in hand...
Extremely minor spoiler below:
You'll be surprised to know that this guy doesn't die, believe it or not.
Jon Potter
First Post
[Realms #319] Search and Destroy
Huair was the only one in a position to do anything about the fleeing man. He reached into the scroll organizer at his hip and produced a piece of particular piece of parchment. "Lubrico!" he intoned, pointing at a spot just in front of the door at the end of the hall. The floorboards there instantly glistened with Grease in the lamplight.
The running man's front foot contacted the area and immediately went out from underneath him. He landed hard on his back and his own momentum carried him unceremoniously into the door, where he lay for a moment, gasping for breath.
Still invisible, Huzair grinned widely as his scroll crumpled to dust.
"There's trouble," Morier said upon hearing the commotion in the hallway. Karak reacted quickly, moving toward the door with his axe ready.
Ledare, however, surveyed the carnage they had wrought in the room and grimaced. Certainly, during the course of performing her duties, she'd righteously dispatched many enemies, but something about this assault rubbed her wrong. These folk had been taken completely unawares and were without armor or weapons. It felt more like murder than warfare.
She was startled out of her own thoughts by a rush of air as Feln slipped passed her invisibly.
Feln reached the doorway two paces before Karak and darted silently passed him. He couldn't see Huzair, of course, but he was easily able to dodge around Hildegunna and barrel down the corridor toward the stunned man. He'd just hoisted him into the air - becoming visible in the process - and was about to snap his pathetic neck when Feln heard Ledare holler, "Stop!"
Morier moved toward the half-ogre and his intended victim with one hand held out in a warding gesture. "Feln, let's not be too hasty to assume the intentions of those we encounter here... It would be a shame to come this far to rescue the girl and have her fall victim to a misunderstanding."
"What?" Feln asked, crestfallen. The man in his hand was very pale and very still and his eyes were wild with panic.
"I think he means we might be able to learn something from a live captive," Huzair's disembodied voice said from somewhere nearby. Under his breath, the mage snidely added, "I guess he forgot how well that went last time."
"I am maintaining the upper hand, these people will not stop to interogate us," the martial artist said sheepishly.
"We're here to find Shamalin, not to kill everyone in our path," Ledare said as she walked down the corridor. "We're not murderers!"
"Yeah!" Lela said as she landed on Feln's shoulder. "We're heroes."
"Perhaps we should take this man into one of these rooms and leave the ladies outside to stand watch," Huzair's voice hissed into Feln's other ear - loud enough for the man in Feln's grasp to hear. "If he talks, he'll not be killed. If he doesn't... well let's hope he talks."
That started the man squirming in fear and Feln cast him heavily to the ground between himself and Ledare. "Bah!" he growled. "I don't see interogation happening until we have secured this manor. We've no time for this."
Just then - as if to lend credence to the martial artist's assessment - the sound of many feet approaching the door at the end of the corridor at a brisk pace was heard.
"It's a bit late to say this," Hildegunna remarked to Ledare, "but you do realize that having a goal is not the same as having a plan, don't you?"
Huair was the only one in a position to do anything about the fleeing man. He reached into the scroll organizer at his hip and produced a piece of particular piece of parchment. "Lubrico!" he intoned, pointing at a spot just in front of the door at the end of the hall. The floorboards there instantly glistened with Grease in the lamplight.
The running man's front foot contacted the area and immediately went out from underneath him. He landed hard on his back and his own momentum carried him unceremoniously into the door, where he lay for a moment, gasping for breath.
Still invisible, Huzair grinned widely as his scroll crumpled to dust.
"There's trouble," Morier said upon hearing the commotion in the hallway. Karak reacted quickly, moving toward the door with his axe ready.
Ledare, however, surveyed the carnage they had wrought in the room and grimaced. Certainly, during the course of performing her duties, she'd righteously dispatched many enemies, but something about this assault rubbed her wrong. These folk had been taken completely unawares and were without armor or weapons. It felt more like murder than warfare.
She was startled out of her own thoughts by a rush of air as Feln slipped passed her invisibly.
Feln reached the doorway two paces before Karak and darted silently passed him. He couldn't see Huzair, of course, but he was easily able to dodge around Hildegunna and barrel down the corridor toward the stunned man. He'd just hoisted him into the air - becoming visible in the process - and was about to snap his pathetic neck when Feln heard Ledare holler, "Stop!"
Morier moved toward the half-ogre and his intended victim with one hand held out in a warding gesture. "Feln, let's not be too hasty to assume the intentions of those we encounter here... It would be a shame to come this far to rescue the girl and have her fall victim to a misunderstanding."
"What?" Feln asked, crestfallen. The man in his hand was very pale and very still and his eyes were wild with panic.
"I think he means we might be able to learn something from a live captive," Huzair's disembodied voice said from somewhere nearby. Under his breath, the mage snidely added, "I guess he forgot how well that went last time."
"I am maintaining the upper hand, these people will not stop to interogate us," the martial artist said sheepishly.
"We're here to find Shamalin, not to kill everyone in our path," Ledare said as she walked down the corridor. "We're not murderers!"
"Yeah!" Lela said as she landed on Feln's shoulder. "We're heroes."
"Perhaps we should take this man into one of these rooms and leave the ladies outside to stand watch," Huzair's voice hissed into Feln's other ear - loud enough for the man in Feln's grasp to hear. "If he talks, he'll not be killed. If he doesn't... well let's hope he talks."
That started the man squirming in fear and Feln cast him heavily to the ground between himself and Ledare. "Bah!" he growled. "I don't see interogation happening until we have secured this manor. We've no time for this."
Just then - as if to lend credence to the martial artist's assessment - the sound of many feet approaching the door at the end of the corridor at a brisk pace was heard.
"It's a bit late to say this," Hildegunna remarked to Ledare, "but you do realize that having a goal is not the same as having a plan, don't you?"
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