The Romance of the River Kingdoms

[Dr Simon]

Xielt darts across the courtyard with the nimbleness of a hunting cat. His clawstick strikes true, slicing across the back of one of the thugs threatening Three Flowers. The man drops to the ground, felled by a single blow.

Ape, too, charges across the paving slabs with only slightly less animal grace than Xielt. He brings his staff down in an overhand swing towards the lantern bearer. The empowered wood smashes the man's skull like an egg and he falls, scattering blood and brain across the stones. His feet continue to kick in a macabre dance of death.

Such a display of savagery provokes a muffled cry from the still bound and gagged Vashti. She nudges Jar'Thol (standing next to here), a look of desperation in her eyes.

Three Flowers is still unable to land a strike on his opponent - the man seems able to dodge his every attack. Just then there is a flurry of red feathers as Eagle-Annika flies in to strike at the man with her claws. The thug raises his arms to defend his face, only to have them gruesomely torn by eagle talons.

Seeing his companions downed, outnumbered and wounded the last remaining thug turns tail and runs down the street behind him.

[SBLOCK="OOC"]
Xielt clawstick attack 17+5=22, hit. Damage 1d6+2 =7
Growling Ape quarterstaff attack 20+7=27, Crit confirm 13+2=15, Critical! Damage 4d6+8 = 19
Three Flowers scimitar attack 6+4=10, miss.
Annika claw attack 20+0=20, crit confirm 13+0=13. Critical! damage =2d4-2 = 3.
Thugs - lie bleeding. Ch does double move towards top of map.
[/SBLOCK]

The battle is won. Three of the thugs lie wounded but unconcious, one is without a doubt dead. Two have escaped, one to an uncertain fate in the river and one running away down the street.

 

[Walking Dad]

AC 15 (T15, FF13), HP 25/25, F +4,R+2,W+5

"I... I didn't want to do this... I had targeted his shoulder. No!!!" Ape stutters, shocked by the result of his blow.

ooc: Any chance to save the man with immidiate healing magic?

 

[Redclaw]

Xiet moves over to the Vashti and cuts through her bindings with his claws. You are safe now, holy one. Those who hunted you have been dispersed.

He looks over at Growling Ape when he hears his distress. Why are you upset? He opposed us and you defeated him. That is the way of nature.

OOC: Xielt is a bit of a darwinian.

 

[Dr Simon]

ooc: Any chance to save the man with immidiate healing magic?

Not with the amount of over-damage done, no. I think he ended up on -17 hit points or thereabouts! I guess I could re-jig the flavour text for a shoulder strike but the critical damage still stands.

 

[Walking Dad]

Not with the amount of over-damage done, no. I think he ended up on -17 hit points or thereabouts! I guess I could re-jig the flavour text for a shoulder strike but the critical damage still stands.

ooc: No need for that. It is more about flavor. Also, a critical hit hasn't to be the intended hit. Your ruling is just finr and I see it as a role-playing opportunity.

 

[The Rolling Man]

Jar'Thol, Salsham'ai shaman

While Xielt works on the priestess' bounds, Jar'Thol removes her gag. "What is it, Vashti ? I'm ashamed that we had to use such violence, but they left us little choice."

 

[Dr Simon]

ooc: No need for that. It is more about flavor. Also, a critical hit hasn't to be the intended hit. Your ruling is just finr and I see it as a role-playing opportunity.

OOC: That's cool. It's funny that normally in D&D a critical hit is a cause for celebration, not for remorse!

IC: The Vashti gives Xielt and Jar'Thol a friendly smile but says nothing. She walks over to the dead thug, blanching slightly at the gory sight. Kneeling, she checks the corpse for signs of life before heaving a sigh. She then moves between the three wounded men. Each one she touches and the bleeding stops, breathing becomes shallow and regular although all three remain unconcious.

Finally, head held high she turns her attention to her rescuers. She puts a hand on Ape's shoulder and gives him a wan smile.

"You did what you had to," she says. "It is...regrettable that he had to die, but the way he lived would have taken him to a bad end eventually. Thank you for helping me, Growling Ape. Thank you, all of you. Help me get these men into the temple. The wounded will be tended, and perhaps we can teach them the error of their ways as they recover. The dead we will give full honours. Perhaps we can guide his spirit to a better incarnation."

(The temple is just off the right hand side of the map).

 

[Shayuri]

"He lived by bullying the weak and defenseless," Annika spits as she resumes human form, having worked her way back into her poncho as an eagle moments before.

"Today it caught up with him. We gave him every chance not to fight."

She collects the little snake that is her familiar off the ground and grimaces at the blood staining her toes. Even so, she helps move one of the unconscious men without complaint.

 

[Walking Dad]

Ape helps in silence to bring the men to the temple. He still regrets the outcome of the fight, but the soothing words of the Vashti helped a little bit.
Later he will have to fight this new demon of his conscience.

 

[Dr Simon]

OOC: First bit over, and everyone is now level 2, with exactly 1000 XP. It's a little difficult to adjudicate Challenge Rating with the increased character hit points so I'm going for guesstimation. I wanted to award XPs for the diplomatic solution with the wolves anyway, as some good rolls really too that in a way I wasn't expecting.

Address any further questions to the OOC Thread and update in the RG thread. I allow a one-time re-adjustment of characteristics to allow for a bit of settling in, if anybody wants to change an aspect of their character.

Back IC:

The Vashti rousts some of the temple novices and sets them to preparing the corpse, and cleaning up the ghat flagstones. Sister Herbalist is tasked with tending to the wounded (with the admonishment that they are dangerous and should be guarded), and the Vashti orders tea and supper for all of you.

"I don't think I could sleep for a while," she says. "Not after tonight's experience. So you may as well tell me how you got on. I see you've got the statue. Did you have any problems finding it?"