Busily preening, she doesn't notice the big-big approaching. She backs away on Con-nor's shoulder and tightens her tail around her little-big's neck, issuing a warning hiss as the brute catches her by surprise.
Not an enemy. Not an enemy. Friendfriendfriend.
She remembers how the big-big fought to protect them and, despite watching the hulking figure warily, doesn't offer a threat display this time.
Connor swallows hard. "Yessir," he says with a slight tremble in his voice. "I'll..." He glances sideways at WindDancer. "We'll do our best, sir," he says as he cautiously takes the half-orc's hand.
She looks at Con-nor, then at the big-big.
"Duwarb essst," she agrees with a nod.
Alexander started, the jolt traveling through Connor's body as well since he had put an encouraging hand on his unoccupied shoulder. "Did you hear that? Did any of you... WindDancer just spoke!"
Shaking his head in astonishment, a smile creeping onto his lips, he nodded to Connor and WindDancer. "You are both enormously important. And... if for some reason, there is a chance for you to escape without us... take it. You will do much better on the outside than trapped in here. Do we have an agreement?" He eyed the little ost pointedly.
She cocks her head at Con-nor's big, then looks to her little-big for guidance. After a long pause, she gives Con-nor's big a single nod.
Connor sighs.
"Okay. Except I'm not leaving her behind. And she says she won't go 'away-away' by herself either. But I said if it's just her, she should go outside and hide nearby. Is that alright?"
Alexander would have preferred for Connor to hightail it back to the city, but knew he'd be pushing his luck. He gripped Connor's shoulder tightly. "Good lad. And, er... dragon. I'm proud of you."
Yup everything works.
Arabella :
The Weird Science roll is to create the trap successfully.
Need a Smarts roll to fool Gerta about the delays.
Asking for the goggles for the reasons you gave would require a Persuasion roll (not including +2 for attractiveness), since it's not the truth.
Let's just say it would be hard to smuggle anything bigger out of the lab that could be turned into a useful lockpick for that lock, and leave it at that.
You've noticed that your Orc guards don't hover over you when you're alone (due to your sweet-talking them), but get right back by your side (one each side, and a step behind) when they hear Gerta approaching.
WindDancer reports that there are other windows (all barred, but that she can get thru) into other rooms in the building. Some of them have open doors.
FYI : weapons and Powers can damage objects (like doors and locks), but the damage roll never gets an extra d6, and none of the dice can Ace (so you can't punch down a steel door with your fist on one lucky roll). And as usual, objects also have a Toughness which has to be beaten to inflict "Wounds".
Using parts of the beds as clubs would be "Improvised Weapons" : d4+Strength damage, -1 to Fighting roll.
And, great role-playing, everyone!
Everyone needs to agree on a strategy.
Did I miss any outstanding questions?
K'Don needs to assess the guards that escort Arabella to the lab. What are the odds of success of a surprise attack on one of the guards being able to take him out quickly. Are they a match for him in strength.
K'Don looks pointedly at Alex and asks...
"If I can take out one guard, can the rest of you take out the other one fairly quickly".
"Arabella, where do you have to be to make the diversion work? Do you have to set it and run or does it go off at a predetermined time?
I think we should jump the guards when the bring Arabella back from the lab. Have the diversion go off. Gather our stuff and beat the $^!+ of that slimy dwarf."
"Anyone have a better idea?"
'Way back when, I mentioned that the guards always make everyone back up against the far wall from the door when they let Arabella in or out. Just a reminder to visualize the setup...
Alexander looked offended at K'Don's question. "Of course I can handle the other guard," he blustered, ignoring for the moment that he had trained as a swordsman and a marksman in a genteel setting, not a thug with a club. An improvised club. What should that matter? Surely his fine breeding would show through. Certainly he wouldn't be upstaged by a native.
"It's certainly not elegant, but we can pretend that Connor is sick, and refuse to leave his side. That may get us within range of the guards, should they enter to see what the fuss is. Perhaps you can play up concern for him growing ill to the guards while you're away, Arabella. Then, when your diversion is in progress, we can... attempt our escape." He had been going to say fight our way free, but even his arrogance couldn't overcome the fact that the orcs were many, armed, and brutal.
"Do you believe we might get away in that flying wagon? If we could somehow block or destroy the path leading down the cliff, perhaps light a fire before it, it would buy us extra time."
He hesitated, then turned back to K'Don. "Or... now, this is just an unfinished thought, mind you... but if we defeated the dwarf woman, do you think we might convince the orcs that we are more worthy of performing the task she was set to do? That would buy us quite a lot more time, and might win us into the orc's ranks, if that's where you intend to go in search of your enemy, this... K'Yuck." Or was it K'Blech? He hadn't been paying that much attention.
Katana offers a thought : "I can attack the guards from the back wall now, as can WindDancer, and *if* Connor can control himself well, so can he. Our 2 or 3 attacks should be enough of a surprise for the rest of you to rush forward, perhaps? But if they should sound an alarm, or should there be other Orcs within sight or earshot, we will be in trouble immediately."
Looking at K'Don, she adds "Taking the time to put Gerta out of your misery will only lengthen the time we are exposed to danger. I would suggest that IF we get free, we simply try to escape. Altho taking the flying machine would be a great tactical advantage.
Either that, or we resolve to take down Gerta, which would probably mean taking down the whole installation, and discover exactly what Gerta is up to. There is probably a great wealth of scientific and other information here. As well as coin to be had.
I am prepared for either possibility, but we should all agree as to what our main goal will be."
And muttering more to herself than anyone else, "...and I still think we should get the Orcs into the mine somehow, but I can't...".
Result = 5
Bonus: +2
Result = 5
Result= 10
Questions:
Does the lab have a barred window? If so, WindDancer could slip in and get a number of our items, such as Marko's spellbook and fettish, Arabella's goggles and "Reason".
"Arabella, where do you have to be to make the diversion work? Do you have to set it and run or does it go off at a predetermined time?
"The device I'm developing to nurture and strengthen crystals has a shock trap built in. I will demonstrate something for her and then reset the device for her to try, but when I do, I'll switch the Leyden Jars to discharge when she does what I tell her. Since she always works with me in the lab, it will have to be set off there. My intention is to use the shock to give me time to dash across the lab and get 'reason' and blast Gerta and the guards, grab Marko's magic gear and try to dash back here with the key to the cell. There's a lot of things that can go wrong."
"If we jump the guards at the cell, we would be without Marko's gear and my devices, but we'd all be together and could perhaps get to the lab for the rest. We'd also not know for sure where Gerta is or what other orcs might be close by. Katana's right about some kind of diversion in the mine but without access to the mine, it's hard to know what we could do to trigger such a thing, unless WindDancer can discover a way down and do it."
Arabella gets the trap installed without incident this time.
= 1
Wow, she completely buys the story about your goggles, but she won't let you take them out of the lab.
= 7
And she's still suspicious about the rate of your progress and grumbles about it.
= Nope.
"Hmmm your first plan means everything is done by you and dependant on your success. That is way too risky with too may fatal mistakes. I won't bother to pick it apart point by point. We would need to have your diversion coupled with us getting the door open for that plan to have any chance of success."
"Your second plan has much better chance of success. At least we would have 3 fighters, granted without weapons, vs one scientist and a lot of luck."
"Katana, do you have an idea about how to get the orcs into the mines?"
[ooc]I am not sure how big WD is or if she could carry a spell book or other things. Someone please clearify. If she can carry stuff, that changes a lot.[ooc]
Katana says "So we have two choices to make :
1.
A. Arabella acts alone in the lab against 2 Orcs and Gerta.
B. We all act against 2 Orcs, but don't know who else is near.
2. Once we get free, we grab our stuff in the lab and
A. Escape. Preferably in the flying machine.
B. Kill Gerta, probably having to fight off many guards, but then the building and all of Gerta's secrets and resources are ours.
I don't like the odds of 1.A. at all, for all the reasons K'Don pointed out. I say we try 1.B.
I can go either way on 2. Great rewards usually involve great risk. We'd all have to agree to take that risk (glancing at Connor).
What do the rest of you think? We need to all be in agreement."
"I'm for killing the dwarf and keeping this place. If we can kill the dwarf, I might be able to convince the other orcs that "The Threat of the Dwarf is at an End".
"Okay, I'll keep the shock and blast plan as a backup. I'd feel better if we could choose our time of escape rather than having to do it when the orcs come or go with me. I might be able to create some chemicals that would produce an acid that could weaken the lock on the door or the hinges."
"If WindDancer is willing, I'd be interested to find out if she can prowl around the place at night and perhaps obtain for us something we could use as a lock-pick or the supplies from the lab or--best of all--Marko's magic books or 'reason'."
Do the guards ever come check on us while Arabella is in the Lab? Perhapse we could use a 2 pronged assult. Arabella in the lab and us here. Timing may be difficult.
Guards might peer in at random times during the day as they're just walking down the hall with your cell, but nothing on a regular basis. And they don't open the door, just look thru the small window in the door with the slidey-hatch (like you've seen in movies).
"Arabella, outside our cell is a hallway. Are there other cells on this hallway? Are they occupied? Is the hallway a dead end or does it continue in both directions? Where are we located in the hall, near one end or the other or in the middle?"
Arabella reports there are a couple more unoccupied cells along this hallway, along with some storage rooms, and your cell is about in the middle of the length of this hall which meets with other halls on both ends.
"Arabella, can you draw a map of as much of this place as you have seen? Which way to the flying machine or stairs out of here. Trying to plan an escape route incase we have to fight all the way there.
On day K'Don is conversing with the guard he lowers his voice conspiratorially and asks:
Stage whisper"Hey what would you all do if the dwarf is playing with some funny stuff in that lab of her's. What would happen if she suddenly met with an untimely accident? "Do you have somebody else to report to. Maybe I could wrangle a job out here too.
(Remember these Orcs are larger and meaner than usual, why or how you can't tell.)
(Spits)"Your kind could never be one of us - in fact, soon ALL other races will bow to us!"
"Anybody think they can operated that flying machine?
(assuming someone speaks up)
"Alright then, sounds like we escape and head for the flying machine. Arabella, do you want to do this while your in the lab? Maybe we could wait til we hear the dwarf is shocked and then get out of here and try to meet you in the lab to get out stuff?"
Uhhh. "How are we getting past the door?
"Is the way to the flying machine the same way as the lab? Draw us a map, to the best of you knowledge, the route to the lab and then to the flying machine"
Someone asked if WD could reconnoiter, and I'd said there were rooms with windows with open doors. So if you need any directions to any place, just ask and she can take you there.
Also don't forget that the mines are connected to the building you're in, just open a door and start walking down.
While interrogating WD on what she's seen, she mentions in passing that down in the mines she saw a key on a ring hanging on a wall near (but out of sight of) the cells you were in. From her description, it sounds like the lock to the mine cells, but probably not your current cell. She thinks she could lift it, just barely.
When WD reports through Connor about the key ring, Arabella gets a gleam in her eye, and says, "Katana said we need to create a distraction to draw off the guards or keep them busy. I've been trying to think of something and I may have it. Remember when we were working the mines? As we started our shift, another shift was being returned to their cells and when we finished our shift, we were replaced by other slaves. So at any given time, two thirds of the slaves are just down the hall from us. If we can overwhelm the guards who accompany me, we can get to the cells, use the key ring and release all the prisoners. That would create an urgent situations the guards would have to deal with, freeing us to get to Gerta's office and the lab. Once we've gotten our stuff and maybe some valuables of Gerta's, we can use the hovercraft to get away."
Regarding the choices of what to do with Gerta and the orcs:
"These orcs may have another master besides Gerta. So even if we disrupt this operation, it may not end the threat. I don't think we're up for a frontal assault, although if we let the other prisoner's go, they might be able to take out the majority of the guards, so we should consider what we might do to help them get to safety as well."
"I thought of something as well. WD can move the key, maybe she can take it to the prisoners and they can relaese themselves. Other than that I like the plan."
"The problem is the timing. We need my guards to open this door. If the prisoners are released before I get back, there's no telling what my guards will do. It would require WindDancer to be in the hall somewhere watching and waiting until we have our door open before opening the doors for the prisoners. There's also the risk that the first prisoner to get released will just bolt and won't open the doors for the others. Unless WindDancer can open each door in turn, at least until someone gets the idea to release everyone else, it could go wrong."
Connor struggles to get the concept of unlocking doors across to WindDancer. Eventually, he shrugs. "She says she's never done anything like that before. But she'll try."
Katana says "Regarding the timing, could not WindDancer already be in place in the mine near the keys? Then when we hear Arabella's guards approaching, Connor can signal WindDancer to get the keys to the nearest cell. She does not have to open the cell herself, just give the keys to some prisoner. We'll have to trust to luck for the prisoners to keep the mine guards busy one way or the other."
On with the show
Arabella suggests we time the break out attempt for the end of her shift, at which time, she can have some idea of where Gerta might be and maybe get some intel on what kind of orc presence there is in the compound just prior to the attempt.
Before leaving to work in the lab, Arabella gives everyone a hug and as the doors unlock to escort her away, she murmurs, "See you all on the other side."
So, the set-up for The Great Escape :
-WD has sneaked down to the mines, and is waiting in a good hiding spot near the key.
-When Arabella arrives back with her escort, everyone will line up at the far back wall as before, except...
-Everyone will have a make-shift club from one of the beds that's been broken apart, behind their backs. These weapons do d4+STR damage and your Fighting is at -1 for being an Improvised Weapon.
-Katana is the only one that can do "magic", altho it's assumed that Connor can also if he's sufficiently scared (which isn't yet).
-Everyone will act before the guards (surprise round).
Did I forget anything?
Initiative (start of round 1)
Alex :
Arabella :
Connor :
K'Don :
Marko :
WindDancer :
Katana :
So in order : K'Don, Connor, Alex, Katana, WindDancer, Arabella
And Marko gets the Joker! Which is a shame, as he can't cast, but at least he can do more damage with his club.
I'll mention that there's a SW combat maneuver called "Push" which as far as I'm concerned can also be used to pull someone (as in pull a guard into the cell). It requires an opposed Strength roll with at least one Success to move your opponent 1 square (or more with Raises). You'd do this *instead* of attacking with your club.
I'll see what I can do about getting a map up, but it may not be until tomorrow. Just try to visualize/imagine the set-up in your head.
P.S. - Katana and Connor are at -1 to casting, please help keep me honest about that! :)
And technically you could "Push" and attack, but at the usual -2 for multiple actions, so I didn't think anyone would want to do both...
At exactly the right moment, K'Don grabs the nearest guard and pulls him into the room (Str 10)
6+4=10 Looks like a success with one raise for a 10
As K'Don "relocates" the guard, Connor closes his eyes and concentrates on "talking" to WindDancer.
Alexander raises his bed leg club and attempts to knock out the other guard.
Arabella steps back slightly and tries to imitate Gerta's voice, saying "Stand aside! I will deal with these dogs!"
Result = 10
Let's see, in initiative order :
K'Don - a Push is an *opposed* roll (there are several other opposed rolls in SW), which means you can't predict success until I roll
= 5 so you win with a Raise
And you pull that guard ("Orc A" until I can get a map up) 2 squares into the cell.
Alex - the bed club is STR+d4, -1 to Fighting roll
Alex moves up, swings, and misses.
Katana hurls a "shuriken" at Orc A :
= 6 is a Success
does no damage
And moves up to him.
WindDancer grabs the key and starts dragging it to the nearest prisoner.
Arabella - you can only Trick single opponents, I'm going to pick the Orc that hasn't been dragged in ("Orc B"). You not only reduce his Parry by 2, but he is Shaken! ("Huh? Gerta? Here? While we're being attacked? Holy cr*p we're in trouble!").
Marko runs up to Orc B and swings
Let's see : Orc's Parry is -2 from Arabella, Marko's attack is +2 from the Joker
= 3-1+2 = 4 vs. 6-2=4 is a hit!
+2(Joker) = 5 but unfortunately no damage
ALL - to make things go faster, the Orcs' Parry is 6 and their Toughness is 8.
Also notice, Orc B's Parry is reduced by 2 for anyone that attacks him!
Visual
Orc A is in the cell, and is surrounded by K'Don and Katana (don't forget gang-up bonuses!)
Orc B is standing in the doorway, facing Alex and Marko (ditto!)
Arabella is standing outside in the hall, weaponless
Connor is up against the back wall