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Posts
 Recent Posts 
Tate zigzags to the minotaur, and tries to cut its throat open with his bulky knife.
Tate will sneak through the door, and listen. He will also look for irregularities, tripwires and anything else that can mess up our day. Bow ready but not drawn.
Arrow in surprise round on hobgoblin that is not engaged in a plummet. Critical cofirmation and damage. Attack on initiative 26 on first round. Sneak attack damage is included, on the assumption that I could get close enough to place shots. Here is my stealth check. I was operating on the assumption that Johnny was distracting one hobgoblin while I creep up and snipe the other. All hell broke loose somehow, and I have no idea what is going on anymore. Stealth check to get within 30' of the hobgoblin sentry.
"You have more faith in my abilities than I have. I think it would only be possible to drop the guards if I get within twenty five feet or so of them. I can shoot a few arrows before they respond, but if the arrows don't take them down, we will have to storm them. Perhaps this would be a good time for Johnny to show his allegiance, by going and talking to them while I position myself. If any of you can turn invisible, now would be a very good time to let us know."
"Perhaps master Calumbrust, Johnny and I should go in first, with weapons ready. We should move slowly, and carry light. Things that hide do not do so well in changing light. By the way, Yalla is a goblin name. This most helpful animal mentioned a creature with wings. Is that the same one we seek?"
Shadow air people.
Stinky ones.
Gorilla hybrid.
Man-bull.
Could be worse. I think. Maybe.
Tate stands up, and helps the wounded hobgoblin to its feet. He looks to those around him, and holds his hands out to stop them. He quickly wipes the blood from his blade, and sheathes his wicked knife. "Stay put. Don't do anything to make me regret this, and let me do the speaking."
Tate passes Johnny's bow and arrows to him.
" Tate looks the hobgoblin in the eyes. He speaks quietly to it. Spoiler:
You are pretty resourceful Johnny. What are they paying you? it won't be as much as I can. I need someone to distract and harry my foes. These people will cut you pretty badly if you try that blade, and the lady there will patch me up. The best option for you is to sign on with me. You will get glory and loot. Ready to move to a quarter share of my take?"
Check to break the grapple, if that should become necessary. Diplomacy check :)
Meanwhile, in the neighbouring glade, "You spoke the truth. I did too." Tate will place a sword and bow and arrows and one of the pikes at the feet of the hobgoblin. He unties the creature, except for its hands, then will move thirty paces back, while it cuts its bonds. He delays action until it is free. He has his rapier in hand. Initiative: Three attack rolls: 1d20+10=27, 1d6=5, 1d20+10=28, 1d6=4, 1d20+10=25, 1d6=5 Check to confirm crit on second attack: Extra d6 to damage:
Assuming the captive chooses option one or two: Here are the questions Tate will ask.
Tate will wait until he is alone with the hobgoblin. He will also ask Amie to come in about a half hour. DM Spoiler:
I am going to assume that the hobgoblin and I share a language, and that I am left alone to get to work. To the hobgoblin: "You are a warrior. I will not waste your time with threats. I will simply lay out your options. I have power here. I have strength here. All you have is a choice on how I should proceed." Tate will make sure the hobgoblin is making eye contact. "Option one: You can tell me everything you know about the leader of your band, and of the one that is gathering your people and equipping them for war. I will check your intelligence against what is extracted from the leader we caught. If you tell the truth, and our magics confirm it, I will let you take one weapon from the ground here, and we will finish this. You will die a warrior's death, or you will slay me, and have a chance to gain freedom. You will be master of your fate again either way." Tate holds the hobgoblins head toward the tools of his trade. "Option two: You can lie to me. I will use our sorcerors and the intelligence given by your leader to find out you have lied to me. I will then use all my skills to kill you in the most painful way possible. You are the twelfth being I will kill in this way. Perhaps you have heard of Galt? I learned things in Galt that would surprise your torturers. You will not die a warriors death. Instead you will die like a pig or goat that is gored by an ox, and crawls broken to die." Tate allows the hobgoblin a quick drink from the lid of his flask of brandy. "Option three: You can stupidly remain silent. I told the others that I would not do evil here. I did not lie to them. To let you go without finding out what you know will make it hard to prepare for the threat you pose. That is to allow harm to come to the innocent by inaction. That is evil. F$%%ing you up to the point where your species is hard to determine is by far less of a strain on my conscience than you may suppose. Good does not mean weak. Good does not mean kind. Good means doing what must be done so that the darkness does not swallow the light. They call me Tate the butcher. Make your choice." \
"This blessed sister of the savoured sting will explain. Please leave me to my work." Tate touches his finger to the Callistrian scripture embroidered on his armour. It reads: Guard your house. Strike down they that trespass.
"You don't know me yet. I hope you will grow to trust my judgement in time."
In elven. " Intimidation is a subtle art. Please trust that I will not do evil here. The greater good requires that this creature not know that. We must know their plans in order to save lives, and contain the threat this force poses. I will not do evil here." He searches their faces for comprehension.
Having satisfied himself that the archer is carefully secured, Tate will turn toward those that are close by, and hold up his hand for their attention. "Please grant me a few hours alone with this captive. Thank you all for your aid. I need some private time with him, if I am to find out what I think we need to know about this force. Perhaps one of you could go to the other captive, and hear what it has to say, then come back here in a few hours." As he talks, he starts laying out some tools on a leather tarp that he spreads under his captive. A flensing knife, Some tiny skinning knives. A Small balanced stone hammer without a handle. Some pliers. A small pot of salt.... All of them are cleary visible to the hobgoblin. Tate will wait until the others have gone before starting to talk. His face is very calm and impassive. He looks like he is relaxing himself, and preparing for something. He looks at each of the newcomers in turn, standing next to his tools, and the slowly twisting hobgoblin.
Tate calmly and expertly binds the unconscious hobgoblin. He binds its hands behind it, and binds it at knee and ankle. He will keep an eye on the newcomers. "Your arrival was timely. Go and finish the fight. I will make sure that this one is ready for questioning. If you can catch another of these, we will be able to question them seperately, which will give us a way to verify such testimony as I will extract. Introductions can wait."
Tate is going to do a little experiment in psychological conditioning. He will maneuver himself in such a way that he will flank and attack whatever attacks Amie. In game terms, he attacks, then moves to flank, and set up his next attack. If he kills what he attacks, and there is no enemy close to amie, he will position next to her, and a little in front, to intercept threats. 1d20+11=15, 1d4+1=3, 3d6=14 plus two for flanking: 17 to hit. Quickly, to Amie, keeping the enemies ahead of him: "Did you do that?"
Acrobatics check to kippup onto his feet again: (If he succeeded by more than ten, could he perhaps bound to his feet as a swift action, and thus be able to draw a mellee weapon this round, instead of next round? Rules weirdness says it takes a move action to draw a weapon, and a move action to get up from prone, which would mean one round of doing nothing but a five foot step, or taking attacks of opportunity from the menagerie. ) "Yargh! Hunfh! I am a butcher! you hear me! A butcher!" If Tate is coordinated enough, at dex twenty-two , to flip upright, and draw a weapon at the same time, he will attack the closest hobgoblin to Amie. He will position with a five foot step, so he can flank, and thus add sneak attack damage.
In elven, calmly "Take the two on the right. I have the left. Pharasma take them." Second sneak attack in first round with bow, against the second Hobgoblin on the left: 1d20+13=33, 1d8+2=6, 3d6=14
Move action to drop bow and draw butcher's knife. Next round Attack with knife: and position to threaten two on left, if they survived.
Tate beckons to Amie to ready her bow. He takes his own bow out, and nocks an arrow. He places another arrow into the dirt ahead of him. Initiative:
Perception to identify the source:
Attack roll and damage (if necessary. Provided for convenience. Tate will only attack a credible threat.)
Tate knows he can place an arrow best at close range, and will do so if possible. He will draw his butcher's knife to close, after taking the shot.
Tate leads Amie surely throught the woodland, to a small copse of trees on a small rise. A fireplace made by a ring of squared stones sits in the shade of an elm. A pair of elk antlers is attached to the tree, and a leather patch hangs below it. A quote from the parables of Erastil is engraved in the leather. "Family is the root of all good." A deer carcass has been expertly butchered here. A cable stretches into the tree limbs, with a block and tackle. On a hook at the bottom of the cable is the skeleton of the deer. The gore and blood has run into a drainage channel, and been covered with soil. Strips of dried meat hang in the sun to dry. A flat stone has salt and spices laid on it. Almost nothing is wasted. Tate quickly and efficiently starts to break down the camp. He packs the meat into a leather bag, and tosses a chunk of excellent jerky to Amie. He leaves the fireplace, and the shrine. The carcass, he drags into the trees. He throws the meat he cannot carry into the trees after it. "Some scavenger will eat well tonight. I saw a fox b#!%# nosing around after the meat earlier. I think she has a litter somewhere near." He adjusts the straps on his pack, and takes a walking stick to hand. He takes a last look around, to make sure his camp is properly broken. He nods, and smiles briefly at a job well-done. "Onward to the elves. Would you honour me with some scripture, as we go?" Edit: We posted at the same time. I am going to assume your post is after mine, and that the sound comes to Tate's clearing in the woods.
"Berrick, a ranger friend of mine, told me of a half-elf stranger who was asking after the elves. I thought you may come this way, and so took to the trees to see a little farther. I will take you to the elves I know. Before I can do that, I have some salted venison hanging to dry in the sun, and a few belongings at my camp. I also have placed some antlers and hides as a shrine to Erastil. I would be honoured if you would bless the shrine, that the hunter may feel respected for the fine stag I took. There is a meadow there that will be good grazing. It is a single sun width away. It will take no more than an hour for me to return the glade to the way it was before. Is the need critical? I am loath to abandon my posessions." Tate seems curious, and a little puzzled. He looks into Amie's eyes a little guardedly.
"I mean you no harm. I am quite surprised you could see me. You have fine eyes. I would have announced myself, but I am unused to company, and spent too long rehearsing the words I would use to announce myself. By the time I was ready, you were close enough for it to be hard not to startle you. I am ashamed, and call now the greeting I lacked the wit and manners to use earlier. I am quite unarmed." Tate drops from the tree, and bows. He is wearing beautiful elven leather armour, with a quote from the scriptures of Calistria embroidered on it in meticulous lines. He has a straight longbow sheathed in hide on his back, next to a rapier. A dagger on his left thigh, is dwarfed by a butcher's knife on his right. His hands are held away from his body, and open. He has long dark blonde hair, tanned skin, and a gaunt, bony look. He is very still, moving with economy. A few blood specks dot the armour. His eyes have a sad, haunted look to them, and he looks exhausted. It is hard to place his accent. Around his neck, are two elven wedding rings, and the symbol of Erastil. "I welcome you to my path. Peace and longevity to your house. I am Tate Argensier, late of the river kingdoms. Come into the shade, and rest your horse. How may I help you, blessed daughter of Erastil?"
About backstory. I prefer to have it discovered during play than have an essay buried on the character's profile. I have a solid past for Tate, and would like to reveal it slowly. I am hoping that the characters are not assumed to know each other, and are going to introduce themselves in the game. Things like alignment of the rest of the party, class and spells are not really in our characters to know, so I am not going to read any of the other stat blocks, so please don't misunderstand when Tate asks the other characters some questions. If this is difficult, let me know, and I will type up a bio, but personally, I think I want a bit of mystery about my lanky rogue. Similarly, I will describe him in thread. |
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