Garim mutters, "I hope I didn't just scare them off to run for help."
Garim steps forward, his morning start coming in at the bandits left side. He mistimes his step though and manages to slam the spiked ball into one of the crates near the wall.
Ah yeah. Will do those while at work tomorrow so I don't have to use my phone to do the dice syntax
Seeing some space finally opening up, Laya steps around the corner of the grease spell, and rummages quickly through her scrip. She pulls out a bottle, pulls out the stopper, and bends over to administer it to Zuran. All the while, she continues chattering on about inherent weaknesses in humans.
Zuran stabilization 1:
Zuran stabilization 2:
Zuran stabilizes at -4, which means the healing potion brings him up to 2 hp, conscious, prone, and unarmed.
"Does he yet live?!" the paladin roars, looking back in apprehension and smiling in pleasant surprise.
Ofelio moves back to be on the other side of Zuran and swipes at the bandit on the other side of the one he'd just felled, loathe as he is to leave Laya unguarded.
The hit has a satisfying sound to it, more than bloodying the man.
The darkness embraced him. The temporary pain was a vague memory. He had expected there to be some kind of light or something. His weightlessness made him feel uneasy. He tried to remember what had happened. Oh yes, Garim blocked his retreat... Why would he do that? Instantly, his incorporeal body felt like he was moving fast.
In a instant, the pain was back, at first he choked on the liquid that was being forced down his throat. Groggy, his eyes had trouble focusing. Who was this human child kneeling over him? After a few moments, his focus became sharp again. It was Laya! Being brought back to conciousness, he was quickly able to piece together what happened. Giving Laya the look of gratitude with his eyes, he began to survey the situation.
HP 8
AC 16 (11 touch; 15 FF)
F/R/W +3/+1/-1
Bandit 2:
HP 18
AC 16 (11 touch; 15 FF)
F/R/W +3/+1/-1
Prone
Bandit 3:
HP 18
AC 16 (11 touch; 15 FF)
F/R/W +3/+1/-1
Bandit 4:
DEAD
Bandit 5:
HP 13
AC 16 (11 touch; 15 FF)
F/R/W +3/+1/-1
Prone
Bandit 6:
HP 17
AC 16 (11 touch; 15 FF)
F/R/W +3/+1/-1
Round 14
Bandit 1 pales at the grievous wound, stabs at Garim, inflicting a moderate wound, and then steps back to F20.
Attack on Garim:
Confirm:
Damage:
Bandit 2 attempts to step forwards to attack Laya.
Acrobatics:
Reflex:
He flounders, arms flailing wildly, but he doesn't fall.
Acrobatics:
He tried again and gets off the grease. Ofelio can have an AoO against him as this wasn't a 5-foot step. He's also denied his Dex bonus to AC against this attack.
Bandit 3 stabs at Garim, then curses at his comrade for blocking his own withdrawal. He takes a double move to carefully back away and behind the stairs.
Assuming Ofelio doesn't kill him with the AoO, bandit 2 glances around and suddenly realizes he's very much alone at the moment, with all his friends gone or retreating.
Initiative: Bandits, Garim, Laya, Zuran, Ofelio
Map Updated
Growing frustrated at his own clumsiness with the weapon Garim brings the morning star down in an overhand swing. The spiked ball slams into the floor with a loud clang echoing in the small confines of the tower.
Ofelio, happy as he is that Zuran is, in fact, alive, loses some of his focus... meaning the bandit is unharmed by a wide margin.
Apologies.
"It's also a fairly typical human response to withdraw when things get difficult," Laya continues. She backs further away from #2 and then casts another spell. A burst of light flashes in front of #2's face, but the bandit is able to blink his vision clear again.
Laya scowls. "Some people prove particularly resilient."
-- pass
The paladin moves to take the place Garim has vacated and makes a spirited attack against bandit 1.
Striking him down and getting more blood spray on his face, one fleck notably on his larger eye. He doesn't seem to notice.
Zuran, not wanting to risk another injury with the bandits withdrawing, delays, though once Ofelio strikes down the bandit, he feels it safe enough to stand and retrieve his bow.
Round 15
Bandit 1 turns and flees around the stairway. You hear a thud of wood striking wood.
Initiative: Bandits, Garim, Laya, Zuran, Ofelio
With no enemies in sight a wave of nausea hits Garim seeing the dead and spilled blood. He retches in a corner and closes his eyes to fight the dizziness. "So... so this is what it is like to... to be sent on a quest?" Garim had seen the dead before, he remembered his grandparents being laid to rest. But this up close and personal was unnerving.
[ooc]Taking no actions. If the others give chase will follow suit, otherwise will sit on the floor and stare at nothing for a while trying to clear his head - Use Natural Divination to gain a bonus to a future saving throw.
"Indeed, Garim... it feels hardly different from hunting down bandits. Mostly because we're hunting down bandits."
One gets the distinct impression Ofelio is trying to make a joke with those words, but the carnage distracts... and it's a bit weak to begin with.
After grabbing his bow, Zuran shaken by what appeared to be his end. He didn't speak. His hands still shaking. Shooting a quick glance of disdain at Garim. He worked to calm the adrenaline coursing through his veins.
Ofelio got him.
Does anybody wish to look around the staircase?
Closing his eyes and wiping his mouth Garim stands up, a wave of dizzines hitting him. When it passes he moves around the north side of the staircase, his morning star and shield held ready. He cautiously peeks around the corner of the stairs.
Garim peers around the corner, finding no bandits. Footprints and blood drops lead to an area directly behind the staircase, then vanish.
Garim continues his search, moving slowly, trying to avoid making noise, but his armor clinks as he walks. He moves to where the footprints and drops of blood come to an end.
He sees a trap door; it hadn't properly closed.
Blinking at the noissome sneaking of the oracle, the paladin inclines his head around the bend with a quirked brow.
Garim examines the door, looking for locks or latches on both the inside and out, opening it only enough to determine if there is any kind of latch on the inside. "Should we bar the door until we are ready to move on?" he asks Ofelio.
Ofelio nods, though it is an agreement with whatever the more intelligent oracle suggested more than the fruit of his own mental labors.
Garim heads over to the crates and barrels, looking for one of sufficient weight to hold the trap door closed, then with Ofelio's help move it to the trap door. "Laya and Zuran, can you keep a watch on the door outside?"
With one entry secured Garim cracks open a couple of the remaining containers to see what is stored inside.
There is no latch on either side of the trap door, nor are there any bandits awaiting you. Garim can see enough to spot a ladder leading down into the darkness.
Cracking open a few crates and barrels, Garim finds dried meat and beans, and some wormy flour. They are easily heavy enough to provide a significant hindrance to opening the trap door (though whether the trap door will support the weight of the containers is a concern). In the end, you manage to pin the trap door shut, though it sags noticeably.
Is there healing to be done? What's the plan from here?
With the trap door temporarily secured Garim heads up the stairs to get a look at the top level.
Upstairs, you find four lumpy mattresses on the floor, some dirty blankets, and a rough wooden chest. Small arrow slits let a little light in and provide a view of the central courtyard area. A burly half orc stands in the doorway of the north tower, surveying your tower, with the surviving mastiff sitting beside him, licking its many wounds.
Garim calls down the stairs, "Hey, there is a half-orc out there with the dog. Looks like he is watching to see if we come out."
"Probably waiting to call down another ambush on us," Laya replies, staring forlornly at the blood on her clothes. "I wonder if these towers are connected underground."
"Maybe. There is also a wooden chest up here, with..." Garim cracks open the lid on the chest to take a look at what is inside.
Garim cracks open the lid of the unlocked chest and finds a few sets of worn, dirty clothing, some musty blankets, a pair of boots with a hole in the right toe, and a few wash leather purses containing coins. All told, you find 90 silver coins.
"... uh, some old clothes and blankets and a worn pair of boots. And a couple leather purses filled with silver." Garim pauses a moment before sighing and pulling out the purses, feeling somewhat uncomfortable just taking coin. I don't suppose they earned this through any honorable means - and finding a rightful owner...
Coming back down the stairs Garim sees his companions standing where he left them. "So..." he drawls out the word. "Now what? Block the door outside to make sure that half-orc doesn't come in behind us and explore this trapdoor? I think you are right though Laya that it must connect to the other towers. Where else would those thugs have come from?"
He begins pulling some of the heavier boxes and barrels to bar the door.
"Exactly," Laya says. She starts helping Garim to block the door, although her small size and obviously limited strength means she has to struggle a bit. "Naturally, they'll be ready for us to follow them down there. They're probably preparing another ambush for us, so we'll need to be on guard."
"Not to be that guy, but what if they decide setting this tower on fire is a good idea? I mean, we already considered it..."
Laya shrugs. "Then we'll be safe in the cellar." She pauses. "Not accounting for cellar ambushes, that is." She pauses again and scrunches her face slightly. "The fact of the matter is, at the moment, we're unsafe no matter where we are, so might as well do whatever seems the most proactive. The cellar seems our best bet. At least in there, they're not likely to be able to pelt us with arrows as easily."
"Hopefully they haven't trained their dogs to climb ladders either." Garim grins.
With the door blocked Garim begins removing the crates from the trap door.
Garim peers down into the darkness of the cellar area and listens for a moment. As he listens his morning star begins to glow with a red light, which soon turns to near white, as if it were superheated from a forge, though it does not give off any heat.
At the bottom of the ladder is a hand dug "room", about ten feet across. Garim can just make out a passage leading northeast.
Sorry, I just double-checked the map, and the passage leads straight east, not northeast.
Laya peers into the trap door. "Ah, a tunnel," she says. "Well, tunnels are for following, I suppose. Who's first?"
Genisen tries to find a nice place to hide while he keeps watch in case of an attack. Unfortunately there isn't anywhere really good so he does the best he can.
When they begin to descend the ladder, Genisen moves over to the chest, pulls everything out, and searches for hidden caches, I've done this trick a few times, wouldn't surprise me if they have too
I assume you mean the chest upstairs, rather than anything close to the cellar tunnel. A thorough search of the chest reveals no hidden compartments. Indeed, the chest is of such poor quality and repair, its unlikely it could support a hidden compartment.
As you arrive at the bottom of the ladder, the light from Garim's spell is augmented by light from a pair of unknown light sources further down the tunnel. Despite the gentle turns in the passage, you can make out two of the bandits hiding behind a heavy wooden table that's been laid across the opening of a larger chamber. They hold longspears at the ready, but make no move to engage you.
"A welcoming party. Great." Garim scowls. He then leans over to whisper to Genisen, "Think you could scare them off with a couple of arrows?"
The oracle adjusts his light shield and morning star, fearing another battle is likely, and pushes up in front of Ofelio. [i]He needs the distance to work that weapon of his.[/ooc]