Liamae's arrow sails gracefully through the air and strikes its target true, piercing through the goblins armor and into his gut. He howls goblin obscenities as he jumps off his crate and takes cover from behind another, from which he returns a volley through the legs of his friend.
Roger is saved by the soft cover provided by a goblin.
However, that very goblin jumps from his crate and charges full speed straight at the halfling. For such a small creature, he moves with alarming celerity through the grass.
The ragged goblin spearpoint cuts through Roger's upper arm, leaving a nasty, if not superficial, gash.
The other speargoblin also runs full speed across the field towards the group, but stays wide, possibly trying to cut off an escape, but its a goblin, so who knows.
Attai frowns as hostilities commence, and moves to broker peace in the quickest fashion known...violence. It seems negotiations will continue as Attai achieves little by his swing...
Round 1
Move Action: Move to H6
Standard Action: Smash goblin at G7 with morningstar.
[+2 Str]
[+3 THF]
In spite of his better judgement and his complete ineffectiveness during the last fight, Iagon follows his instincts and moves forward to stand in between the goblin and Liamae. He roars as his power surges, building up and then bursting out in a straight blast, sending wood fragments flying at the approaching creature.
"Ahh! Goblins!" Roger leaps back next to the fire and reflexively casts Grease on the goblin, his plan immediately forgotten in the fright the goblin gave him.
Seeing the further goblin blasted, Attai rounds Kytes and swishes his morningstar at the nearer, his neat arc thudding ineffectually into the earth.
Valiantly, Iagon protects his teammate from the speedy goblin and with a well tuned shot, sends a burst of plant matter which shreds through both armor and flesh. The goblin is knocked back and falls to the ground, twitching unconsciously. A cheer erupts from the keelboat.
The other spear goblin keeps to his feet as a puddle of grease appears beneath him, and jumps a little when Attai’s morning star comes crashing down with a thud into the ground behind him. Being small pays off some times.
Kytes can only think of protecting his new friends, so he steps between Roger and the slippery goblin and takes a swing with his long sword.
This one, too, crumples into the dirt. Another huzzah sounds from the boat.
All that’s left is the bowgoblin, crouching behind a crate. But the fire still blazes on.
The grassfire spreads immediately to the south.
Liamae moves away from the flames to get a good angle on the remaining goblin. She lets another arrow fly.
With elven grace, Liamae fires another arrow which somehow slips perfectly by the cover provided by the crate and neatly plunges through the remaining goblin’s throat. Black blood gurgles up through it’s wide mouth as it falls to the ground. Shouts and whistles of applause again sound from the boat, as the polemen begin pushing the craft back towards land. With the goblin threat cleared, and after a thorough stamping out of the grass fire, the ambush site lies ready to be investigated.
"Holy crap, that actually worked..." Roger mutters to himself. "I mean...hell yeah, that worked perfectly!"
He confidently strides over to investigate the site, allowing himself a moment to breathe deeply. Between the fire and the goblins, his adrenaline is roaring in his ears.
Liamae smiles with grim satisfaction as she shoulders her bow. "Brilliant work, everybody! Now let's see what they were squatting on." She follows Roger to search the area, sweeping it with detect magic.
Attai nidd grimly, not at all sure his work was "brilliant". Ever vigilant, Attai grips his morningstar tight as he accompanies Liamae toward the wreckage, still on the lookout for more goblins...
Liamae’s attention is drawn to the body of the dead bowgoblin, where she detects a faint aura of conjuration. Tucked away in a back pocket she finds a vial of swirling silvery pink liquid.
Other than that, she finds a small pouch with a couple of pinches of what looks to be a shredded root of deep ochre color, and a small purse with only 5 gold and 10 silver pieces.
Altogether, on the goblins you find 2 spears, 2 light wooden shields, 1 shortbow, 1 quiver of 18 arrows, 1 dagger, and 3 pairs of leather armor, all sized small.
Attai notices that the goblins show signs of ritual scarring on their bodies.
There are no signs of any other goblins nearby.
When the ‘all clear’ signal is given, the driver moves the keelboat up the river bank near the grounded barge. Hans jumps off the boat and helps to assess what can be salvaged. Of the remaining crates, three have their contents spilled and ruined. By the looks of the spoiled goods, and from peeking into the intact crates, Hans assumes they are holding sacks of milled and unmilled grains, "Probably from Absalom, or further east in Taldor I bet, shipping up north to Galt, a right mess of a country. We can load these up on the boat and trade them off at the post for a hefty profit." He rubs his hands together then motions at the polemen to come help claim the goods.
Kyte’s seems unsettled. "I’d like to know what happened to the people on this barge," he states.
Looking about, the ground around the barge and crates is thoroughly trampled and muddied. A pair of lead ropes tied to a center mast on the barge have been cut through and lie in the mud. Likewise, a pair of long poles have been left behind. Goblin crafted arrows are scattered about the site, shafts snapped or otherwise unsalvageable. Many tracks of various shapes and sizes leave the site to the east.
"Huh, I've heard about these guys before. These are Belching Toad goblins, they're from the Blackwood swamp. It's weird though, they usually stay to their own area, which is way south of here. Wonder why they're all the way up here. It's never a good sign when the goblin tribes start moving them around. Usually means they've been moved by something or someone."
Liamae swirls the potion about and studies its color, then takes a sniff. "Mmm, almonds! This must be a healing potion." She offers it to whomever might make best use of it.
"Shall we follow the tracks?"
Attai responds to the wreckage with silence, taking care to step carefully, as if his own footsteps might create any worse disturbance than that already visited upon the scene. The sylph frowns as the venal boatmen see possibly filthy lucre and likely illegal salvage instead of danger or dissolution.
Not able to discern anything clear in the disturbed site nor the tracks, Attai nods thoughtfully as Roger assesses the likely aggressors. He nods more vigorously as Liamae speaks, and cradles his morningstar in the crook of one arm.
"We are tasked thus. And those who were conveyed upon this craft are, as Kytes indicates, missing and unaccounted for. Let us find them."
"What tracks? Oh my gosh, how did I miss those?"
Iagon nods grimly at their success, and pats Roger on the shoulder as they go about their salvage. Well done, Roger - a fine idea...and one I admittedly wasn't sure would work. I'll never doubt you again!
He bends to survey the tracks, having had no knowledge of the salvage. There are goblin prints, as well as larger humanoids and apparently whatever draft animals were used to haul the barge in. Also...some of these larger humanoid tracks appear to be goblinoid, as well. He looks up to Kytes. I agree...a large force such as this would no doubt just find another target after this one. This passage isn't safe while these Belching Toad goblins are active.
"Larger goblinoids...like hobgoblins? They're not active in this area, are they? That's really not good."
Yes, or something like that. There are other humanoid prints that may not be goblinoid though...perhaps they took prisoners, in which case... He looks pointedly to the east.
"Lead the way, Iagon!"
Although the immediate threat has been cleared, the boat driver fidgets nervously at the rudder, eager to move on.
Seeing the group conferencing about the tracks and looking off to the east, Hans approaches. "If it's no threat to us, it's none of our business," he gruffly orders, but then his face twists in further contemplation. "Ya know what? Our Lord an' Lady will be travelin' this way in a few days. If there's more goblins about, best to clear them off an' make the passage safe. Just uh... be quick about it. We'll be sittin' ducks till you get back." With his compliance as it is, he returns to the business of securing the claimed trade goods.
With the number of tracks, the trail is easy to follow. After about a half hour heading east through the prairie, you come across an old country road running from the northwest to the southeast, seemingly abandoned for at least a generation, although signs of recent use lead to the southeast. Agreeing that this must be the direction of your quarry, you follow along the road.
Another half hour passes, the sun is now near it's zenith in the sky. You approach a rocky outcropping that juts out from the otherwise featureless plain. The road cuts the outcropping through a narrow pass. Approaching the entrance of the notch in the hillside through which the road passes, you notice what appears to be two bodies lying in the dirt of the road.
Iagon stops and looks about the area around the bodies, looking for any potential dangers, specifically a trap with the bodies of the unfortunate folks as bait.
Liamae careful approaches within 60 feet, eyes glowing softly as she casts a spell.
When the bodies come into view, Iagon and Liamae halt the group a safe distance away. A warm breeze blows through the pass, rustling the leaves in the sparse shrubbery, but the bodies are unmoving. What first appears to be deep shadows cast by the noonday sun turns out to be pools of dark blood soaking into the dusty road. Nothing else seems out of the ordinary from this vantage.
"This...this is bad. Keep your eyes out, there may be more goblins."
Roger scans the are for goblins and other goblinoid creatures.
A chipmunk scampers across the trail and Eir rustles her feathers in response. Other than that, all is quiet.
Liamae uses her wand to replenish her mage armor, then slides it back into her belt and draws her bow. "Let's approach, but be cautious."
She stays behind Kytes as they draw near the bodies.
Seeing nothing amiss, though still suspecting a trap Attai moves closer to the bodies as cautiously as he can.
Iagon follow suit, walking alongside Attai, and making sure to stay ahead of Liamae....perhaps he's a bit old fashioned, but the woman of the group probably shouldn't have to lead.
Upon closer inspection, the bodies appear to be two middle-aged human males, dressed in the attire of lowly grain merchants. Their hands are bound behind their backs, and a length of rope connects them at the waist. Their throats are slit; it is easy to surmise they were executed in this fashion. The pool of blood they lay in has partially soaked into the sandy road, and still remains moist and somewhat gummy.
As you stand around inspecting the murdered merchants, from somewhere further down the pass, a small rock is thrown and lands amongst you. When it hits the ground it emits a small flash of light, as well as a thunderous crack.
Iagon and Liamae are left with a deafening ringing in their ears
As the rest of you regain your senses and look about for your assailant, from somewhere on the bluff above, an arrow comes screaming down.
The arrow finds its mark in Attai, a well aimed shot that catches him in the gut.
"Hglaaa!" gurgles Attai as the shaft lodges in his midsection. The sylph swears a curse at himself, for not having his mind in focus, and seems to shift physically. The very air seems to spin and cavort around him.
Swift Action: Enact Breeze Kissed: Swirling winds circle the sylph, conferring a +2 racial bonus to AC against nonmagical ranged attacks. Can be calmed or renewed as a swift action.
He steps back, putting his back to the north cliff face, and bringing his heavy crossbow to bear, Attai launches a bolt at the goblin to the south. A mix of being shot, sudden movement and the swirling wind around the sylph create a truly terrible aim.
Standard Action: Shoot at goblin to the south.
[+2 Dex]
Iagon curses himself at his foolishness. A simple but effective trap...of course it was! He winces at Attai's injury, but focuses on the battle at hand. If they didn't move quickly, they'd all be dead.
Targeting the goblin atop the rise on his side, he lets loose with a barrage of wooden fragments.
"Oh gods!"
Roger dives into a nearby bush, drawing his sword and wishing he had bought some sort of sling or something in the city. "Bring them down here, I wanna whack them!"
The goblins jump and laugh at Attai as he shouts in pain and his retort ends up in the dirt. Their wicked grins continue when Iagon's blast is mostly blocked by bush and boulder, losing enough matter and momentum to be absorbed by hardened leather.
Eir lets out a screech a moment too late after the goblins ambush the group, and Kytes lifts his shield in a defensive response. A flash of light emits from the hawk and seems to wash over Kytes, before Eir takes to the sky, quickly soaring to 60 feet above the frey.
With an extra bit of clarity granted to him, Kytes hustles over the boulder to the goblin and brings his sword down in an overhead arc.
CLANG!, the goblin jumps and laughs as Kytes' blade strikes granite.
"Oh gods!"
Roger dives into a nearby bush, drawing his new bow and thanking himself mentally that he'd looted it. "Well, if you won't come down here so I can whack you, looks like I have to snipe you instead!"
He heroically sends an arrow flying at the goblin Kytes is engaged in combat with.
Roger’s arrow makes it past boulder and armor and punctures the goblins leg just before Kytes engages.
Dismissing the arrow and laughing at Kytes, the goblin drops its bow, reaches behind its back and pulls out two short, curved blades, apparently made from honed scrap metal. With surprising finesse, she hacks away at Kytes.
With surprising finesse, she misses twice.
The other goblin, gleefully untouched in her fortified position between rock and shrub, digs into her bag of goodies at her feet and pulls out what looks to be a dead cat, overstuffed with black, goopy tar. She swings it overhead by its tail a few times and then lobs it at Iagon.
The grotesque creation hits Iagon square in the chest and explodes in a mess of very sticky tar and rotten fur. The goop is substantial enough that Iagon becomes glued to the ground.
Liamae cries out and claps her hands over her large ears as they ring painfully. She can't hear the fight going on, but she sees the threats clear enough.
Raising her bow, she fires an arrow at the goblin on the southern ridge. Then she clashes her bracers together and expends some of the mental focus therein, creating a protective barrier around herself.
Liamae’s arrow sails high over the goblins head. Looks like the goblins are having a jolly ol’ time.
Gah!
Iagon exclaims and falls back, stumbling right into the goblins well placed trap. He falls under the mess and has to take a deep breath to calm himself before looking at the situation realistically. Well, this one may be a bit beyond strength of arm, but if I can get the right angle...
He manuevers and fires a blast upward at the covering goo in an attempt to knock it off.
"Spiteful vermin! Keep peppering them Roger!" yells Attai as he cranks the mechanism on his crossbow furiously, the mini-gyre swirling around him kicking up motes of sand and dust.
Full Round Action: Reload heavy crossbow.
Roger sends another arrow flying at the blue goblin, hoping to give Kytes a bit of breathing room.
His bow lets out an audible *CRACK* as the arrow gently flops out and lands quivering in the ground in front of him.
A roar of laughter emits from the goblins. They are having a field day.
"Look at da longshanks, so slooooowww! Don't even know how ta use da bow!
A mighty swirl of branches and twigs flies around Iagon, removing just about half the gunk from around him, but he's still stuck in place.
Up above, Eir surveys the action. A bird's eye view is a good thing to have. Swiftly, she tucks her wings in and dives toward the goblin her charge is engaged with, flapping her wings at the last moment as she swings her talons out and rakes at the goblin's face.
As his companion swoops in behind the goblin and gives it a good scratch, Kytes seizes the moment and attacks with an upswing of his sword.
But his blade doesn't get through the goblin's armor.
"Ouch! Stupid turkey!"
The goblin swings her two blades wildly about.
This time she hits Kytes' breastplate, but that's it.
The other goblin digs around in her bag of tricks and pulls out a small glass bottle, which she hurls at the glued-in-place Iagon.
Poor Iagon, her aim is on today.
The flask hits him in the chest and a burst of flame spreads across the goop, igniting it as well.
Alchemist's Fire
Liamae swears in Elven as another arrow sails past the goblin.