Stark finishes off one of the goblins as Durvin pokes another hole in the commando. Despite the blood seeping into the commando's armor, he is still up and willing to fight. Confident in his abilities, the commando takes a swipe at Durvin, but only manages to catch his weapon's handle in his own armor causing the attack to completely miss. Meanwhile, Skorabor has taken out the last goblin and Hawkeye manages to completely miss with his crossbow again. The commando looks up, suddenly realizing he is very much outnumbered.
Round three
Ac 14 HP 13 Fort +4(+5) Ref +1(+2) Will +5(+6)
Effects: 1 surge used. 1 wind blast used. Bane spell cast.
Resistance (Occa) 3 rounds remain
Bless 7 rounds remain.
Grimly Occa fights on.
Full attack on commando.
Hit? Flank and bless included . Damage? .
Durvin, buoyed by the dropping of the last goblin minion, swings an eager strike at the commando in front of him. Yet his tired limbs betray him as his attack falls just shy of its mark.
"Tselevye plamya!" he chants as he traces the symbols in the air, which is followed by a stream of fire that bursts from Stark's hand aimed for the ugly goblin.
Unfortunately, for the group, the Commando appears to be extremely agile and his small size makes things more difficult. Stark, on the other hand, manages to singe the ugly thing, burning it pretty badly. Realizing that he is starting to be surrounding, he takes a swing at the new enemy who just showed up. Skorabor dodges the "halberd-like" weapon with room to spare. The goblin then decides to give up and runs for it.
Skorabor just smiles as the goblins blade bounces off his armor. "Ding!", he imitates the sound mockingly. "Think yer disgarded vermin blade can put a dent in a Boulderback?" he boasts. Has the goblin turns to run Skorabor deftly slides the hilt of his waraxe between it's legs, sending it stumbling to the ground. "When ye fight a Boulderback, ye stay to the end!" the dwarf says and swings his axe in an overhead chop. The goblin manages to bring forth his weapon to parry, but alas the strike is to heavy and the blade yields, sending both the horse chopper and waraxe through the goblin's skull which splits like a water melon.
Skorabor walks into the middle of the street. "Is there anyone else?", he bellows slaps himself over the chest. "Bring yer whole litter, i'll cleave them one by one!" the dwarf declares to the night.
The street is empty, save for the man crying over his dead dog's body. You no longer hear any screams or cries of pain elsewhere. In fact, the whole town seems to be deserted as everyone has disappeared to safety.
Hawkeye nervously looks at the nobleman and looks to Occa to see if he is going to go help him. He nervously thinks to himself.
"I can offer no healing at this time.. I would be not of much use to this man.. you should take a look at him."
He calls out to the nobleman. "Sobbing man, are you injured?"
Occa moves swiftly to the man and dog.
'Hawkeye, Dervin, Stark, Check the adjoining streets. Skobar, stay here unless they call out. I'll just be a minute."
The man looks up as Hawkeye speaks to him and wipes away the tears from his face. "No, no, I'm fine. Can't say the same for Jak, though. My dog..." He chokes up a little as he speaks.
Occa examines the dog, but it is already too late. The dog was killed almost instantly by the goblin's blow. It likely didn't even feel pain as the death was quick. Eventually the man pulls himself together and looks at Occa. "I'm sorry... It's just... It all happened so fast, you know? Thank you for saving my life."
He then stands up and walks over to Skorabor, grabbing the Dwarf's hand and shaking hit profusely. "You are a fine warrior. I almost cannot believe your skill at arms and your bravery, except that I saw it for myself. Thank you, Sir Dwarf. Thank you!"
To the man. "Jak was a valient beast."
...blood to the sea, breath to the clouds. You go as we have gone and we will follow...
Occa says a swift prayer for the dog and the goblins.
To the others. "Come on. Let's find the sheriff. This may not be over yet."
Hawkeye mutters a Shoanti prayer for the dead dog.
To any who speak Shoanti it translates to
"May the Sky Father watch over you as your spirit returns to the Earth Mother's embrace."
As his hands return to normal, "Agreed. I wonder how the rest of town faired."
Skorabor plants the hilt of his axe in the ground and stands fast, the ever watching and vigilant protector of the north gate to Sandpoint. He liked that notion. Warden of the Gate. It had a nice ring to it.
The dwarf is dragged from his daydream as the man approaches and shakes his hand. Startled at first Skorabor quickly recovers his wits. "As a Boulderback i've got battle in the blood! Right down from the first dwarves. Taught by Torag, no less! No thanks is necessary. It's my duty to protect those who cannot protect themselves", he declares.
Durvin decides to examine the bodies of the fallen goblins, going through their pockets and looking for signs of the disease they carry. "I wonder what would make them decide to attack a town full of revelers, aren't they normally a cowardly lot?" He continues to look them over, "I wonder if something scared them into attacking? They did seem rather brave about the whole thing. Maybe they were mind controlled?" He continues to spit out his possible options.
"Goblins do as goblins do, friend. But to attack in such a force is curious and concerning. I fear the dark clouds lurking above in our near future and it must be us who stand to face it."
"Dark clouds? Ha! These things aren't even fit to rattle the leaves, much less darken the sky!" Skorabor snorts and gestures with his axe over the fallen goblins. "Not even a whole tribe of these little green devils would be able to obscure the sun from the skies. Take my word for it."
"They'll have to have a mind first to controlled, Durvin! the dwarf laughs. "The goblins are cowardly but unpredictable. They don't need anything to scare them into assaulting a settlement. No, these things just got it into their heads that they where worth somethin' and tried the mettle on the town. And now they're dead. Nothing more than that", he continues as a scholar speaking infront of a room of students.
"Now, let's see if we can't find that sheriff and get some firewood to put these wretches things to the torch!", Skorabor finishes.
The man speaks to Skorabor before turning back to his dog. "The Boulderback clan sounds mighty indeed!" The man returns to his dog and picks him up gingerly. "I must now go and bury my dog. But before I go, I'd like to ask you to please look me up at the Rusty Dragon Inn. I'll be in town for a few days more and I would like to repay you in some way. Just ask for Aldern Foxglove."
Aldern leaves through the nearby gate with his dog, presumably to find a suitable place to bury him. Meanwhile, Durvin's search of the goblin's corpses hasn't turned up anything to indicate disease. He does find a few pieces of string, some rotting pickles, a flattened toad, and a mostly empty salt-shaker. The halberd-like weapon the commando is carrying is the only object that seems to be worth anything. Durvin also finds a small glass bottle with a very small amount of liquid left in it, a potion of some kind that has already been drunk. There is enough there to taste in order to determine the type of potion, but not enough to benefit from it.
As the party is catching their breath, a group of guardsmen comes upon them. The guardsmen are in a good mood, and you can hear from their conversation that they were able to drive the goblins north out of the city. Turns out only a few people actually died, though many were given nasty cuts that will need to be stitched.
"Repayment to me is not necessary, he who is called Aldern Foxglove. The sun expects no payments for doing what it does and neither do I. I'm sure my friends and I would appreciate eating with you, though. I am sorry for your loss."
Hawkeye listens to the guards and thinks
It is truly fortunate that this attack left so few dead! Peace and order has been restored at this festival. Finally.
"Ooh, string and a salt shaker. I could probably use that at some point." He mumbles as he picks them up and stuffs them into his belt pouches, before asking "Nobody wanted those did they?"
Holding up the mostly empty vial, he suggests "It looks like he had drank something, maybe it cured the boss of his disease. I didn't see any signs of sickness in him.", holding it toward Occa and Stark he adds "Maybe if we figure out what the formula was, we can carry some with us in case we need an antidote."
To Aldern he responds, "I'm pleased to meet you, though I apologize for the unfortunate events that led to our meeting in the first place. I truly am sorry for the loss of your good friend" Durvin pauses to bow his head in respect. "My friend Hawkeye here is correct, repayment is unnecessary we were also victims of their attacks, and were just doing what was needed to help keep the town safe." he brightens a little, "I would still glady meet you at the Inn. I'm always eager to make new friends."
"Made in the image of Torag himself", Skorabor boasts and slams himself on the chest. "The rusty dragon, that's the inn down this street, right? Saw it on the way to the festival, might take up accomodation there myself." The dwarf fastens his axe to his belt and continues. "I'm sorry about yer dog. A hound is worth a hundred of these pests", he continues and kicks one of the dead goblins.
"Probably a carrier of the disease himself. There's one back here that didn't seem to be effected as well. You shouldn't temper with that stuff. It's been in a goblin's hands. That's a sure way to tell it's some foul thing", he tells Durvin.
"Hey, these things where carryin' some kind of disease. We're gonna need a wagon, a animal to pull it and a place to crisp these critters. Somewhere secluded. I don't want to smell burned goblin tomorrow when i wake up!", he calls out to the passing watchmen.
Hearing the news of the rest of the town, Stark is feeling hungry again. "Well, I don't know about you, but I've worked up an appetite. What better way to support these people than buying their food, services, and wares?" He smiles at the group. "Oh, and now that they're dead, I'm certain the diseased goblins aren't going to be contagious." He lightly chuckles. "In any case, let's not stand around any longer. The celebration has thoroughly been disrupted. I wonder if they're still consecrating the church later."
"But there's flies and other vermin that will be drawn to their carcasses and spread the filth. Those things have no taste, they'll happily feed on goblin and man alike!" Skorabor protests.
"Then gather the bodies in a pile outside the main populace, and burn them like you said?" He says confused.
Durvin looks between Skora and Stark, and decides to chime in "I'll help you if you want, Skora. Though, I'm not exactly the toughest guy, I'll do what I can."
Aldern thanks everyone once again before he heads off.
The guards, having heard Skorabor's call, head over to help remove the bodies from the street. Thankfully, the gate is nearby so it doesn't take much effort to move the lightweight creatures out of town to a good place for a pyre. Other goblins are brought from elsewhere in the city, but the majority of the dead goblins were those that the party killed. The guards comment that most of the goblins ran away and one was captured.
You also hear that the rest of the festivities for the night have been cancelled. The guard is doubling there numbers for the night and the church will be consecrated in a small ceremony tomorrow.
"Ye don't have to be tough, my little friend. Just as long as ye don't catch fire easily or faint at the sight of blood ye'll be fine", Skorabor replies and pats Durvin on the back.
"Oh, ye captured one, did ye? I would sooner have slaid 'im but i guess that can be done after he's been questioned. Has he told ye anythin'?", Skorabor asks the guards as they're working. "Where might we find the sheriff tonight?"
"The Sheriff's at the Garrison with the goblin right now. He's being held in the jail there at the moment. I suspect the little bugger's being questioned as we speak. The Garrison is on the corner of Tower Street and Main Street. It's hard to miss." He points the way to Skorabor.
"Thanks! We best be off then", Skorabor thanks the guard and starts to trod off towards the garrison. "Ye'll see that it's just some kind of impulse that made the goblins assault the town. Nothin' more than that", he tells his companions on the way.
"He who is called, Skorabor Skalfgrin Boulderback of the Boulderback clan of dwarves, I must disagree. I wish I could think it to be so simple but my heart tells me more is at stake. There is a great evil coming and I must face it. This could be the fist omen. I think it prudent to talk to the gaurds and see what we can do to help protect in case of another attack or even bring the attack to the goblins. To wash our hands of this tonight would not be wise, I fear."
Durvin listens for a bit before piping up, "I would actually like to join you at the jail" he grins "Never thought I'd say that before." before he returns to his previous line of thought. "I would like the opportunity to hear it directly from the horse-killer's mouth, what it was that drove them to attack." Looking at Skora he adds, "I'm gonna have to agree with Hawkeye, I think there is something going on that don't seem right, despite your experience with goblins."
"Haha, ye shouldn't be so dour. Goblin schemers are about as likely as a pig spoutin' wings and flyin' about!" Skorabor laughs joyfully squatting off the other's worry as if it was flies. "Next you'll tell me that orcs make good midwives! Ha!" The dwarfs spirits have been high ever since he planted his axe into the last of the goblins. He hums a gleeful tune on the way, paying to mind to the destruction the goblins have left.
"So these are the barracks, ey? Let's see what that little green gutter frog has to say", Skorabor says as he stands infront of Sandpoints garrison before opening the doors. "I am Skorabor Skalfgrin Boulderback, son of Kargunt Boulderback, the warlord of Stoneshire!" the dwarf announces to the whole building as he enters. "We're here to see the goblin."
"He who is called, Skorabor Skalfgrin Boulderback of the Boulderback clan of dwarves, I must disagree. I wish I could think it to be so simple but my heart tells me more is at stake. There is a great evil coming and I must face it. This could be the fist omen. I think it prudent to talk to the gaurds and see what we can do to help protect in case of another attack or even bring the attack to the goblins. To wash our hands of this tonight would not be wise, I fear."
Occa seems thoughtful
"Hmmmm.... This was a large raid. It may have had an object. I would recommend keeping weapons handy tonight. There may be more of them in hiding."
"Hidin', now that's somethin' ye got right! If there's somethin' these vile devilspawn can do it's hide. To cowardly to stand n' fight. They probably thought they could get some easy prey here at the festival, but look how they all fled as things turned against them!", Skorabor responds as sure as ever that his words are true.
Those who decided to head to the garrison are led instead to a stairwell that leads down into dim light. The stairwell ends in a hallway with six thick iron doors on each side. There are no bars on the doors, only a small slot for food to be passed through. This is where people are jailed in Sandpoint, though from the looks of things, it likely doesn't happen often.
At the bottom of the stairs, a heavily scarred Shoanti man stops you and introduces himself, "I am Vachedi. If you are looking for the Sheriff, he is busy at the moment. He will be free in a short time." His speech is good, but you can tell that he isn't very comfortable with it and his accent identifies him as originally being a tribesman.
"Well met, he who is called Vachedi."
"I am Skorabor Skalfgrin Boulderback, son of Kargunt Boulderback, the warlord of Stoneshire!" Skorabor announces and extends in hand in a greeting. "It's a pleasure to meet ye, Vachedi. Is the sheriff in there with the goblin now? Have ye been able to squeeze anythin' out of the little bugger?"
Stark will go with the group to the garrison, but will remain upstairs.
"Well met, he who is called Skorabor Skalfgrin Boulderback, son of Kargunt Boulderback, the Warlord of Stoneshire. The Sheriff is with the goblin as we speak. He will return shortly, I am sure." As he speaks this last sentence, Sheriff Hemlock emerges from one of the cells and walks up to you all.
Hemlock, recognizing Skorabor, addresses him primarily, but nods to everyone recognizing their presence. "Sir Dwarf. Welcome to the garrison. I expect you are here to find out more about the goblin. Well, I can tell you that I am a little concerned. It says it was ordered to burn the city down, but it wouldn't tell me who gave the orders. Goblins don't usually work off of orders like that."
Hawkeye pauses. He knows exactly what he means. Ever since he left his tribe, he, too, has felt himself speaking more and more like the non-native tribesmen. Hawkeye nods respectfully to the tribesman.
Hawkeye listens to Hemlock's words and contemplates on the confessions of the goblin.
"hmm... goblins don't work off orders of anyone..."
"Ordered? That does sound odd. Are there many tribes around here? Could be a chieftain drunk with power tryin' to show off to the other tribes. Or shaman driven insane by it's foul magic. Magic will do that you know. Turn yer mind into mush.", Skorabor says knowlingly. "Best thin' to do is to stomp the little buggers down. Show them their place. Them are a cowardly lot and will scatter like leaves in the wind, i tell ye!"
Durvin's eyes brighten at the sheriff's words, "AHA! I knew it. That's great!" Durvin regains his composure as he relizes what he said, "What I mean to say is I am glad what I suspected was correct, not that it was good that they were told, or that they attacked." after his rambling he decides to change his direction, "Well met Sheriff, and Vachedi, is there any chance we would be able to speak with this goblin? Maybe we could get more out of him."
"Well met Sheriff Hemlock, Vachedi. It looks like you have things under control here. I am Occa a priest of wind and water, I might be able to help with the injured. Where would I best be used?"
"No chieftain in recent years has had the power to move this many goblins at once. Our goblin expert is out of town and isn't expected back for a few months, unfortunately. I'm sure she would have been able to give us a better explanation of what is going on." He looks at Durvin. "Please, be my guest. It'll be taken out of town and executed tonight, but we haven't told it that."
To Occa, the sheriff responds, "Pleasure to meet you Occa. I believe Father Zantus is tending to the wounded in the Cathedral. You may be of some assistance there." The Sheriff nods to the groups before announcing, "Well, I must be going. I have to make sure our town is secure and I want to see if I can figure out where these things came from."
As Sheriff Hemlock leaves, Vachedi motions for Durvin and anyone else who is interested to follow him to the goblin's cell. He unlocks the cell door for you. "The goblin is tied up in the corner so he will be unable to harm you. Knock twice when you are finished." He then opens the door for you to enter.
As he said, in the corner is a small goblin with his arms tied to a chain on the wall. The goblin appears to have given up struggling against the ropes and he looks up at you, with a flash of fear in his eyes that is quickly replaced by anger. He spits as you enter the cell.
"Harm us? Haha, it's a goblin! Ye can throw a lance in there and it still wouldn't be able to harm us", Skorabor laughs. He follows Durvin into the cell. "Hey, there'll be none of that lest ye want and axe shuttin' that mouth of yers!" Skorabor warns the spitting goblin.
Stark continues to wait for the group at the top of the stairs.
"Thank you Sheriff."
To the others. "I am off to the cathedral. Meet at the Rusty Dragon round night fall?"
Assuming no questions etc. Occa will head off to find Father Zantus.
Occa arrives at the Cathedral where a few have bravely left their homes to come pray. He finds his way in easily and is greeted by an acolyte. The acolyte escorts Occa further into the Cathedral, to an open air courtyard in the center that the rest of the Cathedral appears to have been built around. In this courtyard stand seven stones surrounding a stone altar. Father Zantus is here tending to some of the wounded.
To the west are shrines devoted to Shelyn and your own deity, Gozreh. To the south are shrines to Abadar and Erastil. And to the east are shrines to Desna and Sarenrae.
The goblin sneers at the Dwarf, but does not speak a word.