DM JD's Kingmaker- Stolen Lands! (Inactive)

Game Master Jack Daniels

Dendarial takes 10 to climb the knotted rope as well, dropping down behind one of the buildings. At Damrak's request he launches Acio into the air. The owl flies high, taking an entire round to gain altitude. The bird is fragile. I will have to shoot the man as well. Den explains. Ready?

When the group is ready Den give some hand signal and the owl drops like a rock onto the man, using the sun to hit itself by instinct. I comes in behind the man and hits him with both claws.

Swooping Charge: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 202d4 ⇒ (1, 2) = 3 If hit, the man is staggered for a round.

As the owl hits, Den stands ready to come to his friend's aid. Readied action to shoot if the man begins to attack the owl that is now in its square.

"Ugh...!" Struggling to lift a stack of bear traps, Athenasius finally gives up and slumps against the side of the wagon. He rises a hand at Grimath's comments and, after catching his breath, complains: "By the divines! Can we just get these things unloaded and go home? I'm tired of the dirt and cold and... oh... I think I got a splinter... M'lady! Can you take a look at my hand? Please?"

Keeping up the act, he silently whispers to Anibeth and Grimath while retrieving his cross bow from its holster: "There is a bandit on the other side of this door. Our friends are inside and about to engage, get ready."

He then messages the infiltration team: "We are ready at the gate. Strike swift and true my friends."

Olo takes cover the second he clocks the bandit at the gate. From his shirt-sleeve he draws a dagger and waits for his companions to make the climb. He likes the sound of Damrak's plan. He dashes off as Acio's wings take flight. He makes his way east along the walls to K25 where he'll hide and listen keenly, awaiting the results of the owl's assualt.

Stealth: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (14) + 11 = 25

Damrak nods. "Understood, do what you think best - but I'd prefer to make this look natural; if he's attacked by a bird and calls for help, it won't alarm them as much as if he's shot by an arrow and calls for help. I want to draw the other two away from Oleg and Svetlana before we start anything obvious. Let's get closer in."

Suiting the deed to the words, Damrak moves further into the fort (again trying to avoid any windows), eventually taking cover behind some wooden benches (L17/L18).

Stealth (skill pts, Core, Dex bonus, Armour penalty): 1d20 + 1 + 3 + 1 - 2 ⇒ (19) + 1 + 3 + 1 - 2 = 22

Once in place, he readies his crossbow to aim at the bandit, and prays silently. Abadar: when the world was without form and void, you separated the earth from the waters to create Order; and the day from the night to create light, that we might see to judge the crooked from the straight. Help me now against those who shun the Law and protect me as I render judgement on them.

Conveniently for the party, the main house on the left has windows but they're covered with shutters, perhaps to keep the impending cold out.

Olo silently moves east then south along the house's outer wall to K25. Damrak also moves further south into the Trading Post to his spot at L17, behind some benches. Den stays put, ready to launch Acio into action. The bandit for his part has not turned around and continues to listen at the gate, inching closer to U16.

The owl has not attacked yet. Den's post says he is waiting for a hand signal from the party to set Acio loose; hence I put Damrak in L17 so he can communicate with Den visually. Damrak's spell has not gone off yet, since it has a V component, so the bandit may hear him. Let me know your actions now.

Updated Map

What is taking them so long. Not sure how much longer we can stall convincingly.. When they get the gate open, I should be ready to either help force it open wider to make sure Grimath and Athenasius can engage quickly. If there's no problem with the gate, I should attempt to find out where Oleg or Svetlana are and race to defend them from bandit reprisals.

Good with all this.

Den stands ready to command his owl to attack, watching for a signal.

Right, let's do this!

Damrak smiles at the exchange: he had assumed they were scum, but it's nice to hear them confirm it themselves. It makes his job easier.

He signals to let Den know that there is one in the main house and one in the stable, and indicates that he will go to the stable. He then signals Den to send Acio into the attack and signals Olo to see whether he will move to the gate, or whether he wants to try and get to Oleg.

Olo/Den: one option is for Olo to try and get to Oleg and for Den to get the gate open by himself - I don't know how optimised you are for combat Olo, so you may want to continue with the gate option - I'm just leaving it out there in case you want to change plans. Either way, to save real-life time and further exchanges of posts, let's assume that we exchange signals so we know what we're doing.

He moves to the stable and will use the noise of the bird's attack to cast his spell. He also whispers a message to let the others know what's going on:

As Acio distracts the guard, Damrak enters the stable, crossbow stowed and his duelling sword drawn.

Perception (skill points, Core, Wis bonus): 1d20 + 1 + 3 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 1 + 3 + 3 = 22

Stealth (skill points, Core, Dex bonus): 1d20 + 1 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (14) + 1 + 3 + 1 = 19

Olo signals Damrak that he'll head for the gate. Using the table and bench for cover, he sneaks further south, where he hides behind another building. On the balls of his feet, poised and ready, he awaits his opening.

Move to S25
Stealth: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (3) + 11 = 14

Den launches Acio with instructions to kill. He then readies his bow and waits for the bird to strike.

In case its not clear, Acio needs two rounds to do this swooping Charge: A full round to climb to altitude and another to dive/charge. If it hits the attack does double damage and staggers the target. In the numbers above I forgot to include the +2 to hit for the charge, so its actually a 22 to hit.

Den - that's fine, I think I need 2 rounds to get into the stable anyway

"Oleg is held by a bandit in the building north of the firepit. Another has his wife in the stables..." An expression of disgust flashes across Athenasius's face: "Damrak is moving to help her and called for assistance, but we'll have to deal with the one behind the door first. Once we've done that, I'm going to take the bandit that is holding Oleg. Anibeth, may I suggest that you go help Svetlana? She might need comforting after the bandit is... dealt with." His voice caries a cold edge that is uncharacteristic of the usually diplomatic wizard.

Damn it! As much as I want to help Svetlana, Oleg is a higher priority right now. Loosing him would put our entire mission in jeopardy. I hope Damrak can get to her before anything... unpleasant... happens.

Just looked up the falconer. Den, that swooping charge maneuver and subsequent stagger your bird can do is something you gain at 6th level as a falconer (swoop for the kill). So let me know if that changes your plans or you simply send your bird to attack. No stagger.

Grimath nods at Athen and steels himself for the coming combat. "Angradd stokes the fires of war that our foes might know justice." he mutters under his breath, clutching his holy symbol.

Blessing of War, 1 min. duration (Choose +10' move, +1 insight to attacks, +1 luck to saves, or +1 dodge AC at start of each round)

Just looked up the falconer. Den, that swooping charge maneuver and subsequent stagger your bird can do is something you gain at 6th level as a falconer (swoop for the kill). So let me know if that changes your plans or you simply send your bird to attack. No stagger.

Hmm. I added it as a trick. It did not seem all that powerful. Its just a trick. It takes two rounds to do 2d4 instead of 1d4. Staggered for a round is ok, but also not that great, as the enemy can still attack the bird. It just can't attack AND move. But after reading it again I agree with you that I should not get it until 6th level. Herolab let me add it at first. And yes the bird still attacks. Sorry for my confusion.

No problem, Den.

Olo stealths his way to S25.

Damrak sneaks into the stables, having cast his spell. It is musty there, a strong odor of alcohol and sweat in the air coming from the bandit in front of him, who has not noticed him yet. Damrak also sees a woman he assumes is Svetlana on the floor near the corner, crawling away, her cheek bruised when she looks back at her captor. "So you scratched me, you whore! Good! I like my women with some fight in them!"

At the same, Acio swoops down and scratches the bandit on his cheek (1 point of damage), causing him to curse loudly. He draws a short sword.

With the stables door open, the would-be-rapist (Rufus) hears the bandit's curse and turns to the door, "Jeffron, what are you...what the hell?!" He looks at Damrak with surprise and hatred, small streaks of blood flowing down his right cheek from Svetlana's scratch.

Bandits are garbed in leather armor with short swords at their sides and long bows. Rufus' bow, however, is on the ground.

Initiative Order:
Den (initiative bonus is +4, you don't get +2 initiative vs. humans)
Athenasius
Olo
Acio
Grim
Bandits
Anibeth
Damrak

Combat Map

5 party members are up before bandits. I did not label all squares on map. Use common sense and count squares and reference existing labels.

Is there no surprise round then?

Is there no surprise round then?

I was rolling the bandits' perception checks off camera and I rolled a nat 20 for the one in the stable. No surprise round.

Athenasius delays his turn until the door is unlocked. He will first help eliminate the bandit in the court yard, after which he will move towards the building where Oleg is being held, taking cover along the way and engaging any targets of opportunity.

+2 to Bluff, Knowledge, Perception, Sense Motive, and Survival. The +2 init comes in with favored terrain.

Acio, already in the bandit's square launches into a flurry of bites and talons at the man as Dendarial advances on him (30 move forward. Bandit is flat footed?

Bite: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 = 111d4 ⇒ 4

Claw: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 = 61d4 ⇒ 3

Claw: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (11) + 4 = 151d4 ⇒ 1

Then the ranger looses a shaft at the man, no compassion on his face and no hesitation in his action.

Longbow: 1d20 + 5 + 2 ⇒ (16) + 5 + 2 = 231d8 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9

Rangers do not receive favored terrain until 3rd level.

The bandit again gets clawed in the face by the meddlesome owl, but in the end, the owl was only a distraction, as Den's arrow strikes true and pierces Jeffron's neck, his eyes in shock. The bandit's eyes close forever and his body slumps against the gate, blood gushing from his wound, forming a small pool at the entrance. Bandit dead!

Olo, Grim, and Athenasius' delay are up.

Let me know if this is too conditional
Anibeth nods at Athenasius's suggestion that she head for Svetlana once the door is open. The stable's probably not the best place for the glaive, but no time to stow it somewhere and use the morningstar instead. If it gets too cramped I can probably drop it in there. Leaving it out here seems risky if the bandits bolt, they might steal it on their way out.

If its her turn and the door is already open:
She'll head to R11 with a double move (40', think I counted it right), provoking if needed. If the back of the wagon isn't difficult terrain to squeeze past, she can make it to Q11.
If the door isn't open,
she'll ready a run. I think she can get near N16 in that case (limited more by the straight line than the actual movement (80'), assuming you'll allow the straight line to be at that shallow angle.

Looking at the map and given Olo's speed is only 20 feet, he will not be able to open the door this Round. He can only double move to the door this Round and open it next. So Athenasius, Grim, and Anibeth are stuck outside this round.

Round 1: Bandits
"Here's what I do to do-gooders who interrupt ma bizness!" Svetlana pleads with Damrak, "Please help me..."

Rufus draws his short sword, steps to M15, and swipes at Damrak, but caught off guard by the inquisitor's presence, his attack is slow and predictable and Damrak easily side-steps it!
Attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 2 = 4...miss!

Bandit in the house: actions unknown.
Damrak is up to finish Round 1.

Rangers do not receive favored terrain until 3rd level.

Right. I do not recall if I had claimed +2 for init for that He should be +4 for his dex.

Hearing the commotion inside the compound and the thud of the bandit against the gate, Grimath tries to get ahold of the gate to force it open.

"Gimme a hand ye two, mayhap we can open it quickly!"

Strength Check: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (16) + 3 = 19

Figured I'd try since there's nothing else for those outside to do in the first round.

I like the thinking, Grim but a barred door is DC 25, so the gate door budges but does not open.

Assumption correct - Double move to T18, thanks.

"Let us wait for our compatriots to unbar the gate. It seems they are making good progress." Athenasius nods at the blood that is pooling beneath the gate.

Athenasius delays until the end of the round, then refocuses to an initiative count of 27, and continues to delay until the door is unbarred or a major development arises.

The seriousness of the situation suddenly hits Damrak as he enters the stable: this isn't some minor brawl in the city, resolvable with some idle punches and a few threats while he waits for the city watch to turn up - this could be deadly.

Distracted by that thought, he is somehow caught flat-footed by the bandit, who gets the first attack in - he misses completely, but that is nothing to do with Damrak's defence... Get your guard up and sort your footwork out, stupid! You've done live-blade drills before and you've heard enough stories about the Swordlords - now's your chance to live it! It's a shame though that the stories never mentioned the sweating hands, the racing pulse, the dry mouth; or the bladder's attempt to declare independence.

Damrak licks his lips and tries to shake his mop of blond hair out of his eyes; it sticks limply to his damp forehead. Presenting his sword and buckler in the approved position, he flicks his wrist and flexes the blade of his venerable duelling sword: slightly longer - and considerably thinner - than a longsword, the steel has a springy quality to it akin to a birch or riding crop. He'd like to try something fancy from his training, maybe a trip or a disarm, but he can't remember the moves; he's having trouble concentrating over the sound of the blood pounding in his ears. Instead, with a move that isn't found in any training manual, he flails the point of his sword toward the bandit, hoping it gets past his guard:

Attack roll (Str bonus, trait bonus): 1d20 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 3 + 1 = 16

Damage (Str bonus): 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5 must have bounced off a rib

Damrak withdraws into an on-guard position (a more orthodox move), gauging his opponent: "You're outnumbered and I'm no unarmed helpless civilian - I suggest you surrender." The words sounded fine in his head, but he wishes his voice wasn't shaking quite so much - it rather spoilt the delivery.

Damrak notices the bandit is not too dexterous and he relies mostly on his grimy leather armor to protect him. Unfortunately, for the bandit, his armor fails to protect him, as Damrak's sword cuts his collarbone rather deeply, an area not protected by his armor. His eyes widen in shock and fear as he sees his own blood. He feigns a swipe at Damrak with his short sword but the inquisitor sees it for what it really is: an attempt to flee! "Jeffron, Paulo..help me!"

Bandit tries to run around Damrak: free AoO!

"I said surrender!"

Damrak flicks the flat part of his blade against the bandit's calves, much like a cane, aiming to take his legs out from under him:

Combat Manoeuvre: Trip (Str bonus, trait bonus): 1d20 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (12) + 3 + 1 = 16

Edit: I think you can make a combat manoeuvre as an AoO; if not, treat it as an attack roll:

damage: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6 (if needed)

Yes, you can try a Trip as an AoO but since you do not have Improved Trip, you provoke an AoO since bandit has short sword in his hand that supersedes your AoO. Or you could attack with flat of blade and take -4 to hit, making your roll a 12 to hit. Damrak, let me know if I should roll an AoO against you.

Recursive AoO's... heavy, man. Damrak would rather not kill this guy, so roll the AoO - before I change my mind!

As a bleeding Rufus tries to run around Damrak, he notices the young inquisitor aim for his legs and he lashes out his short sword out of fear at Damrak's exposed forearm! The ever watchful servant of Abadar dips his shoulder at the last minute, causing the blade to harmlessly bounce off his armor. He then takes out Rufus' legs from under him and the bandit lands hard on the ground. The bleeding bandit, quite aware now that he has no chance of escape, drops his sword, and raises his arms in surrender.

Opportunity Attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (13) + 2 = 15...miss!

Summary of Round 1:
Acio wounded Jeffrom
Den killed Jeffron
Olo double moved
Grim tried to push doors open but failed
Anibeth held her action
Athenasius held action.
Bandit attacked Damrak and missed; he tried to flee and was tripped
Damrak wounded and then tripped Rufus

Round 2 is up!
Everybody but Damrak can act. Olo uses a standard action on his turn to open the door, since it is a heavy bar.

Olo dives forward, dagger still in hand, lifting the heavy bar on the door and pushing it open for his comrades.

Speak with Athenasius via Message as a free action. Move action toward the door, standard action to open it up.

The ranger, who moved 30' last round will double move to where he believes Oleg is held. If a single move gets him there he will open the door.

As the gate opens, Grimath helps it along before moving into the yard. As he passes Olo he asks where Oleg is being held, deciding that if Anibeth is headed to help with Svetlana that he'd best head the other way.

Double move towards the entrance of the house Oleg's being held in. +10' move from Blessing of War.

"Quick and efficient! Impressive work Olo." Athenasius whistles as he spots the arrow stuck in the bandit's throat: "Well, remind me to never get on Dendarial's bad side." Taking a second to orient himself, Athenasius hustles towards the building where Oleg is being held. Double move to M16

OK, Anibeth, you know what you're doing. This is for real. Let's find this Svetlana and make sure she's safe and defended/

Anibeth moves quick, noting the downed bandit. Hugging the edge of the stables, as the rest of the party are blocking other escape routes for the ruffians.

Double move to R11

Den moves to the front of the door and opens it. The last bandit (Paulo), who is 5' from the door in a hallway, turns in surprise and is about to strike at the ranger, when he sees the front gate open. Thinking quickly, he moves behind Oleg and puts his short sword to his throat. "Okay, you meddler. Here's what's going to happen. You and your folk gonna let me walk outta here or I'mma cut Oleg here from ear to ear." Readied action on Oleg. Anybody moving to the front door can see this scene.

Damrak and rest of party up. Can't update map at work, will do so tonight.

I do not even know the man. You kill him and we kill you. Everything clean that way.

The ranger takes a step back readies an action to shoot the bandit should he try to take any offensive action.

In the battle of readied actions, the one posted first wins. So in this instant, he would cut Oleg's throat if attacked and then Den would get his shot. Is everybody else just watching and can the bandit go again then?

I'd like to suggest that Oleg is not helpless. He is not even grappled. So no coup de gras can be performed. In fact you can't ready a coup as it's a full round action that provokes. So the readied action is an attack that could miss, and is very likely not to take Oleg from full health to below negative con. I do not mean to meta game but it's just not in the game mechanic to do what the bandit is hoping to do. Thoughts? I would think that Oleg could simply Withdraw, taking the readied attack.

I was not treating it as a coup de grace. But as you saw with the bandit you shot, my NPCs die at 0 hps not negative con (reserved for PCs only). And while the heroes may not care about a sword blow to the back, an unarmed unarmored man would not take a readied attack, especially knowing it might kill him.

Sorry, been flat-out at work all day, but posting now; can Athenasius not just hit them both with a color spray, like he suggested?

Having secured the bandit's surrender, Damrak leads him - at swordpoint, but on slightly wobbly legs - out into the courtyard, where he sees the others. His stomach heaves slightly at the sight of the corpse with the arrow sticking in its neck, the freshly-spilled blood steaming in the cold air (one more thing the stories never mentioned), but - biting his lip until blood trickles down his chin - he retains control. His attention is drawn to Den's readied bow, and he gathers that Oleg must be in some sort of predicament.

Steadying his voice, he calls out to the remaining villain:

"Let me explain for you: you think this is a hostage situation. In fact, it's not. What's going on is a choice: whether you surrender now, or after you've killed your victim. I assure you that if you choose to kill him, you will beg - you will beg - to be allowed to die. Why not surrender?"

Intimidate (skill points, Core skill, Stern gaze): 1d20 + 1 + 3 + 1 ⇒ (17) + 1 + 3 + 1 = 22

"Let me be! I won't bother you good folk no more. Just let me go. Please" The fear in the bandit's voice is quite clear.

"Lana, how's Lana?" Oleg's voice is harsh and bitter.

Other players can move, right? This guy was indoors, and Olo was out, using stealth. Assuming he's still unaware of me...

Olo slinks along the building side, listening keenly to the bandit's threats. He discreetly whispers a message...

Olo will use a double move to get as close as he can to the scene, using stealth and taking cover behind the tables, or under the table if there's enough space and it will bring him closer.

Stealth: 1d20 + 11 ⇒ (15) + 11 = 26

Typical scum - only picking on those who won't fight back

Damrak is glad that the bandit can't see him: he's regained control of his voice, but his legs are still shaky; and his face, still pale. He feels that the fact he just bit through his lip trying not to be sick doesn't help, either. Addressing Oleg, Damrak reassures him: "Your wife will be fine, she's with a priestess of Shelyn and in good hands. Let's focus on you, shall we?"

To the bandit, he calls: "If you remember, the only choice on offer is about when you surrender. You want to be let go - so does Oleg, I think; why not release him, and I'll see whether I can get Den here to point his bow somewhere else?"

Damrak draws the bandit's attention to the bow to keep him from noticing Olo.

I moved Damrak into the narrow hallway, so his body can give Olo the cover he needs to sneak into the house and under a table near the entrance.

Oleg gets bold. "My Lana's safe..then I don't care what happens to me, you monster!" Looking at Den, Oleg starts yelling, "Shoot him, just shoot him!"

Looking more nervous than ever that's he's losing his leverage, the bandit pushes Oleg toward the entrance, moving right behind him. If you allow this, Olo can get a sneak attack on the bandit when he passes by the table.