Oleg shouts, "Guthruc! Leave the damn horses alone! They're getting away!" and takes off at a run to head the fleeing bandits off.
Svetlana doesn't take any actions, because she'd have to put her torch down to load a crossbow and she doesn't want to start a fire.
Blue rider topples dramatically off his horse.
Blue horse flails about, targeting Mr. Blinky, which it sees as the greater threat.
Green horse squeezes through past the tables to escape. Red horse tries to follow, but provokes an AoO from Guthruc and likely doesn't make it. (If red horse doesn't make it, would someone do me a favor and remove it from the map?)
Abaos is up!
Shemeska fires another ray of frost at the Blue Rider.
vs touch AC
cold damage, no save.
Guthruc say no survivors!
He swings his mighty branch at the horse trying to escape
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Seeing Blue Rider fall, Abaos darts through the giant pig after the fleeing bandits.
"There's nowhere to run!" he'll yell. "Lay down your weapons, and I'll make certain no harm comes to you!"
"And Awn, if they actually listen, can you keep the orc away? he'll query.
"Guthruc, I challenge you! Don't let the horses get away!"
The bandit drops his sword as he runs. He's going to need both hands for this. He sprints towards the wall, and then leaps onto it, climbing as quickly as he can.
But he can't find purchase in the wall. Slowly, unnarmed, he turns around and puts his hands in the air. (I'm going to say that his failure to climb the wall gives you a bonus on your diplomacy check! Or rather, he's running out of other options.)
While Awn is concerned about horses, he is more concerned about the leader getting away. He gives chase, yelling over his shoulder:
"Guthruc - see that Iorskan is breathing, and don't kill any more meat!!!"
Guthruc, with everyone giving him orders (Oleg's only now registering), looks around somewhat franticly.
puny man say catch Bandit
card game man say catch horse
wood man say check small dragon
in his rage addled confusion, He does the one thing he's trained himself to do in these situations: Guthruc end his rage.
with his intelligence back up to normal, he assesses the situation, remembering that Iorskan had tried getting up, and that the trap sprung prevents the horses escape
small dragon alive
horses no escape
the bandits were the only liability left. He rushes over, and in an attept to force their cooperation, roars, and gives them some incentive:
Bandit surrender or Guthruc bash skull in!
Iorskan lies unconscious. He has stabilized.
Ozzy continues to run along the wall. She gets just close enough to strike at Happs Bydon with her spindly pike. The man appears to be surrendering, but she doesn't entirely trust it, and points her spear down at his throat and readies and action to attack if he tries to climb, move, attack, or do anything else that doesn't look like surrendering or commanding his remaining men to do so.
With Abaos playing good cop and Guthruc playing bad cop, both of the remaining bandits decide to surrender. Green bandit, who's still holding his sword, makes a show out of dropping it and holding up his empty hands.
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Abaos yells to Oleg. "Oleg, in the storeroom! Grab the rope!"
As Oleg goes and grabs the ropes, he continues to the bandits. "Look, we just want to talk. Answer our questions, and we'll let you go. Understand?"
Assuming everyone complies, he'll then help tie the bandits down, and throw them into the guesthouse.
"Shemeska, see to Iorskan, please. We'll need him up and running."
"Ozzy, can you watch the guesthouse? I don't want any of our guests leaving without saying goodbye."
"Everyone else, with me please. We have a stage show to perform!"
He claps his hands together, miming a director, and walks into the Main Hall.
Guthruc follows Abaos as instructed.
Guthruc no like perform
Hopping down from the wall, Ozzy lets out a disappointed Awwwwww! I wanna be in a show! Her young face bunches up in a pout.
Guthruc, wanna switch? You 'n' Mr. Blinky can eat their faces off if they try 'n' escape. The casualness with which she says this suggests that they wouldn't be the first faces Mr. Blinky ate.
Deal
guthruc rushes over to start glaring at the bandits.
Guthruc think limbs more tasty than face, but either work
The remaining bandits are tied up and in the guesthouse. Svetlana has done what she can to make the bandit's horses comfortable, with her help they've all stabilized except the one that Guthruc hit twice, Bydon's mount. But, because they aren't PCs and are thus subject to narrative rules that make the world more believable, they aren't in very good condition and infection is a very real concern. None of the bandits made it, they didn't have much CON to begin with and Svetlana triaged them after the horses.
Inside the main building, the party sans Guthruc but plus the Levetons have gathered. It's time to decide your next course of action.
Interrogating the bandits might yield useful information. In fact, that's probably what you'll decide to do next, and what they say will weigh on what you do after. Oleg, much as he'd like to be around for the interrogation, thinks that he should probably saddle up Claptrap and find an acquaintance of his that owes him a favor, a recluse by the name of Bokkens who knows something about healing and calming animals. Bokkens could heal the horses, he's sure, and if that's what Oleg's doing he'd like to get started, since it's still morning and he'd like to be back before it gets dark. (Your wand of Arcane Healing is prohibitively expensive at 750 gold, and the Levetons don't want to make you waste charges.)
Before he leaves, Oleg asks the party if they'd do him a favor and drag all the dead people far enough away from his trading post that they don't stink it up.
Shemeska heals Iorskan. "You missed it -- we won! Of course, you'd be dead if we lost, so I guess that was redundant."
Inside the cabin, the wizard is happy to assist in the interrogation.
"Tell you what, bandits! I would not want to be in your shoes. Not at all! No sir-ee-bob. Why? Because... Well, do you see my angry green friend over there? The big guy? He wants to eat you. I'm not joking. He is a psychotic man-eater, and he wants you to not cooperate so he has a reason. But you know what? I bet you know exactly what we want to know. How about we keep you off the menu?"
Awn frowns as Abaos takes charge, evidently displeased. He does not follow into the main hall, but accompanies the bandits into the guesthouse.
"He is not correct, that one, Abaos." Awn tells them matter of factly, taking the time to sink low on his feet into a crouch, the elfin blade T'lass cradled in his lap in full view.
"We cannot afford to let you go. At least, not back to your leaders. But we may afford you the luxury of living. As Shemeska says, the green one, Guthruc - he hungers for your flesh. And the dragonling, my friend Iorskan - that you nearly killed - he too likes your smell and wonders what you taste like."
Awn pauses, looking over his shoulder out the doorway, as if fate itself prowled there.
"So, tell us that which we want to know, and keep your lives. Simply. Or, be eaten. Possibly alive."
Once heard, Iorskan’s eyes snapped open. The little dragon remained silent as the prisoners were rounded up. His pride, as well as his body, were hurt. The only consolation was that there was so much meat around.
He went over to a random corpse and grabbed a piece of meat. Which just so happened to be a bandit’s arm. Carrying it over, he went to watch the interrogation. Looking with filled eyes at the bandits who had humbled him, Iorskan started eating. The sound of bones crunching and flesh tearing could easily be heard.
Iorskan did, after all, enjoy finger food.
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Abaos looks at the group. He raises his hand in dramatic fashion, holding up one finger.
"Abaos' first rule of interrogation! Always have a plan for the interrogation! What do we want to know?"
"Who are they? Who do they work for? Who else besides Oleg have they been hitting in the past month?"
He pauses. "On a broader scale, we need to know the context of the situation. Who are the major players in the region? Dangers, etc."
"Finally, on a personal level, we should probably find out how they are feeling, personally. Need to know the morale of these bandits groups if we ever hope to break them."
He looks around at those assembled. "Does anyone else have any questions we should be asking? this is important?"
"Lastly, we should discuss what we're going to do with them once we've finished talking to them. I don't feel safe leaving Oleg to handle them the whole time, but that's just me. We'll vote on it,"
As Happs and Townsend are having their hands tied to their feet, the human with the starknives reassures them. "Look, we just want to talk. Answer our questions, and we'll let you go. Understand?" Townsend looks scared. He's seen how dangerous these people are. Bydon just sneers.
And then they're alone in the dark. Well, not quite alone. There's the orc. But they don't try to make conversation, and thankfully the monster doesn't either.
The door opens, and the rest of the force walks in. Well, except the dragon. At least I killed the dragon.
A distressingly cheerful jubilantly informs them how close they are to being devoured. Monsters. Happs thinks bitterly.
The tree-thing talks. It's voice is calm, soothing, almost hypnotic, until Happs realizes what it's saying. "He is not correct, that one, Abaos. We cannot afford to let you go. At least, not back to your leaders. But we may afford you the luxury of living. As Shemeska says, the green one, Guthruc - he hungers for your flesh. And the dragonling, my friend Iorskan - that you nearly killed - he too likes your smell and wonders what you taste like."
Damnation, I thought I killed the dragon!
"So, tell us that which we want to know, and keep your lives. Simply. Or, be eaten. Possibly alive."
Townsend, who had been trying to be stoic, starts crying. He tries to be quiet about it, but fails. He's figured out what this is all about. Get eaten alive or betray his friends, tell a group of marauding demi-humans where they can found, where they can be eaten? That isn't much of a choice at all.
Happs, feeling embarrassed for the man, tries to distract the interrogators by speaking. He spits the words out. "What is it that you want to know?"
And at that moment Iorskan walks into the room, with Hyatt's arm in his mouth. Townsend shrieks. Bydon sighs.
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Iorskan’s heart grew seven times that day. Seeing the man so terrified, he thought to himself that just because they were food didn’t mean that they had to be cruel. Iorskan had seen death that day and nearly died on an empty stomach. Seeing the man scream made him think that he had to give them a last meal before they were eaten. To do otherwise would be just mean.
So he waddled over to the screaming man and dropped the half-eaten arm at his feet. And, to make him feel better, did what humans seemed to do to calm each other down. He opened his mouth to show all of his teeth.
The idea of the man’s smiling face before Awn let him be eaten made Iorsan feel quite magnanimous.
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When Abaos enters the room, he's surprised to see Awn and Iorskan already there. He notes the man crying, and the man's sneer- well, that's not a way to make friends.
"No need to be afraid, my friend! He likes you. Isn't that right, Iorskan?" Abaos says quickly to Townsend.
He spits the words out. "What is it that you want to know?"
"No need to be hostile! We're all relaxed here, just having a friendly conversation. We just want to have a friendly conversation," he reiterates. "I'm Abaos," he says, "and this here is Iorskan, Guthruc, Awn, Ozzy, and Shemeska." He'll point to each in turn.
"Now, what are yours?" he asks, opening up his arms as if making a grand gesture.
Quoth Happs Bydon: "Happs Bydon. And this is Townsend."
Quoth Townsend: "Townsend. Please don't let them eat me."
The little dragon looked at the man called Townsend with narrowed eyes. RUDE! He had offered the man a last meal and he wasn't taking it. Well, this is what I get for trying to be nice. The dragon plopped down and continued eating. First they stab me, and then they insult me. And it still hurts! I hope Abaos gets tired playing with his food soon.
Guthruc feels as though this interrogation is taking far too long and dragging on with petty things such as pleasantries, so he tries to speed up the process.
Where bandit home!
Guthruc exclaims, quite bluntly while menicingly clapping his club to his hand.
Shemeska smiles at the bandits. "Guys! Look. Listen. You should probably give us details. Lots of details. Because if we have to ask a bajillion questions, we're going to get frustrated. We don't want getting information to be like pulling teeth... Because if you make Guthruc or Iorskan mad, they might start pulling teeth!"
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"Townsend. Please don't let them eat me."
Abaos laughs uproariously. "We aren't going to eat you, bud! I promise that much."
He pauses. "Look, we're new to the area. Very new, in fact. Why don't you tell me about some of the bandit groups in the area? Who are they, who runs them, who's in charge, how they make their marks, etc, etc. And, while you're at it, who else do we need to know about? In the region, who's are the big fish, so to speak?"
Abaos winks at them. "Besides, it must be fun to rat out your enemies, right?
The orc barks an inquiry in broken common, the cheerful human subtly implies dental avulsion, and the bandits prepare themself for the worst. Avaos, seeing their anxiousness, steps in to smooth things over. He reassures the bandits that no one needs to get eaten, and asks for information on the disparate bandit units in the area.
Bydon, seeing that his best chances for survival lie with toadying up to the people who have him tied, decides to talk.
"I get it. You won, we lost, and now we're getting interrogated. I'll tell you what you want to know, there's no need to get violent." The less than scrupulous ranger begins his tale. "Year 'fore last, I'd be rattin' out bastards in so many different factions and groups they'd be impossible to keep straight. This year, though, things're bit simpler." He pauses for effect. "Everyone works for the Stag Lord."
He wriggles into the sitting position. "Look, do you have something I can drink? I'm parched. I don't know where the Stag Lord came from originally, but he's taken over the entire Greenbelt banditry operation. Which is impressive, since the Greenbelt's never had any kind of operation, just a couple of desperates thrown out of Rostland trying to get by however they can. The Stag Lord unified them . . . us . . . though you'd be hard-pressed to find someone'll thank him for it. He "demands tribute" like some kinda damn king, from every half-wit with a sword and a bounty on their head, with no home to go back to. His taxes are . . . ridiculous. More than anyone can make robbing people stupid enough to wander by. To pay 'im, we've had to organize into parties, and start raiding, like damned orcs. No offense.
Happs pauses to collect his thoughts. "Really. Do you have anything I could drink? If you want to find the Stag Lord, and you don't, than head south until you hit the Thorn River, he built a damn castle right on Tuskwater Lake, maybe sixty miles from here? Little more? Honestly, I don't know what he's trying to do . . . besides call attention to himself."
Iorskan got up and started pacing around the bandits. His eyes narrowed. Lies! He thought. They didn’t warrant hearing his majestic voice. They did not deserve the honor. But this insult could not stand!
Once behind them a reptilian hiss could be heard. Then, a voice (sounding like a very young smaug) said Sixty miles through inhospitable terrain does not sound very likely.
"So, how many bandit groups does this Stag- Lord have under his belt?"
Bydon thinks about it for a moment, before answering. "I'm not entirely sure. There isn't exactly a census, at least not one that I've seen. If I had to guess, and I do, I'd say no less than thirty individuals, no more than a hundred. Can't tell you how many 'groups' that makes, since factions are forming and folding constantly."
From behind the the bandits Iorskan hisses. "Sixty miles through inhospitable terrain does not sound very likely."
Townsend jumps (at least, as much as he is able to, being tied and all) and Bydon flinches. Quoth Townsend, "But that is where the Stag Lord's castle is! Everything Happs said is tech-"
Bydon cuts him off. "Doesn't sound likely for what? I've no reason to lie to you about where the Stag Lord lives- I want him gone as much as you do. And I've no love for his lieutenants and the kissups in his castle either."
Awn watches intently, still crouched.
Iorskan sees much. This "Stag Lord" is an unlooked for development.
"Master Bydon. Please preserve a modicum of care for your situation. You are dead men, you and Townsend. "
Awn pauses.
"But, you may yet escape the noose that banditry deserves, or becoming the living meal my friends desire. Mayhap you become our guide. Take us inside the Stag Lord's demesne. Meet some "factions"."
Awn smiles.
"Live. A little."
Happs looks around at you somewhat incredulously. "Who are you people? If Leveton paid you to defend his little fort, my congratulations on a job well done. Why in the hells would you ..." he shakes his head. He knows that if can't talk you out of it you'll drag him along on your suicide mission. "First, you want to trek sixty miles through the greenbelt. The terrain's too hard for horses, unless we want to take the really long way around, so we're looking at maybe a week of forced marching, through the Greenbelt, which is full of boggards, wyverns and worse. We wouldn't make it to Tuskwater. If you want to go deep into the Greenbelt without casualties you need a party big enough to scare most things off without a fight, ten men or more, or you want to go alone so's to not get noticed, which I can't exactly do with you all following me."
The ranger raises his eyebrows. "And then, since you all came back as ghosts, you want to sneak into the Stag Lord's castle and kill him. I must not have made it clear when I was telling you how he singlehandedly cowed the human population of this forest and built his damn house where most people are too smart to even go. The Stag Lord's strong as an ogre, and nearly as smart. I watched him punch out an owl bear; he's kept it as a pet. Everyone tries to fight him has died."
"There's a reason he's in charge."
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Abaos turns back his head and laughs. And laughs and laughs and laughs, keening and chuckling for several minutes, breath coming in ragged gasps. Finally, he stops, gasping for breath.
"We- We had no- We had no intention of hurting him, not- not yet, at least! We need friends. Allies, a name in this world. Prestigious, fearsome, prosperous, with a dash of devilish and handsome."
He stops, as if admiring this thought. "There's got to be some others in the woods. Malcontents, those who do might want a change in leadership. Someone who's just desperate enough to help us, and do it legitimately."
"And you know, the odd bandit, or monster, or whatever, that needs stopping. Every good tactician needs a fight."
He bends down, getting really close to Happs and Townsend. He discards his knives, setting them on the floor beside him.
"Look, my friends here and I are here to change things. Change them for the better. With cities, and homes and families and trade, farmers and tanners and casinos," he winks, his voice lowering to a whisper "even the odd thieving or two- as long as no one gets hurt!"
"But it's going to take more than just us to do that. It's going to take a lot of people, working together, to get this done."
He bows his head. "Look, I know we killed your mates, and I won't apologize for that. But I am sorry it's come to that point. Help me stop that."
"Look, I made a promise I wouldn't kill you. I intend to keep that." He looks Happs in the eyes, then moves to Townsend, to underscore his point. "But I made no such promise about maiming you. Enough that you'll live, but not enough to go back to banditry again." He pauses. "Unless you swear to me, right now, one thief to a thief. Pledge yourselves to me, or to the Swordlords, or to the idea that we hope to inspire. Do this, and I'll set you free, right now."
He looks at them again. "Please." His eyes look sad, almost sorrowful.
Iorskan growled unhappily. ”But I want to eat-murder them!” The disappointment was evident in his voice. ”When I get bigger I’m going to eat-murder ten...no...a hundred bandits!” So great was his anger than a small lick of flame came out of the little dragon’s mouth. Then, realizing that he had spoken not once, but twice, in front of creatures unworthy of it, he narrowed his eyes, shook with rage, and stomped off.
"Maim sound fun. Guthruc say we maim bandit then throw bandit into forest no arm, one leg. Guthruc tear off finger one by one. Then hand, then arm. Guthruc make slow and pain."
An evil smile crosses Guthruc's face as he walks up to Townsend and grabs hold of his middle finger in one hand, the man's wrist in the other. He turns to abaos.
"just say word!"
Awn remains crouched, watching the bandits.
They cannot go free, to wreak havoc. But if what Abaos says is true - cities, farmers? What of the Greenbelt? Which is havoc?