Devlin looks around and sees the number of bandits glaring at him. "Ah crap..."
Just behind Devlin, Big Ern breaks out of the underbrushes, swinging his axe at the bandit Devlin just missed, hitting him square and bringing him down, bleeding to death.
Another arrow flies out from behind a tree, hitting the bandit leader in the stomach, nearly knocking her off her feet.
"Goooh... Dam'it! Wher'd them all come fro' now? Get 'em! Hit 'EM! KILL 'EM!!"
Even so, the woman seems not all to keen on getting her own hands bloody.
She throws one of her daggers at Big Ern, while retreating backwards, away from both the newcomers and where she thinks Queslin hides.
One other bandit (the one that got to feel Delfey's claws) already flees in terror, and another one of those on the ground looks around shaking, unsure what to do.
That leaves two bandits on the ground in the clearing, shooting their bows at the two intruders:
The other two bandits up in the trees take aim on the newcomers out in the clearing as well:
Only one arrow from up above hits Devlin in the shoulder, sticking out like an antenna.
Devlin grunts from the pain of the arrow in his shoulder.
Shoot at the axe wielding woman again.
Composite Longbow: to hit
Composite Longbow: damage
Majet will throw a bomb at a bandit (if she can see any)
confirm
Damage
crit
Branomonrik upon making it to the clearing, scans the area for targets and raises his crossbow firing at the closest.
Attack
Damage
Big Ern bellows: "Die, shit-heads!" as he lumbers over to the next bandit and tries to separate his head from his shoulders.
Majet and Branomonrik close a bit in on the clearing (to about 45ft distance), before attacking the bandits in the clearing.
Majet's bomb hits one of the bandits square in the chest, leaving little more than smoking bones once he hits the ground.
Branomonrik's crossbow bolt hits the bandit that already tries to flee the scene, but does little more than scratch the skin of the target.
Queslin's arrow strikes the woman in the chest once again, and with a "Hurk!" she falls to the ground, just a bit outside the ring of treetrunks that surrounds the clearing.
Meanwhile the blade of Big Ern's axe finds the neck of the last bandit standing in the clearing and although the head doesn't come off clean, there isn't much left to hold it on the shoulders. Another body drowns the ground with blood.
For Devlin no target is close now. There are two bandits left in the trees, and one is fleeing to the west, already hurt badly.
Devlin casts a spells and fires a small glob of acid at the nearest bandit.
Big Ern grabs a bomb from his belt and hurls it at one of the bandits in the trees, heedless of whether it will cause a forest fire.
The acid conjured from the summoner hits the one bandit in the eastern watchpost, searing through his armor, causing him audible pain.
Both of the bandits up in the trees now let their voices be heard, begging for mercy and their lives. The one hit with the acid even already throws down his bow and sword, while the other one still has an arrow nocked.
....I guess not. :-(
(Spoilsports.)
....I guess not. :-(
(Spoilsports.)
"Don't kill 'em all before I get there!" With a speed of 20', Agerron still needs another two move actions, right?
I'll chase down the fleeing bandit. I'll take move actions until I can get a shot off. If he evades my pursuit that way, I'll hunt him down. He'll stop eventually and I'm a pretty good tracker. It might be simpler if you did the rolls.
The bandit has a bit of a head start, and Queslin isn't in the best position to see where he ran off to in the first place, but his trail is pretty easy to track down.
About half an hour later the elf finds, along the trail of the bandit, a short sword deliberately stuck to the ground, a knife and quiver with arrows nearby.
The trail leads on a bit, but Queslin is careful enough to not simply walk into a trap. He snaps a small branch and get's the reply he hoped for:
"Don' be shootin' me... I give up..."
The voice calls out from behind a big tree, some 25ft. in front of the short sword, which is 10ft. from where Queslin hides behind a tree.
Queslin will take him prisoner. As long as he behaves, the bandit gets to live. If he makes one step out of line, he dies. Queslin makes it clear that he wants the bandit to step out of line. He'll collect the bandit's gear and walk back to the others.
The caught bandit behaves on the way back, but he's not the fastest on foot. Blood loss and open wounds do that to a human. He also still has Branomonrik's bolt stuck to his back, just under his right shoulder blade.
"All right, you pussies," Big Ern hollers at the bandits in the tree, "You're lucky I'm in a good mood. Now get your asses down here and throw down your weapons. You oughta lick my boots too, but I ain't gonna make you."
After the remaining bandits are rounded up, Devlin readies an acid splash and asks, "Which of you bastards killed my Delfey?"
Agerron arrives, almost crestfallen that the fighting is over. He still wields his greatsword, ready for any signs of treachery. "Like my friend said, get your asses out of those tress and down here! Before we think better of mercy!"
Reluctantly the bandits lower the ropeladders to their watchposts and climb down, one in dead silence, the other one whimpering.
Unarmed they don't resist any handcuffing, but are shocked as Devlin asks them his question.
While the one hit from the previouos acid splash breaks out in tears, the other one yells back: "We all did!"
Shaking his head he adds: "Does it matter? That thing got 5 arrows stuck to him avore it vanished. Which one killed? All of em.
Ask yo' friend back there which bean makes him fart, you'll get the same ans'er." nodding towards Big Ern.
"Careful punk. My friend here, the one with the greatsword, had to run as fast as he could, but still didn't make it here until after you lot surrendered. I wouldn't be upset to let him work off some aggression on you." With that, Devlin turns to walk away before he does something stupid.
"Which bean makes me fart?" Big Ern lifts one butt cheek and blasts a noxious cloud on the talkative bandit for emphasis. "You tell me, bud. Now I hear there's some kind of bandit king around here, ain't there? Where's he hiding his sorry ass?"
Agerron still looks disappointed, and very pissed off. He growls a bit to enforce Devlin's threat. As he begins regaining his breath, he asks the others, "Does anyone possess rope to secure these thugs? I have a bit, but we'd need more than I got."
"Agerron, Branomonrik, Ern, Queslin, would you four be so kind as to watch this lot? Majet, would you assist me in searching their camp for rope so that we might bind them properly?"
Big Ern reaches in his pack and pulls out a 50' coil of rope. "Knock yourself out, buddies."
He pokes at the bandit queen's body with his toe and checks for loot.
"Rope, I think we have enough rope to Hang them, sure we may have to hang them one at a time but we can hang them with what we have I think" He says a matter of factly as he gazes over the bandits. "Would you like to pray to your gods and repent your sins?" he asks them calmly as he holds his crossbow ready.
"So now it's our fault that he's slow or what now?" the bandit replies, adding "You're going to kill us anyway. We should've put up a fight instead of surrendering..."
Turning to Big Ern he answers: "The Stag Lord? He don't hide. His fort is 'bout 40 miles or so south. Once yo' get near, yo' can' miss it.
Gettin' there isn't no problem, but me wou'd like to see yo' sorry asses try to get in! Ha." he babbles on.
His companion with the acid wound though cries hysterically, be it from the pain or the look-out of immediate death is hard to judge.
Looking the woman over Big Ern easily finds her wearing studded leather armor, she also has two handaxes at her sides and 1 more dagger tugged in her boot.
At Branomonriks approach the crying bandit starts to plea for mercy and his life: "I've only done this to survive! What else can you do out here? *sob* I don't want to die!" he cries hysterically.
The other one just stares at Agerron silently.
Big Ern will take 20 on his Perception for 23.
Beyond the handaxes and dagger, Big Ern finds, at closer examination, in one of the womans many pouches an ornate clay bottle that bears a swirky earthy design of browns and tan with a nozzle at its tip for drinking.
He also brings forth a total of 85gp.
Devlin in his rage nearly misses the heap of tents, rations and firewood that's kept under a canvas tarp beliw the westward watchtree.
Devlin, his temper cooling, checks the bandit's supplies, taking however long is needed to do an inventory of things.
Taking apart that heap of supplies, underneath Devlin finds some more valueable things. Seems like the bandits used those supplies and stuff as a cover!
Besides 4 tents, 15 lbs. of firewood and over 20 days worth of rations and food, the stack hid 543sp, 160gp, a pair of silver earrings, a wooden music box, 5 crates of furs and hides and a polished wooden case with 10 bottles of some greenish fluid.
But no ring.
Branomonriks stares down at the sobbing bandit "And why should you not hang? Your a parasite upon civilization. A blight upon the land. What use do you have in the civilization that is to come? Tell me boy, why should you be spared the rope?"
"I ... Idon'twannadie! I'm sohohohorry. I didn'tmeanto... I'm bwahaha .. buhuh.." the boy cries, lying on the ground pathetically.
"Uh maybe we should go a little easy on them?" Majet suggests "have them work there crimes off at the fort or something?"
Big Ern rolls his eyes. "You aren't going soft on us, are you Stubby? A little blubbering ain't going to make up for a life of looting and pillaging. Let's just string 'em up and get it over with."
"Although I am not without mercy, seems like the thing to do is execute quickly. By the laws of my homeland, their crimes would cause their heads to roll, a service I am happy to provide. However, should you prefer the neck-stretching, I can accept that as well."
Taking apart that heap of supplies, underneath Devlin finds some more valueable things. Seems like the bandits used those supplies and stuff as a cover!
Besides 4 tents, 15 lbs. of firewood and over 20 days worth of rations and food, the stack hid 543sp, 160gp, a pair of silver earrings, a wooden music box, 5 crates of furs and hides and a polished wooden case with 10 bottles of some greenish fluid.
But no ring.
Devlin looks at the pile of stuff a moment, then cast's detect magic.
Branomonrik puts his boot on the sobbing mans chest driving him to the ground. "Stop your sniveling boy! How many honest men lay in unmarked graves at ye hands lad? Humm, How many good hard working folk have ya killed like a parasite to still the coin hard sweat earned them a boy! The dwarf presses on the boys chest with his boo , crossbow aimed at his face "Well, Answer me boy and be quick about it.' He says in a slow even voice.
Planting the dwarven boot in the incinerated chest of the young man, the bandit screams in pain again, stammering: "NONE! I didna kill NO one! Gah!"
The other captured bandit speaks up to this, calm: "He's tellin' the truth, ya know... We jus' took 'im in. Kressle likened it ta tease 'im for tha' too. He's jus' done some lootin' wit' us all, but no killin'.
...
Well, 'cept for tha' beast thare. If ya be countin' tha arrow..."
"Then maybe Abadar can find a use for you parasite. Honest sweat may wash away your sins." the drawf glares down at the boy. "Your oath boy, In Adabar's name, you'll give this land five years of hard honest sweat. Five years of toil boy in Adabar's name and I'll spare ya the rope boy. But I swear to ye if you brake your oath You'll Hang if I must chase ye to the world's end."
Branomonrik lets his foot from the boys chest "What say ye boy?"
Glaring at the other man he goes on "And ye, have ye killed men for their coin?"
Devlin looks at the pile of stuff a moment, then cast's detect magic.
Nothing in that lot shows up as magical, but one of the things Big Ern found on the female leader of the bandits has a faint magical aura. As it turns out, it's the ornate clay bottle.
The young bandit quickly begs: "Please! I'll do it! I do anything but don't kill me! I do it! Anything!"
At the question of Branomonrik the other, older bandit nods, still calm: "Aye. An' worse. I kill'd men fo nothin'. Had me fun wit' wifes an' kill'd them too. Had me mor fun when their men ha' to watch.
I'm a downrigh' bas'erd.
But I'm nowt 'gainst the Stag Lord and his men.
Don't make me life any good tho'... Was me choice I made.
So. I confess'd me sins. I kill'd yo' ... (nodding towards where Delfey was killed) whatev'r it was."
At that, Devlin launches a glob of acid at the bragging bandit.
Acid Splash: