Muqaq runs back over to near Xanyon, staying behind cover as much as possible.
N'Dateh sends her last ball of fire hurling at the nearest Gnoll.
Then whispers to Rafhik, urging him to attack. The proud stallion rushes forward, charging the gnoll.
Akhom continues to advance steadily , loosing another arrow at the nearest archer, then looks around to see if he can spot all members of the team, planning his next move.
Round 9
HP = 28/39
AC/T/FF = 19/15/14
Weapon Equipped = Pistol
Grit = 2/2
Orc Ferocity = 1/1
Bullets = 22/23
Black Powder = 22/23
Alchemical cartridge (paper) = 15/18
Speed = 30'
Status Effects = None
Xanyon reloads with his regular bullets, then holds fire as he searches for reinforcements.
"See any more coming?"
Trusting in his shield, Gruthic moves past Seif to guard him from the hyena and the other gnoll.
He swings at the gnoll he passed, putting his corded arms to work.
Seif-al-Din nods his thanks to Gruthic as the Dwarf distracts the attention of the Gnoll and Hyena in base-to-base with him, and stands up, allowing the cleansing fire of the Dawnflower to wash over him.
Round 9:
Muqaq runs over into the shelter of the ruins near the bottom of the cliff, among what used to be the giant boar's den.
N'Dateh is able to through another wisp of flame at the nearest gnoll as she rides in. The fire connects with the creature, burning him and dropping him to the ground where he rolls for a moment before going still, his fur continuing to burn. Rafihk moves around the combatants, moving into range with the last gnoll at hand, and rearing to drop a hoof down on him. The mighty hit lands right atop the archer's head, crushing his skull to paste before slamming the rest of the body down to the ground.
Akhom runs into the path between the trees on the plain south of the town, and momentarily loses sight of his target. Spotting him between the branches and leaves, he tries to make the distant shot against the last remaining living gnoll. The arrow hits the gnoll, high in the shoulder, wounding him, but not badly.
Xanyon reloads and looks about for enemies, but as he is standing at the bottom of a cliff, amongst ruins, he has no clear line of sight to the battle, or the rest of the city upon the hilltop.
Gruthic moves up into range with the hyena, guarding Seif with his form. He swings his axe and kills the beast with a clean hard strike.
Seif takes the relief provided by the figures around him to stand, and heal some of his more severe wounds.
The last archer, seeing his allies all defeated, turns and moves back further, around a building to get shelter from the archer firing on him from the south. He raises his bow and looses a shot at what he sees as the most immediate threat to his escape.
The arrow strike's Rafhik's flank, but lacks the force needed to penetrate the leather and muscle.
Round 10:
N'Dateh -10 (2, 6, 8, +6)
Rafhik -11 (11)
Gruthic -6 (7, 5, +6)
Seif -20 (-8, 7, +9, 7, 6, 6, +5)
Xanyon -11 (-11)
Gnoll with bow -4 (4)
N'Detah: 5 Gnolls, 1 confirmed Critical.
Gruthic: 2 Hyenas.
Seif: 2 Hyenas.
Xanyon: 1 Gnoll, 1 confirmed critical.
Akhom: 1 Gnoll.
Muqaq approaches the majority of his companions and says, "Excellent work, friends. We've won the day," He smiles and asks, "Who's still seriously injured?"
"That man on the cross." replies N'Dateh flatly.
Seif-al-Din gesticulates emphatically in the direction of the remaining Gnoll.
"Kuna bado ni moja ya maadui wetu kushoto ..."
He then begins moving *around* the Entangle field, in the direction of the Gnoll.
Seeing only one warrior charging towards him, the injured gnoll, an arrow still sticking out of his shoulder at a jaunty angle, takes aim at him before loosing an arrow.
The arrow slams into a wooden doorpost about two feet in front of the advancing swordsman. Upon seeing his shot had missed, the gnoll dashes across the street, trying to keep to cover from the distant archer he still knows in somewhere to the south.
N'Dateh sends her stallion after the fleeing gnoll, her spear pointing at it.
Unwilling to engage in the footrace, Gruthic sheaths his axe and approaches Muqaq.
"I am not seriously injured, but I would ask you for some salve for the dog bite. Wouldn't want to catch the froth from them. And I have no idea what madness spawned that flying horror. Do you think its condition is contagious?"
"We have routed the gnolls and claimed a solid victory here. Once we see if the poor man on the stake is still alive, we should press our advantage."
AKhom bursts through the trees, flashing a glance at his companions, before firing again at the fleeing gnoll.
"I'd like to get my hands on that musket. It'd greatly increase me range, making me more effective. But I agree, we need to check on the staked man then prepare for a counterattack. Unless N'Dateh catches the last gnoll."
After seeing that no one on his team is mortally wounded, Muqaq rushes over to the crucified man. If he is still alive, Muqaq will try to get him down and heal him, in whichever order seems to make more sense. "Seif, aid me please," he calls to the stronger man.
As Seif moves around the field of entangling weeds, N'Dateh sends Rafhik racing towards the fleeing gnoll as well.
Akhom moves into a position where he can get a fleeting glance at the fleeing gnoll, and takes a last desperate shot at him. Unsurprisingly, it misses, though not by much.
The gnoll draws a quick shot at Rafhik, trying to down him before he gets within reach. . The hasty shot flies off in a basically random direction. He continues his retreat after loosing the shot.
Xanyon is able to see right where the musket wielding gnoll fell, just at the north end of the square, near where the circle of entanglement ended. His musket lies on the ground, near his body.
The man on the cross is not the priest of Nethys. He is human, and relatively young, though it is somewhat difficult to say due to the heavy layers of dirt, bruises, and blood. Still, you would likely place him in his late twenties, perhaps thirty. He has been stripped to his smallclothes, as is custom during such an execution. He is unconscious, and his beating has left both eyes swollen shut. He is both nailed and bound to the cross, meaning that getting him down without inflicting further trauma might be troublesome. As you examine his form, you can hear short rasping breaths escape him, with a gurgling, bubbling sound accompanying each breath.
Shedding a very reluctant glance in the direction of the retreating Gnoll, Seif-al-Din sighs, and hurries over to the crucified man, once again calling upon the healing light of the Dawnflower...
Seif-al-Din channels more healing energy into the injured man...
...before turning to his companions.
"Tunapaswa kunyakua nini tunaweza. Silaha itachukua muda mrefu sana, lakini kila kitu kingine lazima kuwa na haki mchezo..."
"The loot can wait until we get this cross down. I'm not strong enough to lower it by myself, can the rest of you please help me?"
Once the cross is laid flat on the ground, Muqaq will go about untying the man, and removing the nails. If he's conscious, Muqaq will encourage him, "Hold still. We'll have you free in a moment. Who are you? How is it you came to be here?"
The healing does a great deal to help with the man's injuries; his bruises turn from purple, to pink, and gradually fade away. However, he does not reawaken.
Lowering the cross will also be a difficult task. There is no sign of the tools used to plant it in the ground, so without being able to dig it up, the only options will be to chop it down like a tree, or wiggle it back and forth until it becomes loose enough to lift free, which would also require an impressive feat of strength. It is far easier to drop a pole into a hole than it is to lift the same beam out, with the weight of a grown man attached, no less. Either might also injure the man secured to the evil instrument.
Muqaq seeing no way to get the man down without killing him shrugs in helplessness and waits to see if anyone else can do it.
N'Dateh crouches on Rafhik's back, letting her companion run like the Sirocco. As it nears the entangled area, she releases the conjured energy, dispelling it.
As Rafhik reaches the fleeing gnoll, it strikes at it.
If the gnoll doesn't fall, she keeps on pursuing it, striking with her spear.
Realizing that there is now no way he can outrun the woman pursuing him while mounted, the gnoll turns to face her as she approaches. Rafhik stomps at the gnoll, but the creature is able to evade the clumsy strike. N'Dateh's follow up thrust with her spear is better, but the gnoll is quick, and is able to defect the strike with his armour. This gnoll was never trapped within the area of entanglement, and therefore still possesses his spear. He tosses his bow to one side, gripping the spear in two hands. He attacks, aiming at the wounded horse with a powerful two handed thrust.
Rafihk retaliates after receiving the blow, but the pain of the spear thrust distracts him, making the attack an obvious one. N'Dateh follow up attack is aimed truer than the first, and she skewers him through the chest, killing the already wounded gnoll instantly. He slides to the ground, pulling himself off the pointed weapon by the force of gravity.
Looking over the fallen corpse of the musketeer, Xanyon is able to find the musket easily, lying just a pace away from his hand. Other than a few scorch marks from its recent exposure to fire, it appears to be in good condition. Actually, upon examining it, the weapon appears to have been very well maintained, and is a very good example of craftsmanship.
Musket 1,500 gp 1d12 ×4(critical) 40 ft. 1–2 (5 ft.) 1(round) 9 lbs. B and P — UC
He also has two powder horns; one full (10 charges) and the second used with about 7 charges of powder remaining. A pouch on his belt holds 27 bullets. Another holds his special loads: 4 alchemical cartridges in plain paper, and one wrapped in red paper, as well as 3 silver bullets, and one of cold iron. Beyond this, he has only the equipment common to the rest of the gnolls; studded leather armour, a knife, flint and steel, and a water skin. If he has a Gunsmith's kit or a keg for his extra powder, he was not carrying them on his person.
Seif-al-Din grunts with satisfaction when the last Gnoll goes down.
He then turns his full attention to trying to release the crucified man...
N'Dateh snarls at the dead gnoll, then whispers to her horse, before heading back slowly, careful for her companion.
"We are victorious, and the priest seems alive. Today the Desert favors us; we should be grateful."
He moves his horse closer to the crucified man: "We should bring him down." she says, unaware of the previous conversation. She accepts to have her horse used to help take the man down and holds her horse, whispering calmly to it.
Muqaq lays his hand on Rafik's flank. "May the Dwanflower relieve your pain noble Rafik," he says. His hand glows with the sun's light and some of the horse's wounds heal.
Seif, being the strongest member of the team, gets elected to be the one to try and pull the man down while standing upon the wounded horse. The footing is awkward, and while the horse stays relatively still, each of his shudders or motions is enough to cause the large Suli to have to stop what he is doing in order to concentrate on keeping his footing.
Luckily, the large man proves nimble as well as strong, and he keeps his balance while working the nails free of the wounded man's wrists. The man groans a few times as the warrior works, trying to find ways of pulling with his crowbar without putting the pressure against the man's own limbs; an action that would be sure to crush flesh or even break bones. However, the man never quite wakes, seeming to be lost within some delerium. When the nails come loose, the wounds that open up in the man's arms gush out a mixture of fluids, but as much seems yellow and clear, or white and pustular, as seems to be pure dark blood. The wounds continue to ooze as Seif cuts free the ropes, but it is more the slow bleeding of old unclosed wounds, than the urgent gush of a fresh injury. As the man slips free, the muscular man balancing upon the saddle of the warhorse catches him.
He lifts him easily, without disturbing his own stance, and hands him down to the waiting arms of his comrades. Lowered to the ground, the man's breathing continues, but shallowly and the sound of fluid in his lungs persists. He opens his eyes for one brief moment, but it is unclear if he sees what is really before him, or recognizes its significance.
Though by this time, some ten minutes has past since the end of you battle, no sign of additional gnolls or other hostile figures emerges. The bright desert sun moves further into the sky, detaching from the horizon as Akhom finishes his long dash from the plains below, just no catching up with you. There is no sign of his camel. The man himself is dusty, and clearly fatigued, if not exhausted, sweat leaving muddy streaks down his dust caked form.
5 Longbows
110 arrows with 5 quivers
5 spears
5 knives
1 Flind-bar
5 waterskins
3 flint and steels
2 pipes with 1/2 oz of tobacco
2 days worth of dried rations (spread among the group), much consisting of dried and salted mystery meat.
1 potion of bull strength (found on someone who fought as an archer, and therefore never had the need to use it).
They also possess another 5 suits of studded leather, but you had mentioned it was likely not worth the time to try and strip them of the smelly (and now bloody) garments.
"Serara..." says the desert prophetess.
"I know him." She adds after a pause, raising her head towards the others. She then turns to look directly south at the desert, then laughs.
Tricky Desert! I have offered to kill this man first, not knowing he was a companion. Facing you, all are my companion...
"This man needs shelter and care, and there is no safe place here. He would be best back at the monastery, but we would lose our advantage if we were all to return with him and give the gnolls another day to regroup. Muqaq, you are our leader, and thus this decision falls to you. How does our mission weigh against the life of this man?"
Gruthic is very interested in Muqaq's decision, taking another opportunity to gage what kind of leader he is currently following.
Having only just noticed Akhom's return, he gives him an enthusiastic shake.
Xanyon eagerly takes the musket and shot, smiling as he runs his hands across the well crafted weapon.
"Not sure how gnolls got their hands on dwarf make, but this is a fine weapon indeed. My ability to assist at long range has been significantly increased."
Seeing the broken man brought down, the half-orc agress with Gruthic.
"We should take this man back to shelter, if the gnolls haven't come to investigate by now they are either getting ready for us or don't care. Any delay would allow them to prepare, but not taking this man back would kill him."
"My healing energies are nearly spent. We have deprived the gnolls of more of their forces without losing any of our own. I think our plan was a success besides Akhom showing up extremely late. It's probably best to get this man back to the monastery, rest to regain our spells and then come back here to finish off the gnolls as quickly as possible. It seems impossible that there could be more of them left than what we've already killed."
Having made sure that the crucified man is comfortable, Seif-al-Din raises an eyebrow when he notes Akhom's return.
"What happened? Your arrival was fortuitous, but we had expected you some time ago..."
When the talk turns to what to do next, he shrugs.
"We could explore more buildings, but if we did so, we would need to make sure that this man was stable, and that we had him safely ensconced somewhere out of the way..."
Having approached the victorious group, Akhom shakes Gruthic's hand in response, but his eyes are downcast. "I am sorry my friends. I was... delayed. My camel will not be continuing on with us." He sighs. "My self-confidence got the better of me, and you all could have paid the price. I don't ask for your forgiveness, only another chance to prove myself."
As the talk turns to the unfortunate crucifixee, Akhom says little, seemingly happy to let his betters take the lead, but he does make approving noises whenever someone suggests seeing to his safety immediately.
N'Dateh stares at Akhom with steely eyes: "I prefer an unconscious priest to someone who shows late to a fight. You have been a burden and a source of danger. Keep it in mind." She turns bluntly at the others but simply shrug as they offer to come back.
"I am here to free Kelmarane." she says flatly, not clear whether she will follow Muqaq's order of heading back to regroup.
"Do as you please N'Dateh. But, you will have more success in a group," Muqaq states tiredly to the strange woman.
"Well Muqaq? What is your final decision?"
"Grab him, we go back to the monastery."