This is where Lightning Bolt would be fun - a whole line of targets ready and willing to get fried.
True, and obvious with the layout. Alas Cуровую does not have that in her spellbook and all her plans to use Blood Transcription on the magister faded when he was turned to ash and no body left to drain.
Have Faith in your companion dark Champion as she has in you.
Deal with the archer before he escapes though.
As the human guard retreat, Edmin, we want the keep to fall as quickly as possible. I say we heal up then drop the gate once we see the first of Sarakot's forces.
Then we wait for them with our remaining resources and the fireballs then wipe a large number of them out as they sally forth to try and take the gate back, they will have to come out or the keep is most likely lost.
We send them back in confusion and allow the siege proper to begin as Sarakot's forces arrive. The destruction of another group of defenders plus two avenues of attack will split the defenders and cause the keep to fall that much easier. We can hold the gate against their normal rabble.
After checking Xen, Edmin, he is dead. You know he actually saved your life when he healed you instead of himself. Curious action that.
Dren starts hitting the group with wand charges.
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The Judge responds to Dren:
I hear the goblins already. Lets get them on top of the tower and have them start to drop arrows on the fort, just as the guards were doing to us. The entrance across the catwalk is mostly undefended. Once we have a number of bugbears on the upper level of the gatehouse, we can send them across the catwalk. Cy can open this up with a fireball so that there will not be a defensible chokepoint. Once the bugbears are in, it should not be difficult to open the main gate. If we drop the drawbridge too early, then the troops in the fort will have a way across if they want too, while it give us no value until the gate is open, or at least until we take the fort walls to allow ladders to be placed on the far side of the main bridge.
Dren had picked up Xen's hat and placed it on his head just after the combat ended, it now looks like his hood he wears.
You assume that the Goblins and Bugbears will follow our commands and not attack us. I can turn into a Bugbear and possibly give them commands but they are very choatic creatures and rallying them to do very specific attacks, possibly against previous orders, may be difficult. But we could always do both ideas with one fireball for each plan.
Edmin, what do you think?
The Judge gives his nicest smile, which combined with his rather unpleasant oder, is not nice at all.
I can be quite charming when needed. His face then twists into a raging snarl, or intimidating. I am sure that we can show the chaotic goblins that we are in charge. The goblin and bugbear leaders have seen us before, they will follow our instructions . . . or they will die.
The Judge pauses for a moment.
And I would expect the Fourth [insert correct Knot if this is wrong] to arrive shortly after the initial troops.
Jax walks over to Xen's fallen hat and picks it up. He takes off his amulet, turning into his devilish self..and places it on his head with a smirk before rummaging through Xen's still freshly bleeding corpse. "Sorry dear friend, I did quite like you. More than most of this lot, anyway. But lets see what you have here.."
Jax walks over to Xen's fallen hat and picks it up. He takes off his amulet, turning into his devilish self..and places it on his head with a smirk before rummaging through Xen's still freshly bleeding corpse. "Sorry dear friend, I did quite like you. More than most of this lot, anyway. But lets see what you have here.."
"Creepy Dren! Any chance I can wear Xen's hat? I liked that feather!"
From June 26, 2013
Perhaps Xen is wondering where the large plume feather that once adorned his hat has gone too.
Cуровую has had Xen's hat feather for several months now.
As dren turns into a replica of Jax...you feel as though you are looking into a mirror, The hat isn't trinket for fashion Jax, it is a tool for us to fool the weak and subjugate the strong. You have no idea what I can do with this hat...I can be anyone, although my lies are not as convincing as sister Zimu.
But it is not up to you or I to decide who actually will own the hat. For now we will use it in the group as needed.
Basically he is willing for whomever to wear it as long as we are using it. Dren was planning to replicate a Bugbear to help direct the goblins or make sure we don't get attacked by any of them by mistake.
Actually zimu has the feather from his hat, the hat of disguise can create a feather. The regular hat is in the haversack
We also need to search the monk, she might have some interesting items on her.
Jax glares at Dren and throws his hands up. "Bah! Tools.." He then discovers the mundane hat in the haversack and puts it on, grinning goofily. "In memory of the dear departed."
Now: the soldiers do have leadership -- there are several NCOs still alive, and after some discussion they decide to release Captain Edderly from his prison cell. (Which was on the floor where the dwarves were working, right below the Magister's laboratory.) So they even have a commander. And there are three acolytes left alive, and one more Seeker (there were three), and Father Jole from the village, and maybe Mad Martin (did he survive those two fireballs?)
I just had a huge post eaten up by the Paizo site.
The cliff notes version.
DM
I was wondering for a few weeks now if the captain was still in the fort, I guess we have an answer.
I was also thinking of the old cleric that we had no time to ambush, if he was in town he may have been brought into the fort to help with the sick, although there may not have been enough time to summon him or getting word to him is not 'military protocol' but yes I was thinking of him too.
That being said I have a question for DM, rather important.
Cуровую has been wanting to assume the guise of leadership of the fort since early September, none of the above would be alerted of the death of the commander or the most senior Seeker unless the archer was able to reach the most senior remaining junior officers so quickly.
Morsum, Dren, Ragnar were all 1 round away from the archer, could he really have fully escaped in 1 round? They were all ready to give chase.
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Also just as important, can we please not fast forward just yet.
If you fast forward we will not be able to take advantage of the confusion. And that's rather important right now.
By my calculations we need 7 minutes to enact what I was planning and surely the confused clumsy withdrawal of the soldiers, then turned full panicked retreat, to any discussion (and counter command of the commanders standing orders) about the captain's release, his update and appraisal of the situation (from the stew to the infiltration to the loss of key defenses to the possible death of the senior command) and him getting into armor and assuming command will take longer than that.
Can we please keep the rounds we are on, we would NOT remain idle with the momentum we have worked hard and bled to earn.
He might have quaffed a potion of inviso for all we know. I would let it go.
We have pretty much won, other than helping them take the fort I would rather let GM cutscene it out.
I'm with Dren on this. I think we won mostly, although Jax plans to sneak around gathering treasure while chaos and havoc reigns.
We would be doing that but during the time the fort is leaderless.
Cуровую HAS See Invisibility, Jax your plans and Cуровую are fully on the same page, don't you want to raid a fort that is leaderless?
Jax, you and I are totally on the same page.
The confused clumsy withdrawal of the soldiers, then turned full panicked retreat, to any discussion (and counter command of the commanders standing orders) about the captain's release, his update and appraisal of the situation (from the stew to the infiltration to the loss of key defenses to the possible death of the senior command) and him getting into armor and assuming command will take longer than 2 to 3 minutes of real time.
If we fast forward we will not have that advantage, we would NOT remain idle with the momentum we have worked so hard for.
But they do not have time.
I just read DM's next three posts after I had posted.
That's actually very cool and cinematic, but my request that we don't fast forward stands.
checking Xen, Edmin, he is dead. You know he actually saved your life when he healed you instead of himself. Curious action that.
Wow! Good point!
We are currently 5-10 minutes after the rocket was launched. The army should start arriving within a few minutes - scouts and fast troops followed a few minutes later by the main force. Our job is to make sure that the fort is taken, not to risk our necks pretending to be the command. If we fail on the ruse and are killed, then the guards retake the gatehouse and rain death on the approaching horde.
I posted my thoughts above, which nobody seems to have paid attention to. We hold the gatehouse and get as many goblins and bugbears up to the roof/upper level. Then the sneaky bugbears begin to sneak across the catwalk with the goblins prepared slightly behind. At the same time, any archers they have will be raining arrows on the fort walls and the area around the point where the catwalk connects to the main fort. Once the bugbears and goblins are prepared, Cy launches a fireball to soften the troops guarding the entry and the bugbears storm through. Once that are in the main fort, they should be able to get the the main gate and open it. Or, if it cannot be opened, once the wall is taken, then ladder can be used to climb from the main bridge to the fort.
I have said that I would have no problem flying and summoning fire elementals to light the stables on fire and perhaps drop a few in the town to keep any reinforcements occupied putting out fires (literally).
I'm thinking impersonating the Commander will be kind of difficult after Edmin has brandished his severed head.
Not the commander but with Extended Fly and Invisibility going to make some key stops.
Could we cut scene it the way you have? Literally the 5 minutes right after the commander's death.
We have an Extend Rod.
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May I present my argument one last time. If you all don't like this or if it takes away from DM's game I will be happy to just say, ok I tried.
Fair?
The main thing is the actions we want to take would be BEFORE the archer got the word out, it will take minutes for them to retreat and regroup even after he gives them the accounts of what happened.
The fort is not a single omnipotent organism that has streaming data that covers the entire complex all at once.
The commander dies, the archer retreats. Fair.
Then is what immediately follows.
The confused clumsy withdrawal of the soldiers which then turns to a full panicked retreat, followed by any discussion (and counter command of the commanders standing orders) about the captain's release, his update and appraisal of the fort's dire situation (from the stew to the infiltration to the loss of key defenses to the possible death of the senior command) and to him getting into armor (where would that be) and assuming command will take longer than 5 to 6 minutes of real time.
Is that a fair call?
Summoning the hermit, the alchemist, the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker should take even longer.
Is that a fair assessment?
I propose we act in that 5 to 6 minute window, nothing more than that, if you want we can make our own cut scene of our actions we don't need to play it out.
A few notes:
We have mostly burned through 1 CLW wand and are using a second.
I cannot be healed with the wand - I have a few ILW potions, but that is it.
I have no spells, and only 4 Summon Monster III spells.
Jax is short on spells.
Dren is almost out of spells.
Edmin has used his smite.
Cy is out of offensive spells, to the best of my knowledge.
Xen is out of spell, and hp.
All we really have at this point is muscle, and they have a lot more. Last time someone decided to wander around by themselves with a full spell complement, they met uber-monk and almost got oneself and Grumbles killed.
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We have accomplished out task. If Jax and/or Cy wish to be greedy and go snooping around the tower and fort by themselves, they are welcome to. I understand that both are greedy by their character's nature, especially Jax, but at the same time neither is stupid, they have high Int.
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The Judge and Morsum are going to stay put until the goblin calvary arrives and then advise them on the best way to get into the fort - via the catwalk. If Cy leaves, I shall request that the fireball wand be left with Dren so that we can get the troops into the fort by blasting a hole in the defenses where the catwalk meets the fort.
The Judge is greedy and self serving by nature, he is not going to do anything that will risk his neck. He has no interest in being remembered as a hero, he is interested in being remembered as the tyrannical vampire that helped rule a nation.
I propose we act in that 5 to 6 minute window, nothing more than that, if you want we can make our own cut scene of our actions we don't need to play it out.
So there are no maps, no books, no logs or journals in that chest or the commander's quarters which we have yet to have searched?
No royal seals of the King's commander?
No bits of information, whatsoever that we can use? Nothing?
Money, or bank letters of credit for funding fort's supply and inventory perhaps?
You understand my mind set from though right? I am not acting on greed, that was never Cуровую driving goal.
You have Undeath to look forward to.
I am but a child running from her kin.
Two charges Bref, two. The Judge forbade me to use one of them.