K'Don, my advice was to NOT spend your last Benny unless you're facing a situation that would cause Incapacitation. Or if there's probably no way to avoid Incapacitation (like a 4-Wound attack on top of your current 2 Wounds), take the Incapacitation and keep that last Benny for your Vigor roll to survive!
"I'll reverse the polarity and try to retard their coordination with my glasses!"
Still waiting a little bit to hear in from Marko, otherwise I'll start the next round and he can retcon his action for this round.
Cool, I'll hold my last Benny.
Since tomorrow is my short day, I'm going to start the next round now...
Summary of round 9
Another sandstorm mysteriously comes from out of nowhere and engulfs several of the Orcs, getting dust in their eyes.
Arabella steps back and shoots one of the Orcs almost point-blank, but the shot was off to one side and his armor deflected the bullet.
Two Orcs attack Alex and both miss, two Orcs attack K'Don and one scores a healthy hit (well, not healthy for K'Don), one attacks Arabella and also gets in a solid blow.
Despite his wounds, Alex manages to connect with his rapier, but unfortunately does no damage.
Connor runs in, heals Alex, and runs back out before the Orcs can even react!
K'Don remained dazed from the attack by one of the Orcs, and could not act.
Adelmar chants, and manages to stun 2 of the Orcs.
Katana attacks with her hands, but does no damage.
Initiative (start of round 10)
Alex :
Arabella :
Connor :
K'Don :
Marko :
WindDancer :
Adelmar :
Katana :
Orcs :
In order : Orcs, Alex, Arabella, Katana, Adelmar, WindDancer, Marko, Connor, K'Don
Drat, the Orcs act first (and BTW, so their -2 to Parry is gone). I'm out of time right now, I'll make a post of their actions early tomorrow AM.
K'Don, it'll probably be better to wait until *most* everyone else has posted (so you'll know what the actual situation is), but when you do I think you should get TWO chances to recover from Shaken, one from the last round since you acted after they attacked you, and one at the start of your action this round.
Orc A attacks K'Don :
= 8+1 = 9 vs. Parry 6 is a Success
= no damage
Orc C attacks Katana :
= 11+1 = 12 vs. Parry 6 is a Success and Raise
= 17 vs. Toughness 6 is a Success and 2 Wounds
Katana spends a Benny to Soak :
REALLY? Ok, 2 Wounds
Orc B attacks Alex :
is a miss
Orc E tries to recover from Shaken :
= 7 is a Success
Is not Shaken, but can't act this round
Orc G tries to recover from Shaken :
= 5 is a Success
Is not Shaken, but can't act this round
Please everyone (including me!) remember to subtract your Wounds from ALL your rolls (except Damage)
Katana will attack, while I'm here :
= 8-2+1(gang) = 7 vs. Parry 5 is a Success
= 17 vs. Toughness 8 is a Success and 2 Wounds!
Orc C finally drops!
She's going to take a chance on a "withdraw attack" from Orc A to move towards the other group :
= 5 is a miss
K'Don has 2 wounds. He gets a +2 to Vigor rolls but -2 for wounds
Roll of 11. Not sure of application to events
Arabella flicks a lever on her goggles and presses a button. The goggles glow with a soft light easily visible in the dim lighting. Tendrils of glowing light lash out at the foreheads of each orc, creating a ghastly effect for a split second.
Arabella attempts to lower the fighting skill of the three orcs.
Cost = 5
Wound Penalty -2
Result = 8 + 2 - 2 = 8
So the orcs now need to make a spirit roll.
See discussion board for a question about how this spirit roll is interpreted.
But basically, I think if they get a result of 9 or better, there is no effect.
If they get a result of 8, reroll next round?
If they get a result of 5 to 7, lower their fighting die by 1 die type.
If they get a result lower than 5, lower their fighting die by 2 die types.
Duration = 3 rounds, with option to extend for 1 pt./round/target.
Arabella has 2/10 power points and 1 bennie.
Alexander pulled out the potion Adelmar had given him, and downed it in a gulp. Already feeling better - at least he could see straight - he hastily made an attack on the orc before him, just to warn it off.
She stiffens and chitters nervously as she sees her little-big run into the fray. But after touching his big, Con-nor runs away again, unharmed. With the ostian equivalent of a sigh of relief, she quickly assesses the situation. No longer seeing a way to reach all three of the big-bigs at once, she turns her attention to the two closest to her assigned charge.
Once again, a dust devil springs into existence for the briefest of moments.
Orcs G, B, E against Arabella's Lower Trait
Orc B :
= 5 means his Fighting die is a d4!
Orc E :
= 5 means his Fighting die is a d4!
Orc G :
= 12 (no point in continuing), is not affected
Good job, Arabella - very effective! That high TN is what's essential...
Orcs B and E face another sandstorm
Orc B :
= 4-2 = 2 means he is Shaken and -2 to Parry!
Orc E :
= 3-2 = 1 means he is Shaken and -2 to Parry!
Marko - your Bolt came *after* WindDancer made Orc B Shaken, and so your Shaken result inflicts a Wound, and Orc B is DOWN!
Connor, still fearing for Alex's life, is all worked up but seems to be getting a better grip on his abilities as he cups his hands and shouts at Orc E :
= 4 well, it's still a Success
vs. Toughness 8 is a Shaken
And, since E was already Shaken, HE goes down, too! Woo hoo!
Go, team! :)
K'Don, I doubt anything is going to change your situation with Orc A at this point, so you can attack whenever it's convenient. Thanks for waiting.
8+3=11 Which hits. And a Raise
A hit, a good hit.
After striking down the orc, (or at least damaging the beast) K'Don will let loose a mighty roar followed by bellowing "K'Don Son of Ugal CANNOT BE KILLED BY AN ORC"
K'Don - don't forget to include your Wounds! But fortunately a 9 is still a hit with a Raise...
Regarding your Damage, they have Toughness 8 normally, but 7 when you use your greatsword. So 11-7 = 4 is a Wound, and he drops.
Summary of Round 10
Some of the Orcs try to recover their wits, while one attacks K'Don and does no damage, while another manages to do some serious hurt on Katana, and another swings at Alex but misses.
Alex drinks his potion and feels much better.
Arabella manages to somehow make it harder for a couple of the Orcs to hit anything.
Katana drops an Orc and rushes over to help the others.
Adelmar does nothing.
Another dust storm kicks up, and distracts two of the Orcs.
Marko takes down one of those, and Connor takes down the other.
K'Don dispatches the Orc in front of him and bellows with blood-lust.
Initiative (start of round 11)
Alex :
Arabella :
Connor :
K'Don :
Marko :
WindDancer :
Adelmar :
Katana :
Orcs : (ok, Orc)
So in order : Arabella, K'Don, Orc, Adelmar, Alex, Connor, Katana, Marko, WindDancer
Arabella, I believe Alex's Boost is running out, you need to decide whether to maintain it or not.
Arabella will spend a power point to extend the boost on Alexander and she will imitate Connor's shout, in hopes of tricking him into becoming shaken, expecting more crazy human magic. "Peanut Butter!!!"
Wound penalty - 2
Result= 3-2= 1, failure
Power points: 1/10
Bennies: 1
K'Don Will dispatch the orc A
5-2=3 a miss.
She shuffles nervously from side to side, watching the conflict below.
K'Don - best to read the text rather than go by the pictures, you dispatched that Orc last round but I forgot to take him off the map.
But you can Move to Orc G, altho you still miss. I've updated the map.
Orc G attacks Arabella :
= 8 is a hit and a Raise
= 17 vs. Toughness 6 is 2 Wounds
Arabella, that would put you into 4 Wounds or Incapacitation. You can spend your last Benny now and *try* to Soak (at -3) and hope that you at least get a Success, or take the Incapacitation and use the last Benny to *re-roll* your Vigor check (at NO penalties due to an already existing house-rule) if needed. Having just read that, I would definitely save it for the Vigor check. :)
SWD : Make a Vigor check.
Snake-eyes - you're dead, Jim.
Failure - take a permanent Injury (p. 69) and you're Bleeding Out (we'll deal with that if it happens)
Success - take a 24-hour Injury
1 or more Raises - take an Injury until all Wounds healed
Adelmar, looking exhausted, chants one more time and stomps his staff into the ground :
= 8 is a Success and Raise
So the Orc has to save (ha-ha) :
= 2-4 = I don't think so
The Orc is now Shaken.
Altho Alex's action may change things, I'm going to take care of Connor and Katana while I'm here...
Connor shouts again :
= 10 vs. TN=4 is a Success and a Raise
vs. Toughness 8 is Shaken
Since that *was* "real" damage, the Orc takes a Wound, and drops.
MELEE IS OVER!
Katana rounds the corner of the temple, ready to smack something, and looks rather disappointed/frustrated that there's no Orcs left standing. She starts eying K'Don...just kidding.
"Is it over?" Marko said with a shaky smile. And then he saw the carnage. "Watching Gods," he whispered, but then got to work.
-Posted with Wayfinder
Alexander dropped to his knees by Arabella, all coldness toward her forgotten as she lay bleeding. "Is there anything I can do?" he asked anxiously, letting his rapier fall into the mud. He lifted her head into his lap and pulled off her goggles, unsure what else he might do.
Seeing that Marko's attempts didn't appear to be helping to stop her gushing blood, a desperate idea occurred to him.
"CONNOR! Arabella needs your help!" he bellowed. Looking up, he spotted WindDancer on the rooftop. "Get Connor!" he yelled, pointing where he thought Connor had gone.
She watches as the last of the big-bigs falls and the character of the activity below her changes. She can tell some of the bigs had been hurt during the fight, including Con-nor's big.
Con-nor! Her head snaps around to check on her little-big. And then her other charge shouted Con-nor's name. Twice. Once while looking at her and pointing.
She launches from the rooftop and glides over to her little-big, circling 'round and landing on his shoulder, then chittering excitedly.
SWD : Make a Vigor check.
Snake-eyes - you're dead, Jim.
Failure - take a permanent Injury (p. 69) and you're Bleeding Out (we'll deal with that if it happens)
Success - take a 24-hour Injury
1 or more Raises - take an Injury until all Wounds healed
Here goes:
Incapacitation Vigor Check:
Result = 9, Success + Raise
K'Don will begin the grisly process of dispatching the orc that are wounded and dying.
Katana will gladly help K'Don.
So Arabella survives, and has a nasty gash on her left arm (rolled at home). It will heal up (but leave a nasty scar) when all her Wounds are gone.
But she is unconscious and has 3 Wounds.
Connor and Adelmar will come over, but I'll have to post that later today.
Anything else anyone wants to post in-character? Not even a "woo-hoo!"? :)
K'Don pauses before dispatching the last few orcs, his blood lust cooling, and states, "Perhaps we should question one or two of these about what caused this attack?"
Alexander sat back on his heels, relieved that Arabella didn't appear to be dying just yet. "Capital idea, K'Don. You're just the fellow for the job."
Sparing the last 2 orcs, binding them and leading them to the nearest lean-to shelter or barn.
Hate to leave Arabella hanging, but I just got back from work and I'm done for the day. Been dealing with semi-major health problems all week.
Lots more tomorrow.
K'Don, if you wish you can pose some starting questions and make a couple of Intimidation rolls.
Intimidate = 14
Failed
Why did you attack this village?
Who is your leader?
Where is your leader?
How many orcs are left?
Are you gonna attack again?
Healing
Connor rushes over to Arabella, WindDancer on his shoulder, and seeing Arabella covered in blood (and still bleeding a bit), lays his hands on the worst of the wounds :
= 5-3 = 2
Spending a Benny
= 7-3 = 4 is a Success
And heals her of 1 Wound.
Adelmar gets to her just after that, and says "I'm afraid I cannot heal her myself at this point, but I can tend to her wounds to make sure they don't get infected." He spends 10 minutes with her...
= 9-2 = 7 is a Success
And heals her of 1 more Wound, so she's at 1 Wound.
Adelmar turns his attention to Katana while Marko unsuccessfully treats K'Don :
= 7-2 = 5 is a Success
So Katana loses 1 Wound.
Next he turns to K'Don :
= 7-2 = 5 is a Success
So K'Don loses 1 Wound.
Finally he treats Alex :
= 5-2 = 3 is a Failure
Sorry Alex, guess the old guy's getting kind of exhausted, himself.
Any other PC with the Healing *skill* can attempt to treat other PC's, with a penalty equal to *your Wounds* AND *their Wounds*
And after a *full* 8 hours' sleep, everyone rolls Vigor to see if they've gotten better. That's probably not going to happen tonight, however.
Interrogation
The first Orc rolls Spirit vs. K'Don's Intimidation of 14 :
Nuts. Can't even spend a Bennie!
Despite K'Don's roll of 2, this is an opposed roll, you never know - he might roll snake-eyes too :
Or not...
= 8 vs. 2 = Success and Raise
The first Orc has a head wound, and seems to be somewhat addled and more compliant. He completely breaks down after a few well-placed dagger cuts, and applying some pressure to his wounds. The other Orc does nothing but spit in your face and call you and your mother some exceptionally rude things, no matter what you do to him.
What you get out of all that is : "We attacked because our leader told us to. You are not worthy of sullying your tongue by speaking our leader's name. Our glorious leader is personally leading our massive army just north of here, and will soon crush you all under his feet like the vermin you are, but I am not worthy of knowing his plans."
(The Baron had said the leader's name was something like "K'Plech".)
You can get no further information out of them - the first one passes out and nothing you do can revive him, and the other one refuses to speak at all after a while, except to demand an honorable death.
The next 18 hours
(If anyone wants to heal another PC, or talk out strategies, etc., feel free.)
As the sounds of battle fade, the villagers finally start coming out of their homes, and are just as appalled at the carnage as they are grateful for your help in saving their lives. They are all embarrassed and guilty for not being brave enough to come out and help you.
At Katana's suggestion, they pile half the bodies in front of the main gate, and the other half in front of the gap in the wall (she says it will serve as a warning to the Orcs), and then they re-position the wagons and barrels in the gap.
The rest of the night passes without further incident. At the crack of dawn, the villagers begin to complete the fence in earnest, cutting down trees, hacking off limbs, digging a trench, raising the posts, etc. They insist on doing all the work, and the younger children wait on all of you "hand and foot", bringing you their best food and drink, changing your bandages, etc.
Altho the gap in the wall is now filled in, sunset arrives with a feeling of dreadful expectation...
K'Don will be busy in the Barn for a little while. When he comes out he tells everyone the information gathered
"We attacked because our leader told us to. You are not worthy of sullying your tongue by speaking our leader's name. Our glorious leader is personally leading our massive army just north of here, and will soon crush you all under his feet like the vermin you are, but I am not worthy of knowing his plans."
(The Baron had said the leader's name was something like "K'Plech".)
"This K'Plech sounds more like a religious leader than a warlord to inspire that kind of loyalty," Marko says. "Does anyone know if this kind of fervor is typical among Orcs?"
-Posted with Wayfinder
Arabella's consciousness swirls in a confusion of shapes and colors as a blessed warmth seems to fill her from the inside out. Gradually, she recognizes the concerned face of Connor. Her wounds still hurt but she finds she can sit up. She beckons Connor closer, as if she wants to whisper something to him. When he leans in, she gives him a fierce hug, bitting back the pain it causes her still wounded arm. Then she kisses his forehead and says, "Thank you! Are you all right?"
Once she can see that he is, she says, "I'm so sorry you had to see that. But for what it's worth, this is what adventures can be like."
Once Adelmar dresses her wounds, she finds she can get about fairly well and begins to go around and give the others hugs and ask each person if he/she was wounded and thank each for fighting so bravely.
She says nothing to the people, but accepts what help they give after that. From then on, she is uncharacteristically quiet. She tinkers with her tools and begins to fashion a belt with glass beads interspersed with small bones, light chains, and some quartz gems. She manages to get faint motes of light to circulate through the belt as she makes adjustments, but nothing potent. If asked, she shrugs and says, "Just something I'm experimenting with."
Most Orc leaders are fierce warriors, but every so often one will also have a little bit of extra intelligence, and be very charismatic (from an Orc's point of view), and that's a potent combination.
If there's no further discussion, then...
The night passes without incident.
Those of you who still have any Wounds can make a Vigor roll (minus your Wounds) to see if you get better :
Snake-eyes = you tore something open and take *another* Wound
Success = remove 1 Wound
Any number of Raises = remove 2 Wounds
Probably you could normally spend Bennies on this roll, but due to the nature of PbP I'm going to say you can't.
At the end of this day, a small contingent of semi-trained people (men, women, mostly human but a few other races) arrives from Jewelston and sets up camp inside the fence and out. They all have "real" weapons, including guns and rifles.
The Baron is extremely thankful to you for saving the village and Adelmar, and makes good on his 100 GP payment. He even gives Katana some money for her part. Y'all can decide how to divvy that up amongst yourselves.
The next two days are pretty tense, with everyone on high alert, but finally the "real" cavalry arrives from WeMadeIt without any other attacks by the Orcs. Apparently they were pretty impressed by your defense of the village.
If you still have Wounds, make Vigor rolls as above for the next 2 days.
After settling in and getting a sit-rep from everyone, the commander of the WeMadeIt army requests your presence to discuss something.
Katana :
Day 1
= 3-2 = 1 = no improvement
Day 2
= 5-2 = 3 = no improvement
Day 3
= 5-2 = 3 = no improvement
So she's still at 2 Wounds.
Fail day 1.
Success day 2? No more wounds.
Day 1
Wound Penalty: -1
Result = 2-1 = 1, failure
Day 2
Result = 9 - 1 = 8; success + raise
Arabella's wounds are healed, except for a scar on her arm.
Personal Use Spirit Roll:
Result = 4
Arabella shakes off her subdued attitude and focuses on her belt contraption. Her only comments about the military leader's request for a meeting is to say, "Whatever he wants us to do, I'm against it if it requires us to attack anyone or fight anyone else's battles for them. We're not a military unit. We fight if we are attacked, but we don't go looking for a fight. At least that's my feeling."
Thanks for the clearification. Here are my vigor rolls.
Day 1
Wound Penalty: -2
4-2=2 Miss
Day 2
Wound Penalty: -2
4-2=2 Miss
Day 4
Wound Penalty: -2
5-2=3 Miss
You keep your wounds for the time being. It's just taking you a longer time to get over them. Perhaps yours cut some deep muscles in your arms or legs, whereas Alex's and Arabella's were more superficial.
You arrive in the tent of the commander. Katana is already there.
First, the commander thanks you and congratulates you on defending the village. Then he says, "We have new information from our scouts as to the exact location of the Orc army north of here. We are going to attack them, and hopefully take care of K'Plech.
But over the past month or two, we have had more and more indications that Orc tribes from all over the center of the continent are working together in ways they never have before, and are becoming more militant than ever before.
We have been thinking for some time that all of this might be due to the work of a single individual or a small group, and for the first time ever just recently (at great cost, I might add) we have some idea of where they might be located.
What we need is a small, non-military group to go to that area and find out what's really going on. Many Orc tribes have not (yet) joined this...'movement', for lack of a better term, and with someone like K'Don in your group, you should be able to move among the tribes pretty freely. And you have demonstrated that you can take care of yourselves in a pinch. This young woman (gesturing to Katana) has volunteered to accompany you."
K'Don - in your wanderings, most tribes have welcomed you initially with reservation, but once you demonstrated that you knew the Orc culture and traditions, they considered you as one of their own. The hatred towards half-breeds that these Orcs showed was nothing like anything you'd ever seen before.