Brom growls his frustration as Theod is heavily injured by the bear, and quickly weaves his way through the press of bodies to the bears side, raising Krasa high and trying to kill it in one fell swoop... whatever it takes to free his friend. "KRASAAAAA!!" he bellows as he swings his trusty weapon with enormous effort.
Brom rushes forward and delivers a massive bash to the bear, and his fury is rewarded by the sound of bone crunching under the force of his blow, but the beast does not release its grasp.
The bandits-turned-hirelings fire off another volley of arrows, while the men with swords are driven by the heroics of the party, quickly helping surround the beast and stab at it, using tactics to their advantage.
But their attacks all fail to land.
The bear, threatened on all sides, roars in defiance, releasing Theod to the ground and flailing a massive paw at him, then turning its full fury on the giant man with the hurting hammer...
The ranger falls to the ground, savaged by the claws of the bear, and goes still...the creature then focuses on Brom...
...and lands a grisly hit with the first claw, but narrowly missing the barbarian with the grasping bite.
Castor goes wide eyed when he sees Theod go down, and rushes in to the ranger's side. He kneels and places both of his hands on Theod's shoulders. Holy power courses down his arms and into Theod, mending his wounds.
As the bears claws slash across his flesh, Broms eyes roll up into his head, reveling in the pain even as his blood begins to flow. What a foe! he thinks to himself, thoughts heavy with regret that he must now kill the monster. Pulling the earthbreaker back he swings it up and over, trying to brain the taller, massive and powerful beast.
Cappi is relieved to feel the giant beast release Theod, though barely manages to get free of the swipe that pins the ranger to the ground. Ducking beneath the massive paw, Cappi unleashes a flurry of frantic stabs at the creatures side just below the shoulder. He's not happy with his position so close to the snarling mouth, but thankful to have men on the other side providing a small distraction.
Theod lays on the ground unconcious one moment and quickly brought back to the harsh reality of his gapping wounds. He lays on the ground feigning death as to not draw the bears attention, just barely holding onto life.
By the Holy Antlers of Erastil...
attck roll damage
Brom delivers another devastating blow to the giant bear as Cappi and Hadin come at the beast with everything they have. Steel rains down against fur and thick hide and in the end the might of the party triumphs, slaying the beast as it collapses and shudders, the last bit of life escaping it.
Sighing in relief as the angry beast collapses, Castor quickly moves to the center of the group and gathers divine power, letting it radiate from him to relieve the his companion from their injuries.
Noting that Theod's injury are still rather deep, he approaches the ranger and applies more concentrated healing.
Theod nods in appreciation to Castor "My thanks! I was not expecting that all of the sudden. Perhaps I should concentrate more on paying attention to the ride than to making the maps, or perhaps I should ride closer to the middle in future." he grins sheepishly.
Cappi stares at the giant beast for a moment, breathing heavily himself and careful to be certain the animal is dead. He goes to wipe the perspiration from his brow, but freezes quickly as he notices the blood smeared across his palms. Instead he looks up at the other men they had recently encountered who assisted in felling the beast. He salutes them with a wink, leaving a small red dot on his forehead where his fingers contacted in salute.
Brom goes to a knee as the rage drains out of him, breathing heavily. Seeing Castor move to heal him and the others, the barbarian quickly spits in the dirt at his feet, scooping the muddy mixture and rubbing across his blood and rent flesh where the claws got him. The healing seals up his flesh, the wounded flesh healing with an angry red hue as it scars over nicely. He smiles down at the new and impressive badges of honor, looking around at the others proudly, "You see zhe honor zhe bear gave to me?" he asks happily. Then moves towards Theod with concern on his face, "Zheod, you are vell now, yes?" He'll congratulate the recent recruits on a job well done and lastly work to skin the bear, asking the others, "You zhink zhe cave is nearby? It vould be good place to camp in zhe future."
Brom manages to skin the carcass with ease, awarded with a massive pelt for his trouble. The entire bundle easily weighs no less than 60 lbs and his horse loudly protests the parcel as he loads it behind his riding saddle.
The tracks are easy enough to follow, leading only about sixty feet before the group finds a shallow cave, obviously the great bear's den.
Cappi looks to Theod as they approach the shallow cave, defaulting to the outdoorsman's superior knowledge rather than his own. "I could sneak in there and check things out, provided you don't think it's the worst idea you've ever heard..."
Quite happy about the pelt, he rolls his eyes at Horsey's protestations, "You carry zhis for me Horsey, and I vill get you a treat vhen ve get to Olegs!"
At the cave Brom looks confused, "Ve shall all go, no?" and takes a look around the area for anything of interest.
-----
Theod nods to Cappi "The bear is dead. Let me check the area see if there are any signs of others." Theod takes some time checking for tracks or other signs that might denote whether it was only the one bear or if there were others.
"Is everyone okay?" Castor inquires while Cappi investigates the cave? "Let us hope we do not run into another beast of that size any time soon."
With a nod, Cappi stalks into the cave, utilizing caution in case the grizzly had a mate or perhaps a cub.
Theod takes a look around the area, noting several sets of tracks but has the feeling that they have all been produced by the same animal. There appears to be no variance in size between the numerous sets.
Cappi creeps into the cave with all the stealth he can muster, and giving the entire area a good once-over finds nothing to indicate any other bears in the area. There is nothing of value inside the den, as bears do not have a habit of being their prey back to their lair with them.
"Well, Hadin," Cappi wonders aloud as he returns from the empty cave. "I'm not sure what the priest saw, but we've got nothing but a vacant cave down there. Might be good to know should we need shelter in the area again though, provided it remains vacant."
Once the investigation is over Brom suggests they continue on their way, having already used much of their morning dealing with bears and the search of the area.
The priest's bear should be another one, so. I don't honestly remember if this hooly man gave any clues about where we might find it. I suppose I will recongnise the right bear when I see it. Besides, this cave doesn't seem particulary holy or worshipped by the followers of Erastil. There's nothing here that links to my god, so far as I can say.
"Well then, let us be on our way." Castor smiles, eager to get back on the road. He makes sure that Capella is unharmed from the battle and does his best to calm her down before climbing back into his saddle.
"Ready when you all are."
The party saddles back up and continues the journey back to Oleg's. After a day's ride they find themselves back within the safe confines of the fort's walls and once again under the stern and watchful eye of the new garrison. As they approach, with far more members in tow than they originally intended, Oleg and Svetlana greet them, both with concerned looks on their faces, but not speaking up initially.
Theod greets Oleg and Svetlana and goes on to explain about the extra men "We have found some men looking for some honest work, they have been of great assistance to us. We thought they might be of some use here."
After the initial greetings and after relieving Capella of her saddle and packs, Castor approaches the fort's owners.
"It's good to see you again, Oleg, and you as well, Svetlana. You seemed rather troubled when we arrived. Is there something I or my companions could help you with?"
Brom proudly displays his bear hide and inquires if Svetlana (or anyone) could fashion it into a basic cloak. During most conversations he is also sure to keep his body at such an angle so his new scars are plainly visible. He also inquires after the other group, "Have zhe ozhers returned from zheir efforts yet?"
Seeing his family concerned faces, Hadin does his best to dismount quickly, but being quite inexperienced as a rider, nearly fall to the ground. Brushing his clothes, he strides to Svetlana and Oleg
Auntie! Uncle! Is there a problem? What happened?Can I do something to help?
Oleg is the first to respond, as the group details their most recent adventure. "Well, I'm grateful for what you are doing out there lads, but I don't think we can afford the space for so many. What are you thinking of doing with those ruffians as far as lodgings go? And am I to understand right in thinkin' we are to watch over them while you are away? I've enough to handle with getting ready for the upcoming fur season. And these guards are eating through our supplies at a brisk space." at which point he tosses one of his patented scowls in the direction of the bivouac constructed within the perimeter of his post.
Svetlana is obviously impressed by Brom's display of prowess with the bear and as usual fawns over the group, fetching them food and drink, and asking to hear all the details of their trip. "No word from the others yet, surely you don't expect something foul has happened do you?"
Brom scoffs at Svetlana's concern, "I do not zhink zhey have found foulness. Ve came early vhen ve found zhese men."
He addresses Oleg, "Zhe guards did not bring zheir own supplies viz zhem? Zhat is not good. I vill speak viz zheir leader about zhe men joining viz zhem."
He offers Svetlana the hide to fashion into a cloak, or to send it to be completed elsewhere if she cannot, and whatever amount she think is needed for such a task.
----
Later, he approaches the soldiers, a leg of some animal in one hand, and a large tankard of drink in the other, "Hello, who is in charge here today?" he asks the nearest, taking a long pull of his drink.
Cappi suspected that Oleg's concern may be with the recruits. And he has to admit that the thought of bringing them right into their fort seems a bit foolish. None of this concerns the halfling though, who's still quite confident in the group's decision.
"They're bene hunters, Oleg. Look at the bows, eh? Certainly they could track down some swish-tails for themselves and a few others." If the intention is to lay claim to this land, then recruiting men and women seems a much easier way of doing so than killing them all. And perhaps slightly more humane.
I'm sorry,uncle, I haven't thought of that...
Hadin scratches the back of his head, as if a child caught red handed. He looks at the new recruits, throughfully, murmuring a prayer to Erastil
Mechanically speaking, they are too low level to actually generate an aura of evil enough to detect, so you wouldn't get a reading.
From a character perception standpoint, their actions so far have been up front and honest enough, and you'd have no real reason to doubt their words. They have been compliant with your group for the whole of the trip and have helped whenever possible without needing prompting. You'd think they are truly ready to try to lead a straight life and make something of themselves.
As their fates are being discussed, the man who negotiated with the party originally in the woods, who the group later came to know as Arken Griswald, speaks up, "Lords, while me and mine are ever grateful for the chance at a fresh start, we nae want to burden anyone with our troubles. If you will give us leave to do so, we will gladly work the wood and stone available to us in the area to build some suitable shelter for ourselves. If help is available it would be appreciated, but me and my mates can handle it on our own if needs be."
Oleg frowns but nods at the suggestion, "Well, we can likely use the help around here, and if your lot is willing to work we may be able to find some way to keep you in tools and food for the time being at least. These folk," he says, motioning to the party, "have spoken for you, and I'm willing to trust their guts. As long as you can make yourselves useful I think we can come to an arrangement."
At Brom's approach, the man the party had words with earlier, Kesten Garess, stands and acknowledges the large man. His demeanor is obviously sour, likely due to the earlier run in with the group. "Aye savage, what do you want?"
I'm willing to help you to build your shelter, Arken. I'm not that bad with wood structures, and it can only strenghten the post, in my opinion, to grew larger. Besides, more hunters here can mean more furs and meat to sell for you, Uncle. Then, uncle, i'll work on your catapults, if they still need to get fixed.
Hadin smiles genuinely, and wait respectfully for his uncle's answer
Brom smiles proudly when he's called a savage, puffing up a little with pride, "I vondered if zhere vere open spots in zhe guard for any of zhese men ve found. Zhey vere essential in killing zhe bear and are strong varriors." He shrugs, "It sounds as zhough zhey have a plan viz Oleg, but I zhought I vould ask."
Oleg smiles at his nephew and nods, "Aye, help them lad. I've a feeling that I'm fighting against a current and am only losing the struggle. Might as well chip in and accept change. The defenses can wait, get these men settled. If you need anything, we are here to help as we can."
Meanwhile, Kesten listens to the barbarians broken speech and glowers slightly, "My men and I are more than enough to handle the rag-tags and unwashed lot of these parts, we need no assistance from the natives." He turns from Brom without so much as blink and returns to giving instructions to his men, still busy working on the defenses of the post.
Brom wants to spend time helping the new folks build their homes.
The rest of the time he'll earn capital using his survival skills (labor). I'd use intimidate but I don't know how that'd help me since I don't have anything or anyone to boss around.
I'd say using half the week to help the newcomers, and another week to earn capital.
Capital earned = 0.
Brom snorts at Kessen's dismissive attitude, "You are not a kind man." he states simply to the mans back. Unless the man physically stops him, Brom walks back toward his friends, shaking his head.
Looks like 8 Capital gained.