"I could use a bunch of spells, and I'm pretty sure we have potions... we could take the whole party in invisibly tomorrow." says Xanderghul. "I might even be able to make us all invisible in one go..."
"I'm sure the whole thing would fall apart if we assassinated the leader, you know?"
"I didn't see one. The town seems to be built around the mine. Additionally, their leader seems to have holed himself up in the mines along with some sort of beast, so they'll be well guarded."
Once it becomes apparent that Valaria has returned to the rest of the group undetected and unscathed, Ehren takes to the sky again and rejoins them.
The scouting team's job complete, they set off south to reunite with the main army. While they are still en transit, Isilme and Hinagiku with their group reunite with Ary's forces. It is miserably slow going through the snow, but eventually Ary is notified by her forward scouts of the Vilareth refugees. Likewise, Hinagiku, Isilme, and Commander Alkalson are hailed by Lieutenant Eltringham, informing them of the approaching crusader army.
Captain Alkalson dismounts from his station on one of the wagons to greet the Commander, saluting her.
"We are indebted to you for our lives, Commander Bishop, and I am honored to pledge my men to fight under your banner. My name is Captain Alkalson of Fort Vilareth. Chevalier Lleuad a'r Ser here tells me that you have set up base camp outside of Silvershore. We too have a number of noncombatants and supply wagons that we need to shelter from the cold and protect from harm. With your permission, we'd like to send them there with escort, leaving 75 of us to march with you northwards." He pauses. "Though, it is unlikely we'll make it much further in this weather, and you do not appear to have supplies... we have just enough to feed your men, if you'd prefer we not part with our wagons. Which would you prefer, Commander?"
I forgot to mention this while you were scouting, but you can approximate the enemy forces as numbering at least four-hundred strong, though their soldiers do not seem as well trained as the ones you fought at Silvershore - there were a number of younger cultists (aged 10-16) as well as more elderly ones - since Mantarin was abandoned, it stands to follow that they would not invest their best forces into capturing it. A third of that number are schir, however.
With the weather continuing its unrelenting assault on the group, Isilme begins to wonder if trudging all the way to the mines at the moment is a good plan. "Ary... Perhaps we should consider setting camp here tonight hoping the weather clears some. We can make use of the supplies that Commander Alkalson has for now, then send off the wagons and their escort tomorrow to town."
"Buttoning down may be wise." Ary responds. "You're more than welcome to march with us. We'll send out some of the Rangers to help with food supplies."
Captain Alkalson nods. "Yes, Commander." He and his men set to work in helping set up camp. Ser Ilivan and his rangers assist with hunting with food - in the barren north, there isn't much, but after a few hours they come back with some dead caribou.
Two additional hours pass before the scouting team - Ehren, Anevia, Valaria, Xanderghul, and Ayavah, find the army. Ehren spots the army's encampment from far away and circles back to help lead the others to it.
"Little fox," Irabeth says happily as they come into sight, striding forward to embrace her wife.
"S-s-s-s-s-o c-c-c-cold," shivers Anevia, visibly frostbitten.
"Come, sit down, we'll build you a nest." Irabeth guides her to sit on a bed of furs, detaching her own cape so that she can wrap it around her wife. As she works to warm Anevia up, she glances up at the other scouts. "Well? What did you find?"
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"There's a significant cultist presence in the town," Val reports dutifully. "Somewhere in the realm of four hundred, but many of them are children or elderly and significantly less combat capable. However, this is somewhat off set by a significant number of schir, perhaps a third of their number. They also have packs of howlers and some beast they've taken to calling Snil-Snil supporting their guards. I didn't have a chance to get a look at it, so I don't know exactly what we're dealing with. The fortifications around the town are still present and manned, but they're run down and damaged so they're not up to full effectiveness. They seem to be unaware that their mission to hit Silvershore has failed, as they're still waiting for the commander to return with captives to use as slaves. That should give us at least some advantage of surprise. It has also kept their mining operation from progressing too far yet, as they've been holding out until they could get slaves to do the hard work for them. The commander is holed up in the mines with the beast to wait for the forces sent to Silvershore to return and letting others handle day to day operations, so they're likely extremely well guarded."
With the army hunkering down for the night, she spends some time writing in her journal and warming up from the trip. "I was not expecting it to be quite so brutally cold out there, Külə. Did it get to you at all?" she asks, sitting down next to the unicorn in one of the makeshift shelters near a fire.
When the scouting team returns, she gets up to go, encouraging her companion to come along. She listens to Valaria's explanation of the situation, considering what it means for their chances.
"Perhaps then we can make use of their expectations and approach with illusions to allow us to close to within fighting range. If we could disguise our infantry to appear as cultists until up close, that would be ideal," she says, thinking back to the supplies they'd captured from the various battles they had waged that day. A thought dawns on her at that point, "In fact, with Külə, everything he knows, and a good disguise, we can present the commander they are expecting the arrival of. Illusions can provide the slaves needed along with other important touches. If we can retrieve some of the cloaks and such we captured in the battles of Silvershore, we can disguise our infantry such that we should be able to get inside their defenses before they are alerted to our subterfuge. The cavalry can hang back and wait for our call to join the fray as their forces try to surround us, leaving their flanks vulnerable."
She pauses for a moment, thinking more on the subject. "We would, however, need to get a small group and a wagon or two to try to make a trip to Silvershore to retrieve the cloaks and other items this evening so we would have them to distribute before we begin our march northward."
After hours spent as a bird, unable to speak, Ehren seems glad to be human and on his feet again. He smiles slightly when it becomes apparent that Isilme's plan is turning to trickery yet again, but frowns as he mulls over the details.
"I assume that you would not have any difficulty posing as the commander," Ehren remarks, while giving Külə a look of evident concern. He deeply pitied the poor creature's plight, and had no doubts about his hatred toward the cultists, but he still did not trust the unicorn completely.
He then looks to the sky, anticipating whether the weather conditions would further complicate their march, or the retrieval of the supplies needed for the plan.
To effectively pose as a cultist army, you would need to leave your horses behind because the cultists you have fought have not ridden on horses. They also don't use heavy shields, so those would need to be left behind as well.
The cultist armies that you have observed do not march in as an orderly fashion as crusaders - they do not march in unison nor do they keep to ordered columns, preferring to travel as formless masses as they move.
Wind speeds are severe (30 to 50 mph) and visibility is cut by three-quarters. The storm will last for hours, starting early in the morning, imposing a –8 penalty on Perception checks. Storms make ranged weapon attacks impossible, except for those using siege weapons, which have a –4 penalty on attack rolls. They automatically extinguish candles, torches, and similar unprotected flames. They cause protected flames, such as those of lanterns, to dance wildly and have a 50% chance to extinguish these lights.
During the snowstorm windchill will cause the temperatures to reach -26°F, meaning survival checks will need to be made every minute. It is not realistic to travel in these temperatures, while those with endure elements will be safe, the rest of the army will need to hunker down to avoid death to hypothermia.
For the rest of the day, the winds are severe, checking small creatures and blowing away tiny ones, and snow will continue to fall, making travel slow. It will be extremely cold, 2° F, but still bearable (1 survival check per hour).
After a brutal 2 days it will warm up to 18°F, which is still 1 check/hr, but positively balmy compared to the previous two. The storms should pass, leaving inches of snow on the ground total from the two days of accumulation. Wind speed will be moderate, endangering torches and the like, but not much else.
With a quick prayer to Irora, Hinagiku garners blue and white wisps of positive energy to heal Isilme.
”… before travelling over the crown of the world, I had no idea how cold could be treacherous… though, we are blessed to have so many clerics with us, without them, frostbite can leave long lasting wounds.” she says, trying to empathize with her companion.
Only once some red comes back to the azata’s cheek does she lead her horse away, staying with Ser Ilivan most of the way, trying her best to help lead the refugees toward their own forces.
Isilme accompanies captain Alkalson when he dismounts to meet with Ary, she wanted to give her own report. However, with the topic of camping and supplies coming up, she decides to speak up, hoping that even her uninformed words might help Ary make a decision.
”Ary, if I may, sending people away might not be so wise, they might not make it to Silvershore. In truth, it all depends on the weather…. If it gets much worse, it might even be wiser for the whole army to return to Silvershore. Also, during our mission, we found no evidence of people tracking the soldiers from Vilareth ford. So, our flank is probably safe.”
Külə lashes his tail agitatedly. "I am in constant suffering - the cold matters not in comparison." After a moment though, the bad memories seem to pass and his voice softens somewhat. "Though, as a unicorn, I am gifted with some healing abilities. If you need me to help ease your pain, you need only ask, Isilme."
Külə listens to Isilme's plan with interest - though the only sign of this are his ears cocked in her direction, as his eyes are closed and his face tilted away.
"If you're going to imitate Hormond, you'll need some people to play as his consorts... he goes nowhere without his witch-wives. Their adoration of him was.... disturbing."
"There is definitely a storm coming," Ehren reports grimly, looking back down from the sky. "It will hit us tomorrow morning, and will probably last for a few hours. Having the army march then would be next to impossible. If we want those supplies, I imagine that someone would have to be sent out immediately."
The druid looks over at Hinagiku and shakes his head. "We should be fine, as long we hunker down during the storm. That aside, I don't think we can afford to backtrack at this point."
"Thank you, Külə, I appreciate the offer of healing," she says.
"Good Point Külə. We will need to think on it and prepare accordingly."
Turning to Ehren and Hinagiku, she continues. "The weather is a serious problem, for sure. We definitely need to hunker down this evening."
"It might not be impossible, however, to take advantage of this storm" Isilme says. "We may very well have enough casters to prepare endure elements for everyone in the army. That allows us to ignore the cold. Then, by making use of Ehren's ability to change into an elemental, a fire elemental might be able to clear our army a path enough to march to the enemy base. Even the tieflings would be hard pressed to fight in these conditions, and any non-tiefling cultists would be completely incapable of meeting us on the battlefield at that point. It would also make illusions more effective, since visibility would be exceedingly poor, allowing us to perhaps skip getting the supplies from Silvershore, although it still might be worthwhile to do so."
Hinagiku follows Ehren's gaze toward the icy cloud, staring at them for a few second, then turns her attention back to the conversation to join Isilme in acknowledging Ehren's.
"The storm would be a great advantage miss Isilme... but unwise, if we fail, we will be stranded far form Silvershore with no food..."
"If we take the town, it should significantly increase our stores. Since this is their base, they must be storing a significant amount of food and supplies here." Val bites her lip. "But... if we took the time to send for our supplies, we could also bring the artillery up. While the walls are already damaged, the catapults could be useful in breaching the town. Though I don't know much about sieges, so perhaps it wouldn't be worth the effort. It's really a matter of deciding if we believe we'll benefit more from the storm's cover or from having the resources we left behind at our disposal."
Xanderghul pipes up during the planning session, mentioning a few important things. "For once, I actually agree with Isilme. I think that utilizing endure elements to make our soldiers much more comfortable is smart, especially if we're assuming that our enemies don't have the same advantage. I can prepare it additional times tomorrow as well, keeping our..." he eyes Isilme and Anevia, "... less enduring members comfortable and warm."
"However, I don't think that we need to go back for disguises in order to infiltrate the town. Using invisibility and crowd-control magic can give our forces the time that they need to close to an appropriate range. I can render several of our party members invisible, and we can sneak into the town. From there, we can block off any apparent paths to the town with control spells and ourselves, creating an opportunity for our army to get close."
"Isilme, can I have your help creating shelter for the night? It seems like we're staying here, and the comfort of our command staff takes some precedence. If we're fatigued from frostbite first thing in the morning, that won't bode well for our day overall."
"I agree that we do not need to retrieve the cultist gear from Silvershore if we are going to make use of the storm. The low visibility will make it easy to use illusions to make it difficult to figure out that we are crusaders until the last moment. We should not find it terribly difficult to enter the town if the coming storm is as bad as Ehren says it will be, and they will be unprepared to deal with us when only the schir will really be able to function outdoors. Given the weather, I do not believe siege will be terribly effective, in terms of difficulty moving and setting up, as well as in targeting although Aron will know for certain."
"Also, a group of us should definitely head into the mines once the battle begins to try to take out their leader before he can head out to join the battle as well."
Turning to Hinagiku, she says "We can take some of the supplies with us on the trip, an extra two days rations per soldier would be ideal, if we have enough supplies here to do so."
"I can certainly help preparing the shelters, Xanderghul. That is an excellent idea," she adds.
"I've never taken the form of fire before, but that should not be an issue," Ehren decides after a moment of thought. The other three elements had been easy enough. "I don't see any reason why your plan wouldn't work. It would certainly get us there faster. However, preparing so many endure elements spells will cut into the clerics' healing capabilities. We will need to be prepared for that, once the battle is over and done with."
In regards to entering the mines, Ehren hesitantly nods in agreement. "Eliminating the commander - or at least preventing him from reaching his forces - seems ideal. If we do venture into the mines however... we should take care. There might well be other threats in there, besides what we are expecting."
Anevia grins crookedly at Xanderghul. "Hey! I heard that. .... but..... all right. I'll admit I'm what those Sarkorians call a southerner. This weather is really getting to me!"
Irabeth nods. "I would expect the cultist armies to have brought food to Mantarin if they have a sizeable tiefling offense sequestered there. I like the sounds of this plan. Very good, yet again, Chevalier Isilme."
After some planning the heroes pull the captains aside to inform them that all able-bodied men and women need to be preparing Endure Elements tomorrow to brave a nasty snowstorm. Afterwards they prepare to hunker down for the night - Xanderghul building illusionary structures made of shadowy webs to shelter the core personnel.
14 Lamashan 4713
After the excitement of last night's babau attack, the night proceeds relatively quietly. The army goes to sleep early to give them enough time to dismantle their equipment before the storm hits. They wake up before the sun rises to meditate and prepare to march... and by the time they are ready to get moving, the promised snowstorm has hit in earnest. The heroes are surrounded with blinding white, barely able to see anything in front of them, though abjuration magic keeps them warm even in the face of blistering cold 40 mph winds.
Ehren assumes the form of a fire elemental to march the army forwards towards Mantarin. He trudges through the snow at the head of the army causing the snow around him to erupt into clouds of steam. The army follows behind in his path, funneled into a long, narrow line of soldiers. The rangers are uneasy - their dependence on Ehren to move makes it impossible to send a forward scout - they feel blind.
The army marches forward with a combined force of over 250 soldiers. A march that would have taken all day otherwise through the snow is cut to only a few hours, thanks to Ehren. Eventually they reach the environs - through the white haze they can see the peaks of the Rimethirst Mountains.
Ser Ilivan calls out to the heroes above the howling winds. "Commander! We're maybe a good twenty minutes away from Mantarin! How should we proceed?"
"I don't think the storms are going to let up anytime soon, either." Ary responds, "And worse, it's not going to warm back up. Is there a reason we can't just use Xander's magic to disguise our approach?"
"And... me too, Anevia. This body isn't nearly as hardy as my old one was." she huffs. She'd been quiet as she recovered from the bitter chill. "We should make it look as though their conjurer summoned Ehren, however, if we utilize him to melt the snow. Maybe."
* * *
Ary does what she can to assuage the rangers - the fact that they can't see is made up for by the fact the storm won't allow the enemy to see anything, either.
"I think we should spread the men out more, and not into lines. We need to tether up the majority of our horses, as well. I'm sure they'd expect some captured horses, so our cavalry need not entirely dismount. They've also not used many large shields at all, so unless we have a way to cover all of that up, we'd need to leave teh shields behind."
Xanderghul trudges along with the rest of the army, up front with Ary and company. "It doesn't seem like we'll have it much easier for the rest of the winter." says Xanderghul. "We'll want to finish this campaign soon, I think, or plan on utilizing fire and endure elements for the long run."
"As for disguising the army... I know a few figments, but few phantasms or glamers, which is what we need if we want to change the appearance of things that already exist. A veil spell is a powerful example of this, that allows the disguising of any number of men and women... but I'm not quite capable of such a spell." Xanderghul smiles and nods at Ary. "It's only a matter of time, though. Next time we march on a city, I'll have mastered it."
"A glamer would be quite helpful, without a doubt, but illusions of their forces should be enough to get them to open the gates and allow us to rush in. We should break up the forces into small squads paired up with a cleric. The fight will be hectic, and visibility will be terrible. We will want the groups to be able to have some level of independence as it will be difficult for the healers to triage more than what they can personally see," she says as Xanderghul and Ary as they move along.
"Once we convince them to open the door, the initial groups goal will be to march in and secure the gate so the rest of the forces can funnel in. Then we push forward into the camp and clear it. We can use my message spell along with Ayavah and Xanderghul's if they have access to it to help keep the captains in contact with Ary and Irabeth, allowing us to have an idea of where we need to push during the battle, an advantage the cultists will likely lack."
While Isilme and Xanderghul discuss magic, Hinagiku takes out a small book, with introduction to magic written on its side, and calmly looks through it to find the definitions of glamer,figments, and phantasms. When they finally stops, she brings anothe rpoint.
"It would be wise to know better what we are up against, draw a map, or send someone to scout?"
As Ehren had anticipated, wild shaping into a fire elemental was easy. It was just a matter of finding the balance between the tranquil fluidity of water and the wild, boundless nature of air. The small, fiery form could not even pass for humanoid, being little more than a fireball with stubby arms and legs, and a barely discernible visage. Perhaps it would not be so bad if it wasn't for the massive snowstorm raging around them - if it were not for his endure elements spell, the snow might just snuff him out completely. Ehren trudges through the snow awkwardly, unable to see anything between the storm and clouds of steam rising up all around him. It is only when he hears Ser Ilivan that he finally comes to a halt.
"Scouting is not feasible in this weather," Ehren says, his voice accompanied by a low roar of flame. Without an independent head to shake, his entire body shifts side to side. "Even if someone can move through this snow, there just isn't enough visibility. I can't fly through this, either."
"So Xanderghul will summon an illusory army of cultists, deep enough in depth that any guards at the gate will have difficulty seeing the end of the illusory forces. Included among the illusions must be the commander's witch-wives. Interspersed among them will be our first two groups, along with us. We will talk our way in, and move in slowly but steadily. Val, Hinagiku, Ary and Ehren will move to quickly silence the gate guards as we file in. We will continue to maintain the illusion for as long as possible. Once the alarm is raised, or once we have enough forces in to begin clearing the town, we will form a perimeter and the army will work its way deeper into the town. Ayavah and I will stay with Irabeth to aid in commanding the troops. The rest of the group will continue on to the mine in the chaos to intercept the commander if he comes out to join the battle."
"Do you mind if I borrow your hat of disguise again Xanderghul? I will need it since we do not have the commander's plate available at the moment."
5 minutes out Xanderghul creates the illusion of the army. The army consists the commander's witch-wives along with a horde of cultists like we fought in Silvershore during the last battle.
Amongst them will be two squads of 25 paladins hiding under their cloaks with their shields hidden beneath their cloaks on their backs. Along with them will be 10 clerics grouped up so each cleric can cover 5 paladins. These are the vanguard of our forces. The rest of the army will be arranged to file in infantry first, with one cleric/healer per 15 infantry/cavalry. Cavalry can dismount/leave horses behind or bring them depending on what the cavalry commanders feel is best.
Isilme will ride out front on Kule, disguised as the commander, and the rest of the group will hide in the front group. Ehren will hang back 20-30', close enough to be seen burning, but not close enough that they can make out what he looks like. Isilme will refer to him as the magma ooze, which should be believable at a distance.
The group will approach to within 75' with Ehren's help, then he will fall back. Isilme and Kule will convince them to open the gates, and then the group will begin to march in calmly. Hinagiku and Val (and whomever else wishes to go) will dispatch the gate guards to prevent them from raising alarm and closing the gate. The vanguard will secure the entry area, and Xanderghul will maintain the illusion until the alarm is raised.
Once the forces are in, the clerics will redistribute to have a ratio of 1 cleric per 10 units. Ayavah will link 6 captains and Irabeth via message and stay near Irabeth. Isilme will link Hinagiku, Val, Ary and 4 more captains and stay near Irabeth as well.
The forces will push into town once we control the entry and the alarm has been raised, or we have over 100 infantry inside. Once that has happened, the party will attempt to make a break for the mines to intercept the enemy commander.
Note: If Ary wants to command the battle, substitute Ary for Irabeth. Right now I'm assuming she'll help kill the enemy commander.
"Not at all," responds Xanderghul, taking it off and handing it over. It's a simple circlet, and quite light. "We're gonna have to fight quite a few cultists with not very many men at the beginning, you know, and I cannot use phantasmal control effects as long as I maintain the illusion."
"I believe I can make that work. It's a pity we don't have more time to put together disguises, but we'll work with what we have."
Ehren's fiery body bobs up and down. "I'll see what I can do."
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"Understood miss Isilme, I will be among the first people to follow you in." responds Hinagiku with a nod. Then, her kitsune nature amused by the idea of masquerading as a cultist, the monk feels like reverting to her vulpine shape. As she does, a small smile appearing on her lips without her notice.
"Am... I the only one with misgivings about killing the elderly and the young? I get that they chose their side and all that, but... we're going into the closest thing they have to a village, to target their noncombatants who were exclusively left out of the fights because they were too old and too young. I agree that we need to take this place... but is there anything we can do to try to limit casualties as much as possible? I don't want to lose men... but I know my morale will take a hit killing kids and grandmothers..." Ary says with clear concern as she wrings her hands.
"Does anyone have issue with me requesting the soldiers use nonlethal methods where possible?"
"I'm not thrilled to fight elderly and children, but many of them will be fighting regardless of their actual ability. When I slipped inside to get a feel for the place, I overheard a boy arguing with his father because he'd been assigned to care for their beasts rather than being allowed to fight with the rest of them, so don't expect them to act like non-combatants. We can try to take an many prisoners as possible rather than killing them. If I recall, Ehren and Xan have plenty of magic tricks that can disable large groups of enemies without killing them."
"We are going into a situation where our forces may be outnumbered two or three to one. We are counting on the weather to keep the humanoid cultists out of combat, which will play to our advantage, but limiting our troops ability to defend themselves in a situation where visibility and communications will be hampered could leave us with enemies active behind our lines. If it becomes clear our forces are fighting to subdue, cultists may surrender only to immediately take advantage of the situation. We saw this in Silvershore where they started fighting again the moment they thought they might be able to win. In Silvershore we were able to get help quickly and get things under control. Here we will not have that luxury, and crusaders could die because of it. The safety of our forces must come first here, and that means that we need to trust the judgement of the captains and soldiers who are fighting the battle."
Irabeth nods. "I agree with Isilme. Regardless of their age, they'll fight us to do the death - we cannot afford to do anything less but fight on their terms. And if we lose, many innocents will die if they manage to summon those abyssal drakes."
Ayavah rolls her eyes. "Doesn't that make you no worse than the cultists? Eesh. I'm with Ary... the thought of killing young ones who can't even fully grasp what they're doing makes my skin crawl."
Anevia wrinkles her nose and shudders - though this time, not from the cold. "Hey, I don't like the idea of it either, but there's a lot of them and not as much of us. For what it's worth, I think the men will understand."
Xanderghul hums and haws. "I think those who are already equipped for mercy should do so, and people who are not should not. I agree with Irabeth and Isilme. There are too many circumstances in which a warrior is compromising himself by attempting to subdue his enemy rather than kill him, and would die or become seriously injured because of it."
"If you like, I could try to blind, disable, or otherwise debilitate quote-unquote 'noncombatants', but... if there's three guys coming at me with swords and one of them happens to be particularly young, well... I'm not exactly going to hold back."
Isilme sighs and looks at Ayavah. Her naivete was grating, especially since she had had ample opportunity to see that the cultists were not just merely people going about their own business who were being abused by crusaders. "We are not talking about a town of innocent villagers who happen to have been occupied by demons and are tentatively supporting them, nor are discussing sneaking in in the dead of night and slaughtering one and all. The demons and cultists, however would not think twice about doing same to us. In fact, one attempted to do so the other evening, and if Külə had not woken me, I would likely be dead now. Remember that the demons and cultists here are actively seeking to unleash forces that will cause the deaths of many innocents and make it easier for them to commit all their forces to finishing off Nerosyan and the rest of the crusaders."
Before Ayavah can get a word in edgewise, she continues pressing the issue, making it clear that this false equivalence between the two sides needs to stop. "To desire to provide a chance at redemption for those who have not had such a choice in their lives is an admirable goal. But never forget that while they may have had only terrible choices in their lives, it was still their choice to be here. They are there because they are willing to burn down the world for a chance to be equal to or superior to those they feel oppressed them. At the very best they made that choice because they know nothing else, but they still made that choice."
"We, on the other hand, are here because the demons and cultists have waged a century long campaign whose goal is to leave this world a smoldering ruin as cursed as the wound itself. Many more are counting on our success here than the handful of cultists that might be redeemed. We will do what we can to save those who can be saved, but we are an army fighting a war against demons and their adherents--a war the demons started no less--not a band of priests preaching redemption to poor misguided souls."
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Xanderghul nods rigorously. "Let me be the first to tell you... you don't want to live in a world that's governed by demons. The Crusaders are doing you and everyone else a solid by keeping them at bay."
"The people who live here on the Material Plane may have it rough sometimes - I'm not disputing that humans sure do like to be racist - but a lot of these tieflings don't even really know how good they've got it. To be so misguided as to actually think that a demon isn't just waiting for the first opportunity to wreck and defile you and everything you care about is to be dangerously stupid."
Xanderghul waves his hand vaguely at Ayavah. "Present company excluded, of course. Your faith is different. Probably. You believe your goddess isn't even really a demon."
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"Do not be so quick to dismiss them as being mere children. The moment they chose to fight for a cause, whether out of fear or devotion, they became men and women," Ehren asserts, glad that his current form afforded him the power of speech; this was not a matter he could stay quiet about. "That has been the case from the very beginning, on both sides of the war.
"If we do not return the enemy's intent to kill in kind, then we stand to lose everything. Mercy has its place, but if that happens, then nobody will be saved."
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Ary raises a hand as Isilme launches into her tirade... and then continues talking down to Ayavah, causing Ary to rub her temple before continuing. "It isn't that simple. We can't do as they do and expect it to be okay because we're right. But by that same token, one bad act will not make us as bad as the demons and their cultists. But we must absolutely strive to not allow this to become the norm."
She pauses. "I'd like it if the soldiers were informed to use their own discretion with each situation. We're outnumbered, and they are weak, but as has been said... they're not all innocent."
The faint, and unconscious, smile Hinagiku displayed in her secret anticipation to deceive cultist quickly melts away when Ary brings up the young and old. The age of the enemy did not bother her much, she never seek to slay sentient being other than onis, age did not matter. However, she was now given the chance to vote to force the crusaders to stay their hand, potentially saving many of their enemies lives. The choice was hard for it would not mean much if their troops perished from acts of goodwill.
"... it is not the same as what the cultists would do. We are not here to burn and pillage a village. We are here to make sure that it does not become and enemy outpost...." Hinagiku starts, her brow slightly furrowed as she tries to anticipate how the battle will take place, and who they will be fighting. "They might be weak... weaker with the cold. I can imagine that some will even prefer to stay inside houses to come out to fight us. What will we do then will distinguish us from them... we can leave those barricaded houses alone, give mercy to those within, and fight only the ones she stand against us. And if they do all come out to fight, we only need to draw the battle longer, fight on the defensive... it might seem cruel, but if the cold weakens them, then we can ask for their surrender. And if many of them are young, than will give in more quickly."
Ayavah crosses her arms and sighs. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Xanderghul."
Külə fidgets, his tail twitching back and forth as he listens to the discussion. "Right, wrong, hmph. It's this kind of back-and-forth that got the world into this mess to begin with. These... things... deserve no mercy."
Irabeth considers Hinagiku's input for a moment, then responds, "But if they surrender, even then, how will we handle so many prisoners? We don't have the resources to keep them all bound, nor the men to keep them in line and march on Drezen."
Sosiel taps his glaive on the snow, then says softly, "I would never kill a man who is trying to surrender to me... and I doubt our soldiers would either. With the exception of some of our present company," he side-eyes Külə for a moment before continuing, "...Our men and women are good and godly, and not out for blood. I suppose we'd have to handle the logistics of such a thing afterwards, though...I'm sorry I don't have all the answers."
Külə snorts, his head turned away. "If the cultists surrendered, it would only be with the goal of stabbing us all in the back at the soonest opportunity. Your intention is to take back Citadel Drezen, yes? Even if they feigned being on your side, they would defect back to the enemy as soon as they got a chance to. No. Better to simply never give them the option." He scoffs. "Though, it's your troops' lives, of course."
Val shoots Xan a look, but doesn't respond to his quip. At this point, she's far to tired of his bullsh*t to bother justifying him with a response. Instead, she addresses Hinagiku's plan. "I hate to say it, but many of them are tieflings. The cold is fierce, but hardly crippling to someone who has the blood of the Abyss flowing through them. The weather gives us a tactical advantage, but expecting it to provoke them to surrender may be too hopeful. Additionally, they have a significant number of demons among them. Unless we manage to eliminate or drive away all of them, I doubt they'll willingly give up. And knowing demons, they'll let their servants take the brunt of the attack and come at us once their cultists have softened us up."
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"The cold of the north isn't to be underestimated. Even the demon-blooded would be hard-pressed to resist it for long," Ehren replies, wisps of steam still curling off his body from the falling snow. A soft sound leaves his mouth, sounding like a candle's flame blowing in the wind - an unmistakable sigh. "Regardless of how we act, the storm will undoubtedly claim lives. Focus on the demons and hope that the rest are wise enough to surrender. But if they are not, then nobody should hesitate to do what must be done."
Chevalier Irabeth salutes. "Understood. It will take but a moment to organize our forces, then we should be ready to march."
Ayavah and Isilme work together to set up a network of message, then Isilme uses Xanderghul's hat of disguise to take on the appearance of Commander Hormond. She climbs onto Külə's back in front of a vanguard of sixty soldiers - 50 paladins and 10 clerics - partially disguised to conceal their tabards and shields.
Five minutes out, Xanderghul creates an illusion, fleshing out the horde of cultists, and adding the Commander's loyal witch-wives. 75' out, Ehren and the rest of the army fall back, difficult to see through the blinding snow.
The gates of town are a large, double gate, made of wood and reinforced with a single horizontal plank of wood and iron. They are flanked on either side with a single watch-tower, both of which are clearly manned - movement and light can be seen within, though the winds are too strong for the exterior torches to be lit.
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Before the group sets out, Xanderghul finds Ayavah. Pulling out one of the scrolls of silent image, he hands it to her. "You should know how to use one of these," he says. "I can't maintain two illusions at once, or I would do it myself... but I thought it might be useful to have someone else with the capability of creating a figment if necessary. I'm worried about the Crusaders being spotted before we get in too close, so I want you to use this when we get invited in. Use it to call up the illusion of a particularly thick flurry of slow, and use it to cover up the vanguard of soldiers, if you would. If that doesn't work, well... I'll leave it up to you. Illusions are useful, especially for this kind of task. Maybe surround the watchtowers, or save it for an emergency retreat or something."
Xanderghul marches along with the rest of the army, driking one of the potions they'd claimed from the battle of Silvershore and casting a couple of spells on himself before they do their final preparation. Imbuing himself with the daring of a hero, and then vanishing from sight, Xanderghul is replaced by a babbling gaggle of dozens of tieflings, with a frightening variety of abyssal deformations. Their noses are blue with the cold, they wrap ratty cloaks around themselves, and they shiver. The air fills with the chattering of teeth and the quiet, timid susurrus of a lot of people who are miserably cold but who don't want to talk loudly for fear of angering their Commander.
A number of veiled and bent woman appear near disguised Isilme. As one upon appearing, they all groan, "Oh Isilme! Just like that!" Xanderghul cackles invisibly and then the witch-wives move to stand near or around Isilme. About ten illusory cultists stand near the back of the crowd of men and women, their hands on the handles for a chain that binds thirty Kellids, big strong men with thick brown hair and beards. The kellids are wearing very little, and their bare arms are cracked and grey with frostbite. "My ancestors!" cries one. One of the tieflings hisses, "Shut it!" and pulls the illusory Kellids forward. The whole group lurches slowly, and with little organization, down the path that Ehren creates, with Isilme at the lead.
Xanderghul himself lurks within the crowd, invisible but close enough to see and, if need be, help out with any altercations that may take place. He pulls his robes close, focuses on his illusion, and trudges the very last leg towards the fort, standing back and letting Isilme try to talk their way into the base. The tieflings quietly bicker between themselves about they they let Commander Hormond bully them into trudging this far in the terrible storm, and how cold and miserable they are.
As they begin their final approach, Isilme takes a moment to cast heroism upon Valaria, drawing upon the spark of divine power within her to enhance it with her runic magic. "That should help with disabling the guards manning the doors as quickly as possible," she says as she dons her disguise and hops up atop Külə.
She does her best to stifle a laugh at Xanderghul's absurd illusions and turns and gives him a serious look. "Just be sure not to do that at the gate," she says as she pats Külə on the neck, causing him to begin moving. With her illusion up, she focuses on her role, letting herself slip into the trance she often used to aid her recollection of things past to help her better control her posture and expressions. "My apologies in advance for using the horrible terms the commander once referred to you by, Külə. Hopefully it will be the last time you ever hear such things directed at you," she says earnestly to the unicorn.
As they ride forward, talks to Külə, working on her impersonation of the commander and getting any last minute pointers on impersonating the commander.
Approaching the gates, she slumps back some, mimicking the corpulent commander's pose from the battle. She occasionally looks about at the witch-wives, who flank her on either side. Her face carries the self-satisfied look of one who had achieved their goals, and who'd had their need for violence and torment sated recently.
When they finally reach the gates, Isilme speaks up loudly so the gatekeepers can hear, sounding irritated that she even needs to make an effort to get the gates opened. "Maggot, tell me... Are we waiting on these imbeciles to open the gate?" she says disdainfully down to Külə. She waits a moment to allow him to answer before turning her gaze up to the gatekeepers. "Well?" she says looking up at the guards. "If these slaves die of exposure, I will make sure you take their place after you have had an opportunity to spend the rest of the day with Maggot here!" she shouts at the cultists. "... or perhaps better my pet?" she adds, an evil grin crossing her face.