"Seven, plus the boss and his dogs. Look, you can all save your breath. I ain't tellin' you anythin'."
"Well, to be fair you have told us a thing or two," Joneth quips with an amused look on his face.
The bandit scowls. "Well, I ain't tellin' you any more. Cause I don't know nothin'."
Daniel moves to the trap door and peers down it.
Alexis quietly moves out of Daniels way.
Daniel sees a rough wooden ladder that leads down into a 15x15 cellar. It's completely dark, though not for his dark vision.
Anybody going down the ladder? Searching the tower? Checking other towers?
"What are we hoping to accomplish, here? Our initial destination is still waiting."
"I suppose it would not hurt making the area a little safer for travelers," Joneth offers. "Even so, if we are to do so, we should not take too much time. Our actual mission is hardly unimportant."
"What mission is you guys on? Maybe I can help, for a cut of the take, course."
Thanephos shakes his head, Our mission is far too important for us to share it with a bandit who just tried to kill us. I'm afraid that we cannot divulge that information to you.
"You. Quiet." Ty threatens the bandit with the butt of his spear.
Ty points at Daniel. "You want to herd all of these men to jail? Don't you need some sort of proof against these men to give to the watch? And is all of this important enough to delay us by a day or more?"
"Hey! I can be trustworthy. I didn't squeal on the boss, now, did I? I didn't tell you nothin' about his little ambush down there, did I?"
He pauses and blinks a few times. "And I ain't gonna, neither!"
So you're saying that is totally not an ambush down their not waiting to not kill us? he looks back towards the man speaking.
Tell me bandit. If we let you go. What would you do?
(checking the room below)
"If you lets me go, I just take off, maybe get a job, in the city. Sure thing no more try in' to rob folks."
Looking down, Daniel can see an opening leading south out of the room below. He looks closely for signs of movement, and spots none. Just as he's about to pull his head back, however, he notices an oddity of disturbed earth in alone leading into the opening. Tracing it back, he can see a knotted bit of rope around the bottom rung of the ladder.
"That's not the point. If we take them to Absalom, what do you think will happen?"
"I'll tell you what will happen: The watch will want proof that these men are bandits. Which we don't have. And the time we spend trying to prove ourselves is time that we're not headed to our destination.
"We should tie these men up so that they can't follow us. Tell them that we will come back very soon. If we find them here, we will kill them. We've already shown that they are no threat, and the next time we come we'll be better prepared."
Joneth sighs as the paladin and the warrior priest debate what is to be done with their captives. "Then let us tie them up and leave them here. But we still need to deal with their comrades and leader, even more so actually. Otherwise their friends are bound to check up on them sooner or later, yes? At which point we are back where we started with bandits in the towers."
Not at all.
not only do you harm us, but you would so blatantly lie. My friends are right it would take to much time. I will not condone the slaying of surrendered men, however, I doubt I could stop all of you.
Daniel will take the ladder in his hand and attempt to move it back and forth. Watching the bottom where the rope is knotted looking to see where the other end will lead to.
Lifting the ladder pulls the rope free of the dirt. It leads back into the passage that leads south.
After Daniel puts the ladder back down, he can feel resistance from the rope, as if the other end were briefly pulled taut.
"Is that a trap?"
hmmm.help me with this. Daniel whispers
He then pulls the ladder fiercely, pulling the rope and whatever else on it along with it.
There's a bit of resistance, and then the ladder pulls free, the rope dropping limp to the ground (though still leading off into the tunnel).
Daniel will pull up the ladder to where he can reach the rope, untie it, then set the ladder back down.
well then. Who's down first? I say we toss the bandit down there just to be sure.
Daniel looks to the tied up bandit.
"Didn't you hear anything that I just said? Engaging the bandits only delays us! We have a higher priority.
"The bandits will be here later for us to take care of. And if I'm wrong, even better."
and what about the people these bandits rob, kill, and rape until then! What if this quest takes months? They won't just suddenly stop and politely wait for our return. The town has known of the bandits for weeks. Did you not hear the warning given about them? No. They are an immediate threat to the good people of this area. I'll not return to hear that my negligence caused the death of even one life. You've seen and felt the strength with which they wield their blades. No. I'm going down, with or without you.
Daniel pulls out the mithirl symbol.
I feel its what he would want done. I do not feel as if a few hours will bring about the end of our mission.
Thanephos shakes his head in disapproval, Daniel, let's stop and discuss this first. Personally, I'm all for stopping the bandits, but we need a plan rather than just charging in. And for a paladin, you're awfully cavalier about tossing surrendered and disarmed prisoners into danger.
Did you not hear the warning given about them?
Genedair warned you that bandits were known to inhabit old siege towers. You weren't warned about these specific bandits, just bandits in general.
Looking to thaneos. I hadn't planned to charge in blindly. And I feel the only danger down their are more of him. he points towards the bandit.
perhaps. I was trained slightly different than most. But if it eases you I had no intention of throwing him in harms way. Deserving or not.
"So what is the plan, then? Take all the bandits down, stabilize them, and then -- assuming we do that without any of us dying -- we march them off to Absalom?
"Then we tell the watch that these are the bandits, the bandits tell the watch that they are not the bandits, we somehow sort that out, and THEN we go back to our original objective, hoping we don't encounter any more bandits along the way?"
if they surrender, we take them alive, we take them back to the city. If they do not, then they made their choice. If we fall prey to the blades of bandits, I very much doubt out ability to complete the quest anyway. It won't take but a few hours at most. As for the plan.. I was going to offer them the chance to surrender.
Ty breathes deep and exhales through his nose.
"Fine.
"I'll go first."
Ty lights a torch, climbs down the ladder, and gets his shield and spear ready. He does his best to avoid the rope.
Alexis sighs and with and irritated look on her face speak quietly.
I agree with Sir Daniel. Though should this happen again in our travels might I suggest we do our planning outside of hearing range.
Ty begins to descend the ladder. Once his face is level with the floor, he hears a wordless growl down below and manages to catch a glimpse of a large half-orc carrying a great axe charging the ladder.
He slams into the ladder, knocking it and Ty flying.
Ty thuds to the ground below, prone. The ladder falls down also. It's a 10 foot drop down for the rest of you.
Initiative!
Initiative Order: (Thanephos/Ty/Daniel), Half-orc, (Joneth/Athar/Alexis)
Round 1
Thanephos, Ty, and Daniel are up.
He will have cover. Also, there's only room for two archers (one on either side of the hole).
If next round, he advances to attack Ty, he will lose his cover.
Daniel will jump into basement like tunnel, but trips and lands on his rump.
With unnatural swiftness however he stands and and fires off two shots at the half-orc
now surrender!
Thanephos, groaning at the sound of Daniel thudding to the tunnel floor, prepares to fire as soon as the half-orc moves into sight.
HP: 25/34
AC: 15 (12 touch, 14 ff)
CMD: 19 (20 vs sunder)
F/R/W: +7/+4/+4
Effects: -2 AC from charging (1 round)
The half-orc curses as the paladin drops down and plunks an arrow into his shoulder.
As a result of the failed Acrobatics check, Daniel takes .
Ty stands in a hurry and brings his spear and shield to bear.
Ty sinks his spear into the half-orc's thigh before ripping the spearhead back out.
The half-orc raises his great axe and brings it down on:
...in a vicious slash as he tries to bury the blade right into Ty's spine.
Everybody else is up. He no longer has cover from the archers above.
HP: 19/34
AC: 15 (12 touch, 14 ff)
CMD: 19 (20 vs sunder)
F/R/W: +7/+4/+4
Effects: none