Bupkis creeps up the stairs, trying to be as quiet as he can.
As Bupkis reaches the top of the stairs he can see the back of two deforemed cratures. Both green and large, but one a skinny figure with a third arm and the other a bloated specimen with a too small head. They seem to joke about something and having a good time.
They bend over the battlements, take their bows off their back and start shooting at the tents below in the moat. From below an uproar is heard and javelins come flying back at the deformed uglies.
Bupkis figures that whatever these creatures are, they're not very nice. He takes out a small crossbow bolt and uses his mental powers to fling it at the nearest one.
The bolt Bupkis flings at the uglies, is deflected by their hard skin. The two return the favor by shooting at Bupdis.
Bupkis focuses aetheric energy and shoots again, then steps to the side to give his friends room to get into action.
Hearing the sounds of combat, Daseem growls, "Gorum Fend!" and then he strides towards the sounds of combat!
Menrozzar ascends the stairs, rushing towards the two creatures Bupkis attacked. As he does so, his hands warp into claws, his eyes become golden with reptilian-slitted pupils, and his skin shows a reddish scale pattern. He swings his hammer at the nearest of them.
Menrozzar misses and Ivan's short legs don't allow for getting into the fight. The corridor is too small for a full blown battle anyawys. The uglies drop their ranged weapons and attack with their ogre hooks.
Daseen and Menrozzar are blocking Bupkis' shot, so he uses his telekinesis to fly around the melee combatants, and lands on the wall behind the inbred enemies.
Grinning at the thrill of fighting something so ugly, Daseem shouts "Gorrrrum!" as he sweeps his holy sword at knee level hoping to cut deeply and trip it up!
Daseem cuts one of the uglies down, with one mighty swing of his sword. Even without the trip attempt it falls prone and will stay that way.
Menrozzar grits his teeth against the pain and brings his hammer around again, taking another strike at the ugly.
The fight is cut short by another heavy hit, this time from Menrozzar. The uglies are released from their misery.
Bupkis asks the others, "Anyone knows what these creatures are?"
Then he looks down at the tents that the deformed creatures where shooting at.
A deep trench resembling a dried scab runs around the perimeter of the fort. Several brightly dyed animal-skin tents flap vigorously in the harsh breeze blowing across the ditch’s dusty floor.
Bupkis points down at the tents, telling the others, "Creatures shoot arrows at tents for fun. One tent looks nicer than others — decorations look like shaman's tent."
Menrozzar nods, but doesn't look over the edge for fear that his human head will cause an issue. "Let's stay within the fort for now. We can clean up the tents around the outside when we're done. We can either head back down to the courtyard, or follow the wall around to that gatehouse in front. Which do we think?"
Looking further along the wall, you see some giant feet streched out in the way. With Bupkis sneaking close, he finds a hill giant sitting around the corner that is fast asleep. Just as Bupkis prepares to exploit this situation, the giant is woken by a rat dropping from the roof truss onto his face.
"<What the... >
Amira isn't sure if it'd be a good idea to sing out there. Who knows who else would hear that and show up to the fight. So she does an inspirational dance performance instead.
It looks more like slapstick, with her falling over her own feet, but it's still inspirational.
Bupkis, inspired by Amira's funny dance moves, shoots the giant with a crossbow bolt.
Bupkis lands a solid hit, making the giant scream out in anger. Which causes some ruckus in the next room from some of the other fort residents who might come over to join the party.
Ivan moves into the fray, to give his armor and shield another test. The giant looks different from those you encountered so far. He wears leather armor and wields a large great sword. And his hatred for dwarves is immediately apparent when Ivan comes into sight.
Ivan ignores the ringing in his ears, the hitting on his shield produces and goes for the kneecap, but the giant doesn't even flinch. But two more blows with the sword rain down on Ivan, and one gets through.
Daseem had been bitterly disappointed when the uglies where felled so easily so when they found a giant to fight he was almost rapturous! Shouting "Gorum witness!" he pushed past Bupkis and Ivan to engage the Giant. He swung Gorum's Thorn in an upwards strike, like a cricket bat, hoping to lop something off!
Menrozzar moves through the door uttering a wordless cry of rage as he swings his hammer over Ivan's head at the giant.
Daseem adds a bleeding gash to the giants arm, but this enemy will last longer for a more glorious fight. Menrozzar's plan to hit from the second row doesn't work out.
Bupkis rushes in and tries to punch the giant in the leg.
Amira keeps up her performance.
Bupkis moves in on the giant, taking a big hit. But Bupkis can hit too!
For Ivan it's hammer time again.
Menrozzar continues swinging his hammer, trying to take down the giant.
Daseem grinned when the giant didn't immediately die. Yet his smile died when his next swing was parried by the Giant, it was replaced by a grim determination to cut it down to size.
Menrozzar adds to the wounds of the giant, while Daseem fails to do so.
The uglies come over, but this room is to small for such a fight. The one up front attacks Bupkis.
As the fight spreads anyway, Amira changes her inspiring performance to song, to make sure also those who can't see her get the additional encouraging.
Enraged that his armor had been pierced, Ivan goes wild, slamming his hammer at whatever peice of the giant presents itself as a target.
Ivan in his rage leaves nothing for Daseem to honor Gorum. His mighty blow shatters half of the bones in the giants body, letting him sink to the ground like a sack potatoes.
Bupkis rolled with the giant's powerful blow, with his force shield absorbing most of it (he suspected he would have a colorful bruise later). When Ivan took down the giant, the little goblin turned his attention to the smaller newcomers. He wound up and tried to punch the one in front of him.
Turning his attentions to the newcomers, now the Giant was down, Menrozzar swing his hammer, then brought it around again on the backswing.
Daseem raised an eyebrow at the ferocity of Ivan's attacks, surely it was his duty to convert such a formidable combatant to the one true faith... Still there where uglies to deal with and Daseem brushed past Bupkis to engage the closest ugly. His sword was already describing an arc as he rushed forwards and he stopped suddenly transferring all his momentum to the blade which whistled toward's the ugly's midriff!
The fight continues with one ugly less, as Bupkis hits it badly and Daseem cuts it in half.
The next ugly staps up to fight Daseem. Now the others could further prove their battle prowess, if Daseem wouldn't stand in the door.
Elemental energy swirls around Bupkis, building up to a crescendo; he unleashes a mighty blast at the deformed creature fighting Daseem.
Daseem brought himself in position for more glorious fighting, but as the hill giant is dead, the fight is back to puny opponents. One of which sinks to the ground dead, after Bupkis shoots it from behind. Which would allow the last ugly to step up, but instead it flees.
Daseem shook a mailed fist at the retreating ugly, how dare it?! He proceeded forwards with caution, the cowardly creature might be leading him into a trap.