What kind of rat pigs are these creature anyway? And have you seen this whip?! No such creature could make such a beautiful, supple leather as this. Who did they take it from, so many question eh ? Do either if you have any experience with a whip ? unfortunately I do not. Louis offers the whip to his comrades I believe if we were to follow the path back to the creatures came from that might bring forth zee answers we seek Louis also gives full disclosure of everything he found to his comrades... coin goes to group treasury
It takes the tracker turned rogue about an hour and a half of silent and methodical tracking to follow the tracks to a sparsely covered clearing surrounding a pond. He is able to silently make his way behind a thicket and have a look about the area. He half turns in his crouched position and holds a finger to his mouth and motions to Louis and Markas to move low to the ground.
With a raised eyebrow and a nod, Louis holds up four fingers and then makes a cutting motion across his neck.
Keeping low to the ground and as quiet as possible Markas surveys as far as the eye can see.
Quietly Louis draws his sword readies his shield. With a smile he looks at Markas and Latovios and raises his eyebrows as if to say "Ready?" Surprisingly the happy warrior can be extremely silent.
Latovious moves next to Louis and whispers, "Give me time to flank the right side, if all goes well you then draw them to the left with Markas covering you with his sling. If it all goes to hell and they spot me I'll lead them back to you. Be ready either way!" The rogue then takes off with his daggers still sheathed, perhaps he didn't want to chance the sunlight reflecting off of a blade?
While the rogue makes a bit of noise it goes unnoticed by the kobolds. There is not much to hide behind where Latovious has moved to and if he would try to stay there for any period of time he will be surely spotted.
Louis listens to Latovios plan, with a smile and a wink he says in a whisper, It is a good plan my friend, rest assured that Louis Mon roi... ... *! But he iz gone, no? a bit surprised that Latovios took off so quickly Louis readies for attack, he shares the plan with Markus, he adds cover me! [ooc] I believe that Louis can make it to a spot next to the pond between the small bush and the small tree, or 4 squares to the right (east), then 6 squares forward (north) as he hurries to position he shouts out OH HO HO! Prepare for zee trouble and make it double! To protect zee world from zee devastation! And to protect all people within our nation! To denounce the evils of your ways! Ho Ho! And to earn zee approval from the stars above... It iz I... Louis Mon roi de Dunis ready to blast you with zee speed of my blade! Surrender now, or prepare to fight! ha ha HA! iz right !
En Garde!
Louis waves his sword! He is very assured his challenge has scared the puny Ratman have to death!
Louis's sprint does not go unnoticed by the kobolds, and they begin to yip in their high pitched language while gathering up weapons and preparing for a fight.
Markas heeds the Thief's plan drawing out his Sling. Moving to a closer position while staying hidden by the bushes the Cleric will move to the square 6 squares to the north of his current position. It is there he awaits the enemy.
K1, who is a horribly unclean and likely disease infested member of his species, hobbles on a bad hip over 10' to it's left and shakily fires a crudely made arrow at Louis.
Which misses wide badly.
K3 tries to make its way through the spooked cows towards Louis and is stopped short.
K5 and K6 immediately let go of their wheelbarrows causing each of them to immediately tip over (dex check to avoid handles and contents holding them up) and spill their waste and water contents.
The pair avoid the mess they have made and encounter the cows holding up their comrades progress.
Louis makes an extremely slow advance towards the Kolbolds, hoping to draw them in range of Markus' sling while giving Latovios time to spring his trap. But not too much time ay. Louis aggressively threatens the Kolbolds Youuuu! You make me zo angry! Here's what will happen to you! First I'm going to hit ya, then you're going to fall... and you're going to cry and I'm going to laugh... And the threats continue!
With the distraction provided by his traveling companions Latovious takes off in a silent sprint. His approach goes unnoticed by the kobold standing upon a 6' tall rock with it's attention focused on Louis while trying to figure out a way down from his perch. With a leap the rogue drives a dagger into the unsuspecting kobold's back, it falls face forward off of the rock dead before it bounced on the ground before where it had stood watch.
A small kobold with a coin purse tied to a string around it's neck rushes at Louis and lands a solid hit with his spear on the warrior.
I hope you are (h)appy! Now you have gone and made me angry! And for that you must pay! Arrg! Louis shouts at the creature that dared to stick him
[
Louis runs the kobold through and brings his shield up to possibly fend off blows from the many advancing kobolds.
Markas sees the advancing Kobolds and in particular the one with a bow. He lines up his sling and fires.
Markas slips on some loose brush underfoot while putting his all into his sling shot at the kobold archer. The shot goes wide and the sling flies from his hand to hang up in the shrubs near him.
Markas's misfortune seems to be spreading as the hobbled archer kobold's hands get tied up trying to ready an arrow and its bow for a shot at Louis. Both fall to the ground and fear can be read in the eyes of the humanoid.
Another kobold streaks out from behind the tree and nears Louis wielding a knobby looking club.
Latovius's approach towards his next foe is not nearly as silent and it turns quickly avoiding his attack.
By turning so quickly to avoid this unexpected foe the kobold's attack is thrown off and his swing with his dagger is nowhere near the thief.
With foes rapidly approaching and a sling in the shrubs Markas abandons his sling and position moving from 2,7 to 3,12 while moving the cleric draws his mace and readys himself for more combat.
Seeing the two human's standing side by side and outnumbered bolstered the kobold water carrier's resolve and he dashed towards the mace wielding human. The swing of his recently acquired dagger went wide of it's mark and suddenly being the only warrior standing toe to toe with two humans seemed like a bad idea to the young kobold.
Riddle me this pig boy, what's pink, and red, and dead... it iz you! Ha ha Louis strikes at K6
Pant! pant!
Louis slays the kobold he attacks, dropping it where it had stood.
K1 scrambles to gather up his dropped bow and arrow and then hobbles away to give himself a clear shot at the pair of fighters.
Latovius attacks K5 and cuts down the kobold he faces with a deft stroke of his dagger.
K3 moves and attacks Markas with his club, the cleric's shield deflects the weak blow.
Unconcerned with the deaths of their comrades the two kobolds stand their ground against the two humans.
Seeing K1 back away and prepare to fire from a distance, Markas hoped to finish K3 quickly. The cleric raised his mace and with all of his might brought it down upon K3's head.
The strength of Markas's blow caves in the side of the kobold's head, it manages only a gurgled yip upon the weapon's impact before the body slumps lifeless to the ground.
As the body of the kobold he was fighting with hits the ground Latovius takes off in a sprint towards the bowman drawing a bead on the fighters. His swing at the kobold comes up short scaring the heck out of the kobold who tries to quickly move away from this unexpected foe. Latovius gets another swipe at the kobold but again it comes up empty. The kobold tries to get a quick shot off but the arrow comically goes almost straight upward and left into the sky nowhere near where the rogue he was shooting at.
Yelling all the way Zo this iz how you like it! And you shall have it no? Tout mon petit ami une bonne mort est sa propre récompense Louis strikes at K1
Ah ha!
Louis's attack does not find its mark as the kobold's resolve breaks when it is surrounded by two humans.
Latovius also swings at the kobold and misses.
Yes! yes! thiz one iz feisty, no? Ho ho ho! Louis again strikes at K1
And zo it goes... I am getting tired... Louis states, as the sweat runs down his face.
Markas feeling the warriors rush from his last strike moves to where K1 is and swings his mace...
Markas's mace connects solidly with the crippled kobold and sends the much smaller beast flying. It does not stir once it lands on the ground after the blow from Petra's favored. Markas took a deep breath and held it, calming his battle nerves. This fight had been more dangerous than their first but they had prevailed. He soon found himself offering Petra prayers of thanks for keeping his companions safe and for the souls of these kobolds to be at peace.
Louis lets out a nervous sigh; he was not feeling well after suffering a solid blow from a spear during the fight. He sunk his sword into the ground and held a hand to his bleeding side. The fighter felt a tremble in his hand as he pressed onto his wound. 'How serious am I wounded? My skill at mending won't be able to quickly patch this one up.' He thought to himself after chancing a look at the wound.
Latovius cleans his dagger off as he moves to the body of his first kill in the fight. He retrieves his dagger from the beast's side and walks over to the spilled wheelbarrows. Taking a few moments to poke around the spilled buckets and pots he stands up and carefully looks around with concern visible upon his face.
"By the grace of Petra let me heal you of your wounds!"
Hmmm thought Markas. What did Gerius say?
If we can get zee cattle... and if we can get them to zee camp with the farmhands, I say we do that! IF we can make it before it iz too late... because these pig men are going to notice nine of their friends are not coming home for dinner tonight, and they are going to want to explore and see why. Zo zee most important thing for us iz to get to shelter, for tonight we rest! No?
Louis takes his time and does another fantastic job treating wounds, this time ones that he incurred in the fight! The loss of blood has left the fighter feeling exhausted and in need of a few hours of sleep. He can not see any of the cattle that fled on the surrounding hillsides, they scattered pretty well when the fighting started. It may take hours to locate more then one or two. HP 9/9
Markas understood that the bulk of Gerius's herd was mostly left to on their own while they were in the hills. The farmhands stationed at his distant cabin probably do daily checks on the state of the animals and guide them back towards the cabin at night. This watering hole probably supplies the animals within a large surrounding area of these hills with fresh water as it is the first water you have come across all day.
Markas notes in the mud along the edge of the small pool that there are animal tracks such as deer, some sort of large dog, and even the track of a horse of some sort. These appear to be several days older then those left by the kobolds and cows. It would seem to Markas that perhaps the kobolds have frightened away or killed all the animals in the area.
"These weaklings were using stolen wheelbarrows and containers to haul water from this pond somewhere. A few of the pots have food residue left within them. Their camp or lair or whatever can't be far away, these little buggers couldn't push the heavy wheelbarrows back any great distance." Latovius says as he walks over to the rocks where the fighter was humming a cheerful tune while bandaging himself and the cleric was undoubtedly lost in thoughts or prayers to his god. Boy, what a pair I've been chained to! Thought the rogue as he again scanned the area. "Louis is right, we can either backtrack for a half hour and try to find the cabin Gerius told you of or we hit these buggers before they notice their friends are gone."
"Latovius if you can track the Kobolds back to their lair then that is my choice for action. We can hit them when they least expect it before they realize their numbers have diminished."
Louis finishes bandaging himself Sigh... Mes amis, I think it would be best for us to backtrack and try to find zee cabin Gerius told us of... we can rest, and be fresh for the new day. Then we can also press into service zee farmhands to boost our numbers against zee pig man hordes! Ho ho! Cough cough. But if it iz how you say... that their camp is close, well then Goldfson you should check it out, and see how many of the little buggers there are! But don't take too long, and don't be spotted, you yourself told us that these pig mens see better in the twilight hours, We wouldn't want to be caught at a disadvantage. Would we? Markus and myself will wait here. And I will look over thiz bow. As he stands up the warrior grimaces a little, but is quick to put on a smiling face... although it is obvious to those who are watching that he's in a bit of discomfort. Louis gestures to the dead Kolbalds What iz the custom with zee fallen… burial, or let nature take it'z course?
"Louis while Latovius is out tracking help me move these beasts' bodies under or behind some clumps of shrubbery. If we go back to the cabin perhaps we can still hold some surprise over the creatures. If the Thief finds their lair despite our seeing disadvantage I believe our best course of action is to bring the fight to the creatures. We are far better suited for the task than a bunch of farmers." Once the bodies were moved Markas said some words of prayer for the fallen beasts. While the beasts were up to no good perhaps their souls can still be redeemed, thought the cleric. He then moved to a undisturbed portion of land kneeled and prayed.
7 crude arrows and a very crude short bow (-2 to hit with the bow, -1 to damage with the arrows are the stats on the bow and arrow. It is up to you if you wish to take and make use of it.
Louis and Markas drag the corpses of their victims beneath the bushes about the small pool. Twenty minutes pass from the time the thief leaves their company to when he returns winded from his trip. "There's a cave with a low entrance nearby, two are standing guard out front. I don't think I was seen but it will be tough to approach unnoticed."
Thiz iz pretty bad... but with my expertise ability I should be able to put it to good use, no? Zo! We are heading to zee cabin? With a smile that says "You know that I'm right" Louis waits to see what L&M plan to do.
"Should we let the fates decide? Evens the cave, odds the cabin?" Latovius picks up the bone dice from among the loot Louis had piled on the stones next to the pool of water.
After picking up the dice you note that the rogue immediately pauses and then weighs the two small objects in his hand instead of giving them a toss. You also note that a small half smile makes it's way onto the rogue's face.
"The fates would have us go to the cave it seems. I should like these dice as my own, I have a feeling they are lucky."
"Petra tells us it is important to defend. In this case we defend the farmers from further attacks. To the caves it is. However Latovius do you think you can find another entrance into the cave? Now that would also prove to be lucky."
However the three approach the caves Markas would like to employ his Danger Sense skills.
"I could do as you ask Markas, but how much time do we spend poking about the area of the cave looking for another entrance? We risk being found by patrols or spotted by the two guards if they decide they need to take a leak. There's at most three hours left of daylight left to us and then they have the advantage on us for a short time. " Latovius responded to Markas's request for him to locate another entrance with his concerns. A pile of cow dung got the thief's mind working, "What if we bait out the kobolds or distract them with a few of the cows running in front of where they are keeping watch?"
The happy warrior gets up from a sitting position smacks his thighs and stands up straight. Oui, We go and attack at zee cave enterance... how large iz thiz entrance Latovius? For if she iz small, zee pig men can not all get through no? Ho ho ho! We can pick them off one by one. And one of us can keep an eye out for zee strays, hee hee hee ! Realizing that there will be no good night sleep at the cabin tonight, Louis readies himself for zee battle ahead.
"I don't think you should spend a long time looking for another entrance. Perhaps 15 to 20 minutes. I think the gain in surprise is worth a small risk of time. However I agree a long search increases our chances of being discovered. As to your idea of baiting the guards, I think that would be an excellent plan b. Instead of a cow though I would volunteer to be the bait with a ruse of looking for missing cows. I am the logical choice as you Latovius have skills that are benefitted by distraction and I think Louis can use his newly found bow from cover. Are we in agreement?"
Latovius nods his head in a show of understanding at the cleric's plan and takes off into the hills making a significant amount of noise.
post approach - sneak up by Latovius
After about thirty minutes the rogue returns to the watering hole. "I found no signs of another entrance, the cave appears to just go into the side of a hilly area to the north east of here. There are still just two kobolds out front. There's a wash that would allow Markas to appear some distance in front of the pair, it might be a tricky climb up or down in the dark but in daylight you would just have to watch your footing. Louis there's a few trees on a slight ridge above the entrance to the north west, that would probably be the best spot initially for you. I shall approach from the north east, there looks to be a slope that might hide my approach. I will wait to see what they kobolds do upon seeing Markas to determine what I should do next. Good luck to each of you." With those well wishes the thief was off, back to the spot he had noted in his earlier scouting trips.
Markas clasped Louis on the shoulder and wished the man well and hoped sincerely to see him when the kobolds were bested. The cleric slowly makes his way to the wash that Latovius noted, nothing raises the cleric's suspicions as he makes his way through the sparse brush and trees. At the base of the wash the cleric offers prayers to Petra to help keep him safe and to help him in protecting the families of the farmers. He feels an inner peace wash over him after completing the prayers, perhaps his goddess's favor had found him in this moment of need?
Louis smiled at the cleric's kind words but found himself tongue tied and at a loss to respond beyond returning the cleric's sentiments. The farm hand turned fighter made his way in the direction the thief had laid out, keeping his senses alert for danger. He noted a hawk circling lazily above him on the last of the day's thermals, it reminded him of home. Not much later the fighter leaned low to make his way through a dense section of brush and he came eye to eye with a red tailed hawk with a dark black streak through it's plumage. Gazing into the intense eyes of the predator the fighter knew instinctively that this was no ordinary bird. Some unknown time later the bird took wing and had no problem flying through the dense thicket that currently impeded the fighter. A smile crossed his face and he pushed his way through the underbrush and within a short while he stood with his bow looking over the cave entrance. The two kobold's appeared to be bickering among themselves from his vantage point, unaware of those who approached their hiding hole.
'Your blade will bite harder for the next hour warrior. Rid this area of the kobold scourge and you will have gained a friend among my order.' The words echoed in his head, not spoken but understood just the same.
Markas began the descent moving diagonally to the Northwest. His movements were slow, deliberate, and intended to allow the Kobolds to see the human bait. For this turn Markas moves at half normal movement and tries to avoid looking directly at the Kobolds.
Louis closes the distance between him and the Kolbolds heading stealthily slightly north but mostly east trying to keep trees between him and the enemy.
Yes you can move diagonally as long as it isn't through obstructing terrain such as a wall
The two kobolds standing guard at the cave entrance do not notice Louis's approach towards them. It could not be going any better for the fighter as he lessens the distance of his bow shots.
One of the kobolds does notice however the movements of Markas, or at least he thinks it does because he watches as a kobold holds a hand up to shield the sunlight from it's eyes while looking in his direction.
initiative Markas, Latovius, Louis, K1,K2
Markas playing the part of a lost traveler or perhaps a farmer looking for lost cattle looked from side to side and moved forward slowly. The clerics hand was on his mace ready to use it at a moments notice.
Latovius continued his silent but not so hidden approach to confront the kobold guards, he rounded the corner of the hill in an all out sprint. He had noticed Markas's approach up the hill and understood that it was his task to strike first and hard. The rogue was not slowed by a large stone that lie in the path that he'd chosen to reach his targets. He leapt the rock in stride and continued on making no sound at all. The guards had yet to notice Latovius's approach, instead they appear fixated on Markas's movements as they stood half crouched while observing the man in the distance, the appeared unsure of what the hell the stranger was doing.
Latovius slams his dagger home into the first of the kobold's watching the spectacle at the other side of the hill before any of the two kobold's knew of his presence.