Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
Jorriko takes a massive swipe at the lieutenant, but misses completely.
Capitalizing on his opponent's lack of coordination, he turns around to attack the ninja nearest Korak, hitting him with a solid hit, grievously wounding him through his armor. You don't have to move to hit him, though if you wanna 5 ft. shift closer to the door again, that can happen.
The man grits his teeth against the pain and ignores the feeling of despair bubbling up with the blood pouring from his side.
I have to protect Master Chen! he thinks to himself, and he summons all his strength as he tries to attack Jorriko with both weapons.
Unfortunately for him, he and his companion are in a pickle...they have absolutely no clue where Jorriko is.
So, instead, they try to attack the one target they CAN see: Korak.
The heavily injured guard uses his meager reserves of Ki to unleash a devastating volley of hits at Korak, while the other moves in towards him, going around the bed and coming up on his side to set up a flank for his lieutenant.
He then proceeds to attack the enemy to his right with a flurry of kicks and knees.(The square west from him in the map. If the first ninja is still alive, the first unarmed strike goes against him too... Actually, the second one. The first 1 deals more damage, so it goes to the other ninja) Unarmed Strike:1d20 + 10 ⇒ (15) + 10 = 25 Unarmed Strike:1d20 + 10 ⇒ (13) + 10 = 23 (Ki Strike) Unarmed Strike:1d20 + 10 ⇒ (16) + 10 = 26
He then steps back into the stairs. (or is it just a corridor?)
EDIT: Sorry, forgot my Fort save. Fort:1d20 + 9 ⇒ (12) + 9 = 21. Korak takes only 6 damage, BTW, not 8. It was 2 attacks :). Also,keep in mind that enemies can't attack through a the corner, so if that ninja to Korak's right stays there, he can't hit him. If I somehow manage to kill both ninjas before my attacks are over, whatever is left goes to Chen.
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
Korak turns into a whirling dervish, lashing out with two quick claw strikes that put an end to the guard Jorriko wounded so deeply, then lashing out with high kick that cracks the skull of the second guard outright, putting him down for good as well.
Korak then turns his attention to Chen. He snaps out with another kick, which Chen deflects with a smirk using an eerily similar move to what Koark is so fond of pulling on his foes.
Taking advantage of Korak being off balance, Chen does a quick leg sweep and knocks Korak to the ground. As he falls, Chen uses the momentum from his leg sweep to bring his leg up, and then smash it back down in a devastating axe kick to Korak's stomach. On his back, Korak kicks Chen in the knee, still managing to score a solid blow.
1d20 + 15 ⇒ (18) + 15 = 33
1d20 + 14 ⇒ (11) + 14 = 25
1d20 + 14 ⇒ (20) + 14 = 34
Crit confirmation:1d20 + 12 ⇒ (9) + 12 = 21
2d8 + 16 ⇒ (4, 7) + 16 = 27
25 damage to Korak. Yowch. Before you ask, what happened was he deflected your first attack with Snake Style, and then used the free attack from you missing (Snake Fang) to perform a Trip (which succeeded), and you provoked a second AoO from falling over, which he happened to crit on. And, unfortunately, I think that means you're unconscious. 13 damage (Chen's first attack), 6 damage (ninjas), and 25 damage from this crit equals 44 HP. I'd say roll your Snake Style thing but you already used it this round I think.
Edit: Wait, durr, you Snake Styled that 13 damage hit away, that's right. So, you're still up! With 13 HP.
Unfortunately again though, it's actually Chen's turn now. =/
Chen smiles at Korak.
"You show potential, child. It seems a pity to cut down such a promising young martial artist before he's had time to come into his own." he sighs.
"Unfortunately, you made the mistake of challenging a master before you were ready."
He rears his arm back, only two fingers extended.
"I'll make it quick and painless, in honor of your skill and potential."
He jabs his finger forward as swift as a striking snake, and pierces Korak's chest, as Korak coughs blood and gasps for air.
1d20 + 14 ⇒ (12) + 14 = 26
1d8 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15
You take a further 13 damage. Unfortunately I don't see that you have Raging Vitality, so you're now at -8 HP, and need to make a DC 18 Con check to stabilize.
Chen slides over to Jorriko, gracefully stepping over the body of his dead guard.
"You too, Invisible One, show great promise. You would have made an excellent guard for my person."
He lashes out at Jorriko with another two finger strike, piercing his chest in the exact same way, and causing him to flop bonelessly to the ground. Jorriko is now at -2 HP, and needs to make a DC 12 Fort save to stabilize.
1d20 + 9 ⇒ (14) + 9 = 23
1d8 + 6 ⇒ (8) + 6 = 14
The lieutenant steps forward.
"Should I finish them, Master?"
Chen leans back on his heels and takes a moment to think.
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
You were good...up until he critted you. A couple solid whacks from you and Jorriko would have dropped him. =/ I think this encounter was doable (it was made to be difficult), just a combination of bad luck and a diminished party.
Gah. I realized I don't think you die at 0 HP while Raging (you can Rage while Staggered at 0) but I rolled for the lieutenant and he hit, at which point you ended up at -13 anyway. Thought that may have been an out.
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
"No," Chen replies "Let them live, if they're strong enough. They have potential, and I'm very curious to see how strong they become."
"They had a companion, Master, I saw her fall to the darts of the other Warriors of the Moon. What should be done with here?"
"Find her, make sure she wakes up, and get her and these two out of here. Get the servants in here to clean up the rest of this as well, Tanh."
"We'll need to start training more Warriors, Tanh. Your last batch was far from sufficient."
The three are dumped out of the estate, barely breathing in the case of Jorriko and Korak.
It takes them quite a while to recover, nearly a week to regain their full strength.
Charles and his group continue to grow in reputation, while Korak, Jorriko, and Jo's first failure has caused them to plummet to the bottom of the Mandrigal pecking order again.
There are reports that a veritable undead army attacked Chen's estate in the wake of your group's failure, with Michaelis at it's head. It may be some small comfort to know that Michaelis' newly acquired broken arm, missing eye, and nickname ("Lightfoot") speaks for itself on the success of the mission. Michaelis looks at Charles with thinly veiled hatred when he thinks the necromancer isn't looking these days, and Maya herself doesn't seem too happy with him either, always complaining within earshot about the loss of one of her lover's "Absolutely GORGEOUS" eyes.
Word that an Obsidian Guard crackdown is imminent after such an overt attack on a prominent and well respected member of the community has also trickled down.
There is one spot of good luck amongst all this, their mission to infiltrate Lord Bryonds' estate has not failed. Due to circumstances left unspecified, the ball was pushed back a few days, and it appears the papers for the transfer of one of his estates have still not gone through (perhaps because of the same circumstances that postponed the ball).
Jo, you're free to do whatever you like during this week, gathering information, making money on some legitimate enterprises (I think I'm going to start using the organization rules from Way of the Wicked for you guys in a certain form), or whatever. The other two, well, you guys are kinda stuck in bed covered in bandages like highly injured cartoon characters. Don't wanna put too much stress on your nicked arteries and all that.
I could prep only CLW spells and channels to get us back as well, but I think the point of the break in time is to emphasize the failure of the mission, and to let the consequences of that failure set in.
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
Hey, I gave you a freebie on living, but that doesn't mean there won't be consequences for it. =) I figured this was the best way to do it from a narrative perspective, and move some things along, if not from a logical perspective exactly.
@Jo: I made sure you wouldn't fail your mission in that last bit. It was already 2 days away, we'll say you got a letter on the postponement the day after. The Costume Ball mission you liked the idea of so much is now 2 days away. Or, more accurately, it's tomorrow evening.
Also, yeah Charles' team failed. You'll have your chance for another crack at Chen if you want it at some point. In case it wasn't clear "Lightfoot" refers to the fact that he runs away really fast. =)
There are some opportunities to be had from this, and there are also some downsides (your loss of status, for one).
Male Oni-Spawn Tiefling Bruiser 7 - Wound 12; HP 60[74]; AC 22[23] (tch 20[18]; ff 20[21]) (+2 w/ Mage Armor); CMD 32[32] (+2 vs Grapple; +4 vs Disarm); DR 3/-; Fort +8 [+10], Ref +9; Will +9 [+11]; Darkvision, Scent, Perception +13; Sense Motive +18; Initiative +5
Rynjin wrote:
Hey, I gave you a freebie on living, but that doesn't mean there won't be consequences for it. =) I figured this was the best way to do it from a narrative perspective, and move some things along, if not from a logical perspective exactly.
Damage control is part of the character's ability too. ;)
Rynjin wrote:
Also, yeah Charles' team failed. You'll have your chance for another crack at Chen if you want it at some point. In case it wasn't clear "Lightfoot" refers to the fact that he runs away really fast. =)
Hey, if they failed the same mission as us, after we killed half the guards, their reputation shouldn't be much better. lol. At least we still have our eyes. ^^
Rynjin wrote:
There are some opportunities to be had from this, and there are also some downsides (your loss of status, for one).
I'm okay with that. I just don't think Korak and Jorriko would stay put for a whole week if they can get up sooner. -.-'. And mirror matches are boring, BTW ¬¬'
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
Yeah, there'll be a hit to Charles' teams rep as well, but not as big as yours. Reason being Michaelis escaped, not allowed to live on his opponent's charity. And to be fair, I created Chen before I even asked you three to join the game. He came first. =p
Jo spends the whole week trying to find out as much as possible about Bryond's estate, and the man himself, his hangers on, etc.
She finds out a LOT. The man is very well known among the citizens of Myrial, and he makes no secret of a lot of his personal life.
And with her connections to the more...unsavory inhabitants of the city, she has a number of hidden facts about him as well.
On the estate: You know EVERYTHING about it. Entrances, exits, layout of the building, even secret doors and such. Basically how this is going to work is if you ask a question like "What's the fastest, quietest way to get to his bedroom?" or "Where are the secret rooms?" I'll answer it then and there so I don't have to list everything here.
Bryond is the very image of a nobleman. His extravagant lifestyle is tempered by his sense of noblesse oblige. He helps the community, treats his employees well, and manages his estates with precision, fairness, and competence.
Under the surface, he is somewhat less clean cut. His father left him with massive debts and ties to the criminal underground, neither of which is common knowledge. At the age of 15, when he took over the estate, he immediately turned those connections to his advantage, participating in "victimless crimes" to make back his fortune and save his life from debt collectors who have no qualms about extra-legal means of dealing with default. Drug trafficking, robberies of the rich merchant families, and so forth all at his command.
Of course, that was before the Mandrigal showed up and put such a stranglehold on "Unsanctioned Criminal Enterprises".
But it was enough. Bryond seemed content to let his criminal empire slip away after only a few years of running it, his coffer full and his debts repaid. Since then, he's gone entirely legitimate, growing his fortune and attempting to forget his criminal youth after nearly 50 years out of the business.
However, some habits die hard. He has a ruthless streak anyone who knows him well is aware of, though of course not to the extent it runs. Anyone who crosses him too severely meets with "accidents", sometimes deadly, sometimes mere financial ruin.
Bryond has a reputation for being a fierce negotiator, with eyes like a hawk, and employs guards handpicked by him to have the same qualities.
Not much of a fighter himself at the age of 68, he nevertheless personally oversees the training of his guards, occasionally working with them on moves with the longsword or rapier.
The guards themselves run tight patrols of the estate, with rarely more than a 10-12 second delay in an area being watched. Any would-be thieves or assassins roaming the halls had better be quick, silent, and lucky to escape their notice.
The exception, of course, being Bryond's "companions". Despite his age, Bryond has an insatiable libido, and has no trouble wooing young ladies with his silver tongue and air of command. He's instructed his guards to act as if these women were not there, as he wants no word of these trysts getting back to the fathers (or occasionally husbands) of his guests.
Male Oni-Spawn Tiefling Bruiser 7 - Wound 12; HP 60[74]; AC 22[23] (tch 20[18]; ff 20[21]) (+2 w/ Mage Armor); CMD 32[32] (+2 vs Grapple; +4 vs Disarm); DR 3/-; Fort +8 [+10], Ref +9; Will +9 [+11]; Darkvision, Scent, Perception +13; Sense Motive +18; Initiative +5
Rynjin wrote:
Yeah, there'll be a hit to Charles' teams rep as well, but not as big as yours. Reason being Michaelis escaped, not allowed to live on his opponent's charity. And to be fair, I created Chen before I even asked you three to join the game. He came first. =p
And to be fair, Ryu vs Ryu tends to be an interesting match. Being the most well-rounded characters in the game makes his mirror matches very balanced and fun to play and watch.
Male Oni-Spawn Tiefling Bruiser 7 - Wound 12; HP 60[74]; AC 22[23] (tch 20[18]; ff 20[21]) (+2 w/ Mage Armor); CMD 32[32] (+2 vs Grapple; +4 vs Disarm); DR 3/-; Fort +8 [+10], Ref +9; Will +9 [+11]; Darkvision, Scent, Perception +13; Sense Motive +18; Initiative +5
Rynjin wrote:
Links are a brighter blue than OOC text lol.
Just slightly so...
Rynjin wrote:
And I've been kicking the Myrial idea around for a while, since at least February. So still first! ;)
Hey, if just the imagined-but-not-yet-realized idea counts, then Korak was created just a couple days after Ultimate Combat was released! Well, at the time he was A MoMS Monk 2/Ranger 8, but still... He was there! ^^
I will say this from the begining. I will have nothing to do with that creepy old man and specially his silver tounge. If you someone of you thnk that be his companion is a good idea, I can bowwor you my hat
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
SInce y'all are fuzzy on the details after so long, allow me to repost the job...
Field Trip:
You're going to have to leave the city for this one. Have fun in the country.
We need you to travel to Lord Bryond's estate, about 15 miles outside of the city, and attend a costume ball he's holding in 3 days.
There you will attend to a few tasks.
First, you will need to make a copy of his signet ring. Our client has need of it, and so do you for the rest of the mission.
Secondly, you will need to find a way to enter Bryond's private quarters and find the deed to one of his lesser estates in western Cheliax, which he is in the process of signing over to another minor lord. He's completed it, and just needs to send it off to the legal offices here in Myrial to finalize the proceedings. Once you have found it, you will need to change a few things, most importantly the recipient of the estate, over to our client (Augustus Bluth), then reseal the envelope with the deed.
Most importantly, you must not be caught at this stage. If you are seen in the room the entire plan will be ruined. Likewise, seeming too suspicious while AT the party will ruin your cover, and ruining your cover means forfeiting this mission and all its rewards. If the forgery is not carried out flawlessly and too much suspicion is raised, the forged deed will be useless.
To that end, you will likely need to mingle for a significant period of time before you can credibly excuse yourself.
So brush up on your ballroom dancing and courtly etiquette, gentlemen (and lady), you're nobility now.
Male Oni-Spawn Tiefling Bruiser 7 - Wound 12; HP 60[74]; AC 22[23] (tch 20[18]; ff 20[21]) (+2 w/ Mage Armor); CMD 32[32] (+2 vs Grapple; +4 vs Disarm); DR 3/-; Fort +8 [+10], Ref +9; Will +9 [+11]; Darkvision, Scent, Perception +13; Sense Motive +18; Initiative +5
"I suggest we just kill the messenger, forge the letter(with Prestidigitation/Linguistics)and deliver it to wherever it must be delivered. That should save us a lot of work... Hell, we don't have to kill them, we forge the letter steal whatever else is in the carriage, pretend it's a robbery, get extra loot and let them deliver the forgery for us. Easy as pie."
Well Krail is super suspicious at this point, and is taking the last failure very personal. Is is even more quiet (if possible) and broody than before, and shadows anyone who leaves what he deems a "safe" place.
Male Oni-Spawn Tiefling Bruiser 7 - Wound 12; HP 60[74]; AC 22[23] (tch 20[18]; ff 20[21]) (+2 w/ Mage Armor); CMD 32[32] (+2 vs Grapple; +4 vs Disarm); DR 3/-; Fort +8 [+10], Ref +9; Will +9 [+11]; Darkvision, Scent, Perception +13; Sense Motive +18; Initiative +5
Korak spends an afternoon reading and thinking about Charles and Salvador's behavior and abilities, trying to link them to any knowledge he might have obtained in the last few weeks. He orders a courier o bring him a couple nets too, just in case the trio has to capture something.
I assume I can retry this knowledge check, since not only Korak learned more about the subjects at hand (gods, outsiders, undead, planes of existence, etc), but also had access to books about them. I take 20 on Knowledge (Planes/Religion/Nature) (total 28) to learn any useful information about Charles and Salvador, like race, religion, etc.
EDIT: BTW, Nicos, a few Diplomacy checks to learn what people know about them would be useful too. More so if it's done with discretion (can one raise the DC of the Diplomacy check to make it so they don't know about our asking around?)
EDIT2: I'm not home right now, so I can't check their price and availability, but there are some scrolls and wands that could be useful, such as Darkness, Darkvision/Alter Self (so Jo can see in the dark) and Silence.
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
Hrm. I can give you Charles, you've seen Charles. You don't have any clue what Salvador looks like, though, and his fighting style is one that's not really racially oriented. He hasn't used any magic/SLAs that you've seen, so you don't know much about him personally. However, you do know a fair bit about them already.
Charles: The mastermind of the group. He's a control freak, which may explain his love for Undead (he has absolute control over them), and is a cruel person, reveling in torture and breaking people if they won't serve him normally. Nobody's seen him really get into a battle himself yet, just his minions and the rest of his party. He is a human, who seems to be some sort of Cleric...but is as intelligent as any Wizard. He seems to be a devotee of both Asmodeus and Urgathoa.
Salvador: He doesn't talk much, and he never shows his face that you know of. He could be anything from a monstrous beast to a heavily scarred man, or even a normal looking guy for all you know. He's almost bestial in his actions, especially in combat. He has a habit of sniffing out his foes and then flying into a frothing rage before ripping into them with his scythe, usually killing his opponents quickly and mercilessly, but reveling in the blood and carnage. He is a worshiper of Zura, and seems to gain some unholy power from her.
EDIT: BTW, Nicos, a few Diplomacy checks to learn what people know about them would be useful too. More so if it's done with discretion (can one raise the DC of the Diplomacy check to make it so they don't know about our asking around?)
Any questions for this guy? Or preparations you wanna make before you go in?
A scroll or two of darkvision should suffice.
Jo uses the scroll of darkvision. BEfore the fight she cast shield on the entire group and If the tunnel is big enoughshe cast enlarge person on Jorriko and Korak.
Any questions for this guy? Or preparations you wanna make before you go in?
A scroll or two of darkvision should suffice.
Jo uses the scroll of darkvision. BEfore the fight she cast shield on the entire group and If the tunnel is big enoughshe cast enlarge person on Jorriko and Korak.
Dude... That stuff lasts 1min per level. Save it for when necessary. A scroll of Darkness would be nice too!
Any questions for this guy? Or preparations you wanna make before you go in?
A scroll or two of darkvision should suffice.
Jo uses the scroll of darkvision. BEfore the fight she cast shield on the entire group and If the tunnel is big enoughshe cast enlarge person on Jorriko and Korak.
Dude... That stuff lasts 1min per level. Save it for when necessary. A scroll of Darkness would be nice too!
BEfore the fight, I am assuming you will be succesful in your job as scout :)
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
Jo asks around, but the common folk don't know any more about Charles and his group than you do...they're not exactly commonly known figures to begin with, and they try not to reveal too much about themselves.
Your group is the most knowledgeable about them besides themselves, and that includes the rest of the Mandrigal, at least those members you're cleared to talk with.
Jorriko addresses Gaven's man, asking him what he knows.
"Not all that much you ain't been told really. The thing just flew outta the darkness, like a piece of the shadows just came alive and flew down on 'em. It wrapped a round 'em, and it killed 'em soon after, or at least I hope so from the way they was screamin'. We ran outta there as fast as we could go after it dropped on Jimmy and it still caught Farlo afore me, Sam, and Lariel got out."
He shrugs.
"Afore that happened things was goin' pretty well. The tunnel looked like it went straight on through, but we never made it to the end. If it ends up in that little cove like we think it does it'd be a prime spot, and we're pretty sure the Guard doesn't know 'bout it yet, but I'd be careful anyway. They're searchin' other parts of the sewers so if'n you make too much noise they might come a runnin'."
Male Human Monk 5 (Qinggong Master of Many Styles from the Sacred Mountain)/Fighter (Brawler) 3
"Jus' this weird...flapping noise when it attacked. though now I think about it, we was gettin' spooked a little bit before the thing showed up, even though things was goin' peachy so far. As for smells...you ever been in a sewer, buddy?" and he looks at you like you're crazy.
