He backs away a bit, to keep the bugs off balance and swings with his weapon.
Okay, as I had mentioned above, the initiative order changed thanks to Scrapeknee's ability. You guys go before the bugs now. This messes things up a bit as the bugs would not have charged out from the shadows before your attack so to save time and effort, I am going to resolve this as if you had all readied an attack action if they got to you and we will carry on from there.
Roku is the only one to hit a bug this round and it looks quite hurt.
Your Turns
Roku presses his attack on the bug.
Roku presses his attack on the bug.
[dice=Attack vs Bug]1d20+4
[dice=Damage]1d6
[dice=Knowledge (Dungeoneering)]1d20+3
Round 1
HP 18/18
AC 13 T13 FF10 CMD16
F/R/W 4/3/5
Spells
1st - 3/3
Judgement 1/1
Effects
None
Seeing her first strike miss and knowing her lack of bolts for future strikes, she decides to change up her tactics. Taking the crossbow in one hand, she pulls out the club and steps up to the bug previously shot and attempts to bash it.
Scrapeknee swings again, "Fall, vermin! Fall as a sign of how true warriors will vanquish the weak multitudes!"
I take a five foot step south west to flank and strike!
"DIE!"
Xzevrra and Malum slay the insect before them.
Scrapeknee squashes the bug in front of him.
Though it seems as though Roku might miss, he somehow manages a hit that slays the bug in front of him.
Two bugs remain. One by scrapeknee and one more by Malum and Xzevrra
The bug near Malum five foots up and attacks him but misses.
The other bug by Scrapeknee also fight foots, attacks, and misses.
It is now your turns players. Hopefully you can guess where the remaining two bugs are and act accordingly.
Roku moves and attacks the nearest living bug, these things had an ally or trainer. No doubt it would come around sortly. He would want to speak with that person. His thoughts got in the way of his aim, he misses.
Round 2
HP 18/18
AC 13 T13 FF10 CMD16
F/R/W 4/3/5
Spells
1st - 3/3
Judgement 1/1
Effects
None
Xzevrra moves around the bug, attempting to strike it with her club.
Scrapeknee grins as one is squished, "The battle gods are with us!"
He strikes at the next bug
If I can i will go to flank if not then oh well, still attacking.
wooow
SQUISH! Srcapeknee squishes yet another puny insect.
The rest of you show off your excellent whiffing skills and hit nothing. *Golf Clap*
THE REMAINING BUG ATTACKs
Roku gets hit by it for 3 damage.
YOUR TURNS. ONCE BUG LEFT!
Roku attacks yet again.
Round 3
HP 18/18
AC 13 T13 FF10 CMD16
F/R/W 4/3/5
Spells
1st - 3/3
Judgement 1/1
Effects
None
Xzevrra deals the creature another strike with the club.
Roku steps up as stabs the bug doing it some harm and Xzevrra finishes it off by smacking it with the club.
The tunnel is quiet once again.
"Chirp" Seems to be coming from further down.
You think you hear voices up ahead. A bit too faint to make understand what they said but you are certain you heard some people.
Roku moves his head slightly. Whispering to the others.
"Seems the source of the bird is up ahead. As well as some people. I will scout them from the darkness. I will yell if things go wrong or return quickly with information if I am not discovered."
The oracle is still grinning from battle's victory, and nods, "Let me know if you require healing. Any of you"
You move ahead several meters. The other members of your party are out of sight. After a little ways further you hear the chirp. It is getting louder as are the voices. They seem to be coming from the right. You can hear them almost through the wall.
It takes you a moment of examining to realize that the there is a hole at the base of the tunnel wall nearly three feet in diameter. The hole is a nice few feet of tunnel and you believe you can see the glow of a light beyond it.
You definitely here the voices and the chirping coming from there. The voices are still too mumbled to understand but you are sure there are at least two individuals down there.
What do you do?
Get the others but make sure they are just far enough away so no light gets thru the hole. Fill them in and go back to scout again once everyone is in place.
"I'm fine, Scrapeknee. Worry about the others." Xzevrra watches Roku head into the darkness, the club stowed and the crossbow armed and readied.
"The bird!"
Sorry for delay. Busy weekend with the superbowl and stuff.
Roku returns and reports he has found the source of the chirping. He leads you to a hole in the tunnel wall but advises you to keep the light from shining through.
Now that your close enough, you can hear the chirp without focusing. You can vaguely here voices too. They seem to be coming from a hole in the tunnel wall barely three feet in diameter. What do you do?
Where are you scouting Roku? Do you go further down the main tunnel or do you get on your hands and knees and crawl down the newer smaller tunnel?
"He's going ahead again?" Scrapeknee asks as Roku seems to slip away
You creep into the hole and begin crawling through the fifteen foot tunnel. When you poke your head out the end you see right in front of you, six feet below, an underground spring. It blocks any further progression from this point but a good hundred or so feet beyond the spring you see a well lit wooden door in the grotto wall. Sitting on two chairs at a table in front of the door are two men playing cards. There are two lanterns, one hanging next to the door and the other sitting on the table. On a roost next to the door you see a canary. It chirps. The two men are mumbling to one another as they play talking about personal interests and hobbies. Nothing particularly ear catching.
To proceed further you would have to climb down the six feet into the spring. Unless you have a high stealth this could make a lot of noise and draw their attention. However, any noise you would make could be masked by the constant dripping sounds going on in this grotto.
So what do you do? Go tell the others or risk getting closer by going for a swim?
The rest of you saw Roku get on his hands and knees and crawl into the hole in the wall.
Roku retreats, knowing better then to risk a two on one battle or setting off an alarm for reinforcements.
Roku returns to the group, letting them know what he has seen.
"As that is the case I would suggest we douse our light. Those who cant see will need to keep a hold of those that can. It is not as if we can get lost once we enter the tunnel. Once we get to the head the guards light should be enough for those who need light to see by. I will attempt to get close without being noticed and make friendly contact."
If no one objects he suggest a marching order of himself, Xzevrra, Scrapeknee, and Malum bring up the rear.
Once he gets to the head he will use ghost sound to increase the sound of the dripping water slowly so not to attract attention to it but help mask his attempt at stealth.
"Be careful. They sound like they're guarding something, and they may not like that we know about it." Xzevrra follows Roku.
The men are armed each with a shortsword, a couple of daggers, and a crossbow. They are wearing a unique style of studded leather armor. Closer observation will be required to identify the armor further.
The water noise highest and you move in. However, to get any further silently, you will need to make a DC 15 climb check to the pool below. If you fail by five or more, you fall into the pool and forfeit your stealth score. The hole comes right out of the wall to the chamber and there is no other way down than to climb into the pool. No injury will come of falling but the two men will be alerted. If you make the check successfully, you can proceed to sneak to wherever you wish. Good luck.
The rest of you are waiting on Roku's return.
Roku will attempt to use his acrobatic skills to land.
Roku will attempt to climb down carefully.
You successfully slip into the icy cold underground water. The water seeps into your clothes and chills you to the bone. The water is still enough and shallow enough for you to have an easy swim to the shore.
Your darkvision + perception notices several lampreys feeding on the corpse of another dead human. These Lampreys are big. You manage to slip by them as they feed. The body was stripped bare and had nothing of value on it.
You reach the shore and creep closer to the two men enjoying their game. The canary chirps some more. You are finally close enough to see these two men are wearing Faction armor. Knowledge local to learn about what faction and how much you know about this faction.
The two men are sitting smack dab in front of the door blocking in and out entry. They are talking about what they did at a local tavern the other day. Telling silly stories. There is a bottle of ale on the table and two mugs. They aren't drunk yet but they seem to be working on it.
Is there anything else you'd like to know?
Is the door lockable from our side, if so is it locked?
What race are they?
How much ale is there and can Roku guess how much of it is needed to get them drunk?
Knowledge Local: You recognize the insignia on their armor. These fellas are part of the largest most organized crime circuit in all of Borallas, The Syndicate, You know this is one of the oldest crime organizations and it runs itself with a very strong business mindset. They are a very dangerous enemy but could be a useful ally. This is probably one of their underground bases.
You are shivering cold.
Q&A:
Your first Question: Yes and Yes
Second Question: Humans
Third question: Bottle is almost empty and they look bit groggy. Maybe if they had a little more. I reviewed you guy's loot list and compared it to my notes. I missed an important peice of loot. Among the dwarf remains you found a bottle of wine several hundred years old. A DC 15 knowledge nobility would have told you it was a rare vintage of wine that has become even more valuable as it has been lost for hundreds of years. Again, It was suppose to be in with the dwarf remains. If they happen to discover it and drink it, that would do the trick Again, sorry I missed that piece of loot.
Roku knows of the group those two are a part of. Considering it he takes out the bottle they found earlier of wine. Using a minor spell to speak to the others, he tells them that he will try to speak with them and if things turn sour will run towards them. Stepping into the light with bottle in hand and the other empty, prepared for a bad reaction regardless, he speaks to the two men.
"Greetings to the Great Syndicate. My most humble pardon but I happen to stumble upon you by mistake. None the less it is with respect I offer my services and this small gift."
"I would add that it is a very fine and rare year and worth a good bit. I dare say it may even be considered lost. So naturally only men like yourselves would take the proper care of it I am sure."
The men are startled at first by your sudden appearance seemingly from no where. However, your gentle posture and sweet non threatening tone of voice puts them at ease. You explain yourself and make your offering. They are skeptical at first. They look to you, then to the bottle, then back too you again, "Who are ye? Where didya com from?" They seem cautious but not hostile.
Roku chooses his words carefully.
"I am called Roku, as I said I stumbled across this place. I came from a maze of tunnels, the recent quake gave me reason to move. This place seems to have become connected with it. Would you mind letting me know where this is, if it is allowed of course."
One of the men snorts. "No it aint allowed. No ones suppose ta know bout dis place an live. You either a member of the Syndicate or it's enemy."
The other guard pipes in. "Dere somethin differ bout you. You aint no normal fella. Hey you aint wit dat guy we shot earlier? Da one dark one dat was creepin round down here? We spotted him an put a bolt in him fer snoopin. Well, you wit him? Here ta snoop?"
They seem edgy but not quite ready for violence yet. Careful word games can substitute the need for further diplomacies or improve the results even.
Roku keeps his hands up, none the less ready to react should things go sour.
"Oh no I have spoken truthfully I dont know where this is. I was not with that dark one as you put it. I did not even know you were here until I found you. Like I said the tunnels are a maze and I am just trying to find my way out. If its a choice between becoming a member of the syndicate or being its enemy then by all means I would be honored to join them. Such an opportunity would be great indeed and you would have my thanks. I have no desire to make you or your organization my enemy. As I said I have a gift, here see for yourself."
He presents the bottle again.
"I am no expert but as I said it could be worth a good bit of coin. Its certainly not common I know that much."
The men consider your proposal for a moment. "Hmm. Well if ya want to join then ya needs ta talk to Tairas. He's second in command of dis branch. Our leader Jallant is not in at da moment. Well, ya wanna join?" They wait for your response.
Roku gives a bow.
"I would be most honored. Do you have room for three more? I have some comrades watching near by. I am sure they would welcome such a chance as well. I assure you they are useful."
The men seem stunned. "Dere are more of ye? Ya friends where waitin te jump us weren't day!" There's suddenly a knock at the door.
One of the two men gestures for the other to open it. The man does. A reletively tall and rugged looking dwarf steps out. "What be all de commotion out here?" The one guard still with you says. "Oh Micky. We found this trespasser out here."
They briefly explain to the dwarf who you are. The Dwarf considers for a moment. "Interesting. So ye want to join us aye? An ye have friends? Well call em out here an we have a look at ye."
Roku bows again to the newcommer. Watching them as the newest development was given.
"Apologies but one does have to be careful if they wish to live a long life. I dont look for trouble but it pays to be prepared for it."
He presents the bottle to the dwarf.
"Would you mind holding that. It is a gift after all, from what I know its a rare vintage. I assume you would know a good spirit when you see it."
Regardless if he takes the bottle or not. Roku waves a hand towards the tunnel. His spell still in effect he whispers to the others.
Whispered via his message spell to Xzevrra and Scrapeknee as he waves towards them.
"They seem to be willing to let us join them. Come out and present yourselves. Stay on guard none the less."
Something more seems to be motivating this dwarf than merely just recruiting a few new bodies. There is something else he is think of.
The dwarf looks astonished at the bottle. "By Jove! This be the oldest vintage of this wine I have ever laid eyes on! I gladly accept dis gift. Go call your friends an bring em here."
The two guards seem a tad confused by something but stay quiet.