"What if we tunneled down instead of through the door? Better to collapse their ceiling rather than our floor."
"Do any know if there is a master siege engineer within the city right now?"
”The dwarves are well known for their engineering skills, as well as their experience holding back the Old Dark. I, for one, would much sooner trust our allies of old before I allowed a dark wizard to call upon the dark powers. Nor would I want one of the licensed mages to risk damnation when honest gunpowder could do the trick.” Adela said, feeling that just blowing the damn thing up was the most straight forward answer.
Witch-Hunter Captain Schild says, "I think your instincts are sound Lady Wolf, I too have no wish to see the foul winds of Magick be called upon when good solid blackpowder could do the trick."
"What if we tunneled down instead of through the door? Better to collapse their ceiling rather than our floor."
"Tunneling down, that's an interesting idea Goodman Liestag. We can get workers started on that first thing in the morning. That probably would be less destructive to the Countess' city than blowing up part of the sewers," the Witch-Hunter Captain says in agreement.
"Do any know if there is a master siege engineer within the city right now?"
"Mayhaps Magistrate, mayhaps, I propose that you consult with the faculty of the University. I admit I am not optimistic about the prospects as Nuln has not constructed new fortress walls or citadels in decades but the University is large so it is possible."
Nightfall has come to Nuln. Will the hearty group stay at the Temple of Sigmar overnight or proceed to another location?
"No telling if they will need us for something on the double," Dirk says, with the recent Eshin attack on his mind. "I've no use for wandering the city in the dark tonight either."
"The Temple is a wise choice for respite."
"The university sounds like our best prospect for a more focused tunneling - or explosive - plan. Otherwise, we stuff the area with barrels of explosive powder and pulverise the obstruction."
"The university sounds like our best prospect for a more focused tunneling - or explosive - plan. Otherwise, we stuff the area with barrels of explosive powder and pulverise the obstruction."
Hanna contemplates the options, "Having a dark wizard 'help' us would no doubt play right into our enemies hands....buy using explosives will remove any element of surprise we may have. A difficult decision, but we must get past that barrier...explosives it must be!" she declares.
As the group leaves the Grand Temple, you come across the Witch-Hunter Captain organizing a group of workers armed with picks and shovels. He waves at you as you leave and shouts, ”we’ll try to dig our way down while you talk to the engineers at the University.”
The team heads back to the University of Nuln for the second time in a few days to consult with the faculty. This time it is the faculty of the College of Engineering that you seek. Asking around you find the University’s expert in siege technology, a certain Doktor Tanzer, can be found in the laboratory blowing things up.
Following the sounds of explosions you make your way to basement of the North Building and follow a cloud of gunpowder down a hall to a large lab. As you enter the lab a female voice screams, ”GET DOWN!!”
More accustomed to danger than he would like, Dirk drops to the floor.
Trusting in expertise, Ubaldo swiftly seeks and finds cover to duck behind.
Having experienced dangerous labs in universities across the land, Hanna is ready for the shouted warning, taking cover along side her companions.
Adela barely kept her balance...but barely was enough.
The entire labarotory shakes with the force of a huge blast, dust rains down from the ceiling, glassware shatter as flying projectiles smash them and clouds of grey smoke fill the air.
With ringing ears you hear what first sounds like high-pitched sounds of pain but you then realize that you're actually hearing a woman howling in laughter and joy.
"Ha, Ha, Ha...I told them it would work, I told them...ha, ha, ha, ha, ha..."
Coming out of the billowing cloud of dust and smoke, a young human female with red hair that sticks out in all directions and a singed face with a huge smile walks up to you all. She looks to be no older than 20 winters. "Did you see that?? I told them it would work and I estimate that the new formula will be 0.124% more effective than the standard formula and will only cost, hmmm, 175% more than the standard. Obviously, the new formula must become the standard immediately, wouldn't you say? Hmmmm...???" She gives you all a hopeful look.
Hanna picks herself up, smiling a bit despite the dangerous situation, "Hmmm, perhaps....you might have some issue getting that cost increase past the army's quartermasters...Very impressive, nonetheless!" she exclaims, knowing that practical results such as this was the mainstay in the progression of knowledge.
"I think that you are the individual we are looking for...."
Hanna picks herself up, smiling a bit despite the dangerous situation, "Hmmm, perhaps....you might have some issue getting that cost increase past the army's quartermasters...Very impressive, nonetheless!" she exclaims, knowing that practical results such as this was the mainstay in the progression of knowledge.
"I think that you are the individual we are looking for...."
”Looking for me? How exciting!” the young woman says with glee, literally bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. ”Why? Who are you? You’re a wizard. How wonderful for you! What’s that like?”
"A most impressive explosion. There is an enchanted stone wall blocking a secret route. We need it open."
"A most impressive explosion. There is an enchanted stone wall blocking a secret route. We need it open."
”Thanks, I liked it too. Enchanted wall? How fascinating!! Who did you say you were and why do you want to get rid of an enchanted wall? What’s on the side of it?”
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”Evil. The Cults of Ulric and Sigmar are in need of an engineer with the bravery required to set explosives to machinations of the Old Dark, and to purify their foulness with cleansing flame. But a true expert is needed, not an explosion-happy apprentice. An engineer who can pinpoint exactly what is needed...down to 0.124 percent.” She said, meaningfully. She spoke with the authority of one used to being listened to, not due to titles, but experience. Dressed as she was in the armor and livery of Ulric, it was a stance easy to take. ”We need access to what lies behind, but we cannot bring harm to the town above. And we cannot lose the clues that may lie within, so that we might track down and purge those responsible for these iniquities. You!” She pointed ”Have been judged worthy to take up this task. Are you willing to stand with the Gods against this threat?”
SL3, becomes 5 with attractive
”Evil. The Cults of Ulric and Sigmar are in need of an engineer with the bravery required to set explosives to machinations of the Old Dark, and to purify their foulness with cleansing flame. But a true expert is needed, not an explosion-happy apprentice. An engineer who can pinpoint exactly what is needed...down to 0.124 percent.” She said, meaningfully. She spoke with the authority of one used to being listened to, not due to titles, but experience. Dressed as she was in the armor and livery of Ulric, it was a stance easy to take. ”We need access to what lies behind, but we cannot bring harm to the town above. And we cannot lose the clues that may lie within, so that we might track down and purge those responsible for these iniquities. You!” She pointed ”Have been judged worthy to take up this task. Are you willing to stand with the Gods against this threat?”
[dice=Charm 58]1d100 SL3, becomes 5 with attractive
”Of course I’ll help but as great as blowing things up is I will need more information.” The young women looks around the lab and spots a slate tablet and chalk on the floor and starts making notes and pacing while she talks to herself, hmm...enchanted wall...Gustav Heinlicher brought down an enchanted wall during the time of Magnus...how did he...oh yes, used 700% more black powder than than needed for a 12 foot thick non-magical reinforced stone wall. So, if I want to make a hole 6 feet tall and 6 feet wide, I’d need, umm...197 pounds of explosive...hmmm...that would also blow up anything else within 193 feet...how to focus it...can’t drill it...acid...etch the wall...maybe, but can we etch enchanted walls...hmmmm....” The woman closes her eyes and absent mindedly chews on a lock of her hair while she rocks back and forth. After a minute or so she opens her eyes and looks at you, ”I think maybe I can do what you ask but I’m not sure. I’ll need you to get about 200 pounds of black powder from the Gunnery School. I’ll also need a gallon of Haverson Dissolving Water which I can, uhm, borrow from the alchemy labs after they’ve gone home. And primer and fuses and a timer but I have that stuff around here. So, get me the gunpowder and we can try this tomorrow, probably, unless the alchemist catch me again. Then you’ll probably need to see the Dean to get me out, the alchemists said they were throwing me in a deep hole next time.”
She smiles shyly and look at Adela and says, ”I like your wolf cloak, it’s very pretty, any chance you have an extra?“
"We also discussed boring through the ceiling of the sewers rather than trying to go through the enchanted wall. Going down rather than sideways."
"If boring or blasting around the door would be swifter or safer, we are all ears."
"If boring or blasting around the door would be swifter or safer, we are all ears."
”Not an expert in mining but I can say that an explosion from above would likely collapse the roof of whatever you’re trying to get inside. If that’s what you want we can fill a bored hole with explosives and BOOM, everything goes crashing down. That’d be fun. Going to need more black powder though.”
The Imperial Gunnery School is only a few blocks from the University of Nuln. The Gunnery School itself is an imposing sight. An 18-foot high wall surrounds the grounds on three sides, with the 20-foot high city wall making up the fourth. The School overlooks the Aver River and has a commanding view of Aver Island, where much of the actual gunnery practice takes place. The walls are cut limestone blocks, blackened from two centuries of soot and river air. Two 25-foot high towers mark the intersections of the shorter north and east walls with the longer east wall, which also features the main gate.
The group is stopped by a squad of soldiers armed with wicked looking halberds. "Stop and state your business!"
"I am Ubaldo Hartig, Magistrate of Nuln. My companions and I need engineering supplies. Not least-"
He glances at the young woman.
"-a quantity of black powder. Whom do we need to speak to?"
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Ka-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM A wave of dirt and debris from the thunderous explosion blasts everyone within a hundred yards of the explosion off their feet. The young professor is the first one to stand as she claps excitedly and points to the massive hole in the magical barrier. "My calculations were perfect! We need to find more things to blow-up!"
Unfortunately for you all, her calculations were not exactly perfect, in fact they were pretty bad which you realize as the ceiling begins to collapse upon you. Your only chance seems to be to get into the tunnel opened behind the magical barrier. It's just the four of you and the professor as the Witch-Hunters and their troops were buried under debris.
Ubaldo wastes no time.
"Into the tunnel NOW!", he urges, as he races for the newly-excavated opening.
"Hurry! There is no telling how long that hole will last!"
Hanna glances back at the cave in behind them, the twitching arms of Witch-Hunter and troop alike sticking out of the debris.
She looks at the professor, "Wonderfully powerful, tragically imprecise." she says calmly, then follows the others to 'safety'.
After about 20 feet the tunnel begins to slope downward at a steep angle. From somewhere lower down the tunnel, the group hears that high-pitched chittering sound that they've learned too well to recognize. Skaven! The sound quickly grows louder...the Professor bravely takes her place behind everyone else but does prepare to light some sort of tube that has a fuse sticking out of it.
The tunnel is actually quite a bit larger than something you'd expect from the Skaven being about 15 feet high and 20 feet wide. There are a parallel set of grooves on the floor of the tunnel. The grooves are about 10 feet apart and about a foot wide.
Ubaldo says quick words quietly.
"Get ready to fight!", he urges as he tries to find an alcove or gap to conceal himself in and get his back to the wall in.
Adela’s first instinct was to pray to Ulric to bless her axe, but the words stuck in her throat. The witch hunters and the soldiers...it was a repeat of Middenheim. They had come because of her and now they were dead...it seems that when it came to Skaven the past wouldn’t stop repeating itself. The weight of the guilt felt soul crushing in it’s intensity.
Dirk readied his hammer and shield as he looked about. The wide tunnel would allow the Skaven to quickly surround them if they weren't careful.
Hanna begins to marshall the Winds, trying to draw them into herself so that she can utilize the more powerful magicks known to her...
... but it would seem the ringing in her ears from the Professor's explosives proved detrimental to her concentration...
Ubaldo slips out of sight by sliding into a crack in the wall just big enough for him to fit.
Your foes come into sight finally. There are 8 small Skaven armed with rusty swords and wearing bits and pieces of armor, 4 bigger black Skaven armed with halberds that are using them to poke the smaller ones in the backs to speed them along and trailing behind are two odd looking Skaven that are wearing goggles, leather gloves and leather lab coats. One of them pulls a small wagon that holds a weird machine that shakes, bubbles and hisses. The crudely made machine also sheds a sickly green light that shines through cracks in the case of the machine. The other goggle wearer carrier a nozzle that’s attached to the odd machine by a flexible hose. There’s a valve that is attached to the top of the nozzle and it is currently turned perpendicular to the nozzle. There are none of the horned Skaven that you’ve encountered before.
Round 2 Initiative Determination
Round 1
Ubaldo can attack any of the Skaven and they will be surprised.
Round 2
Hanna and Ubaldo go in any order
Black furred Skaven and Goggle Skaven go next
Adela and the Professor go in any order
Small Skaven go next
Dirk goes last
Round 1
Ubaldo waits for his moment then rushes from the darkness, driving his fine blade at the flank of the goggled hose bearer!
*************************************************************
Round 2
Ubaldo presses his assault. Should the hose-bearer fall, he will strike at the other goggle-wearer!
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Round 1
Ubaldo waits for his moment then rushes from the darkness, driving his fine blade at the flank of the goggled hose bearer!
dice=Practical Hand Weapon vs Surprised Skaven 91 (61 + 10 charge +20 surprise) +/- modifier for skaven having ungainly hose in its paws]1d100
** spoiler omitted **
*************************************************************
Round 2
Ubaldo presses his assault. Should the hose-bearer fall, he will strike at the other goggle-wearer!
dice=Practical Hand Weapon vs Skaven 71 (61 + 10 advantage) +/- modifier for skaven having ungainly hose in its paws]1d100
** spoiler omitted **
Round 1
Ubaldo Attacks!Modifiers
+1 SL Surprised
+1 SL Charging
+20 to Attack Surprised
No Defense Roll
A commotion breaks out in the back of the pack of Skaven as out of the darkness a sneaky human charges forth which is of course completely unfair to the noble Skaven. The disgusting sharp blade pierces the beattiful leather coat and shiny fur of the genius engineer from Clan Skryre. "Help me...help me...warriors of Skryre," the wounded Skaven screams. The other goggled Skaven grins wickedly seeing his boss wounded by the inferior human.
Round 2
Ubaldo Attacks (again)
The sneaky, rotten human vermin manages to somehow again pierce the lovely fur of the Skaven Engineer. "Horned Rat, help me!" squeals the Skaven. The other goggled Skaven's grin widens seeing his boss stabbed again by the nasty human.
Round 2 Continues
Hanna goes next then the black furred Skaven and the Engineers.
Two of the black furred Skaven (Stormvermin #1 and #2) answer the order of the Engineer by attacking Ubaldo. The Engineer holding the nozzle turns the valve as he points the thing at Ubaldo. Stormvermin #3 shoulders the small Skaven out of the way to attack Adela
Stormvermin #4 also attacks Adela
Skaven Attack Rolls
Ubaldo raies his blade to defend himself...
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Ubaldo raies his blade to defend himself...
[dice=Parry vs Stormvermin #2 attack]1d100
[dice=Parry vs Stormvermin #2 attack, reroll]1d100
Two of the large black furred Stormvermin move to engage the human that is attacking the Clan Skryre engineer. In all honesty the Stormvermin are perfectly happy for the arrogant engineer to be chopped apart but they also know that they'll be blamed and punished if he dies and punishment by the clan that can invent anything they put their minds to is too awful to consider.
The first Stormvermin takes a mighty swing at the sneaky human and is stunned when his foe is able to parry his strike. "Quick quick strike strike," he chatters to his litter-brother.
The skill that the human exhibited in parrying the first strike is lacking as the second Stormvermin stabs his halberd at the human sneak.
The Stormvermin squeaks happily as his halberd rips a large gash in the Ubaldo's arm.
The badly wounded engineer holding the nozzle turns the valve and sprays a caustic, green liquid that sticks to and begins to dissolve whatever it hits. Unfortunately for the small Skaven he misses his target and sprays a couple of the Clanrats with the green goo instead. They barely have time to squeak in horror before they dissolve into a green ooze.
Hanna can go when she wants.
Adela is up now along with the professor.
Time seems to slow as you watch the Professor try to toss her lit bomb into the midst of the Skaven. The bomb traces a beautiful arc in the air as it thuds to the ground in the midst of the Skaven as the Professor cackles happily and claps.
BOOM! The Clanrat portion of the Skaven horde is literally blown apart by the Professor's bomb. Everyone is drenched in Skaven blood and body parts. Large pieces of the ceiling break off and fall onto the combatants. More sections of the roof appear to be on the verge of falling. A particularly large piece crashes into the case of the weird machine. The cracks in the machine widen, the machine begins to shake even faster and green smoke begins pouring out of it.
Hanna begins the hard work of attempting to bend the Winds to her Will, when the crazy Professor throws her bomb. It is all Hanna can do to avoid getting crushed!
She manages to avoid a large chunk of the ceiling, but a smaller amount hits her shoulder.
Wincing from the sudden pain, she give a chastising look at the young professor, then notices the machine, "We'd be wise to get far away from that contraption before it also blow up..."
Adela avoided the debris, which was fortunate, as her order forbade helmets. A tenant that had gotten many a good man killed.
SL4
Her axe began to glow as she prayed to Ulric. ”Agreed. It would be a foolish death. Fall back, I will cover the rear. Regroup outside the chamber.”
Some rocks from overhead fall onto Dirk. The large man doesn't seem to be slowed down by it though.
Ubaldo staggers back from the stormvermin assault, a bloody tear in his arm.
Then the blast shreds the clanrats.
The magistrate then dodges with more purpose to avoid falling masonry - and succeeds.