Xing nods her thanks to Senna as she follows Yash.
”I feel as though we are making this personal, now,” Xing quips as she jogs forward, stopping next to the big orc. ”We have no insight into the quality of this thing’s character.”
Afterwards, she considers the approaching brute, then looks back at the cart. "Should we move that back? I do not want this creature within his long arms' reach of our only method of transporting goods."
The team moves and the oxen snort with concern over the dangerous newcomer…
Round 2
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
Senna steps further away from the wagon and gauges the distance – just outside of spell or bow range – then pulls a bit of grass to judge the wind… Accounting for distance and wind, she lets two arrows fly. The first lands in front of the shambling giant. The second sticks in his shoulder. He brushes it away like a fly.
Arrows: xx
Blunts:
Perfect Strike (3):
Ki Pool (4):
1st Spells (6): x
Blood Intensity (1):
Dancing Lights (3):
Inspired (1):
Effects:
effect = x
Lady Sable notices where Xing and Yash are standing as she waits. She shrugs to herself and moves on up ahead of the wagon like them.
The giant continues striding toward your group, heads swinging warily in all directions, eyes alert for more dangers than a wagon full of tasty morsels. The earth shakes with each step. He’s got to be 13’ tall and must weigh in at over 5000 lbs.
Round 2
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
Yash slowly walked a few more yards away from the cart and it's contents, not wanting the huge man to get near the animals.
"Grandfather, guide my hand" he prayed.
Seeing Yash jog forwards, spreading out, Xing nods and follows suit. Where Yash moved straight, Xing repositions herself to create a loose wall of defenders between the brute and Nine-Toes’s donkeys.
She deliberately drops into a low, ready stance .. feet wide, body poised, and her claws ready to counter should the big brute come within range.
Cookie moves to try to keep Yash and the Lady in her reach. As the monster approaches, Cookie catches its gaze with her eye, giving it a look that could melt the reolve of any mother's son.
Our heroes form a spaced out front-line and ready themselves for the monster’s approach. He is so close, you can smell him… literally. Between the rotting leather armors, the pervasive grime on his clothing, and a thick layer of dirt so caked on his skin that he appears gray instead of greenish – his odor almost makes you gag.
Round 3
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
Lady Sable remains where she's standing, waiting for the the giant to come a little closer.
"Let's see what he sounds like falling on his ass."
She readies a spell, waiting for him to approach to less than 30' from them.
Senna steps a little closer and fires another volley of arrows. Both hit the creature and he roars his irritation.
Arrows: xxxx
Blunts:
Perfect Strike (3):
Ki Pool (4):
1st Spells (6): x
Blood Intensity (1):
Dancing Lights (3):
Inspired (1):
Effects:
effect = x
One of the giant’s heads watches the melee combatants distrustfully. The other head – on the side of the body stuck with arrows – glares at the small archer, then decides to return the favor. He reaches into a quiver slung across his back and pulls out a crude javelin whittled from an entire a poplar tree. He hurls the massive sharpened tree trunk at Senna. The tree-javelin misses by a dozen feet and buries itself 5’ into the earth. The blow would have been devastating had it hit.
Both heads roar their frustration as the giant moves roughly in a direction between Sable and Senna. Sable judges the distance well between herself and the lumbering beast, then weaves an eldritch spell. Oil pools up from the ground beneath the giant’s massive feet. The monster slides, slips, and sidesteps… somehow managing to stay on his feet. He toddler-walks forward, nearly falling again, but somehow maintains his balance until once again getting firm ground beneath his feet. He wipes his feet like a dog on fresh grass.
Round 3
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
Mama gives it the evil eye hex when it's finished not falling over into the grease. She's not mad. Just... Disappointed.
The monster's prodigious body odor blunts the effects of hexes, even grandmotherly disappointment hexes.
As the big threat lumbers forward, clumsily navigating Sabelina’s goopy spell, Xing takes initiative. She explodes forward, her fur and tail whipping in the wind behind her, directly into the brute’s reach. At the last second, she dives, trying to avoid his defenses, rolling to her feet as she jumps up onto his torso with clinging claws.
As she strives for any point of leverage, she snarls out a cough, ”He smells no better from here!”
"Grandfather, lend me your axe" Yash prayed. A ghostly battle axe appeared opposite the giantic, two-headed man and chopped low towards the back of it's leg.
Grandfather’s spiritual axe strikes true, biting into the giant’s arm.
Xing’s acrobatics only infuriate the monster as he sweeps his massive flail parallel to the ground, aiming to scythe the battle-cat like a stalk of wheat. But the wily cat hurdles the weapon which caroms off a rocky hillock and flies free from the giant’s grasp. Xing takes advantage of the giant’s momentary confusion and leaps on him, securing a hold! Of course, now that she has a giant… the question is what can she do with him?
Round 4
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
Sabelina frowns and grumbles when the the ettin doesn't slip and fall. Things just got a lot harder. She follows Xing in, closing on the giant from a slightly different direction. She aims a thrust at the knee because it's a painful place to take a hit.
Sabelina slides into range and drives her blade into the giant’s thigh.
Senna closes in as well and threads a sheet of flame between Sable and Xing. It scorches the giant’s flesh thanks largely to Xing hampering the monster’s movements.
Arrows: xxxx
Blunts:
Perfect Strike (3):
Ki Pool (4):
1st Spells (6): xx
Blood Intensity (1): x
Dancing Lights (3):
Inspired (1):
Effects:
effect = x
Round 4
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
In his simple mind, the giant debates pounding the battle-cat into a fine paste… and had he a flail in hand, he probably would have. But with no weapon in hand at the moment, he settles for scruffing the cat, peeling her off him and tossing her down… before pulling the flail from his belt.
Round 4
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
Xing writhes and spins in the air, righting herself just as she hits the ground in her low stance.
"Okay, we do it this way, then," she growls as her tail lashes once. Then she launches herself at the huge creature one more time. This time, her claws are a series of blinding but smooth strikes seeking any exposed, soft skin.
Mama scowls at her enemy. Yash! My young friends! The Ancestors call to battle!
As grandfather's axe continued to strike at the gigantic, two-headed man, Yash crept in slowly, hoping to go unnoticed.
Once close enough, he roared as he brought his own greataxe down, right towards at the man's feat.
The ettin dodges Yash’s spiritual weapon and – with two heads and four eyes – he spies the half-orc as he approaches. The oversized flail smashes into Yash’s ribs, breaking three of them with a loud crunch. The damage throws off Yash’s own attack, which goes wide.
Cookie rallies Yash and moves to support Senna.
Xing launches herself at the Ettin, carving bloody strips in the monster’s hide.
Round 5
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
HPs
Cookie: 32
Sable: 36
Senna: 31
Xing: 30
Yash: 19/36
Lady Sable shifts a little farther to the right, hoping to keep the ettin as confused as possible about where exactly his antagonists are at. She keep working on the vulnerable parts of his leg, knee, hamstring, tendons, and so forth.
With the giant’s body turned to face Yash, Sable drives her rapier into the back of his knee, hoping to slow him down and turn his attention from the wounded Soul Keeper.
Given the monster’s deadly flail (soaked in half-orc blood) and the beast's numerous wounds... Senna barrages him with arrows, hoping to bring the beast down before he can bring the flail to bear again. The first arrow slides off his filthy armor but the next two strike home - white fletching sticking out from the giant's chest.
The monster staggers, both heads lolling in different directions before he rights himself, thanks to his inhuman constitution.
Arrows: xxxxxxx
Blunts:
Perfect Strike (3): x
Ki Pool (4): x
1st Spells (6): xx
Blood Intensity (1):
Dancing Lights (3):
Inspired (1):
The light-headed Ettin considers the many threats around him, and focuses on the shiny object with the swishy tail…
He grumbles loudly, takes his flail in two meaty hands and brings it straight down on the battle-cat's spine, trying to drive Xing's broken body 15’ into the ground.
The blow misses... by a whisker.
Round 5
ORDER: Sable, Senna, BAD, Yash, Cookie, Xing
HPs
Cookie: 32
Sable: 36
Senna: 31
Xing: 30
Yash: 19/36
Xing touches her sheered whisker, her eyes narrowing to angry slits at the big creature.
Then her onslaught continues. Strike. Slide. Lunge. Strike. Pivot. Strike.
The blow from the two-headed giant left Yash struggling to breathe. His breaths were more gasps than anything, and each one sent a shock of pain through his chest. With a roar that even the spirits would hear, Yash swung his greataxe with desperate fury.
Between Yash, grandfather's spirit axe, and Xing, all their blows hit and chop down the ettin like a mighty tree. His felled corpse shakes the earth as it impacts the sod.
Lady Sable lowers her weapon and stares at the dead giant, puzzled by the sudden assault.
"What was that all about?"
No idea. I wish I could ask. Sometimes monsters are just humgry, but who can tell. She sighs as the corpse and starts examining it for anything significant or any sign of religion with known rites for the dead.
Cookie carefully searches the filthy creature. She finds nothing of religious significance. In addition to the two large flails, large javelin, and large stinking leather armor, she finds a small sack tucked into a rudimentary pouch in the armor. It contains 50 GP and a battered Sextant.
His rage expended, Yash fell to one knee, leaning heavily on his greataxe. He still felt the blow from ettin, his breath coming in short, ragged gasps. With his free hand, he wove an intricate pattern in the air as he called upon his grandfather once again.
"Grandfather, if it...is not my time...I have need...of your aid."
He could feel his ribs merging back together, the pool of blood in his lungs evaporating. Finally, he stood, and smiled at Xing.
"Well fought" he said with a nod. He turned to look at Sabelina. "You too."
One side of Lady Sable's mouth quirks upward into an almost smile.
"Thanks Yash, and the same to you."
The sextant Cookie finds intrigues her.
"It seems an odd thing for a giant to have. I very much doubt he could use it, and he' too large to set foot on any ship I've ever seen."
She frowns at her next thought.
"We're traveling in one direction toward a grounded ship, and we meet him coming the opposite direction, in unlikely possession of a piece of ship equipment. I don't want to draw wild conclusions, but this isn't an auspicious find."
As soon as the great behemoth hits the ground, Xing’s eyes are scanning the area around them for additional potential threats.
Yash’s compliment brings her up short, and she gives the tall orc a surprised look. ”You, as well, Yash-of-Many-Words.” She pauses, her golden gaze sweeping across everyone. ”To all of you. Well fought.”
She considers the sextant, her tail lashing with agitation. ”It does not give me confidence that the ship is intact or unmolested, at the least.” She looks back out at the direction from which the ettin attacked, her eyes squinting into the dusky distance. ”If the boat is being pillaged, time is against us. We should make as much time as we can while we have any light at all.”
Xing sees no other threats.
Xing considers the situation. "Traveling at night seems like a poor choice. I will scout forward and try to find a good place for us to eat and rest."
Unless there are objections, Xing lopes forward, her long legs quickly carrying her in their intended direction.
"Yes, sure, it's best we halt until sunrise."
Xing quickly scouts the area, seeing variations of a few scenarios...
Scenario 1: You camp on one of the bluffs. This puts your back to the sea and would make it very hard to intruders to attack you from the seaward side - unless they can silently scale the cliffs that are a mix of rock, sand, and soil. But you would be in the open sward on the bluff with little in the way of concealing brush or trees.
Scenario 2: You move inland several hundred yards which provides you with tree and brush cover, but enemies could come at you from all directions.
Scenario 3: You stay on the bluffs but shelter in one of the natural dips in the terrain. This would give you some cover while still keeping your back to a cliff that is hard to scale. Of course, in a dip, you are conceding the higher ground to potential enemies on both sides.
So, you have Door #1 - Defensible but exposed; Door #2 - hidden but not particularly defensible; or Door #3 - Defensible, less exposed, but gods help you if you are attacked by enemies with ranged capabilities.
"Trees good."