Faen looks from face to face as each ambush suggestion is offered, her mind whirling at the possibilities.
At Quintessa's question, she offers, "I'll hide....then stick 'em!"
Graham nods. Faen, Velas, and I will be best served hiding nearby and being able to close into melee. Alvis, you'll need to be near enough to join as needed, but you're also strong enough to tip over the oil barrel by yourself and cut off their retreat. And Lady Orlovsky and Teela should remain clear away from the fracas a bit so as not to come to harm.
He turns to Tessa. Our Lady, you should devise a signal that will signal the pincers to close.
Alvis nods, "Glad to aid in whatever way, milady. I can be by the barrel, but I am not good at hiding. I should be behind some wall or something that I cannot be seen without any skill involved. Do not ask me to aid in any crafting, it would not go well, sadly. The Mastersmith still wonders how I set his smithy on fire given it was mostly made of stone." Alvis seems downcast but resigned at this admission.
Alvis will aid in any other task, moving heavy items about or fetching water from the source the outpost uses.
Alvis asks the Levetons, "I'm curious, this outpost has no water inside? That seems quite a weakness in a fortified place."
"I propose Faen hides in this building , Graham in that one , and I'll hide in that other one ." Velas walks over the wagon. "If the tax payment is laid on this side of the wagon, the bandits will need to enter a bit into the yard. On Quintessa's signal, Faen, Graham, and I will come of the buildings and engage. Oleg and Svetlana, you run into a building as fast as you can. Don't come out until the fighting is done. Seems reasonable to me."
"Alright. I may need some help, but here's the idea." Teela stands up and walks over to the yard to show what she has in mind.
It is a group effort that takes until way after dark, but by supplementing the rope Oleg has for sale with at least one bundle of rope your group carried, and other building materials, Teela is able to put her skills, which may be sewing adjacent, to good use and even though it is laborious and tiresome, you have a workable net trap hidden from outside view but ready to spring on the potential invaders in the morning.
It sure seems like this is going to work from your perspective, but you once the bandits are trapped inside the compound, you may just have the tiger by the tail.
It's soon late enough that if you are going to get a full night's rest, you better get to bed. Svetlana does not charge you for the night's lodgings in the guest quarters, which has only 4 bunks, and, much to Oleg's chagrin, she waives the stabling fees for your ponies as well.
After all the work is done, Teela would pull out her bedroll and lay down next to one of the barrels, just in case. "Good job, everyone!See you in the morning, folks. Good night."
Velas confers with Faen and Graham to make sure they are in agreement with his suggested hiding positions. Once that's handled, he heads to bed as well. A good night's rest will be important given they know a battle is imminent.
Graham nods in agreement with Velas' placements.
He is restless and takes more than one middle-night walk about the trading post, trying to see if he's missed anything , but ultimately when he lies back down, sleep overtakes him.
At first light, he is up and preparing for the coming fight.
Alvis comments, "Seems as well concealed as possible, for now, hopefully they won't notice until they enter. In the morning place me wherever you believe will be of most use."
Alvis is also up early to do his morning prayers. Seeing Graham up he issues an invite, "Care do make a few prayers, Graham? It couldn't hurt to ask for a bit of divine assistance, at least."
If there is any time left, he will see to the cleaning of the yard, particularly the product of the horses, to conceal numbers. With the sweeping he hopes that the net will be sufficiently hidden to with all the ground disturbed by the general clean-up.
4 Pharast, Oleg's Trading Post, Rostland Hinterlands
The guest quarters is clean and comfortable, and the beds are not fantastic, but much nicer than a bedroll on the hard ground as you've spent the last few nights. There is some sense of peace about the place even with the impending storm in the morning.
Graham takes a night walk around the perimeter of the old stockade, but cannot find anything amiss or out of place, and soon even he retires for the night.
Awakening the next morning, all of you are at peak performance readiness, fully healed, all spells and abilities ready to perform. A hearty breakfast, made by Svetlana, is served to all of you, mostly in silence. Alvis makes his morning oblations and then begins grooming the heard in the dawn half-light waiting for the inevitable.
It's not terribly long before the appointed hour is near. Straining to look at the south, you can see the cloud of dust that seems to signal the approach of horsemen, but its too far to count numbers from here. "Get in your places," Oleg says, moving to open the southern gate. "They will be here soon."
Velas thanks Svetlana and Oleg for last night's accommodations and this morning's breakfast. After breakfast, he paces alongside the eastern wall, trying to calm his nerves and stay focused on the imminent battle.
When Oleg calls, he quickly positions himself inside the appointed building and waits.
Faen prepares her gear and somehow manages to fall asleep, rising with the others as daylight peeked above the horizon.
Finding herself famished, she gulps down Svelana's breakfast with gusto, finding the thought of the upcoming ambush makes her extra hungry!
Then , checking over her gear once more, she retreats to her hiding space and makes ready.
Looking over his clean-up he hopes that it will make the buried net unnoticeable. Quietly he ask, "Does it seem like anything is out of place?"
Alvis walks over to Velas saying, "It appears that we are going with your plan, but I'm not sure where you want me. So, what would you like? I'm not good at hiding so I should be out of sight. We don't have much time."
Alvis will go to any place in the outpost that Velas or anyone tells him.
Teela's voice enters Alvis' ear. "The other barrel, man! Keep up!"
When Alvis turns his head, Teela is on the palisades, frantically pointing to the other side of the gate. A barrel without anyone to push it down.
"Thanks Teela, that plan is in effect, hope they don't spot me before until it's too late.", Alvis replies as he gets into position.
Alvis is hunched down as much as possible, trying to make sure he isn't immediately obvious by taking cover.
Quintessa takes a position up on the southwest tower, hiding around and behind the catapult.
Soon enough, the sound of horses approaching is undeniable, even for those who are in hiding. The bandits, there seem to be 5 plus the man with the hood and bow - Happs as you recall. They dismount their horses just outside the gate. Happs stalks inside the compound with a laugh. "Come to collect our taxes, Oleg. You won't give us any trouble will you? C'mon boys, let's load this stuff up." Four of the bandits also enter the gate, moving toward the pile of hides and furs left in the rear of the wagon. One stays outside, holding the reins of the horses, chewing something and distractedly kicking at the ground. None of the bandits have weapons out, as they are fairly sure the cowed couple will give them no resistance once again.
"Breakfast smell delicious," Happs says with a sneer at the Levetons. "If that little lady of yours cooks as good as she looks, maybe we will take her this time as well. You'd like that pretty thing, wouldn't you?" The rest of the henchmen laugh at that, as they turn to admire poor Svetlana, and gauge Oleg's reaction. Oleg's face turns red, and he seems about to burst, but he doesn't say anything.
Coiled tight, her muscles screaming to be let free, Faen watches from her concealed location as the ruffians come into view.
She seeths as the arrogant raider threatens to kidnap dear Svetlana!
As the bandits approach, Velas slows his breathing and listening intently, ready to spring into action at a moment's notice.
Teela sleeps next to her barrel. When she wakes up and hears hooves approaching, she attempts to hide her presence. She slips behind the barrel, but leaves a piece of her bedroll hanging from the platform.
Alvis is concerned at the likelihood he'd be spotted behind the barrel by anyone with the slightest awareness at all. He puts his shield behind him, to pick up and strap on later leaving both hands touching the barrel ready to push it over.
The rider come in looking mostly at the goods and the leader speaks most disrespectfully of the goodwoman of the post, drawing Alvis' anger over the injustice.
Cover
Graham finds that his heart is uncharacteristically pounding as he lurks in wait for the signal. Is this righteous anger? he wonders. It feels unfamiliar, as out of place as a random thistle under the bedroll.
He holds his blade in his hand, pressed close to him so it doesn't glint in the morning light, and waits...
Quintessa is the essence of stealth itself. Her hiding spot is perfect and she is perfectly tucked away. She readies her crossbow, hoping she will not need it.
As the bandits continue to pick up the trade goods, and haul them to their mounts at the gate, one of the notices the loose bedroll that Teela slept in the night prior. "Oy, what's that?!?" he shouts pointing to the catwalk above the gate. "Dere's some funny bidnes, Happs!". The man in question drops his trade goods to the ground and grabs for his dagger. And the others turn their attention to where he is pointing.
Happs, the man with the cloak, growls. "What's this then?" and reaches for an arrow. At this, Alvis figures the jig is up, and blows a loud shrill blast on his signal whistle, alerting the others to action.
It seems there will be a fight at Oleg's this morning...
Ambush at Oleg's - Round 1
26 Faen (stealth)
23 Graham (stealth)
23 Teela
22 Alvis
22 Happs
21 Green Bandit
19 Yellow Bandit
17 Oleg
15 Velas (stealth)
13 Red Bandit
7 Orange Bandit
7 Svetlana
6 Blue Bandit
5 Quintessa
At the bandit's "Oy!" Graham mouths a curse and takes a deep breath. The signal comes and he leaps into action.
He races around the courtyard, interposing himself between the brigands and the Levetons. This, scalawag, is the end of your little squeeze!
Faen takes aim with the leader Happ through the gap between door and frame, throwing two knives in quick succession!
She then eases back into the shadows once more to conceal her location
Ambush at Oleg's - Round 1 - continued
26 Faen (stealth)
23 Graham
23 Teela
22 Alvis
22 Happs
21 Green Bandit
19 Yellow Bandit
17 Oleg
15 Velas (stealth)
13 Red Bandit
7 Orange Bandit
7 Svetlana
6 Blue Bandit
5 Quintessa
Faen throws a pair of daggers out the door of the barn, the first misses, but the second solidly hits the surprised leader of the bandit force, burying itself hilt deep in his back. She is able to stay hidden in the barn, and slinks back in the shadows just to be sure.
At the same moment, Graham bursts from the hay barn, jumping in front of the Levetons to protect them. His strike scores a hit against the lightly-armored Happs, and Graham nods triumphantly as the target slumps to the ground, apparently killed.
Hearing what what these bandits have to say about Svetlana, Teela squints and her lips tighten. She quickly stands up, looks around the yard and then outside. Seeing a lone man guarding the horses, she hurls a forearm-sized wooden stake from the palisade at this person.
◆ Stand up from prone, ◆◆ Telekinetic Projectile vs Green
Alvis sees Teela rip a stake and hurl it at someone outside, he debates for a second if he could jump from this height but rejects it. Looks at the four guys between him and most of the others and knows he can't face that many at once. Castigating himself for not thinking through how out of position he would be if the plan failed, he does what little he can.
He calls upon the power of the Master of the First vault to protect the defenders of justice. A faint golden glow fills an area around Alvis for fifteen feet.
Cast Benediction two actions, interaction to pick up his shield.
BENEDICTION [two-actions] SPELL 1
AURA CONCENTRATE MANIPULATE MENTAL
Traditions divine
Area 15-foot emanation
Duration 1 minute
Divine protection helps protect your companions. You and
your allies gain a +1 status bonus to AC while within the
emanation. Once per round on subsequent turns, you can
Sustain the spell to increase the emanation’s radius by 10
feet. Benediction can counteract malediction.
Alvis is a 16 or 17 AC. If shield is usable, he will use shield block, if not, he's just hanging on to it.
Ambush at Oleg's - Round 1 - continued
26 Faen (stealth)
23 Graham
23 Teela
22 Alvis
21 Green Bandit
19 Yellow Bandit
17 Oleg
15 Velas (stealth)
13 Red Bandit
7 Orange Bandit
7 Svetlana
6 Blue Bandit
5 Quintessa
Teela fires off a telekinetic sliver of the wooden palisade that strikes the man holding the horses outside the gate who was mostly unaware of the ambush until then. The wooden stake strikes him in the flank, and he howls in pain.
Also on the catwalk above the gate, Alvis casts a spell intended to protect his allies, the emanation growing in an area 15' on all sides of him. Right now, that emanation only encompasses him. Then he grabs his shield, but still lies prone.
The Green Bandit outside the gate, now wounded, shouts at the others. "It's a trap! Let's git!" as if the others didn't already see Happs cut down in a matter of seconds. He unties the knot of reins and mounts his horse, waiting a beat for the others to catch up.
Yellow bandit, near the gate, also cuts and runs, grabbing his horse's reins and also mounting, but not able to get far away this turn. "Happs is dead!," he shouts in a panicked voice. "I ain't fightin' no more."
Oleg is a bit stunned at the speed by which Happs was cut down, and he stands there a moment before realizing the bandits are cutting and running. He shouts something angry and primal at the bandits, reaching for his hammer from his tool belt and launching himself at the nearest raider, swinging wildly, maybe scoring a glancing blow, but not doing any real damage.
Velas jumps into action when he hears the whistle and rushes into the fray. Momentarily he is torn between assisting Oleg with one of the bandits and chasing down the fleeing cowards. "Oleg, to Svetlana!"
Velas stops within reach of the bandit near Oleg and attacks him with a combination of blade and the arcane.
◆ Stride
◆◆ Spellstrike w/ Gouging Claw at Red Bandit
Ambush at Oleg's - Round 1 - continued
26 Faen (stealth)
23 Graham
23 Teela
22 Alvis
21 Green Bandit (4hp dmg, mounted)
19 Yellow Bandit (mounted)
17 Oleg
15 Velas
13 Red Bandit
7 Orange Bandit
7 Svetlana
6 Blue Bandit
5 Quintessa
Velas leaps from his hiding spot and lays into the nearest brigand, hitting it with his dueling sword and a magical clawing spell. Caught between the two attacks, the Red Bandit defends against neither, and dies as he turns to run away.
Orange Bandit runs away, around the back end of the cart, dropping his armful of hides and furs. He makes it to the horses, and gathers the reins preparing to mount.
Frightened by the violence close up, Svetlana turns and heads for the house, perhaps not quite as fast as the bandits seem to be fleeing at the first sign of resistance. "Oleg, be safe!" she calls as she enters the dwelling.
Blue Bandit is able to get to his horse, gather himself, and mount into the saddle, turning his pony to flee.
Quintessa slides down the catwalk to get in ranges of two of the fleeing bandits, sending a blast of electricity their way.
Ambush at Oleg's - Round 1 - concluded
26 Faen (stealth)
23 Graham
23 Teela
22 Alvis
21 Green Bandit (4hp dmg, mounted)
19 Yellow Bandit (mounted)
17 Oleg
15 Velas
13 Red Bandit (mounted)
7 Orange Bandit
7 Svetlana (inside)
6 Blue Bandit (mounted)
5 Quintessa
Quintessa comes down from the tower, entering the emanation cast by Alvis coincidentally, and then unleashes an electrical spell that arcs from one of the mounted bandits to another. Whether its because they aren't grounded the same on horseback, or they just shifted the right way, both bandits avoid the worst of the electrical damage. Green looks very unsteady in the saddle after the blast however, while Blue cries out when the shock hits him.
End of Round 1
Graham curses and races out the gate, intent on ending this threat if possible. Hold here, Oleg, he says as he moves past the man.
Faen's eyebrows rise as the leader falls under her and Graham's assault, and rise higher as the others run away. "Cowards" she mutters under her breath, before hustling out after the fleeing bandits, catching up to them at the gate.
Teela starts smacking her palms against the wooden fortifications, using the material as a drum. Interestingly enough, the thing sounds much like a series of distant war drums after she reinforces the sound with her inner magical reserves.
"No one's gonna own us! Tearing down the tyrants! Glory to the fighters! We're in the dance of death!"
As she slams the palisades, a loose nail flies out to strike one of the bandits.
You add a flourish to your composition to extend its benefits. If your next action is to cast a cantrip composition with a duration of 1 round, attempt a Performance check. The DC is usually a standard-difficulty DC of a level equal to the highest-level target of your composition, but the GM can assign a different DC based on the circumstances. The effect depends on the result of your check.
Critical Success The composition lasts 4 rounds.
Success The composition lasts 3 rounds.
Failure The composition lasts 1 round, but you don't spend the Focus Point for casting this spell.
This should be standard DC equal to party level with buff compositions (LINK), so I assume the 21 works. Let me know if not, Doc.
Alvis having no ranged attack worth much, too unlikely to hit, he seeks to secure the possibility of another approach, sustains his spell increasing the area by ten feet, rises, and moves to get down the ladder.
Calling out he says, "If their horses are not trained for combat, if you hurt them they will likely throw their rider. That's sad but them escaping will be worse for us." Alvis is looking not at the fleeing bandits or the others but at the dying bandit, in a calculating way.
Sustain, Stand, Move
Ambush at Oleg's - Round 2
26 Faen (stealth)
23 Graham
23 Teela
22 Alvis
19 Yellow Bandit (mounted)
17 Oleg
15 Velas
5 Quintessa
Graham rushes out of the trading post to stop the fleeing bandits, making it adjacent the seriously hurt Green Bandit. He dispatches Green with a flick of his rapier, ending him.
Faen leaps from her hiding spot, and also hustles to engage the villains before they make their escape. She exposes herself in the process, and is no longer sneaking, but her dagger plunges deep in the side of Orange Bandit, and he falls from the saddle face down in the dust, also killed.
Teela begins beating a cadence on the wooden walls that turns into a rousing drumbeat, increasing the prowess of her and her allies. From there, nails fly from the wooden fence, striking the most distant bandit, Blue, in the face, and killing him as well.
Alvis continues his benediction, the protective aura growing around his allies as he rises and moves.
Seeing all his allies fall, Yellow Bandits spurs his horse, spinning away from Graham and Faen and riding south as fast as it possibly can. Horse and rider are quickly more than 100' away.
Oleg stand and lets out a loud war-whoop as the bandits turn tail and many of them fall. "That'll teach them! Run you yellow bastards!"
Velas spins on his heels as the bandit in front of falls limply to the group. He runs as quickly as he can past the carnage just outside the walls and tries his best to catch the lone bandit that escaped, but the horse is certainly faster.
Heart racing from the run, the fight, and the anticipation of a fight, Velas keels over and gasps for air. He slowly walks back to the fort to rejoin the group.
As the last bandit rides away,all elbows and knees, Faen pulls her bow, knocks an arrow and aims , takes a deep breath and looses the arrow....and again....and again
Faen drops her knives and draws out her bow, firing at the fleeing horseman. The first shot actually wings the rider, but the last one falls woefully short and off the mark.