Stanislaw nods. "Agreed. We should see what kind of defenses we can bring to bear. Oleg, have you any bear traps or things that can be used to slow them?"
Bear traps? No, but now that you mention it, there is a crate of old Alchemist's Fire that Bokkem made that we were going to dispose of because they are leaking and unstable. Maybe you can rig something from that."
Oleg thinks for a moment.
"There may be as many as a dozen of them coming if Hap is involved."
Things you know so far:
The gate to the stockcade is broken and pegged open. It would take too long to repair. Eack corner of the stockcade has an unroofed watch platform that gives a good view of the area surrounding the trade post.
If Harter meant his conversation with Piret to be a pep talk, he failed. To Piret what he says sounds more like a nascent plan for war. That is fine with Piret though. Clearly she had misapprehended what the expedition would be like due to excessive optimism or wishful thinking. And even then, she had never expected all conflict would be avoided. She would just have to adjust her thinking to the circumstances at hand.
Now, with a new attack on the outpost likely, Piret her mind to the problem of mounting an effective defense.
"A dozen? That seems like a lot of bandits... How will they be armed?"
”I suppose there is little point to tracking the ones that fled if they will be returning with greater numbers.” Elenaril responds, considering Oleg’s expectation. ”If we cannot secure the gates, then we will have to make the area outside the walls more hazardous. That I can help with.”
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Although Harter wanted to continue the discussion on how to deal with the bandits' morale, he realized the subject is a new one. Unfortunately he doesn't have enough knowledge on tactical combat to contribute, so he just stays silent. He does think the subject of how to handle the bandits' morale should be touched before the attack. He waits for a better time.
"The alchemist's fire will help, although we'll want to be careful we don't set the trading post on fire. Any tar or pitch we could spread on the ground outside the trading post? It could slow them from approaching, and then we could ignite it with the alchemist's fire. I can post up on one of the towers to provide archery cover. Would anyone else be effective on the other?"
”Aye. With any luck they won’t see the tar or pitch. Especially if they decide to come at dusk or night. Human eyes aren’t the best…” The dwarf said, running his fingers through his beard. ”All said, I’m glad they are coming. If we are to face their greater numbers it should be on our terms. As for the plan of battle, I’ll at the front gate when they come. I’m not the sharpest shot, but I can hold ground when needed.”
"The alchemist fire won't burn the palisade. It's explosive, consuming the fuel inside the container immediately. It's actually very hard to burn large pieces of wood like the logs comprising the palisade walls. They aren't arranged in a way to provide the needed ongoing heat and airflow a fire would need. At worst the posts very close to a blast might be slightly scorched, just a bit of cosmetic damage. If anyone isn't sufficiently confident I'm right, the posts can be soaked with water for extra safety."
"If the vials aren't stable, we don't want to throw them. Somebody could lose a hand, or be burned badly. But I think I have an idea for using them without having to move them about. I'll come back to that in a minute."
"We can't close and bar the gate, so a standard siege defense isn't an option. We could try to obstruct the gate opening somehow, but do we really want to keep them out, or invite them in? If their numbers would be smaller, I'd think letting them all come into the open courtyard to be ambushed would be best. But a dozen of them would be hard to surround and deal with quickly. It could lead to a messy pitched battle."
"I would suggest a combination of seeming to try to keep them out, while letting them in. How exactly that could be done depends on what we have on hand to use, as well as whether they will be mounted or on foot and how they are armed. Both could be dealt with by a combination of barricade and hidden pit or ditch traps containing some alchemical fire."
Piret asks Oleg about those details.
"Are the bandits usually on foot or riding when they arrive? How are they armed?"
"Also, is there a wagon, or cart, something like that around? How much spare wood, planks or logs, is on-hand?"
Responding to Piret's questions, Oleg says, "They are almost always on foot, horses aren't that common among them. I have two wagons in the stable."
"Letting them inside the walls would be a mistake, especially if they outnumber us. And any magic that would make the terrain more difficult for them would also affect us if we do." Elenaril points out.
"If we can't close the gates, we can't keep them out. What we can do is punish them for coming in. My suggestion is to make it look like we're trying to block the entrance while leaving them specific choices for coming in. We trap each of those routes with the alchemist fire vials."
"Specifically, we park the wagons across the gate opening. They can go around the wagons on either side, they can go under the wagons, or they can go over the wagons. We dig shallow ditches on each side of the wagons where they will turn the corner coming around. We also dig two ditches beside each wagon on the inside. Depending on the number of vials in the crate, we put the vials of alchemist fire in the ditches, and lay a plank or board across the top of them. We camouflage the ditches with cloth over them and a little dirt on top. When anyone steps on the ditch, their foot goes down onto the plank, which will press it down enough to break the vials and boom!"
"Hopefully we get one or two of them with each trap and take them out. We can also set more "traps" down across the courtyard. Of course we don't have enough vials to actually arm them. But after seeing what happens when they are stepped on, I'll bet none of the other bandits are going to test them. We can locate the false traps in a pattern that will prevent them from charging unless they are willing to step on some of them."
"Our problem is we're not a company or archers. If we were, we would have the option of fighting from the towers and a better blocked gate. But we can't use a siege defense because we're better prepared for hand-to-hand combat."
"So, how we respond to them will depend on whether they are archers or not. We'll need someone as a spotter up on one of the towers to take their measure once they're in sight. If the bandits are armed with bows, we have to close on them. We'll stay out of sight close to the gate. Once the traps have done what they can, we rush them at the wagons, half of us from each side. In that case the decoy traps in the courtyard probably won't matter."
"If they are not so well armed with bows, we use our ranged weapons from down across the courtyard behind any cover we can find or construct. Hopefully they don't get wise to the fake traps and must approach us slowly, giving us a little more time for a few extra shots. When they make it to us, all of us will be waiting except for Meredith."
"Meredith, you will be mounted and we'll find a place where you can be out of sight. Once they reach us, you'll circle around and hit them from behind. I'm pretty sure being charged by a mounted rider will scare them about as much as it would terrify me."
"So, now critique time. Where does this plan go wrong? What is it not accounting for? What are the bad assumptions?"
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Harter forgets to breathe as Piret speaks. When she's done, he says "Well, then... For someone who doesn't get in a lot of fights, you do know a lot about fighting!" He chuckles and continues "Well, as to your critique... Meredith might need support. As capable as she is, she might get a volley of arrows before she reaches them, depending on how many they are, how perceptive they are and how noisy her armor is as she's getting ready for a charge."
"A good plan, Piret, save for the fact that I am an archer. I'll be better utilized from up high on one of the watch towers. I can also keep a look out to let you know when they're coming so you can get into position from there."
"Seems like we are in agreement then. Well, as much as we can be, knowing shyt about the enemy's numbers or capabilities." Sven said with a sardonic smile. "Meredith can stay hidden outside of the trading post, and can come at a pre-approved signal. Be it a sound, or just explosions. And I'll likely pray to me deity to bring forth another celestial creature when the fighting kicks off. Put that near their archers, and it'll hopefully distract them long enough for our lass to close the distance."
With that said, he turned back towards the post. "We'd best get working, aye? These ditches aren't going to dig themselves, nor will carts move on their own accord. We'd best get this done now, so we don't start this fight exhausted."
"Ah, one thing I should be been clearer about. I meant Meredith to only be mounted if the bandits don't have a lot of bows among them. In that situation we would be luring the bandits inside across the courtyard to us. She would be inside the stockade waiting behind an outbuilding or something large enough to keep her hidden until the bandits are all the way across the courtyard and attacking them from behind then, when we are fighting them from the front."
"I think if would be too dangerous for Meredith to be outside. The stockade walls limit a bow's range inside. Outside archers could start shooting at Meredith when she's a long way off still. Besides, we would want to meet the bandits at the wagons in front of the gate and force them to fight hand-to-hand if they're mostly armed with bows. If we fight them at the wagons, any archers outside will have very limited targeting on us. Archers inside the gate won't have space to use their bows. In that scenario we'd probably want Meredith dismounted and with us. It would be tight trying to maneuver a horse on the inside. Outside she would be too isolated, very dangerous."
"Yes Stanislaw, you're the best choice to take the watch from up on a tower. You probably wouldn't even need to waste time coming down from it to be in the fight."
Piret smiles slightly at Harter's comment.
"I make maps. I care about terrain and how it functions. I also know a little about alchemy. Also, if you think about it, the plan I've laid out is aimed to do the most to stop the bandits with the least possible actual fighting. At least to my way of thinking, if Meredith hits the bandits from the rear by surprise while they're trying to fight us at their front, they might panic and break, either running or surrendering."
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Harter is more affected by Piret's smile as he'd have liked. He is glad to see her break her stoic and calculating take for a bit of warmth, but his life experience makes him wonder if her smile is of endearing warmth or of ironic dismissal.
He decides to add "Well if most of them are archers, then a mist spell will either force them into melee or allow us to deal with the melee threat and give us time to prepare for them."
”No one should be outside the fort when they arrive. I plan to make the area outside the walls a very hostile environment.” Elenaril adds. ”I would take a spot on one of the towers. From there, I can see the field and attack at range, as well as use the environment against them”
Oleg helps set up makeshift barriers and pulls out the wagon as well. While making preparations, upi fond a couple of barrels of tar.
"We can spread this on the ground inside the gate, that should slow down their initial rush. It maight also make the explosion from the crate more effective.
"I can at least prepare the crate, but someone else will need to set it off. Any good jolt should do it after I get it ready." Bokken tells you.
"I ain't young anymore, I'll be hiding inside with Svetlana when they come."
I can get on and can see the map.
Stanislaw nods as he helps Oleg get the wagon in position. "The tar should help make it harder for the bandits to move. Can we set the alchemist's fire off with a good jolt, or do we need to hit it with a fire arrow or something?"
A gnome comes out from one of the small rooms, stretches, looks around, and then says, "Did I miss an important meeting or something?"
He is clean-shaven and dressed rather plainly (by gnome standards), with smooth brown hair and an earthen complexion. He cranes his neck up to try to get a view of the gate, which is challenging given his height.
"Are we having a party?"
Stanislaw blinks as a gnome suddenly appears from one of the buildings. "Er, hello. I am Stanislaw Medvyed. We're a group of explorers chartered by Restov to map the Greenbelt and deal with the bandits plaguing this area. Master Leveton did not mention any other guests. Who might you be?"
"Ivo. Pleased to meet you. Actually I was at the charter party, but I left early. I've been here a little while already. All the noise and banging around got me to come out and see what you folks have been up to. Looks like you're preparing to invite someone in and then give them a very bad day," says the gnome.
”The bandits that have been banditizing this place are coming. We killed the last lot, and the new group hasn’t learned the lesson we be teaching.” The dwarf said. ”Also, good to meet ye, Izo. If we both survive the day then I look forward to getting to know ye more.”
"In that case, I should get my bow. And maybe put on my traveling armor," says the gnome. He disappears back into a dark corner somewhere (where has he been sleeping all this time? How did he avoid getting noticed? who knows) and about fifteen minutes later returns with drab studded leather armor and a tiny bow.
"So um. I see you've spread some tar around the front entrance there. Plan is basically to get them to charge in, get stuck, then pick them off, yeah?"
”A warm welcome.” Sven said, dryly.
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Harter looks at Ivo inquisitively and says "My, we've been here talking for a while, have you slept through the entire conversation? Uhm, forgive me, yes, we can very much use extra help in the coming fight. They won't charge in due to the tar we've spilled at the front, but we do expect them to do their best in getting to us. I see your chosen weapon is a bow. We think bowmen should stand on these towers to the side, so they have a good view of the battlefield."
"Make sure that everyone remains inside the walls before the battle starts. I plan to make the terrain outside, a very hostile environment." Elenaril says, giving the newcomer a nod, and climbing to the top of one of the towers, forwarding her an excellent advantage point from which to cast.
Harter looks at Ivo inquisitively and says "My, we've been here talking for a while, have you slept through the entire conversation? Uhm, forgive me, yes, we can very much use extra help in the coming fight. They won't charge in due to the tar we've spilled at the front, but we do expect them to do their best in getting to us. I see your chosen weapon is a bow. We think bowmen should stand on these towers to the side, so they have a good view of the battlefield."
"I've been around, I just had my own things to do and really didn't cross paths with you all until now."
"Up in the tower, eh? I can do that."
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As you prepare, you gain some respect for Oleg. He choose the site for this trading post well. From the corner platforms you have a commanding view of the surrounding countryside. The post is built on a slight rise and the nearest substantial cover is almost a quarter of a mile away. The road itself is easily observable for even further.
You see a group approaching from the West, it looks to be about a dozen. They seem overconfident as they take no precuations as they near the post.
Sven waited right until the men were at the gate to begin praying. He knew that his ability to channel divine energy was limited, but he wanted to make it last.
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Harter's heart races as they wait. He feels he finally understands what his old friend Martin meant when he used to talk about watching pots as they boil. He looks at the others and starts to wonder... He himself was blessed by Erastil with divine powers and he trained enough in the use of weapons and armor, and he was still nervous. How were the others feeling?
As they wait, he decides to speak "Friends, we may be prepared, but this will still be a tough fight. But we can be sure of one thing. We have come to bring law and justice to this land. Our mission is not to bully honest folk or self-enrichment." He makes a point to look each of the others in the eyes and continues "We represent something larger than us, and because of it, our resolve is greater. Our will is stronger. We must prevail, because if we don't, the alternative is unthinkable. Our task is too important, our duty is... It's imperative." He marks his speech with a cry "For the Stolen Lands!"
Harter doesn't have any magic to boost himself or his allies. However, for now, he leaves his big sword sheathed and takes out his shortbow and makes sure the arrows are easy to grasp. He reinforces the strategy to the others "Remember, let them come to us. If we rush out to meet them, we give up all the advantage we now have."
Elenaril stands silent watch from atop one of the towers, breathing deeply of the air before the enemies arrive. She once again whispers remembrance into a few stones, awakening the power of old, before setting them back in her pouch.
She spends the rest of the time, silently communing with the environment around her, developing the best possible sense of how to use it to their advantage.