Nope, I'm still here. :)
Also, I heard that Connor/Winddancer's player's internet has been down/slow enough that Paizo kept timing out. He should be back when it's up and running again.
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Time for a BOLLYWOOD SONG AND DANCE NUMBER! *Alex does the Electric Boogaloo amid beautifully choreographed fighting to sitar music*
Sorry I didn't respond sooner - the forums were down for me for quite a while, intermittently. Usually disappearing right when I wanted to post something. :P I guess Alex would have to drop his gun, then.
Alexander holstered one of his guns, whipping out his rapier in its place. Darting forward with teeth bared, he attempted to jam the rapier between Ror's joints.
= 11 - 1 raise? depending on MAP
= 8 (without raise)
With two of the aliens fighting (and in check by K'Don and Katana as well), Alexander eyed the mechanical man consideringly. What a marvel it would be if they could disassemble it and discover how to make their own! Leveling his guns, he fired them in an attempt to see whether they were useful at all against such a construct.
Seeing that his attack had not fazed the thing in the least, Alexander hesitated. Perhaps his rapier might do what these strange guns could not... there were seams in the thing's joints, after all. Surely they could be exploited.
Connor raised a good point - if we're using the deflection shields on our wristbands, do our potions "stack" with that effect?
Alexander targeted Xvark, thinking to deal with the faster of the two first, then let everyone move in as a group and deal with the last two. He would bet on K'Don against a lumbering brute any day. Still, he waited for Arabella to fire first.
Success? Do we get a bonus for the Trick, or is the bonus just that we get to act first?
Alexander had been so relieved that Connor was alright that he actually gave the boy a brief hug, which was far out of character for him. Standing back as WindDancer flew at the lad, he hemmed and hawed a bit. "Good lad. I dare say that was a test of manhood even K'Don will admit to being sufficient. All you need do now is learn to shoot, and you'll be part-owner of our enterprise in no time." He nodded to Marko, as well. "Perhaps you might summon that beast of yours before we tackle the next lot, eh?" His narrowed eyes glanced sidelong at the centipedes, but whatever thoughts he had of them, he managed to keep them to himself, or so he believed. Still, his hands flexed on the grips of the guns they had been given. These will be worth a fortune. I wonder how many more these creatures have. *** Alexander frowned at the mention of the psionic creature. "Isn't that the sort of magic they said you have, Connor?" He knelt by Connor, one hand on the boy's shoulder to shake him for emphasis. "One thing I know is that being armed makes you a target. If that thing's magic is too much for you, you run back here. Understood? But first, do try and shoot it once or twice." He ruffled Connor's hair and stood. "K'Don, are you feeling well enough to be set loose on these things? I'll not soon forget their vicious power." What an attraction they would be at a hunting resort! A pity I don't actually have such a resort at the moment. First things first. Alexander readied his odd, silent guns, prepared to fire the moment the next door opened.
Alexander appeared angry, though he didn't give voice to his complaints for a change, nor did he hover around Arabella. Instead, he gave the barrel-alien a kick, then went to lift Connor into his arms. As a dead weight, the boy was heavy! Still, all this running about and mining and whatnot had given Alexander a bit more strength, so he managed without dropping the wounded lad, or exacerbating his wounds. He didn't object as WindDancer curled up on him, either. "Let's go see those damn bugs," he grated.
Alexander shook his guns, as though that would help them work more efficiently, then took a step closer to the horrid monster and fired again:
= 16 and 6
Alex shook his head sharply as the preternatural acuity of his vision faded; his shots failed to strike the barrel-thing.
Whoops!
3+8 = 11 Does that get through?
Yeah, I usually do that. Forgot that time, though. :/ If the problem with IE is newish, then it's because of the upgrade Paizo had to do. IE 11 and up should work, according to the email I got. Of course, it the problem is old, then I got nothin'.
My posts just got eaten as well, and notifications didn't happen for me, either. Bad forum! No cookies!
Alexander breathed a sigh of relief when he found a pulse still beating in Connor's neck. Then a scowl crept over his face as he clambered over the dead snake-thing, circling the wolf Marko had summoned until he had a good shot. He raised both guns and let loose at the barrel-thing.
Just wanted to say that I'll be attending a wedding on Saturday, so I won't be able to post while I'm gone.
"Surrender or suffer the same fate, monster!" Alex yelled at the tentacle-drum, but he didn't move to attack. Instead, he knelt by Connor, keeping an eye on the alien out of the corner of his eye, but doing his best to stop Connor's bleeding. For the first time, his face showed how much he cared about the boy as he looked down on the red ruin of his body.
Alexander watched to his horror as Connor stepped in front of the snake-monster for a fateful moment.
Result: Alex hits Connor/Marko and Arabella hits Alex, and they drop like dominoes. LOL Shortest battle ever. ;)
"Connor!" About to follow Arabella's example and pull back, Alexander hesitated when he saw that Connor was against the wall with Marko. Instead he shot at the monster hemming Connor in, his teeth bared in a grimace.
Alexander's pause to take aim bore fruit as he nailed the snake-dragon-creature in a length of its coiling, twisting body.
Thanks. :)
9 doesn't get through its toughness. :(
11=success
Alexander stood firm, raising an unfamiliar gun in each hand and firing at the dragon-thing. He felt his vision was sharper, his balance and aim more coordinated, and savored the effect. "Ugly tossers. A pity we can't have them stuffed and displayed in WeMadeIt." Obviously, he was having a hard time thinking of the monstrous creatures as sentient.
Though Alexander had been expecting something weird, the level of weird surprised him a bit - enough that he focused on pointing his guns at the dragon-ish thing rather than the more incomprehensible tentacle drum. "Surrender n- bother, do they understand us?!"
Alex would like two guns, if he can get them (Ambidexterous). He'll try to convince Connor to take one, but I don't know if he's successful. :P
Alexander was quite impressed with the guns they were given, despite the warning that it would take several shots to down a target - in fact, the thought was a bit of a relief, given that Connor didn't seem quite comfortable with them. He was even more impressed with the earbuds; he could think of quite a few people who would pay handsomely for such useful magic. He eyed Arabella, trying to get a sense of whether she understood the workings of these things. If she could create something like this with her crystals... well, wealth and renown weren't far off! "I say, these items are quite interesting. I should think that they would be reasonable compensation for our efforts, or at least a step in the right direction."
"No, quite right. But there's a trigger here, and I presume this nozzle should be pointed at what you wish to shoot. Strange times lead to strange bedfellows, and their strange equipment," Alexander muttered, hoping Connor wouldn't panic and shoot him (or the others) by accident. The gods only knew what this foreign bit of technology did. The boy would probably use his strange power instead, if such a thing worked on whatever passed for prisoners in this place, but Alexander felt better armed. Rising, he turned to the weird insects and demanded, "Tell us what to look for, and where. What manner of attack might we expect from your prisoners?"
Alexander put up a little fuss about leaving his pistol behind ("A Taarnfalk heirloom left behind? Preposterous!"), but in the end was willing to compromise by leaving the gunpowder and shot with the centipedes, on their solemn oath that they would return it. He accepted guns for himself and Connor, kneeling by the boy. "Another adventure for the Taarnfalk men, eh?" he said with false cheer, wrapping Connor's hand around the gun. "Just like we practiced, understand? Good lad. Stay close, and keep WindDancer from flying off."
Alexander pushed Connor behind him with his pistol hand. The things seemed truthful about not harming them... but they were... things. "Either I've been drinking all this time, or those rather enormous centipedes speak the common tongue," he answered Connor. He didn't put away his pistol, despite the creatures' warnings - what little protection it provided from the inmates, he wanted, and who ever heard of a single pistol killing everyone? "So you offer us nothing but threats? At least offer us answers. It takes only a moment to explain where we are, and perhaps why." He couldn't think of a politic way of adding, and what you are.
"Ahem. Excellent work, Arabella." Alexander sheveled himself and poked his head out the door to confirm what Connor (and WindDancer) had told them. Leaning back in, he regarded the rest of the party seriously. "Does anyone have ANY idea where we are, how we got here, or anything of the sort? Were we close to Gerta's contact on the map? This isn't some dwarf hall, is it?" He made a moue of distaste at the thought. "In any case, I would prefer not to be captured in that box of a room once again. Come, let us venture forth. While K'Don was our guide in the wild, perhaps a stealthier approach is called for here. Connor, can you stay in touch with WindDancer if she's out of sight?" He pulled out his pistol and rapier and held them ready, prepared to sneak down the lit corridor.
Alexander nodded to Connor with approval. No nephew of his would take orders from a native! All the same, should fighting be called for... "You're your own man now, Connor. But I would suggest helping to get K'Don there armored. I don't imagine that whoever is responsible for this odd circumstance will be friendly to our arrival." He patted Connor's shoulder encouragingly, careful not to bother WindDancer on her perch.
"I would make an exception for such dire circumstances, Connor," Alexander noted, having decided (with some relief) that he wasn't dead. "What in blazes happened back there? And where are we? Arabella, what is this?"
K'Don will talk to Connor about being his squire.
Alex had already been worried as they strapped themselves into the contraption that Arabella assured them would fly. By the time they were actually in the air, his grip on his seat was so tight the wood creaked. Then there was the accident - or was it an assault? It made no difference to Alex. He yelled as the aircart tipped, certain that this was the end... and he wasn't so sure he hadn't been right when he looked around and saw nothing. He hadn't been expecting to go to Heaven, after all... but this was a bit odd. "Steady on," he muttered to himself, shaking hands seeking the clasps of his straps. A little louder, he added, "Is... is anyone there?"
My condolences about your father in law, Arabella. I'm sorry to hear that.
Alexander drew Connor aside, intending to teach him how to shoot in their downtime. He didn't bother to make himself useful in any other way, though he followed along Arabella sometimes and watched her disable the machinery with interest.
"Yes, do load the cart. Should we see trouble coming, we might as well have taken whatever we could take." Alexander made no move to help, instead peering at a handful of gems as he held them up to the light.
I've put Alex's Advancements at the bottom of his sheet.
Drawn by the sound of Arabella's crying, Alexander found her rocking back and forth in a corner, sobbing her heart out. Kneeling at her side as Katana left, he spoke quietly. "It has been a long, hard time for you, I know. The pressure on you has been enormous; without you, we would never have escaped, and would likely have been dead." He didn't think it was the time to mention his inner thought that they probably wouldn't have been targeted in the first place but for her. Touching her cheek, he ducked his head in an effort to meet her eyes. "Thanks to you, we are alive and well - ah, more or less. We have done more than merely survive - we have taken Gerta's crystals, and whatever evil she had planned, we have put an end to - all thanks to you. If you cannot take comfort in that, then know that for saving Connor, I am eternally grateful. The Taarnfalk home will always be open to you... once I've built it, of course." Rising, he let her be, going instead to see whether K'Don had been patched together, and to gather what spoils he could find.
I'm going to be pretty busy until after Sunday, but I'll try to keep up. Did Alex get an increased attribute last advancement? I can't recall. I think it was the one before that. Does that mean he can get another one now? The change sounds good to me!
Shaken to the ground by the concussion of the exploding gun, Alexander heaved himself to his feet and immediately looked around for Connor. Seeing the boy safe, he moved to pat the boy on his back. His little dragon should be back any moment, unless the noise scared it off. "Let's see about saving our native guide, eh?" His voice was loud as he tried to speak over the ringing in his ears. "Well done, K'Don, Marko, Arabella." His tone wasn't even grudging for having missed doing Gerta in; at this point, he was glad to have survived. Instead of leading Connor over to K'Don, Alexander released the boy and went to see if Arabella was all right.
Shall this vile brute best me in a contest of arms? Impossible! Alexander shifted his stance and pressed the attack, his face a mask of casual disdain, one hand behind his back. His rapier zipped through the air like lightning, daring the orc to open himself to Alexander's precise stabs. "You shan't live to tell of this, you know. What a pity," he noted diffidently as he circled the orc.
I'm going to be away from my computer most of tomorrow and the day after. ZF, feel free to DMPC Alex if necessary.
A glance at the other fight worried Alexander; if Gerta escaped, their troubles were far from over. Hoping someone would get on the cart to prevent the dwarf from escaping on it, he tried to enrage her enough to prevent her from thinking to do so. "Fool dwarf! Your reign here is at an end, no matter how clever you thought yourself to be! Face it, you were no better than the worst of us!" + gangup w Winddancer & Katana? :P
"Your friends are vanquished, your employer soon to be the same. Be a good chap and hold still." Alexander circled the last remaining orc, darting in to jab with his rapier...
...but too much of his attention was focused on what was going on by the magic cart to fell the orc.
With Connor behind him, Alexander wasn't about to yield ground to the foaming brute at the end of his blade. He pressed the attack, saying loudly, "Once I have seen to this ruffian, Connor, there will be a path free to tend to K'Don, if he yet lives. Where has that little dragon of yours gone?"
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