Summoner

Krokar's page

73 posts. Alias of CampinCarl9127.


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Male Half-Orc

"We've each been preparing for the different areas. Alia will support you in the Muskegons, Jasper will support you on Cypress Island, and I will support you at the Sky Cliffs."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar frowns. "Insightful. I won't sit here and lie to you and say we're not concerned about Andril's quickly-growing power. It was a factor in our decision. But regardless of that we still believe this course of action would be the most beneficial for Brumik."


Male Half-Orc
Toramin Gearsmith wrote:
"Which as I just mentioned could lead to open war because it is ludicrous to believe that any state will sit on its thumbs while being attacked by its neighbors who go 'sorry, those were our brigands.' States that are not seen by their neighbors as being able to maintain the integrity of their borders do not long remain states."

Krokar shakes his head. "They won't be "Brumik's brigands", they will just be lawless and unaffiliated bandits."


Male Half-Orc
Dalton Barrowwheel wrote:
"Why not let them reap what they sowed? Enough people in the pockets of the dark merchants to hand the government over? Let them go to this war and oppose them on the fields. Once the tides turn against them, the motivation for profit will be extinguished and the direction of investment - if not the power of the investors - will be changed."

Krokar grunts. "A good point. That was similar to what I was thinking originally. If they wanted to play with blades so bad I'd say let them get a few cuts and go home to lick their wounds. Problem is, their entire force is officially just mercenaries and sellswords. That means Brumik is technically innocent of any aggressive actions, making counter measures difficult. In addition we would like to see the problem handled internally instead of waiting for it to escalate to involve the other nations. We're hoping for less bloodshed that way."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar stares at Pazeek for a moment, then Toramin, then nods. "Alright."

"Yes Pazeek the official position was offered, but we wanted to have a chance for you to see how we work as well as give us a chance to see you in the field before making anything final. As long as you and the majority of the council are agreed, you will gain full status."

"Assuming that happens, and I'm betting it will, would you be alright with waiting a while to come back to this rune giant? We will of course defend the village in the meantime if the necessity arises, but it will be a while until we mount an offensive."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar nods. "Yes, that's what we had intended on sending you all on next. I'll brief the rest of the council on what we learned today. You all should rest while you can, we'll get you set up with some rooms."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar grimaces. "It would be difficult diplomacy indeed. Trickery perhaps could work, but we would most likely send a different team based on your feedback from previously. Perhaps this mission ought to wait for another time, after we're better prepared and Heff has had time to gather more intel. We know next to nothing of this particular rune giant."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar allows a moment of silence, looking between the two. "Is this going to be a problem? Beyond clashing personalities, I don't care if you b~&!~ at each other out in the field. Can you work together without compromising the mission?"


Male Half-Orc

Krokar clears his throat, crossing his arms with a stern expression on his face. The meaning is clear - enough bickering.

His expression softens as Pazeek thanks them. "It was our pleasure, I'm glad we could help. I suppose you are an entirely different matter Pazeek. You are not an Aestheric, but I imagine you are interested in going after this rune giant, yes? Arguments aside I think your knowledge of the mountains could be a great asset, although I am concerned you may attack the rune giant if provoked."


Male Half-Orc
Bjorkus wrote:
"If we don't go after this rune giant in force and bring him down, he's gunna keep sending giants after Pazeek's village. Whoever is behind all of this has shown that they'll sacrifice anyone or anything to get the adamantine they're after", Bjorkus adds. "If we kill this fool, do you think the rest of the giants in his thrall will surrender in exchange for their lives? Even better, imagine what he could tell us if we can take him alive."

"I agree, I think it is vital to get to the bottom of this adamantine matter."

Krokar looks towards the huge prison where the cloud giants are. "They may be under the rune giant's control, but that doesn't mean they are our allies by any stretch. From what we know of this clan, they're certainly one of the destructive and malicious ones. I would assume the worst going in."

Rilka Featherfeet wrote:
She turns to Krokar. ”I would like to pursue this rune giant. Not only for protecting the tengu of those mountains, but also for any links to our previous mission in Grastle Hollow.”

"Yes, there's clearly a connection, due to the adamantine and the fact Calios was using giants."

Toramin Gearsmith wrote:
Gesturing at Pazeek, Toramon grates out, "This one is rude and unpleasant. I cannot say that his contributions are worth the trouble. If his services are the reward for saving his village, you should have done it for free. They likely offered him up to be well rid of him."

Krokar raises an eyebrow. "Hmm. Well opinions are always welcome, although we were simply doing this for the good of the tengu as well as pursuing what was going on in Grastle Hollow."

Sense Motive DC 20:
Krokar has faith in Toramin's word, but also seems to be keeping in mind that Toramin can have an abrasive personality in certain circumstances.

Toramin Gearsmith wrote:
"As for the rune giant, we should destroy it. Slavery is wrong no matter who is enslaved. Rilka, as for the lore, I do not know much more than what has already been said. The last two rune giants who bothered my people were destroyed by the Titan golems my father created...It would be cheaper to assemble a skilled team and ward their minds before hand."

"If at all possible, I agree. But we have to be careful. They're immensely powerful, and not just physically. Our primary goals are to keep them out of the tengu's homes and to find out what is going on with the adamantine. If you can kill it, don't hesitate, but don't throw your lives away."

Ianna Trealamhgabha wrote:
"If the Aestheric libraries are lacking, I could Send to our mother. The daughter of Maerin Saifír has access to many tomes and scrolls of lore. But, I suspect that the Aestherics already know much of rune giant lore."

"Yes we have the information here, I've been browsing it myself so I already have the books located. I'm happy to share."

Ianna Trealamhgabha wrote:
"Does this council think we are skilled enough to destroy a rune giant? I would make no such claim myself. And what of the southern rumors of war?"

Krokar gives Alia a brief looks, then sighs. "Honestly...no. Not in any sort of fair fight, much less surrounded by hostile cloud giants. Unless Jasper has something significant to bring to the table, I think we will end up advising trying to avoid combat completely."


Male Half-Orc

Alia raises her staff, and a burst of healing magic fills the room, nearly overwhelming the senses as wounds heal at an alarming rate.

Everybody is fully healed.

Krokar nods. "Right, if you remember we had some concerns about the possible involvement of a rune giant. They're a damned blight on the world, but they're too tough to just go after casually. We have to pick our battles with them. I'm sure I speak for the council when I say this level of involvement will easily force our hand." He looks at the party. "Are you still interested in pursuing this further? We will likely quickly follow up on the rune giant lead."


Male Half-Orc

"Looks like it all went well, yeah? Even got some prisoners based on what Liamsho told us. So, where do we want to go from here?"


Male Half-Orc

"No worries. We've gotten used to working around other magic gear, we can get you a disguise item in any form you want. Belt, necklace, shoes, you name it."

Haha sounds like fun, go for it!


Male Half-Orc

"Ah yes, and before you go. We give all of our members a hat of disguise, or some variation thereof, so they can stay under the radar. I'm not sure if you thought going in as yourself would be acceptable or not, but we saw fit to provide one regardless." Krokar hands Pazeek a simple-looking hat.


Male Half-Orc

Krokar gives an apologetic look. "Nothing personal. Just our business to know things." Krokar nods at the location. "I agree. One hour, then meet back at that location and Liamsho will extract you."


Male Half-Orc

"Alright. Once Liamsho gets here we'll get started." Krokar pulls out a map of the village. [b]"Where do you want to drop?

Here is the map. It's mostly just for a building layout, as Pazeek's village looks very different from a human village. Instead of water and fields around the edges there are high mountains.


Male Half-Orc

Krokar looks briefly at Drosil who appears to be happy sitting in silence. "Probably send you in as soon as we get the intel. Until then we don't know where exactly you might be. Certainly possible to be in the water considering the situation."


Male Half-Orc

"I think we've waited long enough, let's get down to it. Ianna, want to explain what's going on?" Krokar lapses into silence as Ianna explains her piece, then leans forward and looks around the table. "So that's it, some unknown faction or freelance pirates have been intercepting our messages and plan an attack on our search group."


Male Half-Orc

Bjorkus finds audience with Krokar after only a brief wait, coming into a modest looking office where he's peering over a map of southern Andril. He gives a smile as Bjorkus comes in, offering a seat before listening quietly to Bjorkus. By the end he looks fairly concerned. "We didn't think it was a particularly high-risk mission so we didn't go very strict on security. I think this demands some immediate attention from the council. If Ianna is available we will need her as well to explain what she heard or saw." Krokar goes outside briefly to tell a couple runners to gather the council.


Male Half-Orc

Reflex: 1d20 ⇒ 12

Krokar dodges the worst of the trample, then arcs his back and wipes the sweat from his brow. "Got a report last night, they've had a scuffle or two with pirates but nothing interesting beyond that." Krokar grunts and looks at the blood on his hand leaking from his brow. "Well I think I'll give, clearly you've got the edge when it comes to unarmed fighting."


Male Half-Orc

"Still out there, but they got a wizard with them we can contact when we need to."

Reflex: 1d20 ⇒ 16

This time Krokar wheels out of the way, then crouches and with a roar charges Bjorkus, jumping up and bringing down a full-body punch!

Attack: 1d20 ⇒ 7
NL Damage: 1d3 + 22 ⇒ (1) + 22 = 23


Male Half-Orc

Reflex: 1d20 ⇒ 1

"Alia has been coordinating it, but we all get the reports." Krokar catches the trample head on, weathering it as Bjorkus passes. He follows after Bjorkus but isn't used to his new form and throws a wide punch.

Attack: 1d20 ⇒ 1


Male Half-Orc

Yes Bjorkus, I answered it in game. It's the same site.

Krokar arcs a brow as Bjorkus changes. "That's a new trick. Suppose you're done warming up than?" He grins and invites Bjorkus forward. "Heff has the most experience, mostly because of his pirate connections. We have about twenty people out there, haven't run into any problems so far."


Male Half-Orc

Bjorkus and Krokar both realize it at the same time. "That's the general area we've been searching in." Krokar takes advantage of the opening Bjorkus gives as the onlookers cheer, darting forward with surprising speed and delivering a two-fisted swing into Bjorkus's gut. It feels like getting hit with a mace. Then Krokar plants his leg between Bjorkus's hooves, grabbing the pull around the midriff and yanking him closer, tripping him over his leg and throwing him to the ground. The gut shot completely sucked the wind from Bjorkus's lungs, leaving him gasping for a few seconds, but Krokar dances away and waits for Bjorkus to return to his feet. "There might be some great things to be concerned about there." Krokar works his jaw around, feeling the spot Bjorkus clubbed into. "Gods be damned you hit hard." He says with a grin.

Attack: 1d20 ⇒ 20 Uh oh
Damage: 1d3 + 10 ⇒ (1) + 10 = 11

Confirm: 1d20 ⇒ 18 Well now Bjorkus has learned Krokar has stunning critical!
Crit Damage: 1d3 + 10 ⇒ (2) + 10 = 12

Bjorkus Fort: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (4) + 15 = 19 I may not be calculating for rage, but you failed by a big margin
Stunned Duration: 1d4 ⇒ 1


Male Half-Orc

Bjorkus and Krokar meet in one of the spacious sparring arenas. Despite it being a friendly spar, a pretty significant crowd has gathered, mostly the brawling types but a number of others as well.

Krokar walks into the training grounds, not wearing his usual armor. He peels off his shirt as he comes in, throwing it to the ground and wearing nothing but a set of pants.

People tell stories of the warriors whose scars are impressive and something to boast of...but these tell a story. Long rattling rakes, clean slices, violently deformed scars from unfathomable weapons. One of the most impressive is a huge puckered area of skin on his chest, indicating some kind of weapon pierced his back and came out his chest.

There also is a single tattoo on his right should, depicting the snarling face of a black wolf.

Krokar walks out into the open field, stretching his neck out from side to side with a series of cracks. He goes up to Bjorkus and claps him on the shoulder with a grin, then takes a step back and raises his fists. "So. What'd you need?"

Krokar Init: 1d20 ⇒ 2
Bjorkus Init: 1d20 ⇒ 7

As Bjorkus squares up Krokar stands with his fists raised, eyes locked with Bjorkus.

Feel free to include some dialogue with each round!


Male Half-Orc

"Alright now, all in good time. We have an entire briefing scheduled to go over everything. For now, you should handle any personal affairs and then be prepared for your next training session."


Male Half-Orc

"Of course, if you need to go somewhere we can fit it into the schedule."

"Well to give you the short of it, tensions have been rising between Andril and Brumik, and war is probably inevitable at this point. Brumik has it's own government but they're most figureheads who pass laws they can't enforce; the true rulers of Brumik are the merchants. It's a very complex situation, I'm sure once it's fully explained you'll understand it better than I, Dalton."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar shakes his head at Jasper. "Come now, insults are beneath us." He leans forward, resting his muscled forearms on the table. "I think that's everything we have for now. You're free to ask us anything else you deem necessary. Once you're satisfied, you have more than deserved a good rest." He grins. "And then we start training for the next mission."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar groans. "I hate magic."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar gives a concerned look. "So we can only guess at Calios's status. And this Malose character...what do we know of him?"


Male Half-Orc

There's a moment of silence from the council, then Krokar awkwardly breaks the silence as he gestures for the party to sit and clears his throat. "Well, I wouldn't put it like that but I agree. But first let's get you debriefed. Please, tell us what happened. Then let's talk about your future here." Drinks and food are brought in for what the council clearly anticipates to be a long conversation.

I don't expect you guys to type out a full summary, but give me a general idea of who says what, and if anything specifically is left out or extrapolated on. Also what you guys think about your future with the Aestherics if you wish!


Male Half-Orc

"Welcome back. Take a seat, I'll get the others." Krokar grunts, standing up and going to the back. A few minutes later he returns with the rest of the council, Alia teleporting into the room.


Male Half-Orc

Krokar shakes his head. "I've only heard stories about him. I'll trust your judgement on bringing him in."


Male Half-Orc

Heff's lip twitches at the image. The other four council members look at him with a mix of apprehension and expectation. After half a minute Krokar breaks the silence, slamming his fist on the table. "By the gods Heff, they're in danger!"


Male Half-Orc

"For the betterment of all." Krokar answers simply. "You completely misunderstand what we mean by valuing truth. We don't love the truth, we value it. Sometimes we even hate the truth. We value it because of how hard and rare it is to have. Not because we wish to spread it."


Male Half-Orc

"Heff manipulates people. So does a very large portion of the Aestherics. We are a subterfuge organization, and we do things that seem morally wrong. The thing is, we always do it for the better. I know how that sounds, it's the old "It's for your own good" argument. As Älia told you months ago, we may not be perfect, but we're really damn good at knowing what needs to be done. For that to be accomplished, secrets have to be kept and people have to be manipulated. We wish the world was a simpler place and these tools weren't necessary."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar nods. "As a point of consensus, Jasper and Drosil will be overseeing your training. You must meet up to their standards by the time you are done." He gives a grin. "I wish you the best of luck."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar points to a place on the map. "I still don't think that's a good entry point. The guard there is ready for invisible foes, and..." He notices the party and looks up, giving a wide grin. He looks back at Drosil. "We can finish this later." After a nod from Drosil, he rolls up the map and Drosil stows it away. He walks over the party and greets each one with a handshake. They can again feel the immense but controlled strength in those green, scarred hands. "Damn good to have you back. How was the vacation?" He greets Ianna last with a firm but gentle handshake. "And greetings to you, Ianna Trealamhgabha. I'm sure this is all a lot to take in for you. Right now we're very time constrained, but I promise everything will be explained. What you need to know in a nutshell is that you are in the secret base of the Aestherics. We are a group that acts outside the power or influence of any government to best keep safe and help all the good races of Erandor. Our organization used to be completely democratic, but as we grew in size we decided to have a council of representatives so we could make decisions in a timely manor. I am Krokar, Weaponmaster of the Aestherics." He gestures to Drosil. "This is Drosil, Shade of the Aestherics. You will be meeting the rest of the council shortly."


Male Half-Orc

"I'll get it taken care of. Can't have a recruit dying on me in a day." Krokar gives a smile at his outburst but says nothing.


Male Half-Orc

"Good! That's what I like to hear, now go on and celebrate, you have endured enough talking and hardships for today."


Male Half-Orc

"If you didn't try to save every innocent life you could, we wouldn't consider recruiting you. We do the best we can and accept things the way they are. We don't want anybody to die if we can help it, but we would sacrifice a hundred lives to save a thousand if we had no other choice."

Krokar looks seriously at Gabriel. "I heard about what happened down in Acera's lair. Heff may have spoken harshly, but he meant to teach a lesson. You didn't know there were people down there and you had much evidence to think there wasn't any, but you also knew of the high likelihood of prisoners. I won't lecture you any more on the matter, I can tell you understand the gravity of the situation, and I can tell that since you're driven instead of broken that you intend to do better in the future. That's a good mindset to have. Honor the dead but fight for the living."


Male Half-Orc

"Well I hate to tell you this, but our organization is not "Paladin-ish". I believe Heff's manipulation of you tells you generally how we work. You can tell truths through lies, and better the world through subterfuge. We do what lawful organizations cannot or will not do. We make the hard choices."

Krokar chuckles, patting Gabriel on the shoulder. "Yes, he's a slippery one. It's easier to derive the motives of a tree than him. It took many years for me to truly trust him, and I did it through experience for seeing how his end games turn out. It takes a great deal of faith to work with Heff, but I trust the man with my life. I know it can be hard though."

Bjorkus:
She glares at Bjorkus a moment longer and is about to open her mouth when Coralla steps out from one of the back doors. It appears she has been crying, but her face is dry now. "I'm so glad things worked out for you, and I hope you and that woman are happy together."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar raises an eyebrow. "You seem to have quite the problem with Heff. I know he can come off as slippery, but he was one of the founders of our organization and does more to help than any one of us individually-well maybe not Älia, but it's pretty hard to comprehend what she's doing most of the time."

"You're not the first or the last paladin to be offered this opportunity, as you know Toramin is working for us. We try to keep you away from some of the more difficult decisions, but it isn't always perfect. Sometimes you might be forced to make a greater good decision."

Gabriel:
Krokar seems like an open book, telling things how he sees them. He also seems concerned about your mistrust of Heff and really wants to patch things up. He must have a pretty high opinion of the man.

"As long as withholding these secrets do not put any lives in danger, you only need share what you wish to. Oh don't worry, we're not entirely sure about accepting you yet, only considering the idea of recruitment. Things should be quieting down so we should have plenty of time."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar laughs. "You really are in the dark, aren't you? The Aestherics are ruled by a council of five who share equal power, and I am one of those five. You can talk to me, Heff, or Älia."


Male Half-Orc

The party is lead under the Colosseum where Krokar is waiting. He laughs his approval, patting everybody on the back (nearly knocking several people over). "Well done, well done indeed! Soon enough we will learn all of Acera's secrets and uncover what she was trying to do. You've all earned yourselves a promotion and a damn good reward for your work here. I'll get you your new badges, and we'll get to work on a budget to figure out what you can get from our vaults. This day is going to do go down in history."


Male Half-Orc

"Acid? That stops trolls."


Male Half-Orc

"Think nothing of it. Not every organization is as tightly knit as ours."


Male Half-Orc

Krokar exhales sharply at Gabriel's question. "My men would never harm somebody I tell them not to." He turns to the werewolf. "I've already spread the word of what you've done. I'll let them know to aid your men in healing as well." Raul gives a gracious nod.


Male Half-Orc

"As do I. As for Acera showing up, capture her if you can, kill her if you can't. I would rather have her dead than escaped, but captured for interrogation would be even better."


Male Half-Orc

"I like Gabriel's plan. However your group has been known to not be the stealthiest."

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