Evo Only:
Not only do you find the alley to be a dead-end, but you immediately recognize the Cyran man, Aegen Aeron, as the bouncer of The Reverse Mermaid, the brothel where your friend Alin works (and where you frequently sleep the night).
Search Posts
"Retreat," orders the cool voice behind the leader's mask, as he hears the watch approaching. The third thug runs south and jumps off the skybridge, disappearing into the fog. The second and fourth thugs do the same.
The fog is thick and Cog and Aegen may have enough time to flee the scene before the city watch arrives, but the same can't be said for the changeling lying on the ground.
Initiative Reminder:
Cog
Cog's attack misses the enemy suicidally, as Aegen's own aggressor presses the advantage.
Aegen is further sliced open, but the sorcerer recovers his footing and imbibes a healing potion a moment later. The sickening sensation from his wounds, however, intensifies. The leader of this band of ne'er-do-wells lashes out at Cog once more with his wicked scythe, his masked face cold and expressionless.
...but only his first swing lands.
Evo strikes the thugs on either side of her, but ducks to the northwest, getting her back against the wall to limit her enemies' flanking options.
The second in command moves to attack Evo .
The sound of whistles and shouting voices rings out from the fog to the east. Beams of lantern light erratically approach through the mist as the city watch approaches, drawn no doubt from the sounds of your tumult.
Unfortunately, Evo's crisis of conscious momentarily throws her off her game as she struggles to land a blow.
That being said, her new found resilience reinforces her constitution and she is able to stave off the draining effects of the enemy's tainted daggers.
[dice=Fortitude Save]1d20+3
The gang leader, now grievously wounded, maintains his composure and silently retaliates.
The menacingly quiet plague doctor strikes true with the first swipe of his scythe. The second attack runs along your metal plated arm, sending up a shower of sparks, but it doesn't quite land. His gaze lands on a tangled wound in Cog's abdomen: a mess of wires, wood, and brass. "Very nice," he cooly remarks, admiring his own handiwork.
Aegen, your longsword barely misses the thug as it cuts a long gash into the side of his hood. You stumble as the dagger is ripped from your ribs, but the unnatural burning sensation dies a moment later.
Cog moves with alarming, second-nature swiftness as she engages the enemy band's dark leader. Her large greatsword sends up a shower of sparks, briefly reflected in the plague doctor's lenses, as she swipes at the villain, nearly bisecting him from the groin up. The masked man, however, sidesteps the attack with surprising ease, releasing a slight "Heh" as he moves.
The third goonie moves in behind Aegen, flanking the Cyran and attacking with two daggers.
Miraculously, the thug is unable to land a blow as Aegen's drunken body swings wildly from side to side.
The man in the wide brimmed hat, stands perfectly motionless after dodging Cog's greatsword, watching in stillness as the battle unfolds.
Aegen is caught by surprise at the attacks coming at his back and as he wheels to avoid the daggers, his longsword swings wide.
Evo swiftly pulls out both daggers and gets the drop on the thug nearest her. He's clearly surprised that she's armed, let alone that she moves with such swiftness.
The changeling's hungry blades dig into the hoodlum's chest simultaneously. In one swift action, she pulls them up and out, carving a deep V-shape into her opponent's torso.
DM Only:
Thugs have 20 hp, not 24. The thug closest to Evo barks at his ally, "Take care of the drunkard, the little girl is mine!"
The mouthy bandit moves to his left as he pulls his own daggers out and tries to stab down into Evo's shoulders, the changeling girl still recoiling from her last attack.
Evo quickly jerks her back knee, turning her body completely sideways as both daggers come down on either side of her, narrowly missing. As the thug recovers, she twists back and faces him once more.
The last of the gang to act moves to fill the vacant space where his ally was in moments ago. He is now flanking the sorcerer and has drawn two daggers of his own.
The thug's dagger digs deep between Aegen's ribs and a hot surge of pain runs up and down the Cyran's body. Aegen, as the bandit rips his dagger out from you, you can see that the blade is awash with some sort of black, shiny ichor.
FOR THE DM'S EYES ONLY:
"Sorta Enhanced" Bloorot Gang Thug CR 2
Human fighter 1/rogue 1
FOR THE DM'S EYES ONLY 2: CARPE DM:
Bloodrot Gang Leader XP 2,400 Human fighter 4/rogue 3
As the three of you make your guarded verbal exchanges and Aegen kneels to inspect the body, you all hear a scraping sound approach you from the dense thicket of rain and fog. The cacophony of metal-against-stone grows steadily louder as a figure approaches from the shroud of mist. The silhouette is distinctly a man in a long, dark coat with a wide-brimmed hat and a finely wrought plague doctor's mask. A scythe hangs loosely in his hand, its blade coming to silent rest on the stoney street as its bearer calmly stops in his tracks. He cranes his face up, as if to inspect you through the dark lenses of his false visage. You remember what he said boys: 'No loose ends.' An instant later, four more men in dark clothes, climb up from the sides of the skybridge. No doubt that had been hanging on the ledge the whole time listening in. Their dark, almost featureless clothes are somewhat patchwork and a few display their musculature in sleeveless shirts not unlike Aegen's. They wear similar plague doctor masks, though these are poorly made and are partly concealed by dark hoods. The sight of these masks may bring back memories for Aegen and Cog, either good or bad, but more likely the latter. Initiative Rolls:
For Knowledge (local) checks of 15 or higher: The body belongs to none other than the famous Moxie, a sort of celebrity courtesan here in Sharn. In addition to her scandalous rags-to-riches story that has since become part of her popular image, she's regarded as the crown jewel of a nightclub called Savia's in the Firelight district. You also know that Savia's is also considered the finest bordello in Sharn, catering to only the most expensive tastes for those seeking companionship.
The rain begins to fall slightly harder now and an inky red darkness creeps into the pool of water surrounding the dead young woman. As her gown gets soaked through, its brilliant white shimmerweave fabric begins to turn a pale crimson as well.
Evo: Evo, you recognize the scraggly stranger as the bouncer of the brothel where Alin is employed, The Reverse Mermaid. Unless you use your second skin on your nightly visits to sleep at the bordello, it's unlikely that he recognizes you.
This is where y'all get to jabber on, ask for clarification, discuss strategy out of character (if need be), and so on. If you're gonna be unavailable for long stretches of time, this would be the place to let the rest of us know. Enjoy!
Evo and Cog, your conversation is interrupted as a scruffy, drunk man approaches from the mist, menacingly brandishing a longsword that's still in its sheathe. As the scabbard is still attached to his belt, he's only able to hold it up at limp angle a couple of feet above the ground. Aegen, as you move forward the mist parts slightly and the two figures are revealed to be a young woman and a warforged.
Evo approaches the confused looking warforged with the charisma of a snake-oil salesman. The young woman's words catch the living construct off-guard. Evo, your words trail off at the end of your question as you see what the warforged was inspecting. Aegen, as you approach the sparkles, they begin to take form and you see two silhouetted forms just behind the twinkling source. Evo and Aegen:
A stunning woman lies on the rain-slicked ground, dressed in the finest garments available. A white sequin gown clings to the dangerous curves of her body and a white fur shawl makes a bed for her ample blonde hair. She’s got the kind of looks that make other women mentally ill, but it looks like those days are in the past.
She’s dead. Cog's Perception Check:
You notice a dark red stain in the woman's side, covered up only by her limp, bare arm.
Evo:
Evo, as you're about to step out from the alleyway now wearing your second skin, you pause before stepping out. A battered-looking warforged strides brazenly through the fog. The construct has strange carvings in both her metal and wooden parts, and in certain places it seems to be missing plating. It seems to be approaching something that's sparkling in the fog. The warforged is heading towards the skybridge you need to get back. Besides this strange golem-like creature, there is no one else around.
Cog:
As you approach a narrow skybridge ahead, the fog parts with your steps and the twinkling lights begin to take form. A stunning woman lies on the rain-slicked ground, dressed in the finest garments available. A white sequin gown clings to the dangerous curves of her body and a white fur shawl makes a bed for her ample blonde hair. She’s got the kind of looks that makes other women clinically ill, but it looks like those days a past. She’s dead.
Aegen: Your vision is clouded and little hazy. The world seems to be gently rocking before your eyes, but something has caught your interest. A glittering pool of sparkles in the fog.
Cog:
You see a faint flicker of light, perhaps better described as a sparkle, in the fog, not too far off from where you're standing. Evo: Evo, you recognize enough of the surrounding area to orient yourself. You'll have to take a nearby skybridge in order to make it home as quickly as possible.
Sharn, 998 YK. Curtains of water fall from the night sky in the City of Towers and the balmy, hot air turns rainwater into vapor only seconds after it hits the ground. Gargoyle statues, perched high up in the parapets of Sharn’s towers, empty their gutters between the labyrinthine walkways of the city. The rain falls hard, running off higher balconies and bridges in drenching waves. The distant glow of everbright lanterns, barely visible in the soaking gloom, does little to light the paths on this warm, wet evening. Aegen Only:
It’s been a quiet night at The Reverse Mermaid, the brothel at which Aegen Aeron make his living as a bouncer. Well, for now at least. The Cyran sorcerer has been discreetly taking swigs of Zil brandy from his boot-flask all evening, but a little more than a half-hour ago, the brothel’s proprietor, __________, sent him home for the night. There were hardly any customers that evening and even if there had been, Aegen was in no condition to take care of business, the “good-for-nothin’ Mourner trash” that he was.
Cog Only:
It’s easy for some like Cog to lose track of time. She doesn’t have those daily little impulses that break up the hours of typical human life into smaller portions. Thirst, hunger, the need for sleep; Cog doesn’t have any of those. So, when she sat down earlier this morning in the library of Morgrave University with two stacks of books that nearly equaled her height when combined, she lost track of things pretty quickly. She had only been there a couple of hours when a tiny gnome with a long, hooked nose asked her in a low, clipped voice if she would kindly leave. The warforged was about to object when she saw that a bright, crisp morning had turned into a dark, rainy night. Well, it had only seemed like a couple of hours, at any rate.
Evo Only: Evo struggles to catch her breath, as she races among the rain-slicked streets of Sharn. The city watch had pursued her all the way into the University District, but after a quick shift into an old man in scholarly robes, she threw them off her trail. She was after a rare gem called the Sphinx’s Eye Diamond and though she broke into the exhibition hall undetected, Evo missed the magic alarm that had been placed on the jewel itself. After a few minutes, tucked away in the shadows of a dark alley, Evo regains her composure. She looks both ways before returning to the winding walkways of the open city air.
This thread is for the players who have been pre-selected from my RL tabletop group. As the game develops, we may be recruiting other players from the forums, but until that time, please do NOT dot the thread just yet. Thanks in advance! Aegen, Cog, and Evo: Welcome to Sharn...
Aww, crap. So it turns out that my tabletop DM is gonna be running my gaming group through Carrion Hill, and he respectfully asked that I look for another PBP to play in so as not to ruin the experience for myself and the others in my tabletop party. Though it pains me to say it, I've gotta sit this one out, but on the bright side, at least we hadn't started yet...! The divine caster slot is now officially free.
Okay, I'm gonna playtest the new oracle class! ^_^ Like I said, this is my first time doing PBP (so excited!), so hopefully I put down everything you need...! |