Sorry everyone, work has gotten especially busy lately and I don't have the bandwidth to keep up with this game. I don't know how long the workload is going to continue, so I'm afraid I'm going to have to bow out. Good luck with all the things!
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Tanu nods in agreement. "Morning it is. We can finish the business with the giant and be about other things after." He doesn't seem terribly concerned with the boy's fate; the boy was headstrong and willful, Tanu had very little doubt that the boy would figure out where he wanted to be and how to get there.
Tanu nods quickly in support. "She has the right of it, sir. The hill giant was defensive of his home, but otherwise cooperative. He was also very wary of this drake lord, and we have already seen how dangerous the drakes can be. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, sir. Sometimes the fiercest enemy can become the most valuable ally."
Tanu simply shakes his head at Pavo's question, wheels Nisha around, and begins heading back with the others.
Tanu sits quietly astride Nisha, flag-laden lance in a vertical position, watching the exchange with interest. However, not speaking Giant, he is completely unaware of what is actually transpiring. Instead, he watches the body language of the giant, and notices when it relaxes. First the drakes, now the giant... I really need to pick up some extra languages...
Tanu looks at the scared child with obvious concern. "We will make sure you get to safety. Do you know if the giant is in the house now?"
Tanu and Nisha turn immediately to the charging child, at first ready to deal with a new potential threat, but the knight quickly lifts his lance and looks on with concern. "Who are you, child, and what has got you so worked up?"
Tanu gets done staring at the wall to find that the others had left without him. He quickly heads out and catches up to them on the road. "Seems like a reasonable assumption" Tanu agrees.
Tanu -- the next time someone demands all your gold and you only give up some of it, you should remember to mention it and roll Bluff.
I did mention it - I wrote exactly how much I was giving, and I never made the claim that it was all of my gold when I gave it, I merely offered gold as tribute. They never asked me if it was all of my gold, and I didn't offer that information, so I wasn't bluffing.
When asked, Tanu loans Pavo 20gp, which should be plenty to buy a longspear, as well as any other necessities. He doesn't say much about it, not even mentioning repayment, just quietly handing over a pouch when they were preparing to turn in for the evening.
The next day, Tanu is up bright and early, brushing out Nisha and preparing her for the day's journey. Once that was done, he'd see to his own needs, eating a quick breakfast and gearing up. Then he'd get Nisha and meet the others at the gate, ready to head out. Hearing Talia's report, he asks "Did he indicate whether we should track down the bugbears first? It seems like they are the most direct threat, and likely closer to home than the hill giant."
Tanu has largely busied himself with caring for Nisha with their safe arrival home. It had shaken him more than he cared to admit, how close they had come to death this time out. He brushed her out thoroughly, removing saddle and gear and the heavy owlbear egg she carried, and set her up with some feed. Having seen to all that, he finally makes his way back to the barracks with the owlbear egg in tow. He sets that down with his other gear in the barracks, then looks around for the others. When he finds the rest of the party, he'll share "I definitely want to rest up tonight; Nisha needs a good rest, and I'm fairly wiped as well. As to where we head next, I don't care that much. The hill giant seems as good a place as any to start." Gesturing back to the owlbear eggs (supposing the egg in Portia's care is likewise safely back in the barracks), Tanu asks "What do we want to do with those?"
Sorry for my inactivity folks - things have been hectic at work, and I keep thinking surely I'll have time to post tonight/tomorrow/etc, but I inevitably do not. Apologies. I will post in gameplay here shortly, and strive to do a better job at keeping up.
Both Tanu and Nisha are injured enough that they are not responding terribly quickly, and both fireballs find full purchase against them. Tanu breathes a deep sigh of relief when the drakes fly away. "That was much too close. We most definitely need to think of ways to counter their advantages when we face off against them again." The knight gives a nod of thanks to Wulfgar as the clerics healing magic courses through him. "My thanks, comrade." He then turns and makes his way over to the body of the fallen drake, only limping a little, and begins to search the body for any valuables or anything else of note.
That would have also healed Nisha for 10 as well, right? Just wanting to clarify because the HPs on the Campaign page had Tanu's +10 HP reflected from this, but Nisha's HP didn't change.
Tanu breathes a sigh of relief when the blue drake succumbs to his lance, then looks around for Wulfgar. They were in desperate need of healing. Spotting the fallen cleric, Tanu gets Nisha to move over next to him while Tanu pulls a potion from his pack.
Tanu nimbly hops down off of Nisha, crouches down, and pours the potion down the cleric's throat.
He then lifts the banner back toward the sky and turns his keen gaze upward, waiting to see what happens next.
When I get a chance to post, which won’t be until this evening, I am planning on giving Wulfgar a potion of CLW, which I can do in this round. Move action to get potion, Nisha moves to wulfgar, free action with Ride check to quick dismount, standard to pour the potion down his throat. I’d recommend another glitterdust if possible personally, especially if you can hit multiple drakes at once with it
Tanu just barely manages to hold his seat, but it is a near thing. These fireball spitting monstrosities threw one major wallop, but he couldn't abandon his crew. So, burned and ragged as he was, he lowered his lance and charged at the one drake within reach. Maybe bringing this one down would cause the others to rethink their life choices.
The fireball being centered right on Tanu ends up being his downfall. The searing ball of flame strikes both him and Nisha directly, before either has time to defend themselves. The flames burn Nisha severely, but she still stands. The same could not be said for the battle herald, though. His lance clatters to the burning forest floor, and despite the military saddle he sits in, the knight quickly follows.
Nisha, half crazed with pain from the flames, seems unwilling to leave her charge. She takes a stand over him, preparing to bite any hostile creature who comes in range.
Tanu quickly dodges the worst of the first fireball, but Nisha doesn’t, instead taking a nasty burn on the neck. This distracts and angers Tanu badly enough that he doesn’t avoid the second fireball nearly as well. He takes the brunt of the second flame ball, helping Nisha to avoid much more damage. The mounted man takes up his planted lance and tries to stay low, hoping that Portia’s illusion work would but them some time, but readying for an attack in case that didn’t work.
Tanu quickly bows as well, motioning sharply for Casamir to do the same, following Portia's lead.
As soon as the drakes started circling, Tanu instinctively would have run to Nisha and mounted up. His lance was planted in the ground, flag flying high to give them some comfort from the chill air while camping, but Tanu made note of where it was so he could easily grab it up if need be. Not knowing any of the languages being bandied about by either the drakes or his companions, Tanu is largely left in the dark about what is going on, listening closely for any guidance from his companions. His face darkens when the conversation turns the way it does. He looks ready to refuse, but valor turns to wisdom as the rest of his party seems willing to deal with the drakes. Tanu reaches into his pack and pulls out a coin pouch which appears very heavy. He opens it, looks longingly at the contents, shuts it, and urges Nisha forward to the closest drake to hand it over with a bow of his head. A quick glance suggests there are over 100 coins in there, while an exact count would reveal it to be 117 gold pieces. "There is my coin, for your master, for his patience in allowing us passage."
It is my birthday today, so slightly distracted. Will try to post later tonight, but might not be until tomorrow.
As the conversations swirl around him, Tanu tends toward quiet focus, as was more normal for him. He keeps his gaze pointed forward, sweeping left and right looking for any signs of danger.
Tanu's eyes snap to the newcomer when he appears, readying himself in case he was hostile. When this Casamir claimed to be looking for Fort Thorn, he relaxes somewhat but still not completely. How did he miss the fort coming into the vale? Kind of the first main stop... However, his manners came to the fore when the conversation continued, and he snapped off a brief bow of the head. "I am Tanu, and this is Nisha" he said, with a fond look down at his horse. He was obviously very happy to be riding again after Portia's conjured horse was able to take one of the eggs, leaving enough room for him to ride again. As the group turns and begins making headway back to the fort, he falls in next to Casamir. "Where are you from friend? And how did you find yourself so deep in the vale without passing through the fort?"
Same, sorry, will get a post up tomorrow. Wulfgar's marching order sounds fine to me. Question - do I get to ride? You said previously that I couldn't, but your most recent gameplay post says I get to ride.
Tanu looks at the various tracks, and at the obvious concern that Talia is showing for her horse. He certainly understood that - if anything had happened to Nisha, he would stop at nothing to get her back. He looks at Talia and asks "Do you think you can tell which set of tracks is Noleski? Barring that, do you think he would be able to make his way back to where we came from?" He frowns and continues "I don't think tracking down those that did this would be a wise course of action. We have no way of knowing if they are a larger threat or not, but it would certainly take time to even begin to try to find out when we have already known large threats we have to deal with. However, I know how close a bond can be formed with a horse, especially one you've been with a while. If there is any chance of getting them back, I'd think that worth the detour."
Maybe you could not even be there as a mercenary - you’re just on a walk-about, rambling where the wind takes you, and we’ll rope you into fighting with us :)
It doesn't seem like the party is headed back to the fort at this time. How would you like to proceed? Maybe he could pull a Fezzik and randomly show up with four white horses :D
When Wulfgar awakens Tanu, he comes alert quickly, just as he has for many years. Advantage of being a soldier, he was used to this sort of thing. Nisha was already awake, as usual. Horses didn't actually sleep as much as most people assume, and she likes to keep an eye on things. When he shares a watch with her like this, it is usually more her watch and he helps out on occasion.
Tanu gives her a light brushing while they keep a look out, not doing any serious grooming but more keeping his hands busy while keeping watch and thinking. He tried not to do too much of that, as his thoughts inevitably turned to dark thoughts of night watches past. At least he now had people to share the watch with again; it had been just him and Nisha for so long, he had forgotten how nice that felt. When the two hours had passed, he gave Nisha a loving pat and went to go wake the next person in watch order before returning to bed himself.
After trying different means of securing the eggs to himself and finding that none of them seem to work, Tanu shrugs, gets off his horse, removes his armor, ties up everything on Nisha, and climbs down separately.
The descent doesn't go super smoothly, and he bangs his shin once or twice and gets a couple of scrapes, but he gets down mostly in one piece.
Tanu gladly gives his blanket over in service of trying to bring some eggs back with them. While Wulfgar ties them up, Tanu quickly straps his lance and shield to secure spots on Nisha. Once Wulfgar has the eggs secure in the blanket, he'll work with Wulfgar to secure the weighty blanket to Tanu's back, using the rope to tie it off. Bit heavier than a backpack, but doable.
Once settled back on Nisha and everyone else is ready, he'll have Nisha start working her way carefully back down the cliff side.
When it came time to establish camp, he would first make sure the campfire was going using his own campfire bead , and he will also plant his lance upright firmly in the ground. He quickly explains "The flag is magic. If planted in the ground like so, it will protect everyone within 30ft of it from extreme temperatures." Tanu then turns his attention to removing the load from Nisha and himself. He gratefully removes the egg bundle and sets it on the ground, then removes the gear that Nisha carries. He gives her a quick brush down before removing his own armor and gear and setting up his own tent. "I can take second watch."
Posting availability is low due to Easter. I am fine walking and letting Nisha carry eggs.
Tanu breathes a sigh of relief as the giant beast finally falls. Barely holding upright in the saddle after the vicious onslaught, hurting as he hasn't hurt in some time, he is quite glad when Wulfgar's healing magic flows through him, closing up his wounds. He grins at the suggestion of the salt, saying "I don't mind the lack of scars, comrade. I live to fight another day, is enough." Tanu will generally leave the looting to the others, keeping watch for any returning owlbears or other hostile creatures instead. He will nod along with Portia's suggestions, though. "Nisha here is pretty strong herself, and I have something that would make her even stronger; I'm sure we can figure something out."
My HP total should be 6 right now, not 3:
Tanu's weathered gaze hardens in determination as both he and Nisha open up with everything they have against the owlbear.
Tanu gives a muted shout of pain as the cursedly huge owlbear finds a way past his armor and sinks deep into skin beneath. The bottom beak just barely catches on his armor, luckily, or it would have been much worse; the upper beak still comes away dark red with Tanu's blood. Curses that hurt! Got to be more careful. He spares a thankful glance at Wulfgar as his healing magic takes hold. "Thanks, comrade! Bloody beast hurts when it bites!" Tanu's lance then dips back toward the owlbear in another quick double jab. He is being noticeably more careful with his motions.
Aid rolls:
The GM botted Pavo:
After that, Pavo responded saying that he thought he had posted a full attack, and the GM posted that he couldn't have done that anyway. Ultimately, though, the map position is currently correct given the GM's botted move. I wouldn't mind a bit of healing, if you are looking for something to do! That owlbear bites hard...
Somehow I or the map got moved after my post. I was previously two diagonals away from the owlbear, and after the 5’ step I was diagonal one and down one, which is 10’ and within reach. No idea how that happened, but I know I was two diagonals away before my post.
Tanu's rough hands grip his shield and lance firmly, not a single quiver to betray his nervousness at moving closer to such a very large beast. He didn't particularly want to get closer to it, but that is what they were paying him to do. "Alright girl," he says to Nisha, giving her a signal with a very light tightening of his legs, "ease forward. Careful!" His sharp eyes will stay focused on the beast as Nisha moves them just a hair closer. As soon as they get close enough, Tanu lifts forward and sends his lance singing in toward the very large side of the creature, then out and back again in a quick double strike.
Tanu's worried eyes shift up... and up... and up... until his eyes finally meet those of the giant owlbear. That is a massive creature! How are we going to do anything to that? He pauses for a moment to think through strategies, looking at the distance between himself and the mad mama, a frown forming on his face. "Talia, can you move just a little? I'm out of range I'm afraid."
I assumed the fact that it was Huge was a given with the size of the token on the map, and the amount of reach that a Huge creature has is a basic rules question, not a statblock question. I will switch up my remaining questions to be hypothetical to make sure I am not crossing any lines. Hypothetically speaking, if a medium sized creature is positioned 15' away from a huge sized creature with a 15' reach, is it possible within the rules for said huge creature to perform a charge? They are more than 10' away, and so are able to move the required 10', but my understanding is that a charge must stop at the closest spot that you can melee attack, which for the hypothetical huge creature with 15' reach that would be its present spot, so it wouldn't be able to move the required 10'. Is my understanding of the charge rules accurate?
Just want to make sure I understand the current situation - the huge owlbear has a 15ft reach because he is huge, yes? Which means that with the map as it is right now, everybody except Wulfgar is in melee range already? It also means he can't charge, because charge requires you to go to the closest spot you can attack from, which has to be at least 10ft away for a legal charge, right? Does it have a choice to not use its reach and charge anyway?
"Good work!" he says enthusiastically to both Talia and Portia. "Keep at it, if we can keep her distracted for a little longer, we can take care of this one. Pavo, I'll distract the beast, be ready to strike while it's distracted!" At this, Tanu will dip his lance toward the smelly beast, sweeping down wide but trying to draw its attention.
If anyone other than me is attacked...: Tanu's eyes snap to the incoming claw, but before it can get close his lance dips down once more on a path to intercept the attack.
Some glitterdust on the mama bear would probably be pretty effective as well. Hard to throw boulders if you can’t see!
Tanu's eyes widen in alarm as the giant owlbear makes its opening salvo. "To arms, everyone, quickly! Just a bigger version of what we've already done. Let's do it again!" He raises his flag high, and fixes his intense gaze on the owlbears. He quickly takes in the terrain and the distance to the owlbears, frowning slightly. "Anybody have anything to stop that beast from lobbing boulders at us? It would be best to let them come to us if we can, this terrain doesn't look pleasant."
Aid rolls if needed:
Tanu blinks and tilts his head in slight confusion as Talia applies her magic to Portia. "What did that do? Is she good to go now?" As Talia continues to walk away without a word, he shrugs and looks at Portia and says "I guess so. If not, I can still throw you a rope." He then turns and starts guiding Nisha up the slope. There are a few spots where it doesn't look like a horse could possibly get up, but Nisha's confidently placed hooves seem to find absurdly solid spots as she makes her way up the side of the cliff easier than most humans would. Once at the top, he waits for the others to gather while keeping an eye toward the caves in case anything comes out while they are gathering.
Tanu gets a panicked look in his eyes as his new companions suggest leaving Nisha behind. No way! Not a chance. I'm not leaving her alone out here. I've been with Nisha for years, I've been with this group for not even a day... He takes a deep breath, as he tries to think through the problem rationally. She is strong and smart, and able to protect the other animals, maybe it would be alright? That roar, though... What if another owlbear, or something worse, comes along? Finally, after a minute of thought, Tanu responds "no, Nisha goes where I go. If something were to happen to the horses you recently purchased, it would be sad, but recoverable. Nisha is family to me. If something happens to her, it would be awful for me. She is capable, but wouldn't stand a chance against even a single owlbear one on one." At this, Nisha snorts and shakes her head, as if to say Want to bet? Smelly weird bear thing, no match for me!, but Tanu persists. "She will go in with us. As for the others, I don't know if tying them up or not would be better, up to you."
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