Likewise, my good ser.
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Yes, more than a month without the GM posting usually is a PbP's death knell. Still, this thing we had here managed to last quite a bit and it has surely been fun while it lasted! Castor, Korinne, Rufus: thank you for the enjoyable game we shared, I'm happy to have had the opportunity to play with you. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors, both on these forums and in the real life (once more Castor, congrats for the job!). Guys, be happy and have fun!
Yeah. It is summer, and IME things tend to get a bit slower as a result, but still... I do second Korinne's hopes though.
"I like it. Strike them from a different direction every day without those blue menaces even knowing where they've been hit from. Wear them down by attrition" Xelani chimes in nodding approvingly. "Not to mention Castor could really use some time to recover."
Indeed! And since we're there, happy belated Canada Day too!
Xelani nods as Korinne and Rufus express their points. "Indeed. Individually, and even in small groups, they didn't pose much of a treat. As long as we don't get heavily outnumbered or surrounded, this Sharptooth idol should still be well within our reach." "So we are decided. Tomorrow we make another foray into the lair."
"So what's our plan now?" Xelani says while looking nervously around, eyes piercing the surrounding darkness. "Are we going back come morning? I reckon we'll find one less giant millipede, but probably quite a lot more angry mites."
Withdrawing seems the most sensible option, considering how uncomfortably close to a TPK we've just got. It mostly irks me due to how efficiently we were proceeding, without raising any alarms or taking any damage, until that unfortunate crit. I feel like opting to retreat now would prevent us from taking advantage of the element of surprise ever again against the mites. Also, without access to a restoration spell, it would still take 9 days for Castor to fully heal his DEX damage...
Once the creature has finally fallen, Xelani turns around to scan her companions' condition. She is relieved to see Rufus' bleeding has stopped and is now showing signs of recovery thanks to Castor's blessings; the half elf himself, on the other hand, looks ash-grey and unnaturally stiff in his movements. Thinking quickly, she rushes to his side trying her best to recall whatever notions her parents taught her in her youth.
Kneeling besides him, she examines his thigh looking for the tiny spots marking the inoculation points. "Try not to move the leg. Relax the muscle as much as possible" she tells Castor as she uses some rope to apply a rudimentary tourniquet, intermittently sucking and spitting the venom out.
Once Castor's illness has somewhat stabilized, she turns her attention toward Rufus, who has regained consciousness in the meanwhile. "Let's see if we can restore you to full health, shall we? We'll need you at full power if we want to survive these tunnels." Muttering a prayer, she channels Erastil's blessing from her body and into the wounded warrior.
"Whatever we do, we'd best do it quickly. There are no guarantees they aren't preparing a counter action even now." "We've been pretty stealthy until now, allowing no mite to flee to warn the others. But this thing must have made quite a lot of noise as we fought it" she says in response to Rufus' warning. "Our powers have been pretty depleted in this last fight, and Castor surely needs some rest to recuperate. Mites we can handle, but I wouldn't be too anxious to face another monster such as this" she says, pointing at ichor-stained carcass occupying most of the room they're currently standing in.
We've got you covered, Rufus ;)
Xelani sees the vicious gap Rufus' blow opened on the creature's side. Knowing she has to end it now, she aims at the vulnerable spot while swinging her blade with all her might.
Xelani stares in horror at Rufus' body being mangled and casually thrown away. She knows that probably makes her the next one on the menu, but she lunges at the beast nonetheless, knowing full well she's the last line of defense between it and her companions. "Castor - heal Rufus! Korinne, keep up the pressure!"
Hey! Congrats – not even two months after graduation; kudos to you!
Xelani hears Rufus' thunderous battle call, inspiring her to charge blindly into her foe. The effect is short-lived, however, as her disciplined training allows her blood to chill and her mind to regain the necessary focus. She carefully takes a step backward while shooting at the creature.
Xelani can't quite comprehend the meaning of Rufus' words, but the sound of them alone is enough to instill a battle lust into her soul. She drops her bow and draws her sword, swinging it at her monstrous foe.
Xelani was intent watching Rufus' conversation with the kobold, ready to provide help or healing if it was needed, when the Desnan's shout suddenly forces her to turn and focus on the new threat at hand. "What? Castor!" she exclaims, as she shoots an arrow at the insect-like creature who has just wounded her companion.
As the diminutive blue menaces turn their backs and run, Xelani rapidly shoots another arrow at one of the fleeing mites. "Oh no you won't..."
"It'd be wise to investigate" Xelani replies in a murmur. "Perhaps these cramped tunnels can work to our advantage" she adds, addressing Rufus. "Negating their only way of retreat was a tactically sound decision, but should we, as I fear, come to face greater numbers, holding a bottleneck instead might mitigate our numerical disadvantage. Not to mention we all know how devastating Korinne can be against clumped up foes."
Silently nodding towards Korinne and Castor, Xelani nocks an arrow and shoots at the same mite her fellow half-elf is aiming at.
Ditto. Skald is more thematically appropriate to Rufus than bard anyway. And since we've more or less agreed that anything that transpires here can be considered as a paraphrase of in-game discussions, I'm completely fine with Rufus having warned us of the futility of a diplomatic approach beforehand.
Thought about that, but I'm afraid if they don't have at least 5 HDs (which I doubt, for our own sake at least!) – or some sort of Aura SQ – they wouldn't register anyway. (This is also why I didn't bother to use it with the kobolds)
With three of us being somewhat accomplished archers and there being only two mites, sniping them could be a possibility – if we're not terribly unlucky they might be dead before the surprise round even ends. Of course, that would almost assuredly leave no maneuvering room for a diplomatic approach anymore. Though the chances of it succeeding are probably so small, and the drawback in the form of alerting the whole lair of our presence so significant, that I'd probably call it a fool's gambit anyway. tl;dr: I'd suggest opening up with a volley of arrows, and then we roll initiative. Barring abysmal rolls it should suffice, methinks.
Nodding at Rufus' words, Xelani silently takes place in the rearguard, wielding her bow in her hands. She gives her eyes some time to adjust to the dim light of the underground tunnel – once they do, she does her best to make good use of them, trying to penetrate the surrounding darkness with her elven sight as she looks for traps and ambushes alike.
"And mayhaps trying to reason with them? Though since it looks like we've cast our lot with the kobolds, that seems to get more and more unlikely by the hour. Let's hope our intrusion won't have unforeseen consequences; between the fear of a vengeful god and that of an enemy 'numbering in the hundreds', the shaman surely knows how to keep his tribe in check" Xelani says. "In any event, my mother taught me the tongue of the sylvan feys – though I don't know if those... mites share it" she adds almost as an afterthought, before retiring for the night. As usual, she would volunteer to take last watch, and recite her daily devotions to Erastil while watching the sun rise, praying for aid in their endeavor.
Agreed. Xelani's spent all of her daily Lay On Hands uses to patch up Crak after Rufus cracked it. Some rest would be appreciated – tomorrow, we take on the mites.
"Donc, nous avons trouvé une puce?" Xelani whispers in an amused tone. Elven:
"So we've got ourselves a smart one?"
Thirded. Potentially very useful, even if it would kick in in full force only by the time we reach the second part of the AP. (I agree about the very ambiguous wording, btw)
Xelani listens tacitly to the exchange between Rufus and the chief, instinctively trying (and failing) to discern a meaning in the words uttered in an alien tongue. At Korinne's mention of 'playing to the ego', she cannot help but raise an eyebrow in puzzlement: it's not like they're the ones asking for help, or that we've come here after thoroughly beating and dispersing four of their numbers. Still, if it gets the job done. I only hope it won't give them strange ideas. She knows better than to voice her thoughts out loud, though; as long as the negotiation's proceeding smoothly, it would be foolish to potentially jeopardize it by chiming in. As they make their way into the shaman's alcove, she eyes both the chieftain and his purple counterpart intently. "So these two must be the ones jousting for power, correct?" she whispers to Korinne. Who knows? Perhaps backing the right party might go a long way to earning ourselves a grateful ally.
"Being outnumbered I can stomach", Xelani mutters "but being outsmarted just adds insult to injury." "Wonderful..." Korinne groans softly. "Maybe we can still make this work our advantage though, depending on what sort of 'reward' they have in mind?" she murmurs as she follows after Rufus and the others. "Agreed. Since we were bound to pay those mites a visit anyway, we might as well see if we can retrieve this 'statue', too. And see if we can tip this power struggle in a direction which is the most favorable to us. Or... least unfavorable" she hastens to add as she gives their reptilian escorts an assessing glance.
"So this is the mites' hive. And there is Svetlana's ring presumably buried, too. Perhaps we can still turn this enmity to our advantage... or at the very worst, catch two birds with one stone" Xelani muses addressing her companions. ***********************************************************************
"I'll keep my eyes open. Let's hope Crak here is more representative of his people's acumen rather than pugnacity."
"Smart thinking. A flame is best quenched before it turns into a full-fledged fire" the half-elf paladin states pensively. "We'll watch your backs" she adds, nodding towards Castor.
Best wishes and, as they say, ad majora!
"Releasing him would at least appear like a gesture of good will – if they even understand such a concept, that is" Xelani muses. "Still, the moment we let his three companions go we've made our presence known to the tribe as a whole. Sparing it might at least prevent our relations from turning even sourer." "See if you can get a hunch about where the bulk of those Sootscales operates from, so we can at least avoid any more accidental trespasses" she asks of the more linguistically-inclined party members. "I don't crave the idea of repeating today's encounter – only with 40 kobolds instead of 4."
"That... will need some reworking if we ever write it down in some annals" Xelani jokes in agreement with Castor. That said, the paladin kneels besides the poor, unconscious creature and pours all her remaining healing powers into it.
Once it has regained consciousness, she looks at it with an arched eyebrow and a quizzical, bemused expression on her face – as if to signify the time has come for it to follow his companions in retreat.
"Ouch" Xelani can't help but mutter as she hears she sound of ribs being pulverized. She takes a few steps towards the combatants to assess the situation, trying to save the little kobold's life if at all possible.
"Well, let's hope they've got enough wits in their scaly heads to accept the challenge. For their own protracted well-being, that is" she whispers in Korinne's ear.
Xelani has been content to watch the events unfold, the language barrier and both Rufus and Korinne's competent handling of the situation suggesting taking a backseat as the wisest course of action. When the party opts for the diplomatic approach, she nods approvingly. As the Kobolds try to muster whatever pugnacity is left in their bloated bellies, she whispers to her allies. "Rufus says we can easily overpower them, and let's say I'm quite inclined to believe him. Do we really want to, though? Is there anything we might gain by putting those little creatures down?" Her tone is one of sincere curiosity, she seems more than willing to follow whatever course of action the group suggests.
Hey, no worry GM^2. So I take it the cart was attacked in an hypothetical A8 / A9 hex, which is where we are... Personally, I think cutting down diagonally through B8 would be a sensible and time-saving choice, but we probably don't have enough supplies as of now to reach the mites all in one swing. As it stands, I suggest we go back to Oleg's => resupply, inform Kesten of our intentions => reach the mites' lair through C5 (which I know is a forest hex, but we still haven't explored it and it's nearby so...), D6, E6
@Korinne: according to his backgroud, Arawn is a Surtova descended from a secondary branch, though after leaving port Ice he picked up the surname Vasska. I don't know if he told anyone about it during the few days we spent together; I think he said (ooc) that his story should have been pretty well know in the right circles, but the only one with ranks in Knowledge (nobility or local) would be Rufus... As for exploring, I'm all for it - where are we exactly, though? I was under the impression we're currently somewhere along the south Restov road, and thus outside the eastern edge of the map... Does the top row of hexes fall within our charter?
"Looks like we've struck a dead end. I had hoped we could at least recover their bodies and give them the proper funeral rites, but it seems there's little more we can do here" Xelani bitterly states with a defeated look on her face. "Personally, I'm loath to proceed all the way to Restov. There's no business for us there, and Kressel's probably hanging from a gibbet as we speak: it's south that our duty lies. If someone survived, we're bound to hear from them sooner or later. If not... Erastil guide their souls, for they're beyond our reach now."
Heading here... perhaps Arawn made it to Restov after all... if by some fortunate accident he opted to remain there... clinging to one bare thread of hope whose truth she has no way to ascertain, Xelani sighs heavily and turns toward the brothers. "And may I suggest letting go of the trading business?" she wearily chimes in. "You don't seem to have had much luck in that particular field. As for the merchandise... Let us and Master Oleg take a look and see how many items in there are rightfully ours and I think I can safely say everyone's willing to close an eye – or two – on your little scavenging. With bandits still active further south and some kind of ferocious beast preying on caravans, we have more pressing issues to tackle right now." ************************************************************************ Later, once the situation has been settled, Xelani addresses her companions to decide on their next moves. "We now know there's a dangerous predator lurking around here. We can safely say it's well within the boundaries of our mandate to try and find a way to neutralize it; still, even should the Montrous be able to pinpoint the exact location where they found the cart, the trail is probably now cold... What's your take on this, Castor? Do you think we have some chance of tracking it? Or should we just proceed with our exploration – hoping it's going to be the one to find us rather than the other way round?" And that the hunters won't become the hunted, too...
"Yes. That would have spared us quite some trouble" Xelani says, a weary expression on her face. "And this 'right' to loot comes as news to me. Though in the end, perhaps it's for the best. We wouldn't have known of this unfortunate event as early as we did if it weren't for your unorthodox stance about matters of appropriation... not to mention your poor lying skills." Then, turning to Castor, "We still don't know what kind of threat we're facing, other than it's probably big and feral as it apparently didn't bother to steal anything. Wild wolves, just like the ones who killed Happs? Though that close to Restov – not to mention those claw marks... Something doesn't quite add up."
"I see you were attacked on the road" Xelani says pointing at the blood spots. "Are you hurt, good sir? If so, let me make amends for that... unpleasant incident and heal your wounds" she offers, putting the arrow back in the quiver. "Though I wonder what manner of beast can leave such marks. Care to shed some light on the matter?" she immediately asks the two men. Though outwardly friendly, Xelani still remembers Castor's earlier warning and is trying to get a hunch of their latest guests.
Later, to Castor: "Alors, quel est votre point de vue à ce sujet? Toujours penser qu'ils sont une menace? Ils ne regardent pas que menaçante pour moi ... ou ils représentent un danger plus subtil?" Elven: "So what's your take on this? Still think they're a threat? They don't look that menacing to me... or do you think it's a subtler danger they pose?"
"Right... and sorry for trying to shoot you" Xelani says as she pulls out the arrow from the board it got stuck into. In doing so, she briefly attempts to get a glimpse of the wagon's inside, trying to discern the presence of anything suspicious.
Xelani was about to express her own worries to Kesten when she heard the wagon approaching. Now, she stands on the palisades with her bow in her hands, ready to shoot an arrow at the first sign of treachery. Though she herself hasn't noticed anything amiss, she knows better than to second guess a Desnan priest.
"A couple of hours of sleep might have been enough to have me on my feet tomorrow, though I agree that would have been about it. Who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth? Sleep now, Rufus, I'll wake you up in a few hours..."
"Of course, Castor. As our eyes are probably the keenest in piercing the darkness, it would stand to reason we split this duty among the two of us. I'll take the first watch, if you like" Xelani says to her fellow half-elf.
Xelani assists in perusing the area around the mound, using to discern the presence of lingering negative energies.
Should nothing transpire, she would urge her companions to camp here for the night and then depart as soon as the sun rises, unwilling to desecrate such a site by resorting to what would essentially amount to grave robbing.
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