"You are very good against someone half your size." Vandis taunts Irocar.
"I'm not feeling peaceable. It's upsetting my aim."
Dagobert abruptly realises how much he depended on Kenneth's cheery quips in these situations. Even thinking of rats is no comfort.
The spirit once again drifts over to Irocar and attempts bury it's blade deep in his sides.
The party seems completely unable to coordinate their attacks as Irocar finds new strength and shrugs off all attempts to finish him off.
"What's...the matter? Losin' yer' steam?" mocks the War Captain between heavy breaths. "Was...the bard...the only one of ya'...with any spirit?! Come at me!"
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Hit Points
Dannad (marked by Irocar)
Irocar the War Captain (bloodied)
Galad
Vandis
Dagobert
Dannad drops the normal dagger in his off hand and presses his arm against his bleeding wound.
"You.... Shall.... See."
With a deep breath he summons what remains of his energy and lashes out with his blade, sending it spinning around Vandis.
Dannad comes within a hair's breadth of slicing through Irocar's leg armor and hitting an artery but he moves slightly and brings his shield down to block the attack at the last moment.
Irocar brings a hand to his helm and pulls the elaborate armor off of his head. It is now plain why he wears it, as his face is a mass of scar tissue. His lip is pulled up in a horrible sneer and his left eye is unable to close with most of the lid missing.
"You're all nothin'! I'm the War Captain! Neither hired mercenary or Beggar-King takes me down!" shouts the bleary eyed warrior, his fearsome visage lending credence to his boasts.
Dazed from blood loss and mania, Irocar puts himself in a flank between Vandis and Dannad and prepares to Cleave through the two of them. His blade remains strong in his iron grip and Vandis is severely bloodied once again. The continued momentum of the swing is enough to smash into Dannad's chest and send the halfling sprawling and unconscious.
-13 HP from Vandis and he is marked. -4 HP from Dannad
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Hit Points
Galad
Vandis (bloodied, marked by Irocar)
Dagobert
Dannad (dying)
Irocar the War Captain (bloodied, marked by Vandis)
The spirit slashes at the captain with relish as Galad moves over to Dannad in a roundabout way.
Galad's companion finally lands the final blow on Irocar's exposed head and the large man falls to the floor with a great clatter as sword and shield also fall. A horrible smile is frozen on the War Captain's face as he joins the deep pile of corpses now lining the floor.
Eventually the regeneration revives Dannad and both he and Vandis' wounds continue to heal until they are no longer in dire need. The spell then fades.
Dagobert breathes again and kicks the dead warchief.
"I'd like to do worse really, but I won't lower myself."
He drags Kenneth's body clear and lays it out neatly.
"You'd have told a good story about this, I don't doubt," is his only tribute to his old friend.
"Ah. I'm sure some of us could use a little kip before we meet any more of these otyughs. I'll just have a little look and see if there's anywhere a bit less infested shall I?"
He climbs the stairs to Irocar's hideout.
The ladder rises to a small smoky loft. An austere cot stands in the back of the chamber, before a chimney built of crumbling brick and rotting mortar. On the opposite side of the loft, beneath a pair of shuttered windows, is a simple brazier filled with faintly glowing coals.
The spirit raises it's blade to stab into the chest of the fallen captain before fading away like mist in a strong breeze. After a quick funerary rite on Kenneth's body, Galad follows Dagobert. "Are you sure it is wise to sleep in a den of thieves?"
Vandis looks exhausted, bleeding from many wounds. "This has gone badly." he says grimly.
"We can't rest here, dwarf. Someone is bound to come looking over the course of time."
He turns to address Dannad, "Halfling, what do you say to scouting a little ahead of us?"
Dagobert prods around the room, looking for anything interesting, answering Galad and Vandis over his shoulder.
"I didn't say this was the best or only place to hole up, but I've lost one friend today. Unless it's some strange foreign thing I don't properly understand, I'd rather not lose another."
"I can keep watch. I've got plenty to think about."
Dannad realizes that there is a great redundancy in having both a fireplace and a lit brazier in the same room and inspects the chimney. It is filled with debris and obviously hasn't been used in quite some time. A closer inspection reveals several loose bricks in a key part of the chimney.
Dagobert rootles cautiously.
Dagobert rootles cautiously.
It looks as though pulling the loose bricks out would collapse part of the chimney. You can also tell that it has been worked purposely to do this, as there are chisel marks around the loose bricks.
"Errmmm. Dannad, care to take a look? Galad and I can do any pulling out of bricks, but if you could just take a peek for any traps first? Normally I'm a trusting chap, but these are thieves and murderers."
Galad leans down and takes a look at the mysterious bricks.
Dagobert surprises himself with the depth of his knowledge.
Dannad looks closer at the bricks, trying to discern anything beyond what he's already seen.
The halfling shrugs as he turns back to the group.
"I can't see nuthin more'n that they'll collapse ifin theys be puled out."
Between Dannad and Dagobert's inspections, it seems like the chimney is designed to collapse on whoever tries to pry the bricks free. It would take someone of impressive strength to hold the stones in place while the loose ones were removed to keep it from crushing anyone in front.
Vandis braces himself and assists the nimbler party members.
Dagobert uses his detested dwarven heritage to work out how to turn the stresses on the chimney bricks to his advantage.
Galad leans down and carefully takes out the brick.
Vandis' direct approach does not seem to be working as Galad manipulates the loose bricks, and the chimney begins to collapse outward, luckily, Dagobert jumps in and is better able to hold the bricks in place with his lower center of gravity.
With the loose bricks removed, Dagobert and Vandis count to three and leap out of the way, allowing the bricks to fall and clatter harmlessly on the floor.
Inside the chimney space are several large sacks, a leather quiver of javelins, and a large ceramic jug secured with a woven cord net.
Vandis' eyes gleam.
He inspects the sacks.
Inspection of Irocar's armor reveals nothing magical. His sword, however, gleams with an unnaturally keen edge. A few minutes of study reveals it to be a +1 Vicious Bastard Sword.
The sacks contain an assortment of coins that add up to:
The quiver holds 8 javelins, 4 of which are silvered and one of which turns out to be a +1 Lightning Javelin.
The ceramic jug is old, worn, and sealed with wax. The seal will need to be removed to reveal its contents.
Vandis silently strips Irocar's corpse of its wargear, and appropriates it.
He closes Kenneth's eyes and mutters something.
Critical: +1d12
Critical: +1d6
Power (At-Will * Lightning): Free Action. All damage dealt by this weapon is lightning damage. Another free action returns the damage to normal.
Power (Daily * Lightning): Free Action. Use this power when you hit with the weapon. The target and each enemy within two squares of the target take 1d6 lightning damage.
Dannad sits down, plops the jug into his lap, and begins to work at the seal.
"I'm guessin' from the sounds that Vandis' be making that he's found some new shiny toys for playing with others."
After working some of the wax seal out of the lid the jug emits a pleasant aroma much like that of good wine. Just sniffing it seems to alleviate some of your more minor aches and pains.
Dannad sits down, plops the jug into his lap, and begins to work at the seal.
"I'm guessin' from the sounds that Vandis' be making that he's found some new shiny toys for playing with others."
"He'll like that. What have you got there Dannad?"
Dagobert carefully picks up the javelin in case anyone can use it.
"Waste not, want not. You never know when a javelin will come in handy."
"A prayer for the fallen. He was a strange one, but he died like a warrior."
"I'm thinking I'll remember his stories and tell them. That's going to be how I remember Kenneth."
Arcana check on contents (1d20+7=16)
Dagobert's face falls. "That's something we could have used a few minutes ago," he says soberly.
Currently the demesne is surprisingly quiet after all of your excursions. The usual night sounds can be heard out in the distance but all you hear nearby is a fluttering sound outside the window.
"To my way of thinking, Kenneth would be wanting to finish this Beggar King and he wouldn't think well of us rushing into battle any old how, if you take my meaning."