Initiaitive:
Silstaren curses to himself, but doesn't stop his charge. His sword swings in a wide arc over his head and he brings it down with both hands toward the leader's head.
Greehr pulls out a small vial, shakes it roughly, and tosses it at the surviving mounted bandit.
Summary of Round
Greehr flings a small vial at the remaining bandit on horseback that strikes him in the face and explodes in a burst of fire, engulfing him and four of the six horses around him in flame. The bandit screams in pain and his body falls off the horse. The horses neigh in pain and bolt out of the gate, their manes and necks severely burned. Oh and Greehr notices the trading post's gate has caught fire!
Garyn shoots at one of the bandits engaged in melee with Strovan and Cale, but the distance is long and the scene chaotic enough that he misses.
Realizing the situation is desperate and he is severely wounded, the Bandit leader, Happs, takes a step back ready to unlease a vial of his own at Strovan and Cale, only to find Silstaren waiting for him with a swing of his elven curve blade, that cuts across his back. "Damn elf!" are Happs' words before his eyes close and he falls to the floor, the vial of red liquid in his hand, landing harmlessly on the floor and intact.
The red-haired bandit unsheathes his longsword and attacks Cale, screaming "Die you bastard!", but Cale easily parries the awkward swing. Cale, Strovan, and Silstaren can see real terror on the bandit's face.
Attack
The bald bandit from the stables suddenly appears, riding bareback on one of the party's wagon horses, headed towards the gates. He is currently 10' from the front gate.
Drumming hoofbeats draw Silstaren's attention. The bandit in the stable! He dashes from the melee, pulling a throwing hammer from his belt as he goes. Rounding the corner of the bunkhouse he casts the hammer at the fleeing bandit's back.
Strovan Rushes around the corner of the building and yells at the fleeing bandit, "FALL!"
Strovan takes a 5 foot step away from the surviving bandit and sternly says, "Fall!"
"You seem to be the last of your band of thugs alive. If you wish that to continue I suggest ye not move a muscle or my friend here will likely chop you in half."
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **
Attack:
Strovan springs into action and the red-haired bandit tries to take advantage, but the sly dwarf's armor protects him from the sword blow
Damage:
Greehr took stock of the situation. Unwilling to hurt one of their own horses, Greehr picks up the nearest handy object, in this case his cane, and hurls it with great accuracy at the fleeing bandit.
That was so easy... Cale trained with swordsman of weight and renown, so the parry was only an elementary move. Cale expected the man to move with the speed of a nightmare, certain that his blood would be the next to spill. Instead, he had survived with ease and it looked like take some luck for the highwayman to ever make contact with the swordsman. With the same haughty grin he uses to annoy dueling opponents, Cale slashes out with his sword again, hoping to teach this one the same lesson learned by the fallen.
Cale's assessment of the bandit's skill rings true, as his blade finds its way through the bandit's defenses, nearly killing him in one blow. He grips at the wound in his chest, drops his blade, and falls to his knees, as he tries in vain to stop the bleeding, murmuring "Mercy, please!"
The bald bandit struggles to get off the ground and continue running, despite the cut on his forehead, when a wooden cane nearly strikes him in the head. He curses his luck and tries to make a final run for it, but not before Garyn's arrow hits him in the neck, ending his life in a gurgle of blood, as he slumps to the floor.
Silstaren comes around the corner of the bunkhouse just in time to see the bandit's bloody death, but also to notice that one of the wooden gates to the post is on fire and it is starting to spread!
"Oy, that wasn't so bad." Strovan chuckles slightly, "Ye sure do know how to make a large boom Greehr. Lets not make this bandit killing all for naught."
In no time, the fire is put out quickly by Strovan's magic, though scorch marks remain on the gate as a reminder.
Garyn does his best to help put the fire out. That went surprisingly well, he thinks. The boy did very well, seeing as how he's not really seen real combat. Hells, everyone executed the plan perfectly. A wide grin crosses his face.
"Well done, mates!" Garyn calls. "Very well done, indeed! Oleg! Lana! There will be no more violence this day! Strovan, see to the injured bandit, please. I think it may be best if he doesn't meet Pharasma this day. The dead tell no tales, and we need him singing."
Garyn begins the process of collecting the dead bandits' valuables.
Silstaren runs to the burning gate, but he starts to shed his cloak to try to beat the flames out when Strovan begins creating water. The elf then turns his attention to the downed bandits.
Greehr climbs down the palisade, lightly picks up his cane, and goes starts looking through the bandits, with a particular eye on any potions or alchemical items of note.
Items found on the bandits:
5 suits of leather armor
4 longbows
1 composite longbow (Happs)
4 short swords
1 dagger
100 arrows
12 days' worth of trail rations
2 vials of alchemist's fire (identified easily by Greehr) (Happs)
Small silver amulet shaped in the likeness of a Stag's skull (Happs)
85 gp in total
"If any of the poor horses lived through Greehr's explosions see if ye can round them up and bring them over to me. The sins of the riders should not extend to the horse besides we can probably use them if they aren't too traumatized."
Strovan then checks over the bandits to see if any still live.
Silstaren does a walk-through of the scene, but the other bandits clearly died from their wounds. The horses were spooked by the fire and ran off. The 2 unharmed ones and the party's wagon horse are nearby, but the others cannot be seen. As Silstaren rounds up the 3 horses, he recognizes the Surtova brand on one of the horses the bandits brought with them.
"Well done, mates!" Garyn calls. "Very well done, indeed! Oleg! Lana! There will be no more violence this day!
Oleg and Lana walk out ouf their house and survey the carnage of the scene. "Good riddance!", says Oleg, as he sees the corpses and spits on the ground in disgust. "My compliments, young warriors, yer plan worked flawlessly and here I was telling Lana to get the healing kits ready, in case any of ye were wounded. My, look at ye, not a wound on ye, any of ye..impressive!...My gate! Thank god, they didn't burn me place down!"
Items found on the bandits:
1 composite longbow (Happs)
Small silver amulet shaped in the likeness of a Stag's skull (Happs)
85 gp in total
"Oy," says Garyn, "this is a nice bow! Any of ye gents mind if I claim it?"
"And what's this?" he continues, noticing the silver amulet. "Does this mean anything to anyone?"
He looks over to Oleg and Lana. "Don't ye be putting them kits away for good. Something tells me we'll be glad if ye keep them around!"
Garyn surveys the carnage around him. The gods were good to us today. Is it a fluke? Or will this whole endeavor work? He goes to Barley, making sure the beast didn't panic in the chaos. When his horse is seen to, and the bodies are disposed of, Garyn checks with Oleg and the rest of his party to see what is next on the agenda.
"The amulet means nothing ta me. Yes twas impressive, but it isn't that hard to defeat scum like this, especially when they don't know ye are coming."
Strovan smiles and winks at Oleg and Lana. And here I thought this was a suicide mission. The lads can sure fight, and if we can learn to fight as a team we could be very dangerous. Then he walks up to Cale and slaps him on the back.
"Twas a right nice ambush ye set. Now what, ye want us to track them back to their lair and attack them head on, or are we taking a slower rout to our eventual goal. Maybe we will use this as a home base and explore out from here and get the lay of the land first."
Cale has to stop himself as the bandit falls to his knees in surrender. He shakes with adrenaline and has trouble getting his sword sheathed. He swallows a lump and drops his shield to lean against the doorway interior. That didn't take long at all. Then people are moving all around him, people are talking and Strovan's slap pulls him from his racing thoughts. "We won. We did it! HA!" He grins in triumph down at the bandit, then walks to look at the corpses of the other bandits. One survivor, then. But there are others. This woman that killed my father. I'll send her head home in a box. What could possibly hope to stop us?
Cale chuckles to himself then walks back to the bloody survivor. He squats down to look the young ginger in the eyes. "You're the only one that made it. The others are dead. They go to cradles prepared now by Pharasma. But you survived. I want the others, criminal. I want all of the rest. If you don't take us to them... If you don't tell us everything you know about banditry in this area... you will hang. You will hang from the neck until you are dead, by decree of the Swordlords and House Surtova. Not the quick hanging either, where you break your neck and it's over quick. No, you'll slowly strangle, your face will turn black and we'll watch your tongue try to crawl its way out of your head. Help us, and you will live. There may be punishment, but you will live to make amends for your predations. I give you my word on that. Make your choice." Cale then stands up and walks away, going to speak with his companions. "You did admirable work yourselves, sirs. We'll eat our fills, then we should discuss what to do with our prisoner." Cale will then describe what he said to the captured bandit. "Mercy may garner us a larger victory in the grand scheme of things. Maybe the boy will lose a hand or be branded and made to serve the traders here for a time. He's young enough to still make a go at a decent living. What say you?" Cale pays no mind to the fact that the 'boy' is probably the same age as the young noble himself.
Intimidate
Silstaren walks the horses slowly back to the stables. As he walks he reflects on the fight. That went well indeed. Strovan is no mean drunk; the dwarf has power. Garyn shoots well. Greehr's a surprise. That explosion was more than the little pop I was expecting. And Cale acquitted himself well. He puts the horses in stalls except the paint mare with the Surtova brand which he leads to Cale and the others.
To Garyn, Silstaren smiles, "You've earned the bow with your marksmanship. Though it is not mine to divide the spoils, I will not gainsay you." Inwardly, though Silstaren is needled that the human shot so well while he had no chance to show his own skill with the bow. He brushes the feeling off as unworthy.
To Strovan, Silstaren listens in agreement without comment.
To Cale, Silstaren replies quietly, "Sir, I would urge you to begin your career with mercy, if the 'boy' merits it. If he repents and tells us of the bandits, and if he speaks true, then perhaps he deserves neither mutilation nor branding which would mark him forever as a thief. If he won't repent or if he lies, then your justice should be swift."
Silstaren steps back and waits a few beats before continuing in a louder voice so that all can easily hear. "This horse is yours Cale nil Surtova. She is called Patches and was ridden by your father's sworn man Nils. She is not the grandest of horses, nor the fastest, but could outlast the other horses we had with us excepting only your father's own mount. Reclaim your own."
He squats down to look the young ginger in the eyes. "You're the only one that made it. The others are dead. They go to cradles prepared now by Pharasma. But you survived. I want the others, criminal. I want all of the rest. If you don't take us to them... If you don't tell us everything you know about banditry in this area... you will hang. You will hang from the neck until you are dead, by decree of the Swordlords and House Surtova. Not the quick hanging either, where you break your neck and it's over quick. No, you'll slowly strangle, your face will turn black and we'll watch your tongue try to crawl its way out of your head. Help us, and you will live. There may be punishment, but you will live to make amends for your predations. I give you my word on that. Make your choice."
The red-haired bandit looks at Cale through pained eyes and says, "I'll help ye, tell ye all I know, lead you to the rest if ye want, but please heal me, I'm bleeding out here and won't last much longer without medical attention. Please", he says, as he he coughs up blood.
Silstaren does not recognize it, though he admires its quality, probably human-made, definitely not elven.
Garyn thanks Silstaren for his kind words, and if no one objects he unstrings the composite bow deftly with precision grace that marks a task performed countless times.
Hearing the bandit bleeding out and begging for mercy, Garyn goes to his side and calls for Strovan's aid. "Mates, let's keep this bastard alive! If he dies, we learn nothing."
Lana speaks, "While Oleg and I thank ye for the job you've done, won't they just send more bandits? And what will happen when these bandits don't report back? Have we just made the situation worse, Oleg? Next time, they may burn our place down instead of extorting us." Lana starts to cry, as the worse ideas come to her mind.
Oleg sighs, "Sweetie, we had to take a stand, we couldn't just keep giving all our profits over and over, and these young warriors, they were a sign from Erastil. If this made things worse, well, then it's best to die on our feet with honor than give in. And if they try to burn us down, so be it, but I'll make sure to take a few with me. C'mon sweetie, are you with me?"
Lana wipes her tears, nodding in agreement, as she grasps the handle of her butcher's knife.
Lana speaks, "While Oleg and I thank ye for the job you've done, won't they just send more bandits? And what will happen when these bandits don't report back? Have we just made the situation worse, Oleg? Nest time, they may burn our place down instead of extorting us." Lana starts to cry, as the worse ideas come to her mind.
Oleg sighs, "Sweetie, we had to take a stand, we couldn't just keep giving all our profits over and over, and these young warriors, they were a sign from Erastil. If this made things worse, well, then it's best to die on our feet with honor than give in. And if they try to burn us down, so be it, but I'll make sure to take a few with me. C'mon sweetie, are you with me?"
Lana wipes her tears, nodding in agreement, as she grasps the handle of her butcher's knife.
This bastard's bleeding like a stuck pig! Garyn wipes his hands on the ground and gives up in his meager efforts to staunch his bleeding, moving aside so those more knowledgeable can do their work. He stows the rest of his equipment and walks unhurriedly over to the master and mistress of the trading post, listening as Oleg gives what comfort he can to his wife.
"Ye both showed great courage both during the fight and now, when the chips fall. Aye, they might send more, and aye they'll certainly know something is amiss when their mates don't return, but that don't mean we'll be resting on our haunches neither." Garyn clasps hands with Oleg and pats Lana's shoulder gently.
"I feel a reckoning near at hand."
Garyn thanks Silstaren for his kind words, and if no one objects he unstrings the composite bow deftly with precision grace that marks a task performed countless times.
Strovan gives a disdainful glance at the young bandit bleeding on the ground. Sighs, deeply and finally heals him.
"Boy, sometimes if ye make a mistake you have to live with the consequences, and if that means yer neck gets stretched, well ye got no one to blame but yerself. Tis a lucky thing for you that you have information we need, and that my friends here believe in redemption, but make no mistake I wouldn't lose a wink of sleep if you bled out."
Without a second glance Strovan turns towards Lana and Oleg. Now these two here are the reason we are out here. Revenge it is never a worthy cause, but the people, they are always worth fighting for. With a large smile on his face he walks up to Oleg and shakes his hand.
"I am glad we could help ye with yer problems. But I am no fool we know that this was but one battle and yes they will be back. I give ye my word that we will stand by ye and not leave you swinging in the wind. We will get information on their base of operations from this lad and depending on their numbers either keep ambushing them or attack them head on."
Strovan gives a disdainful glance at the young bandit bleeding on the ground. Sighs, deeply and finally heals him.
"Boy, sometimes if ye make a mistake you have to live with the consequences, and if that means yer neck gets stretched, well ye got no one to blame but yerself. Tis a lucky thing for you that you have information we need, and that my friends here believe in redemption, but make no mistake I wouldn't lose a wink of sleep if you bled out."
The wave of energy washes over the bandit and the majority of his wounds close, though he still bleeds. He rips off a piece of his shirt and applies pressure to the wound. "Thank you dwarf. I know I made my own bed and I must lie in it. But if there was a better option for me, I would take it. I didn't wake up one morning and say I want to be a bandit, a thief. I was out of options. Society forced me into it, there was no employment available, with all the decent jobs going to the nobility or their friends. The common man lives on the scraps of the nobles and I felt I deserved better. So, what is it you need to know?"
"Patches, eh?" Cale wasn't sure what he was supposed to do when he got a new horse. He had seen a man once check a new horse's teeth, so he mimicked that now, then stepped back to examine the creature's shape. Truthfully, though, unless the horse had an extra leg, Cale wouldn't know the difference between a healthy and unhealthy horse. But he nodded in satisfaction nonetheless, as if he were an old hand at horsecraft.
He considers the traders. "We'll be heading that way shortly. The rest will meet similar ends as these." He then returns to the bandit and has a seat at one of the exterior tables. "I want to know everything. How many of you are there? Where is your camp? Who leads you? Tell me everything about Kressle, this axe-wielding whore that murdered my father. Is your lair trapped? Who else do you rob and kill in this area?" Cale is intent on draining every ounce of information that he can get from this young man.
The bandit sighs. "How many in number? Left I'm assuming, seeing as you seem to have killed the other 3 bandits and Happs today. Yeah, that was our leader, Happs, second-in command, the guy whose spine you can see laying over there, thanks to your elf friend. Kressle's not going to be happy, she was sleepin' with ol' Happs there. Or maybe she will be happy, we all thought he wasn't satisfying her the right way!" The bandit laughs to himself but when he notices no one else is laughing, he continues: "I'm Calvin, by the way. So that leaves Kressle, our leader, and about 8 more good ole boys, like me, in camp. Our camp is about 10-12 hours away from here, we got a little place by the river, helps to have drinking water and a place to keep clean. What else? Yeah, Kressle is our leader, mean b+$+~ she be, no one fu**s with her, she don't play with those handaxes of hers and she's strong, stronger than all of us. But with a sweet ass!" He chuckles to himself, probably imagining some stuff. "Anyway, she keeps us in line, makes sure we're not too drunk or that we chew more than we can take. Sorry about your father, whomever he was, but you don't piss Kressle off if you know what's good for you. No, there's no traps at our place. With Kressle's rep and 12 bandits at her side, nobody messes with us...except for you now. Anything else?", says Calvin, as he tries to stand, holding his wound.
"I am glad we could help ye with yer problems. But I am no fool we know that this was but one battle and yes they will be back. I give ye my word that we will stand by ye and not leave you swinging in the wind. We will get information on their base of operations from this lad and depending on their numbers either keep ambushing them or attack them head on."
Oleg shakes Strovan's hand firmly. "I can tell you're a man of your word, dwarf! Thank you! Whatever you boys need, let us know!"
Oleg can't take anymore of the bandit's comments. He snatches Lana's butcher's knife and walks up to Calvin. "I sure as hell ain't no noble, boy, but did you see me resort to a life of crime and stealing from those weaker than you. Society forced you...HA! You're just a plain ol' bully and if I had my way, I would carve you up like a turkey with this here knife for spouting all that bull-s**t about not havin' a choice. I ought to..." The party sees Oleg raise the butcher's knife to strike at Calvin, while Calvin raises his arms defensively and screams "No, please!".
"Stay yer hand friend Oleg, I agree he deserves the blade but not like this. Ye aint the type of man to kill another in cold blood." Strovan puts a hand on Oleg's shoulder, not as a restraint but more as a calming motion. Then looking once again at the bandit. "As for you, don't be talking bout how ye had no choice. There are always choices, sometimes the right ones aren't the easy ones, and that is the true test of a man, and you do not measure up."
He then spits at the ground in front of the bandit and turns back to Cale. "Even if we get the drop on them if they are in their hideout I think eight plus the leader will be a tough match for us, we got lucky this time because of surprise and terrain. But ye know they will have guards in their camp and they will know the ground better than us. I wonder if all nine of them will come looking after these five, or will she leave some of them back in their camp? I would love to be able to take them when we had close to equal numbers."
Cale gives a disapproving frown to Oleg's brutish feint. No wonder the peasantry are so often likened to animals. So quick to eat their own. He then turns back to his companions. "Five rode out today, and their compatriots are expecting five to return. We shouldn't disappoint them on that account." A wicked grin spreads across his face. "Garyn, how good are you with rope? Could you tie Happs to his horse? We could ambush them in their own layer, penetrating any layers of defense they would put between us and the she-b@$*!, Kressle. If the rest are as unskilled and feeble as this" he gestures to the captive, "then she will be the only true threat. Let's get these bodies stripped down. That means you too, animal. Strip."
"Oleg," Garyn says after Strovan calms his outburst, but before he storms off, "I pegged you as different than this bastards ilk. I know ye've suffered, and the gods know that men like this have done the same to me. They sent people I loved to Pharasma well before their time, but the thing that makes us different than them is our compassion. Our mercy! Don't be as they are. Ye're better, as are we. If death is to come to him, let's have it be in a fair fight or after we decide he can't do no more good, not when he's lying bloody and beaten." Garyn looks around, embarrassed by his outburst.
"Well, ye know what I mean." He clears his throat and addresses Cale after the boy asks him about the rope.
"I can do a job tying the body, if ye want, but are we sure that charging at their camp, even with a sound plan, is the wisest course of action? Mind ye, I'm not against it, but if we can whittle down their numbers, make them scared of us, then...then after they're terrified of us what go bump in the night and haunt their dreams...then we strike."
"Your plan has merit, Garyn. However, there are a few things that make it less than ideal." Cale ticks them off on his fingers. "One, we aren't all adept sneaks or woodsmen. Only half of our force could be brought to bear effectively. Second, we lose the element of surprise with a prolonged assault. Once the first victim is assassinated, the rest will be on a higher alert, and they may have allies nearby. However, your idea does raise a good point. Your skills at stealth could be used in conjunction with the proposed plan on the table. We could stay a ways out and have you scout the camp before we ride in. With the added information, we could make a more educated decision." A thought occurs to Cale then. He approaches the captive. "Does your boss have a boss? Is there a way for your band to gain reinforcements?"
Silstaren watches and listens to Strovan and the humans. How utterly gauche they are. But he recognizes that their motives and feelings are no more base than those of his own people, only less well disguised.
At last he addresses one of his questions,"Cale, what do we do with Calvin? We can not free him until we know if he speaks true and our business with Kressle is done. Nor do I wish to bring him with us until we know if we can trust him. "
"Oleg, is there someplace you can hold him until this business is done?"
A thought occurs to Cale then. He approaches the captive. "Does your boss have a boss? Is there a way for your band to gain reinforcements?"
Calvin, in the middle of stripping off his bloody clothes, pauses. "I know Kressle reports to someone, further south, don't know where, but they says he's a big oafish guy who wears a helmet with stag horns, they say he never takes it off. I've never met him personally, guess I wasn't too important to merit that. He's supposed to be the big boss man of all the bandits in the Greenbelt. No one takes a sh*t without his ok!" Calvin chuckles. "As for reinforcements, I don't think so, we've never had to call anyone for help....ever..so I wouldn't know. Do you still need me to strip? It's cold out here!"
"Oleg, is there someplace you can hold him until this business is done?"
Oleg pauses to think. "Tied up in the stable is my only idea, don't want him in the house, anywhere near my Lana...couldn't you guys take 'im wit ya? Oh, and one other thing, how about them dead bodies? They going to be attracting scavengers and such."
"Now that's interesting," Garyn says in response to Calvin. "I wonder if we might meet some more organized resistance than these louts."
"Oh, and one other thing, how about them dead bodies? They going to be attracting scavengers and such."
Garyn helps lug the bodies from the common yard, using sawdust or dirt to cover the blood. If no one makes any other suggestions, Garyn suggests burning the bodies or burying them in a mass grave at least a half mile or so from Oleg's.
"...couldn't you guys take 'im wit ya?
"Talkative as he may be, someone with passing knowledge of the area could be of use." Greehr intoned. "But as for your plans, If we do attack blindly, I'll have to remind you that we will have the same disadvantage as these had." He gestured toward the corpse Garyn is dragging along. "It might even be better to wait and see how they react to this."