Joined: May 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 308 Location: Ohio Karma: 27
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #121 on Jul 27, 2012, 9:44am »
Mads the Enlightened
Ruglud? Snorks perhaps...
Mads steadily and slowly ascends the stairs, sword brandished. He puts on a stern face and appraises the group waiting on the landing. He directs his lights to float above each of their heads. "I ask." he states simply.
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 1,217 Location: Melbourne, Australia Karma: 195
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #122 on Jul 28, 2012, 5:53am »
[One imagines the young warlock as a Darth Maul-esque figure, his gaze smouldering intently as he steadily rises from the dark stair...]
Mads spies four hunched men with overlong arms and bulbous noses standing in front of a door in a 10ft wide stone passage. Their dark eyes glimmer beneath heavy brows in the floating candle lights. Several of them fidget to swat the flames away from them and to shield their eyes. Their hair is greasy and rank, their knuckles knobbly and their fingernails dark and hard. They are an ugly lot with bare feet and yellow teeth... and knives and hand axes near to hand...
[Reaction is rolled 2d6=3!]
"It ain't Rudlug at all!" confirms a fellow at the rear.
The pair nearer the front straighten their hunched backs and slowly draw forth long, curved knives with notched blades from their belts. They are taller than Mads realised -- almost as tall as he is.
"Hand over yer goodies, wizard, and we'll let ye scurry off." says the nearest fellow (30ft away), his shoulders bunching as his eyes narrow warily.
"Otherwise, you'll have trouble 'ere," confirms his friend, licking his licks hungrily.
Rufus whispers to Dugel and Wendel, "if you have an spells or tricks used them now". Rufus will draw his bow ready to shoot the creatures below.
"I've got a right trick if this turns out nasty," mutters Dugel the Dwarf, listening intently to the conversation that is taking place out of sight, on the landing a dozen steps up the stair.
Rufus covers the stair behind with his bow in case the great spider should follow them up... all is inky dark and still in the stair below him, however.
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 1,217 Location: Melbourne, Australia Karma: 195
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #126 on Aug 1, 2012, 6:56am »
The four hunched figures draw their weapons with a delicious lack of speed, and wicked toothy grins spread across their ugly faces.
"You can start by dropping that pretty sword," says the leading thug, "and then that pack," confirms one of his mates. All four of them begin toward Mads with murderous intent...
What now?
[T'wil possible be combat next round unless Mads does/says something to prevent it...]
Joined: May 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 308 Location: Ohio Karma: 27
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #127 on Aug 1, 2012, 8:18am »
[ What's the layout of the room, and, by chance, is there anything of significance here made of wood? Particularly something being held at eye level?... ]
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 1,217 Location: Melbourne, Australia Karma: 195
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #128 on Aug 1, 2012, 8:53am »
The layout is something like this:
@@@@#...#@@@@ @@@@#...#@@@@ @@@@#.3.I@<-- door @@@@#..4#@@@@ @@@@#12.#@@@@ @@@@#...#@@@@ @@@@@#M#@@@@^ @@@@@#=#@@@ | @@@@@#=#@@@ up @@@@@#D#@@<- stair @@@@@#W#@@@ down @@@@@#=#@@@ | @@@@@#R#@@@ V
The door is wooden (judging from a scant glance)...
Joined: May 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 308 Location: Ohio Karma: 27
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #129 on Aug 1, 2012, 9:02am »
Mads the Enlightened
Mads sours. He quickly directs his magical light into the eyes and face of his nearest attacker, and presses an attack with his pretty sword. "A little help, here!" he calls out.
Joined: Apr 2010 Gender: Male Posts: 12 Location: Melbourne, Australia Karma: 5
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #130 on Aug 4, 2012, 7:56am »
Rufus finds himself at the rear. If he can get a shot he will let fly an arrow on one of the creatures furthest from Mads. The last thing he wants is to shot a friend in the back so he will play it safe. Rufus will keep a look out for the spider ready to shoot it if it comes back from behind the group.
If everyone rushes in to attack Rufus will sneak in the shadows for a back stab.
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 1,217 Location: Melbourne, Australia Karma: 195
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #131 on Aug 5, 2012, 4:19am »
Combat is joined!
Mads flicks his motile candle-flames into the faces of the nearest thugs immediately as he launches his attack. A surprise check is allowed [1d6=1] but the hunched enemy are already wary of anything from a "wizard", and duck their heads and side step the buzzing flames...
Initiative is rolled [1d6;Mads=6, Dugal=1, Enemy=3(-1 for avoiding the candles)].
...but Mads is upon them before they know it [1d20=13] and plunges his pretty short sword into the belly of the nearest [2dd=2,5] for 5 hit points.
"Oowapphh!" he grunts, and doubles over Mads' sword, collapsing in a flatulent heap.
His mate's eyes bulge wildly at the sight of this as he lurches to thump Mads across the noggin with his hand axe [1d20=5], but the young warlock dodges aside just in time and the axe blow instead strikes a spark form the flagstones.
"Outta my way!" huffs Dugel as he tops the stair and simultaneously utters an unknowable phrase of Dwarvish dialect. There is a sharp crack as the ceiling stone of the passage splits and a great load of heavy rocks and a choking cloud of dust tumble onto the rearward pair from above!
Mads has to retreat violently and shield his face to avoid being suffocated, but only the single thug is left!
Rufus can't shoot over the top of stair through Wendel and Dugel, and nor can he see any targets from his position. However, by the sound of all that racket, it's likely a good thing!
Joined: Sept 2008 Gender: Male Posts: 1,217 Location: Melbourne, Australia Karma: 195
Re: (038) The Concourse Catacomb « Reply #134 on Aug 6, 2012, 7:29am »
The last of the hunched thugs makes a morale check [2d6=11!] and even faced wizards and seemingly impossible odds he plunges on -- maddened by the sudden slaying of his fellows.
"You killed them!" he howls as he launches himself at Mads.
Initiative is rolled [1d6; Mads=6(+1), Thug=6] but despite his viper-like speed, Mads finds an uncanny alacrity and [1d20=16] deals him a startling whack to the face with the flat of his blade [2dd=5,5] for 10 subdual points -- it could so easily have been a killing blow!
But even knowing he should be slain, the gaudy hobgoblin (for hobgoblins these thugs are) is carried by his momentum -- indeed he would scarcely pull the blow even if he could! -- [1d20=7] but Mads artfully bats the curved blade aside, disarming his opponent and simultaneously allowing the onrushing rogue to smack his head against the wall and falling into a hopeless tangle of limbs.
[No need to roll for subdual, since the Hobgoblin has suffered more than 100% subdual damage].
"Pleeeeease don't turn me into a sluuug!" grovels the bested Hobgoblin pathetically, clambering its huge hands over its head as Dugel strides up, clearing the clouds of dust with sweeping arms.
"What's this piece of filth?!" snorts the Dwarf, seeing the Hobgoblin...