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Post by mushgnome on Apr 19, 2012 6:13:09 GMT -6
Since the entire party has chickened out Highbough wishes to revise his action and join them (if it's not too late). He grabs his lantern on the way out.
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eris
Level 4 Theurgist
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Post by eris on Apr 19, 2012 9:32:04 GMT -6
Well, Olaf is still...perhaps stupidly...trying to defend as he withdraws. He didn't expect Desmond, Gustave, Dieter and Highbrow to completely cut and run. He is still operating under the assumption that we'll have to fight these horrors here, but he is moving back toward the door hoping the fighters can form a line.
OOC: And it's likely to get him killed, but that's the way it is.
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Post by mushgnome on Apr 19, 2012 10:07:28 GMT -6
I also am surprised the party chose to retreat (it's not like the fiends are just going to let us walk out the front door... and think of all the XP and treasure!); Highbough was willing to stand united and go down fighting, but a 5-constitution Elf on a solo suicide mission doesn't do anyone any good. (Sorry, Josianne, if Highbough was Lawful and/or you were an Elf, he might try to save you.  ) |
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ehiker133
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Post by ehiker133 on Apr 19, 2012 11:00:51 GMT -6
OOC: Honestly, I think we're probably going to have to fight it out. But my thought was that it might be better to not be so spread out across the whole room.
For example, it'll be hard for certain people to cast AOE spells (like the big flaming one...) when friendly PCs are in the vicinity/behind the primary target.
But we have a limited number of magical weapons, so... even hurting these creatures isn't going to be possible for some/most of us. Don't know if Desmond's axe will do anything - cold iron "traditionally" being used against daemons, not undead. Guess we'll find out soon enough!
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Post by sulldawga on Apr 19, 2012 11:40:01 GMT -6
Since the entire party has chickened out Highbough wishes to revise his action and join them (if it's not too late). He grabs his lantern on the way out. There's a difference between brave and stupid. Dorgan is not stupid. |
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Post by sulldawga on Apr 19, 2012 11:42:57 GMT -6
Well, Olaf is still...perhaps stupidly...trying to defend as he withdraws. I wouldn't call that stupid. It's going to take at least one round to get the door open and then it's not like we're all going to be able to exit at the same time. |
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Post by doctorx on Apr 19, 2012 12:38:17 GMT -6
O.O.C: I agree our only chance is going to be to run for it, but I also agree a sudden panicked rout isn't going to improve any of our chances.
So my thinking would be for people to form a battle line as Olaf's trying to do, those with shields and/or levels to burn protecting those without, who concentrate on getting the door up.
And, if I read this right and The Ire Spear allows Highbough to Blink, perhaps he could stand on the pressure plate while the rest of us scarper, then Blink himself out of the chamber? (That's only minorly suicidal...  )
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Post by mushgnome on Apr 19, 2012 13:43:13 GMT -6
O.O.C: I agree our only chance is going to be to run for it, but I also agree a sudden panicked rout isn't going to improve any of our chances.
So my thinking would be for people to form a battle line as Olaf's trying to do, those with shields and/or levels to burn protecting those without, who concentrate on getting the door up.
And, if I read this right and The Ire Spear allows Highbough to Blink, perhaps he could stand on the pressure plate while the rest of us scarper, then Blink himself out of the chamber? (That's only minorly suicidal... ) If there is an organized battle line forming to cover the retreat, Highbough will be part of it. He's never invoked the Ire Spear before, but the impression ways gave me is that it allows him to flank/backstab an opponent in the blink of an eye. I do not think the spear encourages its wielder to blink away from a fight. |
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Post by coffee on Apr 19, 2012 22:19:26 GMT -6
If there's a line of battle forming to cover the retreat, Dieter will of course be a part of it.
Once the door is open.
Until that happens, he'll be up there with his crowbar and his 17 strength...
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Post by waysoftheearth on Apr 22, 2012 5:27:24 GMT -6
Josiane seems inwardly focused a moment as Dorgan and Guntrum sprint away and the diabolical menace looms toward her; she is about to call out when Gustave roars from the other end of the vault "Josiane! Dieter! Get back here - we are leaving!". She pauses half a moment before she turns and flees like a rabbit... the terror lunges at the last moment after her, but its reach is not quite enough.
The remainder of the company fall back like autumn leaves, and there is suddenly a general rush toward the exit; Dieter leaves the fiends he cannot harm and rushes toward the portal, right behind Highbough and Desmond, sheathing his sword mid stride and freeing his crowbar from his pack.
Only Gustave and Olaf make a fighting retreat, notionally distracting the two fiends that seem intent upon slaying Olaf as the others scarper for the closed portal and the pressure plate.
"Thhhhaaa liiigghtt, khhilllll ttthaaa liiigghtt!" the undead screech and they slash and flail toward Olaf, shielding their pitiless eyes from the glare of the scepter where possible...
Initiative is rolled [1d6; Gustave=5, Olaf=6, Enemy=2] The fighting men somehow gain the initiative, perhaps because the undead dare not look directly at the scepter, and may therefore both apply their defensive fighting adjustment to the incoming attacks.
The dead lunge spitefully at Olaf none the less (Gustave is ignored). Their fell blades cometh as if by night [2d20=20! 6] and regardless of the fencing prowess of the Men, one of the dread foe penetrates their defenses and pieces poor Olaf again! The young fighter [2dd=1,4] swoons into a faint and knows no more.
[Olaf drops sword and scepter and collapse to the ground. He is reduced to a 1st level fighter, and has exactly 0 hit points.]
Meanwhile, Ulric is first back to the pressure plate, and hastily shoves the spilled coin box back onto it, and adds his own sack to the load, but alas, the door is not lifted! Too many of the coins have been scattered about!
Highbough, Desmond/Mondes and Dieter are just about to reach Ulric at the pressure plate.
Guntrum and Dorgan, closely followed by Josiane, and the chief enemy, are just about to reach Gustave and poor Olaf.
What now?
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eris
Level 4 Theurgist
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Post by eris on Apr 22, 2012 13:43:02 GMT -6
"Argh.! " down goes Olaf again. Has his luck finally run out?
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Post by mushgnome on Apr 22, 2012 14:37:46 GMT -6
"The scepter!!!" shouts Highbough!
[OOC: did the light go out when it left Olaf's hand?]
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Post by doctorx on Apr 22, 2012 15:26:04 GMT -6
Josiane races across to the stricken Olaf. She attempts to protect the fallen Fighting-Man with her shield while dragging him back towards the door (although if any of the horrors tries to skewer her in her process she will use her shield to defend herself).
"Dieter! We need you in the line!" she yells, though she keeps her focus firmly on the enemy.
And seeing that the door remains stubbornly down, she does now play that last card.
"I seek an audience with the Sons of Arnhold Gottfried! I seek Bastian, Franz and Gothliff! If you be sworn to them, tell them Josiane the Guided would speak on a matter of mutual importance! The affair is pressing. Make haste and convey my words!"
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Post by tonneau on Apr 22, 2012 16:51:33 GMT -6
Gustave, for once happy to not the center of attention, is nonetheless dismayed when his defence fails to protect the younger fighter, who goes down in a crumpled heap.
As Josiane rushes to the aid of the stricken man, Gustave places himself between the two of them and the oncoming horrors - and as far away from the scepter as possible.
"The door gentlemen, the dooooor...." he croons as he mutters a silent prayer to Hans of The Anvil and tries to turn himself into an impervious wall of steel.
"Mobility! pah!" he mumbles.
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Post by waysoftheearth on Apr 22, 2012 17:06:41 GMT -6
[OOC: did the light go out when it left Olaf's hand?] The scepter remained lit as it fell from Olaf's hand, and blinked off momentarily as it first struck the ground, then came on once more as it bounced -- pogo like -- off the ground the first time. And that was the end of the round. |
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Post by mushgnome on Apr 22, 2012 17:08:34 GMT -6
Highbough leaps onto the pressure plate, hoping his 98 pounds are enough to open the door... "Go! Go! Go! I'll try to blink through the door before it closes!"
He grips the Ire Spear so tightly the iron begins to sizzle with harnessed magical power!
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Post by waysoftheearth on Apr 22, 2012 17:15:28 GMT -6
Josiane races across to the stricken Olaf. She attempts to protect the fallen Fighting-Man with her shield while dragging him back towards the door (although if any of the horrors tries to skewer her in her process she will use her shield to defend herself). " Dieter! We need you in the line!" she yells, though she keeps her focus firmly on the enemy. And seeing that the door remains stubbornly down, she does now play that last card. "I seek an audience with the Sons of Arnhold Gottfried! I seek Bastian, Franz and Gothliff! If you be sworn to them, tell them Josiane the Guided would speak on a matter of mutual importance! The affair is pressing. Make haste and convey my words!" So... (hypothetically) Josiane would barge between the pair of fell terrors to drag Olaf out from under their stabbing swords, while lecturing them, and hailing Dieter, and while the third enemy bears down upon her from behind? This does seem rather... risky. Gustave is ideally positioned to attempt to shield Olaf and drag him free -- heroically dangerous though it will be. Josiane, meanwhile, has the third undead right behind her. Any pause will allow it to attack her. |
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Post by danhem on Apr 22, 2012 20:13:04 GMT -6
Ulric makes his way toward the door as Highbough jumps upon the pressure plate.
"Keep falling back!" he shouts.
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Post by doctorx on Apr 23, 2012 6:06:10 GMT -6
So... (hypothetically) Josiane would barge between the pair of fell terrors to drag Olaf out from under their stabbing swords, while lecturing them, and hailing Dieter, and while the third enemy bears down upon her from behind? This does seem rather... risky. 
But as a certain wise dwarf of her acquaintance is wont to say - 'There's brave and there's stupid.'
So...Josiane concentrates on staying out of the clutches of the horror breathing coldly down her neck, praying desperately that Gustave can get Olaf clear and that the door is about to open... |
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ehiker133
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Post by ehiker133 on Apr 23, 2012 7:31:04 GMT -6
Desmond continues falling back, frantically thinking of anything he can do to halt the fiends' advance. The light seems to be having an effect on them. Maybe the sound of something clean and pure will at least distract them long enough for everyone to get away?
Desmond fumbles for the silver whistle attached to the chain around his neck. He hastily sticks it into his mouth and blows hard on it to see if it has any effect on the evil pressing on his friends.
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rleduc
Level 3 Conjurer
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Post by rleduc on Apr 23, 2012 15:12:05 GMT -6
Guntrum grabs Olaf's scepter and makes a beeline for the the northwest corner of the room, hoping to draw the fiends while providing a statue to shelter him and to give Ulric a clear shot.
{ETA - "northwest" meaning upper left hand corner per the last MUD map}
{ETA - sarcophagus, not statue}
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Post by tonneau on Apr 23, 2012 16:51:36 GMT -6
Observing Josiane is otherwise occupied in fleeing for her life, Gustave takes it upon himself to drag the fallen man back to the door, just as Guntram leaps past him and whips the scepter from the ground.
"Now...", he grunts as, still holding sword and shield, he struggles with Olafs shoulders, "...is most definitely not the time for a nap, my friend."
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eris
Level 4 Theurgist
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Post by eris on Apr 23, 2012 19:38:40 GMT -6
Observing Josiane is otherwise occupied in fleeing for her life, Gustave takes it upon himself to drag the fallen man back to the door, just as Guntram leaps past him and whips the scepter from the ground. " Now...", he grunts as, still holding sword and shield, he struggles with Olafs shoulders, "... is most definitely not the time for a nap, my friend." "Groan!" mumbles Olaf, dead to the world. |
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Post by coffee on Apr 24, 2012 1:46:49 GMT -6
"In a second!" Dieter barks, wrestling with the door.
Do Dieter and his crowbar have any effect on getting the door open?
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Post by sulldawga on Apr 24, 2012 15:37:02 GMT -6
Having made it only halfway to the door and seeing the carnage being wreaked by the undead fiends, Dorgan will change tactics.
He will stop where he is, draw his one remaining flask of holy water, and throw it at the fiend closest to the fallen Olaf.
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Post by waysoftheearth on Apr 26, 2012 5:28:19 GMT -6
"Keep falling back!" shouts Ulric as he does so.
Desmond/Mondes does likewise, fumbling for his silver whistle and hastily sticking it into his mouth to blow a shrill note (fortunately this doesn't stop Mondes breathing for the pair of them).
"The scepter!!!" shouts Highbough as he leaps onto the pressure plate.
"In a second!" growls Dieter in reply, reaching the door with his crowbar ready to wrest it from its stubborn hinges if necessary. But just as he is about to apply his might the heavy stone door flies upward which remarkable ease to vanish into the top of the door arch -- the vault beyond is apparently vacant.
"Go! Go! Go! I'll try to blink through the door before it closes!" commands the aged Elf, gripping the Ire Spear so tightly that it sizzles with harnessed power.
Meanwhile, Josiane flies ahead of the pale terror that pursues, breathing coldly down her neck; making headway now.
Gustave grabs Olaf by the scruff of his mail shirt and attempts to drag him away from the loathsome dead as Dorgan flings his remaining flask of holy water at them from the flank [1d20=12]. The fiends hiss and slash with their deadly cold blades, but right before they would fall upon the pair of vulnerable men Dorgan's flask smashes over one's back [2dd=6,5] causing an eruption of burning steam and an Unholy squealing from the dead as they suffer 6 hit points each!
At that very moment Guntrum leaps past them both and tries for the scepter [1d6=4! exactly the roll required with his 13 dexterity] and snatches it from the ground without pausing.
The undead are livid with rage; one of them slashes at Guntrum as he tumbles by [1d20=9] but its deadly slash goes awry, and the other lunges at Gustave, who cannot make any pace with his burden [1d20=16] and this strike would be true but for Gustave's shield, which clatters the blow aside as it is dashed from his grasp [assuming Gustave will sacrifice his shield here].
"Now... is most definitely not the time for a nap, my friend." grunts Gustave as he heaves Olaf away from the looming foe.
By now Ulric, Desmond/Mondes and Dieter have all made a few paces back into the second vault, which is cold and dark and filled still with the litter of charnel corpses.
Josiane is almost upon Highbough at the pressure plate, with the chief enemy 30ft behind her now... scarcely behind Guntrum, Dorgan, Gustave/Olaf and the pair of livid undead trailing them.
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Post by waysoftheearth on Apr 26, 2012 5:28:51 GMT -6
What now gentlemen?
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Post by doctorx on Apr 26, 2012 5:42:40 GMT -6
If I'm reading this right and Josiane's put distance between herself and her opponent...
Josiane turns and lets fly with her vial of holy water at the fiends Dorgan just scorched.
But if I've got it wrong and the horror is still bearing down on her she keeps running...
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Post by waysoftheearth on Apr 26, 2012 6:01:47 GMT -6
If I'm reading this right and Josiane's put distance between herself and her opponent... Josiane turns and lets fly with her vial of holy water at the fiends Dorgan just scorched. But if I've got it wrong and the horror is still bearing down on her she keeps running... If she keeps running, she'll get clear. If she turns to fight... it will close the gap easily. |
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Post by mushgnome on Apr 26, 2012 7:23:47 GMT -6
[OOC: Anyone not through the door by the time the fiends reach Highbough's position at the pressure plate will be trapped inside, so...]
"Keep running!" shouts Highbough.
When the fiends are upon him, he'll blink through the door, a look of Ire upon his face.
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