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The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

"Get through it? I suppose, yes. But I am not sure how quietly. Not because of the wards, I am not even sure they register people going from this way to the other, but simply because of all the stuff holding it shut would make a good deal of noise."

Looking to Badger, Annetta nods. "Ardranoth is a name we have cause to be familiar with, yes..."

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Dallan Invictus
Oct 11, 2007

The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes, look for them behind words that have changed their meaning.
Landra

Taldrel's response to her sally left her quite speechless, conveniently as Badger scurries forward to scout the noises ahead, the time for frivolity drawing to an end. Such, when the source of apparent confusion dawns on her, she can only shake her head, eyes sparkling as she murmurs, "My mistake. Poor choice of words. You're right, shades do not drink ale."

And then the other two women make their reports, and she leans intently against a nearby wall. "That...creature from the cave. It spoke of a Lady. Perhaps we have found her, and her...colleagues?" A free hand strokes her jawline, and she frowns as she looks between the other three, especially the young sorceress. "I do not like to imagine what could need such binding in a place like this. But if they serve Ardranoth, and even he prefers to keep it bound, I would leave...whatever it is...alone until we know more. Which, I suppose, would mean paying a call on this Lady for a brief chat." Her voice, even whispering, lends an almost indulgent air to the idea.

She catches herself then, and looks to Badger. "But you do not even know all we know, I think. The whole will take time we do not have, but know that name. Ardranoth is a powerful mage, perhaps a lich. Until very recently, he employed a goblin warlord named Nathrak to impede our patron's research efforts, and we believe he has something to do with this...Godless Dusk."

Dallan Invictus fucked around with this message at 06:54 on Mar 11, 2010

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

"We came here looking for Ardranoth, or whoever has taken his name," Taldrel follows Landra's answer to Badger (and ignoring the blank look on her face), "We have some questions for him."

Looking back toward the door Badger listened at, "Maybe someone in there can point us in the right direction. Landra's right. Let's go have a word with this Lady. A quiet word." He looked around the group for signs of dissent. They would use the same entry plan, closing the door behind them if their odds looked good.

Still, there was a strong possibility that the forces they were going into were of the sentient variety. He had little hope for a peaceful encounter after their experiences with Ardranoth's other minions, but one of them may be open to persuasion if their friends were removed from the picture. A trait in hired goons Taldrel was very familiar with.

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

"Works for me. I still think this is just some idiot with more magic then sense taking on somebody even nastier's name, but I have been wrong in the past, and will no doubt be wrong in the future. In any event, these lot ought to know more at the very least."

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
You open the door. For being made entirely of stone, it swings fairly smoothly and silently on its hinges, thanks to frequent usage perhaps, but not so quietly that you don't draw attention to yourselves. Beyond it lies a large room, hewn from the earth like the rest of these caves, or at least the parts you've seen so far. Numerous simple, wooden benches are set up in it, enough to seat some three dozen if packed tight enough, while a kind of large canvas leans against the far wall, showing what seems to be a fairly detailed map of the countryside, big enough to include both the castle and Farling. It is far from blank; arrows, circles and other markings have been drawn or painted on it to indicate points of interest, travel routes and such, and here and there the odd word or phrase has been scrawled as well, spelt in Common but reading only like gibberish to you. To the right of the map, a few map scrolls and a book, along with a silver metal cup, are stored on a small table.

Your entrance turns quite a few heads. There are easily a dozen individuals within the room, all but one of them hobgoblins from the looks of it, and almost all armed and armoured. Two of them are standing in front of the map, and Badger surmises that it is they whose argument she has been listening to: a female hobgoblin is the more imposing of them, not especially tall but powerfully built, clad from neck to toe in pale crimson plate armour; a heavy shield is strapped to her back, and a vicious-looking broadsword is sheathed at her side. Entirely bald, her scarred skin is deathly pale, and there is a red light in her eyes – both of which cause Badger to suddenly realise exactly what made her uneasy about the voice she heard earlier, for it clearly belonged to the hobgoblin: the voice of the 'Lady', if this is she, was not that of a living being at all.

The man the hobgoblin has been arguing with is a scrawny human in his mid-twenties at most. His hair, from the looks of it, has not had anything that might in good conscience be called a 'cut' in quite some time, and he sports a pathetic attempt at a pointed beard – but then, his dirty clothes and ill-fitting leather jerkin deserve no better wearer. His nose twists this way and that, obviously having been broken many times in the past, while his eyes are small and beady like a rat's, though also possessing some of the malicious cunning often ascribed to that poorly-regarded animal. Two blades dangle from his belt, a dagger and a rapier, both looking – much like their owner – as though they've seen far better times, exhibiting countless notches and scratches that are visible even at this distance.

Curiously, Taldrel feels certain he has seen that face before, many years ago in Niemund, and the weapons too for that matter: one of many youth turned to crime, an orphan from the poorer parts of town maybe, the sort that runs with a gang but never quite fits in. What was his name again? Kevon – Kevan – Krevan, that was it; Krevan. Unlike many of the unscrupulous adolescent criminals and gang members who grew up in poverty and only ever knew the uncaring reality of a dog-eat-dog life, Krevan wasn't a particularly bad sort – dealt chiefly in theft, blackmail, protection rackets, fairly small-time and overall victimless crimes compared to what Taldrel had to deal with on a regular, if not daily basis. Krevan never managed to stay out of trouble, but to find he has ended up here of all places still puzzles the half-elf somewhat.

The other occupants of this chamber are less remarkable, with one exception. Seated by himself on one side of the room is a hobgoblin wearing a dark, hooded cloak that obscures everything but his face, which is covered in discoloured blotches; his dull grey eyes, lacking pupils, stand out all the more because of this. His noisome appearance is that of a plague victim, which is perhaps nearer to the truth than one would care to guess: to Badger, at least, it is plain that he too is an undead creature, though obviously different from the 'Lady' – he is farther gone, so to speak, claimed more firmly by the corrupting grasp of undeath, and despite his inertness and lifeless appearance, an undying hunger seems to emanate from the undead hobgoblin like a cloud of miasmal air.

It is because of this, maybe, that none of the others chose to sit anywhere near him, for they all look like perfectly ordinary, living hobgoblins, mostly wearing heavy armour and carrying shields and battleaxes; simple soldiers, in short. Only one is somewhat less stoutly armoured, clad in chainmail and armed only with a mace: the bronze amulet around his neck, bearing the symbol of Bane, suggests he is a priest, or some other devoted follower of the god of tyranny.

With the door's soft but nevertheless audible creak heralding your entrance, heads shoot up to glare at you, and the argument taking place near the front of the room abruptly ceases. A few of the hobgoblins rise and begin to draw their weapons, but a gesture from the 'Lady' stays their advance for now. "Look at that," she growls as she steps forward to look at you, an unnatural tone to her voice which the rest of you realise is what Badger was referring to earlier, "four uninvited guests, showing up suddenly in our humble home." The 'Lady' grins mirthlessly, baring her teeth, and you can't help but notice that even by hobgoblin standards, her canines look just a little too large and pointy. One does not need to be as familiar with the undead as Badger is to guess, and quite possibly correctly, that she is a vampire, and not among the less powerful either; a lord of that kind – or a lady, as it were. Clearly she is not particularly fazed by your unexpected arrival; there is hostility in her demeanour, to say nothing of her minions', but there is also immense confidence that borders, really, on arrogance: confidence due to outnumbering you three to one, confidence in her own might. One almost gets the impression that she is willing to humour you for the time being.

"I am Gharmya, called 'the Cruel' by those with wits enough to at least know fear, if not respect," the hobgoblin continues, bowing mockingly to you. "And who might you be, blundering in here unbidden? Did you outsmart the guards or simply slay them? 'tis a small feat in either case," she laughs. The others watch this exchange suspiciously, and more than one hand is laid on the haft of a battleaxe, while the sole human in the room looks like he'd rather be anywhere but here. Only the cloaked hobgoblin, remaining seated, shows virtually no interest at all in the proceedings beyond staring at you with pale, lifeless eyes.


'V' being the other undead hobgoblin; HW is the priest.

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 21:17 on Mar 12, 2010

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

Nonchalant about this, Annetta pipes up from behind the others. "Actually, was just curious whats behind the door over there? Some nice wards, just curious what exactly would be behind them that you lot, being as dead as you are, are worried about. Mostly on account of me having started up the process of unwinding them and all." Curiosity, no small amount of impatience and also trying to hide her slight disquiet with this whole situation behind a mask of bravado. But, Annetta was an old hand at saying pretty much the exact opposite of what she intended.

+17 to Bluff, and +12 Arcana in lieu of Insight.

Soonmot
Dec 19, 2002

Entrapta fucking loves robots




Grimey Drawer
Badger

The druid bristles at the presence of the vampire and the... whatever that was. To rush into battle, no matter how much her instincts may urge, would be suicide. She would bide her time.

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Gharmya's crimson gaze turns on Annetta as she steps forward to eye the sorceress. "Shown yourselves around, have you?" she growls, plainly displeased for a moment, before recovering her former, indulgent demeanour again. "The restless dead wait past that door, mage, buried deeper still," the 'Lady' explains, glancing at each of you in turn, watching for any signs of recognition. "A multitude of souls, abandoned and betrayed in gravest need by the one who had their trust." Gharmya's eyes settle briefly on Landra. "You, at least, ought to know of whom I speak. Their betrayer is bestowed elsewhere now," she continues, gesturing vaguely upwards, in the direction of the Keep, "but neither an honourable burial nor the passage of one hundred years have done anything to soothe their wrath. They linger still in their sepulchral darkness, harbouring nothing but undying hatred for the living and even the dead, for everything but each other – though most of all for the one who left them to be slaughtered, of course. What they would do to her, should she ever end up in their grasp somehow, is something you do not even wish to imagine." Gharmya smirks. "We could put them to rest if we really wanted to, which we do not, for they may be of use yet; but taming a throng of spirits so bitterly enraged as these isn't a simple matter. In due time, we will concern ourselves with them again. Until then –" The vampire shrugs. "What our purposes require is more easily procured elsewhere."

The senior members of the party – Annetta, Landra, and Taldrel – know that the 'Lady' must be talking about Kyrianne Vamèssen and the troops she left to die when beating her own cowardly retreat, the Spears of the Summer Fey; Landra remembers that the latter were buried according to eladrin tradition and with full honours near Stonegaard Keep, to rest in the very soil of the world they'd fought to defend. To Badger, on the other hand, this all means next to nothing: she is only vaguely aware of a myth of betrayal during the Great War, a dark chapter in the history of the eladrin people and a rumour of ancient disquiet surrounding the castle.


Badger botched her History check pretty hard, unfortunately!

EDIT: if Dallan and Clanpot could finalise the details of their MP2 retrains (if any) soon that would be great.

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 21:13 on Mar 13, 2010

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

Taldrel's first thought was that they had just gotten themselves in way over their heads. Even he felt the aura of power around the grey hobgoblin. He couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something very... off about her. He was reminded of the angels they had slaughtered but days ago - the same air of power, with an equal sense of repulsiveness. He avoided looking directly at her, and very much did not want to test her in combat.

Taldrel scans the room, sizing up the hobgoblins, while making no movement to his arms. Confidence and authority. These were the grunts, probably hired by Ardranoth but loyal to Gharmya. Any one of them would be a small matter to deal with, but there were a lot of them. He didn't expect any of them to be willing to talk, regardless of how this encounter played out. The human however, Krevan, was different. The man was essentially a coward. He would talk, and given the scene in front of them, it almost looked like they had come to his rescue. What a curious fortune.

Leaving discussions of the disturbing and arcane to Annetta, Taldrel motions to Krevan, "You're a hard man to find, Krevan. I've got several outstanding warrants with your name on them, racketeering and extortion the least of them. I'd like you to come with us."

Dallan Invictus
Oct 11, 2007

The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes, look for them behind words that have changed their meaning.
Landra

"Oh, I know about this keep's ghosts. I knew some of this keep's ghosts. They have earned their rest and more, not an eternity of bondage and disquiet or whatever you have in mind." She nearly spits the words at the vampire Lady, so angry she has grown at the recounting of their fates...but no, a fight, however delightful, would be ill-advised just yet.

She takes a moment to calm herself, and in the meantime, Taldrel's....stunt is the only word that comes to mind....and the revelation of a figure from his past, take her briefly aback.How audacious! Am I rubbing off on him? But she recovers soon enough, stepping forward to join the guardsman, though she makes no move to draw her weapon yet. It might well have to be soon, though. Looking around the room, she began to suspect that their odds of escaping without violence had dropped significantly with that request and her own response.

Suits me. But I'll play along with you, Taldrel.

There's no warmth in her voice, still, but the venom is gone too after her brief centering exercise. She addresses Gharmya now with edged politeness, like so many acquaintances in the courts of Deepwreathe and Niemund that e everyone knew she would rather have run through.

"But we are not here for them, we're here for your little friend. The guardsman here has a few questions, I think, though he hasn't told me about any plans to take anyone from here into a cell. I think he's after bigger fish than this fellow could possibly be."

"So." and now she turns, her hand caresses the scinitar's hilt, and her eyes lock on the young man's, callously impassive, almost terrifying as she comes the noble eladrin full force. "why don't you step out with us, answer the man's questions, and nobody has to get hurt. We can even bring you back to your lady friend here if that's what you really want. You look more her type than mine anyway."

Diplomacy +8 for Gharmya (assists or the group Diplo bonus would be nice, or maybe Taldrel should lead the check to get her to let him go. Don't know if his Diplo is better), Intimidate +15 for Kevran. Landra is a better bad cop than good cop.

Also, I wasn't planning any retrains before my system died, but I haven't had a chance for a thorough review in the CB. We can assume no changes for any encounter that might be immediately forthcoming, but I don't want to say "no, full stop", until I have CB access back.

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Quite pale to begin with, Krevan turns a little whiter still as he steps aside in an attempt to hide behind the hobgoblin. "P–Please don't let them t–take me, Lady!" he blurts, gripping the hilts of his blades with trembling hands in what is an entirely unconvincing display of bravado. "I d–d–don't even know whose these p–people are! They'll stick me and leave me to b–bleed out! They'll kill me!" he babbles, almost hysterical. "I've been g–good, Mistress, haven't I? Useful? L–Loyal? Please, Lady, don't –"

Silencing Krevan with a curt wave of her hand, Gharmya turns back to you, looking fairly genuinely perplexed. "So what you are saying is that you are trespassing here because there are some petty warrants out on the boy's head? That you've somehow found a way past my defences because you want to...question him?" She doesn't sound surprised by the fact that Krevan is (allegedly) wanted so much as by the notion that anyone would actually go to the trouble of tracking him all the way here. "Is there something you are not telling me, maybe?" The 'Lady' bares her fangs, looking first at Krevan, who shrinks away from her, then at you again, locking eyes with Landra. "Someone here is speaking untruths," she growls, sounding openly suspicious – though, perhaps, almost as much of Krevan as she does of you.

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

This... is not the tack she would have gone with. Hunting petty criminals is not exactly the work of choice for seasoned adventurers, especially not these days. However, the words were said and so she just kept her mouth shut for now, though afterward, if they survived this, she might have words with them.

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

"I'm hurt, Krevan," Taldrel says, ignoring Gharmya momentarily, "I've taken you in enough times for you to know the Niemund Guard isn't in the business of murdering those we arrest. We just want to ask you some questions."

He turns back to Gharmya and pauses, as if deciding what to say. It was true they had come here seeking somebody - Ardranoth, or the bearer of his name, in fact. Mentally, Taldrel weighed the pros and cons of telling who was likely a lieutenant of Ardranoth's that they came to the keep looking for her boss. He might just want to meet them, and they could forgo slaughtering their way to his piss-pot.

Then again, if this was the actual Ardranoth, lich or some other long-time undead, Taldrel couldn't even begin to guess at his motivations. He decided to err on the side of caution.

"Ma'am, the city of Niemund takes its pursuit of justice very seriously. They have dispatched myself, a Captain of the Guard, and several hand-chosen associates to apprehend this man for some very serious charges. Now, you can either allow us to arrest this man and leave, or bar us, making you an accessory after the fact." He paused, to let that sink in before continuing, "Now, personally, that just creates more paperwork for me, and I hate paperwork - worst part of the job. So how about we do this the easy way and you let us leave with the man we came for?"

I don't even know what skill fits here. What have I done?

Dallan Invictus
Oct 11, 2007

The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes, look for them behind words that have changed their meaning.
Landra

She met the vampire's eyes without flinching - though she had expected to flinch, expected an assault of power on her mind and will. Surprise built on surprise as Taldrel stepped in to answer the question instead, while she recovered from...not needing to recover..

This isn't good cop bad cop, this is left hand right hand. As in not knowing what we're doing. I thought he'd be more co-operative if we promised not to take him from here.

But it was ostensibly Taldrel's mission, so they were married to his explanation. Her nose wrinkled visibly as her offhand gesture at the vampire wordlessly conveys, "What he said."

At least we might convince the boy that I'm not going to eat his soul out of hand or whatever. Grandfather would be proud - I've actually made a vampire goblin look like a refuge.

OOC: oh, this'll all end in tears. On the bright side,computer is due to arrive tomorrow!

Soonmot
Dec 19, 2002

Entrapta fucking loves robots




Grimey Drawer
Badger


The druid, reining in the impulses urging her to kill these undead, speaks softly, "Is it difficult to believe that powerful men would use their influence to capture one who wronged them? What lengths would you go to to ensure that one who roused your ire was brought, alive, to face your judgment?"

+6 diplomacy for an assist to whoever!

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
"First you only wanted to ask the boy some questions, now you would arrest him and leave?" Gharmya growls, scowling. To an observer, it would doubtlessly seem surprising that the hobgoblin has humoured you this long to begin with, given your sheer audacity, but her willingness to continue doing so clearly is fading. Turning to Badger and giving the pale elf a look of distaste, she continues: "It is hard to believe that the 'city of Niemund' –" her words fairly drip with scorn, "would send such an ill-matched group to carry out its 'law'. The eladrin I can accept, maybe, 'Captain'," Gharmya concedes to Taldrel with a sneer, "but that human surely is little more than a child; and as for the elf, I'll wager she has never seen fair Niemund from the inside, or any other city for that matter – not that she'll want for the experience," the 'Lady' adds with a grin.

"However, despite your being out of your jurisdiction here, I'll grant you a concession," the vampire declares magnanimously, with a challenging undertone. "You have questions for Krevan? Ask them, here and now. I am sure he'll answer them as truthfully as possible. And please, speak freely, all of you – no secrets among us. We are, in any case, quite curious what Krevan could possibly have done to warrant such attention." The other hobgoblins chuckle at this with their own peculiar take on good-naturedness; they may not count the feeble human as one of their equals, but as far as any of you can tell there isn't any especial derision for him, either.

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

Brimming with anger at the suggestion from the vampire, correct as it might be, Annetta holds back the anger, reflecting the many differing ways she could strip the brutes flesh from her bones, bringing a smile to her face. The faint crackling surge of power meanwhile as she discretely as possible placed her hands on her daggers, drawing up the arcane through herself.

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

Ah, bargaining. It might work with the magistrates in Niemund, but as an executor of the law it only ever lead to two things: acceptance of his terms, or combat. He suspected the latter was the likelier outcome in this particular conversation, but he had to follow protocol.

"Lady Gharmya, as I said before, my associates were hand chosen for this mission outside of what you might call 'normal channels', and your observations are very astute," Taldrel replies with patience fading to match, "However, we are not in the practice of interviewing suspects with an open audience. Again, as I said before, we will arrest him, but how this plays out for you, Krevan, depends entirely on your willingness to answer our questions. For you, Gharmya, you can either stand aside and allow us to carry out the law, or be arrested as an accessory after the fact, pending further charges."

Only once in all his years in Niemund had he seen a situation this heated play out peacefully. He didn't expect a repeat of that occasion.

Almost as an afterthought, Taldrel added, "As for what he did to be awarded our attention, the boy has a list of prior offenses as long as your teeth," he joked, hoping to lighten the mood a bit, "But we have warrants today for extortion, smuggling, attempting to bribe an agent of the city, and distribution of restricted magical artifacts. We also believe he may have information leading to arrests in several unsolved homicides. He is a person of interest in a larger investigation." Who knows, maybe pallid hobgoblin has some sense of civic duty in her.

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
"Yes, he is quite able," Gharmya agrees, "and that is why he's staying with us. Krevan is going nowhere – and neither are you," she snarls suddenly, baring her fangs as her patience at last runs out. As the hobgoblin dons her helm and sweeps out her sword and shield, her troops do likewise, visibly eager to throw themselves into battle. "You'll doubtlessly make good stock; Ardranoth will be pleased. TAKE THEM!" the vampire bellows, barking commands in the Goblin tongue as she urges her men into combat!

Something about Gharmya's stance tells Landra and Taldrel that here is an able warrior who is in many ways Landra's match, especially where singling out a foe and forcibly training his or her attention on the fighter is concerned – one ignores such a swordswoman at one's own peril. Despite her undead nature, the hobgoblin's followers seem quite keen to do her bidding, and though none of you speak Goblin, you get the impression that Gharmya is directing her troops quite efficiently, not unlike Nathrak did; judging from her bearing she is, however, more offensive-minded, perhaps, and certainly more ruthless. What else the vampire may be capable of is more difficult to say, as not each of that kind possesses the exact same abilities. Drinking the warm blood of a living creature almost certainly isn't beyond her, but beyond that even Badger can't be really sure – many vampires are said to be able to assume a nearly intangible, misty form, and there are some that weave spells of deception and glamour to confound their opponents. What is certain is that Gharmya should not be underestimated, due to her martial prowess as much as her supernatural abilities.

The other followers of the 'Lady', in comparison, look somewhat more predictable. Her hobgoblin soldiers plainly are nothing more than that, though they're doubtlessly well-trained, drilled to work together in combat and watch each other's back. Likewise, the priest at the far side of the room most likely commands powers similar to the one you faced back in your fight with Nathrak, excelling at harnessing the power of Bane to bring death to his enemies from a distance, as well as invoking the name of the Lord of Conquest to aid his allies.

Fleet of foot, Krevan has the look of an opportunist, and that of a man who is not going to be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time if he has anything to say about it. The two blades now in his hands – a keen rapier and a sleek dagger that looks balanced for throwing – are doubtlessly capable of inflicting grievous wounds if Krevan can catch the victim unawares, which doubtlessly is his idea of a fair fight. The only combatant that remains difficult to read is the second undead hobgoblin, who has risen to his feet at Gharmya's behest and now stands staring at you with dull eyes, his upper body swaying slightly from side to side. You do not get the impression that he is a wholly mindless creature, no zombie certainly and not a ghoul either, but what precisely he may be remains anyone's guess – for now.


Regarding the map: squares with benches are difficult terrain (the table and chest squares, if it comes up, will require fairly easy Athletics check to move into). Furthermore, obstacles with thick black outlines (such as the walls or the doors) are considered "hard cover". This is relevant chiefly when it comes moving or attacking past them diagonally, as they are considered to be impassable/granting cover in these cases: for instance, a creature in N36 would have cover from Landra's attacks, and were it unoccupied she could not shift directly into N36 because she cannot move past the corner (she'd have to move O37->N37->N36).



pre:
/-----[ROUND 1]--------------[IN]--[HP]-----[THP]--[STATUS EFFECTS]--------------------------------\
|==>| Badger                | 33 |  83/86  |     |                                                 |
|   | Annetta               | 28 |  79/79  |     |                                                 |
|   | Landra                | 27 |  82/93  |     |                                                 |
|   | Taldrel               | 27 |  82/83  |     |                                                 |
|   | Gharmya               | 24 |               |                                                 |
|   | Hobgoblin Grunts      | 20 |               |                                                 |
|   | Krevan                | 18 |               |                                                 |
|   | Hobgoblin Warpriest   | 17 |               |                                                 |
|   | Varn                  | 17 |               |                                                 |
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------/

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 00:41 on Mar 27, 2010

Soonmot
Dec 19, 2002

Entrapta fucking loves robots




Grimey Drawer
LOL, I edited this post instead of quoting it!

Soonmot fucked around with this message at 09:14 on Apr 3, 2010

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

"Finally!" Glad to have the stupid charade over with, Annetta opts for the moment for simplicity and past successes, opening up on the Hobgoblin's with a searing purple arc of raw arcane.

Chaos Bolt on HG8, +16 vs Will, 1D10+17 damage. Evens, it arcs to another within 5 squares. If it does, preference for still standing grunts.

pre:
AC: 25       Fort: 22     Refl: 26     Will: 29             Special Abilities
HP: 79/79    Surges: 7/7  Value: 19    Init: +10              Chaos Burst: First attack roll determines extra
Stealth: +10 Arcana: +14                                        benefit. Even, +1 AC until the start of my next
AP: 0                                                           turn. Odd, make a saving throw.
Resists: 5 Radiant, 10 Necrotic                               Chaos Power: Gain Dex+2 to damage rolls. (+6)
                                                              Unfettered Power: On a natural 20, slide the target
Encounter                                                       1 square and knock it prone. On a natural 1, push
  Thunder Slam [ ] Dancing Lightning [ ] Chaos Storm [ ]        each creature within 5 squares 1 square.
  Primordial Rage [ ] Eyebite [ ] Second Wind [ ]             Primordial: Cold
  Dragonflame Mantle [ ] Narrow Escape [ ] Swift Escape [ ]     - Attacks ignore cold resistance up to 10. 
                                                                - Creature's hit by my attacks are slowed until
Daily                                                           the end of my next turn.
  Chromatic Orb [ ] Acidic Implantation [ ]                   Sorcerous Blade Channeling: Can use ranged sorcerer
  Contagious Curse [ ]                                          powers as a melee attack.
  Primordial Boon [ ]                                         Rootling: Ignore difficult terrain from vegetation.
  Elemental Twist Dagger [ ] Cloak of Resistance [ ]          Dual Implement Spellcaster: Gain offhand damage bonus 
                                                                as a bonus to damage. (+1)
      
Cunning Dagger
    - Saves against powers done through this are made with a -2 penalty.
    - Critical: 3D8  

Elemental Twist Dagger
    - When any enemy resistances or immunities reduce
      my sorcerer attack powers used through the dagger
      gain 5 temp HP.
    - Critical: 2d6

Triggers (In Priority of use. Locations will be updated if need be.)
Dragonflame Mantle: If it would convert a hit to a miss, or if there are two or more creatures in melee. 
Swift Escape: Hit by an area or close attack. Teleport to: R33
Narrow Escape: Hit by an attack while at half health or less. Teleport to: R33
Sunweave Armor: Hit by an opportunity attack from a non-minion foe.

The Transhumanist fucked around with this message at 03:21 on Mar 27, 2010

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Badger misses. (Thorn Whip targets Fortitude, incidentally.) I presume Annetta meant to attack grunt #9 because she has no line of effect to #8. She does, at any rate, kill #9 and #6.

Transhumanist, your stat block is in need of some updating, particularly those teleport power triggers.

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Woops, thought I had copied my blank block, but no. Will fix it.

Dallan Invictus
Oct 11, 2007

The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes, look for them behind words that have changed their meaning.
Landra

"We will just see about that, Lady?" Finally raising her blade, she almost cackles with glee as the vampire finally casts their halfhearted charade aside. She looked a worthy opponent - even a match in the clash of blades - and even without Taldrel's encouraging gesture the eladrin was spoiling for a fight with her, a test against her.

"Nathrak could tell you how able we are - perhaps you can compare notes in the Hells!"

And she is off, through the doorway and sprinting past dying hobgoblins through the aisles, so quick it almost looked like she had teleported to cover the distance - but no, though her strides were long, her feet kept on touching the floor as she arrived in the centre of the room, already delivering the first emphatic blow of what, for all that might swirl around them, would always feel at least a little like a duel between the pair of noblewomen.

You have no idea how hard it was to avoid a "bitten off more than you can chew" pun here.

Move: ->M36->M32
Minor: Into the Fray: M32->K30->J30
Standard: Villain's Menace on Gharmya, +17 v. AC, 2d8+9 damage and gain +2 to attack and +4 to damage against target until end of encounter.
Miss: +1 to attack, +2 to damage against target until end of encounter.


pre:
Landra
--------------
HP: 82/93			AC: 32 
Healing Surge: 10/10 (heal 23) 	Fort: 25 
Speed: 6 			Refl: 25 
Initiative: +15	 		Will: 24 
Action Points: 0/1 		Perc: +10 (passive 20)
				Inst: +13 (passive 23)

Features: +4 to OAs, hit enemies stop moving. (Combat Superiority, Blade Opportunist)
Adjacent marked enemies provoke melee basic attack (Combat Superiority)
+2 item bonus to AC when not bloodied (Agile Armor, included)
5 damage on misses with scimitars (Scimitar Dance)

Standard Interrupts: Mark all attacked enemies unless otherwise specified
Take all OAs available. 
Use "Unbreakable" if hit by Krevan or Gharmya for >=6 damage.
If Precision Cut is unused, use it for OAs.
 
At-Will: Combat Challenge, Footwork Lure, Tide of Iron
Encounter: Second Wind, Fey Step, Steel Serpent Strike, Sweeping Blow, 
Come and Get It, Into The Fray, Precision Cut, Unbreakable, Fantastic Flourish
Daily: Villain's Menace, Boundless Endurance, Victorious Surge, Nimble Bladestorm, War Ring

Basic Attacks:

Melee: Vicious Scimitar (+17 v. AC, 1d8+9 dmg, +2d8+4d12 crit)
Thrown: Thunderburst (+17 v. AC, 1d4+6 dmg, +1d6 thunder crit)

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

"Always the hard way," Taldrel mutters as he dashes into the room. "Leave Krevan," he says to the group, "Slaughter the rest."

And with that he is before Gharmya, crashing into her with shield and spear. He and Landra would make short work of her, before cutting down her feeble minions.

Move: N33
Standard: Charge to J29 with Brave Warriors against Gharmya, +17 vs AC, 3d8+11 damage (+3d6 on crit)
  miss: half damage
  effect: Until the end of the encounter, you gain +1 power bonus to attack rolls when charging, and your allies gain a +1 power bonus to attack rolls when charging while within your line of sight.

pre:
HP: 83/83                        AC  : 28 
Surges: 11/11 (22hp)             Fort: 24
Action Points: 1	         Will: 22
Speed: 5	                 Refl: 23

Basic Melee Attack: +16 vs AC, 1d8+9 damage (+3d6 on crit)
Tactical Assault: When an ally that can see me spends an action point,
   they gain +2 attack and +4 damage on an attack made.
Combat Veteran’s Action (11th level): When you
  spend an action point to take an extra action, one of
  your allies within 10 squares of you can take a move
  action as a free action.
Tactical Shift: When an enemy strikes an ally, that ally can shift 6 squares as an immediate interrupt. 
  Range 10.  Allow one OA. Trigger on:
   - any ally under 50% health is struck
Shield of Defiance: Spend a healing surge after being crit.  Immediate free action.
  Trigger on:
   - Any time Taldrel is crit and under 80% health.
Evil Eye Fetish: An enemy with CA against me takes 3 necrotic when they hit me.
Miss Me Once: An enemy within range and in your line of sight
  misses you with an attack.  The enemy grants combat advantage to each ally
  who has line of sight to it until the start of its next turn.
  Range 10.  Immediate Interrupt.  Allow one OA. Trigger on:
   - The enemy who missed Taldrel is in melee range of at least 1 member of the party.

At-Will: Direct the Strike, Wolf-pack Tactics 
Encounter: Cleave, Inspiring Word 3/3 (minor action), Hammer and Anvil, 
   Aid the Injured, Steel Monsoon, Reorient the Axis, 
   Surprise Attack, Skirmish Ploy, Miss Me Once
Daily: Lead the Attack, Brave Warriors, Force of Fellowship, 
   Tactical Shift, Healing Surge (free action), Shield of Defiance, 
   Gauntlets of Ogre STR (free action, +5 damage on melee attack), Helm of Heroes

Clanpot Shake fucked around with this message at 03:12 on Apr 3, 2010

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Badger and Annetta are the first to take the fight to their enemies, but while the druid's attack falls short of her expectations, her target almost casually shrugging off the vines she summons, the sorceress fells two of the soldiers with a single arcing blast of chaotic magic. It is a pattern which Landra and Taldrel, charging boldly at the 'Lady', find themselves adhering to as well, with the former landing a sound strike against the vampire that bites into her armoured side, while the half-elf only manages a glancing blow that seems to perturb Gharmya little. Still, Landra at least has achieved her goal, and thrown down the proverbial gauntlet to her enemy: it is clear that only one of them will be walking away from this.

"Good," the female hobgoblin grins. "Our turn." Barking a number of sharp commands in Goblin, her troops likewise throw themselves into the fray, with most of them joining the mêlée raging around their leader and locking shields immediately. Taldrel finds two blows from their battleaxes aimed at him and deflects one using his shield, albeit with some difficulty; the other hobgoblin's attack follows too fast, though, and at too awkward an angle for the half-elf to defend himself in time. The battleaxe is less than a foot from Taldrel's head when the guard captain's necklace flares with a pale, blue light and his hobgoblin assailant gives a short scream as he falls dead at the half-elf's feet, the skin of his face withering and shrivelling close to the skull while his eyes dissolve into a sickly green mist; a grisly sight up close to be sure, but it does save Taldrel from the otherwise unavoidable blow the hobgoblin was going to land.

Landra also finds herself attacked by two of Gharmya's followers, but these do not aim to wound her directly, she soon realises: they are simply trying to keep her off-balance, hindering her efforts to defend herself so that her 'Lady' can bring her own blade to bear more effectively against the eladrin – and they succeed flawlessly, as comparatively simple a task as it is. The remaining grunts split up as they storm towards Annetta and Badger, two attacking the sorceress directly while the rest move through one of the other two doors to flank her and the elf. Both of the hobgoblins that charge Annetta successfully bear down on her, one of them leaving a shallow cut on her shoulder with his axe – the other, about to inflict a similar wound, suddenly bursts into flame as the sorceress' arcane defences flare up and form a resplendent mantle of fire around her; his flesh bubbling and his armour melting, the hobgoblin drops to the ground, thrashing feebly as he quickly burns to death.

"Nathrak was weak," sneers Gharmya, transfixing Landra and Taldrel with her eyes. The red glow in them becomes more pronounced until there is nothing but that glow; the 'Lady' herself is simply gone, at least as far as the two adventurers engaging her in close combat are concerned: only a faint shadow remains where she stood, a shadow and the deathly glow of those eyes. "Now for you first," the unseen vampire growls as she smashes aside Landra's shield with a vicious thrust of her own, then brings her broadsword out in a low, sweeping arc aimed at the eladrin's midsection – yet somehow, teetering back on her heels for a moment, the swordswoman just barely avoids the attack, the tip of Gharmya's blade harmlessly scratching along the scale armour protecting her belly. Struggling to retain her balance, Landra isn't quite sure how she manages to defend herself against Gharmya's follow-up blow as well, but she does; the vampire's sword crashes against her shield with enough force to send a wave of pain through the arm wielding it, but inflicts no actual harm this time either.

Amid all this commotion, Krevan moves in to take a literal stab or two at the eladrin with his notched rapier, though it is unclear how, given Landra's current preoccupation, he fails to land either attack; perhaps the dishevelled-looking man is having some misgivings still, or perhaps this simply is not the sort of fight he is used to. Looking uncertain, he steps aside, closer to one of the armoured hobgoblins, who gives him a look somewhere between pity and annoyance; Gharmya seems to refuse to even acknowledge him. Instead she issues a curt command to the chainmail-wearing priest, who moves closer and, clutching his symbol of Bane, draws on the power of his god, extending his free hand towards Badger and Annetta. The effect of his prayer is immediately felt by the two women, as for a brief moment they feel as though they are caught in the middle of a much larger battle, a clash of two mighty armies, with heavily armoured soldiers all around them, their screams and the sound of weapons striking shields and cutting through metal and flesh nearly deafening; it is so intense as to amount to a real, physical experience in some ways, for the elf and the young sorceress both feel themselves being fiercely battered and bruised by the warlike might of the priest's prayer. Badger stands up to it reasonably well, resisting the brunt of the attack, but Annetta is knocked summarily off her feet by countless blows and strikes; they may be imaginary in the end, but the pain is very much real.

Finding the other undead hobgoblin striding towards her, Badger notices that his cloak has parted enough to reveal his torso – what little there is of it, that is, for between his ribcage and pelvis there is only empty space, the bare spine somehow supporting his entire upper body. Numerous black, glistening things like morays or eels churn restlessly within the gaping hole where the hobgoblin's waist should be, but as he draws closer the druid realises they are nothing of the like; they are his viscera, animated morbidly by the same necromantic process that bestowed the dark gift of undeath on the hobgoblin. Even so, she knows that this is rarely done intentionally – it is more likely the result of a ritual gone awry, or perhaps that of exceedingly uncommon "natural" circumstances.

What Badger is certain of is that despite their frail appearance, such creatures are not to be underestimated, what with their ability to use their writhing viscera to ensnare opponents and bleed the very life from them. For the moment, at least, this one shows no signs of doing so, instead closing the distance with a few long, unsteady strides and clawing at Annetta's prone form. At this, her mantle of flame blazes into renewed existence, burning the undead hobgoblin, but fails to avert its attack, which leaves five long, freely bleeding gashes across the sorceress' face; they hurt like hell, but all things considered she is lucky her attacker's jagged claws did not put out her eyes.

"Very good, my love," Gharmya purrs, pleased by the sight of her undead companion striking the young mage, "but do not drain her completely empty – she and her friends will be of much more use to Ardranoth alive!"


Encounters where there are only two initiative groups make me want to shoot myself!

Badger uses Thorn Whip on Hobgoblin Grunt #9 and misses (F:3+15).
Annetta uses Chaos Bolt on Hobgoblin Grunt #9 and hits (W:16+16) for 25 psychic damage, killing it and gaining a +1 bonus to AC until the start of her next turn; Chaos Bolt bounces to Hobgoblin Grunt #6 and hits (W:10+16) for 15 psychic damage, killing it; Chaos Bolt bounces to Hobgoblin Grunt #3 and misses (W:5+16).
Landra moves O37->M32.
   She uses Into the Fray and moves M32->J30.
   She uses Villain's Menace on Gharmya and hits (A:15+17) for 24 damage; until the end of the encounter, she gains a +2 power bonus to attack rolls and a +4 power bonus to damage rolls against Gharmya.
Taldrel moves O38->N33.
   He charges N33->J29 and uses Brave Warriors on Gharmya, missing (A:1+17) for 12 damage. Until the end of the encounter, he gains a +1 power bonus to attack rolls when charging, and his allies gain a +1 power bonus to attack rolls when charging while within his line of sight.

Gharmya delays.
Hobgoblin Grunt #1 moves H23->I29.
   He uses Aid Another to give Gharmya a +2 bonus to her next attack roll against Landra and succeeds (A:8+21).
Hobgoblin Grunt #2 moves H26->J28.
   He uses Battleaxe on Taldrel and misses (A:3+21).
Hobgoblin Grunt #3 moves H34->I31.
   He uses Aid Another to give Gharmya a +2 bonus to her next attack roll against Landra and succeeds (A:12+21).
Hobgoblin Grunt #4 moves J24->K38.
   He uses Battleaxe on Taldrel and hits (A:16+23); he takes 3 necrotic damage from Taldrel's Evil Eye Fetish and dies.
Hobgoblin Grunt #5 moves J32->M37.
   He charges M37->O37 and uses Battleaxe on Annetta, hitting (A:7+20) for 8 damage.
Hobgoblin Grunt #7 moves L25->N29.
   He opens the door.
   He moves N29->P34.
Hobgoblin Grunt #8 moves L27->R32.
   He charges R32->Q37 and uses Battleaxe on Annetta, hitting (A:11+20)...
      Immediate interrupt: Annetta uses Dragonflame Mantle: until the end of her next turn, she gains a +1 power bonus to all defences, and any creature that hits her with a melee attack takes 1d6+6 fire damage.
   Hobgoblin Grunt #8 takes 8 fire damage and dies.
Gharmya uses Dizzying Blow on Landra and misses (A:10+20).
   She uses Shadow Glamour, hitting Taldrel (W:16+14) and Landra (W:13+14); she is invisible to them (save ends).
   She spends an action point to use Tide of Iron on Landra and misses (A:5+18).
Krevan moves F31->K31.
   He uses Twin Strike and misses Landra twice (A:4+20,9+20).
   He shifts K31->J31.
Hobgoblin Warpriest moves J21->I27.
   He uses Storm of War centred on O38, missing Badger (F:3+17) for 10 force damage and hitting Annetta (F:16+17) for 21 force damage, knocking her prone.
Varn moves F39->K38.
   He charges K38->O38 and uses Claw on Annetta, critting (A:20+19) for 14 damage, bloodying her; he takes 12 fire damage from Dragonflame Mantle.




pre:
/-----[ROUND 2]--------------[IN]--[HP]-----[THP]--[STATUS EFFECTS]--------------------------------\
|==>| Badger                | 33 |  73/86  |     |                                                 |
|   | Annetta               | 28 |  36/79  |     | +1 AC; Dragonflame Mantle                       |
|   | Landra                | 27 |  82/93  |     | +2 atk/+4 dmg v Gharmya; cannot see Gharmya (S);|
|   |                       |    |         |     | marked by Gharmya                               |
|   | Taldrel               | 27 |  82/83  |     | Cannot see Gharmya (S)                          |
|   | Hobgoblin Grunts      | 20 |               | 1,2,3,5: +2 AC                                  |
|   | Gharmya               | 19 |  36           | +2 AC                                           |
|   | Krevan                | 18 |               |                                                 |
|   | Hobgoblin Warpriest   | 17 |               |                                                 |
|   | Varn                  | 17 |  12           |                                                 |
|-----[GLOBAL BONUSES]-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Party: +1 pwr to atk when charging (if LoS to Taldrel)                                           |
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------/

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 17:21 on Apr 3, 2010

Dallan Invictus
Oct 11, 2007

The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes, look for them behind words that have changed their meaning.
Landra

Landra looks around semi-frantically as Gharmya fades to shadow, but tries to disguise it as trying to survey the situation - which is ugly, certainly...but she is needed where she is, or even more would be on the other women's heels. Instead, she ripostes to the vampire's mockery, with a bravado that is only somewhat feigned.

"Know a woman by the company she keeps. If your allies are weak, and you need so many of them for the two of us...what does that say? Come, do your worst! Or is six not enough? Will you bring the others from the door too?"

Taking a step or two back into a defensive stance, she marks her territory, threateningly, with sweeping swordstrokes and cold eyes. This might well hurt. But she would give back what she got and more, as it always was when fighting goblins.

Delaying for Taldrel to act first.
Standard: Come and Get It, close burst 3, pull all targets 2, end adjacent, attack all at +17 v. AC, 1d8+9 damage. If I can't pull everyone, prioritize the three normals over the minions.


pre:
Landra
--------------
HP: 48/93			AC: 32 
Healing Surge: 10/10 (heal 23) 	Fort: 25 
Speed: 6 			Refl: 25 
Initiative: +15	 		Will: 24 
Action Points: 0/1 		Perc: +10 (passive 20)
				Inst: +13 (passive 23)

Features: +4 to OAs, hit enemies stop moving. (Combat Superiority, Blade Opportunist)
Adjacent marked enemies provoke melee basic attack (Combat Superiority)
+2 item bonus to AC when not bloodied (Agile Armor, included)
5 damage on misses with scimitars (Scimitar Dance)

Standard Interrupts: Mark all attacked enemies unless otherwise specified
Take all OAs available: priority is Gharmya, then priest, then Krevan.
If Precision Cut is unused, use it for OAs against non-minions.
 
At-Will: Combat Challenge, Footwork Lure, Tide of Iron
Encounter: Second Wind, Fey Step, Steel Serpent Strike, Sweeping Blow, 
Come and Get It, Into The Fray, Precision Cut, Unbreakable, Fantastic Flourish
Daily: Villain's Menace, Boundless Endurance, Victorious Surge, Nimble Bladestorm, War Ring

Basic Attacks:

Melee: Vicious Scimitar (+17 v. AC, 1d8+9 dmg, +2d8+4d12 crit)
Thrown: Thunderburst (+17 v. AC, 1d4+6 dmg, +1d6 thunder crit)

Dallan Invictus fucked around with this message at 17:03 on Apr 3, 2010

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

Taldrel looks down under his shield after deflecting the axe at the dead hobgoblin. He almost took an axe to the head, but something, his necklace, it seemed, stopped the monster in his tracks. A close call. There was some irony in Nathrak's necklace killing his compatriots, but now was not the time to remark on it.

Looking back to the door, Taldrel realizes the other two hadn't made it into the room. His own fault for rushing in, he supposed. Annetta looked bad, so he called for her to get her head in the fight and get into the room. He was addressing both of them, really, but Annetta looked a bit shaken, so he called her by name.

He then twists his spear in a wide arc, hoping to catch one of the hobgoblins distracting Landra off guard, then catch another on the back-swing. At the same time, he steps forward and calls to Landra to bring them in.

Minor: Inspiring Word on Annetta: surge +3d6
Standard: Cleave on HG1, secondary HG2: +16 vs AC, 1d8+9
  hit: secondary target takes 4 damage
Move: Shift to I29 on hit, I28 on miss

pre:
HP: 83/83                        AC  : 28 
Surges: 11/11 (22hp)             Fort: 24
Action Points: 1	         Will: 22
Speed: 5	                 Refl: 23

Basic Melee Attack: +16 vs AC, 1d8+9 damage (+3d6 on crit)
Tactical Assault: When an ally that can see me spends an action point,
   they gain +2 attack and +4 damage on an attack made.
Combat Veteran’s Action (11th level): When you
  spend an action point to take an extra action, one of
  your allies within 10 squares of you can take a move
  action as a free action.
Tactical Shift: When an enemy strikes an ally, that ally can shift 6 squares as an immediate interrupt. 
  Range 10.  Allow one OA. Trigger on:
   - any ally under 50% health is struck
Shield of Defiance: Spend a healing surge after being crit.  Immediate free action.
  Trigger on:
   - Any time Taldrel is crit and under 80% health.
Evil Eye Fetish: An enemy with CA against me takes 3 necrotic when they hit me.
Helm of Heroes: You and each ally within 10 squares gain +2 item bonus to saving throws against fear effects.
Miss Me Once: An enemy within range and in your line of sight
  misses you with an attack.  The enemy grants combat advantage to each ally
  who has line of sight to it until the start of its next turn.
  Range 10.  Immediate Interrupt.  Allow one OA. Trigger on:
   - The enemy who missed Taldrel is in melee range of at least 1 member of the party.

At-Will: Direct the Strike, Wolf-pack Tactics 
Encounter: Cleave, Inspiring Word 2/3 (minor action), Hammer and Anvil, 
   Aid the Injured, Steel Monsoon, Reorient the Axis, 
   Surprise Attack, Skirmish Ploy, Miss Me Once
Daily: Lead the Attack, Brave Warriors, Force of Fellowship, 
   Tactical Shift, Healing Surge (free action), Shield of Defiance, 
   Gauntlets of Ogre STR (free action, +5 damage on melee attack), Helm of Heroes

Clanpot Shake fucked around with this message at 17:24 on Apr 5, 2010

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

"Well, you had your turn, now it's mine."

Getting up to her feet, Annetta glares at the brutes around her before taking a hint from her flaming mantle, the flames exploding outwards into a searing jet aimed at the creepy as all hell undead thing and it's buddy. Almost fascinated as she looked at the blue-white incandescent flame.

Burning Spray to clear out the two north of Annetta and Badger, +16 vs Reflex, 1D8+17, Close Blast 3.

pre:
AC: 25       Fort: 22     Refl: 26     Will: 29             Special Abilities
HP: 36/79    Surges: 7/7  Value: 19    Init: +10              Chaos Burst: First attack roll determines extra
Stealth: +10 Arcana: +14                                        benefit. Even, +1 AC until the start of my next
AP: 0                                                           turn. Odd, make a saving throw.
Resists: 5 Radiant, 10 Necrotic                               Chaos Power: Gain Dex+2 to damage rolls. (+6)
                                                              Unfettered Power: On a natural 20, slide the target
Encounter                                                       1 square and knock it prone. On a natural 1, push
  Thunder Slam [ ] Dancing Lightning [ ] Chaos Storm [ ]        each creature within 5 squares 1 square.
  Primordial Rage [ ] Eyebite [ ] Second Wind [ ]             Primordial: Cold
  Dragonflame Mantle [X] Narrow Escape [ ] Swift Escape [ ]     - Attacks ignore cold resistance up to 10. 
                                                                - Creature's hit by my attacks are slowed until
Daily                                                           the end of my next turn.
  Chromatic Orb [ ] Acidic Implantation [ ]                   Sorcerous Blade Channeling: Can use ranged sorcerer
  Contagious Curse [ ]                                          powers as a melee attack.
  Primordial Boon [ ]                                         Rootling: Ignore difficult terrain from vegetation.
  Elemental Twist Dagger [ ] Cloak of Resistance [ ]          Dual Implement Spellcaster: Gain offhand damage bonus 
                                                                as a bonus to damage. (+1)
      
Cunning Dagger
    - Saves against powers done through this are made with a -2 penalty.
    - Critical: 3D8  

Elemental Twist Dagger
    - When any enemy resistances or immunities reduce
      my sorcerer attack powers used through the dagger
      gain 5 temp HP.
    - Critical: 2d6

Triggers (In Priority of use. Locations will be updated if need be.)
Dragonflame Mantle: If it would convert a hit to a miss, or if there are two or more creatures in melee. 
Swift Escape: Hit by an area or close attack. Teleport to: F37
Narrow Escape: Hit by an attack while at half health or less. Teleport to: F39
Sunweave Armor: Hit by an opportunity attack from a non-minion foe.

Soonmot
Dec 19, 2002

Entrapta fucking loves robots




Grimey Drawer
Badger

There are no words from the druid, only the shedding of flesh and the slashing of bone. Badger's bones, gleaming with clean light serve as stark contrast to the rotting, writing flesh of Varn as she attacks.

Minor to beast form, Blighted Agony on Varn +15 vs. Fortitude 2d8+12 Necrotic and slide to N38 and dazed until end of my next turn

pre:
HP: 83/86 (temp:  )      AC:   26    Encounter           Daily
Heal Srg: 10/11 (v 23 )  Fort: 24    Elven Accuracy      Death Burst armor
Speed: 7                 Ref:  23    Second Wind         Healing Word        
Initiative: +13          Will: 25    Cull the Herd       Savage Frenzy
Action Points: 1/1       Perc: 18    Bark Skin           Wall of Thorns
				     Tundra Wind         Feral Mauling
				     Camouflage Cloak    Amulet of Vigor
				     Tremor
				     Roots of Rescue
				     Blighted Agony
				     Maggot Form
				 
Resists: Necrotic: 5 (beast form)
STR: 10 CON: 19 DEX: 16 INT: 11 WIS: 21 CHA: 11
Skills: Arc 11, Heal 16, Ins 16, Nat 18, Per 18, Rel 16
Basic Attack: Savage Rend: +15 vs Ref 1d8+8 damage

Critical Damage: +3d6/ +3d10 on bloodied target
Special: Group Awareness: non-elf allies within 5 squares +1 racial	bonus to Perception checks.
	 Wild Step: You ignore difficult terrain when you shift 
         Auto save vs ongoing Necrotic
         +2 damage to implement attacks on bloodied targets.
         Action Point: all enemies adjacent to you must move 1 square away or take 4 necrotic (save ends).
         Beast form attacks deal +4 necrotic damage
         Ally with lowest initiative within 5 squares can reroll
         Roll twice for initiative
         Uncanny dodge:  Enemies with CA do not gain +2 to attack.
         +2 with Elven Accuracy reroll
	

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Despite her change of shape, Badger again finds herself frustrated by failure when the undead hobgoblin easily withstands her attack. Annetta fares somewhat better: while the soldier ducks behind his heavy shield just in time and so avoids her blast of fire, her second opponent is thoroughly scorched, though seemingly little perturbed; his intestines rear up like angry snakes, ready to strike.

Shouting encouragement at the sorceress, Taldrel brings his spear around in a broad swing, but these hobgoblins are trained soldiers and not just mere rabble, as the practised motion with which the half-elf's target deflects his blow proves; it is all he can do to step aside and make room for Landra, blinking as he unexpectedly finds himself able to see the vampire once more just fine. The eladrin, for her part, finds numerous takers for her challenge, but cannot be especially satisfied with the results: while she neatly decapitates one of the soldiers and wounds Krevan and the priest, the remaining two grunts avoid her whirling blade entirely, and when her fey mind overcomes Gharmya's glamour spell and renders the hobgoblin visible to her again, Landra notes that she only suffered a shallow cut on her arm as well.

"That is why he was weak," the 'Lady' snarls in-between barking orders. "He had notions of honour and a similarly foolish semblance of fairness in battle, and what did it gain him? Nothing at all." The soldiers crowded around Landra lash out at her, and all three battleaxes strike true, leaving her vaguely aware of warm blood trickling from several injuries. Nearby, the other two hobgoblin footmen move in on Badger, and while they are mildly surprised to find that the elf is downright uncannily aware of their movements no matter how adept they are at flanking their enemy, their attacks aren't any less successful for it, one leaving a cut along her forearm, the other nicking the back of her neck.

"If you knew what was at stake," Gharmya continues, staring at Landra and again fading from her sight, "you would make no such concessions either. The end justifies the means – and what a grand end it is!" With that the vampire surges forward, but despite her foe having virtually no visual cues to rely on, the eladrin still manages to step out of the way and smash Gharmya's broadsword aside – only to feel a sharp, stinging pain in the small of her back as Krevan's rapier finds a vulnerable spot and slips past her scale armour to deliver a deep piercing wound, causing white stars to explode before Landra's eyes no matter how hard she tries to block out the pain. Finding the eladrin thus preoccupied for a moment, Krevan takes the opportunity to step cautiously around her to stand opposite the 'Lady', whom he gives an almost cringing look, craving approval.

The warpriest, too, takes a timely step away from the fey swordswoman before raising his hand in Taldrel's direction and loosing a bolt of pure force at him by Gharmya's command. Landra's earlier blow distracted him, but it seems it wasn't enough – and likewise Taldrel simply isn't quick enough to dodge the nearly invisible projectile as it slams into his chest, driving the air from his lungs and leaving him gasping. This does not exhaust the priest's repertoire of divinely granted power, either: when the glistening viscera of the undead hobgoblin lash out at Badger and Annetta with the speed of striking serpents, he again invokes the name of Bane, thus assuring that the sorceress is successfully snared not by one but two of them, one coiling tightly around her midsection while the other wraps itself around her left arm and shoulder, rendering them all but useless to her.

Clammy and cold, the texture of the viscera is like that of some dead animal's sinewy, raspy tongue, their smell cloyingly, sickly sweet with a tinge of smoke and ancient soil; yet at the same time, the sensation is like that of a thousand leeches writhing on her skin, greedily clamping down with toothed, sucking jaws. Badger is somewhat luckier, with only one of the repulsive appendage-like intestines catching her bony form in its grasp, but it is enough to root her to the spot as well until she can break free.


Badger uses Wild Shape to turn into beast form.
   She uses Blighted Agony on Varn and misses (F:5+15).
Annetta stands up.
   She uses Burning Spray centred on N37, missing Hobgoblin Grunt #5 (R:3+16) and hitting Varn (R:18+16) for 23 fire damage.
Landra delays.
Taldrel uses Inspiring Word on Annetta, who spends a healing surge to regain 25 hit points.
   He uses Cleave on Hobgoblin Grunt #1 and misses (A:11+16).
   He shifts J29->I18.
   He saves against Shadow Glamour (12).
Landra uses Come and Get It, pulling Hobgoblin Grunt #2 J28->J29 and pulling Hobgoblin Warpriest I27->K29; she misses Hobgoblin Grunt #1 (A:1+17), misses Gharmya (A:2+17) for 5, crits Hobgoblin Grunt #3 (A:20+17) for 39 damage and kills him, misses Hobgoblin Grunt #2 (A:3+17), hits Krevan (A:19+17) and Hobgoblin Warpriest (A:7+17) for 15 damage.
   She saves against Shadow Glamour (6+5).

Hobgoblin Grunt #1 uses Battleaxe on Landra and hits (A:19+21) for 8 damage.
Hobgoblin Grunt #2 uses Battleaxe on Landra and hits (A:12+23) for 8 damage.
Hobgoblin Grunt #3 uses Battleaxe on Landra and hits (A:9+23) for 8 damage.
Hobgoblin Grunt #5 delays.
Hobgoblin Grunt #7 moves P34->Q37.
   He uses Battleaxe on Badger and hits (A:18+19) for 8 damage.
Hobgoblin Grunt #5 uses Battleaxe on Badger and hits (A:7+19) for 8 damage.
Gharmya uses Shadow Glamour and hits Landra (W:10+14); she is invisible to her (save ends).
   She uses Dizzying Blow on Landra and misses (A:5+18).
Krevan uses Lucy on Landra and hits (A:16+22) ...
      Immediate interrupt: Landra uses Unbreakable to reduce the damage from the attack by 6...
   Krevan hits Landra for 14 damage, bloodying her.
   He shifts J31->K30.
Hobgoblin Warpriest shifts K29->K28.
   He uses Cruel Bolt on Taldrel and hits (R:16+17) for 15 force damage.
Varn uses Hungry Viscera on Annetta and misses (A:1+17)...
      Immediate reaction: Hobgoblin Warpriest uses Bane's Blessing, Varn rerolls the attack and uses the higher result...
   Varn hits Annetta (A:9+16) for 7 damage; she is grabbed and he gains a +2 bonus to all defences.
   He uses Hungry Viscera on Annetta and hits (A:17+16) for 7 damage; she takes a -2 penalty to escape checks.
   He uses Hungry Viscera on Badger and hits (A:19+16) for 6 damage; she is grabbed.




pre:
/-----[ROUND 3]--------------[IN]--[HP]-----[THP]--[STATUS EFFECTS]--------------------------------\
|==>| Badger                | 33 |  51/86  |     | Grabbed (Varn)                                  |
|   | Annetta               | 28 |  47/79  |     | Grabbed (Varn), -2 esc                          |
|   | Taldrel               | 27 |  67/83  |     |                                                 |
|   | Landra                | 27 |  44/93  |     | +2 atk/+4 dmg v Gharmya; cannot see Gharmya (S);|
|   |                       |    |         |     | marked by Gharmya                               |
|   | Hobgoblin Grunts      | 20 |               | 1,2,3,5: +2 AC                                  |
|   | Gharmya               | 19 |  41           | +2 AC                                           |
|   | Krevan                | 18 |  15           |                                                 |
|   | Hobgoblin Warpriest   | 17 |  15           |                                                 |
|   | Varn                  | 17 |  35           | +2 def                                          |
|-----[GLOBAL BONUSES]-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Party: +1 pwr to atk when charging (if LoS to Taldrel)                                           |
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------/

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 21:15 on Apr 4, 2010

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Lack of bookmarks? Lack of inclination? Something else? :iiam:

Soonmot
Dec 19, 2002

Entrapta fucking loves robots




Grimey Drawer
Badger

With a roar of anger, Badger's skeletal beast form lashes out all around with glowing claws. An avatar of natural death, the taint of the undead Varn was too much for her to take. The hoblgoblins around her and Landra were only an afterthought.

Savage Frenzy on each enemy in the burst +15 vs. reflex 1d6+8+4 Necrotic and dazed/slowed. Elven accuracy +2 reroll if I miss Varn

pre:
HP: 51/86 (temp:  )      AC:   26    Encounter           Daily
Heal Srg: 10/11 (v 23 )  Fort: 24    Elven Accuracy      Death Burst armor
Speed: 7                 Ref:  23    Second Wind         Healing Word        
Initiative: +13          Will: 25    Cull the Herd       Savage Frenzy
Action Points: 1/1       Perc: 18    Bark Skin           Wall of Thorns
				     Tundra Wind         Feral Mauling
				     Camouflage Cloak    Amulet of Vigor
				     Tremor
				     Roots of Rescue
				     Blighted Agony
				     Maggot Form
				 
Resists: Necrotic: 5 (beast form)
STR: 10 CON: 19 DEX: 16 INT: 11 WIS: 21 CHA: 11
Skills: Arc 11, Heal 16, Ins 16, Nat 18, Per 18, Rel 16
Basic Attack: Savage Rend: +15 vs Ref 1d8+8 damage

Critical Damage: +3d6/ +3d10 on bloodied target
Special: Group Awareness: non-elf allies within 5 squares +1 racial	bonus to Perception checks.
	 Wild Step: You ignore difficult terrain when you shift 
         Auto save vs ongoing Necrotic
         +2 damage to implement attacks on bloodied targets.
         Action Point: all enemies adjacent to you must move 1 square away or take 4 necrotic (save ends).
         Beast form attacks deal +4 necrotic damage
         Ally with lowest initiative within 5 squares can reroll
         Roll twice for initiative
         Uncanny dodge:  Enemies with CA do not gain +2 to attack.
         +2 with Elven Accuracy reroll
	
[/quote]

I thought I posted awhile back, sorry!

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Badger hits all three, killing the grunts and dazing/slowing Varn. (Edit: this also causes his grabs to end, which may be relevant in case Badger/Annetta want to move!)

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 16:09 on Apr 9, 2010

Clanpot Shake
Aug 10, 2006
shake shake!

Taldrel Darlhunt

Stepping past one of the grunts, Taldrel calls out words of inspiration to Landra, and threatening words to Krevan. His patience for the boy was waning quickly. His patience increased somewhat at seeing Annetta's power tear through the hobgoblins with vicious potency. He would wait for their reaction to the attack before acting.

Crying out for Landra to follow his lead, Taldrel makes a daring stab at Gharmya's back. He hoped it would unnerve the vampire enough for Landra to score some more grievous wounds.

Move: Shift to I29
Minor: Inspiring Word on Landra: surge + 3d6
Standard: Lead the Attack on Gharmya: +16 vs AC, 3d8+9 (+3d6 on crit)
hit: until the end of the encounter, me and each ally within 5 squares gains +5 attack against Gharmya
miss: bonus is +1

IGNORE THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN: delaying to act after the grunts

pre:
HP: 67/83                        AC  : 28 
Surges: 11/11 (22hp)             Fort: 24
Action Points: 1	         Will: 22
Speed: 5	                 Refl: 23

Basic Melee Attack: +16 vs AC, 1d8+9 damage (+3d6 on crit)
Tactical Assault: When an ally that can see me spends an action point,
   they gain +2 attack and +4 damage on an attack made.
Combat Veteran’s Action (11th level): When you
  spend an action point to take an extra action, one of
  your allies within 10 squares of you can take a move
  action as a free action.
Tactical Shift: When an enemy strikes an ally, that ally can shift 6 squares as an immediate interrupt. 
  Range 10.  Allow one OA. Trigger on:
   - any ally under 50% health is struck
Shield of Defiance: Spend a healing surge after being crit.  Immediate free action.
  Trigger on:
   - Any time Taldrel is crit and under 80% health.
Evil Eye Fetish: An enemy with CA against me takes 3 necrotic when they hit me.
Helm of Heroes: You and each ally within 10 squares gain +2 item bonus to saving throws against fear effects.
Miss Me Once: An enemy within range and in your line of sight
  misses you with an attack.  The enemy grants combat advantage to each ally
  who has line of sight to it until the start of its next turn.
  Range 10.  Immediate Interrupt.  Allow one OA. Trigger on:
   - The enemy who missed Taldrel is in melee range of at least 1 member of the party.

At-Will: Direct the Strike, Wolf-pack Tactics 
Encounter: Cleave, Inspiring Word 1/3 (minor action), Hammer and Anvil, 
   Aid the Injured, Steel Monsoon, Reorient the Axis, 
   Surprise Attack, Skirmish Ploy, Miss Me Once
Daily: Lead the Attack, Brave Warriors, Force of Fellowship, 
   Tactical Shift, Healing Surge (free action), Shield of Defiance, 
   Gauntlets of Ogre STR (free action, +5 damage on melee attack), Helm of Heroes

Clanpot Shake fucked around with this message at 01:30 on Apr 10, 2010

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
Annetta

With the unnerving viscera retreating, Annetta takes the moment to go and aid her allies fighting the vampire bitch. Looking them over, Annetta opts for the weaselly Krevan as the instrument of her desire and ire, her magic settling around him in a miasma that would leave her enemies in agony, while her allies could stand firm. With a little luck, it would wreck Krevan's day as well.

Was waiting for Badger to plot out what was going to happen before figuring out what to do on my turn. Move to K39, then open up a Contagious Curse on Krevan.

+16 vs Fort, Hit: 2D10+17 poison damage. Effect: Slide Krevan to H30. Target is poisonous to enemies (save ends) Any enemy that starts it's turn adjacent to Krevan takes 1D10+6 poison damage. If I rolled even on my attack roll, it's any enemy within 2 squares.


pre:
AC: 25       Fort: 22     Refl: 26     Will: 29             Special Abilities
HP: 47/79    Surges: 6/7  Value: 19    Init: +10              Chaos Burst: First attack roll determines extra
Stealth: +10 Arcana: +14                                        benefit. Even, +1 AC until the start of my next
AP: 0                                                           turn. Odd, make a saving throw.
Resists: 5 Radiant, 10 Necrotic                               Chaos Power: Gain Dex+2 to damage rolls. (+6)
                                                              Unfettered Power: On a natural 20, slide the target
Encounter                                                       1 square and knock it prone. On a natural 1, push
  Thunder Slam [ ] Dancing Lightning [ ] Chaos Storm [ ]        each creature within 5 squares 1 square.
  Primordial Rage [ ] Eyebite [ ] Second Wind [ ]             Primordial: Necrotic
  Dragonflame Mantle [X] Narrow Escape [ ] Swift Escape [ ]     - Attacks ignore necrotic resistance up to 10. 
Daily                                                           
  Chromatic Orb [ ] Acidic Implantation [ ]                   Sorcerous Blade Channeling: Can use ranged sorcerer
  Contagious Curse [X]                                          powers as a melee attack.
  Primordial Boon [ ]                                         Rootling: Ignore difficult terrain from vegetation.
  Elemental Twist Dagger [ ] Cloak of Resistance [ ]          Dual Implement Spellcaster: Gain offhand damage bonus 
                                                                as a bonus to damage. (+1)
      
Cunning Dagger
    - Saves against powers done through this are made with a -2 penalty.
    - Critical: 3D8  

Elemental Twist Dagger
    - When any enemy resistances or immunities reduce
      my sorcerer attack powers used through the dagger
      gain 5 temp HP.
    - Critical: 2d6

Triggers (In Priority of use. Locations will be updated if need be.)
Dragonflame Mantle: If it would convert a hit to a miss, or if there are two or more creatures in melee. 
Swift Escape: Hit by an area or close attack. Teleport to: F37
Narrow Escape: Hit by an attack while at half health or less. Teleport to: F39
Sunweave Armor: Hit by an opportunity attack from a non-minion foe.

MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Krevan uses an interrupt to switch places with the adjacent grunt and make him the target of the attack, but Annetta then nat. 1s it anyway so it doesn't end up making much of a difference. Krevan doing his thing also sets off an interrupt chain, which ends with Landra getting pushed into K31 and Gharmya shifting into her former square.
Taldrel delays.

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 02:09 on Apr 10, 2010

Dallan Invictus
Oct 11, 2007

The thing about words is that meanings can twist just like a snake, and if you want to find snakes, look for them behind words that have changed their meaning.
Landra

"You think I wanted this to be fair? You and me, woman to walking corpse? How precious! Do you know nothing of the fey? Have you ever thought us fair, thought us just?" Snarling at her foe in a vain attempt to transcend the pain of the blows she's been unable to dodge, Landra straightens again, doggedly reasserting her balance from the vampire's push.

The melee around the eladrin is truly wild and chaotic, not even the principals knowing precisely who is where at any given moment, between sidesteps and darting movements and whirling confusion - confusion she adds to by simply vanishing to appear in a gap in the goblin mob. Her blade is already tracing impossible, enveloping arcs about her and the foes surrounding her, and a brief glance over her shoulder to Badger and Annetta leads her gaze back to the vampire's shadow. The blade whirls around her, like the edge of a hurricane, and her mocking calls almost carry the sound of the wind.

"I live for this, am honoured by this! Bring your six for us, bring your ten, bring sixty. You will gain nothing but one last death."

I'm trying to figure out all the moves from those interrupts, but I may be mistaken as to how the map looks now!

EDIT: okay, it reads like I30 is free and should hit both G and K (along with all the minions, but they're less importat), but correct me on IRC tomorrow if I'm wrong.

Move: Fey Step to I30.
Standard: Nimble Bladestorm, close burst 1, target all enemies in burst, +22 v. AC, 2d8+9 damage.


pre:
Landra
--------------
HP: 44/93			AC: 32-2=30 
Healing Surge: 10/10 (heal 23) 	Fort: 25 
Speed: 6 			Refl: 25 
Initiative: +15	 		Will: 24 
Action Points: 0/1 		Perc: +10 (passive 20)
				Inst: +13 (passive 23)

Features: +4 to OAs, hit enemies stop moving. (Combat Superiority, Blade Opportunist)
Adjacent marked enemies provoke melee basic attack (Combat Superiority)
+2 item bonus to AC when not bloodied (Agile Armor, included)
5 damage on misses with scimitars (Scimitar Dance)

Standard Interrupts: Mark all attacked enemies unless otherwise specified
Take all OAs available: priority is Gharmya, then priest, then Krevan.
If Precision Cut is unused, use it for OAs against non-minions.
 
At-Will: Combat Challenge, Footwork Lure, Tide of Iron
Encounter: Second Wind, Fey Step, Steel Serpent Strike, Sweeping Blow, 
Come and Get It, Into The Fray, Precision Cut, Unbreakable, Fantastic Flourish
Daily: Villain's Menace, Boundless Endurance, Victorious Surge, Nimble Bladestorm, War Ring

Basic Attacks:

Melee: Vicious Scimitar (+17 v. AC, 1d8+9 dmg, +2d8+4d12 crit)
Thrown: Thunderburst (+17 v. AC, 1d4+6 dmg, +1d6 thunder crit)

Dallan Invictus fucked around with this message at 09:06 on Apr 10, 2010

The Transhumanist
Jan 2, 2008

Things can get better. You just gotta be willing to take the chance.
The attack is just the 2D10 damage, the effect line is regardless of whether it hits or not. So, he's still poisonous, or the grunt is, dunno how the thing he's got is worded.

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MMAgCh
Aug 15, 2001
I am the poet,
The prophet of the pit
Like a hollow-point bullet
Straight to the head
I never missed...you
Lashing out in a blur of bone and claws, Badger fatally wounds the two soldiers harrassing her and knocks loose part of the lower jaw of the third, undead hobgoblin; her sheer vehemence is such that it puts even this creature from beyond the grave into a daze of sorts, his eyes becoming even glassier if that is at all possible. Astute observers – those to whom she is at all visible, that is – will notice that Gharmya looks vaguely but oddly distraught by this course of events for some reason.

Sensing a chance to put some distance between herself and the abominable one while he is so thoroughly off his guard, Annetta moves into the room and begins to channel her magic, recalling the arcane venoms of fabled creatures such as the basilisk or the cruel yuan-ti tribes and attempting to recreate their unparalleled toxicity with her own magic. As she levels her dagger at Krevan, the sneak catches sight of this, his eyes going wide; stumbling back, he hastily shoves the hobgoblin soldier next to him towards the sorceress instead, who fails to rein in her magic in time and so finds herself unleashing the poisonous spell on the hapless hobgoblin instead.

One who does react in time is Landra, who responds to Krevan's sudden movement with a quick swipe of her scimitar that sadly fails to leave anything more than a shallow cut in his upper arm; even this injury almost remains uninflicted, for her blade has barely even struck the man when something very heavy crashes into the eladrin with a clash of metal, shoving her backwards as an unseen sword carves a jagged, painful wound into her waist at the same time. "Over here," hisses the perpetrator of this fierce attack as two red specks of sickly light, all that is really visible of Gharmya right now, glare at Landra.

Things are moving rather too fast for Annetta, and she feels her magic slipping out of her control! All she sees is the newly 'infected' hobgoblin stumbling around the mêlée as she'd meant Krevan to before there is a thunderous boom, the chaotic energy surging through and around her cascading and spontaneously combusting, sending Badger and her undead opponent stumbling out of the room as a wave of pure force smashes into them. This turns most everyone's heads for a moment, an opportunity Landra seizes to step through the nameless void between the worlds and back into the very middle of the fray, angrily bringing her scimitar to bear in a tempest of steel again, disembowelling another hobgoblin soldier and once more wounding Krevan and Gharmya; the snivelling human gives a pathetic cry of pain, but the vampire remains silent, hardly even taking notice. With her glamour spell wearing off again, Landra finds herself able to read the hobgoblin's expression once more, but what little there is of it anyway is fairly inscrutable, aside from a look of focus and concentration the eladrin is only too familiar with it, for she is wearing that same expression herself right now – the expression of a fighter wholly caught up in combat, when she and her blade are truly one.

Of the two remaining hobgoblin soldiers, one succumbs to the deadly miasma surrounding his comrade, retching and vomiting as his innards liquefy; the other bravely throws himself at Landra again, striking her in the back with the flat of his axe's head and knocking her a little off balance in preparation for his leader's next blow. Taldrel chooses this moment to press the attack again, stepping forward to drive his spear into Gharmya's back while expertly restoring Landra's confidence at the same time with a few well-chosen words. The 'Lady' glances briefly over her shoulder, the look she gives the half-elf making him suddenly glad she is busy dealing with Landra right now; but Gharmya clearly can't help but be ever so slightly distracted as a result, and as Taldrel well knows it's these small distractions that make all the difference sometimes.

"I have never thought much of you fey, no," is the vampire's response, "other than that you should have stayed sequestered away on your own plane, instead of meddling here in business that isn't yours." Again Gharmya attempts to throw Landra off balance by smashing her shield into her, but the eladrin sees it coming and counters with her own shield, the impact almost wrenching her shoulder from its socket – but it is more than enough to foil the hobgoblin's attack and cause her sword to whistle almost a full foot past Landra's head. "There seems to be so much you feel certain of," she sneers anyway, "and so little you actually are. You don't even know why you are here, do you? You don't have a notion what's going on – and as long as there's fodder for your blade you couldn't care less, could you?"

Landra having aimed one blow at him recently, Krevan steals away from the mêlée as ordered to by Gharmya, correctly wagering that the eladrin won't be taking another swing quite so soon. He instead steps closer to Annetta, who still seems caught somewhat off her guard by the sly switcheroo the scoundrel pulled on her, and flings his dagger at her, his eyes narrow with concentration. The sorceress is far away, though, too far indeed to expect a thrown dagger to remain fully accurate at such a range, and as one might expect it sails past her, towards the wall. It never actually strikes the wall, though; a moment later it magically appears in Krevan's hand again, who gives a moan of displeasure and throws the weapon a second time, only for it to miss a second time as well and return to its wielder's hand, who proceeds to cower beneath Gharmya's angry glare.

The hobgoblin priest, raising his mace and clutching his symbol of Bane, again summons a storm of war, this time bringing it down on Landra and Taldrel's heads. They are both experienced in matters of warfare, though, and not so easily distracted or overborne by the sudden noise and belligerent bustle of battle raging around them, and while each suffers a few stray blows, both of them emerge only marginally more battered when the priest's prayer wears off and they are dropped back into the actual fight they're still very much in the middle of.

Jaw dangling from his pale-fleshed head, his intestines swaying lazily like serpents enthralled by a snake charmer, the one called Varn gazes dully at Badger only to suddenly lash out at her osseous form with a clawed hand. It's a blow the druid didn't expect to come so quickly, or hit so hard, but it does; there is an unpleasant cracking sound as some of her many bones snap under the impact of the undead hobgoblin's swing, an injury that will certainly have ramifications in her elven shape as well – of which sort those might be, though, she cannot be sure.


This round was pretty messy, which is of course chiefly my fault again for resolving turns out of order – as we all know immediate actions and their ilk don't work so well in PbP, which did not help either!

Badger uses Savage Frenzy, hitting Hobgoblin Grunt #5 (R:12+15) and Hobgoblin Grunt #7 (R:17+15) for 14 damage plus 4 necrotic damage, killing them, and hitting Varn (R:13+15) for 14 damage plus (4-15) 0 necrotic damage, dazing and slowing him (save ends both).
Annetta moves P38->K39.
   She uses Contagious Curse on Krevan...
      Immediate interrupt: Krevan uses Better Him Than Me and switches places with Hobgoblin Grunt #2...
         Immediate interrupt: Landra makes a Combat Challenge melee basic attack against Krevan...
            Immediate interrupt: Gharmya gets a Combat Challenge attack: she uses Tide of Iron on Landra and hits (A:14+18) for 18 damage, pushing her J30->K31 and shifting I30->J30.
         Landra misses (A:8+15) for 5 damage.
      Krevan makes Hobgoblin Grunt #2 the target of Contagious Curse; if the attack misses, he gains combat advantage against Annetta until the end of his next turn.
   Annetta misses Hobgoblin Grunt #2 (F:1+16), triggering Unfettered Power, pushing Badger P37->Q36 and Varn O38->P37, and Krevan gains combat advantage against her until the end of his next turn; she slides Hobgoblin Grunt #2 K30->H30, he is poisonous (save ends): any enemy that starts its turn adjacent to him takes 1d10+6 poison damage.
Taldrel delays.
Landra uses Fey Step and teleports K31->I30.
   She uses Nimble Bladestorm, missing Hobgoblin Grunt #2 (A:3+22) and Hobgoblin Grunt #1 (A:1+22), hitting Hobgoblin Grunt #3 (A:15+22), killing him, and Krevan (A:16+22) for 17 damage, and hitting Gharmya (A:10+24) for 21 damage.
   She saves against Shadow Glamour (12+5).

Hobgoblin Grunt #1 takes 16 poison damage for starting his turn adjacent to Hobgoblin Grunt #2 and dies.
Hobgoblin Grunt #2 uses Aid Another to give Gharmya a +2 bonus to her next attack roll against Landra and succeeds (A:3+23).
   He saves against being poisonous (15-2).

Taldrel shifts I28->I29.
   He uses Inspiring Word on Landra, who spends a healing surge to regain 34 hit points and is no longer bloodied.
   He uses Lead the Attack on Gharmya and hits (A:17+16) for 31 damage; he and Landra gain a +5 power bonus to attack rolls against Gharmya until the end of the encounter.

Gharmya uses Dizzying Blow on Landra and misses (A:1+20).
Krevan shifts J29->K30.
   He uses Twin Strike, shifting K30->L31, and uses Verena on Annetta twice, missing (A:5+18,6+18).
Hobgoblin Warpriest moves K28->N29.
   He uses Storm of War centred on I29, missing Taldrel (F:4+17) and Landra (F:6+16) for 8 force damage.
Varn uses Claw on Badger and crits (A:20+16) for 14 damage, bloodying her.
   He saves against being dazed and slowed (15).




pre:
/-----[ROUND 4]--------------[IN]--[HP]-----[THP]--[STATUS EFFECTS]--------------------------------\
|==>| Badger                | 33 |  37/86  |     |                                                 |
|   | Annetta               | 28 |  47/79  |     |                                                 |
|   | Landra                | 27 |  52/93  |     | +5 atk/+4 dmg v Gharmya; marked by Gharmya      |
|   | Hobgoblin Grunt       | 20 |               |                                                 |
|   | Taldrel               | 20 |  59/83  |     | +5 atk v Gharmya                                |
|   | Gharmya               | 19 |  93           |                                                 |
|   | Krevan                | 18 |  37           |                                                 |
|   | Hobgoblin Warpriest   | 17 |  15           |                                                 |
|   | Varn                  | 17 |  49           |                                                 |
|-----[GLOBAL BONUSES]-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Party: +1 pwr to atk when charging (if LoS to Taldrel)                                           |
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------/

MMAgCh fucked around with this message at 03:42 on Apr 11, 2010

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