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Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer
Floating on the Field of Dreams – The Rough Patch

Curiosity gets the better of you and you will yourself closer to an unoccupied rough patch.
The fog gives way as your mind focuses and soon you find yourself face to face with a strange scene in the midst of a bush of thorns.



A battle has been fought. You do not know the sides, but seeing the result, the reasons hardly matter. The warriors lay dead, their wounds not readily apparent.
Strange vines cover their bodies, bending the fallen in unnatural poses and even lifting one on-high.

You hear a rumbling in the distance, the approach of thunder. A sickly green light at the horizon. The vines move, but only to further constrict the dead.

1:
A:Return 'home'

B: Investigate the thunder

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Nyaa
Jan 7, 2010
Like, Nyaa.

:colbert:
B

Theantero
Nov 6, 2011

...We danced the Mamushka while Nero fiddled, we danced the Mamushka at Waterloo. We danced the Mamushka for Jack the Ripper, and now, Fester Addams, this Mamushka is for you....
Yeah no. It feels like we are being given more than enough hints to get out of dodge before things start to get nasty. A.

Prudence over greed has served us fairly well this far.

Nothingtoseehere
Nov 11, 2010


A

Waci
May 30, 2011

A boy and his dog.
B

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
Do we have any matches or a blade? Burn/cut the vines

Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer

Outrail posted:

Do we have any matches or a blade? Burn/cut the vines

You consider yourself briefly.
You look at your hands.
You appear to be blue and semi-transparent. A thin cord connects you to something far away. It tugs at you.
The something feels like home.
You are at the same time naked, and not. You have nothing to cover, you are neither hot nor cold.
You don't seem to have any items on you.


Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
Ain't gonna tie me down.

Reach up and snap that stupid cord.

JT Jag
Aug 30, 2009

#1 Jaguars Sunk Cost Fallacy-Haver
A.

Wentley
Feb 7, 2012
A

We have more cupcakes. By the time they are gone, perhaps we can learn to do this without them.

Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer
Cupcake Dreams
Month 2, Week Two, Day Three


Curious, but ever cautious, you creep away from the macabre scene and float away from the violence of the approaching storm. You have no sense of direction but 'home' and 'away' and so you reel yourself back, following the azure thread that links you to yourself.

---

You awaken to find yourself in a small bedroom on the upper floor of the Inn. It is pretty spartan as far as these things go but with the size of the village you expected no different.
Through a window the pale light of early autumn morning breaks, motes of dust sparkling in a chill wind. A small leaf finds egress through your window, lays itself atop the floorboards like a grand carpet for a court of ladybugs.



Your things are neatly packed around your bed, and there is a note on the small table besides you.

It's from Kvelar. He says that you retired soon after you finished dinner, muttering something about fields. He took it for naught but a strange mood, encouraged you to go to bed.
The plan was already established and a nights sleep could not hurt. He asks you to come down as soon as you are feeling better, for there is still much to do.

You nod to yourself, get dressed and geared up and head down once more.

---

Sat around the same table as the night before are the members of ITEC all. They have hardly been idle, and by the sound of it they been out all night gathering information.
You are waved in by the group and together you go through what you know.

Sockne is a small town. No more than a hundred people, and that is with the more seasonal duck-workers in for the harvest. Most of the time this sleepy village doesn't even breach fifty.
The caravan road passes through the city on the way to Grüw and it is surrounded on one side by farmland, the other forest. A few pastures utilize the nomans land of grassy fields that the village nests in,
something that the proposed monster has taken advantage off.

Investigations of the affected pastures have led your group to believe the cullings the work of a large forest animal. Skvababt did not see any creature in the night, but the damage to fences and tracks around the area suggest a bear of unusual size.
Hopefully this one doesn't teleport.

What do you do?

1:
A: Investigate the pasture further

B: Follow what tracks you can find further into the forest

C: Something else?

Waci
May 30, 2011

A boy and his dog.
A.

Knowledge is half the battle, and half done has been good enough before.

Theantero
Nov 6, 2011

...We danced the Mamushka while Nero fiddled, we danced the Mamushka at Waterloo. We danced the Mamushka for Jack the Ripper, and now, Fester Addams, this Mamushka is for you....

Waci posted:

A.

Knowledge is half the battle, and half done has been good enough before.

Yeah, This. We can investigate on a bit during the morning before we track the beast. It's not like the prints are going to disappear any time soon.

A, then B.

Check out the areas the blighted patches we saw in the dream were. Maybe they are somehow marked even in this waking reality.

Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer

Theantero posted:

Check out the areas the blighted patches we saw in the dream were. Maybe they are somehow marked even in this waking reality.

Whilst the area was familiar, it was not this area. If you ever come across it in your (waking) travels, you will know.

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
Do we have any peanut butter and is there any fish in the village? There's not a creature alive that can resist the smell of peanut butter mixed with oats and oily fish. (being serious)

Waci
May 30, 2011

A boy and his dog.
That's Americans, not animals.

Nyaa
Jan 7, 2010
Like, Nyaa.

:colbert:
A.pasture

Kira Akashiya
Feb 2, 2013
B

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:

Waci posted:

That's Americans, not animals.

Pretty much any wild animal that can only think as far as it's next meal so yeah, them too. Better if you wrap it in bacon.

Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer
Less Green Pastures



You gather your party and venture forth, trekking through the village of Sockne to its outer reaches where the pastures lay. The terrain is hilly and offers a a view of the west-south-west that rivals nearly that of the view from Tukatt Hold.
The rolling hills, the river Ennui, villages, roads, the Empire as you know it. All the expanse of your life. And in the distance, ever looming, the great Rim Wall, dominating the horizon. All horizons.



You enter the pasture itself some hours before noon, finding a herd of sheep grazing warily, keeping their distance from a clearly ruined stone fence.

You where never really a nature dwarf, having spent most of your life locked up in an accountancy firm, but when your team shows you the tracks they found you cant help but nod in agreement.
A large forest creature, walking on four paws that seem to have rather large claws attached. Right before the fence the tracks indicate the beast standing up, probably for a fearsome swipe. All signs point to bear.

The sheep herder has attempted repairs, but even a stone wall seems to pose no barrier to the monster in question. He has instead taken to bringing some of his prized sheep with him into his cottage come nightfall, but realizes this is not a good permanent solution.
The sheepmurderscene has of course already been cleaned up. Sheep are easily frightened at the best of times, it wouldn't do to have blood on the grass. Yet you search thoroughly, hoping that perhaps the shepherd missed some vital clue in his clean up.


It doesn't take long until Khami calls for your attention.



“There seem to be a lot of feathers strewn about the place. Curious, I did not know this shepherd kept chickens? Yet they seem far larger than any chicken I have ever seen. What do you think?”


The feather is striped and light brown, about the size of Khamis forearm.

1:
Well, what do you think it is?
A: Write-in.

2:
What do you do now?
B: Develop some sort of make-shift trap out of bits of food and things that bears might like.
C: Follow the tracks to the monsters nest.
D: Something else? Write-in.

Nyaa
Jan 7, 2010
Like, Nyaa.

:colbert:
1. Flying Slime
2.B

Theantero
Nov 6, 2011

...We danced the Mamushka while Nero fiddled, we danced the Mamushka at Waterloo. We danced the Mamushka for Jack the Ripper, and now, Fester Addams, this Mamushka is for you....
A: The picture is of an owl feather. When you add to that the fact out monster seems nocturnal, an owlbear seems like the most likely culprit. Now I realize the feather might just be there for demonstrative purposes and we might not actually be fighting an owl-based monster. However, it seems like a good preliminary guess.

I still think that trying to track it and kill it while it's sleeping is our best bet though, so C. Owls have very sharp senses however, so I am uncertain about our ability to sneak up on it.

Nothingtoseehere
Nov 11, 2010


C

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
B. Get a handful of every kind of food we can find in the village and strew it around the broken fence. Then find tree down wind and hang out with froglips for the night.

If we get a glimpse of what it looks like we can either signal for the rest to come charging out of a cottage or let it escape and plan a trap.

Waci
May 30, 2011

A boy and his dog.
1: Signs point to owlbear.

2: B. Get it in a pit trap, poke it with sticks, if that fails, throw a bottle of FOOF into the pit.

Theantero
Nov 6, 2011

...We danced the Mamushka while Nero fiddled, we danced the Mamushka at Waterloo. We danced the Mamushka for Jack the Ripper, and now, Fester Addams, this Mamushka is for you....

Waci posted:

2: B. Get it in a pit trap, poke it with sticks, if that fails, throw a bottle of FOOF into the pit.

The problem I see with this is that bears are fairly good climbers.

Waci
May 30, 2011

A boy and his dog.
That's why we put spikes in and poke it with sticks, duh.

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
Bears love busting poo poo open. Smear a phoof jar with gravy and peanut butter and leave it lying around.

Bon provecho Hooty Bear.

Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer

Outrail posted:

peanut butter!!

I'm sorry, there is no such thing. The climate just isn't right. Perhaps if you travel the world you might come across something similar?
But not here in Sockne, a village of roughly 50 people in the middle of nowhere.

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
Uhg fine. Use Vegemite.

Ms. Happiness
Aug 26, 2009

1. Definitely an owlbear...or a bearowl. Both are evil.

2. Don't rush in to danger, ambush the danger. Let's make a trap. B

Swedish Thaumocracy
Jul 11, 2006

Strength of >800 Men
Honor of 0
Grimey Drawer
Bear Essentials

"im not sure" you say, stifling a laugh, "but I think it might be a giant, flying slime!"
This nets you some slight merriment from the team, which is soon replaced with anxiety when you continue.
"I kid, the feather is obviously that of an owl."
"But judging from the tracks, the description of the howl we heard from the halfling, the feather and this monsters modus operandi, we can conclude we are dealing with an Owlbear. "

Pause for dramatic effect.

"A what now?" says Konnie, raising an eyebrow.

"Just what it says on the tin, lad." replies Kvelar. "A great big beast part bear, part owl." "ain't no ambushing the likes of them, keenest senses in the land."

"What more can you tell us about them, Kvelar?"


"An alpha predator if there ever was one. Vicious claws, can cut an elk in half. Can spot a shrew at night in total darkness from miles away."
"Its sense of smell is unsurpassed." He continues. "It likely knows we are here already, where we came from and what we ate fer dinner last week. Its going to be a tough fight, mark me words."

"Mhmm, should be an exciting hunt. I can already feel my heart beat, faster and faster. Mh." interjects Skvababt.

"Nevertheless, how do we fight such a creature? Surly it will sense us before it falls in any trap we care make for it. I doubt my chain can hold a raging bear." comments Khami in turn.


"Bears die like everythin else. Just distract it and ill break its back.
You ranged folks pepper it with arrows, Kvelar and Thorgrim can flank it.
Konnie and Johakim should stay back."
"''Spose we could make a trap for it as well, why not?"


"Brash as always, bruh! But it would clobber you harder than that ivy clown. You saw what it did to that stone wall!
"Nah, We find its cave and burn it out. Lay sharpened stakes at the entrance. Jump it from above. Deal with it swiftly and safely."


"We should be careful, we are as virgins to this forest. The bear will devastate us should we underestimate it in its own domain."
"If it relies on its senses, overwhelm them. If it relies on brute strength, deny it the thrill of close encounters. Engage it only at range and from all sides at once."
"Like a good party. "

"Aye. All good ideas. What do you think, Thorgrim?"

1:
Everybody looks to you expectantly. You are pretty confident in your assumption and Kvelar seems to know a lot about them too.
Digging a pit-trap wont be that effective without bait, a serious time investment and or a distraction of some sort but the other members of your group has come up with some plans of their own.
Do you wish to continue with the old plan, or follow the advice of your crew?

A: Tommys idea. Full frontal assault wherever you can find it.

B: Konnies idea. Track it to it's cave, set up an ambush outside it and burn it out.

C: Skvababts idea. Engage it at range outside of its cave, distract it as much as possible. Kite it.

D: Your own, previous idea. Make a pit trap somewhere (where?) and hope for the best.

E: Something else? Write-in.

Ms. Happiness
Aug 26, 2009

B AMBUSH OR GO HOME

Nothingtoseehere
Nov 11, 2010


B We have that lovely flask of FOOF ready to kill anything it shatters on, ambush time!

Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
A combination of B and C.

Vv: I'll be pretty happy if we turn out to totally wrong about the identity of every single monster we try and hunt.

It's like Scooby Doo but with more bloodshed.

Outrail fucked around with this message at 17:43 on Nov 26, 2015

Nyaa
Jan 7, 2010
Like, Nyaa.

:colbert:
B since we are so dead set that it is a bear because FEATHER.

Theantero
Nov 6, 2011

...We danced the Mamushka while Nero fiddled, we danced the Mamushka at Waterloo. We danced the Mamushka for Jack the Ripper, and now, Fester Addams, this Mamushka is for you....

Nyaa posted:

B since we are so dead set that it is a bear because FEATHER.

Well that, and you know, bear tracks. Huge owl feather and bear tracks in a fantasy setting where owlbears apparently exist seems like a fairly obvious assumption :v:

As for a plan, I'm a bit leery about the one that Konnie has. Kvelar, the only person in our team with monster hunting experience seems to think that taking the owlbear off-guard is near impossible. It is liable to wake up if we try to stalk it into its nest.

However, owls are birds and not super smart birds at that. It ought to fall easily enough for a pit trap with bait, even if it can smell we have been around. I mean, why would it care? People are around all the time in these parts. Therefore I suggest D, our own plan with a pit trap and bait. Also take torches with us. If it has such sharp senses and is used to being nocturnal, we should be able to distract its sensitive eyes with bright lights. It might be scared of fire too.

Ask Skvababt if she can uh, do something to distract the keen olfactory senses of the beast when the time comes.

Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.
As Outrail said, B and C aren't mutually exclusive. Start with the assumption we'll be harassing it from range, but take some brush with us for the fire and stakes.

Waci
May 30, 2011

A boy and his dog.
B, but if it looks like that wont work or the monster attacks us before we're ready, be prepared to switch to C.

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Outrail
Jan 4, 2009

www.sapphicrobotica.com
:roboluv: :love: :roboluv:
Also set up a trap that consists of a jar of Phoof hanging from a rope with some meat tied to it.

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