anakha posted:

Make with the magic

Vonotar's Web posted:

The ruffian is shocked and he struggles to regain his composure. Before he is fully able to do so, you intone the words of the Brotherhood spell Magic Hand (lose 2 ENDURANCE points). Exerting your sorcerous will, you hurl the ruffian backwards with a concussive wave of invisible force. He gasps with shock as he is sent reeling across the small room to crash heavily against window. The shutters burst open and, for a terrifying moment, he teeters on the brink before falling out of sight. Moments later, a heavy thud announces his impact with the hard cobblestones below.

Endurance: 5/22.

The thin voice of Vonotar calls out again:

'If my ears do not deceive me, you have disposed of my fist surprise. I expected no less of the great Loi-Kymar. Now, get in here before | lose all patience and entertain myself by setting fire to your grandchildren!'

You have no choice but to do as the evil wizard says.

(You have time to quickly eat some Red Brushwort, if you have any).

Automatically used Red Brushwort.

You push open the door to Sarla's bedroom and step through the doorway. In the far corner, on the opposite of a familiar double bed, you see your son-in-law and your grandchildren. They are all bound and gagged. Standing in front of them, clutching your daughter before him like a shield, is Vonotar the Traitor. Your Guildstaff is nestled in the crook of his left elbow where he restrains Sarla. With his right hand he holds a wicked-looking dagger to her throat.

'Surrender, Loi-Kymar,' the hunchbacked wizard sneers. ‘Do exactly as I say and I'll spare her life.’

The look your daughter gives you is unreadable. What will you do?

achtungnight posted:

I surrender, sucker (get closer)!

achtungnight posted:

I surrender, sucker (get closer)!

Xarn posted:

Bedwarmer throw!

Vonotar's Web posted:

Both your daughter's and Vonotar’s eyes widen with shocked surprise when you hurl the heavy metal Bedwarmer at the pair of them. Vonotar scuttles one way and your daughter dives in the other direction as the Bedwarmer crashes hard against the far wall. Hurriedly you rush forward and place yourself between Vonotar and your daughter.

Seemingly undaunted, Vonotar discards your Guildstaff to the floor behind him and pulls an ornate golden wand from within his voluminous robes. As he points this wand at you, you sense the build up of magical energies within its shaft.

anakha posted:

Old man = poo poo reflexes.

inflatablefish posted:

Our daughter is right behind us in the line of fire, so we'd better use magic.

inflatablefish posted:

Our daughter is right behind us in the line of fire, so we'd better use magic.

Ofecks posted:

I realize we're low on EP, but please cast Counterspell

Vonotar's Web posted:

We roll: 1 + 2 (Red Brushwort) = 3.

You try to block out the chilling scene and focus on the wand and the magic that is building within it, But the sight of your frightened family huddling in the corner of the room disrupts your effort to concentrate. Suddenly, a gout of sorcerous fire leaps from the end of the wand and strikes you square in the chest barely moments before your countermagic can take effect (lose 8 ENDURANCE points).

Vonotar frowns as the ornate wand grows cold and unresponsive in his hand, With a shrug of resignation, he replaces it in his robes. With his other hand he clutches at an amulet that dangles from a silver chain around his neck. He barks out a short, gruff incantation. The shadows in the room start to boll and writhe, and then they coalesce and pour away from the walls to shroud the whole room total darkness. You can no longer see anything at all.

Vonotar's Web posted:

We roll: 2.

You try to dodge away from the blast of sorcerous fire by rolling across the bed, but Vonotar is an expert with his wand and the ball of flame alters course in mid-air and strikes you squarely in the chest (lose 8 ENDURANCE points).

To inflict further injury upon you, the accursed traitor keeps his wand levelled at your smouldering chest and gets ready to launch a second blast. If you do not prevent him from using the wand again, he will simply launch blast after blast until you are dead.

Vonotar's Web posted:

You block out the chilling scene from your consciousness and try to focus solely upon the wand and the magic that is building within it. Despite your unfamiliarity with the black sorcery that Vonotar is using, you complete your counterspell faster than you have ever done so before. With gratification, you see Vonotar scowl as his wand grows cold and unresponsive in his hand. Keeping a wary eye on you, he replaces the now-useless wand within his voluminous robes. With his other hand, he clutches at an amulet that is dangling from a silver chain around his neck. He barks out a short incantation, and suddenly the shadows of the room begin to boil and writhe. They coalesce and then they pour away from the walls to enshroud the whole room in total darkness. You can no longer see a thing.

You gulp down the lemony-tasting Sharpeye and your eyes quickly adjust to this unnatural darkness, Unfortunately, Vonotar seems to have anticipated this turn of events. As your vision adjusts, he completes the casting of a spell and suddenly there are two Vonotars in the chamber. One lurches across the room towards your family with Vonotar's shuffling gait, while the other advances towards you. The advancing Vonotar has one hand held high to strike you with a long needle. It extends from one of several rings on his bony fingers, and it is glistening with venom. You know for sure that one of these Vonotars is an illusion, but can you determine the illusory one from the real one?

Your heightened mental acuity reveals several tiny inconsistencies in the clothing and posture of the Vonotar who is threatening your family. Clearly he was hoping to distract you by threatening them, just long enough for him to be able to deliver his toxin.

It goes against the grain of every instinct you possess, but you choose to deliberately ignore the threat to your family and face the Vonotar who is menacing you. As you square up to him, a look of consternation flashes in his eyes and abruptly he retreats. You are facing the real Vonotar and your ability to see through both his magical darkness, and his spell of illusion, has suddenly unnerved him.

As the shadows melt away to their proper places in the room, the real Vonotar prepares to launch another spell.

'And there I was thinking you were just a doddering old fool,' sneers Vonotar, through gritted teeth. Menacingly he raises his right hand to cast a spell. ‘Despite your age, your mind appears to be as strong as ever. Just so... but what about hers?'

Your stomach lurches as you see your daughter leap to her feet with sudden, jerky movements. Vonotar's hand twitches like he is working a marionette. With his free hand, he passes Sarla a Dagger that he unsheathes from inside his black robes. With a look of fearful panic in her eyes, she places the sharp tip of this weapon against her own chest, directly over her heart.

'Surrender, Loi-Kymar,' Vonotar says, his mouth now twisted into a vicious smirk, 'or I'll have her thrust the blade deep into her own heart. Her life is in your hands.'

inflatablefish posted:

We already have grandchildren, so we don't really need a daughter anymore. Counterspell.

anakha posted:

Surrender. IIRC, we get captured anyway in Book 3 so might as well pick the choice that aligns with that.

Ofecks posted:

God drat, the brutality.

Don't do this, please surrender.

Gats Akimbo posted:

You soft sods.

OK, I'm one too. We surrender.

Vonotar's Web posted:

Stoically, you accept defeat. You cannot risk the lives of your family in this way. Vonotar laughs in triumph as you slump your shoulders and look away from his piercing gaze.

'Come here and use your Guildstaff, Loi-Kymar. I command you to transport us to Ikaya! Be careful now. No trickery. I'm sure you wouldn't want me to slip with this blade and redecorate this room with her blood.'

Ikaya? You cannot imagine what Vonotar could want in the distant, frozen fortress of the Ice Barbarians. Perhaps only that it is very far away from the ever-growing list of people who want him dead. Gingerly you lay hands on your Guildstaff and prepare to activate it.

You picture the icy fortress of Ikaya in your mind. You have never been there, but you know its location and that is enough for you to be able to use the Guildstaff. A sheet of rainbow light leaps from the tip of the staff and obscures your daughter's bedroom. As the familiar surroundings begin to fade, you have time for one last look at Sarla before she, too, fades into the swirl of colours. Vonotar reaches out to grab her but the vortex of colour whisks you both away.

'Fool,' you say, triumphantly. 'If you had done your research you would know that not only does the staff heed a special knowledge for it to be used effectively, but it also permits the wielder of the staff to choose who may travel with him. We will finish this battle in Ikaya, safely away from my kin.'

The rainbow colours swirl once _[sic] last time before they wash away, and you are left shivering as the bitter cold of your new surroundings engulfs your body. You are in a stone room with a deep pit surrounding a throne located at its centre. On the throne is a short, stocky man with a fearsome countenance. He wears fur-lined armour fashioned from plates of yellowed bone, and he is accompanied by several similarly-dressed men. They move to surround you and Vonotar as soon as you materialise in the chamber. They are all shouting in a language you do not understand. At once you realise that these ferocious men are Ice Barbarians.

Your unerring sense of direction has brought you both into the throne room of the Brumulmarc, the chieftain of the Ice Barbarians!

Vonotar starts returning the shouts in the same language that is used by the Ice Barbarians. You sense that you must do something, and quickly, if you are to prevent him from turning them against you!

Xarn posted:

inflatablefish posted:

Punch him in the face!

Xarn posted:

nelson posted:

Punch him in the face!

Vonotar's Web posted:

Grasping your Guildstaff tightly with both hands, you swing it in a mighty roundhouse arc that hammers into Vonotar’s midriff. The blow knocks the wind out of him and sends him crashing to the floor. You raise your staff to strike again, intent on ending this threat once and for all, but suddenly an Ice Barbarian tackles you from behind and your staff goes clattering across the icy floor of the Hall of the Brumalmarc. Despite your powerful magic, there are more than enough of these tough ice warriors around to subdue you. Vonotar cackles weakly as he watches you being dragged away.

'You are the fool, Loi-Kymar. You could have taken me anywhere! Instead, you chose to go exactly where I wanted. Did you not think I would be prepared?'

You say nothing. Your blank expression does not betray your satisfaction. You brought him here knowing that your daughter overheard him state his desired destination, and you know that she will report this to the authorities. After the unexpected effectiveness of your attack on him, Vonotar is now too apprehensive to even think of extracting from you the secrets of the Guildstaff. Your imprisonment in the ice fortress will be hard and lonely, but it will be an incarceration that is not entirely devoid of hope. You never lose faith that an attempt to rescue you will be launched from Sommerlund at the earliest opportunity.

Your adventure is now over.

Loi-Kymar, optimistically, posted:

You brought him here knowing that your daughter overheard him state his desired destination, and you know that she will report this to the authorities. [] You never lose faith that an attempt to rescue you will be launched from Sommerlund at the earliest opportunity.

Ofecks posted:

All hail the real MVP of this adventure - the bedpan bedwarmer. Probably one of the more amusing pick-ups throughout this book series.

Ofecks posted:

All hail the real MVP of this adventure - the bedpan bedwarmer. Probably one of the more amusing pick-ups throughout this book series.

Ruanon posted:

In this exciting adventure you play the role of Captian Remir D’Val - a much respected officer in the prestigious King’s Guard Cavalry Regiment of Sommerlund. You and your cavalry command were highly decorated for exceptional courage and gallantry during the siege of Holmgard.