Post by TheUdjat on Oct 20, 2009 9:50:41 GMT -5
SEA GREEN
Discussion goes back and forth about a method to confront the Deathspeakers. The Scalanders are strangely ambivalent about the notion of burning everything—mostly they are doubtful that the very alive jungle can be effectively demolished, and indeed they have no oil. The clearing, they explain, they cleared specifically for the burning of bodies, and that took considerable effort. Naturally they are not in favor of burning the village, given the Callers within.
The plan to use Antyca meets with far more excitement and interest. Thinking on the enormous roc, Ella knows that she could indeed be used to drop things on the village, possibly very large things like boulders and cauldrons of burning pitch (if they had any). A ship would be out of the question, of course, though the thought is enough to make anyone amused. [Antyca can fly with about 1,864 pounds, which I roughly translate to about 8 people and gear (average 233 pounds).]
Beyond tearing down defenses, trying to draw the enemy out, and other considerations, there is always the route of infiltration, which perhaps has some merit. Here the Scalanders confess they are less help, except perhaps in providing a distraction. Only a small group would have any hope of sneaking in and attempting to reach the Callers, though even this tactic faces many obstacles—patrols, the hundreds of warriors within, any magic the Deathspeakers might be using to defend the place, and so forth.
These are the possibilities—but which one holds the best chance of success?
[I need a more definite plan. As I’m reading, there are two predominant methods to approach this: 1. Bait and attack; 2. Infiltrate and rescue. The first will undoubtedly lead to some form of mass combat as the hundreds of Deathspeakers take the field, and I will rig up some rough rules to allow this to go expediently. The second method would be a more conventional rules system, though discovery and failure could very swiftly be fatal. I could even try some combination of the two if some few want to infiltrate while one or two of the group stay back to lead the war effort, using the confusion of a mass combat to mask an infiltration.
Just let me know how you guys want to handle this so I can properly prepare.]
(Character Status)
Ella – 67/77 HP; DR 3/- (4 blocked), Lifedrinking 12 (Lance)
Sean – 47/47 HP; Hide from Undead
Gro-bug – 79/100 HP, DR 1/-
Henrick – 73/78 HP
Natsumi – 51/52 HP, Freedom of Movement
Antyca – No damage [Absent]
Squeeks – No damage
DARK RED
Everyone-
[Well, I’m glad my two active characters are getting along.
]
With tensions continuing to be high in the Tertian camp—sort of the regular state of affairs, really—the group prepares for battle. Lockheart seems sympathetic to Gildas’s desire not to make things too abnormal, but is insistent on keeping any innocents as safe as possible.
Gildas looks for ways to keep the temple more secure, but it turns out there are multiple avenues that can be used to reach the Temple of St. Cuthbert, which after all was not designed with the intention of repelling invading forces. They do the best they can, but any stand will best be made on the grounds themselves, inside, so as to avoid being spotted too early.
Towards the evening, word is passed along that the guard is quietly watching from a safe vantage point. They will be available as reinforcements, but cannot take a role in the initial stages of the battle for fear of being spotted. The first wave will have to be repelled by the clerics and Tertians without outside aid.
Lenny goes about preparing for such eventualities, setting what traps he can with limited supplies and time. He manages to trigger alarms on the possible entrances that won’t be actively watched by people, and to set up a few nasty surprises at the most likely approaches. There is no guarantee the traps will get triggered, however, and they are all necessarily primitive and quickly fashioned. They would not even stop one well-armored foe, merely hamper them.
After that, there is naught to do but wait. Wanderer waits in an interior room, the Skullsplitter in his hands while he sits on the edge of a narrow cloister bed. Tyrano is not far, the copper bone in his hands and at the ready. There is no reason to hide it now, especially since it is the lure to draw in the Deathspeaker forces.
The night is still, and wears on, unnervingly quiet. Traffic has long since cleared away from this district, and even most places inside New Ravenshead will be retiring by now, in the deepest hours of night. When will the attack come? is the question on everyone’s mind. For certainly the Deathspeakers would not refuse a chance to take the copper bone.
But even prepared for an attack, they manage to take the temple by surprise.
It is only for the fact that there are paladins and clerics within the walls that there is any warning at all. Those without special abilities are almost crippled, left to rely on their insufficient mundane senses. Even the Tertians, all proficient scouts, are not able to detect what comes in the night—but one enterprising young paladin abruptly sounds the alarm, just as fatigue is beginning to take its toll. “They’re inside!” she shouts at the top of her lungs, the echoing sound making its way down every hall and corridor, reaching the ears of the Tertians, wherever they may be. “Shadows!” And then her voice is abruptly silenced, and the battle is underway.
No sooner does this unknown woman shout the alarm than the shadows make themselves known. Seeping through the walls themselves, the creatures silently manifest, lunging for their prey—many of whom are wholly unprepared for such an enemy, their weapons useless against the incorporeal creatures.
[I’ll need to know where you guys are, specifically. The complex includes a low outer wall and gate (not being defended), and several connecting buildings: the cloistered cells where residents priests, assistants, and visitors stay; a lower level for storage where most of the innocents and noncombatants are; the main building with the sanctuary, its antechamber, and various halls and meeting rooms; the dining hall, kitchen, and associated facilities; and the clerical library. Wanderer and Tyrano are assumed to be hanging together in the cloisters, working on the assumption that Deathspeakers will be trying to kill them in their sleep.
You can assume, however, that about 3-6 shadows have just emerged nearby and are moving to attack. If the whole crew is together, that’ll be 6. Give me several rounds or even minutes of tactics to work with (i.e. ‘I want to fight shadow and call out the following advice to anyone nearby’ or ‘I leave the shadows for Wanderer and rush off to help the others get potions’ or whatever. This battle will be taken as fast as I can conveniently manage it and not really round-by-round. I’m more worried about tactics being used.]
(Character Status)
Gildas – 69/69 HP
Lenny – 61/61 HP
Wystfalrun – 18/62 HP, DR 3/-
Lockheart – No damage
Wanderer – 90/90 HP
Discussion goes back and forth about a method to confront the Deathspeakers. The Scalanders are strangely ambivalent about the notion of burning everything—mostly they are doubtful that the very alive jungle can be effectively demolished, and indeed they have no oil. The clearing, they explain, they cleared specifically for the burning of bodies, and that took considerable effort. Naturally they are not in favor of burning the village, given the Callers within.
The plan to use Antyca meets with far more excitement and interest. Thinking on the enormous roc, Ella knows that she could indeed be used to drop things on the village, possibly very large things like boulders and cauldrons of burning pitch (if they had any). A ship would be out of the question, of course, though the thought is enough to make anyone amused. [Antyca can fly with about 1,864 pounds, which I roughly translate to about 8 people and gear (average 233 pounds).]
Beyond tearing down defenses, trying to draw the enemy out, and other considerations, there is always the route of infiltration, which perhaps has some merit. Here the Scalanders confess they are less help, except perhaps in providing a distraction. Only a small group would have any hope of sneaking in and attempting to reach the Callers, though even this tactic faces many obstacles—patrols, the hundreds of warriors within, any magic the Deathspeakers might be using to defend the place, and so forth.
These are the possibilities—but which one holds the best chance of success?
[I need a more definite plan. As I’m reading, there are two predominant methods to approach this: 1. Bait and attack; 2. Infiltrate and rescue. The first will undoubtedly lead to some form of mass combat as the hundreds of Deathspeakers take the field, and I will rig up some rough rules to allow this to go expediently. The second method would be a more conventional rules system, though discovery and failure could very swiftly be fatal. I could even try some combination of the two if some few want to infiltrate while one or two of the group stay back to lead the war effort, using the confusion of a mass combat to mask an infiltration.
Just let me know how you guys want to handle this so I can properly prepare.]
(Character Status)
Ella – 67/77 HP; DR 3/- (4 blocked), Lifedrinking 12 (Lance)
Sean – 47/47 HP; Hide from Undead
Gro-bug – 79/100 HP, DR 1/-
Henrick – 73/78 HP
Natsumi – 51/52 HP, Freedom of Movement
Antyca – No damage [Absent]
Squeeks – No damage
DARK RED
Everyone-
[Well, I’m glad my two active characters are getting along.
]With tensions continuing to be high in the Tertian camp—sort of the regular state of affairs, really—the group prepares for battle. Lockheart seems sympathetic to Gildas’s desire not to make things too abnormal, but is insistent on keeping any innocents as safe as possible.
Gildas looks for ways to keep the temple more secure, but it turns out there are multiple avenues that can be used to reach the Temple of St. Cuthbert, which after all was not designed with the intention of repelling invading forces. They do the best they can, but any stand will best be made on the grounds themselves, inside, so as to avoid being spotted too early.
Towards the evening, word is passed along that the guard is quietly watching from a safe vantage point. They will be available as reinforcements, but cannot take a role in the initial stages of the battle for fear of being spotted. The first wave will have to be repelled by the clerics and Tertians without outside aid.
Lenny goes about preparing for such eventualities, setting what traps he can with limited supplies and time. He manages to trigger alarms on the possible entrances that won’t be actively watched by people, and to set up a few nasty surprises at the most likely approaches. There is no guarantee the traps will get triggered, however, and they are all necessarily primitive and quickly fashioned. They would not even stop one well-armored foe, merely hamper them.
After that, there is naught to do but wait. Wanderer waits in an interior room, the Skullsplitter in his hands while he sits on the edge of a narrow cloister bed. Tyrano is not far, the copper bone in his hands and at the ready. There is no reason to hide it now, especially since it is the lure to draw in the Deathspeaker forces.
The night is still, and wears on, unnervingly quiet. Traffic has long since cleared away from this district, and even most places inside New Ravenshead will be retiring by now, in the deepest hours of night. When will the attack come? is the question on everyone’s mind. For certainly the Deathspeakers would not refuse a chance to take the copper bone.
But even prepared for an attack, they manage to take the temple by surprise.
It is only for the fact that there are paladins and clerics within the walls that there is any warning at all. Those without special abilities are almost crippled, left to rely on their insufficient mundane senses. Even the Tertians, all proficient scouts, are not able to detect what comes in the night—but one enterprising young paladin abruptly sounds the alarm, just as fatigue is beginning to take its toll. “They’re inside!” she shouts at the top of her lungs, the echoing sound making its way down every hall and corridor, reaching the ears of the Tertians, wherever they may be. “Shadows!” And then her voice is abruptly silenced, and the battle is underway.
No sooner does this unknown woman shout the alarm than the shadows make themselves known. Seeping through the walls themselves, the creatures silently manifest, lunging for their prey—many of whom are wholly unprepared for such an enemy, their weapons useless against the incorporeal creatures.
[I’ll need to know where you guys are, specifically. The complex includes a low outer wall and gate (not being defended), and several connecting buildings: the cloistered cells where residents priests, assistants, and visitors stay; a lower level for storage where most of the innocents and noncombatants are; the main building with the sanctuary, its antechamber, and various halls and meeting rooms; the dining hall, kitchen, and associated facilities; and the clerical library. Wanderer and Tyrano are assumed to be hanging together in the cloisters, working on the assumption that Deathspeakers will be trying to kill them in their sleep.
You can assume, however, that about 3-6 shadows have just emerged nearby and are moving to attack. If the whole crew is together, that’ll be 6. Give me several rounds or even minutes of tactics to work with (i.e. ‘I want to fight shadow and call out the following advice to anyone nearby’ or ‘I leave the shadows for Wanderer and rush off to help the others get potions’ or whatever. This battle will be taken as fast as I can conveniently manage it and not really round-by-round. I’m more worried about tactics being used.]
(Character Status)
Gildas – 69/69 HP
Lenny – 61/61 HP
Wystfalrun – 18/62 HP, DR 3/-
Lockheart – No damage
Wanderer – 90/90 HP
. 
We would have to know something of where the prison might be though, so if the lizards think they can draft out some type of rough sketch of the internal compound then all the better. 
