-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Spoiler
Show
Charge range of our mounts? if yes then:
Katerina sees the monster rise from the ground and without a thought spurs her horse towards it, a battle cry rising from her throat.
Spoiler
Show
[roll0] (BAB+2; DEX+4; MW+1; Charge+2; Sword Scion+1; Weapon Focus+1; Bless+1; Power Attack -1)
[roll1]
Adding Crit Damage (assuming a 27 confirms...)
Crit confirm and damage:
(d20+11)[27]
(d8+6)[13]
Total damage: 23
Spoiler
Show
If we are not in charge range, Katerina will move off to the left to set up a flanking charge/attack next round.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Begone, foul beast," Viktor cries in surprise as the mound rises up to attack. He furrows his brow, draws his sword and charges.
Spoiler
Show
Charge and Power Attack. Detect evil. If it's evil, Smite Evil, but I dobut it.
Power attack roll: [roll0] (+3 if evil)
Damage roll: [roll1]
Status:
HP 30
AC 20
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
The runaway prince's eyes widen as the hillock rises suddenly, the fangberries and other foliage born aloft by its ascent. "I think," he quips as he moves forward, firing an arrow, "that I now see why everyone was so perturbed by this land. It does seem to be rather hostile," the young man says as he looses the arrow, which streaks towards its target in a blaze of blue light.
Spoiler
Show
Move to within 30 feet and fire an arrow.
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1]
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"You seem to have found what you are looking for, Tireas," Zinovia mutters. "But I think that I can kill it first." A wan smile flits across her face as she casts her new favourite spell.
Spoiler
Show
Burning arc: [roll0], Ref DC19 for half.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"You wouldn't happen to know what it is?" Tireas asks, eyeing the creature as the rest of his companions charge forward. "Usually I aim for the vitals, but this might be tricky..."
He darts forward, utilizing his favorite vanishing trick once again as he strikes the strange creature threatening them.
Spoiler
Show
Not going to charge... I might want my full AC against this thing!
[roll0] against flat footed
[roll1] damage + [roll2] sneak attack damage if applicable.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Katerina jumps into action first, bolstered by Grigori's blessing. The monster lashes her hard as she charges, its thorny tendrils raking across her. They try to wrap around her, but she barely manages to shake free of its grip. She repays it with a fierce slash that sends clumps of dirt and a gush of greenish fluid pouring from its foul core.
Viktor follows Katerina into the fray, wielding his sword. He hacks at the thing's root-like "legs," but they prove tougher than they look, deflecting his blade away. Tireas too gets unlucky. He closes with the monster, but his blade strikes a boulder embedded in its earthy body.
Ilya's arrow punctures into one of the thing's lashing tendrils, blazing blue as it slices through the vine.
Despite all this punishment, the strange monster is more agile and aware than it appears. Its immense weight shifts so that Zinovia's fiery blast only singes it slightly.
The monster swings with its tendrils, whipping both of them towards Katerina. Viktor gets caught in the the arc of the thorny vines, but manages to deflect one of them with his shield. This time, the creature manages to wrap both of its vines around Katerina.
Spoiler
Show
23 damage to Katerina, and she's grappled. 14 damage to Viktor.
Round 2
Map
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
By the Gods, I will not make that mistake again, for thinks, cursing his misfortune. He swings again with all the force he can muster. As he does this, his wounds are infused with a golden light, closing up.
Spoiler
Show
Power Attack vs. the shambling mound. Lay on hands on himself.
Attack roll: [roll0]
Damage roll: [roll1]
Lay on hands roll: [roll2]
Status:
AC 22
HP 20
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Katerina takes the first blow from the beast with a grunt as she gets close enough to slash it. She screams as the monster's thorny tendril wraps around her and tears flesh; it is obvious she is in serious trouble! The girl grits her teeth and hacks at the appendage holding her, hoping to hurt it enough to break free.
Spoiler
Show
Yikes! Power Attack: [roll0](BAB+2; Bless+1; Sword Scion+1; DEX+2; Masterwork +1; Weapon Focus+1; Grappled -2; Power attack -1. Damage [roll1] (correction on Damage: with Power Attack it should be 8 damage.)
AC: 17
HP: 1
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Kat!" Ilya yelps as the woman is grabbed by vines. She is obviously in dire straights. He lets fly another pair of arrows as he calls to him companions. "We need to bring this this down, preferably before it finishes off our friend."
Spoiler
Show
Arcane Strike, Rapid Shot.
Attack #1: [roll0]
Damage #1: [roll1]
Attack #2: [roll2]
Damage #2: [roll3]
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Seeing his swing have no effect on the strange creature, Tireas frowns, and tries to aim for the softer... flesh? Vegetation? Whatever the tiefling is stabbing, he hopes that it's soft.
Spoiler
Show
5 foot step up, and using a point of ki to make an extra attack. I'll roll for sneak attach just in case this thing doesn't have improved grapple (though I doubt that)
Attack: [roll0]
Damage: [roll1] + [roll2]
Attack: [roll3]
Damage: [roll4]
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Katerina, no!" The priest of Abadar can only look on as Katerina is brutally attacked the the monster. Heedless of his own safety, Grigori rushes towards her. "Abadar, keep her from harm." His hands glow with light, channeling it into the wounds.
Spoiler
Show
Swapping out sound burst for cure moderate wounds, which is being cast on Kat.
Moving into range first, obviously.
Healing: [roll0]
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Let her go," Zinovia growls at the plant-creature. Not expecting any reply, the lobs another blast of fire towards it.
Spoiler
Show
I feel like a sorcerer... :smalltongue:
Burning arc, again: [roll0], Ref DC19 for half.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Viktor and Tireas both have no more luck than earlier in the fight. But Katerina, Ilya, and Zinovia's combined assault sends the creature toppling. The shudders on its rootlike legs, then collapses with a thud that sends clumps of wet earth and green plant gloop rolling away across the ground. Its tendrils twitch, then go limp, releasing Katerina from their coils.
You gather the fangberries carefully and continue on your way. The day turns to night as you head eastward across the rolling hills, large, glacier-smoothed boulders and the occasional tree the only real landmarks.
As the sun sets, you make camp on a sheltered hillside, a dint in it serving well to guard against the wind. A fire soon crackles, and you heat what rations you have over it.
Spoiler
Show
I figured you could use some free RP time. If I'm wrong and you'd like to press on, just go to sleep.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Terrified by her brush with death, Katerina frantically fights agains the now limp tendrils of the fangberry monster. As she wobbles to her feet there are tears welling up in her eyes, but she holds them back. She starts to step away from the corpse and stumbles, falling to her knees. She stops where she falls, her head hanging and her hair covering her face. Katerina whispers a prayer, "Blessed Adabar, thank you for your protection and thank you for your brave servants."
After a few breaths she recovers and stands up. she pushes her hair out of her face and puts on a smile. To each of her friends she gives a heartfelt thanks, "It seems I owe you all my life. Thank you for your bold actions." Still smiling, she begins to clean her sword, focusing on the strength in her steel.
* * *
Later at the camp site, Katerina goes out of her way to make a tasty dinner with the meager supplies. Here's hoping I learned something from Old Nadya!
Spoiler
Show
Profession: Cook? [roll0]
Taking a few bites of her would be stew, Katerina looks at each of her companions, hoping it is just her that finds the meal unpalatable... Too much salt? Boil the beets longer? Blech!
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Tireas laughs quietly. "I can't complain. At least this time someone's willing to try, instead of eating stale bread each day." Looking over their new companion's equipment, the tiefling points at her weapon and asks, "That's a dueling sword, isn't it? The ones the Swordlords use?"
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Bah," Zinovia says with a thin-lipped smirk at Tireas; "do not expect my unwillingness to change any time soon." She busies herself with her herbs, mixing up a small tin glass of tea that smells of warm heady spices. She glances down at Katerina's blade when Tireas asks his question, but is content to remain silent. How does one even tell? Swords all look the same to me.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Grigori lets out a sigh of relief when he sees that Kat is fine, though worse for wear. "Think nothing of it," he says, raising a hand as if to ward away any thought that she should be in anyone's debt. "We did only as the moral law obligated us. I am pleased to see that the Master of the First Vault has shielded you from greater harm, but let me see to those lashes..."
Spoiler
Show
He's got a whole heap of channel energies left. Here's 3 of them. Take until your HPs are full.
1: [roll0]
2: [roll1]
3: [roll2]
* * *
The priest busies himself in his evening prayers, quietly inclining his head towards the earth as he sits calmly. He murmurs a few words. "Lord, shield us from evil, and let not it enter our hearts in this wilderness. Let us know wisdom and virtue, truth and justice. Look down on us with a firm gaze, that we may feel your mind and know the way onward. Guide us always to harmony, within and without, until the First Vault takes us and we can know perfection everlasting."
Having said his quiet words, Grigori joins in the meal that Kat has prepared. He brings a bite to his lips and pauses with this fork held between his lips. Slowly he chews and swallows down the over-salted, under-cooked meal, his bearded face concealing the slight grimace he makes. "Though I do not have Tireas's experience with such things, I thank you for your effort, Katerina," he says politely with an appreciative nod.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Good," Viktor says shortly as Gregori's healing washes over Katerina. "I am glad you are safe," he says, frowning. Abadar willing, I will not fail again when my companions are in peril, he thinks to himself harshly as he sheathes his bastard sword.
---
Viktor sits quietly by the fire, tired from the day's ride. His heavy fur cloak is removed, for the spring night is relatively warm. "Thank you for the prayer," he says, nodding sharply as Grigori finishes. "It has been too long since I have heard such a blessing." The certainty in the prayer is comforting to the man in times of such uncertainty. "What are you doing here, father Grigori?" he asks, looking into the fire. "I am afraid this land remains alien to the ways of the Lord of the First Vault. As you saw today, it resists us everywhere, and ferociously," he growls, taking a bite of Katerina's handiwork. The man scowls momentarily, but makes no complaint.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"You are most welcome," replies Grigori to Viktor. "It has been, truth be told, some time since such a prayer took on more meaning than simple habit." The priest takes a long look at the surrounding countryside. "Here, it seems immediate and pressing to have such a ward, to speak words of comfort."
"Why am I here? This land needs order. Nothing can long survive without the guiding hand of the divine. The massacred hunters and the depravities of this Stag Lord are the natural way of things in such a place as this, wild and untamed. Such places let the darkness grow in the hearts of men; it is why Abadar in his wisdom placed the golden key to the First Vault in the heavens, to shine amongst the stars, so that we might be guided by it even when all else has failed us. What I have seen here is a bloodletting that defies reason and renders us as animals, unless we should strive against it."
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Katerina nods to Tireas, but waits for Grigori to speak before she relpies. After the speech, she mouth turns in a smile that does not touch her eyes and says quietly, "It is not only these lands that need Adabar's protection. There are those in the cities that suffer at the hands of men like the Stag Lord. Oh no, you don't see heads on pikes, but the violence is no less real when it is quiet. It is no less real when the victims are powerless." She nods as if to approve of her own statement and then continues. "But you are right, Grigori, we should be here, too. We," she motions with her hands to include everyone, "should do everything we can to create a better place, a place where justice is common and murder is unknown."
She pauses, then turns to Tireas her smile is more honest now as she begins to speak of her sword. "Yes, it is an Aldori Dueling sword. But it is more than that. We all know the legends of Sirian Aldori, the first of the Swordlords. He brought back to Brevoy a tradition of steel and discipline. Imagine this wild place as a land that the children are taught that discipline and strive to be better than they are." Katerina's eyes get misty as she finishes her speech.
Wiping the near tears with the back of her hand she asks Tireas about his steel, "That too is a strange blade. What is it called?"
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Quote:
Originally Posted by
???
"Nothing can long survive without the guiding hand of the divine."
"What a priest-y thing to say," mutters Tireas in between bites of stew. "Of course it sounds so much better when not accompanied by a beating."
In response to Katerina, Tireas grins and responds, "I believe it was called a katana. I, ah, aquired it many years ago, and have been training with it since. Apparently these blades aren't made in Brevoy, so at times I wish I obtained a more practical weapon, like a longsword or bastard sword. The latter of which would be rather appropriate, I think." He chuckles a bit at his own joke, and goes back to his stew.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Katerina flashes a grin and quips, "Kat, Ana, sounds like two girls I know. Do you often hold two girls, Tireas? So you really taught yourself to fight with that blade? Where are they made if not here? Are you from Brevoy?" She takes another bite of the 'food' she has prepared, forgetting the taste and forcing down the undercooked beets. They are all so polite, not a complaint!
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Zinovia snorts and "ha"s her way through Grigori's explanation, but she seems content to merely disparage without arguing the point.
"Yes, Tireas, while you are answering Katerina's questions, there is something I wish to know. How is it that you turn yourself invisible. The magic to do so is complex," she explains, "and I think it beyond you to have mastered it. So what, then?"
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Not often, no," Tireas responds, putting his empty bowl aside. "Most women try to maintain a polite distance from any tiefling they see, if their reaction isn't an immediate scream, of course. A few are more adventurous, but..." the tiefling trails off, trying to remember what the conversation was about.
"Oh! Wait, you meant my blade? Yes, I use it all the time, but I'm also handy with a dagger or bow. I taught myself how to use the katana when I had the chance, but my unique, er... heritage, gives me a few abilities to make up for any lack of formal training. So there's your answer, Zinovia: a demon did it!" To Katerina's question about Brevoy, Tireas answers, "And yes! I am from Brevoy. Well, Rostland at first, but I've been to Issia plenty of times as well. But this is actually the first time I've been outside Brevoy, and it has been quite exciting."
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Your heritage, Tireas, is hardly of your own making," Grigori says, "but I trust that you will use the abilities with which it has furnished you only for good and necessary purposes." A hint of stern disapproval has entered the priest's measured tone. "Such powers are not to be taken lightly; demonic influence seldom comes without a price."
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"Thank you Katerina," Ilya says delicately as she hands him a bowl of stew. The perceptive will notice the prince's nose wrinkle ever so slightly, but otherwise he does an admirable job at evincing an appearance of appreciation. "I'm sure it's delicious."
The young man barely listens as Viktor and Grigori discuss the blessing of Abadar. His lack of attentiveness does not, however, inhibit his desire to insert his own opinion. "I'm not sure we want too much of this sort of godly thing in the Stolen Lands," he begins. "Not none!" he amends hastily, shooting an apologetic glance at Viktor. "But I've observed that gods - and Abadar especially - do try to order people around an awful lot for my tastes." He takes a bite of stew as he finishes, having momentarily forgotten its taste. He feigns a fit of coughing to remove as much as possible with his handkerchief.
"Oh, joy of joys," Ilya sighs dramatically as the conversation turns to swords. "How scintillating." He yawns pointedly. "These 'Kat and Ana' do pique my interest however, if for no other reason than that I recently met a charming young woman named Kat. Tireas," he says with a smirk. "You might be interested; she is, after all, rather adventurous," he says with a laugh. As he does so his hand slips from his bowl, which topples to the ground, stew sloshing out. "How clumsy of me," he apologizes. "What a pity that it will now, in all likelihood end up the dinner of some forest animal."
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Zinovia's pale face scoffs openly at Grigori's words. "And what would you know about such things, priest," she hisses venemously. She stands, casting a long, firelit shadow as she steps towards Tireas. "You are what you are. That you did not choose your birth does not matter. And there is always a price." She pauses, her eyes gleaming with feverish pinpricks of firelight beneath her hood. "There is always a price," she murmurs again. "But only a few will pay it unflinchingly. Only a few will harness their powers no matter the cost."
She sits, touching a gloved hand to Tireas' shoulder briefly. She sighs at Ilya's japes. "If only your hands were as dextrous as your tongue, Kuril," she retorts sharply as Ilya drops his soup. "Besides," she snaps, "you might at least make jests with an air of reality to them." She sinks back, her eyes glaring at Kat for a moment, as though the girl herself is responsible. Then she closes them, a shiver wracking her body. She takes a drink from her tin cup, sighing.
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"If it puts your mind at ease, Father Grigori, I'll try not to use my vanishing to burn down an orphanage," is all Tireas has to say about demonic influence. As Zinovia so cryptically said, the tiefling had never had to make any choices regarding his extraplanar advantages, but thankfully if there were any sacrifes to be had, Tireas was ignorant of them. Unless his somewhat bloodthirsty nature counted, but so far that's served the group well.
"When it comes to women, it would be foolish to ignore your advice, Ilya." Tireas quips to the bard, with a smile that shows his sharp teeth. "You do happen to have one too many chasing after you."
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
Grigori doesn't rise to Zinovia's challenge. He looks calmly at the wizardess as she stands. "I do not pretend to possess knowledge of such things in my own experience. I can convey only the wisdom of my faith and the histories of men, but I do not think those meagre repositories of our knowledge." He gives Zinovia a long look. Her own powers come equally at a cost. He sighs. "In the end, it is up to each of us alone to choose our path. We must do so judiciously, and with the needs of all in mind."
-
Re: AA's Kingmaker Part I: The Stolen Lands
"The Swordlords are indeed an honorable force amidst the machinations of Brevish politics," Viktor says, nodding at Katerina. "What is your affiliation with their order?" the paladin asks. "And Father Grigori," he continues, nodding at the cleric, "you are correct. This land needs taming, and if Abadar is good we will see it done. Soon the Stag Lord will be defeated," he says, banging a fist on his other, open hand to emphasize his point.
The man listens to Ilya and Tireas' jesting without speaking, but his brow is furrowed as if he somehow disapproves. He declines to participate, taking out his bastard sword with his whetstone and sharpening it with rather more force than is strictly necessary.