[WFRP] The Hour After Midnight

[LCP]

Lothar

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The man tensed a little.

"No. I don't reckon so."

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You don't pick up any signs that he's lying about anything he just said.

[goblinpaladin]

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"No? No other...friends? No-one in high places, maybe? No old friends who are still willing to chat? Just the cart-driver... what was his name again?

[LCP]

Lothar

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Dagsen seemed to stop to think at Lothar's question. At length, he replied.

"...I already told you. Friedrich."

[goblinpaladin]

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Lothar grinned. "Just making sure. You were lyin' to me before, weren't you? So, I had to check now that we are best friends." He paused, and gestured with his sword.

"Why don't we go on upstairs now, and we'll move on.

The others better be back soon...

[LCP]

Lothar

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Dagsen blinked, slowly.

"...Move on where?" he asked.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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"Upstairs. There's nothing else down here, is there?"

[LCP]

Lothar

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Dagsen didn't move.

"There's not much upstairs, either,"

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Keeping him talking can't hurt, but Sigmar's teeth he is starting to get on my nerves.

"Uh, well, there is fresh air. As fresh as you get in Delberz, anyways."

[LCP]

Lothar

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Dagsen shook his head.

"The way I see it... the best you got to offer is taking me up there to wait for the Guard. Either you kill me or they do."

His hand flexed.

"Seems to me, in those circumstance, a man ought to take what kind of a chance he's got..."

In a flash, the pickaxe was in his hands...

Rolls

Initiative!
Lothar (1d10+31)[40]
Dagsen (1d10+30)[35]

EDIT: And it looks like you get to act first.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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"Oh, for-- Ulric's Fury, man!" Lothar lashed out with his sword angrily, a red haze settling over his eyes. He struck, again and again at the prisoner, fury setting in as he hacked, hilt in both hands.

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Lost his temper! Full attack action (+20%): (1d100)[2]

[LCP]

Lothar

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Twisting frantically out of the way, Dagsen cried out in pain as the soldier's sword still bit into the meat of his arm - hefting his own clumsy weapon as best he could, he swung back, the pickaxe describing a blurred arc through the gloom and missing Lothar by a hair's breadth.

Rolls

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All-Out Attack; the pickaxe counts a Poor quality Great Weapon, so that comes to +10 to hit in total.
To hit: (1d100)[69] - miss.
Damage: (1d10+3)[13], (1d10+3)[7] (choose best)

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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The former soldier's face twisted into something between a sneer and a snarl as he pressed against the mutant, hacking at him with the sword of his former regiment.

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Same again: [+20%] (1d100)[60] (1d10+3)[5]

[LCP]

Lothar

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The man was surprisingly agile - as the sword lashed out again, he ducked back, its decapitating strike only cutting a red line across his cheek.

Snarling, he barged forwards, swinging wildly with the pickaxe as he tried to clear a path to the ladder.

Rolls:

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Dagsen makes a Standard Attack, then tries to Manouevre to move Lothar sideways and move himself up into the space where he was so his path to the ladder is unobstructed.

Attack: (1d100)[58] (-10) - miss
Damage: (1d10+3)[9], (1d10+3)[8]

Manouevre: Dagsen (1d100)[43] Lothar (1d100)[5] - failed

Wounds taken:
Dagsen - 5
Lothar - 0

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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"Ah! No," Lothar dodged aside as the mutant lunged for him. Holding his sword in both hands, the former infantryman lunged forward, striking for the belly.

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Full Attack: Whatever the +20WS-get-no-parry-attack-is: (1d100)[54] (1d10+3)[6]

[LCP]

Lothar

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Dagsen recoiled, bleeding from another shallow gash - howling in thwarted fury, he swung back, staggering under the momentum of the lumbering pickaxe.

The tool's pointed head whistled past Lothar's ear, the wind of its passing ruffling the soldier's hair...

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All-Out Attack again. (1d100)[41] (+10) - JUST missed.
Damage: (1d10+3)[4], (1d10+3)[4]

Dagsen has taken 8 wounds.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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The wildly swinging pickaxe caught at the edge of Lothar's battered uniform, opening a seam but no skin. The soldier grinned a-wide, teeth a-gleaming and drove his sword at the mutant with a cry to Ulric the Berserk, Wolf of Winter.

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AGAIN [+20WS = 60]: (1d100)[95] (1d10+3)[12]

[LCP]

Lothar

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Dagsen staggered back as the sword ripped across his ribs, blood staining his tattered shirt red - drawing on one last desperate surge of energy, he lunged at his opponent, the pickaxe hurtling wildly round once more.

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And again!

All-Out Attack: (1d100)[11] (+10)
Damage: (1d10+3)[8] (1d10+3)[4]

Dagsen's wound total = 10.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Clearly Ulric smiled upon Lothar- Dagsen's pickaxe smashed into the earth of the tunnel, the soldier blinking through his fury just enough to smack aside the improvised weapon with his sword. The red haze dimming slightly, Lothar whirled his blade and struck at the mutant again, single-handed this time.

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Still All Out Attack.(1d100)[89] (1d10+3)[9]

[LCP]

Lothar

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Flagging a little, Dagsen managed to duck the soldier's blow - roaring back, he swung again at Lothar.

The pickaxe ripped across the side of the soldier's chest, bowling Fischer backwards with a solid crump as the haft connected. Regaining his balance, Lothar felt warm blood running down his side...

Rolls

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AOO: (1d100)[36] (+10) - hit
Damage: (1d10+3)[9], (1d10+3)[8]

Wound totals: Dagsen - 10, Lothar - 5.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Lothar groaned, shaking his head to clear it. Feinting with his sword-arm, he hooked his shield over the other before stepping in for another attack. This time he swung careful and sure, his expression the only sign of his rage.

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Free Action: Put shield on.
Half action: Aim +10WS
Half action: Stab [WS 50]: [roll]1d100][/roll] (1d10+3)[6]

[goblinpaladin]

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Sorry, attack roll didn't work because I'm an idiot.

(1d100)[62]

[LCP]

Lothar

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Sensing his chance, Dagsen made another charge for the ladder, taking a wild hack at Lothar as he barged forwards. The soldier's shield easily warded off the blow, Dagsen's momentum petering harmlessly out as Lothar blocked his path.

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Standard Attack, Manoeuvre, as before.

Attack: (1d100)[95] (-10) - misses hard
Parry: (1d100)[78] (+10)
Damage: (1d10+3)[5], (1d10+3)[13]

Manoeuvre: Lothar (1d100)[48], Rudolf (1d100)[28] - an exact tie, thanks to the poor quality of the pickaxe as a weapon. Lothar doesn't budge.

Wound totals - Dagsen 10, Lothar 5

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Winded slightly by the mutant's shoulder in his wounded side, Lothar stared at his enemy for a moment before leaping against him, his blade slicing into Dagsen's defence.

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1/2 Action: Aim [+10 WS = 50]
1/2 Action Attack:(1d100)[75]
(1d10+3)[8]

Okay, um. Let's just know that this is Lothar's action for a few rounds, yes? If Dagsen successfuly manoevers, then Lothar will do it back to him. Roll away, LCP.

[LCP]

Lothar

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Pressing the attack with his last reserves of strength, Dagsen managed to batter Lothar aside, lunging for the ladder. As he did so, the soldier’s sword flashed out – there was a horrid sound of shearing muscle, a splintering crack of bone, and the man was sprawling on the muddy floor of the cellar, screaming. His arm was too, but several feet away from his shoulder.

Blood was pumping from the severed stump at a dreadful rate – Lothar had been a soldier for long enough to know what a man could survive, and a wound like that was not on the list. Shock and blood loss overwhelming his system, it only took Dagsen ten seconds to die.

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar

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Lothar stood for a moment, weary, then held his sword high. "Here, Ulric. We are under the earth, but see here. This fight was won by you- blood and fury left me standing." The former soldier wiped blood from his face, and absently licked his lips.

"Right, then. What were you hiding..." He limped over to Rudolf's blood-soaked corpse, one hand held to his side. Turning the body over the soldier pulled at the bloody, muddy rag around the mutant's throat...

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OOC: Once upstairs I'll a) clean up b) search the bodies and c) try and stop my own bleeding. Heal check: (1d100)[24] I'll leave the long postings to you, LCP.

[LCP]

Lothar

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Pulling back the dead man’s scarf, Lothar could not help but recoil a little – bulging out of the bristly skin under the man’s chin, its eyelashes indistinguishable from the stubble, was a bloodshot eye. It stared blankly back at him, glazed and dead.

Wiping his sword on the dead man’s clothes, Lothar ascended the ladder, leaving Dagsen’s corpse where it lay. Picking through the bodies of the fallen, he found little of note: Puderbrand had a sadly-depleted money-bag in one pocket, containing a single gold coin and half a dozen pennies. As it turned out, he also had a short, stubby tail protruding from the base of his spine – it had been hidden beneath his clothes during the fight. Aside from their muddy clothes, the others had nothing.

Doing his best to treat his own wound, the soldier tried to put the place in some semblance of order, piling the bodies in one corner of the corridor and righting what had been overturned or knocked during the fight. There wasn’t much he could do about the huge puddles of blood without a mop, though – or the interesting perforated effect Raffy’s blunderbuss had given the doorframe...

[hr]

EVERYONE!

It was some time before Seth and the others arrived: with them came the Captain, and a pair of men in the muted livery of the Guard. Stepping through the broken-down doorway, they found Lothar sitting on a chair in the kitchen, smoking his pipe with an absent-minded air - a rather incongruous image, since he was still spattered with blood. Seth and Raffy noticed he had a improvisedly-bandaged wound on his side where there had been none before. The bodies of the three mutants who had died in the battle were piled up in the corridor, their drying blood still staining the floorboards.

Slipping between Ithelus’ legs, the cat scuttled to the edge of the doorway to the corridor and mewed, the hair on its back rising – following it, Marius’ eyes widened as he saw the piled bodies of the mutants. One of the guards gave Puderbrand’s hideous claw a nudge with his halberd, as if afraid it might move.

“You couldn’t take him alive then,” said the Captain, a tinge of disappointment in his voice. “I hope you learned something of use.”
His tone softened, almost to a mumble.
“Mutants in our midst. The Lector will seize this with both hands, you can be sure of that.”

Turning to his men, he resumed his air of authority.
“Strappi, secure this house. The Hounds will be along to put their noses in, and I want them kept out. Jenkels, I want you to go and round up a troop of men to help. You will return here, you will guard the doors, and you will conduct a thorough search.”
The guard he had addressed second saluted and departed.

Turning back to the party, the Captain nodded.
“Well, I must say you’ve exceeded my expectations.” He seemed to notice their wounds. “Unless you have anything that requires immediate attention, however, I'd suggest you get those seen to by Dr Rasen. You may give me your full report in the morning - I'll have to consult my father about securing a proper reward for your actions. In the meantime, I wouldn’t like to be held responsible for your moving about too much on that leg,” he said, nodding towards Raffy. Reaching to his belt, he produced a small pouch of coins to pay the doctor, and looked reluctantly back at the bodies.

"They didn't say anything? A full confession would have been handy."

[hr]

Elves (if you haven’t been following the other’s spoilers): below is spoilered a description of where you find yourselves.

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The back door of the house opens onto a narrow, shaded alley on the Old Town side of New Street. It has clearly been smashed in with great violence: inside, a poorly-lit and dirty kitchen is where Lothar is sitting, its bare floorboards marked with many muddy bootprints, both new and old.

A square wooden arch on the other side of the claustrophobic space leads into an equally dusty and dirty corridor – the empty doorframe has been marked by what look like shot from Raffy’s blunderbuss, and there are several large, fresh bloodstains on the floorboards just inside it and on the corridor floor behind. Looking round the corner, there is an open trapdoor with a ladder descending down into darkness; piled next to it are the corpses of three men in shabby, blood-soiled clothes. One of them is clearly Puderbrand, with an ugly powder-burn down one side of his face and a black, elongated crab-claw in place of a hand – the second is a hunch-backed man with bulging, fish-like eyes and curiously pallid skin, while the third is a big brute with six fingers on each hand.

[Exeson]

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At the sight of the blood Ithelus begins to get a bit jumpy, slowly walking around the corner he sees the bodies and collapses to his knees, wretched and retching on all fours. After he has exhausted the contents of his stomach he stays on all fours for a while, then slowly he stands up and leans on the wall for support.

'Holy ****, the Four are in the city? ****.'

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar gave a casual nod to Raffy and Seth as they entered, puffing at his pipe. The moment when Marius entered, he jumped to his feet with a clatter of a falling chair and the scent of burning tobacco. He winced as the sharp movement pulled at his new injury and managed an awkward salute with his pipe.

"Captain! I, uh." Lothar seemed to notice his pipe and hurriedly put his hands behind his back. "The mutant Puderbrand's resistance was -um- excessive, Captain von Brucker. There was a fourth, though, a Rudolf Dagsen- he is downstairs -uh, the ladder, sir- and before he viciously turned on me," -the soldier patted his side- "he did give some little information."

Lothar paused. "Which- well, I'm not hurt badly, sir, so-- I'll continue?" Without waiting for a response, he took a deep breath and started talking rapidly. "Apparently these served a 'Court' of some kind, which ordered them to destroy the, um. The Cathedral of Sigmar, sir. After which they were to lie low, but the crab-man- uh, Henrik Puderbrand, he made the others plan to level the new building. Those diggin's, they were gettin' close to the new site."

He coughed, and shifted position. "'Parently Puderbrand was the boss o' this lot, but back when he was in good with the Court, they got orders from that apothecary- Pilsier, or whatever his name was. He's our next bet for trackin' it further."

The soldier paused, and nodded to the kitchen. "There's barrels o' 'powder back there, Cap'n- uh, Captain. I've not looked yet, but I'll wager it's bought from the same chaps we've already looked into. An', ah- it was bought by Puderband, aye, but not from the Court. They were tellin' him to lay low- he was getting supplied from elsewhere."

At this Lothar looked down at his feet and coughed nervously. "The, uh, Dagsen wouldn' say more. He claimed he didn't know, but then turned on me. Kept ravin' about getting their revenge, that some god was helpin' 'em." The former soldier fingered his copper ring nervously, then looked up and saluted again- in his nervousness, he forgot he was still holding his pipe.

"I hope this is satisfactory, Captain."

[LCP]

Marius breathed in sharply.

"So these are our saboteurs," he said, regarding the bodies with a new expression. "A pity the man's dead, but we still have the apothecary in our custody."

Something seemed to strike him.

"I hope you all understand that the less the Hounds know about this, the better. I'll have to inform the Lector that we've caught his man, and they already know we took Pilserier away. If they can, they'll take him for themselves."

"Most satisfactory, Mr Fischer. Well done."

[goblinpaladin]

Lothar nodded sharply. "Sir. The Hounds won't hear a word. Thank you, Captain."