Old Ways IC

[Frivolous]

Brandon Bor

Brandon watches with a frown and listens to any translations provided by those who speak Goblin.

[Sterngir]

Gregoras warily kept pace with the goblin and scholar, ready to strike should the vile little monster turn aggressive.

[Altair_the_Vexed]

Talsarios follows the goblin, thinking about how best to pump information out it before the ruse is rumbled.

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I'll be away for a fortnight, but as agreed with our Ref, Roland, and Sterngir (who I know outside the forum), Sterngir will continue to post actions for Talsarios till I return.

[Frivolous]

Brandon Bor


Brandon followed, but he complained, "Do we have to go now? None of us have rested. It's still dark."

[Matthew]

"The friendship of a goblin is of little worth, this creature will still betray us if it can," Nathros mutters. "Talsarios will have to take a firmer hand or risk being led into disaster."

[Roland St. Jude]

The goblin proceeds to head toward the keep, cresting the small ridge and looking back over his shoulder to see if his new friend is following.

[Sterngir]

Talsarios quickly laid a hand on the goblins' shoulder, and stilled it from walking.
"No, my friend. We are not going back to the keep just yet. Instead we're going to have a little talk, you and I - as friends do," he said firmly.

A smile strained across his features as he motioned for the goblin to sit with him. "Let us discuss matters of importance together, there will be time aplenty for the keep. Tell me about the bigger ones - are they like me?"

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Talsarios has no intention of wandering into the keep at night - he will proceed to question the goblin at length. He wishes to learn if there are captives at the keep, and what strength the possible defences are - but he is quite liable to be sidetracked into learning as much about the social structue therein.
If the goblin refuses to take the hint, he will regrettably inform his friend that he must indulge him or the most unkind associates surrounding him will be forced to kill him. This is not a bluff, of course.

[Sterngir]

Gregaros tightened his grip on his sword.
I don't like how close he is to that goblin - I suppose his magic has worked well enough to make it talk to him like that.

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At the first sign of violence towards Talsarios, Gregaros will attempt to cut the goblin down like a corn stalk.

[Roland St. Jude]

The goblin pauses as his friend insists. "Oh big like you, but bigger and not so...talky. And stronger too," he adds with a little laugh.

"Not too many though, you'll see."

He refuses to stop for more than a moment, eager to get his friend back to the King. Upon being told firmly to do so or threatened in anyway, he bolts for the Keep.

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You can probably get a few more answers out of him before it happens, so feel free to pose a couple more questions in a spoiler, but let's get on with the action.

But he resists orders or suggestions not to go back because being a lone goblin and disobeying the boss both conflict with his nature and life-long experience. Once threatened with violence he gets another save, which he makes.

PCs turn. You are as close as your previous posts have indicated.

[Valameer]

Stefan quietly watches from the corner of his eye as the action moves further away from him. When the goblin becomes adamant that they must go to the keep, Stefan slowly readies a bullet into his sling, waiting for the worst to happen.

When the goblin becomes irate, or breaks the spell, Stefan is ready to attack with his sling, but he waits patiently until the effects of the spell are clearly undone.

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HP: 2/2 AC: 3 (No shield currently) THAC0: 19
Attack roll: (1d20)[11]
Damage: (1d4)[1]

[Frivolous]

Brandon Bor


Brandon says in a calm voice, "Kill him before he can alert the other gobbo's to our presence here."

Then he chases after the fleeing goblin, attacking with his sword.

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Hit Points: 4/8.

Attack: (1d20+1)[14]
Thac0: 19
Damage: (1d8+1)[8]

[Matthew]

When the goblin bolts, Nathros hurls his hand axe at its fleeing back (+4 to hit?)

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Nathros, Level One Dwarf Fighter: AC 5(?); HP 4(?); THAC0 19.

Attack Roll: (1d20+1)[13]
Damage Roll: (1d6+1)[6]

[Sterngir]

As the goblin turned and ran, Talsarios stepped back sharply. The magician turned away from the fleeing goblin, and began considering the answers it had given as he walked back towards the camp - the fate of the little creature already out of mind.
Fascinating, a goblin king no less. I wonder how it maintains discipline, notoriously difficult to keep controlled. This could be the basis for an entire volume! I wonder how many I can interrogate... probably best to have a selection of their social structure, lowly servants up to bodyguards - and the king of course, of course...

[Sterngir]

Gregaros tensed as the goblin made a sudden move, but relaxed as he saw it was only fleeing. He moved back cautiously, following Talsarios to the camp.
He won't get far.

[Roland St. Jude]

Nathros plants his axe square in the back of the fleeing goblin. The little guy sprawls out and tumbles down the slope toward the keep, but only slides a short distance in the underbrush. Brandon is nearest the fallen goblin.

[Valameer]

Stefan becomes less tense, now that the campsite is calm again.

"Nice throw, Nath," he remarks to his stout friend.

Stefan is more than happy to get back to resting, although he finds it difficult to fall asleep again.

[Frivolous]

Brandon Bor

Brandon starts dragging the dead goblin by one foot back towards the campsite.

He calls to Jeanne and Nathros, "Jeanne? Nathros? You two can see in the dark, so could you do something to conceal the blood this goblin spilled? We'll do more tomorrow to hide the signs of battle, but I don't want any more goblins to find blood here tonight."

He lets the corpse lie close enough for the guards to see but far enough that it does not stink up the camp. He plans on dumping the dead goblin in the pit trap tomorrow.

[jmbrown]

Jeanne shrugs and shakes her head. "You could leave the body. Scavengers will pick it clean and the king is already short one patrol. What does hiding one body out of half-dozen hide?"

Jeanne kicks dirt over the blood stains.

[Matthew]

"Our elvish companion may have the right of it, there are only a few hours until dawn now, but I mind not the work." Nathros retrieves his axe and looks for a shallow ditch into which to deposit the bodies, once despoiled.

[Roland St. Jude]

Nathros can easily drag the little fellow back to the camp side of the ridge and drop him with his little fellows. Soon the quiet of the woods returns and the first watch can continue its work.

[Matthew]

"It might be that we are giving ourselves away somehow, since these goblins found their way to us so easily. Perhaps we should have asked the prisoner about it... oh well, too late for that now. I doubt I will sleep overmuch these last few hours before the dawn."

Nathros remains awake and prowls the woods, axe in hand.

[Roland St. Jude]

The sound of scavengers can be heard in the direction of the goblin burial, but otherwise the forest is very quiet through all the following watches. The rest of the night passes uneventfully.

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I believe that we houseruled +2 hp for each full night's rest. You may take that now.

[Valameer]

Stefan wearily rises in the morning. After doing his morning preparations, he kneels in silent prayer to the Immortals for a few minutes, asking for their favour in the day to come.

[Sterngir]

Talsarios
Come the morning, Talsarios rose and stretched with a wide yawn. With the enthusiasm born of a day of exciting scholarly achievement ahead of him, he deftly shrugged into the least stale of his travelling shirts and stowed his bedroll back in the finely embossed leather backpack at his side.
"Good morning, fellows! And a fine looking day for investigating goblinry it is too, I might add," his voice was cheerful.

With that he sat down and retrieved his grimoire of magics and began to pore over the various arcane glyphs and diagrams.

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If possible, Talsarios will want to prepare his charm spell once again.

[Sterngir]

Gregaros
Gregaros roused himself from his bedroll in the morning light, and silently re-packed it in his heavy leather backpack. He waited until Talsorias was buried in his book of spells before carefully checking the magician's own pack was properly secured.

Once prepared, he sorted out a portion of trail rations for the magician and himself, and laid one out next to the oblivious scholar before retreating to perch on a convenient rock and consume breakfast.

Let's hope the goblins in the keep are as easily defeated as that patrol.

[Frivolous]

Brandon Bor


Brandon looks and feels much better after a complete night's rest. His leg wound is no longer bleeding and he walks with more limberness.

"So, the spell didn't work on the goblin, I guess? It sure ran off quickly..." He sounds uncertain, not being very familiar with magic of any sort.

[Matthew]

"For my part, I am glad of the light of morning. Let us take food and drink before setting out for the keep, and hope that their watch is lax, though their patrols are late." Nathros looks to see what may be had for breakfast.

[Roland St. Jude]

The woodsmen are up early, despite the evenings activities and regardless of their watches. The are helpful around the camp and quick to strike and stow it when given the signal. Talsarios is able to study in peace as the sun climbs more clearly into to the morning sky.

[Matthew]

"Right, make ready and let us fan out to move through the woods towards the keep. There may still be watchers, so we ought to be careful in our approach. Once it is in sight, we will have a better idea of what we are dealing with."

[Sterngir]

Gregaros
Gregaros nodded wordlessly at Nathros and shouldered his pack. He began to walk as quietly as was practical through the woods towards the keep, his eyes sweeping back and forth warily.

Talsarios
Talsarios murmered to himself as he followed the party towards the keep, his excitement at the coming bounty of humanoid lore occupying his attention.
So, a goblin king with multiple followers - not just goblins, but larger humanoids as well, or possibly even humans. Extraordinary! I knew coming to this place was a good idea, the research potential is simply amazing.