The Rebels of Westwall (IC Thread)

[tigerusthegreat]

You travel through the snow-strewn paths of Westwall, looking for the elusive rebels. Your group makes slow progress, the wagons getting caught in snowbanks. As you are about to give up hope, you find yourself in a sunken road, wagons stuck once again, and the eerie feeling you are being watched. Looking up, you catch sight of several men in brown, snow-covered cloaks, aiming taught bows at you and your group.

[esorscher]

The soldiers ready their own bows, but Adam raises a hand. "We mean you no harm. In fact, if you are the men we seek, we mean quite the opposite."

[tigerusthegreat]

The men on the sides of the road do not relax their bowstrings. From ahead on the road, a single man, similarly clad in brown clothes covered in snow steps forward. On his back is a frost-rimed shield, and the long sheath of a longsword drags in the deep snow. He pulls back the cloth protecting his face, revealing long brown hair, tinged white with age and snow. His sharp blue eyes size you up in an instant, and you feel how dangerous this man is.

"What manner of fool are you, who seeks us with armsmen and weapons of war? You are too disorderly to be a legion, but if they are desperate enough they will hire any mercenary to find us. Speak if you be a friend, or stain the snows red if you dare risk treachery."

[esorscher]

"Not a fool," Adam quotes, "but a faithful. A believer in the divine Lord Cuthbert of the Cudgel, who commands me to 'come to the aid of those who fight for the same cause, though they do not know it.' I interpret this to mean the men of the woods here who fight against the tyrant Daramund."

[tigerusthegreat]

The man considers you for a moment, and says something to the archers you do not understand. "Anethro Lockannan. Ju tran tri'lack." They slack their bowstrings, and disappear beyond the crest that hides the road. The man nods to your wagons. "Your wagons are poorly suited to this ground. My men are bringing runners to turn them into sleds. With that, you might make it to our camp before nightfall." As he turns to look down the road, you notice the gilding on his shield represents a dragon. Once probably set in gold, it is dented and scarred in more places than you can count. "What brings servants of the Justice-seeker out this far? The Temple is officially neutral to the conflict in this land, and sending such a party is a clear declaration of its intent. I doubt the Tyrant will come down easy on you if you are found out."

His breath creates a heavy mist on the air. "The Tyrant has disowned his own son, claiming he is a devilspawn and his long-dead queen a harlot who consorted with devils. All that so he could marry the Queen of Archranas, and unite those two kingdoms and conquer the rest of us."

[esorscher]

"We are not so widespread in this land as to have anything to jeopardize by our mission here," Adam explains. "If we fail, the elders will amount it to a failure of my person--suffice it to say they are in a position to do so, though doing so would be a betrayal of reality. When we succeed, the elders will amount it to a success of St. Cuthbert, purifying me in this (to them) backwater realm."

"I know better. I know that St. Cuthbert has sent us for the very reasons you proclaim--Daramund the tyrant, Daramund the betrayer, is deserving of retribution."

"Tell us about these people. We are new to this land and know only a little."

[tigerusthegreat]

Quickly men bring up long runners, and begin the process of attaching them to the wagons and removing the wheels. The action will take some time, but less than getting the wagons unstuck time and time again from the deep snow.

"We are farmers, craftsmen, woodsmen, and peasants of all kinds. Balifs, butchers, cooks and carpenters. Every kind of man, and some women have joined us, all united by the common cause, of sending the legions back to the east, and restoring our nation to its rightful place."

"Even with your armsmen, the task is great. We face an organized army. Our estimates place the number of the one legion still present here at four thousand heavy infantry, five hundred cavalry, and another two thousand conscripts of various kinds. Their general, Maxon Giglimansh, is a skilled commander, and one I am not eager to face on the open field. To win the war, we must strike from the shadows, and gather our forces."

[esorscher]

"Then that is what we will do. There are others here, surely, who feel the same sentiment as you. We will recruit them, covertly, and train them. Meanwhile we will harry and harass Giglimansh's troops. 7000 men is a great number, but it is not infinite." Adam says before quoting from the scripture, "Infinite is St. Cuthbert's providence, and unending is his judicious gaze."

[tigerusthegreat]

The man grunts at your quoting scripture. His men finish putting the runners on, and your wagons begin moving again.

"We are far from infinite as well. With your men, we have close to three hundred at this time, ranging in skill from great archers to those who have never held a weapon. Our equipment is sparse, mostly farm impliments and bows. About twenty of my men have swords, about ten real shields, along with a handful of wooden shields. If we were to fight a true battle now, we would be slaughtered. The only defense we have is the wilds themselves, which our trackers know better than anyone. The most we have been able to do is raid a few supply wagons here and there. I wish we could capture the pay chest of the legion, but it is protected by almost five hundred well armed men, and opportunities for ambush are rare."

[esorscher]

"I have brought smiths with me," Adam says. "With some help from your men and some resources, we can craft weapons and armor for our army. Tell me more about this pay chest."

[tigerusthegreat]

"Unless you've hidden stockpiles of metal and ores in those wagons, your smiths won't do much except keep the weapons we have in good shape. Not that your intention isn't welcome."

"The pay chest is dispatched from central command every month with the salaries of the local legions. The money would help our cause greatly, not to mention demoralize the enemy forces as they have to work without pay."

[esorscher]

"We've got trees," Adam says. "Trees will make spears, and shields. When is the next dispatch?"

[tigerusthegreat]

"The next paychest is due in the area in a week."

[esorscher]

"Then we spend the week preparing. Have your men cut down some trees, and my men will turn them into longspears, shortspears, and shields. That should be some improvement over what we're fighting with now."

He turns to John the Barber (halfling Ranger) and tells him to scout the surroundings, looking for signs of the Imperials route through the forest, such as a well-traveled path leading from their command center.

"Are your men hungry?" Adam asks.

(Taking 10 on the Craft Check each smith can produce 19 shortspears, 4 longspears, 2 heavy wooden shields or 6 light wooden shields. Per week)

[tigerusthegreat]

Shortly you arrive in a wooded clearing. Fires burn, and a few women tend pots that boil over them. A few deer hang from the trees, being skinned by a couple of young boys. There are probably fifty people in the camp at the moment, but the tents around its edge suggest closer to one hundred could lodge here.

"We have food enough for our purposes, help yourselves if you are hungry. Building an army isn't an easy thing. We are small, not enough to be considered much more than a raiding party."

The man turns to you, and laughs. "The name is Barlenor, former Watch Captain of Celendon, until the legion came. Now I'm to be hanged for crimes against a crown I do not recognize. There is Faustus, my adopted son. His father is dead, and the poor lad was lost in the world until he stumbled into my camp. Poor bastard, I would have sent him away, but they were after his hands for stealing a loaf of bread, and he had barely skin over his ribs." He points out a black haired boy of maybe fourteen. He is very twitchy and nervous, and there is definitely something strange....even unnatural about him.

(Sounds about right, the spears especially are easy as they are cheap. Are you wanting to speed ahead, or continue more roleplaying?)

[esorscher]

Adam nods, and introduces himself. "Adam Hardy," he says, placing a hand on his chest. "His father--a victim of the Empire as well?" He tries to sense if there is anything peculiar about the youth. "What do you all call yourselves? Barlenor's Bandits?"

Sense Motive: (1d20+4)[14]

The 5 smiths do as directed, making 95 shortspears for the week's work. These are given freely to any able-bodied man or woman who wishes to fight for the army.

(I'm fine speeding up)

[tigerusthegreat]

"Bandits implies what we are doing is wrong. We are the Freemen. We fight a tyrant, and so we will remain free, until we are freed in death itself, whether it is our death, or the death of the tyrant."

You sense the boy is keeping a great deal to himself, but what exactly you will not know without talking to him. Most people avoid him, and he isn't very social.

Your forces begin the work of arming those that they can during the week up to the next pay delivery. All told, there are now ten swordsmen (including Barlenor), fifty spearmen, fifty longspearmen, twenty bowmen, and your forces. Barlenor mentions that an ambush would be the best way to take the pay chest, but an ambush would require a good deal more ranged firepower than they can wield. Facing five hundred trained soldiers with a handful of ragtag men, armed with hastily crafted wooden weapons, would be certain suicide.

[esorscher]

"Unless we could use the geography to our advantage, I certainly agree," Adam says. "My men are as skilled with the bow as they are the spear." He turns to John the Barber who has long since returned with the results of his search. "Did you find any terrain suitable for an ambush?"

[tigerusthegreat]

"Only one decent spot, sir, its a bit of a canyon the road descends into, about a days march from the garrison. If we could block the far end of it, they would march down into it,and be trapped. A small force could hold the opposite end while we rain down arrows from above. The danger comes from them scouting the way, if we keep the blockade in place long before they reach it, they will just go around, but if we block it after they enter the canyon, they will be none-the-wiser. "

[esorscher]

"That sounds like a fine plan," Adam says. "How wide across is the canyon?"

Meanwhile, Ethan (who has not been introduced to anyone, still clothed in his garments that conceal his face and skin) surreptitiously walks over to the boy sitting by himself. At first he simply observes, then goes over and introduces himself. "Hello," he says diplomatically. He attempts to strike up a conversation with the boy about whatever he is doing, and thus befriend him.

[esorscher]

Diplomacy roll (unhurried): (1d20+7)[10]

[tigerusthegreat]

"The canyon is about forty feet across at the exit. It will be a squeeze for the wagon and its escorts, and they will have to squeeze out when leaving the canyon."

"What do you want, newcomer? Did Barlenor send you to keep me from being sullen and antisocial?"

[esorscher]

"Eight men across," Adam says. "They will not leave the canyon. Would you draw it out for us, John?" The halfling ranger does so with his finger in the dirt.

"They enter the canyon here," Adam says, pointing to the entrance. "And here is where we will end them. Once the last man is through, we deploy the blockade." He pointed to the opposite end. "Eight spearmen on the frontline. Eight longspearmen behind them, with shortspears as well, to take up the position if a man on the front falls. Another eight longspearmen with shortspears behind them, to move up in the formation. Archers on either side atop the canyon walls. I have arcane support as well; I'll deploy it here, at the ambush, along with ten of my men. The other thirty will be with the bulk of our forces at the entrance. After they are out of sight, we will begin to march--chest to chest across the canyon floor, the hammer against the anvil of our ambush. When they flee in fear of our ambush, they will turn to find our spears smiling at them. Let them charge--we will be ready. We will force the fight into the range of our archers on the cliffs."

Meanwhile, Ethan continues his conversation with the boy. "Barlenor?" he says. "I have no idea who that is."

[tigerusthegreat]

"It could work, a wall of spears.....we would loose people, but if we keep the local force strong enough, they won't be able to use their superior numbers against us, and with archers on the canyon walls, we might be able to slaughter them all before they can do much."

Map scratched into the dirt

Spoiler

Show

"Sure you don't.......what do you want anyway?"

[esorscher]

"It will work," Adam says confidently. "With Cuthbert's blessing, it will work." More accurately, he is thinking about the damage Ethan will be able to do to the enemy soldiers in a confined space like the canyon. "I'll go ready my men.

"Nothing," Ethan says to the boy. "I just wanted a place to sit with my thoughts. You looked like someone who'd understand that." Ethan is silent for a few moments, inviting the boy to speak, but Adam walks over to them both and tells Ethan to prepare for battle. "Til next time, Kiddo."

(I'm ready to set the ambush)

[tigerusthegreat]

As you set up your troops, preparing for the ambush, Barlenor approaches. "The men I sent scouting have returned. It seems that we are in luck, the enemy force is only four hundred horsemen, and if their ill-fitting uniforms are any indication, fairly new conscripts. The Legions must be running low on men, or they think this front is a safe one. It seems everything will be going according to plan. Are you ready?"

[esorscher]

(John will serve as scout and not partake in battles)

"Yes." Adam says. "In the night I had a dream. A dream of our victory. Cuthbert showed me leading the ambush, and you, Barlenor, leading the charge." (This way Adam will be more effective I think.)

At some point, Adam addresses the army as a whole before splitting off with the Ambush team. "Freemen, Freewomen. Today you fight for your freedom, and more than that. You fight for the freedom of your children, of your nieces and nephews. For the freedom of every man and woman living in these lands. And you are not alone.

"You fight with the strength of the divine St. Cuthbert in your arms, with the swiftness of his judgment in your feet. He has blessed us against this wicked enemy, and we will be as the hammer of justice against the evil tyrant and his lackeys.

"Do not fear, do not falter. If you die, you die for your fellows beside you, for your families here at this camp. Know that your death will not be in vain. And know this--the enemy will quake in terror at the very sight of us, they will flee before their fiery demise. Today will be a good day, and you will all want to live to see the end."

As close in time as they can to when the ambush begins, Adam and Ethan casts the follow buffs (w/ 10 min duration) on the following units:

Ambush:
A: Bless, Shield of Faith (Legion's)
B: Bless, Shield of Faith (Legion's), Reduce Person (mass)
C: Bless (same casting as B)

Ethan: Bless (A casting), Shield of Faith (Legion's), Shield, Fly

Adam: Bless (A casting), Enlarge Person, Bull's Strength, Magic Vestment, Shield of Faith (Legion's)

[tigerusthegreat]

(Having some trouble with my map program, the next update will have the map in place, sorry about the difficulty). I realize that the map is a little wrong, so I'm going to say that every square represents a 10x10 area instead of the usual 5x5, this makes the area 60ft wide where you are defending, but we can finagle that and call it 50ft. This will make the end of the enemy line enter the canyon as the front of the line reaches the soldiers blocking it.

Allied Units
Ambush:
Unit A: 25 Spearmen (with long and short spears) + Cuthbert NCO [+1 to attack from bless]
Unit B: 20 Bowmen [+1 to attack from bless] [+2 Dex, -2 Str, +1 attack and AC from size]
Unit C: 10 Cuthbert soldiers + Cuthbert NCO [+1 to attack from bless]

Hammer:
Unit A: 24 shortspearmen + 25 Longspearmen + Cuthbert NCO
Unit B: 1 Animal Handler (on Riding Dog) + 20 Dogs
Unit C: 10 Swordsmen
Unit D: 30 Cuthbert soldiers + Cuthbert NCO


Enemy Units:
400 Legionaires Divided into 8 Units of 50 men:
Legion 1
Legion 2
Legion 3
Legion 4
1 Wagon with Pay Chest and 4 soldiers (Also has a Command Officer)
Legion 5
Legion 6
Legion 7
Legion 8

The legion is in a column stretching 400 feet long (80 squares)

[tigerusthegreat]

Round 1

The column of enemy troops enters the canyon. The front edge of the massive column quickly reaches the ambush point. They don't know what to make of the ragtag band that is holding up their progress.

(You have won initiative. Your Ambush A unit is in contact with Legion 1. If Barlenor is following the plan, Hammer A unit is in contact with Legion 8)

[esorscher]

Ambush A readies against charge.
Hammer A regular attacks Legion 8.
Ambush B, C fires arrows into Legion 1 (aiming at the ranks behind the first)

Ethan casts Greater Invisibility and flies directly overhead the wagon.
Adam casts Prayer on the front lines of the Ambush (+3 bonus to allies/ penalty for enemies)