The Vanstermen IC

[Woggle]

Kára fends off the two warriors in front of her with shield. Waiting for an opening, she strikes quickly and deftly with her javelin's point at the one directly ahead. A very small glance to her right informs her that the others are holding their own.

Spoiler: OoC

Show

Kára will attack warrior 5, and if she manages to drop him with her first hit, will direct her second attack at warrior 4. She will then hold her position.

Attack1 - (1d20+8)[13] Damage1 - (1d6+5)[6]
CritBonus - (1d6)[3]

Attack2 - (1d20+8)[14] Damage2 - (1d6+5)[7]
CritBonus - (1d6)[1]

[HatMadder]

Trusting that the others can handle the wounded warrior, Lim scowls over to the one who hit him with a javelin. The others have him, leave it alone. Pulling himself away, Lim then begins climbing higher into the tree for better cover.
He hopes to go unnoticed by circling around to the far side of the trunk. Peering out towards the center of the clearing, Lim again steadies himself, slowing his breathing and fires off another arrow. (At W10)

Spoiler: Actions + Attack

Show

Climbing 10 feet higher (Second story work).
Cunning action to Hide (specifically from W10, but if others lose track of me, that's nice too)
Stealth roll: (1d20+10)[24]

Attack roll: (1d20+7)[23]
Damage: (1d6+4)[9]

If I have advantage from hiding
Attack roll: (1d20+7)[19]
Sneak attack damage: (3d6)[9]

[MintyNinja]

Ivar's whip snakes around Beck's side and catches the warrior across the inner thigh, blood gushing out from the gash. As the warrior drops to the ground, vainly trying to stop the bleeding, the whip catches him across the side of his head and he goes still. Gerðr watches the wounded man succumb to his injuries and re-aligns her shot to one of the men around Kára. The first arrow takes the warrior in the back and as he turns to see who's shooting at him the second goes through his eye. As he drops dead Kára's javelin brings the other man first to his knees with a deep stab wound to the hip, and then to the ground as she finishes him off. Lim ducked around the trunk of the tree and climbed even higher with the agility of a squirrel. With a very well aimed shot, he drops the warrior farthest from the others as he looks around the base of the tree for his killer. [W8, W5, W4, and W10 are dead.]

The final warrior, standing alone with only a dagger to hand, decides against his odds and turns to flee. He runs quickly south, but is actively being pursued by Beck and Jenner as they follow suit. With his new vantage point, about 35 feet off the ground, Lim spots a trail of smoke rising to the south. It seems to be further south than the edge of the clearing, but not too far off. It might be where the last warrior is running to.

[SaintRidley]

Gerðr moves out of the trees and up to the door of the house and shoots two arrows after the fleeing man, giving them her all. If she hits, she'll take a moment to peer inside the house and if there's anything that looks good for the taking at a glance, she'll take it at the earliest opportunity.

Spoiler: Attack

Show

Attacks: (1d20+3)[18];(1d20+3)[8]
Damage: (1d6+13)[14]; (1d6+13)[16]

Spoiler: In case of crit, natural 19 or 20

Show

for first arrow add: (1d6)[6]
for second arrow add: (1d6)[5]

[HatMadder]

Making note of the rising smoke, Lim looks down to see two raiders chasing the last surviving warrior.
Seeing two arrows fly towards the running warrior, Lim waits a moment to see if they land true and take him down.
If they don't, he fires off one of his own. (If they do, then ignore attack)

Spoiler: Attack

Show

(1d20+7)[12]
Damage: (1d6+4)[7]

If I still have advantage from hiding
To hit: (1d20+7)[23]
Sneak attack: (3d6)[10]

Lim begins climbing down to the rest and relays what he saw while pointing further south.

"Chief's hut might be ahead, should keep an eye out for others."

Seeing that Jenner has run ahead, Lim shrugs and looks to the others.

"Want to search around here? Could be something useful in the huts."

[MintyNinja]

Gerðr's first arrow takes the fleeing warrior in the back and he goes down with a scream. As the scream chokes off into blood, silence fills the village again. Looking into the hut, Gerðr finds a pair of children huddling in a corner, the older one covering the other's ears, both their eyes shut tight. The one room hut is supplies with wooden furniture and decorated with various shells and natural ornaments. There's a dead rabbit waiting to be skinned not far from the door, but at a glance there doesn't seem to be anything of value.

Kára finally gets a second to peek through the door of the large hut next to her. Inside there seems to be a separate room against the far wall, with a doorway but no door. She can see an elderly islander woman sitting in a long chair, glaring at Kára and the outside world. Along the walls are earthenware jugs, dishes, and baubles. There's a basket of wild herbs and mushrooms to one side, and some blankets stacked on a table to the other. There's a pair of finely carved oars decorated with bright red stones of some sort leaning against the wall by the elder. Kára's seen one very much like it tied to Ivar's pack not a moment ago.

As Beck and Jenner trot back, the large man calls out to everyone, "Take a minute, catch your breaths, but don't get comfortable." He points to a trail leading south out of the village, "We've still got a job to do."

Spoiler: OOC

Show

You have a couple minutes to collect up ammo, loot if you so choose, and generally take stock of your situation before Jenner Longclaw wants to press on. Give me about a post each detailing what you do in this time and I'll try to make it work with what I have prepared in this village.

[HatMadder]

As the silence fills the clearing and Jenner reminds everyone of the job at hand, Lim darts over to the surrounding huts to make sure there's nobody else hiding with a weapon.
Going in a counter clockwise circle, he enters each hut with his weapon drawn, leaving the civilians where they are.
If any children cry out as he enters, Lim lowers his bow and speaking softly motions them to a corner.

"Stay down, stay quiet. Don't come out until the sun rises again."

If there is a hidden warrior, or some unfortunate civilian who happens to be wielding a weapon, Lim will release an arrow.

Spoiler: Attack if needed

Show

(1d20+7)[9]
Damage: (1d6+4)[5]

Once all the huts are checked, Lim will call out to the group.

"Huts are safe, no worries about an attack from the rear."

[MintyNinja]

Lim's search results in no casualties as all the people he comes across are cowering in one corner or another. There's a number of adult women consoling children and crying as well, and although they spit curses at Lim, he doesn't know their exact meaning as the islander's have their own tongue.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Lim's pretty old, give me a History Check in the OOC thread.

[SaintRidley]

Gerðr looks at the two children and feels a little pity for them. They're no threat, though, so she simply closes the door, before rifling through the pockets of the downed men at the top of the hill for any more interesting coins.

[Woggle]

Kára eyes the oars and other trinkets in the house with some curiosity, but decides against taking anything. Time enough for that once we get to the chieftain's house. She glares back at the old woman, then steps outside. She rejoins Jenner and Beck, waiting for their next move.

To Ivar, she mentions "Seem to be a number of those oars around. Wonder where they got the stones for them? Kára adjusts her sword belt slightly, standing at the ready.

[MintyNinja]

Gerðr finds a total of 36 silver coins with the same symbols as earlier and another 15 smaller copper-like coins with five-point stars on one side. These kinds of coins do circulate in Vansterland, but aren't as common as proper coinage. In either case, they're about the same size as their Vansterland counterparts and should be worth the same.

As Kára leaves the old woman to her possessions, she notices what might have been tears rolling from her glaring eyes. Back outside, Beck is breathing pretty hard, but Jenner seems hale and somewhat cheerful. Kára notices that Jenner's also got a pair of those red-tipped spears strapped to his pack. She notices that the tips of the spears are the same color as the stones on the oars. [Investigation check if you want to carefully examine one.]

Lim has been in the raider lifestyle far longer than many of these others have been alive. During all that time, he's never really caught the hang of the islander's language. Sure, some people say it sounds like Vansterman if you really listen for it, but to him, it's always been gibberish.

[Woggle]

Kára moves over to Jenner, asking for a brief look at one of the spears he's found. She studies the workings of the wooden haft, and pays particular attention to the distinctive red tip. Once she's examined it, Kára hands it back to Jenner.

Spoiler: OoC

Show

Investigate the spear.

Investigation - (1d20)[17]

[MintyNinja]

Jenner hands a spear over to Kára, mumbling about picking one off the ground, and waits with his arms crossed. upon closer inspection Kára can see that the red stone is unlike any other she's ever seen. It's shaped into a spearhead, yes, but it's not chipped like one would with a stone. It's been ground down, probably on a larger rock of some sort or another. The feel of it, even on the flat parts is scratchy, like the stubble of a fresh shaved man or the skin of a small shark. It's incredibly light, and in fact the balance seems to be in the wood of the spear more than the head.

[Woggle]

Handing the spear back to Jenner, Kára says "The stone is certainly curious. I've never seen or heard of anything like it." She shakes her head, adding "Very strange. I wonder where the material comes from..."

[SaintRidley]

Gerðr pockets the coins. "A few of each to keep and start a collection with, and the rest to sell or spend," she says as she does so. She starts pulling the arrows from the corpses - any that are still usable she sticks back in her quiver. No sense letting them go to waste. She eyes the oar Ivar has. Bit awkwardly sized for her to carry. "Those oars - if there are more unclaimed, I'd like to get one. Can't carry one and shoot at the same time very easily. Think I'll be rested and ready to go forward if I can get one or two and stick em on the ground here to grab on our way back to the boat, she says. "Were there any in the house you checked, Kára?"

[MintyNinja]

Jenner takes the spear back from Kára and takes a closer look himself. "Ah, this stuff. A lot of the islanders use it. They polish it up for their jewelry and scrape it down for their weapons. Never seen any large pieces of it, probably just one of those mysteries," he says with a non-committal shrug. With all of you gathered around, he gives a quick check over and a sharp nod. "We'll collect all we can carry on our way out. For now, we got work to do," he says as he points to the smoke from the south. "Chief's likely over there with his household. I ain't ever fought a chief before, but I've heard they're sometimes the strongest man in the village. Keep your wits about and remember, we need to get the Captain her loot, or we might have to swim back!" He gives a loud laugh at this and starts heading towards the path to the south.

With a quick jog and a few twists and turns, you're just coming into earshot of what sounds like a group of men laughing and jeering each other. You don't seem to have been noticed yet, for whatever luck that's worth, but you can't exactly see what's ahead of you, either. Further down the path there's turn and it leads right towards the noise and the smoke.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

It's the Players' Turn right now.
Set yourselves between H62 and K63, then take your actions.
In your first post, list where you're going with map coordinates so I can tell who sees what when.
If you're going to be stealthy, use stealth checks.
If you're going to peer through the trees, you'll need to enter the thick trees and give me a perception check.

[SaintRidley]

Gerðr follows Beck (start position at K63). "Going to go through the trees and set up some cover fire. Keep them wondering how many of us there are that way," she says. She heads into the trees (to N64), trying to be careful about noise and seeing if she can see anything from her new position.

Spoiler: Stealth and Perception

Show

Stealth: (1d20+3)[6]
Perception: (1d20+3)[23]

[HatMadder]

Lim makes note of the strange stone on the spear, he had seen it around on various other raids but never thought to bring it back. Might make for a good arrowhead if done right.

Leaving those thoughts behind until after the raid, Lim heads forward with the group and listens as the noise from down the path grows.

"Good idea, I'll set up position further along the way." Lim says to Gerðr.

Lim almost pushes ahead as his curiosity piques, but his years of raiding experience have taught him not to separate too far from the group. So instead he hangs back from the edge and climbs a tree to try and get a good look into the clearing.

Spoiler: Actions

Show

Cunning action to Dash, Second Story Work to climb 10 ft up a tree. Started at J23, moved to P64.
Stealth: (1d20+10)[29]
Perception: (1d20+8)[27]

[Ghost Nappa]

Ivar will take up position at T59 so he can shoot down the door when it opens.

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

Stealth: (1d20+7)[9]
Perception: (1d20+6)[16]

[Woggle]

"Were there any in the house you checked, Kára?"

Kára turns and fetches one of the oars from the house, and hands it over to Gerðr. "Here ya go."

Kára moves forward along the path, but hangs back a bit to let the stealthier individuals scout the way ahead. She positions herself at Q62, ready to rush around the bend as soon as the word is given.

[MintyNinja]

Gerðr enters the trees and gets a few feet in before she stops to peer through the branches and trunks. She sees three more warriors and a very large man leaning on fence to what seems to be an animal pen. Inside the pen there's a giant boar rutting around in the mud. The men seem to be laughing at it and point out what parts they plan to eat when all of a sudden Gerðr snaps a branch that she thought would bend. All eyes turn towards the trees.

Lim, however, sees not only those four men, but three more a bit further away. He's quiet enough that they haven't noticed him yet but whether or not he can get a shot through all the trees and branches remains to be seen.

Ivar runs ahead and ducks into the tree cover at the end of the road only to look down and see that there's an array of men outside the house. About three very large men, and four more warriors like the ones from the village. Two of the large men are lugging around huge axes, and the third has a curved sword, likely Vansterman made.

Kára sets herself up between Ivar and Beck just in time to hear the laughter and jeers from the men end and shouts of alarm rise up.

The large man by the pen gestures and gives some kind of command and two of the warriors charge into the brush to attack Gerðr. One goes right under Lim without seeing the smaller man. Both men strike out with their spears but while Gerðr dodges one, the other lands a glancing blow. [Take 9 piercing damage] The large man with the great axe comes closer to the treeline but holds off, waiting to see what else comes about. The remaining warrior stays behind, his hand on the gate to the giant boar's pen.

From the other side of the small clearing, the large man with the large axe charges down the way to where Ivar ducked into the trees but he doesn't seem to reach him in time to attack. The warrior followed him, red-tipped spear at the ready. The third man, with scimitar, draws the blade and a dagger from some hidden place and advances slowly down the path, keeping an eye on both fronts and fighting on neither.

Beck and Jenner, for their parts, give up all pretense of stealth or caution when they see Ivar nearly cornered and charge down the path to his assistance.

Spoiler

Show

Player's turn now.

[HatMadder]

Not wanting Gerðr to be outnumbered, Lim breaks cover by firing an arrow down into the closest warrior.

Spoiler: Attack

Show

(1d20+7)[9]
Damage: (4d6+4)[24]
(Included sneak attack because ally is next to warrior)

If I have advantage from stealth
To hit: (1d20+7)[25]

Then, turning his attention to the larger man standing at the treeline, Lim takes a guess that the group really is getting closer to something important.
Attempting to break line of sight, he moves around the tree and a little higher if necessary in an attempt to hide.

Spoiler: Hiding

Show

Cunning Action to Hide.
Stealth: (1d20+10)[19]

[Woggle]

Deciding on a course of action quickly, Kára moves to aid Lim and Gerðr, pushing through the trees. She stands at Gerðr's side and makes two swift strikes at the warrior before her.

Spoiler: OoC

Show

Move to O64, and attack W12. She should have just enough movement to make it through the trees.

Attack1 - (1d20+8)[26] Damage1 - (1d6+5)[6]
CritBonus - (1d6)[1]

Attack2 - (1d20+8)[22] Damage2 - (1d6+5)[10]
CritBonus - (1d6)[4]

[SaintRidley]

Gerðr winces a little at the blow, and before she can react Lim and Kára have disposed of both assailants. "Thanks," she says. "The big guy near the pen looks tough. Should probably take him down so we can get into that clearing safely.

She steps off behind one of the corpses (M65) and readies her bow. "The big fella's going to be a harder target to hit, so precision's preferable to power. Get as many hits in as you can, and don't worry about how good they are - every little bit helps."

Spoiler: Attack

Show

Attacks: (1d20+8)[25];(1d20+8)[15]
Damage: (1d6+3)[4]; (1d6+3)[8]

Spoiler: In case of crit, natural 19 or 20

Show

for first arrow add: (1d6)[4]
for second arrow add: (1d6)[5]

[Ghost Nappa]

Ivar is nearly caught flat-footed by the two warriors but finds the time to put away the bow, and in a rush pulls out his shield...

(Ivar uses Action Surge.)
and in a single motion his sword all but flies from its sheathe into his hand to drive into W14.

Spoiler: Attack Rolls

Show

Thrust 1: (1d20+7)[16] ; (1d6+4)[9]
Thrust 2: (1d20+7)[16] ; (1d6+4)[10]

[MintyNinja]

A split second after Gerðr takes the hit, Lim makes his presence known and sinks an arrow deep into one warrior's vital organs via the collar of his armor. With squirrel-like finesse, the older halfling climbs further into the foliage above. [Hidden anew]

Kára arrives just in time to see one warrior hit the ground, dead. Turning her onslaught onto his partner, she sends him also into death's embrace with a pair of quick and deadly thrusts.

Gerðr takes aim and fires both arrows at the large man by the pen. Even though they both seem to stick into his hide armor, he doesn't seem slowed at all. In fact, he seems angrier.

Ivar, in a feat of agility, stows his bow and retrieves his sword and shield as he sees the enemies charging at him. With a pair of quick thrusts he kills the smaller warrior, who drops into the underbrush nearby.

What happens next is a coordinated pile of misery. What could only be presumed to be the chief, the very large man with the scimitar, charged up the path and barreled right into Jenner. Slashing this way and that with his long blade, the chief is able to sink one of his daggers into Jenner's arm. The large brute between Beck and Ivar swings with reckless abandon but his greataxe misses Ivar by a fair margin. [All attacks have Advantage against B2]

From the other side of the clearing, the final warrior received some sort of cue and has opened the pen for the Giant Boar to escape. He goads it up the pathway after the chief and it barrels up to Beck with ferocity, but the small halfling ducks the goring that was to be his fate. The other large man charges into the forest, eager to take down Kára and the hidden halfling after. His swing goes wide, however, and he leaves himself open to attack. [All attacks have Advantage against B1]

As the giant boar charged up the path Jenner Longclaw attempted to halt it by bracing his halberd against the beast, but it merely knocked his blade aside. Sensing dire straits ahead, Jenner let out a roar and brought the blade back to bite at the chief in front of him, but missed as the chief parried the blow. Beck let out a matching roar and brought his battleaxe around in a powerful arc with a quick step in, but again the chief parried the blow.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Players turn.

[Ghost Nappa]

Ivar continues his dance with the blades on the next weakest fighter, B2.

Spoiler: Rolls

Show

Thrust #1: (1d20+7)[11] ; (1d6+4)[8]
Thrust #2: (1d20+7)[21] ; (1d6+4)[10]

If at least one strike would miss, Ivar will expend a superiority die to add (1d8)[5] to its hit roll to try and make it hit.

[Woggle]

Kára sidesteps the brutes arcing swing. She drops the javelin in her hand then swiftly draws her longsword and attacks in a flurry of cuts and slashes. She glances worriedly through the trees toward Ivar and the others, but can do nothing for them now.

Spoiler: Actions

Show

Kára will draw her longsword and attack B1, and action surge to attack again. Lots of rolls

Attack1 - (1d20+8)[26] Attack1 - (1d20+8)[12]
Damage1 - (1d8+5)[7] CritBonus1 - (1d8)[1]

Attack2 - (1d20+8)[12] Attack2 - (1d20+8)[17]
Damage2 - (1d8+5)[13] CritBonus2 - (1d8)[3]

Action Surge:
Attack3 - (1d20+8)[11] Attack3 - (1d20+8)[21]
Damage3 - (1d8+5)[7] CritBonus3 - (1d8)[6]

Attack4 - (1d20+8)[10] Attack4 - (1d20+8)[10]
Damage4 - (1d8+5)[13] CritBonus4 - (1d8)[1]

[SaintRidley]

Gerðr notices the big man's wide swing. Looks utterly reckless, with no sense of self-preservation. And the arrows from the first attack simply didn't seem to do much. "Okay. Maybe harder is better."

She pulls her bow taut and releases two arrows, as hard as she can.

Spoiler: Attack

Show

Attack 1: (1d20+3)[14];(1d20+3)[19]
Damage: (1d6+13)[19]

Attack 2: (1d20+3)[5];(1d20+3)[17]
Damage: (1d6+13)[14]

Spoiler: In case of crit, natural 19 or 20

Show

for first arrow add: (1d6)[2]
for second arrow add: (1d6)[5]

[HatMadder]

Watching the large man collapse after several vicious attacks, Lim turns his attention to the other combatants.

Realizing he can't get a clear shot through the trees, Lim quickly climbs down and darts around and through the underbrush until he finds a clear shot at the other large man fighting among his allies.

Spoiler: Movement + Attack

Show

Second Story work to climb down without penalty. Moved from P64 to R62.
Attacking B2: (1d20+7)[17]
Advantage: (1d20+7)[24]
Damage: (4d6+4)[25] (Sneak attack included)

After releasing his arrow, Lim turns his attention to the boars and the last warrior. Marking his target, he tries to cover himself in the forest to catch them off guard once they run past.

Spoiler: Hiding

Show

Cunning action to Hide.
Stealth: (1d20+10)[11]