Rokugan in the Shadows Ch 1: Gathering Dark

[~Corvus~]

You become aware you've been out of consciousness. That's right; you were pulled from a task, or from a place of suffering. Mercifully, it will only be a memory. You're instructed by a voice in the void that you've been pulled into.

Spoiler: Voice in the Void

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I have answered your call of suffering. I offer you a path to vengeance and power. I have gathered you in a city under siege by twist of fate. Make sure they do not reclaim control of the city, at any cost.

We will talk again.

The Void begins to fade. Screams of terror surround you; they are mirrored by satisfied groans and messy eating. As the darkness fades, you see you're surrounded by large and simple earthen buildings. The ground beneath you feels soft; earth softened by gore and blood. What could be a fairly-organized area is instead in chaos. Masses of people try to flee larger masses of zombies that descend upon them. What little resistance they offer does not hold up to their sheer numbers. To the south and south-east, many pockets of leather-and-stone clad soldiers, circled up, offer resistance to the hordes. They wield wicked clubs and smash the oncoming zombies as the hordes approach them. In a few areas, lines of battle surge to good-spirited cheers where groups of soldiers devastate the somewhat fragile undead. Further off, you can see robust stone buildings assaulted by huge...towering zombies made of blood and bones. They pick up soldiers and peasants alike, glutting themselves on the general populace. Even further on, you can see a wall. Though it is far away, it is similarly clear that soldiers struggle against the hordes of creatures.

A pack of roughly twenty zombies, followed by three larger, stronger-looking zombies covered in the armor of the guards, feast on a group of hapless peasants. The chaos around you seems to offer you decent protection for the moment. What do you do?

[zabbarot]

Tokazou

The great beast looked around in confusion. Had he been somewhere else? He wasn't sure, and the voice spoke too many words, some he didn't recognize. But there was something that made sense to him. He could hear eating.

His stomach growled. Tokazou followed suit and his nostrils flared. He loped towards where the undead were eating the peasants. The dead men smelled awful, but the ones they were eating smelled like fresh meat.

[Kashmir]

Niku no Seijen

After listening to the voice from the void, wondering if it is one that he recognizes, he shall enjoy the feeling of the Void. As that feeling slips away, and the clamor of battle surrounds him, he shall draw his bow and ready an arrow, awaiting to see what shall happen between the living, dead, and the monsters.

[WarHunter]

Kaorin Naereth

Peers around while staying out of the slaughter to get his bearings, thirsting to join in but hesitant on sharing his fun with the undead but only for a moment as he waits to see if their are more allies to help guarantee a rout. Wonders if he can control the undead with verbal commands or would they follow his lead once jumps into the fray, it matters not as he would just do whatever he wanted to enjoy this feast. Having Rageclaw and Thunderstep boots was a good choice for today's festivities.

[Swami Monsoon]

Jade

She stumbles, trying to regain her bearings and taking in the violence around her. She has long since lost any scruples about punishing those who deserve it, but she has no idea what these people have done to merit such a fate. She gets close to a wall, trying for the moment to avoid the attention of soldiers and zombies...

[~Corvus~]

A large black-scaled lizard jumps into the group of feasting zombies, heedless of their numbers. His motion splatters a few of their (apparently) fragile bodies, and he grabs a partially-chewed corpse away from the creatures. They dully turn their attention towards the lizard that's deprived them of food, and lash out at Tokazu.

Spoiler: OOC - everyone

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For the sake of this page, please describe what your characters look like to us!

4 zombies lash out at tokazu
Attack:
(1d20+2)[17]
(1d20+2)[15]
(1d20+2)[19]
(1d20+2)[10]

damage:
(1d4+2)[6]
(1d4+2)[5]
(1d4+2)[4]

8 more zombies shamble around him, attempting to find purchase on his flesh.
(you're welcome to take AoOs for their movement)

Kyorlin and Jade, catching their bearings, see the lizard swarmed after his charge. He has attracted the nearest attention at the moment. To their right, about seventy feet away, a group of panicked villagers run away from more of the creatures, who fell many more hapless humans and glut on the unfortunate victims. In front of them, roughly thirty feet away, another long house looms, and a large crab--still disoriented, it seems-- blocks what could be a doorway.

Niku spots many choice targets. The closest to him, about 45 feet away, are a pack of roughly 18 zombies swarming a black-scaled lizard that attempted to steal their lunch. Two of the 18 appear to be zombified guards, and they move sluggishly--they seem to be weighed down by their armour.

[zabbarot]

Tokazou

The massive black scaled lizard straightened to his full twelve foot height and glared down at the flailing zombies with meat still hanging out of his mouth. He swatted at them like flies before hunching down to grab another bite.

Spoiler: actions

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full attack
Claw attack at the two closest zombies 1/each

Claw 1
To-hit (1d20+7)[11]
Damage (1d4+6)[7]

Claw 2
To-hit (1d20+7)[16]
Damage (1d4+6)[10]

[Lightning Fast]

Kanishi made as close to a frown as a crab could as he felt himself being pulled out of one instance and into another. But I'm huuuungry... the crab said as he felt himself pulled away from his pursuit of a delicious-looking adventurer. Said adventurer had also stuck him with a large trident several times, though, so perhaps it was for the best: he looked as though he would try to devour his delicious crab meat and take his courage. He was quite the specimen, after all: his body was six feet wide and stood about six feet off the ground, covered in an exoskeleton that slowly changed to match his surroundings, though not fast enough to act as camouflage. Right now, it was a pleasant bluish grey. He was large, though there was an unassuming and confused look upon his "face" that made him seem somehow less monstrous.

The voices which filled his head confused and frightened the crab. But it was okay; he was a big crab, and these voices were small. Perhaps whatever the sound was coming from could be eaten. Crabs were scavengers, and could therefore eat almost anything organic. Kanishi liked things that didn't run fast and didn't put up too much of a fight; it mostly tasted the same to them. Speaking of which, there were some rotty-looking humans trying to eat some less rotty-looking ones. Humans fought each other all the time. Kanishi didn't really understand that, but he supposed that the rotty ones were trying to get something that the clean ones had and take it. They all looked tasty, but the rotty ones seemed slower, if less clean. The clean humans also rewarded not eating them with fish and sacrifices and not attacking with tridents, so eating them tended to be a mixed proposition.

Of greater interest was the twelve-foot-tall lizard currently locked in combat with the rotty ones. Crabs were scavengers: they ate whatever was left behind. Logically, that meant anything left behind by lizards eating humans, whether they were rotty or clean. He wanted to gauge the reptilian's aggressiveness, but at the same time knew that if he did not try to get a slice of the delicious meat, it might be all gone.

His thought process was cut off, though, by a crowd of clean humans, running away from many rotty ones and seemingly towards him. They were close-by. He would go after the strong rotty ones: their meat would make him braver than the clean fleeing ones. Without so much as a word, Kanishi began to walk forward, claws clacking and legs stepping from side-to-side so as to intimidate his soon-to-be foes. He wasn't any taller than these folks, even if he was wider, but he was still confident he could eat at least a few of them. "Hello humanfolk. I want meat." He lunges forward at the rotty men, his mouth beginning to water. He makes no effort to block the humans from entering the door, relishing the tide of rottymen to nourish him. He could use the clean ones as bait for the rottymen, and eat them all! I am a very smart crab. I am like a fisherman. But a crab. And with humans as bait. I am the best and strongest crab.

Attack 1: (1d20+6)[9]
Attack 2: (1d20+6)[7]
Damage 1: (1d6+4)[5]
Damage 2: (1d6+4)[10]
Grapple 1: (1d20+10)[25]
Grapple 2: (1d20+10)[21]

[~Corvus~]

Kanishi, overcoming his temporary nausea, becomes aware of the attention granted him by other humans around him. A large group of them, with their legs, hands, stomachs being ripped and apart by the ravenous creatures, look up to Kanishi with pleading eyes. "THE SPIRIT OF OUR CLAAAAAGGHH
HE WILL SA----AAAAGGHHH
SAVE UAAAGGGGH~
YOU CAN'T LEEAAAAA-- US HERE HEEEEAARKK--
HELP MEEEAAAHHH"

The pleading eyes and hands reach for him amist the crowds of feasting critters, and when he speaks to them, they flail in both terror and hope. He clatters over to several zombies and reaches for them, but their mindless shuffling and gore-slimed bodies make them harder to grasp than Kanishi would think. His claws slide amongst their number, but since they offer very little resistance to his attempts to grab them, he knocks a few away from a man but remains empty-clawed. His intestines, yanked with the zombies knocked away, slither over the ground, and more ravenous rotty-men mercilessly descend upon him.

Five zombies approach Kanishi and attempt to bite his legs; perhaps they can sense the flesh just below his chitinous exterior.

Spoiler: ROlls

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(1d20+2)[4] crit (1d20+2)[7]
(1d20+2)[7] crit (1d20+2)[15]
(1d20+2)[19] crit (1d20+2)[4]
(1d20+2)[3] crit (1d20+2)[12]
(1d20+2)[13] crit (1d20+2)[14]

(1d6+2)[7]
(1d6+2)[5]
(1d6+2)[3] damage dealt
(1d6+2)[3]
(1d6+2)[4]

[Kashmir]

Niku no Seijen

The dark haired humanoid in red robes, with piercing yellow eyes, narrows his vision, as he sees both the lizard and the crab start wading into the shambling horde.

Weighing his options, and the thoughts of all the materials he may gain from this occasion, he will try to get atop one of the buildings, and use his bow to put down some of the remaining humans, as the voice said to keep the town from not falling.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Climb:(1d20+2)[7]
Attack:(1d20+5)[7]
Crit:(1d20+5)[19]
Damage:(1d8+2)[7]
Crit:(2d8+4)[12]

[Swami Monsoon]

Jade

There appear to be only a few creatures out there (not including the fleeing civilians) who don't want her dead. She's no good to eat, but the zombies likely wouldn't find that out until they'd already torn her apart. She'll have to take what allies she can find. She gulps down a potion as she plans her next move...

Spoiler: Description

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She appears as a very small woman dressed in plain robes with a hooded cloak. A close look at her face reveals that her skin is an odd pale green.

Spoiler

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Drink potion of Mage Armor
Move to get lined up properly on a clump of zombies so she can use Form of the Wave next round without hitting an ally or (too many) civilians.

[WarHunter]

Kaorin

Well that's a lot of new potential allies, best to stay away from them until the fighting is over, stealthy gets closer to a group of humans. I like their armor. Gazes down on his dark skinned form covered by his chain shirt, looks down at his four sleeves and scanning down to his claws. urg those armors aren't going to fit me(snarling) with a red glow from with in his goggles he surveys the battle to find an easy outlet of his fury. Spotting a small group cut from the rest by zombies he rush in to attack.

Spoiler

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Stealth check total 27
Charge attack roll total 15

[~Corvus~]

Tokazu lashes out at several of the zombies, felling them in brutal strokes. The creatures manage to fully surround him now, and many, somehow understanding that he will be tough to bite, instead reach ineffectually for the humans dangled above him.

Spoiler: Zombies near Tokazu

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Attacks (no hits)
(1d20+1)[3] (1d20+1)[2] (1d6+1)[5]
(1d20+1)[16] (1d20+1)[5] (1d6+1)[4]
(1d20+1)[16] (1d20+1)[7] (1d6+1)[3]
(1d20+1)[14] (1d20+1)[5] (1d6+1)[5]
(1d20+1)[14] (1d20+1)[7] (1d6+1)[7]
(1d20+1)[18] (1d20+1)[2] (1d6+1)[5]
(1d20+1)[14] (1d20+1)[13] (1d6+1)[6]
(1d20+1)[21] (1d20+1)[19] (1d6+1)[3]

Niku has some trouble climbing on top of a house. However, close to Kanishi there are a number of humans--suffering horribly--that he sees a chance to kill. Several of them are prone and easy targets, and he dispatches one with a casual shot from his bow.

Jade lines herself up along the alleyway. She finds a great group of zombies near Kanishi the crab that will all fall prey to her well-aimed attacks.

Kyorlin travels south of the alley-way towards where samurai hold greater resistance. They instruct what appears to be slaves to pile the limp bodies in place to make a makeshift wall.

[Swami Monsoon]

Jade lets go of her humanoid form for a moment and flows through a clump of zombies as a stream of pale green liquid, melting dead flesh in her path...

Spoiler

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Form of the Wave through zombies, avoiding the crab and trying to end at a spot that won't be surrounded (line up to 90').
Damage (2d6)[3] +acid (1d6)[5] Reflex Save for half, DC 15
Recharge (1d4+1)[4]

[Lightning Fast]

Though Kanishi's assault was unsuccessful, it seemed as though the zombies weren't particularly successful in theirs either. Most of their attacks bounced harmlessly off Kanishi's hard exoskeleton, with only one managing to bite through his shell... though not hard enough for the crab to take serious concern. He had plenty of delicious crab meat, and crabs were adept at regenerating their body-parts overtime.

Kanishi's pincers clack and click with surprise as a gush of green, acidic liquid blows through the area, eating away at the rottymen's flesh. "I was going to eat those!" he bellows, his back fins flailing in confusion and annoyance. Thankfully, there were still a few rottymen remaining, and they looked as though they'd be much easier to chew now. Once again, Kanishi reaches forwards with his claws, hoping to grasp the now-injured rottymen that are attempting to bite him. "Stop fighting me, dinner!"

Spoiler: Attacks and Stuff

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Attack 1: (1d20+6)[20]
Attack 2: (1d20+6)[17]
Damage 1: (1d6+4)[5]
Damage 2: (1d6+4)[6]
Grapple 1: (1d20+10)[16]
Grapple 2: (1d20+10)[20]

[WarHunter]

Kyorlin-
The sight of the defenses gives the draegloth pause. Having never seen a wall of limp bodies, he approaches while in his child of Shadow stance. He crouches down on the outer side of this wall to investigate the integrity of it.

Spoiler: sneaking

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see next post for roll

[WarHunter]

Child of Shadow stance

Spoiler: hide/move silently with concealment

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(1d20+11)[25]

[Kashmir]

Niku no Seijin

Niku will loose his next arrow at the humans close to the Crab.

Spoiler: Rolls

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Attack:(1d20+5)[8]
Crit:(1d20+5)[16]
Damage:(1d8+2)[9]
Crit:(2d8+4)[17]

[~Corvus~]

Tokazu continues to lash out against the horde of zombies near him, eating away at the humans he has. Each attack sends several of the zombies flying away, where they smash against a wall or end up sprawling, whereupon their brittle bodies break apart in the tumult.

Jade flows south along the corridor between the living quarters, and passes Kanishi halfway into her stride. His complaints, however, do not stop her, though. She passes by a shadowy creature in strange, skin-like armor who shoots arrows into the hapless humans to the south. Jade's motion washes past them all, bringing acidic death to human and zombie alike. At the end of her stride, she has cleared the entire corridor of the foul creatures, and managed to pass through a final clump near an otherwise-deserted building. The wave of acid flows through the barricaded doors, and shouts of surprise come from the other side.

Kanishi, engaged in the gathering of delicious corpses, finds himself stymied as five prime targets to his East dissolve. He must step into the living quarters for the last four "rotty men". He gathers two of them successfully, and devours them whole. The remaining two haplessly crunch at his shell but don't get through.

Niku, about ready to fire upon the same group of dying humans, barely misses being passed by the Acid-water creature flowing as a wave Southward. In its wake, there are only a few humans left, screaming in pain from wounds both acidic and bestial. He casually puts an arrow through the head of one within easy firing distance. The strange-furred creature and the Acidic one have gone south; the crab, occupied in the building to his West, seems to have a handle on the creatures. To his left, at the corner junction of several other barracks, the tall lizard stands and takes on a veritable horde of zombies that, to his credit, don't seem to faze him. There are at least fifty swarming him, all clamoring for the juicy and humans he holds aloft in his hands.

Kyorlin, facing south-east, takes use of his shadow-encased form to examine the area around him. The wall spans from the NE corner of what looks to be strong structure--an armory perhaps--and the wall continues to the Northwest, through a few ruined buildings and beyond his sight. It reaches seven feet high at most places. The few armored soldiers are on this side of the wall are intent upon filling a gap, and through it he can see what appears to be a fine cobblestone area, where many Samurai--nearly a hundred--assemble and wait patiently. Nearby, to his right, an acid-creature sweeps through the zombies and eliminates them; it stops just north of the Armory. About a hundred feet beyond her--to the West--a small group of armored humans and peasants face off against a large mass of zombies. Although the peasants die slowly, they are well-led in resistance by a few stalwart samurai that yell encouragement to boost their morale.

[WarHunter]

Kyorlin
Heads along the wall to the pocket of resistance beyond the armory.

Spoiler: sneaking

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(1d20+11)[12](1d20+11)[30](1d20+11)[13]

[~Corvus~]

Kyorlin moves fourty feet Northwest to where three Samurai drag bodies from a nearby destroyed building to a 10-foot gap in the corpse wall. Their task keeps one of them busy enough to not notice him; however, one of them points you out to the other two.

"An oni! It must be helping them reanimate our dead! Kill it!" Although one of them is too far away to attack him this round, the other two rush over to attack Kyorlin. One samurai stares him down, daring you to face him first; the other moves nearly into a flanking position, drops his club, takes a 5-foot step to flank, and puts his hand on a shortsword on his hip.

Spoiler: rolls & combat

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Samurai 1 Initiates a Duel of Wills (ToB 27; Opposed Intimidate checks (or Concentration if you have Unnerving Calm). If you submit, take -1 atk for combat; if you ignore the challenge, Sam 1 gains a +1 to atk vs. you; if you participate and win, Sam 1 gets -1 atk & you get +1 atk; same in reverse.)
Intimidate: (1d20+5)[23] vs Kyorlin's 22. Result: Sam 1 gains +1 atk vs. Kyorlin; he takes -1 atk vs. Sam 1
Attack: (1d20+4)[8] (crit) (1d20+4)[6]
Damage (heavy mace): (1d8+5)[10]

Samurai 2 moves 30' and takes a 5' step, drops his heavy mace, and readies himself for a Iaijutsu Focus attack (OA pg 58-59).

The first Samurai, surprised by Kyorlin's appearance, misjudges his attack and misses. The third Samurai has dropped his corpse and rushes towards the gap in the wall; he could potentially call over many more guards!

[Samurai 3 is 70' away from the gap in the wall]

[WarHunter]

Kyorlin
Returns the samurai's glare with a fiery one of his own that promised a fate worst the becoming one of the undead.
He prepares to drops Darkness at his feet as soon as the 2nd Samurai prepares to strike.

Spoiler: duel of wills

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(1d20+7)[22]

[Lightning Fast]

Kanishi feasts upon the corpses of the rottymen, chomping off their heads in a single bite and them swiftly swallowing large pieces of them whole. It doesn't take long for the crab to get his fill: after all, he's not much larger than the rottymen themselves. Crunching upon the bones, he ponders how they will make his exoskeleton strong and shiny. He seems completely oblivious to their taste and simply enjoying his scavenging. He wonders, briefly, where the humans have gone. Perhaps if they believe I am their ancestral beast, I can get them to bring me fish like the villagers back home...

He doesn't hesitate in dispatching the rest of his attackers, though: they have tried to chomp upon his delicious crab-meat, and had to pay the price for it. "I SHALL DESTROY ALL ROTTYMEN!" he screams out.

Attack 1: (1d20+6)[8]
Attack 2: (1d20+6)[18]
Damage 1: (1d6+4)[8]
Damage 2: (1d6+4)[7]
Grapple 1: (1d20+10)[14]
Grapple 2: (1d20+10)[21]

[Swami Monsoon]

Jade re-assembles herself and takes another look at her surroundings. She frowns as she realizes that she's hit several of the civilians as she traveled... but from the looks of things they'd only had moments to live. And... the crab can talk? She sees several other odd... people... fighting, some against the zombies, some against the humans... She swats at a still thrashing zombie and calls out to them.

"Does anyone here know whats going on? Were you all told to fight as well? And if we're lucky, one of you was told who we're supposed to fight?"

Spoiler

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Attack nearest zombie (if any are still alive near her)
(1d20+4)[15]
Damage (1d4+3)[6] (1d6)[1]

[zabbarot]

Tokazou

With the edge taken off his hunger Tokazou takes a moment to figure out his surroundings. The zombies are relentless however, constantly reaching for the remaining scraps of flesh he holds above his head in one hand. It took a moment before it sank in that they weren't really attack him at all anymore. Instead they really just seemed to want the meat he was holding. This he could sympathize with. He also liked meat. He watches them while moving the meat around, testing to see if they'll follow it.

Spoiler: OOC

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Can I... can I train them? I will lead the hordes into battle! Until they get distracted.

[Kashmir]

Niku no Seijin

Hearing the green watery woman calling out, Niku decides to respond.

"The voice I heard before being placed here, said that we should keep them from reclaiming this city. I believe it has more to do with the armored men, then it does with the undead that are running around.

With that said, he will call out to both the lizard and the crab, as he cannot tell where the fourth one has disappeared off to.

"Crab and Lizard, you should head towards the ones that have armor and weapons on them, as it seems that the dead cannot harm you, the men are to the south, they will be a better feast."

With that said, he will try to pick off another of the few survivors, and try to move on the rooftops to a better vantage point.

Spoiler: OoC

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All said in High Rokugani

Attack:(1d20+5)[14]
Crit:(1d20+5)[11]
Damage:(1d8+2)[10]
Crit:(2d8+4)[11]

[Avatar_Image]

???
From the top of the armory overseeing the Carnage, a small figure smiles. It is a good day to be in Rokugan.

[~Corvus~]

Kanishi's cry goes out to the fallen people around him. In its silence, he notices the relative silence around: there are no people, only mangled hands, entrails, spatters of blood and a ground awash with bloody mud and rotted flesh. In the building he's in, a few zombies contentedly feast on ripped-off arms and hands. The few near him, convinced he is not edible--or at least not appetizing enough--lose interest and shamble outside, where many other of the beasts shuffle to the South.

Tokazou finds that, indeed, as long as the creatures around him see the meat he holds, he has the interest of those zombies around him. In fact, to his South, he spots a few recently-dead humans currently only being eaten by a few zombies. However, with the disappearance of the bodies he held, the interest of those zombies around him quickly fade to apathy. Many of them mill south, picking up speed when they sense the fresh corpses.

A red-robed...man? in armor calls out:

"Crab and Lizard, you should head towards the ones that have armor and weapons on them, as it seems that the dead cannot harm you, the men are to the south, they will be a better feast."

He then turns and puts an arrow through the last thrashing form of dying humans in the corridor in which they appeared.

With the call of Niku near them, the three Samurai re-assess their situation. Samurai 1 says, "Hakao, Seijin! These meddlers are with the oni! Do not let them escape!" With that, he turns to Kyorlin. He seems to focus, his gaze concentrated and menacing, and strikes.

Samurai 3 looks at Samurai 2, then turns to Niku. He drops the body he carries and hefts is club menacingly.

Samurai 2 looks at Jade, and rushes over to attack her.

Jade looks near her surroundings and sees many zombies far off, to the East, and many to the North, shambling away from Tokazu. Nearer her, however, are two Samurai that turn towards her and Niku.

Spoiler: Swami

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Would you like to have Jade attack the samurai?

Spoiler: Combat

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Samurai 1 seems to focus more upon the Draegloth. He attacks with a powerful strike that leaves himself a little more vulnerable
Attack (1d20+10)[26] Crit (1d20+6)[16]; Kyorlin gets +1 (4-1-2) to hit him
Damage (1d8+3)[8]

Samurai 3 He drops the body he carries and, as he strides towards him, hefts his club menacingly.

Samurai 2 Charges at Jade! For this attack, he draws his short longsword for an Iaijutsu Attack!
Attack (1d20+8)[25] Crit (1d20+8)[25]; Jade can make an AoO if she has one
Iaijutsi Check (1d20+7)[22]
Damage (1d8+3)[9]
Potential Iaijutsu dice (1d6)[2] (1d6)[4] (1d6)[2] (1d6)[3]
Damage

[Swami Monsoon]

From her experience, Jade knows that samurai are as predatory as any zombie... a fact that she is being reminded of painfully at the moment. She swipes at her attacker and then steps back and summons a cloud of mist to conceal herself...

Spoiler

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AoO (1d20+4)[6]
Damage (1d4+3)[6] [roll]1d6]/roll]
Then take 5' step straight back from enemy, cast Breath of the Night (Fog Cloud) at his location.

[Lightning Fast]

Kanishi glances at the acid elemental who dissolved his dinner-to-be earlier and shrugs as best he can with claws. "I will have to pull off their shiny shells to get at the meat inside. But it shall be worth it!" And with that, he skitters southwards with considerable speed, claws snapping and clacking as he does so. He scans the area for the armoured zombies as his skittering brings him closer to the lizard-creature.