Ad Hoc Hack&Slash IC

[Aaronmoze]

A human, dressed in a flowing blue and gold hooded cloak, steps forward from his Half-orc companion and also spreads his hands out in front of his body to show they are empty. ”Greetings! My friend and I are a little disoriented at the moment. We survived a large battle a short while ago and have been trying to get our bearings. We noticed your fire and came down to investigate. My name is Fallyn. Fallyn Windsinger.”

[Tychris1]

Francesca watches in the back, pacing side to side, and never takes her eyes off of the half-orc. Finally she breaks her scowling silence to grunt "Funeral pyre. God's will it... You survived? Good. If you want to keep surviving you won't stand here with us much longer. Relentless little ****s, they are."

[lagninja]

"If you wish to join us, feel free, but we ought to get moving. The goblins surely have scouts looking for us again."

[Aaronmoze]

”There is safety in numbers.”
Fallyn looks at his companion and whispers, “What do you think? I say we join them. They look as desperate as us.”

[Stelio Kontos]

Crow loosened the tension on his arrow, though it was still in the bowstring. "All right, if you're good enough for them you're good enough for me. If you want to join up, let's get out of here. I need to get this armor on, I think, at least until we get some shuteye."

Spoiler: OOC

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I'll put on that chain shirt we're carrying around. AC will be 15 for a while, but I'm going to have a -2 to attack rolls because wizards and armor don't mix. Also a -2 to skill checks that involve moving, but hopefully that won't come up (haha).

[CasualViking]

"Yeah", yawn, "Anyone who's not a murderous little monster is my battle brother right now".

[Geordnet]

Okay, so the five of you have officially agreed to work together.

Technically speaking, none of you ever agreed to be here, and even your two little subgroups were merely collections of individuals. Perhaps once you get back to civilization, you might forge this hasty alliance into a permanent mercenary troupe.


But for now, here you are. In the middle of the night, in the middle of an unknown forest, with goblins at your heels.

At least you're nobody important enough to chase across the entire country, so if you manage to evade the goblins for a few days they'll probably give up the chase. But that doesn't matter if you can't survive tonight and tomorrow.

As long as you keep moving, they'll have a hard time catching up, but the moment you stop to rest...

You need some sort of plan. Even if it's just "keep running until we reach civilization or drop dead of exhaustion".


You have an opportunity to seize the strategic initiative. Don't waste it.
Your goal is to convince the goblins that you're more trouble than you're worth. Being too far way is only one way to do that.
Be creative: fortune favours the bold.

[lagninja]

"We should cover our tracks as best we can, and look for a river or a stream. It will be next to impossible for them to catch us if we can walk through the water, or if we can lash together a decent raft, we could take it downstream. Did either of you see any water on your way here?"

[Aaronmoze]

”You guys look worn out. But perhaps if you could find your 2nd or 3rd wind, we could convince them to leave us alone for awhile”

[Tychris1]

"We could hunker down, try to wait them out with some form of disguise. Shrubbery, a trap or two maybe. Just ideas.... Do any of you speak their tongue?" Francesca said as she sheathed her longsword. Tucking aside loose strands of hair back inside her chain mail, she looked none the worse for wear save for bags that were slowly developing under her eyes.

[Aaronmoze]

If we want to wait them out and get some rest we shouldn’t stay here in this clearing. My friend and I found a hill back there. Perhaps we could head there and set up camp to get some rest. We should be able to see them or anyone coming from that vantage point. “

[CasualViking]

"We could...I don't know, what happens to goblins after they die? We could slaughter a bunch of them, do something to their corpses to persuade the rest of them. I don't know."

[Stelio Kontos]

"Yes, I speak their tongue, among others. The one that fled is likely heading back to their base to raise the alarm, and they are sure to send out a search party while they have the advantage of night. That's why we must put as much distance between us and this place as possible. If you want to regroup and seize the initiative once day has broken, we can do that, but this is not the time or the place."

"And killing a few of them won't do the trick. They have numbers, we don't, and they don't particularly care how many they lose as long as they take us down with them."

[lagninja]

"It seems we at least all agree that we need to move until day break." Kuro returns to moving carefully through the woods, being methodical in his moving, covering hisbtracks as he goes.

Spoiler

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If we move half speed and cover our tracks,
It makes it more difficult to track us, and if they are tracking us, then we will be moving at the same speed. It doesnt put extra distance between us, past our headstart, but it can make it so we can get some rest during the day.

[Tychris1]

"If you speak their tongue, perhaps we can attempt to parley with them when next they come after us. Regardless, lets move. Put more distance between us and hopefully make the ones that pursue us as ragged ." Francesca follows after Kuro, trying her best to imitate his careful actions.

[Geordnet]

Spoiler: Rolls

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Assuming Kratis is taking charge of covering the tracks, with Kuro aiding him. The rest keep their eyes peeled (i.e. avoid the penalty for being distracted).
Kuro: (Aid Another: Survival) (1d20+2)[4] vs DC 10
Kratis: (Survival) (1d20+7)[15] (+2 more if aided) vs DC ??

Some hours pass without incident. Kratis quickly corrects Kuro's approach to covering tracks, knowing that trying to destroy individual footprints is a waste of time. Instead, with Kuro scouting ahead, he leads the party on a path that winds randomly up and down slopes and through rocky ground, doubling back a few times. By the time you manage to traverse two miles "as the crow flies", there are but a few hours left before dawn.

Kuro finds a small cave. It's big enough for any three or four of you save Buttercup the horse to enter, but not to stand up in. The vegetation around the entrance is dense enough to hide behind, as well. Crow successfully identifies the direction a nearby dry creek should flow in.

---

As you travel, Fallyn recounts (in a soft voice) a tale of a land distant from home, but likely much closer to where you are now:

King Mughol the Sunstruck, who wished to make Korë, the Goddess of Sun and Desire, his bride. Normally a Wizard-King wants for nothing, but the gods exist beyond their domain. So he created various bizzare plans to "capture" the goddess in physical form.

One such attempt involved breeding a new species of monster specifically designed for her, hoping to trick her into descending to walk among them. Using goblins as the base, he infused them with the essence of Kobolds (a race beholden to Immalach, the unwilling target of Korë's affections) and gnomes.

The product was an "adorably impish" creature with a simple mind designed for obsessive-compulsive activities. However, when the Goddess did actually appear in the physical realm, their meagre attention span meant that the messangers sent to inform their King forgot which message they were supposed to bring.

By the time Mughol realized what was going on, the Goddess had seen her fill of the new race dedicated to her and departed. In the end, his creations were released into the the wild, presumably to all die horribly due to their lack of survival instincts.

This all happened roughly half a century hence. By the look of it, those creatures did not die, but instead bred back into the goblin population to create a new subrace. At least, that would explain why their skin is more brown than green, and they aren't quite as repulsive.

But the way they were organized... The fact that there aren't any rumors about that is troubling. It suggests this is either a recent change, or that nobody has met them before and lived to tell the tale.

Spoiler: OOC

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Neither of the new guys saw the bodies left behind by the last encounter, but everyone here saw plenty of goblins during the original battle. Maybe a thousand of them, acting in strange ways: too organized for normal goblins, too fluid for hobgoblins.

[Stelio Kontos]

Crow made his way quickly for the back of the cave. "I've seen worse, I suppose" he remarked dryly. "It's defensible enough, if the opposing force isn't too large, and there's a ready escape route along the creek bed if we need to run for it. I say we hole up here until we're properly rested, and then see what we can see in the light of day."

Without waiting for much of a reply from his comrades, he flung his pack down in the far back corner of the cavern, readying his bedroll for a long-needed rest.

[Tychris1]

Grunting her agreement, Francesca crawled her way to the back of the cave, and promptly began to strip her chainmail off before curling up with a blanket and pillow in the nude.

[lagninja]

"You all get rest, i will stay awake and stand guard. One night without sleep isnt going to kill me and I am honestly more afraid of the goblins that being tired."

Spoiler

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I might become fatigued, but its better than getting ambushed again.

Fort save dc 15 to not get fatigued. (1d20-1)[12]

[Aaronmoze]

thanks Kuro. I’ll sleep nearer the entrance in case you need anything. “

Fallyn takes off his armor and slides into his bedroll. He checks to make sure his scimitar and shield are close in case he needs them quickly.

[CasualViking]

"It's a kind offer, but I really think you should get some sleep as well. For this night, I think my Orc eyes will see us through better than yours.".

Kratis takes off Buttercup's barding, wipes her down, settles her on the ground near a fallen tree, and covers her with her blanket, then some leaves. Then he either settles in for the watch, or goes to sleep, depending on Kuro.

[Geordnet]

You've settled in for an hour or two when an arrow flies from the direction of a nearby hill. It embeds itself in the tree sheltering Buttercup, waking her up. She looks nervous, but not panicked.

Spoiler: Rolls

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<unknown> Attacks: (1d20+7)[10] vs DC 10 - 50% concealment: (1d20)[9]
<unknown> Stealth: (1d20+26)[30] (+16 base, -20 snipe, +30 range)
Kuro Perception: (1d20+9)[27]

Spoiler: Initiative

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Kuro: (1d20+8)[24]
Crow: (1d20+1)[9]
Francesca: (1d20+2)[11]
Kratis: (1d20+2)[18]
Buttercup: (1d20+2)[15]
Fallyn: (1d20+3)[14]

<unknown>: (1d20+3)[13] posts

We're going to try something different this time. After the enemy moves, all party members can move in whichever order they like, in a "first post happens first" rule for resolving conflicts.

Oh, also no battlemap this time, because it'd have to be over 60 tiles long to cover the ranges involved.

Everyone but Kuro and Buttercup is still in the cave, sleeping like the dead. Unless someone shouts, it's a DC 15 Perception Check to wake up.

[lagninja]

Kuro strikes his smokesstick, tossing it down in front of the cave and whistles loudly into the chamber. Peering into the dark night, he searches for his quarry, focusing his ki.

Spoiler

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Immediate action to get +4 perception.
Standard action to strike the smokestick and drop it. Move action to perceive.
(1d20+12)[21]
Free action to wake everyone up

[Geordnet]

Your sense envelops the surrounding area, yet you find nothing. The enemy must be farther away. The nearby hilltop where you think the arrow came from is about a hundred yards distant.

Spoiler: OOC

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The negative modifiers for range stack up rather ludicrously. By RAW, it's DC 30 to notice a person standing on the other end of a football field. Add in skill points, and the shooter has over a +40 modifier.
(1d20+46)[61]

I think we need to homebrew some replacement, because 300ft. is the minimum at which I want archers to engage.

Actually, you don't even get to make the check, because you need your move action to retrieve the smokestick from storage.

[CasualViking]

Kratis rolls to his feet and whistles for Buttercup. Assessing the direction of the bowshot, he puts the cloud between himself and the archer, unslings his shield from his back and pats Buttercup on the neck with his free hand.

Spoiler: OOC:

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Autopass Handle Animal for Come, a known trick. Perception to gauge direction and possibly spot something: (1d20+7)[9]

[Tychris1]

Hearing the sounds of conbat and whistling, Francesa groaned as she stirred awake, wiped her eyes, and promptly stretched her arms as she sat up. Scratching at her bare armpit, she began to reach around for her armor nearby, and began the tedious process of donning it.

[Stelio Kontos]

Crow rolled out of bed, trying to recall the most offensive Goblin curses he could muster, and grabbed his bow.

Spoiler: OOC

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Stand up, grab bow. Exciting stuff, no?

[Geordnet]

Buttercup whinnies. She wants to come, but you're in the tiny cave and her instincts refuse to let her enter such a cramped space. You'll have to Push her to get her in.

Crow forgets about the low ceiling, and tries to stand up. Crow takes 1 nonleathal damage.

Spoiler: rolls

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Rapid Shot
Attack (1d20+6)[26] vs AC 18 crit (1d20+6)[15] damage (1d6+4)[8] 50% miss (1d10)[4]
Attack (1d20+6)[18] vs AC 18 crit (1d20+6)[16] damage (1d6+4)[5] 50% miss (1d10)[7]
No LOS

Two more arrows come in, and Buttercup cries out as one hits her. Unfortunately, Kuro can't see out of the smoke, and everyone else is still in the cave.
Buttercup takes 5 damage.

Okay, having trouble keeping turns straight... Probably not going to repeat this experiment.

[Aaronmoze]

Fallyn sits up at the sound of the whistle. He quickly grabs his armor and starts to put it on. At Buttercups cry he moves closer to the side of the cave to finish up, sling on his bow and grab his sword and shield.

[Geordnet]

Confusion reigns, magnified by the cramped space. By the time the smokestick is exhausted, you've all managed to get out of the cave and into your armors, if applicable. But as you wait, nothing happens.

The arrows had stopped as suddenly as they began. The night is silent again.


Conflict has ended with no clear result.

Well, this experiment was a failure. However...
Even such a fiasco can teach you important lessons. +15 XP

Spoiler: OOC

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For the record, I intend to give out minor XP grants for losses and such, on the premise that you're learning what not to do. This doesn't apply to repeated losses where you fail to apply lessons learned, though. (On the other hand, if you do identify what went wrong and adapt, I'll give you an extra bonus.)

In this case, it's also an apology for the messing things up.