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  1. - Top - End - #271
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Steveodore's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    As the dazed orc rose up to eye gouging level, Miz leapt onto him with gusto. She tore into Giggles more so out of feelings or irritation then any sense of rage or bloodlust.

    Spoiler
    Show

    5ft to Giggles and then full round attack.

    Bite
    (1d20+7)[22]
    (1d8+5)[6]
    Claw
    (1d20+7)[18]
    (1d6+5)[11]
    Claw
    (1d20+7)[12]
    (1d6+5)[11]

  2. - Top - End - #272
    Troll in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Miz pounces on the half-orc, biting deeply into his shoulder and plunging one of her claws into his hip, right below the bottom of the chainmail shirt he's wearing.
    Somehow the half-orc is still on his feet, although he's not laughing anymore and only the stubborn-ness of his orcish blood is keeping him standing now.

    (Giggles is at -10 and Staggered, but due to his orc ferocity racial, he will get one final swing unless Aliani/Silas/Dalen manage to drop him to negative Con before his turn comes up again. That shouldn't be very difficult to accomplish given he's already at -10.)
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  3. - Top - End - #273
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Silas

    Seeing that the half-orc hadn't fallen, Silas stepped into a position to assist Miz before Giggles could retaliate. With sword in hand, he swung it down upon the doomed creature.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    MW Falchion
    Attack: (1d20+8)[16]
    Damage: (2d4+4)[11]
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  4. - Top - End - #274
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Silas winds up, and as Giggles struggles to pull his arm back for a final strike, rushes forward and in a sweep of his sword separates the half-orc's head from his shoulders.
    Giggles' head rolls across the floor, coming to a stop with an expression of mirth still frozen on its face.
    A chorus of gasps come from the assembled children, although it sounds more like an "oh wow!" gasp of awe than an "oh no!" gasp of horror.

    Tucked into the half-orc's belt are two more finger-sized vials filled with a turquoise liquid, similar to the one that he drank to heal his wounds.

    On Yargin's body are an array of vials and flasks of chemicals that only make sense to Miz, as well as two wands, one wooden one pockmarked with acid, and the other one made of obsidian.
    Dalen & Aliani recognize them as the wand of Acid Splash that Yargin carried previously, and the obsidian wand that was in Gaedren Lamm's stash - that one seems . . . different, somehow.
    He also has a small brass key that Aliani & Dalen know unlocks a small money cabinet in Yargin's office on the side of the Fishery.

    Other than that, only the weapons and armor that they carry are of any note.

    (Miz/Aliani is able to patch up Yargin, Thug #4, and Hookshanks, if they so desire to save them from bleeding out. Either should be able to just take 10 now, and should be able to get to all of them before they all bleed out, if they care to save them).

    Spoiler: Loot
    Show

    -Giggles-
    1 Chainmail
    1 Flail
    2 Potions of CLW?

    -Hookshanks-
    Studded Leather Armor (Small)
    Masterwork Kukri (Small)

    -Yargin-
    Chain Shirt
    Wand of Acid Splash (28 Charges)
    Wand (23 Charges - CL 3!)
    Key to Money Cabinet (Yargin's Office)

    -Thugs-
    Leather Armor x 5
    Club x 5
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  5. - Top - End - #275
    Ogre in the Playground
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Aliani bent over, tending to the nameless thug long enough to ensure he wouldn’t bleed out, even as he looked sadly at the other, more familiar villains.

    ”They made their choices. Leave them. We need to find Lamm, quickly. Mind the walkway outside, it’s rotted out.

    “Are you all feeing okay?”


    It was only then that he finally remembered the children around. In the heat of battle, such as it was, he was a bit ashamed to admit that they’d become a secondary consideration. Standing up and sheathing his morningstar, he looked around the catwalk, not quite sure how to proceed.
    Last edited by Stelio Kontos; 2018-06-10 at 06:02 PM.

  6. - Top - End - #276
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Seeing as Lamm's dogs were dealt with, Miz took advantage of the lull to quickly staunch the alchemist's wounds. She took the opportunity to relieve the man of his possessions, holding out the wands for who ever would take them.

    She cast a look around the room and frowned. Turning again she addressed her companions in mangled elven

    <"Any o' you want ta speak ta the tots, maybe squeeze em for info 'fore we finish things outside?">

    Spoiler
    Show
    stabilize Yargin

    Taking a 10 and a -2 for not using a healing kit resulting in a 16
    Last edited by Steveodore; 2018-06-09 at 09:07 PM.

  7. - Top - End - #277
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    "Absolutely no, we're not 'squeezing' them for anything" Aliani replied in Common with a withering glare. "We know why we're here and where to go. If you want me to get them busy packing while you head downstairs, then fine."
    Last edited by Stelio Kontos; 2018-06-09 at 10:20 PM.

  8. - Top - End - #278
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Silas

    The bruised tiefling caught himself before letting out a chuckle at the final resting expression of the half-orc.

    'At least I didn't waste the poison. Sleep well, Giggles.'

    In an effort to increase his chances of survival for the night, Silas looted a single vial from Giggles and drank it quickly. Not much time left before the troops upstairs wake. Stepping away from his sarcasm, Silas putted the head out of his way as he walked toward the children. For the moment, he sheathed his sword and held his hands out. No need to approach innocents with a threatening appearance. He looked to Aliani.

    'The miss meant nothing by it - just her way. Here, take these. They'll need some coin to start fresh. I trust you can look after them while we finalize our mission? Those thugs might not wake up friendly.'

    Silas removed a silver for every child from his pouch, handing them to Aliani. With his hand outstretched, the tiefling let out a wheezing cough, forcing his body to bend over. After a moment, he stood himself upright and let out a few quick breaths. Nodding, he finished giving the half-elf his coins.

    'Let's crack on.'

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Removed 1x Potion of CLW from Giggles. Consumed.

    Potion of CLW: (1d8+1)[6] That should put me at 20/27.

    Paying Aliani 1x silver per child for later.
    Last edited by PiccadillyPi; 2018-06-10 at 01:00 AM.
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  9. - Top - End - #279
    Troll in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    A dozen children in all cautiously step out from their places around the periphery of the room, lining up to receive a silver piece from Aliani.
    One of them, a tiny halfling girl with a crooked nose (due to it being broken at some point in the past and not set properly) looks up at the group of heroes with a cold stare.

    "So what do you wanna know?"

    Meanwhile, from the hole in the floor, a voice yells up from a rowboat that has been tied to one of the moorings that the Fishery rested on (at least, you assume there's a rowboat below the hole at the moment, as otherwise the man would be swimming in shark-infested waters).

    "Oi up there! You gonna lift up this next crate or what!? What's going on up there!? . . . Hullo!?"
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  10. - Top - End - #280
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Silas

    The dandy bowed away from the children while drawing his sword again. Staying away from the hole from which the voice is calling, he gave Dalen a wave for his assistance. Afterwards, he stepped lightly toward the source of the call, staying away just enough that he could jump in at any moment without giving himself away immediately.
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  11. - Top - End - #281
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Miz held up a taloned finger to her mouth for quiet before turning her back on the children and moving alongside Silas. Miz didn't fancy the drop to below into either the boat or the water. With a bit of concentration she reverted her form back to her neutral state before immediately changing into another, drawing on her winged aspect. While she didn't truly have wings in this state, her bones and body adapted to reduce long falls, mighty handy to have in the shingles.

    Spoiler
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    move action to return to her normal state per her racial ability and then a standard action to gain a new beastiar feature, this one treats falling damage as 20 ft less then it is. I don't know if this nullifies it or not though.

  12. - Top - End - #282
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Aliani gave Silas a quizzical glance as the coins were handed over, taking note of the wheezing cough, but took a seat on the ground nonetheless, patting the ground next to him to try to get the children to sit down. "You be sure to thank Mr. Silas for these when he comes back, okay?" he said to each child with a soft, soothing whisper. "He's just trying to make you feel better."

    The little halfling brought him to a state of distress; it was clear that he was having a bit of trouble holding it together. "You don't need to tell us anything, it's okay, but if you want to you can tell me anything you want. Do you understand why we're here? We're here to help you, so nobody can hurt you any more, and take you to people who will take good care of you and make you all better. We can talk about where you might want to go a little later, but right now do you think you can gather up whatever things you can, like clothes and things? You have to do it super-duper quietly though, we don't want to wake up the sleeping men until later. It'll be like a little game. Whoever does it the quietest gets to ask Mr. Silas for another coin as soon as he comes back! But I need to make him feel better first."

    He stood up and placed a hand on Silas's shoulder, speaking in hushed tones into his ear as one might tell a nursery rhyme to a child about to go to bed.

    "Valiant fought 'gainst mighty foes,
    Through my words may your wounds close."


    "Have Dalen show you the way down, don't let him have an escape route. I'll get the kids started and be right behind you. Be warned: that man will say terrible things to you remind you of every taunt you ever heard, every mistake you ever made. Don't let him get to you. Don't let anger take over. That's what he wants, to make you feel as he feels, to hate as he hates. You are better than him. Show him why."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    I'll, uh, take 10 on Diplomacy to deal with the kids, if it's necessary (result =18)
    Will dump a Shield of Faith spell to convert to a Cure Light Wounds for Silas; healing for (1d8+3)[11]

  13. - Top - End - #283
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Dalen quietly pockets the wands when Miz offers them. He'll properly examine them later. As Silas moves towards the hole, "let's head around; there's a way down, but we must proceed cautiously," he leads Silas and Miz around back to the boat and way down. As he proceeds, he mentions, "the derelict boat out back hides a way to the lower levels. It's floor is rotted and weak, so only one passes through at a time. Also there are some... vermin in there. Not a major threat, but watch out for them,"

    Once they are outside, Dalen whistles for his familiar, "spy below, but be nonchalant. Don't alert anyone down there to our approach,"

  14. - Top - End - #284
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Silas

    The ranger tried his best to take Aliani's words to heart while thanking him for renewing his bruised body, but they were there to kill Gaedren after all. Mercy would only suffice for as long as an interrogation held. With that in mind he made way following Dalen to the ship - careful along the backalley dock. Briefly he wondered if sharks prefered planar or extraplanar meat whilst carefully stepping on what he assumed to be the most sturdy parts of the dock.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Taking 10 (10) acrobatics to travel along the right-side dock leading to the ship.
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  15. - Top - End - #285
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Aliani's approach to speaking to the children was wearing thin on Miz, his words were also making her increasingly uncomfortable. As far as Miz was concerned, shoving a few silvers into their small hands an giving them each a kick on their way out was plenty enough for the brats. It was certainly a better deal then she got, and look what she made of her self!

    She wasting time here as Dalen and Silas peeled off. She shrugged off niggling thought and crept after them. She took her cues on where to step from Silas as they made their way through this derelict area.

    Spoiler
    Show
    As with Silas, Miz takes a 10 on acrobatics to traverse the sketchy floor.

  16. - Top - End - #286
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    (I will assume that Aliani will bring up the rear, and Dalen will allow Miz and Silas to proceed ahead of him towards the boat.)

    It's clear that the children don't have much belongings at all, as only a few move to dig a few coppers hidden out of small hiding places, and not much else save for a few small personal effects. They one and all have pretty much the clothes on their backs and that's about it.

    "You're going to get us in trouble."

    The halfling girl promises as way of good-bye after Aliani asks the group of children to stay there while they all go outside to deal with Lamm. Still, dealing with the children slows Aliani a bit, and so he ends up bringing up the rear of the group as it makes its way down the catwalk out to Lamm’s boat.

    Darvin's thrush returns a minute after being sent off to report "three down below, three up on the ship".

    Coming around the side of the Fishery on the walkway that snakes around to the boat, the group sees that the scouting report is true - there are three people standing on top of the boat's rickety deck, waiting for them. Gaedren Lamm, some platinum blond man in studded leather armor who was probably Brendan of Brendan's Blackguards, and someone that Aliani and Dalen both recognize - Cykan! Lamm himself also seemed different from how each of the group remembers him as well - although still old and withered, he held himself differently. Less hunched over, eyes more focused, and with an air of danger about him that wasn't there before.

    "So this is the group that was making such a ruckus a minute ago. Well well well . . . if it isn't Silas, the man who sold his own daughter for a vial of Shiver. Afraid I'm fresh out at the moment, but I'm sure we could work something out if you need a fix. And little Miz! You're looking well for a dead 'un. Afraid I don't have time to catch up with you tonight poppet, I've got a city to destroy. As for you two . . . I don't recognize either of you."

    Lamm waves a dismissive hand at both Aliani and Dalen.

    "So what, you two both do-gooders just here for moral support after my two old friends told you a sob story about how ol' Gaedren wronged them? Come here to avenge some loved one? Well I don't have time to play right now, I've got places to be. So do the job you got paid for, Blackguard, and deal with these louts."

    Gaedren grumbles, slapping a vial of something filled with a pus-colored liquid up against Brendan's chest. Miz recognizes it for what it is immediately having seen it before - a vial of Shudder. The hired thug leader looks down skeptically at the offered vial, then shrugs and grabs it off of Gaedren, pops off the cork, and reads off of the small paper tag attached to the vial while biting into his thumb and dribbling a few drops of his blood into the vial (clearly following the instructions on the tag).

    “Bound by blood, the pact is forged. Bound by soul, the door is opened. Offer me your strength, and I shall offer You my flesh. Grant me the power to exterminate my enemies!”

    And then without another moment’s hesitation, Brendan downs the vial's contents with a grimace of disgust. For a moment nothing seems to happen . . . then the screaming starts.

    Shudder Musical Theme

    YEEEEAAAAARRRRGHHHHH!!!!”

    Brendan howls, falling to his knees and clawing at his right eye as it goes from clear, to blood-shot, to bright red and swelling with excess blood. But when the eye bursts a moment later, it’s not blood that rushes through the man’s fingers and down the side of his face, but a viscous ink-colored liquid. Brendan’s screams immediately turns to mad laughter as the veins on his neck bulge, black lines standing out against his otherwise pale skin, and a nimbus of dark energy flares up around him.

    “HAHAHAHAHA! FOOLS! BLIND MEN! DO YOU NOT SEE!? DO YOU NOT COMPREHEND!?”

    Brendan shouts as he rises back up to his feet, and then further upward, floating up into the air as if dragged there by an unseen hand.

    “THE BLEEDING EYE TURNS ITS GAZE TOWARDS KORVOSA! AND THIS CITY! SHALL! BURN!!!!”

    Brendan waves his hand casually, and a dark wave of energy lashes out from the man, slamming into the catwalk that winds its way around the boat and shattering it. What starts as a simple collapse of a few boards near the boat turns into a wave of destruction that races back along the catwalk, destroying the entire structure all the way back to the shore.

    Deprived of its support for all these long years, the old boat lists heavily. Cykan slides across its width, grabbing the edge and dropping some sort of stone into the water off the side of the boat. The water there immediately begins to bubble and roil, and amazingly the boat begins to level off again, and drift out towards the middle of the river. It should continue to sink and eventually settle onto the river bottom, but somehow the rickety thing continues to float off – well, that was certainly new! Lamm maintains his footing, leaning over the side chortling at you all and waving good-bye as your already fragile footing collapses beneath you.

    (Please make a Reflex Save DC 15. Dalen gets a +2 bonus, and Aliani gets a +5 bonus, due to them being further back along the catwalk and thus having more time to react to the catwalk’s destruction. If you succeed, you may choose the exact square within the orange area that you land in, otherwise roll a d4 for across (left to right) and a d10 (top to bottom) to determine where in the water you end up in. You get your first round of actions now. Due to all of the debris from the catwalk in the water, you get a +5 bonus to Swim checks so long as you have a hand free to grab a piece of driftwood and cannot drown – should you even end up in the water. If you make the Reflex save, and choose to land on the walkway just above the water’s surface that the thugs are standing on, you may do so, but must make a DC 10 Acrobatics check or start your turn prone – you do not take any falling damage, however, regardless of whether you land on the walkway or in the water. If in a water square adjacent to the walkway or rowboat, you may pull yourself out of the water onto dry “land” as a Move action that provokes attacks of opportunity as per normal movement from a threatened square. Thugs are obviously standing on solid ground, the shark is cutting through the water, and Brendan is about 15' up in the air at this moment.)

    Spoiler: Map
    Show


    Last edited by Inspectre; 2018-06-12 at 07:54 PM.
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  17. - Top - End - #287
    Ogre in the Playground
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Aliani started to say something, to even as Lamm continued his rant, but found himself struggling with the overall comprehension of the situation. All he could do was mutter "something like that" in reply to his last retort. The blackguard's transformation brought any thoughts of doing more than that to a swift and terrifying halt. This was not how it was supposed to be.

    The sudden sensation of being thrust bodily into the air -- actually, a twin thrust, as the effect of the catwalk levering him first into the air and then, just as contact with the board was about to be released, flinging him forward away from the building and into the water -- no, wait, not quite into the water. Time slowed down; oddly, Aliani found himself deep in thought while the total helplessness of unintentional flight took over. Okay, calm down. You wouldn't be here if you weren't meant to do this. Just because you know you're hopelessly overmatched, they don't know that. If you let your friends see that you think you're going to fail, they'll think they will too. They are here to watch and protect you. You're here for that man, and to die if you must. Have faith. Think...

    Even as he reached the height of his parabolic arc, a calm came over Aliani. He found himself reaching back toward his pack, pulling out a small scroll case and deftly pulling the outermost of the scrolls into his hand. The case itself was back in the pack as his feet touched the remaining walkway; miraculously, he found himself remaining upright, sliding toward the edge... and stopping against the slightly raised edge of the final board. Praise be.

    Scanning the scroll before him with his eyes, he ignored all that was around him -- the floating possessed man in midair, the blackguard thugs about to tear him to bits -- and found his voice.

    "Gaedren Lamm! For years you have run from those you have wronged, failed to repair that which you have damaged. But your time is over. Approach, and meet your final fate."

    He flung the now-useless piece of paper into the sea.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    I'll land on the very corner of the L shaped walkway, close enough to...
    Move action: draw scroll from scroll case
    Standard action: cast Command from scroll at Gaedren Lamm (command: Approach. He can swim for it.)

  18. - Top - End - #288
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    The man who sold his own daughter for a vial of Shiver.

    Silas huffed at every word. There were skeletons for every man to keep hidden from others. Sometimes they took the form of a family member. In his case, it was a deed he performed. Unforgivable, indescribable, and truly the only thing that could shake him awake from an otherwise restful slumber.

    As the ramshackled docks stirred, Silas realized just in time what was about to happen. A few steps forward, and he leaped to the walkway below, slipping on the slick surface from years of algae and poor upkeep. A flurry of words cursing his luck flew around his mind with a single simple word escaping his lips.

    'Damn!'

    His aura turned an angry red. Being so caught off-guard by a monster like Gaedren was not a well feeling to be had. As well, the fact that he would almost certainly get away before Silas could get a word (or a sword) in.

    In an effort to exit his rage, he rose from the floor, too tightly holding his weapon with growls echoing from his being. He stepped toward the nearest creature guilty of conspiring with Gaedren while hefting his blade up from below in a sweeping strike.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Land against the rear door.
    Move action: stand.
    5-foot step toward thug #3
    Attack with falchion.

    Attack: (1d20+8)[24]
    Damage: (2d4+4)[7]
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  19. - Top - End - #289
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Hesitation is a wizard's enemy. Powerful wizards can wield contingencies and can be more confident, but Dalen? No, Dalen was not powerful. He'd been busy taking in all the differences and thinking about what they meant. He hadn't seen any ranged weapons. He'd presumed he was safe from that vantage. Presumptions like that would be the death of him, "next time, I strike first," he mutters as he grasps at the side of the building and slides down with more grace than was typical of him.

    He takes only a moment to collect himself, not even taking full appraisal of the situation before begin to cast his final sleep spell of the day.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show

    Dalen lands right next to the door, 10 feet below thug 3

    Dalen casts sleep. 1 round casting time so everyone gets to act before the spell completes. If positioning doesn't change, Dalen will attempt to target thugs 1 and 2. If the positioning changes such that he can also target thug 3 then that's great. Keeping Miz out of the area of effect is important, but Aliani and Silas are immune.
    Last edited by Darvin; 2018-06-13 at 05:47 PM.

  20. - Top - End - #290
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Maintenance post in preparation for next round.

    Spoiler: Saves
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    Gaedren Lamm vs. Command (Note that since it's a Scroll, I believe the DC should be reduced.)
    Will Save: (1d20+4)[22]

    And Silas's falchion is still poisoned as far as I know, so . . .
    Thug #3 Fort save versus poison
    Fort Save: (1d20+4)[16]


    Gaedren and the Thug are both fine, having passed their Saves unfortunately.
    Last edited by Inspectre; 2018-06-13 at 08:30 PM.
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  21. - Top - End - #291
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Her eyes were locked onto Gaedren from the moment he appeared, and a maddening whispering grew in the back of her head. There he was so close at hand but a watery abyss lay between her twitching claws and her prey. She almost missed the yellow vial, the shudder had Gaedren's hand in it? Was she chasing him from the beginning? So many questions, so many thoughts she had neither the time or inclination to examine with Gaedren so close and the whispering so loud.

    It was almost a relief when the catwalk collaped and her thoughts were pushed aside by imminent danger. She easily landed on walkway below thanks to her altered physique. She found herself beside Aliani and slipped past him to stand abreast of the ship ahead. As he fired off a rapid incantation she hefted a weighted dart and cast it at Gaedren's mocking grin.

    She kept an eye on the blackguards to their left, and another for the possessed man hovering above. Gaedren might be out of reach so now she was in need of something to occupy her hands.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Land right below Aliani and move past him to stand two spaces to his left.

    Equip and throw a Dart at Gaedren on the HMS scumbag.

    Attack (1d20+5)[24]
    Damage (1d4+5)[7]
    Last edited by Steveodore; 2018-06-14 at 02:37 AM.

  22. - Top - End - #292
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    At Aliani's Command, Gaedren pinches his nose shut with one hand and extends a foot off the side of the boat as if he is about to jump into the water.
    And then he steps back away from the edge and lifts his hand away from his nose to spread his arms wide with a cackling laugh.

    "Nice try, kid! But you're going to have to do better than that if you want -"

    Running up beside Aliani, Miz winds up and pitches a dart across the distance, the point of the weapon slicing a bloody red line across Gaedren's face as it skips off his right cheekbone, missing his right eye an inch or less.
    The crime lord immediately stops laughing, reaching a hand up to incredulously dab at his face, scowling as he looks down at his fingers to see them stained red with his own blood.

    "So it's gonna be like that, eh!? Fine then! Next time I'll make sure you're dead, poppet! Count on it!"

    Gaedren curses, while at the same time cautiously slinking back into the ship's cabin, clearly wary of the group having a proper archer among the group as the rickety old ship continues to drift off deeper into the middle of the Jeggare River.
    Aliani sees a long dark shape emerge from the shadows of the Fishery's support pilings, rapidly darting through the water to follow the ship - Gobblegut, Lamm's pet alligator.

    Meanwhile, Silas exchanges blows with the thug closest to the door to Gaedren's lair, the door to which still hangs partially ajar from Brendan's minions moving in and out of the hideout room beneath the old Fishery.
    The tiefling's blow does not fell the thug, but the thug staggers back from the blow.

    Spoiler: Thug #3
    Show

    Attack vs. Silas
    To-Hit: (1d20+4)[20]
    Damage: (1d6+2)[6]


    The man's return blow strikes Silas a glancing blow across the chest, but his armor and thick skin manage to prevent any actual harm (but only just!)

    Sliding down the wall, Dalen lands on his feet and begins casting his last Sleep spell for the day.
    Meanwhile, the thug on the boat attempts to leap across the narrow gap between the boat and the walkway, going after Aliani.

    Spoiler: Thug #2
    Show

    Move: Needs to make an acrobatics check to leap across the water to reach Aliani. Should only be DC 5 to clear the 5' of water between the boat and walkway
    Acrobatics: (1d20+1)[4]
    -If he makes it-
    Move to Aliani and attack, otherwise he'll haul himself up onto the walkway next to Aliani for his Standard action instead.
    To-Hit: (1d20+4)[11]
    Damage: (1d6+2)[5]


    He doesn't quite manage, tripping on the rim of the rowboat and splashing down into the water before clawing his way up onto the walkway behind Aliani soaking wet.

    Descending from on high like some sort of nightmarish deity, Brendan lands at the far end of the walkway, right next to his last subordinate who is working up his courage to step forward and attack Miz.
    The thug looks over his shoulder and blinks in shock as he gets a good up-close look at Brendan's oozing eye socket.

    "B-Boss!? What do you want me to do?"

    "Die for me."

    Is all Brendan replies, a ghastly smile tugging at his lips.

    "W-What?"

    "DIE FOR ME!"

    Spoiler: Brendan's Actions
    Show

    Move: Land at the end of the pier
    Standard: Shoot Thug #1 in the chest with an Empowered Pushing Gravity Kinetic Blast, going against his flat-footed AC of 12 as Thug #1 is definitely not expecting this.
    To-Hit: (1d20+5)[17]
    Damage: (3d6+3)[11] * 1.5 = 16 Damage

    Brendan gains a point of Burn, taking 5 Damage (he auto-negates the Burn from Pushing Infusion due to Infusion Specialization)


    The Shudder-crazed thug howls, as he raises a hand and summons a blast of purplish-black energy that spears his followers through the chest.
    The man's chest explodes in an eruption of blood and chunks of gore that splatter across the walkway, a few drops even reaching Miz.
    A look of shocked betrayal on his face, the man tumbles backward off the pier into the water.
    The dark fin that had been circling around out in the water starts moving closer.
    Brendan swoons as a fresh eruption of ink-colored blood boils out of his eye socket.
    But he recovers his manic swagger a moment later.

    "WHO WANTS TO BE NEXT!?"

    Spoiler: Map
    Show




    Spoiler: Summary
    Show

    Brendan - 5 Damage, 1 Burn
    Thug #1 - 16 Damage, Dying and SHARK FOOD
    Thug #2
    Thug #3 - 7 Damage
    Last edited by Inspectre; 2018-06-14 at 08:05 PM.
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  23. - Top - End - #293
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    PiccadillyPi's Avatar

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    Oct 2017

    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Silas

    As the thug's attack was deflected, Silas could only give him an ambivalent glare - somewhere between hatred and pity. However, the explosion of guts nearby gave him some pause from his rage. He lost himself for a fraction of a moment, blinding him from the danger of their current situation. In an effort to wind down, he mustered a few words to remove the thug from his path.

    'Out of the way!'

    Unfortunately for the thug, this request came with swings attached.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Falchion
    Attack: (1d20+8)[15]
    Damage: (2d4+4)[9]

    If Thug #3 dies (or gets out of the way), Silas will move to flank Thug #2.
    Last edited by PiccadillyPi; 2018-06-15 at 01:25 AM.
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  24. - Top - End - #294
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
    Steveodore's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Miz's lip twitched upward as Lamm's mockery was cut short. It wasn't Gaedren's head on a plate, but it was a taste. The promise of another opportunity to kill him brightened this dismal situation considerably for Miz, at least for a moment. It was a pretty short moment as Brenden demonstrated his new power, it wasn't like anything she'd seen before and she didn't like the look of it at all!

    Miz was rather wishing she prepared more infusions today. She had what she had so she made the best of it. She downed one of her infusions and stepped up to the shudder-mad gangster.

    Spoiler
    Show
    Standard Action: Miz drinks her shield Infusion making her 19 AC go up to 23 AC for 3 minutes.

    Move Action: Moves to stand next to Brenden.

  25. - Top - End - #295
    Ogre in the Playground
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Dalen watches the thugs fall. One left, simple enough. He focuses the effect near Aliani - hoping his elven heritage wasn't too diluted - and attempts to bring down the thug next to him. The spell expended and his concentration freed, he cries out to a familiar he can't quite find amid the chaos: "Rhetoric, pursue!"

    Dalen turns to Brendan with a look of disdain. There's a nagging tug at the back of his mind, a reminder of his rapidly depleting magic; a warning to be ignored in such a situation. He begins to weave his magic, drawing upon its most unusual verbal components, "it seems Gaedren has an eye for talent. Shame it cost you one,"

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show

    Dalen casts Hideous Laughter on Brendan. DC 19 negates.
    Last edited by Darvin; 2018-06-15 at 05:24 PM.

  26. - Top - End - #296
    Ogre in the Playground
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    Illinois, USA
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Aliani froze, staring down the clearly possessed monster of a man, trying to comprehend (without any success whatever) the evils of the world condensed into such a small space, not to mention how the group would possibly cope. They'd need a distraction, but distractions were in short supply. The most expendable...

    "I'll be next" he found himself saying out loud, voice cracking a bit, before the parts of the brain inclined toward self-preservation kicked in. Oh, ****.

    It was at that moment that first the thug right next to him collapsed in sleep onto the walkway, and then that ... thing .. collapsed in peals of laughter. He looked at Miz and Silas next to their respective targets. A wave of relief came over him. "I trust you can handle this mess?"

    "He's going to get away, you know" he continued as he walked back toward the building, in a tone that said that was precisely the worst thing in the world that could possibly have happened -- rather surprising given the number of other contenders from the evening's events. "I'm sorry. He was my responsibility. I'm sorry."

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Action: move back up the walkway I do want to keep a view on the two, especially Brendan obviously, because...
    Ready action: If Brendan does anything other than continue laughing, I'll cast hold person on him.

  27. - Top - End - #297
    Dwarf in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Seeing the vulnerable state their foe was suddenly in, Miz closed in quickly to finish him off. She worked quickly to butcher Brenden, her mechanical slashes picked up into a frenzied pace as Miz began to lose herself in her urgency. Soon she fell onto Brenden completely, her attacks taking on a feral tone.

    Spoiler
    Show

    Three rounds of attacks!

    1st round
    First slash
    A:(1d20+7)[9]
    D:(1d6+5)[6]
    Second slash
    A:(1d20+7)[16]
    D:(1d6+5)[7]

    2nd round
    First slash
    A:(1d20+7)[11]
    D:(1d6+5)[9]
    Second slash
    A:(1d20+7)[22]
    D:(1d6+5)[11]

    3rd round
    First slash
    A:(1d20+7)[8]
    D:(1d6+5)[9]
    Second slash
    A:(1d20+7)[22]
    D:(1d6+5)[8]
    Bite
    A:(1d20+7)[18]
    D:(1d8+5)[10]

    Fort save:
    (1d20+3)[23]

  28. - Top - End - #298
    Barbarian in the Playground
     
    PiccadillyPi's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    Spoiler: Based on the OOC, this is just to help speed up the combat - barring any surprises.
    Show
    Silas

    As the thug in front of him fell unconscious, the last bit of spittle flew from his teeth - one last breath to release his most immediate emotions.

    In part of watching Miz tear into the laughing man, Silas put his sword away to draw and load his crossbow. It was somewhat fascinating in a macabre sort of way. Turning his attention briefly Aliani, he gave him a concerned glance. They'd have to talk in a minute as there was still the matter of Brendan to deal with.

    Spoiler: OOC
    Show
    Round one: Put away sword, draw light crossbow.
    Round two: Load and fire with -4 for shooting into melee.
    (1d20+2)[6]
    (1d8)[2]
    Round three: Load and fire with -4 for shooting into melee.
    (1d20+2)[4]
    (1d8)[4]
    ~ Piccadilly Pineapple

  29. - Top - End - #299
    Troll in the Playground
     
    Inspectre's Avatar

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    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    The thing that was Brendan crashes to the pier, laughing with an intensity such that even Dalen can't tell how much is due to his magic and how much is from the Shudder-induced madness.

    "Heeheeheehee - you have, hah, no idea what's, hoho, coming, do you? Heeheehee . . . City shall burn, city shall rot, abandon what hope you have got!"

    Brendan cackles in a sing-song tone, which seems to be the tipping point for Miz as she leaps onto the man and furiously hacks at him with her claws.
    She picks up the pace with her strikes as the man continues laughing rather than howling in pain as his chest is shredded, black blood oozing from the wounds.
    Finally in desperation, as Brendan's laughter begins to subside, she leans down and tears out his throat with her teeth.
    (That last bite and the to-hit bonus from prone was literally the difference between Brendan hitting negatives and still being up right now . . . tough bastard!)

    Miz had been holding back from employing her teeth as her alchemical knowledge gave her an awareness of the dangers of getting the blood of a man high on a Shiver-derivative into her mouth, but her desperation overcame her concern.
    She spat out the man's tainted meat immediately as he breathed his last but she felt some of his blood ooze into the back of her mouth and down her throat, almost as if it moved with a mind of its own!?
    Miz gagged and fell to her knees, looking about her surrounding wildly for a moment.

    Spoiler: For Miz's Eyes Only
    Show

    For a moment after Brendan's blood finds its way down your throat you blink and see the world around you very differently.
    Korvosa is burning - no, Korvosa is being consumed by flame, an inferno that stretches across the entire cityscape from the northernmost point on the island of Old Korvosa to the noble estates in South Shore.
    Even from here along the river, you can hear the wailing chorus of screams from people as they and their loved ones fell victim to the flames, burning away to ash even though they should have died from asphyxiation long before then.

    Since learning of the Great Fire that nearly consumed the city over two centuries ago before it was stopped by the heroism, leadership, and self-sacrifice of Saint Alika, one of the few Varisians respected and honored by even the Chelish citizens of Korvosa, you had wondered what it would be like.
    To see a wall of fire washing across the city and burning away all the casual racism, the class-ism, that you had to put up with on a daily basis - perhaps on your darkest days you had even wished for something like this.
    But no, this . . . this was a horror, a nightmare from which nothing would escape and no one would survive this time.
    You were looking into Hell.

    In the middle of this destruction a dark winged shape towers over the conflagration, impossibly huge, although you cannot make out the details beyond its size due to the haze of smoke plumes between you and the center, the cause, of this terror.
    That is very good, for neither can it see you, you are sure, and yet the towering shape speaks.

    I CAN SEE YOU, LITTLE RAT.

    Only Gaedren *ever* called you his 'little rat", and although you are certain this was not some Shudder-infused Gaedren Lamm the use of that phrase made you feel even smaller than you already felt in the face of this. Insignificant. Powerless.

    I CAN SMELL YOUR FEAR. SO AFRAID. SO ALONE. BUT I CAN DELIVER YOU FROM THIS FATE. MAKE A PACT WITH ME AND I WILL GIVE YOU POWER BEYOND EVEN THIS. YOU KNOW WHAT YOU MUST DO.
    COME TO ME. OR DIE WITH THESE OTHER RATS!


    And then the vision abruptly ends, as you force your mouth open, bend out over the water, and . . .


    And then, she does something that Miz has not done in many years, since an inexperienced street rat on her own ate a piece of trash that was too far gone to be edible.
    She empties the contents of her stomach into the Jeggare River.
    Included with the half-digested fragments of her last meal is a glob of thick black liquid which slowly breaks apart as it sinks into the darkness of the Jeggare River.
    Miz retches again, washing her mouth out with a handful of dirty river water as nearby the water thrashes as the shark finally arrives and starts digesting its own meal of the thug that Brendan blasted almost into literal pieces.

    While this drama is playing out, Silas cuts down the thug he was fighting, Dalen puts the last one to sleep, and Aliani goes back into the Fishery to collect the thugs, their weapons, and the children.
    The question now was . . . what were you going to do now?

    (7 of the 8 Brendan's Blackguards thugs are unconscious but alive, Hookshanks and Yargin are also savable if desired.
    Giggles and Brendan are dead.
    Gaedren's lair is basically stripped bare, although part of his treasure is likely in the boxes upstairs in the cart - you'll have to check those to determine what portions of his treasure you have also acquired.
    Rheotric is off following Gaedren's boat at a safe distance as it continues to drift north down the river towards Old Korvosa.
    There are 12 children present.
    Staying here is unwise, as the whole Fishery is unstable after Brendan's little temper tantrum.
    Plus, someone might burn it down given nobody actually likes Gaedren Lamm.)
    I didn't actually intend to kill EVERYONE. It just sort of happened.

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  30. - Top - End - #300
    Ogre in the Playground
    Join Date
    Jan 2017

    Default Re: The Crimson Echo IC

    "We should head topside. It seems everything of value is loaded into the wagon, and we should make our way off with that before anyone else can. My sleep spells should last a minute yet, but that leaves no time for dallying. My familiar, Rhetoric, will follow Lamm and determine his new whereabouts. We'll pursue at a more opportune time," Dalen grimaces, not mentioning to his allies just how close he came to fully depleting himself.

    In truth, he felt inadequate here. It wasn't that this was a bad outcome, or he'd somehow failed. It was that he couldn't do more. That he lacked the power to pursue Lamm and press their initiative. It was a matter that urgently needed addressing. He sighed, and turned his attention towards returning to the upper level and the cart.

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