[WFRP] The Bloody Crown IX

[LeSwordfish]

"You heard him!" Ludo shouted. "Turns out, we're going to have to win this war for Sforza on our own! Don't let them past the wall!"

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Load and Aim crossbow

[Erulasto]

Astoria cast a glance towards the murky pool, then once more around as if assessing the ways they could fall back if necessary. Elsa’s dire words were likely true. It would be exceptionally troublesome to flee into the winding passages of the Karst, at night, with Alvarr’s forces hot on their heels. Perhaps even likely they’d be split up during the flight.

Easy to be picked off in the dark.

With sword in hand, Astoria bent down to grab the healing draught she kept in her bag. It hadn’t seen any use since she had received it before the battle against the Jarl, but unarmoured, the Estalian felt a bit more confident with it tucked safely into a pouch at her belt.

Shielding her eyes from the bright flare of Elsa’s wall of fire suddenly piercing the gloom of night, she remained as close to the Wizard as she could.

”Can we use the water to cover a flank?” She asked, brow creased with concern as she watched Alvarr’s forces pressing forward.

[LCP]

Elsa, Ludo, Sieghard & Astoria, 11th Sommerzeit

Practically invisible against the night sky, Morrslieb swooped low over the soldiers pouring out of the rocks. A wall of flame slashed across his wake, cutting off the men at the forefront of the charge and bottlenecking the greater number behind its sudden roar of fire and smoke.

With shouts and curses, Alvarr’s men on the near side of the spell halted the charge. Only around twenty had made it through, not enough to charge headlong into an enemy camp. A sergeant shouted for them to spread out, and they began to spread into a long line, hunkered down behind their shields as they waited for more of their fellows to join them. Elsa’s spell wasn’t quite long enough to plug the gully behind them, and more men-at-arms were worming through the narrow gaps to either side. The wild rush had been slowed to a steady trickle, but they were still coming – Ludo guessed they might have a minute at most before the Duke’s men would have the numbers to attack.

The light from the fire revealed something else: figures up in the rocks to the west, the other side of the pool. There weren’t many of them, but they had bows. Even as Sieghard was barking his orders, arrows were beginning to zip down into the camp. One hissed over Elsa’s shoulder, shattering its shaft against the stone a few feet behind her. A wide miss, but still too close for comfort.

The appearance of the archers was no help in a camp already on the edge of panic. As the militia scrambled this way and that, tripping over each other in the dark, Heinfried and Ingwald seemed to be questioning Sieghard’s orders.

“They’ve got us!” Heinfried was saying, fear written clearly on his face. “We’re ****ed, we’re ****ing ****ed.”

“We’ve got to fall back, boss!” Ingwald shouted, as Hanna tried to marshal the headless chickens of the Thorn into one group. He pointed back north, the way they had came. “We can lose them in the rocks!”

Nat at least was following orders without question. The battered survivors of the Volunteers had formed a thin line at the front of the camp, armed with whatever weapons they had to hand. Behind them, the Maneaters were lumbering forwards, hefting their huge mauls and cleavers as they came. Those weapons were hard to lose.

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As stated, you now have 1 minute until the attackers coming through the main passage will have critical mass for a charge. Please give me your plans for it in one go, not round by round.

The archers in the rocks will be shooting continuously; there aren't as many of them as the Thorns, but their position provides them with high ground and cover.

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

Sieghard spat a few curses of his own. The appearance of Alvarr's archers changed things significantly. For all they knew, there were more of them approaching from the other passages.

"Shields, cover us!" Sieghard shouted. "Everyone else, gather up your weapons and what else you can carry! We're falling back into the rocks!"

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Not trying to drag this out any longer than necessary while under arrow fire. We've got about a minute, but we don't have to cut it that close. As stated OOC, he'll make sure his armor isn't left behind.

(1d100)[9] vs 49 command
(1d100)[9] reroll.

If anyone wants to throw some tests of their own to help with this, it's a pretty important one.

Edit: Sieghard can roll well when he really needs to, thank goodness. He'll stick behind coordinating things until the last of the men and the shield wall withdraws. Elsa can drop another curtain behind us once we're safely (relatively speaking) in the north passage. A roll like that should be good for maintaining order in all this chaos, but if someone else wants to go ahead and make sure no one panics and goes off on their own to die, that's probably a good idea.

[LeSwordfish]

"Any archers who are ready, cover us!" Ludo shouted. "You've got bows too, you know?"

He fired a crossbow bolt up at the nearest group of archers, and bent to grab his pack off the ground.

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Shooting at the nearer archers. (1d100)[27] BS 48+Aim 10 -20 cover = 38?

(1d10+4)[6] damage.

[LCP]

Sieghard, Elsa, Astoria & Ludo, 11th Sommerzeit

Sieghard's voice cut through the chaos like a knife, finally imposing some purpose on the disarray of the camp. Only about half the Volunteers had managed to find their shields, but those had rushed over to the west side of the camp, raising them to try to shelter the others behind them. The value of the move was more psychological than tactical - with the height given to them by the quarry's lip, the archers in the rocks had no difficulty shooting over the shield-bearers' heads. Leaning forwards to get a decent shot, one of them got a nasty surprise as a bolt from Ludo's crossbow glanced across his shoulder, sending him falling back into cover with a string of pained curses.

Lending their voices to the call to retreat, Ingwald and Heinfriend helped whip the men around them into action, grabbing up what they could before running for the northmost cleft between the rocks. Sieghard was standing by to make sure no-one ran down the wrong passage in the dark, keeping the company together in its retreat. Shouts were rising from the spearmen who had already slipped past Elsa's curtain of flame, calling for their friends to hurry as they saw their prey slipping away. With the ogres still standing between them and the retreating militia, none were yet bold enough to rush forwards on their own.

The archers began to turn their attention on the Maneaters instead, Kulug and his brutes grunting in discomfort at the sting of iron arrowheads. They had clearly learned respect for Alvarr's bowmen after Arrow Heap - with the last of the humans retreating behind them, they too began to fall back, putting solid stone between themselves and their tormentors.

It was dark between the crags, the jagged rocks of the Karst quickly cutting out the light of the sorcerous fires behind them. Someone was clamouring for the torches, but no-one could produce them - with each of the militia carrying whatever they could grab from the campsite, no-one was sure who was carrying what. With Alvarr's men surely not far behind, there was no time to waste.

[-Sentinel-]

Elsa summoned some lights to guide their way, just to make sure no one twisted an ankle in a crevice. She remained among the rear guard, ever ready to cast another wall of fire behind them should the enemy start gaining on them.

Morrslieb. Please make sure the way ahead doesn't turn us around.

She sent some of her lights to the front, and kept the others evenly spaced along the length of the retreating army.


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I figure having some lights won't make us too visible, with all those walls around us. It's also possible to send them off along another passage, if we need a decoy.

Channeling 88: (d100)[38]
Marsh Lights 3+/6+: (d10)[5]

Passed thanks to Channeling.

[Erulasto]

The order to fall back was taken up by the Estalian, who quickly bent down to snatch up her pack and sling it over her shoulder. Astoria quickly surveyed their camp; despite the disarray of the hasty retreat, she looked for anyone who may have been struggling with breaking away.

”Hurry! By the Eagle! Be swift as a fox!” Shouted the knight. When she was convinced there was no one who needed immediate aid, she fell back to Elsa’s side. Her unease at being in the Karst in the dark was somewhat mitigated by the flickering witch-light she had conjured.

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Command check vs FEL 46

(1d100)[51]

[LeSwordfish]

"Stay together!" Ludo shouted, struggling not to get trampled in the rush. "Don't spread out and get lost!"

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"Good thinking with the lights," Sieghard told Elsa. "Once we reach the end of this passage, drop a new fire wall behind us. After we've put a bit more distance between us and them, we can spread some of those lights out to make it harder for them to follow."

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Here's my thought process... The first wall bought us some time, but we've probably used much of it and Alvarr wont be far behind us. Casting a new wall will dismiss the first one and free up the spearmen who aren't already past it, but by this point most are probably through anyways. Putting the wall at the end of the passage will bottleneck them again. Probably enough time to channel for this one... On the off chance the cast fails even after channeling, that also allows a second channeled attempt without costing an additional round.

We need the lights, but I doubt the walls of the Karst will obscure them enough for Alvarr to not be able to follow us. As you said though, easy enough to spread them out so he doesn't know which lit up passage we went down.

[-Sentinel-]

Elsa moved to obey Sieghard. "As you wish, but I think running away is robbing us of a golden opportunity."


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Channeling 88: (d100)[7]
Curtain of Flame 12+/14+: (3d10)[2][10][9](21)

Another try if needed...

Channeling 88: (d100)[78]
Curtain of Flame 12+/14+: (3d10)[9][7][6](22)

[RossN]

Adelbert

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"You don't understand," Adelbert whispered back, his voice trembling with anxiety. "This might be the only chance to deal with Klammenberg before he slips away. He's much more valuable alive but dead might have to do."

He was silent for a long moment. " If I do go and find my old friends - which given I have no idea where they are is quite the task - can I can't on you doing something in the fight then?"

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"Any opportunity we have depends on the men being ready to fight," Sieghard replied. "Keep Morrslieb flying above the Duke's men. I want to know whether he stops or tries to pursue us further."

[LCP]

Adelbert, 10th Sommerzeit

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”The last time I saw your friends, they didn’t need anyone’s help. Not as long as they had the fire witch with them.” There was a certain bitterness in Sanne’s tone. “But no, I’ve no intention of helping Hakon deliver this southerner his book. No revenge is worth dealing with sorcerers.”

She nodded. “I’ll do what I can to stop them. Provided they don’t catch on to me first, which if we stand here jawing much longer, they will. So are you ready?”

---

Sieghard, Elsa, Astoriay & Ludo, 11th Sommerzeit

Finding a point in the passage narrow enough for her spell to bridge, Elsa dropped another curtain of fire across the rocky path, filling the darkness around them with heat and light. She knew it would only last a few minutes – turning back to follow the others, she had to hope that the Duke’s men were not prepared for a long chase.

For a while, it seemed like they were. As the militia stumbled fearfully through the dark, Morrslieb filled Elsa’s mind with chatter, criss-crossing the crevasses behind them and warning over and over of blue-clad figures hurrying through the dark. Guiding the company away from them as best she could, she remembered Dolokhov’s words at the council of war. Edouard knows the Karst, the big Kislevite had said. It looked like he had been right.

At last, however, the raven reported their pursuers were regrouping to turn back. Perhaps they had lost the trail, or perhaps Alvarr didn’t want to stray too far from the town. Looking at the jagged crags around them, Ludo realised with a sinking sensation that he once again had no idea where they were.

In the east, the sky was lightening with the promise of dawn. Most of the militia looked dead on their feet, their forced march and rude awakening doing no favours for their fatigue. Elsa felt just as tired – and as she listened to Morrslieb’s mental croakings, she could tell her familiar was too.

[-Sentinel-]

Elsa leaned against a cliff to catch her breath. "I don't think our situation's improved a lot, Sieghard," she said, almost accusingly.

They could not fight a battle in their current condition. For that matter, they could not even march to Putbad in their current condition. Though the immediate threat had been evaded, a lot of precious time had been lost... as well as an opportunity to whittle down Alvarr's remaining forces in a place where numbers would not matter. They were just tired, and far away from where they should be.

"And before you ask, Morrslieb's exhausted too."

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"And Alvarr is nearly as far afield as we are. 'Cause enough confusion and draw enough of Alvarr's men away.' Not the way I planned to do it, but they're plenty drawn away," Sieghard grumbled, in no mood for Elsa's tone. "We told him we'd send the bird when we were in position. If Morrslieb is too tired to fly to him, then he'll either realize something has happened when he doesn't show or he'll press on regardless and find Putbad with Alvarr unable to defend it."

[-Sentinel-]

"Won't take Alvarr that long to return to Putbad," replied Elsa. "For all we know, his men are well rested. We'll be late and many people may die in vain. If we'd made our stand here? Play our cards right, and we could've killed four men for every one of ours who fell."

She sat down with her back to the rock face. "Where's the Sieghard who led the attack on the Red Company camp? We could've used him."

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"He was busy not letting the enemy choose the terms of the fight," Sieghard replied sharply. "<If you have something to say then just say it,>" he said, switching to Tilean. If she wanted to argue, he wasn't going to make a show of it for the men.

[LeSwordfish]

"Give me a boost." Ludo said, turning away from the squabbling couple and to Gustaf and Astoria. "I want to see if I can get high enough to see any firelight or anything."

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Assuming I can get two Assists, I think this is Scale Sheer Surface vs 21+20=41? So lets roll a few tries. (1d100)[45](1d100)[42] (1d100)[60]

[RossN]

Adelbert

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"Well I suppose we better do this," Adelbert said. He paused and gave Sane a look. "I'm sorry Kelda died. Believe me I'd be much happier if Sforza was doing Morr's jig... but his time will come. Until then keeping the book away from Klammenberg is what's important."

He took a deep breath and prepared to scream. Adelbert once seen the Bögenhafen Players perform The Lamentable Tragedy of Graf Wergensdoffer at the Emperor Wilhelm Theatre in Grenzstadt and Adelbert had never forgotten the scream uttered by the Graf's daughter when he removed his cloak in the third act. True that particular shriek was rather girlish but Hakon probably expected as much - and it would turn anyone's blood to ice hearing it!

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I'm kind of okay with fast forwarding a little bit to Adelbert's get away, following Sane's idea (I'm happy to make rolls if you need them of course!)

[LCP]

Adelbert, 10th Sommerzeit

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Looking a bit startled herself at the sound, Sanne nodded and led Adelbert over to the pool. Between the two of them, they managed to dislodge a small boulder perched on its side. From the height it fell, Adelbert wondered whether the splash wasn't a little much for someone of his frame.

"Alright," she said, when the last echoes had died away. "Now run, and don't look back."

Adelbert found Bella where he and Arne had tethered her. Taking the horse and leaving it to Sanne to explain how she had got away, he turned and rode into the Karst - slowly at first, so as not to alert Hakon and the others with the sound of echoing hoofbeats. Once he thought he had put a respectable distance between himself and his erstwhile captors, he spurred Bella on, weaving through the looming rocks as fast as the treacherous ground would allow.

In retrospect, perhaps that was a mistake. Though he could name the authors of several treatises on the subject, he had never been much of a navigator himself, and soon he found himself suspecting he was quite lost. The Karst stretched out around him in every direction, a natural labyrinth to match anything a human mind could devise. Remembering his past encounters with bandits and robbers in this same terrain, he checked his sword was in easy reach, and guided Bella in the direction he could only hope was north. The last time he'd truly known where he was, he'd been in Putbad - perhaps if he could reach the Uplands, he could regain his bearings...

---

Ludo, Astoria, Elsa & Sieghard, 11th Sommerzeit

Scaling the limestone crags seemed easier the second time, even if this time it was without a rope. Reaching the top, Ludo looked back in the direction they had fled.

He couldn't see much light from Alvarr's men - just a few faint glimmers between the rocks, now moving away to the east. It was hard to tell distance in the dark, but if he'd had to to put a number on it he'd have guessed they were about a third of a mile behind, and growing further away.

One light burned much closer, and in front of the company instead of behind. In the next crevasse over, it looked like someone had lit a campfire. It was burning low, but by its dim light Ludo could make out the shadowed shapes of a lone man and his horse - by the looks of things both still asleep.

[-Sentinel-]

"<If you have something to say then just say it.>"

<Never mind,> mumbled Elsa. No point in recriminations now... but she was still angry.

"See anything?" she asked Ludo.

[LeSwordfish]

"Alvarr's a little way that way," Ludo called down, pointing. "Looks like he's headed back to town. And there's someone else, too. A man with a horse and campfire, just ahead."

Trying his best to fix the man's position in his mind, Ludo climbed gingerly back down. "I've no idea why someone would be out here, unless they knew the place well. If we still want to find our way through, perhaps we should talk to them."

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

Sieghard deflated a bit. He certainly wasn't in the mood to argue if Elsa wasn't going to press matters.

"Perhaps we should borrow his horse," Sieghard said flatly. "We may yet be able to get a warning to the Captain."

[Erulasto]

With her one good hand, Astoria gave Ludo what assistance she could in scaling the rocks before taking a moment to gather her breath and ease weary muscles.

Eyeing Sighard and Elsa as they switched to Tilean, she furrowed her brow. Tensions were high and morale had to be at a low given the route they just had.

When Ludo returned, Astoria dubbed the back of her neck in irritation.

"It could be one of Alvarr's men looking for us. But that would not explain the fire or apparent ease of being spotted."

[RossN]

Averland

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It was terribly quiet out here. Albert cast his mind back to the great anchorites of history who had sought out solitude in the wild and lonesome places of the world. Then he tried not to think how many of those history had forgotten who had ended up in the bellies of trolls. (Or worse.)

Albert steered Bella to what he chose to believe was the route to the Uplands. If he failed to spot anyone or anything he'd eventually have to find a spot to make camp. Wandering around in the darkness between two armies might be an amusing metaphor for his travails had he been in Averland. In the last it lost a certain charm.

[-Sentinel-]

"Either way I don't much like the idea of a stranger camping in the area," said Elsa. "I vote we check it out. Some of us at least." She was just as exhausted as everyone else, but she was prepared to volunteer.

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

Sieghard nodded. "Just be sure not to startle him. We don't want him bolting." Him or the horse.

[LCP]

Adelbert, 10th Sommerzeit

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It was no good - winding between these blackened rocks, it was impossible to stay on a straight course, and however much Adelbert tried, he swiftly found himself lost and turned around. He wished for a track, a signpost, anything to tell him he was heading in the right direction.

With the sun sinking in the west and his empty stomach rumbling, he settled down to make camp. Perhaps he could hope that Hakon and company were equally lost - but somehow that didn't seem likely.

---

11th Sommerzeit

Heading in the direction Ludo pointed, Elsa carefully rounded the rock formations between the company and the sleeping figure. The strands of Aqshy feeding off the man's dying campfire kept her confidently on her path, drawing her tired mind closer with their comforting warmth.

Sure enough, there was only one man and one horse. He didn't look like a warrior. Satisfied that it was safe to approach, Elsa walked a little closer, before stopping as she recognised the sleeper's face. It was Adelbert.

[-Sentinel-]

Elsa closed her eyes for a moment, wondering if weariness was getting to her. When she opened them again, Adelbert was still there.

Was he looking for us?

Meeting him here, of all places, seemed almost too incredible to be a coincidence. What could he possibly be doing in the Uplands on his own? She had assumed he was with Forkbeard and had returned to Alvarran after his duke's defeat.

She sat down by the campfire, indecisive. Adelbert had fought for the other side, but Elsa did not consider him an enemy. Not a mortal enemy, at least. Just a temporary opponent, who she planned to forgive once all this nonsense between the lords was over. And unless he had been sent as some kind of bait, he was not here to harm them. It served no purpose to kill him. But would it be wise to wake him up?

She kind of missed him, though she hated to admit it.


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Not sure if Sieghard and/or Ludo are here. I'll pause to let them react. Adelbert is of course free to wake up on his own, as Elsa is not being particularly sneaky.

If Adelbert does wake up, don't forget that Elsa is now almost bald, which is bound to elicit questions. Also he may or may not know about Elsa personally killing Kelda.