Tomboys and Troublemakers pt 3

[bramblefoot]

alright, so the party ends up in front of the powderhouse. the area is silent as the grave, and the door to the powderhouse swings in the breeze.

regine: youd spot a single gold coin with arcane sigils laying on the doorstep of the powderhouse. the gold piece seems to whisper to you, calling you to pick it up. gimme wp at -20 to avoid grabbing it



wighard: you detect an aura of misery inside the powderhouse, as if many souls cried out at once, and were suddenly silenced

bruno and berty: feel free to theorize on what awaits you inside.

jasmine: youd spot a small grey scrap of cloth on the top piece of the door, as if someones cloak got stuck in the door

wdyd?

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5

Wighard is already concerned on the boat trip across from Trundheim as they arrive at the isolated powder house without being challenged.

His fears are confirmed upon their arrival, and he turns to the crew of the boat, Get back to Trundheim as fast as possible


then devotes his attention to Siobhan

Warning flags out please, get the boat back and keep a safe distance

Aye sir

and returns his attention to the boat crew

Why are you still here?

What about you?

We've survived worse, and we'll survive better not having to worry about you, move

The boat pulls away as the Trundheim pulls the Imperial Ensign down and then rehoists it upside down

[farothel]

Bruno wasn't sure what Wighard had in mind, but he didn't say anything. He only hoped that the powderhouse was build like the dwarves did in the empire. Very thick walls and the lightest roof they could get away with. Also with thick inside walls and heavy doors, so that an explosion in one chamber didn't necessarily mean that the whole thing went up in flames and if it did, the thick outside walls would contain the blast that would just throw the light roof away.

But in the empire, both dwarves and humans were used to black powder and its ways. This was Bretonnia, where the whole concept was new and where people were often too proud to take advice of those who actually knew what they were doing. Well, they would have to be careful no matter what the building looked like.

[dojango]

"A magic pot that sails underwater? Like Strega Nona who brings pasta to all the good little boys and girls?" Jasmine shakes her head. "Hope you had fun out on shore leave..."

While the others are carefully watching the powderhouse, Jasmine points up to the top of the door. "Bruno, kin you grab that? I wanna take a closer look at it. If it caught on the top o' the door, it must be someone real tall, much taller than a dwarf just went in."

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5

Wighard looks at Bertelis, who is in one of his quiet subdued modes today, which is probably for the best as it means he is unlikely to do anything rash or impulsive, then turns his attention to Bruno and the others.

Obvious trap is obvious, we want to wait for some local authority to show up given that there's no sign of anyone we can help?

[farothel]

"Sure, hold on," Bruno said, grabbing the piece of cloth and quickly looking at it before handing it over.
"I'm not sure what the authorities can do here," he said, "well, except for the fact that blackpowder is still forbidden around here, but that also means they have no idea on how to handle things. I see them walking in with torches and that wouldn't be a good idea."

[dojango]

"An' let the local authorities set off the trap? While they hain't impressed me with their competence, integrity or attention ta basic hygiene, don't ya think that's a little cold ta use them up like that? If ya reckon there's nowat we can do ta prevent the disaster then we're best jes' sailin' away like we did before an' letting the chips fall where they may, which in this case is gonna be over several dozen city blocks."

[wilphe]

It's a trap for US, not necessarily anyone else, because we are supposedly being set up to take the blame for something bad happening. We have assumed that means this is going to go skywards, but it might be something else.

That seems less likely if we simply alert the locals and go in with them, between the Duke, the City, The Grail Maidens and The Temple of Manaan someone should react to Trundheim's signal. There's a lot of money tied up in there.

Also we have a set MO that observant foes will anticipate us following, I would rather not act according to their expectations, that's why I haven't lit up the building yet.

[farothel]

"Point taken," Bruno said, "Maybe Bertelis can get the assistance. He's the one with the authority here. We can keep watch on this building until he comes back with the assistance, in whatever form."

[BananaPhone]

Regine Lacroix

The Thief was waltzing back to the agreed upon HQ of the group, the night air kissing her skin gently and a general good mood palpable in her own head.

That was, of course, until she spotted the coin.

Transfixed as its magic called out to her, the thief at first attempted to sway herself away from this trinket. But, she couldn't help herself. Maybe it sung to a deeply seated inner greed within her that over-rode her sense of reason, or maybe her inhibitions were temporarily disabled - but the well-dressed Master Thief knelt down and reached a gloved hand out to the coin and drew it up off the ground.

[bramblefoot]

alright, so you wait, and wait and wait. no local LEO's seem to be forthcoming, and it seems to be quiet as
a tomb. the aura of despair seems to be growing, and all of a sudden the doors swing open, and your worst nightmare appears.

everyone, please describe your worst nightmare, and gimme a int roll against mr magic users opposed int roll

int roll
(1d100)[83]

fp roll if necessary
(1d100)[41]

regine: the gold coin will stay in your hand, and then it switches to a small hand of glory with five fingers clenched around an unlit candle.

can i get a fear test at -20 or take 1d3 IP?

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5

Wighard gets a bit testy at the lack of response from, well anybody, and is considering firing off a signal - or simply leaving, when it happens.


He is back on a stream bank in the foothills of the Middle Mountains, five years ago.

He knows that he has just run from the destroyed ruins of a homestead in the woods.

He knows he will find a charred stake sticking lopsidedly out of the ground

He knows he will find nothing there because the ash and remains around it have all been cleared away, ground up and tossed into the river.

He knows his master will tell him there is nothing he could have done except die beside her

He know he is right

And yet

Would that have been so bad?

Spoiler: OOC

Show

(1d100)[48] INT 71

(1d100)[72] FP if necessary

[dojango]

Jasmine feels like she is a child again, and hears voices from just out of sight. Her uncle, and the sheriff talking. "They were looking for mushrooms in the woods..." "Beastmen raiders were seen..." "They haven't come back yet..."

She feels tears rolling down her cheeks, but intellectually she knows it's a trick. She rolls her eyes and says to nobody in particular. "The best part of bein' orphaned is it only happens once. Shake it off, it's jes' dark magic, if that's their only shot it ain't much." She swivels to double check nobody's sneaking up on them or scurrying away.

[farothel]

Bruno looked at the table. He was in a small cottage and he and his older brothers have just returned from a day of backbreaking work on the field, getting it ready for the next planting season. But the table is empty, as are the stores. The winter wheat, which should be ripe by now, has done nothing but feed mold and other parasites. Looking at the table again, as if that was going to change something, he tried very hard not to cry as his stomach rumbled with hunger.

Spoiler: OOC rolls

Show

int: (1d100)[42] vs 59
FP if needed int: (1d100)[79] vs 59

[BananaPhone]

Regine Lacroix


Regine had pulled off the most daring heist of her life. The Barons coffers raided, his prized jewels stolen! She made off into the night with a satchel that would set her for life...but she was caught and imprisoned.

Naturally though, no jail could hold her skills and she escaped! Not only did she escape, but she swung past the Barons manor to thieve his jewels once more, to flee into the night...but she was caught and imprisoned.

Naturally though, no jail could hold her skills and she escaped! Not only did she escape, but she swung past the Barons manor to thieve his jewels once more, to flee into the night...but she was caught and imprisoned.

Naturally though...

[bramblefoot]

alright, so after that little mind trip, those of you who passed by more than 2 dos are fully back in your headspace. then, five gold statues with their faces in pure agony move out of the front door of the powderhouse and begin to march towards you. the aura of despair intensifies as these five statues move towards you, hands outstretched and grasping

wighard: gimme an occult roll at -20 pls to see if you know what these are. (spoiler alert, their nasty) also they seem uncannily focused on you

regine and jasmine: these things are slow, but steady. they'll reach you in a round, giving you plenty of time to shoot or do something

bruno: What's the play? you got 5 golden statues marching out, all headed for wighard

meanwhile, inside the powderhouse: a mysterious man in chain and plate will mutter to himself, as two people walk around, pouring out powder and rigging things up "the statues will only hold them so long" dreadlocks says, tapping her fingers against her arm. the other man will shrug "we'll be long gone by then" he says, fiddling with a small tinderbox. "rig the candles like so, so when the rope burns, they fall into the powder" the mysterious man barks, standing and tracing an arcane ward in tobacco ash on the wall. "after your done, follow me"

the mysterious man


dreadlocks


guard boy

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5

Wighard is unsure why there would be golden statues inside a magazine, so isn't sure if they would be real gold or just look like it. He backs up towards the water and keeps Bertelis and Bruno between him and them


[

Spoiler: OOC

Show

(1d100)[5] AK/Magic 51

[farothel]

Bruno saw the golden statues come out and noticed they were on a sort of row, so he rushed the first one, trying to give it a push so it would fall on another which would fall on another and so on.

Spoiler: OOC rolls

Show

agility at +10: (1d100)[89] vs 61 (30 FP reroll in OOC)
toughness at -20: (1d100)[19] vs 20

[bramblefoot]

the statues topple, but the foremost one snags bruno by the chainmail, and youd all notice his chainmail starts to change to gold

wighard: these are midas gold statues, people who touched cursed coins, and were turned to gold by wicked sorcery. the cure is unknown, and it looks like brunos been touched

wdyd?

[wilphe]

Bertelis Roche


Bertelis snaps from his sullen reverie at the prospect of danger and begins smashing at the one standing statue with his mace

Spoiler: OOC

Show

(1d100)[57] 41
(1d10)[5] +5

(1d100)[40] 41
(1d10)[6] +5

(1d100)[25] 46 Parry

(1d100)[44] 52 Doge

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5

Try not to let it touch you!

Wighard isn't sure how to fix this, because if this is normal magic it seems like corrupted Metal college material that is outside his expertise and if it is a divine curse all bets are off.

On the other hand, it has so far only affected Bruno's armour, not himself, so maybe if he can channel enough Hysh into Bruno the hostile magic won't

Spoiler: OOC

Show

(1d100)[38] Channelling 87

(1d100)[55] FP if necessary

[BananaPhone]

Regine Lacroix


Regined eyes opened at the sight of them all - Regines crossbow quickly in hand and loosung bolts.

[dojango]

Jasmine sees the molten gold is spreading and thinks quickly... maybe cooling it down will give him time to break free? She pulls out her waterskin and tries to pour water on Bruno's armor where the gold is.

[farothel]

Bruno tries to dodge the attack from the statue after he bowled them over.

Spoiler: OOC rolls

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dodge blow: (1d100)[55] vs 41

[bramblefoot]

bruno: the gilding climbs to the shoulders of the mail, and then dies off. the statue shudders, and releases its grip on bruno. the golden cover flakes away, to reveal a very dead dwarf with its body frozen, its face a mask of horror. seems like you found a dwarf

wounds taken by the molten gold
(1d5+1)[5]

wighard: the statues will move together, to form a 7ft automaton made of gold and dead dwarves. it will stand, as if awaiting orders, and then move to advance on you, feet like tombstones attempting to crush you

le trample

(1d100)[99]

(1d10+4)[14]

regine and jasmine: what are you two doing now that the golden automaton has risen and is attempting to play a game of squish the pesky humans

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5


Wighard sidesteps the stomp and draws weapons

Spoiler: OOC

Show

(1d100)[74] Parry 64

(1d100)[47] Dodge 54

Schlapp stays back and out of the way



Bertelis decides to keep smashing enemies even if he doesn't seem very enthusiastic about it and attacks in dour silence

Spoiler: OOC

Show

(1d100)[77] 41
(1d10)[10]+5

(1d100)[69] 41
(1d10)[7]+5

[(1d100)[15]46 Parry

(1d100)[76]52 Doge

[dojango]

While the warriors are dancing with the horrible automaton, Jasmine gets an uneasy feeling about the building and carefully skirts the battle and goes to the door to check inside to see what lurks within...

Spoiler

Show

(1d100)[30] v 79 silent move to sneak over and peer inside the powder-house

[farothel]

Taking a bit of distance for now, with part of his armour in gold (which is notoriously bad at being armour), he draws his pistol and fires it into the big golden statue. Maybe a shot being fired will also get the lead out of the asses of the local guards.

Spoiler: ooc rolls

Show

a few steps back, then quick draw and shoot at the statue: (1d100)[8] vs 58 for damage (impact): (1d10+4)[13] or (1d10+4)[8]

[bramblefoot]

jasmine: stalking around mr gold and dead dwarves and peeking your way inside, youd spot this man trace a few sigils in the air, and then snap out of reality. at the last sigil, the candles drop into the spilled powder, and the sound of the worlds biggest crump noise as the powderhouse explodes, leaving nothing but a raging fire and a massive crater in the island

meanwhile the rest of you would realize, as the illusion magic fades from reality, you just killed several powderhouse dwarves, just as the local guards round the corner with two mounted knights in the lead. "alright boys, take em away for a tribunal" the lead knight says dismissively, and the men at arms will nod. "will you come quietly, or do we have to make a bigger mess than already exists?" one of the men at arms says calmly

wdyd?

[wilphe]

Wighard 13/13 5/5

Get ready to come pick us up if necessary, is everyone ok?

Aye sir

Wighard looks at the leading knight, his undischarged blunderbuss not pointed at anyone right now but definitely there

Yes whenever I am going to blow things up I make sure to fly a distress signal and alert the authorities for up to an hour before I actually do it.

"will you come quietly, or do we have to make a bigger mess than already exists?"

That will very much depend on where you are so kindly inviting us to come.

We are happy to cooperate with your investigation, but not as prisoners

You would in any case be laying hands on a Bannerez and direct vassal of His Majesty as well as an Imperial Baronet.

He lets that sink in for a bit

That would be above your paygrade

Also if we did fight our way into the magazine you will notice that we are apparently entirely fresh and unwounded and no one landed a scratch on us

He lets that sink in also, and for the slow on uptake

Which would be good evidence that we did not in fact do anything; or that we are way scarier than anyone you want to mess with

So here is what will happen:

I will look for and treat anyone who needs it, which it doesn't seem there will be that many because this is an isolated and properly built magazine

We will remain here, whilst you alert someone who is of appropriate rank to deal with this and possibly summon reinforcements if that makes you more comfortable.

Also I strongly suggest that you ask a few grail damsels to check this place out because some powerful illusion magic has been employed.