Eberron: Merylsward Exhumed

[Zoobity]

Orestes gets his crossbow out (loaded already) and tries to maintain a clear shot of the fracas in front of him. He doesn't fire until a.) he gets a clear shot and b.) things get dire enough that he wants to blow his cover. He motions for Khayla to cover his back.

[King Tius]

XXXIII Where Were We?

Wrex rushes out of the woods towards the two bandits, followed closely
by Ajaba and Aesop. The hobgoblin lunges at the first swordsman but
his attack misses. He stumbles forward from the missed charge and
nearly falls in the water himself. Aesop attacks the same man and
manages to nick him with his rapier, though not by much. Ajaba gives
the one-two to the second guard but is unsuccessful with both slashes.
Delan rushes out of the woods and stands there menacingly but both
bandits are engaged in fighting and don't notice him. Orestes moves
forward a bit and finds a clear view of combat. Though he has a clear
shot at the second bandit, the situation is not yet dire enough to
meet his firing criteria. Khayla watches the fighting intently but
makes no move to attack. The first bandit hacks at Aesop but the spry
elf deflects the blow. The second manages to score a hit on Ajaba,
doing 4 points of damage. From the water the sounds of splashing and
yelling can still be heard

OOG: It has taken me days to post this simply because I had to get lucky and find a time when the Forums weren't crashingly slow. This infuriates me to no end. We may be moving this game in the near future if GITP doesn't get their S#it together

[Loquacius]

Aesop

Hmm. Well, bandits haven't gotten any better at fighting. It's been a while since I've done things like this, but it's comforting to know some things never change.Aesop figures this is as good a time as any to try inspiring courage in his allies again. He figures Wrex is in no position to criticize seeing as he just barely avoided falling into a pond.

Maybe he can psyche the Mossers out a little bit too. Or at least confuse them. That'd be fun. Adopting an impish grin, he locks eyes with the bandit who just failed to hit him and starts talking about a band of intrepid heroes who soundly defeated a band of evil thugs with poor hand-eye coordination.

[captain_decadence]

Delan moves up to the bandits that are attacking his companions and yells at them threateningly.

OOG: I can haz flanking bonus.

[Zoobity]

Orestes motions to Khayla and begins circling through the underbrush to where the party is currently located. If he has another clear shot as he moves, he'll take it.

[King Tius]

XXXIV Morality Checkpoint

Aesop drops to a defensive stance and begins his inspiring words. They uplift the party as you slowly pick apart these two brigands. Delan moves up next to the one bandit to flank him. Fortunately for the warforged the bandit doesn’t get an Attack of Opportunity since he is flanked. Orestes moves sideways with Khayla in tow. He manages to get a clear shot at the second bandit and scores true. Wrex finds his footing and drops this second bandit with a blow from his mighty greatsword. The kicking and screaming from the water stops and Bin’s head pops to the surface, dagger between his teeth. With both his friends dead, the final bandit drops to his knees and holds his hands up in front of his face. “Please don’t kill me!” Bin slowly walks out of the water and grabs his dagger, poising to slit the man’s throat. Khayla emerges from the treeline, watching your actions intently.

Ajaba’s ears suddenly perk up and he looks off to the east, up towards the top of the valley. Orestes and Aesop’s keen ears hear an ever-so-faint howl that sounds as if it is many miles away coming from that direction.

[captain_decadence]

Delan

"Stop! He has surrendered to us, we cannot kill him."

Delan waits to see what the others say before he argues the point. If they support him, he's not going to monologue.

[Loquacius]

Aesop

Aesop is annoyed that this man should surrender at a point in time where just letting him go would seriously endanger their mission, but luckily he has some rope on him. "Save your energy, Bin, and keep alert while I have a word with our new friend. I think I might hear more trouble coming." He puts his rapier against their new prisoner's throat. "Quick, lackey. Anything important we should know about wolves or friends of yours who are like wolves in some way?" Upon getting his answers: "You're too kind. Don't go anywhere!" Aesop sheathes his sword and commences tying the bandit up, then takes any weapons that might be lying around in the area and throws them into the pond (unless one of them looks like it might be worth something). "I think we're done here. Let's go."

[Zoobity]

Orestes steps out of the bushes and loads another bolt. While the rest of the party is focusing on their prisoner he stays on watch. "I can't think of a good reason to kill him," he says, his back to the party, looking over the woods. "However, I can think of a dozen reasons to tie him to a tree and gag him."

[King Tius]

XXXV Where Wolf?

As you tie up the bandit, he shakes his head and struggles feebly against his bonds. "It's a forest, of course there are wolves. I...I don't know anything." Once he is bound you begin to make your way onwards again and notice that Ajaba has disappeared. Bin nods off in the direction where the howls came. "He ran off full tilt, growling something about 'family'. I doubt we could catch him at the rate he went off. Let's keep going." Continuing on, you move through the rest of the little valley without interruption. You come upon the bandit camp, a large fence of crossed wooden pikes rings a two small buildings and one large barn. From your post in the woods, you can see two men standing guard at the open gate, though one seems to be slumped asleep against the wall.

OOG: I know it was lame, but this is how I'm writing Ajaba out of the game so I don't have to NPC him forever. He'll be back, maybe.

[captain_decadence]

OOG: This game loses people faster than...something that loses people really fast.

Delan

Delan, after seeing the building, has some doubt about this situation. A bandit king who is able to terrorize large parts of the forest and he's got...two bungalows and a barn. Feels funny.

He explains, in a low whisper, his feelings to the others and sees what they have to say. He knows they should scout but he's obviously not the one for the job.

[Loquacius]

Aesop

Aesop is confused by Ajaba's sudden departure. Right in the middle of a hunt? Must be some big family reunion or something. I'm picturing the main course as a spit-roasted halfling with an apple in his mouth. And an open bar of little bowls of dirty water. Maybe a gnoll wedding? I bet he always cries at those.

Shaking his head, Aesop refocuses on the task at hand. "If we can get those guys away from the gate we should be able to get to the buildings easily enough. Another magical diversion, perhaps? Khayla, do you have anything, erm, special we could use?"

[King Tius]

I HAVE GIVEN UP ON TITLES

Khayla turns to Aesop and again smiles. "I could call upon the creatures of the wood to try and draw their attention away from the gate. If we found any feykin they might also aid me. What would you have me do?"

Bin speaks up, directing his inquiry largely at Wrex. "Think you could toss me over that wall? I might be able to do some damage and create a diversion inside."

Wrex shakes his head. "You've gotten fat since the war. Maybe if the 'forged gave me a hand."

OOG: I need a definitive decision before we move on. I promise this boring quest is almost over. Then the good stuff starts!

[Loquacius]

Aesop

Aesop thoughtfully strokes the place where his beard would be if only he could grow facial hair. "I think I overheard something about a fey problem earlier. Sorry to postpone your fun, Bin, but I think that would work better than sending you in on your own. Let's magic us up a distraction!"

[captain_decadence]

Since Delan has never seen any of the fey, he thinks that a distraction involving them would be interesting as well as less dangerous to Bin. His companions may be bloodthirsty but at least they didn't kill innocent travelers like these bandits do and he's grown slightly attached to the odd pair.

[Zoobity]

OOG: Sorry for the long delay. My "part time" job has become a 70 hour a week job. Asses will be kicked.

Orestes looks at the sleeping bandits. "The fey sound interesting, but these guys aren't very good at their jobs. Why don't we save our resources and just knock these two out ourselves from back here?" He pats his crossbow and component pouches. Seeing things not working out in his favor, "But fey work, too."

[King Tius]

Khayla nods and casts a quick spell. A small sparrow swoops down and alights upon her outstretched hand. She whispers to the bird for a moment before letting it fly away. She turns to the party and says "the two should be here in just a few minutes. Hopefully they are awake." After about five minutes have passed, a rustling in the bushes behind you reveals two satyrs. One carries the token pipes while the other an ornate bow. They both glance at the party with mildly amused looks before turning to the Druid and bowing low. "A pleasure to see you again, sweet Khayla. I hope we did not keep you waiting." "Not at all, dear friends. Would you mind doing us a favor? We'd like to draw those two guards away from the gate so we me slip in unnoticed." The two satyrs glance quickly at the fort. "Anything for you, Wardeness." Without another word the satyrs sprint over towards the two guards, finally stopping about 40 feet from them along the path that leads to the fort. They begin to hop up and down wildly while the one blows an inane tune on his pipes. The lone awake guard cries out an alarm and rouses the sleeping one before taking off after the satyrs. The newly awoken guard shouts into the base and two more men come running out, all in hot pursuit of the goat-men who have just ran off into the forest away from you. Wrex shakes his head and picks up his sword. "Damn fey and their games." He begins to move through the woods towards the fort, followed by Bin.

[captain_decadence]

Delan

Delan follows the two as they move into the base. Now that the guards are gone he doesn't have to worry about sneaking, never his best asset anyway.

The fey were different than he expected. More wild and earthy but he shakes his head and tries to concentrate on the mission at hand.

[Zoobity]

Seeing that the guards are out of the way, Orestes follows the goblinoids and the warforged towards the hideout. He keeps a magic missile at the ready in case the party encounters any resistance.

[Loquacius]

Aesop

That went surprisingly well. I guess now we just waltz on inside. Rather than waltzing, Aesop Moves Silently, a good distance behind the front-liners.

[King Tius]

The group enters the bandit compound and finds that it is more of a refitted house than a fort. A wooden split-pole wall has been run up around a two story house and it's barn. Another one story building of considerably lower quality is also built within the walls. This little shack has the same construction look as the walls about the compound and was clearly added on by the bandits as well. Standing in the center of the place facing away from the gate the barn lies on your immediate right and the two story house ahead of you. The shack lies on your left. Khayla turns to the group and says "I do not know how long the satyrs will keep those brigands occupied. We should act quickly." Bin nods his head and pipes up in Common for everyone to hear. "Search fast or set a trap, but we do it fast! (Those of you who speak Goblin notice that Bin's normal eloquence seems completely lost in his limited Common) I say we get out fast." Wrex shakes his head as he looks around the compound. "We came here to deal with them, not rob them. Let's wait for them to come back and burn this camp to the ground." Khayla casts a quick spell and raises her hand. A little sparrow alights on her outstretched finger and she begins to titter to it. After a second the bird flies off. "My little friend will warn us when the bandits are returning. We must hurry."

[Loquacius]

Aesop

OOG: I almost had Aesop light a cigar in this post before I remembered he's not Cedric.

Aesop nods decisively. "I'm with Wrex. These men are a threat to Merylsward until they've been defeated. Mess with their resources and they'll just take more. Let's tear this place up." (OOG: Puff.) "Those guys probably weren't the only ones here anyway--if you were Baron Moss himself, would you run out after a couple of satyrs? Let's deal with the guys still here, and then when the others come back we won't have to fight everyone at once." If everyone's in agreement, Aesop peers into the house for reconnaissance.

[captain_decadence]

Delan

"I would prefer that we take these men prisoners and take them back for justice but we must do what we must. They are criminals who prey upon the innocent."

"Let's shut this operation down for good. If we can find this Baron, taking out the leader would probably be the best way to stop the organization. Then again, bandits without a leader can still do a lot of damage so we should try to do as much as possible here."

Whatever the others decide, Delan studies their surroundings. A good understanding of the layout of the compound and the house will serve them well no matter what decision they make.

[King Tius]

Delan studies his surroundings and sees a wagon parked near the gate that might serve as a good hiding/vantage point. Aesop peers inside the house and sees that it still looks like it is being used as a home, albeit a very scantily furnished one. Khayla moves off to one side and crouches behind a barrel near the barn. Bin ducks behind one of the open gate doors and Wrex stands behind the little shack, ready to charge. As everyone moves to their respective ambush locations (post yours, plz) you hear the sound of arguing men coming from the woods outside the fence. It sounds like the bandits are approaching the fort from the woods and have to circle the fence to reach the gate. You have maybe a minute before they enter.

[captain_decadence]

Delan moves behind the other open door of the gate and gets ready to slam it once they've all gotten inside.(I'm assuming it's a two door kind of gate, if not please correct me)

[Zoobity]

Assuming that there's no one inside the house, Orestes swings around and hides inside the doorway, ready to spring out and fire his magic missiles.

[Loquacius]

Aesop

Aesop had hoped they'd have a little more time to scope the place out and/or remove any bandits still inside, but you can't always get what you want. He draws his rapier and lies in wait around a corner of the house.

[King Tius]

As the four guards come sauntering back into the compound none of them see you laying in wait. After the last bandit has come in Delan gives the door a great shove, slamming it into place behind them. The four turn around in surprise to look at the warforged, hastily drawing their weapons as they do so. Orestes cracks the door open of the house and fires his magic missile at the closest of the four. As the magical bolt strikes the unsuspecting brigand roots erupt from the ground in a circle around the bad guys. Unfortunately Delan is also caught in the mess. While two of the men avoided the roots, the hulking warforged was not so lucky. Wrex comes charging around the corner but skids to a halt at the sight of the entangle spell. He reaches over his back and draws his throwing ax. Bin, who had taken refuge behind the same door as Delan, is nowhere to be seen. Three of the men have drawn swords and one a bow.

OOG: I did not know if Aesop wanted to charge or switch to ranged weapons, so just say so and he can get his move in before the next round along with his action for the second round of combat.

[captain_decadence]

Delan bellows at the bandits, attempting to attract their attention solely on him as opposed to his friends.

"Fiends! Your time plaguing the innocent is at an end!"

He then touches his chest and infuses himself with "Shield of Faith."

[Loquacius]

Aesop

FIRST ROUND:
Figuring that Wrex, Bin, and (possibly to a lesser extent) Delan probably have the front lines handled, Aesop decides to aid Khayla and Orestes in their long-range support modes. He drops his rapier and draws his bow, but on a whim, he pauses for a second to begin telling a story before attempting to fire. It's a story about a dim young man who had been a bandit but now must endure all manner of terrible fates in the dungeons of the wise and just King. Sort of like a high-fantasy Oz. (OOG: This is the last Bardic Music effect I get today, better make it count! Oh, and I'm Inspiring Courage, for the record.)

SECOND ROUND: now that Aesop has gotten his story off the ground, it no longer requires his full attention and he's able to keep telling it as he snaps off a shot at the bandit holding the bow.