Well, looking a little more closely at things, Quarol, you can spot some kind of important building, judging by how many water hoppers with weapons are going in and out of it. It doesn't seem to have any obvious above-water entrance, but it is connected to the other buildings and you're not above fitting through a window. Maybe it's their treasury?
The captain's... laughing? Judging by her tone afterwards, that's probably it. "Phew. Horn-brow, we haven't had problems with the undead for generations."
The guard who escorted you here vents a little spray of air through his gills, in the universal guardsman's "ahem".
"Yes, as lancer red-line constantly reminds me, the air-lover ghosts sometimes roam near the edges of the mist, where the glow-moss grows. But they've never come closer, and no-one's told me they ever will."
The captain... drops down from the balcony. It's not much of a fall, but she lands adroitly and stands, balancing a trident on her shoulders. "The air-lovers fed you a line, horn-brow, and you bit."
She calls into the barracks. "Blue-eye, green-ring, go fetch a scribe, eh?" Two guards trot out the main doors of the barracks and over to the water's edge. "In the meantime, horn-brow, ask your air-lover friend why she really wanted to come here."
Blennid, the trident isn't pointed at you yet, though a handful of the guards in the barracks have stopped training and are watching the captain.
Lojainne, it may be useful to remember your vows. For what it's worth, you haven't heard whatever it is -- and what is it, anyway? -- that tells you when someone's trying to deceive you, but this is a different language you're dealing with here.
---
Oh, by the way, new rule. In face-to-face play there's room for a lot of quick negotiation over whether a move should apply or not, but on a board It's Easier To Beg Forgiveness. If you think a move should apply to something you're doing, like trying to read a situation or a person with Discern Realities, just g'wan and roll. Otherwise I will assume you don't want to risk failure and feed you a handful of details that may or may not be helpful or useful, but which are always true.
"You misunderstand me," Blennid replies. "They're seeking undead to attack, and resources to help in their fight. If undead don't bother you here, then fine, I'll lead them on away from your caves."
Blennid gestures to Quarol. "This one believes that there is some sort of artifact nearby, that they could use in their upcoming battles. They want me to see if you know where it is, if you have it, and, if so, if you would be open to any kind of trade for it."
He asks Quarol, "is it close by? Can you sense it?"
Just chiming in to say that I'm following along, but singing and reciting poetry aren't really what's called for right now, so Astrafel is just doing his best to stay quiet.
Not terribly concerned about drawing the wrath of the water hoppers, Severik is reluctant to expend resources on reinforcing their position. Unless someone suggests otherwise, he'll risk getting spotted to keep an eye on Blennid and the others.
"Sure, we got one," says the captain. "It's the reason the undead leave us alone. Your air-lover friends better have something really impressive to trade. Black-fin, browny, go wake the chief up."
Two of the water hoppers who've been watching head off to the largest sandstone building.
Blennid, tell me what you're planning on doing and I'll tell you what's useful/valuable in pursuit of it.
You should be on the lookout for the troops in the barracks. The captain's calm, but they're getting pretty nervous. You never want to look bad in front of the chief.
What's about to happen is that there are three shapes in the water moving toward you from that treasury-lookin' building I pointed out to Quarol earlier. "Ah, there they are," says the captain. "About enough time for you and the air-lovers to get a nice history lesson before the chief gets here, horn-brow."
Lojainne, the two guards who left are escorting a water hopper with a silver back-frill toward you. "I understand you're fighting the undead', he says, and you say...?
Quarol, Piotor is gesturing in the general direction of that treasury you spotted earlier. "Yes, my chalice is in there somewhere," he whispers to your mind.
Blennid's looking for a compelling trade to make with them. If this chalice is keeping this whole village safe, and they don't want to part with it, then he's willing to leave it in their hands.
"Sure, teach away, captain. Who knows, maybe it'll tell us how to destroy Pallas."
0
Options
GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
"Oh, yes I-" the paladin pauses when realises she's still mimicking a vampire's fangs with her fingers. Straightening, she continues.
"Yes, I am sworn to slay the vampire Pallas and any undead in these lands- whether they serve him or no. I would be honoured to rid your people of any malicious spirits that threaten you, though whatever aid you can offer would be welcome."
Lojainne, I'll just ignore that roll since there's no need for it yet.
"Er, yes, the relic," says the scribe. "Centuries ago we dredged it from the flow of Deborah River, this being, ah, the river forming a portion of Castle Ardenne's natural fortifications. Vampires are inherently, ah, disadvantaged against running water, but this prohibition does not extend to their, ah, servants, as our ancestors found to their, ah, despair, yes."
"The relic produces, ah, water of a particular quality that repels the undead when the proper, ah, rites are followed, and thus we have produced, ah, a barrier of sorts against them and they have turned their, ah, incursions elsewhere. Save for the ghosts, who are, ah, set in their ways perhaps?"
"If you were capable of destroying, ah, the vampire ensconced in the castle, this would, ah, destroy his power block and free us from, ah, the need for the relic, at all, and greatly expand our, ah, hunting and salvage operations. If, ah, you were however not capable and the relic was, ah, lost to us, then our own destruction would of course be only a matter of, ah, time, yes."
"So you see we have, ah, much to gain and, ah, everything to lose. What could you, ah, offer us aside from the words of, ah, a stranger?"
Blennid, I suppose that counts enough: you get the impression from the scribe's body language, having a body that can read it, that the water hoppers are shut in here because they have no choice. After how long it's been, they're still planning what to do when they don't have to keep inside the barrier anymore.
Blennid turns to Lojainne. "Are there any wards or sigils we can teach them, to help keep the undead at bay?"
0
Options
GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
"I'm afraid not, I am no cleric." The paladin turns to face the assembled creatures, indicating to Blennid to translate. "Know this! Any that follow the word of Lumnos will have sanctuary in the darkness. As it is written: those who bear My Mark will stand as sentinels of light- untouchable by the shadows of iniquity and the spectres of evil."
She then removes her moonsilver pendant and offers it to the scribe "I can offer two things- faith and the destruction of your enemies."
"The destruction of our enemies sounds good. Let's start with that."
The voice doesn't come from the scribe, but from another water hopper, flanked by the second set of soldiers the captain sent off. He's wearing a sort of shawl of canvas studded with gold coins, and a golden crown with a few jewels set in it. He looks at you evenly, Lojainne.
"My scribes tell me, constantly, that we have tried and failed to repulse the air-lover ghosts with the power of the relic alone. I don't care about what faith you have or what oaths you swore, but if they let you do something we can't, I'll believe there's power in them."
Severik, Astrafel, Vladire -- it looks like your services as overwatch will perhaps not be required. So here's a question: how are you planning to get out? Or are you planning something else entirely?
Sure do. Kind of hard to forget the hole in the wall you came through.
Trouble is, when you came in this whole cave was looking at Blennid, Lojainne, and Quarol, and that novelty's worn off a bit. The chieftain is drawing some of their attention now, but you'd either have to risk exposing yourself coming back out the hole or... go out another way and drop into the water, which might be harder to maneuver in, but doesn't seem to have any fishmen in it and will be below line of sight for every one on the land.
Speaking of, Blennid, Lojainne, Quarol: the chieftain has extended you an offer of sorts. How are you responding?
"It doesn't look like they're going to be doing any fighting," Astrafel whispers. "I'd like to avoid going for a swim, so perhaps we should start making our exit now before the performance is over."
Lojainne, if you're trying to impress someone socially, Parley's a bit better off. You've actually got a Charisma bonus, so that one's just a straight-up hit.
The chieftain nods. "Right, then. We'll see you when you've taken care of them. Or find your bodies. Either way. Silver-tip, give the air-lover the reserve that I know you're keeping on you even though we've got months stored up and the relic is right over there."
The scribe, chastened, reaches under his mantle and unfastens something, reaching out with a bandolier of 6 rough glass bottles filled with a faintly luminescent liquid. Who's going to carry them?
After a bit of back-and-forth for translation's sake, the captain flashes a big grin at the guard who led you here in the first place. "Red-line, you gripe on about seeing ghosts all the time, why don't you show the air-lovers the last place they bothered you?"
---
In the meantime, Severik, Astrafel, Vladire, give me one Defy Danger roll between you all to get out of there while the water hoppers are distracted. You're helping each other but there are more of them watching so I'll just say that evens out to a normal roll.
When you throw a flask of holy water, treat it as a weapon with a range of Near and the tags Area and Holy. Holy water only deals effective damage against a certain vulnerable enemies, and the flask it of course gone when it's thrown.
When you anoint a weapon or bundle of ammunition with holy water, you use up the entire flask, but the thing you anointed gains the Holy tag until the end of combat. It will be able to damage certain enemies that normal weapons cannot.
Quarol, I've updated the ring's combat move to reflect something nifty I only recently saw:
When you draw on Piotor's combat skill, the ring gains the Close and Reach ranges and the precise tag, and you roll d6+d8 to Hack and Slash with it. However, Piotor was a reckless fighter. If the d8 is higher than the d6, you will have landed yourself in a precarious situation - the GM will tell you what.
---
Severik, Astrafel, Vladire: you poke your way out of the large, disused building, scramble down the wall, and head for the cave entrance, trying to keep a building between yourself and the throng of water hoppers in the main square.
But this means you often don't keep a building between yourself and the water. You're a bit caught off guard when a water hopper breaches the surface and flops down practically right in front of you.
It isn't carrying any weapons and doesn't seem to have noticed you, but unless you scramble for cover with a quickness, it's going to. You can only imagine how it would react to three strangers and a great slavering beast. What are you doing?
Astrafel wastes no time diving behind a nearby stack of barrels. He's almost surprised at how well he rolls out of sight. Usually this sort of thing ends with him knocking over something dangerous.
--
Astrafel will defy danger by diving for cover: roll + Dex: 2d6+110
Severik, Vladire, now that Astrafel's found a hiding spot a little bit of the hard work is out of the way. You take +1 forward if you're trying to hide in the same place.
Severik, let me see how Vladire manages and I'll get back to you about the spot you find yourself in.
In the meanwhile, Blennid, Quarol, Lojainne: you've got some interesting supplies and a grudging escort to where the ghosts are. Is there anything you want to try and do here before you go? And how are you going to cue the other three to follow you, anyhow?
Assuming that Red-Line is taking us back the way we came, Blennid's assuming that they'll re-connect somewhere along the path. Once they start heading out, he's going to tell Red-Line, We need to rejoin the other air-lovers, and then we'll go kill some ghosts, loudly enough for the chief to hear.
If we miss the three as we pass, I guess I'm hoping they'll show themselves?
Quarol, I've updated the ring's combat move to reflect something nifty I only recently saw:
When you draw on Piotor's combat skill, the ring gains the Close and Reach ranges and the precise tag, and you roll d6+d8 to Hack and Slash with it. However, Piotor was a reckless fighter. If the d8 is higher than the d6, you will have landed yourself in a precarious situation - the GM will tell you what.
That's from the Barbarian playtest, right? That class just screamed 'Severik' to me.
Quarol, I've updated the ring's combat move to reflect something nifty I only recently saw:
When you draw on Piotor's combat skill, the ring gains the Close and Reach ranges and the precise tag, and you roll d6+d8 to Hack and Slash with it. However, Piotor was a reckless fighter. If the d8 is higher than the d6, you will have landed yourself in a precarious situation - the GM will tell you what.
That's from the Barbarian playtest, right? That class just screamed 'Severik' to me.
Yeah. I think it's a pretty good way to represent something powerful but risky, but maybe doesn't make the best class-defining mechanic.
Brand starts a quiet growl upon seeing the water hopper. Vladire immediately snaps at the beast to calm him down, distracted he rolls into the same hiding spot as the others- Brand following from the rear.
2d6+2+1: 7 [2d6=3, 1]
defy danger with dex .. boo on me for sucking so hard and with 1 forward
Astrafel, Severik, Vladire: You all make it behind the stack of barrels quickly, but not entirely quietly. The water hopper, curious, shambles over to investigate. You don't have much time and there isn't a stack of barrels behind the stack of barrels to hide in.
You could distract it by dropping something in the water and escape while it's diving in, but you'd probably lose whatever it was forever.
You could just up and kill it. Unsuspecting target against heavy weapons? No contest. But someone would have to deal with the fallout.
You might be able to terrify it so badly it didn't call for the guards right away, leaving you to escape in the confusion, but who knows how well that would work?
You might have some other amazing plan that will completely surprise me, in which case, hey, go for it.
Doesn't really matter to me. I mean, if you want to take some time to talk it over out-of-game, go for it. This is where play-by-post falls down a little in comparison to all sitting around a table.
(Incidentally, thanks for the help on using tags. Still kinda new to the forum.)
I suppose while y'all tossing that back and forth I can cut over to Blennid, Quarol, and Lojainne, being led back through the tunnels... actually pretty much the way they came in, come to think of it. Is there anything any of you would like to ask your guard about his encounters with the ghosts? (I'm assuming Blennid will translate for you.)
Posts
The captain's... laughing? Judging by her tone afterwards, that's probably it. "Phew. Horn-brow, we haven't had problems with the undead for generations."
The guard who escorted you here vents a little spray of air through his gills, in the universal guardsman's "ahem".
"Yes, as lancer red-line constantly reminds me, the air-lover ghosts sometimes roam near the edges of the mist, where the glow-moss grows. But they've never come closer, and no-one's told me they ever will."
The captain... drops down from the balcony. It's not much of a fall, but she lands adroitly and stands, balancing a trident on her shoulders. "The air-lovers fed you a line, horn-brow, and you bit."
She calls into the barracks. "Blue-eye, green-ring, go fetch a scribe, eh?" Two guards trot out the main doors of the barracks and over to the water's edge. "In the meantime, horn-brow, ask your air-lover friend why she really wanted to come here."
Blennid, the trident isn't pointed at you yet, though a handful of the guards in the barracks have stopped training and are watching the captain.
Lojainne, it may be useful to remember your vows. For what it's worth, you haven't heard whatever it is -- and what is it, anyway? -- that tells you when someone's trying to deceive you, but this is a different language you're dealing with here.
---
Oh, by the way, new rule. In face-to-face play there's room for a lot of quick negotiation over whether a move should apply or not, but on a board It's Easier To Beg Forgiveness. If you think a move should apply to something you're doing, like trying to read a situation or a person with Discern Realities, just g'wan and roll. Otherwise I will assume you don't want to risk failure and feed you a handful of details that may or may not be helpful or useful, but which are always true.
Blennid gestures to Quarol. "This one believes that there is some sort of artifact nearby, that they could use in their upcoming battles. They want me to see if you know where it is, if you have it, and, if so, if you would be open to any kind of trade for it."
He asks Quarol, "is it close by? Can you sense it?"
--
Time to try Discern Realities: 2d6+2 = 9
(I did a successful Discern Realities with the moss patches, can I carry one forward from that?)
Question: What should I be on the lookout for?
Extra Questions, if I get the +1 forward:
What is about to happen?
What here is useful or valuable to me?
I'm expecting Piotr to tell us that the captain's chain is the artifact we're looking for. That could get interesting.
Penny Arcade Rockstar Social Club / This is why I despise cyclists
--
Defy danger (to convince the captain our intentions are noble): 2d6+1 5
Two of the water hoppers who've been watching head off to the largest sandstone building.
Blennid, tell me what you're planning on doing and I'll tell you what's useful/valuable in pursuit of it.
You should be on the lookout for the troops in the barracks. The captain's calm, but they're getting pretty nervous. You never want to look bad in front of the chief.
What's about to happen is that there are three shapes in the water moving toward you from that treasury-lookin' building I pointed out to Quarol earlier. "Ah, there they are," says the captain. "About enough time for you and the air-lovers to get a nice history lesson before the chief gets here, horn-brow."
Lojainne, the two guards who left are escorting a water hopper with a silver back-frill toward you. "I understand you're fighting the undead', he says, and you say...?
Quarol, Piotor is gesturing in the general direction of that treasury you spotted earlier. "Yes, my chalice is in there somewhere," he whispers to your mind.
"Sure, teach away, captain. Who knows, maybe it'll tell us how to destroy Pallas."
"Yes, I am sworn to slay the vampire Pallas and any undead in these lands- whether they serve him or no. I would be honoured to rid your people of any malicious spirits that threaten you, though whatever aid you can offer would be welcome."
"Er, yes, the relic," says the scribe. "Centuries ago we dredged it from the flow of Deborah River, this being, ah, the river forming a portion of Castle Ardenne's natural fortifications. Vampires are inherently, ah, disadvantaged against running water, but this prohibition does not extend to their, ah, servants, as our ancestors found to their, ah, despair, yes."
"The relic produces, ah, water of a particular quality that repels the undead when the proper, ah, rites are followed, and thus we have produced, ah, a barrier of sorts against them and they have turned their, ah, incursions elsewhere. Save for the ghosts, who are, ah, set in their ways perhaps?"
"If you were capable of destroying, ah, the vampire ensconced in the castle, this would, ah, destroy his power block and free us from, ah, the need for the relic, at all, and greatly expand our, ah, hunting and salvage operations. If, ah, you were however not capable and the relic was, ah, lost to us, then our own destruction would of course be only a matter of, ah, time, yes."
"So you see we have, ah, much to gain and, ah, everything to lose. What could you, ah, offer us aside from the words of, ah, a stranger?"
Blennid, I suppose that counts enough: you get the impression from the scribe's body language, having a body that can read it, that the water hoppers are shut in here because they have no choice. After how long it's been, they're still planning what to do when they don't have to keep inside the barrier anymore.
She then removes her moonsilver pendant and offers it to the scribe "I can offer two things- faith and the destruction of your enemies."
The voice doesn't come from the scribe, but from another water hopper, flanked by the second set of soldiers the captain sent off. He's wearing a sort of shawl of canvas studded with gold coins, and a golden crown with a few jewels set in it. He looks at you evenly, Lojainne.
"My scribes tell me, constantly, that we have tried and failed to repulse the air-lover ghosts with the power of the relic alone. I don't care about what faith you have or what oaths you swore, but if they let you do something we can't, I'll believe there's power in them."
Penny Arcade Rockstar Social Club / This is why I despise cyclists
Sure do. Kind of hard to forget the hole in the wall you came through.
Trouble is, when you came in this whole cave was looking at Blennid, Lojainne, and Quarol, and that novelty's worn off a bit. The chieftain is drawing some of their attention now, but you'd either have to risk exposing yourself coming back out the hole or... go out another way and drop into the water, which might be harder to maneuver in, but doesn't seem to have any fishmen in it and will be below line of sight for every one on the land.
Speaking of, Blennid, Lojainne, Quarol: the chieftain has extended you an offer of sorts. How are you responding?
We can do this the peaceful way, or we can do this the fun way, either works for him.
Penny Arcade Rockstar Social Club / This is why I despise cyclists
--
Spout Lore: 2d6 6
I was going to try and impress him with my knowledge, but maybe Blennid/Quarol could throw in an angel roll?
Blennid turns to Lojainne. "Do we have ways of destroying or dispelling ghosts?"
The chieftain nods. "Right, then. We'll see you when you've taken care of them. Or find your bodies. Either way. Silver-tip, give the air-lover the reserve that I know you're keeping on you even though we've got months stored up and the relic is right over there."
The scribe, chastened, reaches under his mantle and unfastens something, reaching out with a bandolier of 6 rough glass bottles filled with a faintly luminescent liquid. Who's going to carry them?
After a bit of back-and-forth for translation's sake, the captain flashes a big grin at the guard who led you here in the first place. "Red-line, you gripe on about seeing ghosts all the time, why don't you show the air-lovers the last place they bothered you?"
---
In the meantime, Severik, Astrafel, Vladire, give me one Defy Danger roll between you all to get out of there while the water hoppers are distracted. You're helping each other but there are more of them watching so I'll just say that evens out to a normal roll.
Penny Arcade Rockstar Social Club / This is why I despise cyclists
When you throw a flask of holy water, treat it as a weapon with a range of Near and the tags Area and Holy. Holy water only deals effective damage against a certain vulnerable enemies, and the flask it of course gone when it's thrown.
When you anoint a weapon or bundle of ammunition with holy water, you use up the entire flask, but the thing you anointed gains the Holy tag until the end of combat. It will be able to damage certain enemies that normal weapons cannot.
Quarol, I've updated the ring's combat move to reflect something nifty I only recently saw:
When you draw on Piotor's combat skill, the ring gains the Close and Reach ranges and the precise tag, and you roll d6+d8 to Hack and Slash with it. However, Piotor was a reckless fighter. If the d8 is higher than the d6, you will have landed yourself in a precarious situation - the GM will tell you what.
---
Severik, Astrafel, Vladire: you poke your way out of the large, disused building, scramble down the wall, and head for the cave entrance, trying to keep a building between yourself and the throng of water hoppers in the main square.
But this means you often don't keep a building between yourself and the water. You're a bit caught off guard when a water hopper breaches the surface and flops down practically right in front of you.
It isn't carrying any weapons and doesn't seem to have noticed you, but unless you scramble for cover with a quickness, it's going to. You can only imagine how it would react to three strangers and a great slavering beast. What are you doing?
---
tags: @wildwood, @jdarksun, @Der%20Waffle%20Mous, @Denada, @Egos
--
Astrafel will defy danger by diving for cover: roll + Dex: 2d6+1 10
Penny Arcade Rockstar Social Club / This is why I despise cyclists
In the meanwhile, Blennid, Quarol, Lojainne: you've got some interesting supplies and a grudging escort to where the ghosts are. Is there anything you want to try and do here before you go? And how are you going to cue the other three to follow you, anyhow?
---
tags: @Egos, @Grog, @Der%20Waffle%20Maus, @wildwood
Assuming that Red-Line is taking us back the way we came, Blennid's assuming that they'll re-connect somewhere along the path. Once they start heading out, he's going to tell Red-Line, We need to rejoin the other air-lovers, and then we'll go kill some ghosts, loudly enough for the chief to hear.
If we miss the three as we pass, I guess I'm hoping they'll show themselves?
That's from the Barbarian playtest, right? That class just screamed 'Severik' to me.
Yeah. I think it's a pretty good way to represent something powerful but risky, but maybe doesn't make the best class-defining mechanic.
defy danger with dex .. boo on me for sucking so hard and with 1 forward
ok bring on the pain
You could distract it by dropping something in the water and escape while it's diving in, but you'd probably lose whatever it was forever.
You could just up and kill it. Unsuspecting target against heavy weapons? No contest. But someone would have to deal with the fallout.
You might be able to terrify it so badly it didn't call for the guards right away, leaving you to escape in the confusion, but who knows how well that would work?
You might have some other amazing plan that will completely surprise me, in which case, hey, go for it.
---
tags: @Denada, @jdarksun, @Egos
in cases like this do we vote or? what is the ideal?
Penny Arcade Rockstar Social Club / This is why I despise cyclists
(Incidentally, thanks for the help on using tags. Still kinda new to the forum.)
I suppose while y'all tossing that back and forth I can cut over to Blennid, Quarol, and Lojainne, being led back through the tunnels... actually pretty much the way they came in, come to think of it. Is there anything any of you would like to ask your guard about his encounters with the ghosts? (I'm assuming Blennid will translate for you.)
---
tags: @Grog, @Der Waffle Mous, @wildwood