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PbP - The Champions of Virtue

245

Posts

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    John Roep props his knee on a tree stump and removes two coils of rope from his belt and easily begins weaving them together, crafting a very long rope that he then coils up loosely on his belt and makes his way to the front of the group. He wraps the large rope around a treee and begins to make his way through the unsteady brush, the rope from his belt unspooling behind him to form a guide rail for the others. He stops occasionally to wrap the rope around a sturdy tree to fortefy it. He moves with the grace and agility of a man used to rigging sails in the rough seas.

    Acrobatics check: 1d20+7 25

    i don’t know if the guide rail Roep leaves could benefit the others rolls, but that’d be tight

  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    Hearing axil's hymn, and seeing John Roeps' rope, Bulmeer peers into the thick woods and scans the area ahead for anything suspicious.

    Perception check: 1d20+4+1d4 26

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    How have you guys had such dope rolls? All of mine have been shit.

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Seeing Bullmeer survey the area, Axis gives him a knowing wink. Get winked onnbn: 1d20+3 17 It is a pretty damn good wink.

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Because I am handsome and drink vodka and don’t waste my precious rolls on dumb shot. *winks even better than you, freely.*)

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    The trip through the forest goes better than you could have hoped. John blazes the trail and weaves his guideline through the brush. Bulmeer brings up the rear, winding the rope back up as you go while keeping an eye out for rotgrubs, widow's vine and other such dangers. Axis is there too, though his efforts to improve morale seem to focus primarily on your kobold prisoner.

    Easy peasy, future skill challenges will be more complicated, but you passed this one with flying colors.
    You all gain 125 XP.

    Que the music.

    The sun is just beginning to set when you break from the treeline and come within sight of Poswick.
    It's a dusty little town splayed out along the banks of a wide and lazy river. The sort of place where folks don't have a word for any length of time smaller than an hour or longer than a year.
    Most of the houses are simple thatch huts, but the buildings near the center of town have a more modern architecture to them. Bulmeer was the talk of the town for weeks after he put a tin roof over his smithy.

    The town's main industry is a water-powered mill they put up a few years back. It brings in traffic from nearby farmers who stop by to process their harvest before floating it downstream to Hilde's ferry.

    Gu89MwH.jpg

    As you're crossing the fields outside of town a small group of Poswickians gathers to greet you in the town square. They cluster around Mayor Lowell as she hollers a greeting.
    "Bulmeer! I knew you'd make it back. How was the trip?"


    Pokeylope on
  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    I resent the DM’s calumny. My spells were clearly our guiding light through the harrowing woods.

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Roep blows past the gathering of Bulmeer's fan club, he wipes sweat from his brow and spits onto the dirt before letting out an involuntary yell. It is deep and weird. He immediately walks down the road, past the general store and into the inn. "I need the biggest glass you've got, and I need all the ice you've got. Pour that ice into the cup, and then fill it to the top with a strong spirit. Leave the bottle, I will refill for myself." He removes his hat. Dirty, greasy hair pours from beneath. It's clearly thinning out, but Roep doesn't care. He knocks his pipe against the wood of the bar, spilling ash that he blows over the side and retrieves a small pouch from his coat pocket, refilling and lighting again. "Here's to feeling good all the time, and burying the darkest shit you've ever seen, mate."

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Axis’ frown grows deeper as he bespies his new environs. “So...this is what you call a ‘town,’ eh?” He struggles to hide the disdain in his voice. Gone are the ivied towers of glittering marble, gone the glittering cathedrals of stone and silence, gone the pneumatic tubes and indoor plumbing - all of this, a world and a lifetime away. He sighs and offers his companions a resigned smile before turning to the kobold.

    “Well, Jeffrey - let’s go and see if we can find a pub, eh?” The kobold tilts its head inquisitively; then, suddenly, its tiny frame is wracked with a violent spasm. It coughs and makes a low guttural noise. A frigid mist drips from its mouth followed by creeping tendrils ladden with dark ocelli and sharp beaks. The kobold speaks - or rather, something much more immense and distant speaks through it.

    “HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN OUR BARGAIN.” Its voice is carried in the sound of thousands of leaves rattled by wind and the wet sounds of maggots writhing in corpse flesh.

    Axis winces visibly before standing and straightening his tie. “No - have you? As far as I can tell, I am still stranded on this shit continent and Maria still breathes easily in the arms of her new lover. Tend to your duties and I will honor our contract.”

    There is a pause before the voice answers. “I SEE YOU. I KNOW YOU. YOU ARE MINE AND I AM WAITING.”

    Just as suddenly as it began, the mist recedes and Jeffrey the kobold stands before Axis, looking curious. Axis glances around, noticing for the first time that he is covered in sweat; however, none of his colleagues appear ostensibly aware of what had just transpired. He wipes his forehead, his words lost in the hustle and bustle of the town. “I need a drink.”

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Entering the same inn, Axis takes a seat at the bar. Uncomfortable with what lurks within the small creature’s frame, Axis deflects Jeffrey’s attempts to sit on his lap and sits him in the corner, facing the wall. He turns to the barkeeper.

    “A scotch, please. Single malt, highlands, and up, if you would be so kind.”

    Gazing around, his eyes fall on Roep. He grins and leaps tactlessly into conversation. “Hail, my good fellow! We met briefly in the wagon. I am Axis Upon Repose, Esquire, former...well, never mind that. I never formally made your acquaintance. Who might you be and what brings you to these parts?”

    Scanloma on
  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    The bartender is a bear of a woman with a short crop of blazing red hair. She fetches a bottle from the large shelf behind the bar and silently pours you two drinks that smell like paint thinner. She leaves the bottle in front of john but replaces the cap, presumably to prevent combustion.
    She then returns to cleaning glasses behind the bar, keeping a wary eye on the kobold in the corner.

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Also, that music is spot on.

  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    Ah! Mayor! Good to see you old friend! Where are my children! Ive pumped out so many I've lost track! Round them up! Actually, dont. Forget it, mayor. What news is there to share about the town and local wilds?

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Roep cautiously eyes the flamboyant lawyer, sipping the icy drink before him and cringing. He's used to shitty liquor, he and his shipmates had to come up for creative, and often disastrous, ways to replace simple pleasures on the end days of his expedition. But this is something new. This is something terrible. He's excited to discover the effects. "names Roep. and Loyalty, friendship. That's why I'm here. Things I suspect don't come into play in your profession." He looks to the Kobald, his slightly glowing tie and takes another drag of the wretched concoction, at very least he enjoys the chill of the liquid. "I don't think I need to tell you, but what you and this creature have going on...it's fucking weird."

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    Bullmeer: There are scores of folks living here in Poswick, but you notice that only a handful have come out to greet you and the mercenaries you've hired. The mayor is here, as well as a few of the townsfolk who were most generous in raising the funds to hire these men. Everyone else is conspicuously absent.

    95Pkqd7.png

    The mayor is a young woman named Casandra Lowell. Though she is kind and generous, there's an intensity to her. Something dire just beneath the surface, like one of those terrible swamp lizards that lurk beneath still waters.
    "Everything is well here Bullmeer, but for how long? Shepsfeld is gone, and we have no idea where they plan to go next."
    Her gaze passes over the men you've brought with you. She steps closer and lowers her voice so only you can hear.
    "Is this all? I know we didn't have much to offer, but I'd hoped... Bullmeer these men are no soldiers."


  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Axis nods at Roep's response. The man has a coarseness to him, his voice slow in cadence and deep in timbre. He smells of the sea - of shit and sweat and piss too, certainly, but also undeniably of the surf, the waves, the sand. It sparks warm memories of his childhood in the guildhall, memories that are quickly repressed. Axis calmly allows the verbal jab to fall from him with a warm smile. He is familiar with the suspicion and disdain with which his profession is viewed by the coarser elements. No matter; when his goals are realized, he will be insulated against said elements by wrought iron fences, gilded paintings, trellises of plump grapes, elaborate limestone walls, and armed guards. Lots and lots of armed guards. For the moment, however, it behooves him to avoid inflaming relations further. He will take whatever strange bedfellows he might find in his current, disadvantaged state.

    "Well, a pleasure to meet you, mister...err...Roep. And a toast to your health." He takes a deep sup of the drink, only to be reduced to a violent coughing spell. After roughly two minutes of continued gagging and retching and aggressive brow-dabbing (with his kerchief), Axis regains his composure.

    "As for Jeffrey, well..." He gives the small beast a furtive, somewhat timorous sidelong glance, his voice dropping to a gravelly rasp. "I suppose he is somewhat special. I've certainly taken to him...or perhaps, he has taken to me." His voice now barely a whisper. "I think he may yet surprise us all."

    Hearing his name, the kobold plods from the corner to Axis' side, where he repeatedly attempts to jump and grab the glass of liquor from the bar, impeded by his short stature and Axis' diligent hands constantly moving the drink out of his reach.

    Outside, a clamor of voices arises from a crowd. Axis turns to see a young woman addressing the dwarf before a crowd. He frowns; he is little able to distinguish such collections of commoners from packs of feral animals, and he deeply fears their propensity to dissolve into something violent and implacable. Though their words are muted by glass and wood and stone, he attempts to discern the general mood of the crowd from afar.

    Perception check: Get perceived on?: 1d20+2 12

    Scanloma on
  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Axis: The gathering outside is somber, voices are hushed and the villagers look nervous. A few of the mercenaries look like they're getting bored of proceedings and may be joining you soon.

    A woman who looks very much like a smaller version of the bartender finishes her conversation with a few customers in the corner and makes her way back behind the bar.
    "So these're the brave heroes come ta save the day?" The larger bartender nods solemnly. "We've got beds for ya upstairs, and drinks are on the house'n till I feel you's abusin my hospitality. Least we can do an all."

    aokkryT.png

    Pokeylope on
  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Feeling the booze go to his head, Axis peers at the two red-headed women with bleary, unsteady eyes. He hiccups before asking in a slurred voice, “Izzat asecschual reperducshion? Little Red buddin’ off big Red?”

    He lists dangerously to one side before overcorrecting, turning to show the bar keepers and Roep two thumbs up as a indication of his sobriety. Unfortunately, he immediately slips from his stool and bangs his head unceremoniously on the counter. Get banged on?: 1d20-1 8

    Jeffrey climbs his toppled frame, hurriedly raising the high proof alcohol to eager lips. After downing the drink, the kobold smacks its mouth once, twice, burps quietly, and then projectile vomits violently onto the counter. It sways woozily before collapsing clumsily onto Axis’ back.

    Scanloma on
  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Roep sighs heavily, looks to the women with a sort of 'eh, what can you do' and turns to make his way back outside, ignoring the odd drunken duo on the floor. There is a slight list to his walk, like a ship slowly capsizing, but he's holding himself relatively together. He makes his way to Bulmeer and the mayor, looking over the small gathering. He claps Bulmeer on the back, "so what it is, friend?" he slurs.

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Also, I petition to make it canon that anytime someone picks up or moves Jeffrey, it makes this sound.

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    roll for it

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    Bulmeer to mayor: You think i would bring a band of misfits to solve a grave problem? No, they have particular skills. If you need know more, you will have to ask them yourself. As for you and i, has a member if the high dwarven guard ever let any town down when in need?

    Speech check against mayor: 1d20+1 2

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Axis rouses to the sound of the dwarf addressing the crowd. His speech, though well-intentioned, is...inelegant. Axis flinches as the dwarf's voice cracks at several critical junctures, breaking into a piercing falsetto uncharacteristic of and ill-befitting his stocky frame. The dwarf also somehow mispronounces several exceedingly common words, bastardizing them into something vulgar and offensive. A nearby inn patron covers her mouth in shock and distaste. Even Jeffrey has the good grace to appear embarrassed, tapping his index claws together and scuffing his tiny feet on the floor. Axis staggers to his feet only to fall sidelong into the bar counter. Exasperated at his own inebriation, Axis beseeches the barkeeper for aid.

    "Hey! Big Red! Can you get me to the going? I mean, cahn you get me to the...guys? Alzo, where's that budding? Budling...buuuuddy. Notchu Jeffrey, not now." Charisma check: Get drunkenly charisma'ed on?: 1d20+3 23

  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    Remember mayor, what it felt like when i was balls deep

    Balls deep check: 1d20+1 16

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Oh boy

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    "Particular skills? Yes I imagine so. That one looks like he could drink a dwarven wedding dry. That one looks like he could pick a shadow's pocket and that one's got a world class collection of facial scars. Seven hells Bullmeer, they haven't got a scrap of armor between them, and no weapons meaner than a pocketknife."
    She lets out a resigned sigh.
    "Oh well, I suppose we'll have to work with what we've got. I'll call a town meeting tomorrow and we can decide how to handle things then."
    She turns to address the small crowd of townsfolk in a reassuring voice.
    "Now I know some of you are nervous about letting a bunch of strangers come to town, but you all know Bullmeer, and he swears by these men. Go and get some rest, tomorrow is going to be a busy day."
    The crowd begins to disperse.

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Axis: The big lady hovers over you for a few a moments before reaching down and scooping you up in her massive arms. She makes her way out onto the porch and dumps you roughly in the dusty road. She returns holding a squirming Jeffrey under one arm. She plops the kobold down beside you and unstoppers a small vial of milky liquid she pulls from her pocket, handing it to you with the faintest of smiles.

    Pokeylope on
  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Roep stands there as the crowd disperses. He's got the chill, and the burn, of a healthy drink in him. He watches the townsfolk head back to their (objectively) comfy houses. Rest sounds nice to him, but he's not entirely confident it will come to him easily. He looks to the Mayor. "Are you certain there won't be attack tonight? You are so confident you have time to plan. You are so confident that the fires of hell won't descent upon you when you are most comfortable. Shit goes bad in moments, deaths can occur in seconds. I came here without question because Bulmeer, my friend, asked me. But what confidence should I put in you. What defense do you currently have?"

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    Mayor Cass seems taken aback by this line of questioning.
    "Do you think they're out there? Already? Should we establish some kind of night watch?" She turns to gaze at the distant treeline, though the falling gloom is sure to obscure anything that may be lurking there.
    "We haven't done any preparation really. These are simple folks, farmers mostly and a couple of tradesmen. I've had a hard enough time convincing them to stay. Getting them to trade their plows for shovels and hammers will take some convincing. Getting them to stand and fight?" She shakes her head. "Maybe you'll have better luck than I did."

  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    We must sleep in shifts! Rally together a handful of night guards to keep watch of the perimeter! Bulmeer shakes his belly in laughter "Where is the ale? Wheres my armor? I feel like a recruit once again in the dwarven guard!"

  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Big Red giveth, and Big Red taketh away. Axis smiles idiotically at the stalwart woman, studying the small vial of opalescent fluid, which he then sups without hesitation or reserve. I hope that wasn't poison. The substance is cool and tastes faintly of quinine and juniper. I'll let Alex dictate whatever it is that the drink does.

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    "sleeping in shifts is a good idea, my friend." Roep nods, removing his pipe from the inside of his heavy coat lighting it with a match. After his pipe is burning, he extinguishes the lit match on his tongue. The taste faintly reminds him of roasted meat, of charcoal fires. It's an old trick he picked up during the doomed expedition days, when he and the crew were so sick of moldy, flavorless biscuits and were prepared to do anything for a hint of flavor. "I'll happily take first watch, I am not yet tired and it seems our lawyer friend," looking over towards Axis and his...pet? friend? ...lover? "...is out of commission."

  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    "Right, right. The lawyer must take care of himself, the man smells of grain alcohol and i believe just drank a vial of that large womans breast milk. Intriguing. You may have the first shift!"

    Breast Milk Gives Lawyer man an extra saving throw: 1d20 9

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Axis: As soon as you swallow you feel a pressure growing in your gut. It's an epicac.
    Con save: 1d20+1 16
    You almost manage to hold it in, but the foaming action is irressistable and the vile poison in your gut re-emerges.

    Axis pulls himself together and heads back into the inn to get some rest. Bullmeer heads off to sleep in his own bed for the first time in weeks. John fills his pipe and begins to pace Poswick's perimeter.

    Which watch: 1d6 2
    They come during the first watch

    Sneakin up on ya: 1d20+5 11
    Kobold stealth check

    Guard Duty: 1d20+1 20
    John's perception

    John: A few hours into your watch you spot something moving low and quiet through the fields. It looks like their heading for Bullmeer's smithy. As you rush to get a better look you see the group of kobolds split into three smaller parties and spread out.

    Pokeylope on
  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    Axis pukes violently. He barfs and barfs and barfs, eventually passing out from the vociferity and volume with which he continues to vomit. He wakes up on several occasions only to vomit himself back into oblivion. When he finally comes to several hours later, he feels like a new man. Unfortunately, it is now nighttime, and he finds himself lying alone in the town square, accompanied only by Jeffrey. A Jeffrey who now appears somewhat distraught, hopping from one tiny foot to the other and turning in a circle, whimpering softly. Axis does not know it, but the young kobold senses other members of its pack moving nearby.

    "Jeffrey...what is it, young one?" he asks as picks up the kobold and places it on his knee. Seeing its agitation, he scans the nearby grounds for any sort of sound or disturbance. Perceived, get on!: 1d20+2 10

  • JohnRoepJohnRoep Registered User regular
    Roep catches sight of the little creeping bastards, the slightest bit of warmth he felt for the dandy lawyer's new friend has evaporated. They are the enemy. He promised his loyalty to Bulmeer, he won't let this village fall. He quickly needs to work out a plan, he can shout and let the town know there is an enemy in their midst, but that means the Kobald armada are also aware that they've been spotted. The villagers aren't warriors. People will die. Stealth could be better. The bastards are small. He's caught one already, and in his mind, trained it to love a city boy. The low key approach, he decides. He bends down to pick up a fist full of gravel as he makes his way towards Bulmeers' home. He hurls the tiny rocks towards Bulmeer's roof, remembering the lavish tin roof he spotted on his way into town. The sound should startle Bulmeer out of bed. To be safe, he picks up two more fist fulls and lets them fly.

    Alerting Bulmeer: 1d20+5 14

    i used a stealth check since I'm trying to be sneaky, let me know if that doesn't apply.

  • PokeylopePokeylope Registered User regular
    Naw that's a good idea, I like this approach. Sneak on the sneakers.

    Bullmeer, do you sleep in your armor? Coming outside without it will let you make stealth checks without disadvantage, but your AC will be lower.

    John's check is a success. Bullmeer can wake up and join him.

    Axis: You only succeed here thanks to your darkvision. You look in the same direction as Jeffrey and notice a figure crouched beside Bullmeer's smithy.

  • CryptikothCryptikoth Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Bulmeer wakes to the sound of what may be birds shitting on the roof. Bulmeer hates birds. In his youth, the bastards would steal his sandwichs and he was too short and weak to reach their nest for revenge. Bulmeer is angry at being woken up by birds. Birds shitting on his roof. Bulmeer gears up, and opens a chest at the foot of his bed, his shining hammer glistens in the candle light.

    The thought of bird blood on his lips is tantalizing.

    Cryptikoth on
  • ScanlomaScanloma Registered User regular
    edited July 2018
    Seeing a strange man crouching outside the smithy, several thoughts and impulses rapidly race through Axis' mind: first, that he should run away; second, that he should run away and scold Big Red for whatever poison she had used on him; third, that he should, as a good citizen, move toward the man and accost him loudly, waving his arms and yelling to alert the town guard. Something in the strange, anxious movements of Jeffrey and the deafening silence of the town, however, suggests to him that it may behoove him to draw as little attention to himself as possible.

    As such, Axis attempts to surprise the crouched figured stealthily, Jeffrey strapped to his back like a small, anxious, whimpering backpack. Get stealthed on.: 1d20-1 15

    Scanloma on
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