# FADED GLORY: The Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion (FINISHED!)



## Henry (May 5, 2005)

_Author's Note: This is a story hour inspired by the North Carolina Gameday on April 23rd, 2005, played by Rel, Nakia, Riggs, Tiberious, and myself, and DM'ed by Old One. It is a combination System of Grim Tales, with the Magic System and other elements of the Black Company Campaign setting house-ruled in.

The setting is best known to readers of Old One's Faded Glory story hour, the Emorian Empire, beset on all sides, but managing to triumph against odds most perilous. I've have little experience with story hour writing, but I hope you find it a fun read._ - Henry




*Faded Glory:
The Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion*

*Or, a grim tale of the Imperial Bureau*​

The long-simmering guerilla war between the Emorian Empire and the Sythian Confederacy has exploded into full-scale conflict once again. Constant forays by Sythian troops and their Fire Witches are threatening to over-run the regions of Upper Pyladia. The sorcery of the Fire Witches has proved to be most puissant in recent battles and divinations by the Imperial War Wizards indicate that legendary items knows as the “Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion” are providing a significant power boost to the Sythian mages.  Further, a large army of Sythians is being trained at the southern reaches of the region known as the Wadi el-Arish for a decisive strike against Emor’s southern defenses.

The Emperor Legatus X has put forth a bold plan: An elite legion of Emor’s finest would travel across the desert known as the Demon’s Anvil, penetrate the Sythian heartland and disrupt the gathering Sythian forces, buying time for the Empire to shore up her southern defenses.  The strike, however, is cover for another, more important mission…the capture or destruction of the Demon Scorpion’s Eyes.

An elite team from the innocuously-named Imperial Inspection Bureau accompanies the mission:


Maxian of Tyriel: Holy Warrior of Osirian, Hammer of the Sythians;
Myrwyn the Swift, beautiful but deadly Archer of Emor;
Brandis Tollheart, Halfling diplomat and scout of the Bureau;
Boldric of the Brigantes, former slave but freeman and peerless warrior
Vercinius, physician of the team and minor enchanter
S. Antonius Bellicus, Patrician, student of the Arcane, senior War Wizard

Aided by two score of hand-picked legionnaires and four competent Imperial War Wizards, they are separately tasked with securing or destroying the Fire Witches’ fiendish power source. Rashad ibn-Aziz, a turncoat Sythian warlord, guides the team and claims to know a secret way into the inner sanctums of Wadi el-Arish. Overall command of the penetration team is entrusted to Senior Centurion D. Octavius Varus.

The small team presses on through the night, making a forced march toward the Wadi with the intention of launching a night invasion of the Fire Witches’ stronghold. The Turncoat Rashad leads the team through winding arroyos and sun-baked deadlands before entering their goal: a rune-carved portal at the base of a low-ridge line, the secret entrance. The rising of Osirian’s Eye reveals tell-tale dust clouds to the west: The battle between the Emorian Legion and the Sythian forces is joined.

After an hour of careful movement through ancient corridors of worked and natural stone, a magical missive reached Centurion Varus:

_Holding western portion Wadi.
 Outnumbered 3-to-1, with more enemy arriving.
Water and supplies holding.
Expect your success soonest._





The dark cavern seemed to mute all sound, and the dozen Sythian guards took the quiet for granted. Reports had recently filtered down warning of Emorian forces to the north; even these were miles away, however, and no one had ever dared challenge these deadly guards for access.

The Halfling-sized draft of air that stole past them did not perturb these warriors; neither did the subtle chink of metal that wafted down the passage at one point. The guards at the table near the exit tunnel did not even note the shadowy figure that gently strode into view and spoke cursed words of power that heralded the end.

With a crackling sound like crunched bone, blindness descended upon the nearest guards. Simultaneously, streaks of silver and azure flew to the table and EXPLODED, decimating all of the blinded guards in an instant. Cries fell. Shouts rang out. Legionnaires stormed the guard post chamber, slaying quickly, mercilessly. An order was barked to warn the outpost!

It never happened. Maxian of Tyriel, armor-clad Holy Warrior of the Empire, saw to that. Maxian was a true Son of Emor, prominent Aquiline nose, hardened jaw, both broken and reset before, and he truly lived up to his given title. His intimidating cry shook the Sythians with cold fear. The seconds were enough to leap into the midst, to slay the Commander where he stood.

Following him closely, the lovely and dexterous half-fey Myrwyn followed. Everywhere she fired her bow, death reigned. Roaring behind her, the Mighty Boldric of the Brigantes surged forward to deliver oblivion with his glaive, larger than the tallest man. One Sythian surprised the group by being minorly trained in magic; he got off an enchantment, and Maxian felt disoriented. Boldric, one stroke later, put an end to any future deviltry. 

The final Sythian bolted for the door leading into the stronghold, but before he could open it, the outline of a Halfling-sized bow shimmered slightly in the air as it spurred the guardsman in his family treasure, followed up by a swift jab to the eye with its tip. The flat of Maxian’s blade clopped the guard to the floor, and the guard chamber was won. 

Brandis, coated with his short-lived Dust of Neverwhere, slowly shimmered into view. The Senior Centurion Varus strode into the room, surveying the scene. “Excellent work, Inspector Brandis.” He turned, bowed slightly to Antonius and the other war wizards, then to the other inspectors. “But time is short. If we fail, the very Gates of Emor are lost.”


----------



## Old One (May 5, 2005)

*Woot!*

Henry,

Great start!  Of course...I am a bit biased...I should have given you two extra action points !  Maybe I will place one on deposit for next time...

~ OO


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (May 5, 2005)

Henry, this is some of the best writing I have seen in this forum.

It reminds me of someone... I would say Howard, although it's a bit more patrician and not coarse enough. But in the gripping detail and the choice prose, definitely.

If you can keep up that level of writing... hoo-ooof.

Awww, hell, I take back any reservations. It's downright Howard-esque.


Wulf


----------



## Mark Causey (May 5, 2005)

In another world, on another plane, a red skinned tiefling bores of a conversation with a fiend and looks over to see this adventure taking place. Caught twixt the adventure he is on and the adventure taking place, he feels remorse for not being in two places at once.

AKA, I sat at the table next to game, wishing I could play both. I'm glad I'll finally know why some of the things I heard happened!


----------



## Ashy (May 5, 2005)

Great stuff, Henry!


----------



## Ankh-Morpork Guard (May 5, 2005)

Ashy said:
			
		

> Great stuff, Henry!



 Couldn't have said it better. Well, except for adding, "Give us more!"


----------



## Old One (May 5, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> The final Sythian bolted for the door leading into the stronghold, but before he could open it, the outline of a Halfling-sized bow shimmered slightly in the air as it spurred the guardsman in his family treasure, followed up by a swift jab to the eye with its tip. The flat of Maxian’s blade clopped the guard to the floor, and the guard chamber was won.




EDITORIAL DM NOTE: _Trick_ is one of my favorite new talents.  I had saddled Rel's halfling Brandis with another, less useful talent that was all but made useless by his weapon finesse skill.  After perusing the other talents available for that slot, he chose _Trick_ which allows the user to daze an opponent for one round with a successful use...it quickly became a source of mirth for DM and players alike !

~ OO


----------



## nakia (May 6, 2005)

Awesome job, Henry!  Excellent writing!


----------



## Old One (May 6, 2005)

<Just to make Henry feel like other popular SH writers>

Hey!  How about an update?!?

BUMP!

Get going...quit slacking!

!

~ OO


----------



## Ankh-Morpork Guard (May 6, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> <Just to make Henry feel like other popular SH writers>
> 
> Hey!  How about an update?!?
> 
> ...



 It wasn't even off the first page! 

Wish I had readers who would bump my SH up to the top when it was barely halfway down the first page...

Oh, and re-bump.


----------



## Ashy (May 6, 2005)

Ankh-Morpork Guard said:
			
		

> It wasn't even off the first page!
> 
> Wish I had readers who would bump my SH up to the top when it was barely halfway down the first page...
> 
> Oh, and re-bump.




You and me both!   :\


----------



## carpedavid (May 6, 2005)

Very nifty Henry. I'll be sure to keep reading this one.


----------



## Henry (May 9, 2005)

*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Pt. 2*

Varus abruptly tasked the halfling with his newly-won door. “Can you open this?”

All of the Imperial Inspection Bureau were chosen for their unique talents; supposedly incorruptible, each reported directly to the Emperor, and had the power even to remove a commander of duty, if suspected of negligence. Now, Brandis was not a Halfling who stood on formality, but something about the way Varus ordered him about always grated at him. Varus was a good man, though impatient, and was put in charge of this mission because he and his legion was one of the best. The result was a tenuous relationship of Varus ordering about those who could remove him, and it showed in Varus’ impatience to lead to victory.

Brandis shook it off. “Yes, Centurion Varus.” He nodded, then regarded the door. The lock was child’s play – for one of his kind, that is. He opened the door, and pitch-black tunnels stretched before him. One tunnel, three branches, all promising death cheerfully, welcomed him. “I’ll investigate.”

Rashad the Turncoat stepped forward. “Take caution, half-man. There are many passageways ahead, and only one leads to the inner chambers. I’m afraid that past this point I know little – all my time was spent in these outer passages. But I was told of a trap erected by the Fire Witches ahead – be watchful. They are cunning.”

Vercinius and Antonis bristled at this. “Be aware we trust Brandis far more than you, Sythian,” Vercinius grumbled. Antonius’ hands spontaneously glowed with a blue nimbus, but calmed his magic. Brandis thanked the Sythian Warmaster, to diffuse the situation; most of the Inspectors did not trust this one, but Brandis also wouldn’t be hurt by exercizing a little care.

A feminine form moved to Brandis’ side. “I’ll accompany, Commander.” Myrwyn was suddenly beside him, always a comfort in a deadly situation. Though his Halfling sensibilities didn’t swing towards humans or even the half-elven Caeldyn, Myrwyn was a deadly mistress of the hunt, dedicated to Corelian, the elven aspect of Osirian, and was worth ten Legionnaires.

As Myrwyn and Brandis listened, they explored as best they could; the two rightmost passages dead-ended in a series of storerooms, and in more troops, more vigilant than the guards they overwhelmed. The left passage held promise – another shadowy door, metal-bound. When they reported back, Varus swiftly detailed a four-man squad at the guard post, and the twenty centurions and the others advanced towards the passageway containing the door, lead at a distance by Brandis and Myrwyn.

Brandis and Mwrwyn looked at one another and winced as they listened to the force of soldiers crashing along behind them. They were quiet enough for taken tunnels, but far too loud for the sensibilities of the two scouts. The wizards were quiet enough, even the big Boldric was relatively quiet, but Varus, the Legionnaires, and the poor Vercinius, clad like a tortoise, even got turned around at one point in the confusion of battle at the guard outpost a few minutes ago. He was a healer without question, but they questioned the wisdom of cladding him in armor and sending him into combat. He would be a hindrance, for sure. 

And Boldric was… Boldric. The huge glaive-wielding barbarian warrior, no longer a slave by virtue of his combat skills, was a powerhouse in combat, and what his strikes lacked in finesse, they were made up in power. If he got enough room around him, and when his righteous wrath was hot, he was a terror, a scourge, to his enemies.

Brandis and Myrwyn approached the dark door. In the gloom of their lamps, they were surprised to see no guards; it was free and clear! Brandis smirked. _Well, luck’s with us! Maybe the guards are on break?_

It was only a second later when he noticed the floor doing something he didn’t like; it was moving. 

Myrwyn was the second to notice.

“What’s that Clicking sound?”


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (May 9, 2005)

So, Henry, how's this Story Hour thing grab you so far?

Story Hour Fatigue yet?


----------



## Henry (May 9, 2005)

No, not yet.  I did find that Story Hour fatigue isn't an issue when you've already written 90% of the story before you post it. 

How'm I doin' so far?


----------



## el-remmen (May 9, 2005)

I'm liking it so far. . .  I find short installments is the way to go at first to let people get used to the setting and characters - but then they should get longer b/c once readers are that far into it they desire more more more. . .


----------



## Riggs (May 9, 2005)

> and the poor Vercinius, clad like a tortoise, even got turned around at one point in the confusion of battle at the guard outpost a few minutes ago. He was a healer without question, but they questioned the wisdom of cladding him in armor and sending him into combat. He would be a hindrance, for sure.




D'oh!  I thought I had escaped this retelling after the last post!     I rolled the first 1 of many of us!!!


 

Nice write-up, Henry


----------



## Henry (May 9, 2005)

Riggs said:
			
		

> D'oh!  I thought I had escaped this retelling after the last post!




Shhh - the dramatic irony is coming. 

Thanks, all!


----------



## Spider_Jerusalem (May 9, 2005)

Hi there Henry, I'm really enjoying this as so far.

First off, it's refreshing to read your writing style - the bared down actions (for example - the first combat was really well handled. The sense of pace made the characters a force to be reckoned with) are great.

Oh, and I like your use of exposition in mid-sentence. Once again, very well handled.

This is firmly on my to-follow list. Looking for next update!

Spider.


----------



## Old One (May 9, 2005)

Riggs said:
			
		

> D'oh!  I thought I had escaped this retelling after the last post!     I rolled the first 1 of many of us!!!
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Hah!

I don't think Henry missed much...least of all the enormous number of "1s" rolled by all parties !  I have said it before and I stick by it...I exude a "Zone of Bad Dice Rolling, 10' radius" .

~ OO


----------



## Old One (May 9, 2005)

Spider_Jerusalem said:
			
		

> Hi there Henry, I'm really enjoying this as so far.
> 
> First off, it's refreshing to read your writing style - the bared down actions (for example - the first combat was really well handled. The sense of pace made the characters a force to be reckoned with) are great.
> 
> ...




Hear, hear!

I don't know how you have "escaped" writing a SH to this point, Henry.  I really like the style...can't really pin down what to call it...maybe "Expository Minimalist" !  Keep up the great work...

~ OO


----------



## Henry (May 10, 2005)

Oh, I've written another story hour, but it was... well, difficult to explain.


----------



## Old One (May 11, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> Oh, I've written another story hour, but it was... well, difficult to explain.




Ahhh...somewhat short-lived...sorry I missed it !  Plus, this is a good excuse to "bump" and ask where the next installment is !

~ OO


----------



## Henry (May 11, 2005)

Either tomorrow or Friday - I will look it over first and made sure I described Brandis' heroic actions properly.


----------



## Henry (May 13, 2005)

*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Pt. 3*

It was then that the carpet of scorpions took their meals.

The floor undulated as it swallowed up the two scouts. *Thousands* of scorpions, making their home near the door, crawled, scurried, skittered, and _stung_ their way over Brandis and Myrwyn.

Myrwyn screamed first -- or later, Brandis CLAIMED it was Myrwyn.

Varus and the company trotted quickly to the corridor, and stopped dead when they encountered the scene. Dozens of hardened legionnaires, victors of so many combats, were helpless before the irresistible horde. They watched as Brandis and Myrwyn tried to escape by running AWAY from the group and towards the bound door. Cursing and crushing, slapping and screaming, the pair hit the door with nowhere else to run. Brandis, in total panic, climbed UP the door, bare fingernails digging into wood like a rabid monkey. Myrwyn continued to flail and fight, as the disgusting carpet of creatures grabbed, stung, stung, stung, and stung again.

Maxian called to his comrades and used his only effective weapon -- fire. He tossed his hand-lantern straight at part of the swarm, hoping that the fire would do something. In his haste, he flung wide however, dashing a perfectly good lantern and flaming oil across the south wall of the passage.

Where men could do naught, Wizards took command. Antonius shouldered past gawking soldiers and launched a blast of explosive cold into the swarm; scorpion bodies froze, cracked, and died, but there were so many. His fellow Imperial War wizards followed suit, but magic is taxing; all were feeling slightly drained after that; little damage was inflicted on the horde.

Boldric strode forth, the immense fighter with his glaive. “Let me try.”  Incredibly, he tried scooping some of the creatures away with his weapon…


*“eeeyah!”*


 …but abandoned the idea when they threatened to engulf him via his weapon-handle!  Slamming the glaive flat against the wall, he dumped the bugs and stepped back a bit to give others room.

Flames erupted as more oil was flung; Myrwyn, successfully slapping away most of the scorpions, began to shake violently as the poison from the legion of stingers took hold. Brandis saw his chance; he leapt from the door, plowing through the swarm, running almost magically fast and right through the creatures, diving behind Boldric. Miraculously, of the times he was bitten, his Halfling fortitude protected him from the venom. 

Finally, Antonius Bellicus and the other wizards, coordinated with lantern flingers, finished off the creatures. Enough cold and flames, and they dispersed. Antonius checked for more enemies, then slumped to the ground.

Myrwyn promptly kneeled, vomited, stood up, then vomited again. Vercinius was immediately at Myrwyn’s side, preparing a tonic. Staggering like every muscle ached to move, she leaned on the healer of the god Osirian. 

“I feel… Sloppy,” she burbled. Vercinius suppressed a smile as he had her drink the vile brew and salved the worst of her wounds.  

Antonius, propped against a wall as he regained his footing, and addressed no one in particular. “Though we are dead set on success this day, I will need to rest soon.” The wizards grunted agreement.

Varus grumbled to the contrary. “We must move forward! The legions lose ground and men as we speak. If we fail or delay, they are the ones who suffer.”

Maxian spoke. “Much as I’d like to see a rested wizard as an ally, Centurion Varus is correct. I say we dare to push forward.” Boldric, not having suffered so much as a scratch, simply nodded. He was eager to shed Sythian blood in these tunnels, and had not NEARLY had his fill.

The others wizards were torn between duty and caution, but Antonius took the choice from their shoulders. “If all understand the consequence, then we will continue forward.”

Varus grunted in approval. “Besides, what more can these vermin throw at us?”


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (May 13, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> “Besides, what more can these vermin throw at us?”




Well.... More vermin?


----------



## Rel (May 13, 2005)

Gah!  How did I miss this getting started?  Where was the memo?!

Henry, you're doing a great job.  It's almost as fun reading about it as it was playing it.  But my experience won't be complete until Wulf makes some kind of nasty comment about the "Peck".


----------



## nakia (May 13, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> Well.... More vermin?




Well, there's that. . . except I don't think they should be called vermin anymore when they can lift you off the floor.

Great job Henry!


----------



## el-remmen (May 13, 2005)

I love swarms of vermin!  w00t!


----------



## Henry (May 13, 2005)

Just for the sheer "what the heck" value, I wonder if anyone outside of the players at Game Day want to guess what happens next?

Brandis eventually comes to a room decorated with *SPOILER *that *SPOILER*. The heroes get past it by casting *SPOILER *and *SPOILER*ing as if their lives depended on it.

Meanwhile, the Sythian Fire Witches are *SPOILER* into a beautifiul *SPOILER *and if the heroes don't stop them from *SPOILER*ing the *SPOILER*, then all is lost.


----------



## Old One (May 14, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> Just for the sheer "what the heck" value, I wonder if anyone outside of the players at Game Day want to guess what happens next?
> 
> Brandis eventually comes to a room decorated with *SPOILER *that *SPOILER*. The heroes get past it by casting *SPOILER *and *SPOILER*ing as if their lives depended on it.
> 
> Meanwhile, the Sythian Fire Witches are *SPOILER* into a beautifiul *SPOILER *and if the heroes don't stop them from *SPOILER*ing the *SPOILER*, then all is lost.




Oh...oh...pick me...I know, I know...pick me!

Great update, Henry!  Can I interest you in writing the rest of my SH?

~ OO


----------



## Old One (May 14, 2005)

el-remmen said:
			
		

> I love swarms of vermin!  w00t!




Vermin swarms are my new favorite critters !  Beat on 'em all day long and it doesn't hurt 'em...gotta bring the fire, ice or smoke (or just run away).  The scorpions are particularly nasty, since they can do damage (2d6 base), have poison (DEX), can distract and have "put a hurtin' on ya" rend ability if they successfully distract a target that does 4d6 automatically.

~ OO


----------



## Old One (May 14, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> Gah!  How did I miss this getting started?




Hmmm...head up your...

Er, nevermind...I forgot to send the memo around !

~ OO


----------



## Henry (May 16, 2005)

*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Pt. 4*

Brandis picked the second door with ease. Beyond was something the invaders were definitely not prepared for.

A marble-tiled room, some 30 feet wide, stretched back into darkness beyond his lamp. Two massive pillars, about 15 feet in, supported the ceiling, but what struck Brandis’ eye was that these two columns glittered with gems; rubies, to be specific.

Varus’s voice, requesting a status report from the previous room, snapped him back into the here and now. _Success now, gems later._ Brandis strained with his lamp to note details on the far side of the hall, and fairly skipped into the middle of the room when he caught a similar glint from two *additional* glittering columns on the far side, as well as another, larger, iron door. His keen eye, however, brought him to a screeching halt.

_Say, what are those black circular stains on the tiles?..._

Gems from the two near columns flickered to life, and Brandis moved faster than a branded calf as a streak of light bloomed into a roiling fireball, incinerating where he stood less than a second prior. Brandis was almost back to the door by the time he slowed down. No more fireblasts --

No more fireblasts?

“Don’t go near the pillars!” Brandis cried as the rest of the group stormed in, seeking the source of commotion. Vercinius and Antonius strode forth to examine as Brandis filled them in.

“Magical trap,” both agreed. Antonius admitted he had no capability to diffuse magical traps. Vercinius offered, “I might be able to temporarily dispel ONE of these things. But FOUR…” he trailed off. There was no way.

Antonius regarded Rashad the Turncoat. “Was this your Fire Witch’s trap, Sythian?”

Rashad countered, “As I told you, I do not know. But it would seem true.”

Brandis chimed in, pointing out a few facts. “Look here  -- see all those black marks? Not only has this thing been here, frying the incautious for a long time, but the black marks are all the way from north to south – meaning they guard the whole width of the room, not just between the pillars.”

“Why aren’t we ash?” Varus asked irritatedly.

“They stop right at the pillars. As long as we’re over here, or on the far sides, next to the doors, we’re safe. And note all these dull, cracked gems? These things seem to burn out as they are used. They’re not infinite, but I don’t fancy my chances trying to burn through the ten THOUSAND gems on each of these pillars!”

“Pry them out?” Varus asked.

“No good,” Brandis replied sullenly. “They’re almost certain to be trapped to explode from that, too.”

“We need more information,” said Vercinius.

Brandis warned them, and tossed a pebble into the center with the pillars. No reaction came.

Varus grumbled, “_We WASTE TIME_. Our troops falter in the Demon Wastes. We need a way past. War Wizards!” He commanded, totally ignoring Antonius. “Have you any fire protections?”

One timid wizard, named Junius, spoke. “Yes, sir! It is a small charm, but somewhat effective.” He offered an almost apologetic side glance at Antonius, who fixed him with a stare. Antonius was known as a competent wizard, but he was known even more for exacting cold revenge on those who showed him up at magic, or who treated him as an inferior. What this boded for Junius or Varus, the younger war wizard was afraid to think about beyond the here and now.

Varus grunted satisfaction. “We need a volunteer.” Legionnaires silently swallowed.

Straws were drawn, and a legionnaire was ordered forward.


----------



## Old One (May 16, 2005)

Woot!

Two Faded Glory updates in one day...now we just need Rel to get off of his duff and we will have a hat trick !

Good update, Henry...hooray!

~ OO


----------



## Rel (May 16, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Woot!
> 
> Two Faded Glory updates in one day...now we just need Rel to get off of his duff and we will have a hat trick !
> 
> ...




I'm afraid that isn't going to happen.  I got "babied out" today (though technically I guess she isn't a baby anymore).  Samantha the Red would not take a nap this afternoon and that equalled no time for daddy to do any writing.  So you'll have to be content with 2 out of three Faded Glory Story Hours updated.  Still not bad...


----------



## Henry (May 20, 2005)

This part was fun to write, because it reminded me just how much we really had not yet tested the magic system. When I realized I had totally forgotten I had ALL types of Wards available, Old One gave me a gentle reminder in the form of Varus and Junius. I had TONS of time to prepare the thing, and make it more efficient, and smugly figured that 11 points of fire resistance would be enough for our crew if the one grunt got through with Junius' measly ward.

To put it mildly... it still hurt a bit. 




*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Part 5*

All was ready. Junius the war wizard completed his enchantment, and a wreath of gold flame spilled from his hand to wash over the Legionnaire. The man, with palpable fear in his eyes, stood at attention and waited for orders. Varus had some for him.

“Advance to the other side of the room as fast as possible, avoiding all obstacles. GO!”

With a short cry for the Empire, he charged. The closest pillar twinkled, a fireball EXPLODED, and the Legionnaire charged full-tilt. When the flash cleared, they looked – and found him on the other side, burned slightly, but in somewhat disbelief that he was alive.

Brandis gestured zealously. “Did you see that! Only one fired at a time! If we all charged, at most only four blasts would occur!”

Varus smiled. “Can you do that for us all?”

Junius replied, “I am nearly spent, sir.”

Antonius chimed in. “_Centurion_ Varus, I too have an enchantment that will work, AND it can cover all of us. However, it is, as Junius said, taxing. We must have utmost timing if it is to work.”

Varus smiled. “You’ll have it, by Osirian! _*MEN! Fall forward!*_ Circle the Wizard! All ready for charge!” Vercinius and the others of the command staff bristled. They trusted their wizard’s arcane arts, but the question is, did they trust him THAT much?

Antonius began his chant. He placed every syllable, calling on the wards of Seluna the Silver Lady to envelop them, forcing as much into his petition as he dared, weaving the threads of the world into a silver sheen that spread from him, flowed and covered all. When he was done, the company had sworn the temperature had dropped. The last sparkles of dweomer had not even faded when Varus tensed to give the order.

And they CHARGED. Some thirty soldiers, Legionnaires, wizards, gladiators, scouts (and one Halfling) stampeded forward like a herd, moving as fast as posteriors and elbows would carry them. Time seemed to stop for them, almost as if the universe was deciding what should be done. 

Then it came – spectacular fireblasts rained fire, light, and death to all.

The light subsided, the glow faded. All was dark save one or two broken lamps and sputters of fireballs from the tiled floor. All that was heard were gasps and cries of the wounded. The enchantment HELD! It had held – but was not enough.

Seven Legionnaires lay twitching and dying in the killing field. One war wizard, the very Junius himself, also lay in the pile of bodies. Brief prayers for their souls were said by Vercinius, who quickly took to patching the wounded. Antonius stared in disbelief. Inwardly, he panicked, just a little. He had put as much into his ward as possible, but still it wasn’t enough! This was not good. They were counting on his skill to take them through, and here he was, tired and half spent.

He inhaled, held his breath, calmed himself. He had to steel himself, do better, and protect the remaining wizards, or they were all going to be very, very dead. For good or ill fortune, his fate was decided here. He could live and triumph over this – or they could all die.

The rest of the group quietly rejoiced. The majority had made it through alive, and that was what mattered. However, they knew that even worse lay ahead. Antonius and Vercinius confirmed it when their Arcane senses detected an aura of terrible power, just beyond the next door. For good or ill fortunes, their die was about to be cast…


----------



## Ashy (May 20, 2005)

Excellent...

...more more!


----------



## Old One (May 20, 2005)

It was fun watching the players try to figure this one out...

They debated long and hard about loading one person up with protectives - someone who might avoid the worst of the fireballs due to quickness and dexterity (cue up Brandis) - to trip all the pillars and then have the rest follow while the pillars reset.  Or whether to extend a protetive ward out to cover the entire group.

Their final plan worked pretty well - although I rolled some horrible saving throws for one group of legionnaires and poor Junius.  

Would their alternate plan have worked?  Only the Shadow knows !

~ OO


----------



## Rel (May 21, 2005)

I'm still lovin' this.  It's my first experience getting to read a Story Hour from the perspective of having been a player instead of writing my own as GM.  I really enjoy getting to read events that I participated in from a different point of view.

You're doing a great job, Henry.  If I'd known that your skills at writing were so good I'd have pressed you for an Eberron Story Hour.  You got off easy.  

By the way, in completely unrelated news, you left your little beanbag/travel pillow when you stayed here.  My wife's been bugging me to tell you that.  If necessary I can ship it to you or you can just grab it at the next Game Day in September.  In the meantime I'll try to keep it safe from the depridations of Samantha the Red.


----------



## Henry (May 21, 2005)

Darn - I had forgotten all about that! I apparently have a memory like a steel trap...door. 

I'll just get it next time I'm back that way. Even if something were to happen to it, it's not a big deal, as it's a backup, anyway.

Glad you're all liking the Story Hour! I've settled into a Monday/Friday rhythm, because while it's good to update, sometimes if they're too rapidly released, it dilutes the story a bit.


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (May 22, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> I'm still lovin' this.  It's my first experience getting to read a Story Hour from the perspective of having been a player...




Well, there's one significant difference between you and the peck.


----------



## Rel (May 22, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> Well, there's one significant difference between you and the peck.




You mean the "lovin' it" or the other part?


----------



## Old One (May 22, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> Well, there's one significant difference between you and the peck.




Yep...If Brandis was playing "The Peck", he would have already made a deal with the Sythians to betray the party, wiped out half the legionnaires with intentionally triggered traps and looted their bodies !

~ OO


----------



## Henry (May 23, 2005)

*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Pt. 6*

Brandis stared for the fourth time that day into the face of doom. After picking the lock on the small yet heavy door, he carefully opened it a crack, and peered inside. He was greeted by a scene from the heart of unholy darkness.

Just beyond lay a huge hall – dwarfing the size of his raiding party’s current room. A War Room this was, full of the props of generals and commanders of armies – including a large diorama that took up thousands of square feet in the chamber’s center, a strategy board that tracked movements of armies, both Sythian and Emorian. Just to one side, a large set of steps led upwards, to an exit from the chamber – Brandis could just barely make out a curtain beyond that closed off whatever was there. At the base of the steps, a pool of water glistened, shimmering with a pearly light that constantly moved.

And the room – the room was swarming with Sythians. Guards around the perimeter, foot soldiers moving pieces on the diorama, officers watching from balconies as the battle progressed.

Dominating the scene though was a beautiful fair-haired woman – A Sythian Fire Witch, by her dress, engaged in a frightening act. A swirl of dark, malignant-looking energy swirled from the curtains far behind her, corkscrewing through the air, and feeding directly into the back of her head, as if supplying her with dark power begging to be used. She channeled this power into the pieces on the diorama in front of her, smiling wickedly as she watched the scene in the pool the whole time. She was beautiful, deadly, and malign all at the same time; Brandis shivered.

Had he stopped there, he would have never noticed her guards – two Sythian Cavalry, riding Scorpions. Yes, Scorpions of huge size, sitting tamely, were waiting for their masters’ commands. _Good gods, the size of those things! They could snap me in half without straining!_

Brandis leaned back from the doorway, exhaled quietly, and relayed through Handspeak the information to Myrwyn, Varus and his fellow agents. Then, preparing his magic dust, he sprinkled himself with it, and vanished.

Boldric, Maxian, and the rest stood quiet as death behind the slightly cracked door, waiting for a sign.

Ironically enough, it was Boldric who provided the sign.



Brandis moved in, and skulked closer, listening to the events.

“Tell Commander Mufid that we are near success,” The Fire Witch intoned. “The Scorpion brings us strength, and the Emorian cattle are in dire straits.” The officers in the balcony perches mumbled approval, as one officer pointed. “What of the left flank?”

With a slight adjustment of posture, she poured more power into the icon of the Sythian armies on that flank, and looking into the pool after a few seconds seemed satisfied. “They rout the Emorians there, soon.”

Brandis realized quickly that as she channeled this power, the Sythians were bolstered and sure to win. What demonic strength it gave them, he didn’t know, and didn’t want to figure it out. They had to stop her and the other users of this power, and there would never be a better place of time.

Boldric, meanwhile, grew irritated. He longed to kill off all the roomful of Sythian dogs, but was ordered to stay here. He shifted uncomfortably…

…just enough to make the door give a loud **SQUEAK**.

Brandis’ blood froze, as did the group behind the ajar door. Even Myrwyn froze, hand paused to slap Boldric in the back of the head assuming they weren’t detected.

Of the two nearest guards, standing mere feet from Brandis, one shifted and stifled a yawn at his exciting work, and the other glanced behind him. He grew curious at the slightly opened door, and unknowingly stepped past Brandis to investigate. Boldric, hearing the movement, choked up on his glaive’s point, ready to strike. Brandis stalked the wayward Sythian all the way to the door, ready to strike. The Sythian reached for the open door, ready to strike…


----------



## Rel (May 23, 2005)

And THEN what happened?!


----------



## Old One (May 23, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> And THEN what happened?!




Hehe...the comedic highlight of the game !

~ OO


----------



## nakia (May 25, 2005)

Rock!  I've finally gotten a minute to catch up on the updates.  They are great as always, Henry.

One minor quibble, though.  Maxian volunteered to take the random legionaire's place in testing the traps in the "pillars of fire" room.  I had pretty good saves and figured it would be cool from a role-playing stance if one of the "big guys" stepped up and took a hit that would have possibly killed a red shirt.

I guess it wasn't that cool, since no one else remembered.   

Jeez, everyone overlooks you unless you ______ a guy with a giant _______. (Spoliers deleted).


----------



## Henry (May 25, 2005)

nakia said:
			
		

> I had pretty good saves and figured it would be cool from a role-playing stance if one of the "big guys" stepped up and took a hit that would have possibly killed a red shirt.
> 
> I guess it wasn't that cool, since no one else remembered.



I don't think even the DM remembered you volunteering - I think we were all too fixated on killing the red shirt.  In the end it worked out, because at least then we were able to gauge if most of our redshirts would make it or not. Given Varus' temperament, we were still going across, red shirts be damned.


----------



## Henry (May 27, 2005)

*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Pt. 7*

The guard was gone before he nor any other Sythian could conceive it. He opened the door,  just in time for Brandis to stage an attack in his vulnerables, which temporarily stopped him cold; to his credit, he didn't even cry out. To add insult to injury, behind the door Boldric grinned and rammed his glaive home in the man's chest while hoisting him into the columned room. Brandis followed, slealthily closing the door back to a crack, and no one was the wiser. 

After Boldric pulled the Speared Sythian back into the room with him, Brandis, still invisible, whispered to the group, “Wait 30 seconds, then charge. We hit them NOW.” He was then gone, stalking back to the 2nd guard still unaware. He knew the element of surprise was almost gone – it would only be seconds before the guard was noticed missing, and he doubted anyone in the group could convincingly imitate one of these soldiers.

Brandis studied for a long time, looking for an opening. He found one and struck. Seconds later, the felled guard eased to the ground as the Dust of Neverwhere evaporated. Suddenly, one of the Soldiers minding the war-map started and pointed. He didn’t get the words free before all hells were loosed by the invaders.

Antonius was first in – sprinting forward, he practically SPILLED the words of his spell into the ether. Hurling a blast of bone-snapping cold at the witch and her guards, the Fire witch and one of her Scorpion cavalry was hit with the spell, shocking them, but not disturbing the Witch from her maintaining whatever she was doing to bolster the troops. _Dedicated or stupid,_ Antonius mused, _I hope she doesn’t let me find out._

Boldric stormed the doorway, charging into the thick of the room, wild-eyed, singing his battle song as he speared a Sythian. Restrained for hours in these caves, he was doing what he was born to do, and had the room to do it.

Arrows sung from Sythian Archers on balconies as officers gave orders to their faithful below. “Emorians at the Gate! Kill them! Hold them! Protect the Witches!”

Brandis perked up.

_Witches? As in, more than one?_

Antonius and Boldric took a few minor near-misses and flesh wounds, stopped by armor, but fought on. The Emorian Legionnaires were next in, Led by Varus and Rashad, charging as the trained force they were, forming battle lines, holding back the quickly-organizing Sythians. Maxian and Vercinius quickly charged in; Maxian stood shoulder to shoulder with Boldric, Hammer and Spear of the Sythians together, as the pair put fear of the gods into the foe. Mywyn, fleet of foot but still unsteady by scorpion venom earlier, plied her bow evenly across the commanders and footsoldiers. Vercinius and the Imperial War Wizards joined Antonius just behind Emorian lines and surveyed the situation. 

Then, the Scorpions moved, and the outcome was a little less clear.

Riders urged their Scorpions forward, the massive insect-like beasts clicking and charging into battle lines. As drivers used riding bows, Scorpions slashed and grabbed; one snatched up a man like kindling, and one speared with its poison stinger that killed before the poison could. Still, the Emorians _held_.

Antonius focused on the Witch. _She had to GO_. Surging his next spell forward, he spoke the key triggers that collapsed it on the Witch’s head with a resounding crackle of bone. The Witch screamed as she was hit with the full curse that took her sight. Suddenly blind, she flailed about, her command broken enough to stop her sorceries with the Demon Scorpion power. The wave of dark energy that fueled her retreated beyond the curtain. As it did so, the three war wizards hit her with all they had – spikes of electricity and cold that cracked and sizzled the skin from her bones. Down went the Fire witch, and hope lifted in the hearts of the invaders.

Vercinius moved forward. His skill was healing, not fighting, and he had little to blast the field with; however, he did know a trick or two. Picking out four enemy soldiers, he wove a spell that clouded their minds for a time. Suddenly, these four soldiers stood, watching their comrades die, and were stuck with indecision. Should they fire arrows? Charge and Attack? Run for help? So confusing! They stood and simply watched as the battle raged.

Seeing an opening after one of the Scorpions downed a soldier, Maxian cried to Tyriel, Captian of the Heavenly Host, and drove his sword deep into the body of the beast. A hiss escaped like cracked shellfish, from the creature or its innards, he had no clue. He just knew that he had struck a telling blow. Singing his lord’s praises, bathing his blade and arm in the Scorpion’s ichor, he was cut as the figure of a Gory God of Death before the Sythians, and those who stood before him had to take every ounce of courage not to break ranks just then.

Myrwyn engaged in a barrage of arrows on the four confused soldiers. While still capable of defending themselves, she hoped to take down a few before they came to her senses.

Antonius almost smiled. _Amazing! We win the day like –_

Two things cut his thought short: First, a new Fire Witch with her entourage of Sythian guards emerged from behind the curtained partition in the rear of the room; second, two crossbow bolts slammed home, wounding him, and breaking his concentration. _Damn!_

The Fire witch wasted no time resuming the ritual, and on cue, the Dark energies swept from behind the curtain to fill her…


----------



## Rel (May 27, 2005)

Ahem...I don't mean to critique your telling of the story, Henry, but right between here:



			
				Henry said:
			
		

> Brandis stalked the wayward Sythian all the way to the door, ready to strike. The Sythian reached for the open door, ready to strike…




and here:



			
				Henry said:
			
		

> He opened the door, to find Boldric grinning and ramming his glaive home in the man's chest while hoisting him into the columned room.




...I seem to recall something noteworthy happening. 

I know that Brandis is super stealthy and all, but c'mon!  Yer' killin' me!


----------



## Rel (May 27, 2005)

Oh, and by the way, I updated my Faded Glory Story Hour today and this one has been updated so if Old One will just get off his lazy butt and update his then we'll have the elusive HAT TRICK!


----------



## Henry (May 27, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> ...I seem to recall something noteworthy happening.




D'OH! I knew I'd forgot something!

Reminder: Was it your bow, or did you use something else?


----------



## Rel (May 27, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> D'OH! I knew I'd forgot something!
> 
> Reminder: Was it your bow, or did you use something else?




It was the short sword.


----------



## Old One (May 27, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> Oh, and by the way, I updated my Faded Glory Story Hour today and this one has been updated so if Old One will just get off his lazy butt and update his then we'll have the elusive HAT TRICK!




Alas...my turn to blow the hat trick !  No Against the Shadows update today :\ !  However, on a brighter note...the Mrs. and I are trekking to Charlotte next week to check out some houses...we will be there June 2-5...wish us luck.

Henry - great update!  I like your Mon-Fri updates.  Have a fun and safe weekend.

~ OO


----------



## Rel (May 27, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Alas...my turn to blow the hat trick !  No Against the Shadows update today :\ !  However, on a brighter note...the Mrs. and I are trekking to Charlotte next week to check out some houses...we will be there June 2-5...wish us luck.




Wait a second...does this mean you might be moving back to the Great State of North Carolina?!  If so then that is most definately cause for celebration!


----------



## Rel (May 27, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> The guard was gone before he nor any other Sythian could conceive it. He opened the door,  just in time for Brandis to stage an attack in his vulnerables, which temporarily stopped him cold; to his credit, he didn't even cry out. To add insult to injury, behind the door Boldric grinned and rammed his glaive home in the man's chest while hoisting him into the columned room. Brandis followed, slealthily closing the door back to a crack, and no one was the wiser.




Thanks for the edit, Henry.  This was the funnest moment of the whole session for me (although I loved the entire thing).  It was another chance for Brandis to use his "Trick" ability to stun an opponent.  In this particular case when Old One asked what I was doing I said, "I wait until he opens the door just a bit and then...I STRIKE to subdue his balls!"  After I swatted him in the Scythian Jewels with the flat of my short sword I gleefully shoved him through the door onto the waiting glaive of Boldric before I turned around and sneak attacked his fellow guardsman.  I love it when a plan comes together!

Too bad it didn't stay together...


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (May 28, 2005)

Pretty damn fine story hour. Reads like something from Iron Heroes to me!

Vercinus greatly underestimates his little "trick." Confusion is one of those sleeper "deadly" spells-- it's potency increases the more dangerous the targets are! 

I'd much rather have three or four mooks suddenly decide to attack me than Maxian and Boldric, and I'd much rather have Maxian and Boldric stand around doing nothing than three or four mooks.


----------



## Old One (May 28, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> Wait a second...does this mean you might be moving back to the Great State of North Carolina?!  If so then that is most definately cause for celebration!




Rel,

Where ya been???

This has popped up a couple of times in various threads (must be old age catchin' up with ya) !

The housing market in the Baltimore-DC Metro area, for what we want to get, is crazy-ridiculous.  Prices in many areas around here have appreciated 75-100% in the last 3-4 years, effectively pricing us out of the single family home market for the type of properties we are interested in unless we want to spend 600k+.  That and my commute to and from N. VA from Baltimore is killing me (I will spend about 23 days commuting this year...so we need to do something.

We have figured out that we can move back to Charlotte, buy a "McMansion" for $275k - $350k in a nice, yuppie master-planned community and then I can commute by air weekly to N. VA and stay with friends to work my day job.  Even with weekly flights, airport parking, etc...we will still save ~ $1,000 per month over buying up here...crazy.

Anyway...the spousal unit hasn't been back since we left in late-2000...so this whole plan is contigent on her feeling comfortable with the area...hence, the recon mission.  Our timing will be largely dependent on, unfortunately, the passing of my father-in-law, who is terminally ill.  We are waiting for that situation to resolve before making any concrete moves.

Anywho...we could be back down within the next 12-18 months.

~ OO


----------



## Rel (May 28, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Rel,
> 
> Where ya been???
> 
> This has popped up a couple of times in various threads (must be old age catchin' up with ya) !




Don't remind me.  I'm turning 34 this week.  :\ 




> Anyway...the spousal unit hasn't been back since we left in late-2000...so this whole plan is contigent on her feeling comfortable with the area...hence, the recon mission.  Our timing will be largely dependent on, unfortunately, the passing of my father-in-law, who is terminally ill.  We are waiting for that situation to resolve before making any concrete moves.
> 
> Anywho...we could be back down within the next 12-18 months.
> 
> ~ OO




I'm sorry to hear about your father in law.  Please send our codolences to your wife.

But it is great to hear that you might be coming back to the general area.  You know, the Triangle area has nice, inexpensive housing too and is conveniently located near an airport...


----------



## Henry (May 28, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> Don't remind me.  I'm turning 34 this week.  :\



Take comfort in one thought: Your medical insurance bracket doesn't change until age 35...  I knew we were of similar age, but I'm older than you? Dang, time to start cultivating that "patronizing elder" persona. 




> You know, the Triangle area has nice, inexpensive housing too and is conveniently located near an airport...




...and a gameday...


----------



## spidertrag (May 28, 2005)

> Then, the Scorpions moved, and the outcome was a little less clear.
> 
> Riders urged their Scorpions forward, the massive insect-like beasts clicking and charging into battle lines. As drivers used riding bows, Scorpions slashed and grabbed; one snatched up a man like kindling, and one speared with its poison stinger that killed before the poison could. Still, the Emorians held.




This may be fun to draw---any details that u can provide for all the various things involved?

BTW, great S.H.


----------



## Old One (May 29, 2005)

spidertrag said:
			
		

> This may be fun to draw---any details that u can provide for all the various things involved?
> 
> BTW, great S.H.




The layout was a large part-natural, part-worked stone roughly rectangular chamber.  The party entered about the center of the lower long side and had steps leading to a raised ante-chamber to the right, a reflecting pool below the steps and a huge "sand table" taking up most of the center of the room.  Several balconies - with archers - overlooked the chamber.

The Fire Witch channeling the demonic energy surge stood at the top of the steps and was flanked by huge scorpions with archer riders.  About 25+ other minions, warriors, archers and flunkies were scattered about the chamber on guard, moving pieces around the sand table and various other functions.

The initial charge of the legionniares - with Maxian and Boldric in the lead - was met by a skirmish line of Sythians.  The battle line stretched roughly from the near right hand corner of the chamber to the far left hand corner on a diagonal.  It took the scorpion-riders a couple of rounds to get into the action, but they hit the center of the Emorian line like a whirlwind, snapping legionnaires in half or impaling them with their stingers.

Big scorpions are grapple machines...if they grab you...you are in serious trouble !  I actually used an on-the-fly house rule to see if a grappled PC's arms got pinned (d6 per arm, 1-3 pinned/4-6 free) and then allowed them to continue to make attacks with non-light weapons...albeit at a -4 penalty to hit.  Made things a bit more cinematic and didn't totally screw the PCs - who basically would have been completely helpless once grappled, since there was mathematically no chance for several to win an opposed grapple check.

Hope that sets the scene a bit better...

~ OO


----------



## Old One (May 29, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> Pretty damn fine story hour. Reads like something from Iron Heroes to me!
> 
> Vercinus greatly underestimates his little "trick." Confusion is one of those sleeper "deadly" spells-- it's potency increases the more dangerous the targets are!
> 
> I'd much rather have three or four mooks suddenly decide to attack me than Maxian and Boldric, and I'd much rather have Maxian and Boldric stand around doing nothing than three or four mooks.




Wulf,

This was the BCCS version...which basically could cloud minds for a certain duration...effectively taking them out.  IIRC, 4 or 5 of the 6 warriors that came running in failed their saves and stood there drooling for the better part of the climactic battle.

~ OO


----------



## Old One (May 29, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> Don't remind me.  I'm turning 34 this week.  :\
> 
> I'm sorry to hear about your father in law.  Please send our codolences to your wife.
> 
> But it is great to hear that you might be coming back to the general area.  You know, the Triangle area has nice, inexpensive housing too and is conveniently located near an airport...




34?

Bah...some of use have 43 looming on the horizon !  Thanks for your thoughts...he is hanging, but barely.  We have thought about RTP, but I have significant number of clients in Charlotte, so it makes the most sense.

~ OO


----------



## Rel (May 29, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> We have thought about RTP, but I have significant number of clients in Charlotte, so it makes the most sense.
> 
> ~ OO




Can't blame a guy for trying.  You'd be able to game with Tiberious again though, huh?


----------



## Riggs (Jun 1, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Wulf,
> 
> This was the BCCS version...which basically could cloud minds for a certain duration...effectively taking them out.  IIRC, 4 or 5 of the 6 warriors that came running in failed their saves and stood there drooling for the better part of the climactic battle.
> 
> ~ OO




True, and I had been figuring up the math to get that spell off since the columns of zap room, so I wasn't exactly underestimating the effect, but I surely did step around picking a decent group to try it on. I figured at first to neutralize an archer group but to get in range of them on the ledge I would have had to move Verc through the scrum and beyond and wasn't a huge fan of that.  I chose to hold up the guys that looked to be in our way if we had to charge to the curtain, etc.  I had to use lots of prop/focus/xp resources but I went for it, and was pleased with the result.  If Verc were to be Sythian, I darn well would have tried this on Maxian and Boldric before they sliced a limb off.


----------



## Henry (Jun 6, 2005)

*Black Eyes of the Demon Scorpion, Pt. 8*

Antonius wasted no time retreating. If he was hit by anything, sword or spell, he was surely done for. He had spent himself beyond the breaking point, and he suspected the other wizards were in similar trouble. Putting his hand briefly to the three Wizards’ shoulders, he nodded, stated, “For Emor” and retreated to bind his wounds. He knew these men, and they would fight on until spent, too. With that, he sprinted to the exit door, just in time to hear a roar.

The Fire Witch was furious. _These Emorian dogs have interrupted the ritual, and possibly cost thousands of troops their lives! Time for this to end! But wait..._

THERE – in the midst – the treacherous Warmaster who deserted weeks earlier! HE had led them here. His was the first score settled, as a corkscrew of serpentine energy SLAMMED into the Turncoat Sythian, and bored a hole two feet wide into his chest. He fell wordlessly.

“Damnation!” said Vercinius to no one in particular. “He COULD be trusted!”

Now, the Witch swore, they would taste the full fury of the Demon Scorpion’s venom, and pay for shedding the blood of her sister. She gestured, and a Fireball bloomed in the Emorian lines. Soldiers withered and died; Wizards were burned alive screaming; and the remaining forces were singed.

However, this only enraged Boldric further. Singing his song of battle uninterrupted, he straightforwardly thrust the Glaive through the Scorpion; it was a clumsy cut, but with so much power it smashed through the scorpion’s claw like paper; so deep was the wound it even drove through and injured the rider, who tumbled to the ground.

The battle had turned, but was uncertain. Gone were most of the Sythian footmen; the archers still fought from the balconies, a scorpion and rider still stood uninjured, and the fire Witch fought on, frying solders with her spells as she could aim. Of the Emorians, all five of the inspectors stood, some just barely; Maxian and Boldric stood firm, Brandis flitted to and fro like a darting wraith, dealing choice blows where he could; Vercinius joined the line, as his armor and shield allowed him to withstand such an assault; Varus barked orders to his remaining half dozen or so men, trying to organize them for a javelin assault on the archers.

The remaining Scorpion and Rider saw their chance. Charging Maxian, it surprised him with a pincer, and grabbed on with bone-crushing force by his waist. Maxian cried out, but stayed conscious. He repeatedly slammed the scorpion’s claw with his sword and shield, but to little avail. Boldric rammed home his glaive, but the weapon glanced off its hide.

The Legionnaires under Varus reformed. Charging to the balconies, they made short work of the Sythian archers and officers with Javelin discharges. To their surprise, Antonius, sneaking back into the room, assisted with a few choice crossbow shots. Spent with spells, he still lended a hand where he could.

Boldric and Maxian repeatedly rained blows on the Scorpion, as its handler laughed. Both sides knew that if these two fell, the invaders were lost. However, the commander was worried about the wrong threat. Vercinius, hammering at the large Scorpion mount himself, raised his mace and offered a brief prayer of Foresight to Osirian. And then, there, he saw it – the invisible crack in its body, near the fangs or pedipalps of the face. He raised his lethal mace, struck home, and as if by magic, the beast crumpled like a house of cards, dumping Maxian, Boldric, and its rider to the floor unceremoniously.

Boldric, thundering a battle cry, grinned at the Sythian handler. One last prayer to his god, as well as about two feet of Emorian Glaive, went through his mind.

The witch, standing nearby, stood slackjawed. Boldric didn’t even slow as he whipped his glaive about and sent it slashing, almost ten feet away, straight to her gut. She shook, faltered, but did not fall. Her spells ceased, however, and she stood defensively. It did not help her, however, as Maxian bounded forward to finally end her life with his blade.

Myrwyn led the way, as the Dark spell-wave for a second time retreated to the curtain. *"Quickly! We must end this!”*


----------



## Old One (Jun 6, 2005)

Good thing Henry isn't as slack as the Faded Glory creator!  Good stuff !

~ OO


----------



## Riggs (Jun 6, 2005)

Nicely done, Henry!

This was one of the times where, as the healer, I was reminded that the ability to convert lethal to non-lethal damage was about useless when the target already had tons of non-lethal.  Verc couldn't help keep Tony in the spellcasting game because of that. About half his HP were taken in lethal and the other half in non-lethal, so conversion was a turn spent for nothing.  BC magic means not having enough prep time to say you are sorry 
Had we had sleep time, non-lethal conversion is worth it though, but this was a one-shot deal. It was fun and gritty to cast down to the barest of margins of HP and see how we could make it from there.


----------



## Henry (Jun 6, 2005)

Also, I have a request: Old One and Rel, when you get a chance, could you check your e-mail?


----------



## nakia (Jun 7, 2005)

Yeah Henry!  I'm loving the story hour, even as this was the part where Maxian was up against a +45 grapple check or something similarly ridiculous. Damn scorpions.


----------



## Old One (Jun 7, 2005)

nakia said:
			
		

> Yeah Henry!  I'm loving the story hour, even as this was the part where Maxian was up against a +45 grapple check or something similarly ridiculous. Damn scorpions.




Hey...quit whinin'...at least I gave you a chance to have your arms free.  How dare you curse my lovable scorpions !

Off Topic:  Have you guys moved yet?

~ OO


----------



## Rel (Jun 7, 2005)

Henry, hopefully now you'll have gotten all of our recollections from the endgame.  Now imagine that this all happened around a year ago and you'll know what Old One and I are up against when we update our story hours.


----------



## Tony Vargas (Jun 7, 2005)

nakia said:
			
		

> Maxian was up against a +45 grapple check or something similarly ridiculous. Damn scorpions.



 Did someone forget the -20 for Improved Grab?

(Does anyone /ever/ remember the -20 for Improved Grab?)


----------



## nakia (Jun 8, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Hey...quit whinin'...at least I gave you a chance to have your arms free.  How dare you curse my lovable scorpions !
> 
> Off Topic:  Have you guys moved yet?
> 
> ~ OO




Giant scorpions are the new chocolate lab retriever.

And we haven't moved just yet.  We're packing, with a yard sale on Saturday.  We're not moving until the end of the month.

What did your wife think of Charlotte?


----------



## Old One (Jun 8, 2005)

Tony Vargas said:
			
		

> Did someone forget the -20 for Improved Grab?
> 
> (Does anyone /ever/ remember the -20 for Improved Grab?)




Hmmm...that is what happens when you DM off the SRD...what are the specs on this?

~ OO


----------



## Old One (Jun 8, 2005)

nakia said:
			
		

> Giant scorpions are the new chocolate lab retriever.
> 
> And we haven't moved just yet.  We're packing, with a yard sale on Saturday.  We're not moving until the end of the month.
> 
> What did your wife think of Charlotte?




Natch.

The trip was not the glorious success I had imagined.  

First, for reasons that seemed sane at the time, we drove down with our 27-month old and 5-1/2 month old.  Bleah.  The first half of the trip each way was graced by two screamin' mimis.

Second, the weather absolutely sucked on Thu/Fri.  Torrential rains made for very poor house-hunting.  We were so tired by the end of the day Fri that we called a halt on Sat for a day of rest and recuperation.  By the time we left, I rated the "Success %" of a move back down to Charlotte at below 20%.

However, we discussed on the way home and more since we have been back and decided to go back down in late summer/early fall - just the two of us - for another trip.  We will probably make a little mini-vacation out of it and leave the kids with the GPs.  Even if we like what we see...we won't do anything until my father-in-law passes, which could come at anytime...so we shall see.

~ OO


----------



## nakia (Jun 8, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Natch.
> 
> The trip was not the glorious success I had imagined.
> 
> ...





Sorry it wasn't more successful.  It sounds as if the fates conspired against you in your house hunting.  And, again, sorry about your father-in-law.  I'll be thinking about you and your wife during what has to be a difficult time.

You and your wife would be welcome in Rock Hill during any future trips down, of course.


----------



## Rel (Jun 8, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> However, we discussed on the way home and more since we have been back and decided to go back down in late summer/early fall - just the two of us - for another trip.  We will probably make a little mini-vacation out of it and leave the kids with the GPs.




You know, if that were to fall on or around September 23...

GAME DAY!


----------



## Old One (Jun 8, 2005)

nakia said:
			
		

> Sorry it wasn't more successful.  It sounds as if the fates conspired against you in your house hunting.  And, again, sorry about your father-in-law.  I'll be thinking about you and your wife during what has to be a difficult time.
> 
> You and your wife would be welcome in Rock Hill during any future trips down, of course.




Nakia,

Thanks much.  All I can say is that I hope I go quick...the lingering/wasting thing is just terrible to watch.  I hope your move goes well!

~ OO


----------



## Old One (Jun 8, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> You know, if that were to fall on or around September 23...
> 
> GAME DAY!




Unfortunately (for you), we will be just ending our week in Tuscany (just outside Sienna)...sipping wine, hanging out by the pool, etc.  

The place we are staying is here: Villa

I will have to pass this time !

~ OO


----------



## Henry (Jun 8, 2005)

Ya Lucky So-and-so's! 

We'll miss you, but glad you're getting away from it all, just the same.

I can sympathize about the watching and waiting -- had to do it for my father 7 years ago, to the extent that I wasn't even there when he actually passed. But there's a lot of relief that they're not suffering, too.

Anyway, hope the second trip goes better.


----------



## Tony Vargas (Jun 8, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Hmmm...that is what happens when you DM off the SRD...what are the specs on this?
> 
> ~ OO




It's in the MM, and also in the Types, Subtypes & Special Abilities portion of the SRD under Improved Grab, it's been there in 3.0 & 3.5, and it's kinda important, because 1) really big creatures can grapple PCs without rolling around on the ground with them like they're play-wrestling a two-year-old, and 2) it cuts into the insane grapple bonuses such monsters tend to have:

"_Improved Grab (Ex): If a creature with this special attack hits with a melee weapon (usually a claw or bite attack), it deals normal damage and attempts to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. No initial touch attack is required. Unless otherwise noted, improved grab works only against opponents at least one size category smaller than the creature. The creature has the option to conduct the grapple normally, or simply use the part of its body it used in the improved grab to hold the opponent. If it chooses to do the latter, it takes a –20 penalty on grapple checks, but is not considered grappled itself; the creature does not lose its Dexterity bonus to AC, still threatens an area, and can use its remaining attacks against other opponents._ "

Now, it is an option, but, I'd expect most less intelligent creatures to do so more or less all the time (it should be instinctive, they mostly prey on smaller creatures, etc), and for intelligent ones to do so when facing multiple opponents, to avoid vulnerability.


----------



## nakia (Jun 9, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Unfortunately (for you), we will be just ending our week in Tuscany (just outside Sienna)...sipping wine, hanging out by the pool, etc.
> 
> The place we are staying is here: Villa
> 
> ...





Hanging out in an Italian villa is an acceptable reason for missing a game day, I think!  Definitly let me know how that trip goes; Sarah and I have talked about renting a villa for our "big dream vacaction before we have kids."

And thanks for the move well wishes.  I wish we could just go ahead and go; I feel like the guy hanging out after the dance is over, waiting for his ride to show up after everyone else has gone.


----------



## Old One (Jun 10, 2005)

Tony Vargas said:
			
		

> It's in the MM, and also in the Types, Subtypes & Special Abilities portion of the SRD under Improved Grab, it's been there in 3.0 & 3.5, and it's kinda important, because 1) really big creatures can grapple PCs without rolling around on the ground with them like they're play-wrestling a two-year-old, and 2) it cuts into the insane grapple bonuses such monsters tend to have:
> 
> "_Improved Grab (Ex): If a creature with this special attack hits with a melee weapon (usually a claw or bite attack), it deals normal damage and attempts to start a grapple as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity. No initial touch attack is required. Unless otherwise noted, improved grab works only against opponents at least one size category smaller than the creature. The creature has the option to conduct the grapple normally, or simply use the part of its body it used in the improved grab to hold the opponent. If it chooses to do the latter, it takes a –20 penalty on grapple checks, but is not considered grappled itself; the creature does not lose its Dexterity bonus to AC, still threatens an area, and can use its remaining attacks against other opponents._ "
> 
> Now, it is an option, but, I'd expect most less intelligent creatures to do so more or less all the time (it should be instinctive, they mostly prey on smaller creatures, etc), and for intelligent ones to do so when facing multiple opponents, to avoid vulnerability.




Doh...

Um...er...well...these were super scorpions...yeah...that's it...with special grappling powers...yeah...'cause they had been trained for a long time !

I will remember that next time ...

~ OO


----------



## Old One (Jun 10, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> Ya Lucky So-and-so's!
> 
> We'll miss you, but glad you're getting away from it all, just the same.
> 
> ...




Thanks, Henry.

It is very sad just kind of waiting for the inevitable ...

We are really looking forward to the trip, however.  Going with 3 other couples that are all long-time friends...should be a blast.

~ OO


----------



## Old One (Jun 10, 2005)

nakia said:
			
		

> Hanging out in an Italian villa is an acceptable reason for missing a game day, I think!  Definitly let me know how that trip goes; Sarah and I have talked about renting a villa for our "big dream vacaction before we have kids."
> 
> And thanks for the move well wishes.  I wish we could just go ahead and go; I feel like the guy hanging out after the dance is over, waiting for his ride to show up after everyone else has gone.




Nakia,

If you can get some other folks in on the trip...it makes it pretty cost effective.  We are going with three other couples, so the lodging is only going to run ~ $1,000 per couple for the week.  Not cheap, but I have paid the equivilent $145 a night for really crappy hotels before !

I did a fair amount of research before selecting the property vendor linked above, hopefully I chose well!  We will let you guys know how it turns out.

~ OO


----------



## Mark Causey (Jun 10, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> You know, if that were to fall on or around September 23...
> 
> GAME DAY!




September 23? Did y'all change it from September 10?


----------



## Henry (Jun 10, 2005)

adamantineangel said:
			
		

> September 23? Did y'all change it from September 10?




That's a very good question: The site still says September 10th.

Or are you mixing up April 23rd and September 10th?


----------



## Old One (Jun 10, 2005)

Hmmm...now Sept 10th I might be able to make !

~ OO


----------



## Rel (Jun 10, 2005)

adamantineangel said:
			
		

> September 23? Did y'all change it from September 10?




No, it didn't change.  That was just my brain limping along trying to pretend that it still works very well.

We now resume our regularly scheduled slow slide into senility.  Enjoy the ride.


----------



## Henry (Jun 10, 2005)

_*Henry rolls up newspaper, whaps Rel in the back of the head*_

Now see there? You 'bout made the man miss a Gameday!






> We now resume our regularly scheduled slow slide into senility. Enjoy the ride.




It is, to be sure, a slow ride, filled with scenic routes, meandering pathways, retreads over the same scenery, and nice padded seats with redundant safety brakes. 

I should know; I'm in the car ahead of you. 



--Story Hour should be updated and completed on Monday. Fire-witchery and foolin' with the pool GALORE!


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Jun 21, 2005)

hiccup.


----------



## Henry (Jun 21, 2005)

Lay off the ale -- a gassy dwarf is one of the worst things to see. 

Unfortunately, story writing has taken a bit of a backside to work and home for the past two weeks, but I will make a concentrated effort to remedy that tonight, and finish this tale. I will definitely have it finished before the 30th, because I am going on vacation then for a week.


----------



## Rel (Jun 21, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> I will definitely have it finished before the 30th, because I am going on vacation then for a week.




Hey, me too.  Where are you going?  Not to the southern coast of North Carolina by chance?


----------



## Henry (Jun 21, 2005)

Nope, unfortunately not; we're doing some camping locally, then some sightseeing in Atlanta.


----------



## Rel (Jun 21, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> Nope, unfortunately not; we're doing some camping locally, then some sightseeing in Atlanta.




If I told you that it might be possible to spend a few days at the NC coast for fairly cheap, would you want to consider that as an alternative?


----------



## Ashy (Jun 21, 2005)

Henry, let me know if you swing by Huntsville-way; I'd love to hook up with a fellow EN-world-er....


----------



## Mark Causey (Jun 21, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> If I told you that it might be possible to spend a few days at the NC coast for fairly cheap, would you want to consider that as an alternative?




That wouldn't be near Supply, would it?


----------



## Rel (Jun 21, 2005)

adamantineangel said:
			
		

> That wouldn't be near Supply, would it?




Actually up a bit north of there near Morehead City.


----------



## Mark Causey (Jun 21, 2005)

Ah, not that close, but close, I guess.

Supply is my home ... stoplight.


----------



## weiknarf (Jun 26, 2005)

C'mon update!


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Jul 27, 2005)

How can you just stop when you are --><-- this close to finishing this story hour?

Let's go! Get crackin!

Wulf


----------



## Old One (Jul 27, 2005)

*Yeah!  Hurry up!*

Henry keeps threatening to finish in other threads...but his shadow hasn't darkened this doorstep in sometime...hmmm...wonder if another mistress has caught his eye ?

~ OO


----------



## Old One (Aug 8, 2005)

A "Finish Me Before NC Game Day VII" bump !

~ OO


----------



## Rel (Aug 8, 2005)

That'd be VII*I*, actually.  But who's counting?


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Nov 9, 2005)

Futile bump...


----------



## Rel (Nov 10, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> Futile bump...





So do you think that if Henry doesn't get this thing finished by the January Game Day that I should charge him rent to stay with me?


----------



## Henry (Nov 10, 2005)

R'lyeh arises, Cthulhu wakes, and says....

_"All right, already!"_ 

I should finish this thing - the stars have been right enough for a loooooong time...

Look for it this weekend!


----------



## Old One (Nov 10, 2005)

*Thud*

Sound of Old One hitting the floor after fainting !

Good to see you back in the saddle, Henry (metaphorically speaking, of course)...

~ OO


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Nov 10, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> Look for it this weekend!




Oh, I've been here my friend, believe me. I have several unfinished SH threads hanging around here. 

I've got $5 bucks that says this weekend is going to come and go, and your muse will leave you high and dry.

I'll look for it when it's _posted_, if ever, but I'm not going to fall into the trap of high hopes.


----------



## Henry (Nov 10, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> *Thud*
> 
> Sound of Old One hitting the floor after fainting !




First time I read that line, I read that last word totally differently - and the thought, _"they're THAT powerful? Really?" _came and went...



			
				Wulf said:
			
		

> Oh, I've been here my friend, believe me. I have several unfinished SH threads hanging around here.
> 
> I've got $5 bucks that says this weekend is going to come and go, and your muse will leave you high and dry.




If you're trying to egg me into getting it done, you're doing great.


----------



## Rel (Nov 10, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> I've got $5 bucks that says this weekend is going to come and go, and your muse will leave you high and dry.




I'll take some of that action.  I've got faith in Henry!

And besides, I could probably get some good "double or nothing" action on him finishing it by Thanksgiving if I'm wrong.


----------



## Old One (Nov 14, 2005)

[Best Ted Knight impersonation]

_"W-e-l-l?  We're waiting!"_



~ OO


----------



## Rel (Nov 14, 2005)

Oh, the disillusionment!

*sob...wail*


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Nov 14, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> I'll take some of that action.  I've got faith in Henry!




Would you like to PayPal it to me directly, or perhaps purchase one of my fine PDFs, available now at RPGnow.com?

_Seven Saxons_ is new and cool...


----------



## diaglo (Nov 14, 2005)

_gnashing of teeth_

oh, the horror


----------



## Rel (Nov 14, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> Would you like to PayPal it to me directly, or perhaps purchase one of my fine PDFs, available now at RPGnow.com?
> 
> _Seven Saxons_ is new and cool...




Can't I just buy you large amounts of beer at GenCon like I do most of my creditors?

And besides, I'm hoping to fall back on the "double or nothing if Henry doesn't come through by Thanksgiving" plan.


----------



## Henry (Nov 14, 2005)

Sorry I don't have it yet, but the plant burned down today.

Well, it feels like it, anyway. 

I've got an update about 65% finished, and I hope to put finishing touches tonight.

Sorry, all!


----------



## Son_of_Thunder (Nov 15, 2005)

Post Henry dagnabbit!

I like to read about Old One's world no matter whom writes it.


----------



## Rel (Nov 16, 2005)

Maybe I've been watching too much Lost, but I'm starting to think that perhaps we're all part of some sort of big psychology experiment...


----------



## Old One (Nov 16, 2005)

Rel said:
			
		

> Maybe I've been watching too much Lost, but I'm starting to think that perhaps we're all part of some sort of big psychology experiment...




Don't open the hatch...the numbers are bad...shhhh, here come the "Others"...

~ OO


----------



## Darklone (Dec 4, 2005)

Yummy, FG update soon. Oops, it's decembre


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Dec 5, 2005)

I sincerely hope I am earning compounded interest on that $5 bucks Rel owes me.


----------



## Rel (Dec 5, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> I sincerely hope I am earning compounded interest on that $5 bucks Rel owes me.




I sincerely hope that Henry is ready for the severe beating that I'm going to have reveal inflict on him when he comes to stay with me next month.


----------



## Henry (Dec 5, 2005)

You know I enjoy your beatings. 

I'm writing, I'm writing! I've revised what I've written twice, though, as I suck at it after having been away and trying to get the details right. Still working on it, though.


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Dec 5, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> You know I enjoy your beatings.
> 
> I'm writing, I'm writing! I've revised what I've written twice, though, as I suck at it after having been away and trying to get the details right. Still working on it, though.




You're writing for an audience of experienced Story Hour authors. Do you sincerely believe that the same tired old excuses are going to engender any sympathy among us?


----------



## Darklone (Dec 5, 2005)

Guess he tries to persuade me. 

But don't worry, Henry, I'm used to Sepulchraves beginnings.


----------



## Henry (Dec 5, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> You're writing for an audience of experienced Story Hour authors. Do you sincerely believe that the same tired old excuses are going to engender any sympathy among us?




It's BECAUSE I've got an audience of experienced Story Hour authors telling me they want to see it, not in spite of it.


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

Brandis struggled up the steps to follow. The rest were busy slitting throats of the wounded, or binding their own injuries, and did not immediately follow. That changed as Myrwyn made her discovery.

She peered through the curtain’s part, certain she would find the end of this mission and success. What she found curdled her blood. Beyond lay another chamber, smaller than the war-room, but merely a continuation of the hall at the top of the stairs. At its far end, she made out yet a THIRD Fire Witch! Is there no end?

The woman sat in a throne or ornate chair, attached to the far wall, and above her sat embedded two marvelous Black Gems, the size of her fist, pulsating with power. Between her and the Witch, however, was coalescing something from the very ether, a thing of nightmares. A Scorpion of enormous size, some 60 hands long and the height of an elephant, was materializing, and should it be finished, so were they!

Myrwyn screamed. _“TO ARMS! CHAAARGE!”_ Steeling herself she raced across the room, but not before the ethereal scorpion could become solid and note her presence. Before a single ally could help, she was snatched and grabbed by a titanic claw.

Brandis took the distraction to use his magic Dust of Neverwhere, and slipped inside; there was no way he would risk being a target. Just as he made it halfway to the witch in the throne,   Myrwyn was grabbed, crying in pain. There was nothing he could do to help her against this thing – but if he could catch the witch by surprise, then they stood a chance.

Boldric, bloody and bellowing, charged in. When he caught sight of the giant vermin, it did not faze him; as Brandis would joke, Boldric in his rage would charge the god Uriel the Damned. He simply charged straight to the biggest source of danger, the Scorpion, and let loose. His mighty glaive struck – and made the barest scratch. A blow that could pierce steel and flesh and bone, merely grazed the Scorpion’s chitin. In ducked Maxian, calling Myrwyn’s name and hacking with all his might. No avail.

In charged a remnant of the battle group. The Emorian troops were tired, so tired, and when they saw what they faced, any lesser army would have yielded to despair. However, it is said, Emorians are a stoic lot. Faced by constant attacks, the ever-present threat of invasion, loss of their borders, these troops shouldered the burden, and once again became the crack troops they were born to be. It did not matter, however, for as they moved in, the monster vermin stung, hacked, and chopped them to bits, one at the time, as their steel made little mark on it.

Antonius was nowhere to be seen. Having been spent, all he had strength to do was look on from the rear. He was last of the war wizards, and reduced to readying his crossbow, looking for an opening. Commander Varus fared little better. He ordered his men in, but did not approach himself. Whether it was fear or injury that held him back, none could say.

Vercinius, however, was not ready for surrender. The stalwart old priest hugged the walls, carefully moving past the pitched battle, totally unnoticed by the creature. Ever closer, he moved to challenge the witch, her eyes radiating dark power. _At least she doesn’t notice –_ 

The seated Witch jumped to her feet, readying a staff, her eyes still a hellish glow, still controlling the beast, still channeling the artifacts’ power...


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

One note about the updates: Due to both the fog of time since the game, and due to making a better story, some details may be changed from the original; for instance, commander Varus MAY have made his way to risk his neck at the front. However, I (1) don't remember him being described up there, and (2) he was alive at the end, and had little input in the rest of the events. (Varus was a GM's NPC anyway, and was the Hand, nay, the Whip of Plot that helped us keep focused on the mission, as we kidded Old One about after the game.)


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

*“AAAAAAAHHH!”* the Osirian priest screamed, his mace coming in high. He was blocked by the swift staff, and he knew this was not going to be easy.

Maxian hacked away. *“MYRWYN!”* The half-fey woman was writhing in pain, blood pouring, struggling uselessly as the pincer continued to bisect. Maxian slammed home another strike, thews bursting – and the scorpion reacted. SNAP! Catching Maxian unawares, it lifted him and he, too, was caught in a death-grip, sharing Myrwyn’s fate. The last Emorian guardsman dangled nearby, like a ragdoll hanging from the scorpion’s stinger in a parody of a dance before being flung free.

Vercinius was in for the fight of his life. It was not a superior combatant who threatened him; it was that if he could not finish this witch, he, his companions, and Emor’s hopes were dashed in this dark pit, far from the front. He would counter-strike, she would deflect; she would misdirect, he would guard; he tried to draw close, and she would not take the bait. _Damn you, witch, *fall!*_ She came close to cold-cocking him with a underhanded blow, and he realized he had to be more careful. 

Then, he saw salvation, in the form of a shifty little Halfling, winking into existence at the witch’s flank. Brandis Tollheart jabbed at the witch with an evil glee that Vercinius had never seen before. _Never fight a Halfling when death is on the line_, the saying went, and Vercinius never understood it, until he saw Brandis probing the witch’s defenses like some crazed giant hornet. She caught sight of her new attacker, but his cuts were telling. She was trapped, and her dreams of Sythia were dying before her.

These three did not catch the snapping sound  from the claw holding Myrwyn; nor did they hear the final grunt from her tortured body. They further did not see her limp body give up the struggle.

Boldric DID see. Boldric saw even more red; his glaive began to hammer away, piledriving a wicked elegant glaive like the crudest maul, opening welts in the chitin of the beast. He would hammer and hammer and HAMMER until he or this thing died.

The witch, too close to defeat, moved quickly to try and separate herself. All she needed was the breathing room for one incantation, one spell, and she could snatch victory. Vercinius would not let her get the chance. _Osirian_, he half-prayed, _I have been your servant. I have faced death repeatedly in your name, just as you once did, and here I stand. Give me one gift, that others may live._

He closed his eyes. And he struck. He trusted, and struck.


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

This comes to the Action Point Use of the Year. In Riggs' words, _"As I recall, Brandis hit her again, but she was not quite out, then Verc hit and same but I rolled a 6 on the action point [which explodes in Grim Tales] and rolled a 5 and that did it, all drama on the western front."_

Antonius was completely and utterly OUT of spells at this point; he had IIRC 49 hit points, but FORTY-SEVEN nonlethal damage from spellcasting, and the equivalent armor and battle skill of one of the _tunica rubra_ Emorian soldiers who followed us. 

Boldric was doing some damage, though not much if I recall, and it was clear that the Fire Witch was the key to it all by a few rounds in.

And finally....


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

He struck hard. The Sythian Witch would swear for that last instant of her life that she had blocked the blow, would swear that there was no way it got past her, and smashed her face, and….

Brandis stood in awe. _Gods we’re going to die we’re going to die watch out for that staff watch out for that tail we’re going to die we’re going to… live?_

So much was undone, suddenly. The power of the black gems faded; the scorpion faded back to mist, then to nothing. Maxian sprawled to the ground, Myrwyn dumped lifelessly. Boldric screamed triumph, then fell over. Antonius just gaped. He’d never fired a shot, and suddenly, their hopelessness was changed to victory.

Vercinius and Maxian worked quickly, minding the wounded. But one wounded was beyond hope. Maxian grabbed the body of his comrade in arms, checked her vital signs. “She is gone! Vercinius, can you help her? She is gone!”

The priest checked her carefully. She was gone.

The spark of life was fled, but…

He still had a chance. Swiftly, he pulled a small phial from his belt. The liquid within both at once had purple and silver sheen, rarest of magic draughts, entrusted to him for this mission – the Tears of Mortiana. “This draught may – MAY – bring back the dead. Pray to all the gods of the Church of Light that it works in time.” If Commander Varus, hanging in the background, had any reservations about using this on the Caeldyn woman, he kept them to himself.

Vercinius administered the draught; it poured like smoke or light more than liquid, and Myrwyn was still unmoving.

A glimmer of light, faint, escaped her. Then her body spasmed, as the horrid sound of joints and bones RENDING back into place startled even the battle-hardened folk present. Myrwyn coughed blood, shook once, and BREATHED. Then she laid back, still. Vercinius seemed the only one pleased at the outcome, quickly calling on his god and forcing the last of his reserves into her.

“She will live. She will live.”

Brandis simply knelt by and held the bloody hand of his friend, helpless and exhausted.

EPILOGUE

The remaining Emorian strike team beat a hasty retreat from the Sythian base. The wounded who could not walk were carried; the dead were burned on a hasty pyre, their valorous souls commended to the gods for their part that day. Two fabulous black gems, faintly pulsing with power, were swaddled in sacks and cloths, safely in tow. The gems slept, their horrid power dormant for now. If a jewel could be sentient, perhaps these would be content to bide their time and wait… It sensed power from its procurers, and sensed just a bit of taint from one or two as well… It would have a chance to show its charms, and perhaps shime again as it did… and the dark might of the Demon Scorpion might yet show its face under a different master – an Emorian one…

*Finis*


----------



## Rel (Dec 6, 2005)

Yay!!  I can stop compounding the interest on the debt I owe Wulf!! 

Good job, Henry.  It's funny that even though I was there, I read each line with a drumbeat of "Yeah, and THEN what happened?!" going through the back of my mind.

And as for the victory that our heroes pulled off...I give full credit to the Peck!


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Dec 6, 2005)

[wiping away tears]

Very nice. 

You know, color me prejudiced, but you just don't get this kind of action out of vanilla D&D.

Long live grim and gritty.


----------



## Rel (Dec 6, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> [wiping away tears]
> 
> Very nice.
> 
> ...




The extra good news is that we're going to get a chance to play in Old One's world (with his own unique blend of Black Company and Grim Tales) in just a few weeks at the January Game Day.

Feel free to drop on down if you'd like to attend.  I've still got a spot left in my basement!


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

I'm looking for a spot in Old One's game anyway when it opens, but if Wulf came in, I'd have to start mailing bribes to Old one for a spot at the table.


----------



## Wulf Ratbane (Dec 6, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> I'm looking for a spot in Old One's game anyway when it opens, but if Wulf came in, I'd have to start mailing bribes to Old one for a spot at the table.




I'm really not that interesting at the table. If you've read Wulf's Story Hour you've pretty much seen every trick I have to offer. I'm one of those guys who pretty much just plays himself.

Ummm... not that I'm a sociopathic megalomaniac with an insatiable desire to kick people's teeth down their throat.

Just that... you know... given the right circumstances... _I would be._

So, anyway, where and when's the Game Day?


----------



## Henry (Dec 6, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> So, anyway, where and when's the Game Day?




Next one is January 21st, in Raleigh, North Carolina. It's a gathering of about 50-to-70odd people (about 30 or so are ENWorlders from SC to VA) and it's for the one day. Three org's got together (ENWorlders, TriNoCon and GAMER) to make a pretty successful gameday and have been doing it for three years running.

Next one is a BIG one - April 22 & 23rd, and quite a few people have pledged to be at that one. It's the first time to my knowledge an ENWorld Gameday will run two days straight.


----------



## Einan (Dec 6, 2005)

Alright, after that story hour, I'm there.  And I want a copy of Grim Tales!

Einan


----------



## Jon Potter (Dec 6, 2005)

I can't believe I missed that game!

Sounds like it was a huge load of fun. I'll have to make sure that I'm at my computer when the registration finally opens in a couple weeks!

And congratulations on finishing the write-up, Henry.


----------



## Old One (Dec 6, 2005)

Wulf Ratbane said:
			
		

> [wiping away tears]
> 
> Very nice.
> 
> ...




Hehe...

*Long live the exploding action dice!* 

All I can say - as a GM - is it doesn't get any better than this.  They were (literally) dead on their feat...Boldric was down to his last action or so before the rage expired and he keeled over...Myrdwyn was dead meat...Maxian was about to be dead meat (his armor conversion is the only thing that saved him, IIRC)...Fightin' Tony was spent...and Vercinius/Brandis were beating (somewhat ineffectually) on the last Fire Witch.

They were basically down to their last attack (before half the party was shredded and the scorpion turned its attention to Vercinius and Brandis) and Riggs (Vercinius) hit.  I allowed action dice to add an extra 1d6 on a successful attack, which, with the exploding variant, sealed the deal.

All-in-all, it was a very fun session (for me, at least ) and I was glad to see them pull it out at the end.

~ OO

PS - Looking forward to 1/21!


----------



## Old One (Dec 6, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> He struck hard. The Sythian Witch would swear for that last instant of her life that she had blocked the blow, would swear that there was no way it got past her, and smashed her face, and….
> 
> Brandis stood in awe. _Gods we’re going to die we’re going to die watch out for that staff watch out for that tail we’re going to die we’re going to… live?_
> 
> ...




Henry,

_*BRAVO!*_  Even if you did diss my pet NPC ...

Thanks for finishing this up...just in time to whet the appetite for the next FG installment at the next NC Game Day...hooray!

I might have to make you the full time chronicler .

~ OO


----------



## Old One (Dec 6, 2005)

Jon Potter said:
			
		

> I can't believe I missed that game!
> 
> Sounds like it was a huge load of fun. I'll have to make sure that I'm at my computer when the registration finally opens in a couple weeks!
> 
> And congratulations on finishing the write-up, Henry.




Jon,

Hope you can make it on this one.  Of course, I _am_ taking bribes ahead of time !

~ OO


----------



## nakia (Dec 6, 2005)

Yeah!  

How did I miss that Henry had completed the update?  It had been so long it took me a few minutes to remember which PC I played.  

Still, great job!


----------



## Riggs (Dec 21, 2005)

*Hooray!*

Nice finish, Henry!  

I enjoyed your writing style and getting to read that which I had already experienced.

I really love how you ended your last flurry of updates more or less with Vercinius' "lucky magic hit" on the scorpion and this one with Verc and Brandis wailing as best we could on the witch and taking both hits and the exploding die to finish her in time!  Wow, $10 bribes go far when Henry writes!!  Awesome!   That was THE time for an exploding die roll!

I recall thinking to myself as I had Verc running around the edge of the last room hoping not to get killed on the way, "I hope we limit ourselves to one death, as my one focus toy that resurrects is in my pack" and then after many long rounds of not killing that witch went by, I was starting to feel like the next year's comments would be around the lameness of attacking that Verc and Brandis showed.  Then at the end, I sort of re-remembered the Tears and was happy to note we only suffered one loss!  Yay!   After some talk about how parties rarely get through OO's games without a casualty, we could technically finish whole!

hoorah!  It was a very fun time and I got to learn the BCCS magic system.


----------



## Henry (Dec 21, 2005)

If there's one request I would make of Old One for this next Faded Glory game, it would be:

REST!

_Please?_


----------



## Old One (Dec 21, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> If there's one request I would make of Old One for this next Faded Glory game, it would be:
> 
> REST!
> 
> _Please?_




Rest?  You're kidding, right?

Well...I will say that there might be an opportunity to rest...but then again !

~ OO


----------



## Henry (Dec 21, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> Rest?  You're kidding, right?
> 
> Well...I will say that there might be an opportunity to rest...but then again !
> 
> ~ OO




Hey, even Brigitta had a chance to make poison.


----------



## Rel (Dec 21, 2005)

Henry said:
			
		

> If there's one request I would make of Old One for this next Faded Glory game, it would be:
> 
> REST!
> 
> _Please?_




We can rest when we're dead.  About 15 minutes into the session.

Which is cool since it's always nice to have some extra time to grab lunch (or breakfast as the case may be).


----------



## Old One (Dec 21, 2005)

Hah!

Well, as an extra added bonus...I am seriously thinking about picking up Wulf's "Mythic Heroes" and templating each of the PCs.  It looks like a very cool product and works well with low-magic settings.  More soon...

~ OO


----------



## Riggs (Dec 21, 2005)

Hey, did I miss the part about Antonius seeking the pool of "healing" in the war room?  

Fortunately that was _before_ Boldric defiled it.


----------



## Henry (Dec 21, 2005)

Riggs said:
			
		

> Hey, did I miss the part about Antonius seeking the pool of "healing" in the war room?
> 
> Fortunately that was _before_ Boldric defiled it.




I glossed over that because (1) nothing came of it, and (2) that was my "holding" action while I took care of the away-from-table business that happened right then. (when my wife called).

It didn't matter because Antonius was exactly as described - almost out of action points, totally drained for magic, possessing a low attack bonus, and hiding like a scared two-year-old.


----------



## Old One (Dec 21, 2005)

Riggs said:
			
		

> Hey, did I miss the part about Antonius seeking the pool of "healing" in the war room?
> 
> Fortunately that was _before_ Boldric defiled it.




I think he mentions something about Antonius guarding rears...or something like that !  On another note, Riggs...do you want that open slot or is Jon gonna take it?

~ OO


----------



## Rel (Dec 21, 2005)

Old One said:
			
		

> I think he mentions something about Antonius guarding rears...or something like that !  On another note, Riggs...do you want that open slot or is Jon gonna take it?
> 
> ~ OO




KNIFE FIGHT TO THE DEATH!!

Or maybe we should flip a coin?


----------



## Riggs (Dec 21, 2005)

Re: Henry--Yeah i know, I just brought it up since you had no control over it anyhow as you were on the phone.  Just fishing for a "Hey you guys did that, I didn't!"

As for the slot left, I know Jon and I both want to play.  Jon chimed in here first and I had already chimed to Rel to make that possible, so legit cases both.

From Old One:  







> Here is the deal...one of the reserved slots is definitely open. I will let you guys thumb-wrestle for it (although Riggs did get Rel of his keister ). I should know about the 6th slot in early January and will post then.





After dutiful consideration and deliberation, my client is willing to grant all rights to the 5th seat in the GT/BCCS game to Mr. Potter--on the condition that my client be granted rights to the possible 6th seat and if so, the play of Vercinius.   

I'd hate to get all random, though the D02 system know no limit.

If the seat is there, I want it (if you're early enough so Belen has plenty of warning), and if not, I will most happily let Belen smash my character out of vengeful spite.      I mean, play some future d20! 

Character ID is occasionally strong, and I'm used to Jon as Cpt. Umbrage and Belen as Budrajah in SG, hence my want to reprise Verc in like fashion. Else, I am pleased to d20F.


Oh, I'll post most of this in the GD forum so Jon kows, hehe


----------

