# [Pathfinder] The Fog of War



## Mark Chance (Apr 3, 2009)

The town council of Feldspar has hired you to investigate frightening goings-on that have closed mining operations. The disturbances started with strange noises and shouts in an unknown tongue. The source of these sounds could not be determined. A few days ago, the situation went from eerie to deadly. Four miners were found slain, their bodies punctured and bruised repeatedly in a most horrible fashion. The cause of the injuries remains a mystery, although one of the town healers did extract several lumps of grayish metal from various punctures.

Found near one of the bodies was the only other clue, one that raises more questions than answers, namely a dagger, the hilt of which is emblazoned with a peculiar sign:





Rested and equipped, you have arrived at the mine just outside Feldspar. The imposing Dragon's Teeth foothills dominate the view. At the moment, at least, all is quiet. The path down into the mine awaits.

With map in hand, Piedra, Jon, Sam, and Mellisande approach the mine entrance. Nothing seems amiss at first, but then the numerous hastily dropped tools become apparent. Near the entrance is a mine car full of ore. According to the map, the area in which the slain miners were found isn't too far.

Exercising all due caution, the adventurers press on. More signs of hasty departure are visible: tools, a broken lantern, a moldy half crust of bread. In short order, the map leads the quartet to the scene of the murder.

Piedra notices at once several strange pockmarks in the cavern walls, as if something had chipped out the stone at random. There are several blotches of dried blood on the floor and splatters on the walls. No other points of egress from area can be seen: one way in, one way out.

"Brr. Did it just get colder in here?" Jon says, his breath billowing into white mist.


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## Andor (Apr 3, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> "Brr. Did it just get colder in here?" Jon says, his breath billowing into white mist.




"It's always chilly in the mines, away from Iomedea's light." notes Sam absently, one hand stroking the silver coated monkey on his shoulder. He wanders about the room, not touching anything, trying to find something that let's him get a handle on what happened here.


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## kinem (Apr 3, 2009)

Jon looks for clues, moving slowly and carefully around the scene.

"Just thinking out loud here, but I suspect we may be dealing with cultists in some long-term scheme to summon their dark master.  It's clear that robbery was not the motive.  The killers probably knocked out the miners with saps or magic, made the odd wounds with a thin and pointed implement, and pushed the bits of metal inside to complete some horrid ritual."

ooc: take 20 to search the area (perception 24)


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## Shayuri (Apr 3, 2009)

Mellisande saunters to the middle of the chamber and peers around. She shivers a little and waves her hand through the dissipating cloud her breath makes.

"I bet there's magic in the air here," she opines. Then, to prove the point, the gnome concentrates on subtle senses beyond eyes, ears and nose and searches for evidence to back up her threadbare hypothesis.

(OOC - Detect Magic)


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## ghostcat (Apr 3, 2009)

*Piedra Odio - Ranger 2*

Having left Windwalker in the care of a friendly hostler, along with enough money to keep him in the manner that he is becoming accustomed, Piedra plods slowly along the track to the mines. Anyone who knew the dwarf would not be surprised to hear him muttering under his breath. Anyone who knows dwarvish would be surprised at what he was saying "mutter,mutter, mumble, mumble. Blooming mines. Why does it always have to be mines. I hate mines. mutter,mutter, mumble, mumble."

Arriving at the mine, Piedra's whole demeanor changes. He stops muttering and his whole body becomes alert. "If no one objects I'll go first. I want to see if there any tracks" Piedra slowly walks into the mine head down examining the ground. When he gets to scene of the murder, he will visually examine the ceiling. He will then carefully search the walls and floor for secret doors. 

OOC
Take 20 on Perception (Perception 24, Locate hidden doors 26)


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## Andor (Apr 3, 2009)

kinem said:


> "Just thinking out loud here, but I suspect we may be dealing with cultists in some long-term scheme to summon their dark master.  It's clear that robbery was not the motive.  The killers probably knocked out the miners with saps or magic, made the odd wounds with a thin and pointed implement, and pushed the bits of metal inside to complete some horrid ritual."




Sam pauses and looks worried. "You think so? Ritual magic is not my area, but don't you think it would have done something already? Or animated the bodies as undead or something? I could use a prayer to detect evil if you think it's worth it..." He looks at Piedra to see what his opinion is.


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## Mark Chance (Apr 4, 2009)

As the party searches the area, Sam's observation about chilly mine become harder to reconcile with the cave's changing conditions. The temperature spikes noticeably downward, moving from chilly to dead-of-winter cold. A few small pools of water frost over and begin to freeze.

Piedra looks up from the faint, confused traces of tracks. Some of them are booted, but of a strange tread unlike any he's ever seen. Mellisande's keen arcane senses detect a magic aura on part of the cave's wall. While the others search, she concentrates on the aura.

[sblock=Mellisande]
The aura's strength is moderate. Since Mellisande doesn't have Knowledge (arcana), she can't determine school.
[/sblock]

The piercing cold becomes accompanied by a fog. It starts as just a few wisps of slow-moving icy moisture suspended in the air, but gradually and quickly thickens. Jon is certain that the fog originates from the cave's rocky wall. He points this out, and Mellisande realizes he's pointing to the area of the magic aura.

Soon the fog will be so thick that clear vision will surely be limited to just a few feet.


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## Shayuri (Apr 4, 2009)

The little gnome's mouth pops open in cute surprise and she rushes over to the foggy wall. "This is where the magic is!" she bleats...perhaps unnecessarily, since the -wall- is emitting -fog-. "It must be some kind of secret door that let in the ones that did all this!"

She whirls around, already starting to vanish into the haze. 

"Do you think it's opening for us now? Or are they coming back?"


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## Andor (Apr 4, 2009)

"Well crap. Score 1 for Jon's ritual magic theory. Now I just hope those corpses stay buried." Sam backs away from the encroaching fog and grasps the simple holy symbol he wears about his neck while he murrmurs the words for the detect evil spell.


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## ghostcat (Apr 4, 2009)

Uncertain as to what the fog actually is but been certain that it does not bode well for the party, Piedra moves to give himself some fighting room and readies his weapons. "I'm just a simple dwarf. Cults are beyond me." Then with a uncharacteristic flash of insight, Piedra blurts out "You don't think this fog is one of those inter-planer portal thingies that wizards are alway playing with do you."


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## kinem (Apr 6, 2009)

Jon draws his greatsword.  "Maybe the ritual opened a gate ..."


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## Andor (Apr 9, 2009)

Sam spares Piedra a glance. "What wizards have you been hanging out with?" Nonetheless he draws and nocks an arrow before he resumes concentration on his spell.


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## Mark Chance (Apr 10, 2009)

The heroes move into action. Opinions about what is going on are exchanged in a mixture of trepidation and bravado. Sam's spell reveals no evil present within range. Weapons are readied. Jon's greatsword's regular sheen is dulled to a flat gray in the fog. The head of the arrow nocked by Sam trembles ever so slightly against the tension of the bowstring.

The cold bites. It digs like needles. Mellisande's teeth start to chatter. The moist, earthy smell of the mines becomes mixed with other scents: urine, smoke, something oily. The ground underfoot shifts from stony hardness, growing softer.

The fog thins slightly. Trees fade into view as the mines fade away. In the foreground, three men kneel at the edge of a freshly dug pit. One of them prays in a tremulous voice. Behind them are strangely uniformed men holding what seem like weapons, something similar to hand crossbows and heavy crossbows, but lacking the means to fire bolts. One of the uniformed men -- the one closest to the party -- laughs, harsh and compassionless.

Other uniformed men stand farther away. As the fog continues to thin, the moment at which the party will become visible rapidly approaches.

[sblock=OOC]
Initiatives and actions, please. Use Invisible Castle for your various dice rolls. We start with a surprise round, so a single standard or move action only.

The kneeling men and soldiers are 15 to 20 feet away. The men in the background are about twice that distance. The freshly dug pit is about 10 feet square. Its depth cannot be determined at this moment.
[/sblock]

[sblock=Special Considerations]
The party will discover that the pull of gravity is less than normal for them. The following game effects should be remembered: +5 Str for carrying capacity, +2 on CMB checks, +2 on Acrobatics, Climb, and Swim checks, and +10 feet base speed. If applicable, work these into your posts, to include your characters' reactions to the effects.
[/sblock]

[sblock=The Scene before the Party]




[/sblock]


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## Andor (Apr 10, 2009)

[sblock=OOC Have I mentioned I hold a special hatred of Nazis? _I_ know what we're looking at but I'm trying to see it through Sam's eyes. He doesn't know who's who or who has done what. He doesn't even really know what's about to happen. If he were a cleric of Iomedea I think he'd have to try and find out what's going on before acting. 

But he's not. He's a cleric of the god of farmers and he's been tending a pastoral circuit his whole life. He see 3 guys who look like peasants and a bunch of guys who look like soldiers. So ... crud. I was thinking he'd shoot one in the arm, but I just remembered he still has the spell up. It really would make more sense for him to keep checking for evil.

Oh, and as a side note, he's got an arrow nocked, but not drawn. Easier to hold that way. [/sblock]

Sam takes a second to take in the scene in front of him then narrows his eyes in concentration as he continues detecting evil in this new world. Init roll = 14


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## ghostcat (Apr 10, 2009)

As the trees fades into view, Piedra gives Sam an "I told you so"  look. However, just then the people came into view and he had more important things to think about.

Piedra sees what looks like a group of thugs murdering a group of unarmed peasants. At the same time, he is not quite sure exactly what is happening. To make things even more interesting he can't afford to draw attention to the party or wait to see what transpires as the "thugs" are obviously armed with ranged weapons, even if an unknown type. To Piedra, the obvious solution is to quickly disable them before they can react.

Immediately putting is plan into action, Piedra starts to run over to the "thugs" threatening the peasants. However, he seems to be stronger and able to moving faster than normal. This catches him by surprise and only his lightening reflexes save him from stumbling.

[sblock="OOC"]Piedra attempts to position himself such that his opponent provides cover from the distant thugs.

Initiative (1d20+3=16)[/sblock]


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## kinem (Apr 10, 2009)

_Oh no, the gate dragged us in!  This must be  another plane!  So ... are the men with the magic crossbows the cultists?  We are doomed but we can take a few of them with us!_

Jon moves awkwardly, feeling light headed and light bodied in this strange place, as he moves in for a surprise attack on the nearest cultist!

[sblock=ooc]init = 14

23 to hit, 10 damage + 4 sneak attack,
if 15 confirms crit  +10 damage

ooc: yay below average wisdom![/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Apr 11, 2009)

Mellisande stumbles woozily as the fog lifts and the cold is replaced by the warm sunlight. She holds her arms out to keep her balance, then breaks into a bright smile as she sees the blue sky above. This was better than the mine, she thought. Better to be outside and free to run around and...

Abruptly she realizes the others seem rather...battle-ready. The gnomette looks over and sees the strange and frightening tableau before her. Realizing trouble's brewing, she quickly says a few words in Sylvan, a'conjurin' herself a protective charm for the coming brawl.

(Init: 6 Roll Lookup
Action: Casting Shield)


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## Mark Chance (Apr 16, 2009)

*First Blood (Round 1)*

_I apologize again for the hold up. My long weekend turned to crap, to include a trip to the emergency room to be misdiagnosed._

The fog thins slightly. Trees fade into view as the mines fade away. In the foreground, three men kneel at the edge of a freshly dug pit. One of them prays in a tremulous voice. Behind them are strangely uniformed men holding what seem like weapons, something similar to hand crossbows and heavy crossbows, but lacking the means to fire bolts. One of the uniformed men -- the one closest to the party -- laughs, harsh and compassionless.

Other uniformed men stand farther away. As the fog continues to thin, the moment at which the party will become visible rapidly approaches.

As the trees fades into view, Piedra gives Sam an "I told you so" look. However, just then the people came into view and he had more important things to think about.

Piedra sees what looks like a group of thugs murdering a group of unarmed peasants. At the same time, he is not quite sure exactly what is happening. To make things even more interesting he can't afford to draw attention to the party or wait to see what transpires as the "thugs" are obviously armed with ranged weapons, even if an unknown type. To Piedra, the obvious solution is to quickly disable them before they can react.

Immediately putting his plan into action, Piedra starts to run over to the "thugs" threatening the peasants. However, he seems to be stronger and able to moving faster than normal. This catches him by surprise and only his lightning reflexes save him from stumbling.

As Piedra positions himself so the closer group of thugs is between him and the more distant group, Jon thinks _Oh no, the gate dragged us in! This must be another plane! So ... are the men with the magic crossbows the cultists? We are doomed but we can take a few of them with us!_

Jon moves awkwardly, feeling light headed and light bodied in this strange place, as he moves in for a surprise attack on the nearest cultist, and what a surprise it is! Jon quickly covers the intervening distance with a reckless charge. His greatsword starts high and ends low, cleaving through neck, shoulder, and ribs. The thug armed with the "hand crossbow" drops to the cold earth, blood pumping madly from the fatal wound.

Sam takes a second to take in the scene in front of him then narrows his eyes in concentration as he continues detecting evil in this new world.

[sblock=For Sam]
Oddly enough, Sam gets no feeling at all from the spell. He can tell the magic is still active, but also that it has somehow been suppressed.
[/sblock]

Mellisande stumbles woozily as the fog lifts and the cold is replaced by the warm sunlight. She holds her arms out to keep her balance, then breaks into a bright smile as she sees the blue sky above. This was better than the mine, she thought. Better to be outside and free to run around and...

Abruptly she realizes the others seem rather...battle-ready. The gnomette looks over and sees the strange and frightening tableau before her. Realizing trouble's brewing, she quickly says a few words in Sylvan, a'conjurin' herself a protective charm for the coming brawl.

The three closer thugs stagger away from the ferocious Jon, swinging their strange weapons at him. Flashes of fire and smoke explode from the ends of the weapons. Jon feels something hot _whiz!_ past his ear. The more distant group of thugs seem less panicked.

"What the hell!" one of them shouts. "Men, spread out! Stahl, put a grenade down range!"

The thugs quickly obey orders, moving into a long line, readying their weapons as they move. One of the men pulls what appears to be a smallish mallet, which he tosses toward Sam and Mellisande. The mallet hits close to target, and then explodes with fearsome power, sending clumps of earth flying in all directions.

[sblock=Sam and Mellisande]
Include a DC 15 Reflex save with your next action. If you succeed, take 4 points of damage. Otherwise, take 9.
[/sblock]

_Okay, let's finish round 1. All the thugs have acted. Good job keeping it in character with your reactions and character knowledge. Please post next actions with relevant dice rolls._

[sblock=Combat Block]
Initiative Order: Thugs, Piedra, Jon, Sam, Prisoners, Mellisande
Piedra: uninjured
Jon: uninjured
Sam: uninjured
Mellisande: uninjured; _shield_
Thugs (13): 1 dead
Prisoners (3)
[/sblock]

[sblock=Dice Rolls]
NPC Initiative: 1d20+2=17, 1d20+1=10.
Three Shots at Jon: 1d20+4=12, 1d10=4, 1d20+4=5, 1d10=6, 1d20+4=15, 1d10=9.
Grenade Toss: 1d20=12, 2d6=9.
[/sblock]


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## Andor (Apr 16, 2009)

Sam tries to shield himself from the magical mace these cultists threw at him but was a little to slow and is badly hurt by flying bits of metal. Save vs potato masher (1d20+2=13) *21 hp - 9 = 12 left.*

"Rovagug Damm and Blast you fiends!" he cries and quickly fires an arrow at the one called Stahl hoping to kill him before he can throw the mace again. 1d20+4=13 However it's a poor shot as the arrow flies higher than he expected in this strange place.

Frightened by the noise and blast the monkey on his shoulder leaps away and runs towards the nearest tree.


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## ghostcat (Apr 16, 2009)

Originally Piedra was going to try to intimidate or subdue the thugs. However, once the fight breaks out, he decides that the best tactics are to finish it as quickly as possible. Fighting with two weapons, a quick one-two, results in a lot of muttering, a deep cut in the nearest thug from the war axe and the mace hitting nothing but air. "mutter mutter, this will teach you to pick on someone your own size, mutter thugs mutter mutter"

[sblock="OOC"]Two Weapon Attack, Primary Hand - War Axe (1d20+2=18, 1d10+1=9)
Two Weapon Attack, Off Hand - Mace (1d20+1=5, 1d6=5)[/sblock]


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## kinem (Apr 16, 2009)

As something hot and fast barely misses his head, Jon has a horrible thought.  _The strange wounds.  We need to act fast!  At least, these cultists seem quite mortal._

He will move to flank with Piedra if he can, otherwise just taking another swing, as he cuts down another cultist.

[sblock=ooc]19 to hit, 12 damage; if flanking, add +2 to hit and +3 sneak attack damage[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Apr 17, 2009)

(How far are we from these guys?)

The spry little gnomeling spies the hurtling hammer-like something, and squeaks in alarm as she scurries out of its way. When echoes of the blast fade, she emerges from behind a crag of rock, singed but not badly.

(Ref save: 21 Roll Lookup  for 4 damage. Current HP: 13/17)

"They have magic weapons!" Mellisande pipes in her high, girlish voice. "Lets get 'em!"

No bigger than a human child, she darts out and holds her hands towards the man who'd thrown the magic hammer, with her fingers touching in such a way so as to make a loop. The air around her cools, and her wild hair is tossed in a chill breeze that gusts around her for a moment. Her skin seems to fade to a papery white, even as mist erupts in the 'loop' of her fingers and starts sinking rapidly to the ground.

She lifts that mist to her mouth and blows. Like tiny frigid comet, it streaks through the air, leaving a thin trail of snowflakes in its wake as it bears down on that most impertinent of foes!

(OOC - use move to get within range, then use Ray of Frost at grenade dude. Roll Lookup    19 to hit, ranged touch, 4 damage (these figures assume Point Blank Shot range.)


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## Mark Chance (Apr 22, 2009)

*First Blood (Round 2)*

_In the continuing drama of my life, the current episode involves a young lady blowing through a four-way stop to ricochet off a truck and into the front end of my car. If life gets more interesting around here, I may have to seek therapy. _

Originally Piedra was going to try to intimidate or subdue the thugs. However, once the fight breaks out, he decides that the best tactics are to finish it as quickly as possible. Fighting with two weapons, a quick one-two, results in a lot of muttering, a deep cut in the nearest thug from the waraxe and the mace hitting nothing but air. The thug goes down hard under the waraxe's bite. More blood puddles on the nearly frozen ground. "mutter mutter, this will teach you to pick on someone your own size, mutter thugs mutter mutter"

As something hot and fast barely misses his head, Jon has a horrible thought. The strange wounds. "We need to act fast! At least, these cultists seem quite mortal." Jon tries to flank an enemy with Piedra, but the dwarf's deadly axe makes that task impossible for the moment. Nevertheless, Jon's weapon strikes true, and another of men falls.

Sam tries to shield himself from the magical mace these cultists threw at him but was a little to slow and is badly hurt by flying bits of metal.

"Rovagug Damm and Blast you fiends!" he cries and quickly fires an arrow at the one called Stahl hoping to kill him before he can throw the mace again. However it's a poor shot as the arrow flies higher than he expected in this strange place. Fortunately, Sam's aim proves good enough. His arrow cuts across the side of Stahl's head, taking a bit.

"Ak!" Stahl cries out. "My ear!"

Frightened by the noise and blast the monkey on Sam's shoulder leaps away and runs towards the nearest tree.

The two prisoners closest to where the party appeared scramble away from the thugs. The third lunges to his feet and grabs a shovel, raising it high over head, making ready to attack one of his would-be killers.

[sblock=Question]
_Q: How far are we from these guys?_
A: Not sure.  I'm kind of abstract right now because I don't feel like drawing up a map. The party is within 30 feet of the closer group of soldiers.
[/sblock]

The spry little gnomeling spies the hurtling hammer-like something, and squeaks in alarm as she scurries out of its way. When echoes of the blast fade, she emerges from behind a crag of rock, singed but not badly.

"They have magic weapons!" Mellisande pipes in her high, girlish voice. "Lets get 'em!"

No bigger than a human child, she darts out and holds her hands towards the man who'd thrown the magic hammer, with her fingers touching in such a way so as to make a loop. The air around her cools, and her wild hair is tossed in a chill breeze that gusts around her for a moment. Her skin seems to fade to a papery white, even as mist erupts in the 'loop' of her fingers and starts sinking rapidly to the ground.

She lifts that mist to her mouth and blows. Like tiny frigid comet, it streaks through the air, leaving a thin trail of snowflakes in its wake as it bears down on that most impertinent of foes! The ray hits Stahl in the chest. His thick coat freezes and cracks, and the man staggers and shudders.

"They're devils! Devils!" he cries.

In the next instant, Sam's monkey is racing back toward Sam, leaving the treeline as quickly as possible. A half-dozen men spring into view, all of them armed with strange weapons similar to those wielded by the thugs. Loud _cracks!_, flashes, and puffs of smoke follow. Three thugs jerk as if powerfully struck and then fall motionless to the ground.

What started as a graveside execution now turns into a route. The thugs who appears to be in charge orders the retreat, and the survivors start to run away from the new arrivals and the adventurers. Their path of retreat is toward a rise on the opposite side of the field.

_All of the thugs took double moves to get away from their attackers. They're all still in missle weapon range. Of course, you can also pursue if you wish._

[sblock=Combat Block]
Initiative Order: Partisans, Thugs, Piedra, Jon, Sam, Prisoners, Mellisande
Piedra: uninjured
Jon: uninjured
Sam: 9 lethal.
Mellisande: 4 lethal; _shield_
Thugs (8): Stahl injured (6 hp), 6 dead.
Prisoners (3)
Partisans (6)
[/sblock]

[sblock=Dice Rolls]
Sam's Arrow Damage: 1d8=2.
[/sblock]


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## ghostcat (Apr 22, 2009)

Having droped his thug, Piedra start to move to attacked the nearest thug when he sees the armed men spring into view. His heart sinks. The party may have been able to handle the original thugs but there is no way they can handle the reinforcements. Almost immediately he cheers up as he sees the new men attacking the thugs.

Before he can recover from his surprise, the original thugs run off and Piedra quickly concludes that there is no way he could keep up should he try to chase them. Yet he is well aware that they have distance weapons that can do serious harm to the party. Deciding to encourage the thugs to keep running: Piedra drops his weapons, draws and loads his light crossbow and fires at the leader. His shot is true and in the next instant the leader has a crossbow bolt sticking out of his chest near to his heart

[sblock="OOC"]Actions:
I think I have this right. If not, ignore the attack.

Drop weapons - Free Action,
Draw Crossbow - Move Action (can be combined with a move action as per Page 135 note 3)
Load Light Crossbow - Move Action (see above)
Fire light crossbow at leader (1d20+5=22, 1d8=7) - standard action.
[/sblock]


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## kinem (Apr 23, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> "They're devils! Devils!" he cries.




_I knew it!_ Jon looks around wildly for the summoned devils about which the cultist was shouting, but he doesn't see any.

He is startled when new cultists appear, and attack the others with their strange weapons!  _Must be a rival faction.  If they fight among themselves, perhaps they think we too might be cultists.  This deception might be our only chance to survive._

Jon sheathes his greatsword and picks up one of the magic crossbows dropped by the cultists he'd killed.  _What to say now?  "Praise the devils?"  But what if these ones are demon worshippers?_


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## Andor (Apr 23, 2009)

Sam moves near to Mellisande and grasps the simple wooden holy symbol he wears about his neck as he whispers a brief prayer. A gentle wave of white and green light washes out from him and it's healing energy heals her wounds and help close his. *HP 12 + 5 =17*

[sblock=occ] Channeling positive enrgy for 1d6 healing in a 30' radius. Channel Positive energy (1d6=5) [/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Apr 23, 2009)

The fleeing thugs were quickly out of range of her magic, but Mellisande couldn't resist leaving them something to remember her by.

"Here, something for your trip!" she yells, and lifts her own crossbow to her chin to look down its sights. She raises it up, then remembers the strange lightness here, and lowers it a bit...and lets fly!

(To hit: 22  Roll Lookup  )
(Damage: 3  Roll Lookup )

Then she looks over at Sam and grins.

"Thanks!"


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## Shayuri (Apr 30, 2009)

(Bump off the 4rth page)


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## Mark Chance (May 2, 2009)

The thugs continue their retreat, quickly disappearing up and over a low hill. The party and the new arrivals send attacks down range. Another thug drops.



kinem said:


> Jon sheathes his greatsword and picks up one of the magic crossbows dropped by the cultists he'd killed.  _What to say now?  "Praise the devils?"  But what if these ones are demon worshippers?_




As Jon picks up the magic crossbow, the new arrivals turn their weapons toward him. The prisoner who grabbed the shovel steps between the two groups.

"They helped us, Joseph," he says. "Grab them." He points to the other prisoners. Several of the new arrivals move forward, slinging their magic crossbows over their shoulders. "You two: Get the dropped weapons. We need to move quickly."

The shovel-bearer turns to the party.

"Praise be to God for your timely arrival. I am Andrew. These are my friends. The Nazis will be back. It'd be best if we were gone by the time they returned."

_OOC: Pausing here for PC responses._


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## kinem (May 3, 2009)

Jon kicks the dead men into the pit as he tries to understand what these new cultists are up to.

"Yes, thank the gods.  I am Jon.  As you see, we are ready to slaughter those who do Not See.  We ... have come a long way to help."


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## Shayuri (May 3, 2009)

"Um, do you want us to come where YOU live, or should we take you where WE live?" Mellisande asks, jogging lightly over to the men and picking up one of the magic "bowless crossbows" curiously.

"Actually, we should stay here and you need to tell us all about the 'not-zees' I guess, otherwise we won't have much to report."

"I'm Mellisande, by the way. Hi."

She offers her tiny hand up to shake.


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## Mark Chance (May 3, 2009)

While the other men follow Joseph's orders, Joseph kneels and takes Mellisande's hand. She can see something akin to fear in his eyes, but his voice is firm, "Peace be with you, Mellisande. And you should come with us. We have a camp not too far from here. Those who are there must be warned that they need to move. A search-and-destroy mission is only an hour or so away. Once those who escaped get back to their headquarters."


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## ghostcat (May 3, 2009)

Piedra is not really a people person, so he leaves it to the others to talk to the newcomers. Meanwhile he walks over to where the last, retreating, thug was kill. After relieving him of his magic crossbow he starts to search the body.


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## Mark Chance (May 3, 2009)

ghostcat said:


> Piedra is not really a people person, so he leaves it to the others to talk to the newcomers. Meanwhile he walks over to where the last, retreating, thug was kill. After relieving him of his magic crossbow he starts to search the body.




One of the new arrivals nearby starts to say something when Piedra picks up the magic crossbow, but then thinks the better of it. He's obviously nervous, not only about the prospect of the enemy returning, but perhaps moreso by Piedra's presence.

Piedra finds a double-edged knife with a long, thin blade on the body. There are many pouches and pockets as well.

"Um," says the nearby newcomer. Piedra notices for the first time that under the heavy clothes and dirt, the speaker is barely more than a child who has yet to see his first shave. "We need to go. Joseph said. They're, uh, they're leaving, uh, sir?"

Sure enough, Piedra notices the men forming up into a single file, heading back toward the forest. The other three members of his party are following along.

[sblock=XP!]
450 XP each for the game so far.
[/sblock]


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## Andor (May 4, 2009)

Sam is looking increasingly worried as he looks about. He turns around a couple of times slowly scanning the area, then walks in a quick loop before drawing Mellisande aside and whispering to her. "Ritual magic isn't really my thing but... shouldn't there be some kind of a set-up? A ritual circle or runed archway to contain the magic? This just looks like marauders hitting peasants. If these guys were cultists where is the altar, more  importantly where is the way home?"

[sblock=occ]What about languages? Does common happen to be german or do we get that double-echo of translation magic? [/sblock]


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## Shayuri (May 4, 2009)

Mellisande squinches her mouth into a convincing 'hmmm' expression and looks around.

"It seems like we've been displaced along a sinusoidal barometric vector state into a hyperspherical plane that is coterminous with ours," she opines. Then she nods sagely, agreeing with her own scholarly opinion.

Then bursts into a grin.

"I'm just messing with you, I have -no idea- what happened. It's fun though isn't it? Look at this thing!"

She shakes the magic bowless crossbow.

"It's just a metal pipe in a wooden holdy thing, but I don't smell any magic at all! Isn't that weird?"


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## ghostcat (May 4, 2009)

Piedra stops his searching and gets up, stowing the crossbow and knife in his belt. "OK son. Keep your shirt on, I'm coming." Piedra walks over to join the others at the end of the line. Noticing again has he does so, how much easier it is to move here.

Now that the immediate danger is over, Piedra has time for some serious thinking. _"I wonder were we are. Things feel different so we must be on a different plane, whatever one of those is . More importantly. how do we get home, the portal seems to have disappeared. I'd better make sure I know where the portal was so that we can find it again"_

Piedra, uses his survival / tracking skills to try to remember exactly where the portal was located.


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## Andor (May 5, 2009)

Sam opens his mouth, appears to reconsider and closes it again. Instead he whistles a command and Mr. Chitters resumes his place on Sam's shoulder. He makes his way up to the leader of the soldiers, marveling at his unatural lightness. "Andrew was it? Do any of your men need healing? I'll be glad to do what I can." He strokes his holy symbol meaningfully.


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## Shayuri (May 14, 2009)

(4rth page save bump!)


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## Mark Chance (May 20, 2009)

Deeper into the woods the group moves. Most of the soldiers remain silent. They are obviously unnerved by the party, but Joseph also insists on noise discipline while on the march. Nevertheless, some talking is inevitable.

The party gets a picture of this strange world. The land they're in is called Poland. About two years ago, they were invaded by Germany, a nation to the west ruled by people called Nazis. Joseph and his partisan band are Jews, many of them escaped from ghettos, a sort of prison-neighborhood in a city. The Nazis have targeted Joseph's people for extermination, likening them to disease-carrying rats.

"When we get to camp, I must take you to Rav Tevye. He's our spiritual leader and a prophet of the Lord. He's...expecting you. At least, it must have been you he dreamed of."

The forest is cold and dark, comprised of old, towering pines. There's little undergrowth. Pine needles cover the frozen ground, and the party grow increasingly uncomfortable. Teeth chatter. Fingers grow numb.

"We'll get you some warmer clothes in camp," one of the partisans offers.

An hour or so passes. The land has become rockier and steeper. The hills are cut through with steep draws. The group moves down one such draw and around a bend. There ahead is the camp.

Small cooking fires crackle in the mouths of several caves. Guards come out of hiding, warmly welcoming the partisans back to camp. Blessings are exchanged, as well as hugs and kisses. As if on cue, the women and children emerge from hiding. All but the youngest children are armed with at least one of the strange hand crossbows.

The party cannot help but notice the alarm and wonder in nearly everyone's eyes.

"Anya," Joseph says happily, embracing a heavy-set woman. "Friends, this is my wife, Anya. Anya, take them into the caves. Find them warmer clothes and some stew. I must go see Rav Tevye."

Anya looks doubtfully at the party, her round face expressionless. But then, a smile spreads widely, and she nods.

"Come, come," she says, waving her hands. "Inside before you catch your death of cold."


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## Andor (May 21, 2009)

"Anya, it's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Sam Elmwise." Sam smiles warmly and brushes his hair back from his ears knowing most people find half-elves unthreatening. While the rest of the party makes their introductions he mutters a short word and touches his holy symbol which starts to glow softly so as to light their way in the cave.


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## kinem (May 21, 2009)

Jon listens in confusion to the strangers' talk, saying nothing.  _So they're not cultists, but the Nazis are just as bad.  But who opened the portals to our world?_


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## ghostcat (May 24, 2009)

Piedra follows the others, moving as quietly as he can. He still can't get over how easy it is to walk in this strange world. After a few minutes walking it occurs to him that the tracks of a dozen or so people will not be that be hard to follow, so he reluctantly breaks his silence and speaks to Joseph. "Joseph. You do realise that your leaving a trail that leads directly back to your camp?" When Joseph queries this, he points out their tracks, bits of which Joseph can actually see. "Would you like me to break the trail for you.

[sblock="Joseph Accepts"]"OK. Lead you men to the other side of that ridge and wait for me there." Piedra points to a spot about quarter of a mile away. He then looks around to make sure he can find the end of the tracks again before slowly following the men hiding the tracks as he goes.[/sblock]

[sblock="Joseph Declines"]"OK its your decision. You know your own territory better than we do."[/sblock]

Once they arrive at the camp, Piedra will keep quite. He will nod when introduced to Anya and follow the others into the cave.

[sblock="OOC"]Attempts to use his tracking skill to hide the tracks. I'll leave it to you to decide if this is possible and if he succeeds[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (May 24, 2009)

By the time the group has reached the camp, Mellisande has discovered the joys of jumping, and is hopping happily along. The exercise helps keep her warm, though she discovers that when they stop, the extra sweat makes things a lot worse. As such, the gnomelet with the wild violet hair beams at Anya and patters after her quickly as she jams her hands under her armpits, hugging herself to keep warm.


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## Mark Chance (May 25, 2009)

_Flashback:_



ghostcat said:


> Piedra speaks to Joseph. "Joseph. You do realise that your leaving a trail that leads directly back to your camp?" When Joseph queries this, he points out their tracks, bits of which Joseph can actually see. "Would you like me to break the trail for you?




Joseph considers the suggestion. "That is a sensible precaution. Please, if you could."



ghostcat said:


> "OK. Lead you men to the other side of that ridge and wait for me there." Piedra points to a spot about quarter of a mile away. He then looks around to make sure he can find the end of the tracks again before slowly following the men hiding the tracks as he goes.




Throughout Piedra's work, Joseph stays just in sight near the ridge, watching Piedra carefully. When Piedra returns, he says, "I thank you, although I must confess that I see little difference. I suppose to one who knows what to look for, those little differences mean a great deal."

_The Present:_

Sam mutters a short word and touches his holy symbol which starts to glow softly so as to light their way in the cave. Anya starts at this, her eyes widening, but she doesn't comment.

Instead, Anya leads the four adventurers into the cave. It isn't very deep or large, but it does cut some of the chill. She instructs everyone to sit around a crude table. About that time, another woman, this one younger and thinner, enters, carrying an iron pot by its handles.

"This is my daughter, Miriam," Anya says.

Miriam looks nearly terrified when she sees the adventurers, especially Piedra and Mellisande, but then she see Chitters.

"Is that your monkey?" she says timidly.

"Miriam, never you mind that," Anya says. "Serve our guests some stew and go tell Mrs. Zygmuntowicz to have her boys fetch us the clothes."

_OOC: Pausing for role-playing stuff. _


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## Andor (May 25, 2009)

Sam smiles at Miriam. "Yes. This is Mr. Chitters. He is a holy creature of Erastil." He takes the monkey from his shoulder and holds him out on his hands where the monkey does a flip and then bows to Miriam.


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## Shayuri (May 26, 2009)

Mellisande beams happily at Anya and her daughter, but notices the little human girl is a bit nervous. She supposes it must be because of the weapons and everything...they must seem like pretty rough customers to a little child! Fortunately, she knew the cure for that.

"Hey Miriam," Mellisande called with a chummy grin. "There's nothing to worry about, we're the good guys! Want to see a neat trick?"

The magic was second nature by now. Using it took just a little concentration...just to focus her will on the outcome. Then she held out her hands...each one was not much bigger than Miriam's.

Pink and cyan and pale green orbs of light zoomed out of her palms and followed a twisting course around her head and shoulders, like huge colorful fireflies. She let them swirl around a second, then 'juggled' them, pretending to get more and more unsteady as she did it. It ended with a pratfall that never failed to get laughs (and coin) when she did it on the streets, with little balls of colored light flying everywhere and bouncing off of nearby tables, chairs and people before winking out.

The spry little gnomette then bounced to her feet and took a bow, eagerly anticipating laughter and applause.

(OOC - Prestidigitation. )


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## ghostcat (May 26, 2009)

_Flashback_

Having re-joined Joseph, Piedra looks critically at his work. "Yes Joseph. If you know what to look for, a trail like your's looks like a road. Hopefully, that is now broken."

_Present_

Following the others into the cave, Piedra takes a seat when instructed. On being introduced to Miriam he smiles until he realises that it looks more like a scowl and is frightening the girl even more. Instead he nods his thanks for the soup and concentrates on eating.


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## Shayuri (Jun 4, 2009)

(OOC - Bump. Anyone there?)


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## kinem (Jun 5, 2009)

Jon claps at Mellisande's antics, and looks to see the reaction of the hosts.

_We may be here a while, best to try to learn the strange ways of these people._


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## Mark Chance (Jun 6, 2009)

The meal is simple and there is hardly enough for a single serving all around. Nevertheless, the company is pleasant. Young Miriam is delighted by Chitters and by Mellisande's tricks. Anya watches nervously, but soon relaxes her guard, at least by a degree, but she soon reminds Miriam about fetching Mrs. Zygmuntowicz.

An old woman arrives. Three lads follow her, each toting two sacks full of clothes.

"What do we have here?" she asks, looking at the party. "Don't stand there gawking, boys. Put those sacks down. You lads --" She points to the male members of the party. "--stay here. Young lady, you come with me. Can't have you changing out here."

The old lady leads Mellisande to a smaller cave further into the hillside, dragging one of the sacks along. Anya follows.

"I'm Chaya," the old lady says. "Don't you worry. We'll soon have you in some warmer clothes."

In the forecave, Sam, Piedra, and Jon are left alone with the other five sacks. About that time, Joseph returns.

"I see Chaya's been here," he says. "Find warm clothes. Rav Tevye wants to meet you as soon as possible."


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## Andor (Jun 7, 2009)

Sam sorts through the cloths in the bag diplomatically ignoring the occasional suspicious hole or blood stain. Selecting a wool shirt and a grey jacket he quickly puts them on over his chain shirt and rewraps his cloak around himself. He shivers as he warms up a bit in the chill air. "Thank you very much. It is much chillier here than I'm used to."


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## Mark Chance (Jun 7, 2009)

Joseph smiles, but there's little humor in it. "This has indeed been a cold winter for all of us."


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## ghostcat (Jun 7, 2009)

Piedra rummages through the sacks of clothes looking for something that will fit a dwarf. However, most of the clothes are either for a full sized human, which means they are too long, or for a child, which means that they would be way too tight. Finally he finds a fleece jacket that would make him a nice coat. Although, even then it was a very tight across his chest, especially as he would be wearing it over his armor.

Watching him struggle with his new coat, Joseph says "If you like that jacket, I'll have one of the women let out the seams while we go talk to Rav Tevye."  Piedra responds "Thanks, I'd like that." After handing the coat to Joseph, Piedra goes back to rummaging through the sacks. Just as he was about to give up he comes across a fur cloak. Although it is not clear who or what it was for, it was an almost perfect fit.

Sporting his new cloak, Piedra comments "Ready"

OOC: Hope you don't mind me hijacking your NPC.


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## Shayuri (Jun 8, 2009)

"Warm clothes would be great!" Mellisande enthuses, throwing off her garb with abandon and in the process revealing a couple of things. One, that her clothes are of rather 'archaic' make. No zippers, elastic, or other modern conveniences. Two, that despite her size and demeanor, she's not a child and she's not a midget. Her body is fully developed, if in miniature, and her proportions are all exactly like a normal human being...just smaller. Like a large living doll.

She doesn't wait for the women to help, instead opening the bag herself and starting to try garment after garment on.


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## kinem (Jun 11, 2009)

Jon digs through the pile and finds a large coat.  He removes his scabbard strap and puts on the coat, then attempts to put the sword belt over that.  "In case we need to defend ourselves again.  I trust my sword, though I do want to learn about this strange crossbow."


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## Mark Chance (Jun 18, 2009)

"Crossbow?" Joseph says, and then realizes about what Jon speaks. He chuckles. "You are indeed unusual people. Those aren't crossbows. They are rifles and pistols."

Joseph unholsters his pistol. He pulls part of it and a small bit of shaped metal pops out. He presses another part, and a long narrow box slides out of the handle. He shows the box to Jon, who can see more bits of shaped metal stacked inside it.

He then explains that the shaped metal bits are "bullets" and that the pistol's trigger causes a small explosion which propels the "bullet" at great speed and with great force.

"If necessary, we can teach you the basics of how to shoot," Joseph says. "It takes time and practice to get good, however, especially in the chaos of a firefight."

A younger man, large and brutish with thick black hair, enters the cave.

"Joseph," he says. "Rav Tevye wants to see the strangers. He says to bring them at once."

Joseph nods, and the large man departs. "That was Alexei," he says. "Used to be a soldier in the Red Army." He pauses, as if there's more he wants to say. "Well, we'd best go."

Joseph leads the four adventurers, newly outfitted in alien but warmer clothing, back out of the caves into the forest proper. Deeper into the camp the group walks. Drawn faces, most frightened and curious, watch from shelters made from fallen trees and cut branches. Most of those in the camp are women and children, but none of the very young or the very old can be seen.

In what seems to be the center of the camp is a stoutly built hut. A thin trail of smoke curls from its roof. Joseph walks up to the door and knocks sharply.

"Let them in, Joseph," a voice says. "You may return to your wife."

Joseph frowns and nods. "You heard him. Go on in."


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## Shayuri (Jun 18, 2009)

(OOC - Is Mellisande with them? Last I saw she was changing clothes with some woman.)


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## Mark Chance (Jun 18, 2009)

Shayuri said:


> (OOC - Is Mellisande with them? Last I saw she was changing clothes with some woman.)




_OOC: D'oh! Mea culpa for not being clear. Yes, Mellisande is with the group. I'd never leave Mellisande out. _


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## Andor (Jun 19, 2009)

Sam looks at the wan and drawn faces as they approach the hut and wishes he was powerful enough to conjure food. Not that it would do any good. There were far too many people for any but a cleric out of legend to feed. This thought shows in his open face as he tentatively opens the door and enters the hut.


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## Shayuri (Jun 19, 2009)

Mellisande is a bit subdued by the time she reaches the hut. She's never seen so many people who need cheering up before! The atmosphere of glumness finally starts to penetrate even her skull. Making merry just seems somehow wrong in front of these haunted faces. It's puzzling.

Even so, she puts a brave face on it, and nods smartly at Joe, then plunges right into the hut without waiting to be asked twice!


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## ghostcat (Jun 19, 2009)

Piedra follows the others through the camp. Although he sees the drawn faces of the women and children, it does not really register has he as seen worse in a Shoanti camp during a particularly hard winter. However, one thing the Shoanti never were, was frightened. Seeing women and children frightened like this means that there is something going on that he probably was not going to like.

Arriving at Rav Tevye's hut and observing Rav's curt dismissal of Joseph made him remember Joseph's reaction when told to bring the visitors to Rav. This made Piedra wonder if Rav was a despot ruling by fear.

So, already inclined not to like Rav, Piedra enters the hut.


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## kinem (Jun 19, 2009)

Jon looks on with concern at the women and children as well.

_So much to ask._

He heads into the hut, hoping for some answers at last.


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## Mark Chance (Jun 20, 2009)

The party follows Sam into the one-room hut.

Two walls bear crudely constructed shelves holding an assortment of books, knick-knacks, and framed pictures. A cot is set up under the lowest shelf along one wall. A bearded man sits on a chair in front of a small fire pit.







"Welcome," he says warmly. "Please, grab a log. Would you like some tea?" He lifts a kettle from the fire. "It's not very good. Made from pine needles, but it's the best we can do."


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## Shayuri (Jun 20, 2009)

Mellisande's eyes widen in sudden intense delight. _Pine needles!_ It was so obvious! Why had no one thought of that before?!

"I want some!" she demands excitedly, then scrabbles in her pack for her wooden cup. "That's brilliant! Pine needles! No one's ever made tea from _pine needles! _I want to be the first to try it!"

She finds her cup and eagerly holds it out, tiny hands actually shaking a little from repressing her desire to just yank the whole kettle away and guzzle the precious ambrosia straight from the spout.


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## Andor (Jun 21, 2009)

"Thank you." replies Sam in a subdued voice. "We're sorry to impose on your hospitality. We ... had no way of knowing we were coming here. We only planned a short trip, but this looks like it might be a great deal more than that." He seats himself on a log and strokes his holy symbol for comfort.


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## Mark Chance (Jun 21, 2009)

Tevye chuckles as he pours Mellisande's tea.

"Hospitality is never an imposition, Sam," he says. "It both my honor and my duty. Joseph tells me you aided the partisans today against the Nazis." He shakes his head. "I once had the wish to never live to see a time when evil became a necessary tool." He sighs and then smiles at the party. "But that's neither here nor there. You may not have foreseen your arrival, but I have. The Lord has shown me things, hints of what must be done, and what our roles are in those events."

Rav Tevye abruptly stands up and fishes a metal box from beneath his cot. He sits back down, pops the lid off the box, and hold it out to the gnome.

"Cookie, Mellisande?" he says.


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## Shayuri (Jun 21, 2009)

Rav Tevye can tell from Mellisande's wide eyes that he has earned a friend for life with that question. She nods, apparently too awed to speak...and lifts the pine tea to her lips.

A second later she spits it out with a loud 'puah!"

She wipes her mouth and sets the cup down. "Pine needles taste really bad," she informs him. "It's like licking sap off a tree."

Without further comment, she cracks her knuckles over the tea cup, and little colored sparks of light fall from her fingers and palms into the liquid. She then picks it back up and sips again...and smiles contentedly. 

"Much better."

(Prestidigitation to change flavor.)


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## Mark Chance (Jun 21, 2009)

Tevye says, "Fascinating." He holds his battered metal cup. "Mine, too, if you can."


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## kinem (Jun 21, 2009)

Jon says "I know nothing of the politics here, but I wonder if it would be possible to arrange a meeting with this lord sometime soon.  If we are to do his bidding, I want to know what kind of man he is."


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## ghostcat (Jun 21, 2009)

Determine to be on his best behavior, Piedra sits down and patiently waits until the others have finished getting their tea. Poring himself a cup he thanks Rav "Thank you sir" and sits quietly sipping his tea. He has drank worse and in fact, unlike Mellisande, Piedra finds it quite good.


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## Shayuri (Jun 21, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> Tevye says, "Fascinating." He holds his battered metal cup. "Mine, too, if you can."




"Sure!" Mellisande enthuses, after taking a crumbly cookie from the tin.

"What flavor do you want? I made mine taste like strawberry wine, which is like regular wine, only it tastes like strawberries. Do you have strawberries in this world? They're little red fruits with lots of seeds on the outside and kind of...triangular in shape. You eat them all in one or two bites."


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## Mark Chance (Jun 22, 2009)

"Yes," Tevye says, "we have strawberries, although I've not tasted one in years. Strawberries would be nice." He turns his face to Jon. "I am afraid I cannot take you to my Lord, Jon. In moments of weakness, I doubt he is even with us any more. But, I suppose, you arrival shows otherwise."

Tevye sips his flavored tea. He smiles.

"Quite nice. Quite nice. As to his will, I am afraid we must make do with what little bit I know. The Nazis have captured a young man. He must be freed and brought to safety. He will be an agent of peace years after this horrible war has ended. Instrumental in the freedom of millions. My dreams said that you would arrive, and that you would rescue Karol from certain death."

Tevye takes another sip of tea.

"Other than this, I know little. The young man is being held by the Gestapo in Krakow, a city not too far from here. I have friends in Krakow who can get us more information, but getting too them will not be without grave risk."


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## Andor (Jun 22, 2009)

Sam sips at his tea without comment, listening to the conversation. He may not have the genius of a wizard but he can recognize the manner of a holy man. "When you say your Lord, do you mean your patron deity? Which God do you revere? As you can see" he holds forth his glowing symbol "I myself am a cleric of Erastil." The celestial monkey on his shoulder nods as if in confirmation.


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## ghostcat (Jun 22, 2009)

Piedra sits quietly drinking his tea nodding occasionally.

Meanwhile he is starting to re-assess his opinion of Tevye. Tevye does not appear to be a despot, yet at the same time he issues terse commands that his people obey even though they obviously would rather not. Piedra decided that this is getting just too complicated and that he will ask  Sam about it later. Having resolved the Tevye dilemma for the time being, Piedra goes on to consider how to break a prisoner out of a jail filled with guards armed with magic crossbows. At the same time he  listens to the ongoing conversation.


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## Mark Chance (Jun 22, 2009)

Andor said:


> Sam sips at his tea without comment, listening to the conversation. He may not have the genius of a wizard but he can recognize the manner of a holy man. "When you say your Lord, do you mean your patron deity? Which God do you revere? As you can see" he holds forth his glowing symbol "I myself am a cleric of Erastil." The celestial monkey on his shoulder nods as if in confirmation.




Tevye chuckles at the monkey. "'Patron deity' is an apt phrase. I've not heard that before. My Lord has a name, but it is sacred, not to be spoken aloud. My people use circumlocutions out of respect for this holy name."


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## Andor (Jun 23, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> Tevye chuckles at the monkey. "'Patron deity' is an apt phrase. I've not heard that before. My Lord has a name, but it is sacred, not to be spoken aloud. My people use circumlocutions out of respect for this holy name."




Sam tugs on an earlobe thoughtfully. "I'm not much of a theologian I must admit, I'm a rural Priest and usually leave the deep thoughts to the temple priests in the cities who have time to think them." He pulls the monkey into his lap and strokes him as though trying to quiet uncomfortable thoughts. "But if I may be frank ... Your comment about evil tools worries me. Erastil is a God of the farm and the hunt, of family and trade, of daily trials and simple good deeds. I know of a score of deitys and it is only a handful of vile ones whose followers fear to speak their names. I hope you will convince me things are different here." He look levelly into Tevye's eyes as he waits for an answer.


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## Mark Chance (Jun 23, 2009)

Tevye chuckles.

"What a different world you come from! Here, Sam, there are no evil deities. There is one Lord, who is the Lord of all. We do not avoid his name out of fear, but out of respect. No, that's not accurate enough. Out of love. He is the father of our people, and a son does not address his father too familiarly."

He takes a sip of tea.

"This must be so difficult for you to understand. It is sometimes difficult for me to understand, and I have not only my lifetime of study, but also the merits of my father, grandfather, and great-grandfather to assist me.

"Nevertheless, what will be will be. We must rescue this young man. This Karol. Future generations depend on us, and we must not shirk this honor. My faith tells me that to save one person's life is to save all his descendants as well. My dreams tell me that Karol will be a father to millions."


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## Shayuri (Jun 23, 2009)

"Wow," says Mellisande, a bit awed. "He must be -really- good in bed."

She looks at the others speculatively, then back at Tevye.

"Alright, so I guess we'll do it. I mean, we're here. And it sounds fun. So do you have a map or something so we know where to go? And we'll need to know how to recognize him. And can we borrow some of those magic-but-not-magic crossbows you use?"


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## Mark Chance (Jun 24, 2009)

Tevye's answer is delayed by his laughter.

"That's quite the observation, Mellisande," he says, still chuckling a bit. "As for how we'll get to Krakow, I shall accompany you. My friends in the ghetto there would not trust any of you. If we are agreed, necessary preparations will be made, and we shall depart tomorrow morning." He tugs at his beard. "Before I go, I must make some sacrifices. I would be arrested and likely shot in an instant going about like this."


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## ghostcat (Jun 24, 2009)

*In Which Piedra Demonstrates his Diplomacy Skills*

Piedra was just about to speak when Mellisande made her "Good in bed" comment, at which point he burst out laughing instead. "Ha Ha Ha. Good in bed. That's a good one. Ha Ha Ha" After about 10 second, he manage to get himself back under control and tries to take a slurp of his tea, only to find his cup is empty. "I don't care what Mellisande says, this tea is not too bad. Although you could probably improve it with a touch of mint. Is it OK to have another cup?" Without waiting for the answer, Piedra pours himself another cup of tea and sits quietly sipping it.


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## kinem (Jun 24, 2009)

Jon pours himself a cup of the pine needle tea as well, and sips it.

"Very well, we'll help.  So, Rev, what god do the Nazis worship?  And do you know how we got here ... or if we can go home?"


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## Mark Chance (Jun 25, 2009)

Tevye says, "They worship power and race. Everything they do is aimed at acquiring the first and destroying threats to the second. That much I know. I do not know about how to return you to your home."


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## Andor (Jun 25, 2009)

"I wonder... I wonder if the nazis who killed the miners came back here or ... could they still be wandering around the woods near Feldspar?" He frowns. Then rubs the pointed tip of his ear thoughtfully. "Wait. I don't understand something. You said they're concerned about race? But you and they look like perfectly normal humans to me, why were they about to kill their fellow humans? In fact I haven't seen anything but humans since we got here."


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## Mark Chance (Jun 25, 2009)

"And you're not likely to see anyone other than humans," Tevye says. "In this world, we are all humans, created by the Lord. But the Nazis reject this truth in favor of a lie that exalts the fiction that only so-called Aryans deserve to rule. My own people occupy a special place in the Nazi schema. They say we are subhumans, fit only for slavery and then death."


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## Shayuri (Jun 25, 2009)

"So even though there's only one race, they pretend there's more than one, just so they can fight?"

Mellisande shakes her head. "And they say gnomes are strange."

"But if there's nothing but humans here, you sure don't seem too surprised to see us."


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## Mark Chance (Jun 30, 2009)

Tevye grins. "I should be surprised, but I'm not. My dreams showed you clearly. I thought your appearances were perhaps symbolic, but obviously not." He finishes his tea and stands. "Well, if there is nothing else, we must make preparations to leave tomorrow. Things must be packed. I'll need a change of clothes and a shave and a haircut. Joseph can show you how to use pistols and rifles as well. We've much to do."


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## Andor (Jul 1, 2009)

Sam glances at the cup of pie needle tea. "I can see times are hard here. War always is I suppose. It's not much, but in the morning, any supplies you have that may have gone bad or putrified I'll be able to restore to good condition. I'm afraid it's the most I can do for now."


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## ghostcat (Jul 1, 2009)

Once its clear that the meeting is over, Piedra stands and makes for the door calling out "Good night sir." over his shoulder.

Without waiting for the others, Piedra walks over to Joseph's cave and tried to find Joseph. Once he finds him he says "Rav Tevye says you can teach us how to use the magic crossbows. Any chance of doing it now."


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## Shayuri (Jul 5, 2009)

Mellisande nods sagely and steps back. "All right then. I'll help! Just tell me what to do! As long as it's not lifting things...or carrying them. Or running a lot. Or...doing anything yucky, like dishes or chamberpots. But other than that, anything goes!"

She plants her fists jauntily on her hips, clearly very pleased with how helpful she is.


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## Mark Chance (Jul 7, 2009)

_OOC: Everyone: Mea culpa on the hold up. Last week, life kicked me in the head. The state of Texas changed certification requirements for teachers recently. Suddenly, I'm not only not qualified for my current position, but I've also been terminated from my current position in another week. Consequently, I've been running around, taking necessary steps to secure employment elsewhere, et cetera.

I'm going to try to get back into game mode this afternoon/evening._


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## Mark Chance (Jul 9, 2009)

_OOC: Let's get this show on the road!_

Joseph shows the heroes how to use pistols. The basic operation is simple enough.

"The trick," Joseph says, "is hitting your target. The bullet moves fast. Real fast. But you've still got to lead a moving target a bit, and the accuracy falls with range rather quickly. A rifle shoot farther and packs more of a punch, but it's also a lot harder to conceal."

Each party member is given a loaded pistol and two extra clips of ammunition. Joseph also goes over the basics of maintenance, how to keep the pistol clean and its parts lubricated.

"They heat up fast with use, and friction will cause the moving parts to jam. A misfire can be dangerous. A bullet can explode in the chamber if it's too hot. It's not common, but...."

He shows everyone how to clear a jam.

The frightened community does their best to welcome what, to them, are truly alien visitors. Joseph's confidence allays many suspicions. When Tevye appears around dinner time with his hair cut short and beard shaved off, nearly everyone seems to forget the party entirely. There's a brief argument about the impropriety of Tevye risking his life, but Tevye is unmoved. The weight of his moral authority cannot be overlooked.

After dinner, everyone settles down quickly. By the time the sun has set, the fires are out. A tense hush settles over the camp. The adventurers are made as comfortable as possible.

"Sleep well," Joseph says. "Who knows when you'll get another chance?"

In the morning, the community assembles to see the party and Tevye off. Tevye is wearing a wrinkled uniform.

"I might be able to pass as a Polish officer," he says. "If not, they'd shoot me anyway."

Packs of food are distributed. Tevye pronounces blessings on several people. Almost everyone is weeping.

"Take care of people while I'm gone, Joseph," Tevye says. "The Lord willing, I shall return. Now, come my friends. We've got a long walk ahead of us. I know a farmer who will loan us a wagon, assuming it hasn't already been requisitioned. We can then ride most of the way to Krakow."


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## Andor (Jul 10, 2009)

Sam triple checks the alien weapon on his belt and turns to Tevye. "Do you have no stores of old food I can restore? I hate to see a community is such need and not do anything to help. It's a minor spell, I can cast it as many times as needed."


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## Shayuri (Jul 10, 2009)

"You could probably find it without even asking," Mellisande informs Sam, tugging on his belt. "Just follow your nose. Anywhere they keep nasty old food would get all smelly."

Then she skips ahead a few steps. "Now lets get the wagon! HAY RIDE!" She charges ahead gleefully...only to have to come back and ask Tevye which way. Then she charges off gleefully in that direction.


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## ghostcat (Jul 10, 2009)

Piedra starts the pistol lessons with eager anticipation. However, as the lesson goes on and Joesph starts explaining the drawbacks, he becomes less and less keen. By the end of the lesson, Piedra is determine to stick with his crossbow whenever possible. Its silent and doesn't blow your hand off if it goes wrong.

Piedra settles down to sleep along with everyone else. However, he does not quite trust the community and therefore sleeps very lightly, waking at the slightest noise.

In the morning he thanks Joseph for all of his help and follows Tevye and the others as they walk off down the road. Piedra carries his crossbow, loaded but not cocked.


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## Mark Chance (Jul 10, 2009)

Andor said:


> Sam triple checks the alien weapon on his belt and turns to Tevye. "Do you have no stores of old food I can restore? I hate to see a community is such need and not do anything to help. It's a minor spell, I can cast it as many times as needed."




Tevye nods. "We have a bushel of potatoes that are going bad. Mold. If you can 'restore' them, it would be a great relief."


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## Andor (Jul 11, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> Tevye nods. "We have a bushel of potatoes that are going bad. Mold. If you can 'restore' them, it would be a great relief."




Sam nods eagerly, clearly relieved at the chance to do _something_ to alleviate the suffering of these people. 

OOC: During his morning prayer Sam swapped out "Create Water" for "Purify Food/Drink" and will happily purify anything the refugees can bring him. Once done he quickly joins the rest of the group in the wagon for the trip to Krakow.


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## Shayuri (Jul 14, 2009)

Perhaps it's fortunate Mellisande seems to like playing in the hay so much, since it means she's rarely in view of other people...and if so, not for long enough to register as anything stranger than a rambunctious child. It also tuckers her out fairly quick, prompting the young gnomelet to curl into a sleeping ball of cute after only four or five hours of noise and messing around with straw.


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## Mark Chance (Jul 14, 2009)

_OOC: I miscommunicated earlier. The group doesn't have the wagon yet. The first stage of the trip to Krakow is getting the wagon._

The refugees are duly impressed by Sam's restoration of their potatoes. The word "miracle" is whispered more than a few times. Tevye grins hugely and claps Sam on the back. One older woman brushes gnarled fingers against Sam's cheek, tears shining in her eyes.

"May the Lord bless you and keep you," she says.

An hour later, the group is trudging through the forest. An unseasonably warm day is causing the snow and ice to melt, turning the frozen ground into icy mud.

"We're almost to Andrew's farm. He's on the outskirts of the village, so there's little chance of us being spotted. Krakow lies in that direction, so we need not pass through the village either."

Some time later, the land grows less hilly. The trees become more sparse. A chill breeze picks up. The scents of moist earth and decaying vegetation drift on the wind. Then, almost as if it were a solid thing, the stench of rotting flesh assaults everyone's senses.

Ahead winds a narrow road, and farther down the road is a simple farmhouse, a barn, and a pen.

"Oh, dear Lord, no," Tevye says.

Tied to the pen's fence can clearly be seen five bodies, arms outstretched, heads slumped.

"Not Andrew," Tevye says, and he makes to run toward the farm.


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## ghostcat (Jul 14, 2009)

"RAV STOP" Piedra says in what can only be described as a loud whisper. "They may still be around. You stay here with Sam while Jon, Mellisande and I scout around to make sure the coast is clear. Are you two coming?

Without waiting for answer, Piedra start to stealthily move round the farm so he can see what is around the other side. Depending on how far are we from the farm, Piedra will either stay at the same distance or move to within crossbow range (80'). Unless he sees anything, he will keep going until he is back with Tevye and Sam.

[sblock="Mechanics"]Stealth (1d20+6=17)[/sblock]


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## Andor (Jul 15, 2009)

Sam mutters a quick prayer under his voice as he quickly strings his longbow and knocks an arrow. Then he stands where he is or follows the Rev (depending on Tevyes' actions) while scanning for danger.


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## Mark Chance (Jul 15, 2009)

Andor said:


> Sam mutters a quick prayer under his voice as he quickly strings his longbow and knocks an arrow. Then he stands where he is or follows the Rev (depending on Tevyes' actions) while scanning for danger.




Tevye follows Piedra's orders, although it is obvious he wishes to do otherwise.


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## kinem (Jul 15, 2009)

Jon draws his greatsword and follows Piedra.  He tries to move quietly, but the strange gravity in this place gives him an awkward stride, making it difficult this time.

[sblock=ooc]stealth=11[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Jul 21, 2009)

"I'm with you!" Mellisande bleats loyally, and scampers after the two longer-legged fellows. She doesn't seem terribly -skilled- at staying out of sight...but with her natural light step and her size, it's pretty easy for her to be lost in the tall grass and large (next to her) buildings and objects around the farmhouse.

Stealth: 17
Roll Lookup


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## Mark Chance (Aug 5, 2009)

_I am floored by how slooow this site is running._ 

Sam, bow at the ready, stays behind with Tevye while Piedra, Jon, and Mellisande slink forward toward the small farm.

A horrible sight greets the trio. The farmer and his family are all dead, obvious victims of violence, and their corpses left on display against a fence. Two of the victims, certainly the mother and an adolescent daughter, bear such vile trauma that they are difficult to look at.

The front door to the house stands open. Through the portal, Jon sees overturned furniture. On the wall adjacent to the open door, two words are painted: "Jew Free". To the right of the house across a small yard sits a barn. Its front door stands just ajar.


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## ghostcat (Aug 5, 2009)

Without getting any closer than he needs to, Piedra will move into a position where he can see into the barn.

Assuming that it appears clear, he will creep upto the barn and have a proper look. Likewise the house. 

Only, if he a completely sure that there is nobody waiting in ambush (that is to say he has visually checked all parts of the house and barn, including checking the floor for trap doors) will he signal for Sam and Tevye to come in. If this means that he needs to enter the house then so be it.


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## kinem (Aug 5, 2009)

Jon stops and stares at the sight of the bodies for a moment.  He feels frozen in time, as if unable to move a muscle.

Suddenly the feeling passes - though after how long he can not say, it feels like it could have been a mere moment or weeks since he'd last acted - and he peers into and enters the house, looking around.  His greatsword is raised, as he almost hopes to find a target for it.


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## Mark Chance (Aug 5, 2009)

_*ghostcat:* While we give others a chance to reply, hop over to Invisible Castle and give me a couple of search rolls. Or, since you're not pressed for time, I guess you could just take 20._


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## ghostcat (Aug 6, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> _*ghostcat:* While we give others a chance to reply, hop over to Invisible Castle and give me a couple of search rolls. Or, since you're not pressed for time, I guess you could just take 20._



OOC:
Piedra would rather be safe than sorry and is not bothered how long he takes. So I'll take 20 please.


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## Shayuri (Aug 18, 2009)

(Gah! I thought I'd posted to this already! Sorry everyone, if you were waiting on me!  )

Mellisande peeks timidly into the house after noting the reactions of the ones ahead of her. The cruelty of what she sees takes her breath away.

"Was it orcs?" she asks quietly as she tiptoes in, looking warily around. "or goblins? They can be pretty mean sometimes."


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## Mark Chance (Aug 18, 2009)

Shayuri said:


> (Gah! I thought I'd posted to this already! Sorry everyone, if you were waiting on me!  )




_More like waiting on me. Bad DM! Bad!_



ghostcat said:


> Without getting any closer than he needs to, Piedra will move into a position where he can see into the barn.
> 
> Assuming that it appears clear, he will creep upto the barn and have a proper look. Likewise the house.




The minutes stretch by as Piedra cautiously, methodically scouts the area. He finds no danger lurking in the barn, although it is obvious some of the violence displayed outside took place in that structure. He shifts his attention to the house.

Just as he is about to push the door open a bit more to get a look inside, Piedra's keen eyes discern faint tracings around the door frame. A _glyph of warding_!


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## ghostcat (Aug 19, 2009)

Piedra suddenly draws back from the door, a look of surprise on his face. "Watch the door. It has a glyph on it." he says. Then continues "No-one's supposed to knew about magic here, yet whoever was here obviously did. I wonder if they know about the gate back home."

Turning to Mellisande, Piedra asks "Mellisande. How do we get rid of that glyph?


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## Shayuri (Aug 19, 2009)

"Set it off," replies the gnome promptly. "It's the only way to be sure."

She quickly scurries back a bit from the door, making it clear she wasn't volunteering.


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## Andor (Aug 19, 2009)

Too far back from the farm to really follow what's happening Sam tries to distract Teyve with quiet conversation as he nervously scans the area.


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## ghostcat (Aug 20, 2009)

Piedra grins at Mellisande and replies "Just because I'm a dwarf doesn't mean I'm stupid. This is a case for some lateral thinking. Jon can you" Piedra stops speaking abruptly as he suddenly realises that Jon does not appear to be around. Looking around frantically, he exclaims "Where's Jon gone?"

[sblock="OOC"]According to post 107, Jon entered the house.[/sblock]


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## Mark Chance (Aug 20, 2009)

ghostcat said:


> According to post 107, Jon entered the house.




_Doh! How did I miss that? Time for a retcon!_

Piedra looks through a window and sees Jon inside the house, walking toward the front door from the rear where he entered.

Meanwhile, across the street, Tevye looks at Sam, "Is it safe? We cannot leave them...like that."


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## Shayuri (Aug 20, 2009)

"I didn't mean YOU set it off," Mellisande scolds. "I meant throw a rock at it or something. Or conjure a monkey to go look at it. These things usually only work once after all."


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## ghostcat (Aug 21, 2009)

Seeing Jon walking towards the front door, Piedra thinks _No time for subtleties here_ and putting thoughts to words smashes the window with the handle of his axe. "JON STOP" he shouts, then continuing in a normal voice he says "The door is trapped."

Once he is sure that Jon is safe, Piedra will answer Mellisande "I didn't actually think you did. I was been funny. Anyway, I didn't know you could set off glyphs using inanimate object."


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## Andor (Aug 24, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> Meanwhile, across the street, Tevye looks at Sam, "Is it safe? We cannot leave them...like that."




"We won't, I promise you. But the safety of the living comes before the dignity of the dead." Sam glances again at the bodies then looks away scanning the surrounding area.


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## kinem (Aug 25, 2009)

At Piedra's warning, Jon stops in his tracks.  "Thanks!"

He looks around the inside of the house ...


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## Shayuri (Sep 1, 2009)

Mellisande shrugged. "I don't see why you couldn't. Or...or...you could climb in through a window? They can't have those things on every single way in."


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## ghostcat (Sep 6, 2009)

"Mellisande, Jon has already found a back way in, so we can leave the door as it is. What do you think guys, is its safe to get Tevye and Sam over?"

Assuming that no-one object, Piedra will wave the others over. The first thing he will do once they arrive is warn them about the door.


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## Andor (Sep 6, 2009)

Sam leads Tevye to the front of the house when Peidra waves. If the Rev wants to rescue the bodies Sam will assist, laying his bow against a fencepost while he works. He chats to try to distract himself from the gruesome task. "Glyphs on the door? Do these beasts usually leave boobytraps for the friends of their victims?"


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## ghostcat (Sep 7, 2009)

"Its interesting that they left a Magic boobytrap not just any old boobytrap. Tevye have they used magic before?"


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## Mark Chance (Sep 11, 2009)

_OOC: Again, sorry for the nonactivity. Unemployment has been kicking my arse. A 10-hour temp database job turned into a bit more than 20 hours and then, starting tomorrow, turns into an actual temp to hire position. So, for at least a month, I'm not unemployed, I've got good hours, and sufficient pay. Huzzah! I'm going to get caught on various ENWorld stuff over the next couple or three days._


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## Andor (Sep 16, 2009)

'grats! We'll be waiting.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 2, 2009)

ghostcat said:


> "Its interesting that they left a Magic boobytrap not just any old boobytrap. Tevye have they used magic before?"




Tevye, having been led into the small farm house by Sam, looks confused.

"Magic -- as I've seen you perform -- it does not exist in this world except in stories," he says. "I am...perplexed."

The party splits up tasks, some keeping watch while others search. There is little to be found. The interior of the farm house has been ransacked, but with no apparent purpose other than to cause damage.

"We should move on," Tevye says, picking up a trampled book from the floor. He wipes the cover with this coat sleeve. "Patrols might come by. If we could bury the dead, I would be thankful, but if not...."

His sentence trails off into a sigh.


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## ghostcat (Nov 3, 2009)

"Of course we will bury dead friends. We're not barbarians, unlike the ones that did this. But after that we need to get a long way from here, fast. Where exactly do you want them buried?

Getting shovels from the barn, Piedra hands them out to whoever wants to dig and starts digging in the place indicated by Tevye, all the while muttering to himself. "Here we go again, digging. Everywhere I go, I end up digging. I even left home to avoid digging. yet here I am digging." Piedra continued muttering in this vain but it did not stop him working.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 3, 2009)

ghostcat said:


> "Of course we will bury dead friends. We're not barbarians, unlike the ones that did this. But after that we need to get a long way from here, fast. Where exactly do you want them buried?




"Behind the barn, out of sight of the road." Tevye takes a shovel. "Thank you for your compassion."


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## kinem (Nov 3, 2009)

Jon grabs a shovel and digs, letting the sheer manual labor take his mind off the grim situation for a moment.


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## Shayuri (Nov 4, 2009)

"I'll go watch and make sure no one catches us by surprise!" shrieks Mellisande, just as she flees the prospect of manual labor in favor of lurking near the road, ready to go tell the others if anyone starts coming down the driveway.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 5, 2009)

The adventurers and Tevye labor to bury the dead. Few words are exchanged. One by one, the murdered family is laid to rest. When the work is done, Tevye breathes heavily, wiping his hands on his pants legs.

"I must pray for them," he says, "although we do not have ten men for the prayer, but I am sure the Lord will understand. I shall be only a moment longer, and then we can be on our way again. Thank you, my friends."

Tevye covers his face with his hands, and then looks skyward, hands upheld. His voice is soft but resonant.

"Exalted and hallowed be His great Name. Amen. Throughout the world which He has created according to His will, may His kingship reign, and His redemption come forth and hasten the coming of His Redeemer. Amen. In your life and in your days and in the lifetime of the entire House of Israel, speedily and quickly say, Amen. Amen. May His great Name be blessed in this world and in all worlds. May His great Name be blessed in this world and in all worlds. Blessed and praised exalted and extolled, honored, adored and lauded be the Name of the Holy One be He. Amen. Way beyond all the blessings, hymns, praises and consolations uttered in the world; and say, Amen. Amen. May there be abundant peace from heaven, and a good life for us and for all and say, Amen. Amen. He who makes peace in His heaven, may He make peace for us and for all Israel; and say, Amen. Amen."

Tevye pulls a shovel from the freshly turned earth and starts toward the barn.


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## ghostcat (Nov 7, 2009)

Piedra finishes his digging and respectfully waits while Tevye completes his devotions. He then takes his shovel and follows Tevye.

"So what do we do now? I though we were going to borrow a horse and cart from here but that's now right out. Whatever we do we should got away from here immediately and get under cover."

So saying, Piedra  sets off down the road in the opposite direction from which they cam, all the while checking for tracks and traps.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 13, 2009)

Tevye, Mellisande, Sam, and Jon follow Piedra.

"I guess we walk," Tevye says. "Keep an ear out. If we hear someone approaching, we should hide."

The weight of recent events presses down as the group walks along the road. Soon the exertion takes the chill out of the day, but the grayness remains. Snow seems likely before sunset.

Farmhouses gradually become more numerous. It's easy enough to skirt by them to avoid being seen by the few people working in the yards. Given the frigid weather and frozen ground, there's not much incentive for the farmers to be outside.

"There's a village about a mile up the road. It's best if we go around it," Tevye says. "After that, there are going to be more people, more villages. Still, walking it'll take a few days at least to reach the city limits. Longer depending on how much we have to hide. By this time tomorrow, we should reach the train tracks. We can follow them to Krakow."


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## Shayuri (Nov 13, 2009)

"We can't go to the village?" Mellisande whined piteously. "Awww, come on, please? I really want to see a village! Things here are so strange, but at the same time so ordinary! And what's a train? Is it some kind of beast that goes to the city? Like a pack animal? That's a clever idea to follow its tracks. Maybe we can pick an apple to feed the trains to thank them later."


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## ghostcat (Nov 14, 2009)

Piedra will lead the way and use his tracking skills to find trails around the various farms. "We can't pass through the village Mellisande. We do not look like the humans who inhabit this place and these Nasties seem to have spys everywhere. If we went through the village and someone saw us we would be chest deep in Nasties before we knew it."

Piedra again starts looking for a trail to bypass the village.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 19, 2009)

"Piedra is right, little one," Tevye says, chuckling a bit. "It would not be safe for any of us."

Piedra's wilderness skills prove useful. He finds a easy path over the frozen earth, skirting the village safely until he comes across a wide path cut through the forest. In the middle of the straight path is a raised road of sorts, atop which sit twin iron rails stretching off ahead and behind as far as the eye can see. Between the rails are regularly spaced wooden beams. It looks very much like the tracks a dwarven ore cart would follow, but the rails are farther apart and thicker.

Tevye points. "Krakow is that way."

More walking. Minutes pass into hours. Although he doesn't complain, it is obvious the journey is wearing on the rabbi. He has started to favor his left leg and his breath billows in labored clouds.


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## Andor (Nov 20, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> More walking. Minutes pass into hours. Although he doesn't complain, it is obvious the journey is wearing on the rabbi. He has started to favor his left leg and his breath billows in labored clouds.




"Here Rev, let me ease your pain." Sam bows his head briefly in prayer and uses a Calming Touch to ease his fatigue and pain.


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## Shayuri (Nov 21, 2009)

"We can rest for a bit if you want," Mellisande offers...though she herself appears no less spry now than she did at the journey's beginning, despite her having to move her legs faster to keep up.


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## ghostcat (Nov 23, 2009)

Piedra keeps plodding on without seeming to tire. Once they stop and the others start to fuss over Tevye, Piedra chips in "We could stop for the night, if it would help Tevye. If you like, I'll look for a camp site. My feeling is that Tevye can't go on like this and that we really need to find some transport."


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## Mark Chance (Nov 23, 2009)

Andor said:


> "Here Rev, let me ease your pain." Sam bows his head briefly in prayer and uses a Calming Touch to ease his fatigue and pain.




Tevye stops for a moment, a fresh light shining in his eyes. "Amazing," he says. "Amazing. Thank you, Sam."



Shayuri said:


> "We can rest for a bit if you want," Mellisande offers...though she herself appears no less spry now than she did at the journey's beginning, despite her having to move her legs faster to keep up.






ghostcat said:


> Piedra keeps plodding on without seeming to tire. Once they stop and the others start to fuss over Tevye, Piedra chips in "We could stop for the night, if it would help Tevye. If you like, I'll look for a camp site. My feeling is that Tevye can't go on like this and that we really need to find some transport."




Tevye shakes his head. "No, no. I can continue. We need to cover as much ground as we can before sunset."

More time passes. From the direction of travel, everyone sees a rapidly moving plume of white smoke snaking above the trees toward the gray sky. A rhythmic _clack! clack!_ grows louder. Racing over a rise scores of yards ahead comes a huge object, belching white smoke from a vent on its back. Its wheels _clack! clack!_ more loudly. It stretches for an impossibly long way, vanishing from sight over the rise even while more than a hundred feet can be seen moving as fast as a galloping horse. The great machine travels along the metal tracks, pulling large, box-like wagons behind it.

Piedra's keen eyes spot the tell-tale shapes of guards riding atop the machine's back.


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## ghostcat (Nov 26, 2009)

Piedra's jaw drops at the sight of the monster truck shooting towards them. However, his awe does not stop him from spotting the guards. "Guards. Quick, we need to hide." He quickly looks round for a place where the party can safely hide until the monstrosity has passed.


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## Andor (Nov 27, 2009)

Sam pushes Tevye towards the cover of the trees, shaking his head even as he goes. "What sort of monstrosity is that? An armoured worm?" Mr. Chitters complains loudly about the noise of the beast before Sam shushes him.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 27, 2009)

As the party rushes for cover, the "monstrosity" starts to pass. Tevye gasps. Watching as it passes by, it is obvious that the box-like wagons carry people.





Wagon after wagon, at least 50 of them, rumble into view. People inside the wagons are pushing bits of paper out of the spaces between boards, out the small windows. Dozens and dozens of scraps dance through the air, hit the frozen ground, tumbling along, pulled by the wind caused by the massive machine.

"It's a train," Tevye says to Sam. "Taking my people to their deaths."

The party sees a half-dozen soldiers. There could be more inside. As quickly as the train rolled into view, it will soon have roared on down the tracks, out of reach and then out of sight.

[sblock=OOC]If you all want to assault the moving train, there is time to do so. Otherwise, continue as if it has gone on its way.[/sblock]


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## ghostcat (Nov 29, 2009)

Post deleted to maintain order.


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## kinem (Nov 29, 2009)

"Is there any way to stop that thing?" Jon asks. "If so, let's do it."


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## Mark Chance (Nov 29, 2009)

kinem said:


> "Is there any way to stop that thing?" Jon asks. "If so, let's do it."




Tevye says, "The front is the engine. Stop the engine; stop the train."

_OOC: Looks like you might be editing that post, *ghostcat*. _


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## Shayuri (Nov 30, 2009)

Mellisande shot a look at the train speeding past and sighed. "I'm going to wish I knew that fleet foot spell before this is over..." Oddly, her mouth formed into a grin though.

"Come on, everyone! Grab on to one of those handle things on the side! Then we can climb up to the roofs of the houses and just jump and run to the front!"

The gnomelet starts hurrying after the train, trying to get going fast enough on her short little legs that she can grab onto one of the handholds on the passing cars.


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## Andor (Nov 30, 2009)

Mark Chance said:


> Tevye says, "The front is the engine. Stop the engine; stop the train."
> 
> _OOC: Looks like you might be editing that post, *ghostcat*. _




Sam cannot bear the sight of so many innocents being consigned to their deaths in the belly of this metal beast. He springs to his feet and runs towards the front of the 'train' trying to grasp one of the handles Mellisande noticed and haul himself aboard the beast.


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## kinem (Nov 30, 2009)

Jon will also try to grab onto the train, if he can.


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## Mark Chance (Nov 30, 2009)

_OOC: Okay, let's get some dice rolling. Everyone please give me Climb checks vs. DC 10. If you fail, you still catch the train, but your feet are dragging. If you make the DC by +5 or more, you make it up to roof level.

Head to Invisible Castle, roll away, and narrate your results. _


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## ghostcat (Nov 30, 2009)

Piedra's face is grim has he watches the train pass. At one point his hand unconsciously grabs hold of his axe. When the others start planning how to attack the train, he sighs, as he thinks its suicidal. However, he is not prepared to let his friends down, so he keeps quite. 

When Mellisande starts to run after the train, Piedra also starts running as fast as his stubby legs will carry him. He aims for a different set of handholds than any of the others. 

Puffing loudly, Piedra makes it to the train but just doesn't have the energy to pull himself up. Grabbing hold of a handle he attempts to climb on and fails. Ending up being pulled along by the train, feet dragging on the ground

[sblock="Rolls"]Catching Train (1d20+2=7)[/sblock]


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## kinem (Dec 4, 2009)

Jon runs towards the train.  The machine is moving fast but he manages to grab hold of it and pull himself up, just barely.  His strangely light weight on this world makes it a little easier to climb, but his arm is sore from the sudden pull of the moving train.

He looks around, to see how the others are faring, and what the guards are up to.

ooc: climb = 10
Yay - the castle is back!


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## Andor (Dec 4, 2009)

Sam runs towards the iron beast and makes a succesful grab for one of the handholds along the side of the car, but promptlys trip over a railroad tie and is dragged alongside of the train. Mr. Chitters leaps from his shoulder and scampers easily up the side of the train then turns and scolds him from the roof, as though to show him how it's done.

OCC: Doh! Forgot the roll. 6


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## Shayuri (Dec 5, 2009)

Mellisande makes a valiant effort, but while her spirit is willing her flesh is small and not especially strong. Her mighty leap gets her in grabbing range of one of the iron loops on the side of the rushing 'house,' but she can't quite get her foot into it before a jog in its motion nearly dislodges her. She holds on desperately to the rung and tries to get a better handhold!

Climb: 7
Roll Lookup
(wow...really, really bad rolls for this all around)


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## Mark Chance (Dec 9, 2009)

Tevye mutters a prayer as the adventurers burst into action.



ghostcat said:


> Puffing loudly, Piedra makes it to the train but just doesn't have the energy to pull himself up. Grabbing hold of a handle he attempts to climb on and fails. Ending up being pulled along by the train, feet dragging on the ground.






Andor said:


> Sam runs towards the iron beast and makes a succesful grab for one of the handholds along the side of the car, but promptly trips over a railroad tie and is dragged alongside of the train. Mr. Chitters leaps from his shoulder and scampers easily up the side of the train then turns and scolds him from the roof, as though to show him how it's done.






Shayuri said:


> Mellisande makes a valiant effort, but while her spirit is willing her flesh is small and not especially strong. Her mighty leap gets her in grabbing range of one of the iron loops on the side of the rushing 'house,' but she can't quite get her foot into it before a jog in its motion nearly dislodges her. She holds on desperately to the rung and tries to get a better handhold!






kinem said:


> Jon runs towards the train.  The machine is moving fast but he manages to grab hold of it and pull himself up, just barely.  His strangely light weight on this world makes it a little easier to climb, but his arm is sore from the sudden pull of the moving train.
> 
> He looks around, to see how the others are faring, and what the guards are up to.




Both Jon and Mr. Chitters see a single guard about two car lengths away toward the front of the train. He has obviously spotted both Jon and the monkey as he walks cautiously hunched over, holding his rifle across his chest.

Another guard about two cars behind Jon and Mr. Chitters hasn't noticed anything as he busily scans the woods on the opposite side of the train. Jon sees Piedra and Mellisande half running along, grasping protrusions of the car atop which sits this latter guard. Sam struggles to climb the car adjacent and forward of Piedra's and Mellisande's locations.

[sblock=OOC]Seems like initiative checks are in order. Jon and Mr. Chitters don't need any more Climb checks, but moving at more atop the train requires a DC 10 Balance check. It's quite windy and wobbly.

Mellisande and Piedra are in a position to Aid Another with their respective Climb checks if desired.[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Dec 13, 2009)

(OOC - Slight confusion - Does that mean we each make 2 climb checks, one for ourselves and one to aid?)


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## Mark Chance (Dec 13, 2009)

_OOC: What I mean is that Mellisande and Piedra can use the aid another action if they want to. It certainly isn't a requirement._


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## kinem (Dec 13, 2009)

Jon makes his way over to the guard.

ooc: balance = 17
ooc: how far / what kind of action?

When he gets within hearing distance he tells the guard "Don't mind us. We are a circus act and we needed a fast ride. Going to perform for some Nazis."

ooc: bluff = 13

ooc: If still have standard action left, ready action to try to disarm guard if violence breaks out, as Jon's weapons are not drawn


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## Mark Chance (Dec 14, 2009)

[sblock=OOC Clarifications]
1. Regarding Balance, by which I meant Acrobatics, a successful check lets you move at half your speed along the surface for 1 round. A failure by 4 or less means you can’t move for 1 round. A failure by 5 or more means you fall. The check itself is part of your move action. While you are using Acrobatics in this way, you are considered flat-footed and lose your Dexterity bonus to your AC (if any). If you take damage while using Acrobatics, you must immediately make another Acrobatics check at the same DC to avoid falling or being knocked prone.

2. The roof of a train car is about 15 feet above the ground, about 10 feet wide, and about 20 feet long. That's probably not historically accurate, but it'll work. I've been in an actual car used for transport to the death camps. It seemed oppressively small inside.
[/sblock]


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## Andor (Dec 15, 2009)

Mr. Chitters Has little trouble standing on top of the swaying train, seeing the guard he arches his back and screeches a warning. Unfortunately Sam, pausing to look up to see what the commotion is, manages to catch a foot on another railroad tie and promptly looses his grip and face-plants alongside the railway. 

So much for that famed Elven grace. 

*OCC:* Climb check: 3, Balance check: 19.


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## ghostcat (Dec 15, 2009)

Running along side the train, hanging on to the handle for dear life. Piedra makes another attempt to climb on-board. Unfortunately he trips at the vital moment, fortunately this means that his feet are no longer dragging on the ground and, because of the strange gravity, he is able to pull himself onto the steps using his arms.

Once on board the train, Piedra tries to help Mellisande get onto the train.

[sblock="Roll"]Attempt to climb on-board train. (1d20+2=7) +2 for gravity, +2 special circumstances = 11.[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Dec 22, 2009)

Mellisande tries and tries, but this thing is clearly meant for legs much longer than hers...or hands more clever. Or...dice less hateful. Or something.

(Climb: 5 Roll Lookup )

(OOC - sorry, guys...only so much you can do when the dice decide they hate you)


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## Mark Chance (Jan 14, 2010)

*Storming the Train!*

_OOC: Here we go again! My New Year's resolution is to a better DM job. _

[sblock=Train Hazards]
1. Regarding Balance, by which I meant Acrobatics, a successful check lets you move at half your speed along the surface for 1 round. A failure by 4 or less means you can’t move for 1 round. A failure by 5 or more means you fall. The check itself is part of your move action. While you are using Acrobatics in this way, you are considered flat-footed and lose your Dexterity bonus to your AC (if any). If you take damage while using Acrobatics, you must immediately make another Acrobatics check at the same DC to avoid falling or being knocked prone.

2. It's a DC Climb check to climb a train car.

3. The roof of a train car is about 15 feet above the ground, about 10 feet wide, and about 20 feet long. That's probably not historically accurate, but it'll work. I've been in an actual car used for transport to the death camps. It seemed oppressively small inside.
[/sblock]

Jon makes his way over to the guard. When he gets within hearing distance he tells the guard "Don't mind us. We are a circus act and we needed a fast ride. Going to perform for some Nazis."

The guard pauses a few feet away from Jon, just on the other side of the gap between Jon's car and his. He blinks several times, obviously confused. For a second, Jon thinks his bluff may actually work, but then the noise from the celestial monkey and Sam's clanging tumble from the railcar breaks the spell. The guard steps back and starts to swing his firearm toward Jon.

Running along side the train, hanging on to the handle for dear life. Piedra makes another attempt to climb on-board. Unfortunately he trips at the vital moment, fortunately this means that his feet are no longer dragging on the ground and, because of the strange gravity, he is able to pull himself onto the steps using his arms.

Once on board the train, Piedra tries to help Mellisande get onto the train. Mellisande tries and tries, but this thing is clearly meant for legs much longer than hers...or hands more clever.

_OOC Again: Okay, let's get initiatives from everyone. Jon goes at the top of the round. There's a five foot gap between him and other car, and there's a five foot space in front of the guard. I'll get a map drawn up by the time of the next post.

For now, initiatives (except for Jon), desired actions, et cetera._


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## ghostcat (Jan 16, 2010)

Rather than continue climbing onto the train's roof, Piedra stays at the bottom of the ladder and tries to help Mellisande board the train.

[sblock="Roll"]Aid Mellisande to climb on train. (1d20=13)
Incentive. (1d20+3=19)[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Jan 18, 2010)

(Init: 16   Roll Lookup )

Mellisande gratefully grabs Piedra's hand and tries to get up onto the car!

(Climb roll: 18 (including the Aid Other bonus) Roll Lookup )


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## kinem (Jan 19, 2010)

_Uh oh.  Gun crossbow!  I could jump that gap ... if I'm lucky.  Might fall through and get run over.  Then I'd have to draw my blade and strike him.  Think I'll play for time instead, and go with the bow._

Jon draws his his bow and knocks an arrow. "Think!  Monkeys don't grow on trees. Ancient weapons? Circus!"

ooc: bluff=20


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## Andor (Jan 27, 2010)

Slightly dazed Sam staggers to his feet and stumbles a bit as he starts running after the train again. Feeling a little woozy he cries "What? Of course monkies grow up in trees... oh yes I see. NEVER MIND MR. NAZI!"


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## Mark Chance (Jan 30, 2010)

_OOC: Is this game still viable? It seems to be gasping for air, which I'm sure is entirely my fault._


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## Shayuri (Jan 30, 2010)

(OOC - Uh...I think some of us are waiting on you, Mark. I know I am. I made a roll, but I don't know my current status. Some of us have declared actions that are now waiting on resolution. I would suggest that the game's viability at this point is primarily in your hands, and depends on whether or not you still feel like providing updates. If not, that's fine...just please tell us so we can tell whether or not to keep watching this thread. )


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## Mark Chance (Jan 30, 2010)

OOC: Well, that's good to hear. I'd rather not kill the game, my erratic behavior notwithstanding. So, cool! I'll get my act together and get this game back on track (get it? track? y'all are on a train?) before the weekend's done.


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## Mark Chance (Feb 1, 2010)

kinem said:


> _Uh oh.  Gun crossbow!  I could jump that gap ... if I'm lucky.  Might fall through and get run over.  Then I'd have to draw my blade and strike him.  Think I'll play for time instead, and go with the bow._
> 
> Jon draws his his bow and knocks an arrow. "Think!  Monkeys don't grow on trees. Ancient weapons? Circus!"






Andor said:


> Slightly dazed Sam staggers to his feet and stumbles a bit as he starts running after the train again. Feeling a little woozy he cries "What? Of course monkies grow up in trees... oh yes I see. NEVER MIND MR. NAZI!"




The guard confronting Jon and Sam almost looks ready to buy the circus story, but them a harsh call comes from behind the two adventurers.

"What the devil? William! Shoot them!"

The other guard farther back on the train has risen unsteadily to his feet and swinging his rifle in the direction of Sam and Jon. Violence now seems inevitable.

_OOC: Y'all get first actions. Piedra and Mellisande are still down on the side of the train._


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## kinem (Feb 3, 2010)

_Damn! Nazis or no, somehow it doesn't seem right to start the violence.  Does this guard know this is a death train?  Does he believe the lies his leaders have fed him?_

Reluctantly, Jon releases his arrow at the man he'd been talking to.

He then draws another arrow, and drops prone to help dodge the bolts from the gun crossbows.

ooc: 14 to hit, 5 dam


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## ghostcat (Feb 3, 2010)

"Come on Mellisande, lets get to the top and help the others." Piedra says as he starts to climb the ladder on the side of the carriage. Just then the carriage swayed and it is all he could do to just stay on the train.

[sblock=Mechanics]Climb train ladder (1d20+2=4)[/sblock]


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## Shayuri (Feb 3, 2010)

Now with her hands and feet on the firm metal of the ladder, Mellisande climbs with more confidence. "Hurry up!" she urges. "They're starting without us!"

Climb: 17
Roll Lookup


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## Andor (Feb 7, 2010)

Flailing his arms as he tries to run after the train Sam manages to snag his arm on a climbing rung and finds himself once again being dragged alongside the train with his feet grateing along the gravel and thumping over railroad ties. _"And these were new boots too!"_ he thinks dazedly to himself. Mr Chitters does a backflip in confusion at what to do without Sam.

Still rolling like crap = Climb check of 7.
Monkey shows Sam up again = 21


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## Mark Chance (Feb 15, 2010)

*Train Fight! (Round 1)*



kinem said:


> _Damn! Nazis or no, somehow it doesn't seem right to start the violence.  Does this guard know this is a death train?  Does he
> 
> believe the lies his leaders have fed him?_
> 
> ...




The arrow sinks deep into the man's gut. He drops to his knees and then tumbles forward into the space between the train cars. Jon hits the deck just as the other guard raises his weapon and fires. The bullet whizzes by over Jon's head. The other guard is about twenty-five feet away toward the rear of the train, down on one knee, weapon braces against his shoulder.



ghostcat said:


> "Come on, Mellisande, lets get to the top and help the others." Piedra says as he starts to climb the
> 
> ladder on the side of the carriage. Just then the carriage swayed and it is all he could do to just stay on the train.






Shayuri said:


> Now with her hands and feet on the firm metal of the ladder, Mellisande climbs with more confidence. "Hurry up!" she urges. "They're starting without us!"




Piedra and Mellisande come up about half way between Jon and the other guard. The guard spots them, his aim wavering between the choice of targets. Then, farther toward the head of the train, Piedra sees two more soldiers climb into view, hunched over and walking cautiously to compensate for the cars' rocking motion, carrying their weapons across their chests.



Andor said:


> Flailing his arms as he tries to run after the train Sam manages to snag his arm on a climbing rung and finds himself once again being dragged alongside the train with his feet grateing along the gravel and thumping over railroad ties. _"And these were new boots too!"_ he thinks dazedly to himself. Mr Chitters does a backflip in confusion at what to do without Sam.


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## Shayuri (Feb 20, 2010)

As Pierce gets up onto the top of the train's car (according to the OOC thread), Mellisande shimmies up after him, ready to clamber up right behind.

(will be atop the train next round, also as per OOC thread)


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## ghostcat (Feb 21, 2010)

Once Piedra reaches to top of the ladder, he climbs onto roof, moves to the side (to allow the others to climb on the roof), drops flat to the floor and spread-eagles himself. Once in position he unships his crossbow and prepares to fire on one of the two new guards.

[sblock=OOC]This will probably take more than a round.[/sblock]


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## Andor (Feb 21, 2010)

Sam finally reaches down and finds his inner monkey. He grabs the bar his arm is caught on and manages to shinny up to the top of the car. He flops over the edge and lays there gasping of as second. Mr. Chitters gives a squeak and runs over to him. "It's official." gasps Sam. "I hate trains."

*OCC:* Go for it Sam! Climb like a monkey! (1d20=18)


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## kinem (Feb 23, 2010)

_That was too close!_

Jon stands up, which he has to do in order to wield his longbow, and shoots his arrow at the nearest of the new guards.  However, a sudden gust of wind blows the arrow off course.

_I can see why they use those crazy crossbows - they come in handy on top of trains!_

He considers dropping prone again - but doing so would drastically limit his own options for further attacks.  A new plan begins to form in his mind ...

ooc: How far are the new guards, and is the guard to the rear of the train on the same car as Jon?


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## Shayuri (Mar 4, 2010)

(Ping? I don't think it's my turn...Melli isn't free to act until next round)


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## Mark Chance (Mar 4, 2010)

Hello!

I know it seems like I'm more of an AM* and a DM, but the continuing drama of my life continues. On the good news front, my daughter finally seems to be getting over the worst of her two-month long asthma problems.

On the bad news front, I'm out of work again, and looking for a new job. I'm pushing to return to teaching come next school year, but in the interim I'm likely going to be doing short-term grunt work off and on. I'm also waaaay behind with some writing projects for my Big March Product Release.

I'm pretty busy the rest of today, but I will have time to starting getting caught up (again) come tomorrow and into the weekend. In fact, I have no plans at all this weekend other than regular family and church stuff. Otherwise, I plan on writing, posting (which counts as writing), and maybe finishing off a bottle of single malt.

* AM = Apology Master


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## Shayuri (Mar 4, 2010)

I emit a thunderous, crestfallen gleep.

My bad, sir. Take all the time you need. No harm, no foul.


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## Mark Chance (Mar 20, 2010)

*Train Fight! (Round 2)*

_Recap:_ Jon hits the deck just as the other guard raises his weapon and fires. The bullet whizzes by over Jon's head. The other guard is about twenty-five feet away toward the rear of the train, down on one knee, weapon braces against his shoulder. Piedra and Mellisande come up about half way between Jon and the other guard. The guard spots them, his aim wavering between the choice of targets. Then, farther toward the head of the train, Piedra sees two more soldiers climb into view, hunched over and walking cautiously to compensate for the cars' rocking motion, carrying their weapons across their chests.

[sblock=OOC]
At the start of the round, the guard to the rear of the train is on the next car back from Jon. The other two guards are three cars ahead of Jon toward the engine.
[/sblock]



kinem said:


> _That was too close!_
> 
> Jon stands up, which he has to do in order to wield his longbow, and shoots his arrow at the nearest of the new guards.  However, a sudden gust of wind blows the arrow off course.
> 
> ...






ghostcat said:


> Once Piedra reaches to top of the ladder, he climbs onto roof, moves to the side (to allow the others to climb on the roof), drops flat to the floor and spread-eagles himself. Once in position he unships his crossbow and prepares to fire on one of the two new guards.




Moving with all possible haste, Piedra will be ready to fire in a few seconds.

[sblock=Piedra]
The way I read it for this round is Climb & Move & Drop Prone (move action) and Upship Crossbow (move action).
[/sblock]



Shayuri said:


> As Piedra gets up onto the top of the train's car, Mellisande shimmies up after him, ready to clamber up right behind.






Andor said:


> Sam finally reaches down and finds his inner monkey. He grabs the bar his arm is caught on and manages to shinny up to the top of the car. He flops over the edge and lays there gasping of as second. Mr. Chitters gives a squeak and runs over to him. "It's official." gasps Sam. "I hate trains."




Sam comes up onto the train farther toward the rear. The guard between him and the others hasn't seen him yet.

The guard closest to the others looks at Piedra working with his crossbow and at Jon with the longbow. He drops to one knees, aims, and fires at the Piedra. The rifle _cracks!_ and a gouge appears in the train's roof not too far from Piedra's head. The guards advancing from the front of the train move cautiously, single file along the center of the car, until they reach the edge of the car. There they pause, arguing with each other, their words lost in the wind.

_Y'all are up!_

[sblock=Combat Block]
Initiative Order: Jon, Piedra, Mellisande, Sam, Nazi Guards
Piedra: uninjured
Jon: uninjured
Sam: uninjured
Mellisande: uninjured
Guards (3): uninjured
[/sblock]

[sblock=Dice Rolls]
Guard vs. Piedra: 1d20+4=10, 1d10=2.
[/sblock]


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## ghostcat (Mar 21, 2010)

Targeting the guard who had just tried to shot him, Piedra loads and fires his crossbow. Although his shot was true, it only hit is shoulder for minimal damage.

[sblock=Dcie Rolls]Crossbow attack, damage. (1d20+6=19, 1d8=2)[/sblock]


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## Andor (Mar 22, 2010)

Lying on the corner of the train car's roof Sam contemplates his options. After all the trouble he went to getting up here falling off again is unappealing, and all too likely with the rocking, swaying motion of the train and the gusty wind. Then it occurs to him that those pistol thingys can be fired while prone, unlike a bow. He fishes the one Joseph gave him out of his belt pouch and lines it up on the guard in front of him. _Now how did this work? Line up the front sight with the rear sights like this, squeeze the trigger..._ Mr. Chitters watches Sam manipulate this strange new toy with interest then screeches in dismay at the noise it makes. 

[OCC] Draw weapon, Fire.
Modifiers Dex + BAB = 4, Unfamiliar with weapon -4
Shooting a Nazi = Gaming Gold (1d20=17) A hit! 17 to hit. 
I have no idea what we're using for pistol damage, feel free to roll it for me.


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## kinem (Mar 25, 2010)

Jon takes stock of the situation, realizing that he has very limited options. _I wish I'd spent some time training how to jump._

So he shoots another arrow, at the guards towards the front of the train.  The arrow hits a guard but not in any vital area.

ooc: arrow:20 to hit, 3 damage


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