Chapter 25: Tooth and Claw

[hedgeknight]

Dahinna

The rogue closes in on the hidden archer, moving as quickly and quietly as she can. Once she is in range, she lunges and attempts to backstab the Pict. Short Sword: [1d20+2]=13+2=15 Damage [1d6+2]=3+2=5
I didn't add any bonus for backstab...just in case I was unable to do so. Does she get a +4 to hit from behind?

[ChubbyPixie]

A picture of intense concentration, Kiri stops suddenly before his assailant's hiding spot in an intimidating posture. He performs a few short, sharp manipulations with his fingers, then reaches up to his own face. As he does so, he barks an unintelligible syllable that might be a word or a repressed scream before neatly parting the skin on his face to reveal his bare, bloody skull.

Ew...

Kiri casts Scare on X3.

Startled, Grandfather stops shaking the undergrowth in surprise.

[jemmus]

Torix touches his spear's tip to the earth to indicate his peaceful intention. He says in Pictish to the Raven clan woman-shaman, Greetings, and peace to you. My name is Torix, of the Panther clan. Our clans are at peace, as you know. I am traveling on a spear quest, before returning to my village and taking a wife. If your village is close by, I would like to trade for arrows and darts. I can trade for silver. He's careful not to mention the much more valuable treasure he's carrying. The Ravens may not be enemies, but any kind of person can be an enemy to someone known to be carrying riches.

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

A stifled wail from the depths of the underbrush to Cruloc's left distracts him momentarily.

Attack with +1 flint spear [1d20+3]=7+3=10

[ravenn4544]

Amethu looks to lend what aide he can from the brush. He calls forth a sorcerous artifact to crush this new enemy.

Cast spiritual hammer on X2 (seems to be closest in range)

Spiritual Hammer - To Hit[1d20]=5 Damage(Sm/M) [1d6]=2 Large [1d4]=4

[Urson]

Zahra
Zahra closes with her opponent, snarling and cursing. Seeing an opening, she attacks again.
att [1d20+4]=15+4=19
Sword vs sm, med [1d8+5]=2+5=7

She gives a harsh laugh in triumph as her blade bites deep.

[Inferno]

The Pictish Wilderness, the World of Hyboria
Day Seventeen. Dusk. 27th day of the month of Qrot, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







"Tattooed brother. You are far from your hunting grounds."

"Greetings, and peace to you. My name is Torix, of the Panther clan... If your village is close by, I would like to trade for arrows and darts. I can trade for silver."

The deathly medicine woman replies, "Silver? How came you by silver, lone hunter?" Her dark eyes fall upon Torix's Atlantean spear, and then to the many fish he has caught for himself. "You travel alone you say?"

After hearing his answers, the macabre shaman continues, "We can trade. A hunting party will join me here shortly. They hunt closer to the sky," she says, pointing a blackened finger up at the forested plateau where Torix's companions wait for him.

"They have arrows."


Actions, Torix?







On the forested plateau of the Pictish Wilderness, bedecked in skulls and ebon feathers, the ghoulish Raven Picts continue their silent, bloodthirsty attack!

The eerie assassins mercilessly assail the adventurers with axe, knife and arrow!



Razor sharp, flint-headed missiles whistle around Amethu as he desperately weaves an incantation from cover! One pierces the sorcerer-priest (6hp damage!) and breaks his concentration, disrupting his incipient spell!

Kiri too works to brings fearsome magic to bear! The eastern mystic summons dread, otherworldly visions of madness and horror!



His primitive, superstitious foe (X3) crumbles to his knees in quavering, uncontrollable terror!

Stealthy Dahinna darts through the dense, shadowed foliage and thrusts her sword into the back of the murderous Pict that hunts her! (X5) He's dead before he knows he's been backstabbed.

In the thick forest, Cruloc and Zahra engage in melee with the fierce, morbid savages! One ghastly cannibal (X2) narrowly evades the disemboweling thrust of Cruloc's spear! The Cimmerian side-steps a stone axe levelled at his head as a dagger point rakes along his chest! (1hp damage)

Still enervated from the grave, a stone axe head and a knife sink deep into Zahra's pale flesh! (4hp damage from X4) The corpselike amazon awakens from the pain and counterattacks with fury! The Sword of Xuthalhotep ruthlessly seeks the Pict's vitals and nearly kills him in a grisly spray of blood and gore!




Actions?!


Map:

One square = 10 feet. Cliff that protects campsite is 35 feet high. Bottom of map is north and in that direction lies the clearing.

Behind the DM Screen:

Initiative: Party: [1d6]=2, Monsters: [1d6]=2 Tied!
X5: Wisdom check to find Dahinna: [1d20]=2 X5 can find Dahinna in the foliage unless she rolls a successful hide:
Dahinna: Hide: [1d100]=52 Succeeds with modifier for dusk. Dahinna will successfully backstab.
X1 fires arrows at Amethu who has -4 to AC from concealment: [1d20]=17, [1d20]=20. Damage: [1d6]=3, [1d6]=6 One still hits, for 6hp damage. No critical hits in this game.
X3 Saves vs Kiri's Spell: [1d20]=13 Fails.
Scare duration: [3d4]=8 minutes
X2 attacks Cruloc with axe and knife: [1d20]=9, [1d20-2]=17-2=15. Damage: [1d8]=3, [1d4]=1 Hits with knife for 1hp damage.
X4 attacks Zahra with axe and knife: [1d20]=18, [1d20-2]=16-2=14. Damage: [1d8]=1, [1d4]=3 Both hit for 4hp damage.

PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 3/17, Spells: 3/8 1st lvl, 4/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 35/54
Dahinna: Zamoran Southwoman Thief 5: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 14/25
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 3/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 14/21, Spells: 1/3 1st lvl, 0/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 24/38
Zahra: Verulian Amazon Fighter 4: Move: 12", AC: 3, HP: 20/29

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 11 minutes
Scare (Kiri): Duration: 7 minutes

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[Urson]

Zahra
Zahra and her opponent shift their weight, seeking an opening. Zahra lunges and slashes, her blade finding her target.
att [1d20+4]=15+4=19
Sword vs sm, med [1d8+5]=2+5=7

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

Attack with +1 flint spear [1d20+3]=6+3=9

Cruloc lunges with his new spear, but it does not suit his fighting style as his sword once did.

"Crom's bollocks!"

[ravenn4544]

Amethu grunts in pain but refocuses his mind to direct magical bonds upon his assailant!

Hold person on x1

[hedgeknight]

Dahinna

Flitting from tree to tree, trying to maintain as much cover between her and the other Picts, Dahinna moves toward Zahra. "She must be disoriented with all this so soon after..." until she sees Zahra in combat and realizes, the Amazon has not lost a step when it comes to bloodshed!
If she can get behind Zahra's foe, and if he's still alive, she will attack!
Short Sword: [1d20+2]=14+2=16 Damage [1d6+2]=4+2=6

[jemmus]

Torix replies to the shaman, I took the silver from some warriors some friends and I slew. My friends are not Picts, but they mean the Picts no harm. Will you lead me to your clansmen who have arrows? I would like to discuss with them soon.

[Inferno]

The Pictish Wilderness, the World of Hyboria
Day Seventeen. Dusk. 27th day of the month of Qrot, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







Like ravenous tigers, the ghoulish Picts hunger for the throats of their enemies!

Flint-headed arrows shatter against the cliff rocks that shelter Amethu! The masked sorcerer-priest weaves a frightful incantation of the Old Ones, summoning invisible, etheric tentacles from some adjacent otherworldly realm to envelop the limbs of his foeman (X1), holding him prisoner in an unbreakable embrace!



The captive Pict's horrified scream is cut off mid-cry!

Nearby, Cruloc and his enemy (X2) are locked in a life and death struggle! The Pict hooks the Cimmerian's spear with the crook of his stone axe, and raises his dagger high, ready to strike, but his wrist is suddenly caught in Cruloc's iron grip!

Meanwhile, Dahinna quietly moves through the darkening foliage and sneaks up behind Zahra's assailant (X4) in time to see the white lioness of Verulian rend him asunder, from shoulder to gut, with the fabled Sword of Xuthalhotep!



Two Picts are slain! Two Picts are ensorcelled and alive! One Pict fights on, unaware of the fate of his brethren!


Actions?! (And Pixie, please post twice for Kiri. The first action will precede all others)


Map:

One square = 10 feet. Cliff that protects campsite is 35 feet high. Bottom of map is north and in that direction lies the clearing.
Black X=Dead. H=Held. S=Scared.

Behind the DM Screen:

Initiative: Party: [1d6]=5, Monsters: [1d6]=5 Tied again!?!
X1 fires arrows at Amethu who has -4 to AC from concealment: [1d20]=2, [1d20]=16. Damage: [1d6]=2, [1d6]=2 Both arrows miss.
X1 Saves vs Amethu's spell: [1d20-2]=8-2=6 Fails.
X2 attacks Cruloc with axe and knife: [1d20]=9, [1d20-2]=10-2=8. Damage: [1d8]=6, [1d4]=2 Both attacks miss.
X4 attacks Zahra with axe and knife:[1d20]=7, [1d20-2]=5-2=3. Damage: [1d8]=5, [1d4]=3 Both attacks miss.

Beneath the same sunset as the slaughter of the Picts, Torix tells the shaman of the Raven clan, "My friends... mean the Picts no harm.
"Will you lead me to your clansmen who have arrows? I would like to discuss with them soon."

She replies. "We might miss them in the dark. It is best that we wait here for them. They are coming but they are not many. Like all the clans of Pictland, we have sent warriors to Conajohara to kill the white men at the fort.

"Who are your friends that are not Picts?"


Actions, Torix?





PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 3/17, Spells: 3/8 1st lvl, 3/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 35/54
Dahinna: Zamoran Southwoman Thief 5: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 14/25
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 3/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 14/21, Spells: 1/3 1st lvl, 0/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 24/38
Zahra: Verulian Amazon Fighter 4: Move: 12", AC: 3, HP: 20/29

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 10 rounds
Scare (Kiri): Target: X3. Duration: 6 rounds
Hold Person (Amethu): Target: X1. Duration: 7 rounds

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[Yrkoon]

Cruloc

His muscled arm, striped with the blood of the wild-eyed Pict, stays the savage descent of his foe's dagger mere inches from his jugular!
HRRRR!

Cursing at his newly-acquired spear, Cruloc's gaze pierces the feral eyes of the Pict tense moments before its flint tip does the same to his belly!
"This accursed twig is as unbalanced as a peg-legged streetwalker on the cobblestones of Messantia! But in the hands of a Cimmerian, it'll burst your guts like a bloated pig in the sun!"

Attack with +1 flint spear [1d20+3]=20+3=23
+1 flint spear vs. S/M opponent [1d6+4]=2+4=6

[hedgeknight]

Dahinna

The rogue watches as Zahra cuts down her Pict foe and then hears screams and guttural shouts coming from where she thinks Cruloc may be. "What do we do now?" she whispers to her Amazon friend. "I wonder if Amethu is okay? Maybe we should check on him. How many Picts were there to begin with?" Dahinna's rapid fire questions reveal her anxiety in these type of situations.

[Urson]

Zahra
Zahra smiles in triumph as her foe collapses. She glances at her bladesister, waving off the flood of questions, and wordlessly heads toward the sounds of combat. She's not sprinting, but is moving quickly.

[jemmus]

Torix worries about the Picts hunting in the vicinity of his companions, but is a little relieved to hear that they aren't many. He replies to the shaman, My friends, are on we in my clan would call a spear quest, like I am. They are traveling looking for challenges and experiences to make themselves stronger. Thank you, but I cannot wait for your friends to return. The area where my friends wait and where your friends hunt is near the evil place, the underground city of the death worshippers. If you will tell me of the location of your clan's village, I may come someday to ask to trade for arrows. Alone, and without the Hyborians. They are good and trusted men and women-- but they are Hyborian outsiders. And no outsider should know where a Pict child, grandmother, or grandfather lies down to sleep for the night. This I swear, with the forest and its two-leggeds, four-legged, and no-legged and their gods to hear. And watch and remember.

Whatever the shaman's reply, Torix will set off back to the party's location at a calm and observant but brisk steady trot.

[ravenn4544]

Amethu's spell successful, he will quickly approach the helpless combatant to restrain him as best he can. Questions now need to be asked and answered from the attacker once the others have been dispatched....

[Inferno]

The Pictish Wilderness, the World of Hyboria
Day Seventeen. After sunset. 27th day of the month of Qrot, 1280th year of the Age of Aquilonia







"The Hyborians are mad. As are you to befriend them!" the Raven shaman proclaims in disbelief. "They will corrupt your soul. Or else betray your trust, enslave you and steal from you all that you possess, as they have our brothers. When that happens, they will force from you the location of my tribe. Forsake them. Stay here with us."

But Torix leaves her and navigates his way by moonlight, back to his Hyborian friends.







A Pict death mask is mere inches from Cruloc's face which itself has become a mask of rage and fury!

With one strong hand keeping the knife inches from his throat, Cruloc impales his enemy with all the might of his other arm and the spearhead bursts out from the Pict's lower back in a jet of hot blood!



The Pict staggers and falls dead, hands clutching vainly at his spilling entrails.

Suddenly, Zahra and Dahinna are standing at Cruloc's side. As quick as it erupted, the fight is ended. Three PIcts lie dead and two captured alive, bewitched and helpless.

Amethu suggests binding and questioning the captives. Cruloc and Kiri each have coils of rope but the Picts do not speak the common tongue of the Hyborians.

After the clamor of battle and death, the only sound now is the drone of insects as darkness falls across the camp.


Actions?! (Plans for the next few hours please?)


Behind the DM Screen:

Initiative: Party: [1d6]=3, Monsters: [1d6]=6 Monsters win.
X2 attacks Cruloc with axe and knife: [1d20]=10, [1d20-2]=4-2=2. Damage: [1d8]=2, [1d4]=4 Both attacks miss.

Weather table 1: [1d20]=8 Clear.
Weather table 2: [1d20]=1 And will remain clear for 24 hours.
Phase of moon (1=full, 5=new): [1d8]=8 Almost a full moon.

PC Status:

Amethu: Verulian Grand Magus Cleric/Magic-User 4/3: Move: 9", AC: 4, HP: 3/17, Spells: 3/8 1st lvl, 3/5 2nd lvl
Cruloc: Cimmerian Northman Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 35/54
Dahinna: Zamoran Southwoman Thief 5: Move: 12", AC: 4, HP: 14/25
Kiri Khutan: Kambujan Easterner Fighter/Magic-User 3/3: Move: 9", AC: 3, HP: 14/21, Spells: 1/3 1st lvl, 0/1 2nd lvl
Torix: Pict Savage Barbarian 4: Move: 12", AC: 2, HP: 24/38
Zahra: Verulian Amazon Fighter 4: Move: 12", AC: 3, HP: 20/29

PC Magic:

Unseen Servant (Kiri): Duration: 9 rounds
Scare (Kiri): Target: X3. Duration: 5 rounds
Hold Person (Amethu): Target: X1. Duration: 6 rounds

Player Resources:

The Struggle To Survive (the story so far)
Mysteries Strange and Deadly (player clues and notes)
An Age Undreamed Of (maps and realms of the World of Hyboria)

[jemmus]

Torix will make his way back to the party as quickly as possible while also staying cautious and observant. He'll serve as interpreter with the Picts. He'll take the dead ones' arrows and offer to buy the live ones'. Then divide the arrows among the fighters.
If the fish needs to be smoked to preserve it, he'll consult with the party before making a fire that could attract attention. Maybe he or Cruloc know of some herbal or other way to preserve fish?
He'll divide the food among the party members when he can.