Auriel halts just before reaching the door and turns to glare at Bhevek. "Who's Walhar—" he cuts himself off, "The pirate? The one in the reinforced cell!?" His mind races. How could that prisoner have escaped? If Bhevek looked so alarmed, it was clear they had every reason to be concerned. The summer Eladrin pulls out his halberd, his voice sharp as steel, "How in the name of the gods could that one get loose? What the hell is happening here!?"
Hex immediately draws her bow as the alarm begins to ring. "Whoever it is, it doesn't matter. Our business here is done. Let's leave." She glances towards the halfling brothers before heading towards the door and peeking out to see what's going on.
Carl growls, clenching his fists, saying “Perfect. Just perfect. If we have ta help ya with a friggin jailbreak, then you’re givin us all of our coin back. Well, go ahead, go on an deal with it!” He prepares to go, giving a quick look back at Rathene, saying “Anything else? Now’s the time to tell us…”
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
OOC: So ... did Uragum stay outside as Hildigrim had suggested, or did he come up with us?
OOC: I'll leave that up to Bduds when he hops back in. We can assume Uragum was with the party the whole time, or that he was outside and caught up with the party.
Bhevek grabs Carl's tunic, the worry evident on the gruff halfling's face. "You don't get it. We're in grave danger. Stick close as we descend," he says.
“Anything else? Now’s the time to tell us…”
Rathene's eyes are wide as she sniffs the air. "Is that fire? You have to get me out of here!" She exclaims.
Hildigrim scowls, tapping his finger to his chin as he considers the situation. The fire could potentially be extinguished, saving everyone in the tower, but depending on the extent of the blaze, there may be no way to stop it. If it grows too large, all the prisoners would be in grave danger. Taking the time to free them could give the fire more time to spread, but waiting might make it impossible to return before the tower becomes too dangerous. Realizing that stalling is as dangerous as the fire itself, the Harper breaks his silence.
"We must hurry. Let us assess the situation. If the fire can't be put out, our priority must be saving as many prisoners as possible. Are there windows higher up in the tower?" he asks, turning to the remaining Grimshackle brother.
Seeing that Bhevek intends to leave the cell as it is, with Rathene still pinned to the wall and helpless against the fire, Auriel makes a decision. Without a word to the halfling jailor—who would, of course, object to his prisoner being freed—he strides toward Rathene. Raising his halberd, he cleanly slices through the ropes binding her to the wall. Auriel then turns to Bhevek, his voice sharp. “She’s coming with us. Outlaw or not, I’m not leaving her to burn in this hellhole of a prison.”
Then, looking back to Rathene, he states, “Stick with us, and you might get something better than a window to the sky. But you will tell us everything we need to know about Krulek.”
Bhevek's response to Hildigrim is cut off when he abruptly raises his crossbow toward Auriel. "The prisoner stays, unless your willin' to pay her ransom. We don't have time to waste on rabble, you want to pay the rest of her ransom then that's on you," he says while Rathene rubs her wrists, shaking them to restart circulation.
Hex sighs as Bhevek raises his crossbow at Auriel and draws her own bow. "You're really want to try that, Bhevek? There's four of us and two of you. Like you said, you don't have time to waste on rabble. She can't be worth all that much to you."
Eldritch energy crackles in Carl’s hands, he turns to Bhevek, saying “I agree with Hex here, you point that crossbow one more time at one of us and I’ll light you up like a Yuleblot celebration candle. You two had better look at savin yourselves, if anything. Grave danger you say….from who, and how? Gettin pissy with us doesn’t solve a damn thing.”
"The tower is on fire!" Hildigrim yells. "We don't have time for this!" Ignoring Bhevek's weapon, the Watcher moves toward the stairs to descend and evaluate the situation.
Bhevek growls, looking ahead and behind him, but sees his is alone without his brother. Despite that, he keeps his crossbow raised, wearing a mask of increasing rage. "My brother and the other jailers can handle the fire. It's Walharrow you have to worry about, and if you don't kill me, he certainly will. So you're not taking our prisoner unless yer gonna pay her ransom! You pay the hundred gold now or later, I don't care, but you're payin' the hundred gold if she walks free!" he shouts.
He does not move to stop Hildigrim from moving into the hallway past him, where the smell of smoke grows stronger but no fire is yet in sight.
Auriel narrows his eyes at the crossbow aimed at him. For a moment, he considers yielding to Bhevek's demand to leave Rathene behind to prevent the situation from escalating. But as Hex and Carl come to his aid, their words strengthen his resolve. He keeps his halberd close, gripped firmly in a non threatening way —though he’s aware that he'll be able to strike, even if the halfling is several feet away from him.
"It's Walharrow you have to worry about, and if you don't kill me, he certainly will."
"That’s exactly the point, Bhevek. No one needs to die—not even you. The way I see it, you owe us. We came here peacefully to speak to Rathene, and your inability to control this facility has put us in danger. Like it or not, you need our help if anyone is going to make it out alive. So, keep rattling on about your damned hundred gold if it makes you feel better, but you won’t even have time to enjoy the ten we already paid when the fire scorches your flesh, the smoke chokes you, or Walharrow finishes what he started. Your choice."
With that, Auriel glances at Rathene, offering her a silent, pointed look. He expects the half-orc will prove worthy of this confrontation with Bhevek, but her next steps are her own, and they've already gone further enough for her sake. Turning back to Bhevek, the paladin assesses the halfling and his crossbow one last time. Then, he follows Hildigrim. Offering his back as a target may not be the safest, but Auriel trusts Bhevek to understand where his priorities should lie.
As Bhevek refuses to yield, Hex eyes dart between everyone in the room, waiting for their reactions. She's surprised as the brothers don't stop Hildigrim from leaving room, and as Auriel goes to follow him, she does as well.
Carl doesn't say another word, he feels that it is wise to see where the fire is coming from and not linger. He watches Bhevek as he leaves and looks to see if the crossbow is being pointed in their direction as they make their way down, a scowl on his face.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
"Have it your way, we'll sort this out downstairs. But she ain't leaving this tower!" Bhevek growls, sticking close to the party and the trailing Rathene as you head down the tower and back the way you came, departing the stairwell and into a hallway on the floor below Rathene's cell.
"Ukharim will have gone ahead to gather the jailers," Bhevek yells on the move. "If we can get to the main floor, they'll be--"
A door ahead explodes in a shower of splinters, and a hulking creature with the head of a bull bounds through the wreckage. The creature's left leg is fashioned from intricately carved wood, starting just below the knee and resembling an angry man with its arms and hands upraised to support the leg. Rusted chains dangle from around the monster's waist, arms, and shoulders, and a number of crossbow bolts jut from its bare chest. A jailer--obviously dead--lies limp in its arms.
The beast sees you and bellows, "Blood for Walharrow!"
Tossing aside the broken corpse like little more than a doll, it wrenches a massive beam from a nearby wall and strides toward you, striking the beam into its open palm.
"Other way, other way, other way!" Bhevek shouts, scrambling to flee in the opposite direction of the hulking Walharrow.
Before anyone can so much as turn their head toward the fleeing jailer, Walharrow has charged the span of the hallway and thrown his massive skull into Auriel's chestplate. The paladin goes flying through open air in the hallway, landing ten feet away before rolling to a stop, his chain mail a bloodied mess from the impact.
Round 1 Order: Bhevek Walharrow Players <=====
Placement: All combatants are within movement range except for Bhevek, who is 50 feet away and nearing another stairway. Auriel is prone and 10 feet away. All attacks against Wallharrow this round are made with advantage.
Hildigrim spits a sharp phrase in Halfling as he watches Auriel arc through the air. Narrowing his eyes, he growls under his breath to Hex, "Aim for the torso." Without waiting for a response, the Watcher charges toward the towering minotaur, rapier drawn, determined to land a blow.
As he closes the distance, his footing betrays him — a slick patch of something sends him slipping mid-strike, and his weapon glances harmlessly off the beast's thigh. Gritting his teeth, Hildigrim steadies himself, using his momentum to dart through the minotaur’s legs. He emerges on the far side, keeping low and agile, putting distance between himself and Walharrow while positioning for another chance to strike.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
"Auriel! Shit, Bhevek! You gods damned coward!"
Hex runs towards Auriel, dropping her shortsword on the way for Rathene to take. She gives her a stern look. "Fight or flee, its your choice. But if you live, don't forget you owe us." She slides onto her knees next to Auriel's prone body and nocks an arrow to her bow. Green light swirls around the tip of the arrow as she takes Hildigrim's advice and aims for Walharrow's torso. "Don't you dare run in to get yourself killed, Auriel. I'm not as good as Sylyra but at least let me heal you first."
(As usual, holding attack to try and proc Colossus Slayer)
Auriel halts just before reaching the door and turns to glare at Bhevek. "Who's Walhar—" he cuts himself off, "The pirate? The one in the reinforced cell!?" His mind races. How could that prisoner have escaped? If Bhevek looked so alarmed, it was clear they had every reason to be concerned. The summer Eladrin pulls out his halberd, his voice sharp as steel, "How in the name of the gods could that one get loose? What the hell is happening here!?"
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
OOC: So ... did Uragum stay outside as Hildigrim had suggested, or did he come up with us?
Hex immediately draws her bow as the alarm begins to ring. "Whoever it is, it doesn't matter. Our business here is done. Let's leave." She glances towards the halfling brothers before heading towards the door and peeking out to see what's going on.
Carl growls, clenching his fists, saying “Perfect. Just perfect. If we have ta help ya with a friggin jailbreak, then you’re givin us all of our coin back. Well, go ahead, go on an deal with it!” He prepares to go, giving a quick look back at Rathene, saying “Anything else? Now’s the time to tell us…”
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
OOC: I'll leave that up to Bduds when he hops back in. We can assume Uragum was with the party the whole time, or that he was outside and caught up with the party.
Bhevek grabs Carl's tunic, the worry evident on the gruff halfling's face. "You don't get it. We're in grave danger. Stick close as we descend," he says.
Rathene's eyes are wide as she sniffs the air. "Is that fire? You have to get me out of here!" She exclaims.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
(Do we see anything when we look outside the cell or is it just empty at the moment?)
Carl narrows his eyes at Rathene, saying “Guess the price of questions just went down…”
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
Hildigrim scowls, tapping his finger to his chin as he considers the situation. The fire could potentially be extinguished, saving everyone in the tower, but depending on the extent of the blaze, there may be no way to stop it. If it grows too large, all the prisoners would be in grave danger. Taking the time to free them could give the fire more time to spread, but waiting might make it impossible to return before the tower becomes too dangerous. Realizing that stalling is as dangerous as the fire itself, the Harper breaks his silence.
"We must hurry. Let us assess the situation. If the fire can't be put out, our priority must be saving as many prisoners as possible. Are there windows higher up in the tower?" he asks, turning to the remaining Grimshackle brother.
Seeing that Bhevek intends to leave the cell as it is, with Rathene still pinned to the wall and helpless against the fire, Auriel makes a decision. Without a word to the halfling jailor—who would, of course, object to his prisoner being freed—he strides toward Rathene. Raising his halberd, he cleanly slices through the ropes binding her to the wall. Auriel then turns to Bhevek, his voice sharp. “She’s coming with us. Outlaw or not, I’m not leaving her to burn in this hellhole of a prison.”
Then, looking back to Rathene, he states, “Stick with us, and you might get something better than a window to the sky. But you will tell us everything we need to know about Krulek.”
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
Bhevek's response to Hildigrim is cut off when he abruptly raises his crossbow toward Auriel. "The prisoner stays, unless your willin' to pay her ransom. We don't have time to waste on rabble, you want to pay the rest of her ransom then that's on you," he says while Rathene rubs her wrists, shaking them to restart circulation.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
Hex sighs as Bhevek raises his crossbow at Auriel and draws her own bow. "You're really want to try that, Bhevek? There's four of us and two of you. Like you said, you don't have time to waste on rabble. She can't be worth all that much to you."
Eldritch energy crackles in Carl’s hands, he turns to Bhevek, saying “I agree with Hex here, you point that crossbow one more time at one of us and I’ll light you up like a Yuleblot celebration candle. You two had better look at savin yourselves, if anything. Grave danger you say….from who, and how? Gettin pissy with us doesn’t solve a damn thing.”
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
"The tower is on fire!" Hildigrim yells. "We don't have time for this!" Ignoring Bhevek's weapon, the Watcher moves toward the stairs to descend and evaluate the situation.
Bhevek growls, looking ahead and behind him, but sees his is alone without his brother. Despite that, he keeps his crossbow raised, wearing a mask of increasing rage. "My brother and the other jailers can handle the fire. It's Walharrow you have to worry about, and if you don't kill me, he certainly will. So you're not taking our prisoner unless yer gonna pay her ransom! You pay the hundred gold now or later, I don't care, but you're payin' the hundred gold if she walks free!" he shouts.
He does not move to stop Hildigrim from moving into the hallway past him, where the smell of smoke grows stronger but no fire is yet in sight.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
Auriel narrows his eyes at the crossbow aimed at him. For a moment, he considers yielding to Bhevek's demand to leave Rathene behind to prevent the situation from escalating. But as Hex and Carl come to his aid, their words strengthen his resolve. He keeps his halberd close, gripped firmly in a non threatening way —though he’s aware that he'll be able to strike, even if the halfling is several feet away from him.
"That’s exactly the point, Bhevek. No one needs to die—not even you. The way I see it, you owe us. We came here peacefully to speak to Rathene, and your inability to control this facility has put us in danger. Like it or not, you need our help if anyone is going to make it out alive. So, keep rattling on about your damned hundred gold if it makes you feel better, but you won’t even have time to enjoy the ten we already paid when the fire scorches your flesh, the smoke chokes you, or Walharrow finishes what he started. Your choice."
With that, Auriel glances at Rathene, offering her a silent, pointed look. He expects the half-orc will prove worthy of this confrontation with Bhevek, but her next steps are her own, and they've already gone further enough for her sake. Turning back to Bhevek, the paladin assesses the halfling and his crossbow one last time. Then, he follows Hildigrim. Offering his back as a target may not be the safest, but Auriel trusts Bhevek to understand where his priorities should lie.
Peindre l'amour, peindre la vie, pleurer en couleur ♫
Auriel | Shenua | Arren | Lyra
As Bhevek refuses to yield, Hex eyes dart between everyone in the room, waiting for their reactions. She's surprised as the brothers don't stop Hildigrim from leaving room, and as Auriel goes to follow him, she does as well.
Carl doesn't say another word, he feels that it is wise to see where the fire is coming from and not linger. He watches Bhevek as he leaves and looks to see if the crossbow is being pointed in their direction as they make their way down, a scowl on his face.
A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to.
"Have it your way, we'll sort this out downstairs. But she ain't leaving this tower!" Bhevek growls, sticking close to the party and the trailing Rathene as you head down the tower and back the way you came, departing the stairwell and into a hallway on the floor below Rathene's cell.
"Ukharim will have gone ahead to gather the jailers," Bhevek yells on the move. "If we can get to the main floor, they'll be--"
A door ahead explodes in a shower of splinters, and a hulking creature with the head of a bull bounds through the wreckage. The creature's left leg is fashioned from intricately carved wood, starting just below the knee and resembling an angry man with its arms and hands upraised to support the leg. Rusted chains dangle from around the monster's waist, arms, and shoulders, and a number of crossbow bolts jut from its bare chest. A jailer--obviously dead--lies limp in its arms.
The beast sees you and bellows, "Blood for Walharrow!"
Tossing aside the broken corpse like little more than a doll, it wrenches a massive beam from a nearby wall and strides toward you, striking the beam into its open palm.
"Other way, other way, other way!" Bhevek shouts, scrambling to flee in the opposite direction of the hulking Walharrow.
Before anyone can so much as turn their head toward the fleeing jailer, Walharrow has charged the span of the hallway and thrown his massive skull into Auriel's chestplate. The paladin goes flying through open air in the hallway, landing ten feet away before rolling to a stop, his chain mail a bloodied mess from the impact.
Round 1 Order:
Bhevek
Walharrow
Players <=====
Placement:
All combatants are within movement range except for Bhevek, who is 50 feet away and nearing another stairway.
Auriel is prone and 10 feet away.
All attacks against Wallharrow this round are made with advantage.
Health:
Auriel is severely wounded.
See my profile for all my PbP threads!
Hildigrim spits a sharp phrase in Halfling as he watches Auriel arc through the air. Narrowing his eyes, he growls under his breath to Hex, "Aim for the torso." Without waiting for a response, the Watcher charges toward the towering minotaur, rapier drawn, determined to land a blow.
As he closes the distance, his footing betrays him — a slick patch of something sends him slipping mid-strike, and his weapon glances harmlessly off the beast's thigh. Gritting his teeth, Hildigrim steadies himself, using his momentum to dart through the minotaur’s legs. He emerges on the far side, keeping low and agile, putting distance between himself and Walharrow while positioning for another chance to strike.
Action: attack: 8
Bonus: Disengage
"Auriel! Shit, Bhevek! You gods damned coward!"
Hex runs towards Auriel, dropping her shortsword on the way for Rathene to take. She gives her a stern look. "Fight or flee, its your choice. But if you live, don't forget you owe us." She slides onto her knees next to Auriel's prone body and nocks an arrow to her bow. Green light swirls around the tip of the arrow as she takes Hildigrim's advice and aims for Walharrow's torso. "Don't you dare run in to get yourself killed, Auriel. I'm not as good as Sylyra but at least let me heal you first."
(As usual, holding attack to try and proc Colossus Slayer)
Movement: 10ft a spot next to Auriel
Free Action: Drop Shortsword for Rathene
Bonus Action: Hunter's Mark on Walharrow
Action: Longbow Attack - 18 Damage - 7 Hunter's Mark - 4 Colossus Slayer - 6