Hoard of the Dragon Queen [IC. 2014 rules]

Draylin

***(initiative: 18)***

Surprise round:  Draylin, a bit of a look of disgust on his face, knocks an arrow into the short bow he pilfered from a fallen foe.  He drifts in the smoke, using the headstones of the cemetery to keep out of sight.  When he slipped into place 30 yards away he fired at a kobold.  ***short bow attack 1***  "I hate these damned things," he muttered under his breath as he watched the arrow sail over everything; possibly the fence on the other end of the property as well.  

Without wasting another half second, the monk dropped the bow to the ground, drew his short sword, and closed the distance to the enemy in the blink of an eye.  He smiled in satisfaction as Tam's own well placed shot found it's mark.  His blade flew out in an upward arcing slash at the next kobold in line.  ***short sword attack 17 on K2 damage 9 piercing***  The blood of the unfortunate beast splattered against the outer wall of the church.  Realizing the great advantage that the companions had at the moment, and also realizing that such moments were fleeting and far between, he called on the power of ki.

Wading into the thick of it, he followed his blade into the ever growing pool of kobold blood.  He knew that he was putting himself in a sketchy situation here, but he had faith in his friends, and his own ability to create complete chaos in a small space and a very short amount of time.  He raised the weapon once more, bringing up the eyes of the remaining kobolds with it.  His right leg snapped out low into the knee of kobold 1.  ***ki point flurry of blows - unarmed strike K1 20 (dirty) damage 7 bludgeoning : way of the open hand = DC 13 DEX save or be knocked prone.  unarmed strike 2 K3 16  damage 8 bludgeoning : WotoH = DEX save DC 13 or prone***  Hearing the audible crack of something in that knee, the monk followed his momentum, dropping low and pivoting hard on the ball of his left foot.  He right leg snapped out again, this time in the knee of the other remaining kobold. 

As the little beasts fought for balance, Draylin rose quickly, squaring off against the cultists.  

***If it all goes right, K2 and K4 should be dead quite quickly (barring a high INI) - then one or both of the others end up prone if the shock of their shattering knees doesn't kill them outright.  Dray then ends up in the space where K3 was (if he isn't dead, then another dead one's place.  If either of the K's fail the save, Montar and Thistle can get melee ADV.  If everyone opts to stay back and range, speak well of the monk at his memorial service  :)***

Thistlewick   *** Initiative Roll: 21  ***

Before the melee begins, Thistlewick acts.
With a harsh whisper, he channels magic into the fungi thriving on his skin, triggering Symbiotic Entity.  (action)  
Instantly, a thick, pulsating halo of visible, necrotic spores erupts around his body, turning his armor into a living, mold-covered shield. 
( +12 tmp hp ) 

Striding forward, he speaks another whisper as he runs his hand along his club. Shillelagh  (bonus action)
What had been a simple club now sprouts tiny, bioluminescent mushrooms and more spores.

Gnome that he is, he can only stride forward 25 feet... however, it that leaves him at least 10 feet from C4, his Halo of Spores will be able to send forth a cloud of necrotic spores lashes out, causing the C4’s flesh to grey and wither instantly, dealing damage through sheer, magical rot.  

CON save 13  or take 4 pt necrotic dmg

***Montar initiative 11***

Montar strides forward, following in Thistlewick's wake and at the same pace. Studiously ignoring the halo of necrotic spores as he approaches, he raises he found crossbow and fires. Sadly, his aim is far off, and he comes close to plunking the church and possibly giving them away. (Atk: 5 (or 6 with advantage!)) The dwarf didn't live this long without having learned some patience, though, so he simply stows his crossbow and draws his maul, ready to close the gap and take a swing as soon as he gets a chance.

While the shock of his and his new companions' appearance is wearing off, Montar advances the rest of the way to the cultists. Aiming for the closest, conscious one, he swings his maul in a low arc and connects. The hip of the cultists shatters and the shock and sudden injury drop the cultist to the earth, insensate. (Atk: 22, Dmg: 11 in first non-surprise round.)

Kobold 1 initiative 5

Kobold 2 initiative 14

Kobold 3 initiative 21

Kobold 4 initiative 5

Cultist 1 initiative 7

Cultist 2 initiative 21

Cultist 3 initiative 3

Initiative Order

Thistlewick - 22

C3 - 19

Draylin - 18

C1 - 18

K1 - 15
K2 - 15
K3 - 15
K4 - 12

Montar - 11

Tam - 7

C2 - 6



C3 con save against Halo of Spores 1

Before the raiders can even register what's happened, Tam's crossbow bolt downs one of the cultists. The group looks up, startled only to see the rest of the party descend on them. Next to the downed cultist, another one turns to face Thistlewick, just as the druid's cloud of spores erupts. The cultist instinctively pulls her cloak over her mouth and nose, ducking low to let the necrotic mist drift harmlessly over her head.
In the meantime, Montar and Draylin's ranged attacks go wide. 

Now I need Thistlewick's turn 1 actions and I will address the rest of your posts in my next one. 

"Take root and give me strength," Thistlewick muttered as his club became his spore enhanced shillelagh.  

To Hit:  14          9 pt bludgeoning +  4 pt necrotic damage  = 13 pt

Wick's club transformed into a shillelagh of primal fury, pulsing with the Symbiotic Entity 'enhanced' spores coursing around the druid's body and twisting tendrils around the club.  On impact, it strikes with the weight of ancient oak, magical nature force flowing from the wood to punish his foe.  (C4)

Halo of Spores >>>  5 pt necrotic dmg as more spores swirl about, landing on exposed skin and C4's eyes even as she tries to keep her nose and mouth covered with her cloak.

(Since C4 has been dead since Tam's attack in the surprise round, I will consider Thislewick to be attacking C3)

The druid's club descends with a loud crack onto the cultist's head. She doesn't have time to react again as the spores of Thistlewick's magic swirl around her. As the necrotic spores settle, her body hits the ground already turning a dull, lifeless grey.

Nearby, Draylin moves like a blur, taking down three kobolds before they can even draw breath. Tam follows up instantly, her crossbow bolt finding the last kobold just as its hand reaches for a dagger. (K1, K2, K3 AND K4 DEAD)

The only enemy left standing, C1, lunges at Montar in a desperate counter-attack with his scimitar, trying to draw blood just as the dwarf hammers the life out of the other cultist (C2 - dead).

Scimitar Attack: 23 Damage: 8

That brings us  to round 2 and Thistlewick and Draylin's turns. The only enemy standing is C1. 

Thistlewick turns in place to take in the battlefield.   All were down but one Cultist (C1).    Stepping forward, he swings his shillelagh

To Hit:  19             Damage:  8 pt bludgeoning + 5 necrotic = 13 pt

and to put some spore icing on the cake...  his Halo of Spores spreads over the cultist for the final insult to his injuries with 3 pts of necrotic damage... if the cultist fails it's CON save (13)

 * * * * * 

If all are 'down'...  collect what we can and Thistlewick will use his enhanced entity spores to make quick work of the bodies.

AND... since time is critical, while everyone else is working toward getting 'us' inside... 
Wick can work up Fog Cloud  over the area to help 'muddy' the waters when the circling 'troops' come by?

With Thislewick's final attack, the last cultist collapses into a messy heap of flesh on the ground. 

Combat Over.

"We made quick work of that," Tam said. "Good work, everyone! Now, we need to get inside as quickly as possible." She moved over to the door and knocked lightly, whispering loudly "we're from Greenest, from the Keep. The Governor sent us to get you to safety."

The silence from behind the door is heavy, broken only by the distant sounds of the ongoing siege. The smoke from the raiders' failed fire thins out as the kindling dies, although the area remains heavily obscured by the thick, magical mist of Thistlewick's Fog Cloud.

Draylin

***Assuming the door is locked***

Draylin moves closer to the door.  He kneels down, inspecting the lock briefly.  With a satisfied nod, he turns to Tam.  "I practiced at the monastery with a lock very similar to this one.  The second tumbler is the tricky bit.  Angle up to the left, you can pop it from there."  

When Tam's nimble fingers are working on gaining the companions entry, Draylin moves with haste to the downed cultists.  He begins to pull their outer layer of robes or cloaks off.  He tries to hustle to beat Thistlewick's decomposition trick.  He has a strong stomach, but no need to put it to the test...

He shakes one to knock off a bit of dirt, then drapes it over his thin shoulders before pulling up the hood.  "This may buy us a bit of time in a pinch," he says, giving one to to anyone else that wants it.  

***Help action:  assist Tam with the lock to give ADV.***

Montar keeps a lookout in case the roaming pack has heard anything.

[pick locks roll 20

Getting no answer, Tam attempts to pick the lock with Draylin's assistance.

Thistlewick tries to hold onto his special spores but time is running out.  He hopes he might pick off a straggler as they patrol through the smoke and fog, but he knows that might be difficult without warning the rest of the patrol.

Whispering, he tries to get an idea of how much time they have left before getting inside; avoiding the patrol.

"You said the patrol makes a circuit every ten minutes or so.  It will not be long before they come into the fog and smoke.  We need inside.  Explain our 'rescue'.  And get them all out before my fog dissipates.  Do we need to climb the outer walls to keep us out of sight?"

While Thistlewick and Montar keep watch, Tam, you manage to unlock the door without much trouble. Behind it, you find a cool storage room with a small staircase leading to another door. In the silence of this vacant room, it is easy for you to hear the hushed voices and prayers of dozens of people from beyond the second door. That door does not appear to have a lock.

By Draylin's rough calculations, there should be around eight minutes before the mob circles back to this side of the temple. The thuds of the battering ram continue to echo through the night as the monk quickly checks the decomposing bodies for anything valuable. The kobolds have a couple of daggers and slings in good condition, while the cultists each has a scimitar, but they don't appear to have any coin on them.

Draylin

"If we move with haste, we can get them back to the sewer before the mob circles back."  The monk pauses, glancing down at his cultist get-up, blood splattered arms, then absent mindedly wipes his hands on the dead cultist's cloak.  "I don't really have much of a way with words," he confessed to the party.  "I'll guard the back entrance.  I want to get that fire smoldering again as well, the more cover the better."  He stops to flash the group a smile before saying, "If any of them get lippy, let me know.  I'm good at that kind of 'persuasion'."  

Draylin then glances out the door, setting up near it to keep watch.  While he waits, he pulls out a torch from his pack, along with his tinderbox.  When the rest of the team moves to spring the faithful, Draylin pushes the cultist's burn pile back a little bit away from the door.  He pulls what bits of fabric he can from the kobolds or cultist's bodies and shoves it into the bottom of the burn pile.  He is careful to make sure the fire will be back far enough so that the people escaping won't get cooked on the way out.  When it is ready to go, he slips back into the door, pulling it mostly closed, but peeking out periodically to keep watch..

Tam rushes to the second door and opens it, announcing herself with a loud whisper. "We're from the keep. The Governor sent us to get you to safety, but we must hurry. The way out the back is clear. Come quickly."

[Persuasion roll in case it is helpful 15]