Above & Below

OOC: Pure luck check, 10+ and it's one of the tavern dudes: 2

The half-orc dodges out of the way and sneers at Brask. "Have too much to drink last night? You swing like a girl."

He returns the favor and swings his axe at Brask.

Attack: 17 Damage: 10

Effort, you hear a scream from the northern building and turn to see one of the tieflings at Freedom's side fall. To the south, there isn't even time for a scream. One of your other allies meets an untimely end. Pip turns his attention to Namar, firing at the hulking figure as he approaches Effort. 

Attack: 11 Damage: 13

The arrow ever-so-gently grazes across Namar's cheek, drawing the tiniest bit of blood. Pip seems pleased with himself, but it doesn't slow down the gang leader.

Back down on the street, the bugbear swings down at Burik...

Attack: 15 Damage: 9

Effort, Namar is now standing right in front of you. You're at front edge of the building with no real escape route. As you try to decide your next move while attempting to ward off the panic and fear of being slain by this son-of-a-*****, everything seems to freeze for a moment. Time stands still and your fear turns to a feeling of pleasure. Pleasure fueled by the hate and need for vengeance. You see every bit of Namar clearly now. Where his armor has been worn down. The little wounds he's already suffered. Energy pulses within you, collecting in your hands and burning - not with pain, but with power.  

Effort, you're up. Roll your attack with advantage.

A wild, delirious joy fills Effort as Namar stands before her, like a lamb before a sacrificial altar.  Even the loss of Cadmael fades as the whispers of revenge fill her ears.  Reaching out, she puts her palms around his face and smiles -- a wide, vicious smile -- before her hands crackle with the energy of a shocking grasp.

Attack: 25
Damage: 7 lightning + 4 necrotic

If the shocking grasp hits, Effort will simply run away from Namar, and towards Pip, as he will be unable to use his reactions for the rest of the turn.  If it doesn't hit, she'll misty step away from him and onto the other building, near Pip.

Oh a crit!  Have another 6 lightning and 1 necrotic then! 

OOC: What a thematic time for a crit! Love it!

Namar's confused look turns to pain as Effort releases the energy into him. He's blasted back, hunched over with hands covering his face. As he looks up, smoke tendrils float up from the seared flesh. A bit of cheekbone peeks through his sneer. "You demonic *****! You're going to pay for that!" He charges forward as Effort joins up with Pip, swinging his axe down...

Attack: 12 Damage: 5

Effort confidently steps to the side as the axe smashes against the roof. Someone laughs, but Effort can't see who. Pip is staring wide-eyed. Namar struggles to lift his axe back up. He's breathing heavily. 

Oh, he's hurting! Kurama, you're up! There is an injured half-orc and a healthy bugbear still in the fight on the ground with you.

Kurama could feel the wild energy surging inside him.  While growing frustrated at his failures, a memory flashed through his mind of a sparring session with Tora before his world fell apart: Before you can master something else, you must first master yourself!  Thankful for the reminder, Kurama will take a moment center himself and clear his mind before once again attempting strike the remaining enemies below. (He'll attack the bugbear first)

Attack: 14 Damage: 4

Bonus Attack: 8 Damage: 5

(Woo a crit!)

The bugbear screams out as Kurama strikes true, regaining a bit of his confidence. 

Burik channels the necrotic energy he knows so well, and casts Inflict Wounds on the bugbear.

Attack: 18 Damage: 14

The bugbear yells out in pain as a dark essence shrouds him and pulses into his flesh. 

Round 5: Tieflings > Brask > Half-orcs > Pip > Bugbear > Effort > Namar > Kurama > Burik

To the south, Effort sees Akrus cut down another half-orc. Freedom and the remaining tiefling to the north are still trading attacks with the two half-orcs on that rooftop.

Brask, you're up. You have a very injured bugbear and a very injured half-orc to deal with.

Brask's attack on the half-orc:

Attack: 20 Damage: 10

Shoulda listened when you the chance, chump.  We're taking you down.  All of you.  Tonight.

As the half-orc is about to respond, Brask's maul crushes in his skull. The bugbear looks around, eyes widening as he realizes how outnumbered he has quickly become. Brask, roll an intimidation check. 

Up on the northern roof, another tiefling is cut down. Freedom is now by herself facing off agains the half-orcs. Pip, sensing she might be in more trouble than Effort at this point, turns his recently notched arrow toward one of the half-orcs...

Attack: 10 Damage: 5

Pip's eyes light up as the arrow sticks into the middle of one of the half-orc's backs. He screams out in pain, turning with an angry look toward the goblin. 

Brask's Intimidation 13

The bugbear stands his ground, possibly realizing the hopelessness of his position, but attacking Brask nonetheless...

Attack: 20 Damage: 18

He swings with the full might of his morningstar. A last stand, perhaps. But the strike is so vicious it sends Brask down to the street, unconscious or worse.

Back up on the roof, Effort looks deep into Namar's eyes. They're filled with panic that his face and body language won't betray, but Effort sees it all the same. As she feels the power reenter her body, she feels no pity for the half-orc. Do it. Enjoy it. She swears someone whispered in her ear. 

Effort, you're up. Roll with advantage.

Brask, intimidating sneer still on his face, takes the blow, stands firm, and then topples unconscious to the ground like a felled tree.

Bumping this for Effort just in case she didn't realize it was her turn. :)

( no, no, sorry, I got sick ... will catch up!)

Freedom's plight is worrisome, as is the niggling concern for Pip.  But more than anything else, more than even a concern for her own safety, is a desire to see Namar suffer, and suffer like no other can.  When she reaches out this time, she wraps her hand around his throat, squeezing, a mad laugh issuing from her lips that she can't control.

Shocking Grasp attack: 23
Damage: 1 lightning + 3 necrotic

Once again, she will come to herself, and step backwards from Namar, forcing him to move away from Pip and the others to chase her, if he's still standing.  Or give him the opportunity to run, so she can hit him in the back with her ranged magic.  There's no escaping for you, she thinks with satisfaction.

No worries - hope you're feeling better! Namar had 4 HP left, so...

Tell us how you finish him.

Effort‘s fingers tighten around Namar‘s throat, and the energy surges and crackles through her palm. She could roast him here, she knows, end his life swiftly in one charring burst of lightning.

But she doesn‘t want to.

Instead, she lets the barest trickle of lightning ease through her fingertips, sending the smell of cooked flesh into the air. „I want you to suffer,“ she says darkly to Namar, letting her necrotic curse slowly eat away at his skin, starting from the web of char marks her fingers created.  „I want you to suffer the way you made Cheer, and Freedom, and Promise suffer.  I want you to die slowly, alone, forgotten and in pain... the way I did.  You, who killed me, you, who created me, just for you.  Look upon my face as your last sight in this world, and know despair.“

She leans forward and brings her lips to Namar‘s, giving him a final kiss even as the necrotic energy eats away at the skin on his cheeks.  Leaning back, she smiles, her eyes glowing with unholy energy as she makes sure he sees her, his skin still falling from his face in gruesome chunks.  She loosens her grip on his throat only long enough to  hear the last muted, unintelligble sounds his ruined throat can make, before releasing his lifeless corpse and letting it collapse wetly to the ground with a sickening smack.  And then she throws back her head and laughs, long, loud, and cruelly.

The lone bugbear on the ground even hears the laughter, pausing for a moment to wonder what could possibly elicit such a reaction during a bloody fight. The half-orcs on the roofs see the end of their leader as they hear Effort and glance over. 

Effort, roll an intimidation check with advantage.

Intimidation: 17

You glance south, and see the remaining half-orcs throw up their hands, offering their weapons to Akrus and the others. With Pip heading toward Freedom (and I assume Effort as well after Namar was disposed of), those half-orcs also lay down their arms. On the street, the bugbear still thrashes wildly, not realizing just how poor the odds have become for him.

Kurama, you're up.

Tail still lashing, Effort manages to bring herself under control... with some effort.  She eyes the corpse at her feet, before spitting on it once, and then moving to join Pip and Freedom.

Unaware of what's happening on the roofs above them, Kurama's focuses his effort on containing the raging Bugbear and so that he can then check on the unconscious Brask.  Losing a bit of the control he had moments before with his powers, he'll attempt to grapple the enemy to limit his thrashings with one appendage while striking him with the other.

Grapple: 7

Bonus Martial Arts Attack: 7 Damage: 6

(OOC: Attack action to grapple, Bonus action to unarmed strike afterwards)

The strike saps what is left of the bugbear's energy, finally putting him down for good. The street is quiet. Burik kneels down next to Brask and presses his hands into his chest. He closes his eyes and casts Cure Wounds. Brask regains 7 HP.

Effort, you have three half-orcs surrendering up on the rooftops. You're joined by Pip, Akrus, Freedom, and another tiefling. Peering down, you see your friends have dispatched with the rest of the rival gang.

You're out of initiative.