Haggered Appearances, part 8
Log Info
- Title: Haggered Appearances, Part 8
- Emitter: Whirlpool
- Characters: Braelnoir, Cryosanthia, Baz da Ork, MAC-B1G, Edinaz
- Place: The Borderlands near Alexandria - Augustus' house
- Time: Thursday, December 24, 2020, 8:34 PM
- Summary: The fighting has moved inside, with Braelnoir the last to enter and covering the door. The Imp said the Vrocks want the Shard and will keep coming. Together Vrocks did a group spell and blasted the entranceway off the building. The party refused to hand over the shard, threw the imp out, and are now retreating desperately to the control room. The house seems to be repairing itself, which is an encouranging sign. They make it to the control room, but the rocks keep up the pursuit and are just outside.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Appearing, in Order =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Braelnoir 5'11" 146 Lb Human Female A tall, pale Acanian woman, branded in silver. Cryosanthia 6'9" 291 Lb Sith-Makar Female A dashingly tall, elegant white-scaled lizard woman. Baz da Ork 7'0" 320 Lb Orc Male 7' 320 pounds of metal, muscle and stupid. WAAAGH! MAC-B1G 6'6" 303 Lb War Golem Neuter Drab gray primarily metal humanoid with cyan-lit optical receptors. Edinaz 6'10" 296 Lb Half-Orc Male Grey-skinned half-oruch, extensive black ink. --=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--= -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= As the GM =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Whirlpool Otyugh I am stinky! --=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=
Green spores seem to be clouding around the Vrocks, alongside crackling lightning. Retreating into the house for the most part will buy you some time, and at least prevent you from having to face all three at once ... for a while.
The imp is squirming and trying to break free. "Give it to them! They just want it! Give it to them!"
GAME: Braelnoir RAGES!, gaining +2 to melee attack/damage/Will saves and 16 temporary HP
Braelnoir, as less meat is in range, lets out a low growl with a glance back to the others as they pull back, and, enough of her reason remains that she faces the enemy and edges back to defense her team. Her sister. She tightens her grip on the haft of the scythe, the points of her claws almost pressing into her hand for the force of it. They will come.... and they will die.
The most injured vrock now flies upwards, joining the other two. It's joining the others in a circling dance above you, the air around them growing green and misty.
Cryosanthia has an Imp, which seems to be answering questions truthfully as long as it feels intimidated. She holds on tight, keeps her cold iron icicle menacingly close.
"No, we've played keep away with much bigger demons. They're not getting it from us." Cryo growls! She watched the game, at least. Held onto Seldan and was teleported to safety and got the details later. She groks the general strategy and wishes Mikilos was here.
"How many more Vrocks, what are they doing? How many Imps? What ripped the roof off the building and is it coming this way? Whom do you follow? Do you understand the building controls?"
The whitescale calls outside, "Brael, what's the plan? Are you coming in? Are we leaving? I've got a floating disk, some other spells."
Of course, depending what the Imp says, she may have information that will change the current plan. She waits, ready to attack things that show up or suddenly demonstrate they need to be attacked.
"I don't know," shrieks the imp, "but that's the borderlands out there, you're seeing, and I know that they'll keep coming until they have what they want. That's just the FIRST ones. If you want to live you'll give them what they want!"
"I'll die before I go down in history as the one who doomed the world by giving a Shard to a bunch a demons. We all will!" Cryo swears.
Now all three vrocks are dancing in the red-tinged sky.
Seems they're up to something bad, green puffs of smoke erupting around them.
Edinaz ducks inside with the others, holding his weapons at the ready.
The Third Vrock continues its dance with the others. It's an elaborate pantomimed ritual of spread wings and lightning growing sparking between them at this point. They're ... almost laughing.
GAME: Baz da Ork rolls 4d6: (19): 19 GAME: Baz da Ork damaged you for -19 points. 112 HP remaining.
As the Unit pulls back into the worn home. Baz presses his fist over the bedazzled Korite symbol on his chest. "Kor, heal our wounds so we might continue to fight! Ta drive our fists into these demons! Dis is where the war is! Dis is where we fight! KOR! Infuse us so we may spread your word of WAR!" From the big Ork comes a pulse of divine energy, flowing through those around him. Binding their wounds and easing their injuries and illnesses.
GAME: MAC-B1G rolls knowledge/the planes: (15)+3: 18
MAC-B1G observes the creatures outside of the structure. "Analysis indicates communal collection of power. Probability of imminent attack: ninety-five point seven nine percent. Offensive or defensive tactics required." It's faceplate rotates to regard its fellow taskforce units. "Directive?"
GAME: Braelnoir ends her rage. GAME: Braelnoir rolls knowledge/military theory: (10)+10: 20
Cryo and MAC's questions slip past the Dragon to the Sergeant as, and Brae's eyes squeeze shut a moment, then reopen in their normal state as her talons retract without sign back into her fingertips. A shake of the head and a slight touch of fatigue, she glances back and says, "Think they're 'bout to take the top layers off, pull back ta the stairwell, we'll thin'm out there! Range an' reach ta th'back line, Baz, front line with me!" Order of battle intoned, she starts to edge back to cover the withdrawl.
GAME: Whirlpool rolls 15d6: (47): 47
... the front doors *smash* open wider, the wall crumbling away as bolts of lightniing rain down on it from the Vrocks. Seems Brael, Cryo and MAC were right to be readyy and wary. Thankfully, no one was close enough to it for the impact to really land on them, at least beyond dust and debris.
GAME: Cryosanthia refreshes spells. GAME: Cryosanthia casts Draconic Reservoir. Caster Level: 10 DC: 17
Cryo dives back from the explosion, trying to cover Zaya, hold onto the Imp, keep her weapon. It's getting too much and making her feel useless.
Thus! It's Imp punting time, Cryo flings him through the doorway with a warning, "Keep going or Baz will eat you. Tell them they're dead! He'll eat them too."
To the others, once the little guy has been freebirded and hopefully out of earshot, "That Imp was correct, they're going to keep coming. We need a plan. Is there any chance, Baz, Mac Bee, you can make the controls work enough to move the house or close that hole?"
"Otherwise, what? Run to Alexandria?" The whitescale snorts, "The Temple Paladins were never there when Kol, Salina and Big E tore them a new one in their highest holies, and the city guards..." Not even worth a snort.
"I don't have Plane Shift, Teleport, even a way to message anyone. Never any Egg-smashing, Maugrim Strutting, Empress sucking way to get scales rotting away!" This is a very old frustration for her. "I can cast one of my scrolls as a regular spell, but I don't know which one. Magic Circle against Evil, Rope Trick? I don't know which to pick."
She casts something complex, causing the scales on her chest and both arms to twinkle with blue light. There's a ghostly, quiet draconic roar as she completes it, and she looks a little bluer somehow.
Then the white-now-blue-ish sith'makar blinks. "Oh. I'm also an idiot. I have a ton of scrolls." She's been thinking of them as her spellbook so much, she forgot she could... just use them and buy more later.
Breaking away from the others now the way is clear, one of the injured Vrocks dips down and slams into the ground in front of the gap. It screechers menacingly, leathery, wrinkled skin savaged by injury as it pushes its way towards the now open gap.
Interestingly, the manor seems to be ... repairing the damage.
Bit by bit, the splintered wood is restoring itself at the fringe.
Edinaz is gonna attack the first Vrock that shows up, and does so.
GAME: Whirlpool rolls 1d20+13: (4)+13: 17
Screaching like a bat of out of hell, a Vrock swoops down and strikes at Edinaz. It misses. Well two out of three aint' bad.
<OOC> Whirlpool says, "Baz channels." GAME: Whirlpool rolls 4d6: (14): 14 GAME: Baz da Ork damaged you for -14 points. 112 HP remaining.
Baz da Ork thumps his chest symbol again, "Dats a good healing Kor, but wez gonna need some more. Dis is a big fight." He waves a gauntlet-ted fist at the everyone. "You stop slackin' de fights not over! Wez movin' it to a betta place."
MAC-B1G initially follows Braelnoir's directive and falls back to a second-line defensive position where it can provide support and covering fire to those at the fore. After it's primary weapon deploys and is readied, it responds to Cryosanthia. "Defensive action cannot be sustained indefinitely. If established planar mechanism is sole means of transport, this unit will analyze. Activate."
MAC-B1G begins falling back to do that, but is loathe to leave the group distant. "Relocation protocol activated. Unit advises close proximity be maintained."
GAME: Braelnoir rolls ranged: (13)+11: 24 GAME: Braelnoir rolls 2d4: (8): 8
Braelnoir listens to the input from her fellows, and as the wounded Vrock touches down, she glances to MAC, "Do it!" more for combat brevity than disrespect. She taps Cryo as she pitches the imp and nods her way before that hand flips upen the pouch on her bandolier holding a flask branded with the symbol of Kor. Deftly enough, despite her wearied malaise, she draws her hand back and hucks it to catch the demon center mass in a splash of searing holy water, "HAVE THAT!" she exults and continues edging back.
In a thud, the second Vrock lands behind the first.
It roars, making gestures with its clawed hands.
"GIVE US THE SHARD," Rock the Vrock screeches, it's voice pain on the ears.
The fighting moved inside, with Braelnoir the last to enter and covering the door. The Imp said the Vrocks want the Shard and will keep coming. Together the Vrocks did a group spell and blasted the entranceway off the building. The group refused to hand over the shard, threw the imp out, and are now retreating desperately to the control room. The house seems to be repairing itself, which is an encouraging sign.
"Control room!" Cryo agrees, or orders, "Try locking the door. I'll get Zaya."
She scoops up the unconscious girl and heads after MAC-B1G, for the control room. "I've got so me scrolls we can use that would help us hide, or protect us, but it's only temporary. MAC Bee! When you get there, see if you can close the hole in the sky. If not, the house moved, it might be able to teleport. It's repairing itself like the Shard Tower. Don't drop it in the Vast, but if we can get it to skip town that will slow them down."
Cryo bounds along, Zaya in a fireman's carry over her shoulder. This is not ideal, and narratively she's sure someone male, and perhaps human, should be doing this. Except, that would make her the comedy relief animal, which is not the role she wants. "I can't think of anything helpful right now, just Plays!"
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls knowledge/the planes: (17)+7: 24
Cryo calls randomly, "Vrocks are immune to electricity and poisons and resistant to acid, cold and fire, if that helps with your attack plans."
The *third* and final Vrock lands.
With a *crash* into the ground as well and a plume of green dust all around it, like the others.
It climbs over the shattered wall, clawing at the regrowing debris to break it away.
GAME: Edinaz rolls athletics: (1)+8: 9 (EPIC FAIL) GAME: Cryosanthia rolls athletics: (7)+10: 17 GAME: Braelnoir rolls athletics-1: (2)+11+-1: 12
Running!
Running away.
The white lizard woman tears off down the hallway, carrying the unconscious girl, arms wrapped around her legs. She has a long stride and a bounce in her step, helped by her boots. Her tail is straight out behind her, no extraneous motion. Move forward, move it.
She gets to the steps, then it's down them, careful of the traps. Step daintily with your massive feet and toes, tip tip. Perhaps it's useful they weren't disarmed, if the Vrocks rush down, the acid might hurt them.
This leaves her facing the controls, which are no more clear than they were. "There's... a couple things I could read that might help, but it would take ten minutes. I've got an Identify spell, that could help too. I'm really hoping MAC Bee or Baz have some idea." Cryo pants.
"We could randomly pull levers again, but who knows what that would do."
Braelnoir is all set to cover the retreat as it gets going as her target sizzles and drips from the baptism she gave him, but, with the opening closing, she starts to hustle to the best of her bewearied capacity. She slips in ahead of Edi, with a dip of her chin and an effected posh sort of, "Most kind, sah!" There's a glance back wence they came and she does her own tally, "How we lookin?"
Edinaz turns and starts to run through the house, pacing Cryo and Braelnoir as they run. He starts off doing it to watch their back, but after a while, he's sucking wind. Rule One: Cardio. He arrives, does the briefest of headcounts, and slams the door shut, locking all the mechanisms, and putting his bulk against it as he looks for furniture to wedge against it.
Edinaz leans there, back to the door. "Fuck." Then, "Think we're all here."
...run you do, back up and down, slamming into walls as you desperately run through it, carrying Zaya and the shard of a dead god with you.
You burst into the control room and slam the door shut behind you, a moment later you can hear the impact of the first of the demons into it and an enraged cry.
You don't have much time...
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=-
===================== Current Initiative Order - Round 1 =====================
---Init--Name------------AOO-Notes--------------------------------------------
23 Braelnoir 1
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>> 21 Rock The Vrock 1 <<
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19 Cryosanthia 5 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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16 Edinaz 1 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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14 Crock The Vrock
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11 Rock Vrock
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7 Brock The Vrock
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6 Baz da Ork 1 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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5 MAC-B1G 1 Flat-footed (0 rnds remaining)
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<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "and miraces of miracles, for the first time in decades finished wrapping gifts before midnight"