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canyonwalkerSunday's D&D game wasn't finished after the epic chase scene where Leoghnie and Otonio caught the fleeing spy/ringleader. For one, there was also action happening in the other ring. Back at the scene of the ambush, the hobgoblins had fled but the worgs (bigger, stronger, evil wolves) had not. The worgs had already killed two of the caravan's horses and were about to kill two more. Ryuu-Han the mage moved around from behind his wagon to confront the worgs.
Ryuu-Han's move was a good one... initially. He gained clear line-of-effect on the worgs with his spells while remaining 20' away from the melee. He struck one worg with a burst of magical flame that singed its hide. But in the heat of battle he forgot that worgs, like their wolf cousins, move fast. The worgs disengaged from the horses and moved to attack the foe they perceived as the biggest threat. Ryuu-Han was flanked.
The mage wasn't done. He still had fight in him. The magical protections he'd cast gave him some defense against the worgs' snapping jaws— much better than the worgs expected for a city-ape clad only in rags. His strongest spells were depleted, though. The risk was very real that the worgs, even both injured badly already, would kill him before he killed them.
His companions rallied to his side.
Herran, already on the ground with her bow in her hands, spotted the trouble first. Employing a tactic of "walking fire"— move, shoot, move, shoot— she closed on the worgs, each shot becoming more deadly as she shortened the distance. Before her first move, though, she banged on the side of a wagon asking Wataru for help.
Wataru, a grizzled older driver, had put up a stout fight so far. As driver of the first wagon he'd already taken a lot of arrows, though. He'd retreated into the cover the wagon to drink a healing potion. Now it was time to rejoin the fight. He leapt down from the seat, bow in hand, and followed Herran with walking fire.
BTW, if you're wondering why I'm narrating that Wataru had a bow in hand, when the picture above clearly shows him ready to draw his sword: it's because this is the sort of thing I get from AI image generation. Yes, I'm providing a lot of careful prompts. No, it's not perfect; it even stubbornly refuses to change some details I'm explicit about. I consider it enough of a victory that it doesn't draw any of the female characters with exposed cleavage or bare midriffs (IYKYK).
Update: I worked on a picture of Herran rallying aid to help Ryuu-Han:
Another driver joined in the fight, too. It took some urging from Kiarana the cleric, who was seated next to him on the buckboard. Blushing with chagrin that a cleric had to tell him to get back in the fight, he loaded his crossbow, fired, and loaded and fired again.
Together, between Ryuu-Han's resilience under threat and three warriors working their bow, the group defeated both worgs.
But even there, the story of the ambush wasn't complete. There was still the captured spy to deal with!
Kiarana healed him enough to bring him to consciousness. She cast a spell to compel him to speak only truth. Otonio led the questioning while Leoghnie scowled holding her massive sword, providing the implicit "Or else".
Again re: AI image gen... Yeah, it's not accurate that the cleric has a sword. And she's over-armored. But again, that's way better than her showing off her boobs and midriff. Plus, Jill, who's athletic herself, appreciates that Leoghnie is drawn not only with appropriate gear to go fight snarling monsters toe-to-toe but is drawn stocky enough to actually wield that huge sword she's got (IYKYK).
The spy gave up almost nothing in the questioning. He couldn't lie, due to the spell, but the spell couldn't force him to elaborate. He spat and called them names.
Otonio challenged the spy that he looked familiar. "I have seen you in the city. You serve House Berenar."
"Yeah, Tashara kid, you probably have," the spy sneered. "Best you let me go or you'll join me in hell when they find out."
Otonio's eyes narrowed as he weighed the political dimensions of this. Skirmishes between ruling houses were not unheard of but had to be navigated gently. Very gently.
"Get the merchant," Kiarana barked. She was irritated by the spy's stonewalling. Plus, now it seemed the spy might actually be the ringleader. Leoghnie went and grabbed the tied-up former caravan leader, Munetoshi, dragging him ungently across the ground to add to the questioning.
"Look, here's the deal," Kiarana explained to the two captives. "One of you talks, one of you loses his tongue. Choose." Eyes widened around the gaming table that the cleric was the one making the threat. "Hey, I'm Lawful Neutral!" the player rebutted.
Munetoshi babbled that although someone else had hired him first, this man, Touichi Berenar, told him there would be an ambush and paid him extra to advocate for surrender when it came. This confirmed that Touichi was not merely a "spy" but the coordinator of the attack.
"Hmm," Otonio said aloud, making a show of thinking about the situation as he faced Touichi. "You planned and attempted my murder. I am sure that my loyal house guard would object to that, strongly."
Leoghnie was busy picking her nose, or something— but picking it fiercely— so she didn't catch the verbal handoff. Otonio repeated himself, "I said, I am SURE my house guard would object to that, strongly!" Leoghnie didn't need a third invitation; she lopped off Touichi's head.
"As for you—" Otonio said, turning to caravan leader Munetoshi and leveling his rapier at the man's throat, "Your treachery imperiled all of our lives. It killed one of the men you hired. And should we further risk our own lives spending our now-depleted resources transporting you to the next city for trial? As a member of House Tashara, ruling coalition of Durendal, I declare your life forfeit here and now."
Ryuu-Han's move was a good one... initially. He gained clear line-of-effect on the worgs with his spells while remaining 20' away from the melee. He struck one worg with a burst of magical flame that singed its hide. But in the heat of battle he forgot that worgs, like their wolf cousins, move fast. The worgs disengaged from the horses and moved to attack the foe they perceived as the biggest threat. Ryuu-Han was flanked.
The mage wasn't done. He still had fight in him. The magical protections he'd cast gave him some defense against the worgs' snapping jaws— much better than the worgs expected for a city-ape clad only in rags. His strongest spells were depleted, though. The risk was very real that the worgs, even both injured badly already, would kill him before he killed them.
His companions rallied to his side.
Herran, already on the ground with her bow in her hands, spotted the trouble first. Employing a tactic of "walking fire"— move, shoot, move, shoot— she closed on the worgs, each shot becoming more deadly as she shortened the distance. Before her first move, though, she banged on the side of a wagon asking Wataru for help.
Wataru, a grizzled older driver, had put up a stout fight so far. As driver of the first wagon he'd already taken a lot of arrows, though. He'd retreated into the cover the wagon to drink a healing potion. Now it was time to rejoin the fight. He leapt down from the seat, bow in hand, and followed Herran with walking fire.
BTW, if you're wondering why I'm narrating that Wataru had a bow in hand, when the picture above clearly shows him ready to draw his sword: it's because this is the sort of thing I get from AI image generation. Yes, I'm providing a lot of careful prompts. No, it's not perfect; it even stubbornly refuses to change some details I'm explicit about. I consider it enough of a victory that it doesn't draw any of the female characters with exposed cleavage or bare midriffs (IYKYK).
Update: I worked on a picture of Herran rallying aid to help Ryuu-Han:
Another driver joined in the fight, too. It took some urging from Kiarana the cleric, who was seated next to him on the buckboard. Blushing with chagrin that a cleric had to tell him to get back in the fight, he loaded his crossbow, fired, and loaded and fired again.
Together, between Ryuu-Han's resilience under threat and three warriors working their bow, the group defeated both worgs.
But even there, the story of the ambush wasn't complete. There was still the captured spy to deal with!
Kiarana healed him enough to bring him to consciousness. She cast a spell to compel him to speak only truth. Otonio led the questioning while Leoghnie scowled holding her massive sword, providing the implicit "Or else".
Again re: AI image gen... Yeah, it's not accurate that the cleric has a sword. And she's over-armored. But again, that's way better than her showing off her boobs and midriff. Plus, Jill, who's athletic herself, appreciates that Leoghnie is drawn not only with appropriate gear to go fight snarling monsters toe-to-toe but is drawn stocky enough to actually wield that huge sword she's got (IYKYK).
The spy gave up almost nothing in the questioning. He couldn't lie, due to the spell, but the spell couldn't force him to elaborate. He spat and called them names.
Otonio challenged the spy that he looked familiar. "I have seen you in the city. You serve House Berenar."
"Yeah, Tashara kid, you probably have," the spy sneered. "Best you let me go or you'll join me in hell when they find out."
Otonio's eyes narrowed as he weighed the political dimensions of this. Skirmishes between ruling houses were not unheard of but had to be navigated gently. Very gently.
"Get the merchant," Kiarana barked. She was irritated by the spy's stonewalling. Plus, now it seemed the spy might actually be the ringleader. Leoghnie went and grabbed the tied-up former caravan leader, Munetoshi, dragging him ungently across the ground to add to the questioning.
"Look, here's the deal," Kiarana explained to the two captives. "One of you talks, one of you loses his tongue. Choose." Eyes widened around the gaming table that the cleric was the one making the threat. "Hey, I'm Lawful Neutral!" the player rebutted.
Munetoshi babbled that although someone else had hired him first, this man, Touichi Berenar, told him there would be an ambush and paid him extra to advocate for surrender when it came. This confirmed that Touichi was not merely a "spy" but the coordinator of the attack.
"Hmm," Otonio said aloud, making a show of thinking about the situation as he faced Touichi. "You planned and attempted my murder. I am sure that my loyal house guard would object to that, strongly."
Leoghnie was busy picking her nose, or something— but picking it fiercely— so she didn't catch the verbal handoff. Otonio repeated himself, "I said, I am SURE my house guard would object to that, strongly!" Leoghnie didn't need a third invitation; she lopped off Touichi's head.
"As for you—" Otonio said, turning to caravan leader Munetoshi and leveling his rapier at the man's throat, "Your treachery imperiled all of our lives. It killed one of the men you hired. And should we further risk our own lives spending our now-depleted resources transporting you to the next city for trial? As a member of House Tashara, ruling coalition of Durendal, I declare your life forfeit here and now."
