The bird pecks at the soft tissue in the gaping wound once, then stumbles over to a tree.  It warbles once then hunkers down and nuzzles its injured wing, interested more in its significant wounds than in eating now.

Eyeing the cricket, Talisi calms her breathing.  After a few seconds she puts away her weapon and shield and approaches the bird.  She keeps her hands outstretched and her steps slow.  The words she uses are in Kradok, but they sound like nonsense words regardless.

The bird warbles and tries once to stand.  Talisi freezes and the austoric hunkers back down.  Eventually, the cleric makes it to the bird's side.  She croons and pets the shaking animal until it accepts her.

"Cecil.  Need you help."

Cecil puts his sword away. "Ok, what do I have to do?"

"Need you hold bird.  I heal."  She indicates where she wants you to hold the bird.  You do your best to get the bird to accept you before wrapping around its neck.

GM: Handle Animal roll then STR roll.

Cecil does his best to calm the animal, but he doesn't have much luck. However he is quite used to wrestling with things...

[Private to Game Master:
11:23, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 4 using 1d20-2. handle animal.
11:23, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 23 using 1d20+4. str. ]

The creature struggles mightily as you hold it, trying to wriggle free.  It is apparent it does not like you.

Talisi is fast with her prayers.  As she begins, the bird stiffens and does not move.  A warm glow covers the wounds and when it is gone, the flesh and feathers are whole again.

The moment she pulls back, the bird jerks free of your grip and stands.  It snaps at you, but does not connect.  Talisi strokes the birds neck and beak, calming.  She whispers more words.  Soon the austoric warbles then takes her shoulder gently in its beak and flicks its tongue over her armor.

With a final pat of its neck, Talisi pulls away.  The austoric turns to its meal and digs in with relish.

Talisi looks to you.  "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

With the bird saved, Xan suggests that this would be a good spot to camp.  The austoric would provide a bit of extra protection, however scant.  He sets up a firepit far enough from the cricket to avoid any smells.

In the morning, the austoric has bedded down near the campfire close to Talisi.  It allows her to pat it before the three of you continue on.  Just before you lose sight of it, the bird warbles forlornly.

The trail grows more rugged and barely discernible.  Two days from the fight for the austoric, the three of you come up over a rise into a small camp.  A fire burns in the center and eight humanoid creatures are in the middle of some kind of ritual.  A second glance at the spit over the fire indicates that whatever it is wore leather armor and might have been an orc.

The creatures dancing around make sibilant sounds.  They have hexagonal patterned skin like a serpent rather than the smooth flesh of most humanoids.  The skin is blood red.  All of them are bald, though a couple wear head gear of some sort.  Many wear crude armor, but their weapons and claws looks sharp.

They do not appear to have seen you as you duck behind trees.

"Evade, Attack or Talk?" Cecil asks quietly. those were the three available options and all of them had advantages and drawbacks. He wanted to see how his companions felt whatever they did would have huge impact on how they proceeded.

Talisi takes a sharp breath.  "They evil.  Children chaos.  Abominations."

The wizards places a firm hand on the cleric's arm.  He observes the camp for a few long moments.  "They are performing some kind of rite.  It is intended to summon something and whatever comes won't be good.  The question is, can we take them?  Likely not once they finish."

"With surprise? Maybe. summon something...can any of you do something similar more quickly? Maybe have a bunch of creatures harass, distract and break them up as we move in to finish? What sort of offensive spells do you have Xan?"

"I have one summon spell that might do what you are talking about.  They don't do much, but I can summon a minor swarm of rock beetles.  They should be annoying.  As far as offensive spells, I can do some pretty serious damage to one or two with my stonespear or summon boulder spell or some minimal damage to all of them.  My hail of stone spell might work well to initially disrupt the ceremony and my beetles will keep them hoping for a few minutes."

"I summon mechanik harrass.  Need bless against fire you, me.  Xan no get close."

"ok starting off with your hail of stone spell would be good. The beetle swarm and mechanik should attack the furthest targets. After the hail of stone I'll move in to engage and you start blasting away with your offensive spells. Reducing their numbers quickly and capitalizing on the confusion created by our surprise assault are key if we are going to stand a chance at victory.

 If it looks like we'll be overwhelmed cast something that slows movement and fall back. Don't worry about me. I'll catch up if that happens. Just get as much distance as possible between you and them. If we're lucky they'll break up, the faster ones outpacing the slower, when they chase us. Which will mean we can stop and take them out easier piece mail. But that's only if our initial assault seems like it's going to fail."

<blue>"Oh and we can't let them escape either. If it looks like they are going to run we need to slow them down. What we interrupt once they can start again.",/blue>
This message was last edited by the player at 21:39, Tue 12 Mar 2013.

The others nod and turn to the clearing again.

Xan scoops up a handful of pebbles from the ground and tosses them into the air.  "Barad'eben," he whispers.  On the far side of the scene, rocks the size of a man's fist fall from the sky at great velocity pelting four of the lizard creatures standing there.

At the same time, Talisi is kneeling on the ground.  She digs in her pack and pulls out what looks like a toy.  She places a hand on it and says something in Kradok.  There is a tiny column of light that surrounds the toy then it disappears.  Further into the camp (not quite on the other side) a large column of light appears and a human-sized version of the "toy" fades into existence.  It immediately attacks the lizard men on the far side of the encampment.

Cecil moves forward to engage as the others unleash their attacks...

OOC: How far away are the lizard men?

GM: They are at the bottom of the hill within striking distance in the second round for melee.  You will have initiative next round when you engage.

The lizardmen scramble to address this invasion of their ceremony.  Those in the strange headdresses continue on while those who are obvious fighters or archers engage the mechanik.

Once again, Xan chants in the wizard dialect.  He throws a handful of stones out into the clearing.  With a puff of smoke around each one, the stones turn into flying beetles half the size of your fists.  They fly into the faces of some of the lizardmen and distract them from the battle, though they don't seem to do much in the way of damage.

Talisi charges down the hill behind you.  "Kill hat ones!"

Cecil advances on the nearest Lizard man in a strange headdress. He observes the lizardman closely, particularly how he moves. Once within range Cecil attacks, swinging his sword mightily to try and take full advantage of his momentum and the lizard man's movements.

[Private to Game Master: Cecil will use sapphire nightmare blade.
concentration check vs ac: 17 if successful the attack deal 1d6 extra damage and catches the opponent flat footed.
attack (vs flat footed): 21
total damage: 29


19:19, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 5 using 1d6. punishing stance damage.
19:19, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 1 using 1d6. sapphire nightmare blade damage.
19:19, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 23 using 1d10+15. damage.
19:18, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 21 using 1d20+7. PWR attack -4.
19:16, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 17 using 1d20+12. concentration check. ]

As the first of those in the headresses goes down, the ceremony ends and the participants desperately regroup in the face of the onslaught.

One more wearing the headgear points at you and hisses something in its sibilant tongue. [Roll Fort]

Two more with swords approach and swing, but they are unable to even hit you, much less test your armor.

The beetles still bug them, but the lizardmen ignore them now for the most part.  The mechanik still gives them problems though as it damages the two on it.

With a shouted word in the wizard tongue, Xan launches a large spear of stone at one of the dragon men.  It lodges inside the creature's gut before shattering, ripping the lizardman to pieces and tearing through the flesh of those around it.

With a might swing of her weapon, Talisi finishes off another of the lizardmen.  It's skill collapses inward and it drops to the ground like a rock.

Only three of the lizardmen remain, including the one wearing the headdress and the two attacking the mechanik.  Those two don't seem to recognize what has happened to their companions.

Cecil advances on the one who had pointed and spoke at him. Enjoy Hell he shouts as he closes in. Cecil didn't understand much about magic, but it didn't take a genius to know that lizard-face had done something meant to harm the young human warrior. Once in range Cecil lashes out with a powerful and fast horizontal swing that would be hard to dodge or block.

[Private to Game Master:
Fort save is 24. If that is not enough He'll use iron heart surge to end the effect and gain a +2 bonus on his next attack roll.

08:15, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 24 using 1d20+8. fort save.


cecil is going to use emerald razor making this attack a touch attack.

attack roll vs touch: 8, 10 if he needed to use iron heart surge.

08:21, Today: Cecil Bellic rolled 8 using 1d20+6. Emerald razor full power attack vs touch.

]