OOC:
Stars and moon provide some small bit of illumination--those with low light vision are in better shape to utilize this type of faint light.  As soon as I get all Spot checks, I'll detail the results IC and the underlying game mechanics OOC.

Cheers,
Kev

OOC:  Gonna roll for Hau'dn, and move us along.

19:50, Today: DM, on behalf of Hau'dn Shera rolled 7 using 1d20+5. Spot check.
19:54, Today: Dominique de Vedia rolled 23 using 1d20+5. Spot check.
19:54, Today: Caylin Direbrook rolled 12 using 1d20+2. Spot check.
19:53, Today: Aine Cliodhna rolled 15 using 1d20+11. Spot check.

An eruption of flame occurs in the middle of the small town square--the one that houses the statue of the old Paldorian King Tanoch Dwarffriend and the municipal fountain.  A blossom of orange fire opens to the night sky, and then subsides almost instantly.  One unfortunate man, crossing the square, is caught in the conflagration and is almost instantly slain--as the fireball fades, the man is collapsing, his limbs and torso already curling into the fetal position as the intense heat melts flesh and shrivels muscle and ligament alike.  The two acacia trees nearest to the statue are kindled into flame, as well.

Dominique cries out, "My friends!  There!"  Asher nods before the priest even speaks--the monk had seen the figure move in the darkened shadow of the trees even as whatever was thrown into the square detonated.  Garryn also caught a glimpse of a barely visible someone hurling...something...into the square--from the shadows of those same trees.

OOC:  Opposed checks resolved this round of rolls.  Updated map up on the site.  Asher, Garryn, and Dom will roll initiatives for this first partial round, and we'll move things along accordingly.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:47, Tue 28 Sept 2004.

Just beginning to wonder whether the fire wagon may have been a target, Hau'dn is caught by surprise as flame blossoms, brightly leaping into the night sky.  "What did you see?"

Hau'dn's gaze seems trapped by the horrid fire washing across the square.

OOG: Sorry for not being around today, I blew out my rotator cuff yesterday and after initial examination today it is feared I may have even torn it.

Kev - did you mean Vil or Garryn for the initiative roll?  Vil rolled the 20 spot check...

09:15, Today: Asher Willbourne rolled 20 using 1d20+3. initiative.

Asher will run (base speed 40') towards the unknown figure and (if he can close the distance this round) attack the figure with an unarmed strike (add "stunning fist") aimed at the upper torso (intentional non-lethal blow).

OOC: Kev, Asher would prefer to "charge" for the +2AB, but I need you to tell me if he has the staight line through the trees or no.

While closing the distance, Asher trys to determine if this figure matches the discription of Zante: thin, dishevelled, bearded, etc.

09:40, Today: Asher Willbourne rolled 14 using 1d20+7. spot  roll /more info.

OOC: sorry about the haste in posting, but I will be out of the office most of today and do not want to hold up the game. Kev, if Asher makes it to the stranger, will you just make the necessary rolls?
This message was last edited by the player at 15:24, Tue 28 Sept 2004.

Haud'n wrote:

OOG: Sorry for not being around today, I blew out my rotator cuff yesterday and after initial examination today it is feared I may have even torn it.

OOC: Oowwww! I'm feeling for ya. I went under the knife to repair mine. There is no pain I know like a dislocation. Take care and good luck on the recovery.

Brian
This message was last edited by the player at 14:46, Tue 28 Sept 2004.

OOC:  That would be Garryn.  If you're curious about things, you can often get a sense for the rolls that underlie the game mechanics by checking out the Dice Roller.  Your DM also uses the Roller, although he doesn't necessarily post clear and complete "reasons for roll".

Bruce, my sympathies for your torn rotator cuff.  Shoulders...the most mobile (and therefore the least stable) joint in the body.

Cheers,
Kev

Garryn will take off running towards the figure but taking a different tact than Dom and Asher, cutting through the trees in the SW corner of the fence surrounding bldg 14. I'll wait to post more until prior actions have been resolved.

OOC

Kevin - ah, thanks for the clarification.  I was looking for G-Mony's roll in the thread (instead of the dice roller).

Bruce - Get some rest and take care of that Shoulder!

Jason

Many people in the vicinity of the explosion yell out and flee, panicked at the sudden fire.  One of the two guards at the manor door starts towards the square, sword in hand.  The other stays by the door with his bow, scanning the area and obviously not seeing the figure that Asher, Dominique, and Garryn have spotted.  The foliage and branches of the acacia trees, set afire by the explosion, are burning hotly--casting weird and shifting shadows and patches of illumination across the square.  The figure in the shadows sets off towards the manor at a relatively quick pace, skillfully keeping to the shadows and using the shifting, flame-lit chiaroscuro of the burning trees to slide through the night.  Asher, Garryn, and Dominique can all see the figure, but are a little disconcerted as to how difficult it is to keep their eyes on him or her.

Dominique, never taking his eyes from the creeping figure, softly chants a simple Mithran prayer--touching one of the crossbow quarrels that are contained in a quarrel case on his belt.  One of the quarrels begins to give off a bright light, which the priest quickly shields with his hand so as not to interfere with others' vision.

Asher sets off as quickly as he can, striving to close some of the distance between the skulking figure and himself.  The monk is still unable to make out details of the figure, other than a certain thinness.  Asher moves purposefully, and the figure glances backwards, and starts slightly.



OOC:  Here are the mechanics--note that the party started approximately 90' from the figure.

Partial, surprise round (only a standard or move action allowed)

28:  Figure moves 25', Hide check w/ -5 penalty
24:  Dominique casts Light on a crossbow bolt
20:  Asher moves his regular movement (40').  Figure Spots monk (DC of 15, no Hiding involved).
12:  Garryn is up.

The others may attempt another Spot check this partial round.  We then move into a full round dynamic, after Garryn's action.

20:06, Today: Aine Cliodhna rolled 14 using 1d20+11. Spot check.
20:06, Today: Caylin Direbrook rolled 17 using 1d20+2. Spot check.

Revised town map up on the site.

Cheers,
Kev

22:22, Today: Villhalas of Cameron rolled 22 using 1d20+5. Vil's second spot check.

OOC: Kevin, just want a quick clarification to sum up the partial round; Asher started 90'approx from stranger and at end of partial round, is still 75' distant from the elusive figure?

OOC:  Because it is a partial round, you can only do a limited number of things--charging is not one of 'em, for example.  Asher moves his full movement as a standard action; he can't move any farther in this partial round.  And yes, he starts 90' away, the figure moves 25', and Asher moves 40', bringing the distance between the two to 75'

Cheers,
Kev

(12) Garryn springs forward, his eyes firmly fixed on the shadowy figure some distance in front of him.  The rogue moves under the trees that overhang the southwest corner of the town corrals, intending to cut through this little copse and continue his pursuit of...whomever.



OOC:  We begin a new, full round

28:  Figure
24:  Dominique
20:  Asher
12:  Garryn

Note that this initiative sequence does not include the other party members.  We'll be rolling initiatives soon enough...see the next post.

(28)  The shadowy figure, glancing back, apparently notes Asher moving forward with some purpose.  The figure hesitates only fractionally, and then speeds off towards the eastern garrison wall.  Nonetheless, the running figure is still attempting to keep to the shadows as much as possible.  Reaching the wall, figure leaps...and in an amazing display of athleticism, manages a *7 foot vertical jump*, arms extended upward, to grasp the top of the 15 foot wall.  The figure hangs there momentarily, preparing to pull itself up and over the wall.

The guard at the manor doors with the bow, scanning the area, still does not spot the figure on its running flight and subsequent leap for the wall.


OOC:  Anyone who has not spotted our lovable "figure", please make another Spot check vs. a Hide check of 10 (w/ the -20 modifier because of running).  If your Spot check is successful, please roll Initiative so I can fit you into this round...we are at segment 28 right now.

16:53, Today: Villhalas of Cameron rolled 13 using 1d20+4. Initiative.

OOC:  please see Vil's earlier spot roll...

Asher will utilize a full round action to *run* after the stranger (160' move) with a vertical leap at the end of his move (understanding that this action will *roll over* into the next round and take up half of the next round for asher-- but if i am reading the PHB correctly, should be  legal move).

Asher rolled a 25 on the jump for just over a 6' vertical leap. Will this enable him to grasp the top of the wall?

Asher muses to himself, "Who is this guy? He's amazing."
This message was last edited by the player at 22:59, Wed 29 Sept 2004.

(28) Figure moved and jumped to grab top of garrison wall.

(24) Dominique loads his crossbow with the Lighted bolt and fires...disastrously.  The bolt is not seated correctly, and the crossbow string, as it fires, merely sends the bolt spinning to the ground.  Additionally, the string snaps with an audible popping sound, and one end whips across the priest's face, leaving a welt on his cheek.

(20) Asher speeds off towards the figure, likewise leaping for the garrison wall...and barely catching himself, by the very tips of his fingers, on a slightly lower section of the wooden pallisade wall some 20 feet or so from the thin figure.  A glance to the monk's left reveals a thin but wiry man with long dark hair, several days' of stubble on his face, armored in studded leather with a long sword at his side and a short bow on his back.

(18) Caylin successfully spots the figure as it runs toward the garrison and leaps and grabs the top of the wall.  The halfling instantly nocks an arrow and trains it on the figure, but holds his fire and glances at Garryn.  "Who's this, rogue?  Foe or nae?  D' ye wish me t' fire on 'em?"  Caylin hesitates only to allow Garryn to respond.


OOC:  Garryn is up on 12.  Caylin is delaying his action (dropping back in the initiative to 17) to allow Garryn to respond.  Remember, the halfling didn't see anything exept the explosion, and has already shot a citizen tonight.  I need a Spot roll from Hau'dn and an initiative roll if successful.  The initiative order appears as follows:

28:  Thin man
24:  Dom (fumbled and is out next round)
20:  Asher
18:  Caylin, drops to 17 this round
12:  Garryn
8:   Aine

Hau'dn--unknown.
Vilhallas--did not make the necessary Spot check to enter into initiative sequence this round.

The latest Borderton map shows updated positions.

Cheers,
Kev

"Kill him!" Garryn calls to his small companion as he runs at full speed towards the retreating figure. Garryn doesn't even consider trying to match the figures jump and instead sets about quickly climbing the wall.

IGA: Hau'dn rolled a 14 on his spot and a 7 on his initiative, which works nicely since yesterday was a complete bust for getting online.

(17)  Caylin, squinting to make out the figure levering itself up over the wall in the dimness, sends an arrow from his short bow thudding home.  Asher hears a muffled curse as the halfling's arrow finds its mark.

(12)  Garryn races towards the garrison wall, closing the distance at a run, but unable to begin climbing the wall until next round.

(8)  Aine, following Garryn's barked imperative and Caylin's lead, lets fly with one of her own arrows.  Another solid hit accompanies the ranger's shot, and the previously muffled curse of the figure turns into a full-throated yell.

(7)  Hau'dn is up, and then we move to a new round.


OOC:  Caylin needed to roll a concealment miss chance (25%) due to the darkness.  Aine, with her half-elven low light vision, did not.

Hau'dn cautiously shakes his head.  Odds are it is this Barnabas character but what if it is not.  What if this is a distraction to pull everyone off the manor.  Is it worth the risk?  It would make a good tale to run after and get a first hand account but if in turn it costs another his life then what?

Hau'dn debates with himself within the silence of his own mind and then makes a decision.  Slipping back into the shadows, he stays to observe the manor, in case this whole thing is indeed a diversion.

(7) Hau'dn slips back into the deeper shadows nearer the stable outbuildings, still keeping an eye on the manor--and focusing much of his attention on other parts of the square and manor building, in search of an attack from elsewhere.

New round:  Villhalas can clearly see the figure now that Aine and Caylin have both struck it with arrow fire.

(28) The figure pulls itself up and over the wall, and the man's torso and head reemerge long enough to seize something from around his neck and hurl it into a spot between Asher and Garryn.  The monk is clinging to the top of the pallisade, and Garryn is poised to begin his ascent of the pallisade.  Another fiery eruption occurs...this time engulfing Asher and Garryn.


OOC:  Figure is able to pull itself over the wall and engage in one additional action.  Garryn and Asher must both make Reflex saves--please roll those.  Asher does NOT receive his Dexterity bonuses, due to his current position.  Dominique loses this round due to his fumble last round, so Asher will be up next.  Please see the Combat Map on the website for location details.

Garryn tries to roll away as the fireball engulfs the area around him.