Brenzeg stands and bows rather formally to his litter mates. "I will see you in Smalltown." He then darts out of the entranceway and disappears into the night.

Once his companions are ready Verzeg pushes everyone out into the dark. Turning he uses a large stick to push out the supporting rocks. The roof of his hideout collapses in on itself in a loud rumble of falling masonry.

Grabbing his beetle's reins Verzeg then begins to lead the way east and slightly south. The sound of the Hombobom drums suddenly stops. The night falls silent. It usually means one thing. The hunting beetles are coming!

There is no time.

Vezeg hisses to Madzeg and Hurzeg

"Lead off! I will be at the rear, ready to fight if we have to. Ready a spell of attack or healing if you have no attack spells. If we get separated we meet on the riverbank a hundred metres from the Big Bridge."

Verzeg readies his spear and grimly remembers his four levels of bladesharp, then he follows his brothers onto the ruins, making the best time his little legs are capable of.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 2):

The trollkin run along the side of a rundown building the ground to the left is a steep downward slope bereft of plants, it is covered in scree and looks a little unstable.

spot hidden roll please

Verzeg pants alongside the fast moving Beetle, its legs skittering over the rubble and scree from ruined buildings. He scans about, ready for enemies.

Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 30 using 1d100.  Verzeg Darksense Scan 87%. Success
This message was last edited by the player at 10:25, Sun 10 Mar 2019.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 4):

As he moves along the side of the building Verzeg sees Madzeg clambering over a large pile of rubble. Something strikes him that all is not well with the rubble, a large wooden beam is sticking out from it. There is a rope ties onto the end that disappears down the slope. It suddenly goes taut.

Verzeg lunges at Madzeg to get him away from the trap.

"Look out!"

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 6):

Roll DEX x 5

In reply to Adrian (msg # 7):

Verzeg manages to push Madzeg clear of the pile of rubble as the beam is pulled out and the rubble tumbles down the slope. You hear several raucous voices, in an unrecognised language, shouting and then slingstones start pinging off the stones nearby.

Turning his doubly armoured back on the slingers, his slung shield giving him extra protection, he hurries up his brothers and the beetle, watching for signs of pursuit.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 9):

Verzeg leads his brothers past the building and into a more open area of ground. There are sounds of someone climbing up the slope behind and a strange clicking.

Verzeg shudders. As a long time initiate of Gorakiki he assumes the clicking is the sound of beetle mandibles, and the thought of going down screaming as they pulled him apart is not enticing. He needs to get away from the place right away. He grabs his nearest brother's shoulder and points towards more ruins where hopefully they can lose their pursuers.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 11):

The noise is definitely insect-like but as he reaches the next set of ruins a glance over his shoulder shows a long, segmented tail with a larger stinger on it poking out from behind the other building.

Verzeg swings around and faces the creature, not quite sure what it is yet. He starts saying the Sharpening Prayer for his spear. As it's a Zorak Zoran spell it comes out not as worship but as propitiation.

"Nasty Uncle, make my spear sharp so I can split this thing for you and maybe you won't give me bad dreams today!"

He readies his spear as it glimmers with red-flecked blackness. His guts tighten again, trying not to let the fear overtake him. It's now that enlo die, when they're so scared that they turn and run and make themselves easy targets. He grits his teeth and stands his ground.

Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 24 using 1d100.  Verzeg Casting Chance 92%. Success

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 13):

From round the corner of the ruined building comes a horror never imagined. It is as long as a horse and looks like a scorpion, complete with clicking pincers and a stinging tail but at the front is a human looking torso.

In one hand it carries a club and in the other a small, round shield. It makes its way across the open ground directly towards Verzeg. It is not rushing but neither is it going slowly.

Verzeg is aware on the noise of another of the things moving round to try and get ahead of them.

He hears a grunt of effort and the whistle of a stone as Madzeg launches a missile from his sling. He hits the thing in the middle of its scaly body causing it stop halts its advance allowing Madzeg another shot which bounces harmlessly off its leg.

Verzeg hisses at it, crouching down to no more than two feet tall. He's seen too many of these things and he knows them too well. The tail is the real threat, he had to make a new shield after one's tail speared right through the old one and only just stopped in his armour. They are of the darkness but can't sense in it, he remembers the wall of darkness prayer he has in his medallion and think it may come in useful.

"Watch out behind us! He tells his litter mates, there's one trying to get around us!"

With that he lunges into attack, flicking the spear around to make the scorpion-ko work to parry it, ready to bring it up to parry the dreaded stinger.

Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 52 using 1d100.  SR6, Spear attack. 86%+20%=106%. Success
Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 19 using 1d100.  Spear parry, 69%. Success

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 15):

His saw-bladed spear strikes home nicely severing the middle leg on the creature's right. It barely notices the loss. I swings down with its club but the low crouched enlo proves to be a hard target and it passes over his head. As the stinger sweeps across, Verzeg bats it to one side with his spear. The spear shears the thing off in one go and it and its owner fall to the floor in a spray of ichor.

Needed to do a quick rewrite after the parry damage was rolled.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:19, Mon 11 Mar 2019.

Verzeg spins around, having no time to savour his victory, and looks for the other scorpionman in the darkness. He thinks it's probably struggling to see what's going on.

He scuttles over to where he heard the last one, ready to kill or be killed.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 17):

He turns to see Hurzeg and Naazeg facing down the second scorpion-man.

Somehow Hurzeg, who looks more likely to injure himself, lands a blow on the monster's thorax. Naazeg swings wildly with his club but misses completely.

The scorpionman lashes his stinger into Hurzeg's arm, his attempt at a parry doesn't stop the blow and the arms is almost ripped right off. He shrieks and falls to the floor. The venom working quickly on his small body.

Verzeg goes cold. Suddenly a huge anger builds in him, like the 'anger heart' prayer he knows to counteract the effects of The Bright Thing in the day. Big Things always hurt Little Things, and now little Hurzeg was going to die.

Verzeg squeals in fury and hacks at the monster, his fury is so great he is almost unable to strike through his bitter tears.

Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 94 using 1d100.  SR6, Spear attack. 86%+20%=106%. Success
Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 16 using 1d20.  Hit Location.
Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 17 using 3d6+6.  Saw Tooth Spear Damage.

This message was last edited by the player at 22:04, Mon 11 Mar 2019.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 19):

The scorpion man's right arm is severed. It lets out a screech and turns, fleeing into the night. Madzeg's sling stones following it.

Verzeg is free to tend to his dying brother.

Dropping his spear unceremoniously, Verzeg open his pouch - dropping a few things out in his haste - and fumbles out one of the antidote potions he picked up so long ago. He pours it on the deep wound, starting back as it suddenly foams out in reaction with the venom, and then he readies the horse brush Heal matrix and lets the magic flow into his litter-mates arm.

Resting back on his haunches, he sighs in relief as he sees that the effects take hold. Shaking slightly he gathers up his dropped items and the empty flask and replaces them in his pouch. Gathering up his spear he leans on it as he helps Hurzeg to his feet.

"Hurzeg! You are too little to fight Big Things like that! Please, from now on just throw rocks or something!" He says, relief coloring his voice.

(Expended: Total 8MP from crystal. 1x POT 12 Spider/Scorpion Antidote - noted on sheet)

Aware that he has little time to waste, Verzeg quickly checks the scorpionman for decent loot, and anything looks good to an enlo, before picking up his spear and moving the beetle on towards the bridge.

"Hopefully the dead scorpion-thing will give our followers something to think about." He says grimly.

In reply to Verzeg Black Beetle (msg # 22):

The scorpionman had 25L in a small pouch and his club has some kind of markings on it that look like they might be magical in nature. Roll evaluate

"Shinies!" Says Verzeg, taking the pouch and putting it in his own, He has little concept of money but understands it has intrinsic value, he's just not too sure on how to use it.

He looks at the club speculatively, his dark sense picking up the markings. A good club is a good club anyway but this looks interesting.

Verzeg Black Beetle rolled 58 using 1d100.  Evaluate club, (40%) Failure

Unable to decide he takes the club and the shield and puts them in one of the panniers on the beetle and proceeds towards the bridge, making sure his brothers are close.

Club, shield and coins added to sheet.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:48, Tue 12 Mar 2019.