Tex glowers at Spotswood. He didn't quite get all those words, but he could tell an insulting tone of voice when he heard it. He growls, and switches his grip from the trumpet gun to the lapel of Spotswood's shirt. He lifts the scientist off his feet, pulling him to eye level.

"You think I'm dumb. You think I can't tell the difference between booms an' bangs. I ain't dumb. You is dumb, askin' about dynamite, lightin' up cigarettes, while we all still down here...you is really dumb, fer all yer fancy words an' whatnot. So I says again -- blow yer trumpet there all you like, but NO BOOMS!"

((OOC: Carl? Wildcat? Murphy? Henry? Charging Bear? Do any of you have any input on this situation, or are you just watching it play out?))
This message was last edited by the player at 16:27, Mon 12 Jan 2015.

Charging Bear hakes his head at the interaction between Tex and Augustus. "I don't think arguing about things is going to be helpful. We need to get moving and do what we came here to do."

"I concur. Mr. Shaw, please let Mr. Spotswood down..." Dr. Ward says, then trails off as Spanish Joe begins waving he hand urgently.

"Whatever is..." Dr. Ward begins, but the scout presses his finger to his lips, then begins pointing down the tunnel. He cups a hand around his ear and points again.

((OOC: Notice check time!))

OOC:
13:33, Today: Charging Bear rolled 6,2 using d6-1,d6-1, rerolling max with rolls of (6+1)7,3. Notice (-1 Fatigue).

Wildcat had noticed the almost unconscious way the Dust Adders had moved to circle that pale Eastern feller when he'd remonstrated with Tex. Her tension eased a little at Charging Bear's words.

"I were just about ter say..." she trailed off, then made a calculation and holstered her pistol, bringing the hypertemporal shotgun to bear on the darkness beyond Joe, finger off the trigger until such time as the Dust Adder would be well out of the way, well aware of the quiet Adder at her side.


[[I was at work! Well, I was asleep at the time that first lot of posts went up, then I went to work...food an' all.

Carl Allans rolled 2,4 using d6-1,d6-1, rerolling max with rolls of 3,5. Notice?

Wildcat Hawkins, rolled 3,4 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,4. Notice? ]]

In the quiet, something can be heard. The soft scraping of scale against stone...and the occasional shake of a rattler's tale.

If it's a snake, it's a big one...or more than one.

((OOC: It's coming from the tunnel on the left. Obvious exits are: south (back toward the central chamber) and north (into the unknown).))

Augustus's hand brushed his bow tie, and his coat began to vibrate faintly.  His voice took on a strange timbre.  "You're obviously not smart enough to realize that our plan is your best chance of living.  Wildcat over there has most of the 'big booms', so if you don't like it, we suggest you talk to him.  But for right now, Put Us Down."

Got a 29 on a Puppet roll, the command is to put him down.  You get a Spirit roll to resist, but if you don't, my plan is to shut down the gizmo the moment Tex lets go.
00:08, Today: Augustus Spotswood rolled 29,1 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (10+10+9)29,1. Puppet.
00:07, Today: Augustus Spotswood rolled 3,4 using d4,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,4. Notice.

Augustus finds himself unceremoniously dropped to the ground. And for good reason...the giant is backing away swiftly, a look of abject terror on his ugly, mashed-in face as a sudden rattling comes from down the corridor to the left...

...followed by a dozen very, very large rattlers, scales glowing with eldrich energy. Each of the snakes is at least a dozen feet long, and as thick as a man's wrist.

"Move!" Ward shouts.

some mood music

((OOC: Yeah, Tex is not going to be able to contest that, not only because of the Puppet but because he is deathly afraid of snakes.))

The muscles in Charging Bear's arms and shoulders twitch as he sees the serpents. His fight or flight response tends go more towards fight than flight. "Go I'll hold here for a moment then follow." says the native son to the others he readies his tomahawks.

OOC: I'd LOVE move to the nearest choke point where only 3 or 4 could attack.

In reply to Charging Bear (msg # 248):

((OOC: You're in a tunnel, so only three could get at you anyway))

"Don't you worry none, Chair'kee," Wildcat says, keeping her aim and her jaw set. "Reckon there's enough for both of us."

She throws a swift glance to Carl and shakes hair strayed from her baling-twine ponytail back over her shoulder, sighting. "Th' Saviour said "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy", an' you know, I do believe Him."

[[Going to renew that Smite, since she's reloaded since then.
Wildcat Hawkins, rolled 22,1 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (10+10+2)22,1. holy (*&@ing buckshot, Batman!]]

Carl catches the Ranger's look and turns to make sure the pack doesn't split and bolt in terror, signalling Mike, Henry and Murphy to keep alongside Tex and stop him throwing a fit or getting lost if possible. Joe and Ned he assigns to guard Ward, and Augustus he ignores completely.

Although he backs off enough that the foreguard have room, he doesn't seem set to immediately start running himself: if the Serpent didn't want them going that way, it was probably the way they ought to go.

"Glad to see you got a new trick or two since last I saw ya ranger." Charging Bear says with a grin as he spins his twin blades waiting on the unnatural snakes to get closer.

OOC: I couldn't recall how wide the tunnels were
This message was last edited by the player at 20:18, Tue 13 Jan 2015.

((OOC: it's 2 characters wide. Probably time to draw for initiative.

14:35, Today: Mirror Serpent's Brood drew the single card: 10S using the Deadlands system. Snakes. Why did it have to be snakes?

14:40, Today: Dr. Dexter Ward drew the single card: 6C using the Deadlands system.


14:42, Today: Dust Adders drew the single card: JS using the Deadlands system.))
This message was last edited by the GM at 21:42, Tue 13 Jan 2015.

OOC: Dice Roller keeps showing CB SUCH love
16:43, Today: Charging Bear drew the single card: 2D using a deck of 54 cards. Initiative .

[[Wildcat Hawkins drew the single card: 5H using the Deadlands system. init.

21:53, Today: Carl Allans drew the single card: 10D using the Deadlands system. init. ]]

Turn Order:

• Augustus Spotswood: KS
• Dust Adders: JS
• Mirror Serpant's Brood: 10S
• Carl: 10D
• Mad Irish Murphy: 6D
• Dr. Ward: 6C
• Wildcat: 5H
• Charging Bear: 2D

This message was last edited by the GM at 15:35, Wed 14 Jan 2015.

10:31, Today: Mad Irish Murphy rolled 6,1 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,1. Notice!
10:33, Today: Mad Irish Murphy drew the 2 cards: 3S, 6D using the Deadlands system. Initiative, Level Headed.


Murphy had been shaking his head at Tex and the Saxon mad man, but just as he had opened his mouth to say, well, something, he heard the rattling.

"Oh, good. The snakes are back. Took'em a while to figure out I'm not really Saint Patrick, ey, Carl?"
The small Irishman furrows his brow. "Don't think it's gonna work a second time..."
This message was last edited by the player at 09:36, Wed 14 Jan 2015.

Augustus spun around, with his scattergun ready.

OOC: Sorry, I was on my phone all day.  I couldn't cut and paste.

01:50, Today: Augustus Spotswood drew the single card: KS using a deck of 54 cards. Init.

((OOC: Augustus is up first!))

Augustus leveled his gun at the snakes.  "Yes, I know they're too close.  Perhaps some distance, then?  The sonic transducer should work, our audio-vibratory physio-molecular transport device!"  As he pulled the trigger, waves began to coalesce around the gun, then burst forth in a cacaphony of sound, not unlike if you fed twelve million beans to a goat.  Vibrations roared through the air, slamming into the snakes and sending them flying.  As the din faded, Augustus started to mutter to himself.  "Odd, they went in all directions instead of on a flat plane.  Well, I suppose there were too many muttering snakes on that muttering plane."

Anyone in a cone template has to make a Strength roll (presumably at -2, I'm pretty sure I got a raise) or be flung back 6 inches and is prone.  Thanks to the special effect of my power, they're all shaken as well.


00:23, Today: Augustus Spotswood rolled 6 using 2d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,2. Pummel distance.
00:14, Today: Augustus Spotswood rolled 3,28 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,(6+6+6+6+4)28. Pummel  .

The glowing serpents seem utterly shocked by the sudden warbling fart of the trumpet gun. They fly back a good thirty feet and land writhing.

((OOC: Yup, that's a raise, and with game inches representing 2 yards apiece, that's...that quite an impressive distance. Were you firing from behind Charging Bear and Wildcat? If so, they'd be caught in the blast.

08:09, Today: Mirror Serpent's Brood rolled 4,0,2,-1,-1,2 using d8-2,d8-2,d8-2,d8-2,d8-2,d8-2, rerolling max with rolls of 6,2,4,1,1,4. Strength (2nd batch).
08:08, Today: Mirror Serpent's Brood rolled 2,15,4,2,1,5 using d8-2,d8-2,d8-2,d8-2,d8-2,d8-2, rerolling max with rolls of 4,(8+8+1)17,6,4,3,7. Strength (1st batch).

Not a single one of them saves. They are all Shaken.

I think I also need Strength checks (-2) from both Charging Bear and Wildcat, vs. 28(!).))

Charging Bear goes flying from Augustus's blast and quite literally was left seeing stars.

OOC:
10:34, Today: Charging Bear rolled -1,7 using d8-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,(6+3)9. Strength vs 28.
Well that's a fabulous fail ... not going to burn a chip to reroll as its rather unlikely I can beat a 28 even with Elan's +2.

"Wh-" is as far as Wildcat gets at the noise, then isn't there any more.

[[Wildcat Hawkins, rolled 10,4 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of (6+4)10,4. Resist! Flyyyyyyyyyying...wheeeeeeeee!!!]]

Wildcat, Charging Bear, and the snakes all go flying, landing in a particularly tangled heap further own down the tunnel.

"You moron!" Mike shouts at Augustus. "What in God's holy name do you think you're doing!?"

"No time." Spanish Joe says, tugging on Mike's elbow. "More coming."

"I bet the snakes are being drawn to that mad scientist's fart gun." Heavy Henry grunts. "It must be gettin' 'em all riled."

"Doc, we need to get going." Ned says as he tugs at Dr. Ward.

"One moment." Ward replies, pulling a silver pentacle medallion from his lapel. "These creatures are not of this world, and it will be useful to know how best to dispatch them."

He begins muttering in latin, and then tilts his head as if listening to some unseen voice. He makes a second gesture, but nothing seems to happen. He frowns. "Still experiencing interference from Tezcatlcoatl. Humph. Well, it was still informative." He looks over at Carl and Murphy. "Would you kindly extricate them from the serpents and get them moving? We will meet you up ahead. And let them know that the serpents can only be permanently killed with a dose of venom, either their own or from other rattlesnakes. If you kill any before you free them, make sure to keep the heads so we can harvest their poison sacs. That might be something to try against the enchanted Comanche."

"Doc! We gotta be gone!" Ned says, more urgently. "If you die, this whole thing'll be a waste!"

Ward sighs, and reluctantly lets the man pull him away down the corridor to the north.

((OOC: The Dust Adders hold their action until Ward goes, though they use free actions to curse out Augustus.

Ward uses his action to cast Analyze Foe, spending 2 power points to divine an Immunity, Invulnerability, or Weakness. He has a -2 penalty on Spellcasting rolls because the spirits he draws on for his spells are actively working against him down here.

15:53, Today: Dr. Dexter Ward rolled 5,1 using d10-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 7,3. Spellcasting. Success. Ward learns an important weakness, he gains a +1 bonus on his Trait rolls that directly affect the snakes, and the snakes have a -1 penalty on any Trait rolls affecting him. This effect lasts for the next 3 rounds unless he maintains it.

He also activates his free-action Mystic Protection power as an added defense.
16:02, Today: Dr. Dexter Ward rolled 2,-1 using d10-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 4,1. Mystic Protection. The Mystic Protection fails due to the penalty.

He passes an order to Carl and Murphy and then moves his speed down the tunnel. The rest of the Dust Adders use their action to follow along.

Cards for next turn:
Ward: AD
Dust Adders: 3H))

---

Carl is up next.