I still have 2 npc chips, I'll burn them for the two mercs to soak.

20:15, Today: Moses rolled 8 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of (6+2)8. Mercenary 2 soaking.
20:14, Today: Moses rolled 3 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3. Mercenary 1 soaking.

Brown raises his head an inch.
"We got 'em boys! We got 'em on the run!" He barely contains a "whoop" as he squeezes off another shot.
The remaining four, with decidely less entusiasm, follow his lead, pumping the dark air full of lead...


20:17, Today: Moses rolled 19 using 5d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,1,4,5,5. soldiers. firing.
..but not hitting anything.


20:19, Today: Moses drew the single card: 9D using the Deadlands system. soldiers, initiative.

The return fire has the soldiers ducking even more, though one of the soldiers catches a bullet.

((OOC: The groups on hold return fire. They have a total penalty of -2 between Cover, Rain, and their Aim bonus.

Group 2: 12:02, Today: Wild Bunch Outlaws rolled 0,5,0,2 using d6-2,d6-2,d6-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 2,(6+1)7,2,4. Shooting! at cover. 1 Hit.

Damage: 12, which will Incapacitate one of the Soldiers if they don't soak.

Group 3: 12:04, Today: Wild Bunch Outlaws rolled -1,0,2,1 using d6-2,d6-2,d6-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 1,2,4,3. Shooting! at cover. No hits.

I'm surprised you didn't have some of your soldiers shoot at the flamethrower guys, since those guys don't have any cover right now.))

---

Moses, it's your turn!

Because I forgot about that. :-)
Oh well.

Moses' Champion edge applies against the Pole men, right? That's +2 Toughness for me, then.



Something is wrong. Moses feels it. The cries of triumph had turned into shouts of surprise and screams of fear.

"HOLD YOUR FIRE!" the prophet bellows. "WE ARE TEARING US APART WHEN WE NEED TO STAND TOGETHER AGAINST THE DARKNESS THAT WILL CONSUME US!"


Persuasion?

21:37, Today: Moses rolled 7 using 1d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 5. Legend chip. Total of 9.
21:37, Today: Moses rolled 2,-1 using d6-2,d6-2, rerolling max with rolls of 4,1. Persuasion, negative Charisma.


21:38, Today: Moses drew the single card: 9C using the Deadlands system. Initiative.

Moses's voice thunders across the battle, echoes off the trees and the hillside.

And, for a brief moment, the guns stutter and fall silent.

"What was that, nigger?" Arkansas Tom "You surrenderin'?"

But from the trees, shouts are still being heard.

"Hellllllllllp! It's got me! Hellllllllllllp!"

"Mighty fucking CHRIST!"

"Leon! Leoooon! Let him go!"

Meanwhile, the woman with the jetpack flies into the air above the battle, screaming her head off and pointing her dynamite launcher every-which-way...

((OOC: Champion applies, yes. And that roll gives you a brief "talking is a free action" action against the hostiles.

Did I seriously not make a map for this fight!? What the hell, me!?

No wonder this fight got so bogged down. I have over 20 bandits, 20 ravenites, the Pole Men, Art and the Cheyenne, Moses and his soldiers and mercenaries...and no sodding map.))

"THERE IS AN EVIL IN THE TREES!" Moses bellows back.
"It watches us, singling us out. Will you waste your fire and your bullets in a futile attack on Moses and his flock? Or will you join ranks with the Lord's Own Army and defeat the Evil before it descends upon thee all?"

((OOC: Alrighty. so since your band and the Ravenites are about to enter the general fight with the bandits, pole men, and soldiers (why!? why did I think this was a good idea!?) I'm going to need you to make me an Initiative card draw for you, Kira, WTNA, and KIH. How do you want to split them up? You and Kira on one card and the Dog Soldiers on another might be the cleanest way.

Meanwhile, I'll split the Ravenites into 4 groups of 5.

21:50, Today: Ravenite Braves drew the 4 cards: 2D, RJ!, 3C, AS using the Deadlands system.

Looks like some of those Ravenites are going to be really awesome soon, and that's our first Joker award.

This will all be on the next round. I still have a massive, massive post to make for all the NPCs that get to go.))

4D for Art, BJ for Cheyenne. More chips!
This message was last edited by the player at 12:43, Tue 04 Oct 2016.

"Shit." The leader grumbles. "Fine! Cease fire, Boys! At least until we figure out what the hell is going on!"

((OOC: So I've got way too many combatants now to cover this under the normal combat rules, so let's switch this up.

This is now a Mass Combat.

I'm going to count The PC's forces as follows:

Moses (Wild Card) -- I'm going count Private Brown and Little Crow as bonuses to your rolls, rather than worry about how they count for tokens
Art (Wild Card) -- I'm going to count the Dog Soldiers and Kira as bonuses to your rolls, rather than worry about how they count for tokens
Arknasas Tom (Wild Card)
Candy McShane (Henchman) 2 Bandits with Flamethrowers, 2 with Gatling Rifles -- Another package deal
5 Soldiers
2 Mercenaries
22 Bandits (not counting the Incapacitated ones, but counting the Shaken ones)

Meanwhile, the bad guys are:

Wanahtah (Wild Card)
3 Pole Men (all Wild Cards)
20 Ravenite Braves with Ghost Shirts (+4 Toughness vs. bullets)

Moses's ad hoc combined force is probably stronger than the Ravenites in theory, but the shirts provide a great equalizer, and the Pole Men are damn scary.

So I'm going to say that Moses has 10 tokens, the Ravenites have 8

Modifiers!

Moses's side has light Artillery/Air Support in the form of dynamite-shooting Candy and the guys with the Mad Science weapons. That's a +1 bonus

Moses's Side has a +2 Bonus because they have 2 more tokens than the other side.

The Ravenites have a terrain advantage that cuts into Moses's advantages somewhat. They get +2 to their roll.

The Ravenites are also coming up on a confused, wild three-way battle, so they get another +2 Bonus for tactics.

Neither side has anyone with any Knowledge (Battle), so these are going to be straight default rolls (d4-2)

Current Modifiers
Moses's Side would be rolling at d4+1
The Ravenites' Side would be rolling at d4+2

But the PCs can still affect the battle!

Describe what you are going to do to try and even the odds, and then make a Fighting, Shooting, or Arcane Skill roll. You get a +2 bonus because your forces are better, and each of your allied Major NPCs can aid you (adding a +1 bonus to your roll for each helper--see above.)

Moses, you have a total bonus of +4 (+2 tokens, +2 allies)
Art, you have a total bonus of +5 (+2 tokens, +3 allies)

However, the downside of allies is that they are going to be in harm's way. If you wind up taking damage from your Battle roll, one of your allies suffers the hit instead.

any questions?))

OOC: Okay, I think I've got an idea of what's going on, but lemme be sure...

Art's group was way separated from the others and is well behind the Pole Men, time-wise. However, they noticed the Ravenites and have been staying out of sight of them until an opportune time. I'm assuming the Ravenites are going to join the battle in some normal way, but they aren't aware of Art and his crew. Could his group stealthily (they have been quiet so far) move toward the flank or the rear of whatever battle line the Ravenites are drawing and hit them in a way that will be a surprise? The Cheyenne should be able to fire arrows from hidden positions, and Art is still PumArt and can do a little bit of hit-and-run.

Would that work for these purposes? If so, what sort of roll would you like to see?

((OOC: Well, sounds like a decent Tactical plan, so you can make a Stealth check (with that +5 bonus) instead of a fighting, Shooting, or Arcane Skill roll. The better you roll, the better your ambush is pulled off. Remember that combat rounds inside a Mass Combat cover a lot more time than normal combat rounds, so this one roll will represent the positioning and surprise attack.))

Art and his crew slow themselves a little bit to allow the Ravenites to get in front of them. Art and company then slowly and quietly move toward the Ravenite flank once the battle is joined. With surprise on their side, they strike!


23:26, Today: Art C. Wiley rolled 10,9 using d8+5,d6+5, rerolling max with rolls of 5,4.  Ambush!

The surprise strike sends the Ravenites into a panic, and forces them to reveal themselves before they're ready. They return fire, and one of them gets the drop on Walks The Night Alone, who is clipped with a bullet but not badly injured.

"Fire at the Tall Men!" The crazy woman with the jetpack screams as she heads back to the tree line. "The Tall Men!"

She shoots a stick of dynamite into the trees, which explodes. The burst reveals glimpses of three tall monsters working on strangling some of the bandits.

The boys with the flamethrowers turn around and light the forest up. Flames roar as they sweep the treeline. And then the boys with Gatling rifles start chopping at the rubbery, long-limbed monsters

"FUCK!" Arkansas Tom bellows as one of the pole menbusrts through the trees and grabs one of the men with flamethrowers. The outlaw begins firing wildly at the Pole Man, but another gets behind him, reaches out, and grabs him by the throat...

((OOC: That's a Raise, so you add +2 to your side's Battle roll, and you'll take 2d6 damage (which gets dealt to one of your allies at random)

I roll up Walks The Night Alone.

05:46, Today: The Stray, on behalf of Walks The Night Alone, rolled 7 using 2d6, rerolling max with rolls of 5,2.  damage.

This makes him Shaken, which means he won't count for your next roll.

Rolling for Candy & her crew. She has a +2 bonus from having extra tokens, and +4 from her flame-toting allies.

She's focusing on the Pole Men, because they scared the bejeezus out of her

05:49, Today: X-Squad rolled 8,11 using d10+6,d6+6, rerolling max with rolls of 2,5.  Shooting.

She also adds +2 to your roll, and also has one of her allies take 2d6 damage.

05:50, Today: X-Squad rolled 5 using 2d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,2.  damage.

That will make one of her boys Shaken, which means he skips the next roll.

Arkansas Tom has a +2 bonus, but no actual allies to add to his roll.

05:53, Today: Wild Bunch Outlaws rolled 9,3 using d8+2,d6+2, rerolling max with rolls of 7,1.  Shooting.

Another +2, and another 2d6 damage. Tom doesn't have any allies, so it's all dealt to him.

09:54, Today: Wild Bunch Outlaws rolled 6 using 2d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,2.  damage.

That will make Tom Shaken, so he'll sit out the next roll.

Altogether your side has added +6 to their roll. This is before Moses rolls. I'll wait for Moses, then post up the Ravenites and Pole Men, then we can roll off to see which side wins this round of the mass combat))

((Mass combat rounds take longer, don't they? Could I still use a prayer to boost my Knowledge Battle skill?))

((OOC: Yes, Mass Combat rounds take a lot longer than normal rounds. Um...sure. That would be a separate Faith roll, without all the bonuses from all the allies and advantages. You'd have to make a new Faith roll each round to keep the bonus. Sound fair?))

Moses raises his arms to the heavens.
"Lord... your most humble servant is no general. But a general is what Moses needs to be. Will you give your champion the wisdom he needs to win this battle for you?"

((Absolutely.
21:37, Today: Moses rolled 6,3 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 6,3.  Faith for Boost Skill.

That boosts me to d4.

21:41, Today: Moses rolled 5,6 using d4+3,d6+3, rerolling max with rolls of 2,3.  Knowledge, Battle.
))

The prophet shouts: "BROWN!", then grabs the soldier's shoulder when he's close enough.
"Take your men there", he points toward a point where the Ravenites are fleeing.
"Smash into them, then stand your ground. You shall be the anvil against the hammer will be slammed."

In reply to Moses (msg # 161):

((OOC: Actually, I need you to hold off on that Knoweldge (Battle) check for a moment...there are more bonuses that your group has accrued (see the post in reply to Art).

What I need from you is a fighting, Shooting, or Faith roll, with a +4 bonus, plus a description of how you use your shooting, fighting, or magic to influence the battle. You're getting a +4 bonus on this roll to represent Little Crow and Private Brown's actions as well as the benefit you get from having an advantage in this fight.

Once I've gotten all the relevant modifiers, you'll get to add that all in to your Knowledge (Battle) check (and I'm pretty sure you won't want to keep that 3).))
This message was last edited by the GM at 02:38, Sun 09 Oct 2016.

Ah, got it.
10:34, Today: Moses rolled 6,5 using d8+4,d6+4, rerolling max with rolls of 2,1.  Faith.

Casting Protection on the group?



Moses addresses his troops - his flock, his new allies, and even Little Crow, who's still teetering on the edge.
"Children of the Spirits. Children of the Lord. You are all children to the same father, to the same mother. This, here, is not the Reckoning. But it is a skirmish in its wake. We have to throw all our weight into the scales of Good to triumph over this Evil. Set aside our differences and stand here, now, united! Go and fight and let the Lord be your shield while you are his sword!"

With the lord on their side, the men under Moses's command take to the field. Bullets rip through the Pole Men, and one of the long-legged monsters is chopped apart by gunfire.

The others continue their grisly work, strangling men with their long, rubbery fingers.

Little Crow struggles in the grasp of the Pole Man, kicking for all he's worth. He begins to see stars, and then things start to go dark...

((OOC: Well, casting spells, anyhow. The mass combat round is longer than a normal round, so the roll represents an average of all your actions over the course of a few minutes.

So your roll is a success, but not a raise. That adds +1 to your side's roll, but you take 3d6 damage. As per the special rules for this, one of your allies will be taking the damage.

14:16, Today: The Stray rolled 17 using 3d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,(6+5)11,2.  damage.

Since we last left Little Crow being choked by a Pole Man, we'll apply the damage to him. He has a Toughness of 6, so that's 2 wounds and Shaken he suffers, unless you decide to spend a chip to let him soak. He's a henchmen, which means 1 wound is enough to incapacitate him. The Pole Men are intent on stringing him up and turning him into another Pole Man, so you probably want to get his soak on (He has a Vigor of d8, and he rolls a Wild Die because he's a henchman).

Since I'm dealing with the Pole Men, I roll to see how they affect the battle. They don't have any bonuses to their rolls.

Pole Man 1: 14:23, Today: Pole Men rolled 3,7 using d12,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,(6+1)7.  Fighting. Success. The Pole Man adds +1 to the Ravenite roll, but suffers 3d6 damage.

I roll a 32 (!), which is 6 wounds (!). The Pole man is going to try to soak, but is likely dead.

14:26, Today: Pole Men rolled 1,1 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,1.  Soak.

We have a confirmed kill on one of the Pole Men.

Pole Man 2: 14:23, Today: Pole Men rolled 10,1 using d12,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 10,1. Fighting. Success and Raise. The Pole Man adds +2 to the Ravenites, and suffers 2d6 damage.

I roll a 13, which is 1 Wound on the Pole Man. It attempts to Soak.

14:29, Today: Pole Men rolled 1,15 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1,(6+6+3)15.  Soak.

Yeah, that soaks.

Pole Man 3: 14:23, Today: Pole Men rolled 4,2 using d12,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,2.  Fighting. Success. It adds +1 to the Ravenites and takes 3d6 damage.

This pole man only takes 11 damage, which is 1 Wound. It attempts to soak.

14:32, Today: Pole Men rolled 4,5 using d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,5.  Soak.

It soaks.

So altogether, the Pole men add +4 to the Ravenite's side of the battle.

The current Knowledge (battle) bonuses are:

Moses: d4+3, +2 from Art, +2 from Candy, +2 from Arkansas Tom, +1 from Moses himself = d4+10
Ravenites: d4+2, +4 from pole Men = d4+6

I still have to roll for Wanahtah, the Ravenite leader, but I want to resolve whether Little Crow survives the fight first. If he doesn't, you're going to get a brand new Pole Man to battle.))

---

Moses, you may attempt a Soak for Little Crow

---

when that's resolved, the Ravenites try to get back in this.

((I don't have Little Crow's stats))

((OOC: Ah. Alrighty.))

*Little Crow (henchman)
Attributes: Agility d8, Smarts d6, Spirit d8, Strength d8, Vigor d8
Skills: Fighting d8, Intimidation d6, Notice d8, Riding d8, Shooting d8, Stealth d6, Survival d6, Tracking d6
Charisma: 0; Pace: 8; Parry: 6; Toughness: 6; Grit: 1
Hindrances: Vengeful (Major), Vow (Serve the Raven cult), Intolerance (White man)
Edges: Fleet-Footed, Marksman
Gear: Clothes on his back

21:23, Today: Moses rolled 4,1 using d8,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 4,1.  Little Crow soaks...

21:24, Today: Moses rolled 2,14,4 using d8,d6,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2,(6+6+2)14,4.  Re-roll.
21:24, Today: Moses rolled 2 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2.  red chip.

Little Crow is able to escape the grasp of the pole man, and scrambles for a weapon to fight with.

---

Wanahtah did not like the sudden appearance of Cheyenne Dog Soldiers from nowhere.

[Language unknown: "Thovirtra!"] He shouts. [Language unknown: "Astallsti! T al ceomck romshelar!"] He turns his horse and spurs it toward the Cheyenne, and the...lion?

Well, he wasn't going to let their animal friend confuse him. It was only two men and their pets, after all.

He sighted along the barrel of his Winchester, the holy rifle he'd been given by The Raven to bring death to those who had made it. It would serve well enough to smite those who would not listen to The Raven's call.

His shot was true, and sent Walks The Night Alone spinning, though the bullet was only a flesh wound. Wanahtah frowned, and lined up another shot, ignoring the furry lion...until suddenly it leapt on him, and he found himself desperately trying to fend the monster off...

((OOC: Wanahtah, leader of the Ravenite band, has a chance to aid his side.

He's a Veteran Brave, so most of what he knows is fighting and shooting. So Shooting is what he uses here.

19:59, Today: Ravenite Braves rolled 3,5 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,5.  Shooting.

Not terribly impressive, so he spends his lone Red chip for a bonus on that.

19:59, Today: Ravenite Braves rolled 1 using 1d6, rerolling max with rolls of 1.  red chip.

...and that does nothing. he adds +1 to his side of the battle, and takes 3d6 damage.

20:00, Today: Ravenite Braves rolled 19 using 3d6, rerolling max with rolls of 3,(6+5)11,5.  damage.

Owwie. That's 3 wounds for him unless he soaks. He spends his lone white chip for that.

20:02, Today: Ravenite Braves rolled 2,2 using d10,d6, rerolling max with rolls of 2,2.  Soak.

That is an utter failure. He's not dead, but he's wishing he was and is probably out of this fight.

So, time to resolve that mass combat round!

The Ravenites get to roll d4+7
Moses gets to roll d4+10

Roll off!

20:04, Today: Ravenite Braves rolled 8,11 using d4+7,d6+7, rerolling max with rolls of 1,4.  Knowledge (Battle).

I'm pretty sure Moses can beat that fairly easily.))

10:12, Today: Moses rolled 12,15 using d4+10,d6+10, rerolling max with rolls of 2,5.  Knowledge, Battle.

Well, if The Lord Wills It...

The battle is over decidedly quickly. The savage attack on the leader of the Raventies and the loss of several of their men to the Dog Soldiers surprises and demoralizes the rest of the large band, which retreats into the wood.

Meanwhile, the remaining rubbery Pole Men are cut down by the bandits and the soldiers.

An eerie calm settles over the field for the moment. Tensions are still high. Moses had better have on heck of a sales pitch to keep the fighting over and done with...

((OOC: That means the Ravenites lose 2 tokens, and need to make a Morale check. This is a Spirit roll on the Leader's part.

Wanahtah has 3 wounds, and an additional -2 penalty from losing 2 tokens. His total penalty is -5.

05:41, Today: Ravenite Braves rolled -2,-2 using d8-5,d6-5, rerolling max with rolls of 3,3.  Morale.

That's less than one, so it's a rout, and the Ravenites flee.

I decide that the Tokens lost represent the remaining Pole Men, since that's where most of the fire was concentrated.

Mass Combat over.

Of course, now you have the bandits to worry about...))

Pumart and Kira gave chase for a few brief moments, if nothing else but to be sure the Ravenites were actually leaving. He then circled back to those in his small band. The cat sat and the wind blew, circling leaves around the cougar. A blinking eye might miss the actual transformation, but Art returned to his gangly, human form once again. He held his staff in his right hand as he stood, and smiled at those that had chased off the Ravenites.

His first concern was for their safety, but he saw that there were only a few bruises and minor cuts among them all. Walks The Night Alone seemed to be a little dazed, but none the worse for wear. [Language unknown: "Nt ulal, dinromhisbut. Ng...ati ati redeenres ho miteosmo as ad, maei E anthasure a urri manandven thisonwhi a on eenlatica. Atewh lahe ca."]

Art looked around for Moses and headed over toward him with Kira at his heels, then pointed toward their allies in the fight. "You be making new friends?"