(You know the drill. Every group gets the same mission.)

You are all allowed the rest of the day off. You had the chance to explore the city a little bit and buy some odds and ends. The dwarven blacksmith might be glad to see others of his ilk, since the current dwarven population of Phlan counts exactly three - "An' he ain't on good terms with dem two bitches."

(Make any simple weapon and armor purchases you want - all costs are standard as listed in the PHB)

The night offers some restful sleep in the communal barracks (or elsewhere in the city if you prefer). The poisonous river and high wall form enough of a barrier that monster incursions are a rarity. However, Boros is not taking his duty lightly, and there are plenty of patrols around.

Your day's work is already planned in advance for you. Boros opens a partial map of the slum area. It's a parchment crawling with additions, corrections and smudges from food. The slums seem a mess of collapsed houses and blocked streets. The dragonflight left the entire area in ruins, and it will take considerable time to clear the area once you make it safe. Boros jabs his finger at a particular spot and mutters something about scouts spotting the centre of kobold activity there. After you take care of that and prove your worth, you'll be free to pick your next assignment. He spits on the floor and grumbles that you seem like you could handle this.


Each square is about 250 meters.
+ marks cleared area ("Good work, team!")
- marks mapped but not cleared area ("Might still be some beasties there.")
? marks unmapped area ("Will get to that later.")
The spot Boros indicates is in C2.

The trip to the target area is uneventful. The guards, of course, don't leave the wall or escort you out into the slums. Orders, they say. But you get the impression Boros simply doesn't want to lose his soldiers.

Navigating through the narrow passageways and collapsed houses takes almost half an hour. You get the distinct impression of being watched, but can't quite spy anyone following your movement. The center of kobold activity Boros wants taken out turns out to be a largish, still standing two-storey house with a collapsed roof. It's built of thick stone blocks, and looks more like a fortification than a townhouse. A thin wisp of smoke rises from the place, and even from afar you can smell some sort of stew.



shaded = wall
shaded "+" = barred window
shaded "-" = open window
"I" = door (action or reaction to open or close)
. = rubble (difficult terain)

A single kobold guard paces around the house, muttering about how hungry it is and how unafir life is and how he needs to find a new band to hang on to.

(You can start anywhere on map edge. If you need to run away, you cn do so from a map edge as well. The kobold guard hasn't spotted you yet. He has AC12 and HP5 and is armed with a rusty blade and a sling.)

Ghere looked sad when Torwyn told them that he could no longer adventure with them but understood that it was difficult for a clanless dwarf to work with clanned ones. Fortunately, there was already a singleton adventurer in the barracks, who readily agreed to work with them. In addition, the looks on the Dwarves faces when they learned that they were expected to work with an Elf was priceless!

He did his usual fuss over everyone then followed Boros's crude map to the site. Peering round the corner, he could see a gobbo on guard. "They are there all right. Anyone got any last-minute blessings or potions to do?"

Everyone have +5 Hp.

Rurik was not entirely surprised when Torymyn informed them that he was leaving the mercenary company. The term of Torymyn's contract was up, and he had previously mentioned needing to do some things for his family. Rurik well knew that that could mean a variety of things, but he suspected that Torymyn had figured out a way to restore some of his family's honor.

He wished Torymyn well, but restrained himself from using any of the traditional Dwarven words of parting -- for Torymyn was a clanless outcast, and under Dwarven law he was no longer entitled to be treated as a fellow-Dwarf.

And now, 'twas time to move on. They needed to replace Torymyn on the strike-team, and Rurik was frankly a bit curious as to who their captain would assign. He looked a more than a little crestfallen when he learned that it would be an Elf named Risshil, but consoled himself that At least it wasn't one of the Orcs -- it could have been worse . . . I suppose.

But rather than mope about things that were beyond his pay-grade, Rurik soon turned to readying himself for their next mission. He had bought some new gear over at the market-place, and he needed to find room for everything -- either inside his backpack or secured to the outside of the pack -- or, mayhaps carried on his belt, attached to leather loops.

When all was ready, he made a point of speaking to Risshil. "Ye might not've been my first choice to join us, Risshil, for yer folk have a reputation amongst my folk of being skittery and undependable. But I'm willing to give you a fair chance to prove yerself. And know this -- by joinin' our strike-team ye have become one o' my sword-brothers now, and I'll nay hesitate to stand at yer side, an' to fight an' shed blood alongside ye."

Rurik nodded his head in appreciation when Ghere went through his same pre-battle activities as he had before their first mission. The Dwar could not explain it, but he always felt better -- more energetic, somehow -- after Ghere had finished his doings.

After the strike-team had moved forward to the position shown on Boros's map, Rurik shook his head silently when Ghere asked if anyone had any last-minute blessings or potions to use before they went into battle. He hefted one of the javelins that he had recently purchased, testing its balance. I suppose that I'll use this on that sentry, if he doesn't fall to ranged magicks first.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:35, Thu 08 Oct 2015.

Brak shrugged indifferently at Torymyn's news, "Cycles, right? Beasts and birds migrate. Our paths will cross again." He went back to working his club without further comment.

The dwarf spent his time between missions wandering nearby gathering what roots and berries he could preferring them to the faire severed in the town. When he finally made his way back to the barracks he discovered an elf had been added to their roster. He nodded, a bit sceptically as he listened to Rurik's speech. "Hrumph, what he said," Brak mumbled around a slender piece of root. Flecks of dirt showed around his lips and on his teeth when he gave a forced smile.

When Risshil found himself transferred to a different group he didn't mind it, the dragonborn having rubbed him the wrong way. Having pretty much everything he needed he had no reason to go shopping with his pay. Once he had the freedom to go exploring through the ruins he would take time to prepare, however he wondered if that was even possible anymore with the way this military was acting.

The dwarf's reaction was typical of his race, and Risshil simply shrugged in response. "That's funny Rurik, as your people have the reputation among my people of being obstinate, rude, bull-headed, and quick to anger and violence. Let us not put too much stock in stereotypes though shall we? It will make working together much smoother." he replied as he took out his spyglass from his belt and viewed the building in question.

"Just one guard outside. While I disdain unnecessary violence, things could get hairy if he alerts everyone. Does anyone have a non-lethal way to handle him? A sleep spell or something perhaps?" he explained, looking at his new companions. "I could use a command spell to get him to come to us, and then we could subdue him. We'd be able to get information about the group inside that way. When we are ready to attack I can ask Labelas' blessing."

"Another tactician..." Brake grumbles picturing long discussions before each battle. "If you can get him over here without raising the alarm, do it. We'll beat him into submission and threaten to take his thumbs, his eyes if he doesn't talk. Course you understand we'll have to kill him either way."

Risshil's eyes narrow at Brak. "No, we don't. If he's subdued murder is not necessary. Any that surrender will be unharmed in my presence, and torture will not be tolerated. Do you understand dwarf?"

Brak's grin is ferocious, "That's not some elvish lass beguiled by a wizard, that's a kobold. They got no capacity for anythin but evil and fear. You'll not make nice wit em. To leave it alive goes against our mission and common morality... bah! Enough of this!"

Brak hefts his club, straightens his shield and charges the sentry without another word.

Quickly closing the distance and crushing the kobold's skull.

OOC: Assuming we're just off the map Brake moves to 25' to L18.
Bonus Action: cast Shillelagh.
Attack the Sentry
 10:55, Today: Brak rolled 21 using 1d20+6 ((15)).
 10:57, Today: Brak rolled 10 using 1d8+4 ((6)).


If for some reason my assumption is incorrect he'll close as much of the distance as he can. Entering the map at Q18.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:15, Sat 10 Oct 2015.

"Subtle." Ghere nevertheless moved up to maintain formation, darkfire waiting on his fingertips for the first kobold to react.

Ready Action- Fire on first target.

Rurik listened as his companions discussed whether to attempt to subdue the Kobold sentry -- and then Brak, with typical Dwarven aggressiveness, decided to end the discussion and take action. He moved up and downed the sentry before it could raise an alarm by crushing its skull.

With his shield and one of his newly-purchased javelins readied, Rurik moved up to protect Brak's flank. Ghere had preceded him and stood calmly surveying the battlefield, ominous magicks held at the ready on his fingertips.

If any other Kobolds show themselves, I'll take down any that Ghere doesn't kill first with his magicks, Rurik thought to himself.

OOC:

Round 1

Move Action: Rurik will enter the map at Q-17 and move straight forward to L-17 (25 feet)

Action: Readied Action: Throw his javelin at the first Kobold that appears that is not taken down by Ghere's Darkfire (I think that since Ghere posted before Rurik, his readied action will also occur before Rurik's). If a Kobold appears to be closing, he will wait until it gets to 30 feet before throwing his javelin.

09:17, Today: Rurik Ironhand rolled 24 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 18.  Readied Attack (Javelin).

09:18, Today: Rurik Ironhand rolled 5 using 1d6+4 with rolls of 1.  Damage (Readied Attack).

Rurik's Stats: AC: 18; HP: 13(+5T)/13.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:58, Tue 13 Oct 2015.

  Getting quickly to the others had entailed a scope of speed Librand hardly expected. One moment he was turning to head out, the next, smoke seemed swirl about him and he was standing in one of the many ruined areas. Rather than fright or bewilderment, Librand's uniquely silver hued eyes were wide with excitement and eagerness.

  Having appeared just in time to see one of the dwarves move up behind a kobold and club it, Librand tried to fall quickly in line As to what it looked like they were doing. He whistled a sort of bird call to get his fellow mercenaries' attention nodding his acknowledgment to them before stalking into the ruinous cover of the near by building, nocking an arrow on his short bow as he moved.

<small><small>
B=Brak R=Rurik L=Librand G=Ghere
shaded = wall
shaded "+" = barred window
shaded "-" = open window
"I" = door (action or reaction to open or close)
. = rubble (difficult terrain, cost 2 squares of movement)</small></small>

Brak charges the poor, unobservant, defenseless kobold. And smashes the creature's head in with a swift and powerful strike. Gore and blood splatter everywhere, and for a second it is painfully obvious why some druids have a poor reputation as far as people skills go. Then again, kobolds aren't people, right?

Ghere holds a spell, Brak having stolen the kill from him. (please place yourself on the map.)

Rurik charges in as well, javelin at the ready.

It seems nobody in the house is aware of the team. Instead you can smell a tasty stew being prepared on open fire, the fine smell overpowering the usual malodor of the slums. A deep voice can be heard, singing some sort of misbegotten shanty stitched together from several other songs you might have heard. There's also the skittering and yips of the kobolds, occasionally interrupted by the sound of a ladle hitting a kobold head or paw.

It sounds as if you're about to interrupt a meal.

OOC: DM, are Brak, Ghere, and Rurik aware of Librand? He looks to be out of their line of sight at the moment (well . . . depending on where Ghere is on the map, I suppose).

I'm not clear on when he "magically" joined the Team. :)

PS. Meh, never mind! I see from re-reading Librand's IC post that he signaled to the rest of the Team before taking cover.

I'll wait to see where Ghere is before posting IC. :)
This message was last edited by the player at 14:07, Fri 16 Oct 2015.

He absolutely magically totally joined the team, and you weren't surprised. It's as if a giant hand reached from above to remove Risshil and placed Librand down. And you're aware of eachother, being the super duper team you are.

From M18

Ghere moved up to the door, motioning Librand in behind him and pointing Rurik and Brak to the window. (K16) Still holding darkfire ready, he set the other one on the latch and counted down on his fingers 3-2-1...

Moving to L14, readied action.

OOC:

DM,

Is the open window (K-16) large enough for medium-sized PCs to fit through, or are we limited to making ranged attacks through it? I'm assuming the latter, but thought that I would check.

Rurik saw Ghere motion towards the open window, then position himself in front of the door to the building. I'd rather be blocking the door myself, he thought to himself, since I'm thinking that our attacking through this window is going to have about the same effect as kicking an anthill. But we'll play it this way. I'll move in front of the window on Ghere's count, throw my javelin at a target, and then go through it.

Rurik waited for Ghere to count down on his fingers, then on "zero", he stepped in front of the window, with his javelin at the ready. Flinging his javelin at a likely target, he moved in through the window, stepping far enough into the room to both clear a line of fire for Brak and to allow his Stone-Brother sufficient space to move in behind him, if he so desired.

OOC:

Move: Rurik will wait for Ghere's count, then will move from L-17 to L-16 (difficult terrain, 10' of movement), throw his javelin through the open window, then move through the window. Once he is inside the room he will step to the right (towards the door at K-14), to clear a line of fire and provide space for Brak.

Action: 19:02, Today: Rurik Ironhand rolled 7 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 1. Ranged Attack (Javelin). Well, that was a waste of time.

Object Interaction: Rurik will ready his warhammer after he has thrown his javelin.

Communicate: Once Rurik is inside the house, he will shout(!) out through the open window to Brak and Ghere, regarding the number and type of foes that he sees. Meh, just consider this to be the Dwarven version of scouting. :)

Rurik's Stats: AC: 18; HP: 13(+5)/13.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:52, Sat 17 Oct 2015.

  Seeing the human motioning him forward, Librand quickly tries to wave him off as he starts counting down. Stepping carefully through the rubble of the collapsed wall he had been taking cover behind, he joins Ghere and takes quick account of the situation.

  Remaining utterly silent, he taps Ghere on the shoulder then half turns, gesturing to the length of coiled rope lashed to his pack, an more notably, the grappling hook hanging from its end.  The halfling pointed up at the collapsed roof of their objective then a climbing-like gesture, and lastly, holding his bow as though sighting a shot. Librand offered a sort of cock-eyed grin that asked 'What do you think?'
This message was last edited by the player at 18:30, Sat 17 Oct 2015.

Brak waits for Rurik to scramble trough the window and quickly follows suit. Standing atop the window sill, waving his gore-coated club menacingly. "Have at ye filthy Kobold scum!" he shouts.

OOC:
Move: Hopefully his full move will get him through the difficult terrain and up on the window sill. Should have 10 feet to move through difficult terrain + up to 7 feet of climbing to spend.

Action: Ready. Trigger enemy reaches clubbing range. Reaction: melee attack.

Brak rolled 14 using 2d8+4.  critical damage from club (if triggered)
Brak rolled 26 using 1d20+6.  melee attack shillelagh enhanced club (if triggered)

gonna be really sad if that's wasted! oh well, c'est la vie!

AC: 14 (maybe 12 if shield can't come into play from standing in the window)
HP: 11+5t

This message was last edited by the player at 05:50, Sat 17 Oct 2015.

Ghere noted Librand's signs, then gave him a thumb's-up, turning back to dart through the door in front of him. He didn't bother with finesse, simply blasting the leg of the goblin nearest him off at the hip.

B=Brak R=Rurik L=Librand G=Ghere
shaded = wall
shaded "+" = barred window
shaded "-" = open window
* = fireplace & kettle
T = table (difficult terrain)
K = shaded figure (AC13 HP15)
k = starving kobold (AC12 HP5)
"I" = door (action or reaction to open or close)
. = rubble (difficult terrain, cost 2 squares of movement)

Ghere stands ready at the door, one hand on the latch, the other ablaze with darkfire ready to scourge whatever poor kobold comes into sight.

Rurik half-stumbles through the window, hurling a javelin blindly, then rolling into the house with a grunt and dwarven curse. (nb: you used up 30' of movement there - 2 difficult terrain + 2 regular squares - but I'll let it slide because of the coolness factor ;) ) There is a meaty thunk as the javelin impacts something fleshy. It takes a second for Rurik's eyes to adapt to the gloom inside the house. Now that he's inside, the smell of blood overpowers the sweet aroma of the stew. Along the barren inside wals, dozens of humanoid corpses are hung upside down, from big iron hooks driven through their heels. There are elves, humans, even a dwarf, all fresh and still bleeding from slit throats into broad-rimmed pans set up beneath them. Blood is a valuable nutrient, after all. In the south niche of the house, a big fireplace holds a huge kettle that's the source of the yummy smell -  although now that you know what's cooking, your appetite might not be quite what it was a moment ago.

The insides of the house are mostly barren, apart from a few half-functional tables in its middle. There are a dozen clean bowls with wooden spoons waiting on the table, in two neat rows.

Oh, there are eleven kobolds waiting for the stew as well. They turn to the invading dwarf, yipping in surprise. Some move towards Rurik, but most are too surprised to react.

The fire in the fireplace outlines a shadowy humanoid form; the figure is still busy with the stew, and butchering a song with its raspy voice. From closer up, it seems the voice is... female?

Brak bursts through the window the next second in a flurry of hands, feet, beard and cudgel. The latter connects solidly with a very surprised kobold. There is a sickening sound as the little creature's head explodes under the assault of the magically enhanced weapon, painting Brak and the surrounding squares with blotches of blood and brain matter.

To add insult to injury, Ghere opens the door and darts in as well, the darkfire in his hand reaching out to end another kobold. This one has time to scream in agony while darkfire consumes him.
This message was last edited by the GM at 07:38, Sun 18 Oct 2015.

  Now this was a team he could get behind! With the trio vaulting through doors and windows he immediately forgot about his half-baked idea of scaling the building.

  The fuse was lit, now to seek a bit of advantage. Rather than get underfoot of the human to enter the fray, Librand quickly searched for an equally impressive and dynamic means of entering. Dashing north along the building's perimeter, he found himself a nice vantage point for firing through another window...he just needed to get up there first.

OOC-

 AC 15 : HP 14/14 (+5 temp)
Move: L13-L12-L11-L9
Action (Dash): L9-K9-J9^RT-I9
I assume Librand is too short to see through the window. Once he gets an angle though, he'll keep targeting enemies adjacent to the team to gain Sneak Attack damage.
This message was last edited by the player at 10:40, Sun 18 Oct 2015.

Brak snarls and barks as he swings his club at another kobold felling another foe

OOC:

Move: to I16

Attack kobold @ I17

Brak rolled 10 using 1d8+4.  damage shillelagh blunt magical.
Brak rolled 21 using 1d20+6.  melee attack shillelagh enhanced club.

AC: 14
HP: 11+5t = 16

Now this is the way to do battle, Rurik thought to himself, with plenty of foes to slay and a Stone-Brother fighting at my shoulder!

As luck would have it there was a Kobold within easy reach of Rurik's warhammer,  and he growled "Too bad for you!" as he swung the heavy hammer at the little lizard. The Kobold tried to skitter out of the way but was not quite quick enough, and collapsed in a heap with a crushed left leg.

Glancing to his left and right, Rurik was uncertain whether he should reinforce Brak or Ghere. There were more Kobolds over near Ghere, but there was some sort of creature over by the fireplace that was out of his line of sight that the Dwarven warrior suspected might prove to be worthy of his attention. Rurik decided to serve as the Team's mobile reserve and hold his position for the moment, until the flow of the battle became a trifle clearer.

Edit: Soon enough Rurik's patience was rewarded, as he heard Ghere yelling at him -- with some urgency -- to break left. Rurik did so, moving so that he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Brak once again.

OOC:

Action: 11:27, Today: Rurik Ironhand rolled 22 using 1d20+6 with rolls of 16. Melee Attack. Hit! Rurik attacks the Kobold at I-15.

11:28, Today: Rurik Ironhand rolled 7 using 1d8+4 with rolls of 3. Damage (Warhammer).

11:32, Today: Rurik Ironhand rolled 3 using 1d10 with rolls of 3. Hit Location (Bludgeoning). (Left leg).

Move: Rurik will ready an action to move when it becomes clearer (either through Ghere's actions or the foes' actions) that he is needed more on the right flank or the left flank. Edit: Upon hearing Ghere urging him to "Break left", Rurik will move from J-15 (starting square) to J-16, then J-17, and will end his turn in I-17 (15' of movement).

Notes: Rurik's stats: AC: 18; HP: 13(+5T)/13.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:49, Mon 19 Oct 2015.