It all happens so fast.  One moment Rolf is about to connect with the creature with his sword that it darts out of the way, and straight for him!

Gradus Rolf shouts mere milliseconds before the beetle's jaws clamp on his thigh.

Instantly he is transported harmlessly about a step backwards.  Expecting to feel woozy from the effort, in fact Rolf feels just fine and steps forward to get back in the furious fray.

OOC: I'll step forward and keep swinging.  Seeing as it has a tough shell I will target it's legs at -2 to hit in hopes its easier to hurt there.  Defense again blink.

blades swing towards the furiously moving beetle, scraping off flecks of black shell, narrowly missing a well scored hit due to the thing's feverish pace and frenzied movement.

"Tech tha yew kitten is ways el!"  Bromdaeg screams, pulling back his left arm and swinging his right forward, his pick surging downwards in a murderous arc.

But the beetle is moving too, it's head and massive horn thrash towards Bromdaeg, slamming the stout dwarf in the chest, the blow just inside of his shield that moves just to slowly in defense.  Bromdaeg recoils from the blow which hits with a meaty thwack!, his whole body retreating backwards, his face contorting in pain.

However there is no stopping the dwarf's swing!  The weapon, already well through it's arc hurdles down, crashing through the thick, chitinous flesh, spurting sticky wet all around.

In a surge motion and a rage of noise the beetle flails in place with a screech before settling down motionless on the cave floor below.

Bromdaeg too, stumbles backwards, leaving his pick sunk in the flesh of the beetle and clutching at his chest with his hand.

"Cursed insect!"  Bromdaeg coughs, though he groans immediately after.  "Ah thin et baroque Sam ribs."  He wheezes, his breaths shallow and pained.

First making sure there is nothing else crawling out of the cave walls, both Darran and Rolf step down to help, looking to see just how bad the injury is.

OOC:  The beetle seems well taken care of at this point, with a pick sunken through it's body and no signs of movement whatsoever.  There are two exits form the room (in addition to the one leading back out to the ledge) one on the left wall and the other on the back wall.

Rolf swings his falchion as best and true as he can, but the beetle is just so damn fast that his strikes are rendered useless.  He can't help but feel he is a burden to the better warriors Darren and Bromdaeg, but to be fair he is useful in other ways...But at the moment that doesn't matter much as they have to kill this thing.  And the sooner the better.

He hasn't spent anywhere near the time honing his martial skills as Bromdaeg and Darren, and it shows.  And he's pretty sure they are both stronger than he is.  Not that Rolf is weak, he's not, and not that Rolf is a terrible swordsman, he isn't.  He's a fairly average warrior, with a fairly average arm, but when compared to his companions he wishes both were better.

With a mighty swing for the ages, Bromdaeg brings his pick down in a wicked curve which impales the beetle and ends the battle!  But not before the creature got in it's own bite that severely hurt the dwarf.

"Are you ok?" Rolf asks as he looks to see if he can help.  Though he may not be the greatest warrior, he has among other things, the capability to heal.  Which even the greatest fighter needs now and then.

OOC: I will try to evaluate how badly Bromdaeg is hurt.  I will give him up to a 4FP major healing.  And if he's still hurt, up to a 4FP minor.  Afterwards I will rest as needed to recover.

"Em fen."  Bromdaeg grunts, his expression wincing despite his assurances.  The dwarf places his empty hand on the ground, attempting to push himself back up to a sitting position, though he grunts deeply and instead rolls over to a side before rocking himself up to one knee.

"Eh guess hem mat be all were Stan eh thought." The dwarf concedes, his brow creased as a pained grimace stretches across his face, his free hand gently tapping his leathers just below his left breast.

It's enough For Rolf to know that the dwarf needs his help.  Setting down on a knee beside his comrade, Rolf places his hands gently on the wound before channeling his mana towards the worst of the injuries.  "Curare".  The mage breathes softly, his magic pushed into Bromdaeg in a gentle flow.

The dwarf exhales deeply, his face and jaw relaxing as he settles back in just a moment.

Rolf tries again, this time with his light healing spell, though he fails to gain control of the magic and rather feels the mana slip through his fingers.

"Eys nay matter."  The dwarf grins, pushing himself to a stand before adjusting his armor slightly and ripping his pick out of the beetle's carapace.  "As match better than he was, as good enough ta bay getting en with."

As Rolf rests, Bromdaeg peeks around the corners of the two exits to the room, saying briefly that the two tunnels connect after only a few feet, leading on in a single shaft that heads farther downhill and into the base of the hillside.

OOC:  Your major healing spell worked, though your minor healing spell failed.  You can roll against either again if you wish at -3 for a second healing attempt, though Bromdaeg seems to be nearly back to full strength.  Let me know if you want to try again or if you want to just move on.

Rolf watches with concern as the dwarven miner feigns that he is okay.  He saw him take two shots to the chest from the belligerent beetle, the latter of which looked extremely painful.  So much so the mage is surprised he even made it to one knee.

Rolf places a hand on the man's chest and brings forth as much mana as he can.  The wound heals mostly, but some of the wound remains.  He tries another weaker spell, but he fails to cast it correctly.  Fortunately not so badly as to make the situation worse.

Seeing Bromdaeg stand and seem well enough to continue he says "Alright.  Let's keep moving."

OOC: I would like to keep going.

Rolf sits to rest to regain some of his lost strength.  While at first the others, Bromdaeg and Darran, seem happy to rest for a moment and sip from their water and nibble at their rations, it becomes quickly clear that both are eager to move on rather than sit for an hour for Rolf to regain his strength.

"Come on, we'll likely have plenty of time to sit and rest up ahead if this is anything like our last cave."  Darran offers, waiting as long as he can before their dwarven companion seems ready to delve farther into the caves on his own, his body nearly disappearing into the shadows ahead.

Rolf reluctantly agrees, knowing that he is at least partially recovered, though nowhere near full strength.

Luckily, Darran's prediction proves quite sentient, for after only a dozen steps or so farther in the tunnel, it branches off in two directions, the left side veering off and upward into another chamber, this one larger than the last few, some twenty feet square, but before the light has even penetrated the recesses of the room, Bromdaeg is already hastily climbing ahead, rushing towards the back wall.

"Ah's may tall!  An ah then ah's ten!"  The dwarf shouts, pulling his pick from his belt and swinging furtively at a large grey  swath.

Clink!  Clink!  Clink!

The pick wails away in several strokes, Rolf finally getting a chance to look around as he ascends in from the shallowly graded tunnel.  He shines his light high, and indeed it seems that there is plenty of the metallic substance all around, large crystals of grey and black that emerge in places from the walls, Bromdaeg slowly chipping away at a lode that is some three feet across and several inches wide.

But that is not the only interesting thing about the room...  As he shines his light towards the ground, Rolf notices a fine, black earth that is at odds with the solid stone and thick claylike dirt of the rest of the area.  In a corner, a small tuft of mushrooms sprout and as Rolf notices some motion out of the corner of his eye, he crouches down slightly and sees several tiny beetles skulking in and out of the fine, black earth.

OOC:  You rested for about 20 minutes and have gained a couple of fatigue back.  Bromdaeg is looking to pull some of the metal off the largest lode in the room and Darran is looking around.  Do you want to continue to rest here until everyone moves on or would you rather search?  Roll vs. Per-5 if you opt for the latter.

"Agreed.  Let's move on." Rolf says in reply to Darran's plan to investigate the caves further.  He stands stiffly from sitting on the hard stone floor and rubs his backside before following Bromdaeg's lead.

Hurriedly he moves to keep up as Bromdaeg finds something that interests him in a room not far from the entrance.

"Sure looks like something of value." Rolf says as the Dwarf drives his pick in a spot even he can plainly see is a vein of metallic gray stone.  Though what it may be is a mystery to the geologically ignorant mage.

"Dear, what is this?" he asks as he notices the good black earth throughout the room.  "How is such good soil possible here?" he asks mostly rhetorically.

OOC:  Rolf missed his Per-5 roll.  I want to search and root/dig around the earth on the floor.  I'll try a Naturalist check to see if I can figure out the process the earth got there.  I'll also check the ceiling in case it might be falling down from above.

Rolf reaches down to the floor, picking up a small bit of the choice, black earth to rub between his fingers.  It is quickly clear that the dirt is just a thin dusting, for less than a knuckle below the top is the hard clay and stone that make up the rest of the caves.  Tiny beetles scatter as Rolf picks up his hand, investigating the curious layer of top soil.  It's quite clearly organic material. the presence of the beetles attested to as much... so it would follow that it is remnants of some plant or animal, carrion or otherwise... though Rolf has a hard time imagining that any plants would make it this far into the caves and relatively permanent darkness.

Giving up on trying to get any more information from the soil, Rolf looks around the cave, taking a small glimpse at the copse of mushrooms in the corner which are centered around a damp and shallow recess in the floor of the cave.  There seems to be little there to find, for Rolf cannot identify the mushrooms though he knows enough to reason that they have a better than half chance of being poisonous.

There seems to be little else to find.  Here and there, the crystalline veins sparkle like gemstones, though Bromdaeg seems confident they are tin, and indeed after 30 minutes or so, Bromdaeg has removed a fist sized bit of crystal from the wall.

"See ah?  Es ten fir sure, yeh can nah see hay sift et as."  Bromdaeg presses a finger nail hard into the bit of metal, which sports a thin, curved line when the dwarf takes the pressure away.

"Say thats tha?"  Bromdaeg gestures, turning his head up to Darran.

"Well."  Darran returns hesitantly, taking a quick look at the small bit of metal.  "I suppose there's no need to try anywhere else but at least lets search this one through... we may find something better yet, or at least find another area to give a bit better value to our story."

Bromdaeg grunts and nods, stuffing away the bit of metal in his bags.

The group puts their things back on, making their way back down from the small room, taking this time the fork to the right.  They find themselves in another wide hallway, perhaps ten feet or wider, though the ceiling hangs slightly lower, perhaps only six or seven feet off the floor.  At the crest of the tunnel, the rock seems to bend back down, creating a sort of downward ridge that drips tiny droplets of water in a thin line on the floor below.  The tunnel continues on some ways ahead before turning to the right...

Looking up at the low hanging ceiling, Bromdaeg raises the flat of his pick at one of the fattest drops hanging downward.

OOC:  I moved ahead a bit.  Roll vs. Perception-1 .  You are in the middle, following Bromdaeg with Darran just behind you.  Neither your perception nor your naturalist roll in the last room seemed to glean anything beyond the obvious.  The good news is that Bromdaeg is near certain that the ore he has already plucked out of the cave walls is tin, and with the amount of it that was in the last room you guys are going to get at least the small bonus for finding minerals.

Rolf digs around the rich black dirt, but is wary of the mushrooms and as such leaves them be.  It's unclear to him how the soil came to be.  The process of it's creation is unclear but he guesses the beetles are involved somehow.

Moving on, he watches Bromdaeg explain in his thick, hard to understand speech, and he gathers it's tin.  "Well, tin does have it's uses no?  I'm no expert but it's not worthless and there seems to be plenty of it here."

With Bromdaeg taking a sample, the group moves on.  They soon find themselves in a hallway with a lower roof line.  Water drips along the length of the passages ceiling.

Reaching out to Bromdaeg he says, "Before you drive your pick in the ceiling, is it possible the ceiling is holding up a significant amount of water?  Hence the lowered ridge line.  Maybe we should leave it be?"

"I just don't want to get flushed out here.  I suggest we keep moving and see what's around the corner." he adds as he looks to Darren to see what he says.

OOC:  I missed the Perception roll.

Though he has little idea what could cause the ceiling to bow, Rolf hazards a guess that it's not worth tempting fate, and pulls on Bromdaeg's shoulder to keep him from nudging the sagging, wet earth.

"Aye, there's sem thin ta that."  Bromdaeg lowers his pick, looking at the wet track on the floor below.  "Ah bet yer rye, an there's sem thin bait ta drip through."  Bromdaeg looks both directions in the wide corridor, before shuddering slightly and moving on ahead.  "Ah, Kim en then, fair we prove ye rye."

In another twenty or so feet, the tunnel splits again, though the large hallway going right only travels another dozen yards or so before it breaks out into the light of day.

"Must be the other cave headed in from the ridge."  Darran mutters, "Let's go on to the left."

Bromdaeg continues on, every so often stopping to feel a bit of the tunnel wall or to take a closer look at a patch of earth.  The slow progress ebbs away at the morning, though before too long, the group finds themselves at the opening of another room.  Caught up with a wet bit of earth that reflects the sheen of the lighted ropes like a streak of silver might, Bromdaeg only sees the monster when he's already half way within the cave.

"Moradin's beard!"  The dwarf curses, his pick and shield immediately coming back into position.  Rolf and Darran hurry to his side, and take in the scene as they ready their own weapons.

Beyond is another large cave, much like the others they had stumbled across throughout yesterday and this morning.  It is wide and deep, thirty or forty feet in each direction with a ceiling that is easy twenty feet off of the sloping ground.  Curled towards the back wall, though it has to wrap itself around for lack of space, is a monstrous worm, seven or eight feet tall and easily five times that long.   Its whole body is caked in wet clay that cracks off in places, especially near the thing's thousands of minuscule 'feet'.  Its gaped mouth displays two rows of razor sharp teeth, though there seem to be few other features to it's face with no eyes nor ears to speak of.

Regardless of whether the thing can see or hear, it has seemed to have noticed their presence, for even as Bromdaeg pulls his shield and pick back in defense, the thing raises its head, it's circular mouth pulled open to display dozens of teeth and the semi-open cavity of its endless stomach.  From its mouth issues a hissing gurgle...

OOC:  Picture below that is at least close to the mark.  Sorry for no map, I'm a little pressed for time.  The worm's head is about 20 feet away from you (or call it 7 yards).  He hasn't made any aggressive moves yet, but your instincts tell you that they aren't far off.  Roll vs. IQ for me to avoid mental stun (combat reflexes nullifies the need for this roll if you have it).  Let's do 3 seconds worth of action.

Rolf discusses the merits of digging into the dripping ceiling with Bromdaeg and is glad the dwarf agrees to leave it be.  It's just not worth the risk to test if it means unleashing a torrent of water atop their heads.

The mage follows the group through the passage beyond and very shortly it splits into two directions.  He notes that one half ends in daylight and the other continues on.  He follows his group as they pass by leaving the underground and take the other passage.

Rolf stops short as Bromdaeg sputters something about a dwarven god.  Catching up to the man, he finds before them lay the largest creature Rolf has ever seen, capped with an enormous mouth rimmed with razor sharp teeth!

By the god's indeed!

Such a sight would give even the most hardened veteran pause, but Rolf is as mentally tough as anyone and spares no time in taking action.

Knowing they cannot engage the thing in hand to hand combat, and likely he suspects won't be able to outrun it either, Rolf prepares to cast.  "Fall back." he mutters softly as his hands begin to move.

OOC: Assuming the creature is N and we're due S, Rolf will cast a full 4 hex radius Grease M42 with the southern edge of the circle right in front of him.  Darran and Bromdaeg will have to step back as I cast.  Defense retreating dodge.

This message was last edited by the player at 00:21, Tue 08 Oct 2019.

"Fall back."

The whispered words are meant as a command - for what Rolf has in mind will at least buy the adventurers time if not some sort of victory over this monster.  Immediately he begins channeling his mana, his eyes on the massive worm which already is already rearing its head up and back, pushing off with its hundreds of feet to begin moving slowly in the confined space towards the three intruders in its lair.  His moment of concentration complete, Rolf seems to cast his spell just in time.

'Deturpant!"

With that single word, the floor of the cave slicks like ice and the massive worm, his multitude of feet suddenly gripless beneath him, slides back towards the center, his body coiling back against the far wall of the cavern.

Rolf exhales with exhaustion, the spell having left him entirely spent.  His legs feel weak, his arms like rubber, and the ebbing headache of manaburn sucks away at his attention, though Rolf pushes the pain to the back of his mind for their problems are far from over.

For a half a step ahead of him (why didn't he step back when I told him!), Bromdaeg slips on the edge of the greased surface, his feet kicking out ahead of him as he lands on his rump and shield, his pick hand pushing off to the side for balance as he starts slowly slipping down into the cave below.

"Bromdaeg!"  Darran shouts, dropping his sword and reaching out to grasp the dwarf, though he daren't step forward and he proves too far to actually make the grab.

OOC:  Ok, that was one second vice 3.  I've been bad about asking your equipment and what's in what hand, so just assume you have your crossbow unready, though cocked and loaded, in your left hand (you needed your right to cast the spell).  Grease spell was successful and covers the entire floor of the cave.  Unfortunately, Bromdaeg is stubborn and didn't follow your directions, resulting in him being in the field of the grease spell when it was cast.  You are now at 1/2 move, dodge, and ST due to fatigue.  If your inclination is to grab Bromdaeg, you may do so.  First roll vs. DX to make the grab, then vs. ST to pull him back up.  You may put 1 fatigue towards extra effort for +2 to ST and/or use a hero point if you wish.  Map is below.  If you want to grab Bromdaeg, just make those rolls for me, otherwise, give me three seconds.

Rolf is not starstruck by the immensity of the large worm or its yawning maw of a mouth rimmed with razor sharp teeth, and immediately steps into the careful hand movements required to cast his spell.  He calms his mind to allow the mana to flow through him despite the threat of imminent death a few mere yards away.

Deturpant

He utters his spell's keyword with force as he simultaneously unleashes a torrent of slick grease upon the chamber.

Perhaps it was due to his singular focus to the worm issue at hand that he did not notice Bromdaeg not heed his warning and is caught in his spell!

"Grab my leg and pull us out!" he shouts to Darran as he reaches down to grab the sliding dwarf.  Seemingly Rolf is not aware of the worm slowly sliding to the middle of the room, for he knows he can't let the dwarf slide to meet him, and dealing with the worm will have to wait until he is safe.

OOC:  My intention is to create a human chain with me grabbing Bromdaeg directly,  whichever part of him is closest (hopefully Bromdaeg can grab me as well), and having Darran grab me and pull us both out. Either by the leg or waist, whichever makes the most sense.  With Rolf's weakened limbs it's doubtful he could do the job himself.

With reflexes unfitting of a man who has just cast himself into exhaustion, Rolf grabs out at the collar of Bromdaeg's leathers, finding at least for now a firm enough grip to be getting on with.

Of course, that moment is where his plan hits a snag.  For Rolf had in the flash of a moment, dreamt up a scenario where he grabbed Bromdaeg, holding him steady while Darran did the heavy lifting of pulling him back up to the mouth of the cave.  Unfortunately, Rolf barely manages two words by the time he has Bromdaeg's collar dragging down his hand, not to mention the fact that Darran has barely caught himself after his own attempt at grabbing the dwarf.  Mentally prepared to plunge headfirst down the slide of the cave floor, Rolf flattens his body to the floor, the weight of the dwarf pulling him forward precariously forward.  Somehow, miraculously, Rolf manages to hold, his feet and free hand flattening to get as much traction on the ground as he can, his crossbow long forgotten somewhere near his left arm.

"Beck!  Beck.  Get me beck!"  Bromdaeg shouts, as his feet flail unproductively across the gripless floor.

Slowly, Rolf manages to pull back the dwarf, then Darran is there too, getting a grip beneath a shoulder and pulling the dwarf back and over the brink.

The monstrous worm seems to catch it's grip for a moment, turning its head and lunging slightly forward with a handful of its legs, thought the momentum is short lived, and it sinks back down to the bottom of the cave, its mouth gaping wide, displaying the whole circle of dagger-like teeth.

OOC:  Wow.  I was fully prepared to have you both flung into the depths of the cave, as Darran didn't really have the time to react to save you after already attempting his own grab.  However, even at half ST, I rolled for you and it was a success.  You've managed to pull the dwarf back up, which took 3 or 4 seconds.  I'm happy to play general intentions here until the fight changes significantly, either you guys run out of ranged ammo, the thing dies, the thing gets loose, or some other major shift.

The large grease casting has sapped Rolf of almost every bit of energy he has, and then some.  His now clearly bloodshot eyes see Bromdaeg caught in the oily slickness of his spell and he knows the man has no hope of escaping the slow side to the middle of the room and be eaten by the deadly worm.  He must do something.

Reflexively the mage bends down and grabs the miner roughly by the shoulder and at first doesn't try to lift him out in hopes the leader of their group, Darran, can instead provide the muscle to get them both out.  But the mage quickly realizes there's no time for that as both he and the dwarf slide precipitously towards death!

Tossing the crossbow to one side, Rolf is just able to get enough grip with his legs and free hand on dry ground to pull them both up and out.  Which is remarkable considering he is so tired he can barely stand.

The worm continues to wriggle and writhe in it's lubricated prison, but the mage knows that it may not hold him for the entirety of the spells duration.  And even if it does, then what?  Surely it will come looking for them.  The best chance to defeat it is now.

"We have to kill it." he says simply as he reaches for his crossbow.

OOC:  You can move the action forward as needed.  Rolf has 1 bolt loaded and five in his quiver.  For the first three shots he will target the main torso.  And use all out attack ranged for an extra +1 to hit.  He will take one turn aiming then fire.  If it still lives after 3 bolts, and if he can target the mouth, on the last three shots he'll try a targeted aim at it's mouth.  If not then more torso shots.  The only discernible hit location I think available beside it's main trunk is the worm's mouth.  I don't believe I would know what a vitals attack would be on the creature.  If he misses on a shot at it's mouth he'll use a hero point to get a better roll.

There are many analogies that spring to Rolf's mind as unloads his crossbow with a twang! sending the bolt springing forward into the thick side of the writhing worm.  Shooting fish in a barrel...  Shooting the broad side of a barn...  Everything he can think of about a task being easy seems to apply quite literally for even as Rolf isn't the best shot, he finds the monster quite unmissable at this close range and with the slick surface and lack of footing, the monster seems unable to really get any traction to do anything about the situation.

Of course, the downside seems to be that despite the hits he manages to score, Rolf isn't sure there is any effect to the beast itself...

As his first, second, and third shots crash into the side of the monster, the thick brown coat of mud at its side cracks and falls away, revealing dark scales.  Darran too, forsakes his dropped broadsword for his bow, not even bothering to remove his shield as he loads an arrow and draws back, sending forth into the worm's ample flesh.

And so passes what seems the better part of a minute with Rolf reloading his crossbow with a deliberate and slow process, Darran slinging arrow after arrow in succession, Bromdaeg waiting patiently with his pick and shield in hand, and the worm writhing and pedaling uselessly on the hopelessly slick cave floor as mud and scales drop away beneath it.

Itching to break the stalemate, Rolf chooses a new target, this time going for the worm's open maw, a target which still seems quite a reasonable shot to make.  Taking his time, Rolf unloads again and this time the bolt sinks deep within the monster's open jaws.  The thing tail flails, slamming the bulk of it's tail against the wall which sends it's torso shooting forward!  Rolf is already pulling back on the draw string as he realizes the worm easily has enough momentum to make it up the shallow incline!

"Nay!"  Bromdaeg shouts, shoving Rolf out of the way as he meets the monster head on!  The dwarf's pick swings, crashing into the side of its lip just as the monster slashes with its razor sharp teeth!  Bromdaeg goes flying backwards, thrown from his feet as his pick clatters against the cave floor below him.  He seems to be no worse for wear, though his shield bears deep gouges that dig down to the braces.

"Get him off the ledge!"  Darran shouts, dropping the arrow in his hand as he reaches down to the floor where his discarded broadsword lays.

OOC:  25 seconds of action there.  You've scored 4 hits of your 4 shots and you think you've done some damage to the massive thing, though it doesn't seem to have slowed down any at all.  Darran has likewise scored 8 hits - same story.  Rolf has the drawstring of his crossbow half ready, it will take another turn to pull back, then another turn to draw a bolt, then one last one to put it in place.  Darran is crouching and gripping his broadsword and Bromdaeg has been knocked to his back by the force of the blow (which he successfully defended) and his pick has been knocked from his grip.  The worm is gripping on to some bits of the corridor where you guys are standing and seems to be able to keep himself there.  Let's do 3 turns for now.

Rolf draws and puts a bolt into his weapon.  He takes just a moment to aim before pulling the worn trigger on his trusty crossbow.  The giant worm is such an easy target and hard to miss that he doesn't want to take more time than is really necessary.  He isn't sure how long his greasy prison will hold the thing and by the gods he doesn't want to find out what it will do if it gets loose.  He scores three easy hits in quick succession, during which Darran unloads even more arrows into the creature.  It doesn't seem to have much effect however as he notes thick scales underneath the mud covering it's exterior.

What is this thing?

The mage decides to change tactics as he readies his fourth bolt.  Spending a bit more time aiming he targets directly for the creatures gaping maw before letting the bolt careen to it's target.  He scores a direct hit and bedlam ensues!

The worm reacts violently to having a bolt driven into it's innards and flings itself instinctively to the full length it can reach.  Bouncing off a cave wall in a mere fraction of a second it hurdles towards his party!

Crashing into Bromdaeg, the dwarf is knocked forcefully to the ground.  Briefly Rolf considers more grease, but it's too close and he is too fatigued to cast again.

The mage drops his crossbow and begins to draw his falchion.  Such a small weapon against such a large foe he would agree looks almost comical if he weren't currently fighting for his life.  "Aim for the mouth" he shouts as he steps closer to the fray.

OOC:  Rolf will draw his sword and attack.  He'll aim for it's mouth again.  Defense blink.

The thing thrashes, it's precarious grip on the small ledge dependent on half a dozen pod-like feet that cling like suction cups, holding the whole weight of the monster while its latter majority still swings idly behind it, unable to get a grip on the slick cave floor beyond.

The situation seems to significantly hamper the monster's attacks, for while its massive mouth and razor sharp teeth gnash and snap at the three adventurers, it can't seem to build up enough momentum to make the bites count for anything.

Darran's sword lashes out, smashing not toward the massive mouth, but to the closest of the podlike feet which holds the monster's grip.  The sword bites into the flesh, a thick brown sludge bubbling upward from the wound though the monster seems little perturbed otherwise.  Again and again the sword thrashes out, slicing deeper and deeper wounds into the monster's feet, though the goal of knocking loose the thing's grip does not come to pass.

Bromdaeg and Rolf too take their own swings, Bromdaeg pulling himself back to his feet and swinging wildly before getting himself under control and scoring a bone-shattering strike on the monster's lower lip and jaw, if indeed it has bones at all.  Rolf, after unsheathing his sword makes his own attack, missing first before scoring a neat hit that just slashes through the thick skin and scales of the beast.

Seeming to recognize its poor positioning, the monster arches its back, bringing several more of its feet onto the ledge as it pushes its head forward in the tunnel, the mass of its body barely clearing the walls.  The thing seems to be finally slowing, brought to exhaustion after taking enough injury to bring down a small army of men.

OOC:  I'm starting to get tired of telling characters how lucky they have been :P.  The worm missed both of its attacks and the cumulative attacks have started to take a toll on the worm.  It's still in fighting shape though and is pulling itself farther into the tunnel for more traction.   Just one turn of action this time.

The narrow passage Rolf finds himself in rings with the sound of blades clashing.  Men shriek as they fight against a creature the stuff nightmares are made of.

It is now quite clear Rolf is not the swordsman of his fellow companions, but he cannot abandon them to fiddle with his crossbow while they fight for their lives.  He wishes he were a better mage who might have made more of a difference with his magic, but he is what he is and if the situation requires he use his falchion he will.

A normal man would likely wet himself if faced with the enormous worm before them.  But Rolf, Bromdaeg, and Darran stand tall and mete out enough strikes to fell an elephant.  Yet the creature keeps coming.  Heedless of the danger, it's hungry and looking for a kill.

Deeply exhausted, Rolf musters every bit of energy he can and keeps fighting.

OOC:  We can use all the luck we can get!  I'll keep attacking as last turn, though I'll target the torso rather than mouth this turn.  Defense blink.

Picks and swords lash out at the beast, with Rolf scoring a neat cut just aft of the thing's mouth, its neck perhaps if indeed there was any real difference at all between the parts of the thing's body.  Darran scrapes a long gash too and Bromdaeg's pick sinks in, nestled between two hard scales just so that Bromdaeg struggles to pull the weapon out.

With its newly purchased footholds, the worm gnashes out in retort with its murderous teeth again, biting straight through a sizable chunk of Bromdaeg's shield as the dwarf retreats feverishly out of the way, leaving his pick embedded in the things skin in his haste.

Back and forth the men swing, swords slash this way and that, Bromdaeg merely trying to get a hand back onto his weapon which waves and flops with each movement of the giant worm!

But suddenly the thing strikes!  it's whole body shoots out, its mouth catapulted like the stone from a sling as its rows of razor-sharp teeth threaten to sever each and all of the three as they hustle backwards and out of the way.

Rolf uses his magic, shifting his body through space, backwards several feet, his head spinning with the sudden shift of his senses.  Just ahead of him, Bromdaeg manages to step back though Darran proves not quick enough, and he is knocked backwards by a lip before the thing slams it's mouth closed, Darran's leg shuddering with the impact as he is jerked off balance yet again and falls to the side, his leg caught in the monster's vice-like grip.

Darran screams!  His body flails with the horror as his sword clatters to the ground!

"Nay!"  Bromdaeg shouts, his half eaten shield still propped between himself and the monster, gripping with his empty right hand to pull back on their leader!

OOC:  Three rounds that time.  Though he has sustained an abundance of injuries large and small, more than one of which could have killed a normal human, it still is somehow continuing to fight.  And finally the worm managed to score a hit.  Darran's right leg has been caught and was nearly severed clean off, though I guess the downside is that now it is grappled instead.  Bromdaeg's pick is stuck in the folds of the animals scales, though at the moment he seems more concerned about pulling Darran back and out of the thing's grip.  Roll vs. Body sense or do nothing on your next turn.  Let's do three more rounds. 

Rolf joins his companions and swings his sword with abandon.  In unison, swords and Bromdaeg's heavy pick slice and pierce the worm's exterior.  However, despite it's grievous wounds, seemingly impervious to pain and hurt, it keeps coming for them and gains a better grip on the tunnel wall.

Gathering itself, it lurches forward, bringing about it's enormous mouth as it seeks to swallow them all at once!

Burning precious life force, Rolf uses his magic to ferry himself out of harms way.  Bromdaeg is lucky enough to scramble backwards and keeps his half eaten shield in front of him.

Darran is less fortunate and stumbles.  In an instant his leg is caught and nearly chomped free from its host!

Rolf numbly takes this all in as the use of his spell and it's painful cost leave him dazed.

Shaking it off, he grits his teeth, steps forward in hopes of freeing Darran, if he still lives.

OOC: After the first turn and he shakes off the daze from blinking, Rolf will attack.  As long as the worm has Darran in it's grip, he will all out attack @ +4 to hit, targeting the mouth.  In hopes of getting the worm to open its mouth so Darran can be dragged away.

If he does let go of Darran, standard attacks and blink defense as before.

Chaos reigns as Bromdaeg the dwarf grips his friend by the arm, pulling him back from the vice-like grip of the nefarious worm!  Rolf, disoriented by his spell can merely look on as the thing gapes open his mouth, Darran falling away in slow motion, Bromdaeg pulling him back with all of his might... the jaws slam shut again and Darran shouts as he falls, though fall away he does...

Finally back on his feet, and his wits about him, Rolf charges forward, his shortsword tearing through a thick gash at the monster's lip.  The thing snaps back at the mage, but the blow is unwieldy, weighted down by several yards of writhing feet that still cannot make traction on the slippery floor of the cave.

Indeed, perhaps the whole thing seems to have lost it's traction, for as Rolf steps forward again to attack, the only one now with a ready weapon, the murderous beast slips away from him, pulled backwards at a lethargic pace, its mouth slackening closed as it falls backwards.

On his guard for another moment, Rolf is finally convinced that the thing is unconscious as it slides back towards the cave bottom, its feet stationary through the movement.  It is hard to be certain the thing is down for good however, as it doesn't seem to breath or see even on its best of days.

Rolf turns, looking over his shoulder at Darran and immediately he can tell the damage done.  The man's whole leg is severed off just below the knee at the shin, and blood flows freely through the empty hole, gushing down the torn leathers and on to the cave floor below.

"Are ye awl rye?"  Bromdaeg shouts, turning towards Darran himself, though the other merely props himself up on his elbows, his face as leeched of all its color and stretched out into a grimace as his breaths come fast and shallow.

OOC:  Congratulations!  After taking a combined 47 points of damage (and knocking off 38 points of ablative DR) the worm finally lapsed into unconsciousness.  You guys managed to skate out of it pretty well, though Darran did lose his leg after Darran missed his roll for stun and the exact same hit location was rolled for a second time.  Though this module is essentially over, we have a few things to clean up.  Darran is in bad shape, if you want to heal him now, give me a roll vs. your appropriate healing spell, or a roll vs. an appropriate medical skill to stop the bleeding.  If there is anything else you want to do in the cave, feel free to roleplay it and I'll respond appropriately, I'll also have Bromdaeg search this last cave for precious metals in the next post assuming there isn't some other emergency in the making.

Wearied from casting and battle, Rolf's legs and arms feel like lead.  Sweat beads around blood shot eyes, while a dribble of blood oozes from not only his nose, but an ear as well.  But the battle presses on.

Heedless of his own safety, the mage steps forward and strikes with deadly accuracy on the worm's mouth, currently still clamped and chewing on Darran's leg.  The prone warrior writhes in agony as Bromdaeg tries his best to pull the man free.

Bringing his sword back for another strike he realizes the creature has now let go of Darran, whether he had swallowed his lower leg or simply let go he is uncertain.  But more importantly for Rolf, he has caught the worm's attention.  With an indifferent movement, the fell beast tries to bite down on him similarly as it had Darran, but misses as its numerous feet lose traction on the cave wall.  In fact the air seems to deflate from the mighty creature as it unmoors and slinks back to the middle of the cave.  Finally unmoving and still.  A giant greased slug wallowing in the chambers lowest point.

Rolf drops his sword as he wastes no time relishing the victory and wrestles his pack off as quickly as he can.  Blood spurts in hot streams from the stump on what is left of Darran's leg.  His eye glaze over as it's clear his leader is in deep shock.

Tearing open his backpack, he pulls out his first aid kit and hurriedly works to staunch the bleeding.  After an excruciating minute, the mage has pulled off an adequate tourniquet and has stabilized his leg.

Exhausted he sits and curls up against the cool cavern wall.  "I have to rest." he says simply to Bromdaeg as his battered and exhausted body has reached its limit and beyond.

OOC:  My first aid roll on Darran I made by 5.  I need to rest and use healing spells on Darran (first), myself and Bromdeag too if he is hurt.  During which Bromdaeg can search if he wants to (after the grease has ended in about 9 minutes).  Also, once the resting and healing is done, I'd like to to recover as many of the worms scales as I can.  Once we're ready to leave and I have enough energy I will use levitation spells to get at least me and Darran up to our main camp so we don't have to climb (especially important for Darran).  I would suspect Bromdaeg would want nothing to do with a magic flying spell.

Rolf pulls his first aid kit out of his pack, his hands shaking and his head feeling light, blood dribbling in a slow ebb from his nose.  Though he knows that Darran needs healing badly, the mage does not trust himself to anything more than his mundane skills until he has had an hour or more of rest, but Darran simply does not have that long.

The moments slink by, blood squirts out of the wound in slowly diminishing gushes as Rolf applies pressure, squeezing his tourniquet quickly to save as much as he can of Darran's precious blood.  After a minute or more, Darran passes out from loss of blood, but Rolf keeps on until the blood flow stops and he himself collapses in exhaustion.

Still, Darran's shallow breath continues unabated and the minutes slip by...  Bromdaeg tests the floor of the cave and finding it now safe to pass, he walks down towards the unconscious worm, retrieves his pick and takes several swings at the unmoving bug before he is satisfied.

Eventually, Rolf feels well enough to heal Darran, and he casts his strongest healing spell, restoring much of the color to Darran's face as the man's eyes flutter open.

Another hour or more passes and Rolf casts another spell, restoring further vigor to Darran's countenance, though Rolf knows there is nothing that can be done for the leg that is even now resting in the belly of the beast.  Darran continues to rest even as Rolf heads down into the cave himself, taking his sword to cut away some of the thick, leathery scales of the animal that had nearly done them in.  He finds that the things separate well enough when cut and it seems easily possible to take off a whole sheet of the material, if indeed he can get the whole of it to separate from the animal itself.

"Yeh feigned et!"  Bromdaeg shouts, his voice coming up from a small shaft that seems to have been a tunnel hole the worm had eaten into the depths below.  "As cupper!  Clear as day!  En if ta be main en down ere fir menths er yers!  We feigned it!"

OOC:  To make things clear, Bromdaeg found a massive copper vein in one of the shafts (worm tunnels) below.  Go ahead and give me a roll vs. Leatherworking +5.  This defaults to DX-4, so it ends up being a roll against DX+1 if you don't have it.  Please also specify how much of the scales you want to take with you either in pounds or square yardage.  This will affect a few things which we can handle in private off line.  You are correct that Bromdaeg wouldn't want you to levitate him up but I'm comfortable fast forwarding through the climb/float up and assuming you just wait until you get a successful spell. Please add anything you want in the closing post here.

Rolf work's furiously to staunch Darran's bleeding.  He is so tired and suffering from various wounds, mostly self inflicted from drawing on his own life force to fuel his magic, but he can't rest.  He does have some skill in medicine, but not that much.  Still, whether it be the seriousness of the situation, or a determination borne from sheer exhaustion and a desire to just be done with it, he makes short work of Darran's spurting stump.

Though he has stopped the man's blood loss, he desperately needs more healing,  However the mage knows in his own current state he would have to draw upon more his own health to do so.  And by doing that it would make it much harder to channel the mana needed to weave the spell.  Which by the fickle nature of this particular spell is doubly worse as is it can't be cast repeatedly on the same subject without increasing difficulty.

He just can't take the chance.  Instead he collapses on the cave floor and closes his eyes.  He rests despite having to listen to Darran's breath come in ragged, irregular cycles.  Precious minutes pass by and he feels a bit better.  Well enough that he tries, and succeeds in using his strongest magical healing on the unconscious Darran.  The man awakens, but doesn't say much besides warranted moans.

He rests more and casts another spell on Darran, before standing and checking on the worm.  He really wants to get some scales from the creature and there's little more he can do for Darran.  At least for now.  He isn't sure what he might do with the scales, but he want's at least a keepsake of this experience.  And maybe someone might be able to let him know just what it was.

His grease long gone, Rolf sets his feet firmly and uses his falchion to begin tearing into it, though he feels a bit uneasy at being so close to the deadly creature where just a little while before it was literally trying to eat them.  And it almost did.

"That's great!" Rolf shouts back in response to Bromdaeg's discovery with little joy in his voice as he looks Darran's way.  Despite the copper and the windfall it will provide, it has come at a great cost.

OOC:  Rolf missed his worm scale roll by 1.  He has a sack with 40lb capacity so he'll do his best to fill it up with as many undamaged ones that he can.  I'm okay with fast forwarding the return upside.  btw, his sack is in camp so he'll have to get the scales ready, fly up, grab the sace, then fly back down to fill it.  He'll want to manage his FP accordingly so he'll have enough to do the flying in one shot.