Cassandra watched horried at the battle. At least the dangerous strangers on the ship were winning. She wasn't worried about herself now: she could flee now faster than the skeletons could follow, but she had the natural desire not to see these people die.

With the living statue slain under their combined fury, Theoros felt the song of victory coursing through his veins. He had not known that this group of survivors had been made up of such formidable warriors and magi, but he was sure this test of Ares would be passed.

"Onward to greater glory!" he boomed, brandishing his blade and guiding his mount forward.

With that, he charged through the rubble of the Spartan, and made for on of the Skeletons menacing the end of the line of skirmish. This time, his blade connected with his foe, as well as his horse's strange headbutt.

OOC Mechanics
HP: 9/9
AC: 17 FF: 14 T: 11
Initiative: 14
Active Effects: -2 AC from Charge

Free Action      : Speak
Full-Round Action: Charge Skeleton near Malvolo - Hit

Astera's Actions
Full-Round Action: Charge Skeleton near Malvolo - Hit

Damage: 6 Slashing
Damage: 9 Bludgeoning

-Rolls-
08:36, Today: Theoros rolled 26 using 1d20+7. Charge Attack.
08:37, Today: Theoros rolled 22 using 1d20+13. Astera Charge Attack.
08:38, Today: Theoros rolled 6,9 using 1d8+3,1d4+7. Damage Rolls.

Yngvar swings his staff at the skeleton that had moved up to him, he swung so wiildly, he missed the air! He lost his grip and had to recover it when he could!

08:37, Today: Yngvar the Mad rolled 1 using 1d20.  to hit.


Initiative 15
AC 17
HP 8
This message was last edited by the player at 13:41, Thu 26 Jan 2023.

Garvarius was glad to see the stone statue fall. The Spartan statue reminded him a little too much of home. Moving to the next skeleton nearest to him he took a swing, but his new size threw him off a little and his sword bit into the sand.

OOC: Attacking nearest skeleton. Missed

The centaur looked upon the ruined form of the spartan that had crumbled in seconds.
"Was that all!? WAS THAT ALL!?"
He turned to the skeleton next to him, but he was clearly inebriated from the wine. His axe swings were wild, his hooves lashed out into thin air. At this rate he might sooner hit someone nearby than his foe!

---

Initiative: 15
AC: 16 HP: 13 (0/5 Damage pool)

Active Stance: Martial Spirit
Full action: Full attack (miss, miss, miss. impressive!)

22:02, Today: Gerakas rolled 4,1,10 using 1d20+3,1d20-2,1d20-2.  Full attack (axe, hoof, hoof).
22:06, Today: Gerakas rolled 11,4,3 using 1d12+3,1d4+1,1d4+1 with rolls of 8,3,2.  Damage (axe, hoof, hoof).

Malvolo and Aranea both move a 5' step South and try their attacks again on their only adjacent skeleton. Another sheet of webbing is wasted and the staff sails harmlessly through the air again. He did stand his position of not running away well at least.

ooc: even when it isn't what you're built for, some times you have to be there.

On the Beach...

The battle rage on, Eleni using the power of Hades, smashed a skeleton back to the Underworld. She was in her element, moving with near supernatural strength and speed, fueled on by her god. The pipes of Pantelis continued to play as the skeletons where being finished up. Aetius cut down another and so did Theoros as they felt the song of victory coursing through their veins.


Anstice, finally breaking through to her goddess, channeled godly light and fire through her holy symbol turning the last of the Skeletons to dust. (Anstice was busy today, so at her request I rolled for her).

The party stood victorious.


In Olympus...

Athena stood with a smile on her face, despite receiving a look of disapproval from  Artemis.

"They only passed one test Athena!"

Athena's smile slowly turned into a full grin. "It would appear, brother, that you have...underestimated them...perhaps?"

Ares went red with rage. "A mistake that will not happen again....and there will be more tests in the future for these mortals."

"I can't wait to see that...., but brother will you...fall on your face again?" The reflecting pool of water shows the broken face of the stone spartan in the sand.

On the Beach...

Yngvar had found two days worth of food and water for the party off the dead that he had looted before the battle. As well as 14 rubies.

OOC: On the skeletons you find 3 masterwork scimitar, 6 large steel shields. 3 masterwork short-swords. On the stone spartan a (large sized) masterwork bastard-sword and a (large sized) masterwork large steel shield. Appraise check dc 15 show the veins running through the stone spartan is silver ore. If you look at the game map, you are on the red hex. Where you go from there is up to you. :)
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:48, Fri 27 Jan 2023.

Eleni takes a moment to look and ensure no enemies remain. Finding none, she puts her weapon up and wipes the bit of blood on the side of her head clean with a cloth. "Great job taking care of these things. We should bury the remains if someone would not mind helping me do that. The others should resume taking care of the essentials, ideally in groups of 2 or more in case more of these things are around." she says loudly enough to be heard, then begins making a small hole to place a set of the remains in.

As the sounds of battle turned to the relative silence of victory Aetius scanned the impromptu battlefield for a moment to look for any fresh signs of danger before relaxing slightly. Turning to regard those gathered across the beach he flashed a sudden grin of enthusiasm at them before calling out, "Fine work, fine work indeed. Good to know I'm surrounded by capable sorts."

At Eleni's remark he reached down to the nearest skeleton, pulling free the shield and passing it in her direction, "Likely the closest thing to a spade here, unless anyone brought one with them?"

Looking back to the remnants that had washed ashore he added, "We'll likely want to keep searching the detritus for signs of anything useful. if nothing else it'll make decent enough supplies for a fire. Aside from that probably want some people to do initial scouting. If there's no signs of civilisation we'll be looking for fresh water or higher ground as the first priorities."

Moving along the scene of battle he glanced down at the stone spartan he paused for an instant, kneeling down in the remains to examine them. Rising with a small chunk in his hand his features brightened a moment later as clarity came, "Well this is possibly a good sign. There looks to be traces of silver ore in this. Assuming there's more in the other rocks that increases the chances of there being people nearby, those scouting should watch for any signs of extraction work." Lowering the chunk to the ground his attention turned back to the assorted bits of the ship that had washed ashore with them and he nodded, "I'll get to sifting through the wreckage. I doubt there's much that made it ashore with us but better to be sure now."

The sudden horrific and scary violence over Cassandra wondered what to do. Should she just go find her own place: easy enough in a place like this, and probably safer than hanging around with these people who had somehow attracted the God's attention. Which was never good

The idea of being 'on her own' after so long being part of a family was ... probably as scary as staying with these. And she could always change her mind later

"I'll... We'll..." she patted her wolf "We'll go looking for fresh water. If you look at the lie of the hills there is probably a valley to the west. We'll back back in under an hour" leaving the despoiling of the dead and stones to the others she walked into the bushes and was gone

Malvolo began looking intently at what was native to the area. Left to his devices he would likely be many minutes looking over the scrubby beach grasses and going to the tree line, "I'm no scout but I'm pretty good at communicating and figuring things out. If there is a call for skilled labor that no one is particularly versed in, let me know. I can figure out harvesting that silver though I'm trying to figure out a bit more about our location."

"I found some food and water as well as 14 rubies. I'll keep looking for more. Or do you need help burying the dead now?"

Cassandra walked out of the wilderness perhaps an hour later

"There is a large river to the southwest, and decent terrain for traveling along it." she announced "Rivers often have people building settlements on them. People have boats and means to leave the island, and .. well ... it looks like a good direction to go in"

"Shall we start heading that way? We can leave markers for anyone out scouting to follow. Or I can go scout it out some more"

"Or we can wait on them to get back, the other way may be even better, patience is good sometimes, I'm in no hurry to die today." Yngvar says to the pretty scout.

"I'll take one of those nice shortswords if there is one left, I can use a sword!"
This message was last edited by the player at 17:12, Fri 27 Jan 2023.

"I think waiting for the others is a better idea. We have strength in numbers, and do not know if anyone we encounter will be friendly. The river bodes well for a water source and for potential food. I agree the river is a good place to head to, once we are whole again. Patience is often rewarded." the warrior says to the Cassandra and Yngvar. She used the shield she was given to scoop away the sand quickly and then grabbed each rock out. It was slow going, but at least each grave did not have to be large. She wiped a bit of sweat off her brow as she began the next grave.

It was several hours before Theoros returned, looking someone tired from the ride, but still bright eyed and alert. Astera had a bit of a later from the ride, but of anything, she seemed to be happy about it.

"The land to the north, is slightly forested. To the Northeast and Southeast, the trees begin to thin and the ground changes to sand dunes and desert in the distance. But note that this is not an empty Forest. I noticed tracks of various kinds of game dear, ram, and a variety of small animals like rabbits. I also found the occasional faded Human and goblinoid tracks. There were other tracks of other things, potentially more monstrous. I could not say for certain. So this place is not uninhabited. We should head for signs of civilization. But be wary. There is no telling what dangers lie abroad, or if the gods will seek to test us again," the big man reported simply, without preamble.

"Oh they'll test us alright, pass the test and live, fail the test, we die. Testing us for WHAT is the question." He sees to his mule, there wasn't much that survived as far as livestock, but a few horses and his mule.

Aiding in moving the assorted bodies closer to where Eleni was digging Aetius then embarked on what would ultimately be a fruitless search of the various other bits of detritus that had washed ashore. Wherever he found chunks of wood suitable for fire he tossed them lightly further up the beach where they could dry away from the ocean. As he sifted through and the sun began to rise higher in the sky he paused in the search, lowering his head to concentrate for a moment and mouth a few words as he cast a spell upon himself before resuming the work.

OOC: Endure Elements for anyone who can make the Spellcraft

When Cassandra returned he paused in the work and headed over to hear her information. While he agreed with her assessment of why the river would be the best route to explore he nodded acknowledgement of Eleni and Yngvar's remarks too, "While we could leave them a trail there's no guarantee they'll follow it as soon as they return. And if they don't return we'd never know that if we leave now. Let's finish up everything here, wait for them and then move on."

Once he had sifted through the detritus to the best of his ability Aetisu dug a length of rope from his pack and began to bind together the bits of wood he had scavenged in small bundles better suited for carrying. While there was far from a hefty amount he could at least get something together for that now rather than they run the difficulty of harvesting wood in strange terrain later. As he continued with this he kept an optimistic eye out to the sea though no vessels passed by while he worked unfortunately.

Theoros' return say him again pause his efforts to hear the latest news, this time confirming that at least there was some wildlife out there along with signs of other humans and more unusual beings. Still it boded well, the place was not uninhabited so even if this was not the mainland it was at least likely to have contact with it. Given Cassandra had already left he advised Theoros, "The girl's search found a large river to the southwest. Off that it's likely better to head that way since it at least assures us a source of water and I'd imagine there'll be game to find there too if needs be."

Looking at Eleni he asked, "Are they nearly all buried now? I've found little in the wreckage so there's not much keeping us here once that is done."

OOC: Edited as Cassandra's post confirms she left after initially returning
This message was last edited by the player at 21:58, Fri 27 Jan 2023.

While the other's waited, Cassandra went back into the bushes again before heading back the way of her short scouting trip to see what she could find. She too returned after half a day

The centaur, drunk as he was, unsurprisingly lay down in the shadow of a tree and did not rise for a long while...

Eleni responds "Yes, the sand quickly turned to rock, but they are laid to rest. We should gather everyone and figure out exactly what we want to do. I think we should make for the river and follow it away from the coast. It is our best chance of happening upon civilization, I think. I think I will attempt to catch an animal or two for a more hearty dinner or breakfast. Anyone is welcome to join me.

OOC:

13:40, Today: Eleni rolled 18 using 1d20+6.  Survivial.

Staying close to the beach, no more than 30 mins away walking. Trying to set up traps or find dens for the burrowing animals.

Garvarius smiled and took a moment to catch his breath after the battle. See the large bastard-sword, he picked it up to feel it's weight. "If no one minds, I think I hear this fine maiden calling my name."

OOC: Claiming the large bastard-sword, if no one objects.

Malvolo inspects the silvered stone of the statue for a few minutes and also considers the wasted webs that missed and spread in sand. "Arachne's webs are stronger than you might give credit for. We can't clean those for cloth weaving but we can use them for fishing. It would take a very strong fish to break them. I haven't met anyone who could pull a knife through a full sheet... A home web. These hunting ones are lighter but still take a lot of work for the average person. Some of the warriors here, no doubt could tear the webs or even shelter sheets... I would almost fear a common animal that pulled through a sheet.

We can expect things to be clear and conducive to work if not exactly to distance travel, weather wise. Do any of you know anything about mining? Did the statue wash up with us or was it native?

I'm going to try to plan for being stuck here, others can focus on leaving and as long as we don't forsake each other we can all benefit."

Pantelis, while not one for hard work, had remained behind and helped to bury the dead. He remained silent on thoughts until both scouts had returned to give their reports. As he dug he quietly a song, that those who listened would recognize as a hymn to death:

"Hear me, O Death, whose empire unconfined
extends to mortal tribes of every kind
on thee, the portion of our time depends,
whose absence lengthens life, whose presence ends
thy sleep perpetual bursts the vivid folds, by which
the soul, attracting body holds: common to all of every
sex and age, for nought escapes thy all-destructive rage
not youth itself thy clemency can gain, vigerous
and strong, by thee untimely slain
in thee, the end of nature’s works is known,
in thee, all judgment is absolved alone:
no suppliant arts thy dreadful rage control no vows revoke the purpose of thy soul
O blessed power regard my ardent prayer, and life to age abundant spare."


At last he piped up, after both reports had been given, "If my vote counts for anything, towards the river would be the best choice even without finding the other inhabitants of this place, at least nearer the river will be a source of fresh water and more likely food sources."

Anstice smiles as the power of Artemis comes forth to destroy the last remaining foe. Her goddess is still with her. Opening her eyes as the others start to move along with plans. First, she sends her Eagle, Thelma forth to hunt on her own while she discusses what to do first, "I suggest we start with gathering Materials and rest. We all just survived a shipwreck, our bodies need time to recover focusing on that recovery should make moving easier in a day or two. While foraging and hunting keep an eye out for berries they can be enchanted into a meal each. I will forage and search locally for food while the dead are dealt with."




OOC:

I will stay nearby for hunting and foraging. Effectively staying in the local Hex.

Eagle Rolled: 19:19, Today: Anstice rolled 18 using 1d20+2.  Eagle Survival Hunting.

Anstice Rolled: 19:29, Today: Anstice rolled 14 using 1d20+9.  Survival Roll for Anstice.
This message was last edited by the player at 03:32, Sat 28 Jan 2023.