"Ulrich's Axe, that's all we need," growls Captain Schiller. He turns to Harkin and Fyodor (and Edgar and Jocelin if present.) "I better see to the gate. You four better check across the bridge just to make sure there isn't anything else left there. Report back in a few minutes and you'll have your bottles - and more thanks!"

Turning he marches towards the gate defenses with most of the Watch.

Edgar had crossed under the bridge and made his way back up the bank to meet the others " I fear pour Lukas is gone from us. I heard of another assault, on the gate no less. I will postpone my search for the man's body until the town is secure but I will then take nibbles and go find him. A brave man such as he must have a proper burial"

With that he picked up a dozen stones from the ground and put them in a pouch. " so I heard someone say we should cross the bridge to look for the shooter. I say we break the bridge to allow the stretched town watch to focus on defending the gate. The river is high and I doubt even those beasts could cross it. But I also know how the town views this hunk of stone so I suppose we need to secure the other end for them instead"

Jocelin was surprised to hear the halfling suggest the destruction of the bridge.

"But... this bridge is these people's livelihood... without it they'd be destitute. Well, even more destitute." Her attitude brightened. "Besides, Imperial forces know of this threat and already the army has been here to defend Unterwald from the beastmen. Surely those in Altdorf know of these people's needs and the threats they face. By Sigmar, they'll come again if needed! Surely we cannot destroy the bridge, but fight to preserve it, for the glory of the Empire!"

Edgar looked at the mageling " with the bridge intact it might be more than their livelihoods they will loose next time but that call is not mine to make just an observation. As for the army coming back, I've been a messenger for many years I've carried communications in the heat of battle and one thing I can tell you the army that helped here were passing through they won't be back this town is nothing inthe great scheme of things sadly these people will live or die due to the decisions they make and waiting for the army to save them wouldn't be a good one."

He sighed and sat on the edge of the bridge " my dear I commend your view of the world but it is not truly like that" he spread his arms indicating the town around them " little people, innocent people such as these are like flies on the arse of a horse any moment they will get slapped by the tail and be gone that is the nature of it. What you have to decide is do you attempt to cut the tail off or jump at the last moment and leave the rest to die"

Fyodor awkwardly thanked the old woman for her help and finished reloading his gun. He nodded grimly to Captain and the orders to secure the bridge and slung the rifle over his back.
If there was indeed a Hochland Rifle, then that would be a major find. He had heard rumors about such a weapon.

"Bridge stay. Lets go."

Grabbing his trusted berdysh he started crossing the bridge, eyes peeled for the sniper.

Jocelin sniffed. "I'm sure the people of Uberwald would listen to the camp-following halfling."

She walked off after Fyodor shaking her head. "Tsk. And he thinks I'm naive!"

---

OOC:
Jocelin will have dropped the Glowing Light once she's out of the darkness beneath the bridge.

Edgar laughed at the mage reply "I don't doubt your words no one will listen to me I'm sure but can we get one thing straight I'm not a camp following halfling. I am a messenger of the guild of messengers. I have a badge to prove it. In the scheme of things and to such lofty people such as wizards and the like it might not be much but the guild of messengers keep villages and towns connected to me that's a vital service I give"

He jumped down off his seat "oh and if a halfling were to be part of a camp they definitely wouldn't be a follower they be the head cook" he added with a grin as he moved across the bridge

"Report. Har." Harkrin grumbled. "First pay, then expect reports." he muttered to himself and followed Fyodor across the bridge, looking around in search for an ambush or another enemy.

The stone bridge over the River Taub is in bad shape but for the most part seems stable; it was built a century ago to allow the passage of carts while also being high enough to allow barges to travel beneath up and down the river.

Ahead of you looms what the locals often refer to as 'Ostgard' the eastern and newer section of Untergard. Though smaller than the western half it was actually wealthier, and you can easily see the fire-gutted ruins of once fine houses. Now the once bustling side of the town is silent. Even the flies are gone, disappearing once the dead had been removed after the original battle (an unpleasant task some at least of you took part in.) You boots echo across the cobbles.

Fyodor makes for what had been the coaching house, a large building edging out onto the river. and it is here he soon finds the mutant sniper - or what had been the sniper. The mutant in its haste to retreat had clearly stepped on a weak  floorboard on the upper floor crashed through and broken it's neck. It lay in a crumple heap amongst the rubble, face turned up.

The mutant was a young human woman and might once have been quite pretty with her slim figure, pale complexion, blonde hair and and almost aristocratic features. Even the rags she wears look like they must once have been a dress of quality. However the left side of her face bares the unmistakable mark of the altered - blue scales cover what had once been human skin and the open left eye is snakelike yellow with a slit pupil.

Nearby lies her weapon, a long and complicated firearm that looks both dangerous and difficult to use - and so heavy it might have added to the mutant's fall. The weapon is bent at ugly angle and even Fyodor, who is far more familiar with the firing of black powder weapons than their construction, knows that it will need substantial repair by an expert if it is to work again.

Jocelin followed Fyodor into Ostgard, looking this way and that but seeing only the destruction left in battle’s wake.

She looked at the woman sniper and saw in her aristocratic features a potential reflection of her own future, corrupted by the immaterium after a moment’s weakness or break in concentration. Not that she voiced her concern — these peasants needed to be shown confident and capable leadership from Imperial officials like herself.

“An advance party, perhaps?” she asked. “Should we look through this part of town for others?”

---

OOC:
17:43, Today: Jocelin Herzog rolled 78 using 1d100.  Search - Target 41.

"well we've found the sniper which is a good thing but as Jocelyn said this could have been an advance party or as the watch said a decoy to draw us away from the gate....either way we need to make sure the immediate area is safe. " suggested the halfling.

"also if we can't destroy the bridge then we need to get the watch to barricade it in some way to give the town's defence time to move from one area to the other to defend it if attacked again"

Harkrin poked the corpse with his axe.

"Do you think we'll get some extra wine if we bring the head of this one back to Schiller?" he asked casually, but without directing his question to any of his companions.

There doesn't seem to much sign of anything living in the ruins of 'Ostgard' beyond the four of you and the lice in Harkrin's hair. There is a faint scent of beast men on the air but it is very stale and given how much they reek and the recent rain wet beast man fur would assault your nostrils like a musk based battering ram if any of the chaos monsters were nearby.

Five sets of footprints are indentifiable in the mud, quite clearly belonging to the mutants you slew on the bridge and the luckless sniper. Further investigation reveals an hours old trail of what might have been a cat, dog or fox but what is clearly some four legged animal.

From back across the bridge you can hear raised voices. It doesn't sound like a fight or a panic more like a heated debate back in the Acherplatz.
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:05, Sun 04 Apr 2021.

Fyodor grabbed the large rifle and studied it. He wondered how much it would cost to fix and who the original owner was. A woman sniper. He then knelt down next to her body and searched it for any sign of her identity and more important if there was any spare ammunition.

Rifling through the dead mutant's clothing Fyodor discovers four brass pfennigs, a plain silver ring with an inscription he can't read, a knife and enough powder and ammunition for a single shot.

The warrior takes the gun powder and shot for himself and slips it into his belt pouches. Grabbing the coins and silver ring he hands it to woman known as Jocelin.
He didnt trust magic, but she had proven her worth, so maybe she was trustworthy.

Standing up he finally takes the long rifle and slings it across his shoulder.


"Kaput. But maybe one day fix." he says and pats the rifle.



OOC: Is it a Hochland Long Rifle? and would Fyodor have a guestimate on the cost of fixing it?

Edgar was about to move further into the ruins when the sound of an argument drifted across the bridge.

With a sigh " looks like we might have problems in house as well as from without. shall we band of heroes go find out what the heated discussion is about?"

With that he started off back across the bridge towards the town square

Jocelin smiled in surprise at the spunk of the halfing, and said nothing, but followed him towards the Acherplatz.

The dwarf spat at the mutant's body, poked it once again with his axe and followed the rest back to the Acherplatz.

Departing 'Ostgard' you walk back across the Taub towards the Acherplatz. The crowds are once again milling about in confusion and excitement but you can easily make out Captain Schiller, Father Dietrich and Granny Moescher trying to restore order.

The Captain notices you walking over and smiles ruefully, stroking his steel grey moustache. "Ah welcome back. You again have my thanks but it seems we might have to rethink our plans. Tell them what you told me Hans."

Captain Schiller addresses this last point to a bearded man in his thirties, nearly as big as Fyodor and as hairy as Harkrin. He stands with a knot of perhaps a dozen or more exhausted looking civilians, men women and children. They look like strangers but Hans himself is familiar at least by sight - like your missing comrade Lukas Hans is a woodsman from the outskirts of Untergard who has been acting as a scout and game hunter for the past few weeks.

"I've been scouting the surrounding countryside and picking up stragglers. These folks with me" - Hans jestures to the survivors he brought with him, "are the survivors I found wandering in the woods. They come from villages all over Middenland.

"As I was bringing them back. I found fresh Beastman tracks south of here. It looks like a warherd some 200 strong is headed towards Untergard. I rushed back here to warn you.

"I will of course defer to Captain Schiller but it's my feeling that we should leave Untergard before these Beastmen arrive. I don't know if we could withstand them alone and there is no help to be found in time. I visited Grimminhagen six days ago and it's a wreck. We can't expect help from there. What else is new, eh? I must also report that while Grimminhagen was sacked, Graf Elster Sernhauer survived by hiding in his keep."

At the mention of the Graf, many in the crowd boo. Even Granny Moescher looks disapproving with a scowl crossing her face. On hearing all of this, the crowd that had momentarily lapsed into silence re-starts loudly debating what should be done.

None of you are Untergard natives but you do know there is enough bad blood between the people of Untergard and those of Grimminhagen to flood the Taub and Graf Sernhaur is a name you've often heard spoken in anger.

---

OOC: Fyodor, you've never even so much as seen a long rifle but it might be one from the stories you've heard. It likely won't be cheap to repair but probably cheaper than buying a brand new one!

Edgar didnt like the sound of having to fight more of the creatures they had already lost a good man to a small band a force of 200 would be like a swarm of locus on a field of corn.

He stepped into the square and cleared his throat but the noise of the crowd drowned it out so he picked up a stone put it in his sling and shot it towards the bell tower striking it with a resounding ring.
once there was silence he cleared his throat again to get peoples attention

" I am not a warrior I am a mere messenger but I have been on a few battle fields in my time. It seems to me that we are poorly prepared to fight off 200 beastmen let alone 20 it might be the best plan to retreat from the town and head for the hills to better set up a defence. Stay here and we could be trapped with food and water in low supply if the monsters don't do for us then starvation will."

"I admit i am not one of you so my word might seem hollow and without the pride of your great town behind them but pride never saved a life as far as I know but pride can definitely shorten one. A town can be rebuilt a community cannot."

He looked at his fellow defenders " if a small group were to track the warband see where it is heading, it might just pass by if it does then we have valuable information to pass onto our army, if they head this way then they gain nothing but a deserted town. If they find our tracks into the hills then the group can try to lead them away. It is dangerous I know but I feel staying will surely result in nothing but a ghost town"

"The hills?" gasps Karl Hauser, the innkeeper turning ghostly. "There are trolls and worse up there and we have women and children here!"

There is a chorus of agreement from some of the townsfolk, and a filthy look from Hilde the blonde watchwoman who had helped fight the mutants on the bridge. She clears her throat and states: "Untergard is ours! I say we stay and fight!"

Another serenade of agreement, though not quite so loud this time and from notably fewer people.

Father Dietrich raises his hands to speak. The lanky Sigmarite has been nodding along to Hilde's declaration. "Well said! Brothers and sisters, I know I am not Untergard born but I swore an oath to the Heldenhammer to serve and guide the people of this town and I will not lightly abandon it. Beyond the wall, covered in lime lie hundreds of dead beastmen and mutants who thought they could take this town. This warherd is a rabble who don't know they've already lost the war. Let us stay and fight."

Hans Baumer grimaces and gestures at the ragged band of survivors he escorted to Untergard. "With respect Father they've been through enough battles. Aye I'm not sure the hills are a smart idea but the halfling is right about us going and that towns can be rebuilt."

This provokes another vicious argument between those who want to stay and those who seem ready to flee at once.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:04, Tue 06 Apr 2021.

Edgar raised his hands in exasperation then turned and walked back to the others "well I did my best but humans seem to put more value in material things than their own lives."

Fyodor watched in silence the villagers discuss the situation. He had seen villages razed back home and knew how attached people could become to the only thing they knew and called home.
Looking around he knew that these 50 odd people didn't stand a chance against a horde of Beastmen.

He scratched his beard and thought about the options. He could just leave and continue on his journey and quest, but he quickly abandoned that thought. His father would not approve of him leaving the less fortunate to be slaughtered. They could fortify the village and destroy the bridge to reduce the front lines. Then they could hide in the woods or hills, which seemed like a bad idea.

He was not familiar with the local politics and normally didnt care about them but in this case their best chance of survival seemed to be Graf Elster Sernhauer's keep.

He made his way up to the Captain. "Graf Elster Sernhauer Keep. Seek protection. Reorganize. Fight back. Survive." he made a gesture towards all the villagers.

"Homes aren't mere things, and if your skill is in carrying others' messages, then do that." Jocelin said matter of factly.

"But he's right that the best we four can do is try to lead the beasts away from here... towards a stronghold where the herd can wipe itself out in a futile attack on the might of the Empire. Do we know the garrison of the Graf's keep?" she asked Baumer.