|
Post by jon on Oct 5, 2013 2:06:19 GMT
"Oh that is dreadful, someone should probably inform Mrs Perin of her nephews likely demise... Perhaps leave out the details of blood and torture though..." Hans shudders.
Hans' eyes gleam with Teo levels of excitement at the potential of a weapon that could give the common man the ability to use such a weapon with almost magical abilities... for a reasonable price of course... "Is there any chance you could train one such as me to assemble and use these weapons? We will need every chance we can for the upcoming battle". War isn't so bad at all Hans thinks to himself.
|
|
|
Post by henwen88 on Oct 5, 2013 4:21:45 GMT
The strange contraptions Wu Jiao showed the group held little interest for Leath. Too complex. Nothing natural about them. The Lia woman, while he enjoyed seeing her made to feel fear, seemed to be of more use to them alive than dead. No reason to waste someone who could perhaps help them avoid a lot of trouble in taking the compound. He tries to keep up his threatening glare until the interrogation is over, however.
|
|
|
Post by tengen on Oct 5, 2013 6:06:37 GMT
She had been busy following almost three different interactions of the interrogation, Wu and the occasion blurb from Azreal outside that she had kept silent for the most part. It was what Hans mentioned that snapped her out of her fugue and gave her a reason to act.
"You make a good point Hans, someone should go break the news to Miss Perin." She says as she slowly gets up walking to the door stopping next to Wu.
"Mr. Wu, It is a pleasure to meet you." She says politely extending a hand in greeting. "From what it seems it is too bad we did not meet on less dire circumstances. " She says solemnly her eyes downcast in respect before continueing. "For now if you may excuse me, I have a task to perform". she says with slight trepidation giving a small curtsy out of habit before walking away. Her mind was swimming trying to processing everything along with how to break it to Miss Perin. Mass graveyards, crazy mages, black powder arrows, undead commands words, Smugglers tunnels........that thought crossed her mind as she entered the threshold causing her to abruptly stop to think for a moment before turning around to look at those of her companions that are nearby.
"If by chance, do you think you could inquiry for me on information related to the tunnels she mentioned earlier it would be highly appreciated" She says almost conversationally before turning around again to head to where Miss Perin is located to deliver the grim news.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 6, 2013 1:56:04 GMT
Lorenzo enters the room with his head facing down, obviously having been listening in. "I knew that poor boy," the Captain hangs his head low. "Mrs. Perin is back in Scalo Est treating with the wounded, but I shall dispatch another courier. As far as Lia's fate goes, I shall send a courier to see if your claims hold water. You had best have spoken the truth to us, for your fate depends on it."
A guardsman salutes, and dispatches a courier to Scalo Est and a courier to the hilltop. The next few minutes drag on for a seeming eternity as tension hangs over the room. Lia sits sweating like a condemned woman, waiting for news that will determine her fate. There is a burst of excitement when the runner returns with dirt stained hands, and a wooden box carried by two other militamen. They set it down, and pry it open with a short sword. Black powder tubes connected to javelins roll out, as well as small bags of coins and leather-bound books. Lorenzo picks up a book and skims through it. "Alchemical notes and maps of the Vizzini Estate," he looks at Lia. "You certainly were prepared."
"He might've changed up some of the defenses, but there's ways in," she says. "Smuggling tunnels connect with the crypt, and then the main house. The front road's lined with skeletons and his best guards."
"How about the forest?" Lorenzo asks.
He opens the window in the bandit barracks, by which he kicks open a rotting wooden shutter that clatters to the ground below. The Vizzini estate can be seen due south, a two-story manner in a clearing on a peninsula to the south. The land sits upon the Adriatic like a great mossy blanket. Forests engulf much of the peninsula, but the path of the road can still be made out.
"Full of traps, but the guard patrols are probably smaller," Lia says.
"Still, we could land a small party in the woods or smuggling tunnels with a rowboat under cover of darkness," Lorenzo says. "Assuming these diagrams are trustworthy."
Lia is silent for a moment. "There might be changes, but I know Malfatto spends much of his time underground. Who knows what horrors he's reanimated or conjured there?"
---
Wu thinks for a moment as a response to Hans' question. "The weapon's name is essentially 'thunder tube,' for the black powder's explosion drives it outwards," he muses. "What are these terms in other local languages?"
Hans thinks, and a Frisian dialect is the first thing that comes to mind. 'Thunder' is 'donder,' and 'tube' is 'buss.' He mutters them out loud, then apologizes for his blunder.
"Donderbuss," Wu Jiao muses. "Or, in light of your words, blunder. Yes, that is catchy: blunderbuss. I have enough spare parts to build another for you, but you must promise to help remove Vizzini and any others who abuse such weapons."
He begins to show Hans how to handle the firearm, and all the parts. Hans repeats it until he can do so without thinking. Wu shows him a few tricks to make reloading easier, especially in the heat of battle. Such a weapon allows him to keep a comfortable distance from the melee or to blast large numbers of swarming foes. Hans envisions possible changes he could make to the weapon as the interrogation goes on in the barracks behind them.
|
|
|
Post by orgoth on Oct 7, 2013 22:46:42 GMT
Orgoth takes a moment to test the weight of the new axe. He smiles and nods, "Hm. Good axe!"
He makes an offer to Lorenzo as his old axe has outlasted its usefulness, "Here you take old axe for trade. Give me weapon to smash bones."
Orgoth heads outside to practice swinging his new axe on a nearby tree stump.
|
|
|
Post by henwen88 on Oct 8, 2013 0:24:50 GMT
Leath watches the others playing with their new devices, and realizes there is nothing he wants, himself, other than perhaps more time outdoors. "Shall we head out tonight, then?" Leath asks. "To take advantage of the darkness?"
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 8, 2013 1:09:38 GMT
"Ah, thank you," Lorenzo picks up Orgoth's old axe, before handing it to a nearby guard. "I hope you make use of the magical one."
"A night attack would give us the advantage of surprise, although if we must use our weapons, the advantage of silence would quickly be lost," Wu says. "Captain, could your militia assist us?"
"Yes, but moving in more troops will take time," Lorenzo says. "If your party can assault the mansion at night and signal us after first light, we will march along the main road."
"Now, I have a recommendation," Wu points to the fire lances the militiamen had brought in. "You can fire several of those simultaneously, by having all connected to the same fuse. Unleash a barrage of those projectiles over the estate, and give Vizzini a dose of his own medicine. I believe this hill should be of sufficient height for continued bombardment."
Lorenzo smirks to himself. "Bene," he muses. "We will send these crashing upon Vizzini's estate during the day, and you will begin your assault through the night. At daybreak, my men will clean up whatever is left."
Lorenzo turns to Aldeus. "I am putting you in charge of ensuring this operation goes well," the Captain says. "I do not care what your party loots from the estate, so long as you find out what happened to little Dante. If he still lives, bring him to me, and if you find this Malfatto character who did him harm, show no mercy."
A courier runs in, with a note bearing Scalo Est's official seal, a ram's head and sword. "Sir, message from Madam Perin!"
The militia captain looks it over before looking down at Lia.
"She says she will decide what to do with you after Vizzini's manor falls," he notes. "But you will be held here until then. Your cooperation, however, will be noted."
Lorenzo looks down at Teo, pointing up in the sky with his finger. "I remember your ill-considered light show," the militia captain says. "If you signal us, I will provide a light show of my own."
Aldeus unfurls the map of the Vizzini Estate on a nearby table, forcing Hans to move his new toy, and the party looks over available routes. The primary road runs along the eastern part of the peninsula, turning gradually along the coast. The forest covers the western side of the peninsula, and terminates near a coastal grotto that connects with the smuggling tunnels. The estate itself has a few main structures: a barn, the mansion itself, and a servants quarters re-purposed as guard barracks. There are also some smaller buildings, like storehouses and latrines. The smuggling tunnels run under the barn, before connecting with the crypts near the main mansion. The crypts come up under the mansion via a small chapel. Surrounding the estate is a wooden palisade, with a reinforced gate at the front. Nearby guard towers would allow sentries to fire at them from above. A path through the woods, and then into the smuggling tunnels, seems like the best option for a stealthy infiltration.
Alicia stares at the map when she thinks she hears a voice whispering to her. Every word seems to be slow and deliberate, as if drawing them through a pinhole. "You tread upon the All in One and the One in All."
|
|
|
Post by jon on Oct 8, 2013 1:49:31 GMT
[OOC do I have the blunderbus yet? otherwise I'll edit this post] Hans thanks Wu profusely, before turning back to the group brandishing his new weapon with an unconcealed grin. The grin suddenly fades as he sees the next objective. "I'm slightly suspicious of smuggling tunnels marked on a map given to us by the enemy, but they may be our best bet... Getting Lorenzo's men in will be an entirely different matter." Hans points to the guard towers at the gate, "We will probably need to take these if we want them to not take casualties before even entering the estate.
[DM OOC: Hans has the new toy, and Wu showed him how to use it.]
|
|
|
Post by orgoth on Oct 8, 2013 3:22:41 GMT
Orgoth glares, astonished Lorenzo would try to cheat him. He stands toe to toe with the man and slowly speaks, "No, old man. You give me good axe. This gift. I keep."
Visions of himself ripping out Lorenzo's throat flash through his mind. He tries to maintain his composure. "I give old axe. This no gift, this part trade. You give thing to bash bones. Club. Mace. Don't care. Just now."
[DM OOC: I meant that Lorenzo took the old axe from Orgoth in exchange for the new one. Fixed the post with an edit to clarify.]
|
|
|
Post by aldeus on Oct 8, 2013 3:57:24 GMT
Aldeus is not fully satisfied that Lia is trustworthy, but feels further interrogation will not diminish his apprehension. She will pay later if she wronged him.
His attention turns to Lorenzo as he hears his name "Of course. I will either bring you Dante alive, or proof that Malfatto suffered."
Aldeus speaks to the rest of the party "The woods and the tunnels will provide the best cover for our entrance. We must prepare with haste and be on our way."
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 8, 2013 5:19:35 GMT
The group spends the remainder of the day sneaking through the underbrush as Aldeus and Elgeon guide them stealthily through the woods. The forest gradually parts from the roadside as the skirt of the land rises above the road. The group can hear the distant barking of dogs and movement of men, but does not see anything at first.
[Party's total stealth roll: 19]
Gradually, they make their way to a small elevation partially overlooking the manner. Two guard towers are visible, but the pair of sentries in each seems more fixated on the road ahead than the woods to either side. The manor looks as Lia's maps detailed it, although the gardens are overgrown and flaking paint seems to indicate a lack of maintenance. Makeshift fortifications, twice as high as the hilltop camp's palisades, surround the camp. A skeleton troop is seen within the grounds of the manor, marching about with inhuman precision. Based on Lia's notes and their own counting of torches as night falls, there are about as many guards, although most are archers scattered about the main walls or patrolling the main road with dogs. Beside the manor is a small spit of land terminating in a rocky point, but a wide gap between the rocks seems wide enough to fit a small rowboat into. Aldeus and Elgeon realize that must be the smuggling tunnels. So far, Lia's notes seem to be accurate, but they do not know what awaits them within the tunnels.
[Perception roll=17]
As a patrol departs, the party moves towards the grotto. Elgeon stops the party for a second, and points to a small tripwire on the ground. The string vanishes into a stack of rocks, where Aldeus finds a coiled spring and poison dart ready to be delivered. They direct the party around the booby trap, mindful of any other snares.
They see no guards or other traps on their way to the cave. The pitch black yawns before them, as if Charon himself is inviting them to the underworld. The water barely comes up to Teo's knees, but is still shallow enough for the others to move with out delay. There is no light within the cave, so the party had best have torches, alchemical light, or some spells to illuminate the passageways for them, lest they blunder into traps or worse.
|
|
|
Post by teodoro on Oct 8, 2013 16:14:41 GMT
Teo produces 2 glowing orbs of dim, warm light [Casts Dancing Lights]. The first he sends up in the air to travel along the ceiling of the cave as the party proceeds. He guides the second orb under the water, about 5 feet in front of them to lead the way along the cave floor.
[OOC: Teo will dispel both orbs at the first sight or sound of anything he thinks is guarding this cave.]
He feels more confident dealing with this necromancer now that he has discovered a way to magically disrupt the undead. He's never cast the spell before but it should work. At least, he hopes it does.
|
|
|
Post by orgoth on Oct 8, 2013 17:32:12 GMT
Orgoth's begins the trek to the manor in a good mood. There is unquestionably a fight in his near future. He will likely be outnumbered. Everything points to a fun battle for him.
He begins smoldering as the party finds the first trap. He thinks any enemy that would use a trap is a coward. A poisoned trap is even worse. Even lower than a magic-user. Magic-users at least do their damage up front, poison users do meek bits over time.
Orgoth trudges along with his new axe on his back, eager to make use of it. As he thinks more about this mudak laying a trap to stop him, his anger grows. "He think dart stop me??", to himself. He unconsciously speeds up his pace in the cave wanting to put an end to these enemies as quickly as possible.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Oct 8, 2013 18:18:22 GMT
The magical lights illuminate the tunnel, but Elgeon notices a few things from deep within the cave. Teo's spell casts shadows on the wall, due to illuminating a pile of flotsam.
Even in the poor lights, Elgeon's senses are sharp. He stands by the mouth of the cave and notices something directly above them. There is a gap in the palisades, big enough to fit someone through. It looks like it would be fairly easy to climb, only about 10 feet. He points this out to Aldeus. Perhaps they could also call down bombardment on the estate to confuse Vizzini's guards.
|
|
|
Post by henwen88 on Oct 8, 2013 22:38:18 GMT
Eager to be of use, Leath attempts to make the climb, curious about what he could see on the other side.
|
|