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[Sir Knight]

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This could get fun . . .

Spoiler: Some directional coin flipping (click to show/hide)

Just assigning a direction for John's first glance, since I wasn't about to pester him on the nitty-gritty

Result: 1

So that's the first big passage counting up from the south

Spoiler: The joy of observation rolls! (click to show/hide)

Result: 2, Fail!
Result: 6, Fail by succeeding!
Result: 6, Fail by succeeding!

Dustan is away through the ruins of the basement.  The toxic scent of the alchemy equipment assails you as you go by, but the air back upstairs is a welcome relief.  The alchemists hurry over as soon as they see you.

"You're bleeding!" they say, and "Where are the others?"  You assure them that the situation is well under control and that your esteemed associates are still at work.  You demonstrate the kills, unloading them on a table for now.

(I didn't know if that was your intention, but it seemed to make sense from an inventory perspective.  Obviously you can get these 20 carcasses back; though if you want to dump them in a wheelbarrow, I should note the wheelbarrows are out of space.  The team is loaded with loot!  Please buy something in town when you're done!)

Certain quiet events continue in the depths, specifically in the west.  Having confirmed the source of the breeze, Alyssa Alpine and Dwain head back toward the main group.  Ragnarek soon appears; you see he holds the extracted pincer of an ant lemming in his hand.  Um.

John, though, squeezes by heading east.  These tunnels are jagged and uneven.  You come to a "landing," as it were, between downward slopes in the north and upward slopes in the east.  The air is thick and cloying with the scent of vanilla.  Arbitrarily, you peer up an eastern slope.



Movement!  And more!  The chamber beyond is filthy with debris, but unmistakeable in the middle is a pile of healthstone.  There are ant lemmings, but very few.  These ones, though, seem agitated; they are immediately on the offensive and come after you despite their low number!

And . . . and you hear hammering somewhere?  In the distance?

This is a small group of only 6 monsters.

[Dustan Hache]

right. Tell them about how deep the tunnels we found are, and then head back in to finish the job.

[ziizo]

"OVER HERE MORE ENEMIES"

After screaming at allies, Get down the slope and use the sling to throw opal at enemies.

[Starver]

With our luck, these are Soldier Ant Lemmings, quite a bit more vicious than the Worker Ant Lemmings, possibly guarding the Queen Ant Lemming with acid blood, no wait, wrong fictional universe... I hope.

I'm assuming that my position to the rear doesn't give me much option other than to ride in late. But I'll be the cavalry if needed, the spare wheel if not (maybe a nod to Alyssa/whoever that I'm checking north, or wherever the hammering sound is coming from?). And discretion being the better part of valour if all I see beyond is human body parts, naturally.

[Rautherdir]

"Got it."

Assist John

[PaPaj]

Run to the enemies and jump at them with the pincers

[Sir Knight]

use the sling to throw opal at enemies.

While you technically could throw opal, what with having 1 kg pieces in your backpack, I always assume there are plenty of loose shale bits around that you can throw the latter more quickly.  I'll go with shale.  But hey, if you want to test whether the ant lemmings could be distracted by something shiny, I could be convinced back . . .

I'm checking north, or wherever the hammering sound is coming from

Assuming it gets to that, I'd have to do some rolling to see if you can identify the direction.  Only John has heard it yet, after all.

(And, once again, you people are fast.)

[Starver]

Only John has heard it yet, after all.

The one time I don't doubt my omniscience...     

Yep, it's just my contingency, to save you asking when it turns out I have nothing obvious to do.  (I'd probably be interested in the most shiny of slime-trails/whatever, if the cloying vanilla isn't overwhelming, or the combat isn't all-consuming.  Caution but curiosity, whilstsoever there's no obvious hostiles to run towards or away from.)

ETA: Conservation of ninjutsu makes me worried about there not being as many enemies. That or it's the remastered moment with Han Solo dashing round the corner, chasing after the few Stormtroopers, into the Death Star hanger full of enemies.

[ziizo]

use the sling to throw opal at enemies.

While you technically could throw opal, what with having 1 kg pieces in your backpack, I always assume there are plenty of loose shale bits around that you can throw the latter more quickly.  I'll go with shale.  But hey, if you want to test whether the ant lemmings could be distracted by something shiny, I could be convinced back .

John just likes the idea the idea of killing people with money, but if the ant-lemmings get distracted by the opal he will not complain.

[Sir Knight]

. . . Okay, we go with that, then.

And I'll see you all tomorrow!

[Sir Knight]

Previous -- Next

I'll roll for turn order, but John (ziizo) automatically goes first for having decent space to used ranged attacks.  And Dustan (Dustan Hache) is just running in from the distance.

Spoiler: Remaining combat round order (click to show/hide)

3, 4, 1, 2

. . . Ragnarek, the ant lemmings, Alyssa Alpine, Dwain.

Spoiler: John (ziizo) vs. ant lemming hive (click to show/hide)

John's combat table, sling and opal:

1: Fail terribly
2: Fail
3: Succeed weakly
4: Succeed
5: Succeed greatly
6: Fail by succeeding

John's attack roll: 2, Fail!

Ant lemming combat table, venomous, you have no immunity, fighting as a group based on hive size (6):

1: Fail terribly
2: Fail
3: Succeed weakly
4: Succeed
5: Succeed
6: Fail by succeeding

Ant lemming hive attack roll: 3, Succeed weakly!
Damage to John (1d4-1): 2-1 = 1!
John, HP: 9/17

John shouts a warning, then tries to solve the problem using that tried and true method: throwing money at it.  Ping!  Plok!  Opal bounces off the funny angles on the slope to land in a heap, and the ant lemmings stream on down, ignoring it.

You hear support racing up behind you, so you dodge the pincers (for the most part) and lean back in the nearest narrow crevice to let your allies through.

Spoiler: Ragnarek (PaPaj) and Alyssa Alpine (Rautherdir) vs. ant lemming hive (click to show/hide)

Ragnarek's combat table, improvised ant lemming pincer attack:

1: Fail terribly
2: Fail
3: Succeed weakly
4: Succeed
5: Succeed
6: Fail by succeeding

Ragnarek's attack roll: 1, Fail terribly!

After attacking John, ant lemming hive continuing to attack Ragnarek:

1: Fail terribly
2: Fail
3: Succeed weakly
4: Succeed weakly
5: Succeed
6: Fail by succeeding

Ant lemming hive attack roll: 5, Succeed!
Damage to Ragnarek (1d6+1): 1+1 = 2!
Ragnarek, HP: 5/11

Alyssa Alpine's combat table as before

Alyssa Alpine's attack roll: 6, Succeed greatly!
Damage to ant lemming hive (1d6+6): 2+6 = 8!
Ant lemming hive size: 0/6

Ragnarek tries to return the severed ant lemming jaw to these beasts at high velocity, but you succeed only in smashing your weapon apart on the rock!  Two of the pests bite you!  Whereupon Alyssa Alpine squeezes by and slaughters them all with a few clear swipes of a sword.  You're so used to this.

Ant lemming has been struck down! x6

Spoiler: Observation rolls are prevalent down here (click to show/hide)

Result: 4, Succeed!
Result: 3, Succeed weakly!
Result: 1, Fail terribly!

The place goes . . . mostly quiet.  You can hear Dustan hurrying back underground.  The whole gang together again!  (Except for Overseer, but that's his deal.)

Then there's that weird rhythmic sound.  Dwain arrives to see the peril resolved, hear the sound, and begin investigating.

There seem to be two ways to go: north and east.  That sound is coming from the east, through the . . . mess . . .

Dwain heads up the slope.  The smell of vanilla is overpowering.  The ground is painted in shiny organic matter, with remnants of food everywhere, along with what you will hesitantly describe as "ant lemming cast-offs," presumably where they were born/hatched.

There are three large brown stones which look salvageable.  The one thing you don't see is any form of mining-worthy mineral in the walls.  There haven't been any valuable outcroppings in Rock Bottom in general, you notice.  So where did the hive get the loot?  Only one guess . . .

You cover your face and head southeast, because at least you recognized that rhythmic sound.  Just yesterday, when you were sitting with Overseer while the rest of the group was at work, you became very familiar with it.  Somebody is mining nearby.  But you don't get how that could be when you only see an empty tunnel.



John (ziizo): I removed 2 kg of opal from your character sheet for this.  I'm sure you'll pick it back up.  And, if it isn't completely obvious, "hammering" was a misinterpretation and the sound has now been correctly identified by Dwain (Starver) as mining.

Dwain (Starver): You said you'd head "wherever" the sound originated, and that you were interested in the trails, so I did this.  If you didn't want to head solo into the mess, well . . .

[PaPaj]

get another pincer and go to the tunnel northeast

[ziizo]

Pick the Opal, the brown stones and keep investigating the tunnels at the left

[Starver]

I'm Ok with things so far, more or less.

First thoughts are that I don't want to go up/down too many more ramps into this atmosphere, but one more won't hurt. (As in "it's not the fall that'll kill you, it's the bit where you hit the ground", right?)

Is the mining sound in the walls? Through the cracked bits or solid? Or would I get closer if I headed towards the mid-east tunnel (4e,2n from where I am, relative, say...)?  I think there's echoing involved, so a little exploration of this kind might be needed, if it turns out that I am to solve any mystery without regard to personal safety.

It seems PaPaj/Ragna is coming nearby, though, and who knows who else.  (Though someone more mercenary will doubtless return the pilfered stone while all this goes on, right?)  So I'm pausing for thought, rather than rushing off on my own.  If I need to, I'll put my ear to the walls and look into (not poke about in!) various cracks.

What to do next can wait until I know which particular madmen I'm doing it with. 

[Sir Knight]

get another pincer and go to the tunnel northeast

It seems PaPaj/Ragna is coming nearby, though, and who knows who else.

Okay, this is just ambiguous enough to need attention.  Ragnarek (PaPaj): by "northeast," do you mean something close to Dwain (Starver)'s current location?  That is, are you going to a northeast tunnel to the east of the smelly nest area?  Or are you going to a northeast tunnel right near where you are, to the west of the smelly area?  There's a lot of possible "northeasts," you see, if you take another look at the map.

Once we have that answer, Starver, you might provide more input.