Topic: Lanternwebs (The End!) (Read 80045 times)

Rysith · « **Reply #390 on:** June 30, 2009, 07:08:13 pm »

"Dwarves of Sosadcerol!" Flint bellowed from the head of the column. "Dwarves of Lanternwebs! Today we shall fight the trolls that have so long troubled Dwarfkind. Today, we shall open their skins to let their blood spill upon the ground. Today, we shall end their lives and return home with glory on our shoulders."

They had been marching for most of the day, walking slowly to conserve their strength for the battle that they knew lay ahead of them. Over the next ridge, they knew, waited the troll army. The troll army that would be nothing more than broken bodies and black blood upon the ground by daybreak.

"When you go to fight, remember your comrades who have fallen in battle with these foes." Flint continued, his strong voice carrying to the back reaches of the hundred-strong army of dwarves. "When you go to fight, remember that this night, with your axe, with your sword, with your crossbow, you can protect dwarves for generations to come. When you go to fight, do so with fire in your heart and a calmness in your eyes. Trust in your fellow soldiers, let your weapon strike true, and you will return to your homes as heroes, remembered through the ages in song and stone."

Workerdrone had been right. By noon, they had all been able to hear the steady beat of the trollish war drums, preparing their warriors for battle. Flint had ordered the soldiers to beat their shields as they marched, heavy gauntlets striking steel shields to send up a challenge to the drums. A Sosadcerolian, Bomrek, had started reciting the great deeds of The Great Roughness, tuning the poetry to the shield-drumming. Soon, he was joined by Shoruke, adding the tales of The Braided Lenses. The army had advanced as the two storytellers had recited tales of the heroes and victories of the two civilizations.

"Never falter." Thundered Flint. "Never doubt your own abilities. Never hesitate. If you are struck, rise again. If you cannot, fight from the ground. Even if you feel the life flowing from your body, fight on. You will be buried in heart of the mountains, warmed by their blood, and sent with glory and honor to the next world, where those you have slain will serve you eternally. Strike your foes without mercy, without pause. It is through courage, skill, and determination that we shall prevail in the battle to come."

Silvereye had returned in the evening with a count of the enemy. Four hundred and fifty, give or take a dozen, he had said. The news had been greeted with cheers from Grand Army. Four to one odds meant plenty of kills for everyone. It meant the possibility of a challenging fight. It meant that they would be able to demonstrate their mastery of the fighting arts, that they would be able to return with a story that was worthy of the journey they had taken to reach here. No simple mauling of near-equal numbers, here they would fight the largest army the world had ever seen. What more could they ask, they said, than to die in glory in the largest battle any of them were likely to see?

"And remember, above all else, that each of you is a dwarf." Said Flint, his voice quieting as he finished his speech, though the words still carried easily. "You have the finest equipment, you have the finest training, and you have the finest comrades to be found anywhere. Tonight, you will fight side by side with those you have known for scant weeks, and you will emerge victorious. Tonight, you will show all who would lay siege to a dwarven city that they must be prepared to challenge all dwarves if they do. And tonight, you will show them that they cannot possibly prepare enough for that challenge. Dwarves, light torches!"

Each soldier in turn dipped a tallow-soaked branch into the fire, mounting it firmly to their armor until the field was brightly lit by the points of fire dotting it.

"Dwarves, assume formation!" Shouted Flint.

The soldiers quickly moved to their assigned places, a massive box surrounding their marksdwarves and second wave of fighters.

"Dwarves, to battle!" Shouted Flint, a shout followed by a roar from the soldiers as they began marching up the hill, ready to bring fire and death to the trolls that waited for them on the other side.

--------------
Disadvantages to writing this way: It's hard to actually play Lanternwebs, for fear of moving the "real" timeline too far along compared to the Grand Army timeline.

Advantages to writing this way: I can't get a 500-person battle to describe in fortress mode.

ToonyMan · « **Reply #391 on:** June 30, 2009, 07:11:46 pm »

This is awesome and going to be even more awesome. Good work Rysith. Each of your posts is equal to all my posts put together!

*typo

Rysith · « **Reply #392 on:** July 08, 2009, 06:15:26 pm »

Kib jogged in the center of the dwarven formation, her torch reflecting its green light off the steel armor of the dwarves that surrounded her. Green from powdered copper, sprinkled through the burning fat-soaked cloth, to mark her as a squad leader. The regular soldiers carried no color, and their flames burned a dull yellow, while Flint and Kel would both fight beneath the gleaming gold of iron filings, marking them as the commanders of the army. And, Flint had joked, to draw the best of the trolls to him for single combat.

He had insisted on a night battle, and the torches, to give the dwarves some sense of coordination after battle was joined. Despite his elaborate plan, he knew as well as any that once they met the trolls the line would break and dwarves would head off, fighting their way through the trolls in small groups. They needed space to move and dodge, since their heavy armor alone could not protect them. They needed space to lunge and swing, to let their weapons penetrate the iron shields and chain of the trolls. And some of them, undoubtedly, would be claimed by the battle trance and be totally unable to coordinate with the rest of the army. Better to plan around those than try to fight them. Better to have dwarves fighting towards the green lights, than to rely on them recognizing unfamiliar dwarves in the heat of the moment. Better to rely on light in the darkness than vision in the day, surrounded by trolls.

Crossbows sprung as the marksdwarves fired their first volley, falling back to retreat and take up flanking positions. They wouldn't be able to aim effectively until the melee dwarves had moved in among the trolls, bringing their light with them, but blind firing as better than no firing. Ahead, Kib could see the lit area that surrounded them begin to reveal the first of the trolls, standing ready with pikes. A moment of worry flashed across his mind: If their leaders were skilled enough to get them to hold, what other combat prowess might they have? But his resolve quickly banished it. It did not matter how skilled they were, they would still die this night.

The clash of arms echoed through the forest as the first wave of Lanternwebs soldiers absorbed the shock of the pikes and stepped through, twisting the pikes as they passed the first rank of trolls and letting the second rank swing into the troll's exposed sides and backs before the box dissolved and Kib was able to step into the thick of combat. The troll's larger size was working against them, she could see, with only small numbers able to press close to the dwarven formation while the dwarves were able to maneuver with as much freedom as they would have in a cramped tunnel between their legs. A swift chop to an unguarded leg shredded chain leggings with no more effort than it took to rend the meat and bone beneath it, sending the troll next to her to the ground. Blocking a sword strike on her shield, she swung at the neck of the downed troll before deflecting the next sword strike and catching the blade in her steel-plated grip. She felt the dull iron of the troll's sword pulling her up as the troll drew the sword back, tightening her grip and jumping to let herself fly as high as her arc would take her before severing the swordstroll's windpipe.

Letting the falling troll's corpse cushion her fall, Kib turned to see Kel fighting to keep two trolls away from a wounded Sosadcerolain soldier. Without hesitation, she charged the back of one, her axe sinking deeply into its leg as the force of her charge knocked it to the ground. A powerful overhand stroke severed its torso, and she pivoted to strike at the second troll's arm as it swung at Kel. Though the blow didn't break the troll's thick skin, it did unbalance the troll enough for Kel recover from her block and slash into the troll's hand. As thick blood flowed around the troll's fingers, Kel's axe found its maul, tearing the weapon from the troll's weakened grip and sending it flying across the battlefield.

Kib seized the opening, swinging her axe into the troll's undefended side. The steel blade cut deeply, bringing the troll to its knees. Despite its injuries, the troll managed to catch Kel's next strike on its shield, the iron screeching in pain as it turned aside the steel blade. Kib's next stroke struck true, the shield out of position and the troll's metal cap providing no resistance to the blow that split its head.

"That's my four." Kib joked to Kel as they set off together for another clump of dwarves. "Where are yours?"

------------
~~Blah, partial post because I ran into a wall trying to visualize the battle. I'll edit this in later tonight, since I didn't want to delay updating any more.~~ And by later tonight I mean tomorrow.

Xanares · « **Reply #393 on:** July 09, 2009, 07:06:52 am »

Death!
Blood!
Victory!

Rysith · « **Reply #394 on:** July 13, 2009, 06:28:46 pm »

A raven, disturbed from sleep by the clash of steel on iron, circled the battlefield.

Below her, the dwarven torches clearly illuminated the struggle as it played out, their flames giving illumination to the chaos below as the sounds blended into a single heavy noise that blotted out all others. Here she saw a troll struggle to pry an immense axe from the lifeless corpse of a plate-clad warrior as the fallen dwarf's friends rushed it, their weapons biting through its armor and skin until it fell on top of their comrade to join him in death.

There she watched a space widen as a dwarf fought with an enormous piketroll. Back and forth they jumped, matching each other strike for parry, as the battle raged around them. The troll's larger weapon struck heavily on the dwarf's shield, the dwarf's sword nipped at the troll's hands, its wielder unable to get close enough for a telling blow.

Here she saw two dwarves with axes move methodically through the trollish ranks, their green torches casting their surroundings in an eerie glow. Yellow flames flocked to join them and fell back, extinguished, but the pair of green flames held strong as troll after troll died to their steel.

There she saw a green-torched swordsdwarf stumble as he blocked a troll-chief's maul, the steel of his shield denting as he absorbed the blow and knelt under its force. A second dwarf severed one of the chieftain's arms as it raised the maul for a killing blow, striking again to slay it before reaching down to help the green-torch to his feet.

Here she saw another troll chief, standing with his sword on top of a mound of slain dwarves, let out a war cry of triumph before a dwarf flew through the air to land a pickaxe in its chest. The steel point found purchase in the troll's ribcage as the dwarf climbed to strangle the troll, both falling to the ground as the troll lost balance trying desperately to claw the dwarf off of its face.

And there, she saw a single dwarven unit, still in close formation despite the chaos, leaving a trail of mutilated trolls behind them as they moved quickly through the trollish lines. They marched purposefully towards the open pit that marked the entrance to the troll fortress, and their leaders both wore flames of bright gold. They were a point of order in the chaos of the battle, dwarves with a purpose beyond killing. They would strike at the heart of the trolls, and tear it out, leaving the field heaped high with the bodies of the dead. There would be much carrion here in the morning, she knew. Much to feast on.

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More updates! Much easier to describe a battle like that, then trying to capture everything from the ground. This segment is almost over, and while it's been fun to write I'm eager to get back to Lanternwebs proper.

Rysith · « **Reply #395 on:** July 20, 2009, 07:33:56 pm »

With a final axe swing, Flint took the legs off the last troll to stand between him and his target. Before him gaped the entrance to Vicevises, the fortress of the trollish force that they had come to destroy. He looked to Shoruke, standing at his side holding her war-pick, and nodded.

"Assault team, ready!" He shouted over the battle, calling Workerdrone and Grath back from the skirmishes they were in, their armor and weapons spattered with black blood from their fight to the back of the battle.

"Argentum first!" he called, and Argentum clambered over the edge of the pit, his torch barely strong enough to illuminate the floor far below. On the far side, he could see the Sosadcerol team beginning their decent. Each would take half of the fortress and sweep it clear of trolls while the battle raged above, to cut off the troll's retreat and cut the heart from the troll's assault against Sosadcerol.

He swung himself down onto the crude trollish stairway as the rest of the assault team followed, Silvereye picking off a last troll as they descended. As they neared the bottom, they could see the large forms of the trollish guards rushing to meet them. With a shout, the six dwarves lept from the stairway to land beyond the guards, Flint quickly recovering and rushing to slam his axe deep into the left arm of the nearest guard.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"Soldiers of Lanternwebs!" Flint shouted as he swung his axe again. "Let none of these foul trolls escape. To battle!"

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Hah, finally, back to actually playing dwarf fortress!
Shoruke is unfortunately a speardwarf here, since the miner + pick trick doesn't seem to work in adventure mode. It seemed the closest to her actual skills that I could come.
The "party" was also unfortunately limited to only 6, since I couldn't figure out a good way to add party members over the limit before half of my carefully pre-made soldiers wandered away.

ToonyMan · « **Reply #396 on:** July 21, 2009, 06:30:47 am »

Into the cave now!

Rysith · « **Reply #397 on:** July 28, 2009, 08:26:25 pm »

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"Alright, that's the entrance clear." Flint said to Kel. "We'll take this stairway, you take the other one. We'll meet outside and see who killed more!"

The six Lanternwebs dwarves descended into the interior of the troll fortress, watching the Sosadcerol dwarves jog towards the other ramps. As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, the two glowing eyes of a troll stared back at them. Flint lunged for it, but Workerdrone was faster, his sword plunging into the troll's chest before it could draw its own weapon.

The darkness lifted to the shades of gray that the dwarves were used to seeing underground, advancing steadily through the roughly dug earth of the fortress. Wherever their eyes, wide with the lack of light other than their few torches, found signs of the trolls they moved swiftly and quietly to open its skin and let its blood splash the walls and floor. All six, their movements guided by years of fighting orcs, glided through each battle with ease, some moving up to take heavy blows on their shields to allow others to deal telling strokes with their weapons. Even as they lost weapons to the clinging bodies of their foes, they still fought on, their skill unmatched by any who opposed them.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The soldiers moved quickly from room to room, their weapons sharp and their swings sure as they cut down the trolls. The trolls rushed to combat singly or in pairs, their great size and strength rendered useless against the dwarves as they were overwhelmed with numbers and the impenetrable defense of the fine dwarven armor.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

"That's all of them." Flint announced at last, the first words that any of them had spoken since they had entered the fortress. "They'll not be able to recover from this, not to any strength that would let them attack Sosadcerol again."

"Too bad it's carved out of sand and peat." Muttered Workerdrone. "Nothing in this damp hole will burn, so we can't have the pleasure of putting it to the torch."

"Let's go see how Kel and his group are faring." Said Flint. "I wonder if their trolls managed to put up any more of a fight."
---------------------

Gah, that was a pain to write, and I feel kind of guilty about posting it. No real narrative structure at all from the game that I could use, and the Lanternwebs dwarves are entirely too good to make the fights interesting. There was one injury in the entire attack, when Argentum got a spear stuck in his right wrist. It's a light gray injury, and he pulled it out without harm a few turns later, after killing the guard that put it there.
Combat in adventure mode on this scale just takes too long, and consists mostly of the dwarves beating on the trolls until they get an instakill. That everyone was losing their weapons to stuckins and reverting to shield bashes didn't help either. I'm sorry for the unsatisfying update, but I think I'll be glad to get this over with and back to Lanternwebs proper. I've got the combat log if anyone is interested, though it's roughly 7500 lines long. 146 kills total. On the other hand, it showed that I'm going to have to significantly boost the orcs for the final siege, given the troll's performance against these six. I'm thinking of giving the "average" orcs professional shield/weapon/armor, with squad leaders at Grand Master or possibly Legendary. Should be fun, I think.

Also, as might be expected with 146 kills among six dwarves, everyone got new titles:

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

WorkerDrone · « **Reply #398 on:** July 28, 2009, 09:38:50 pm »

NEVER.

EVER. SPEAK OF THE TITLE I HAD THAT NEVAAAAR EXISTED.

EVER AGAIN.

The shame.

ToonyMan · « **Reply #399 on:** July 28, 2009, 10:05:04 pm »

Too easy. Too easy WorkerDrone. Not worth the time.

WorkerDrone · « **Reply #400 on:** July 29, 2009, 07:16:56 am »

I will never live this down. I swear, Rysith might be totally be bullshitting me, but the worse part would be that he's actually NOT.

I'd feel BETTER if he was.

Rysith · « **Reply #401 on:** July 29, 2009, 02:31:45 pm »

Quote from: WorkerDrone on July 29, 2009, 07:16:56 am

I will never live this down. I swear, Rysith might be totally be bullshitting me, but the worse part would be that he's actually NOT.

I'd feel BETTER if he was.

Sorry, I don't control the titles.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

On the other hand, it could well be something that you inspire in your foes. If you had gotten "Workerdrone Hiderazors the Fearful Blade" or something like that, the "fearful" wouldn't have referred to you, but your enemies. Being able to inspire your opponents to void their bowels with your very presence seems pretty badass to me.

WorkerDrone · « **Reply #402 on:** July 29, 2009, 04:14:09 pm »

You make everything seem more awesome Rysith.

ToonyMan · « **Reply #403 on:** July 29, 2009, 04:52:55 pm »

Sniping babies is awesome.

ousire · « **Reply #404 on:** July 30, 2009, 12:04:11 am »

Quote from: Rysith on July 29, 2009, 02:31:45 pm

no way. that is too awsome.

News:

Author Topic: Lanternwebs (The End!) (Read 80045 times)

Rysith

Re: Lanternwebs (To War!)

ToonyMan

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Rysith

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Xanares

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Rysith

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Rysith

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ToonyMan

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Rysith

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WorkerDrone

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ToonyMan

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WorkerDrone

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Rysith

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WorkerDrone

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ToonyMan

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ousire

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