Tackle the caster; he seems much weaker than you in a physical fight.

(1/4) Jeromy 2016/10/17(Mon)01:39 No. 753360 ID: dea742
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>Tackle the caster
>apply body slam

Jeromy doesn't wait for his vision to recover. His opponents are suffering from the same effects, and he's used to Rosa's spells.

"They're stunned, take them down!" he commands, hurling himself shoulder-first into a charge.

(2/4) Jeromy 2016/10/17(Mon)01:40 No. 753361 ID: dea742
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As his vision clears, he finds himself looking down on an unfamiliar form. Glancing around quickly at the bodies strewn across the floor, Jeromy makes a mental tally: the two fighters that Hielok and Sunhammer were tangling with, the guard they saw from the door as well as a second dressed much the same, and this man.

(3/4) Jeromy 2016/10/17(Mon)01:41 No. 753362 ID: dea742
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The mage, still standing, appears to have retreated from Jeromy's charge. Too far for Jeromy to strike, he begins incanting a spell of his own.

"Vinir Soh-"

(4/4) Jeromy 2016/10/17(Mon)01:46 No. 753367 ID: dea742
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"-hrk-"

The mage, too, falls. Even assuming the man he tackled was one of these bandits, at least one remains.

"Jay, did you catch that full in the face again?" Rosa chides. "Come on now. You heard me casting-"

>get them surrender

Jeromy holds up a hand to quiet her and collects himself. "You're the last one left, and this isn't a fight you can win." He announces loudly. "Surrender and w-"

A short, shrill shout from the back room cuts him off and is quickly silenced.

>Jeromy's tolerated nickname is Jay
Duly noted.

I guess we'd better proceed cautiously in the direction of the back room.

Tell the survivor to toss his weapon, and he's free to go.
Maybe ask him who's back there, too.

>>753367
>and is quickly silenced.
Swieble probably took out the last one. Go check.

Whoever has medical knowledge, attend the mage. We want him bound, unconscious and not bleeding to death. Choose someone else to stay in the room and round everyone else up, bind them and make sure they're out cold. The remaining four should head to the back room and overwealm whoevers there.

(1/2) Jeromy 2016/10/22(Sat)00:12 No. 754615 ID: dea742
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>attend the mage
>Choose someone else to stay in the room
>bind them and make sure they're out cold

"We'll need them for questioning." Jeromy says plainly. Sunhammer nods silently and approaches the unconscious mage.

Hielok seems busy restraining the last of the combatants.

>proceed cautiously in the direction of the back room
>head to the back room
>Go check

Jeromy starts toward the back room with Rosaphine close behind. As they near the door, he hears a sudden splintering of wood.

(2/2) Jeromy 2016/10/22(Sat)00:12 No. 754616 ID: dea742
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"Oh, hey. Had a runner."

>>754616
These new guys are really pulling their weight. I could get used to this.

>>754616
Good work. We're assembling the ruffians so that they can be questioned and arrested by the town guard.

Speaking of which someone should go alert the town guard.

(1/2) Jeromy 2016/11/06(Sun)21:20 No. 757252 ID: dea742
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"Good work," Jeromy says. "The others are just finishing up."

"You guys work quick," Sweible replies.

The fight finished, Jeromy removes his gauntlet. "Hielok really pulled his weight. Speaking of which, you mentioned looking for a job. Would you like one?"

"What, uh, kind of job?"

"Adventuring, bounty hunting, general heroics. More of this, basically. Pay is inconsistent, but-"

(2/2) Jeromy 2016/11/06(Sun)21:20 No. 757253 ID: dea742
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"That. Was. Tremendous! I've never seen such swift, decisive action. The way you coordinated your men and, er, others to keep those fiends on their heels. Incredible! It's lucky you came alongwhenyoudidifyouhadn'tblahblahblah"

Jeromy waits politely for a time to interject. There doesn't appear to be one forthcoming.

>>757253
Steadily increase pressure on his hand until he gets distracted by the pain, at which point you can talk.

Dude looks somewhat important. Lets play it safe.

Maybe clear your throat, and lead in with- "I don't think we've had time for an introduction."

(1/2) Jeromy 2016/11/28(Mon)01:28 No. 762024 ID: dea742
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"Ahem. Yes. I'm flattered. I don't believe we've been introduced. I am Jeromy of House Tamarin." Jeromy interjects.

"Oh of course! How thoughtless of me. I'm Baronet Manfred Spade. Whoo, that's quite a handshake you've got there. You know I-"

"The pleasure is mine. If you don't mind, the town guards need to be alerted. I'll be only a minute." Jeromy gestures for Sweible to follow him.

From behind him Jeromy hears a quiet voice trail off as he leaves. "M'lord, we've been distracted, but we do have a matter..."

(2/2) Jeromy 2016/11/28(Mon)01:30 No. 762025 ID: dea742
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"Right," Jeromy continues, "as I was saying, the pay isn't consistent, but I will offer you an even cut of anything we make. Not everything's a job and not every job pays, but the recognition can be reward enough."

Sweible thinks for a moment before responding. "Sounds alright, but I've got a couple questions and we still need to get the guards. Let's walk and talk."

"Oh, don't worry, Silkmoon's already on that. I just wanted to conclude our business before we were interrupted with a job offer."

"Yes! They're perfect! I'msurethey'llmumblemumble" the noble's voice trails off from within the inn.

Jeromy nods. "We've got time. What sort of questions?" Jeromy asks openly. "Were you, uh, taking that halfling somewhere in particular?" he continues, glancing towards the unconscious girl.

"What? Oh, she don't weigh much. Hasn't really been a good time to drop her. I'm mostly wonderin' about you. I keep an ear out for noble houses whenever I'm in a new area, but I don't recognize 'Tamarin.' You must be pretty far from home. Why?"

What made Jeromy and Rosaphine decide to take up adventuring? How much is Jeromy willing to say?

Jeromy's martial training suggests his family was steeped in a trade war or noble feud, perhaps one that started long before he was born.

He probably had to kill another young man of high rank in self defense, and the high court ordained he face exile to try to cool tensions.
Rosaphine was outraged, and elected to join her brother on the road rather than remain in luxury as he wandered.

The trade war is probably still going strong, as Jeromy searches for resources or allies to tip the scales.

There are probably secrets that have been (and will be) left out, however.

Character building, huh? If the J-man killed someone, there might be a black mark on his name. Maybe he's trying regain his honor.

Alternately, maybe it's the old "dragon burned my land down" story. Gotta respect the classics.

(1/4) Jeromy 2016/12/05(Mon)16:22 No. 763791 ID: dea742
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"Ah. Fair question." Jeromy clears his throat and begins. "Well, any noble house is measured by their power, which in turn is measured largely by money. On the eastern coast most of the money comes in through major port cities which makes them the focus of any in a position to claim oversight. The Lord Greywulf controls a great deal of land in the area and-"

"Right, politics, got it." Sweible interjects. "I don't care much for old feuds or history lessons. I want to know about you."

"I suppose you're right. The particulars don't matter much."

(2/4) Jeromy 2016/12/05(Mon)16:22 No. 763792 ID: dea742
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"There was another house and another heir. He invented some insult or injury I'd done him and challenged me to an duel. It was arranged that I'd lose for... political reasons, but when the duel started he came at me too fast and I overestimated his abilities. We were both born of Knight houses you see, and well, I suppose he didn't take the title as seriously..."

Jeromy pauses for a moment and sighs.

"My opponent lying dead on the ground in a minor duel I had intended to lose. my house faced serious charges. Lord Greywulf, to whom we owe allegiance, gave my father an ultimatum: take decisive action or allow all of House Tamarin to stand trial. His only choice was to exile me."

(3/4) Jeromy 2016/12/05(Mon)16:23 No. 763793 ID: dea742
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"After the decision was made, Rosaphine made a big fuss. Said she wouldn't live in the house without me, though I'm not sure if she was outraged or just excited at the chance for an adventure." Jeromy smiles for a moment before continuing. "Regardless, I am grateful. Had she not stood with me I would have been cast out for good. Instead, I was simply judged unworthy. If I am to return, I must first prove myself."

Sweible scratches his head. "That's quite the story. I was expecting something a bit simpler. Take me, for example. I hear my hometown was destroyed by a dragon about ten years ago. Apparently I was the only survivor."

"I'm sorry to... wait, you hear? Weren't you there?" Jeromy asks, bewildered.

"Well, that's what Ankin told me. I was too young to remember."

(4/4) Jeromy 2016/12/05(Mon)16:24 No. 763795 ID: dea742
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The clatter of armor from up the street announces the approach of the town guard.

"Well, talk my offer over with your companion when you get a chance" Jeromy finishes. "Let me know what you decide." With that, he turns to face the new arrivals.

"Check for injured." barks the man leading the guards. "Who can tell me what's happened here? And... who might you be?" he asks, looking between Jeromy and Sweible.

>between Jeromy and Sweible.

No surprise there. Halflings are kinda cute, especially when they're
'sleeping'. He can have this one if he feeds it.

>>763795
Say that the orc and kobold are traveling with you and helped apprehend these brigands or whatever that attacked... uh, whoever we just saved.

Just give him a summary of the events that took place here. We saw evidence of a break-in and fight, we investigated, their leader announced his intention to rob us, but they didn't manage it.

We are travelers, and Sweible was traveling with us. We found this sorcerer with some henchmen and a little skull in his belt fighting the town guard, so we stepped in to stop him.

>>763899
Seconded

(1/3) Jeromy 2016/12/14(Wed)00:56 No. 765793 ID: dea742
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"My companions and I," Jeromy gestures at Sweible, "were passing by when we heard a commotion and saw an unconscious guard, so we stepped in to help. A mage of some kind, apparently the ringleader, took credit for the chaos and announced his intention to rob us. We've apprehended the lot of them."

The captain snorts dismissively. "Secure a perimeter. We don't want any stragglers slipping out."

Sweible smirks. "If ya want runners you can have this one. Just remember: feed her twice a day, and keep the cage locked or she'll run off again."

The captain opens his mouth to say something, but can't seem to find the words.

"The rest are inside," Jeromy says quickly. "You can recognize the leader by the skull emblem on his belt."

The captain stifles a laugh. "Lead on then."

(2/3) Jeromy 2016/12/14(Wed)00:57 No. 765794 ID: dea742
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Jeromy turns and strides back into the inn. "Here you go. The rest of the group so far as we-"

"Sir Tamarin!" Manfred Spade exclaims the moment Jeromy returns. "I fear I wasn't able to properly express my thanks earlier, but have something of a situation at my estate. Well, rather more than a situation. The servants are terrified and my personal guards have been woefully unable to properly handle the problem. I would like to contract you and your companions to clear it up. I believe your group would have no-"

"If you could be a bit more descriptive, Lord Spade," Jeromy interrupts, "what sort of problem?"

"Oh it's horrible, truly. We've been beset by indescribable beasts with an ungodly number of legs and ferocious-"

"Scorpions," Manfred's scribe cuts him off.

(3/3) Jeromy 2016/12/14(Wed)00:57 No. 765795 ID: dea742
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"Flying scorpions the size of dogs."

Accept side-quest?

>>765795
That sounds like fun.

So, like Shiba Inus, or more like Dobermans?

Hardly a perfect mission, but few of them are. We'll need a sizable retainer up front for antivenoms.

Of course you will deal with those nightmarish creatures! You just need some anti-venom supplies.

>>765794
The person casting a spell is one of our guys, right?

Accept the quest, ask for a fee up front to cover the expense of anti-venom supplies

Ok, we'll look into it.

So they are large and flying; now would be a good time to mention anything else they do like burrow or spit acid.

(1/3) Jeromy 2016/12/16(Fri)23:58 No. 766425 ID: dea742
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"That sounds like quite the problem. Of course we'll-"

"Hold on," Rosaphine pipes up, finishing her spell. "What kind of dogs are we talking about here, 'cause that's a pretty wide range. Lap dog? Hunting dog? Riding dog?"

"And any other descriptors you could provide," Silkmoon adds.

"Well, I'd say they're roughly three to four feet long, primarily dark in color with bright red accents, and extremely aggressive," the scribe offers. "Unfortunately we can't tell you much more. We left in a hurry."

"That's fine," Rosa says dismissively. "Sounds simple enough. There's bugs, then there's fire, then there's no more bugs."

"Perhaps not. These sound like they have the markers of an infernal influence," Silkmoon starts. "It's possible-"

"Woah woah, hang on," Rosa interrupts. "These are giant flying scorpions from hell?"

"Not quite." Silkmoon states calmly. "Perhaps a visual aid."

(2/3) Jeromy 2016/12/16(Fri)23:59 No. 766426 ID: dea742
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With a few precise gestures Silkmoon conjures up a floating image of a scorpion.

"There are a number of ways that a creature could become tainted by the lower realms. While it's certainly possible for such creatures to be native to the the Abyss or the Hells, they would need to have found some way to our plane of existance, most commonly a summoner. When such a creature is summoned, however, it cannot range far from its master. They might also have come through a portal of some kind, but if that were the case we would almost certainly have heard of other more fearsome beasts on the prowl. It's more likely they are native to our realm and were merely warped by some dark energy. Perhaps the corpse of a long dead demon, or a cursed artefact, or just a side-effect of whatever magical experimentation stuck wings on a scorpion."

Silkmoon pauses for a moment to pull out a pointer. As she continues, she indicates various parts of the creature.

"Regardless, we should be aware of a few things. The claws and sting are the obvious threats, but there is more we can conclude. Flying bugs are not necessarily fast, but they are often able to turn suddenly and even come to a full stop in mid-air which will make outflanking them difficult. In addition, creatures so influenced are often resistant to both flame-"

"Damn it"

"-and electrocution, and are either extremely durable or able to regenerate minor wounds very quickly. There are any number of other possibilities as well, but any further speculation would be useless without some knowledge of what caused their altered state."

(3/3) Jeromy 2016/12/16(Fri)23:59 No. 766427 ID: dea742
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Jeromy claps his hands together. "Well, that sounds like enough to go on for now. We'll need to pick up some supplies before setting out, anti-venoms and the like." He turns toward the Baronet and adds, "If you could provide a retainer up front for that purpose, it would be quite helpful."

"But of course!" Manfred exclaims. "Bojarski here normally handles monetary matters, but for such an auspicious event I'll handle it personally!" he continues, obviously excited at his renewed relevance. "When we came to seek help, we brought along a sum of coins for exactly such a purpose. In fact, we expected to pay up front for something of this-"

"I never accept full payment for a job unfinished, Lord Spade."

"Just as I'd expect from a man of yourobviousblahblahblah..."

A few coins change hands, Silkmoon acquires enough anti-venom to supply the party, Jeromy purchases a carriage, and the group sets off.

During the ride, the party discusses their battle plan...

Barring additional complications, this is an extermination.

Start at the furthest points of infestation, remove the scouts, and work your way into the spawning zone. Since this is an estate, we probably can't collapse the lair with explosives, etc.

Take it slow, don't get overwhelmed. Addendums?

For the actual combat I think we're gonna want to focus on slowing them down so they can be hit properly. Disable the wings... ice perhaps?

If we have access to ice it would also be useful in turning venomous stingers and sharp claws into heavy blunt objects. Still a threat, but less dangerous than their natural counterparts due to the difficulty the creature will have adjusting to its cold covers. Freezing then out of the sky might prove an effective attack- if one can hit them. We cannot fly, so we can't engage them in the air but it means they have to stoop to our level, literally. If we can find defensive barriers like a tree line or heavy shields and furniture with which to fend off their swoops, we may have an easier time counter attacking with range behind such protection. Even if 90% of your shots miss, a suffient defensive line should provide the time for that 10% to result in casualties

>>766507
5 to 1 they're based the cellers and storehouses of the estate. Even if a few are flying around elsewhere. I think cramped hallways and rooms are gonna be the norm. But I don't know.

Certainly ice would help, but I'm not sure it's within Rosa's arcane sphere. Web spells might be a low level alternative.
Sweible may want to find himself a heavier striking weapon like a poleaxe or halberd, which he can probably do onsite.

(1/3) Jeromy 2016/12/19(Mon)02:38 No. 766819 ID: dea742
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"Seriously, bugs being immune to fire is just unfair," Rosaphine complains to Silkmoon. "Fire's, like, my trump card."

"What about your web spell?" Jeromy calls from the driver's seat. "Could we-"

"Oooh, fitting. Bugs in a web," Rosa smiles to herself.

"We should favor weapons with reach," Jeromy shouts. "Especially for fighters without heavy armor. I-"

Sweible looks up from a conversation with Hielok. "Good point. I'll see what I can do."

A pained shout from the second carriage stops the party's conversations.

"My vineyards! What have those fiends done to my grapes!?"

"M'lord, we should stop now," says his scribe. "We'll let Sir Tamarin take it from here."

(2/3) Jeromy 2016/12/19(Mon)02:39 No. 766820 ID: dea742
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Hielok hops out of the carriage as it slows to a stop and looks expectantly back at the door as the others pile out.

"Alright, keep together and watch for survivors," Jeromy instructs. "Silkmoon, see if you can spot where they're coming from."

Silkmoon switches goggles and climbs to the top of the carriage.

"We'll keep to the trees for cover and hold a defensive line while we move. Try to save your spells for larger fights, we don't know how long we'll be here. As soon as we're moving I want everyone to keep an eye out for scouts-"

>>766821
Holy shit FAST! Shield bash that shit!

>>766822
It's a plan, and it's simple.
Both are good right now.

>>766822
Yep.

Make your move for cover and make it fast. Don't want to get surrounded out in the open.