Menu
News
All News
Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
Pathfinder
Starfinder
Warhammer
2d20 System
Year Zero Engine
Industry News
Reviews
Dragon Reflections
Columns
Weekly Digests
Weekly News Digest
Freebies, Sales & Bundles
RPG Print News
RPG Crowdfunding News
Game Content
ENterplanetary DimENsions
Mythological Figures
Opinion
Worlds of Design
Peregrine's Next
RPG Evolution
Other Columns
From the Freelancing Frontline
Monster ENcyclopedia
WotC/TSR Alumni Look Back
4 Hours w/RSD (Ryan Dancey)
The Road to 3E (Jonathan Tweet)
Greenwood's Realms (Ed Greenwood)
Drawmij's TSR (Jim Ward)
Community
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Resources
Wiki
Pages
Latest activity
Media
New media
New comments
Search media
Downloads
Latest reviews
Search resources
EN Publishing
Store
EN5ider
Adventures in ZEITGEIST
Awfully Cheerful Engine
What's OLD is NEW
Judge Dredd & The Worlds Of 2000AD
War of the Burning Sky
Level Up: Advanced 5E
Events & Releases
Upcoming Events
Private Events
Featured Events
Socials!
Twitch
YouTube
Facebook (EN Publishing)
Facebook (EN World)
Twitter
Instagram
TikTok
Podcast
Features
Top 5 RPGs Compiled Charts 2004-Present
Adventure Game Industry Market Research Summary (RPGs) V1.0
Ryan Dancey: Acquiring TSR
Q&A With Gary Gygax
D&D Rules FAQs
TSR, WotC, & Paizo: A Comparative History
D&D Pronunciation Guide
Million Dollar TTRPG Kickstarters
Tabletop RPG Podcast Hall of Fame
Eric Noah's Unofficial D&D 3rd Edition News
D&D in the Mainstream
D&D & RPG History
About Morrus
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
Forums & Topics
Forum List
Latest Posts
Forum list
*Dungeons & Dragons
Level Up: Advanced 5th Edition
D&D Older Editions
*TTRPGs General
*Pathfinder & Starfinder
EN Publishing
*Geek Talk & Media
Search forums
Chat/Discord
Menu
Log in
Register
Install the app
Install
The
VOIDRUNNER'S CODEX
is LIVE! Explore new worlds, fight oppressive empires, fend off fearsome aliens, and wield deadly psionics with this comprehensive boxed set expansion for 5E and A5E!
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Doomed Bastards: Reckoning (story complete)
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 4419271" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Chapter 90</p><p></p><p>RAVAGES</p><p></p><p></p><p>Duke Aerim stepped into the path of the Ravager. He held the epic brilliant-energy weapon, recovered from where Kiron had dropped it, still attached to the remnant of his arm. The blade had shifted slightly, still a greatsword, but taking on the form of the sword that they’d found with Aerim, when he’d been captured in the vault under Rappan Athuk. Its glow cast a ruddy hue over the Duke’s features. Clad in torn clothes covered in gray dust from the collapse he’d survived, the Duke still somehow managed to appear noble and confident as he lifted the weapon in one hand, pointing the blade unerringly at the Ravager’s head. </p><p></p><p>“You and I have business, beast,” he said simply. </p><p></p><p>The Ravager paused. It sensed something odd coming off the body of the man defying it, but it certainly recognized the sword that had wounded it earlier. It lashed out with a claw, intending to remove the threat quickly. </p><p></p><p>Aerim stepped into the attack and spun in a blur, the sword coming down in a two-handed grip that met the descending claw. The sword carved deeply into the Ravager’s limb, taking off three fingers and a good part of the hand behind them. Black blood jetted out, spraying over the Duke’s torso and arms, but he merely shifted his position and lifted the sword once more into a defensive stance. </p><p></p><p>“You will have to do better than that,” he said. </p><p></p><p>The Ravager gave him his request, lunging forward, smashing down with two of its intact limbs, crushing the Duke between them. Aerim swung the sword again, and again bit into the claws that sought him, but he could not avoid being caught up, and lifted into the air. The Ravager did not hesitate this time, opening its jaws wide and thrusting the man into its gullet whole, swallowing him with a single gulp. </p><p></p><p>A wedge of pain shot up the creature’s leg, as Varo delivered a <em>harm</em> spell. The creature’s will was such that it resisted the full force of the magic, but the attack had certainly gotten its attention. Varo was still <em>invisible</em>, but as the Ravager stomped its foot in reaction he was again knocked flying, and this time he had no sooner bounced on the hard stone than he was snared and lifted in the creature’s iron grip. </p><p></p><p>Lightning again flashed into the creature’s blunt skull, and the <em>magic missiles</em> that descended into it formed a bright halo, a constant flickering of light as the bolts struck the creature in a steady patter. Sultheros had added to his coterie attacking the Ravager, imitating Allera’s earlier tactic of summoning lantern archons to the cause. Four of the creatures now dipped in to fire their blasts of holy light, each forming a perfect white circle on the creature’s hide that was slow to fade. </p><p></p><p>Dar shot forward, carried again by the power of the <em>fly</em> spell cast by Callyse at the start of the battle; the spell was starting to wane, but the fighter did not hesitate as he streaked straight for the Ravager. A beam of light shot past him, but Maricela’s <em>searing light</em> dissolved as it hit the creature. The priestess charged after it, but Dar reached it first, diving in with <em>Justice</em> a gleaming blur in his hand. He dodged under one claw, taking a glancing blow that did not dissuade him from his target. He stabbed the blade into the thick web of flesh connecting the thumb and forefinger of the fist that held Varo captive. It was like trying to hew open a steel manacle with a toothpick, and just as effective. </p><p></p><p>But before the creature could consume Varo as it had Kiron and Aerim before him, the Ravager suddenly convulsed. It opened its jaws wide again, but instead of another roar, a gout of black blood rose from inside it, splattering out in a fan that darkened the churned-up ground at its feet. Its distress was only momentary, but it loosened its grip enough for Dar to yank the cleric free. The respite was only momentary; the Ravager struck out with another long arm, smashing both men hard with its raking claws. Dar and Varo fell together, finally coming apart when they struck the ground some fifteen feet away from the creature. Their momentum carried them a bit further, and they finally slid to a halt, battered and bruised, but alive. </p><p></p><p>The Ravager smashed its lower set of arms into the ground, shattering flagstones and sending bits of stone flying across the square. The hand that had been ruined by Aerim’s had stopped oozing blood, and the buds of new fingers had just begun to appear, but the damage it was taking now was exceeding its ability to regenerate. It roared up at the flyers circling it, or rather tried to; only a choked sound and another gout of blood came out of its jaws. </p><p></p><p>“What the hell is happening!” Dar yelled, having to shriek over the noise of the creature’s wild gyrations. </p><p></p><p>But Varo only pulled himself up on one elbow, clutching his other arm—obviously broken—against his body. “Now!” he cried, his voice sounding like Dar’s over the din. “We must strike it now, with everything that we have!”</p><p></p><p>He lifted his own hand, and fired off another beam of <em>searing light</em> that lanced into the creature’s flank. Maricela rushed past them both, the tread of her <em>might</em>-enhanced boots making ponderous thumps on the ravaged ground. She cried out as she swept her mace around in a heavy arc, but the Ravager proved that it was far from crippled a moment later, intercepting her with two claws that smashed through her guard, and knocked her roughly onto her back. It turned toward her, bringing its other claws around to finish her off, but it did not get a chance.</p><p></p><p>The beast shook again, but this time no blood issued from its spattered jaws. Within its gut, almost as armored and durable inside as without, Aerim had continued his attack. The weapon of epic power that he held responded to his thoughts and his need, reforming into a long-curving dagger that he used to open gashes in the Ravager’s stomach. But even as he inflicted distress upon the creature, the fluids that covered him worked their way into his flesh, burning, penetrating into his ears, his nostrils, and his mouth, wreaking damage that mercilessly punished his every motion. By the time that the Ravager struck down Dar and Varo, he was blind, and as much of his blood as that of the beast accompanied his persistent strikes. The white of bone showed through the bright red covering his fingers, clenched in a death-grip onto the haft of his weapon, and more became visible as the flesh melted from his face. Still, he kept attacking, a noise that was not human issuing from deep inside him. </p><p></p><p>“...not... yield...” he said, his last words, as he thrust one final time, with all of his remaining strength behind it. The dagger penetrated flesh and stuck into one of the monster’s ribs; a moment later, the glowing red blade flickered and died.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 4419271, member: 143"] Chapter 90 RAVAGES Duke Aerim stepped into the path of the Ravager. He held the epic brilliant-energy weapon, recovered from where Kiron had dropped it, still attached to the remnant of his arm. The blade had shifted slightly, still a greatsword, but taking on the form of the sword that they’d found with Aerim, when he’d been captured in the vault under Rappan Athuk. Its glow cast a ruddy hue over the Duke’s features. Clad in torn clothes covered in gray dust from the collapse he’d survived, the Duke still somehow managed to appear noble and confident as he lifted the weapon in one hand, pointing the blade unerringly at the Ravager’s head. “You and I have business, beast,” he said simply. The Ravager paused. It sensed something odd coming off the body of the man defying it, but it certainly recognized the sword that had wounded it earlier. It lashed out with a claw, intending to remove the threat quickly. Aerim stepped into the attack and spun in a blur, the sword coming down in a two-handed grip that met the descending claw. The sword carved deeply into the Ravager’s limb, taking off three fingers and a good part of the hand behind them. Black blood jetted out, spraying over the Duke’s torso and arms, but he merely shifted his position and lifted the sword once more into a defensive stance. “You will have to do better than that,” he said. The Ravager gave him his request, lunging forward, smashing down with two of its intact limbs, crushing the Duke between them. Aerim swung the sword again, and again bit into the claws that sought him, but he could not avoid being caught up, and lifted into the air. The Ravager did not hesitate this time, opening its jaws wide and thrusting the man into its gullet whole, swallowing him with a single gulp. A wedge of pain shot up the creature’s leg, as Varo delivered a [i]harm[/i] spell. The creature’s will was such that it resisted the full force of the magic, but the attack had certainly gotten its attention. Varo was still [i]invisible[/i], but as the Ravager stomped its foot in reaction he was again knocked flying, and this time he had no sooner bounced on the hard stone than he was snared and lifted in the creature’s iron grip. Lightning again flashed into the creature’s blunt skull, and the [i]magic missiles[/i] that descended into it formed a bright halo, a constant flickering of light as the bolts struck the creature in a steady patter. Sultheros had added to his coterie attacking the Ravager, imitating Allera’s earlier tactic of summoning lantern archons to the cause. Four of the creatures now dipped in to fire their blasts of holy light, each forming a perfect white circle on the creature’s hide that was slow to fade. Dar shot forward, carried again by the power of the [i]fly[/i] spell cast by Callyse at the start of the battle; the spell was starting to wane, but the fighter did not hesitate as he streaked straight for the Ravager. A beam of light shot past him, but Maricela’s [i]searing light[/i] dissolved as it hit the creature. The priestess charged after it, but Dar reached it first, diving in with [i]Justice[/i] a gleaming blur in his hand. He dodged under one claw, taking a glancing blow that did not dissuade him from his target. He stabbed the blade into the thick web of flesh connecting the thumb and forefinger of the fist that held Varo captive. It was like trying to hew open a steel manacle with a toothpick, and just as effective. But before the creature could consume Varo as it had Kiron and Aerim before him, the Ravager suddenly convulsed. It opened its jaws wide again, but instead of another roar, a gout of black blood rose from inside it, splattering out in a fan that darkened the churned-up ground at its feet. Its distress was only momentary, but it loosened its grip enough for Dar to yank the cleric free. The respite was only momentary; the Ravager struck out with another long arm, smashing both men hard with its raking claws. Dar and Varo fell together, finally coming apart when they struck the ground some fifteen feet away from the creature. Their momentum carried them a bit further, and they finally slid to a halt, battered and bruised, but alive. The Ravager smashed its lower set of arms into the ground, shattering flagstones and sending bits of stone flying across the square. The hand that had been ruined by Aerim’s had stopped oozing blood, and the buds of new fingers had just begun to appear, but the damage it was taking now was exceeding its ability to regenerate. It roared up at the flyers circling it, or rather tried to; only a choked sound and another gout of blood came out of its jaws. “What the hell is happening!” Dar yelled, having to shriek over the noise of the creature’s wild gyrations. But Varo only pulled himself up on one elbow, clutching his other arm—obviously broken—against his body. “Now!” he cried, his voice sounding like Dar’s over the din. “We must strike it now, with everything that we have!” He lifted his own hand, and fired off another beam of [i]searing light[/i] that lanced into the creature’s flank. Maricela rushed past them both, the tread of her [i]might[/i]-enhanced boots making ponderous thumps on the ravaged ground. She cried out as she swept her mace around in a heavy arc, but the Ravager proved that it was far from crippled a moment later, intercepting her with two claws that smashed through her guard, and knocked her roughly onto her back. It turned toward her, bringing its other claws around to finish her off, but it did not get a chance. The beast shook again, but this time no blood issued from its spattered jaws. Within its gut, almost as armored and durable inside as without, Aerim had continued his attack. The weapon of epic power that he held responded to his thoughts and his need, reforming into a long-curving dagger that he used to open gashes in the Ravager’s stomach. But even as he inflicted distress upon the creature, the fluids that covered him worked their way into his flesh, burning, penetrating into his ears, his nostrils, and his mouth, wreaking damage that mercilessly punished his every motion. By the time that the Ravager struck down Dar and Varo, he was blind, and as much of his blood as that of the beast accompanied his persistent strikes. The white of bone showed through the bright red covering his fingers, clenched in a death-grip onto the haft of his weapon, and more became visible as the flesh melted from his face. Still, he kept attacking, a noise that was not human issuing from deep inside him. “...not... yield...” he said, his last words, as he thrust one final time, with all of his remaining strength behind it. The dagger penetrated flesh and stuck into one of the monster’s ribs; a moment later, the glowing red blade flickered and died. [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Community
Playing the Game
Story Hour
The Doomed Bastards: Reckoning (story complete)
Top