D&D 5E The Rhyot Break - Chapter One: Endless White

[Steve Gorak]

OOC: animal handling check for the first sled: [roll0]

Gimlack grabs on to the one wolf sled, and returns to the rest of the group. There he approached the deat dwarves, and slashed two arms for the one that was still intact. He looks at his companions "Let me take the faster sled, I may need the speed" He then proceeds to feeding each wolf one arm. Seeing the disdain from some of his companions he adds "At least the Korrund dogs will do some good in their death!"

OOC: animal handling check for the second sled: [roll1], second check in case one is necessary per wolf [roll2]

Gimlak then takes the reigns of the second sled, and signals for a torch. "Can any of you light it for me?". Assuming this is feasible, he proceeds to tie it to the sled so he does not use his hands to hold it, and goes towards the noise. "Ready yourselves, if I don't come back, run!"

Gimlak then signals the wolves to go towards the noise.

 

[daindarkspring]

Zemryn scowled in disgust at the mutilation of the Korrud dead. It was not Atemi's way. But she understood the man's urges well enough. Kicking at the contents of the sled, she procured herself another short sword before setting her mouth in a firm line and removing a bloody leather armor and boots from a dismembered Korrud. Donning the bloodstained cuirass and ill-fitting boots, she scraped the swords against one another and lifted her eyes to the unforgiving and frozen sky.

"Atemi. Atami. Atemiri." It was the pre-battle chant of the Priestesses of Atemi. She had learned it young and she had learned it well.

She smiled darkly at Gimlak's advice. "If you do not come back, I will be joining your spirit as it flitters away to whichever immortal you pray to. We will be side by side for a short time, no doubt, until Atemi summons me and I leave you to join my kith and kin in the outer realms. Atemi protect and guide your blade, Gimlak."

Motioning for the others to find cover as well (no doubt they already were), Zemryn ducked behind the nearby tree, body tense and swords to her chest.

<Cast cantrip: Blade Ward>
<Add Leather Armor: AC now 15 (12+3dex>

 

[McD]

Rolin nodded to his new companions before setting about pilfering the spare crossbow bolts from the fallen Korruds and grabbing himself a dagger too. Taking up position behind a tree with Bria he turned and whispered "let's hope this works." A slight hint of a smile crossing his face as he loaded a new bolt into the bow.

He watched Gimlak head off towards the enemy and did his best to hide himself against the tree ready to spring into action when required and fight tooth and nail to keep his newfound freedom.

 

[97mg]

Torch flickering in the wind, Gimlak's companions watch as the (clearly) barbarian man heads off into the darkness, alone. It seems till now, his plan has worked, the wolves more than happy to snack upon their master's flesh. Perhaps that is less of a reassurance on second thoughts, to Gimlak, being the new master and all.

The hairy pair tug him along, and mostly comply to the demands on the reigns. Its a bit lurchy and they lack the domesticated attitude of well trained horses, but aside from a few jolts along the way, he keeps them headed in a generally southwards direction.

With little more than dim light surrounding him, the sounds of the oncoming grow louder. The shout of a dwarven voice, commanding animals to hurry. The crack of a whip. Then ahead, forty feet away, he sees them. A sled pulled by row upon row of wolf. Six? And behind them the form of a Korrud.

"I hope ya found em' ya sniveling muttface!" He calls out with authority in his tone.

"And why the torch dulleyes? Afraid o' somethin'?"

Then he seems to shrug, and points to you with a firm finger.

"Lead the way! I shall follow!"

[sblock=Rolls]Insight: 1D20 = [1] = 1
Critical Fail! lolz[/sblock]

 

[97mg]

"I desire so, too," Bria replies to Rolin, offering the man her name and a nervous smile as they wait.

"Which mine's luxurious accommodations did you escape from? Were they all as lucky as yourself? We took a great risk today... It worries me that we did not see you earlier. We are like prey out here, but if Gimlak is good to his word, and luck does a little more than just smile, then there will be less hunters at the end of it, and perhaps... some free souls."

 

[Imladir]

With a single word and a simple gesture, Faenala lit Gimlak's torch. She wasn't particularly approving of that plan, but not only it wasn't the right time for such a conversation, she didn't have much better to suggest. And it wasn't like it cost her a lot to light up a torch. In fact, after so many years in captivity she felt like using magic as much as she could, for no other reason than...she could.

After that, she put herself as far out of the way as she could manage: the previous skirmish had demonstrated pretty clearly that she was far from able to do much in those situations at the moment: between the fact that she didn't have what she needed for her most useful spells, and she seemed unable to even land a hit we the others...

She had briefly considered using some kind of illusion to mess with the Korruds, but while the visibility was low making it even harder for the slavers to realize what was going on...on this kind of terrain, she didn't have much to work with. So she simply waited, part of her hoping that their previous captors would never reach them...part of her wishing they would so that they could slit their throats.

 

[Steve Gorak]

Torch flickering in the wind, Gimlak's companions watch as the (clearly) barbarian man heads off into the darkness, alone. It seems till now, his plan has worked, the wolves more than happy to snack upon their master's flesh. Perhaps that is less of a reassurance on second thoughts, to Gimlak, being the new master and all.

The hairy pair tug him along, and mostly comply to the demands on the reigns. Its a bit lurchy and they lack the domesticated attitude of well trained horses, but aside from a few jolts along the way, he keeps them headed in a generally southwards direction.

With little more than dim light surrounding him, the sounds of the oncoming grow louder. The shout of a dwarven voice, commanding animals to hurry. The crack of a whip. Then ahead, forty feet away, he sees them. A sled pulled by row upon row of wolf. Six? And behind them the form of a Korrud.

"I hope ya found em' ya sniveling muttface!" He calls out with authority in his tone.

"And why the torch dulleyes? Afraid o' somethin'?"

Then he seems to shrug, and points to you with a firm finger.

"Lead the way! I shall follow!"

[sblock=Rolls]Insight: 1D20 = [1] = 1
Critical Fail! lolz[/sblock]

Gimlak does not see the dwarf well, and he is concerned about the fact it is riding a six wolf sled. Is this because of status or huge strenght? He will find out soon enough. The Korrund did not seem to recognize him as a prisoner, so he signals his wolfs to take a wide turn, to approach his companions from the south west, so they can attack him from two flanks.

OOC: animal handling if required [roll0] dex check if required [roll1]

 

[daindarkspring]

Zemryn's body tensed, her knuckles whitening as she gripped the handles of the shortswords tightly. She let her breath out slowly and evenly, forcing herself to calm despite the roaring of her quickened heart in her ears.

The sled was coming. She could hear the yapping of the wolves, the grinding of metal on snow. She glanced from her hiding place, seeing the two sleds approaching. The shape of Gimlak was unmistakable. Somehow, the man had managed to lure the Korrud right into their waiting trap.

Thank you, Atemi!

The armor she was wearing smelled foul, of blood and Korrud sweat. It disgusted her, and it drove her to do what she had to do so that she could cleanse herself and be free. Free of all of it. The cruel hands, the leering eyes, the growling voices and the dark words. The pain.

It was almost time. She hid the blades so that they would not gleam in some dim bit of torchlight.

"Atemi. Atami. Atemiri." The grace of Atemi was with her. She felt emboldened. Joyful even. A sharp pain, as familiar as a mother's voice, tore through her belly. Her teeth ground together as she endured the torment.

She bent into a crouch, her soggy boots finding purchase in the snow as she coiled like a spring ready to strike.

<cantrip: Blade Ward>

 

[97mg]

The Korrud follows, reigns in one hand and occasionally from the other, he swigs on something within a wineskin as the sled slips across the snow.

Almost miraculously, he has chased Gimlak's tracks right into the jaws of a waiting trap!

"Eh?" The demihuman grunts, the beginnings of hard reality mixing with rough-as-guts wine and a desire for violence in his mind.

"Wha?"

He is surely stupid, this one, the pieces of a puzzle all around him to see. The cart he chases is torchlit and the form upon it is... well... unusual. Wait. Was that blood in the snow he just passed?

He turns his ugly head leftwards, and grits his teeth. The word that escapes his lips next is not fit for translation in a public place as this.

The Korrud may not be wise, nor insightful, but as the silently lurking party looks on they will see that he makes up for such losses, in the breadth of his shoulders and the thickness of his hide. His face, it bares more dark marks of tribal meaning than most others you have seen.

[sblock=Map]

[/sblock]

[sblock=Notes]His Insight critical fail has led him right into the trap . All may take one round of surprise actions before we roll initiative. His AC is 14.[/sblock]

 

[daindarkspring]

The time is now!

Zemryn burst from around the tree, keeping low to the ground as she dashed in an arc that carried her first past the dead wolf and then right by the Korrud dead. She laughed lightly, an eerie and disconcerting sound that came across more as a keening howl in the darkness. Taking the shortswords, she scraped the blades together as she ran, calling forth Atemi as a witness and an ally.

"And now, you both shall die the death due to you!" She implied in her words that Gimlak was a Korrud, which with any luck would convince the Korrud that the man in the sled in front of him was not an enemy. "Come my brethen, raise the battle cry of Atemi. Atemi, Atami, Atemiri!" She made a point to gesture at some invisible force behind her, hoping to gather all of the Korrud's attention towards her.

Coming upon the Korrud from behind, Zemryn's swords gleamed like two flickering eyes in the darkness.

<Surprise action: Dash>
<Cantrip: Blade Ward>
<Initiative roll: 17 (in Rolz)>