[OBSOLETE] Town: El-Shahabi

[sirravd]

Reginald and slave move promptly out of the area.

Paraded around the streets? Surely the guards will pass through some rookeries where their assassinations would go unnoticed. But how to kill them, he wonders, and asks his slave for ideas.

[ooc: Reginald has a 'weapon' in his equipment –– might this be a bow or other missile weapon?]

[Starbeard]

OOC: His starting weapon can be anything in the equipment list here.

His servant chitters. 'Scouting the City Ward seems the best thing to do. The guards there should know what the route will be, and we can look for a good place of ambush.' He begins to lick his hands and groom the fur behind his ear compulsively.

[sirravd]

OOC: A shortbow and arrows, then.

Hmm. Eavesdrop to see what the route will be? Fine, but we had better ambush them in a rookery or slum, or some other out of the way place –- not the Ward.

[Starbeard]

Reginald the Ratman travels to the City Ward to investigate with what daylight there is left.



The pair find a guardsman who confirms the parade circuit for the trial: it will begin at the City Tower, and the prisoner will be paraded around the high street of the City Ward in one full circle of the ward. The high street makes a winding circle around the City Ward, and ends where it started, at the ward's main square, before the Tower and the city hall. The guard will be headed by the Guard of the Tower himself, but the guardsman simply stares Reginald down suspiciously when asked about how many guards will be present.

Since the high street makes a winding circle around the ward, they will never have to leave the main road—however, as Reginald walks the route he finds a few places where the road becomes little more than a series of shadowy alleys between tall buildings. One in particular—about ten minutes into the thirty-minute walk—would allow him perhaps twenty seconds of privacy as the road becomes small enough that a single chariot would scrape its sides of high walls as turns two sharp corners. Another passage, twenty five minutes in, descends temporarily as it passes under a long, stone archway; hidden stone rafters are tucked away behind the columns, where the ratmen could hide easily but where assassins from less supple races would have more difficulty. Neither are near the city walls, but are surrounded by the usual maze of side streets.

[sirravd]

Another passage, twenty five minutes in, descends temporarily as it passes under a long, stone archway; hidden stone rafters are tucked away behind the columns, where the ratmen could hide easily but where assassins from less supple races would have more difficulty.

Reginald and slave decide to travel to the latter location. When the guards come by with the prisoner, Reginald and slave will attempt to shoot them dead.

But beforehand, Reginald travels to the marketplace to buy his slave a sling.

OOC: How many minas per talent?

[Starbeard]

OOC:

There are 20 mina per talent. The money FAQ post is here.

Basically, it's like the pre-decimal currency system: 12 shekels to a mina, 20 mina to a talent (i.e., 12 pennies to a shilling, 20 shillings to a pound).

Considering Reginald's social class, it's assumed that most of his money is sewn into his robes as cloth currency, with some jangly pocket change wrapped around belts or bracelets.

By the time Reginald and his slave return to the Merchant's Ward it is already dusk and the market stalls have closed up for the evening. They return to the inn of Plishat without incident, and bed for the night, eager to get an early start tomorrow to be in position well before the parade. He asks Plishat if he can spare a sling just in case, but the innkeeper has none to sell.

Bright and early the morning, the ratmen trek to the bazaar, to find that the grocers and bakers are the only ones up and selling. They heckle the open-air merchants until they find one willing to part with his sling for a pricey sum of 2 mina. Reginald finds no difficulty in finding tiny stones along the ground for ammunition, and they wend their way to the designated spot. Two blasts of the buffalo horn later, the parade begins. From their perch they can just hear the faint commotion of the crowd across the ward as the prisoner is led from the Tower…

(Happy Easter, we'll pick up after the holiday!)

[Starbeard]

Reginald the Ratman
City Ward

The two ratmen slink into position, tucked away high up in the vaulted arch of a long, narrow stone tunnel.

Occasionally, commotion can be heard several buildings away, as a small crowd jeers at the parade. Long minutes pass, and then the tell-tale sound of clacking hooves and creaking wheels come within earshot. Soon the procession turns the corner at the far end of the road, and begins to descend the long dirt path that ends in the cool tunnel. Within the tunnel, the ratmen can hear the sound of someone scraping large pieces of furniture along the floor in the room above them.

The procession nears, and Reginald counts his foes: a guard of eight men with long pikes, followed by a light two-horse chariot carrying the bound prisoner, and a rearguard of four mounted horsemen—three in light armour and the fourth in a golden jacket of bronze lamellar, from which depends a flowing purple cloak. The prisoner, wearing naught but a loincloth, is badly bruised and bleeding in places, as though he had been stoned by the jeering crowds. The procession hesitates a few metres from the tunnel entrance as the vanguard footmen try to reorganize themselves to pass through without snagging their pikes on the ceiling.

[sirravd]

Motherfucker! thinks Reginald. A procession!

Thinking quickly, he directs his slave to begin slinging at the cloaked man. He himself begins to shoot at the man, too.

[Starbeard]

Reginald draws his bow and commands his slave to aim for the man who looks like the captain—if the guard Reginald talked to yesterday was right, he must be the Guardian of the Tower himself, commander of the Bel's own army. Both of their missiles aim true and fly straight over the heads of the footmen and past the chariot, slamming into the Guardian's chest and nearly knocking him off of his mighty horse. The horse bucks wildly, but Reginald curses when he sees that the Guardian not only manages to stay on, but the missiles were deflected by his armour!

He yells to his guardsmen, and after a few moments of confusion they form up and realize that an enemy is hiding in the tunnel ahead. Lowering their pikes into position, the footmen jog into the archway, searching for Reginald and his slave. The two ratmen continue to attack the Guardian captain, but he manages to reform his cavalry behind the safety of the chariot. Their arrows and stones fail to find their mark.

As the footmen come closer, one yells, 'Up there! High in the pillars!' They run into position, but in the cramped conditions only three of them are able to bring their pikes to bear. Reginald's slave panics as he sees them approach and begins to sling his stones at them instead of the Captain. Reginald pulls out his melee weapon uses the shaft of his bow to deflect the prodding pikes, knocking them aside as he kicks downward at the guards' faces whenever he finds the opportunity. His slave does the same, alternating between slinging stones and lashing out with his powerful legs.

The back and forth goes on tediously long, neither side able to get a good strike in. The ratmen are too well protected in their high corner, but the guardsmen are too far below to fight back successfully, and are cornering them in. In the back of his mind Reginald hears the cavalry calling for reinforcements. Somebody is blowing a horn. Perhaps it is the chariot driver—but he is too busy defending himself to check.

Suddenly, a pike comes thrusting up dangerously close. Reginald smacks it to the side, but when it returns his slave is not so quick. The weapon pierces him near the eye. His fur bristles, accompanied by a shrill squeak, and he slumps in his corner as the bloodied pike pulls away.

INITIATIVE
Side A: Reginald (+1 to initiative roll for ambush)
Side B: Guards

Rolls: Side A [1d6] = 6, Side B [1d6] = 3

AMBUSH ROUND
Side A
Reginald attack: To-hit (5+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 6, Save (5+) [1d6] = 6
Slave attack: To-hit (5+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 6, Save (5+) [1d6] = 6

ROUND ONE
Side A
Reginald attack: To-hit (5+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 5, Save (5+) [1d6] = 6
Slave attack: To-hit (5+) [1d6] = 1, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 3, Save (5+) [1d6] = 6

Side B
Stupidity roll (3+): [1d6] = 3
Spearmen moves 4", now 4" away. Cavalry and Captain move behind the chariot.

ROUND TWO
Side A
Reginald attack: To-hit (6+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 2, Save (5+) [1d6] = 1
Slave action: Morale roll (1-3): [1d6] = 4
Slave attacks spearmen instead: To-hit (4+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 2, Save (6+) [1d6] = 3

Side B
Spearmen make contact, room for 3 to attack.

Melees 1=attack Reginald (6+ to hit), 2=attack slave (7+ to hit)
6. Reginald: To-hit (4+) [1d6] = 1, To-kill (5+) [1d6] = 3, Save (6+) [1d6] = 4
5. Slave: To-hit (5+) [1d6] = 1, To-kill (6+) [1d6] = 6, Save (6+) [1d6] = 1
3. Who [1d2] = 2 To-hit [1d6] = 3, To-kill [1d6] = 6 no hit
3. Who [1d2] = 1 To-hit [1d6] = 2, To-kill [1d6] = 6 no hit
3. Who [1d2] = 1 To-hit [1d6] = 1, To-kill [1d6] = 4 no hit

ROUND THREE
Side A
Reginald attack?: Bow attack? (4+) [1d6] = 1, To-hit (4+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 6, Save (6+) [1d6] = 2
Slave action: Sling attack? (3+) [1d6] = 1, To-hit (5+) [1d6] = 5, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 5, Save (6+) [1d6] = 1

Side B
Mounted guard make a call for reinforcements.

Melees
6. Reginald: to-hit (4+) [1d6] = 2, To-kill (5+) [1d6] = 1, Save (6+) [1d6] = 2
5. Slave: to-hit (5+) [1d6] = 3, To-kill (6+) [1d6] = 3, Save (6+) [1d6] = 3
3. Who [1d2] = 1, To-hit [1d6] = 4, To-kill [1d6] = 4 no hit
3. Who [1d2] = 2, To-hit [1d6] = 6, To-kill [1d6] = 3
-second to-hit roll (4+) [1d6] = 6 hit!
3. Who [1d2] = 1, To-hit [1d6] = 4, To-kill [1d6] = 6

Slave's wound roll: [1d100] = 94 (terribly fatal wound to the head), out for [1d6] = 6 turns.

[sirravd]

OOC: If the slave received a "terribly fatal wound," why is he only out for 6 turns? Also, Reginald didn't have a melee weapon...

[Starbeard]

OOC: If the slave received a "terribly fatal wound," why is he only out for 6 turns? Also, Reginald didn't have a melee weapon...

Sorry, Reg's character sheet said 1 ranged weapon and 1 melee weapon, so I rolled as if he was carrying a default melee weapon. It wouldn't have changed the results either way, though. Pretty unlucky rolls there.

For the slave's wound: the entry for his wound roll (70+) is 'Severe strike to the head, out of actions for 1D6 turns, risk of death: 100%.' Basically, he takes 1D6 rounds to die—an important distinction if you a character had some healing magic.

[sirravd]

Ah, okay.

Reginald, using his slave's body as a shield from the pikes, shouts down: "There are more of us! Yield up the prisoner and we desist!"

[Starbeard]

OOC:

Looking at his sheet again, it says Reg has 1 weapon only, which would be the short bow. Not sure where I saw that he had 2 weapons, I must have made it up. I'll fix the post.

Reginald tries desperately to bluff his escape, but the guards either do not hear or disbelieve his threats. Their pikes continue to clank and scrape on the stone, clay and tile all around him. The ratman squeezes further behind a pillar, looking for any possible way to enhance his position: in the flurry of combat he cannot make out whether there are any doors in the walls along the tunnel, but as he looks his head bumps into a wood plank. Part of the ceiling above him is covered in wood and not stone: the stones in that section must have fallen loose at some point, and the hole was covered by wooden flooring until they could be replaced. If he can pry the wood aside, he might be able to scurry into the building above, where he thought he heard people dragging furniture around earlier (Strength roll (1-2) on 1D6, with 1 round of free attacks at the usual penalties while he tries).

He also notices that if he kicks his dying companion out of the way, he can squeeze through a gap in the pillars and scurry along the rafters for a few yards before jumping to the ground behind the pikemen (1 round of free attacks at a further -1 to hit, then 1 round where 4 pikemen each get a 50% chance of making a free attack at ONLY -1 to hit). From there he could make a break for it, out of the far end of the tunnel away from the soldiers and chariots—he'd be giving up his prize, but he might live.

Either option would be tricky, and would mean that he has to spend a few precious moments with his back turned to his adversaries. In the far distance he hears the heavy footsteps of men in jingling armour. One of the guards below shouts, 'Surrender yourself, rat, or die!'

Rolls:

Guards reaction roll (2D6, -5 for overpowering and superior position, +3 for Reginald's Leadership)
(2-4 hostile, 5-9 neutral, 10-12 positive): ([2d6] = 4, negative result, they aren't buying it.

Reginald's checks for possible escapes
Any exits hidden in the ceiling? (2D6 vs INT-3): [2d6] = 3, any exits that exist are spotted.
Any exits along either wall of the tunnel? (2D6 vs INT-2) [2d6] = 11, no exits are spotted.
Any exits by running away? (2D6 vs INT) [2d6] = 3, any possible paths for flight are spotted.

[sirravd]

Reginald decides to try to climb into the building above; with his nondominant paw he holds his slave behind him as a shield, and desperately tries to pry the wood ceiling open with his remaining paw.

[Starbeard]

Reginald pulls his dying slave in front of him and starts desperately clawing and pounding at the wood planks above. Dust and stone crumbs get into his eyes and mouth. He can feel the the pikes reaching up for him, stabbing holes into the dead body of his shield. Just as his wrist grows too tired to hold up the corpse, his long fingers reach up between two heavy planks and he feels the whole floorboard rattle loose from the movement. He shifts his weight so he can grab the corpse with both hands, and presses his back up against the wooden panelling.

More shouts come echoing down the passage, and he looks in horror to see an entire section of copper-helmed archers come running down the street, squeezing into the passageway in pairs. Two of them pull up their bows and release deadly arrows at him, but they clatter against the stone pillars nearby. Reginald gives a great heave of his back and pushes the boards up and out of the way, and scurries off into the darkness of the building. The corpse falls to the ground, knocking two of the pikemen to the ground and creating a some confusion. (continued in private thread)

INITIATIVE
Side A: Reginald
Side B: Guards

ROUND ONE
Reginald strength check: Reginald STR test (1-2): [1d6] = 4
Reinforcements rush toward the scene: Reinforcements arrive on a 6+: [1d6] = 3

Melees
Reginald's body shield starts at a 4+ save, and gets 1 worse each time it makes a save.
Against Reg: To-hit (6+) [1d6] = 1, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 6, Save (5+) [1d6] = 2
Against Reg: To-hit (6+) [1d6] = 2, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 4, Save (5+) [1d6] = 3
Against Reg: To-hit (6+) [1d6] = 3, To-kill (4+) [1d6] = 5, Save (5+) [1d6] = 5

ROUND TWO
Reginald strength check: Reginald STR test (1-3): [1d6] = 6
Reinforcements rush toward the scene: Reinforcements arrive on a 5+: [1d6] = 4

Melees
3 To-hits (6+) [1d6] = 4, [1d6] = 2, [1d6] = 5

ROUND THREE
Reginald strength check: Reginald STR test (1-4): [1d6] = 6
Reinforcements rush toward the scene: Reinforcements arrive on a 4+: [1d6] = 6. Reinforcements arrive, will move into tunnel next round.

Melees
3 To-hits (6+) [1d6] = 6, [1d6] = 2, [1d6] = 6
2 To-kills (4+) [1d6] = 5, [1d6] = 6
2 Saves (4+) [1d6] = 4, [1d6] = 5 Body shield is now reduced -2, to a 6+ save.

ROUND FOUR
Reginald STR test (1-5): [1d6] = 5 The entry is opened!
Archers come into the tunnel, with room for 2 at the front to shoot. Three pikemen continue to attack.

Combats
2 archery To-hits (7+) [1d6] = 4, [1d6] = 4, 3 pike to-hits (6+) [1d6] = 2, [1d6] = 3, [1d6] = 3

ROUND FIVE
Reginald successfully escapes through the hole in the ceiling. Pretty lucky!