[002] Up the trail in search of the tiger

[ffilz]

Bankei only has 5 spell points remaining, Cure Light Wounds will cost 2. Each will restore 1d6+2 points (you will probably eventually want to acquire some healing potions).

Do you want to loot the body?

But before that, Bankei will want to try and send the Oni's spirit on it's way, so I'll take this roll for Oppose Spirit, assuming you spend an extra round for casting (may be too much to spend an extra minute):

Held Action:
If either Bushi falls and the Oni is stepping in on them for a blow:
Standing behind the Bushi, Bankei will perform his kata, rebuking the Oni. "Your purpose is to use your wickedness upon the wicked. These men are not for you."

Cast Oppose Spirit [1d1000]=186
Oppose spirit seems straight-forward. Demoralize spirit says it causes a Demoralize, but not what that means. Please adjudicate with whatever makes sense.
Cast Demoralize Spirit [1d1000]=446

A 186 is a -6 CA, Spell success is WIS +3 + Caster Level 3 - Spell Level 1 + extra turn casting + 2 for a total of 7, the spell succeeds and the Oni's spirit is sent on it's way. That's not an exorcism (which Bankei is not yet capable of) so the spirit COULD come back to haunt Kiyoshi, but at least not right now...

That took 1 spell point, leaving 4, enough for 2 Cure Light Wounds which you might as well spend an extra minute on for +8 success, so your casting rolls for those will succeed if you want to use up all your spell points.

Decide how many you want to cast and roll the 1d6+2 healing for each.

[ffilz]

Kiyoshi can't think of any way a live tiger-oni could be useful. He bows from the waist to Ezo. He brings his katana down on the thing's thick neck, then takes a square of folded paper from his kimono, wipes his blade clean, and drops it on the body. Thank you for allowing me the honor, Ezo-san. Please, take the oni's dai-sho as your own.

Bushi, being cleanliness-oriented Japanese, carried those papers around with them all the time. I don't know what they were called. Kiyoshi's a ronin, but a High rank, so he does too.

Yes, I remember reading about the papers. Thanks for the extra imagery.

The Oni also has particularly nice looking Partial Samurai Armor (may be magical) and a Dai-Kyu and arrows if you are interested in those. He also has a sake flask tied to his waist with a cord with gold thread woven through.

Bankei might also want to hold off on a 2nd Cure Light Wounds and cast Detect Magic.

Hmm, we really need to get another player on board so we can add a Shugenja also...

[ffilz]

Oh, and one last thing...

The katana the Oni is wielding is larger than Ezo uses, it's a Katana-18 which is the size Kiyoshi uses. The wakizashi is also larger than either of you use, a Wakizashi-6. The Oni was strong! That's a weapon combination for someone with STR 23.

Oh, and the Oni also has a coin purse.

[jemmus]

Kiyoshi views the oni's outsized, larger-than-life dai-sho. They're a size forged to the scale of an oni's oversized body, weight, arms, and hands. The young bushi smiles and straightens his back with pride at what he and his comparatively small new comrades-in-arms have accomplished. He looks to Bankei, Ezo, and back to Bankei. Who could have forged these blades for the oni, I wonder. A human? Or an oni smith? Or a smith from the hell where oni serve as guards and jailers! Do you know, Bankei-priest-san? Ezo-san? The outsized things would wonderful trophies. Proof of killing an oni in the countryside and on the mountsides. Eyes would pop and reputations would swell in the next town.

Impoverished and hungry Kiyoshi also eyes the coin purse at the oni's sash.... By the way, we should return the "tiger's" stolen offerings to the faithfu of the temple. And retain just a little. For the upkeep of The Sword and The Road... He looks again to the bushi and the gakusho. And shrugs with a kind of sheepish smile, and a cheerful confidence.

[ffilz]

The katana is the right size for Kiyoshi. The Oni is large but not giant. The strongest humans can match this Oni’s strength.

[Starbeard]

Ezo nods to acknowledge the fine cut, then adroitly cleans his blade and adjusts his clothing and hair back into place. With great care he removes the armor and other articles. "If nothing else, we might have these things cleansed and displayed at the shrine it desecrated. But I would rather put them to use in putting down more oni, I'm afraid I've might have caught a curiosity for it!"

He gingerly and cautiously smells the sake flask. "I wonder what demon sake tastes of."

[ffilz]

Ezo nods to acknowledge the fine cut, then adroitly cleans his blade and adjusts his clothing and hair back into place. With great care he removes the armor and other articles. "If nothing else, we might have these things cleansed and displayed at the shrine it desecrated. But I would rather put them to use in putting down more oni, I'm afraid I've might have caught a curiosity for it!"

He gingerly and cautiously smells the sake flask. "I wonder what demon sake tastes of."

A sniff of the sake suggests maybe someone more familiar with demons should have a look at it before imbibing.

Ezo, being almost as large as the Oni considers that the armor might be able to be fit to his frame (the Oni was SIZ 23 to Ezo's 21, you can generally size armor up or down 2 SIZ).

[Marullus]

The uncouth eta gravedigger has no qualms with handling the body. He strips it of valuables, binds the limbs, and using his monk's spade sets about digging the hole with a simple efficiency.

Once done he wipes his hands off on his pants and haves a hand closer for the bushido to bring him the items for examination.

He banishes the Oni and casts detect magic first.


How wounded ARE the bushi?
How fast do i recover points? I thought it was ongoing, not daily?

[ffilz]

Kiyoshi is pretty seriously wounded. Ezo is unwounded.

Priests cast spells with spell points which come back daily. They are somewhat more limited in how much they can cast, but in exchange, get some spells at lower level and they get healing that is way better than a magic users and with the adaptations for Samurai Adventures, they also get the best magic for dealing with spirits.

I think I do really need to consider something for directly dealing with spirits that isn't spell based, so let me give some more consideration to that. I'm still working out how to adapt Cold Iron to the Samurai genre. With the more D&D-like base game, clerics are better positioned to also fight, but that doesn't make so much sense for the Samurai genre.

I think the fighting part translated well, and I think Shugenja as Cold Iron magic users will translate well, but priests aren't translating so well...

[ffilz]

With that, the armor, the katana, the wakizashi, and the sake bottle all detect as magic.

[Marullus]

...how else do I investigate the magic?

[ffilz]

...how else do I investigate the magic?

Be 4th level…

And I’m getting an idea of just moving everyone to 4th level. Your magic opens up a lot and the bushi are a bit better. PbP is slow so maybe get a head start on zero to hero.

[Marullus]

"This oni has given great gifts indeed," comments Bankei as he explains what he can discern regarding the enchantment on the armor, katana, wakizashi, and sake bottle. He sizes up Ezo and slides the armor his direction, and the katana towards Kiyoshi. He stoppers the sake and places it in his own furishiki. "This bears more contemplation before it is risked." He leaves the wakizashi on the ground by the overturned earth for the bushi to make a decision about it.

If I have enough power...
He looks over Kiyoshi's deep lacerations and clucks his tongue. He prays over them.
and if he doesn't...
Then bandages them with his strongly-scented astringent bandages.

Healing Spell check and mundane Medicine check:
Healing [1d1000]=41 Medicine [1d1000]=99

"...I am tired. It is a long walk and much digging," comments the monk who observed the fighting. "Perhaps we return to rest in the temple."

[jemmus]

Kiyoshi accepts the katana and offers the wakizashi to Ezo. Yes, I think our work here is done. He takes the oni's head. This proof may reassure the priest and people of the temple.

[ffilz]

Taking a minute to cast the Cure Light Wounds is +8, the 041 is a CA -12 so Level 3 + 3 WISadj - 2 (spell level 2) + 8 extra minute - 12 (CA) is 0, just enough to succeed.

Roll 1d6+2 for healing. No need to roll for first aid (using Physician), but that's an overnight thing to recover any damage. Bankei will get his spell points back at dawn.

[Marullus]

Healing [1d6+2]=5+2=7

[ffilz]

In the interest of speeding up play a little bit, and to get your one caster to have a bit more flexibility, I'm going to promote the Bushi to Level 4 Fighter and Bankei to Level 4 Gakusho.

The Bushi will get to increase 5 combat skills to level 4.

I suggest:

Ezo:
Kenjutsu Attack
Kenjutsu Parry
Dodge
2 more from
Sojutsu (Spear) Attack
Sojutsu (Spear) Parry
Kyujutsu (Bow) Attack
Hand to Hand

Kiyoshi:
Kenjutsu Attack
Kenjutsu Parry
Dodge
Kyujutsu (Bow) Attack
Hand to Hand
He could increase Sojutsu Attack/Parry and actually have 2 skill points unspent (since they are at 2nd level not 3rd).

Everyone get's one attribute augment, I suggest:

Ezo - augment DEX to 16
Kiyoshi has an interesting choice: augment DEX to 17, which doesn't do anything now, but when he augments again at 5th level to 18 he gains a benefit. Or he can augment CON to 16 and get an additional HP/level so he would be 32 HP at 4th instead of 28.
Bankei - augment WIL to 18 (which is going to help exorcism, which I will come up with some rules shortly for... and then he can try them out on the Oni's spirit...)

It will take me a bit to add Bankei's 4th level spells and suggest new memorization. With access to Detect Magic IV he will be able to do more to identify the magic items.

The Bushi can practice with the swords and test the armor to determine the level of enchantment on them, though if there's any other magic, Bankei would have to determine that.

[ffilz]

Healing [1d6+2]=5+2=7

Applied.

[ffilz]

Kiyoshi accepts the katana and offers the wakizashi to Ezo. Yes, I think our work here is done. He takes the oni's head. This proof may reassure the priest and people of the temple.

Recall that the priest is dead... You will probably want to report to the magistrate (hmm, is there a handy reference of proper terms for various officials?).

[jemmus]

oh, right. In the Honor or Death game the samurai magistrate is called the ninyo I found that info on Wikipedia. I think I searched for "Kamakura Period government. "