[003] Into the War Camp

[Samwell Turleton]

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Taka steps into the fog, powdery rust mingling with the gray vapor and steam from the quelled flame. She feels the moisture from fissures in the rock around her in the cave and the air around her astral form chills. She channels the chill into the water on the surface of the rock and the vapor of the fog grips to it, solidifying and forming long needle-like icicles as if the cave surface were covered in the quills of a porcupine. The needles snap from the surface of the cave ceiling and surge inwards towards the dai-bakemono.

Occult Duel [1d20]=6

[jemmus]

Okay, I will advance after Taka's next post.

For Toshizo, the only better-than-average katana in inventory is the one claimed by Ha. There are several fine yari, though. The replacement arrows are bowel rakers.

OK, Toshizo will swap his Average katana for the Good one in the inventory. 1104.0 says this:
Master +3
Superior +2
Good +1
Average +0
Inferior -1
If the katana in the inventory is just "good" (as in not bad quality) and not Good class, could I do a takeback for Toshizo's actions? Instead of going into the house for the katana, he'll start running to help Souta.

[Marullus]

There is one sword among those the bandits had that is an improvement and Ha has it in his hands, having claimed it after the duel. I mistakenly described it as Superior (+2) instead of Good (+1) in the duel, but decided to let that stand because the sword-from-that-duel is part of a great story.

Toshizo knows that's the only good sword. He can start running towards Souta, probably arriving a detailed turn or two after Eiji.

[jemmus]

OK, thanks. I've revised my post to show Toshizo spending one turn for Observe Situation and one for running toward Souta. viewtopic.php?p=574630#p574630

[Marullus]

Hit Points	Power	Turn Order
Ha 9 / 32 Toshizo 21 / 24 Taka 9 / 9 Eiji 11 / 11 Jīva 10 / 10	Taka 18 / 38 Eiji 0 / 28	Phase 16: Jīva (Basic Action) Phase 12: Bakemono-sho (Basic Action) Phase 10: Souta (Basic Action) Phase 9: Toshizo (Basic Action) Phase 6: Eiji (Basic Action); Souta (Secondary Action) Phase 5: Ha (Basic Action) Phase 4: Toshizo (Secondary Action) Phase 3: Souta (Secondary Action) Phase 2: Taka (Basic Action)

---

Arrows from the bushi silence the last of the bakemono-sho, their corpses sinking slightly into the slippery mud. Toshizo takes a moment to observe the field - the arrows have stopped from the cave but he can surmise where they came from, and Taka is in a trance. He surmises Eiji is likely still in danger and begins running to aid him, daikyu in hand. Ha begins walking southward, reaching the edge of the firelight, about halfway to the first-fallen bakemono-sho. Knowing that Eiji subdued one with a shovel, he expects to find at least one of the creatures alive when he gets there.

Toshizo Observes (BCS 3) [1d20]=6
Nothing notable in addition. Toshizo runs towards Souta (5x2=10 yards).

Ha walks to check the unconscious bakemono-sho. (3 yards, both rounds = 6)

Regarding arrows:
There is no provision for recovering arrows in Bushido for re-use. There IS a provision under Bower that you can collect and repair damaged arrows in the field, whereafter they have a -1 to BCS. Since Ha is a Bower, I think it makes sense to use those rules.

Code: Select all

Arrows broken in flight are
repaired on a simple BCS roll, no bonus or penalty used. Repaired
arrows always suffer a -1 penalty to the BCS thereafter, in addition to
any other modifiers affecting the shot.
Only one attempt to field repair damage is allowed for a given
weapon.

I will allow Ha, with enough time, to collect all arrows that were shot, with all damaged in use. He can then repair them per the Bowyer skill.

Ha will reach the unconscious bakemono-sho with three more turns of walking.
[/ooc]

Eiji runs towards Souta's fallen body, Jiva bounding ahead of him. Running in the dark, the buddhist sees the canine skid ahead of him, slipping and splattering mud everywhere. Jiva is able to right himself to all four paws, tongue lolling and excited as he shakes, causing mud to spray around him. More importantly, Eiji is able to slow himself, pausing at the edge of the mud before he also is mired in the magical muck that now surrounds Amano Souta's body.

Eiji runs to reach Souta, enters the mud field. (3x2 = 6, both rounds = 12)
Eiji Speed Save (BCS 4) [1d20]=19
Eiji STR Save (BCS 4) [1d20]=12
...he's fallen and can't get up.

It's a bit lame and anti-climactic, and I don't like it. But I think I need to be fair about applying the still-in-effect spell. I can apply it this way, however, to allow better player choice:
Jiva Speed Save (BCS 4) [1d20]=18
Jiva STR Save (BCS 4) [1d20]=3

...which is what I'll do narratively.

Eiji was wise enough to pause. How does he proceed with the mud problem?

...but in the Astral realm, Taka steps into the fog, powdery rust mingling with the gray vapor and steam from the quelled flame. She feels the moisture from fissures in the rock around her in the cave and the air around her astral form chills. She channels the chill into the water on the surface of the rock and the vapor of the fog grips to it, solidifying and forming long needle-like icicles as if the cave surface were covered in the quills of a porcupine. The needles snap from the surface of the cave ceiling and surge inwards towards the dai-bakemono, pelting him with the crystaline projectiles (-7).

Disconcerted by the mists and pelted by ice, the Dai-Bakemono huffs and manifests his malevolence, closing his clawed hands into fists as he points at Taka. Taka feels the familiar pulse of life energy, knowledgeable as she is of wood magic, but twisted by his dark purpose. She sees the flesh on her arms and hands age and wrinkle, becoming papery with age, blue veins protruding (-9).

In the real world, Eiji and Toshizo see a frost form for a moment on the mud, an unseasonable moment, and then the grasses wilting unnaturally near the cave mouth, drooping. The signs are subtle and not dramatic, but something is clearly unnatural here.

Taka makes a Water School attack (BCS 12) which would be reduced by his magic resistance, but she is surprised to find he has none (which is abnormal) (-0) and by his knowledge of Water School/10 (-0). Roll of 6 is an effect number of 6 plus her level equals 7. She does 7 power damage to the dai-bakemono.

Dai-bakemono Wood School (BCS 15) [1d20]=6
Dai-Bakemono makes a Wood School attack (BCS 15) which would be reduced by her magic resistance (-1) and by her knowledge of Wood School/10 (-3). Roll of 6 is an effect number of 5 plus its level equals 9. It does 9 power damage to the Taka. (18 remaining)

Real-world actions 1, Taka's Astral fight, real-world actions 2. We need Taka's next round, then declared real-world actions go again. Toshizo can run and reach Eiji, Eiji needs a plan to act, Ha walks three of nine yards to the unconscious bakemono-sho.

Night Fight 9.JPG (53.05 KiB) Viewed 504 times

[ffilz]

Eiji will circle the edge of the mud counter clockwise to get closer to Souta. Would he be able to hook her with the shovel and pull her closer? I guess not, she's 3 yards into the muck... Another option would be to step out onto the bake but the one closest to Souta is 2 yards in so that's quite a step.

[Marullus]

There are rules for a jump!

[Samwell Turleton]

Taka's hands grow thin, the skin drawn tight and wrinkling. Her blood pumps through protruding veins as she tries to drive the shards of ice deeper and deeper into the dai-bakemono. She focuses and bends her mind to the task, feeling the little wedges wriggling their way further into the malevolent creature.

Occult Duel [1d20]=9

[ffilz]

There are rules for a jump!

With physical BCS of 4 I don't think so...

[Marullus]

Hit Points	Power	Turn Order
Ha 9 / 32 Toshizo 21 / 24 Taka 9 / 9 Eiji 11 / 11 Jīva 10 / 10	Taka 8 / 38 Eiji 0 / 28	Phase 16: Jīva (Basic Action) Phase 12: Bakemono-sho (Basic Action) Phase 10: Souta (Basic Action) Phase 9: Toshizo (Basic Action) Phase 6: Eiji (Basic Action); Souta (Secondary Action) Phase 5: Ha (Basic Action) Phase 4: Toshizo (Secondary Action) Phase 3: Souta (Secondary Action) Phase 2: Taka (Basic Action)

---

...but in the Astral realm, Taka's hands grow thin, the skin drawn tight and wrinkling. Her blood pumps through protruding veins as she tries to drive the shards of ice deeper and deeper into the dai-bakemono. She focuses and bends her mind to the task, feeling the little wedges wriggling their way further into the malevolent creature. (-4).

The Dai-Bakemono grins maliciously, redoubling his own efforts as well. Taka's hair billows out, doubling in length, gray and brittle. Her fingernails lengthen, yellow and breaking, curling. Her skin waxy and sallow. She sees her own mortality as the life leeches from her, her own death in the corpselike visage. (-10).

Taka makes a Water School attack (BCS 12) which would be reduced by his magic resistance, but she is surprised to find he has none (which is abnormal) (-0) and by his knowledge of Water School/10 (-0). Roll of 9 is an effect number of 3 plus her level equals 4. She does 4 power damage to the dai-bakemono.

Dai-Bakemono Wood School [1d20]=5
Dai-Bakemono makes a Wood School attack (BCS 15) which would be reduced by her magic resistance (-1) and by her knowledge of Wood School/10 (-3). Roll of 5 is an effect number of 6 plus its level equals 10. It does 10 power damage to the Taka. (8 remaining)

Toshizo, Eiji, Ha, Taka!

[Marullus]

Would he be able to hook her with the shovel and pull her closer? I guess not, she's 3 yards into the muck...

I treat them as miniatures, so you count space between bases. You have two yards distance and Souta is in the third. That's long range (optimal for the shovel). Three yards would be extra long and is only -1 BCS. You can make a bojitsu roll to snag the passive, prone Souta... just don'troll a 20.

[ffilz]

Would he be able to hook her with the shovel and pull her closer? I guess not, she's 3 yards into the muck...

I treat them as miniatures, so you count space between bases. You have two yards distance and Souta is in the third. That's long range (optimal for the shovel). Three yards would be extra long and is only -1 BCS. You can make a bojitsu roll to snag the passive, prone Souta... just don'troll a 20.

I didn't account for the -1 but not sure what bonuses there are, so -1 for range, if it's at least +5 for passive and prone Eiji succeeds.

[jmacatty]

Ha intends to kill any apparently unconscious bakemono with his katana.

[Marullus]

Toshizo and Taka.

[Samwell Turleton]

Taka feels her hair brushing against her back where it had not done so moments before. Her nails grow, turn yellow, and break. Taka feels herself age and reflects on her life experiences. She remembers the time she held a small acorn in her palm. As she watched it and thought about the oak it would become the shell began to split and sprout. A small seedling growing there in her hand until she got distracted and it wilted and dropped from her hand back into the soil. Taka feels her body warm and she sends the heat into the needles of ice turning them into boiling steam inside the dai-bakemono.

Occult Duel [1d20]=14

[Marullus]

Hit Points	Power	Turn Order
Ha 9 / 32 Toshizo 21 / 24 Taka 9 / 9 Eiji 11 / 11 Jīva 10 / 10	Taka 8 / 38 Eiji 0 / 28	Phase 16: Jīva (Basic Action) Phase 12: Bakemono-sho (Basic Action) Phase 10: Souta (Basic Action) Phase 9: Toshizo (Basic Action) Phase 6: Eiji (Basic Action); Souta (Secondary Action) Phase 5: Ha (Basic Action) Phase 4: Toshizo (Secondary Action) Phase 3: Souta (Secondary Action) Phase 2: Taka (Basic Action)

---

...but in the Astral realm, Taka feels her hair brushing against her back where it had not done so moments before. Her nails grow, turn yellow, and break. Taka feels herself age and reflects on her life experiences. She remembers the time she held a small acorn in her palm. As she watched it and thought about the oak it would become the shell began to split and sprout. A small seedling growing there in her hand until she got distracted and it wilted and dropped from her hand back into the soil. Taka feels her body warm and she sends the heat into the needles of ice turning them into boiling steam inside the dai-bakemono.

The wave of heat doesn't appear to bother the fire-wielding Dai-Bakemono and the boiling steam fails to manifest. Instead, he bends the warmth, amplifying it, and pushes it back out from his unwashed body, burning away the remaining mists and ice around him, but unable to evoke the burning flame that could harm Taka. The space between the two combatants is now unobscured and Taka notes a significant change - more of the Dai-bakemono's aura is off-center and brighter, stretching behind him like a comet's tail, into the cave and to the left and his astral form looks translucent.

Taka makes a Water School attack (BCS 12) which would be reduced by his magic resistance, but she is surprised to find he has none (which is abnormal) (-0) and by his knowledge of Water School/10 (-0). Roll of 14 is a miss.

Dai-bakemono Fire School [1d20]=19
Dai-Bakemono makes a Fire School attack (BCS 15) which would be reduced by Taka's magic resistance (-1) and by her knowledge of Fire School/10 (-0). Roll of 19 is a miss.

Toshizo runs to Eiji, reaching him just as the monk manages to pull Amano Souta across the mud to stable ground. Eiji applies a salve and bandages to her wounds (+2 hp) compressing to stop the bleeding. She coughs weakly, then awakens to the pungent smell of the ointments.

Toshizo moved while Eiji fished with the shovel. He can state an action for the turn where Eiji applies bandages.

Souta is now awake with 2 hit points and back in the scene.

Eiji is out of power points, recovering them when he is outside to witness the rising sun at dawn (still hours from now). He can't perform magic healing until then.

Meanwhile, in the darkness to the south, Ha reaches the edge of the re-opened mass grave, desecrated bodies pulled from their repose and then left limbs akimbo. He looks down on the unconscious bakemono-sho, lying on the upturned earth with Toshizo's arrow in its chest, and beheads him with his katana in one smooth stroke.

Taka remains standing alone, deep in meditation, back by the house. Her hands are clasped before her, her form visible in the bright firelight, unmoving.

(Toshizo), Souta, Toshizo, Eiji, Ha, Taka!

[jemmus]

Toshizo helps Souta stand in her heavy o-yoroi. She's too heavy in it for the boy to even try to carry. He puts her arm over his shoulder and his over hers. Amano-san, can you walk to the house on your own? I don't want all of us to turn our backs to the cave. Eiji-san, thank you for your hard work. You have done a lot of healing in one day. He nocks a bowel racker on his dai-kyu's string and faces the cave's dark mouth.

[ffilz]

If Souta is steady enough to stand, Eiji will also help her stand and say to Toshizo:

Perhaps you should focus on the cave and protecting Taka while I help Souta to the safety of the house.

[Marullus]

Toshizo helps Souta stand in her heavy o-yoroi. She's too heavy in it for the boy to even try to carry.

Souta is unarmored - she is wearing her winter kimono... now rather bloodied.

[Samwell Turleton]

Where are we in the turn ordering? - Toshizo's last post catches us up to the current GM post and Toshizo has one more action now to start off another cycle of the detailed turn? Does Souta act again at the top of the order where she originally did or skip this round?