Friday, April 17, 2009

Campaign: the Tower V

This was the last comment, and serves fine as a post to begin the next thread. The view out the tower arrow slit is as follows:

You can see the wall as it stretches and curves away towards the east--from where you are you can see the north gate to the left, and further along the wall, the mid-tower between the east and north gates.

You can also see the top of the wall, between the crenallations (the wall is topped by stone blocks and spaces between the blocks--standard appearance). You can count about sixteen slugs that would be on that part of the wall to the left of the door; probably more that are hidden.

The huge giant still bashing its fists against the tower has its front somewhat towards you. There is no "face"...what you can see, from a distance of perhaps 250 yards, are ten two-foot horns arranged vertically in two vertical lines, with a maw opening between them, the "lips" of which would be such that the mouth would open apart like a curtain rather than like a lid (as human mouths do). The creature has no visible eyes.

What do you do?

31 comments:

  1. I'm being pedantic because the map in my head was incorrect. I want to be sure I've got this right.

    We climbed up the wall in such a way that the tower we're now in was to the right of us. The 3 guards we saw on top of the wall, we cannot see anymore, but we do see 16 slugs. This is to the left of us now. Is that all correct?

    Can I see the group of soldiers marching towards the giant?

    Can I see Hornung's beer garden? If not, do I know what direction it would be relative to where I'm at? What do I see in that direction?

    I'll whisper to Kazimir to continue being quiet, but to start putting bed sheets together to form a crude rope to help him climb through the slit and down the tower into the city.

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  2. I've added a picture to help with your orientation. It is not precisely to scale.

    You're looking east; you can't see the street because you are on the outside of the wall, and the tower proper overlooks the ground outside the city and not inside the city. Note that the darker grey band following the wall would represent the crenallations of the wall facing outwards.

    The beer garden would be some four hundred yards away, somewhat to the south. You know approximately where it ought to be, but you can't see it.

    There would only be one bedsheet in the room and it would only be large enough to cover the narrow cot; even with the one below, they're not sufficient for making any kind of "rope."

    Please feel free to ask as many questions as you need.

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  3. (Ha. I hate to admit it, but the picture helped. I thought the tower was bisected by the wall, not tangent to the wall. I should probably study more medieval architecture if I'm going to play.)

    I'll move to the west arrow slit and see if I see slugs to the west of us.

    Is there a lantern/lamp in here? If so, I'll whisper to Kazimir to make a crude torch with the bedsheet at the end of my sword and get the lamp. I'll hand him my sword to do so while I'm looking out the west window to see if I see slugs.

    Will the door swing out towards the east (so that we could be shielded a bit from the east slugs)?

    (I'm thinking that the only sure way out of this is to go down the wall right opposite the door, unless we see that the wall west is clear. The "torch" is to try and keep the slugs away and the oil is in case we need to burn anything in front of the door.)

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  4. I gathered that there was a disconnect. You'll remember when you climbed you moved into the angle between the tower and the wall, and then moved right to find the arrow slit that was below the level of the wall.

    There are slugs to the west of you as well, and in equal numbers. You will notice, however, that there are no slugs on the ground outside the wall, none whatsoever.

    There is an unbroken lantern in this room (you destroyed the one a floor down, and there are torches.

    The door would swing to the west, but it makes no difference as there are slugs in both directions.

    There are no slugs atop the crenallations of the wall.

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  5. I'll listen at the door to see if I hear anyone outside.

    Is there enough room on top of the crenellations that we could move along the wall?

    Once I've done that, I'll motion for Kazimir to give me a torch and for him to keep the lamp. I'll light the torch.

    (OOC - I'm figuring there was 1 to 2 slugs a person in Dachau. Ah, my blood, what hath ye wrought? Also, how far do we want to go without Kazimir adding to any of this?)

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  6. You can hear very little that's new. There would be a slight squishing sound that would be evident through the arrows slits.

    The crenellations are about three feet wide, and there is a two-and-a-half foot gap between each.

    (OOC: Don't worry about Kazimir. When we receive a comment from him, he will either follow you in whatever action you take, or he will remain here to start his own thread. Anshelm has already done so...I don't mind running four different persons at once. It is decidedly easier to do in this format than in person, as no one is left waiting. I recommend that you plan for the possibility that Kazimir will not follow you)

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  7. (OOC - OK, will do.)

    I sheath my (long? short?) sword. I then light my torch and hand it to Kazimir so he either can light his or hold it while I lift the bar. I lift the bar (if I can, if not, Kazimir can set the torch down somewhere safe and help?).

    Should I wait here for any rolls or do you want me to continue?

    (The idea will be: I'll open the door and swing the torch out in front/around me to make any slugs back off, then head to the crenellation opposite the door and climb it. I'll then take a good look around.)

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  8. (OOC: stop worrying about Kazimir. All of this info that you're giving me will be assumed later on. I will have it so that he has done whatever would be logical in his absence. This is how one normally runs a person who was not present for a given evening of running--in effect, they cease to exist. Restrict your attentions to Delfig)

    You open the door. There are two slugs which might be within reach if you were moving slowly, but your intent is to reach the top of the crenallation. Roll a d6.

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  9. I don't think it was said. Were you planning on going west or east?

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  10. d6: 1.

    I didn't state direction, because I want to get on top of the crenellation and take a quick look around first. I'm going directly straight from the door to atop, then survey the situation. My *hope* is that the slugs can't reach me. My second hope is that they either move slow enough or are kept at bay by the torch.

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  11. (OOC: Gentlemen, I will be rejoining the game at about 3:15-3:30 central time. I apologize for my absence this week. Next week will be better.)

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  12. Delfig,

    You can see from the picture included that the crenallation is interrupted by the tower...therefore, you must pick on side or the other before you can leap on top of it.

    You fail initiative, so both slugs get an attack. They roll a 4 and a 9, both missing. You are now atop the crenallation of your choice.

    Point in fact, I assume you are reading events occurring on the other thread--it would be at this moment that the tower there described collapses, with much noise and screaming. If you are on the west wall, you can't see this, but if on the east wall, it is plainly visible.

    Also, and I have been holding back on this information, there follows an eruption of green and blue flashes of light in the vicinity of the Kirche Square--from your vantage point, you can see that there is some kind of battle going on there as well, apart from the huge giant to the east.

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  13. I will be on the crenellation to the west of the tower, away from the giant. I will make my way as quickly as I can to a point where there are no slugs within 20 to 30' or so, then get back on the wall top proper and start looking for a way down off the wall.

    Based on my prior knowledge of Dachau, do I know if Hornung lives next to the beer gardens or in a separate dwelling?

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  14. (It's 3.20pm Central right now, and as of 4.00pm, I'll be offline for PrincessWife and gaming all weekend. Alexis, this was a fun week, thank you again for the experiment and having me a part of it.)

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  15. Delfig,

    You can be pretty certain that, given the insanity going on around the city, the paladin Hornung is not at home.

    He is quite probably, as someone of his class and stature would be, either involved in whatever is going on in the Kirche Platz or at the wall near the giant.

    The wall continues to be covered with slugs...but forty yards on, a troop of soldiers emerges onto the top of the wall and begins to hack and burn the slugs ahead of you. One of them sees you and raises his arm to beckon you to come forward. He is shouting, "Come on, come on!"

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  16. Kazimir looks to the guards, then to Delfig, "This just keeps getting better and better, hey? If I had a moment, I could disguise myself. You think you could keep 'em occupied whilst I do so?"

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  17. (OOC: I don't see how you could disguise yourself, Kazimir. You're on top of a wall completely in the open)

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  18. (OOC: My initial thought was to go down below and use the gear worn by the dispatched guards. The plan seemed more probable before I'd had my morning coffee. However, they seem to be calling for our help, so I suppose they must be looking past our rather thuggish appearance, at least for the moment)

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  19. (OOC - this day is going to be completely and utterly borked for me - work just cranked to 11 with some really bad numbers released today and managers are cranking out the meetings to "fix things" faster than Twitter passing bad news. I will be about every couple of hours.)

    Delfig will at Kazimir and say "Come on! This is our best chance to get off this wall and find Hornung!" He will wave back at the guards and start to move down the wall towards them. He will wave the torch at any slugs that seem interested, and stop to attack only if he has to.

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  20. (OOC: Not to worry, Delfig. I'm discovering today that our company may not exist in a month. Sales have not kept up with costs)

    Kazimir,

    It might have been possible to grab the guard's gear if you had represented it as something that you had done before specifically joining Delfig. But by returning to the campaign by beginning with speaking to him, you indicated that you are now on the wall and now nowhere near the guard's room.

    Sorry to be picky about that sort of thing.

    Delfig,

    As you approach it becomes very plain that the guards very much are concerned about your safety. They are shouting encouragement at you, saying "Come on, You're almost there!" and the like.

    Just to be a prick, I need Kazimir and Delfig to roll a d20 each.

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  21. (Gulp. I rolled a 2)

    Kazimir will follow after Delfig. He will switch to his club and swat at any slugs that stray too close for comfort. His priority is to clear the distance and keep pace with Delfig.

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  22. (Alexis - ouch. I feel bad for you, but I'm going to beat down anyone who stands in my way of keeping my job and family fed.)

    Just to be a prick, I need Kazimir and Delfig to roll a d20 each. d20: 14

    Delfig will hurry as fast as he can towards the soldiers calling to him.

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  23. Kazimir and Delfig succeed in their dexterity checks. Delfig rolled his dexterity. Neither of you slip as you rush over the crenallations, and both of you jump down in among the guards.

    The majority of the guards go on killing the slugs--you can see at this point that they are using primarily holy water and acid, rather successfully.

    "You're safe now," one says. He directs you to the stairwell behind the guards, and encourages you to grab what you have and get what cover you can find. "Stay away from the center of town," says another. "All hell's broken loose."

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  24. Kazimir will quickly get to the stairwell, presumably with Delfig in tow.

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  25. "Have you seen where Hornung is fighting?" I'll ask.

    After the answer, I'll proceed down the stairway. Once we get to the bottom, I'll be looking for any priest nearby that can heal me. I'll also hold Kazimir up so we can plot.

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  26. "Not a clue. He's probably dead," says the first guard. "I heard he was at the cathedral."

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  27. Kazimir says to Delfig, "Shall we try our luck at the Cathedral? Might be a safer place to be, anyway." He looks around. "You think Tiberius and Anshelm are still alive?"

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  28. Delfig looks around for any sort of priest. He shrugs at Kazimir's question.

    "I don't know. If we have time, we'll have to look for them, but my friend, I am not well and I need a healer. Let's get to the cathedral - perhaps I'll find healing and Hornung there at the same time."

    (Based on my knowledge of Dachau, where is the cathedral. [If the 'prick' answer is "Center of town", my office mates are going to wonder why I'm howling with laughter.])

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  29. Kazimir and Delfig,

    The guards hurry to explain to you that the cathedral, Kirche Platz, is where half the town's leaders are fighting some sort of demon that has been coughed up from hell. That is where the blue and green fire is coming from, the square near the Pig Tavern.

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  30. "Kazimir, that is where we'll find Hornung, but I am in sore need of healing. Let's head to the center, but if you or I see a kind cleric, let's see if he can assist me."

    I'll start heading towards Kirche Platz, sword in hand, cautiously looking about for any danger. I'll go out of my way to avoid a confrontation.

    (OOC - Would you please tell me if I am allowed a longsword?)

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  31. Yes you can. There's no problem with the use of a long sword.

    This thread ends here, I'll produce a new post.

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