Heroica RPG - Quest #20: Missing Minerals!

[Rumble Strike]

Whilst waiting for the prospector to respond to Knifk's diplomatic overture, Tarn whispers to Guts. "That's definitely not a dwarf. May the Gods smile upon us and hope that this miner will not take offence at improper words, kindly put."

[Scubacarrot]

"I knew it, and what are you implying, Valco, mistaking someone for a dwarf would be like mistaking someone for an elf, you take offense on that? Are you with the paladins, or something?"

[Bioniclover]

"I knew it, and what are you implying, Valco, mistaking someone for a dwarf would be like mistaking someone for an elf, you take offense on that? Are you with the paladins, or something?"

"Knifk has ret-conned his previous post to appease Guts. Does this make Guts happy?"

[Scubacarrot]

"Knifk has ret-conned his previous post to appease Guts. Does this make Guts happy?"

"Hmph, I suddenly can't remember why we were talking about dwarves, who brought them up, again? "

[Bioniclover]

"Hmph, I suddenly can't remember why we were talking about dwarves, who brought them up, again? "

"Knifk is suddenly hazy on the whole situation. Knifk is unsure as to who brought up dwarves."

[UsernameMDM]

"Dwarf??? Dwarf?!?! DWARF!!!! Yous toad skinned bafoon! Ever sees striders dis longs on a dwarf! And you, ya scarf wearin mommas boy! I'll show yous mah claim!"

Wild eyed, beard blazing, the Crazed Prospector leaps at the heroes

The Enemy:

Crazed Prospector - Level 5 Earth Level 7 Humanoid

HP: 80

Special: Cave In - 5 damage to entire party

Drops: Pickaxe

The Party:

Tarn Valco, Level 12.5 Barbarian, 21 year old human male ***PARTY LEADER***

Power: 22 Health: 19/19 Gold: 50

Inventory: Kyrferath, a Battle Axe (WP: 10, Water Elemental), Pole-axe (WP: 3), Mead x 2, Grand Potion, Shovel

Dak Shadeaux, Level 11 Rogue, 35 year old half-elf Mopag

Power: 18 Health: 17/17 Gold: 155

Inventory: Mockthril Knife (Equipped)(WP:7), Thgir Blade (WP:5), Twin Longswords (WP:3), Mockthril Whip (WP:4), 2 Venoms, 1 Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Guts Holla, Level 10.5 Rogue, 42 year old male human

Power: 17 Health: 16/16 Gold: 133

Inventory: Lifestealer (WP:7 attacks restore 3 health), Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Knifk, Level 11 Knight, 30 year old male Orc

Power: 18 Health: 20/20 Gold: 75

Inventory: Tfel Blade (WP:7), Mockthril Shield (SP:5), Garnet, Bedroll

De'kra, Level 12.5 Rogue, 11 year old Male Shade

Power: 17 Health: 18/18 Gold: 88

Inventory: Pongcanis Dagger(WP:5, Electricity), Shadeaux Dagger(WP:5), Fang Dagger(WP:4), Cloak of the Blue Assassin(SP: 1), Cloak of the Elven Spy(loaned to Atramor), Bedroll, , Potions (2), Pickaxe, Gold Ore

Aberforth Swindle, Level 6 Mage, 62 year old human

Power:8 Health: 10/10 Ether 9/9 Gold: 20

Inventory: Torch (2 WP, fire) Simple Staff (3 WP), Tonic, Venom, Amethyst, Ruby, Scroll of Sleep, Musty Bedroll

Party Leader state order of actions. Party Members state action and target. Good luck!

Edited March 20, 2012 by UsernameMDM

[Bioniclover]

"Knifk is still confused on the dwarf matter, but apologizes as it would appear to be his fault. So Knifk will make it up to party by slashing Crazed Prospector from the front row.

[Rumble Strike]

"Well he definitely thinks you called him a dwarf!" shouts Tarn to Knifk as he readies Kyrferath once again. Secretly he liked the sound of "scarf wearin' mommas boy" as an insult to Guts, but managed to keep a big smile from his face.

Tarn will attack the Crazed Prospector from the front row.

Battle order:

Tarn

Knifk

Guts

Dak

De'kra

Aberforth

[Tanma]

OOC: De'kra notices that talking is a free action.

IC: De'kra's eyes widened, but chose not to comment on it. The emories of the group had changed, and only De'kra seemed to notice. This would be odd by itself, but there are other anomalies. Often in the middle of battle time will freeze, at least long enough for the group to have a discussion. The flow of time here is odd, there is something wrong with it. And De'kra couldn't help but wonder if his conflicting sets of memories are connected to this. De'kra needed to think about this carefully, before making a comment.

Noticing a reply from Arthur, De'kra sighed and wrote.

I am sorry, but it isn't that easy. The scientists of that world had technology so beyond this world that there is nothing to build on. It is like try to teach a crab how to forge a steel sword. Even if the crab had the intellect, it won't have anything in it's life is base metal forging on. Please don't think I am insulting you, the crabs I remember from home were loyal creatures with a good sized intellect who accompanied villagers into battle. It helped that they were big enough for two villagers to ride them. But

But as I mentioned to you, there was an island than comforts my dreams. The island is quite low tech, below Eubric's tech level, so that might help. The main weapons of the village were disks made of reinforced bamboo. The hard plant material was easy to come by, didn't damage easily, could travel some distance, and could deal some good sized wounds. I am not if this helps, but the foes it was used to hurt were partly made of metal...

I have an idea, though I don't think it came from my memories. Could you create some sort of projectile or explosive that will unleash a thick cloud of smoke on impact. It doesn't have to be smoke, but some sort of gas that obscures vision. That way you can pick them off one by one from the high ground, while they will be unable to see and avoid traps. If you could make a gas that corrodes your foes or burns their eyes, that could help too.

If the enemies have large siege vehicles coming, I would suggest weakening the ground. Freeze and then heat it to shatter the stone, then use your earth powers to damage it further. Use plants to tear through the rock, make it very weak. That way when the large foes walk on it, they might crash through the ground. It could stop their progress thanks to the uneven ground, forcing the elves to stop moving to dig out their vehicles. Otherwise there isn't much I can add. Although if they do have metal vehicles, heating it and then rapidly cooling it will devastate it.

[Scubacarrot]

"'Scarf wearing momma's boy?' Really? Really? I must say I didn't see that one coming."

Guts attacks from the front row.

[Tanma]

IC: De'kra clutched his head as time spend up, the figures around him a blur. When time stopped, the group was getting ready to battle the breaded entity, who appeared to be outfit the group's blood. With a sigh De'kra grabbed his Prongcanis Dagger and readied to attack from the front row. As he stands to defend De'kra asked, "What Mask-Rogue say to him? I was distract"

[Scubacarrot]

"Well, I asked him for proof that he is here legit, which I seriously doubt he is."

[Dwellington]

"A fine mess this is..."

Swindle launches some Dark Magic from the back row.

[Scubacarrot]

Darth Nihilus does not seem to be around, can Rumble Strike control his actions?

Since Dak had not made any sign of moving, Guts shoved him in the way of the prospector!

[UsernameMDM]

QM Note - Placed Dak on the back row.

Round 1 vs the Crazed Prospector:

Tarn - Hit (-22)

Knifk - Hit (-18)

Guts - Miss

Dak - Damage (-3)

De'kra - Miss

Aberforth - Critical Hit! (-10)

The Crazed Prospect is out to take no prisoners, but not everything goes according to play. Spry as a cat, he leaps forward, but is knocked down in a heap and both Tarn and Knifk connect with solid hits. As he stumbles backwards, the Crazed Prospector manages to bat aside Guts and De'kra's darting knives but clips Dak with his pickaxe. Swindle tries out his amethyst gem and hits the Crazed Prospector squarely in the chest.

The Enemy:

Crazed Prospector - Level 7 Humanoid

HP: 30

Special: Cave In - 5 damage to entire party

Drops: Pickaxe

The Party:

Tarn Valco, Level 12.5 Barbarian, 21 year old human male ***PARTY LEADER***

Power: 22 Health: 19/19 Gold: 50

Inventory: Kyrferath, a Battle Axe (WP: 10, Water Elemental), Pole-axe (WP: 3), Mead x 2, Grand Potion, Shovel

Dak Shadeaux, Level 11 Rogue, 35 year old half-elf Mopag

Power: 18 Health: 14/17 Gold: 155

Inventory: Mockthril Knife (Equipped)(WP:7), Thgir Blade (WP:5), Twin Longswords (WP:3), Mockthril Whip (WP:4), 2 Venoms, 1 Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Guts Holla, Level 10.5 Rogue, 42 year old male human

Power: 17 Health: 16/16 Gold: 133

Inventory: Lifestealer (WP:7 attacks restore 3 health), Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Knifk, Level 11 Knight, 30 year old male Orc

Power: 18 Health: 20/20 Gold: 75

Inventory: Tfel Blade (WP:7), Mockthril Shield (SP:5), Garnet, Bedroll

De'kra, Level 12.5 Rogue, 11 year old Male Shade

Power: 17 Health: 18/18 Gold: 88

Inventory: Pongcanis Dagger(WP:5, Electricity), Shadeaux Dagger(WP:5), Fang Dagger(WP:4), Cloak of the Blue Assassin(SP: 1), Cloak of the Elven Spy(loaned to Atramor), Bedroll, , Potions (2), Pickaxe, Gold Ore

Aberforth Swindle, Level 6 Mage, 62 year old human

Power:8 Health: 10/10 Ether 9/9 Gold: 20

Inventory: Torch (2 WP, fire) Simple Staff (3 WP), Tonic, Venom, Amethyst, Ruby, Scroll of Sleep, Musty Bedroll

AUTO-ROLL!

Round 2 vs the Crazed Prospector:

Tarn - Critical Hit! (-32)

Knifk - Miss

Guts - Critical Hit!

Dak - Critical Hit!

De'kra - Shield

Aberforth - Critical Hit!

The Crazed Prospector looks down at his scorched chest. He rises up with a shout, but is silenced as Tarn stabs his axe forward with full force

VICTORY!

Drops: Pickaxe

The Party:

Tarn Valco, Level 13 Barbarian, 21 year old human male ***PARTY LEADER***

Power: 23 Health: 20/20 Gold: 50

Inventory: Kyrferath, a Battle Axe (WP: 10, Water Elemental), Pole-axe (WP: 3), Mead x 2, Grand Potion, Shovel

Dak Shadeaux, Level 11.5 Rogue, 35 year old half-elf Mopag

Power: 18 Health: 14/17 Gold: 155

Inventory: Mockthril Knife (Equipped)(WP:7), Thgir Blade (WP:5), Twin Longswords (WP:3), Mockthril Whip (WP:4), 2 Venoms, 1 Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Guts Holla, Level 11 Rogue, 42 year old male human

Power: 18 Health: 17/17 Gold: 133

Inventory: Lifestealer (WP:7 attacks restore 3 health), Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Knifk, Level 11.5 Knight, 30 year old male Orc

Power: 18 Health: 20/20 Gold: 75

Inventory: Tfel Blade (WP:7), Mockthril Shield (SP:5), Garnet, Bedroll

De'kra, Level 13 Rogue, 11 year old Male Shade

Power: 18 Health: 19/19 Gold: 88

Inventory: Pongcanis Dagger(WP:5, Electricity), Shadeaux Dagger(WP:5), Fang Dagger(WP:4), Cloak of the Blue Assassin(SP: 1), Cloak of the Elven Spy(loaned to Atramor), Bedroll, , Potions (2), Pickaxe, Gold Ore

Aberforth Swindle, Level 7 Mage, 62 year old human

Power:9 Health: 11/11 Ether 9/10 Gold: 20

Inventory: Torch (2 WP, fire) Simple Staff (3 WP), Tonic, Venom, Amethyst, Ruby, Scroll of Sleep, Musty Bedroll

Party leader divide the spoils. Players please check your new stats.

[Tanma]

IC: De'kra glanced at the fallen miner and asked, "that force truly necessary? Either way, group search his body to see any identification or clues on him?"

[Bioniclover]

Knifk toes the miner to make sure he's dead or at least unconscious, then searches him for any papers justifying his presence in the mine.

[Scubacarrot]

Guts searches through the backpack the prospector had with him, he als digs at the spot the prospector was mining.

[Darth Nihilus]

"Ah f**k, was that really necessary, Mr. Dead Prospector?" To rest of party: "Yeesh, some people. Just want to kill everyone in sight, you know? Ah, the f**k with him. Let's get some loot! "

Dak searches the walls and ceiling for any more gems, and then digs holes everywhere he can, searching for anything valuable. He also searches the miner's body, presumably for identification, but more likely for gold.

[Rumble Strike]

Tarn had taken no pleasure in striking the last blow that felled the Crazed Propector. He knew deep down that the Gobbler and the Prospector had both attacked the party rather than the other way around, but he would also have liked a better chance to talk through any issues rather than just resolve them with such showings of absolute force. That wasn't how he had been raised by Rystael, he was not simply a blunt instrument of destruction.

Silent and brooding, he let the others search the body and the surroundings, but decided he would take the sturdy pickaxe for himself.

[UsernameMDM]

The Party:

Tarn Valco, Level 13 Barbarian, 21 year old human male ***PARTY LEADER***

Power: 23 Health: 20/20 Gold: 50

Inventory: Kyrferath, a Battle Axe (WP: 10, Water Elemental), Pole-axe (WP: 3), Mead x 2, Grand Potion, Shovel, Pickaxe

Dak Shadeaux, Level 11.5 Rogue, 35 year old half-elf Mopag

Power: 18 Health: 14/17 Gold: 155

Inventory: Mockthril Knife (Equipped)(WP:7), Thgir Blade (WP:5), Twin Longswords (WP:3), Mockthril Whip (WP:4), 2 Venoms, 1 Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Guts Holla, Level 11 Rogue, 42 year old male human

Power: 18 Health: 17/17 Gold: 133

Inventory: Lifestealer (WP:7 attacks restore 3 health), Potion, Bedroll, Shovel

Knifk, Level 11.5 Knight, 30 year old male Orc

Power: 18 Health: 20/20 Gold: 75

Inventory: Tfel Blade (WP:7), Mockthril Shield (SP:5), Garnet, Bedroll

De'kra, Level 13 Rogue, 11 year old Male Shade

Power: 18 Health: 19/19 Gold: 88

Inventory: Pongcanis Dagger(WP:5, Electricity), Shadeaux Dagger(WP:5), Fang Dagger(WP:4), Cloak of the Blue Assassin(SP: 1), Cloak of the Elven Spy(loaned to Atramor), Bedroll, , Potions (2), Pickaxe, Gold Ore

Aberforth Swindle, Level 7 Mage, 62 year old human

Power:9 Health: 11/11 Ether 9/10 Gold: 20

Inventory: Torch (2 WP, fire) Simple Staff (3 WP), Tonic, Venom, Amethyst, Ruby, Scroll of Sleep, Musty Bedroll

The party searches the rest of the area and the Crazed Prospector's bag in which they find:

1 Potion

1 Phoenix Essence

50 Gold

Party Leader divide the spoils.

[Rumble Strike]

Tarn splits out the gold, giving each member 8 except De'kra who gets 10.

Then he looks at the items, and gives the Phoenix Essence to Guts and the Potion to Dak.

This done, he looks at the party. "Where next, do you think?"

[Tanma]

Tarn splits out the gold, giving each member 8 except De'kra who gets 10.

Then he looks at the items, and gives the Phoenix Essence to Guts and the Potion to Dak.

This done, he looks at the party. "Where next, do you think?"

IC: De'kra nods in thanks and clicks, "I think only one not explore passage left, unless group find new passage here. I assume group explore last passage now, then inform employers what group found."

[Scubacarrot]

"Thanks, Valco. But perhaps you should keep it, to replace the one you lost."

Guts gives the Phoenix Essence back to Tarn.

[Darth Nihilus]

"What an unnecessary waste of life," Dak says as he stares at the miner's corpse. He abruptly turns on his heel and begins walking swiftly away, in the direction of the only unexplored tunnel left. "Won't make a difference, I guess. Still, seems like maybe this could have been avoided.... No changing that now. Let's get the hell out of this gods-damned place."