Sloop

Yanking his blade free Helm stepped back and then sprung forward, hammering his blade at Leorry's head, toe to toe with him in the front row.

Hearing the trapdoor open behind him Helm whirls around in time to see an elf climbing up. Drawing his sword he yells at the crossbowmen to fire at the elf and then throws himself down to not obstruct their shot. Then rising to his knees he aims a rough chop at the elf's feet.

Helm grunted happily as the onager was crushed. He loaded another stone and fired at the last remaining Onager.

Ducking as stone shards spray across the tower, Helm once agains carefully aims at Onager B and fires the catapult.

Loading another stone onto the catapult, Helm aims at Onager B, which already looks to be damaged. "Is this all the enchantments of the fey folk can muster?" OOC: "Is this all the wizardry of saruman can conjure?"

OOC: Yes, but if you hit someone with a frickin' catapult and he shrugged it off, I think you would feel a little out of your league. My action is mainly for RP...

Helm grimly observes the effect of his shot, and is suprised that the elf shrugs it off so lightly. "Perhaps I should concentrate less powerful foes..." Ordering the two lion knight crossbowmen to aid him, he begins throwing stones off the turret at the three elves (Elven Scout A, Elven Engineer A, Elven Archer A) two stories beneath him.

Grinning broadly Helm surveyed the massed enemy formations closing from all sides. Whatever this night held, it would be worth living. "Ai! Let them come. Ai! Let them bleed! Ai! Come and die!" He yelled madly into the closing darkness. Loading one of his runed stones into the catapult, he muttered one last solemn appeal, and then jerked heavily on the mechanism, aiming at the Necromancer. "Here is for you witch-doctor!"

OOC: I will be unavailable tomorrow (Saturday) and Sunday. If the battle starts or some other major event occurs K-nut can control my character.

OOC: I will be operating the Mini-Merlin. Finished with carving strange runes and figures onto the ammunition, Helm stands and raises his hands over the stones and proceeds to chant in a low voice... Wartan, Wartan! Yea, hear me Wartan! Little do you care for the plight of man To you we are but playthings, or mere dust. I do not ask you today to spare my life or for gifts, or special privilege. I know what you love, the yell of war and the cry for battle. Chaos and power are your guises. I shall give you these, and add to them. I only ask that you shall aid what you wish to see. Just as your lightning may shatter even the crag So may these weapons bring ruin to mine enemy. Yea, just as even the greatest hero is found by death. So may these stones find their foe. I hold my life as of no account, if only I may bring death to my enemies. With that he poured out upon the rocks his bottle of mead, as an act of faith.

So basically you are saying that the only quests that should be 'rewarding' are the ones that are long boring chains of battles that require only a good battle order and luck with the dice. That would be all good and fine if this was Heroica Battle Game, but it isn't, it is Heroica Roleplaying Game. I joined this game to have fun and to roleplay with a lite combat system and rules set tacked on, and while I admit getting two levels in two days just for roleplaying is excessive (I was rather suprised myself), there should be a middle ground.

After carefully piling up stones next to the mini-merlin, Helm sits down next to the stones. Humming quietly to himself, he pulls out his pocket knife and begins to chisel away at the stones, engraving strange runes and pictographs, primarily of lightning bolts, skulls, and weapons on the stones. As he worked he thought of the distance between him and his home. He remembered as a child listening to the stories of adventurers in the court of his father. He remembered in particular one adventurer, a wealthy raider, telling of the land far to the north called the free islands. His story was outlandish, telling of a place where heroes of all shapes and races (and sizes) fought together to right wrongs and to gain glory. Many in the court had dismissed the adventurer as a hopeless storyteller, but for some reason the story had stuck in Helm's mind. One day, while riding his horse abroad in the fields, and looking over the small domain that would one day would be his, something had snapped in him. Setting off on his horse he traveled eastwards for countless leagues, with no purpose but to lead away as far as possible. In the middle of the wilderness, he found a long dusty ill-paved road that stretched out north to south. Taking the northward way, after many days he found himself in the city of Carthago. Still seeking to go even further he booked a passage on a ship to the location called Eubric. Only after arriving did he realize that this was one of the "free islands" of the storytelling raider. He had never intended to journey so far away, but once he found himself in the halls of Heroica, he could not draw himself away... OOC: Yay, RP cutscene. :P

Helm doesn't answer immediately, but piles up some larger stones near the Mini-Merlin, forming a rough rectangle of rock. Its primary use is obvious, to provide better ammunition for the catapult, but Helm seems to be taking far more care in placing the stones in a pattern than one would expect...

Helm watches the knight drill the soldiers for a while and is clearly impressed, however he steps forward to show them some moves that an honorable knight will most definitely not show them. As he is beginning to tire after the long ride to the fortress, the setting up of the scare traps, and the drill with the other soldiers, he only shows them two particularly useful martial manuvers. The first is a brutal stamp designed to dislocate the enemies knee, and the second is the good old fashioned grit to the eyes.

Helm licks his blade thoughtfully. He was surprised at the pommel trick, usually bashing the enemy with the blade enough times in the crotch their weak points was enough to take them down. He was anxious to try out the technique in battle. He gained a new respect for knight in the flashy cape.

While Helm didn't like the insinuation that he was weak, he had to concede that the siege engines had to be manned. Grumbling slightly he approaches the Mini Merlin and tries to deduce its functions.

Helm's hand comes to rest on his sword hilt. "I think I would be more use with a sword than a catapult. I've been fighting with my body and blade for all of my life, I see no reason to change that now. The elves will learn to fear the fortress of Bric'Bay!" Helm walks off into a corner of the courtyard and practices some sword strokes.

Yes, it may, though I'm hoping to frighten them more than damage them. Fear is a powerful weapon...

Helm leaps lightly from the lion knight horse and surveys the fortress. From what he had seen on the outside it was sturdy enough, though there were fewer defenders than he would expect. The obvious weak point was the forest on the western side that extended right up to the moat. He listened with interest to Sir Lawrence. He glanced at some of the siege weaponry that the defenders had made and shook his head, "I never had much of a head for this sort of thing. If I am to make a contribution it will not be in gears and levers, I have no notion of these. What I do have is a knowledge of simple snares and traps for use in the wilds, and perhaps a little insight on elves. My father often faught with the elves that dwelt near us, and I remember their tactics and warriors well. They were doughty warriors once in the thick of it, but over cautious. Especially on the eve of battle they were...flighty, and superstitious." Helms eyes glittered for a moment. "I may have an idea..." Dragging the skeleton decoys, some spare bones, and some rope, he quickly fords the river to the western bank. Finding a good location with lots of thick ground cover and leaves he sets to work. Selecting several strong but springy pieces of wood he plants one end in the ground and impales the skeleton on the other end. Bending the branches way over until they touch the ground and are nearly flush, he quickly ties off the other end to the ground. Unravelling one piece of rope into string, he loosely ties spare pieces of bones onto the skeletons, then fills the remainder of the skeletons with leaves. Finally, he covers the area in a light coating of leaves and then sets up tripwires around the scare traps so anyone approaching through the area will loose the rope tying the skeletons down, springing them upwards in a hail of dead shrubbery and loose bones. Admiring his work Helm laughs mirthlessly, "If that doesn't scare them I don't know what will..."

Helm nods sadly, it would have been a good game, "I am sorry to leave our game unfinished, but there are more important things then chess."

Black Turn #5 __A__B__C__D__E__F__G__H_ 1_R__N_____Q__K__B_____R_ 2_P__P_____B_____P__P__P_ 3__________P__P__N_______ 4_______P________________ 5_q_____b_____p__________ 6_______p________________ 7_p__p_____p_____p__p__p_ 8_r__n__b_____k________r_

OoC Yes, and don't think I don't see your blitz :P __A__B__C__D__E__F__G__H_ 1_R__N__B__Q__K__B_____R_ 2_P__P___________P__P__P_ 3__________P__P__N_______ 4_______P________________ 5_______b_____p__________ 6____q__p________________ 7_p__p_____p_____p__p__p_ 8_r__n__b_____k________r_

Black Turn #3 __A__B__C__D__E__F__G__H_ 1_R__N__B__Q__K__B_____R_ 2_P__P________P__P__P__P_ 3__________P_____N_______ 4_______P________________ 5_____________p__________ 6____q__p________________ 7_p__p_____p_____p__p__p_ 8_r__n__b_____k__b_____r_

Black Turn #2 __A__B__C__D__E__F__G__H_ 1_R__N__B__Q__K__B_____R_ 2_P__P_____P__P__P__P__P_ 3________________N_______ 4_______P________________ 5_____________p__________ 6_______p________________ 7_p__p_____p_____p__p__p_ 8_r__n__b__q__k__b_____r_

Helm leaned back after making his move. He smiled thoughtfully and then started speaking, "My old teacher used to say something about chess openings. He said the moving of your kings pawn was like staring down your enemy, making them sweat as they move, he also said moving your knight or your queen pawn was like a swashbuckling cutlass strike, but ah, the Sicilian opening it is the flourish of a rapier and the yelling of, 'en guard!'"