Chapter 2 - The Coal Pits

[tenkar]

Tenkar mumbles under his breath: "d**n humans don't let a dwarf even get a swing in... mumble... mumble" after which he lets out a big sigh.

"Aye, much as I hate to say it, the lads is right. The oughts to return to diggin' Much as I enjoy the idea of killin' more gobbies 'n their friends, I'd like to kill 'em in manageable numbers. So's I can kill more of 'em. Dat ain't strategy, just reality."

Tenkar turns to look down the tunnel the dwarves spoke about. "Right down yonder, eh?" he says as he fingers the blade edge of his axe.

[monstermike]

[Interstitial]

Tenkar gets a sly look in his eyes and nips out into the main hallway. As he approaches tunnel 6, a dwarf is returning from the coal dump with an empty wheelbarrow. They spot each other as they both approach the entrance to the mining tunnel. Tenkar gives a wink and puts a finger to the side of his nose to indicate trickery, and tucks in behind the miner.

As the miner approaches the goblin, the guard says, "Too slow, Minggus, too slow. Pick up the pace!" Tenkar leaps out from behind the miner and attacks with a snarl. The goblin draws his short sword and they circle for a moment before clashing together. The guard swings at Tenkar's head, but the blow is easily deflected by the spike shield. The dwarve's broad axe follows through with a bone-crushing blow that enters at the base of the guard's neck and stops somewhere near the sternum.

Tenkar kicks the goblin to dislodge the deeply embedded axe, and the dead guard falls into a bloody shambles on the floor of the tunnel.

The three dwarven miners in the tunnel watch the short combat with approval. "Aye, nicely done, brother."

[Bookkeeping: Tenkar takes 18 general AP for the solo goblin kill.]

Game time: 4/4 14:02 - 14:10

Folks can still do some simple follow-up actions during this turn. Otherwise, I'll move the clock forward on the next GM move.

[monstermike]

The two dwarves in tunnel 5 have gone back to work, digging coal with real enthusiasm.

Herman returns from disposing of the goblin bodies and sees that no one has touched the pile of coins on the ground. Sheepishly, he picks the money up and pockets it, mumbling something about carrying it for the party and dividing it up later.

Bitsa finishes sanitizing the goblin armor and quickly dons it, satisfied with its fit and function.

Pan, Owynn, and Aonghasan see Tenkar coming around the corner out of tunnel 6, his broad axe still dripping with fresh goblin blood and a smug grin on his face.

[Bookkeeping: 'Nasan regains 1 WIZ]

Game time: 4/4 14:10

Please post your next move by noon Saturday, Jan. 15

(Side-quests: Find Kweiraye and return him to Medwort. Find the magic box that controls the neck-rings.)

[kwll]

Owynn smiles at Tenkar. "See? No need to complain: there is plenty enough for everyone!"

Then, putting the small disc he has been playing with since he picked it up into his pocket, he starts thinking about the party's next move. "According to what Medwort told us, the next step would be to get rid of the orcs guarding the decline shaft, right in the loop. I would suggest that we try again to be discreet, as they might have means to alert other guards. Maybe Bitsa can try to attract one of them around here, which might decide the other to check if something wrong happened after a while?"

Then he pulls out his javelin and adds: "Worse comes to worse, I can always try to use this so that he does not run too far..."

[tenkar]

"Eh, not enough 'til there's no more ta' kill. Orcs might be more of a challenge" Tenkar says with a smile.

[ProfGremlin]

[Hobb Rogue Lvl 2 Att: 2d+28 Def: 1 Con: 22 Luk: 22 Wiz: 10]

Bitsa finishes scrubbing the armor with the rag and Aonghasan's Insta-Shower. Got to admit, a hobb could get used to something like this. Tenkar returns from the direction of the next tunnel, a big grin on his face and dark goblin blood staining his axe. Bitsa tosses the rag in a shadowed niche and slips the cuirass over his head and secures the buckles. The hobb listens to Owynn and Tenkar as they banter. His ears suddenly prick to Owynn's suggestion that Bitsa lure orcs to the slaughter. I had to volunteer to be the bait...

With a nod of thanks Bitsa returns the nozzle-of-endless-water to the wizard. Without a word he draws his sax and, hugging the left side of the tunnel, he creeps off down towards the next tunnel opening. Now, according to Medwort, the dump chute is the next tunnel on the left. Let's just take a quick look-see...

The young hobb stretches out his senses attuned to the slightest change in the ambient noise, scent and feel of the air around him. He keeps a careful eye out for the goblin commander patrolling the dump chute and hugs the shadows. In an effort to stay below eye level Bitsa lowers himself quietly to the tunnel floor and slowly belly crawls the last couple of yards to the tunnel entrance. Mindful that the eye will catch movement before it recognizes shape he slowly and carefully peeks around the corner.

[monstermike]

[Interstitial]

The main tunnel slopes uphill slightly as Bitsa approaches the dump-chute tunnel. He belly crawls just far enough to get a good view north into the tunnel. To his north and above him, a goblin commander is making notations on a tally sheet while a dwarf from the north main tunnel empties his wheelbarrow of coal into an opening in the plank floor. Bitsa can hear the creak and groan of the ore wagons passing underneath them.

Game time: 4/4 14:10

[kwll]

"Any sign of orcs?" whispers Owynn to Bitsa, right on his heels?

[ProfGremlin]

Bitsa scoots back behind the corner, turns to Owynn and whispers, "No orcs but there's a goblin commander up there. If you'll cover me I think I can sneak up behind him and drag him back here. He might be useful for some information."

[tenkar]

"Good luck lad. Iffn you get into trouble, I lill 'em for ya ;"

[gaptooth]

Holding the brass mirror as his focus, Aonghasan scans around with Oh There It Is, searching for hidden features of the area.

[ProfGremlin]

Bitsa nods at the responses he receives and crouches behind the corner. He leans out just far enough to get his right eye around the stones edge and watches the goblin to make sure his attention is on the dwarven miner and his wheelbarrow. Once certain the goblin is relaxed - well, bored really - Bitsa eases into the passage and, crouching low, runs as silently as leather sandals allow in rocky passages. He flicks through alternating pools of light and shadow. The hobb leaps up to snake his left arm around the goblins neck to yank the creature off balance and position his daggers point just under the right ear of his quarry.

[monstermike]

(A lot going on during this turn!)

Herman sees Tenkar returning from tunnel 6 with his bloodied axe. Without waiting to be asked, he sighs and trudges off to tunnel 6 to loot the body and drag it off to tunnel 4 for disposal. "Dirty work has its perks, though," he thinks as he pockets the two copper and six silver pieces. The miners working in tunnel 6 seem somewhat relieved to be rid of the slain guard's body from their tunnel; they wink at Herman and mutter something about plausible deniability.

Near the entrance to tunnel 5, Aonghasan works magic to reveal the unseen. As he mutters his incantations, his small mirror gives off a soft glow, and he is sure that he has another working magical focus. Sadly, the spell reveals nothing.

Bitsa completes his scouting and receives assurances from Tenkar and Owynn that they have his back if things go wrong. Waiting for the moment that the goblin commander seems most inattentive, the halfling silently dashes the nine meters up the tunnel. He puts the tally keeper in a chokehold and menaces him with the point of his sax. The commander is taken completely by surprise, but perhaps sensing that his opponent may be smaller and weaker chooses to struggle rather than submit to the threat of the dagger.

Though off balance, the goblin commander brings his arms up to fight off this attack. He uses his left hand to try to peel away the choking grip and with his right hand, grabs at Bitsa's wrist to stop any sudden moves with the dagger.

[OOC: I spent some time trying to decide what would determine whether the goblin would struggle or not. After getting nowhere, I asked my wife what she would do if someone attacked her in this manner. Her immediate response was "How big is the guy?" Exploring this, she said that if she felt that her attacker was much bigger and stronger, she probably would not struggle, but if she felt that she was at least a match for the attacker, she would try to fight him off. So I used a contest mechanic of Bitsa's STR (11) versus the goblin commander's STR (9). Basically rolled STR + 2d6 for each of them and higher total wins. The goblin rolled better dice, so he thought he could take Bitsa, hence the struggle. This really wasn't a contest of strength so much as a contest of the perception of strength, but it'll have to do.]

[Bookkeeping: 'Nasan gains 6 AP INT and 22 AP LUK. His mirror focus has 30 uses remaining. He uses 1 WIZ and regains 1 WIZ, remaining at 12 WIZ. Bitsa gains 20 AP LUK and 5 AP STR.]

Game time 4/4 14:20

Please post your next move by noon Wednesday, Jan 19.

[ProfGremlin]

Bitsa feels a moment of panic as the goblin struggles against his hold. They're supposed to be cowards! The young hobb drops his weight and kicks forward his left hip forcing the goblin to arch his back. Demons take it! Bitsa twists the sax in the goblins grip and plunges the blade forward aiming for the hollow below the unsavory creature's right ear.

[monstermike]

[Interstitial]

The goblin struggles to get his feet under him and claws frantically at Bitsa's arm. Bitsa executes his takedown move and plunges the dagger into the goblin's skull just behind the jaw. The commander kicks and thrashes spastically for a moment, then goes still. His helmet, already skewed on his head from the grappling, rolls off onto the floor and wobbles for a bit before coming to rest at the same instant the goblin's black soul flees to hell.

As Bitsa rises to his feet, another dwarf comes into the tunnel from the north, wheeling his barrow full of coal. He waits by the hole for a wagon to pass underneath and dumps his load of coal down into it, never taking his eyes off the hobbit and the dead goblin commander. Once he is done, he walks over to the body and picks up the piece of parchment with the coal tally on it.

He slowly crumples the paper into a tight ball and stuffs it deep into the goblin's gaping mouth. "I always wanted ta do that," he says to Bitsa with a grin. Then he winks and touches his finger to the side of his nose and rolls the empty wheelbarrow back into the north main tunnel, whistling as he goes.

[Bookkeeping: Bitsa takes 28 general AP for the cranial gobbotomy, and 5 AP STR for the grapple]

Game time 4/4 14:22