Chronicle of the Scavenger Lands (Exalted 3E) - IC

[jaydude]

The Sidereal sighs, as if frustrated at having to deal with a disobedient grandchild. Otherwise, he too remains calm.

"You survived that job and gained great power from it, did you not? As for your comrades, even if they hadn't been killed back then, even if they could have been of use to you afterwards, age would have rendered them useless after but a few decades, after which they would have passed on. You and I can live for centuries, millenia even. You would have had to leave your mortal friends behind anyway."

Spoiler: OOC

The Sidereal is attempting to instill a Minor Principle of "Mortals can only live for so long". With a use of three motes of Peripheral Essence, he reduces the target number of his die to four. As a result, he has eight successes here.

 

[Sherwood]

Still maintaining her composure, Ailera looks across at the Sidereal. "That may be true, but to me, they were more than just a few street urchins. They were my family! The only family that I ever knew, and because of you, they never had a chance at life!" She takes a few deep breaths, trying to keep calm. "I still haven't heard what you are doing here, and why I should even bother to listen to you."

 

[jaydude]

Surprisingly, the Sidereal lets go of Ailera's wrist, and takes a few steps away from her, as if wanting to give her some space.

"My intentions haven't changed since we parted." he says. "Ailera, I want you to become my disciple. Accept me as your master, and I can be of great help to you. You may already be the most skilled thief in all of Creation, but I can teach you so much more. The ability to sneak into the most inaccessible places. Martial Arts beyond the scope of any other in Creation. The know-how of how to change this world for the better."

 

[Sherwood]

Ailera stares at him, dumbstruck for a moment. "What? Am I just supposed to pretend that the deaths of my family and friends are not on your hands, and if I hadn't just happened to Exalt when I did, I would be dead, too?" <snort> "As if." She pauses in her rant for a moment, then says, "Since Exalted are supposed to be so long in their lifespans, why don't you come back to talk to me after a decade or two, when I'm not so freaking mad at you. In the meantime, I have a job to do, so if you would just step aside and let me open this gate, we can all be on our way with no trouble between us."

 

[jaydude]

The Sidereal chuckles. "If you wish to open this gate, then by all means allow me."

He then raises his hand and snaps his fingers. The wheel is enveloped by a brief flash of light, and then begins to turn, completely of its own accord...

Outside...
Ryan, Zedradon, Ganzin and Axtis all see the gate rise up, and the nearest soldiers look at it in confusion, some walking over to investigate.

Back with Ailera...
As the Night Caste and the Chosen of Secrets hear the sound of the gate mechanism working, the Sidereal grins. "It's a power of mine." he explains. "I can tap into fate itself, and partly influence it according to my wishes. I can change the fate of doors and mechanisms, make them open or close, activate or remain inert. In this case, I made it this wheel's fate to turn and open the gate below us. Your new friends might get suspicious if they see you enter this gatehouse and see nothing happen afterwards."

There is another flash of light, this time enveloping the Sidereal, as he discards the destiny of the guard he was using.

When the light fades, Ailera sees the Sidereal in his "true" form, the identity he took when he recruited her; an old man clad in a purple robe with wide sleeves, beneath which lean and sinewy arm muscles can be seen, another hint of his nature besides the ruthless expression on his wizened face.

He narrows his eyes at the Night Caste. "I am not making a request, Ailera". he says in a voice of cold steel. "Creation will not last for another decade or two, not without intervention from the returning Solars. You have a duty to this world, and you WILL learn how to properly carry it out, even if I have to drag you away and beat the knowledge into you."

He begins to slowly walk towards Ailera, his entire being radiating hostile intent towards her.

[Roll Join Battle]

Spoiler: OOC

The Sidereal has the Charm "Secrets of Future Strife", which doubles his successes on an unmodified Join Battle Roll. As a result, he gets twelve successes here.

 

[Sherwood]

As she sees the change in attitude of the Sidereal, Ailera quickly backpedals. "Hey now! Lets not get to crazy here! There is no need to get nasty."

Spoiler

Total Initiative rating: 6

Increasing Strength Exercise active

Essence: 1
Personal: 13
Peripheral: 33 (23)
Committed: 10
Willpower: 7

Join Battle: 6 +3 Successes

Natural Soak: 2 (+3)
Armored Soak: 5
Total Soak: 7 (+3)

Parry: 6
Evasion: 5
Resolve: 3
Guile: 4

Health Levels
[ ] 0
[ ][ ] -1
[ ][ ] -2
[ ] -4
[ ] I

 

[Rykon]

"It's time to give the signal to approach. With the gate opened the jig is up. We have to hold that opening for the army to breach now. I'll draw their eyes." Ryan said, in close proximity to his fellow infiltrators.

He took hold of the orichalcum daiklave at his hip and stepped forward. The commander slipped down the stone wall a short distance before kicking off to leap outward into a central location in the courtyard.

"Soldiers of Lookshy. Hunters of the chosen. You stand here today for the lawgivers of this world to pass sentence for crimes against our brothers. You are guilty of murder and genocide. Your punishment... is death."

At the beginning note of his proclamation, Ryan's caste mark of the Dawn glows hot from essence use. His Daiklave hums with vigor and righteous purpose when leveled at the Dragon-Blooded seated in the midst of the fortress.

Ryan makes this approach once Fivefold Bulwark Stance is active. He will use Holistic Battle Understanding if a Strategic Maneuver of Breach or Infiltrate can apply.

Let me know what rolls you need as everyone states their actions.

 

[D. Rex]

From his perch, Zedradon too leaped into the courtyard, though unlike Ryan, he was closer to the gate and gatehouse. As the doctor stood, he looked as a cold and menacing figure, his face obscured by fabric.

"Should you value your lives... you shall repent or flee. Cast yourselves upon me and you shall be cut down like rye." Zedradon declared darkly.

He hefted the soulsteel blade, ready to protect the gate and the gatehouse. The dark metal point reflecting the lights of the fires ominously, one might even imagine seeing shadowy figures dance across its surface. With a flourish of his grimscythe, the souls within the steel reflected in its sheen. A clear warning of its association with death and dismemberment.

 

[jaydude]

With Ailera...
The Sidereal halts his aggressive advance at those words from Ailera.

"You're right. There is no need to get nasty." he says. "All you have to do is leave peacefully, with me, and this doesn't have to descend into violence."

He then grimaces. "I get that you resent me for the deaths of your...family. But I ask you to look past that hatred, and see the bigger picture here. You admitted it yourself, you would have had to leave them behind in time anyway."

Spoiler: OOC

The Sidereal is attempting to weaken Ailera's Major Intimacy of Sidereals (hatred), by using the Minor Intimacy of "Mortals can only live so long". As before, he is using three motes of Peripheral Essence to reduce the target number of his die to four. This time, he gets six successes.

With Ryan...
Unsurprisingly, the nearby soldiers - about several dozen close enough to immediately respond - all let out yells of alarm and level their spears at Ryan when they see him land within their midst, while Arumi draws her daiklave and stands up, looking at him with suspicion. When Ryan makes clear his nature as a Solar, the mortal soldiers all take one or two steps back, all of them now visibly unnerved.

"Murder and genocide? What are you talking about, demonkin?" asks Arumi, injecting a layer of haughtiness in her voice to try and hide her nervousness at being confronted by a so-called Anathema.

Before Ryan has a chance to answer, Ganzin lands next to him with his glaive at the ready, and a thin aura of reddish flames surrounding his body.

"I thought the plan was for you to help secure the gate." he says to Ryan with a grin, but then he gives a little shrug, as if to say he's not going to complain about the altered plan. His face then becomes a burning grimace as he looks towards Arumi.

"You and your Dragon-blood friends destroyed my village two years ago, remember?" he asks, his voice hot with anger. Arumi just raises an eyebrow, clearly not recognizing the Fire Aspect.

With Zedradon...
Much like with Ryan, the mortal soldiers - a few dozen of them - stand their ground, but they are visibly frightened by the Doctor's appearance, Zedradon's masked face and Soulsteel weapon making up for the lack of a glowing caste mark. For a few moments, they seem hesitant to attack, but then the nearest lieutenant opens his mouth.

"Who are you?! What are you doing here?" he demands.

 

[Psychie]

With the gate opening up, Axtis raises up her bow and fires a Essence-fueled arrow up into the air, letting the burning flare signal the waiting troops that the attack is set and the way is open to charge in. Once that is complete, she begins to hunt for targets on the walls, aiming to take out any soldiers manning heavy siege equipment first.

 

[Sherwood]

Still on her guard, Ailera warily eyes the Sidereal as she slowly shifts back. "What about the other Solars here with me? If you are so hell-bent to get me working for you, wouldn't even more allies be just the thing to make your day? Lets help take care of this fort, and when the dust settles, we can all sit down and you can give everyone your sales pitch. Who knows? Maybe they will be interested in helping you."

 

[D. Rex]

"I am but a simple doctor. But you would know me as an anethema." Zedradon said, as if the soulsteel grimscythe did not already give that away. "My business is my own. But I implore you to lay down your arms. You have no chance against me. Should you decide to attack me, I will have no choice but to amputate them. And I can not guarantee I can put all the survivors back together again. But I will try my hardest, of course."

"I do not wish to see any of you die, but that will be your call, as my friends will not be so merciful."

"What will it be, then?"

 

[jaydude]

Outside the walls of the fortress, Ryan's 200 men emerge as if from out of the shadows, and begin advancing towards the open gate.

With Zedradon
The standoff between the Twilight Caste and the mortal soldiers is broken when one of the soldiers on the wall spots the approaching army and shouts about it to the others. The lieutenant who addressed Zedradon earlier takes command of the situation, ordering the archers on the walls to shoot at Ryan's men, and dispatching a fang of soldiers to retake the gatehouse and close the gates. As for the remaining soldiers...

"Kill the Anathema! We need to hold the gate!"

Roughly three dozen Lookshy soldiers move to engage and surround Zedradon.

[Roll Join Battle]

With Axtis
You can see a few catapults on the riverside walls, but none of them are currently manned, and certainly not aimed at Ryan's army. The lieutenant rallying the defenders at the gate is within Long Range of the Dawn Caste, however.

With Ailera
Along with the lieutenant's shouting, both Ailera and the Sidereal soon hear people pushing against the door, followed by panicked exclamations about it being barred, and then attempts to break the door down.

"It would seem the attack has begun." says the Sidereal absentmindedly. "I don't expect anyone to miss you in the excitement, Ailera. And a group of Solars won't need our help to take this place. Besides, I've waited for more than enough time when it comes to you."

With that, he moves forward and throws a straight punch at Ailera's chest.

[Withering attack. 5 successes. Using initiative counts from previous Join Battle rolls here]

Current round
Sidereal = 15 <----
Ailera = 6

 

[D. Rex]

"Very well. My mercy will just have to be extended to the survivors."

Zedradon readied the grimscythe, with his eyes looking at the mortal soldiers as if they were wheat.


Join Battle: 9

 

[Sherwood]

Ailera moves quickly, dropping into a fighting stance and bringing up her hands to block the attack. So much for getting out of this without a fight. Well, girl, you like to talk a lot of shit about how good you are in a fight. Time to put up or shut up.

Using her Essence, she swiftly moves into her Tiger Form to be ready for the fight that she's found herself in.

Spoiler

Parry DV is 6, so I am able to stop the strike.
Activating Tiger Form
Increasing Strength Exercise Active

Essence: 1
Personal: 13
Peripheral: 33 (23) / 18
Committed: 10
Willpower: 7

Join Battle: 6 +3 Successes

Natural Soak: 2 (+3)
Armored Soak: 5
Total Soak: 7 (+3)

Parry: 6
Evasion: 5
Resolve: 3
Guile: 4

Health Levels
[ ] 0
[ ][ ] -1
[ ][ ] -2
[ ] -4
[ ] I

 

[Psychie]

Axtis will take careful aim at the officer, readying an arrow to end his life.

Spoiler

Taking an Aim Action on the officer

Join Battle Roll for 8 initiative

Health Levels
- 0 [ ]
- 1 [ ][ ][ ]
- 2 [ ][ ][ ][ ]
- 4 [ ]
I

Willpower: 7

Essence: 1
Personal: 13
Peripheral: 33 (23)
Committed: 10

Join Battle: 10 +3 Successes

Parry: 4
Evasion: 6
Resolve: 3
Guile: 1

Soak: 3
Armored Soak: 8
Hardness: 7
Total Soak: 11

Summer Thunder
Type: Medium (+12 DMG, OVW 4)
Accuracy: Close −1; Short +5; Medium +3; Long +1; Extreme −1
Tags: Lethal, Archery (Long), Mounted
Hearthstone slot(s): 1

 

[Rykon]

Ryan grinned, feeling the thundering drumbeat of his heart stir his soul to action. His voice and following laughter broke the chaos and shouts of the fortress as if it were cannon fire. "Look without and within and know... Your fortress is already taken!"

[Looks like starting initiative of 7]

 

[jaydude]

Fight within the Gatehouse
"Huh. Tiger form." remarks the Sidereal, as he moves to stand side-on to Ailera. This slight minimizing of his target area is the only precaution he takes, before he darts forward again and his right hand shoots out with fingers outstretched, this time aiming for Ailera's throat. She manages to avoid the attack easily enough, suggesting that fate either isn't on the Sidereal's side, or he's simply toying with her.

Sherwood , you're up.

Current round
Sidereal = 15 (Moved)
Ailera = 6 <----

Next round
Sidereal = 15
Ailera = 6
===



Gatehouse Battle
The soldiers at the gatehouse aim their spears towards Zedradon. Up on the wall on either side of the gatehouse, about two-dozen archers can be seen moving into position to shoot at Ryan's men.

Your move D. Rex

Current round
Zedradon = 9 <----
Axtis = 8
Gatehouse Guards (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Gatehouse Archers (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Ryan's Men (Size 3) = 5

Next round
Zedradon = 9
Axtis = 8
Gatehouse Guards (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Gatehouse Archers (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Ryan's Men (Size 3) = 5
===



Central Courtyard Battle
Within the courtyard, Arumi draws her Daiklave - a weapon of Black Jade - as her men move to surround and engage Ryan and Ganzin.

Ganzin looks to Ryan, ready to follow his lead.

Make thy move, Rykon

Current Round
Courtyard Guards (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 8 (Engaging) <----
Ryan = 7 <----
Ganzin = 7 <----
Arumi = 4

Next Round
Ryan = 7
Ganzin = 7
Courtyard Guards (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 6
Arumi = 4

 

[D. Rex]

With one final ominous gleam across the blade of the grimscythe, Zedradon leaped into action.

"You must get through me first." Zedradon declared as he rushed towards the guards who were trying to get into the gatehouse. There would be none of that.

Yet with the spearman surrounding him, he would simply have to cut his way through to make his point be known.

Raising the grimscythe, he swung the deathly steel in a wide horizontal arc, Zedradon having to spin with the weapon to keep its weight from throwing him off balance, with a force that threatened to cleave the unguarded in half. Woe be it to those caught in its arc.


Withering Attack:
Pool: (Dex+MA=9)+(Acc 1)+(stunt1=2) =12


Successes: 5

 

[Sherwood]

Ailera suddenly stops backpedaling and, after a moment's pause, launches herself into a blistering attack aimed at knocking the arrogant Sidereal off his balance. With a quick feint at his face and upper torso, she suddenly drops down to one knee and slashes out with her razor claws at his kneecaps with a loud cry.

Spoiler

Spending 10m on Martial Arts Excellency, and 1 Willpower for a automatic success to roll 28 dice with my stunt.

15 total successes

Tiger Form Active
Increasing Strength Exercise Active

Essence: 1
Personal: 13 / 3
Peripheral: 33 (23) / 18
Committed: 10
Willpower: 7 / 6

Join Battle: 6 +3 Successes

Natural Soak: 2 (+3)
Armored Soak: 5
Total Soak: 7 (+3)

Parry: 6
Evasion: 5
Resolve: 3
Guile: 4

Health Levels
[ ] 0
[ ][ ] -1
[ ][ ] -2
[ ] -4
[ ] I

 

[jaydude]

Fight within the Gatehouse
The Sidereal's eyes narrow at Ailera's sudden, swift attack, and he steps back, moving his legs out of the way of her claws. He isn't quite fast enough, and Ailera succeeds in leaving a set of claw marks in one of his trouser legs.

Spoiler: OOC

The Sidereal is using Crimson Palm Counterstrike to defend against Ailera's attack for 5m, and spending 3m to bring target success number for the roll down to 4, all using Personal Essence. With seven successes and a Parry Defense of 6 (being unarmed), he is able to reduce Ailera's number of successes to one. With his current attire, his soak is 3. Roll damage.

Gatehouse Battle
The soldiers in the path of Zedradon's scythe swing raise their shields in an attempt to block it.

[Attack hits with one success. Soak is 8. Roll damage.]

 

[D. Rex]

Threshhold(1)+str(2)+Wep(14) - 8 = 9


Successes: 6

 

[jaydude]

Zedradon's strike cleaves through several shields, and goes on to kill or wound the men behind them. Many of the soldiers fall down, and those still standing take a few steps back out of simple survival instinct.

Your move, Psychie

Current round
Zedradon = 9 Moved
Axtis = 8 <----
Gatehouse Guards (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7 (Mag. 3/9)
Gatehouse Archers (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Ryan's Men (Size 3, Average Drill, Might 0) = 5

Next round
Zedradon = 16
Axtis = 8
Gatehouse Guards (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Gatehouse Archers (Size 2, Average Drill, Might 0) = 7
Ryan's Men (Size 3) = 5

 

[Sherwood]

The Sidereal is using Crimson Palm Counterstrike to defend against Ailera's attack for 5m, and spending 3m to bring target success number for the roll down to 4, all using Personal Essence. With seven successes and a Parry Defense of 6 (being unarmed), he is able to reduce Ailera's number of successes to one. With his current attire, his soak is 3. Roll damage.

Rolling 12 dice for damage.

7i damage and +8i for me. Too bad those 10's don't count double for me!

EDIT since this is Withering, the 10's do count double.
11i damage, +12i to me.

 

[Psychie]

After taking a moment for careful aim, Axtis launches her first arrow of the fight at the enemy troops gathered at the gatehouse archers. Focusing her Essence into the arrow, she launches a powerful arrow that explodes on top of the gatehouse, engulfing the entire bunch in flames.

Spoiler

Using Nova Arrow Attack to fire a Decisive attack at the archers. Raw damage is equal to my initiative of 8 against all the enemy in the range band. The shot does not require an attack roll, and can only be dodged, not parried.

All characters struck by this attack are knocked out of the exploded range band and land prone, losing one Initiative each, not transferred to the Solar. Characters blown down by this Charm have no control over where they land; characters who dodge this explosion are automatically knocked to the next range band, but they do not lose Initiative nor do they fall to prone, simply rolling to their feet or skidding along on their heels without losing balance.

If used to damage a battle group, Nova Arrow Attack causes disarray and panic, applying a -2 success penalty to its next attack.
4 Lethal damage to all up there.

Health Levels
- 0 [ ]
- 1 [ ][ ][ ]
- 2 [ ][ ][ ][ ]
- 4 [ ]
I

Willpower: 7 / 6

Essence: 1
Personal: 13
Peripheral: 33 (23) / 17
Committed: 10

Join Battle: 10 +3 Successes

Parry: 4
Evasion: 6
Resolve: 3
Guile: 1

Soak: 3
Armored Soak: 8
Hardness: 7
Total Soak: 11

Summer Thunder
Type: Medium (+12 DMG, OVW 4)
Accuracy: Close −1; Short +5; Medium +3; Long +1; Extreme −1
Tags: Lethal, Archery (Long), Mounted
Hearthstone slot(s): 1