Chapter 1: Uncertain Times

Dragomir goes first, then the foe, then Stepan, Babu, and Kolya.

Still waiting for Diana's roll, but Dragomir can act now, as can Diana if she rolls better than an 11.

The cellar drop just slammed shut, trapping Stepan inside. The strange odor grows suddenly stronger, a nearly overwhelming smell of rot. What do you do?

The odor is above and below the floor.

"St. John, St. Anthony, and St. Eustace be damned..." Mutters Diana to herself, as she readies to act.

While she quickly considers rewinding time, what could they actually accomplish? Someone else would have to endanger himself to trigger whatever happened, and they had certainly made sure that there were no magic traces floating around, right? ... Yeah, obviously. She believed in them.

She quickly unstraps her hand crossbow from under her dress and holds in her left hand, shooting a glare to her companions that were still there, Kolya and the Babushka. "Let's go." She says, more imperatively than as a suggestion. Looking down the hatch, she clicks her tongue and begins descending. "Pisatel! Are you okay?"

When Dragomir opens the cellar door, Diana sees the darkness, with Stepan pressed against the shelves. He glances up at you, blinking, but then he snaps his head to the left, pointing his sword, and freezing in concentration as if trying to see something in the dark.

Stepan concentrates on holding his invisibility. Unless the beast in the dark can sense his aura, then he is hidden. In the dark, it is his best defense. It's an unseen stalemate but until backup arrives it's his best strategy.

He doesn't want to give his position away but also answer Diana. With the sword pointing into the dark, he taps the bottom ladder rung with the cane. He taps the ok signal (If the cabal has such a signal, otherwise its shave-and-a-hair-cut)

A horrific human sized abomination of flesh and gristle, spare organs growing from everywhere, bounds out of the darkness to the bottom on the ladder, just below Diana. Two noses on three heads sniff around (the third head has only a festering hole where it's nose should be), coming within a few inches of Stepan, but it doesn't quite attack. Its hands, ruptured with bone into claws, flex and rise backwards as it focusses on Stepan's position by scent. A tendril of sinew and flesh snakes out of the darkness striking at Diana.

Diana takes three five lethal damage. The wound burns with raw, burning agony. Each of you can act again. (Technically, Dragomir and Diana have already acted, but they'll act before it does in the next round. For PBP, I don't mind the order between players.)

Sorry, ignore those damage rolls. I had something else on my mind. The damage is the successes.

The creature had 9 dice for its attack (STR 5 + Brawl 2 + Weapon modifier 2), less Diana's defense of 3, for 6 dice. Successes are wounds. Ignoring the last die rolled, that's 5 successes.

So Diana takes 5 Lethal damage, and there is no soak roll.

The intruder's Defense is 3 if you are attacking.

What could i possibly do against THAT?

Dragomir is beginning to descend into the cellar just as an abominable tentacle whips out passed him and strikes at Diana. The Cossack blinks and looks down. Seeing what awaits beneath him, he suddenly reconsiders his course of action. Dragomir steps back out of the hatch and turns to face the cellar entrance, prepping his bow to fire.

Kolya peers down the hatch, squinting at the creature through his spectacles. He shakes his head and grabs a vial, muttering under his breath. "One moment, Diana."

Diana feels her wounds mostly close up. Heal 4 Lethal damage.

GM Prompt: Stepan, Diana, and Babushka all can act.

If you're uncertain how to perform the action, post your intention and we can discuss the resolution.

Stepan has his sword raised ready to strike, but he is waiting for his comrades to act. He is not sure he can keep the invisibility going through combat. In a perfect world, the abomination will start to climb up then they will engage the heads, and then he will strike the legs or hamstring it. Then it should go tumbling down leaving a clear target from the top of the ladder.
Of the thousands of thoughts and ideas that Stepan have been struggling with, is this the best strategy he has come up with.

It seems to be content with attacking Diana's legs at the moment.

Is not entirely certain what to do. None of her spells have much..oomph to them. She is not that type of person...

Diana pulls back from the monster, back into the pantry, casting a rote, Untouchable.

Result: Diana has +2 armor for the scene. Covert spell, no Paradox.

The abomination starts up the ladder after her.

Stepan, if you want to stab it in the back, it's your chance. Otherwise, I'll process its action.

He strikes at the leg muscles and draws blood. He jumps back into the darkness giving the creature room to fall down.