Against the Cult: Party at the Mill (1.1)

Note from DM: Correct; a double move has brought you right to outside that door, next to Sara.

Note from DM: Correct, in this case. Sometimes I may use Insight as part of a conversation, but in this case, it's just a snap assessment of a situation, not a full action.

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Sara has seen that look in men's eyes before. These thugs have heard Quest's challenge and ignored it. They're out for blood.

Xana ducks at the dog's approach and instinctively draws upon her connection with the ArchFey Hyrsam. Abruptly, she is struck by the hilarity of the situation and small giggle escapes her lips. The effect radiates outwards and washes over the shaggy, snarling canine. The dog stops, puzzled, its great fuzzy head quizzically cocked to one side. Then it stretches out its front paws and pants enthusiastically, its tongue lolling and slaver dripping from its massive jaws. A deep yip of a bark escapes and it wags its tail, hoping to play.

Upstairs, Ogbar roars back at the dog, spittle flying, and lashes out with his axe. The first swipe misses, slicing off a big hank of the dog's fur but not connecting with its flesh. The two of them are locked in melee: a whirling ball of fur, fury, and gleaming metal. Their bodies slam together and rebound again and again as the dog dodges the axe swings and Ogbar uses his elbows and knees to knock the dog's snapping head away from him. Neither is able to connect again for a few moments as they whirl around the room.

Next door, Klak engages the first thug behind the table on the left, contemptuously redirecting the first clumsy swing with his shield and stepping around the table while the thug swings his club back around. They trade blows, neither really connecting, but the dwarf clearly is the superior fighter, and the man gives way slowly. Klak pushes out with his shield to bash his opponent and the man blocks it with both hands, leaving his flank undefended. Klak's axe carves into the man's thigh, splitting the leather armor and the flesh beneath. The man screams in pain and surprise. Villagers he's bullied have never fought back like this.

Meanwhile, Quest's look of disappointment transforms into disapproval so profound one thug takes a half step back. But it is no good feeling remorse now; the fierce gleam of blue light flashes from his eyes and the rumor of a whine beyond hearing is felt by all nearby. The mystic enters the thug's mind and is not pleased with what he finds there. He sets off all the pain synapses in his nervous system. The second thug recoils as his buddy shrieks in a seizure so severe that he cannot even fall down as every muscle in his body vibrates with rapid contractions in opposing directions. Further, the man knows that Quest has peered inside his mind and feels intensely violated in a way he never imagined possible. Quest feels the intense hatred as a boiling yet impotent force within the man as the man instinctively imagines how he will enact his revenge for this intrusion.

Having taken careful aim and let fly her shaft, Sara steps across the doorway and sees the mystic's victim - the body twitching, the agonized shrieking from a vibrating mouth - and so does not see the arrow she shot as it flits above the table's edge and catches the man in the eye, impaling him into the wall behind him. Also through the doorway, she sees the other thug behind the table on the right preparing to bash Quest, while to her other side are shutters that she could fling open for a view into another room, where Ogbar and Xana went.

One man in the right hand room is dead, and two there are wounded.

Durren sheathes his sword and dives in between the stalks of wheat, following the kobold's path as it swishes through the grain. Contrary to what he expected, the kobold does not seem to be trying to lose him, but perhaps is simply instinctively avoiding scrutiny, as its path doesn't change, and it continues to rush south, flitting between the stalks while the larger human punches his way through. The kobold emerges just a second and a half before Durren and ducks around one of the elms that border the fields.

As Durren follows, he sees the kobold rushing past the easternmost of a more rustic row of houses, heading toward a low hill and the river. They've been running for perhaps a minute; Durren is not winded, but he is somewhat surprised at the kobold's speed and stamina; he thought reptiles didn't have that much energy.

Durren is able to cut the corner as the kobold veers slightly to the left to avoid the houses, and if he wishes he can close the distance, though the kobold might hear his footfalls and react if Durren doesn't attack. The human is still curious as to why the kobold is running around like this - is it going somewhere? Surely this isn't normal kobold behavior!

ROUND TWO

The war dog continues to try to tear at Ogbar. It leaps at him and tears his throat with its teeth.
Ogbar takes 5 damage (reduced from his Rage resistance). Ogbar is bleeding horribly, red spraying from his neck, but he's still standing, ignoring the nasty wound.

Unfortunately, this attack by their pet bolsters the swaggering confidence of the two thugs in the room with Ogbar, and they step in, swinging their clubs to take down this interloper. But they are squeamish about the spraying blood and can't get close enough past the swinging blade and the snapping jaws to land a good hit; their clubs rise and fall, pounding Ogbar repeatedly but ineffectually.

Aanbo hears screams of agony, snarls, barking, yells of fury and the clash of arms from within the mill, and he sees Sara fire an arrow through a doorway as she steps past and then nock another. Clearly, there is furious battle happening in the mill.

Meanwhile, in the office of the mill, the wounded thug (Thug 3) is fighting for his life against the implacable Klak. Again and again the man swings his club with all his might, hammering at the dwarf's defenses, but the shield is usually there to block it, and when it isn't, the dwarf takes the hit coldly and keeps implacably swinging his axe. Oh, the axe! The human must be quick with his cudgel to knock away the deadly axe's blade, already slick with his life blood. With each swing his arm grows heavier, and the damned dwarf keeps coming.

Recovering the use of his limbs after the profound violation of his mind by the half-elf, thug 4 hammers Quest with his club, screaming insults and curses and spittle as he bashes him again and again across the cover of the table. Quest is able to anticipate his moves, reacting with Intellect Fortress, however, his lip curling in irritated disdain, as the blows land painfully but glancingly, doing no real damage (Edited to accommodate the DISADV on the attack from Quest's Intellect Fortress discipline).

Thug 5, horrified at the sight of his cousin across from him with an arrow sticking out of his eye socket, goes berserk with his club, and smashes the half-elf with his club, using two-handed, full-bodied swings, knocking Quest's head back and forth. The half-elf staggers, his head ringing, seeing stars. Quest takes 3 HP of damage and must make a CON save to maintain concentration.

Initiative order:
- War dog (done)
- Aanbo
- Men in the mill room (done)
- Men in the office room (done)
- Thacogygax
- Man in the basement
- Xana
- Ogbar
- Klak
- Quest
- Sara

Note that I did not need to roll a DISADV on Thug 5's attack on Quest; Quest gets only one reaction per turn, and that was against Thug 4's attack.

I've updated the round two post to indicate that you are aware of the battle, both from sound, and from the sight of Sara firing her bow into the building. Aanbo may still act, but it will take a full move action to get to either the north door (closed), north window (closed), the water wheel (rolling 'toward' you, if that makes sense), or two moves to get around the corner and through the "left" door (open, where Ogbar and Xana went moments ago).

Aanbo runs up to the door, and can fling it open - it is not locked or blocked.