[Game Thread] Chapter I, Part I: Oleg's Trading Post

[Ryoga]

Harken leans against a wall, not entirely interested in the wine, though perhaps the bread if there is any left at the end. He listens to the please, plans and questions. He was never really one for strategy beyond simple maneuvers and ploys, he knew it best to leave to the men who's job it was to plan and watch.

As the idea to gate them in was given, Harken nearly laughed, but held it back somewhat. They didn't know how many were even in this group yet, and they wanted to trap themselves in with them? He was going to raise protest when Rogan spoke of the numbers, Harken loosened up and found it best to sit back. He couldn't really come up with a much better thought himself than use himself as a close range fighter.

[Rohor]

Oleg looks towards Kostas with a grin and nods as he hears the plan.

"Sounds good. Anything to surprise them, although I really don't want to face them again, but if you must..." he looks towards the living quarters as he says this, "... as long as Svetlana isn't involved. I cannot allow her to be involved in any plan that would put her in danger."

There's a momentary pause as he looks at Rogan and Satinder. He snorts at Satinder, almost as though he was trying to ignore him. He answers the question though.

"Well, when they first arrived three months ago there were a dozen of them. Two of them were extremely dangerous. One of them was a man wearing a green cloak. He was armed with a bow. And the other one was a woman, armed with hatchets." As he said this he lifts up his right hand. "Nearly lopped off my arm with one of her hatchets in an attempt to scare me and Svetlana, and it sure scared Svetlana. If it wasn't for her..."

Oleg takes a quick look towards their living quarters, his face clearly showing he is worried as he described what happened. He then turns his focus back towards the party, lowering his voice.

"They visited twice more since, and it was only the man in the green cloak. He came with eight bandits, and on the next visit he came with five bandits. They also come at the exact same time - the first day of the month when the sun rises. Hopefully when they arrive it'll only be the man in the green cloak again and he'll arrive with even fewer bandits. With their arrogance I'm pretty certain they think they've got us cornered."

He nods his head towards the small building next to the stable, looking at Brune as he does so.

"The stock in there, although there's nothing there at the moment. The bandits have taken everything... nothing left for them to take. If you want to you may bless the food." He raises his eyebrows and has a quizzical look on his face as he continues to look at Brune. "You alright there though? You seem a little nervous... "

[LupusRegalis]

"Surprise and positioning negate their numbers. The more bandita come, the less hunting we do." Kostas explains after Oleg adds further details of the bandit group. "With the gates sealed, there is no retreat. No warning for their comrades. No escape for further mischief, you understand?"

He shrugs and continues "It is possible those come later, to find their friends. More wary, yes, but still unknowing. Let them come to us, I say. We will trick and trap them, and break them upon this ground!"

[VaerSheth]

Brune, who had been examining the back wall at the time, glances up sharply when Oleg directs a question at him. He stares at Oleg for a second, growing red in the face. Redder, really. Then the dwarf's scowl softens into a faint self-deprecating grimace.

This was not what I expected to find, Master Oleg. I... am not good with surprises. I must beg your pardon, also, for I have had unworthy thoughts about you.

Brune bows his head in shame for a moment before turning to the food. He cuts an incongruous picture for a priest about to bless food, given that he himself is covered in dirt. He seems to be aware of this as well, eyeing his hands with the side of his mouth twitching up and down. Shaking himself slightly, he raises his left hand over the food and his right hand to the hammer token hanging around his neck.

Oh Father of my heart and my people, bless this bread before me. Grant it strength and purity, that it may serve the living in good stead. May it fortify them in health and honor. Be it so.

Having finished his blessing, Brune nods to Oleg again.

It is done. I could wish that mighty Torag had blessed this bread with the fortitude of warriors, as I am told he can do. I fear I do not know how to properly ask for such a blessing, so what we have instead is that of a simple village people. Our own strength will have to do for tomorrow.

OOC Dwarven in "Red". Dang. Someone already claimed DarkRed.

[Rohor]

"Unworthy thoughts? What, did you expect us to be the bandits? The two of us!?" His voice continues to rise as he speaks, but it suddenly lowers. "I apologise. I didn't mean to raise my voice like that. We'll have to rely on each other's strength tomorrow and support each other." His eyes gloss over the group and they settle momentarily on Satinder as he says this. "I'm... uh... sorry about my outburst earlier to you as well. I have a bit of a... short fuse, and I blew things out of proportion. After all, you didn't know she was my wife. Just protective of her."

He nods towards Kostas and his tone changes to be more positive. "With numbers and surprise on our side, we should be able to handle them without a problem."

Svetlana appears from the living quarters, holding a tray with empty glasses. She gracefully makes her way to the tables and sets the tray down, the glasses clinking against each other as the tray is set on the table.

"Svetlana, I've discussed the situation with them. They've agreed to help us with the bandits tomorrow. This man...uh... Kostas is it? Sorry...bad memory..." he points towards Kostas and continues talking, "...he's even thought of a plan. I could lure them in and they'll close the gates behind the bandits, trapping them. Without an escape route, we should have no difficulties in finishing them off. Everything looks like it'll go according to plan." A smile crosses Oleg's face as he finishes explaining what happened to Svetlana.

A smile also crosses Svetlana's face as she hears what Oleg mentioned. "Well, that's a relief. I've just thought of something Oleg. Perhaps we can let them stay for free overnight to show our gratitude?"

As she mentions this Oleg's smile disappears and is replaced by shock. Oleg only manages to splutter out, "What!?". His shoulders droop and he sighs and grumbles, "Alright, alright! You can stay in the guest house. There's only four beds though so some of you will have to sleep on the floor for the evening..." his words trail off and he turns to stare at the ground.

"Well, that's settled then." Svetlana's smile remains on her face as she continues looking towards the rest of the group. She looks at the untouched loaves of bread on the table. "Help yourselves to the bread. Don't leave it sitting there to go to waste."

OOC If you want, we can roleplay here a little longer, whether that is to talk to Oleg and Svetlana or to agree on a plan of attack against the bandits. From my understanding, Oleg is to be the bait, which he agrees to as above. If you wish to settle in early and get a good night's rest to prepare for tomorrow, let me know and I'll fast forward to that time.

[arguilios]

“Hmmm....” Rogan murmurs, rubbing the stubble on his chin as he casts a studious eye about the compound. “With such numbers, Kostas’ plan might do the trick. I can set up a hide over there,” he gestures toward one corner atop the battlements. “Mr Fancy Pants could cop a squat over there,” the woodsman indicates the corner opposite the main gate.

“We do this right,” he observes to the others, “we might take one of their heavy hitters prisoner -- maybe use him for bait … or interrogation. It’s worth a shot; I’ll set up a few surprises before morning -- just in case.”

“If there’s no stock in your stable just now, that’ll be a good place for us to conceal our animals,” he adds.

[arguilios]

“Ummm....” Satinder interjects as Oleg takes exception to the dwarf's remark, “I’m sure what Minister Brune meant to say was that he thought you a gentleman rather than a rough warrior such as ourselves. Ours isn’t his birth tongue,” he explains. “Right, Brune?”

“Mr Fancy Pants, really?” Satinder favors the ranger with a rakish grin. “C’mon now. Name calling?” From his tone it’s clear that the half-elf is amused rather than offended as he steps forward once more, speaking to Kostas’ capture and containment plan.

“With the gate closed, there’s no way out for us inside either,” Satinder observes with a stern glance to Kostas. “Our only allies with direct knowledge of this area will be in danger, and I’m not comfortable with that. No offense, Master Oleg,” he raises his hands in appeasement to the station owner. “I’m sure you’re an accomplished fighter to have made your stand in this imperiled area so long. But, understand also that we’re proposing to bring the bandits in, corner and kill them. Men are most dangerous when cornered. If they should get an opportunity to take either of you hostage.... I don't want to start from the disadvantage of being caught between our allies held prisoner within and more of their men outside the gate.”

“If we’re going to go through with this, I think Mr Fancy Pants should be over there,” he gestures to a cultivated area beyond the family’s living area. “And, he should be dressed as Svetlana, while she hides out of sight -- in their house or root cellar, perhaps.” The bard turns a blind eye to Oleg’s expression for the moment. “Dressed as the matron of his house, near at hand, I’ll help with the illusion of their defenselessness as our bad men enter. And, though I won’t have the height of Master Rogan’s elevated position, I can conceal both bow and blade ready for immediate action in Master Oleg’s defense if need be.”

[LupusRegalis]

Kostas sits back and considers the dwarf's words, his eyes turning to their host as if to say I had not thought of that. He hadn't gotten a sense of dishonesty from Oleg or Svetlana, though their interactions had been short. Still, Oleg's spluttering had the look of an honest man indignant that he'd been suspected of treachery. Kostas would keep an eye out, but he did not think the two in league with the banditas. Brune's apology was typical of his peoples, gruff and to the point and slightly embarrassed.

At Svetlana's admonishing he takes a loaf with chagrin, having forgotten about the food in his planning. He also snags a glass off the tray and looks to fill it. Breaking a piece off the loaf he eats with casual enjoyment of the simple fare and listens as Svetlana and Oleg talk things over. He can't help but laugh in sympathy for Oleg when the woman cuts further into the poor man's profits, but doesn't object either. Then turns to listen more attentively to Rogan and Satinder's conversation. He nods along with the Ranger's assessment, curious about what he had in mind. But Satinder's plan brings a look of distaste to his face.

"Nem, no" Kostas says to the self-titled Chronicler "I do not like that idea. I think you would look very silly dressed so. tanárnő Svetlana should stay hidden and safe, and tanár Oleg ought guard her once the signal is given." He looks at both of their hosts, but mostly at Oleg, giving the man a way to Diplomacy 16 (taking 10)protect his pride and his wife. While staying out of their way when the fighting started.

[Ryoga]

Harken finally speaks up, from his corner of the room, his own idea for the plan finally coming to him. At the next lull in the conversation, he comes to a stand from his casual lean and strides to the side of Oleg. 'I'll greet them at the gate with my axe.' He stops for a moment thinking of how laughable and cocky that sounded. '...So long as I have one of you with me. I've been surrounded before, I don't like it. Anyone who can wield their might at a range can stay there and protect us from being over-run if their numbers are few.' He crosses his arms and clears his throat, a slightly annoyed look on his face. He was impatient to get to the battle, he always hated the days and hours leading to a battle.

[VaerSheth]

Brune glances sourly at Satinder. He slowly swallows the piece of bread he had been munching on and wipes his mouth with the back of his free hand before replying.

Not hardly. I thought they were bandits, as Oleg guessed. Had I thought him a gentleman I would not have bothered to beg his pardon.

Brune places a certain emphasis on the word "gentleman" and gives Satinder a long look before adding:

You would not ask me to compound my error by lying about it, would you?

Brune turns his focus back to his bread. Harken's bold words bring a smile to his face, causing his beard to twitch, but the dwarf does not speak up. He merely nods in approval at the halfbreed's courage and good sense.

[Finder of Paths]

"We wish to lure the bandits into the outpost do we not? They're more likely to come in if they see Svetlana waiting for them to...capture." Dancing around the horrible word the bandits most likely have in mind, Satinder continues to outline his plan. "This way there's a nice juicy prize, without putting the lovely lady of Oleg's Trading post in danger. Indeed, she could hide on the rear ramparts, and escape by rope and horse if things go wrong. I offer my own Horatio for the task, a gentle beast with light feet."

Pausing for effect, Satinder grins and finishes with the most important point of all. "As I pointed out, shutting the gate behind them may be a bad thing for us, though it does have its merits. With no escape route, the bandits couldn't escape to tell their leader about the five of us. This bandit lord may assume they ran afoul of some wild beast, and given his arrogance assume he can just wait until next month to attack again. This same arrogance might play in our favour if he realises his bandits were slain at the outpost too, and again he just waits for the next month before sending another larger group."

OOC: Oh dear, what have you gotten me into arg I don't actually have any points in disguise...so it's a flat +2 on the roll, I'm going to look like a skinny half elf with two potatoes on his chest.

[Rohor]

Oleg looks outrageously at Satinder's suggestion of dressing up as his wife.

"What? You!? dressing up as my wife!?" He points a finger at the bard as he continues speaking. "You are not dressing up in my wife's clothing! Honestly, I can't believe..."


Oleg throws his arms up in the air, as though he is giving up on the group. Svetlana places her hand on his shoulder and pats it, her face looking pale at the suggestion.

Can you think of some other plan that doesn't involve...wearing my clothes? If you think it is the only way, but otherwise..." her eyes glance away from Satinder as she attempts to find words.

OOC I have planned to move the story ahead although it seems we're a little stuck here because of the different plans. At this stage I need a set plan and a position where everybody is to be placed for the bandit's arrival tomorrow. I'm still not 100% certain what it is, although it looks like Satinder will end up dressing as Svetlana to entice the bandits in . Oleg and Svetlana will agree to any plan (depending on the plan, reluctantly - aka Satinder dressing upas Svetlana) as long as it does not put either of them in immediate danger - i.e. bait to make the situation look normal, etc. Oleg will absolutely refuse for Svetlana to be involved if anyone suggests putting her in the front line where she is in immediate danger. If we are disguising Satinder as Svetlana I believe appropriate disguise checks etc will need to be in order as well. My next post (plan) is to move forward to the next day just before the bandit's expected arrival. It would be appreciated if you could account for this in your post. Thanks. I'm expecting to make a post by Monday on this.

[Ryoga]

Harken nods at the groups final appraisal of the plan. [b]'Well, it seems we've got some sort of plan, that's all I really need. Once again he makes an early retreat, adding parting words on his way out. 'I'll take ground level, you guys figure out who'll be there with me.' He finally exits the room and makes his way outside, near the front door and plops himself down. He takes a quick inventory of all his belongings, and then starts checking his weapons. His axe sharp, his handaxes in decent condition, and his prized possession, a boar's skull rested easily in the middle of his bag, surrounded by cloth.
He strokes the bone for a moment before re-wrapping it, and awaits the rest of the group to exit before he follows them to their lodging and picks a spot on the floor to sleep, if only to pass time.
---
The next day he wakes early with the rest of the group and gets to setting things up, ready to do any manual labor that needs to be done to prepare for the attack. He supposes he'd be at the gate, on one side of it, ready to close it on the intruders, axe already at bear for his enemies to fall to.

[Finder of Paths]

Bowing his head slightly towards Oleg, Satinder tries to soothe the mood, realising he's actually widened the rift between them. "My apologies, we really shouldn't need such drastic measures to entice the bandits into the fort anyway. They're coming here to loot and pillage, they're going to have to come inside for that." Looking around at the ramparts, Satinder nods thoughtfully. "I agree with the plan of letting them come inside, then locking the door behind them. Any of us with ranged capabilities can rain down hell from the ramparts, whilst those skilled at melee engage them on the ground. One suggestion I have is to be flexible in our plan."

Creating a little ball of light in the palm of his hand and spinning it like a toy, the half-elf adds his final words of wisdom. "I'd also suggest we archers stick close together. I'm all for creating a deadly crossfire, but my magic is far more potent when I can benefit many allies at once." Dispelling the ball of light, Satinder creates a small puddle of some murky liquid in the palm of his hand and lets it drop to the floor. "Not to mention if we are positioned above our attackers I can make their way forwards very slippery."

"If there's too many bandits for us to take, we simply slam shut the doors before they reach the fort and then rain down the aforementioned hell on them until they flee. If they manage to scale the walls or break down the gate our melee combatants can deal with them."

OOC: We can try the disguise route, but as I mentioned in my OOC I wouldn't be very convincing. Why not just ambush them? One of us on the ramparts watches and does a quick headcount, if there's more than say 8 bandits we don't let them in and just slam shut the doors, bar them, then shoot arrows at them and yell insults. If there's less than 8 we can take them easily, so we allow them in then slam shut the gates and massacre them all. Assuming we can stay close together I can Inspire Courage for a +1 to everything, and cast Grease or Sleep for some controlling goodness.

[VaerSheth]

The less trickery, the better. Harken and I will stand ready to slam the gate shut behind them. Kostas will charge out of the stables. The rest of you can shoot from the wall-top. I assume that the addition of a second cart loaded with grain will not deter them? It is sitting there out in the open. Likewise, they will not be afeared if the gates stand open before they call you out?

Both questions are directed at Oleg, but the dwarf shakes his head before the man can reply.

Ah, never you mind. We're not like to do better anyhow. If Fortune smiles on us, their greed will drive all thought out of their heads. If not, then we'll do without surprise and beat the thoughts out of their heads with hammer and...

Brune breaks off, glancing over at Harken. The dwarf completely loses his train of thought and wanders over to the half-orc, unable to take his eyes off of the axe in Harken's hands.

That is one fine weapon, warrior. Who made it?

OOC I think we've ditched the disguise plan. Brune intends to chat with Harken (offscreen, basically) for the remainder of the evening. If Harken objects, then he'll take himself off and go to sleep. Either way, he'll be up and in position next to the gate about an hour before sunrise. He will be praying, but I won't change his prepared spells on the assumption that he won't *quite* get done before the bandits arrive. (From a gameplay perspective this doesn't matter, since he already has the spells he needs prepared.)