Sent: 3/23/99

Storm, quickly flexes all his muscles to limber up for the encounter. "Aye, strike up those torches mates! Best ye be seein' these bastards too!!" With this he rushes the nearest creature, long swords at the front. His body soon disappears into the darkness, but by the frustrated growl soon heard, the party can tell he did not manage to strike his target.

Cy, realizing that his lot for the first minute of combat is quite limited, takes out a vial of oil and a torch, dousing the torch and lighting it. Sweat begins to spill down his cheek, as he knows that any minute now the enemy will be bearing down on his position.

Crayne instantly casts burning hands in towards the bodies moving towards him. The now-familiar arc of flames shoots forth from the mage's hands, instantly illuminating the cavernous chamber and revealing the enemy for the first time (there are 5 skeletons and 4 zombies). When the spell has pounded out through his hands Crayne will shout, "Who needs torches when we have Crayne and a lot of undead hanging about!" The flames strike two of the skeletons and two of the zombies, but because Crayne could not see Storm in the darkness, the dwarf is also caught in the blaze! Storm lets out a howl of pain as the fire burns into his back and rear end (4 hp damage). One of the skeletons immediately falls to the ground in pieces, but the other affected undead keep moving toward the party. Seeing his friend affected, Crayne raises his hand to his mouth, saying quietly, "oops..."

Having seen the layout of the room briefly, Cy aims and tosses his now-lit torch into the center of the cavern, where a wooden table with benches sits, along with some stacks of hay, which immediately catch fire.

Edryd readies himself for battle. He had heard of this sort of thing back at the Temple, but to face it first hand this way... He steels himself and whispers a prayer to Anhur for protection. He takes a second to recall what he had learned about the undead in his catechism. He then moves to Storm's shoulder and prepares for battle, whispering back, "who's got the torch?"

Guilliam brandishes one of the torches, handing it forward to Edryd who stands facing a skeleton, sword in one hand with the other open reaching behind him.

Helping to light the other torches, Guilliam stands, holding a torch in both hands like a club, ready to strike anything evil or just plain scarry looking that approaches him. Seeing the fan of flames extending from Crayne's fingers, he takes half a step back and then says dryly "That'd be nice to learn. Yes, I could find some uses for that little trick, except for Storm's part, of course!" Within a few moments he has two torches lit. [Of the original four one was thrown by Cy, Edryd now holds one, and Guilliam has the remaining two at this point.]

Canter, seeing his friend Storm's clothing crisping, moves quickly to the dwarf's aid, taking a moment to pat out the flames while fending off a skeleton attack in the process.

The skeleton opposite Storm then attacks the charred dwarf. With a quick block of one of his swords, he manages to fend of the first attack. But then a second skeleton attacks with a rusty short sword, and that combined with the sting of the fire seems to momentarily overwhelm him. The second skeleton's blow strikes Storm, hitting his armor hard, but also cutting into the surface of his rough skin (2 hp damage).

Another skeleton seizes the chance to attack Edryd just as he receives a torch. The walkin' bones, also wielding a rusty sword, strikes at the paladin, hitting him hard in the shoulder. Edryd winces in pain but does not falter. (4 hp damage)

Canter, too, finds a skeleton bearing down on him. Rising quickly from Storm's back, he tries his best to block the blow, but still takes a hit, drawing some blood in a surface wound on his forearm. (3 hp damage)

Cy, in the meantime, find a mangled, moving pile of flesh swinging it's heavy fists at him. The zombie throws its weight into the attack, but Cy's strength allows him to block the blow with his arm in a quick and effective movement.

The three remaining zombies move slowly, their arms outstretched, toward Crayne and Guilliam, who stand a few feet behind the front line (Storm, Canter, Cy, and Edryd).

1. Note regarding torch lighting and rounds: As much as I would have loved to see the torches instantly lit and the undead quickly attacked, I cannot combine these two actions into one round. The Player's Handbook clearly spells this out in the chapter on Combat (page 93 in my copy). Besides, a) you guys chose not to have the torches lit as you walked down the passageway, and b) it makes for a much more interesting fight this way!

2. Also, my apologies to Storm for getting cooked, but these things happen! "Friendly fire," literally! :)

3. Ok, so there are now four skeletons and four zombies left standing (one skeleton was killed by Crayne's [highly effective] spell). Two skeletons are attacking Storm; one is attacking Canter; and one more is attacking Edryd. One zombie is attacking Cy and the remaining three appear to be moving slowly toward Crayne and Guilliam, who are momentarily protected behind the front line of fighters.

4. HP status: I began with the latest hp values (after the night's sleep at base camp) and from there subtracted damage. At the end of the round (28.0), the values are as follows:

Canter: 11, Crayne: 6, Cyveiliog: 13, Edryd: 5, Guilliam: 16, Storm: 11.

5. Please send me your actions for two rounds of combat. The next rounds will be 28.1 and 28.2, and the PCs have the first attack in each round.

Deep within the Raimead Mountains, the battle between Rinder's Six and the undead continues....

Cy quickly attacks the zombie opposite him. With one strong blow, he slices into the monstrous figure, tearing it to the ground. He quickly turns the next closest zombie, humming a tune all the while, and attacks that one. He hits it, pushing toward the burning piles of hay behind it. It is backpedaling, but still fighting.

Guilliam, in the meantime, approaches a zombie, torch in hand. He looks as menacing as he can, and quickly thwacks at the undead creature with the flaming wood. He hits it right on the head, and hits it hard. It is still moving however, though slightly slowed. Guilliam smiles with the hit, but quickly guards himself for the zombie's retaliatory blow.

Crayne, thinking fast, grabs a dagger and hurls it at an approaching zombie. The dagger hits the creature's leg. It turns to look down with it's bloodshot eyes, but keeps moving toward the mage.

Storm, at the same time, attacks the skeleton opposite him. He, too scores a hit, knocking out a few ribs from the fleshless undead. It is still fighting, however, and the dwarf lets out a loud cry of frustration as he sets up his next strike.

Canter and Edryd, too, square off against skeletons. Both with swords, they try to bash rather than poke, but find the enemy elusive.

Then, Storm's enemy attacks him. It's rusty sword slicing the dwarf's arm, and some drops of blood quickly appear at the wound. (2 hp damage) Edryd and Canter both see attacks headed their way, but nimbly avoid the blows, jumping aside and parrying effectively.

A second skeleton then moves in to attack Storm. The dwarf, however, seems driven and quickly raises one of his swords to block the attack, screaming in the face of the skull just a few inches from his head.

The zombie opposite Cy attacks the warrior, but Cy finds his speed an asset. He steps out of the way of the blow, while continuing his effort to push the creature toward the burning fire. Guilliam, too faces an attack at the claws of a zombie, but also avoids the blow by defending with his makeshift club. The last zombie continues to move toward Crayne.

(28.2)

Cy then takes the offensive against his zombie. He craftily raises his sword and attacks. His attack is unsuccessful, however. Though the zombie doesn't gain ground, it manages to buy itself a few seconds more of time.

Guilliam then presses his feiry attack with the torch. He comes down hard on the zombie, crushing its skull with the torch. The ugly mass of the zombie slowly falls to the ground, Guilliam with a wide smile all the while.

Crayne whips out another dagger, throwing it hard at the approaching zombie. This one, however, misses its intended target, flying over the creature's shoulder and coming to rest in the area beyond. Crayne curses to himself and prepares himself for the impending attack.

Storm, then, strikes at the first of the two skeletons bearing down on him. With a swift blow, he smashes the creature's torso, sending bone fragments flying to the cave floor. He then swiftly turns his attention to the other attacking skeleton. He drops one of his swords and reaches for its neck. Though he does not manage to separate the skull from the body, he essentially tackles it, sending it to the floor and kneeling next to it.

Canter then attacks his foe. This time, unlike last, he scores a good hit, slicing up the skeleton with a strong blow, killing the undead creature. Edryd, too attacks, and hits his skeleton, smashing its backbone to pieces.

The last remaining skeleton, now on the cave floor with Storm at its throat, then swiftly raises his sword, striking the dwarf's face with the handle. Storm turns his head to the side, but still takes the hit, opening up a large cut below his right eye. (2 hp damage)

The zombie, opposite Cy, too, scores a hit. Its sharp claws find their way to Cy's body and with their incredible strength, score a large gash. Cy clenches his teeth in pain, biting his lower lip. (7 hp damage)

The last zombie, bearing down on Crayne, strikes at the mage with its claws, opening up a wound on Crayne's upper arm. (3 hp damage)

1. At this point there are three enemies remaining: One skeleton with Storm, one zombie with Cy, and one more zombie with Crayne. 4 skeletons have been destroyed and 2 zombies killed (if you can say that about undead!).

2. HP status:

Canter: 11, Crayne: 3, Cy: 6, Edryd: 5, Guilliam: 16, Storm: 7.

3. Please send actions for two more rounds of battle for those character still facing off with a foe. If your character is not, it might make sense to send one round of battle plans, and other notes about what he will do after the battle has come to a close. The next round of battle is 28.3.

Crayne, seeing the zombie approaching slowly and hurting from its blow, backpedals toward the heavy wooden doorframe which leads into the passageway. Club at the ready, eyes wide, he braces himself for the next attack, parrying.

Cy, in the meantime, seems fed up with the zombie he faces. With a loud grunt he throws his weight behind his shield, bashing at the fleshy monster. He strikes hard, sending it reeling backwards into the flames of the burning hay behind. Cy then quickly whips his sword around, slicing into the monster's flesh. It lets out a howling cry which echoes through the chamber.

Storm moves quickly, frustrated by the skeleton's blow to his head. He throws himself on top of the bony body and with his hands on the creature's neck, raises the skull and smashes it to the ground. The skeleton gives surprisingly strong resistance, and manages to soften the blow but not completely negate it. A large crack appears at the top of the skull as it reaches the ground, and Storm lets out a loud battle cry with the hit.

Canter, meanwhile, rushes over from the pile of bones he just vanquished to attack the zombie approaching Crayne. With a running start, he flies at the slow moving monster, cutting deep into its arm. Canter lets out a subtle "aha!" as if a great duel is about to follow. "I got your back!" he calls to the mage in the doorway.

Edyrd, also emerging from a re-dead pile of bones, moves over to Storm's skeleton. Seeing the crack in the skull, he forcefully lowers his fist right on the skelton's face as Storm holds it steady, smashing it into numerous pieces on the cold stone floor. The rest of the bony body lies there motionless.

Following Canter's lead, Guilliam moves toward the zombie with his torch. He swings it at the monster like a club, but the zombie blocks the attack with its arm, causing Guilliam to drop the torch to the ground in an array of sparks.

The zombie then lashes out at Crayne, his original target. Crayne, however, had prepared himself for the attack, and does his best to match the undead's stregth. Using his staff, he blocks its claws, keeping his tender skin at a safe distance.

(28.4)

Crayne then grabs the moment and attacks the zombie with the staff, bashing at its head. Angered by his wounds, the mage hits hard and furiously, sending the zombie's head reeling backwards in pain with a loud cry. Canter follows up with a strike of his own, driving his sword deep into the zombie's flesh. The zombie whips its body around just in time to block an attack by Storm, but in the process leaves just enough room for Edryd to deal the final blow. With a strong hit, Edryd severs the zombie's head from its shoulders.

Cy, in the meatime, looks into the mangled, burning eyes of his foe one last time before driving his sword strongly through the creature's torso. With a kick he sends it's body flat into the flames, ending the battle.

1. At this point all enemies have been killed. I'll work on XP receipts as soon as I can (though this week will be especially busy for me).

2. HP Status: (unchanged from the previous post)

Canter: 11, Crayne: 3, Cy: 6, Edryd: 5, Guilliam: 16, Storm: 7

3. What now?

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