Correct, you do have aerial recon between Crowley and Mildred's birb, but this is a Battle Royale with a shrinking perimeter, and should be treated accordingly.
That being said, 70 Armor plus your Hama Field is still pretty chonky.
Okay, these have me convinced to go with the currently winning vote. My grasp on the systems of this quest is pretty weak, which is why I don't comment that often on the mechanics and planning.
[X] Winfrid Tolstan (Anglo-Saxon Thane - Strengths: Battlefield Control, Rapid Attacks, Mobility.)
[X] Do Not Use an Armor Charge (Armor remains at 70/100 for the next match)
[X] Winfrid Tolstan (Anglo-Saxon Thane - Strengths: Battlefield Control, Rapid Attacks, Mobility.)
[X] Do Not Use an Armor Charge (Armor remains at 70/100 for the next match)
[X] Estienne Bonhomme (Carolingian Cultivator - Fourth Decade. Strengths: Superior Cultivation, Charger, Superior Equipment - Note: Wounded, will seek to deny battle except against obvious weaklings, as he is mounted, he will probably succeed at doing so, but you've got the option to try even if you'll probably fail)
So I was looking back in the quest and I thought of how funny it'd be if Asvir DID kidnap Audrey for a while.
===============================
Halla: Gabriel! It's been too long how've you been?
Lord Blackstone: Halla...you know why I'm here.
Halla: Ah yes. The spicy little Squire Asvir brought home. I would've sent her back on the first ship back but she was just having so much fun!
Gabriel: ...What? Your daughter or the Squire.
Halla: smiles knowingly
While the idea of taking a poke at Margh Grouse with the full strength of her present party did occur to Audrey, at the end of the day, he was also serving as a deterrent against the Frankish Squire who was even now keeping his greatest distance to avoid a repeat incident.
And yet, Audrey's party was a strong one, with two Squires and a pair of Thanes. Simply taking a poke at some of the less well-rounded companies would be poor form, and with the Ransoms being split four ways, they would need greater challenges to profit from their performance. So after some dickering, they settled on challenging Winfrid Tolstan. Storm Crow and unknown Gyrfalcon took the wing, serving as eyes in the sky–an advantage not easily denied or countered by those bound tightly to the earth below.
So it was little surprise that they were able to find Winfrid Tolstan. What was… Less pleasant was…
"He has friends." Mildred deadpanned, a sour look on her face as she voiced what Audrey was thinking. "Looks like another Squire from our side and three Thanes."
"Tough odds," Osric muttered, scratching at his growing beard as he mulled over the situation. "Not impossible odds, but we'd have a rough time taking that unscathed."
"We have the advantage in equipment," Audrey muttered. "And I don't recognize any of their colors, I don't think any of them are particularly exceptional, allies of Winfrid's house you think?"
"Likely" Osric agrees. "Or favors traded, I didn't say we couldn't handle it, but we'll have our work cut out for us, do we still want to take a stab at this or back off before we've committed?"
"I can pin down the Squire at least." Mildred confirms. "I'm not worried about losing that fight, and if I dig into my reserves, I can win quickly if I have to, so that's one down."
"Two would be tricky, but I could do it–I just wouldn't be good for a whole lot else afterward," Osric explains.
"... Yeah, I should be able to handle one." Osric's friend sheepishly added as the three looked towards him. "Two would hand me my arse though unless they're complete scrubs–and I don't think anyone who's lasted this long qualifies as that."
"Then I'll handle Winfrid–from what we've seen and overheard, he likes his little tricks and traps–I should be able to run him down." Audrey nods. "That seems to account for everyone–if we move fast and strike hard, we should be able to sort this out before anyone else intervenes!" She couldn't wait! A proper set-piece clash between experts of Wessex! With nothing on the line but pride and coin!
Of course, she would claim victory, she was Audrey Eotenslaga, and she had formidable allies with her now too. What could possibly go wrong?
0~0~0
"You are quite fortunate that the rules of engagement say I am not to strike at your hawks." Winfrid Tolstan observed, from his position at the highest point of a hill he had taken a position on. "I would have cast each of them from the firmament long before, were this a real battle." His voice was oddly musical, his ears ever so slightly pointed–it was said that the Tolstan had descent from the Fae, and he certainly looked the part–especially with the colossal longbow currently strung, carried in one hand. He had no obvious arrows–did that mean he was generating them with a spell of some kind? Were they hidden instead?
How did he sustain that level of expenditure? He was assuredly a Thane–Audrey could feel the questing threads of his Hama–already spooled out and probing the emanations of her party. From what she had seen from a distance as well, he wasn't shy about attacking either. That felt like she could take advantage of that somehow.
"You would find that our Companions are not as fragile as a common beast, but your graciousness is appreciated." Audrey grants him, accepting the concession sportingly. "You've been doing rather well for yourselves, and as we both represent the future of our Kingdom, would it not be fitting to show our full potential?"
Crowley sent a pulse of warning down their bond. Channeling her art to view through his eyes, she saw the great Falcon of Estienne Bonhomme taking a glance their way, seeming to size them up–then backing off with great speed. Good, the Frankman wouldn't get involved in this mess, it would be a good, clean fight between the two forces of Wessex…
Then she felt another cry of warning–this one far more intense.
" Dummy! I'm not talking about the bird!"
Gold filled the battlefield, each side shifting to a defense posture as a Crash of iron and displaced soil filled the air.
"Ah! What a wonderful afternoon!"
Margh Grouse, grinning in his infuriatingly boyish manner, observed, currently stretching his arms up and over his head, a great crater where he stood, having presumably jumped from his previous position to an area on a third point. "Oh? Me? Oh, don't mind me, good fellows!" He waved off the attention, glancing around for a rock. "It would be the pinnacle of rudeness to interrupt your show in advance."
Satisfied with the one he had discovered, he moved to settle in. "Do go right ahead, I saw the rude gentleman with the magnificent steed looking this way, and thought I would give a challenge to the victor!" He met Audrey's gaze and tilted his head in recognition. "Ah yes, Sir Eotenslaga, my thanks for the forbearance you granted my Brother as well! Fear not, no miscreants will be permitted to interfere until your match has concluded, I will ensure the security of this hallowed battlefield between peers!"
Mildred looked Audrey in the eye, staring judgingly at her. What was that about? She couldn't possibly be able to read her mind! She definitely didn't say that things couldn't go wrong, right?
Osric shook his head, laughing grimly at the events. "Well, that went cross-eyed on us in a hurry!" He slaps his helmet on, as the other fighters prepare their headgear. "Any adjustments to the plan, friends?"
"I'll take one of the Thanes out." Mildred declared, reaching her off-hand towards one of the pouches at her side. "You can definitely win a one-on-one, right?"
"Against these folks?" Osric's eyes look up, glancing over the Thanes. "With contemptuous ease."
They didn't seem thrilled about being dismissed like that, but as shields came up and weapons were drawn, Audrey met the gaze of Winfrid Tolstan.
And beyond the battleground, all eyes turned to the clash between the Mightiest of the Youth Division…
0~0~0
You are facing Winfrid Tolstan, in a group battle. He has several allies, but your allies have made arrangements to sort them out, so at the moment, you only have to worry about him. While Margh Grouse has arrived, he is content to wait until you have a moment free before he joins the battle, and has agreed to intercept anyone who tries to intervene until then.
Winfrid himself is armed primarily with a longbow. He has no obvious arrows on hand, suggesting he is making them with the famed Flintknapping art of his bloodline on the spot. As he is a Thane and has shown the ability to deploy these arrows in great numbers, this suggests he's reached a terrifying degree of efficiency with this technique. You feel like you can take advantage of that, strengthening your Armor's defenses with Zeal should outright deny that level of efficiency–especially if you fight using the Hordebreaker stance.
He is known to prefer to keep his distance, making use of flash-forged barricades, traps, and caltrops to delay and frustrate attackers while he strikes at a distance until he has degraded your defenses enough to bring you down with one powerful blow. Presumably, that's the one that costs him a great deal, hence why he's reluctant to use that until it will be decisive. While you've not seen anyone capable of pulling him into a melee, he almost certainly has something for close-quarters combat that you can't see yet.
Be advised that you will be facing Margh Grouse afterward, though given his magnanimous nature, he's likely to give you a chance to adjust your Stance and use an Armor Charge before the battle begins–should you take any damage. This doesn't mean he's stupid, if he feels you're trying to drag the battle out in hopes of timing him out, he's likely to take steps to stack the deck in his favor somehow, or worse, turn it into a three-way, given how slippery Tolstan is, that would likely go poorly for you.
Winfrid seems to have Fine Mail and a Fine Longbow, if the latter has further enchantments, you can't make it out at this distance. He also has an extremely fine cloak–that's somehow managed to repel all of the mud and scuff of a day's battle, it is definitely enchanted–given his tactics, it likely helps conceal his presence, so you should take care to have a countermeasure to him trying to hide and set up an ambush.
This is likely to be the climax of the Tournament, hold nothing back.
0~0~0
[ ] Sample Combat Plan
-[ ] Stance: Pick 8 Prayers or Feats to use in this combat (from the Stance Options list below).
-[ ] Expenditures: As an optional entry, you may state how much Zeal you are willing to expend in this combat and on what.
-[ ] Tactics: Describe what you are going to do.
For ease of reference, here are the possible options for a Stance, arranged by category with costs and a brief summary of effects (including current equipment bonuses). Full descriptions may be found on the character sheet. For reference and comparison purposes, basic attacks deal 30 Damage.
Ongoing Effects:
-Litany of Resolve (No Cost): Provides increased mental defences.
-Perfect Footing (No Cost): Never trip normally, provides resistance to being tripped or having your footing messed with.
-Prayer For Perseverance (5 Fervour per turn): Lets you ignore Stamina and fight forever.
-Through Their Eyes (No Cost) Allows perceiving through Crowley's senses and vice versa.
-Strandsense (No Cost): Allows perceiving stuff within a nearby area via invisible web.
-Vanguard's Prayer (6 Fervour per turn): Grants +1 Speed and a +2 bonus on attacks.
Attacks:
-Black Scratch (8 Fervour): A strike using the red-black lightning. Deals 50 Damage (including a minimum of 30 to armour).
-Darting Strike (3 Fervour): Draw a weapon, charge, and attack. Provides movement, +1 initiative as an opener, deals 40 Damage.
-Faulty Ground (5 Fervour): Trips an enemy. Deals 20 Damage ignoring most resistances and renders them prone.
-Francisca Toss (6 Fervour) Tosses a francisca as a ranged attack.+1 initiative as an opener, deals 40 Damage or, if the target has a shield, causes the loss of 2-3 Shield Uses (depending on circumstances).
-Giant-Killing Blow (15 Fervour): Big attack. Deals 130 Damage (including a minimum of 30 to armour).
-Horde-Breaking Charge (8 Fervour): Charges and body checks one or more people. Provides movement, knocks people prone, deals 20 damage.
-Limb-Breaking Hold (10 Fervour): Wrestling hold (so needs a hand free). Deals 20 Damage ignoring most resistances and breaks a limb.
-Stunning Blow (6 Fervour): Unarmed attack that requires being in close. Deals 20 Damage and stuns the target.
-Sweeping Slash (8 Fervour): Multiattack. Hits up to three nearby targets for 40 Damage each.
Defences:
-Clever Deflection (1 Fervour): Defends and, if successful, creates an opening in the opponent's guard.
-Slip Free (6 Fervour): Gives a roll with a bonus to escape a grapple, doesn't require an action the first time per round you use it.
Utility
Pulling the Web (3 Fervour): Allows moving 20 lb or lighter unattended items within the Hama Web's area, does not cost an action, relatively imprecise but does allow weapon retrieval.
0~0~0
"So, we were planning on having a five round tournament, let's see how things shake loose with the groupfight and..."
(Rolls some Grace Checks)
"I GUESS WE'RE DOING THE FINAL BATTLE RIGHT NOW, LET'S GO"
@Alectai was it ever stated what kind of traps Tolstan was noted for?
Would we be able to disrupt traps with Faulty-Ground?
If we're able to react in time would Pulling the Web/Clever Deflect be able to redirect projectiles?
[X] Plan For the Next Fight
-[X] Stance: Prayer For Perseverance, Perfect Footing, Vanguard's Prayer, Strandsense, Darting Strike, Clever Deflection, Faulty Ground, Giant Killing Blow
-[X] 35 Fervour per turn, 3 Zeal for the Boost to Rebuke
-[X] Tactics: Hordebreaker style and going to close the distance, using Perfect Footing to clear out any potential traps or environmental hazards, while deliberately using Faulty Ground to trip Tolstan up to force him to engage in melee while defending from his ranged attacks and charging towards him, while using Strandsense to keep an eye out for unexpected avenues of attack or entrapment, or attempts to break line of sight specifically. Upon reaching melee range, immediately go for the Giant Killing Blow to blow open his close quarters combat defenses, while using Faulty Ground to keep him from making distance immediately afterwards.
Close distance, keep him from making distance, and then STRONG SLASH.
The sooner this duels over, the sooner we can intervene in the rest of the ongoing melee so Audrey's allies can be fresher for the final round when she gets her 1v1 against Margh up next
@Alectai was it ever stated what kind of traps Tolstan was noted for?
Would we be able to disrupt traps with Faulty-Ground?
If we're able to react in time would Pulling the Web/Clever Deflect be able to redirect projectiles?
Caltrops, surprise razor-sharp stuff to bang your shins against, walls, that kind of thing, he can materialize magic flint from nothing within the range of his perception.
Clever Deflect doesn't need to "React in time", you can just deflect any incoming projectiles that you detect coming.
You can't GKB right the instant you get into melee unless you also Clever Deflectioned him the turn before, but the general thrust of this plan would still be intact. You'd Darting Strike him, and he'd either tank it or not, and then you'd be in a scrum.
The plan's fine, it's just that you won't instantly GKB him unless you have an opening first.
You can't GKB right the instant you get into melee unless you also Clever Deflectioned him the turn before, but the general thrust of this plan would still be intact. You'd Darting Strike him, and he'd either tank it or not, and then you'd be in a scrum.
Yeah, my mindset is that either the Darting Strike and Faulty Ground will enable the opening to happen once we manage to close the distance, or he'll manage to play keep away for long enough that some other development will occur to have us recalibrate our plan. Like him revealing he's got some kind of ancestral ghost possessed super sword or the french dude showing up to mob us with his minions while trying to hold off Meargh or something catastrophic like that
Yeah, my mindset is that either the Darting Strike and Faulty Ground will enable the opening to happen once we manage to close the distance, or he'll manage to play keep away for long enough that some other development will occur to have us recalibrate our plan. Like him revealing he's got some kind of ancestral ghost possessed super sword or the french dude showing up to mob us with his minions while trying to hold off Meargh or something catastrophic like that
Would we be able to disrupt traps with Faulty-Ground?
If we're able to react in time would Pulling the Web/Clever Deflect be able to redirect projectiles?
Expanding on these: Faulty Ground can't do much to counter other traps because of how it works (it insinuates your Hama under someone's feet, making a slight hill, which then drops away creating a mini-pit trap).
Redirecting attacks in the sense of aiming them at other people is not available (not with your current kit, anyway), and Pulling the Web doesn't really help, but Clever Deflection works just fine on ranged attacks. It doesn't create openings as well when used that way, but it works just fine. The only things Clever Deflection doesn't work well against tend to be AoE stuff or field effects...if you can dodge or block something without moving vast distances, you can generally use Clever Deflection against it.
So, to be clear, GKB does not expose you to anything. Not any more than any other attack. It's just real expensive, which means you have to pick your moments carefully or waste it and you could wind up low on Fervour and thus 'exposed' in a sense if you use multiple ones in succession or something and wind up sans Fervour. But the bolded part? That's not a thing per se
Now it hasn't really come up, since we always use Clever Deflection, and I doubt it's something we'd want to do if we aren't in a good position to land it, but do we or do we not actually require an opening to use GKB?
Now it hasn't really come up, since we always use Clever Deflection, and I doubt it's something we'd want to do if we aren't in a good position to land it, but do we or do we not actually require an opening to use GKB?
It is not mechanically required. Generally speaking, however, Audrey is gonna be reluctant to use such a high cost attack without some sort of setup to make it more likely to hit even if you put it in the plan that she do so. You'd need to include 'even if there's no opening' or some sort of similar language if you actually want her to GKB without an opening of some kind.
[X] Plan For the Next Fight Stingy Edition
-[X] Stance: Prayer For Perseverance, Perfect Footing, Vanguard's Prayer, Strandsense, Darting Strike, Clever Deflection, Faulty Ground, Giant Killing Blow
-[X] 35 Fervour per turn
-[X] Tactics: Hordebreaker style and going to close the distance, using Perfect Footing to clear out any potential traps or environmental hazards, while deliberately using Faulty Ground to trip Tolstan up to force him to engage in melee while defending from his ranged attacks and charging towards him, while using Strandsense to keep an eye out for unexpected avenues of attack or entrapment, or attempts to break line of sight specifically. Upon reaching melee range, immediately go for the Giant Killing Blow to blow open his close quarters combat defenses, while using Faulty Ground to keep him from making distance immediately afterwards.
The leading plan seems solid, but I don't think we need the rebuke boost here , if he's fought enough squires to know what normal rebuke is at this level, then the regular hordebreaker buff should be enough to get him to waste an attack, since he seems to like being very efficient about his attacks. the zeal we have is all we have for the whole tournament after all.
The leading plan seems solid, but I don't think we need the rebuke boost here , if he's fought enough squires to know what normal rebuke is at this level, then the regular hordebreaker buff should be enough to get him to waste an attack, since he seems to like being very efficient about his attacks. the zeal we have is all we have for the whole tournament after all.
To be clear, the reason to use Zeal to boost Rebuke is not to get him to waste one attack. If you choose to do it, the point is to make what Audrey thinks is one of his great advantages, his efficiency, no longer apply. If someone's great efficiency is one of their advantages making them spend 10 Maegen rather than 6 per attack is a big deal and forces him to either use more expensive attacks or really overcharge his weaker ones to make them work at all.
Now, that's not to say that there's not an argument for saving the Zeal, since Zeal is valuable, but Audrey's goal in using Zeal on Rebuke, if that's what you choose to do, is not to stop a single attack, it's to fuck up his whole game plan and make him fight at a disadvantage by doing so. It's a resource economy play.
And again, it's certainly not one you're obligated to use, but Audrey thinks it would be an effective tactic.
Caltrops, surprise razor-sharp stuff to bang your shins against, walls, that kind of thing, he can materialize magic flint from nothing within the range of his perception.
Clever Deflect doesn't need to "React in time", you can just deflect any incoming projectiles that you detect coming.
How does Rebuke work with traps? Will by default if Rebuke is higher then trap investment cost negate damage but still allow any status effects to apply?
How does Rebuke work with traps? Will by default if Rebuke is higher then trap investment cost negate damage but still allow any status effects to apply?
How does Rebuke work with traps? Will by default if Rebuke is higher then trap investment cost negate damage but still allow any status effects to apply?
For status effects, that's still mostly true but, well, how are we defining status effects? Walls are still walls...they won't hurt you if Rebuke isn't beaten, but they will still block your path (barring breaking them down), you can still fall in a pit (though you won't take damage), and so on. One way to think of it might be that if it's an effect on you, Rebuke stops it, but if it's an effect on the world that just inconveniences you it doesn't. Or doesn't necessarily anyway.
While I don't like it, we do need to start spending Zeal if we want to actually make it through this tournament, and we do.
Besides, we need to end this quickly and safely. Margh has issued a challenge to the victor, and I am not going to disappoint him by showing up as anything other than our best.
Satisfied with the one he had discovered, he moved to settle in. "Do go right ahead, I saw the rude gentleman with the magnificent steed looking this way, and thought I would give a challenge to the victor!" He met Audrey's gaze and tilted his head in recognition. "Ah yes, Sir Eotenslaga, my thanks for the forbearance you granted my Brother as well! Fear not, no miscreants will be permitted to interfere until your match has concluded, I will ensure the security of this hallowed battlefield between peers!"
... Is it bad that I kinda want to make the next duel against Margh a 1-on-1?
Like, I know that it is an objectively bad idea that takes the fight from "Tough, but probably winnable" to "Not that", but it kinda feels appropiate, doesn't it? We challenged him to a spar earlier, which he defered until during this melee, we already took out his brother in a 1-on-1 and Margh is a nice chap that I wouldn't mind too much losing against. Besides, Audrey has the Wrath+Pride combo, so challenging worthy opponents to cinematic duels where nothing vital is on the line wouldn't be out of the question.
If anyone asks, we could say we did it to give our allies a chance to catch their breath and recover some ressources while we fight a probably doomed battle.
