NorseQuest (A Norse Xianxia)

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: the Element of Surprise

[X] **Plan the Element of Surprise**
-[X] We will scout the castle using our flygia before finalising our plan, to gather more information, particularly ways to lure the knights outside the castle. But provisionally, our idea is:
-[X] Up the River, you'll sail up the river straight to the castle's walls
-[X] ...After having deposited a strike team, who will climb up the cliff using the distraction of our frontal attack, assaulting their way through the castle, eliminating any surprised combatants they find, and then attacking the garrison on the walls from behind as they're engaged with us.
-[X] This will deal a fatal blow to the defender's morale, and may even lead defenders fighting outside the walls (cough cough, Knights) to assume the castle has fallen.

[X] (Optional) You're not sure that you can handle this with the men you have, perhaps you should see if there are any men of the Danelaw in the area?

0~0~0
Norsemen in the area (Hamingja: 6x2, 5x5, 4x4, 3x3, 2x1, 1x1)19+2(Reward Dice)=21 Successes
When sieging anywhere, you want to have at least twice as many men as the enemy—ideally thrice or more. Men will die when you're assaulting fortified structures. It's a simple fact of combat and, as bitter-tasting as it is, it's important that you have the manpower to fill the holes they leave.

Unfortunately, you don't have the manpower to take Daw's Castle—flat out. Maybe, maybe if you caught them by utter surprise you could do it—but that's a fool's dream at best. Thanks to the series of sea-forts and coastal watchtowers that King Alfred ordered built many decades ago, any ship that dares approach the coast will swiftly be known about far and wide. As a result, the people in Daw's Castle will know of your presence, though that doesn't mean they know you're going for them.

As long as you don't give it away, you'll be able to catch them off-balance—but not off-guard. While they won't be ready for you, they'll still have their armor donned and their weapons close enough to grab at the first sign of trouble. There'll be at least one person near any beacons and, if lit, they'll first spell danger and then disaster—if you're still there by the time proper reinforcements can arrive, that is.

The problem is, there's no good way to approach them while still retaining the element of surprise. As you sit in your tent and pore over the maps, you just can't find an angle. Approaching up the river means passing by Watchet, who'll certainly send out an alert to nearby towns and forts. Scaling the cliffside, while doable, is still a dangerous task—even more so if whoever's on watch isn't blind and starts dropping stuff on you. The only way you can think to approach would be overland, but that comes with its own downsides in the form of not having an easy way to retreat.

Maybe if you—

The tent-flap swings open as a puzzled Svend Sulsson steps into your space, "Hey, uh, boss? You might want to come have a look at this."

You sigh and rub at your eyes, "Just tell me what it is."

Svend blinks and leans back out of the tent before yelling, "Oscar! What kind of ships where they again?"

Ships?

Oscar Sharphone's shouted voice answers Svend from beyond sight of the tent, "I don't fucking know! Small ones, I guess? Go ask Eric, or even Nokkvi!"

Svend huffs and goes to do just that, but Eric beats him to it, "Karvi! Two of them, sixteen oars each!"

Svend shuffles out of the way as you exit your tent, a slight frown on your face and a crease between your brows. The ground—still wet from the storm earlier that day, which had forced you ashore—squelches and squishes beneath your shoes as you make your way down to the shore.

Sure enough, there's a pair of sixteen-oared karvi heading straight towards you. They both have their sails up, as is only wise when in bowshot of the shore, and rely on their crew's strength to row safely to shore.

At the dragon-prow of the first-most ship stood a man with a foot on the railing. As he drew closer and his figure grew clearer, the shaped, pointed beard on his face took on an unusual white hue.

A smile creeps up your face as recognition blossoms and Stigr races forward. As the man sets foot on the sand, Stigr hits him like a sling-stone—Stigmar not too far behind.

"Stigulf!" Stigr's happy shout causes the building tension to evaporate as Stigulf Snowbeard returns his brother's hug. Stigmar leaps in a half-step behind, his weight sending all three brothers tumbling to the waves lapping at the sandy beach. Even Stigulf can barely keep the smile off his face as he reunites with his family.

As you turn to Abjorn—who had drawn up next to you as the ships drew in—your words die on your lips. Not an inch of Abjorn so much as twitches as the second ship makes landfall, he doesn't even breath as his eyes stay locked to its master as he sets ashore.

Though he'd left long before you'd gotten to know Abjorn, the resemblance is unmistakable. Farbjorn Vidsson towers over everyone in attendance—Abjorn included. His body is covered in hardened, thickly-corded muscle that sits eager to be used. His hands more resemble bricks then they do appendages and his eyes could scare even the unruliest child straight.

He carries no weapons and wears no armor—for why would a man with skin of iron require such paltry, fleeting tools? The world bows to his presence as he locks eyes with Abjorn—the unmistakable aura of the odr cultivator making itself known.

You swallow the dryness in your throat as your concerned thoughts turn to Abjorn. All his life, he's been compared to the man before you and never favorably. How must he feel, to finally be looking eye-to-eye with Farbjorn after so long?

As the pile of brothers-named-Stig quickly devolves into an impromptu wrestling match, Farbjorn strides forward. Every step he takes sends shivers down the sand, but Abjorn stands firm all the same.

Farbjorn stops just out of Abjorn's reach, his face an unfeeling wall of iron. Eventually, he speaks with a voice like crackling lightning, "Does Father still live?"

"He does," Abjorn nods.

A flicker of disappointment flashes across Farbjorn's face as his shoulders slump near imperceptivity. "Damn," he grunts out through a heavy frown. His eyes flick to you, "Who's this?"

"Halla Skyfire," you answer as you step forward and extend a hand, "Abjorn's my husband."

Farbjorn eyes you and your bold hand for a long moment. Taking it, he nods his respect to you, "Farbjorn Bleedingstone," and to your husband. "Abjorn, you're a lucky man."

Abjorn looks like he might pass out.

0~0~0

After leading Stigulf Snowbeard and Farbjorn Bleedingstone to your tent and laying out the situation, they both agree to lend their strength and that of their men to the fight, which bolsters your forces by another thirty-six warriors—which brings your total to seventy-four, yourself included.

Stigulf seems to be about equal to Heima Smiles, but Farbjorn outclasses them both by a sea-mile. He is, without a doubt, nearing the peak of power—if he's not there already.

(Farbjorn Bleedingstone's Felag has Allied itself to Yours!)

Spoiler: Farbjorn's Felag

Farbjorn's Ship, the Crush-Dragon

Spoiler: [I

Crush-Dragon's[/I] Crew]
-Farbjorn Bleedingstone (Near-Peak)
-1 Top
-2 Lower Tops
-6 Upper Middle
-8 Middles

Stigulf's Ship, the Golden Glimmer

Spoiler: [I

Golden Glimmer's[/I] Crew]
-Stigulf Snowbeard (Upper Top)
-1 Lower Top
-4 Upper Middle
-7 Middles
-6 Lower Middles

0~0~0
(Tactics: 6x1, 5x5, 4x1, 3x2, 2x2, 1x3)10+5(Frenzy)+3(Scouting Rank)=18 Successes

As you make camp a few beaches away from Daw's Castle, you send out your fylgja to do a little bit of scouting. If the storm hadn't thrown Farbjorn and Stigulf off-course—which allowed them to meet up with you—then what you see may very well have cratered any hope you had of winning the day.

For you see, the garrison of Daw's Castle has been reinforced by a group of fifteen Norse mercenaries. Their strength isn't anything overly stand-out—mostly around the middle of the power ranking—except for the man who leads them, a man with hair of red and eyes of steel.

A beardless face, your kinsman is tall and slender with a certain graceful flair to every movement. A strange, one-edged and curving sword hangs from his belt while a sax sits at its side. He's clearly strong—the world bows to his whims in the tell-tale way of the odr cultivator, after all—but he seems to lack any obvious hint of what he might be capable of. Which is rather disconcerting.

Still, even with his men bolstering their ranks, you still well outnumber Daw's Castle. Unfortunately, as the onus of initiation is on you, you won't be able to see how they react until combat has begun. Even with that in mind, you can still get a general understanding of priorities.

Tobias Belanger will be focused on keeping himself safe and, once that's secured, repelling any attack. Louis Dubois will leap into the biggest clump of enemies he can find. Serge Gagnon will be focused on responding to the situation, with emphasis on eliminating high-threats first. His Squire is going to seek out the strongest person that he believes he can defeat. The Priest... you have no idea on.

The Thanes and Mercenaries will, unless given direction, act independently. Your Kinsman will likely lead his men, giving them direction in battle. You get the feeling that you and he will end up fighting, at some point. That's just how these things tend to play out, in your experience.

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense)
Orthstirr: (520/660) | Odr: (36)
( ) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 109d6 and you have 15d6 Stoked Dice

What is your battleplan?
[ ] Plan name
-[ ] Plan

0~0~0

AN: I'm a little uncertain on how this one will work out, mechanics wise.

And no longer uncertain

25-minute moratorium.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: The Element of Surprise Mk. 2.5: Different People For Different Jobs

[X] **Plan The Element of Surprise Mk. 2.5: Different People For Different Jobs**
-[X] Sail the Wavedancer up the river straight to the castle's walls, grabbing everyone's attention, and begin a direct assault.

-[X] ...After having stealthily deposited a strike team consisting of Heima Smiles and his eight picked wolves, who will climb up the cliff using the distraction of our frontal attack.
--[X] Heima's Instructions: Take pockets of the garrison by surprise, and ideally eliminate Tobias as he cowers behind his high walls, before attacking the walls from behind to support our attack. If he can stop any beacons being lit too, then that would be good. Avoid killing non-combatants or bringing the Priest into the fight if at all possible. We leave this up to Heima's judgement and experience.

-[X] Stigulf, Farbjorn, and their and our other elites (Lower Top or better) will be on hand to counter the enemy knights, and will actively move to engage such targets if possible.

-[X] Meanwhile, we and Abjorn will lead our troops and take the fight to the enemy Thanes and Norsemen and prepare for our kinsmen to come find us...we'll take the opportunity to go for him directly if it comes up. We will obviously adapt to situations as they arise, but this is the plan.

-[X] Ideally, the strike team attacking the walls from behind cause a collapse in the defender's morale, and and lead many to believe the castle has fallen, allowing the knights and the Norse to accept terms of honourable surrender.

-[X] Move Travel Pack to a Pocket, put Thievesbane on our belt (adding +2 Combat Pool), personally unassign all Tricks from our Fylgja and store 9 additional Basic Shields in it. Also assign Stabilizing Palm and Forceful Lever into our remaining Capacity.

0~0~0

After dropping Heima and his eight picked men—which consists of Abjorn, Nokkvi, Eric, Kare Ulfsson, Randolf Well-Named, Gordon Wiggles, Bo Burisson, and Halle the Hairless—off in the faering Eric gave you as a belated wedding present, you start the next step in your plan.

With the Wavedancer leading the Crush-Dragon and Golden Glimmer, you start rowing up the river Washford. There's no hiding your presence from the town of Watchet—built on the edge of the river as it is—so it's no surprise when a horse-mounted messenger races off towards Daw's Castle.

Stigr fingers his bowstring as the mounted boy gallops away as fast as he can. He lines up the shot, but tilts his head your way before letting the arrow fly, "It's an easy shot, want me to take it?"

You shake your head no, "If they're preparing for us, they won't be for Heima."

Stigr huffs and lets the arrow go slack on the string—the boy disappearing into the woods, "Fine, fine... That's gonna bite us in the ass, I bet."

"Maybe, but we're not supposed to attack mortals," you remind both him and your crew at large. Stigr grunts a wordless response as he returns to the oars.

After about fifteen minutes of rowing, you drop anchor at the river's shore. Shoe-clad feet follow as the rope-wrapped stones hit the mud. A trail of footprints follows you and your men as you make towards Daw's Castle at a light jog.

You offer a cheery wave to a shepherd tending his flock as you exit the woods into the pastures of common ground surrounding the sea-fort. He absent-mindedly returns it before his eyes fall on the shining mail on your body, the naked weapons in your grasp, and the direction you move in. His knuckles whiten around his crook as his face pales. The men share a chuckle as the panicked shepherd shuffles his sheep away from the looming battle.

As the sheep clear away and the sea-fort rises in the distance, you swallow the dryness in your throat. The gate was already closed by the time you arrived, so you'll have to scale the walls. Fortunately, you came prepared.

You stop at the bottom of the hill and roughly sixty Norsemen stop with you. Mail shines as Thanes take to the battlements with javelins in hand. A lone, well-dressed man with slicked-back blonde hair appears at the top of the wall.

"I am Lord Tobias Belanger," the Nobleman announces himself as he pears out towards you. "What brings Danes to my doorstep?"

You exchange glances with Farbjorn and Stigulf before nodding, turning back towards Tobias, you cup your hands around your mouth and call out, "We are vikings and we have come for your lives and loot!"

Tobias scowls and says something to his men. A horn is blown. The battle is on.

0~0~0
(Tactics: 6x3, 5x3, 4x3, 3x4, 2x1)18+5=23 Successes

Heima's team had to carefully and slowly climb the cliffside in order to avoid detection, which means that it'll be some time before they can proceed with their part of the plan. Fortunately, with all eyes on you, they can make the rest of the climb in a minute or two.

Tobias Belanger is currently standing at the top of the tower-centerpiece of the fort, which gives him a good view of the battle.

There are two sets of walls, though only the inner ring is actually manned—by Thanes and Norsemen alike. All of the Thanes have javelins—and many of them, at that!—while only about three of the Norsemen carry bows. You can expect to see Norsemen pick up and throw javelins as well.

You'll have to scale the outer wall first before you can assault the inner—walls are just big fences, after all, and the power of the fence stops people from just hopping over. However, once you crest the outer wall, you'll be vulnerable to the ranged attacks of the inner wall's defenders. Before that, however, the outer wall will serve to give you cover from javelins and arrows.

Once you crest the inner wall, you'll be free to fly around as you please. You and your men brought grappling hooks along, which will be used to scale for those who can't leap that high.

On the left side of the inner wall is Louis Dubois, while Thomas Laurent and your Kinsman are on the right. You're not sure where Serge Gagnon is, but it's pretty safe to assume that he's in the courtyard—where he and his horse can have room to work. The Knightly Birds of Serge and Thomas circle in the sky—but inside the walls—waiting for the opportunity to strike.

This is your last chance to do any sort of organized planning before chaos takes control. You'll need to give orders to Stigulf and Farbjorn—or you can just leave them to their own devices.

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense)
Orthstirr: (520/660) | Odr: (36)
( ) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 111d6 and you have 15d6 Stoked Dice

What do you and your men do?
[ ] (Plan Name)
-[ ] (Dice) Attack
-[ ] (Dice) Defense
-[ ] (Dice) Intercept
-[ ] (Dice) (Trick) (Orthstirr)
-[ ] Tactics Write in
-[ ] (Optional) What directions do you give to Stigulf and/or Farbjorn?

0~0~0

AN: Not a lot to say here

25-minute moratorium.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Ranged Dueling

[X] Plan Ranged Dueling
-[X] Assign Semi-Halting Vortex, unassign Heated Shroud
-[X] Invest 3 Orthstirr in Hugr, 1 in Composure, 4 in Tactics, 4 in Silver-Tongue, 3 in Scouting (-15 Orthstirr)
-[X] Remove one Bomb Boulder from our Fylgja and give it to Farbjorn, replace it with a Glue Pot, have our Fylgja get ready to feed us items quickly. Put Sagaseeker in our Armory Pocket and pull out our Bolt Thrower instead, which we'll start with slung over our back so we can pull out and throw a boulder when needed (we'll drop it and draw Sagaseeker when and if needed).
-[X]Activate Banish The Night
-[X] 83d6 Attack (74d6 tricks)
-[X] 28d6 Defense (28d6 tricks)
-[X] 0d6 Intercept
-[X] Put 4 Orthstirr into 8 layers of Reinforce Shield before the combat begins (-4 Orthstirr) and activate our Explosive-Reactive Armor (-9 Orthstirr) using our armor's Orthstirr reserve.

-[X] Activate Stoker State 3 (-9 Orthstirr), Slipstream (-8 Orthstirr),and Ember-Wing Cloak (-6 Orthstirr) as combat begins (all subsequent rolls include the +1d6 from Skyfire).

-[X] Put up a 50d6+9 (w/Hugareida) Semi-Halting Vortex to protect us andthose near us from ranged attacks, do not use it against melee attacks (-50 Orthstirr).

-[X] Make a 70d6+5 Orthstirr-Enhanced x17 Chuck attack w/Puncture with a bomb boulder (-30 Orthstirr, -1 Odr) once we have an opening to do so at the gate, also make a total of up to nine 8d6+5 Sharpenedx3 Basic Attacks using our Bolt Thrower (-3 Orthstirr each) and up to six 7d6+5 (w/Hugareida) Orthstirr-Enhancedx3 Kindle Spinners (-5 Orthstirr each) opportunistically.

-[X] Against a wave of javelins, throw out up to two 27d6+5 (w/Hugareida) Orthstirr-Enhanced x13 Inertia-Arresting Throws to protect other groups of people not immediately around us (-19 Orthstirr each)

-[X] Against the first attack by the 8th Decade bird where the range makes it viable use Contested Movement adding all our Stoker State dice tothe action (-3 Orthstirr, 23d6+5 or higher on the roll) counterattacking with a quick-drawn Glue-Pot w/Puncture (-9 Orthstirr).

-[X] Against melee attacks by the 3rd Decade bird (if it comes for us) use Contested Movement alone (-3 Orthstirr, 8d6+5 roll) and counterattackwith a Firebomb-Strike + Stunner Slam combo w/Puncture (-23 Orthstirr) intended to be nonlethal and knock the bird out.

-[X] If something specifically with Puncture heads at us, have the Semi-Halting Vortex ignore it, and pull a shield from our Fylgja and use that to counter it. Otherwise, by default use our ongoing Semi-Halting Vortex to defend against ranged attacks against us or those near us, if anything gets through that or looks too big for it to work against, or against melee attacks from non-birds, try and throw up a regular Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr) again to defend against any attacks against ourselves and anyone near us if possible and use Sidestep (-2 Orthstirr) if it is not, and if something that ignores that or otherwise gets through and Reinforce Shield is down or somehow out of commission use up to four 60d6+9 Reinforcedx58 Sway defenses to save ourselves (-60 Orthstirr each).

-[X] In the unlikely event we go down to 100 Orthstirr or below stoke Frami

-[X] Tactics – Tell Barki to specifically go for the less powerful bird and to incapacitate without killing if possible, and have Vagn stick with us as much as possible. Give a Boulder-Bomb to Farbjorn immediately pre-combat and suggest he use Odr on it (that part using Eyespeech) and toss it at the gates, providing us a means of entrance, then prepare he, Stigulf, and their other people to intercept Serge and defend us all from his charge (we assume he knows his business about how to do that). At that point, our forces advance into the courtyard, with Halla in the air providing defensive overwatch from Javelin attacks as best as possible and taking potshots with Kindle Spinner. At our first opportunity we throw our remaining boulder bomb at the second gate and pull our Bolt Thrower off our back and start using attacks with that as well (including at the more powerful bird). Hopefully, all of this draws the more powerful bird into attacking us.

0~0~0

Farbjorn eyes the rune-carved boulder you place in front of him, not overly impressed by it. Fair is fair, after all, he's taller than it. "And this is your plan to break the gates?"

You narrow your eyes, "You got a better one?"

"Yeah," he says as he cracks his neck, "I do."

With that, he confidently strides towards the gate of the outer wall—a large, imposing door set into the only stone part of the structure. Rolling his shoulders as he walks, he seems to sink ever-so-slightly deeper into the ground with every step he takes.

His men start to trickle in behind him as he reaches the gate. Farbjorn tilts his head to the side as if appraising the door and you watch with furrowed brows as he comes to a conclusion. Nods to himself, a smile spreads across his face as he crouches.

His fingers dig into the dirt and your jaw hinges open. Muscles flex, straining with all their might as veins and arteries stand-out on his flesh. That easy, confident smile of his stays shining even as his teeth stay gritted. Where once there was the noise of looming battle, now there is only a single sound echoing across the field—the sound of cracking stone and crumbling earth.

Keeping his back straight as he plants his feet firm in the ground, Farbjorn lifts with his legs.

The entire doorway—gatehouse and all—shudders as it rises into the air. Rust red orthstirr surges as Farbjorn holds the entire structure aloft! As once-packed earth crumbles and newly-loosened stones fall, everyone watches with baited breath as Farbjorn's smile merely broadens—like the weight of a building many times his size means utterly nothing to him!

He takes a single step forward—a step as easy and as unburdened as every step preceding it—and throws.

Gate meets gate in an teeth-rattling clash of wood, iron, and stone. A giant dust cloud flies from the impact, obscuring the sight but all in attendance know what just happened. In one fell swoop, a single man has breached the gates.

A hawk cries and Farbjorn stiffens as Serge Gagnon enters the fray. With lance in hand and an armor-clad charger between his legs, the Knight bursts from the smoke as his horse easily clears the pile of rubble.

Gagnon's lance shines with white-gold Fervor as he aims it square at Farbjorn.
(Prayer Charge: (275+35)x2=620 vs Fortified Trick Defense: 610+15=625, Defender Wins! Strike-Through Negated!)
Farbjorn's arm swings up and his fingers splay wide. The taste of odr—unknowable to most, but very familiar to you—fills the air as a spray of red blood joins it. The tip of Gagnon's lance sprouts from the back of Farbjorn's palm as both warriors stand still. A trench three times as long as Farbjorn is tall stretches from where he once stood to where he stands now—the force of the blow nothing to trifle with.

Driving a foot into the ground, Farbjorn lurches forward, grabs the horse by the barding, and bodily hurls both mount and rider head-over-hoofs behind him. Gagnon's horse rights itself with ease as it daintily alights at the bottom of the hill, but Farbjorn isn't far behind. The moment the pair left his grasp, Farbjorn chased after them with a single, bounding leap.

As Norseman and Christian face off, it's clear that this is a duel between champions—a duel between men of rank, irrespective of their different cultures. There will be no interrupting them, not if one wants to remain in good standing with either.

The battle begins in earnest.

Your Norsemen shout battle cries as they stream forward in the vague shape of an arrow while your Kinsman curses from atop the wall. He twists around on the spot, barking orders as he turns, and leaps down from the battlement. A mixed collection of mercenary Norsemen and Thanes follow close behind as they rush to fill the gate-shaped gap.

On wings of crimson fire, you streak across the sky as you spearhead the charge as best you can. Light glows from your body as you take the role of the guiding star. Your Kinsman waves his naked sword as the arrow nearly reaches the line forming on the mound of rubble.

A wave of power-clad javelins comes thundering out, only to freeze in midair as twin Inertia-Arresting Throws bind them down.

You and your Kinsman lock steely eyes as charging spear meets bracing shield and blood stains the rubble red.

(Round End)
(Unspent Orthstirr and Odr Refunded)
0~0~0
(Tactics: 6x1, 5x4, 4x6, 2x3)13+5+1=19 Successes
(Your Formation's Attack: 28+63(Size)+5(Champions)=96 vs Enemy Formation's Defense: 3+20(Defending)+40(Size)+3(Champions)=66, Attackers Win! Formation Breakdown!)
As the charging spearhead clashes with the defending shieldwall, the lines ebb and flow as shield impacts shield. However, the rubble provides poor footing for the defenders and their shieldwall crumbles in the face of your onslaught.
(Allied Initial Casualties: 6-3(Initial Victory Reduces by Half)=1 of Farbjorn's Felag, 2 of Yours) (Enemy Initial Casualties: 4=1 Norseman, 3 Thanes.)
As the formations break down and duels and small group fights break out across the interior of the sea fort, seven bodies are left on and surrounding the rubble. Three are from your side while four are from the enemy's.
(Allied Death Saves: 3, 5, 5) 1 Dead, 2 Wounded (Identity Rolls: 16, 22) (Enemy Death Saves: 1, 4, 3, 2) 3 Dead, 1 Wounded
One of Farbjorn's felag—a younger man by the name of Holgi Jamdisson—lays face-down on the rubble. He took an javelin to the eye socket and that was that, poor guy. Two of yours lay on the ground as well—Trygve Ironoath with a pair of missing legs and Ivor Thinbow paralyzed by a broken back. They're alive, but out of the fight for the time being. Cultivator birds circle overhead, waiting for an opportunity to finish off your wounded.

On the other side, things are looking much better—for you, that is. Four enemies are on the ground with three dead and one wounded. Stigmar and Hakon Thunderclap both scored a Thane each while Trausti and Tryggr shared a Mercenary kill and Roar Shiningspear managed to wound another Thane.
Champion Activity: (Kinsman: Dueling) (Louis: Dueling) (Thomas: Dueling) (Vagn: Dueling) (Stigulf: Fighting) (Unknown 1: Dueling) (Unknown 2: Fighting). Duels: (Louis vs Unknown 1) (Thomas vs Vagn)
The champions have taken to the battlefield and are currently dueling each other and fighting their enemies. Louis Dubois and a member of Farbjorn's Felag that you don't know are currently dueling. Thomas Laurent and Vagn Wheel-Drifter are currently dueling. Stigulf and his second are is fighting whoever they can find while your Kinsman, unable to find a champion to duel, has turned to slaying anyone he can find.

All in all, the battle is going in your favor, though Tobias Belanger has disappeared from the top of the tower.

You can either seek out a champion to duel, assault the enemy soldiers, or go for the objective—which may involve both of those things as well.

Which would you like to do?
[ ] Duel a Champion
[ ] Battle amongst the men
-[ ] Focus on supporting your men
-[ ] Focus on slaying the enemy
[ ] Aim for the objective

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense) | (8/8) Reinforce Shield, ERA is active
Orthstirr: (444/660) | Odr: (36)
( ) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 0/13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 111d6 and you have 15d6 Stoked Dice

0~0~0

AN: Alright, this is the test for mass combat from the commander/champion's perspective. When you're not in the commander's chair or one of the strongest warriors in an army, all you can do is fight the man and/or men before you.

This will be a short vote, with the next update being a tactical breakdown of your foe/s and the actual combat planning section.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Chosen Options

[X] Battle amongst the men
-[X] Focus on supporting your men

0~0~0
(Tactics roll carried over) (Tactics: 6x1, 5x4, 4x6, 2x3)13+5+1=19 Successes

Going with your gut, you've decided to dart around the battlefield and lend aid where its needed. Whether that's by intercepting a mortal blow or casting spells of healing and support. Occasionally, you may strike out to take advantage of an opening.

While you do this, Thanes may throw javelins your way and Norsemen may strike out with hugareida or other abilities. That's not to say that Thanes will only throw javelins, to note, as you've seen a fair few abilities accompanying those throws. They seem to have an easier time getting through Perfect Defenses, for one, and there seems to be an odd coating of power on both themselves and their weapons.

However, while the people on the ground may be threats, the more significant threats to you right now are the cultivator birds in the sky. The Hawk—the bird of Serge Gagnon—is scarily fast and seems to posses some kind of 'blinking' ability that allows it to cross distances in an instant. The Falcon—the bird of Thomas Laurent—on the other hand, is a bit too cautious. It's had a couple opportunities now to hit one of the wounded, but hasn't taken them.

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense) | (8/8) Reinforce Shield, ERA is active
Orthstirr: (444/660) | Odr: (36)
( ) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 0/13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 111d6 and you have 15d6 Stoked Dice

What do you want to do?
[ ] (Plan Name)
-[ ] (Dice) Attack
-[ ] (Dice) Defense
-[ ] (Dice) Intercept
-[ ] (Dice) (Trick) (Orthstirr)
-[ ] Tactics Write in

0~0~0

AN: Oh boy, I suddenly started not feeling too great. So, if there's something wrong somewhere, that's what's up with it.

No moratorium, have at it.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Attracting The Bird

[X] Plan Attracting The Bird
-[X] 53d6 Attack (43d6 tricks)
-[X] 30d6 Defense (30d6 tricks)
-[X] 28d6 Intercept (28d6 tricks)
-[X] Put up a 60d6+9 (w/Hugareida) Semi-Halting Vortex to protect us and those near us (-60 Orthstirr).

-[X] If given the opportunity and it seems useful be prepared to use Stabilizing Palm or The Quickest Stitch on fallen allies.

-[X] Make a 60d6+5 Sharpenedx9 Meteoric Shot attack w/Puncture (-30 Orthstirr) on one enemy who isn't expecting it. Also make a total of up to ten 10d6+5 Sharpenedx4 Basic Attacks using our Bolt Thrower(-4 Orthstirr each) and up to one 12d6+5 (w/Hugareida) Orthstirr-Enhancedx8 Kindle Spinner (-10 Orthstirr) opportunistically(with the Kindle Spinner only used if a group of enemies separate from the scrum).

-[X] To defend our people, throw out up to two 30d6+5 (w/Hugareida) Orthstirr-Enhanced x14 Inertia-Arresting Throws to protect other groups of people not immediately around us as needed (-20 Orthstirr each)

-[X] Against the first attack against ourselves or any of our people by the 8th Decade bird where we can do so (and we'll use EWC to move if necessary to enable this) use Contested Movement adding all our Stoker State dice to the action (-3 Orthstirr, 23d6+5 or higher on the roll) counterattacking with a Chuck of a quick-drawn Glue-Pot w/Puncture (-13 Orthstirr), and if that doesn't work sacrifice a quick-drawn shield to stop it (-1 Shield).

-[X] Against attacks by the 3rd Decade bird (if it comes for us or our people) likewise use Contested Movement with one use of Fight of Our Life (-3 Orthstirr, 15d6+5 roll) and counterattack with a Firebomb-Strike + Stunner Slam combo w/Puncture (-23 Orthstirr)intended to be nonlethal and knock the bird out, and if that doesn't work sacrifice a quick-drawn shield to stop it (-1 Shield).

-[X] By default, other than the Contested Movement usages above, use our ongoing Semi-Halting Vortex to defend against all attacks against us or those near us, if things get through that or seem big and coming towards us use up to three quick-drawn shields (-1 Shield each) and then up to two 60d6+9 Reinforcedx44 Sway defenses to save ourselves(-46 Orthstirr each). If targeted by Chivalric cultivators or Norsemen not using Puncture, we will attempt to use Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr) or Sidestep (-2 Orthstirr) before resorting to Shields or Sway, but there's no point against Thanes.

-[X] In the event we go down to 100 Orthstirr or below stoke Frami

-[X] Tactics – The basic idea here is to defend our people and take potshots as opportunity presents and attempt to attract and intercept the 8th Decade Hawk, which we will then hit with a glue pot and disable it. If it doesn't take the bait, we'll use our Meteoric Shot on it to draw its attention. If that's not needed we'll instead use the Meteoric Shot on some other troublesome looking cultivator who's not expecting it (not one of the Chivalrics or our Kinsman).

0~0~0
(Hama-Raesan: 59+4=63 vs Trick Defense: 210+9=219, Defender Wins!)
An errant javelin shatters against the surface of your Semi-Halting Vortex as your teeth grind together. The rapid swirling of constant motion blurs together into a vaguely cohesive blob of violent shapes and bloody colors. Red sprays splatter across the grassy surface, coating each strand in a crimson layer of slick blood. The battle cries and pained screams of battling men echo in your ears as the cacophonous din only adds more confusion to mix.

You understand intellectually that battle—true mass battle—is a chaotic, disorientating mess, but it took actually being in the middle of such a frenzy to truly internalize it as fact.

Slapping a palm to Gorm Bloodslick's bleeding side, your orthstirr surges as it mends his sundered flesh. Sharing a nod, you help him to his feet and watch as he jumps right back into the fray. Lifting off the ground, you rise once more into the air.

Even up above, the swirling mass of combat is a disorientating mess. But at least it's not as bad as it is on the ground. Of course, flying above everyone's' heads while acting the lighthouse comes with its own set of problems.

The Thane fighting Arnfinn Heavystep shoves him back, shifts, and hurls a javelin your way. At the same time, an enemy Norseman leaps away from his opponent and hucks a javelin of his own.
(Hama-Raesan: 66+5=71 vs Trick Defense: 227+9=236, Defender Wins!) (Honed Trick Attack: 84 vs Trick Defense: 218+9=227, Defender Wins!)
Contorting on the spot, the first javelin sails harmlessly on past your twisting torso as your free hand swings up. The second javelin shatters against Standstill's might, the broken pieces falling to the ground.
(Sharpened Trick Attack: 193+5=198 vs Hama-Ealga: 82+8=90, Attacker Wins! Armor Pierced!)
The Thane who threw that first javelin stumbles back as an arm-length arrow suddenly sprouts from his chest—a courteous gift of your bolt thrower. His shock and stunned pain doesn't stick around for long as Arnfinn lunges in to take advantage. The oversized boy drives his axe through the Thane's helmet, into the temple, and cleaves it away from the rest of his head—all with a single, powerful strike.

But while you scan the battlefield and reload your weapon, the Hawk circling up above decides to make its move. Tucking in its wings, it dives towards Trygve Ironoath at breakneck speeds. You'd just finished stopping his legs from killing him, too! You can't just let it undo all your hard work, dammit!

Fortunately, you have something prepared for just such an occasion.

Reaching into your soul, you retrieve the ceramic jar filled with sealwood sap from the pocket it was stored in. As the Hawk closes in and its deadly talons gleam in the sunlight, time slows like wax drips. The jar leaves your hand and tumbles through the air as it flies in a precise arc.
(Halla's Hamr: 77+5=82 vs Hawk's Soma: 52, Halla Wins! Hawk is Trapped!)
The Hawk blinks forwards—disappearing from one spot and reappearing several feet ahead—but it doesn't matter. Reality twists and the pot smashes against the Hawk's feathers as you demand it so.

It's as the Hawk panics and starts to plummet—the sticky sap clinging to its feathers doing its work—that you realize something. Something rather curious.

The Hawk isn't a cultivator of the Eighth Decade. If your senses aren't deceiving you, then the Hawk is only a cultivator of the Fifth Decade! Is the Hawk actually Louis Dubois' bird or is there something else going on here?

Either way, the Hawk is now incapacitated on the ground.

(Round End)
(Unspent Orthstirr Refunded)
0~0~0
(Friendly Forces: 15+60(Numbers)+10(Halla Support)+10(Champions)=95 vs Enemy Forces: 10+36(Numbers)+5(Champions)=51, Friendly Advantage!)
Duels and battles rage all across the courtyard-turned-charnel house as both sides scramble for the advantage. However, despite their best efforts, the sea-fort's defenders are being pushed back. While the battle is largely a chaotic mess, there generally are two mostly distinct sides to the battle. After all, a man that gets surrounded is a soon-to-be corpse.
(Allied General Casualties: 4-3(Halla Support)=1. Enemy Champions: 2)=1 of yours, 2 of Farbjorn's. (Enemy General Casualties: 5. Friendly Champions: 6)=4 Norsemen, 7 Thanes
As the defenders step back and the attackers advance, they leave the bodies of their dead and wounded comrades behind. In a proper field battle, these bodies would be pulled off the field—but this is no proper fight.
(Allied Death Saves: 2, 2, 1) 3 Dead (Identity Rolls: 21). (Enemy Death Saves: 2, 4, 6, 4, 2, 4, 3, 3, 5, 3, 1) 6 Dead, 5 Wounded
Unfortunately, your felag just suffered its first death. Harold Hugehands was disemboweled by your Kinsman, who then stepped forward and slew one of Farbjorn's men—a man by the name of Tyrgny Fine-Dancer—with a sword-thrust to the neck. Another of Farbjorn's men, Gustav Arisson, was slain by a Thane's ice-wrapped sword.

On the other side, however, your men have racked up quite the tally. Eleven of the enemy lay dead and dying as your men step over their forms. Stigmar killed a Norseman while Jordan took a Thane. Tryggr shared a double-kill with a man of Farbjorn's felag. Stigandr put an arrow through a Norseman's head. Hakon Thunderclap put a lightning bolt through a Thane while Stigulf and his second killed and wounded three men each.
Champion Duels (Louis: 53+20=73 vs Unknown 1: 32+6=38) 1;0 - Louis' Favor. (Thomas: 98+10=108 vs Vagn: 17+3=20) 2;0 - Thomas Wins (Death Save: 3) Vagn Dies
The duel between Louis Dubois and one of Farbjorn's champions is still ongoing, though Farbjorn's man is sporting injuries and is slowing down a little.

Morale amongst the defenders is flagging. They've lost more men then you have and they didn't have all that many to begin with. Not to mention the sound of chaos coming from the inside of the tower, either.

However, as the headless body of Vagn Wheel-Drifter hits the ground and the blood-stained blade of Thomas Laurent rises into the air, morale surges.
(Enemy Champion Activity: Kinsman: Forcing a Duel, Thomas Laurent: Battling) (Friendly Champion Activity: Stigulf: Battling, Unknown 2: Dueling.) (Kinsman and Unknown 2 are now dueling)
As your Kinsman wipes the blood of Tyrgny Fine-Dancer off his blade, Stigulf's Second—who happens to be Tyrgny's kin—challenges him to a duel. Your Kinsman accepts and the pair start to clash.

Stigulf is getting stuck in while Thomas does the same. The Falcon is still active, but it seems like it won't be doing much after you disabled the Hawk.

All in all, the situation could be better, but you're definitely winning. One more victory and you'll take the day, you can feel it!

Which would you like to do?
[ ] Duel a Champion
[ ] Battle amongst the men
-[ ] Focus on supporting your men
-[ ] Focus on slaying the enemy

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense) | (8/8) Reinforce Shield, ERA is active
Orthstirr: (338/660) | Odr: (36)
( ) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 0/13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 111d6 and you have 0d6 Stoked Dice

0~0~0

AN: Champion Duels are best 2-out-of-3, unless one combatant's roll is twice their opponent's, in which case the duel ends in that combatant's favor.

No moratorium and short vote, same as last time

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Dueling a Champion

[X] Duel a Champion
-[X] Thomas Laurent

0~0~0

Alighting upon a collapsed part of the tower—a Thane had gotten thrown into it hard enough to knock down a wall—you point Sagaseeker at Thomas Laurent. The Squire merely nods and assumes a combat stance.

The duel is on.

0~0~0
(Tactics: 6x5, 5x1, 4x4, 3x1, 2x1, 1x2)14+5+2=21 Successes!

The moment you lay eyes on the Squire, it's clear that something is deeply wrong. The way he moves, it's like he's unfamiliar with his own body's limits. When he swings his sword, it's like he expects his reach to be just a little bit longer then it is.

A foul stench permeates the air—and not the smell of death. It stinks of dark, damp pits. It tastes of the bleakest cold and the blackest night. It reminds you of an empty world, like Ginnungagap.

Vagn managed to kill Thomas' horse before being slain in turn, so you won't have to face that.

Thomas seems to have a solid baseline of strength (~50 average rolls), but he can clearly boost himself to greater heights. Ice clings to the bone-white blade of his sword as he advances.

Thomas is going to try and wear you down before delivering powerful blows. He's prepared to repeat this many times. He clearly has some kind of ice power, which may play weird with your own fire.

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense) | (8/8) Reinforce Shield, ERA is active
Orthstirr: (338/660) | Odr: (36)
( ) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 0/13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 111d6 and you have 0d6 Stoked Dice

What do you want to do?
[ ] (Plan Name)
-[ ] (Dice) Attack
-[ ] (Dice) Defense
-[ ] (Dice) Intercept
-[ ] (Dice) (Trick) (Orthstirr)
-[ ] Tactics Write in

0~0~0

AN: Not much to say here other then that I'm not feeling 100% right now.

15-minute moratorium.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: I Think You Need An Exorcism

[X] Plan I Think You Need An Exorcism
-[X] Stoke Frami (+220 Orthstirr)
-[X] 46d6 Attack (34d6 tricks)
-[X] 65d6 Defense (65d6 tricks)
-[X] 0d6 Intercept
-[X] Sling our Bolt Thrower, pull Sagaseeker and move into melee

-[X] Activate Stoker State 3 (-9 Orthstirr), Slipstream (-8 Orthstirr), and Ember-Wing Cloak (-6 Orthstirr) as combat begins (all subsequent attacks and defenses benefit from Skyfire).
-[X] Use Identify Concept on the sword Thomas is holding (-3 Orthstirr)

-[X] Once we've used Hefty-Halter Chop (whether it works or not), use Orthstirr Enhanced x126 Banishing Rebuke adding 3 Odr (-150 Orthstirr, -3 Odr) to attempt to free him from whatever spirit has entered his body.

-[X] If the fight is still going after the exorcism make a total of two 60d6+5 Sharpenedx21 Lightning-Charged Flashfire Cleave attacks w/Puncture (-36 Orthstirr each), followed by twelve 12d6+5 Sharpened x5 Lightning-Charged Basic Attacks (-6 Orthstirr each), trying not to kill him unless necessary in all cases

-[X] Against his first attack use a 65d6+9 Reinforcedx17 Hefty-Halter Chop (-20 Orthstirr) to hopefully disarm him. Do this even before the Semi-Halting Vortex gets a chance to work.

-[X] Against the next three attacks use Contested Movement (again even before our Semi-Halting Vortex) with one use of Fight Of Our Life each (-3 Orthstirr, 15d6+5) and counterattack with Lightning-Charged combo attacks with Firebomb Strike + Shatter Wrist Trick w/Puncture (-14 Orthstirr each). If that fails to work we'll use a Shield from our Fylgja if possible (-1 Shield) and Focus Guard (-7 Orthstirr) or Sidestep (-2 Orthstirr) as appropriate if not.

-[X] After that, by default use our Semi-Halting Vortex to defend against everything. In response to anything without the ability to go through Perfects that gets through Semi-Halting Vortex use Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr) if possible and Focus Guard (-7 Orthstirr) or Sidestep (-2 Orthstirr) as appropriate if not, and if something somehow gets through that use up to three 60d6+9 Reinforcedx53 Sway defenses (-55 Orthstirr each), while if something looks like it ignore Perfects we'll just use a Quickdrawn Shield from our Fylgja (-1 Shield)

-[X] If, at any point, we drop below 100 Orthstirr stoke Virthing (+220 Orthstirr)

-[X] Tactics – So, he's clearly possessed, maybe by that weird sword. We're going to try and analyze the sword, ideally disarm him of it, and kick out the evil spirit. From there, if he's still fighting, we use Flashfire Cleaves, Contested Movement, and Shatter Wrist Trick + Firebomb Strike combos to deal with him in a straight fight, is the plan.

0~0~0

Crimson flames lap at your body as they snap and hiss at your surroundings. Orthstirr floods your body, rejuvenating weary limbs and filling your mind with ironclad determination. As the wind quickens your limbs and your heart pounds with increasing ferocity, you turn your gaze on to that of the icen blade.

Letting your orthstirr surge to your mind's eye, you run through every scrap of knowledge of ice and blade you know. In the blink of an eye, you've gotten a grasp of the sword's identity. Clearly, this sword has a spirit of ice bound to it, which has infected the mind of the Squire!

Questions answered and suspicions confirmed, you ready yourself for the next step in the plan. Thomas, of course, obliges like the gentleman he is. Pushing off the ground, he lunges in with a wide swing as you lift off into the air. Lightning crackles across Sagaseeker's blade as you bring him to bear.
(Halla: 215+5=220 vs Thomas: 246+10=256, Thomas Wins! Reinforce Shield Breaks! ERA Triggers!)
You didn't miss. That's just not something that happens. Either they dodge or you hit them. Thomas didn't dodge, so you hit him. It was a perfect swing, too. By all accounts, it should've stopped him in his tracks, knocked the sword out of his hands, and then left him wide open for your counter attack.

Thing is, it didn't work.

Lightning sparks against ice as sword-blade grinds against atgeir-edge. But despite the might behind your blow, despite the strength of your arm, it wasn't enough to stop the onslaught.

Darting past your guard, the sword carves a glowing path through your orthstirr armor. Orange light erupts from the cracks as an explosion throws the Squire back.

He skids as he lands, but stays on his feet—his armor having devoured the explosion's force.

(Round End)
(Unspent Orthstirr and Odr Refunded)
0~0~0
(Tactics: 6x3, 5x1, 4x5, 3x2, 2x2, 1x1)12+5+3=20 Successes

This isn't right. Something is wrong here. Either he's far stronger then anything indicated—which is rather unlikely, given what you know of the world—or there's something else in play here.

...It's almost like he's being fed more information then he'd otherwise have.

You're pretty sure that's what's happening here—though the exact method is a mystery to you. Whatever is possessing Thomas is very skilled at information gathering, allowing it and him to read you better then you do them. He's got a serious advantage in this fight, no wonder he slew Vagn!

Regardless, you can't help but feel like you've been in this situation before—or at least something like it.

There's a certain lack of something in Thomas' fighting style, like he's not doing something every other Knight and Squire you've fought has.

He's planning on repeating his former plan. He's moving in, striking a bunch, then delivering a powerful blow. However, it's clear that he's capable of dishing out seriously strong attacks if the information he's being fed deems it necessary. Those seriously strong attacks are likely to be the powerful blows, just moved around in the order of things.

Endurance: (13/13) | Frenzy: (5/5) (+5 to all Combat Rolls) | Armor Health: (17/17) (+4 to Defense)
Orthstirr: (515/660) | Odr: (36)
(X) Frami: 220 | ( ) Virthing: 220 | ( ) Saemd: 220
Sagaseeker has 49 orthstirr in his reservoir.
Your Armor has 0/13 orthstirr in its reservoir.
Shapeshifting is granting you (+1 Damage and +1 Attack-Speed)
Your combat pool is 111d6 and you have 0d6 Stoked Dice

What do you want to do?
[ ] (Plan Name)
-[ ] (Dice) Attack
-[ ] (Dice) Defense
-[ ] (Dice) Intercept
-[ ] (Dice) (Trick) (Orthstirr)
-[ ] Tactics Write in

0~0~0

AN: Well, this was a weird one to write. Figured there'd be more going on, but there wasn't.

15-minute moratorium. As this was a fairly short one, I can probably fit another one in today.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Once More, With Deadly Calm

[X] Plan Once More, With Deadly Calm
-[X] Burn a Calm Charge in hopes of masking our tactics
-[X] 29d6 Attack (17d6 tricks)
-[X] 82d6 Defense (82d6 tricks)
-[X] 0d6 Intercept
-[X] Turn Effects Still present from prior round
-[X] Once we've disarmed the guy, use Orthstirr Enhanced x126 Banishing Rebuke adding 3 Odr (-150 Orthstirr, -3 Odr) to help banish the Ice Spirit
-[X] Launch up to twelve 26d6+5 Sharpened x12 Lightning-Charged Basic Attacks (-13 Orthstirr each), trying not to kill him unless necessary in all cases, during the period we're setting up for our banishment. If he's still fighting after the banishment, try to KO him with a 21x Sharpened, Punctured, Lightning-Charged Flashfire Cleave (60d6 + 5, -36 Orthstirr), but be willing to follow up with Stabilizing Palm or other healing magic to prevent him from bleeding out.
-[X] Against his first attack, feint another Hefty-Halter Chop, but transition into a Contested-Movement Boosted (With Fight for your Life) boosted, Lightning-Charged, Sharpened Shatter-Wrist Trick to loosen his grip, or make him straight up drop the sword if we're lucky. (Paying the 3 Orthstirr and an additional 10 Orthstirr to overcome any Rebuke)
-[X] For the follow-up attack, _then_ we feint like we're going to follow that up, but this time actually use a 82d6 + 9 Reinforced x17 Hefty-Halter Chop to disarm him (-20 Orthstirr)
-[X] After that, by default use our Semi-Halting Vortex to defend against everything. In response to anything without the ability to go through Perfects that gets through Semi-Halting Vortex use Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr) if possible and Focus Guard (-7 Orthstirr) or Sidestep (-2 Orthstirr) as appropriate if not, and if something somehow gets through that use up to three 60d6+9 Reinforcedx53 Sway defenses (-55 Orthstirr each), while if something looks like it ignore Perfects we'll just use a Quickdrawn Shield from our Fylgja (-1 Shield)
-[X] Tactics – Pop the Calm Charge to ideally conceal our plans from them, and go into melee, using the short period of perfect composure to feint a disarm when we're actually going for a wrist break, and then feint another wrist break to go for a real disarm. Then we try to Exorcise as planned.

0~0~0

You have the edge in speed, so as the dust settles and smoke clears, you dart into action on wings of frenzied flame.
(Sharpened Attack1: 92+5=97, 2:86+5=91 vs Defense1: 36+10=46, 2:47+10=57, Attacker Winsx2! 9 Armor Damage! Armor Pierced! 1 Focus Damage!)
As Sagaseeker's shock-wrapped edge carves into the Knightly Armor for a second time, you can't help but feel like you may have gotten something ever so slightly wrong. If it was reading your movements or mind, then it would've known to strengthen its defenses accordingly.

Which it didn't do.

The question is why?

Why, if it can read your mind or movements, would it let you not only hit it twice, but pierce its armor on the second? It clearly wasn't expecting you to, if the way its face contorted in surprise as you cleaved away its face-plate was anything to go by. So why wasn't it ready? What changed from times previous…?

Wait. Something about the end of that thought, 'times previous', tickles your instincts in a certain, remarkably familiar way. The same feeling you get when you're about to solve a riddle washes across your body as you can't stop the grin from spreading across your face.

The past, that's the key here—the thing you were so close to grasping. The spirit isn't reading your mind or your movements, but your past! It's reading your past and extrapolating what you'll do next from it!

That would work wonders against most Norsemen. Heck, it'd work wonders against you too. The only reason it didn't is that you opened with something you almost never use—a basic, non-trick attack.

Thomas Laurent's eyes widen as you put it all together. He knows that you know how he knows what he knows, so why don't you go show him what else you know?

Your grin turns bloodthirsty. Thomas pales.

A half-minute later, the tower shudders as Thomas Laurent hits it—after you tore him from his armor, of course. He falls to the ground in a crumpled heap—unconscious, but alive. Steam rises from his unconscious form, the residual energies of the spirit accompanying him.

0~0~0
(Friendly Forces: 68+47(Numbers)+5(Champions)=120 vs Enemy Forces: 88+25(Numbers)=113, Victory Achieved!)
The Squire's defeat caused a shockwave effect of morale breaks to happen across the enemy forces. To see the champion who just slew another champion go down so quickly? Well, it's nothing short of spirit-breaking.
(Allied General Casualties: 1)=1 of Farbjorn's. (Enemy General Casualties: 3. Friendly Champions: 1)=2 Norsemen, 2 Thanes
Not many men were able to die in the time it took for you to defeat the Squire.
(Allied Death Saves: 1) 1 Dead. (Enemy Death Saves: 4, 4, 2, 4) 1 Dead, 3 Wounded
In fact, only two men died. One from Farbjorn's felag—a typically well-meaning lad by the name of Hrolfr Riggsson—and a Thane who had died killing Hrolfr. The rest of the enemy casualties were merely wounded.

However, the question of whether or not they surrender comes down to the result of the duels between your Kinsman and one of Farbjorn's Champions and Louis versus the other Champion.
Champion Duels (Louis: 75+50=125 vs Unknown 1: 85+34=119) 2;0 - Louis Wins (Death Save: 1). (Kinsman: 92+50=142 vs Unknown 2: 20+47=67) 2;0 - Kinsman Wins (Death Save: 6).
Both of Farbjorn's men fall to the ground, clearly defeated. Louis' opponent has a crater in place of a head and your Kinsman's is currently wheezing with his lungs on the outside of his body—though notably still alive.

You and Stigulf exchange glances as silence falls across the battlefield. Both of he and Farbjorn's champions losing at the same time? Near inconceivable, but reality has a funny way of proving people wrong.

The battle itself is clearly over—but that doesn't mean that the champions are done.

What would you like to do?
[ ] Demand surrender (Silver-Tongue Check)
-[ ] (Optional) Guarantee freedom for your Kinsman's men (some of your men may not like that)
-[ ] (Optional) Guarantee ownership of valuables (some of your men may not like that)
[ ] Battle your Kinsman while Stigulf battles Louis
[ ] Battle Louis while Stigulf battles your Kinsman

0~0~0

AN: Well, I'm actually a little surprised I got this one out. Apologies if anything is weird, I had to write most of this on my phone.

Halla is a smart cookie.

No moratorium.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Demanding Surrender

[X] Demand surrender (Silver-Tongue Check)
-[X] "You fought well, but not _everyone_ needs to die today. We'll need to discuss ransoms and whatnot if you want to go home rather than taking a time out of course, but as a sign of good faith, I'll handle the resuscitation of any of those fallen from your Felag who haven't met their Fated Day once I've gotten my own side up on their feet again. As for you and your fellow Knight and Squire, you're not on the List we got of people who weren't paying your king their taxes, I know, we _checked_ before we came here. The looting's just interest, you know? We're not here to kill _everyone!_"
--[X] Spend 4 Odr
-[X] If that doesn't work though, fight Louis, it's not quite so fraught even if he'll be a tougher foe.

0~0~0
(Silver-Tongue: 6x3, 5x2, 4x3, 2x3-1=2, 1x3-3=0)11+1(Friendly)+4(Good Faith)=16 Successes
You take a step forwards and call out, "You've fought well, I'll give you that, but the fight is over now! You've lost, but we didn't come here to spill your blood."

The Knight, Louis Dubois, tilts his helmet to the side as if contemplating something, "What ever happened to 'We are vikings and we are here for your lives and your loot'?"

You grimace, but carry on regardless. After all, you have a solution! "I wield healing magics and will heal your wounded and dying, just as long as you surrender. We'll even let you ransom yourselves! We're not here to kill everyone, after all! Just the people avoiding their taxes!"

"Taxes," the Knight hisses. "A dozen men dead for taxes. Unbelievable." He curses in French under his breath. "I will have no further part in this," he lifts his visor a crack and spits, "tax evasion scheme."

He turns and starts to saunter off, much to your disbelief. He's just gonna leave, just like that? Is that something you can even do?

It's only as he climbs the pile of rock and rubble replacing the gatehouse that Stigulf takes a step forward. "H-hey!" It takes him a second to process his words before he can truly start. "You can't do that!"

Louis Dubois doesn't even bother turning around as he casts a solitary, upright finger behind him, "Fuck you, Danish-Dog!"

He clicks his spurs together and a ghostly specter of a horse appears beneath his legs. Grabbing hold of the reins, he wheels about and swiftly departs from the sea-fort battleground.

"What." Stigulf's jaw hangs slack as he slowly blinks, eyes fixed to the empty space Louis used to fill.

Your Kinsman picks that moment to speak. His voice sounds like honeyed thunder as he frowns, "While what you offer is all well and good," the frown deepens into a glare, "My men and I were hired to do a job and that job is what we shall do. I am no oath-breaker and I will not be made one."

It's then that the tower's door opens and you crack a grin as Heima Smiles looms. He throws something from the doorway. It bounces once, twice, before rolling to a stop at your feet.

"Caught him putting on armor," Heima announces without much fanfare as you heft the decapitated head of Tobias Belanger by his hair.

The stench of nid leaks into the air as their failure rings true to your enemies' ears. Your Kinsman grits his teeth, but sheathes his sword and drops it all the same. As it clatters against the ground, he folds his arm and snarls, "Fine! We accept your terms!"

What do you set the ransom at? (Higher the price, the more this angers your Kinsman)
[ ] 5oz per man
[ ] 10oz per man
[ ] 15oz per man
[ ] Write in

And what would you like to do with the Thanes?
[ ] Try to execute them
[ ] Bring them back to Alfred
[ ] Take them as Thralls
[ ] Release them

And finally, what would you like to do before it's time to go? Pick 2:
[ ] ...What happened to Farbjorn and Serge Gagnon?
[ ] Where did the Priest go?
[ ] Go get to know your Kinsman
[ ] Thoroughly loot the sea-fort
[ ] Interrogate the Squire

0~0~0

AN: This was really weirdly difficult for me to get out, so I'm sorry if it's kinda beans.

15-minute moratorium.

 

[I.F. Ister]

Spoiler: Chosen Options

[X] 10oz per man
[X] Give the Thanes a choice between thralldom and Alfred's justice
[X] Thoroughly loot the sea-fort
[X] Go get to know your Kinsman

0~0~0
Looting Normally
As your men haul out fancy furniture and shiny silverware from the tower, you find yourself in Belanger's study. It's a small place, though it still is filled to the brim with wealth. However, despite the golden candlesticks and velvet-padded chairs littering the room, it's what's on the desk that captures your attention.

Sitting there, neat as can be, is a stack of unmarked, ready-to-use parchment paper. Thumbing through, you count under your breath as you come to a total of fifty pages of fresh paper. This will be very useful for the book project of yours...

Picking the stack up, you deposit it in your fylgja before your men start to tear the room apart in search of wealth and worldly treasures.
Looting Thoroughly
As you make to leave the room, you stop before the archway serving as the study's entrance. You eye the stone bricks and how they're cut into exact shapes—ideas already sparking in your mind. It would surely be impressive to have a home of brick and finely-cut stone!

However, there's one more thing that catches your eye as you stand in the archway. Specifically, it's the arch of it and how it's built. Cutting arches of soil from the ground is a common method of testing the truthfulness of someone's words. If the man can walk under it before it collapses, he speaks truth. If it falls before he can, he speaks falsehoods. The arch always falls eventually, though.

But this one doesn't. As your eye lingers on the wedge-shaped stone at the arch's peak, you reckon you know why it's still standing.

Now that would be an impressive feature on a house!

0~0~0
Talking to Kinsman
Your Kinsman sits on a large piece of rubble with his elbows on his knees and that curious sword of his leaning against his shoulder. Its bronze guard is an odd one, with one three-armed side curling down to connect with the pommel. The guard isn't the only curved part of the sword either, as the blade itself has a sweeping edge—and only one at that!

"Nice sword," regardless of how strange you find his sword, it does makes for a decent conversation starter. "Never seen anything like it before."

His eyes flick to yours, a carefully cautious glint in his tired gaze. Heavy bags permanently hang from his half-lidded eyes, the result of one too many sleepless nights, "It's called a saber, and thanks."

You offer him your hand, barging on past the attempted conversation-stopper with all the grace of an army on the march, "My name's Halla Skyfire, what's yours?"

He stares at your hand for a long, drawn-out moment before an arm snakes up meet you, "Hallvar Songbird."

"Hallvar, eh? How'd you get Songbird as a kenning?" You quirk your head to the side, nobly resisting the awkward tension in the air.

"I have a good singing voice," this entire conversation is giving you some serious deja vu. From the flatness of his stare to the way he doesn't seem to blink, it's like you're talking to a smaller version of Modgudr. "How'd you get Skyfire?"

You grin, "I exploded a Threaded Elephant while flying around."

That manages to draw a reaction from him—if one could call it that. His heavy brows twitch upwards for a moment before resuming the glare-stare combo that stubbornly clings to his mien. "A Threaded... Elephant?"

"That's right!" You nod as he stares.

"...I don't know what an elephant is." He listens as you describe what an elephant looks like, how the tusks hang low and the ears are big and flappy. You note the sheer size of the thing and the long, arm-like thing dangling from its face that it uses to grab stuff. By the end of it, Hallvar's eyes turned from staring to squinting. Eventually, he gives his thoughts on the matter, "That doesn't sound real."

"It is!" You shoot a glare his way as you wave a hand at your surroundings, "There's a whole world of weird-looking monsters out that and this is what you doubt?"

He offers a bob of the head, "Fair enough. I suppose it's not that outlandish." It's as he nods, though, that you catch sight of silver chain shining on his neck. It trails down under his shirt, hiding whatever the necklace is away from the world. Hallvar catches your gaze and his lips thin, "I think I've heard of a Halla Skyfire before. You ever fight someone called 'Hroi Hooknails'?"

This time, it's your turn to squint, "I have, yes."

A small smile forms on his face, which does little to lighten the ever-present glare-stare, "Good job kicking his ass, guy needed a humbling."

"You know him?"

"He's my brother-in-law, unfortunately." You wince in sympathy as he pulls the necklace from his shirt collar. Carved from a dark-colored gemstone, a well-polished raven-figure dangles from the end of the chain, "A gift from Hrefna, my wife." His expression softens as he speaks Hrefna's name, "It's actually... Well," he tucks the raven away, "it's not really important."

"If you say so," you nod as you glance towards where your men finish up sorting out the loot. You would've asked after it, but you're running out of time as it is. "It was nice meeting you, Hallvar. I hope we meet again under better circumstances."

"We'll have to see," he says as you turn to leave, but it's his next words that stop you dead in your tracks. "But, you really should leave Agder while you still can. Heljarskinn is out for blood."

You swallow the dryness in your throat. "I... I'll think about it."

0~0~0

The Thanes universally decided to go with their King's Justice, so they're loaded onto the ships as your men bring you your share of the loot.

While that was happening, Farbjorn re-emerged from the forest—a flat look on his face and a tightness to his jaw. He refused to talk about his fight with Serge, except for the fact that it was inconclusive. Odd, very odd.

Speaking of oddities, you never did find that Priest...

Well, regardless, you've got your loot to admire!

(+80oz Silver, 5oz Gold)
(+1 Suit of Knightly Armor)
(+1 Strange Ice Sword)
(+50 Pieces of Blank Paper)
(+38 Orthstirr)
(Feat: Lead a Successful Assault: +3 Orthstirr a Year)
(+2 Progress to Knightslayer)
(+2 Progress to Speaking Out of Law)
Pick 1 as a general reward:
[ ] +1 Hamingja
[ ] Unlock Fortify as a Vague Trick
Pick 1 as something else you found in the study:
[ ] A Treatise on Frisian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle
[ ] A Treatise on Bulgarian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle

0~0~0

AN: I hope that those are good rewards. If you're confused about the low silver and gold rewards, remember that this is being split 70 ways.

Also, I'll be rolling to see if Vagn Wheel-Drifter and/or Harold Hugehands suffer True Death (35% chance each for them to Truly Die). If you'd like to spend Reward Dice to improve the odds of survival, now is the time to do so.

No moratorium, this'll be the only update for today.