Could target a single large piece of the armor I suppose, like the breastplate.
...or the crotch guard.
Of Wolves and Witches (WHF Wizard Quest)
- Thread starter Maugan Ra
- Start date
- Fantasy
...or the crotch guard.
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
Or the Helmet if you are going for confusion.
I picked based on pieces which would be...difficult to take off rapidly
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
I suppose, although well made helmets are surprisingly difficult to rip off. Still regardless of which armor piece we choose to heat it would cause a lot of issues for the person wearing it.
- Location
- London, England
Ok well since I want to see if I can write this today I think I'll set the deadline for... another two hours, ish? That seems about right.
chocolote12
A Penguin Flailing Against The Keyboard Of Life.
The usefulness scales with how hard it is for them to get rid of it. Weapon versus blasting them goes to just blasting them because it burns them more, but armor versus blasting them is different because even if the per second damage is less it goes on for a lot longer.
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
Plus it means that the enemy either has to throw away their armor or take damage from the red hot metal on their body.
Nevermind the damage, the pain probably adds more to a fight than the damage.
Barring ashing them outright
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
It would certainly be incredibly distracting and likely cause them to panic a bit. Although if the target is riding a horse or other mount I'd aim for an armor piece in contact with the animal in order to cause it to freak out.
chocolote12
A Penguin Flailing Against The Keyboard Of Life.
Everybody knows enemies don't feel pain. That's only something the protagonist suffers.
[X] Pyromania. Brawling with knife-wielding assassins is a fine way to get stabbed. Setting knife-wielding assassins on fire, however, is one of the Bright Order's most respected traditions. Who are you to shun the methods of your predecessors?
I still need to catch up with the rest of the Quest, which will be a treat, but when I heard about this I came as quickly as I could.
This quest has the option to LIGHT THE PYRES against scurrilous foes of the Empire who have the audacity to be misbehaving whilst flammable, and we're hesitating at taking it?
I still need to catch up with the rest of the Quest, which will be a treat, but when I heard about this I came as quickly as I could.
This quest has the option to LIGHT THE PYRES against scurrilous foes of the Empire who have the audacity to be misbehaving whilst flammable, and we're hesitating at taking it?
- Location
- London, England
Vote Called.
Pyromania wins! Time to set something on fire.
Pyromania wins! Time to set something on fire.
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
I hope we set the Assassin on fire and they comically end up running through the front of the Inn before nose diving into the river.
XVIII - Blades in Firelight
- Location
- London, England
Well, the Gravin did say that you should make a fuss in order to let everyone else know that the assassin has arrived. A blast of fire magic sounds like exactly the sort of thing that will grab everyone's attention, and also has the advantage of keeping you away from a knife-wielding assassin, which is always a bonus.
Rising from your chair, you focus your mind and reach out for the Red Wind, the first syllables of your incantation breaking the tense silence of the room.
Channelling test, TN is 68. Roll is 34, success with 3 SL, +2SL from Aethyric Attunement talent.
There are no fires in the room, no great braziers of flame to draw upon the wind in its most abundant form, but you are no mere apprentice who relies on props and bonfires to cast your spells. What little ambient aqshy exists in the air and the body and the cooling ash of the hearth is more than enough for you, and with a few moments work you conjure into being a blazing orb of blood-red flame. It hovers before you, crackling with barely-leashed power, and in its ruddy light you get your first proper look at your assailant.
It is a woman, a buxom redhead with pale skin and a rash of freckles across her cheeks, and her emerald eyes catch the light as she stares at you in horrified surprise. Were it not for the knife in her hand you would think her one of the taverns serving wenches, but there is no mistaking the gleam of steel or the oily sheen of poison on the blade.
"Lady's blessed tits," she swears, and on instinct flings the knife. Her aim is off, what skill she has dulled by surprise and the flaring light of your spell, and the blade embeds itself in the wall near your arm with a dull thunk.
"Burn."
The assassin throws herself aside at the last moment, desperation lending her haste, but it doesn't matter. Your spell strikes the wall at her back and detonates, flinging her through the air and engulfing the entire wall in brilliant orange flames. The glass window explodes in a jagged shower, followed a moment later by the dull rumble of the wall as it collapses outwards into the yard below.
Her skirts on fire, burns and bruises running up and down her side, the assassin looks at you with wide eyes.
"Oh, fuck this," she says, once more in Bretonnian, and turns to flee. For a moment the roaring flames see her hesitate, then she grits her teeth and sprints directly through their heart, throwing herself headlong through the newly created hole in the wall and out into the cold night beyond.
Growling a curse, you pursue, the flames parting as you move to stand next to what used to be a rather expensive window. Far below you can see the assassin break into a stumbling run, the fall apparently having harmed her not at all, one hand tearing away her burning skirts as she goes.
"Oh no you don't," you growl, reaching out with one hand to seize a handful of the flame from the burning remnants of the wall at your side, "You can't get away that easily!"
Anger makes up for what the fire alone lacks, and you fling another bolt of flame directly in her path. The explosion tears a sizeable crater in the ground and swathes the assassins arm in flame, but though she screams and stumbles she does not fall, still sprinting for her life towards the river.
For a moment you consider leaping down after her, but… no, you're not nearly so confident in your ability to absorb a fall, and the last thing you want is a broken ankle. Instead you turn and race back across the room, throwing open the door and pushing past the startled guards outside.
"With me!" You roar, heading for the stairs as fast as you can, "Don't let her get away!"
Perception: TN is 33, Erika rolls 11, success with +2SL.
Assassin's Stealth: TN is ???, roll is ???, success with +5SL.
It is futile. By the time you and the guards have made it down the stairs and across the taproom into the yard beyond, the assassin is long gone, her passage marked solely by the fading ripples in the fast-flowing waters of the River Soll.
Swearing, you prowl up and down the bank for a few moments, then inspect the shredded remnants of burning cloth the girl tore away from her legs as she ran. Neither offer any clues, and in the end you are forced to concede and turn your attention back to the Three Feathers, where already shouts of panic fill the night as your conjured flames lick at the eastern side of the building.
By the time a bucket chain has been assembled and the fires doused, the rising sun is painting the horizon in shades of pink and much of the upper wing of the inn has been transformed into smouldering ruins. You do what you can to limit the spread of the flames, but buildings made of wood are always difficult to work with, and few of the staff or patrons seem to appreciate your assistance. In the end you give you on trying to get them to stop glaring at you and simply collect your bags, aiming to be back aboard the barge and gone as soon as practically possible.
The Gravin finds you on the dock, sitting on one of the stout wooden posts that barges can tie themselves to, and despite the shockingly early hour and the minimal rest afforded to her by the night she still manages to look elegant and composed.
"My thanks, Magister," she says, handing over a small purse of silver coins. You weigh it in your hand for a moment, noting how much less it is than the amount Gustaf paid you for his own commission. Maria-Ulrike, it seems, is much less ignorant or easily flustered when it comes to matters of payment.
"You're welcome," you say, tucking the purse away inside your robes, "though I'm actually still a journeywoman."
"One of considerable talent, all the same," the noblewoman inclines her head to you, the rising sun making her short blond hair shine like gold, "tell me, are you presently employed?"
You frown. "No. I finished my last commission a week ago; I only wound up here because the barge stopped for the night. Why do you ask?"
"Because, despite the temporary nature of this commission, I am still in need of a champion to represent me at Kemperbad," the gravin says, folding one hand over the other, "you seem far more capable than most other options. Should you win the duel for me, I will pay you a sum of forty crowns, and arrange an introduction to my aunt."
"The Countess?" You say, blinking in surprise, "A generous reward indeed. What are the terms of the duel?"
"To fight until one champion cannot continue," Maria-Ulrike smiles slightly, "This can be death, but incapacitation is also considered valid. Gustaf tells me that precedent permits a Bright Wizard to employ certain spells in such a match - those which enhance your capabilities or create some form of weapon, generally, but no great explosions as you wielded today."
You rub your jaw, considering the offer carefully. The reward is a valuable one indeed, and there is much honour and prestige to be earned fighting as a champion for a noblewoman of Maria-Ulrike's high station… but it would still mean risking death on her behalf, and striving to prove her innocence from a charge you know very little about.
Rising from your chair, you focus your mind and reach out for the Red Wind, the first syllables of your incantation breaking the tense silence of the room.
Channelling test, TN is 68. Roll is 34, success with 3 SL, +2SL from Aethyric Attunement talent.
There are no fires in the room, no great braziers of flame to draw upon the wind in its most abundant form, but you are no mere apprentice who relies on props and bonfires to cast your spells. What little ambient aqshy exists in the air and the body and the cooling ash of the hearth is more than enough for you, and with a few moments work you conjure into being a blazing orb of blood-red flame. It hovers before you, crackling with barely-leashed power, and in its ruddy light you get your first proper look at your assailant.
It is a woman, a buxom redhead with pale skin and a rash of freckles across her cheeks, and her emerald eyes catch the light as she stares at you in horrified surprise. Were it not for the knife in her hand you would think her one of the taverns serving wenches, but there is no mistaking the gleam of steel or the oily sheen of poison on the blade.
"Lady's blessed tits," she swears, and on instinct flings the knife. Her aim is off, what skill she has dulled by surprise and the flaring light of your spell, and the blade embeds itself in the wall near your arm with a dull thunk.
"Burn."
The assassin throws herself aside at the last moment, desperation lending her haste, but it doesn't matter. Your spell strikes the wall at her back and detonates, flinging her through the air and engulfing the entire wall in brilliant orange flames. The glass window explodes in a jagged shower, followed a moment later by the dull rumble of the wall as it collapses outwards into the yard below.
Assassin goes first, due to her initiative characteristic being higher. She throws her dagger, suffering a -10 penalty from the darkness (it would be -30, but calling a fireball makes a significant difference in light levels).
Her TN is therefore 46. She rolls 65, a miss, but with Lucky gets to reroll. However, she gets an 83 on the reroll, and therefore still misses.
Erika has amassed enough SL to cast Fireblast. She rolls Language (Magick) against TN 59, roll is 29. Spell is successfully cast! 3SL were scored, thus the damage of the attack is 3 spell + 5 willpower + 3 SL - 5 toughness = Six wounds inflicted. Assassin has nine wounds remaining, and is now also ablaze.
Erika has one advantage.
Her TN is therefore 46. She rolls 65, a miss, but with Lucky gets to reroll. However, she gets an 83 on the reroll, and therefore still misses.
Erika has amassed enough SL to cast Fireblast. She rolls Language (Magick) against TN 59, roll is 29. Spell is successfully cast! 3SL were scored, thus the damage of the attack is 3 spell + 5 willpower + 3 SL - 5 toughness = Six wounds inflicted. Assassin has nine wounds remaining, and is now also ablaze.
Erika has one advantage.
Her skirts on fire, burns and bruises running up and down her side, the assassin looks at you with wide eyes.
"Oh, fuck this," she says, once more in Bretonnian, and turns to flee. For a moment the roaring flames see her hesitate, then she grits her teeth and sprints directly through their heart, throwing herself headlong through the newly created hole in the wall and out into the cold night beyond.
Growling a curse, you pursue, the flames parting as you move to stand next to what used to be a rather expensive window. Far below you can see the assassin break into a stumbling run, the fall apparently having harmed her not at all, one hand tearing away her burning skirts as she goes.
"Oh no you don't," you growl, reaching out with one hand to seize a handful of the flame from the burning remnants of the wall at your side, "You can't get away that easily!"
Anger makes up for what the fire alone lacks, and you fling another bolt of flame directly in her path. The explosion tears a sizeable crater in the ground and swathes the assassins arm in flame, but though she screams and stumbles she does not fall, still sprinting for her life towards the river.
Assassin flees! She moves and leaps out of the window. Average (+20) athletics test is taken to mitigate fall damage, TN is 95, roll is 21, success with 7SL is enough to entirely mitigate damage.
Assassin then uses her action to try and extinguish the flames, testing against 75. Roll is 44, success, ablaze condition removed.
Erika moves up to regain her line of sight. She can see the assassin below, and tries to cast fireblast again. Advantage grants +10 on the test, local fire grants +10, TN is therefore 59+20= 79.
Roll is 89, fail! Erika spends fortune to reroll, rolls 04! Success with +7SL. 4 are required to cast fireblast, so that is +3 net, for another six wounds. Assassin has three left, and is ablaze, again.
Assassin then uses her action to try and extinguish the flames, testing against 75. Roll is 44, success, ablaze condition removed.
Erika moves up to regain her line of sight. She can see the assassin below, and tries to cast fireblast again. Advantage grants +10 on the test, local fire grants +10, TN is therefore 59+20= 79.
Roll is 89, fail! Erika spends fortune to reroll, rolls 04! Success with +7SL. 4 are required to cast fireblast, so that is +3 net, for another six wounds. Assassin has three left, and is ablaze, again.
For a moment you consider leaping down after her, but… no, you're not nearly so confident in your ability to absorb a fall, and the last thing you want is a broken ankle. Instead you turn and race back across the room, throwing open the door and pushing past the startled guards outside.
"With me!" You roar, heading for the stairs as fast as you can, "Don't let her get away!"
Perception: TN is 33, Erika rolls 11, success with +2SL.
Assassin's Stealth: TN is ???, roll is ???, success with +5SL.
It is futile. By the time you and the guards have made it down the stairs and across the taproom into the yard beyond, the assassin is long gone, her passage marked solely by the fading ripples in the fast-flowing waters of the River Soll.
Swearing, you prowl up and down the bank for a few moments, then inspect the shredded remnants of burning cloth the girl tore away from her legs as she ran. Neither offer any clues, and in the end you are forced to concede and turn your attention back to the Three Feathers, where already shouts of panic fill the night as your conjured flames lick at the eastern side of the building.
By the time a bucket chain has been assembled and the fires doused, the rising sun is painting the horizon in shades of pink and much of the upper wing of the inn has been transformed into smouldering ruins. You do what you can to limit the spread of the flames, but buildings made of wood are always difficult to work with, and few of the staff or patrons seem to appreciate your assistance. In the end you give you on trying to get them to stop glaring at you and simply collect your bags, aiming to be back aboard the barge and gone as soon as practically possible.
The Gravin finds you on the dock, sitting on one of the stout wooden posts that barges can tie themselves to, and despite the shockingly early hour and the minimal rest afforded to her by the night she still manages to look elegant and composed.
"My thanks, Magister," she says, handing over a small purse of silver coins. You weigh it in your hand for a moment, noting how much less it is than the amount Gustaf paid you for his own commission. Maria-Ulrike, it seems, is much less ignorant or easily flustered when it comes to matters of payment.
"You're welcome," you say, tucking the purse away inside your robes, "though I'm actually still a journeywoman."
"One of considerable talent, all the same," the noblewoman inclines her head to you, the rising sun making her short blond hair shine like gold, "tell me, are you presently employed?"
You frown. "No. I finished my last commission a week ago; I only wound up here because the barge stopped for the night. Why do you ask?"
"Because, despite the temporary nature of this commission, I am still in need of a champion to represent me at Kemperbad," the gravin says, folding one hand over the other, "you seem far more capable than most other options. Should you win the duel for me, I will pay you a sum of forty crowns, and arrange an introduction to my aunt."
"The Countess?" You say, blinking in surprise, "A generous reward indeed. What are the terms of the duel?"
"To fight until one champion cannot continue," Maria-Ulrike smiles slightly, "This can be death, but incapacitation is also considered valid. Gustaf tells me that precedent permits a Bright Wizard to employ certain spells in such a match - those which enhance your capabilities or create some form of weapon, generally, but no great explosions as you wielded today."
You rub your jaw, considering the offer carefully. The reward is a valuable one indeed, and there is much honour and prestige to be earned fighting as a champion for a noblewoman of Maria-Ulrike's high station… but it would still mean risking death on her behalf, and striving to prove her innocence from a charge you know very little about.
Article: Do you accept?
[ ] Yes, accept the commission. You will proceed to Kemperbad, there to fight a judicial duel with a champion nominated by the von Dammenblatz family.
- [ ] Take the Duellist Career. Your rewards for this arc will focus on making you more capable of personal-scale combat.
- [ ] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
[ ] No, refuse the commission. You will return to the Colleges of Magic in Altdorf and seek out alternate employment.
Note - If you move into the Duellist career, you will still be a bright wizard and will have the option to switch your focus back to improving as a wizard in the future, perhaps when you seek to become an accredited Magister. This is more a question of how you focus your training in the short term; once I know the result of this vote I will post a new one where you can decide what stats, skills and spells you want to learn as appropriate.
[X] Yes, accept the commission. You will proceed to Kemperbad, there to fight a judicial duel with a champion nominated by the von Dammenblatz family.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
Being a judicial champion for someone of importance is a route to connections, influence, and meeting people - and certainly making a name for a fighty wizard for Erika.
On the other hand, right now she isn't going to commit to it. Being a fight wizard is still valid, and maybe she might want to focus more on martial skill if she finds she enjoys this career, but it's a little premature to transition now.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
Being a judicial champion for someone of importance is a route to connections, influence, and meeting people - and certainly making a name for a fighty wizard for Erika.
On the other hand, right now she isn't going to commit to it. Being a fight wizard is still valid, and maybe she might want to focus more on martial skill if she finds she enjoys this career, but it's a little premature to transition now.
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
[X] Yes, accept the commission. You will proceed to Kemperbad, there to fight a judicial duel with a champion nominated by the von Dammenblatz family.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
[X] No, refuse the commission. You will return to the Colleges of Magic in Altdorf and seek out alternate employment.
Duelist for hire is a sucker's game. A wizard can do so much more.
Duelist for hire is a sucker's game. A wizard can do so much more.
Sinsystems
Patron Librarian
Yes, but this job could get us an in with an Elector Countess which is really valuable for our future career paths.
- Location
- Germany
[X] Yes, accept the commission. You will proceed to Kemperbad, there to fight a judicial duel with a champion nominated by the von Dammenblatz family.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
Of course not a career for the long term, for a Magister, but for now likely the best option.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
More money and fame than most work a Journeyman can find.
Of course not a career for the long term, for a Magister, but for now likely the best option.
- Location
- Southampton, Great Britain
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Yes, accept the commission. You will proceed to Kemperbad, there to fight a judicial duel with a champion nominated by the von Dammenblatz family.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
- Location
- Reno
- Pronouns
- They/Them
[X] Yes, accept the commission. You will proceed to Kemperbad, there to fight a judicial duel with a champion nominated by the von Dammenblatz family.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
-[X] Remain in the Wizard career. Your rewards for this arc will be taken from the same list of options as those of the last arc, save for spells, which will be new.
Mopman43
Mountain-Hermit of Nitpeak
- Location
- Vermont
@Maugan Ra, will we have time to study another spell before the duel? Or do we have to use our current loadout?