Hydraulic Bucolic

Log Info

• Title: Hydraulic Bucolic
• Emitter: Cryosanthia
• Characters: Nemori, Robert
• Place: Boghum Farm, Alexandros
• Time: Saturday, November 12, 2022, 9:44 PM EST
• Summary: An oruch farm with clan ties to Robert's daughter-in-law needs help clearing out trouble stirred up by marching hordes of undead. The artificer and his priestess apprentice arrive at the fields on the back of a wagon with some basic supplies. They meet with Sar, a bald-pated farmer with an affinity for axes. The farmer provides some very useful information and both Nemori and Bob set to preparations. A 7-headed cryohydra surges from the nearby river when they get close but the beast proves to be no match for the pair, girded as they were after the warning from a helpful farmer. Plans are made for seven grim pikes to warn off other trespassers.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=  Appearing, in Order  =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Robert       6'3"     235 Lb     Human             Male      A middle-aged Cerenzan with a friendly, fatherly vibe.
Nemori       4'10"    110 Lb     Mul'niessa        Female    A tall and slender, dark skinned elf.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=  As the GM  -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Cryosanthia  6'9"     291 Lb     Sith-Makar        Female    A dashingly tall, elegant white-scaled lizard woman.
-=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=--=

Family.

One can't ignore a call for help from family. Well, one can, if one wishes to be reminded of it until death do you part, and while one isn't marrying the parents and marrying into the family of the fiancee'...

One kind of is...

This property transfers up, so suddenly relatives of the daughter-in-law must be helped.

Which brings a certain artificer and friend to a farm out in Alexandros.

Two massive horses pull the cart Bob drives clad in his titan's armor. He takes up the whole bench, leaving no room for a crossbow-wielding passenger, and his helmet is open, dangling against the backside of his pauldrons on its hinge. A few sacks of supplies (the basics, really) take up most of the simple cart's stowage but leave enough room for a certain mul'niessa if she doesn't mind the inanimate company.

"... apparently she has clan all over Alexandros, steading over into the Mythwood. She doesn't like to talk about it much, usually." Plenty of tribes in that region fell to demon-taint... but maybe it's not that? "I appreciate you joining me, lady. I'm sorry Jay couldn't join us, I imagine the ride would be smoother."

Nemori has shifted the sacks just enought to soften her ride just a little; burlap and dried goods don't make for much softness, but at least they lave a little more give than the bed of the jostling wagon. Thoughts briefly stray to being borne on palanquins...

Nemori gives her head a small shake, then pulls her hat down a little further. "He had other business. It is no fault of yours," she tells Robert, looking sideways at him.. though she sees little but his armoured backside.

---

Boghum Farm.

Abandonned when the wights attacked, the immediate return was delayed due to monster infestation. An orc is waiting at the the gate at the start of a dirt road onto the property. He's wearing coveralls and a straw hat, with an ugly looking axe nearby. Leaning on a post, he watches the carriage roll up, nodding with approval at the large armour, squinting at the crossbow wielding passenger.

"Shuf sent ya?" He takes off his hat, the sun shining off his olive skull, "We had a crack at it, but it didn't work out."

He points across the fields at the river, "So when you chop off the head and it grows back, it's a hydra right?"

GAME: Robert rolls Knowledge/Arcana: (19)+16: 35
You paged Robert with 'Heads growing back is a typical sign of a hydra. They regenerate quickly, so the only way to kill them is to cut off their heads which slows down the regeneration, and to stop them regrowing usually fire, acid or cold is necessary to use on the stump'

The big, artifice-powered fists opens and lifts to wave as Bob steers the wagon in towards the gate. He clears his throat and offers a simple greeting in yrch-speak, struggling a little to fit his lips around the word after conversing in Trade for the trip's duration. The springs on the wagon seat squeak as he dismounts, taking a step and looping the reins around the gatepost.

"It could be," agrees the Cerenzan with a frown. "Hydras haven't cornered the market on rapid-healing... but regrowing a whole head is quite the feat." The armor clanks as he takes a few more steps, moving around the wagon some more and offering the priestess a hand out of the busy, bundle-strewn back.

"I hope everyone made it away safe. Shuf didn't mention anyone being in immediate danger." The artificer chooses not to comment on the woman's past relations.

Nemori rises first to her knees, then to her feet, a hand on the rail to assist before she climbs out. She doesn't interfere in the older man's questioning of the local orc right away, instead pulling her sword from the back of the wagon and hitching it to her belt. She looks off in the distance in the direction the orc indicated, then turns her dark visage back on the pair. "If it grows its head back, I imagine your axe was not the best tool for the job."

"We were checking the farm when it came out of the boathouse and attacked." Sar explains, pointing at the dock. The fields in between are overgrown, the evacuation during the summer and through the harvest was not kind to the crops. They grew tall, then desiccated and browned. Any livestock appears to have escaped or been eaten.

There is a low and long ranch on the property with a greenhouse beside it, and a boathouse on the river that looks like a small copy and a large enough structure to house a sizeable creature.

"A couple ax-whacks worked well enough, but then it started the breath weapons. So we pulled back." He shrugs his bare shoulders, "We like a fight, but there's fun and there's dumb." <yrch-speak>

Bob nods and frowns deeper, "Breath? Most hydras don't breathe any particular elements. Subspecies aren't unheard of, though, and neither are mutations." He flips one of his pouches open, carefully fingering the contents and producing a metal-on-glass tinkling as he does. "Frost? Fire? Acid?"

There's a glance back as he turns his broad, armored shoulders. "Do you have any protective magics prepared, lady?" He glances then at the oruch and returns to searching his pouches.

"Muse' grace. It was good thinking. Better to be safe," he adds as he quits the search. A smile is offered to the orc and he rests his gauntlets on his wide belt. "We're happy to help, normally. Shuf mentioned how important the crops you grow here are to some of the nomadic peoples in the region. We'll get it cleared out."

Nemori gives a slow nod of her head. "I do.. though as you requested, I will need to know what to protect us from," she tells Robert. Her gaze levels on the orc. "Have you anything more useful to tell us before we stride forth to die in your stead?"

"Oh, yeah. Cold." Sar says, as if the answer was obvious. "Fields would be on fire if it were fire."

He picks his axe up just under the head and waves it towards the river, "Swims around in there, pops out when you get close. It has seven heads. It's not like we raise them, I don't know what you expect me to know." <yrch-speak>

"Oh, marsh at the water's edge." He glances at the titan armour, "you might bog down."

<OOC> Robert says, "I'll hit myself with a Resist Energy (Cold) if Nemori can do one on herself?"
GAME: Nemori casts Protection From Energy. Caster Level: 7 DC: 17
GAME: Robert casts Resist Energy. Caster Level: 7 DC: 16
GAME: Robert casts Ablative Barrier. Caster Level: 7 DC: 16
GAME: Robert casts Blur. Caster Level: 7 DC: 16
GAME: Robert casts Shield. Caster Level: 7 DC: 15
<OOC> Robert says, "Blur for Nemori. The rest on me."

The Cerenzan nods one last time as he reaches up and lowers his helmet into place. "That was more information than we could've hoped for, friend. I thank you again." Even a quieted, tinny echo from inside the helmet, his voice carries his smile well enough.

The artificer sets to work before moving from the gate. First, he pops the cap on a stumpy crystal vial and drops the head of a tindertwig into it. It begins glowing red as he shakes and sockets it into a pauldron, causing the threading across his adamantine armor plates to glow red-hot. Next, the Shield-sphere, twisted and hooked into place as the hexagonal grid dances across his shape. A cylinder slides into the underside of his gauntlet and the smooth, matte adamantine ripples into ridged draconic scales.

Finally, he flips open what appears to be an artifice locket and presses his thumb into the mirror, shattering it. The locket he hands off to the mul'niessa. "Stow it in a pouch or pocket," he suggests, watching her form stretch and blur to his gaze as she accepts the trinket.

All that done, he begins to walk towards the waterline...

<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "okay, where to? And the square beside the water is a 2' Marsh, do difficult terrain"
<OOC> Robert says, "How about a straight go past the buildings to 19,4 and then hook "south" to 20,11"
<OOC> Nemori says, "Looks good to me."
<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "okay, and Nemori is where?"
<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "also, sense motive"
<OOC> Nemori says, "I would be staying with Robert, using him as a shield."
<OOC> Nemori says, "I mean, making sure I don't get in his way."
<OOC> Nemori says, "20,10 looks good."

Nemori accepts the locket after glance of only a second or two, and it gets stowed in a pocket before she pulls her coin out to settle a protection of her own in place. There is little in the way of a visual effect; none, really, and her dark skin does a good job of hiding the warmth the magic infuses her with.

With that done, she follows the large, titan clad tinkerer towards the waterline.

"Heh, spells." Sar grunts, slapping his hat back on and following along. He keeps a little distance from Robert and Nemori, stays further back from the river's edge, but he easily could have stayed further back. It would be the smart thing to do.

"Yeah, it's a..." is as far as he gets.

There's a surge of water as the hydra appears, one snake-like head, then another, then seven, followed by the mass of its body. It lands in front of Robert, a spear's haft back. The centre head blasts him with a torrent of freezing breath and ice crystals, while the other six attack.

<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "so, reflex saves, DC17"
GAME: Robert rolls Reflex: (12)+8: 20
<OOC> Robert says, "Frost Resist is 20 right now"
GAME: Nemori rolls reflex: (12)+5: 17
<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "so you'd take 5. not sure how much your spell can absorb"
<OOC> Nemori says, "12/level, so 84, so down to 79."
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 3d6: (10): 10
<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "for both of you, then it doesn't get through. anyhow, the 6 more attacks then we go into regular rounds"
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (3)+8: 11 (vs AC25 - Miss)
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (6)+8: 14
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (14)+8: 22
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (8)+8: 16
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (10)+8: 18
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (14)+8: 22

The heads lash out, but none hit.

<OOC> Nemori will cast spiritual ally to attack the hydra from behind. Unlike spiritual weapon, it does occupy a space and threaten. so.. 20,16"
GAME: Nemori casts Spiritual Ally. Caster Level: 7 DC: 18
GAME: Nemori rolls spiritual weapon: aliased to BAB+Wisdom: (12)+5+4: 21
GAME: Nemori rolls 1d10+2: (7)+2: 9

Nemori ducks behind Robert... his massive frame really does provide the best cover. And shade, too, on hotter days. Makes a decent windbreak as well. As for today, well, she's more than happy to let him take the brunt of the freezing breath while her protection absorbs the rest. Then as the giant creature's heads all seem to come down upon the artificer, she pokes her head around him with her holy symbol brandished.. manifests an indistinct form behind the Hydra. Rosey in hue, the figure gives the impression of a dancer, lithe, flowing silks and ribbons.. and a deadly blade that arcs as the form shimmers through the air, striking the creature from behind.

<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "okay, it attacks Robert again, all heads"
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (10)+8: 18
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (18)+8: 26
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (16)+8: 24
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (12)+8: 20
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (16)+8: 24
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (10)+8: 18
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d8+3: (5)+3: 8
<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "now what's the DR and NL effects?"
<OOC> Robert says, "DR2/Adamantine, then 5 nonlethal."
GAME: You damaged Robert for 5 points of nonlethal. 5 total.
GAME: You damaged Robert for 1 points. 44 HP remaining.

Roaring, its breath weapon having ineffectually washing over Robert, Nemori and the crops, the creature repeats its onslaught on the artificer. All seven heads strike like snakes, most miss, two are turned by his shields, and one strikes effectively but is still blunted.

GAME: Robert activates his Titan Armor, gaining: +4 Str
<OOC> Robert says, "5' to 20,12. Full attack. Will enhance fists to give them Flaming. Power attack."
GAME: Robert spends TWO uses of CHARGE POOL.
GAME: Robert rolls weapon13-2+2: (12)+12+-2+2: 24
GAME: Robert rolls weapon14-2+2: (7)+12+-2+2: 19
GAME: Robert rolls 2d6+7+4+1d6: (8)+7+4+(6): 25
GAME: Robert rolls 2d6+7+4+1d6: (9)+7+4+(5): 25, "11 fire, the rest bludgeoning, adamantine, and magic"
<OOC> Robert says, "Think I have to attack the body since it's not a slashing weapon."
<OOC> Robert says, "Oh! Heal 3hp, please"
GAME: You damaged Robert for -3 points. 45 HP remaining. 3 nonlethal damage healed. 2 nonlethal total.

Bob simply crosses his armored forearms and lowers his helmet against the breath and subsequent barrage of the many-headed hydra. With the forewarning and preparation they were allotted, he has a host of activated artifice to meet the attack of the invading beast. The shield flares to life, the red-glowing threading hisses and sizzles, and the extra layering of magicked armor cracks and crumbles. The Cerenzan below can't help but feel a small amount of pride as the defenses effectiveness.

Two quick steps and he's in among the thrashing necks. Steam blasts through the plating of his gauntlets as the entirety of their form goes red with heat. The one-two punch slap and sizzle, cracking through bony protrusions and tearing leather hide beneath.

<OOC> Nemori says, "Spiritual weapon, I guess. Staying where I am."
GAME: Nemori casts Spiritual Weapon. Caster Level: 7 DC: 16
GAME: Nemori rolls spiritual weapon+2: aliased to BAB+Wisdom+2: (11)+5+4+2: 22 (Spiritual Ally)
GAME: Nemori rolls spiritual weapon: aliased to BAB+Wisdom: (2)+5+4: 11 (Spiritual Weapon)
GAME: Nemori rolls 1d10+2: (4)+2: 6

Nemori elects not to wade into the the fronds of snapping heads, instead using her link to the dancer to create another manifestation of force.. this time the more familiar disembodied rapier. It joins the translucent dancer in its assault upon the Hydra's backside.

<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "okay, 7 more attacks on Robert"
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (9)+8: 17
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (19)+8: 27
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (14)+8: 22
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (4)+8: 12
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (18)+8: 26
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (18)+8: 26
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d20+8: (3)+8: 11
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d8+3: (3)+3: 6
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d8+3: (8)+3: 11
GAME: Cryosanthia rolls 1d8+3: (4)+3: 7
GAME: You damaged Robert for 4 points of nonlethal. 6 total.
<OOC> Robert says, "4 NL, 5 NL and 4 L, and 5 NL. I think."
GAME: You damaged Robert for 5 points of nonlethal. 11 total.
GAME: You damaged Robert for 4 points. 41 HP remaining.
GAME: You damaged Robert for 5 points of nonlethal. 16 total.

Reeling from the titan fists, the heptade hydra continues to snap and strike at Robert. Three solid hits land, rattling the artificer.

<OOC> Robert says, "I'll attempt the same without the 5' step this time. 3hp healed, please."
GAME: Robert spends TWO uses of CHARGE POOL.
GAME: You damaged Robert for -3 points. 44 HP remaining. 3 nonlethal damage healed. 13 nonlethal total.
GAME: Robert rolls weapon13-2+2: (12)+12+-2+2: 24
GAME: Robert rolls weapon14-2+2: (14)+12+-2+2: 26
GAME: Robert rolls 2d6+7+4+1d6: (7)+7+4+(5): 23
GAME: Robert rolls 2d6+7+4+1d6: (8)+7+4+(5): 24
<OOC> Cryosanthia says, "okay that kills it."

The blunt force from the hydra's attacks send the Cerenzan reeling and force him to step his stance wider lest he be knocked over. More of the reinforcing armor-scales break away, too, and crumble to ash well before they hit the ground. He tires to say something to Nemori as the thrashing intensifies but the words are lost in the heavy heads crashing across his suit.

He finds an opening, again, and cracks the hydra a third time in the chest. The first of the strike is enough to topple the animal onto its flank, half-submerged in the shallow water. Not giving the monster a chance to rise, Robert steps forward and lifts both hands overhead. Energy surges across his entire form and he drops both of the titan fists down in a brutal haymaker. A thunderous report announces the destruction of scapula and neck-bones as the entirety of the hydra goes limp in the river.

It hisses, taking a blow, taking another. The fire burns away a streak of scales but the sheer percussive power of the titan armour blows right through the magical beast.

"You're supposed to cut off the heads." Sar suggests, raising his axe, about to step forward, when the hydra hisses again like an urgent kettle. It drops, flopping into the marsh.

The orc rushes forward, swinging his axe, lopping off a head, "So's it doesn't come back." He proceeds to wack at the remaining six, each impact giving and severance making the body twitch, an automatic response he takes as remaining signs of life. He swings a seventh time at the last, "You're welcome."

Nemori raises her hand as though to summon more magic.. then drops it as the large suit of titan armour brings the many headed creature down in a most decided manner. Instead, she dismisses the two apparitions, channels a small amount of healing magic into the artificer.. then watches the orc steader proceed to mutilate the rest of the hydra. "Perhaps mounting those will make good deterrents," she suggests to the warrior-farmer.

GAME: Nemori casts Endure Elements. Caster Level: 7 DC: 15
GAME: Nemori rolls 1d8+5: (2)+5: 7

"Oh that's a great idea. Yeah!" Sar says, grinning widely, "I can butcher the body for you if you want to take the meat back."

There's a quiet *pwoonk* as the helmet clasp releases and Robert flips the dome back. He glances down at the broken beast as the oruch dismembers it, lifting his gaze to scan the waterline for signs of other creatures.

"Likely it was driven out from its den when the undead passed through..." he muses, as much to himself as the other two. "We'll check the outbuildings, Sar, and then we'll scout out the immediate area just to be sure this was the only one."

The armor is slowly powering down, though the active artificer gadgets continue to color the exterior. Steam leaks out at a slow, steady trickle above a quiet hissing and the arcs of energy play less and less. A metal thumb is tossed towards the wagon even as he starts walking for the boathouse.

"Shuf suggested your stores might've suffered. The stuff in the wagon is yours. This shouldn't take us long..."

OOC & Combatty

map
https://www.mipui.net/app/index.html?mid=msoso7ireto

 ===================== Current Initiative Order - Round 1 =====================
 ---Init--Name------------AOO-Notes--------------------------------------------
     17   Nemori           1  Flat-footed (0 rnds active)                  
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     17   Herptade            
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     7    Robert           1  Flat-footed (0 rnds active)                  
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|   Name   |   Race   |   Class   | CHP | HP  | AC/FF/T |CMD |For |Ref |Wil |
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|Robert    |HUMAN     |Art        | 32  | 45  |21/19/13 | 22 | 8  | 8  | 4  |
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