Borderlands II - This is the OLD game thread

[Tempest]

"We should light some torches and hand them out amongst the group. We can use the torches to try and drive it off. Many animals are afraid of fire."

[Jenara]

"Agreed, you get the some of the others, leave our employer and his staff, use the fire. I'll cover the creature."

[ooc]If that fails, don't Rangers have animal empathy? Or something?[/ooc]

[Tempest]

[OOC] That's a secondary proficiency right? I didn't take any with animals. [OOC]

Elias goes to get the other able bodies and some torches.

[Stik]

[OOC]@ Tempest:

Rangers are adept with both trained and untamed creatures, having a limited degree of animal empathy. If a ranger carefully approaches or tends any natural animal, he can try to modify the animal's reactions. (A natural animal is one that can be found in the real world -- a bear, snake, zebra, etc.)
When dealing with domestic or non-hostile animals, a ranger can approach the animal and befriend it automatically. He can easily discern the qualities of the creature (spotting the best horse in the corral or seeing that the runt of the litter actually has great promise).
When dealing with a wild animal or an animal trained to attack, the animal must roll a saving throw vs. rods to resist the ranger's overtures. (This table is used even though the ranger's power is non-magical.) The ranger imposes a -1 penalty on the die roll for every three experience levels he has earned (-1 at 1st to 3rd, -2 at 4th to 6th, etc.). If the creature fails the saving throw, its reaction can be shifted one category as the ranger chooses. Of course, the ranger must be at the front of the party and must approach the creature fearlessly.
For example, Beornhelm, a 7th-level ranger, is leading his friends through the woods. On entering a clearing, he spots a hungry black bear blocking the path on the other side. Signaling his friends to wait, Beornhelm approaches the beast, whispering soothing words. The DM rolls a saving throw vs. rods for the bear, modified by -3 for Beornhelm's level. The bear's normal reaction is unfriendly, but Beornhelm's presence reduces this to neutral. The party waits patiently until the bear wanders off to seek its dinner elsewhere.
Later, Beornhelm goes to the horse market to get a new mount. The dealer shows him a spirited horse, notorious for being vicious and stubborn. Beornhelm approaches it carefully, again speaking soothingly, and mounts the stallion with no difficulty. Ridden by Beornhelm, the horse is spirited but well-behaved. Approached by anyone else, the horse reverts to its old ways.

[/OOC]

[Tempest]

OOC- Alright. I'll pass out the torches, rally the troops and then go try to talk to the critter.

"You guys take these," Elias says to the others. "I'm going to go... try something. If this doesn't work, light these torches and try to run that thing off with them. Just wave them around and make loud noises."

Elias approaches the creature slowly, trying to make sure that it sees him so he doesn't startle it.

I am about to look like a complete moron.

"Hey there... uh... little guy. How're you doing?"

Elias tries to pet the creature.

[Jenara]

Angel smiles, probably due to the actions of her party member, keeping the bow raised she'll arrange the others as they wake up.

Assuming Doas is the first to arrive she points to the creature with a wry smile on her face..

[Stik]

[OOC] @ Tempest: "Little guy"? I suppose that, standing on its hind legs, this thing might be shorter than Elias, but it almost certainly outweighs him... [/OOC]

As Elias approaches, the fjellfras first snarls at him, but when he does not back off, its expression changes. It eyes him strangely, looking puzzled and wary. It growls experimentally and then appears confused that the elf isn't afraid. When Elias reaches out to pet it, the fjellfras ducks away and snarls again, showing entirely too many large teeth, but does not attack.



The animal makes several attempts to walk around Elias towards the wagon, but he blocks its path each time. After about ten minutes of this, the fjellfras turns away, lifts its leg, and urinates in the ranger's general direction, them slinks off into the darkness looking for an easier meal.

The rest of the night passes more or less uneventfully. Morning finds you picking yourselves up and getting back on the road. The forest is fairly thick, and though the road was cut through a long time ago, it is still mostly passable.

Passing through the forest takes most of the morning, after which you return to meadowlands which slope ever so gradually downward heading northeast towards the sea. The road is still more of a trail than anything else, and other than the road there are few visible signs of civilization. Towards evening a small river comes into view to the southeast, flowing into the forest which lies ahead of you to the east, directly in your path.

[OOC] Sorry to leave off without some specific situation for you to react to. This post will be continued later this evening [/OOC]

[Stik]

After another night in the wilds, during which the fjellfras returns (but only lurks at the fringes of your encampment, rather than approacing directly) and another morning and afternoon on the trail, it becomes apparent that you must be nearing the settlement of Orr’s Bay. The road, which for the most part has been crude and poorly maintained by imperial standards, shows signs that someone has been doing maintenance. Boggy areas have been filled, and the fill includes bits of seashell, indicating that the material came from the seashore.
At one point, an old imperial stone bridge, long collapsed, has been rebuilt in timber on its old foundations. Down below, the brook gurgles between too few broken stones to make up a whole bridge.

By late afternoon, the scent of smoke of the village is in the air. Another mile or so, perhaps, before you reach the seashore, and the village.
Elias, on point, catches a glimpse of someone moving in the woods off to one side of the track. The surroundings are not conducive to an ambush, though – too thickly wooded to get a clear shot, and too close to town for bandits.

The lurkers in the woods try anyway. The stones are egg-sized, and inexpertly and weakly thrown, but one of them strikes Elias’s horse, and another rattles off his armor, before the assailants flee deeper into the woods.

[Ismaels-Legacy]

Bastian yells out from the wagon train "Oi! Elias! Have you made some new friends!?"

[Jenara]

Angel frowns, hand on her sword. She turns back and glares at the cleric.
"This is no worse than we were expecting. Keep quiet, do not rise to the situation, any attempt to react could be taken the wrong way."

[Ismaels-Legacy]

"Don't worry, it takes more than THAT to get a rise out of me! It generally requires the attentions of a buxom brunette! ....or a blonde. ...or perhaps a redhead. Yes! Definitely a redhead!" Bastian seems to have gone off into his own little world for a moment. "Hmm? Oh! Right, don't instigate the natives. Gotcha!"

[Tempest]

Elias frowns and pulls his cloak up over his ears.

[Stik]

The rock throwers venture one more salvo, this time managing to hit Elias' horse again (causing it to rear and nearly dump the ranger in the process) and the side of the wagon, before retreating into the woods. You continue unimpeded for another hour or so before arriving at the village.

The former old imperial road continues to wind through woodlands, which for the most part press close to the road, creating a tunnel effect. In the last half-mile before the village, though, there is evidence that the woods were cleared long ago, probably to make room for expansion of the settlement and to provide timber for construction.

The first buildings come into view, small houses and outbuildings, and large barn,
then the road takes a hard left at a pond and continues towards the village proper and the coast.

You pass more shacks on either side of the street, then boathouses and a smokehouse, to the left, and over the bridge the village proper. At the foot of the bridge, a large inn and tavern beckons. In the distance, looming over the village, is an old imperial lighthouse, still functioning, and it its base a mostly ruined fort. The whole village smells like fish, smoke, and smoked fish.





Fraso, tired from the road, orders Hiric to stop at the inn. Salia rolls herself wearily off the rear of the wagon onto the ground, stumbling about on shaky legs.

From the outside, the inn doesn’t look like much. The walls are stone to a height of about four feet, and wood above, as if the original builder abandoned work half-way through. The wood is shiny and grey with age, but the roof is covered with cedar shingles rather than thatch. The place smells considerably more pleasant than the village in general.

As you begin to dismount, two men in tattered livery come out of the tavern, carrying short spears. One is wearing a mail vest, the other wears a brigandine jacket, but it is not buckled shut. “Who are you people? And why are you armed?” the taller of the two asks. His voice betrays his nervousness. Several of you are better armed and armored than he.

“Luvitius Fraso. I was sent for by your mayor.”

“That’s as may be, m’lud, but I’ll have to ask you to stay here, while I send word to the mayor,” the sentry spots Elias and stiffens up. “Word to the wise, sir: be on your best behavior, and watch your words carefully. Your folk are not very popular here at the moment.”

The sentry grabs the nearest tavern patron: “Cabe - Go to the villa, tell them that hizzonor has visitors.” The man seems reluctant, but relents when the sentry’s voice turns stern. “Now, Cabe. No arguments.”

You look longingly at the tavern, and the two sentries who stand between you and a warm plate and a cold drink.

[JadedDM]

Daos waits patiently. He does pull his hood up to cover his ears, though. In the past, his facial hair has often fooled most people into believing he was human. It was only the pointed ears that gave away his elven heritage.

[Jenara]

Angel looks to the rest of the party, her ears hidden by her helm, her face is still obviously Elven. She slips off the horse discretely, hoping the movement doesnt cause a problem.

She helps Salia steady herself and then checks her weapons.

"Nice Village you have got here..." She mutters to the guard.