After an unpleasant encounter with the Tyrant's men, we finally managed to leave the Delve. This means we finally get to Fulfill Our Vow: "Get Glain safely back to the village." We get a Strong Hit (9 vs. 4, 4), which means no unpleasant surprises. We mark 1 XP for fulfilling a Troublesome vow.
There was a long silence after I finished my story. Mira didn't even look worried; she was simply tired.
"I never thought I would prefer you didn't return," she said.
"Well, that's harsh," I protested. "I wasn't the one that brought them here. They were already determined to find us, and eventually, they would. At least now we know about them."
The Overseer shifted uneasily in her stool, then nodded.
"Perhaps you're right. There's no point crying over spilled milk. Now I have to really think what are we going to do about them."
"You aren't going to swear fealty, are you?" I asked. Usually, an iron vow would have been sacrosanct, but years living in this dump made our people regretful and wonder what would have happened if they had accepted the Tyrant's ultimatum.
Does Mira consider accepting the proposition (50:50)? No.
"What good would that do?" She asked bitterly. "We would be known as oathbreakers. No one could trust we wouldn't betray the Tyrant the first moment it's convenient for us."
"In that case, we need to strike as soon as possible," I suggested. "Before they find us."
"It's not a given they do," she protested. "We are well-hidden, and I'd rather they pass us and return with nothing than not return at all. The Tyrant can and will send more men."
"But what if they do find us? We trade with other villages. If they really want to get us, they only need to ask."
She exhaled.
"You're right. I'll call a thing today. Don't do anything on your own before that."
I nodded. I had no weapons; I was beaten up, wounded, and tired. The only thing I wanted right now was a good sleep, something to eat, and checking out on Glain.
But it turned out that the gods had other things in store for me. As I went towards the entrance to the hut, the goatskins covering it parted, and I stood face to face with pale Setara.
"Overseer!" She shouted. "Some men are coming towards the village! They're armed and want to see you!"
They were already here.
Compel with Heart went well (Strong Hit, 5+1 vs. 2, 4), and Mira agrees to fight the invaders before they find the village. Momentum +5.
But then we make a roll to Sojourn, and it goes terribly (Miss, 1+1+1 vs. 6, 6, Complication). Not only do we Pay the Price, something goes unexpectedly and awfully wrong. Obviously, there's no time to recuperate because the enemy already found Stilthouse.
**
There was no time to prepare for combat except going to Glain's hut to grab a spare bow and a few more arrows. The old man was asleep. I shook his shoulder gently to wake him up, told him to get ready for combat, grabbed my weapons, and left.
As a familiar group emerged between the trees, the village looked even more pitiful than before I left it. The circle mainly gathered near the overgrown bloomery, where the ground was dry and high. They wielded mostly slings and spears, with a few bowmen among them.
Morter's group, to the contrast, was armed to the teeth. When I met them, they only wore leather; now, each of them sported a byrnie. This made sense: heavy armor in the swamp was more trouble than it was worth unless you expected a brutal fight. Their leader wore an iron helmet with a nose guard; a sharp-looking ax in her hand left no doubt she was prepared for violence.
Mira stood at the front of the defending group with a defiant look.
"You are not welcome here!" She shouted.
"Do you even know who we are?" Morter asked in response. Her eyes spied me in the crowd, and she grinned unpleasantly. "I'll assume you do."
"You're the Tyrant's men." The Overseer spat out, causing a few shocked gasps among the circle.
"We serve the rightful king of the Ironlands, yes. The one you foolishly defied, exiling yourself to this swamp. But even now, he extends a merciful hand towards you. Swear fealty, and in no time, you'll be in Thornhall again, among his subjects!"
"We want nothing to do with your king!" Mira shouted, but a few villagers gave each other an unconvinced look. Morter must have spotted it too.
"Does this woman speak for all of you?" She asked.
"Don't you see my circlet?" Mira grabbed her headdress and raised it into the air. "I am their Overseer for at least five more springs."
"Wait, aren't we even going to consider it?" Wulan, our tanner, asked incredulously. His bearded face was pale, and it seemed clear he didn't want to fight.
"Are you serious?!" I couldn't believe my ears. "We all vowed to get rid of the Tyrant one day."
His face went red.
"Who are you to decide, boy? For all we know, it's you who brought them here."
This is a dangerous moment: the circle is tired of resisting and is on the verge of breaking their vow. A perfect moment to Test Our Bond. Failing this means the hamlet swears the fealty and effectively stops existing.
We succeed, but not wholly (Weak Hit, 5+1 vs. 8, 5). If we don't want them to give up, we must do something decisive. We need to win.
The villagers are dispirited and worse armed than the invaders. Because this is a battle and the main problem is that the defenders really want to surrender, a Formidable scene challenge seems more appropriate than a regular fight.
"I did. And I'll take them out." I said, drawing my bow. I didn't even need to aim; Morter only gave a shocked gasp after an arrow hit her right shoulder, punching between the rings of her chainmail.
"Attack, damn it!" She spat out. Her men fanned out between the buildings, trying to avoid getting hit by even more arrows.
"We have the higher ground!" I shouted. "This is our chance!"
First, we Secure an Advantage with our Archer talent (Strong Hit, 6+3+1 vs. 1, 3). Momentum goes to +7. Then we Face Danger with Heart, trying to energize the defenders (Miss, 2+1 vs. 6, 6, Complication). Terrible, but that's what Momentum is for (Strong Hit, 7 vs. 6, 6, Opportunity). We eliminated the leader, changing a Formidable fight to Dangerous. We also mark Progress (+2)
Too shocked and angered by her wound, Morter was the only person that didn't try to take cover. Instead, she charged straight towards the hill. This meant that she was the most obvious target for every circle member with a ranged weapon.
A stone nearly as large as a woman's fist went straight into her nose, bending the guard and breaking the bone with a sickening crunch. The shock sent her reeling and made her drop the spear. Before she fell, an arrow went into her knee. With a muffled scream, she toppled either dead or unconscious.
But it wasn't the end of the fight. Seeing their leader fall, the rest of her men screamed in anger and charged through the damp ground towards the bloomery. There were too few spearmen among the circle to successfully repel them; they only needed to reach defenders to slaughter them effortlessly.
I assessed the situation. It didn't look good for us. Another salvo as strong as the first one could break the charge. Nothing less than another death could discourage our enemies from their charge.
I drew my bow again, hoping to finish another enemy in one shot. The big man who nearly broke my nose the day before seemed like an obvious target. However, when I loosened the bowstring, he tripped over a loose plank, and the arrow that would have hit his bald forehead didn't even nick him.
Secure an Advantage with Wits (Weak Hit, 5+2 vs. 9, 6) gives us only +1 to Momentum (+3). But the more important Face Danger with Edge roll fails miserably (5+2 vs. 10, 8). Not only it raises our Countdown to +1, but it also means there is too late to stop the charge.
Kalidas, the man with the wispy mustache, reached the defenders first with his sword already raised. Maya, a mother of three, met him with her spear, but a thrown javelin hit her just below the ribcage. The attacker smiled triumphantly as she dropped her weapon, putting all his strength into a vicious stab. It never connected: I charged him, hitting his shoulder with mine.
In any other conditions, he would have kept his balance. However, getting pushed on a wet, grassy slope in the middle of an attack was too much for him. He fell, nearly dropping his sword. I reached for it, but he grabbed my right hand with his left.
Rolling to Face Danger with Iron gave an unexpectedly good result (Strong Hit, 6+1 vs. 5, 1), bringing our Progress to +4. Unfortunately, an attempt to Secure an Advantage by grabbing the sword was a failure (Miss, 1+1 vs. 4, 5). Our Momentum goes back to +2.
Having no weapon to defend, I attempted to jump back before he got a good grip. Instead of even bothering with holding me in place, Kalidas stabbed my side. The blade went effortlessly through the skin and muscle, stopping only at the pelvis. I nearly pissed myself from sheer pain.
Face Danger with Edge went even worse (Miss, 1+2 vs. 8, 5). We take +2 Harm, bringing us to 0 Health and +1 Momentum. Fortunately, an Endure Harm move goes well (Strong Hit, 5+1 vs. 5, 2), letting us get Momentum back. Unfortunately, Countdown also raises to +2.
"Maya! Get him!" I didn't even bother to look if she was still standing, but she did. With the javelin still jutting from her abdomen, she pointed her spear at Kalidas; its point was visibly shaking, though. It was clear she was barely holding up. Her enemy didn't even bother with her; he was still looking for a way to get through her and reach me.
Still with no melee weapon, I notched another arrow. Seeing this, Kalidas viciously kicked Maya's spear, then slashed her throat with a merciless cut. But it was enough time to send a projectile into his belly. Chainmail offered little protection from a point-blank distance; the arrow went into his stomach to the fletching. He groaned in pain and collapsed.
Securing an Advantage with Heart (Weak Hit, 3+2 vs. 4, 7) gave us little +1 Momentum (+3). A Face Danger with Edge roll didn't go much better (Weak Hit, 3+2 vs. 4, 7), raising the Progress to +6 and the Countdown to +3. The battle will be decided one way or the other soon. The next Face Danger roll will most likely determine our success or failure.
I dived for his sword as he lay there. He still fought me, and it took me a moment to snatch it from his weakening grip. Around me, the battle raged. Several circle members were already lying on the ground, blood seeping from their wounds. I tried to assess the situation and determine where I was needed the most. The answer was pretty much "anywhere," as long as I wouldn't dally. But then I spotted the large man I tried to shoot before: he broke through the spearmen and faced a bunch of slingers. Because of the crowd, shooting him was not an option: I had to reach him before it was too late.
I need to stock up on Momentum, trying with Secure an Advantage rolls with Edge and Wits (Weak Hit, 4+3 vs. 2, 7), (Weak Hit, 4+2 vs. 7, 3). Momentum +5 isn't really comfortable enough, but it must do.
I didn't. His ax went into Vigo's shoulder with a sickening crunch, sending the barely thirteen-year-old boy sprawling. Another vicious hit crushed his mother's skull like an egg, splattering the defenders with her blood and brain. Then Glain, of all people, stabbed the warrior's neck with a javelin, severing an artery. The large man died before I reached him, trying to stop the bleeding with his hands, but only managing to protect his enemies from getting splashed with his blood.
The three remaining men were already breaking away from the fight. Nobody pursued them; they all looked at the wailing boy, bleeding profusely from his shoulder. He was already pale as death. Mira knelt next to him, trying to staunch the flow of blood, but she was merely going through the motions at this point.
"I'm sorry- I wasn't fast enough," I blurted out.
"Damn right you're sorry." Wylan pointed the accusing finger at me. "You should be."
We Face Danger with Edge, hoping we got enough Momentum to overcome a lousy roll (Miss, 3+2 vs. 9, 10). It isn't nowhere near enough. Two more people are brutally murdered before our eyes, losing us Spirit (+1) and forcing an Endure Stress move. It went as well as expected (Miss, 2+1 vs. 6, 6). Momentum goes down to +4, and our guilt makes us an obvious target.
With Countdown going to +4, we need to end the scene challenge immediately (Weak Hit, 6 vs. 9, 4). The village is saved. Unfortunately, several people are dead, and the rest is are unhappy about starting a fight. At least, our vow to Free Thornhall to the Tyrant's yoke deserves a tick.
I also realized I wasn't filling the Bonds correctly; it's one tick per Bond, not one progress.
**
- Get Glain safely back to the village (Fulfilled)
- Kill the basilisk (Dangerous, 2/10)
- When you Secure an Advantage by taking a moment to aim, choose your approach and add +1.
• Trust your instincts: Roll +wits, and take +2 momentum on a strong hit.
• Line up your shot: Roll +edge, and take +1 momentum on a hit.
- When you Secure an Advantage by crafting arrows of fine quality, add +1. Then, take +1 supply or +1 momentum on a hit.
- When
your supply is reduced to 0, suffer any remaining -supply as -momentum.
Then, roll +wits. On a strong hit, you manage to scrape by and take +1
supply. On a weak hit, you may suffer -2 momentum in exchange for +1
supply. On a miss, you are Out of Supply.
Bonds:
- Glain, vilage hunter, Escape from something, Timid, Cautious, Wary
- Stilthouse, settlement in the Flooded Lands
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