Barston and Derron arrive in Yewsforth and confront a group of cultists. As well as a local man who seems to be helping the cultists out.

from a photo by Greg Willson on Unsplash. Apologies to the folks of Grassington for having their home modified to be a seen-better-days town in Phillia.

Before I continue, I want to set a pair of "Keyed Scenes" of sorts. If this does not lead me to thinking that B & D have reached Yewsforth or the Tower, then tomorrow's (#6) AC will be hitting one of the goals. Then, there will be between 1-3 mini-sessions at whichever place [how about, 1-3 at Yewsforth, 2-4 at Tower?].

The nature of this beast is that it doesn't really have to wrap up. These are more like the highlights of this journey.

As a note, a mixture of chronic-plus-acute pain and illness has worn me down quite a bit. This and maybe the next couple of mini-sessions are going to likely be artificially brief.

On with it...

  • Card One: 229 6d4 Cultists looking for teeth. Ok, so never mind above, we have made it Yewsforth. 6d4 is waaaaay too many so will 4-6: 6. Of course there are.
  • Card Two: 137 2d3 Skeletons. Oh my. I get 4.

Anyhow, I am glad I typed the above because now I look a fool. At any rate, we'll set it up like this. Two fights. The first will be 3 cultists prowling the area. Do they have a captive? (50/50) → 66...in One Page Mythic that's a twist of sorts. Let's see: 03 Benefit 73 Negative + 69 [nice] Mundane 53 Goals. Ok, we'll say that there is NOT a current captive but there are folks from the region helping the cultists. They are benefiting the negative. Why? Mundane Goals. So not even staying alive. This is going to be like...a landowner who (likely, falsely) believes they are going to be rewarded for such dastardliness. Is that a word? MOVING ON!

We'll find out more about the landowner later... but this might be all THREE encounters for Yewsforth.

Entering Yewsforth

It is unknown how exactly Yewsforth looks in the height of summer when the grass is greenest, the fields are plentiful, and the Mountains Midnight shine in the noon-day soon. In this blighted early spring, it is brown and gray, mostly. Some buildings burned. Cobblestone streets empty.

Not even cries of the damned break the painful silence that wraps over it.

"It's the smells, really," Derron notes, quietly. He and Barston have gained entrance into the town and have hidden themselves behind some crates next to a bar: De Eend Leest. A picture of a duck with a book hangs from a sign which hangs from a single chain after the other broke.

Awareness rolls +3 for both. B = 3 vs 12. D = 4 vs 11. They both clearly succeed. They will be able to set up a trap of sorts.

Their target are a group of men and women who have been combing the area. Loudly. Making noise. Terrible laughter. They sound human but are speaking a language of somewhere else. In strongly accented West Phillian, a language that neither Barston nor Derron speak, they have been talking to someone else. Someone who sounds pompous.

As the group rounds the corner past a fountain which trickles water despite the statue of a young boy being bashed to pieces at the top, they come into view. Three men and a woman. One of the men looks decidedly local. Fat but otherwise fitting the general vibe. The other three are in dark robes and their hair shaved clean. Tattoos of strange design cover their skin instead of hair.

Barston and Derron wait for them to go down another alley, and then sneak after.

Since B and D both well succeeded in the previous roll, I'll give them a +5 to this one.

The three cultists will be a mid-level threat, mostly just part of the "wearing down" vibe. The two men we'll put at 8/8 with no armor but daggers [and teeth-pulling pliers]. The woman will be the chief and 9/9 and a longsword. She'll have on Scale Armor under her cloak.

B = 7+5+9 [21]. D = 11+10+5 [27]. C1 = 4+8 [12]. C2 = 9+8 [17]. C3 (the woman) = 7+9 [16].

B and D will get +4 for their round of attack and +2 to Damage.

As the woman berates the local-looking man about a locked door, the other two men lounge back and look far too relaxed. It is clear they have gotten too used to picking on poor Yew-folks and have not really faced a threat. Barston seeks to make them pay for that.

  • ROUND ONE
    • B (targeting C1): 6+4+11 [21]. C1: 5+8 [13]. B wins, doing 2+1+2=5 (3 Stam). This is a powerful blow (+6 target). Doubles damage. 2 remain.
    • D (targeting C2): 8+4+11 [23]. C2: 8+9 [17]. D wins (Powerful). Does 5+1+2 = (4 Stam). x2 = enough to kill the guy in a single hit.

Quietly and quickly, Barston surprises the guy lounging to the left and strikes him in the head with his mace. It is a heavy blow that sends the man reeling down into boxes.

On the right, Derron grabs the head of the other man and twists fast, snapping his neck.

The woman turns and sees her followers under attack and pulls out her sword to join the fray. Derron rushes forth to meet her.

The fat man seeing this lets out a cough and starts fleeing down the alley.

  • ROUND TWO
  • [MAN] has +1 Round head start. Is the Alley closed off at the end? (50/50) → 86. No. So he is going to start actually escaping.
    • B vs C1: 7+11 [18] vs 3+8 [11]. B will finish him off without even checking since he'll do at least 2x2 Stam.
    • D vs C3: 7+11 [18] vs 8+9 [17]. ooo, competition. D does [4+1] = 3 Stam. Her armor blocks 2 = 1 Stam. She has 7 remaining.
  • ROUND THREE
  • [MAN] has +2 Rounds.
    • B helps fight the woman. B: 3+11+1 [15]. D: 8+11+1 [20]. C3: 6+9 [15]. She blocks B's hit but gets hit by D for 4+1=5 (3 Stam) and blocks 1 (0 Stam). 4 remain. Derron will shout to chase after the man.
  • ROUND FOUR
    • B will do a contested SKILL roll with the man having +2. B: 10+7 [17]. M: 6+5+2 [13]. B makes up one round.
    • D vs C3: 5+11 [16] vs 9+8 [17]. She hits. Does 2 (3 Stam) vs D's 6 Dodge (2). He takes 1 Stamina damage.
  • ROUND FIVE
    • B vs M: 5+7 [12] vs 8+5+1 [14]. The man stays 1 Round ahead.
    • D vs C3: 6+11 [17] vs 4+9 [13]. He does 1+1=2 (2 Stam) and her armor blocks 6 (2). She takes no damage.
  • ROUND SIX
    • B vs M: 9+7 [16] vs 5+5+1 [11]. Man has lost his advantage. B is catching up.
    • D: 10+11 [21]. C3: 3+9 [12]. Another powerful blow. D does 3+1 (2 Stam) [4 total]. Her armor blocks 3 (1). 3 Stamina damage. She has 1 remaining. Could she surrender? (50/50) → 47. Yes. We'll do a SKILL test: 6 vs 9. She's in control. I'll say she will.
  • ROUND SEVEN
    • B vs M: 9+7 [16] vs 8+5 [13]. B has caught the man.

Near the edge of the town, Barston finally jumps on the man and drags the larger guy down into the hard grass. A few quick twists later, he manages to have the man's arms grasped.

"Come on, you. Let's see how our friends are doing."

Back in the alley, Derron keeps dodging the sword while landing hits on the woman. She finally cries out, "Uklast!," and drops her sword. Derron contemplates finishing her off but instead raises his fists in a sign he is giving her some degree of grace. He waits to see if she takes the opportunity to fight back but instead she gets on her knees and puts her hands against the street.

Hoping for mercy she herself would never have given. Derron cannot see it, but she has a smile on her face.

NOTE: For some reason this one never finished publishing. I have tried to back-date but it might be out of order. That's ok.