Heroica RPG - Quest #104: Ace Assassin: Dual Dragoons

[The Chosen Minifigure]

"Hey A-man, can I just have the gem and 15 gold, that'll do me."

says Warlen.

Edited July 17, 2014 by The Chosen Minifigure

[KotZ]

"If I may," Kiray chimed in, "am I able to have the Flameproof Armor? I'll take nothing else if I have to."

[Actaeon]

OoC: This may be a dumb question, but can a hero other than a mage or cleric use the Scroll of Frailty? I noticed that we don't have ether, but it says nothing about being class specific.

"Well done everyone. Time to divvy the loot up!" Actaeon says, trying to hide his excitement. "Nicole and Shadow, we greatly appreciate your help in battle. Since we are paying you for this voyage, I hope you won't be too disappointed if we divide the loot among the heroes."

"Kiray, you already have some defenses, and since this is our very first battle, I think a lower level, weaker hero should get that. And Siecron, do you mind letting Warlen have the Saphire?"

Ooc: I'll divvy after my questions are answered

Edited July 17, 2014 by Actaeon

[Siercon and Coral]

Siercon replies to Actaeon, "I think the sapphire is probably the most tempting to me, but I will happily step aside. I know Warlen will put it to good use."

[KotZ]

"I can easily trade it to a hero if we come across something better. As of right now, I'm our tank, and I'm going to be up on the front row taking full damage when we fight enemies."

[Actaeon]

"I can easily trade it to a hero if we come across something better. As of right now, I'm our tank, and I'm going to be up on the front row taking full damage when we fight enemies."

"True, but you already have the most health and defense. Nevertheless, if you keep your word and are willing to sacrifice an item later on, I'll let you have it.

Siercon replies to Actaeon, "I think the sapphire is probably the most tempting to me, but I will happily step aside. I know Warlen will put it to good use."

"Thank you, Siecron. I think the young mage has proven himself to be very useful."

OoC: Do either of you guys know if technically a non mage or cleric can use the Scroll of Frailty?"

[KotZ]

"True, but you already have the most health and defense. Nevertheless, if you keep your word and are willing to sacrifice an item later on, I'll let you have it.

"Thanks," Kiray replied. "I just thing it's best right now for me to use the armor, but if we come across a much more difficult opponent, I'll gladly give it to one our fellow heroes. Or if there was better armor, I'd gladly take that if that was the only thing I would take as loot and give the Flameproof armor to somebody else along with my share of gold and what have you."

[Actaeon]

"Thanks," Kiray replied. "I just thing it's best right now for me to use the armor, but if we come across a much more difficult opponent, I'll gladly give it to one our fellow heroes. Or if there was better armor, I'd gladly take that if that was the only thing I would take as loot and give the Flameproof armor to somebody else along with my share of gold and what have you."

Actaeon nods in return. She's right, but I really wanted that item.

[Flipz]

QM Note: Only classes with Ether can use Scrolls, though Scrolls can be imbued into Artifacts at the Marketplace to provide immunity to the effect they inflict.

[Actaeon]

"Alright everyone. Here's the loot divvy. I'll give the Phoenix Essence to Kiray, since she's the strongest. But if we don't use it during the quest, I will want it back.

Kiray- Flameproof Armor, Phoenix Essence

Warlen- Sapphire, 15 gold, potion.

Siecron- 35 gold, Dragon Scale

Diana- Remedy, 20 gold (you already got some from the battle).

Germ- Remedy, Potion, Dragon Scale, 20 gold

Actaeon- Remedy, Dragon Scale, 25 Gold, and Scroll of Frailty

Daeth- 5 gold, potion.

I hope that seems fair!"

OoC: Daeth gets less because he was gone all battle.

[Flipz]

The Party:

Actaeon Artus (Actaeon)

*Party Leader*

21 year old male human

Level 2 Ranger

Power:

5

Health:

5/7

Gold:

30

Equipment:

Bow (WP:3)

Inventory:

Smoke Bomb, Potion, Dragon Scale, Remedy, Bedroll, Scroll of

Frailty

Siercon (Siercon and Coral)

Male, Age and species unknown

Level 7 Mage

Power:

15

(7 levels + 8 WP)

Defense:

1

(Robe of the Magi)

Health:

5/11

(5 base + 5 lvl)

Ether:

8/11

(5 base + 5 lvl)

Gold:

76

Equipment:

Lullaby Wand (WP:8, deals

sleep

-effect; wand), Robe of the Magi (SP:1),

Inventory:

*Sylvania's Cowl (Artifact, Head Wear, Animal Talk),

*Diamond (

Light

), Scroll of

Sleep

, Bedroll

*Potion x2, Remedy, Dragon Scale

The Demon Germ (Samurai Turtle)

??? years old ; Half Demon; Male

Level 2 Rogue

Power:

5

Defense:

0

Health:

5/8

Ether:

0

Gold

28

Equipment:

Wrench (WP:3, decreases the target’s level by 1; throwing weapon)

Inventory:

Copper Dagger (WP:3; dagger), Venom, Potion x2, Remedy, Dragon Scale, Bedroll

Warlen Melimane

and

Quarion

the floating skull

(The Chosen Minifigure)

17 Year old Male Half-Elf

Level 2 Mage

Power:

5 (10 for spells)

Power Bonus:

+5 for spells

Health:

6/6

Ether:

2/6

Gold:

20

Equipment:

Gold-Coated bat staff (Wp:3), Spellbound Gloves (Power +5 to spells)

(Loaned by Siercon)

Inventory:

Potion x2, Amethyst (

Darkness

), Sapphire (

Wind

), bedroll

Yuji Daeth (Daeth)

34 year old male Croaken (Frog based race)

Level 2 cleric

Power:

5

Defense:

0

Health:

7/10

Ether:

2/6

Gold:

15

Equipment:

Slightly Sharpened Croaken Staff (WP:3; staff)

Inventory:

Remedy, Potion x2

Kiray Nastayo (KingoftheZempk),

A Hero Who Is Actually Worth Something

*Immune to

Fire

*

24 year old female human

Level 5 Knight

Power:

8

Defense:

3

Health:

10/14

Gold:

5

Equipment:

Sword of the Kin (WP:3), Scutum Shield (SP:2; shield), Flameproof Armor (SP:1, immune to

Fire

; bodywear, suitable for anyone)

Inventory:

Potion, Banana (Restores full health when eaten), Chaotic Bomb (Causes 100 elemental damage to all opponents), Phoenix Essence, Bedroll

Diana N. Justus

(NPC, Uncontrollable/takes suggestions)

17 years old female human Assassin

Level 2

Power:

5

Power Bonus:

+0

Defense:

0

Health:

11/13

Gold:

259

Equipment:

Ace Assassin's Crossbow (WP:3, crossbow), Belt of the Ace Assassin (Successful Assasination rolls on enemies immune to sudden death deal an extra Aim instead. Bodywear, Suitable for Assassins only.)

Inventory:

Potion x5, Mead x3, Smelling Salts x3, Nostrum x3, Remedy, Sticky Gloves (Increases the amount of gold stolen by 50% (rounded up), suitable for rogues and beast warriors)

"Thank you, Heroes. You've provided an excellent testing grounds for the Stealth Shadow's combat capabilities. I can already think of a few improvements..."

"I HAVE LEARNED MUCH FROM STUD-Y-ING YOUR STYLE OF COMBAT. I WILL USE THIS KNOW-LEDGE TO BET-TER PRO-TECT THE CRE-A-TOR IN THE FU-TURE."

Nicole and Stealth Shadow have left the party!

As the party divides their loot, a small crunching sound can be heard from the back of the airship, and the remaining avians that had been circling the ship suddenly disperse as quickly as they had come. Dragonlord approaches, his exp<b></b>ression grim.

"Trouble?"

"You could say that. It appears we've been sabotaged--I believe this was responsible for those creatures' attack."

Dragonlord holds up a small, crudely-constructed mass of machinery that was now smashed beyond all repair. None of the party had noticed it before, but the crushed cone atop it bore a striking resemblance to a device they had seen very recently...

"A Vibrataphone?!" Nicole gasps.

What will the party do?

Edited July 19, 2014 by Flipz

[Actaeon]

Actaeon's eyes narrow on the machine. That's what attracted the beasts.

"Who had access to this ship before we left?" he asks Nicole, clearly upset.

[Siercon and Coral]

Siercon seemed slightly confused. "A vibrataphone? So this a different one than the one in the shop, and isn't one of yours?" He asked Nicole.

He hardly had a enough time with the last vibrataphone to recognize it in this shape.

Turning to Dragonlord he thought to himself. "So you think it was planted intentionally...? humm..."

[Flipz]

Actaeon's eyes narrow on the machine. That's what attracted the beasts.

"Who had access to this ship before we left?" he asks Nicole, clearly upset.

"N-no one!" For once, Nicole's monotone breaks, and real fear begins to creep into her voice--a trace amount, but far more than she would usually allow herself. The woman is truly rattled. "There's me, and the crew, and any of the scientists in the lab that morning...but surely none of them would have sabotaged our own ship...right? The only unusual people at Tritech Headquarters were your group."

Siercon seemed slightly confused. "A vibrataphone? So this a different one than the one in the shop, and isn't one of yours?" He asked Nicole.

He hardly had a enough time with the last vibrataphone to recognize it in this shape.

Turning to Dragonlord he thought to himself. "So you think it was planted intentionally...? humm..."

"W-what are you suggesting?!"

"Remember that noise I mentioned when we woke up? It was coming from this. The birds fled when I smashed it--seems pretty conclusive to me."

"It's not a normal part of the ship, that's for sure..." Nicole stares at the hunk of mangled machinery, as if she could somehow will it out of existence.

[Siercon and Coral]

"W-what are you suggesting?!"

Siercon reassured her, "I'm not suggesting anything, just that if it was completely foreign it that would imply someone created it and brought it here intentionally to cause harm. But if it's just one of yours, someone could have easily just been listening to it for fun without knowing it might bring trouble." Siercon could see himself falling asleep to the vibraphone as a harmonic din, conducive to sleep. So he finished saying,

"Anyone want to fess up, and give a reasonable explanation to this?" He thought, 'if no one says anything, then they're either scared of getting in trouble, or know they intentionally caused it... This could be an issue. Fortunately no harm was done... For now.'

[samurai-turtle]

I better give the gloves back to Diana. I do not need an assassin hunting me down. No mater how cute they are, she giving him a look . (Knowing that the comment would not work.) I'm only joking around here here are your gloves just a little bit dirty or bloody.

OoC: Encase any one wanted to know what I put in the spoiler.

(searches the damage vibraphone) Let me look at it maybe it is marked some how.

OoC: Shouldn't my power went up? Flipz

Edited July 18, 2014 by samuraiturtle

[KotZ]

"Seems that this technology isn't as safe as we thought," Kiray added. "That, or somebody is trying to stop us from finishing our quest, and I doubt it's anyone of us heroes. Is it possible for the automaton to be controlled from a distance? Who besides us have come into contact with it?"

[Actaeon]

"N-no one!" For once, Nicole's monotone breaks, and real fear begins to creep into her voice--a trace amount, but far more than she would usually allow herself. The woman is truly rattled. "There's me, and the crew, and any of the scientists in the lab that morning...but surely none of them would have sabotaged our own ship...right? The only unusual people at Tritech Headquarters were your group."

"People will do almost anything for money. How well do you know the crew and scientists?"

[The Chosen Minifigure]

"I think we could add that Captain we met at the docks to our list of suspects.

He was pretty annoyed when we chose the Airship!" remarked Quarion.

[Flipz]

QM Note: Your Power is fixed, Germ.

Siercon reassured her, "I'm not suggesting anything, just that if it was completely foreign it that would imply someone created it and brought it here intentionally to cause harm. But if it's just one of yours, someone could have easily just been listening to it for fun without knowing it might bring trouble." Siercon could see himself falling asleep to the vibraphone as a harmonic din, conducive to sleep. So he finished saying,

"Anyone want to fess up, and give a reasonable explanation to this?" He thought, 'if no one says anything, then they're either scared of getting in trouble, or know they intentionally caused it... This could be an issue. Fortunately no harm was done... For now.'

"It can't be of Tritech craftsmanship. It would not have been broken so easily if it had been."

For once, Dragonlord and Diana agree on something, as they both roll their eyes.

(searches the damage vibraphone) Let me look at it maybe it is marked some how.

Germ finds no insignia or logo of any kind. It is difficult to tell due to all the damage, but the device seems to have been hastily constructed, and the design seems crude in comparison to the device they'd seen in the Tritech Headquarters. Any more than that is impossible to discern.

"I think we could add that Captain we met at the docks to our list of suspects.

He was pretty annoyed when we chose the Airship!" remarked Quarion.

"Hmm...it is a possibility, but I'm not sure it's the case."

"The Bonapartes and may not get along well with Tritech or their sponsors the Ji Pei, but it would be an awfully big risk if the device was somehow traced back to them, especially with us Heroes here to corroborate." Dragonlord frowns, as if on the verge of figuring something out but not quite able to make the connection.

"Seems that this technology isn't as safe as we thought," Kiray added. "That, or somebody is trying to stop us from finishing our quest, and I doubt it's anyone of us heroes. Is it possible for the automaton to be controlled from a distance? Who besides us have come into contact with it?"

"People will do almost anything for money. How well do you know the crew and scientists?"

"Our technology is perfectly safe! And our scientists are carefully screened and beyond reproach! Clearly an impostor is trying to ruin our good name and our relationship with with Heroica!"

Dragonlord suddenly looks up.

"That's it!"

"What's it?"

"I don't think this has to do with you or the Heroes at all...this has to do with me."

"...I don't understand."

"Miss Tesla, do you know what the consequences would be for the Tritech Corporation if a Veteran of Heroica was killed aboard one of your airships?"

"..."

"Miss Tesla?"

"I...I have never even considered--"

"Heroica would immediately withdraw its support, the other Houses would distance themselves from Tritech and the Ji Pei, and the Bonapartes would have the excuse they needed to move in on and shut down Tritech."

"But that's insane! Why would we take such an illogical risk?"

"That's a good question. But no one would stop to ask it--"

"--until it was too late."

Dragonlord nods.

"Exactly. Meanwhile, we'd be down a Veteran and in disarray, allowing certain...elements to exploit the situation."

Diana looks up suddenly.

"You don't mean..."

"I do."

Diana seems irritated at the Dragonlord's suggestion, but bites back her response. She crosses her arms, muttering darkly to herself. Nicole also frowns, but for a different reason.

"That plan seems structurally unsound. Why take such a chance on something so likely to fail?"

"I'm sure the plan was made in haste. This Quest was organized quickly, so the saboteurs would've had even less time to do their own plotting."

"That does not explain why they took the chance in the first place."

"Short story: out here, I'm vulnerable. I don't want to say too much, but this is one reason we Veterans try to stay out of sight: we don't want to put the people around us at risk."

Nicole still doesn't seem to be buying the Dragonlord's theory, so he gestures to Stealth Shadow.

"Robot--er, Shadow. You were on-board the Bostonius the whole time the ship was at Tritch Headquarters, right? From the time it docked to the time it left?"

"AF-FIRM-A-TIVE."

"Did you notice anything unusual this morning?"

"AF-FIRM-A-TIVE. SCANS DE-TEC-TED EIGHT UN-KNOWN IN-DI-VID-U-ALS COM-ING A-BOARD. THEY WERE DES-IG-NAT-ED AS PASS-EN-GERS BY THE CRE-A-TOR."

"That's us," Dragonlord explains to the party. "Did you notice anything else while the ship was docked? Any...small animals by any chance?"

Nicole gasps in realization.

"Of course...and that would explain how they managed to reverse-engineer my Vibrataphone as well!"

Shadow appears, for lack of a better word, confused.

"PRO-CESS-ING IN-QUI-RY...ERROR. I AM NOT PRO-GRAMMED TO DE-TECT NON-HU-MAN-OID IN-TRU-DERS. I AM UN-A-BLE TO PRO-VIDE A DE-FIN-I-TIVE RE-SPONSE."

"A miscalculation I will quickly correct. Thank you, Dragonlord. And you as well, Heroes. It seems we now owe you twice over."

Just then, Captain Fragle interrupts.

"Missssss Tesssla, we have almossst arrived in Drakencourt."

"Thank you, Captain. Please begin your landing procedures."

Does the party wish to say anything further to Nicole, Stealth Shadow, or Captain Fragle before they land in Dastan?

[Actaeon]

"This all makes sense, all but one thing. Why would the Bonapartes offer us passage to Dastan if they planned to sabotage our flight with you? How did they even know you would offer us transportation? What if we had accepted the ride with the Captain? Their plan would obviously never have taken place."

[Siercon and Coral]

Siercon looks over the edge of the ship and tries to gauge the distance between them and their destination. He figured he had time for a quick catnap... even if it was just 10 minutes. But who knows perhaps landing might take longer than he expected. Siercon huddles down on his bedroll in an obscure corner of the ship.He wouldn't get a full nights sleep, but every little bit would help. Besides, he had a sneaking suspicion that he didn't want to see how this thing "landed".

[The Chosen Minifigure]

"Well, at least we've warded off the threat... for now, at least."

Noticing sirecon snatching a rest, Warlen Lies down and sleeps on his bedroll.

Edited July 19, 2014 by The Chosen Minifigure

[Actaeon]

Actaeon notices his fellow heroes lying down, "Do you think we could get some quick rest before we depart from your ship? We could all really use it."

[Flipz]

"This all makes sense, all but one thing. Why would the Bonapartes offer us passage to Dastan if they planned to sabotage our flight with you? How did they even know you would offer us transportation? What if we had accepted the ride with the Captain? Their plan would obviously never have taken place."

Diana snorts derisively.

"Do you really think those Bonaparte clowns would be any more attentive than this hunk of junk over here?"

"There is a...third party who tried to steal the original Vibrataphone several months ago. Another party of Heroes stopped them, but it seems they got a close enough look at the device anyway."

Dragonlord leans down to whisper into Actaeon's ear.

"For various reasons, the Bonapartes being blamed for my death would actually be worse for our organization. It's not safe to discuss why in front of outsiders--or even amongst our own, unfortunately. Best if we just drop it for now--I'll make some inquiries of my own when we return to Eubric."

Siercon looks over the edge of the ship and tries to gauge the distance between them and their destination. He figured he had time for a quick catnap... even if it was just 10 minutes. But who knows perhaps landing might take longer than he expected. Siercon huddles down on his bedroll in an obscure corner of the ship.He wouldn't get a full nights sleep, but every little bit would help. Besides, he had a sneaking suspicion that he didn't want to see how this thing "landed".

"Well, at least we've warded off the threat... for now, at least."

Noticing sirecon snatching a rest, Warlen Lies down and sleeps on his bedroll.

Actaeon notices his fellow heroes lying down, "Do you think we could get some quick rest before we depart from your ship? We could all really use it."

The party's mages try to set out their bedrolls for a quick nap, but the turbulence and whirring machinery caused by the airship's descent prove too disruptive to allow for rest.

"I doubt it. We only have a few more minutes before we land anyway."

Even as Nicole speaks, the party notices the ground getting closer and closer. Rugged mountains, vast deserts, and small but wild forests stretch out beneath them, a sunbaked mosaic of browns and greens broken by the gray rock of mountains and the harsh lines of manmade walls and old military outposts, a testament to the Empire's martial heritage.

Edited July 19, 2014 by Flipz