The Dark Isles of Atmos (IC)

[DoctorGlock]

Thunder rolled and the flash of lightning illuminated the devastation as the first of the Black Talon ships began to split, spilling burning debris and screaming men into the Maelstrom below.

That's when the ships magazine went up. The whole black powder store touched off in an instant of light and heat. And death.

The chief gunner of the Black Mastiff Squinted against the glare and pounding rain and gripped the rail to steady himself against the shockwave that rippled the deck. Spitting blood towards the shattered mainsail he turned towards the Mastiff's captain.

“One down, if you can keep us out of the Maelstrom and gain us more height I reckon we can take the other!” he shouted, as crewmen ran out the guns, loaded with fresh shot.

His words were punctuated by another thunderous boom and the sound of splintering wood. Men on deck screamed, desperately aiming scatter-guns as the second Black Talon ship broke cloud cover above, dropping barrels of burning powder towards the stricken Mastiff below.

“We can't drop any further!” shouted the helmsman. Below, green lightning flickered and thunder rolled shaking the ship's keel. The Mastiff was mere feet above the Maelstrom's turbulence, forced down by the combined assault of twin Black Talon corvettes.

No surrender. No retreat.


Well everyone, roll initiatives then.

[Starsign]

Like any escorting job, the days have been long, boring, and distressful all at once. They're never jobs any pirate would accept due to how they work; people would be more often found preferring to go plundering ships than making themselves highly-valuable ships protected by a rag-tag group of pirates, freedom fighters, rebels, psychos; the list goes on.

So of course the weathered old minotaur named Drallic happened to find himself in this mess. The mercenary stood at the bow of the Black Mastiff, particularly relaxed despite all the quakes and sounds erupting from the ensuing battle. He's been in this situation plenty of times, none of them ever comfortable either. He remembers the first time he got a damn close look at the maelstrom he had a look of panic of horror back then. Nowadays he views it like any inconvenience. Compared to all the panic the other people are in, Drallic seems like he'd be unfazed by anything.

He looks up to the Talon corvette that had helped trapped the Mastiff so close to the maelstrom, figuring that the corvette would either shoot from above or attempt to crush the Mastiff between the land of death below. Considering his brown fur, dark combat vest, undershirt, and pants are drenched in the rain that came before, a little Talon blood couldn't hurt to get everyone else out of this. Drallic turns to the captain, yelling out with a loud, focused, and grizzly sea dog voice. "Capt'n! We're outta places to go but up! Get us up 'n at tha ship. Best bet's takin' out their crew 'fore we burn alive down 'ere!" That burning powder does indeed look horrible as the minotaur gets down on his knee to try and avoid any of it from flying in his face.

[SuperCracker]

Jin

Cannons blazed even as rain pelted down upon the combatants. The Mastiff was being pummeled by drums from above. Even amidst the flurry of activity, the shouting, the action… there was one man who stood calmly.

Jin stood 5’11, and had a lean, athletic figure. He wore a close-fitted breastplate, a sleeve of armored scales on his right arm, a bracer on his left, and greaves on his legs. Underneath was thick black mesh for his upper body, black cloth for his trousers. His hair was short, not going beyond his eyes or over his ears, and his eyes were deep brown. Around his neck was a red scarf that had seen better days. It was long, and trailed down behind him almost like a shadow. On his back was a single-edged foreign blade.

He hadn’t been shouting, he hadn’t been rushing for cannons. He had been watching the ships that were attacking, glaring at them. And now, he’d had enough.

“I’m going up there,” he said in a loud, clear voice. “I’m going to go up there and kill every one of them. If anyone wants to come with me… now’s the time to say so.”

Initiative [roll0]

[stack]

At the first sign of the initial attack, Alister had simply stepped off the deck, the long blue scarf that covered his lower face flapping behind him. How his tri-corn hat remained in place was a mystery. It was only a second later that he reappeared, sitting astride the powerfully muscled scaly beast he called his friend. Black wings bore them aloft as one hand fastened his bindings, the other drawing his pistol.

Now with another foe in sight, the pair spirals upward, rider reloading, mount flexing deadly claws.

[Lord Of Ravens]

The wind rushing behind him billowing his cloak; the smell of salt infused with blood and gunpowder; the shouts of enemy and friend alike mixed with the splintering wood; just like it always was, Jack thought to himself. Of course things were different now then they were but two years ago.

Back then he was the one flying the royal flag, and not the other way around. Back then he was waylaying the ambush, not the one being ambushed. All things considered the crew was doing pretty well for itself. They had taken down one of the Black Talon ships, no mean feat. And yet, it wasn't good enough. Not nearly good enough for what he had in mind.

"Helmsman!" The captain shouted. "Raise us up and bring us about. I've got a little surprise in mind for that other Black Talon Ship." But first, he thought, I have to deal with the vermin currently infesting our ship. Just then, the captain, one notorious Cadence Jack, jumped over the railing. He, a man dressed in leather breaches, a breastplate, a black bandanna, and a navy blue cloak to boot landed on the deck. He was a lean man of average height, and a dark complexion. He pulled out his flintlock and aimed it an enemy: he was out for blood.

[Nightraiderx]

Lumiere was tinkering in the lower part of the deck, making sure the ship was still hanging together, hearing the enemy board the ship, he was unsure if he really wanted to go up there...hearing Jin expressing his eagerness to go up, he was now faced with a second dilemmna-- he couldn't just stay here and let the crew die.

"I-I'll go," he said tentatively, adjusting his goggles nervously and standing up from the construct he was fixing.

[Rokku]

"Bloody hell," shouted Lady Electrum, in a decidely unladylike way, "those bastards just won't give up, will they?"

She stomped across the deck, hair flying every which way, skirts all a-flutter -- a lady could barely stay decent this close to the Maelstrom -- and approached the captain.

"I'd be happy to set these idiots ablaze for you if we can get close enough, Captain," she said. Drawing her enormous pistol, she let her power flow into it. Bits began to glow and spin, and she smiled.

"As soon as we're in range, I will joyously send the Black Talons to hell."

[DoctorGlock]

Thunder rolls again, as the ship nearly six hundred feet above begins to list sharply to one side. Along that side black hatches pop open and the dark iron mouths of cannons roll out, aimed downward at the Black Mastiff.

"whatever your plan is, best do it quickly, we cannae' take another broadside from the bitch," spits the chief gunner as more casks of burning gunpowder drop from the ship above.

Area between you and the Black Talon ship counts as difficult terrain unless you can pass a DC 16 Acrobatics check each round.

[stack]

Stormcrow wings ever higher, closing on the Talon's ship through the storm. Alister shoulder's his rifle, looking for the long shot. When the ship lists he finds it, the pilot at the wheel. With a slight squeeze of his knees, Alister signals to level for a moment, giving himself a stable base. A shot rings out, lost in the cacophony of battle. "We always meet the most interesting people! And such a scenic local!" he shouts back to the deck.

should be able to use ride instead of acrobatics since mounted, right? [roll0]
trying to move closer (45') to get inside long range (560')
Attackw/ rifle (distantx2, magnum) [roll1] (10 base + 2 for cataphract-1 deadly aim),
damage [roll2] (6 KOM +3 (str bonus/2)+1 deadly aim +6 musketeer + 2 cataphract)


I made some fixes to my sheet. Dex is now a good save, fort poor, human racial bonuses removed, improper additional attack bonus removed, and some other fixes. Swapped dex and Con (14 and 12) since I realized the way I had it was stupid. Basically doing the stuff I screwed up making my sheet late at night.

[Lord Of Ravens]

Jack lowered his pistol and looked toward Electrum. "Arr? And I wager you'll need a clear shot for that."

Of course the idea that anyone could have a clear shot in this storm was preposterous. Yet, if you sail with pirates for long enough you will soon realize that a number of them make the preposterous look dull and mundane by comparison. Electrum's pistol, and her demeanor unsettled Jack. But unsettling is good for a pirate.

"Yes, I think I like the sound of this plan."

He turned towards the helmsman and shouted "Helmsman! Make to ram the other boat!" Of course the other ship's captain wouldn't realize that his was just a feint to get close to the powder kegs so Electrum could take a shot. Maybe some of his own crew wouldn't either, but he'd hoped at least a few of the keener ones would pick up on this.

"And the rest of you landlubbers. You dare call yourselves pirates when you can't handle one single navy? I think I be ashamed of you all."


This being the crew's first real battle, Jack was not familiar at all with his crew. Of course every man and his cousin will tell you that he's the ablest sailor of fighter around in port, but when you bring them out to sea 9 out of 10 of them will prove to be useless in one or the other. Unfortunately, most of them tend to be better sailors than fighters. He surveyed the deck and spotted three other competent fighters:

"You three: Allister, Jin, and Drallic.. was it?"

At this he, with a bemused expression, eyed the Minotaur. Well there was never any pirate tale about it being bad to have a Minotaur on a ship. Of course that may have been because it had never happened before.

"What do you say we give miss Electrum a clear shot, shall we?"

With that he drew his sword and pointed at the remnants of the crew of the shot-down ship. Then, he charged.

[DoctorGlock]

Slowly, the Mastiff begins to turn its bow towards the Witchwind above, picking up speed as it closes the distance. 500 feet and closing.

Aboard the deck of the Mastiff, the remains of the Blood Wind's crew rally. "Come on men, I reckon we can take a new ship!" one of them shouts. priming muskets, and swinging cutlasses they charge into the fray.

[myriad attacks- 7 bodies, each gets a single attack and cannot direct more than one attack per target. [roll0] vs all party members on deck. Damage [roll1]]

Heedless to their comrades below, the guns of the Witchwind above spit out smoke, fire and death. Explosive shot bursts across the deck sending men and gear flying.

DC 16 reflex save, fail and take 35 HP reduction, everyone on deck.

Above the howling winds you can hear the voice of their captain as she cries "Send them to hell, lads!"

Slowly, the cannons begin to roll back into the ship.


Allister:

Your drake screeches towards the ship and you can see the black talon captain aboard the listing deck, one eyed and bitter. Taking aim, you snap off a shot at her. Shard of wood go up from the wheel as the musket ball crashes through it, peppering her face with blood and splinters.

"And kill that damned bird!" she spits, as the crew on the deck of the Witchwind takes aim.

[SuperCracker]

Jin

Well, first things first, kill the stragglers left behind from ship number one. But before that can happen, Jin finds himself having to dodge explosions from the casks landing firmly upon the deck of the ship. As he clears a zig-zag line around multiple explosions, one of the boarders struck at him with his cutlass. Jin quickly brought his own blade up to block, but still too a slight cut on the shoulder.

“The only ship you’ll be taking is the one straight to hell!”

Jin stepped into position, to try and get as many of the boarders within ten feet of him as he could, then he gripped his blade tightly and slashed out into the air. And by some extraordinary, nearly supernatural way, that slash echoed, exploding outward and striking at all of the enemies within 10 feet with cutting force.

The power of the strike was truly deadly if it hit home, and was followed by Jin turning and making another slash at one of the pirates.

Hitting all enemies within a 10 foot reach using my Path of Destruction Volley attack. One attack roll will be applied to all enemies within reach. And if I hit, I’ll use the first circle of Path of Destruction as a swift action, and deal more damage to another enemy. (If it works the way I think it does, correct me if I’m wrong.)

Attack Roll (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4490798/) - 19 to hit.
Damage Roll (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/4490801/) - 20 points of damage.
And an additional 20 points of damage to one of the same enemies in melee range.

[stack]

Alister quickly reloads and shoots again before spurring Stormcrow into a sharp turn, pushing sharply to clear the enemy field of fire.ride[roll0]

Attack w/ rifle vs random deck enemy (distantx2, magnum) [roll1] (10 base + 2 for cataphract-1 deadly aim),
damage [roll2] (6 KOM +3 (str bonus/2)+1 deadly aim +6 musketeer + 2 cataphract)
trying to move out of their field of fire, below the plane of their deck if possible

[Starsign]

Drallic was glad to hear about the ramming plan, reckless as it may be. Sometimes the best plan is to make the most unexpected of actions. Unfortunately it couldn't come soon enough. He takes his eyes off the ship from above as one of the straggling Blood Wind members come in charging at the minotaur with a sharp, steel cutlass. Yet as someone who has been in this predicament many times, Drallic knew how to handle this situation with ease. With his strength he brings his right arm out forward as the pirate comes in bringing his cutlass down like the familiar motion of a woodcutter cutting wood. With a solid grab, Drallic stops the cutlass right in his hand; his tough skin safely cushioning the blow to nary a scratch. Even if he'd prefer not to fight, he can't help but smile a bit to see that his skills are still up to par.

Hearing Jack's call to arms, Drallic can't help but begin replying. "Aye! Be right 'ere cap-" His voice gets cut off, clawed by the sounds of thunderous cannon fire from above. One of these occurs in front of Drallic, practically making a direct hit as he is forced back and off his feet. His front body burned and charred like he had run through flames; most normal folks, such as the pirate who'd just attacked him, would've had their bodies burnt and their organs splatted all over the deck. Drallic instead got back up with only a little difficulty. A simple cannon shot like that wouldn't stop him. This is, however, a time where he absolutely has to remain cautious should he not wish to die.

Instead he kicks one hoof back a bit in preparation for his moment of "showing off" as he might say. He finishes his own sentence before, brushing off his own injury as best as he can. "Gotta hold up capt'n. Got some fish to put out t' sea." Following this is the famous charge of a minotaur as Drallic charges down the ship's deck; his arms and body collide with the Blood Wind members in the way, knocking them away or down as Drallic ends with his great horns reaching to impale the unfortunate pirate right in front of him. Push comes to shove, Drallic shows absolutely no mercy.

Bit long of a post, but oh well :smalltongue:

Using Earthspike as my Move Action. All in a 5 ft radius spread takes 10 damage.

Also using my melee attack as a Standard Action. [roll0] My Weaponized feat means that I'll just use KOM for the result of my dice. Damage is 16 with a reach of 20 ft.

[Rokku]

"Bloody hell!" exclaimed Lady Electrum, as the Blood Wind sailors spilled onto the deck.

"Never mind that plan," she said, "got to deal with these idiots first."

She turned and barrelled down the deck, sighting down the barrel of her hand cannon. A whisper and she pulled the trigger, power pouring through the gun and unleashing a wave of bone-rattling cold at the boarders.

Reflex vs Cannons: [roll0] Fast Healing recovers four damage. Dread Wave 40 foot wedge [roll1] cold damage, Will DC 19 or be shaken.

[Nightraiderx]

Lumiere heard the cannons hit the deck, wondering how much damage the boat took from such an explosion.
The small bit of courage he mustered to even agree going diminished immediately.
"this boat won't last if I don't do something...." Lumiere took his tools and began working on the ship, hoping to repair the damage

Engineering Check
[roll0]
Move Action Set up an automaton to assist me repairing the ship.

[DoctorGlock]

Pirates on deck go down before Jin's blade and Alister's gun Drallic bodily chucks another pirate off the deck. Even as they fall, more black talon members begin to craw over the rails from where they hung to the sides of the Mastiff. From above another black powder cask hits the deck.

Jin:

[smells like victory+flash bomb, targeting jin. [roll0] if hits take [roll]5d4+6[roll] fire damage and make a DC 17 reflex save to avoid burning

All within 10' of Jin, DC 17 reflex or blind+deaf

[Last attack on everybody was a crit, so take an additional 8 damage from last round]

The pirates still on deck rally together in a back to back knot, lunging at all nearby and discharging flintlocks as they assume a defensive cluster.

Pirates attack Jin, Drallic, Cadence Jack.

[roll1] 10 damage god low level mooks suck even with the myriad template

The Mastiff creaks as the bow points upwards and accelerates towards the Witchwind.

"Is it too late to negotiate a surrender perhaps?" the lead pirate on deck asks sheepishly.

[Starsign]

Seeing the defensive formation that the stragglers put up, Drallic raises his arms to cover his head as flintlock fire comes right at him. Thankfully, tough skin and experience pays off again as the bullets do nothing more than stub themselves lightly in his skin and fur like a blunt dagger into studded leather. Not that this did anything for his clothes, now pummeled with small holes in addition to being scorched. If it wasn't for dust, dirt, and modesty he would probably have preferred to simply go bare-chested. Actual armor doesn't tend to do much for him anyway.

Once the less-than-concerning barrage of bullets whimper out, Drallic poises himself to counterattack the enemies. He could only respond fiercely to the lead pirate in this awful weather, despite after how the minotaur has been handling himself so far. "We ain't leavin' or givin' up. Brace yerself for the rammin'!" As a way to try and direct the enemies away from the rest of the crew, Drallic quickly charges once more. His right hand clenched into a fist as he moves, moving fearlessly into the defensive formation to break it up as he hammers his fist upwards into a poor Black Talon's skull.

Like they always say: You want to bring a wall down, summon a minotaur.

Moving into the defensive formation the Black Talons have set up; hopefully disrupting the formation. Using my normal attack on one unlucky fool as well.

Attack: [roll0] Damage is 16 due to Weaponized.

[stack]

Alister pulls up, again plunging for the enemy ship, staying beneath the line of return fire. Hearing the trouble on his own deck, he twists back, loading and sending a round into the fray with a back rending parthian shot.ride for terrain[roll0]

swift for ride for +20 speed (dc 20) [roll1] total move = 65/2=30 or 35?

Attackw/ rifle (distantx2, magnum) [roll2](10 base + 2 for cataphract-1 deadly aim),
damage [roll3] (6 KOM +3 (str bonus/2)+1 deadly aim +6 musketeer + 2 cataphract)