Ready, Aim, Fire! (Round 9) (Tainted Gold)

[Silkenfist]

The sun rises above the peaks of the Andes. The warm rays illuminate the long winded path through the mountains and the group of travellers on it. These are the last days of the fall and soon the winter storms would set in and make the mountains impassable. Still, there were some days left and a few days were all, the small group intended to take.
Taking a closer look at the caravan, it doesn’t seem to consist of natives, as you would expect in this place, where tourism is yet unknown. The group is led by its two oldest members: The archaeologists had organised the caravan to search for a site deep in the mountains of Ecuador. They recruited some of their own undergraduate students and some other volunteers. However, they have kept themselves rather secretive about what exactly they were searching for and they declined to take with them local guides as well as other experienced archaeologist, specialised in the region.
In the back of the caravan, some of the volunteers had been rumoring for days. They had been offered a reasonable payment for their job as bearers and pathfinders, but their employers had placed several demands on them, among them secretiveness about their destination before and after the expedition. Four days ago, they had left behind the last village before the expedition leaders found the small trail that led them deep into the Andes. Several times they had left a rail and cut into the wilderness only to miraculously picking up another path several hours later. Up in the front, their leaders kept rummaging through an assortment of maps, both old and new ones, comparing them and debating several times, which one to believe while they led the group deeper and deeper into the mountains.

While the small group treks through the Andes, many of them are wondering what exactly their destination is. But this is why they were chosen instead of more experienced archaeologists. With only a few unspecialized semesters of study, it is unlikely that they ever heard before of the Treasure of the Llanganatis.
The knowledge about the secret of the Ecuadorian mountains has crumbled with the centuries and before the Professors extracted new information from one of their translations, it had been forgotten already. Deep within the mountains, ravines and caves of the Llanganatis, the Professors are searching for the legendary place, where the greatest accumulation of Inca gold workings is supposed to be hidden. By applying the oldest maps and descriptions of early explorers, they could find, the archaeologists hope to find the path that had been used almost exactly four centuries ago.

Back then, in the year 1533 the path through the mountain was used frequently, since it connected several key cities and temples of the Inca Empire. Those were the last years of the Inca. The Spanish invaders had already made contact with the Inca and abused the rivalries of their leaders to turn them against each other and take advantage of their feuds to capture cities and land. The man around General Pizarro intended to seize the land for the Spanish Crown and the Roman Catholic Church and make the native Inca part of both. When they had successfully weakened the support of the Inca ruler Atahualpa, they approached him with the offer to have his men join the Spanish Empire as vassals, subordinate them to the Spanish Crown and having his people baptised.
Atahualpa had considered joining the Spanish Empire, but the demand to abandon their religion was refused by him. Unfortunately, this was all the excuse, Pizarro needed to declare war against the Inca. Through superior arms, he battled the Inca forces and captured Atahualpa in his very own temple. Being in position of power, Pizarro repeated his demand to make the Inca part of Spain. Being under pressure in captivity, Atahualpa came to a decision to avoid submitting to the Spanish. He offered Pizarro a room full of worked gold and two of silver in exchange for his freedom. Pizarro complied and allowed the defeated Inca Leader to send away one of his generals to collect the ransom.
The chosen general was Ruminahui, who travelled to the temples in the south to collect several hundred tons of the gold workings, promised to the Spanish. After several months, he had gathered the required toll and sent a huge caravan of mules back to the Spanish settlements to meet Pizarro and deliver the ransom. But when he had nearly reached the borders of the Spanish zone of influence, Ruminahui met a small group of Inca refugees who had escaped from the conquerors. They told the Inca general, that he had come too late. Fearing a plot behind his back and doubting Ruminahui to actually deliver the promised toll, Pizarro had staged a trial against Atahualpa and executed the Inca ruler long before the return of the faithful general.
Ruminahui hears this and feared the Spanish enemies advancing south and capturing his caravan and claiming the treasure. Desperate not to grant the invaders a reward for their foul act, he took the gold deeper into the mountains, hiding it deep in the ravines, where even his kin did not venture. He then proceeded to lead the struggle against the Spanish troops but it was to no avail. Ruminahui would later burn down entire cities to spite the attackers and leave them without supply but in the end, it only facilitated the downfall of the Inca. After years of war against the Spanish, Ruminahui was captured and executed just as his predecessor. And with the death of Ruminahui and his followers, the last knowledge of the treasure and its whereabouts became eradicated.

Only tiny traces of the knowledge have remained in the narratives of the few Inca survivors, but these traced have persisted for all of four hundred years. Now they are finally put together. After four centuries, the Treasure of Llanganatis could be found. Through the winded paths through the Andes, the Professors lead their expedition on the path of Ruminahui – eager to find his destination and reap their rewards.


Previous Winners
Round 1: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710) DarkLightDragon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=7519) (14 contestants)
Round 2: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27939) B-Man (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=2002) (8 capos)
Round 3: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28305) Bookman (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=14935) (12 pirates)
Round 4; (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=28632) Alarra (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=7141) (16 cowboys)
Round 5: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29474) Bookman (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=14935) (17 cavemen)
Round 6: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30904) Deckmaster (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=10143) (20 hackers)
Round 7: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=31739) DarkLightDragon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=7519) (27 shinobi)
Round 8: (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32920) DarkLightDragon (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/member.php?u=7519) (28 rebels)


Registration for Round 9 ends Friday, 1 PM Eastern


Possible Themes for Future Rounds

Star Trek
Highwaymen (Richard Turpin, Tom King)
Fighting Jackie Chan style (Drunken Mastery & arbritary use of improvised equipment)
Royal intrigue (Roman senate, Hamlet scenario, Japanese daimyo...)
Snipers
War (England-Scotland, American Civil War, Thirty Year's)
Blaster Mages
Swashbuckling
Roman Gladiators
Jungle Fight/Amazons
Horse to Horse Combat/Huns/Goths/Mongols/Romans
Vikings
007 Spies
A-Team Agents
Vampires



Contestants: 32

Alarra
Angela
Atreyu the Masked Llama
Bookman
Captain van der Decken
Castaras
DarkLightDragon
David94
Deckmaster
Destro Yersul
El Jaspero
evnafets
faerwain
Fredricus
Gezina
Gnome Babarian
Indurain
Ink
inky13112
Kantur
KewlKat
Khantalas
Krursk
Lord Fullbladder
Lord Herman
Lord Magtok
Lucky
purple gelatinous cube o' doom
Selrahc
Shadow
weebl
Zar Peter

[Indurain]

Sure...sign me up. Is there a link to the rules?

[inky13112]

I'm in. Been waiting for the new thread to start to sign up.

[Silkenfist]

:vaarsuvius:: The almighty Player Statistics thread. Check out your adversaries (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29553)

:roy:: The Hall of Fame (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1686881#post1686881)

:durkon:: The Rules (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710)


At your service, sir or madam.

[evnafets]

Count me in.
Faerwain, maybe this time you can resist the temptation for suicide until I can get around to killing you?

[Lucky]

In .

[Lord Magtok]

I hope I survive the first round this time!

[DarkLightDragon]

*DLD waits to see how long it will take for everyone to start plotting against her*

[Castaras]

Count me in please.

[Lord Herman]

Put me on the list.

[Captain van der Decken]

*plots*

Something involving snakes, methinks.

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

It would seem that there would be a large amount of gold at stake. Gold is valuable. It's also shiny. Like honey.

I'm in.

[Weebl]

I am in because if i weren't i would lose my grudge title!

[Captain van der Decken]

*plots*

Suicide, it is.

[Shadow]

I'm in! (damned character minimum....)

[Lord Herman]

*summons forth more players from the lowest depths of hell*

[InaVegt]

In .

[faerwain]

Wow, I'm meanwhile a suicidal, homicidal pacifist.
My therapist will be interested.

In as always. (shooting evnafets while saying"paeace, fellows" and hanging himself)

[Deckmaster]

Wow, I'm meanwhile a suicidal, homicidal pacifist.
My therapist will be interested.

In as always. (shooting evnafets while saying"paeace, fellows" and hanging himself)

Not to mention that you've got 2 grudges.

[Silkenfist]

Woo! 31 players is a new record again. Unfortunately, I have an appointment before writing the next story batch. Feel free to sign up in the meantime if you haven't. Next part is up in 2-5 hours, depending on how lucky I am.

[KewlKat]

If it's not too late, I'd like to sign up.

[Silkenfist]

The helpers in the expedition don’t exchange banter as usual as they rest in the shadow of a majestic peak. They had spent the last hours walking non-stop through dense vegetation, at the edge of ravines or down steep slopes. This time, they haven’t crossed a path again since they left their last one and the Professors at the front had completely stashed away the modern maps by now. The whole day has been exhausting and the tension has spread throughout the ranks. As the evening draws near and the wanderers gather their strength for another marsh through the wilderness, they suddenly hear an ecstatic scream from above.
One of the younger bearers had been scouting ahead and came back running and cheering. After he regains his breath, he exclaims. “It’s there! It’s a temple! We have found a temple!” Despite their weariness, the explorers get up and walk up the hill in the direction, the bearer had pointed to. As they arrive on the top, they look down into a narrow valley that has not been visible from the higher peaks. Shielded by a line of high trees, there is a small flat before the mountain, they are looking at. Through the trees, you can see the remains of a winded path that leads towards the rock face.
Amazed, the group stares at the mountain and the large cave in it. At the very first glance from afar, it could have been mistaken for a natural cave, but as you approach it, the explorers quickly revise this impression. The cave had been natural once, but human hands have evened the entry and chiselled runes and ornaments into the rock. Awestruck, the group stands in front of the majestic building. After what feels like an hour, one of the Professors speaks up. “We will continue inside. Get your gear and prepare the torches”

Mere minutes later, the explorers arrive at the entry again. Hastily, they erect a camp for the night and deposit their gear there, before they equip themselves with torches and the light equipment only. Shortly before the dusk falls, the explorers continue their journey and enter the temple. In a straight line, they move on the path deeper into the mountain. They see that the walls at the entry are covered in the runes of the Inca and that these runes are seemingly forming a pattern. The explorers in the back of the group however are unable to identify the runes, while their leaders in the front are preoccupied with what they expect to be in the caverns deep in the mountain. They notice that there are several small holes in the ceiling and the walls as well as a few narrow passages, but still they follow the broad main path that leads straight down into the mountain. As the explorers travel deeper and deeper, even the main path becomes narrow and steep, forcing them to tread carefully. They continue at a slower pace, but finally they find what they were looking for. The main path leads to a small exit to a platform at the edge of a giant cavern. The torchlight reaches down and is reflected faintly by the glow of metal. The explorers anchor ropes in the hard ground and climb down into the cavern. As they reach the surface below, they gasp in awe as they see the hoard before them. Countless masks, goblets and other trinkets of pure gold are arranged in arrays before them, forming a path that is lined with pure gold. Gazing in wonder, they move through the treasure towards a giant stone pedestal at the end of the array. Stairs lead up to the pedestal. On top of the pedestal, an emerald of the size of a human head is held into place by stone cylinders crafted onto the pedestal. In a semicircle, the group gathers around it, unable to move or speak.
Again, the Professors are the ones to break the silence. The two old men climb up the stairs towards the pedestal, then turn around to their helpers to give them a speech.
“Gentlemen, I can see the amazement in your eyes and I can assure you that we are just as surprised as you are, that the rumors of this place are actually true. Our work has proved to be fruitful and we all have the honor to witness the historic moment that the temple of Ilanganatis has been revealed to the western world. The archaeological world thanks you for your effort and we are happy that we can attribute this success to the efforts of our faculty.” A few of the bearers applaud, but it dies down quickly. “We will choose one or two examples to take with ourselves and present to the authorities in Quito, then return with an official team of native scientists. This is a great day for South American history and…” The Professor stops speaking as murmurs in the group have become audible. Puzzled, he looks down at them and sees one of them stepping forward.
“That’s all very nice, boss. But why inform anyone. Just look around you.” The men steps up to where the Professors stand, gets next to them and gestures around with his torch. “This could all be ours. All we need to do is to take it.”
The face of the expedition leader turns deep red. “Be quiet. This is not your property. This belongs to the people of Ecuador and I will not allow this noble expedition to turn into filthy robbery.”
“So what do you expect us to do? Sit on our butts and watch the state take this away from us. After all, we endured? Let them steal our reward? Let them steal yours?”
“If this is, what you think, you will never grasp what archaeology is about. Let alone science. Let alone being responsible. Now get back everyone. We camp outside and return tomorrow and you will take NOTHING with you.”
“Afraid to say that, but this is unacceptable, prof” the man snarls. Suddenly, he has a machete in his hand. Before anyone can react, the blade is swung around twice, cutting open the hapless Professor’s torsos with ease. The leaders of the expedition fall down the stairs, screaming silently through their punctured lungs. Their attacker steps up next to the pedestal, addressing the others. “Don’t be afraid, I won’t harm you. There is plenty for us to take and no reason why we shouldn’t just walk away with a fortune for each of us. This doesn’t belong to anyone but us.”
With these words, he turns around to the giant emerald. With ostentation, he rips it from the pedestal with both hands, raising it over his head. He opens his mouth to speak up again, but lets out a surprised scream instead. The whole pedestal trembles and a loud rumbling can be heard throughout the cavern. Then suddenly, they hear clanking sounds echo throughout the cavern, followed by a deep thundering sound from where they came.
With their dying breaths the Professors mutter “You fools. You damned fools.” before they pass away. Stricken with panic, the explorers run back to the entry, but the dust cloud that meets them halfway tells them, it is too late. A large piece of rock has fallen and blocked the entry to the cavern. They look around and see other entries to the cavern that have been destroyed by the same mechanism. However, they find some other ways reaching from the cavern that have not been blocked in this manner and offer a potential exit.

The group stand in front of the wall with raised torches, contemplating. Inside, they see the passages split up and twist again and again, forming a seemingly endless maze. The murderer of the group leader looks into them and speaks up.
“Okay, this will be difficult but we will get out. Everyone take some of the stuff with you, then we will split up and everyone searches one passage. Whoever finds the exit shall get something to mark the way and rescue the others. Are we clear?”
“No. Why should we trust you? You brought us in this mess and you already betrayed the leaders. How do we know that you help us when you reach the exit. How do we know that you won’t just take the stuff and leave us to die in the middle of nowhere?”
Grimly, the accused replies by merely raising his machete. “Is this enough of a reason to cooperate? I don’t need all of you to get out” He tries to stare his opponent down menacingly, but to his surprise, the others are suddenly drawing weapons from knifes to whips and handguns.
“Do what you want. But I won’t die here.”, the murderer shouts and runs into the nearest passage. The others look after him, unable to decide whether to pursue him when they suddenly hear a loud twang and the ugly sound of a human body falling headfirst onto a stone floor. Shocked, the trapped explorers look at each other and hold their weapons tight. There was no room for trust. Only the first escapee could be safe. Eyeing each other with suspicion, they head for the passages, trying to get there first.


The game starts NOW and ends Monday, 6 PM Eastern. Send in your actions until then.


Contestants: 32

Alarra
Angela
Atreyu the Masked Llama
Bookman
Captain van der Decken
Castaras
DarkLightDragon
David94
Deckmaster
Destro Yersul
El Jaspero
evnafets
faerwain
Fredricus
Gezina
Gnome Babarian
Indurain
Ink
inky13112
Kantur
KewlKat
Khantalas
Krursk
Lord Fullbladder
Lord Herman
Lord Magtok
Lucky
purple gelatinous cube o' doom
Selrahc
Shadow
weebl
Zar Peter


For Metagaming


:vaarsuvius:: The almighty Player Statistics thread. Check out your adversaries (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29553)

:roy:: The Hall of Fame (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1686881#post1686881)

:durkon:: The Rules (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710)

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

All right, then. To the victor go the spoils.

[DarkLightDragon]

*evil grin*

[Lord Magtok]

My western avatar doubles as a Indy style one! Woo!

http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n291/rexidiotarum/Magtok.gif

*Indiana Jones theme music plays.*

[David94]

FINALLY I got in! It only took me three tries.

[Castaras]

Bwahahahaha! I am going to get the treasure, so nyah!

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

Hypothetically, does the Great Gender Bender affect the story portion?

[Fredricus]

Lara Croft time!

[Castaras]

Lara croft?! Where?! Where?!

* Stabs Lara *

* Spits on her corpse *

[Lord Herman]

The shiny shall be mine!

[DarkLightDragon]

*shifty eyes*

Maybe...

[David94]

Lara croft?! Where?! Where?!

* Stabs Lara *

* Spits on her corpse *

AVENGE LARA!

*Stabs Castaras*

*Spits on his corpse*

[faerwain]

*stabs all*
*builds a ladder from their corpses*
*climbs out of temple*

Okay, Silkenfist, what did I win?

[Silkenfist]

6 hours remaining and 6 contestants haven't sent actions yet. Coincidence?

[Castaras]

Hmm... too much of a coincidence...

David? A LARA CROFT LOVER?!

* Stabbity! *

Oops, wrong thread...:smallwink:

[Gnome Barbarian]

Weird thing is I just sent mine and soon there will be 5 hours left with 5 people not sending anything in yet

[David94]

Hmm... too much of a coincidence...

David? A LARA CROFT LOVER?!

* Stabbity! *

Oops, wrong thread...:smallwink:

What do you have against Lara?

[David94]

Hmm... too much of a coincidence...

David? A LARA CROFT LOVER?!

* Stabbity! *

Oops, wrong thread...:smallwink:

What do you have against Lara?

[Silkenfist]

Okay, something new for you guys to keep you under tension a bit. I'll write and edit the stuff in step by step. Just wait until your demise shows up ;)

Above the peak of Ilanganatis mountain, night is about to set in. Peaceful, the majestic rock braves the gusts of wind blowing around it. As the winds turns, the gusts blow into the entry of the cave, creating a spine-chilling melody humming through the structure. 31 explorers and one of their steeds have found themselves suddenly treasure hunters and shortly after that survivalists. A maze of trapped passageways has opened up before them, offering quick death as well as a slight chance of escape. Hastily, they turn to the maze, knowing that too much reluctance could become fatal as soon as their inventory of torches had run out. Reluctantly, they agree to form small groups with expedition members they trust at least somewhat, each group scouting one of the paths.
Before they do so, most of the treasure hunters return to the pile of gold and stuff some of it in their pockets to make at least some profit out of an eventual narrow escape. However, some explorers, deluded by the riches around them and apparently oblivious to the danger, stay amidst the wealth, grab handfuls of jewellery and cheer, exclaiming “We are rich. Woooo!” faerwain, weebl and El Jaspero even form a circle, dancing around and throwing jewellery in the air. When they gather around the pack-Llama, they had brought with them, they have gone too far though. With a pinpoint hoof attack to the neck, the Llama sends El Jaspero flying against a stone wall, breaking his neck immediately. The rest of the loony dancers scatter.
Meanwhile, Inky had analysed the situation. Most of his opponents were harmless, but one opponent was truly terrifying: The legendary treasure hunter by the name of King of Griffins would certainly know the way out and trap them here. This enemy must be dealt with immediately. In a rush, Inky sifts through his backpack in order to create a trap, specifically designed against this foe. In a narrow edge of the rock, he installs a whistle, a waterskin and a stone in a manner that they produce the sound of a wounded Griffon. Then, to get rid of his target, he installs a tripwire and a revolver. After he has finished building his trap, Inky sets off the Griffin call and runs away from the trap, waiting for his target to be caught.
Two dozen feet above inky’s head, the other adventurers look down at his preparation, hearing the Griffon call.
“Funny device, he made”
“Yup”
“What’s that call?”
“Griffons, I guess.”
“Are you sure?”
“Well, if King of Griffons were here, I’d ask him”
The adventurers nod and decide to ask the King, who had decided for some reason not to join the expedition at all. They then split up into their teams. In groups of 2 to 5 persons, they squeeze into the narrow hallways, carefully looking for traps. Some of them don’t participate, though. Selrahc and the DarkLightDragon have not joined a group, each with their own plan in mind. The two look at each other with suspicion, then decide to leave each other alone and start working.
Gezina and Destro Yersul have formed the smallest of the groups with only the two of them scouting. They examine one comparatively broad hallway that leads them down for some time. After following the path down for a while, they see a large hole in the ground, with a narrow path next to it. Carefully, the two round the hole and continue. Right behind the pit, the path rises again. Destro Yersul volunteers to take the lead, in good spirits to find the way out. And indeed, Destro soon sees the exit of the way. He tells Gezina to stay back in case of traps and goes up to the exit – only to find that the path has led them just back to their old cavern. Frustrated, Destro decided to at least get rid of his rival below. He looks up and sees a big boulder just above the exit. He climbs up and squeezes behind the boulder to push it down onto Gezina as soon as she would leave. While he is doing so, Gezina has figured out herself, that they just have found their way back to the old cavern. Frustrated, she decides that there is no point in even trying to escape. She sees a poorly disguised pressure switch in the ground and steps deliberately onto it to end the nightmare quickly. She closes her eyes, but instead of the Reaper’s voice she hears a crunch and a horrid scream above her. She looks up and sees that she stands right under a rolling boulder trap. However, the boulder wasn’t released; instead it has wedged itself into place, crushing the body of Destro Yersul in the process. Gezina scratches her head and proceeds her quest to find another way. As she leaves the hallway, she hears the boulder falling to the ground and rolling down to where she just came.
In another hallway, Deckmaster, Khantalas, Krursk, Indurain and Gnome Barbarian are advancing more slowly. Ceiling and walls are filled with ominous holes and switches and since the explorers don’t plan to find out the hard way, what they are for, they try to slip past them without making contact. They ignite several torches at once to fill the path with enough light to not overlook a possible trap. For a few hundred feet, they are successful in this, but then Deckmaster, who had taken lead, suddenly motions the others to stop. He had found another set of small holes in the ceiling and this time, the row fills the entire span of the corridor, making it impossible to advance safely. “Looks, like we have to deal with this the hard way. You just wait for a few minutes.” Deckmaster says, as he treats the holes with army knife and torch. After looking at it for a while, he says “I see it. They have some kind of spears in there. Give me a minute and I block the holes. Don’t step on anything; there might be a trigger somewhere.” Deckmaster turns to the trap again while the others do there best to stand still. Except for Indurain, who stands right behind Deckmaster and had just spotted the pressure switch. The naked explorer smiles wickedly and covertly pushes against the plate. The resulting click startles Deckmaster, but he is not quick enough – A line of spears shoots through the ceiling and nails his head to the stone floor below. The other explorers let out screams of surprise and horror as they see his impaled figure on the ground, but they come to their senses soon. “Looks like he fumbled” Indurain just says, before cutting away the spears and continuing with the rest of the party over Deckmaster’s remains.
Meanwhile, the DarkLightDragon has found a place to create her own trap. She had looked into several hallways, before finally finding one with a large pit in it. She uses the wood from one of the racks below together with her bedroll to create and improvised seesaw just at the edge of the pit, which she secures into place with rope and tent pegs. She installs the seesaw laterally and masks it with dust and earth. As a final piece, she paints a bright sign and mounts it at the edge of the pit, facing away from the corridor. She then gets to the edge of the pit, grabs the lower end of the seesaw and lets herself fall into the pit. As she hangs at the edge of the pit, she starts shouting: “Hello? Help! I am hanging at the edge of the pit and can’t get up. And don’t kick me in or step on my fingers or something.”
Of course nobody will help me, the Dragon thinks. But there will be someone to try and deliver the final blow. Her apparatus would work in a manner that whoever approached the edge, would step on the seesaw, lifting her up and hopefully lose the balance to fall in. DLD smiles as she admires the cunning of her own plan while calling out for the others to come and NOT kill her. After about one hour and many calls, however, she begins to wonder if anyone could even hear her. DLD decides to check and get out but she is too weak already from the strain of hanging. Unable to hoist herself up, she decides to switch to the full dragon form. In an instant, a giant dragon appears at the edge of the pit. But to DLD’s misfortune, the sudden weight causes the tent pegs to snap and the seesaw to give way. Unable to fly in the close space, the dragon falls to the ground below. The last thing, she sees is her own sign falling down towards her. In big right letters, it reads “PWNED”
The noise of the hard impact, however, has finally attracted a group of explorers who had just returned from a fruitless attempt to find an exit. The five adventurers Alarra, evnafets, KewlKat, Castaras and Van der Decken have heard the Dragon’s screams for help but discarded them as one of her usual traps. Now, the group carefully approaches the edge of the pit before them, waiting for a trap to spring up. However, they find the edge of the pit empty, devoid of Dragon or traps – all of DLD’s trap mechanisms have become undone and fallen into the pit with her. Grief-stricken, the group looks down into the pit to see her dead fellow explorer amidst a pile of unidentifiable rubble. It is not long before guilt sets in.
“We…we could have saved her. We heard her. We were there.”
“Listen, we had reasons not to trust the Dragon. In the past, she…”
“It doesn’t matter what happened then. We have killed her in cold blood and there is no excuse. I can’t live with that.”
“So we did wrong. But now we…NO, WAIT DON’T DO”
KewlKat’s scream comes too late. Before his unbelieving eyes, evnafets had thrown himself down into the depths below. He mutters to himself “Crazy. Just crazy. This doesn’t change anything. But at least we know” KewlKat turns around to his fellow adventurers but doesn’t see anyone. Alarra, Castaras and Captain van der Decken seemed to have similar idea to evnafets. KewlKat curses and turns to the edge again. And indeed, with the help of his torch, he sees the battered corpses of his entire group lying below. He looks down at them and speaks to himself.
“Fools. So we could have done better. But this is no reason at all.”
“Right you are. There’s nothing wrong with good old opportunism.” KewlKat turns around as he hears that voice from behind. He catches a glimpse at the grinning faces of Fredricus and the purple gelatinous cube but he can’t react in time. With joined efforts, the two push the hapless KewlKat down to the rest. And while Fredricus and purple cube attempt an awkward high-five on their way back, the only thing intact in the pit below is the “PWNED”-sign lying between the broken bodies.
In the main cavern, Selrahc has kept sneaking around the groups, eavesdropping on them to hear their plans. He noticed that most of them were running through the corridors on trial and error. “Let them run into the traps if they want. I need a better plan” the treasure hunter thinks while eavesdropping on another group. The three men, he observes are the three noblemen of the expedition; the three lords by the name of Herman, Magtok and Fullbladder. The three of them apparently have debated for some time but the few things, Selrahc hears, sound promising. “Message” “Return” and “Being found” sound like a sound plan to Selrahc and so he stays around them. When he sees one of them leaving, he seizes his chance. Just as the Lord has left the sight of the others, Selrahc sneaks up on him and clubs him down from behind. Hastily, he then proceeds to disguise himself with the Lord’s clothes and takes over the nobleman’s garb. Then, he runs back to the others, hoping that they wouldn’t spot the exchange.
Minutes later, Selrahc had assembled with the two Lord on the pedestal. They had given him one strange look but they didn’t appear to figure out what had happened. Selrahc tries not to give himself away as he hears them speak.
“Now my noble friends, this is what we have chosen. Lord Magtok, would you care to read our message again. I’d like to hear it a last time.”
“Of course. But may I suggest, taking the capsule first.”
“Agreed.” The surprised Selrahc is given a capsule. As he sees that the two Lord are swallowing theirs, he follows them suit to not be revealed as imposer.
“Very well, gentlemen. Now, Sir Magtok if you would care to quicken your pace reading. We might not have more time.”
“I will do.” Magtok clears his throat “This is a message from Lords Herman, Magtok and Fullbladder. We have entered this cavern on February, 18th, 1933 and have been imprisoned since. The robberies that have happened and that are going to happen are neither in our interest nor consent, yet beyond our control. We apologize in the name of the other participants of this exposition to all damages done to this cultural heritage. We hereby allow upon this letter being found, that any amount of our property may be used for reparations. We ask our heirs to treat this wish with respect. We also wish for our remains to be returned to our respective estates to be…”
Selrahc suddenly starts screaming. “Our what? What is this about?” He grabs the speaker and starts shaking him but he gets no answer. The weakened body of Lord Magtok dies in his arms. Selrahc suddenly notices that he is barely able to breathe and his eyes have become blood-shot. Through a red veil, he sees his counterpart speaking croakingly but he fails to hear it. Together with Lord Herman, Selrahc slumps down on the stone pedestal, dead before he hits the ground.
A few yards away beneath them, Lord Fullbladder awakes with a headache from Selrahc’s attack. He looks up and curses as he sees that his own plan has happened without him. He decides to make finding a noble death is second priority after finding a new set of clothes for him.
Meanwhile, in another corridor, Kantur, Lucky and Bookman have found themselves exploring together. They have spent the last hours travelling through winded corridors, slopes and narrow passages, avoiding traps by a hairbreadth more than once. In the process, a bit of a distance had developed between them, since their exhaustion prevented them from adapting their pace to each other. A while ago, Bookman had taken point, so he is the first to see the gap. Right in their way before them, a large pit has appeared. Bookman looks for a way to bypass it, but to no avail. The walls are even and offer no way to get past. Bookman looks down, curious whether they would be able to walk down there but the hiss of several dozen snakes in the pit tells him, this might be a bad idea. The prospect of moving back and trying again disheartens Bookman. Instead, he decides to go for it and try to jump over the pit – even though the length of the gap makes it near impossible, at least the snakes would make for a quick end. Bookman steps back a bit, while Kantur sneaks up from behind. Kantur had left Lucky way behind them and wants to seize this opportunity to get rid of Bookman. He sees that Bookman is going to jump over something, but he is not able to see, what. Anyway, he wagers that a disruption of Bookman’s jump might be lethal already. He ties his rope into a lasso and sneaks up on his opponent.
Bookman hasn’t noticed this and runs up to the pit. At the edge of it, he bounces forward to the other side. But as soon as he leaves the ground, Bookman sees that his leap is too short to reach the other end. As his trajectory reaches down, he prays for a quick death, when he suddenly feels something wrap around his feet. Kantur had thrown his lasso and successfully ensnared Bookman with it. This alone would not have saved him, but shortly before he reaches the ground, his fall suddenly stops. The rope had hit an advance in the rock and prevented him from falling further. Instead, Kantur loses his balance and his propelled forward and into the pit. As Kantur and Bookman are of equal weight, they soon find each other in the pit, each dangling from one side of the rope halfway above the snakes.
They hear Lucky approaching and their spirits rise for a moment. “Lucky! Get us out!” they scream while glaring at each other menacingly. Several feet above them, the Leprechaun has arrived and sat himself down at the edge of the pit. “Guys…what have you brought yourself into. I am deeply disappointed by you.” While Speaking, Lucky opens his own backpack getting out his rope. “I turn my back on you and you start killing each other. That’s not very nice. Who started it?” He ignores the rabble from below. “No, don’t even tell me. Kantur, I know it has been you. Who else would be so stupid to get himself in the mess that way?” Lucky holds up Kantur’s bag, takes some of the equipment and ties it to rope, adding weight to it. “Now Listen to me. I can get out one of you. Now who do you think, should I rescue, Kantur? Can you tell me? Well, I can tell.”
With these words, Lucky draws the rope towards him and ties the rope with the items to Kantur’s side. With the additional weight, Kantur slowly moves down towards the waiting snakes below. Kantur screams in terror and tries to climb up the rope but he is not able to climb fast enough. Just as Bookman reaches the advance in the rock and hoists himself up to safety, he lets his side of the rope go, sending Kantur down to the snakes definitively.
In another hallway, Ink, David, Angela, Shadow and Zar Peter have gone exploring. They have found their share of traps, but so far they have been able to avoid them until they reach a strange long-stretched corridor. The corridor is especially narrow and flat and is disconnected by several thick stone doors. The group is unsure what to make out of it, but as it is there only way forward, they decide to risk it and proceed. They go down the corridor in a straight line, Angela taking the lead followed by Shadow, then David, then Zar Peter, then Ink. Carefully they go down the first corridor, but when they are all in the second, they hear the big stone doors before and behind them slam shut. They look at each other, then at the closed doors, then above their heads. The five are horrified as they see the stone ceiling moving down towards them. Stricken by panic they run forward and throw themselves at the stone door in front. And to their fortune, the door indeed gives way. The ancient locking mechanisms seemed to have weakened over time. One after another they slip through, but as Zar Peter passes through the door, he suddenly gets a wicked idea. Instead of holding it open for Ink, he presses the door shut behind him. He gestures for David to help him and together they keep the door shut, trapping poor Ink inside. They wonder whether he would be able to make it to the other side in time, but a crunching sound from behind the door makes them assume, he didn’t. The two smile at each other and attempt a high-five – but to their surprise, they hit their hand at the ceiling. As they look above, they see the ceiling their corridor move towards them. Even worse, at the other end of the corridor, they see Angela and Shadow waving them mockingly, before the door becomes shot. With the corridor behind them blocked, David and Zar Peter dart forward to force their way through the door but as they arrive, at the other end, the rustling of tent pegs as improvised V-notches greets them. As they vainly attempt to push past them, they know that they have been caught in their own trap.

[inky13112]

Well I apear to have lived to the second round which is nice, but I also apear to have shot at someone who decided not to play.:smalltongue: Dang. Least the others didn't kill me while I made my trap.

[Lord Magtok]

Darn. I was so sure Fullbladder would've tried to kill me. *Sigh* at least I died with honor.

[Lucky]

Well I apear to have lived to the second round which is nice, but I also apear to have shot at someone who decided not to play.:smalltongue: Dang. Least the others didn't kill me while I made my trap.Oh... It's not over yet... He hasn't said my actions...

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

YEAH! I'm nude but I'm alive. I knew Cyanide was the way to go.

I cannot beleive you thought I would try to gun you down after last round's failed attempt, Maggy.

[inky13112]

Oh... It's not over yet... He hasn't said my actions...

MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!

Oh gods. Please tell me that doesn't mean what I think it means:eek:.

Goodbye cruel world! Why could I have not killed king of griffins before I died. WHY?!

EDIT: bigger :smalleek:.

Edit2: @V jerk. heehee

[Lucky]

Oh gods. Please tell me that doesn't mean what I think it means:smalleek:

:biggrin: .

EDIT: @^ Yeah, I'm a cruel liar, I didn't attack you, I attacked Kantur.

Was fun lying to you though.

[InaVegt]

I'm alive!

[KewlKat]

Geeze, how did I manage to get two people to kill me?

[Silkenfist]

Actions:
Alarra: Self
Angela: David94
Bookman: Self
Captain van der Decken: Self
Castaras: Self
David94: Ink
Deckmaster: Air
Destro Yersul: Gezina
DLD: Self
El Jaspero: Timeout
evnafets: Self
faerwain: Timeout
Fredricus: KewlKat
Gezina: Self
Gnome Barbarian: Air
Indurain: Deckmaster
Ink: Air
inky13112: King of Griffins
Kantur: Bookman
KewlKat: Air
Khantalas: Air
Krursk: Air
Llama: El Jaspero
Lord Fullbladder: Self
Lord Herman: Self
Lord Magtok: Self
Lucky: Kantur
purple cube: KewlKat
Selrahc: Lord Fullbladder
Shadow: Zar Peter
weebl: Timeout
Zar Peter: Ink


Treasure Hunting: 16
Angela
Bookman
faerwain
Fredricus
Gezina
Gnome Barbarian
Indurain
inky13112
Khantalas
Krursk
Llama
Lord Fullbladder
Lucky
purple cube
Shadow
weeb
l
Hunted Down: 16
Alarra
Captain van der Decken
Castaras
David94
Deckmaster
Destro Yersul
DLD
El Jaspero
evnafets
Ink
Kantur
KewlKat
Lord Herman
Lord Magtok
Selrahc
Zar Peter



Send in your actions now. Deadline is Wednesday, 6 PM Eastern

Player Statistics will be updated later. Need sleep. Now.

[Deckmaster]

Wait...after reading that, I thought I was dead, but you just listed me as alive. Wait...yep. Dead.

[David94]

Damn you, Angela and Shadow, you double-crossed my and Zar's double-cross!

[Ink]

Ack! Murdered!

^ Heheh, serves you right.

[Shadow]

Ack! Murdered!

^ Heheh, serves you right.

Strange.
In one thread I led a lynch mob against you.
In another, I've avenged your death!

[Ink]

I'll return both favours someday :smallwink:.

[Fredricus]

Geeze, how did I manage to get two people to kill me?

You tripped. I didn't touch you:smallwink:

[Cobra_Ikari]

...looks like I'm too late to join...I'll have to try next time...

[Kantur]

I attacked Kantur.

I'd say I'm surprised, but even the most gullible person in the world wouldn't believe that...

[Zar Peter]

Strange.
In one thread I led a lynch mob against you.
In another, I've avenged your death!

SSSHHHHAAAADDDDOOOOWWW. NNNOOOOOOOO.

You get that back.

[DarkLightDragon]

The reason I suicided?

To give you guys a chance.

Oh, and I like the PWNED sign :smallbiggrin:

[Silkenfist]

Deckmaster: Fixed (to the worse for you)

Statistics and Stuff will follow in 1-3 hours.

[Lord Herman]

Curses! I died in the first round AGAIN!

[Gnome Barbarian]

Yay Alive... Also good thing King of Griffons wasnt there he would have been killed prety handily

[Silkenfist]

OK, guys: Player Statistics and Hall of Fame are updated. We have some changes among the awards and a new grudge Forget Pirates vs. Ninja. RAF is about Pirate vs. Llama

:vaarsuvius:: The almighty Player Statistics thread. Check out your adversaries (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29553)

:roy:: The Hall of Fame (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1686881#post1686881)

:durkon:: The Rules (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710)

[Castaras]

Damn. I died. Oh well. There's always next game.

[Gnome Barbarian]

Woot I am the most loved. I would like to thank everyone hasn't shot me for that honor.

[Deckmaster]

I've got the Absolute Nobel Peace Prize! Cool!

[Silkenfist]

Uhm...guys? Deadline is in 12 hours and I haven't received half of the actions yet.

[DarkLightDragon]

My survival expert title is threatened! DIE! DIE! DIE!

((j/k. I like to have lots of spots in the hall of fame but I'm not gonna go psycho over it.

And I know I've mentioned this multiple times, but the PWNED sign was totally worth suiciding XP))

[faerwain]

Sometimes I feel
I've got to
*clap-clap*
run away!
I've got to'
*Clap-clap*
get away!
From the spears you're trying to put in me
The gold we share
has us brought nowhere
And some will lose their life
'cause I dodge and turn and use that knife!

Once we ran in here, now we run in fear,
This tainted gold we found,
it made this place a bloody ground-
Take my spear and knife and bullet!
Tainted gold, whoahoowww...tainted gold...


Woot I am the most loved. I would like to thank everyone hasn't shot me for that honor.
Famous Last Words?

[Silkenfist]

Eight hours have passed, since their greed has caused the explorers to become imprisoned inside Ilanganatis Mountain. They have searched some of the passages for a way out, but to their dismay none of them brought them back to the surface. Instead many explorers fell to the deadly traps and their fellow adventurer’s mischief. After seeing half of their original expedition die that way, the survivors reassemble in the main cavern and mark the explored corridors.
However, there is still tension and mistrust among the treasure hunters. Especially the trio of Indurain, Khantalas and weebl has drawn many malevolent gazes upon them as they have emptied their backpacks and stuffed their pockets with as much of the golden trinkets as they could carry. Even the naked explorer Indurain has used leather bands to strap some golden masks to his body, where not even greed could force clothes upon him.
Faerwain, Lucky and Krursk, unable to stand their refusal to deal with the situation professionally, decide to get rid of them as quickly as possible. They observe the trio, then sneak behind them into the very same passage. As soon as they have left the sight of the rest of the group, Lucky, faerwain and Krursk start their preparations. They each take some of the most valuable jewels from the cavern and put them into a golden gemmed chalice. They each put the filled chalice on the ground, then tie a nylon string to it, threading it through two eyelets and tying them to something in the ceiling. They each step back to admire their work, nod to each other and retreat to hiding.
They don’t have to wait for long until they hear the first steps from down the corridor. Indurain, Khantalas and weebl have not gotten fat before they had run into a dead end. Their spirits are down as they return to the main cavern in the prospect of yet another attempt that would be all too likely to fail as well. But then they spot something glittering in front of them. They rush towards it and see three chalices with beautiful gems inside. They wonder why they hadn’t seen them earlier and whether they could be trapped but their greed dictates action diametrical to these questions. Swiftly, they each pick up one of the chalices, then raise them up to toast each other. But just as they are doing so, they hear the faint sound of thread snapping. Khantalas doesn’t even hear it and is thus taken completely by surprise as a machete swings down from the ceiling and into his back. Weebl had become startled by the sound and tried to move away from the sound but this only causes the machete in his trap to become driven into his throat instead. Indurain sees this happen in terror and closes his eyes, awaiting Death. But to his surprise, he is not stabbed, instead he merely feels something slap against his face. He dares to open his eyes again and sees red letters on a sign that has been propelled from the ceiling towards him: “Be glad that I have left my knife in the camp. Krursk”
Meanwhile, the main cavern is filled with activity as the Gnome Barbarian has called the other explorers together for a plan. He had taken his time to gather the reports of the various groups about the structure of the corridors and put together an improvised map of the maze inside Ilanganatis. If the reports of the others were correct, then there would be no escape at all. However, there were other ways to leave this place. Gnome Barbarian had raided the special box earlier, knowing that it would possibly come in handy later in the cave. “Well it appears that I was horribly right” the Barbarian thinks as he gathers a small group around him.
“Listen, all of you. I have drawn this map based on your information. If your reports are true, then there is no possible way for any of the other passages to lead to safety. Now we have two choices. We could either wait until we die from asphyxiation, dehydration or some of the weird traps around here. Or we could take matters in our own hands and make our own passageway.”
“And how? Did you by chance smuggle a drill down here?”
“No. But I brought these.” Gnome Barbarian lifts one of the sticks of dynamite. “I have brought five stick with me and we have a lot of explosive power with them. However, we can’t simply blast our way out, as we will probably produce a cave-in, if we apply them carelessly. Our best chance is…” Gnome Barbarian produces a burnt-down torch and marks places on the map with its ashes. “…to apply the five stick at these five points, in this exact order. If we do so, a passage will form here, allowing an escape”
“Yeah, that’s cool. Give me the five sticks and I’ll get it done.”
“Well Mr. Bookman. I’m afraid, it’s not that easy. All of these points are deep within one of the passageways. With the explosion, the entire corridors will most likely collapse. I have enough fuse for you to get clear of the blast, but not enough for us to make it out of the corridors in time. I am asking for a suicide mission, Gentlemen.”
The reactions to Gnome Barbarians idea are mixed. While there are apparently some volunteers, others have discarded his plan as mad and impossible. Angela, Fullbladder and the purple cube take a look at the map and the planned detonation points, then choose a path far away from them to examine. The three hurry to get ahead, eager to prove the lunatic Barbarian wrong before his explosions destroy an eventual exit. In their rush, they don’t notice that Fredricus is following them closely, trailing behind and observing their steps. The trio makes good progress since their passage is not trapped but they are soon stopped by a large body of water that abruptly ends the way. In front of the explorers, an underground lake opens up. They see the water moving and hear something in the distance, but with their small torches they are not able to make out the boundaries, so Lord Fullbladder decides to fetch wood from the main cavern to build an improvised raft while Angela studies their location in one of the Professor’s maps. Behind them, Fredricus crouches deeper in the shadows, barely able to conceal himself as Fullbladder runs back and forth to transport the wood. In the meantime, Angela had studied the maps and came to a negative conclusion. The moving and the rushing of the water must be caused by the waterfall at the edge of the mountain. Angela looks at the map again and again but there was no other possibility and with the speed of the water, there was no way to pass the lake safely. As she sees Fullbladder returning, she decides that she can’t send her fellow explorers to their deaths, but for herself she decides that she wants at least to see the outside of the mountain once – even while being flushed down the fall. As Fullbladder arrives with a large board to be used as raft, Angela tries to tell everything to them.
“Listen guys. I’ve studied the maps and I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to cross the lake. I will go down there because I…”
“Oh, don’t make plans about that. Cubey and I already made a better one.” Fullbladder replies and knocks Angela out with a golden candleholder. He then turns to the purple cube and smiles.
“Throw her into the water?”
“Nah, to easy. Take away her equipment and leave her out there.” The cube gestures to one of the big rocks, protruding from the lake.
Fullbladder nods and soon the three of them get on the board and onto the lake. The purple cube and Fullbladder paddle the raft through the water towards one of the rocks and lie down the unconscious Angela there before they continue on the water. But shortly after they have done so, they notice that the current becomes increasingly stronger and that they aren’t able to fight it with their own strength. Even worse, they start hearing the loud rushing in the distance, which could only be attributed to the waterfall in the mountain. Vainly, they try to get away from it as they drift nearer and nearer towards their death. Panic-driven, Fullbladder jumps into the water to try and reach one of the rocks, but he doesn’t find one in the darkness timely.
The purple cube hears Fullbladder’s screams disappear behind him but he starts to gain new hope as he sees Fredricus standing at the water side. He screams for help and sees that Fredricus indeed acts. Just as he feels unable to continue fighting the current, the cube sees a lasso thrown towards him, wrapping around his body. The cube abandons the raft and gets into the water, allowing itself to be slowly drawn to the waterside by Fredricus. As the current becomes a bit weaker sees his savior standing at the waterside. He looks up to make eye contact with him but as he sees into Fredricus face, the cube notices a wicked grin upon his face. Horrified, he hears Fredricus speak “Just wanted to do this myself”. With these words, Fredricus lets go of the rope, sending the cube back into the currents again. Seconds later, another scream disappears in the depths.
Meanwhile, the packing Llama has formed its own plans how to reduce the competition. Clearly, inside the dark cavern, everything was decided by light. Without light, there was no way to avoid the countless traps or discern different corridors. So even if there was an escape somewhere, it would be meaningless if they lost all their light. But in that case – wasn’t it a shame to waste good torches by keeping many of them lit simultaneously. The Llama had spent the last hours with gathering all light sources from the fallen explorers. “This should sustain me for a while. But why stop here? Without light, the others will be helpless and stumble into a trap sooner or later.” the Llama ponders. A wicked idea brews in its head and it starts hiding in one of the corridors to ambush the next party.
While the Llama had been plotting on its own, Gnome Barbarian has finally found four volunteers to accompany him on his mission. He gives detailed instructions, where to go and when to use their dynamite, then takes the first explosive demonstratively. “For the good of the others” he says and lets the others repeat it before they split up.
A few minutes later, Gezina sits down in her assigned corridor, her torch rested against a wall at one side, the dynamite at the other. She closes her eyes to concentrate and listens. As she hears tremors from somewhere behind the walls, she calls out the names of her fellow volunteers. The first explosion: “Gnome Barbarian” The second explosion: “Shadow” The third rumbling “Inky” The fourth explosion “Bookman”
Gezina breathes deeply. “And now it’s me, I guess” she says and opens her eyes. But to her surprise, she finds herself sitting in darkness still. As she feels for the torch, she notices that she can’t find it. And even worse: The important dynamite is missing as well. Gezina curses and tries to think of what could have happened.
A few hundred feet away in another corridor, the Llama is galloping away, carrying its loot in the mouth. It didn’t know exactly why the female human chose to sleep there and it didn’t know the cause of the explosions but it certainly wasn’t complaining. It was able to sneak up and steal both of the torches, leaving Gezina back helplessly. “Only a few more feet, then I’ll be far enough away” it thinks while running through an intersection into another corridor. But shortly after it has turned into the other corridor, the Llama sees that one of the torches in its mouth had ignited the other. In the glint of the eye, it sees that the other torch is burning strangely, giving off a surprising amount of sparks. It decides to stop and drop the torches to look at it, but it is too late. The strange sparkly torch doesn’t even hit the ground before it explodes, devastating the Llama and the entire corridor around it.
The resulting explosion is heard by Angela several dozen feet below. She had awoken somewhere on a rock in the darkness, surrounded by water. Not knowing any directions, she had chosen to remain still until she had an idea of how to get any sense of orientation. The explosions above told her at least that the stupid plan of the Barbarian had gone into effect, to whatever good it did. “Well, the moron probably just blew up the exit anyway” Angela thinks as she hears the fifth explosion. But to her surprise, the rumbling of the fifth explosion doesn’t fade down like the others, but instead keeps constant in volume and nears itself. Then suddenly, Angela finds herself sprayed with water and she hears several splashing sounds around her. She looks around her, able to make out some faint shapes since the might of the explosion had torn some cracks into the rock through which at least some sunlight could enter their prison. She sees that a lot of the rocks from above her had become undone and fallen down into the water around her, forming a narrow path through the waterside at the other side of the lake. Amidst the street of rocks, small shreds of fur and trails of blood can be seen. Further continued splashing leads Angela’s attention to the side of her rock, where she sees Gezina treading water, looking up at her and meeting eye contact.
“Don’t ask” both of them say simultaneously before they climb onto the rocks, leading back to the cavern.

[Deckmaster]

*at the part where Gnome Barbarian mentions a suicide mission*

Dun Dun Dunnn!!!

[inky13112]

Oh dang thats awesome. wait... CRAP I suicided this round :smalleek: @gnomebarbarian suicide mission.

WOO I'm psychic I knew I would die BEFORE he posted it. Oh yeah.

You were supposed to kill me. i thought that was obvious from the fact that I killed someone earlier and therefore was a homicidal maniac and easy kill. GRR.

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

Well, I fear I may have drowned nude. Crap.

[Silkenfist]

Your Actions

Angela: Self
Bookman: Self
faerwain: Khantalas
Fredricus: Purple Gelatinous Cube
Gezina: Self
Gnome Barbarian: Self
Indurain: Timeout
inky13112: Self
Khantalas: Timeout
Krursk: Air
Llama: Gezina
Lord Fullbladder: Angela
Lucky: weebl
Purple Gelatinous Cube: Angela
Shadow: Self
weebl: Timeout


Still running in the third instance: 7
Angela
faerwain
Fredricus
Gezina
Indurain
Krursk
Lucky

Not running anymore at all: 25
Alarra
Bookman
Captain van der Decken
Castaras
David94
Deckmaster
Destro Yersul
DLD
El Jaspero
evnafets
Gnome Barbarian
Ink
inky13112
Kantur
Khantalas
KewlKat
Llama
Lord Fullbladder
Lord Herman
Lord Magtok
purple cube
Selrahc
Shadow
weebl
Zar Peter

And once again: Updated Player Statistics follow tomorrow.

Oh. Almost forgot: Deadline for sending in your next actions is Saturday, 6 PM Eastern.
Three day interval this time due to my schedules.

[Shadow]

Martyrs Unite!
Silkenfist... At least let our sacrifice cause the winners' eventual escape route, huh?

[inky13112]

OO that would be cool.

[Lord Fullbladder, Master of Goblins]

My revenge cannot be so easily sated! I shall bring you down, Angela. I will bring you down.

Maybe not today, maybe not for a thousand todays. But I will. Just you wait and see....

[Atreyu the Masked LLama]

Hahahaha! Awww....I died, but what a way to go.

Silkenfist, if I may make a suggestion to put in breaks where you stop and start up the story sections. It makes it easier to find where I left off.

[purple gelatinous cube o' Doom]

well at least DLD can't win again this round.

[InaVegt]

w00t, reached the third round already

[Krursk]

Oh, man that was awesomly written. Ironically enough, that's just the thing I'd do IRL if I was a traitor to my fellow adventurers. Set a death trap and forget one crucial aspect, then make a joke out of it. Anyone question where we got all the signs and the red paint though?

[Silkenfist]

ACME undgerground facility.

[Angela]

Awesome!!! I can't believe I actually survived that!!

[Fredricus]

I survived! I was worried when I read that i followed someone on a suicide mission.

[Silkenfist]

And here are the updated statistics. There are only minor changes this time, but with Fredricus we have another player who has reached the criterium of 5. Gezina will follow tomorrow if she submits an action.

:vaarsuvius:: The almighty Player Statistics thread. Check out your adversaries (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29553)

:roy:: The Hall of Fame (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1686881#post1686881)

:durkon:: The Rules (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710)

[DarkLightDragon]

well at least DLD can't win again this round. That's why I suicided. I wanted the others to have a chance :smallsmile:

And I seem to have a 6th sense, so I knew it was unlikely that anyone would target me.

[InaVegt]

I'm going to become part of the statistics after this round

[David94]

Anyone question where we got all the signs and the red paint though?

Maybe driftwood/firewood to make the signs, and blood as red paint... :smallwink:

[Gnome Barbarian]

Man i thought for sure after proclaiming the fact that no one has ever shot me that someone would be baited into doing it. There goes that plan.

[Shadow]

And I assumed that someone would shoot me out of spite for what I just caused in WW.
Wrong as well.

[faerwain]

Man i thought for sure after proclaiming the fact that no one has ever shot me that someone would be baited into doing it.
As we supposed you to. :smalltongue: :smallbiggrin:

[InaVegt]

Can't wait for the results of this round.

[Silkenfist]

In the corridors and caverns inside Ilanganatis Mountain, clouds of smoke and dust are being blown around by the winds that are now able to penetrate the mountain in various places, where the series of explosions planned and planted by Gnome Barbarian had ripped cracks into the solid rock. Coughing, the few survivors of the previous melee step over the debris and assemble in the main cavern again. The explosions might have brought upon them new ways to escape the place, but right now the narrow corridors are brimming over with dust, making immediate explorations impossible. While they are waiting for the dust to settle, the adventurers investigate the main cavern. To their surprise, they find that the shockwaves were mighty enough to crack open the rock beneath their feet. The countless treasure, the hoard of golden trinkets apparently had been sitting atop of one major crack, as it is not to be seen. Upon closer examination, the explorers find the fissure, into which most of the riches have fallen. Several yards beneath their feet, the gold has formed a gargantuan pile, faintly shimmering in the flickering light of the torches far above. As the group continues to search the main cavern for promising alterations, they hear noises from another one of the fissures. But when they approach that gap, they immediately recognize the sound for what it is: The sharp hissing of snakes. Cautiously, you step up to the edge and look down into what appears to be the remains of a pit trap, filled with snakes. The shockwave had unhinged the trapdoor, which in turn fell into the pit, blocking the entry holes, trapping a large number of snakes inside. The humans above light into the pit, hoping that the surface would be too steep and even for the snakes to climb.
Turning away from the snakes, the explorers look at the impassable passages again and decide to sit down and wait until they could continue their attempts to free themselves. They sit down on the remains of the stone pedestal that had been destroyed and cast to the ground by the explosions. While they are waiting, they suddenly notice that there are scriptures chiselled into the stone. Curious about what they could mean, they search for the Professor’s backpacks, hoping to find some means of translation. After a short search, the explorers retrieve a handful of notes as well as a manual how to translate Inca scriptures. Closely huddled together, they bend over the stone plate with the scriptures, slowly reading the inscriptions in the largest part of the broken stone tablet.
“…they look like men and they speak like them, but their tongues are split and their mind is that of a snake, cold, predatory and cruel…”
“…for this gold is tainted, as tainted as the hearts of the men who forced this toll upon us and as tainted as the hearts of those who will try to rip it away from its place. Even though the murderers may not find their judgment, the defiler shall find naught but entrapment and death inside the cage of stone, for this is the judgment of the gods. Pure hearted one, shall you read…”
They try to continue but the fragment ends there and they fail to find another piece intact to continue reading. Looking at each other, however, everyone grasps the true meaning. It was the will of the gods to have them imprisoned here. Either actual gods or what the Inca perceived as such. It might be a clue for finding a way to leave. If the gods could be appeased sufficiently, a way out might appear.
The adventurers split up, wandering around the cavern, thinking about how to use the scriptures. Only faerwain is preoccupied with a different question. He sits in a corner, silently sobbing. “It’s all a lie. MY heart is NOT tainted” he cries. They don’t even know me, I was just dragged along. Still crying, faerwain unsheathes his bowie knife. As self-doubts grow stronger in him, he looks at the blade contemplating. Now there was only one way to find out. In a quick exercise of willpower, faerwain raises the knife and plunges it into his own chest, cutting out his own heart. As he rips it out he looks at it with satisfaction and a smile appears on his trembling lips. “Not tainted” he says breathlessly before his vision grows black.
As faerwain’s dead body falls to the ground, the others explorers have started their attempts to solve the riddle. Among them, Angela was the first to head into a certain direction. With steady stride she steps through one of the previously explored corridors. “They called it The Stone Cage” she ponders, “so clearly the stone must be the guardian for the treasure. Would this make the stone god?” With ease, Angela avoids the traps she already knew of while approaching the sequential hallways with the falling ceiling traps. “Now if we plan to appease the gods, why not give in to their judgment by trusting my life to their very element” Angela thinks as she closes the door to the first sequential hallway behind her. Just as expected, the door on the other side slams shut and the ceiling starts to move down on her. Calmly and without fear, she lies down on the floor, looking at the approaching ceiling. As it is fractures of an inch above her chest, she exclaims loudly “STONE FOR THE STONE GOD” and closes her eyes, trying to think of an appropriate prayer.
One minute later, a loud ugly snapping sound, followed by a long crunch echoes through the hallway, indicating that Angela’s idea was off target. Indurain, hearing it with his keen senses, shakes his head in disbelief. “They are all wrong, so very wrong.” he mutters to himself. “This is not about appeasing someone, it is about justice. We have taken from the hoard and committed the crime for which we are imprisoned. Now if we were to give it back, we might be released.” Indurain returns to the main cavern and walks up to the fissure into which the treasure had fallen. He empties his pockets, throwing the contents down to the other trinkets. As he throws down the last golden mask, he listens to his surroundings, whether something had happened. But even though he had given back everything, no exit appeared. “Of course” Indurain can be heard cursing “the others have taken as well. Well, looks like I’ll have to pay for them as well…somehow” With these words, Indurain takes his backpack and equipment, throwing it into the fissure one by one, always listening whether something happened. As Indurain throws the empty bag down to the hoard in vain, he looks down at himself. Hesitating, he starts to undress and throws down his clothing into the gap, hoping that the parity between textile and gold was favorable for him. But a few minutes later, he finds himself devoid of further clothing to add and also devoid of indication that an exit has sprung up. “I see…” Indurain ponders. “I gave everything I had and it still is not enough. So there is but one way to achieve balance.” He looks down at the pile of gold, equipment and textile and leans forward, allowing him to fall into the depth below. A muffled ring is audible in the cavern as Indurain’s body becomes broken by the impact on the solid metal below.
Fredricus had watched Indurain falling down and seen a hint of inspiration in it. The fissures could lead to an escape, but how could he know, which one to use? He contemplates and finally finds his answer. “The snakes” he screams loudly. “Everything makes sense perfectly” he adds loudly while getting the rope out of his backpack and anchoring it in the ground. “The creators deemed someone to be snakes, which seemed to be an insult. But yet these supposedly filthy creatures are allowed in this temple?” Fredricus asks himself. “It makes no sense. Unless, of course, these snakes are not what they appear to be. If snakes were evil, they would not be used as guardians. They are a symbol of sneakiness and cunning, so they must mark the exit for someone immersed in the culture, who became trapped accidentally.” Satisfied with his explanation, Fredricus starts climbing down the rope into the snake pit. He gets down and jumps the last few feet into the pit, landing amidst the snakes. Quickly, he waves around his torch, looking for the expected exit. But Fredricus not only fails to find a way, he finds himself also in pain as he feels two fangs embed themselves into his ankle. In horror, he sees the snakes attacking him. He lets out a high-pitched scream and tries to get up the rope again, but his muscles refuse to follow. As the anaphylactic shock slowly stifles his heartbeat, he realizes the flaw in his plan – he should have removes the obstructing trapdoor first.
Krursk has not had a real idea yet until the screams of Fredricus startled him. He had considered everything while casually watching Fredricus get himself killed. “Snake Idea: Good. Everything Else: Bad” Krursk says with a smile as he watches the last twitches of his rival below. “He should have gone into another line of thought.” Krursk gets up and starts searching the walls of the main cavern. The Inca apparently had enemies, they compared with snakes. This is a place to trap those snakes, so if there was any escape, it would be one that could not be used by these creatures. “But what is it hat snakes can’t use but humans do?” Krursk contemplates, while inspecting another wall. “Anything connected to the use of arms and hands. So the exit will be tied to something with manual control.” Krursk smiles as he finally finds what he was searching. Out of the wall, an advance is protruding. Krursk feels for it, finding that it is easily movable. “Maybe this is just another trap. But here goes nothing” he thinks as he pushes up the lever with full strength.
Meanwhile Gezina has reiterated the events of the last hours. Hasn’t she, crushed by despair, tried to end the nightmare by killing herself. And hadn’t fate and coincidence caused others to be killed in her place instead? Surely this was the answer: There was a higher power, protecting those that were willing to abolish life. A nihilist god? An entity with cruel humor? Or something else? “Whatever it was, it appeared to be working.” Gezina thinks while investigating one of the known hallways. She had scouted it earlier and detected one rolling boulder trap. “Suicide for the Suicide God” she comments as she finds the pressure switch on the ground. She looks up to see whether the shockwave had destroyed the mechanism but the trapdoor above her head seemed to be still intact and working. Gezina takes a deep breath, then steps onto the pressure plate. Immediately, she hears rumbling above, coming nearer rapidly. She starts doubting her own theory, when she hears something from behind. She turns around and sees Lucky approaching her with a gun pointed towards her. Lucky, seemingly oblivious to the noise above, comes closer until he reaches point blank range. Gezina just stands there watching as Lucky pulls the trigger and – sprays her with a liquid. “WATER FOR THE WATER PISTOL” Lucky shouts and laughs. “You should have seen the look on your face. Anyway, something happened in the cavern and I wanted to let you know, nothing else.” Lucky says as he put away the squirt gun. Gezina starts to reply “Rea…” but she is cruelly interrupted by three tons of tone crushing her to death before the unbelieving eyes of Lucky.
Wow. This IS bad luck, Lucky comments but then he turns around and walks back to the main cavern, where Krursk is about to clear debris. The lever in the wall had created a passage, but somehow – probably through the stupid explosions – the original passage has caved in partially, leaving only a narrow hole to squeeze through. As they have cleared the last of the debris, Lucky and Krursk look at each other.
“I guess, you will insist on going first.”
“Well, *I* found the lever. So I’d assume it is my right to.
“I know what you’re planning. You’ll get away over my dead body only”
Standing in front of the narrow passage, Lucky and Krursk face each other, grimly watching for the other’s weakness.

[Silkenfist]

Your Actions

Angela: Self
faerwain: Self
Fredricus: Self
Gezina: Self
Indurain: Self
Krursk: Air
Lucky: Air

Tomb Raiders: 2
Krursk
Lucky

Tomb Content: 30
Alarra
Angela
Bookman
Captain van der Decken
Castaras
David94
Deckmaster
Destro Yersul
DLD
El Jaspero
evnafets
faerwain
Fredricus
Gezina
Gnome Barbarian
Indurain
Ink
inky13112
Kantur
Khantalas
KewlKat
Llama
Lord Fullbladder
Lord Herman
Lord Magtok
purple cube
Selrahc
Shadow
weebl
Zar Peter

Once again, statistics to follow tomorrow.

The last round takes place now. Send in your actions until Monday, 7 PM Eastern

[Lucky]

AHAHAHAHA! Ahah! That was awesome!!

"WATER FOR THE WATER PISTOL!"

But yeah... crap... I've never been here before... DLD, quick! Tell me what to do!

[DarkLightDragon]

That was ALMOST a repeat of the end of last game! XP

[Krursk]

AHAHAHAHA! Ahah! That was awesome!!

"WATER FOR THE WATER PISTOL!"

But yeah... crap... I've never been here before... DLD, quick! Tell me what to do!

Try shooting yourself. That'll work. Um, I'll...shoot you. Yeah, that's what I've done every round this game:smalltongue:

[Silkenfist]

:vaarsuvius:: The almighty Player Statistics thread. Check out your adversaries (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29553)

:roy:: The Hall of Fame (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1686881#post1686881)

:durkon:: The Rules (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710)


Gezina becomes enlisted in the Player Statistics and fights for the suicide titles. Krursk will follow shortly.

[Fredricus]

I died, darn. No one tried to kill me.

[InaVegt]

AHAHAHAHA! Ahah! That was awesome!!

"WATER FOR THE WATER PISTOL!"

But yeah... crap... I've never been here before... DLD, quick! Tell me what to do!
It's easy.

If you commit suicide you win if Krursk attacks you and lose if Krursk shoots the air.

If you shoot in the air you win if Krursk commits suicide and lose if Krursk shoots you.

If you shoot Krursk you win if Krursk shoots in the air and lose if Krursk commits suicide.

If you don't take your opponents like/dislike for certain actions in effect, and start thinking really difficult tactics (though you could, it's just really messy and the calculations are reasonably hard to do, especially if your opponent takes into account you're calculating based of what you think are the chances he will do something, which forces even more calculations) it's 1/3 chance of winning and 1/3 chance of losing for every choice you make.

[faerwain]

My goodness...so much rampage yet, and then I end up in a bunch of depressive Buddhists :smallwink:

You know, actually I'm sometimes tempted to not survive because of these great death scenes:smallbiggrin:
(Don't rely on it)

Well, at least evnafets can now use a new war cry: "Faerwain eat your heart out!"

[Silkenfist]

As the sun rises above the mountain, less light reaches the cavern through the hole in front of which Krursk and Lucky are standing. The few rays of sunlight reaching their dark trap are barely enough to hull their faces in a frightening penumbra.
“Can I trust you to not collapse the corridor after you have gone through?”
“How can I trust you to not do so, while I am in, Mr. Homicidal Maniac? I will not cede and neither will you.”
“Fine for me. Now do you want me to beat you into a pulp before letting me go or do we do this like gentlemen?”
“Like gentlemen?” Krursk replies, but Lucky doesn’t listen to him and has already run off to the stash of equipment lying in the back. Krursk looks after him, then at the hole, thinking of making a run for it. But before he can execute his plan, Lucky had already found what he needed and returned with it. Grinning broadly, he drags with him a backpack. “Here” he exclaims, as he reaches into the bag and produces two pistols.
“Wha…? Listen, Lucky. I am not trusting you outright but there must be a better way than this. Let us…”
“Nonsense.” Lucky interrupts. “If you don’t want to die from starvation or boredom, we will have to reach a conclusion sooner or later and here you have a quick and clean way. Make peace with your gods or your conscience or whatever, I will have these puppies ready in a minute.
As Lucky sits down and handles the firearms, Krursk wanders around contemplating. Lucky follows Krursk with his eyes, then takes a bullet and jams it into the barrel of one weapon. He memorises which weapon was maltreated and then prepares them both normally. The weapon with the additional bullet, jammed in the barrel would just explode at the first shot and kill whoever handled it. Lucky looks at the two pistols again, checking that they are not discernable, then calls Krursk. As his opponent arrives, he hands him the normal pistol, claiming the maltreated pistol for him with emphasis. Krursk, looking not too enthusiastic about the events, merely nods and grabs the weapon he was offered and approaches duelling stance.
Lucky sees his rival getting ready and starts sweating. Things did not go according to plan. What happened to reverse psychology and stuff? Why did Krursk just trust him like this? Why didn’t he grab both pistols when he had the chance? Standing there with an explosive in his hands, he would lose any duel. His only chance was to hope that Krursk did something stupid in the last moment or that his weapon would miraculously not malfunction. But before he can sort out his thoughts, Lucky hears a click. His opponent has armed his gun. Lucky hastens to arm his own weapon and as he sees Krursk lifting his weapon, he fires at him.
Two loud bangs later, Krursk puts down his revolver again, looking at where his bullet hit the ceiling. “Lucky, I have thought about this one. We can sort this out. We don’t need to kill each other and I am glad you did not shoot me, when..:” Krursk suddenly stops speaking. As he looks at his fellow explorer, he sees him lying on the ground, bleeding. Krursk runs up to Lucky, seeing his torso riddled with shrapnel, bleeding all over from deep wounds. “What happened, Lucky? What? Tell me!” Desperately, Krursk shakes the body, but Lucky grows limp in his arms without answering the question.
With a heavy heart, Krursk gets up and starts crouching through the narrow hole out of the mountain. The treasure has been cursed and if he didn’t take anything else with him, his life and his freedom feel like enough of a reward.

Actions
Krursk: Air
Lucky: Self

Congratulations Krursk for winning Round 9 of Ready, Aim, Fire!

:vaarsuvius:: The almighty Player Statistics thread. Check out your adversaries (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29553)

:roy:: The Hall of Fame (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1686881#post1686881)

:durkon:: The Rules (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26710)


will be updated now. Krursk will be enlisted at the beginning of the next game (you need to participate in three rounds).

Round 10 of Ready, Aim, Fire will start during the next few days. I'm torn between two settings, so I can't give you details yet. I will take early signups again, but please use them only if you visit the forums infrequently and are able to miss the normal signup period.

[Shadow]

fantastic finish!

[Lucky]

fantastic finish!
I disagree quite wholly.

[Krursk]

I disagree quite wholly.

Are you kidding? My reverse-reverse psychology worked! And I didn't shoot a single person in the entire game

EDIT: Oh, yeah, and if I can I'd like to sign up for the next game

[Destro_Yersul]

Sign me up for the next one too.

[Zar Peter]

Signation time? Me too!

[Cobra_Ikari]

If this is signup time, I'd like to sign up...

[DarkLightDragon]

*claps*

I'll join the next one too... BEWARE!

[Fredricus]

I'll join too!

[Selrahc]

*Signs up*

[Deckmaster]

Sign me up as well. This game is addictive.

[Shadow]

I haven't seen a thread for the next one if it exists yet.
Sign me up if you see this.

[Castaras]

Sign me up pwease!

[InaVegt]

Sign me uppers

[Lord Magtok]

Me too. I'm going to survive the first turn this time, just you wait.

[Silkenfist]

OK, my schedules are worked out. You can expect Round 10 to start Tuesday. We will be going back in time again, claiming another age.

[Captain van der Decken]

I'm in again.

[Calamity]

I'll give it a try!

[Lord Herman]

Sign me up for next round.

[Bookman]

I'm in

[Alarra]

Oh, this is over? Yeah...I guess...sign me up.

[Ink]

I'm in for the next round too.

[KewlKat]

I'm game for next round.

[heretic]

Any idea on when the next round is going to start?

[Castaras]

Tuesday. 019231

[Angela]

I'm in for the next one too...

[Khantalas]

I'm always in.

[DarkCorax]

If there is still time I'll sing sign up.

[Krursk]

Oh, cummon, it's Tuesday and where's the thread?

Yes, yes, I know about the time zone differences...

[DarkLightDragon]

^ Better watch out...

*humming*

[Aegeus]

I'd be interested in round 10.