The Battle of Stánford

[Telcontar]

  matt, I'll withdraw my post if you want to chime in here. I think this is an important point for Grimbeorn.

[GandalfOfBorg]

Grimbeorn calls out to the wall and those behind it.  "I am Grimbeorn and speak to those who hold my people in ransom.  I have offered your leader a hand, an open hand and he rejects it.  This man sees nothing but blood in the end, while I come offering you this one chance to walk away from this in freedom, a chance at a new life for you.  You are surrounded and will be overwhelmed.  You came seeking a new future and you will find one here, one way or another."

 
 

Insight -  1d12 : 8, total 8
Rolled 1d6 : 1, total 1

Hope if necessary

[GandalfOfBorg]

  Yup, use the hope.

[Eclecticon]

As he speaks, Grimbeorn seeks to meet the eyes of the men he addresses, that he might know how open their hearts are to his words.  But though he sees movement through the stockade, the men beyond are ciphers to him, their faces hidden.  No word comes back to him save from Vidugalum, who calls out "you are right, I see naught but blood for this day.  And wise are those who follow me, to see through your offer of false hope and childish fantasy!" 

Away from the negotiation at the stockade, Esgalwen, Bandy and the archers reach the barn.  From within come the quiet, furtive noises of desperate captives wondering if they will live to see the sunset. 


Using a Hope point doesn't quite put you over the line, so I'll consider it unspent. 

[Posterboy]

  I'm going with Persuade. Perhaps Tate can talk some sense into this punk.

Persuade Roll
Feat Die:

Rolled 1d12 : 11, total 11

Skill Dice:

Rolled 3d6 : 3, 4, 1, total 8

[Posterboy]

  Son of a...
Well, that stinks... and here I had this epic post too. 
Tate shall take it as these men really are stubborn. 

Tate cleared his throat. "Wise?" He queried softly. "I suppose a fool might think his foolishness wise."

Looking the leader of the men on the other side of the wall, Tate projected his voice. "Listen, Lord Vidugalum, and all you wise men who follow him. I understand how difficult this position is.. you are like wolf pups, wandering these woods as though in your first season, striking at the weakest thing you can sink your teeth into. And you, Lord Vidugalum, the most cunning amongst this pack, convincing these men rich reward if they would follow you, yipping on about promises you thought you could deliver.

"But you have not delivered, have you? You've known it for some time. And the rest of the pack senses it too. They are becoming unconvinced of your lies. And you feel it... feet it in your chest, the tension that catches your breath, as you try to stave off the unseen dagger. You know it is only a matter of time...

"Winter is coming. And so, you whipped the pack up for one final attack, Stanford, promising these pups, 'See, have I not provided, safety and spoils for us for the harsh winter.'

"It was a wild gambit. You were desperate, I understand. You told yourselves, 'Surely, the Bear will not miss one of her cubs. Surely, the Bear will not bother over the lost of the least of her one.'

"But you were mistaken, forgetful perhaps. Or have you not heard the vengeful ruin Beorn brought down on the heads of the orcs in the during the Battle of Five Armies, payment for the treatment of his enslaved kin.

"And it is possible that your ears have not yet heard the ruin that has come to the house of Viglund? I know Grimbeorn is no braggart, but surely you have heard the news! Lord Viglund's  lodge... nothing more than smouldering embers and ash. It's a fine tale, truthfully... Grimbeorn, son of the Bear, and his standard bearer, the cunning Hathcyn, stood alone against the clan of Viglund... the whole clan! They knocked on the doors of Viglund's home, demanded the return of their people, and when they were refused, these two men, standing right here before you, released all the captives, not just their people, all the captives. You see some amongst us now, yes?

"Can see now your error in judgment? The Bear cares very much about even the least. And the Bear has seen what you have done, little wolf pack. He bring judgment in his right hand, and vengeance in his left. It took only two Beorning to bring ruin down upon Viglund. Look carefully at the host before you, for it is a hundred times more than what Viglund faced.

"Now, then, Lord Vidugalum, listen well and learn the lesson Viglund failed to heed. For though Grimbeorn, son of Beorn, comes at you with numbers enough to drive you into the Anduin, yet from his mouth, he speaks to you words of peace. You may go and live and rule over your pack two days journey from here. Some of your men will likely perish through the winter because of your poor planning, but you may survive. And maybe you will have sons and perhaps they too may live as wolf-kings and rule over your pack. And, maybe, some day, there maybe will be songs sung about you, wolf-king, or of your pups.

"But should you refuse, know this: The Wolfslayer and his people have come upon you. The curse of Williferd lays heavy upon you. Ruin and wrath shall overrun these walls and, by sunrise tomorrow, only your blood staining the ground will remain. After the first rain, even that will be washed away and remembered no more. By winter, you will be utterly forgotten.

"Choose carefully now, wolf-king, and all you who wisely follow him. The Wolfslayer has shown you great patience... Do not mistake it as hesitation."

[Eclecticon]

"Two days march from here, I hear again and again," comes the reply.  "Where ought we go, in these two days?  What fields route with grain, ought we harvest when we arrive?  What kine ought we herd?  Bah, there are none such!  To accept the offer your lord makes is to perish, and no generous offer is that!"

Within the stockade, the sound comes off footsteps, and the clinking of mail rings, as Vidugalum parades himself before his warriors. "Seek not, therefore, to divide me from my followers, for we are of one mind.  If we are to die, then let it come in glorious battle, and not as paupers in the wild!"


Man, I struggled with that result, 'cause it was such an awesome post, but in the end the dice wanted to tell a different story.

You guys have three successes and two failures.  But there's still a slight chance that you could turn this around...

[Posterboy]

  If Tate is allowed, he does have Trader's Savvy, which allows him to raise the tolerance.

Normally, you'd roll this at the beginning of the encounter. I'll roll it. If you judge it acceptable, keep the result. If you don't, no worries at all... just disregard.

Trader's Savvy [Song] Roll

Feat Die:

Rolled 1d12 : 4, total 4

Skill Dice:

Rolled 4d6 : 3, 2, 2, 2, total 9

[Posterboy]

  Yeah, I'm taking my dice and going home... 
Nevermind about raising the tolerance.

[Posterboy]

  What skills are usable for this encounter? Awe and Persuade, yes? If Tate uses his Awe is the TN 16 for his roll?

To be honest, Tate's pretty close to the "Okay, you asked for it!"

[Telcontar]

  dusts off mass combat rules

[Eclecticon]

Apart from the two you've mentioned, all the usual suspects could be used, if you can think of a way to justify them - Inspire would be useful if you were going to try to sway the Toft-men as a whole, as would Song.  Riddle could work to persuade Vidugalum that you know more than you're saying, and Insight could give you some clues about the state of things inside the village.

[GandalfOfBorg]

 
Unless someone has something else to say, Grimbeorn will finish this...


"Vidugalam, you may condemn yourself to a bloody end, but do not let the innocent suffer, let them leave this place.  Doing so may prove this day more merciful."

 
 

Courtesy -  1d12 : 3, total 3
Rolled 1d6 : 5, total 5

Hope above all hope.


Grimbeorn only stays long enough to see if there is a reply.  If one comes that isn't favorable, he replies, "This day and these lives are upon you, all will remember that and rue it.  This parlay is over."

[Telcontar]

Hathcyn passed a longing look over the village. Those who observed him may have taken it as hesitation, or the up welling of coming loss. This was not the case. The standard bearer of the Beornings had already resigned himself to the fates pushing events towards battle. Instead he looked to gain some insight into how they could storm the village.

Insight roll to determine objectives for Mass Combat.

Rolled 1d12 : 10, total 10

Rolled 3d6 : 1, 1, 4, total 6

[Telcontar]

Bandy was inside the stockade. He had passed through the sharpened sticks and with a quick glance behind himself he saw Esgalwen with a handful of men stalled out on the outskirts. He had no time to guide the big folk through the fence, he was unsure why they had come. All the risks that he took relied on his being able to sneak in undetected and inspect the barn.

Moving he found quickly that stores of straw and wood had been placed against the building so that when the fire was lit it would burn quickly and hotly. He also so that the building had been secured from the outside so that the those within could not escape. He also assumed that those within were those who did not have the power to resist their conquerors. These folks would be the old, the sick, and the wounded. Those that the defenders would not care about, but that the attackers would.

Bandy quickly decided that this building would be a focal point for Grimbeorn's attack. His desire to free these people would also place them at the greatest risk, for if he got close to the building they would set it on fire. The small hobbit also realized that he would not be able to prevent the firing of the building. The structure was to large and the tinder and fuel too great for him to cover the whole area with is bow. Surely one would make it through with a flame and lite the building. The only course was to find a way out for those within. So the Hobbit crept closer looking for a blind spot in which to begin freeing the captives held within.

INSIGHT

Rolled 1d12 : 7, total 7

Rolled 3d6 : 5, 2, 3, total 10