20150403 Recap WAR! The Secret Shipment Mission

Introducing Strike Force Manticore - Pax (Elven Ranger – Art), Twinkle Toes (Goliath Barbarian – Jim), Belladona Foxglove ( Seeker - Brad), Raistlin (Invoker – Arthur), Thrain Soflaug (Dwarf Fighter – Dan) and Vidia (Pixie Rogue – Ross).

From the prior mission, the party learned of a potential connection of Troi to the intelligence network informing on Rebel activities, specifically Falzool the merchant. Jana learned that the date of a Royalist supply shipment and knew that it would be near the docks of Sulduskoon. Cagvree charges the SF Manticora with travelling to Sulduskoon and capturing the shipment or preventing the shipment from falling into Royalist hands. Secondly, the team should find out who is facilitating supplying the Royalists and if they are using ships or caravans to bring the shipments to the city. Under the leadership of Section Chief – Pax, the team draws supplies and decides to travel to Sulduskoon by ship, rather than by road, choosing speed other stealth.

On the morning before arriving at Sulduskoon, the team is on watch when a swarm of stirges dives upon them, looking for a quick meal. Looking extra juicy, Mr. T. and Thrain attract more than their share of attention. Thrain and Rastlin distinguish themselves by slaying more than their share of the little beaties. It’s not long before the remaining stirges are driven off.

Knowing that they’ll be recognized at the port, the team very cleverly decides to have Captain Pike drop the team off a quarter mile from town. After getting on the main road, the party is suddenly attacked by a squad of half Ogre mercenaries who have resorted to banditry. Mr. T. maneuvers to protect the team’s spell casters and with a mighty blow, downs one of the larger ogre bandits. Pixie uses her magic to great effect, downing or discouraging several of the hulks. Due to their prowess, the Ogres are quickly dispatched.

After a short rest, the team approaches the main gate and manages to get through without too much incident by entering the city individually and in small groups and by doing their best to not arouse the suspicions of the guards on duty. Mr. T, Thrain and Belledonna are especially convincing while speaking with the watch. The team regroups once in the city and find out from a beggar how to get to Doe Kang’s to link up with Wendy and Gale, their contacts in the city. While following the beggar’s directions, Pax spies a dead man in a courtyard, about the same time, Mr. T passes a woman who is trailing small drops of blood. When confronted, the woman takes a couple of deadly swipes at the barbarian, inflicting serious wounds. Undaunted, the barbarian charges after her and is rewarded with further critical slash wounds. Dazed, the barbarian is unable to keep pace with the sprinting woman. Several other team members are distracted by Endow, a local scout, who is watching from a nearby rooftop. An examination of the body reveals that the victim was Odeecee, a Master of Order and Priest of Pelor. It appears he has had his throat broken by a pair of large bludgeoning hands. There are also two small stab wounds in his back. Another local beggar (Kongo) tells the team that the Steel Man is a killer that has lived in the city for decades. He is rarely seen and tends to kill only the rich or powerful. Potential victims receive a silvery steel coin with the image of the Steel Man and those that do not leave the city are often found with their neck broken and bruised by his gigantic hands.

After a short rest, the team arrives at Doe Kang’s and while most of the team attempts to gain information from the locals, Belledonna searches out back and spies a man standing on a rock in the bay. She summons Thrain to assist her and the pair is assaulted by a trio or elementals; a huge water elemental, a smaller mud elemental and a earthen rock type elemental. Hearing the Seeker’s cries for help, the rest of the team charges to aid her. Although the team attempts a retreat back into the bar, Pax, and Raistlin are washed out into the storage area and cut off. Belledonna escapes by teleporting back inside the bar. Thrain and Vidia challenge the rock elemental in the alley. Mr. T and Train distinguish themselves by bravely engaging the creatures, keeping the heat off as much as possible from their less armored cohorts. An epic blow from the Barbarian (90 hits!) greatly weakens the huge water elemental. Raistlin continues to blast away to good effect attempts to persuade the elementals to retreat and it is not long before the elementals decide to back off. The wizard that was on the rock is nowhere to be seen. It is then that Gale reveals her presence and tells the team of the exact warehouse where the goods will be delivered and that the delivery will be within a very short time. After a very short rest, the team heads off, choosing to travel via alleyways rather than using the sewers.

After avoiding a potential conflict with a street gang, Wendy takes the party to a small building next to the target warehouse and the Manticoras make contact with Strike Force Green, Chief Bender. The Manticoras are charged with maintaining perimeter security and they divide into two teams, Thrain, Mr. T and Vidia to the west and Raistlin, Belledonna, and Pax to the east. After just a few minutes initial royalist reinforcements start to converge on the warehouse. A knight and a few soldiers from the west and an archer, a knight and a few more soldiers from the east. Both sections of the Manticoras down a few of the soldiers right away. A few seconds later, additional enemies arrive on the scene, a wizard, a knife fighter, a second knight and two archers in the west, and an additional knight, an archer, and seven more soldiers from the east. Rastlin blocks the eastern doorway with a summoned magic sword and Pax downs several enemy soldiers with rapid fire. Mr. T. having not fully recovered from prior battles, is challenged in the west, while the Pixie remains elusive, consistently damaging enemies. The team in the east abandons their roof top position when faced with four enemy archers. One by one, the eastern trio wounds or downs their opponents until finally Pax heads off to the west to assist the section there. Thrain and Mr. T take the brunt of the fight in the west and the weakened barbarian finally falls from a dozen wounds. As badly damaged as the Dwarf is, the enemy is weakened also, and they flee the area as Pax and the others begin arriving. After a short rest, the Manticoras regroup and enter the warehouse.

There they see a large shipment of supplies appear, as well as a dreaded Royalist Fighter, Peal of Pelor, Master of Blades. The Royalists were unprepared for the large Rebel presence and after a quick shot by Vidia, Peal vanishes in the puff of smoke. After reviving Strike Force Green who is scattered about the warehouse, Strike Force Manticore returns to Hayden with the captured shipment. Mr. T is awarded the Bloody Knife token for bravery and self sacrifice in battle. Mr. T. is also awarded a Combat Badge for the battle with the elementals. Pax is awarded the Diplomat’s Bronze Star for helping the team avoid wasteful conflicts, and every member of the team is awarded a Yellow Service Ribbon.

Thrain remembers things a bit differently: Twice we were ambushed by enemies and both times half the team hesitated to come to the rescue. Insert difficult-to-translate dwarven swearword  Diplomacy is all good and dandy, but not while we are being gutted. Show some back bone soldiers!!!

mr. t took a truck load of damage and kept fighting I might call that some back bone or just crazy

Paks says the mission comes first, negotiate and pay when you can solders bleed often enough.