Private Providence Bounty of Cragrun

[The Guy]

The low-elevated running roads of Cragrun were home to many dangers. Primarily, this was the reason that the region of Providence built their civilization far above these dangerous rivers which coursed through the crags at punishing speeds. However, from time to time, there came a reason to come down to these dangerous regions of stone.

Yesterday, it was a quest to pluck the Moonleaf weeds from the river's banks. Today it was a bounty to hunt the legendary Mooncrest Bear. THE GUY was never one to resist a challenge given, and so he took on the quest to hunt down the pelt of the aggressive beast. A long hour's time was all it took to hike back down from Neridan into the Cragrun proper. Things were going well... THE GUY only had one worry on his mind.

"Someone else has also taken the bounty today. Are you alright with competition?"​

Who had built enough trust with a random guy out in an outpost to get the bear bounty, too?! Perhaps THE GUY's contribution had raised his kindness towards all Travelers, and whoever came to take the bounty had just luckily came at the right time? Perhaps this was an NPC on the hunt? THE GUY did not know, but one thing was for sure-if they wanted that bounty for themselves, THE GUY wouldn't go down without a good shot at the challenge.

His gun was out in hand, ready to fire at the slightest disturbance. All he needed to do was to find that damned mooncrest bear...

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

"Ay Cousin!" The Cat man had called out.

Brutus paused, he was exploring the world as much as he could, taking in the sites and smells. Getting a feel for the region and its inhabitants, entrenching himself in the deep lore of the land. He was acclimating well, the system seemed to have some dynamic quest system that helped him string from point A to B with something to do anywhere he went. He'd crushed many a goblin skull, chased wolves from sheep, plucked apples, pears, peaches, and weeds. Anything anyone needed, he would stop with a smile and help without even asking for a reward. Some would still offer, oft refusing his objections and at least leaving him with food in his belly, a place to sleep, a couple meagre coins, or his nice new boots that felt nice and comfy.

"Yes Cousin?" He replied. A great deal of the local beastfolk referred to eachother as kin, and whilst it felt a little odd given he was...alien to their culture, he wore their skin so he thought it best to oblige.

"I've heard word of a giant man wandering the land helping those in need, might I perhaps bend your ear? I'm trying to woo the love of my life, but her father will have NONE of it! I wish to impress him with something amazing! Would you be willing to slay the legendary Mooncrest Bear for me? His pelt will make a fine cloak to drape around the shoulders of my beloved." The man's ears fell flat against his head as he clasped his hands together. "I don't have enough to hire a true adventurer, but I have some coin and a nice pair of gloves..."

Brutus simply smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I need nothing in return Cousin, I will slay the bear and bring you the pelt. Your happiness is reward enough."

With that, he was off once again. Adventure called...

Or it had. Brutus was having one hell of a time following tracks through the harsh lands. His eyes were sharp, his instinct honed, but his hubris had gotten the better of him. Hunting goblins had been easy...this, this was harder. He sourly bit into a bit of jerky and stared at his depleting hunger bar. Any longer and he'd need to head back to town and get some more supplies for an overnight. A twig snapped snapped behind him and the giant whirled around, brandishing his canon in the face of his would be assailant.

"Fancy meeting a stranger out here." He growled through clenched teeth. "Watcha up to?"

 

[Corsair]

"It's just me, though I can understand how everyone under six-foot must look the same to you," Corsair said dryly, pulling off her cloak. She stepped out from the firing line of Brutus' cannon. "I got your message, and I brought more food. Hopefully this will be enough." She held out a hefty bag full of fresh fruits and vegetables. "The corn is very filling."

Since she couldn't taste or smell anything in game, Corsair had picked the foods with the best mouthfeel. She particularly liked grapes, though she'd never given them more than a passing thought in real life.

"Did you get hurt on the way up?" she asked, looking him over for any signs of damage. @Brutus Dahlgren seemed to attract battle damage the same way he attracted muscle mass. She pulled her magitech frog out and set it on his shoulder. "I'll leave this with you. It's more efficient that way." She moved past Brutus, sheltering as she often did in the bulk of his form.

"Keep your eyes on the path," she said, motioning back down the rocky road she'd taken to their cliffside spot, "and don't put that weapon away yet. I was followed."

@Brutus Dahlgren @The Guy

 

[The Guy]

Whilst Brutus was whirling his cannon around to intimidate any would-be foolish attackers, THE GUY was facing a similar problem against his own instincts. shoot the enemy. don't shoot the non-combatant. shoot the enemy. don't shoot the non-combatant. These conflicting series of war-time conditionings pinnballed around his head like a great and arduous bell that ring, rang and rung him all about. He struggled, but refrained from pulling the trigger just because he came across somebody on accident.

...This had all taken place behind Brutus' back. Even so, though Corsair looked back at the trail she came from as she noted that she was tailed, the mechanical frog on Brutus' shoulder pointed straight at him instead. How had the mechanical frog noticed his presence?!

He walked out of the tall-fibre weeds, gun now safely in his holster and ambush abandoned. He waves with a shaky, nervous hand as he calls out, "Y-yeah, hey there! THE GUY, uh, followed you here to make sure you would be safe!"

Something came to register in his mind at that moment. From the confusion that possibly showed up on the two's faces, Corsair really had been referring to someone that had tailed her across the proper road. If it wasn't THE GUY... who or what had been following them?

 

[Vale]

These Hunters are loud, My Lord, sing old and cold winds. A rock and a rain of pebbles skitter down the crags and into sweeping currents. White water foams where it could be pink. The sparse trees cast ink black shadows across the slopes. The humid, hot reek of fur and blood leeches slowly into the space behind A Man, The Man, The Guy in fact, having an epiphany. Something lurches behind him, further into the rocks.

It seems that the three of you are no longer hunting, but rather, being hunted. Do you have time for distrust?

Skill Challenge: Hunt or Be Hunted
Your characters may work together to locate the creature. Roll a Skill Check using one of your Masteries. Rolls made with Geomancy, Hemomancy, and Hyper Sense have advantage. Your DC is 40. Two must succeed.​

 

[The Guy]

"So, uh... hunting, yeah? I came over to help out! I swear. Just, uh, give me a second..." THE GUY looked around himself as if expecting some convenient trail to show up to his eyes. After all, he had just said he was going to help-it would be real embarrassing if he made a fool out of himself now. He listened to the pinkness of the water, the sound of the dark beneath the trees.

Then THE GUY tried actually using his eyes for once, and found something surprisingly quickly. "¡Por Dios!" He exclaims, "That pothole you're standing in, Brutus! It's a footprint!"

Indeed it was a single footprint. It would have been foolish to point that out had there been a trail leading from it-surely Brutus would have been following the trail if that were the case. No, there was just one footprint. Just next to it was a long, dragging trail, as if something big had been dragged around. It had merely looked like a riverbank before, but now THE GUY was sure of it! They were already on a trail at this very moment.


Hyper Sense roll: 79! Success!

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

Brutus turned to look at the man who'd come out of the woods, eyes narrowing into slits as he instinctively pulled Corsair into his shadow. Canon at the ready he was prepared for things to get-

How the fuck did he know his name? The giant had no time to ponder this though, because he revealed to him that he'd in fact been standing in a track. A rather large one at that. He silently swore, looking from the track at his foot to the trail leading further down the way towards the river.

"Alright Mr. Guy" Brutus grunted. "Shit just got real, so if you feel like being a bro I'd suggest accepting this and staying close." He shot the man, not with his canon, but a party invite. "Something doesn't smell right..." he drawled, but otherwise he was at a loss up until his friendly frog companion on his shoulder gave a little warble. His eyes darted to where it was looking and he clutched his canon tighter. Ready to fire upon the first threatening thing that jumped onto them.

 

[Corsair]

Corsair's frog construct warbled and flashed, warning of an approaching enemy. Just as with her spirit sensing bracelet before, Corsair was at a loss regarding the specifics. Was the enemy this new Mr. THE GUY? Or was it whatever had left the massive footprint?

She opened her mouth and let out an ultrasound command to her frog. Its core stopped strobing and the siren shut off as its warning sensors reset. She kept the healing magitech on Brutus' shoulder. He was her shield, after all.

"Three is much more advantageous in a fight," Corsair agreed, noticing the party invite for THE GUY appear on her HUD. "I don't suppose either of you know if this is from that bear we're tracking?" Footprints were tricky to discern at the best of times, and what was a single print doing right here?

Corsair's eyes glowed as she inspected the footprint. There was something at the bottom of the print. Some smear of destroyed fauna. A patch of blood where something had been crushed into the dirt with a single, mighty stomp.

She sunk further into Brutus' shadow.

 

[Vale]

The three of you close ranks and inspect the mark of something wicked this way passed. Through a measure of both senses and sensors, the trail is easy to find. You are delayed for moments when something shifts between towering shards of stone. When something larger than a twig snaps. Yet you continue your hunt, perhaps knowing if you turn your back on whatever predator is out here that it will all be over.

You determine the tracks to be from a bear. A huge bear. A Moon Bear. A drawn out fight happened here. Splatters of blood drip down tree trunks, not yet dried. Feathers absolutely litter the smooth stone, clay, and lichen under your feet. Ahead of you all lay your bounty. The Moon Bear lay on its belly, with not but a few scraps of fur clinging to its stripped hide. Around it lay two dead creatures, their bodies cracked into the tree trunks and crushed into the Cragrun basin's floor. They are covered in feathers. You get to see no more of them though when the Moon Bear takes a miserable inhale - it has been left, cruelly, alive.

The Guy and Corsair offer Brutus enough warning not to be ambushed, but you all are cornered in the same basin the Moon Bear was.

From feather-sewn shoulders hangs the freshly skinned pelt of the Moon Bear, now with messy bundles of black pinions tied into it by the dense locks of fur. Crimson slicks the few patches of exposed rubbery skin on the almost-human beneath it. Claw and bite marks riddle it, but the instinct remains: fight or flight. This foe, even injured, still seems happy to hunt.

Lone Duuhmeron Encountered!
LP 3 DC 40 15

See Auto Monster for combat assistance.​

 

[The Guy]

150 / 165

"Now there is a beast I can fight! Time to deploy, boys!"

These were the first words out of anyone's mouth whence the two parties had run into each-other. A long silence had taken the toll of these two parties, who watched each-other in anticipation of the coming battle. That was up until THE GUY charged right the hell in there, anyway.

He seemed intent on disabling the legs of the beast, and the shots he'd made grew just shy of the monster's talons. It was most unfortunate, but THE GUY had yet to grow used to the new weight of his ancient-feeling weapons.

So he'd thought. He'd struck true on second glance, but the rubbery hide of the beast seemed to hardly care at all for the open wounds he'd caused in it. What would have been bullet holes had simply become dents in an almost iron-thick leather. THE GUY cursed under his breath.

As the Lone Duuhmeron struck down upon him with heavy wings, THE GUY deftly kept himself out of the way. To others it may have looked like he was just being bludgeoned around, but he could assure himself that he was minimizing losses he could be otherwise taking right now. He just needed a bit of time to reload...

---

Heavy Attack attempt: 34 / 40 DC. Failure.

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

Brutus simply sidled in front of Corsair, aiming his canon with a grin. "Well if aint the fucking mothman. Corsair I hope you packed your earbuds alongside the corn." He watched as the thing batter The Guy with its wings and then took to the air straight for them. He grit his teeth and braced the canon, squinting down his crude sights.

"Come fucking get some." He growled as he could see the red of the creatures eyes and smell the blood on its breath. BOOM. He let off his shot and sunk it square into the creatures body, causing it to hiss and screech as its brandished claws nicked his shoulder. His screen flashed red and he let out a light grunt, pain coursing through his body as he sucked in a deep breath. The creature took flight around, whirling above them as he plopped his canon into the ground and began to hastily reload it, ignoring the blood running down his arms.

"Careful now, he's due back any time soon..."

---

Heavy Attack: 93 vs DC 40
Brutus takes 15 damage, 115/130

 

[Corsair]

112 / 115

The Duuhmeron's battered THE GUY with brutal wingbeats, and its jagged claws bit into Brutus. It moved like a vulture, too full of carrion to take off and yet desperate to fight for another feast.

Brutus' cannon went off, and Corsair staggered back, hands over her ears. I need to make those earplugs, she noted, head ringing from the sound.

The blast had given the creature enough force to finally take off, and it circled above them, every flap of its wingbeats sending a hail of steely pinions whistling through the air. Corsair scrambled back into Brutus' shadow, but a volley of the blood-tinged slivers pierced right through her flimsy armor, scraping along her chassis underneath.

But her frog was already in place, glowing with magitech healing. No sooner had the injuries been opened on the three of them then the magitech was hopping into action, leaping from wound to wound and sealing them closed and leaving a smear of healing ooze along the scar.

Rolls

Heal (AoE)
1d20 (20) + 10 + 5 = 12 (Total divided by 3)
+12 HP to 3 targets (@Corsair @Brutus Dahlgren @The Guy)

Play Sheet Link

 

[The Guy]

147 / 165

The beast held the home advantage. Slivers were stuck in THE GUY's armor, and he was strafing around opposite to the flying beast who still yet appeared to have eyes on him. He could see it-as the target of all of the creature's wingbeats before, he would probably be the target of the Duuhmeron's full-body attack next.

That's what he wanted. He'd failed to keep the beast's attention on him only twice, and all the time rest had taken the initiative to play the punching bag for the monster first and foremost. This was because of the Taunt skill he had, which he was using liberally. THE GUY wanted the Duuhmeron to feel like it had the upper hand-like it could strike at any moment to spell his end.

He readied the use of Taunt once again. The way he was circling counterwards to the beast was a maneuver that had meaning behind it-from the two times he'd seen it throw its' razor feathers, he could tell that it was something that required distance to arc. The way that he moved right now placed him right below the Duuhmeron. The only direction it could throw was down-and after two tries, the monster realized that it wasn't going to work when THE GUY knew how the attack would fly. Naturally, it tried the next best maneuver it had-to drop down straight onto THE GUY with all of its' weight.

This is the moment he had been waiting for. The time to act had come.

He leapt back at a timing that spelled life or death-crushed under the Duuhmeron's weight would he have failed. Another crack of his gun sounded out, striking right where it had before on the monster's ankle joints. Blood did spray this time, yet the Duuhmeron did not buckle-until he struck it full-mass with a sliding kick, driven by the force of his spring-like leap.

As THE GUY felt the course of energy flow through him as the frog began repairing his bruised musculature flow through him, he decided to press himself beyond what should be possible. Instead of circling around, he instead decided to reverse his momentum entirely when he was once retreating. He dug his heels deep, using the ground as a landing wall before leaping straight at the wound. This flying kick struck true and forced the agent of Duuhm onto its' knee as THE GUY slid behind. He had shattered his left leg from the force and precision of the reversal, but as he'd predicted, that broken bone healed right up as the primary target of the frog's healing magic.

He flipped onto his feet once again before leaping off the ground. This time, his target was the broad back of the Duuhmeron itself. THE GUY brought his arms underneath and around the monster's joints between the shoulder and wings, putting it in a headlock for a time. He wouldn't be able to hold such a large opponent for long, but this was long enough-he wasn't alone.

"I've got him still! Fire, Brutus! DO IT!"
​

--------------------------
Take 15 damage. Heal 12 damage.

THE GUY has dealt 1 injury to the Duuhmeron with a HEAVY ATTACK! (Ranged Attack+Martial Arts)

The Duuhmeron requires 1 more injury to defeat.

 

[Brutus Dahlgren]

112 / 160

Brutus growled, reloading his canon with as much speed as he could muster. It's ranged attacks were problematic, and he moved himself between @Corsair and the creature, blocking the last of its stray spray attacks as it did so, sharp shrapnel finding purchase in his thick armor. He watched in awe as @The Guy went "Sikko Mode" as the kids say. This creature, while intimidating to look at, was shaping up to be easily managed. He took a deep breath, raised his canon up, and let his shot ring out as he blasted away.

The Creature exploded into a fine mist of bloody feathers, letting out one final horrifying shriek as it died. "Are you okay Guy?" Brutus called out, stuffing another cannonball into his gun. He would squint into the cloud of steamy, bloody smoke before turning back to Corsair.

"How about you? Fucker moved pretty quick so it was hard to keep me between you and him." He scowled, picking bits of shrapnel out of his armor.

Rolls

Heavy Attack 33+5+5+20=63
BOOM KILLSHOT

Play Sheet

 

[The Guy]

THE GUY's hand can be seen waving from up and behind the looming mass of the Duuhmeron's corpse.

"I'm alright, hermano! I'm an active duty man, you feel me? Living under artillery's an important life skill I've had to pick up! You can count on THE GUY to keep kicking!" What grim words to hear in a video game. Was this dude alright? It hadn't even seemed like he was using auto-mastery skills when he'd knocked over that giant beast, as if he were playing freeform mode the whole time...

THE GUY dragged himself up on top of their hunt, pulling the bear pelt off from atop the foe as he looked it over. It seemed to be the pelt they were looking for! A cheer sounded in the sky to let the other two know of this important fact.

 

[Corsair]

Corsair pulled quills out of her clothes, and then out of Brutus', storing them in a pocket for later. As she walked past Brutus she patted Sam the Frog, switching him to low-power mode. The healing would take longer this way, but the team had gotten out relatively unscathed, and it would ease the strain on her own magic.

She did the same with THE GUY, settling Fujitsu the mechanical spider on his shoulder and setting it to low power. The pale blue glow of her magitech healing filled the broken clearing, along with a dim hum. It was like the background hum of a magical refrigerator.

"Is that the pelt we're here for?" she asked the others, looking it over as THE GUY held it up. "It looks in good condition, all considering." She crouched down to inspect the fetid body of the Duuhmeron. "Well Brutus that may be our first real monster, don't you think?" she asked, smiling despite herself. "Nice work @The Guy. Thank you for your assistance."

She looked back at the monster. "I'll bet someone in town has a bounty out for this beast," she said, plucking more of its quills and storing them with the rest in her jacket. "Shall we take part of it in just in case?"