Exalted III: Poorly-Named Game

Ukkoya


Seeing Kyros find something in the walls keeps her grounded even as the eerie voice echoes and the crew responds raucously. "Right," she says roughly. "We are not surrenderin'." Ukkoya flags down Tepet Miran and jabs an accusing finger at Reln, the lucky bastard.


She crouches down, crowding Third Cloud's vision and locking eyes with his. "Stay with me, sailor. We're getting out." She waves at Kyros. "Can one 'a yours help out here?" She makes to remove her coat if there isn't a suitable demon to assist moving Third Cloud.
 
"Wait...


My friends must be down there somewhere. Faeries eat slow, right?


We can still save them..."

One of the blood apes can help carry him. Not gently, though. Such is the nature of blood apes.


Convincing him to give up on his friends will take a difficulty 2 Charisma or Manipulation + Presence roll. Difficulty 3 if you want it to stick when the island tries to convince him that they're still alive.


Kyros's knowledge of the Wyld tells him that Third Cloud's hope isn't crazy. Soul-eating can be a slow process and it's possible that the rest of the crew is still alive. Maybe a one-in-four chance.
 
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"Yes, they eat slow, but how does that help us?" Kyros asked. "We're wounded, in hostile territory with an unknown number of enemies just waiting for us to make a mistake before they pounce again." He said.


"Can you defend yourself should that happen? Can you defend your crew? Can you guarantee their safety, given our situation? I'm not sure I can even guarantee mine right now, and I have access to much more resources right now than you do." Kyros hated to admit it, hated to admit it, but he was outmatched right now.


"There is, at best, a one in four chance that they're still alive. I don't think it's worth the risk. I think we should focus on staying alive, and that you should focus on keeping the crew you still have alive." Kyros argued pointedly.


He was quiet for a moment, thinking, before speaking once more in a softer tone. "I can promise you that if they still live, they will not suffer."


OOC


Introducing the Fact that soul consumption isn't painful, and is similar to falling asleep. 11 dice for 5 successes


Persuasion attempt to convince him to leave, hopefully tagging an intimacy to his loyalty to his still living crew. 6 dice + 3 via excellency for 5 successes
 
Third Cloud seems to shrink, almost. His voice is low and hopeless.


"Fine."


Reln sighs.


"Worst feeling in the world, when you have to give up. But it's good to beat yourself to death against a wall.


We've got rum back on the ship. You can drink this away."

Fact introduced, character convinced.

 


But it's worth mentioning that these guys aren't really his crew so much as they are the crew he happens to be with.
 
"We'll drink to their memory and honor them for their efforts." Kyros said. "Get anyone who can't move on the Agata. Everyone else, stay behind the Blood Apes. We'll take point." He said, moving in to formation and setting off.
 
(You still need to roll to scale that slippery slope. Dexterity + Athletics 1 to climb it, or 3 if you're helping the wounded up.


Also, bear in mind the Agata's wounded. Can still fly, but not terribly well. Can't count on it to deal with this problem for you.)
 
Kyros, having the athletic ability of a drunken cow, eyed the slope with distaste. ""I will ride up first with my Agata and Blood Apes to secure the area above. If all looks clear, we can throw a rope down and the Blood Apes can pull everyone up." He said.
 
An agata can carry "two fully armored people", so I figure you and the apes can go up in pairs. Two apes might be pushing it but whatever.

 


Blood apes are incompetent riders but they just need to hold on so it probably won't be a problem. Probably. There's always the risk of ape savagery or agata incomprehensibility causing trouble, though...


 


I'm assuming, by the way, that when you said "setting off" you meant breaking through the thin wall to get at the sloped chamber.


 


Anyway, roll Dexterity + Ride against difficulty 1 if you fly up alone. Difficulty 2 if you take an ape.
 
Kyros approached the Agata cautiously. Despite calling them to serve his bidding, he had never actually rode an Agata before. Frankly he had always been of the opinion that if he needed to fly, he would devise a spell that would allow him to do so.


So it was with a great deal of controlled trepidation and carefully masked discomfort that Kyros mounted the demon insect, and hoped to whatever god was listening that he didn't make a fool of himself.


OOC


Dex 4 + Ride 0 = 4 dice for 1 success. Damn that's a relief. Super worried there for a moment.
 
The ride is surprisingly smooth at first - the agata does all the work, Kyros just sits still. But as the sorcerer and his demon leave the cavern, a strong headwind hits them. It's all Kyros can do to hang on as the wasp lands.


Kyros and his demon stand at the mouth of a mountaintop cave, looking down upon a glassy landscape as the air tries to throw them back underground. The path downwards looks treacherous, but not as treacherous as flying through actively malevolent winds. The crew can probably make it, assuming nothing attacks.


Having the agata carry the apes up would be chancy. Blood apes are not skilled riders and they might not be able to stay mounted in these winds. But skilled climbers like them should have no trouble following a rope up a slope.

Lowering a rope lets unwounded people get up without a roll. Getting the wounded crew up still requires a roll; difficulty 2 with Dexterity + Athletics to help them walk up or difficulty 2 with Strength + Athletics to pull them up. The apes are easily capable of doing the pulling if you're willing to put wounded people at their mercy.
 
Like most Sorcerers who studied the art academically, Kyros had little to no athletic ability. So it was with great care and supervision (and more than a few threats) that he instructed his Blood Apes to pull the wounded sailors up the on the rope.
 
Roll Charisma or Manipulation + Presence or War against difficulty 1 to prevent the apes from ruining the work you did setting Third Cloud's injuries.

 


You guys have been here a while, so I'm calling for another Wyld mutation roll. Same difficulty as before, because you didn't go any deeper: Stamina + Integrity, difficulty 1.


 


So, how do you want to get down the hillside? Walking carefully? Rushing full speed? Splitting into a holding-off-enemies group and an escaping group? Some other way that I didn't think of?




As the demons pull the sailors up, you hear the sound of footsteps. Lots of them, coming towards you, up from the depths of the island's central caverns. Hard to judge how far away they are, in these echoing tunnels...


Regardless, it makes going down the mountainside seem more urgent. Problem is, the terrain's pretty rough. Smooth crystal with sharp edges, made worse by chaotic winds. Healthy people moving slowly could manage it safely...


Meanwhile, the island speaks again. Its voice is still incongruously girlish.


"Will...


you...


abandon...


your...


friends...


Third...


Cloud?"


The sailor seems shocked to hear his name. He opens his mouth to respond, then closes it.
 
"Move swiftly." Kyros said, walking directly towards the their boat. "Ignore anything that happens behind you. If you get cut, power through it. If you can't, you'll be dead." Right now they didn't have time to move slowly. "Stop anyone from coming through." He ordered his demons. "Once we're on the ship, return to me."


OOC


Cha 3 + Presence 3 = 6 dice for 5 successes


Stam 3 + Integrity 3 = 6 dice for 3 successes
 
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