>>4885879
>>Talk to the middle aged, struggling man. He could use some help, and he seems like he had a story to tell.

>>4885879
>>Talk to the young, strong man. He seems like a useful ally.
Battle buddy is always needed

>>4885879
>Talk to the young, strong man. He seems like a useful ally.
We must tread the path of the swole with our mustachioed friend. Although the title seems to paint this as some sort of Necromancer Quest.

>>4885879
>Talk to the middle aged, struggling man. He could use some help, and he seems like he had a story to tell.

We appear to have a perfect tie! I’ll wait a little bit to see if there are more votes and arguments, but if not, I’ll roll a D2.

Middle aged

>>4885879
>Talk to the middle aged, struggling man. He could use some help, and he seems like he had a story to tell.

>>4885879
>>Talk to the middle aged, struggling man. He could use some help, and he seems like he had a story to tell.

>Talk to your older, less rugged companion

“Would you like a hand?” You say to him, grateful for an easy means of breaking the ice. You have never been very good at approaching new people.

“Sure! That would be great!” He says to you with a cheerful smile. Despite his apparent exhaustion, there’s an undeniable energy to his voice, as bright as a man who’s only just started on his daily grind. You take up the task of carrying his supply pack, relieving some of his burden. The lieutenant gives you a look, but says nothing.

The man breathes a sigh of relief, stretching his arms as much as he can in his armor. “Appreciate the help. What’s your name, son?”

>Arthur
>Frederick
>Joshua
>Other (choose a different name)

>>4886840
>Frederick

>>4886840
>Anton

>>4886840
>>Arthur morgan

>>4886840
>>Frederick

File: 0F15088B-6B45-407B-953E-F(...).jpg (568 KB, 750x745)

568 KB JPG

>Your name is Frederick

“It’s nice to meet you, Frederick. I’m Kendric.” He says, looking around at the jungle around you. “Just look at it all. Have you ever seen anything so strange and yet so beautiful?” You know what he means. There are woods back in Paragon, dense woods even, but nothing like this. Where the ground was a dead brown and easy to traverse there, it was so green and alive here that the soldiers ahead had to quite literally cut a path for the rest of you. It’s a world unknown and untouched by human hands.

“Yeah,” You finally stutter, realizing you’ve said none of your observations aloud. “It’s so… alive.”

He nods in agreement with a small smile, as if amused by your awkwardness. “You hear those calls out in the distance?” He points out into the woods, where the odd bellowing has begun once again. “What even are they? I just have to know. I hope we get a chance to venture out there a bit at some point.” There’s a twinkle in his eyes with an almost childlike excitement. He’s either a braver man than you or an absolute fool. Still, you must admit there’s a part of you that wishes to explore this place as much as he does.

“You don’t exactly seem like the conquering type,” You say, trying to sound curious rather than accusatory. “What made you sign up? Was it just to go somewhere new?” He nods, understanding. “That would totally be enough to get me aboard the fastest ship here, but no. I have another reason. You see this?” He holds his necklace out for you to see. Strange carvings adorn the wooden piece. What looks to be an eye sits in the middle, below three unfamiliar symbols that look almost like letters. Underneath are a few wavy lines that look to you like a rough ocean current, though you’re really not sure. “This is all we know about the spiritual world. This single carving, which is just a copy mind you, tells us that our ancestors were only able to discover three spirits in the entire course of our history. Who knows how many the Elves have found? This is the opportunity of a lifetime!”

The hope in his voice seems to be rubbing off on you, and you can’t help but feel lucky to be here on this mission. The lieutenant has a much different take on the matter, and barks at the two of you to keep it down, questioning whether your goal is to capture the attention of the locals. At this, Kendric quiets down. His cheerful demeanor still as bright as it had been, he asks what brought you to the shores of this newly discovered world.

>Why have you joined this mission to conquer and settle this newly discovered continent?

>>4887114
>>Why have you joined this mission to conquer and settle this newly discovered continent?
Power and riches!

>>4887137
>Power and treasure guide your heart!

“I’m here because I want to make something of myself,” You say to him, proudly. “I’ve never had much in the way of power or money, but this is the place to get it. A land of opportunity.” You beam at the prospect of what you can achieve here. “The old world is settled. An entire continent with no place left untouched by our emperor. There’s nothing there left for someone like me. This is the chance I’ve been waiting for.”

He gives you a little nod. “Yes, well that is a common motivation I’ve seen. I’m sure there will be plenty of opportunity for those things if you seize the moment.” You detect a hint of disappointment in his voice. Different people have different callings. Yours is to grow wealthy and take a part of this place for yourself. It won’t be easy, but you’ll rise above the rest. You were born for it.

The lieutenant calls for the group to halt. “Alright men. There’s just one mile ahead of us. Now, watch where you step carefully in this area. There’ve been reports of swarming, stinging ants crawling all over the place and-“

He is cut off by an arrow flying inches from his face and directly into a man’s eye. Kendric gasps. The man falls motionless to the ground as more arrows fly out from the jungle in every direction. The young, strong man gets down on one knee and immediately starts firing into the distance, as do others. More men fall dead, and an arrow strikes you directly in the shoulder, thankfully on the iron plate of your armor. You fall to the ground from the force and shock. Kendric leans over, frantically trying to help you up, but is forced to abandon the idea when an elf comes charging out of the greenery, drawing back his bow. He gets up and tries to fire his musket, but the smoldering rope has been put out in all this rain.

Pulling yourself up, you reach for your…

Choose your weapon
>Sword and shield. Excellent in close quarters, but with very limited range.
>Matchlock Musket. Unmatched in power and range, but requires ammo and a bit of time to reload.
>Crossbow. Less powerful than the musket, but faster and simpler to reload. Plus it’s more compact and has reusable ammo.
>Halberd. Greater range than the sword and an overall versatile weapon. A bit awkward though, especially among all of this thick jungle.
>No weapon, but you’re the handler for a vicious war dog.

>>4887757
>Halberd. Greater range than the sword and an overall versatile weapon. A bit awkward though, especially among all of this thick jungle.
Halberds are one of the coolest and best looking melee weapons that exist, you can not convince me otherwise. We must use it.

>>4887757
>>Halberd. Greater range than the sword and an overall versatile weapon.
Hard choice, armor covered war hound, would be so cool too.

>>4887757
>>Crossbow. Less powerful than the musket, but faster and simpler to reload. Plus it’s more compact and has reusable ammo.

LET'S DO THIS!

>>4887757
>>Crossbow. Less powerful than the musket, but faster and simpler to reload. Plus it’s more compact and has reusable ammo.

>>4887766
>>4887772
>>4887785
>>4888014

Ya’ll love your ties lol. I’ll leave it for just a little bit longer.

>>4887757
>>Sword and shield. Excellent in close quarters, but with very limited range.

This seems like the most practical weapon in this environment.

>>4887757
>Halberd. Greater range than the sword and an overall versatile weapon. A bit awkward though, especially among all of this thick jungle.
let's shatter some ribs

>>4887757
>>Crossbow. Less powerful than the musket, but faster and simpler to reload. Plus it’s more compact and has reusable ammo.

>>4887757
>Crossbow. Less powerful than the musket, but faster and simpler to reload. Plus it’s more compact and has reusable ammo.

>>4887757
>>Matchlock Musket. Unmatched in power and range, but requires ammo and a bit of time to reload.

Anons never go for a musket

>>4888977
Unless we are allowed to carry like 6 pistols, and 2 rifles + a blunderbuss.

>>4888163
>Crossbow

>>4889192
That would be ideal, not gonna lie. Sadly it's between crossbow and a hailberd now.

>>4888977
I'd vote for this if >>4889192 would be possible.

>>4887757
>>4888363
I am changing my vote to Halberd.

>>4889192
Because every MC must be a swashbuckling action hero

>>4890435
I'd change my vote to if that where the case. We'd still need a knife or dagger tho.

Sorry to leave you guys hanging like that. I had a boatload of history reading to catch up on.

>>4888977
For real though. Matchlock muskets are the coolest weapons of all time. That is a fact, not an opinion.

>>4889192
Don’t forget having a personal cannon to bust out when needed.


>You tread the path of an archer’s lazier cousin

You reach for your iron crossbow, raising it without even thinking. The bolt tears into his chest and he screams in pain. His arrow flies through the air, but he misses due to his agonized state.

You stumble, trying to reload as quickly as possible. More men fall to the ground around you, struck by arrows. Kendric is lying on the ground in an attempt to avoid incoming fire as he struggles with his musket.

“Spread out!” The lieutenant yells out. “Don’t give them a group to target! Meet them where they are and kill them all!” He fires madly into the woods with his pistols, carrying a full set of 6 on his torso. Must be nice.

Just as you hear the rustling above you, an elf descends directly onto your back like a wild predator. You yell is surprise and desperately try to shake him off. His knife doesn’t make it through the back of your armor, so he reaches up to cut your throat. You grab his arm and hold on with all your might to keep him from reaching your neck but he’s much stronger than you. Kendric aims his finally functional musket but can’t get a clear shot at him. You can feel your grip loosening as he pushes harder and harder against his obsidian blade.

A hand grabs his arm and roughly tears him off of you. His blood spatters on the ground as he gurgles from the wound in his neck. The young, strong man is there holding your attacker with one hand as though he were a prized turkey, his other holding his crimson-coated dagger. He gives you a small nod, and you respond in turn before he continues firing at the enemy.

Kendric finally manages to fire a shot at the enemy, but you can’t see if he even hit anyone through the dense jungle. You look around to see just how screwed you are. Most of you are dead, and the incoming arrows have barely decreased in number. You see a small opening in the jungle where a little creek has kept the vegetation at bay. It’s possible you could escape this attack through there, but it would mean abandoning the entire group.

>Desert the group in their time of need and save your own life.
>Risk it to help save what’s left of your platoon.

>>4890638
>Risk it to help save what’s left of your platoon.

>>4890638
>>Risk it to help save what’s left of your platoon.
We're a soldier.

>>4890638
>Risk it to help save what’s left of your platoon.
The only name we can make for ourselves if we run is 'Coward'. We fight.

>>4890638
Risk it to help save what’s left of your platoon.

>>4890638
>Desert the group in their time of need and save your own life.
I want to watch the lieutenant die. He took all the guns.

>>4890638
>>4891234
+1

>>4891234
>>4891629
And loot his corpse for them afterwards of course!

>You are not a coward and you are not about to give up on your dreams after coming this far!

With a renewed sense of vigor, you charge into the forest in search of knife-eared fucks to kill. You see two in the distance firing at your platoon and get down. If you do this right, you should be able to take both of them out without a scratch. You carefully make your way through the undergrowth, grateful for all the noise from the gunshots.

You line up the perfect shot to take one of them out. If you time it just right, the other one will be focused on their archery and won’t react right away, giving you time to reload. You aim your crossbow, take a deep breath, and fire.

The bolt strikes the elf right in the skull with a loud crack. He convulses and falls to the ground, his brain destroyed. You try to reload quickly but his friend has already seen you. You can see the pure rage in his eyes. His true hatred of you and your people. He pulls back the bow to put out the light in your eyes once and for all.

He is interrupted, not by you, not by your fellow troops, not even by a miracle from the lord himself. He is interrupted by his friend. The one with a bolt in his head, currently chewing on his companion’s foot. The elf opens his mouth to scream, a look of pure horror and agony upon his face, but no sound escapes. Or if it did, you could not hear it due to your own shock.

He pulls his bare, bleeding foot free from the jaws of the fallen corpse. It gets up, awkwardly, as though it was not used to making use of its legs. Then, as though possessed by a sudden drive not present before, it seizes the dagger on its belt, lunging forward and plunging it into his living associate in one swift motion. It keeps stabbing him over and over again, ripping him into a fine red paste. It seems so passionate about killing and yet seemingly just mechanically driven to destroy what’s in front of it like an ant. You push the thought aside and finish loading your bow, overcoming the fear that had frozen you in place.

The moving corpse turns to look at you, revealing its two blue glowing eyes. This is not an elf. This is nothing like you’ve ever seen before. You fire a bolt into its chest as it lunges toward you, but it barely flinches. You grab the hand with the knife and try to wrestle it from the thin with both hands. It’s strong, but you’re not giving up without a fight. It clamps its jaws on your arm and futily tries to tear through your armor. The horrible crunching sound of its teeth shattering makes you grimace. Finally you manage to pry the knife out of its hand, plunging it into its neck.

(1/3)

If it feels it, it certainly hides it well, for instead of writhing in pain or falling to the ground, it wraps its hands around your throat and squeezes an iron grip. You choke and sputter, unable to breathe. You desperately try to pry its hands off of you, but they won’t budge. Thinking quickly, you stab the knife straight into its left wrist, twisting it and tearing its hand from its body. To your horror, the hand remains in place on your neck, still squeezing of its own volition. Spots fill your vision and you can feel the world fading around you as you begin to grow limp.

A blurry mass passes before your eyes, and you feel a cold sensation on your neck. The pressure seems to vanish, and a warm liquid coats your skin. You can feel your lungs filling with the jungle air, a feeling so relieving you wish you could just breathe forever. As the world begins to come back into focus, you see two shapes moving about. You see one shape push on the other, and it falls over onto the ground. A strange long projectile flies out of the upright object and into the one below. The object approaches you, and you soon recognise Kendric, offering you his hand to get up, which you oblige.

“Are you alright?” He says, worried. “I’ll be fine. What the hell was that? Are these people doing some eleven crack or something?” Kendric doesn’t answer. You can see the shock in his face at what he’s just seen. “Here. You’ll need this.” He finally says, handing you a crossbow. Your crossbow. “They can’t be killed, but pinning them down to the ground with arrows seems to work well enough.” You look over to see that despite being nailed to the ground by a bolt through the chest, it is very much alive, as are the fingers on the hands Kendric cut off, writhing around like insects. What in the world could do something like this?

You both hear a cry in the distance, and the sounds of footsteps rapidly approaching. In a flash, dozens of elves run straight past you and out into the woods. Several more like the corpse you fought appear to be chasing them at a slow pace. You recognise former soldiers from your platoon among them. “Take them all down!” The lieutenant barks out from the main path. “Hunt these things like animals and tear them to pieces!” You and Kendric begin loading your weapons in preparation.

“No!” Another voice cries out from near the path. “Gather here and form a circle! Sword and shield men to front! Halberdiers behind them! Gunners and bowmen form the inner ring. Handlers take up positions in the open parts of the trail and retreat inside if there are too many of them!” You don’t recognise his voice, and you don’t recall any other officers in your platoon.

(2/3)

“I am in command here!” You hear the lieutenant yell. “Destroy these things one on one! Don’t let them build up their forces!” You can hear more of those vile walking corpses headed toward your position. You might be able to take them down here with Kendric’s help, but you have no idea how many there are. On the other hand, fighting them out in the open where they can gather together could be a disaster also. What to do? Who to follow?

>Side with the lieutenant and try to hunt them in the woods.
>Side with the other man and take them down as an organized group.

(3/3)

>>4892428
>>Side with the other man and take them down as an organized group.

>>4892426
>Side with the other man and take them down as an organized group.
Butter bars led us into an ambush.

>>4892428
>>Side with the other man and take them down as an organized group.

>>4892428
>Side with the other man and take them down as an organized group.
Yeah no, hunting Undead Creatures solo is a recipe for disaster.

>>4892428
>Side with the other man and take them down as an organized group.
Oh yeah let's just run like headless chickens into danger

Trying to find a good regular time to be on here so I can be more frequent. I think it might be best if I cut down on the length of these, as it's time consuming to write and takes a bit of the role playing aspect away imo.

>Screw rules and screw the lieutenant. It’s time for a change in leadership!

You and Kendric quickly make your way back to the path, luckily avoiding any more encounters with those monstrosities. You emerge from the jungle, appreciating the lack of obstacles here. Most of the surviving men are already here, forming a defensive circle. The foul corpses begin walking out into the path, slowly, but with an unexpected grace to their steps without the stumbling one might expect from a dead man. If it were not for the piercing glow of their eyes, some could even pass for the living. Kendric is frozen in his tracks, a look of shock and horror at the monsters before him. You grab his arm to keep him moving and he follows along.

The group opens a bit to let you into the center ring with the other gunners and archers. Your fellow soldiers pant and slouch with weariness, but there’s a determination within them that shines through. They’re ready to do whatever’s necessary.

“Gunners blast their limbs to pieces! If they can’t walk, they can’t fight!” Cries a young blond man with a sword and shield out in the front. His voice matches that of the man arguing with the lieutenant. The sound of thunder and fury fills the jungle as the muskets go off. Your ears ring, and you find it hard to hear any other sounds in the battlefield. You hear the yelling of the lieutenant, but can’t make out any words. Looking around, you spot him next to the blond man, trying to argue with him. You don’t need to hear his voice. The anger he’s projecting could be heard by the deaf. The blond man completely ignores him, placing his eyes forward and his sword at the ready.

You place your foot in the stirrup of the crossbow, pulling the string back with a little *click*. In goes the bolt, and you bring your attention to the ruthless beasts that oppose you. You hit a former elf straight in the middle of its bare torso, immobilizing it. You feel some pride at taking it down and quickly load another bolt. Firing the next one into the shattered leg of one of your fallen comrades, you notice Kendric fighting with the same vigor as the rest of you. That frozen, indecisive man you had to drag in is nowhere to be found. The lieutenant on the other hand has had enough, and runs away into the forest as fast as he can. Coward.

(1/2)

The undead legion seems to be thinning out, and your swordsmen work together to slice the few that made it to your group to useless bits, still moving on the ground. Men yell victory cries, and they begin to walk out, kicking dirt at the fallen enemy. “No! Hold your positions!” The blond man calls out just as several arrows make their way out of the woods and into the necks of two men. You feel your heart stop. At least 20 pairs of blue glowing eyes rise up from the undergrowth. The elven ones carry bows, loading in unison. Your two fallen men rise up to join them, those cold blue spots in their faces, and attempt to open the gap they left in your defenses further. Their sword skills are lacking. Your swordsmen manage to knock them down and you help pin one down with a bolt to the neck.

You’re relieved to see the gap closed, and your circle of shields renders the incoming arrows a mere nuisance. Horde descends upon you, slashing and clawing at you as the swordsmen struggle to play crowd control. The blond man cuts the arms off of one and kicks it into the dirt. “Keep it together! Gunners get down and try to go for their legs! Fire in unison! Take the closest ones down first! Move!” Kendric and the other musketeers get down on their bellies and stick their weapons between the swordsmen’s adjacent legs. Walking corpses fall to the ground in a ring around you as they open fire. Three of them grab onto one man and pull him down with them, removing his helmet and tearing his screaming head off with their blades. You manage to push down your shock and pin two of them to the ground. Three more try to force their way inside, wrestling with your men. You see an undead archer aiming for the new gap.

>Pick up a sword to take the place of your fallen comrade. They need help containing the breach.
>Stick with your current weapon and try to stun the archer from afar. One of those arrows could kill in a second.

(2/2)

Forgot to add that the second one needs a D100 roll for accuracy.

Rolled 25 (1d100)

>>4896794
>Stick with your current weapon and try to stun the archer from afar. One of those arrows could kill in a second.
We're probably better of with the weapon we're used to, trying to play swordfighter when we're not properly trained might just end up being a death sentence.

>>4896834

>Why quit what you’re good at?

You quickly raise your crossbow and fire a bolt straight at the abomination ahead of you. The bolt grazes its head, briefly causing it some confusion, but ultimately doing little to stop it. You struggle to reload your crossbow, but it’s too late. Its arrow flies through the gap, past your face, and right into Kendric’s hand. He drops his musket, screaming in pain. He stares at his hand in complete shock. You wish you could stop to help, but sadly you have more pressing matters to deal with.

The young, strong man fires his crossbow into two of the savage beings, bolting their heads together. You slam the butt of your weapon into their combined heads as hard as you can, forcing them out of the ring. The third is grabbed and quite literally used as a shield by the young, strong man to block the archer’s next arrow. You almost can’t believe it as he throws the damn thing in a hammer throw straight into the archer, breaking both of their bones.

There are only a few undead left, and they’re quickly dispatched. The blond man cuts the head off of one and kicks it away. He charges forward and swiftly butchers it, swinging his sword until it’s in too many pieces to kill anything. He picks up the head and holds it up high. The group yells victory cries and, seeing the calmness of their new favorite leader, finally let their guards down. You see some of them spit on the writhing, useless undeads, but only the elven ones. The human ones are mostly just avoided.

A group gathers around the blond man to congratulate and speak to him. They’re tired and still likely in shock, but you can see they’re grateful to have a hero. You’re not sure what to make of him yet.
Kendric is sitting on the ground, trying to do something about his wound. The young, strong man is with him along with a couple others, evidently trying to help. A couple other warriors sit injured beside him, but luckily most seem to have come out unscathed. At least, the ones who lived.

You look over at the archer who gave you so much trouble. It’s pinned to a tree with a bolt, apparently having recovered after its flying companion. Its bow is several feet away from it, out of its reach, though it hasn’t given up reaching for it. It might make for a better weapon with its faster reload, greater range, and increased power. Assuming you can spare the time to train with it of course.

>Talk to the blond man and get to know him.
>Go join the other soldiers helping the injured.
>Hey look! A new toy to play with!

>>4896858
>Hey look! A new toy to play with!
I mean, we can always hand it off to a friend. But maybe we finish off the dead archer guy first?

>>4896858
>Hey look! A new toy to play with!
Might aswell, cause it looks like we suck major ass at our current weapon.
Also maybe hold the updates a little bit longer, going off a single vote seems a bit hasty. The board is slow, give anons some time to show up and vote.

>>4896858
>>Go join the other soldiers helping the injured.

>>4896936
I wasn't sure if this was still alive.

>>4896936
>Might aswell, cause it looks like we suck major ass at our current weapon.

Really? I'm pretty sure I've had him make most of his shots in this with pinpoint accuracy. Maybe I'll add more rolling in during action to spice things up.

>Also maybe hold the updates a little bit longer, going off a single vote seems a bit hasty. The board is slow, give anons some time to show up and vote.

That's fair. In hindsight, having players roll for one of the choices is a bad idea because then people will vote based on what roll that choice got, which kind of defeats its purpose.

>I wasn't sure if this was still alive.

Yeah my bad lol. Neglected things around here a little bit.

>>4896978
>>4897045

>>4896858
>Hey look! A new toy to play with!

>>4896858
>Go join the other soldiers helping the injured.
don't want more of the undead getting up in our midst, and in a jungle like this the threat of infection is everywhere. Plus there'll be time to talk to the blond dude later.

>>4896900
>>4896936
>>4896978
>>4897255

>To the victors go the spoils!

You carefully make your way off the path and to the archer. It stops reaching for its bow and desperately reaches for you with a determination, almost a longing, to end your life. You grimace at the former elf, its organs hanging out of the apparent lethal wound it was dealt. Clearly not deep enough.

You pick up the bow, admiring its simple yet elegant craftsmanship. The wood has a few unrecognizable symbols carved into it. Perhaps text, or perhaps just for decoration. They’re beautiful either way. It even has some sort of finish on the wood. You pull the string back experimentally, pretending to aim at its former owner. It takes a lot more strength than it looks, and your arm can’t hold it back for long before you have to let the string go, making a rather musical note.

You look around for some arrows, but the quiver is nowhere to be found. You search high and low before finding it attached to the belt of the dead archer. Going in to get it would mean entering into grabbing range, and having experienced a brawl with one before, you’re not sure you want to risk that again. You wonder if it can actually die, and try a few shots with your crossbow into its head and body. It barely even seems to notice, despite taking two hits to the brain at this point. It doesn’t even bleed much, with all of its blood pooling into the lowest regions of its body. If there is a way to kill it, your crossbow isn’t it.

You stare longingly at the lethal, twenty-something arrows sitting in that quiver. They look almost as well crafted as the bow, totally straight with perfectly symmetrical fletching. The undead archer is somewhat subdued after all. You suppose you could always harvest used arrows from the battlefield, but there’s no guarantee as to their condition. You imagine most of their arrowheads are broken from the impact against your people’s armor. It is the safest option of course.

>Try to get the quiver of arrows from the archer.
>Gather what few used arrows you can.

>>4898549
>>Gather what few used arrows you can.

>>4898549
could we like go borrow a sword to cut the arm off to then get the quiver?

>>4898620
Totally. You could even enlist one of the swordsmen/halberdiers to help you.

>>4898650
then that,
>go ask a halberdier to cut the limbs and lower jaw off so that we can retrieve quiver in safety.

>>4898549
>>4898656
>go ask a halberdier to cut the limbs and lower jaw off so that we can retrieve quiver in safety.

Agreed, better be safe in this strange place we've found ourselves in.

>>4898656
I support this.

>>4898549
>>4898656
good idea

Been busy moving to a new place. Here’s the long-awaited continuation of the adventure.

>C, none of the above. The QM shall not restrict me with such unworthy options!

After speaking to the group of people crowded around your blond savior, two halberdiers are more than willing to help you rob the living corpse of its possessions. You lead them over to the tree where it’s pinned and they go to work slashing it to pieces. First the arms. Then the head. You feel your anxiety calm a bit at seeing the creature rendered harmless, only to be reignited at the sight of an undead arm clamping itself onto one of the halberdiers’ legs and beginning to climb up its pants leg.

He yells in surprise, and you work together with the other man to tear it off his pants and onto the ground. You leave them as they yell obscenities and tear its flesh from its bone, forming a pile of gore that still twitches but is unable to harm anyone. You pick up your prize beside the body, a leather quiver with beautiful wooden beads carved and sewn into the brim. You notice they all carry a unique symbol, but some seem to match the ones on Kendric’s pendant. You count twenty-three dark wooden arrows, straighter than a cleric’s writing stick, and each with an obsidian tip sharper than a sword. Your thumb can attest to that.

Looking closer, you see a small scroll in the fallen warrior’s belt. Curious, you take it out and unfurl it, revealing a sort of map. You have no idea how to read the curious, twisty glyphs scattered at various locations, but you notice it seems more loose and artistic rather than the rigid, proportional format of human maps. There are several areas marked with what look like villages, and you notice with a pit in your stomach that the path you’re taking is broadly traced out in the brown stain of dried blood leading up to what must be your camp. Your eyes meet a strange shape somewhat near the camp. It appears to be a skull on the head of a building, but little figures have been drawn with yet more blood. A trail of blood stretches from the camp just to the middle of the space between the two. You puzzle at this, wondering what it could mean. You consider taking it back to Kendric when you hear a gunshot followed by a shriek from the Jungle.

Your reflexes kick in and you pull your loaded crossbow ready to fire. The halberdiers quit playing soccer with the undead head and raise their weapons. An elven archer tears out of the jungle and into the edge of the path. He immediately aims up toward the tree canopy above you, but his chest explodes before he can do anything. The lieutenant slowly steps out of the jungle, his pistol outstretched. He appears scratched and beaten, with torn pants and blood dripping down his face. He pants for a minute before letting out the words “You… idiots…”.

(1/3)

He steps forward and looks the blond man straight in the face. The blond man stands tall, not intimidated in the slightest. “Don’t even try to give me that. You led us to the slaughter in those woods. ‘Let’s go let them pick us off one by one. That’ll work.’” The lieutenant shakes his head in disgust. “They surrounded us, but they mainly kept their distance. Their arrows can only penetrate our armor if they hit us just right. Any chance they had at beating us was to meet us where we stood. So I’ll ask you, why did they just shoot at us from afar?” The blond man looked over at the wriggling corpses on the ground around him, considering the question. “Because they’re cowards,” He finally answered. “They ran when the dead ones attacked us. They couldn’t face them and they couldn’t face us. They know that together we can conquer anything that stands in our way.” He turns around and speaks to the whole group as he finishes his last sentence. “Nice speech,” The lieutenant replies with a smile of amusement. “But there’s something you’ve forgotten. Yes, they are cowards, but they’re not stupid cowards. This is their land and they know it by the back of their hands. You see that tree up there? The dark one with the large leaves.”

You all look up and see a tree directly above you that matches his description. Its leaves are indeed a shade darker than the others, and its leaves are the size of fully grown man. They would make good shelter material. “That tree has a very special adaptation to ward off all the little critters that would just love a nibble of its bark and leaves. It grows such large leaves to provide a perfect place for the nest of the bore wasp. Have you heard of this creature, private?” He adds extra emphasis to that word as he addresses the blond man, almost saying it through his teeth. “No, sir,” He says with an aggressive, somewhat sarcastic tone. “Please be so kind as to educate us.” The lieutenant loses his amusement and yells with all the force of the sergeants on the ship ride here. “They’re one of the most aggressive insects known to humankind! They’d tear through this platoon in minutes! What do you think this guy was aiming for?!” He gestures to the fallen elf. He moves back, addressing the whole group. “Since you seem to have decided orders mean nothing around here, let me spell it out for you. If we had stayed clustered in this path as they intended, we would never see the light of day again. If this young man had brought the Hell above us down to the ground, we’d find ourselves wishing for a hunting trip in the jungle. Is that understood?”

(2/3)

The men don’t get the chance to respond. An arrow flies through the air towards the treetops. The gunfire hits the newly reanimated elven archer too late. You see the nest fall from the tree in slow motion steadily towards the ground. Some men run. Others are frozen in place, too shocked to move. You don’t feel yourself raising your crossbow. You barely even realize you’re aiming it before you let loose a bolt at the nest. From your angle away from the path, the nest might be knocked off course enough to save your group, but it’s a hell of a shot. You can barely watch as the bolt soars towards its intended target.

>Roll 1D100 to see if it makes its mark

(3/3)

Rolled 99 (1d100)

>>4906019

File: 1358513939292.jpg (8 KB, 330x280)

8 KB JPG

Rolled 48 (1d100)

>>4906019
>>4906251
High rolls are good for us, right? R-right?

Rolled 33 (1d100)

>>4906019

>>4906251
You sir are a legend. Savior of the group.

>>4906274
>>4906285
Hehe don't worry. Higher rolls are better in this game.

>99. You are a sharpshooter unrivaled across the globe!

Your bolt tears its way through an orbiting wasp and smacks straight into the center of the nest. Of all the shots that have graced this world, none can compare to this. In this moment you are a god of your weapon. It’s as though some great force has taken you over, and made you a master like you could never have imagined. The crack of dried wood pulp fills the air as the nest flies off into the trees. A moment later, a loud splash informs the group of the nest’s destination, a nearby creek with rushing water to carry the threat far away, assuming it didn’t simply drown. You’re not sure if this was some hidden talent brought to the surface from all the combat or just dumb luck, but whatever it is, you’re grateful for it.

The entire platoon, having watched their doom soar away from them with great fascination, turns to stare at you. Their first expression is surprise, their eyes still wide with fear. Then they slowly begin to loosen up, affirming smiles breaking out all over. One man yells “Hell yeah!” and the others join in the cheer. You lower your crossbow and stand tall as they come over in admiration. They congratulate you, and the blond man steps away from the lieutenant, who’s too stunned to even care, and makes his way over. “You’re one hell of a shot. Thanks for keeping us alive.” He shakes your hand, with genuine respect in his eyes. “I’m Arthur.” You notice the group quiets a bit as he speaks. You even see the lieutenant giving you a nod of approval, though you’re not sure he likes seeing you fraternize with his newfound rival. “I’m Frederick,” you finally respond.

>”You seem like quite the natural leader. Do you have experience?”
>”I’m just glad we’re all safe. I can do it again, but I hope I don’t have to.”
>”It’s nothing. It was just a lucky shot is all.”
>”Thanks. Who knows? Maybe with this new beauty I’ll be able to top this one.” Gesture to your new longbow.
>Give him a nod and go show the lieutenant that disturbing map you found.
>Other (specify)

>>4907015
>Give him a nod and go show the lieutenant that disturbing map you found.

>>4907015
>>Give him a nod and go show the lieutenant that disturbing map you found.

>>4907015
>Give him a nod and go show the lieutenant that disturbing map you found.

>>4907015
>Give him a nod and go show the lieutenant that disturbing map you found.

Seems like a good idea, the lieutenant has proved he's at least somewhat competent.

>>4907170
>>4907458
>>4920638
>>4913152
I’m having a big move, which is why I haven’t been updating. I’ll try to get a new part out tonight, but my id will probably change as a result.

Holy shit QM's not dead.

>>4921696
Hehe. Yeah sorry I haven’t been around. I’ve just been extremely busy. Our landlord is being as ass and our deadline to get everything out of the old house is fast approaching.

>You don’t have time to chat. You have important intel to deliver!

You make your way away from the group and to the lieutenant, map in hand. Without you to bind them together, they disperse, mourning the loss of their fallen companions. Not even to the camp and you’ve already lost so many. You reason most of you have never seen war until now.

You feel something touch your leg and immediately reach for your crossbow in a panic, but you’ve only hit your foot on a root. You try to calm yourself, putting your weapon away. If they’re anything like you, they can barely function after witnessing such carnage.

The lieutenant is kneeling by the wounded soldiers, and appears to be doing something to Kendric’s injured hand. As you step closer, you see that he’s sewing it up with a small metal needle and some black thread. His hands are steady, and he works with confidence, making it look easy. He finishes by biting the tread to break it and tying a knot at the end. He ties a small handkerchief around it and says “Go easy on that until we get to camp. An infected man is a poor soldier at best and a dead soldier at worst.” He puts the needle and thread into a little tin and moves on to inspect a soldier clutching his shoulder.

You clear your throat and try to be polite. “Sir,” you say, standing at attention. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m very busy at the moment, private. Is this urgent?” He answers, not even looking at you as he examines the wound. “I believe I’ve found something worth your attention when you have a moment, sir.” He sighs, and after determining that the man had dislocated his shoulder and taking a moment to pop it back into place with a painful CRACK, he stands up and looks at you.

“Now what new disaster will I have to deal with? I’m expecting the apocalypse, private. Please don’t disappoint me.” You unfurl the map, marveling at its strange and beautiful artwork. You hadn’t even noticed before that it doesn’t even seen to be made of parchment, but of a brownish crinkling substance. You wonder if it might be the nest of some insect species, but you quickly refocus on the task at hand.

You hold it out to him and he looks at it, taking it in. His brow furrows as he continues to make sense of this new and disturbing piece of information. He lowers it, looking you now with a deadly serious expression. “Excellent work, soldier,” he says, not proudly, but in a distant sort of way, as though he’s barely even thinking about the words.

(1/2)

He yells “Line up!”, and the entire platoon gets into formation. You make sure to do so as well, though you’re a bit slow about it. “We’ve discovered new intelligence showing these savages have had our route staked out in advance. They didn’t just find us out here. They knew we were coming and they know where we’re going.” You realize for the first time that they must have specifically looked for a spot on the map where they could find a nest. That being why they didn’t attack earlier. They could have been watching you the whole time.

“As such,” the lieutenant continues, walking along the line of soldiers. “We are not taking the intended path. Rather, we are going to make camp in a shelter we very recently found two miles from here. It’s large, and defendable if need be. In the morning we can walk to camp.”

He stops in place and stares forward. “In addition, several of you will quickly go back the way we came to warn the others at the arrival base. They can’t be allowed to send another group behind us. It’s unlikely that you’ll be attacked as the Elves have no reason to think we’d go back. Now, is anyone here feeling like they have the stamina for that?”

>Volunteer to help go back and warn the others
>Stay with the group

(2/2)

>>4922042
>>Volunteer to help go back and warn the others

>>4922042
>Volunteer to help go back and warn the others

>>4922040
>>4922042
>Volunteer to help go back and warn the others
But before that I think we should ask Kendric about the symbols on the beads.

>>4922042
>Volunteer to help go back and warn the others

>>4922042
>>Stay with the group

>>4922112
>>4922548
>>4923210
>>4930645
>>4938822
>Can’t stay here. It’s hero time! But let’s get some info first.

The lieutenant nods at you to join the small group assembling to your right. There you see Arthur, the young, strong man, and five others. They start packing up supplies for the journey, taking water, ammunition, and a couple of sacks to carry them in. Hopefully this journey won’t be long with only the eight of you.

You look around and spot Kendric, now on his feet. You march over to him, arrow in hand. Surely he’ll know what to make of these carvings.

“Hey Frederick!” He says as you approach, somehow as upbeat as ever. “Hey Kendric,” you say as you step beside him. “How’re you holding up?” You wish you could help, but you’re not a doctor. “Oh I’ll live.” He says with a chuckle, though you can clearly see he’s in pain. Poor guy.
“Could you spare a moment to look at this?” You hand out the quiver to him. He takes it in his good hand, and stares intently at the bizarre symbols on the beads. You can see the shock and intrigue in his eyes as he pours over every inch. Maybe it’ll help to distract him from the wound, you wonder to yourself. He sets it down to look at his pendant before picking it back up again, finally exclaiming “Fascinating!”

He hold it out to you, pointing to a couple of swirly shapes above what look to be trees. “You see this? It’s a little bit different from ours, but I’m almost certain this is the wind spirit!” You look at it more closely, and the lines do look like how one might draw a gust of wind. He searches through them a bit more, seemingly energized by this new discovery. “These two,” He points to a beetle-shaped carving and then to a sort of “D” shape, “Are likely the insect and conflict spirits, just like the ones here.” He holds out his pendant and indicates the odd triangle shape as akin to the insect and the “X” symbol to mean conflict. You’re grateful the Elf artists were a bit less abstract.
(1/2)

“There are so many here,” He says, in awe. “I count twenty. That’s seventeen new spirits previously undiscovered by our people. I wonder where they live.” You pause at that last part. “What do you mean, ‘where do they live’? Don’t the spirits live all around us?” He chuckles. “Well, yes, but not quite in the way most people think. Each spirit inhabits a different type of vessel. The wind spirit lives in the wind, the insect spirit lives in all the insects, and the conflict spirit lives in every weapon in the world, like your crossbow.” You’re not sure whether to find that information comforting or downright creepy. “They mostly just use them as a place to keep their ethereal bodies, but they have been known to use their influence from time to time.”

He gives you a smile, and you think back to that shot you pulled off earlier. Did you have any help there? You brush the thought aside. It’s not as though you’ll be getting an answer to that any time soon. May as well feel some pride in something for once. Kendric’s face drops a little, staring at one bead in particular. Unlike the others, it has a bright red paint forming a line through the symbol of a flower. “This looks almost like it’s been crossed out. But why? Did they discover that a spirit was not in fact real? But they could have just removed the bead. Why go to the trouble of crossing one out?” He places his injured hand on his chin, puzzled.

He turns back to you. “Would you mind if I keep this while you’re gone? I’d like to study it more.” You could probably take one or two arrows with you without the quiver, but not enough to do much with. Though you aren’t exactly trained with it anyway, and Kendric could use a distraction.

>Let Kendric keep it. You can still use it when you get back.
>Take it with you. You don’t know what kind of danger you’ll run into. Might be nice to have an ace in the hole.

(2/2)

Weird. It changed my ID. That may happen a couple of times guys.