Hekazu

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

Your Guiding Bolt hits @Norschtalen. It's a rather nasty blow at that, burning a gap into the man's armour and leaving a glowing patch of skin behind, from whence it spreads to the rest of the man's body for the spell effect. Yet that spot will remain battered, and even softly haemorrhaging as time goes by.

Next up is @Lucius Cypher with Orchid.

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

Not looking promising for the next round, is it? My tolerance for the delays dragging on is growing thin, I won't hide it from you good people. You do deserve to know, since it isn't a game without you taking part just as well. If either side cracks, the DM or the players, well then a game of D&D isn't really working well is it?

I hope we can keep this rolling. It would be a shame to put the closing notice after all the hardships we have already endured as a group. But there's only so much I'm able to take on the whole "no communication, sparse posting" front.

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

The tiger's ferocious assault was met not only with a dodge from his opponent, but the handle of the axe pushed the clutch of the jaws further from the combatant. The weapon was being turned into another strike, but there would still be time to react, not to mention the many other things that would have the time to take place just as well. For as much as the three adversaries may have been, their number was now joined by one more name. It wouldn't be a surprise to any to see the gleaming scales of blue on approach, but the fierceness in the half-dragon's gaze as it met with that of Brannor was much stronger. It was not simply a feral impulse. He was here with a purpose.

The half-dragon locked eyes with the transformed paladin, huffing sparks of electricity through his nostrils as he hefted his greatsword into a battle ready position after his exit from the tunnel, still pushing his way past Orchid while his orders cut through the air in the common tongue. "If it comes to this, then it will! Slay everyone but the champion! He is mine!" Cyanwrath roared. "I hope you have learnt how to fight properly since our last encounter…" the booming voice lowering to something more of a growl as the man's scale covered digits opened one at a time, grasping the hilt of the blade again afterwards. He had a target. And he would not let anyone stand between him and it. Not even the target himself.

Mechanics&Rolls

Enter Langderosa Cyanwrath, a blue half-dragon wielding a greatsword and two spears on his back, dressed in splint mail. Having taken the Dash action to arrive to the scene of the battle and made it to the edge of Orchid's threat range just outside of that of Torus's. He has issued orders for everyone but Brannor to be killed, though he seems rather intent on handling that himself.

Next in turn is Kyra Shepard @Norschtalen.

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

The foe just barely does not make the save with a roll of 12. Given it makes no sense for him to have the time to run back the full distance in the timeframe of a turn and still make it forward, since no further opportunity attacks are plausible I will describe it as him halting in place for a moment. Last post will be edited to reflect this.

It will be Brannor's turn next @The Harbinger of Ferocity.

Hello!

Hello there, new blood!

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D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

Your attack lands, @Lucius Cypher. No blood is drawn, but you give their armour a good memento of your offence.

Would you like to react to your trigger condition being fulfilled, or leave it for later @Ryonara?

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

The immediate aggression from the adventurers certainly was not unexpected, for the opposition was already on the move the moment the first arrow was let loose. Yet them being ready had not been something the adventurers would have forgotten either, and so the first arrow that was let loose would find purchase at the hip of the hide armour of their opponent, sticking out from his side while he bared his teeth and begun to slip the large shape of his axe down his right shoulder, preparing to strike back at the first opportunity. The free one was used to blunt the worst of the half-orc's vicious strike, the wrathful blade thunking against the thick protection of the axe-wielder's shoulder. The man released a grunt, but that was all. His axe was swinging through the air in a retaliatory strike before any other form of harm came from the adventurers.

And if the machete of the half-orc had delivered a firm blow, the adversary was no stranger to bloodletting either. The wicked blade scraped a long slice of skin off of the half-orc's side, it being a small miracle it had not sunken deeper and delivered him unto death's door. "Ignore the summons! So be it!" the man bellowed from the bottom of his lungs, another two sets of steps rushing from behind him, up the stone staircase. The two other arrivals, dressed and armed largely the same were differentiated by one carrying a lantern with its hood up on his belt, and the other to follow with a grimy tassel at the end of the axe and a scar over his left eye, barely leaving him with both eyes functional still.

"Cyanwrath!" a single call behind the last one to arrive should already tell plenty. Had these people accepted, there would have been no need to call for the boss. And so the group begun to turn to the fallback plan immediately. Both warriors pushed past Orchid, the scar faced one carrying their axe high, but even before him the other approached the tiger behind the green skinned male. The weapon of the lantern carrier was brought down with terrifying force, and the shape of the beast would be subjected to a fearsome blow. It wasn't wholly clear if the Druid's magic could hold against the slash of the axe, but even if it could not much would remain for protection.

The last one to enter had taken the risk of being struck as he advanced, and that risk wpukd be realised as Orchid's machete cut at his waistguard, trimming fur and hacking off the topmost layer. Yet the man beneath would not bleed as a result. He did stop dead in his tracks with his eyes flitting about in a fit of near paranoia, trying to make sense of what he was hearing. What threat was out there? But with a shake of his head, he would soon resume his rush, even if it was left shorter than intended, much further than his weapon's length from the archer cleric.

Mechanics&Rolls

There are three axe-wielders. The turns of each will be detailed in order. #1 is the one that has been speaking to the party. #2 has the lantern. #3 features the scar and tassel.

#1 stands his ground, taking a swing at Orchid with 17 to hit, dealing a whopping 14 slashing damage on the hit before reductions. Since Orchid is not raging, the wound looks rather nasty. @Lucius Cypher

#2 rushes past Orchid to meet with Torus. He needs not leave Orchid's threat range for this which allows him to go for a strike, likely landing it with a 23 to hit. The strike will deal 7 slashing damage upon connection, before reductions. @Zverda

#3 has to take the Dash action to reach his target from his previous position, his aim being to park himself next to Kyra. However, this opens him up for an Opportunity Attack from Orchid (@Lucius Cypher) were he to take one. If he does, this can serve as a trigger for Parum's (@Ryonara) reaction, which may further alter things.

EDIT:
Orchid strikes the advancing opponent with his reaction for 10 damage. Parum resolves her spell trigger against which #3 fails to save, and has his movement cut shorter than intended, only 10 feet away from Orchid and Torus, and a full twenty from Kyra.

We move on to the turn of Ashkar Brannor @The Harbinger of Ferocity.

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

There is a little issue with the Ready Action trigger you have chosen @Ryonara

When the trigger occurs, you can either take your reaction right after the trigger finishes or ignore the trigger.

PHB p.193

Emphasis mine. To finish starting an attack is a very strange limbo of hacking apart an action, and that cannot happen for clarity's sake. Would you like to make scarce with the Readying to save your reaction or shift the trigger to after attack?

[Monster Cafe]

Jessamine's Atelier

^{Stupid o'clock ~08:00
Scene featuring Jessamine Leud @Hekazu and Valerie @Lady Selune}

It was a beautiful morning outside. The sun was rising above the horizon, flowers were opening their petals to greet the new day, birds had been singing for a few hours now… and Jess hated every second of it. Her alarm clock had gone off half an hour ago, yet here she was still in her bed with all of her arms holding on fast to the blanket drawn to her ears. She had an agreement with a friend, so this was the last thing that she should be doing now. They were going to be meeting for breakfast at the cafe and all. But despite swearing that she would get up, she wasn’t making much progress, if any.

“Do I really need those clients?” she asked herself a question, pushing the cover off her face so that she could have a look at the ceiling. The shadows were weird. Not in angles that she was used to. But that was probably just them being where they were supposed to be at this hour, when she would for the most time be snoozing away. “I don’t, but on the other hand they won’t hurt me either. I could use the extra cash. For something. Right. I’ll count down from five and be up. Five, four, three, two, one…” she murmured to herself and… failed. She was still laying in her bed, under the blanket, face up to the ceiling. “Dammit”, she cursed to herself.

Generally, Valerie was fairly fast when it came to moving about. The thing about being a internet spirit was that one could quite easily maneuver oneself around via the web, but ever the non-confrontational individual that she was, she only did that when someone gave her explicit permission to do so, so instead she was walking the old fashioned way to Jess’ house.

For anyone that knew Valerie well, the outfit she was wearing was thoroughly normal for her. Plaid, jeans, a beanie that kept the tips of her ears close to her head rather than popping off at emotion-revealing angles. Arriving at the door of her friend, she would press the doorbell once… And then again a few more times just for good measure.

And there it was. She was being expected. Jess hated not living up to expectations. Oh there was nothing more frustrating than to not live up to what others expected of you. “But Jessamine, why isn’t your design as detailed as I was expecting?” or “Oh, but I had thought you would have it done a day early since you said so.” And here she was, having promised that they’d get to the cafe this early. No, she was nowhere near ready to just walk out of the door. As the rings brought their friends to the mix, she finally managed to kick the blanket off and prop herself upright on the floor next to her inviting and warm bed, but returning just wasn’t on the list of things she could do. So instead, she headed straight to the front door, not looking to keep Valerie waiting.

The already fully dressed E-Cryptid would meet a woman still in her pyjamas on the other side of the door, Jess’s two eyes obviously still somewhat drooping despite her having been awake for half an hour by now. “Morning. Come on in, I’ll get changed and we can go right after”, her voice droned without the least bit of enthusiasm, one arm rubbing her forehead while three others supported the door, the rest staying idle for the time being. Jess turned around, her single colour fuchsia red outfit not really fitting the best with the blackness of her partial exoskeleton or her usual attention to every detail ever, but it wasn’t something most people would get to see anyway, her everyday sleepwear.

The atelier featured numerous display pieces all around it, Jess having finished her full transition to Summer fashion and already starting work on the upcoming Autumn catalogue. The front featured a multitude of brochures detailing all that the seamstress could do for you, and a price chart that really didn’t seem to have an end to itself, climbing to sums few in Foxbridge could afford without taking a loan if it got to it. But they were all available for purchase, if one consulted the spider hybrid.

It was rare that Valerie actually entered Jess’ house. She wasn’t one for needing a custom seamstress, nor did she generally visit homes in general- she preferred her meetings public. What was rarer than her entering Jess’ house was Jess’ state however- Valerie didn’t think she’d ever actually seen the arachnid woman in anything but her best clothes.

“Wow, I didn’t think you ever took all the fancy stuff off.” The disadvantage of the skull-like facial covering was that it was hard for her to do things that might seem normal to other people- like raising her eyebrows, but still, the message was conveyed nonetheless. Walking through to the entranceway, the therianthrope would take a seat, indicating around. “I’ll just wait here then, no need for me to watch you change.” A toothy smile to go along with her words.

Jess stopped in her tracks at the comment, the two higher up arms on her right side grasping at the edge of a shelf while the bottom one was used to point in Valerie’s direction. “Well I wasn’t thinking on ever letting that image go, so you better not be telling”, she groaned and let go of the shelf, heading deeper into her shop and back to the upstairs area, flicking a switch to transfer any doorbell rings into the store rather than her home. She had someone who could handle that, in case somebody forgot that she wasn’t open at idiotic o’clock.

Soon the seamstress would return, this time in much more characteristic short and puffy sleeved dress that let her exoskeleton and craftsmanship both shine with its details. It was more striking red in its colour, with a very softly pink white for the bottom. Several embroideries decorated the surface in colours just a hint off the base nearly everywhere, whilst the larger, more attention grabbing images were sewn in silver thread. “Thanks for the patience!” she smiled broadly as she returned to view from behind all the shelves. “Now, I sure hope this breakfast will be as good as you have made me believe. And on a related note, the morning people better come up with something they’d want from me since I bother changing my schedule for this. Whoever thought waking up before twelve was a good idea should be…” her speech trailed off, ending up in her pushing her tongue far past her lips in an expression of disgust.

Valerie would raise her hands in mock-surrender, her toothy smile only growing wider. “My lips are sealed, your secret is safe with me.” She would wait, patiently at first, and then a little impatiently… Although, to be fair, she wasn’t the sort of individual that liked sitting still for long. By the time Jess came down the stairs, Valerie had almost gotten to the point of just setting her laptop up here and accepting this as her new home. Luckily though, Jess would come down, and Valerie would get to admire the fine craftwork involved in her outfit.

“Jess, you can’t only exist between the hours of midday and two in the morning. There’s this thing called ‘dawn,’ have you ever seen it?” Good natured teasing would continue as Valerie stood up, tail wagging up a storm. “Let’s get going then, shall we?”

Jessamine followed Valerie’s eyes flitting about her dress, letting her lowest pair of arms fluff the skirt part a little so it would descend just where it belonged and not hike up to risk any embarrassing moments. “Yes. I know it’s time to call it a night when dawn breaks on me working. Weren’t you tech nerds supposed to be the nocturnal sort?” she jabbed right on back, flicking one of her upper hands through a curl of her hair. “But yes, better we get going or we’ll miss the window we were aiming for even harder. You did say that the fresh pastries you liked were often among the first to run out, no?”

Jess opened the front door, pat one of the cute little pockets on the front of her dress to make sure her keys were with her and ensured the lock would click shut once the door was closed again. “Come on then!” she called out to Valerie in case she wasn’t already out there with her and shut the door, even applying one of her sturdier keys to the safety lock set in the door, a heavy clink of metal signalling breaking through the structure would be ever so much harder now. “Besides, it’s easy for you to think morning are tolerable. You don’t want to die harder if you get caffeine in your veins!” she made a friendly jab accompanied by a quite literal nudge with one fist on Valerie’s shoulder, another hand scratching her friend under the skull’s chin.

“I’ll have you know that I like to work when there’s the opportunity to talk to people.” She would stick a tongue out at Jess, before shrugging. “They’re fresh pastries, of course they sell out fast… Hence why I get there early. Also, the coffee is freshly ground so it tastes so much better in the morning…” Ah, but the spider couldn’t drink coffee. “Well, maybe that last part doesn’t apply so much to you. We’ll get you some hot chocolate and it’ll all be fiiiine.”

D&D 5e - Hoard of the Dragon Queen

Your target is hit, @Lucius Cypher. He does manage to duck to make his armour absorb worst of the blow though, his body not yet shedding blood to signify weakness. If I may request you to be faster on the draw for your next turn, I would like to do that. This was on the late side in my honest opinion.

Anyway, next would be @Ryonara with Parum.