View source for PrP: Dire Expectations

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== Log Info ==
*Title: Dire Expectations
*Emitter: Benthus
*Characters:  Lothos lvl5, Curugorm lvl2, Lyrana lvl4, Taro lvl3, Alba lvl2, Gragnar lvl6, Iuriel lvl3
*Place: Alexandria – outskirts of the city
*Time: Oct 27, 2014
*Summary: An ogre has murdered a family of four and the local authorities require that the ogre be apprehended so it can be tried on court.
*APL: 4
*Encounter 1: 5 x CR3 orcs , CR7
*Encounter 2: 1 x Ogre +4 HD (Adv +2), CR 7
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(Start of Plot)

Caleb, an Alexandrian crime investigator, looks at the scene of the crime. The house has one of its wooden walls bashed in, and the inside of the house is splattered with the blood of the people who once lived in it. He moves off to the dining area where the slaughter commenced. His experience in crime investigation allows him to get an idea of what happened. Something big come into the wall that was just flattened. The occupants were probably having dinner as the dining table still had food on top of the table. The mother and two children tried to run by how some of the chairs got upturned. Father was the first to die, his corpse splattered almost to a fine paste near the huge new entrance. The wife, son and daughter were next. They all died close together. Mother likely shielding them with her back before they all got bludgeoned to death. It's a horrible way to die, and to anyone not use to this types of murder the scene would be enough to make one toss what he or she has eaten earlier. Caleb has seen these things before and just goes about the crime scene gathering more evidence.

The people outside the house establish a perimeter so that no one can go in and tamper with evidence. The rest try to console neighbors and even relatives who have gone to find out what had just happened. There is an air of sadness all around as the family were said to be a good lot, always helpful and approachable. To see something like this has made a few people angry. Angry that the city guards have done nothing to prevent this thing from happening, and angry at the perpetrator for having escaped.

When Caleb steps out of the house, he looks about but says nothing. He heads towards the group of adventurers who were summoned immediately considering the possibility of who might be the murderer...

(Caleb addressing the PCs)  "I don't know what you have heard from the grapevine, and I don't care what your affiliations are to the murdered family. All I want from you is to apprehend this... Zlog Grizzly, the resident ogre in this part of the city's outskirts. He was said to be a relatively gentle giant, different from his kin, but a few weeks ago, he has been acting strangely and some violent outbursts have been reported. Although there is substantial proof to indicate his involvement in the murder, I want him apprehended alive as he... or it had once been part of this community. Find him and bring him back alive. There may be more to this than meets the eye. He was last seen this morning running towards the forest northwest of here." With that, the investigator heads off to make his report to the city officials...

Lothos grimaces at the information or the scene, whichever he gets, then nods to Caleb. "I think it will be possible to apprehend him alive, answers are definitely what you want in case something larger is at work here."

Iuriel watches the investigator go, her expression saying that she's chewing over what she's been told. She bows her head and murmurs a prayer, both for those who were lost and those who were left behind, but more she does not say -- if the Vardamen are not here already, they will be any minute. After a moment of reflection, she looks up and turns to the others, looking up at them. "Yes, we should certainly seek him alive," she agrees. "Where is he now?" She pauses a moment, then looks at the ground to see if there is evidence of his passing.

Curugorm looks a but confused at first, hearing there was an ogre resident in the first place. "But aren't they all...?" But clearly the residents felt otherwise, if there was one living here. He listens to the rest, and nods slowly. "I see," he says at last, and nods about searching northwest, in the forest. "I have a small bit of woodlore, this should not be tough to find a large creature like that."

Lyrana nods her head, she is mostly here to provide healing support but there is the question of justice as well. She glances around and then shrugs, the golem dips her head, "I am just here to assist, not good at tracking."

The hunting has been good, and it's with a full pouch of coin that the masked Veyshanti wanders toward the disturbance, every now and again glancing toward the little green scorpion sitting on her shoulder, and listening to the thoughts and ideas flying around. "...You will wish to hurry," she notes, after a moment's silence. "To track is worthless if your quarry outpaces regardless."

Gragnar looks over and past Caleb to the scene of carnage, frowning slightly, but showing no signs of his stomach turning. "Anythin' dat'd do dat," he says, gesturing to the flattened wall, "Shouldn' be too hard ta find." He begins looking around, wondering if it was a rampage that just ended at the family's home, or something more directed.

Taro sniffs a few spots in the house, then frowns. "Feh! Smells the same as any other place in this city. We can't track him as we would in the woods. We'll have to search for his trail another way."

There appears to be a trail of blood coming out of the house. It is quite a lot of blood. And it looks like the murderer may have been stomping on the victims body, as the footprints are clearly marked in blood. The trail leads towards the forest where few residents go as it is said to be patrolled by murderous feral orcs bandits.

Taro looks shamefaced when he notices the bloody trail. "I suppose we could follow that," he allows.

Lothos chuckles as he looks over the trail, "Yes, I think that might lead us somewhere. Though...it could be a trap!" he raises a finger to the air dramatically to accent his point.

Lyrana moves along and shakes her head, "THis could just really be bad." she murmurs and shakes her head at all the blood.

Curugorm grips his polearm tightly and moves forward, following the bloody footprints. 

"Clearly, the perpetrator went this way," he says, though he looks a bit sick as he says so. "If it's a trap, then we'll have to spring it, yes?" he asks after a moment. "This is what it means to be an adventurer? We take risks so others can live in peace?" (Pose by...?)

Gragnar looks at the trail of blood, following it to it's destination. He frowns. "Chaos," he mutters, and looks to Lothos. "Ogre's ain't known for brains," he remarks, "but keep your eyes peeled." He takes point, to be closest to the action. He watches the footprints, trying to get an idea of pacing, though he has no actual tracking skill, he figures just seeing how far apart they are should give SOME idea of how fast he'll have to move to catch up.

Iuriel seems content to follow the others. While she studies the tracks as much as anybody, she shakes her head helplessly and looks at the others.

GAME: Gragnar rolls survival: (12)+5: 17
GAME: Curugorm rolls survival: (10)+6: 16
GAME: Alba rolls survival: (6)+9: 15
GAME: Lothos rolls survival: (12)+6: 18
GAME: Iuriel rolls survival: (9)+3: 12

GAME: Iuriel rolls initiative: Roll: 15 + Bonus: 2 = Total: 17
GAME: Lothos rolls initiative: Roll: 6 + Bonus: 4 = Total: 10
GAME: Curugorm rolls initiative: Roll: 9 + Bonus: 8 = Total: 17
GAME: Lyrana rolls initiative: Roll: 15 + Bonus: 2 = Total: 17
GAME: Taro rolls initiative: Roll: 3 + Bonus: 2 = Total: 5
GAME: Gragnar rolls initiative: Roll: 11 + Bonus: 3 = Total: 14
GAME: Alba rolls initiative: Roll: 10 + Bonus: 4 = Total: 14
GAME: You roll initiative for Roving Orc Band: Roll: 3 + Bonus: 0 = Total: 3

<pre>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|   Name   |   Race   |   Class   | E Lev| CHP | HP  | AC  | For | Ref | Wil |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
|Alba      |HUMAN     |Bbn/Wtc    |  2   | 14  | 14  | 14  |  3  |  4  |  4  |
|Curugorm  |WILD_ELF  |Ftr/Rog    |  2   | 20  | 20  | 18  |  5  |  6  |  1  |
|Gragnar   |ORC       |Mnk        |  6   | 39  | 58  | 19  |  8  |  8  | 10  |
|Iuriel    |HALF-ELF  |Clr/Sor    |  3   | 14  | 14  | 12  |  3  |  2  |  8  |
|Lothos    |HUMAN     |Wtc        |  5   |  5  | 28  | 16  |  4  |  6  |  7  |
|Lyrana    |WAR_GOLEM |Clr        |  4   | 28  | 28  | 20  |  6  |  3  |  8  |
|Taro      |ORC       |Bbn/Rgr    |  3   | 33  | 33  | 16  |  8  |  5  |  4  |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
</pre>
GAME: Lothos rolls perception+2: (16)+6+2: 24
GAME: Alba rolls perception: (11)+7: 18
GAME: Gragnar rolls perception: (3)+9: 12
GAME: Iuriel rolls perception: (9)+5: 14
GAME: Taro rolls perception: (17)+8: 25
GAME: Curugorm rolls perception: (9)+8: 17
GAME: Lyrana rolls perception: (19)+4: 23

<OOC> Benthus says, "Lothos, Taro, Lyrana, you three get surprise round. There's a wandering band of orcs, in front of you. Looks like they had a few of their numbers killed, as some of them liter the floor in front. The rest of the orcs appear stunned and not sure what is going on (shell-shocked?). In any case, they look like the group of orcs that have been a real bother to the nearby settlement."

(Foe range: 60 feet)

*Surprise round
GAME: Lyrana casts Bless. Caster Level: 4 DC: 15
Lyrana frowns as they come up on the orcs. She has her shield and heavy mace out, but she also focuses on her holy symbol and a wave of holy light settles over the allies.

GAME: Lothos casts Glitterdust. Caster Level: 5 DC: 17
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+2: (18)+2: 20
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+2: (18)+2: 20
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+2: (11)+2: 13
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+2: (4)+2: 6
Lothos looks ahead, spotting the group, the trees, and then he makes a quick decision. He throws a pinch of ground mica at them, and bam, an explosion blinds some of them, the rest are all just sparkely!

GAME: Taro rolls 1d20+11: (8)+11: 19
GAME: Taro rolls 1d12+10: (1)+10: 11
Taro looks surprised for a moment at the sight of fellow Oruchs - but only a moment. Unlimbering his giant two-handed axe as he rushes forward, he bellows, "Greetings from the Broken Tusk clan!" before slashing one of the glowing Oruchs closest to the party.
*Surprise round finished

      It is now Lyrana's turn! Iuriel is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Lyrana ended.
<OOC> Lyrana says, "will do shield of faith on myself, basically defensive stuff atm"
GAME: Lyrana casts Shield of Faith. Caster Level: 4 DC: 15
Lyrana frowns as she watches the orcs and for the moment is aiding her allies first with a blessing and then she casts another spell and a shimmering aura appears around her for a moment.

      It is now Iuriel's turn! Curugorm is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Iuriel ended.
<OOC> Iuriel says, "Mage Armor."
GAME: Iuriel casts Mage Armor. Caster Level: 1 DC: 14
Orcs! But ... maybe they aren't aggressive right this minute. Iuriel's taking no chances, though, and with a swift phrase and a few quick gestures, a field of shimmering blue force wraps itself around her, much like armor without seeming to hamper her.

      It is now Curugorm's turn! Gragnar is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Curugorm ended.
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d20+5: (9)+5: 14 (attacking blinded Oruch)
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d12+1d6+7: (9)+(3)+7: 19
Curugorm runs into the fray, his huge and awkward polearm held ready, and he swings it clumsily at one of the orcs, hitting it pretty hard, all things considered. It doesn't drop, but the wild elf is pretty happy with hurting the bad guy. "For freedom and good!" he shouts, like a battlecry.

      It is now Gragnar's turn! Alba is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Gragnar ended.
GAME: Gragnar rolls diplomacy+1: (14)+0+1: 15
Gragnar steps forward as Curugorm and Taro charge past. He turns, bellowing in his native Oruch. "Clansmen, calm." He switches back to common. "We're lookin' for da ogre." Back to oruch. "Have you seen an ogre come through? He killed a family in the city and we are looking for him." Of course, with battle already joined, his words fall mostly on enraged ears.

The one's who are not blind, roar in vengeance, wether it is because Gragnar has sided with the non-orcs or just because they are unstable in the head. But one of the blinded oruchs, the one that Curugorm has nearly cut in two, drops his weapon and falls on its knees surrendering. It speaks in oruch tongue.

 	Alba's Turn
Alba pages: Get into the face of one of those not blinded, and Batman it.
You paged Alba with 'Do your batman.'
GAME: Alba rolls intimidate: (14)+7: 21
When the flag goes up and the battle starts, Alba circles around to one side, breathing a soft cackle under her breath... And the moment the more violent among them make their presence known, she moves. ''Fast.'' Charging the remaining orcs, she skids to a halt just in time to bring the featureless plane of her mask bare inches away from the orc's tusk. "Which way," she breathes, her voice rough with the promise of violence. "Tell us which way it went, or I shall peel your face and wear it for a hat."

(Response to Alba's intimidate pose)

The oruch cowers in fear but still holds to his great axe, he looks around at his companions as they seem to be attacked from all side all of a sudden. And it would appear what ever happened earlier has still traumatized him. He points to the back of them, where the trees and bushes seem to have been pushed to the sides. Oruch probably did not understand Alba, so he might be pointing at something else in particular...

(End pose)

	GAME: Alba's initiative total changed to 18.



      It is now Lothos' turn! Taro is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Lothos ended.
<OOC> Lothos says, "I am going to move up, then surround the enemy with swamp so they cant run away too fast. Difficult terrain, I can cover 5 blocks of 10x10. I'll leave a path facing us."
Lothos starts approaching the orcs as everyone starts trying to be diplomatic. As he does, he makes a few gestures and the area behind and to the sides of them suddenly becomes marshy and wet, mud and ick like a swamp surrounds them all. Weird power, but handy.


      It is now Taro's turn! Roving Orc Band is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Taro ended.
<OOC> Taro hmm can I try to Intimidate some more into surrendering?
GAME: Taro rolls intimidate: (1)+7: 8
Taro looks around at some of his allies - one has talked an Oruch down, another has cut off their escape. When he isn't in a berserker rage Taro likes to think of himself as actually somewhat cunning - it may be the cunning of a playground bully but still. He lowers his axe and plants it at his feet, then stands at his full height and pulls back his teeth in a snarl. "Lay down at our feet!" he bellows in Yrch-speak at the marauders. "Or we'll cut down every one of you!" Then he waits to see what happens...

      It is now Roving Orc Band's turn! Alba is next!
<OOC> Benthus says, "And the oruch on Taro shows its displeasure at being swiped with an axe, by swiping him with its axe too."
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+9: (13)+9: 22
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d12+7: (5)+7: 12
GAME: You damaged Taro for 12 points. 21 remaining.

<OOC> Benthus says, "The rest of the orcs are mired in the swamp or have surrendered (one of them did). The one on Alba sees that one of its companions take a swipe against their enemies and so does the same to her, albeit in a very frightened (but not frightened condition) way..."
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+7: (19)+7: 26
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d12+7: (4)+7: 11
GAME: You damaged Alba for 11 points. 3 remaining.

      It is now Alba's turn! Lyrana is next!
The Oruch that has its wits nearly frightened out of it, closes its eyes as it swings a round house at Alba. Against all odds, it managed to hit her. And hit her bad...
GAME: Alba RAGES!, gaining: +4 Str, +4 Con, +2 Will and -2 AC
GAME: Alba rolls melee+1: (20)+3+1: 24
GAME: Alba rolls melee+1: (11)+3+1: 15 (hits shaken. Crit confirmed)
GAME: Alba rolls 2d4+3: (5)+3: 8
Big, ''big'' mistake. The axe bites deep, leaving a long, bloody gash across her side... but rather than fall back, the Veyshanti looses a high, piercing shriek as a dagger all but leaps into her hand. "PEEL YOUR FACE!" she screams, lunging forward and slashing upward toward the oruch's cheek, carving a long and bloody furrow around its face.

      It is now Lyrana's turn! Iuriel is next!
GAME: Lyrana rolls 2d6: (8): 8
GAME: You damaged Alba for -8 points. 15 remaining.
Lyrana frowns as things devolve into fighting, she was hoping to avoid it, now no chance. She winces as she sees a few of the others get hit and calls on Daeus. Positive energy swells out from her to wash over her allies, while leaving the orcs without any healing.

      It is now Iuriel's turn! Curugorm is next!
GAME: Iuriel casts Magic Missile. Caster Level: 1 DC: 14
GAME: Iuriel rolls 1d4+1: (3)+1: 4 (magic missile!)
Well. Battle is fairly joined, and any hope of a peaceful resolution ... so much for that. With a small sigh, Iuriel quickly chants another spell, this one different from the first, then points her slender finger at one of the orcs that is preparing to throw javelins. A blue dart of force flies from that fingertip, burying itself in the orc's arm with a small spray of blood.

      It is now Curugorm's turn! Gragnar is next!
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d20+5: (12)+5: 17
Curugorm moves through the terrain, such as it is, to get himself and his giant pole arm into position bind one of the remaining combatants since his first opponent had surrendered, but with moving around and swinging, he can't quite get where he wants to go, and his hasty swing is wide, landing smack at the enemy's feet and doing damage only to the ground.

      It is now Gragnar's turn! Lothos is next!
<OOC> Gragnar says, "Okay, Gragnar tells the one that's surrendered to stay put, and goes to subdue the actually aggressive ones."
GAME: Gragnar rolls weapon1: (10)+10: 20
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (6)+5: 11
<< Stay put >> Gragnar tells the cowering, half dead Oruch before turning and taking a look around. He selects more of the more obviously aggressive members of the band and leaps into action, bringing a heavy fist directly across his jaw. When fighting a group, hit the biggest guy first, hard.

      It is now Lothos' turn! Taro is next!
Lothos pages: I'll fly up to where I'm within 30 of them, and out of their reach (up above them), then I'll misfortune one of them that isn't blind.
Lothos suddenly just takes off from the ground, flying quickly and above everyone's head to hover over the orcs, out of their reach of course. As he looks down he begins to laugh, "Now, lets see, whom shall I put a nice little curse on next." He points at one of the Orcs that can see..."You, you'll do nicely." He laughs again.

GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+2: (9)+2: 11 to Lothos
The oruch targeted by Lothos looks about itself and rubs its eyes with its free hand.  The witch's (Lothos) cackling is making it see double and the world around him seems dark and foreboding...

      It is now Taro's turn! Roving Orc Band is next!
GAME: Taro rolls 1d20+8: (9)+8: 17
GAME: Taro rolls 1d12+10: (6)+10: 16
Taro takes a return strike that if it were a few inches higher would have torn out his throat. Clearly he isn't as persuasive as others in the group. But he does have a large axe. Raising it with both hands, he pulls it back and then brings it crashing down into his enemy's chest. "Hah! Should have given up!"

      It is now Roving Orc Band's turn! Alba is next!
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+7: (2)+7: 9
<OOC> Benthus says, "Miss on Alba."
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+9: (17)+9: 26
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d100: (4): 4 (miss)
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+9: (14)+9: 23
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d100: (25): 25 (miss)
The shaken oruch attempts another swing against Alba, but this time it misses. The oruch that is attacked by Gragnar attacks him as well, but the spell Lothos has cast is still in place and hampers its otherwise good attack. This condition has the same result on the other oruch...

      It is now Alba's turn! Lyrana is next!
(At this point we lost Alba and Iuriel)

      It is now Lyrana's turn! Iuriel is next!
GAME: Lyrana rolls melee+1+1: (13)+5+1+1: 20
GAME: Lyrana rolls 1d8+3: (1)+3: 4
Lyrana moves over to assist Alba and swings her mace at the orc fighting her. She hits it, but it is at most a glancing hit.

      It is now Iuriel's turn! Curugorm is next!
(Lost Iuriel at this point)

      It is now Curugorm's turn! Gragnar is next!
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d20+5: (19)+5: 24
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d12+7: (12)+7: 19
Curugorm still can't get through the swampy ground to flank the orc, but he slogs a little further. This time, he's got much more time to prepare his attack, pulling back with the polearm and swinging hard, the hammer head of the weapon smashing into the orc with all the force he can muster, hurting the orc badly. "Take that!" he says, panting hard.

      It is now Gragnar's turn! Lothos is next!
GAME: Gragnar rolls weapon1: (9)+10: 19
GAME: Gragnar rolls weapon1: (20)+10: 30
GAME: Gragnar rolls weapon1: (3)+10: 13 (Threat roll, no crit)
GAME: Gragnar rolls melee: (4)+9: 13
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (1)+5: 6
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (8)+5: 13
Gragnar easily sidesteps the wide swing. Once he joins a fight, he doesn't fool around. He steps under the axe swing and claps his hands onto the Oruch's ears, and then, in a single, powerful motion, brings the Oruch's head down and his knee up. With a loud cracking noise, he breaks the feral oruch's nose and lets him fall lifeless to the floor. << Are we done? >> he asks the feral oruchs.

GAME: Benthus advances the initiative order.
      Round Three - Init 10.
      It is now Lothos' turn! Taro is next!
<OOC> Lothos says, "Misfortune. Will dc 17 or have to roll twice all the time!"
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+2: (13)+2: 15
Lothos continues to hover in the air, flight seems to be a magical ability he possesses, as he never actually seemed to cast a spell. He points to another of the orcs, and says, "Now, guess what....your cursed too!" he cackles, laughing and giggling as he floats there pronouncing doom upon them.

      It is now Taro's turn! Roving Orc Band is next!
GAME: Taro rolls 1d20+8: (18)+8: 26
GAME: Taro rolls 1d12+10: (12)+10: 22


Taro slogs his way through the swamp, coming up next to the Oruch Curugorm was fighting. He swings a massive blow that beheads the hapless target. "NOW we're done!" he bellows in answer to Gragnar.

GAME: Benthus has cleared initiatives.

As the last of the wild oruch is dispatched, the one that surrendered is tied up and left until you can pick it up on your way home. And so, the search continues.

Following the path of destruction is easy, the group of adventurers make haste their pursuit of the fugitive ogre. It takes a couple of hours and then you find him in a clearing.

The ogre seems to have his hands on its face and is crying hard, his sobs clearly audible in the forest. (+init)

GAME: Taro rolls initiative: Roll: 11 + Bonus: 2 = Total: 13
GAME: Curugorm rolls initiative: Roll: 14 + Bonus: 8 = Total: 22
GAME: Gragnar rolls initiative: Roll: 18 + Bonus: 3 = Total: 21
GAME: Lothos rolls initiative: Roll: 11 + Bonus: 4 = Total: 15
GAME: You roll initiative for Crying Ogre: Roll: 14 + Bonus: +3 = Total: 17
GAME: Lyrana rolls initiative: Roll: 19 + Bonus: 2 = Total: 21

      It is now Curugorm's turn! Lyrana is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Curugorm ended.
<OOC> Curugorm says, "I will advance, hold my weapon threateningly, ready an action to attack if it attacks, and remain quiet because I have no social skills at all."
Curugorm sees the ogre, and is puzzled because it seems to be crying. Well, we're here to bring it back, and if it's sorry for what it did, this may be easier than expected. But he's not sure what to do with ogres, so he'll step out from cover and level his polearm threateningly, ready to use it if the monster rises, but remaining quiet. The other party members will know what to do, he assumes.

      It is now Lyrana's turn! Gragnar is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Lyrana ended.
GAME: Lyrana casts Shield of Faith. Caster Level: 4 DC: 15
Lyrana frowns a bit and she doesn't choose to attack aggressively yet, she casts another defensive spell like before.

      It is now Gragnar's turn! Crying Ogre is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Gragnar ended.
Gragnar sees the crying ogre. He approaches, carefully, out of concern for his own safety or simply not wanting to startle the seemingly remorseful ogre is impossible to tell. He places a hand as close to the Ogre's shoulder as he can manage. "Oi," he says, gently. "We saw what happened back dere. You gonna come with us, explain what happened?"

      It is now Crying Ogre's turn! Lothos is next!
The Ogre continues to sob even when it is being surrounded. "I did not mean to kill them. They have always been good to me, always tried to help me when I started to feel unwell. And on the night that I felt so strange, they were the ones I went to for help. I did not know what happened to me. I mean, I knew what was going on, but I could not control my actions. I tried to plead for someone to stop me, but I could not. I could not stop myself from beating Franklin to a pulp. I could not stop myself from beating Martha, Donni and Skie to the wooden floors. I cried and cried inside myself, angry and impotent as I am killing the ones I cared about most." He looks ups as his eyes have been ripped out from its sockets, the balls of his eyes in his own hands. "Please, kill me before I loose myself again. Please kill me before I become a monster. Please, let me die this way so that I may still have peace knowing that I was myself and not the monster." He pleads to the heroes for this act of mercy.

      It is now Lothos' turn! Taro is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Lothos ended.
<OOC> Lothos says, "I'm going to give him the evil eye. -2 to saves. DC 17 will. Even if he saves, its good for a single round."
GAME: Benthus rolls 1d20+10: (16)+10: 26
        Lothos looks hard at the creature, "You ask for death, and it can be granted. Will you fight against it if we grant this wish." Lothos already assumes the guy can't control his own actions, either some magical influence, or just his nature.

The ogre convulses, but manages to regain control of himself.  But he convulses again... "Kill me now! Please!" He screams at the top of his voice.

      It is now Taro's turn! Curugorm is next!
GAME: Note Flat-footed on Taro ended.
Taro moves over to stand behind the Ogre, nodding slowly. Yes, he thinks he knows just how the creature feels. Only Taro never asked anyone to kill him for his rages. He holds up his axe so the blade is at the Ogre's neck level as he talks, then pulls it back, then slowly moves it forward again in a half-swing. Like a headsman preparing his stroke. He glances around at the others to see if anyone has anything else to say.
GAME: Taro rolls 1d12+10: (6)+10: 16 (non-lethal damage)
Taro brings his axe forward, but has it turned sideways so that the flat of the axehead slams into the back of the Ogre's head like a shovel. Taro curses at the stinging impace, then grimaces when the Ogre doesn't fall. "Quickly! Before it changes it's mind!"

      It is now Curugorm's turn! Lyrana is next!
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d12+7: (4)+7: 11
When everyone else attacks, Curugorm will attempt to KO it with his polearm, using the blunted end as a sort of very long and heavy cudgel and hitting as hard as he can.

      It is now Lyrana's turn! Gragnar is next!
Lyrana stands back...

      It is now Gragnar's turn! Crying Ogre is next!

<OOC> Gragnar says, "Flurry, all of it subdual"
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (2)+5: 7
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (2)+5: 7
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (1)+5: 6
*his pose is in his next emit

GAME: Benthus advances the initiative order.
      Round Two - Init 17.
      It is now Crying Ogre's turn! Lothos is next!
The ogre suddenly changes color and turns from pale to ebony black. It howls at the sky and it begins to attack everyone around him. "For you, master Mattias! I will have their souls for you!"

<OOC> Benthus says, "Okay, everyone around him, roll OA, apply subdual if you want."
GAME: Gragnar rolls weapon1: (8)+10: 18
GAME: Gragnar rolls 1d8+5: (7)+5: 12
GAME: Taro rolls 1d20+7: (20)+7: 27
GAME: Taro rolls 1d20+7: (12)+7: 19 (Prone, blinded and flanked.  Crit confirmed)
GAME: Curugorm rolls 1d20+5: (12)+5: 17
GAME: Taro rolls 3d12+30: (20)+30: 50

Gragnar sighs heavily, and delivers three quick, heavy blows to the Ogre's head, trying to knock it unconscious before it can hurt anyone. However, it's not enough, and when the ogre quickly changes colors, he swings his fist one more time, catching it across the jaw, ironically a more solid hit than when it wasn't resisting.

Taro hauls his axe back and swings again. The Ogre is up and moving about now, which makes the axe smack him square in the forehead this time.

The ogre topples down with a loud thud, its black skin slowly reverting back to its original colour.

The ogre is still breathing, although it may have a very sore head when it awakes. The group manages to carry it back to the city where it is locked up in one of their monster pens. As it lies there unconscious, the populace began jeering and calling for its immediate execution. Rotten eggs and other vegetables are being thrown at the jail cell where the ogre is said to be held.

Caleb, the investigator, thanks the adventurers for apprehending the ogre. "I thought it was impossible. But you did it. You have my thanks. And the bounty for bringing him alive."

Curugorm will try and explain, haltingly, that the ogre seemed to be under some kind of spell or control, and that it had not intended to do what it had done. If that helps.

Taro looks tempted to join the crowd in heckling the Ogre.

Gragnar stands in front of the cage, catching the eggs as they are thrown. "It was not him, it was somethin' usin' 'im."

The crowd of hecklers soon were pushed away by the guards and a semblance of peace has returned to the immediate area.  But somewhere in the shadow, a dark silhouette watches all that has happened, and cackles malevolently...

(End of Plot)