Topic: ☼Masterwork Mod☼ - Romomon, The Ageless Realms (Multi-race succession world) (Read 31208 times)

jimboo · « **Reply #195 on:** November 22, 2016, 03:06:07 pm »

Details
And then, nothing. Doren didn’t change for more than a month, time he spent lifting boulders on a weightbench built in room adjacent to his quarantine. Each set of ten reps increases stats of strength, agility, kinesthetics and such by only two, kind of a waste of time. Or would have been, if there’d been anything else for him to do while locked up. Meanwhile, fortress life went on.

Storyline, Bookie’s Plan

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

It’d been more than a year since the embark at Geshudarros. Bookie was supposed to have been expedition leader, dammit. Dammit! She had the skills, she was prepared and then the other six idiots had chosen Oddom Itomgatin for whatever reason. Bookie had carried a grudge every since. Sure, Oddom had proven at least marginally competent but still, it wasn’t right. And needed to be put right. The final straw came when waves of migrants joined the first group of idiots and chose Oddom as their first Mayor, to boot. Idiots, all of ‘em! Oddom had a suite of smoothed and furnished rooms including a proper office and that just tore at Bookie each time she walked past to her rough chair out in the hallway to update the official records. As bookkeeper for ForestChuckers – something else that needed to be changed, that name, the translation of Geshudarros into the Common Tongue was just so wrong -- as bookkeeper for ForestChuckers, Bookie knew the numbers better than anyone. From an outpost consisting of only the stones and supplies they could load onto one wagon, Chuckers had grown from an outpost to a village and was now a town valued at nearly 600,000 urists. That was more than enough to attract the attention of MountainHome, surely. Wasn't it? Towns became Counties ruled by a proper Noble, not a mayor and that was done by Royal decree and not by some half-assed, had-to-be-rigged popular election. It was again Autumn and time for the dwarven caravan. Would this be the year? All the memories of feigned congratulations repeatedly given, the burn of acquiescence, the pretending to celebrate with the others at each new discovery of a vein of gold or the opening of a Hospital or Tavern or Meeting Hall or Temple … would this be the year everything changed back to right? Bookie prepared the Annual Report with the standard numbers and columns listing such things as how many pigs were butchered during the previous 12 months and how many tanned hides and hams had resulted, along with numbers for the gems polished and stones dug. It was a large report – they got larger each season as the town grew in population and wealth – but this time, Bookie had done something special. The entire report was bound in tanned leather for one thing, looking very professional. And in the section written specifically for the MountainHome diplomats regarding the Wish List for the coming year, Bookie had inserted her own page: on fine parchment and seemingly over the signature of Mayor Oddom (a signature that Bookie had been practicing for more than year), was a formal letter recommending Bookie as the first Noble of Geshudarros …

On the 17th day of Limestone in the year 211, word came that dwarven caravan wagons were seen coming over the mountaintop. It was time.

jimboo · « **Reply #196 on:** November 22, 2016, 03:23:26 pm »

Storyline – Execution. Or, The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Dwarves

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

The first trade exchange had gone well and the MountainHome dwarves were ecstatic, as was to be expected. Acting as Broker also, Bookie had offered a dozen pots of prepared meals and one very nice steel trap component all in exchange for a single bar of tin. The visiting diplomat had accepted the bound Report with Bookie’s secret message and was now in discussions with that usurper Oddom. Bookie was feeling great. Excited! And thirsty. As the traders began greedily loading the first stone pots into their wagons, Bookie excused herself for a short break and went to a nearby stockpile for a mug of ale.

The attack came as a complete surprise: a Giant Lizard within the courtyard walls! Bookie heard the screams and turned just in time to see the beast upon her.

[note: 8 screen pages of bites, punches and counters between Bookie and the Skink]

Then suddenly,

The Beast was dead. The mayor herself had punched it out with her bare hands and then it was over. It was over, in fact, pretty much before anybody had a handle on what was happening and dwarves and animals were still scrambling and screaming. But the giant beast was dead.

[note: 6 screen pages of the mayor battling barehanded before finally taking it out. Kinda repetitive.]

In an emotional speech to the gathering residents, Oddom took full blame for Bookie’s ‘tragic, senseless’ death and that, for whatever reason, none of the town’s troops had been garrisoned near the Depot or on watch when the attack came. “I don’t know how this could have happened,” she said, “but it did and I accept full responsibility. The fact that I myself defeated the monster came too late for our beloved Bookie. There will be investigations. But more importantly, there will be a better tomorrow, for all of us.” The crowd cheered and cries of “Countess! Countess!” and “Long live the Mayor!” echoed through the fortress hallways.

Late that evening, alone in her suite, Oddom reviewed the plans the late bookkeeper had earlier given to the architects for a massive suite of rooms in that newest magnetite lode, plans that Bookie thought had also been secret. Yes, those rooms would be just fine.

Summary:
Two years and still no invasion. This latest Masterwork version is on the 43.03 vanilla core and that’s likely why. Perhaps a multi-race worldgen based on Ye Olde Masterwork, where scores of different invaders still come at a time? That might test the idea of ‘semi-playable’ invader Orcs against dwarves.

Overall, it’s a great dwarf embark: loads of magnetite, gold and flux along with other ores, 5 listed civs nearby and the expected aquifer isn’t here after all. Interesting Visitors from the caverns and Untamed Wilds, the werebeasts so far haven’t been all that troublesome. But no Orcs or invaders yet at 800K wealth. The save is here.

Arcturus · « **Reply #197 on:** December 02, 2016, 07:16:00 am »

I'll play a round to keep the thread alive. Starting an adventurer.

Got The Save

Arcturus · « **Reply #198 on:** December 02, 2016, 01:32:01 pm »

The Tale Of
Latugdur Stoneskin

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

So it begins...

Latugdur grew up in the town of Iliimbuubagroqu "Tunnelhated" in the steamy forests. He wanted to be a great hunter of powerful beasts. He preferred killing thing with his bare hands. Being a strong olog he could rip a canine apart and did it on several occasions when wargs of The Hell Of Toads reverted to a wild and vicious state. He began his journey knowing he was an olog and that he needed very little equipment except a suit of leather armor.

He knew first he had to become an expert hunter of regular beasts if he wanted to impress the world with his skills. Besides he needed the money to buy equipment. He took his spear and dagger into the wilderness hoping to find something large with enough meat to buy a suit of leather armor in town.

He searched the forest for game, spending hours looking for something to throw his spear at. It began to rain.

He finally encountered some stags but they would see him and run. He was clearly not a sneaky olog yet. Sneaking is usually left to snaga but here the prey would run away. He would move through the fallen branches until his feet were keen enough to not the branches. His determination would prove to be his strongest asset.

He grew tired of all this sneaking he couldn't get close enough to throw his spear at the stags. He instead ran at a stag that had broken off from the pack of them. He threw his spear at point blank range and it hit with the shaft, he wasn't a good thrower at all.

He was close enough to grab the stag though and reach out and caught the animal with his hand. The beating began. He kicked the stag in the right rear leg, punched in the neck shattering something. The stag was on the ground now it's fate was sealed, he would have his meat. He kicked it in the upper body, it bucked and was ready to attack with it's antlers, he grabbed the antlers with his other hand and beat it to death, collapsing the skull with a kick.

He butchered the corpse for the meat he wanted. Then he realized he had no containers for the meat, it wouldn't fit in his backpack... This was poor planning indeed. He decided to go back to town and buy some. He recieved a gold coin, a copper coin and iron coin for his efforts. It seemed like too little.

He decided to chat up a leather merchant and asked what the process for leather making was. "The key ingredient is urine" he said" you have to soak it in urine" he said. Disgusting as that was, he decided to make his own leather armor with the leather from his game. This hunting business didn't seem very profitable and he wanted leather armor as quickly as possible.

He headed back into the wilds.

Through the fog and rain he went back to the steamy forests. This time he would make everything in the woods he needed. The fog cleared and he found a moose. This was his chance to get a load of meat and some nice leather. He crept up on the moose and grabbed it.

He kicked the moose in the neck and it fell over from spinal damage. He decided to practice his wrestling on the moose in it's half moving state. He would grab the moose and squeeze and let go over and over again. This would increase his grip strength, he trained for hours on the fallen moose all the while the creature attacked him. His dulled olog pain sensors told him this workout was beginning to hurt. He fell to the ground from exhaustion. and distanced himself from the moose for a rest. The moose shortly after that point suffocated from neck damage.

He wasted no time in butchering the corpse, the skin would make fine leather. He decided to hunt some more before making any leather and found a koala that suffered a similar fate to the moose. He began making leather, soaking the skin in urine he coincidentally very, very close by. He spent a couple hours in the woods. Making the leather, he made a backpack and some armor.

He found one more moose and knocked it out almost immediately. He practiced his wrestling on the moose for a few more hours and managed to gouge it's eyes out. It had become the perfect wrestling opponent. The moose was large and strong enough to ever properly tackle to the ground and too blind to know where to run to. His muscles began to strengthen on the spot. He held it in place while it bucked until he was very tired and backed off to rest. Then he would return to it and practice his grabs. He did this for the remainder of the daylight. In a single day he had become knowledgeable and strong in wrestling. Even may have even been considered an expert fighter now. He felt different after eventually killing the moose. He felt stronger, faster and his mind more keen. He killed the moose with a punch to the head and headed back to town, Latugdur knew why he feared the night.

He traded some meat plus his copper spear and knife for the rest of what would be his leather armor. He didn't know how to make leggings, robes or helms so he had to. He felt he was ready to set out on his true adventure tomorrow. Killing those moose and stags with his bare hands really proved he had what it took to become an adventurer.

He asked a merchant to stay for the night and he pointed him to the tavern called "The Devourer Of Muffins" not far to the north. The tavern had no booze in the corner which disappointed him. Suddenly he looked to the other side of the room. There was a strange table that seemed made of fire!

What sorcery was this!

He decided it was best not to ponder how exactly such an item had come to exist. It didn't matter anyway, it didn't seem to pose any risk to the surrounding structure. He crept past the tavern keeper and up to the upper level and laid down to rest. His long day of hunting had taken it's toll on his stamina and he slept as soon as his head hit the pillow.

He awoke the next morning to the darkened room, in his stupor he failed to recall the previous days events. It took a full 10 minutes for his slow olog brain to recall how he came to rest his head in this place. He got up and realized he was staying here without paying. He quickly crept into the hallway and down the stairs seeing nothing but a passed out patron wearing armor. He was snoring in his chair and didn't seem to be awoken by the smoke coming from the table that was clearly made of fire. He felt guilty and dropped the 3 coins he had made selling meat. It would serve to pay half of the rent he would have owed had he consulted the tavern keeper.

He made his way into the fresh air of his home town. Drawing in a deep breath he decided where to go, the fortress was an hour to the south and there he could find companions for his quests as well as information concerning the troubles of his kingdom. He would speak with the local lord... He had forgotten his or her name... Anyway he would know who to speak to based on how they were dressed.

He set off to the south and followed the winding road, shops and houses lined the path and he got lost several times. He asked for directions from a local merchant and discovered he was going the wrong way. Apparently the fortress was near the tavern he had just left. He traced his steps back the tavern and went a little west. He gazed upon a great fortress. He wondered how he had missed the gigantic purplish building made of pitchblende.

He entered the castle as day was just breaking. The pitchblende smelled very odd and he knew it was rare. He wondered what compelled them to make such a large structure out of something so rare. He let it from his mind as he entered the keep. He noticed an awful smell as he entered. Looking to his right he discovered the corpse of a goblin. It was an odd thing to find a goblin in an orcish fortress, even a dead one.

He spotted the clan leader and remembered her name, Urb Gashnaakagradbug. That name was a mouthful even by orc standards. He greeted the clan leader and bowed a little in reverence of her position. Even though he was much larger than her he felt somehow humbled. "What is your name ?" She asked rather sleepily, "Latugdur Gundamatark" replied Latugdur. He was not surprised she did not know of him. It was a big town and the clan leader of such a place cannot be expected to know the names of every citizen. "Could you tell me about the troubles of the area ? I wish to seek out our enemies and destroy them" said Latugdur with much bravado, he stood very upright. The clan leader looked pleased with his words, very few would take the fight to the nations enemies of their own accord. "This nation has no troubles, seek out another place to help" she said. He was very confused, how was there no trouble on the land? "Very well thank you for your time clan leader" he said barely concealing his frustration. How could he make a name for himself when there were no bandits to slay or people to rescue?

He had planned to ask some other orcs to travel with him but all his saw were sleeping assistants of the clan leader. The high umbra himself however was awake and speaking to the clan leader. "This adventurer my lady could be of some use. I have the journal of my father which shows the locations of great beasts that plagued our nation" Agradbug the high umbra said. "Should I give it to him ?" he then said in a quizzical tone. "Of course dear Agradbug, he seems to a passion for fighting in his eyes I as an orc would not dissuade" the clan leader said with a smile. Agradbug moved towards the stairs at a quick walking speed. He disappeared down the stairs, Latugdur and the clan leader were left alone. The clan leader walked over to the dead goblin looking at all the blood still seeping from it's carcass. "You are probably wondering what happened to this bastard" she said in a stern tone. She continued "we had a disagreement with this goblin spearman". "Oh" said Latugdur kind of dumbfounded that they would let a goblin in an orcish castle at all. "We won the argument as you can see" the clan leader said with a smirk. Agradbug returned up the stairs with a huge journal. "Here you are it lists all the locations of the cave systems that house beasts of a powerful nature" he said. Passing the book to Latugdur who could (surprisingly for an olog) read thankfully. He opened the pages and quickly looked over all the maps and diagrams. He discovered a large number of blank pages at the back for further writing. Closing the book he bowed as a sign of thanks to the high umbra. "I will leave now" he said simply and went from the castle.

On his way out he saw a human maceman and walked up to him. He appeared to be on his way to the castle. Must be another mercenary.

Lutugdur greeted the maceman. "Ah yes I've seen you before" said the maceman. "I am Erab Inilasod, I recall seeing you years ago" he said. This jogged Lutugdur's memory he recalled seeing a human soldier years ago in the town market. Erab continued "A large olog like you is hard to miss even in a large crowd, it seems you've grown even larger and stronger". Latugdur enjoyed the compliment and said "I have a request, maceman". "Well what is it then ?" said Erab. "I would like you to join me on my adventures" said Lutugdur. A wild look came about the maceman's copper face "I've always wanted to travel the world. Let us be off!" he exclaimed. Latugdur inquired about any troubles the maceman may know of. "Well let's see... we have armies on the march, beasts, criminals and bandits." the maceman said with gusto. "Who would you like to beat up, oh most large orc?". He spent the next couple of hours jotting down all the information the maceman had given him. An army was marching on "Monstercrew" to the north, "Goalthieves" far to the north, "Monsterphantoms" also far to the north. The name Nelti "Matchsiege" kept coming up. Strange a man set to siege a series of towns had siege in his name. "Hatesluts" was also being sieged, his favorite town. A wide array of over 100 powerful beasts was mentioned, he wondered how the maceman ever bothered to remember so many.

When asked about bandits he produced a strange name : Pikachu17 The Dragonslayer

He continued on and finished speaking, it took another 10 minutes to jot everything down. Lutugdur's arm was tired after all the writing.

It was then that Lutugdur finally noticed he was hungry. He spotted a recently abandoned shop full of supplies. Found some troll meat in the shop as well as 4 pig tail bags for storage. Erab and Latugdur ate their troll meat just outside the shop among the tame tunnel tarantulas.

Latugdur looked over the journal and all he had jotted down and decided where to go. He noted a group of criminals marked down near "Wetscourge" from the journal's previous owner. "Wetscourge" was a hamlet not far to the south. How good it would be to bring them to justice or death he thought.

"How would you feel about going to "Wetscourge" to clear out some criminals ?" Lutugdur asked. "I go where you go" Erab said with a smile. They finished their meal, fed the leftovers to the tunnel tarantulas and set off for "Wetscourge". South through The Steamy Forests they went when they came to a river. Lutugdur decided to fill his waterskins at the river as well as drink deep it's waters with his hands. Sated of thirst they continued their journey by swimming across the river. They continued south for hours through the forests.

They passed birds and squirrels, They saw at the edge of their vision a hall near midday and decided to investigate. They opened the door and saw an orc in clan leader's garb. "Greetings, my name is Latugdur Gundamatark" said at the sight of the clan leader. "Oh hello welcome to The Unholy Hegemon, I'm Snazguul Ugdushumazguu" said the female clan leader. "We would be pleased to take from your armory" said Latugdur knowing this was a tradition when confronted with a leader of a hamlet. "Look freely" Snazguul said in response. So Latugdur walked up the stairs. He found a mithril helmet, mithril greaves and mithril boots near the stairs and took them. That would be enough he thought. He bowed at the clan leader as he passed, they needed to get to "Wetscourge" quickly, for all he knew the criminals had already packed up and left.

They set out.

They stopped at another hall in "Goadednightmare" called "The Ungodly Crevice" and just walked past the clan leader without a word. They gathered the remainder of a set of mithril armor. They found gauntlets and a mail shirt and went to leave. They returned to the main hall and found the clan leader butchered and beaten on the floor. They heard movement in the other room. "Hello ?" said Erab and got no response.

They crept up to the room and opened the door. It was empty but Lutugdur heard something from up the stairs. He snuck up to the stairs and peek over the steps. There was a goblin in the room. He guessed it was the murderer still here. He took a deep breath and charged up the stairs and got close to the goblin. "Greetings. My name is Latugdur "Stoneskin". I have nothing for you." Latugdur said with an angry tone. "Hello, orc. I am Mecaxundare "Bridgeidols" the goblin said with an evil grin. "Do you know of any troubles, goblin?" Latugdur said with a stern look in his eyes still suspecting this goblin of wrongdoing. "Well just now I attacked that human maceman over there if that's what you're asking" the goblin said pointing at Erab. Not only did this goblin probably murder someone but he was also a liar.

The goblin suddenly looked as if he was going to attack Erab. Erab took it as a threat and forced the goblin to yield or die, the goblin yielded. Latugdur asked the goblin over and over again if he had killed the clan leader. He kept replying he had attacked the two of them. The orc began to lose his patience with this goblin and punched him in the nose. He hit him harder than expected thanks to his mithril gauntlets and his head exploded.

Erab looked a little shocked at how powerful that punch was. "You didn't have to kill him" he said. "I know he killed the clan leader, he had it coming" said Lutugdur with a grimace. "Let's just go before someone finds us and thinks we did the clan leader in" said Erab. They left quickly and tried to put all the death out of their minds.

They headed south and ended up in "Demontunnel". They stopped for the rest of the day at "The Immoral Thunder" a hall that was near the town. The hall was surrounded by a mound of black sand that made it a rare sight. They met with the clan leader and warchief. The warchief greeted Erab "Hello, I am Urb "Orangejackals" "Hello I am Lutugdur "Stoneskin" honored to meet you warchief" said none other than Lutugdur. " I am Duum "Listenedtorment" are you here to have a look at my armory?" said the clan leader "He's probably here to look at your fine figure" said the warchief with a smirk. The clan leader's and warchief's eyes looked into each other for a moment, they clearly had a connection and Lutugdur couldn't tell if it was friendship or lust. "Yes, I would like to look at your armory, also I would like to stay the night" Latugdur said in a very matter-of-fact tone. "Very well then look on and stay a night but no more" said the clan leader warmly. While looking for more mithril armor Lutugdur took a swig of water from his waterskin. The selection was very limited as well as there being only three rooms in which to look. It was strange this place seemed bigger from the outside. He made no effort to keep his eyes open after a while and fell asleep in the main hall.

He awoke to find the clan leader asleep and the warchief gone. He awoke Erab and silently left the hall to the fresh air in front of the sand covered hall as the sun rose in the east. Erab shortly after followed sleepily.

They ate breakfast beneath a carambola tree only to discover the water in the waterskins had turned to ice from the now cold temperatures. They set up a camp fire and melted the ice into water and ate troll pancreas chops while they drank their fill as well. While the fire was still burning they left for "Wetscourge".

Through the steamy forests again and up and down hills they went, across a bridge and south again until the hit a mountain. They looked at the map and traveled east to "Wetscourge". They traveled until they hit the middle of town and every house they saw was abandoned in the hamlet. It seemed creepy, "Wetscourge" was a ghost town. They began to get hungry as it was almost noon now. They stopped just north of the town ate some food and drank some water. The water in one waterskin was liquid while the other waterskin remained full of ice. The troll pancreas was especially delectable today, or maybe they were just hungry.

They stood up from their meal and looked around the town for potential criminals. They searched through the houses to the south, they searched through the houses to the east. It seemed they couldn't find anyone until they came to the houses to the southeast. "Don't serve anyone blindly. You'll only get in trouble" they heard what was clearly a goblin say from the rundown shack in the middle of the row. They made their way to the shack and opened the door. They found three goblins.

Latugdur walked into the house and simply said "Hello". The goblins charged forward and brought the battle to Lutugdur. He readied himself and set himself in a aggressive combat stance. Erab missed the goblin commander at first and then bashed him in the leg causing some bruising. The goblin maceman and commander withdrew. The sheer fear in their faces was astounding. "Goblins are cowards !" Latugdur shouted as he ran after the commander, best to kill the leadership dead. The goblin commander ran through a house and seemed to be getting away when Latugdur caught up and grabbed him. He reached and grabbed his upper body in a swift motion. He punched the goblin commander in the upper body breaking the ribs of the cowardly swine. The goblin commander bashed him in the left upper arm with his silver morningstar bruising him. He punched the goblin commander in the lower body. The goblin commander missed him. He followed up with a punch that the goblin commander blocked. The goblin commander reared up his left arm for another strike and blocked the punch meant to interrupt the attack bashing Lutugdur in the left arm with his silver morningstar. Lutugdur became angry and used his fury behind his heavy fist, it connected with the goblin commanders head. The head thereafter exploded into gore.

Latugdur was now out for blood and returned to the shack where he had seen one of the other goblins sleeping. He entered the shack quitely and placed a choke hold on his victim without him waking up. He began to strangle him and before the goblin could wake properly he was bereft of air and dead of suffocation in under a minute. Now to find the third goblin. He crept out of the shack and looked around. Moving to the south he looked down the hill, the goblin was nowhere to be seen. He decided to stop looking and continue to root out this criminal band if any of it remained. He moved to the west and quickly heard more movement. This time in a shack just directly west of him, he crept up to the door and found 5 goblins, 1 was asleep. A goblin spearman ran out of the door on the opposite side of the shack saying simply "I must withdraw". He went to chase him but was blocked by a goblin pikeman who looked ready to fight. He kicked him in the right leg so hard the leg collapsed under his foot. The goblin fell to the floor screaming. He punched him in the right arm but it didn't have the same collapsing effect. Before the goblin could act he followed up with a punch to the head and it seemed to almost deflate.

Erab bashed a goblin maceman in the right hand and it collapsed. He lost hold of his platinum mace and ran away screaming. Lutugdur grabbed the goblin axeman by the throat with his right hand so he wouldn't run away. The goblin failed to break the grip of Lutugdur's hand on his throat, he shortly after punched the goblin axeman in the head and it exploded in gore.

He ran after the injured fat goblin maceman, catching him just as he was halfway to the slope leading to the forest. He used his left leg to kick him but the kick was too slow. The chase was on! The fat goblin maceman was fairly fast but at a full sprint Lutugdur was much faster. He ran up and grabbed him by the shirt just as he was going down the hill. The fat goblin tried to break his grip but the training Lutugdur had done combined with his raw orc strength prevented this from ever happening. He kicked the fat goblin in the chest and the he gasped for air while trying to strike Lutugdur, the goblin missed twice with his shield in the time Lutugdur landed the kick. A strange idea came about Lutugdur and he bit the goblin in the gums completely removing a part of his teeth.

He followed up with a kick to the goblin in the gut, the fat goblin maceman began to get sick and weak. He missed Lutugdur again. The fat goblin lined up a shot with his shield again and Lutugdur threw him before he strike could land. The fat goblin slammed into the ground but was otherwise uninjured by the throw. Lutugdur punched him in the gut again but this goblin was proving a tough opponent compared to the other goblins. Must be all the fat. The goblin cocked back his shield but Lutugdur caught it before he could strike. He tried to land a kick to his head but the fat goblin moved the shield into the path of the kick despite Lutugdur's grip on it. He was tired of this fight and bit the fat goblin in the gut, shaking him around and tearing open his lower body through his leather armor. He could smell a foul odor and knew his guts had come out the goblin's lower body was deformed and blood and shit oozed out from under the leather. The goblin tried to punch him twice before he finally became very pale and stopped breathing. He let go of the dead goblin and tried to catch his breath.

After he wiped the seat off his brow he headed back to the house where he had found the goblins. Erab came into view with his bloodied flail, not a scratch on him. Lutugdur looked at the bruise on his arm and decided Erab must be a very defensive fighter with that shield of his to not get hurt. They were about to have a word when they heard a muffled "Death... this is truly horrifying" from somewhere near the house. When they went to investigate they saw a goblin spearman still in the house. They crept up on the turned around goblin spearman and Lutugdur quickly crippled him with a kick to the leg which collapsed it. He proceeded to place a choke hold on the goblin spearman and strangle him to death. The goblin breathed his last and slumped into a heap. He hoped there were more to kill, this was getting fun.

Just then a goblin hammerman rounded the corner and charged. He grabbed the convex-nose goblin by the foot and placed a lock on the goblin's right ankle with his left arm. The goblin bashed Lutugdur in the right bicep as he broke the goblin hammerman's ankle. He decided to break his other ankle and used his right hand to lock the left ankle. The goblin screamed and struggled to break the out of the two locks but failed miserably. He bashed Lutugdur in the left gauntlet to merely bruising his forearm. He broke the goblin's left ankle and the goblin screamed even louder. Lutugdur kicked the goblin in the right hand trying to get him to let go of the hammer but it did not succeed. So he instead kicked him in the neck and heard a crunch as his foot came down, he had shattered the goblin's spine and blood leapt from a wound he had opened. The goblin lost a hold of his war hammer and shield and tried to hit him random parts of his body because he could no longer put up a good fight. Erab said "I've defeated many fearsome opponents!" strangely saying this while contributing nothing to the carnage.

Lutugdur struck the goblin in the head with a precisely timed punch and his head exploded in blood and gore.

Arcturus · « **Reply #199 on:** December 05, 2016, 11:52:33 am »

The Tale Of
Latugdur Stoneskin
Part 2

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Latugdur was bruised all over his upper body but it barely registered on his dulled olog nerves. He wanted another kill to his name in true orcish spirit. He ran outside in a frenzy and found no enemies in the immediate area. He roared, beat his chest and yelled "Is that all you have you little cowards!? Come face a true orcish warrior in battle!". Erab quietly made his way out of the house and yelled "bring the fight to us for once!" he paused for a moment and yelled "I've defeated many fearsome opponents but not today, for today I only killed unworthy opponents!".

They scoured the town for another couple of hours but could find no one else there. So they headed off to the town hall just south of the river called "The Black Weight". They found the main hall empty and rummaged through the abandoned armory. Latugdur found a pair of mithril claws and strapped them to his chest. They found nothing else of any interest and headed back to the main hall. "So where do we go from here?" Latugdur said to Erab in a quizzical tone. "Perhaps we should pick something a little tougher than a band of poorly fed goblins" said Erab. "I would like to get you some new equipment first my friend." said Latugdur with a hint of concern in his voice "Yes, I wasn't prepared for a heavy battle with these pieces of platinum strapped to me. Yet where shall we get these new pieces of armor? There are none in my size for many leagues." said Erab speaking in a doubtful tone. "Well, first let's focus on getting me a new piece of chest armor" Latugdur paused and continued "I would very much like a mithril plate armor for our journey". "Where do we go now?" asked Erab "A remember seeing a town to the north in the distance, we should start there" said Latugdur. So they headed out of the main hall and made their way north to a town they did not know the name of. Perhaps it was a human town with any luck thought Latugdur.

Latugdur entered the town hall with Erab not far behind, he saw the clan leader and greeted her "Hello, my name is Latugdur 'Stoneskin'... the Rhyming Satins." Latugdur finished with his new customary name for the lives he had taken, he thought it made some sort of sense because it's impossible for satin to rhyme and so his name meant "the Impossible". "Oh hello dear warrior, I am Ama 'Testscorpion' clan leader and resident of 'The Fell Strokes' and 'Gulfmalice' a town of wonder and promiscuous clan leaders" responded the clan leader confidently with a grin. "We would be most honored to see your armory and perhaps your more private areas... I mean the rooms of course" said Latugdur with a laugh. He was taking a liking to this clan leader, she may not be the prettiest female he had seen. She was however a bubbly personality and he needed a bright beam of light and laughter in his day of bruising and blood soaking battle. "Carry on strong warrior and do not tarry too far I wish to look upon your large form again before you go." Ama said displaying her tangled teeth in a wide grin with her eyes opened wide, her expression almost looked creepy.

Latugdur went for the armory as Erab entered. As Latugdur went to the first room he could see Erab greeting the clan leader and going through the usual formalities. Latugdur waited in the room for Erab before he began, eyeing a tungsten breastplate. Erab arrived and they looked through the room together. There was no mithril breastplate to Latugdur's dissatisfaction. He did however see a tungsten shield he decided to give to Erab. The human wasted no time in trying it on his arm, it seemed to be the right size and he moved it through the air. The tungsten was heavy but good protection, he doubted Erab could handle a full set of tungsten plate armor with his skinny body but the shield was a nice addition to his current armor. Latugdur came upon an idea he wanted to try, he would try his hand at smithing to make his mithril breastplate. He gathered as many mithril items as he could with Erab asking "What are you doing?" in a confused tone "I am getting my mithril breastplate one way or another" Latugdur said with determination. He spent the next half hour sorting through the armory for all the mithril he could get. He handed Erab a mithril battle axe in exchange for his copper flail saying "I know you prefer a different kind of weapon but this one is high quality and should serve you well. Erab simply nodded and accepted the gift.

Latugdur began to work on making a mallet to break apart the random armor and weapons he found. he found some rocks outside and constructed a forging pit using a mithril pick as a chisel to work the stone. He got a branch from a nearby tree and made a handle and bored a hole through a large rock sticking the handle through the rock and put a bit of metal into the part above the rock to properly secure it to the branch. He gathered everything he needed in the next 15 minutes and went back to the front of the hall with all his newly made forging equipment. He laid everything on the floor while the clan leader watched on at his interesting activity from the door, there was nothing else for the clan leader to do anyway.

He began by breaking apart the equipment with the large mallet, the chert stone wore a little as he did it but it lasted long enough for his to get several chunks of metal from the equipment. He had forgotten one key thing, he needed a piece of leather to finish his work, most breastplates had some leather worked into them. Gathering up his forging equipment and mithril chunks and he said his goodbyes to the clan leader, heading out into the woods to kill an animal and make some leather.

They spent hours in the woods and finally found a honey badger to slaughter. Latugdur ran it down, grabbed it and then kicked it so so far hard it flew 10 feet before coming to a stop. The badger was badly injured and Latugdur punched it in the neck there was a sickening crack and the creature was crippled. He kicked two more times before it slammed into a tree and died.

He skinned the badger and left the meat to rot, he already had enough food. He still needed more skin as a base for the leather and searched around a little. To his shock he found a large group of enormous creatures nearby, he believed they called it a "hipopotamoose" and it's name meant moose of the water. He wasn't sure anyway but he did know it looked like a good punching bag. He jumped into the water and lured one of the creatures, it went into a frenzy and attacked from the water's edge while Latugdur was just on dry land. The beast looked fairly muscular compared to even the other creatures, it must be the one that was in charge, the dominant male. Latugdur kicked the animal in the leg but only bruised it, the hippo counterattacked and missed. He kicked it directly in the nose with as much force as he could put behind it and it exploded in gore. This did not deter the large creature at all, in a blind rage it attacked and didn't manage to bite him. He followed up with a kick to the head which stunned the creature a little, it missed yet again with it's teeth. This was truly a tough creature. Latugdur performed a punching combo on the creatures body, merely bruising it but also causing some swelling near it's spine, if he could only disable the creature. He punched the back of the creature over and over again. The creature would miss because of Latugdur's deft movements and he would get another shot in to try to cripple the creature. He spent a full 5 minutes attacking the creature before a second hippo intervened. Latugdur retreated a little onto solid ground, it was bad enough having to fight one of these creatures. The creatures slowly caught up as he made his stand, missing him a few times while he retreated. He kicked the second hippo in the neck, trying to break it but it only bruised the creature. The hippo charged as he hit it from the side with a punch and jumped out of the way. The hippos were too slow to hit him it seemed but he simply wasn't strong enough to fracture any of their bones through their large mass. Erab was nowhere to be seen despite the fact Latugdur could really use his help right now. The hippo charged again as he kicked the muscular one in the head and dodged. It was time for the mithril claws he had gotten earlier he decided. He unstrapped the Mithril claws from his chest in a swift motion. He stabbed the hippo with the left claw in the head, causing massive amounts of blood to pour from it, the hippo was stunned but still attacked and missed. He followed up with a slash to the neck damaging the creatures spine. It fell over and still managed to try to attack him, quite a determined opponent. The second hippo was still making his way to attack Latugdur, so he ignored the crippled creature and moved to attack the fresh and much less damaged hippo. He slashed the hippo in the front right leg and the creature bled like a slaughtered pig he knew he had opened an artery. The hippo charged Latugdur quickly and caught him unaware he was knocked backwards by the large creature. Quickly getting up and attacking in one swift motion he attacked the creature with the claws and pierced parts of it's brain, killing it outright. He put his claws away and came back to the disabled hippo, it was time for some punching practice. He practiced on the large animal with his fists for a long time the hippos of the river not bothering him. He began to fracture bones on the creature and knocked out it's teeth. Finally a kick to the throat opened a major artery and it quickly bled to death.

Latugdur butchered the hippo corpses with his rock dagger. Setting the skins aside he began the tanning process. It took hours to make the leather but it was worth it. He unpacked all his forging equipment from his backpack and laid it on the ground. Before he knew what came over him he had finally forged his mithril breastplate. There was much leather and metal left over so he also made some cloaks. Erab came into view just as Latugdur was finishing up, "Where have you been?" said Latugdur, to which Erab replied "I got lost when you ran out of sight, I heard the fighting though when I saw what you were fighting I became scared. Those hippos are very deadly". This was not a proud day for Erab. "Very well then but I am still standing uninjured after fighting two, they cannot be that deadly." said Latugdur with a hint of disappointment. "I apologize, it won't happen again my friend" said Erab lowering his head in shame. "Let's find a new place to go" said Latugdur and he began looking at his map and the large book the nobleorc had given him. Flipping through and double checking names and locations he came to the conclusion they should go to "Boundmaligned" and root out the criminals there. "Let's go to root out another criminal organization called The Plaited Sins" said Latugdur and paused then continued "follow me we shall continue our grand adventure".

Just then one of the remaining hippos let out a roar and charged from the river. Latugdur ran and kicked the hippo in the front leg causing some bruising. The hippo struck out at Erab but he blocked the attack. Latugdur punched the hippo in the neck causing little damage. Erab hacked the hippo in the leg with his battleaxe and caused some damage to the muscle. Latugdur kicked the hippo in the left rear leg and bruised the leg severely. The hippo missed Erab as he jumped away. Latugdur punched the hippo in the upper body causing it to have trouble breathing. The hippo missed Latugdur. Latugdur punched the hippo in the right rear leg causing bruising. The hippo missed Latugdur again. Erab broke off into a run and headed away from the creature. "Not again..." said Latugdur and continued to fight the hippo. He retreated a little away from the river as not to provoke the other hippos into a fight. With his back to a tree he renewed the fight punching the hippo hard in the stomach as it reared up. The hippo began to vomit from the attack. The hippo's next attack missed Latugdur just as he punched the hippo in the right front foot. The hippo charged and Latugdur jumped out of the way avoiding another attack. A hard punch to the nose of the hippo caused this particular body part to explode in gore. Latugdur wondered why these creatures were very tough except for the nose. The hippo vomited some more. The hippo charged at Latugdur and knocked him over, he stood up just before the hippo was able to attack him and kicked the creature in the upper body. He followed up with a kick to the neck which didn't seem to do much damage. The hippo charged again and Latugdur moved too quickly for it. Another kick to the neck causing only minor bruising. He was tired of fighting this thing, time for the claws. Latugdur drew his claws and quickly ripped the hippo open around the neck it fell to the floor. He finished it off with a claw to the head, he liked his new toys. Erab began to return in the distance.

"Why are you so afraid of hippos!?" Latugdur yelled at Erab. "I'm sorry there just so big, I don't know how you stand your ground in front of those things" Erab said in a nervous tone, paused and continued "Perhaps now we can get to 'Boundmaligned' ". "Let's be off then, more standing around will only earn us more hatred from the hippos" stated Latugdur.

So they headed north through the thick forest then west a little coming to "Boundmaligned" by nightfall. This town looked abandoned as well, the rickety house they came to seemed good enough to sleep in and Latugdur was tired, hungry and little cold. The water in his waterskin had turned to ice so he made a campfire outside the house. Warming the ice into water he drank and ate his fill with Erab while talking about the days events. "I showed those hippos not to attack and orc, hopefully they talk to each other and decide to run next time" Latugdur said in a tone that lacked any seriousness. "I can't recall ever seeing so many animal teeth on the ground before today, you must punch harder than a drunken Uruk" said Erab with a smirk. Finishing their meal they headed inside the abandoned house. "Good night Erab" Latugdur said as he began to drift off. "Night Latugdur" Erab said with a yawn. Latugdur woke to rays of sunlight peeking through the roof of the barely intact shack. Erab was already awake and watching a wall with a stain on it, probably wondering what exactly the stain was caused by. Latugdur stretched and made a grunting sound as Erab looked over at him. "Good morning my Olog friend" Erab said with a smile. "Time to get to work" Latugdur stated with stern resolve. "We'll root out these bandits just in time to have lunch" Erab said jokingly. They stood and readied themselves for the day ahead. After fully stretching out they left the shack behind and began to search the town. It only took a minute of heading to the west part of town before they heard movement. They decided to check it out, they were not sure if there were any town folk left by the state of the houses. As a precaution they crept slowly to the source of the noise which was a house in the middle of a group of houses. Latugdur opened the door to find a team of goblins, most of them asleep on the floor of the house. Latugdur wasn't sure what to do, most goblins he had seen had attacked him though he wasn't sure if this particular group would. Slowly he made his way into the house at the ready in case these goblins were also hostile. He walked closer and goblins attacked he avoided their attacks. A goblin pikeman closed the distance as Latugdur retreated to the entrance of the run down home. Latugdur kicked the goblin in the left upper arm and the part collapsed, the goblin screamed in pain but did not drop it's pike. Erab entered the fray and attacked the goblin pikeman but he jumped away. Erab attacked again and slashed the goblin in the right upper arm cleaving the arm in half. The goblin began to look pale and dropped the pike. "I've defeated more fearsome opponents than you!" Erab yelled, this seemed to be his battle cry. Latugdur charged forward with Erab and kicked a goblin maceman in the arm, he heard a crunch and the arm opened completely, nearly turning it inside out. The maceman dropped his mace and began to back away from Latugdur. Latugdur punched him in the other arm but there was no spectacular effect. He followed up with a kick to the head and the head exploded like a melon. Brains and skull shards littered the floor and yet the goblins around him slept despite the noise. The sleeping goblins were the next victims. Latugdur was glad he struck out at dawn, it made the goblins easy targets for his blood lust. He quickly caused four heads to explode one after another. It was an art really, positioning the body just right for maximal carnage leaning into the punches and using the whole body to throw the punch, something he had learned from rigorous practice. By the time he was finished he was sure the goblin pikeman he had originally attacked was long gone. He would track him down later. They began to search the town again. After searching the rest of the town they returned to the house to find the goblin pikeman asleep at the southern entrance. Latugdur ran up and punched the goblin with immense force causing the goblin's head to explode.

"I think that's all of them" Erab thought aloud. Latugdur eyed his empty water skins and noted his thirst. "Let's go to the river to the north, I need to fill up on water and it's time for a meal" Latugdur. They went to the north until they reached a bridge over the river, Latugdur scooped up water in his 4 water skins and drank from the river. They sat not far from the river under an apple tree and ate troll pancreas. "Where do we go next?" asked Erab between chewing the troll pancreas. "Good question, let's see" Latugdur pulled out his still partially dusty book. Flipping through he noticed a pattern, there were many bandits far to the north. "I say we head west around the ocean and try to make it north where there are many tasks" Latugdur said in assessment of his findings. "There are more than a few armies on the march there, I hope you know what you're doing" Erab said obviously hesitant about the long trip and dangers.

They finished the meal, stood and readied themselves for the journey. Before they knew exactly where they were going, they were to the west and past a hamlet. They continued west until they had reached the last town for a long time, it was nearly sunset and they stopped for another meal just outside of town. Upon of field of furrowed clay they ate more troll pancreas quietly and calmly. Birds chirped in the distant tree, the sun shone bright as ever. They got up and went into town to secure a place to sleep for the night, lest the bogeyman get them and they be reminded why they fear the night. They came to a house in the northern part of town and opened the door. They were greeted by 4 orcs, one of which was an executioner. "My name is Latugdur 'Stoneskin' the rhyming satins" Latugdur said in a proud manner. "Welcome, I am Snazguul 'Endtorments' " said the executioner. This seemed a fitting name for a executioner Latugdur thought, he would end the torments of the hamlet's criminals. "May I and my human companion stay the night?" Latugdur asked. "It would certainly be a shame if the bogeyman were to get you, of course stay a night" Snazguul said with more of a smile than the average executioner would show. Erab finally entered and greetings were exchanged, a human was an odd sight for the orcs but they did not show any contempt towards him.

They spent their time exchanging stories and finally got to rest on the floor of the house after a few hours. They drifted off to sleep while there was still some light outside. The morning came sooner than expected, the rays of light peeking through small holes no one had yet bothered to fix in the side of the house. As soon as the day had fully dawned Latugdur got up, he was exceptionally hungry and thirsty. He woke Erab and they both headed outside into the light of the dawn sun. Erab said "I've been thinking about something, is not trade the life-blood of a thriving society?". "Well yes every society needs trade to barter for things they do not have" Latugdur said in agreement. "Time for a meal" Latugdur said as his tummy rumbled away from the long time without food. They sat near some strawberry plants and started a camp fire to warm the ice in the water skins into water. They warmed up the ice into water and began to eat more troll pancreas. There were few words exchanged as they were both still a little drowsy from the long sleep. They finally stood up and made their way out of the hamlet, never to return to it.

They headed northwest and soon hit a great desert, the going was slow but the made it to a river and crossed it, drinking some water on the way. A carp swam near and Latugdur grabbed it and threw it at the bank, it bled but swam off. They continued through the desert and came to a forest. It was nice to hear the birds and see the small animals move around, the desert was so lifeless. They headed further northwest and came to a desert again, the crossing to another forest was shorter and they noticed a change in the type of trees found there. According to the map they had entered "The Forest Of Crafting". They were a little hungry and thirsty and stopped for a meal beneath a walnut tree. There was no need to thaw anything this time and they ate some troll pancreas and drank some water. "We will head northwest until we hit 'Profanereins' and rest for the night" Latugdur said. Erab simply nodded in agreement. By the time they reached "Profanereins" it was sunset.

They came to a house on the west part of the hamlet. Inside were 7 orcs which included an Uruk peasant humming a nice tune to himself. This humming gave Latugdur an idea. He would convince this Uruk to come with him on his adventures by starting a performance troupe. "What would you say if I told you I'm starting a singing and storytelling group?" Latugdur said to the Uruk. "Well I'm just a peasant here and it would be better to travel the land, however show me you have some talent and I will join you" The Uruk peasant said in reply. So Latugdur began to sing called "Brews And Nothing More", he chanted "I drink my beer with honey and mead, it's exactly what a body needs. My favorite brews of wine are free, I brewed them and added some poppy seeds. The ale is fine in winter time, especially with a bit of lime. My favorite brew is longland beer, fills you with those summer's cheers." He finished his demonstration of his singing skills, it seemed he was pretty mediocre. The Uruk seemed impressed enough though and accepted his proposition. "From here on out, we travel together" He said, this ploy would gain him enough followers to attack a great beast one day. He would train them in the lands to the north on the bandit camps and hopefully assemble many Uruks to his cause. He began to look around the town with some Uruks and arm them. They were the best fighters he could assemble on short notice. He would accept Ologs too.

"My name is Bagroqu." the Uruk said. There were two other Uruks in the house he asked one to join him. "Hello, I'm Alatuul, I would love to join your troupe". He talked to the other Uruk she agreed to come join the troupe. Then Latugdur noticed an Olog in the corner, he asked the Olog "Would you join as well?" The Olog responded "I am Uzgash I will come with you". They went to a few more houses and gather who they could. A Uruk named Azguuk and an Uruk called Bugh joined them. Now they were a force to be reckoned with. All he needed were weapons and he would be set. Though first he was tired and they slept in the house they found Bugh and Azguuk. By dawn everyone was well rested and ready to go. They were 8 now as they stepped outside.

They went to the hall to the southeast and tried to gather equipment. It was meal time and they all sat down and ate troll pancreas. Latugdur made a camp fire and warmed the water skins that were full of ice. There was enough water for everyone when that was done. They headed into the hall and exchanged greetings with the clanleader. "May we see your armory oh honored clanleader, we are traveling musicians now" Latugdur said. "Hello I am Ughorb new friends, I see you've convinced some of my townspeople to join you" Ughord smiled as he spoke. "You are free to go, though there will be less Uruks in town, I'm sure you'll make us proud". The armory is unfortunately empty" Latugdur was disappointed but he knew he could find weapons on the way or better yet get the Uruks into wrestling first to build up their strength.

They said their goodbyes and headed out of the hall. Latugdur would train them into good fighting shape and take on the world. It was only a question of how many got injured in training. They headed west in their large band and sought a place to train on wild animals. The wandered "The Hill of Jails" finding only birds. They decided to train elsewhere if this is all they could find. Heading east they covered as much ground as possible. They had lunch in the desert. They came to a forest after which it turned back into desert and then came to a jungle. A hamlet came into view in the middle of the jungle. It was meal time so they sat in the middle of town and had more troll pancreas and water while the townspeople went about their daily routine. The sun was low in the western sky and they decided to stay the night. They went to a house near the center of town and opened the door. There was nobody inside, so figuring the house was abandoned they all laid down. "Rest well friends" Latugdur paused and continued "Tomorrow we begin our training in these jungles, you need to be prepared to fight on the road". They all consented to the training, after all they were mostly Uruks and could fight well with the most meager of training. "Let's go kill us some elephants, I've heard of these large creatures they would be perfect for training" said Alatuul. They others nodded in agreement and Bugh said "As long as they don't have big fangs or anything". The troupe soon found sleep and rested for the night.

They awoke at dawn and Latugdur got some of the more heavy sleepers up. "Oh the bustle of the day, I prefer it to all the quiet" Bugh said "Truly" replied Latugdur. They sat just outside of the house they slept in and ate more troll pancreas and drank water. This was going to be a long day of training. He would get these Uruks into shape. They went deep northeast into the jungle. It didn't take them long to find some deer. Latugdur ran up and grabbed the deer holding it still. The others ran up and began punching and kicking the deer. Bagroqu punched the deer in the hoof but it glanced away from the hard hoof. Alatuul punched the deer in the upper body bruising it. Uzgash punched the deer in the right ear and the part exploded. Bagroqu punched the deer in the other ear, it tore and bled. Alatuul punched the deer in the head bruising it. The group beat the deer over and over again crushing it's right eye and breaking it's ribs while Latugdur held it in place. Bugh lined up a shot with his fist that broke the deer's skull and killed it. They moved on to the next deer, Latugdur had trouble running a deer down but he proved to have greater endurance and speed and manged to grab one in the end. The team of orcs beat on the deer until it was unconscious. Latugdur landed a killing blow to it's head completely shattering it's skull. They traveled around finding more things to fight. There was a herd of camels just within view. Latugdur ran up as quick as he could a grabbed one. The animal broke loose from his grip and ran. He chased it down again and hit it in the stomach to slow it down. He grabbed it again the orcs caught up and started beating the creature. both of it's eyes were squished in a matter of seconds. Bugh and Alatuul beat the camel but could only bruise it. The camel attack Latugdur but he easily dodged it's attacks. He hit it a couple times to make sure it didn't get away. There was such a flurry of fists now that Latugdur could hardly keep track. Uzgash landed the killing blow with a fist to the head of the camel, the injured part exploded. They killed 2 more camels and declared their training done for now.

Latugdur went to the nearby river and filled his water skins. They ate some troll pancreas on the edge of a desert, the humidity of the jungle and dryness of the desert made the air humidity just right. Everyone talked about the events of the day so far. "Did you see how I cracked that camel's head open?" Uzgash said with glee through a mouthful of troll pancreas. "Can't wait until we kill something really noteworthy" said Alatuul while flexing his arms. They finished their meal and headed west through the desert and back into the jungle. They crossed two rivers before stopping at the hamlet that was the last one for many leagues. They entered town and immediately found an empty house to sleep in until dawn. It was late in the day but a bit early for bed. As they were gathered in the large house Latugdur made an announcement "As leader of this troupe I hereby declare we shall be known as 'The Stones' ". They all cheered the name and there was no argument about it. They decided to practice their singing and storytelling for the purpose of bettering the troupe's skills. Latugdur sang "Brews And Nothing More" getting progressively louder as the style of music dictated. The troupe thought his particular chanting this time was very lousy. He absolutely butchered the part about longland beer. By the time he finished the crowd was getting a bit grumpy. "You need more practice" Atatuul said with an almost disgusted look on his face. "You should really consider never singing that song again that way" said Azguuk with his hands to his temples as if the singing had caused him a headache. Latugdur simply stared at the group speechless. He thought he had done some decent singing... For an Olog anyway... Oh well it was time for bed anyway, hopefully they would forget he ever performed his most practiced song that badly. The laid down on the floor and practiced their singing some more.

A few hours later they ate some troll pancreas and practiced a song called "The Azure Tones" Latugdur picked the song specifically because according to rules you could have up to 6 singers. They practiced the song for the rest of the day until night came. Then slowly one by one they began to fall asleep. Hours later they were all fast asleep, not a peep to be heard.

Morning came and they quietly got up and walked outside into the daylight. The sun stung their eyes after a long sleep and many shielded their eyes until they adjusted. It suddenly began to get cloudy and rained. They decided to eat inside. After they ate and drank their fill they headed back out into the rain. There was no time to delay after all. There was only one stop along the way to the north, a shrine. They would have to make it to the shrine without resting, it was too dangerous to stop and sleep in the wilds. They left the jungle and entered some hilly area. checking the map Latugdur discovered these were "The Prime Hills". They crossed two rivers and stopped for another meal along the way. Some creatures would pass them by like elk and ravens. They went to cross a third river, there was an alligator there. The Uruks charged and began beating the alligator to no effect but bruises. Bagroqu with his strong arms hit the alligator in the head knocking it unconscious. Erab used his mithril axe and cut off the head. Then the Uruks charged after two more alligators in the water. The fools could not swim well but swam up the gators anyway. The fists flew and the alligators were killed in no time. Erab had to be pulled from the river before he drown. No one else came close to dying or was injured. Latugdur was impressed. They continued through the hills until they came to a river that went three ways. They decided to cross to the north and avoid this river altogether. They walked north and encountered some wren people, they seemed neutral at first, not really taking an interest in the group. Then one said "Hello" and the others began to get agitated as the group neared. "I attacked me. It was inevitable" one of the wren people said and the rest laughed. They didn't attack but it seemed they did not like the presence of the orcs. They were in melee range and nothing was happening. They passed them without incident. The hit two other groups of beast people wild boar people and sparrow people. Both showed interest in the group though neither attacked. They went further north through the hills until they got hungry and thirsty. They had a meal just north of a frozen river, more troll pancreas and water entered their mouths and they picked some nearby strawberry plants and ate some strawberries too. That was the most varied meal they had in days. They would go non-stop to the shrine no matter how tired they got. They picked up their belongings and headed north. The day broke and they had another meal, you can guess what they ate. The traveled a little more and found the shrine. There was one problem though, Latugdur had not known what the shrine was for exactly and came to realize his mistake. He saw a Titan made of shell opal in the shape of a stegosaurid. Strangely it emanated an aura of giving and kindness while it ran full speed towards them to kill them. It seemed they had no choice. They could flee but it would make no difference this creature would not tire while chasing them. Latugdur did not even know how this creature moved without cracking the shell opal it was made from. "Well I hope you all make it, we're going in to beat a titan to death with out bare hands." Latugdur said as he charged the titan. The beginning of the fight was almost comical. Several Uruks beating on stegosaurid made of shell opal. Their fists just bounced off the creature, though it seemed the enemy wasn't hitting anyone yet as all the Uruks so far dodged the attacks. After several more attacks the titan bit off some of Bugh's teeth. Latugdur quickly drew his claws to damage the creature and hopefully save the others from the horrors of a toothless head. Latugdur slashed the titan in the upper body, causing the opal to fracture. Erab was in trouble the creature knocked him to the ground, the titan bit his leg, which collapsed under the force. Erab screamed in pain. Latugdur rushed to help his friend. He hit the titan so hard it actually moved away from Erab but the damage was done. Erab was bleeding all over, he looked pale and the bleeding didn't seem to slow. Latugdur fought off the titan and pushed it away from Erab. The other orcs surrounded the titan and smacked it over and over again to no effect. Erab stopped breathing suddenly and was gone. Latugdur entered a frenzy like he had never entered before, he would kill this thing now no matter the cost. His oldest traveling friend had died and the titan was his enemy until he was dead or it was dead. Bagroqu and Alatuul took a hit the head one after the other and were dead. This did not deter Latugdur, he would finish this. He attacked very quickly and chipped away at the titans legs and feet hoping to disable the creature. The creatures legs began to show signs of extreme wear but it still stood. He attacked several more times as the other orcs attacks bounced off the creature. Then a lucky break, the creatures right front foot came off. Though it still stood it seemed much less fearsome with the knowledge it could be beaten. Uzgash was struck in the head and killed. The orcs began to retreat having lost so many of their comrades. Latugdur and Azguuk remained fighting the titan. Latugdur landed an unusually strong blow to the upper body of the titan and it shattered in half and stopped moving.

There were only 4 of them left now. The titan had killed half the group. Bugh had a mangled upper lip, some missing teeth and his body was mangled a bit, Azguuk was the only one not injured besides Latugdur, Azguuruk was bleeding from the torso. They tended to each others wounds and tried to apply pressure to stop the bleeding. Latugdur wept a little for his friends that now lay on the ground lifeless. He was the one who led them into this, he should have known this shrine would contain a titan. They had certainly earned their rest though. Latugdur grabbed Erab's axe and shield and awarded them to Azguuk as a prize for being so stalwart and remaining uninjured. Then they left into the prairie that surrounded the shrine. They were beginning to get very tired and stopped. The last meal of the day was a solemn and sad one. They had lost 4 people today, they ate their meal through the tears and anger that came. Azguuk was troubled "How did you not know a titan was there? That's what most shrines in the middle of nowhere are for" he glassy look in his eyes as if it was too much to bear. "I've never heard of these shrines until I got a map, I can only promise it will never happen again" Latugdur's mistake had cost much. He would need to find new companions in the north now. They made camp for the night as there were no hamlets around for many many leagues. They hoped there were no bogeymen tonight. They drifted off and were sound asleep until dawn. They awoke, ate their morning meal, heated up some water and were on their way north again. They traveled north for many hours coming to a river and stopping for lunch. Just south of a bend in the river they ate more troll pancreas. Yesterdays events were still fresh in their minds. Even in his failing he had gained some renown. "How does Latugdur the titan slayer sound?" asked Azguuk "We will be known throughout the land once we as a troupe begin to tell this story" Latugdur paused and continued "We must never let their deaths be forgotten, it is all we can do now". "May we never do something like that again" said Bugh. They all nodded in agreement and finished their troll pancreas. They headed north and crossed 3 rivers by the time they had their next meal. Just as the sun was setting they settled down for the night. They were in the far northern part of "The Prime Hills". The were about to cross a river when Bugh collapsed to the ground. They knew the titan had injured his lung from the labored breathing. They would have to let him go when they reached the first northern hamlet. His days as an adventurer were done if he suddenly collapsed sometimes. They were all tired and decided to set up camp around Bugh to keep him safe. They rested for the night and watched Bugh in his unconscious state. Hopefully he could move again and they would be off in the morning.

Fleeting Frames · « **Reply #200 on:** December 07, 2016, 10:17:27 am »

So, let me get it straight: You slaughtered wildlife, then you looted a hamlet where you were welcomed, then performed home invasion and killed the protesting and fleeing inhabitants.

Then you killed wildlife again.

And you say to be seeking criminals?
Well, I know where to find one.

Arcturus · « **Reply #201 on:** December 21, 2016, 06:55:25 am »

Quote from: Fleeting Frames on December 07, 2016, 10:17:27 am

So, let me get it straight: You slaughtered wildlife, then you looted a hamlet where you were welcomed, then performed home invasion and killed the protesting and fleeing inhabitants.

Then you killed wildlife again.

And you say to be seeking criminals?
Well, I know where to find one.

It's not my fault I needed leather, the shop was abandoned and they attacked me when I went to the home. You can never trust a goblin. I did however beat fleeing foes to death. Have to kill all the criminals to win.

Arcturus · « **Reply #202 on:** December 26, 2016, 05:05:50 pm »

The Tale Of
Latugdur Stoneskin
Part 3

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

They awoke to birds chirping and the sun peeking out over the horizon. Latugdur looked over at Bugh who seemed well rested and alert. They ate a meal and continued the journey north until they came to a river. They were about to cross when a pack of giant coyotes attacked. Latugdur charged and attacked the nearest coyote. He punched it unconscious but by that time the orcs had taken some biting damage. He hoped this was not another day of death. He drew his claws and readied himself, the next strike pierced the lungs of a coyote. Bugh and Azguuk were knocked over, it didn't look good there were simply too many of them. Bugh was being bitten all over the place, it was a wonder he wasn't torn apart already. The coyotes tore out Bugh's tongue and proceeded to rip him apart before the other orcs could help. Bugh was now part of the landscape and the coyotes continued their attack. Latugdur slashed left and right but it was no use. The coyotes slowly ripped his two remaining friends into several pieces. His rage reached new heights as Azguuk's last words were "I must withdraw!". He fought back the tears and charged forward hoping for death. He slashed open one of the coyote's stomach and the guts spilled forth. He hacked the next one in the head and it came off. The smell was awful as he stepped on the reeking guts and delivered a killing blow to the creatures upper body sending halves of the coyote opposite directions. The third coyote was killed in two hits, one of which collapsed a lung and the other shattered the head. A trail of blood led Latugdur to another coyote and he finished it off with a strike to the head. Everything else but him that had entered the fight was dead. Azguuk, Bugh and Azguuruk were corpses now. He was all alone.

He picked up the mithril axe and tungsten shield from Azguuk's corpse and put them in his pig tail backpack. He moved silently and sadly north. When he came upon a giant weasel he tore it apart in anger. He lopped off it's feet and killed it with a blow to the head. This brutal act did nothing to make him feel better in the end. He looked at the ground with a grim expression. The faces of his friends came back to him in his mind. Even though they had not known each other very long he still felt much grief at their passing. He vowed to never let something like this happen again. He was all alone far from any town, he would have to walk the path without rest. It was said the bogeymen appear most when a traveler is alone and asleep at night. He looked at the map and was happy to leave all this death behind. He crossed another river as it started to rain, through "The Prime Hills" he went. He started to hallucinate in his sleep deprived state, his friends were walking with him, the animals were speaking to him. Every bird was singing a song about death. The night came as he neared the hamlet on the map. The shadow of Azguuk spoke to him "You are in danger friend, the bogeymen are coming".

Just then he heard an incessant cackling as the shadows of the hills came alive. He thought perhaps this wasn't real and his tired mind was making another apparition. The shadow struck out and hit in the boot. He attacked and slashed open the torso where the lung should be. Were these bogeymen? Several other shadows leapt up from nowhere and took form as horned beings. This was it, he would fight his way out. The attacks were deflected by his mithril armor, he couldn't seem to dodge them well. These things moved faster than most things he had seen. Latugdur bit one of them in the throat and collapsed it. The bogeyman struggled for air and fell to the floor. He tore off another bogeyman's leg with his teeth. The two bogeymen on the ground made the other bogeyman a little hesitant in their actions and he gained the advantage. He slashed the bogeyman in the upper body opening an artery. He took many hits to his armor as the several bogeymen attacked him but he did not give up hope. One of the bogeyman bit him the upper lip, causing Latugdur to bleed. He struck out and crippled three bogeymen one after the other. They fell and still chased after him by crawling. These were persistent monsters. The remaining bogeymen chased after Latugdur as he dodged some attacks. He slashed and spilled some guts and with another slash a bogeyman's head came off. There were only three left in pursuit of him. He doubled back and attacked them. He slashed apart an arm and jumped away from an attack. The bogeyman bit him in the gums and his upper left back teeth came out. He slashed and took many hits to his armor over and over they would hit his gauntlets and boots. He slashed them as they came close and backed off when they overwhelmed him. He finally saw from bleed out from it's injuries and there were only two left. He got bit in the ear and slashed another bogeyman to death. The bogeyman that was on the ground began to float above him. He slashed at it in the air and tore apart it's limbs until it bled out. The cackling faded and Latugdur was bleeding from every uncovered part of himself. Tired and drowsy he sat down and caught his breath. Now the night feared him.

He made his way to the hamlet before he let himself rest. As he entered town he felt uneasy and began to notice the goblins that had just surrounded him. It looked like a fight. He drew his claws as they closed and determined not be surrounded charged to the southwest. The goblin was not looking for a fight though. Puzzled he looked as the goblins charged a home and sounds of fighting came from inside. Latugdur decided to push his luck and follow the goblins. Inside they were attacking an orc. Not knowing what the orc had done he charged and stabbed a goblin spearman with his claws. He shattered the criminal's ribs and he knew he would have to fight the goblins just outside. Latugdur ripped the criminal as he missed him with his spear. The attack broke the goblins arm but he seemed hell bent on attacking the orc spinner. He finally hit in the head with his claws and the goblin yelped and then breathed no more. He went outside but the other goblins had moved on to their next target. Only one goblin swordsman remained around a corner. Latugdur slashed him in the upper body and broke his ribs while ripping into his lung. His next strike was parried but he followed up with strike to the goblins left hand which held a short sword. Latugdur crippled the goblin's hand and he dropped the sword. The fight would be easy from here. He pushed off from the goblin and mantained possession of his claws. Latugdur then stabbed him in the upper body bruising his internal organs. The goblin attacked with a shield and Latugdur parried the attack deftly. He bit into the goblins lower body and shook him around, after a couple times the goblin went pale and passed away. A goblin pikeman appeared in the distance and Latugdur ran at him letting out a battle cry. The goblin nonetheless looked unprepared for the moment Latugdur stuck his left claw in his gut. The goblin retched as Latugdur came up with his claws and slashed his head off. He only noticed after the goblin was dead that he had said "I yield", it was no matter though Latugdur did not allow his enemies to surrender. He went back to the house and found a goblin hammerman. As soon as the goblin hammerman saw a blood soaked and stone skinned Orcish warrior he ran with his hammer as fast as he could. Latugdur was too tired to chase him despite the thrill another fight would bring. He went into the nearest house and fell to the floor. It had been two days since he slept and he had gotten into three fights during that time. He couldn't keep awake anymore and passed out. Someone woke him not long after and he asked to stay for the day. "Most certainly, you're already here so try not to get any more blood on the floor". He thanked the stranger and passed out again.

Latugdur awoke in the southern tip of the town. He was still a little drowsy and fell back asleep for another 8 hours. The second time he woke up he felt alert and fresh once more. His quick Olog healing had helped him recover from all the wounds he had accumulated in the previous day's fights. There was some scar tissue and scabs but everything had retained it's shape. Now both the upper back rows of teeth were gone but he would press forward.

Time to get a new troupe. He started from the house he was in. Everyone else had gone into another part of the house. He opened the door to this second part and found one Uruk and two regular orcs there. He would win this Uruk to his side. "Greetings I am Latugdur, adventurer and story teller." The Uruk responded "I'm Latak, nice to meet you". Latugdur got straight to the point "Would you join my troupe, we could use a strong Uruk like yourself to guard us on the road" Latak thought about this for a moment and said "Show me you have talent". Latugdur told the story of Alatuuls death at the hands of a mountain titan. He did a poor job of it, but this was his first time telling a story. He stumbled over many details. In the end the Latak was not convinced Layugdur had what it took to be a bard. "Tell me a better story, that one was awful" Latak said with clear disdain. He decided the story of how Agradbug the dreamwalker became the high umbra of his home town. He missed less detail this time and told of how the orc had gotten drunk and married the clanleaders sister. The position of high umbra was bestowed as a wedding gift even though he later regretted marrying such an attention seeking and needy orc. Once the performance was concluded Latak agreed to travel with him. He went to another house and sang "Brews And Nothing More" this convinced another Uruk to join him, his name was Srithmog. Two more joined him in the next house Azguuruk and Bolugd. Then onto the next house 1 Uruk joined him named Burzump. Others by the names of Urb and Guurguul joined him in the house to the east. They now had a full force of 8 including Latugdur.

He would not make the mistake he made last time, this time he would arm the Uruks. They headed to the local town hall to collect metal weapons and armor. The clanleader was sitting in the main hall having a cup of wine clearly very drunk. He didn't even notice as they entered, his back was to the door and he was wobbly. "Excuse me could we look at your armory?" asked Latugdur slowly and loudly. The clanleader turned around and nearly went sideways doing so. "Shhure haav a luuk, takke whut yuw neeed" said the clanleader in his drunken haze and then promptly fell to the floor and started snoring. They tried to ignore what they had just seen and moved on to gather as much metal as they could. The armory had a huge stockpile of weapons and armor. They grabbed anything that was made of iron or a stronger metal. Latugdur had left the forging pit he previously made far in the south. He would have to make a new one and get to equipping his Uruks with what he could find and making what he could not find. Latugdur set the load of metal armor and weapons on the ground in the main hall. He went outside and collected all the rock and leaves he needed. He shortly returned with many peach leaves and stones forming a bundle in his arms he set these on the ground and made his forging pit, rasped sticks from the leaves and made a stone mallet with a stick and a stone. Setting all this on the ground he began to sort through what armor and weapons would stay as is and what would be broken down into metal chunks. All the caps were set aside, all the chain leggings and the picks that had found their way into the armory. He also put aside the claws he had found these would be broken down because he didn't want anyone else to have his signature weapons. The rest of the equipment he passed to the Uruks. Guurguul got first pick because he was the strongest of the Uruks, Latugdur gave him mostly tungsten equipment. Breastplates were in short supply as well as mail shirts and boots. He broke down the mostly bloodsteel equipment and began to forge some mail shirts and boots, he would need leather for the breastplates. He finished passing around everything and they were also short on greaves but he could make none because they also needed leather. They were short a pair or two of gauntlets as well.

With his newly equipped fighting force he went back to the hamlet as it was night. They entered the north part of town and entered a house where everyone was asleep. The rain outside prevented them from resting there. They quietly ate a meal without waking their unsuspecting hosts. The moment they were about to go to sleep someone hopped up from the floor and said "Can I help you with something?" Latugdur asked "May we stay the night? It's raining outside" the architect responded "please be quiet and no drunkenness and I will allow it" Latugdur nodded in agreement and laid down. They all drifted off to sleep shortly after.

The new day came and the sun crept out from the horizon once again. Latugdur awoke and stretched, everyone else was already outside. He went to the door and exited the house. Outside they were having a discussion "I'm kinda scared of that place, I have no idea what that wizard does there" Latak said "We can go check it out anyway, I think that wizard gets lonely and maybe he has a good book to read" Urb said adventurously. Latugdur walked into the circle the group had formed. "What's all this then?" He asked and furrowed his brow. "There's a tower we've all heard about with a wizard in it, we want to see what's in there besides the wizard" Urb said. Latugdur thought about it for a minute, his long silence was met with looks of confusion. The cogs began to turn in his head and he came to the realization he could learn a couple magical spells from this wizard. This decided it "Let's go, but first we eat" said Latugdur breaking out the troll pancreas, they were going to learn to like it. They drank and ate, during the meal Latugdur asked "So where is this tower?" after some muffled discussion among the group they came up with "To the northeast, across a large desert". Just what Latugdur need another trip through a desert with all the sand. "Alright let's be off" said Latugdur and they quickly finished the meal and began the trip northeast. Their group was headed for excitement and glory.

They headed through a forest simply called "The Ancient Forest" until they hit a desert called "The Lone Dune". They stopped at a river in the desert to fill up on water and have something to drink. They passed scorpions and camels on their way to the tower. After crossing for nearly a day they finally hit some hilly area called "The Hill Of Knights". Near they found a town that the Uruks called "Nightmarecrushed". They stopped in the northern part of town. They decided to sleep outside near the well. The soft ground of the steppes seemed better than a wooden floor. Drifting off to sleep they heard few noises but the orcs snoring in the nearby house. They awoke in the morning and had breakfast by the well. They ate their troll pancreas another time, it was sour but made a good ration for these long trips as it was preserved with the best orcish techniques. They stopped to ask directions "We have just come from 'Dungeongripped' what way is the wizard's tower?" said Latugdur "You want to go there? That's a necromancer's tower you know. It's back the way you came it's southeast of here, slaying that necromancer would be a big help he attacks with his minions sometimes" said the friendly and concerned executioner. "Alright we will make sure his head is removed" Latugdur said with bravado.

They went to the southeast and back across the river. They quickly found the tower and approached slowly. When they rounded the corner trying to find the entrance a walking corpse of a snake woman attacked them. Latugdur punched the corpse but surprisingly did not break any bones, it was hardened like no living thing. The corpse attacked and Latugdur jumped away as 4 more corpses rounded the corner.

Latugdur drew his claws, it was time to cut off some heads. Latugdur charged as Burzump smacked the corpse in the right upper arm to no effect. He was right next to the corpse and was about to strike when the corpse and Burzump exchanged blows. The shot was blocked by Burzump and he followed up with a bash to the head with only bruising. These things seemed tough, good training for the new warriors. With a slash to the neck the corpse was dead for a second time. Latugdur decided to let the new warriors battle the corpses. The outnumbered them and they needed the practice. Very clearly the reason Burzump could not kill the corpse is because of his inexperience, not the make of the maul. The battle really got off to a good start, the two forces met and limbs were flying off the corpses. Two corpse were struck down with half a minute. There seemed to be more corpses around the corner though and the battle went on as Latugdur stared on. Several minutes went by and the group seemed to be doing well. They had taken so many hands and feet off Latugdur had lost count. There were too many corpses though and Latak had just been knocked unconscious by a bite to the head. Latugdur rushed to his aide. With a slash he removed an enemy corpse's head that had bitten and latched on to Latak's head. The rest of the Uruks joined Latugdur and they fought off the now 20 enemies. Left and right the group would remove limbs and heads and pierce deep into enemy flesh. Burzump's foot was injured and he fell, Latugdur regretted not fully armoring his troupe. Latugdur dug his claws deep into the enemy and slashed off a two hands. Then he slashed off an elf corpse head, looking around there were still more enemies than he ever encountered at any single point in time. With a kick Latugdur sent a limb sailing, he paused at the unexpected reaction from the tissue of the fat elf corpse. The battle went on for several more minutes as the group began to accumulate injuries. Urb was knocked unconscious by a bite to the head. Just then an orc corpse armed with a halberd rounded the corner. It looked fearsome and the zombies strangely seemed to bow to it as it passed. This was their best warrior or something? It hacked Burzump in the right leg and the halberd struck deep. Latugdur rushed to his aide and stabbed the corpse in the chest, then the lower body, then the leg twice and it finally fell over. The rest of the zombies were easy prey and Latugdur slashed and stabbed his way through the remaining 7. When all had fell it was truly a sight to behold, there were bodies piled up everywhere. Not a single Uruk in his troupe had died and all except Bolugd and Burzump seemed to be able to stand.

Latugdur decided they were still OK to fight whatever else was in that tower. There would be be more blood today. He ran up the hill and opened the door. Inside he quickly saw a necromancer on the level below. It screamed "You have destroyed my precious creations!" and went for the stairs near Latugdur. He charged and met the necromancer's apprentice who was a dwarf. Latugdur slashed off the dwarf's thumb and the dwarf cried in pain. Latugdur cut his head off with the next motion of his claws. The corpse and it's head began to move again as the helmet snake woman necromancer made a gesture from the opening of the stairs. Latugdur easily shattered the moving head's skull and it ceased to move. He slashed the corpse in half as it struck out at him and missed. Suddenly Latugdur was knocked off the higher area and fell to the level below. He realized the revived corpse he had just slain pushed him. The helmet snake woman necromancer fell too and Latugdur got up and slashed her hand off. Just then there was a movement as the helmet name woman cried out for help. Several other necromancers came into view and te true battle was on. There were two orc necromancers that were torn apart by the Uruks in under a half minute their body parts came to life as the other necromancers gestured. Latugdur dug his blades into an olm man necromancer and he went down quickly after when Urb hacked him with his great axe in the neck. The Uruks were getting better at this, before Latugdur knew it the enemies were down for the count. Latugdur entered a northern room on the lower level and found a necromancer guarding a table. Latugdur slashed the necromancer and dug a little into it's flesh. The necromancer attacked but missed as the Uruks piled in and beat the necromancer to death. Latugdur was impressed they were all still breathing and standing. He looked over the books, an idea had come to him, he would try to discover the secret to eternal life. He wouldn't of course raise any corpses but he would certainly preserve his own life. He found a tablet titled "Seduce Thief" that said it had the secrets to life and death. He wouldn't read it yet, that would be for another time and place. He took the tablet and put it in his backpack. They found some orichalcum armor and he passed it out among the Uruks to make up for their lack of armor in some places. They quietly went up the stairs and out the front door.

They needed to rest from their injuries, so they went across the river and back to the hamlet. The hall was to the east of the hamlet. They met with the clanleader in the main hall. There didn't appear to be any other rooms but the main hall so they skipped the part about asking to see the armory. "Hello I am Latugdur Stoneskin The Rhyming Satins" Latugdur said "Ah, hello. I'm Snazguul Menacecalled." the clanleader said with a curious look at the injured Uruks. "We have just rid you of that necromancer in the tower to the southeast." Latugdur said with pride "That's wonderful news, I would give you a gift but as you can see I am a little short on possessions". "May we stay the night though, I want a nap after that battle" Latugdur said with a sigh "Of course my hall is your hall tonight" Snazguul said with a smile. They all laid on the floor bereft of energy. Bolugd and Burzump still could not walk. Latugdur went over to them saying "I'm sorry but you two are going to have to leave, we can't travel the wilds with you crawling behind us the whole time I'm sorry" They both looked deeply saddened but understood and said in unison "it's for the best then." "We'll just go back to dungeongripped on a wagon or something" said Burzump. They hung around for a while and seemed to be resting when Latugdur finally fell asleep.

By they time the rest of the troupe had fallen asleep and awoken they were gone. At least they got to keep their equipment. The dawn sunlight peeked in from the door and the troupe wondered where to go next. "It is time to go take care of some bandits that have been plaguing the eastern settlements" Latugdur said in a stern voice. "Let's follow the mountain all the way that would be easiest" said Urb. The others nodded in agreement and followed Latugdur out of town to the east and towards a mountain called "The Fenced Horn". They made it to the western part of the mountain and followed the mountain south through the desert. They hit several rivers and crossed them until they hit the northern part of"The Prime Hills". They then followed the mountain east a little and stopped for lunch. They had the usual troll pancreas and water. The birds chirped and sun shone, Latugdur felt lucky to have made it this far despite all the dangers. His relaxation reached a new height as he lay in the sunlight. His mind suddenly turned to the friends he had lost along the way. Everyone that had died fighting the titan. A tear streamed down his cheek as he remembered Erab, he still missed his oldest travelling companion. He hoped to see him once again when his time in this world was done. The troupe finished their meal and headed to the east until sundown. They ate another meal and had no choice but to sleep in "The Desert Of Liberties". They laid down in the sand and lit a fire to ward off animals. Latak looked a little scared and said "do you think the fire will keep away the scorpions? Are you sure they aren't attracted to heat?" everyone reassured him it would keep the scorpions away and Urb called him "a baby". They soon fell asleep in their drowsy state. The dawn light woke them all as the sun made it's daily trip from east to west. They got their gear together and Latak looked more peaceful now that he wasn't laying in the sand where the scorpions could get him. They ate a meal of the finest troll pancreas within a dozen leagues.

They continued the trip east. They eventually entered a plain after crossing three rivers. Then crossed several more before lunch, as they came to a river they sat down and ate another meal. This was now the finest troll pancreas within dozens of leagues. They filled up their water skins and set out again crossing several other rivers through "The Curled Plain" as the Uruks called it. Nothing but plain as they came to a stop for dinner. Once again they sat on the plain and heard the birds chirp and the weasels scurry as they ate their meal. This was the simple life Latugdur though to himself. Nothing to worry about, no necromancers to behead or titans to slay. He began to like these peaceful moments when no one was dying or getting injured. He still wanted to fight, but a nice break was nice now and again. They entered a hilly area by nightfall, tired from all th travelling they quickly fell asleep as they laid down. "Well at least it's not a desert with scorpions" Latak said with relief and shortly after went into a coma-like state. When Latugdur awoke there was shouting "You must yield!" Srithmog said to Azguuruk "Never" replied the female Uruk. "Stop this fighting now!" Latugdur yelled and they came to a stop. "What is going on?" Latugdur asked with immense disdain for this situation. "He thinks I'm ugly I hate him" Azguuruk said with her halberd drawn, "she made advances I did not appreciate, so I let her know I had no interest in her" Srithmog said. "Srithmog apologize for not letting the girl down easy, she is clearly upset" Latugdur said trying to sort out the problem. "My apologies, I did not mean to offend you" Srithmog said with a sigh. Azguuruk scowled and put her weapon away "I was only hurt you turned me down, I took it to mean you thought I was ugly" Azguuruk said slowly lowering her tone of voice until it was a mere whisper. Her eyes glazed a little and she slouched. The whole group breathed a sigh of relief, the last thing they needed was infighting. "Let's just get out of here, the dawn has come and we have work to do" Latugdur headed northeast towards the edge of a forest. The group followed and they came to a river shortly after. After crossing they saw a hamlet in the distance. They decided not to go into the hamlet and stayed south of the houses. They headed further east and came to what looked like the beginnings of a "dark pit" as they called goblin settlements. Dark pit's usually had many tunnels and they might have been in danger just by being near one. They headed north and came to a river. They sat and ate another meal at the edge of the river. The sunlight was reflecting off of the water and the river was almost blinding. The bird continued their songs and flocks of them could be seen overhead. They continued on their journey and crossed the river. The came to a mire and traveled east through it. They came again to a forest and found an elven village. They decided to stop here for the night. They set up camp just below a tree house for safety. The bogeymen would not get them. They fell asleep and slept soundly until dawn.

The new day came quickly in the elven forest retreat. Time itself seemed to pass quickly, as if time itself seemed less tedious and more flowing here. The shining sun, chirping birds and even crawling insects seemed more colorful than usual. They ate their meal with more laughter than usual. There was certainly something in the air. The time came to pack up and leave but Azguuruk wanted to stay for longer. "Can't we just stay here a day? Can those bandits wait for us to show up before robbing anyone else?" Azguuruk asked in a pleading manner. "We must reach the area as soon as possible, there are several groups of bandits in a small area" Latugdur said with a bit of a frown, he didn't really want to leave either but he had a mission. Azguuruk sighed and after another half hour she followed Latugdur away from the forest retreat. They headed northeast only to discover the path was blocked by a sea. They headed west a bit to get around it and head north from there. Just then a grizzly bear came stomping out of the woods looking for a meal. It charged them in a place called "The Simple Jungles", it was fighting time. Everyone drew their weapons. Srithmog was the first to the battle, he stabbed the bear in the leg causing the bone to crack. Everyone else was far behind Srithmog and he had time to stab the grizzly bear 4 times more twice in the legs, once in the upper body and once in the lower body. The bear was now on the ground and vomiting. Urb landed the killing blow by cutting the bear's head off. All was well now. They continued the trip to the west around the sea. On their way to cross a river they encountered some wolves and the group drew weapons and attacked. The wolves did not want to fight but the Uruks had other plans. They chased them down and easily killed them. They sat by the river and had a meal. The troll pancreas was especially good that day. After the meal they crossed the river and headed west along the coast until nightfall. They came to an area where two rivers joined and set up camp. The night was uneventful and they got a great deal of rest.

When morning came they ate their meal and headed out. To the west of where they camped they encountered another grizzly bear looking for meat. The bear immediately charged and attacked Azguuruk ripping her lower lip. Azguuruk stabbed the bear in the upper body, the creature had trouble breathing. Latugdur grabbed the bear by the leg and threw it, the bear skidded along the ground and nearly hit Azguuruk as it collided with the ground. Latugdur charged and punched the bear in the head knocking it out. Guurguul came in and stabbed it to death with his halberd.

They cleaned their weapons and headed north to a river and filled their water skins. After some time spent traveling further north they came to a town. A sign at the southern entrance of the walled town read "Strangledstoke". They went north along the road and saw a weird sight, a white tigerman was apparently a resident of the city. "Hello, could you point me towards the nearest tavern?" asked Latugdur "Certainly stranger it is 'The Olive Oats' to the west just northwest of the temple" said the white tigerman. They traveled through the bustling town passing merchant stalls filled with orcs and white tiger people. They traveled past the temple and looked in to see the high priest speaking with someone. When they finally came to the tavern a fight broke out and they could hear but not see the fighting. They made their way into the tavern to find a marksdwarf telling a story about a beast warden ascending to the position of queen. There were some tigermen, another dwarf and two goblin thieves in the bar. Overall it looked like a rough crowd with some scars. With his squad of well armed farmers he had nothing to fear though. He went over to a liquor barrel and scooped up some dwarven rum in a bag, he had taken the entire contents of one barrel and hoped no one would notice. Now he would earn the liquor he had just taken after the dwarf finished his story. The troupe prepared for a long performance. They went outside and began to practice "The Azure Tones" They got in a line and performed the song for no one to hear. Half of them were off key at first but it improved. As they were performing Latugdur realized where the sounds of fighting had come from the sewers, there was the corpse of an amphibian woman bleeding in the water. What a strange place Latugdur thought. After a pause the performance continued and one of the Uruks was actually singing well. During the performance a cat wandered in, head bumped and licked Srithmog. He petted the cat while singing his part. Half of them were singing more in key and Latugdur was pleased with their performance at this point. Then Latugdur himself began to sing sloppily along with two others. It seemed they weren't good singers after all. During the end of the performance a cat walked up and licked Guurguul on the shin. Guurguul smiled and continued to the very end. When the performance was concluded he pet the cat. "Well that's 'The Azure Tones' friends, it the only one I know where we can all sing it together" Latugdur said. The Uruks looked a little breathless at the length of the song but Latugdur gave them all some dwarven rum to make up for it. Latugdur peeked inside and saw the marksdwarf still telling a story. The troupe went back outside and practiced "The Azure Tones" a couple times more. Overall they sung OK and nearly equal amount of good and sloppy singing. During the performance they heard the goblins order two or three drinks. They seemed pretty drunk already from the slurred speech. They finally peeked in to find that no performance was going on. Latugdur walked into the middle of the tavern and said "Welcome friends me and my troupe will now perform a song called 'The Azure Tones' all of the lyrics will be improvised. The Uruks went to form a line and the goblins jumped up from their chairs and joined the performance. Latugdur got one line in before stopping the performance. "Please take a seat patrons, we shall perform" Latugdur said in a slightly annoyed tone. They backed up a little and began to perform the improvised music. They were not off to a good start half the Uruks were singing sloppily, must have been the rum Latugdur gave them. They did better on the next parts. By the time they finished the first part of the performance everyone was clapping. Now they sang "The Azure Tones" one more time. In the middle of the performance the two goblin thieves began to fight. There were many punches but few injuries except bruises. One the thieves lost some teeth from a well placed punch to the face. The performance concluded and goblins were still fighting each other. The troupe packed up and left before one the goblins was either unconscious or dead. Just as they exited one of the goblins hit the other in the stomach causing him to vomit.

The decided to visit the town castle to see the clanleader. They went to the northeast by heading north along the road then east along another road. They entered the siltstone castle and moved to the keep, inside they found everyone naked. "u-uhm who is the clanleader here?" asked Latugdur with nothing but disbelief at what he was seeing. The only one with clothing on was the dwarf bard. He could not determine rank by clothing in this situation. They even had a naked elf among them. "Hello, I am queen Bufut 'Sunkencrazes'. This servant of love greets you." said the very naked orc queen. Latugdur thought for a moment and realized this "servant of love" stuff explained the whole town. Blind love for the creatures of the earth led to a very cosmopolitan city of tigermen, snake and amphibian people. It also explained why they were naked a possible interpretation of love is in a sexual manner. The rest of the orcs entered and some jaws nearly hit the floor. The Uruks were completely speechless. "Oh hello I am a mountain king consort the name is Tode 'Seduceoozes', pleasure to meet you" said a naked goblin. A fitting name for a naked goblin. The Uruks still didn't know what to say. "This servant of love greets you. I am Aroz 'Rendpacks' another king consort" said a naked Uruk. The initial shock had worn off but they didn't stay long. After exchanging greetings they quickly headed for the door with Latugdur saying "We did not mean to disturb you, have a good day". They exited the building and looked at each other. Azguuruk giggled a little. Urb had a confused look on his face, Latak was rubbing his temples trying to comprehend what he had just seen. They made their way to the exit and out onto the road. From there they navigated the streets out of town and into the forest.

Fleeting Frames · « **Reply #203 on:** December 27, 2016, 02:48:07 am »

Weird wild animals, should have picked easier targets. Sucks to be you, sucks to be them.

Well, this is the gamist aspect of DF.

Now that you're alone and drowsy, time for a quick nap? Before the sun sets....

Arcturus · « **Reply #204 on:** December 27, 2016, 12:31:01 pm »

Quote from: Fleeting Frames on December 27, 2016, 02:48:07 am

Weird wild animals, should have picked easier targets. Sucks to be you, sucks to be them.

Well, this is the gamist aspect of DF.

Now that you're alone and drowsy, time for a quick nap? Before the sun sets....

I can't believe those animals were able to take down Uruks. If you look in the raws Uruks have awesome stats. I think they have 2.25x human stats for strength and toughness. Even unarmed they should have been able to take a few of those coyotes with them. Maybe I should have picked Ologs they have 3.5x human stats for strength and toughness and double thickness tissues.

Anyway I did not nap and encountered bogeymen anyway as the story tells. I thought I was done for but my armor saved me.

Fleeting Frames · « **Reply #205 on:** December 27, 2016, 01:40:42 pm »

Ah, you edited it in while I was reading or something.

Heh...Reminder - bogeyman are only bit larger than a hamster.

Bards wouldn't make a good choice, you'd think, but they still tend to have 3/1/1 military skills.

TheImmortalRyukan · « **Reply #206 on:** December 27, 2016, 09:10:10 pm »

I'm gonna re-read this, and catch up, since I haven't payed much attantion after my playthrough, then, I'm gonna conquer the world

Arcturus · « **Reply #207 on:** December 28, 2016, 04:48:24 pm »

Quote from: TheImmortalRyukan on December 27, 2016, 09:10:10 pm

I'm gonna re-read this, and catch up, since I haven't payed much attantion after my playthrough, then, I'm gonna conquer the world

Just ask for the save when you want it. I've been playing for two weeks because no one has asked for they save yet. I almost want to copy this save and keep writing about Latugdur's adventure in another thread. Anyway, as soon as you tell me to get the save ready I'll make sure you have it within 24 hours.

TheImmortalRyukan · « **Reply #208 on:** December 28, 2016, 05:11:14 pm »

You can pass it along if you want, and I'll take the reigns until the next sucker comes along...

Or we can move it to a new thread.... I can't help you with that one, I already run 1 or 2 and my plate is full.

So, start a new thread and let this one lie in peace, just be sure to include links to all of the relevant posts in this thread.

Arcturus · « **Reply #209 on:** December 28, 2016, 06:45:52 pm »

Quote from: TheImmortalRyukan on December 28, 2016, 05:11:14 pm

You can pass it along if you want, and I'll take the reigns until the next sucker comes along...

Or we can move it to a new thread.... I can't help you with that one, I already run 1 or 2 and my plate is full.

So, start a new thread and let this one lie in peace, just be sure to include links to all of the relevant posts in this thread.

I dunno I think I would rather start a new succession world altogether. This save is getting glitchy with me trying to use the newer version of masterwork. I don't really have time to start a new thread, I disappear for months at a time. I think it would be better though if Romomon 2 was made or something. Anyway I will post the save by tomorrow night.

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Author Topic: ☼Masterwork Mod☼ - Romomon, The Ageless Realms (Multi-race succession world) (Read 31208 times)

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