The half-elf looks on with interest and perhaps with more than a little concern, though whether it is for the fate of his companions or for the group's chances at winning the Trials and claiming the prize is anybody's guess. Taking a moment to address the guard with them without taking his eyes off of the ensuing fight, he asks, "You mentioned the Trial of Athleticism a few moments earlier, a... chase as you called it?"
His tone seems nonchalant, as he makes it a point to sound calm, collected, without worry. "Would you happen to know who chases whom, friend? Or were you simply referring to the Sargavan flag being the 'quarry', so to speak?"
Kieran winces inwardly as Qhude is struck and then once again entangled. 'Well, this is not going as well as it could be going,' he thinks to himself.
The guard just grins at Kieran's questions.
Sorry lad, under strict orders to give no hints as to the nature of the trials. The chase should be a lot of fun though. These morning events are brutal!
Round 4:
Qhude strains against the rope attempting to step back out of the big man's reach. Muscles bulge on his frame as he tries to force movement.
Strength check:
He then tries to ruin the second net beating at it with his cestus once more.
Sunder: for
Unsatisfied with that answer, Ansha clutches herself to one of the man's arms and leans in to breathe huskily into his ear, "Are you sure about that, sweetie? If you don't know anything more about the competitors, what about the competitions themselves?"
Round 4:
Qhude strains against the rope attempting to step back out of the big man's reach. Muscles bulge on his frame as he tries to force movement.
Strength check: 1d20+4
He then tries to ruin the second net beating at it with his cestus once more.
Sunder: 1d20+5-2+1 for 1d4+4
Tie, but Qhude wins out based on greater strength mod.
Struggling, Qhude manages to drag out the rope from under the mans straining hands, promptly breaking another net and freeing himself once more.
Unsatisfied with that answer, Ansha clutches herself to one of the man's arms and leans in to breathe huskily into his ear, "Are you sure about that, sweetie? If you don't know anything more about the competitors, what about the competitions themselves?"
Will save success
I'm sorry ma'am, I must not say more he repeats stubbornly, although he doesn't seem to mind the attractive elf's embrace.
After the second net falls to the ground Qhude looks up and smiles "Do you always fight like a coward little boy? Or are you not man enough to face me."
Well, that didn't work. Maybe he's not interested in women... Deciding not to push the issue, she instead turns to pouting as they walk into the arena's spectator stands just in time to see Qhude tear up another net. Smiling at Kieran and Jakob, she asks lightheartedly, "So how are the dour one and the short one doing?"
"Well," Kieran starts, taking a moment to return the elf's smile, "the first battle went quite well. Some minor injury, but with Qhude downing one opponent and Picklebeard causing the other to fall asleep, it did not last very long."
"This one, however, could be going a little better. Were I a betting man..." He pauses to look at the guard with them before sighing softly and continuing, "Which I am, so better to say, were certain individuals allowed to bet, it would be perhaps more prudent to wager against our friends rather than in their favor. At least, judging from the way the fight is going at the moment, anyway."
"Still, things might very well change," he adds with a shrug.
"CURSE YE!"
Picklebeard stares down the big men from where he is standing, causing him to have bad luck and stumble when he needs to be strong.
Picklebeard, after seeing Qhude take some major hits is unsure if his tricks are enough and if he should bring some wooden-stick-justice to these nincompoops.
The huge man seems to resist Picklebeard's curse, although his movements do seem clumsier for several seconds. Looking at Picklebeard with unease, the man takes the opportunity to rush the Dwarf, charging in with his trident held out before him- plunging the prongs into Picklebeard's chest. The Dwarf appears entirely unharmed by the blow, but he can feel the magical vitality placed upon him by the official strained almost to breaking point.
Visibly red with anger at Qhude's taunt, the lean man pulls his battleaxe from his shoulder scabbard and moves into melee with Qhude, maneuvering to seperate the two melee and leading with a cunning reverse flourish of the weapon that catches Qhude off guard. The barbarian is able to sway aside from the brunt of the blow and his armour absorbs the glancing hit. The fight is clearly a fairly close match at the moment and the crowd have mostly quietened in anticipation of the next strike.
Miss (barely)
Init-
Picklebeard- 13
Qhude- 11
Huge Human- 4
Lean Human- 3
Map-
Map Link
Tebati winces slightly as they step into the arena; the contrast between what she knows should be a very loud crowd and the silence ringing in her ears is disorienting. She stays close to N'bellocq's side, trusting him to serve as her ears and warn her in case of the unexpected. Looking down into the arena, she sees Qhude and the strange dwarf facing off against a couple of colonials. Qhude seems to have just broken free from a man-sized net, while the dwarf is ... standing still and glaring? Does he think he can intimidate the other team into surrendering? She shakes her head in dismay. If only her cousin and she had met up with the Mwangi team before casting their lot in with this strange crew. Well, if the dwarf dies and their team still manages to win the contest, perhaps they can recruit the Kalabuta to take his place....
Round 5:
Pleased that the tsotsi has finally decided to match arms, Qhude looks for an opening to exploit. Relaxing his stance for a moment to draw the man off balance he then explodes with a wickedly strong strike to the kidneys.
Power attack cestus: for
Round 1:
"Bah" Picklebeard returns with a blow from his staff.
It hits the armor of the big man with a thud that does no damage.
Picklebeard gulps.
Qhude's strike slams into the lean man, but the magic protecting him fully absorbs the impact. Meanwhile, Picklebeard's duel is going badly for him, the big man simply ducking underneath the Dwarf's quarterstaff strike and returning with a quick jab to Picklebeard's leg with the trident, diminishing the temporary vitality granted to him via the aid spell.
Hit vs Picklebeard
Qhude's opponent, perhaps unsettled by the power of the tribeman's blow, fumbles with his battleaxe, making a reckless swing in panic that completely misses.
Init-
Picklebeard- 13
Qhude- 11
Huge Human- 4
Lean Human- 3
Map-
As above.
Round 6:
Qhude's grin widens at his opponents failure and his success. I have your measure he thinks as he seeks to press the advantage. Waiting for the battleaxe to swing a fraction wide, he steps inside the arc - delivering a stinging uppercut into the lean man's chest and throwing in a headbutt for good measure.
Power attack cestus: for
Crit confirm:
Disengaging from his opponent and dancing back into fighting stance, he laughs at him derisively.
"Well, well, well...," Kieran mutters with a smile, a silver coin dancing between his fingers as he watches the fight with renewed interest. "Perhaps the tide of battle will indeed change after all."
"I do so enjoy a good show," he remarks turning to the rest of his companions. "Would you not agree? Although I must say, it would all be so much better if I had a nice cup of even nicer wine in hand. Perhaps even a beautiful, sufficiently infatuated girl by my side." He sighs softly, seemingly lost in thought and daydreams for a moment or two before his attention returns to the duel between the two pairs in the arena.
HISSSS
While the big man lunged down at Picklebeard, Verithrex seized the opportunity by jumping on the big man and scurrying to an unexposed fleshy neck area he bites down as hard as he can into the man's neck with a quick chomp. He scurries and is eagerly ready to dodge any attempt to dislodge him.
Seeing his lizard nibble into the big man, he uses the opportunity to strike hard into the nuts of the big man with his quarterstaff. Beating his trunk-like legs and arms won't get him anywhere.
He jabs with his staff but the big man is wise and sees the attack coming. He deflects the shot and his staff just hits the meaty trunk legs harmlessly.
Qhude's uppercut lands firmly under his opponents chin, snapping his head back and severely wounding him. Although he still stands, it is clear the magic vitality coursing through him has long been spent. Meanwhile, Picklebeard continues to attack ineffectively, his familiar having more luck- managing to find an exposed piece of flesh and biting on it.
Ignoring the irritation on his neck, the big man takes a step away from Picklebeard and hurls his trident at him, the weapon imbedding itself in Picklebeard's flesh.
The other duel seems to be going much worse for the bounty hunters. Reeling in pain from Qhude's blow, the lean man has lost his confidence and swings with little skill, discouraged by his inability to land a hit on Qhude.
Init-
Picklebeard- 13
Qhude- 11
Huge Human- 4
Lean Human- 3
Map-
As above.
Round 7:
Knowing that he has the ascendancy, Qhude mercilessly presses the attack. Attempting to foul the opponent's axe with his free hand and battering at the man's upper body with his cestus.
Cestus Power Attack: for
But his strikes are for naught as his opponent easily weaves out of the way. He taunts the man "Stay still tsotsi, your nursemaid is calling for you - it's time to sleep"
1 point of non-lethal
Picklebeard bites his teeth at the pain and proceeds to take a 5ft step back and eye the big man down.
Drawing a flail from his belt, the big man steps in and smacks the weakening Picklebeard's chest with the wicked weapon, the iron balls slamming into the Dwarf and stabbing him with nasty spikes.
Qhude's foe finds a second wind, inspired by Qhude's own miss and snarling at his continual taunts. His newfound courage is a poor substitute for skill in melee however, and he makes several poorly though out attack routines; he fails to even come close to landing a blow.
Success vs Evil Eye
-
Init-
Picklebeard- 13
Qhude- 11
Huge Human- 4
Lean Human- 3
Map-
As above, but Picklebeard and the big man are 5 feet further to the north.
Round 8:
Seeing how badly he missed with his recent strikes, Qhude tightens up his stance and concentrates on trying to land a solid strike and not a brutal one.
Cestus Attack: for
Qhude's more precise blow pays off- slamming his cestus into his adversaries neck the man finally drops to the ground, too beaten and bruised to continue. Barely concious, he raises his hands in surrender.
Seeing his immediate opponent drop and raise his hands in surrender, Qhude almost follows through with a cruel kick to the face - but his mind turns back to Picklebeard. Turning around he sees him hard pressed and bleeding, with a trident lodged in his leg.
Anger rising within him like a wave, Qhude moves to engage the larger man "Your friend is a coward and is kissing the sand as we speak." he growls in an attempt to distract the big man from his current quarry.
Round 7
Picklebeard spits blood. "THAT THE BEST YOU GOT? MY MUTHER HITS HARDER YA FAIRY."
"GO FER THE EYES V! THE EYES! I GOTCHA COVERED!" Picklebeard feels the blood under his clothes and feels the pain of his wounds. Somehow he manages to let out a laugh. This big man may have a pointier stick than he does, but he knows Qhude and himself are going to win this fight.
Picklebeard does not move. He does not flinch. He focuses the might of all his ancestors into a single coherent blow of destruction only dwarves can accomplish.
He curses at the big man as his furious attempts of beating him with his staff are futile. "GO TA HELL YA OVERSIZED OAF."
He curses as the big man as his furious attempts at beating him with his staff are futile. "GO TA HELL YA OVERSIZED OAF."
Picklebeard's furious efforts with a quarterstaff are completely ineffective, the big man daring to chuckle- both at the Dwarf's persistent if fruitless efforts and his comments. The laughter has not quite finished as he makes another attack- swinging his flail in menacing arcs that Picklebeard is easily able to evade.
Miss
Round 9:
Sizing up the big man's armor and shield, Qhude instead takes the direct route. Opening himself to a strike as he steps towards the bounty hunter, he attempts to trap the man's weapon arm in an arm-bar on his left.
Grapple CMB:
Qhude successfully traps the big man's weapon arm - leaving his cestus free to start it's bloody work.
Dwarven ancestor magic works in mysterious ways. His boistrous nature and invocation of his family name bestowed him unnaturally amazing defensive skills. His evasion conjures tales of heroic dwarven fighters of old. He is tempted to quote the legendary dwarven boxer, Cassius Claybeard "Float like a butterfly, sting like a dire bee, rhymings fer fairies so I'm gonna punch ya in the face till yer dead!"
"TOO SLOW, BOY!"
A bloodied, whirling, bearded, sodium-chloride smelling mass of dwarven awesomeness swings violently at the tall, shielded man. He twists and turns in his furious barrage of strikes hoping to hit the man and actually do damage. It is quite the spectacle.
Unbeknownst to Picklebeard, the man stepped back a foot and the dwarf is furiously twisting and dodging imaginary blows and his jabs are hitting nothing but air.
Hopefully his bearded lizard is having more luck at scoring blows.
Nope.
Having taken a step back to avoid Picklebeard's flailing, the big man is well prepared for Qhude's lunge, swinging the flail as he turns to meet him. The very tip of Picklebeard's quarterstaff touches the flail in mid-air, diverting a sure strike away from Qhude*, who steps in and establishes a hold on the man's weapon arm.
AOO (Miss)
Wanting to fell at least one of his opponents, the big man releases his arm for a moment and swings his flail at Picklebeard, who once again dodges the deadly, triple headed weapon.
Round 10:
Grinning like a sinister cheshire cat, Qhude tightens his grip on the tsotsi.
CMB to maintain:
His arm gripping the man like a vise, Qhude repeatedly rams his cestus into the man's skull - whooping with each impact.
Inflict damage while maintaining grapple:
Round 10:
"YER WASTIN' YER TIME! I CANNOT BE STOPPED!"
The relentless tornado of moving dwarf and staff attacks is too much for the big man. Half-stunned by the dwarf's boldness and relentlessness, the other half by being grappled from behind by Picklebeard's partner in crime, the man feels the stick lunge into his crotchal-region in a very rough fashion.
"YOU'LL FEEL THAT IN THA MORNIN' YA WUSSY. OH HO HO YESSIR. TOO FAST. TOO STONG FER YA SON!"
The dwarf is blinded by his confidence. He feels no pain, only the glory of combat and relishing his powerful blow into the nuts of his opponent.
The lizard furiously is chewing at the man's fleshy neck but it seems to not be able to chew through his tough skin.
The crowd cheers for the stubborn Dwarf as he finally manages to land a telling blow while to their excitement moments later, Qhude slams his cestus into the big man's head over and over. Staggering back from the wounds he has received, the man tries to break Qhude's grip, but is far too weak.
Maintain grapple: and damage
Qhude loosens his grip on the man's arm slightly as he knees him solidly in the groin. As the bounty hunter hunches in pain, he repeatedly slams his elbow and cestus into his kidneys. Not stopping until the man goes limp against him and slides off into the dirt.
Arms wide and face to the sky, Qhude roars his triumph with primal fury. He then turns to Picklebeard and gathers him in a triumphal bear hug, lifting him bodily off the ground. Placing the dwarf back on the sand, Qhude gives him a solid clout on the back in congratulations "Laduma! You are a little one, but you have a big heart" tapping his chest and smiling genuinely.
He then lets himself be led off back through the portcullis.
He aims for the nuts again but in one last effort to parry, he knocks the dwarf's stick to the ground rendering his attack totally ineffective. His parry leaves him open for Qhude's finishing blow.
As the man drops, you see Verithrex leap off the falling man and scurry up the sick and back to perching on the dwarf's shoulder defiantly.
He looks around at the roaring crowd and rasies his quaterstaff proudly in the air! Picklebeard looks at Qhude very admirably. You probably can barely hear him over the crowd cheering but it sounds like praise: "Not bad, lad. Not bad at all."
He tags along with Qhude walking back through the porticulus.
hiss tchk tchk
To the roar of the crowd, Picklebeard and Qhude walk back through the portcullis. Smiling warmly, the official has your wounds seen to once again and has you escorted to join the rest of your team.
You can stay and watch the other fights or you can return to your tent the guard hovering near Ansha states.
You can stay and watch the other fights or you can return to your tent the guard hovering near Ansha states.
"I have little taste for blood sport but someone should remain. We might learn something of the competition."
To the returning heroes. "Well done you two, very well done. I must admit i was worried when I saw the second pair. Thay had clearly worked together before, but you two came together and won out. Well done!"
Picklebeard asks the guard, "Wait justs sec. Is that fairy gonna come over here an' fix this" He points to his bloody wounds. "before mah next fight?"
He asks Qhude what he wants to do, "We should watch ta see whose our next victims, eh?"
Picklebeard asks the guard, "Wait justs sec. Is that fairy gonna come over here an' fix this" He points to his bloody wounds. "before mah next fight?"
The official chuckles as you are healed and responds-
That WAS your last fight, sir Dwarf.
"I have little taste for blood sport but someone should remain. We might learn something of the competition."
"My thoughts exactly, so I think I will do just that," Kieran nods in agreement. "Besides, I believe I will probably enjoy the show, even though we will not have as much stake to the fights as we did until now."
"As for you two," the half-elf says with a chuckle as he turns to the victorious pair, "I do believe you had us worried for a moment there, but what great fights indeed! And you, Master Picklebeard! Quite the entertainer you are and quite the ferocious fighter!"
He proceeds to clasp both men's shoulders in a display of camaraderie before his attention returns to the arena and the rest of the fights, the smile still on his face.
Tebati looks inquiringly at N'bellocq to see if he will stay and watch the other teams or return to the tent. While she would like to see the other members of the Mwangi team, the privacy of the tent is tempting as well; the contrast between the raucous press of the crowd and the silence she perceives is beginning to give her a headache. Her forehead is still creased with consternation at the dwarf's strange performance.
"Huh. The Dwarf must bleed beer. It a wonder he is still upright. His strategy seemed to be making faces and getting stabbed. Thanks be to Qhude for pulling our team through that one."
Seeing the concern and stress on Tabati's face, his mood softens. "We should head back to the tent. You have not yet had a chance to relax after your victory. As for this..." He nods out toward the combat field. "They might as well put chains on us, for what they command us to do. Who is uncivilized here? Come lets go."
With a gesture of respect and congratulation to Qhude and a fleeting, worried glance at the dwarf, Tebati follows N'bellocq out of the arena. Surely her hearing should return to her soon; the long minutes of silence feel like hours.
"YER JOKIN'! I was just gettin' warmed up!"
The dwarf laughs and sighs and regroups with his fellow party members.
"You saw me 'n Qhude down thar?! Ha! I thought ye be the first one ta flee at the sight o' blood! hah! Much obliged, me boy. T'was nuttin'."
"Bleedin' beer eh? Speakin' o' which I'm mighty thirsty. Where's tha nearest drink stand? I could use a good beer right about now."