IC - 1. Gainful Employment

The year is 1867, the war that pitted brother against brother is over and some of the wounds are beginning to heal; the railroads are racing across the continent in a rush to connect the 2 oceans. The land is still untamed and the natives still a threat. Law is coming but the lawless roam free.

A chance find by our posse on the trail of train robbers leads to a terrifying adventure of horror that spans time and space.

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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

Post by Mr. Handy »

OOC,I hadn't thought of that, but at least I still hit and do 12 damage.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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The initial volley of gunfire kicks up stones and dirt around the decoy bedrolls, several bullets finding their mark that would almost certainly have meant the death of whoever had been sleeping there. Other bullets ricochet into the night.

Murdoch taking careful aim at a barrel-flash squeezes of a round and is rewarded with a scream. He is supported by two or three more shots fired from his left.

The bullets keep coming and start to concentrate on the muzzle flashes from your side. Murdoch feels and hears the rounds thudding into the tree trunk that he's hunkering down behind.
OOC:   Statements please. Bullets are flying mainly at Murdoch's log and also about 10 yards to his left where the other shots came from.

Can everyone give me (100 - LUCK)/2 roll - this is the chance that you catch a ricochet or stray bullet.

Turn order is

Farnsworthy
Strachan, Harriet, Mario
Murdoch


Farnsworthy and Strachan can give me spot hiddens to count the number of opposition guns as they basically observed the initial round  
Yeah, well, sometimes nothin' can be a real cool hand.

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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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OOC:   Ricochet? Luck 75/2 [dice]0[/dice]  
Little Harriet huddles tightly and scrunches her eyes shut.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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A stray round plucks at Strachan's sleeve, but Strachan ignores it. It was always considered poor form in the regiment to pay much notice to close shaves and so Strachan concentrates on counting guns, until he's reasonably sure he has their measure. The he slowly starts making his way around the clearing.

OOC:   Did you mean luck/2 rather than (100-luck)/2 which would mean luckier people would be more likely to be hit :)  
OOC:   Strachan doesn't plan on moving around the outside of the clearing, rather he'll head back in the direction he's just come from until he's parallel with the bandits firing line then he'll start to move towards them, no point in walking in front of everyone else's guns and getting shot in the dark.  
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Luck is with James, as he ducks back down before the bandits can react and fire at him. He has achieved what he wanted to do, shooting one of them and drawing the majority of their fire so that the rest of the group can take them by surprise. Now that most of them are shooting at his log, he stays behind cover for now rather than risk exposing himself again until something else draws their attention, but he is ready to shoot at any targets of opportunity that present themselves or to avoid incoming fire if he is outflanked. He draws his cavalry saber from his scabbard and rests it at his side, ready to snatch it up if any of them rushes his position.
OOC,We want to roll high on that roll. Getting the number or lower means that we get hit, which is why Luck is subtracted from 100.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

Post by Tabs »

Bugger. Does Harriet get hit? **Moan,mumble, mumble**--the roll feels a bit arse-backward, I mean shouldn't it be a Luck roll with a penalty, like -20% ? Oh, I get it now, it's a bad luck roll. Harriet 100 - 75 / 2 = 12% and I rolled 24, so she's not hit by a ricochet.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Ricochets & Strays,The formula (100-LUCK)/2 should benefit the lucky Luck 80 => 10% chance of a stray/ricochet Luck 60 => 20% chance of a stray/ricochet If you 'make' the roll it does not mean that you have been hit - just that a bullet is flying in your direction. I will then roll a to hit with situational modifiers - Murdoch is tucked down behind the tree trunk, just about all of his body is concealed so I will apply a large negative modifier. If one of you were running across the clearing, through the gunfire, then I would add a positive modifier.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Yes,I get it now! I edited my previous comment, but you were online and may have missed it. :)
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Strachan,1 point damage - as the bullets fly you feel a ricochet fly into your arm, most of it's energy spent it barely tears through your clothing. It smarts and will leave a beauty of bruise but you've suffered worse. As you watch, you count approximately ten muzzle flashes.
Murdoch,You lay hunkered down behind your tree trunk, bullets thud into it and splinters fly but other than a few stings from exploding tree bark you remain unscathed. To your right you can the Sheriff Clancy ducked down behind his cover, he nods at you checking your ok.
Harriet,You squat down behind the large rock you have chosen as cover, clasping your shot gun close to your body, thinking that this is no place for woman. As you silently call upon the good lord to protect you, you are showered in fragments of stone as a bullet smashes into the rock a few inches from your head.
The gunfire continues a minute or so. The fire concentrating on the tree trunk that Murdoch is hiding behind and an area to his left. You hear a shout or cry of pain come from your line.

Then it stops, the smell of gunsmoke drifts across the clearing mixing with the smoke of the fire.

A voice calls out across the clearing You there! Behind the log! Show yerself! All yer friends are dead already, there ain't nowhere fer yer to go. Give yerself up an' I swear you won't come to no harm!
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

Post by Priest »

Luck and spot hidden,[url=http://orokos.com/roll/331562]Not being hit by a stray shot[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]17[/b] Don't understand this formula but it a 17. [url=http://orokos.com/roll/331565]Sot Hidden - 25%[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]98[/b] Nope didn' count em
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

Post by ghill »

  Clearly with only James returning fire it looked as though the bandits believed they'd killed everyone.  
thought Strachan
OOC:   Where is Strachan in relation to the 'voice' at this point? When the shooting started he started moving so I'm expecting the voice to be somewhere to his immediate left.  
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Image

James nods back to the sheriff. He doesn't believe that the bandits have actually killed everyone any more than he would believe they'd spare his life if he surrendered. For all they know, they killed him with their volley, so he simply plays dead. He remains lying behind the log, not making a sound. In his right hand he clutches his saber, and in his left he grips his revolver. If one of them tries to come around the log to see if he's still alive, he'll be in for a nasty surprise.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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At the voice Ethan smiles, old trick, he thinks, everyone concentrates on where the voice is coming from allowing the others a chance to creep closer to the campfire from another direction.

With that in mind he watches for movement to the opposite side of the camp.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Harriet is showered with crumbs of stone from where a ricochet struck the boulder she is hiding behind. The bullet was only inches from her face. When she hears,
Give yerself up an' I swear you won't come to no harm!
she feels so light headed that it's all she can do not to run or plead for mercy, even though she realises they could well be snake words.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Strachan,As you creep forwards, the voice that calls out comes from your left, judging by the gun flashes you observed you estimate that you are probably in-line with the gun men. Can I have a sneak roll - it's only a problem on a fumble.
Farnsworthy,Spot hidden please.
As you wait, making no moves or sounds, the voice calls out again This is yer last chance mister. If'n we gotta come an' get yer, it ain't goin' to go easy on yer. All yer friends is dead, they be talkin' with the maker right about now. Show yerself and I swear now, on my word as a god fearin' man, yer won't come to no harm
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Farnsworthy:
Straining his eyes through the darkness and ears pricked for sounds of movement, Ethan alerts himself. But whether his eyes are tired, dusty, or just old he sees nothing.
Spot Hidden,[url=http://orokos.com/roll/331792]Spot Hidden - 25%[/url]: [u]1d100[/u] [b]79[/b]
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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If they were God-fearing men, thinks James, they wouldn't have ambushed us. He remains still and quiet, watching and listening for their approach. There wasn't enough screaming to account for everyone dying, and besides, the sheriff is still here. Maybe the others will be able to help once they show themselves and enter the campsite. I may die here, but at least I'll take some of them with me.
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

Post by ghill »

Strachan

Strachan spends a moment listening to the bandits leaders speech, then confident he's at one end of their firing line he turns and starts moving towards them. He's no frontiersman but he's rather proud of how stealthy he is

Strachan is moving slowly, the colonel always said it was poor form to interrupt your enemy when he was making a mistake, and Strachan thinks the bandits or at least some of them are about to enter the clearing to try and finish James off.
OOC:   While he was listening did Strachan catch any hint of where the bandit's horses are?  
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

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Strachan,You heard a snicker from a horse/horses ahead of you, before turned towards the bandits but you can't tell how far away they are.
As you watch the campsite from your concealed positions, you see four figures slowly advance into the light being cast by the fire - 2 carry pistols and 2 carry rifles. They crouch low, moving as quietly as they can as they approach the tree trunk behind which lies Murdoch.

They are spread out, approx 4 or 5 yards between each man.

As they move closer, one of them looks down at a decoy bedroll, he then quickly glances at the others before shouting It's a trap! Get outta here! he turns and starts to run from the direction he came.

The others look at hims startled and then turn to follow him.
OOC:   Statements please  
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Re: IC - 1. Gainful Employment

Post by ghill »

OOC:   Strachan will wait for the shooting to start and then make in the direction of the horses. He wont bother being overly quiet as he figures the gunfire will hide any noise he makes but he keeps his head up and looking for movement.  
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