eighth hunt ⚔ troll hunt

[rokubro]

Characters: Rokurou Rangetsu [Huntsman] and everyone who's coming along on this hunt
Campaign: Break
Format: whichever you prefer!
Open
Summary: Rokurou has made a call to arms to take down this troll (Commission Board #0909)! This is vaguely set before the upcoming poisoning and anyone can join in the fight. Commenting to Rokurou's post is not necessary and can just handwave greetings. To keep things simple(ish), below are the details regarding the troll and various ways on how to fight against it. There are two phases for the fight, but there is no strict order for threads. Players can make their own threads for either portion of the fight and tag each other at will.


⚔ I. PHASE ONE.
The first part of the battle after everyone's gathered and are getting ready to strike. Can use this as an opportunity to mingle, but here's the lowdown for this section:

A. Piercing that hide. The troll's hide is tough and the troll regenerates health, so it needs to be weakened before any real damage can be done to it. However, it is susceptible to magic and the elements. Physical weapons such as blades and even firearms will need to be coated in either poison or magic elemental enhancements that will give the weapon an additional property to break through the skin. Those who can cast magic or throw poison/magic bottles can deal more direct damage to weaken the hide and provide opportunities for the melee fighters.

B. Operation distract! The troll has two heads and thus has a wider range of vision. Because of this it's harder for anyone to get real close without getting spotted, and the troll is surprisingly fast. With various stomps, sweeping motions, and bashing around with its chained mace and club, anyone trying to get close will have a difficult time. Thus it's imperative to create distractions for those in melee range. Alternatively just go straight for the eyes—just fair warning that they slowly regenerate just like the rest of the body.

C. Destroy the weapons. That chained mace and club are definitely a problem, and fortunately they aren't too special—just ridiculously large. Disarm the troll and prevent it from picking either weapon back up and it will be left to fight with just its hands and feet!

Note: The troll itself towers at a whopping fifteen feet and is quite burly. At this point in time, although it can be stabbed and receive deep cuts, no limbs can be hacked off. Maybe a few fingers and toes.


⚔ II. PHASE TWO.
After enough damage has been inflicted, the troll will suddenly let out a massive roar that will send everyone flying back. It will then proceed to split into two separate trolls, each one a half size of the original. It's at this point that it becomes clearer that this is no ordinary troll and is instead an Eraser. With its size reduced and defenses down, the fight becomes a little easier and fairly straightfoward, but be careful—there are times the trolls will join together to tag team. When joined together, their strength doubles and can inflict massive damage, so it's best to keep them separate.

Once the trolls are defeated, everyone will receive phat loot. Huzzah! Anyone who comments here can use this to link threads for redeeming points from the board.

Comments

B

[kawkaw]

Being able to fly certainly had its benefits when it came to being a distraction. And while the troll was fast, Crane was faster, weaving his way around the hand trying to swat him away and the troll's weapon as he flew around the two heads, sending gusts of wind in the troll's eyes whenever he was able to.

It also helped him get close enough to keep the heads' attention on him, so that others are able to get closer.

[rokubro]

[Rokurou had already been keen on watching how Crane would fight, and seeing it in action he is not disappointment. Just from the start he can tell that he is truly a master martial artist. And he's not going to waste the opportunity Crane is giving them.

With his blades coated with the poison provided by Kazuma, Rokurou darts in when the troll is focused on Crane. With a few expert slashes he aims at the back of the troll's knees to weaken its mobility before jumping back to take another slash at its back. He's then forced to retreat when the troll turns with a painful yowl, unable to ignore the surprise attack. Although not definitive, the poison is effective and his blades had been able to cut through the hide to inflict some damage.]

T'ch, this is really going to take a while.

[kawkaw]

[ He swirls around in the air while continuing to dodge the swings aimed at him. Even while moving, he observed the troll's two heads, and how one head seemed to control each hand. ]

So let's have it help us.

[ Swooping around, he flies in the face of the troll holding the club to get its attention. As it follows him, he then zips over to the other head as troll swings its club to try and strike him.

Then he makes a hard turn, avoiding the club that ends up hitting the troll's other head. ]

[rokubro]

[Rokurou watches on the side to allow Crane full maneuverability and is impressed by the tactic! He laughs when he watches the troll smash the club into the other troll's head, momentarily stunning it and causing the body to stagger.]

Hah, guess two heads isn't better than one!

[Of course, Rokurou won't stand idly by. Switching his blades, he seizes the opportunity, he darts in and jumps up high to first land on the shoulder and utilize his gunblade to fire a few incendiary shots at the distracted head, bringing it closer to the other one. He then hops up onto the head with a blade in each hand, he activates the enchantment to set the swords on fire and jumps down to slash each face on the descent. If he's lucky he'll catch one of the eyes, but even then—well no one would like a trail of fire on their face.]

[kawkaw]

[ Crane darted around to give Rokurou time for his attack, and as the trolls' heads reared back with a roar of pain, he uses his wind manipulation to shoot him forward at the troll, delivering a powerful kick to the chest. ]

[rokubro]

[The kick is good! And it's the blow that sends the troll back staggering before it falls backwards to the ground.]

Nice one! Don't let up now!

[They need to get in as much damage as they can before the troll gets back up, or try to prevent it to!]

[kawkaw]

[ It kind of goes against principle to keep attacking an enemy when its down, but these aren't exactly normal circumstances. So Crane dives down, landing blow after blow wherever he could on the troll. ]

[rokubro]

[They're really dealing damage now!

But just when it looks as if they might come out victorious, the battle music changes there's a massive roar that sends everyone flying back. When the dust clears and they're able to stand, the troll has risen...but now instead of one, there are two of them.]

What the...you've got to be kidding me!

[kawkaw]

[ SERIOUSLY ]

Well...let's just hope they're at half strength now that they're split up.

[ Without another word, Crane flies straight at the troll on the left, unleashing another gust of wind to drive it back and farther away from the other one. ]

[rokubro]

[While Crane takes the left, Rokurou dashes in to deal with the right. They do seem a little easier to handle, but still fairly tough.]

Just keep them apart!

[kawkaw]

On it!

[ He lands another kick on the troll, causing it to stagger back a little. Luckily, Crane seems to annoy the troll enough that it was more intent on trying to catch him than reuniting with its twin. ]

[rokubro]

[With the two split, the battle drags on for longer than anyone probably likes, but the combined efforts of everyone in the group, especially in keeping them apart, pays off. Eventually the troll falls and disappears, revealing itself to be an Eraser in the end and not your typical troll. That's...a bit troubling, but at least it's been dealt with.

After the battle, Rokurou will meet with everyone, and when he sees Crane he grins and raises a hand in greeting as he walks over to him.]

Nice job back there! Never fought with a bird like that before, but I have to say—your skills were very impressive.

[kawkaw]

[ Crane was in the midst of preening his feathers which, on the outside might seem like a strange thing to do after battle, maybe even a bit vain. But sorting through his feathers helped him take stock of anything out of place that he wouldn't have noticed during the heat of battle.

Hearing the voice and the steps approaching, though, he glances up and offers a smile back. ]

Thanks. I do my best to keep my skills sharp.

But yours are remarkable as well.

[rokubro]

[...Yeah that's a bit weird. Or rather, it's like a dissonance from seeing the mighty warrior bird performing something like a normal bird would. But he doesn't too much mind.]

Heh, thanks. Could use some more training, though. Trying to cut through those trolls was a lot more difficult than I'd like. But hey, it was good exercise.

[Although... Thinking about it and considering what Crane was doing, he can't help but ask—]

Do you lose feathers when using your skills?

[kawkaw]

Well, I think the fact that the trolls were actually Erasers might have made it more difficult.

[ The question has him pause, and he stretches out his wings, flapping them a few times to get another feel for them. ]

Not generally. I have a few abilities that I gained when arriving in this world that causes me to lose some feathers sometimes, but I don't usually need that ability in this form. But it helps to check myself over after a fight to make sure nothing is damaged or twisted that I didn't notice before.

Felix (The Fox) | OTA

[daggersedge]

I. PHASE ONE

[ This isn't the first time that Felix has played the part of a shiny distraction. He's used to doing so with a trusted sniper watching his six, ready to take advantage of any opening Felix provides. This time, he may not have a trusted ally at his back, but he does have others. And besides, it's not as though he's putting his life in their hands.

Felix is undoubtedly an irritating distraction. He transforms into a fox and darts between the troll's legs, then suddenly grows larger and bites its ankles. When the troll swings at him, Felix vanishes into a burrow that appears out of nowhere. Then he pops up and starts darting around again, far too quick and agile for the troll to get in a solid hit.

The hardest part is letting the troll think that it might hit him. Felix has to stay still for longer than he'd like so the troll can wind up, then time his escape so that he won't actually take the blow. But those moments of stillness in the troll should allow his allies to aim for vulnerable spots. He can only hope that the others are taking advantage of these opportunities. ]

II. PHASE TWO

[ Well, fuck.

Felix is so surprised by the sudden splitting of the troll that he momentarily freezes. The troll takes a swing at him— ]

Shit!

[ Felix barely manages to activate his light shield in time — a glowing blue barrier projected from his armor. A piece of technology rather than magic. It does its job, saving Felix from what might've been a devastating blow. ]

Go around! [ He yells as the troll swings at him again. ] Hit it from behind!

III. AFTERMATH

[ When the job is done, Felix pulls off his helmet and wipes the sweat from his brow. He's easy to identify like this — his foxlike ears make his essence readily apparent. He's undoubtedly the fox that was darting around the troll's feet and causing such a distraction.

Catching someone's eye, he grins. ]

Well, that was a fun workout, wasn't it?

[ His eyes may be a little strange, what with their gold color and vertical pupils. But judging by the look in them, Felix genuinely did have fun. ]

IV. WILDCARD

( ooc: toss something else my way! to plot something specific, shoot me a pm, @ me in the game discord, or hmu on plurk @ twofouroneten. )

II

[arrogator]

Yeah, yeah, working on it!

[She'll use the distraction to start going around the back of the troll, chain in one and and her stick in the other. Despite the weapons not looking like much, she's been holding her own so far.]

Never seen a troll that could do something like that. Would've been nice to know that kind of crap beforehand.

[Not that she thinks it's a problem or anything, just..advance notice would've been useful!]

[daggersedge]

[ Felix grunts as the troll hits his light shield again. How much damage can this thing sustain before it breaks? Better not test it. With a quiet curse, he dismisses the shield to allow it to recharge. Looks like it's back to dodging for him. ]

You can put together a proper two-headed troll briefing once this thing is dead.

[ The troll swings. Felix flings himself to the side and rolls, then comes up in his fox form. Whether he likes it or not, he's more agile like this. ]

Hell, I'll even help you. We can have props and everything!

[arrogator]

Yeah, really? I've never put something like that together.

[Briefings were more Agravain's thing than hers.

But while she's talking, she'll work on wrapping that chain around the troll's legs, trying to knock one of the damn things down. She hasn't seen the snowspeeder scene from Star Wars, but it's essentially the same thing.]

Think you can use this?

[If not, she's just going to resort to hitting the stupid troll over and over again, like she's probably been doing.]

[daggersedge]

Let's find out!

[ Felix darts this away and that, dodging blows while trying to egg the troll into moving. He has to be irritating enough to seem like a more significant threat. Otherwise, the troll might turn its attention to Mordred and her chain. Fortunately, Felix has extensive experience being a complete fucking pain in the ass. It takes a while, but eventually…

BAM!

The troll tries to take a step and goes down hard, face-first. ]

[arrogator]

All right! It worked!

[For a second there she was worried it'd split into more trolls or grow extra legs or something like that.]

Let's take it out before it decides to get back up!

[She'll take her own advice and jump in, starting to wail on it some more with what looks like a wooden sword. She's got a regular one in her pack, but as weird as it sounds, with her Essence, this'll probably be more effective. Maybe?

Not that she bothers with explaining any of this because explanations also aren't her thing!]

[daggersedge]

[ Why his companion has decided to use a wooden sword, of all things, makes no sense to Felix. But he doesn't bother to demand an explanation, too busy making his own move.

Felix's essence hasn't given him much in the way of combat power — fox fangs aside, that is. But it has given him one thing that could help: a bag of tricks. One that seems to give him more good luck than bad these days. He returns to human form and then whips it out, digging in and hoping for something useful…

And when he draws his hand out, he grins beneath his helmet. It's not his weapon of choice, sure. But a comically oversized sledgehammer should still do the trick. He's just glad that his armor enables him to wield it.

Felix closes in quickly, raises his weapon, and joins in wailing on the troll. ]

[arrogator]

What the hell's with that hammer?

[Sure, she won't explain her odd choice of weapons, but she'll stop to question the cartoon prop. Doesn't interrupt her troll bashing, but it's enough to make her ask about it.]

[daggersedge]

[ The sledgehammer is comically oversized, but it's still a fully functional sledgehammer. If anything, its sheer size just makes it more deadly. Felix brings it down hard, and it does all the damage that a giant blunt-force weapon should do. ]

I pulled it out of my bag of tricks.

[ He assumes she's asking where it came from. ]

[arrogator]

Yeah, but it's freaking huge. What did your essence do, rob Thor?