Campaign Journal battle 1: Why Horses are Frightening
So our little one-shot to include Andy opens in the desert, in a fetid, saltwater marsh on the offskirts of an out-of-the way port city. Our intrepid duo, Sumotori Hotakatashi "Solid Mountain" (Kyle) and Giovanni Avanti the Italian Fencing Gunslinger (Dave), have hired themselves out to a noble to help him cross the desert to this, a waypoint on the way to their main objective, the Caravan of Halmaro the Red. They were paid protection and enough food to make it to their objective in return for their own protective services. They had been hired along with two other mercenaries for this purpose, by the Merchant Noble Hidalgo Montemura. He and his knighted guard travelled on horseback with all their supplies as the mercenaries hoofed it in a semi-circle around them down the road.
As everyone reaches the bottom of a shallow wadi filled with a salt-water pool, a hill of parched grass to their right and a plateau out across the tepid stillwaters, a number of them spot cresting said plateau a group of menacing looking horsemen.
Hidalgo Montemura and his guard begin discussing the likelihood that these horsemen will attack. One of them notes that they "travel with a cargo of flesh," indicating one of the horsemen at the top of the plateau, who is tied by the wrists to his saddle. So they turn away and continue on.
Giovanni Avanti spots the threatening riders begin to pull off and away from the party, leaving two behind. Of the two left behind, one knocks an arrow and fires it into the flank of Lord Montemura's horse, which panics and begins to flee. By now Avanti has drawn one of his six pistols (a rare, valuable collection he won in a card game) from his long jacket and is preparing to fire at the horse archer, who has not seen this gunman.
The knight chases the noble and Hotakatashi runs after his charge. The two other mercenaries ready their weapons.
Avanti's shot rings true and knocks rider off of horse, killing him instantly. The other rider, who we will soon know as Haseem the Rat (Andy), backs away to begin attempting to break free of his bondage.
By now it is clear to all that the noble and knight are not coming back. Hotakatashi is unable to catch up with them and the Knight hasn't seemed able to calm the noble's horse, and they disappear over a rockslide. One of the mercenaries seems to think that they've been abandoned, and he sets himself to be ambushed at any moment. The group thusly positions themselves to receive the inevitable attack.
Within mere seconds, three screaming tribal horsemen round the corner down the hillside and charge at the group, nets in the hands of two of them, one having knocked an arrow. Hota's immediate response is to ready his shield and... charge the horse. He does so, and impacts violently, but does not knock the horse down. The horses proceed to group together and stomp him left and right, raining down hooves upon his battle-hardened sumo body. One of the riders breaks off and throws his net around one of the mercenaries, and the other moves to defend him. After Hota is beaten nearly to death, Avanti finally manages to get off a shot true enough to fell one of the riders. But not before the archer plunks an arrow into one of the mercenaries.
By now Haseem the Rat has escaped his bonds and rides down the hillside to protect these strangers and avenge his capture. He throws a long bola at the archer to bind his hands and bow, who drops his weapon.
Battered and bruised, Hotakatashi backs away to defend himself, while Avanti fires another rider out of his saddle. The last rider plows right through the gunman to attempt to escape while the horses run wildly away. Haseem the Rat gives chase. He calls out to the rider, who flounders in fear, bound by the roped weapon, and falls onto the ground off of his horse.
Haseem dismounts and grabs the horseman. He tells him that he is no longer part of the tribe, that he is now Haseem the Rat, and only under that condition would he let the rider live.
As everyone reaches the bottom of a shallow wadi filled with a salt-water pool, a hill of parched grass to their right and a plateau out across the tepid stillwaters, a number of them spot cresting said plateau a group of menacing looking horsemen.
Hidalgo Montemura and his guard begin discussing the likelihood that these horsemen will attack. One of them notes that they "travel with a cargo of flesh," indicating one of the horsemen at the top of the plateau, who is tied by the wrists to his saddle. So they turn away and continue on.
Giovanni Avanti spots the threatening riders begin to pull off and away from the party, leaving two behind. Of the two left behind, one knocks an arrow and fires it into the flank of Lord Montemura's horse, which panics and begins to flee. By now Avanti has drawn one of his six pistols (a rare, valuable collection he won in a card game) from his long jacket and is preparing to fire at the horse archer, who has not seen this gunman.
The knight chases the noble and Hotakatashi runs after his charge. The two other mercenaries ready their weapons.
Avanti's shot rings true and knocks rider off of horse, killing him instantly. The other rider, who we will soon know as Haseem the Rat (Andy), backs away to begin attempting to break free of his bondage.
By now it is clear to all that the noble and knight are not coming back. Hotakatashi is unable to catch up with them and the Knight hasn't seemed able to calm the noble's horse, and they disappear over a rockslide. One of the mercenaries seems to think that they've been abandoned, and he sets himself to be ambushed at any moment. The group thusly positions themselves to receive the inevitable attack.
Within mere seconds, three screaming tribal horsemen round the corner down the hillside and charge at the group, nets in the hands of two of them, one having knocked an arrow. Hota's immediate response is to ready his shield and... charge the horse. He does so, and impacts violently, but does not knock the horse down. The horses proceed to group together and stomp him left and right, raining down hooves upon his battle-hardened sumo body. One of the riders breaks off and throws his net around one of the mercenaries, and the other moves to defend him. After Hota is beaten nearly to death, Avanti finally manages to get off a shot true enough to fell one of the riders. But not before the archer plunks an arrow into one of the mercenaries.
By now Haseem the Rat has escaped his bonds and rides down the hillside to protect these strangers and avenge his capture. He throws a long bola at the archer to bind his hands and bow, who drops his weapon.
Battered and bruised, Hotakatashi backs away to defend himself, while Avanti fires another rider out of his saddle. The last rider plows right through the gunman to attempt to escape while the horses run wildly away. Haseem the Rat gives chase. He calls out to the rider, who flounders in fear, bound by the roped weapon, and falls onto the ground off of his horse.
Haseem dismounts and grabs the horseman. He tells him that he is no longer part of the tribe, that he is now Haseem the Rat, and only under that condition would he let the rider live.