that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar

[faderifting]

WHO: Dragon-slayers
WHAT: The three Inquisition teams face their dragony foes
WHEN: Guardian 28
WHERE: Emprise du Lion
NOTES: Violence, gore, etc. This log contains closed threads for the 12 characters who were assigned slots on the dragon-fighting quest. Each team has an info pack-type starter about its dragon below. From here it is up to you to coordinate OOCly and decide how you want things to go down, and to NPC the dragon as needed. It also has an open thread for post-dragon-slaying tavern boasting.

By the end of Guardian Judicael's Crossing is repaired, at least enough to send Inquisition agents across on foot. But there is another obstacle preventing them from reestablishing a link between Sahrnia and the outside world: three high dragons have taken up residence across the bridge in an area called the Pools of the Sun. Here, the only road out through the mountains winds between rocky hills, ruins, and statuary. The remains of three structures dominate the landscape, arenas commissioned by Orlesian nobility in ages past.

Each of the teams has been assigned a dragon, and given as much information about it as the Inquisition has been able to gather from a few cautious scouting missions. This consists of where it sleeps and its primary method of attack. Though Inquisition resources are not great, they have had mages working overtime preparing at least basic protections against the dragons' elemental magic. While not enough to prevent injury altogether, they do significantly increase chances of escaping without dire casualties. They have also been provided with a small stock of healing and lyrium potions.

The three teams have been chosen from among the most-suited of the volunteers, and are dispatched across the river together. They split off on arrival, each making their way to the dragon's location and, at a roughly simultaneous moment, beginning the attack.

Comments

KALTENZAHN | Cassandra, Jamie, Korrin, Merrick

[faderifting]

Not far past Etienne's Ring is Judicael's, again two concentric circles of stone arches, a path between them leading to stairs that take one to a ring of packed dirt and snow. Parts of the third level remain here, several chunks of arch atop the outer ring. The ground heaves up at the sides, not high enough to provide any real advantage or any cover, but perhaps high enough for the nimble and enterprising to climb the taller section of wall, two layers of arches stacked atop each other propped up by statues of a bearded hero carrying a barrell.

The Kaltenzahn is a striking foe (no pun intended), streaks of vivid red and blue marking its hide. It bellows and grunts as it fights, and occasionally lets out a piercing shriek sharp enough to stop a warrior in her tracks to cover her ears. It breathes ice instead of fire, spitting bursts of freezing mist cold enough to slow and injure anyone caught directly in their path despite the Inquisition providing what magic they can spare to increase the party's resistance to magical cold. They also freeze the ground, which has turned marshy in the centuries since the rings were last used. Water covers much of it, only shin-deep but treacherous when it suddenly freezes beneath-- or around-- one's feet. Its affinity for its wintery surroundings, however, mean that the beast is especially vulnerable to fire.

Like the Hivernal, the Kaltenzahn prefers to fight from the ground more than the air. Stomping, lashing its tail, and toppling enemies with the powerful wind generated by flaps of its broad wings are its primary attacks. If allowed to take flight it will circle, blasting its foes with ice from the air before landing heavily enough to shake the ground and knock the unwary (or frozen) onto their asses.

[gatheringstorm]

Well, this is it. A chance to repay those dragons for what happened to their camp earlier, and a chance to see how well Korrin's Knight-Enchanter training holds up against a high dragon. This is certainly a worthy test of her new skills, and the Vashoth mage is eager to begin. Having taken her share of cold resistance tonics earlier, Korrin downs one now, then casts Barrier to encompass everyone nearby. As the only mage among them, she knows it'll be her duty to keep that up as much as possible.

But she's here as part of the offense, not about to just hang back. Taking advantage of its vulnerability to fire, Korrin summons a gylph to trigger an explosion underneath the beast. Hopefully the flames will be distraction enough so that she can close in with her spirit blade, assisting Cassandra on the front lines.

[wontforgetyou]

Korrin's not the only one seeking to repay the dragons for what they've done. Even before being drafted to help write the letters for the families of the soldiers who'd been taken he's been wanting to put paid to those beasties once and for all. Writing the letters just makes him that much more determined, and he jumps at the chance to be part of the group to help take one down.

After downing his own tonic and sticking close enough to let the barrier settle over him, he ranges further back so he can bring the bow he's been given into play and help to strafe the dragon from range. His sword is nearby though, sheathed but ready to be drawn at a moment's notice whenever the call comes for extra steel. For now, though, he concentrates on moving and firing, dodging when need be to avoid the bursts of freezing mist the dragon is sending out. It's not at all hard to see what happens when it hits the ground, and he doesn't much fancy the notion of finding out what happens if he gets caught by that icy breath instead.

[stabsbooks]

Cassandra doesn't need a reason to fight dragons.

She waits just long enough for Korrin to cast her spell, and then she's moving, running straight for the dragon with her sword ready and her shield high. The explosion triggers just as she gets there, and she ducks behind her shield, protecting herself from both the flames and the dragon's freezing breath for half a second before she charges forward with a cry, seeking a vulnerable place to attack.

[dalishious]

For once, Merrick is glad he's so small. He moves swiftly around the dragon, using the ice to propel himself as he slashes at the creature's legs, and can easily evade its gaze. There is the unfortunate chance that he might get stepped on, but that doesn't even occur to him. He's having the time of his life.

He leaps back to avoid the blast, then grabs a tonic from his belt--he tugs the cork free with his teeth and swallows the flask's contents before chucking it aside. Then he's grinning, sharp incisors glinting like the ice around them as he watches the monster burn.

Then it's back into the fray. He's learned the beast's attack pattern by now, but it's not set in stone-- So when the dragon's tail sweeps toward Korrin, he's startled.

"Korrin, watch out!" he yells.

[gatheringstorm]

Korrin is likewise giving in to enthusiasm, not having felt this rush since the last time she'd fought a high dragon. That was years ago, with far more people and a weaker beast. This creature would provide a stronger challenge, and she's going to enjoy every moment of it. Her glowing spirit blade is swung vigorously, and she grins every moment it strikes, claiming more of the dragon's defenses.

That icy blast has Korrin grateful that her protections are in place, though having it land as close as it does is still unpleasant. The chill sets into her bones, not causing the harm that it could have but slowing her movements at a time where every moment counts. Hearing Merrick, her eyes widen as she spares a glance in time to see that tail rushing towards her. Only a use of Fade Step, causing her to swiftly blur away, saves the Vashoth mage from being flung across the battlefield or worse, off it.

[wontforgetyou]

The shout of alarm draws Jamie's attention as well, but as Merrick's already raised it and Korrin's gotten herself out of the way, there's nothing for him to do but what he's been doing. His feet slide on the ice as he moves closer to fill the temporary gap that Korrin's blurring form has left behind, although his balance is good enough that he's able to recover before it becomes an issue.

At the same time he nocks another arrow, pulling the string taut as he takes aim at the spots where the front-line fighters have already scored hits in order to further take down the dragon's defenses. He looses the arrow, then nocks and looses another, a flicker of satisfaction crossing his face as both sink into its flank. The dragon, on the other hand, isn't nearly as pleased, and it starts to move, taking the flank out of range as it wheels about, bringing up its head as it prepares to breathe at whoever's in range - something that has him moving, darting across the icy ground to get out of the way even as he shouts his own warning.

"Look out, it's turning towards us again!"

[stabsbooks]

Cassandra ducks out of the way as the dragon turns, sprinting a few steps to get out of range of its icy breath. It's no good; the dragon's attention is fixated on Jamie, and she's already taking a few menacing steps towards him, the stone ring shaking with every step.

He won't survive such a direct attack, and Cassandra reacts immediately. She lets out a loud cry, challenging the dragon and directing its fury towards herself instead, and braces herself for a fight.

[dalishious]

With the dragon turning and focusing its attention at Cassandra, Merrick takes the opportunity to drain one of his Tears of the Dead tonics. His blades now soaked in poison, he starts to weave around the dragon's legs while it stomps toward her.

His eyes land on the meaty area underneath the dragon's foot, and as soon as it lifts one he crosses his blade and slashes at it. The dragon shrieks in response to the sudden, sharp pain, and Merrick slides across the ice, narrowly avoiding being trampled.

Very narrowly.

[gatheringstorm]

Jamie's cry gets Korrin's attention, and she charges back into range to renew Barrier for everyone else, her own still holding strong. Not about to have Cassandra face the beast alone, however skilled she is, Korrin whips out her spirit blade again, attacking it from another angle so that it's forced to divide its attention.

Merrick's blow gets a smirk out of her, though not for long as the shriek pierces her ears. It's not quite as bad as the one used to summon dragonlings, but she nonetheless stumbles before regaining her footing. In retaliation, she renews her assault, her glowing blade slicing into its flesh.

[wontforgetyou]

He'll be grateful for a long time to come for Cassandra's save. That distraction is just enough to allow him the chance to get away, and he runs as fast as he can across the ice away from her. That's a good thing as well, because when the shriek rips through the air he winds up stumbling, catching the wrong bit of an edge of ice and tumbling to the ground. If he hadn't been as far away as he was or if the dragon's attention hadn't been taken up by the others, it'd be a far different story.

He's not about to let a wee tumble stop him, though, and he pushes himself back up to his feet, whirling about once he's regained his footing. The only problem is that he had to drop the bow in order to avoid it breaking during the fall, and for the moment the dragon is between him and it. Until he can get back to retrieve it, he opts to shift to his more usual style of fighting, pulling his sword from a sheath on his back and wrapping both hands around the hilt before throwing himself back into the fray.

[stabsbooks]

Merrick's poisoned strike pains and angers the dragon, and it roars in indignation, tail whipping furiously. Cassandra takes the opportunity to attack, striking concurrently with Korrin and pulling out her blade to immediately swing again. With Korrin's barrier protecting her and the rest of the team keeping the dragon from focusing the entirety of its attention on her, there is little that can stop her. She pushes forward, trusting her shield and the barrier to keep her from major injury as she does as much damage to the dragon as possible.

[dalishious]

Cassandra is doing a lot of damage, and the dragon appears to have had enough. It screeches again, then spreads its wings to take to the air.

Merrick manages to throw a knife at the beast before it gets too high up, and then leaps to the side to avoid an icy blast. He moves like a dart, seizing Jamie's bow up off the ground and tossing it to him.

"Korrin, can you hit it?" he shouts.

[gatheringstorm]

Korrin is about to set another Immolate spell to trigger beneath the dragon when it takes off and ruins her plan. Scowling up at the beast, she tucks her spirit blade hilt back, leaping back before that icy blast can freeze her in place. Mobility is more important now than ever.

"Yes! We'll wear it down!" Between her and Jamie, hopefully that won't take too long. She spins her staff and assaults the dragon continuously from below. If it focuses on her, fine. Her barrier will hold, and she'll wear it down into landing for Merrick and Cassandra's sake.

[wontforgetyou]

Merrick gets a brief but genuine nod of thanks as he scoops up his bow with one hand, sheathing the sword with the other before moving out to range again and pulling another arrow from its quiver. With his own barrier in place, he just has to keep moving and shooting - and now that he's more used to the terrain it's easier to keep ahead of any retaliation from the dragon.

The blasts of magic from Korrin are more potent than his own arrows, so it's entirely likely it'll choose to focus on her instead of him for the moment, but each shot that lands is another one that will help wear the dragon down, and the more of them he can get off, the better the chance it'll land again and let Cassandra and Merrick get back into the fight. So he doesn't say anything, simply focuses on firing and moving and firing again. They'll sort this dragon out yet.

[stabsbooks]

Cassandra scowls furiously as the dragon takes to the air and leaves her unable to attack. It circles above them, blasting freezing ice - she raises her shield to protect herself, and curses when she hears it crack. Not entirely, not enough to make it worthless, but enough that another good swing could break it in two.

She watches tensely as Jamie shoots the dragon and Korrin blasts it with spells. The dragon is growing tired, she thinks, and it isn't long before it lands again, its attention, as Jamie had predicted, on Korrin and her spells.

She runs forward as the dragon lands, her shield still firmly in hand. If it is cracked and ruined completely by another blow from the dragon, so be it; better than the dragon striking Cassandra herself. She cries out again as she gets close, trying to draw the beast's attention from the mage and to herself.

She was right, she sees suddenly as the dragon roars and swings its head around. It is tired, and it is wounded, and it is vulnerable. They can end this now.

"Barrier!" she calls to Korrin. "Jamie, aim for the neck! Try to stun it!" She meets Merrick's eyes. "Now is our chance! Do not hold back!"