1227.2t The Joust

((From the peanut gallery. IIRC, the Joust is the very last event so there would be time between Valerian's departure and the event.))

Fiona makes a show of checking Rotgiers out, looking him over, then smiles bawdily. [color=blue]"More woman than you can handle, I'd wager.

But isn't it convenient that you change your mind when there's an opening against an opponent who's already been battered. I would think that the honorable thing to do would be to face the same adversity as your apparent opponent in the Joust would face, avoid any unfair advantage."

((No one's been battered, Rotgiers would be taking Valerian's spot in the Joust, entering at the beginning like everyone else. So, this is really a matter of whether Fiona wants to enter the Joust instead of Rotgiers.))

"Very well, I challenge you to Certamen, for the right to enter the Joust. The winner enters the Joust. I choose Rego."

((Ah.. .I was thinking that the Joust was already underway. Ah well.))

"Very well, I challenge you to Certamen, for the right to enter the Joust. The winner enters the Joust. I choose Rego."
[/quote]
[color=blue]"And I choose Corpus," she replies as she smooths the front of her robe, subtly letting him know that she has a nice one.

Her scores:

  • Initiative: 7 (Qui -1 + Finesse 3 + die roll of 5)
  • Resistance Total: 8 (Sta 3 + Parma Magica (Corpus) 4).

First round, she is Attacking with Rego and defending with Corpus.

Attack Total: Pre 1 + Rego 10 + die roll of 7 = 18.

Defense Total: Per 0 + Corpus 15 + die roll of 7) = 22.

Well, it was a bit of a suprise...the competitor Valerian was going to face was going to move onto the next round, since Valerian was DQ'ed from the Tourney because of the death. Rotgiers then volunteered to take the spot. He's a bit of a hothead, so he'd challenge at Certamen. And don't forget, he's Tremere trained. :smiling_imp:

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Rolls of
Intiative: non botching zero; total of 6 (Finesse) +1 Specialty -1 Quickness=6
Attack total of 1+13+13+3=30
Defense total of -1+24+3=26

Rotgiers has an attack advantage of 8.

Rotgiers says, simply, "Gladiatrix." Rotgiers wins initiative and creates the phantasm of a chessboard with figures resplendent in white upon the board, all are human in shape. Rotgiers obliterates a bishop, Fiona flinches at the ferociousness of the attack, but she doesn't feel any fatigue from the attack. No Fatigue penalty, but Fiona needs to make an Intelligence roll of 9+, or others familiar with Rotgiers school gain insight into Fiona. Rotgier's doesn't, but it can be presumed he has confederates in the crowd who will report this information back to him on another Int roll of 6+.

Fiona's attack is absorbed by Rotgiers, the cheese pieces she attempts to move are held fast to their starting positions. Next Round...

Intelligence check (9+) is Int 1 + (die roll of 0, followed by a die roll of 3) 0 = 1.

Second int check (6+) is Int 1 + (die roll of 0, followed by a die roll of 2) 0 = 1.

Obviously Fiona is flustered by the choice of chess, and was momentary thinking of the board that Korvin had set up a couple days earlier. Time to get your head in the game, girl!

Second Round: Since Rotgiers didn't beat her down in the first round like she thought he might, she is going to go with the same combination: Rego Attack, Corpus Defense.

Attack: Pre 1 + Rego 10 + die roll of 7 = 18.

Defense: Per 0 + Corpus 15 + die roll of 8 = 23.

invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3819610/

Rotgiers attacks with Corpus again (6). Attack roll is a 5 and defense roll is a 1, exploder of 2 for a total of 4 to defense.

Attack is 1+13+13+5=32
Defense is -1+25+4=27

Rotgiers strikes out and destroys another bishop of Fiona's, forcing another couple of int checks as specified above.

((So far, Fiona hasn't lost any Fatigue, am I figuring that right? Let's see. First round, Attack Advantage 8 – Resistance Total 8 = 0, no Fatigue loss. Second round Attack Advantage 32 – 23 = 9 – Resistance Total 8 = 1, so 1 Fatigue Level lost. So she's at Winded, which has no penalties.))

First Int check (9+) is a total of 10.

Second Int check (6+) is a total of 4.

She's going to try to change things up a little bit. Attack with Corpus, Defend with Rego.

Attack: Pre 1 + Corpus 15 + die roll of 5 = 21.

Defense: Per 0 + Rego 10 + die roll of 8 = 18.

Actually, no fatigue lost at all. Rotgiers is doing something altogether different in this Certamen match, part of the Gladiatrix school of dueling detailed in HoH:TL.

invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3819813/
Art to Attack with is even,2
Attack roll of 7; 1+13+13+7=34
Defense roll of 7; -1+24+7=30

He destroys a rook. Fiona finally realizes what Rotgiers is doing and gets the sense that she's being toyed with at the same time. This Certamen is revealing far too much of her psyche, as the rook is taken away, she feels her Secretive nature appear visible for any and all who know what to look for. She can concede the Certamen, if she'd like, but she gets the sense he will continue violating her until all of her has been fully exposed, as it were, and then finally begin truly engaging in Certamen.

((Ah, so that's what he meant when he said "Gladiatrix."))

Her eyes narrow as she realizes what he's up to, exposing every weakness, however carefully hidden by the kids.

[color=blue]"I yield. Good luck in the Joust," she spits out before she spins on her heels and storms off. ((Or tries to, anyway, since I suspect that he'll do something to stop her.))

"I thank the maga for the pleasant diversion. Although I was so looking forward to handling your chess piece in a manner similar to how Korvin used your image in the Ceramen Tournament. Such a pity." The way he says it is truly vile, along with the leer on his face marks him as a degenerate of the worst sort.

[color=blue]"A lot of people long for that privilege, sodalis. Too bad you'll be handling your piece yourself."

Fiona leaves and finds a quiet place, alone and slumps against a wall, trying desperately not to cry. She can't remember the last time she felt so exposed as she did when fighting Rotgiers, and she wonders how much of herself he saw.

Alexei returns to the jousting field in high spirits as he puts his gauntlets back on.

"Master Lexi! Master Lexi!" Helmut calls to him, running fast to get to him before he readies for the next round. Alexei waves as Michel pulls his horse by the reigns and gets ready to help him into the saddle.

"Helmut! Slow down lad, what's wrong?" Alexei asks.

"Mistress Fiona..." he pauses to catch a breath. Alexei holds up a hand to Michel to wait. "Mistress Fiona...she entered Certamen with Rotgers.."

"What?!" he thunders and grabs Helmut by the shoulders. Michel lays a hand on Alexei's shoulder and is rebuffed. "When? What happened?!"

"Just a few minutes ago! Just after he was announced, Mistress Fiona questioned his right to enter so late and replace Valerian! He challenged her to Certamen and they fought right there! You were speaking with the Prima when this happened! Fiona...she..."

"What! What did she do?"

"She yielded." Helmut looks down at his feet. "He used techniques that she could not counter...he...seemed to humiliate her, but I could not see what it was." Helmut looks back up, his eyes watery with tears. Hesitantly Alexei finally lets go of Helmut's shoulders as his breath shudders. He seems to be drawing in his humours as he turns to Michel, but then his eyes catch the gloating Rotger's in the distance.

"Son of a bitch!" he mutters and yanks the sword out of Helmut's belt.

"No my lord! You must not!" Michel quickly exclaims laying his hands on Alexei, keeping the sword low and trying to block him from sight of Rotgers so he can't see the display. "In the joust! It must be the joust! Do not do anything outside of the tourney! Please Master Alexei, you can beat him in the joust, but you must not do anything outside of it!"

Alexei nearly strikes Michel in his haste and anger but manages to take a shuddering breath and loosen his grip on the sword enough for Michel to take it from him. "Where is she?"

"My lord there's no time, the next round is about to begin!" Helmut implores. Alexei's head whips about to and fro before finally seeing the marshalls of the tourney who are wondering what the hold up is.

"Aaahh! Blast it all! Fine, I'll have to speak with her after. Please give her my regards." he gets helped into his saddle and Michel hands him the enlarged staff that he's using for a lance. "Rotgers...you'd better make it to my round!" he growls as he canters the horse forward.

Helmut cannot know that on his own, without a Very Hard OoH Lore check... A magus will have a slightly lower difficulty, or Fiona could come out and tell people what was going on, as she felt parts of her get exposed. Another magus, such as a Tremere might know about this, too... :smiley:

Oh, I thought part of the school was that it revealed it to anyone watching it. I'll ammend it.

Waiting for Alexei's competitor roll and initiative roll...

Korvin will seek Fiona out to see if she needs a hug.

((Woops, sorry about that, and we're using his last attack and defense roll since it wasn't needed))

Competitor: 1d10 → [7] = (7)
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Init: 1d10+2 → [6,2] = (8)
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Alexei glares across the field at his competitor, his eagerness for the contest changed to anger.

Korvin finds her seated against an out-of-the-way wall, her knees drawn up to her chin. Her head is down, and she's sitting deathly still. She barely moves when she feels Korvin sit next to her.

[color=blue]"Did it look as bad as it felt?" she says quietly.

I'm not an expert on Ceramen but you looked over matched. i do not understand what happened to you. He was using a chess match but his attacks seem to have no physical effect on you.