[LP] The Way of the Tiger. (Complete)

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Wed May 18, 2016 4:39 pm

OK, changing my vote. Tell her to free Glavais.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Wed May 18, 2016 7:01 pm

You tell the Keeper to help Glaivas out of the cell, and she does so unquestioningly, supporting him enough to stand and walk out before you. She looks expectantly at you.

(Avenger does not have a spider in his head.)

'Is it really you, Avenger?' Glaivas says in a dry voice unused to speech for a long time. 'You have proven yourself to be my redemption. Thank–'

You interrupt, saying it is not the time. You ask him about Doré le Jeune, but Glaivas simply shakes his head.

'I know not. He was still fighting when I was caught in the net.'

The Keeper speaks a word and an image appears over the palm of her hand of the Black Widow perched on the cavern roof directly above the Forbidden Sanctuary. She is wrapping the outer windows and doors of the stalagmite in webbing, sealing you in.

'Her minions have surrounded this place whilst you tarried here,' the Keeper says, the light of the fire disc causing her eyes to gleam. 'Where will you go now, ninja? You are trapped.'

(Avenger is carrying Tyutchev's Belt Pouch, but not the Paladin's Sword.)

At the nearness of Glaivas, you sense something glowing from Tyutchev's pouch on your belt. You open it to reveal a crystal in the shape of a heart.

'By the All-Mother,' Glaivas says, 'it is the fabled Heart of Illustra! How did you come by it?'

You remember that Tyutchve slew Aurora, the High Priestess of Illustra, in Harith-si-the-Crow. He must have pilfered this from her. You remove the heart which glows. You feel its radiance bathe the room. Glaivas gains in strength, becoming nearly steady upon his feet, and you strengthen too – regain up to 4 lost Endurance points. Cross the pouch from your Character Sheet and note the Heart of Illustra.

The Keeper shrinks back with a shriek, turning away from the light, and she transforms into a hand-sized yellow and black spider with gnarled legs. At her screech, one of the cell-guarding creatures opens its tentacles revealing a surprise.

A vortex of dust stirs in the cell, and a man in grey silk, features obscured by a balaclava, leaps out and adopts a martial stance opposite you. He speaks, his thick accent muffled by the cloth over his mouth.

'I am Amin the Fida'i. Upon the the capture of your friend, the minions of Nullaq summoned me from Upanishad to await you here. In my meditation I have prepared for the honor of ending your life. Your skill must be breathtaking for you to stand before me now. I specialize in the killing of your Kwon brethren, and killing you will be my greatest glory.'

It seems you have stepped into one final trap. Glaivas moves in on the Keeper whilst you face off against Amin. From what little you have read about the Fida'i, they are a fanatical sect of assassins whose martial arts specialize in exploiting the weaknesses of other fighters and martial artists. Amin's empty hands twitch in anticipation of fighting you.

What move will you use?
• Iron Fist punch?
• Cobra Strike punch?
• Tiger's Paw chop?
• Forked Lightning kick?
• Winged Horse kick?
• Leaping Tiger kick?
• Whirlpool throw?
• Dragon's Tail throw?
• Teeth of the Tiger throw?
• Kwon's Flail?
• Use the Acrobatics skill to throw him off guard with a somersault to the left?

Ruh-roh, I don't think we've seen the full matrix since the fight with Yaemon. The Heart of Illustra has put us at near-full Endurance, but we still have a crippled leg and are empty on Inner Force. This could be rough.

Avenger I, Overlord of Irsmuncast-nigh-Edge, Grandmaster of the Five Winds
Modifiers: Kick (-1), Throw +1, Fortune +1
Inner Force: 0/4
Endurance: 18/20
Techniques: Acrobatics, Climbing, Disable Device, Poison Needles, Kwon's Flail, ShinRen.
Shuriken: *****-*****-*****-***
Ninja Tools: Ninja Costume, Breathing Tube, Iron Sleeves, Garotte, Flash Powder, Flint & Tinder, Spiderfish, Blood of Nil.
Special Items: Opal Ring, Pouch with 34 Gold Pieces, Locket with Saint's Hair, Silver Shuriken, Statuette of Dama, Coronation Day Coin, Ruby Circlet, Scorpion Ring, several gems, Amulet of Nullaq, the Orb (in eye), the Sceptre, The Heart of Illustra.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Wed May 18, 2016 7:08 pm

Acrobatics, because our Kick modifier is still at -1.

Omegonthesane · Post by **Omegonthesane** » Wed May 18, 2016 7:37 pm

Acrobatics. This sect specialises in fighting other martial artists, so our winning move is clearly to not fight.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Thu May 19, 2016 6:43 am

Note on your Character Sheet that you must apply -2 to your Kick Modifier and may not use the Acrobatics skill (if you have it)

Without Acrobatics, I'll vote for Kwon's Flail, even with the negative modifier, hoping the reward for learning it exceeds the damage to our leg.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Thu May 19, 2016 9:16 am

Oh shit, I forgot about that. Kwon's flail it is then.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Thu May 19, 2016 11:29 am

So he claims to "specialize" in the killing of Kwon' followers? I can't think of a more appropriate move than to smash his face in with a move with Kwon's name in it.

angelfromanotherpin · Thu May 19, 2016 11:38 am

You shuffle sideways and lash your right heel round like a flail, however to your amazement Amin drops into a roll to avoid it and springs back to his feet. He counters with a combination of punches to your ribs. Your Defense against this is 10, and it will cause 1 Die damage if successful.

• Iron Fist punch?
• Cobra Strike punch?
• Tiger's Paw chop?
• Forked Lightning kick?
• Winged Horse kick?
• Leaping Tiger kick?
• Whirlpool throw?
• Dragon's Tail throw?
• Teeth of the Tiger throw?

7 is a miss, but while it fended him off, the auto-miss on such a signature move suggests his boast of specializing against Kwon-types is no joke.

Avarice · Post by **Avarice** » Thu May 19, 2016 12:48 pm

You know what? Go for an iron fist punch.

Surprise him by using the most boring, underwhelming move there is.

Dr_Noface · Post by **Dr_Noface** » Thu May 19, 2016 2:01 pm

are there any ways to pick up hints for this fight? I know with Yaemon in the first book you can spy on some monk scrolls

and half a vote for whirlpool throw, maybe our +1 counts for something

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Thu May 19, 2016 2:16 pm

Another vote for Iron Fist

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Thu May 19, 2016 2:18 pm

I haven't seen any hints, but at the same time it seems to be a lot more forgiving than Yaemon's fight. I think there's actually room to feel him out and figure out what works and what doesn't without being cold beaten to death in the process. If that's true, it would be fairly cool.

If I had confidence that the authors knew more about martial arts, I'd suggest that the Way of the Tiger had learned/stolen some of their moves from other styles, with clues in the names (like the Whirlpool throw obviously comes from some Nemesis-devoted tradition, right?) and using those would be more effective than signature Kwon- and Tiger-named moves. But I don't have that confidence, I think you have to just trial-and-error it.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Thu May 19, 2016 2:44 pm

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Thu May 19, 2016 3:10 pm

Amin's dark eyes drink in your every movement, stance ready, as you drive your fist at his torso. He seems familiar with the move – expectant almost – as he jinks aside and slams an elbow into your side. Deduct 3 from your Endurance.

If you live, he circles you, his eyes shining as if he were smiling beneath his cloth face mask. 'It is your move, Avenger.'

• Cobra Strike punch?
• Tiger's Paw chop?
• Forked Lightning kick?
• Winged Horse kick?
• Leaping Tiger kick?
• Kwon's Flail?
• Whirlpool throw?
• Dragon's Tail throw?
• Teeth of the Tiger throw?

Ouch, down to 15 End. As a note: the reference for Kwon's Flail is different here than at the previous opportunity to use it. None of references for other moves have been variant.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Thu May 19, 2016 4:02 pm

Go for the alternate Kwon's Flail.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Thu May 19, 2016 4:05 pm

Agreed. Go with Kwon's Flail again.

Dr_Noface · Post by **Dr_Noface** » Thu May 19, 2016 4:14 pm

whirlpool throw, i feel as if we need to unbalance him before we use our finishing move

Avarice · Post by **Avarice** » Thu May 19, 2016 7:25 pm

Going for repeats on used moves leads to game overs with Yaemon. If the chapter is different it could just as well mean we do worse.

Going with whirlpool

Dr_Noface · Post by **Dr_Noface** » Fri May 20, 2016 1:44 am

Brief Aside: Apparently a Way of the Tiger rpg should be out sometime this year.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Fri May 20, 2016 5:34 am

To break the tie I'll switch to whirlpool throw.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Fri May 20, 2016 1:22 pm

I'd have chosen the Flail, but I'll withhold to avoid another tie.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Fri May 20, 2016 2:37 pm

Nah, I'll just switch back to my first choice, making it 3-2 in favor of Kwon's Flail.

Dr_Noface · Post by **Dr_Noface** » Fri May 20, 2016 9:22 pm

i dunno guys, the idea of not using "tiger" or "kwon" moves seems plausible

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Fri May 20, 2016 9:43 pm

Oh, fine. Back to 3-1 for whirlpool throw.

angelfromanotherpin · Fri May 20, 2016 10:19 pm

As a heads up, I'm vacationing in Scotland for the next few weeks, so updates may be less regular for a while.

You grab one of Amin's wrists and try to transfer his weight over your hip, but he is expecting the move and falls backward, pulling you with him before using an extended leg to flip you onto your back in a throw. Amin follows up with a punch towards your throat. Your Defense is 8, and if you are hit you will suffer 1 Die damage.

Either way, due to the fact that you were thrown, you must suffer a -2 penalty to your Modifier for your next attack only.

• Iron Fist punch?
• Cobra Strike punch?
• Tiger's Paw chop?
• Forked Lightning kick?
• Winged Horse kick?
• Leaping Tiger kick?
• Kwon's Flail (new)?

Amin's attack is 12, but we block with a 5. Between that and the throw, our next attack is at neg 4.