The Great Escape

[Bill the barbarian]

Slight Old Movie Spoilers ahead but nothing egregious (sorry PhilHibbs).

So, I'm watching Yojimbo and our hero makes an escape at one point in the adventure by (Nah, not gonna tell why should I ruin a fantastic movie to make a point says I. See it and then think escape and tie it back to this topic).

Now, escaping is a fantastic trope that we all love and adore Don’t think I am giving anything away by saying that John McClane or Tom Farrell used ducts and vents to flee, Lancelot hid behind tapestries, under large hoop dresses or hung from parapets, or snorkelled in moats with reed straws to get away. Jimmie Bond (that’s James to you) used his wiles to walk by guards on the arm of beautiful Russian spys, Beretta  pointed at their all too perfect breasts, and Jedi’s, well a little handwaving a few Jedi mind tricks and Obi Wan's your uncle.

Now, my mind flashes to Gloranthan escapes. And promptly goes blank (insert dig at stupid barbarians here). 

Oh hold on, Pavis ....

I can see running the rooftop and on Cyclopean walls twixt Old and New Pavis, through the shanties of Oldtown trailing drying clothes, jumping from boat to boat by the quays of Riverside a la Aladdin in Pavis. Pavis I get...

Sartar?

I can perhaps see getting your Orlanthi Guards drunk and stealing the key to your shackles, I can see Eurmali misdirects, but lacking a really good vision of Clearwine streets, Alda-chur glass towers, the winding and impossible streets in Tink near the Dragonnewt's inhuman city., I am having a hard time envisioning escapes well enough to run them for my table. 

So who has tales of their escapes they want to share...or anything else that would make for a great escape vignettes for the poor GMs that lack escape fu. You know dashing one’s way through the cities, sewers, rooftops and streets of Dragon Pass on two clacks a day.

Cheers
and thanx in advance!

Edited November 24, 2019 by Bill the barbarian

[Joerg]

There's always the Lightbringer's Quest, with the stage "Lost in Hell". Magic power and hope in the shape of a feather from the wife, sent to the dungeon.

The Red Cow clan regularly raid the Godtime equivalent of their own village, escaping through the secret caves.

Wells that bring in water from the side of the settlement are a possibility for this, too - Nochet has aqueducts, and possibly intersecting catacombs.

Boldhome has its pockets for some overhanging rock climbing, if you want to.

Duck settlements with stilt houses or floats have the underwater approaches Jimmy B has always been so fond of.

The underbelly of sheep are probably applicable only on the Other Side, unless your party consists of Enlo or ducks? Stowaway on a vehicle or sufficiently sized beast is a well-proven trick.

A Eurmali can turn everybody's appearance into that of a highly embarrassing beast of burden, possibly causing some sweat when the cargo of that "donkey" or "beetle" is checked by the guards.

 

The Orlanthi have a couple of rote techniques for such ventures. Flight and Teleportation are dull and should be discouraged, likewise Divine Intervention. That leaves donning your Sandals of Darkness, casting Wind Words to distract the guards, seducing and/or sedating the alynx, putting up Darkwalls or similarly un-flashy magics. Invisibility spells require spell trading with a ready source, and there is no telling what the trading partner wants in return.

For missing hand holds there is the possibility of the Glue spell and some MP storage (applied to the rope or log you put against that wall or ceiling).

[Sumath]

The map of Clearwine in the GM Screen Pack provides a good basis for escape/chase scenes - the Upper City is full of flat roofs to jump between, the Lower City has a mix of flat and pitched roofs (remove some tiles and hide out amongst the beams until the coast is clear), and there are plenty of battlements along which escapees may flee, or lower their knotted sheets from.

There is also the Hero's Trail, which originates from a sally port in the North wall and is perfect for getaways by those in the know, and a market place in the Upper City is great for knocking over stalls of fresh fruit during the chase scene.

Alternatively, there are vineyards surrounding the city through which games of cat & mouse might be played out by fugitives and their pursuers.

Edited November 24, 2019 by Sumath

[Eff]

Some potential setpieces: 

- Large Pelorian cities probably take out the city gods from their temple and parade them around in a massive day-long celebration on their holy day. Our intrepid barbarian heroes have just managed to get away from the Unspoken Word, now they have to make their way through the party without being seduced by Lunar blandishments and still evading the pursuing secret police. And for some unfathomable reason, there's all these people carrying large panes of glass around...

-The heroes, having run afoul of a secret order within the Lion Society, have been captured and put into the Basmol Ruins, to be hunted to keep the Lion Society's elite sharp. These ruins were made for lion-people, with lots of open courts atop buildings laid out perfectly for sunning yourself, lots of broad ramps, and so on. Will Rokar/Hrestol/Siglat/Arkat's guidance be enough to let them escape, or perhaps even triumph over their captors? 

 

[Bill the barbarian]

Do I know my community or what, the topic has barely opened it’s doors (so to speak) and... wow! Top notch stuff, ya bunch of budding Break ’n' Enter artists and scallywags!.

8 hours ago, Joerg said:

Wells that bring in water from the side of the settlement are a possibility for this, too - Nochet has aqueducts, and possibly intersecting catacombs.

Well a quick boo down this rabbit hole tells me that the ancient folk about 3,000 years ago in the area of Persia used qanats () there are qanat that date from antiquity that are still in use today.  

Well, this will work for Prax, I think, so further down the hole to find somewhere (somewhen) more temperate in clime to dig a well a well. And nothing so far... (waugh).

Quote

Until recent centuries, all artificial wells were pumpless hand-dug wells of varying degrees of sophistication, and they remain a very important source of potable water in some rural developing areas where they are routinely dug and used today. 

Of course, our so-called experts from Wikipedia are wrong, what individual who knows an Ernaldan god talker would dig a well when a gnome would do it ever so much better and  easier...

Any others from the Halstat or La Tene area @Joerg?

4 hours ago, Eff said:

- Large Pelorian cities probably take out the city gods from their temple and parade them around in a massive day-long celebration on their holy day. Our intrepid barbarian heroes have just managed to get away from the Unspoken Word, now they have to make their way through the party without being seduced by Lunar blandishments and still evading the pursuing secret police. And for some unfathomable reason, there's all these people carrying large panes of glass around...

Religious festivals, odd scenes just at the edge of comprehension, noise, strange music (i assume there would be music this would be strange to a barbarian ear if not all ears) that brings to mind little jimmie bond sashaying his way through a New Orleans madras gras parade all while trying not to be killed by mysterious pursuers... 

 

5 hours ago, Sumath said:

There is also the Hero's Trail, which originates from a sally port in the North wall and is perfect for getaways by those in the know, and a market place in the Upper City is great for knocking over stalls of fresh fruit during the chase scene.

Yes, it is not a chase until someone upends a fruit cart or vegetable table (or both)!  Nice point about being in the know, to escape well it pays to know ones possible routes...

 

8 hours ago, Joerg said:

The Red Cow clan regularly raid the Godtime equivalent of their own village, escaping through the secret caves.

8 hours ago, Joerg said:

The Orlanthi have a couple of rote techniques for such ventures. Flight and Teleportation are dull and should be discouraged, likewise Divine Intervention. That leaves donning your Sandals of Darkness, casting Wind Words to distract the guards, seducing and/or sedating the alynx, putting up Darkwalls or similarly un-flashy magics. Invisibility spells require spell trading with a ready source, and there is no telling what the trading partner wants in return.

Now those are Gloranthan solutions!

 

8 hours ago, Joerg said:

Boldhome has its pockets for some overhanging rock climbing, if you want to.

Boldhome would have boltholes up the wazoo being a vast metropolis of 10,000 souls, Rooftops and rain spouts for rascally lovers to climb seeking trysts or while fleeing from vengeful husbands or wives. Thieves using blind alleys, abandoned boxes to hide in or behind, throngs to melt into... all to avoid pursuit by righteous thanes and their harried carls. Hell, just imagine a trollkin thief getting into the caves behind the city under the cliffs as a bolthole (gone), but will our deputized adventures follow into the gloom, or perhaps they are the trollkin thief panting his way to the grotto, thinking, ‘a few more pace yep a few more pace <pant, pant>... and then darkness once again shelter me an mine...yes <gasp> we are all uz!" 

 

8 hours ago, Joerg said:

For missing hand holds there is the possibility of the Glue spell and some MP storage (applied to the rope or log you put against that wall or ceiling).

of course... an ol’ standard but still golden! Never gets too old.

 

8 hours ago, Joerg said:

Duck settlements with stilt houses or floats have the underwater approaches Jimmy B has always been so fond of.

...Nice, now add a largish and strong water elemental for the full speedboat effect, white plumes of foam flying in the boat’s wake, and yippie kai yay, ride ‘em jimmie!Image not actual size

Edited November 24, 2019 by Bill the barbarian