~ ~ ~ Confronted by despicable Undead, Draego, ignoring his Sa'ir, pulled forth the large bull horn gilded with bronze fittings, and sounded the Horn of Valhalla.  The walking abominations were the most monstrous creatures to infest the High Forest.  No quarter would be shown to the Unlife.  Back to the grave they would be sent.  And the Berserkers of Valhalla would help accomplish this goal.  The roan Centaur blew long and hard upon the horn [1st rd action], sounding a clarion cry ringing off the cliff face behind him, which reached across the Outer Planes to summon the Berserkers to battle. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ When the Berserkers of Valhalla appeared, Malar's Talon ordered of them, "Go!  Destroy the lifeless abominations!  Lay them low.  Return them to the decrepit earth from whence they came!" and pointed at the approaching Undead.  The Hunter Priest holstered the Tetsubo, choosing instead to do battle with the Claws of his God, and followed behind the Valhallans flanked by the Sa'ir.  Slowly closing with the walking dead, Draego called upon mental energies to increase his adrenalin flow [2d rd action - CON chk pass, -8 pts, +1 str & dex, +3 con]. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Against the first Undead creatures encountered, Kael lashed out with both his front hooves [3rd rd actions - atks NAT 20, mod 14 // mod dmg 12, 13] and slashed at them with the Claws of Malar [atks mod 12, mod 6 // mod dmg 15, 14].  The Goat Lions attacked with fang, horns and claws [Vawn atks 1 / 5 hit, dmg 1; Tau atks 2 / 5 hits, dmg 2, 6].  Tau scored with one horn.  Vawn gored with a horn and chomped down with a bite. ~ ~ ~ 

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~ ~ ~ Clear to the Plane of Gladesheim the note of the Horn did reach, and stridently ring in the ears of the Norse God LOKI!!!  For this particular Horn of Valhalla was attuned to the God of Mischief and Strife.  And in answer to the Horn's Summons, Loki directed five of the Valkyries to bear five Berserk Warriors, loyal to him, from their Heroes' Paradise back to the mortal realm.  Loki's Valkyries instantly bore the five Beserkers from Valhalla on their white winged horses, and dropped them before the Horn-Bearer.  Loki's Berserkers appeared before Kael Draego ready to do battle, dressed in all varieties of armor and wielding all manner of sword, spear and battle axe.  At his command, the Warriors of Valhalla swarmed to the attack. ~ ~ ~ 

- - - The faster moving Skeletons encountered the Berserkers first [combat begins, rd 1, initiative Berserkers, Undead].  And the battle was on.  The variable depth of the snow [2-3'] on the battlefield made for treacherous footing, and hampered both the living and the dead, as they clashed [1/rd save vs paralysis to avoid -1 initiative, attack and damage; Berserkers 3/5 saved; 1st wave Undead 2/5 saved].  Two of the five Berserkers landed blows to the Undead.  The first planted his battle axe [#5, mod atk 22, mod dmg 14 - destroyed] into a normal Skeleton [#3].  The second Warrior of Valhalla bashed his bastard sword [#4, mod atk 12, mod dmg 15 - destroyed] into another normal Skeleton [#5].  The other Valhallans missed their attacks against the Undead.  The three remaining Skeletons [#1, 2 and 4] retalliated against the Berserkers, but all missed in their attacks against them.  Then the Talon of Malar was among them.  With his first hoof attacks, the Centaur downed the Monstrous Skeleton [#1].  The claw blades rent asunder the last two Skeletons [#2 and 4]. The Sa'ir got in parting shots on the Skeletons, but only got scraps. - - -  

 - - - In the wake of the faster moving Skeletons, the the second wave of slower moving Zombies advanced into melee range [rd 2, initiative Talon, Sa'ir, Berserkers, Undead].  The three normal Zombies, one monster Zombie, and a pathetic Animal Skeleton creature, formerly a Cougar or Puma, fearlessly confronted the party.  In the distance from the south [300', rd 5 melee] and west [100', rd 3 melee], new waves of Undead tracked through the deep snow toward where the battle was engaged.  Both the south and west forces comprised one Giant Skeleton, four normal Skeletons, two Monster Zombies, and three normal Zombies.  As usual, the Skeletons preceded the Zombies toward the party. - - -

Round 2 actions [Save vs paralysis - Draego = 8 (success), Sa'ir = 7 (failed)]

 ~ ~ ~ If there was one thing, the Centaur hated more than Humans, it was Undead.  They were so unnatural, and didn't make for good prey to hunt.  Also Malar didn't imbue His Talon's with the power to affect the abominations back from the grave, relying on His specialty priests to get the job through other means.  And with more shambling Unlife coming from the south and west, it seemed the decision to summon the Berserkers was wise.  The Talon now understood why battle of old was engage back in the ravine.  Its narrow confines channeled the battle front down to a narrow point protecting the flanks, but also made it more vulnerable to any magical attack affecting a wide area.  The Berserkers would never resort to using the terrain to their advantage.  Once battle was engaged, it was always head on to the bitter end, death.  The Malarite hoped to avoid that. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Moving to intercept the largest of the walking abominations, the Black Bard's Talon plowed through snow finding sound footing, and as before, attacked against the Monster Zombie.  The Hunter Priest double punched with the Claws of Malar, missing with one [atk=mod 6], but sliced through the left arm of the Monster Zombie [atk=mod 15, dmg=12].  The front hooves of the Centaur Stallion kicked out at the hideous beast, but missed with each attack [atks=mod 5]. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Attacking by his side, the Sa'ir launched claws, fangs and horns at the Monster Zombie.  Tau ripped into the Undead [3/5 atks=hits, dmg=6] with one claw rake, one horn jab, and a successful bite.  The second Goat-Lion, Vawn missed with both claws, but successfully gored the Monster Zombie in the neck with both horns [dmg=4].  Vawn also tore a respectable chunk [dmg=10] from the right leg of the Walking Dead. ~ ~ ~ 

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 ~ ~ ~ Having destroyed the faster moving Skeletons, the Berserkers attacked the slower Zombies [3/5 Berserkers -1 atk/dmg].  The Monster Zombie, formerly a Giant of some kind, had its unnatural existence ended by the Centaur and Goat-Lions, and missing its chance to pummel the Talon into paste. The maniacal Warriors of Valhalla all landed strikes with their respective weapons despite any trouble caused by the slippery footing.  However, only three of the Valhallans [1-2-5] successfully struck with their second attacks.  The first Warrior of Loki, flashing the tip of the Spear about as he attacked, repeatedly punched it through the normal Zombie [dmg pts: 6 & 5 - dead].  The Zombie, which the first Berserker faced, missed its chance to pummel the Warrior, before the Spear ended its unnatural life.  The second Valhallan faced off against the second Monster Zombie, and fiercely slammed the Battle Axe into its groin and then the abdomen [dmg pts: 11 & 6].  The Monster Zombie, formerly an Ogre, pounded the Berserker on his right shoulder [dmg pts: 7] nearly knocking him to the ground.  The third Warrior from the Outer Planes also attacked against the same Monster Zombie, and chopped the blade of the Battle Axe into its abdomen [dmg pts: 12 - dead].  The fourth Warrior of Valhalla squared off against a normal size Zombie, and wielding two-handed his mighty Bastard Sword, whipped the blade completely through its chest [dmg pts: 17 - dead].  The Zombie, formerly an Orc, attempted to clobber the Berserker, but missed, before getting cleaved in two.  The last of the Heroes from Valhalla swept his Battle Axe around in a flat arc, and decapitated the Zombie [dmg pts: 11 - dead] he faced. Before losing its head, the Zombie which once was a Bugbear successfully bashed the Berserker, beating on his right shoulder [dmg pts: 8].  The Talons and Berserkers elimnated the first force of Undead right in time for the arrival of the West Force [rd 3 - initiative: Talon, Berserkers, Undead, Sa'ir]. ~ ~ ~

Round 3 actions [Save vs paralysis - Draego = 12 (success), Sa'ir = 20 (success)]

 ~ ~ ~ With the first wave of Undead dispatched, the Priest of Malar stood his ground amongst the lifeless bodies and scattered bones of the vanquished, and confronted the next wave of Walking Dead as they came in range of his hooves and claws.  Draego fought without utterance, and lashed out with an initial combination of hoof [atk=mod 12, dmg=9] and Malar Claw [atk=mod 8, dmg=12] at whichever of the abominations first came at him.  The Talon then kicked out with his other hoof [atk=mod 11, dmg=15], and double punched with the other Claw of Malar [atk=mod 18/13, dmg=11/11] at any of the other Undead fighting nearby or against him. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ When the opportunity for the Sa'ir to attack came, Tau poorly orchestrated his attacks, missing with all but one of his goring attacks [atk=18, dmg=3] against one of the vile abominations.  Vawn proved to be equally uncoordinated with his attacks, managing to barely score with just a bite [atk=13, dmg=1] on one of the Undead. ~ ~ ~

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 ~ ~ ~ Against the Talon, the animated Skeletons crashed.  A Bear-like Animal Skeleton was crushed and scattered by a single blow from the Centaur's hoof to the sternum.  A normal Skeleton fell ripped from right leg up through the bony torso to be decapitated by a Claw of Malar.  The Giant Skeleton disintegrated from Draego's rapid fire hoof strike to its left arm and double punch strike with Claw of Malar to its lower chest and abdomen.  Half the Skeletal Ranks of the Western Squad were decimated by the Hunter of the Black Bard. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Elsewhere hiding in the ruins from the cursed sunlight, a vile Ghast stirred from its death-like sleep amongst its fellow stench exuding Ghouls, and exerting psychic control over the Deathlink, forced the remaining three normal Skeletons to converge on the Follower of Malar.  Two of the three attacking Skeleton's rusted and pitted long swords strokes came perilously close to nearly split him from head to front groin.  And around the battlefield, the attacks of the mindless Undead took on a more orchestrated and intelligent, as the Ghast and Ghouls exerted their influence. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Defending their Master, the Goat-Lions pounced upon the Skeletons.  Tau missed with both claws and one horn, but scored with a bite and gore.  The horn gored into the Skeleton's left leg and ripped up through the lower ribcage [dmg pts: 2].  The Sa'ir clamped its jaws onto the rib bones, and ripped them out [dmg pts: 2 - dead].  Vahn score two hits also on one of the Skeletons, impaling with one of its horns and raking with one of its leonine paws.  The horn hooked through the Skeleton's upper ribcage, and ripped the bones out clear to the lower cage [dmg pts: 3].  The paw slashed off right arm of the Walking Bone-Heap and across its neck [dmg pts: 2 - dead].  The Sa'ir eliminated two of the Grave Escapees. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Reorienting to face the new threat coming at them, the Berserkers followed the Centaur's lead, and launched themselves at the Undead.  They charged at the rank of Zombies, leaving their Summoner to take care of the Skeleons [3/5 Berserkers -1 atk/dmg].  Their target was the Monster Zombie.  Only two of the Valhallans landed successful blows.  Two others due to their haste slipped and fell to the snow covered ground.  Another Servant of Loki missed entirely.  The second of the Warrior of the Paradisian Plane whirled the Battle Axe in a fierce underhand stroke, and deeply plowed the blade up through the leg, abdomen and lower chest of the Walking Abomination [dmg pts: 13].  Rotted and diseased entrails crawling with maggots and other squirming parasites spilled out in a rank black heap on the snow.  The fifth Hero of the Valhallan plane followed suit with his Brethren, and with an underhanded sweep of his Battle Axe, clove through the Monster Zombie's abdomen and right arm [dmg pts: 17 - dead]. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ Controlled by the Ghast and Ghouls, the three normal Zombies and one remaining Monster Zombie, once a Bugbear, focused on the fallen Berserkers.  They'd be easier to hit.  Two of the three normal Zombies pummeled the third fallen Hero of Vahalla, beating him about the chest and neck [dmg pts: 2 & 8].  The third of the normal Zombies just plain missed its chance to pummel the other fallen Warrior of Loki.  However, the Monster Zombie viciously pounded down upon the grounded fourth Berserker of the Norse Paradise, and smashed aside his upraised right arm into his upper chest [dmg pts: 12].  Normally such a blow would have knocked out the common Warrior, but the Berserker state prevented this from happening. ~ ~ ~

 ~ ~ ~ The West Force was nearly decimated.  Only a single normal Skeleton and three Zombies, and Monster Zombie remained from that Force.  To the south, the South Force closed in on the living invaders, soon to be in melee on the fifth round [rd 4 - initiative: Talon, Undead, Sa'ir, Berserkers]. ~ ~ ~

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