Combat with the Geese

Summary

In Session 2, while investigating Dunko Guzman's apartment at the Pinecone Restaurant and Spa to locate his missing book, the party discovers that geese have broken through an open door and ransacked the residence. The apartment is filled with sticks, leaves, and feathers, with several members of The Geese in Dunko's Apartment still present. Sucks immediately decides to engage the hostile wildlife head-on to clear the area for investigation, aided by Vasso's natural instincts for dealing with waterfowl. What starts as a straightforward attempt to clear the room devolves into a chaotic, guilt-ridden scene when Sucks becomes convinced the group has killed Gooseman's pets. The combat ends with the apartment covered in blood and feathers, and Sucks frozen in remorse while still being attacked by the surviving geese.

Details

Upon entering the apartment, the party finds the door on the far side standing open, with multiple geese having taken up residence inside. As described in the session, "he realized that a bunch of geese got into his apartment and kind of wrecked the place." The residence is in disarray, strewn with natural debris the geese have brought in.

Sucks announces their intention to take direct action: "I'm gonna try and attack these geese. Clear the matter here so we can investigate." Vasso immediately offers assistance, stating "Vaso will absolutely help you because this is instinctual for dinner because this is, like his upbringing right there." Drawing on his background, Vasso employs his physical attributes to corral the geese: "I go into the room and I spread myself really, really far. So my wingspan is quite big." He then attempts to use his unusual anatomy to grab the birds: "And then I just, like, run towards the geese, trying to grab their necks with my leg. Little boy hands."

Vasso's Aid roll proves highly effective, achieving a 9 which becomes a 10 when modified by his bond with Sucks. This grants Sucks a +1 bonus to their attack roll. Sucks uses the Hack and Slash move, rolling a 6, but receives the +1 bonus from Vasso's aid, making it a 7—a partial success. Sucks attempts to grab several geese and break their necks, declaring "I grab a couple, and then I whip them in the air and break their necks."

The geese prove unexpectedly dangerous, possessing armor-piercing damage. They deal 2 points of damage to Sucks despite his armor. Sucks's strategy of grabbing geese by their necks backfires when he realizes "you have two of them by their necks, but then you realize that just gives them cleaner looking face"—the position gives the birds better angles to attack his face with armor-piercing pecks.

Vasso attempts his own Hack and Slash, rolling a 6. Monster declines to aid, stating "I felt like I shouldn't aid Sucks because it seemed like sucks. Had no respect for nature."

The combat takes an emotional turn when Katniss yells down to Gooseman asking "Hey, Gooseman, are these geese your pets?" Gooseman responds "What geese?"—denying any knowledge of the birds. When Katniss relays this response, Sucks becomes overwhelmed with guilt, believing he may have killed someone's pets despite the denial. He drops the geese he's holding, freezes up, and begins crying and muttering apologies while continuing to be attacked. He feels he deserves the punishment as penance, saying "I think. I think we killed Gooseman's pets."

Katniss offers philosophical commentary on the situation: "Cat put his hand on his shoulder and say, this is what happens when you jump into violence."

Brad attempts to maintain morale during the chaos, telling the group "this is all gonna be worth it when we're riding away at our pigs."

The scene concludes with Safia arriving from downstairs to find the aftermath. The apartment is described as a room "full of feathers and blood."

Participants

Sucks — Initiates combat against the geese using Hack and Slash, achieving a partial success (7) after receiving aid from Vasso. Takes 2 armor-piercing damage from the geese. Becomes overwhelmed with guilt mid-combat and freezes, stopping his defense.
Vasso — Provides aid by spreading his wingspan and attempting to corral and grab the geese, successfully rolling a 10 on the Aid move. Attempts his own Hack and Slash that fails with a roll of 6.
Katniss — Communicates with Gooseman from inside the apartment, triggering Sucks's guilt by asking about the geese's ownership. Provides philosophical commentary on violence.
Monster — Refuses to aid Vasso's attack, citing Sucks's lack of respect for nature.
Brad — Present during the combat, attempts to maintain party morale.
Safia — Remains outside during the initial combat, arrives afterward to find the bloody aftermath.
The Geese in Dunko's Apartment — Multiple hostile geese that have broken into and ransacked the apartment. Possess armor-piercing attacks that prove dangerous to the party.

Consequences

Sucks takes 2 hit points of armor-piercing damage from the geese's counterattacks
Multiple geese are killed in the apartment, leaving blood and feathers throughout the space
Sucks experiences emotional trauma from the belief that he killed pets, leading to a breakdown mid-combat where he stops defending himself
The apartment becomes even more difficult to search due to the mess created by the combat
Monster's refusal to aid Vasso demonstrates tension within the party over Sucks's approach to conflict
The failed combat rolls by Vasso leave the goose problem unresolved despite the casualties inflicted
The combat creates an immediate obstacle preventing the party from properly searching Dunko Guzman's apartment for the missing book