(Skyseas of Gensokyo) Nazrin Quest (Part 3)

[Hello Purvis]

So. Strategic retreat?

[Oldmansour]

I wasn't sure turning our backs on ONE spider was a good idea, let alone two of them. But on the other hand, I don't know how to beat two of them at once with the tools we have. At least not with any degree of certainty. If we make it back to the village, we can tell the farmers what we've found, and come back with backup and torches. Might cost us some pay, but it's a better chance of winning.
I agree, strategic retreat.

[Hello Purvis]

Of course, we're not running. Once we get a better position, let's not throw knives and get on top of them where about all they can do is buck us off. While we stab 'em about the neckparts.

[Oldmansour]

I like the stabbing part.
Think we should try climbing a tree for the extra leverage, or just leap on 'em and hope we don't run into their fangs?

>Did we notice an incline in the ground on the way here, or any sort of incline now?
>Did we pass by any rocks or tree stumps small enough to hop on top of, or are there any around here?
>Is our first kunai still embedded in the larger spiders' head?

[Hello Purvis]

Your second command is largely what I'm thinking. Climbing would be slow, and more their deal.

>How much range of mobility do these spiders seem to have? In particularly, can they freely look around, or do they have to face whatever they're looking at?

[DracoOmega]

>Did we notice an incline in the ground on the way here, or any sort of incline now?
>Did we pass by any rocks or tree stumps small enough to hop on top of, or are there any around here?
>Is our first kunai still embedded in the larger spiders' head?

>The ground is somewhat uneven and bumpy, although there are no distinct defined inclines near you that you've noticed.
>You leapt over a moderately sizable rock not far back, when you were chasing after the smaller spider.
>It is, though fairly shallowly.

>How much range of mobility do these spiders seem to have? In particularly, can they freely look around, or do they have to face whatever they're looking at?

>You haven't seen the spiders move enough to know how agile they are over general terrain, but their heads do not appear to be able to freely turn. The spread of their eyes does look to give them a fairly wide field of vision, however.

[Oldmansour]

Okay, here we go.

>"I proved I can keep up with you, uglies. Let's see if you can keep up with me."
>Turn round and make for that rock, while keeping both ears open to keep tabs on how close they are behind us.

[DracoOmega]

>"I proved I can keep up with you, uglies. Let's see if you can keep up with me."
>Turn round and make for that rock, while keeping both ears open to keep tabs on how close they are behind us.

>You call out a taunt as you turn and make a dash for the rock. Judging by the sound, you think it takes the second spider a moment to readjust itself and fully extricate itself from the foliage serving as its cover, but after that, its land speed is quite impressive. You're almost certain it's gaining on you. The first spider trails behind it, somewhat slower; something about the sound of its footfalls seems slightly uneven.
>After a few frenzied seconds, you reach the rock and vault onto it, the second spider very close behind you now.

[Oldmansour]

>With a yell, leap off the rock and onto the back of the spider!
>Assuming we actually make it, start stabbing the thing in its head and neck.

[Hello Purvis]

>Really, just stab it anywhere. Get a clear hold on it with one of the blades so it can't buck us off easily.

[DracoOmega]

>With a yell, leap off the rock and onto the back of the spider!
>Assuming we actually make it, start stabbing the thing in its head and neck.

>Really, just stab it anywhere. Get a clear hold on it with one of the blades so it can't buck us off easily.

>With a yell, you spin around and leap from the rock towards the spider. Geez, it was almost on top of you!
>The spider rears its forelegs up as you leap at it, grasping towards you. The rock gives you some height advantage, but not enough to clear them entirely. They knock at your legs from below as you sail into them, sending you tumbling aside. But as you careen, you manage to swing your arm out and around a limb. Pulling yourself close, you use your momentum to flip up onto it, then with your other hand, you stab! Its exoskeleton is firm, but far from armor-tough; the kunai drives inward, cutting through softer flesh. The spider gives a short cry of pain, and goes stiff for a moment. You drag the kunai back out, trailing slick fluid across the blade, then slide backward down the limb and leap onto its back. And then you stab again, driving your right blade in its thorax for grip while laying savagely into it with the other. The spider screeches and thrashes wildly beneath you, sending your legs tumbling off the side of it, but your grip on the other kunai remains firm. Using it for support, you scrabble you feet against its side and back up again.
>The first spider is closing in behind you, although it seems to be hesitating a little.

[Hello Purvis]

Let's be civilized.

>"Lay down and I'll stop!"
>Try to regain our purchase.

[DracoOmega]

>"Lay down and I'll stop!"
>Try to regain our purchase.

>The spider shows no obvious response to your words, continuing to shriek and try to throw you. Blood oozes slowly from the multiple gouges in its thorax and the back of its head.
>You've managed to work your legs back up again already. You're about as secure as you're likely to get on the back of an angry, thrashing giant spider.
>The other spider moves around to the side of his companion and you, raising his forelimbs carefully. You can see the tip of one of its limbs bent a little awkwardly where you slashed it earlier. The wound seeps blue fluid.

[Hello Purvis]

>What does the other spider look like it's trying to do?
>How secure do our kunai feel?

[DracoOmega]

>What does the other spider look like it's trying to do?
>How secure do our kunai feel?

>It looks like it may be trying to reach out and grab you towards it, without simply pouncing on the other spider.
>Fairly secure. The exoskeleton is firm enough that they can't cut through it without a appreciable amount of force applied. Your right kunai tore into it slightly further when you were nearly thrown off, but otherwise feels fairly firmly embedded.

[Hello Purvis]

>Try to keep away from from its grabbing. Try to make the purchase of the dagger opposite the interfering spider a bit stronger, so we can use the other if needs be.
>"You're being smart, now be smarter and tell your buddy to surrender!"

[DracoOmega]

>Try to keep away from from its grabbing. Try to make the purchase of the dagger opposite the interfering spider a bit stronger, so we can use the other if needs be.
>"You're being smart, now be smarter and tell your buddy to surrender!"

>You try to shift away from the side the spider is reaching towards, driving the kunai opposite it into as secure a position as you can find. The thrashing of the spider below you is slackening a little.
>The spider makes no apparent note of your words, rearing up and reaching its forelimbs overhead and towards you.

[Oldmansour]

>Yank out the kunai closest to big ugly and give his forelegs a slashing.
>"If either one of you two can understand the words that are coming out of my mouth, now's a good time to show it! Otherwise, I get even stabbier."

[Hello Purvis]

>If it feels like our position on the spider is getting too perilous to stay in a good position, free both daggers and leap away, putting our riding spider between the interfering spider.

[Narouge]

its to bad we don't have spiked chains. because i can't get the scene in castlevina lords of shadows, where you ride the giant spiders. Only now its with nazrin.

[Hello Purvis]

Well, we could probably find some bailing twine and tie it onto our kunai hilts for future events.

[DracoOmega]

>Yank out the kunai closest to big ugly and give his forelegs a slashing.
>"If either one of you two can understand the words that are coming out of my mouth, now's a good time to show it! Otherwise, I get even stabbier."

>If it feels like our position on the spider is getting too perilous to stay in a good position, free both daggers and leap away, putting our riding spider between the interfering spider.

>You yank on the kunai closest to the encroaching spider, pulling it free with a wet ripping noise, then you slash at its legs. This time, it manages to pull back the limbs you strike towards, keeping them just out of your range. Clinging to the bucking spider with your other hand as you are, you don't have much leverage to follow up on these slashes, merely fend them off. As you slash at one limb coming from your left, more grasp dangerously close from the right as the spider all but moves on top of you.
>You decide that you're too held down to dodge properly with its limbs moving to surround you like this, and yank out the other kunai and kick off, landing a couple feet beside the injured spider. The second spider immediately starts to scrabble around the first, so that it can move towards you.

[Hello Purvis]

>Play keepaway by going behind the wounded spider, and take a quite assessment of the terrain, our opponents, and get our footing and balance back.

[DracoOmega]

>Play keepaway by going behind the wounded spider, and take a quite assessment of the terrain, our opponents, and get our footing and balance back.

>You shift your position around the wounded spider, trying to keep it between you and your pursuer. You gain little respite, however, as the spider shifts around nearly as quickly. The terrain here is fairly flat, with hard packed ground, some low-lying scrub, and a scattered few small rocks. Stocky conifers crowd the landscape with the ocassional smaller tree among them. The spider's large size appears to be less of an impediment than you would think, as its limbs are able to flexibly navigate over and around obstacles quite quickly and move easily through gaps between trees that would seem too narrow for it at first glance.
>The wounded spider, for its part, seems to be calming down and trying to turn, although its movement is quite obviously uneven.

[Hello Purvis]

Whachu think, Sour? Think we've been mean enough to our horse, or give it some leg stabbies while playing keepaway?

[Oldmansour]

Much as I enjoyed riding that thing, the sooner we can elimintate one of them, the better our odds will be of beating the other. If we can take its legs out, or at least damage a couple on one side, we won't have to split our attention quite so much.

[Oldmansour]

>Try to keep the more wounded spider between us and his buddy as much as we can, without letting its head turn to face us.
>Slash our 'shield' spider about the legs, try to limit its movements even more.

[DracoOmega]

>Try to keep the more wounded spider between us and his buddy as much as we can, without letting its head turn to face us.
>Slash our 'shield' spider about the legs, try to limit its movements even more.

>You continue to strafe around the heavily wounded spider, while the other chases after you. You already moved past its head once earlier, and you really can't circle much further without moving in front of it again at this point. Especially since it seems to be trying to face you.
>While you move around it, you dart closer to slash at its legs. You score a glancing blow against one, but another flails out towards you, nearly knocking into you. You stumble, and the spider chasing you gains precious ground. It's no more than a quarter circle away from you now.

[Oldmansour]

>All right, wanna gain some ground? How about all of it.
>Stop circling the more wounded spider and charge at the one chasing us.
>If it rears up enough to expose its underside, try to stab it in the guts.
>If it stays nearer to the ground, stab in the head again, try to get a better shot than the last time.
>Whichever act it takes, prepare our offhand kunai to ward off its counterattack, so we can stab it with our main hand.

[Hello Purvis]

>And should it try to spring on us and pin, try to slide and bring both our knives up to let apply that momentum in stabbing itself.