Find shelter until day

The night is way too spooky, so you decide to wait for daylight. At first, searching the beach seems to be fruitless, but after awhile you find a suitable nook in a rocky outcropping. Hunkering down, you wait out the night in what seems to be relative safety. It's quite warm and a fire would be difficult without scavenging further inland, so you make do with a hand on the hilt of your sword and the flickering light of your lantern.

You must have nodded off, because you are awoken with a start by the sound of excited, guttural yipping noises. Jerking to your feet with sword drawn, you find yourself face-to-face with the ugly visage of a goblin, lit by the pre-dawn twilight. Three more of the diminutive creatures flank him, wielding nets, bolas, and vines brandished like whips.

'Great,' you think, 'they're aiming to capture.' You realise that this band of goblins likely sees you more as a potential capture for ransom or slavery rather than a genuine threat to their territory. Given that you know of no one around to pay ransom, slavery is probably foremost on their agenda.

Although briefly startled by your quick reflexes with your blade, their superior numbers quickly reassures the goblins of their chances. With a sharp cry, the leader of the band orders his comrades forward.

Individually, a goblin poses little threat, but now several of them have their sights set on you. More unnervingly, you're sure you've caught them eying your figure with more in mind than hauling rocks around. You've heard tales of goblins savagely raiding villages and making off with only the women as slaves, but usually the detestable little creatures are quite egalitarian in their ****-taking practises. Suppressing a shudder, you steel yourself for their attack.

The first goblin is careless, and you easily cut him down as he gets within range. Goblins are nothing if not cunning, however, and the others quickly wise up to your proficiency with a blade. Taking a more prudent approach, they begin testing your defences, hopping in and out of your sword's arc to make little probing attacks. It doesn't take long for you to figure out their strategy; they're playing it safe and simply trying to wear you down. All it takes is one mistake and they'll have you.

You're faced with a dilemma: Play their game and rely on your superior swordsmanship but risk losing a battle of endurance; or take more aggressive action and try to break out of the rocky outcropping, exposing yourself to their attacks but manoeuvring the battle in your favour.