Duglan, seeing that everyone else appears set on killing this monster, reluctantly agrees, "Alright, but we betta strike sum real platinum. And Gromtheb, I'd like to see yeh try, ya coward!"
He wipes his mouth, places his helm back over his head, and intentionally passes in front of Gromtheb's path on his way out the door, giving him an aggressive bump with his shoulder.
Velinari quietly eats his breakfast in peace, seemingly ignoring the squabbles of his troupe, but every once and a while you can catch him looking up and glancing around the room.
Once done with his breakfast, Velinari tidys himself up with a maroon silk handkerchief with a blaack raven emblem imprinted on it, which he returns to his jacket before following Harris outside.
Gordel is cheered somewhat by Quinn and Ser Harris' reassurances, though he remains notably on edge. When Gromtheb and Quinn leave, he even offers a lukewarm Gu'luck. An' don' ferget: jus' head up the closer bank a' the river an' y' can' miss it.
So, what's the plan?
Quinn nods silently, mutters a "Thank you" as he passes by the innkeep, and heads outside. "So, as we're looking for this thing's lair, I suppose it would be too much of a fuss to be somewhat quiet?"
"Quiet? I ain't the one talkin. This wuddnt my idea so let's get this over with. Might as well find this river an' follaw it."
You note that with every step Duglan takes, his heavy armor clanks loudly.
Velinari approaches Harris outside and says, "Ah, Harris, yes! While the keeper of this inn may suggest that we go straight to the lair, the scene of the crime may serve us better. Yes, this is as Velinari sees it, yes. At a the farm I do believe a it was, yes"
"I concur. Examining the location at which this tragedy occurred seems a prudent measure. If nothing else, doing so may indicate whether or not Forejaws was responsible," Ser Harris says, saddling his horse.
As you approach the gate to the Hotza farm, you are met by a young peasant woman, her wollen robe dyed black, her eyes red from weeping. She greets you in a tremulous voice. Yes? How can I help y'all?
Velinari clears his throat and then looks to Harris to speak.
"Excuse us, madam. We are investigating the death of Arkum Hotza. We were hoping to make the area safe, so that others do not share his fate. Would you be willing to tell us what happened?" Ser Harris asks, attempting to be as nice as possible.
Ain't much t' investigate, but yer welcome to take a look. M' husband was working in the fields over there, she gestures, when I heard him screamin'. By the time I got out the door, was just that hole there. Neighbors tell me it was Ol' Four-Jaws. What kinda' town lets monsters like that go tunnelin' about killin folk?
"Why dun we check tha hole then? I wanna see how big this bugger is. I figgur it leads back to old "Four-Jaws" anyways."
Meanwhile, Duglan scans his surroundings, looking for any signs of foul play or traces that Four-Jaws left behind.
Perception:
"Sanders has an idea! Congratulations buddy! How does it feel?" Gromtheb smacks him on the back and starts walking over to the hole left by ol' Four-Jaws. When he gets there, he examines the hole.
"The superterranean sort," Ser Harris says briefly. "What types of crops and livestock do you have here? I ask because I'm not sure what Four-Jaws feeds on, and finding out may help us deal with the threat."
Whether or not the widow answers him, Harris will ride over to the hole and begin to examine the tunnel.
"It's curious that the tunnel has held up so well. I wonder why that is."
We've got goats, a few chickens, and a mule what's in the barn now fer takin' it all to market. An' we grow cabbages, beans, corn, millet, an' some veggies.
Four-Jaws took a goat from Arkum 'bout a year-an'-a-half back, but they say he's never took a man before.
The tunnel hole on the ground is about 15 feet in diameter, and you can see the floor about 25 feet down. It continues off towards the north.
You find no "clues." Are you looking for anything in particular?
"On second thought, this tunnel has not held up well. Hell, it's like to collapse when next it rains!" Harris exclaims, before calling back to the widow, "When Forejaws took the goat, did he leave a tunnel like this one?"
Well, I wasn't married to Arkum yet, so I can' rightly say. But some a' the other men who came said it looked like his work.
Velinari examines the women, and after a brief pause gives her a smile, saying, "Ah yes, excuse me miss. But I must ask, yes. Was there anyone in the town who was a at odds and ends with a your, uh, late husband? While this may be as you say, upsetting to think about, it might as Velinari sees it a continued a help to this a investigation, yes."
Not that I c'n think of. I mean, we wasn't friends with everybody, but didn't hate nobody neither. We pretty much keep to ourselves.
Duglan thinks about Harris' comment about the tunnel not holding up the next time it rains. He looks up at the clouds and uses his instinct to try to gather whether that will be happening any time soon.
Survival to predict the weather:
"Well, I don't like the idea of trying to go through that tunnel. If it collapses, it will be easy enough to see it from the ground. If we care to see where the tunnel leads, we can wait until it rains for the tunnel to collapce. Since we know where the big bug's hideout is anyway, why don't we just head there now?"
"Maybe, Gromtheb, but it's forest fire season - maybe it'd be better if we follow the tunnel. If nothing else, we can be reasonably sure that it doesn't branch off elsewhere without our knowledge this way."
"Ye'll be waitin a long time then Grom. I dun think it'll be rainin any time soon. Look at tha sky, ain't no clouds in sight. If ye think tha tunnel'll hold up, why don't we save us tha trubble of findin the lair and head straight to its den?"
"I can see it won't rain today, but I think it would be foolish to jump into that tunnel to chase down a burrowing creature. Let's find this thing above ground if we can. We know his lair is along the river, might as well just go walk to it. Some large animal could collapse the tunnel just by walking on it, don't you think? This is the freshest part of the tunnel, so it is possible that other places have already collapsed. And if it does collapse, then what? I'm not goin' down there. If you are desperate to go that way, I'll wait for you here.
Bluff:
You get the feeling that Gromtheb has no intention of waiting here for you if you go into the tunnel.
"It is as Grom says, yes. It would be better to travel above ground to it's lair. It seems, yes, that this location is known, and that above ground travel might be in the safety way. Then again, to travel above ground,, yes, we might miss out on some clues about this kidnapping in the tunnels. This is as Velinari sees it, yes."
Sense Motive!
Duglan grimaces at Gromtheb and thinks about his recent words.
"No way in hell he's waitin' round fer yeh if ya go in th'ole."
He says out loud. "I think Grom is right. We go down in the hole and I know there gonna be a large animal hangin back and stompin on us." He points at Gromtheb accusedly. "Dun think yer can just run off witout us. Yer got us in this mess, helpin out these wretches fer nuttin."
An ankheg is a huge, burrowing insect with a dangerous bite and a tenacity matched only by its hunger. As well as its lethal bite with which it can latch on to its victims, an ankheg has a natural acidic venom which coats its mandibles and can be spit over short distances. Once an ankheg spits however, it takes a number of hours for it to build up its acid once more.
"Heh. Run off? Leave you in a mess? More likely, I'd have to rescue you if you went in that hole," Gromtheb scoffs, careful not to actually lie. "And as for clues, they won't be much use if we are trapped underground. And I don't see why you are all so suspicious. This just seems like any other job to me. I'm ready to head down the river when the rest of you are."
At some point in the discussion Quinn started casually reading a book. He puts it down and meanders towards the hole. "So, I take it Dulgan is ready to take a shot of acid to the face and smile about it. I agree with Grom, we should hurry up and end this thing. I'll be in the back." As the group travels to Forejaws' lair, Quinn keeps his eyes peeled; once they're close, he'll start separating himself from Dulgan and keeping hidden.
Is everyone else agreed on heading up the river? If so, I'll post a new map tomorrow.
[/transparent foreshadowing]
As Gordel said, it would have been hard to miss the burrow, as you come up the river. A mound of earth with a 15-foot wide opening looms in a sparsely vegetated clearing. Map
Please place yourselves (by telling me coordinates) within the highlighted section in the lower-right and roll initiative.
Ser Harris is in AB 38. His bow is drawn and he looks around carefully, hoping to spot trouble before it spots them.
Velinari initiative:
Location: AD,42
As.they approach the site Velinari says, "Ah, very large indeed this creature must must be to make such tunnels. Yes, careful we should be thinks Velinari, yes he does"
Duglan stands in Z39, following the lead of the others and drawing his fauchard. He thinks, "Betteh ta be safe than dead."
Initiative:
Perception:
Roll to decide if PVP breaks out this turn:
Well, we didn't walk right into him. If it's here, it'll probably head right towards the loudest one of us... Dulgan. Quinn softly, silently makes his way behind some shrubbery. He looks around for any trouble, but also makes sure to feel the ground for tremors, should he have to move abruptly. These tunneling beasts won't surprise me a second time.
Gromtheb draws his bow and hopefully prepares himself for an upcoming battle. He will continue walking toward the mouth of the cave as long as he doesn't see anything buglike. If he does see something he recognizes as a monster, he is going to fire at it.
Wow. So the initiative order is:
Gromtheb
Velinari
Duglan
Ser Harris
Quinn
...
...
...
DM
Also, since everyone else did it without my asking, can I please get a perception check from Velinari. The rest of you don't perceive anything special yet, but I'll save those results for later.
And to answer Quinn's question, the vegetation on the map is all scrubby thickets. The cave entrance is in a clearing, but it's a big 'un. If you start running away, I may have to add trees.
Round 1, Start!
Stepping lightly, Ser Harris moves to Y37. "Let's see if anybody is home, shall we?" He says, grinning. He then mutters an incantation under his breath, and a flashing red light appears in the entryway to the cave in D16 .
Duglan will delay and remain on guard until either Harris' actions get resolved or there is a clear threat to the party.
In case you'd like one:
Stealth:
Perception:
Gromtheb moves to Z37. He is training his bow on the cave.
Velinari Delays his action
Velinari: Are you delaying until after Quinn, until after the GM, or just skipping your action this round altogether and picking a new initiative for next round?
Quinn delays until after DM action.
Nothing apparent happens on the DM's turn.
The three of you who delayed can go, or we can just move on to round 2.
Ser Harris looks mildly irked. "Hmm, I guess it isn't in sight of the cavern entrance. Keep an eye out for any disturbances in the ground - we know it burrows, and it might try to catch us from below." With that, he draws a cowbell from his pack and starts clanking it loudly.