DM Jesse's Kingmaker PbP (Inactive)

Game Master Jesse Heinig

Cassandra takes a threatening step forward. She was not about to be cowed by a bird. She had eaten bigger ones and shot smaller ones out of the sky.

Intimidate: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (14) + 3 = 17

For brief moment, Cassandra's pupils elongate into slits like that of a predatory cat. The beast inside responded to her anger and need to make it known she was the alpha hunter. She also growls deep, much deeper than Tzerny. A resonant sound that echoed through the bones. "Neither do you little bird," she says making the last part sound like a threat.

She stares a moment longer before turning and heading for the shed Oleg was working on. "Oleg said they would burn this place down. I am going to make that difficult." She finds a few buckets and heads for the closest source of water. She then gathers mud and smears it on the wood of the wall, shed, and barn. That would make it resistant to torches and fire arrows. When that is done she gathers several buckets of water and begins storing it in any container not being used. Best to have some lose at hand for emergencies.

Remember, Tzerny and every other animal can't even get within 30ft of me because of Warded Against Nature.

Tzerny's a magical beast. But what even is Warded Against Nature? Never heard of it. Extra power in a drawback? How unfortunate.

Tzerny looks carefully at Cassandra, shifts back and forth, then flies off, calling, "Get out of here, then."

Valeska visibly relaxes and gingerly retrieves the spoon.

It does only same animals but it also specifically mentions familiars being immune if granted by a class ability. That leads me to believe that if it isn't mine, its not immune. Guess this needs DM interpretation. But the intimidate is high enough to shake anyway.

When she hears the argument of Cassandra and the bird, Telmarni looks up from her work on the layout of the outpost. Wait... Does she mean really to go out there alone? She shakes her head before getting away from her work and walks over to Cassandra.

Telmarni is concerned about her plan. "Cassandra, I know we only met before coming here, but is going out there, even alone right now, even a good idea? As she asks in a soft tone. She flexes her hands a bit before continuing in a more stern tone. "And also, what if they catch you? Wouldn't they then know something is happening at Oleg's? Or why is there a new person roaming around if there was no one new here? And... Do you even know which direction they could be camped out at?" She then gestures to Cass. "They could also have a woodsman just as experienced, or even more so than you. How could you tell if you'd be walking into a random trap that they made just in case like our group?"

Cassandra smiles at the concern but it is misplaced. She realized she would have to make a good argument. "They made a good showing a few months ago but have diminished in numbers since," she says while still spreading mud. "They come at a predictable time of the month. We are out at the edge of civilization. And I really doubt that news of the charter has made it down here yet. That means the job has become easy. They won't be expecting retaliation. And by the time they are ready for us, we should be ready for them. We might even hold them off until the guards Oleg mentioned arrive. Doubt they will attack with an active guard around."

First things first, Telmarni's scouting trip.

Taking to the sky, Telmarni soars with great speed. Both Oleg and Svetlana watch as she leaps into the air and takes off -- it takes you a moment to realize that the expression on Oleg's face is a sort of barely-contained terror.

"Is she..." Oleg starts to say, but Svetlana grabs his arm and squeezes it and he lets it trail off.

Telmarni's speed while flying is twice human movement speed, and she has a better point of view and no difficult terrain, so this helps a lot, but it still means that just going in a straight line for an hour only gets her about 6-7 miles, and anything that is significantly hidden under tree cover would be obscured without a Perception check. So, she can scout for a couple hours, but there's no sign that the bandits are encamped within that 6-7 mile radius; if they have horses, they could easily be 10 miles away and still make the ride in the morning, arriving a couple hours after sunrise. This does show that the area around the immediate vicinity of the trading post is largely rocky grasslands and verdant brush, with occasional stands of tree cover that become more common to the west. There's no sign of monsters immediately near the trading post -- probably the small amount of human activity in the area means that they stay at least some short distance away. The South Rostland Road heads north and east from the trading post; your charter is to explore mostly the area southwest of here.

Second, Warded versus Nature and familiars. I'm going to be a little finicky and go back to source mythology. Animals are aware that there is something horribly unnatural about you and they want nothing to do with you. People with Handle Animal abilities might be able to get animals to behave according to the handling. Note also that Magical Beasts are technically a separate category from animals, and anything with an intelligence over 2 can't be an animal. This is a disadvantage so the general tenor is that it is going to cause you problems more often than it will help. Tzerny the Raven feels like there is something horribly wrong with Cassandra, like she isn't really a person, just a monster living inside a human skin and waiting to come out and eat him (Tzerny). Tzerny is a special case because he is a party member(-ish) as well as a magical beast, and I really prefer parties to function without having to intimidate each other, so I'd prefer to keep this conflict to "Tzerny gets his feathers ruffled and REALLY doesn't want to get into an argument with Cassandra" and Cassie can decide whether she's going to go scouting at night or not. Overall, this disad is just really poorly written, but it is mythologically appropriate flavor for the character, so let's work it in and see how we can make it fit without disrupting the party.

Third, Cassie scouting at night. If she decides to sneak out on her own, it's not like the party is going to necessarily stop her (they might not even see her). Super-dangerous though, plus there is the possibility that you wind up not getting enough sleep and you are fatigued the next day when the bandits do show up!

Telmarni isn't going to go scouting. She just is more interested getting a layout of the outpost to help make plans for the bandits that will be arriving tomorrow. And to note of anything that might be a place of cover immediately outside the outpost. Nothing more. She will be basically be drawing a map of the outpost like the battlemap. :)

Telmarni replies. "While I don't doubt that guards will come, they might not get here soon enough. A change, no matter small can easily spread like fire." She begins to help Cassandra spread mud on the buildings. "Also, who said they all came the first time? There could be many more out there. Different groups of bandits who might be interested in "testing" themselves. Or there could be others down right suicidal with others watching." She grabs a big clump of mud and splatters a portion of the wall with it. Telmarni sighs as she notes her blouse has specks of mud on it. She speaks softly. "And also, if we ambush them here, without them getting warning, we can trap them." She gestures to the large wooden doors of the gates. "Wouldn't it be better that way. Lure them in, have their defenses lowered, and capture them." She dusts her blouse off as best as she can before continuing. "We do have a couple people with abilities that can render people unconscious without much effort."

Telmarni squats down to get another clump of mud, and gently starts to spread it on the wall again. "We have info that they will be here tomorrow morning. So to help protect them, we need to be here. Rested and ready to fight. And we have the means to lure them, this outpost. And we have the means to trap them and deal with them within a closed space. Also, we haven't asked if they have other means of travel other than just by "foot"." As she finishes she shakes her wings a bit before getting up.

Good points. I also forgot to ask about horses.

Around midday, Cassandra approaches Oleg for more information. "These bandits. Do you know where they camp or the direction they approach from? Do they have horses?"

Also, we haven't asked if they have other means of travel other than just by "foot"."[/b] As she finishes she shakes her wings a bit before getting up.

Remember that Oleg remarked offhand that the bandits load their loot onto horses.

Ah. Oops. >.<

Also oops. But if I find out direction I am willing to take the fatigue and give it a shot.

Cassandra wipes away a bit of sweat and inadvertently smears mud across her forehead. She either doesn't notice or doesn't care. "Yes, we could easily trap them. Might even get them to quit without putting up a fight. Then what? The charter is clear. Sword or noose is their fate. Would you condemn them to death? Or give them a second chance as somone has done for you." She turns to Telmarni and gives her wings a meaningful look. "And as much as they are willing to help, do you think it a good idea to involve Oleg and his wife any further? No doubt they wish to fight but we are the ones that essentially decided to do it here. If we fail here, they are dead. If I fail out there, only I am."

Korinne watches the rather unusual exchange between Cassandra and Tzerny curiously, but something about Cassandra's change in demeanor unnerves even her and she opts not to get involved, at least not immediately.

"Um, suggestion?" she offers, raising her hand reflexively as though she were sitting in one of Miss Adula's classes. "If Cassandra wants to scout around a little before tomorrow, then why not? It can't hurt to know the lay of the land if we need to set up any defenses outside the fort. But I don't think going off alone at night is the best idea," she says, speaking hesitantly. "Don't get me wrong though, I'm all for second chances if by some way we're able to capture or talk them out of attacking. It'd make things much easier if we didn't have to kill anyone."

Tzerny resting on her shoulder, Valeska shakes her head. "If I knew you were so eager to take off on your own, I'd have made the healing potion instead."

She hands Cassandra a small vial. "Here. Drink this and you'll grow twice your size. Your equipment should grow with you. Now please, no more threatening Tzerny. Yes, he's got his own opinions, but he's not going to go too far from me anyway."

Tzerny resting on her shoulder, Valeska shakes her head. "If I knew you were so eager to take off on your own, I'd have made the healing potion instead."

She hands Cassandra a small vial. "Here. Drink this and you'll grow twice your size. Your equipment should grow with you. Now please, no more threatening Tzerny. Yes, he's got his own opinions, but he's not going to go too far from me anyway."

"He started it," she responds petulantly. She even goes so far as to make faces at the creature.

"I agree with the part about going out alone." Telmarni said in a calmer tone. "But I for one I feel it would not be a good idea to do so." She shakes her head. "And what you said earlier Cassandra, well, it is simply not true. They are already involved. They're the victim in this already." She gestures to the large gates. "If you do go out there and find them, they might just find you. And when that happens, we won't know until it's too late. They will be prepared." As she finishes with a grimace.

Telmarni walks over to the layout of the outpost she was drawing for planning. She looks over it and sighs. "If you wish to go, go. But it will affect everyone here. So I do hope if you go out, just get back here. Either way, we'll need all the help we can get." She goes back to trying to finish the layout of the outpost.

So, do you want to set up any physical barricades/traps, or just move to the next day?

I guess just move to the next day, since any defense would alert the bandits of reinforcements.

Carinna tries again to dissuade Cassandra of her decision.

"I think you are wrong about only you being killed if you fail. These bandits are here for a couple of months and, so far, found no resistance. They come and get what they want. This is how I see this:

I do not doubt your skills Cassandra, but if you go, you risk not just your life, but ours as well, including our mission. I beg you to reconsider!"

"Do not doubt my skill?" she asks angrily. "In every situation you just described I fail or do nothing meaningful." She wants to say more but bites her tongue. Oleg and Svetlana might hear. They didn't need to worry them further with infighting. Just retaliating was probably stressing them enough. They shouldn't even be considering killing those bandits right in their home, advantage or not. They could probably just bar the door and be fine. The mud and water should prevent fires. They had enough ranged weapons to keep them at bay. And as soon as they realized they couldn't get in, they'd leave. Sure they might come back in a few days with more, but they'd have more too. But she could this before they got to the gate. That was a chance worth taking.

"Oleg. Which direction do they come from?" she asks. Once she has a direction Cassandra leaves before anymore arguing can take place. She heads in the indicated direction until she is out of visual ranges. She turns and looks back at the outpost. A small feeling of doubt nibbles at the corner of her confidence but she pushes it away. She could do this. End this with no bloodshed. Cassandra turns back the task at hand and calls forth to the animal within for the first time in days. It springs forth easily and willingly. An alien but comfortable sensation washes over her. Her pupils split into lines like a cat. Her posture takes on a feline grace. Her teeth become sharp. But most notably, her nose becomes wide and the bridge to her forehead becomes flat and catlike. For those that didn't know what was happening it would be terrifying. But for Cassandra, it was exhilarating. The world may have changed from vibrant colors to shades of gray but now navigating the night would be easy. Time to hunt

Survival to find tracks: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (20) + 9 = 29 Add +5 if I can find the scent of humans or horses.
Perception: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (14) + 6 = 20 Add +1 when night falls.

Using Shape Change to gain +2 dex and darkvision. 2 more shifts for the day available. Using survival and perception to either find a trail, spot a fire, or hear men or horses.

This good luck will fail as soon as combat starts I bet.

EDIT: Leaving just after midday so I have time to cover some ground before night.

After Cassandra left the compound, Valeska came up close to Carinna. "I'm very worried about Cassandra. Is she an explorer, or someone who just lives out there?"

Carinna sighs.

"I don't know, Valeska, and I share your worries, not only of Cassandra's decision but also of her behavior... she is stubborn and doesn't listen to reason, even when all of us were against her course of action."

There is something wrong with that girl... I don't know why, but I don't trust her at all.

"We are a group now, and we should act like one. What you think, we continue to our plans to make an ambush? There is a great chance that it will fail now."

Valeska sighs. "We need to. They'll be coming here for sure. We need to be prepared."

"We will have to do for now." She sighs afterwards.

She looks over at the gate and examines it. "If we can close this after they get in. It will be much easier to deal with them. They would not be able to run away, even by horse."
DM, can we use the gate in any way for tomorrow?

Though uncertain of why Cassandra seemed so intent on going out alone, Korinne makes no move to stop her as she leaves just past midday. "Be careful, okay? Oh, and you might want to let us know some sort of signal so we can let you back in later if need be."

As the woman disappears into the nearby wilderness, Korinne turns her attention back to the matter at hand - planning an ambush. "Closing the gate behind them sounds like a good idea to me! The last thing we want is for one of them to get away and then run back to his little bandit friends to tell them what's happened. Although you do realize that if there are more out there somewhere, they're eventually going to know that something is up when their friends don't come back, right? Though by that point the soldiers should be here and things will be much easier," she adds, cheerfully.

Regarding the gate: You can open or close the gate, but of course someone has to be next to it. So you would need some way to get past the bandits, or to sneak out from something next to it and close it -- you probably don't have the skills to rig a device to close it with a lever from a distance. Opening or closing the gate counts as using a portal (Move action). Because it's big and unwieldy, it will provoke an attack of opportunity from enemies who threaten you.

Cassandra's Journey

Cassandra stalks off to the south after Oleg indicates that they generally come from that direction. It's been a month since the bandits were last here, so their scent long since gone, and tracks obscured by a month's worth of weather. Cassandra heads in a meandering southerly direction, toward the trees of the Narlmarches.

After two hours of travel, she's made some progress in the direction of the treeline, fairly confident that the bandits would use that as part of their concealment, but spotted no sign of them.

As the day wears on, Cassandra catches sight of various small rabbits, moles, and similar wildlife, but nothing especially large or threatening. When she gets closer to the edge of the forest line -- which takes about five hours total from leaving the post -- she even spots deer and elk, but no tracks yet.

At the edge of the Narlmarches, Cassandra can see that the forest stretches away to the southwest, while smooth grasslands punctuated by the occasional low hill lie to the south.

Five hours of travel gets Cassie across one plains hex and to the junction of hexes south-southwest of Oleg's, at the edge of the Narlmarches forest. She can head further south into the hilly grasslands, or follow the forest line to the southwest, or even go west deep into the forest. So far, though, no clear sign of where the bandits are located. Best guess is that they would hide in the woods. How late does Cassie want to stay out?

For the rest of the group, any other stuff to get done while Cassie is off risking wandering monsters? :D

The forest was Cassandra's home but the plains were a nice vacation. Sometimes the trees felt stifling and constricting. It was good to get away. Along the way she re-familiarized herself with the smells of nature and the new ones that sprang up. She practically floated along the ground it was so nice here.

But as much as she enjoyed the freedom she remembered to stayed on task. But as she expected, there was no trail to follow, no scents. It had been a month. Within days the trail would have been too difficult for her skills. But Cassandra carried on all the way to the forest. And from there it was an easy choice. Telmarni could fly as fast as a horse. If she hadn't spotted the bandits on the plains it likely meant they were in the forest. It was also the logical place to be for people on the wrong side of the law. But it was going to be down to luck mostly if she found them.

She sighed. Cassandra wished she hadn't left the way she did. But her grandfather told her not to sacrifice her beliefs just to fit in. It was best to be yourself and not try to be someone else. With reservations of course. She couldn't walk back through Oleg's like she was, all wild and scary. With a deep breath she entered the forest and prayed to Erastil and Tulis to guide her. It was going to be dark soon, but that would only work in her favor.

Head into the forest. I'll stay out long enough to get back at sun up. Gonna split the difference here though. Before I head back and if I don't find them in the forest I will head out to the edge and climb a tree. Should see a lot of the plain that way. I'll do that periodically on the way back.

DM, can someone hide behind each door or maybe we can stack hay to make it easier to hide behind the doors?

Telmarni continues study the doors. "Maybe someone can hide behind the doors while they are opened. One person for each door. Though if needed, maybe we can stack some hay or something to make it harder to be seen." As she speaks, pondering how to get the doors closed.

She turns to Carinna. "I guess I will be one of the people closing the doors. Since I got a feeling I am one of the more stronger ones here. Seeing that it looks like your training in the Aldori style has done well, I think you will have to close the other door." She turns to the others. "And that means both of you will need to hide. Maybe put some hay up above on the wall to hide in, or will have to hide in the stables or the main house." Telmarni sighs and looks out the gateway onto the plains. "I do hope she gets back before the bandits do. We just don't know how many will come."

"Alright Tel, I'll close the other door." Carinna looks at Korinne and Valeska.

"Tel can close it from outside and then fly over the walls, I can't. So when we close the gates and they see we made an ambush, they will surround me really fast and I'm not sure I can parry all their attacks. I trust you to down as many of them as you can."

Carinna is visibly worried.

I hope Cassandra comes back in time... we could use another pair of hands...

Valeska nods. "Understood. I'll work to stop as many of them as possible."

Korinne gazes thoughtfully around at the courtyard and then at the doors. "Seems like a sound plan," she nods. "We probably don't want to move things around too much, or else they might suspect something. When they come in, they'll likely all move to the center of the courtyard here, while Oleg and Svetlana fetch whatever it is they demand this time."

She turns toward the barn and then looks back to the entrance to the trading post. "I'm not sure where Valeska wants to be, but if I hide in the barn, I can ready my razzle dazzle and catch them by surprise when Carinna and Telmarni close the doors. That should do the trick for most of them and then you guys can take care of any leftovers!"

Wis Check: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (18) - 1 = 17

"Oh! Does that sound okay to you two?" Korinne adds, turning to their host and hostess.

"I will do what I can Cari." Replies Telmarni to Carinna. She tries to smile, but doubt makes it into a slight grimace. She notes what Korinne suggests. "If I remember correctly. I can cast a spell similar to what Korinne described. Color Spray I believe. I will make sure I will have that prepared for tomorrow in addition to a shield spell for myself." She states, trying to suppress her nervousness of the battle tomorrow.

The following morning she will prepare Color Spray and Shield as her two first level spells. She will of course unload all non-essential gear near where she sleeps this night to be able to move to her fullest. And I'll add a Non-encumbered stat sheet to my profile to reflect this.

Sorry for the delay, folks. Busy couple days.

Cassandra's Journey
Cassandra heads west into the Narlmarches -- dangerous territory, though she does have some experience with being a creature of the woods. After about four hours of somewhat difficult travel, Cassandra comes upon tracks -- but not those of human bandits; rather, they are the tracks of something smaller but still semi-humanoid. Cassandra surmises, given her knowledge of this part of the woods, that they are kobolds.

Cass can follow the kobold tracks, or abandon them. It seems likely, though, that the bandits are not at this location; if they were, they would either have allied with the kobolds or exterminated them.

Defense of the Trading Post
Oleg somewhat reluctantly assists in getting piles of hay from storage and stacking it near the doors. He seems to regard your plan of an ambush as a reasonably good one, but he is obviously agitated and tense, likely because of the combination of the prospect of the upcoming fight along with the uncanny nature of your group and the argument that you had with your erstwhile companion who subsequently left.

Oleg insists that for the altercation, Svetlana needs to be safely indoors. He points out that the bandits already threatened to kidnap her once.

Just to be clear, your plan is to close the doors from the outside before the bandits get in, then people jump out from hay bales on either side? Or you let the bandits into the compound, ambush them from hay bales on the inside and close the doors from the outside, with Telmarni flying back over the wall to get back in and Carinna stuck outside? I am not quite clear on it.

Definitely not going near that.

Cassandra takes a knee and examines the tracks before her. Small, unbooted, and talons. Likely Kobold. Not her prey. And probably indicative that the bandits were not this way. Coming through the area over the past few months would mean they would have killed them or allied. And since Oleg never saw one and the tracks were fresh, probably neither. Crap. She went the wrong way. Cassandra decides to head back for the edge of the forest and closer to the plains. It was full night now and she didn't have much time left.

I assume since I left at noon and spent 5 and 4 hours searching, it is now 9. Should probably head back soon. Still want to angle towards the plains and climb a tree, that way I might see a fire.

Survival: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (15) + 9 = 24

Had an idea. While I am out I was wondering if I could use survival to find something to stave off the fatigue I will likely feel in the morning when I get back? There is nothing in handbook except Allnight but that is 75gp and an alchemical creation. There was one that had promise but no RAW benefit to me.

The doors open outward?

I was going on the assumption that they open inward. Having the hay piles on the inside, helping hide both Carinna and I. Once they get into the outpost itself, we would then push the doors closed.

Though I was hoping to prevent them from escaping and was basing it on the gates opening inward. If they do not, then cannot even count on that plan.

With moving hay around, Telmarni makes sure to write down anything on the map she has drawn out. With the plan coming together, she hears Oleg's request about Svetlana hiding indoors. She turns to him and nods in agreement. "I would also suggest that you should head inside once they get inside the walls. You should be by her side to protect her." As she answers Oleg's request. She turns to others of the group for their input.

Did a little digging and the entrance is a 30-wide wooden gate. So, you don't have to worry about it being two doors. Since it's explicitly called a "gate" I'm gonna say it can be raised and lowered. Presumably you could let it drop whenever you want after the bandits arrive.

Also note, though it may not be readily visible on the map, there's a ladder on the south wall to the west of the gate. You can get on top of the palisade wall. It would be trivial for someone to get up there, lie down until the bandits are in position, then stand up and use ranged attacks.

Well, with the new info about the gate, things got easier. Carinna, Korinne and Valeska can hide in the warehouse and Telmarni (or Cassandra if she gets back in time) stay atop the palisade. This also makes to sense to move the hay, which is better since it makes the ambush less suspicious.

Cainna looks at Oleg.

"Telmarni is right, once they get inside, please lock yourselves inside and wait for the ambush is over, we will not fail you, I promisse." She then looks at her companions. "Well, everything done, better to get some sleep and be rested for tomorrow right?"

Valeska looks at the doors. "Wait... How large and heavy are the doors? Tzerny, do you think we could handle the doors ourselves?"

I could prepare unseen servant. That can lift 20 lbs or drag 100 pounds. If that could close the door, then Telmarni and Carinna could stay on the inside and help more with the combat.

So what happens to me?

Presumably at 30' across it's a pretty heavy gate, but that also means it would likely be operated by a winch and wheel. So an unseen servant could turn the wheel. Also if the gate is up and you just release the clamp it will immediately fall back down under its own weight and that is easy enough for an unseen servant to do.

Cassandra's Journey

Suspicious now and with a bit of extra caution, Cassandra starts heading back toward Oleg's. She's crossed a fair bit of countryside and forest, and now hustles back as quickly as she can, but even going in a straight line from here it's a good six hours back to the post. (Cassie crossed about one and a half overland hexes at 12 miles per hex, and though she's hustling and not searching now she does still have to clear the area that's forested before she can break into the open and get a good, mile-eating loping stride on.)

While in the forest she keeps an eye out for some herbs that generally help with wakefulness, and her very keen eye for Survival helps her to pick a few promising leaves for use if she needs to stay awake.

As she makes her way out of the forest, she pauses to climb an occasional tree (taking 10 since she's not under duress). The view is fairly expansive. The Narlmarches spread off to the west and southwest, while to the south and east are the rough, grass-and-brush covered hills. She can just barely make out, to the south, the treelines that indicate rivers -- probably the Thorn river. She also spots a tiny hut (barely visible at this range) that she estimates is about ten miles southeast of the trading post, but no other structures. She spots, in the distance, a bear, a herd of elk, and at one point a small, lazily-moving point of light that looks like a bobbing lantern at night but, she suspects, is actually a will-o'-wisp.

Some research shows that AP #44 has a sidebar about sleep and fatigue, and the general rule is if you don't get at least 6 hours of sleep in the day you need to make a DC 15 Fortitude save or become fatigued. Each day you go without further sleep adds a penalty to the save. So, Cassie needs to make a Fortitude save when she gets up in the morning, as she gets about 4 hours of sleep. I'll give a +2 for having a foul-smelling tea made from various plants to induce wakefulness (like bad coffee!).

Cassie arrives back at the fortification about two hours after midnight. Alert for trouble, Carinna wakes up at the sound of Cassie's return (letting the spellcasters continue to slumber).

Sadly, it seems likely that the bandits are encamped in the low hills to the south, where the rolling terrain makes it hard to get a straight view of all the grasslands. If the bandits know the area well, they'll have picked out a concealed dell where they can camp undisturbed.

Cassie has just enough time to get back, tell Carinna what she saw, and try to get some sleep!

Everyone ready to move on?

Yup! Looks like we're just about ready. With Valeska's unseen servant, we all can be on the ground, or at better spots for this.

Korinne nods approvingly at Valeska's idea. "Excellent idea! The less time anyone spends on having to monkey with the gate, the better. And I agree, Oleg and Svetlana should find somewhere safe to hide."

Once the finer details of the plan are worked out, Korinne heads to bed and sleeps surprisingly soundly until time comes to rise and prepare for the arrival of the bandits.

Korinne will prepare Color Spray and Mage Armor for today.

"Wonderful! Carinna, Telmarni, don't worry, I'll have someone take care of the gate doors. You just be in position to fight."

[ooc]Valeska prepares Unseen Servant and Obscuring Mist.[/b]

Hearing steps in the yard, Carinna wakes up fearing that the bandits arrived earlier. She grabs her sword and hides in the shadows.

Hum... looks like a single person, and no sound of horses either... is Cassandra back?

She peaks outside and sees it is indeed Cassandra. She sheathes her sword and walks towards her.

So... have you found them?

I also read that. Hope I don't fail.

Well before reaching the outpost, Cassandra shifts back to her normal look. And with the shift goes most of her remaining energy. She is tired, grumpy and very disappointed that she failed. "Wasn't a fruitless journey but no, didn't find them," she says sullenly. "Going to bed. Tell Svetlana to boil these in water for me in the morning." She hands over the pungent herbs and goes to find a bed to collapse into.

Fort: 1d20 + 3 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 3 + 2 = 24 Happy I am not fatigue but very concerned about dice karma for the fight.

In the morning, Cassandra rolls out of bed and staggers into the inn. When a very unappealing smelling tea is placed in front of her she almost thinks Svetlana is somehow displeased with her. But the smell is familiar and she remembers her request of Carinna. Cassandra takes one sip of the brew and is wide awake in an instant. What ever Svetlana added really gave it a kick. She'd need the recipe for later. After food and a pick me up she meets up with the others. "So what's the plan?"

The sun rises only a few hours after Cassandra's return, and the group spreads to their assigned locations. Sure enough, only an hour or two after sunrise (hard to tell these things without clocks), there's the unmistakable sound of several horses approaching from the south. Peeking from their concealed places, the group members spot a small band of grungy-looking travelers on horseback -- five in all, each on horseback, and leading a sixth horse that has a pack saddle. Oleg, standing not far from the main (northeast) building, bristles visibly at their appearance, while Svetlana remains indoors. Oleg has already stacked a pile of hides and trade goods near the tables, just to leave the whole scenario believable.

The presumed brigands dismount and lead their horses on foot into the compound. "Oleg! So good to see you again," says one of the bandits. "I see you've brought everything out in advance. Very good of you. Why, we'll just be off in a few minutes at that. No trouble at all."

One of the other brigands says, "Where's your wife, Oleg?"

"She's inside," he says numbly. "She isn't feeling well."

"Aww," the bandit says with a sneer, "What a shame. Our condolences."

Now is the time! I'll update the Roll20 map with the bandits.

If you wanna have a quick discussion "in the morning" before the encounter, please feel free to wind back the clock a bit. ;)

You should be able to move your icons on the board to your hidden locations.

Tzerny takes position atop the battlement to watch the bandits approach, and lets out a caw as they do.

Valeska, hiding inside the wall, casts unseen servant a bit before the bandits enter. The spell lasts an hour, she figures, no need to try casting it in the midst of battle.

Telmarni readies herself against the battlement on top of the wall. She hides and waits for them to ambush them as the gate drops.

When the gate falls, she will cast shield and hop down from the wall to the ground to get in close.

Using her grappling hook and rope, Cassandra takes a position on the roof and lies in wait. When the men enter the trading post she stands tall with her bow fully drawn and aimed at the man that first spoke. She whistles high and sharp to get their attention. "You're right. Their need not be any trouble. You are surrounded by might and magic," she says drawing attention to herself while the others spring the trap and move into position. "You have two choices, surrender and live, or die by magic, sword, or arrow. I guarantee it will be painful if you choose the later."

Intimidate: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (10) + 3 = 13

Some aid another's would be helpful.

Your ambush provides you with a surprise round. As usual, that means you get a free move or standard action before the bandits even go into initiative. So far, looks like Telmarni is going to cast shield on herself and Cassandra is going to make an intimidate attempt -- what's everyone else got on tap? (Valeska's unseen servant can be cast before the bandits get inside, since it has a long duration.)