Lamsfel feints with his right hand before stabbing deeply with the blade in his left - the goblin stands still in shock, staring almost uncomprehendingly at its own blood. Although Tybus' icy blast merely chills the air over Lamsfel's head, the goblin doesn't seem to even notice.
Below, Gan moves into the village itself, finding himself inside another one of the guard towers; two doors lead out onto the boardwalks and a ladder climbs up to the viewing platform above.
Tristan and Callomeleth have actions still to take.
New map. I moved Tristan in a way I hope is suitable for your purposes, Tom.
The goblin looks up at Lamsfel and says something in scratchy Goblin - the words sound like a plaintive question. Before any answer could be made, though, the smaller creature suddenly bares its teeth in a fierce grin and shouts a warcry as it swings its sword again. Katana attack: 1d20 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 2 = 9, damage 1d6 ⇒ 3. Despite its apparently rejuvenated morale, however, its wounds seem to keep it from being any more effective this time than it was before.
Lamsfel wipes the goblin blood from his swords before sheathing them - etches the metal, you know - and takes a long careful look around from his elevated perspective.
From his perspective, Lamsfel can see pretty much the entire area, including both the guard tower in which his friends are currently positioned and a third one to the south (F/G-16/17). Nothing seems to be moving or hiding within view, however, other than the people he already knows about.
I'm a little confused by the map, also. It would appear that things are on different levels with the ladders and doors, etc. Are the three towers the only areas that are raised? For example, it appears that I cannot go to the right on the map, but there appears to be something there - is that a roof below my position?
Sorry, yes - the map does a terrible job of accounting for the multiple levels that compose the village. Essentially, there are three levels on which you can travel: the ground, the boardwalks and houses, and the towers and roofs of the houses. With the exception of the towers, all the buildings are one story high, and even then are fairly short by human standards (about ten feet up to the top of the roof; the roof edges are about seven feet above the boardwalks). The visible ladders are all external, and lead from the ground to the boardwalks, or - in a couple cases - directly up to a door into a building. Based on what the whole group can see, the watchtowers are two stories high, with ladders up to the watching platform inside them (and not visible on the map). Currently, Lamsfel is on the second floor of the tower, with a ladder down to the first floor if he wants to take it; directly south of him is a long, narrow building whose roof he could easily drop to; likewise, to the southeast of his position is a larger, squarish building he could also climb out onto the roof of. Alternatively, there is a door leading south from the first floor of the watchtower that appears to enter into the narrow building, and a door leading north from the first floor that opens out onto the boardwalk. From there he could climb down into the central "village square" area, with its pig pen in the middle, and cross over to the rest of the group, currently on the first floor of the watchtower.
Sidebar: The small scale of the image on Google Docs is not helping either - I'm thinking about switching to Photobucket, but I'm hesitating because Google Docs has better privacy options, and I don't want to get into trouble for posting copyrighted images out onto the web where anyone can find them. I'm still debating the issue for the moment.
Tybus dismounts and pats Tomodachi for a good job. He reaches up and scratches the warhorse's ears, whispering in Minkaian with affection. He leaves the horse unhobbled so he can defend himself if the goblins double back while the group moves into the village.
He shoulders his bow and draws his cutlass, expecting close fighting inside.
As the group reassembles in the center of the village, the area remains ominously still and quiet, with only an occasionally-gusting breeze and the distant rumble of thunder from a storm over the Varisian Bay disturbing the silence. Doors all around are closed, but nothing seems to move in the few windows, and to all obvious appearances, the village is deserted.
"Yeah, but I expect more warriors than this, more of a fight before they go underground. There were three on their wolves, three in here so far, right?" He sighs, "I really don't want to go house-to-house and, much as I dislike the little ankle-biters, these have not been a problem since Thistletop fell. But they know answers about your blade. I would be fine with leaving peacefully if we could get those answers."
Both Tybus and Lamsfel note almost immediately that only one building has a set of double doors - the large complex in the village's southeast corner - and the largest number of tracks lead to and from that spot.
Lamsfel will move toward the aforementioned building. He'll go south on the boardwalk before dropping down to the ground assuming about a 3' drop before moving under the building at I16. He'll wait at L17 and observe (and listen to) the building for a bit before approaching closer.
"Well, the rest of the goblins have either holed up in there, or they're drawing us into a killbox," Callomeleth whispers to the group. "Only way we can know for certain is to enter into their trap. If it looks bad, I can call upon the Rose for Her protection." He follows behind the group, readying his bow again and nocking an arrow into the string.
Though it is faint, Lamsfel hears murmuring voices - scratchy, squeaky voices - coming from within the building. From his vantage, he also notes a ladder leading up to what looks like a blank wall; tipped off by the ladder's presence, though, he realizes there is a hidden door built into the side of the building there (at O17).
I assume the others went the other route - the one that doesn't require passing under a building.
Lamsfel waves to get the others' attention, points to an ear and points at the building with a nod. He moves around behind the building.
DM Shisumo:
He will sheathe a sword and place an ear to the door from his place on the ground. Does he appear to be able to open the door without using the ladder? He'd like to remove the ladder and set it aside, then open the door, and, assuming he does not see a goblin immediately, boost himself up into whatever is being the door.
If he sees a goblin, he will leave the door open, but he will move around the corner of the building. Say, N16 before ducking underneath the building. His secondary plan is to appear to flee, but circle back to surprise anyone that drops from the doorway.
Removing the ladder is impossible, without at least creating a large amount of noise, as it is nailed into place. Lamsfel does not hear anything on the opposite side of the door; the other noises he heard before a still present, but seem to come from somewhere off to the side rather than on the other side of the wall he is listening to right there. Let me know if you still want to try to enter that way.
Gan will retrieve his spear and wield it (sheathing his dagger) while walking over to the southeast building with the others. He will nod to show his readiness, trying to take a spot in front.
Okay, I know where Lamsfel is and what he is doing (he's circled around the back of the target building), but I need to know what the rest of the group is up to.
Lamsfel disappears behind the building, scrambling up a ladder and out of sight. The four of you that remain are on the boardwalk just outside the double doors.
Please give me a Perception check, DC 22.
Lamsfel:
The room behind the secret door appears to be a dead end, something like a hidden broom closet attached to the outside rather than connecting to anything inside the building. It is dusty and cobwebbed across the corners, but otherwise empty of both people and contents.
Please give me two Perception checks. Both are DC 20.
If the successful roll is not for locating a door, he will pull the external door closed as much as possible so the room is darkened and look for any cracks shedding light. Failing that, he will carefully listen at each of the walls he perceives to be internal in hopes of hearing someone within.
You spot the faint outline of a door on the north wall; on closr examination, there is a simple catch set into one of the gaps between boards that make up the wall.
You open the door, and through the narrow gap see what looks like a kind of throne room-cum-trophy hall, with stuffed and mounted heads of various animals lining the walls, a small dais on the end nearest you and atop the dais a tall, awkwardly posed chair, with uneven legs that look ready to topple with the gentlest nudge. Seated on the chair is a fat, angry-looking goblin wearing strange, food-spattered robes; he is armored and another of the long, curved swords Gan and Tybus call "katana" is resting on his lap. At his right hand, curled up near the chair, is a wolf - at his left, a female goblin with thick white makeup on her face strokes a fat pig with nails an inch long or longer. Unlike most goblins, this one has hair, snow white and bound up in a strange bun held in place by long, thin needles.
On the edges of the room, more goblins - perhaps a dozen in all - line the walls, watching the double doors at the far end of the room with expressions of fear. None of these goblins are armored or carry weapons of any kind, and most seem to be female as well.
I need a Stealth check, please - you get a +4 circumstance bonus.
My apologies to everyone for the delay in the game - I had a con, a writing deadline and the busiest two weeks of the year for me at work all hit at the same time. Things will continue to be busy for another couple of days, but I am hopeful everything will be back to (mostly) normal by Monday. Also, for any or all of you who are in the US or culturally inclined that way, Happy Thanksgiving!
Close the door as quietly as possible, then out the back door. If I make any noise, I slip under the building and wait to see if any follow. Otherwise, move alongside to where the others stand indecisively before the door.
