DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
For clarity, you can take 10 whenever there is not any risk of danger / consequences of failure.
So in this case, yes - you can take 10 to track, and tracking is Survival.
Kalum follows the footprints into the trees and notes that the trail looks to continue deep enough that you'd lose sight of the carriage.
Also for clarity, the blood drops were on the path - so were a few nails.
The trail is solely of small booted footprints.
Kiren Tanariel |
Kiren confirms that the nails are cold iron. "I don't like this, I think we should just move on." Handing 3 of his cold iron bolts to Kalum, "Can you use these."
Not sure if a small crossbow uses the same bolts...Which way do the footprints go, towards the road or away?
Shorga Brull |
Shorga looks over with an incredulous look on his face, "You want to leave thish without inveshtigating? What if those tracksh belong to a bandit who killed shomeone," he points to the blood, "and ish now waiting for ush up ahead? Or there could be a wounded traveler in need of help. Pershonally I'd like to follow theshe tracksh firsht."
Shorga Brull |
Shorga considers their valid point, "You shpeak true, I am loathe to shplit us up ash well. How about Kalum and I follow the tracksh until at the edge of vision from the carriage, and then if they continue away we'll return and inveshtigate them on our way back to camp. If the tracksh turn parallel to the path we'll follow along ash far ash we may. Agreed?"
Does that make sense? Just follow them as far as we can, as long as we have visual contact with the carriage.
Kalum Navigator |
Kalum looks at the bolts
"I think I can."
"I think" announces Kalum "that these footprints are something to do with the Fey, given these nails cold iron nails. If it is a Fey, and we can help it then it might be friends with us. If it is someone who was attacked by the Fey there might be an ambush around here. If it is someone who attacked the Fey then the Fey might be watching to see if we are their allies."
At Shorga's suggestion Kalum nods "Sure"
Tracking take 10 = 20, right?
DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
Kiren and Icarus remain with the wagon, while Shorga and Kalum follow the tracks into the forest and out of sight. The forest is eerily quiet, though Kiren and Icarus can occasionally pick out a distant croak of a frog... that seems of a deeper timbre than should be possible.
In the center of a clearing about 7 feet across lies a lithe, diminutive creature that looks like a humanoid with wispy, mothlike wings and long, thin ears. It is writhing back and forth, and with closer inspection you can see why... it is currently pinned to the ground with nails that have been driven through it's ankles and wrists - pinning it spreadeagles against the mossy floor.
You cannot see any other creatures nearby, and the tiny fey has not yet noticed you. The tracks you have been following definitely lead into the clearing, though you'd need to step within to see where they might lead away...
Kalum Navigator |
Kalum feels his heart go out in empathy to the poor suffering Frey-thing. He prepares to step out when his internal voice berates him "You idiot, surely even you can see this is a trap!"
Kalum holds up a hand to stop Shorga, waving for him to stay still, then crouches low and calls upon the Universe to empower him.
Casting Expeditious Retreat
As soon as he feels the familiar twisting in his stomach that indicates the universe has responded, he prepares to continue following the tracks.
Breaking here in case Shorga wants to do something
Shorga Brull |
Shorga curses as Kalum continues to follow the tracks out of sight, but even he can see the tracks are much more fresh and so continues on uneasily. Plans are made to be cut to hell... he thinks to himself with an internal sigh.
Coming upon the clearing Shorga is filled with anger and disgust for whatever trapped this helpless creature, torturing it for reasons unknown. He looks at Kalum, his voiced raised in alarm and shock, "We musht help it!" and rushes out into the clearing, intent on getting to the poor creature as quickly as possible.
If progress is unimpeded to this point.
When he gets to it, he speaks gently, trying to sound non-threatening, "Don't worry little one, we are here to help you."
Icarus Ras'Drexel |
I attempt to teach Kiren the game Cat's Cradle, to pass the time, getting my hands hopelessly tangled up in the yarn after the first couple of exchanges. "It really is very easy," I say too him, struggling to get my fingers out of the knot of yarn without breaking it or making it tighter. "I don't know why I am having so much trouble..."
DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
Kalum reviews the tracks in the clearing and sees that there was much activity in the clearing - likely as whatever it was tormented the nailed fae - before the small booted feet lead deeper into the forest out of the clearing. But then the tracks vanish not ten feet from where the clearing ends next to a tree. You warily cast your eyes upward, but can ken no foes lurking - just the occasional flitter of birdlife.
Shorga Brull |
The large half-orc is only able to fret as the nails are withdrawn, concern all of his over-large features. At Kalums whisper he freezes, and as the last nail is withdrawn he stands up, turning his face upward to the leafy canopy, "Come down and face me! I challenge the coward who trapped this poor creature to a dual this moment. If you've no spine for a fair fight, come down so we might haul your cowardly arse to face justice!" His eyes rove the branches, wild and angry.
Perception: 1d20 ⇒ 5
Issue challenge if I can without a clear target.
DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
Two in a Clearing:
Sense Motive: Kalum: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (9) + 7 = 16 and Shorga: 1d20 + 0 ⇒ (5) + 0 = 5
Kalum pulls the other three nails from the fae's prostrate form and sees the faerie grow ever agitated as he does so. As the last nail is drawn and Kalum focuses upon the empty space from which his divine power is wrought... the fae's wings flutter and it attempts to lunge from the clearing at speed. It is attempting to run, you have an AoO that you could use to try and grapple it if you wished.
Edit: You do get a sense that it is fleeing in pure fear... most likely of mortals as well as potentially whatever put it there.
Shorga finds that the canopy does not answer his challenge, except with an occasional falling leaf and flutter of bird's wings. From back towards the carriage you hear Ursa whinney.
I'm going to say that you need to either see or at least sense your target to initiate a challenge.
Two on a Carriage:
As you wait for Kalum and Shorga to return... you hear faint song carried upon the wind:
"Cap of red, cap of red,
Cut their throat and they'll be dead,
Soak the cloth just as they said,
Put the cap back on my head."
A Knowledge Nature or History might get some context on the tale...
Then you hear Shorga bellow his challenge, and the horses start growing restless.
DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
Icarus has heard of murderous fae known as redcaps. Despite their small stature, they are very dangerous and wear a woolen cap that is dyed red with the blood of their slain enemies. Strangely they are irreligious and known to be afraid of the symbols of worship associated with good aligned deities.
Icarus Ras'Drexel |
"Oh dear," I say and begin patting my pockets. "Does anyone happen to have a holy symbol to a good aligned deity? I seem to have misplaced all of mine. We may be doing battle with some redcaps soon, Kiren, Otis prepare yourselves." I say, finally pulling out one of my cold iron daggers and hopping down off of the drives seat.
Handle animal 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (7) + 6 = 13 to calm the horses
Perception 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
"KALUM! SHORGA! WE MAY NEED YOUR ASSISTANCE SOON!" I shout.
Kiren Tanariel |
Kiren was getting nervous about how long the others were taking. Now he looks around for the source of the sound but can't find it. He loads his crossbow with one of his two remaining cold iron bolts and offers it to Icarus. "Take this and lend me one of those daggers, would you?"
Kiren reveres Desna, I'm not sure if he would have a reason (before now) to carry a holy symbol.
Icarus Ras'Drexel |
If you didn't purchase one in the beginning you don't have one, they come in wood or silver.
I take the crossbow and hand one of my daggers to Kiren stepping back up into the driver seat so that I have a view up and down the road, as well as into the forest on either side. Taking another look around from my new vantage point.
Perception 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (15) + 3 = 18
Kiren Tanariel |
"Hey it looks like Otis woke up. I am going to check on Kalum and Shorga." Kiren heads to where he last saw them.
Survival (tracking) 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (13) + 3 = 16
He looks around at the forest, trying to figure out if it is wet enough not to burn if he throws a bomb.
Knowledge: nature: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (14) + 8 = 22
Shorga Brull |
Shorga watches sadly as the fey zips out of the clearing and out of sight, and with no target to fix his ire upon, he acquiesces to Kalum's requestion. If they pass Kiren he'll explain their encounter on the way back to the wagon. In an irritated voice, "Redcapsh? Never heard of them, but I find myshelf in need of a fight."
He moves swiftly to Ursa and murmurs some words of comfort, stroking the horse between the eyes with one hand, the other withdrawing the heavy cold-iron mace from the saddlebags with the other.
DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
The two scouts return to the carriage and hear the eerie chorus echoing through the winds and seemingly coming from multiple directions... but no bogeymen make themselves plain to see yet. You wait for a couple of minutes and despite the uneasyness of the horses remaining... no threat seems to be any closer or further than it was before.
Bomb throwing is fine Kiren - my view of standard alchemist bombs is very flash bang, so unlikely to start a fire.
Otis Ryland |
Phew, just caught up with all the posts from the last weeks!
As Shorga's outcry fills the woods, Otis wakes up, stretches his limbs and then sits down, groggily.
*yawn* so, are we there yet? The rocking of the carriage made me sleep like a dead man... Hey, why are you guys armed?
He shuffles the blanket he was laying on in search of his crossbow, and picks it up, then looks around and listens intently.
Perception: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (17) + 7 = 24
Shorga Brull |
Shorga's temper subsides slowly, but he remains cautious. While trying to look in all directions at once he tells the others what happened in the clearing, from the tracks Kalum followed, the terrified fey brutally staked to the ground, and the unanswered challenge. Since nothing has moved to attack them, "Shall we pressh on? I shuggesht we keep our weaponsh handy however, there'sh shomething malicioush in these woodsh, and it more than likely ish looking at ush right now." He mounts Ursa with a vault into the saddle and looks to the others to see if they're ready.
DM - Voice of the Voiceless |
The path continues on as you follow the childlike map drawn for you. The sound of the redcap's call comes and goes over the next few hours... sometimes nearer and sometimes further, but never disappearing for longer than five or ten minutes. It would definitely seem that the fae is either following you or something moving along the same rough course.
As the afternoon shadows start to deepen you find the path ahead blocked by a fallen branch. The branch is big, with a trunk about the size of Kalum's torso... there's no way you're getting the carriage around it with it in place.
The lay of the land is still heavy forest, flat out to your right and hilly to your left. About fifteen feet ahead of the fallen branch is a small man sized cut track leading to the left and towards a nearby hill.
Kiren Tanariel |
Kn. Nature 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (4) + 8 = 12
"Watch out, it looks like someone has cut this tree to block the path."
Signaling the others to cover him, Kiren hops down and tries to get a sense of how hard it is going to be to move.
Strength roll 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (10) + 1 = 11
Icarus Ras'Drexel |
Knowledge (engineering) 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (12) + 8 = 20
I look at the scene from the driver seat and see if there is ay way to use leavers, rope and higher branches to move the tree that is blocking the road. Laughing a little as Kiren tries to push it.
Kiren Tanariel |
(Slightly embarassed) "Any help? OK, should we hitch up the horses to it or does somebody have another idea. I don't suppose anybody brought a crosscut saw from the camp?"
I can make myself bigger but I think it is only +2 to STR. Maybe Shorga can challenge the tree?