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Panish replies - "Too risky, I would be recognized from field exercises, and Aliandara and the others are likely to not be recognized as guards. Sneaking one in that they aren't familiar with is possible; but having 4 or more of us that the deserters don't even have a passing acquaintance within the guard...? Unlikely."
After a pause, "This does raise the question of what we will do once we have reached the butchery. Scouting or disguises aside, do you propose we just go in and arrest everybody?"
Field Marshall Cressida rises, "Yes, Sergeant, you're dismissed...only you are part of the military though, these heroes are not members of the military, they are assisting us because the guards are needed for civil duty. The incident you went through might actually come in as an asset in this situation, though I know your innocence, I know you fight every day to erase your unwarranted reputation...a reputation these deserters might find tempting for letting you in."
Sgt. Drakus executes a crisp salute and barks out "Yes Field Marshall!"
Translation: Thank you for your kind words. For sticking me with this irregular unit, I will get you someday.
He turns to the rest and shouts "You heard her! Move out soldiers!"; then he visibly restrains himself and says "I mean, lets go now."
Aliandara shifts uncomfortably at Sgt. Drakus’s words but manages to reply “Then I will be off and meet you there in a few minutes”. With that she goes to her place to get dressed in more appropriate clothes and meets up with the party at the designated place
more appropriate clothes is a peasant’s outfit and now her mwk studded leather armour is in her packpack
OK, stats are right at 20, tell me if we get more;
Dex got adjusted down, was a point higher than it should have been.
Dex adjusted all the way through
AC adjusted all the way through
Skills boosted all the way through
Armor check penalties for Armor Expert and Masterwork done
Hit points for second level I rolled for (not taking less than half); was there another method used in this game?
Aliandara Scouting:
There are two entrances, one at the storefront, and a gate for livestock delivery on the eastern alleyway fence.
As you arrived, a rough looking guard shooed you off, "I already told you, we're out of meat today, come back tomorrow morning scrub!"
Feel free to either ask more questions, roll stealth if need be, search rolls etc, or report initial findings to the rest of the team.
Cutscene:
As Marra waits for Aliandra to scout, she thinks back to Sorin Scouting the Fishery, had it really only been 3 days since the downfall of Gaedren Lamm? She thought back to Sorin doing what Aliandra is doing now, and wonders how the elfling's ability compares with her old friend's stealthy abilitis, her mind drifts to Dorran, as she absent-mindedly strokes the deck of Harrow cards that house the spirit of Zellarra, the murdered woman who was instrumental in the downfall of Lamm. She thinks of the funny little priest of Abadar, and how different he is compared to Sollus...then she thinks to herself...what of Pavo and his sister, then she thinks to her rebirth, her passing from the scared little girl bent on vengeance...to this new being, full of confidence in her abilities, and then realizes she's the last of the companions that entered Lamm's Fishery, what a strange world this is...
Questions:
Are there any cattle in the pin currently?
Have I seen any windows up to now?
I at first try and push my luck a bit more with the guard with the next few words:"But, but kind sir there must be something left? Maybe some scrap meat or a bone for soup for tonight?" If he doesn’t offer anything I reply: "Sorry, sorry good sir, I will come again tomorrow. Sorry to be a bother”, with my head bowed low and then move towards one of the alleys and hide till I can't see him anymore.
If he does offer something I thank him overly much and scurry to one of the alleys, just to return stealthily when I can’t see him again to try and check out the windows to see if there are any and check if there is anything around the building that might be of note. If I manage to get close to the gate for the livestock (if the fence in good shape?) I would like to check out the lock
diplomacy
perception
stealth
** spoiler omitted **
On the ground, you note there are currently no livestock in the pens, there is no gate, but you can see that it has a bar across the inside.
You could probably make it over the fence and check it out, it's not very tall. Wait til dusk? (this would be 3 climb and stealth checks)
When you prod the guard, he stares at you hungrily. "Keep it up little one and you'll be breakfast tomorrow." He's a tall man
with bushy eyebrows that merge into one just above his large flat nose, his breath smells of stale ale and garlic. (Sense Motive-secret roll) He seems to be making some sort of dark joke.
The Hell Knights look at the ragtag group lead by the gruff Sergeant, they begin to bristle at his harsh words, then at Sollus' words, there leader steps forward. Through the helmet, the Hell Knight speaks, "Not even guards are above the law, if we catch you loitering or causing trouble after dark, don't think we won't put you down."
With that, the Hell Knights form up again and march off down the road, Two handed swords held in their grip, the wicked blades held upward.
The Hellknight orders are part of the Church of Asmodeus, they pretty much consider themselves above the local law...The Church of Asmodeus is still powerful in Korvosa. The Hellknights would consider guardsmen acceptable out after curfew as long as they are on official business. You definitely don't have authority over the Hellknights. The Hellknights have been instrumental in crushing the riots, though a bit heavy-handed.
** spoiler omitted **
The current time is about a half hour before dusk.
The Weather is cool, and wet, as the marine layer is moving in, towards the water you can see a fog bank beginning to form.
Sounds of Rioting can still be heard in various locations, few fires are burning now.
After a bit of scouting Aliandara returns to the party to report her initial findings.
"When I wanted to enter the shop I was greeted by one of the guards, a tall disturbing fellow. Good news, disguise was successful though my kind will only be welcome again tomorrow. What I did notice was that there was no livestock, which is strange considering it is a butchery. Other than that there no windows on the ground floor and the back gate is closed from the inside. I could go again when its darker and climb to the second story, or come back tomorrow morning in my disguise again, though I wanted to report first.
"Thank you Aliandra. I wonder if there are no livestock because they bring them in every few days, obviously there is nowhere for the animals to feed within the city, and that pen can't be too large."
"If we just barge in at night, I'm sure there'll be bloodshed, especially once they see a guardsman in full uniform. We need to talk to Vandercaskin, but how?"
"Our rag-tag bunch is not likely to convince anybody that we are guards - defecting or otherwise. As I read the situation, we have a few sensible options:
Firstly, at night we have a decent chance to catch them unawares, meaning some or all of them may be without armor; maybe Aliandara remembers what armor the guard was wearing.
Alternatively, if we are looking for Vandercaskin, then during the day he should either be up-front, or in the back. Gathering some information from the local clientele ought to give a good hint.
I suppose just going up to them and asking for Vandercaskin for parleying purposes is out of the question."
** spoiler omitted **
After a bit of scouting Aliandara returns to the party to report her initial findings.
"When I wanted to enter the shop I was greeted by one of the guards, a tall disturbing fellow. Good news, disguise was successful though my kind will only be welcome again tomorrow. What I did notice was that there was no livestock, which is strange considering it is a butchery. Other than that there no windows on the ground floor and the back gate is closed from the inside. I could go again when its darker and climb to the second story, or come back tomorrow morning in my disguise again, though I wanted to report first.
"Oh. Didn't see you there in the fog."
Sgt. Drakus grips the trident and twists it with frustration.
"I want to just kick the door down and have it out right there. But orders are to try to get them to come quietly. Maybe if we observed them operating tomorrow we could learn what they are all about before approaching them. Maybe find out how many there are. Is there a good observation point nearby?"
Aliandara, are you going back to scout for awhile it's foggy?
Drakus: You going to try to find a good vantage point in the dark?
You hear the approach of a group of Hell Knights off in the fog, they coulnd't sneak with a silence spell cast on them, the shaking of the ground would still give them away. Whether it's the same group or not is unknown.
"Alright, Panish is right. This is pointless at night in the fog. Let's find a place to stay the night and reconvene here in the morning."
"Ah, anyone know a place nearby?"